40K - Should I .... or not? Where to start?

The dislike of Tau isn't terribly prevalent anymore these days, and much of it is mostly in jest. Everyone hates every army they don't play in 40k, except maybe the Orks. Besides, they aren't very overpowered these days. 8th edition is the horde edition, and is favouring forces like the Imperial Guard, Orks, and Tyranids more then last edition, which favoured Death Stars and powerful shooting armies, like the Tau. Much of the current dislike for Tau mostly stems from the massive range and shooting power the larger battlesuits have. Some can more or less shoot anything from anywhere on the board. Since this isn't nearly as much of an advantage as it was last edition, the remaining salt will probably die down eventually.

 

The fish of fury is the tabel top equivalent of a Vietnam flashback.

 

We live in a world where people worship the Kardashians, is this really such a stretch?

 

Genestealer cults are sect created by Tyranid infiltration organisms, namely the Genestealers. Every once in a while, a Tyranid hive fleet will send out clusters of minor void faring organism, containing plenty of Genestealers. These cargo's of Genestealers are meant to find new planets that the hive fleet can devour.

Genestealers are incredibly intelligent lifeforms that can operate without the need to be close to the hive mind. Their main role is to act as a vanguard for the main Tyranid assault, and they do so by infiltrating socities and military compounds and wreaking havoc. Genestealers are most feared for their ability to hide, plan and attack when you least except it.

How are Genestealer cults created? Well, Genestealers are also outfitted with a "stinger" that have a extremely flexible DNA code, so they can create offspring with close to all living, non Tyranid, lifeforms. This offspring takes characteristics from the host species, but is still clearly a Genestealer, but after a few generations, the genestealer hybrids are close to indistinguishable from others of the host species. These hybrids are completely loyal to their Tyranid masters, and view them as star gods. These cults are always hiding the best they can, and when they reach critical mass, they will come out of hiding and try to seize control of the planet. They don't always use brute force to try and get control of a planet, some of them become high ranking officers in the Emperium, and end up causing unending chaos.

After a certain amount of generations of genestealer mutants have been born, they don't birth more hybrids, but pure-strain genestealers instead. The parents of the pure genestealers don't see them as monsters, but sweet little angles instead, that must be protected at all cost. This is referred to as the 'curse of the genestealer', when you don't see a monster anymore, but a loved one.

The most dangerous thing about a cult is their leader, The Patriach. An enormous genestealer with great psychic might, that acts as the puppet master of the entire cult. The genestealer Patriachs are considered the most dangerous Tyranid lifeform by the Emperium, for it's ability to destroy entire worlds without the help from a hive fleet.

As the strange alchemy of the alien's life cycle takes hold, that first creature to infect a host on a new planet grows ever larger and more potent. Much as an alpha simian becomes heavier and grows outward signs of dominance to mark its ascendance, the Patriarch's body bulks out, its claws lengthening until they are more like bony sabres than simple talons. The creature's mind develops too, filling with strange telepathic energies until its engorged cranium bulges fit to burst. At first, its instincts are only to survive and to procreate, and its abilities develop accordingly. Eventually, however, the Genestealer's uncanny ability to enthrall its prey burgeons into a suite of telepathic abilities that can bind a person to its service with but a flicker of its cold, inhuman eyes.

 

