Warp Rift Cover

Issue 40 | July 2023

Foreword
Issue 40?!? And it features many tentacles. THE RULES HUB:
[Link]
Who would have believed that! Issue 40 of Warp Rift is upon all of you. Thanks again for Here you will find all and everything rules related from official and unofficial fan
the nice comments on previous issues and continuous support for this community sources. But also, a digital starter kit, tokens, PDF sheets, markers and all the old
efforts. magazines.

Last months have seen the release of the 10th edition of Warhammer 40k, bringing us BATTEFLEET GOTHIC DISCORD
the fourth Tyrannic War. The background story introduces us to the Solblade fleet and [Link]
in this issue, you’ll read about how I think these are best translated into Battlefleet Join this great discord to talk about Battlefleet Gothic!
Gothic.
WARP RIFT DISCORD
Furthermore, we have the last two winners of the Facebook character competition. All [Link]
in all, an inspiring competition this was with a lot of fun ideas and stories by the A small dedicated discord for this very Warp Rift ezine!
participants.
If you want to submit articles or just ask something the best way is to join the
And to have some more Tyranids going around Italianmoose and Farathorn have a 750 Discord or sent me a mail at: horizonmcr@[Link]
points battle report for us between the Imperial Navy and the Tyranids.
Battlefleet Gothic also has a presence on Reddit, Instagram, Dakkadakka,
And from the game of Darktide BleachHawk, master of kit bashes, brings us the Yaktribes, Mastodon and Facebook (the last one is without me). So, check those
Mourningstar as a Ship of Legend. out as well.

And of course, this issue sees a return of Moose Musings and Double’s Hobby Insights! Cover page by BleachHawk
The hand drawn art on pages 8 and 13 are from Kharneth, the ones on the page 10,
Have fun! 11and 14 are from Wintermans.
Horizon The cover page of Stellar Wars is by The NoMercian, check his Instagram here:
[Link]
Index
What we have for you in this issue of Warp Rift? Have a good article? A scenario you want to share? A story to tell? Tactics?
Nice ships? Remarks? Anything?
❖ Ships of Legend! (Page 4) The Mourningstar by BleachHawk
Contact me and we’ll get it into a next issue of Warp Rift.
❖ New rules & scenarios: Solblades. (Page 6) Dive into the fourth Tyrannic War!
You can find me at the Warp Rift Discord, BFG Discord, Reddit
❖ Battle Report: Tyrannic War! (Page 20) From Italianmoose and Farathorn: can (horizon_fleet), Instagram (horizonmcr), [Link]/forum,
the Imperial Navy stop the Tyranid Hivefleet? yaktribe (horizon) and dakkadakka (horizon).
Or mail me at horizonmcr@[Link]
❖ Campaigning through the stars: Tau (Page 25) Fr05ty kicks of his series of
campaign additions! BFG Discord: [Link]
Warp Rift Discord [Link]
❖ Facebook Character Ship Competition Winner series. (Pages 17 and 31)
The last two categories You can download previous issues of Warp Rift here:
[Link]
❖ Stellar War over Meroe (page 34) short story by Captain Ardias
From the Nexus Publishing House:
Double’s Hobby Insights (page 36) Warp Rift is not endorsed, nor does it endorse, Games Workshop, and it is not an official
❖ Ork Advanced Starter Kit Fleet. publication of Games Workshop. Any words, phrases or images are used without
permission and no challenge is intended as a result of such a usage, including the use of
these words, phrases and images without the appropriate symbols of copyright.
Moose’Musings (Page 46)
Additionally, these pages – including content, design and images – are copyright (except
❖ The Avenger, torpedo bombers and commerce raiders update
where copyright should infringe other such rights). Licensed names, images and logos are
copyright their respective companies or authors. No part of these pages may be
Solblade Extras ‘borrowed’ or reproduced, and no articles or rules should be considered ‘official in any
❖ From page 48 on: gallery, swarm base diagram and paper cutouts way.
The Mourningstar 60 Points She may also be interesting to use in a custom scenario or you
is the vessel of the Rogue Trader Shipmistress Brahms. It is could try her out in the Privateer setting from Fanatic Magazine
from there that Inquisitor Grendyl and his warband operate to 02 and Fanatic Magazine 07 where she might be a more
assist in containing the heretical Nurgle-worshiping decisive asset.
‘Admonition’ cult festering in Tertium, the capital city of Atoma
Prime. I hope you like this little addition and I’d love to hear from
A variant of the Firestorm-class from the Imperial Navy, it is anyone using it in a game!
considered a Frigate class ship. BleachHawk

Today, coming from the videogame Darktide, we have the

Mourningstar. I really like the game's setting and atmospheric
environments and of course, the ship serving as the player hub.
Aboard the Mourningstar there are quest givers, merchants
and so on and the players, starting out as convicts and then
serving as inquisitorial operatives, start their missions to fight
the vile chaos cult on Atoma Prime from here. Type/Hits Speed Turns Shields Armour Turrets

Escort/1 25cm 90º 1 5+ 2

Having a small and discreet escort, rather than an inquisitorial
cruiser was interesting to me as well and soon I thought about
Armament Range/Speed Firepower/Str Fire Arc
kitbashing my own miniature of it.
I built it from a Firestorm and a Sword (both recasts as the Prow Torpedoes 30cm 2 Front
amount of cutting and rasping would have been a pain with
Weapon Batteries 30cm 2 Left/Front/Right
original pewter), a converted bridge from Battlefleet Galaxy
and random bitz. Launch Bay Assault boats: 30cm 1 -

Roll for the leadership of the Mourningstar on the Imperial Navy table.
When that was done, a natural follow-up were rules for BFG. Shipmistress Brahms grants +1 to the rolled value, as well as one re-roll that may be used on
Seeing as the ship is a humble frigate and her mission is strike- leadership tests of the Mourningstar.
team operations, rather than fleet actions, the rules had to
reflect that, and I realize she might not be something to write The Mourningstar applies +1 to her Hit and Run attacks.
home about in a game of BFG. Well maybe, if you can make her
single-wave assault boats count. The Mourningstar may be taken as part of an Inquisition, Imperial Navy or Rogue Trader
fleet and may be fielded alone or as part of an escort squadron.

5
The Solblades of Terra Well known Solblade commanders are for example Chapter fanatics and flagellants. As a result of this, the Adepta Sororitas
Master Kayvaan Shrike of the Raven Guard and Epistolary Solblades were noted for being the most zealous and containing
Drakht of the Necropolis Hawks the largest fleets
The Fourth Tyrannic War began in M42, when the largest
invasion of Leviathan yet began after it invaded the Western
Reaches of Segmentum Pacificus. This was done by three The Adepta Sororitas also sent many Solblades, with the Convent Other forces of the Imperium sent their own Solblades as well.
separate massive tendrils, which the Imperium named Nautilon, Prioris on Terra sending numerous Canonesses and Palatines to This included the Astra Militarum and Adeptus Custodes, with
Promethor and Grendyllus. command them. Those dispatched from Prioris were drawn from Captain-General Valoris commanding one, aboard the Manifest
many Orders, including the Ebon Chalice, Argent Shroud and Judgement, himself. The Knight Houses also took part and House
Sacred Rose. Though they often drew other warriors of faith to Taranis supplied a score of Barons to command their Solblades,
When the true extent of the threat the tendrils posed was
them, which included the Black Templars and shiploads of with each containing a lance of their Imperial Knights.
discovered, the Imperium began a massive mobilising of its
forces to stop them. However, this would take time, as the vast
majority of the forces sent would be Astra Militarum Regiments.
However, the Imperium's more elite armies could attack at once
though and most of these strike forces were organised into
Solblades, which were named after their commanders. Besides
being told which tendril to attack, the Solblades were given huge
strategic autonomy, but often numbered no more than two or
three warships in each fleet.

