Ephrael Stern in 8th Edition

[wraithman]

Would anybody have any idea how to go about creating one of our favourite heroines for the new edition? I'm not sure where to start, but I have a model I converted of her which has sat in a box for too long. Any help is appreciated.

[Servant of Dante]

I'd start by trying to find the rules that went with the model that was released for her years ago. Last time I looked for them all I could find was something roughly translated from french, and then use that as a base I guess?

[Beams]

I'd use the rules for a Space Marine Librarian with jump pack.

 

Or a captain with a jump pack.

Edited August 8, 2017 by Beams

[A.T.]

I'd start by trying to find the rules that went with the model that was released for her years ago. Last time I looked for them all I could find was something roughly translated from french, and then use that as a base I guess?

 

Her original rules were :

 

EPHRAEL STERN:

Pts WS BS S T W I A Ld Sv

125  4  3 3 3 2 4 2  9 3+

 

Bolt pistol and blessed sword (power weapon, always wounds daemons on 4+, ignores invulnerable saves)

Jump pack and purity seals.

Fearless

Ephrael's save is invulnerable

Ephrael has a 3+ save against the effects of psychic powers

Opponents suffer a -1 Ld in close combat

Daemons within 6" of Ephrael test instability on 3d6

Ephrael may reroll failed attack and wound rolls against daemons

Daemons in close combat with Ephrael suffer -1 to their initiative

At the start of each turn roll a D6 - on a roll of 1 Ephrael is overwhelmed by her daemonic knowledge and may not move, shoot, run, or assault.

Ephrael is not faithful.

No inquisitor, other than Silas Hand, can be included in the same force as Ephrael Stern

 

[wraithman]

 

I'd start by trying to find the rules that went with the model that was released for her years ago. Last time I looked for them all I could find was something roughly translated from french, and then use that as a base I guess?

 

Her original rules were :

 

EPHRAEL STERN:

Pts WS BS S T W I A Ld Sv

125  4  3 3 3 2 4 2  9 3+

 

Bolt pistol and blessed sword (power weapon, always wounds daemons on 4+, ignores invulnerable saves)

Jump pack and purity seals.

Fearless

Ephrael's save is invulnerable

Ephrael has a 3+ save against the effects of psychic powers

Opponents suffer a -1 Ld in close combat

Daemons within 6" of Ephrael test instability on 3d6

Ephrael may reroll failed attack and wound rolls against daemons

Daemons in close combat with Ephrael suffer -1 to their initiative

At the start of each turn roll a D6 - on a roll of 1 Ephrael is overwhelmed by her daemonic knowledge and may not move, shoot, run, or assault.

Ephrael is not faithful.

No inquisitor, other than Silas Hand, can be included in the same force as Ephrael Stern

 

 

 

Those are the rules I have for her, but now comes the trick of converting these to 8th Ed.

 

The base stats could become so:

 

Power= 5, 100 pts.

 

Mv  WS  BS  S  T  W  A  Ld  Sv

 

6"    3+   3+   3   3  5   4   9    3+  Not quite as good as a basic Canoness, but tough enough that she stays around.

 

Wargear: Bolt Pistol, Blessed Sword (treat as Power Sword, but Wounds Daemons on a 4+ and ignores Invulnerble Saves), Jump Pack (12" Move, adds Keyword Fly)

 

Abilities:

 

Acts of Faith, Shield of Faith, Zealot

 

Ephrael Stern's Save is an Invulnerable Save

 

Ephrael's Deny the Witch roll is 3+ regardless, and Psykers attacking her suffer Peril of the Warp on any Double rolled, not double 1s or 6s

 

Opponents in Close Combat suffer -1 to Ld, Daemons lose Initiative to her even if they initiate the Charge 

 

Ephrael rerolls all failed to Hit and Wound rolls against Daemons

 

 

 

How's that for a first pass at a rules conversion?

Edited August 9, 2017 by wraithman

[Purifying Tempest]

Way under costed :)

 

"Ephrael Stern's Save is an Invulnerable Save" is a big deal... 3+ invulnerable.

 

Her Deny is REALLY powerful, too, maybe Deny rolls gain +1 or +2 if you're really wanting to pump it up... and pushing perils up that high on opponents is really savage.  I think it goes from 1:18 to 1:6.  Do not underestimate how much damage Perils can do, especially if you implode the psyker.

 

She also single-handedly trolls demon lists.

 

Technical point: how many powers can she deny per turn?

 

All that for 100 points?  Seems REALLY good.

[A.T.]

Way under costed

"Ephrael Stern's Save is an Invulnerable Save" is a big deal... 3+ invulnerable.

 

A full canoness with jump pack is 56 using the current cost and pack formula.

Throw a character-cost storm shield from the marine index and power sword on and you are at 75pts. It's the fringe abilities that need to be figured out.

[taikishi]

Ephrael Stern in 8th?

https://i.warosu.org/data/tg/img/0265/65/1376270785054.jpg

 

[ValourousHeart]

In the graphic novel she is shown zapping people with lightning, being faster and better than DE in an arena, and quite a few other unnatural abilities.  She is also able to survive events where everyone else dies.  And psykers and deamon powers tend to have minimal effect on her.

 

Design notes - We don't want her to just be a cut and paste of Celestine.  So this is aiming at somewhere just below Celestine.

