Greetings, Citizens,

As we leave the ancient and mysterious technology of the Omnissiah behind, we join the equally technologically gifted forces of the Votann and their Kyn.

Additionally, we’ve included a list of all the newly added cards to the gacha.

So, without further delay, let’s dive into the changes:

Balance Changes

Leagues of Votann

With the League’s relatively small roster and newer releases, there is a limited amount to focus on for balance changes without diving deep into the Warlords. That said, of the two options between ranged and melee, ranged decks are by far the most popular and highest performing. As such the focus for the Votann changes will be on their melee-focused units, to give better deck-building flexibility and make each option viable.

With a bit more punch the Dôzr can capitalise on its Furious Charge secondary trait and deal consistent damage with the protection of his Fear primary trait, making him a very formidable card for his points.

As the most expensive of the Hearthkyn Warriors Pykô may have had a bit too much competition for his spot, so a small price reduction should help him slot better into more decks.

With his low cost, and now much higher melee, Ymmê is now a very strong impact card able to deal a massive targeted attack when he arrives when combined with his Scout/Outflank traits.

While the Heysr has no issue with durability with its Wounds total and Shields, it is a bit lacking with the overall attack, though well-rounded, the inability to deliver decisive damage somewhat holds her back.

As one of the original release cards, Hâk is behind the other comparable options for cost and rarity so a buff should help push him more towards the middle. A bump to his already strong melee and a few extra wounds to help out between his limited shields should make the difference.

Aeldari:

While tricky to get the balance right with the smaller cost cards, particularly with Taunt, the Razorwings are stat-wise a bit lower than average and have a lower playrate than comparable cards in other factions. A small but meaningful buff should help the pointy birds out.

One of the older Aeldari cards, and with a lot of competition for Target Acquired, Amallyn is hard to justify at her current cost. There was the option to increase her health as well, but we want to preserve the glass cannon feel of an Aeldari deck so all increases went into Ranged. This gives her a huge starting range stat for her cost, and supports the role of TA, to appear, deal devastating damage, and then get removed in turn.

With the Barrage the Fire Prism was struggling to compete with the other cheaper options available, especially as a Common, we’ve opted to change the trait. The other lore-appropriate options for its trait would be Precision Shot or BGH. We’ve opted with Precision Shot in this instance, and will see how it affects the card.

Necrons:

When Manifest Nightmare was released there were concerns that his rule could be too powerful or oppressive, and so he went out with slightly below-average stats for his cost. Given the amount of time that has passed, the new Warlords and rules since, and the general state of the meta it seemed reasonable to bring him finally into line stat-wise. Given his innate durability from his rule and Fear, a significant bump to both attack stats should see him a much better closer when he does hit the field.

While Regen and Medicae are iconic for Necron decks, in reality they don’t have access to a reliably cheap Medicae option other than the newer Plasmacyte. It seemed unreasonable to have such a points barrier to the trait compared to other factions, so bringing the Cryptek down a decent chunk of points makes sense.

T’au:

As an older and cheaper card, the Vespid has been competing with newer cards, and drones, for the high-value cheap card spot in decks. As such a good ranged boost combined with a scout should make it a much more effective and impactful choice.

Talking of old drones, the missile turret has also struggled to make the cut as one of the higher-cost drones. Rather than reducing its cost so it blends in with the other drones, an increase in Wounds makes it a more tempting lane-blocker for its points, while still delivering good damage from its Barrage.

Servants of the Emperor:

With the adjustment to her rule, Greyfax has taken a bit of a knock in her standings. That said, the change has opened the door to changing her more directly. Before the change, her high cost was in part to put a limit on what her deck could fit. With the new rule, there’s no need to restrict her as much. At 10pts less she immediately gives an additional 5% to any existing decks, which puts her immediately just shy of her current stats with the new stat reduction. Alternatively, it opens up more room for more or larger cards. Additionally, it has the big benefit of taking her out of BGH range. This should give her more flexibility and power while synergising with the new rule structure.