Though because of their small sizes and low manpower, the

Solblades were forced to utilise hit-and-run tactics against the
massive Nautilon and Promethor tendrils. The Imperium hoped
however that despite this, the Solblades would be able to move
more swiftly against the tendrils, than larger Imperial
formations that might become entangled amidst the Xenos'
swarms.
Many of the Solblades that were deployed, often came from
Space Marine Chapters whose commanders were either
Captains, Lieutenants, Librarians, Chaplains or in a rare few
cases even Dreadnoughts. Their fleets and military forces were
drawn from their commanders' Chapter and typically centred
around a Strike Cruiser or squadron of frigates. Some would also
include forces from other Chapters, the Deathwatch and even
from the Militarum Tempestus.
7
Introduction The third step was to create some engaging scenarios for this
setting. While the classic blockade run or perhaps the Bait
would still work, we wanted to reflect the big swarm effect of
As the tenth edition of Warhammer 40,000 introduced us to Tyranids and the elite action the Solblades needed to
the fourth Tyrannic war, the largest attack yet, I was really accomplish. In this first article we have two scenarios which
captivated by small elite squadrons trying to disrupt the hopefully bring some new fun into your games!
masses of the Tyranid Hivefleet. To reflect this in Battlefleet
Gothic this required some adjusting to the setting. Usually, one It is also noteworthy that you can play these games solo using
would see fleets of equal point values pitched against each the solitary rules by Italianmoose as found in Warp Rift 37.
other or at most that a fleet half the size of the opponent should
try to do a blockade run for example but trying to design a And, yes, I mentioned the first article. Over the coming issues
scenario of a single strike cruiser and a frigate against a fleet of we hope to add four more dedicated scenarios, add special
1500 points was something different! characters for the Solblades and new special Tyranid bio
vessels!
The first bit I wrote were the Solblade fleets themselves;
adjusting the approach a little in how to select the ships I And especially on the latter we would like to receive input from
settled for rather straightforward one with a limited ship you! If you have an idea, please let us know and we might get
selection. The key being using the upgrades as they are them into the Solblade setting!
presented.
With that I also realised I needed some new-old rules to reflect And I really appreciate receiving feedback on the following set
the nature of these missions. From the old Fanatic Privateer of rules!
article by Matt Keefe, I copied the rules for damaged escorts
and from an old working file from the Khareshi Expanse I Note: for those people who like to try these rules but do not have
added the Silent Running rules. the miniatures I have added paper cutout models at the end of
this issue of Warp Rift.
Secondly it was time for the Tyranid fleet. A major concern was
the fact that if I have a single ship on one side but thirty ships
Also: yes, these games are between 250 of Imperial assets versus
on the Tyranid side; the downtime for the Solblade player
1500 points of Tyranids!
would be significant. In order to go around this I had the idea of
the classic movement tray, as I called it now the Swarm Base.
With excellent input and help from DoublebaseFanatic we
think that we created a good addition to the Tyranid rules in
using these swarm bases. Some things need a little adjusting
and even the Instinctive behaviour chart saw an extra step.

8
Special Rules – the Solblade Fleets Damaged Escorts
Well prepared Solblades often consisted of frigates without a capital ship.
Due to the nature of their missions and great cunning Solblade With these desperate missions we must consider the possibility
vessels do not need to take a leadership test when not shooting that escort vessels are able to go on fighting past the point at
at the nearest target. which in larger battles they would be considered entirely out of
action. When an escort vessel suffers a hit which would destroy
it, roll a dice and consult the chart below:
Escorts & Squadrons
Due to the smaller battles represented by these Solblade
1-3 Out of Action! The vessel is destroyed, or if not suffers
scenarios, we can assume that escorts are occasionally forced
such great damage that its crew cannot possibly hope to
to operate alone, rather than in their customary squadrons.
continue the fight and must turn all their attention to saving
Escorts may operate alone and there is no need to maintain
their own lives. Leave the model on the table and place a
squadron coherency. Escort vessels outside of coherency may
blastmarker in base contact. The ship will drift 5cm in a
each do their own Special Orders using the squadron’s
random direction at the start of following movement turns. In
leadership value.
the end phase roll a D6: on a ‘1’ the ship becomes lost beyond
salvage and is considered destroyed; remove the miniature
Teleport Attacks from the table and replace it with a blastmarker.
In the setting of Solblades Imperial escort vessels may conduct
teleport attacks as well. The restriction that only vessels of 4-5 Damage Control. The valiant crew struggle to bring raging
lesser hit points may be attacked is ignored. fires under control, hastily repairing damaged systems. Leave
the ship model on the table. At the start of its next Movement
Attack Craft phase, move the ship directly forwards by a distance equal to
Solblades have somewhat limited supplies and need to treat half its speed. After moving the ship, roll again on this chart
their attack craft with care. Per launch bay the Solblade has a adding +1. This bonus is not cumulative, so only a single +1
pool of attack craft available: each launch bay carries three bonus applies, no matter how many damage control results an
squadrons (markers) of each type they have available. escort may roll during a game.
If a marker is shot down by enemy spores roll a further D6: on
a roll of 1-3 it is removed from the pool. On a 4-6 it manages to 6 Battles On! A heroic effort by the ship's crew allows it to
make its way back to the carrier. fight on through the damage. Place an additional Blast marker
on the ship's base to represent the difficulty of operating such a
Note: this roll is only made after interaction with spores, thus damaged vessel, but otherwise the escort remains in the game
not after an interaction with enemy ordnance. and can be used as normal.

9
Silent Running Ordnance under silent running
Any ship can opt to run silent; a command check is not When a Solblade has launched ordnance and goes into silent
necessary. The player decides this at the start of his movement running while the ordnance is still on the table the player must
phase before special orders are given. This means that they decide what happens after the attack craft made an interaction
cannot be targeted unless detected or if they shoot, move, with Tyranid ordnance or ships:
launch ordnance or do anything. Stay on the gaming board but if they are intercepted after an
attack run, they will be lost for the remainder of the game.
If a ship is running silent from a previous turn the owning Deduct the number of lost attack craft from the ordnance pool.
player may make them fully active at the start of any Return to the ship per usual but silent running is deactivated.
subsequent movement phase.
If the ordnance has yet to make contact, it can elect to stay on
A ship on silent running has its shield value reduced to zero. the field until an interaction happens.
Furthermore, it cannot perform Special Orders, nor can it shoot
or initiate any action towards an enemy ship. Solblade Leadership
Instead of the usual movement, due the engines being turned Space Marine Strike Cruiser, Nova and Gladius frigates use the
off, the ship drifts 10cm forwards (using its previous heading. standard Space Marine leadership table. The Adeptus
The ship will interact with celestial phenomena as usual. Mechanicus light cruisers use the standard Adeptus
Mechanicus leadership table.
Enemy ships cannot target a vessel which has silent running
activated. Tyranids on instinct behaviour do not sense a ship on Imperial Navy and Adeptus Sororitas table
a silent running, keep this in mind when applying the chart. use the standard Imperial Navy table
However, whenever a Tyranid due movement comes within with a +1 modifier to the
10cm (at the end of its or the Imperial movement) of a vessel dice roll.
running silent the ship is detected and Tyranids may move
towards it using the chart.
A Tyranid Hiveship will sense any Imperial vessel within 20
cm.

When a Solblade has fired upon or otherwise engaged with a

Tyranid creature, and it decides to go on silent running the
following turn the Hivemind still has a sense where the
Solblade is. On a successful 2D6 leadership test, the Hivemind
leadership may be used if in range), the Tyranid squadron or
ship may move into the direction of the Solblade vessel. In the
second turn after the leadership is done on a 3D6. From a third
10
turn on they return to normal behaviour.
Solblades Solblade Command Solblade Upgrades
Solblade fleets have access to following vessels. Speed and Each Solblade vessel may choose from these command options. Each Solblade vessel may choose from this upgrade list.
Manoeuvrability being a key factor with these.
Space Marine 25 points Deathwatch 10 points
Space Marine Strike Cruiser 145 points Often Solblades are under command of veteran Space A vessel with Deathwatch members rolls an additional dice
upgrades may be taken; no restriction on variants; may only Marine captains or members of the honour guard. A vessel when attempting a teleport attack or joining a boarding
be taken if Solblade is under Space Marine command. which embarks these battle-hardened veterans has a attack: on a roll of 5+ they inflict an additional point of
Leadership value of 10. When participating in a hit & run damage.
Adeptus Sororitas Priory Class 150 points attack roll 2 dice and apply the highest result. In a boarding
may take any of the variants; may only be taken if Solblade is action they may re-roll the dice roll, second roll stands. May Dreadnought 25 points
under Adeptus Sororitas Command. be taken once for each vessel in the Solblade list. These ancient venerated beings grant a further +2 in
boarding actions. Furthermore, they will inflict an extra
Adeptus Mechanicus Light Cruiser 130 points Space Marine Epistolary 10 points point of damage in a boarding action on a roll of 4+.
Defiant, Endeavour and Endurance are available, must take A Space Marine Epistolary grants a re-roll to the vessel he is
the Advanced Engine Upgrade (included in cost); may only be embarked on. May be taken in addition to other Tempestus Shock Troops 10 points
taken if Solblade is under Adeptus Mechanicus command commanders. Battle hardened, when opponents try to board this vessel, or
they get a -1 modifier on the dice roll.
Dauntless Class Light Cruiser 110 points Veteran Captain 10 points
torpedo or lance variant are available. A veteran captain grants a further +1 leadership to the ship. Black Templars 10 points
This is an upgrade to the Space Marine Command (which
Adeptus Sororitas Chapel Class 100 points Adeptus Sororitas Canoness 15 points must be taken first and be on the same ship. If embarked
may take any of the variants; may only be taken if Solblade is When a canoness is embarked on a vessel that ship may Black Templars use the same rule as the Adeptus Sororitas
under Adeptus Sororitas Command. bring up to three Armed Cargo vessels [20], Fireships [10] Canoness to attract zealot flagellants.
or Transports [10] on top of the scenario restriction to a
Nova Class Frigate 050 points maximum of 100 points. These flagellants have a standard
leadership of 6.
Gladius Class Frigate 045 points
Magos Explorator 15 points
Firestorm Class Frigate 040 points When a Magos is aboard a vessel that vessel may roll one
extra repair dice in the end phase. On an escort vessel the
out-of-action dice roll gets a +1 modifier. If on an Adeptus
Sword Class Frigate 035 points
Mechanicus cruiser the repair dice may be used on another
vessel within 10cm.

11
Tyranid Special Rules
The Tyranids use the standard rules from the Battlefleet Gothic
Remastered Fleetbook. Except for the changes noted below.

