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New to 30k and wanted to run Word Bearers with Last of the Serrated Suns rite.

Was looking at putting a list together for an Isstvan V campaign (from book 2), but reading the 'compulsory reserves' rule for phase 3 of the campaign, half of my units must be in reserve at the start (drop pods are not included when calculating this). Pretty much all of my infantry would be in drop pods with this rite, so guessing it would be a bad ROW to use for this campaign? I.e. I wouldn't have much on the table turn 1 and run the risk of getting tabled before I've even begun to bring units on.

Am I reading this right and should go for a different ROW for this campaign, or am I overlooking something that would still make the Serrated Suns rite viable?

Looks like that rite is a bad choice for that scenario, yes. I don't know the text of the scenario background or that Rite of War, but particular scenarios might make various Rites of War or unit choices more or less relevant. For example, taking an army that makes heavy use of reserves in a "last stand" scenario is probably narratively inappropriate.

 Vithar's boot wrote:
New to 30k and wanted to run Word Bearers with Last of the Serrated Suns rite.

Was looking at putting a list together for an Isstvan V campaign (from book 2), but reading the 'compulsory reserves' rule for phase 3 of the campaign, half of my units must be in reserve at the start (drop pods are not included when calculating this). Pretty much all of my infantry would be in drop pods with this rite, so guessing it would be a bad ROW to use for this campaign? I.e. I wouldn't have much on the table turn 1 and run the risk of getting tabled before I've even begun to bring units on.

Am I reading this right and should go for a different ROW for this campaign, or am I overlooking something that would still make the Serrated Suns rite viable?

No, you are not reading that right.

1. that rule is only for one of the missions (mission 3 - Deadly Ground)
2. you can get that mission in any of the campaign phases
3. your reserve units are included in the compulsory reserves and get included before any others
4. you get to roll for them on turn one irrespective of unit type
5. your opponent has to do the same

I dug out my book to quote it properly.

Compulsory Reserves
Before beginning the game, each side must divide their forces in two as equal as possible halves by their number of units. They must then choose which half to keep in reserve and which to deploy at the start of the game. If the player's forces contain units which must be held in reserve (such as Drop Pods or Flyers), these must be assigned to the Reserves force first before any others. Compulsory Reserves enter play from the first player turn onwards, rolling to arrive as normal.

Your takeaway from this is that, yes, you totally can use the 'Serrated Suns' RoW. In fact it may be of benefit to you to get this mission as your opponent will have that exact issue of being tabled early on. You don't since your stuff being left in reserve was always going to be held in reserve.
In fact, in phase one the traitors are taking reserve rolls at a +1 modifier, Phase 2 nobody has a benefit or detriment, and in phase 3 the loyalists are getting a -1 modifier, so the chance of tabling the opponent are actually balanced in your favour.

 SirDonlad wrote:


No, you are not reading that right.

1. that rule is only for one of the missions (mission 3 - Deadly Ground)
2. you can get that mission in any of the campaign phases
3. your reserve units are included in the compulsory reserves and get included before any others
4. you get to roll for them on turn one irrespective of unit type
5. your opponent has to do the same

Thanks. I saw that for mission 3, but the wording for Campaign Phase III Legendary Mission reads different. In the Compulsory Reserves rule, it includes the wording Any units carried in Drop Pods are not included for calculating this amount i.e. the number of units put in reserve. I read that as, for example, if I had 6 drop pods units and 4 non-drop pod, half of my units not including drop pods would be 2, so 2 units on the table turn one.

Sorry, i'm confused - how is your group dealing with the legendary missions in your campaign? you aren't all doing that mission are you?

I follow the reading that the bit starting on page 171 at the bottom on the right is singular - i haven't seen it played any other way tbh..

Each campaign phase also has a legendary mission attached to it. This battle represents a pivotal moment in the on-going narrative story of the dropsite massacre. These should always be played last in your sequence of battles for each campaign phase if possible, and a victory in a legendary mission is worth a larger number of campaign points and can be a superb climactic battle for the end of a phase's games.

The way i'm familiar with it being played, is that at some point in the third campaign phase (preferably at the end with an audience of all the other campaign players) the emperors children player and the iron hands player have a 'set peice' battle additional to any they might be playing as normal.
As far as i'm aware, you don't have to do that mission as a WB player.

Is it the case that you don't have an emperors children player and you are 'taking one for the team' as it were?

>checks book<

I wouldn't worry about getting tabled even if you have all agreed to do the legendary mission: the traitor player has 50% more points than the loyalist player..

>continues checking book<

That legendary mission doesn't stipulate what you have to actually include in reserve, only how you calculate the number which have to be put in reserve, and it states that number as a minimum, so you're good to have extra.