While well-stated for its cost, the Triumph has struggled to make many decks with its price tag. While it does its job of being an incredibly hard card to remove that can safely buff friendly cards, while securing a lane, it is hard to allow the deck space required for that role. A significant points drop, along with some Wounds to keep its stats reasonable, should open it up to more decks.

Space Marines:

Another old card, that was changed from Shield to Furious Charge a long time ago, however, didn’t have its stats adjusted to suit that transition. With a good increase to its attack stats, particularly supporting its Furious Charge, we should see it make some more decks.

The Interrogator-Chaplain has always provided quite a niche tool, and while his traits are very powerful, they are quite situational when combined. As such a small points reduction with an increase to Wounds and Melee should help him fulfil all his roles to control a lane and deal damage and make him a more tempting choice for precision Melee decks.

Chaos:

N’eemz has been nerfed a number of times in the past when the Chaos psychic meta was dominating. That time has long since passed, but N’eemz and a few others were never revisited. So it’s about time that he was brought back into line for appropriate stats for his cost.

Similarly, Sorrian was also a target of nerfs previously but was able to be kept relevant with his Psychic Link upping his damage. This meant that he was not prepared for the transition to Anti-Infantry. So, he gets a points reduction and a decent upgrade to his attacks which should make him much more viable, both in pure psychic decks, but also in mixed decks.

Lucius has obviously found a new body as he’s getting a bit of a rework here. While Lucius is one of the greatest swordsmen in the 41st millennium, he’s never quite felt it in-game. While he definitely had his spot, arriving at the same time as Endless was introduced, that novelty has worn off, and his lack of damage output has held him back. With his base Melee increase and his two changed upgrades, his max Melee is now up by 30, and his wounds are also up overall by 20 taking into account those lost in the upgrade changes. He should now pack a serious punch as well as be incredibly difficult to remove, living up finally to his reputation.

Another iconic Chaos champion getting a bit of rework. With the number of big hitters, target acquired and other factors, Kharn takes a lot of effort, and luck, to turn into the juggernaut he once was. As such the focus has been changed into making him a high-impact damage dealer, taking Furious Charge to become his primary trait, and adding Deathblow as his secondary. He’ll be dealing serious damage every moment he’s on the field. And since his range won’t be increasing from Berserk any more, he’s getting a top-up there too.

Orks:

Another older card that is struggling to keep up. With it being in that upper bracket of cheap cards, it can be hard to fit, so adding a meaningful all-round attack boost, combined with its own Inspiring Presence should have more of an impact beyond just the stat boost to other cards.

Another target of old nerfs, this time from when Badrukk was dominant. Since then Badrukk decks have found alternatives and the meta has moved on, so giving the Bubblechukka some relief was also overdue.

Tyranids:

While these tiny cards are incredibly fine on their stats, giving the Neuroliod a melee stat, even if small, adds a lot more versatility. Be it getting a surprising value attack out of Ghosar or a trigger from the Parasite. Importantly it still preserves its psychic ready on psychic meaning it should now be a much more versatile card and get great value out of its mini price tag.

While Deathleaper, and Tyranids in general, don’t struggle to find high-damage cards, or resilient cards, they don’t have much in the way of options for both. Fear and Shields particularly are lacking from the roster and are normally attached to very expensive cards. Deathleaper hits that sweet spot of not being too expensive, but big enough to make the most of it. It is also very appropriate to Deathleaper!

With so many big cards in the Tyranid roster, they tend to compete a lot with each other, and while having a bulky Inspiring Presence card is incredibly valuable, the Tyrant can be hard to reliably get going. While the combination of IP and Berserk is interesting, it can be a bit too slow, and the lower-than-average attack stat left it feeling a bit subpar. A cost reduction leaves more room, and a decent attack buff means the Tyrant can come out the gate a big threat rather than solely relying on Berserk stacks.

And that’s it for this month’s Balance Change! We’ve got some high-impact ones here to kick off the year with a number of cards getting a meaningful rework or significant buff. Hopefully, we’ll see some more variety and old favourites return to kick off the new year!

New Cards Available in Gacha