+ inload: Bloodsong update and Great Gargant +

+ 'Ere We Go – Great Gargant +

+ Before the paint is dry on the first, a second Great Gargant has emerged from the Meks' workshop, eager to get into combat with the 'oomie Titans. +

As the great philosopher Udgrub of Gaff had it: 'Woss ded ard and ded shooty? A Gargant. Woss even arder and shootier and krumpier? Two Gargants!' Who am I to argue with such a paragon of kultur?

The finer points of ork warfare aside, I'm delighted with this print, which was given to me over a pint at the local. Drawing from the same original sculpt, the two 3D-sculptors have given slightly different results, as you can see below. The new one is slightly more broad in the chest and the arms are proportionally a little lower, and I think these differences help to suggest an individuality that's fitting for Gargants. After all, each is a kustom job – even when orks try to copy each other, there's inevitably some variance.

+++

+ Gaming +

Besides making a very attractive set of bookends, why would two Great Gargants be useful? Well, what if you had a set of rules that let you play Orks – or Eldar, if that's your breakfast fructose pulp-preserve of choice – in Adeptus Titanicus? Well, I'm pleased to say that such a supplement exists, and pending a couple of permissions for featured artworks, it's just about ready to release.

You can judge for yourself whether I've been successful in my initial aims – the first article on the project was written back in September 2018 [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+], and it's been more actively polished and revised in the years since.

I've been beavering away on Bloodsong for just about as long as the new version of Adeptus Titanicus has been out. We're now up to beta version 14, and I'm on track to publish the free, finished, ready-to-play booklet as a Christmas thank-you to readers. 

+++

+ What's new? +

Well, if you've already given the expansion a try, I hope you'll be pleased to hear that it's more refinement than rework. 

The Eldar, who benefitted from being much more similar to Imperial Titans, haven't thrown up any huge problems in playtesting, and are largely untouched. The big exception is the psychic lance, which has been considerably toned-down following playtesting – terrifying it might be in background terms, the older rules were both powerful to the point of being oppressive, and also a pain to use in practise.

As for everyone's favourite space-hooligans, ork shields seemed uncharacteristically reliable in early turns – not a problem when you've just got one on the table, but the more you had, the more oppressive it turned out to be. The solution? I looked back into Adeptus Titanicus '87 for inspiration, and found a rule about Power Fields occasionally allowing shots through gaps. There's thus now a (small) chance for a shot to go through and set off a fire. This gives 'feels-good' factor for the opponent, and also gives the Ork player something to juggle in otherwise quiet early turns. Win-win.

In addition to that, the shields/boiler relationship now has a smaller 'sweet-spot', so it's much harder for an Ork player to simply avoid touching their boiler. There's also a bit more of reward/encouragement for pushing, introduced through adjustments to the Gargant's speed value.

The Maniple equivalents – Conclaves for Eldar, Mobs for Orks – were a relatively late addition, and  while the Eldar ones seem to have worked out okay, playtesting revealed some fairly elementary problems with the ork's Godbreaka mob; which has been defanged and reworked.

It's not all down-tuning for the orks, however. The gun decks – those key elements for the 'land battleship' feel – now kick out two shots per Krew assigned, making them a genuine alternative to other parts of the Gargant, for example. In recompense for the reduction in their durability, they've also seen some of their more characteristic weapons tweaked upwards; increasing a little in S, range or coming down in cost.

+++

Besides the crunch, there's now lots of lovely pictures submitted by talented hobbyists like jgnstudios, Gary C, MeshyMesh and Johnpaints, to give you an idea of how to build and paint your Gargants and War-Clans.

I've worked up some silhouette illustrations for the various Maniple equivalents...

... and you've got new background and lore, all lovingly re-interpreted from the original material and aiming to reconcile newer and older lore.

The book has also received reference sections for each faction, so you've got quick comparisons for weapon stats, Command Terminals and more.

+ Tactics and strategy +

Overall, I'm very pleased with how playtesting has refined things, but as always, these rules are explicitly designed for Open Play. I hope they give you fun, balanced games, but the key aim is to allow Xenos players the chance to get involved, and provide a new challenge for Imperial players.

Quite a few playtests threw up a common point that's worth addressing: Imperial players who used an existing force sometimes found it difficult to adapt in their first game – those who tooled up to take on the aliens they were facing tended to fare better. I wanted to make sure that each faction provided a new and interesting challenge to the Imperials, as it's as much an expansion for them as it is for Xenos players. After all, Imperial/Traitor players are likely to make up the vast majority of games you'll get in.

