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Final Fantasy

2019-01-29T19:51:15Z

2601:147:4300:1949:E9AF:C429:E6F0:9AE3: /* Races */

{{/vg/}}

'''Final Fantasy''' is a long, ''LONG'' running series of fantasy-themed video-games created by Square Enix. First released for the Nintendo, the original Final Fantasy was the company's last hurrah, as they were teetering on the brink of bankruptcy; the name was an ironic dig at this. Then, to everybody's surprise, it caught on, and the videogaming world would never be the same. The games didn't have a decent plot until FFV. As before that game the stories were paper thin(FFI,FFIII), a D&D style adventure(FFII), or cheesy melodrama(FFIV).

==/tg/ Relevance==
As perhaps ''the'' most iconic fantasy gaming series on /v/, Final Fantasy inspires more than its share of gamers to try and convert the games to the tabletop gaming experience. As such, threads about converting races, classes, jobs, spells and other such things from the games sporadically appear on /tg/.

The original game, Final Fantasy 1, is particularly beloved for its efforts at replicating the [[Old School Roleplaying]] feel, and is practically a [[Dungeons & Dragons]] game in everything but name - it even steals many classic D&D monsters and throws them at the party. Beware though, as unlike later games(FFIII,V,FFT) that use a class system. The remakes [[railroading|railroads]] you into having a Fighter/Knight and at least one healer.

Most notably, an article in [[Dragon Magazine]] #323 saw the adaptation of the Chocobo running bird to [[Dungeons & Dragons]] 3rd edition.

==Settings==
The Final Fantasy series is quite complicated to get into for one major reason: it's not a continuous series, but rather a shared title. Different games take place in their own worlds, and whilst some games share a common universe (the world of Ivalice is particularly fleshed out), the connections between are... rocky at best.

==Races==
There are a wide variety of races in Final Fantasy, and many of them only appear in one game. A large varities are just different tribes of humans, such as the Al Bhed (green-eyed humans with a racial proclivity for machina). The more unusual species tend to capture the imagination more.

'''Moogles''' are cutesy little humanoids who look, depending on the game, like either a cartoonish white bat or a bat-winged mixture of cat (or rabbit) and teddy bear. They've also been called Mogs and Moglis. Can be considered the series mascot along with Chocobos. Their depictions defer depending on the game. In FFII they are bodyguards for a major NPC. FFV has them acting as equivalent to Elves or Gnomes. FFVI give them a larger role as they help the main characters in the early part of the game. With one joining later on as an optional party member. In FFVI and FFVII they are reduced to summon monsters and toy mascots. The latter is true in FFX and FFXV. FFXI, XI, XIII and XIV have them return as minor characters. In FFXII and the Ivalice series Moogles are basically [[Dwarf]]s. They have their own character classes and create or repair most of the [[Magitek]] that the world depends on. Although not all of them are Engineers. With some acting as shopkeepers or quest givers like other characters.

'''[[Burmecian]]s''', who only appeared in FF9, are a race of [[ratfolk]] (arguably kangaroo rat-influenced). Their society is based on togetherness, family, and close community, and they are known to be quite religious, with practices focused on worshipping through dance.

'''Elvaans''' (FF11) look like your classic [[elf]], but are proud, disciplined, hardy warriors who have no talent for magic and instead devote themselves to proving their skill with the art of the sword.

'''Galka''' are hulking, seemingly all-male [[ogre]]-like creatures in FF11.

'''Genomes''' (FF9) are a race of artificial life-forms that resemble humans with monkey-like tails, which were created to exist as back-up bodies for an invading alien race.

'''Mithra''' (FF11) are infamous for being the [[catgirl]] race. There apparently are males, but due to their scarcity, they are kept strictly segregated in the Mithra lands, looking after the children. Like cats, they are playful, curious, and prone to mischief. They are best at being thieves, rangers, ninja, and mages with their high dexterity and agility.

'''Qu''' (FF9) are a bizarre race of androgynous, long-tongued humanoids which dwell in swamps. Known for their obsession with gourmet cooking and their love of frog-meat in particular.

'''TaruTaru''' (FF11) are basically the [[gnome]]s of Final Fantasy, although they look more like the titular Chipmunks and Chippettes from the 80s cartoon "Alvin and the Chipmunks". Dedicated and hard-working, they use their skill in magic to make up for their lack of physical prowess.

===Ivalice Races===
Ivalice has made the most appearances of any one Final Fantasy game, and thus has the largest array of potentially playable races to show up so far.

'''Aegyls''' are a primitive race of winged humanoids, in a state of cultural and spiritual decline.

'''Bangaas''' are a powerful race of hulking [[lizardfolk]], distinguished by their two pairs of long, droopy, bunny-like ears. They are note for their strength and agility, favoring classes that require high physical power.

'''Garifs''' are a primitive race of [[ogre]]-like humanoids, characterized by their thick fur coasts and their cultural doctrine of wearing masks throughout their life.

'''Gria''' are [[monstergirls|an all-female race of humanoid]] [[dragon]]s, with the classic "dragongirl" appearance of a dainty tail, horns and dragon wings on an otherwise human body. Despite their girlish looks, Gria are formidably strong.

'''Nu Mou''' are effectively the [[kobold]]s of Ivalice, resembling a surprisingly cute mix of [[lizardfolk]] and long-eared dogfolk or [[rabbitfolk]]. They are known for their proficiency with magic.

'''Seeqs''' are basically the [[orc]]s of Ivalice, appearing as large, bulky pig-men. Barbarous and cowardly, they often tend to be bandits.

'''Viera''' are perhaps the most famous of Ivalice's races, being a species of [[monstergirls|practically all-female]] [[amazon]] [[rabbitfolk]]-[[elves]] [[monstergirls|of legendary beauty and with a preference for skimpy clothes]]. Quick, agile, great shots, long-lived and equally proficient with both magic and martial combat, only female Vierra ever appear, as their menfolk are both rare and extremely territorial, hiding even from their women until it's breeding season.

Noise Marines

2019-01-29T18:49:28Z

2601:147:4300:1949:E9AF:C429:E6F0:9AE3: /* Eight Edition */

{{heresy}}
[[File:Laser_Guitar.jpg|200px|thumb|right|The original Noise Marine model in all its glory, complete with fabulous painting scheme. All the fantastic '80s style, with that .75 calibre goodness!]]
[[File:NoiseMarine.jpg|200px|thumb|right|He's back!]]
{{Topquote|Here come, here come, here come the Noise Marines!|2=[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LE1wSSZ-iFs D-Rok, Official Theme Song]}}

{{Topquote|My Emperor's Children, what wonderful music they make.|The [[Primarch]] [[Fulgrim]] on the eve of the [[Drop Site Massacre]]}}

{{Topquote|1=Gonna fight the war, AND USE MY MUSIC AS A WEAPON!|2=[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj3ii1Cn25U#t=58s Disturbed - Droppin' Plates]}}

{{Topquote|Oh well; at least it's not Skrillex...|Final thought of an unnamed [[Planetary Defense Force]] trooper}}

Possibly the most <s>[[derp]]</s> [[Awesome]] thing of to come out of [[Games Workshop]], the Noise Marines are [[Chaos Space Marines]] sworn to [[Slaanesh]].

==What?==
Yeah, so [[Slaanesh]] is the God of Excessive Pleasure: lots of sex, lots of drugs, lots of weird sex, lots of pain, lots of weird sex that's painful, lots of weird sex while on drugs that are painful. You get the picture. So when it comes to making up a Slaaneshi flavor of Chaos Space Marines, what does GW come up with?

Rock stars, naturally. Rock stars with [[Sonic Weaponry|sound-laser guitars]]. Because in the [[Rogue Trader|'80s]], '''everything''' was glam' rock and [[awesome]]. They've since moved away from giving them ''actual'' sonic guitars in favor of [[Sonic Weaponry|sonic guns]], but the parallel is still there. Why have they moved away from something freaking awesome into something just kind of meh (excluding the fact that Blaster-Guitars-Swords sound wonderfully dumb)? <s>Because Games Workshop doesn't know a good thing when it sees one. You really should know this by now.</s> The recent Vigilus Weekender revealed a celebratory model based almost entirely on the original model, with some added flair and modernized scaling. Also with the bonus of it standing on a decapitated Primaris Marine's head.

Even more recently, thanks in part to '''[[Dawn of War II|Dawn of War 2: Retribution]]''' and a certain [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnzuRnKnO7E Youtube video] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsGRsDe3iRw This one is even better] they've seen a slight resurgence of popularity. The goofy idea of '80s, Motley Crue-spewing Noise Marines has been replaced with the goofier idea of [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7AC5M7F4ys evil-DJ-esque Noise Marines with long and loud sustained "music" (also known as dubstep) being blasted out of speaker-guns at head-fryingly loud volumes]. Also the idea of a [[Awesome|Land Raver]] is pretty cool too. Their in-game counterparts, however, still stick true to the original Noise Marines [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqROBgF7_DU and attempt to] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yafb25_ObVo rock their enemies to death].

There have been sightings of the Noise Marine's 21st century counterparts who used weaponised dubstep to [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDlif8Km4S4 fuck up Counter Strike wannabes]; if you want to make an ACTUAL terrorist's teeth explode, then you need to called up the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Range_Acoustic_Device L.R.A.D,] a real world sonic cannon with a range of over two miles, with a total volume slightly lower then a shotgun going off next to your ear, but able to just keep that volume up for hours.

L.R.A.D is maybe close, and while it surely does please Slaanesh while doing a pretty awesome job of ruining some terrorist's day, it does not quite match the mark of Slaanesh's rock star/Skrillex Marines, but some day...

If you want to field old style rock star Marines, redesign be damned, you're in luck. [http://www.spellcrow.com/pleasure-legions-c-9_43.html Spellcrow] makes conversion bits for both guitars and arms.

== Dawn of War 2 ==
[[File:Dow2 noisemarines.jpg|400px|thumb|right|Shake it, shake it, shake it!]]
Noise Marines are scary as fuck in Dawn of War 2. 3 member squad carries 3 sonic blasters that does flame damage; yeah, 3 flamers in one squad. Their damage is quite high, even hurts heavy infantry like Tactical Marines. The result is even better if you use it on light infantry like Guardians, Shoota Boyz or Termigants. But that's not all!. Sonic blasters '''disable ranged weapons and grenades on those hit.''' So you can't just out-shoot them, they will also disable your weapons. You could try to get into melee with them...but they have an ability that knocks back everything short of vehicles in a wide radius of their position so your choppy troops will just bounce around aimlessly for any other troops to finish off.

They are even more threatening in tier 2 with their Blastmaster upgrade. Basically it's a plasma cannon for Chaos army. Does great damage, insane range, massive knock-back. The weapon is a bit odd however, as it knocks back everyone in its '''firing path'''. So if you set up your Havocs to fire in front of them, they will be '''INTERRUPTED''' by a Blastmaster. The weapon is great for crowded groups.

Noise Marines are all Chaos was missing in Chaos Rising expansion pack. Flamers for power bashing, artillery for later stages. Their short range sonic blasters may become a problem in later stages since there will be lots of threats for them and they are in front of your all army with their short range. Upgrading them to Blastmaster wouldn't be a bad idea for protecting a victory point.

==On the Table Top==
Noise Marines have always been, at the very least, a competent shooting unit that won't necessarily collapse in close combat; the primary difference between them and other astartes has been their unique weapon choices and until 8th edition, a higher initiative stat. They were introduced as a Chaos Space Marine wielding a guitar gun; there was only one type of noise marine and noise marine weapon in those days with little in the way of options.

===Second Edition===
Noise Marines got new weapons this time around, splitting their weapons into the now well-known sonic blaster, blastmaster and doom siren. The crazy part was just the availability of the weaponry - anyone in the squad could take any sonic weapon, which was wild!

===Third Edition===
This is where things get interesting. At the onset of Third, Noise Marine weapons get a weird change getting variable strength but low AP and the weapons were more restricted: noise marines were armed primarily with the sonic blaster, with some upgrade options to blastmaster or doom siren, while the champion could still take any of the sonic weapons - including the blastmaster! Also note that Noise Marines were a Heavy Support choice here instead of an elite, which was changed with the new codex.

