Castellax-Achean Battle-Automata - FW Thousand Sons for 8e

[Revlid]

Bringing these big boys back to the Thousand Sons. The hereteknical semi-sophont machine spirits inside have become daemons in the 10,000 years since Prospero burned, and their armaments have gained inferno shells, but they otherwise function pretty much as they used to. And they needed a snappier, more Chaos-y name for the 41st Millennium, so... here are the Aethermind Automatons! I'm honestly kind of confused as to why Forge World haven't produced datasheets for units like these or the AdMech 30k models; it seems like it couldn't hurt sales.
 
I originally used the Kastellan statline as a basis for these, but downgraded them back to the original 4 wounds, 2 attacks when I realized how hard it was to distinguish 6 wound, 3 attack stompy robots from... well, regular Hellbrutes. Instead they're basically the Thousand Sons' answer to Obliterators or Centurion Devastators. These guys aren't infantry, can't ignore cover, and need to be babysat if you want them going anywhere – otherwise, they're pretty much the same as Devastators in terms of durability, role, loadout, and so on.

  
Aethermind Automatons (Heavy Support, Power Rating 5)
 

M 2", WS 3+, BS 3+, S6, T7, W4, A2, Ld 10, Sv 3+

This unit contains 1 Aethermind Automaton. It can include up to 4 additional Aethermind Automatons (Power Rating +5 each). Each Aethermind Automaton is armed with achean claws, two inferno boltguns, and a mauler inferno cannon.
 
Weapons
 

• Aether-flame cannon: Range 36", Heavy D3, S8, AP-3, D3, Abilities: Each time you make a wound roll of 6+ for this weapon, the target suffers 1 mortal wound in addition to any other damage.
• Inferno boltgun: Range 24", Rapid Fire 1, S4, AP-2, D1
• Mauler inferno cannon: Range 24", Heavy 5, S6, AP-2, D1
• Achean claws: Melee, S+1, AP-2, D2

Wargear Options

• Any model may replace its soulreaper cannon with an aether-flame cannon.

Abilities

• Warp-flux Shield: All models in this unit have a 5+ invulnerable save.
• Crystalline Clarity: This unit does not suffer penalties for moving and shooting Heavy weapons.
• Psi-Locus: When a friendly THOUSAND SONS PSYKER within 12" of this unit successfully manifests a psychic power, you can resolve the power (for the purposes of range and line of sight) as though it had been manifested by one of the models in this unit, instead of the psyker. If such a psyker suffers Perils of the Warp, this unit immediately suffers D3 mortal wounds.
• Sorcerous Control: When this unit Advances while within 6" of a friendly THOUSAND SONS PSYKER, add 6" to its Move characteristic for that Movement phase instead of rolling a dice. In addition, it can still shoot and/or charge that turn, despite Advancing.

Keywords

• Faction: CHAOS, TZEENTCH, HERETIC ASTARTES, THOUSAND SONS
• Keywords: VEHICLE, DAEMON, DAEMON ENGINE, AETHERMIND AUTOMATON

Points Costs

• Aethermind Automaton: 50pts
• Achean claws: 0pts
• Inferno boltgun: 2pts
• Mauler inferno cannon: 11pts
• Aether-flame cannon: 21pts