Marines are armed with the very best weaponry in the Imperium. The Storm Bolter, the Marines’ standard firearm, fires small, high velocity bolts with explosive tips, capable of blasting through eight inches of plasteel as though it were tissue paper. Few creatures stand a chance against this awesome firepower.
The Genestealer is one of them!
Ranged Assault is firing from any projectile weapon or something that can be thrown. All specific rules are covered in the Units and Weapons sections.
Who may fire in ranged assault?
Any Marine that is armed with a long-ranged weapon may attack in ranged assault. Marines with jammed Bolters must un-jam first before being able to fire. Corripiofax and Inmolotor units are also able to perform ranged assault, as are Hybrid units armed with weapons.
Targeting
The term targeting refers to a unit’s ability to (A) see a target, (B) have the target in range of his weapon and (C) have enough ammo to shoot at the target. If the unit can do all 3 (or does not require C), they can fire at the target.
Score to Hit
Ranged assault differs from close assault in that the unit firing the weapon must achieve a set score in order to kill the enemy. This is known as the Score to Hit. A lower score to hit means it is more likely to kill the target. So, a score to hit of 2+ means the unit must roll a 2 or more.
Ranged Assault Attack Dice
Different weapons have varying degrees of effectiveness in ranged assault. This is reflected by the number of attack-dice the unit rolls to fire the weapon. The more dice, the higher the chances of achieving the score to hit.
Regardless of how many dice the unit rolls for ranged assault, the result is always just the highest individual dice-roll of all of them. So, if a unit rolls two dice and rolled a 2 and 5, the result is 5 as that is the highest dice.
Ranged Assault Bonus (RAB)
This is a bonus that is applied to any weapon or projectile attack dice roll. The RAB can be from the unit’s standard attributes and/or from Tactical Cards. If a unit has a RAB of +1 and rolled a 4, then their result is 4 +1 = 5. RABs can make results higher than 6. So, if a unit rolled a 6 and had a RAB of +1, their result would be 7.
Conducting Ranged Assault
A unit firing ranged assault is known as the Attacker. The unit being attacked is known as the Defender. The Attacker must have the Defender targeted in order to make a ranged assault.
The Attacker will need to look up how many Attack Dice their unit rolls and any RAB modifiers they receive. They also need to look up what the score to hit is.
- The Attacker rolls their Attack Dice and adds any RAB to their highest result.
- If the result matches the Score to Hit or higher, then the Defender is killed and removed from the board.
If the result was lower than the score to hit, the combat has no effect. The attacker may, of course, initiate another ranged assault if they have enough APs.
Sustained Fire
Sustained fire is when a unit is firing repeatedly at a single target. The effect only works when the attacking unit remains still and concentrates upon hitting the same target.
If a unit fires and missed with a first shot, the score to hit the same target on their second and subsequent shots is 1 less. If the unit loses LOS to the target, moves, engages close assault, switches targets or another unit is activated, then they lose the sustained fire bonus. Each shot still requires the appropriate APs to perform.
| Shot Number | Score to Hit |
| 1st | 6+ |
| 2nd and more | 5+ |
Sustained fire bonuses are also lost at the end of the player’s turn. However, Marine unit’s using CPs during the Stealer players turn to fire at Stealers more than once will gain the sustained fire bonus if they do not lose LOS to the target, move, engage in close assault or switch targets.
Only the Storm Bolter weapon supports sustained fire.
Going on Overwatch
When the Marine player expects a horde of Genestealers to come rampaging down a hallway at a Marine, he may put that Marine unit into Overwatch mode. This is indicated by placing an Overwatch counter next to the Marine model.
In Overwatch mode, the Marine is firing off rapid bursts at anything that moves. He is not taking the time to carefully aim his weapon; he’s just shooting as quickly as he can. The range covered when on Overwatch is much shorter as the Marine is only concerned with the immediate threats.
Marine units can only go on Overwatch if they are not in any Tyranid unit’s CAZ and they are not already jammed.
