Age of Darkness Starter Series Pt 1: Sons of Horus

As we discussed in episode 2 of the podcast, getting into the Horus Heresy can be overwhelming! The absolute best way to start right now is with the Age of Darkness box set, which is a tremendous value and includes a fantastic set of miniatures that can form the core of any Legion. However, the contents of the box are not quite enough to build a 2,000 point army, and many guides to starting a new Heresy force largely disregard the contents of the AoD box or assume everyone has ready access to expensive Forgeworld add-ons or 3D printed parts.

To help remedy this, below is the first of our introductory army lists, legion by legion. Many of these armies will utilize the Pride of the Legion Rite of War as it works well with the contents of the Age of Darkness set, but each Legion will get a few tricks to put their own spin on it, or use a different Rite of War all together, in some cases. In all cases, these lists are built using the Age of Darkness box and a number of commonly available plastic Horus Heresy kits, avoiding resin and Forgeworld all together.

Based on Simon’s own Sons of Horus force, the following list started with the Age of Darkness box and built it out to a playable 2,000 point force. From there, he’s since expanded to over 3,500 points of Sons of Horus with more on the way! This initial list provided a great way to learn the game at the small 2,000 points level (Heresy really starts at 3k, but 2,000 is a great level to kick the tires on the game and learn fundamentals).

To build this force yourself you’ll need:

1 Age of Darkness box set
1 Deimos Pattern Rhino
1 Legion MkVI Tactical Squad
1 Special Weapons Upgrade Set

From the Age of Darkness box you’ll build a pair of 20 man Tactical Squads, a Contemptor dreadnought, the Praetor with power axe (in this list, it’s used as a Charnabl Tabar), 10 Terminators, and the Spartan Assault Tank. From there you’ll be adding a 10 man Support Squad with volkite chargers built from an additional MkVI Tactical Squad box + the Special Weapons Upgrade, and they get the Deimos Pattern Rhino as their dedicated transport. This will leave you with 20 unbuilt Tactical Marines and a plethora of other special weapons with which you could equip them as you expand beyond 2,000 points. You’ll also have the plastic Praetor with power sword from Age of Darkness who could make a good consul champion or the like.

In terms of gameplay, this is an infantry heavy army full of Line troops (the Terminators gain Line from Pride of the Legion) that your opponent will have trouble dislodging from objectives. The Spartan and Dreadnought are your best ways to deal with enemy armor, though the list is somewhat limited in this regard and an opponent with lots of tanks is going to give you some trouble. The Terminators pack a serious punch in close combat with all their chainfists and power fists, so they can be used to take out enemy armor if need be, but they’re better utilized murdering enemy infantry blogs or command squads. As always, set expectations about the game with your opponents before coming to the table!

Note: Simon built his own Terminators with Carsoran Power Axes, as pictured above, but the list below calls for Power Swords instead, to avoid the need to source parts not included in the Age of Darkness set.

++ Crusade Force Organisation Chart (LA – XVI: Sons of Horus) [1,996Pts] ++

+ Allegiance: +

XVI: Sons of Horus

Allegiance: Traitor

+ Rite of War: +

Rite of War

+ HQ: [155Pts] +

Praetor [155Pts]: Chosen by Dark Gods (Traitor only), Warlord
. Legion Praetor [155Pts]: Artificer Armour, Frag Grenades, Iron Halo, Krak Grenades, Master of the Legion, Master-craft one weapon [10Pts]
. . Archaeotech Pistol [15Pts]
. . Charnabal Weapon [10Pts]: Charnabal Tabar

+ Elites: [205 Pts] +

Contemptor Dreadnought Talon [205Pts]
. Contemptor Dreadnought [205Pts]: Atomantic Deflector, Combi-Bolter, Gravis Lascannon [20Pts], Gravis Power Fist with in-built ranged weapon Combi-Bolter, Havoc Launcher [10Pts]

+ Troops: [1641 Pts] +

Tactical Squad [298Pts]: Frag Grenades, Krak Grenades, Power Armour
. Legion Tactical Sergeant [30Pts]: Artificer Armour [10Pts], Bolter, Lightning Claw [10Pts], Plasma Pistol [10Pts]
. 16x Legionaries (collective) [192Pts]: 16x Bolt Pistol, 16x Bolter, 16x Chain Bayonet [32Pts]
. Legionary w/ Options: [22Pts]: Bolt Pistol, Bolter, Chain Bayonet [2Pts], Nuncio-Vox [10Pts]
. Legionary w/ Options: [22Pts]: Bolt Pistol, Bolter, Chain Bayonet [2Pts], Legion Vexilla [10Pts]
. Legionary w/ Options: [22Pts]: Augury Scanner [10Pts], Bolt Pistol, Bolter, Chain Bayonet [2Pts]

Tactical Support Squad [210Pts]: Frag Grenades, Krak Grenades, Power Armour, Volkite Charger
. Legion Tactical Support Sergeant: Bolt Pistol, Power Armour
. 6x Legionaries (collective) [72Pts]: 6x Bolt Pistol
. Legionary w/ Options [22Pts]: Augury Scanner [10Pts], Bolt Pistol
. Legionary w/ Options [22Pts]: Bolt Pistol, Legion Vexilla [10Pts]
. Legionary w/ Options [22Pts]: Bolt Pistol, Nuncio-Vox [10Pts]
. Rhino Transport [35Pts]: Smoke Launchers, Twin-linked Bolter

Terminator Cataphractii Squad [830Pts]: Cataphractii Terminator Armour
. Cataphractii Sergeant [15Pts]: Chainfist [15Pts], Combi-Bolter
. Cataphractii [30Pts]: Combi-Bolter
. . Power Weapon: Power Sword
. Cataphractii [30Pts]: Combi-Bolter
. . Power Weapon: Power Sword
. Cataphractii [30Pts]: Combi-Bolter
. . Power Weapon: Power Sword
. Cataphractii [30Pts]: Combi-Bolter
. . Power Weapon: Power Sword
. Cataphractii [30Pts]: Combi-Bolter
. . Power Weapon: Power Sword
. Cataphractii [40Pts]: Combi-Bolter, Power Fist [10Pts]
. Cataphractii [45Pts]: Chainfist [15Pts], Combi-Bolter
. Cataphractii w/Heavy Weapon (1 in 5) [50Pts]: Chainfist [15Pts], Heavy Flamer [5Pts]
. Cataphractii w/Heavy Weapon (1 in 5) [45Pts]: Heavy Flamer [5Pts], Power Fist [10Pts]
. Land Raider Spartan [430Pts]
. . Land Raider Spartan [430Pts]: 2x Lascannon Array, Flare Shield [50Pts], Hull (Front) Mounted Hunter-Killer Missile [5Pts], Hull (Front) Mounted Twin-linked Heavy Bolter, Legiones Astartes (X), Multi-Melta [20Pts], Searchlights [5Pts], Smoke Launchers

++ Total: [1,996Pts] ++