Signatures3

Shadow Masters. The gang declares and shifts a single Combat Doctrine each round, as any Astartes force does. Over that engine the Raven Guard run two permanent riders, and the riders make the war their own. First: a larger share of the gang than normal may hidden-deploy — set up infiltrated, out of line of sight, or held in reserve — so the strike force arrives on ground the enemy believed was empty. Second: any fighter that has made a Shoot or Fight action may Hit-and-Run, an immediate free short Move away from the enemy, breaking contact the instant the blow is struck. No token, no currency. Only deployment and action, read the Raven Guard way — the strike from shadow, and the fade before the answer lands.

Combat Doctrines. The disciplined heart of the Astartes way of war, and the mechanic that sets a Chapter apart from any warhost that merely brings guns to a fight. At the start of each round the controlling player declares the strike force's stance, which may shift one step along the ladder from Devastator to Tactical to Assault. Under the Devastator stance the gang fires with lethal precision, adding to its ranged Hit rolls or re-rolling misses. Under the Tactical stance the brethren move with purpose, gaining ground and seizing objectives. Under the Assault stance they close for the kill, striking harder on the charge and running down a fleeing foe. A Chapter cannot hold every advantage at once; it flows through the phases of battle as its commanders read the field, and each brotherhood leans toward the end of the ladder that suits its character.

Finest Hour. Once in a battle, a commander seizes the moment the whole war seems to turn upon and drives his brethren to their greatest effort. Once per battle a Captain or Lieutenant may call upon it. Until the start of the next round the commander himself gains an additional Attack, and every friendly fighter within 6" re-rolls failed Wound rolls, the strike force striking as one at the instant it matters most. It is a single, decisive surge rather than a lasting boon — spent in the crisis of the fight, it does not come again. A wise commander holds it for the stroke that breaks the enemy rather than the one that merely bloodies him.