When in Overwatch mode, during the Tyranid player’s turn, each time a Tyranid unit performs any one Action within Overwatch range and within LOS of a Marine on Overwatch, that Marine unit may take 1 free shot (a shot that would normally cost 1AP) at that Tyranid unit. Each Overwatch shot is fired, after the Tyranid unit has completed its action. If the Tyranid’s action has taken it out of the LOS to the Marine on Overwatch (it closes a door or moves around a corner), then that Marine cannot fire at it.
Not all weapons are suitable for Overwatch. Weapons and Marines cannot gain Sustained Fire if they support it. This represents the Marine firing frantically in quick response to the incoming threat.
Hybrid units with weapons cannot go into Overwatch mode during the Marines turn but some Stealer Bio-morph units have an attack type that can be used during the Marines turn. They are considered as always being on Overwatch and so do not require an Overwatch counter.
Overlapping Overwatch
If two or more Marines are in Overwatch mode during the Tyranid player’s turn and they all see the same Tyranid unit perform an action, they all must roll to hit. Even if the first Marine kills the target, they are firing simultaneously and there is always a chance one or more Marine Storm Bolters will jam and any weapons that use ammo need to expend accordingly.
Weapon Jam
Only the Storm Bolter is prone to Jamming while on Overwatch. On Overwatch, the Marines fire faster than the Storm Bolters are designed for and there’s a chance the weapon will jam. If a Marine in Overwatch rolls doubles when firing at a target, his Bolter is jammed. If they roll a double and still achieve the score to hit, the target is killed but the weapon also jams.
If a Bolter jams, turn the Overwatch counter over to its jammed side.
While jammed, the Marine unit cannot fire and will have to spend CPs to clear the Jam. Weapons that have not been cleared remain Jammed into the next turn. Units will have to un-jam their weapon in order to be able to fire it again.
Note that un-jamming a weapon during the Tyranids turn and being able to fire again while on Overwatch requires a couple of Actions. All must be seen by the Marine unit.
- Action 1 – Tyranid unit moves, Marine on Overwatch shoots and Jams.
- Action 2 – Tyranid unit moves again, Marine un-jams his weapon and automatically goes back on Overwatch.
- Action 3 – Tyranid unit moves again; Marine can shoot again.
Move and Shoot
Some weapons allow a Marine unit to fire their weapon at the same time as performing a move action.
The move action can be
- Move Forwards (including diagonally)
- Move Backwards (including diagonally)
- Turn 90-degrees
The Marine player can choose to fire the weapon before or after the move, either way they do not get Sustained Fire bonus while moving and shooting.
If a Stealer unit is in front of a Marine, he may wish to fire first before making a 90-degree turn. Whereas, if the Stealer unit is to his left, the Marine may want to fire after turning 90-degrees to face it.
Effectively this combines two 1 AP actions into a single action as they are simultaneously compatible.
Credits
- Original Game Design: Richard Halliwell.
- This Advanced Edition Revision: Ken Allen
- Original Expansions and Revisions Design: Jervis Johnson, Matt Forbeck and Andy Chambers.
- Additional Material: Paul Murphy, Alex Goh, Dean H. Bass and Martin Kay.
- Illustrators: Dave Andrews, John Blanche, Wayne England, David Gallagher, Jes Goodwin, Pete Knifton, Ian Miller, Steve Tappin, Kevin Walker, Paul Bonner, Fangorn, Mark Gibbons, Paul Green, Gary Harrod, Tony Hough, Richard Wright, Tony Ackland, Nick Coleman and Ken Allen.
- Tactical Cards and Additional Counter Designs: Ken Allen
- Copyright: All original game design, artwork, concepts and story are owned by Games Workshop: UK – Games Workshop, Willow Road, Lenton, Nottingham, NG7 2WS – US – Games Workshop, 6711 Baymeadow Drive, Suite A, Glen Burnie, Maryland 21060-6401 – Australia – Games Workshop, 23 Liverpool Street, Ingleburn, NSW 2565 – Canada – Games Workshop, 2679 Bristol Circle, Unit 3, Oakville, Ontario, L6H 6Z8
The owner of this web site advises visitors to buy original products, where available, from Games Workshop. The contents of this site are intended as additional fan-made material for existing owners of the original editions of Space Hulk by Games Workshop only.
Space Hulk Codex 