Although the ancient Legions of Chaos Space Marines aren’t often distinguished by their narrow-minded Imperial detractors, in truth they couldn’t be more different. The splintered Legions are all awful in their own unique ways, and millennia spent fighting for naught but the whims of the thirsting gods have only intensified their predilection for particular patterns of pugilism.The upcoming Codex: Chaos Space Marines gives each Traitor Legion its own tools to stand out among the rabble, including a Legion Trait, Stratagems, Warlord Traits, Relics, and even secondary objectives. To help you choose which of these raucous warbands you’ll ride to battle with, we’re taking a look at some of their stand-out options.
Black Legion
Although their colleagues might not agree, the Black Legion are the foremost power among the forces of Chaos. Their leader, Abaddon the Despoiler, demands nothing short of excellence from his fanatical Black Crusaders, ceaselessly drilling them in the devastating speartip assaults that earned their former Legion top-dog status during the Emperor’s own Great Crusade.
Word Bearers
As you might expect from the guys who started the whole ‘fall to Chaos’ trend, the Word Bearers are experts at channelling warp entities. The most strong-willed (or foolishly naive) of their kind can even rent out their body to powerful daemonic forces in an Exalted Possession, gaining unnatural strength… at the cost of maybe becoming a fleshy marionette for eternity.
Night Lords
Taking the example of their fallen Primarch, the Night Lords love nothing more than to creep into position before throwing a surprise party for their victims. This year’s gift? An outrageously bloody assault! While In Midnight Clad, these bat-eared terrors can use the shadows to weave between curtains of incoming fire – despite being eight-foot supermen.
Iron Warriors
Undisputed champions of breaking nice things, the Iron Warriors prize destruction of a more calculated sort than their warp-wracked cousins. These Masters of Demolition are a dab hand at drawing up mid-battle plans for dismantling all kinds of vital infrastructure – trust the former IV Legion to find a route to victory through the ruin of their enemy’s works.
Alpha Legion
Where many of the Traitor Legions are screaming berserkers or chanting demagogues, the Alpha Legion are subtle manipulators par excellence. Their battles are carefully planned, full of traps and schemes – and with the help of the Hydra’s Wail, a sorcerous jamming gadget sneaky enough to put Phobos kill teams to shame, they can shut down any enemy’s command structure.
Emperor’s Children
The Emperor’s Children, on the other hand, are all about being seen. These sinister sensationalists are true maestros in the art of combat, each a dark reflection of their Primarch’s obsessive perfectionism… and while their skills are immaculate, the Unbound Arrogance of their greatest champions can get them in serious trouble. Are you ready to gamble for greatness?
The Death Guard and Thousand Sons already have special codexes of their own – must be Primarch model privilege – but wherever could the World Eaters be? If you were following last month’s Warhammer Fest Online, you’ll have seen that Khorne’s favourite lumberjacks* have their own book coming, while Index Hereticus rules to tide you over are featured in this month’s issue of White Dwarf.
These Legions aren’t the only subfactions you’ll find in Codex: Chaos Space Marines – a certain leather-clad scientist is eager to throw open his laboratory doors, for one thing – and more previews from the new book are on their way, so sign up to the newsletter to get the latest reveals dropped right into your inbox.
* Red shirt? Check. Big axes? Check. It’s all coming together…