Editing Codex - The Covenant (section)

==Hand of the Gods==
In this section you’ll find rules for Battle-forged armies that include Covenant Detachments –that is, any Detachment which only includes units with the COVENANT Faction keyword. These rules include the ability below and a series of Stratagems. This section also includes the Covenants’ unique Warlord Traits, Relics and Tactical Objectives. Together, these rules reflect the character and fighting style of The Covenant in your games of Warhammer 40,000.
:'''Breath of Annihilation''': If your army is Battle-forged, all Troops units in Covenant Detachments gain this ability. Such a unit that is within range of an objective marker controls it even if there are more enemy models within range of it. If an enemy unit within range of the objective marker has a similar ability, then it is controlled by the player who has the most models within range as normal.
:'''Taking Our Due''': If your army is Battle Forged then any objective in your deployment zone that is not held by any side counts as being held by you.

===Covenant Warlord Traits===
If a COVENANT CHARACTER is your Warlord, they can generate a Warlord Trait from the following table instead of the one in the Warhammer 40,000 rulebook. You can either roll on the table below to randomly generate a Warlord Trait, or you can select the one that best suits your general’s battlefield objectives.
# With Extreme Prejudice: ''In an attempt to exterminate his foes, a Warlord may order his subordinates to fire without regard for ammo.'' Your Warlord and any unit within any aura he possesses can re-roll failed To Hit rolls of one with shooting attacks. If they can already do this, then they can re-roll failed To Hit rolls of two as well.
# Into the Fray: ''There is no greater motivation than the assurance that you're doing what's right.'' When your Warlord and a single friendly unit within 3" of them Advances, they may both add 6" to their Move characteristic for that Movement phase instead of rolling a dice.
# Master of Melee: ''After many decades of training, this Warlord has discovered the weakpoints of every sentient species and race known.'' Re-roll failed hit and wound rolls in the Fight phase for attacks made by your Warlord.
# To Retreat is Heresy: ''A high-ranking leader is often the only thing keeping the others from retreating.'' You Automatically pass Combat Attrition Tests for friendly COVENANT INFANTRY units within 6" of your Warlord in the Morale phase.
# Servant of the Abiding Truth: ''Faith can inspire warriors and foster courage.'' Add 3" to the range of any abilities on your Warlord’s datasheet.
# Hand of the Forerunners: ''All servants of the Covenant wish to claim Forerunner technology, but only the greatest among them can claim it.'' Your Warlord has a 6+ invulnerable save. If your warlord already has an invulnerable save then add 1 to invulnerable saving throws made for your Warlord. (to a maximum of 3+)

