December Detachment Review: Angelic Inheritors

When it comes to Blood Angels, it’s hard to say if you can make a detachment better than Liberator Assault. But I think GW came pretty close.

Let’s talk about the Angelic Inheritors detachment and why it’s pretty cool.

The detachment rule is Legacy of the Angel which lets you, in the first battle round, pick two of three abilities, they are:

Sanguinary Grace: Fall Back, shoot and charge.
Carmine Wrath: Re-roll 1’s for hit and wound.
Their Appointed Hour: Re-roll Advance and Charge rolls.

The two effects you choose apply to all character units. This is pretty crazy, I think you always pick the first two, but damn. It’s really good, there’s some cheap characters out there

Enhancements

These are all mostly fine but the tools you are given all help push the army to do what it wants to do: reach melee, and go sicko mode.

Prescient Flash: Models in the bearers unit get Scout 6″. Death Company just got a little bit crazier if you ask me. For 20 points, it might be a bit too expensive, but it’s worth a consideration in all lists. B+

Troubling Visions is 15 points and once per battle gives the bearers unit all three Legacy abilities. This is fine, for 15 points it feels like a throw away to gap fill when you have a unit you really want to make the charge. B

Blazing Icon is 20 points and makes your unit unable to be selected for overwatch. Pretty huge in a melee army and I will be taking it in every list possible. A+

Ordained Sacrifice: Is 25 points and gives your character a 2+ get back up after dying with 3 wounds remaining. As someone who pays 35 for this on an Autarch, this is always, always, always worth it if you put it on a high value character. Take this every game for the clutch moments. A+

Enhancements

Nothing here is going to blow your socks off, and only one of them is terrible. What you do have here is some very sufficient objective playing tools to make up for the loss of kill power you’d normally get from liberators.

Armor of Contempt exists here, it’s worse than it was with the dataslate. Womp womp.

Focused Fury gives your unit lethal hits in the fight phase, you also get lance if it’s a character unit. To be clear, you have to battleshock in liberator for the exact same effect. This is excellent. A+

Instant of Grace lets you make a model in a unit a character model, hence giving them all the benefits of Legacy and the downside that Assassinate exists. Which is both really cool design, a useful stratagem, and hilarious. It could be solid for that clutch fall back and charge you need last minute. A

Strike Now For Glory gives you Sustained Hits 1 in shooting. This kind of sucks who wrote this lmao, someone tell them this is a Blood Angels detachment. C-

In The Shadow Of Great Wings makes your unit unable to be shot outside of 18″. Turn one this helps your Sanguinary guard be a bit more aggressive. I don’t hate it, it’s pretty good, it’ll get used when you go second or need a clutch action monkey. A

Unto The Burning Skies lets you pick up a Jump Pack unit at the end of the fight phase outside of engagement range and put them into reserves. Unless you’re The Sanguinor, then you get to jump out of combat which is, frankly, a little crazy. I’m not a Sanguinor simp, not even close, don’t even own one, but this is really good for the first effect alone, but now you also get beat stick with extreme mobility. A+

Lists

We have Scotty Bee and Mr. Hudson coming in hot today. Both I’ve seen win events with these armies, so I’d say its a good pick today.

Scotty “I think I’m really funny” Bee’s List and Thoughts

CHARACTERS

Apothecary Biologis (90 points)
• Enhancement: Prescient Flash
• 1x Absolvor bolt pistol
1x Close combat weapon

Chief Librarian Mephiston (135 points)
• 1x Fury of the Ancients
1x Plasma pistol
1x Vitarus

Commander Dante (130 points)
• Warlord
• 1x Perdition Pistol
1x The Axe Mortalis

Lemartes (110 points)
• 1x Absolvor bolt pistol
1x The Blood Crozius

Lieutenant (65 points)
• 1x Heavy bolt pistol
1x Master-crafted bolter
1x Power fist

Lieutenant in Phobos Armour (55 points)
• 1x Bolt Pistol
1x Master-crafted bolt carbine
1x Paired combat blades

Lieutenant with Combi-weapon (70 points)
• 1x Combi-weapon
1x Paired combat blades

The Sanguinor (140 points)
• 1x Encarmine broadsword

BATTLELINE

Heavy Intercessor Squad (220 points)
• 1x Heavy Intercessor Sergeant
• 1x Bolt pistol
1x Close combat weapon
1x Heavy bolt rifle
• 9x Heavy Intercessor
• 9x Bolt pistol
9x Close combat weapon
7x Heavy bolt rifle
2x Heavy bolter

OTHER DATASHEETS

Death Company Marines with Jump Packs (240 points)
• 10x Death Company Marine with Jump Packs
• 5x Astartes chainsword
2x Eviscerator
6x Heavy bolt pistol
2x Inferno pistol
2x Plasma pistol
3x Power fist

Eradicator Squad (100 points)
• 1x Eradicator Sergeant
• 1x Bolt pistol
1x Close combat weapon
1x Melta rifle
• 2x Eradicator
• 2x Bolt pistol
2x Close combat weapon
2x Melta rifle

Hellblaster Squad (230 points)
• 1x Hellblaster Sergeant
• 1x Close combat weapon
1x Plasma incinerator
1x Plasma pistol
• 9x Hellblaster
• 9x Bolt pistol
9x Close combat weapon
9x Plasma incinerator

Reiver Squad (80 points)
• 1x Reiver Sergeant
• 1x Combat knife
1x Grapnel Launcher
1x Reiver Grav-chute
1x Special issue bolt pistol
• 4x Reiver
• 4x Combat knife
4x Grapnel Launcher
4x Reiver Grav-chute
4x Special issue bolt pistol

