"Space Hulk Variants?" Topic

Space Hulk Variants?

Grabbed a copy of the game when it came out b/c I was certain I'd want to have it and play it at some point. After sitting in a box for a while the time has now come. Excited to get to it, and am already looking for variation.

The "feel" of the game to me is more suited to my 40K Imperial Guard fighting aliens. The Terminators just appear to heavily armored for me to buy that they die so easily under claws.

Also, it seems to me that any hex / square based game might accomodate further skirmish battles, and with the plethora of new cardboard and other downloaded hex / square tiles, someone must already be using Space Hulk rules expanded into the 40K universe to play skirmish games.

- I'm looking for people, blogs, sites where people have been playing and playtesting extensively 40K variation forces for the SH rules and missions.
- Also looking for anyone who's "opened up" the system to play in more than a space hulk. Perhaps they've converted to inches and gone from there. Perhaps they're using other tile / tunnel networks. Interested in seeing what people are doing.

While Space Hulk's newest version is great and filled with lots of game play, I'm already curious about how I can use more of my 40K figures to play it!

Also, was there ever a Black Library book about Space Hulk, or that had nearly an identical theme? Just looking for inspiration.

Thanks for any leads!

I just put together a squad of the Defiant Games marines to use with Space Hulk. I kind of agree about the terminators not dying so easily to Genestealers although it does work for the game. What I will probably do is get some Tyranid Warriors next and paint them up in the dark green/black scheme from the Aliens movie and do Aliens games with space hulk.

Hey Pictor,
If you can share your method to get that Movie Alien feel, I'd be thrilled. That's the exact paint scheme that interested me as well.

It seems to be based upon hues of grey and green – which probably includes some olive also.

To the topic, I was wondering what direction to go – make genestealers easier to kill or Termies harder? I'm inclined to go "harder with the termies" and then put in lesser armored models like Cadians and non-armored like Catachens who have the present.

Alternative would be to add an armored save, with the Termies being 2+ like in 40K, at which time 3-6+ becomes easy to figure out. Naturally, the 'Nids get their armor save and the Genestealers their ability to rip up armor a bit (I think on t '6' they deny your armor save?).

I'd also like to use other types of 'Nids for the invasion of the Space Hulk. I really like all the models!

Here on TMP when the game came out there were discussions about Tau and Orc variants. I think with small rule changes you could have some fun.

The early White Dwarfs (110 – 120) had rules for Power Armor in SH and Imperial Guard too.

I remember old white dwarves with rules for Chaos termies versus good Termies and regular marines versus sealers . Ruless for milti levels

I built a 4-8 modular space station for Space Hulk, never played it (use it for 2120, Fastand Dirty (FAD) and space zombie games

There was a yellow book with all the space hulk variants combined. I think there is a Space Hulk Bible out there which is all the version 1 rules combined.

link

Had such things as other races, terminator vs terminator, auto lasers, nerve gas, grenades, etc…

There is also other games out there like Legions of Steel that is the same premise

The Terminators just appear to heavily armored for me to buy that they die so easily under claws.

Kind of how a rhino beetle is too heavily armoured to die easily to something as puny as army ants?

- Monk

I just put together a squad of the Defiant Games marines to use with Space Hulk.

Really good idea.

use your google-fu and look up 1st edition Space Hulk, there should still be some fan sites that had everything but Sisters of Battle, Necrons, and Tau rules(and they were working on Tau…). I have a download of all the pages that were available, but none of the maps made it…

If you can find the old ebbles guncrawl you will have a great range of extra tiles to work with.

Guncrawl is available at link

This is a real interest of mine, too – I just love the elegant simplicity of Space Hulk from way back and I have always been wanting to broaden it's scope. I've done alot of reading round (see links below) but not much actual rules modifying. The main areas I always wanted to address for more symmetrical warfare and/or other theatres of war were the use of cover and armour.

I, too feel that the termies are a bit too easy meat for the stealers if we are trying to incorporate lesser armoured troops as well. That said, lighter armoured troops do have increased maneouvreability and that can be reflected with free turning and suchlike.

I have also played around with a wound system where the marines lose an action point per hit taken and this can be quite fun deciding whether to use up action points getting wounded troopers away or abandoning them to their fate. I am not always happy with the suicide/leave me to die aspect of play in the original game although sometimes that suits us just fine. I was always going to incorporate a rule for a medic/healer model that could restore marines health as well.

