Codex: 38th Company (Part 3) · 10:13pm Oct 28th, 2014
So here's the part with all the Codex-specific rules and pony-oriented wargear. With this you can use the Pony Captain template to make your own totally illegal OC profile for use in... well, your head, I guess. There are worse ways to kill an afternoon.
I guess next would be the human and Iron Warrior special characters, and then units that are unique to the 38th Company detachment, but that doesn't seem as much fun. Ah, well.
Codex: 38th Company
The 38th Company is a fleet of Iron Warriors that have been saddled with the crucial yet inglorious task of acting as raiders and resource convoys for the Legion’s vast fortresses and siege operations. Despite the relatively high importance of its operation, the Company tends to be assigned the least motivated and capable Chaos Space Marines, or those that other warbands wish to be rid of for one reason or another. Although this means the 38th Company lacks the martial excellence and most skilled Chaos Space Marines that their Legion has to offer, those that end up with the Company are inevitably very well-supplied, at least. The Company also plays host to a considerable number of mercenary units and rogues, which has ultimately lent their operations a surprisingly “moderate” and economical culture for a Chaos fleet; since they do not rely exclusively on cultist fanatics and slaves to top up their manpower, this allows for more professional army structures that would otherwise not be seen in Chaos warbands. It also means that the 38th Company soldiers are somewhat less obsessive in their lingering hatred of the Imperium and its defenders; long experience at piracy and trade operations in Imperial space has made their conduct of war far more business-like in general.
A notable exception to their unusual ambivalence is in regard to the Emperor’s Children, and by extension their patron God, Slaanesh. Warsmith Solon suffered personally at the hands of the Children when they betrayed the Iron Warriors and attempted to sacrifice their Primarch Perturabo, and that wound has festered much more deeply than his lingering resentment of Loyalist Space Marines. To Solon, Slaanesh is a forsaken corner of the pantheon of Chaos; a wellspring of hedonism and incompetence that no soldier under his command may dally with. To the 38th Company, bearing the Mark of the Whore God is grounds for immediate and brutal execution.
Army Rules:
• As the Company frequently makes use of professional mercenaries, pirates, and non-Astartes traitors in its operations, a 38th Company army may consist of detachments taken from Codex: Chaos Space Marines and/or Codex: Astra Militarum. All such detachments function as Battle Brothers, and have the same allegiance status as Chaos Space Marines. This necessarily means other Armies of the Imperium cannot be treated as Battle Brothers, even if the 38th Company detachment is composed entirely of Astra Militarum (which is ostensibly an Imperial army) or ponies. Either codex can be used to form the Primary Detachment, which may be the only detachment depending on the player’s wishes or available models. Detachments allied with a 38th Company army may never contain models with the Mark of Slaanesh or Daemons of Slaanesh.
• Codex: Chaos Space Marines has the following limitations and changes:
o No models may take Marks of Slaanesh under any circumstances, nor can any Daemon Princes be Daemons of Slaanesh.
o No Elites units from the Codex may be taken aside from Helbrutes (Dreadnoughts). This restriction does not extend to Codex Supplement Elites choices (such as Contemptor Dreadnoughts, for example), and may be circumvented if a certain class of unit is treated as a troops choice because of a special rule.
o No Obliterators may be taken; they’re far too valuable to end up assigned to the 38th Company.
o No special characters may be taken aside from those listed in Codex: 38th Company. Obviously Abbadon isn’t going to be found leading a charge of Company shock troopers, much less Lucius.
o The Veterans of the Long War special rule is replaced by the 38th Veteran special rule. This includes any instance where the rule is listed in a unit profile, as well as when it is listed as an optional upgrade. The point costs remain the same.
o While the Iron Warriors of the 38th Company may be considered “incompetent”, that is only when compared to those who perform to the martial and tactical perfection demanded of such a Legion; suffice to say, to their enemies they seem every bit as capable and vicious as their more “honored” counterparts. They are, however, relatively unmotivated in laying down their lives for their most inglorious objectives. All Chaos Space Marines, Havocs, and Raptors, including squad leaders, suffer -1 Leadership. However, all these models possess boltguns, bolt pistols, and close combat weapons by default for no additional point cost.
o Any unit of infantry taken from this Codex can purchase the Deep Strike rule for 25 points if they do not already have it (this does not extend to any dedicated transports purchased with the unit). This represents the Company’s common tactic of teleporting strike forces directly into battle to knock out key defenses or seize objectives.
