Warhammer 40K: Fulgrim Takes On The Grimdark
Games Workshop does the thing where they toss a new character at various targets to see how they stack-up. Here’s how Fulgrim performed.
We all know the drill by now. Games Workshop has a new uber-character coming out for a faction and they do some “testing” to see how well they do against a lot of the usual suspects. Today, they are showing the results after taking Fulgrim out for a spin. While I’m sure these are very scientific and absolutely not biased tests at all, unsurprisingly, Fulgrim did quite well. Let’s chat about these fights.
Fulgrim VS A Warhound Titan
” …as the combination of his Strength 14, D6+1 Damage, and the Fights First ability makes Fulgrim a thoroughbred Titan-killer. He can drop a Warhound in a single (albeit lucky) turn. “
So, you’re reading that correctly. He can generate quite a few Strength 14, D6+1 Damage attacks. A Warhound Titan has Toughness 13 and a whopping 40 wounds. So when GW says a “lucky turn” they aren’t kidding. Even with Sustained Attacks 1, you’d need Fulgrim to roll really hot to generate 40 wounds in a single turn. Could he do it? Yes. Is it likely? Eh… check the math on that one. With 6 attacks from his Daemonic Blades, his absolute damage cap is 72 damage in a single turn. But you’d also have to roll 18 6’s on your dice in a row…if you do that I’m either checking your dice or walking away from the game.
Fulgrim VS The Lion
“The Primarch of the Ultramarines proves no challenge against the almighty son of Slaanesh, while the Lion at least put up an action-packed duel in which several swings were turned aside by Fulgrim’s Beguiling Form. Though Lion’el’s sword Fealty is a more deadly weapon than Fulgrim’s, the Daemon Prince’s defensive abilities reduced a significant portion of the incoming damage. Poison is eventually what brought the Lion low.”
I think this one is probably a tad more realistic. One factor that I think puts Fulgrim over the top for most fights is the option to use the Daemonic Speed to Fight First. Ensuring you get the first attacks in the round allow him to really put out the damage first and that enables his Daemonic Poisons to get to work. Fulgrim can then swamp to more defensive options and just let that poison do the work in the end. Still, I think the Lion is a closer match than some of the other ones on the GW list.
Fulgrim VS Primaris Marines
Fulgrim kills 23 Intercessors in this “fight.” He’s got a Sweep attack option with Sustained Hits 1 and each hit is 2 damage. He’s also got another 6 tail attacks that do 1 damage a pop. Could he slice through a squad of 10 Intercessors in a round? That’s very likely. Could he slice through a mob of 23? When was the last time you saw 23 Intercessors all in close combat with the same model… I guess that’s not the point. He could do it if they all lined up nice and tight for him I suppose.
Fulgrim VS Mortarion
Okay, now this is a fight where I think the two combatants are actually pretty close. In the end, the GW “fight” calls it a draw. Why? Well, even though Mortarion does actually win that duel (according to GW), Fulgrim’s poisons (ironically) drag down Mortarion in the end.
Fulgrim – The Perfect Warrior of the Grimdark?
So we all know this was part of the GW hype/marketing for Fulgrim. I didn’t think going into that article from WarCom that Fulgrim was going to outright lose those fights. Honestly, I do think he’s got the Fights First and the Daemon Poison abilities to be a serious threat on the tabletop. He’s also go the ability to Deepstrike to (hopefully) avoid just getting shot off the board — at least at first. Personally, I don’t know if I’d consider him a meta pick right now. On paper he’s a threat that folks will have to figure out on the tabletop. If players do actually bring him.
Basically you’re going to have to deal with him a lot like how you have to deal with other Daemon Primarchs that show up. Either take them out immediately or feed them stuff to keep them busy. Fulgrim might be more of a problem due to the factors mentioned above (Fight First, Deepstrike, Poison). But once he’s on the tabletop you better have some sort of a plan for him. He can deal with big targets and he can cut through mass bodies, too. So have a plan or he’s going to bully your army around.
I like these “VS” articles GW does. Feels like watching Wrestling on TV.
