Warhammer 40K: All Hail the Master of the Forge
The Master of the Forge is by far the best Master of the Chapter. Let’s take a look at why he’s coming to a tabletop near you.
Faith and Fury has a lot of cool goodies for the Astartes, both good and naughty. On the Loyalist side we get the Masters of the Chapter, and the Black Templars.
The Masters of the Chapter are a cool way to bring back some of the detail and bling of the chapters. The mighty lords of their various departments are formidable foes, and their inclusion gives players who make up their own chapters a way to build heroes who most often exist only as specific Named Characters. But these cool textural characters were not all built equally – and one in particular has raised a lot of eyebrows.
Master of the Forge
The Master of the chapter’s armory and every Techmarine’s boss is not a marine to be trifled with. The expected traits of repair, and buffs for vehicles are in line with what GW produced. Each Master of the Chapter has a Stratagem, Warlord Traits, and Relics. Let’s look at each in turn.
Stratagem
Not bad. A superior repair ability that can’t be spammed. Once per turn is all. Flavorful, cheap. Just what the doctor ordered.
Warlord Trait
And we are into the weeds. While Warden of the Ancients is flavorful and helpful to buff underpowered and underused Dreads, Master the Machine is THE standout power of the entire character. Look at that; a 6″ aura for all Chapter vehicles granting +1 to hit. Just think of all the other ways Marines have to buff shooting and think about how many vehicles you can cram into a 6″ radius. Don’t forget about the ones that may not need LoS. Again, this seems like an ability that is head and shoulders above Warden of the Ancients. It’s why you will see this guy in a lot of armies unless GW steps in.
Relics
Nothing too nuts here. The Endurant Protector is nice and will keep your Matser alive a bit longer. The fancy axe is the ho-hum option.
Verdict
This guy will get used – A LOT. In fact I would not be surprised to see “Master the Machine” nerfed in a future FAQ. These types of auras are ultra deadly for the already potent Marine chapters, and I can already hear the Iron Hands and Imperial Fists drooling from here. Maybe a smaller radius (say 1″), or only a single selected vehicle within 6″ is more in order.
I say keep your powder dry a few weeks until we see the Faith & Fury FAQ to see what GW thinks of it.
~What do you think of the Master of the Forge?
