RED ELF
SPECIAL RULES
ACTS OF FAITH

Ecclesiarchal armies are driven by their fanatical devotion to the Imperial Cult. They loudly proclaim their faith in hymn and prayer as they march into battle, calling upon the Emperor's name for aid against His enemies. Such is the perfervid, unquestioning nature of their belief that collectively they can cause miraculous phenomenon to manifest. There are those amongst the Administratum who claim such things are simply mass hysteria brought about by the trauma of battle, while others maintain that it is a form of collective psychic projection. It is enough for the Ecclesiarchy simply to know that the Emperor marches alonside their armies and those who doubt His almighty power are fools of the worst kind. Those who have witnessed its effects simply know that faith can be a potent weapon indeed.

  • The army begins with 0 Faith points. Including certain characters or units adds to the army's number of Faith points.

  • The loss of characters or units that contributed Faith points adds their Faith points to the army total a second time. These Acts of Martyrdom thus help build the overall level of faith.

  • A note should be made of the army's current Faith points. Alternatively, markers can be used to help keep count.

  • A unit of Seraphim or a unit currently containing a character that has contributed Faith points is called a Faithful unit. Only Faithful units can benefit from Acts of Faith.
USING ACTS OF FAITH

Each Act of Faith performed costs one Faith point. The Act of Faith is performed as a Leadership test by each affected unit. No members of the army count as being Psykers. The following effects can be produced by Acts of Faith:

Spirit of the Martyr

The candles flickered as the Sanctum door was quietly opened. The Adeptus Sororitas novice padded softly across the marble floor through the cloud of incense, standing respectfully behind the kneeling Sister Superior. She waited patiently for acknowledgement.

'Yes, my child?' asked Sister Superior Candida without looking up from her devotions.

'The mob approaches. Sister.' whispered the novice, her voice betraying her unease. 'It will be at the gates soon.'

Sister Candida was remained kneeling as concluded her prayers.

'Give us strength, Divine Lord. May your will be done.'

She stood, turning from the effigy of the Emperor to face the young novice. 'Fear not, my child. The Emperor is with us. We shall prevail.'

+++

The stout, wooden doors of the cathedral were thrown open as the Battle Sisters marched onto its steps, chanting hymns to the Emperor and raising their ritually blessed weapons of faith. Bolter shells rained down the steps and arcane weaponry spouted cleansing fire. High above, the angelic forms of the Seraphim dropped from the dark, towering spires, bolt pistols spitting death.

Sister Superior Candida stood at the top of the marble steps, her bolter kicking in her arms as she pumped shell after shell into the heretics. The light from inside the cathedral framed her in a glowing halo of brilliance.

'Death to the defilers!'

This Act is used after determining how many wounds are inflicted against a Faithful unit after armour saving throws (if any) are taken from a single enemy unit's attacks. The Act does not protect against shooting hits that cause instant kills or close combat hits that prohibit armour saves. The Act grants each wounded model a 4+ save against each hit taken. Any models that make the save struggle to their feet, heroically, ignoring the wounds inflicted on them. They are one with the Emperor and will die when he is ready to accept them. The Act can be used only once in response to taking hits from a given enemy unit.

Divine Guidance

This Act is used after a Faithful unit has rolled to hit but before they have rolled to wound. This can be used during shooting or in close combat. Any roJI to wound of a 6 will bypass the defender's armour save. If the attack allows no armour save anyway then no further benefit occurs. Units affected by this power find their shots and/or blows striking weak spots in their enemies' armour through sheer good fortune. The Act can only be used once for a given unit after resolving its hits during shooting or in an assault.

The Passion

This Act can be used in the Shooting phase of a Faithful unit. Instead of shooting it must fleet of foot towards the nearest visible enemy if not already in melee and must assault in the Assault phase if it can. If fighting in an assault, all models are at +2 Initiative and have +1 Attack for the remainder of the turn in which the Act of Faith is used. The Passion is the last refuge for the faithful, in which they give themselves up entirely to holy fervour and rush at the enemy in a zealous fury. This Act can only be attempted by any given unit once in any given Shooting phase.

Light of the Emperor

This Act can be used at the start of any friendly player's turn and will potentially affect all Faithful units on the table. It takes effect whenever a fleeing Faithful unit has an opportunity to regroup. The usual criteria for regrouping must still be met, with the exception that it does not matter if the unit is below half strength. The Faithful unit automatically regroups even if it is below half strength. Despite their terror, the fleeing troops recall that the only thing the faithful need fear is to fail the Emperor of Mankind. Filled with contrition, they turn to confront the Emperor's enemies in His name.