• Codex: Astra Militarum is used with the following changes:
o No special characters can be taken by the Astra Militarum detachments. There are no other HQ restrictions or changes, although presumably the models' functions and attitudes would be very different in service to Chaos rather than the Imperium.
o Guardsmen and Veterans are replaced by Mercenaries and Veteran Mercenaries. While these men and women of fortune are just as skilled and well-armed as their Imperial counterparts, they’re not nearly as willing to die for the cause; their cause is money, and money is unhelpful to the dead. All Mercenaries and Veteran Mercenaries, including their Sergeants, are at -1 Leadership, but have the Better Part of Valor special rule. This does not affect other units such as Officers or Stormtroopers, who go through a much stricter training regime and presumably severe indoctrination as well.
38th Veteran: Models with the 38th Veteran rule have +1 Leadership. In addition, all such models have Preferred Enemy: Slaanesh. This refers to any models with the Mark of Slaanesh and models with the Daemon of Slaanesh special rule. Abbadon, who ostensibly bears all the Marks of Chaos, is a grudging exception to this category of enemy (they may not like him, but the Despoiler is not one to be opposed lightly).
Better Part of Valor: Models with this rule are very quick to abandon any pretense of valorous courage on the battlefield, not having any greater ideal to fight for beyond their immediate survival and future payday. Although this means that they will gladly fall back if given the slightest excuse, it also means that they’re equally quick to jump back into the fight once they’ve judged to be in a more advantageous spot. If every model in a unit has the Better Part of Valor rule, then the unit may choose to automatically fail any morale check it is called upon to make. In addition, if falling back, they may choose to regroup automatically without needing a morale check so long as the unit is at least at 25% of its original strength. If not, then it must test for insane courage as normal (or test on the Leadership of an attached Independent Character). All other rules regarding falling back and regrouping apply as normal.
The following sections are dedicated to special equipment that can be taken by Equine characters and/or certain other models in a 38th Company army. These wargear tables are for pony models only; human and post-human characters select equipment from their relevant Codex armories. Each armor suit, ranged weapon, or close combat weapon taken replaces any wargear of the same type that the model is initially equipped with. Other types of wargear do not replace default equipment except where specifically stated. This means that it is effectively impossible for a pony to wield more than one shooting or melee weapon at once, unlike human soldiers (hands. Go figure). Please note that where a specific pony race is listed as a requirement, alicorns count, of course, as all pony races.
Armory
This is the generic armory, consisting mainly of Company equipment available to even low-ranking pony officers for moderately improved battlefield performance. All of it is relatively safe and easily modified for equines to use, and, naturally, far superior to the assortment of melee weapons and ceremonial armor in the equivalent Equestrian barracks.
Carapace Armor (5 points): made of lightweight and expertly fit polyceramic plates – often scavenged from dead Fire Warriors and refurbished – this armor suit offers a 4+ armor save to the wearer.
Boltgun (5 points): using a boltgun requires a lot of practice for a pony – not to mention a much more complex ballistics harness – but those few equines that master the weapon swear by its stopping power, able to put a gaping hole in any Ork or griffon that happens within range.
Plasma Gun (20 points; unicorns only): a plasma gun is identical to a lasgun in terms of recoil and lack of jamming, and several orders of magnitude more powerful. However, in terms of reliability the laser weapon has the clear advantage of not burning one’s face off when it overheats. After seeing the horribly maimed bodies of those humans that had taken such weapons to the field, no ponies would dare to touch plasma weapons. Luckily, the unicorns have never had to touch their weapons in order to use them.
