Horus Heresy 3e Review: Dark Sons of Death (Karaoghlanlar)

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are great for this legacy unit, but the points cost adds up fast. 

Background.

The Dark Sons (Karaoghlanlar) focus on the "unmaking" of enemies who have fallen so far as to deserve both physical destruction and spiritual oblivion. They are regarded with unease by their battle brothers and adorned with appropriate talismans and wards to protect themselves and to make Stormcallers aid them all the easier. 

Strengths. 

Movement of 12 is excellent here.

Otherwise, these are simply space marines with rad grenades. Of course, the rad grenades are great, thanks to phage on toughness as being poisoned. So my view for this unit is to go further and arm them with either weapons that enhance strength further, or templates that go over as many enemies as possible. 

The Invocation of the Razing Tempest special rule allows a Stormcaller to target them from further away with their Call of the Wild special power. This is actually insane and can get you where you need to be in short order. 

Weaknesses. 

The points cost rack up steeply here. And fundamentally, they are one wound space marines with a 3+ save. So what this unit is, in effect, is a glass cannon. You need to treat it as such. 

Builds.

5 Karaoghlanlar, all with Power Glaives (200 points). 

S+1 on the power glaives is great. But the points cost is steep. Make sure you know which target you are going for. 

10 Karaoghlanlar, 2 Flamers, 2 Hand Flamers, Champion with Power Weapon (255 points). 

Flame unit variant. Take extra men to taste. 

I think other builds are possible such as a melta-cide orientated one, but other units do such activities better than this. You want to be an anti-infantry glass cannon. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Kyzagan Assault Speeder

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. The rules are average. 

Background.

This is the White Scars solution to ensuring heavy weapons keep up with the rest of the legion! Essentially it is a flying anti grav platform form those heavy weapons to fly to where they are needed and do some shooting with. They should be played like that accordingly. . 

Strengths. 

Movement of 14 combined with an impressive toughness of 7 should keep the speeder alive for it to perform its duty. Which explicitly is the unloading of lots of assault cannon and reaper auto cannon shots into its designated target. 

Weaknesses. 

For the points cost that you are paying, this is a reasonable option overall. Sure, it isn't over powered, but it is a viable threat as well. There's just not too many builds to consider. 

Builds.

Kyzagan Assault Speeder (105 points). 

I don't think the hunter killer missiles are generally worth it, but you might get some bang for the points cost if you play them right. So take them to taste. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Ebon Keshig

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. The rules are average. 

Background.

Being put in terminator armour for the White Scars is not a testament of strength or honour as it might be for other legions. It is condemnation. The Ebon Keshig is a form of atonement for battle brothers who have been found wanting or lacking in honour. They are deployed as a vanguard and bodyguard, and should the marines die, then clearly they've had a final honourable death. Should they survive, then maybe they have found atonement and will be allowed back to the prior positions. 

Strengths. 

Tartaros terminators with T=5 and Leadership=10. They come with a power glaive which gives a S bonus as well as breaching and impact on AP. 

Thanks to Legacies, you can get other power weapons and power fists alongside combi weapons. 

The vexillia and the grenade harness are almost a given upgrade. 

Weaknesses. 

The points cost is steep here. You are effectively paying for Vanguard (3) (but basic terminators have this! NB), feel no pain (but only at 6+) and Expendable (2). It is worth also considering how to get them to their destinations. 

Builds.

5 Kharash, 2 with power fists and combi-meltas, vexilla, grenade harness (235 points).

A basline entry unit. But note that the points cost is high here already. Are you sure you wouldn't just have tartaros terminators instead?

10 Kharash, 5 with power fists and volkite chargers, vexilla, grenade harness (440 points).

The unit gets a bit cheaper with more members, but it is still very expensive. And you need a transport solution, or some White Scars speed ups. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Golden Keshig

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5/5 stars. Rounded up. Excellent heavy assault jetbikes!

Background.

Riders par excellence. The Golden Keshig are the White Scar's main heavy assault asset. They serve as line breakers and assault units - and within the White Scars they have long been noted to be the effective "replacement" for pure terminator squads (but we will talk about the Ebon Keshig in another post). Their aim is to confuse the enemy with speed, and then undertake a Horus-like tip of the spear strike at the heart of the enemy. 

Strengths. 

