Horus Heresy 3e Review: The Angel's Tears

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are good.

Background.

There exist a range of attitudes toward destroyer units among the legions. There are those that simply do not use them (Salamanders) to those that regularly use them without remorse (Death Guard), and various shades of shunning, and occasional use in-between. For the Blood Angels, they use them, but only when Sanguinius calls for it. These then are the Angel's Tears: Destroyers for the Blood Angels, also called Erelim, and part of the First Sphere like the Crimson Paladins. They have given up their names and identities whilst they serve in this manner.

Strengths. 

Destroyer assault squads with twin volkite serpentas and rad grenades. 

The vanguard (3) rule is excellent here and might swing games. Firestorm ensures that their volleys are not snap shots either. 

Upgrades include the Erelim grenade launcher that has poisoned and phage on toughness which is excellent. Legacies give further options including rotor cannons for causing statuses and Iliastus assault cannons. 

Weaknesses. 

Expensive given that they only have 1 wound each and a 3+ save to keep them alive. Very much glass cannon territory if not played intelligently. 

Builds.

5 Erelim, Arch-Erelim with thunder hammer (165 points). 

The baseline entry. 

5 Erelim, Arch-Erelim with inferno pistol and thunder hammer, 2 rotor cannons, 2 assault cannons,  (230 points). 

Note the use of the inferno pistol here. I'd like melta bombs here too, but can't seem to get them in Third Edition. 

10 Erelim, Arch-Erelim perdition weapon, all with heavy flamers (365 points). 

The anti-horde build. It won't make you many friends, but it is very nice. 

10 Erelim, all with Iliastus pattern assault cannons (450 points).

Dakka till you drop. Again, you are not making any friends here. The price is too steep realistically as well. 

10 Erelim, Arch-Erelim with power fist, all with Erelim grenade launchers (365 points). 

 I really like this build as well. Might get you slightly more friends for being fluffy, but don't count on it.

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Dawnbreaker Cohort

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are great.

Background.

The Dawnbreakers are the elites of the assault squads for the Blood Angels. They are known for accompanying Sanguinius himself in dawn raids as they sprinkle down from the skies to liberate long long human colony worlds from xenos and tyrants alike.

Strengths. 

High movement, WS=5 and armed with the falling star power spear. This does impact (SM) and breaching whilst bringing AP=3 to the table. You can exchange this in Legacies with a pair of equinox blades to get an extra attack which might be attractive, but I'd value the spears higher. A couple of perdition weapons might also be desirable for the Aflame rule here. 

Alongside this, they come armed with grenade dischargers (frag and krak) which are a great shorter ranged weapon for when they charge in.

And charge in they are very likely to. They have deep strike natively as you would expect with jump packs. They also have Set the Sky Aflame. You cannot be targeted by interceptors over 12 inches away when you deep strike. This is very strong indeed. 

Rounding this off is the fact they have a 2+ save and 2 wounds each which explains their higher points cost, but they are still worth it. 

Weaknesses. 

Not many, but I would recommend a character being attached to them.

Melta bombs for 25 points for the entire unit are good for larger units, but not as great for smaller ones. 

Builds.

10 Dawnbreakers, Melta Bombs, 3 Perdition Weapons (315 points).

A baseline build (you could go smaller) that is effective and strong. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Crimson Paladins

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are rather good.

Background.

These men are the guardians of the halls of the Primarch, also known as the Keruvin. Like others in the first sphere, they give up their identities and adopt new names. In battle, they are the "anvil" (not my words, I emphasize, but their role is not dissimilar).

Strengths. 

Terminators with power swords and power shields. They are very likable and the miniatures have the rule of cool.

The Coriolis pattern power shield is an interesting one. It reduces the wound characteristic of incoming blows by 1 to a minimum of 1. This is excellent. Moreover, when they are outnumbered, they gain feel no pain. This is bumped to a maximum of 4+ when more they are outnumbered by more than a factor of two. 

Native deepstrike is also impressive, combined with Line (1) and WS=5 plus the ability to take different upgrades thanks to Legacies. 

Weaknesses. 

I like the models, and when well painted, they OBVIOUSLY survive longer. I won't be taking any questions on this point. Not sorry. Love the models and sculpt. 

