Powerful new Space Marines 40k rules combos are here with 20+new Warlord Traits and nearly 30 new Stratagems in their 9th Edition codex.
Were talking a closer look at the new Warlord Traits and Stratagems rules in the new 9th Edition Space Marines codex.
Last edition we saw the rise of the Smash Captain from a mix of Warlord Traits and strats. This time around however it’s hard to see the same character being as effective. Also, there are some noticeable changes to the way Strats are organized now as well.
TL;DR If you want to check out the rest of the Codex rules not on this page we got you covered below:
- Warlord Traits & Stratagems
- Relics, Litanies, Psychics, & Secondary Objectives
- Chapter Tactics Rules
- New Unit Datasheets
Space Marines Warlord Traits & Stratagem Rules
Phobos and normal warlords are separated so let’s check out some of the standard warlord traits first.
- Fear made manifest is a leadership based trait. While Enemies are nearby (6 inches), they get -1 to leadership. Whenever the same units take a combat attrition test they also subtract 1. This is solid against any army that has issues with leadership, but not that great against anything else. Opponents’ auto passing tests make this trait a complete waste.
- Storm of fire got a slight NERF, it went from 6s to hit to 6s to wound. When you roll an unmodified 6 to wound on a ranged attack it gets +1 AP value. This is a nerf because you get fewer dice after removing missed hits, if you know a hit has better ap, you may be more likely to CP reroll a failed wound for it.
- Rites of War just helps you paly the objective by given objective secured to units within 6 inches of the warlord. A solid safe option when you are playing objective-based games.
The Phobos also get 6 Warlord Traits to choose from, lets go over some of them.
- Lord of Deceit now sends three units into reserves and then redeployed immediately after each player has deployed their full armies.
- Stealth Adept is more in line with the old character targeting rule, they have to be the closest target to be shot at.
- Target Priority buffs one nearby Phobos unit to add one to ranged attack hit rolls. Super good, if you run any max squads in early rounds.
The second page is entirely focussed on the Chapter specific warlord traits with each chapter getting a unique option.
Ultramarines give you a CP refund on 5+ whenever you spend one. This is super solid, assuming it isn’t erratad to once a turn, this is going to be strong as we’ve seen similar effects work great in the past with less CPs avaialble
Imperial Fists get a strat that helps hold positions. While a unit within 6 inches is in cover, they ignore AP -1. This is pretty solid given the sheer volume of -1 AP guns in the game. You’ll just have to make sure you take advantage of your placement to take get the most out of this trait.
Space Marine Stratagems
So it looks like there are new groupings of stratgems now in 9th Edition, as these all fall into the following categories:
- Battle Tactic
- Epic Deed
- Requisition
- Strategic Ploy
- Wargear
Here’s some of the new Space Marines Stratagems we took a closer look at:
Gene-Wrought Might and Armour of Contempt haven’t changed at all.
Honour the Chapter sadly only works on Assault Intercessors now. There’s still a ton of power in this, just a lot less flexibility for obvious reasons. This might put a target on your Assault Intercessors if its obvious you want to get that extra value out of them.
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Rapid Fire lets an Intercessor Squad shoot again at the end of the shooting phase. In a similar fashion, if you have a big squad of Intercessors your opponent may try to focus them down to prevent you from getting that double shot in a turn.
Combat Revival allows an Apothecary to automatically revive a dead unit with the Infantry or Biker keyword. This is overall decent and helps when you need just that little extra oomph.
Power of the Machine Spirit lets a vehicle with the Machine Spirit keyword operate at its top profile for a turn. This can come in clutch. Sometimes as vehicles get into lower brackets, people stop worrying about them, but this threat means your opponents need to finish off the vehicle unless they might get a full force retaliation from it.
Hammer of Wrath allows a Jump Pack unit to pick one enemy unit within Engagement Range and roll a D6 for each model in your unit when it finishes a Charge move. Each roll greater than or equal to the target’s toughness does a single mortal wound. For a single CP, this seems very good in the right situation. It helps your Jump Packs cull any swarms of low toughness units.
Uncompromising Fire lets a unit perform an action and still shoot without it failing the action. This is great for in some cases as it lets you get those extra shots in you might not have been able to otherwise.
Guerilla Tactics lets you put a Phobos unit that’s more than 6 inches away from an enemy unit back into Strategic Reserves and redeploy elsewhere. These type of stratagems are always great and provide more options for strategic play. At a single CP its even better.
Adaptive Strategy allows your Warlord to pick a Core unit on the table and makes all of its Devastator, Tactical, and Assault Doctrines active for it until the next turn. This can be strong if the size of the squad is big enough to really take advantage of the extra help.
Flakk Missile does 2D3 mortal wounds and has +1 to hit, but must target an Aircraft, no more targeting Daemon Princes or the like. This is still solid, just slightly more situational while being better in those more specialized situations.
Hellfire Shells is still D3 damage and deals a flat 3 damage against units with the Monster keyword. This is great against armies that play important monsters, I’m looking at you Tyranids.
Melta Bomb lets a Melta Bomb unit make a melee attack against a vehicle and if it hits, does 2D3 mortals. This has some satchel bomb vibes and honestly seems pretty decent. Getting rid of vehicles can be challenging, but 2D3 mortals are nothing to scoff at.
Pretty interesting changes to the Stratgems, espcially the ones that have cross-over potential with the other Chapter codex books as well (like Grey Knights, and Custodes). Along with the change to Thunder Hammers being -2 AP now, and Honor the Chapter’s update it looks like Smash Captains have been brought down a peg or two.
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What do you think about these traits and stratagems? Are the changes fair and warranted? Which change has you most excited about?
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About the Author: Andrew Schrank
Andrew Schrank
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
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Bio: Aspiring diplomat, Lord of Fluff, and Master of Ice Hammer. Andrew joined the Spikey Bits team in 2018. He mainly covers releases from Games Workshop, along with some previews and hobby posts. He loves Star Wars, Chaos Undivided, and Gundam.
During his free time, he hunts Platinum trophies on PS5 and reads international news. On weekends, he can be found playing commander and cEDH games, often with unique strategies that push the limits. He believes that each day presents a new opportunity to grow and be challenged.