====Named Characters and Warlord Traits====
If one of the following named characters is your Warlord, they must be given the associated Warlord Trait shown below.
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Prophet of Regret !! The Arbiter !! Jiazah 'Thogamee !! Rtas 'Vadumee !! Tartarus
|-
| Servant of the Abiding Truth|| Into the Fray || Hand of the Forerunners || Master of Melee || To Retreat is Heresy
|}
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===Legendary Armory===
If your army is led by a COVENANT Warlord, then before the battle you may give one of the following Legendary Arms to a COVENANT CHARACTER. Named characters such as The Prophet of Regret already have one or more artefacts, and cannot be given any of the following relics. Note that some weapons replace one of the character’s existing weapons. Where this is the case, if you are playing a matched play game or are otherwise using points values, you must still pay the cost of the weapon that is being replaced. Write down any Legendary Arms your characters may have on your army roster.
* Haka's Helm: ''The helmet of Haka, the killer of Arbiter Fal ‘Chavamee. Its glowing eyes and kuwagata-like appearance make him look like an otherworldly monster.'' A model wearing the Helm of Haka causes a -1 penalty to Leadership to all enemy units within 6", has +2" Movement and +1 Strength on the turn they charge.
* Kaidon Battleplate: ''Another relic of Sanghelios, this is a truly one-of-a-kind armor. It is the single best harness the Covenant has, having been improved upon gradually and consistently since time immemorial. It once belonged to Ther ‘Vadam himself.'' Prelates, Councillors, Zealots and Chieftains only. A model wearing the Kaidon Battleplate has a 2+ save and 4+ invulnerable save.
* Light of Urs: ''This fuel rod gun shoots faster and stronger bolts than usual.'' Model with Fuel Rod Gun only. The Light of Urs replaces the models Fuel Rod Gun and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Light of Urs|| 54" || 6 || -2 || 2 || Assault D6 || Blast
|}
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* Talon of the Lost: ''Carefully crafted blamite needles can embed themselves even in Mgalekgolo‟s armor.'' Model with Needler only. The Talon of the Lost replaces the models Needler and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Talon of the Lost|| 18" || 4 || -4 || 1 || Assault 2 || One-Handed. All failed To Hit rolls made with this weapon may be re-rolled.
|}
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* Hailstorm: '' A pre-Covenant Elite needler that fires faster and better needles.'' Model with Needler only. Hailstorm replaces the models Needler and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
|- valign=top
! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Hailstorm|| 24" || 4 || -1 || 1 || Assault 3 || One-Handed. Each time you make a wound roll of 5+ for this weapon, that hit is resolved with an AP of -4. All failed To Hit rolls made with this weapon may be re-rolled.
|}
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* Spitfire: ''Spitfire is a Plasma Pistol with an expanded power cell, allowing it to make charged shots as often as a Plasma Pistol makes regular shots.'' Model with Plasma Pistol only. Spitfire replaces the models Plasma Pistol and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Spitfire || 12" || 4 || -1 || 2 || Pistol 1 || This weapon re-rolls failed To Hit rolls. 
|}
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* Void's Tear: ''As it turns out, plasma pistols can fire black holes. Who knew?'' Model with Plasma Pistol only. Void's Tear replaces the models Plasma Pistol and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Void's Tear || || || || || || When attacking with this weapon, choose one of the two profiles below.
|-
| Standard || 12" || 4 || 0 || 1 || Pistol D6 || Blast ||
|-
| Overcharged || 12" || 4 || -1 || 2 || Pistol D6 || Blast. Overcharged shots re-roll failed To Hit rolls. However, Void's Tear can only be Overcharged once per battle.
|}
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* Sword of the Faithful: ''This beam rifle once belonged to Lod Mron‟s bodyguard.'' Model with a Beam Rifle only. The Sword of the Faithful replaces the models Beam Rifle and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Sword of the Faithful || 48" || 6 || -2 || 1 || Rapid Fire 1 || Two-Handed, This weapon may target a CHARACTER even if it is not the closest enemy unit. If you roll a wound roll of 6+ for this weapon, it inflicts a mortal wound in addition to its normal damage.
|}
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* Krith's Left Hand: ''This beam rifle once belonged to the pirate prince Krith.'' Model with a Beam Rifle only. Krith's Left Hand replaces the models Beam Rifle and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
|- valign=top
! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Krith's Left Hand || 48" || 5 || -1 || D3 || Rapid Fire 1 || Two-Handed, This weapon may target a CHARACTER even if it is not the closest enemy unit. If you roll a wound roll of 6+ for this weapon, it inflicts a mortal wound in addition to its normal damage.
|}
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* White Scar: ''This plasma caster fires superhot blamite.'' Model with a Plasma Caster only. White Scar replaces the models Plasma Caster and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
|- valign=top
! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| White Scar (Standard) || 24" || 4 || -1 || 1 || Assault 3 || Two-Handed. Each time you make a wound roll of 6+ for this weapon, that hit is resolved with an AP of -4.
|-
| White Scar (Overcharged) || 24" || 4 || -1 || 1 || Assault D6+D3 || Two-Handed, Blast. Each time you make a wound roll of 6+ for this weapon, that hit is resolved with an AP of -4. This Profile can only be used once per game.
|}
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* Scourge of Fire: ''This plasma caster has been improved to not overheat.'' Model with a Plasma Caster only. Scourge of Fire replaces the models Plasma Caster and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
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! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Scourge of Fire (Standard) || 24" || 4 || -1 || 1 || Assault 6 || Two-Handed
|-
| Scourge of Fire (Overcharged) || 24" || 4 || -1 || 1 || Assault 2D6+2D3 || Two-Handed, Blast. This Profile can only be used once per game.
|}
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* Demon's Bane: ''The blade of Thel ‘Vadam, and the one that slayed a 1st Company Captain during the Glassing of Djangoris Alpha.'' Model with an Energy Sword only. Demon's Bane replaces the models Energy Sword and has the following profile:
{| border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4 align=left
|- valign=top
! Name !! Range!! S !! AP !! Damage !! Type !! Abilities
|-
| Demon's Bane|| Melee || +1 || -3 || 2 || Melee || Each time the bearer fights, it makes 1 additional attack with this weapon. Hit Rolls of 1 with this weapon must be re-rolled, your opponent must subtract 1 from any hit rolls made for INFANTRY units that have suffered any hits from Demon's Bane until the end of the turn.
|}
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===Stratagems===
If your army is Battle-forged and includes any COVENANT Detachments, you have access to the Stratagems shown below, meaning you can spend Command Points to activate them. These help to reflect the unique tactics and strategies used by The Covenant on the battlefield.
