Horus Heresy 3e Review: Atramentar Flay-Clade

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars. I've rounded down due to native WS and the points cost. 

Background.

The terminator elite of the Night Lords, and all swearing fealty to Sevatar. Armed to the teeth (in some cases literally), they are noted to be shock troops employing murderous opportunism, yet also very prone to the Night Lords' failings of being little more than a disunited rabble who might plausibly turn against their own. 

Strengths. 

Two wound terminators in tartaros armour with T=5. There are several rules that set the aside. 

The first is Sworn Loyalty. They can use Sevatar's Leadership value (Ld=10) whilst he is on the battlefield instead of their own (Ld=8). This is valuable. 

The second is cloaked in murder, which gives +1 movement when setting up a charge against an already embroiled foe. 

The customization here is great. They have access to an almost full suite of terminator upgrades - which is exactly what you would expect for this elite unit. More than this, they also have native deep striking which is one of the hallmarks of the Night Lords - they really did invest in teleporter technology extensively. 

Weaknesses. 

Hopefully the subject of your charge is not only already locked in close combat, but also suffering from a status effect to activate the much needed WS+1 bonus for this unit (which has WS=4 base). This is an issue in comparison to alternatives in the Night Lords. The points cost here is also steep, and you are paying for these bonuses and the access to better weapon upgrades through the nose here. Hence the 3.5 stars out of 5. 

Builds.

5 Atramentar, 1 Heavy Flamer, (Power Axes or Chain Glaives)  (180 points).

Expensive in comparison to regular terminator squads (cf., 155 points), but arguably worth it for the extras as discussed above. 

10 Atramentar, 5 Thunder Hammers, 5 Chain Fists, 5 Combi-Meltas (495 points).

Anti-tank, but expensive. Take a Headsmans Axe to taste. 

20 Atramentar, 4 Heavy Flamers, 4 Thunder Hammers, 1 Headsmans Axe (785 points).

The large blob. Not really recommended, simply here as an illustration. Not worth the points.

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Night Raptor Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. This is a standard marine unit that can be very powerful, but you have to line them up appropriately.  

Background.

A breed apart, forged together by the simple fact that they all have similar ... proclivities. Soar above the battle field. Circle around. Look for prey. Then be really unsubtle about it all. 

Strengths. 

Essentially the Night Raptors are assault squads with built in Fear (1), Impact (I) alongside an impressive Vanguard (4). They get an extra pip in WS as well which makes them valuable. Two wounds rounds out a good value proposition. 

The WS=5 calls for a more combat orientated unit. However, with the legacies rules, you can also add on special weapons. And in third edition, I strongly recommend the flamer to cause panic and thereby trigger the Night Lords rules before you charge in. 

Of course, you can still have melta guns and others to make your squad more specialist, but I really see the flamer as the go to option. Twin lightning claws are also a realistic option here too as are chain glaives and chain blades. 

Weaknesses. 

They are still 3+ save space marines with a leadership value of 8. You need to position them well and get the charge in if you are combat orientated. 

Builds.

5 Night Raptors, 1 Flamer, 5 Chain glaives  (180 points).

A baseline build. Use the flamer to cause panic. Then charge in and finish them off. Expensive points wise, but worth it if you can position them well. 

10 Night Raptors, 8 Twin Lightning Claws, 2 Flamers (365 points).

Burn, rip, shred.

10 Night Raptors, 2 Melta Guns, 2 Chain Glaives, 2 Power Weapons (335 points).

Mixed Threats and will do well.

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Terror Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. This is a standard marine unit that can be very powerful, but you have to line them up appropriately.  

Background.

Regardless of whether it is a criminal worthy of punishment, a planetary governor, or some other victim, the Night Lords were well able to make a gruesome example of all that stood in their way. Indeed, it is notable that these true monsters (many of whom were marked for death by their Primarch) probably caused less bloodshed through their mere threat than when they were unleashed. But when unleashed, they brought ruination and dark deeds to the battlefield. 

Strengths. 

Fundamentally, the terror squad is a basic marine with bolt pistol, chain sword, and the valuable Vanguard (2) and Fear (1). 

As with other sources of fear, you need to apply some conditions and it is worth considering how to do that. 

In the upgrades, we have Flamers that cause panic, and rotor cannons for suppressive. Both are viable in third edition to help with that WS+1 bonus in close combat. 