Instinctive Behaviour
In the chart we replace step 7 with the following:
Is there a planet on the table?
-> YES: No special order. If there is a planet on the table, the
ship/squadron must end its movement closer to it if
possible. Otherwise move at half speed straight ahead.
-> NO: No special order. The ship/squadron will start
circling around the nearest Hiveship. Move them closer to a
Hiveship if possible, when at 15cm turn towards an abeam
angle to the Hiveship.

Fleet selection
For each Hiveship a squadron of 6 to 12 Escort drones must be
taken. Furthermore, each Hiveship may include 1-12 Kraken or
Vanguard Escorts in the fleet.
From this pool of escort vessels (kraken and vanguard), the
squadrons are formed. Squadrons may be from size 3 to 12.

Evolution of the Hive Mind

As a default, evolutions for the Hivemind are not allowed.
However, if both players agree they can be added. Just keep it
in character (don’t give all speed boosts in a scenario that calls
for speed).

12
Tyranid Swarms Moving & Shooting with swarm bases Ordnance from and versus swarm bases
In games with Solblades the player commanding the Solblade The stem in the centre of the swarm base is used for When a swarm launches boarding torpedoes, the marker must
will only have a single of a few ships under his command. measurements per usual. Thus, if the centre stem is in weapon be in the front arc as usual. The measurement is done from the
However, the Tyranid player most likely have many ships at range the whole swarm is targeted. Blastmarkers are placed middle stem in the first ordnance phase.
their disposal! around the base per usual and affect all escorts on the swarm For firing boarding torpedoes, they count as being in based
base (yes, even the ones in the back). contact and must combine their strength value of the boarding
To speed things a little up and not have the Solblade player for torpedoes into a single wave.
a long time the Solblade rule set introduces Swarm bases. A When one of the Tyranid escorts is killed, lower the dice value
swarm base can have a diameter of 120mm; a base of 120mm accordingly. You can remove miniatures at convenience. If you When enemy ordnance attacks a swarm base the interaction
represents a squadron of 2-6 escort vessels. Thus, if you have a are under half strength having less than 3 miniatures on the starts when the base is touched. A single escort is attacked, and
12 strong escort squadron you will need two swarm bases. base is easy referencing. it gains +3 spores (turrets) from the massing turrets rules. If
Using a swarm base does change a couple of things regarding When shooting with a swarm measure from the middle stem: the swarm strength drops below 4 adjust the massed spores
escort squadrons: ALL escorts, the whole swarm, will shoot if the target is in per usual.
range.
Swarm strength Boarding and Hit & Run attacks
On top of the base is room for six actual miniatures. Place a dice Measurement for moving is also done from the middle stem. When boarding with (or against) a swarm base all escorts in
on the base to show how many escorts are in the swarm. the swarm will take part in the boarding action.
Massive Claws The middle stem must reach the vessel being boarded. Replace
A swarm may not have mixed weaponry, so all escorts have the When the middle stem of the swarm base touches the enemy the middle miniature with the
same loadout on a single swarm base. base all Massive Claws attacks are resolved. Usually, an enemy poor enemy vessel for as long as
vessel is latched onto if two or more massive claw attacks are the boarding action takes place.
If you have two swarm bases belonging to the same squadron successful, however for a swarm base more than half of the
these will benefit from the same leadership dice-rolls for massive claw attacks must be successful to latch on to the When an opponent attacks the
special orders and other command tests. When calculating enemy vessel. swarm base with a hit & run
firepower for direct weaponry or gunnery table weaponry both If successful, remove the middle Tyranid escort and place the attack (teleport attack for
swarm bases are added together. When launching boarding enemy ship there.
example) the middle stem must
torpedoes two separate swarm bases cannot combine their be within 10 cm and spores
strength, thus fire two separate torpedo waves. Feeder Tentacles
(shields must be down per
Both swarm bases are also treated independently of each other The middle stem must reach the enemy base to let the feeder
usual)
when it comes to Massive Claws, Feeder Tentacles and tentacles… feed.
boarding actions.

See page 60 for a Swarm Base Diagram and on page 61 you’ll find a template to print. Here you can find a STL for the swarmbase to print:
Swarmbase STL 13
For some ease of use we have added a couple of example fleet The Hive’s Swarm The Gathering Hive
lists for the Tyranids.
Hive Ship, Leadership 9 335 points Hive Ship, Leadership 8 310 points
The Pyro-Acid Hivemind’s Fleet Prow Feeder Tentacles & Massive Claws, Thorax Bio-Plasma Prow Pyro-Acid Battery, Thorax Launch Bay, 3x Launch Bay
Discharge, 3x Launch Bay on port/starboard. on port/starboard.
Hive Ship, Leadership 8 305 points Hive Ship, Leadership 8 295 points Hive Ship, Leadership 8 310 points
Prow Pyro-Acid Battery, Thorax Pyro-Acid Battery, 3x Pyro- Prow Feeder Tentacles & Massive Claws, Thorax Bio-Plasma Prow Pyro-Acid Battery, Thorax Launch Bay, 3x Launch Bay
Acid Battery on port/starboard. Discharge, 3x Bio-Plasma Discharge on port/starboard. on port/starboard.
Hive Ship, Leadership 8 305 points Hive Ship, Leadership 8 310 points
Prow Pyro-Acid Battery, Thorax Pyro-Acid Battery, 3x Pyro- Escort Drones 90 points Prow Pyro-Acid Battery, Thorax Launch Bay, 3x Launch Bay
Acid Battery on port/starboard. Six drones with Feeder Tentacles on port/starboard.
Escort Drones 90 points
Razorfiend 130 points Six drones with Feeder Tentacles
Prow Torpedoes. Thorax Torpedoes, 2x Pyro-Acid Battery on Razorfiend 130 points
port/starboard Vanguard Drones 150 points Prow Pyro-Acid Battery. Thorax Torpedoes, 1x Bio-Plasma
Razorfiend 130 points Discharge and 1x Pyro-Acid Battery on port/starboard
Six drones with Feeder Tentacles
Prow Torpedoes. Thorax Torpedoes, 2x Pyro-Acid Battery on Vanguard Drones 150 points
port/starboard Escort Drones 90 points
Six drones with Feeder Tentacles
Razorfiend 130 points Six drones with Feeder Tentacles
Prow Torpedoes. Thorax Torpedoes, 2x Bio-Plasma Discharge Escort Drones 90 points
Kraken 210 points
on port/starboard Six drones with Bio-Plasma Discharge
Six Kraken with Massive Claws
Razorfiend 130 points Escort Drones 120 points
Prow Torpedoes. Thorax Torpedoes, 2x Bio-Plasma Discharge Kraken 180 points
Six drones with Pyro-Acid Battery
on port/starboard Six Kraken with Feeder Tentacles

Kraken 70 points
Escort Drones 120 points Two Kraken with Massive Claws
Six drones with Pyro-Acid Battery Kraken 70 points
Escort Drones 120 points Two Kraken with Massive Claws
Six drones with Pyro-Acid Battery

Ordnance 110 points

5x Assault Boats and 10x Fighters

14
The Master Node The Tyranid fleet is feeding upon the planet before moving on.
A tendril of Nautilon engulfed an Imperial planet and is feeding S Tyranid deployment S Every Tyranid squadron and Hiveship must spend one turn on
upon it to strengthen itself for the next push towards Terra; intel O zone O top of the planet before they can move away. Only a maximum
L L
has learned that a master hive node is on the planet. Killing this B B of three squadrons or hiveships can be fed per turn.
L L
creature will cause a setback in the surrounding fleet. Making A A
time a little easier for the nearby systems; even if only a little. D 30cm 15cm D GAME LENGTH
E E The game continues until the Solblade makes a successful
FORCES E E landing or has been destroyed.
N N
The Solblade player may choose up to 250 points. T T
The Tyranid player must choose a fleet of 1500 points. R R VICTORY CONDITIONS
Y Y
The Solblade wins if the drop has been a success. It would be a
BATTLEZONE major victory if the Tyranid fleet failed to reach the feeding
This battle is most likely to take place in the inner or primary threshold.
biosphere of a system. Place one medium sized planet in the The Tyranid fleet wins if the Solblade has been destroyed. For a
SPECIAL RULES
centre of the table. Determine one of the long table edges to be major victory it should feed at least 50% of the total fleet value.
The Solblade must try to reach the planet. If they manage to
the sunward side. Furthermore, place D3-1 asteroid fields and land at least two Thunderhawks or Assault Craft on the planet
D3-1 gas clouds randomly in each 60cm x 60cm quadrant. Campaign ideas
it counts as a win. In order to do so a Solblade vessel must be
Alternatively, you may set up the celestial phenomena in a within the gravity well of the planet and launch the attack craft; Solblades can also be part of a regular campaign, tree campaign
mutual agreeable fashion. in the ordnance phase they must reach the planet's edge. or narrative campaign. As an idea you can use the successful
rounds of feeding as a bonus for the Tyranid fleet in the
For gaming purposes, the Solblade keeps two attack craft on
SET-UP following game.
standby to be launched: there is no Reload Ordnance needed to
The Solblade enters from either one of the short table edges. activate these. Or, if you like to play Kill Team, boarding actions or
The Tyranid fleet is set up around the planet, in a perimeter If the Solblade has no attack craft, drop pods are being used Warhammer 40,000k you can let the number of successful
between 30 cm and 45 cm away from the planet’s edge. The which have the same in-game effect. A capital ship has two Thunderhawk landings or drop pods have an effect in those
creatures are abeam to the planet. drop pods, an escort one drop pod. To be successful with these games.
the ship has to touch the planet template.
FIRST TURN Then the Solblade needs to roll a dice: on a 4+ the landing has You could also extend the game by having the goal that the
The Solblade takes the first turn. been a success. For each attack craft or drop pod above the two Solblade fleet survivor, after completing the hit and run attack,
first the roll for success is lowered by 1. must escape from any table edge.

