drop pods and difficult terrain..

ok, i have seen this played many times.. and i believe it is being played wrong...

lets say you set the drop pod within 1 inch of a ruin on a base... and you roll the scatter and 2d6.. it says you move 5 inches ONTO the ruins... most people do not scatter the drop pod onto the ruins.. they say it stops 1" away..

i do not see how.,.. since the rules for drop pods say it stops if it comes within 1" of enemy or friendly models.. or IMPASSABLE terrain.. ruins are not impassable.. they are counted as difficult terrain.. and dangerous for deep striking.. am i reading the rules completely wrong? or is everyone wrong that ive seen play it this way?

Deep striking treats difficult terrain as dangerous terrain. so it is ok

when you say it is ok.... do you mean they are doing it right? because dangerous terrain is not impassable

I concur that a drop pod can scatter into difficult terrain. The disembarking moels then need to make the appropriate movement tests

and i do believe the vehicle has to make a dangerous terrain test as well.. in the case of a drop pod if it faiuls it would also loose its weapin...?

Why would they lose a weapon? Vehicle Immobilized only requires that a vehicle can no longer move - weapons can still rotate freely in turrets...etc.

Are you stating that b/c the drop pod is already "immobile" when it lands, that a 1 on difficult terrain test would count as a second immobilized result and thus the loss of weapon?

yes, when multiple immobilised results/weapon dest results.. it goes to the other..

Yes but the vehicle is not immobilized when it lands so on a roll of 4 you do not automatically destroy the weapon.

Ok lets state the rules first and work from there...

Codex:SM (pg.69) "Drop Pod Assault" - Drop Pods always enter play using the deep strike rules from the Mission Special Rules section of the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook. <---pretty strait forward

Codex:SM (pg.69) "Inertial Guidance System" - Should a Drop Pod scatter on top of impassable terrain or another model (friend or foe!) then reduce the scatter distance by the minimum required in order to avoid the obstacle. <---again pretty strait forward

altahara wrote:

ok, i have seen this played many times.. and i believe it is being played wrong...

lets say you set the drop pod within 1 inch of a ruin on a base... and you roll the scatter and 2d6.. it says you move 5 inches ONTO the ruins... most people do not scatter the drop pod onto the ruins.. they say it stops 1" away..

i do not see how.,.. since the rules for drop pods say it stops if it comes within 1" of enemy or friendly models.. or IMPASSABLE terrain.. ruins are not impassable.. they are counted as difficult terrain.. and dangerous for deep striking.. am i reading the rules completely wrong? or is everyone wrong that ive seen play it this way?

In this example Altahara is right. The Drop Pod will scatter on top of the ruins since it is neither impassable terrain or another model.

I would also like to note that when scattering into other models you must still stay 1" away from enemy models. This will cause you to disembark at least 1" away. Remember also you deploy 2" away from the hull of the Drop Pod not the end of the doors so keep this in mind when you are placing miniatures.

John Gemrich wrote:

I concur that a drop pod can scatter into difficult terrain. The disembarking models then need to make the appropriate movement tests

This is really not a factor until later movement phases since terrain has no affect on disembarking or a run move if that is what a person chooses to do. In the next movement phase they choose to move then yes a difficult terrain test is in effect.

altahara wrote:

and i do believe the vehicle has to make a dangerous terrain test as well.. in the case of a drop pod if it faiuls it would also loose its weapin...?

This untrue because the vehicle on landing is already suffering a Immobilization effect. If you made a dangerous terrain test this would be two effect in one turn.


"Thank you I will be here all week"

Before a game begins the terrain must be labeled for each type, ruins depending on the type should be considered impassable to vehicles, Cities of death is impassable to vehicles FYI. Page 57 large Rulebook.

So It is safe to assume that if the workings out of a terrain feature are not done go off of common sense for terrain feature for it being impassable by vehicles or just difficult. Or Dice off.

I Personally will rule anything that goes over he lip of a rhinos track as impassable, thus making it impassable for the drop pod.

I agree you should go through the terrain in most cases if not specified impassable, which I have never in my years of playing ever seen or considered a ruins impassable by a tank, by default it is usually considered difficult terrain. If that is the case then it would be dangerous to vehicles. I have seen many videos of a modern day APC go through walls and over huge piles of rubble. If we can do that now I am sure in the years of 40,000 they can do it also. Also I think that a Drop Pod hurtling out of space would do OK in a pile of rubble or ruins. They have the equivalent armor of a tank on them plus they have thrust blasters when they are landing that would either clear some area from the force of the engines or they would just crush the rock underneath it.

I think people using terrain to modify their scatter are being a little shady. So for me the way I will play it is that unless you specify that a piece of terrain as impassable by vehicles you should land in the ruins and move through the difficult terrain on your next movement phases. Remember that there is no rule stating impassable for one type of vehicle or another so if your drop pod doesn't land in it that also means that your Land Raider cant drive through it.

Also I looked at pg.57 and saw nothing contrary to what I said in previous posts. The example they give on that page use tank traps (which are in the real world used to block tanks) and barbed wire as you know can hurt little men. I also read through the building section on pg.77+ and found nothing except that buildings are either impassable or used a fixed transport with certain amounts of people that can occupy them, destroy them, or fire out of them.

These are the things in the next few months that need to be cleared up to make it easier for Sean to judge and run the tournament.