Weaknesses. 

They are marines with a 3+ save and they die like them too. You are really paying a lot of points for fear, vanguard, and the ability to have lots of toys. See if you can infiltrate them somehow, or just take a transport. 

Builds.

5 Executioners, 3 Rotor Cannons, 3 Chain Glaives (145 points).

The baseline build to force suppressed on enemy units and follow up with close combat mayhem. Take a vexilla to taste. 

5 Executioners, 2 Rotor Cannons, 2 Flamers, 5 Chain Glaives (160 points).

Getting expensive here for 5 regular marines, but the idea is to apply different statues and follow up directly in combat. You just need positioning. Take a Vexilla to taste. 

10 Executioners, 2 Rotor Cannons, 2 Flamers, 5 Chain Glaives (250 points).

Like the above, but with more members that are really ablative wounds. Take a power fist or similar on the Headsman to taste. 

15 Executioners, 15 Rotor Cannons (370 points).

Massed rotor cannon action! Take a power weapon on the Headsman if you feel the need, and a vexilla to taste. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Contekar Terminator Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. Very reasonable overall.  

Background.

The Contekar were the noble born sons of Nostramo. Corrupt, and showing utter contempt for the Imperial Citizenship, their main concern was with their own standing and haughty status within the legion. Indeed, only the Night Haunter or the First Captain could freely command them, everyone else had to be worthy of their butchery (by, e.g., being of similar noble bloodlines). More than this, they were often sent to change the commander of lesser Night Lord detachments that were deemed unworthy. 

Strengths. 

WS=5 and T=5 terminators in tartaros armour with three attacks and two wounds.

They come as standard with chainblades which grants S+1 , breaching and shredding. Functionally this is identical to chain glaives, but look cooler. They also have volkite cavitors which give you deflagrate at short range and S=6 which is very nice for softening up targets. 

There are only two upgrades to consider here: the Escaton Power Claw (which is worth the points), and upgrading the cavitors to heavy flamers which is tempting to be very honest. Even though you reduce the strength to S=5, the possibility of inflicting panic cannot be overlooked due to the core rules of the Night Lords. So take at least one - preferably much more. 

Weaknesses. 

Vanguard (3) and Fear (1) is good, but the inherent deep strike is what you are paying the points cost for. Indeed, Night Lords are one of the few legions to have superb access to Deep Strike and you should take advantage of this. 

Builds.

5 Contekar, 3 Heavy Flamer, 1 Escaton Power Claw (235 points).

This ties to the resin sold by Warhammer/Forge World and is exceptionally viable. 

10 Contekar, 6 Heavy Flamer, 1 Escaton Power Claw (435 points).

Moving up to 10 members, the points cost is less steep, and in all honesty, you could readily take it up to 15 members (635 points). 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Sevatar

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. Very reasonable overall.  

Background.

All legions have their champions and their Legends whose names are known widely outside their own. For the Night Lords it is Sevatar. A lethal warrior, a dirty fighter, a repressed psyker, a murderer, and able to command every element of the legion with skill and where necessary malice. And that malice was often required given the command and structure problems present within. 

Strengths. 

With WS=7, Sevatar presents a strong presence in close combat and challenges. He has an archaic chain glaive that his Primarch discarded called Night's Whisper that grants I+1 (to make I=6) and S+2 (making S=6) and AP2. It comes with critical hitting and shredding which makes him a strong combat threat. In addition to this, he also gains Fear (2) and Precision at 4+ which adds to his presence. 

His personal gambit is Dirty Fighter which grants an attack out of the usual sequence of events. This is reasonable, but can only be used in the first round. So you get A+1 effectively thanks to this. Its okay. 

Dark Dreams represents his repressed psyker ability. Every turn you get to roll 1d6 and on a 6 you get feel no pain (which is handy), but on a 1 you drop Command in favour of Specialist. Meh. 

Weaknesses. 

Sevatar is a little bit random to use, but he is quite good. 

Overall.

I would take him as the leader of the Atramentar and with a themed army to make the most of him and play fluffily. Sure, terror squads are fine, but terminators are the way to go here in my opinion (largely because of fluff!). In terms of points cost, he is probably a bit over priced and this is reflected in my star rating. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Konrad Curze

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. A deadly primarch with occasional psychic powers. 

Background.