As a result, a lot of the weapons and tactics that are optimal against other Imperial/Traitor Titans aren't necessarily ideal for tackling the Xenos – and that's intentional. The lower armour ratings and shieldbane trait make the oft-derided lasers surprisingly useful against Gargants, for example, while a combination of weight of fire (to deal with holo-fields) and precision shots (once they're knocked down) are your friend against Eldar, rather than specialist Titans.

+++

+ Back to the point +

But enough on the rules, let's look at some more pictures of the Great Gargant!

+ inload: Bloodsong goes public +

+ Bloodsong complete + 

+ Free Adeptus Titanicus expansion with rules for Eldar Titans and Ork Gargants +

+ No time to waste? Just need the Google Drive link? +
+ Manifold access, my Princeps: [+noosphericexloadlink embedded+] +

+ Command new forces; engage new enemies! +

+++

+ Changes and updates +

... and now that everyone who just wants the free Bloodsong expansion has blithely closed this noospheric node, those that remain suckling on the datafeed can enjoy the inner secrets of the project.

Way back in 2018, shortly after the release of the new Adeptus Titanicus, I (rather fatefully) wrote:

I'll preface this by saying that these rules are only intended to tide players over until we get some official rules.

Well, seven years have passed, and not so much as a squeak from Games Workshop on any official rules for Eldar and Orks, so since 2023 I've been tinkering away on creating a full print-ready expansion for the game so xenos enthusiasts and those looking for a new Open Play challenge can get involved. 

The result is Bloodsong, which has gone through nine 'alpha' iterations, being playtested and tweaked in a small pool in various back rooms and on the + Death of a Rubricist + Facebook group (thanks for all feedback thus far!). It's now complete to the point that it's ready for more broad distribution, with everything from custom Command Terminals and Weapon Cards to instructions for how to print the 50pp booklet to the right size. Perhaps most importantly, it explains how to use the supplement with the official rules to create all-Eldar or all-Ork forces.

For anyone who's already been using the supplement, this new public version includes the following improvements:

• Practical additions: 8 Maniple equivalents – 4 each for Eldar and Orks.
• Extensive improvement and refinement of the Ork section, polishing it to match the Eldar. Clarification of suggested base sizes and conversion ideas for Gargants.
• Mega Gargant rules clarifications.
• Useability improvements: a table of contents, 'How to use this book' and development notes throughout.
• Single page formatting (view it on Acrobat in two-page view with cover page)
• Terminology tweaks – the Wraithtension table had started to annoy me, so it's now the Wraith Matrix table, which feels a bit more 'Eldar' to me.

+++

+ Find new enemies and allies for your Imperial and Traitor Titans for Open Play Titanicus! +

+ What's next? +

Next, I hope, is for the supplement to get more feedback from other gaming groups, which will help to tweak and adjust the points values to make for more fun and exciting games, and highlight any glaring clangers I've made.

Besides the nuts and bolts of the mechanics, my next priority is improving the look of the layout by adding some artwork and more background material: example Titan/Gargant pictures for the maniple equivalents, nicely styled in-action battle pictures, and some design flourishes to make it as professional as possible – I've been aiming to make it as user-friendly, polished and attractive as I can.

If you can help – either by supplying pictures of your own models, or suggesting artists I can ask, please do let me know in the comments, either here on the blog, or on the Facebook group – or through the Google Drive link:

[+noosphericexloadlink embedded+]

+++

+ Tell me more! +

Glutton for punishment, eh? Want to know more about the process and past development? By using the [+insphere contentsieve+] at the top right of the page, you can search for Titanicus and read through all the various changes and designer's notes – here's a good start, if you fancy looking at the philosophy and process behind the project [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+].

+++

+ inload: Eldar Titans and Ork Gargants in Adeptus Titanicus +

+ Bloodsong designer's notes +

+ An inload to put some thoughts in order on the next stages of the Bloodsong supplement, which introduces Eldar and Orks to Adeptus Titanicus and Legions Imperialis – and a request for any playtesting feedback to be popped up on the Facebook group [+noosphericexloadlink embedded+]. +

Eldar/Ork rules for Epic-scale games are the thing most likely to make datascribes join the +Death of a Rubricist+ Facebook group, so I wanted to give a bit of an update, outline the process for the supplement – and hopefully garner some feedback and (best of all) playtesting notes.

