Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Another thread, as I've been reading some Heresy books (Age of Darkness currently) and have an unpainted box of Calth sitting around. Been meaning to get into 30k as that's what a fair few local gamers are playing. I know I want to play either a loyalist legion -or- a loyalist faction of a traitor legion (Torgaddon Saul and Garviel Loken are pretty damn bad-ass). My questions to the brains trust are:

Which book do I need from Forgeworld? - Do I need the Legiones Astartes army list one and the one specific to my legion of choice, or can I get by with the generic army list book?

Which units from 40k are 30k compatible? - I feel this should be: A- All of them, but if anyone can shed light if 40k Rhinos, Preds and Dreads are compatible with the Heresy. Mainly want to retro-fit rhinos leftover from selling my BA. All dreads and vehicles are not blinged so stripping paint and redistributing them to another legion would work.

How good are heavy bolters? - I got into 40k from Dawn of War, way back when. I loved the heavy bolter as it just looked so cool to a younger me (and is still just as cool to an older me) and "feels" like it should be the heavy weapon of choice for a tac squad . Leading into this is are there any legions who make heavy bolters better/fluffy to take heaps? Not spam levels, but the plan is to field a squad of all HB toting marines.

Out of the following, which one should I commit to?

Loyalist SoH/Luna Wolves - I enjoyed reading Galaxy in Flames, the last stand made by the loyalist legions captures the futility and devastation of the Heresy
Imperial Fists- Gives me a reason to fight at Holy Terra, and if memory serves, the IF are the bolter/heavy bolter legion.
Ultramarines- Blue is easy to paint and well, Ultramarines. Plus Calth has transfers for them along with the UM fitting the Roman feel of the armour.
Blood angels- Used to collect in 40k, though I'm not keen on painting red.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Yo Dawg ! We heard you like bolters ! So we put bolters in ya bolters so ya could bolters in your bolters.

Ahem... Now, more seriously.

Ideally, you need both books. The first one for the general army list, the second one for the units, rules and rites of war specific to your chosen legion.

For the model compatible, many vehicules are pretty similar. Just make sure you have the correct weapon load out. For example, in my army, a regular CSM land raider could represent a spartan assault tank for the Word Bearers legion.

Heaby bolters are okay, but cannot be taken by regular tactical squads. Instead, they can be taken by heavy support squad and veteran tact squad.

Imperial Fists are THE bolter-heavy army. Their rules make their bolter useful as hell. Here's the link to their rules : https://1d4chan.org/wiki/Warhammer_40,000/Tactics/Space_Marine_Legion_List_(30k)#VII_Legion:_Imperial_Fists

And in case you didn't knew, this is the new Imperial Fists colour scheme, which is far easier to paint and way less damaging for the eyes :

It's an alternate scheme to the standard yellow.

Loken leading the loyalist Sons could be a pretty cool list.

Thanks for the reply, am leaning towards the Fists at the moment

So to play 30k, I'll need the 40k rulebook then the Legiones Astartes Army List book (Red, winged skull with dagger behind it) and the Crusade army list book (red w/ winged swords and lightning bolts).

1d4chan says tac squads are just bolters only, no special or heavy weapons at all?

Yes, these books.

Yep, Tactical can only use regular bolters. However, they can use the fury of the legion special ability, which allows them to shoot twice. And the minumum unit of them is 10 man and the maximum is 20 (if I remember correctly, maybe 15, not sure). Regardless, it's a lot of shooting attacks, especially at 12 inches with rapid fire.

40k kits that are compatible in 30k:

- Dreadnoughts (not ironclad) as 'Legion Dreadnought Talons'
- Rhinos, Whirlwinds, Predators, Vindicators
- Land Raiders (lascannon pattern) as 'Phobos pattern'
- Land Speeders
- Drop Pods
- Terminators
- Tech marines - and Thunderfire cannons make good quad-launcher Rapiers.
- Bikes & Attack Bikes - though you may need to change the armour of the riders.
- All mark 6 marine armour, especially if you're playing Raven Guard
- All mark 7 marine armour without an eagle on the chest, especially if you're playing Imperial Fists

 Warzoner wrote:
For the model compatible, many vehicules are pretty similar. Just make sure you have the correct weapon load out. For example, in my army, a regular CSM land raider could represent a spartan assault tank for the Word Bearers legion.

Given that a Spartan is considerably bigger than a Land Raider, and Land Raiders are already things in the 30k list, I'm not sure this would fly in many groups. You could just use that CSM Land Raider as..... a Land Raider!

Depends on what your group feel about counts-as I guess. Much like the use of Mk7 armour. Technically, it's possible that any Legion could have a company or two equipped with it, but people generally prefer Heresy armies to look different to their 40k armies!

There are some great conversions out there of people making Spartans out of two plastic Land Raiders, though!


.

My vote is for Luna Wolves for obvious reasons lol.
Seriously though their rules are fun and they have some great units. Also no one ever does wolves proper just SoH and that green is an eyesore.