*Anger (Covenant Battle Tactic Strategem - 2CP): ''Even the lowly Grunt can be pushed too far, when the warriors of the Covenant get angry, they will fire relentlessly, cutting their foes down in a hail of plasma.'' Use this Stratagem when you select one of your COVENANT units to shoot or fire Overwatch. Re-roll failed hit and wound rolls for models in this unit.
*Black Eye (Covenant Battle Tactic Strategem - 2CP): ''Even in an age of guns, many of the Covenant favor the opportunity to batter and bruise the enemy into submission.'' Use this Stratagem at the end of the Fight phase. Select a COVENANT unit from your army – that unit can immediately fight for a second time.
*Eye Patch (Covenant Battle Tactic Strategem - 1CP): ''Sometimes, a unit displays phenomenal luck.'' Use this Stratagem when a COVENANT INFANTRY unit is targeted by a shooting attack. For the rest of  the phase, your opponent must subtract 1 from all hit rolls that target that unit.
*Swarm (Covenant Battle Tactic Strategem - 1CP): ''The Lekgolo and its myriad forms are one of the most formidable in the Covenant, whether a tiny Thanolekgolo or piloting a mighty Scarab.'' Use this Stratagem after a LEKGOLO unit from your army has inflicted an unsaved wound on an enemy unit in the Shooting or Fight phase. You can add 1 to hit rolls for any other LEKGOLO units from your army that target the same enemy unit during that phase.
*Ghost (Covenant Epic Deed Strategem - 1CP): ''Time and time again has the faith of the Covenant allowed its warriors to fight on despite the deadly wounds suffered.'' Use this Stratagem in the Fight phase, when a COVENANT CHARACTER model in your army that has not already been selected to fight this phase is destroyed. Do not remove that model from play - it can fight after the attacking model’s unit has finished making attacks. If the selected model’s characteristics change as it takes damage, use the bottom row of that model’s profile when resolving those attacks. After resolving the destroyed model’s attacks, it is then removed.
*Thunderstorm (Covenant Epic Deed Stratagem - 1CP): ''Veteran Covenant have their faith tempered by their survival in battle.'' Use this Stratagem at the start of the Morale phase. Pick a COVENANT INFANTRY unit from your army that is required to take a Morale test. You can roll a D3 for the unit, rather than a D6, when taking this test.
*Relics of the Forerunners (Covenant Requisition Strategem - 1CP): ''Scouring the Covenant's armories, a high-ranking Covenant leader can call forth potent relics with which to slay his foes.'' Use this Stratagem before the battle, when you are mustering your army, if your WARLORD has the COVENANT keyword. Select one COVENANT CHARACTER model from your army and give them one Legendary Arm (this must be an Arm they could have). Each Arm in your army must be unique, and you cannot use this Stratagem to give a model two Arms. You can only use this Stratagem once, unless you are playing a Strike Force battle (in which case, you can use this Stratagem twice) or an Onslaught battle (in which case, you can use this Stratagem three times).
*Assassins (Covenant Strategic Ploy Stratagem - 1/3CP): ''The COVENANT launch their assault from multiple directions, fixing the enemy in a lethal crossfire and throwing them into a terrified confusion.'' Use this Stratagem during deployment. Choose either one or two (one unit costs 1CP, 2 units costs 3) COVENANT units to setup in ambush instead of placing them on the battlefield. At the end of any of your Movement phases these units can strike from hiding – set each of them anywhere on the battlefield that is more than 9" from any enemy models.
*Grunt Funeral (Covenant Strategic Ploy Strategem - 1CP): ''Unggoy breed explosively, allowing the Covenant to crush their enemies under the sheer weight of Unggoy bodies.'' Use this Stratagem in your Command phase. Select one UNGGOY INFANTRY unit from your army that is either within 6" of a battlefield edge or within 6" of your deployment zone. Up to D6+3 destroyed models can be added back to that unit. These returned models cannot be set up within Engagement Range of any enemy units, unless those enemy units are already within Engagement Range of that UNGGOY INFANTRY unit.
*Plasma Bombardment (Covenant Strategic Ploy Stratagem - 2CP): ''A ship hovering above the battlefield fires its Plasma Bombardment Mortar against a high value target as designated by the Warlord.'' Use this Stratagem in your Command phase, if a COVENANT WARLORD from your army is on the battlefield. Select one point on the battlefield and place a marker on that point. At the start of your next Command phase, roll one D6 for each unit within 6" of the centre of that marker, adding l if the unit being rolled for is within 3" of the centre of the marker and subtracting l if the unit being rolled for is a CHARACTER. On a 2-5, that unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, and on a 6+, that unit suffers D6 mortal wounds. The marker is then removed. You can only use this Stratagem once.
*That's Just... Wrong (Covenant Strategic Ploy Strategem - 2CP): ''Covenant motion trackers detect enemy movements, warning them of impending ambushes.'' Use this Stratagem at the end of the Reinforcements step of your opponent’s Movement phase. Select one COVENANT unit from your army. That COVENANT unit can shoot as if it were your Shooting phase, but its models can only target a single eligible enemy unit that was set up as Reinforcements this turn and that is within 18" of their unit when doing so.
*A Spoonful of Blamite (Covenant Wargear Strategem - 1C): ''The Supercombine nature of a Needler weapon inflicts horrific injuries in the soft flesh of biological targets.'' Use this Stratagem before a COVENANT unit from your army attacks in the Shooting phase. Add 1 to the wound rolls made for all of that unit’s needle weapons and increase the damage inflicted by any needle weapon by 1. For the purposes of this Stratagem, a needle weapon is any weapon profile whose name includes the word ‘Needle’ or 'Needler' (e.g. Heavy Needler, Needle Rifle) or is a relic that replaces a Needler.
*Blind (Covenant - Wargear Stratagem - 1CP): ''Under cover of active camo, holograms and electromagnetic jammers, the warriors of The Covenant confound their foes.'' Use this Stratagem at the start of the Fight phase. Select one enemy unit within Engagement Range of any COVENANT unit from your army. Until the end of the phase:
**Each time a model in that enemy unit makes an attack, the hit roll cannot be re-rolled.
**Each time a model in that enemy unit makes a melee attack, subtract 1 from that attack’s hit roll.
*Catch (Covenant Wargear Strategem - 1CP): ''Against packed formations of enemy infantry, a favoured tactic of The Covenant is to hurl an opening salvo of grenades en masse.'' Use this Stratagem before a COVENANT INFANTRY unit from your army shoots or fires Overwatch. Up to ten models in the unit that are armed with grenades can throw a grenade this phase, instead of only one model being able to do so.
*Excavate (Covenant Wargear Strategem - 1CP): ''When Locusts focus their fire, nothing can withstand their might.'' Use this Stratagem when you select a target for a Locust's Boring Laser. Do not resolve that weapon’s attacks until the end of the phase. Until then, any Locusts from your army can link fire with that Locust if it is visible to and within 60" of them; if they do so, when firing their Boring Laser they must target the unit that the first Locus targeted with its Boring Laser, ignoring range and visibility, and re-rolling failed hit and wound rolls. At the end of the phase, resolve the Boring Laser shots from the first Locust, re-rolling failed hit and wound rolls if at least one other Locust linked fire with it.

