40K Deep Thought: Can Xenos Please Get Some Lords of War
A lot of xenos armies need Lords of War. Let’s take a look at who need what.
After 3 years of 8th Edition – big models are here to stay, and outside the ridiculous class models like Titans and the Manta, the in-codex Lords of War are the big sticks of the tabletop. They are big enough to dominate the game, but not so pricey or ridiculously sized as to make them rare occurrences. Looking around the game (and discounting Forge World) we get tons of Lords of War from most of the game’s important factions – as plastic kits in the codex:
Space Marines …Roboutte
Imperial Knights – All of Them
Astra Militarum – Baneblades & Friends
Chaos – Renegade Knights/Khorne Lord of Skulls/Daemon Primarchs
Xenos – The Lucky Ones
Movong onto the xenos we get a mixed bag. These factions already have some love, even if they may need some rules love:
Orks – Stompa
Necron – Obelisk/Tesseract Vault
Craftworld Eldar – Wraithknight
Tau – Stormsurge
Sir Can We Have Some More?
So who’s left. Let’s go over 4 more xenos factions that have gone without:
Tyranids
When you need a big bug that isn’t Forge World there is only one obvious choice:
Dominatrix
The Dominatrix is a Tyranid species which exerts a controlling psychic aura to bring lesser Tyranid creatures under its will, allowing the swarm under its command to operate with uncanny efficiency and tactical ability. However, a Dominatrix is extremely rare and only seen in the most advanced Tyranid swarms.
A Dominatrix possess a large array of Bio-weaponry and packs a colossal mass, dwarfing that of an Imperial Super Heavy Tank. It has an intelligence akin to that of a mighty Hive Tyrant, and the link it has to the Tyranid Hive Mind surpasses even the Hive Tyrant’s.
Genestealer Cults
This one is tougher. In theory they can take IG Baneblades, but it does’t feel right. Something much better would be a giant earth mover/mining machine to fit their aesthetic. Think of a giant upsized Goliath with an enormous wrecking ball or cutting blades on it. Basically this kind thing – all genestealered up.
Eat your hearts out Orks!
Dark Eldar
Again we have a choice. There are two ways to go with the Drukhari. You could either have a very large flyer/grav tank. Essentially an upsized Raider. Or I think a more creepy thing would be an enormous flesh creation of the Haemonculi Covens. Imagine if you will a hulking floating Talos/Cronos engine the size of a knight. Something the Haemonculi keep under wraps except for “emergencies”. It would also act as a horrifying tactical anchor for their hordes of flitting flyers and jetbikes to work around.
Now supersize to the size of a Knight! Add more tentacles…
Harlequins
This is the trickiest of them all as the Harlequins are an extremely fast mobile force. So nothing too bulky or unmaneuverable looking. Back in Rogue Trader Harlequins had flashy Dreadnoughts, so that’s a line we can follow. I’d say to use a slim walker – like the Wraithknight, with a Harlequin upgrade sprue. It’s manned by a living crew member, and is probably nimble enough to got through a lot of the Webway. Who knows, put a Solitaire in there and perhaps these are the dread Guardians of the Black Library.
Add checkers, and Harlequin weapons
~Who do you think should get a Lord of War first?
