The Ohdan Legion Project

[IgnusDei]

i posted my idea on this thread (http://forums.relicnews.com/showthread.php?p=547860#post547860) and while the response to it was minimal, i figured i'd try to get us all together to work on this new race. I got a small faq written here, but i'll need some help from you experts to design the units and make sure i don't trip myself up in the fluff.

well, here it is. A more detailed description of each unit will come soon, so stay tuned!

oh, and can we make this a sticky?


The Ohdan Legion Project.


About the Ohd:

The Ohd, also referred to as the Ohdan, are a young race of warp spirits capable of possessing lifeless items. Their species depends on the presence of human worshippers to give birth to others of their kind, and so human attention is their greatest and most prized (and well protected) resource. With the destruction of their homeworld at the hands of the necron, they find themselves desperately trying to convert others humans to Ohdan worship, while portecting what few they have.

The Odh themselves are immaterial balls of energy, invisible to the naked eye but detectable by psykers or VERY advanced scanning technology. Their "physical" appearance varies with wathever object they possess, of course, but their most common look is a suit of armour made of black cloth and plates of Damascus Steel. (artist's note: the armour designs should be more akin to the antiquity than the High Middle-Ages.). When "naked", legionnaires are wooden mannequins riddled with arcane runes. Some mannequins have VERY human features (which facilitated some Ohd/human marriages...ahem) but most are pretty much featureless.

Combat-wise, the Ohd are heavily influenced by their worshipers: technology on the homeworld hadn't even reached the level of guns, much less gunpowder. So, the humans fought in old-fashioned hand to hand combat, with sword, spears, shields and bows and arrows. When the Ohd were born, they picked up this form of combat and have stuck to it throughout the vast history of the homeworld, and improved upon it right up to the Necron Invasion. It is doubtful that they will change this, even faced with the more advanced species of the galaxy.


Special Rules

Repossession:

So long as a damaged Legionnaire squad still exists, the player can attempt to resurrect its casualties 2 turns after they die. Player must roll 1 dice for each dead Legionnaire and get a number higher than four, with the range increased by 1 if a decurion leads the squad, or 2 if a centurion or General leads the whole army. these bonuses do not stack.

To obtain these bonuses, however, you must equip the centurion , decurion or general with the "planar beacon" ability, which makes them considerably more expensive, points-wise.


Coup de Grace:

"Dead" Legionnaires are not taken off the table, but are tagged as such either by being tipped over or flagged with some visual cue. Enemy units standing right next to a fallen Legionnaire can see to it that they cannot rise again by further damaging or even desecrating their empty shells. The specific unit giving the coup de grace needs no rolls as he automatically succeeds, but cannot participate in his squad's attack, reducing the amount of casualties that his squad can inflict on the same turn.

oh, and the Legionnaire player has to take the busted Shell off the table, of course.

Broken Shell:
The Legionnaire may have been resurrected, but whatever damage that caused his spirit to get knocked out of his shell in the first place is still present. Hence, raised Legionnaires can barely take one hit before falling again, and their lowered armour makes things worse. On the other hand, they are still very capable in terms of lethality.


Units:


Legionnaires
The basic soldier of the Legion. Their equipment includes a set of throwing knives usually carried on a bandoleer, a dagger, a shortsword, and a large round shield.


Shieldbearer

The Shieldbearer is an unarmed legionnaire whose role is to carry a large, 2x1.3 meter damascus steel shield fitted with a mid-powered magnetic field generator in the middle. They have a 4+invulnerable save, and they are the first casualties of a squad when wounded at range. They cannot, however, protect against projectiles from above and the "first casualty" rule is negated by guided missile fire, or other indirct fire weapons

Special ability: for extra points, (maybe one hundred?) the Shieldbearer can be fitted with a high-powered mag field generator which, when "deployed" forces any attacker that shoots at the shieldbearer's squad to have their hit range lowered by one. needless to say, this does not apply to melee attacks.

Spearman
The Spearman is self explanatory: it is a legionnaire carrying a long polearm tipped with a D-Steel spearhead. Some armies prefer to use Bastions, others prefer Tridents. Spearmen have doube the normal CC reach, and are most effectively deployed with shieldbearers.



Greatswordsman
The shock troops of the Legion, Greatswrodsmen have lighter armour but considerable attack power thanks to their 6 feet long blades.

Greatswordsmen can trade in their regular Greatswords for Dragonslayers: mighty , 7 foot by 2 clods of steel. These make shortwork of anything, but because of the sheer weight of these weapons, they can only strike last.

Rifleman, formerly Bowgunman

these are trained marksohdan wielding particle beam rifled cannons. they are specialized for long range attacks and are never provided with more than a long knife to fend off hth attackers.


Horseman (centaur)
Horsemen are not Odhs that ride a horse, but rather Odh possessing a large Centauroid Shell. They are very mobile (tau battlesuit mobile? bonus inches for move?) and can be equipped with a variety of weapons from heavy repeater bowguns to polearms, and more defensive equipment such as a low power magfield generator or a simple shield.

Commanders

Decurions (squad)
The commander of any Legionnaire squad, keeping the group together and organized. They can be recognized by their more ornate shells, and most particularily the helmet Their equipment depends on which kind of infantry they command, only they carry enhanced versions: A decurion commanding a squad of mostly greatswordsmen will wield a flaming greatsword, a Heat Edge Saber if they command Legionnaires, a thunder trident if they control a squad of spearmen, and a Stormbow for Bowgunmen.

Centurions

Commanders of the Legion. Similar to decurions, but even stronger, and with a better leadership bonus. They can have authority over a whole army if it is small enough, 2 squads (that is, his own squad PLUS another led by a Decurion) if a the army is larger and a general is present, and 1 squad (accompanied by a decurion) if the army is huge.

General (whole army)

The MAN. the big honcho. the boss. Generals are particularily powerful Odh whose psychic influence can extend over the battelfield, giving a substantial leadership bonus to every squad. they are not bound by the same equipment restrictions as the other commanders, and can take on any form, be it humanoid, centauroid or dragonoid. Some even take on humanoid form and ride a dragonoid, usually particularily ornate Forge Dragons. If the army reaches a certain number of Legionnaires (or points), the presence of a General is mandatory.


"Vehicles"

Forge Drake (flyer)
Forge drakes are large, intricate constructs of D-steel and metal wires in the form of a winged lizard, possessed by veteran Ohd capable of handling larger and more complicated shells. their heads and abdomen house a simple flamer. Some Drakes can be riden, usually by an officer or hero wielding a spear. They are quick, but lightly armoured.

Special Rules:

Wall of fire:
The drake can spread fire on the ground as it flies. make a movement roll, move the drake, and cover the distance from start to finish with some sort of visual cue. This will be a fire wall, and it will last for 2 turns. any units with a low armour save attempting to walk through the wall must make a morale check. If successful, they can proceed, but not without rolling a wound save. Highly armoured units have nothing to fear, as the fires aren't that intense.
Each drake can use Wall of Fire only once per battle.

Rider:
The drake is riden by another ohd in a shell. this basically makes them two different units sharing the same mobility. The Drake gains a wound, and an extra cc attack in the form of a spear. The drake automatically loses his rider at the first point of wound it suffers.
If the rider is a General, the amount of wounds a drake can take is increased by the General's full wound score.

Forge Dragon (flyer)
A forge dragon is the larger cousin of a forge drake. It is not as quick on the battlefield, but its flamer belches out hellfire, is better armoured, and its claws and fangs are that much more dangerous.

Special rules:

Wall of Hellfire.
Same as Wall of fire, only more intense. Any units attempting to walk through must make a morale check, and units that do cross automatically take a wound regardless of Armour. Of course, it can only be used once per battle.

Rider: see above.



Colossus
Colossi are huge shells that vary between the size of a tank or a Titan, the only units that could be called a "Tank" in the Legion. They can mount several ranged heavy weapons on their arms or shoulders, be it Particle Cannons or Beam Arrays, but the most commonly fielded Colossi are specialized for close combat, meaning they usually are seen wielding a large weapon..ususally a Fusion Lance. The form of a colossus varies, some are tall humanoids, others are beastly bipeds and others are heavy quadrupeds. humanoids are the quickest, Beasts are stronger but slower, and the Quads are the most heavily armoured, and the slowest.


Special

see below.

Summoning circle
Daeva

Daevas are closely related to the odhan, in the sense that they are born and sustained in the same fashion: worship. Unlike the Ohdan, however, Daevas are limited to a single physical form and are single-minded in their divine purpose, making them utterly incorruptible. These small gods, upon their summoning, can turn the tide of any battle.

The Daevas are the Uber units of the Legion, equal or stronger in power to the Great Daemons of Chaos. They can be deployed for
a rather costly amount of points (200? 300?)...of course, this could drain an army's versatility and strength, but there is a cheaper (and potentially deadlier) way of getting a daeva on the battlefield.

The Summoning circle. 13 human worshipers sealed in Steel sarcophagi. In the middle, a crystalline egg known as a Warp Womb. The worshipper's senses are completely deprived save for the image of the intended Daeva. Their energies and thoughts coalesce into the womb until it finally explodes, releasing massive amounts of warp energy on the battlefield. The Daeva has come.


Daevas summoned in this manner (which, i admit, is not very original :) ) are put on the table at no extra point cost (unless you count the 50 or so for the summoning circle). Also, the effects of the warp explosion depends on which specific Daeva has been summoned. Some bolster the morale of troops, others bring death and misery to the legion's enemies. Some... do nothing at all.

[ThirdDanScoota]

Sounds a bit too much like Fantasy Battles if you ask me, especially being a Dark Elven player.

[IgnusDei]

hm, so i might want to inject *some* technology into this, hm?