Why's this? Well, with the best will in the world, it's never the best idea for the writer to be the one testing things – I might know what I mean by phrasing things a certain way, but that's useless if it's not clear to anyone else. Likewise testing in isolation can result in swingy and non-representative results – so more reports from the wider community are essential to helping this progress and becoming more refined.

If you're able to contribute constructive criticism, please do! There's a 'Xenos AT rules' chat up on the Facebook group [viz-ref link above], which has already been very useful in helping tweak things – thanks to Sean, Rowan, Chris, Thomas and Paul, who've provided some invaluable feedback.

+++

+ State of play +

The Bloodsong supplement has been ticking over since 2023 – you can follow the development from this initial inload [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+]. It contains rules for Eldar Titan Clans (Aeldari warhost) and Ork Gargant Bigmobs in Adeptus Titanicus., as well as a workable but incomplete Ork list for Legions Imperialis.

The current version is available from the Facebook group here:

Bloodsong v9.pdf

If you're inloading this from the future, then please check the version number to make sure you've got the latest revision. If you've come across a hard copy, the version number is printed on page 1 for clarity – and you'll also spot the version number on the weapon cards and terminals, too, to make sure you're playing with the most up-to-date material.

+++

+ Where are we? +

I'm going to focus more on the Titanicus side of things for the moment – while I enjoy Legions Imperialis, there's less interest in that side of the supplement. I therefore plan to hive off the LI ork list (and any future Eldar one) into a separate document, so Bloodsong v1.0 will be an AT-only supplement – and one, I hope, that's fully ready to use.

+ Shade and Spectre-type Phantoms – I've tried to cleave closely to established background, and the use of the very old terms here is to make things more hobbyist-friendly. +

The fundamentals of the two lists, Aeldari Warhost and Ork Gargant Bigmob, are in place. There are rules for creating your Battlegroup equivalents, and terminals and weapons for the following:

• Eldar Phantom Spectre Titan
• Eldar Phantom Shade Titan
• Eldar Warlock Titan
• Eldar Revenant Titan

... and for the orks:

• Ork Gargant
• Ork Great Gargant
• Ork Mega Gargant

For the moment, I'm sticking to developing these basics. Mekboy Gargants, Stompas, Eldar Knights etc. are potential future additions, but I want to get the core forces pinned down for each before expanding further. 

We've now got a fairly decent playtesting pool complete for the Eldar, and I'm happier with how they're working – but every battle throws up new ideas, so always open to further tweaking. 

My gut feeling at the moment is that the ork weapons need a bit of reining in, but I'd like some playtesting results before tweaking them. I want to avoid the old trope of ork weapons, where in addition to being unreliable, they're also just straight worse than the Imperial equivalents – they should instead be more subject to variance (i.e. a bit more swingy than the Imperial guns – better when you have good luck, but worse when you don't!)

+++

+ What's next? +

The immediate next stage is to looking at creating a handful of Maniple and Legio equivalents, and a dozen or so Strategems for both Orks and Eldar, so you should end up with a modest amount of variety that allows you to lean into particular thematic gaming styles, and expand things beyond Open Play to Matched Play and Narrative Play styles.

+ The basis for a potential Conclave (Maniple) – a Phantom and two Revenants. +

+++

+ How can I help? +

You generous soul! As noted above, the most valuable contribution is feedback based on playtesting – while I'm happy to listen to theory and discuss things, nothing comes close to just trying things out and sharing them. 

Secondly, if you've got (or know of) any cool painted models of Gargants or Eldar Titans, please do show 'em off; I'd love to include some nice pictures to give the supplement a bit of polish. All images will, of course, be fully credited in the style of your choice.

+ inload: Bloodsong – Eldar and Orks in Adeptus Titanicus +

 + Bloodsong version 0.5 +

+ A quick riffle through the [+ Insphere contentsieve +] (the search function for this noospheric node, to the right of the body of the post) will reveal that I've been working on rules for introducing xenos to Adeptus Titanicus – specifically Eldar Titans and Ork Gargants. +

+ I've just uploaded version 0.5 of the Bloodsong pack to the +Death of a Rubricist+ Facebook group. The files can be downloaded freely and shared as you like – and as always, I welcome playtesting notes and feedback on the group.