Cursed with psychic premonitions. Alone as a child on a gang controlled criminal world. And with a keen sense of bringing judgement to those the Emperor would see sanctioned, Konrad was almost a breed set apart from his kin. With a bit more humanity in him, he could have been very similar to Corax, but as it turned out, darkness, fear and terror were his boots, gloves and coat. 

Strengths. 

With 7's in WS, BS, and I, Curze is a quick and potentially deadly opponent. His melee weapons (artificer lightning claws named Mercy and Forgiveness) give A+2 with AP=2 and 1 damage, but with a valuable critical hit at 5+ and shred at 4+ (the latter helping alleviate the singular damage). 

His ranged weapons - widowmakers - causes breaching at 4+, but is otherwise not very remarkable.

He comes with a personal gambit - A Death Long Foreseen - which grants him a choice psychic advantage (Check against willpower at WP=8). This can be feel no pain (okay I guess), A+1 (useful), or I+2 in melee (much, much more useful and likely the top most pick). 

As sire of the Night Lords, the prime slots are grants if you have 4 terror squads or assault squads which is fluffy. And all terror squads gain infiltrate of 12 which is useful, and demands that you actually have terror squads build around him. 

Weaknesses. 

I did want a higher fear factor, but fear (2) is still useful. He is not the most deadly of his brothers, not the best fighter, not the most endurable, nor causes the most damage, but he holds his own when he needs to and the weight of attacks he has combined with some psychic powers from his gambit makes him a primarch to think twice about tangling with. 

Overall.

I was going to give 3.5/5 stars, but gave 4/5 in the end as I was struggling to make my mind up. He packs an amazing punch still. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Night Lords Legion Rules

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars. Rounded up. The rules are mixed to good. 

Background.

Of all the traitor legions, the Night Lords ever were close to censure and skirted the edge of acceptable results against monstrous behaviour. Already close to being declared renegade, it is little wonder they threw in their lot with Horus. Nearly unique among the legions, they pretty much splintered during the Heresy itself and dissolved into much smaller warbands. Temporarily reunited for the Siege of Terra, they were a spent force after Thramas and ultimately did dissolve into renegades and those who would still visit their "justice" on the Emperor. 

Armoury. 

Trophies of Judgement. A tradition within the legion and in every edition. For a small points cost, command and champions get Fear (1). Almost always worth taking. 

Notraman Chain Weapons (chain glaive and headsmans axe) are a modest points cost for the benefit of higher S, better AP and some special rules (breaching and shred for the former, with critical hits for the latter). Almost always worth taking. 

Atramentar grants a prime slot advantage to a terminator to gain the deep strike and Impact (I) special rule. This is certainly worth taking and very fluffy - the Night Lords ever being one of the legions with reliable deep strike access. 

Finally in Legacies, we also get the Escaton Power Claw. This is more expensive, but massively impactful. Worth considering here and there. 

Tactica. 

Talent for Murder returns in third edition to give WS+1 when facing enemies that have tactical statuses. This fundamentally alters the playstyle of the legion from one with massed infantry to encourage outnumbers, to one that wants to inflict lots of statuses on enemies. These are not mutually exclusive either, and I think retention of large blobs of Night Lord units is still beneficial and fluffy (not least because of the points cost implications). 

Gambit.  

Nostraman Courage lets you swap out your challenger for someone else. The cowards literally get someone else to fight their battles! Very appropriate. Very frustrating for your opponent as well perhaps! But actually subtly powerful when done right.  

Additional Detachements. 

Terror Assault and Atramentar Hunt brings some nice extra units in the for of compulsory terror squads in the former (for extra fast attack), and an apex detachment of terminators but restricted to them all having teleporter transponders as their prime advantage. This is actually an incredible strong apex detachment and very fluffy - top marks! 

Advanced Reaction. 

Better Part of Valour lets you fall back when charged - because you are Night Lords and don't tangle with stuff you don't want to! 

Overall, the rules for the Night Lords are average with some stand outs like the teleport transponders and various upgrades. Their play style shifts in third edition from massed blobs (still valuable) to inflicting as many statuses as you can and ending your enemy up close and personally. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Sevatar

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4.5/5 stars, rounded down to 4/5 stars. Jago returns to second edition in a better shape than First. 

Background.

All legions have their champions and their Legends whose names are known widely outside their own. For the Night Lords, it is Sevatar. A lethal warrior, a dirty fighter, a repressed psyker, a murderer, and able to command every element of the legion with skill and where necessary malice. 

