Psychic Powers 101

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Hello all!

 

I don't know if i'm alone in this, but to me, psychic powers are quite confusing! They exist in many forms accross many armies and have different uses, so I felt that it might be a good idea to start putting together a 101 of the different psykers in the world of 40k!

 

I was thinking of using this template for each psyker:

 

Codex Space Marines:

 

 

Librarian:

 

The space marine psychic user, he has a good range of different powers, but his statline and equipment aren't particularly special. The librarian is quite flexible as a HQ and can assist and support a wide range of squads with his powers, rather than having to help a CC squad like most other HQs, this in itself makes him quite a useful tool in any players arsenal. Overall he is a very decent psyker and can be used a wide range of different situations, so keep this in mind.

 

 

Commonly appears as -

 

Barebones: At 100 points many people take the character for a cheap and flexible HQ that can adapt and support on the battlefield at a bargain price

 

Terminator Armour + Stormshield: A much more heavily armoured version makes the librarian more viable in fights and to move around without a vehicle, it gives him protection from some of his own powers as he now has an invulnerable save.

 

Epistolary: Allows the librarian to use 2 powers a turn, sometimes to devastating effect

 

 

Special Character varients:

 

Chief Librarian Tigurius: Has access to ALL powers and can use up to 3 a turn, making him a very powerful psyker. His points cost and 'weak' statline mean however that he pays for his powers by being quite vulnerable to being killed as he lacks strong defense.

 

 

List of Powers + which are commonly taken:

 

 

*The Avenger: S5, AP3, Assault 1. This power uses a flamer template and is very effective at burning through crowds of people, it works well in most squads and can even bring down marines in their heavy armour! I (think) it can be sneakily deployed from within a rhino as well, creating a flamer tank! It is quite a common power to see on a librarian.

 

 

Force Dome: The librarian and his attached unit benefit from a 5+ invulnerable save, whilst this is better than nothing, it's not the strongest defense against attacks and shouldn't be relied on. However it can help units such as vanguard veterans or honour guard shrug off just a bit more firepower.

 

 

*Gate of Infinity: This power allows you to 'teleport' your librarian and his attached unit around as if entering by deep strike. The power is therefore limited by the fact that his unit cannot assault after the teleport and runs the risk of taking casualties, but does allow for some potentially devestating shooting attacks! Good combined with units like sternguard, a regular appearance on the battlefield.

 

 

Machine Curse: A 24" psychic attack against vehicles only. Whilst nice against mech heavy armies, it can only cause glancing hits against the vehicle it attacks, though it does this against any vehicle regardless of AV. Its not seen often in the battlefield.

 

 

Might of the Ancients: This power boosts the librarian to S6 and allows 2D6 for armour penetration on vehicles, making him quite hard hitting in combat, its often combined with 'Quickening' in order to make best use of the powers.

 

 

*Null Zone: One of our most useful powers, it allows the librarian to force enemy units with 24" to re-roll successful invulnerable saves, which makes it extremely useful at hurting armies such as demons, or units like terminators! Because of its effectiveness against a wide range of foes it is another common power.

 

 

Smite: 12" AP2, S4, Assault 4. This is effectively a psychic shot fired by the librarian, which is quite good at taking out elite infantry such as terminators. Combining it with a squad such as plasma command squad could result in a whole heap of dead elite infantry.

 

 

Quickening: The librarian gains the 'fleet' rule strikes at I10 for the next assault phase. This generally means he'll be in an assault unit to make any kind of use of this power. It can be combined with 'Might of the Ancients' to make a hard hitting character.

 

 

Vortex of Doom: 12" S10, AP1, Heavy 1, Blast Template. Whilst this sounds great from the first glance, its a pretty double edged sword, as a failed psychic powers means that the blast template will land straight on the librarian! This can be a real problem if is attached to a squad as it'll mean lots of deaths! He also can't shoot it on the go unless hes given terminator armour or a bike to ride, so he'll often be alone!

 

 

How to Counter:

 

The Librarian his standard 3+ save power armour, so hes got good defence against light weaponry and he'll often be accompanied by a squad. His statline is comparable to that of a chaplain, which means he lacks some of the upgrades and improved statline of the captain. Enemy psychic defence such as psychic hoods should help to shut down his powers, whilst plasma weaponry and power weapons should help cut him down quite quickly. Weight of fire could also be effective. The librarian is also less at home in melee (despite some powers that help benefit him there) so this could be a good place to remove him

 

It gives a nice breakdown of the psychic user and allows the understanding of what psychic powers are available to the enemy. I feel that its a nice idea, but I'll need any help the community can provide!

 

Thanks,

 

Grim

[Iron Father Ferrum]

I'll participate. I run C:SM Libbies and Farseers, so I can contribute to two different sections if need be...

[DarkGuard]

How's this working. Are we having different armies first with quick descriptions of their psychic powers, followed by the individual unit analysis that can take these powers?

 

Either way, I can contribute to Nids, C:SM, C:DA, C:GK, C:CSM, and contribute a bit to the rest of the psychic powers in other Codices, apart from Greenskins. I don't try to understand them, just shoot them.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

How's this working. Are we having different armies first with quick descriptions of their psychic powers, followed by the individual unit analysis that can take these powers?

