Skyhunters - Emperor's Children

The fully painted squad of Emperor's Children skyhunters ready for deployment!

The paint scheme here is mainly the Emperor's Children purple that I've been using consistently on all the other models that I have for this legion, edged with gold trim and a large expanse of brutalist black and silver metal down the middle. White accents and appropriately applied decals finish it off. The stands use the creeping vines extensively below the speeders to give the suggestion of varied and overgrown terrain. 

Other little details include the sergeant's power sword in green (taken from the newer Slaanesh chaos space marine range), a variety of heads (including an older chaos space marines plume) and of course the melta guns at the front for tank exploding purposes. Happy with the outcome here - its a squad with purpose and will look good undertaking missions!

Painted Emperor's Children Praetor Tartaros Terminator

Regal purple mixes with exquisite threat in the pose for this Emperor's Children praetor in tartaros terminator armour!

The miniature itself was very easy to put together, and the painting almost did it itself. The purple follows my standard recipe. However, it is almost drowned out by the gold that adorns the praetor himself. Obviously this is a guy who wants to not only own the battlefield, but looks like a mythological figure while doing so. There's also some gemstones and robes around the character which to me feels like Ancient Greece vibes in some ways. And the Laer style sword hints at the early signs of falling to chaos here without actually having sworn feality (potentially). I've picked this out in the same green tones that I've used for the gemstone (which I'm interpreting here as something a bid Eldar in nature). 

Although gaudy and regal, it somehow still works and comes together to still present a threat and a perfection of martial skill ready to take on the enemies of the Imperium. Or of Fulgrim at least. 

Emperor's Children Phoenix Terminator

The first Phoenix Terminator fully painted!

I think it probably could do with one or two more highlights, but overall it is more than tabletop high enough quality standard. The purples follow my usual Emperors Children approach with base, layer, contract and highlights all in the citadel range. The base has the technical paint applied that results in cracking - I've applied a layer of watered down PVA glue to keep everything in place. The golds were difficult to achieve, but think I got there in the end. The decals round out the tabard nicely as I wanted them in white rather than the otherwise black colour shown in the usual schemes. 

I really like the pose of this one as well, caught in mid-swing against an opponent! Highly dynamic and evocative!

Steam Style Review of Isstvan 3

Thanks to ChatGPT, I give you the following: a Steam style review of Isstvan 3!! 

[Emperor's Children loyalist variety]

- - 

Not Recommended.  

26.3 hrs at review time.    

Avoid unless you are extremely committed to punishing difficulty, broken command structures, and being lied to by every system that is meant to protect the player. 

The deployment begins normally enough. Standard compliance theatre. You know the routine. Then, without meaningful warning, the campaign reveals that your own commanders have flagged you for deletion, the sky turns toxic, half your faction disappears in the opening minutes, and the rest of the experience becomes an extended endurance mode against impossible odds. 

To be clear, this is not “challenging” in the satisfying sense. This is a betrayal simulator with survival-horror elements. Respawns are effectively disabled. Reinforcements do not exist. Air support is hostile. Extraction is fictional. Supply lines are gone. Mission updates consist mostly of discovering fresh layers of treachery while your brothers die around you. 

And yet, infuriatingly, it works. 

Because once the scale of the deception becomes clear, the whole thing sharpens. Every corridor matters. Every magazine matters. Every last stand becomes personal. You are not fighting to win the map. You are fighting because the alternative is to accept that everything you served was already rotten. The game understands this, and it leans into it with brutal consistency. 

Enemy variety is also strong. Arrogant duelists, frothing butchers, trench-stubborn killers, cold administrators of death. You really do get the full traitor roster, each with their own special way of making the galaxy worse. 

Boss design on the command tier is especially effective, because the real mechanic is not damage output but moral injury. 

Pros: Phenomenal atmosphere. Excellent desperation-driven combat. Strong squad cohesion mechanics, especially when everyone knows they are already dead. One of the best final-act tonal collapses I have ever seen. 

