A Novella for The Siege of Terra by Graham McNeill
With The Siege of Terra in full swing, Graham McNeill takes us down a little cul-de-sac to close off the story-arc of the ‘Sons of Selenar’… or the Shattered Legions. This is an interesting departure from the other Siege of Terra books, in that it has characters from the Horus Heresy series who have been with each other for some time and gone through a number of adventures together.
Sons of Selenar from Black Library
From the book:
The Shattered Legions crew of the Sisypheum, broken and at the end of their endurance, find themselves divided – torn between following their resurrected captain on a suicidal mission or obeying orders to return to Terra and rejoin their Legion brothers.
Following a series of garbled messages intercepted by the Kryptos, the divided warriors descend to the shattered surface of Luna. Here, their bonds of loyalty, duty, and their devotion to one another will be tested as ancient horrors of the earliest days of gene-manipulation are unleashed, and a long-buried secret is revealed.
A secret that will have far-reaching consequences for the future course of the galaxy, no matter who eventually claims Terra.
The Shattered Legions – a group of loyalists separated from their own legions, find themselves hiding in the solar system following a void battle, when they receive a call for help from the surface of Luna. Ancient technology is under threat from the Sons of Horus and they are being called to help.
This is a strange – but I imagine essential – addition to the Siege of Terra, and I can understand why it is a novella and not part of the main story arc. The characters have all been introduced in some depth in the Horus Heresy series and – as I note above – have already have adventures, battles and close-calls within that series. This then left the writers of the Siege of Terra books in a quandary – the need to close this particular story-arc, but not confuse people who are just reading the Siege of Terra – like me!
And they have succeeded – sort of. This story has what you need in a Horus Heresy novella, but it should probably have been released under that series and not the Siege of Terra series. There is only a minimal link to the Siege of Terra proper – they are on Luna – and Black Library could easily have released it alongside.
The writing is of course good as we’ve come to expect from Graham McNeill but the characters are already developed, and I would have liked to have a little more description of them, even if it would have been superfluous for those who’ve read all the Horus Heresy novels. They fly, fight, kill and die whilst struggling to save the secrets of Gene-manipulation… and there’s some more history about the Emperor thrown in for good measure.
Overall a good book, but you really need to have read the Shattered Legion novels from Horus Heresy first.
Continuing my re-reading of the Dan Abnett series – Gaunts Ghosts – next up is book 6, Straight Silver
‘Commissar Gaunt and his men undertake a seemingly suicidal mission in the blood-soaked trenches of the 41st Millennium.
On the battlefields of Aexe Cardinal, the struggling forces of the Imperial Guard are locked in a deadly stalemate with the dark armies of Chaos. Commissar Ibram Gaunt and his regiment, the Tanith First and Only, are thrown headlong into this living hell of trench warfare, where death from lethal artillery is always just a moment away. The only chance for Gaunt and his lightly armed scouts to survive is to volunteer for a mission so dangerous that no one else dares accept it.’
The Ghosts are stealth and infiltration specialists, but when they are assigned to the wars on Aexe Cardinal they quickly find themselves in the middle of trench warfare… and to make matters worse the enemy has brought some very big siege guns into the war… and the trenches are under intense attack.
After repelling the first attack against their lines, Gaunt convinces the local command to use his troops in a more suitable location… but there is a catch; the Ghosts are split in two. One half is working their way through a forest – still miraculously standing after decades of war – and the other must hold the trenches… and find the location of the big guns.
Unfortunately neither mission is as it seems and the Ghosts have to explore the wood, where their own need for R&R may cause them to forget the basics, whilst those left behind in the trenches must find the guns, so they can be silenced.
Straight Silver is back to classic Ghosts (although it never went far), and I loved it. The descriptions of the battles, unlikely survival of the troopers, and death of some, whilst they infiltrate and fight their own boredom … often at the same time.
This is another novel set in the 40k universe that I was able to relate to, in a way that I sometimes struggle with Space Marines. The Imperial Guard / Astra Militarum remain just men and women… with guns and a little armour… dying in droves to keep the enemy at bay or making small progress. Straight Silver delivers on this promise.
Another great novel and a good read.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
— Declan
Previous Gaunt’s Ghosts Book Reviews on Woehammer:
This is the Top Three AoS Lists for the Justice Series GT that took place in Liverpool, UK on 15th and 16th October. It involved 80 players vying to be crowned champion in a 5 game tournament.
The Justice Series has been going on for some time now and this is not the first iteration, and – whilst I haven’t been to the venue yet – it is getting good reviews. Ritchie is the manager of the store and gaming venue and he is very visible on Twitter, as well as being a very good player on the UK scene.
