Warhammer 40,000 FAQ

I'm a bit late on this, but Warhammer Community has posted the big FAQ for April! YAY!

You can access the FAQ here.

I'm not going through them because I'm sure everyone has either already read them or can just read the damned FAQ itself (it's pretty long, so don't waste time reading my stuff and just go to it immediately). But I'll just pick out the couple that concerns an Imperium player like me, especially since I'm an Imperial Knight player.

First, the Imperial Assassins Stratagem, Operative Requisition Sanctioned, that allows you to set aside 85 points for an Assassin (so that you can pick and choose whoever you want) has been changed to 2 Command Points. That makes sense, because before you can just spend a Command Point for that and there was no reason ever to take an Auxiliary Support unit for a single Assassin (which costs 1 Command Point as well) unless you have no detachments. There was no downside to taking this Stratagem and all upsides, but now it's no longer an auto-take and if you have the Detachment to spare, you can just do an Auxiliary Support Detachment for cheaper, at the cost of flexibility and one less detachment.

For Imperial Knights players, take note that our Rotate Ion Shields only give us a maximum of 4++ invulnerable save now. That sounds fair to me, and in any case I usually just use Rotate Ion Shields on my other Knights to save them, not just the one with the Ion Bulwark Warlord Trait. It's cool and all to try and save a Knight Crusader or Knight Valiant with Ion Bulwark, but that means my Knight Gallant or Knight Errant are going to get hit hard, and only have a 5++ invulnerable save. It makes more sense, because a 3++ invulnerable save on a Toughness 8 model with 28 wounds is just unfair.

The last one that matters the most is the Knight Castellan going up 100 points. The plasma decimator now costs 40 points as opposed to 0, and the volcano lance is now a whooping 60 points. Well deserved, if you ask me. For Renegade Knights, the volcano lance is now 70 points, since Dominus Knights cost the same regardless.

Fortunately, if you've been following my blog, it doesn't affect me one jot. I don't use a Knight Castellan, I don't own one, despite being an Imperial Knights player who has a pure Knight army. HA HA HA HA HA! This is what happens when you chase the meta! This is what happens when you buy a model because it's strong, efficient and dominant in the current meta! This is why you should only buy a Knight that you like, not one that's dominating tournaments!

That's what I did. I stuck to my favorite Questoris Knights, got the Knight Valiant because of his awesome flamer, and a Cerastus Knight Lancer because he matches well with both my fluff and the Secutarii Hoplites I had, and not because they are that good. I didn't care about the Knight Castellan (he would have overlapped with my Shadowsword and Leman Russ Executioner tanks anyway). I didn't care that for the Cerastus Knights, the Knight Atrapos will be more efficient and deadlier than a Knight Lancer. I grabbed the Knights I thought were cool and I liked, and played whatever and however I want. And...so I emerge out of this FAQ unscathed. HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!

Sorry for being childish. Never mind. Anyway, even if my Knights got nerfed, as long as I can still field a pure Knight army, or Imperial Knights supported by Skitarii/Imperial Guard, I honestly don't care. I'm not a win at all costs player, and I don't soup up to min-max - it's my fluff. House Yato fights alongside their Household Militia, the Draconian Armored Defenders Astra Militarum regiment. Command Points or not, soup or not, that's how I enjoy playing them. Or House Yato/Kanda (which is a branch clan of House Yato entirely seconded to Legio Draconis, the Titan Legion on the forge world Draconis IV) fights alongside the Skitarii and Secutarii Hoplites of Draconis IV. That's how I envision them playing, and I would still do so even if soup gets nerfed. If soup didn't get nerfed, then good for me! If it does, I wouldn't care less unless it becomes absolutely detrimental (allies costing 5 Command Points to field or something along the lines of that).

This, folks, is why you do not chase the meta!

Oh, right. I see a lot of people complaining about pure Knights being affected or punished for soup players min-maxing. They are saying this hurts pure Knights, etc.

The funny thing, however, is that, all these people are talking as if they are taking it for granted that the Knight Castellan is an auto-include. They assume that all Knight armies will automatically include at least a Knight Castellan.

If you see it from this perspective, you'll understand my point about the FAQ achieving balance. Now the Knight Castellan is no longer an auto-include. Now you're forced to assess other options and your other Knights instead of just taking it for granted that your Knight Castellan is in. Should I swap out an Armiger Helverin for a Knight Castellan, or should I use a Knight Valiant instead? Is a Knight Crusader and an Armiger Helverin better than a Knight Castellan, or do you need the anti-titanic volcano lance and better AP plasma decimator? Stuff like that. It makes you consider your choices rather than think automatically, "oh, of course a Knight Castellan is better in terms of points cost and effectiveness."

Well, you won't hear a lot of whining from me, just a lot of gloating! And this is coming from an Imperial Knights player! HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!