Warhammer 40,000 enters the second half of 2022 guns blazing, kicking off the new season with a Grand Tournament mission pack, free points updates, and now the latest Balance Dataslate heralding significant changes for casual and competitive players alike.
Download the Balance Dataslate below to get all the latest updates.
These changes aren’t limited to the major movers and shakers of the tournament scene, and we’re going to look at some of the most impactful changes right here.* Better yet, the Warhammer 40,000 team’s Robin Cruddace is on hand to give his thoughts about the process and intent behind this update.
“2022 continues to be an exciting year for the balance of Warhammer 40,000 in the matched play scene! We’ve had several months to see the impact that the previous Balance Dataslate brought about, and introduced new adjustments with this latest update to rein in a handful of overperforming factions further – while giving a few underperforming factions a healthy boost.”
Tournament Leaders
“Tyranids and Aeldari have certainly been dominating the battlefields of the tournament scene over recent weeks, so we’ve made a few updates to reduce the oppressiveness of these factions and level the playing field without invalidating any player’s collection of miniatures. Likewise, the Harlequins’ luck might finally have run out; they too have continued to overperform and so further tweaks are being introduced to rein in their power.”
Firstly, Aeldari from a Far-flung Craftworld can no longer combine the Hail of Doom attribute with another option from the list. The ability to automatically wound targets with deadly shuriken weapons proved a touch too strong overall when combined with powerful stealth capabilities, cover-ignoring skills, or other attribute options.
Likewise, two Stratagems have been adjusted to pare back the Aeldari’s ability to avoid return fire with their supernal reflexes. Matchless Agility now allows a unit to re-roll their Battle Focus roll instead of gaining an automatic 6” of movement, while Fire and Fade becomes one-use-only – affecting Asuryani, Ynnari, and Harlequin units alike.
Speaking of the Harlequins, Cegorach’s jesters now need to truly push their luck to see a return from their patron’s favour. Their initial stock of Luck re-rolls based on battle size are reduced to zero, meaning a re-roll can only be earned by making a Luck of the Laughing God roll.
The Light and Dark Saedath characterisations have also been tweaked – the former now only protects from incoming fire beyond 18”, while the latter inflicts mortal wounds on attackers rather than letting the slain Harlequins strike back at their assailant with their deadly weapons.
Lastly for the major tournament leaders, Tyranids must now pick their Hive Fleet Adaptation when building their army list like all other factions, rather than being able to swap out the Adaptive element at the start of each battle. Hive Tyrants included in your army must also now assert full control over its swarms as your Warlord, and you can only receive the benefit of Synaptic Imperatives while your Warlord remains on the board. Shoot the big ones!
Resurgent Threats
“Meanwhile, we took steps to improve the Necrons, Orks, and Astra Militarum – each of these factions having faced challenging times of late – as well as relaxing several restrictions previously introduced to the Adeptus Mechanicus, effectively giving them a boost on the battlefields of the 41st Millennium as well.”
Necrons continue to see more of their units given the CORE keyword, this time adding Canoptek Spyders and every single VEHICLE. This major change properly reflects the control Overlords exert over their risen legions, allowing My Will Be Done and other powerful abilities to be extended to the vast majority of your units on the battlefield.**
In addition, the Necrons’ Command Protocols now affect every model on the board rather than just those near a friendly CHARACTER, and don’t require a NOBLE to work – any CHARACTER will do.
Finally, whichever protocol you don’t assign to a specific turn now affects your army for the entire battle – in addition to your normal Command Protocol abilities. Better yet, you can select which of its two directives to employ at the start of each turn – and if your Dynasty allows both to be active at the same time, you get the benefits of both directives all game.***
The Astra Militarum get their first taste of the Armour of Contempt rule introduced in the last Balance Dataslate, with all their VEHICLES now receiving the groundbreaking defensive ability. Leman Russ tanks keep their boosted Save characteristic – meaning they’re an even tougher nut to crack!
Orks see a slight adjustment to their restrictions on many of their SPEED FREEKS units – such as Shokkjump Dragstas or Megatrakk Scrapjets – now allowing up to three of each model rather than a single unit.**** The Waaagh! also taps into more of the greenskins’ latent power than before, granting an extra point of Strength and an invulnerable save for both turns.
Finally, the Adeptus Mechanicus have a number of their earlier restrictions rolled back in light of the changing competitive landscape, with Ironstrider Ballistarii and Sydonian Dragoons regaining the CORE keyword. Several previously limited Stratagems like Acquisition at All Costs and Clandestine Infiltration have had their usage limitations removed, while others’ increased Command point costs revert to their initial levels.
“Together with the changes introduced in the War Zone Nephilim: Grand Tournament Mission Pack and the latest points updates found in the Munitorum Field Manual, we are excited to see how this Balance Dataslate will impact the shape of the Warhammer 40,000 matched play scene around the globe.”
The Studio is always keen to hear what you think about these balance updates – and the Warhammer 40,000 rules at large – so please feel free to send any queries and comments to 40kFAQ@gwplc.com.
Even more changes await inside the Balance Dataslate, so download it now and prepare your forces for a fresh assault on the matched play scene.
* This is by no means an exhaustive list – download the Balance Dataslate to get the full low-down.
** Including his highness The Silent King, who can now affect himself with his own abilities.
*** Such as Sautekh and the Protocol of the Conquering Tyrant.
**** Now Kustom Jobs don’t force you to only take one of that vehicle!