So, how would you approach and Adeptus Mechanicus Kill Team?

[Magos Takatus]

As the title poses really, since the previous Skitarii Kill Team rules seem to have been retired recently, How would you approach a new Kill Team for the faction?

 

As cool and easy to put together as the Skitarii team was, I think the army needs some more Cult Mechanicus themed units and perhaps an Explorator-themed unit would work? some lower-tier tech priests, some excavation servitors with breaching drills and perhaps some gun servitors and smaller automatons for security detail? I imagine a hodgepodge approach like the Inquisitorial Agents box would work well? 

 

Let me know what ideas you would like to see. Am I completely wrong? Would you like to see an addition sprue to an existing unit or a new unit in it's entirely?

[apologist]

Ooh, so many opportunities! Honestly, I can think of half a dozen themes off the top of my head; the Cult Mechanicus is such a rich pool of opportunity.

 

The ones I'd most like to see are an Explorator warband – so you could have a mid-rank Techpriest leading two or three low-ranking aspirant priests, supported by (say) a hulking weapon-servitor, a lithe combat synth, three or four specialised servitors, a Thallax bodyguard and a few odd hangers-on. I'm picturing everything from brains in tanks to figures stumbling under the weight of piles of books; classic gun servitors

 

Electropriests would be another great theme to explore, but honestly... there's so much!

Edited October 8 by apologist

[Magos Takatus]

I'm quite pleased that your ideal theme is so similarly aligned to my original suggestion, hopefully that means we might be on the right track. I hadn't even thought about having a Thallax in the group, do they exist in the modern 40k setting? Thinking about it, a mixed Automata battle formation with a variant Datasmith sculpt would be really cool, and I hadn't really considered it until you mentioned the Thallax. I'm working on the Mechanicum box set right now and they have been fun to work on so far. That may change as I get into the detail phase. 

 

An Electro Priest presence could be fun, but how would you approach it? Having a two-part Corpuscarii and Fulgurite warband working grudgingly in concert with each other could be fun, but I'm not sure how you'd get specialists out of Electro Priests? The Corpuscarii half would be hard-pressed to have a sniper equivalent considering their lack of functioning eyes but a specialist that explodes energy out like an EMP discharge could be entertaining. I'm personally struggling but I'm sure there is potential for good ideas. Maybe there are other, lesser branches beyond the two we know that haven't been explored yet?

[N1SB]

I think I'm coming from the same school of thought as you.  Skitarii Vanguard and Rangers are the too obvious options, so what else?

 

I do think the Sicarian units, i.e. Infiltrators and Ruststalkers, are the Mechanicus equivalent for Kill Teams, nimble advance units.

 

But like you, I too think the more interesting thing would be specialised servitors or servoskulls or turrets that'd accompany them.

 

But to dream impossible dreams of red sands, go back to 1st ed, there WAS a unit meant for Kill Teams before it was even a thing:

 

 

The old "robots", the Vorax, were meant as units specifically for light skirmish or recon missions.  Have them lead by some Enginseer with Servitors.

[Magos Takatus]

 

I think I'm coming from the same school of thought as you.  Skitarii Vanguard and Rangers are the too obvious options, so what else?

 

I do think the Sicarian units, i.e. Infiltrators and Ruststalkers, are the Mechanicus equivalent for Kill Teams, nimble advance units.

 

But like you, I too think the more interesting thing would be specialised servitors or servoskulls or turrets that'd accompany them.

 

But to dream impossible dreams of red sands, go back to 1st ed, there WAS a unit meant for Kill Teams before it was even a thing:

 

 

The old "robots", the Vorax, were meant as units specifically for light skirmish or recon missions.  Have them lead by some Enginseer with Servitors.

A good idea. I didn't mention the Vorax as I didn't know what their stats were and if they were too powerful to include in Kill Team. There is the old sketches from the Gothic and the Eldritch  that could be developed further to fit the more human or Thallax scaled automata?

