World In Arms is a mod for Games Workshop's Mordheim game system.

If you're coming into this game as a Warhammer 40K player, get ready to have your perception of the game turned on its head. World In Arms is smarter, faster, and sneakier than anything you might have played up until now. Your wits will be tested and your forces battle-hardened as you fight your way through twisting alleyways and the blasted wasteland of what used to be civilization. Your battles are fought not in the name of the Emperor or any of a handful of Xenos deities, but for simple survival and advancement on a planet bound to endless warfare. Instead of relying on superpowered characters and lumbering engines of war to batter the enemy into the ground, you have a handful of grunts and their enterprising leader. Sound boring? Give it a try - you might surprise yourself. Mordheim players already know what they're in for, but with the emphasis on deadly ranged combat your tactics may need a bit of retooling. Necromunda players will find that the familiar gameplay is streamlined for minimal bookkeeping, which is hopefully a welcome surprise.

World In Arms Features
- A complete list of changes from the original Mordheim rules, with references to the appropriate page numbers in the updated .pdf files.
- Twelve races, each with their own unique units and armory, as well as a large general armory.
- A wide variety of Mercenaries, from psykers to light walkers!
- Six new scenarios to test your squad's tactics and composition
- Streamlined gameplay - straightforward items and effects make for effortless gameplay
- Completely free - as much licensed material as possible has been referenced from .pdfs that GW has made available to the public.
- Designed to incorporate the quadrumvirate of appeal, balance, racial playstyle, and ease of collectibility, with a focus on player input to help improve the game.

Download It!
You can direct download the files here (2.27MB download - right-click and Save As). You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the files.

You'll also need the Mordheim Rules and Campaign Rules available here if you don't have them already. We also highly recommend that you download the excellent Alternative Warband Roster by Sean Maroney here.

Races
Adeptus Mechanicus: The Adeptus Mechanicus show their devotion to the Machine God by augmenting themselves with bionics, making them tough to take down. Their position as manufacturers of the Imperium's weapons gives them access to powerful firearms.

Chaos Renegades: Traitorous ex-members of the Imperial Guard, the Chaos Renegades charge into battle aided by those of their brethren who have been blessed with the "gifts" of the mighty Chaos gods.

Dark Eldar: The Dark Eldar are sadistic slavers who delight in terrorizing and slaughtering their foes with a deadly array of weaponry.

Eldar: An Eldar squad is made up of skilled warriors who train extensively in their race's specialist wargear.

Genestealer Cult: Genestealer Cults are made up of a horde of untrained civilians, infected by Genestealers and under the sway of the Hive Mind, who fearlessly rally behind their charismatic leaders. They are accompanied into battle by infected Guardsmen and the ferocious Genestealers.

Harlequin Troupe: The enigmatic Harlequins rely on sophisticated holo-technology and amazing agility to outmatch their foes.

Imperial Guard: The mighty hordes of the Imperial Guard fight devotedly for their Emperor under the watchful eye of their Commissars, aided in battle by a vast selection of Heavy weapons.

Inquisition: The Inquisition relies on a variety of elite troops and rare wargear in their neverending crusade to purge the universe of heretics.

Kroot Mercenaries: The Kroot are a primitive yet ingenious race, guided by their Shaper in search for new genetic material to absorb. This racial trait has allowed for several specialized strains of Kroot to arise and aid in battle.

Orks: The Orks move in multitudinous hordes, armed to the teeth with their unpredictable yet deadly weapons.

Sisters of Battle: Always outnumbered but wielding powerful weapons of fiery purification, the Sisters of Battle are protected not only by their power armor but by their very faith itself.

Tau: The Tau seek to expand their fledgling realm, and utilize deadly alien weaponry and powerful battlesuits to kill their enemies from afar.

FAQ
Where can we contact you guys?
You can contact Garrett at his email address, found in the World In Arms rulebook.

Do you guys actually know what you're doing or are you just a few guys with too much spare time?
Yes and yes. We have been messing around in the Games Workshop universe for five years or more by now, and have tried our collective hands at assembling, disassembling, and revising the rulesets for a good chunk of their games, as well as a number that weren't made by them, not to mention the handful of rulesets we made from scratch. For all points and purposes please treat this as an official release - not official as in the GW-sanctioned way, but as in assuming that we have all our cats in the basket as far as game mechanics go. If nothing else it will make us feel important.

Aren't you infringing on Games Workshop's property? Won't they have a problem with that?
Although we are using Games Workshop's setting and ruleset, credit has definitely been given where it is due. We are huge fans of the 40K universe, and this game is another way to enjoy that setting - and it will always be free, like many of the best things in life. We're not trying to rip them off or threaten their property - if anything, we'll give them a minor boost in sales if this game becomes popular. Of course, if they ask us to change something or even remove it from the internet, we will be cooperative. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

So you aren't making any money off of this?
Not now, and not ever. We don't aim to profit off of something that is nine-tenths Games Workshop's property and hard work.

Why didn't you use the Necromunda rules instead of the Mordheim rules?
We were going to initially, but Mordheim was released after Necromunda, and it cleaned up a few of the rules. Newer is generally better - makes sense, right?

Is World In Arms going to be compatible with the fan rewrite of the Mordheim rules?
We don't see why not. The fan rewrite clarifies a lot of things, but as far as we know it hasn't changed anything dramatically enough to affect World In Arms. Let us know if anything crops up for you.

Why isn't there a list for X race or racial variant?
In designing this game there are a few elements of the 40K universe that we have left out. Some of the races such as Necrons, Space Marines and Tyranids are powerful beings that operate on a much grander scheme and have been purposefully omitted for both fluff and balance issues. Variant lists of the remaining races may be written up if there is enough interest, although we feel that we have represented all the races to the best of our ability.

Can I submit a list that I designed?
We'd prefer that you didn't. We feel that we have designed lists that incorporate the defining traits and weaponry of each race, and would rather that you gave us feedback on how our lists perform rather than coming up with your own. Of course, there's nothing preventing you from using a homebrewed list - just don't tell us about how our races are under/overpowered compared to it!

Where's the Overwatch rule?
We considered it and then scrapped it. Although interesting, it was unnecessary - there's quite enough shooty death going on around the battlefield already! If it helps, imagine that your models lying in wait snap off a flurry of shots but fail to hit the target model as it dashes from cover to cover.

So the game's called World In Arms... which specific world are we on?
We decided that rather than providing a premade world that incorporated all the available races, we'd much rather let you come up with your own to fit the races that you and your friends play with. Whether you want to lead the Inquisition through a hive city purging Chaos Cultists, or have your Tau investigating an ancient Cyclopean city ridden with Orks, or Kroot stalking Catachan troopers in a deathworld jungle - it's your game, we'll let you make the creative calls.

Your game sucks! X game is much better!
Then go play X game. Nobody's forcing you to play World In Arms. Or you could make yourself useful and give us some constructive criticism.

Your game is awesome!
Thanks! Please tell a friend or put it up in your favorite gaming forums - we're relying entirely on word of mouth to generate interest in this game. Also, emails with praise are nice.

...Too bad your website is so bare-bones and ugly.
This is because we prefer to spend our time hobbying, gaming and perfecting our ruleset than making fancy internetty widgets. It gets the job done..