The Comm Guild Maelstrom's Edge

- by Iain Wilson

The arrival of the Maelstrom's Edge V2 rulebook was accompanied by the addition of an all new faction to the game - the Kaigus Pact! We're all very excited about them as the Kaigus Pact are very different to the other models we've released so far, with their alien appearance and organic approach to technology. This week, I thought I'd take a closer look at one of the new plastic kits - the Kaigus Pact Troops sprue.




The troops sprue is one of a number of plastic sprues that we created for the Kaigus Pact launch, building three bioengineered warriors.


The Kaigus Pact Troops sprue, sculpted by Kevin Johnson.

Kaigus Pact soldiers, known as Muharis, generally take to the field armed with organic weapons called Dart Hosts. These are bioengineered crustacean-like organisms that clamp over the Muharis' weapon arm and, as their name suggests, spit lethal darts with the same force as a more normal firearm. More at home in space, the massive forms of the Muharis are gangly and awkward looking on the ground, their asymmetrical torsos and giant, carapace-clad forms a stark contrast from their human forbears.


Kaigus Pact Muharis with Dart Hosts, painted by Todd McNeal.

Muharis have access to a number of other lethal weapon symbiotes, including a heavier version of the standard Dart Host, the armor-piercing Spike Rifle and explosive-lobbing Brood Host. When more close-range assaults are called for, Muharis make use of the giant taloned Ripper Claw.


(Left to right) Heavy Dart Host, Brood Launcher, Ripper Claw & Spike Rifle, painted by Todd McNeal.

Regular Muharis Sentinel units have more limited access to these, while Sentinel Strongpoint units provide battlefield support with access to multiple heavier weapons.


Sentinel Strongpoint unit with Brood Launchers, painted by Iain Wilson.

The troops sprue also allows you to build Biologis troops. more specialised than the Muharis soldiers, Biologis Attendants carry a shorter ranged but poisoned version of the Dart Host. The parts from the troops sprue can also be combined with the Proctat Upgrade sprue to build a Biologis Proctat, a Genostaff-equipped squad leader upgrade for Attendant units.


A Biologis Attendant unit, painted by Todd McNeal.

Biologis Adepts also serve as leaders in some Muharis Sentinel units, providing them the ability to spawn Thrall units on the battlefield.


A Muharis Sentinel unit with attached Biologis Adept, painted by Iain Wilson.

Because of the unique design of their armour and equipment, the Kaigus Pact troops are not quite as modular as some of our other plastic kits. The most notable difference is in the heads, which we couldn't separate at the neck as we usually do. Instead, the sprue provides a number of different torso fronts, so you still get a wide range of posing options by combining different legs and torso fronts.


Muharis with Ripper Claws.

Being plastic, the models are of course easy to chop and change to suit yourself! While weapons are fixes to the arms, again due to their unique design structure and the limitations of plastic tooling, it's easy enough to slice weapons off and switch arms to give yourself some different posing options.


Muharis with Spike Rifles. the model on the left is the standard arm configuration, while the model on the right has had the weapon switched to a different arm, and a left arm from the Proctat Upgrade sprue.

And, of course, if you're like me and enjoy wandering outside the bounds of the 'official' game units, there's nothing stopping you from going to town with these kits and creating your own units!


A unit I'm calling a 'Sentinel Spearhead', equipped with shields taken from the soon-to-be-released Orakan Shield Thrall, and a polearm made from a Proctat staff and Orakan legs!

The painted models shown here (both Todd's fantastic studio models and my more table-level versions) are representative of the Koritanii moot, found active in Zycanthus space. The Kaigus Pact models lend themselves to a wide range of organic color-schemes - we recommend looking to sea-dwelling crustaceans for inspiration!


Some alternate Kaigus Pact color schemes.

The Kaigus Pact Troops box is available to buy soon, but in the meantime you can nab the sprue in the Kaigus Pact Starter Force box available now from the Maelstrom's Edge webstore here!

What are you working on? We would love to see your models and terrain in the Comm Guild Facebook group!

For other building ideas, modeling tutorials, army spotlights and conversion walkthroughs, check out the Hobby section of the Maelstrom's Edge website here. And while you're there, grab a copy of the Maelstrom's Edge V2 Beta rules!

A small hydroponics facility sits on the western edge of Daviston Outpost, bracketed by the failed Mackie Ranch Bullroach grazing area and the reclamation and research facilities on the edge of the acidic Three Minute Lake. While seemingly of little tactical significance, the troops of the Daviston Militia find themselves called to action to defend against the planetfall of a Kaigus Pact incursion.



A new Maelstrom's Edge V2 battle report, featuring 120 points of Epirian Foundation militia taking on a Kaigus Pact assault in a Strike & Hold mission! Check it out here!

Despite the alien appearance of the beings they have become, the ancestors of the Kaigus Pact were human. After many generations in space, little remains of their origins, with their tall, slender frames covered in armored chitin and reinforced skins designed to withstand even the harsh conditions of the void. Even their technology has shaken off all trace of their forebears as the Pact relies on bioengineering, growing their ships, weapons and other technology from living organisms and making use of genetically programmed thrall species in place of robots and other menials.

And now, you can bring these bioengineered forces to your own tabletop, with the release of the Kaigus Pact Starter Force for Maelstrom's Edge V2!



This collection of Kaigus Pact models builds around 50 points, forming a solid foundation to expand into a full force. Included are the following plastic Kaigus Pact sprues:

• 1 x Kaigus Pact Biologis Curator with a 36mm base.
• 1 x Kaigus Pact Troops Sprue, building up to 3 models with 32mm bases.
• 1 x Kaigus Pact Proctat Upgrade Sprue, which combines with the Troops sprue to upgrade a unit leader.
• 2 x Kaigus Pact Thrall Sprues, which build 4 x Tamakin, 2 x Krii Vapor Thralls and 2 x Krii Shatter Thralls, with 32mm and 46mm bases.

Biologis Curator, painted by Todd McNeal.


Biologis Attendants, painted by Todd McNeal.


Tamakin and Krii (Thralls), painted by Todd McNeal.

These sets will be released separately later on, but the starter force box gives you a small saving on the individual kits and allows you to get a good head start on assembling for Kaigus Pact force. Grab yours now from the Maelstrom's Edge webstore here!

To find out more about the Kaigus Pact, check out the Faction Focus article here and the Colors of the Kaigus Pact article here. Or, of course, pick up the shiny new V2 rulebook!


SecDef try in vain to hold off a Kaigus Pact assault.

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Get the rules now!

The new V2 rulebook is available in the Maelstrom's Edge webstore now. You can also check out the V2 Rules Downloads section for PDF rules downloads, and the V2 Rules Articles section for some insights into the Maelstrom's Edge rules. The website also includes a handy Force Builder which allows you to easily build and save your force lists!

Stay Tuned for more!