Strengths.

The stat line alone is very good with WS=7 base and I=6 combined with 4 attacks and artificer armour. His special rules combine what you might expect of praetors and Night Lords with Fear, precision strikes at 4+ and an additional set of unique rules.

His latent psyker ability allows him to glance the future for WS and A+1, but he uses Ld=7 for this. He also gains instant death thanks to Dirty Fighter when his challenge enemy has WS>=5. 

The weapons possess AP2 which is incredibly valuable here and combines it together with further rules like duellist's edge, and murderous strike. Finally the warlord trait is handy enough granting deep strike to his terminators and preferred enemy on the turn they land. This is super powerful for an alpha strike tactic where possible - nice for the pinning interaction as well. The extra movement reaction is just icing on the proverbial cake by this stage. 

Weaknesses.

A great character with no real draw backs. He's not at Abaddon levels, but he is very powerful.

Overall.

I like the idea of using Sevatar for an alpha strike terminator assault tactic, and combine potentially with Terror Assault for an interesting game. 

Difference to First Edition.

Improved! He is strictly better in Second Edition in every department. Even if I dislike the Night Lords (I candidly never like fighting against them!), I really love Jago Sevatar. Not only is his fluff excellent, his rules are great too. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Contekar Terminator Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4/5 stars. The rules are strong.

Background.

The nobility - such as it was - of Nostramo wound up in the elite Contekar formations and given some of the best tools and pieces of kit available. They are more concerned with status over each other and how they stand in the legion than others. This makes them something of an uneasy formation to command unless you are the Primarch or Sev. 

Strengths.

WS=5 and W=2 terminators are strong to begin with. Add in their special rules that include deep strike and stubborn as standard and you have an even better squad. The icing on the cake is the chosen warriors and fear.

In addition to this, they gain a special rule called "Lords of the Night" to reflect their standing in Nostramo society. This means they can fill a compulsory HQ slot where the Primarch and Sevatar are not around when needed, which I find to be most remarkable. This could be great for an allied detachment potentially? They can also be a retinue for Sevatar. 

Weaknesses.

No night vision. A notable lack of options.

Difference to First Edition.

Love the automatic deep strike in second edition.

Builds.

5 Contekar, Dissident with Escaton Power Claw (240 points).

The baseline unit. Take either the volite cavitor and/or the heavy flamer to taste. A combination of the two is great at short range. The usual rule of "go big" with volkite can also apply here, but with heavy 4 per weapon it is not as needed as it might be elsewhere.

10 Contekar, Dissident with Escaton Power Claw (440 points)

The only real option for the squad is more members and the power claw. Take both. Make it 15 strong for a sum of 640 points. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Night Raptor Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4/5 stars. Night Raptors are a great elite choice, but feel like they should be fast attack.

Background.

A breed apart, forged together by the simple fact that they all have similar ... proclivities. Soar above the battle field. Circle around. Look for prey. Then be really unsubtle about it all. 

Strengths.

Jump pack infantry with 2 wounds, WS=5 combined with sudden strike, bloody murder, fear, and built-in night vision unlike many of the other Night Lords who have to pay for this. Fundamentally, this is a stronger version of an assault squad that causes fear and can be kitted out in a manner that suits the Night Lords very well. They also synergize well with night fighting. 

Weaknesses.

Slightly expensive in terms of the sheer points value that players are paying for them. They feel like they should also be in fast attack, but given the double wounds, I get why they are elites as well.

Difference to First Edition.

Skirmish troops with improved lightning claw capabilities!

Builds.

10 Night Raptors, all with Twin Lightning Claws (410 points).

You won't make too many friends here, especially with that sudden strike coming into play. Take up to 15 members, if you're feeling like you need larger numbers to play to Night Lords' strenghts?

10 Night Raptors, 2 power weapons, 2 chain glaives, 2 melta guns, Huntmaster with artificer armour (380 points).

Mid range option here with anti-tank and appreciable anti-infantry as well. Sometimes the humble flamer might be preferable here if you want a better anti-infantry option, although plasma guns are nice too. I'm not so taken with the plasma pistol or volkite serpenta for the huntmaster though. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Terror Squad

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4/5 stars. The Terror Squad is a way of life for the Night Lords and comes recommended.

Background.

