Hammer of Math: War Zone Nachmund GT Primary and Secondary Objectives

This week’s Hammer of Math looks at the primary and secondary objectives in the 2022 GT Mission Pack. For an examination of how often the 2021 primary and secondary objectives were utilized and how they scored, Rob did an excellent article here.

War Zone: Nachmund introduces players to an all-new set of missions for Matched Play with new methods of scoring. In these missions victory points are scored from mission-specific primary objectives and a combination of universal and faction-specific secondary objectives; gone are the mission-specific secondary objectives as options.

Matched play games are scored on a 100-point scale. The scale consists of maxing out the 45 possible points of primary objectives, the 45 maximum potential points from secondary objectives (15 per each secondary), and 10 points from having a painted army. Realistically you’re either going to have a painted army or not be a dick to your opponent, so the effective goal is 90 points.

Primary Objectives

Primary objectives are specific to the mission and every Strike Force mission in the 2022 packet contains two objectives:

1. The first primary objective is always worth a maximum of 12 VP per turn and focuses on controlling objective markers.
2. The second primary objective is unique to each mission and focuses on either destroying enemy units, performing actions in proximity to objective markers, or controlling specific objective markers. In general, the second primary objective is worth a total of about 15 VP over the course of the game.

Universal Primary Objectives

• Take and Hold is a progressive objective that revolves around controlling objective markers. Players gain 4 VP for controlling one marker, an additional 4 VP for controlling two or more, and 4 more VP for controlling more markers than their opponent. These points are scored at the end of every Command phase from Round 2 on, with one exception: In the fifth battle round, the player who goes second will score victory points at the end of their turn. 7 of the 9 Strike Force missions in the 2022 packet use this primary objective.
• Domination is a progressive objective that requires the player to control objective markers. Control two objective markers for 4 VP, three or more for an additional 4 VP, and control more markers than your opponent for 4 more VP. The rules for when the VP are scored are identical to Take and Hold. 2 of the 9 Strike Force missions in the 2022 packet use this objective.

Mission Specific Primary Objectives

• Break Them, Body and Soul is a progressive objective for Recover the Relic in which each player scores 1 VP for every enemy unit that was destroyed during that round (to a maximum of 3 VP per turn).
• Detonation is an end game objective unique to Tear Down Their Icons, in which players perform an action to place specialized explosive markers in the enemy half of the board. Each special marker is worth 4 VP and the maximum VP that this objective can provide is 15, which would require 4 markers. Only one unit can perform the appropriate priming or defusing actions per turn, meaning that you would need to be in your opponent’s half of the board (and protect your bombs) for 4 out of the 5 turns to maximize this objective.
• Data Intercept is a progressive action for Data Scry-Salvage where a unit within range of an objective marker in their own deployment zone can perform an action to score a number of VP equal to the objective markers controlled in no man’s land, with a maximum of 3 VP possibly scored per turn.
• Secure the Sanctuaries contains both progressive and end game elements for Abandoned Sanctuaries. The progressive element is that at the end of each turn a player can score 2 VP if they occupy the objective marker at the center of the battlefield, or if they destroyed at least one enemy unit that was within 6″ of the center of the battlefield. The end game element is 5 victory points for controlling the center objective marker at the end of the battle.
• Corrupted Ground is a progressive objective based on controlling objectives for Conversion. 4 VP are scored if the marker in the opponents zone is scored, 2 VP are scored if the player controls one or more objective markers outside of the deployment zone (no man’s land), and a player loses a VP if they do not control the objective marker in their deployment zone. Controlling the objective marker in the opponent’s deployment zone for an entire round is effectively a 5 VP swing. Although improbable, assuming you controlled an objective marker in no man’s land and your opponent’s deployment zone you could potentially score 30 points from this objective alone.
• Strategic Scan is an end game objective for The Scouring where a player scores 3VP for every objective marker that was scanned using the Auspex Scan action. The Auspex Scan action can only be performed once per turn and only once per objective marker.
• Overrun contains both progressive and end game elements for Tide of Conviction. Players scores 2 VP at the end of each player’s first through fourth turn if they control at least one objective marker in their opponent’s half of the board.  At the end of the battle each player scores 4VP if they control the objective marker in their opponent’s deployment zone, and 2 additional VP for every other objective marker in their opponent’s half the board (for a maximum of 8 VP per player). This objective is unusual in that there’s no limit, meaning the maximum potential VP available from Overrun is 16 VP.
• Direct Assault is a progressive objective for Death and Zeal where, at the end of each turn, players score 2 VP if they meet one of two conditions or 3 VP if they meet both. The first condition is that the player controls every objective marker on the board or controls at least one objective marker that they did not control at the start of their turn. The second condition is that they destroy at least one enemy unit that was in range of an objective marker at the start of the turn.
• Precious Artefacts is a progressive objective for Secure Missing Artefacts; at the end of each player’s turn they score 3VP if they control one specific objective marker (the Priority) that’s located on their half of the board.