A direct link to the files can be found here: [+noosphericexloadlink embedded+]. You will need to be a member of the Death of a Rubricist Facebook group – and if you're new to it, please answer the three questions when prompted: it's the only way I can screen for bots! +

+ Of course, there's nothing stopping you from joining, downloading and leaving immediately (not even hard feelings!), but I do encourage you to stick around and get involved. +

 + A new fan sculpt I picked up second-hand +

+ Ch-ch-ch-changes +

+ v0.5 brings some big updated: Eldar get access to the Revenant Scout Titan and its weapon cards, and – perhaps of more interest to some readers – brings the orks out to play. You get Gargants, Great Gargants and their weapon cards.+

+ Long-time inloaders might recall the first draft of the ork rules a while back – [+noosphericexloadlink emebdded+] well, they're updated and available now, including terminals and cards. +

+ I'm very pleased with how these rules work – I think they really capture the feel of directing Gargants, and would love to hear your battlefield experiences when using them: both good and bad! +

+ Based on feedback received I've also tweaked the Eldar stats a little – nothing major, but it is worth your time replacing the old cards and terminals with these. I've also squashed some gremlins). 

+++

+ A glimpse into the future +

+ The Warlock is on the horizon, and I'm also planning to revise the Phantom into two sub-classes: the Phantom Shade and Phantom Spectre. +

+ This is because there are two broad schools of thought for the Phantom: one that sees it as the equivalent to the Warlord Titan, and one that sees it as something more akin to a Reaver. +

+ In keeping with my 'nothing new without good reason' philosophy, the most elegant way I could think of to square this circle is to allow both to co-exist. The Shade and Spectre classes are a throwback to the classifications for the Phantom, from the original Codex Titanicus supplement – in essence, equivalent to the Deathbringer, Eclipse, Nemesis variants for the Imperial Warlord. +

+ The Phantom Shade and Phantom Spectre will not differ greatly. They will share the same weapon cards, for example. The nearest equivalent I can think of is that between the Reaver and Nemesis Warbringer – fundamentally the same chassis, but with slight variation in Infinity Circuit, armour etc. +

+ Ultimately, the splitting of the two is for three major reasons:

• To allow a broad church of players to get a Phantom that matches their vision for the Titan, whether that's slightly heavier or slightly lighter.
• To give some slight variation and increase the tactical choices available to Eldar players.
• There are a number of quite different fan-sculpts of the Phantom Titan around, and I've always preferred the 'model-led' approach to writing rules. 

+ My hope is that this approach will let people differentiate their models if they wish – or just opt for a single type without impacting their chances in-game. +

+++

inload: Eldar Titans and Ork Gargants

+ Eldar and Orks for Adeptus Titanicus +

+ Rules, playtesting and a plea +

+ With v0.4 of the document up and ready on the files section [+noosphericexloadlink embedded+], it's now out there for you to playtest. If you have any feedback, ideas, questions or critique of the Eldar Phantom and/or  Ork Gargant rules, please post them up on the Facebook group [+noosphericexloadlink embedded+], or as a comment below. It's particularly helpful if you've had a chance to playtest them live, as it were, to experience them in the round. +

+ Likewise, if you've built or painted any Eldar Titans or Ork Gargants, I'd love to see them – it'd be great to feature them on the blog, or use them in this Eldar and Ork expansion. +

+++

+ Models +

+ Rules are all very well, but models are what this is really about. With all these xenos popping up, it's looking like it's time for a Great Crusade, right? +

+ What little painting time I've had recently has been concentrating on the Catachan guntruck thingie, but I have been able to build and undercoat the Revenant Titans above (and below). +

+ They are 3D prints, and a very kind gift from PCRC stablemate Lucifer216. The kits went together very smoothly, and I've based them on 60mm rounds – I toyed with 80mm bases (like Warhounds), but the lithe alien war engines just looked utterly lost. +

+++

+ While we're talking about building, my brother sent over the WIP pictures of the Gargants he and his boys made – thought I'd share them here so you can see the materials and ideas that went into them. +

+ The rear shot shows some neat little details – I particularly like the use of the Genestealer cult Goliath drill-shield thing as the rear balcony. +

+++

+ inload: Ork Gargant rules for Adeptus Titanicus +

+ 'Ere We Go! +

+ Ork Gargants in Adeptus Titanicus +

 

+++

+ Ork Gargant rules for Adeptus Titanicus +

+ I've been beavering away polishing and tinkering with the rules for running Gargants in Adeptus Titanicus. They're now in a playable state, and the playtest pack can be inloaded for free from the files section of the +Death of a Rubricist+ Facebook group [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+]. +

+ The pack, entitled ATEC v04, contains:

• Full rules for using Ork Gargants in games of Adeptus Titanicus
• Print-ready Command Terminals for Gargants and Great Gargants
• Print-ready double-sided weapon cards.
• Info for submitting playtest notes, but do just feel free to have fun with them!

