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Hi, so long story short I've come back to the hobby after last playing during 3rd edition.

I've been buying units without much real direction and wanted to see if this list could at least hold up. I'm not looking to go uber-competative, but would be nice to attend a tournament and win a game or maybe two. Also looking for guidance on what next to buy.

Patrol Detachment

Regiment: Cadian

HQ

Tank Commander: Battle Cannon, Lascannon, Heavy Bolters - 195pts

Tank Commander: Executioner Plasma Cannon, Lascannon, Plasma Cannon - 192pts

Troops

Infantry Squad: Sargeant, Flamer, HW Team - Autocannon - 56pts

Infantry Squad: Sargeant, Flamer - 46pts

Elites

Platoon Commander: Plasma Pistol, Power Sword - 29pts

Platoon Commander: Bolt Pistol, Power Fist - 29pts

Fast Attack

3 x Armoured Sentinels - Autocannons - 120pts

Heavy Support

Leman Russ Battle Tank - Battle Cannon, Lascannon, Plasma Cannons

Battalion Detachment

Lambdan Lions

HQ

Lord Commissar - Bolt Pistol, Power Sword - 35pts

Lord Commissar - Plasma Pistol, Power Sword - 39pts

Tempestor Prime (Warlord) - Bolt Pistol, Power Fist, Kurov's Aquila - 44pts

Troops

5 Scions - Tempestor with Bolt Pistol, Power Fist, 2 Hot Shot Volley Guns - 58pts

5 Scions - Tempestor with Plasma Pistol, Power Fist, 2 Plasma Guns - 70pts

5 Scions - Tempestor with Plasma Pistol, Power Fist, 2 Plasma Guns - 70pts

Elites

Scion Command Squad - 4 Meltaguns - 92pts

Dedicated Transport

2 Taurox Primes - Both with Gatling Cannons, Hot Shot Volley Guns, Storm Bolters - 232pts

Super Heavy Auxiliary Detachment

Lord of War

Baneblade - 2 Heavy Bolter/Lascannon Sponsons - 452pts

Total - 1923pts

I'm aware it may not be optimised, but simply looking to make a coherent army out of what I have. Also aware I'm spending CP to bring detachments, but hoping the CP you get over the course of a game will help mitigate that.

Be gentle, I'm back after about 15 years out of the game, but open to all constructive criticism and suggestions, including what to buy next. Again, not going super ITC level, but would be nice to win a game or two in a local tournament.

Thanks!

Flamers in 9th will be different but in eighth they have been essentially useless in gaurd hands. Every army we face has some cheese to charge from 9+ range and make the charge, or is coming from out of line of sight, or similar. 9th may change this but in eighth, it was basically just "gaurdsman died before he could fire his flamer again."

Your list would be critically helped with the presence of a trio of astropaths -- one to cast malstrom up front with th etroops, and deny cover to a high priority target for their many lasguns, and two to make your baneblade astonbishingly hard to kill by giving it both -1 to be hit and +1 to save every round.

You could also get a lot of mileage out of the lambda lion specific warlord trait and warlord's relic, and instead of him being your warlord by default, make one of your cadian PC's warlord. He can carry the aquila, but now your own "extra warlord trait scion" (-1 cp) grants the lambdas a reroll of 1 just like a marine captain, and a 5++ invuln aura from the relic. This significantly helps your little scions force (with the 2 gatling cannon I think lambda is a VERY strong choice here) both to hit that critical melta shot when you need it and to maybe hang on a second roudn after the big drop. The weapon improvement for the tauroxes is a good choice here.

Baneblade can useone cp for its tank ace version of prepared positions, granting it a 1 better base armor save until it moves. That tank ace strategy can be augmented further iwth the 2 defensive astropaths (30 points total!) to give the thing -1 to be hit, a base effective armor save of 1+. Now carefully place it so it starts in cover, and it has a base effect armor save of ZERO after you buff it each round. Situational, but wickedly effective, and gives it a better chance ot fire a couple rounds instead of just one. Even better with an engenseer in the wings (another possible swap for one of the lord commisars)

My suggestion for the astropaths won't win you GT level games, most likely, but it will give you a trio of chances to deny enemy psykers, rather than zero, and some good utility spells to fire back, all for 45 points. By greatly enhancing the survivability of your big tank, you strech out the time the enemy is shooting it rather than your tank commanders, and when that happens, your defense astropaths shift their buffs onto the next most vulnerable vehicle or unit. In this way, you can get a lot more resiliance out of your gaurd armor than you have any right to expect in this crazy high kill game (where armor is not favored unless its got lots of invuln, and even then, usually dies.)

Stuff you may not "need" need.
2 heavy bolters on your command tank. They ain't killing armor and they ain't gonna make it an anti-horde asset. 16 points that you take away from the tank commander (which is a usually high priority target) means 16 points that survive and can give (for example) 2 grenade launchers and an autocannon to the squads.
Flamers. Not useful at all in 8, maybe in 9, but replace with something like gernade launchers to save 6 more points.

Two tauroxes with gatlings that get ap-1 is a decent little anti-horde strap on for your force, good show!

Sargents can carry bolters. Not a bad 1 point buy if ytou can find bolters

Anyway, if it were my list, I would probably swappo in 3 astropaths, 5 scions in another 5 man squad (or perhaps, a second tempest for one of the lord commisars, allowing me to add a second command squad with and an extra warlord trait / carrier of the aquila for a few cp.) Cadian troops get either a missle launcher, autocannon, or lasgun per squad to plink with rerolls, and leftover points (and redistributed weapons) make the scions teams carry a few extra specials.

Total comment is not bad for casual play, but in tournaments the tanks are a vulnerability -- you hvae the equivalent of 4 leman russ tanks that will lose you all your armor in about 2 roudns in a tournament at the slowest, unless you buff them and care for them carefully. Also, new terrain is likely to make direct fire tanks more vulnerbale to charges by melee units in ninth, and I can't advise on that very well.

As a reference point, my late eighth army is almost entirely scions (I use lambdas) so that part I understand. Note that putting 4 meltas in a command squad will leave you vulnerable to being killed on the drop by an auspex scan from marines and can make it very, very hard to use them. You may find yourself riding them forward in tauroxes rather than deepstriking as a result.

Thank you for the advices I really appreciate it! I'm going to get some astropaths. I've ordered some Bullgryns as well to see where they might be useful.

Unfortunately I've glued the Flamers and Heavy Bolter Sponsons. I might be able to convert the Heavy Bolters but otherwise I'll wait to buy more and learn to magnetize these things.

Anyway, thank you so much!