Regardless of whether it is a criminal worthy of punishment, a planetary governor, or some other victim, the Night Lords were well able to make a gruesome example of all that stood in their way. Indeed, it is notable that these true monsters (many of whom were marked for death by their Primarch) probably caused less bloodshed through their mere threat than when they were unleashed. But when unleashed, they brought ruination and dark deeds to the battlefield. 

Strengths.

Fear (1) combines with infiltration (and a possible rhino, dreadclaw, or drop pod as transportation) with precision striking, bloody murder and preferred enemy (infantry) to make a truly nasty combination. The key here is probably pinning and this is worth thinking through in a bit of detail (allies with Iron Warriors might make a lot of sense arguably?) but the rotor cannon option will help a lot with this. 

Weaknesses.

One wound each with a 3+ save makes them just as vulnerable as regular tactical marines. Make sure they infiltrate into a good position, or take enough of them to survive one turn of incoming firepower. 

Difference to First Edition.

Lost melta bombs. Need to pay for night vision. Skirmish is good here though. Otherwise pretty similar and a mainstay for Night Lords lists. 

Builds.

5 Executioners, 3 Rotor Cannons, 3 Chain glaives, Headsman with power fist and artificer armour (185 points).

Distraction carnifex.

10 Executioners, 5 Rotor Cannons, 3 Chain Glaives, Headsman with power fist and artificer armour (285 points).

Take night vision to taste and put inside a drop pod. 

15 Executioners, 15 Rotor Cannons, Headsman with power fist and artificer armour (395 points).

Infiltrate and kill stuff. Take Night Vision for goodness sake - well worth it here. Take also in combination with other units to do the mopping up - as required. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Konrad Curze

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4/5 stars. The Night Haunter returns to second edition with style. 

Background.

Cursed with psychic premonitions. Alone as a child on a gang controlled criminal world. And with a keen sense of bringing judgement to those the Emperor would see sanctioned, Konrad was almost a breed set apart from his kin. With a bit more humanity in him, he could have been very similar to Corax, but as it turned out, darkness, fear and terror were his boots, gloves and coat. 

Strengths.

As Sire of the Night Lords, he spreads Night Vision to his sons for reasons inadequately explored, and also bloody murder which is nice. In addition they also gain Fear, presumably because he inspires them. The reaction bonus to movement is solid. 

Konrad has a small slew of special rules including Hit and Run, and Fear (3). The King of Terrors is notable here for forcing a pinning test to anyone who sees him win a combat. Presumably because it is always gruesome even by the grim dark setting's standards. 

He has a very minor psychic power based on him knowing of his death against Ld=7 to activate. On success, he can gain rules like feel no pain and A+1 hence its worth considering, especially if you can ride out a perils of the warp. 

The stat line is good with WS=8 which is fantastic. His armour is solid like his brothers, and grants him a +12 to move when running instead of the usual initiative bonus while also ignoring dangerous terrain and any movement modifiers. His weapons provide shred and murderous strike at AP=2 while his side arm is excellent with rending assault=3 shooting at very short range. 

Weaknesses.

He brings a combination of army boosts and personal capability to the battlefield. Against his brothers he is middle of the rankings in terms of how good he might be against them. As a primarch, he is, naturally, crazy deadly and can take on every kind of infantry imaginable and probably win. You might want a different solution for land raiders though as he lacks melta. He will also struggle to keep up with jump infantry.

Overall.

I like what I see!

Difference to First Edition.

Improved to my mind. Now, we might argue that he has lost his jump pack and jump ability. But his movement here is swift enough to remain deadly and problematic to opponents on foot otherwise. With 8 base attacks he is incredible in close combat against most infantry. But his shooting got a bit worse here. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Night Lords Armoury

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4/5 stars. There are plenty of choices contained within the Night Lords Armoury in second edition.

Nostraman Chain Weapons. A remarkable three variants here for characters, all with breaching and shred and variable S bonuses. Very nice indeed for the costs involved.

Escaton Power Claw. Shread and murderous strike combined with a power fist like improvement for a modest cost. Again: really nice.

Lords of Murder. Gain Bloody Murder for a very small points cost. Take it.

Bloody Murder. Charge +1 distance, and A+1 against pinned or falling back units. Situational, but good.

Prey Sight. Night Vision used to come as standard in first edition. In second, it is an upgrade. Worth taking though if you're using Night Fighting.