 

Yes thats probably the best way, to look at each army and then the psykers in it. C:SM only has 1 real psyker so it won't extend the article by much!

 

Thanks for the help guys I really appreciate your support, its nice to have you on board! <_<

[Koremu]

Codex Blood Angels:

 

 

Librarian:

 

Not personally very different from the generic SM Librarian, does come with the Force Weapon & Psychic Hood that make Librarians generally so popular. One major difference to C:SM Librarians is that C:BA ones allow you to take Honour Guard (the equivalent of C:SM Command Squads) with their aura of Furious Charge & Feel No Pain.

 

 

Commonly appears as -

 

Barebones: At 100 points many people take the character for a cheap and flexible HQ that can adapt and support on the battlefield at a bargain price. The default option if what you are really interested in is psychic defense from the Psychic Hood.

 

Terminator Armour + Stormshield: A much more heavily armoured version makes the librarian more viable in fights and to move around without a vehicle, it gives him protection from some of his own powers as he now has an invulnerable save.

 

Epistolary: Allows the librarian to use 2 powers a turn, sometimes to devastating effect - less useful on a C:BA Librarian than on a C:SM one, as C:BA has many powers that can be used in the enemy turn

 

Infernus Pistol: Useful as 1 extra melta shot, especially if you run with a Jump Pack. Good in combination with the Force Weapon.

 

Jump Pack: Often taken by those who are using a full Jump Infantry approach to C:BA

 

 

 

Variants:

 

Mephiston. Someone else can write about this guy, he's not very similar to the regular Librarians.

Furioso Librarian Dreads. Again, someone can else can write this. They get the same powers, but the applications are different.

 

 

Powers & Uses:

 

Blood Boil. Psychic Shooting. Comes down to being a 25%ish chance to put the wound where you want it in the target squad. If it works you can pop an enemy Apothecary, Meltagunner or Heavy, but mostly it won't.

 

Fear of the Darkness. Psychic Shooting. OK *if* you know you are facing an enemy that's really susceptible to morale issues, otherwise not great. Usable in scenario games, but most of the time your Librarian has better things to do IMO.

 

Might of Heroes. Usable in either Assault Phase. Utterly deadly if you take Epistolary & Sanguine Sword as well, but leaves you as a very focused one trick pony. Great when used as a support caster spell to power up a Power Fist Sergeant; definitely one to consider if all you were really interested in was the Psychic Hood.

 

Shackle Soul. Psychic Shooting. Like Fear of the Darkness, great when used on low Ld targets, not so great for all comers. Hilarious when used on Carnifex.

 

Shield of Sanguinius. Used in enemy turn. Excellent choice if you are going to take a Psychic Shooting Attack as your second power, as you will then be able to cast this in the enemy turn all the time. While on the surface it's not as powerful as the 5+ invuln from the C:SM Librarians Force Dome, it does have the advantage that it's a true Aura, affecting everything within 6". One trick is to have you Librarian in a Land Raider, cast this and because ranges are measured from the hull you can shield a LOT of tanks. Also, Scouts with Camo Cloaks do get their Stealth bonus.

 

Smite. Psychic Shooting. Kills Terminators. Plasma Guns are cheaper though.

 

The Blood Lance. Psychic Shooting. Str 8 Lance Attack, pretty nasty, but only one hit per unit. Meltaguns are probably cheaper.

 

Sanguine Sword. Can be used in either Assault Phase. What part of STR 10 didn't you understand?

 

Unleash Rage. Can be used in either Assault Phase. Another excellent power for the "walking psychic hood" demographic. Good when applied to pretty much any squad the Librarian might find himself with.

 

Wings of Sanguinius. Just buy a Jump Pack if you want one. There's an argument for Terminators Librarians, but then I tend to feel that using a Psy "slot" on this weakens their combat potential to the point where it compromises the act of having the jumping Terminator Librarian in the first place. YMMV.

 

 

 

Overall, I'd make sure you have at least one power that can be used in the enemy turn, and steer clear of the Psychic Shooting Attacks. Support Librarians should pick up any two of Might, Shield & Unleash, while combat monsters should substitute Sword for Shield.

[Paulochromis]

Terminator Armour + Stormshield: A much more heavily armoured version makes the librarian more viable in fights and to move around without a vehicle, it gives him protection from some of his own powers as he now has an invulnerable save.

Also allows better use of Vortex.

[Validar]

Also allows better use of Vortex.

 

That is really the only way Vortex can work :D

 

For the BA powers I think Wings are only really justified on the Dreadnought. There, however, it really rocks. All SM players know: You want that dreadnought in CC. You want that to happend ASAP before it is shot to slagger. Now it happends twice as fast.

 

I also think you're denying Blood Lance's ability to hit multiple targets. Being lance is also great. And while its range is random, it has better range than your melta most of the time :(

[Cpt_Reaper]

Here is the Dark Angel Librarian as I see it:

 

Powers: Hellfire and Force Barrier

Gear: Psy-Hood, Force Weapon

Other: Fearless

 

Notes: Infinite range hood, +1 BS

 

Configurations:

 

Barebones: 120pts. Nothing special really. Only really good for the hood and force weapon. Force Barrier can come in handy, Hellfire suffers from it's template range. May be upgraded with plasma pistol or combi-weapons bot increased points. No real increase in value.