15
Let them burn! FIRST TURN Campaign ideas
A supernova shockwave has caught a tendril and the Hivemind is The
S Tyranid fleet takes the first turn.
Tyranid deployment S You can also turn this into a running scenario in which the
O O
fleeing the blast. A daring Solblade has the task to destroy the L
zone
L
Tyranid fleet starts in the mercurial zone and must traverse
leading Hiveship so the small creatures are more likely to get SPECIAL
B RULES B each zone until it reaches deep space. The Solblade gets an
caught. L
The shockwave blast enters from turn two on (Tyranid player)A
L attempt at each stage. You may consider starting with a 2500-
A
. the
D short table edge behind the Tyranid fleet.
30cm 15cm It will move 15cm
D point Tyranid fleet!
E E
FORCES onto the table. At the start of each subsequent movement phase
The Solblade player may choose up to 250 points. (both
E players) the shockwave moves 15cm forward. E You could also add the idea that the shockwave moves faster in
The Tyranid player must choose a fleet of 1500 points.
N N the zones closer to the sun and slows down the further away
T T
When
R a creature or ship is caught in the shockwave it is R the zone is. Parallel let the Solblade add reinforcements in the
Y
destroyed (stem counts for measuring). Y Outer Reaches and Deep Space zone.
BATTLEZONE
This battle can take place in any Battlezone. Setup the celestial
phenomena per rulebook. Alternatively, you may set up the Special barrage gunnery: The Solblade vessels may choose
celestial phenomena in a mutual agreeable fashion. each turn to fire a barrage instead of their usual weapon
batteries. For a capital ship, place a blastmarker up to 15 cm
SET-UP away, within the respective arc, per point of weapon battery
The Tyranid fleet starts up to 30 cm away from a Short table strength. Escorts will place two blastmarkers per vessel up to
edge. 15 cm away.
The Solblade enters from either one of the long table edges. These blastmarkers may not overlap or touch each other.
Furthermore, these blastmarkers cannot be removed in the
SOLBLADE ENTRY following endphase, in every endphase after they can be
removed like a regular blastmarker.

GAME LENGTH
The game continues until either the Tyranid fleet has been
30cm destroyed or escaped.
Tyranid deployment
zone
VICTORY CONDITIONS
The Tyranid fleet wins if it manages to escape the shockwave
with at least 50% of its fleet value.
The Solblade wins if they can prevent this.
SOLBLADE ENTRY

16
Facebook
Character Ship
Competition:
Community Choice
Image by Kharneth
 The Auct by BleachHawk

A Cradle in the Dark To make up for the lack of heavily armed vessels, the house Meanwhile the decks below are even more crowded than
tries to travel alongside other fleets whenever possible. Most Imperial Navy ships. The claustrophobic corridors, lined with
void faring factions gladly accept their company as they are sleep-alcoves and the complex halls full of machinery, working
Among the thousands of Imperial Navigator Houses, there are
second to none in navigating space and warp. Quite a few areas and commercial districts are brimming with lower
some that are no longer a part of the nobility who reside in the
Imperial worlds under attack could be aided in time, because of members of the ship's own society as well as crews of other
Navigator's Quarter of Holy Terra. They might have lost their
the exceptional navigational skills of House Cerephon. currently docked vessels. Visiting fleet officials, traders or
power in a great trade war, slowly fading away to nothingness.
delegations of Imperial worlds have been known to take days,
Or they might have angered the Inquisition - with or without
When and how exactly the Auct was acquired by House trying to make their way up from the vast hangar bays to the
justification - and are being hunted and exterminated. Some
Cerephon and what class of Cruiser it originally resembled is command and ceremony decks.
leave Terra for one reason or the other and form nomadic
fleets. Some say these void born are the most skillful now unclear. Over the centuries it was converted to provide The Auct is the beating heart of House Cerephon's fleet and is
Navigators known to the Imperium. extended repair and logistical capabilities as well as an protected at all cost, trying to avoid any hostile action in the
increased number of secure docking points for smaller vessels first place.
House Cerephon is one such Nomadic Navigator House. It incapable of warp travel.
broke its ties with the Navis Nobilite in late M39 when a small Leading the fleet from Auct's bridge is Syreena Ort, the current
family of a much bigger house was outcast and had to flee from Most weapon systems it once might have had are long gone and Novator. A powerful navigator herself, she has ruled the house
Holy Terra. Against all odds the family managed to survive for replaced with housing units, hydroponic halls, storage spaces, for over 6 decades. Keeping the order between the sects and
over twelve centuries and formed its own house. Roaming fabrication complements and repair bays. The major sects built cunningly negotiating with other factions to keep the house
every Segmentum, providing navigators to Imperial sector and rebuilt extensive palaces along the upper spine to exhibit alive and on its way,
fleets, Rogue Trader dynasties and some even say Renegade or power and backup their own claims to lead the house. for to rest means to die.
Pirate fleets, in exchange for resources, supplies and void ships.
Within the house, many rivaling sects emerged and perished,
making the small fleet a microcosm of its own.

The fleet's core consists of the Auct, a heavily converted

Imperial Cruiser of unknown class and a handful of armed
escorts.
In addition, there is a wide variety of small ships like loading
sloops, lightly armed cutters, repair barges, modified civilian
clippers and so on. Each one not only serving a logistical or
defensive purpose but also housing part of the fleet's sects. At
one point the house also owned a few bigger bulk freighters
and tankers but those have since been lost.

18
 The Auct– 230 Points

Type/Hits
The Auct Speed Turns Shields Armour Turrets
Cruiser/8 20cm 45º 2 5+ 3

Armament Range/Speed Firepower/Str Fire Arc

Starboard Launch Bays Fighters: 30cm 2 -

Prow Weapon Batteries 30cm 5 Left/Front/Right

Port Weapon Batteries 15cm 3 Left

Starboard Weapon Batteries 15cm 3 Right

Novatar: House Cerephon is led by its Novator and powerful Navigator Syreena Ort aboard
the Auct. Syreena Ort has a Leadership of 9 and adds +2 on Leadership tests to disengage the
Auct.

Cradle of the void born: The Auct is the main homestead of House Cerephon. As such it is
excessively crowded and instead of a wide array of weapon systems, the bulk of the ship is
made up of hangars, housing and repair facilities. It suffers a malus of -1 during boarding
The model
actions, but critical damage is repaired on a 5+ instead of a 6. I started by stripping the colours off a second-hand Imperial Cruiser. Using leftovers from another project,
mainly Battleship parts, I started to reshape the spine, bridge and wing sections, making sure to include a
Escort Armada: The ship is always accompanied by a large amount of small void craft. While lot of spires and other vertical bitz. I then replaced the prow with a Helian one from Vanguard Miniatures
most of these vessels are unarmed, some do provide short ranged weapons battery fire as well and used parts from Battlefleet Galaxy to fill in most of the side modules. Finally, I added some tiny
as additional point defence (included in the profile). accompanying ships from aforementioned manufacturers using optical fibre.
In addition, once a game at the end of a friendly movement phase, a Squadron of 2 Sword
Class Frigates OR 2 Falchion Class Frigates may be placed within 30cm of the Auct. Roll on the
standard table for the Squadron Leadership, when it is placed (point cost included in the About me
profile). I’m 37 years old, from Germany and first got into contact with 40k through Space Crusade (or Starquest as
it was called here) around 1993, which featured Spaceships quite prominently. From 2005 to 2008 I was
Note: These rules were written using Smotherman’s Formula as a guide and with Official and involved with BFG and when I came back to it in January of 2021, I was really surprised to find an active
XR rulesets in mind. If your opponent agrees, the Auct may be used with any Imperial and growing community.
(including sub factions) or Chaos fleet list without restriction. The Auct counts as an ally of I've always been very interested in the fringes of 40k lore and the lesser-known Imperial organizations
convenience and is not subject to any faction specific special rules.
specifically, which coincides with my love of converting and kitbashing models. So naturally this project was
a lot of fun to me.

19
 Battle Report
Tyranids vs Imperial Navy

This background image is by Unta Kilat and Kaneko Lumi

An Imperial versus Tyranid battlereport! I had the pleasure of The battlefield:
my friend Farothon visiting from Germany, and he brought his Small planet in the centre near the Imperial deployment area.
magnificent kitbashed Tyranid fleet with him. Two asteroid fields in the Tyranid half on either flank.

