Its been a hot minute since we reviewed a Legion, and as they are my current Legion of focus, it makes sense to look at the 9th. As per the last few, I’ll be looking through the standard Legion rules, equipment, units and characters, as well as any extended or Legacy units found in the variety of pdfs about. Also as usual, this is not from a position of grand authority, but from a narrative/semi-competant at the game perspective.

Legion Trait

The Blood Angel’s trait is one of the stronger ones across the legions, granting all Legiones Astartes (Blood Angels) the ability to wound on one better than they normally would (to a maximum of 2+ to wound), on any turn in which they make a successful charge or disordered charge. So tacticals on the charge against an equivalent squad will wound on 3s rather than 4s, etc. This obviously has some great benefits for the whole army, promoting an aggressive playstyle where your squads will have an advantage over an enemy equivalent (so long as they charge). It also can make Blood Angels quite the worry to high toughness units such as Dreadnoughts, Ogryns, or Mechanicus, as their combat squads are likely to be wounding on 4s or even 3s, rather than 5s and 6s.

However, do remember this is only on a successful charge. So, you want to be the one making the plays, not receiving them. And it does not impact the strength of the weapon (like the sons of Horus rule), so will not affect things such as Instant Death thresholds. Its still strong though, especially when combined with some of their equipment.

The trait also grants all vehicles +1 strength for any ramming attacks. Not the worst trait, just very situational.

Advanced Reaction

This is quite the tasty little number. When an enemy unit chooses to shoot at a Blood Angels unit, you may declare this reaction. The receiving unit gains Shrouded (5+) against the entire shooting attack. Once this has been resolved, the Blood Angels unit then has to charge the enemy shooting unit. The unit that shot may not react in any way, and the charge is resolved immediately, locking the units in combat. The combat is then resolved in the assault phase, with the Blood Angels unit gaining all relevant charge bonuses, Hammer of Wrath strikes etc.

This is a really handy trait, especially on an army that prefers aggressive play, and deepstriking, allowing you to charge in an opponents turn, and lock a key unit away from receiving too much enemy shooting. Obviously, there are caveats to bear in mind; the enemy will need to be within 12”, you cannot gain bonuses for jump packs to this charge (because wording), and you won’t be able to use things like psychic powers to benefit your combat. So, you need to be sure you’ll make it/succeed in the combat before you declare this reaction. However, saying that, if you’re already deepstriking in a few inches away from the enemy then this gives you the opportunity to destroy a unit in their own turn, slingshotting your combat unit further up the board as you do so!

Warlord Traits

As with all Legions, the Blood Angels have three warlord traits.

• Encarmine Paladin (Loyalist Only) – The warlord starts with Fear (1) when opposing Traitor aligned enemy forces. The warlord gains an additional +1 to this for every combat with a Traitor unit that the Warlord and their unit wins, to a maximum of Fear (4). This is a warlord trait that can really helpfully snowball, especially as the Warlord’s unit loses bodies over the course of the game, giving the unit a fighting chance against larger opponents. However, the flipside is that it is useless against certain foes and enemy units, so it pays to be selective in your assaults. The bonus reaction is in the assault phase too, which is handy on a force that really doesn’t want to be receiving too many charges.
• Paragon of Unit (Loyalty Agnostic) – A straightforward trait, all Blood Angel units that can draw Line of Sight to the warlord gain +1 Leadership (to a maximum of 10). Again a useful warlord trait on an assault focussed army, and very handy for combatting certain enemy combos – such as Terror Assault. The bonus reaction is also in the assault phase for this one too.
• Thrall of the Red Thirst (Traitor Only) – Do you want your Blood Angel to play more like a World Eater? Then this is the trait for you. You become obliged to charge any unit within 12” of the Warlord at the start of the assault phase, however gain +2 attacks from charging, even on a disordered charge. The bonus reaction is also in the movement phase here, so a savvy commander could easily use the movement reaction to surge towards an enemy, then the legion specific reaction to charge in the enemy’s shooting phase, with than +2 attacks. On a big combat unit, this will most definitely blend.

Equipment

With no specialist consul for the Blood Angels, we can go straight into equipment, of which they have a few!