 SpinCycleDreadnought wrote:
Thanks for the reply, am leaning towards the Fists at the moment

So to play 30k, I'll need the 40k rulebook then the Legiones Astartes Army List book (Red, winged skull with dagger behind it) and the Crusade army list book (red w/ winged swords and lightning bolts).

1d4chan says tac squads are just bolters only, no special or heavy weapons at all?

About the books: you need the first one you discribe (with the skull) in addition you need the one with the eye of Horus on it. (Legions of the AoD)
You don't need the Crusade Army list book (it only contains rules for the Solar Auxillia, Militia/Cults and Knights.

About heavy weapons: it is right you have neither heavy nore special weapons in Legion tactical squads.

About Armour: MK 7 is a no go for a Heresy armys as this pattern entered service at the very end of the Heresy. (the only existing MK 7 during the Heresy was carried by Garro)

Xantalora wrote:

 SpinCycleDreadnought wrote:
Thanks for the reply, am leaning towards the Fists at the moment

So to play 30k, I'll need the 40k rulebook then the Legiones Astartes Army List book (Red, winged skull with dagger behind it) and the Crusade army list book (red w/ winged swords and lightning bolts).

1d4chan says tac squads are just bolters only, no special or heavy weapons at all?

About the books: you need the first one you discribe (with the skull) in addition you need the one with the eye of Horus on it. (Legions of the AoD)
You don't need the Crusade Army list book (it only contains rules for the Solar Auxillia, Militia/Cults and Knights.

About heavy weapons: it is right you have neither heavy nore special weapons in Legion tactical squads.

About Armour: MK 7 is a no go for a Heresy armys as this pattern entered service at the very end of the Heresy. (the only existing MK 7 during the Heresy was carried by Garro)

Pretty sure Garro and the rest of the Knight-Errants wear Mk VI armor. Mk VII was used by a handful of Imperial Fists at the Siege of Terra if I remember right. Anyway with the Aquilas removed its not like the Mk will matter that much, though using Mk II-VI would be better.

 SpinCycleDreadnought wrote:


So to play 30k, I'll need the 40k rulebook then the Legiones Astartes Army List book (Red, winged skull with dagger behind it) and the Crusade army list book (red w/ winged swords and lightning bolts).

No, you need the Age of Darkness Legions Book https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/en-US/The-Horus-Heresy-Legiones-Astartes-Age-of-Darkness-Legions and the Age of Darkness Army List book https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/en-US/The-Horus-heresy-legiones-Astartes-Age-of-Darkness-Army-List

As said about the Crusade Imperialis Book has nothing to do with the Legions.

Thanks for the replies, everyone- late response as I had exams to do then knee surgery, Da Orky Doks made me good 'n' proppa.

I've ordered the Legiones astartes army list and age of darkness books so they'll hopefully arrive sometime soon.

Still haven't decided on a legion as yet. Haven't found an Imperial Fist scheme I like the look of on both troops and vehicles and after reading a load of Heresy novels, I have a bit of a desire to go traitor and paint word bearers. Blame Sor Talgron for that >.>

While I do want a loyalist legion, I have a niggling urge to go Traitor. Must be all the post-surgery idleness.

Do both loyalist and traitor. Most of it should be compatible, just convert a character or two for each section to give them their own story. That's what I would do anyways.

If you get book 6 (retribution i think) you can use the shattered legion rules, allowing for mix and match legions.

 Warzoner wrote:

And in case you didn't knew, this is the new Imperial Fists colour scheme, which is far easier to paint and way less damaging for the eyes :

That is not the "New" IF color scheme.

That is a Unification Wars veteran color scheme from the original Terran marines that fought with the Emperor before the Crusade. This is discussed in HH Book 3

Standard Imperial Fists are still:

That guy in black is a Veteran - veterans used black some times. And that particular guy, Gunther, is mostly black because of the War of the Howling Gyre (just read it in the book)

 teban wrote:
That guy in black is a Veteran - veterans used black some times. And that particular guy, Gunther, is mostly black because of the War of the Howling Gyre (just read it in the book)

As I said, veteran. The lightning bolts and castle are, specifically, the unification wars veteran symbols.

As far as I know, a veteran didnt really have to have fought in unification wars to be one. I was talking about black heraldry in general.

The lightning bolts are unification wars honours (as you said!) and the castle/tower identifies him as fortress defense

I had taken the black heraldry as unification wars veteran, also. Perhaps I was mistaken.

In any event, it still isn't the "New" IF paint scheme.

You can also paint them in whatever alternate scheme suits, took part in X scheme, where Y enemy forced them to change livery, which became a mark of brotherhood for that army group.

Or paint them however because it's your plastic

If you like Heavy Bolters and you have a BaC box I would recommend Imperial Fist too. And the black colour scheme is biutifuil, if you wish to take an alternative colour scheme.