The Space Marine Legions of the First Founding make up the core factions and conflict of the Horus Heresy. In this article, our penultimate trip to the forbidden vaults of lore, we try to catch up with the swiftest of the Legions – Jaghatai’s V: The White Scars.
Introduction
“The V Legion were the pathfinders of the Great Crusade, ever in uncharted territory and far from the borders of the expanding Imperium, and oft forgotten by the chroniclers that followed in conquests wake… they were the swift blade that probed for weakness before a sudden and deadly strike, not the sledgehammer that some of their brother Legions had become.”
It has been a long and winding road, but we are nearly at the end of the Goonhammer Legion Overview series! In this penultimate installment, we’re casting our eyes over the last of the Loyalists in the archives – the White Scars. Swift, deadly, inscrutable, the V Legion always stood slightly apart from their fellow Loyalists, and it was wholly unclear when the Heresy began which side they would stand with. Thankfully for the Imperium, they stood with the Emperor, but it could easily have gone the other way.
Jaghatai Khan is a Primarch of peerless skill and tactical acumen, but he holds a unique status as the deliverer of the most epic burn in the history of the Heresy, taken from Scars by Chris Wraight:
“He wants to be left alone,” said Fulgrim. “To shoot off into the stars and hunt down xenos on those delightful jetbikes. They’re devilishly fast. I heard from a contact on Mars, Jaghatai, that you do strange things to your ships.”
The Khan shot him a heavy-lidded stare. “I heard you do strange things to your warriors.”
It’s barely believable that Fulgrim survived that one…
Background
“As the Emperor consolidated His hold on Terra and the surrounding worlds, the V Legion was among the first of His hosts to depart the Sol system…”
The White Scars are unique amongst the Legions. For many of their brother Astartes you could draw inter-Legion comparisons – by way of example, the Salamanders were, in many ways, akin to the Death Guard in their grim survivability in hostile environments, and the Iron Warriors and Imperial Fists (although they would never admit it) were two sides of the same coin. But the Scars stood apart.
Scouring the ancient texts of the shadow days of Old Earth reveals little about the White Scars’ origins, but it is clear they were one of the first Legions to fight in the name of the Emperor. Their gene stock was that of technomads – wanderers and walkers. They were a small force in those days, used to operating in discrete cadres and keep moving to chart the course ahead of His forces. The early V Legion, going then by various names such as the Blood Debt, Vanguard, or Grey Ghosts, were well-used to operating behind enemy lines, entirely cut off and without substantial support. This could be frustrating for other commanders, as the V Legion often acted in accordance with their own whims as opposed to bending to a wider battle plan, but the Emperor allowed a certain leeway for them which ultimately paid dividends. As the Unification Wars ended, the Legion was split into so-called “Pioneer Companies”, who were set coursing along the stable warp-currents emanating out from Sol to track and chart pathways for the wider Crusade. They found innumerable worlds and systems of value, truly blazing the trail for Humanity. It is not without some irony that Cthonia, where Horus Lupercal would be found, was first identified by one of these Pioneer Companies, who initially marked it out for destruction, before the Emperor intervened.
For decades the V Legion continued in this way, fighting a “lonely piecemeal crusade” as isolated units, as opposed to any sort of cohesive Legion. This was quickly perceived as unsustainable and while the V would never admit it, they were slowly being ground down to powder, small pockets of Astartes fighting and dying apart from one another. And then, the Khan was found.
Jaghatai fell onto Chogoris – also known as Mundus Planus – a world characterised by horse-tribes of nomadic raiders and scavengers. Jaghatai was adopted by one of the chiefs – or “Khans” – of a tribe, and swiftly led his people to conquest after the untimely slaying of his adopted father by a rival clan. His subjugation was uncompromising and absolute, raising up those who submitted and crushing those who resisted, sweeping away even the settled states. Soon, Chogoris was in the hands of the Khagan – the Khan of Khans. Jaghatai’s meeting with the Emperor of Mankind was, in comparison with some of his brothers, relatively understated. His private journals indicate he saw the benefits of a united Imperium to mould his relatively disunited people. The Khagan asked simply one thing – good treatment for his people on Chogoris, and then he would fight for the Imperium. The Emperor agreed.