Mostly what @Captaniser said, but also that there are 4 main generations of Genestealer Cultists and several offshoots:
1. The first generation of Acolyte Hybrids are born from the result of the Patriarch implanting non-Tyranid lifeforms with his DNA. These are born in various ways depending on the life-form infected, but they are always the initial offspring. They have little resemblance to their host parents, just looking like a smaller Genestealer with 3 arms rather than 4 and wearing scraps of clothing.
2. The second generation of Acolytes are born from the first-generation Acolytes interbreeding with more of the native population. Again, they show little resemblance to the host race, although they resemble them more than the first-gen Acolytes, often showing more of a tendency to wear clothing.
3. The offspring of these Acolytes are the third-generation Hybrids, the first Neophytes, who have a much greater resemblance to the host race, only having a bald, ridged forehead and possibly an alien tongue or some other weird feature to identify them as a Hybrid. These are vastly different from their parents in that they are the first generation that can actively infiltrate the host race because they look so much like them - those that infiltrate humans will most often join the Imperial Guard or work in the mines or manufactora, for example, most often being so difficult to tell apart from ordinary humans that Genestealer Cults can ally with Imperial Guard (or at least they could in 6th/7th Edition). Furthermore, while the Cult is hidden it will gladly ally with the Imperial Guard stationed on the planet to combat common threats that attempt to take over the prey world, such as Chaos Space Marines, Tau and Orks.
4. The offspring of these will result in the 4th generation Hybrids. These Neophytes are almost exactly like members of the host race, the only way in which they differ from them being that they are pale in complexion and have bald heads. That’s it. These will blend further into the host race’s society even than their parents.
5. When they reproduce, the offspring are not Hybrids, but original purestrain Genestealers, thus causing the family tree to go full circle as these Genestealers will attempt to become Patriarchs of their own cults by stowing away on freighters and even warships bound for other planets belonging to the host race. A Cult’s presence on a prey world acts like a magnet to Tyranid Hive Fleets, which will immediately change course and head towards the planet when it senses the Cult’s activity. At the same time, the Patriarch will sense the Hive Fleet approaching the Cult’s planet and will lead the cult on a full-scale rebellion against the prey. The Cult will attack the Imperial Guardsmen that it previously sided with and the streets will be filled with Cultists and Acolytes who now display their Genestealer attributes. When the Tyranids arrive, they will see the Cult soldiers as other warrior-organisms and join their fight against the prey, overwhelming them from all sides. However, as soon as the last members of the prey are dead, the Tyranids and the Acolytes will turn on the Neophytes, as their job of infiltrating the prey race has now been completed, and the Neophytes will be devoured along with the comrades they deceived only a few hours earlier.
6. Aberrants are exceptional cases of Hybrids that are born with exceptional physical strength and a minuscule mental capacity. These are kept within the Cult’s HQ as bodyguards and enforcers that are used to muscle in whenever trouble breaks out in the Cult’s territory or whenever enemies come calling. They are given Power Hammers and Power Picks that they can wield with brutal ferocity and are also quite resilient because they had Feel No Pain in 6th/7th, which is basically the 40K equivalent of Regeneration without the vulnerability to Flaming Attacks.
7. Acolyte Metamorphs are Acolytes that start to grow Tyranid-like mutations when a Hive Fleet approaches the prey world, such as Lash Whips and Carnifex Crushing Claws that they can use with terrifying vigour against the forces of the prey world.
8. The Magi are special cases of Neophytes who are born with a greater intellect than their kin and powerful psychic abilities, who act as preachers among the Hybrids, dealing out sermons to their brothers that get the most to fight with renewed ferocity as well as controlling the minds of their enemies.
9. Last but not least, the Primus is a Neophyte who is born close to the time of the coming of the Tyranids whose role is that of the overall strategist and military commander of the forces of the Cult - while the Patriarch is the brawn and the charisma that incites the rebellion, the Primus is the brains of the uprising.

Hope this gives you a greater insight into the insidious Genestealer Cults...

 

Yes the ‘Special’ Neophytes like the Magus are devoured as well and although the majority will be killed on the spot without them realising, those that survive the initial killing will most likely feel betrayed and will attempt to fight back, but there will be so few of them that they will be easy prey.

 

So, for anybody interested, a new battle box of necron vs admech is on the way. Should someone start a 40k news thread?

 

They usually try and fight back when they realize that the Hive Mind and Patriarch were, in fact, bullshitting them and that they're being consumed as indiscriminately as everybody else, though at this point they've usually weakened the planetary defense forces, and themselves, so much that there's basically no hope for survival unless outside intervention arrives in time, which the aforementioned Shadow in the Warp of the Tyranids makes it extremely difficult to call for. Not sure about the Patriarch and the Purestrains, actually. I guess they just join the Swarm, and become a Broodlord and his Genestealers? Or maybe they're devoured as well? Was never to clear on that. With the silly patriarch model we used to have, I'd assume that it'd be eaten, but now it's stats and aesthetic are very similar to a Broodlord, so unless there was some definitive statement on it I missed, I think it'd up in the air. God, I love that old Patriarch model, the thing reeks of the early 90s. Reminds of my old Slann to, the one getting carried around on his throne by the Saurus. Two fat bastards in chairs with magical powers. Also somewhat of note are their familiars, apparently little constructs of bone, blood, and chitin that follow the Patriarch and Magi around, boosting their psychic power by....helping them concentrate? Was never very clear on that. Think they used to be able to attack or something, though I rarely if ever play against Genestealers so I'm rather unclear on their exact mechanics.

 

The Patriarch and the remaining Purestrains go to found more Genestealer Cults I believe. The Familiars do all sorts of things - they assist the Patriarch and Magi with their psychic powers and protect them from harm lorewise. Game wise I’ve forgotten what they do, but I have the 6th/7th Ed codex so I’ll look them up.

It is true! I wasn’t sure if it was just a rumour because it surfaced on Necrontyr Online a long while ago, but I wasn’t sure if GW were really doing such a boxed game or not. If it is true, I would certainly consider getting it unless it is really expensive, £100 or something like that. Otherwise, I would consider getting it because it would come with an 8th Ed rulebook too. Don’t know what I would do with the AdMech, perhaps convert them into more Necrons, Flayed Ones or something.

 

Beautiful, beautiful! Although probably ridiculously expensive

But finally, the alien races getting some glory once more! Would buy that set over Dark Imperium any day!

 

Thats pretty neat looking. I think I like the necron dudes who have one eye instead of the skulls terminator-skulls.

It looks like they are just the regular models repackaged in a new box though (except for the necron character and the light imperial knights); does this mean that this kit won't be an easy-to-assemble version?

 

I think so. Probably a 40K version of Blightwar with more interesting factions.

 

Boom

 

relevant to forgebane

 

Well, just realized that I replied to the start of the thread for some reason, so that post never happened.