Go with the flow... Games Workshop Promethium Relay Pipes

Games Workshop Promethium Relay Pipes

Promethium Relay Pipes Kit

Now that I have cleared the environmentalists off the sidewalk, it's time to install a pipeline. Promethium is not an environmentally friendly material, but more importantly it is not heretic friendly and so we are going to keep it flowing.

Now that I have read some of the Gaunt's Ghosts novels, I have decided to build a series of tables that are inspired from battles/scenes from some of those novels. I may play with some of the details, but these novels are the inspiration. The first pieces I picked up were the Ironheart Artisans Fuel Storage Tanks (Single Can and Double Can). Well in order to fill up these tanks, I have to keep the promethium flowing and the Games Workshop Promethium Relay Pipes ($37) are the start to that.

Long pipes

The kit is designed so that it can only be assembled in way. There are 16 pieces for the main components of the pipes. There are an additional 14 caps of different styles that mimic closed doors and open vents. A rules addendum comes with the set that provides for the use of the pipes in the game. The final assembly with yield three long pipes, four short pipes, and one control module.

Control Panel 

Each set of pipes costs 40 points. All of the sections must be placed in contact with at least one other section. There is a completed set of rules for use as cover, damage, and some special rules. Any non-vehicle flamer within 2" can tap into the pipes to increase from Assault to Heavy or from Pistol to Heavy and the weapon gets the Torrent special rule to the end of the phase.

Small Pipes

The details of the kit are rather good. The kit is one of the simplest to assemble. There is a lot of flexibility to how the pieces can be fielded.  The end caps provide lots of options, but if you don't glue them on, there is a good chance that you will need to keep putting them back on the pipes during a game.

Control Panel

As with all Games Workshop pieces, there are Gothic accents, but I think these have pushed it too far. The pipes are covered in skulls, and spikes which though keep with the theme are excessive. Personally I would have liked to see these be a bit more industrial in design and more practical. I suppose in the 41st millennium the Ministry of Civil Engineering has no concern for the maintenance staff.

While I do like the set as pieces and the concept of tapping into them on the battlefield (a nice surprise when I opened the kit), I am looking to add some additional pipes that are not as heavily accentuated. These additional pipes will be made with supplies purchased from Home Depot, but that will be for a later post.

This post is pretty small because the set is simple overall and I am preparing for my weekend at NOVA Open this weekend where I will be running This Is Not A Test demos. If you are there, please come by Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for a demo and maybe some games. When I am not running demos, I'll be working on a blog post of the NOVA Open experience and working on painting some figures. Look forward to seeing you there and be sure to go to the website and get your NOVA Open Charitable Foundation auction tickets.