Coming from a primitive background, the Khan found he had to learn quickly to get to grips with the technology and equipment of the modern Imperium, and he was not given the benefit of a lengthy induction as some of his brothers had. Other Primarchs, such as Guilliman, protested at this, urging the Emperor to give Jaghatai the thorough education they had received. The Emperor, for His own reasons, refused, and handed over the full authority of Legion Master to the Khagan, to let him do with it what he willed. The Khan began by gathering the Pioneer Companies, a process which took over a decade, while training up a new Chogorian core for his Legion. The first gathering at Chogoris was an uneasy one, the original Terran recruits looking warily at the Chogorian Astartes. There, the Khan urged them to embrace their differences but recognise from that day onwards, they were a new brotherhood – the White Scars, loyal to the Khagan, and to each other.
From there, the Scars went to work. A scouring campaign in the Kolarne Circle was begun, pitting the nascent Legion against hordes of foul xenos and renegade human outposts. The Khan’s choice of world was deliberate – he knew the Kolarne Circle could only be conquered by his men working together, forging themselves into a brotherhood. Jaghatai led every assault he participated in, and soon the V found themselves unified into a single blade – a horde of laughing killers rushing to the forefront of the Crusade, and “unmatched in the sheer impetuous fervour with which they made war.”
And make war they did.
During the Heresy
“… In these final years of the conquest there were fewer wild spaces for the White Scars to make war as they liked. They were becoming obsolete, unnecessary to the empire that was to be; the Khan of Khans knew it and it made him restless…”
The White Scars were unusual amongst the Loyalists, in that their Primarch had a close personal affinity with those brothers who fell – particularly Magnus the Red and Horus Lupercal. Indeed, the Khan felt it was a personal failing of his that he did not attend the Council of Nikaea to argue side by side with the Crimson King to preserve the Librarius. Instead, he had been ordered by the new Warmaster to fight the Orks of Chondax, and had obeyed without question.
On Chondax, the White Scars had found themselves bogged down, with the majority of the Legion embroiled in bitter combat against the Xenos. There, they received reports of the Burning of Prospero, but the news was that Russ had turned traitor, not Magnus. The Scars were uneasy, cut off at Chondax by roiling warp storms, receiving conflicting reports from Dorn to return to Terra, but these were alongside tales of Ferrus Manus going rogue and slaying Fulgrim. It was not clear what to believe. The Khan eventually gathered his fleet, and found himself encountering the Alpha Legion and the Space Wolves at the Alaxxes Nebula; the Alpha Legion had been waging a shadow harrowing to whittle and wear down the Scars on Chondax. The Khan refused to assist the Wolves as they were harried by the Hydra’s servants, but eventually the Alpha Legion openly turned on the V Legion, cementing the Khagan’s view that, at least, the XX were an enemy, even if it was not clear who the enemy was. Escaping from Chondax in a daring fleet action, the Khan journeyed to Prospero, finding the bleak truth of the Heresy on its blasted surface. But there was a darker truth to come – a split within the Scars, as the Terran-born Legionaries saw fit to throw in their lot with Horus Lupercal, and attempt a coup. This failed, and the Khagan was forced to banish large quantities of his forces as Sagyar Mazan.
The Khan would eventually – clashing with Mortarian and journeying through the Webway in the process – reach Terra, and be there for the Siege.
Legion Special Rules
The rules for the White Scars are found in Book VIII: Malevolence. This is separate from many of the other Legions, as the White Scars are a Legion with relatively new rules. They focus, as you might expect, on fast movement, Bikes and Jetbikes. It is rare to see a Scars force with Infantry who are not in some form of transport.
- Swift Action: On any turn in which a unit with this rule ends its Movement phase at least 6” – or 12” if it is a Bike or Jetbike – from the point it began the Movement phase, it can then re-roll all failed Wound rolls of “1” with all attacks until the start of the White Scars player’s next turn.
