The Solar Auxilia Battle Group is available to pre-order this Saturday, which will be the first time these elite soldiers join the ranks of plastic in the Horus Heresy.
The Solar Auxilia fought alongside the Legiones Astartes during the Great Crusade (and the subsequent civil war), supporting the Space Marines with vast Cohorts of infantry and a wide range of armour, from the nimble Hermes Light Sentinel to that rolling fortress we all know and love, the Stormhammer.
Despite their prolific presence during the Horus Heresy, some of these tanks may be less familiar due to the skew towards the actions of the Legiones Astartes. Our unbiased reporting, however, will put your size-based concerns to rest.
The indomitable Leman Russ is actually on the smaller end. Shorn of its 41st Millennium era sponsons and sporting a sleeker design with yards of trim that demands polishing before every engagement, this stalwart of the Imperial stable is dwarfed by the Malcador Heavy Battle Tank, but far more versatile.
The Malcador itself predates the Leman Russ design, created during the Age of Strife and (re)named after Malacdor the Sigillite. These mighty tanks are well known for their impressively deceptive speed on the battlefield, thanks to a powerful, if temperamental, drive system.
It’s not all fun and guns on the battlefield, though. The men and women of the Solar Auxilia are prepared to take every front by foot if need be, but the Dracosan Armoured Transport gets them right where they need to be with its capacity for 20 troopers. This versatile chassis can even forgo half this load to install a thundering Demolisher cannon.
The Auxilia Basilisk and Medusa specialise in opposite directions, adapting the Leman Russ chassis to carry either a massive Earthshaker cannon or a Medusa Mortar, respectively.
You can start your very own Solar Auxilia armoured company with the new Battle Group Army Box, which will be available to pre-order on Saturday. It contains a sturdy Leman Russ, a capacious Dracosan Armoured transport, two 10-man Lasrifle Sections, a Line Command Section, and an Aethon Heavy Sentinel.