[DarkRaven0021]

Indeed. Put the technology in. Make them more diverse, as being able to take "hosts" means they would/could have evolved all kinds of gear over the centuries as befits any race that leeches like they do. Need a newer model of ship? Possess someone and get it from the Tau, Imperials, etc.

Double Post

And make them less like the Thousand Sons, as Ahriman had that effect on his legion with his spell "The Rubric of Ahriman". Meaning, the Thousand Sons are empty husks themselves.

[IgnusDei]

well, i might as well add technology as i go along...

Shield bearer:

The Shieldbearer is an unarmed legionnaire whose role is to carry a large, 2x1.3 meter damascus steel shield fitted with a mid-powered magnetic field generator in the middle. Their armour save is high, and they are the first casualties of a squad, except when flanked or taken from behind.

Special ability: for extra points, (maybe one hundred?) the Shieldbearer can be fitted with a high-powered mag field generator which, when "deployed" forces any attacker that shoots at the shieldbearer's squad to have their hit range lowered by one. needless to say, this does not apply to melee attacks.

[TS_ahriman]

How about a spirit that is able to possess enemy models (Gift of Chaos style rolling, or something similar.)

[Thalasion]

Idea for shieldbearer;

Make it like the jakara spyrer from necromunda(miror shield-reflects attacks back)

Ideas for the army in general;

lose the balistas, way to fantasy. Maybe replace them with things that launch small ''host shells''(like real small ohd with wings)if it hits a target roll to see if it hits again, if it misses it is assumed that the host shell has crashed into the ground.

Also have human worshipers as a cheap unit(possibly the bowmen).

And have a wizard/psyker of some kind possibly in just his wooden body and robes.

A unit that has blades for arms would be quite cool to(lots of attaks).

[IgnusDei]

Bowgunmen:

or crossbowmen, if you prefer, are trained marksohdan wielding mechanized projectile launchers. The most common of these is the Repeater Bowgun, which is basically a regular crossbow with an ammo clip mounted on the bottom. Bowguns typically fire bolts with explosive warheads capped with a monomolecular tip, giving the weapon a decent enough punch, but nothing compared to the boter guns the Space marines carry. Some Ohds prefer to use composite longbows, while others like to lob small explosive munitions with a slingshot.

Double Post

Thalaison: while it's a nice idea for the Shieldbearer, Odhan technology is nowhere near advanced enough to reflect energy shots.

although using the humans as cheap bowmen sounds good.

[ThirdDanScoota]

Remember, this is 40k, and almost EVERYTHING have guns in it. Spearmen, Swordsmen and Greatswordsmen are WAY too Fantasy Battles, and out of the 3 of them, only Swordsmen would be able to carry guns (which would be some kind of pistol, although since they "dont have that kind of technology" while Orks do somehow, it would be some small, lightweight slug-throwing weapon, like a mini-crossbow). This just ISNT 40k like, and the entire army would be disadvantaged by this. Even Orks, a fully close combat army have guns. You might want to rethink alot of this.

[Dimension]

using humans goes EXTREMELY against the fluff you wrote. the ohdan fight to PROTECT the humans. since they can't die, they'd have no fear of lobbing themselves at the enemy ferociously, even if only to protect a single human.


the shieldbearers as they are sound a bit iffy, as there are no flanks or rears in 40K, except for vehicles which have armor values. my suggestion is that you just leave it at the "removed as first casualties" rule.

i'd also give them an invulnerable save instead of a high armor save, similar to storm shields for terminators. this would make them effective against monstrous creatures and other stuff. depending on points, you could have a unit with either no armor save or 6+, with an invulnerability save of 3+ or 4+, depending on how expensive you want the unit to be.

for kicks, you could make a rule that weapons which can be fired out of line of sight (artillery, some missiles) negate the inv save (but not the armor save if this weren't normally the case), since they strike from above, and land in the squad. this could also defeat the "first casualties" rule.

also, have it so they can still fight in close combat. they can still whack people with their shield around, can't they?

that shieldbearer ability to decrease weapon range by an inch is most ineffective. one inch isn't going to make a difference. i'd drop the rule, since this unit has so many rules already.

TS_Ahriman's suggestion made me think of something else. according to the fluff, they can't posess live beings, so his idea doesn't work, but they could posess vehicles.

decurions (or another unit) for instance could posess any vehicle they see(or maybe they don't even need to see it). on a roll of say 4+ which can be rerolled if a machine spirit or eldar soul etc inhabits a vehicle, as that vehicle is already posessed in a sense, and the ohdan has to drive out the other spirit first. if it succeeds, the vehicle is yours to command, and a decurion model is put down as casualty. the rest of the squad can move and shoot normally (unless the unit is not in a squad in the first place). if the attempt fails, the ohdan returns to his body(can't move or shoot), and the vehicle has "crew stunned" or "crew shaken" or something. if the vehicle is destroyed within 2 turns, the old body stands back up, but may not move or shoot that turn. the crew of the vehicle and the vehicle itself are counted as casualties.

furthermore, the posessed vehicle is now subject to a few special rules. for one thing, it can only fire one weapon system(to reflect that there's only a single being on board now). any bonuses that have to do with crew in any way are lost (such as multitrackers, night vision and stuff). chassis upgrades of course remain (suped engines, extra armour etc).

suggestion for units in general:

don't make them look like mannequins with weapons, make them look like mannequins with weapons for arms. would make it easier and more direct to control for the spirit.

furthermore, give your army guns. doesn't have to be kickass guns, but gun powder really isn't so high tech. high-caliber single shot cannons and pistols, rapid fire bolt throwers and stuff like that wouldn't take the primitive feel of the army away, especially if you represent it in the way the weapons look.

[IgnusDei]

actually. i meant that the Shieldbearer's high powered mag shield affects the HIT range on the DICE, meaning the the opposing player has to get luckier in his to-hit dice roll. A lot like how Tau stealthsuits make it harder to be hit, TT-wise.

All the other suggestions make a lot of sense, and i'll integrate them into the faq.

Double Post


Remember, this is 40k, and almost EVERYTHING have guns in it. Spearmen, Swordsmen and Greatswordsmen are WAY too Fantasy Battles, and out of the 3 of them, only Swordsmen would be able to carry guns (which would be some kind of pistol, although since they "dont have that kind of technology" while Orks do somehow, it would be some small, lightweight slug-throwing weapon, like a mini-crossbow). This just ISNT 40k like, and the entire army would be disadvantaged by this. Even Orks, a fully close combat army have guns. You might want to rethink alot of this.


I thought about giving the basic Ohdan legionnaire SOME means of long range attack. Even though they're just spirits animating a lifeless doll, they do have a mean throwing arm, so they carry throwing knives with monomolecular edges. They'd be practically the same as the eldar shuriken launchers, only a tad weaker. and only marginally effective against armoured targets.

[Dimension]

mmh. maybe have them throw some kind of magically imbued marble or something. the ohdan, as a magic race, might be using stuff like that.

also, maybe have several different varieties of flame throwers at their disposal. flames and magic go together like church organs and sex (you people should try it out some time).

i'm kinda inclined to retract what i said about how gunpowder isn't that advanced. i don't think there is an army out there so far that relies heavily on magic. have it so that everything they can't achieve through their limited tech is achieved through magic. for instance, instead of fielding a big tank as a support unit, have some kind of vehicle that throws a bigass lightning bolt at armored targets. think a powerful ohdan sorcerer posessed a contraption to draw electricity from either the warp or its surroundings.

one other thing i noticed, there are "3" different basic close combat units. how will you differentiate them?

also, have you thought about the stats? are there certain traits you want emphasized(such as strength, number of wounds, initiative or stuff like that)? for orientation of points cost, i suggest you check out the creature feature rules here (http://us.games-workshop.com/download/download.htm?creatures). gives you an idea anyway. we can then compare the stats you made up with existing close combat units, such as hormagaunts, assault marines, banshees, kroot and so on.

as an aside, I'd also think up some replacement for the roman unit names at some point of time. this is not really important though. just thought i'd say it before i forget :D

*edit 14 or so*

now that i think about it, I'm not even sure if you want to take it in that particular direction, seeing as you put together a rather medieval looking army. maybe i've made suggestions in the wrong direction or something. so take it all with a grain of salt is what I'm saying ;)

[IgnusDei]

hm, better yet: throwing knives which are momentarily possessed to be guided towards a soft or vital spot on a target? Well, it's only fliuff, and in the end, it's a ranged capability.

Forge Drakes and Forge Dragons will be the flamer units. Heavy armour, the ability to jump around the map and set everything on fire should be nice. :)

As for the stats, well, they might pose a problem, since i know next to nothing about them :p.

i was hoping that someone more knowledgeable about them could actually make them up based on the unit descriptions.

[Dimension]

k, i'll take a shot at it. i love creature feature. i need to know more of the feel however, like are the units you described supposed to be elite, or do they win by throwing numbers of relatively slow and/or not battle-trained mannequins at the enemy?

just tell me info along these lines.

swordsman: mass unit, medium strength, low initiative, can take a punch

greatswordsman: elite unit, powerful, good armor

etc etc.

PS: oh, and are they particularly fearless? what i mean, would they value the object they posess, possibly because they need to expend a big amount of energy to posess it?

PPS: ok, threw together some prototype rules for a shieldbearer. comments required.

Shieldbearer
troop choice (infantry)
WS 2 (or 3?)
BS 0
S 3
T 3
I 4
A 1
Ld 9 (more? less?)
Sv 6+

Invulnerability Save 4+ (awarded through "fancy name" shield)
Points: 14 per model

special rules:
Protectors: Shieldbearers protect the unit they are assigned to by placing themselves in the line of fire. as a result, they are the first unit to fall and must be removed before other troops can be wounded. this does not apply to template weapons, indirect fire and ordnance.

