Here comes the Crimson King! Checkout the rules for Magnus, and his Thousand Sons Legion in our latest new 40k rules breakdown!
First off BoLS has the contents of the book:
And our friends at Frontline Gaming got to read the new Wrath of Magnus book, and here’s what Reece had to say about it in his post:
Rubric Marines: Not much has changed about these guys…unfortunately. Sigh. Well, they got some new options but as is, are still massively overpriced. 23pts per model, 150pts for the first 5 including the Sorcerer who can only take Tzeentch powers (although, thankfully those are improved a bit). They can take Warpflamers on any model which could be VERY powerful…but then you’re paying 30pts per Rubric Marine. Ouch. The real kick in the pants though, is that you can only take 1 Soulreaper cannon per 10 models.
Oh, and did I mention the models are amazing enough times? Check out the sprues, so much to work with!
Scarab Occult Terminators: So beautiful….but so EXPENSIVE. Holy cow, these guys cost a lot of points. 250 base for 5, including the sorcerer, and another 40pts per Terminator thereafter. Are they worth it? Let’s dig in to find out more. They have normal Terminator stats but with a Power Weapon on each model. Interestingly, they don’t have Slow and Purposeful like the Marines, but they do have AP 3 Combi-Bolters which is pretty cool. The Sorcerer is Mastery Level 2 with a plethora of psychic disciplines to choose from and an extra wound which is nice. The unit can take a Heavy Warpflamer or Soulreaper Cannon per 5 Terminators and interestingly can also take a Hellfyre Missile Rack per 5 (so two heavy weapons in a unit of 5).
While the formations solve the durability issues, the Scarab Occult Terminators also don’t hit super hard. AP 3 Combi-Bolters is awesome but if their target unit is in cover or 2+ armor, it really blunts the impact a lot and a Strength 4 Power Sword is…well, a Strength 4 Power Sword. The AP 3 Heavy Flamer is boss, though.
The man, himself: Magnus the Red: The big cheese, the head honcho, the main event! This is what everyone has been so excited to see, and for good reason! The return of a Primarch to the current timeline of Warhammer 40,000! This is so cool, and something most of us never thought would happen, but here we are. Let’s dive into this beast.He’s got an impressive stat-line!
Also, against what many had speculated he’s not a Gargantuan Creature but a Flying Monstrous Creature. This to me is a good thing. He is more accessible to “normal” play. This may not jive with the mental image many have of him, but I’d rather see him on more tabletops than not, so this was the right call, IMO. He rocks WS and BS 7, Strength 8, Toughness 7, 7 Wounds and Initiative, 6 Attacks, Leadership 10 and a 4+ save. He also weighs in at 650pts, base, so not cheap. He’s got a host of special rules:
- Adamantium Will
- Daemon of Tzeentch
- Deep Strike
- Eternal Warrior
- Fearless
- Fleet
- It Will Not Die
- Psyker level 5
- Veterans of the Long War
- Unearthly Power: harnesses Warp Charge on a 2+
- The Lord of Flux Warlord Trait
- Omniscient Eye: Magnus has LoS to every model on the table when determining the targets of his psychic powers.
- Knows the Gaze of Magnus ability and all of the Tzeentch and Change powers. This is his biggest weakness as the powers he has access to are more limited. Gaze of Magnus will be the go to in most cases, but summoning in more units is always awesome, and a second option for a D shot isn’t bad, either.
- His wargear is similarly impressive: The Blade of Magnus is Strength user, AP 2, Force, Soul Blaze and Transmogrify (which can turn models into Chaos Spawn). The Crown of Crimson Kings gives Magnus a 4++ and lets him ignore Perils…wow!
Okay hold the phone here folks. Let’s start with Magus. Just like Reece says yeah some folks may have an issue with him just being an MC, however from a sales perspective I think it makes sense. Then thereis the point cost. that may be the next hurdle to the table top.
Rules wise- he literally seems to have them all and then some, but it perhaps at first glance another drawback is his list of Psychics. Now I know Games Workshop said he could know 15 spells, so I am not sure at this time how he can do it. However if they say he can, well I am a believer. Obvious being an MC his abilities do not end with just the psychics, and remember per the FAQ if he deep strikes in you can choose his mode of flight. He can also jink overwatch fire now when charging as well too!
I would imagine we’ll see this bad boy on the tabletop at most stores, however whether he makes the competitive meta is still a up in the air at this time.
The Terminators appear to be pretty expensive at first glance, and he seems to indicate that they are NOT two wounds like the rumors suggested. The firepower is immense however, but there are better terminator options out there IMHO if they prove to be only one wound. Perhaps if they have some way to get feel no pain that you can combo with a low invunerable and their normal 2+ save (that appears to be re-rollable because of a rumored formation) that has some potential I think.
Again gorgeous models, just maybe not the most tactical with the information at hand currently?
Again while the rubric models are very amazing looking, it seems like they are on par with the Deathwatch (mechanic and point wise) like I’ve been alluding too over the past week. The big exception is however, sight unseen of their rules and the new Traitors Legion book, there does not seem to be as many delivery options for them (like the Deathwatch).
Their firepower however, is amazing though, and Ahriman makes them troops in non T-Sons armies. Which should not be taken lightly in any format I feel like.
That’s it for this one, we’ll break down more of the book from Frontline’s teaser post as soon as we can.
What do you think of their rules so far?
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About the Author: Rob Baer
