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.