 

Jump Pack: Allows Librarian to move around quickly, getting most from Hellfire. Attached to Assault Squad with melta-bombs, plus his own melta-bombs and Hellfire can deal with most vehicles.

 

Terminator: Can only replace storm bolter with combi-weapon. Good for helping Deathwing deal with horde units via Hellfire. For the extra points one would expect more from a Librarian. Can be quite hardy with Force Barrier, assuming he only has to make one Invuln. Save a turn.

 

Ezekiel: At 170 points he brings quite a bit. A nice bubble of Fearless can both help or hinder, master crafted weapons and Artificier armour and his unique Mind Worm power. However, he suffers from not being able to footslog fast enough, and Mind Worm is classed a a Heavy weapon with 18". Overall he is better than a Barebones Librarian, but your best bet is to use a Jump Pack.

[breng77]

That is really the only way Vortex can work tongue.gif

 

Vortex works pretty well on a biker libby (arguably better because of the increased range)

 

Fear of the Darkness. Psychic Shooting. OK *if* you know you are facing an enemy that's really susceptible to morale issues, otherwise not great. Usable in scenario games, but most of the time your Librarian has better things to do IMO.

 

I rate this power quite high these days, most top tier armies are not fearless and the ability to force things like long fangs (who are often near a board edge) to run off the table can be huge. IT really just depends on what you use your libby for.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Thanks Koremu and 11th Company Dark Master for those! And thanks to everyone so far for the input, its looking good!

[DarkGuard]

So, here is the first of DarkGuard' contributions to Nid psychic powers. I've started with the Zoanthrope and the Doom. The Zoanthrope because In actually have extensive experience with it, the Doom because it's a special Zoanthrope. Notice that I have not just included the psychic powers like Warp Lance, but also mentioned Warp Field (because it was a psychic power) and also mentioned the synapse and shadow in the warp when appropriate. With a couple of exceptions each Tyranid psyker has these abilities, and they should therefore be considered. If they aren't needed let me know and I'll take them out.

 

Next up with be the Tervigon, but until now here's the Zoanthrope and the Doom!

 

Zoanthrope

The “psychic artillery” of the Tyranid Codex, in fluff terms the Zoanthrope was created by splicing Eldar DNA into the Tyranid gene pool. This resulted in an incredibly potent psychic conduit, able to act as a synapse node within the swarm while fighting with blasts of psychic, all the while levitating itself, truly a powerful psychic creature, unsurprising given that it came from the Eldar DNA. On the tabletop the Zoanthrope is a valuable source of synapse, anti-MEQ and anti-mech for the Tyranid army, with two active psychic powers that destroy infantry and tanks alike, while it has a couple of passive psychic abilities that keep it alive, and the swarm in order.

 

 

Common Builds:

There is no variation in individual Zoanthropes, no opportunities for upgrades or adjustments. The only decision to make is whether to run them in broods of one, two or three, and whether put them in Mycetic Spore, the Tyranid version of a Drop Pod.

 

Common builds therefore tend to include a minimum of two Zoanthropes, with some putting them in Spores to act as dedicated tank killers, dropping in, while others use them as synapse conduits for the horde, footslogging them and hoping they may also take out a tank. Both are viable and are to be expected. The choice of two or three helps to ensure that they stay alive to provide synapse and actually do damage.

 

 

Powers:

Warp Blast: the lesser known of the Zoanthrope psychic powers, Warp Blast is by no means bad. Sitting at the respectable (for Nids) 24” range, it’s assault nature gives it an effective range of 30”. The weapon itself, after a successful psychic test is a S5, AP3 small blast, with their BS of 4, a couple of Zoanthropes should at least get one dead on hit, and if that unit is out in the open they are going to struggle unless they are wearing artificer armour or equivalent. Particularly effective against expensive squads like Space Marines, multiple blasts will do a good job against hordes as well.

 

Warp Lance: ah, the famous Warp Lance. Notorious for being the most powerful ranged weapon in the game. No, I’m not kidding, the Tyranids, the combat army, have the most powerful ranged weapon in the game. With S10, AP1 and the lance special rule, plus assault nature, this weapon can take out any tank while moving; even the dreaded Land Raider is penetrated on 3s, destroying on 4s! The drawback? 18” range means you need to be close to use it, necessitating the use of a Mycetic Spore to drop close, or the Tervigon’s Onslaught to be able to run and shoot (more on that in the Tervigon section). Still, despite its short range it will slaughter tanks and all multi-wound models with T5 or less.

 

Indeed, its biggest weakness is not range, but dice rolls. You need to pass a psychic test, which could be on 3D6 or -1 Ld, then if present pass a psychic hood test, then roll to hit, roll to penetrate, and then you finally roll to deal damage. And the fact is, it doesn’t matter if you have S10, an AP of 1, or the lance rule, if you mess up any of those rolls you’ve wasted your shot, and most likely the lives of that unit. But when it works its devastating.