Then 3.5 came along and changed that dramatically: sonic weaponry were revised again removing their random strength and the blastmaster specifically gained it's double profile here. They also become flat upgrades to other weapons on models with the Mark of Slaanesh or on vehicles dedicated to Slaanesh. The implication here was that for a fee, most models could upgrade or straight up buy better bolters, flamers or auto-cannons. It also meant there were vehicles with sonic weapons, making the Emperor's Children somewhat OP. Noise Marines specifically could be taken as troops if the lord leading the army had a mark of Slaanesh and any unit numbering 6 models could take an aspiring champion for free.

===Fourth Edition===
A bit of a downgrade from Third, the base profile was effectively a fearless CSM with better leadership and initiative. Sonic blasters didn't change at all but could now be upgraded from their bolters as per the previous edition. The biggest change was the blastmaster gaining AP3 on their high-power setting and the Doom Siren being upgraded to S5 AP3. Noise Marines also got shuffled into the Troops section and overall, were the second most chosen troops choice for builds behind plague marines throughout fourth and fifth edition.

===Sixth Edition===
Moved back to elites with a Troops choice caveat, Noise Marines had ''another'' change to their weaponry with sonic blasters becoming Salvo 2/4 and all sonic weaponry ignoring cover. Basic noise marines with no options were a bargain infantry choice being flat-out better than most other astartes but only costing 18 pts. before options. This would ferry them through seventh edition wherein they had their Emperor's Children list somewhat restored from 3.5.

===Eighth Edition===

[[File:Noise Marine.jpg|200px|thumb|right|The current incarnation of Noise Marines. "I hope you're not too sensitive, because [[Meme|THINGS SHALL GET LOUD NOW]]!"]]
These guys are so good now! In their previous incarnation while an all around solid choice, but they had mobility problems, as most of their set up forced you to play in a very static fashion. Well, Slaanesh heard our pleas, and '''''THINGS SHALL GET LOUD NOW!''''' Sonic Blasters are now Assault 3, so you not only can move, but you have even the option to advance and still shoot (with a -1 to hit, but still!); they're broadly speaking more expensive combi-bolters, doubling the price in exchange for ignoring cover and moving from Rapid Fire 2 to Assault 3. Blastmasters are not as powerful as they once were against power armor; but are far better against characters, terminators, vehicles, and multi-wound models in general. Averaging 2 shots at S8/AP-2/D2, but possibly doing 9 damage in a single shooting phase, at 20 pts they cost 5 pts less than a Missile Launcher or Lascannon! The Varied Frequency setting will see far more use than in the past as well; averaging 3.5 S4/AP-1/D1 shots, with the potential for 6 shots, it's got slightly better rate of fire than a Sonic Blaster, and a much-improved AP of -1. The Doom Siren is now a heavy flamer with AP-2 and D6 auto-hits for 10 pts. You can now take a Sonic Blaster on your champion! They get the Music of the Apocalypse rule, which lets them fire their weapon (or a grenade) when they die, even if they are in melee. This rule doesn't seem to let you fire on the unit you are in melee with, though. Noise Marines are not slouches in the melee either with 2 attacks each. Which makes them as effective as loyalist Assault Marines in melee. You can swap out their bolters for Chainswords to gain a bonus attack taking them to 3 attacks each in the fight phase. Take the Icon of Excess and the trigger Death to the False Emperor on a 5+ to hit. The unique Emperor's Children stratagem: Excess of Violence give them a bonus attack for each model slain. They're no Khorne Berserkers but melee kitted Noise Marines can do work with the right stratagem and psychic power boosts. All in all, these guys are awesome (and surprisingly cheap at 15 pts, too).
*Note: The rule that protects characters from being directly targeted specifically states it only applies to the shooting phase. So, if you have Noise Marines die in the psychic or fight phases, Music of the Apocalypse will let you target characters regardless of nearby units!
**Fun quirk with the Champion: It is technically possible for the Champion to take a Sonic Blaster, a Doom Siren, ''AND'' a combi-bolter, and [[dakka|can legally fire them all at once!]]
**New FAQ note: Death to the False Emperor applies to any hits made in the Fight phase, including shooting attacks made with pistols and sonic weapons (Icons of Excess are truly decadent now). Grenades can also be thrown by EVERY Noise Marine that dies, not just one per unit. The potential suicide-bomber strategies are mind blowing! Due note however that only pistols can be fired at units within 1", which means no drowning the unit that's murdering your boys in NOISE, so it's a good thing they don't have to be the target of your SWEET CACOPHONY.
**Additional FAQ Note: If you go the close combat route with your Noise Marines (possibly even if you don't), give your Champion a Plasma Pistol. If you use it on your Music attack, there's no reason not to supercharge it--you're dead anyway, and might even get an extra DttFE shot off!

Tl;dr: The God of Excess delivers in the 8th Edition. While briefly losing their ability to be taken as troops when the codex first dropped, a subsequent FAQ has allowed to be taken as troops if they are Emperors Children. Slaanesh in general is just excellent this edition. Now that Sonic Blasters are Assault 3 you can foot slog them to a mid-field objective and still maintain effective fire. Or take a squad of Noise Marines in a [[Rhino Transport|Metal Box]], get it within range of a distant one, and drop the bass. In an Emperor's Children detachment they gain Flawless Perfection granting them always strikes first in combat. In a Renegade detachment they Dark Raiders which allow them to move, advance and charge in the same turn. So they can move and advance, fire off 3 sonic Blaster shots, and charge into combat. With all the newly available psychic powers and stratagem combos of the new codex.

{{Chaos Space Marines}}

Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Talons of the Emperor (30k)

2019-01-29T18:46:50Z

2601:147:4300:1949:E9AF:C429:E6F0:9AE3: /* Heavy Support */

So we've had rules for [[First Founding|the Legions]], the [[Primarch]]s, and the [[Mechanicus|Mechanicum]]. It was only a matter of time until the [[Custodian Guard|Emprah's BFFs]] and the [[Sisters of Silence|premium in anti-psyker units]] got rules, and here they are. FAQ updated them to be alliable, they count as Agents of The Emperor. Do note that these rules for the Talons of the Emperor are only for the Horus Heresy (30k) game, if you're interested in the 40k tactics, you can find the [[Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Sisters of Silence|Sisters of Silence tactics here,]] [[Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Adeptus Custodes (8E)|and the Adeptus Custodes tactics here.]]

==Why play Talons of the Emperor==
There are a number of reasons for playing this army.
*Because you like gold
*Because you like eagles
*Because you like eagles made out of gold
*Because the Emperor was right all along
*Because [[Erebus]] can fuck a cactus
*Because you want to take [[Emperor's Children|Phoenix Terminators]] with a half-Primarch statline as troops
*Because you hate Psykers harder than [[Space Wolves|any furry]] can ever hope to imagine
*Because one day you will be able to take the EMPRAH as a LoW
*Because being Agents of the Emperor (per new rulebook) you can ally with any and all Loyalists as Sworn Bros

==Special Rules==
===Custodes===
*'''Preternatural Skill''': If the majority of enemy models have less Weapon Skill compared to yours when fighting in assault, you get +1I. Not as useful after the nerf since plenty of legion-specific MEQ's have WS5. However unless you're up against Emperor's Children, you'll still be striking before generic units anyway.
*'''The Sodality''': A Custodian's unit coherency range is 3" and they always use their usual LD for regrouping. Representing how the Banana Custards fight as individuals rather than a squad in the lore. Use the 3" to better control the battlefield and reduce the effectiveness of Blast weapons (since a 3" blast will only touch more than one Custodes when perfectly centered between two of them, at maximum coherency).
*'''Inviolable Psyche''': Forgeworld dancing around ATSKNF again, you are immune to Fear and Pinning and ignore all penalties when taking Morale Checks, meaning it's Stubborn 2.0, and re-roll Deny the Witch rolls. However, it does mean you CAN break as a result of bad combat, and you CAN be utterly wiped out. Not that that would happen often, but still.
*'''Bulky''': Not a rule specific to the Custodes, but they all have it.
*'''Character''': Always remember that ALL Custodes are Characters. That means they can issue and accept challenges, but also benefit from Look Out, Sir. With some lucky rolls and a good positioning, this can really help your guys survive hails of plasma fire and assaults, especially if you have a lot of Solarite gauntlets.
*'''Crusader''': Like Bulky, almost all Custodes have it. Quite powerful since your Custodians usually have better Initiative than most 30k units.

===Sisters of Silence===
*'''Psychic Anathema''': The core defining feature of the Sisters of Silence, this is how they fuck up psykers all twenty ways from Sunday. They're immune to any psychic powers targeting them and ignores any Telepathy Blessings that would negatively affect them, because fuck invisibility cheese (you can still be raped by Biomancy user for example, so pick your targets). Anyone within 12" takes -1 Ld (-2 if they're psykers, though anyone with Fearless is immune) while allies can re-roll Deny tests, but any Daemons in range take -1 to Toughness while Daemon vehicles take +1 to Pen. Anyone within that range that tries to use a power now needs to roll 1 higher to successfully manifest, raised to 2 higher if they're in B2B (So if they're against Magnus, he has to roll 4+ to use a power when in range while needing 5+ when in combat).
*'''Ex Oblivio''': Another deadly null power for the Sisters, but only for the most brutal of them. Anyone within 6" can't generate WC dice, and if they want to use a power, they have to test Ld or suffer Perils at a -1 penalty, minimum 1. This means they can't roll a 6 for warp surge and are twice as likely to roll a one.
*'''Fanatical Discipline''': Sisters are Fearless and Hate Psykers, except for their leaders (Oblivion Knight-Centura's), [[derp|who do not have this rule.]] A shame, since it could've allowed you to give Fearless to Custodes, or loyalist MEQ/GEQ squads they're attached to. ''Given that every other Sister has this, including the squad that the Oblivion Knight-Centura's are chosen from, its omission is likely due to the same reason for why the Custodes have Misericordias as wargear, FW fucked up.''
*'''Company-Cadres''': The organization of the Sisters. For every three non-HQs they bring, they need an HQ choice. If they have an HQ choice, every Sister model in the detachment gains Infiltrate, Crusader, Stealth, or +1 to Combat Resolution.

