Horus Heresy 3e Review: Ultramarines Legion Rules

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are very good.  

Background.

The largest of the legions (assuming you miscount the Alpha Legion) were drawn in by Horus' plan and betrayed by the Word Bearers at Calth. There followed the underworld war, the Ruinstorm, and the Shadow Crusade. Alongside this they also built Imperium Secundus along with the Blood Angels, Dark Angels, and elements of the shattered legions. When all was said and done, they crusaded to destroy Davin, push the traitors to their limits, and rebuilt the Imperium proper. Although arguably not at the forefront of the Civil War thanks to Horus' manipulations and the Word Bearer's Betrayal at Calth, their wider forces contributed significantly and mopped up after the event in a way other forces simply were not able to do. Moreover, they were the spear that forced Horus' celerity at Terra: he knew they were coming and had to act before their full forces arrived along with others.

Armoury. 

Legatine Axe is a an excellent power axe upgrade for a small points value which yields S+1 and breaching at an incredible 4+. This is worth the upgrade for a number of your characters. 

Argyrum Pattern Boarding Shields gives a 5++ generally which increases to 4++ in melee. This is solid, but the points cost is steep; particularly when you factor in that most characters probably have 5++ natively anyway. 

Logisticae is a prime advantage for Ultramarine only armies to represent their superior organisational abilities and requisitioning. This gives you a free transport or heavy transport with +2 capacity. This is actually really quietly appealing and powerful. 

Tactica. 

Tactical Flexibility sounds like the Alpha Legion should own it, but the Ultramarines gain a reduced reaction cost per turn (down to zero). In essence then, the army gets a free reaction every turn. This is very plausibly their strongest aspect, and I almost gave 5/5 star rating for this alone.  

Gambit.  
Aegis of Wisdom grants access to the collective wisdom of the legion which provides focus+1 for every command model at the expense of outside support. This is strong because presumably you have plenty of Consuls in your army. 

Additional Detachments. 
Primus Demi-Company gives a mixture of slots, but the command slot must be an Optae. Can't have everything, but this is close with a lot of customization possible. 

Advanced Reaction. 
Retribution Strike allows you to fire back using a unit that was not targeted by whoever dared fire at you. Its very nice really and can help with concentrated fire against any unit that is shooting at you. 

Overall then the Ultramarines feel a bit generic - but that comes with the territory here. Yet they also show how that can be a strong advantage when played right.