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divineerdrick · 2 months ago

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Warhammer 40,000 Balance Changes for December 11, 2024: Imperium

Adeptus Mechanicus

Not even Richard Siegler seems to be able to help AdMech right now. Their stats aren't horrible, with more than a few factions sitting below them in most metrics. But they can't seem to win anything these days.

One interesting thing is that most players are using Hunter Cohort, and Hunter Cohort does have the highest win rate. But in most other metrics Rad-Zone is still beating it. Still, with player counts this low, data can skew easily. Those are the only two detachments people are playing. They're not playing a lot of Datasheet eithers, and seem dependent on Skorpius variants and Skystalkers.

Unfortunately, AdMech isn't getting any love in the Dataslate. So any help will have to come from the MFM.

And what help are they getting? Kastelan Robots are going down 5 pts a model. That's it.

That being said, some of their predators have been hit pretty hard, and they have a new detachment to play with. Even so, I can't see their fortunes changing much.

Astra Militarum

I won't lie. I knew Guard were going do well in the new meta, but I didn't think they'd do this well. They're arguably in a better position than GSC, when you consider how niche their rival is and how many less experienced players enjoy Guard. In my defense, I didn't know what Aquilons were going to do. Though in harsher criticism, I thought the changes to Tank Commanders would even out.

Yeah, Aquilons were definitely a thing and Tank Commanders are basically auto-include. But with their Codex coming out next month, what is GW going to do for now?

Apparently, nerf Leontus. Now, instead of being able to issue orders to any Astra Militarum unit, Leontus can only issue orders to Regiment units or Squadron units. Next, they've nerfed Aquilons as well. They too must come in outside of 6” now, and they can only do it if you set them up in your Movement phase.

Errata wise, they get an update that clarifies that Mindlock requires a Tech-Priest Enginseer. So that's all there is with the new Index.

However the MFM is a different story. There's a lot of red here. Some of their units are getting the split unit treatment now. Cadians and Catachans are now both 65 pts for their 10 man and 120 pts for their 20 man. Meanwhile 6 Ogryn have gone up 10 pts while 3 Ogry haven't changed. Scions and Aquillons have gone up 2 pts per model, so you'll be paying for them in Guard's shiny new detachment. Chimeras have gone up 15 pts while Gaunt's Ghosts and Hellhounds have gone up 10 pts. Finally Leontus gets hit with a double nerf, and has gone up a massive 25 pts.

All of these are relevant models, and Guard is almost certainly going to be hurting after this. Still, with Tank Commanders untouched I don't think this is a massive nerf to them. They're in a really good spot, and I think they'll still be good after this. But I don't think they'll be dominating tournaments like they currently are.

Black Templars

Templars was one of the factions that made me think that GW was trying to even out all the Space Marines and try again. They got hammered last update. Currently many Templar lists aren't actually taking many Templars. And when they do, they're usually going with the Gladius. Righteous Crusaders is currently struggling.

The Dataslate brings too small buffs to the faction. The fist is that Black Templars Repulsor Executioners finally can take 7 models. This just brings things in line with their other transports. The second, is that apparently Firstborn have put their centuries of experience into sharpening their combat knives, and Firstborn Crusaders are now AP-1. I don't think this balances out the nerf to Armour of Contempt though.

Black Templars has a new Index download for the Balance Dataslate, but I think it's just the fix to Repulsors and the new combat knives. They also have a new question answered in their FAQ. This is just a clarification to Fervent Acclamation that I'm pretty sure is how most people played it.

Other than this, you just have two points changes in the Dataslate. Repulsors have gone down 10 pts, and the Executioner has gone down 5 pts. This probably won't have too much of an impact on list building. But Templars aren't in a bad spot, and other powerful armies have gotten significant nerfs. So they're going to stay in a good spot. But it's still a shame so many of their Datasheets aren't that competitive now.

Blood Angels

I'll admit it. I completely blew it on my read of the new SanGuard datasheet. They slap.

On the whole, new Blood Angels are struggling a bit, but I think a lot of that may be new players that have come into the faction. Players are overwhelmingly sticking to Liberator for their detachment of choice for now, and we don't have a lot of data on the other detachments. Though one mad lad did really well with an Ironstorm.

I would say the Blood Angels don't get anything out of the Balance Dataslate, but that's no true. They get nerfs. The first is to Armour of Contempt, like all Space Marines. The second is to Descent of Angels, which is the Angelic Host 3” deployment stratagem. Still, they're in one of the better positions to take these hits.

The changes in the MFM are a bit odd. On the one hand, Mephiston has gone up 10 pts while the auto-include enhancement Rage-fuelled Warrior has gone up a whopping 15. You're probably still taking Mephiston, but Rage-fueld Warrior definitely isn't auto-include anymore. So what's strange? SanGuard has gone down 5 pts per three models. They've already been proven to be worth their cost, and Blood Angels didn't really need a lot of help.

The Sons of Sanguinius will be fine.

Dark Angels

Dark Angels was another faction I knew was going to have issues, though I didn't think it from looking at their datasheets. It wasn't until I saw Codex Marine nerfs that I knew they were in trouble. Dark Angels is very close to a classic Space Marine list, just with some cool flourishes. So if Codex Marines are hurting, it can hurt them too. Deathwing Knights are still good though, as is Azrael. But no one is having success with any of their detachments. Gladius, Stormlance, and Vanguard seem to be the best way to play the faction.

