The mission on the opposite page has been sent to me by Laurence Sinclair, a puritanical Sisters of

Battle player who also helpfully included a number of threats to try to bring forward the Sisters of
Battle Codex. Acta non verba, Laurence. One of Laurences concerns about not having a Codex for
the Sisters was that they no longer got the benefits of offering their prayers to the Emperor at the
start of the battle. Gav has already been doing some preliminary work for the Sisters, including a new
Sacred Rites table, which Ive filched from his desk to give you a look.

SACRED RITES
By Gav Thorpe
Before the fighting begins, the Sisters of Battle kneel
in prayer, offering their thanks to the Emperor and
asking for His protection and guidance. The Battle
Sisters are invigorated and emboldened by
their prayers, instilled with grim courage and
determination to overcome their foes.
Any Sisters of Battle infantry units (ie. not vehicles)
may take part in these Sacred Rites at the start of a
battle. For each unit, roll a dice on the Sacred Rites
table to see what effect their prayers have. Higher
ranking members of the Adepta Sororitas inspire
greater acts of selfless sacrifice and dedication, and
so may add a bonus to the dice roll, as listed below
(only apply the highest modifier):

Sacred Rites Table

D6

Character
Sacred Rites bonus
Canoness
+3
Celestian Superior
+2
Veteran Sister Superior
+1
Note: For a Canoness or Celestian Superior to lead
a squad in the Sacred Rites, the character must be
set up with the squad at the start of the battle.
If the character leading the squad in the Sacred Rites
subsequently leaves the unit, any benefit from the
Sacred Rites is lost for the rest of the battle the unit
will think they are being abandoned by the Emperor!
Note that this does not happen if the character is
killed whilst with the unit they become martyrs! The
unit also loses its Sacred Rites if another character
takes over leadership of the unit.
The results of the Sacred Rites apply to all members
of the squad and any characters who start the battle
with them, including the character leading the Sacred
Rites.

Effect

No effect.

The unit never counts as

outnumbered in an assault.

The unit cannot be pinned.

The unit ignores any negative

modifiers on Morale checks and
Pinning tests.

The unit may re-roll any failed

Morale check.

The unit may always attempt to

regroup, with no restrictions.

The unit never falls back and is

automatically assumed to pass
any Morale check it is required
to make.

In close combat, the unit always

hits on a 3+, regardless of
relative Weapon Skills.

All models in the unit add +1 to

their Attacks for the duration of
the battle.

The Assassins mission has unique Force Organisation charts to represent the facts that the
defender would naturally have his best soldiers guarding his commander and that the attacker is
mounting a lightning raid.

DEFENDER

ATTACKER
COMPULSORY
1 Troops

OPTIONAL
2 HQ
4 more Troops
1 Heavy
Support
3 Elites
3 Fast Attack

TROOPS
TROOPS

74

COMPULSORY
1 HQ
1 Elites

ELITES

HQ

OPTIONAL
3 more Elites
6 Troops
1 Fast Attack
2 Heavy
Support

HEAVY
SUPPORT
FAST
ATTACK

ELITES

HQ

FAST
ATTACK

TROOPS

TROOPS

HEAVY
SUPPORT

SISTERS OF BATTLE
To further offset the abominable machinations of Chaos, here is a further sneak preview for the Sisters of
Battle, penned by the just and pure (ish) Gav Thorpe. You may recall we previously published the Sisters
Sacred Rites. This time were going to take a trip to their armoury and take a peek at the specialist gear they
have for bashing aliens, traitors and heretics.

SISTERS OF BATTLE ARMOURY

Characters may have up to two single-handed weapons, or one single-handed weapon and one two-handed
weapon. In addition you may pick 100 points worth of items of Wargear. You may not take duplicate items for the
same model. The rules for items marked with a * can be found in Codex Space Marines.

WARGEAR

SINGLE HAND WEAPONS

Blade of Admonition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
Bolt pistol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 pt
Brazier of Holy Fire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
Close combat weapon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 pt
Flail of Chastisement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 pts
Plasma pistol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
Power fist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
Power weapon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts
Praesidium Protectiva (i) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
(independent characters only ii)

TWO HANDED WEAPONS

Axe of Retribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts
Bolter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 pts
Combi-weapons:
bolter-flamer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts*
bolter-grenade launcher . . . . . . . 10 pts*
bolter-plasma gun . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts*
bolter-meltagun. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts*

Bionics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts*
Book of Saint Lucius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts
Cloak of Saint Aspira . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 pts
(independent characters only ii) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Frag grenades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 pt
Rosarius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 pts*
(independent characters only ii)
Jump pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts
(independent characters only ii)
Krak grenades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 pts
Litanies of Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 pts
Master-crafted weapon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts*
Melta bombs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 pts
Purity seals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 pts*
Sacred Banner of the Order Militant (iii) . . . . 60 pts
(Banner Bearer only)
Sacred Standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 pts
(Banner Bearer only)
Simulacrum Imperialis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
(Banner Bearer or independent characters only ii)
Notes
i - Although not a weapon as such, a Praesidium Protectiva
must be carried in one hand.
ii - Note that Veteran Sister Superiors and Banner Bearers
are not independent characters.
iii - Only armies of 2,000 points or more may take a Sacred
Banner of the Order.

SISTERS OF BATTLE
VEHICLE UPGRADES
Any Sisters of Battle vehicles may be fitted with the
additional equipment listed here. Any upgrades must
be shown on the vehicle model. No duplicates may be
taken for the same vehicle. Rules for upgrades marked
with a * can be found in Codex Space Marines.