• Perdition Weapons. These are upgraded power weapons (axe, sword, spear, maul), that are a +5pt upgrade for any character on top of the normal cost of a power weapon. In all cases the weapon becomes Two-handed, and gains +1 Strength (except the spear…bizarrely) and Brutal (2) to its existing statline. They also count as Flame weapons. Honestly these are pretty good, especially on high weapon skill units that you don’t mind losing out the extra attack on. With the extra strength, combined with the legion trait, it means you’ll rarely not be wounding on 2s on the charge. The Maul of Perdition making you Strength 7 AP3 is quite terrifying too, especially on a destroyer with Rad Grenades. The downside of taking these on Sergeants though is that loss of the extra attack, meaning if you’re receiving the charge you really have to put your faith in the dice.
• Inferno Pistol. It’s an 6” meltagun that you swap our a plasma pistol for. What’s not to love? The melta range is only 3”, so you’re going to be real close when you decide to pop those tanks… unless they’re Alpha Legion, then you can almost never actually be in melta range unless you’re only 1” away. But upside if you can absolutely equip a moritat with two, and its hilarious.
• Illiastus Assault Cannon. A S6 AP4 4shot assault weapon with Rending 6+ and the risk of jamming if you roll three 1’s to hit on a reaction. At +10pts for any infantry unit that could previously equip a heavy flamer, +20pts for any vehicle, and a free swap-out option for predator turrets, its really easy to get loads of these in your army list should you feel like it. And whilst one of two may not make too much of a dent, the law of averages starts to stack in your favour once you’ve got 5+ of these turning on a power armoured target. They’ll also make horrifically bloody chunks of auxilia or militia! Just beware that the 24” range means your shooty units are going to be in stabbing range really quickly.

Rites

Currently the Blood Angel’s have two Rites of War, both adapted from 1st Edition.

The Day of Revelation

This is unsurprisingly seen as the Blood Angel’s Rite of War. Anything that can Deepstrike, must do so, as does as part of a single fixed turn Deepstrike Assault on a fixed marker of your choosing. You place this marker at the start of the game, and decide what turn your forces will arrive on, meaning your opponent knows a rough where and when before the game begins (no surprise arrivals this time). However, you are not obliged to drop all your units in range of the marker after the first one, and any unit that does deploy with a model with 6” of the marker does not scatter. As an extra, all units that deploy at table at the start of the game, rather than in Deepstrike Assault gain fearless until the start of Game Turn 2.

Limitations of the Rite are few: No fortifications unless it can also Deepstrike (not a big loss), all Compulsory HQs must equip jump packs (again, not a big loss), and you may not use Subterranean Assault (but Outflank is totally fine).

Honestly, it’s a strong Rite, and that cannot be denied. Mass deepstriking units that you don’t have to roll for arrival is incredibly useful, and the first unit not scattering even moreso! You can be assured that the units you need are going to be where you want them to be, and as most of the Blood Angel’s specialist units have jump packs, that’s a lot of punch you can bring down and immediately get stuck into assault. Saying that though, you should bear in a mind a few caveats:

• You can still be disordered after the first unit, so be careful of enemy Master of Signals.
• It can be very easy for an opponent to swarm your 6” marker zone, so be ready for scatters and mishaps.
• You can still lose T1 if your opponent tables you. So be mindful of your starting units and their ability to stay in the game. It’s a strong Rite. But you can absolutely screw it up if you’re not careful.

The Day of Sorrow

This Rite was overlooked, and a little funky, in 1st Edition, and honestly its not changed much in this one either. If you choose this Rite, then you no longer can Deepstrike, Outflank, Subterranean Assault or put any units in reserves at the start of the game. You must also accept and issue all challenges, and any unit that falls below 50% of its starting model count must attempt to charge the nearest unit within 12” at the start of their assault phase if they can do so. However, the whole army gains Stubborn when in 6” of an objective, Crimson Paladins become non-compulsory troops choices, and gain Line, and any unit that falls below 50% of its starting model count gains Hatred (Everything), Line and Heart of the Legion.

So, it’s a mixed bag.