Attached Unit: Shieldbearers do not form squads of their own, but are assigned as protection to other infantry units, whose squads they join. they count towards the squad limit, and if used, take up one troop slot(no matter how many infantry squads are equipped with shieldbearers).

Deflector: if shield bearers number 5 or more in any given squad, they may decide to build up a deflector by drawing warp energy into their mag shields. any hits on the squad may be rerolled, and ordnance scatter is doubled. however, the whole squads may only move 6" minus D3 inches, and difficult terrain tests fail automatically. the deflector is upheld until the player decides otherwise, or until the number of shieldbearers drops below 5. once deactivated, the deflector cannot be built up again for 3 turns.

[IgnusDei]

i scrapped the swordsman, actually. they're pretty redundant considering your basic legionnaire IS a swordsman.

[IgnusDei]

update: added more descriptions. feedback and critique are welcome as always!

[IgnusDei]

added more descriptions, as well as the Wall of Fire, Wall of Hellfire and Rider special rules.

[ThirdDanScoota]

I'm not trying to be nasty or anything, but why are you making a new 40k army from scratch, when you know close to nothing rules-wise anyway? Maybe you should go play some games or something. I honestly admire the fact that you're using some imagination and going for something, but its like skipping the basics in computer programming and jumping to creating a game. It just doesnt work like that. Basically what i'm trying to say is, before you make an army up like this, perhaps you should get some experience with armies that exist, and get to know the game a bit first.

[IgnusDei]

because i want to. :) And besides, life is short, and i may never get to put that tau codex into use. ever...mostly because i can't even afford the damn starter pack. Well, i do have enough, but i owe my ex-gf 120 bucks.

DAMN HER.

And it's not like this little project is doomed to fail: Dimension has made some invaluable contributions already, and you could too.

[IgnusDei]

http://www3.telus.net/ignusdei/funnies/legionnaire.jpg

and here is a color sketch for the Centurion. not much to look at at the moment, but i'll be working on it.

[ThirdDanScoota]

I HAVE made some suggestions, though not many. But seriously, it just seems a bit... Illogical. I mean, you dont even know anything about this game yet are attempting to make a new army. Theres no other way to put it. Seriously, you cant possibly intend to make it work until you have grasped at least the basic structure of the game. I'm not trying to be nasty, but its the truth. You need to research it a bit, you cant just expect to jump straight in like this.

Okay. As for a more positive note, i like the picture, especially being a fellow artist. I'll need to get my mindset into actually comming up with ideas, so dont expect anything right away. I'll be back, dont worry.

[IgnusDei]

fellow artist? do you have anything i could see?

[Dimension]

mmh, now Ignus, tell me, WHERE have i seen this head before :D

I was wondering when it would reemerge :D

[IgnusDei]

:D

[IgnusDei]

Behemoth description added.

[IgnusDei]

added description of the Daevas. Expect a long list of the Daeva pantheon, and an inventory of equipment available to the Legionnaires.

[ThirdDanScoota]

By "fellow artist", i mean to say someone whos pretty damn good at drawing certain things but is COMPLETELY out of practice and as rusty as a metallic knife left in Coke for 500 years. Basically, "wheres the knife?". Seriously though, the last time i did a "proper" sketch (i only use grey-lead and black fine liners, generally on standard paper as my medium - hate adding colours, thats where i stuff up, i'm a specialist really) was about.. Nearly a year ago (roughly 9 to 10 months), when i was still in school. Also, i dont have a scanner unfortunately, only a digital camera.

Also, what IS that head from? Looks familiar... Can't put my finger on it though. Good work either way.

[IgnusDei]

here are some stats for the Basic legionnaire:

Legionnaire

points: 8

WS: 5
BS: 1
S: 4
T: 2 This reflects the the archaic light armour and its metal...on the other hand....
W: 3 Since the ohdan aren't built like androids and don't have "organs", they are difficult to permanently incapacitate.
I: 4
A: 1
Ld: 7
Sv -

Decurion (or squad leader)

Points 18

WS 5
BS 1
S 4
T 3
W 4
I 4
A 2
Ld 8
Sv -

Centurion

Points 23

WS 6
BS 1
S 5
T 3
W 4
I 4
A 1
Ld 9
sv -

Team: A squad of legionnaires must count no less than ten in numbers, and no more than 18.

Equipment: Sword, throwing knife set, shield.

options: because of the rigidity of the legion's organization, no legionnaire squad can have anything but a legionnaire. However, it can have up to half its squad (round fractions down) filled with shield bearers.

character: The team leader MUST be ranked a Decurion . He can wield any sword and shield from the armoury, save for the shield bearer's tower shield.

Special Rules:

Ranged possession:
For an extra 5 points for every legionnaire of the squad, each member learns to inbue a throwing knife with his essence and awareness and momentarily guide it to a target. Add +1 to Ballistic Skill of each thrower.

[IgnusDei]

here's a first bit of ohdan history.


The history of the Odhan

In the year 184 M19, Earth and Mars undertook a grand project: the construction of a long range colonization operation starship known as the Ark. This behemoth of a starship would propel itself using experimental technology and serve as a vector point for the colonization of a faraway sector: It was designed with self sufficiency in mind, and was a mining platform, construction facility and warship all at once. Its agricultural bays could sustain a crew of seven hundred thousand men and women, and could carry three million in cryo tank bays. It took hundreds of years of blood and sweat to finish, but the pinnacle of martian engineering was completeted in 491 M19. It was fully crewed a mere 4 months later, and took its maiden voyage shorty after. Nobody had heard or seen the Ark ever again after it tore open a gateway to the unknown at the edge of the Sol system.

The reason for the Ark's sudden dissappearance was, most agreed, its expermental warp drive: The engine's power core output exceeded that any drive system before it in order to carry a ship the size of a metropolis and thus something wrong was bound to happen. Some say extensive tests were planned, but corporate cutbacks and pressure to finish up the project rushed the engine onto the Ark and the Ark out the Drydock...right into its doom.

The Ark did suffer problems with its warp system, as expected, but it was not destroyed. It was lost in the deepest reaches of a chaotic dimensional sea, the crew naviguating the great behemoth for generations looking for an way out. Two thousand years later, the Ark finally emerged at the edge of the galaxy, above a blue planet brimming with diverse fauna and flora. This world would be their new home, and they would call it "Canaan".

The Ark would finally serve its purpose: The mining systems stirred, the construction bays roared, and the cryosleepers awoke from their millennia-long slumber. Thousands of shuttles ferried people and equipment to Canaan's surface. Millions the great mountains of stone and the lush bright green forests, the magnificent green sky and the blue seas, and the multicolored fields of flowers. After thousands of years of tears and pain, the people of the Ark had found Heaven.

And then all Hell broke loose.

The massive withdrawal the Ark made form the Warp left a tear in the fabric of space, and the destructive energies of the Void bled into reality through the wound. Lighting licked the hull of the ark and burned its insides, leaving it with many dead systems and a scarred hull. The storme then moved on to Canaan, boiling seas and scorching land. Many colonists perished in the cataclysm, and all of the technology they had brought was made useless. After a handful of days that felt like months The remaining million or so unscathed settlers emerged from their refuges, squared their shoulders and began new lives on a scarred world.

Canaan was not utterly devastated. In fact, many areas were still lush with grenery and life. However, her eco-system had been considerably destabilized by the cataclysm, and would take thousands of years to recover. Many predators had lost their prey of choice, and all too eagerly turned to human flesh for sustenance. This made life even harsher for the newcomers, forcing them to remain nomadic for a VERY long time; Civilization had to wait until 345 M23, when the first human settlements cropped up all over the main continent.

The next ten thousand years was a near perfect reflection of earth's own antiquity: The people rediscovered art , music and architecture. But first and foremost, The Canaani, who were faced with too many hardships that secularity could allow them to bear, had quickly "rediscovered" mysticism.

TO BE CONTINUED.

[Akranadas]

I think its a good idea to add your own flavor to W40k, there no real limits to creating your own race, but i dont get why you choose a energy type beings,

For the basic units, have a energy sheild its abit more techo than a normal metal one, maybe a sword with bolter like attachment? heres a Idea, i made this quickly in paint
http://5.forumer.com/uploads/tbgforums/post-16-1114532340.jpg

[Tinweasel]

This may be an odd question, I guess, but given that it's an imaginary race for a TT game using imaginary armies - what the heck...

If they are beings of energy that "possess" other substances for physical forms, who exactly makes their armor and why? Likewise, if they possess anything they wanted to, why would they pick ancient Roman-esque armor as a form, when they could use something more durable and close combat-oriented similar to Eldar Dreadnoughts? (I understand that Eldar Dreads are "occupied," so that's just an example of a "shell.")

Like the concept so far, keep up the good writing!

[IgnusDei]

ah, to try and explain away stuff. what fun! :D

okay, as for who makes their physical forms, the answer would be human craftsmen.

As to why they stick to small roman armours rather than walking tanks, i'd have to say it's because of...stamina? Possessing is one thing, but making the object move around (imagine POWERING it) is another ballgame: It's a strain on an Odh's energies. As such, the young ohdan stick to humanoid frames is because it strikes a nice balance in terms of energy drain and physical capacities.

Why roman armour? well why do skeletons in fantasy games and stories stick with their equipment after being raised? couldn't possibly be useful since they have no organs, right? No particular reason. it's just kinda cool.

[Magus]

3 wounds on an 8 point model is slightly wrong, it basically hoses all those who dont have S4 weapons as their base weapons. S4 weapons, on the other hand, are double T2, so they would still kill in one shot.

[IgnusDei]

hm, i guess i havta tone it down, eh? by how much?

[IgnusDei]

History of the Ohdan (cont'd)

Like many of the strange entities of the universe, the odh are the result of a single belief shared by many. On Canaan this was a more common phenomenon due to the storm brought about by the Ark: indeed, a minor rumor could become true if it was believed in hard enough.

