Pre-Order & Preview: New Epic Warpath Superheavy Units

Epic-scale gamers know that (ironically) one of the best things about building armies with tiny models is....adding some big models!

Why? Because while a tank in a 28-32mm game is great...let's face it, a giant mech towering far above 10mm infantry like a skyscraper looks incredible. Especially when it's trying to pluck a gunship out of the sky while smaller units clash around its ankles. Those combined arms 'cinema moments' where drama and strategy smash explosively together are the essence of Epic Warpath - and we LOVE it.

So, it's high time to bring a big extra unit to all eight factions this month. It's the first time these Superheavy behemoths have been available outside the original Kickstarter campaign - so let's check them out, with special notes by Simon from the Rules Committee on all the new capabilities they're about to add to your games!

The Plague 3^rd Gen’s innate mastery of human technology doesn’t just stop at tanks and transport – even the GCPS’ greatest weapons can be turned against them. Thanks to the work of numerous corrupted pilots and engineers, and dedicated attacks from Leapers and Murderbirds, even the mobile power of the GCPS’ mechs has been corrupted to the Plague’s foul purpose.

What the Plague Battle Mech brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

Just imagine. Five blast templates which can be targeted at up to three different targets (all capable of direct fire with an SH 5+) give a good chance to pin enemy units and inflict early casualties with 30” or 36” ranges. Or you could use the missile pods to soften up an infantry unit and fire the penetrator shells at a vehicle unit with AP 3 and Vicious. The Plague Battle Mech may be “pre-loved” horribly-infected GCPS tech, but it provides the same offensive benefits. Coupled with a high AR rating and Resilience 3 this walking Colossus can take some punishment.

Compared to the list's other Superheavy, the Colossus, the Battle Mech serves a very different purpose with multirole support fire. Should it find itself in melee range, it benefits from the Sustained Attack Aura, boosting it’s own and any units in range with exploding 8’s in assaults. However, keeping its guns firing provides provides by far the most offensive value as the highest AP unit (AP 3) the Plague currently have available. This makes it an excellent choice against well-protected units like Forge Father units with all their armour and big hammers!

Maul-class battleships prowl over the war-torn worlds of the GCPS’s expansion. Held aloft by brutal anti-gravity engines, its multiple cannons are brought to bare against enemy positions, each thundering report crushing resistance outright. The Maul is the concentrated result of the GCPS’ industrial complex at its strongest.

What the Maul Battleship brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

An absolute bruiser, the Maul is heavily armoured and well-armed to engage targets at long range. Three 36” range turrets, Blast, AP 2 and Primary Weapon give it the flexibility to hurt a lot of targets, or really hurt something that warrants special attention. Its AR of 9+ makes it immune to weapons without AP, and Sv 6+ is very capable when combined with Resilience 3. Unlike a lot of other Superheavies it is also bringing a command dice, plus transport capability. Consider Veterans for a close combat boost, Ranger Tank Hunters to defend an objective, or even TAC Drones for plenty of pinning capability.

Unlike nearly every other unit currently in game, the Maul can regenerate damage. This is not without risk but it has a respectable 75% chance of regaining a Resilience token (up to 3). It can still move and receive a combat token (all when activated and spending a command point) so can create a real challenge for your opponent unless they're prepare to sink some serious firepower into its destruction. Naturally, this diverts meaningful ranged fire from your other units - who can set about busily grabbing objectives, securing resources for their corporate masters.

Not all the modern Marauders’ arsenal has been taken from corporate outfits or bought with profits from clandestine merc jobs. Many Orc leaders are still able to use the original machinery and equipment built for their ancestors before the Mandrake Rebellion - such as the formidable Kymera Gunship. It is a testament both to the ruggedness of the original designs that these vehicles are just as deadly today as when first deployed.

What the Kymera Gunship brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

The Kymera is a Superheavy flier, so it cannot be engaged in close combat and is always -1 to be hit - so it's not an easy target! It is also flexible in deployment, having the choice to enter the table on turn 1 or drop onto the field (carrying a unit a highly trained killers) anywhere on the table from turn 2 onwards with Orbital Deployment. How about dropping onto an objective, hovering and unload 18 Assault Dice of Ripper Maulers onto an objective? And while it’s hovering above those just-deployed troops, the Alpha Strike special rule gives it five extra dice for shooting (two for each of the Rotary Cannons and one for the HEW Cannon).

As a transport, it's excellently suited to carrying your Rainmakers or Ripper Maulers. Or for some really high impact 'punch', a unit of Brawlers or Heavies would be a great choice for consolidating objectives if you intend to stick around. If you choose to 'Keep Going!' with a unit, then the Kymera can then fire at +1 to hit and damage - which makes those Rotary Cannons very effective at short range.

The Enforcers excel at strategic control of the battlefield, and the Maven IV is a mobile command centre capable of overseeing anything up to and including a country-wide invasion. When its prodigious resources are focused on a singular conflict, the faceless warfighters it coordinates unleash a terrifying level of cohesion and synchronicity.

What the Maven IV Command Tank brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

The Maven IV is a formidable force multiplier, “allowing a smaller unit to accomplish more than they otherwise could”. It has a reasonable complement of Anti-Infantry weaponry in the form of 4 Laser Blasters, but isn't designed for toe-to-toe combat like other Superheavies. What it brings is a large command radius and two command dice (green and orange), which makes it able to exert influence across a large area of the battlefield.

'Command and Conquer' reduces the cost of the 'Go, Go, Go!' stratagem to 1 CP. This means that the Maven Command Tank can help move Enforcer infantry units around to where they may have more impact, or contest an objective your opponent was maybe threatening to gain control off. Keep an eye on fast enemy units, because it’s a tempting target and you want to keep it in play to provide those bonus dice. Its AR 9+ and a SV 5+ means it’s not likely to be jumped easily by a fast moving bike unit or even roving aircraft, so just watch out for anything with high AP that's attempting to break through your front line!