==Special Equipment==
===Ranged Weapons===
*'''Adrathic Weapons''': Yet another super special Terran-only weapon, these are proper disintegrators. As a rule, they will make Mechanicum players cry, also they are all AP2 with Instant Death, Armorbane, and Gets Hot.
**'''Adrathic Destructor''': 12" S5 AP2 Assault 1: By far the most 'common', available in some form or another on most infantry models.
**'''Adrathic Devastator''': 18" S6 AP2 Heavy 2: Dickbike and Pallas upgrade.
**'''Adrathic Exterminator''': 36" S6 AP2 Heavy 1, 3" Blast: Not yet used on any model, but it's only a matter of time. If they remember this exists. It isn't on the Telemon or the Orion. So it's now a shot in the dark if the Exterminator will be used at all.
*'''Adrastus Bolt Caliver''': 30" Assault 3 Heavy Bolter with a Disintegration Beam welded onto it. Distinctly stated as being two functional weapons with unlimited uses, but only one can be used a turn.
*'''Lastrum Bolt Weapons''': The Caladus' fixed mounts have turned into the Custodes' most prevalent vehicle mount. All weapons have '''Heliothermic Detonation''', so anybody that takes ''one or more'' unsaved wounds and ''is not slain'' has to make a Toughness roll or get '''Instant Death''' (or +1 to penetration damage table if a vehicle).
**'''Lastrum Storm Bolter''': 24" S5 AP4; only used by Aquilon Terminators and the Contemptor-Achillus.
**'''Lastrum Bolt Cannon''': 36" S6 AP3 Heavy 3; used on the Caladus, Coronus, and the Dickbikes.
**'''Iliastus Accelerator Cannon''': 60" S7 AP2 Heavy 3, Rending, Rapid Tracking (ignores Jink saves).
***Heliothermic Detonation is mostly relevant against models with a lot of Wounds. Because all models in a unit that are firing the same weapon shoot at the same time, it doesn't matter if said unit is firing one or a thousand Lastrum shells : the rule will only be triggered once against the last wounded model after all the others have been killed normaly. This greatly mitigates the efficiency of Lastrum weaponry against squads of multi-wounded models, but killing an extra bastard is always a good thing nevertheless.
*'''Infernus Weapons''': The Custodes super flamers. Only two versions, and they're both Heavy 1, but who gives a shit when they're S6!
**'''Infernus Firepike''': S6 AP6 Heavy 1, Torrent; only used by Aquilon Terminators.
**'''Infernus Incinerator''': S6 AP4 Heavy 1; used on the Contemptors, either as a replacement for the Storm Bolters or in the Galatus Warblade.
*'''Proteus Las-Lance''': 24" S7 AP2 Heavy 2, Lance; like the Adrathic Exterminator, it is not yet used on any model, come again later.
*'''Corve Las-Pulsar''': 36" S9 AP2 Heavy D3: Upgrade for the Agamatus jetbikes and found as part of the Contemptor-Achillus's Dreadspear, and most of the reason for it's 40 point upgrade cost. The Pulsar is one of the few weapons that Custodes have as a counterpart to Lascannons. So you will need it.
*'''Arachnus Blaze Weapons''': Bastard offspring of Multi-lasers and Lascannons, they have two firing modes. One is Burst for infantry shredding, the other is Concentrated for Vehicle killing with AP1 and '''Exoshock''', which gives you an automatic '''second''' Penetrating hit which ignores cover saves on a 4+ after you score one (so you roll to hit, roll to penetrate, enemy rolls invulnerable/cover, and only then...)
**'''Arachnus Blaze Cannon''': S6 AP5 Heavy Bolter, '''or''' 48" S8AP1 Heavy 1, Exoshock: In all honesty, the Burst mode is rather shitty, but Concentrated is essentially a Lascannon with nasty special rules.
**'''Arachnus Storm Cannon''': 48" S7 AP3 Heavy 7, '''or''' 72" S9 AP1 Heavy 2, Exoshock: the Telemon's big Gatling gun and perhaps the most versatile of the Arachnus weapons. This is a must take if you are facing armies with a large amount of vehicles.
**'''Arachnus Heavy Blaze Cannon''': 48" S8 AP3 Heavy 4, '''or''' 72" S10 AP1 Heavy 1, Exoshock: Optional turret replacement for the Caladus, enjoy IDing MEQs.
*'''Psyk-Out Weaponry''': Available as grenades with 8" range, in grenade launchers with 24", or in missiles with 48", each of them has Strength 2, Blast 3 and Psi-Shock, which forces Psykers to suffer perils.
*'''Stake Crossbow''': A 24" S5 AP- crossbow with Rapid Fire and Psi-shock
*'''Needle Weapons''': S2 AP5 weapons with Rending and Poisoned 4+.
**'''Needle Pistol''': 12" Pistol.
**'''Assault Needler''': 18" Assault 2.
*'''Snare Gun''': A 12" Assault 1 Pinning weapon. If it hits, it inflicts d3 hits, each of them requiring a Strength test to resist taking an unsavable wound (though Invulns work). Just don't expect Superheavies to listen to this. Hurray, the Rogue Trader Webber has finally made a return!
*'''Hellion Pattern Heavy Cannon Array''': So far exclusive to the Sisters of Silence Kharon Pattern Acquistor. It's basically two Autocannons with halved range, Twin-Linked and Pinning.
*'''Proteus Plasma Projector''': One of the few actual Plasma weapons that TOTE get besides Plasma pistols. It is currently exclusive to the Telemon Dreadnought. This is an Assault 1, Template weapon with Strength 5, and Ap2. Making it a decent weapon for roasting TEQs and anything else with inadequate saves. Forgeworld should have given Sagittarum Guard squads the Projector as an upgrade option to make them useful.
*'''Spiculus Bolt Launchers''': Vehicle only Bolt weapons introduced in datasheets for Telemon Dreadnought and the Orion Dropship. As if Forge World is already working on the next red book.
**'''Spiculus launcher''': The basic version. It's profile is Heavy 5, Range 48", Str5, AP5, with Rending and the Volley Fire rules. Volley Fire allows the weapon to fire twice if the bearer doesn't move. Making it a counter for Flyers, blobs and a decent follow up against anything that somehow survives the deadly firepower that said vehicle will already have.
**'''Spiculus Heavy Bolt Launcher''': It is Str7, Heavy 3 and loses Volley Fire. Lowering the amount of Dakka it will spew out despite the improved strength. Not much of a downside if taken in pairs in the case of the Orion. Otherwise not worth it.

===Melee Weapons===
*'''Custodes Spears''': Made of two parts, the power blade is AP2 +1S on the charge, and reverts to a specialist power sword afterwards. Every time you roll a 6 to hit with it, you get another attack, but those extra attacks can't generate any more. The second part depends on the spear.
**'''Adrasite Spear''': It has an Adrathic Destructor, which was 12" S5 AP2 Assault 1, Instant Death, Armorbane, and Gets Hot. Short range and nasty.
**'''Guardian Spear''': Attached with a 18" S4 AP4 Assault 2 bolt weapon. Pretty good on anything short of an MEQ, but not great.
**'''Pyrithite Spear''': Attached with a 6" S8 AP1 Melta, essentially an inferno pistol. Okay for busting light vehicles or TEQs, but 3" melta range can hurt, but it's not like you weren't planning on charging at that range anyways.
**'''Paragon Spear''': AP2 '''+2S''' on the charge (reverts to AP2 +1S when not charging, like a Paragon Blade), rather than +1, and 6s to wound always inflict Instant Death, but 6s to hit get another attack, as it is a spear. The attachment is an 18" S5 AP3 Assault 2 bolter.
*'''Misericordia''': For longer than a year this was listed with rules, and then an FAQ was released and... it wasn't supposed to be in the book at all. According to the FAQ it's a 'symbol of office' for the Custodes, apparently to show that they're not Custodian Guard or Sentinel Guard (as they're the only two units without them).
*'''Paragon Blade''': Specialist +1S AP2 that inflicts Instant Death on a wound roll of 6, but you want a Paragon Spear more.
*'''Plasma Grenades''': Rare enough to mention here, they are assault grenades that can be thrown as S4 AP4 instead of S3 AP-.
*'''Sentinel Warblade''': A Specialist Power Sword with Rending. In addition, it's got an inbuilt 12" Storm Bolter that snap fires at BS2. As it exists now, it's almost entirely inferior to the Guardian Spear except when snap shooting (including overwatch), unless you're planning on using Rending to even out long assaults with high toughness models, or you need to crack open AV11+ and you can't get enough Custodes stuck in to use their Krak Grenades (a lucky rend with this sword can glance a Land Raider, though [[MathHammer]] doesn't favor your odds). But, the Sentinel Warblade does work better with the Praesidium Shield, so taking models with this is a legitimate trade of punching power for defense.
*'''Solarite power gauntlet''': AP1 mastercrafted power fist, same as Imperial Fists. However, you are Custodes, so your punches are now railguns.
*'''Solarite power talon''': +2S, master crafted lightning claw.
====Sisters of Silence Melee Weapons====
*'''Proteus Neuro-Lash:''' Flails and sectioned staves known for causing agonizing pain. Each is a two-handed melee weapon with S+1 but AP-. What they also get is the ability to hit anyone within 3" as opposed to just hitting one unit. In addition, for every hit they make, they roll a d6, with a 3+ meaning they can deliver an additional attack with Poisoned 4+ at AP-. These aren't gonna kill a marine any time soon, but Daemons will rue fucking with these ladies.
*'''Execution Blade''': Essentially Charnabal Sabres with more fancy. They're Two-Handed S+1 AP3 weapons with Duelist's Edge (+1 Initiative in a challenge) and Flawless Cut (a 5+ to hit counts as AP2)

===Equipment===
*'''Arae-shrikes''': Enemy units deep striking within 12" of a model with this wargear suffer perils on a 4+, including models that ignore the effects of mishap. In addition, barrage weapons targeting models with this wargear add 1D6 to their scatter and pick the 2 highest results, although a hit still remains a hit.
*'''Aquilon pattern Terminator Armour''' is super Cataphractii armour with Hammer of Wrath and pseudo-relentless. They can't Run, but they can make Sweeping Advances and fire Overwatch.
*'''Custodian Armour''': Artificer Armour and ''Move Through Cover'' rolled into one pimping banana suit. ''Makes footslogging and charging across difficult terrain a bit more reliable and basically means your Agamatus jetbikers can move everywhere confidently.''
*'''Praesidium Shield''': Adds +1 to the invulnerable save up to the maximum of 3++ and your opponents suffer -1 to Hit on every attack targeting the wielder in close combat up to the maximum of 6+. A Praesidium Shield precludes two-handed weapons, the +1A for 2 CCW, and the bonus for charging with a spear (this includes the Paragon Spear).
*'''Magisterium Vexilla''': A unit with this wargear can reroll failed leadership checks and gains the ''Fear'' special rule. In addition, all units within 12" add 1 to combat resolution at the end of the phase. ''TAKE IT. The vexilla compensates for the lack of Fearless and may give you the edge when charging with Guardian spears. Fear may be especially useful if you're fielding Sisters of Silence alongside your Custodes.''
*'''Teleportation Transponder''': Already known to Imperial Fists and Night Lords, this model's entire unit can deep strike.
====Sisters of Silence Equipment====
*'''Vratine Armour''': The armor of the Sisters of Silence and symbol of their oath to kill witches...otherwise known as Power Armor.

==Unit Analysis==
===HQ===
*'''Legio Custodes Shield Captain''': A <s>holy</s> [[Imperial Truth|honest]] rape machine, fit to take on a [[Chaos Lord]], a [[Chapter Master]] and a [[Warboss]] simultaneously and come out on top. His statline comes with all the best bits of a Praetor and a Custodes and gear better than both, he can take the all powerful Paragon Spear, and combine it with a Praesidium shield, Digital lasers and a Iron Halo for [[Cheese|6 S6 AP2 attacks which generate additional attacks on 6s to hit and Instant Death on 6s to wound at I6 and a 3++ in close combat with -1 to Hit malus for your adversary if they specifically target your golden dude]]. Or you can drop the Paragon Spear and go for a Solarite gauntlet for [[Rape|6 S10 AP1 master-crafted I1 attacks]] (don't forget the Praesidium shield means you don't get a bonus attack for 2 CCWs, even though the Solarite gauntlet isn't a specialist weapon and the shield captain comes with a basic ccw). And everything in between, the rape train has no brakes.
**'''Tribune''': Ooooh FW, what have you done... Here is Mr. Cheestodes, the deadliest generic character in the ENTIRE GAME. No really, this guy is the very definition of mindless rape, Slaanesh him/herself is fucking ashamed. Same as above except you get ''Eternal Warrior'' and ''Fearless'', y'know, in case you wanted to add an [[Archon_(Warhammer_40,000)|Archon]] and an [[Necron Overlord|Overlord]] to the stuff you can take on at once. At a price of [[Rage|25 more points]]. However, you can only take him in a detachment of 2000 points or more, so you're not likely going to see him in an allied force. unless you are playing HUGE games. Also, if he's in the Primary detachment he has to be the warlord ''(unless Valdor, Krole, or [[What|Emps]] are present)'', but he is able to choose his warlord trait. Needless to say, some warlord traits can be really, really good for your guys. Strategic Genius can be useful since almost all your Custodes have access to deep strike, and Master of Ambush is priceless when your cheapest transport is 135 points for a capability of only 6.
*'''Sisters of Silence Oblivion Knight-Centura''': Surprisingly has mostly ordinary human stats with WS5 BS4 I5 and Ld9, she's essentially the budget HQ at 75. She's not barebones however, as she grabs Artificer Armor with a 4+ Invuln that ups to 3+ against Blasts and Templates. She has a bolt pistol, Execution Blade, and Frag, Krak, and Psyk-out grenades, while she has the Cadre rules, Ex Oblivio, and Precision Strikes. Her melee weapon can be exchanged for a power axe (don't), a Neuro-Lash (not for Marines), or a Paragon Blade (if you just want to maul 2+ saves with a chance at ID), while her pistol can be exchanged for a hand-flamer, a plasma pistol, a needle pistol, or an archaeotech pistol - and for 10 points, any of these weapons can be Master Crafted.
**A Knight-Centura with Overawe joining a unit of Custodes with Magisterium Vexilia is a great combination. For just 10 or 20 points more than most Custodes infantry model, a naked Centura provides a decent damage output against both MEQs and TEQs, a free +1 bonus to combat resolution and inflicts a malus of -1 against Fear and moral tests. Given the impressive toughness of your Custodes, you usually won't need to kill more than 1 or 2 models in order to win a fight, just tank enough wounds and watch your opponent fail its moral test before being slaughtered by sweeping advance. Works especially well with units wielding Praesidium shields such as Sentinels or Hetaeron guards.
*'''Sisters of Silence Excruciatus Cadre''': Something akin to a command squad, this is a squad of WS4 BS4 I4 Ld9 ladies with tools, with the Silent Judge having 2 wounds. They all hate Daemons and Psykers, get Fanatic Discipline, Night Vision, the Cadre rules (forcing them to be the mandatory HQ if the detachment is less than 500 pts, meaning they eat up at least 1/5 of the budget by themselves), and the ability to make their melee attacks ID. The Questorae only get CCWs, Bolt Pistols, Assault Needlers, and grenades alongside their armor and ''Spectra-vestments'' which force anyone to take -1 BS to hit them, while the Silent Judge adds a refractor, a Needle Pistol, a Nuncio-Vox, and a power weapon. A Questora can buy the Ardrathic Destructor, while any of them can exchange their guns for Needle Pistols or Stake Crossbows for free or buy a Snare Gun or a Flamer with a one-use boost to make them S6, and each can replace their CCW for a Charnabal Sabre or a power weapon. The Judge can swap her melee weapon for a Neuro-Lash, the Execution Blade, or a fist, while her gun can be exchanged for a Stake-Crossbow, hand flamer, plasma pistol, or a second needle pistol.