I think your post has just re-ignited my desire to develop this little project of mine. I was also quite taken with the combat dice mechanic from Space Crusade and thought that I might blend SH & SC into a single game with a lot of flexibility. Right now, my 10 year old son is getting into Necromunda so I guess that is where a fair bit of my gaming energy will be focussed in the near future.

Some links that may be of interest:
House rules for Space Hulk shooting –
PDF link
Legions of Steel Forum – link
"Alternative rules for friendly games of Space Hulk" – ironhands.com/derelict.htm
SH rules for other races & lots more –
link
Rules for marine v marine battles –
link
Home brewed rules for traitor v termie combat –
link
Rules crusade – Space Crusade for other battles:
ironhands.com/rcintro.htm

Hope this helps.

Playing 'SpaceHulk' with appropriate 'colonial marines' miniatures is a superior experience, IMHO. SpaceHulk really was just GW doing 'AlIens: the boardgame' anyway…

But yes, the 'SpaceHulk Bible' and the old 'SpaceHulk Campaigns' book are what you are after…

Woodbine Designs makes perfect not-Colonial Marines. For less than $50 USD you can get everyone from Aliens 2. Excepts for colonists needing to be rescued from their moral purity… :o)

Yeah, I have my old Starship Troopers from Mongoose that are perfect as more realistic victims of the Aliens. They look and feel right.

More symmetrical fighting and such is also of interest. I have friends with other 40K armies, and it'd be fun to have Necrons fighting Space Marines, etc. There are some passages from the Caiaphus Caine novels that would make for great if deadly tunnel fights btw Necrons and IG.

So thanks for the links, if anyone knows of more, just toss'em in!

Sumatran Rat Monkey 22 May 2012 1:53 a.m. PST

'"The Terminators just appear to heavily armored for me to buy that they die so easily under claws."

Kind of how a rhino beetle is too heavily armoured to die easily to something as puny as army ants? – Monk'

No, the way that an Abrams tank is too heavily armored to die easily under any claws the human race is presently acquainted with. ;)

Even in Alien/Aliens, the bugs had abilities but they were believable – fast reflexes, acid blood/spitting, etc. They killed squishy marines, not terminators / marauders / Starship Troopers et al.

It's not that important, it's just a credulity thing.

Perhaps check out mantics operation pandora,
link

Similar in concept to SH, with imperial guard style humans vs Space skaven.

Phil

No, the way that an Abrams tank is too heavily armored to die easily under any claws the human race is presently acquainted with. ;)

Make an army ant the same size as that Abrams (and ignoring those physiological ramifications that would cause the ant to suffocate and die shortly thereafter), however, and my money's going on the ant every time.

Hell, make the ant the size of a Subaru Impreza, and that's still where my money's going, honestly.

Genestealers are *the* (roughly) man-sized hand-to-hand combatants, in the 40K world. Insectile strength, fearless, relentlessly vicious, and so forth- not to mention, you also need to remember that the combat mechanic is also abstracting things like the fact that terminator armour is slow, bulky, unwieldy, and wholly incapable of any sort of evasive action whatsoever- let alone cinematic dodges- whereas 'stealers are the opposite in every instance.

It always seemed completely believable to me that, if it got to hand-to-hand combat w/a standard termie, the Space Marine lost and lost big- that's why they carried the storm bolter, after all.

As for the Aliens comparison, I'd say the xenomorphs in Aliens are more on par with something like a termagant armed for close combat- nowhere near the level of a 'stealer, really, when you consider overall offensive capabilities, and how hard they are to kill. Aliens are actually pretty fragile, if you think about it- it's just that killing them generates a whole other threat, because of the acid blood.

Of course, if you also think about it, Colonial Marine morale is ridiculously fragile, too, so, yeah.

- Monk

Remember too SH is fought in the hostile atmosphere, so the easy deaths represent "termie breaches".

But I will always be one of the first to tell you to mod the rules…..

Hey Pictors:
"What I will probably do is get some Tyranid Warriors next and paint them up in the dark green/black scheme from the Aliens movie and do Aliens games with space hulk."

Any progress on this front? I'm interested in doing mine up the same way, pondering the colors and techniques to use.