- The Eye of the Storm: If you have a Warlord with Legiones Astartes (White Scars), you get +1 to Seize the Initiative, and to the first Reserves roll made on each turn.
- To Laugh in Death’s Face: If your Primary Detachment is Legiones Astartes (White Scars), you cannot have more Heavy Support choices than Fast Attack choices, unless you are playing a Zone Mortalis mission.
- Born in the Saddle: All models with the Legiones Astartes (White Scars) rule which are on Bikes or Jetbikes have the Skilled Rider special rule (automatically passes Dangerous Terrain checks, and +1 to Jink rolls).
These are a very potent mix of rules, but require the right units to exploit them.
It is obvious – and if you know anything about White Scars, this won’t be a surprise – that Bikes and Jetbikes really get the lion’s share of the benefits here, particularly with Born in the Saddle giving 3+ Jink saves. Hussar and Sky Seeker squads are cheap non-compulsory Troops choices which are worth a look, over the traditional Outrider and Scimitar squads, as they can allow you to play around with the restrictions in To Laugh in Death’s Face.
Obviously you will want to be moving a lot to take advantage of Swift Action. Re-rolls on all Wounds of 1 is devastating in the right hands – Heavy Bolters from Scimitars, followed by a charge, for example. Golden Keshig lance strikes also come to mind. This works for your Infantry as well, so keep on the move with Terminators and the like, and try to avoid Difficult Terrain which could mean you struggle to make the requisite 6” move.
Eye of the Storm is also a nice benefit – remember the Reserves bonus, as if you play it sensibly you can get an almost-guaranteed reserve unit come in on Turns 2 and 3.
Legion-Specific Wargear
The White Scars’ Wargear is some of the best in the game for all-round benefits, in my view – and really beg for some amazing conversions!
- Legion Space Marine Shamshir Jetbike – A “rare variant” of the traditional Scimitar Jetbike, the Shamshir is unique to the White Scars Legion. An Independent Character which has access to a Scimitar can take a Shamshir instead for the same points cost. The +1 Toughness and 2+ Armour Save benefit carries over, and the unique difference for the Shamshir is that it has a Scatterbolt Launcher – essentially a Flamer template which has Shred and Pinning. This is interesting, but given you will be doing a lot of Jink rolls more often than not (meaning you can’t fire it), the Scimitar might be a more reliable bet. The bike model (the Golden Keshig use one) looks great though.
- Power Glaive – Based on ancient polearm technology, many of these are genuine polearms which have been retrofitted to become power weapons, which is an awesome concept. They can be taken for +25pts for any character who can take a Power Weapon, and are well worth it. If wielded Two Handed (so no bonus attack for two weapons) they are +1 S and AP 2, otherwise they are basic AP3 Power Swords. The AP 2 on Sergeants and the like at initiative is really dangerous. Take as many of these as you can.
- Cyber-hawk – This is such an evocative visual, and I can see sales of the Inquisitor Coteaz model going through the roof on the back of this alone. A Cyber-hawk is a small token placed at the beginning of the White Scars player’s turn, and is moved at the beginning of every turn if you wish. It can be placed anywhere on the table it can physically sit. Any Infantry unit with Legiones Astartes (White Scars) shooting at an enemy unit which has one or more models within 6” of the Cyber-hawk can re-roll failed Hits of 1. If they assault such an enemy, they can re-roll the charge distance. When you combine this with Swift Action, it is gobsmackingly good – effectively free Preferred Enemy and Fleet all in one. Praetors can take one for +10 pts – an auto-take if there ever was one.
Legion Rites of War
The V Legion have two Rites of War – the Chogorian Brotherhood and The Sagyar Mazan. The latter is quite an unusual Rite, as we detail below.
The Chogorian Brotherhood
This is a very “traditional” way of waging war for the White Scars, and is probably the image conjured when you think of this Legion – a body of Legionaries mounted “entirely on fleet warbikes and Scimitar jetbikes, or in other transport vehicles” who deal in “lightning strike warfare.”