This is the report from the first, small, battle. A 750 points
Deployment:
clash, we were pretty free and easy about fleet composition -
Tyranid fleets normally need a lot more escort drones. The Imperial carrier squadron deployed behind the planet to
protect themselves. The Imperial escorts and the Wren
deployed left of them.
The fleets:
Tyranid Hive Fleet
The Tyranid escorts in the main deployed on the flanks, with
Hive ship - Pyro acid, Boarding torpedoes and 3x launch bays -
the cruisers inboard of them and the hive ship in the centre.
315 pts
Razorfiend Cruiser - 2x massive claws and Bio plasma
discharge - 110 pts
2 Vanguard drones - Feeder tentacles - 50 pts
3 Escort drones - Pyro-acid batteries - 60 pts
Razorfiend Cruiser - Feeder tentacles, Massive claws and Pyro-
acid battery - 110 pts
3 Kraken - Massive claws - 105 pts

Imperial Bastion Fleet

Fleet Admiral with one additional re-roll: 75 pts. Aboard the
East Lake
Dictator class cruiser “East Lake”, leadership 6. - 220 pts
Defiant class light cruiser “Sparrow”, leadership 7. - 120 pts
Endeavour class cruiser “Wren”, leadership 7. - 110 pts
3x Firestorms (Victory pattern). Leadership 9. - 120 pts
3x Swords (Mars pattern - previously mothballed). Leadership
8. 105 pts

21
The battle: The firestorm locked in combat was abandoned by its fellow.
The Tyranid ships charged towards the Imperial fleet, the Heavy fire from the Tyranid ships caused major damage to the
asteroid fields not slowing them at all. The Imperial carrier Wren which was also boarded by several escorts.
squadron deployed fighters and swung around the planet,
shielded by the Wren and the escorts, which all locked on.

Tyranid return fire and boarding attempts caused the firestorm

squadron to brace. The Imperial fleet now concentrated its fire
onto the hive ship, overloading its spores and causing
The Imperial fighters nullified the Tyranid ordnance and substantial damage with a torpedo salvo. The escort drones
locked-on fire battered the Tyranid cruisers and forced them to boarded the firestorm squadron, destroying one and locking
brace. One cruiser was crippled. The kraken swept down upon another in combat. The hive ship moved in close to board the
the imperial left flank, one trying to use its massive claws to East Lake, damaging it. Tyranid ships swarmed in behind the
board the Wren which fought off its attack. Another destroyed Imperial fleet.
one of the swords.

22
The crippled Wren with its weapons disabled and Tyranid
bioforms swarming the ship sacrificed itself in a vast explosion
when its captain detonated the plasma drives, destroying most
of the remaining Tyranid escorts, leaving a single escort drone
and a resilient kraken. The engaged firestorm was destroyed
by boarding creatures from the escort drone.

23
 Bio-plasma from one of the Tyranid cruisers destroyed one of Bio-plasma from one of the Tyranid cruisers destroyed one of
The surviving Imperial escorts destroyed the remaining
the two swords while the other cruiser moved in close to the the two swords while the other cruiser moved in close to the
Tyranid escorts and combined fire from the other ships
Imperial carriers. The lone firestorm moved in behind the hive Imperial carriers. The lone firestorm moved in behind the hive
crippled the hive ship. With space superiority the Imperial
ship to take advantage of its instinctive behaviour. The ship to take advantage of its instinctive behaviour. The
attack craft proceeded to ravage the Tyranid capital ships.
surviving sword did the same to one of the cruisers. surviving sword did the same to one of the cruisers.

24
We’ve all been there, getting ready to conquer a new system for Promotions
our race, and suddenly we check the campaign rules only to Your Admiral will surely appreciate being called by their
notice that everything is Imperial-centric. Why would an Ork proper title, but just to make sure that even their enemies
follow an Imperial Admiral’s progression? Why would the Tau know what they are without having to learn the Tau language,
have refits about Geller Fields? This simply can’t stand! we’ve kindly provided you with the translation of said titles.
Throughout this series of articles, I’ll aim to provide you (yes, Tau commanders use the following table for their promotions
even you Imperial admirals) with the full complement of rules during a campaign.
you’ll need to get a race-appropriate experience in your
campaign! From getting the proper Orky way to progress to lead Tau Empire Promotions
a massive, sector-destroying Waaagh! to new appeals for other
Imperial factions and even Tyranid evolutions, we’ll get you Renown Title Ld, notes
sorted! First up in the line is the youngest race in the 40k BFG
landscape, the Tau! 1-5 Kor’Tor’Vre (Commander) Ld 8, 1 re-roll

Tau in a campaign 6-10 Kor’El (Captain) Ld 8, 2 re-rolls

There’s an ideology that shall sweep through the Galaxy and
bring all into the light of civilization and purpose, the Greater 11-20 Kor’Tor’El (Rear Admiral) Ld 9, 2 re-rolls
Good, and its torchbearers are the Tau, beacons of progress in a
Ld 9, 2 re-rolls,
desperate and hostile age! The Greater Good shall not be 21-30 Kor’O (Admiral)
1 crew skill
contained, and here you will get a lore friendly Admiral
progression table, updated refit tables and even a couple of Ld 10, 2 re-rolls,
31-50 Kor’Tor’O (High Admiral)
tables to appeal for support. 1 crew skill
Ld 10, 2 re-rolls,
General rules 51+ Kor’Ar’O (Supreme Admiral)
1 crew skill, 1 refit
Tau follow the usual rules for a campaign, being capable of
behaving as a conquering faction (as the Imperial and Chaos
players are said to be in the original rulebook) or as a pirate
faction (as the Eldar and Ork players are said to be in the
original rulebook), though in both cases that must be
announced when the campaign starts.

26
Refits TAU EMPIRE ENGINE REFIT
The Tau are constantly evolving their technology, producing The ship’s engines are fitted with additional systems or improvements have been made to the power
better and more powerful systems. In the process of generators and energy relays in some fashion. Roll on the following table:
developing technology and field testing it, many ships are
chosen as testbeds for new technology or marked for D6 Roll Engine Refit
improvement. 1 Burst Compensator: A realignment of additional thrusters and refining of the
Gravitic Sheath allow much more control over acceleration at greater speeds. When
The refit tables are for use by any capital ships in a Tau fleet. It on All Ahead Full! Special orders, you may move a distance up to the dice rolled
is not for use by escorts. Ships that cannot use the refit rolled instead of having to move the maximum rolled.
for whatever reason may re-roll the result, such as not being
2 Evasive Jets: The hull of the vessel is studded with powerful short-burn engines
equipped with weapon batteries (or railguns), attack craft, etc.
which allow it to drastically turn to avoid incoming fire. At the start of the enemy
Tau do not have access to the special torpedo refit table, though shooting phase, the ship may take a Leadership test. If it is passed, the ship may
they may use Torpedo Bombers and Orbital Mines. make a single 45° turn immediately. However, the ship may not go on to special
orders during the next turn.

3 Manoeuvring Thrusters: The ship has thrust vanes down the length of the ship
almost looking like scales on a fish. The ship reduces the distance it needs to move
before turning by 5cm.

4 Inertial Arrestors: Decelerators and Inertial compensators have been integrated

onto the hull. When attempting to Burn Retros or Come to New Heading special
orders, the ship may add +1 to its Leadership.

5 Auxiliary Power Relays: The rear of the ship is criss-crossed with additional cables
and pipelines, feeding more power to the engines. The ship gains +5cm to its speed.

6 Navigational Shields: The ship is enveloped in low-frequency shields designed to

shunt aside debris and other impediments as the ship moves. The ship does not
suffer reductions to its speed for moving through Blast markers (this includes gas
and dust clouds and similar effects).

27
TAU EMPIRE SHIP REFIT

The structure of the ship is improved in some way, new equipment is installed, or better Crew Skills
trained or specialised crew members are brought in. Roll on the following table: The Air Caste has adapted to life
in the void of space, but even
D6 Roll Ship Refit among them, there are
1 Improved Sensor Spines: The ship’s assayers and long range surveyors are individuals and crews that
particularly attuned to pick up energy emissions and signals from enemy simply excel at their roles.
ships. When taking Leadership tests to go on to special orders, the ship gains Tau ships may use the table to
+2 for enemy ships on special orders, rather than the normal +1. the left when rolling for Crew
2 Additional Shield Generator: The ship has additional shield generators to
Skills.
deflect incoming shots. The ship gains +1 Shields.

3 Repair Drone Swarm: The ship has repair drones capable of Note from Fr05ty:
working in the hostile environment of vacuum aiding to repairs. The ship
may roll two extra dice in the end phase when attempting to repair damage
unless it is in contact with blast markers.
Hope you enjoy these new
additions for the Tau
4 Crystalline Composite Hull: New materials designed to withstand more campaign experience! Please
punishment are used to replace key bulkheads and entire sections of the Hull let us know any feedback you
giving an almost glistening look in space dock, increasing its damage by 10% have, and yes, Sub-plots will
(rounded up). also come, though at a later
5 Blacksun Filter Comms Net: Emergency communications networks and date!
powerful electromagnetic filters, able to work through extreme disruption Thanks to everyone who has
such as solar radiation and plasma storms. The ship does not suffer -1 contributed to this list!
Leadership for being in contact with Blast markers, furthermore, the ship
doesn’t suffer additional right column shifts due to the effects of Fighting FOR THE GREATER GOOD
Sunward.