Sanguinary Guard (260 points)
• 6x Sanguinary Guard
• 4x Angelus boltgun
6x Encarmine blade
2x Inferno pistol
1x Sanguinary Banner

Suppressor Squad (75 points)
• 1x Suppressor Sergeant
• 1x Accelerator autocannon
1x Bolt pistol
1x Close combat weapon
• 2x Suppressor
• 2x Accelerator autocannon
2x Bolt pistol
2x Close combat weapon

“Inheritors is gonna take some time to figure out, but the tools it has are tantalizing. I feel the secret to cracking the detach is gonna be figuring out which Infantry shooting platforms you can get the most out of, as this detach won’t ever hit as hard as LAG. Getting some Reserves manipulation in a detachment that also has some oomph makes for a fun Mashup of LAG and Angelic Host.

Losing out on vehicular shooting and the strength buffs of LAG mean that the #1 thing this detach is worried about it being able to deal with high T, hence the eradicators here. After that it’s a few BA greatest hits combined with a bunch of Lone ops and some board play pieces like the Reivers and the Suppressors(who can jump in and out of reserve here).
The other big piece here is the scouting 10 man Heavy Int brick. We’ve taken the Apothecary instead of the Captain out of points considerations but also because the lethals may well be needed. This brick offers a different sort of threat to the Sang Guard and DC, and the three together hopefully create space for you to get some ReRolling Hellblasters with Lethals and Sustained into a spot to make someone mad.”

Hudson Plays Every Army I guess, also here’s his list and thoughts

CHARACTERS

Astorath (105 points)
• 1x The Executioner’s Axe

Blood Angels Captain (100 points)
• 1x Inferno pistol
1x Master‐crafted chainsword
• Enhancement: Blazing Icon

Chaplain on Bike (75 points)
• 1x Absolvor bolt pistol
1x Crozius arcanum
1x Twin bolt rifle

Commander Dante (130 points)
• Warlord
• 1x Perdition Pistol
1x The Axe Mortalis

Lemartes (110 points)
• 1x Absolvor bolt pistol
1x The Blood Crozius

BATTLELINE

Assault Intercessor Squad (75 points)
• 1x Assault Intercessor Sergeant
• 1x Plasma pistol
1x Thunder hammer
• 4x Assault Intercessor
• 4x Astartes chainsword
4x Heavy bolt pistol

OTHER DATASHEETS

Infiltrator Squad (100 points)
• 1x Infiltrator Sergeant
• 1x Bolt pistol
1x Close combat weapon
1x Marksman bolt carbine
• 4x Infiltrator
• 4x Bolt pistol
4x Close combat weapon
4x Marksman bolt carbine

Outrider Squad (160 points)
• 1x Outrider Sergeant
• 1x Astartes chainsword
1x Heavy bolt pistol
1x Twin bolt rifle
• 5x Outrider
• 5x Astartes chainsword
5x Heavy bolt pistol
5x Twin bolt rifle

Repulsor Executioner (220 points)
• 1x Armoured hull
1x Heavy onslaught gatling cannon
1x Macro plasma incinerator
1x Repulsor Executioner defensive array
1x Twin Icarus ironhail heavy stubber
1x Twin heavy bolter

Sanguinary Guard (260 points)
• 6x Sanguinary Guard
• 4x Angelus boltgun
6x Encarmine blade
2x Inferno pistol
1x Sanguinary Banner

Vindicator (175 points)
• 1x Armoured tracks
1x Demolisher cannon
1x Hunter-killer missile
1x Storm bolter

My first thoughts on this detachment felt like that its a ham sandwich with butter and cheese. You know what the ingredients are, you’ve had them before. And its all very….fine. Its better than nothing, but its also just a ham sandwich with butter and cheese.

The Legacy of the Angel detachment rule is a fun rule giving the choice of 2 abilities of either fallback, shoot and charge, reroll hits and wound rolls of 1, and reroll advance and charge rolls. Of which you choose 2 to be active for the game at the start of the first battle round to all Character units.

I probably would have really enjoyed this detachment were it not for 2 things.

1. The ability is only for character units, requiring you to spam character lead units

2. No advance and charge in either a Stratagem or Enhancement.

These right away make it not as strong a pick as Liberator detachment. But its still got some fun tools to work with. Prescient Flash for a 6″ scout move is fun, as well as Blazing Icon for a No Overwatch on a unit. The stratagems are all fairly usable and are stuff we’ve seen before. Armour of Contempt is here, we have Focused Fury for Lethal Hits or Lance in addition if its a Character unit. We even have Sustained hits in the shooting phase with Strike Now for Glory.

My personal favorite one however would be Unto the Burning Skies, which allows a Jump pack Unit to return to reserves if its not in engagement range, unless it is the Sanguinor. I love uppy downy abilities and this one I think will be one of the ones you likely use every turn as it does plenty of work for scoring secondaries.

All in all, its a fine detachment. Ill likely try it out myself at some point. But as long as Liberator Assault Group exists, Angelic Inheritors will be in it’s shadow.

Final Thoughts

I really love the detachment, it has enough mission play to make up for its loss in killing power, and opens up bringing more fun units like Bladeguard, which I obviously have an affiliation for, hell yeah.

I wish the flavor pushed through more, but this is good enough for what it is. I didn’t know what they were going to do for a Blood Angels detachment, so this was above my expectations.

That’s all from me today however, thanks for hanging out everyone.

Tomorrows T’au.

Oh god. Drink water.