Some Apoc Questions

[tylertt]

Hey Hive, I know the rulebooks for Apoc are a little outdated.

But here if the thing I was wondering. For us Tyranids which rulebook to we follow for our Apoc models? I noticed that some of the Apoc books are significantly better then others in regards to some models.

For example, in the Apocalypse 40K expansion book, the Bio-cannon of the Heirophant is something like S10 AP3 Assault 6 or 8.

Now in the Anphelion Project book, the same weapon is only S10 AP3 Assault1Large blast.

The first being the much better option I believe, which leaves me confused as which do we follow exactly in regards to all our models?

[j0rdan]

It's going to depend on your group. We play it as "play one ruleset, but if you want to mix and match rules (for the same model), jack the price up accordingly". Honestly, it's apoc. As long as everyone knows what you're bringing to the table, it shouldn't matter what rules you use.

[halestorm]

it should be the most recently printed rule set,

So the expansion one i think is the correct one.

For the Harridan i believe that its the forgeworld flyers book,

Iain.

[tylertt]

Thanks fellas. I know I myself would like to the use the 40K expansion version of the Bio-cannon aha. But that is a great idea of maybe agreeing to a point upgrade option or something of the sort.

I'll have to see if I can get my hands on some print dates for them.

[maugrim]

Technically, according to the rules in IA:4, you can field Heirophants in normal games of 40k - as long as you take a Second Detachment which requires opponent permission to do so.

[tylertt]

So if fielding them in a 40K rule, would you technically follow the apoc expansion rules for 40K.

Apologize if questions are silly, just wanting to get a grasp on how the APOC books work.

[infornography]

Here is the relevant portion from my tactica

Apocalypse and Imperial Armour
These units are not universally accepted on gaming tables so even the ones that are labeled as authorized for 40k, it is considered polite to ask your opponent before fielding. That said most opponents have no issue with fielding the 40k approved units. I have separated these options by which book they appear in.

-Apocalypse
--HierophantApocalypse Only
This is one of the best Apocalypse units available to anyone. A gargatuan creature comes with a number of benefits as detailed on Forgeworld's website here www.forgeworld.co.uk/Downloads/Product/PDF/a/apoc6thupdate.pdf. On top of all that this guy has an amazing statline and two Bio-Cannons which are frighteningly powerful guns. Now there are a few problems with this beasty however. It's rules are outdated and lead to much dispute. It is highly recommended that you work out how to handle this before the game starts. Scything talons work very differently now than they used to. You can either leave it as just having the attacks in the statline or try to decrease the attacks and give it rerolls. Fleet of Foot no longer works at all the way it is listed in the special rules so either you ignore where it says as per that rule and run it as written otherwise, or you just ignore the Agile rule alltogether. Lastly Warp Field has a few questions. One it is no longer a psyker power and is better than it used to be. Either you keep it as the psyker power in the 4th edition codex, or you give it the Warp Field rule from our current codex and let it benefit even though it is not a Zoanthrope. Some opponents will insist that you have to use the current interpretation and that since it is not a zoanthrope it gets no benefit... don't play with these people. Lastly, if you are making Warp Field the current version, that leaves this beast as still being a psyker but with no powers. Some believe that means you can roll once on the rule books psyker tables to get a power. Otherwise you go by the Tyranid Codex FAQ and since you have no powers to exchange you get nothing. Last option is that you just don't count it as a psyker anymore. This would be to your benefit since if it IS a psyker then it can be taken down by mindstrike missiles FAR too easily. Once all this is hashed out however, unless your opponents insist on trying to screw you, this beast will be a menace on the battlefield worthy of it's rather immense point cost.

--Barbed HieroduleApocalypse Only
This guy is a point dense gargantuan creature that is a good bit more fragile than the Hierophant, but also a good bit cheaper but still weighing in at more than half the points. With no invuln save to protect it however many consider it not worth fielding. I would say it is worth it if you need more anti tank on the field as long as you can protect it. With two Bio-Cannons of it's own (though slightly weaker than the Hierophant's) it can annihilate many tanks and it can even aim them at two different targets. The Hierodule has many of the same problems as the Hierophant however so be sure to discuss these issues with your opponent ahead of time.

-Imperial Armour Apocalypse Second Edition
--Scythed HieroduleApocalypse Only
While not quite as expensive as it's Barbed cousin, the Scythed Hierodule is still very expensive to field. Being a melee specialized gargantuan creature with no invuln save, it is fairly fragile and will die quickly to massed high strength firepower. It only takes on average 12 krak missile hits to kill it and that is not a terribly tall order in an apocalypse match. It does have a nice Hellstorm Template attack that is good at wiping space marines off the field, but it has to get in range to do that. Thankfully, since this book was published after our current codex his scything talons work correctly, but Agile still incorrectly references the Fleet special rule and so you will have to work out with your opponents how to resolve that.

--Malanthrope40k Authorized
This big beastie is an interesting unit. It is more fragile than most of our monstrous creatures, but it is an HQ slot MC that can be taken in units of up to 3 and it has a reasonable points cost. Just avoid getting into melee with anything that has strength 10 attacks. They can do a reasonable amount of damage in melee and have fleet, but no ranged attacks at all. Also they have an interesting ability that lets them get and give perferred enemy when they kill an enemy unit. Also they look like giant venomthropes so if you have a tentacle faced or legless army concept, they fit right in.

--Meiotic Spore40k Authorized
These are kind of fun. You can take up to 3 in a single fast attack slot and then deployed and operated separately. They are kind of like spore mines writ large only you can actually control the direction they float. Also when they explode they have sufficient AP to be a threat to space marines and then they might spawn spore mines that could then also dentonate on their target. They are a bit pricey but they can be fun.

--Stone-Crusher Carnifex40k Authorized
This big guy is what you want to run if you really want a melee oriented Carnifex. Aside from just looking cool, these guys can dish out the pain and take a lot. A 2+ armor save means a lot more in 6th edition than it did in 5th. Plus it has a slightly upgraded regeneration rule. Due to the changes to Rage in 6th edition, this guy can also operate independantly from synapse and in fact might get an extra attack for doing so, so sending it after a tank or building to make use of it's extra bonus on the damage table is never going to be an issue for it. He takes a Heavy Support slot by himself, but he is probably about as nasty as a Trygon but beting better at taking on tanks and worse against infantry. Worth playing around with if your local club allows it.

-Imperial Armour Areonautica
--HarridanApocalypse Only
While this beast is a gargantuan creature with no invuln save, it does count as a flyer (note not a flying monstrous creature, a flyer. So that means if they shoot at it without skyfire, they have to roll a 6 to hit and it cannot be grounded. It is extremely tough, has no controversial rules, a pair of Hierodule Bio-Cannons, and can transport some gargoyles. All in all, a very good addition to your Apocalypse game as it can reliably shoot down enemy flyers and can be a threat to even super heavy flyers. Vendetta spam is as always a serious threat however.

[infornography]

Basically you use the most recently published rules for each unit, if you just use the ones presented above you are good until a new book comes out. We only have 3 books to worry about currently.

[tylertt]

Perfect, greatly appreciate that Info. I'll have to see about getting my hands on some of those books eventually.

[droiddeka]

I believe there is a rumour that Apocalypse is being updated soon, which *should* bring with it updated rules for all the Tyranid stuff in one book...