6 Decoy Launchers: Decoy launchers are fitted to the ship, launching swarms (horizon note: Fr05ty is on the
of smart decoys that obscure the ship and confuse enemy sensors. Whenever BFG Discord)
the ship takes damage from enemy weapons, you may roll a D6, on a roll of 6
the damage is ignored and no blast marker is placed. You must roll against
each individual hit, and Decoy Launchers work even while braced. Decoy
Launchers have no effect against damage caused by space phenomena.
28
TAU EMPIRE CREW SKILLS TAU EMPIRE WEAPONS REFIT

Over the course of a campaign, a ship’s crew develops experience that only comes from The ship has been upgraded with additional or more sophisticated weapons systems, greatly
serving together in the crucible of war. Roll on the following table: enhancing its battle effectiveness. Roll on the following table:
D6 Roll Skill D6 Roll Weapons Refit
1 Expert Gunnery: The ship’s gun crews are amongst the finest in the whole 1 Tracking Systems: The vessel is equipped with an upgraded computational
empire, able to lay down a devastating barrage. When the ship attempts to suite. The ship gains Tracking Systems with a range of 5cm.
make Lock-On Special Orders, you may roll 3D6 and discard the highest D6
before comparing the roll against the ship’s leadership. 2 Railgun Target Lock: The ship’s railguns are slaved to an advanced targeting
system that locks onto a target and compensates for movement and distance.
2 Skilled Engineers: The crew responsible for running the engines are Railgun batteries receive an additional left shift when firing.
highly adept, able to respond quickly to orders for more or less power.
When the ship attempts All Ahead Full or Burn Retros special orders you 3 Multi Targeter Control: The ship has a direct link between all gunnery crews
may roll 3D6 and discard the highest roll before comparing the score to the and the bridge via a Multi Targeter Control Centre allowing orders for target
ship’s Leadership. allocation to be transferred quickly and efficiently. The ship can always choose
which target to shoot at without requiring a Leadership test (If used in a
3 Adept Trimsman: The officers and crew responsible for the ship’s squadron the whole squadron benefits).
manoeuvring boast that they could get the ship to turn on the head of a pin!
Whenever the ship attempts Come to New Heading special orders you may 4 Additional Auto Loaders: Additional loaders and heavy-duty drones have
roll 3D6 and discard the highest roll before comparing the score to the been assigned to the ships ordnance bays. The ship adds +1 to its Leadership
ship’s Leadership. when attempting Reload Ordnance special orders (re-roll this if the ship has no
ordnance).
4 Excellent Pilots: The ship is famed for the skill of its pilots. The well-timed
attack runs of its bombers can cause horrendous damage while its fighter 5 Supercapacitive Power Discharge: The ship’s weapons have been equipped
pilots fly rings around enemy attack craft. Any bombers launched by this with supercapacitors, allowing for a larger energy discharge, though the power
ship may re-roll the dice when determining how many To Hit rolls they they require is taxing. When on Lock On special orders, the range of all weapons
have. If fighters from this ship intercept attack craft or torpedoes, roll a D6. (excluding Ordnance) are increased by 15cm, but the ship’s speed is reduced by
On a score of 4+ the fighters are not removed as normal but remain in play. 5cmf.
Re-roll this skill if the ship does not carry attack craft.
6 Motion-Tracking Targeters: A complex analytical array linked to the ship’s
5 Disciplined Crew: The ship’s crew have all found their niche in the ship navigational systems enables the gun crews to fire with greater accuracy when
and act as one, with unquestionable purpose. Once per battle the ship may the ship is performing special manoeuvres. If the ship is on All Ahead Full, Burn
re-roll a failed Leadership test or Command check. Retros or Come to New Heading special orders, its firepower and lance Strength
is reduced by 25% (rounded up) rather than halved.
6 Elite Command Crew: The ship’s command crew work well as a team,
united as one in the service of the Greater Good. Once per battle the ship
may automatically pass a Leadership test or Command check – there is no
need to roll any dice.

29
TAU EMPIRE APPEAL CHART TAU AUXILIARIES APPEAL CHART

2D6 Roll Result TAU AUXILIARIES APPEAL CHART

2 The Air Caste give you first pick of the graduates from the academies. Any new ships 2D6 Roll Result
you receive from now on will have Leadership 7, not 6.
2 A Demiurg Brotherhood signs a new treaty with you to exploit a system. Select a planet in one of
3 An Ethereal boards one of your capital ships. You may add a free Aun'O to your roster.
your systems. It is now upgraded in status as follows: Mining if Uninhabited; Forge if Mining. If
there’s no eligible Uninhabited or Mining planet, then you may upgrade a planet, so it will improve
4 The Earth Caste upgrade the orbital facilities around your fleet’s base (your fleet base is the amount of Repair Points it provides by 1.
the system that generates the most repair points). That system will now generate an
extra 1 repair point each turn, additionally, you may deploy an extra D6x25 points of 3 The Demiurg have joined your campaign. Roll D6:
ships in any battles there. D6 Effect
1-2 Add a Citadel class Commerce Vessel to your fleet
5 Water Caste agents manage to disinform or bribe enemy commanders. The next battle 3-5 Add a Bastion class Commerce Vessel to your fleet
will take place on your conditions! You may select which scenario is used in the next 6 Add a Stronghold class Commerce Vessel to your fleet
battle.
4 Ji’atrix advisors have joined your fleet operations. Increase your fleet’s attack rating by 1.
6 One of your capital ships has been heavily refitted by the Earth Caste as a gift for your
actions. You may roll twice on the refit table and apply both refits. 5 Your campaign has been joined by Gue’ve’sa. Roll D6:
7 The Ethereal Council is proud of your actions. In the next battle you receive 1 additional D6 Effect
fleet reroll. 1-3 Add a squadron of D3+1 Imperial Escorts to your fleet
4-5 Add an Imperial Light Cruiser to your fleet
8 A Fire Warrior Hunting Cadre is seconded to your fleet. One of your capital ships 6 Add an Imperial Cruiser to your fleet.
receives a +1 bonus to any boarding action rolls. Select them from the Rogue Trader fleet list.
9 The Air Caste decides that you need reinforcements. You may add a capital ship to your 6 The Brachyura have exceeded their production targets. Add an extra D6 Repair Points.
roster.
7 A Kroot warband heeds your appeals. Add a Kroot Warsphere to your fleet.
10 The Ethereal Council decide that no Tau ship may be allowed to fall into enemy hands.
Capital ships must attempt to self-destruct when losing a boarding action, by passing a 8 A Nicassar brotherhood has joined you. Add a Nicassar Rig and 4 Nicassar Dhows to your fleet.
Leadership test in the End phase. If the test is passed, roll a D6. On a 1-3 the ship suffers
the catastrophic damage result of plasma drive overload. On a 4-6 the ship suffers the 9 Your fleet gains the favour of the Pohu-Agg. Add +1 to Boarding Action rolls for a ship for the rest
warp drive implosion result instead. of the campaign.
11 The Air Caste introduce a new doctrine of system defence. From now you may add 10 The titanic Vorgh have joined your fleet! All your ships score an extra assault point in Planetary
D6x30 points to defences in one of your systems. Assaults.
12 The Earth Caste has built and deployed a deep space station. You may add a secret 11 The Phosiab focus their efforts on your campaign’s edification. You may add D6x50 points to
Uninhabited system with a jump route to a system you control. The system becomes defences in one of your systems.
your secret naval base. Treat it just like a Pirate Base.
12 Charpactin advisors are seconded to you, their powerful emanations make sure that the crew
keeps calm even under dire circumstances. Improve a ship’s Leadership by 1 for the rest of the
campaign.
30
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Character Ship
Competition:
Overall Winner
Image by Kharneth
 The Ascending|Descending by horizon

ASCENDING|DESCENDING It was many cycles ago that the vessel, under the stewardship events that would transpire in the Sanctuary system.
of Starfarer Taria Tunirien, departed from Lodálach-Mús on a
quest to find farseer Eriel Erychien. The Seer Council, after As hostilities between the Eldar and the Necrontyr escalated,
When Lodálach-Mús first launched itself into the stars to
much desperate scrying, had foreseen that she would hold the the scryers and spirit guides across the Craftworld registered
escape the doom of The Fall, her bonesingers created three
key to unlocking the mystery of the Ascending/Descending’s an unknown signal at the very edge of sensor range that
unique and exceptionally powerful warships that would act as
disturbing behaviour. As the search continued, transmissions seemed to appear and disappear at will. As the intermittent
the cornerstones of her defensive fleets. Each more wondrous
from the ship became increasingly erratic until all contact with contact drew ever closer, with shock they were finally able to
and terrible than the last, many a great saga would be written
it was finally lost. Every effort to find the venerable ship failed identify it...
about these ancient juggernauts. Under their respective
and, with a heavy heart, the Eldar of Lodálach-Mús were forced The Ascending/Descending had come home.
Starfarers, these ships undertook many lonely patrols through
to declare it lost with all hands. As experienced as they were, alive and on its way,
desolate and forgotten star systems, ever watchful for threats
however, the Seer Council had not foreseen the momentous
to their Craftworld.