+ The rules are an iteration of those that I've been exloading here on occasion. Feel free to use the Insphere Contentsieve search function in the left-hand column of the blog to look for 'Gargant' if you'd like to read over some early thoughts. In summary, however, I've followed the following general design principles:

• Being orky, Gargants should be tough, and kick out a lot of firepower. 
• Unsubtle but entertaining, they should be generally less reliable than their Imperial equivalent, but have the potential – with luck and good planning – to outshine their opponents' equivalent War Engines.
• Playing a mob of Gargants should feel like you are an ork Kaptin managing his krew, and reward aggressive play.
• Playing a mob of Gargants should not be a frustrating experience.
• Using Gargants must abide to the core rules as seamlessly as possible while maintaining character.

+++

+ Playtesting da Waaaagh! +

+ Had a very enjoyable weekend over at my brother's house. I'd sent him and my nephews a pile of bits and a letter (faithfully dictated by Nikkit the gretchin) from the Warboss asking his meks to build him some dead snazzy Gargants to krump some spiky gitz. +

+ Well, the Meks came good and the Warboss was greeted by a proppa stompy Gargant Mob to take into battle. I think they're just brill – each very distinctive and full of orky character and creativity. They were built using air-drying clay over household bits and bobs. Couldn't have asked for better results; well done, ladz! +

[+{APPENDNOTE=This autoscribe humbly apologises for forgetting to note down the ork's own names for these beasts of steel, so presented here are my loose human translations – do correct me and I'll update the names!+]

+ Great Gargant Zodwort's Revenge. +

+ Gargant Waaagharella. +

+ Gargant Orktimus Prime (and a dead sneeky stompa). +

+ It was a particular treat to see this banner waving over the Great Gargant, as it's been recycled from my brother's old ork army, Waa-Zodwort. Nice to see it taken into battle again. +

+++

+ Playtesting and designer's notes +

+ As my part of the deal, I'd brought along the playtest document above, along with all the terrain and Titans to fight. While keen 40k players, none of them had played Titanicus – but they took to it like ducks to water. +

+ I'd been running the dice every so often to check how things were working, but – lacking any finished gargants – the nearest I was able to come to physical testing beforehand was the rather shonky-looking affair below, with my own mournful half-finished Gargant. +

+ Still, it did the job, letting me try out the Command Terminal and make sure that all the basic mechanics worked. I sent the poor armless Great Gargant out to take on a Warlord and a Reaver – not a fair fight, but a good way to assess the damage mechanics of Krew and Fires. +

+ The Command Terminal on the right of the picture shows an early-game snapshot: just one fire having begun, and plenty of krew remaining. +

+ The late-game example of the Terminal (below) illustrates a snapshot of how the mechanics work. In short, Gargants start with a pool of dice representing Krew, which perform a variety of functions. The quality is determined at the start of each Strategy Phase by rolling the dice, before the player places them on the relevant spaces on the Terminal. This mitigates (but doesn't eliminate) the random hand of luck, giving player agency and decisions to make. Secondly, it gives the player an equivalent to the Imperial decision-making processes throughout the turn – their decisions at this stage affect how the Gargant will behave. +

+ The Command Terminal has a number of negative effects on the Krew spaces – No Full Stride, for example, in one of the boxes on the legs. You ignore these effects by covering them with Krew; so there's no additional book-keeping: you apply only what you can see at the time. A fully-crewed Gargant is a fearsome thing! +

+ Ork players must decide where, and how many, mobs will be assigned to a region. Need to move quickly? Better get enough krew down in the legs, and ensure a good-quality mob are manning the head so the order will go through. Just won a proper scrap? Make sure you max out the Krew in the body, as they're better able to stoke or vent the boiler, or effect repairs throughout the Gargant. And if you just need something killed, load up the gun decks as well as the main weapons! +

+ Ork Gargants make a virtue of their relative lack of sophistication. They're got heavy armour and a long damage track, and critical damage doesn't have a chance of one-shot killing them. There are, Imperial players will be relived to hear, a number of downside to this, however. Damage modifiers come in early and build up quickly. Fires can break out and occupy the Krew spaces. Unlike Krew, fires don't cancel the negative effects, so even one fire in a region can be a pain. Worse, if you've packed the krew into a region too tightly, they'll get consumed by the fires, making your job of managing the Gargant that much harder. +

