Have you been wondering just how a game of 8th Edition might be played and how long it would take? So did we! Come check out what we found!
Hello everyone, Josh D. here to discuss a recent playtest that my friends and I performed using the 8th Edition rules that we have seem thus far. You can find all the rules that we used by viewing the posts on the Warhammer Community web page.
For the play test, we decided to use the new Imperial Knight Titan rules and see how it performs against a squad of Rubric Marines in various arrangements.
Note: since we did not have all the rules for these models, we did have to come up with our own stats for some of the weapons that were used. This isn’t a 100% accurate depiction of 8th Edition but it gives us a pretty decent idea of how things will work.
Before we get into the playtest, let me go over the few things that we did not know and had to substitute rules for. We were not missing too much when it came to rules for the Rubrics. The main points that we did not know were the “Death to the False Emperor” rule and the “Icon of Flame” banner. Since we did not know where to begin on these rules, we did not bother with them and let the Rubrics act without them. Keep in mind that if these rules allow for re-rolls, the Knight may have taken for more damage. For the Knight, we only knew how it acts, it’s stats, and the thermal cannon profile.
Therefore, we had to come up with rules for the heavy stubber and Titanic Feet. As I stated before, these rules are not official. Nor are they GW rules. We just spit-balled what its other stats might be based on what we have seen thus far. With the heavy stubber, we decided to make it Heavy 3, with a range of 36 inches, a Strength of 4, no Ap, and Damage 1 with no special abilities. For Titanic Feet, we based this on what was described and went Heavy D6, range: melee, Strength 9, Ap -3, and a Damage of 1. These might be far off but it gave us a fun base to play with anyway!
With rules out of the way, let me give you the rundown of the models and power levels used for the playtest. The first match had the Titan versus 15 rubric marines which were equipped with 11 bolters, 2 flamers, 1 soul reaper, and 1 Sorcerer acting as one squad. The power levels were 23 for the Titan and 20 for the Rubrics and this match was quite close as the Rubrics were able to stay away and keep firing on the Titan. As you will see, they are better equipped for ranged combat than close combat. The second match was the Titan vs 20 Rubrics, broken in to two squads each, consisting of 7 bolters, 1 soul reaper, 1 flamer, and 1 Sorcerer. The power levels in this match were 23 for the Titan and 28 for the Rubrics.
The third, and final match, consisted of a Titan vs 20 Rubrics in one squad of 15 bolters, 2 flamers, 2 soul reapers, and a Sorcerer. The power levels for this match were 23 for the Ttian and 26 for the Rubrics. All three matches were lost by the Rubrics. The closest match being the first with the Rubrics bringing the Titan down to 7 wounds. However, as was stated beforehand, some of the rules were made up and if the Rubrics had any re-rolls (possible if that is the “Death to the False Emperor” rule) then the Titan might have fallen.
Let’s get to the playtest and I will let my friend Chuck Loney describe how each match went. He also took the photos and ran the Knight for the playtest.
Hello friends, the coming of 8th Edition has everyone excited and wanting to play with the new rules. Sadly, we have almost another month before we get our grubby mitts on them and, for the time being, we have to get by with the scraps that GW has thrown our way. We were able to piece together enough of the rules (with a bit of fudging here and there to fill in the blanks) to play a Knight Titan versus Rubric Marines.
The first match had the Titan vs 15 Rubric Marines in one squad with one soul reaper and two warp flamers. I decided to hold back and fire the Titan’s thermal cannon into the group to weed them out for the first two turns. This gave the Rubric Marines time to put a bit of damage on the Titan. However, having a starting pool of 24 meant I did not have to worry too much about the occasional wound or three. On the third turn, I charged forward ready to crush the remaining marines under the Titan’s massive steel boot. The Titan must have been superstitious because it spent most of the remaining turns refusing to charge over the Imperial Aquila while the enemy sat right on the other side putting fresh holes into it. Finally, on the last turn, it rolled over a three for its charge and laughed with glee as it smashed the remaining Rubrics.
The second match had ten Rubrics running in two squads of ten with a soul reaper and a warp flamer each. Again, I held back and waited for the right time to charge forward (right after the marines crossed that damn aquila!). I managed to weaken the first squad to six men before charging in and killing three more. The marines then backed off and allowed the second squad to shoot up the Titan. I took the opportunity to charge into the second squad with devastating results, killing five marines and having two more run. Holding to form, the marines backed up allowing the other squad to get their licks in. At this point the game was all but won by the Titan who hunted the remaining marines in the next two turns.
The final battle saw twenty Rubrics in one squad with two soul reapers and two warp flamers. The Titan’s thermal cannon warmed up and proceeded to turn twelve marines into ash over the first two turns. The remaining eight put up a bit of a struggle but they were swept up in the following rounds of close combat.
The three games took just under three hours in total. This included set up and taking pictures. Even though we did not have all the rules, it did allow us to a peek into the shift that the game seems to be taking.
Not needing to mess with templates sped up the gameplay significantly. We spent less time counting models and more time rolling dice which allowed us to speed through the games. Even though all three games ended badly for the Rubric Marines, they did not go down without a fight. The Titan ended with a decent amount of damage done to it. The first game where the Rubrics had the most time to fire on it (blasted aquila!!!) brought it down to seven wounds. The damage they put on the Titan felt right and they did not wound too much. When they did wound, however, they normally left a bruise. Having so many wounds allowed the light gunfire to count without it being something the vehicle needs to worry about in small number. So, the Rock-Paper-Scissors play is still there but it is not so absolute that your anti-infantry squad is not hosed when they fight a tank, just mostly hosed.
Overall, playing these quick games just got me excited for the release. I cannot wait!!
Rubrics preparing for battle
We are coming for you!
The Knight lines up his shots
“Stupid aquila! Outta my way!”
“Oh, you stay right there … I got some fire for you!”
“I have got you in my sights!”
Our worst fear, close combat
“He is crushing us sir, what do we do!!!???”
The Knight looms about the city
Maybe we can hit him in waves
“Ha, back away!”
“We have got him right where we want him!”
The games were fast, furious, and fun. Most were done in under a half hour each. Everything felt like it should: appropriately punchy yet still survivable. Prepare to have models come off the table but you will be enjoying yourself the whole time. June 17th cannot get here quick enough. Have a good one and, as always, have FUN!!!
Latest 8th Edition News & Rumors from Games Workshop