If you run this Rite, you must have the Warlord on a Bike or Jetbike, and all compulsory Troops must be Skyhunter or Outrider units. You cannot have more than one Heavy Support choice, and if you lose all of your Jetbikes and Bikes, the opposing player gets an automatic +d3 Victory Points.
These are not really that onerous in terms of restrictions – if you lose all your Bikes as a White Scars player you are probably in trouble anyway, and you aren’t going to be loading up on Heavy Support in the first place!
The benefits are that Skyhunters and Outriders become scoring Troops – which is brilliant given their speed and agility. You also get Lightning Strike, which is outrageous. Bikes and Jetbikes get Hit & Run, as do any Infantry without Heavy, Salvo or Ordnance weapons (they also get Outflank). If an Infantry unit has a Heavy Salvo or Ordnance weapon, they still get Outflank.
If an Infantry unit starts outside of a Transport, or any vehicle with more than 3 Hull Points without the Fast rule, it must also be in Reserve.
Think about this for a minute. Outflanking infantry in transports is deadly – even Tactical Squads can bring force to bear if they appear behind enemy lines. Veteran Squads become very dangerous with Outflank and Hit & Run, as Weaponmasters or Machine Killers can appear in unpredictable places and strike. Terminators in Land Raiders with Outflank anyone? And that is before your Bikes become impossible to pin down – Hit & Run out of combat on their turn, shoot them, re-charge…
Oof. This is a deadly Rite in the right hands. I have seen people on the receiving end of it, and unless you know what you’re doing when facing it, you’ll be left dead on the grasslands!
Sagyar Mazan
This is an odd Rite as you can only use it if you are taking a Shattered Legion. These are, frankly, quite rare and often “narrative only”, so in practice you rarely (if ever) see this at events or similar.
Nevertheless, to look a bit closer at it, a Sagyar Mazan detachment is essentially a penitent crusade, or a penal force – White Scars who have been disobedient, or failed in their task, exiled to seek a noble death. They are Loyalist only, and cannot have more vehicles than Infantry.
The bonus you get is Serpent’s Eye – Fearless on the first turn of any assault, and the very unusual Death Seekers. This latter rule means at the end of any game which uses Victory Points, you roll a D6 for every Legiones Astartes (White Scars) unit which has been destroyed and yielded Victory Points to your opponent. On a 4-5, no Victory Points are in fact awarded, and on a 6, the owning player gets 1 Victory Point. Nasty! It means you can, in theory, give the White Scars player a beating, only to find you’ve somehow lost… true Heresy!
Legion Special Units
The swift V Legion have a nice range of special units, with some excellent models, and they aren’t all Bikes!
The Golden Keshig
The Golden Keshig are “among the most prestigious of the White Scars main combat units” – “heavy assault jetbike squads” with “superlatively skilled” riders wielding deadly weaponry. They are intended to disrupt the enemy lines with a charge and sow confusion, to give the advantage to their fellow Legionaries which follow. 160 pts get you 2 Riders and a Champion, with +40 pts for up to 3 more Riders (so a maximum squad size of 6). They are basic Marine stats with WS 5, and the additional Toughness and 2+ save a Shamshir Jetbike affords. They all come with Hit and Run, which segues brilliantly with their signature weapon – the Kontos Power Lance. This is a really fun weapon. Normally it is merely an AP 4 melee weapon with only 1 Attack. But how does that work? Well, it uses a different profile on the turn the Golden Keshig charge… on that turn, it becomes S 7, AP 2, Sunder, Murderous Strike and Concussive, at Initiative 10. Hoo boy!
While you have a very small number of attacks with these (a maximum of 6), they are seriously heavy hitting strikes, particularly with Sunder giving them decent odds to crack up to AV 13 armour. You have to be very precise with these, and only ever strike on your terms, but if you get it right, you can paste through enemy formations and Instant Death enemies such as Mechanicum. If you want a bit more “reliability”, a Thunder Hammer for +20 pts on the Champion and/or Melta Bombs on the whole squad for +25 pts are not bad options to take either.
