Primaris are getting access to a slew of new vehicles in the latest transport rules previews for 10th Edition Warhammer 40k!
We’ve already seen some generic vehicle rules, and they teased a little for transports, but this really starts painting the picture! With the combined bump in toughness and firepower, transports might play a bigger role than ever before.
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 new rules.
Vehicles & Primaris Get Even Better as GW Drops 10th Edition 40k Transport Rules!
The rules come from Warhammer Community.
Now any embarked unit is free to hop out once a transport has moved – provided the vehicle didn’t Advance or Fall Back. They can also shoot, but can’t make a charge, unless they disembark before the vehicle moves.
This is a major improvement for mechanised armies that love to leap from their vehicles and blaze away at close range, like the T’au, Astra Militarum, Aeldari, and power armour-clad warriors of all varieties. You still can’t embark and disembark on the same turn, but you don’t need to keep your engine running for a turn before the doors open – which, coupled with their newfound durability, makes fielding transports more appealing than ever.
So, some changes in general, but some vehicles even have rules to allow units to disembark after advancing. You still have to jump out of the vehicle before it moves to charge (other than individual tanks), which is probably for the best, but this is just the start of the changes.
In the past, certain open-topped vehicles allowed the troops inside to fire out, and this has now been consolidated into a universal Firing Deck X rule. Just choose one weapon each from a given number of embarked models – such as a plasma gun and meltagun from some Cadian Shock Troops riding in a Chimera with Firing Deck 2 – and the transport will count as if it’s equipped with them for their own shooting attacks.
We saw this with the Rhino, and it has Firing Deck 2 as well. So maybe most of the non-open-topped vehicles will have Firing Deck 2. Looks like vehicles now are the ones doing the shooting, and there are some potential combos to be had as well…
Previously, embarked troops couldn’t benefit from buffs, but now because the transport itself is making the attack, their weapons gain any boosts the vehicle does. For instance, an Ork Mek can use his Mekaniak ability to act as a powerful force multiplier for the Battlewagon’s monstrous Firing Deck 22.
First, firing Deck 22 seems insane, and hopefully, all open-topped vehicles have Firing Deck equal to transport capacity. Not only will the Mek restore wounds, but he will also make them better at shooting, so we’ll see if this is fairly generic along all mechanic-type characters.
New Vehicle Keywords
Some vehicles, however, circumvent the rules entirely with special abilities, such as fast movers like the Impulsor and the Astra Militarum Taurox who can disembark troops even after advancing.
The Land Raider reclaims its Assault Ramp – meaning passengers can declare a charge on the same turn they disembark. If this sounds like a return to the glory days of delivering Terminators hot and fresh into headlong assaults, you’d be right, but it’s not the only Space Marine transport with newfound flexibility.
This means you can really sprint your units to the front to take objectives, and the units inside also only count as having made a normal move, so they can shoot without much penalty. This seems to be a pretty big change overall. Then, maybe most importantly, it looks like you can disembark from a Land Raider after it has moved and still charge!
Maybe we’ll actually see the big tank make a return with this rule!
Many other transports get a new lease on life with characterful rules of their own. The Chimera is often used as a command post by Astra Militarum officers, so now they can bark orders from (relative) safety with the Mobile Command Vehicle rule.
This is huge, as they can sit in the tank and keep issuing orders. We’ll have to see how many vehicles get a similar rule, but with auras going away (mostly), it might not be as helpful for other factions.
The Falcon grav tank, meanwhile, lends supporting fire to its disembarked passengers by picking out priority targets with its own guns. The freshly deployed Aeldari then get to reroll wound rolls against that same unit, giving the Craftworlds a fast one-two punch of overwhelming firepower or lethal bladework that really fits purpose as the premier aspect -warrior delivery system.
This is actually a huge buff, as re-rolling your wounds is no joke. You can always just split fire with something small, and as long as you hit once, you’re getting the buff and sending the bigger guns into something else.
10th Edition 40k Transport Rules: Primaris & Tank Keywords
Minus a couple of exceptions,* Space Marine transports no longer care whether a Primaris unit is riding in the back or not.
* The Rhino, Razorback, and Impulsor are still specialised for certain squad types, and many larger models like Terminators and Gravis-armoured Space Marines still have their own restrictions.
So, it looks like as long as the vehicle doesn’t have a specification about what units can be inside, anything can. Meaning Firstborn and Primaris is not going to have as strict of rules for what they can ride in.
However, GW even dropped a hint for drop pods as it looks like they can be used by Primaris now! ! It’s also interesting they left the transport capacity off the Rhino datasheet, but we assume from this that most will stay similar.
Well, we might be seeing a lot of classic transports! With better Land Raider rules and (possibly) Primaris in drop pods, things might get spicey out there!
Check out the latest for Warhammer 40k 10th Edition, new releases, rules, rumors, and more!
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!
- New Primaris Space Marines 40k Rules & Minis
- Warhammer 40k 10th Edition Rules & Rumors
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What do you think about the new 10th Edition Warhammer 40k transport 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!
