Horus Heresy 3e Review: Aquilon Terminator Sodality

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5/5 stars, but rounded down due to points cost. Expensive but powerful! 

Background. 

Custodes in terminator armour. They are rare, given that the Aquilon pattern was adapted for the Custodes from the cataphractii pattern to bear extra weight. They find use in Zone Mortalis type settings where the extra armour comes in very handy.

Strengths.

Starting with the stat line, these are triple wound terminators with T=6 but otherwise very similar to standard Custodes. 

They come equipped with an Infernus Fire Pike which is a S=6 template with panic - this is nice. Alternatively it can be swapped out for a Lastrum storm bolter which gives you a good range, 4 shots at S=5 with shred. I think strictly these are probably better, but I would keep some flame templates purely for the panic rule. The Adrathic Combi Destructor is also attractive with two shots at S=5, AP=2 and 2 damage and rending of 6+. The range on these is small though. 

The Solarite Power Talon grants reaping blow (2) which can be traded for a Solarite Power Gauntlet which gives S+4 and 2 damage but at I-3. Honestly, I think the terminators have staying power so I would actually be opting for several of the Power Gauntlets here. 

Weaknesses. 

The points cost makes this unit very expensive. There is a legitimate argument for having more regular Custodes over the terminators. But they do have the rule of cool regardless.

Builds.

3 Aquilon, 2 Lastrum Storm Bolters, 1 Solarite Power Gauntlet (260 points).

A bit of a basic build for me. Note the points cost already for just 3 dudes. 

5 Aquilon, 2 Adrathic Combi-Destructor, 2 Solarite Power Gauntlet (455 points).

Suitable for close range work. Probably best to teleport in with a Tribune or similar using an Arae-Shrike.

9 Aquilon, 5 Lastrum Storm Bolters, 2 Adrathic Combi-Destructors, 3 Solarite Power Gauntlets (790 points).

Fabulous full sized squad. But take a moment to pause and look at the points cost!

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Shield Captain

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 stars. The only and the right command choice. Second only to the Tribune in terms of raw power for a non-named character. 

Background. 

Promoted by the Emperor perhaps, and very well respected by his peers at the very worst, the Shield Captain is a senior commander within the Legio Custodes.

Strengths.

The stat line is slightly lower than the Tribune which is also reflected in the points cost. Notable departures are WS=6, W=3, I=5, and A=4. There are similarly reductions in the advanced characteristics. 

In terms of equipment they have the same selection as the Tribune: either an Eternity Spear, or the Eternity Blade and Praesidium Shield. Both are viable, but the sword and shield might be slightly preferred for teleporting in?

Eternal Warrior is at 1 here and Vanguard remains at 2. 

Weaknesses. 

Appreciably cheaper than the Tribune, but once you pay for an Arae-Shrike, things start to look very tempting to just take a Tribune instead to be very, very honest. 

Builds.

Shield Captain with Eternity Sword and Praesidium Shield, Area-Shrike (225 points).

The deep strike build that I like. Swap out for the Eternity Spear if you are not deep striking (by dropping the Arae-Shrike), in my opinion for a good reduction in cost. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Tribune

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 stars. The scary high command for the Custodes.

Background. 

Perhaps no more than ten of the ten thousand carry this title. They are the war council of the shield-general, and responsible for the Emperor's security as well as providing war council. They do not take to the battlefield often and fight only in the most dire of circumstances.

Strengths.

The stat line is impressive on its own with only 1 less wound than Valdor and one less pip in BS. That's the only differences for the stats!

In terms of equipment though, they come with an Eternity Spear as standard. At range, this has AP=3 instead of 4 compared to the regular spear. But in close combat it shines a lot more with aflame (which is excellent here), critical hits, shred on 5+ as well as impact (this last one being the only special rule in common with the standard spear). Don't forget the Misericordia as well. 

In common with Valdor, the Tribune also has the Arae-Shrike for your deep strike tactics which is very nice. Eternal warrior at 2 is splendid, and Vanguard at 3 is fine enough.  

Weaknesses. 

Significantly cheaper than Valdor, but still as expensive as a land raider. Yet well worth the points investment I think!

Builds.

The only option here is whether to switch out the spear for an eternity blade and praesidium shield. This does mean dropping the ranged attack, but the melee attack is strictly better (thanks to shred at 4+ and duellist's edge; the loss of impact on AM is not going to be a biggie I think) and access to the shield trait could be useful. I would actually slightly favour this construction if you are at all tempted by the Arae-Shrike in the first place. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Constantin Valdor

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5/5 stars, but rounded down. A truly deadly almost-Primarch, but the points cost is worth evaluating. 

Background. 

If the Emperor referred to the Primarchs by numbers, then it is arguable that he cared much more for the Custodes than he ever did for his legionary "tools". And if this is true, then of all of them, Valdor would probably be his favourite one of them all and the Emperor's right hand man. Being so favoured by the Emperor Himself, Valdor has a swathe of background and toys at his disposal. Indeed, the background portrayed in Inferno is very comprehensive about his role in the conflict with the Thousand Sons and who exactly he is hence I strongly recommend reading it if you have access to it.

Strengths.

A primarch in all but name if we are honest.

His stat line is almost Primarch levels with the only "poor" entries being 5's in both strength and toughness. 

As Master of the Golden Legion he gives Fear (1) to all Custodes in his army on turn 1. He can also manipulate reserves by +1 for Deep Striking Custodes. 

