Legiones Astartes – Legion Dreadnought Drop Pod
DEDICATED TRANSPORTS Developed alongside the more common Legion drop pod in general service, specifically-designed Dreadnought drop pods, such as the Lucius pattern heavy drop pod, are somewhat larger than the standard drop pods of the Legiones Astartes and have a more powerful engine, allowing for a dangerously meteoric descent to the battlefield. This serves to protect their cargo during approach and allow it to strike with unprecedented speed. The stresses involved, however, are such that only the heavilyarmoured and protected shell of a Dreadnought could hope to survive the descent and impact with the ground without being wrecked or pulverised. Dreadnought drop pods are still highly valued by many Legions, especially considering the attrition rate they commonly suffer in battle, while others inherently dislike the design, lacking as it does armament or the adaptability of more mobile, multi-role designs such as the Deathclaw pattern recently made available. | ||
- Legion Dreadnought Drop Pod 100 pts
| Armour | Transport Capacity | |||||||
| M | BS | Front | Side | Rear | HP | Base | ||
| Legion Dreadnought Drop Pod (base: Use model) | ||||||||
| Legion Dreadnought Drop Pod | - | 2 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 3 | * | Use model |
- 1 Legion Dreadnought Drop Pod
- A Legion Dreadnought Drop Pod has one Access Point on each side.
The Space Marines of the Emperor’s Legions are genetically engineered, psycho-indoctrinated warriors with superhuman abilities, and minds and souls tempered for war. Each of the Legions has its own idiosyncrasies and character – the product of their gene-seed and the unique warrior cultures fostered by their masters.
Any unit with this special rule will have a number of additional special rules and abilities specific to their ‘named’ Legion, all of which will be defined in other Horus Heresy – Age of Darkness publications. A Space Marine unit may only have one such ‘named’ rule, e.g., Legiones Astartes (Sons of Horus). Space Marine units from a different Legion may only be included in an army using an Allied Detachment and in conjunction with the Allies in the Age of Darkness chart.This datasheet has Dedicated Transports Battlefield Role. Full list of Legiones Astartes units sharing same Battlefield Role follows:
Orbital strike vehicles often mount sophisticated sensors to aid them in avoiding obstacles as they streak towards the battlefield. Those assigned to orbital assaults must rely on these systems to see them to the surface, for, given the sheer speed of their descent, no human pilot could hope to bring them safely down.
When deployed as the first model placed during a Deep Strike Assault, or other deployment that requires a model with this special rule to scatter, the distance the model scatters is reduced by half and if it scatters into Impassable Terrain or off of the battlefield then it is moved the minimum distance required to avoid such obstacles. In addition, if all units included in a Deep Strike Assault have the Inertial Guidance System special rule or are models Embarked on a model with that special rule then any rolls made to determine if the Deep Strike Assault is Disordered may be re-rolled.Many assault vehicles have doors designed to release via explosive bolts, allowing their passengers to disembark as swiftly as possible.
When a model with this special rule is deployed, any doors on the model must be opened to their full extent. All models Embarked within a model with this special rule must then Disembark immediately and no models can thereafter Embark within that model for the remainder of the battle. Any model that has Disembarked from a model with this special rule may not have a Charge declared for it in the same turn. The physical doors attached to a model with this special rule are not treated as part of the model once opened and cannot be targeted by Shooting Attacks and do not impede Movement in any way.Drop pods and other dedicated orbital assault vehicles are intended for one purpose only – to deliver warriors and equipment from orbiting spacecraft to battlefields on a planet’s surface. Once deployed they play little further part in the battle, serving only to support the onslaught of their passengers.
A model with this special rule must be deployed onto the battlefield as part of a Deep Strike Assault, or other deployment that requires the Deep Strike special rule. It may never be deployed as normal, regardless of any other rule or mission, and if forced to do so it is immediately reduced to 0 Hull Points and replaced with a Wreck (any models Embarked within must make an Emergency Disembarkation). Furthermore, a model with this special rule may never move – and if forced to do so is immediately reduced to 0 Hull Points and replaced with a Wreck (any models Embarked within must make an Emergency Disembarkation).Some units make their way to battle via tunnelling, teleportation, flying, or some other extraordinary means which allows them to appear in the thick of the fighting.
A unit made up entirely of models with this special rule may perform a Deep Strike Assault. Certain Faction or unit special rules may present other options for the deployment of units with the Deep Strike special rule.Some transports are specially designed to allow the massive frames of Dreadnoughts to be transported into battle; from drop pods intended purely for the delivery of these armoured behemoths from orbit, to more versatile transports that can either ferry warriors or Dreadnoughts into the fires of war.
A model with this special rule may transport a single model with the Dreadnought Unit Type with no more than 8 Wounds instead of any other models. A Dreadnought model may not Embark upon a model with this special rule if any other models are already Embarked on it, and while a Dreadnought model is Embarked on a model with this special rule then no other models may Embark.Only Infantry models can Embark upon Transports unless specifically stated otherwise. Certain special rules, notably the Bulky (X) special rule, may modify the Transport Capacity required for a given model to Embark upon a Transport, and this will be specified in the model’s rules. Sometimes, there will be constraints on which types of models can Embark upon a particular Vehicle, and this will be specified in the unit’s entry. Whilst Embarked upon a Transport, units gain the Fearless special rule and cannot be made to Fall Back or become Pinned while Embarked upon the Transport.
If the Vehicle moved before its passengers got aboard, it cannot move further that turn (including pivoting on the spot). If the Vehicle did not move before its passengers got aboard, it can move as normal after they have Embarked. In either case, a Vehicle cannot Ram in a turn that a unit Embarks upon it.
