a 40,000! a Flyer Rules

Transcription

1 The Legio Bastardes present their Dogfight a 40,000! a Flyer Rules C First edition, January 2011 Hearken, faithful Imperial citizens! Behold, wretched xenos and chaos filth! These rules allow players of Warhammer 40,000 to engage in air-to-air combat between flyers (whether they be futuristic jets or gribbly winged monstrosities) and make air-to-ground attacks more exciting as well. The rules are compatible with and require the flyer rules printed by Games Workshop in the Apocalypse rulebook, with a few modifications as noted below. With the fifth edition of 40k and the publication of Apocalypse, many of the complicated rules that supported flyers in previous editions were changed and greatly simplified. Unfortunately, they became perhaps a bit TOO minimal, making flyers just super-mobile skimmers and air-to-air combat about as thrilling as Basilisks lobbing shells at each other every 20 minutes. To find a workable balance between the two extremes, we suggest a few modifications to the flyer rules in Apocalypse, and add a new layer of complexity that makes air-to-air combat more deadly, thrilling and fun. A big THANK YOU! is owed to George Spiggott, who composed the original version of the Dogfight 40,000 rules and kindly allowed us to revise, mutilate and spindle his work into a near-unrecognizable (but hopefully playable) form. Page 1 of 16

2 Please enjoy using this supplement, and we would greatly appreciate reading any feedback or questions that you have. We can be contacted via private message to Savnock (Legio Bastardes ruleswriting geek) at DakkaDakka.com. Onward into the fiery furnace of battle... b Basic flyer rules Flyers are vehicles, superheavy vehicles, and monstrous or gargantuan creatures with the Flyer rule. Most of them have been designed with this rule in their basic 40K rules (from their codex or the Apocalypse rulebook, etc.). Some do no though- see the "Specific Units" section at the end of these rules for more info on which units are also flyers. Some of the flyer rules from Apocalypse remain the same in this supplement. Here is a brief recap of those, with some notes on a few differences. Please refer to the Apocalypse book for any clarifications on details. Moving flyers- Flyers may move an unlimited distance every turn, but they must move a minimum of 36" from the point where they started the turn. Shooting at flyers- Flyers are only hit by ground-based weaponry that rolls to hit on a roll of 6. Weaponry that doesn't roll to hit cannot shoot at flyers. Anti-aircraft (AA) mounts allow weapons to roll to hit as normal, and template/blast weapons to hit flyers if they roll a 6 on a D6. Pintle-mounted weapons are automatically considered AA-mounted. All hits against flyers subtract one from their roll on the on the vehicle or superheavy vehicle damage tables (like a glancing hit, but only -1). To differentiate this from the regular glancing hit result, we will call it Glancing -1 ). AP 1 weapons and Strength D weapons negate this -1 on the table, and roll unmodified (with neither additions or subtractions) on the damage tables. AP weapons do subtract a further -1 from damage-table rolls. [Designer s note: The -1 glance might make flyers too fragile. Input needed on that.] Page 2 of 16

3 Flyers do NOT receive a 4+ cover save like skimmers moving fast (although there is a way to get this, detailed in the Orders section below). Unless otherwise specified, all shots are resolved against a flyer's side side armor. While operating in Hover Mode or landed, flyers are hit as normal (whatever facing their attacker is closest to). Flyers and proximity effects- Tyranid spore mines, ground-based minefields and other proximity-based effects do not affect flyers unless the rules specifically state that they do. That flying base is far, far below where the model actually is. Just move such models right past the flyer, or if they would end up directly on or beneath the flyer (due to either party s move), move them the minimum distance to get out from under the base. Players owning flyers should NOT use this rule to herd spore mines etc. about though- it s not sporting! b Monstrous and gargantuan creatures in the air war Monstrous or Gargantuan Creatures that fly or move as jump infantry (such as the Tyranid Harridan and Harpy) may function as Flyers rather than regular flying creatures, and may switch back and forth during the course of the game (swooping out of the skies to snatch some unfortunate Guardsman before flapping off again...). Their players will make this decision each turn at the same time other flyers are given Orders (more about that below). If they choose to act as Flyers (generally in order to participate in dogfights), they are issued orders like any other flyer and obey the same rules for movement, being shot at, orders etc. If they choose to act as regular monstrous/gargantuan creatures, they can do so from the beginning of the shooting phase on. Note that this does mean that they can move great distances before, say, shooting or charging. Any Gargantuan Creature that has wings or moves as jump infantry may operate as a flyer. Monstrous Creatures will need to be handled on a case-by-case basis (See the Specific Units Converted from the 40K and Apocalypse Games section later in these rules for a few examples). [Designer s note: Creatures might be too powerful, able to take out several vehicle Page 3 of 16