His Spear came from the Emperor himself (of course!). Is it AP=2 with S+2 for close combat along with critical hit, duellist's edge, and impact on A. This is truly excellent for all your duelling needs. He could easily think about taking on Primarchs and standing a chance (on the basis he has to kill them before they kill him). Eternal Warrior at 2 will help with this and Hatred of Paragons is good too. Vanguard (3) is nice enough, but we have plenty of that in the rest of the army. The Arae Shrike is also very good in that it grants deep strike to him and his unit which is hard to get otherwise. This is probably the primary reason to take Valdor tactically at least. 

Weaknesses. 

Look, I've mentioned his S and T being a little bit low for a Primarch. That is okay.

What I think is the real negative is his points cost in comparison to simply opting for yet MORE Custodes of the troops variety which is extremely appealing set against his points cost. This is the reason why I cannot give him 5 stars. 

Builds.

There are no builds to discuss.  

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Legio Custodes Rules

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5/5 stars, narrowly rounded down. Mixed rules here with some being very good, and others less usable. 

We commence our reviews of the Legio Custodes by looking at their overall rules before progressing to individual units. 

Their Legio Tactica is "Only in Death" which means they they can never withdraw (disengage or fall back) from combat unless they are anti-grav which makes sense. Further, if they are routed, they instead gain stunned. I suspect this will not happen too often in all honesty so this Tactica is only going to activate occasionally. 

They have 5 special detachments. The war-engine one (Moritoi) gives 2 war engines but is an Apex detachment. The rest are Auxiliary and therefore much easier to take and come with a range of troops plus transport, heavy support, scouts, and assorted armour. 

For prime advantages they can select between Prefect (W+1 and Officer of the Line 2) which is great for the Shield Captain, and Hetaeron Guard can modify Eternal Warrior to a value of 2 once per army. 

Their Advanced Reaction is The Blade Splits. This is a movement based reaction that allows the player to split a unit (the split off has to have a minimum of 3 members each - hence you need to have 6 in a squad minimum to do this). Considering the small model count that this army usually has, this is really a tactical bait par excellence. Played well, it can stifle charges, change shooting arrangements, and provide a hammer or anvil where required. It also subtly encourages big units which don't make much sense given that the Custodes don't cost less points when you add more to a unit versus buy a new unit like Astartes and other units generally do. Hence I'm a bit on the fence overall about this one. 

There are no less than FOUR gambits to choose between. Raptor's Surge gives bonus attacks (up to A+3) if the enemy claims a greater outside support - not bad. World Serpent's Bane sets A=1 but D equal to the remaining wounds - probably not worth it unless you are Valdor taking on a Primarch. Heaven's Strike gives 5+ on critical hits at the expense of A/2. Might be okay occasionally. Stone's Aegis gives T+1 in exchange for wounds failing on 1s and 2s - Don't do it.

In terms of weapons, it is easy to overlook the knives that these gold giants carry around, but the AP=3 attacks at the end of a combat are going to be valuable against standard marines and mechanicum. They're worth remembering (but easy to forget). 

Guardian Spears themselves remain of quality. They are bolt guns with shred at 5+ essentially with an 18 inch range (the sentinel war blade is similar, but 3 shots but at 6+ shred and shorter range). In close combat, they give S+1 (i.e., base of S=6 for regular Custodes) and AP=2 with impact on AM (the war blades remain at S, but retain AP=2). Hence everything here is at AP=2 and I=5 in close combat. This makes short work of regular space marine legions. Fundamentally therefore, it is best to think of this army as a close combat one. You want to be as deadly as possible in melee and get there fast. 

I see their main weaknesses as statuses (which you won't get to remove in a rush) and lack of Line (they are a Vanguard army fundamentally). You should be able to cope due to high levels of advanced characteristics and just surging for a wipe out game. But beware the opponent who is faster than you with appropriate weapons to damage you (especially things like phospex, phage, and high S long range weapons). As an elite army, the loss of even one unit can and will hurt you. 

Callidus and Terrain Model Assembley

The Callidus assassin is one of those models that I have wanted to buy for a long while. The real problem is the price in literal hard currency. The model is so lacking in plastic and looks so thin that it is (was) hard to justify the expenditure in comparison to something more chunky. And if I am being very honest: something that is nowhere near as delicate. 

Not wanting to undertake lots of pinning in order to reinforce the very thin arms, legs, hair, weapons, and the rest, I came up with a bit of a different solution: add some terrain on to the base! Originally I was thinking of using Kayvann Shrike's concrete pillars that he is descending on from Warhammer 40,000. It fits thematically and would provide a nice jumping point, or something implying that she jumped off from it. In the end I came up with a different approach. I obtained some old pipework and a ladder from the now quite dated Imperial Sector terrain set. The base is, candidly, very small to fit both the assassin and the terrain on to. This is made even more problematic by the tilt of the assassin model which is angled slightly backward to the direction of travel. A bit of dry fitting and slightly forcing the issue and I came up with what can be seen in the image in the end. 

The angled leg is touching the pipework and I glued it on there. The very thin piping from both of her army is now very much protected by the pipe and the ladder. There's very little that will be breaking them. Although the arms still just outward, the pipe will also help with any wobbly model situation. The hair is a slightly different matter since if this one goes off a table top edge it may still snap. But given the work that I've put in here I think it will suffice quite well and protect the model from most problematic topples. Moreover, the miniature now looks like it was worth the money that I paid for it in terms of raw plastic used!

I intend to paint this one up in a similar approach to my Vindicare with some glitch camo effects going on. I'll see how that goes and post about it another time!