 

[Bouargh]

 

As the title poses really, since the previous Skitarii Kill Team rules seem to have been retired recently, How would you approach a new Kill Team for the faction?

 

Still there. Yet as lazy as they used to be for a KT made out from existing models without special focus of any kind...

 

The exploration team is a great theme. It might be a way to include non skitarii models. Or a cime back of some servitors inc bigger ones (I dream of a VAT ogryn based cyborg).

 

Another radicaly different way would be a full automated kill team. Only hunter killer robots left alone in defense of a perimeter. Small, swift and deadly eith a kill kill kill protocol only. Scillax sized or so maybe. I can imagine a setting similar to Arkhan lsnd last expedition with the ecplorers all eliminated.

[apologist]

I'm quite pleased that your ideal theme is so similarly aligned to my original suggestion, hopefully that means we might be on the right track. I hadn't even thought about having a Thallax in the group, do they exist in the modern 40k setting? Thinking about it, a mixed Automata battle formation with a variant Datasmith sculpt would be really cool, and I hadn't really considered it until you mentioned the Thallax. I'm working on the Mechanicum box set right now and they have been fun to work on so far. That may change as I get into the detail phase. 

 

I think the existence of Thallxi cohorts is a bit vague, but since they're the standard infantry for the Reductor, I think it likely they're still around in some form – certainly in numbers sufficient to allow for Explorators to have some form of special bodyguard.

 

An Electro Priest presence could be fun, but how would you approach it? Having a two-part Corpuscarii and Fulgurite warband working grudgingly in concert with each other could be fun, but I'm not sure how you'd get specialists out of Electro Priests? The Corpuscarii half would be hard-pressed to have a sniper equivalent considering their lack of functioning eyes but a specialist that explodes energy out like an EMP discharge could be entertaining. I'm personally struggling but I'm sure there is potential for good ideas. Maybe there are other, lesser branches beyond the two we know that haven't been explored yet?

 

I think the fun of new Kill Teams are threefold:

• Opportunity to look at a faction in closer detail than 40k
• Repurpose/replace/update older kits
• Show a different side to a faction.

Electropriests are exactly the sort of one-note specialist units that can be rejuvenated in Kill Team with a bit of imagination – Kroot, Ratlings and Arbites are good examples of how a fairly flat archetype is enriched and expanded.

 

I'm picturing the Electropriests proper appearing in limited numbers, and the bulk of the team being made up of lesser menials devoted to the Motive Force. Let's take an example warband.

 

Led by a Magos Errant – the only figure senior enough to quell and arbitrate the arguments between the schools of the Luminem, the Kill Team includes representatives of both the Corpuscarii and Fulgurites. Amongst these are:

• Corpuscari Unificator – acting as a sanctified channel for the motive force, this operative can direct and extend the range of his allies' attacks.
• Corpuscari Excessor – primal and determined, this raging holy warrior seeks to close with her enemies; the strength and effectiveness of her weaponry increasing with proximity to nearby figures.
• Corpuscari Illuminator – taking the light of the Motive Force in its most literal sense, in peace the Illuminator marches to drive back the dark of ignorance. When roused to anger, the Illuminator's electoos can release blinding and disorientating discharges to which his blind allies are immune.
• Fulgurite Incorporator – a single touch from this techpriest draws the motive force from her enemy, enfeebling its wargear while empowering that of the Incorporator.
• Fulgurite Galvaniser – a support priest, the Galvaniser hoards the Motive Force gathered by his colleagues, only reluctantly releasing it to recharge and repair his allies.
• Fulgurite Neodymion – jealously hoarding electromagnetic force, the Neodymion practitioner exert her powers at range, forcibly dragging enemies from cover to be blasted apart by allies, or simply thrusting them from perilous vantage points to tumble to their doom.
• Electropriest Anchorite– the hermetic Electropriest anchorites are a breed apart, seeking to balance and bridge the broad schools of thought within the Luminem. In battle, the Anchorites are balanced and considered warrior-monk, specialised entirely in the use of the Motive Force in sacred melée. Drawing on years of practise, the Anchorites switch effortlessly between draining and discharge to bring enemies to their knees through parries, counterstrikes and attacks of opportunity.
• Liromat – a despised but necessary menial, this servitor serves to earth and safely discharge arcing energies to protect the unenchanced congregation. On the battlefield, this robust and insensitive figures draws and reduces incoming fire from her charges.
• Coronal node-servitor – this servitor bears antler-like coronal nodes on his back, which radiate a low-level electromagnetic charge. Acting as a contrasting background medium for the electropriests' false-sight, this highlights nearby enemies and makes a mockery of cover.
• Distributon – bulky and slow robots, Distributon's bodies acts as colossal batteries to provide a place of refuge to the Motive Force in the long journey's between the stars. 