Also, the models are great.
The Ebon Keshig
Another strong set of models from Forge World, with the nice “samurai”-style leg-armour and power glaives. The Ebon Keshig are Kharash, White Scars condemned to a “ritual post of atonement and redemption” where they have to try to make up for past sins. Terminators were not popular with the White Scars, but the Ebon Keshig often made use of it as they tried to erase their mistakes in the front lines of battle.
On the tabletop, 225 pts get you five Kharash, with +45 pts for additionals (up to a squad of 10). They are basic Terminators with Power glaives – and note that they can be Cataphractii or Tartaros. They also have Feel No Pain (5+), Stubborn, Chosen Warriors, Support Unit and are The Kharash – they cannot be scoring units, but also never yield Victory Points. They also cannot be joined by models who are not also Kharash. Their upgrade options are relatively limited – you can swap the Power glaives for a combi-bolter and Power weapon for free (don’t bother), or for a combi-bolter and Power fist for +10 pts (worth having maybe 2 in the unit), as well as things like combi-weapons and Grenade harnesses.
Overall, these are interesting units but will require thought into how you want to use them. On the charge, you are getting a strong set of attacks at AP 2 at Initiative (potentially with re-rolls of 1 to Wound if you use Swift Action), but you have to deploy them properly. A Phobos or an Anvillus is an obvious choice here. I wouldn’t overspend on these, as they are relatively slow compared to the rest of your force.
The Falcon’s Claws
Now these are a really interesting squad – quite unique, in fact. There are, sadly, no models currently available, but a number of cool conversions are floating around online. The biggest issue with converting these is the dearth of recon armoured models in plastic and resin – a lot of those are just the old monopose scouts.
Anyway, these guys don’t really have a parallel in any other Legion. You start with 5 men for 90 points. They’re in Recon armour, so bear in mind while you have normal Marine stats, it is a 4+ save. They do come, however, with Cameleoline (giving them Stealth), Shroud bombs (Defensive Grenades), and a pair of Lightning Claws. This combines with Move Through Cover, Precision Strikes, Hatred (Characters) and their signature ability Outriders. Outriders gives them Scout, but allows an 18” redeploy using it, as long as you are more than 12” away from the enemy. This is huge – you have a deadly combat unit (3 A each on the charge with Shred and AP 3), which is hard to charge, has a good cover save, is extremely mobile, and can be forward deployed, for very cheap (+16 pts a model). Their upgrades are so-so (generally quite expensive), except for the Cyber-hawk (a must take for +10 pts) and potentially melta bombs for a flat +20 pts. Also remember Hatred (Characters) carries into the unit if a Character is present.
I would think a squad of 10 of these could find their way into any Scars force, given they are not that expensive for what they do. I think, however, I haven’t seen much of them on the tabletop simply as they don’t have model support, which is a real shame.
White Scars Kyzagan Assault Speeder
The White Scars are unusual in that they have a unique vehicle – a special land speeder designed to be a “heavy” support platform that can still keep up with the main force. The Kyzagan is a Javelin (12/11/10 2 HP) for 105 pts, with the same native rules of Outflank, Strafing Run and Grav Backwash with the option to Deep Strike. So far, so good. The bonus comes from the weapons – this speeder comes armed with a Kheres Assault Cannon and two Reaper Autocannons. This is a really nice, hard-hitting gun platform. You won’t be able to take out heavy armour, but it will rip apart opposing light armour, and land a lot of wounds on infantry squads (some of which Rend, but mostly AP 4). Don’t rely on them for the heavy lifting, but a squadron of 2 is always worth it for the side/rear armour hunting with Outflank. Take 2 hunter-killer missiles for +10 pts.