Movement=16 coupled with WS=5 and the rather magnificent Kontos Power Lance. Its worth just noting that this lance along grants I+4, S+5, with Impact on AP (which is native at AP3) and two damage. Oh, and let's not forget armour bane as well. In numbers, this is superlatively deadly. And you play style can also use the (now very old) Way of Saim Hann (look it up if you're not familiar with this style of winning). 

The scatter bolt launcher is reasonable and is a shredding template at S=5 with pinning added for extra fun. 

Weaknesses. 

No invulnerable, but hopefully with that movement rate you will be positioning yourself wisely before charging right in. I really genuinely like this unit. 

Builds.

6 Golden Keshig (260 points).

A max sized squad. And no reason to upgrade much here. Take the Vexilla to taste. Just a pity they cannot have melta bombs any longer (unless I've missed something). 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Stormseer

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5/5 stars. I have rounded up! I'm going out on a bit of a punt here to suggest that Stormseers are actually really good indeed!

Background.

It is fitting that one of the "big three" that established the librarians have their own consul for psykers to bring to the battlefield. Combining old shaman like belief systems and the librarian training has yielded spectacular results for the White Scars in the form of the Stormseers who are valued as much for their psychic wrath as they are for their wise counsel to the Khans. The believe they are bringing forth a sliver of power from Chogoris, rather than necessarily being out-and-out warp power users. I can see parallels to the Space Wolves here. 

Strengths. 

The stat line is what you might expect for a psyker librarian with Willpower = 10 and reasonable stats elsewhere. 

What sets the Stormseer apart from Librarians elsewhere is access to the Stormcalling psychic discipline, and this is the reason he gets 4.5 stars from me. There are 2 powers here. The first is Unseen Bolt which is a 36 inch range 5 inch blast with barrage, stun, AND force at S=4. I think this is incredibly powerful to put stun out at such range. 

The second is Call of the Wind. This gives you an increase in move equivalent to your initiative. That's 5 extra inches assuming you cast it on yourself. 

When you add on a jump pack or similar, this starts to be a pretty wild tactic, in addition to the usual White Scars shenanigans. 

Weaknesses. 

Cheap enough to afford and play without regret to be very honest. You can, of course, take other psychic disciplines, but Stormcalling is very good indeed, so I focus on that discipline alone in the builds below. 

Builds.

Stormseer with Stormcalling (105 points).

The standard stormcaller! Take with a bunch of veterans or similar to get where you need to be fast. Take terminator armour for 125 points instead where appropriate. 

Stormseer with Stormcalling, Jump Pack (135 points). 

A very swift proposition with an assault squad or other jump pack squad. Dangerous as well. 

Stormseer with Stormcalling, Jetbike with Multi-Melta (165 points).

Lead your jetbike units to victory with celerity. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Hibou Khan

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The traitor turned loyalist is a good choice.

Background.

A Terran born Khan, Hibou naturally gravitated to Horus thanks to involvement in the Vth legion warrior lodges. He resented the legion's growing influence from Chogoris and when the rebellion started, he threw in with Horus along with a number of other Khans (it is easy to forget just how divided the White Scars were when the Heresy began). He then sought contrition but his primarch cast him out to seek his own absolution with the Sagyar Mazan which would bring him into the orbit of the Shattered Legions. 

Strengths. 

A solid stat line including WS=6 and modest points value make Hibou Khan a middle range choice for a command character.

His special rule is Seeker of Atonement. As you might expect, he wants to atone for believing in Horus. To this end he gets a special gambit that allows him to stay alive longer than he should just to kill a few more traitors. In short: a 50/50 chance to prevent being removed as a casualty. This is good, and a last minute gambit, but has potential to swing an encounter without being overwhelming. 

He carries The Breath of the Storm, which give a vital I+1 and S+2 to make him fairly deadly. Critical hits and breaching is the icing on the cake. 

Officer of the Line (2) is similarly powerful and makes Hibou a strong choice. Combined with Expendable, and you have a great deal here. 

Weaknesses. 

For the points cost, you can't really go too wrong. The combination of expendable and officer of the line really leans hard into the Sagyar Mazan which is the way to build around him. 

Overall.

A great character, and leader for the Sagyar Mazan. A character that screams deny the opponent. You just need to build part of your army around him. And remember to take some units that might not be so expendable if you are so inclined. Very fluffy and very nice overall as a close combat character.  