etc. etc.

 

On the face of things, the Electropriests aren't an especially interesting or versatile group, but as I've hopefully shown above, you can make some compelling and practical game-pieces by exploring subtleties that wouldn't have a space in 40k. I don't pretend the above list is anything but a loose draft, but the broader point is that by riffing on a particular existing theme, some fun ideas tend to emerge. :)

 

[Magos Takatus]

That's a Kill Team I would certainly put down money for providing GW held up their part and made the sculpts good quality. They really get into the relationship between the Mechanicus and it's utilisation of the Motive Force. I am struggling to find a favourite concept because they all deepen the concepts behind the Electro Priests far more than me simply spitballing  various specialist types. I love the idea of the servitor that broadcasts enhanced sight to guide the otherwise short-sighted priests. I also love the idea that there are Distributons that drain the harnessed energy out of the priests between combats so that they can operate at a "normal" level when not on a war footing. With the old 2nd edition background about Electro Priests exhausting themselves from their exertions being able to discharge harnessed energy sounds like a sensible and necessary task.

 

The biggest shame is that I doubt GW will manage to make something quite this creative. I'm not being cynical, I just think this draft of yours has a lot of potential.  

[N1SB]

21 hours ago, apologist said:

 

The ones I'd most like to see are an Explorator warband

 

The more I think about it, the more I like this idea, and the more likely it seems.

 

The recent Kill Team releases all have a signature theme.  It's not just Eldar, it's like Corsairs.  It's not just GSC, it's Brood Brothers.

 

An Explorator team probably exemplifies what the Mechanicus values most: knowledge.  That's their signature theme.

 

For example, I can easily imagine an Explorator team vs. some Necrons thing as a boxset, looking for Blackstone.

[apologist]

Right, let's have a go at group-planning a Mechanicus Explorator Kill Team together!

 

*Cracks condyli-articulation*

 

+ What is an Explorator? +

 

Something of a breed apart in the Adeptus Mechanicus for their independence, penchant for innovation and personal initiative, they are seen as a necessary evil by some of their fellows and vital agents of the Machine God by others. Explorators undertake their god's Quest for Knowledge across the stars, seeking out undiscovered data and unrecorded phenomena, forgotten archeotech hoards, and unknown life forms.

 

Okay, so lots to go on here – they're part of the techpriesthood, but equal parts Indiana Jones, greedy coloniser and Captain Kirk.

 

+ Leader archetypes +

Archmagos-Explorators themselves might be seen as a bit high-ranking to make an appearance on the table, but I don't think it's beyond the realm of possibility that they would take the field. Apart from anything else, that insatiable curiosity that drives them probably wouldn't be satisfied with second-hand reports. Having said that, these are equivalents to Inquisitors, and the Kill Team equivalent there is an agent; the Interrogator.

 

Another option might be Magos-Commodore, which sounds slightly lower in the chain of command within an Explorator Fleet; perhaps in charge of a group of smaller vessels. Now we're in Star Trek territory, and I can definitely see this level of bridge crew on the field. 