====Special Characters====
*'''Constantin Valdor''': The Captain-General of the Legio Custodes and [[Malcador|second]] best bro of the [[Emperor]] takes to the field. With his near-primarch statline he is a CC beast, with 5s across the board plus WS7, I6, Ld10, and 2+ save. He also has the ever rare Eternal Warrior, as well as Crusader, Fearless, and Counter-Attack. In terms of wargear he has the '''Apollonian Spear''', a +1s (+2 on the charge) AP2 guardian spear, with the <s>GODLY</s> MANLY ''Molecular Severance'' rule: any to-wound rolls of 4+ cause instant death or an automatic penetrating hit regardless of AV or T. In addition, [[Sigismund|successful invulnerable saves against wounds caused by this weapon]] must be rerolled! Oh, and it causes extra attacks on a 6 to hit and also it comes with an attached 18" S5 AP2 Assault 2 ''Concussive'' bolter on top! He also has lots of other gear: An Iron Halo, plasma & krak grenades, Arae-shrike, <s>Misericordia</s> symbol of office, digital lasers, and custodian armour. His warlord trait allows him to re-roll Seize the Initiative, and one Legio custodes unit (including himself) can take teleportation transponders at no extra cost. All that for just 275 points.
**[[That guy|Some people]] may ask why you would ever take good ol' Valdor rather than the already infamous Tribune (you know, the guy who can stomp Spartans, some of the Primarchs and Scoria for the same price). Firstly, you don't want to be beaten to death by your opponent IRL. Secondly, Valdor is more versatile than the Tribune, butchering hordes, TEQs and tanks alike without sacrificing his I6. He's better at dishing out the hurt, just not as good at taking it. Don't take him for his Warlord trait though, since the nerf (the same one that took away one of his attacks for whatever reason) it's fucking garbage. There's no reason to take this trait (or to make Valdor the Warlord), it saves you too few points and locks you out of far better alternatives. Even random character rolling on a random table is more likely to help, let alone the Tribune's ability to flat-out pick his choice.
**Do note that if you're playing games under 2000 points and are unable to get the Tribune as a result, yet you still want Fearless and Eternal Warrior for your Warlord (and an okay trait) then give Valdor a hard pass and get Jenetia Krole instead. She's a budget Valdor, with all that entails. He's 50% more expensive than she is and while his statline is much better, you have other squads meant to deal with whatever -2000 points can throw at you (it won't be nearly as much, seeing as how LoW are locked out and Adrathic weapons are already killing Mechanicum just fine).

*'''Jenetia Krole''': Knight-Commander of the Sisters of Silence. She's got 3's across the board with WS6, BS4, I5 A4 and Ld10. On top of Psychic Anathema, she also has Ex Oblivio, Fanatic Discipline, Rage, Preferred Enemy against Psykers and Characters, Cadre rules, Eternal Warrior, and the option to upgrade an Oblivion Knight Cadre to her elite Raptor Guard, which costs 20 points to make them WS5. For gear, she has Artificer Armor with the invuln seen on the Knight-Centura, an Archaeotech Pistol, grenades, and the '''Sword of Oblivion''': a super-Execution Blade with S+2 AP2 with 5+ Murderous Strike instead of Flawless Cut. This all makes her close to a match a challenge beast against any Marine HQs without Eternal Warrior, and more than a match against Daemons. Her Warlord Trait lets her re-roll Seize the Initiative and grants d3 units Scout.
**Do note that thanks to the new rulebook and the clarifications from the latest FAQ, [[Rape|Krole and every model in her unit get the rerolls from Preferred Enemy as long as even a single character/psyker is part of the enemy unit]]. Perfect for Custodes units with Solarite gauntlets, just in case wounding on 2+ and getting a reroll from Master-crafted wasn't already enough, so if you're going for ridiculous things like Hetaeron deathstars, leave Valdor and the Tribune at home and take aunt Jenny instead.
**Since the aforementioned trick basically makes any Custodes unit hit 33% harder, your opponent may seriously consider the possibility of sacrificing the sergeant of the squad in order to negate Preferred Enemy. But in most cases that means lowering the unit's Ld by one, which may prove a really bad deal since Psychic Anathema already inflicts a -1 malus, making the odds of fleeing the fight and being sweep advanced dangerously real. Apply the Knight Centura's Overawe + Magisterium Vexilia combo to make it worse and enjoy.

===Elites===
*'''Legio Custodes Hetaeron Guard Squad''': The Emperor's [[Companion|Companions]], [[Mary Sue|the best]] of [[Adeptus Custodes|the best]] of [[Imperium|the best]]. At 70 points per model they look REALLY expensive, but they're probably the best infantry unit in the game, bar none. So they have the same stat line as normal Custodes but with 3W and 3A. their special rules are the same as normal Custodes as well but they get ''counter attack''. They can all take a Praesidium shield, melta bombs, Arae-shrikes, and Teleporters, and any member of the squad can replace their spears with any melee weapon other than a Paragon Spear, but you can have Paragon '''blades''' for some nice AP2 at Initiative (probably [[Fail|another typo from FW]], just wait for a FAQ). One of the squad without a shielded may replace their guardian spear with the vexilla and either a MC power weapon or a sentinel warblade.
**So, super Custodes with '''S6 AP2 attacks at I5 (I6 if your opponent is WS:5 or below!), 4++ and hit on a 5+ by most units in the game''' ? Yep. Unless your opponent has something capable of insta-killing them, the Hetaeron are a real step above your other Custodes, so do not dismiss them because of their high price. Depending on the loadout, a Hetaeron can be as deadly as an Aquilon and more than twice as durable in CC for just +20 points, while remaining more flexible. Mixing Paragon blades and Solarite gauntlets in a squad allows you to mince EVERYTHING you could fight against without being stuck at Initiative 1 and still getting some Instant Death attacks thanks to Murderous Strike. Find some psyker ally with Endurance or Invisibility and you are basically unkillable in assault.
**Again, remember you can reallocate some wounds on a 4+ thanks to Look Out, Sir!, so having 3W is a real advantage over your other Custodes. When one model is worth almost 100 points, that's definitely something you MUST NOT forget.
*'''Legio Custodes Aquilon Terminator Squad''': Custodes with Terminator Armor. How terrifying. Each of them is 75 points a model, and with 5's on every stat save W2 A3 and Ld9, they're absolutely not slouches. Aquilon Terminator Armour affords 4++, Hammer of Wrath and Pseudo-relentless. In addition, they are able to fire Overwatch and Sweeping Advance, but cannot run. Say hello to Super Cataphractii armour. Each Aquilon Terminator has Crusader, a Lastrum Storm Bolter, a Solarite Gauntlet, and a <s>Misericordia</s> symbol of office, and each can exchange the gauntlet for a Solarite Power Talon or exchange their guns for a TL Ardrathic Destructor or Infernus Firepike. Each can also buy a Teleport Transponder and Arae-Shrikes.
**While costly (especially with special weapons), they can do the job if you use them correctly. They are the Custodes' answer against vehicles and Astartes multi-wound special units, since they can one-shot Justaerin, Firedrakes and Gal Vorbak while giving no fucks about Power Fist/Thunderhammer instakill (beware for shenanigans, like Rad Grenades, Rad Furnaces, Rad-Phage etc). Firepikes are also you best friends against hordes, something useful since tarpits are the bane of your Cutodes.
**The Firepike is arguably the best choice against most infantry units as long as you get at least 4 hits with the template. The Adrathic destructor may sound nice for TEQ-hunting, but ONE S5 AP2 shot is not that great since most TEQ in 30k are Terminators with an invulnerable save. Take it for one-shooting multi-wound models but otherwise go for the Infernus. The Lastrum is only top-tier against models with T3 and a 4+, so you should keep it when facing Solar Auxilia - remember that Void Hardened armours make the Infernus firepikes almost useless.
**'''Aquilons do not have Implacable Advance''' like the basic Legion Astartes Terminators get. So they won't be able to contest the objective even if they crack open a Spartan Deathstar. One of the four Talons of the Emperor troops choices are what you use to babysit objectives.
** These guys are worse than both Sentinels (as those cost less while having the same survivability. Rerollable 5++ is the same as 4++, and can be tailored toward punching big targets with Solarites with almost no loss of efficiency) & Hetaerons (+1 wound, better equipment & almost the same guns.) On the other hand they are, curiously, the most effective anti-horde option Custodes have - Infernus Firepikes AP may be shit, but they have great range due to Torrent and wound Space Marines on 2+ while bringing ID on Cultist blobs, so pile up those Armor Saves!
*'''Legio Custodes Contemptor-Achillus Dreadnought''': The fanciest, goldiest, and potentially deadliest non-boxiest dreadnought to ever be seen. It's got WS6 and BS5, an AV of 13/13/11, and hits at I5, meaning he'll more than match any marines on the field. He also has a Refractor Field instead of the basic Atomantic Reactor Contemptors use and comes stock with Extra Armor. For weapons, he starts with two Dread CCWs with Lastrum Storm Bolters, but he can buy the Dreadspear, a S10 AP2 MC weapon that '''turns any attack into S:Destroyer on a 6 to hit''' during the turn he charged AND has a Corvae Las-Pulser bolted on top. In addition, he can replace his Lastrum Storm Bolters with either TL Adrathic Destructors or Infernus Incinerators for a small fee.
**Do note the Dreadspear is not two-handed, and nothing is specified about the bonus attacks for every CCW after the first walkers get being included in the profile, so you may get [[Cheese|7 Destroyer attacks on the charge]] (4 base + 2 for three CCW + 1 for the charge). See page 91 of the BRB.
*'''Sisters of Silence Oblivion Knight Cadre''': The Elite among the Sisters of Silence, each comes with Ex Oblivio, Fanatic Discipline, and Precision Strikes. Each comes with Vratine Armor, cloaks that grant a 6++ Invuln or a 4++ against Templates and Blasts, Execution Blades, grenades, and Bolt Pistols. Everyone can replace their blades for Power Axes while the sergeant can buy a Neuro-Lash and replace her pistol with a Needle-Pistol, a Plasma Pistol, or a Hand Flamer.