Boarding Shield (15 points; earth ponies only): made of heavy adamantium plates that are shaped into a tower shield, these are typically only used by humans and post-humans during boarding actions, as they’re only likely to face incoming fire from the front and thus won’t have to try to block multiple angles of attack. In open combat they’re generally considered a liability unless paired with heavy powered armor to help carry them (which may render shields redundant). Earth ponies are smaller than humans, and yet those with combat training are quite a bit stronger than the average human soldier. Earth ponies that take to battle with boarding shields typically take two, holding one ahead of them while the other is cut into sections and draped over their sides to block flanking fire. It’s a crude method of armoring an equine, but surprisingly effective in increasing survivability without requiring the much higher technologies of powered armor. It does, unfortunately, preclude the pony taking any sort of ranged weapon, and slows them considerably in close combat. A boarding shield replaces a pony’s ranged weapon rather than their armor and increases their Armor Save by 2, to a maximum of 2+. Additionally, all close combat attacks by a model with a boarding shield have the unwieldy special rule.
Wingblades (15 points; pegasi only): a set of mono-molecular edged blades that attach to the outermost edges of the wings, these weapons are extremely lightweight and easy to use. In combat they rarely inflict great damage on their own, but they allow the pegasi to turn their wings into another set of dangerous limbs, inflicting glancing cuts on the foe and creating openings for their more substantial weapon. A model with wingblades can re-roll missed close combat attacks.
Power Sword/Lance (15 points): humans were quite surprised to learn that not only could ponies handle melee weapons with their jaws or legs in lieu of hands, but they were actually half-way decent at it. Heavy crushing weapons such as mauls, axes, and gauntlets proved far too imbalanced for their “grip”, but slashing weapons such as swords and piercing ones such as lances were already among their armories. Producing such weapons out of advanced metals with mono-molecular edges went a long way toward updating their melee capability, but power weapons naturally proved most popular for their ability to cut through equally advanced armors with contemptuous ease.
Crescent Blade (5 points): a simple weapon specifically designed to be wielded by ponies, this lightweight melee weapon fits comfortably and firmly in the jaws at the “grip”, and then has two long, curved blades extending from either side and pointing forward. The ultimate effect is to allow a pony to attack with each turn of its head, rather than only half of them (since a sword will only stick out of one side of the mouth), and thus get around the equine’s inability to wield two close combat weapons at once. A crescent blade counts as two normal close combat weapons.
Tail Lash (10 points): a rather… controversial piece of pony war equipment, this armament is a cruelly barbed and bladed scourge that can be affixed to the tail of an equine and used to swipe at enemies between blows to distract them or ward away attackers from behind. Despite being one of the few tools that takes advantage of equine physiology rather than compensating for it, ponies don’t much like them. Partially because of the nature of the tool, but mostly because of the amount of training and practice it takes to use without cutting up their rear. Models with a tail lash have +1 Weapon Skill.
Melta Bombs (5 points): good old melta bombs work even without fingers! Incidents of ponies dropping them with their hooves at a critical moment have proven rare, and usually quite funny in hindsight.
Augments (15 points): augments are the go-to solution in the 38th Company for crippling wounds, organ failure, or just replacing a few body parts that just don’t seem to do enough in your day-to-day. The Dark Mechanicus doesn’t especially like using their expertise and resources helping ponies, whom they see as generally useless and inferior creatures, but when pressed to construct bionic components the Dark Techpriests would see it as an insult to their craft to create a limb that is merely the equal of its biological equivalent rather than being a substantial improvement. A model with an Augment rolls on the Chaos Boon table after deployment, just as with the Daemonic Mutation upgrade. Unlike the Daemonic Mutation upgrade, the model will re-roll any results of Spawnhood, Dark Apotheosis, or Unworthy Offering until a valid result is rolled. A model may have ultimately have both a Daemonic Mutation and an Augment, or even multiple Augments, but may only purchase this upgrade from the Armory once unless otherwise noted.
Magic Cloak (5 points): very nearly the only piece of equine-made equipment that was still deemed useful after gaining access to Imperial and Chaos wargear, the magic cloak is a cape that is enchanted to harden to an utterly indestructible barrier on command, and can even be used by non-unicorns (although they find it harder to use). It has been noted, however, that it takes an unfortunate amount of time and concentration to harden the cape to deflect a blow – two things which are not readily available in the midst of a firefight or swirling melee – and that the hardened cloak usually keeps the wearer from retaliating until the fabric has been returned to its pliable and effectively useless state. When the humans asked why ponies didn’t enchant pieces of jointed armor to be indestructible on command, they were told that “magic doesn’t work that way”. Imagine that. The cloak imparts a +1 bonus to a model's Invulnerable Save, cumulative with all other Invulnerable Save bonuses, to a maximum of 2+.
