GW dropped a ton of new weapon rules for 10th Edition Warhammer 40k, and some of them are pretty wild- check it out!
We’ve seen a lot of rules about 10th, but they are really starting to come together. Some of these are pretty intense, such as the Railgun having 20 Strength, and they say it’s not even the strongest gun around!
So, while tanks went up in toughness and survivability, it looks like there will still be plenty of weapons to take them down, but you’ll have to invest in specific tank-killing weapons and not just put plasma or the likes in every squad.
They’ve also updated and changed a lot of the keywords to be standard, which is nice for the game overall.
GW has officially confirmed the new 10th edition of Warhammer 40k, and continues to show off a bunch of the rules changes as well! Here are the quick links to the latest for 10th Edition Warhammer 40k and the full articles below!
- Warhammer 40k New 10th Edition Release Guide: LATEST
- New 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Starter Set & Models
- What Will Happen To Codex Books in 10th Edition
- All the Latest 10th Edition Rules Changes
- How to Build Army Lists in 10th Edition Warhammer 40k
Now, let’s jump into the changes.
New Weapon Rules for 10th Edition Warhammer 40k!
The new rules come from Warhammer Community.
Up until now, your guns were divided into several categories: Heavy, Rapid Fire, Assault, and so on. In the new edition, these classifications become weapon abilities.
This change allows weapons to behave in more varied ways than before, without increasing the number of rules you need to learn. A bolt rifle has both the Assault and Heavy abilities, for instance – meaning it can be fired on the move or braced for extra accuracy, as needed.
This flexibility is perfect for representing auto and stalker bolt rifles, which are now streamlined into the same weapon profile. All Intercessors just have bolt rifles, which you can build with whatever scopes or magazines you please.
This is interesting in two ways; first, a heavy weapon gets +1 to hit when stationary and not -1 to hit when moving. Then, there is no minus for shooting assault weapons, and all Intercessors have bolt rifles, no matter how it’s modeled.
The core rules include a variety of other weapon abilities, which tie together similar effects found across factions. Weapons that shredded through armour on lucky rolls can now share the Devastating Wounds ability instead. This allows them to dish out mortal wounds on a Critical Wound – that’s an unmodified Wound roll of 6.
Almost all weapons have had their core statistics changed to help pull their weight in this new, more durable edition – especially those designed to tackle vehicles. You’ll generally find that most guns have not increased in strength, and have often lost a pip of AP.
It seems a little strange an Assault Cannon has no AP, but the bolt rifle does. However, with Devastating Wounds, you can just roll a six to wound and inflict a mortal (or whatever the damage is). Up to this point, there have been some really strong weapons, but overall, they are promising weaker weapons.
The melta rifle, for example, gains a bump in Strength and the Melta rule to boost its Damage at short range, while the Hammerhead’s infamous railgun soars to Strength 20.
This is a cool way for them to make bigger weapons stronger at close range, and something like the rifle only goes up by two Strength. Still, it has -4 AP and D6 Damage, so plenty good at killing tanks.
The shuriken cannon picks up Sustained Hits, common among weapons that throw massive amounts of firepower down range – and on swarming Tyranid Invasion Fleets. This one simply adds the listed number of extra hits when a Critical Hit is scored – that’s an unmodified Hit roll of 6. Easy to remember.
This, again, gives some good flexibility and also the possibility for an insane amount of exploding 6’s. We’re not sure how high the number will go, but we might see something like Sustained Hits 3, and every six will score three extra hits!
Melee weapons can also have abilities, including a blast from the past – Twin-linked is back! This classic rule is now found on ranged and melee weapons alike, and confers a re-roll to wound. In recent editions, many weapons that used to be twin-linked were instead treated like two guns taped together, which had a serious impact on balance. This change makes them more reliable, rather than twice as killy.
This is an interesting change, and instead of more shots, you have a better chance to wound. So, while you still have the same chance to hit, you should be wounding a whole lot more.
Check out the latest for Warhammer 40k 10th Edition, new releases, rules, rumors, and more!
View Gallery: 32 Images
Here’s the most up-to-date list of new Games Workshop bits from preview models that we should watch out for. Click on the gallery above to see dozens of Rumor Engines with new models still to be revealed!
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What do you think about the new 10th Edition Warhammer 40k Weapon rules? Do you like the changes so far?
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About the Author: Travis Pasch
Travis Pasch
Job Title: Head Writer & Editor
Socials: @paschbass
About Travis Pasch: Travis has been a Warhammer 40k hobbyist since the 1990s, playing the game since Third Edition. Through extensive traveling, he’s seen a lot of the miniatures hobby from across the world, giving him a unique perspective on the latest gaming topics and trends.
Travis’s brother even owns a commission painting studio, where he’s picked up a lot of good advice and techniques for painting Warhammer and tabletop miniatures over the years, as well. Travis joined the Spikey Bits team in 2019 and has been the lead writer since 2020.
Currently, he’s working on converting all his 40k Adeptus Mechanicus models and becoming a true tech enjoyer, complete with both sad and happy robot noises!