The Odhan began as good luck charms made of meteor rock and made popular amongst travellers and explorers for good fortune. Eventually, they became more widespread within the main continent and became known in every existing culture. Then people started to believe in them as actual guardian spirits rather than cheap trinkets.

It is not known exactly when they became *real*, as their own arrival was underscored by the appearance of other strange animals and spirits and ghosts.
But then the strange new bestiary went from cute little critters to downright dangerous predators and malignant spirits, and the Odh began to truly manifest and actively protect those that carried the charm. Unfortunately there was little they could do then except guide one in distress to safety.

TO BE CONTINUED

[Akranadas]

Here an idea for a unit,

An Odhan Sphere: Basically its a Ball of energy that collects scrap metal and such and floats around, its armed with a few scrap lascannons

What do u think?

[IgnusDei]

nice idea, save for the lascannons. Ohdan don't use em.

wait, you've been playing katamari damacy, haven't you?

[Barricade]

Here's some ideas for you (I love coming up with tech stuff) -

Odhan - Floating Psionic Energy Ball released from within its chosen unit once the unit has sustained enough damage to fall to pieces. While in this form it cannot be damaged. However, Odhan do not 'exist' long in this way before changing into a form of psionic 'light' and instinctively journeying back to their homeworld at lightspeed, which can take decades or centuries in some cases. If they wish to linger, they must inhabit another robotic/cybernetic unit within X turns or they are removed from the game, and considered a kill. Odhan units once destroyed cannot be 'repossessed' by an Odhan. Any unit on the board wearing anything considered power armor that has taken one or more wounds may be attempted to be possessed by a floating Odhan. (I don't have my books handy so I'll skip this part about if the figure is healthy its harder to possess, while if they're about to drop dead you can possess the armor with ease). Odhan cannot possess vehicles excepting their own designs due to incompatiblities involved (aka: beyond a certain size, its too much for a single Odhan - so their vehicles are designed around multiple interlocking modules, each controlled by a single Odhan).

Battlefleet Gothic idea:
Odhan starships/warships bear a close resemblance to Eldar ships, but as if one were hacked into tiny cubes and then reassembled back together. Each ship can have literally millions or billions of Odhan aboard, each controlling one section of the overall ship. And while they can communicate with each other via psionics at lightspeeds, they are limited by the materials they are possessing to how fast they can respond to an external/interal threat. While their smaller units cannot perform a regeneration the larger capital ships can. They carry numerous extra space parts and a small micro-factory buried in the center of each hull, allowing any Odhan that has had its section damaged to quickly move to another. This ability is similiar to the Necrons regeneration but far slower in scale, however with the micro-factories it allows for near unlimited usage until the hull has been breached to the point that the factory itself is damaged, at which point the hull will no longer be able to repair itself, and the ship must retreat/

[IgnusDei]

ookay, first, read my answer in the other thread.

second, And this is something i wanted to save for later, but the Odhan have only one ship at their disposal, and that's the Ark. It's a human ship, but i haven't got any ideas yet as to what it will look like. It's huge and practically invulnerable, so a BFG game with it would simply be no fun.

I appreciate the ideas, though, keep it up.

one more thing. Your assumption that a whole ship would be controlled by a single odh is...correct. The Ark itself IS controlled by a single odh that goes by the name of Seth, so if the Odhan ever got enough resources to start up a fleet, there would be others like him.

[Akranadas]

nice idea, save for the lascannons. Ohdan don't use em.

wait, you've been playing katamari damacy, haven't you?

what the hell is that? if they basically take humans, i sure there is a few lascannons laying around, plus it makes it more techy

[IgnusDei]

they need human worshipers, not scientists, nor engineers nor armorers, and they already have the tech for lascannons in the Ark. They just prefer other types of weapons.

[IgnusDei]

Akranadas' idea, with refinements

Special Unit: Graviteon

Some ohdan suffer from a strange disease that has yet to be named. At times they go through what can be best described as a "stroke", and slowly turn into magnets: they can't seem to stop attracting inanimate objects unto themselves. As the stroke gets worse, more and more objects get attracted and at a longer distance. Finally, the Graviteon goes boom and lets loose it's load upon everyone. This is effectively a mobile anti-personel bomb.

How it works:

When a unit croaks within range of the graviteon, it becomes attached to it regardless of its affiliation. When it's finally time for it to blow, every model that the Graviteon gathered around itself becomes a str 5 attack. The number of attacks is divided equally amongst ANY and EVERY squad within a range of 15 inches.

[sajuukar]

I really like the idea of possessing stuff... but what I don't know about is the whole thing about the Odh coming into existance through having enough believers. This is the way the chaos gods came into existance, which must mean that the odh could be something like lesser daemons. If this were the case, though, they would only be able to possess psykers and the like. Perhaps try adding something to their history to explain this...

I must say, I like that explination about why they can only possess roman-ish armor things. The three wounds also could work if you just increase their points cost. It would make sense, after all, I think, if they weren't very numerous considering how difficult it could be to get more people to belive in them (you know, with the cult imperialis and all).

The whole ark thing kinda bugs me too, though... it's probably just me, but I think the odh should have more meager beginnings. Plus, at around the mentioned time, I doubt the imperium would waster it's time on things like a massive ark... to give you a sense of scale, the horus heresy happened something like 20,000 years before the present.

Truly, this is a cool idea overall though

Oh, and I'd like to see more sketches, those are coolio!

[IgnusDei]

gonna have to create a website for this. too bad i can't code html for shit.

[IgnusDei]

History of the Ohdan cont'd

It is during a time of war that the ohdan became capable of possessing objects. Some time after the guardian spirits presence was no longer accepted as superstition but as a confirmed fact, all sorts of new rumors about them circulated. While few of them were widespread enough to affect the ohdan, there was one that would change their role in Canaan's civilizations forever.

Elegin the second was the ruler of a small portion of land somewhere on the east of the main continent. It was rich in iron and horses, and was the birthplace of fully armoured cavalrymen. With this, Elegin began to expand the borders of his Dominion towards the west, crushing all resistance under lance and hoof. Stories of inhumane atrocities came ahead of Elegin's army, plunging the West in fear and terror, for it seemed that their armies would simply be no match for the seemingly invulnerable imperial horsemen. People needed hope, and they turned to their oracles.

The oracles did what any good religious figure would do in this situation: They lied.
They had told their acolytes to spread news that a vast army was gathering and would be hot on the heels of the army of bloodthirsty madmen . It is not known how exactly the odhan became involved in this lie, but they did. Soon, everyone believed that an army of Odhan armed to the teeth (as unlikely as it sounded) was gathering right behind Elegin's.

Nota Bene: though Elegin was painted as a cold, unfeeling murderer, this was not entirely true, for he saw to it that proper funeral rites were performed for all the fallen, friend or foe. It should also be well noted that the burial ceremony for an armoured cavalryman involved putting his entire gear on top of the grave.

--------------------------

"Well, here we are." said Meik "wait, what are we doing here?"
"Apparently," answered Loke, "we are this big gathering of odhs that is supposed to go after this...Elegin's gang of thugs and give them a good whipping"
"And how are we supposed to do that?"
"Not a clue."

Both odhs slowly grew dimmer, then suddenly brighter. The Odhan expression for a sigh. The two immaterial balls of energy looked on the vast plains of Maiazet, the site of Elegin's most recent victory. It had apparently been a costly one: nineteen hundred graves were spread out across the plains, each a respectful distance from one another. Thousands of Odh were floating about, as unsure as Meik and Loke as to what to do next. The sky was slowly gettiing filled with grey clouds: Rain was coming.

"You know, being an immaterial ball of energy SUCKS," ranted Meik.
"sucks? Never heard that one before..."
"it means it's not good. or terrible. i dunno. it just sucks!"
"why's that?"
"Oh come on! how many times have you had your wielder shake your charm, screaming *oh mighty odh, save me from this Cerebas Hound! Save me from this nine-tentacled flesh eater! this verole-infested barmaid! this HUGE PIKING ARMY ABOUT TO FALL UPON OUR HEADS.* What CAN we do? We. Are. Immaterial. IMMATERIAL. BALLS. OF. LIGHT."
"Ah... i take it you just lost your wielder, then?"
"Huh? oh...yeah."

Meik "sighed".

"flesh eater?" asked Loke.
"Barmaid. She wouldn't take no for an answer."
"Oh dear."
"Ah don't worry about it... but as i was saying, what the heck are we supposed to do?
We can barely communicate with them, let alone hurt some of them."
"I think we are supposed to use these...instruments."

Loke was floating above a full suit of armour on top of of the resting place of an unfortunate Dominion horseman. It could have been called pristine, save for five years' worth of wear and tear and that small hole on its left breast, upon which its arms were resting. At its sides was an equally worn sword and halberd.

"IMMATERIAL," repeated Meik. "BALLS. OF..."
"Yes, yes, i am aware of our inability to interact with the rest of the world, but it is obvious that we are expected to. Shouldn't we try and figure out how?"

Meik looked at the empty suit of armor for a while, as did Loke. Meik gave up after a few seconds, and Loke kept on observing. And observed. And observed. Finally, to relieve his boredom, Meik flew inside the armour.

"Wee!"
"What *are* you doing?"
"Look at me! I am a mighty odhan WARRIOR! FEAR ME AND MY SHINY METAL...hey? huh...."
"What's wrong?"
"Um nothing... Hey, you remember what being inside a Charm is like, right?"
"Yes...why?"
"this just...*smells* like one..."
"Smell? we have no noses to smell with!"
"I know that!...what i mean is, i think they used some of the stuff the charms are made out of into this thing. It's awfully comfortable inside this..."
"Do you think you can rest inside it?"
"Inside? I'm already inside it!"
"No, i don't mean inside the...shell, i mean inside what its made out of...like we used to do with those charms."
"Hm, dunno... let me try."

