The 2024 Edition of Kill Team has overhauled the game, changing rules, datasheets, and bringing with it an updated set of rules for every team in the game. In this series we’re taking a look at each team, how they’ve changed, and what it means for how they play in the new edition.
Greetings esteemed scholars of Arcane, today we are going to be covering Warpcoven who hold the honor of being the second White Dwarf team introduced into Kill Team 2021. Unfortunately, for them it has been a rocky road as their rules have struggled to keep pace with the game as it evolved. This was made doubly unfortunate as they held another distinction as being the only team that was truly able to alternate between being a purely elite 6 operative team, or borderline horde at 11 operatives. One would think this would have stood them out as one of the most flexible teams available, which they were, but none of this has mattered from a competitive standpoint as a combination of weak rules and the poor position of elites in general meant they found themselves a non-factor for most of KT21. As the end of KT21 approached, balance changes sought to bring them in line with more recent elite teams like Nemesis Claw.
Before we dive in, we’d like to thank Games Workshop for providing a preview copy of these rules for Review purposes.
The Video Version of the Review
We have a video version of this review courtesy of Can You Roll a Crit?
Team Overview
The Warpcoven are technically a six selection team that is drawn from a combination of Rubric Marines and Chaos Sorcerers with the added flavor of being able to take two Tzaangor beastmen as a single selection with the caveat that at least one of your choices MUST be a Chaos Sorcerer. The team has received a lot of simplification from their KT21 variant with the removal of Psychic Powers as their own category of actions, but remains unchanged in its intent. In fact, long time Warpcoven fans are going to be very happy with how this team plays as the changes introduced finally allow a player to tailor their playstyle on list selection. Much like their Legionaries kin, Warpcoven are amongst the few teams that have a significant amount of leeway in what they put on the table.
Special Rule: Boons of Tzeentch
This special rule allows players to choose a buff for each Chaos Sorcerer they take. There are nine to choose from and all should be familiar to veterans. None of them are game breaking but all have their uses, and institute yet another avenue in which you can tailor your team against whatever opponent you’re facing.
The Astartes rule is also in effect for this team, making your Rubrics much more useful, as they were amongst the worst Marine options in KT21. Gunners can shoot their non-boltguns twice; however the second instance of firing will require 2 AP to be spent, leaving them vulnerable to return fire, which is largely offset by Rubrics now being the tankiest Marines in the game against shooting.
Team Composition
Your Chaos Sorcerers remain limited to three, and at least one must be taken to lead the team. Warriors and Gunners are the only options that may be repeated, and Gunners only twice, essentially unchanged from the previous edition. Fret not, there is plenty of good stuff to cover.
Playing This Team
As hinted at above, Warpcoven are finally the team that their fans wished they were. The core still remains your three sorcerers who all come with unique abilities that have different tactical implications depending on if you focus on Rubrics, Tzaangors, or a mix of the two. For most of the history of Warpcoven, Rubrics had decidedly occupied the less competitive side of the team, but that is now no longer true. Warpcoven players now are able to bring an incredibly shooting-resistant gunline in the form of their stalwart automatons, or focus on their more numerous and melee focused minions. Either choice is now viable.
What’s Changed?
As with many teams we have a strong re-working of ploys. Exalted Astartes, Psychic Dominion, and Slow and Purposeful are all gone, basically being worked into the team’s core rules or onto operative data cards. In their place we have Aethereal Warding, Fate Itself is my Weapon, and Brotherhood of Sorcerers. Warding reduces Piercing by 1 for all operatives, basically replacing invulnerable saves and immediately making the team much tankier. Fate allows a player to roll two dice and place them in reserve to be substituted in for a roll later, which is useful, but might not be the strongest use of Command Points. Brotherhood grants sorcerers Balance on all Psychic Weapons, or Ceaseless if another Sorcerer is within 9″, which is easily done and greatly increases their reliability. Savage Herd is the only returning Strategic Ploy effectively doing the same thing, but also allowing Sorcerers to fulfill supporting requirements.
