Warhammer 40K: Hammerfall Bunker Rules

Let’s take a look at rules for the marines latest defensive unit: the Hammerfall Bunker.

One of the new units in the Space Marine Codex we’ve all been very curious about is the new Hammerfall Bunker. Does it function like a Drop Pod? Will models get to ride in it? How will the weapons work, exactly? Well, turns out, it’s a lot less complex than you might think.

The Rules

Here’s the Datasheet for the new Hammerfall Bunker straight from the new Space Marine codex:

Points: 175

Thoughts

The biggest surprise is that it’s actually a fortification. While the lore does say that they are “launched from the Space Marines’ warships in the same manner as a Drop Pods” it doesn’t actually drop in like that during the game. As far as we could tell, you would just deploy this in your own deployment zone like normal and that would be that. So if you were thinking of dropping this in your opponent’s backfield and letting it plink away with it’s Defensive Array, guess again.

Also it’s crewed by hard-wired servitors. So it’s got a 4+ BS and degrades from there as it takes damage. There aren’t any Space Marines in the bunker. We’re also not entirely sure why it has a Strength of 6 with an attack characteristic of “-” but that’s what’s happening here.

The Defensive Array for the weapons is also interesting. With flamers, the enemy definitely won’t want to get close. With the Heavy Bolters, it’s just going to hit units in range and be randomly annoying, too. The real weapon option that folks are going to want to look out for is the Hammerfall Missile Launcher. You can swap the missile type before you shoot and pepper the enemy with the appropriate ordnance. From the looks of things, the bunker is really a non-mobile Whirlwind in a lot of ways.

On the plus side taking a Fortification Network doesn’t really cost you any CP either. So that’s nice. I don’t know if this will get a ton of play overall, however, if you’re looking for a tough area-holder that can be played as an aggressive forward position or rear-area denial bunker, then the Hammerfall just might be what the doctor ordered. Too bad it doesn’t have indirect fire though.

What do you make of the Hammerfall Bunker?

Author: Adam Harrison

Writer, Editor, Texas Native, and Austinite for 15+ years, Adam covers all things Tabletop Gaming. Which includes Warhammer 40,000, Age of Sigmar, D&D, Board Games and everything else that involves dice, boards, cards and a table. A hobbyist, player, and collector of miniatures and games, Adam's current obsession are his Death Armies for Age of Sigmar, his Blood Angels and Tyranids for 40k, and his ever growing Arkham Horror: The Card Game Collection.