Loke waited. then waited. Then, he thought he heard the sound of metal, but then more raindrops fell upon the armour. He was rather dissapointed, but he did not know why. And then when the rain really bagan to pour, Meik spoke again.

"hmmm...."
"Well? how goes it?"
"Urghh...feels weird. Like i've been turned into paint then brushed all over this thing. But yeah, i can rest in it. It's almost confortable. Almost. Now what?"
"hm...well this may sound ridiculous, but how about trying to move?"
"Move? you can't be serious!"
"I am. Please. TRY."
"Alright...alright...HMPH!"
"what are you doing?"
"I'm HMPH!-ing. i see a lot of humans do that when they try to lift something too heavy. I figured it helps."
"And?"
"Eh...well...HMPH!. HMPH!....nope, sorry, can't do it."
"Well, perhaps you are a bit too unfocused to try something like this perhaps i should..."
"Unfocused?! hey SCREW YOU PAL!..."

Just as Meik spoke, the armour's left arm rose, bent, curled up some of its fingers save one, and pointed it straight at Loke.

"...hey? Hey? What in Dead Lake is this?"
"My friend, i think you've found the solution to our problem."

TO BE CONTINUED.

[lyte]

Ignus, I could make a decent website for you, e-mail me if you're interested.
s34779@gmail.com
On the Ohd, interesting idea, I liek your drawing too.

[Akranadas]

Special Unit: Graviteon

Some ohdan suffer from a strange disease that has yet to be named. At times they go through what can be best described as a "stroke", and slowly turn into magnets: they can't seem to stop attracting inanimate objects unto themselves. As the stroke gets worse, more and more objects get attracted and at a longer distance. Finally, the Graviteon goes boom and lets loose it's load upon everyone. This is effectively a mobile anti-personel bomb.

How it works:

When a unit croaks within range of the graviteon, it becomes attached to it regardless of its affiliation. When it's finally time for it to blow, every model that the Graviteon gathered around itself becomes a str 5 attack. The number of attacks is divided equally amongst ANY and EVERY squad within a range of 15 inches.

Sweet, I could try and make it out green stuff and basic plastic card if u want?

[IgnusDei]

if you can make a semi transparent glowing ball of gas out of the green stuff and plastic, i'd be impressed.

[Salty]

It could be done - by painting it right.

[IgnusDei]

HOTO, cont'd

After Elegin's eventual defeat (it took several battles for the ohdan to get the hang of moving around in bodies), The Odhs were hailed as heroes, and glorified as such. Of course, they were expected to answer the call again, effectively making them the protectors of the West. Years later and after many more invasions, the Odhan Army extended its protection towards the east, but despite their supremacy and apparent invulnerability, there was always some local warlord with ambitions to large for his own good or some dictator declaring a holy war upon some other nation for one reason or another. This deeply frustrated the Odhan, and after more than 500 years of "keeping the peace", the Ohdan turned on the human nations. They hit one capital, crushing the head or heads of state, then moved on the next. When someone tried to take the reins of power, the Army came back to dissuade or crush him. This went on for two decades, until finally, the people of Canaan got the point.
No more kings, no more nations and "all that nonsense", as the Odhan put it.

"We don't believe that you don't need order to survive, but we DO believe you can go on without nations. don't live for your country or for honor, but for each other."

[Akranadas]

I want to be involed in this project

[SlickWilly]

no offense, but I think you should make them a little more futuristacy (how else should I say it?) And Im wondering what models you'll use to represent them. Will you make them out of fantasy parts or out of 40k parts? If I was you, I would be more concerned about making the models right now then the history and all. That can be done later.

[Salty]

I want to see pictures. Only then can I really get the 'feel' of The Ohdan. At the moment they just seem too mystical and confusing.

Make us some models!

:D

[Lunatic]

I must say that no matter if it will end up as an fantasyt army or 40k army I do not really care because the whole project seems to cool to let it end.

Keep up the good work it has been very intresting so far.

[IgnusDei]

In 40700, Canaan had been thouroughly divided into hundreds of thousands of independent city states peppered across the most fertile and habitaable regions of the planet. The Ohdan had kept the peace for thousands of years, frequently putting down bandit activity and quelling armed revolts. Disputes were encouraged to be settled in the colisseums, much to the entertainment of the masses. Trade was good, as there was a constant demand for faraway luxuries such as spices and art. The Daevas, beings equal in power to greater daemons, held the people's faith as their gods. The entire population of canaan was never counted, but some today estimate it was around 3 billion, with the ohdan population close behind, and yet the quality of life of the poorest was still good enough to provide the absolute necessities. Truly, this was the Golden Age of Canaan.

Then the Necrons Came.

6 tombships, 8 harvesters and escorts, carrying at least 350000 Necron warriors in their holds, came across Canaan, and keeping true to their hatreds of all life, began landing their monoliths upon the lush blue world. Bombardement was light: Armageddon would be slow.

The Legion's Response was swift, and though it looked like it had the advantage of numbers, they could hardly do any harm to the alien invaders. Keeping Canaan's peace had slowed its technological advance down to a crawl, and the Legion's wargear consisted of little else than steel weapons and armour, and crude explosives. Only the intense heat from the forge drake's belly and the crushing blows of the Colossi proved effective, but these constructs were only a quarter of the Legion's numbers, and were easily brought under by mere Gauss Flayers.
The Daevas and their Psykikally talented "mages' held their ground far better than the legion could, but were too few to truly stop the Necrons assault. More and more citites fell, and more and more people died. 5 years later, the human population of Canaan had been reduced to a mere 1 million and a half, with billions of bodiless ohdan furious and their own impotence and failure. the survivors were concentrated somewhere in the western edge of the main continent, ironically, close to where Elegin himslef had made his last stand against the Ohdan. The Necron armies, still 245000 strong, converged upon the last bastions, manned by three million ohdan legionnaires, with the templeless Daevas at their side

Then something blew up in the night sky. then something else. and 14 bright dots of light could be seen. then some loud streaks of light came down upon the marching armies, exploding and scattering metal all over the fields. the Necron attack had been stopped, and the daevas pursued the scattered immprtals to unleash their fury upon the life hating metal constructs, but could not destroy them all.

Something had saved the last people of Canaan, and it would take 5 years before anyone knew who their savior was:

it was, ultimately, Repair Drone C-2245.

[mortifactor]

One thing to keep in mind here is that you are basically remaking the Necrons from a completely different perspective. I have no problem with this, but many of the rules explanations are a bit too convoluted and awkward. Remember, 40k in it's newest editions is all about the stream lining, the making like objects work in similar ways. As such there isn't a very good reason NOT to use the necron rules to represent similar things. THe Odh basically use a WBB rule, the current rule is way out of whack, they also would have a high toughness, not multiple wounds, though there is nothing preventing them from having both. It's hard to damage a wooden doll, compared to a person. That's toughness, not wounds. Now, if the doll can keep coming with huge chunks blown out of it, that's wounds.

To seperate from your idea the Odh from Necrons, obviously you'd have more close combat, more 'magic' type special abilities, and a vastly different range of models normally. Think of similar things already in play: Iyanden, Wraithlords, Talos....

Also, your heavy protests about some ideas thrown out are problematic. Arguably you are making a playable race, and you are doing it in public. Just because you only envisioned a single ship, and an invulnerable one at that, doesn't mean it's a good idea for a game. People will want ships, they will want fleets and balance in BFG if nothing else. Likewise your almost mulish resistance to even half assed ranged combat. While they don't need to be high tech (magic powered flintlocks would fit), even the 'Nids have some decent shooting ability. Right now your Odh are worse shots than Orcs, who don't even aim, and Tau Drones, who don't even have real brains or a stable firing platform...

On that note: you Odh seem to me to have limited numbers, due to their reliance on what amounts to a single planet of worshippers, but have the ability to have custom built bodies. Yet... your suggested statlines are more in line with a numberless horde army, when your fluff would suggest elite killing machines. Why no armor? Surely a magically powered wooden body is somewhat difficult to injure compared to flesh?

Lastly: you keep referencing damascus steel. Please, for the love of syria, stop.

[Salty]

Ooo. The Ohdan are back!

I like the new fluff, IgnusDei.

[IgnusDei]

heh, i noticed the similarities between the odh and the necrons a while back, as well. I've rethought the idea and made the ark somewhat more vulnerable in my head, and making it the ONLY ship available to the ohdan is probable not too bright, as you've said. So, while the Ark is an impressive weapons platform, it can also make smaller vessels like it, and those in turn will build cruisers and frigates and escorts and whatnot (sounds familiar ? :)). But that's for BFG, and so it will be for another time. still, i'll write something on the subject soon.
WBB took me surprise when i read about it, and i though "damned! it's been done!"...so i'm thinking about scrapping it or modifying it, but i can't do that without making it more complicated than it should be. hm. Well, there's still plenty that sets them apart: the legion puts a bigger focus on hth, even with their "tanks", although i'm thinking of upgrading the tech used by the legion so that they could stand up to the necrons a whole lot better. They got owned by those damned gauss flayers once already, and they're not so stupid as they'd reject the technology to stand up to them. That includes guns and cannons.

The similarities between the two could make an interesting story, mind you.

Now, on the matter of point cost making them seem numerous, and the stats making them elite, well, that's because i'm a total moron :/ . either i increase the point value, or i nerf something, or both?

Hm, i think that to set them further apart from the rest, i guess the Daevas (who are the epitome of magic) and SETH could have come up with a fusion of both magic and hi-tech, advantages of both and flaws of neither? we'll see.

and no more damascus steel, promise :)

any other suggestions?