Cons: Tutorial lies to you. Faction loyalty system catastrophically bugged. No meaningful victory condition. Ends exactly as badly as it should. 

I cannot recommend it to anyone seeking fairness, closure, or competent leadership. I can recommend it to anyone who wants to look treachery in the face and still choose to fight. 

Verdict: 10/10 experience. 0/10 command structure. 

Would die on the walls again.

Perfection

One of the issues with the older Forge World models is that the instructions for building them come in one of two flavours:

(a) Step 1: assemble everything.

(b) The instructions are online at this (now no longer existent) web address. 

I feel Angron was a case in point for case (a). Fulgrim is a case of (b), although also partially (a) as well. There are, however, some repositories for the instructions. Only because some very kind hobbyists had the foresight to download the relevant pdfs and make them subsequently available. 

Regardless, here is the perfection of Fulgrim in all his assembled might. 

There are hard parts here, to be clear. I have to pin Fulgrim's narrow triangular standing point where his foot meets the ground into the main part of the resin base to provide stability. The fiddly little bits at the bottom of the leather straps in the shape of the legion symbol were a royal pain. The other hard part was the cape. I had to pin that to the main body as well due to a poor fitting that no quantity of heating or re-shaping would cure. Otherwise, this model was actually okay after a lot of dry fitting. Well, okay, there were serious issues that I suspect a beginner would not appreciate in the slightest. Now that it is done, I am more relieved than anything!

Emperor's Children Terminator Lord or Praetor

A conversion that I've been thinking about undertaking for a long time has finally taken shape! This model is an Emperor's Children terminator. Possibly a Praetor for 30k or a chaos lord for 40k. It could work either way (although obviously traitor aligned for the Heresy era). 

The parts used include:

Tail: Daughters of Khaine Blood Sisters (Age of Sigmar)
Body, Head, and Cape: Chaos Terminator Lord
Lightning Claws: Dark Angels
Shoulder Pads: Regular 40k Terminator

The core idea here is that this is a Lord or Praetor who is treading right down the chaos path toward the dark prince. He is clearly mutated already, but his brothers don't care and regard it as perfectly natural, or perhaps a level of perfection for them to all aspire to! 

I might use him along side the thunder hammer and storm shield Emperor's Children Indomitus terminators that I have already assembled and painted. The painting here uses the exact same formulation of my standard approach to the Emperor's Children in Horus Heresy, so he does at least slot in nicely in terms of the colour scheme, but perhaps a bit less so with the mutation! I'm reasonably content with how it turned out, but I do acknowledge that some finer details could do with touching up (e.g., the eye of Horus in the centre of the chest and some more highlighting on the tail perhaps). 

Praetor Challenge: Alpha Legion vs Emperor's Children

Today's Praetor Challenge / Wargames Gallery! 

Here is the situation top down, and bit more side on. 

It is the Emperor's Children's turn and you are viewing the situation just after the movement phase. 

The units involved are (Left to Right).

Emperor's Children:

Sunkillers x4 with las cannons (positioned on the scenery at the top left). 

Assault Squad x11. Sargent with twin lightning claws. Combat shields all round 

Apothecary x1 embedded in the assault squad. 

Praetor with phoenix spear embedded in the assault squad. Unwounded. 

Alpha Legion:

Veteran Assault squad x5, all with power swords. 

Heavy support squad x5. Missile launchers. 

Termite - undamaged.

You are not playing for objectives. This is a straight forward wipe-them-out style game with the winner decided by sheer number of units left standard. 

The Alpha Legion has 1 reaction in hand. 

What do the Emperor's Children do for shooting, charging, and so on?

Emperor's Children Indomitus Terminator Squad

The full, painted Indomitus Terminator Squad for the Emperor's Children!