Do I think this is a good Rite of War? Not really no. The restrictions on your reserves are really characterful and make you think about how to approach the game. The challenges aren’t much of a hindrance, as you’re Blood Angels, and combat is just your part and parcel. The impact on units sub-50% however is awkward. On one hand, gaining Heart of the Legion is handy, making low strength units more survivable, and line means you’re going to be really rewarded for trying to get these units onto the objectives, especially in the late-game as previously non-scoring units can now score. However, the forced charges do mean your scoring is going to be heavily reliant on how the game is scoring. I.e. Scoring at the start of your turn is not so bad, you’re likely to be on the objectives, but scoring at the end of your turn means a clever opponent can and will just bait your units straight off any key points. The Stubborn is nice, but not as useful as you’d like to think when a lot of GW’s missions are not heavily objective based, same with the Heart of the Legion really. Indeed, in killpoint focussed games, this Rite actively becomes a hindrance. And unlike in 1st Edition, the damaged units do still count for killpoints.

Will this stop me running this Rite? Probably not. Because self-mutilation is a habit of the IXth..

Units

Thanks to a few exemplary battles, the Blood Angels certainly have more than a few specialised units! Although they all have a similar theme… Can’t imagine what it is.

Dawnbreakers

The Dawnbreaker Cohorts are the legion’s drop elite. The first into the fray, and designed entirely around breaking enemy lines in brutal sub-orbital drop assaults. Consequently, their on-table focus is all about doing just that. Coming in at 150pts for 5, and a further 25pts for extras, a full unit of 10 of these is not going to come too cheap (but still significantly less than many other elite units). They all start with ‘Falling Star’ Power Spears (+1 Strength, AP3, Reach (1), Rending (5+) ) and Grenade Dischargers (12” range, firing either three shot ‘frag’ or single shot ‘krak’ rounds). They can replace the spears for equinox power blades for 5pts, and the Champion can upgrade to a Perdition Weapon for 5pts should they choose.

The Spears are already nice, with that reach coming in handy for getting the edge on enemy units. But the swords are extra special. Each round of combat you can choose which of its two profiles to use. Both are user strength AP3, but the ‘Sunrise’ blade gives you shred and Sudden Strike (1), whilst the ‘Sunset’ blade has Rending (5+) and sunder. Both sets of blades absolutely have their uses, and make the unit really versatile when it comes to combat, able to take on anything from light infantry to light vehicles. With the unit’s Weapon skill 5, 2 wounds, 2+ armour, and Furious Charge (1) they are definitely able to go toe-toe with many of the legions’ elites. If this wasn’t enough, the unit’s jump packs cause -1 Leadership to any unit within 6” following their Deepstrike.

So to give you an idea of how a typical Dawnbreaker turn may go:

• Arrive from Deepstrike, causing nearby unit to be pinned at -1Ld, take enemy intercept fire on the chin with 2+ armour saves (and an attached apothecary).
• Proceed to charge the nearby pinned enemy unit. On the charge those swords are now hitting at Strength 5, AP3 (and because you’re a blood Angel, that means 2s to wound). Against anything in power armour, you take the ‘sunrise blade’ – you now have 4 attacks that hit on 3s, and kill on 2s with shred. You see how this is a strong set up?

There are pretty much no downsides to the unit, other than that the Grenade Dischargers don’t count as pistols, so you don’t get +1 attack if you chose to keep the spears rather than upgrade… Oh no… what a shame…

To summarise, this is a unit that is arguably too cheap for its points, with an amazing damage output and strong survivability. You don’t get much better.

The Angel’s Tears

Where other legions have destroyers, the XIth have the Angel’s Tears, a destroyer equivalent elite unit that eschews some of their combat potential in favour of close-range firepower. Each Erelim comes as standard with a pair of Volkite Serpentas and a chainsword, which is not a shabby loadout, and a nice little sidegrade from the usual twin bolt pistols. The whole unit has jump packs as standard, rad grenades, and the expected Bitter Duty and Counterattack special rules. With one wound each, BS4 and 3+ Armour, these guys at basic aren’t much different from the usual destroyers.