Wargear from the Forge of the Warsmith
These selections of equipment are rare and highly specialized pieces of equipment personally designed, constructed, or at least scavenged and modified by Warsmith Solon himself. Besides being extremely useful and resilient, some of the wargear offers tactical abilities or combat power beyond even that of the Iron Warriors’ usual wargear and weapons. Solon resents being used as the go-to blacksmith for equine soldiers, to be sure, but as usual nopony cares. All weapons on this list count as Master-Crafted, and all Power Armor suits add +1 Wound and +1 Strength in addition to its 3+ Armor Save and any other item-specific bonuses.
Pulse Blaster (15 points): the pulse blaster is an assembly of a pair of Tau pulse rifle assemblies with their stabilizer coils shortened and their plasma cyclers optimized. The weapon barrels fire one at a time, but can do so in rapid sequence and with equivalent accuracy to Imperial combat rifles. The result is a weapon that has a rate of fire almost as good as a burst cannon and a range almost as good as a pulse rifle. It is also light enough to be mounted to the forelimb and be fired at a moment’s notice. While this does make it very easy for a pony to fire immobile, it does mean they find it very difficult to fire while running.
| Pulse Blaster | Range: 24” | S: 5 | AP: 5 | Salvo 1/3 |
Flechette Cannon (10 points): these weapons are essentially heavy assault shotguns that are made to fire a wide spread of mono-filament shards on the charge, usually causing minor injuries and distracting wounds immediately previous to a unit reaching melee to land finishing blows. Mounted on the shoulder, these weapons have a limited rate of fire and short range, but have compensated handily for the fact that many ponies find it difficult to hurl a grenade in the middle of an assault charge. A unit that contains at least one flechette cannon counts as having assault grenades when charging in the assault phase.
| Flechette Cannon | Range: 12” | S: 3 | AP: 6 | Assault 1, Blast |
Lascaster (15 points): surprisingly traditional in its technology type, the lascaster is nonetheless very much on the “deadly” end of laser technology, far removed from the oft-maligned “flashlight” lasrifle. A lascaster can be mounted onto a pony’s shoulder, helmet, or even built directly into the skull, and fires a streaming laser that causes remarkable damage in relation to its energy efficiency and heat management. These lasers can be fired easily on the move, at a good range, and are powered by a power backpack or enhanced suit reactor rather fiddly power cartridges.
| Lascaster | Range: 24” | S: 4 | AP: 6 | Assault 3 |
Hunter Armor (35 points): a power armor suit that emphasizes ranged combat, it features greatly enhanced combat visor systems and autosenses, as well as improved ballistics mountings for more easily firing the ranged weapon of choice. Hunter Armor grants +1 Ballistic Skill in addition to its other benefits.
Predator Armor (40 points): this power armor suit is the mirror image of the hunter armor, geared for maximum close combat ability. It is fixed with multiple miniature impulse thrusters and antigrav greaves to allow the wearer to skim over the ground and quickly close with the enemy, and each boot also contains powered cutting blades for making each thrust of the hoof considerably more lethal. Models with predator armor gain the Fleet special rule. Their close combat attacks have the Shred special rule as well.
Wraith Armor (45 points): this power armor suit is derived from Tau stealth suit technologies and designed to not only deflect incoming blows, but protect the wearer from even being seen by the enemy. It gives the wearer the Stealth special rule and incorporates a Cloaking Field.
Black Auspex (20 points): this optical array features an extremely powerful logic engine that reduces the burden of hitting entrenched targets from challenge to more of a chore. It tracks the movements of targets to predict and time shots when a target is exposed, and can identify portions of cover weak enough for a specific weapon to penetrate. A model with a Black Auspex has the Precision Shot and Ignores Cover special rule applied to their ranged attacks.