Thoughts very welcome, but overall I am actually really pleased with how these terminators came out. They are clearly pre-heresy, but perhaps there are subtle signs creeping in. Or maybe they are lingering loyalist elements of the Emperor's Children who still keep the ways of excellence in martial terms. I really like the golden helmets for this squad, they have certainly worked superbly well for these models and I would paint more in the same manner given the choice. 

The bases were a bit of a pain with the flaking, but PVA glue watered down and some stain solved this (with dry brushing as the final step). Tempting to add some flock, but I actually don't think it is needed. Less is potentially more here!

Emperor's Children Indomitus Terminator Test Model

This is the first painted Indomitus Terminator for a new Emperor's Children squad of thunder hammers and storm shields!

I very much like the colour scheme here. The purple of the Emperor's Children combine well with the gold helmet and the whites of the shoulder pads. I have applied decals from the Emperor's Children set to the model to round it out and really like the way it looks. 

The base here was a bit of an experiment in crackle technical paints. Due to the flaky nature of the technical paint, I went over it with slightly watered down PVA glue combined with some drops of paint to ensure that it stuck down to the base. This mostly worked, but it did disturb some of the flakes upon application.

All was not lost though. 

I think the flakes that were disturbed actually make the base look even better. They give a sense of either very uneven ground, or perhaps the weight of the terminator stomping through the terrain. Either way, very happy, and the flakes no longer are at risk of coming off at all. Some dry brushing rounded out the base. 

Building Phoenix Terminators

In part frustrating, but overall okay. 

Building Phoenix Terminators from Forge World has been a pleasure when I'm now able to look at the final product and see the sheer detail that has been included in the sculpts. It is very impressive. However the assembly process itself was a bit fraught. 

The main issue is the two handed spears. Despite dry fitting many times over, getting these style of spears into the exact position is a pain. The issue is that the bond locations (shoulders and wrists) lack nubs or any kind of obvious joint to help with placement. [Aside: for the uninitiated, there are d6 like marks on the arms and spears to help you get the right parts at least (i.e., ".." on the wrists aligns with ".." on the rest of the body - 2 dots, just like the d6 result of a 2). 

In the end, my approach was to pin one of the shoulders into the approximately correct location. I then glued the spear on to this arm, and then proceeded to attach the other arm into what I trusted was more or less the correct spot. It worked out - just about. My pose on the right hand terminator above looks like a mid-strike movement which I am happy with. The head angle certainly helps communicate this fluidity. 

Conversely, the terminators that are wielding the spears one handed were much, much more straight forward and easy to assemble. They certainly look good in the end, much to my relief!

Wargames Gallery: Loyalist Emperor's Children vs Traitors Word Bearers melee

A loyalist element of the Emperor's Children charges against the traitorous Word Bearers from the Gal Vorbak! 

The praetor and the Gal Vorbak leader have been set to one side for their own challenge. This leaves 10 assault squad members with chain swords and combat shields, the assault squad sergeant with twin lightning claws, and an apothecary to fight against 5 Gal Vorbak. 

Which side do the dice favour?!

Emperor's Children Praetor

A recent acquisition that I bought is the relatively (I use the word under advice) new praetor for the Emperor's Children. This character is in near regal Tartaros terminator armour which is simply exquisite in ornamentation and detail - very nice from Forge World to say the least. 

The armaments are also interesting to note. The combi volkite is often overlooked in terms of combi-weapons available to terminators. This is, perhaps, understandable as melta and plasma are often more highly desired and prized. However, I think the key advantage here is that a combi-volkite can fire both components all the time. There is no "one use only" rule for either. You get the best of both worlds, all of the time. 

The sword meanwhile is similarly ornate. But here I find it interesting as you can start to see a very, very subtle creep towards Slaanesh with a hint of a nod toward that power's symbol on the hilt of the blade. I like this detail. Not quite corrupted, but perhaps on their way long the path. Could still be loyal, but yet there might be early signs.  