[SpitfireMK461]

I think this is a really cool idea for a race. If a few things are worked out, it would be amazing.

Personally, I strongly suggest you add SOME sort of gun into the mix. Not even anything that powerful, something like a gunblade. In my head, I imagine a long line of Legionnaires pointing their blades at an oncoming enemy charge, then all at once they unleash a few barrages of bullets before charging themselves, all extremely graceful. Think elves in their movements. Smooth, graceful, and almost nonchalant.

And then your Goliath, i imagine as a huge, fat, lumbering suit of armor or something along that line, with a large battle axe and lascannons on his shoulders.

About the Ark, that thing better be huge. I mean mega big like no other. 5 times the size of the Death Star in Star Wars. Covered with lasers. And making it invulnerable is a bad idea. With the ship being vulnerable, it makes the continuing of the Ohdan more suspenseful.

But really, I must stress the need for guns. Even weak ass ones. Otherwise, it will never fit in the 40k universe.

And again, props on the ideas. Really cool so far. Very nice sketch as well.

[IgnusDei]

alright, new rules for the legionnaire:

Legionnaire

points: 12

WS: 4
BS: 3
S: 4
T:3
W: 2
I: 4
A: 1
Ld: 7
Sv 4+

new wargear: the gunshield.
Str: 2 AP 6 Assault range 21"
inside the legionnaire's shield is a particle beam emitter fitted horizontally across the shield's diameter between the plate and the arm, with the barrel oriented towards the hand. stronger than a laspistol, it provides decent anti infantry firepower.

and the bowgunman's replacement, the rifleman:

WS: 3
BS: 4
S: 3
T: 2
W:2
I: 4
Ld: 7
Sv:4+

Wargear:
Particle charge projection rifle. Str 6 Ap 6 (?) Heavy, range: 24", pinning test.
A crude but cheap and effective weapon, provides plenty of stopping power but not so great ap. The rifle basically ignites a stabilized energy charge and crudely propels the energy out of the muzzle. Because of the raw unfocused state of the discharge, it does incredible raw damage but doesn't do so well against armour. it has the appearance and functionality of an Elephant gun.

Mods (these apply for all riflemen squads in the army, for simplicity's sake)
advanced mag-field barrel: improves ap by 1 at the cost of Str -1, and improves range by 10 inches.
3 extra pts per model
Ether bullets: A magitek product, this offers a much more potent charge (+1 Str) for the same AP, but at the cost of 5 inches of range and 6 extra pts per model.

Continuous beam rifle.
Str 4 Ap2 Line 36 inch template, Heavy
Limit 3 per rifleman squad
The continuous beam rifle is a more advanced particle accelerator that can easily punch through several layers of armour, although it doesn't do a considerable amount of damage
It has the appearance of an oversized Dragunov rifle with a round disk-shaped power cell in the stock.

Special rule: it keeps going and going and...!
if the CBR successfully bypasses the armour AND wounds the target, the beam continues on the next target on the template. if that target is pierced and wounded, continue on the next target until the 36 inch mark or one target makes a successful save. Also note that an energy beam has no way of telling friend from foe :)

Mods:
field regulator: increases the template's range by an extra 10 inches. +5 pts per model.
Neutron particle powercell: Automatic wounding on biological targets. half str against robots. against vehicles, must make a roll higher than 4 to successfully kill one crewmember. +15 pts per model. (this should be REALLY good against orks.)


note that you can stack those mods, if you can live with some negated bonuses and the accumulated points. I'll add more mods later on.

[mortifactor]

Okay: Again, not sure about the choice toughness/wounds wise but that's your call, not mine. Also? armor? you've got an army that's a few points shy of space marines, that can't stand up to anything.... at all. You depict them wearing armor, yes? Heck you've got the gunshields. Might I point out that even primitive armors are effective to some extent or another? I'd go for a 4+ save, not necrons but harder to hurt than humans.

Now for that gunshield? What's the range? Mind, you say it's more powerful than a laspistol, but then give it the same exact stats as a lasgun, identical essentially to a lasgun. If this is something they fire going into the fight, on the charge as it were, make it assault, not rapid fire. Seems to fit the idea, running forward with shields held up, unleashing a potent blast just before they hit...

Okay: Gunmen... see, now your ranged combat is getting somewhere. The idea of really powerful, but not very penetrating, weapons is sorta cool. Now... first of all, all weapon ranges in 40k, and fantasy AFAIK are divisble by 6 inch increments. Now you have a powerful, heavy (more OR shoot) weapon, with a generally pathetic range for it's type.
The special 'ammo' upgrades... erf.. to complex. Have the 'gun upgrade' be a weapon swap, so that an armory line, and a different model, makes it easier on the players.

[IgnusDei]

added armour saves, added an extra gun in th rifleman's inventory.

[IgnusDei]

Millenia ago, the Ark, assauled by the Warp Storm in caused, drifted slowly away from the canaan system orbital plane, having fired its engine in an attempt to get away. Practically a hulk, all of it's auto repair systems were damaged beyond repair. All save one: repair drone C-2245. A model the size of a head of cabbage, C2 had been spared much of the ordeal of the storm while it was cleaning one of the empty fuel tanks. Once it recovered, it set about the task of repairing whatever systems it could.

Unfortunately, C2's main processor unit took a slight shock, and spent quite a bit of time repairing things in no particular order. A small unit undertaking the restoration of a ship the size of the emperor's palace, this took quite a bit of time; one of the main laser batteries took decades, the untold number of latrines took a century to clean and moreso to bring them to maximum relieving capacity.

C2 also took quite a bit of time adapting himself and fixing the ship's critical systems whenever the situation needed him to. For example, C2 needed a freshly made plate of duralloy. unfortunately, taking one panel from another part of the ship would be counterproductive, and the production systems needed repairs, not to mention resources. C2 then modified a mining drone to accomodate himself and quite a bit more cargo than intended, and began a slow trip towards the nearest possible source of required minerals. The round trip took 200 years. When C2 got back, he began to repair the massive phase smelter required to process his hard earned cargo into workable duralloy, and spent yet another few centuries restoring it to its best possible capacity. The ore was then processed, made into a plate, and the plate was made into a toilet booth door.

yes, a toilet booth door. "Washroom 15 at level 142 sector 21 can now maintain acceptable privacy levels. Proceeding to kitchen 18 at level 400 sector 14...........................(a day later).................................done. ERROR ERROR EMERGENCY. MINI OVEN HAS AN OLD PIECE OF BREAD IN IT! MUST DISPOSE! ERROR! LOCAL WASTE DISPOSAL UNIT IS NON FUNCTIONAL! ERROR! MAIN WASTE RECYCLER IN NEED OF REPAIRS!"

It took more than ten thousand years for C-2245 to finally get to repairing the central computer system, NOAH.

[IgnusDei]

years after the Miracle at the Last Bastions, the survivors made every effort to begin new lives, but this was made difficult that the land had been made mostly infertile by foul Necron taints. Hunting and fishing yielded better results, but it was necessary to find places where the Invader's poison had not reached, and the folk that went out in the wilderness became prey to scattered but nevertheless dangerous Necron raiders. And then there was the matter of the Divine Miracle: Even in the bright light of day, a large shape could be barely seen in the sky. Unfortunately, not even the forge drakes could fly high enough to reach it.

Enter Shem, one amidst billions of ohdan who could no longer interact with the physical realm due to lack of shells. new ones were being made everyday, but not many, and many a poor ohd was lost the opportunity to rejoin the world. This, in Shem in particular , caused a horrible uncommon sensation that he can only describe today as "depression". He longed desperately to help the survivors rebuild and atone for his failures, but he soon realized that he would never be able to. Without hope, Shem sought to die. One day, he decided to float up. and up. and up some more. until he reached the Boundary, the end of the sky that no Drake or Ohd before him had reached before. Prepared for oblivion, Shem took one last look at the ground, and entered the void. He took in the great blackness, tried to become part of it... And he let the darkness overwhelm his senses, and thus shut them off.

And then he found himself inside a large construct of metal, the likes of which he could have never imagined.

"Is this death? is this the place Ohdan go to when they die? in a maze of metal?"

"Indeed, is this...hell?"

His depression overshadowed by curiosity, Shem explored his new surroundings for what seemed like years, and finally realized he was floating around the Miracle itself. He then found a long and spacious cylindrical room, with walls made of white tiles like beehive, and with what looked like an altar at the end. There, there was this strange white case with runes shaped to form a word he could not read, and from it came wires. These wires ended inside a large opening on a spherical metal construct that had suffered untold years of rust and scratches and bumps. It was...dead, yet something kept trying to stir it back to life...

Shem let his sensed permeate the entire chamber, and he could feel power here. intense power, funneled and scattered in tiny angular veins. Power, that wanted to continue on from the white case and into the dead shell at its feet.

"Such power. i wonder if that's what killed this poor little creature of metal and wires?...I wonder, could this kill an immortal like me? Have i found my atonement?"

With such grim hope in mind, Shem entered the empty shell, and possessed it. And he felt the energy rushing to him, then taking him through the veins, and then... through the main power conduits, inside the power core, inside the labyrinth of energy that made this maze of steel come to life. then back into the case, but from there he was everywhere. He was every datacube stored in the chamber. he was all the data. he was every food dispenser, the phased smelter. the the construction bay. He was everything, though he felt he could be so much more.

Seth was born. and he had found his atonement.

[Robert Frazer]

The history of the Ohdan, as you have written up to now, is a fairly interesting affair. Whilst the notion of a single little skutter fretting around a gargantuan generation ship for ten millenia repairing lavatories is more than a little ridiculous, I suppose that it's not necessary to be absolutely po-faced about background all the time, and you can always dodge any criticisms with the convenient get-out-of-gaol-free card that it's Dark Age of Technology material and thus so super-mega-hyper-uber-giga-duperly advanced that you can do whatever you please with it.