One significant change from 2021 is that the total number of points available from primary objectives is now higher. Previously the total pool of potential points that players could target to max out their 45 points from primary objectives was 60; four rounds of a maximum of 15 points each. While Take and Hold and Domination only generate a maximum of 12 points per turn over 4 turns for a potential total of 48, all of the mission specific objectives cap out at 15 or 16 points meaning that the total available pool is 63 to 64 VP. In the case of Corrupted Ground the cap is 78, not including the potential points your opponent’s score can lose.

Secondary Objectives

The remaining 45 points comes from the three secondary objectives that the player chooses for their army. Players select secondary objectives after determining the deployment zone, and must pick two objectives from the GT mission back. The third objective can be from a separate source such as a Codex or Codex Supplement, but if the secondary objective has a keyword in the brackets next to the title then players can only select that secondary objective if every model in the army (excluding UNALIGNED models) has that Faction keyword. Players may only select one objective from a particular category such as Purge the Enemy. In 2021 GT Secondaries were worth about 8 VP.

Purge the Enemy

• Assassination is an end game objective that scores 3 VP for every CHARACTER that is destroyed with a bonus VP if the enemy WARLORD was also destroyed; if your opponent has less than 5 CHARACTER models then you’re effectively reducing your potential by 3 VP per missing target.
• Bring It Down is an end game objective that scores points for enemy MONSTER or VEHICLES that are destroyed. Score 1 VP for models with a Wounds characteristic of 9 or less, 2 VP for models with 10-14 wounds, and 3 VP for models with 15 or more wounds.
• Titan Hunter is an end game objective that scores 4 VP if one enemy TITANIC unit is destroyed, 9 if two are destroyed, and 15 if three or more are destroyed.

No Mercy, No Respite

• No Prisoners is an end game objective that earns you VP based on the sum of the Wounds characteristics of every destroyed enemy model. Every 10 wounds is worth 1 VP. Killing between 50 and 99 wounds provides a 1 VP bonus, and 100 or more wounds provides a 2 VP bonus. That means that in order to achieve the maximum potential score you need to destroy a total of 130 wounds worth of enemy models.
• Grind Them Down is a progressive objective where you score 3 VP at the end of the battle round if more enemy units than friendly units were destroyed in that round. This objective is unchanged from last year where it was one of the lower performing objectives.
• To The Last is an end game objective that awards 5 VP for each of your three model expensive units that remained on the board at the end of the game. 3 VP is awarded if the unit split into separate units and not all of the models survived.

Warpcraft

• Abhor the Witch is an end game objective that rewards 3 VP for every PSYKER CHARACTER destroyed and 2 VP for every other PSYKER destroyed. Unchanged from 2021, this was the most valuable secondary from the previous season and is very effective against the right army.
• Warp Ritual is an end game objective that provides 3, 7, or 12 VP based on how often (1 to 3 times) a PSYKER CHARACTER performs the Warp Ritual within 6″ of the center of the battlefield.
• Pierce the Veil is an end game objective with an extremely onerous set of requirements. A player can score 8 VP if one or more units performed the Pierce the Veil Psychic Action 2 or more times, or 15 VP if one or more units performed it 4 times. The challenge is that Pierce the Veil requires the model to be within 6″ of the opponent’s battlefield edge, more than 6″ away from an enemy models, and it can only be performed by one model per turn. The onerous requirements are why this secondary was one of the worst options in 2021, and nothing has changed.
• Psychic Interrogation is a progressive objective that scores 3 VP every time a PSYKER CHARACTER performs the Psychic Interrogation action while within 24″ of an enemy CHARACTER unit. Note that the 2022 version eliminates the requirement that the enemy unit be visible which makes this more viable.

