Poll: Runes of Witnessing vs Shadow in the Warp

So here's something I haven't done before. Usually I just say what I think and ask for what you guys think. But today I thought I'd go about it a little differently and provide the different options and see which guys you think is the answer.

Thursday I had a debate with my friend before I even cast any powers of how Runes of Witnessing worked vs Shadow in the Warp. Now as not to sway the poll I'll not mention how I think it should work but let you guys know later.

So here is what the powers do.

Runes of Witnessing: A Farseer uses runes of witnessing to guide his second sight along the twisting strands of fate. A Farseer with runes of witnessing roll 3D6 and discards the highest roll when taking a Psychic test. You must use the lowest two rolls.

Shadow in the Warp: Tyranids flood the battlefield with psychic signature of the Hive Fleet, overwhelming the minds of enemy psykers and interfering with the mystical abilities. many are driven insane or suffer massive neural damage as they try, in vane, to draw upon their otherworldly powers.

Any enemy psyker that takes a Psychic test within 12" of a Tyranid with Shadow in the Warp special rule must take the test on 3D6 and will suffer a Perils of the Warp attack on the roll of any double 1 or double 6.


Now that we have the two different powers down as to what they do let's discuss the different option of what should be done in this situation.

Option A: The two powers cancel each other out. The reasoning behind this comes from the Eldar FAQ from May of 2008. It simply states;

Q. How do Runes of Witness work when facing a Hive Tyrant with Shadow in the Warp?

A. The Runes neutralize the effect of the Shadow in the Warp for that Farseer, so the Farseer will take Psychic tests using 2D6, as normal.

This FAQ entry is also back when the last Tyranid Codex had these rules on page 31 of the Old Dex;

The Shadow in the Warp: All Psychic test made by the enemy during the game are made on 3D6, discounting the lowest roll. Any Perils of the Warp results are nullified, and the power will pass or fail as normal.

If you look above at Runes of Witness it makes a lot of since that the FAQ would have the powers cancel each other out based on the Older Rules for Shadow in the Warp, but is it still a viable option?


Option B: Roll 3D6, check for Perils, then use the lowest 2 dice. We get this from the Eldar FAQ also, which says;

Q. How do the Runes of Witnessing in one Eldar army work against the Runes of Warding in another army?

A. Proceed as follows: when the Farseer attempts to use a psychic power, roll 3D6. Consider the two lowest results for the purposes of passing the test (ignoring the highest result). Then, if the total of the 3D6 was 12 or more, the Farseer suffers a Perils of the Warp attack (do not do this if the Farseer has already suffered such an attack because of the lowest two results being a double 1 or double 6).

Now you might ask why this FAQ has any precedent when it's runes of warding and not shadows in the warp. Here are the rules for Runes of Warding.

Runes of Warding: A Farseer can use runes of warding to throw up psychic interference to hinder his foe. All enemy Psychic tests must be taken on 3D6, suffering a Perils of the Warp attack on any roll of 12 or above.

If you compare Runes of Warding with the current rules for Shadow in the Warp they are almost exactly the same except for what rolls result in a Perils of the Warp effect. So does this set the precedent and over ride the 2 year old Eldar FAQ on Runes of Witness and Shadow in the Warp canceling each other out?


Option C: Roll 4D6 and Drop the Highest Die, checking to see if you suffers a Perils of the Warp if a Double 1 or 6 is rolled on 4D6. I've not come across any precedent for this but it's been said that Runes of Witnessing and Shadow in the Warp each make you add one more die to your Psychic test then you would actually normally use.

Now I can see this as Rules as Intended possibly, as each ability has you roll an extra Die, but they also explicitly say how many dice to roll, 3D6. If the two powers said roll an extra D6 then you normally would when making a Psychic test, then I would see this as being much more of a viable option.

Option D: Roll 4D6 and Use the Lowest two Rolls, checking to see if you suffers a Perils of the Warp if a Double 1 or 6 is rolled on 4D6. This option is much like option C but it takes into account that the Runes of Witnessing Power says specifically, "You must use the lowest two rolls."

Both option C and D make it much easier to suffer a Perils of the Warp test, but option D makes it much easier to pass the Psychic test then both Option B and C.



So here you can see what the 4 Options are the I've run across. I know which option I believe is the one that should be the one used but what do you guys think based on the facts above. I know there will be bias between different people but try to put that behind you if you're and Eldar or Nid player or if you Just Hate Eldar or Nids, and let's see what you guys think.

-CKR :D