The most illustrious (and perhaps, infamous) of the triumvirate

was the Ascending/Descending. Only gifted to the most skilled
and daring Starfarers, the ship was renowned for being
temperamental and operating with a will entirely of its own.
Additional guidance from seer councils and spirit stones only
proved to be a short-term solution to its wilful behaviour.

Despite its fractious nature, the vessel was both venerated and
revered by its successive crews. Never to be eclipsed by others,
it could always be found charging into the heart of the enemy.

During the defence against the Tyranid Hivefleet Behemoth,

the Ascending/Descending was pivotal in the destruction of the
largest hiveships. During the cleansing of the Solaritia system
to reclaim two maiden worlds, it single handedly obliterated
the roaming pirate fleets of the Mon-keigh. Despite its glorious
service history, the ship was mysteriously silent during the
Necrontyr assault on the Craftworld. No seer or starfarer could
rouse the ship to action. Only after the last Necron vessels had
been destroyed or had retreated did the wraithbone core
awaken and the spirit stones become active once more.

32
 ASCENDING|DESCENDING – 350 points

Type/Hits
The Auct Speed Turns Shields Armour Turrets
Cruiser/8 10/15/25cm 90º 2/Holofield 5+ 3

Armament Range/Speed Firepower/Str Fire Arc

Port Pulsar Lance 45cm 1 Front

Starboard Pulsar Lance 45cm 1 Front

Prow Weapon Batteries 45cm 12 Front

Nightwing: 30cm
Keel Launch Bays 2 -
Phoenix: 20cm

Keel Suncannon Battery 45cm 4 Left/Front/Right

Notes:
Veteran of a Thousand Stellar Wars: The Ascending/Descending can repair critical hits on
a dice roll of 4+. Furthermore, it adds +1 Leadership.

Suncannon Battery: The suncannon is a unique design for this type of vessel. When it
scores a hit, it needs to roll a 4+ to inflict critical hit on the enemy vessel. Just like
regular Eldar Weapon Batteries the Suncannon gains a left shift on the gunnery table.

Port/Starboard Pulsar Lance: This weapon is front only, but when on Lock-On special
orders the Pulsar Lance may fire Left/Front and Right/Front.

About me The model

long-time Battlefleet Gothic fan. Started with Battlefleet Gothic when it was The miniature is the Sword of Elissar, which originates in the Battlefleet Koronus book from Fantasy Flight
released in 1999 when I was at the age of 21. And very glad about the hobby revival Games, lovely crafted by Italianmoose. The colour scheme for the Ascending/Descending was heavily
which started around 2020 so I could reboot the Warp Rift fanzine! influenced by the artwork of the Tool album Fear Inoculum.
The rules are from the fanmade Craftworld of Lodálach-Mús ruleset. These can be used in addition to any
kind of ruleset be it official, revised or XR. (So make sure to read that ruleset before to understand the
stats!)

33
Image by The NoMercian
Sector capital: Meroe Internal bickering left the stores to grow and grow. Should they Dense hive worlds of untold billions pledged for one side or the
be used to stage a play for independence? Should they be used other. Some pledged simply to spite their hated neighbours,
A continent sized hive sprawl sits atop the crust of Meroe, as a bargaining chip to open new war fronts in places where while others pledged for the same side, while simultaneously
blanketed in thick clouds and poison storms. Above the clouds Meroe could influence? Should they be slowly trickled out as fighting with those hated neighbours that they were
a small hive spire pierces the stratosphere, blinking navigation political favours to Expeditionary Fleets for political control supposedly allied with.
lights into the dark void. Through ancient laws and customs, over new sectors?
this spire is the only structure that can reach above the clouds.
It is an enclave that controls a vast sector of dozens of hive The Warmaster’s betrayal tore those plans apart just as it tore
worlds, hundreds of client planets, conclaves of Forgeworlds apart the Galaxy.
and Fanes, and a vast list of minor planets and population
centers. Half of Meroe’s trade lanes were cut off overnight. Dozens of
planets declared independence. Every planet was beset by
Meroe thought itself a key figure in Crusade politics. It riots and civil war. Meroe itself was assaulted by a fleet that its
supplied entire war fronts with supplies. It imported enough own shipyards had just refitted.
raw materials to build mountains. Its Sector Lords titled
themselves “Masters of a Trillion citizens”. Loyal or Traitor
Meroe wanted power. It hadn’t realized that it would have to
It wasn’t enough. choose between two overwhelming power blocs. To the South
the Astronomicon burned from Terra. To the North the
As the Great Crusade ground on, the numerous war fronts and Warmaster’s fleets demanded fealty. Philosophically aligned to
political infighting drew attention away from Meroe towards the Emperor, but financially and logistically tied to the
other hotspots in the widening Imperium. The Sector lords Warmaster, the Sector Lords fought a civil war amongst
spent the first century trying to grab power back. They spent themselves.
the next century plotting a vast power play. Production output
fell by a few percent, enough to raise questions in the Crusade’s During the Great Crusade each hive world had burgeoned even
high command, but not enough that it couldn’t be explained further as their populations grew under the steady diet of the
away. In reality this production capacity was funnelling the Crusade’s resources and political stability. Each one
output of the sector’s many manufactorums into hidden supply remembered a time during the Age of Strife when it stood
caches. alone with its own small empire. Each one wanted that state
back in one form or another.

35
 Double’s Hobby Insights

The Starter Kit –

Advanced (Orks)

Written by DoublebaseFanatic
Prologue
Welcome back to Double's hobby insights and the issue about the creation The Equipment
of the “Starter Kit – Advanced” for the Orks.
Brushes:
It is now almost exactly 5 months since the release of the Starter Kit - Winsor & Newton Series 7 (0)
Advanced (Corsair Eldar) and I am mega happy to announce that, as Winsor & Newton Series 7 (000)
mentioned in the last Warp Rift issue, we can now already present the Ork and an old worn nameless one for oil colours
Starter Kit. And I’m very hyped about that.
Airbrush:
Harder & Steenbeck Infinity CRplus - 0,4mm
A few weeks ago, John (Soul Forge Studio) approached me and said that he Fengda FE-183 – 0,5mm
now had the capacity to start the project. If you remember the last article, Harder & Steenbeck Compressor 16A
you probably remember that John adapted the existing Corsair Eldar a bit. Space stencil
But this time I asked him what he would think about doing a whole new
line of miniatures for it and I dropped the idea of looted Ork ships. Tools:
And what can I say, contrary to my fears, he was as hyped as I was. Hobby pliers and knife
A Cutting mat
Let me say in advance that this project (in contrast to the previous ones) Blu Tack to fix my models
had more ups than downs. But just to be clear, there will be a twist in this A self-made wet pallete
article, and I would advise you to read it to the end and follow the path I Glossy haispray
mention at the end.
Colours:
At this point I should also mention that I have added another airbrush to Citadel (brushwork)
my equipment. Why? The reason is simple. I simply didn't want to use my Vallejo Model Air (airbrush)
Infinity for rough things like priming. So, I looked around for a cheap Schmincke Oil (black)
airbrush with a large nozzle that wouldn't break my monthly hobby
budget too much. I found one for about 21€, the Fengda FE-183 – 0,5mm, 3D printer:
and despite my initial skepticism about the price, I was far from Anycubic Photon Mono
disappointed. On the contrary, I am so satisfied with the airbrush that I Anycubic Wash&Cure
would actually recommend it for beginners. Why? It does what it is Elegoo Water Washable Resin
supposed to do. It sprays paint reliably (even very thick ones) without
clogging and if you are a beginner and not sure if airbrushing is for you,
you can take your first steps and upgrade later. You already have the
airbrush for priming (and I think you should have one anyway).
The Starter Kit – Advanced (Orks) the process of thought
Anyways, let's talk about the project. So, the initial idea was to loot And quickly the rendered design of the first cruiser was ready.
ships for the orcs and what is the first thing that comes to mind?
Imperial cruisers, of course. And so, John started to create the first
drafts. Admittedly John wasn't busy designing the ships from scratch
but rather kitbashing them and with the huge range of miniatures Soul
Forge Studio has to offer, that's a lot of potential.
Below I show you a few WIP pictures from this process…

I have to say that I am a big fan of the details. Starting with the Eldar wing,
the converted Chaos stern as a wing on the other side, the Hemlock
engines in the back that are arranged like those of an A10 Thunderbolt or
the hemlock nose that has been converted into a ram spur.
I would like to hear if you can identify all the bits on the new model range.

But now let’s continue with the paintjob I did on them…

How it was done: The Paintjob
Right from the early stages of this project I In the next step I apply a good covering layer Unfortunately, the effect here was not as
knew what direction my colour scheme was of Vallejo 71.001 White from above onto intense as I had wished, but it was there, so
going to take. Since I already own an orc the ship with the airbrush. I try as much as I was satisfied for the time being. However, I
fleet and they are painted in the wonderful possible to spray only from above, so that a suspected that I probably should have used
yellow scheme of the Bad Moons, the colour lot of the pink remains on the sides (which a yellow contrast paint for this (but I didn't
palette was clear. The fact that I painted the tend to be in the shade). have any at hand)
symbols of the Lamenters on the bow of the
ships afterwards was more a spontaneous Spoiler alert: I was absolutely right with
idea than planned in advance. (sorry for the this assumption. But more about that at the
trigger :D ) end.