 

Warp Field: not an activated psychic power, in that its passive and always on, but worth mentioning. This gives the Zoanthrope a 3++ save, so when you flick through the summary section don’t believe they’re only two wound, T4 5+ save models, but that they also have that magical 3++ that makes them very durable. Still, through weight of fire, or through Null Zone (or both) they’ll start to fail them, and one concentrated shooting phase should see a brood fall.

 

Synapse Creature: It is worth mentioning that these guys are synapse creatures. While not a psychic power, it was in the past and so I still relate it as such. Basically, this means that nearby creatures can actually be controlled. You knock synapse creatures out, you knock out your opponent’s control of the horde.

 

Shadow in the Warp: Also worth mentioning that this Tyranid psyker comes with its own psychic defence, any enemy psyker within 12” has to take their psychic tests on 3D6, taking Perils of the Warp on any double 1 or double 6! And now thanks to the current Tyranid FAQ it works while you're embarked in transports, so if you can try and get your powers off when further away, and don't attempt them up close, 3D6 at Ld10 is failing about 50% of the time!

 

 

Special Character variants:

 

The Doom of Malan’tai:

Ah, the Doom of Malan’tai, apparently the Zoanthrope that absorbed the doomed Craftworld’s infinity matrix, killing it. Since then it has cut through the galaxy with many a Hive Fleet on the tabletop, absorbing the souls of countless soldiers, empowering itself. Fortunately, while it’s capable of having a lot of wounds and a 3++ save, it’s of Marine toughness, and so therefore a lucky krak missile can kill it in one. This, and the short range of its Spirit Leech ability means you’re opponent will take it in a Mycetic Spore.

 

The Doom is a special Zoanthrope variant, and can only be taken in units as one, being a unique model. It must also be taken on its own, and instead of synapse has IB-Feed, which means it may not be able to shoot and must charge close units if out of synapse range (unlikely with Ld10). You’d better hope this happens, as its most devastating weapon is not it’s Spirit Leech, but it’s psychic power, which will be covered below.

 

Powers:

The Doom has the following powers that the Zoanthrope above had – Warp Field, Shadow in the Warp. It also has the power Cataclysm.

 

Spirit Leech: OK, so it’s not a power. But it is an ability closely related to its power. Basically, every enemy unit close by has the chance to lose guys in their squad, and each casualty gives the Doom more wounds, and therefore more strength for combat and shooting. Again, like SitW, Spirit Leech doesn’t affect units in transports, so if you can only show it transports and vehicles you’ll be fine. Be aware though, that his Spirit Leech occurs in both your turn and your opponents. Forget this point and you’ll lose some guys, and it’ll gain some wounds, leading to a more powerful Cataclysm if you can’t stop it before then.

 

Cataclysm: SX, AP1, large blast? Hmmm, X? Well X pertains to the number of wounds the Doom has, making it start the game as a S4 AP1 large blast. Good at slaughtering infantry. But, as Spirit Leech claims lives, the Doom gains more wounds, and so the power of this goes up, making it very easy to kill infantry, or even break open tanks. A longer range is somewhat negated as it has to be close to the enemy to gain wounds to feed its power. Use of the power wounds the Doom as well, so you’ll probably find your opponent won’t use it until its gained a few wounds.

 

 

Hope that's what you wanted Shadowstalker Grim! Till next time.

 

DG.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

An excellent piece there on zoanthropes! Really thorough and interesting, thanks for taking the time to do it DarkGuard! I look forward to the next installment when you have time to do it :mellow:

[DarkGuard]

Thanks for those kind words Grim. I was a bit worried I'd said too much about non-psychic abilities, I wasn't quite sure if we focussing just on the psychic powers, or on the psychic powers and the psyker using it, which is why I went a little overboard. If that's OK I'll carry that on, because quite frankly the Nid psykers often have other powerful abilities besides psychic powers. Also, fortune permitting I should have the Tervigon section done by the end of tomorrow, although if not it should be Monday at the latest.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Its important to state what else the psyker can do too, otherwise its easy to underestimate it! It helps put the psychic into context within its army as well :o

[LardO'Blood]

Whoops! DA libby already done...

[DarkGuard]

Tervigon time! This has become one of my favourite units, probably because I really enjoyed converting it, and its nice to have a focal point for a horde army. So here's my take on the Tervigon and its powers. It is definitely one of the better Tyranid units out there, so expect to see it a lot. Some armies just have Tervigons and Termagants! Hope this is all to your liking, next up: Broodlords.

 

Tervigon

The Tervigon, a massive creature acting as a potent synaptic node for the Hive Mind, the Tervigon is able to project its commands across a vast area. Coupled with the ability to make nearby broods fight harder and shrug off all but the most grievous of wounds, the Tervigon is already a powerful and useful psyker.

 

However, the Tervigon becomes more dangerous when you consider its other abilities. It is able to spawn Termagants throughout the game, imbuing them with certain abilities depending on its own upgrades. When we consider all of this, it’s no surprise that many would claim it is one of the best support units around, up there with the Farseer and Space Marine Librarians. Able to lead armies or capture objectives, all the way creating more scoring units and making them more powerful, the Tervigon is a flexible choice for a Tyranid army and a dangerous prospect to face.

