The titanic Warhammer: The Horus Heresy – Age of Darkness boxed set contains a treasure trove of content, from a massive rulebook detailing the setting and stories of the Horus Heresy, as well as gorgeous photography and art, and all the core rules you need to play the game. The box also contains 54 Citadel miniatures – including a massive Spartan Assault Tank and a host of MKVI ‘Corvus Armour’ Tactical Marines – allowing you to build two opposing forces for out-of-the-box play, or construct a huge Legion force all your own. Alongside all of this, you’ll get all the game accessories and rules reference materials you need to immerse yourself in the worlds of the Age of Darkness. Final Score: 3.5 Stars – A fun theme combined with some great components make this one a joy to play for Warhammer 40k fans. Warmaster Horus Lupercal has plunged the Imperium of Mankind into a cataclysmic war of unimagineable ferocity. Setting brother against brother he has risen up against the Emperor taking half of the Legiones Astartes with him. The nine steadfast loyal legions defy this onslaught through years of strife to the culmination in 30014 of the Siege of Terra. The Horus Heresy: Age Of Darkness is the long-awaited prequel to Warhammer 40000 depicting the era 10,000 years before. But that brings us to the game play. Even the best components in the world won’t matter if the game play is unengaging. Fortunately, that’s not the case with Horus Heresy. While the game play isn’t perfect, it’s still a very well thought out game. One of the problems though is the game is almost a little too complicated for it’s own good. I feel like the designer might have gone overboard in certain areas. The mighty Dreadnought – man resurrected as killing machine – is depicted in Contemptor armour and with a vast array of weaponry available. In gameplay the terms the Contemptor USP is that it has its own atomic reactor power source enabling such a heavy weight to still move with speed.

On Mars, the Warmaster’s allies, the Dark Mechanicum, led by Fabricator-General Kelbor-Hal, initiated the Schism of Mars by unleashing a destructive Chaos scrapcode from the forbidden Vaults of Moravec upon the various forges scattered across the planet. This malevolent act marked the onset of a civil war within the Adeptus Mechanicus.By this time, Horus’ armada had reached the Sol System and sought to advance toward the Imperium’s Throneworld. To achieve this, they needed to capture the strategically vital Beta-Garmon Cluster. The ensuing Battle of Beta-Garmon, one of the Heresy’s largest conflicts, resulted in massive casualties on both sides. Titan Legionssuffered particularly heavy losses, earning the battle the moniker “Titandeath.” Ultimately, Horus’ forces emerged victorious, even though the Warmaster himself succumbed to wounds inflicted by Leman Russ during the Battle of Trisolian. The Lion’s Purge (012-013.M31)

A miniatures showcase containing eight armies created by members of the Warhammer: The Horus Heresy Studio and beyond So yes, Horus Heresy has a really strong theme and the game utilizes it quite well. One of the things that helps tie the theme to the game is Horus Heresy’s fantastic components. From the excellently sculpted minis to the very well laid out 3d board, Horus Heresy is just a joy to behold. Even the cards are both very functional and include thematic Warhammer artwork. These two elements combined help to provide a rich game play experience for Horus Heresy. A players action cards decide which units they can activate and what they do. One per unit of 10 can be built as a Sergeant with Plasma pistol and Power Sword. The Sword can be exchaged for a Power Fist or Lightning Claw and he can carry Melta bombs. An Age of Darkness has descended upon the galaxy. Horus Lupercal, Warmaster of the Emperor’s armies, has turned against his gene-father and sent the Imperium spiralling into a bloody civil war. Out of the eighteen great Space Marine Legions, finest of all humanity’s soldiers, fully half have sided with the traitorous Warmaster, while the remainder stand staunchly loyal to the Emperor. It is a war of brother against brother, Space Marine against Space Marine, which has seen the might of the Imperium’s vast armies turned upon themselves in a cataclysm of fire and blood.It is, however, suggested that even experienced players read the full rule set so they don’t make any rash assumptions about changes made or not made. The main difference between this rule set and its predecessor is the introduction of Reaction Phases. These can occur in the Movement Phase, the Firing Phase and the Assault Phase. This changes the traditional procedure of Player 1 does all their actions then Player 2 does all theirs. This interactive ability means the non-phasing player may move towards or away from another unit they see. It can return fire or evade fire aginst a firing unit and it can conduct overwatch fire or “Hold the Line” against a charging unit. All this adds up to a more immersive session as the turns progress. Horus Heresy is a 2 player, card drive war game that plays in about 2-3 hours. Game Overview: Horus Heresy comes with some fantastic components and tons of well sculpted minis.

Horus Heresy includes six scenarios that differ in both difficulty and style. The first scenario, titled Brother Against Brother, is recommended for all new players as it provides predetermined starting locations for both player's forces. It is a well balanced version of the Battle for Terra, and also presents a roughly historical recreation of the conflict's events. [1] Sources The Horus Heresy, also known as the Age of Darkness, was the first and most devastating civil war in Imperial history. Occurring in early 30K and lasting several years, it divided and nearly destroyed the fledgling Imperium. It marked the end of the Great Crusade and the encasing of the Emperor of Mankind into the Golden Throne. Here in part one of our four part series we look at the events that led to Horus’ corruption. For long years, the Horus Heresy has ground on. Now, the Death Guard have been sent to begin the final battle. But Mortarion and his sons must face their gravest challenge first – for Nurgle has claimed them as his own, and he will not be denied… Allying himself with the Ruinous Powers, Warmaster Horus convinces half of his brother Primarchs and their Space Marine Legions to betray their oaths and make war upon the Emperor and his loyal sons. In the year 0014.M31, on the first day of Primus, Horus’ armada finally reached the Sol System. During the intense final phase of the Solar War, the traitors wrested control of the Solar System from loyalist forces, despite Rogal Dorn’s best efforts to stall until reinforcements arrived from Roboute Guilliman and Lion El’Jonson. Once within range of Terra, Horus and his forces devastated Luna’s naval bases and, within thirty days, overwhelmed the Terran system’s defences. Terra endured bombardment and devastation. The corrupted Astartes from the Sons of Horus, Death Guard, World Eaters, Emperor’s Children, Iron Warriors, Thousand Sons, Word Bearers, and Night Lords eventually landed on Terra, facing fierce resistance from defenders led by the Imperial Fists, Blood Angels, and White Scars. Vast numbers of traitor Imperial Army, Dark Mechanicum, Chaos Cultists, and Daemonic forces joined the traitor Astartesin the assault on Terra. The loyalists were outnumbered, and the battle for Terra escalated into a siege of the Imperial Palace.The 5 man squads consist of 4 Terminators and 1 Terminator Sergeant. The Terminators are armed with a Combi-Bolter and a Power Fist which can be exchanged individually for a Heavy Flamer and a Chainfist respectively or collectively for two Lightning Claws.