Get those vocal cords ready to keep the name of the Emperor flowing with the new Sisters of Battle Hymns of Battle 40k rules!
Warhammer Community just unveiled how the new mechanic will work and who can use them. They only previewed two of them, but there will be six to choose from in the full codex. The hymns can be sung by the Dialogus, Missionaries, and the Dogmata, so you should have plenty of minis on the table to make use of these.
Before we jump into the hymns, let’s check out the Morvenn Vahl rules GW put out in the last Battle Sister Bulletin.
Morvenn Vahl Statline & Warsuit
Morvenn Vahl is one of the youngest Battle Sisters to ever occupy the position of Abbess Sanctorum, the supreme commander of the Adepta Sororitas. Chosen by the Ecclesiarch in the vain hope of securing a malleable and inexperienced pawn, Vahl instead took to her appointment with the faith and zeal that had served her well in the Celestant order.
She will be the highest-profile character available to the Sisters, so she should really kick some butt on the tabletop and give all kinds of auras.
Ever a warrior first and administrator second, Vahl strides the battlefields of the 41st Millennium clad in Purgator Mirabilis, the finest warsuit of its kind and an ancient relic restored to glory by the Fabricator General of Mars himself.
Her statline is pretty decent, especially when she sits there with 8 wounds, so she will be very durable but hard to target. Also with S and T 5 she will deal some decent damage and be pretty durable.
Not only does she have a 4+ Invuln, but she also gets a 4+ ignore for Mortals, meaning even things like Smite will be hard to ping off her wounds. On top of all of that, she halves the damage coming in from attacks, so she should be very durable on the battlefield.
Weapons
The suit itself plays host to a destructive missile launcher of the sort usually found only on much larger vehicles, while the Abbess strikes down her enemies with a gigantic relic power spear named the Lance of Illumination.
If you’re up against a big unit of infantry, the sweeping blow will give her ten attacks, hitting on 2’s, at Strength 5, -2 AP. Unfortunately, these only do one damage, but if you’re against things with 1 wound, this can dish out serious damage. When you need to cut through bigger stuff, she will be attacking 5 times at S 8, -3 AP, and D3. Also if you get lucky, you can get through some mortal wounds as well on 6’s.
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Again, she has the option to mow down infantry or hit hard against the bigger stuff. This really gives her a ton of uses and lets her be taken in almost any army.
Auras
Despite her preference for getting stuck into the fiercest fights around, Morvenn Vahl is every bit the taciturn commander her position demands. Her fellow Battle Sisters rally around the glorious golden figure of her warsuit and fight with superhuman ferocity, knowing that their supreme commander is every bit as ready to lay down her life for the God-Emperor as they are.
If you’ve played against a reroll to hit and wound, you know how strong that really is! The second buff is cool because you only have to start that unit within the 6″ in the command phase. So you can start a unit close and then move away and still get the buffs.
Now with those out of the way, let’s check out the Hymns.
Codex Sisters of Battle Hymns of Battle 40k Rules
Every Priest in your army can intone a hymn they know during your Command phase. If it’s inspiring, your army dances to the beat, earning some form of bonus. For example, want to make your bolt weapons sing a song of sweet death that will really get stuck in their head? Chant the Catechism of Repugnance.
Both of the bonuses of this are pretty sweet! Not having to roll a wound can make your normal bolters get through some seriously tough enemies much easier. On top of that, if you’re in half range, you will get to rapid-fire and have an additional AP. This means your bolters can dish out some serious damage.
Alternatively, if you’re up against an army of infernal witches, such as Magnus the Red and his cadre, you might want some protection from their warp-spawned magics. Have your Priests lead a rousing Chorus of Spiritual Fortitude to drown them out.
If you need to keep a certain unit from psychic powers, then this is the way to go. It will remove all debuffs from them and keep them safe through your next turn. Meaning in a sense they could get protected from two powers.
They only showed the two for now, but we assume each model may not be able to know all six. So you will probably have to decide before the game which you need for that each one perhaps?
What do you think about the way the hymns work? Do you like the 2 previewed 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!
