Angelius
Angelius |
Prime This model is available in twoPrime Armies,
Note that the rest of this page is about the model's Mark III rules. |
The six-winged Angelius screams into the sky as a pronouncement of Everblight s power. This beast falls like a sword upon its prey, pierces any armor with its barbed tail, and rises again despite all attempts to halt it. Soaring for the first time in two thousand years, the Angelius gluts itself on slaughter as the Legion inexorably advances south.
Contents
Basic Info
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Warbeast - All warbeasts share a huge stack of special rules. The short version is they're big, furious, and beat stuff up pretty good. Click here for a newbie-friendly recap, or click here for the full rules.
Abilities
- Eyeless Sight
- Soulless
- Flight
- Serpentine - This model cannot make slam or trample power attacks and cannot become knocked down.
- Side Step - When this model hits an enemy model with an initial melee attack or a melee special attack, it can advance up to 2" after the attack is resolved.
Weapons
- Flame Jet - 12" range, POW 12 ranged weapon.
- Tail Strike - 2" reach, POW 5, P+S 14 melee weapon.
- Armor-Piercing - When calculating damage from this weapon, halve the base ARM stat of models hit.
- Single Shot - After an attack with this weapon is resolved, this model cannot make another attack with it for one round.
- Bite - 2" reach, POW 5, P+S 14 melee weapon.
Animus
COST | RNG | AOE | POW | DUR | OFF | ||
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Repulsion
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2 | SELF | - | - | - | No | |
Enemy models currently within 2" of the spellcaster are immediately pushed 3" directly away from it in the order you choose. |
Theme Forces
Thoughts on Angelius
Angelius in a nutshell
Angelius is the quintessence of the Legion's play-style: for a heavy beast it is deceptively mobile, nimble, and can deliver a crippling alpha strike to everything except the beefiest targets via its armour-piercing Tail Strike. With SPD 7, Flight, and 2" reach on its melee weapons, the Angelius has one of the longest melee threat ranges in the faction, and Side Step enables it to extend that threat even further. It is a strong assassination piece, but its fragility and high point cost mean that it is anything but a point-and-click solution in Legion lists.
Other than the armour-piercing Tail Strike, which has a Single Shot restriction, the Angelius is pretty pillow-fisted. There are light warbeasts which have the same base P+S as the Angelius' Bite. If the enemy has the ability to negate your single armour-piercing attack (with the Hermit of Henge Hold or a Dhunian Archon, for example), then you'll find the Angelius capable of much less output than something like the Carnivean for 1 point more or even the Neraph for 2 points less.
The Angelius relies on its high defense and immunity to knockdown from Serpentine to stay alive. It lacks the staying power to survive for very long if it does start to take hits. This means you'll want evasion and movement tricks to couple with Side Step to help keep it alive. Fyanna2 offers it Overtake, as well as +3 DEF and Dodge on feat turn. The Blight Archon can give Sprint to its battlegroup.
Warlocks that can capitalize further on the Angelius' speed and mobility may reach for them before the more reliable heavies, but in general, you may want to find a balance between speed and power in your beast selection when considering to include an Angelius in your army.
The Angelius' animus, Repulsion, is an incredibly valuable spell for scenario play, allowing you to push out models who are toeing a zone. It can also be combined with Legion's other push tricks: the Neraph's Attractor, the Hellmouth tentacle's Grip, Proteus' Pull, Fyanna2's Gallows, and the Blight Archon's Impending Doom.
Combos & Synergies
The Angelius, with a few exceptions, is best utilized sprinkled into a list. One is usually enough to keep around as an initiation tool, finisher, or assassin. It can go in just about any list, but some casters like him more than others.
- Kryssa - With the feat it will deal scary amounts of damage with the Tail Strike, and even more so with Ignite added. Energizer can further extend its threat range, adding another 2".
- Fyanna2 - Fyanna's kit works quite well with the Angelius. The combination of Overtake and Side Step allow it to threaten deep into enemy lines, or duck behind cover after delivering a powerful blow. Fury improves the Angelius' overall output, and brings its Tail Strike into the realm of terrifying. Admonition and her feat both improve on the Angelius' already high evasiveness, potentially allowing it to stay alive after you commit it to the front lines. Do beware stationary effects, as those still work on Serpentine models.
- Vayl2 - She can make an Angelius as fast as cavalry using Boundless Charge. Combine with the Seraph's Slipstream and the Mekanoshredder's Full Steam, and just about the only thing that Angelius cannot get to is a Defender with Snipe at max range - or things with Polarity Shield on. She'll still want some heavier hitters in her list, but one or two Angelii are worth considering for her.