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Qin Xa

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are very good for the reserve manipulation alone.

Background.

Qin Xa was a supreme warrior who fought alongside the Khan on Chogoris even before becoming a space marine. Pure fury combined with a keen intellect; if he were in another legion, his legend would be more widely known, but here in the White Scars, he is simply known internally as an commander without peer. 

Strengths. 

The stat line is reasonable for a high command figure with WS=6 and T=5 alongside strong advanced characteristics.

The Tails of the Dragon is a melee weapon that yields critical hitting and precision, alongside a valuable S+1. 

But what you are really paying for here is the Chosen of the Khagan special rule which enables you to automatically pass a reserves test of your choosing so long as the unit in question is White Scars. This is really very strong in third edition and will make your opponents jealous. 

Weaknesses. 

No ranged weapon, and you will need a transport solution. Or perhaps just take with a unit that you put in reserves to take advantage of his own skills?

Overall.

For reserve manipulation along, I would be willing to pay the points cost. Layer on top of this that he is a reasonable close combat character, and you have a deal. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: Jaghatai Khan

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. The rules are reasonable without being exceptional.

Background.

The Warhawk was spirited away to a life of Chogoris during the scattering. There, he learned about rapid and devastating ways of warfare which he brought to his sons in bulk. 

Regarded as a recluse, but really just never felt the need to show off to anyone, the Khan is a leader that paved the pathway forward for the Great Crusade and made the victories of other legions seem all the greater for it, and laughed as he did so. 

Strengths. 

The Great Khan has mainly 6's but some 7's in WS, I and A which is nice. Although not at the same level as some of his brothers, his swiftness is very good when paired with The White Tiger Dao which increases this to I=9. Duellist's Edge and Impact on AM is excellent and makes him a strong opponent to many in close combat, although S=6 is an issue. 

The Storm's Voice as a side arm is nice with breaching, deflagrate, and stun, but lacks in the AP department.

Death by a Thousand Cuts as his own personal gambit is good as it reduces the strength of an opponent if they have already been wounded. This helps him with his brothers overall. 

As Sire of the White Scars he can exchange transport slots for recon slots which is nice - and there's not a restriction on the filling type either - just if 4 are filled. BUT, these must be land raider explorator units. Appropriate, but not what I might have expected. 

He also grants Fast (2) during the first turn (to even himself) which is valuable for closing out the board space. 

Weaknesses. 

Strength is an issue for him and he will be whittled down by his opponents. You will be relying on I=9 and WS=7 to win here. But your opponents are likely to use gambits against you, so select carefully. 

Overall.

The points cost is about worth while, but potentially fractionally high. The Khan gets an average 3/5 stars score from me. 

Horus Heresy 3e Review: White Scars Legion Rules

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. The rules are rather good, but the gambit is too inconsistent to bother with.  

Background.

The White Scars were ever the outriders of the Great Crusade of humanity. They were nowhere near the centre of the action when it all started to kick off thanks to being on a long assigment on Chondax. As a result, their loyalties were initially unknown by both sides of the conflict. But once contacted, there were many elements within the legion who pushed to join Horus and the rebellion. The Khan remained fierce in his loyalty and ultimately stood defending Terra itself at the end of all things.

Armoury. 

Power Glaive is a power weapon upgrade that gives impact (AP) and breaching which will generally be a good option, but it is pricey. 

Cyber Hawk grants move through cover which is okay overall, but obviously dependent on the board set-up (but you should almost always have some cover on a board). 

The Sagyar Mazan is a way of giving you Expendable (2) special rule to an infantry or cavalry unit who have previously failed you (but you don't want to execute them - just exile them!). Very fluffy and can be handy at the expense of prime force organization slot. 

Tactica. 

Swift of Action gives you movement +2 all of the time, every turn. This is stronger than it sounds as it will also help with set up moves.  

Gambit.  
The Path of the Warrior is effectively a 50/50 gamble to predict your next focus roll (high or low). Guess correctly and you ignore all negative modifiers and only have positive ones for the focus. It is very random.   

Additional Detachments. 
Chogorian Warband gives 2 jetbike slots (one is Prime) and 2 outrider slots. This is very fluffy and appropriate. And you were probably taking these units regardless I would wager.  