The Nidavellir is a literal fortress dropped from low orbit onto the battlefield. Moments after landfall its armoured hull opens up, interlocking plates moving to reveal weapons and repair bays. Within minutes, the Forge Fathers have a forward operating base, command and control hub, and valuable support for their mobile units – all in one place.

What the Nidavellir Drop-Fortress brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

The Nidavellir Drop-Fortress is a powerful unit that avoids the challenge that others face when deploying into an opponent’s zone of control.  Firstly, it is extremely survivable with AR 9+, SV5+, Resilience (2) and it can ignore AP0 entirely!  Secondly, with the advanced military tech of the Forge Fathers it will only scatter a maximum of 3” when deploying, meaning its position on the board is much more certain than other units that drop from the sky. Thirdly, it's sufficiently well armed to make an impact from the outset - so aim to land near a good portion of enemy infantry, where it can pump out 12 shots with AP1 and Ignore Cover.  The Drop-Fortress can transport two units of infantry, but it also has the option of a unit of Iron Ancestors, or even the short range Heavy Inferno Drills to potentially deliver a very nasty surprise to your opponent, increasing the danger to their backfield.

Alternatively, given the Drop-Fortress has a respectable 16” command radius, there is the option to drop is in the centre of the table to provide a very large “bubble” for your army's strategic orders, and to ward off opponents from a nearby objective location with the threat of its Dragonbreath Flamers.

Under the direct control of a triad of veteran pilots, the Aedis Warden is the largest construct the Clades can deploy to a terrestrial battlefield. The gestalt crew allow for the independent control of multiple arms and weapons in unison and give the warden a heightened awareness compared to foes of its size. It is an elegant and frightening construct to behold, towering over the ground armies of those who would dare oppose the Asterians in battle.

What the Aedis Clade Warden brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

The Clade Warden is a versatile unit that brings a range of capabilities to the table. A 30” range cannon with 2 blast templates, AP 2 and Pinning makes it (i) good against vehicles and (ii) VERY good against infantry. Up close, its Vibroshield and eight dice hitting on 4+ mean that a skilled opponent is unlikely to assault a Clade Warden unless they have no other option. 'Weapon Master' means that it gets to fire its Maelstrom Cannon at any target within range after close combat has been resolved. 'Battlemancer' allows you to switch tokens when activated, even when out of command range of a unit with Cunning. All combined, this suite of abilities make it extremely flexible for a Superheavy, and it excels at supporting other Asterian units in assaults - such as Black Talons, Kalyshi, and the Matsudan.  

This resilience up close make it a tempting target for ranged attacks, so its Heavy Armour is important to help reduce that incoming fire. It’s complex energy signature and high mobility are represented with Stealthy (which makes all incoming fire that bit less effective), and Resilience 3 and a Sv of 5+ round out its defensive profile. If needing to improve this further, then 'Energise', while expensive, can bring the Sv to 4+. As you can see, this is an impressive unit that puts a wide range of choices into the hands of capable Commander.

The reports of Psychomolc encounters that humanity’s ETCU (Exo-Threat Counteraction Unit) have been able to gather are unreliable and contradictory. Psychic power is rarely encountered by the GCPS and though their information on the Psychomolsc is limited, researchers firmly maintain that much of it is hyperbole, unable to accept the Nameless could possibly field a mind-weapon with such range and power…

What the Psychomolsc brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

The Psychomolsc is a Super Heavy flier with Heavy Armour, and can carry 2 units. Brave generals may use this capability to push forward at the start of the game, to get further down the table onto some objectives. Useful suggestions to get the best of this capability include a unit of Swarms to tie up an objective and force your opponent to respond, with either a unit of Feromites or Magnumites in support for when they are inevitably assaulted, or to contest another location.

Now...eight dice of AP 2 shooting really isn’t anything to sniff at (especially with Ignores Cover and Pinning). However, the Mind Wipe attack/ability can really help you determine how a battle for an objective or key terrain feature plays out. It isn’t reliable, but has the potential for real impact - and is the only attack in the game which has the ability to remove an action or combat token. Remember that in a close-fought game, the result can turn at a pivotal moment on the order or ability to resolve assaults...

The underminer is the ultimate in the Veer-myn’s sabotage technology. It is a retrofitted boring machine, hijacked as an enormous ambush weapon. Data-tracks have identified them to be comprised of numerous marks of GCPS mining tech, capable of removing large areas of terrain and grinding them down to retrieve minerals.

What the Great Underminer brings to your army - tips from the Rules Committee:

The Great Underminer has a great trick up its sleeve, and you'd expect nothing less from the workshops of the crafty Veer-myn.  Using Subterranean Deployment you can deploy it anywhere you like, but instead of having to nominate what it's transporting at the start of the game (as everyone else does) you can elect to bring units in reserve through the tunnel the Great Underminer made on it’s way in if it suits you and if they wouldn’t be better coming in from a table edge.  Given no plan survives contact with the enemy, this is a fantastic way to be able to change your deployment plans for reserves at the last minute based on current battlefield conditions.

The Great Underminer is protected by Resilence (4) on top of it’s AR of 8+, Heavy Armour, and SV of 6+. All of this gives it excellent odds of surviving in exposed positions, against anything but concentrated high AP fire. It can return fire using 8 shots with Vicious at 15” range, which is a helpful range given it cannot move once on the battlefield - so pick your location wisely!

It's time to bring out the big guns Commander. New and heavy firepower for your army is ready and waiting to deploy - shipping from 27th July.