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Warhammer 40K: FAQ Arrives!

3 Minute Read
Jan 7 2021
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Six months in, the first big FAQ is here for the new edition of Warhammer 40K, with updates to codexes, points, and scoring mechanics.

It’s that time of year again folks, there’s a new batch of FAQs in town, alongside designer commentary, which means that 40K has just gotten a big update. Come check out the “patch notes” for Warhammer 40K 9.1. There’s something for everyone here including:

  • A full suite of FAQs for Warhammer 40,000’s rulebooks, codexes, and expansions
  • Adjusted points costs, covering every model in every faction
  • Tweaks to first and last turns, and scoring mechanics for the Chapter Approved: Grand Tournament 2020 Mission Pack

So let’s get right to it.

via Warhammer Community

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As stated before there are big changes to the points values for every unit. You can find the changes in the Munitorum Field Manual 2021 Mk 1, and in the next day or so GW is expecting to roll out these changes to the 40K app. Overall the adjustments are about what you’d expect. Popular units that are “overperforming” like Space Marine Outriders and Eradicators have seen their points values go up, while units that haven’t been seeing a lot of play are getting a drop in points to make them competitive.

But that’s not all. Matched play is getting a fairly significant update in the form of changes to the Grand Tournament Mission pack. This change is intended to be a nerf to going first, but we’ll see how it goes:

The first turn now always goes to the player who wins the roll-off. The first few months of the new edition’s missions made it clear that choosing to have the first turn is a much bigger advantage than just getting it on a roll. This also cuts down on the ‘analysis paralysis’ at the start of the game and gets you to the action a bit quicker.

Primary objective scoring in the final battle round has changed so that the player going second now scores at the end of their turn instead of at the start. This was changed for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it helps to address the first turn advantage by giving the player going second a bit of a swing in the last turn. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, it keeps the game interesting and worthwhile for both players in the final turn. Games can be decided on the last dice roll in the final combat for that ultimate objective – there’s every reason to keep pushing.

Secondary objectives have also seen a few small changes. Bring It Down drops in victory points, so as not to discourage the taking of (very cool!) vehicles and monsters in armies. The victory points available for the Abhor the Witch objective have been lowered too, as scoring against psyker-heavy armies like Grey Knights and Thousand Sons had become all too easy

Every major faction (as well as many of the theme books) have their updates. So check ’em out below!

Check out the 40K FAQs

Let us know what you think of the rules changes in the comments below!

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Author: J.R. Zambrano
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