Imperial Armour V. 9 - The Badab War - A Review

I am a sucker; I admit it. I always claim that I will not buy any more Imperial Armour books on the grounds that I just can't afford it. But I always do.

This is the latest, The Badab War Part One, by Alan Bligh.

First, a general comment that I have made before so I will not labour the point. This is an expensive book with high quality, professional graphics but the writing is amateur, underedited, fanzine stuff. Badab War is one of the better examples from Forge World, incidentally, but there are all sorts of amateur style problems in the prose.

The price is, as always, eye watering at £45. However, it is 200 pages of full colour large format.



The graphics are excellent, as always and the Badab Sector is well described and illustrated. I could have done without the brown writing on a brown background - my eyes have the dgradation caused by thirty years of computer screens and high-power binocular microscopes.


The book starts with four chapters describing the background and opening pahse of the Badab Revolt, ending with the destruction of the Lamenters Chapter and the containment of the revolt. As Churchill might have put it - "Not the beginning of the end but, perhaps, the end of the beginning" - or possibly not.




The next seventy pages or so describe some of the loyalist and renegade space marine chapters that fought in the war. The problem is that this section is all fluff and graphics. OK, it's a useful modelling guide, but how deeply do you want to read fictional details about fictional space marine chapters when none of it has any bearing on gameplay. I am just not that autistic. At the risk of inviting vitriol - seen one space marine chapter, seen 'em all.

I found the Campaign section more interesting. It is a story-based construct with scenarios based on key events in the war. Most of the scenarios are uninspiring with the very honourable exception of one - see below.


Blood in the Void is a set of rules for fighting space boarding acrions for 40K. It is the gem that rescues the campaign with new gear and strategems.

This is followed by a small section of special characters, including a pre-renegade Lugft Huron, to match forge world models.


Last, but not at all least, we have a new Codex army - The Tyrant's Legion. This is not just a reworked Imperial Guard. The Legion are the auxilliary troops for the Astral Claws and incorporate Astral Claws units, including the Legion Centurion who is a sort of space marine Commissar figure. The main troop types are Legion SM Cohorts, i.e. Astral Claw squad, Legion Auxilia and Auxilia Armsmen.

The Legion Auxilia are badly equipped militia that fight in groups of twenty, classic cannon fodder. Armsmen are professional soldiers seconded from the private forces of the Sector nobility. They are basically guardsmen.

Two additional things about this codex delight me. First are an Elite choice, renegade marauder squads. These can have all sorts of weapon goodies and can include up to two "brutes". Brutes are large anything-you-want. They can be feral Ogryns, Muties, Xenos, Foul Heretic Abominations, Dark Adeptus constructs........anything your perverted imagination and modelling skills can devise.

And, oh thank you Ruinous Powers, Marauders can be given Fleet Lighters as dedicated transports. And, may joy be unconfined, you can arm the lighter so my weapon armed Arvus is finally not only legal but can be used in a Codex army.

While on this subject, Navy Fighters and Vultures can be taken as Codex Heavy Support choices. I have a couple of Old Crow Vultures and I an finally moved to add a acratch-built Lightning as top cover.

This codex really excites me, which doesn't happen often at my age.



Final thoughts: Did I get value for my £45?

Well almost. The Tyrant's Legion and Boarding Rules are great and inspire me to make some new stuff. The background to the Badab War is so-so and the yet another space marine pic with different coloured armour is weak.

So three out of five.

The Dread Mob

The gem in the new Forge World book (Imperial Armour 8, Raid on Kastorel-Novum, Review to follow) is the Ork Dread Mob Codex.I have a half finished Orky army so I shuffled it around a bit to put together a small 1,350 point Dread Mob, Brazza's Quick Reaction Mob. The Theme of this army is mobility.

My first choice is the HQ - Brazza Big Mek, with a Kustom Mega Blasta, 'Eavy Armour and a couple of grot oilers. [I could alsdo have taken a Painboss or a Kustom Meka Dread as HQ choices).
Cost 65 pts.



Brazza has a Mekboy Junka as his dedicated transport. It is kustomised wiv a Big Zappa in a turret.
Cost 105 pts. [The Big Zappa can be upgraded to a Shokk Attack Gun for +70pts].


A small Loota Mob travels wiv da Boss, so he can keep an eye on the thieving gitz. Consists of two Death Skulls wiv da Deff Guns and three Meks wiv Rokkits and Big shoota.
This is my only Heavy Support choice (alternatives include: Mega Dread, Looted Wagon, Lifta Wagon, and Big Track
Cost: 85pts.