Trophies of Judement. Gain fear! Not much more to say here other than take it if you're not already using Terror Assault. 

Difference to First Edition.

Overall it is very much improved with a lot of new selections that players will be tempted by. The only negative here is the loss of Night Vision which now has to be paid for compared to First Edition. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Night Lords Traits and Rites

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars, rounded up.

Warlord Traits.

The Night Lords have 1 traitor and 2 generic warlord traits to pick between.

Warmonger. Get +1 to hit against loyalist units containing an independent character. This is nice, and the added bonus of fearless if they also have a Sons of Horus detachment allied to them is fluffy, but not necessary. 

Jadhek Clanlord. Counter attack combines here with ignoring penalties to movement and charging due to terrain. This is solid.

Flaymaster. Fear (1) that increases with every successful sweep, unit destroyed, or dead challenger is very nice indeed. 

Rites of War.

The Swift Blade. Get 5 HQs - 1 Praetor and 4 Consuls (take at least 1 herald to grant Line). Each is a Jadhek Clanlord (as above) and all must be killed for slay the warlord. They must be upgraded to combat bikes or jetbikes. This is a very fluffy rite of war, and also somewhat powerful at the price of no one who has to be the true warlord. Outriders as troops rounds it out well. 

Terror Assault. Well known to veterans, this rite of war focuses on causing fear. Get night fighting for at least 2 turns, raptor squads as troops, and fear for your characters. A great combination even with the heavy support restriction involved. 

Difference to First Edition.

The Night Lords player might need to think harder about scoring units in second edition to be honest - where applicable. Take heralds to help. Drop pods are not standard for Terror assault any longer, so some changes will be required. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Night Lords Legion Rules

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
3.5/5 stars, rounded down to 3 stars. The rules are both fluffy and of reasonably high quality.

Background.

Of all the traitor legions, the Night Lords ever were close to censure and skirted the edge of acceptable results against monstrous behaviour. Already close to being declared renegade, it is little wonder they threw in their lot with Horus. Nearly unique among the legions, they pretty much splintered during the Heresy itself and dissolved into much smaller warbands. Temporarily reunited for the Siege of Terra, they were a spent force after Thramas and ultimately did dissolve into renegades and those who would still visit their "justice" on the Emperor. 

Legion Rules Review.

A Talent for Murder. The legion gains +1 to wound when they outnumber the enemy in both shooting and close combat or when facing pinned or falling back units. This is excellent as ever as calls for the Night Lords to be fielded in large squads whenever possible. Also worth considering how to cause pinning and falling back (fear you say?). 

Panoply of Slaughter can choose the Night Lords wargear options, while Children of the Night grants the warlord traits for the legion.

Advanced Reaction.

The Better Part of Valour. The Night Lords take a fall back move and regroup automatically when charged. This, of course, might put the chargers out of range. If they go out of sight, then the enemy can select a different unit. This is a very reasonably and fluffy trait.   

Difference to First Edition.

The rules have improved thanks to more triggering effects for the Talent for Murder. Yes, it is no longer related to the to hit roll, but the wider range of trigger makes this much better than First Edition. 

Horus Heresy Review: Night Lords Atramentar Squad

Background.

The terminator elite of the Night Lords, and all swearing fealty to Sevatar. Armed to the teeth (in some cases literally), they are noted to be shock troops, yet also very prone to the Night Lords' failings of being little more than a disunited rabble who might plausibly turn against their own. 

Strengths. 

Although one might read the stat line and not think much of it, these marines are still terminators, and in Tartaros Armour as standard. Better though, they inherit something that is almost unique in the legions and belongs to the Night Lords -- not the special rules associated with the legion -- but the use of teleporter transponders. This means that they are invariably going to be in the right area most of the time and little thought needs to be applied to how they will be transported around. I honestly wish other legions had more regular access to this technology outside of rites of war, but for the Night Lords, it is a true and powerful boon.

The equipment choices available mean that they can be kitted out in a strong variety of ways -- we will look at some sample builds below. The disordered charges against them, coupled with trophies of judgement make them all the more powerful melee opponents. Implacable advance is also very welcome here. 

Being sword to Sevatar, the Atramentar can be taken as troops, but is Sev is killed, they will no longer be scoring. This leads us naturally into the next section. 

Weaknesses.

