Don’t miss the latest Warhammer 40k rules previews for the two exclusive characters from the new Admech and Genestealer Cult Kill Team Box Sets.
Games Workshop revealed the rules for the new Kill Team characters for the larger 40k tabletop. As it turns out, they’re not bad at all. Take a look at what kind of edge they’ll be giving your faction and see if that’ll be enough for you to pick up a box!
Tech-Priest Manipulus
As a senior member of the Cult Mechanicus, a Tech-Priest Manipulus is an HQ choice for the Adeptus Mechanicus. As in Kill Team, a Manipulus has a solid profile, including a 2+ Save and even a 5+ invulnerable save that will help to keep them alive if engaged directly:
Looking at the Tech-Priest Manipulus’s base stats, he’s a decent frontline unit. His saves and the Character keyword will really keep him alive as he moves up the board with a unit. He can hold his own in close combat too, getting three attacks at S6 -1 AP and 2D flat. He hits like an autocannon, and he’s also getting D6 extra attacks from some mechadendrites which we can only guess will be S3-s4.
The Tech-Priest Manipulus is a guy you really want to bubble wrap. He’s a real force multiplier that gets even better when more units are around him.
His Bolster Warriors ability lets all friendly <Forge World> units within 6″ add 1 to the movement characteristics for the turn. If they charge or advance while within 6″ him, they also add 1. This is perfect for a more aggressive list. Using the Electro-priests to rush something, he could be right in the thick of it with them.
Looking at the Bolster Weapons ability, friendly Forge World units within 6″ of him add 6″ of additional range to their weapons if they have a base range of 24″. Otherwise, they add 3″. The trade-off is that the Manipulus can’t move for any reason. If you need to reach out and touch something with your gun line, the Manipulus can get you just past that hump and keep your units firing at the enemy. Just when your opponent thought he was out of reach… bam!
Manipulus & Machines
What kind of Admech character would he be if he couldn’t heal other units around him? At the end of the movement phase, he can heal a Forge World unit for D3 wounds. If it’s a Questor Mechanicus model, he can only heal it one wound. -This isn’t the main reason why you take him, but it’s a nice little rule to have.
Genestealer Cult Kelermorph
What happens when you launch a Dirty Harry movie into space and a Genestealer gets ahold of it? Well, you get a Kelermorph. This guy is the rootin’est tootin’est pistol packin’ shootin’est cowpoke in the entire Western Fringe.
A Kelemorph is armed with a cultist knife for melee, but that’s the last place they should be – they’re natural born gunfighters, equipped with no fewer than three liberator autostubs with which to shoot up those who would stand against their kin.
This guy may be a character but he’s actually an Elite choice. The Kelermorph comes stock with a 5+ Invulnerable save and has three total Liberator autostubs. That’s six whole shots at two damage a pop! But wait, it gets a whole lot better.
The Gunslinger rule lets him pick out characters even if they aren’t the closest and lets him immediately shoot another bullet for each hit he makes. That’s up to twelve hits at -1 AP 2D going straight to the dome of a foolish Captain. That can actually shred a Slam Captain just because of the sheer dice rolling. Remember, he hits on a 2+ and only three dice have to go through to take him down.
He’s also sort of like a Primus V2. He automatically adds three to the Cult Ambush roll and if he kills any enemy models with his ranged weapons, you can reroll hits of 1 for Cult Infantry units within 6″ of him. With a potential twelve shots pumping out of this guy a turn, you should always be rerolling 1’s for your units. He just has to kill a single model!
These characters seem really strong in their own right. But looking at the Genestealer Cult, it looks like the Cult Ambush ability isn’t going anywhere as the Kelermorph lets us add three to whatever we roll. Hopefully, we can come in turn one when the codex hits.
What do you think about the new characters? Which one are you going to be picking up? how many points do you think they’ll cost? Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group.
About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials: @RealmbrushPainting
About Wesley Floyd: Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He is known for his satirist takes on trending topics and imaginative yet amazingly affordable hobby solutions to painting Warhammer miniatures.
Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4. If you like what he writes and want to contact him or have your tabletop minatures painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