Null Blade (30 points): the technologies that lie behind the construction of this sword are so esoteric and arcane that asking Solon to explain them results in a stream of utterly foreign gibberish (even BEFORE taking into consideration his characteristic slur); human science, much less pony science, has not even encroached upon the theories behind its workings (the non-sword aspects, at least). The only thing that the wielder of this weapon can be reasonably sure of is that its power is generated with material technologies rather than Chaos Sorcery, and that its gently humming, luminescent edge will destroy everything and anything it touches.
| Null Blade | Range: M | S: User + 1 | AP: 1 | Melee, Armorbane |
Corruptions
Corruptions are a collection of abilities and wargear that quite explicitly use daemonic Warp energy to either power the abilities or change the user to make the ability possible. Needless to say, this is not always pleasant for the individual subjected to the corruption, and the Iron Warriors make no secret of the dangers. Ponies don’t take corruptions lightly, since – unlike certain unlucky humans – they must choose to walk the path of Chaos willingly for its power to touch them. It also makes Princess Celestia far more reluctant to hand out her most powerful magical artifacts, because she’s just super uncool like that. That said, the power they grant are quite real and useful, and every corruption seems to make the next just a little bit easier to accept…
A model that purchases a Corruption can never take a Sacred Relic. A model can also never have more than one Chaos Mark; if a model that can purchase Corruptions already has a Chaos Mark of any type, it may not purchase another one to add to or replace the default Mark. Corrupted Psykers that gain access to new Disciplines through a Mark can still select powers from their usual Discipline if they wish. Further limitations are included in each entry.
Mark of Khorne (10 points): the Mark of Khorne grants the Rage and Counterattack special rules. Unicorns and Alicorns cannot take a Mark of Khorne.
Mark of Nurgle (15 points): the Mark of Nurgle grants +1 Toughness. Psykers with the Mark of Nurgle may select psychic powers from the Nurgle or Biomancy Disciplines.
Mark of Tzeentch (10 points): the Mark of Tzeentch increases a model’s Invulnerable Save by 1, to a maximum of 2+. This is cumulative with other invulnerable save bonuses (up to the stated maximum) and grants an Invulnerable Save of 6 if the model otherwise has no Invulnerable Save. Psykers with the Mark of Tzeentch may select psychic powers from the Tzeentch or Divination Disciplines.
Daemonic Mutation (10 points): as stated in the Chaos Space Marines Codex. A model that already has this Corruption cannot purchase it again (pony bodies can only take so much mutation!).
Daemonic Aura (20 points): the pony’s mannerisms and appearance become far more primal, they seem to shrug off debilitating blows and a primal sense of dread surrounds those in close contact. This grants the Daemon special rule.
Gift of Hatred (10 points): the pony becomes completely consumed with their battlefield duties, showing no fear or even concern for their own lives. Although inspiring, they tend to be not as… nice as they were before completely devoting themselves to the business of murder. The model loses the Friendship is Magic special rule, but becomes Fearless.
Warptouched (10 points): Unicorns only. The model has learned to break through the protections granted by their pony heritage; a terrible idea most of the time, but useful when in desperate straits . The model gains the Touched by Darkness special rule.
Flamegaze (20 points): models with the Mark of Tzeentch only. This model can use the Firestorm of Tzeentch power as if it were a PSI-1 ranged weapon. The model does not have to be a psyker to do so, but obviously the power still expends Warp Charge as usual per Psionic Wargear. This does not replace a ranged weapon, but a model may still fire only one weapon in the Shooting Phase.
Stone Bones (15 points): Earth Ponies only. Already dense bones harden further and regenerate when damaged, making the equine warrior even harder to put down. Grants +1 Wound.
Venom Breath (15 points): models with the Mark of Nurgle only. A massive exhalation of internal toxins that fan out from the user, attacking flesh and corroding armor. It does not replace a ranged weapon. Venom breath is a shooting attack with the following profile:
| Venom Breath | Range: Template | S: 1 | AP: 5 | Assault 1, Poison (4+) |
Bloodwing (10 points): Pegasi only. The pony’s wings become much harder and heavier than usual, with spines growing from the bones and feathers developing hardened cutting edges that turn them into full-fledged combat limbs. This grants +1 Attack.
Blood Aura (15 points): models with the Mark of Khorne only. The blessing of the Blood God grants the Furious Charge and Adamantium Will special rules.