They have also just announced their new mascot / character – Justice – who is a female mage knight. You can find out more about her here.
(Pictures copyright Games Workshop)
Before I jump into the Top Three AoS Lists, I wanted to remind everyone of our friendly Discord server where you can join in the conversation with the Woehammer crew and suggest articles or series for the website.
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Also if there’s a one day or two day tournament you’d like us to cover drop us a comment on this post and we’ll have a look at it for you.
The Top Three AoS Lists
Allegiance: Beasts of Chaos – Grand Strategy: Show of Dominance – Triumphs: Inspired
Leaders Dragon Ogor Shaggoth (155)** – General – Command Trait: Adamantine Scales – Artefact: Arcane Tome (Universal Artefact) – Lore of Dark Storms: Sundering Blades
Battleline 6 x Dragon Ogors (250)* – 4x Paired Ancient Weapons – 2x Draconic War glaives – Reinforced x 1 6 x Dragon Ogors (250)* – 4x Paired Ancient Weapons – 2x Draconic War glaives – Reinforced x 1 6 x Dragon Ogors (250) – 4x Paired Ancient Weapons – 2x Draconic War glaives – Reinforced x 1 10 x Ungors (65)*** – Mauls & Half-Shields 10 x Ingots (65)*** – Mauls & Half-Shields
Units 6 x Tzaangor Enlightened on Disc of Beasts of Chaos (360)* – Reinforced x 1 3 x Tzaangor Skyfires (190)** 3 x Tzaangor Skyfires (190)** 3 x Tzaangor Skyfires (190)**
Comments: Well, if ever there was a White Dwarf article that had a bigger impact on any gaming system I’ve not seen it. Dan & Freddie (see below) won their last two games with the Beasts, with very similar armies. The only reason you don’t see this as often is because the Dragon Ogre sculpts are big and expensive.
Games Workshop – tearing up a meta near you
Expect some changes in the new Battlescroll due to be released in October, but based on the previous Battlescrolls I wouldn’t expect them to suddenly become rubbish.
Well done to Dan for 1st, and a 5-0!
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Allegiance: Beasts of Chaos – Greatfray: Gavespawn – Grand Strategy: Take What’s Theirs – Triumphs: Bloodthirsty
Leaders Beastlord (95)* – Artefact: Mutating Gnarlblade Dragon Ogor Shaggoth (155)* – General – Command Trait: Unravelling Aura – Lore of Dark Storms: Sundering Blades Dragon Ogor Shaggoth (155)**** – Lore of Dark Storms: Hailstorm Great Bray-Shaman (100)**** – Lore of the Twisted Wilds: Savage Dominion
Battleline 6 x Dragon Ogors (250)*** – 3x Paired Ancient Weapons – 3x Draconic War glaives – Reinforced x 1 6 x Dragon Ogors (250)*** – 3x Paired Ancient Weapons – 3x Draconic War glaives – Reinforced x 1 10 x Ungors (65)** – Mauls & Half-Shields 10 x Ungors (65)** – Mauls & Half-Shields 10 x Ungors (65)** – Mauls & Half-Shields
Units 5 x Centigors (85)* 5 x Centigors (85)**** 20 x Bestigors (250)*** – Reinforced x 1 1 x Mindstealer Sphiranx (95)*
Comments: To say that I’m running out of things to say about Beasts is an understatement (see above). We’re seeing loads of them in the top threes at the moment and they seem to be a great counter to Maggotkin of Nurgle who Freddie beat twice on the way to his 5-0. Well done again!
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Allegiance: Slaves to Darkness – Damned Legion: Knights of the Empty Throne – Mortal Realm: Ghur – Grand Strategy: No Place for the Weak – Triumphs: Indomitable
Leaders Knights of the Empty Throne Varanguard x 6 (560)* – General – Daemonforged Blade and Warpsteel Shield – Command Trait: Inescapable Doom – Artefact: Grasping Plate – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch Knights of the Empty Throne Varanguard x 6 (560)** – Daemonforged Blade and Warpsteel Shield – Artefact: Corrupted Nullstone – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch Chaos Sorcerer Lord (135)* – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch – Spell: Mask of Darkness Chaos Sorcerer Lord (135)* – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch – Spell: Mask of Darkness
Battleline 8 x Iron Golems (75)** – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch 8 x Iron Golems (75)** – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch 8 x Iron Golems (75)** – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch 8 x Iron Golems (75)** – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch
Units 1 x Mindstealer Sphiranx (95)**
Behemoths Chaos Warshrine (215)** – Mark of Chaos: Tzeentch – Prayer1: Universal Prayer Scripture: Heal
Comments: It’s an Archaon list, without Archaon… just lots of Varanguard changing the definition of hero and letting Slaves to Darkness take loads of them.
