Andilus Greatsword's Great Company

(Needs major photo overhaul in the near future)

Full Army Photo

These photos are a little outdated now, I'll have to update them sometime.

Andilus Greatsword

I wrote these rules for a custom character thread, but decided that it is time to relocate them here to my army profile. He has been costed by 6th edition standards, rather than that of the Space Wolves Codex (by which standards he would be vastly undercosted).

Of all the Wolf Lords in the Fang, Andilus Greatsword is perhaps the most grim. His childhood is shrouded in mystery. All that is known is that his family was slaughtered in a raid. The young boy fled into the wilderness, only to reappear many years later, miraculously still alive and wielding a massive two-handed blade. As a young Fenrisian, he made a name for himself serving under a powerful tribal chieftain, Fremont, who he helped to conquer many of the surrounding tribes. He was recognized by the Wolf Priests for his ferocity in combat, unmatched martial prowess and unswerving loyalty - any other Fenrisian would have tried to kill his master and usurp his throne, but Andilus gave it no thought. Andilus helped Fremont to capture swathes of valuable land, affording his people a life of relative luxury... however, like so many things on Fenris, this was not meant to last. While Andilus' loyalty may have been unquestioned, other elements of Fremont's court were more treacherous, and the High Chieftain was assassinated. A bloody civil war erupted as the decadent empire crumbled scant years after its inception. Andilus fought to keep the tribe together, but was mortally wounded in the face of overwhelming numbers, as he cut down his final foe.

But this was not the end, merely the beginning. The Wolf Priests of Asahiem descended upon the expiring body, bearing it to the Fang and resurrecting him. Andilus was allowed to join the Space Wolves, an honour which he received with dispassion. After enduring the various tests of initiation, he was finally admitted to the Test of Morkai and drank from the Cup of Wulfen before being cast into the wilderness. The potency of the Canis Helix nearly overcame Andilus, and he drew dangerously close to succumbing to its bestial effects. However, he managed to wrestle against the animal inside and made his way back to the Fang, finally becoming a full-fledged Space Wolf as the last of the geneseed was implanted.

Andilus rose through the ranks quickly, and it soon became apparent that the fierce warrior was also a surprisingly skilled leader as well. In recognition of his talents, the chapter's Iron Priests recast his Fenrisian greatsword into a power weapon which would become his namesake. After a couple decades of service, he was admitted to the Wolf Guard, and then became Wolf Lord when his master was slain in battle by a Daemon Prince. Quiet and intractable when not at war, Andilus leads his men from the front, where he erupts into a fury that is terrible to behold.

However, behind his outer facade of grim stoicism, Andilus hides a dark secret - the curse of the Wulfen still prowls beneath the surface, waiting for a chance to rear its head. The curse has already claimed the life of Andilus' former Lord and he knows that if he cannot rein it in that it will claim him as well. The animal inside Andilus wants to be set loose, and it takes every ounce of strength to keep it at bay on the field of battle...

Wolf Lord Andilus Greatsword

Cost WS BS S T W I A Ld Sv 200 6 5 4 4 3 5 4 10 2+/3++

Type: Independent Character, Infantry

Equipment: Terminator Armour, Greatsword, Storm Shield, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman, Saga of the Bear

Rules: ATSKNF, Acute Senses, Counter-Attack, The Animal, A Glorious Death

Options: Andilus can take up to 2 Fenrisian Wolves at 10pts each. If Andilus is the warlord, then any Space Wolves units allowed to purchase a Mark of the Wulfen may choose a second model in the unit and give that model the Mark of the Wulfen for +15pts. Warlord Trait: Legendary Fighter

Rules:

Greatsword: Andilus earned his namesake from the unique sword that he wields in battle. Andilus' wields it with one hand, however it is so heavy that bionics have been fitted into his arm to take some of the weight away - surprisingly, the Wolf Lord is slowed very little by the extra weight. The Greatsword is a master-crafted weapon that counts as a frost blade. In addition, at the start of the assault phase, the player controlling Andilus can declare that he is weilding the Greatsword as a Thunder Hammer. If he does so, Andilus strikes at I1 as usual.

The Animal: Andilus is exceedingly aggressive, throwing himself headlong at opponents as he wrestles with the Curse of the Wulfen. He also gains +D3 Attacks on the charge, rather than +1 (however, he only gains +1 Attack when he Counter-Attacks). This bonus is lost during a disordered charge. A Glorious Death: If Andilus is reduced to 1 wound, he gains the Rampage and Feel No Pain special rules and re-rolls all failed To-Hit rolls as he attempts to bring as many enemies down with him as he can.