===Covenant Secondary Objectives===

'''Remove this Filth''': ''With this sacrament of blood, we journey into the Divine Beyond.'' Score 3 victory point at the end of your turn if an enemy unit was forced off an objective by either completely destroying it or forcing it to fall back. If 2 or more units were forced off an objective than score 5 victory points instead.

'''Artifact Located''': ''Station and Salvation both command a heavy price.'' When this Secondary Objective is generated, roll a D6. Score 2 Victory Points at the end of your turn if you control the corresponding Objective Marker. If your Warlord controls the corresponding Objective Marker, score 3 Victory Points instead.

'''Smite the Demon''': ''The true devotee honors our name with actions, not words.'' Score 3 victory point if at least 1 enemy CHARACTER was slain by one of your COVENANT units in the Fight phase of this turn. Score 5 victory points instead if the enemy Warlord was slain in the Fight phase of this turn by an attack made by one of your COVENANT units.

'''For the Great Journey''': ''Victory is secured, not from the throne, but from the front lines.'' Score 1 victory point if, during your turn, a friendly Covenant unit successfully charged an enemy unit. If 3 or more friendly Covenant units made successful charges, score 3 victory points instead.

'''If They Came to Hear Me Beg''': ''On the blood of our fathers. On the blood of our sons. We swore to uphold the Covenant!'' If one of your units passes or has passed a Morale test in this game turn, gain a Victory Point. Add one Victory Point for each passed Leadership test beyond the first.

'''Momentary Dishonour''': ''Out of the darkness, these blades will light our way.'' Score 2 victory points at the end of your turn if one or more friendly COVENANT units arrived as reinforcements using the Active Camouflage or Sneaky ability and were setup within 12" of any enemy units.