Advanced Reaction. 
Chasing the Wind allows you to move if an enemy moves within 12 inches of you. You could go either way with this (toward the triggering unit, or away) as you see it.

Overall White Scars have a fluffy set of very appropriate and bespoke rules that enable them to move swiftly and hit hard with expendable units if they wish. The gambit is poor though. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Hibou Khan

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars. Rounded up. A traitor turned loyalist with nice rules.

Background.

A Terran born Khan, Hibou naturally gravitated to Horus thanks to involvement in the Vth legion warrior lodges. He resented the legion's growing influence from Chogoris and when the rebellion started, he threw in with Horus along with a number of other Khans (it is easy to forget just how divided the White Scars were when the Heresy began). He then sought contrition but his primarch cast him out to seek his own absolution with the Sagyar Mazan which would bring him into the orbit of the Shattered Legions. 

Strengths. 

The stat line is reasonable and is basically a centurion. The equipment is standard, except for the Breath of the Storm which is an excellent AP2 two handed blade. It comes with a range of special rules such as Breaching and Murderous Strike that would make him competitive in many situations. 

The warlord trait grants Rampage (2) which is very nice along with a reaction that doesn't go away upon his death (it just transfers from movement to assault). He can also join the Shattered Legions, but you won't want to do this. 

Weaknesses. 

The Karash rule will stop him joining other units, but as a leader of the Mazan, he's a potentially good choice. 

Is he worth the points cost though? I'm on the fence a bit. The Feel No Pain helps here, but outside of a dedicated Mazan force, you probably won't be taking him (sad face for the Shattered Legions here too). 

Overall.

Won't be seen outside of very fluffy and specialist builds which is a bit sad for me to say. Indeed, I've never seen him on the battlefield yet - would be interested to hear if you have?

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Stormseer

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars rounded down. The rules are good without being outstanding. 

Background.

It is fitting that one of the "big three" that established the librarians have their own consul for psykers to bring to the battlefield. Combining old shaman like belief systems and the librarian training has yielded spectacular results for the White Scars in the form of the Stormseers who are valued as much for their psychic wrath as they are for their wise counsel to the Khans. 

Strengths. 

The Stormseer comes with a small (four) variety of psychic disciplines available to them. One of these is unique to the White Scars: the Storm's Fury. This gives two powers, the first is a massive range, large blast attack called the Unseen Bolt with the force rule at S=4. This is great all round. The second is The Call of the Wind which can grant fleet(2), but that can be upgraded to fleet(4) with a successful check. Finally, adamantium will is good to have. 

Weaknesses.

The Stormseers are the only type of psyker available to them - they replace the Librarian consul upgrade entirely. Not much is lost here to be fair though. They are limited in disciplines though. 

Builds. 

I would recommend something reasonably fast moving for this consul where possible, but this doesn't necessarily exclude some terminator builds. The psychic hood is a good choice here as well.

Stormseer, jump pack, psychic hood (140 points).

Not overthinking things here. I like the idea of getting into position and using the force weapon on opponents.

Stormseer, jet bike, psychic hood (150 points).

I think this is probably the "go to" build and will slot in with a similarly equipped unit very nicely.

Stormseer in Tartaros Terminator armour, psychic hood, grenade harness (140 points).

Works well enough, but you might not be taking terminators to run with?

Stormseer in Cataphractii Terminator armour (140 points).

An interesting static option -- double entendre. This marine sits at the backline and uses Unseen Bolt every turn. Perhaps assign to a sniper squad.

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Qin Xa

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. A strong terminator praetor level character. 

Background.

Qin Xa was a supreme warrior who fought alongside the Khan on Chogoris even before becoming a space marine. Pure fury combined with a keen intellect; if he were in another legion, his legend would be more widely known, but here in the White Scars, he is an excellent commander.

Strengths.

Strictly better than a regular praetor, Qin Xa has a bunch of special rules including furious charge, counter attack and relentless which make him stand out as a great commander for when you are not taking the Khan himself. His weapons are strong too: both blade options (The Tails of the Dragon) are at AP2 and grant a valuable strength increase.

As previous from First Edition, his warlord trait enables the player to bring in a unit from reserves automatically (no reserves rolling). This can be very good for a deep striking style of army. Beyond that, Qin Xa is very good in melee and can rip through enemy terminator squads given the opportunity. The bonus assault phase reaction is good too.

