Units and unit types

Colossal war engines loom over the battlefield and unleash untold devastation upon their targets. Vehicles probe and break through enemy lines, or prevent enemy attempts to do the same. Aircraft fight for dominance of the sky and bomb enemy positions. Infantry rush from cover to cover and fight desperate hand-to-hand combats to secure positions that other forces can’t reach or can’t hold.

All these forces must work together to secure victory for their side.

Units

The playing pieces that we use to play Epic Remastered represent the many and varied forces that are at war on battlefields of the 41st millennium.

In game terms, each individual playing piece represents a single independent element of these forces, known as a unit. Each unit is also of a particular named kind, such as Ork Boyz or Land Raider. Each kind has a unique set of characteristics that define its capabilities on the battlefield, which we explain at Data sheets and characteristics.

Unit types

Units vary widely in their specific capabilities, but all belong to a broad unit type, as follows:

Infantry (INF)

All personnel that are able to deploy and act outside of war machines. This includes mounted infantry (such as Space Marine Bikes and Ork Boarboyz) and field artillery (such as the Eldar Support Platform and Ork Pulsa Rokkit).

We represent infantry units as follows:

  • 'Regular' infantry: Up to five models affixed to a single base (sometimes called a 'stand').

  • Mounted infantry: Two or three models affixed to a single base.

  • Field artillery: One artillery piece and X infantry models affixed to a single base.

[TODO: Consider whether to include some text similar to that at https://thehobby.zone/resources/ea-rules-revamp/Content/CoreRules/Basics/StandsInfantryUnits.htm (external URL)]

Vehicle (VEH)

Vehicles that are covered with moderate or thick armour plate. Examples include tanks such as the Leman Russ and Land Raider, armoured troop carriers such as the Rhino, and other machines such as Dreadnoughts.

We represent each Vehicle unit with a single model.

War Engine (WE)

All very large war machines. Examples include the super-heavy tanks and Titans of various factions, and Ork Gargants.

These units dwarf the units of other unit types and can absorb a lot more damage before they are destroyed. Best of all, these behemoths usually have multiple giant weapon systems that can rain destruction upon your enemies!

We represent each War Engine unit with a single Epic model.

Flyer (FLY)

Aircraft, and even some creatures that can fly within a planet’s atmosphere. They are very fast relative to ground units. Examples include the Ork Fighta-Bommer, Space Marine Thunderhawk Gunship and Tyranid Harridan.

We usually represent each Flyer unit with a single model on a 'flying stand' — that is, the model sits on top of a vertical rod that is affixed to a base, to raise the model above the height of other units on the tabletop.

Note that 'skimmer' units such as the Space Marine Land Speeder and Eldar Falcon grav-tank are not aircraft, and do not count as Flyer units. Rather, these units have some unique capabilities that we represent with the Skimmer special ability. Otherwise, they behave just like other 'ground units'.