The Firefight ploys are less changed with all the good ones remaining: Psychic Cabal, Capricious Plan, and Mutant Herd. The obsolete Schemes of Change is replaced by All Is Dust, the Thousand Son version of Just a Scratch that allows a Rubric Marine to make a single normal hit do 1 damage.
As mentioned psychic powers are no longer chosen from a list. This does mean we have lost some flexibility in terms of being able to tailor our sorcerers who now simply come in three options. Destiny, Tempyrion, and Warpfire which mostly mirror the previous disciplines with a few of the powers shifted around, and ultimately not fitting super well into any sort of specific job. Each of them now has 1-2 pre-assigned powers, all of which are amongst the more useful ones they had before, while their shooting spells are now simply part of their weapon profiles meaning they can fully benefit from the Astartes rule. Destiny allows for defense re-rolls and debuffs enemy operatives offensive capabilities, Tempyrion allows for an incredibly strong teleportation ability, while Warpfire makes your enemy more vulnerable to attack. In short, they all have great stuff, and your opponent is going to need to be reminded CONSTANTLY on which does what.
Rubric Marines receive all the buffs that their Marine comrades do in addition to gaining a 2+ save, making one of the few sources of this in the game with the exit of Custodes. As payment they have had their movement reduced to 5″, which in reality is actually a buff as Slow and Purposeful no longer limits them to 6″ of movement in an activation, allowing them to move and dash a total of 8″ as long as Sorcerers are nearby. This latter requirement is still likely to be difficult to mitigate on Gallowdark boards. Warrior Rubrics also gain Ceaseless if they have not moved prior to shooting making them extremely strong in a shootout with other Marines. It is important to note that neither the Gunner or Icon-Bearer receive this ability with the latter simply only counting for an additional APL on objective control.
Tzaangors also have received some buffs, although nothing near as extreme as their Rubric overlords. The Horn-Bearer no longer needs to spend AP to buff his kin, while the Icon-Bearer provides a short range damage reduction aura. Lastly, Warriors with a Shield are much tankier, acting in a similar role to Exaction Subductors with the ability to block to hits at a time.
Lastly, we come to equipment, which as a shock to no one has been redone and improved greatly. Our first two options are Ensorcelled Rounds and Daemonmaw Weapons, the latter being new and the former being far better than before. Rounds simply add Devastating 1 to Inferno Bolt weapons (and auto pistols), while Daemonmaw weapons grant Rubrics, Accurate 1 and +1 attack, to their melee profile, which is desperately needed as they still remain the weakest of Marines in combat. Arcane Robes return and now can be used on each Sorcerer once per Turning Point, and lastly Sorcerous Scroll allows a single Sorcerer to gain a second Boon of Tzeentch for a Turning Point, once per battle. This is a more niche choice than our previous three options, but still allows for some interesting plays that your opponent might not see coming.
Three Cool Things About This Team:
- Sorcerers!! Chaos Sorcerers really add some flavor to this team giving you access to some of the more unique abilities in the game. In addition, your Sorcerers are every bit as good at fighting and shooting as their blunt cousins.
- Rubrics. These guys have received a huge glow up. While it is unclear what the best team composition will be going forward. Rubrics are now undoubtedly the most durable operatives in the game in terms of resisting shooting. A combination of Piercing Reduction, 2+ save, damage nullification, AND the ability to re-roll defense dice means your opponent really has to think about when they want to engage with you. Some teams might find they’re utterly incapable of providing any shooting threats against them.
- Flexibility. A combination of Sorcerers, Tzaangors, and Rubrics allow for real decisions to be made when deciding on what to take against your opponent. Just watch out for Inquisition as their ability to bring Sisters of Silence can really ruin your day.
Final Thoughts
I kind of want to play with this team. Warpcoven have always been a neat idea with poor execution, and it seems like the rules team finally nailed it. I am a bit worried that Rubrics might simply be too much for shooty horde teams that lack hard hitting melee specialists, or the volume of fire it takes to overcome a 2+ save. On the flip side Inquisition stands to be one of the stronger non-elite teams in KT24, and their Sisters of Silence operatives and ploy negation would be a strong counterplay against this team potentially limiting their prospects.
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