+ In the early game, Gargants will have krew and shields to spare – but unlike their Imperial equivalents, there's no way to replace or repair them. Krew can be killed off throughout the game as a result of damage, fires or critical effects, so as the game goes on, you'll have to make difficult decisions on what to prioritise. This diminishing pool mechanic means that orks are encouraged to be aggressive – though this needs to be balanced against keeping the Boiler in the green, too. Ork Power Fields might be strong and effective, but if the Boiler's under strain or too cold, their effectiveness will waver (I like to picture the lights in the Gargant dimming and brightening as the boiler struggles). Also, unlike the relatively reliable servitor clades of Imperial Titans, ork bosses have a zero-sum game of managing repairs and the boiler (reactor) alongside the basic functions of moving and shooting. +

+ Trying to strike the right balance of getting the boiler in the right place is engaging and fun. If you're planning on doing lots in a turn, you might want to vent the boiler to a greater extent – but that will temporarily drop the protection the shields offer until you can activate and start pushing... giving your opponent a chance to strike while you're building up a head of steam. +

+++

+ First playtest findings +

+ The first playtest saw the Great Gargant fell the Warlord, before being destroyed in turn by the Reaver. More importantly, it was a lot of fun! +

+ I was concerned that the Krew would add too much complication to the game, but I'm pleased to report that it felt about right. While there's a bit more thinking in the Strategy phase, the mechanic itself is quick and intuitive, and fills a few gaps that account for other mechanics. +

+ It all felt rather orky – and rest assured that doesn't just mean random. There are meaningful decisions to make. The real test, however, would be using it in a proper game.+

+ Second playtest findings +

+ The Gargant mob above faced a Warlord and two Reavers of Legio Sumer-Nikator. I'm afraid I didn't take any pictures of the game, as I wanted to concentrate on enjoying this rare chance to play with my brother and nephews. +

+ I got some really good feedback, and I was pleasantly surprised that no hiccoughs or odd interactions seemed to arise. The main thing, though, is that we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and had big grins on our faces throughout – probably the best result all-round! 

+ Victory went to the orks. Zodwort's Revenge was ablaze from stem to stern (though not quite out of the fight), while Waaagharella and Orktimus Prime had felled one Reaver. The Imperial battlegroup was thoroughly beaten up, but the result was close, and tense. +

+ Thanks to all involved, and hope you enjoy playtesting the rules further. +

+++

+ 'Ere we go! +

+ inload: Engine War – Gargants for Adeptus Titanicus IV: Command Terminals +

+ Great Gargant Command Terminal +

+ This project is one to develop a set of fun rules for ork gargants in Adeptus Titanicus. If you're fresh to this, feel free to browse the related inloads below:

+ Related inloads +

+ General abstract [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+]

+ Fires [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+]

+ Krew [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+]

+ Playtesting +

+ For those who've been following, lets get stuck into the practical, which will allow you to playtest Orks in Adeptus Titanicus. Waaagh! + 

+ Here's version 0.2 of the Great Gargant Command Terminal:

+ Much of it will be familiar to players of Adeptus Titanicus, but for those who want to try playtesting it prior to the tidied-up 'release' (a bit of a grand term!), you'll need a few notes below. +

+++

+ Suggested models +

+ If you wish to playtest Engine War: Orks in Adeptus Titanicus, then first off, thanks! I'd love to hear how you find it, and welcome any feedback on your playtesting. In terms of models to use, I suggest you try a 40k ork Gorkanaut/Morkanaut, or an Epic Mega Gargant as a proxy for the Great Gargant, or guidance on intended size. 

With that said, Gargants are very variable – as long as it's roughly comparable in height to a Warlord Titan, and you use a base identical in size to the Warlord Titan's oval, you shouldn't run into any awkward bits. If you do, let me know. +

+ Terminology +

+ For clarity, I've tried to keep the language as similar as possible to the Adeptus Titanicus rulebook for the Gargant rules themselves, and restrict orky terms to background text, or for new unique rules – for example, 'Krew'; in order to distinguish this mechanic from background references to crew. +

+ It does throw up a few bits and bobs that sound off – I imagine an ork Kaptin's 'Power to Stabilisers' order would probably involve rather more colourful language, for example. In these instances, I encourage you to substitute appropriate jargon – 'Full Steam Ahead!' rather than Pushing the reactor, 'Scrag dose Zoggas!' in place of First Fire, for example. Just make sure the other player(s) are clear what you mean before you make any rolls! +

+ In the text below, any rules are presented in a different typeface, for ease of reference: 

Note: This is an example of how Rules text appears.