Brazza has a small Deff Dread Mob of one dread. (Troop Choice).
Cost 100pts.


Fizzogs Spanna Boyz come along for the ride with a Scrap Trukk (dedicated transport). Fizzog is a Mek wiv a Kustom Mega Blasta.
Cost: 157pts.



Cutta's Spanna Boyz as to yomp it, cuz some thieving Death Skull as nicked their Trukk. Cutta is a Mek wiv da Burna.
Cost: 160pts.
[There was also supposed to be a Gretchin Scavenger Mob along as anuuva Troop Choice, but the cowardly wozzaks have run off and hid somewhere]


A small Killa Kan Mob wiv Kustom Blasta, Rokkits, and Grotzooka (Fast Attack).
Cost: 180pts


Five of WreckDoffen's Flyboyz in DeffKoptas added their support after some unsubtle armtwisting from Brazza, who maintains their Fightas (Fast Attack Choice). They have Rokkits and Big Bombz. [Alternative Fast Attack Choices might have included Grot Tanks or a Warkopta].
Cost: 300pts

Other potential Elite Choices include Junkas, Grot Tanks, Burna Boyz, and a Cybork Slasha Mob.
Note: their are no Nobz, 'Ard Boyz, Buggies, or Bikes

Imperial Armour 8

Imperial Armour Eight is on preorder at Forge World for £45. I will probably buy it to look at the excellent pics, and for the specs & scenarios. If it is true to past form then the story will be pretty turgid. I keep resolving not to buy any more of these but, inevitably, I do. Sad, really. :)

Siege of Vrak II Renegades

I have been creating some new troop types for the Renegade Army List from the Siege of Vrak Volume II.

Here are two 20-strong units.

Beatmen are a new troop type. These are old Warhammer beastmen that can be bought for a song on the web. The pose really suits a 40K army. The shooters are mostly cut down lasguns and the 'skull' resin bases are from Foundations of War.




The Khorne Berserkers are an elite choice. This is my bBand of Brass unit (as opposed to Bass Brand). The 'rock' resin bases are again from Foundations of War.




The forty resin bases cost me £8 plus postage. What a bargain.

Imperial Armour V: The Siege of Vrak Part 1

Imperial Armour V: The Siege of Vrak Part 1

This is a 190 page expansion book for Warhammer 40K that retails for £38 from Forge World or Games Workshop (see my sidebar for Forge World website link). It has many colour plates inside and these are the first thing to catch the eye. The standard of the graphics, both colour and monochrome, is of a very high calibre. The binding on the book is adequate, which is not always true of the larger Forge World supplements.

The book fills a genuine void in the 40K universe, namely rules and ideas for trench warfare or, to put it another way, modern siege warfare. This includes rules for siege artillery pieces and scenarios for trench raiding and so on.

It also offers two more novelties. The first is a full army list for the Death Korp of Krieg and includes some novel vehicles such as the centaur, which is based on the mechanised carriers that European armies built in the 1940s. The second is a rebellious planetary militia army list that has been touched by chaos but is not yet a deranged mob. Forge World offer tie-in models for both armies.

The militia attracted me and I have built up a colourful army, which is my current favourite. In this army, squads have variable morale that you determine the first time their morale is tested (D6 + 4). This is OK for small games but it is immensely tedious trying to keep track of everybody’s morale in large scale scenarios.

There are various alternatives:
1. You test once for the whole army. This makes the battle unbalanced if you roll an unusually high or low result. It works for campaigns OK.
2. Use Imperial Guard equivalent morals. This works fine but takes away some of the flavour of the army.
3. Roll to determine moral before EVERY morale test. I like this one as it is great fun and it does replicate what happens in untried, semi-trained militias. Sometimes a squad fights impossible odds with suicidal bravery and sometimes the same squad is spooked by a stray round. One of the objectives of training professional soldiers is to achieve predictable reactions under pressure.

The only criticism I have is in the writing. Forge World and the English Language clearly have been introduced but the relationship is not yet intimate.

This is a great supplement and worth every penny. I highly recommend it.

Imperial Armour Model Masterclass Vol. 1

I picked up the First Volume in the Forge World modelling masterclass books.

It was reasonably priced at £26, given the high quality photo work within. Some of the techniques described are for static display models rather than wargame miniatures because they would not withstand handling or coating in varnish. Nevertheless, I found it extremely useful and I learnt some new neat things.

I recommend it, even for experienced modellers.