Horus Heresy 2e Review: Dark Angels Rites of War

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars, rounded up. The average and poor rites are outweighed by the better ones! And such choices to make to boot!

Rites of War.

Most other legions get 2 rites of war peculiar to themselves. Some of the more fortunate ones get 3. The Dark Angels legion get no fewer than SIX. You might well ask why. The reason are the 6 wings of the legion. A fair argument could be made by other legions to have more though - of that I'm completely certain. But it is what it is, and no amount of jealousy on my part is going to change that! 

The Steel Fist. [Ironwing] This is great and one for the tank enthusiasts among you. Predators as troops, kratos as elites, land raider transports for your iron wing infantry. Just amazing. You have to be embarked though, and not use deep strike or similar, but hey, that's not a problem. Troops have to be iron wing too, as does the warlord, or take the Lion instead. I see this as such a good rite - and it can also function as an allied detachment which will make any other foot slogging legion sing its praises. So well worth it all round.

The Eskaton Imperative. [Dreadwing] A very entertaining rite of war and probably almost unique in the legions except perhaps for the Death Guard. But of course, the Dark Angels are doing it better because that's what they do. Troops now include destroyers and interemptors, but the key difference is making all of the board except deployment zones difficult (and difficult become dangerous). Two big pie plates are also put down for extra dangerous terrain. You get a bonus +1 to wound against anything in dangerous terrain which is simply amazing. Of course, you have to have dreadwing characters and troops here, but you offer 1d3 victory points for anything of the enemy in your deployment zone (the inverse also counts). For me, I would advocate putting your troops in rhinos and other transports and simply out maneuver your opponent across the battlefield. Zip a few into their deployment zone in the final turns to gain +1d3 points and you're probably laughing. This rite requires planning, but you're essentially taking control of the battlefield here. Other legions without fliers and similar might struggle, but watch out for White Scars if you're using this rite as they might laugh at you.

The Storm of War. [Stormwing] Get a centurion who doesn't count against your force chart in tactical squads, assault squads, and despoiler squads. It isn't a consul though - just a centurion. You get stubborn for free and can fill out other parts of your chart with even more of these squads, just because. You have to have storm wing of course, and max out your troop sizes and cannot deep strike. This rite isn't as strong as others, but if you're wanting an infantry heavy force with a centurion boost, its amazing and can work a treat. Especially assault squads. Fill those spartans as well with despoilers. 

The Unbroken Vow. [Deathwing] Arguably the worst of the set is Death Wing's rite. Veterans and terminators can count as troops, but don't get line, instead gaining Heart of the Legion. A+1 within 12 inches of an objective is very nice and all, but you have to put an extra objective into all games which yields more victory points to the opponent for controlling that you get. Strictly, Pride of the Legion is better than this. You won't want to take this rite of war. Sorry folks.

The Seeker's Arrow. [Ravenwing] Yet another rite that fails to grant Line to your legion's key elements. Sure, you get sky hunters and outriders as troops, while cavalry get rampage 2. The down sides are an irritation more than anything (1 heavy support; fast, fliers, skimmers for vehicles). It is just not great. Sorry once again. Take a different rite.

The Serpent's Bane. [Firewing] Suppose you don't care much for the Geneva Convention and want things dead within the game? This is the rite of war you're going to want to take. Seekers as troops is where it begins, but this is not the key reason to take the rite. Instead, the ability to infiltrate 3 troops selections is the key reason. Seekers already have that, so you will want either a maximum squad of tactical squads or better yet: support squads. Melta and plasma to the face is going to hurt most things in the game - no two ways about that. And on top of this, you are selecting 3 enemy units that you have to take down (HQs or elites in the main part). You get +1 to hit against these priority targets, but lose out on 3 victory points for failing to take them down. So you'd better be ready to max out those melta and plasma support squads for this alongside the seeker squads. Worth taking, but you have to be focused in your game play and plan. 

Overall.

Two poor rites (Death Wing and Raven Wing), One okay one (Storm Wing) and the rest are good to excellent when played correctly. Mix this in with your Warlord Traits and your Hexagrammaton rules, and you have such a swiss army knife of a legion that you almost will be spoiled for choice as to how to build it.