These new Tau Stormsurge Pulse Blastcannon 40 rules could theoretically kill a 24 wound model in one turn…
GW is not messing around with the new Tau rules! Talk about “fire for effect”, if you were hoping for Tau to get some serious firepower their new 40k codex, it looks like GW heard you!
Warhammer Community unveiled the new rules today for the gun along with a stratagem and special Stormsurge ability.
Let’s first look at what we know about the codex then hop into the new rules.
New Tau 9th Edition Codex Cover
It’s about to get even better with Codex: T’au Empire on the way early next year. How early? We’ll get to that, but it’s close enough that we’ve been able to get some markerlights trained on the cover so you can see the beautiful art right now. Codex: T’au Empire will arrive in early 2022, and with the Genestealer Cults and Adeptus Custodes codexes also landing in the same period.
We’ll see how they do the release, but we expect there will be Darkstrider, new Pathfinder kits, etc. Still, with how strange the releases have been, we’ll have to see.
Either way, it’s good to have this confirmed for all Tau players out there! As of right now, it looks like the Darkstrider is going to be the only ‘new’ mini they get, but there there are plenty of new Tau rules changes on the way for Warhammer 40k.
The New Tau Stormsurge Pulse Blastcannon Rules are Super Spicy!
While this doesn’t ignore basically every save in the game as the new Railgun does, it does get 2 shots at Strength 16, and not that it’s a big deal, it deals 12 Damage with each shot!
Acting rather like a colossal shotgun, the pulse blastcannon can lob its payload over long ranges, but it really shines when concentrating its immense power into a close-range blast. Although it lacks the shield-busting power of the Hammerhead railgun’s hypersonic slugs, with a whopping Strength 16, it will still wreak plenty of havoc on even the sturdiest targets – Knights or even Titans included.
Either way, you shoot this thing it’s going to deal damage. Somehow, it almost feels better to play against because at least you can take your Invulnerable saves. So that’s something… However, if you fail any of your saves, get ready to take basically any model off the table!
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Then, the other mode of fire is still insanely strong and will be perfect for taking out things like bikes and high would unit-type models. Still, this has the ability to deal 24 wounds in either form! Plus at Strength 16, it will wound almost everything on 2’s.
Crazy!
When you have enough firepower at your disposal to terrify Imperial Knights, you’ll want to make sure that your shots hit. The Earth Caste couldn’t agree more, and Stormsurges are thus equipped with retractable anchors to absorb the massive recoil. By deploying these in lieu of moving, pilots can significantly improve their accuracy.
Ah, then you’ll get to re-roll all your missed hits, so while you give up maneuverability, you will be re-rolling everything. Some pretty insane stuff overall! It doesn’t stop there though, no, no…
New Stratagem
Such a large war machine is naturally a big target on the battlefield, so no expense has been spared protecting it from enemy fire. Improvements to its Toughness, Wounds, and Save join a built-in shield generator, while a total redesign of the counterfire defence system now unlocks a powerful Stratagem that nullifies attacks before they even reach the armoured shell.
Well, one thing we said about the new Hammerhead is that it might be super easy to kill, doesn’t look the same for the Stormsurge as it’s getting better toughness, save, and a shield generator as well.
Then, you can just change any weapon’s damage to 1, so if you thought you would take this down with Lascannons or such, not so fast. Heck, it looks like this strat will work for more than just the Stormsurge too!
Here’s all the latest on the upcoming rules updates and points changes for Warhammer 40k.
- RUMORS: New 40k Points Changes In Chapter Approved 2022
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- New 40k Chapter Approved GT 2022 Missions
- New 40k Grand Tournament 2022 Secondary Objectives
- Warhammer 40k Balance Updates & Rules Changes
- All The Tau 40k Rules So Far
- New Chaos Space Marines Rules & Rumors
- Eldar Release Rules & Rumors
- Adeptus Custodes 40k Release Latest
- Genestealer Cults 40k Rules & Rumors
- 7 New Warhammer Models In New Years Day 2022 Preview
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What do you think about the new Tau Stormsurge rules?
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About the Author: Travis Pasch
Travis Pasch
Job Title: Head Writer & Editor
Joined: 2019
Socials: @paschbass
Bio: Dark Eldar Dracon and Warhammer 40k hobbyist since the third edition in 1998. He also loves camping because you can only paint so much! He joined the Spikey Bits team in 2019 and has been the main daily writer since 2020.
Maybe one day, he’ll finish converting all his Ad Mech models and turn into a true tech enjoyer, complete with sad and happy robot noises!