One wound terminators won't last too long unless they get where they need to be and stuck into the fray. Even with the transponders, these marines are vulnerable to high volume, and high strength firepower, and this should be taken into consideration. 

Builds.

Remember that the Night Lords really excel when the unit size is large. Hence some of the builds below, whilst expensive in terms of points cost, try to allow for this fact. The Night Lords want to conduct an Alpha Strike and rout enemies through fear. These terminators play that role well. 

5 Atramentar; power axes (270 points).

This is actually the baseline unit. It is viable "as is". That said, it is more of a "distraction carnifex" than anything else.

20 Atramentar; 4 heavy flamers; 6 combi-flamers; 1 thunder hammer (817 points).

I actually wouldn't play this unit, but it is fun on paper at least!

10 Atramentar; 5 with Lightning Claws; 2 thunder hammers; 2 chain fists (545 points).

This is one that I would play. Why? Because Night Lords want to be conducting an Alpha Strike via close combat as soon as possible. This unit can take on most things in the game and look good doing it. Teleport in, and start the murder. Take grenade harness to taste.

10 Atramentar; 2 plasma blasters; 5 combi-plasma; 5 power fists (510 points).

An excellent mid-range unit capable of outputting serious fire power to blast away opponents or light tanks, and following it up with deadly power fists. This is a unit I would also run.  

The Defence of Sotha: Aegida's Lament

This month's Horus Heresy supplementary review is a long awaited welcome to the Night Lords' Atramentar Terminators!

The supplement is available via the Warhammer Community here, and this time we are focused on when the Night Lords invaded the outskirts of the Ultramar Empire to try to capture the Pharos -- the full events of which are told in the Horus Heresy novel by the same name. Key to the Ultramarine's defence of their realm, the artefact is clearly a grand prize for either legion to possess. 

In the supplement, we learn more of the Night Lords who undertook the invasion to attempt to capture it, along with witnessing their grizzly acts in the process. The Ultramarines who defend against this are well accounted for too, but the stars of the show are the Atramentars.

Clearly the series is going to be selecting units that have been explicitly noted in the novels but never really allowed the chance to shine on their own or given any rules of their own to play with. The Atramentar are such a welcome addition to the Horus Heresy rules set, and their absence has long since been lamented. This is now brought full circle and we witness their full g(l)ory here in this release.

I will review the unit separately in a future post (incoming later this week with a little luck) and will review the mission provided in this publication too as a third post. For this post though, I am continuing my amazement and excitement at seeing these important parts of the Horus Heresy come to light. There are certainly bits in the publication that will pique the interest of veteran Night Lords and Ultramarine fans alike. The writing is high quality, coherent, and in line with expectations of what happened for the battle of the Pharos in the novel, along with new light shone on the combatants that were immediately to hand. Excellent stuff really!

[Aside: I am personally looking forward to seeing future rules for the Effrit Stealth Squads for the Alpha Legion. Please please please Warhammer Team, if you read this blog can you grant my wish? Love from me! xx]

Night Lords Tyberos Painting

Mid-week painting is a very welcome change of pace for me at the moment, and a happy respite from what is going on in the wider world. I have finally tackled my Tyberos model that I bought from Forge World a while ago. The plan that I had all along was to paint this particular model up in the colours of the Night Lords.

The reason behind this (seemingly peculiar) choice was to see how he looked in these colours due to the fact that the Carcharodons might be descended from this traitorous chapter. For a more in-depth crawl through the possible successor chapters of traitor legions, I wrote a popular article on the topic in April. The Carcharodons are noted as having possible Night Lords elements within them, or even inside their gene seed in a chimeric fashion. Hence this was a strong motivator for the choice of colour scheme for Tyberos, coupled with a potentially new opponent for some of my smaller games. To be clear, I won't be collecting Night Lords as they simply don't appeal to me greatly beyond their paint scheme (I'm not a fan of their background, although I can readily appreciate the work gone into this legion over many decades of background fluff. Nor do I relish playing against this legion and their fear inducing ways of fighting!). 

Painting followed a home brew approach to the Night Lords colours. A black undercoat was applied to give the model depth, before using a base colour of Caledor Sky for most of the model's bluer parts. This was washed down with contrast paints plus a touch of Nightshade to give the model some depth. Edge highlights were applied to the bluer parts in Teclis Blue followed by Lothern Blue. Some of these edges could have been neater, but I've not managed to purchase new paint brushes in a while (will be getting out more soon, hopefully! And yes: I like to purchase my brushes in person rather than online, before anyone says that). I attempted a lightning effect on the model's left leg which I am pleased with overall. It is almost impressionistic in nature, but seems to work a treat on this model. 