What really separates these guys though, is their upgrades. What a destroyer squad can normally take only one special weapon per 5, the Angel’s tears can equip every member of the squad with a combination of rotor cannons, heavy chainswords, heavy flamers, Illiastus assault cannons, or Angel’s Tears grenade launchers (a 3 shot S4, AP4, fleshbane, radphage weapon). With the option to take additional melta bombs as well, the squad can very quickly be tooled up to deal with a wide variety of enemies. The assault cannons in particular can be quite brutal, especially on a jump pack unit that can manoeuvre quickly.

Only notable downsides are the cost (150pts for 5), and the fact they are bizarrely Heavy. No, I don’t know why either. That 1 wound and 3+ armour will quickly see them folding to return fire too, so use them carefully.

Contemptor Incaendius Dreadnought

A contemptor, with a jump pack. Its cool as shit – end of.

Okay you want more than that? Fine.

For 200pts you have a contemptor dreadnought that you can either deepstrike or deploy as normal and have a turn where it becomes Movement 12, and Hammer of Wrath (2). It comes as standard with the infantry shredding Talons of Perdition - a pair of user strength fists with AP2, Shred, and Brutal (2), which can be swapped into usual fists for free should you feel like it. For some extra points it can have fist mounted melta-guns, or Illiastus assault cannons. It’s a beastly creature, designed for pure rage and close combat potential. Although be aware that those Talons of perdition are going to put you at a distinctive loss versus other dreadnoughts.

Crimson Paladins

An oft misunderstood and misused unit. The Crimson Paladins are a funky addition. Their original design ethos was the anvil to the Dawnbreaker hammer – a unit designed to constantly be outnumbered and outgunned, but hold the line anyway.

Stat-wise the Crimson Pallies are as expected. WS5, 2 wounds, 2 attacks, Bulky (2), Relentless etc. However they are also Stubborn Leadership 10, have Deep Strike as standard, and their The Blood is Forever rule means that whenever they’re outnumbered, the unit has Feel no Pain (5+) (if ever outnumbered 2:1 this increases to (4+) ). Making them an incredibly stubborn and hard to shift unit, that can drop on an objective and hold it tight. Add onto this their shields – that grant -1 To Wound against all melee weapons, and even a unit of 3 can hold their own against a vast quantity of chaff units. And with free Sunset Blades, you want these guys running at the chaff, not the enemy elites – save those for the Dawnbreakers.

Sanguinary Guard (Exemplary Battles)

The Seraphim of the highest order, Sanguinius’ personal guards. This is a costly, but gorgeous unit dedicated primarily to the protection of Sanguinius. Equipped with perdition weapons, and artificer armour, they strike from above and can cleave through his foes.

I’ve already written a much longer and more detailed review of these guys over on Goonhammer.com (), but to summarise my thoughts more succinctly:

• Expensive unit, rocking in at 210pts for 5, and 40pts per extra (up to 10 total).
• Command Squad statline.
• Free Perdition weapons of choice on every Seraphim, 1 in 5 can take a Paragon Blade.
• No access to usual command squad arsenal, and the banner to make them a command squad retinue costs 15pts (and you lose a perdition weapon). They have two special rules. Sanguinary Guard Retinue allows them to purchase the banner, granting line and leadership 10. The Burning Ones grants them significant boons if they are with Sanguinius and the big Pigeon is losing a fight. If there is no Sanguinius, they grant +1 combat resolution to all in 6”.

Honestly. They are narratively great, but expensive as hell. And if you’re not taking Sanguinius, they are one hell of an investment.

Ofanim Court (Exemplary Battles)

The eyes of Sanguinius, and overseers of the Legion’s more disreputable elements. The Ofanim are peerless duellists on the table, and a neat set of bodyguards.

Rocking in at 130pts for 3, you gain a standard command squad statline, but with 3 attacks base. The unit has Chosen Warriors, Loyalist, Support Squad (so no compulsory HQ, Shadows of Judgement (granting a member of the court +1 Initiative, rerolls on wounds, and Feel no Pain (4+) in a challenge versus astartes), and The Burning Eyes (allowing them to be taken as a retinue squad for a Blood Angels Master of the Legion). They each come with Artificer armour, combat shields, and a Blade of Judgement – a +2 Strength, AP3, Two-handed, Rending (6+), Murderous Strike (6+), making for an overall pretty strong profile. These guys make for a really fun and potent combination, especially against high toughness opponents such a mechanicus (or as I discovered, Iron Circle). However, do be aware that against Legion Terminators these guys can and do come unstuck, as their high armour and invuns really get in the way of those effective wounds (unless you roll 6s).