- Abby2 - Being a monster polisher second to none, her Alpha Hunter can help you a lot to add additional mobility, and will bring it up to an impressive MAT 8. You'll still want to boost that Tail Strike whenever possible, though, especially since you'll already be charging for free. Alpha Hunter's SPD boost combines with the Angelius' impressive native threat range and Side Step to create a monster that is difficult to escape. On feat turn, the STR bonus makes Tail Strike quite impressive.
- Absylonia can combine Repulse with her 5" reposition to ensure she can make it back to safety after triggering Alpha Hunter.
- Either version of Thagrosh doesn't mind an Angelius peppered in. Both tend to build their lists a little on the slow side, so having a fast body helps them maintain a longer threat range, and there's also no reason a fast style list can't be tried with them.
- Thagrosh1 can help keep his Angelius alive a little longer with Dark Shroud - just try to say inside his CMD range. Also, if the enemy RFPd your most expensive warbeasts, an Angelius is not bad either for a revival through your feat.
- If the Angelius forgoes its Tail Strike during its regular activation, and uses Side Step to set up an appropriate charge lane, then under Thagrosh, the Messiah's feat it can threaten an unexpected assassination deep within enemy lines. Manifest Destiny is great on all Legion warbeasts, and the Angelius is no different.
- Lylyth1 makes the armor pierce as scary as Fyanna with Fury, and doesn't drop the Angelius' DEF to do it. She can also offer them free charges through Blood Lure, letting them get an extra boost or an extra bought attack. (That said, they also have access to free charges through the Blighted Nyss Sorceress & Hellion's Aerial Coordination or the Mekanoshredder's Full Steam.
- Lylyth3 can use an Angelius as an assassin better than most Legion warlocks - a well placed, stationary caster is easy pickings for a SPD9 (from Battle Host) Angelius to wipe the floor with.
- The Twins get a special Repulsion mention. With one Angelius the Twins get three Repulses, which means a lot of board control. This is especially useful on Rhyas2 as she loves to be thrown neck deep in the enemy, allowing for more chance to push survivors of her Flashing Blade spam off the point.
- An extension of this concept exists with the Nephilim Bloodseer; he can borrow Repulse for around half the cost of a second Angelius, which may be worth thinking about for a very scenario focused list.
- Playing God from Abby1 makes a single Angelius even harder to hit (especially against living enemy models), and much more reliable on its follow-up attacks. They'll compete for the spell with Zuriel if you bring him.
- Sorceress - Charge, boost to hit, Repulse - that'll eat up all of the Angelius' FURY stack. Free charge from Aerial Coordination helps you to save 1 Fury.
- In the Blight Archon's battlegroup, the Angelius can gain access to Sprint, which can stack with Repulse and Side Step to help it reach safety after an alpha strike.
- Rhyas1 - Rapport is an ideal fix for the beast's average MAT, but it is the feat that elevates the Angelius' mobility to new level. See the Warlock's page for a detailed run-down, which is omitted here for the sake of brevity.
- Ice Witches or the Blackfrost Shard have Ice Cage to alleviate its middling MAT.
Drawbacks & Downsides
- It's two points more expensive than a Neraph, and if the enemy has any way to negate its Single Shot with the Tail Strike, it is typically less effective overall.
- High DEF is its only way of staying alive, as it only has ARM 17 and 25 boxes.
- Things that negate single, powerful attacks may make your Angelius run for its points. This was once pretty rare (like the Vision spell or Madrak1's Scroll of Grim Perseverance), but with the coming of the Dhunian Archon and the Hermit virtually every army have access to this ability.
Tips & Tricks
- Always remember the Golden Rule of running an Angelius: boost your Tail Strike attack roll. Always. Really, no matter what. OK, maybe if your target is stationary, or knocked down. Consider this: you have a 14 pts model, and its effectiveness is tied to a Single Shot attack in 99% of the time. You don't even want that 1/36 chance to risk that your point investment is just poured down the drain.
- Your ranged attack is basically a hand-cannon shot, with critical continuous fire - keep that in mind, if you cannot run or charge, but need some work to be done.
- Sidestep behind the enemy, then use Repulsor to push them into your army. Especially potent with Fyanna's Gallows spell. Watch your move, since you're not immune to free strikes while advancing with Sidestep.
Other
Trivia
- Released in Hordes: Evolution (2007)
- Name possibly derives from Angelus, the Catholic devotion, which commemorates the Incarnation (the event when God made himself manifest in the flesh-clad form).
Other Legion models
Rules Clarifications
Rules Clarification : Fire (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Armor-Piercing and/or Case Cracker (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Single Shot - None yet. (Edit)
Rules Clarification: : Warbeast (Edit) | |
See also the Warbeast page for a recap of the core warbeast rules.
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Rules Clarification : Eyeless Sight (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Soulless - None yet. (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Serpentine - None yet. (Edit)
Rules Clarification : Side Step (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Repulsion (Edit)
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