Oil and Blood, Tor Megiddo - part 13 - The Rustmen

The Rustmen

Clink, clank, clunk,

Clink, clank, clunk,

His soul is rotten,

His blood is dust,

He's oft forgotten,

He's made of rust,

Clink, clank, clunk,

Clink, clank, clunk.

The Rustmen walked the lonely valleys and mountains of Tor Megiddo. For an aeon they were but a myth, a legend of old. They appeared in folk tales and travellers' stories, mysterious metal creatures, endlessly trying to remember corrupted or half-deleted programming - tasks set for them before the Long Dark, in the age before the end.

But after the destruction of the Promethean Tower, and the expansion of the Yaike Yaike tribes' civil wars, they either grew bold or noticed the activity on the plains and went down to investigate.

The mutants and techno-barbarians believed the Rustmen to have souls, rotten dusty souls but souls nonetheless. They interpreted the actions of the ancient machines as emotional responses or moods and treated them with a mix of reverence, disdain and fear.











Rustmen use the profile of Luther Pattern Excavation Automata (Gang War 3) with either 6 Wounds (for up to Kastelan sized models) or 12 Wounds (for Armiger sized or larger models), plus any appropriate weapons that the models has. Any weapon fired that rolls the Ammo symbol will automatically run out of ammunition (no further test is made) and the Rustman cannot reload it.

At the start of each game that features a Rustman, roll on the following table to find the mood of each Rustman.

1. Introverted
   The Rustman will not take any action as it attempts to complete internal diagnostics. At the beginning of every following turn, roll a D6: On a 4+ roll on this table again: the Rustman may have finished diagnostics and started to take action.
2. Compliant
   The Rustman will follow orders. The warband with most models within 3” can choose how the Rustman moves and fights.
3. Inquisitive
   The Rustman will move toward the nearest model and scan them. It will not shoot or attack but will fight back if attacked.
4. Scared
   The Rustman is Broken.
5. Aggressive
   The Rustman will move toward, and shoot at, the closest model.
6. Frenzied
   The Rustman will move toward the nearest model, charging it and attacking if possible, shooting it if not.