However do try running these with Biomancy, and Rad grenades. It won’t work often, but when it does you get the joy of one-hitting T4 marines, and wounding dreadnoughts on 3s… and that’s just funny.

Blood Angels Inductii

A legion despoiler replacement, they lose Spite of the Legion, but in return gain The Revenant Legion that disables Sweeping Advances, but grants the unit Fear (1) every time they rout/wipe out an enemy unit. Not appalling, not amazing. An entirely reasonable Inductii ruleset that could be fun to play with, especially with the new Aster Crohne rules.

Characters

Unlike some of their brethren, the Blood Angel’s character roster is a little thin on the ground currently.

Sanguinius – The Great Angel, Chief Pigeon, The Melodramatic One

So, the lord of hosts, and favoured mutant child of the Emperor… Big expectations to fill on his rules!

Sanguinius’ statline hit all the right spots really. WS8, Strength and Toughness 6, 6 attacks, initiative 6, all of which make him a suitable duellist against a good number of his brothers, and more than capable of wiping the floor with most other HQ choices. He’s Bulky (6) on account of the Great Wings, that grant him the ability to become Movement 14 whenever he feels like it (for no downsides). This is a straight upgrade over 1st edition, where he had to choose to fly or not, and suffered the issues to charging when he did. Special rules wise he also has an Angelic Presence that grants +1 to combat res for all within 6”, and Deep Strike. His warlord trait, Sire of the Blood Angels grants +1 Weapon Skill on the charge to all Blood Angels in the armour with Jump Packs or have deployed via Deepstrike Assault/Deepstrike. Weapon skill 6 Dawnbreakers? Yes please. Hell even WS5 assault marines is not to be sniffed at, hitting enemy marines on 3s, and wounding on 3s with shred…

Sangy also comes with a 2+/4++ armour (the Regalia Resplendent) that grants him re-rollable invun saves on the charge. He has Infernus - a 2 shot 18” range melta pistol… that is One Shot. Great, a notable downgrade from previous. Melee wise, as with 1st edition, he can choose the Blade Encarmine or the Spear of Telesto (and Moonsilver), and as with 1st edition the Blade is significantly better. +1 Strength, AP2, Rage (2), Rampage (2), Murderous Strike (5+), Shred and Master Crafted versus S10, AP1, Two-Handed, Master Crafted, Exo-Shock (4+), and Lance. The Blade just takes the win far more often, and is far more ubiquitous. Unless your enemy is bringing a lot of tanks. In which case the Spear can and will make short work of them!

(Yes, it does also mean you can replay Beta-Garmon, and slamming the winged genius into a Warlord Titan). And yes, like in 1st edition, you can throw it too – for the exact same statline (plus Instant Death) with a 12” range – because fuck Kabanda and the demon horse he rode in on.

Overall Sanguinius is solid. He’s got a statline and equipment package that will keep him toe to toe with the best, but never totally superior. Be wary of him getting outnumbered, or out duelled by Primarchs with plenty of special rules/shenanigans. But if nothing else, the near army wide +1 Weapon skill, on a Day of Revelations list, is utterly brutal.

Chapter Master Raldoron – First Captain

Raldoron is a solid HQ choice, and a pretty great all-rounder. With a standard praetor statline with bonus WS7, and at 180pts, at first glance he appears to be not much too special. But under the surface, he has more than a few cards up his sleeve.

