Tomorrow's Warhammer: Using Tomorrow's War to play 40K

[Rolling Thunder]

You all know me! I am a true grognard, of the old guard! I believe in grumbling, nostalgia, and resistance to change! I believe in my own oddly specific view of the 40K universe without recourse to viewpoints which may contradict it! I believe the Imperial Guard is the strongest fighting force in the 41st Millennium!

Speeches aside, I've been rattling on about Shawn Carpenter's Tomorrow's War for an unduly long time now. Almost as long as I've been putting off painting my Valkyries. So, I've decided to finally start a thread on how to play Warhammer 40,000 using those rules, as I believe that their emphasis on troop quality, scenario-based gaming will let us represent conflict in the 40K universe in a manner much closer to the fluff.


A word on some core mechanics of Tomorrow's War:

TW uses a very different system to the traditional I-GO-U-GO that we're familiar with in 40K. The mechanic is still there, in the sense that there is a player or side who has the Initiative (who gets to act first in that turn). That player gets to pick a unit and act with it, whether that be to shoot, move, a combination of the two, go on overwatch or call in a fire mission. It's at this point that the non-Initiative player gets a say. Rather than waiting to get lamped, the non-Initiative player's units which can see the enemy unit can react to some of their action¹². It's at this point that troop quality comes in. Unit's roll their Troop Quality dice, typically a D8, and the highest roll acts first in that particular exchange of fire and manoeuvre. The Initiative player continues on this course until he's finished, at which point the non-Initiative player can activate any units they've not used for reactions.

This is fairly truncated and is explained in more detail in Tomorrow's War (or Force on Force) itself.




^{1: Not all actions can be reacted to, from memory. Fire missions or going on overwatch are largely immune to this.
2: The list of reactions is somewhat more truncated than the list of actions.}

[Rolling Thunder]

Armoury and Formations

Introduction

TW is not a prescriptive rules set, and comes loaded down with a plethora of useful add-ons to specialise your formations to your taste. Rumours of a points system abound, but if it exists (which I can not confirm), it is most definitely unofficial and very much in an alpha state. As such, it offers a plethora of options for the average player. As such, I've prepared a list of my own ideas and ruminations as how to best represent specific formations as true to the 40K fluff as possible.


Nomenclature:

FP dice: Firepower Die. The Troop Quality Dice which a unit rolls when making an attack. More is better. Every man with a weapon gets at least 1. Support/Heavy weapons give you more. This is divided into AP (Anti-Personnel) and Anti-Tank (AT). Given anything which can kill a tank can be used to kill a man, these two profiles are represented as (AP: /AT: ), representing the number of additional Firepower Die you get to either score.

D die: Defence Die. The Troop Quality Dice which a unit rolls to resist an attack. More is better. Armour improves it.

Optimum Range: You get an additional FP dice for firing inside your optimum range. Shotguns are more effective within optimum range and pistols can only be fired at targets in Optimum Range.

Tech Level: Tech Level represents how advanced your technology is, vis a vis your enemy's. Higher tech levels in weapons, armour and sensors (or all three) can give bonuses depending on the margin of difference. TL1 represents the most primitive of technologies, TL3 the most advanced. As such, I've divided up the existing factions:

TL1: Orks, some PDF and almost all Cults, Kroot, Daemons
TL2: All frontline Imperial, Mechanicum and Chaos units, T'au, Hrud, Eldar Exodites, Tyranids.
TL3: Eldar, Necrons, Dark Age of Technology Abominations.

Feel free to vary these based on scenario, formation and indeed down to individual weapon level. So, if you're facing off a relatively low-tech Imperial Guard formation versus a high-tech Mechanicus one, it would be entirely acceptable to play the Guard as TL2 and the Mechanicus as TL3 to represent the significant capability gaps between the two.

On Grid: Grid represents full-scale integrated warfare, where formations are in constant, real-time data communication with each other. It's really only suitable for Mechanicus, Tyranid, fully awakened Necron and possibly T'au units.

