Exemplars Among the Legions, the Palatine Host

[lordsofchemos]

I foresee a lot of people converting Palatine Blades out of the new Dawnbreaker Cohort, and with good reason. You get your jump packs and your fancy power armour, and, significantly, you get all the phoenix power spears you could ever want - the entire unit comes with them stock.

Put some different heads on them if you like, maybe remove the grenade-launcher-things they come with, maybe replace the teardrops and other BA iconography with some Shapeways bits, and you’re laughing.

[lordsofmedrengard]

I’m making a codex for my Grey Templars

It’s balanced for 5th Edition, but with some minor tweaks it’ll fit for any edition (add movement values, WS/BS 4 becomes “hits on a 3+” etc). I’m going to follow the basic codex format of some fluff, including origins and a short overview of their history since then, their relationship with the wider Imperium, notable quirks etc etc, followed by the army list used to represent them - since they don’t adhere to the Codex Astartes, I’ll have free reign to design unique units and rules. I’m thinking a mix of the Black Templars codex, the CSM codex, and the Legiones Astartes army list is in order - BT are the base of my idea, the Legion army list shows what the Imperial Fists were organised like, and the CSM show how Legion-like forces might be organised in the 41st millennium.

A little teaser, for their basic troops choice (so far, I’m thinking of restricting the number of upgrades further, at least for some of the weapons, and I’ll probably add some neophyte/scout upgrades to this):

Astartes Fellowship – 75 Points Astartes: WS 4 - BS 4 – S 4 – T 4 – W 1 – I 4 – A 1 – LD 8 – Sv 3+ Veteran Sword Brother: WS 5 - BS 5 – S 4 – T 4 – W 1 – I 4 – A 1 – LD 9 – Sv 2+

A Fellowship of Astartes consists of 5 Astartes, each armed with a bolter, bolt pistol and frag/krak grenades. The unit may purchase the following upgrades:

The unit may take up to 15 additional Marines                                                               - 15 points each

Any model may exchange their bolter for a chainsword                                                - Free

For every 5 models in the unit, 1 model may exchange their bolter for a special weapon from the following list, or exchange their bolt pistol for a plasma pistol, at the cost indicated: Flamer                                                                                                                           - 5 points Melta gun                                                                                                                     - 10 points Plasma gun                                                                                                                   - 10 points Plasma pistol                                                                                                                - 7 points Power weapon                                                                                                            - 5 points Single lightning claw                                                                                                  - 7 points Power fist                                                                                                                     - 10 points Pair of lightning claws                                                                                               - 15 points Heavy bolter                                                                                                                - 5 points Heavy flamer                                                                                                               - 5 points Missile launcher                                                                                                          - 8 points (15 with flakk) Multimelta                                                                                                                    - 10 points Lascannon                                                                                                                    - 15 points Plasma cannon                                                                                                            - 15 points

A Fellowship may be joined by a veteran member of the Sword Brethren for an additional cost of 30 points. The Sword Brother may purchase melee weapons from the list of special weapon upgrades, and for a cost of +2 points per model, a Fellowship led by a veteran Sword Brother may reroll failed charges. The Sword Brother may purchase melta bombs for +5 points, or a plasma pistol for +5 points. The Sword Brother has access to the same list of unique wargear as do other Characters. (Not 100% with the Sword Brother, I’ll probably rewrite him somewhat.)

Basically, a better equipped CSM/Initiate/Tactical squad that can buy a character upgrade, but loses out on Marks and Combat Squads, potentially leaving you with very expensive blobs of inflexible troops, vulnerable to being swept aside by explosives, Howling Banshees, Terminators, Genestealers etc. Bulking up prevents you from buying a transport, as well, but a unit of 20 with 4 heavy weapons might make good objective holders, depending on how the board is set up.

[lordsofchemos]

An accurate depiction of the 30K Emperor’s Children when compared to other Legions.