===Troops===
*'''Custodian Guard Squad''': Think Terminators, but with all the 4s in their statline replaced with 5s (so yes, you can strike at Initiative 6 thanks to Preternatural Skill), with situational AP2 at initiative weapons, something that most Space marines (outside of Praetors or Emperor's Children) would never get. They can take the usual Arae-shrikes, Teleportation Transponders and Melta Bombs as upgrades for the whole squad, any Custodian can replace its Guardian spear by an Adrasite or Pyrithite spear and one can take a Magisterium vexilla with a master-craft power weapon or a Sentinel blade instead. They do pay for the high degrees of kickassitude they bring to the table, most notably with actual points and they are liable to get shot down before doing anything if you don't take a Coronus, though '''with 2 wounds each and a 2+ 5++''' they might pull though. With '''3 S6 AP2 attacks per Custodian on the charge''' and the buff from Crusader and a vexilla Magisterium, they have decent chances to win the first round of close combat with a good margin before AP3 becomes a problem, so make sure the situational nature of their AP2 isn't going to get them killed.
**Since Custodes pay no extra points for the base squad, if you want to go pure-Custodes or even just have a lot of Custodes then it's best to keep your units small and go with multiple squads. Why you'd want to do that is because Custodes have a rather low damage output once they get stuck in, and unfortunately you're going to get stuck in somewhere. A lot of the time it'll be after crippling the enemy unit and having them pass their morale check, however sometimes it'll be because you were charged after deep-striking, after disembarking, or your opponent rolled lucky. Having backup units support one another means that after you withstand the enemy charge you'll be able to break them in your turn, or you can charge a new unit in to finish mopping up what didn't break last time.
***Also note that if you're playing with both Custodes and Sisters (a really good idea) and your opponent is running a very assault-heavy army, then you can try placing the Sisters up front. While they're relatively easily wounded, there's few units that can wipe them all out on the charge (and less if they were the ones being charged) and their Fearless will ensure they're still there when your <s>glory hogs</s> golden boys come in to save the day. Even if they do all die, you sacrifice a much cheaper unit to guarantee making the charge, which itself can be worth it.
**Before bitching about your ultimate elite warriors being butchered by "mere" Terminators because of your shitty AP3, remember these guys are only ''basic Custodes'' and remain rather good in close combat against anything else. Mathammer-wise, even a three-man squad of Custodians can withstand the charge of 20 World Eaters tactical Legionnaires with 2 CCW ''and win'', just avoid 2+ saves you can't kill on the charge.
**A note on their equipment, if you are not deep-striking them and expect them to come under a lot of fire then try to keep at least one of them as-is. This is the unfortunate bastard who's going to die first, as you'll be wanting to put him up front or LoS'ing wounds to him when everyone else already has a wound. You shouldn't pay for a gun you'll never fire or a blade you'll never swing and if they come under heavy volume of fire, there's a good chance somebody's going to go down.
***Another note on equipment: take Adrasite Spears if you plan on deep-striking or want a fire-magnet. Instant Death is scary as hell to Mechanicum and a lot of Legions, what with their multi-wound units that sometimes have Medicae attached to them to make them even tougher, and a few blasts can make a lot of points back very quick (or instantly cover the entire unit, in the case of some Mechanicum). They can also be used on the side/rear of a lot of vehicles to melt through them, even with only S5 on an average roll they'll glance AV 12 on average, bypassing the issue with Armoured Ceramite entirely. Interestingly the Pyrithite Spear's better suited for lower-point games (unfortunately lower than what 30k's recommended to be played at). In higher-points games the vehicles coming to you are going to have Armoured Ceramite and you're going to be able to more easily afford better options for dealing with them, while the vehicles who don't have Armoured Ceramite are going to be too far away to deep-strike to safely in order to take advantage of the melta rule. While still true in lower-points games for everything except Rhino's and their like, the vehicles in the backline (artillery and tanks) are going to have far less bubble-wrap so even a badly scattered deep-strike won't be nearly as harshly punished, and in your next turn they can still accomplish their objective rather safely. They also still have the benefit of being able to ID MEQ's, but with that short range it'll be hard to get them to use it.

*'''Sentinel Guard Squad''': As Custodians armed with sword and board, they are somewhat less killy than their spear-wielding counterparts, but are more defensive thanks to their Praesidium shields. These are best used to guard your squishier Custodians, so they don't get wiped when they get charged by a squad with 2+ saves as your improved Invuls allow Sentinels to stick around long enough for rending to enter the equation. It's also worth noting that these guys can theoretically deal with vehicles thanks to their rending swords, but don't expect too much from them. Anyway, you can replace your Sentinel blades with Solerite gauntlets and talons for more flexibility.
**While expensive, the Sentinels are the very definition of holding the line, as anything without S10 or Instant Death will take a lot of turns to kill them in CC. For sure, they lack AP2 against TEQs, but they can tank your opponent's most dangerous units, so they are good for preventing a deathstar from rampaging through your army.
**Worth noting that, unlike Custodian Guard, you do actually get a small discount if you run these guys in small numbers (180 for the basic unit of 3, with 65 per model, means you save points if you run small)

*'''Sisters of Silence Prosecutor Cadre''': Baseline WS4 BS4 I4 Sisters of Silence with bolters (or double bolt pistols) and grenades. They get Fanatic Discipline and can buy a Nuncio-Vox or Breaching Charge. Infiltrate or give them Stealth, keep them small and use them as objective holders. Alternatively buy the max amount, give them two pistols, use them as bubble-wrap and make them look like a juicy target. No really, they can be surprisingly hard to wipe out, about the only things that can manage it are fully-kitted out Legion-specific squads, or a fully kitted out Assault Squad (both of which are far more expensive than the Prosecutors, and the Assault Squad can only do it on the charge) and Fearless ensures they don't run. Once they've got stuck in (or wiped out) counter-charge with whatever they're in front of and wipe out whatever it was they're up against.

*'''Sisters of Silence Vigilator Cadre''': Slightly improved Sisters, they all get an Execution Blade and Pistol. If you take them, then before the game starts you must mark a single Infantry unit or Character. They and all other Vigilators get Preferred Enemy on that one target. They can be used for the exact same way as Prosecutors, they're better at being bubble-wrap (due to being able to kill a few of whoever charges them) while being worse at going after objective holders (due to having worse guns and relatively low melee output). The neuro-lash is situational, if you know you're up against huge assault squads or the like then it can do you well. If you're blocking TEQ's then you need to get practically the entire squad in range to do the same damage your execution blade would normally do. If you're up against anything worse than MEQ's however, then it becomes a lot better, but if you expect the squad to die then it's still a good idea not to put that many points into them.

===Dedicated Transports===
*'''Legio Custodes Coronus Grav-Carrier''': A 13/12/11 4HP fast skimmer with BS5 acts as the Dedicated Transport for Custodes forces. It's equipped with a TL Arachnus Blaze-cannon AND TL Lastrum bolt cannon, a Machine Spirit, and a Flare Shield, while also having Grav-Backwash (-2 to hit in close combat unless immobilized), DS, and Outflank. It can also buy Extra Armor, Armoured Ceramite, and a Searchlight. It's not an assault transport - it's an infantry supporting unit depositing gunboat in ways that a Razorback can only dream of. That thing is also bigger than ''a Spartan'', so Deep Strike with caution.
*'''Sisters of Silence Kharon Pattern Acquistor''': The DT of the Sisters, it's not Custodes-tier hax but it's got lots of weapons and is an ASSAULT VEHICLE. It's only 12/11/10 with BS4. It has a ton of guns however, with missile launchers and the Helion-Pattern Heavy Cannon Array, a super TL-autocannon with S7 AP4 Heavy 4 with Pinning. It also has an Auspex to give Night-Fighting and reduces enemy cover while also having Stealth and the ability to make anyone shooting beyond 12" shoot at -1 BS. The last trick it has is the Capture-Grid, a tank-shock attack that grants d6 S5 HoW attacks before any Death of Glory is counted. Stick any type of sisters with execution blades in it, with a character, infiltrate the Kharon Acquisitor, charge in, and rip and tear.
**After the July 2018 Errata, Acquisitors cannot transport models with the Bulky, Very Bulky, etc. special rules, so you can longer use them as a taxi for your golden boys.

===Fast Attack===
*'''Legio Custodes Pallas Grav-Attack''': A light tank with 12/11/11, but it has a TL Arachnus Blaze Cannon to attack and a Flare Shield and the Grav-Backwash of the Coronus to defend it. It also gets a Machine Spirit, Outflank, and DS, making it best suited to attack from an unexpected angle rather than be an assault weapon.

*'''Sisters of Silence Pursuer Cadre''': They're Sisters...with pets. For each sister you buy, you also have to buy a Cyber-Jackal, a powerful beast that's actually slightly stronger and tougher than the sisters and equipped with Rage, FNP, a 5+ save and the option to shoot flamers or meltas at BS2 (pick the flamer), or Razortalon Wings, birds that get more attacks at higher Initiative, but can only fight in melee. The birds are a bit cheaper, but the dogs have more utility and punch. The sisters meanwhile benefit from Fleet and Move Through Cover as well as Fanatic Discipline, though the sergeant has a small list of pistols or Charnabal/Power Weapons to use if she's unhappy with the CCW/Bolt Pistol combo.

*'''Legio Custodes Agamatus Jetbike Squadron''': RIDE THE LIGHTNING ! Custodians on super golden banana jetbikes wielding FUCKHUEG knight-style power lances. It sounds so goddamn metal, it looks goddamn metal, it fights goddamn metal. The Gyrfalcon-pattern jetbike is a jetbike that boosts the rider's Toughness by 1, [[Awesome|making you as tough as a Primarch]] so you can laugh at S10-induced instant death and allows you to re-roll failed charge distances. Your glorious steed of gold and fury comes with cool-looking leather boots and gauntlets (we're not making this up), a Lastrum Bolt Cannon and benefit from the slew of Custodes rules in addition to Split Fire. If you're not happy with the bolt cannon, the whole squadron can be 'upgraded' with Adrathic Devastators (+15 points) or twin-linked Corvae Las-pulsers (+35 points) as well as getting melta-bombs.
**Move on Boltodes, those guys can do your job better. For just 10 points above the Sagittarum guard, you have a unit that can actually move 12", shoot three 36" S6 AP3 and deliver three S6 AP3 attacks on the charge, so anything without a 2+ or decent invulnerable save is fucked. If you must deal with something harder, Corvae las-pulsers can ruin the day of any vehicle, TEQ or MC but the price of your squadron is increasing quickly, so just take the Adrathic Devastators if you're not afraid of short range fights. Two S6 Armourbane shots are mathematically better than 1D3 S9 ones and you get Instant Death as a bonus for far cheaper, meaning [[Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Mechanicum: Taghmata (30k)|T5 or more characters, multi-wound units and Monstruous Creatures]] will shit in their pants too.
**Do note that the Agamatus are the only Custodes unit without Crusader (the July 2018 FAQ didn't change that), and are just jetbikes, not eldar jetbikes, so no free 2D6-not-thrust-moves, and it really sucks since you NEED to win the first round of close-combat after you charge if you don't want to be locked forever with your downgraded derp-lances. Don't be greedy and keep your precious heavy weapons away from tarpits.

*'''Legio Custodes Custodian Venetari Squad (Beta)''': [[Meme|"IT"S HIGH NOON"]] The Custodes version of Assault Marines with Moritat shooting skills. At long last, there are bananas on jump packs. These guys only get a 3+ armor save, though they also have a refractor, a 4++ in close combat, and a buckler that's a Power Axe with the power to reduce the AP of all attacks it suffers by 1 (Making it fuck over power swords and AP3 guns, but faltering against plasma and fists). That shield is backed up by the Archaeotech Kinetic Destroyer (12" MC pistol with S7 AP3 and gains another attack with each 6 to-hit. With a cap of six extra shots per model). Making them pretty good at tabling MEQs. If shield-and-gun isn't your style, then you can replace them with the Venetari Lance, which is part Custodes power-blade and part Archaeotech Kinetic Repeater (Kinetic Destroyer except Assault 2 and no extra hits). This finally gives you a mobile assault squad that can handle itself in melee and isn't as expensive as the bikes, but they're not the invincible fully-plated banana-men. These guys can also buy melta bombs to blow up tanks.

