Most of the iconic battles of the Horus Heresy saw multiple forces combine their strength. Legions died alongside one another at Isstvan V, the Space Wolf assault on Prospero was assisted by the Talons of the Emperor, while the Siege of Terra drew in the Legions, Solar Auxillia, Martian forces and many more.
In fact, allied forces were common throughout the Age of Darkness for battles of any significant size.
In the new edition of the Horus Heresy, it’s really easy to include allies in your army. We have already learned how Detachments and Force Organisation works, and adding allies is merely an extension to that.
Your basic Allied Detachment looks like this, and must be selected from a different faction from your main army.
None of the choices are mandatory, and you can add as many of these detachments to your force as you want – as long as you don’t spend more than 50% of your points on allied units over all.
Just like your main Detachments, each Command slot you fill allows you to add another allied Auxiliary Detachment. This is a very flexible structure: you need a commander, but you may then unlock most other units you’d be able to use otherwise – using faction specific detachments and the first Command slot’s Prime Advantage to unlock Elite and Retinue units normally restricted to Apex Detachments. The only thing you’ll miss are High Command officers, Primarchs, and other warlords, but can you blame them for not playing second fiddle to your main force?
This system unlocks all kinds of possibilities. What about a maniple of corrupted automata battling alongside your Iron Warriors, or a plucky regiment of Solar Auxilia backing up the Raven Guard? For deeper narrative flair, you could play as a handful of Shattered Legions stragglers that have managed to link up with one of the more intact loyalist Legions.
The Lords of War Detachment is a special case. You can use it to add models from your own faction to your force, such as the upcoming Fellblade for the Space Marine Legions, or use it to add Knights or Titans into your army. It allows you to drop up to 25% of your points on a Lord of War (or two) of any faction.
From a collector's perspective, allies are a great way to try out models from a new army, without needing to commit to painting an entire force immediately. If you are looking for a compact and effective allied force to spice up your current army, might we suggest a Centurion, six Saturnine Terminators and a Saturnine Dreadnought, clocking in at just under the 1,000-point mark?
Tomorrow we’re looking at the lore of the loyalist Legions. Stay up to date on all the Horus Heresy news with the Warhammer Newsletter – and if you are signed up before the 29th of June, you’ll be entered into a competition to win a Horus Heresy prize bundle, including the Primarch miniature of your choice. Find out more here, and sign up here. Terms and conditions apply