 

 

Common Builds:

The Tervigon is massively customizable on paper. Poisoned attacks, instant death attacks, regeneration of wounds, auto-hits on units in combat, melee weapon upgrades, choice of powers, this beast has it all!

 

Well, yes or no, because the term common builds here should be common build. Every Tervigon will have toxin sacs, adrenal glands and the Catalyst power as basic, bringing it to just shy of 200pts. This gives it Furious Charge, poisoned attacks and the useful FnP Catalyst power, all of which is can share to specific units. The real choice comes in about whether you take Onslaught or not, and whether you take regeneration of not to keep it alive. Of the two choices, Onslaught is the one we’ll be looking at. Scything talons may be seen but only as a points-filler.

 

The final choice your opponent will make is whether it will be a HQ choice, or with the addition of a unit of Termgants a Troops choice. In low points games it’ll more likely be a HQ, while in higher points games it’ll definitely be Troops. This means your opponent’s T6, W6 3+ save occasional FnP monster will be able to score, so keep this in mind. Furthermore, regardless of where it is in the force org slot, it can spawn more Troops choices, so keep this in mind during objective games.

 

 

Powers:

Dominion: This is the default power for a Tervigon, and one that all Tervigons will have. Basically, it increases synapse range by 6” for the entirety of that turn. As the Tervigon can only use one power, and Catalyst is its best power, don’t expect to see this used much, especially as all good Tyranid players will have a strong synapse web set up, or just not need it. That being said, do bear this in mind, as when used it can turn a unit you thought was going to do nothing into something quite unpredictable, so be prepared!

 

Catalyst: Catalyst, the best psychic power for the Tervigon. Why so? Well after passing a psychic test (easy at Ld10, all Marine players should know this) in the Movement phase a unit within 12” gains the Feel no Pain special rule. Impressive right? Because it is. This can be a life saver for Nids. Most of their units don’t get armour saves against ranged weapons, so giving them a 4+ save can be a life saver. That cannon fodder in front just became much harder to kill. Or that unit in combat just cut its casualties in half, winning the combat. You get the idea.

 

And it’s perfect for keeping synapse creatures alive. I once had a unit of Warriors in cover with Catalyst on whether the firepower of three hydras! Impressive, and lethal. And it can use it on itself, so that krak missile volley just doesn’t seem that threatening anymore. Oh, and it’s used at any time in the Movement phase, so your opponent can position everything and then see what the most beneficial target is. Expect to see this going off every turn, and be prepared to counter it, either with a psychic hood or high strength weapons and/or low AP weapons.

 

Onslaught: As a Nid player I really like this power. Often overlooked in favour of Catalyst, Onslaught is not bad. Like Dominion though it is situational, and not always needed. It’s an 18” psychic shooting attack that auto hits a friendly unit. That unit then immediately runs and can still shoot. Oh, and if it has Fleet it can charge as well! Sounds good. Fortunately, only four Nid units can have shooting weapons and Fleet, the Lictor, Deathleaper, Ravenors and Trygons, so don’t fear Termagants running, shooting and assaulting! But do fear Hive Guard running and shooting, suddenly that mid-range gun that was out of range is now in range. Also fear Zoanthropes getting closer to use their Warp Lance power. And it can bring an entire unit of Termagants or Warriors into range to shoot an infantry unit to death, you get the idea. So while it’s harder to use than Catalyst, used right it is deadly, and could well win the Nid player the game. You have been warned.

 

Synapse Creature: It is worth mentioning that these guys are synapse creatures. While not a psychic power, it was in the past and so I still relate it as such. Basically, this means that nearby creatures can actually be controlled. You knock synapse creatures out, you knock out your opponent’s control of the horde.

 

Shadow in the Warp: Also worth mentioning that this Tyranid psyker comes with its own psychic defence, any enemy psyker within 12” has to take their psychic tests on 3D6, taking Perils of the Warp on any double 1 or double 6! And now thanks to the current Tyranid FAQ it works while you're embarked in transports, so if you can try and get your powers off when further away, and don't attempt them up close, 3D6 at Ld10 is failing about 50% of the time!

 

Spawn Termagants: Not a psychic power, but one individual and important to the Tervigon. This have been hinted at before, but the basically once per turn, before moving the Tervigon can spawn 3D6 Termagants. So the Tyranid player gets more guys to sacrifice, to attack with, to capture objectives, you get the picture. Do remember that this is done before moving, but this matters little as both units can move and shoot and assault if they want later.

 

However, to keep things balanced if a double is rolled during spawning; the Tervigon spawns that batch, and then no more after that. Some people get lucky and spawn 50 over the course of the game, some only spawn 3, but on average expect between 10-20 extra bodies per Tervigon. But don’t expect these during Kill Points games. But be wary, as in times of need your opponent may spawn even in KP games, and then unleash his new unit onto you at the most unexpected time.

 

Brood Progenitor: The last of the Tervigon’s abilities this is dangerous in that increases the potency of all Termagants nearby. It gives them Ld10, Counter-attack, and the benefits of toxin sacs and adrenal glands if it has them, now you see why everyone takes those two upgrades. This ability makes Termagants deadly combatants and brilliant midfield units. Have you been charged by a 20 man Termagant unit with Furious Charge, Poisoned attacks and FnP? No? Lucky you. And if you charge them they’ll just charge you back. And if you kill them, the Tervigon will just make more, and these will be just as powerful. Scary isn’t it?