Games Workshop / Wahapedia
And they come back – albeit in smaller numbers…! Wow. They are fast, hit like a ton of bricks and can use hero abilities. You don’t want to be on the receiving end.
This might be one of the last times we see them from this current book so it’s great to see Phil get them to 3rd in a tough tournament. Also a special shout out to Piotr who drew with Phil in the last game, but lost on points scored in the first four games — such small differences.
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Army Faction: Skaven – Grand Strategy: Take What’s Theirs – Triumph: Indomitable
LEADERS Verminlord Deceiver (405)* – General – Command Traits: Devious Adversary – Artefacts of Power: Shadow Magnet Trinket – Spells: Flaming Weapon Slynk Skittershank (225)* Thanquol (415)** – 2 x Warpfire Braziers – 2 x Warpfire Projectors – Spells: Skitterleap
BATTLELINE Gutter Runners (210)* Gutter Runners (210)* Night Runners (90)** – Nightleader Night Runners (90)** – Nightleader
OTHER Gutter Runners (210)* Skittershank’s Clawpack (225)*
ENDLESS SPELLS & INVOCATIONS 1 x Quicksilver Swords (60) 1 x Warp Lightning Vortex (80)
Comment: I love Skaven, and had an army of them in Warhammer 8th Edition (and have even rebased some of them), and so I keep an eye out on their successes. Gabe hasn’t gone with Stormfiends, but has taken Night Runners and Gutter Runners. The only thing it’s missing to make it fully Eshin, is the Assassins, but he’s got Thanquol and a Verminlord instead so it’s definitely a Skaven list.
This is another list where I say I don’t understand what it does, or how it does it.
Games Workshop & Wahapedia
At 225 points I’ve not seen Slynk or his Clawpack before… it’s more Eshin so Gabe’s keeping on theme, but they can deploy outside 6″ and near terrain at the end of turn 1, so Gabe can pin in the enemy a little. The blighter can fight as well… as you’d hope for 225!
It’d be really interesting to know how this works, so I’m not suggesting go out and replicate this list, but it is an example that there are still new lists out there that can compete.
Continuing my re-reading of the Dan Abnett series – Gaunts Ghosts – next up is book 5, The Guns of Tanith.
‘The heretical forces of Chaos fight back in the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, cutting off Imperial forces. Gaunt and his men must recapture the key world Phantine, in order to save the Emperor’s beleaguered forces.‘
Tanith have been joined by Hivers from Verghast – and it’s rapidly becoming a noun for the new soldiers. In The Guns of Tanith Gaunt and his ghosts find themselves fighting on another planet, and being picked for a dangerous mission. They must infiltrate the chaos defenders, find their leader and kill him.
Four teams of Ghosts are assembled to take on the task, whilst the rest of the regiment stay fighting the arch enemy and preparing for the assault. Meanwhile Caffran is accused of killing a civilian and Gaunt and Hawk must try to get him free… but will they treat the Verghastites differently? The Regiment must be as one, but is that possible?
If you’re this far into the series, it’s safe to say you already enjoy the style – and it is unashamedly page turning pulp fiction – and will be eager to read Guns of Tanith… and you definitely should. Dan Abnett’s great idea to bring in new blood in the form of the Verghastites allows new stories (rivalry, and integration) that wouldn’t have been possible with just the Ghosts, but it also answers the question on many readers minds — what happens when they all die? This is the Imperial Guard after all.
The side plot involving Caffran is well done, and a welcome relief from the bullets, lasguns, and explosions — although they are included aplenty in the main plot. Meanwhile the plot races forward, with stories of daring from the infiltrators but just enough gaps in their stories that you are left wondering how exactly they proceed – a technique I really enjoyed and could be very useful as a plot hook if you like RPGs in Warhammer 40k
Another great novel and a good read.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
— Declan
Previous Gaunt’s Ghosts Book Reviews on Woehammer:
Gotrek and Felix have been on many adventures in the World that Was started by William King whose mantel Nathan Long has taken up. In Book 11, they must stop a Shaman from destroying the Empire!