First step: Priming with Corax White. Back at my bench, I give the ship a coat of
Nothing special here. Shade Seraphim Sepia and folks, let me
tell you, I realised the hard way in the
After the primer has dried, I apply a coat of middle of this project that GW has changed
Vallejo Game Colour 72.013 Squid Pink colour over the last few months and I'm
with my new cheap airbrush to the entire And now comes the clue to the whole thing. lucky that the last of my bottle was just
ship. (The purpose of this will become clear We now apply the yellow to the entire ship. enough. :D
in the next two steps). The pink ensures that the yellow on the
model becomes a rich orange in the pink
The paint is extremely thick. So, I areas. I used Vallejo 72.705 Moon yellow
recommend either to use an equivalent here.
airbrush colour or to dilute it extremely.
Unfortunately, I didn't have any other paint
at hand at the time.

Don't be confused by the huge colour

difference at this point. I work directly
under a strong daylight lamp at my airbrush
station, which is why the difference looks so
extreme.
After the shade is completely dry, I drybrush After that I paint all weapon muzzles and Despite thinning, the contrast colours can
the model from top to bottom with Layer tubes with Layer Runefang Steel. still be a little too strong here and there. No
Dorn Yellow to highlight only the problem, because this is easily solved with a
illuminated edges. few silver accents.

But since the silver alone is too flat for me, I

put an irregular filter over the silver parts
with a few different and strong diluted
contrast colours from blue to purple to red.
That gives the silver much more variation Now let's move on to the
and, in the end, it looks as if the metal was freehand/chessboard part. Wherever I
Now I add a scratches on all corners and once hot. want to realise the chessboard pattern, I
edges by putting a few dabs of Base Rhinox first apply a layer of Base Corax White.
Hide with the with the flank of the brush tip.

When the layer is dry, I start first with the

bleeding lamenter heart on the bow. For
this I first use a layer of Base Mephisto
Red followed by Layer Evil Sunz Scarlet.
 Then I paint all the rivets with Layer The horns on top of the bridge I paint first
Runefang Steel, which I could have done in with a layer of Base Iron Warriors, then a
the step before for sure. bit higher with a 50:50 mix of Base Iron
Warriors and Layer Runefang Steel and at
the end with a highlight of pure Layer
Runefang Steel.

Then I outline the heart with Scale 75 Black

SC-00 which I recently discovered for myself
and paint the frame for the chequered
pattern on the remaining white areas. At
this point, thank you to horizon for the To do this, I first paint a thick layer of Layer
recommendation of the colour. It’s way Evil Sunz Scarlet into the openings and
better and much opaquer than Abbadon then a layer of Layer Wild Rider Red.
Black which I’ve used for years.
I would not get any yellower with the colour
When I have finished drawing in the lines, I at this point, otherwise the effect would
start filling in the chessboard pattern. tend to disappear in the already yellow ship.
Back at the airbrush I now use my Infinity Actually, the chapter would be over at this
for the bright blue effects on the exhausts point in the article. But the idea of the
and the parts I would personally identify as yellow Contrast colours kept me going for
lamps. days, so after painting the whole fleet I
happened to pass a hobby store and decided
First, I apply a coat of Vallejo Model Air to buy Contrast Imperial Fist, because I
71.333 Russian AF to the areas. really wanted to try out how the preshade
would look with the colour.
So back to the preshading…

Then a 50:50 mixture of Vallejo Model Air

71.333 Russian AF and 71.001 White.

...and then applied a layer of Contrast In any case, the difference between these
Imperial Fist with the airbrush... and what two yellow schemes is extreme.
can I say, the effect that the yellow runs into
the orange and thus delivers a wonderfully
warm yellow is much stronger and in my
opinion also looks better. So, if you ever
decide to paint a fleet (or other miniatures)
And last but not least, a highlight layer of in a yellow colour scheme, just try this way
pure 71.001 White with 1-2 drops of for yourself.
Vallejo Airbrush Flow Improver.
How it was done: The Bases
I'm keeping the bases a little shorter this For some more fancy details on the bases, I
time and trying to keep it to one page. decided to paint on some asteroids with my
Because not much new is happening here brush. Base Rhinox Hide is the base for the
today. I have already published several asteroids.
articles in which I talk about how I airbrush
my bases and apart from the colours and a
few asteroids at the end not much changes.
The base coat is still black, then I first spray
the nebulae with 71.001 White and then go
over them with 71.004 Blue. Then again, a
few highlights plus the stars with 71.001
White. I prime the moons with the stencil
and 71.050 Light grey. With the other
stencil and 71.052 Anthracite grey I spray To the side of the brightly shining star, I
the structures on the big moons. For the now apply a layer of Doombull Brown…
yellow moon I use 72.705 Moon yellow
again. Then I create the shadowy and light
side on both celestial bodies again with
black and white.
In fact, I use my new cheap airbrush at this
point simply to show that you can get a great
result with a 21€ airbrush.
...and give the edges of the asteroids on the
same side another strong highlight with
Base Wraithbone. And we are finished!
Closing words
First of all, I would like to thank you for all the feedback after the last
issue. I had some very funny and insightful conversations thanks to you.
Anyway, I'm always happy to take a look behind the scenes at what you're
currently working on.
Now it's time to thank horizon and especially John (Soul Forge Studio)
for another great collaboration. This starter kit really stands out with its
own miniatures especially because I can't remember ever seeing STLs
with looted ships.
If you now feel like building your own Ork fleet with these miniatures, feel
free to download them. As always, our starter kit is completely free for
you. Just follow the link below and you will find both the STLs, the rules
and the pre-made lists for your first game there.
And psst: someone whispered to me that John is so hyped about the idea
that more ships from this series will soon appear on Soul Forge Studio's
pages. But you didn't get that from me.
Starter Kit - Advanced

Instagram: DoublebaseFanatic
Facebook: Chris Krows
Discord: doublebasefanatic

Cheers for reading

Chris “DoublebaseFanatic” Kraus

Note: the Imperial Navy and Chaos basic starter set with all assets can be found here:
Starter Kit
- horizon
Showcase
 Moose Musings
Moose Musings
 Avenger – Torpedo Bombers – Update Commerce Raiders

The Avenger Grand Cruiser at 180 points

One of my favourite ships (although I’ve never owned one), the Tau and (D)Eldar have much better torpedoes than most so
Avenger looks great at first glance. What’s not to like about they should pay more. Tau torpedo bombers can’t make use of
FP16 broadsides on a big chunky hull? Unfortunately, when their torpedoes’ turning ability, but the Tau get lots of cheap
compared to the Imperial line cruisers it just doesn’t quite hit bays. Similarly, Chaos fleets get lots of cheap bays and have
the spot. For 10 points less you can have a Dominator at FP12 very few torpedo ships so they should also pay more, to prevent
(and a Nova Cannon, which is more the reason to take it) The them getting access to as many torpedoes as the Imperial Navy
Tyrant has FP10 at 45 cm as an upgrade to 195 pts. Or for the
same price as the Avenger, you could have two whole Siluria
light cruisers which are better at closing the distance and can
deliver almost the same weight of fire. All without competing Updated Commerce Raiders
with a battlecruiser.
I’d also like to take this opportunity to present a slight update
Something clearly must be done to get this ship out and about to the commerce raiders scenario. It’s been doing well in
more! Therefore, in this musing I propose a points drop. playtests, but one complaint was it makes for a long game on a
Horizon suggests 170-180 points, so I shall propose 180 points 6x4 foot table. Transports moving at 15 cm means that it took
as an initial suggestion. Increasing the FP introduces power them 11-12 turns if all ahead full rolls don’t go well. The option
creep, which is the other proposed solution. A points drop is a for a rearguard wasn’t used much either. A simple solution was
more subtle boost. to shunt the convoy deployment zone 30 cm up the board and
tweak the deployment a little.

Torpedo bombers at 10 points flat fee or 20 for The scenario can be found in Warp Rift 38:
Tau/(D)Eldar/Chaos [Link]

10 points per bay is really, really expensive. Torpedo bombers

are very rarely used due to this. As a concept they’re a useful
way of getting some stand-off torpedo power and they mix well
with bombers forcing a target to choose between shooting at
the torpedoes or bombers. Alternatively, they can give a carrier
a chance against a high turret target like a battleship where
bombers would be more or less useless. Two Emperors whaling
on each other is very dull.

47
Image by Howling_Gypsy
Solblade paper cutouts on the following pages Tyranids by Wintermans Issue 40 | May 2023
 Heading indicator
Blastmarkers are
Torpedoes being placed touching the
fired are placed in outer edge and
the front and are effect all escorts on
Base slot
measured from the the base
central stem upon
launch

Central base and centre

stem:
The central stem is used for
all measurements If a vessel is boarded or grabbed by massive
regarding shooting and claws place the poor vessel as show on these
being shot at. It is also used images. Place the central Tyranid miniature to
to check if a swarm attacks the side for as long as the situations lasts
with massive claws, feeder
tentacles or can engage in a
boarding attack.

Dice slots

Enemy ordnance interacts when

base is touched. An attack takes
place versus 1 escort.
60
61