 

Luckily, there is a downside. If the Tervigon is killed, every Termgant nearby suffers 3D6 S3 hits, so expect half of 3D6 Termagants to die. Use this to your advantage, and all those buffed Termagants are not only weak now, but may have lost their synapse support and taken casualties. So basically, if you can, take out the Tervigon!

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Another excellent section DarkGuard! Thanks for doing that :P

[DarkGuard]

Thanks Grim, glad you liked it. I've also been able to do the Broodlord one, so here it is, hope you like this one as well. Relatively short, the Broodlord's abilities help make it CC monster and assassin, so keep that in mind when playing one. When I next get the time I shall write on the Hive Tyrant and the Swarmlord.

 

Broodlord

The Broodlord, the largest and strongest Genestealer of that brood, is a formidable fighter, able to slaughter his ways through dozens of men before they even strike back. It is the Broodlord that directs the Genestealers in their efforts to undermine the defence systems of cities and planets, and the Broodlord who leads its kin upon their prey when the Hive Fleet approaches.

 

Yet the Broodlord is no mere warrior, for it is also a psyker. While not as outwardly powerful in its destruction like the Zoanthrope, or as potent in terms of support abilities like the Hive Tyrant of Tervigon, the Broodlord is nevertheless and tricky and subtle psyker, using its abilities to undermine the enemy’s confidence and stop them in their tracks. This makes them easy prey for its brood to cut and run them down while sustaining minimal casualties.

 

Common Builds:

Broodlords are upgrade characters, replacing a Genestealer in the squad while retaining its rending claws, and if bought, toxin sacs and adrenal glands. It boasts a vastly improved statline, with 3 wounds, 4 attacks, and a higher weapon skill, strength, toughness, initiative and armour save. And it still keeps infiltrate and fleet, allowing the Genestealers to deploy from the edges of the board or in cover and get in combat quickly! Yet for all this the Broodlord will cost at least, if not more than three Genestealers! If used at all, expect it to be a massive model for your opponent, because he obviously wants it to do more than kill things!

 

Indeed, most people commonly run Broodlords in units of 5 Genestealers with toxin sacs. Doing so grants them access to the Broodlord and its abilities without having to spend too many points, allowing them to use those points on more Broodlords! Expect these people to lump wounds on Genestealers to get to majority T5 as quickly as possible. Some people may run them in larger units though, using the Broodlord to help soak up firepower aimed at the Genestealers, in this case it becomes a wound allocation tool that may be helpful in combat.

 

Regardless of unit size, almost all Broodlords will be run with scything talons, even if the Genestealers in its brood are not. Why? Well because there’s only one Broodlord model and that only have scything talons and rending claws. Also, the costs of talons are so small you might as well get them. Broodlords will most likely have toxin sacs, allowing them to re-roll wounds in close combat against T5 or less enemies, while wounding higher enemies on a 4+. This is deadly against most enemies, at it allows it to chances at getting rending wounds. Finally, many people run their Broodlord with Implant Attack. This means that every roll of a 6 to wound is an instant death attack. And it’s also a power weapon attack. This, in addition to its Hynoptic Gaze power makes Broodlords deadly IC hunters, so be careful!

 

Powers: All Broodlords have Aura of Despair and Hynoptic Gaze. This is fixed. Also, both powers can only be used in the Assault phase of the Tyranid players turn.

 

Aura of Despair: The first power a Broodlord can use is this Ld power. Basically, upon passing all enemy units within 12” of the Broodlord are at -1 Ld until the start of the next Tyranid turn. Also, if a unit is in range of multiple Broodlords using this power the effect is cumulative. Now while this has no effect on the Tyranid’s shooting phase, it can make it harder for units to stay in assault, and therefore get cut down. It also means that during your turn it’s harder to regroup (if you don’t have ATSKNF, like Chaos), harder to get off psychic powers and use your psychic hood, and also can be annoying if you lose 25% casualties to dangerous terrain or overheats. Of course, its worth isn’t amazing, but if the Broodlord isn’t using Hynoptic Gaze it will use this. Oh, and if your opponent is running the Doom, be careful, because if your opponent throws up 2 or 3 Aura of Despairs and you didn’t get your troops away from the Doom you may lose a few. Of course, the ranged and circumstance make this unlikely, but be careful.

 

Hynoptic Gaze: This power is incredibly nasty when it goes off. Basically, after passing it the Broodlord nominates an enemy model in base contact with it. They both roll a die and add it to their Ld, if the Broodlord equals or beats it that model cannot attack during that turn. So hidden power fist? Can’t attack. Captain in base contact? Oh no, I’m too scared to. The nasty thing is that the Broodlord only have to equal your score for both this and a psychic hood test, so they’re more likely to get this off than you block. It becomes even harder if another Broodlord nearby uses Aura of Despair. Primarily a defensive ability used to preserve its and its Genestealer’s lifes, it also serves well in an assault capacity, mainly against enemy ICs, stopping them from attacking before a rending implant attack hits them square in the face. Now you see why the Broodlord is the premier Tyranid Assassin, and not the Lictor.