+ Machine Spirit +

+ Orks have a pragmatic and experimental approach to both engineering and religion. If pressed, most orks will agree that a Gargant is a body for Gork or possibly Mork, but they tend to admire rather than worship the Gargants directly. Gargants also tend to lack any sort of universal systems akin to an Imperial Mind-Impulse Unit; instead relying on a command deck crew like a naval cruiser. This crew will invariably contain a Kaptin, who commands the Gargant; a flagboss, who relays orders both within the Gargant and to nearby Gargants; and various other important cronies and henchmen of the Kaptin. +

+ As a result, Ork Gargants do not have Machine Spirits, instead relying on an array of wheels, levers, buttons, valves and tubes to get things done. However, things can – and do – go wrong; generally for the worst, but occasionally for the benefit of the Gargant. +

Machine Spirit: Ork Gargants do not have Machine Spirits. When Pushing the Reactor, a Cog result on the die will result in the Boiler Pressure venting unexpectedly.  Move the Boiler Pressure marker D6 spaces downwards. If it cannot move downwards, move it as far as possible, then start a Fire in a region determined by rolling the Location die.

+ Shields +

+ The technologies behind ork Power Fields are many and varied; some making a partially visible sheen, superficially similar to Imperial voids; others projecting great bubbles of gravitational force that turn the surrounding air hazy and greasy; still others relying on blunt but reliable ablative reactive counter-measures – that is, controlled explosions that blow incoming projectiles out of the sky (generally to the appreciative whoops of the orks around it.) +

+ What is universal is that Power Fields are powered by brutally powerful generators, usually reliant on the Gargant's engine room, which are run until sufficient energy is absorbed or deflected to cause the generator to fail – sometimes spectacularly. +

Power Fields: Ork Power Fields are treated in an identical manner to Void Shields, except that they always provide a 4+ save, and cannot be repaired. 

When making Power Field saves, if more than one dice shows a '1' result, a generator has blown spectacularly. The shield(s) is/are knocked down as normal, and a fire marker is started in an area determined by rolling the location die. 

At the start of the game, place a marker at the top of the Power Field track, and move it downwards after each failed save. When the last Power Field save is failed, remove the marker – the shields blow out as for Imperial Void Shields.

+ Krew + 

+ The Krew area on the Command Terminal represents the number of mobs of oilers, riggers, stokers, meks, runtherds, gunners and assorted enthusiastic hangers-on that make up the crew of all Gargants. Gargant krew mobz may be made up of the mekboyz and spannaz that built the Gargant, intimately familiar with its workings and able to repair and tune it on the go. They may equally be made up of press-ganged slaves, orks nursing hangovers, or enthusiastic but inept Wildboyz. +

+ A Gargant will carry dozens or hundreds of orks and gretchin, but greenskins aren't the most organised of species. As a result, unless properly 'motivated' by an nob overseer, they will tend to get bored and wander off to peer out of portholes at the battle, or try to wrestle their way into having a go on one of the deck gunz. A network of shouting tubes allows the Kaptin to assign his krew where he wishes – most of the time. + 

Krew are represented by dice rolled during the strategy phase, which can be assigned to the marked spaces on each area of the Gargant. The Krew dice are used just like markers on the Command Terminal, and should be kept with the same face upwards.

Assigning Krew: Krew dice are moved from the Krew area to the marked spaces on the Command Terminal during the course of the turn. For example, if the Kaptin wishes to make a special order, a Krew die must be assigned to the Head. Once a Krew dice has been assigned, it cannot be moved or reassigned.

Krew quality: The number rolled indicates the quality of the krew in the mob. In the End Phase, they can be used to repair or fight fires: the higher the number, the more reliable and useful the krew.

+ The Gun Decks +

+ In addition to the mighty primary weapons on the arms and belly, most gargants sport half a dozen or more additional turrets on their shoulders, clustered on the front of the torso, and occasionally on the head. The krew often congregate on the gun decks, brawling over who gets to fire the guns, and who has to help load and carry ammunition. Relatively exposed, the orks and gretchin here can enjoy basking in the glory of the battle from a great vantage point – though they need to watch out for stray shots! +

Gundecks: A Gargant's secondary guns can be fired by Krew assigned here (see command terminal). When rolling the location dice, a Special result indicates the gundecks are hit; assign the damage to the Krew area. Fires cannot start in the Gundecks – instead assign one point of damage to the Krew area.