Icon of Andilus Greatsword's Great Company, the Night Wolf. This creature is said to be blacker than the night, hunting its prey mercilessly until dawn. It is said that the last thing its prey sees is the red of the Night Wolf's eyes before they are met with a violent end...

Unit Photos

HQ

My Wolf Lord (and first model), Andilus Greatsword. He started life with a storm bolter, but I recently clipped this off in favour of a storm shield. He used to die in close combat frequently, but since I gave him the storm shield he has much more staying power.

This, in my humble opinion, may be the best painted model in my Space Wolf army - Rune Priest Ellri Hraustr.

Here's a model I'm very proud of - the much-maligned Canis Wolfborn. I've only had the chance to use him a couple times thus far, but in both games I attached him to my TWC squads and he did amazing. In the first game he chewed through a maxed-out powerblob in a turn and a half, and in the 2nd one he killed about a dozen Space Marines single-handedly. Plus I painted him really well (by my standards anyway).

My various special characters. First, Logan Grimnar. Due to his high cost and conflicting role with Andilus, I don't tend to take him, but when I do he is awesome. Next is Njal Stormcaller - this guy just plain rocks. Every time I've used him he has caused a ton of damage and taken a lot of enemy fire (which otherwise would have been directed elsewhere). Definitely a favourite. Third is Ragnar Blackmane. I got him off Ebay, but his paintjob was so much better than my other models that I don't have the heart to ruin it. I haven't gotten a chance to use him nearly as much as I would like to, sadly. Fourth, we have Ulrik the Slayer. I didn't paint him either, but luckily his paintjob fits perfectly with my army. Unfortunately, his rules are underwhelming, so I haven't used him yet. Finally, we have Lukas the Trickster (who I should have put with my Blood Claws). I really like how I painted him as well, although his performance in battle has been hit-or-miss.

I recently got the power armoured version of Njal so I could run him in a Rhino if I wanted too (and for cheaper too). The model's pose is a little too rigid, but to be fair it is one of the oldest Space Wolf models still available.

When I first saw Arjac's model, I thought it looked kind of bland... until I saw it in person. Man, if Games Workshop continues to release new models as detailed as Arjac's, then I may just become converted to Finecast. Even better, he wasn't miscast at all. In combat, Arjac's a beast - totally worth his 188pt price-tag.

Here's a menagerie of units. First, we have my Iron Priest (he's really an Elite, but oh well). I have used this guy a grand total of once. Techmarines are pretty much useless, and they compete with some strong Elites choices. Secondly is my Venerable Dreadnought, the old Bjorn model. I typically run it as a Venerable Dreadnought, although if I have the points I may run it as Bjorn as well. Third is my Wolf Priest, dubbed "Ottoman". He is one of my most consistently well-performing models, although I haven't been running him as much lately since I began using Rune Priests more often. Finally, my old Rune Priest, converted from a Blood Angels Chaplain.

ELITES

My Wolf Guard Terminators. They're prohibitively expensive points-wise, but so much fun to use that I will usually justify it anyway.

If I have the points, these will typically be my third Elites choice (after Wolf Guard and the Venerable Dreadnought). I usually run them as a small suicide squad to kill backfield tanks.

Move over Wolf Scouts, there's a new Elite in town! That's right, I've got a Lone Wolf now, and man does he rock. Short story behind this one: I had some Space Wolf bitz left over, so I figured I'd make a Lone Wolf/Wolf Guard out of them, and then decided to test it out with a Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield combo... he killed a Chaos Lord with a Mark of Khorne and Daemon Weapon, a buttload of Chaos Marines and took a Vindicator Shell standing. I love this guy, and he's only 100 points with Fenrisian Wolves. At that cost, he can easily become a staple in my army. (Sorry for the poor image quality...)

TROOPS

My main unit of Grey Hunters, containing some of my first models.

My second unit of Grey Hunters. They are old 13th Company Grey Slayer models, some of my oldest models as well.

My newest unit of Grey Hunters. I love how they turned out, although they're still a WIP. I used to have 2 more units of Grey Hunters, but I sold them off because they were really shoddy-looking and I would never use them as a result.

My Blood Claws (with Wolf Guard leader). In the 5th Ed Codex, Blood Claws aren't very good in comparison to Grey Hunters, and as a result I very rarely run these models (although they are some of my best painted). When I have run them, they tend to be very underwhelming, especially if they don't kill their target on the charge.

FAST ATTACK

My Thunderwolf Cavalry. I usually run the center one as a Wolf Lord, if I have the points. The unit runs over 400pts for the 3 units (plus 2 Fenrisian Wolves), but when they hit they hit hard.

My Fenrisian Wolves. I love how cheap and expendable they are, if I'm tight on points I will often work these guys into a list to provide some quick support.