 

Of course, you can hood this, but the best and easiest way to beat this power is to avoid it! Tie up the Broodlord with a boltgun model. Keep your power fist and Captain’s hidden in the squad, and when you push forward to react get them in base contact with Stealers. As the Broodlord is just an upgrade character it can die if you hit the Stealer squad enough times.

 

Brood Telepathy: While actually a Genestealer ability, it’s worth mentioning. I’ve already said that synapse creatures are deadly as they can make the Tyranid swarm work at full effect. Well the Broodlord doesn’t have synapse, hurray! But the entire squad does have Brood Telepathy, which means they don’t take Instinctive Behaviour tests, and with Ld10 they weren’t likely to fail it anyway. So do remember that knocking out the synapse web won’t do anything to deter these guys, you’ll have to beat them the old fashioned way.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Another nicely done addition! I've been looking for some bits on Eldar, so i'll try my hand at putting together that for now, though i'll need some pointers as to finding information on what the common builds are. I've done what I can for now based on information i've foraged, however it'll need refining as i don't think this quite does it justice! Here is what i have so far:

 

Eldar:

 

 

Warlock:

 

The Warlock is quite a small-time psyker in the grand scheme of things for Eldar, as he will have access to only a single power. Quite often it'll be there to support another psychic user or to provide some measure of psychic ability to a unit. The Warlock unit numbers between 1-10, though they are limited in a similar way to a command squad, as only 1 unit may be used per Warseer or Farseer (including Uldrad) and act as an extension of that single HQ, although the Warlocks can also leave their unit to operate in other units and act as extensions of those types (such as troops). The warlock is quite cheap and thus has room for upgrades (most of which are fairly cheap too). It can upgrade itself into a spiritseer which allows him to remove the effects of 'Wraithsight' for Wraithguard and Wraithlord units, acting as a guide for them. It can also pay for the pricey upgrade to become Lyanna Arienal (see the special characters section) As with almost all Eldar psykers, he has Rune Armour, allowing a 5+, 4++

 

 

Commonly Appears as:

 

Barebones: Cheap and reasonably equipped the main goal of the warlock unit is to provide a psychic support to allied units

 

Jetbike: A unit that can move incredibly fast AND provide psychic powers can be quite potent, making use of their powers easier in key locations

 

Singing Spear: The singing spear is effectively a ranged version of the witchblade and allows the warlock a little extra ranged punch

 

 

Warseer:

 

The Warseer is a more warlike psyker, it mixes some of the talents of the Eldar Autarch with those of the Farseer. It costs the same as the Farseer, has a weaker statline and has access to 2 of a limited pool of psychic powers. This makes it look like a weaker choice to the more powerful Farseer, however it does have access to some psychic powers and special rules that the Farseer doesn't. For instance the Warseer can use the fleet and shrine warrior (allowing it to benefit from Exarch rules) special rules and has access to a nice variety of wargear including that of Spirit Stones, which allow it to use 2 powers a turn. It can also take 1 of 5 banners (which can allow for certain units to become troop choices in the FOC). It has access to the powers Destructor, Conceal, Enhance, Levitation and Doom. In addition to his Rune Armour, he has Runes of Warding. This acts to try and subdue enemy psychic powers, an enemy using a power within 36" must take a psychic test with an extra D6 dicee (so a 2D6 test would become 3D6) if the results are double 1's, 6's or are 12+ then they suffer from perils of the warp.

 

 

Common Builds:

 

(Need some input here)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Farseer:

 

 

The Farseer itself is a powerful psyker and can take up to 4 powers from: Eldritch Storm, Levitation, Guide, Doom, Fortune and Mind War. It has a better statline than the Warseer and a decent selection of wargear too. It too has the option to take 1 of 5 banners like the Warseer! The Farseer costs initially the same as a Warseer to make use of, though will inevitably expend many points in making use of a variety of strong and powerful upgrades. It can also take a jetbike in order to make itself a lot faster and more dangerous, particularly when combined with a group of Warlocks! The Farseer has Rune Armour, but lacks the Runes of Warding his Warseer counterpart posses, instead he has access to Runes of Witnessing. This allows him to take 3D6 for psychic tests, discarding the highest dice. His ghosthelm allows him to ignore the perils of the warp on a 3+ giving a measure of psychic defence.

 

 

Common Builds:

 

Spirit Stones: Allow the Farseer to use 2 powers a turn

 

Runes of Warding: For disrupting enemy psykers

 

Runes of Witnessing: Assists with getting powers off

 

 

Special Character Variants:

 

Eldrad Ulthran - Eldrad is quite a pricey character and as he has a similar statline to that of a Farseer. He lacks some of the upgrade options, but has a varierty of special rules to assist him. First up his staff allows him to make his invulnerable save better, becoming a 3++, it also allows him to use 3 powers a turn and 2 of those powers can be the same! Lastly it allows him access to a powerful weapon (making his 1 extra attack a little more worthwhile) as it acts as a two handed wraithblade that does triple damage against vehicles. The other rule he has with him is Divination, allowing him to roll a dice on a 1-3 deployment is as normal, on a 4-6 the Eldar player elects who deploys first and who gets to go first as seperate entities. This combined with his formidable array of skills: Fortune, Guide Doom, Mind War, Eldritch Storm, Destructor, Conceal, Enhance, Embolden and Augment makes him quite powerful!