4 flyers per creature. Suggestions for balancing it out appreciated. Maybe having to reroll all successful hits in CC or shooting? Hmm.] As they are not vehicles they do take damage differently: hits against creatures acting as flyers are resolved at -1 Strength to represent "speed being the best armor". [Designer's note: The -1 Strength rule is just something I'm guessing at: playtester input again much appreciated.] b Orders At the end of their movement phase a player will give each flyer in play (on the table) an Order. These Orders determine the flyer's role for the next turn, and how it interacts with other units in the battle. If a flyer's Orders are not changed, it is assumed to remain on the same orders it followed last turn. Orders use the special orders dice from the BattleFleet Gothic game. You can use counters if you don't have the dice. After Orders are assigned, the dice are left next to the flyer they affect (or better yet right on the flyer's base). This is important because Orders will also affect how your opponent deals with flyers in their own turn. Assign Orders to all your flyers, then go through and execute them in any order (with the exception of Ground Attack orders to do bombing runs, which must come first). There are 6 Orders that you can give a flyer. Here is a summary table: each Order is discussed in detail below. Page 4 of 16

5 Order Notes Intercept Attack another flyer in the shooting phase. Ground Attack Attack ground targets in the shooting phase. Includes bombing runs, executed in the movement phase. Being on Ground Attack makes flyers more vulnerable to Intercepting enemies. Escort Protect your other flyers. Does not attack now, but enemies Intercepting while you Escort have to fight through this flyer first. Rrrramming Speeeeed!! Ram another flyer (or claw it with a creature). A nasty hit for both parties. Evasive Action Protect your own neck with tricky maneuvers. Gives flyers a 4+ cover save. Disengage Run for it! Leave the battlefield, return in later turns much like Reserves. b Order: Intercept Units on Intercept orders may attack another flying unit in the shooting phase. Should the flyer's turn to shoot come around and the player decide not to take a shot they don't HAVE to do so... but that's hardly the spirit of 40K! Interception is like close combat: Despite being initiated in the attacker's turn, both units involved may get a chance to damage each other. Dogfights are a nasty, frenzied business! Page 5 of 16

6 To resolve an Intercept order, do the following: The attacker picks a target for their first flyer on Intercept. This can be any other single Flyer unit within range of your weaponry. Note that if there are no enemy flyers in play, you cannot issue Intercept orders. [Designer's note: I kept attack range limited by weapon range just to keep things simple and slightly less abstract, even though we could just say any flyer can engage any other, with no range limits. Playtester input on this needed too.] The attacker and defender then Dogfight! To do so, add the following up for each unit: Dogfight! Value = Ballistic Skill + Initiative +/- Modifiers (see table below) + 1D6 The player with the highest result wins the Dogfight, and may shoot at their enemy's rear armor with one weapon for every point by which they won the dogfight. Dogfight! result: Victory- Measure range etc. to target as usual, with the exception that armor facing doesn't matter. Monstrous creature flyers are shot at as normal, but hits against them count their AP as one lower (so AP6 weapons would be AP5, etc.). This means that _either_ unit may shoot their enemy out of the sky, not just the unit belonging to the player whose turn it is. Dogfight! result: Tie- In the event of a tie, both flyers involved may shoot at their opponent's side armor with one weapon. Monstrous/gargantuan creatures get shot at as normal for flyers, (-1 strength but no special AP modifiers etc.). Page 6 of 16

