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Warhammer 40K: Boarding Actions Are Back – Close-Quarters Combat Action

3 Minute Read
Jun 22 2023
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They never really went away! Boarding Actions are sticking around in 10th and you can still use their rules with this handy download.

Games Workshop did tell the world that the Arks of Omen and their Boarding Actions would still be usable with the 10th Edition rules. While the format is designed for slightly smaller scale conflicts everything still transfers over from the Arks of Omen books. Boarding Actions are a great way for infantantry to shine in the claustrophobic corridors — and these rules will help get you going!

via Warhammer Community

The new Boarding Actions Core Rules replace the original ones found in Arks of Omen: Abaddon, adapting the new core rules of Warhammer 40,000 to frantic shipboard battles. However, they’re designed to work with the missions – and mission sequences – presented in all five Arks of Omen books, giving you dozens of missions and a variety of game modes to play through right from the start. 

Boarding Actions Download

Boarding Actions in 10th Edition

While the Boarding Action rules were designed for use with 10th edition there are still a few wrinkles that need to get ironed out. The first and most obvious thing is that there aren’t any Actions in 10th edition. So, how will units do things that the mission might call for? With the new rules included in the download that explain how to perform those in Boarding Actions games.

It’s actually as simple/easy a fix as you think it is. There’s also some other minor changes. For example in Boarding Actions units can still stand on Objective Markers — unlike in 10th edition. This is simply because the battlefield might be a bit too cramped if they couldn’t.

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Another major change comes to Leaders and Bodyguards. The new rules for joining units would make it very easy to hide a powerful champion from harm, so in Boarding Actions, your Leaders don’t join a Bodyguard at all. Instead, they fight solo and confer their powerful Leader abilities to individual units with the new Battlefield Command Stratagem. 

While this is a major change it totally makes sense. Besides, Boarding Actions are relatively small encounters so you’re going to need each model to really “do their thing” to win the day.

Additionally, there are some changes to how you muster your forces for Boarding Actions. All of those changes are included in the rules download below.

Boarding Actions – Mustering Forces Rules Download

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And finally here’s a screencap of all the relative info for what you’ll need for Boarding Actions and what Arks of Omen books will provide for you:

Boarding Actions are one of the many ways to play Warhammer 40,000. I personally think it’s a nice half-step between Kill Team and Combat Patrol sized games. You get a smaller model count/skirmish feel Warhammer 40,000 game with some addition restrictions and rules. The combats can be quick and intense, too. So download these rules and give them a go!

Are you going to give Boarding Actions a go with 10th edition?

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Author: Adam Harrison
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