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Faeit’s 40k Rumor Tarot: Tau & Orks Incoming

5 Minute Read
Mar 17 2013
Warhammer 40K

April looks to be the release month for Tau, and wow, are there going to be some controversial changes coming. Not only were Tau a hot topic of the week, with pics now flowing, but Orks made their appearances alongside their little kin, Gretchin.

Alien races push at every edge of the Imperium, yet the future burns bright with their dead, littering a thousand worlds. I have forseen the threats of the Tau, Ork, and many more. The veil of the premonition will reveal them to me, and I to you. Sing praise to the Emperor of Mankind, for salvation, and victory await.

Tau
There has been a lot of information coming in this week regarding Tau. Some of what we have seen this week is conflicting, and I am going to go over some of the highlights here, of course more detail can be found over on Faeit 212, and in the Bols Lounge

Lets start with the most controversial…..

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Broadsides
*Broadsides are Slow and Purposeful, 2+ and T4 now.
*They come with twin linked Rail Guns str8 ap1 railguns and can take plasma or missiles as well.
*They have a suit upgrade that let’s them at the start of a shooting phase have skyfire.
*They don’t have interceptor, nor do they snap fire ground targets.
*Can Splitfire still
*85pts- that includes base cost + skyfire upgrade

Rail Weapons
Rail Rifle S6 AP3
Rail Gun S8 AP1
Rail Cannon S10 AP1

Fire Warriors
*Have the option for all Firewarrior units within 6″ to fire Overwatch
*Have a new special HQ
*Apparently this can potentially be 4 if the Fire Warrior special character is also attached.
*A character that allows Firewarriors to consolidate after Overwatch

Uber Suit 
*The Tau uber suit is called “Riptide”
*Is a Jump Monstrous Creature
*rumored to be around 165 base but only start with twin-linked Plasma.
*Conflicting Reports but looks like its found in the Elite Foc
*Can take an Ion Accelerator upgrade: three S7 AP3 shots or one S8 AP2 Large Blast.
*There’s supposedly a special rule on the Riptide called Nova Accelerator which can do 4 things:
1.Buff weaponry (unsure how or which weapons)
2.Double the shots of support weapons (missile pods ect)
3.Increase invulnerable save to 3++
4.Boost a stat

Tau Codex Author
*Jeremy Vetock

Model Releases Alongside the codex ( Looks like April 6th)
*Riptide large suit
*Flyer dual kit (fighter and bomber)
*New Battlesuit and Broadside models (not sure if these dual kit or not)
*Plastic Pathfinders
*A new Fire Warrior HQ (not sure if the special character mentioned above or a generic one)

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Orks
There has been some hype about orks this week, and while an Ork codex looks to be out a ways into 2014, we have some rumors incoming. 

First lets take a look at Orks, and then we will delve down into the mud a little and talk about rumors of an all Gretchin army, that may end up being part of an allied supplement, or held off until the Ork codex release.


from Larry Vela here on Bols

NEW UNITS
*Mek Tank – Sporting a giant Shokk Attack Gun, firing Bomb Squigs. Tank can purchase a KFF.
UNIT UPDATES
*Flashgits – Their Snazz guns roll for random range each turn (12+3d6). On a triple 1 they overheat like Gets Hot. The unit may purchase upgrades like +1 BS, +1A, blast, rapid fire, skyfire, ans others, several are mutually exclusive.
*Boys – cheaper!
*Meks – Look for ability to field an increased number of Deffdreads and Kanns than currently.
*Stormboyz – Gain a “Rocket boost” attack that can target flyers. They must move 18” and if they pass a flyer they each get 2 attacks on it as if assaulting a vehicle. Move as infantry during their next turn. Looks like the designers played a lot of THQ’s Space Marine!
*Buggys / Trakks – May tank shock if they are upgraded with spiked plates/wheels.


Part 2 from Larry Vela

NEW HQs
*”Grot Boss” Grot with a stateline of a Ork Boy, but higher BS. Equipped with a nice kustom-mega-shoota as an option. Can also get a Buggy or take a Killa-kan as a transport/upgrade
*”Da Crew”  An HQ unit of even bigger Nobs. They have odd LoS modifications, One Nob must be nominated as “Da Boss”, and if Da Boss is killed, one of Da Crew is promoted.  This interacts in some new way with “Kill the Warlord” victory conditions, and is effectively an entire “warlord unit”.
NEW UNITS
*Grot Whirlybird:  Rotored transport: Capacity 20 Grots. They get dumped on the battlefield roughly from the Whirlybird taking a mandatory DT test, and cause mayhem if they fall atop another unit.
*Grots Buggys: Similar to Nob Bikers, but are buggies with Grots on the back and Orks behind the wheel! Drive-by attacks. Highly likely this will be an “alternate unit” for a buggy combo-unit box.

Gretchin/ Grots
This bit came in to me over on Faeit 212 by two separate sources, and its not completely clear whether the following will be in the Ork codex, or if it will be part of an allied supplement that may be coming.

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Part 1

*I dont think this is for a new Orks Codex, or a new Codex at all yet though.
*grot boss – a big grot almost an ork.
*Gretchin Weirdling – grot psyker. Lvl1. Upgrade to lvl 2. Access to divination, gork, and mork lists
*Killa kans in elite.
*Gretchin – can take control collars no ork herder like in ork list. 5-20 unit. Cheaper than ork codex gretchin by a pt. Can take whirlybird or looted wagon as dt
*Squig runts- sounds like 40k equivalent of squig hoppers
*Whirlybird – looks like a Huey hit with ork hammer, bomb doors underneath to drop gretchin
*Grot scootas – rocket propelled skateboarders? Squad of 5-10. Hvy bolter profile weapon.
*Grot buggies – drive by assault 8 grot blastas
*Grot rocket – single shot roket with large range and big blast.
*Big Guns – control collar option again, the ones from ork codex, plus a flakk gun with skyfire

Part 2

*Grot Whirlybird –
*Looks like a old Vietname War Hellicopter, big bulged bubble cockpit/body, skinny tail boom.
*About twice as big as the ork DefKoptas. Concept is the doors of the main body open on the
bottom like an old bomber to drop the Grots on to the battlefield.
*Cannot carry Orks or Bulky/Very Bulky models.
*Can drop Grots at any point along path travelled in movement phase only if not Zooming.
*Placement like deepstrike, but scatter is reduced if hovering.

What is Currently in Playtesting
This is always exciting when you get a chance to know what armies are in the playtest cycles right now. To my surprise, Imperial Guard, and Black Templar are the most dominant that we really did not know about. Of course there are Eldar and Orks, which seems rather plausible right now as well.

Another highlight…… No Tyranids. Perhaps playtesting is done with them now……

In playtesting
Eldar (should be almost done now)
Orks
Imperial Guard
Black Templar

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Make sure to check back here at Bell of Lost Souls often to find out the latest on what is coming, and then join the conversation over on Faeit 212.

A Tau codex is underway, and I know many of you have been waiting a long time for this release……… How is it looking for you?

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Author: Guest Columnist
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