===Heavy Support===
*'''Sisters of Silence Seeker Cadre''': Sisters with Flamers. Competes with Excruciatus Cadre as your "must take" gold babes. (Calling them "Golden Girls" means you earned that live grenade under your bed.) Nothing more you need to know besides the ability to grab grenades and the basic Anathema, Fanatic Discipline, and Cadre rules. The squad can take Grenade Launchers with Frag, Krak, and Psyk-Out grenades. This is your answer to Magnus and his D. Use them as a Militia Grenadier Squad with anti Psyker options. They don't get Gas or Firebust like the other guys. However a ten member squad can put out a load of hurt with ten S6 AP4 attacks at 24" or as an effective blob killer.(i.e. Chaos Daemons, when they finally have 30K compatible rules) Not quite as good as the Caladius or the Telemon but they can threaten light vehicles such as Rhinos and out range squads with Volkite Chargers. Freeing up the heavy hitters to deal with MEQs and above. Silence Seeker Cadres are however a better choice over Sagittarum Guard Squads detailed below. Note that unlike Grenadiers they won't last as long in a shooting match. One would think the Golden Sisters would have better grenades than Cults and Militias. This oversight might be fixed when Talons get their own red book.
*'''Legio Custodes Sagittarum Guard Squad''': One of the few bad Custodes units, primarily thanks to them being overcosted. For 65 points per model, you got Custodes with Adrastus Bolt Calivers and refractors. Thanks to their Caliver, they're theoretically able to cover either front. There's not much more to describe on the equipment front, being able to grab Arae-Shrikes, meltabombs, and transponders as well as one guy grabbing the Vexilla. For sure they are as tough as any Custodes and can withstand more damage than almost any shooty unit in the entire HH setting, but are very difficult to use if you want them to earn their points back. They can be useful in low point games but you are better off taking the Dreadnoughts or Grav-Tank instead.
**Why do they suck? Here is the answer: You're either going to be a shorter-ranged heavy bolter, or you're putting yourself in assault range while [[FAIL|not being armed with a power weapon.]] As a comparison, a 8-man strong Astartes Support Squad costing the same price can deal almost thrice the amount of dakka (admittedly while losing the mobility the Sagittarum have). Even the Adrathic destructor, while being scary as hell with AP2, Amourbane and Instant Death has only '''one''' shot per shooting phase, so anything with a good invulnerable save and/or some meatshields will probably survive your volley of murder beams. And since the unit you are shooting at is within charge range and will wreck/tarpit your Boltodes in assault because [[Derp|you have only 2 attacks and not even a power weapon]], you need to be lucky. Concretely, that means you must target something you're almost sure to kill in one turn, so avoid characters with Eternal Warriors and Cataphractii squads. Deep-striking behind vehicles is the best way to use your golden boys, so plan to take melta bombs if you fail at blasting this angry Contemptor before it charges you.
**The most damning thing is that a squad of Custodians with Adrasite spears can do the same job (if all you want is the Instant Death/Armourbane) for the exact same cast and they come with actual power weapons that turn into AP2 at initiative on the charge.
*'''Contemptor-Galatus Dreadnought''': Another giant golden mecha for the Emperor's Firstborn. Compared to the Achilius, this one gets a fuckhuge warblade with AP2, Shred and Rampage, with a Twin-Linked Infernus Destructor built in to it. The Galatus also sports a Praesidium Shield, allowing it to re-roll invul saves taken from the front at range (and all in CC) and makes any hit rolls from any non-Gargantuans drop by 1. It also grabs Counter Attack, which lets it use that sword to its fullest. Put this in the front to take a few hits and let the other bananas smack whatever targets the big guy.
**Whilst this sexy beast occupies the sacred support slot for your Golden Bananas, and doesn't have any long-distance ranged weapons, this guy is an absolute BEAST in close combat. Even if we gloss over the Twin-linked S6 AP4 Flamer in it's sword (!), it's going to be doing some damage. On the charge, after a S8 Hammer of Wrath; you can expect 4 base attacks, +1 for charging or counterattack, and +d3 on the charge for for Rampage. '''That's between 5 and 8 attacks resolved at I5, at S10 AP2, rerolling failed to-wound rolls.''' The really nice thing is that in the event YOU are charged, you're still probably going to benefit from Wall of Death, Rampage, and (thanks to Counter Attack) +1 to your base. And if you don't sweep assault? They'll likely be hitting you on 5's in CC thanks to that shield of yours, which is also affording your AV13 a rerollable 5++. Again, it's competing with the Caladius, and the Achilius is arguably better overall, but don't discount this fella. Used correctly, he will put in some work, and is one of the few things that can take a charge of Primarch-train and hope to survive. This also makes a great but quite expensive one unit body guard for characters. The Galatus pairs well with an Achillus or Telemon to act as the defensive linebacker to their quarterback.
*'''Caladius Grav-Tank''': Take a [[Sicaran Battle Tank]], and stick it on a [[Land Speeder]]. Then give it to the most elite dudes in the Imperium and you have the Caladius. It's a fast skimmer (so you can Jink) with BS5, 13|13|11 3 HP and a flare shield, so keep it front toward your enemy and enjoy [[Awesome|your grav-Land Raider with a 4+ cover save]]. It comes with '''Outflank''', a '''Machine spirit''' (so you can Jink AND fire one of your weapons at full BS, pretty cool since the guns of your gilded podracer are nasty) and '''Grav Backwash''' (your enemy doesn't want to charge as much and suffers a -2 to Hit penalty in close combat as long as the Caladius is not Immobilised). The Caladius comes with two weapons : the turret-mounted '''Iliastus accelerator cannon''' and the hull-mounted '''Lastrum bolt cannon'''. The former is a twin-linked '''60" S7 AP2 Heavy 3''' gun with ''Rending'' and ''Rapid Tracking'' (no Jink for your enemy), while the latter is twin-linked '''36" S6 AP3 Heavy 3'''. Great, but here is the cherry on the top of the golden banana cake. Both weapons have a brand new fearsome rule : '''Heliothermic Detonation'''. If your target has suffered one or more unsaved wounds, they have must '''pass a Toughness test or suffer Instant Death''', and '''Penetrating hits adds +1 to the Vehicle Damage table'''. You get this package for just 195 points, or the same as an off the shelf Land Raider Proteus, a bargain for your golden banana warriors.
**Given some similarities with the Sicaran's accelerator autocannon, it is worth making some comparisons. Against metal bawkses, the Sicaran remains better for pure saturation and wiping out HP since it throws twice the amount of dakka the Caladius does, especially against Flyers, the Caladius' BS5 being useless in this case. HOWEVER, any Penetrating hit you may score with the Iliastus will have a 33% chance to blow your enemy up, something the autocannon can't even do. Anyway, the Sicaran looks like a jealous little bitch when coming to anti-infantry capabilities as the Caladius can tear apart MEQs and even TEQs or Monstruous Creatures better than most tanks. Well, for the same price the Sicaran can have 4 heavy bolters and will do a better job against 4+ saves and Cataphractii ([[Tyranids|by pure saturation power]]), but the golden floater remains more polyvalent overall. This Heliothermic Detonation shit means that Characters, multi-Wounds units and MC will sweat a little if they get wounded, [[Be'lakor|unless]] [[Nathaniel Garro|they]] [[Salamanders|are]] [[Sigismund|Eternal]] [[Primarchs|Warriors]].
**In book 7, we now have the option to replace the turret-mounted twin-linked Iliastus accelerator with a Twin-Linked Arachnus Heavy Blaze Cannon, for 15pts. Whilst you do lose out on AP2 and Rapid Tracking, you are gaining a Heavy 4 weapon with +1S and AP3. The real icing on this weapons cake, however, is the alternate firing mode. S10 AP1, with the Exoshock special rule from the Deredeo. With BS5 and TL, one would hope that round punches through some armour! Mathammer-wise, the concentrated mode is more efficient against Armour Value from 12 to 15, while the burst mode will wip out more HP than both the Iliastus and the concentrated blast until facing AV14 but remember you have no chance to get the Explosion! result on the chart. The Arachnus is better at tank-hunting and MEQ-killing, but if you expect a lot of skimmers, flyers, jetbikes or TEQs to show up, the Iliastus remains a more versatile (and cheaper) choice.
**All in all, the Caladius is maybe the most versatile tank in 30k for its price, both durable, fast, manoeuvrable and killy. With a main weapon firing from 48" up to 72", a 4+ cover save and a Frontal Armour of 14, it can stay away from your adversary's biggest guns while destroying light vehicles and infantry from afar and survive medium-range fire from the front when you cannot retreat. Just remember it has only a '''Rear Armour of 11''' so any deep-striking/outflanking unit with a bit of anti-armour stuff will wreck it.
*'''Telemon heavy Dreadnought''': The biggest, shiniest Dreadnought variant that ever existed and the Legio Custodes equivalent of the Leviathan. It comes with an Armour value of 13|13|12, 4HP, WS6, BS5, I5, 4 Attacks, exta armour, armoured ceramite and a 4+ invulnerable save increasing to 3+ against weapons with the Blast special rule or that use a template of any kind. Pretty good, but the giant golden Kinder has another surprise for you... The ''Unyielding Sentinel'' rule lets you roll 2 dice on the Vehicle Damage table after you suffered a Penetrating Hit, the highest being discarded. Now the time has come to punch things, the Telemon has some good tools for the job. Its basic weapons are a pair of '''Telemon Caestus''', Dreadnought close-combat weapons with ''Shred'' and ''Murderous Strike'', perfect for tearing Monstrous Creatures. Each Caestus comes with an in-built '''Proteus plasma projector''', an Assault 1 S5 AP2 Template weapon. It Gets Hot like other plasma weapons, but who cares ? AP2 flamers will make Terminators cry, especially if you're playing Zone Mortalis. You also get 1d6 Hammer of Wrath attacks instead of one when charging. If you don't want to dirty your shiny armour in close-combat, no problem, the Emprah has given you some nasty guns to do the job from afar. The '''Spiculus bolt launcher''' is a 48" S5 AP4 Heavy 5 weapon with ''Rending'' which can '''fire twice if you stay immobile during the Movement phase'''. The Telemon can also equip an '''Iliastus Accelerator Culverin'''. It is a nasty 36" S7 AP2 Heavy 5 Rending uber-autocannon, with the accustomed Heliothermic Detonation, which gives your enemies the chance of Instant Death <strike>on each unsaved wound</strike> if they suffer one or more wounds from your big gun. It's lacking the versatility of its other weapon options, but all in all, it's a great gun to fry some TEQ with and punch the occasional light vehicle. But the real star in the long-range combat department is the '''Arachnus storm cannon''', an [[Awesome|oversized laser gatling gun]] which can shoot with two profiles : 48" S7 AP 3 Heavy 7 or 72" S9 AP1 Heavy 2 with the ''Exo-Shock'' special rule. Not quite as good as the Arachnus heavy blaze cannon or the Iliastus Accelerator Culverin if you want to insta-kill MEQs or squads of T5 models, but slightly better against light vehicles, hordes and MC. You can replace one or both Caestus and Proteus projectors with this beauty for +30 points each.
**The Telemon is by far the most versatile ranged unit in the Talons of the Emperor army list. The Arachnus storm cannon makes him a threat against vehicles and infantry alike and the Spiculus launcher can add a lot of saturation fire, all this at 48" range, and the Iliastus Accelerator Culverin can ID the ubiquitous multi-wound TEQs you're likely to find in 30k. If you stay immobile, your Dreadnought can unleash [[Dakka|14 S7 AP3 and 10 S5 AP4 shots each turn]], making it a good counter-measure against the usual Nemesis of a Custodes army : hordes and flyers. It does not match the Leviathan anti-armour capabilities in close-combat, but can engage a wider variety of targets while staying away from the melee.
**Like the Achillus Dreadnought, nothing is specified about the bonus attacks for every CCW after the first walkers get being included in the profile, so you technically don't lose any attack when taking an Arachnus storm cannon.
**Take note that '''the Telemon is a Character''', so he can call and accept challenges, be your Warlord, etc.

===Lords of War===
*'''Warlord-Sinister Pattern Battle Psi-Titan''': '''<s>HO-LYYY</s> SWEEET FUCK. PSYCHIC WARLORD TITAN.''' [[Grimdark|Fueled by the powers of captured psykers, who are bled dry to power the Titan]], it's a good thing this monster is worth 3250 points. Starting off with the standard kit of a [[Warlord Battle Titan]], the Warlord-Sinister adds the Psychic Pilot rule (Mastery Level 3), knowing three set powers: a 24" d6 bolter-shot nova with Soul Blaze and Ignores Cover, a blessing which [[Cheese|restores any lost hull point on a 5+]], and a witchfire which hits all units within 24" of a point with a Haywire hit (for vehicles-EVEN FLYERS) or d6 Heavy Bolter shots (PER 5 MODELS) if it's infantry. The Psi-Titan makes all enemy units within 12" take leadership checks automatically, and any unit that wishes to charge the monstrosity (why you would do that is beyond us) must take a leadership check at -3 Ld. Its weapons are standard fare for the Warlord, except that you always carry the '''Sinistramanus Tenebrae''' , aka the gun that will ruin your day, on one arm. Fluff-wise it's an up-scaled Animus Speculum, crunch-wise it's an apocalyptic mega-blast that's Strength D/Fleshbane/Poison 4+, and AP 1/2/3 for its respective ranges. Oh, and that inner circle? Yeah, it's a Vortex, just in case anything in the blast radius thought it would survive that shot. And if you finally manage to put the Titan(ic amount of [[Grimdark]]) down, it will explode on you, which on a 4+ becomes a '''[[Rape|36 INCH DESTROYER BLAST]]'''. Honestly, even if the Emperor's rules get released, this bastard will probably be the more OP Lord of War choice.

