The scale of conflict in the Horus Heresy is apocalyptic, and as innumerable warriors join battle across cratered plains and ruined cities, gigantic god-machines stride over them, void shields crackling as they return fire with unimaginable ordnance.
The Titan Legions would often square off against each other in the Age of Darkness, Princeps battling Princeps as these walking battleships try their best to outmanoeuvre their rivals. There’s even a whole game dedicated to such clashes – the exceptionally kinetic Adeptus Titanicus. It was also common, however, for these colossal war machines to fight alongside smaller allies, such as Cohorts of Solar Auxilia and Legions of Space Marines.
Each Titan is a walking fortress, though the Warlord is one of the most fearsome and flexible, and offers an abundance of weapon loadout choices for the discerning Princeps. Their Detachment card is appropriately bonkers, letting you tailor your Titan with a choice of delicious weapons. Whether you fancy the Belicosa volcano cannon, graviton ruinator, or conversion beam extirpator, you can load up and turn them on a mass of tiny troops.
On top of their size and terrifying armament, it’s the Void Shields that set Titans apart from Knights and other super-heavy assets. These powerful energy barriers create a crackling wall that renders Titans immune to small-arms fire, nullifying incoming attacks with an AP of less than -1.
Over the course of battle, sustained impacts to these shields will whittle them down – reducing their integrity by one level for each successful hit. In each End Phase, a Titan’s commander can attempt to reignite their shields, rolling a D6 for each level lost and gaining it back on a 4+. You’ll need concentrated fire to keep a Titan’s shields stripped, and ultimately destroy the god-engine.
Certain weapons have been specifically designed to overpower void shields – many of them wielded by Titans, appropriately enough. The carapace-mounted Vulcan mega-bolter arrays have the Shieldbane trait, allowing them to sunder these energy shields.
Weapons with Light AT cannot normally put a dent in a Titan’s shields. Shieldbane changes that, making them perfect for pulverising shields ahead of a killing shot with a truly big gun.
Towering Reavers, Warlords, and Warmaster Titans may be army-crushing behemoths, but nimbler variants such as the Dire Wolf Heavy Scout Titan are expert pickets that range ahead of their allies. They can spray down enemy engines with their Ardex mega-bolters, then unleash a powerful centreline weapon that’s tailor-made for tearing through a Titan’s superstructure.
Our next Legions Imperialis focus feature will look at how flyers provide lethal close air support with spectacular strafing runs in the Age of Darkness.