7 Modifier Notes +1 On Intercept or Escort orders [Need playtester input on whether to include a +1 for Intercept/Escort or not] -1 On Ground Attack orders 1 Each additional flyer attacking the same defending flyer in the same round +1 die (cumulative) on second or later plane s attack, choose highest -1 Every 2 Structure points (round down) -1 Total armor equals points -2 Total armor equals 43+ points Not cumulative with armor mod above -1 Each Wound above 6 and/or point of Toughness above 8 Monstrous Creatures -1 Carrying bombs (regular or Hellstorm), rockets (Hellfire, Hellstrike, Skystrike, seeker missiles, etc.), fuel tanks or spore mines Not cumulative -2 Carrying big bombs, Grot bombs/supa-rokkits, Smart bombs or Meiotic spores Not cumulative -1 Transport capacity 1% to 50% full Not cumulative -2 Transport capacity greater than 50% full Not cumulative Page 7 of 16

8 Racial initiative chart Imperial Human 3 Space Marine (all types) 4 Eldar (all types) 4 Ork 2 Necron 3 Chaos (other) 3 Tyranid As Creature Tau (Air caste pilot) 3 Tau (drone pilot) 2 b Order: Ground Attack Flyers on Ground Attack orders may do just that: attack units on the ground (including skimmers, etc.) during the shooting phase. This is resolved like any other normal 40K attack. Note that sniping, bombing, and harassing the poor groundpounders requires slowing down a bit and taking your eyes off of the skies, so it leaves the flyer more vulnerable to attacks from other flyers on Intercept orders (see the modifiers in the Dogfighting table above). Bombing Runs- In order to use bombs, players must use a special type of Ground Attack order called a bombing run. When a player is going to execute a bombing run, they need to make that clear during their movement phase, before they move Page 8 of 16

9 the flyer (this actually happens before Orders are issued, so you need to be clear with your opponent about what's going on). Flyers making a Bombing Run are moved at the end of the Movement Phase, before orders are given to any other flyers. They then resolve their bombing runs as detailed in the Apocalypse rulebook. After their bombing run is finished, place an Orders die next to the flyer with the Ground Attack facing displayed. That counts as their order for this turn. Then resolve any other bombing runs before ordering other flyers etc. [Ground Attack orders are designated by the die facing with the target-reticule symbol.] You may also want to listen to this while blowing things up: b Order: Escort Escorts are ordered to be alert to other threats from the skies, and are ready to Dogfight enemy flyers before they can reach other air targets (like your bombers, transports, etc.). Flyers on Escort orders do not attack in their own turn. Instead, during the enemy turn any enemy flyers on Intercept orders must dogfight against a flyer on Escort orders before they can attack anything else. The attacker chooses which Escorts to engage and in what order. Interceptors cannot attack other units until all Escorts are destroyed. You can issue Escort orders even if there are not enemy flyers in the air at the moment (and it may be a good idea indeed, if the enemy is likely to come swooping in at any moment). Page 9 of 16

10 b Order: Rrrramming Speeeeed! Alternately, a flyer may purposefully get the enemy in their sights, put on maximum speed... and then RAM THEM! This is generally the choice only of crazed Ork Speed Freeks and claw-covered Tyranid monstrosities, but sometimes Imperial pilots whose guns have all jammed will consign their souls to the Emperor and try such a desperate tactic as well. When a flyer is on Rrrramming Speeeeed! Orders, they choose another flyer to target and resolve a dogfight as listed under Intercept above. If the rammer wins (by any number of points), they may then ram the enemy (or try to claw them in midair, hit them with a powerfist while flying very close, etc.). The ramming flyer rolls a D6: if they roll a 5+ both flyers take one Penetrating hit, which is not reduced to Glancing -1 like other hits against flyers. Creature-flyers take a S9 AP2 hit instead. On any other die result the ramming flyer misses and the game continues (whew!). Born to Ram- Some flyers (Orks and Tyranids) are better at initiating close encounters in the air. Ork flyers and all monstrous/gargantuan creature flyers succeed at ramming on a 4+ rather than a 5+. Banzai!- Flyers may also make ramming attacks against ground targets, although it is invariably that flyer s last action of the battle and usually also the end of their life. Pick a ground target (any vehicle, monstrous creature, or a single model in a unit of more than one infantry/bike/cavalry models) and make your 5+ ram roll. If the roll succeeds, the flyer hits the model and does an automatic penetrating hit against vehicles, or a S10 AP2 hit against creatures. The flyer is then automatically destroyed and wreckage (or bits of be-tentacled flesh) flies everywhere. Every model within 2D6 takes a S6 AP- hit (which allows it to essentially do a variable-radius blast against units of troops surrounding the one very unlucky trooper who got nailed directly). Page 10 of 16