+ The Boiler +

+ No two Gargants are alike. Gargants are powered by a dizzying array of different motive systems rather than the largely standardised Plasma Reactor of an Imperial Titan. The sheer power required to move a Gargant on a war footing means that the boiler thrums with barely-contained energies. As more fuel is added, the ever-present roar of the Boiler is joined by increasingly loud sounds of strain – venting steam, yelling mekboyz, and the ping of rivets popping across the cavernous space. +

Boiler: A Gargant's Boiler is treated in much the same way as an Imperial Plasma Reactor. When pushed – in order to fire weapons with the draining quality, or to put Power to Stabilisers, for example, move the counter upwards. 

+++

+ Addenda to the Core Rules +

When playing with Orks, the following additional rules apply.

+ Strategy Phase +

'Ere We Go: Orks may re-roll failed Full Stride or Charge Orders.

Organising da Krew: After rolling for initiative, the ork player should roll a die for each free (i.e. undamaged) space on the Krew area of the Command Terminal, then place the dice on the Krew area. 

Orders: Prior to rolling for orders, the ork player may assign Krew to the head. 

HEAD  

No Krew: The order roll is made with a -1 modifer. 

One or two Krew: The order roll is made as normal. 

Three or more Krew: The order roll is made with a +1 modifier.

+++

+ Movement Phase +

Krew may be assigned to any area on the Command Terminal at any point during the Gargant's activation. 

BODY 

+ Gargants are towering mountains of rivetted metal and reinforced plate, within which are crawl-spaces, gathering points, access to the various weapon decks and a colossal magazine for storing the shells, replacement energy cabling and other ammunition that keeps it firing. The body also houses the bulk of a gargant's colossal energy storage chamber – generally referred to as a 'boiler', though the exact source of power can range from coal to esoteric minerals to drop-fusion, depending on the Mekboss's design – which is fuelled via the Engine Room below. +

Krew in the Body have no effect beyond being able to attempt to Fight Fires or Repair damage in the Repair phase. 

ENGINE ROOM

No Krew: The Gargant may not declare Power to Stabilisers or Power to Locomotors.
One or more Krew: No special effects.

GUN DECKS 

Rules for Krew in the gun decks are covered on the Gargant's command terminal. 

WEAPONS

[Rules pending – for the moment, I suggest you use the Warlord Titan Weapon cards with the following Krew rules:
No Krew: Attack Rolls are made at an additional -1.
One or two Krew: No special effects.
Three or more Krew: The weapon gains the Maximal Fire trait.]

+++

+ Damage Control Phase +

If a Gargant's Boiler Pressure is in a hole with an orange or red indicator when it is activated in this phase, it is at risk of failure. Roll on the Boiler Failure table below:

1–2: Pfft: The boiler goes out. Apply the rules for Shutdown orders to the Gargant.3–5: Boiler leak: The Gargant suffers a strength 9 hit to the body, bypassing Power Fields.
6–8: Minor explosion: The Gargant suffers D3 strength 9 hits to the body, bypassing Power Fields. In addition, A Fire immediately starts in an area determined by the location die.
9–10: Towering Inferno: The Gargant suffers D3 strength 9 hits to the body, bypassing Power Fields. In addition, D3 Fires immediately start in a single area determined by the location die.

Fixin' fings: Each Krew marker may be used to make a repair action. There is no need to roll: simply apply the result already on the Krew die.

• Repair disabled weapon (X) – see Weapon card.
• Vent boiler (4+) Move the Boiler Pressure marker down one space.
• Repair Critical Damage (5+) 
• Fight Fires (5+)

+++

+ Combat Phase +

[Critical damage rules pending.]

+ End Phase +

Fires: In the end phase, roll a D6 for each area of the Gargant that contains at least one Fire marker. If the total is greater than the number of Fire markers in that area (or the result is a 6 regardless of the number of fires) the fire does not spread, and nothing happens. If the total is equal to or lower that the number of Fire markers, the fire spreads. Add another Fire marker to the area. If the region is filled with Fire markers, it will spread to another area – roll the location die to find the area.

Boiler Pressure: If there are no Krew in the Engine Room, the Boiler Pressure drops D3 spaces.