They will need to either use that deep strike more seriously, or have a transport solution. Unless you're just holding a key walkway or objective or similar. 

Builds.

5 Paladins, Exemplar with grenade harness (230 points). 

A baseline build for pure close combat. 

10 Paladins, Examplar with grenade harness, 2 Iliastus Assault Cannons, 2 Chain Fists (490 points).

Maximal build with good ranged fire power. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Aster Crohne

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars rounded up. The rules are good.

Background.

In a nutshell, Crohne is a natural born survivor. Massacres, bloody battlefields, and slaughters untold, this is a marine who just gets through everything and still looks good doing so. He is also an old-timer, and therefore somewhat shunned by the rest of the legion whose methods have changed since Sanguinius took over command. Despite this, he is a loyalist through and through even if in the modern 30k scene the ninth legion seems like the wrong fit for him (it used to be a great fit, but the legion demeanour changed).

Strengths. 

An Officer of the Line (2) is attractive here as a foot slogging infantryman. His stat line is fairly typical of a consul.

He comes with 2 hand flamers which are reasonable and the Saiphan Shard-Axe which yields an incredibly strong breaching of 4+ with A+1, S+1, and AP=3. This is strong, but you just need a transport solution for him. 

As the Ghost of Saiph with a natural talent for survival, he has evens chances of coming back with 1 wound when he gets removed for the first time in a game. This is nice without being over-whelming. 

Weaknesses. 

Could do with an extra attack if I'm honest and AP=2 for more stars from me, and the lack of a jump pack might result in him not being selected too often. 

Overall.

The Shroudmaker is in good form for third edition and provides a nice choice for those wanting Officer of the Line slots at a reasonable points cost and comes with a special axe that really works to chew up enemy wounds. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Dominion Zephon

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are good, and I've gone for 4 stars here due to Officer of the Line. 

Background.

With his career in the Blood Angels cut short thanks to a Xenos blade, Zephon was sent to Terra as one of the Crusader Host. His new bionic limbs didn't integrate with his remaining flesh initially. Until Land himself too an interest in Zephon. Land fixed up his bionics just in time for the siege of Terra where he rejoined his legion whole heartedly.

Strengths. 

The jump pack combined with a WS=6 makes for a potent combination for any commander. He comes with rad grenades as standard which will give him an edge where needed. 

He has two volkite 10 inch range pistols called lament and grief which can do some good damage largely through their S=6 and 6 shots total which is impressive. Meanwhile, the Spiritum Sanguis provides AP=2 and S+1 with reaping blow to make him effective in close combat. 

Nicely, he gets Officer of the Line (2) here which is amazing in third edition and the reason that I've bumped his star rating up to 4/5. This is the reason you'll take him along with that jump pack. Eternal Warrior rounds it out very nicely. 

Weaknesses. 

Costs more than Raldoron, but you do get a jump pack!

Overall.

Zephon has gone from an interesting if fluffy character in second edition, to an almost automatic include in third edition thanks to the combination of jump pack, rad grenades, effective short range shooting and solid close combat, combined with Officer of the Line and Eternal Warrior to create a commander who really does justify his costs and his place in the Siege of Terra. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Chapter Master Raldoron

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are solid, but crying out for a jump pack!

Background.

All the legions have their legends - especially the duelists and close combat brothers. Eidolon and Lucius for the Emperor's Children. Corswain for the Dark Angels. Sigismund for the Imperial Fists. Even the Alpha Legion has something of a duelist in Dynat. Raldoron serves an equal purpose for the Blood Angels and his name is writ large in the annals of the Great Crusade. 

Strengths. 

WS=7 is strong for a non-primarch named character. The rest of the stat line is very reasonable and praetor levels. 

He comes with the Encarmine Warblade which gives AP=2 and a valuable 2 damage with S+1, impact on AM and also critical hitting. This will cause some serious damage. 

The has Archein of Wisdom which enables him to learn from his enemies (as a gambit). This gives you a bonus for your focus roll equivalent to the number of successful hits made against you last strike step. This is very nice for taking the focus win!

Weaknesses. 

Not many realistically for what you are getting here. I would recommend a transport solution since he sadly doesn't come with a jump pack and this is the biggest negative here. 

Overall.

Very reasonable for the points cost!