11 b Order: Evasive Action If you want your flyer to stay in the fight but be very hard to hit, you give them the Evasive Action order. This order grants a unit a 4+ cover save against all hits (shooting, ramming, etc.). In combination with the Glancing -1 (vehicles)/-1 Strength (creatures) rule, this makes a flyer much harder to knock out of the sky. Units which already have a cover or invulnerable save (like Eldar flyers with holofields) may re-roll their saves while on Evasive Action. Certain anti-aircraft weapons (like the Imperial Guard Hydra or even Vindicare Sniper shooting) can indeed negate this save or re-roll. b Order: Disengage Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor... (you wimp!). Disengage orders allow a unit to run for it and leave the battlefield, removing the flyer from the table (at least temporarily). However, doing so may expose you to a parting potshot from the enemy. Parting shots- Before you remove the flyer a single enemy unit may immediately take a free shot at it, subject to the usual to-hit rules for shooting at flyers. This does not count against the unit's shooting for next turn etc- it is a free shot. Once Disengaged (assuming it survives the pot-shot), the flyer is put aside off the table. It may return as reserves in subsequent turns, but never comes back automatically. If would come back on a 2+ or automatically, it still must roll a 3+ to return. NEW: Flyers still disengaged at the end of the game ARE considered destroyed, contrary to what is stated in the Apocalypse rules. That s the price of wimping out! [Designer's note: I dunno, is this all too harsh on Disengagers?] Page 11 of 16

12 b Specific units converted from the 40k and apocalypse games Some units that operate as Fast Skimmers or flying creatures in the regular 40k game should be able to join in the air war too. The following units operate as Flyers with the Hover Mode rule: IG Valkyries and Vendettas; Marine Stormravens; Dark Eldar Void Ravens and Razorwings. Also, Tyranid Harpies and Harridans may operate as flyers if their player wishes, as detailed under the monstrous/gargantuan creature flyers above. Also, the Ork Fighta (from Imperial Armor: Apocalypse 1) has the option to be deployed without any bomms for -30 points (it will then cost 110 points total). b Example Dogfight This is an example Dogfight between an Imperial player with three Imperial fighters (see the table below for stats) and an Ork player with one Ork fighta and an Ork heavy bomba (see below as well). It is the Imperial player's turn. As the battle rages on the battlefield below, two wings of aircraft prepare to meet their enemy head-on Here's what our example aircraft look like: Armor Flyer Front Side Rear I BS Structure Points Dogfight! value Modifiers (already applied) Imperial Fighter Rockets -1 Ork Fighta (+6 for Waaagh) None +0 Ork Heavy Bomba (+4 Waaaagh) Big Bombs -2 Page 12 of 16

13 Flyer Weapons Facing Imperial Fighter 2 Lascannons, 1 Heavy bolter, 2 Rockets All Front Ork Fighta 3 twin-linked Big shootas All Front Ork Heavy Bomba 1 twin-linked Big shoota, 2 Big Bombs Turret (360 degrees) Orders The Imperial Player puts both of his aircraft on Intercept orders hoping to destroy both of the enemy aircraft before they can strafe and bomb his ground forces. The Ork player spent the previous turn gleefully bombing the Imperial forces below, and is still on Ground Attack orders. His fighta is on Escort orders, impatiently covering the bomba's wing and hoping some 'humie flyboys will give him a good scrap soon. Looks like he's about to get his wish... The Imperial player (whose turn it is) wants to send all three of his fighters against the Ork heavy bomba. However, he has to deal with the fighta on Escort first. First blood The Imperial player's fighter has a Dogfight! value of 6 this turn [BS 3 + Initiative for Intercept orders 1 for Rockets]. He rolls his dice and gets a 3 for a total of 9. The Ork players fighter has a Dogfight! of 7 [BS 2 + Initiative 4 (doubled when Intercepting, Ork special rule) + 1 for Escort orders]. He rolls his dice and gets a 4 for a total of 11. The Ork player wins by 2. He fires two of his big shootas at the Imperial's rear armor, hitting twice (thanks to the twin-link). After rolling for armor penetration against the rear armor's AV10 he manages a single glancing -1 hit, destroying one of that Imperial fighter s lascannons. Both combatants peel off to fight again later. Page 13 of 16