 

 

I would start with the Gemini Superior stat line.

W5 and A4

Bolt pistol with -1 rend, maybe 15 inch range (just a little better than a basic pistol)

Power Weapon with +2 S, -3 rend and 1d3 damage

Rosarius 4++

 

Additional Act of faith on 2+ (worse than Celestine and better than Imagifyer)

May NOT use Spirit of the Martyr from this act of faith.  (remember she is often the lone survivor)

 

Deamonafuge: A version of Smite, that also heals her for the damage dealt.  (playing more into the lone survivor and her unnatural powers)

All Psykers (friend or enemy) within 18 inches are at -2 to cast powers and deny the witch.  (this is the same as the Culexus, except she can still be affected by powers)

Note - she denies the witch according to shield of faith.

 

Power level - 5 or 6

Points - 100 to 130

[CaptainHelion]

Maybe let her SoF Deny the Witch work on 2d6, and she can do it twice rather than once? 

[ValourousHeart]

Maybe let her SoF Deny the Witch work on 2d6, and she can do it twice rather than once? 

 

I didn't got that way because I agree with the decision GW made about how SoF works with Deny the Witch.

 

Additionally both the Culexus and the Sisters of Silence are not able to deny the witch at all.  They just have the -2 and -1 (up to -4) on casting/deny for psykers within 18 inches and immunity to the effects for themselves only.

 

So instead of making Stern a psyker, which I don't believe anyone wants, I think pushing her to be a little closer to a Sister of Silence is a better way to go.

Edited August 10, 2017 by ValourousHeart

[CaptainHelion]

It's not the same direction as a psyker, not really. It's more of an amped up version of the ability Non-Psyker Inquisitors get. At least, that's the place I was drawing from. And I really don't think Stern has all that much in common with SoS, but that may just be my reading of Daemonifugue talking.

[ValourousHeart]

I wasn't meaning that Stern was like a SoS fluff-wise.

 

I meant that when looking at making a mechanic for her that would represent the minimal effect psykers and deamons had on her from the graphic novel, I went with a similar mechanic that GW used for the SoS, as opposed to the mechanic they used for pyskers.

 

Also consider what that -2 has on the chance for perils.  Perils is normally on 2 and 12, but with the -2, the highest they can roll is 10.  That means that a natural roll of 2, 3, and 4 is a perils, instead of 2/36 chance it is 6/36 chance.  So not only are they more likely to fail but also more likely to perils.

[Sister Rosette Soulknyt]

Remember that Ephrael killed a Celexus assassin in a battle of psychic power, she is blessed by the Emperor much like Celestine, can rip a daemon thingy from a powered armoured opponent.

She also beats up an Inquisitor Silas Hand in personal combat.

 

She should have a invun save of atleast 4+, bonuses to kill Choas, not just daemons. She should always resist psychic powers on atleast 3+ and can random generate a special psychic power that is a blessing from the Emperor as a nasiant psycher.

[A.T.]

Remember that Ephrael killed a Celexus assassin in a battle of psychic power, she is blessed by the Emperor much like Celestine, can rip a daemon thingy from a powered armoured opponent.

 

That wasn't psychic power as such. Ephrael's power comes from the collective faith/souls of the ~700 sisters of the screaming cage, and the Culexus fried itself trying to absorb the energy of all those souls at once.

 

Though she does demonstrate a superhuman strength and speed at various times. It is a personal thing though - perhaps the psychic resistance from the inquisitor rules would be more suitable than an enhanced shield of faith.

[Purifying Tempest]

Stern can Deny 2 and Cast 0 Psychic Powers.  She has a +1 to her Deny the Witch rolls (that puts her on par with exclusive psychers like Yvraine and Ahriman for bonuses).

 

Bolt Pistol at 12" is fine, going out beyond that seems... silly and good.  Toss on -1 AP for STR 4, -1 AP.  Nice bonus to shoot, but not overwhelming, and not too Mary Sue of a weapon.

 

That power weapon seems to be a bit good, too.  Perhaps bring it down a point in Strength to +1, and then slap -4 AP on it (so now you're +1 STR, -1 AP better than a normal power sword), give it either d3 or flat 2 wounds.

 

I like the thought of a Rosarius instead of a flat 3+ invulnerable... leave that to Stormshields.

 

If you really feel the need to represent her psychic power (*snicker*), give her a 12" Smite that does 1 damage on a cast, d3 on 10+, kind of like Tzeentch and Grey Knights.  Up her powers cast to 1 per turn.

 

On the S/T 3, WS/BS 3 platform with a 3+/4++... I would probably give her right in the 100 range, maybe a little lower if she has none of the other Froot Loopiness from above that really punishes Demon and Psykers.

 

Really, what you're paying for is an anti-psyker battery, which is really powerful in this edition.  Especially in matched play (where points matter) when denying a power literally denies them that power for the whole turn across the army.

 

Though, this leaves me wondering... why not Greyfax?

 

Both these models would serve a very similar role on the battlefield, though Greyfax may not go charging into the fray with the abandon that Stern would (though, I would be hesitant to charge that proposed model into the fray, personally... especially if there are Psykers about and I needed to shield my army from them).  She's not very dispensable. 

[wraithman]

So can somebody create a datasheet of all of this? I don't have the means to do it myself.