80

Dozer blade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 pts*

Extra armour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 pts*
Holy Icon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts
Hunter-killer missile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 pts*
Pintle-mounted storm bolter. . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 pts*
Searchlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 pt*
Smoke launchers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 pts*

SISTERS OF BATTLE WARGEAR

The rules below describe how all of the specialised equipment used by the Sisters of Battle works in the game. Any items not listed here
function as described in Codex Space Marines or the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook.

Axe of Retribution
An Axe of Retribution is modelled upon the
Axe of Chalcydon that was carried by Saint
Jason when he crushed the Eldar on Huale.
It has a massive double-bladed head that is
studded with jewels which rend at the flesh
of those it strikes. An Axe of Retribution
must be wielded in both hands, and so may
not be combined with an additional close
combat weapon for +1 Attack. An Axe of
Retribution doubles the users Strength
when rolling to wound in an assault.

Blade of Admonition
The Blade of Admonition is made from the
finest metals and is polished to a mirror
finish. Those who look into its blade are said
to see their true selves. The Blade of
Admonition is treated as a power weapon.
In addition, any models in base contact or
within 2" of the bearer at the end of the
assault phase are not counted when seeing
if one side outnumbers the other.

Book of Saint Lucius

This great tome contains the many writings
and sermons of St. Lucius of Agatha, a
zealous and renowned Confessor. Certain
passages can be read aloud from the book,
inspiring those nearby to great acts of
heroism. Any unit with a model within 12" of
the bearer of the Book of St. Lucius may
use the bearers Leadership value for any
Morale checks or Pinning tests they are
required to take.

Brazier of Holy Fire

This holy artefact is said to light the faces of
the faithful and leave the impure shrouded
in darkness. In battle the Brazier can be
wielded like a weapon in close combat and
contains enough fuel to spray a jet of flames
at the enemy. The Brazier of Holy Fire
counts as a close combat weapon. In
addition, it may be used once per battle like
a heavy flamer. All of the normal rules for a
heavy flamer apply.

Cloak of Saint Aspira

Canoness St. Aspira of the Order of the
Bloody Rose led her Battle Sisters in a War
of Faith that liberated nearly a hundred
worlds from the grip of the blasphemous
tyrant Denescura. She wore a magnificent
cloak of velvet and fur, that was blessed in

the Ecclesiarchal palaces on Terra and

warded away the blows of her enemies. A
model wearing the Cloak of St. Aspira adds
+1 to their armour save (giving a Sisters of
Battle character a 2+ save instead of 3+).

Flail of Chastisement
A Flail of Chastisement is barbed with many
hooks, which constrict around its victims as
they struggle, ripping skin and tearing flesh.
The Flail of Chastisement counts as a close
combat weapon. In addition, if a target is hit
by the Flail but not killed, it loses its next D3
Attacks (rolled immediately).

Litanies of Faith
The Litanies of Faith contain the entire
teachings of the Ecclesiarchy, since its
founding at the birth of the Imperium. It
takes a scribe his entire life to copy and
illuminate the Litanies of Faith, and the
hymnals and chants they contain fills the
Emperors servants with burning faith. The
Litanies of Faith allow the character to lead
a squad in more Sacred Rites, once per
battle. The character and squad may do
nothing for a whole turn and the unit must
not be engaged in close combat. You may
roll again on the Sacred Rites table at the
end of the turn and apply the result
immediately. This is in addition to any
Sacred Rites result generated at the start of
the battle. If you roll a duplicate result, you
may re-roll the dice. All other rules for the
Sacred Rites apply.

Sacred Banner of the Order Militant

Each of the six Orders Militant has its
Sacred Banner, which is only carried by the
most faithful and trusted Sisters of Battle.
They are ancient artefacts that date back to
the creation of the Order and are a source
of inspiration to all the Adepta Sororitas. A
Sisters of Battle unit with a model within 12"
of the Sacred Banner of the Order Militant
may roll three dice for any Morale check or
Pinning test they have to take, and discard
the highest dice.

Simulacrum Imperialis
These icons of the Ecclesiarchy were often
carried by one of the Imperiums many
Saints, or may even be wrought from their
bones. Any Sisters of Battle unit with a line
of sight to the Simulacrum Imperialis
automatically passes the first morale check
or pinning test it is required to take.

Sacred Standard
Add +1 to the Battle Sisters combat
resolution score of any assault that takes
place within 6" of the Sacred Standard.
However, if the model bearing the standard
is slain in close combat, then the enemy
model that slew her captures the standard,
and the enemy gets the bonus from then
on. It is possible for a standard to change
hands several times in a single battle, as
long as the model holding the standard is
slain in close combat each time.

Praesidium Protectiva
Believed to contain shards of the armour
worn by the Emperor himself, the
Praesidium Protectiva can be used to
defend against enemies assaulting the
bearer. A model equipped with a Praesidium
Protectiva may take a 4+ invulnerable save
in close combat, instead of its normal
armour save. The save may only be used
against one opponent per turn (the
defender chooses which), and may not be
combined with a rosarius save. In addition,
if a 6 is rolled for the saving throw, the blow
is reflected back on the
attacker roll to wound
and make armour saves
as if the enemy model had
hit itself!

VEHICLE
UPGRADES
Holy Icon
The vehicle mounts a suitably large
and impressive symbol of the
Ecclesiarchy. Any Sisters of Battle
unit within 6" of the vehicle may roll
three D6 for all Leadership tests
and use the lowest two rolls as
their score.

A Canoness bearing the Simulacrum Imperialis leads her Celestian squad in the defence of the monastery.

81