GENESTEALER CULT WARGEAR

Cult Leaders often carry massive tomes with them, enormous volumes detailing the Cult beliefs and prophecies. Between battles they read to their enthralled followers, both to inspire them for the coming conflict and remove any doubts they might have in their actions. In actual combat there is little time for reading, but the thick velum (or sometimes less savory materials used in covers and pages) does often provide a modicum of protection by absorbing what might have been a lethal blow. Unless killed by an Instant Death wound, when the bearer of a Book is slain place him on his side. At the end of the current phase, roll a D6: on a roll of 6, the model is restored to 1 Wound, stands back up, and fights as normal. Note that the model will count as a casualty for purposes of requiring a Morale Check for enemy fire, which might result in his unit running away & leaving him behind (thinking he is dead). If this occurs for a model leading a unit, both he & his unit must try to regain unit coherency in following turns.

A special protective aid made from specially treated layers of Genestealer Chitin skin fashioned over regular armor. Though difficult and time-consuming to make, its unique properties are sought by most Cult leaders. A model with Chitin armor has the same saving throw as normal, but in order for a weapon to negate the model’s save it must have an AP value that is better than the saving throw, not just equal to it. For example, for a model wearing Flak Armor with an armor save of 5+, this means that only weapons with an AP of 4 or better will negate their saving throw, while weapons with an AP value of 5 or better can be saved against as normal. This must be combined with actual Armor to be effective though; it does nothing without Carapace Armor or Flak Armor.

During Cult services, special braziers are lit to fill the halls with scented smoke. Unknown to all but the Cult leaders, these fumes are laced with special chemicals and Genestealer pheromones. Designed to interact with the altered DNA of the membership, they work to deaden independent thought and reinforce faith in the Cult. In battle, Censers are used to repress any thought of slowing their advance and ensure Brood Brothers continue towards the enemy. Any unit which has a Censer, or is within 6" of a vehicle with a Censer, may roll 3 dice for any Pinning Tests, and use the lowest two for the result.

Cults often fashion weapons from the razor sharp claws of their departed kinsmen, both to remember them in battle and to slay more of the enemy! Usually these take the form of a long staff or club, with several claws (or an entire Genestealer arm) attached at the end. A Totem takes both hands to wield, so the user will not get an extra Attack from it, but the extra sharp claws slice through most enemy armor. Treat any hits done by the model as striking at the User Strength and having an Armor Penetrating value of 4 (thus models will get an armor save only if they have an Armor of 3+ or better). Totems cannot be combined with any other Close Combat weapon effects.

A small amount of ichor from the Patriarch is mixed with rare unholy herbs and forbidden chemicals to form a potent brew! Once per battle at any time in the Assault Phase, the bearer may shatter the vial, releasing the fumes into the air. Nearby Cult members (including Genestealers) are filled with fanatical zeal from the vapors, and any units with any members within 2D6" of the Cultist who shattered the vial may add +1 Attack bonus for the rest of the turn. After the turn ends, the vapors disperse and the effects are lost. Note that the Vial can be used in the opponent’s Assault Phase if desired.

Often the Cult will carry into battle the remains of a slain enemy, usually as part of a previous glorious victory or assassination, mounted high on a pole for all to see. These could be the head of a high ranking planetary official, the crested helm of the local Adeptus Arbites Chief, or possibly even a mighty Space Marine’s helmet! No matter what form the Remains take they serve to strengthen the resolve of the unit, and you may add +1 to their score when resolving any Assaults. If the bearer is killed in an Assault though, the opposing player gains +1VP as they capture the remains (+5 if the enemy is of the same army as the remains!). Note this last rule only applies if the Victory Points special rules are in use.

Unlike "proper" armies, Genestealer Cults often find themselves utilizing anything that can be found or stolen as weapons. This almost always includes massive amounts of civilian weapons drafted into combat roles. All of the following weapons are very common throughout Imperial planets, but are almost never used by actual military forces. Cults cannot be so choosy though, and to their best to make good use of them in their bids for revolution.

This is a new special weapon type, used for those weapons which are simply not up to the normal standards for warfare in the 41^st Millennium (or even the 21^st). Though widely used in Cult forces, they are very much inferior to normal military weaponry. When the Cult player rolls to wound from an attack with a Primitive Weapon, each of the dice that score a wound will have to be re-rolled. Only the ones that again score a wound will count as wounding hits.

Bow: Primitive weapon used on almost all planets, heavily so on Feudal Worlds. Skilled users can fire off arrows at a fast rate at short distances, or draw back fully for extra range.

Auspex: An Auspex is a short-ranged scanner used to detect hidden enemy troops. If enemy infiltrators set-up within 4D6" of a model with an Auspex, then the model is allowed to take a 'free' shot at them (or sound the alarm in a raid scenario). If the model is part of a unit then the whole unit may shoot. These shots are taken before the battle begins, and may cause the infiltrators to fall back.

Carapace Armor: Carapace armor is simply made up of large rigid plates of armaplas or ceramite molded to fit parts of the body that provide additional protection to flak armor. A model with Carapace armor has a saving throw of 4+.

Combi-Weapons: A combi-weapon is essentially two weapons joined together, and gives the operator using it a choice of two weapons to fire. A model armed with a combi-weapon may choose to fire one of the weapons in the shooting phase. The bolter may be fired any number of times, but the other weapon may only be fired once per battle. Note that you may not choose to fire both weapons at once.

Master Crafted Weapons: A master crafted weapon follows the normal rules, except that you may re-roll one failed 'to hit' roll per turn for an attack made by the master crafted weapon. Master crafted weapons are taken as an 'upgrade' for a weapon already being carried by a model and should be represented by a suitably ornate weapon on the model itself. Please note that you may not master-craft grenades! The cost of a master-crafted weapon is in addition to the normal cost of the weapon. However, only the upgrade costs against the maximum point limit on Wargear taken by a model (so a master crafted power weapon would 15 points against the wargear point limit, not 30).

Targeter: Targeters are small devices which gather & process information on enemy targets via optical or electromagnetic means. Models equipped with a Targeter are allowed to pre-measure the range to a target before they decide who to shoot at in the shooting phase. If any Guess weapons are in play, they must make their range guesses before any Targeters are used.