Sacred Relics
Despite the 38th Company’s long history of warfare and the considerable cache of technologies it has to offer, it would be utterly false to claim that Equestria has no weapons of similar power at its disposal. Just as the Dark Mechanicus claims mastery of the physical laws of the universe (and even some metaphysical laws of the Warp) to make its tools of destruction, Equestria has long practiced powerful magics that are every bit the equal of Chaos sorceries (and usually much safer). The Elements of Harmony, the Alicorn Amulet, the odd book of dark magic… these tools and more are scattered across that magical land, waiting and willing to lend a frankly irresponsible level of magic might to anypony foolish, desperate, or enterprising enough to take advantage of them. Some are quite dangerous to the user as well as their enemies, while others are so obviously useful that the Company struggles to understand why Celestia apparently leaves such artifacts lying around the countryside for anypony to pick up if they need or want them.
A model may only ever have one Sacred Relic, and may not take a Sacred Relic if they chose any options from Corruptions. No, not even the sketchy relics; Celestia isn’t letting any tainted ponies into her secret magic stash, period. None of these items will replace a model’s default wargear.
Tome of Starswirl the Bearded (40 points): a model with this tome may not select powers from their usual discipline. Instead, they know every power from any single discipline described in the Warhammer 40K general rule book.
It’s true; Starswirl the Bearded never did figure out the magic of friendship. But you know what? He knew enough about every OTHER kind of magic to be regarded as the best Celestia-damned magus in recorded history, and that’s probably good enough. You don’t see any ponies fighting to get any of Princess SPARKLE’S books.
Helm of Valor (30 points): this helm does not replace armor (or, in fact, effectively deflect blows well enough to improve an Armor Save). The model bearing it has +1 Weapon Skill, Strength, Initiative, and Attacks, and gains the Fearless special rule. They lose the Friendship is Magic special rule.
Throughout its history, the ponies bearing the Helm of Valor have always been Equestria’s mightiest, bravest, and – by far – least popular warriors. It grants the bearer unparalleled martial power and grace, along with all the egomania and contemptuous self-importance one would expect from a pony who actually EARNED such traits through pure effort rather than magic trinkets. But its effectiveness as a weapon can hardly be denied, so here we are.
Phoenix Egg (40 points): if a model with the Phoenix Egg loses its final Wound, the unit it was attached to must make a Morale Check. This occurs at the end of the sequence by which the Wound was lost (after all blows are struck in close combat, after the enemy Shooting Phase, etc.), may not use the egg-bearing model’s Leadership (since they’re dead or dying), and replaces the unit’s normal Morale Check if they were called upon to make one for a different reason (for losing a close combat, taking heavy casualties, etc.). If the test is passed, then the unit holds as normal and the possessor of the egg is returned to its former position with all its wounds restored. This only occurs once; subsequent deaths will be permanent. If the test is failed, or if there are no other models in the character’s unit, then the unit falls back immediately following all the normal rules and the model with the phoenix egg is removed without further effect.
The egg of the phoenix is one of the most treasured healing agents known to modern medical magic, a miracle cure that can instantly return a pony to life and health from anything save the ravages of age itself (there’s a different spell for that). Such items are, naturally, extremely coveted on the battlefield. The problem being, of course, that the recently deceased is unable to imbibe the egg themselves once the killing blow has fallen. Subordinates can usually be trusted to use the egg on the commanders rather than sneaking off with it, but they cannot always be relied upon to administer the item in the midst of a firefight, swirling melee, or after being brutally dismembered themselves.
Heart of Discord (30 points): a model with the Amulet of Discord receives +1 Weapon Skill, Ballistic Skill, Strength, Toughness, Attacks, and Initiative, and -1 Leadership. The model must make a Leadership Check at the beginning of every turn, using its own Leadership (ignoring the Leadership values of any other models in its unit or any rules that would normally allow it to use another model’s Leadership value in place of its own). If the test is passed, then the model may act normally during that turn. If the Leadership test is failed, then the model is “stunned” and may not act at all during the owning player turn, except to strike blows if already in close combat (the sense of madness and disconnection from reality not QUITE enough to distract from an axe descending on one’s face). The other models in the character’s unit may act as normal, with the exception that they cannot declare a charge so long as the stunned model is attached (given that it cannot charge or pile in).