 

 

List of Powers:

 

 

Conceal - The unit with the psyker gains a 5+ cover save to help protect them

 

Destructor - Is an offensive psychic power that operates as an Assault 1 weapon in two different formats, the first is a S5, AP5 flamer template attack and the other is a single focussed attack that works at 6" and is S7 AP4

 

Embolden - The unit with the psyker may re-roll failed leadership tests, including those of psychic powers

 

Enhance - Friendly models in base contact with the user may re-roll failed hits in combat, provided their enemy has a WS

 

Doom - Electing an enemy unit within 24" of the user, that unit must re-roll all failed wounds caused to the unit until the start of the Eldar players turn. This effectively allows for more damage to be inflicted to the unit

 

Eldritch Storm - Similar to Destructor, this power is more potent. It has an 18" range is S4 and AP 5, with a large blast template, assault 1 and allows rending and pinning on its target! Eldritch storm also has an effect on vehicles, moving them round by rolling the scatter die.

 

Fortune - The polar opposite to Doom, this power allows a unit within 6" of the caster (including his own joined unit) to re-roll failed saves for a turn, until the next Eldar players turn.

 

Guide - A friendly unit with 6" to make their weapons count as twin linked weapons, until the next Eldar turn.

 

Mind War - This power automatically hits, with an 18" range. The target then must take a LD test on 3D6. If it fails the test, it must take another test and loses the Fearless special rule if they normally have it. If this 2nd test is failed then the model cannot move, unless they pass LD tests. If they fail the test they must remain stationary, however the owning player may choose to leave behind the afflicted model (thus counting it as destroyed) and allow normal operations for the unit

[DarkGuard]

Farseers tend to run with witch blades/singing spears, spirit stones (which allows the use of two psychic powers a turn) and runes of warding for disrupting enemy psykers. Some people may run them with runes of witnessing to help ensure they get powers off, but that's more of a points left over thing. Powers will nearly always include Guide and Doom, together they will normally kill off an enemy unit. Points permitting some people may put Fortune on as well as it may be needed at times, the same with Mind War. I don't see Eldritch Storm much.

 

As for Warlocks, they tend to run with witch blades/singing spears. Powers rely on what they're with. Conceal seems to be the power of choice if accompanying Wraithguard, Destructor if you're planning on getting up close. Enhance is often used with Storm Guardians, while I suppose Embolden may be used on objective sitters. I'd suggest splitting the psychic powers up, putting the Warlock powers under Warlocks and the Farseer ones under Farseers, it makes it easier to see and read.

 

Where did Augment, Levitation and that Warlock character come from? Also, Eldritch Storm spins vehicles around using the scatter die, and it's worth mentioning that Eldrad's third psychic power can only be cast in the Assault phase (I believe).

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Thanks for the pointers :P

 

I found the information in an online codex, seemed to be legitmate 5th edition....though i couldnt be sure! Thats why the information needs proof reading and checking to make sure its all correct and such!

 

Thanks for looking through it, i'll make the changes tommorow!

[Corby]

Thanks for the pointers :)

 

I found the information in an online codex, seemed to be legitmate 5th edition....though i couldnt be sure! Thats why the information needs proof reading and checking to make sure its all correct and such!

 

Thanks for looking through it, i'll make the changes tommorow!

 

 

Looks like a Fan Eldar codex more than anything Grim.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Here i'll post up the link to show you what I was referring to (the link keeps changing name to games workshop oddly.... i;ve had to lay it out weirdly.):

 

s c r i b d.com

 

/doc/52740984/41/ELDAR-PSYCHIC-POWERS

 

Your best bet to find it is to google that link (altogether and without the spaces obv) should crop up! Otherwise its on page 1 if you google Eldar Psychic Powers

 

The guy writes a disclaimer, saying hes obviously not from GW or anything...but its about the closest I could get to finding something solid on Eldar powers after a little while of trawling! Anyway I'll go about making those corrections!

 

Also DarkGuard, i'm not sure how the powers are broken down and what the Warlocks/Warseers/Farseers should each have, but that is a good suggestion for the powers!

 

I hope at least some of it is right! :)

[JamesI]

Everyone, lets remember that the Bolter and Chainsword is for power armored armies.

 

Keep discussion of Xenos to how to fight them. Talking about what psychic powers they have and how to be ready for them is fine. Discussing strategies for playing as Xenos using powers is not fine.

 

Also, lets be careful not to go overboard with presenting codex rules. Some use of rules for discussion is fine, too much gets a thread shut down quickly.

[Shadowstalker Grim]

Fair enough JamesI

 

I wanted to assemble this 101 as a guide to enemy psychic powers (in the hope that we can understand them and better fight them)

 

I know it comes accross as a guide for all armies psychic powers, but given your reasonable advice, I believe that I'll expand on each army by requesting a section on how best to shut down/kill the enemy user. This will hopefully link it back to SM armies suitably for inclusion in the forum :)