Perhaps the biggest reveal in the New Year Preview show was the unveiling of the all-new plastic Legio Custodes miniatures. Haven't seen them yet? Feast your eyes on their Auramite glory in this reveal video – we’ll be waiting on the other side.
By the glory of Terra, they’re good aren’t they? A host of new miniatures for Legio Custodes players to take the fight to the Warmaster. The Emperor’s personal protectors have never looked so good.
The upcoming Legio Custodes release is spearheaded by the mighty Legio Custodes Battle Group box – essentially a small army in its own right, and the perfect way to begin a new Custodes force. Let’s break down the units:
The new Custodian Guard are the quintessential image of the Custodians we all know and love: tall guardian spears, high plumed helmets, and glorious golden armour. The kit for these contains options for bare heads and command staff, including a vexilla. The Warhammer 40,000 fans among you might have noticed these would also be perfect for representing the Custodian Guard in an Adeptus Custodians army…
The Custodian Sentinels are much like the Guard, but instead of guardian spears, they carry sentinel warblades and praesidium shields. Otherwise, they all have the same options… and yes, you’re right, they would also make brilliant inclusions as Custodian Guard in a Warhammer 40,000 Adeptus Custodes force.
The weapons and wargear of the Legio Custodes are the finest in the Imperium, and the same goes for their armoured vehicles.The Caladius Annihilator Grav-tank ranks among the most dangerous armoured units of its size in the Age of Darkness.
Equipped as it is with a versatile Arachnus blaze carronade (equally capable of busting tank hulls or scything down swathes of heavy infantry)… not to mention the hull-mounted weapons (twin lastrum bolt cannon or a gun-type we’ve never seen before: the twin neutronium cascade projector). Think main battle tank, only better.
The Legio Custodes make use of Dreadnoughts to allow a grievously wounded warrior to fight on – and the forthcoming Custodes Battle Group has a spectacular new plastic Contemptor kit jammed into it.
This is a really versatile model, it can be built as either a Contemptor-Achillus (with signature Achillus dreadspear) or a Contemptor-Galatus with Galatus warblade and praesidium shield. That gives you two very different Dreadnought types, with two distinct battlefield functions: the Contemptor-Achillus deals a whopping Damage 3 with its spear, and makes a mockery of enemy armour, while the Contemptor-Galatus is best suited for crowd control with the flamer in its sword, warblade, and the extra durability afforded by the shield. Best of all though? The poseability. Just check out the awesome, dynamic poses you can build it in!
All Custodians are incredible warriors, but the greatest among them are raised to the rank of the Shield Captain. These warriors stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the greatest fighters in the Imperium, and the new Shield Captain miniature is worthy of such an accolade – just check out the level of detail!
Of course, if you watched the video above, you’ve caught a glimpse of some of the other Legio Custodes kits set for release too:
With the eye-catching silhouette of the Aquila on their backs, the Venatari swoop into battle to expose the enemy’s weaknesses, cutting them down with kinetic destroyers and bucklers or Verutum lance. These are fast-moving, hard-hitting warriors, their lighter armour is more than compensated for by the brutal power of their weapons.
The Custodes are also getting a second Caladius Grav-tank.The signature weapon of the Caladius is a twin Iliastus accelerator cannon, that punches out six Strength 8 shots a turn – more than enough to turn medium and light vehicles into Swiss cheese, or outright butcher heavy infantry.
When you need to get your Custodians safely to where the fighting is thickest, you’ll be needing the services of a Legio Custodes Coronus Grav Carrier: heavily armoured, swift and capable of Deepstrike, this is a transport befitting the Emperor’s protectors.
It can carry seven standard Custodians (or one squad and a character, if you’re interested), and offers some serious fire support with its twin Arachnus blaze cannon or lastrum bolt cannons.
Where exactly do you find the lore and rules for all these models and more? Enter Liber Custodes – the essential guide for using the Legio Custodes in your games. It details the Custodians themselves, along with the Sisters of Silence and an addendum that covers the Agents of the Divisio Assassinorum. These latter two forces exist outside the formal structure of the Legio Custodes, and can be used as allies (or as a stand-alone force, in the case of the Sisters of Silence).
You’ll also find the rules for the two most famous of the Emperor’s Talons, the Captain-General Constantin Valdor and the Knight-Commander of the Silent Sisterhood, Jenetia Krole.
We’ve dropped a few hints that some of these models are also perfect for using in Warhammer 40,000 and it’s entirely true. A rules update for the Adeptus Custodes is set for later this year. But several of these new miniatures are already perfectly suitable to represent current units in Warhammer 40,000.
Meanwhile, if you want to stay up to date on all these Legio Custodes releases, make sure you’re subscribed to our Horus Heresy emails, so you’ll get the latest news dropped straight into your inbox!
All caught up? Head back to our New Year Preview hub, to check out the rest of the reveals.
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