In terms of putting the model together, this one was very straight forward and in the relatively easy category. There's only one place where each of the parts are going to go and only one way to glue them into place. Hardly any dry fitting required in the slightest. I like this very much. I think it would also be easy to convert if you wanted different armaments for the character making it a flexible and very cool kit overall. A fine additional to a collection. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Rylanor the Unyielding

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️

2/5 stars. The rules are below par. 

Background.

Rylanor fought alongside the Emperor himself and bore the legion standard besides Fulgrim during the Great Crusade. Critically injured by the Eldar, Rylanor was interred in a contemptor suit with the battle honours of Thule and Roma still etched on its casing. Therein he served loyally as the Ancient of Rites and oversaw new recruits enter service. His loyalty was rewarded by betrayal at Isstvan III where he became a living icon for loyal Emperor's Children - and also a priority target for the traitors. News of his death was frequently over-rated. 

Strengths. 

Rylanor has the same stat line as a regular contemptor, except that he has a maximal value for Cool. He comes standard with a Kheres assault cannon and power fist with heavy flamer. 

Beyond this, his only other distinction is that he can make and receive challenges in combat so long as his opponent is Fulgrim (daemon prince version or mortal version). 

Weaknesses. 

For the loyalists only. Obviously.

If we add up his points value cost versus a standard contemptor with the same load out, it clocks in at 10 points more expensive. In other words you pay 10 extra points for the ability to challenge and the Cool boost. I honestly don't see this as worth while. 

Overall.

My overall star rating reflects the issue with the points value. I felt he was similarly over-costed in First Edition as well to be candid. There's just not enough special rules or variances in there. Hence he's only going to see play in fluffy loyalist lists, or Isstvan III related narrative battles. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Kakophoni Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars. Rounded up. The rules are good enough, but only for traitors!

Background.

As they slipped toward damnation, new formations arose within the Emperor's Children. Besides the surgical augmentations that some opted for, the Kakophoni were not only an embodiment of the rapidly degenerating legion, but also the precursors to the noise marines later on. They wielded psycho-sonic weapons fused of xenos technology, imperial know how, and daemonic taint. Their total damnation to Slaanesh would follow.

Strengths. 

With sonic shriekers as standard and the Cacophony, these are the proto-noise marines. The cacophony is quite good really, with a long range and S=6, they also stun and cause critical hits. The AP and damage isn't so good against marines though. So treat them as a plasma cannon alternative. 

Weaknesses. 

Traitors only. 

Builds.

5 Kakophoni, Orchestrator with Power Fist (165 points).

The power fist is not necessary unless you want a buried fist to provide a threat. The only other "upgrade" is more members in the squad. This is good to take overall and I think a max squad of 10 can be very good to run. Treat them as heavy support and you will be doing well. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Palatine Blade Squad and Aquilae Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are good, and the traitors arguably slightly better. 

Background.

These men were the elite swordsmen of the Emperor's Children. More strictly, they were a fraternity belonging to an elite duelling club within the Emperor's Children. With the direction and discretion of the lord commanders, they were fielded in their own units to serve as an example of what everyone else should live up and look up to become. 

Strengths. 

Vanguard (3) as standard is powerful and not to be overlooked which is why I am stating it up front. 

Legacies gives the option of swapping the standard Palatine Blade for a Phoenix Rapier, in addition to the options of a phoenix power spear. This is largely a matter of taste (and also modelling aesthetic). There's nothing wrong with the palatine blade (breaching at 5+ and duellist's edge at AP=3 is great). Depends a little bit if you want the damage impact from the other options which is nice - I can genuinely see arguments both ways. 

The stat line is solid with 2 wounds and 3 attacks at WS=5 each. They also have a native 2+ armour save. 

The Aquilae squad is the same, but with wing, and the potential to take power weapons (stick with the palatine blades I'd suggest). 

Finally, traitors have the options of sonic weaponry. The shriekers are valuable for preventing reactions, but I don't think the lances are a top priority pick. 

Weaknesses. 