The notion of a terrible warp-storm blasting the colonists back to the stone age is an interesting one, and it poses an intriguing situation for the Ohdan's future (see below).

"The oracles did what any good religious figure would do in this situation: They lied." Ouch! That's just not cricket, sir.

I do agree with the general consensus with other posters on your thread that the Ohdan are due for a technological boost. They can't inherit Necron armaments, though, for the simple reason that when wrecked Necrons and their equipment "phase out" and teleport back to their Tomb World - it's impossible to halt. What is possible that they begin gathering technology from the Ark - seeing as it is a Divine Miracle they would consider the tools provided within her a blessing. I also concur with mortificator that the Ohdan's focus, to make them a distinctive race on the tabletop, should be psychic abilities and short-range combat. They should also have a vulnerability against psykers - destroy their 'body' and they just reanimate a new one, but blast their consciousness and they're permanently erased! If attacked by psychic powers or daemons, then, the Ohdan should have their saves negated or reduced to 6+.

I also thought that the short vignette you wrote about three Ohdan discussing how to possess a suit of armour sounded too... colloquial. Now, admittedly not everyone in .M41 speaks in a Shakespearean manner but I think that you do need to make at least some appeal to the gothic atmosphere of the game, otherwise it just isn't Warhammer 40,000. Currently it sounds too much like some bizarre teen movie.

Incidentally, the Necrons move with astonishing swiftness, striking like lightning, phasing and teleporting all over to strike new targets and then dissolving into the ether as if they never were. Canaan's fall would occur in a matter of months, rather than years.

The birth of Seth is an interesting affair.

One thing that's struck me about the Ohdan is how systematically brutal they are. I may be a card-carrying right-wing Conservative Tory-boy but even I was not a little disturbed by how exactingly and uncompromisingly the Ohdan impose their vision of order - it's like savage Bolshevism on an awful scale. Canaan is socially, politically, and technologically stagnant, and violent suppression is used to beat down the natural inclination of human inquisitiveness that might try to introduce any innovations. The Ohdan have created a race of mindless drones to serve them and fortify themselves with belief. It may be a quanitly pastoral dystopia, but the Ohdan have created something that would give Huxley and Orwell nightmares. I'm not saying that this is necessarily a bad thing for background - after all, it is the Grim Darkness of the far future and so the viciously uncompromising nature of the Ohdan can serve as the black, foul core that every race requires in this universe. This will demand, though, that you take some factors into consideration when you develop the history further:

-If the Ohdan are gods and the self-proclaimed guardians of Canaan, will the fact that they were impotent to halt the Necron ravages cause mass apostasy within their human worshippers?

-The Ohdan weren't expecting the Divine Miracle to come and rescue them - unless they can somehow put a spin on the event as being part of their design ("But why didn't you erase the steel death when it first arrived, instead of waiting until it had reduced the world to ruin?" "Erm... erm... keep quiet, you're supposed to be grovelling!") this is going to inflict significant damage on the theology of the Canaanites - there's something greater and more powerful than the Ohdan!

-The Ohdan are warp-entities, and so, like daemons, they need to have a connection to the Warp to maintain their presence on the material plane for prolonged lengths of time. They can survive on Canaan due to that original warp-storm weakening the integrity of the cosmos there, but what happens when they start forging out into wider space and their holds begin to weaken?

-An interesting mechanic would be to introduce a notion of corrupted Ohdan, for want of a better term. The Ohdan are warp-entities, and so they have to maintain their individuality against the furious, broiling tempests of daemons, Enslavers and the like. For the most part, the bright soul-flames of the Canaanites' ardent faith in the Ohdan infuses them and helps maintain their individuality, but occasionally there are Ohdan who succumb to and dissolve into the other denizens of the Warp and become twisted and blighted. There is a risk that as the Canaanites' belief wavers in the face of all of their new tragedies, many more Ohdan could be placed at risk of corruption and they musty struggle against themselves as well as their new interstellar foes!

-The Ark is a generation ship "the size of the Imperial Palace" - and it's full of DARK AGE OF TECHNOLOGY equipment. Once the Ohdan start forging out of Canaan, once the Adeptus Mechanicus gets the slightest sniff of her existence (and they will), you can guarantee that they're going to be relentlessly hounded wherever they go.

All this means is that the Ohdan are going to be in for a very tough time once they start expanding, having to confront schisms and apostasy within their ranks as well as furious assault from without. They're a race stuggling to maintain a visage of stately and splendid permanence whilst anarchy is wailing behind that curtain.

[IgnusDei]

Hm, with Seth's access to the datacubes, and as such all the knowledge gathered by the generational crew of the ark as well as the detailed schematics of the ship's experimental warp system, He could very well modify it to weaken the fabric of reality around the ship and allow the ohdan to continuously exist in the Materium. Hell of a can of woms, though: Daemons and the like would loooove the idea of a huge ship in which they could exist for an indefinite amount of time, forcing the legion to constantly defend the inside of the vessel from demonic invaders.

hm, i'll have to compile all the fluff in a single page, sometime. it'll make it easier to make corrections.

and what would be good stats for a spellcaster unit?

[mortifactor]

I like brutal pastoral dystopias...

Not sure I agree necessarily with them being more vulnerable to psychic powers per say, I don't see demons overly suseptable to librarian powers, for example. Obviously they would count as demons for in all the ways that count (Grey Knights, for example...)
I also don't hear alot about warp creatures being suseptable to corruption. A more likely senario is for the Canaanites to fall into the worship of false gods (ie other demonic powers taking advantage of a 'good deal'.)
I have to admit to skimming over, or out right skipping the fluffy only posts. Sorry, but they just don't appeal to me on a fictional level... Then, I'm a systems guy, I look at the rules...
On that, I noted the corrected gunners... still have funky range on one, and overall funky rules, but a lot better overall I thought...Of course, I should look again, just in case something else changed since the last look....

[IgnusDei]

something for mort to chew on.

New unit: Soul Divers (spellcaster unit)
Limit: 3 per army, 1 per squad.
Points: 40
WS: 4
BS: 4
S: 3
T:3
W:2
A:1
I:5
Ld: 9
Sv 3+

The Ohdan known as the Soul Divers are former volunteers in Seth's experiments in the effects of the warp on an Ohd and his shell. The experiments involved opening a gateway into the most profound reaches of the warp and sending an ohd, shell and all, through it, but not without a lifeline. Those that came back and didn't go mad were gifted with an intuitive knowledge of warp magic, effectively making them sorcerers. however, they are eternaly bound to their shells.

Special Rules:


Berserk: After casting 4 spells, the Diver must make a leadership roll for his sanity. If and once the Diver has lost his extraplanar marbles, he is automatically detached from his unit and must travel 2d6 inches in a random direction, chosen by rolling once per scatter, with the starting point as the Diver. At the following turns, he MUST attack the nearest unit, friend or foe, with either a spell or a regular attack.

Attached unit: Seth doesn't trust any diver to be alone for too long, so any diver in your army must be attached to a squad.

Wargear (?):
Force Bolt. A natural ability. The ranged attack of the Soul Diver. it is the equivalent of a Bolter round, but with the assault rule. Does not count towards the Latent Madness Special Rule, so it can be used indefinitely.

Force Blade. the Divers hand to hand weapon. it is an immaterial but focused rod of warp energy summoned from the Diver's Hand.. Equivalent of a force sword.

Dual Force Blade (must be bought for 10 pts). The Diver gets a suplementary attack when in hth.

Spells:

Charged force beam: functions like the Continuous Beam Rifle, including its special Template rules but with Str 8 and AP 1 (too strong?)

Time Shift: The diver rewinds time just a little bit in a small area. The attached squad can either repeat its attack or reroll its saves.

Imbue blades: provides 1 Str to the Melee attacks of the attached squad.

Imbue guns: Provides 1 Str to the Ranged attacks of the attached squad.

Teleport: teleports caster and attached squad anywhere on the map.
-If the psychic test for the Teleportation power fails, the Soul Diver lacks adequate skill to complete the task successfully and the complex skein he needs to conjure begins to unravel! Roll 2D6 and consult the following misfire table to see the consequences of this failure:

2-6 - Failure. The Soul Diver simply lacks sufficient strength to puncture the Immaterium. Treat this result as a normal mundane psychic-test failure.

8-9 - Disoriented. The unit succeeds in a partial translation, but is promptly spat back out into realspace. Wild after-images of the tempestuous currents of the Empyrean dance, whirl and cavort in the Ohdan's minds, which are dizzying to say the least. The unit must pass a leadership test next turn or not be able to move.

10 - Displaced. The teleportation transpires, but the Soul Diver can't control their passage - the unit phases-in in an unexpected place. Roll twice for scatter, with the start-point being the Soul Diver's position, and move the unit straight to the final point. Treat results for landing amidst other units, difficult terrain &c. as per normal Deep Strike rules.

11 - Imploded! The Soul Diver penetrates to the Warp, but the currents are too strong for him to bear - his essence is noisily sucked through from inside out like ethereal spaghetti. Remove the Soul Drinker as a casualty.

12 - Disaster! The Soul Diver unfortunately drags along his unit to his messy fate! In addition to the Soul Diver, remove a further D6 models in his unit as casualties

Force Wave. pushes back target squad 2d6 inches. if the push exceeds 8 inches, squad must make an armour save against a str 5 attack.

Armageddon: range: caster, ordnance template, str 10 ap 3, This is the ultimate spell. caster must be berserk to be able to use it. Will damage friendlies including caster.