Legion Special Characters
Qin Xa – Master of the Keshig, Chosen of the Khagan
Qin Za is “an exceptional warrior even before he became a White Scar”, and a childhood companion of Jaghatai. He is thought of by the Khan as one of the most formidable warriors in the White Scars Legion, which is saying something given the Scars were known for their hand-to-hand skills. Qin Xa was unusual amongst his brothers for preferring use of the relatively cumbersome Terminator Armour, and would head into battle clad in Tartaros plate.
Qin Xa has a Praetor statline with 4 W and Tartaros armour, an Iron halo, Grenade harness, and wields The Tails of the Dragon (below) for 220 pts. He comes with a lot of special rules – Counter-Attack, Furious Charge, Master of the Keshig and Chosen of the Khagan for a Warlord Trait. The latter Trait gives a single automatically passed Reserves roll (or an automatically failed one, if you prefer) once per game, which is a nice bit of tactical flexibility. The Master of Keshig allows him to take a Terminator bodyguard to represent the Keshig, who can take power glaives for +10 pts, who must be deployed with him. A nice little rule, given the Ebon Keshig have the Kharash rule so can’t normally join him. The Tails of the Dragon are nifty swords – twin blades gifted to him by the Khan. You have two weapons, and choose one to use when in Assault. Split the Mountain is S 7, AP 2 Unwieldy and Master Crafted (a pseudo-Power Fist), and Part of the Horse’s Mane is S 5 AP 2 Precision Strikes, Master-crafted (a pseudo-Paragon Blade). This is nice, and gives you some flexibility, but you cannot ignore the fact that Qin Xa does not have native Instant Death (unlike many basic tooled up Praetors) unless he’s charged that turn and used Split the Mountain (becomes S 8). So just bear that in mind, and pick your battles.
Tsolmon Khan – Champion of Byrfrust, The Hammerhand
Tsolmon Khan has absolutely awesome artwork in the book – look at that picture! He was known as an absolutely enormous Legionary, even amongst Legionaries, and highly educated and poetic. In battle, he wielded a devastating Thunder Hammer and on Chondax (as outlined in Book 8: Malevolence) he earned the undying loyalty of the Sisters of Silence in the Battle of Byfrust.
On the tabletop, Khan is a Praetor statline with 2+/4++, a Master-crafted thunder hammer, combi-melta and the option to take a Scimitar jetbike for +30 pts (he is 180 base). The jetbike is something to seriously consider, as he is a combat monster and it allows you to pick battles well. If he is your Warlord, he has Inspiring Presence, and he always has The Hammerhand ability – when he charges, he can swap all his attacks for a single I 5 Thunder Hammer strike – akin to the awesome ability of Eidolon. The unique thing about Tsolmon, and why you might not use him on a jetbike, is his ability Ally of the Silent Order. If you take him on foot, he can buy an Oblivion Knight-Centura as part of his unit for +75 pt, who can split off during the game. Khan ignores Psychic Anathema, and can get +1 A if he uses Glorious Intervention in a Challenge to protect a Sisters of SIlence character (which adds +1 to his Hammerhand ability). Fun, and fluffy! A great modelling opportunity.
Jaghatai Khan – Khagan of the White Scars, the Warhawk, Master of the Ice-blue Heavens, Primarch of the White Scars
“The unexpected storm, a sudden and devastating gale that came and went as it pleased.” Apt words to describe the Khan of Khans. Jaghatai is a force which cannot be leashed, and for a time it was unclear which side he would take in the internecine strife of the Heresy. Ultimately he stood by the Emperor, and the Imperium was all the better for it, but few could claim to truly understand Jaghatai.
The Khan has, uniquely, two profiles, and at the time of writing will be the last Primarch to get a model. You have the Khan Afoot, and the Khan Mounted. Afoot, he is 395 pts and the usual Primarch statline, save for WS 7 and I 8. Mounted, he is a whopping 460 pts, and becomes I 7 but T 7, and is a Jetbike. His rules and gear are otherwise the same, save for when he is Mounted he becomes Extremely Bulky, swaps Crusader for Unmatched Rider, and has a Sojutsu pattern voidbike. More on that below.