They're a little bit lacking in the advanced characteristics department, so I would certainly recommend pairing them up with a command or high command character to ensure that they don't get crushed immediately. 

Builds.

10 Palatine Blades (305 points / 360 points).

The slash for the points cost is for the basic squad versus the jump pack Aquilae squad. 

10 Palatine Blades, Traitors with Sonic Shriekers (355 points / 410 points).

Same as above, but with sonic shriekers for the traitors among you. The shriekers are great at preventing reactions and have genuine potential to swing the combat and possibly a game. A very strong reason to play traitor Emperor's Children overall!

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Sun Killer Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are good. 

Background.

The elite of the heavy support units within the Emperors Children were known as the Sun Killers. Trained in energy weapons their role was to seek out monstrous enemies and heavy tanks and eliminate them. On occasion, they also provided cover fire to ensure a tactical withdrawal for their brothers when ordered. Any record of their failure was rumoured to be expunged on the orders of Fulgrim himself, and thus there was a lot of inter-unit competition between these men for glory. 

Strengths. 

A Legacies unit that really should be in the core rule book to my mind. Firstly, these marines have the designated quarry special rule which yields BS+1 for one turn against your chosen enemy that has the vehicle type. This is good overall. 

They can be customized with a choice of 4 different weapons. Las cannons come recommended as your baseline entry. Multi meltas are reasonable, but suffer from shorter range and that is an issue. Plasma cannons are solid, especially for light transports. Volkites are appealing for anti-infantry action. But you have to pick all the same weapon. 

Take the augury scanner to see through shrouded as standard. 

Weaknesses. 

Heedless means that they won't be taking any objectives any time soon. Sorry. 

They are also slightly worse in third edition as they cannot bring their own defence wall (sadly) and don't have a native BS=5. But I'll live with it given the massively reduced points cost! 

Curiously, this squad comes under Elites in third edition. 

Builds.

5 Sun Killers, all with Las Cannons, Augury Scanner (200 points).

The baseline option. Take more members if desired. Swap out for Plasma Cannons where desired. 

10 Sun Killers, all with Multi Meltas, Augury Scanner (375 points).

Take a transport and go hunting. 

20 Sun Killers, all with Volkite Culverins, Augury Scanner and Nuncio Vox (535 points).

The rule of thumb for volkite is to go big. This remains true in third edition. And here we have an exemplar of this in action that will be very likely to cause damage when positioned well. I might be tempted to take the vexilla here along with a melee weapon for the sergeant as well. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Phoenix Terminator Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are very good. 

Background.

As the honour guard to Fulgrim himself, the Phoenix Terminators were an elite cadre within the Emperor's Children. As might be expected, they have pushed martial excellence to a higher level than most and were about to pull off feats that others might only dream to aspire to.

Strengths. 

Double wound terminators (and the vital WS=5 and T=5) armed with the standard phoenix power spear.

The Skill Unmatched rule here allows them to flip flop between choosing the perfect strike (gain a pip of WS to strike) and the perfect guard (gain a pip of WS when being struck by others). This really allows some customization of what you want them to do (slice and dice, or generally protect whoever they are escorting). 

The ability to take sonic shriekers, sonic lances, and grenade harnesses is similarly excellent. 

Weaknesses. 

They come as retinues, but I don't see this as a major negative to be very honest. 

They also lack in the ranged department. But again: this isn't a true negative if you are playing them like they should be played: aggressively and with intent. 

Builds.

5 Phoenix Terminators, Grenade Harness (205 points).

There are not many options here. In fact, there's only really the option to add more members to the retinue which is generally worth it. 

If you are playing a traitor force, you get the added option of sonic shriekers (take them!) and sonic lances (more to taste). I really favor the former for denying any reaction counter measures to you charging in - very much worth the points cost. I'm on the fence about the sonic lances.

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Saul Tarvitz

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are good. 

Background.

