= Generic Warhammer rules

These are my simplified setup rules for **Warhammer 40,000**.
You might want to use these rules in at least 3 different scenarios:

1. You want to play **Warhammer 40,000** but you don't happen to be within easy reach of your data cards, rulebook, codex, lists of stratagems, balance updates, and so on. You just want to grab some Warhammer miniatures, put them on the table, and play a ruleset you know.
2. You're playing **Warhammer 40,000** solo, or you're still learning the game, and you're feeling overwhelmed by all the special rules specific to each unit in each army.
3. You own a bunch of miniatures that have no profiles in **Warhammer 40,000** . These are likely miniatures that aren't made by Citadel, or that are made by Citadel for a different system (such as **Age of Sigmar**).

These generic rules erase distinctions from each miniature, and uses broad categories to define profiles and special rules.
These rules are designed to relieve you of the mental load of remembering rules for every miniature on the table, and instead just play a game using the standard basic rules found in the **Warhammer 40,000** rulebook.

The design philosophy is simple.
Use standard profiles across the entire army, and make Critical effects dependent exclusively upon dice rolls.
The core mechanics and rules are otherwise unchanged.

== Profiles

Divide all miniatures in each army into 3 categories:

* *Troops*: Infantry, rank-and-file, the bulk of your army. Average profile.
* *Elite*: Brutes, heavy infantry, important figures within the army.
* *HQ*: Machines of war, including tanks, knights, and primarchs.

Each model's category ought to be visually obvious. In a Space Marine army, most of the army is Troops, while Terminators are Elite, and dedicated transports are HQ. In an Adeptus Mechanicus army, Skitarii are Troops, Magos are Elite, and chicken-walkers and transports are HQ. Don't over-think it. Use broad strokes to characterize the generalities of your army.

A typical army is 70% Troops, 20% Elite, 10% HQ.

* *For a small game*: For each HQ model in your army, you may have 1 unit of Elites and 2 units of soldiers.
* *For a big game*: For each HQ model in your army, you may have 2 unit of Elites and 3 units of soldiers.

== Army rules and detachments

Army rules and detachment rules are optional.

== Stratagems

Whether or not you use army rules and detachments, you may always use the standard stratagems included in the rulebook.

== Miniature profiles

Do not use the miniature profiles found in your codex.
Instead, each unit category has its own generic profile:

[%header,cols="2,1,1,1,1,1,1,2,1,2,1,1,1"]
|===
|Unit  |M |T |SV |W |LD |OC |Range |A |W/BS* |S |AP |D
|Troops|6"|3 |5+ |1 |7+ |1  |18"   |1 |4+    |4 |0  |1
7+|                         |Melee |1 |4+    |4 |0  |1
|Elite |6"|4 |4+ |3 |6+ |2  |24"   |2 |3+    |5 |-1 |1
7+|                         |Melee |1 |3+    |5 |-1 |1
|HQ    |8"|6 |3+ |6 |7+ |3  |48"   |3 |4+    |7 |-1 |d3
7+|                         |Melee |2 |4+    |7 |-1 |d3                                    
|===

You may grant each unit a distinctive trait:

* *Ballistic specialist*: Improve BS by 1
* *Weapon specialist*: Improve WS by 1
* *Damager*: +1 Damage
* *Improved range*: +12 Range on ranged weapons
* *Objective control*: +2 OC
* *Fast*: +2 Movement
* *Reckless*: +2 Charge
* *Penetrating*: Improve AP by 1
* *Fights first*: Fight first
* *Sniper*: Ignore cover
* *Warlord*: Friendly units within 3" may re-roll any dice result of 1
* *Invulnerable Save*: Roll your Armour Save, ignoring AP
* *Feel No Pain (4)*: Roll a 4+ after you are Wounded, and ignore the Wound upon success

If you can't be bothered to remember what unit has which trait, then you may choose a trait at the moment the unit is activated, each Round.
You must declare your choice to your oppononent, and each unit may only possess 1 trait each Round.

== Play

When you make an attack and roll of 6, roll 1d3 for a Critical effect:

1. *Lethal Hit*: Automatically score a wound (set this dice aside during the Wound roll, it's already a success!)
2. *Sustained Hits (2)*: Add 2 Hits to your result
3. *Sustained Hits (3)*: Add 2 Hits to your result

When you roll a 6 on a Wound roll, roll 1d3 for a Critical effect:

1. *Concussive*: Target unit must make an immediate Battle-shock test.
2. *Devastating Wound*: Ignores Save and Invulnerable Save (but respects Feel No Pain)
3. *Mortal Wound*: Excess damage must be assigned to another model in the unit

Aside from these two exceptions, play the game as described in the rulebook.

== Solo play

Because missions in **Warhammer 40,000** are extremely flexible, a standard AI system for enemies is impossible.
This is where role play is useful.
Consider the battlefield from the enemy's perspective, taking into account what the enemy knows about the "hero" troops, and what the enemy army wants to achieve for itself.
If a mission contains Objectives, then the enemy likely prioritizes those in the same way the hero army does.
For a mission in which the hero army is trying to reach a point on the board, however, the enemy does all it can to prevent the win condition by any means.

Use these principles when controlling an enemy unit, in order of priority:

* *Unit currently controls an objective*: Always defends the objective
- *Unit is optimized for melee*: Always moves and charges, unless currently engaged in melee with another unit

In cases when an enemy unit's choices make equal strategic sense, roll a d3 for orders:

1. *Seize*: Move toward nearest objective, and make an attack
2. *Stand*: Do not move, and make an attack
3. *Charge* Move, charge, attack