Shamanslayer by Nathan Long
From the book:
Dwarf Trollslayer Gotrek and his human companion Felix Jaeger, Warhammer’s most famous pair of heroes, head off to a new adventure in the latest novel of this best-selling fantasy series against a horde of beastmen who threaten the safety of the Empire.
The horde are moving a Herdstone to the centre of the Empire in order to unleash it’s magic. Magic which turns those near to it into Beasts as well. Will Gotrek & Felix be able to prevent the Shaman and save the Empire from this latest, grave threat?
At book 11, the Gotrek and Felix books are really morphing into the Felix and Gotrek books. This is not surprising as Gotrek developed by William King was already a full character with Felix being more of a sidekick. Nathan Long’s stories have development for Felix (because the only real development for Gotrek is to die!), and it’s good to see.
The story flies along, with a character returning from previous books and Felix must prove that he a worthy wielder of his sword. It has everything you’ll know from the previous books with swords and arrows flying, death all around and Gotrek and Felix at the centre of the storm and all the events.
Despite the death of the World that Was, Gotrek novels set in the Old-World are still great reads, and I would still recommend reading them if you haven’t before.
With 40 Space Marines completed I now need to move onto the remaining four models. As one of them is quite big (very, very big), I realised I needed to get started on the Spartan.
As I’ve been playing mostly Fantasy and Age of Sigmar in the last decade I haven’t painted many tanks, so I needed to go back to basics and remind myself how to do it!
Assembly was a long process, but very straight forward apart from a small error with one of the top hatches. Once I’d worked that out it was completed and ready for undercoat.
Undercoat / Step 1
All my models have a black undercoat as I like the slightly darker affect it has on Mephiston Red. It also means there are no grey / white spots left even if I miss a bit! So I can always pretend it’s deliberate shadow.
I decided I would mask off the tracks and some of the weapons to ensure that these remained black as building back over red is a little pointless when it’s already there. If you’ve not done this before just make sure you take a little of the ‘stickiness’ off so that it doesn’t remove the paint when you take them off!
Step 2 – Red Undercoat
With the Mephiston Red undercoat on, and the masking tape removed it’s starting to look a lot like a Blood Angel tank. Next up is some pin washing (which I’ve never done before) with Nuln Oil and a little tidying up of the tracks where the red undercoat has snuck through!
I also need to finish the Lascannon Sponsors of course but they fit on very nicely to allow some movement of the model.
What’s Next
I need to finish the tank, and complete the remainder of the Age of Darkness Box Set. It’s great to be getting close to finishing a starter set!
Tomorrow the Age of Chumps club is travelling en-masse to Warhammer World to take part in a two day Age of Sigmar tournament. It’s my last for a while, so I was torn about what to take.
After the success last year of the Big Waaagh, they were the obvious decision – brute force, cunning application – all backed up by an improving profile which means that 2+/2+ doesn’t take long to get to…
But… I haven’t used my Gitz in a while and there is a new GHB, as well a small change to the Loonshrine warscroll.
Games Workshop FAQ
It’s not much, and it’s not a White Dwarf article like Beasts, or Khorne… but it does make a small difference. The Moon allows Moonclan to rally, and Squigs to charge after running. Perfect for getting Boingrot Bounders into the right place, or bouncing over units with Hoppers before finishing off lone heroes! Sure it’s range isn’t perfect, but it’s large on the smaller table.
Finally, the General gets an extra command point each turn – great resource benefit.
Squigs, Spiders, Trogs, or Grots
I have options for all Gitz forces, but my favourite has always been the Squigs… especially as they trigger the rally benefit and the run and charge… also; red looks great.
The List
Allegiance: Gloomspite Gitz – Option: Jaws of Mork – Grand Strategy: Show of Dominance – Triumphs: Inspired
Leaders Loonboss on Giant Cave Squig (110) – General – Moonclan Stabba – Command Trait: Envoy of the Overbounder – Artefact: Syari Screamersquig
Battleline 10 x Squig Hoppers (180) 10 x Squig Hoppers (180) 36 x Squig Herd (480)* – Reinforced x 2 12 x Squig Herd (160)** 12 x Squig Herd (160)**
Units 10 x Boingrot Bounderz (210)* – Reinforced x 1 10 x Boingrot Bounderz (210)* – Reinforced x 1 6 x Sneaky Snufflers (75) 6 x Sneaky Snufflers (75) 1 x Marshcrawla Sloggoth (150) – Allies
It’s not going to chose first or second, has no magic, lacks the punch to get out of a wet-paper bag, and the battle tactics are difficult but who’s counting! It has 242 wounds, Squigs come back in my battleshock phase on a 4+, and if I can get the foot squigs into all quarters I get my Grand Strategy… this includes the ones that come back thanks to the FAQ:
Games Workshop, GHB FAQ (Sep-22)
So that’s a bit of a trick – I’ll be sure to make my opponents aware at the beginning of the game, as it’ll be my aim all tournament.
