Living Battering Ram

[dragonus]

Hi, can any one give me info on the Carnifex battering ram cannot find how its used entering into CC. New to 40k and learning slowly after many defeats by sons Space Marines

[t⊗theark]

It adds 2+ two your initiative value during the first turn of combat whence upon you have charged. This may be added to special rules such as Furious Charge and negated by the Crushing Claws bio morph.

[nurglitch]

The Living Battering Ram rule can be found on p.46 of Codex: Tyranids. As t⊗theark suggests, it is cumulative with bonuses like Furious Charge from an Adrenal Gland, and has no effect in conjunction with Crushing Claws, found on p.83 of the same, because the Crushing Claw rules specify that a Tyranid with Crushing Claws always strikes at I1, regardless of any modifiers.

Now, in Warhammer 40,000, units launch an assault by charging. So the Living Battering Ram rule will only take effect if the Carnifex gets to charge. If it is charged, it will be I1. A model's Initiative characteristic is important in two ways in close combat:

1. Attacks, and the resulting casualties, are ordered by Initiative, with all of a model's attacks being resolved at its Initiative characteristic. All models attacking at I4, for example, will roll to hit and wound at the same time. So a Carnifex charging with I4, thanks to the Adrenal Gland upgrade, will roll to hit and wound at the same time as Space Marines rolling to hit and wound, and before a Space Marine with a Powerfist. Basically it's better to attack before other models, or at least at the same time, so that a Carnifex isn't killed before it can do anything.

2. Sweeping Advances. When a unit losing a combat has failed its morale check, and there are no losing units locking winning units in combat by dint of being Fearless, a Walker vehicle, or passing its morale test, the players resolve a Sweeping Advance. Each player rolls 1D6 and adds the Initiative characteristic of their unit (equal to the majority Initiative characteristic of the constituent models, or the highest if there's no majority), and the combat-loser's unit is removed from the board if they roll equal or lower than the combat-winner's unit, after modifiers. Otherwise they Fall Back.

It's useful to note that Space Marines losing a Sweeping Advance will instead be treated like a Fearless unit and be required to take a number of armour saves equal to the margin by which they lost the combat. It's also useful to note that models in Terminator armour prevent their unit from executing a Sweeping Advance. Finally, it's useful to note that if Space Marines are not caught in a Sweeping Advance, they will Fall Back, and cannot Regroup if they remain within 6" of an enemy unit when it comes time to regroup in the Movement phase.

If you can hit a unit of Space Marines from the flank or rear, then they're much less likely to be able to Fall Back further than 6" away from whatever manages to beat them in combat, and thanks to I1, a Carnifex is unlikely to catch the Space Marines in a Sweeping Advance. Conversely, the Space Marines that Fall Back can still shoot (albeit as moving), and the Carnifex will no longer be protected from heavy weapon fire by dint of being locked in combat.

[coredump]

Living Battering Ram has no effect on Sweeping Advances.

[nurglitch]

Yes, your point being?