The original loyalist and a mirror of what Eidolon is to the traitors. A line officer who, very peculiarly, lacked the drive to ascend the ranks within the Emperor's Children like his peers. Content to be that line officer, he was sent by Fulgrim to perish. Discovering the plot, he raised the alarm and conducted a mighty fight-back on Isstvan 3. 

Strengths. 

Officer of the Line (2) is very impressive when combined with the other things he has to offer. He has a typical command profile in the stat line as well as Hatred of Traitors which is very handy. 

He comes with a nemesis bolt gun as standard (which again is unusual in third edition) as well as a Charnabal broadsword which gives breaching and duellist's edge. The S+2 is very attractive here as well which sets him up nicely as yet another character killer potentially.

The gambit he has is very super specific and only operates against the World Eaters, Sons of Horus, Emperor's Children and Death Guard (i.e., those traitors who betrayed them on Isstvan 3). It gives WS, S, and T +1 in the first face off where chosen. This is actually quite powerful, even though it is very situational. 

Weaknesses. 

Loyalist only - if you count that as a weakness?

Curiously, his points cost is identical to Eidolon and Lucius as well. Not sure why it was engineering this way. 

Overall.

His character is well suited to an Isstvan 3 game where you would be assured of having opponents for his close combat gambit. Otherwise this is going to go to waste most of the time which is probably why we also have hatred built in to compensate. A very reasonable character and strong during the betrayal. You will also probably want a transport solution. Don't forget Officer of the Line here either - this really tilts Saul over into the regime of being a really good choice, and an almost default choice for a command slot in the loyalists of the legion. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Captain Lucius

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are good. 

Background.

Superlative swordsman. Vainglorious. Arrogant. Jealous. Bitter. Feuding. Opportunist. Before he was Eternal, Lucius was a promising Captain of the Emperor's Children and was fairly un-matched with his blade skills. During the heresy, he found himself on the loyalist side thanks to working with Saul Tarvitz. He later betrayed Saul and re-took he place among the IIIrd Legion as it descended into madness.  

Strengths. 

Lucius is a duelist, plain and simple. 

He carries with him masterful swords, including the original Laer blade. These generally provide AP=2 and Damage=2 with a duelist's edge. Combined with the stat line that has WS=7, he is a killer. 

He gains +4 to the focus roll when using Paragon of Excellence instead of the usual +2 to make him even more deadly that anyone would otherwise anticipate. 

Weaknesses. 

Costing as much as Eidolon in points value, Lucius is slower and will need a transport to get where he is going, and has less wounds. That said, when he gets into combat he will be deadly. 

Overall.

Yet another character killer for the Emperor's Children, but perhaps played differently to Eidolon - Lucius will be wanting to charge out of a transport for maximum impact. You just need to get him into combat. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Lord Commander Eidolon

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are rather good. 

Background.

Once held up as the ideal to which all Emperor's Children should aspire to. Eidolon had a bit of a fatal flaw in his own over-confidence. This mutated in time to become arrogance which he would later suffer for. Yet at the time of the Heresy outbreak, he had already had sonic weaponry surgically put into place thanks to Fabius and crossed over the proverbial line, and wielded a warhammer gifted to him by Fulgrim himself. 

Strengths. 

The warhammer, Glory Aeterna, provides Eidolon with the mainstay of his offensive capability with S=6 hits at AP2 although at a small initiative penalty that you will hardly worry about. With the sonic shriekers, no one will be reacting to his charge though, and the death scream he can emit is nice for both breaching and pinning which will cause problems. 

He also comes as standard with a jump pack which means he can get to where he needs to be very quickly indeed. He is almost a perfect leader for a speartip assault in many ways. 

Weaknesses. 

Not many for a praetor of his calibre except for the points cost - you will be fielding him in larger games, or concentrating a lot of points into high command at lower points. 

Overall.

A character killer overall, and good at it outside of the Primarchs. Sure, there are other characters in other legions who he will struggle against, but he really is up there with the best of them when you factor in the Emperor's Children special rules.