Confidence Level:
Confidence Level is an interesting mechanic which determines when troops take a morale check: every time they come under fire, every time they come under effective fire, or only when they take a casualty. This is something which you should vary widely by scenario. An Imperial Guard unit might be of normal confidence against normal foes such as Tyranids, Orks, T'au and Eldar. Finding itself opposed by disparate rebels, or Feral Orks, it's confidence may increase to High. However, if they encounter Traitor Astartes or Necrons, their confidence might well take a dive to Poor, and they'd find themselves a lot more wavering under fire.


Imperial Armoury

Weapon list:

Personal weapons:


Power Weapon: (AP1), Close Assault Only.
Power Fist: (AP:2) Close Assault Only.
Bolt Pistol: (AP: 1), Close Assault Only.
Plasma Pistol: (AP: 2 Close Assault, AP:1 Optimum Range)
Boltgun: Light Support Weapon (AP1)¹
Hellgun: Light Support Weapon (AP1)¹
Storm Bolter: Light Support Weapon (AP1), but additional FP die in Optimum Range.

Support Weapons:

Single-shot or underslung Grenade Launchers: (AP:1)
SAW/LMG analogue: +1 AP FP.
Multi-Shot Grenade Launcher: Medium Support Weapon (AP:2)
Meltagun: Medium Energy Support Weapon (EWS): (AP:2/AT2). Adds +1 AT when in Small Arms Optimum Range.
Plasma gun: Medium Energy Support Weapon (AP3/AT2), Gets Hot!²
Light Rocket Launcher: Medium Support Weapon: (AP2/AT2)
Heavy Stubber/MMG/GPMG: Medium Support Weapon (AP2)
Hell/Hot-Shot Volley Gun: Medium Laser Support Weapon (AP2)

Heavy Machine Gun/Heavy Bolter: Heavy Support Weapon (AP3)
Heavy Missile Launcher: Heavy Support Weapon(AP3/AT3)
Imperial Manpack Autocannon: Heavy Support Weapon: (AP3/AT2)
Lascannon: Heavy Support Weapon: (AP1/AT4)
Plasma Cannon: Heavy Energy Support Weapon, (AP4/AT3), Gets Hot!²
Multi-Melta: Heavy Energy Support Weapon: (AP2/AT4) Adds +1 AT when in Small Arms Optimum Range.
Multi-Laser: TL2 Heavy Laser Support Weapon (AP3/AT1).

Small arms including lasguns, laspistols, shotguns, sniper rifles, squad designated marksmen rifles, and standard close combat weapons are all dealt with in the rulebook, as are mortars and flame throwers, so I will not repeat these for copyright reasons.

^{1: I'm uncertain as to whether the Hellgun or the Bolter should be treat as squad support weapons, or just TL3 small arms.
2 Gets Hot!: If the weapon is fired more than once in a game turn, a roll of a "1" on any of the Firepower Die from the weapon will result in the trooper becoming a casualty.}


An interesting thing to note about weapons is that much of their abilities are context-specific. For example, only small arms and rapidfire weapons like machine guns can be used to deliver suppressing fire. Grenade launchers and mortars can be used to lay smoke (or potentially incendiaries, or gas, if you're so minded...). Flamethrowers have become full Lord Death of Murder Mountain, and it is not reasonable for your force to have more than one to two per platoon at most. Weapon Teams get bonus firepower dice, so you want your heavies being lugged around by specialists and not encumbering your squads.

I'm leaving tank and air-mounted weapons off for now, because Tomorrow's War itself is full of examples of these which can be nicked wholesale.



Imperial Army Lists

Imperial Guard

The Hammer of the Emperor. Forming the overwhelming majority of the Imperium's offensive fighting forces, the Guard is beyond legion in the sheer variety of the forces available to it. The closest thing to a coherent picture one can form of the Imperial Guard is one of a numerous, highly aggressive force, staffed by competent commanders aware of the limitations of their formations on an individual level, and so making up with it by aggression, mass and good-quality logistics. They will almost never use integrated command and control (Grid) warfare and use of electronic warfare is often impossible or limited.