14 Get that cover down!! The second Imperial fighter then engages the Ork fighta again, trying to blow it out of the skies so that his wingman can get to the bomba. This Imperial fighter again has a Dogfight! value of 6 (same BS, initiative and modifiers as the previous one). He rolls two dice this time (since he is the second flyer to attack the Ork this turn), gets a 4 and a 6. He picks the higher result of 6 for a total of 12. The Ork player's fighta still has a Dogfight! of 7, and he rolls a 3 for a total of 9. The Imperial player wins by 2. He fires his heavy bolter and one lascannon into the Ork's rear armor. He rolls for penetration, and the lascannon and one bolter shot penetrate (counting as glancing -1 of course). He scores a Weapon Destroyed result, but more importantly gets a Vehicle Destroyed result. The Ork fighta finally explodes, leaving the bomba alone and exposed... Endgame Meanwhile the third Imperial fighter sweeps in on the Ork heavy bomba. The Imperial player has a Dogfight! of 6 like his wingmates. He rolls his die getting a 4, giving him a total value of 10. The Ork heavy bomba has a Dogfight! of 2 (BS2 + Initiative 2-2 for Big bombs), and rolls a 5 on his Dice for a total of 7. The Imperial fighter wins by 3. He opens up with his two lascannons and a rocket scoring two hits with the lascannons. These glance -1 twice against the Ork heavy bomba: one hitting the crew compartment severely shaking the crew; the other more tellingly hitting the engine (an Immobilized result). The Ork heavy bomba crashes into the ground and is destroyed while the Imperial fighter joins his wingmen for another strike. b Optional rules for ground troops in a Dogfight! 40k game This section details some rules that will allow ground troops to join in the air war as well. The rest of the rules can be used in good balance without these modifications: they are just fun extras to use if your gaming group wants to. Page 14 of 16

15 Jetpack assault No Orky Stormboy worth his boostajetz can look out at all those poncey birdboyz in the sky and not occasionally give in to the temptation to try to get into krumpin range on his way outta the dropship... and thanks to these rules he can! Jump infantry, models that moves as jump infantry, and models mounted on (or moving as) jetbikes can attempt to attack flyers in close combat. Models equipped with jetpacks cannot do this, as their flight gear is too slow to give them even a chance to keep up with flyers. Neither can models equipped with Warp Jump generators like Eldar Warp Spiders. Please use common sense for other exceptions as well. Attacks against flyers are resolved like attacks on any other vehicle (charge, then take a swing at the target), with the following exceptions: - They are only ever hit on 6s, with no re-rolls for equipment or special rules allowed. - Models may only make a single attack on flyers: there s no time for anything fancier than a quick swipe (and they re lucky to get even that!). This may be made with any close-combat weapon the model is equipped with, including powerfists, greandes/melta bombs, etc. - All hits on flyers are still considered Glancing -1 (or -1 Strength against creatureflyers), and flyers on Evasive Action orders do get a 4+ save against mid-air close combat attacks. - After attacking, every model that attempted to attack a flyer in close combat (not just those that hit) has to test for dangerous terrain, but suffers a wound on a roll of 1-3 (instead of only on a 1 as normal). Note that this also makes units that re-roll dangerous terrain tests (like Independent Characters) better at aerial close combat, which is only fitting for such skilled pilots... After attacking, move jump infantry (etc.) 1 away from the flyer s base, as with any assault on a vehicle. Jump infantry/jetbikes are then treated just like they normally are: they can return to regular movement in their next turn, or try to hit the flyers again (subject to movement and charge range restrictions, etc. of course). They can also be shot at and charged as normal on the enemy s turn: they are considered to have returned to ground level before aiming their jetpacks or grav-sleds or Page 15 of 16

16 membranous wings at the sky again. [Needless to say, these jump infantry assault versus flyer rules really, really need playtesting.] [Still to do: -??? Add rules for drop troops- deploying from troop transports on the move for all races, not just Marines and IG.??? -?Rules for AA mounts for Tyranids? -?Rules for barrage-balloon-style spore mines for Tyranids? -?Rules for adding AA mounts to (appropriately modeled) regular weapons? -Create summary page with all tables: Quick summary of flyer damage rules; Dogfight rolls, modifiers, and result effects; racial initiative values.] Page 16 of 16