Weaknesses.

He takes to the battlefield in terminator (Tartaros) armour. Therefore he might not be the most appropriate HQ for some White Scars play style, but this is fitting given that he is basically the lord of the Keshig and he is entitled to take a terminator bodyguard when he goes to war. This unit can even take power glaives for a cost. There are no real weaknesses here other than considering what play style is important.

Difference to First Edition.

Neutral. 

Overall.

An excellent HQ choice, but keep in mind what kind of army you want to build and also note that Qin Xa is a Loyalist only. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Kyzagan Assault Speeder Squadron

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5/5 stars. Rounded up. I like this unit more than I should.

Background.

This is the White Scars solution to ensuring heavy weapons keep up with the rest of the legion! Essentially it is a flying anti grav platform form those heavy weapons to fly to where they are needed and do some shooting with. They should be played like that accordingly.

Strengths. 

With a 15 inch movement combined with two reaper autocannons and one Kheres assault cannon, these speeders can readily pump out a good amount of fire power. They have the mandatory hit and run to escape problem situations along with deep strike, firing protocols, and some further special rules to keep them going.

Difference to First Edition.

This vehicle has lost its armour values and instead have a T=7 value along with 4 wounds. This will keep them going for a while, but they are no longer as tough as they potentially once were and I'd be concerned about seeing massed reaper autocannons targeting them more than I previously once was. Especially in the hands of certain other legions.

Weaknesses.

With the heavy rule, they can't get access to shrouded sadly. See also my note above about the difference to first edition.

Builds.

There are no massively unit altering upgrades to discuss here other than adding in more speeders (which comes suggested), and adding on hunter killer missiles (I'm on the fence about these - take to taste). I still like this unit a lot, but I think it got just a fraction more vulnerable in this edition. You will still see it when playing for or against mounted White Scars armies though, no question. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Ebon Keshig Cohort

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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

Background.
Exiled and seeking atonement through an honourable death, or by surviving and returning to their original roles, these terminators are essentially a vanguard for the White Scars, or at best ablative wounds screening units. 

Strengths. 

As tartaros terminators, they can take advantage of the quick moving systems of the armour and also make sweeps which is good. Coming as standard with power glaives is nice enough, but I would suggest that some should be upgraded to power fists and combi-bolters to be honest. Stubborn and feel no pain is great to have though, as are the 3 attacks base all round. 

Important to note here that enemies don't score points for killing them. Plus the rule of cool applies: the miniatures look excellent. 

Weaknesses.

They could really do with the power fist upgrades for the AP=2. The Karash special rule meanwhile merits a mention here as this is a unit that cannot be joined by others without the rule. Still, this gels well with the rite of war and represents a fluffy way to play White Scars when needed. The lack of transportation is a big issue here potentially though. They are not cheap either and there's a mild argument that regular Tartaros terminators do the job better and cheaper? (Jury is out for me on that). 

Difference to First Edition.

Neutral.

Builds.

5 Kharash, 2 with power fists and combi-bolters, vexilla, grenade harness (250 points).

A basline entry unit. But note that points cost. Ouch.

10 Kharash, 5 with power fists and volkite chargers, vexilla, grenade harness (505 points).

Getting in to the regime of the price not being worth paying here, but there's something to be said for this kind of fast moving, charging, and shooting unit I think.

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Golden Keshig Squadron

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are very good overall and play to the White Scars strengths.

Background.

At the tip of the spear of the White Scars attacks are these heavy jet bikes. Ridden by superlatively skilled battle brothers, they are equal parts swift and deadly. 

Strengths. 

I like the power lance here which means in combat the rider is striking at a massive I=8. This is enough to wipe out lesser units before they have a chance to hit back, and this cannot be under sold. Brutal 3 is simply amazing. The scatter bolt launcher on board is solid as well for both pinning and shredding. This calls for a swift assault play style that the White Scars are famed for. Just watch out for reactions. 

Weaknesses.

Being heavy means that the Golden Keshig has no way to get hold of shrouded. This is a problem, but one that can also be worked around with the right foreplanning. Use that hit and run rule as well as much as possible to gain the maximum benefit of the power lances.

Difference to First Edition.

Neutral.

Builds.

3 Golden Keshig, vexilla (150 points).

The baseline unit.