Firstly his sword The Encarmine Warblade is a master crafted Paragon Blade, with Shred and Murderous Strike (5+) makes for a little juicy upgrade over the normal praetor. He also has Furious Charge (2), making him a very solid Strength 7 on the charge! He has a combi flamer, for added ranged firepower, as well as his bolt pistol, meaning he can still claim 6 attacks on the charge. So far, so good…

Then we get to his warlord trait Archein of Wisdom. This trait allows Raldoron to just pick any Loyalist or non-aligned trait from the following legions and lists:

• Generic
• Blood Angels
• Ultramarines
• White Scars
• Imperial Fists
• Raven Guard
• Iron Hands
• Space Wolves
• Salamanders So, you want a Raldoron and 10 Dawnbreakers with +1 Strength on the Charge? Play as a Space Wolf. Want him with an unmodifiable statline? Play as an Iron Hand. Want to have an activatable toughness 10? Become an Ultramarine. Seriously, the possibilities are endlessly entertaining, and allow for Raldoron to be kitted to fit your chosen playstyle. Absolutely worth his points! Although the lack of jump pack option is a shame.

A Sad Bionic Man – Dominion Zephon

Zephon is a little bit of an oddity. Coming in at 185pts, for a standard Praetor statline he’s certainly nothing special. Stubborn and Furious Charge (1) are nice, the latter especially so alongside his +1 strength, AP2 Two Handed, Master Crafted sword (That he can choose to Reaping Blow with). He has twin volkite pistols that each fire 3 shots and have Blind (which isn’t shabby), and his Paragon of Rewstoration rule grants him Feel no Pain (5+) and the chance to come back to life on one wound the first time he pops his metal clogs. He does also have rad grenades, making him incredibly entertaining on the charge when he can one-hit most legionary opponents!

The weirdest bit by far is the warlord trait. Which grants you the ability to take Destroyers as a retinue. And they gain Chosen Warriors… Honestly its fine, just not exceptional. Although at 185pts fine isn’t awful. I guess? I would have liked to take Angels Tears with him though.

(Shame I despise his model though. Seriously, why are his legs the wrong way round?!)

Justiciar Aster Crohne (The Martian Civil War)

Aster has seen a revamped profile in the new Martian Civil War book! Which is appreciated, although the changes in his army role are quite significant.

Crohne is no longer a great buffer of hand flamers and Angel’s Tears. Instead, he captains the new 94th Company, rife with inductii now. Consequently, his rules are very much focussed around utilising your BA Inductii at the table, with his warlord trait The Reforged 94th granting all Blood Angels Inductii units within 6” both Sweeping Advance and +1 attack on the charge. Which is certainly not to be sniffed at! His Captain of the Inductii rule also allows him to join those units. This essentially negates the key Blood Angel’s Inductii downside, and makes it far more likely for them to sweep and gain that Fear (1) - which is handy.

Crohne’s Ghost of Saiph rule allows him to avoid his first death on a 4+, going into ongoing reserves instead. And his Shard Axe with +1 strength, AP3, Rending (5+), Duellist’s Edge (1) isn’t awful. Especially not on a 155pt Praetor statline. All in all, Crohne unlocks a different way of playing the Blood Angels, which is always preferred in a character, and whilst he won’t win any face-off duels. He has a dozen screaming Blood Angels that can fight them for him!

Conclusions

So, final conclusions.

In all honesty, the Blood Angels are good. A combination of good equipment, a strong legion rule, some excellent warlord traits, and a plethora of specialised elite units, creates great synchronisation. In combat, particularly on the charge, this legion is to be feared. And their rules, equipment, and leaders grant them plenty of opportunities to be the ones charging. The way you can quite quickly start to stack buffs to units, particularly with perdition weapons, mean that even if they aren’t always high AP weaponry, a lot of the Blood Angel’s attacks will wound once they make contact, and eventually the law of averages will win out. Units such as the Dawnbreakers are just beyond good, and combined with Sanguinius and Day of Revelations will utterly shatter an enemy’s lines with little issue.

That being said, a number of their units require clever thinking to use to their potential. Angel’s Tears are very much a glass cannon, whilst the Crimson Paladins will melt away if you don’t put them into the correct target. At long range this Legion is at its most vulnerable. With no specialised units or weaponry past 24”, they really want and need to be getting up close and personal to do the dirty work. That being said. They’re still marines, and still more than capable of holding their own without legion buffs, so don’t be afraid to stick heavy weaponry in the back line. Just maybe keep that counter-charge reaction in your back pocket, just in case.