Okay, let's rephrase this according to your latest additions. 300 SM vs. 300 CSM Not the biggest battle there ever was, but definitely an impressive one. There's gotta be at least....let's say at the very least 2 Nurgle sorcs in this conflict, both probably in the front lines trying to spread their Rot, but staying back. Just letting people edge into their Rot and back off over and over again while they cast a buff on themselves to increase their toughness. Just doing this, you've set up that bomb without dying and you're going to have the advantage. Because once everyone goes live, even if the Rot does hit your side as well you WILL have those dedicated to Nurgle slopping about. It's almost a guaranteed win, because once everything else dies it'll be a dozen SM versus whoever was forewarned on your team to leave and your Nurgle Marines. Trust me, I love this concept, I'm just playing devil's advocate because it does sound a bit OP to me.
Players will play in strikeforces, strikeforces dont blob up and thus your OP example will not be as effective as you think (this taking in note that the actual spread of the Rot happens if anyones in the vicinity of the afflicted when he explodes, SM wont be coughing on their allies through their helms). A well played army will mitigate the benefits of the Rot to be as insignificant to the number of their fallen as it can. A blobed zerg will get fucked if they just blob up and wait to see their allies implode around and share the Rot. Similarly this isnt a Rot specific issue. A Plasma Cannon will be the weapon of choice for any Devastator out there when facing unorganized zergs, and that thing will reap allot more death upon the masses of pugs than the Rot could.
From what you just described we need to know a couple of things: How expensive it is to put those two Sorcerers on the front lines? - I.e. What could the other side buy for X amount of Nurgle countering points? Tanks, Lascannons, Plasma Cannons, Plasma Guns, Stalker Bolters, Missile Launchers, Flamers, Grenades, Meltaguns, Bolters, Storm Bolters are all examples of weapons that would utterly destroy a Nurgle Pysker or Plague Marine at range without risking exposure to Nurgle's Rot in it's Aura form. Only one of them would be needed to kill the Pysker. All of which would be beneficial to and certain that the SM's would be carrying anyway. How big is the Aura? It seems as though you think it's 25, or maybe even greater than a 50 meters in diameter. I was thinking that it's really not more than 5 to 6 (the range of a melee charge) if even that. Keep in mind that the average range for a Bolter Round in SM is over 500 meters (which is the length of most of the maps). What gear do Plague Marines get? Not anything based in Assault for sure. What's the most likely range of Nurgle's Rot? Oh yes, 1 meter beyond assault range. What happens when an Assault Marine kills or at least survives the Nurgle Aura and carries it to his allies, or a suicidal Chaos Raptor infects himself and flies into the SM ranks? For a lack of a better term, I'd like to say battlefield fixing: Nurgle's Rot is going to shape the battlefield to certain conditions, where long range/siege is going to be preferred over lightning assault. If you spread out, you'll survive. If you bunch up and assault enemies, you're more likely to die. Remember also that a single stack of Nurgle's Rot won't kill you.. it's if you forget about the mechanic of disease and remain in proximity with others who are stacking it on for you is when it becomes lethal. So in essence, speed kills, but doing nothing against the threat kills you even faster. Edit: Funnily enough, those that can move the fastest, i.e. The Eldar, will utterly butcher Nurgle players because the Eldar will never have a reason to be in range of the slow moving brutes. With monofiliment weaponry, they'd have their own DoT that would completely hose slow moving targets because the more they get hit with the weapon, the stronger the DoT becomes. ( if memory serves me correctly, Monofiliament weaponry basically wraps its target in razor-sharp fishing line that constricts its target until it completely shreds it.) http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Monofilament_Weaponry#.Uz8W1Z5dV9Y
Well here's an another thought to it, as a lot of players will be in strikeforces and provided they can communicate anyone who comes into contact would warn others so they don't come near. Once the battle is other any afflict would be sent off in suicide missions to spread the disease to afflict enemy's so future battles are easier
There is the option of Pestilence in which there was no contact between the infected, it was simply a contagion from Nurgle that defied logic and sprung up from nowhere, ignored all forms of counter measures and quarantine, and had no cure. (Eventually it was figured out the source was from corrupted Medicaes and Apothecaries who had been possessed unknowingly by Nurgle)
Added this (book?) to my backlog to try and find when i get some time to read something. Is it any good? I still have the Blood Gorgons and im halfway into the Palace of the Plaguelord. Also yes the thing about Nurgle is that his diseases are in most cases incurable cause they are tainted by the powers of the warp, to which no regular medical science knows the cure to. Plus if we look into the lore new diseases and strains of existing ones spring up constantly, id hate to be an Apotchecary that had a job to deal with that crap.
It's a short story that is listed both in Let the Galaxy Burn Omnibus and There is Only War Omnibus written by Dann Abnett. The story is really good and touching but if it wasn't for plot armour, everyone would of died.
Oh, i thought it was a book of its own, pity. There isnt much Nurgle related stuff book wise. Ive been recommended the Blood Gorgons cause it contains a Blight Mage and the Palace of the Plaguelord is after all a fantasy book.
Well you could always read the Guard Novel Cadian Blood by Aaron Dembski-Bowden There's also some good mind control zombie like action in the Eisenhorn series, I believe it is the second book of the series that has it. I know that Let the Galaxy Burn has at least four Nurgle short stories and also one of the Heresy novels Flight of the Eisenhorn has some plague action towards the middle and the end and also the book False Gods has some action in it too.