6 Gold Keshig, vexilla, champion with thunder hammer (295 points).

Pretty much a maximum upgraded squad. I don't strongly feel the need to buy power weapons or charnabal weapons for this squad to be honest. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: Jaghatai Khan

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5 stars. The rules are strong and support a quick moving play style.

Background.

The Warhawk returns in second edition with the same enigmatic background: spirited away to a life of Chogoris, he learns about rapid and devastating ways of warfare which he brings to his sons in bulk. Regarded as a recluse, but really just never felt the need to show off to anyone, the Khan is a leader that paved the pathway forward for the Great Crusade and made the victories of other legions seem all the greater for it. 

Strengths. 

If the rules for the White Scars are poor, then the Khan will make up for it. Granting furious charge in turns they move is excellent (just try not to get pinned down, okay!) and a bonus reaction in the movement phase is strong.

He has a 2+/4+ save in the shooting phase but gets the invulnerable save beefed up in movement and assault phases which is very pleasing. He can also come into play from reserves whenever the controlling player wants. 

His armaments are good (AP=2 in combat) and whilst he is not be best fighter among his brothers, with the addition of his Sojutsu jetbike he is looking speedy, deadly, and going at I=8 is strong. The jet bike that he comes with is worth the small points cost addition to my mind.

Weaknesses.

At the time of writing, there is no model for the Khan mounted on his jetbike. I can't over emphasize how much this sucks as many players want this. As above, he is not the best primarch out there, but when played to his strengths of fast movement (etc.), he is a force to be reckoned with, make no mistake. 

Overall.

Great army wide buff combined with being one of the fastest primarchs available mark out Khan as unique. Take the jet bike and enjoy.

Difference to First Edition.

Neutral overall I think. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: White Scars Armoury

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. The rules are average. 

Legion Shamshir Jetbike. This provides a free swap of a jet bike for independent characters (but not unique ones). This provides nice access to shrouded to my mind which is a good boon to have. The scatter bolt launcher is nifty enough. 

Scatterbolt Launcher. A variant bolt gun that comes with a template, shred and pinning. Not bad at all really. 

Power Glaive. For a cheap cost, characters can upgrade their power weapons and get breaching along with S+1 at AP=3. This is certainly worth considering. 

Cyber Hawk. Re-rolling 1's to hit against an enemy is worth the cost to get the hawks for any character and this should be considered an almost standard upgrade to be candid. Adding +1 to charge rolls is just the icing on the cake. 

We will look at the Stormseer distinctly.

Difference to First Edition.

Neutral. Not much to see here. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: White Scars Traits and Rites

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

3/5 stars. The rules are average. 

Warlord Traits.

There are three different warlord traits to choose between and fittingly one is loyalist only, one is traitor only, and one can be taken by both.

Heroes Never Die. What an interesting trait this one is. While alive, there is a bonus assault reaction and the warlord's unit gets stubborn which is very nice. But if and when he dies, all White Scars who witnessed it gain Fearless. This is truly a strong trait.

Born to the Saddle. Ignoring difficult terrain is solid, and an invulnerable against dangerous terrain wounds are great. The bonus reaction here is for movement. Overall this is a solid trait without being game breaking but will resonate very nicely with the rest of the army for builds that focus on rapid movements.

The Forgotten Sons. For the traitors, they gain bonuses when there is an ally detachment of Sons of Horus around such that they pass morale and pinning checks. This is very strong, but requires the Sons of Horus in there. They also gain access to the Death Dealers reaction from the Sons. Flavorful and reasonably good, but at the price of needing that extra detachment. 

Rites of War.

Chogorian Brotherhood. Unlock those sky hunters and outrider squadrons as troops (or non-line elites) and give your infantry outflank for free. This is very nice and will pay dividends for the Saim Hain play style that can be pulled off with the White Scars. The price here is that there are no heavy supports available unless they fly, and infantry must be mobile or held in reserves. Very fluffy overall.

The Sagyar Mazan. Those who have transgressed are exiled and these penitents are the Sagyar Mazan. In brief, they seek but an honourable death. This unlocks Ebon Keshig as troops and all infantry must have the Kharash rule which is nice in the sense of not giving away points to the enemy. Gaining fearless on the charge is also powerful. On the flip side, having nothing in reserves can be a problem as is the lack of heavy support (and primarch or fortification to a much lesser extent). 