"Standard" Imperial Guard formation

Troop Quality: D8 (Trained).
Morale: D8 (Average).
Body Armour: Light Body Armour (+1 Defence die)
Confidence Level: Normal.
Supply Level: Normal.
Tech Level 2.

Cadian (Or Death Korps, Mordians, Elysians and other highly motivated units(

Troop Quality: D8 (Trained).
Morale: D10 (Average).
Body Armour: Light Body Armour (+1 Defence die)
Confidence Level: High.
Supply Level: Normal/High.
Tech Level 2.

Harkoni Warhawks

Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D10
Body Armour: Hard Body Armour (+2 Defence die)
Confidence Level: Normal
Supply Level: Normal.
Tech Level 2

Catachan Jungle Fighters

Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D10
Body Armour: None.
Confidence Level: High
Supply Level: Normal.
Tech Level 2
Special Rule: Elusive, Stealthy (TL1)

Salvar Chem-Dogs

Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D8
Body Armour: None.
Supply Level: Poor/Normal
Confidence Level: Poor/Normal
Tech Level: 1.
Special Rule: Awareness Enhancement, Performance Enhancement or Frenzy Drugs (player discretion).

Penal Legion

Troop Quality: D6/D8
Morale: D6-D8
Body Armour: None.
Supply Level: Poor.
Confidence Level: Poor/Normal
Tech Level 1:
Special Rule: Slave Soldiers, Caveman Casevac, Performance/Awareness/Frenzy Drugs (optional)

Imperial Storm Troopers

Troop Quality: D10
Morale: D10
Body Armour: Heavy Body Armour (+2D)
Confidence Level: High
Supply Level: Normal.
On Grid: Possible.

Ogyrns
Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D10
Body Armour: None/Light
Confidence: High
Supply Level: Normal
On-Grid: Never.
Special Rule: Hard to Kill (D6), Close Assault Monster, Combat Drugs (Optional).


Adeptus Astartes

Generic Space Marine Formation

Troop Quality: D8/D10³
Morale: D10/D12
Body Armour: TL2 Power Armour (+3D), Active Trauma Treatment, Inspiring, Intimidating.
Confidence: High
Supply: Normal.
On Grid: No
Special Rules: Jump Troops (Assault Squads), Berzerkers (Khorne Berzerkers, Death Company), Close Assault Monster.
^{3: Depending on formation. With Astartes recruitment ramping up with the intensification of the conflict with Abbadon, D8-quality troops are likely to be much more prevalent amongst Chapters and Legions engaged in heavy fighting.}

Astartes Terminators

Troop Quality: D10/D12
Morale: D12
Body Armour: Terminator Armour (+4D, Intimidating, Inspiring, Advanced Trauma Treatment, Wearer may only make Tactical Move), Hard to Kill (D6).)
Confidence: High
Supply: Normal
On Grid: No
Special Rules: Close Assault Monsters, Berzerkers (Optional).


Mechanicum


Skitarri

Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D10
Body Armour: Hard Armour (+2D)
Confidence Level: Normal
On-Grid: Yes.


Skitarri Sicarians

Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D12
Body Armour: Recon Power Armour (+2D, +2/4" to Tactcial/Rapid Move, Active Trauma Treatmen, Intimidating).
Confidence: High
On-Grid: Yes
Special Rule: Close Assault Monsters.


Weaponised Servitors


Troop Quality: D8
Morale: N/A
Body Armour: Light Armour (+1D)
Confidence: N/A
On-Grid: Possibly.
Special Rule: Dumb Bots

Fulgurite/Corpuscarii/Negavolt Electro-Priests
Troop Quality: D8
Morale: D12
Body Armour: Light Armour +1D
Confidence Level: High.
On-Grid: No.
Special Rules: Close Combat Monsters
Electroshock Weapons: Unit may only attack in Close Assault. When it does, it may use it's full Firepower Dice as an AT attack.

[Rolling Thunder]

Reserved for Scenarios

[Rolling Thunder]

Reserved for 40K-specific alterations