As Space Marines, The Unforgiven also have to bear the nerf to Armour of Contempt. Inner Circle also has Relic Teleportarium which gets nerfed too. But GW does realize that Dark Angels detachments just aren't working. We start with Company of Hunters, which now gives Mounted units Advance and Fallback and Shoot and Charge. That should help their mobility greatly. However Master of Manoeuvre has been replaced with a re-roll Advance and Charge rolls.

There are weapon buffs too. Apparently GW is tired of hearing The Lion isn't worth taking. He now has Dmg 2 on his sweep. Meanwhile, Ravenwing Black Knights get DevWounds for their combat weapons. Finally Sammael gets boost to his mobility if you put him in the Company of Hunters Detachment, or otherwise his unit gets Advance and Shoot and Charge.

Finally, before we get to the MFM, there's a new FAQ in the Unforgiven's tiny Codex errata. This one is a bit of a head scratcher. I'm guessing someone tried to claim that you have to use All Secrets Revealed on the first Stratagem that gets used. Well GW has confirmed that you do in fact get to decide when and if you use it.

The Lion doesn't get his buff without going up in cost it seems. He's gone up a whopping 30 pts. Not sure that's an equivalent cost. All and all, I don't think things are going to change much for Dark Angels. Maybe some of their specialists will give Company of Hunters another go, or maybe their new Lion's Blade detachment, but I think we've mostly got six more months of Dark Angels themed Codex marines.

Deathwatch

They're a faction again! Applause!

The new index is very similar to the old one, but has been buffed in significant ways. Additionally, the new Talonstrike looks mean! Expensive, but mean! We probably won't see much for them here. But their entry returns to the Balance Dataslate and MFM.

If I have to guess, I think a few players will come back and have success with their new Index. But they're definitely not a top faction.

Grey Knights

Despite having interesting rules, Grey Knights have struggled for most of the edition. Unfortunately they seem to be one of the factions were GW just didn't have the time to make sure their datasheets functioned properly before release. With only a small number of weak datasheets, even the incredible mobility they've been give wasn't enough to let them be successful. While they've received aid from GW to try to fix these issues, when your options are so limited any set backs can cause trouble. Currently, Grey Knights are one of the worst factions in the game, with many of their stats being below Imperial Agents.

Unfortunately, Grey Knight aren't getting any further love in the Dataslate today. In fact Truesilver Armour and Prognisticated Arrival are both strats that have gotten nerfed. So we're not off to a good start. And while there's a new Grey Knights Index for download, I can't find anything that's changed.

Things only get worse in the MFM. Not only are they not getting any much needed buffs, but Nemesis Dreadknights are taking a 5 pts nerf. Things are not looking very good for the Knights of Titan.

Imperial Agents

There have been some mad lads that have had fun and success with the Imperialis Fleet detachment. Between datasheet and detachment rules, this faction has some fun and crazy things it can do. But there's still not enough players to really place it. And if they're going to be a real army, they desperately need a real army rule.

The Dataslate isn't helping them. Deathwatch have Armour of Contempt and Grey Knights have Truesilver Armour, so there's a nerf there. And the Culexis Assassin has two nerfs to Etheric Emergence, limiting it to your Movement phase and bringing it in line with the 6” Deepstrike change.

Finally, they're getting a single buff in the MFM. Well that's not true. Other Imperium armies are getting a buff in that the Vindicare Assassin is no longer ridiculously costed and has dropped 25 pts. So that's good news for every other Imperium Army.

Imperial Knights

As opposed to their Traitor cousins, Imperial Knights appear to have some solid stats but are still struggling to reach top tables. Players also struggle to get their big knights on the battlefield, though they do so more reliably than the fallen Houses. When they do, Canis Rex is still the go to, even after the nerfs.

Knights would dearly love to get Bondsman abilities back, but that's not happening today. And, like many armies so far, their Index has been updated but doesn't appear to have changed. So they're going to have to get their help from the MFM.

And they're getting some help here. Helverins and Warglaives have both gone down 10 pts. These are both relevant datasheets, so gaining a little buff there is a nice thing. That's going to free up 40 to 60 pts in many lists, either to upgrade the Knights being taken or to take advantage of allies.

Still I don't think this is enough to change their fortunes.

Space Wolves

While it's cool to be right about something, sometimes I hate it. See my worries about GSC. In this case, it's the fact that Thunderwolves are still good. The nerfs definitely hurt, as the Sons of Russ have a hard time getting near the podium. But the players that can get there often still take home the gold.

For the Dataslate, in exchange for a nerfed Armour of Contempt, Wolf Scouts also get sharper combat knives. This seems to be all that's changed in the Index too. Otherwise any changes will have to be in the MFM.

In the MFM, both Wolf Scouts and Wulfen go up 1 pts/model. These are both relevant, but it shouldn't hurt all that much. And since the Rout make heavy use of their own units, they don't get hurt as much by nerfs to the core Codex. Also, like many solid factions, they only benefit from top factions getting weaker. So I think the Wolves are fine.

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