Jaghatai is the Sire of the White Scars. This means he always strikes first before any other models in the first turn of a combat, but after Hammer of Wrath. If there is another model with an identical rule, you compare Initiatives as normal. When the Khan is in an army, all Legiones Astartes (White Scars) gain Scout. This is huge – it makes the whole army much more mobile and deadly. The Khan can also never be caught off guard as well.
He is The Bleak Wind, and the Lightning from Blue Skies. The former rule gives him and his unit Hit and Run (amazing when combined with his strike first ability, as you can cycle in and out of combats), and the latter means you do not roll for him if he is in reserves, you write down any turn after T 2 and he automatically arrives as per Outflank, but you pre-determine the table edge. Very nasty, and gives you a lot of flexibility. When on his voidbike, as you would expect, he is an Unmatched Rider – automatically passing Dangerous Terrain tests, and getting a 3+ Jink save (amazing to protect against plasma).
Looking at his equipment, the Khan wears The Wildfire Panoply, giving him a 2+/5++ normally, and a 2+/3++ in close combat (including Overwatch). It also gives him Move Through Cover. This means you want to have the Khan (as you would expect!) up close to the enemy and plowing into as many combats as possible. He wields The White Tiger Dao, a nice weapon which is S +1 AP 2 on the charge, and otherwise just AP 2, with Duellist’s Edge and Master Crafted. Nothing super special, but it gives him an edge and segues well with his high I and WS. He also has an Archaeotech pistol. Finally, if you take the Khan Mounted, you get the Sojutsu Pattern Voidbike, more of an “ultralight fighter craft” instead of a jetbike! It gives him +1 T and the Jetbike (Character) rule, with D3 Hammer of Wrath and two master crafted heavy bolters.
Overall, a puissant and deadly warrior, who can pick his battles and cleave through the enemy. Give him a nice jetbike or Tartaros escort and let rip.
Sample Army List
The White Scars are “traditionally” a low model count army, but they suffer from these being expensive models in terms of real-world price, and time consuming to paint and convert, as well as transport. White is also not that easy to paint!
If you want to do Scars though, you will already have come to terms with all of this. So, lets look at an army list for them. Note, Scars can take Dreadnoughts, but generally their fluff leans away from it, so I am going to skip over the traditional Contemptors I recommend in 1,500 pts.
Rite of War: Chogorian Brotherhood
- HQ – Praetor with Jetbike, Cyber-Hawk, Iron Halo, Master-crafted Paragon Blade, Digital Lasers
- Troops – Jetbike Squad – x5 men, Power Glaive Sergeant, Melta Bombs
- Troops – Jetbike Squad – x5 men, Power Glaive Sergeant, Melta Bombs
- Troops – Outrider Squad – x5 men, Power Glaive Sergeant
- Fast Attack – x3 Kyzagan Assault Speeders with x2 Hunter-Killer Missiles
- Heavy Support – Sicaran with Heavy Bolter Sponsons, Dozer Blade
This is not a cheap list to get off the ground, but will form a great core of any army which can be added to. You use the Jetbikes and Outriders to push and threaten the enemy, with the Kyzagan using Outflank to devastate enemy armour or heavy infantry. The Sicaran is used to take down enemy jetbikes and fast-movers.
Remember, all your Jetbikes have Heavy Bolters. You may be using Jink a lot (and therefore Snap Shooting), but that is a lot of very maneuverable, medium-range firepower to hurl downrange at Tactical squads and the like.
To expand the list, bulk out the Jetbike squads, add some HQ, and perhaps more Fast Attack. Golden Keshig could be a great choice.
Strike Hard, Strike Fast, and leave the enemy in your wake
The White Scars have a lot of unique features as far as Legions go. They have some of the best models in the Heresy range, and can make some amazingly fluffy forces which will look striking on the tabletop. Next time, we reach the end. The Alpha… and the Omega. An article full of abject lies awaits you, as we’ll be looking at the Last Legion – the Alpha Legion.
“For the Emperor, and the Khan!”
Have any questions or feedback? Drop us a note in the comments below or email us at contact@goonhammer.com.