*'''Orion Assault Dropship''': A 7 hull point, 13-12-11, 600ish point super-heavy flyer and a Lord of War for Talons of the Emperor. It's also a transport with a capacity of 24 models. (Yes, Custodians do count as two.) This golden nugget is capable of transporting a Dreadnought, (which counts as 10 models.) Along with being a super-heavy flyer, and transport, the Orion is armed with two Arachnus Heavy Blaze cannons, Two nose mounted tl Lastrum Bolt Cannons, two Spiculus Heavy Bolt Launchers (48", 7, 4, H3, Rending,) armored ceramite and cockpit as standard and the new Eclipse Shield and Macro Arae-Shrike. The Eclipse Shield provides the Orion with a -2 to blast and template weapon strength, and a -1 to all other weapon strength. If a shooting weapon inflicts a glancing or penetrating hit, the Orion immediately gains Shrouded against all subsequent hits against its front Arc during this phase. However, this has no effect on melee attacks or weapons of the Destroyer type (not a big deal as long as you're not Hovering since most of D weapons are usually blasts). Macro Arae-shrikes on the other hand, act as normal Arae-shrikes, with the addition of ''interception interference.'' When enemy units declare their interception, the intercepting player must roll a D6 for each unit attempting to intercept. If a unit rolls 3 or less, it's unable to intercept but may fire as normal in its next shooting phase. Furthermore, because He and the terrawatt clan love us so, the Orion has the Deep Strike and Assault Vehicle special rule.
**As long as you keep the enemy in front of it, the Orion is arguably more resistant (and cheaper) than a similarly geared Thunderhawk. Its firepower may seem somewhat limited for what you're paying and it clearly won't earn its points back by killing TEQ or hordes. Two S10 AP1 exo-shock shots and 3 rending autocannons are still quite good for tank-hunting and make the Orion a monster against other flyers, but you could have more big guns for the same price. Unless you really need a very reliable transport or flyer-killer, there are other units that can do the job better.

*<s>God-</s>[[Emperor of Mankind]]: '''COMING SOON!''' No actual rules yet, but a note in the Legio Custodes Tribune rules suggests he will be a future potential HQ/LoW choice for the army, similar to the Primarchs and their legions.
**Note by coming soon we mean presumably sometime in your lifetime, and by the current HH release schedule, we won't be getting rules until sometime after 2020.

[[Category: Adeptus Custodes]]
[[Category:Warhammer Tactics/30k]]

Sanguinius

2019-01-29T17:08:33Z

2601:147:4300:1949:E9AF:C429:E6F0:9AE3: /* Legacy */

[[File:Sanguinius by noldofinve-d4xpxx5-5157.jpg|thumbnail|right|400px|Look, if I HAD to bang a dude... just sayin'.]]
{{Topquote|A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.|Joseph Campbell}}
{{Topquote|Was there ever another Guardian so beloved by the people?|Paean, of Saint 14, Destiny}}
{{Topquote|My good blade carves the casques of men, My tough lance thrusteth sure, My strength is as the strength of ten, Because my heart is pure.|Sir Galahad, Tennyson}}

'''Sanguinius''' (also known as '''Papa Sang''', '''Fabulous Fucking Hawk-Boy''', '''Definitely Not Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant''' and '''Primarch Fabulous''') was (and that 'was' is quite significant) the [[Primarch]] of the [[Blood Angels]] [[Space Marine]] [[Chapter]]. He was notable for the fuckhueg angel-like wings that mutated out of his back during his childhood on his home planet, [[Baal]], as well as his heroic deeds during the [[Great Crusade]]. Unfortunately, Sanguinius was slain by [[Horus]] during his eponymous [[Horus Heresy|Heresy]], though it is widely believed that it was Sanguinius' weakening of the Arch-Traitor which made it possible for the [[Emperor]] to shut Horus's big, stupid, [[heresy]]-spewing mouth once and for all, and thus save mankind from the clutches of [[Chaos]].

[[FAIL|and for some reason the Black Library likes drawing him with silly hair rolls]]

==Origins==
Like the rest of the Primarchs, Sanguinius was bio-engineered on [[Terra]] to serve as a general in the [[Emperor]]'s armies, and was stolen in his infancy and carried away across the galaxy by daemonic agents of [[Chaos]] in an attempt to foil the Emperor's efforts to unite humanity. Landing on [[Baal]], he was found by the Folk of the Blood, a local tribe who raised him to manhood. They were going to kill him for being a mutant, but when it became clear that Sanguinius was a badass warrior-prodigy the likes of which they'd never seen, they decided he was worth keeping. After all, Sanguinius was actually a pretty nice guy for [[Warhammer 40,000|40k]], and he was pretty handy at fighting off those other mutants that kept attacking them from Baal's radioactive deserts, which he could walk through without any protection. As such, Sanguinius quickly ascended as a leader among the tribes of Baal and drove back the hordes of mutants threatening their hold on the world, eventually attaining a near god-like status among the planet's denizens.

After the Emperor found Baal and bade Sanguinius to assume his rightful place among his armies, Sanguinius wept a single tear of joy because he's manly enough to be in touch with his feelings, and bowed before the Emperor. (Of the [[canon|canonical]] Space Marines, his chapter is to this day one of the most batshit-loyal to the Emperor himself.) The greatest of Sanguinius' tribal warriors were extended the honor of joining the [[Space Marines|Adeptus Astartes]], and were thereafter implanted with the gene-seed drawn from Sanguinius' genome. These men became the first members of the ninth Space Marine legion to be founded, and the [[Blood Angels]] were born.

==The Great Crusade==
[[File:7d9a85e6e4a368bb435e943fc891a25b.jpg|thumbnail|right|250px|Sanguinius (left) and Horus whooping some ass together before [[Erebus|SOMEBODY]] had to go and damn the Imperium to an eternity of [[Grimdark|war, cultural stagnation, paranoia and self destructive behaviour]].]]
Joining the [[Great Crusade]], Sanguinius became best buds with fellow Primarchs [[Horus]], [[Roboute Guilliman]], [[Magnus the Red]], [[Jaghatai Khan]] and [[Rogal Dorn]]. Ironically (and later, tragically), his friendship with Horus is said to have been closer than that of any of the other Primarchs. Which, this being Warhammer, went straight to hell when the [[Horus Heresy]] started. He was easily the most [[Pretty Marines|fabulous]] of all the Emperor's generals (SUCK IT [[Fulgrim|FULGRIM]]); he wore a glowing, ornate set of golden artificer armor adorned with huge rubies which represented Terra, Baal, and Baal's moons, and his magnificent white wings would spread behind him as he took to the skies of the battlefield. At the same time, he gave the impression that he'd be happy to cast off his finery, whereas Fulgrim would rather die. Basically, in Sanguinius' case, [[Games Workshop|Geedubs]] abandoned all pretense of being subtle about the whole "the Emperor is God, the primarchs are the archangels, and Horus is Lucifer" thing—like, to the point that Sanguinius became known simply as "The Angel" among the armies of mankind.

He did some pretty cool shit during the Crusade too, at one point taking on an entire blood-mad Eldar Craftworld with a third of his Legion. Admittedly it was a struggle - the Craftworld fielded Wraiths in large numbers - and had to deploy the Ordo Sinister psy-Titans after massive Eldar Wraith machines destroyed his Legio Fureans allies, but still, Sanguinius managed to tear the head off one of the walkers. Not a sparkly, feathery man to fuck with.

Though not first in favor among the Emprah's Primarchs (that position belonged to Horus, pre-heresy), [[Magnus the Red|or the biggest psychic powerhouse]], [[Roboute Guilliman|or the best at empire-building]], [[Lorgar|or even the one who looked most like Dad]], Sanguinius was said to have the best ''blend'' of the Big E's attributes (which, considering the fact that space marines are a toned-down version of their primarchs, may imply the Blood Angels are the most similar to the Emperor). While a lot of the Space Marine legions and their generals fought in the Great Crusade just for the sake of glory and a good battle, Sanguinius and his Blood Angels fought for what the Emperor himself did: [[Noblebright|a better galaxy, a peaceful galaxy, one where humanity would be united, happy, and prosperous]]. During the Crusade, the Blood Angels formed a friendly rivalry with the [[World Eaters]] legion (yet another relationship the Horus Heresy would royally buttfuck), because both were noted for being assault-oriented shock troops; however, while the World Eaters were straight-up lunatics in combat, the Blood Angels' ferocity was mitigated when it needed to be by Sanguinius' wisdom.

Also, everyone loved the guy. Even at the depths of his heresy, even ''Horus'' wished Sanguinius was one of his generals. [[meme|And he was a good guy who isn't afraid of anything]].

===Signus Prime and Ka'Bandha===
[[Image:Signusianclash.jpg|thumb|left|400px|''"[[Awesome|If you truly do hail from the realm that men once called hell, when you return there, tell your kindred it was Sanguinius who threw you back.]]"'' —Sanguinius, taking a small moment to deliver this line after decapitating a [[Keeper of Secrets]] and [[rip and tear|"relieving"]] [[Khorne]]'s mightiest servant of his wings, and just generally setting the stage for Ka'Bandha's future [[butthurt]].]]

At one point during the Great Crusade, Sanguinius and the Blood Angels were tasked by Warmaster Horus with reclaiming the Signus Cluster from a supposed [[xenos]] infestation and liberating the humans there from their oppressors. However, when they arrived, they found that the entire system had been consumed by the evil influence of the [[Chaos Gods]], and specifically a [[Keeper of Secrets]] calling itself Kyriss [[/d/|the Perverse]]. This was actually a trap set by Horus in an attempt to eliminate Sanguinius early on, because he feared him more than any of his other fellow Primarchs as he was nearly his equal in both combat and commanding. Also this was after Horus's corruption and Sanguinius was not aware of the Isstvan conflicts at the time. Long story short, the Blood Angels were stranded in-system, caught off guard, and lost a lot of Marines, ships, and crew, but eventually regrouped and conquered the armies of cultists and Chaos [[daemons]] in the Signus system. Kyriss even manifested on the bridge of the Red Tear, the Blood Angels flagship, from the frames of [[Khorne|eight]] servitors, to taunt Sanguinius. This was also Horus's first true defeat, as there was no benefit gained from the campaign.

But a greater threat soon emerged: Ka'bandha, a powerful [[Bloodthirster]] and one of [[Khorne]]'s greatest servants. He attacked the Blood Angels while taunting Sanguinius in the middle of the battle and claimed that Horus had betrayed him. Refusing to believe this, Sanguinius attacked in [[rage]], and managed to stab his sword right into the daemon's chest and wound him severely. Ka'bandha roared in pain and lashed out with his whip, ensnaring Sanguinius' legs and crushing them. Then, leaving Sanguinius alive for [[Plot armor|some]] [[rage|reason]], Ka'Bandha charged off to slay a few hundred Blood Angels. The Red Thirst, already a problem for the Blood Angels, was exacerbated by the psychic shockwaves of each of his sons dying, and Sanguinius vowed that he would take vengeance on Ka'bandha for this atrocity. In the Chaos temple at the centre of the battle, Sanguinius duelled Ka'Bandha again, ripping off a wing and then throwing him off a platform and back through a portal into the realm of Chaos. To top it off, Sanguinius then faced Kyriss and beheaded that sick fuck, promptly ending his rule and Chaos' hold on the system.

===During the later Horus Heresy===
{{topquote|Blade with whom I have lived, blade with whom I now die, serve right and justice one last time, seek one last heart of evil, still one last life of pain. Cut well, old friend, and then farewell.|Sir Orin Neville Smythe}}

After Signus Prime, the majority of the Blood Angels found themselves on the wrong side of the Ruinstorm. Drawn to Macragge by the Pharos, Sanguinius learned that his brothers Guilliman and the Lion were trying to set the beginnings of a second Imperium. Sanguinius reluctantly accepted the premise, and was instated as the Emperor of the Imperium Secundus. Being Emperor didn't sit easily with him, and much of the day-to-day ruling was done by Guilliman and the Lion. After Curze paid him a nasty visit / scrying competition, the Angel demanded more oversight into the affairs of the new Empire. When Curze was finally captured, all three members of the Imperial Triumvirate realised that Terra had not yet fallen, but that Sanguinius would be doomed to die by Horus's hand.