Nopony is sure if the unnaturally neon-colored jewel called the Heart of Discord is actually his heart or not; conventional logic says that he’d probably need his heart, and wouldn’t give it out to ponies as a questionable magic power-up. But then, conventional logic does not always apply to him. Whatever its origin, Discord’s influence is quite clear. When in possession of the Heart, a pony possesses unnatural strength and skill of arms, but their thinking patterns become a mess and they’ll have a tendency to get distracted, stopping to argue with deeply offensive shrubberies or suddenly rearranging their munitions in order of use in a hypothetical situation far removed from the current battle. Some have drawn parallels to the Alicorn Amulet and its influence, to which Discord himself simply snorts and mumbles something about ancient magi being shameless copycats.
Moon Shroud (25 points): confers a +4 Invulnerable Save. A model cannot take both a Moon Shroud and a Magic Cloak.
The moon shroud is a simple, stunningly effective, nearly indestructible magic garment that almost seems to swim around the bearer, deflecting blows and even laser bolts as if it had a mind of its own. Luna constructed the shroud herself, and when asked (as she has been many times) why she doesn’t make more, Luna coolly informs the inquisitive soul that she painstakingly sewed the shroud for nearly a century of her 1000-year imprisonment on the moon, and that she just doesn’t have that kind of time anymore. The extra-inquisitive souls that ask why she didn’t make nine more while trapped up there with nothing better to do usually find themselves flung from the castle ramparts.
HAVE YOU APPLIED TO BE A GW WRITER!?
please say you have...this is balanced enough at a glance to be useful and fresh...
2561928
Psh, like I have that kind of time. I'm WAY too busy cramming ponies into their universe lore to do anything productive and respectable with my writing.
2562208
LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL
Not quite as humor filled as the other blogs but still a fun read. Very neat background info on the 38th Company.
Neat ideas on the Pony gear. The Sacred Relics also seemed pretty appropriate.
I suppose the one other thing I might be curious about is how the 38th gets along with other Traitor Chapters. Obviously not well with the Emperors Children but the 38th must run into other Chaos Marines or other Dark forces every once in awhile.
With how well these are written and how invested I am in the story and it's characters, I would certainly be interested if you were to post that.
Why are you using IG? Just use renegades and heretics from Imperial Armor Vol. 14
3407522
The Astra Militarum book is more comprehensive and more accessible.
Not that it REALLY matters, since this is all just made-up nonsense... but if it doesn't matter, it's not going to matter in a way that I like.
3407539
I'm mostly just worried about the shit-load of falking +1 T guardsmen you can field for very few points.
3467064
Under the rules stated here, you can't take +1 T Guardsmen. Guardsmen do not have access to the Chaos Space Marine wargear list or the Chaos Cultist wargear options, which is necessary to take a Mark of Nurgle.
Or did you mean "worried" in the sense that you're worried that option isn't available?
3467081
No I just thought the guardsmen could take mark of N and get +1 T. Even then it seems strange you can't have devoted chaos guardsmen in an essentially chaos guardsmen list.
3468907
It's assumed that once they turn completely to Chaos, their professional organization breaks down. Or something like that.
The real reason, as you suggested, is that T4 Guardsman platoons on the cheap are ridiculous. So instead these rules would force you to use Chaos Cultists if you want T4 meat shields. They're similar to Guardsmen, but generally worse (aside from being able to take Marks).
I was reading through all of the 38th company codex posts once again, and noticed that the Magic Cloak has a wonderful description but doesn't actually say what bonus it gives the model. From one of the other entries it looks like it might just give a 5++, but the description seems to imply there may be more.
4180748
Fixed it.
Actually in imparts a +1 bonus to the Invulnerable Save, which stacks with Unicorn bonuses for a 5+.
Thanks!
4180962
You are very welcome!
That is a pretty good bonus.
I just got the card game WH40k Conquest a few weeks ago, and I have this thought that it might be fun to try to make rules for the 38th company and the ponies in that, based on the codex you have put together. I can't figure out if it would make sense for there to be a pony warlord, since all the ponies take their orders from Solon and Silver, but either way the idea amuses me greatly. If you have no objections I will see if I have the time to come up with something.
4182765
No objections here. Sound like fun!
4182887
Got the first set done! https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/669111/38th-company-conquest-cards-part-1-warlords
It has been happening faster than I thought it would, and is quite entertaining overall. I think I will work on the Equinought squadron and other unique characters next