My Skyclaws and Whirlwind (which is actually Heavy Support). I've only run the Skyclaws a couple times, but they were extremely underwhelming for their cost. Plus, their Wolf Guard sergeant alone costs 63pts! To be fair, he performed fairly well, but they still are definitely not worth their cost. The Whirlwind is also extremely poor at its role, and often just gets run as a Rhino.

HEAVY SUPPORT

The Great Company's hardy Land Raider Crusader. My favourite Land Raider variant, although the hurricane bolters can be swapped with flamestorm cannons with ease.

All the Long Fangs in my army, grouped together. Most of them are WIP. I bought most of these for tournaments, although I've been taking 2 units of 5 missile launchers lately.

Performance (5th Edition)

Game Summit 2012 40k Tournament: 2 major wins, 2 minor losses (13th Best General, 19th Best Overall out of 40 participants)

Year Wins Losses Ties 2011 13 3 8 2012 10 6 7 TOTAL 23 9 14

Versus Wins Losses Ties Blood Angels 5 1 1 Chaos Daemons 0 2 0 Chaos Space Marines 3 0 0 Dark Angels 0 0 0 Dark Eldar 1 1 1 Eldar 0 0 0 Grey Knights 0 0 0 Imperial Guard 0 1 1 Necrons 1 0 0 Orks 2 1 0 Sisters of Battle 0 0 0 Space Marines 1 1 4 Space Wolves 0 0 0 Tau 0 0 0 Tyranids 2 0 1 Hybrid Armies (I like team games) 8 2 7

Performance (6th Edition)

Year Wins Losses Ties 2012 6 7 1 2013 7 7 0 TOTAL 13 14 1

Versus Wins Losses Ties Blood Angels 2 4 0 Chaos Daemons 0 0 0 Chaos Space Marines 1 2 0 Dark Angels 2 0 0 Dark Eldar 0 0 0 Eldar 1 2 1 Grey Knights 0 0 0 Imperial Guard 1 0 0 Necrons 0 0 0 Orks 1 1 0 Sisters of Battle 0 0 0 Space Marines 0 2 0 Space Wolves 0 0 0 Tau 1 0 0 Tyranids 1 2 0 Team Games 3 1 0

Performance (7th Edition)

Game Summit 2014: Best Sportsman, tied for 6th in Generalship (out of 26).

FDB 2014 Highlander Tournament: 2nd Place (out of... 6)

Year Wins Losses Ties 2014 10 3 0 2015 3 3 0 TOTAL 13 6 0

Versus Wins Losses Ties Blood Angels 0 0 0 Chaos Daemons 0 0 0 Chaos Space Marines 2 0 0 Dark Angels 0 0 0 Dark Eldar 0 0 0 Eldar 0 3 0 Grey Knights 2 0 0 Imperial Guard 2 0 0 Necrons 3 0 0 Orks 0 0 0 Sisters of Battle 0 0 0 Space Marines 2 0 0 Space Wolves 0 0 0 Tau 2 0 0 Tyranids 0 1 0 Team Games 0 2 0

Why I Started This Army

I first got interested in Warhammer 40,000 because of the Lord of the Rings battle game, but I didn't start collecting until my friends and I decided to start making our own armies. While most of them fell away from the hobby, I persevered and collected a ton of armies - in LOTR, I had over 100 troops of the forces of evil, in Warhammer Fantasy I had basic Lizardmen and Bretonian armies and in Warhammer 40,000 I had Space Wolves and Tyranids. But of all these armies, the only one I really stuck close to was the Space Wolves. They perfectly represented my taste in warriors and warfare, and so my collection grew and grew... until now it's ~8,000 points (holy crap!!!!). Since getting back into the hobby a few years ago I've been growing my Space Wolves slowly, instead shifting my focus to my Tyranids and Imperial Guard, but the Wolves are still, and will likely remain, my main army.

Also, my paint job is very unorthodox as well. When I started painting the models, I hadn't bought the Space Wolves Codex, so I didn't realize they were supposed to be painted a certain way (and not that it really matters to me anyway, because I really like their paint scheme the way it is). The entire army has been, at the very least, touched up from their original colours and now look far less amateurish than they did only a couple years ago. I've also bought a few new units of Grey Hunters to make up the bulk of my army - as you can see, the old minis are starting to look really rough from all the repainting so I figured it was high time to give them a rest... until I decide to do some paint stripping anyway.

If you liked this, then check out:

My Tyranid army - Hive Fleet Maliades

My Imperial Guard army - Raven Sword

My Lizardmen army - Andilus Greatsword's Lizardmen Army

Categories: Space Wolves Army Profile