 

Magos Explorators are the obvious choice here; and Magos Delphan Gruss from the old 54mm Inquisitor game is a great example.

 

What other choice might we have?

 

[Magos Takatus]

Ah, Gruss was a fine model. I hope we see him again in the setting some day. He's probably a bit too obscure and undercover for a main Admech character though. 

 

I think the next most important role in the group would be a character that collates data and transfers it back to the fleet effectively. Wheras the Inquisition would have a person with an auto-quill to fill a similar role, I think the Mechanicus equivalent should be able to send the information found back to the data-hungry Tech Priests above in a timely manner, so I think a collapsible macro data tether would be an ideal feature to set this individual apart. I am unsure of a suitable name for this character yet. You seem to be gifted in that sort of input.

 

Is this similar to what you requested?

 

[apologist]

Love it – so a minor priest dedicated to getting info off-planet, even when there's no noosphere or compatible technology to do so? How about 'Protonotary' as a name? 

 

In terms of naming, GW seem to use Byzantine Roman terminology as one of their sources of nomenclature for the Mechanicum (and by extension the Adeptus Mechanicus) – terms like Taghmata, for example. Quite fitting, given that they're an empire within an empire; and the Imperium is very Classical Rome-coded. These are then often given 'techy' puns. That might be a route for us?

 

Some other concepts that I had bouncing around for the Explorators were:

• Reticulator – This priest passively draws off and collates information from the other members of the Kill Team, providing a back-up of sorts in case of isoaltion from the fleet and – more importantly in combat – transmitting targetting data freely across the team.
• Archimandrite – A team champion; a bulky muscular techpriest in a confrontational pose. Hands are free, the Archimandrite bears a back-mounted rig of whirring combat blades and short-range weaponry.
• Convocinator – A member dedicated to protecting the team from psychic attacks or feedback through the use of technology; perhaps a sort of falconer, but with a psyber-cherub instead of a bird. 
• Ossuarian-Preceptor – Equipped with statis-casks and seals, the Ossuarian-Preceptor safely gathers sensitive or devotional material. In combat, their knowledge of stasis allows them to delay, freeze or capture enemies, as well as make the environment dangerous to the Kill Team's opponents.
• Capellenary – Minor priest dedicated to sonic and aural transcription; covered in sensors, boom mics and pick-ups – so in addition to her primary role of gathering auditory data, she also makes it very tricky to sneak up on the team.
• Co-Ordinal – A paired set of warriors; they execute seemingly identical stances and actions in order to surround and bypass defences. Equipped with rifles, they gain substantial benefits if they can draw a line between each other and their target.
• Teleseme Transeptor – Responsible for ensuring knowledge, once learned, is properly secured, the Teleseme Transeptor 
• Chromometrist-cleric – Priests that help to calibrate, plan and ensure coordination across space and time, Chronometrist-clerics have absolute perfect timing and reactions, making them surprisingly capable in a fight; where they dodge bullets and las-blasts as easily as a blade.
• Cryptocansor – Relatively slight to allow them to access precarious positions, the Cryptocansor are codebreakers extraordinaire, responsible for translating and interpretating obscure or unfamiliar texts under perilous conditions. In the frequently dangerous environments they find themselves in, these skills make them able to spot ambushes, disable traps and bypass prepared positions; and so they act as ideal scouts.
• Seminarian Exploratory – Low-ranking aspirant members of the priesthood, Seminarian Exploratories make up the bulk of the Kill Team. Relatively unenhanced, they are armed with high-powered but short-ranged las-repeaters. Seminarians are responsible for securing and protecting the Priesthood, and are equipped with sturdy flak-robes that cover bulkier carapace plates.
• Boolean Operative – Wait, these puns have got too silly! 

[Magos Takatus]

I like the Capellenary as a concept. I imagine she loathes dealing with Eldar Vibro-weaponry and Noise Marines!