With the help of the [[Dark Angels]] and the [[Ultramarines]], the Blood Angels were able to make it back to [[Terra]] in the closing days of the Horus Heresy to defend it from the traitor legions and their daemonic allies. Sanguinius and his legion led the defense of the Imperial Palace itself when the forces of Chaos closed in around it, and the Primarch slew innumerable daemons, traitors and other assorted scum in the process. Fortunately for Sanguinius, Ka'Bandha also turned up during the battle, and the two went at it again rather majestically atop the Eternity Gate to the Emperor's throne room. Not to be beaten again, Sanguinius managed to [[Awesome|SNAP KA'BANDHA'S SPINE OVER HIS MOTHERFUCKING KNEE]] and hurled the bastard's corpse back into the throng of Chaos filth below, and the Blood Angels who had died by the Bloodthirster's hand were thus avenged in the most spectacularly badass of ways.
[[File:Horus vs The Emperor.jpg|thumbnail|right|300px|Unfortunately, this is the image most people know Sanguinius from. (He's the fabulous dead guy lying on the floor.) This also is the least fabulous image of him.]]
But this is Warhammer 40,000, and [[noblebright]] doesn't last very long against [[grimdark]], even when it's badass noblebright. Eventually, the Big E himself, along with Sanguinius, [[Rogal Dorn]], Rogal Dorn's mustache, and a contingent of their respective Marines, launched a last-ditch assault against Horus, teleporting aboard his [[Battle Barge|battle barge]] and taking the fight to the Warmaster himself. As fighting broke out across the capital ship, Sanguinius got sequestered from the rest of the assault party, and when he found Horus, he was alone. Horus, perhaps out of some small, lingering sense of brotherhood with Sanguinius, offered his former friend, for the final time, a chance to turn to Chaos. But Sanguinius said '''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEhDjz0WAZs"NEVAH!"]''' and the two Primarchs proceeded to battle for the fate of mankind. Though Sanguinius was one of the most powerful of the Primarchs, he was wounded and wearied from the fight on Terra and already at a disadvantage, and Horus had been granted terrible power by the gods of Chaos to boot. Horus therefore slew Sanguinius so hard that it psychically traumatized the Blood Angels for ages to come, and the [[Black Rage]] became the ([[Mephiston|almost]]) inescapable mental scourge it is on the chapter today.

The Angel had in truth already foreseen his death at the hands of Horus, and knew what it would mean for his sons. However, he accepted that his sacrifice was necessary to preserve his father's works in the long run and took solace in the fact that the Blood Angels would continue to follow in his footsteps even as they grappled with the Black Rage. Moreover, via the temptations of chaos he endured with his brothers in the Ruinstorm--he found that the false hope he had been given, namely that he ''could'' survive the end of the Horus Heresy and even triumph, but learned it would come with a terrible cost. He would gain power from Chaos and slay Horus and save his sons from the curse to come--as a [[Wat|Greater Daemon of Chaos Undivided]] made mention that Horus had become an imperfect vessel and that papa-Sang was to take his place as the Angel of Ruin. So in a nutshell it's The Last Temptation of Sanguinius, but with less Willem Defoe. Naturally space vampire Jesus didn't take the daemon up on the offer and fought his way through a daemon throng until he pinned the daemon halfway through the materium and the warp. In his mind a last defiant act, choosing to neither be slain by Horus or choose chaos, but to die holding the daemon in between the rift to the warp so his Brother-Primarchs could Orbitally Bombard Davin into dust. Unfortunately through vision he realized that the Black Rage would be inevitable, as the proto-rage had filled him by that point, its origins being explained as the violent hatred and rage at the Betrayal of Horus against him and the Emprah, and the sheer pain of his death, existing in the past and future as it resonated through time--and the grief of the death he hadn't experienced yet. [[Doctor Who|Timey Wimey bullshit shenanigans]] aside, if the Jesus metaphors weren't strong enough Sanguinius' [[Sanguinor|Herald]] stepped up to the plate and planted his sword in the Daemon's spine and held it there so Sanguinius wouldn't have to die there. And with that last act the flickers of hope that had died in Sanguinius rekindled and witnessed the miracle of a new Angel coming into being. The Herald was empowered by the warp, glowing a radiant gold with the outline of wings springing from his shoulders as he became in the Primarch's own words the "Son of my hope". Explaining the origins of one of the Blood Angel's specialest of snowflakes, making him a Draigo/Celestine-esque Daemon Prince of Sanguinius. That sound you're hearing is the noise of every Puritan Inquisitor's blood-vessels bursting in their eyes.

On a positive, because of the Triumvirate of Primarch's success on Davin the [[Warp Storm|Ruinstorm]] abated revealing a straight shot to Terra, on a negative, Horus had left a massive fleet to protect the way there [[Just As Planned|(how he knew that THAT place would be the way that opened for them is a bit of a mystery)]] and all tactical scenarios concluded that if they tried to engage them simultaneously they would only be mired down so that none of them could reach Terra. So the Primarchs decided to split up, taking a page out of the Codex of Brother Vincentius Lombardius, they would split the defense and rush the goal: Guilliman using the sheer bulk of his larger fleet to engage the traitors while the Lion fell back and attacked the traitor Legion's homeworlds, burning them with extreme prejudice, while the Blood Angels hung back long enough for Guilliman to break the bulk of the armada and the Lion to draw away and contend with the forces that splintered away as he burnt their homes, giving us a nice tidy bow of exactly where the hell the other primarchs were when shit happened. As Sanguinius corroborated his visions with Curze, he felt that he had come across a revelation - hence the need for his Legion to be the ones to reach Terra. He may have been fated to perish at the hands of Horus, but even if destiny was set, the consequence could be altered. He would fight and die, but his sacrifice would allow the Imperium to persist. He let Curze in on this, letting him in on the razor-thin hope of the future's mutability; he said he could take the Night Haunter to the Emperor, and that the Big-E could do something Konrad had never thought of exploring: he could forgive him. Just as a spark of hope entered his eyes, Sanguinius promised that he wouldn't allow that for Curze, that he would freeze Curze in stasis and jettison the pod, preserving him for millennia if necessary, and that Konrad Curze had no fucking chance of outrunning or changing his future death, [[Awesome|terrifying 40k batman so hard he'd probably be locked in an eternity of despair as he's frozen in stasis.]]

Good is not nice, indeed.

==After Death==
[[Iskandar Khayon]] revealed an interesting fact about the [[Vengeful Spirit]], after letting himself be captured. Apparently, those who died aboard it during the [[Siege of Terra]] had echoes of themselves bound to the ship, manifesting as crystal statues that let you experience a part of their death if you touched them.

==Legacy==
[[File:Sanguinius7sp.jpg|thumbnail|right|400px|His model form descends from the heavens like thunder, or perhaps like the Archangel Michael. The Spear of Telesto is absent for some reason. Might have to wait for Malevolence to know why.]]
Although Sanguinius lost to Horus, it is widely believed that the Emperor would not have been able to destroy Horus afterwards were it not for the chink that Sanguinius put in Horus' armour. And it is also widely agreed that if Horus hadn't come to save his legion's ass that day on Terra, it would have been ground out of existence by Sanguinius and the Blood Angels. Lastly, it is also agreed that Sanguinius was tired after several days of fighting (he defied fucking ''Daemon primarch'' [[Angron]] on the battlements!), is already bleeding and wounded (as shown by Ruinstorm) and if he had been totally refreshed, Horus would have had a lot more than just a chink in his armour. However, in the Horus Heresy Collected Visions, it details the battle between the Emperor and Horus, and makes it clear that the main reason Big E didn't kill him immediately is because he thought he might be able to save him…a hope which was dashed as soon as he saw Sanguinius' body. However, in Visions of Heresy, Big E still held back, even after seeing Sanguinius' body. It wasn't until the Emperor was mortally wounded on the floor that this changed. It says that as he's lying, waiting for the final blow, [[Ollanius Pius|a certain adamantium-balled Imperial Guardsman]] (exemplifying everything it means to be one) appears and rushes toward him, Horus contemptuously kills the Guardsman without barely an effort, laughing maniacally as he did so. It was this utter contempt for taking a life which FINALLY made the Emperor realise there was no saving his son.

In short, if Horus is Lucifer and The Emprah is God, then Sanguinius is Jesus. Sanguinius died for your sins…just like Optimus Prime does on a daily basis.

Sanguinius also bears the distinction of being one of the few Primarchs (alongside Horus, [[Ferrus Manus]], [[Leman Russ]], and [[Roboute Guilliman]]) who were capable of lasting a little more than 3 seconds against [[Angron]], who had Sanguinius's strength, but was much quicker to go all-out. It should also be noted that, unlike his brothers, who each embodied one of the Emperor's traits ([[Roboute Guilliman]] was his strategy, [[Angron]] was his ferocity, etc.), Sanguinius was the embodiment of the Emperor as a whole. So, you could argue that the Blood Angels are the Astartes closest to the Emperor (suck it, ultrasmurfs).

In the 41st millennium, Sanguinius is the Primarch most beloved by the [[Imperium]] for his [[Dreadnought|heroic sacrifice]] (despite what [[Matt Ward|he who shall not be named]] would say about [[Roboute Guilliman|our Spiritual Liege]]), and is a hero of the Imperial Cult. Across the Imperium a celebration called the Sanguinala is held in his honor, where adepts wear the iconography of the Blood Angels. A festival dedicated to [[Leman Russ]] would have been a better party, but would also have involved more property damage and alcohol-related deaths. Also, apparently, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBVxcGxRv_I Reclusiarch Grimaldus is not a huge fan of it].

The mysterious entity known as the [[Sanguinor]] is believed to be the incarnation of Sanguinius' better nature, or the first [[Sanguinary Guard]] Herald Azkaellon, miraculously preserved through time. Its actual origin, though, is far more mundane: when Sanguinius was named Emperor of [[Roboute Guilliman|Guilliman']]s [[Imperium Secundus]], he and Azkaellon invented the figure who could act as Sanguinius' public face and deal with petitioners, whilst Sanguinius himself could be elsewhere, you know...[[Get shit done|dealing with stuff]]. In modern 40k, outside of perhaps the Sanguinary Guard themselves, the only "living" person ''confirmed'' to know the truth is [[Lion El'Jonson|the Lion]], but he's in no position to tell anyone. But since nobody else in the 41st millennium is entirely certain of the truth, it's getting the [[Inquisition]]'s panties in a bunch. A good thing, too, since Sanguinius' original position of proxy-Emperor was a teensie bit [[Heresy|heretical]]. But whether or not the modern and original Sanguinor are the same person, something warpy had to happen since then, since the Sanguinor pops in and out of the immaterium, [[Legion of the Damned]] style.

It is a well-known fact that every female (human, xenos, and daemonette) in the the whole grimdark galaxy wants Sanguinius sexually, as well as most males, including <s>[[Khorne]]</s> '''{{Blam|WHO THE FUCK SAID THAT?!}}''' and [[Slaanesh]]. Many [[Sisters of Battle|Sororitas]] (and some [[Space Marines|Astartes]]) cry themselves to sleep at the knowledge that they won't ever be able to hold his beautiful golden mane as he slays their quivering love pudding with his mighty, throbbing, enormous power sword.

<s> A recent flub on Twitch TV has revealed that Sanguinius may actually not be dead after all, but rather in Stasis... God damn it GW!!</s> Actually they meant to say his model would be released for Horus Heresy along with the rest of the Primarchs who still don't have models.

Take note, this article contains a considerably smaller amount of the usual humor found on this wiki. That's just how revered Sanguinius is. People don't like joking about him.

As is the nature of the shifting turbulent cluster-fuckery that is Warhammer 40k lore, in a strange turn of events, Primarch Sanguinius is also the only <strike>Primarch</strike> <strike>Human</strike> ''being?'' that has garnered the respect of Szarekh, the Silent King of the [[Necrons]]. That's right, the King of ''a 60-million-year-old race of space zombie-robot Egyptians that hates all life and views all other civilizations as inferior beings to be completely wiped out and almost harvested the entire galaxy'' [[awesome|seems to regard Sanguinius with a degree of deference]].

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Heretic.png|Sanguinius gets the bitches. All of 'em. Every last one.
File:Sanginuscool.jpg|Is it time for Sanguinius to choke some bitches again? '''Hell yes baby'''. *Cue the complete, utter and total curbstomping of the mighty armies of Chaos.*
File:Astartesjealousy.jpg| Sanguinius: The most bishie of bishies.
File:Sanguinius by koowanchee-d484eu4.jpg|Don't you wish your Primarch was hot like me?
File:Fear to tread.jpg|Sanguinius, only slightly less fabulous than usual.
File:Sanguinius1.jpg|He's fabulous. [[Fulgrim]] wishes he could be that fabulous.
</gallery>

{{Primarchs}}

[[Category:Imperial]]
[[Category:Blood Angels]]