Shadow Operations

• Raise The Banners High has both progressive and end game elements. Unlike most of the actions linked to objectives, multiple units can perform a Raise Banners action at the end of the Movement phase. So long as the objective isn’t later controlled by the enemy (causing the banner to be ‘removed’) then you score 1 VP per banner at the end of each friendly  Command phase and at the end of the battle. On average it produced around 7.8 VP in the second half of 2021, making it an average result.
• Investigate Signal is a progressive objective that occurs every time an INFANTRY unit with three or more models performs the Investigate Signal action while wholly within 6″ of the center of the battlefield. If at the end of the turn there are no enemies within 6″ of the center of the board then the player scores 3 VP. The worst secondary in 2021, it may see better results now that the action can be started even if there are enemies nearby.
• Retrieve Nachmund Data is an end game objective that is scored based on how many times a Retrieve Data action is performed. You receive 4 points for 2 actions, 8 for 3, and 12 for 4. It can be performed by INFANTRY or BIKER units, but requires that the player roll less than or equal to the number of models in the unit (Troop units get a -1 modifier) on a D6 or the action fails. Only one servo skull can be retrieved per table quarter, and the unit must be more than 6″ away from any other table quarter when the action is performed. The objective’s predecessor, Retrieve Octarius Data, was a reliable option that produced above average VP.
• Deploy Teleport Homers has both progressive and end game components but is effectively a progressive objective. Each turn one INFANTRY or BIKER unit can perform an action while wholly within 12″ of the opponent’s deployment zone. Upon completion of the action (at the end of the turn for TROOP units, otherwise at the end of the next Command phase) you score either 2 VP or 4VP if the unit was wholly within the deployment zone. Previously one of the worst objectives available, the option to have TROOP units complete it in a single turn makes it significantly more viable.

Battlefield Supremacy

• Behind Enemy Lines is a progressive objective that rewards you for having models in your opponent’s deployment zone. If one unit is wholly within then you get 2 VP at the end of each turn; if two or more units are wholly within then you get 4 VP. This is unchanged from 2021 where it was rarely chosen (3% of the time) but produced above average results.
• Engage on All Fronts is a progressive objective where you score points from “qualifying units” (a unit with 3 or more models or the MONSTER or VEHICLE keyword) being in different table quarters and at least 6″ from the center. You score 2 VP if you have units in 3 table quarters, and 3 VP if you have units in all table quarters. The most popular secondary in 2021, it took a slight nerf with the requirement to have qualifying units.
• Stranglehold is a progressive objective which rewards 3 VP if you control 3 or more objective markers and more markers than your opponent. This is unchanged from 2021 when it was the best universal second objective, averaging 8.8 VP per match and selected 24% of the time.

Overall there are some viable options in each of the category, not including the faction specific objectives that can be found in codices and the GT book. If you’re curious about what some of the competitive players think about the changes I highly recommend reading this article. From my perspective as a filthy casual objectives like Retrieve Nachmund Data and Engage on All Fronts have some nice symmetry, while Abhor the Witch remains a reliable option against certain armies and Bring It Down will likely be used every time a Crusher Stampede shows up.

Wrapping Up

I really like these changes. Splitting primary objectives into two separate elements adds some diversity to the game, and the secondary objectives have a wide variety of options. I also really like the decision to limit armies to a single objective from a source outside of the GT book. From a math standpoint it seems like players will have more opportunities to score VP from primary objectives. Thanks for reading! If you have any questions or comments feel free to drop us a note in the Comments below or email us at contact@goonhammer.com.