I decided to use reds on the fists and helmet, inspired by Sevatar. This battle brother's life is therefore held in the balance by the Primarch (or potentially was, until he was assassinated). Two tones of red were used here, including a wash of contrast paints and darker tones to blend in. Eye lenses were picked out in white before getting a sampling of green to offset the red helmet, and a careful pin prick of reflection inserted at the back edge of the lens. 

Cables, recessed metal, and other metallic parts were picked out in lead belcher before receiving a cost of Guilliman Flesh (yep: really). On the upper parts and edging of the shoulder pads, I was quite liberal with this and it has created almost a semi-bronze trim which I am very happy with the blend of. More edging in whiter colours picks out the edge highlights for the uppermost parts of the pads.

Finally, like many people, I only have the older Night Lords transfers that used to come with the older chaos space marine boxed sets. They're aged and don't look terrific these days. So I decided to live a little dangerously and do a free hand icon on the right shoulder pad. The basic shape is done in Mephiston red, with a fanged skull placed in the middle, over the top of this. Black then gives the outer edge of the freehand a good outline that is more than sufficient to round of the basic shapes required here.

Overall, this has been a very interesting experiment to undertake, and one that I hope will be appreciated by readers -- changing the status of a miniature and its in-game loyalty purely by its paint scheme is an adventure, and one that I would fully encourage anyone to try out! 

Praetors Deserve Quality Bases

Every praetor deserves a good base. The one that I'm planning for my new Alpha Legion acquisition is not different in this regard. Luckily for me, I picked up this beauty recently that I will be using with the praetor miniature (as opposed to constructing one from scratch). 

Of course, this base belongs to Sevatar of the Night Lords legion. It also happens to be one of my favourite ones from Forge World. I like the way that the actual base itself slots into the side of the display base. Many Forge World bases are fully encircled by the display base (cf., various other praetor level marines, and some Primarchs). The ones that slot into the side are without doubt my favourite type due to their simplicity and low level of messing around to get the playing base out from the display base. And of this type, I really dig Sevatars. In fact, I was toying with using this one with Alpharius himself at one point, but decided against it. 

The base comes in three parts (four if you count the black circular citadel base as well). The smallest part is the arm of the marine who lies dead near the foot of the shallow staircase. This part is simple to glue in place though, but I would advise dry fitting your miniature of choice to ensure that this arm works with the rest of the miniature before gluing everything in (doubly so for a kitbash like what I'm up to here). 

Horus Heresy Review: Nakrid Thole

Background.
Thole is arguably a quintessential Night Lord preator writ in flesh. He's never fought with the Emperor, and never set foot on Terra. He was obedient to the Night Haunter, but only up until the point he left the legion, and then he was happier to get stuck into the targets he wanted to rather than be subjected to Imperial rules. 

After clawing his way up the ranks, he had a good company of killers at his side and when Curze made haste for Thramas, Thole did what he wanted: killed at will.

Strengths.

Thole comes with a standard Praetor stat line and a balanced set of equipment that I regard as flavorful for the Night Lords. 

The Valour's Shadow rule means that he cannot be targeted within a large group of marines, and sometimes he won't count toward the kill tally for victory points since he's (cowardly) slinked away (with a tactical retreat to live another day). 

He comes with two interesting weapons in the form of a flay-whip, and the Devil's Due (a sort of over-powered power hatchet). I think that unless he is facing off against a large blob, the whip probably won't see that much play. The Devil's Due is superior thanks to its AP2 and S+2 boost most of the time. With that said, the combination of the pair can be powerful in the right circumstances. The whip might well reduce an enemy to I=1, and then the Devil's Due will swing in prior to an enemy striking at I=1 to finish them off nicely. It is a characterful combination, but not hideously over-powered.

Weaknesses.

Like many Night Lords, Thole wants to be in close combat, and quick. He will also need company as the Talent For Murder special rule is too good to overlook for him. Night Fighting will also appeal for Thole as well. 

Overall.

Thole is a solid Praetor for the Night Lords legion, if not categorically outstanding.  He will likely see use in the rite of war bearing his moniker: the Cross of Bone.