I’m hoping for 1 win, and to avoid being bottom Chump but the Gitz will be a challenge – Tune back next week to see how I got on!
The last of the normal marines… having painted 10 Terminators and 30 Space Marines I am now on the final stretch (before characters, Dreadnought and tank).
And what a final stretch… for these I cheated a little bit and bought a second box set.
Missile Launchers and Heavy Bolters
I selected these, because the Missile Launcher is iconic from the RTB01 box set and my first foray into Warhammer 40k, so long ago.
The iconic RTB01 box for the original plastic Space Marines
Missile Launchers
Missile Launchers with Sergeant
Heavy Bolters
Space Marines with Heavy Bolters (including Sergeant)
It was great to have a bit of a change following the 30 Tactical Marines and the weapons themselves are easy to paint – especially given the simple scheme for the Blood Angels. Fortunately Black and Red go together!
What’s Next
I am halfway through the Praetors and Dreadnought and they will hopefully be finished before an October trip to Warhammer World. Meanwhile I have also started my Land Raider Spartan – more on that later!
To say that the Age of Darkness box set is bursting with value, is doing it a disservice. With 40 Mark VIs, 10 Terminators, 2 Praetors, Dreadnought and Spartan Tank; it has got everything you need to have a fun game.
I’ve previously finished my Terminators, and have now completed the Sergeants for the Tactical Marines.
As there are 40 Tactical Marines the obvious answer is to build them as 4 units of 10 to give a good backbone of any army, but I picked up a box of missile launchers and heavy bolters… so I have 3 units of 10 Tactical Marines.
Unit 1
Tactical Squad, including Sergeant with Power Fist
Unit 2
Tactical Squad with Chain-Bayonets and Sergeant with Power Sword
Unit 3
Tactical Squad with Sergeant with Lightning Claw
I really enjoyed painting these models. They have enough detail to be Space Marines, whilst not having too much to paint… no trim! Of course they do have the studded shoulder pads which took a while to get right, but I batch-painted them so got used to it by the 40th Space Marine!
What’s Next
I have finished the Missile Launchers and Heavy Bolters, so the next article will show some pictures of those!
Book 7 in the Siege of Terra Series – by Aaron Dembski-Bowden
The Siege of Terra is reaching it’s climax, having been promised 8 books in the series although it does appear that book 8 will be in a number of parts! Such is the difficulty of writing an ending.
Echoes of Eternity from Black Library
From the book:
The walls have fallen. The defenders’ unity is broken. The Inner Palace lies in ruins. The Warmaster’s horde advances through the fire and ash of Terra’s dying breaths, forcing the loyalists back to the Delphic Battlement, the very walls of the Sanctum Imperialis. Angron, Herald of Horus, has achieved immortality through annihilation – now he leads the armies of the damned in a wrathful tide, destroying all before them as the warp begins its poisonous corruption of Terra. For the Emperor’s beleaguered forces, the end has come. The Khan lies on the edge of death. Rogal Dorn is encircled, fighting his own war at Bhab Bastion. Guilliman will not reach Terra in time. Without his brothers, Sanguinius – the Angel of the Ninth Legion – waits on the final battlements, hoping to rally a desperate band of defenders and refugees for one last stand.
Wow… how do you fit all that in? There are so many Primarchs still left on Terra or interacting with Terra, and there must have been a strong temptation to tell these stories, but Dembski-Bowden doesn’t – or rather he does, but through the eyes of others.
The book starts with a setting of the scene of war – which is essentially a series of short stories of those fighting. The author gives a superb view of the war, with pockets of soldiers fighting, tanks under attack, titan deaths and attacks on the Eternity Gate. These short stories bring the war to the gates, as the defenders (mostly Blood Angels) prepare and await their fate.
The second part is the attack itself, interspersed by the story of Vulkan and Magnus, and has the fight between the Blood Angels and Ka’Banda; and between Sanguinius and Angron. Meanwhile the Eternity gate is still under threat and the Emperor’s shield against the forces of the warp (The Neverborn) starts to weaken under constant assault.
It’s a great addition to the series – and my favourite one so far. We are approaching the end, and it’s great to have the iconic fights included but still see the battle and fighting from the view of more normal people — if ‘normal’ includes the Space Marines!