[KOR'O Y'ELDI]

How exactly are the Soul Divers going to use their spells?? If it's the same way as everyone else (psychic test, i.e. leadership test) then they're not going to cast many spells in a game as leadership 5 sucks. maybe leadership 7 would be better, as that way you have a pretty fair chance of failing or passing.

[IgnusDei]

leadership 7 it is.

[Robert Frazer]

The Force Bolt should be treated as an ordinary weapon rather than a psychic power - it seems somewhat excessive to be forced to make a leadership test for just a single mundane Strength 4 attack.

I'm somewhat hesitant about endorsing the Teleport power - enjoy a fifty-percent probability of being able to transport your units anywhere on the map smacks incredibly of game-skewing beardiness on a dreadful scale. To rectify it, I'd suggest that you do one or more of the following:

-Subject the teleported unit to scatter, as per normal Deep Strike rules.

-Teleportation requires immense concentration and samtina-sapping endurance to execute effectively and maintain the coherency of the teleported subjects as they are sprayed through the Warp. The power can only be used once per battle.

-If the psychic test for the Teleportation power fails, the Soul Diver lacks adequate skill to complete the task successfully and the complex skein he needs to conjure begins to unravel! Roll 2D6 and consult the following misfire table to see the consequences of this failure:

2-6 - Failure. The Soul Diver simply lacks sufficient strength to puncture the Immaterium. Treat this result as a normal mundane psychic-test failure.

8-9 - Disoriented. The unit succeeds in a partial translation, but is promptly spat back out into realspace. Wild after-images of the tempestuous currents of the Empyrean dance, whirl and cavort in the Ohdan's minds, which are dizzying to say the least. The unit must pass a leadership test next turn or not be able to move.

10 - Displaced. The teleportation transpires, but the Soul Diver can't control their passage - the unit phases-in in an unexpected place. Roll twice for scatter, with the start-point being the Soul Diver's position, and move the unit straight to the final point. Treat results for landing amidst other units, difficult terrain &c. as per normal Deep Strike rules.

11 - Imploded! The Soul Diver penetrates to the Warp, but the currents are too strong for him to bear - his essence is noisily sucked through from inside out like ethereal spaghetti. Remove the Soul Drinker as a casualty.

12 - Disaster! The Soul Diver unfortunately drags along his unit to his messy fate! In addition to the Soul Diver, remove a further D6 models in his unit as casualties

[mortifactor]

Of course, the teleportation is very much like the Necron Veil of Darkness (right wargear?), and should use the same basic rule. Having a leadership 7 sorcerer... ugh. I'm not sure I'd pay the points for it, remember there are already incredible built in limitation on psychic powers, putting down a pathetic chance at success on top of it is just mean.
Also, having a 'once a game' leadership benefit... nice concept but makes playing the Ohdan legion too difficult, too many limits, to many oddball rules. Either the squad leader can help, or he can't. I'd say he can, because generally that's how the game works, you can always benefit for leadership from a leader, excepting the psychic tests.

Right now, given the berserk thing (I assume it's more or less permanent) the crap leadership (and I do mean crap), and the 'once in a game' leader benefit, I just don't see them being at all usefull. Think about it, essentially you have a unit that has a 50/50 chance of going bonkers the turn you put it down, and even if manages not to go loopy, only has a 50/50 chance of using any of it's mostly lame powers... including it's shooting attack, which would then have to hit and wound.
I don't agree that the teleport is too powerful, though a minor tweak would bring it in line with similar abilities already in game.

Ugh... just looked again at the berserk/armaggedon. Yeah, 50/50 chance to go berserk in turn one and wipe out his mandatory attached squad. Good idea. I'll buy one right now... not. Given how it's written, that's about the only thing that can happen. (must attack the closest unit... but as he's attached to a unit that would AUTOMATICALLY be the unit he's in... Erf.)

[IgnusDei]

rewrote the Soul Diver rules. boosted leadership, modified the berserk rule to avoid the Diver attacking his own squad, and added Roberts' table of teleportation doom!

thinking about killing armageddon in favor of another spell.

[mortifactor]

I think you could move force bolt out of the spells and into the regular 'rules' as if it were a weapon, provided you intend for it to be used indefinetly. The only confusion is does it count as a psychic power use for casting other spells in the same phase, and only if you don't intend to provide the ability to 'multicast'. I still think the wonky rules of teleport are out of place, fun as they are. Remember, while a single unit full of funky rules is relativly easy to handle on the table top, an army full of wonky rule units is going to just drag the game into a sluggish slog though rolling. Again, other armies can teleport just fine, you still have that nasty psychic test to make, which is a limit on your use of the power to begin with (aside from the chance to fail, there is also the potential for some armies (space marines notably) to shut you down.
The rule of thumb for the newer editions has been: Streamline, streamline, streamline.

[IgnusDei]

removed the latent madness rule and modified the berserk rule for streamlining, put the Force Bolt under the Wargear category. Added more wargear. Added another spell.

[KOR'O Y'ELDI]

a 40 point model with a force weapon?? WoW! Maybe if you bumped up the cost to about 60 it would be more adequate, but with this you might be able to add another attack to his base profile, i.e. 2 attacks base. I dunno, but have you started sort of playtesting these rules?? because this would really help in showing you whereabouts the army is most imbalanced.

[IgnusDei]

Centauroids

Large Mechanical Shells with the body in the shape of a horse (note to self, need to add something in the fluff about imported animals) and the torso in the shape of a humanoid. This is the cavalry of the legion. Since the coming of Seth and his technology, the Centauroids are excellent mobile heavy weapons platform, capable of shooting while moving. Models outfitted for hand to hand combat are prefered, actually, and are still being produced.

there are two versions: the light model is fast and can carry two weapons on its arms, and the heavy version is only a bit slower and carries a backpack that lets it equip two heavy ranged weapons, usually tankbusters. Bah, i'm gonna go with the creature rules:

Light Variant
Pts: 35
WS 4
BS 3
Str: 5
T: 4
W:3
I: 2
A: 2
Ld: 8
Sv 4+

+3 inches for movement.

Heavy:
Pts 45
Ws 4
Bs 4
Str: 6
T: 5
W:3
I: 2
Ld:8
Sv 3+

+2 inches for movement.

So, now i've got light "mechs" who are only a bit tougher than legionnaires but pack more firepower. hm...not quite right. And yet they seem to powerful and expensive to have them in multiple squads of 3 or 4, as intended. suggestions?

Stats: well, this is a problem. The Centauroid is more or less the equivalent of a sentinel, but the size and configurability of a Tau Crisis battlesuit. Both of these use different stats, so i'm wondering if i should have the centauroids behave like pilotless vehicles or Infantry without that extra wound rule. The gist of it is that it's very mobile and has decent armour. thoughts and suggestions?

Wargear:
-Glaive: a powered monoatomic edge blade mounted on a long shaft. default, so no extra point cost
-Fusion Lance: Anti Armour Hth weapon: a long cone that emits a plume of extremely high temperature gas at its end. +10 pts

-Shield: a regular shield, with no tech. adds bonus armour. no pts, must be mounted on arm
-Magfield shield: adds bonus armour and a 4+ invulnerability save: 15 pts.
-Dual Gunshield: Larger version of the legionnaire equivalent, with two particle beam guns. Str 5 AP 5 Assault for the guns. Extra Armour. +20 pts

-Gas Cannon. A crude but effective ordnance launcher . Str 6 Ap4, Assault range 42", Explosion Template. Takes both hands to use. 15 pts. Can purchase Ether grenades for another 5 pts. add 1 Str point.
-Heavy Continuous Beam Rifle. Str 6 Ap 2. Assault 60". Uses the it keeps going and going and!... special rule. Takes both hands to aim properly.
Backpack gear:


Heavy variant-only weapons.
-Particle Cannon Str 7 AP 2 Range 42". Assault.
-Charged Particle Cannon Str 8 AP 1 Range 48". the only heavy weapon in the Centauroid armoury, so move or shoot.
-Jump jets: allows the Centauroid to...well, JUMP and control his landing. can move 6 inches in the movement phase and another 6 in the assault phase., ignoring low and medium obstacles.

[mortifactor]

Er....
THere are many many things in this game with jump jets of one sort or another, and not a single one of them moves more than 12 inches.... WTF???

Now: Make up your mind, is this thing a creature or a vehicle?

[IgnusDei]

creature. it's just too lively to be a vehicle.

playtesting will get started once i've got a decent codex together. any volunteers?

[KOR'O Y'ELDI]

Sure I'll help with playtesting, but I think with the centauroid guys that you're mixing up the jump rule with the Fantasy Flying rule. There are several other possibilities like making them 12" move 6" assault like Jump Packs, or 6" move 12" assault like cavalry, or 6" move and 6" assault always like battlesuits. The playtesters could tryeach when you're ready and find out which one works best.

[IgnusDei]

sweet, i got a playtester!
:jig:

anyhoo, added stats for the centaroid...hm, though i think maybe they could stand to be stronger... doesn't really scream mobile attack vehicle to me at the moment.

[KOR'O Y'ELDI]

Strength six is pretty damn good for killing all infantry, except maybe a Carnifex or Hive Tyrant. If you want them to be light vehicle hunters then maybe you could make the Gas Cannon thing strength 7. You don't really need much better than that except for things like Land Raiders or Leman Russ'. And what do you mean by "+3 inches for movement"??
Another thing, about the high points cost, I think that those points costs are extremely good for the stats of the models and their weapons. If you want multiple units and models then you will have to sacrifice some stat "points" and also weaken the guns, maybe AP 3 not 2, and strength 5.
Like, "Particle Cannon: 36", Strength 7, AP 3, Assault 1"
NOTE: I modified the range in that example because those ranges are crazily high.

With these modified stats then you could drop the points costs to around 25-30 for light and 35-40 for heavy.

If you need any other help then you can give me a yell.