 

Do you think a minor character that intercepts and purifies scrapcode as the team acquires data holds any merit? Perhaps darker they might serve like a fusebox, intercepting dangerous data and burning out in event of exposure to hazardous encounters? They could be like the mining canary of the expedition, sacrificing themselves to nullify certain attacks? A bit of an out-there concept and hard to hammer into a game mechanic but I could see it being useful from the point of view of an expedition. Perhaps it could simply be a disposable cherub counter rather than a downtrodden menial? I just feels very dark and very Adeptus Mechanicus to me.

 

I don't know, I'm interested to see what you think.

[sitnam]

I love both the Explorator team ideas and the Electro-priest idea. KT has been a good way to pad out armies with more niche/specialized units, and unfortunately the Cult Mechanicua has become a smaller subset of the army

 

Electro-Priests are my favorite part of AdMech though, so I would love an updated sculpt for KT. Given the rivalry of the Fulgurites and Corpuscarii, I think it'd be interesting to have rules for a mono-cult team or running a mixed force. Kind of similar to Blades of Khaine.

 

I could also see a Explorator team as a good way to revamp Gun Servitors, which would benefit most Imperium armies

[lansalt]

Maybe I'm misunderstading this thread, but there's actually updated rules for the Hunter Clade AdMech KT in GW's site :

https://assets.warhammer-community.com/rules-downloads/kill-team/team-rules/hunter-clade/killteam_teamrules_hunterclade_eng_02.10.24.pdf

And here's goonhammer review:

https://www.goonhammer.com/kill-team-2024-review-hunter-clade/

[sitnam]

The Hunter Clade will be leaving competitive play at the beginning of next season, alongside all the Season 1 teams. This is basically brainstorming a replacement team. Ratlings and Tempestus Aquilons are basically the new AM teams to replace Krieg, Tankbustas will replace Kommandos, etc.

[Indy Techwisp]

Kind of a strange suggestion here, but I think it somewhat fits for an AdMech team, especially in the current Killzone based around its holy giant gun.

 

What about a Mechanicus "Work Congregation"?

 

The killteam could consist of a Mechanicus Lay-Preacher as the Leader, 3 kinds of Servitor acting as "heavies", a Cherub and a Servo Skull taking up half a slot each for your "support" and then 6 Workers as your main "warriors".

 

The Lay-Preacher has an AdMech Icon and a "decent" AdMech Pistol or Melee (the kind of stuff a Skitarii Unit Leader would have) as their loadout that can buff allies by issuing "Sermons" (1apl)

 

The 3 Servitors are a "Welding Servitor" with a Flamer type weapon, a "Clamp Servitor" with a strong melee weapon and a "Rivet Servitor" with a decently strong gun.

 

The Cherub probably acts pretty much like the Grot from Kommandos and the Servoskull acts as a relay for the "Sermons" (If the Lay-Preacher does a Sermon, they can apply it to a operative that's in range of the skull as well)

 

The 6 Workers have a variety of options avaliable to them, such as their own welders (hand flamer type thing), a weapon with Stun (probably something electrical), better melee provided by bionic arm replacements, etc. Your "default" Warrior has just a Cultist style autopistol and some random metal pipe or bar for a melee.

 

If this killteam sounds like it's just a Manufactorum Repair Crew, that's exactly that it's supposed to be.

[Tawnis]

While I don't play enough Kill Team to really get into the technical rules of how this would work, I'd love to see more of the teams go to interesting design spaces. 

 

For AdMech, I think a team with a Single highly statted techpriest and a number of servitors (maybe 6-8) would be a neat time. You have to keep your techpriest safe since they are the one controlling all the servitors. You could have the Techpriest gain some kind of AP bonuses for actions and stuff with all its tendrils and ability to multitask, while restricting what the Servitors can do the further they get away from their master. 

 

It would certainly take some serious testing to balance, but I think it would be really thematic and a lot of fun.