[lordsofchemos]

Legion Champion

One Loyal requirement for the Maru Skara RoW stripped of paint and (soon to be) ready to rumble.

[lordsofchemos]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD2ZbaCipaE

I’m extremely unimpressed by the EC player here.

No modelling on the Land Speeder pilots/gunners, his Chaplains were boring as hell, just a phoenix guard arm on his jetbike chaplain and a normal artificer armoured Praetor without further converting, Cataphractii terminators with I1 weapons without regard for how they affect EC Legion rules, the javelins had Heavy Bolters he tried to sell as Multi-Meltas (just fucking say you're proxying man, don't try to sell them as EC pattern)... He took Fulgrim with the Fire Blade, which is fine, but he put him with a single 5-man squad of Cataphractii? Why??? The Sergeant jetbiker wasn’t the one with the plume, either.

And the match hasn’t even started yet.

[radiumsoftware]

Procedural dance animations with:

Completely random parameters

Synchronized but with different multipliers

https://github.com/keijiro/PuppetTest

[sableleatherywingsopeninthe711]

mutuals do this

[lordsofchemos]

This is what FOUL TREACHERY and BETRAYAL does to a Legion.

[lordsofchemos]

For the Emperor

This is a Loyalist blog. No “““Traitors”““ aka SCUM allowed.

[firstchaplainerebus]

:(

[lordsofchemos]

If “““Traitors”““ were better at following directions they wouldn’t be SCUM.

[firstchaplainerebus]

I can’t read

[lordsofchemos]

Reading is For LOYALISTS ONLY.

[lordsofchemos]

For the Emperor

This is a Loyalist blog. No “““Traitors”““ aka SCUM allowed.

[firstchaplainerebus]

:(

[lordsofchemos]

If “““Traitors”““ were better at following directions they wouldn’t be SCUM.

[lordsofmedrengard]

Old vs New

I think it’s fair to say that new FW kits are worse value for money than old ones, even accounting for the worse state of the moulds and the inferior models produced as a result. I think the old paintjobs suit the range better than the blinding cartooney style they’re using now. I think the details are clunky and bad.

In this age of “New GW” this is not a very popular opinion to have. This is unfortunate, because I think it’s pretty accurate, at least in terms of the models and their sculpts.

Let’s compare some old Terminator units with some new ones. For fairness’ sake I’m using stock photos - how FW wants them to look and us to see them, essentially, since they can paint them up however they like. I also have a slight discussion about the Contemptors under the pics.

In summary, old is gold.

The old Terminators are Emperor’s Children Phoenix Terminators, Death Guard Deathshroud and Grave Wardens, Sons of Horus Justaerin and Iron Hands Gorgons.

The new Terminators are Iron Warriors Siege Tyrants, Blood Angels Paladins, Alpha Legion Lernaeans and Space Wolves Varagyr.

Quite a difference, I’m sure you’ll agree.

I think it’s worth noting where the over-stylised take on 30K minis seems to begin: Alpha Legion. A Legion without a reputation for flair or vanity, with some of the most appearance-grabbing models in the series, capable of matching anything put out today (though the scales and trim are notable finer on Armillus Dynat than on the new Praetors). When looking at the Contemptors you can sometimes see a glimpse of what is to come in their details as well: one or two details here or there will be thicker or bigger than perhaps it needed to be. I think my favourites are the Death Guard, Sons of Horus, Word Bearers and Emperor’s Children ones, with the Alpha Legion also being up there somewhere but having some very thick snakes sculpted on coupled with a kind of boring paintjob.

It’s worth noting that NONE of the Terminator kits listed above are actually good value for money, since you get a literal handful to no bits at all. For about half of one of these kits you could buy some Grey Knights terminators and have something like a hundred bits left over. Newer GW kits are often bad with this as well; like the new Chaos Terminators.

[lordsofchemos]

For the Emperor

This is a Loyalist blog. No “““Traitors”““ aka SCUM allowed.