Difference to First Edition.

There are lots of differences here, both subtle and less subtle. I think overall, these rules make up for the worse legion rules overall, but they are comparable to first edition in many ways. Unfortunately for fans of this legion, overall they are not looking anywhere near as good as they once were in my opinion. 

Horus Heresy 2e Review: White Scars Legion Rules

Warpstone Flux Rating: ⭐️

1.5/5 stars. Rounded down. They have lost a lot of their power compared to first edition and I am sad to see this. Hope that my 1 star rating doesn't prove hyper controversial?!

Background.

The White Scars were ever the outriders of the Great Crusade of humanity. They were nowhere near the centre of the action when it all started to kick off. As a result, their loyalties were initially unknown by both sides of the conflict. But once contacted, there were many elements within the legion who pushed to join Horus and the rebellion. He remained fierce in his loyalty and ultimately stood defending Terra itself at the end of all things. 

Legion Rules Review.

Swift of Action means the Scars gain +1 movement to everything. This is nice, but hardly game defining. In addition, they gain an extra die for going first and seizing the initiative. This is stronger, but given the existence of reactions in second edition is not as strong as it might have once been. I regard this legion rule as one of the worst ones out of the 18 legions. Sorry folks. 

The Lords of the Storm prevent the White Scars from having Librarian Consul upgrades, but instead provide their own psykers in the shape of a Stormseer consul which we will review distinctly.

The Chogorian Panoply gives the armoury options while the Sons of Chogoris gives the warlord traits.

Advanced Reaction.

Chasing the Wind is a great reaction for the White Scars and is triggered when an enemy gets within 12 inches. When activated, all White Scars within the same bubble can make an immediate move. I think this is a very strong reaction and will leave a lot of enemies scratching their heads as to how to deal with it - especially if the Scars keep on running away! 

Difference to First Edition.

Worse. The White Scars have lost their re-rolls that they were accustomed to making and instead have a flat +1 to movement and a great chance to go first. My thoughts on this are to play the White Scars in the same manner as the Saim Hain - swoop on objectives at the last turn to win an objectives game, or to give the enemy the run around and force them to play your game with the advanced reaction which will help the Scars keep out of rapid fire range for a while. You were intending to play with bike any way right? Thing is though, if you built the same or similar army with (say) Sons of Horus, they would perform better. The White Scars have been truly nerfed in this edition I am sorry to say. 

Horus Heresy Review: White Scars Dark Sons of Death Squad (Karaoghlanlar)

Editorial Note. With the announcement of the new rules for the Horus Heresy, I will regardless finish all the reviews of all units from the previous edition for completeness sake. We already know that these units were retrofitted for the new edition hence their inclusion is assured regardless.

Background.

The Dark Sons focus on the "unmaking" of enemies who have fallen so far as to deserve both physical destruction and spiritual oblivion. They are regarded with unease by their battle brothers and adorned with appropriate talismans and wards. 

Strengths.

As well as being able to be a Librarian's (Stormseer's) retinue, once per game they can gain fleet and rage which is a nice touch for one of their invocations. Their more unique rule is the Ritual of Unmaking is to automatically fail sweeping advances in exchange for units with models with 6 inches to take a Ld test or suffer -1WS until the end of next turn. Honestly, I don't think this is too powerful, but it is flavourful in the sense of inducing fear in the enemy. I'd sooner be sweeping come what may. 

The jump packs are a great feature here though, along with the plentiful options.

Weaknesses.

I think I would have sooner have seen this unit with similar rules to the Thousand Sons brotherhoods, but it is what it is. Fundamentally, these are still 1 wound jump pack marines, but given that they tote rad grenades, they make for a tremendous asset for the White Scars. 

Builds.

15 Dark Sons, 3 Melta Guns, Champion with power fist, Melta Bombs (425 points).

A bit of a maximum squad, but one that would be rather powerful and a vehicle plus crew hunter.

10 Dark Sons, 2 Hand Flamers, Champion with Hand Flamer, artificer armour and power weapon (290 points).

Flamers all round, or just sit on an objective.

5 Dark Sons, all with Power Glaives, 1 Plasma Pistol, Champion with plasma pistol and artificer armour (235 points).

Plasma distraction carnifex, with power glaives.