I am going to take a slight detour away from my current obsession with space elf ninja clowns and explore another part of the 40k universe I really enjoy – The Horus Heresy (or 30k for short!)
When I want to really forge the narrative on the table and immerse myself in the stories of this game – it’s this setting I head to. I recently said as much in person to fellow gamer and they looked at me in slight confusion… The reason they were so surprised it seems is that Forge World still has a stigma attached to it after all these years and editions of the game – and because the rules are all from Forge World, the whole book and range had been branded in that same preconceived manner.
The thing is – I think the 30k rules (in their entirety) are better balanced than any edition of the 40k universe. More than that – I think they are easily balanced enough for every day use against any 40k army.
You could easily argue that the rules for 30k are so balanced because it uses a single army list for all the marine legions and that the special rules and units available based on the legion you play are minor enough to not upset the balance. In part – you would be right. Having played many a game with this rules set – both legion vs legion and legion vs 40k xenos list – I can now safely say there is more to it than that.
Forge World have done a wonderful job on making the legions work at a scale where the setting places them – the sweet spot for the legion forces is around 2250 to 2750 points. This allows you to run the larger squads found in the setting and gives a fantastic grand presence on the table. At 2000 points or less, the heavy taxes placed on legion forces for purchasing minimum units makes the force unwieldy, brittle and ultimately less dangerous than the 40k marine codex. Legions don’t do MSU especially well and trying it penalises the player accordingly. The Great Crusade and the war of the Horus Heresy is all about thinking big!
The lack of the marine rule – And they shall know no fear – is also a major factor in the balance of the legions. With units of 20 marines, potentially with feel no pain, and LD 9 with a reroll – adding this rule from the 40k codex would have made the game unplayable and seen giant meat grinder affairs on the board. Without it – Legion units can be caught in a sweeping advance and wiped from the board unlike their codex brethren – and this makes combats a tense affair for the marine player, something I find most players might not be used too. Facing a dedicated 5 man world eaters assault command squad with your 20 tactical marines is no longer a war of attrition where your dice volume might see you win. It’s now an almost certain loss of the unit for you as the world eaters thunder in, kill half a dozen or more models, lose very little in reply and suddenly you are running for your lives – either butchered to a man or at least running away and needing to rally. When you do rally – you are stuck with the regroup rules like everyone else and are probably going to be charged again.
The other significant change to the legion is the distinct lack of flexibility in the unit entries. When you take a Tactical squad, the have bolters and that’s that. The sergeant can take a combi weapon and the whole squad can supplement their bolter and bolt pistol with a close combat weapon but by and large – this is a unit of bolters and that’s it. If they meet a dreadnaught or even worse a contemptor on the table – its probably going to end badly. This unit specialisation is very reminiscent of the Eldar Aspect Warriors and treating them as such is a good mindset to adopt.
Don’t get me wrong – the legion has some fantastic options and units available to it, especially the legion specific units! But like all the legion list, you pay a premium for the minimum squad and the addiotnal models in the unit come at a discount. You WANT to take big squads to make them combat effective and points effective but when the 20 model tactical squad costs you over 300 points for 1 of your 2 minimum troops choices you quickly find yourself with potentially less than half a dozen units on the board at 1850.
Legion vehicles are a stellar addition to the forces and gain the infantry some much needed support. The squadrons of vehicles they access (though the new 40k marines now do the same) makes it viable to run an armoured column with lots of predators or the like. The air support the legion brings is considerable – most notable is the Fire Raptor Gunship who’s punch on the table is only matched by its infamy in the building of the model! The legion Spartan also deserves a mention with a huge cost (fully armed its closing on 400 points!) but is virtually immune to harm from the front arc save from the dreaded D weapons of titans or in combat with dedicated tank hunters. You want to get your Primarch and Body Guard into combat with the enemy? – accept no substitutes!
Which neatly brings us to the named heroes and villans of the legions as well as their sires – The Primarchs. I am sure just about every marine player (and many non marine players!) have wanted to see these demi gods on the table. Well the heresy lets you do just that and they are every bit as inspiring and dangerous as you would expect. The Primarchs boast so many special rules they make the Solitaire feel inadequate! Huge statlines, monster saves, immunities, AP2 weapons universally as well as army wide benefits and you have the stuff of the fiction. This combination is balanced by the significant investment of points required to put them on the table – 300 to 500 points apiece, not to mention they are all lords of war and legion only get access to lords of war at 2000 points or more and even then – the lord of war can only be 25% of the armies total value.
The notable heroes and villans of the legions are much more likely to be seen on the table – Sevatar, Sigismund, Kharn, Loken – all names most 40k buffs are probably familiar with and all are available on the table (plus many more). Most are very well thought out and match the fiction very well though a couple can be underwhelming if scrutinised closely (how Sevatar could match Sigismund in the stories if we look attheir game rules is beyond me!). Again, most bring unique force benefits, army wide rules or give you access to rules that the legions lack like stubborn or even fearless!
For me – its these heroes and their Gene Sires that make me want to play 30k more than anything else. The chance to see Fulgrim face off against Ferrus Manus on the killing grounds of the drop site massacre, see Loken face Abaddon in the ruins of Istvaan III, Guilliman against Angron and Lorgar on Nuceria – the list goes on. The sweeping scale of the conflicts as these gods of war take centre stage is where I love to forge the narrative and win, lose or draw is not important one bit. The war for the galaxy at the brink of collapse thanks to the corruption of Horus keeps me coming back again and again.