warhammer the horus heresy Archives

Legio Custodes Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbike

The Gyrfalcon Pattern Jetbike is a masterwork of Great Crusade-era engineering, a sleek and predatory silhouette defined by its elongated, aerodynamic chassis.

The Gyrfalcon is a fusion of ornate auric plating and exposed, high-output engine cowlings. Its hull is etched with the signature artistry of the Custodian Guard, belying the sheer raw power of the gravitic engines housed within—units capable of producing violent, overwhelming bursts of acceleration that blur the vehicle’s form to the naked eye.

Coronus Grav-carrier

The Coronus Grav-carrier is a hallmark of the Legio Custodes motor pool, blending heavy protection with a level of grace that puts standard Imperial tanks to shame. As the technological ancestor to the Pallas and Caladius patterns, this skimmer ensures the Golden Legion reaches the front lines with unmatched speed, bypassing difficult terrain and avoiding the quagmire of static warfare.

Telemon Heavy Dreadnought

Fewer than a handful of Telemon Dreadnoughts are to be found within the ranks of the Legio Custodes, each intended to stand sentinel over its charges no matter the forces brought against it. The honour of interment in one of the few existing Telemon sarcophagi is awarded to only the most celebrated warriors. Rare is the foe who can stand against the array of esoteric, hand-crafted weapons that grace its chassis or the ferocious will and warrior skill of the master Custodian interred within.

Legio Custodes Orion Assault Dropship

Created as a dedicated assault dropship for the Legio Custodes, the Orion can carry a full task force of the Emperor’s Talons into combat.

Protected by frontal armour superior to that of the Legiones Astartes Thunderhawk Gunship, its Arachnus heavy blaze cannon and Lastrum bolt cannon can swiftly clear a landing zone of hostile infantry and armour with brutal efficiency, allowing the units within to deploy before it soars back into the sky to unleash death upon any foe who dares approach.

Warlord Battle Titan at the Dropsite Massacre

One of the new dioramas at Warhammer World was The Dropsite Massacre. In corner of the display was this Forge World Warlord Battle Titan.

Within the Urgall Depression, the Salamanders fall back from their faltering attack on the Warmaster’s fortress, expecting the newly arrived Second Wave to bolster the assault and finally break Horus’ defences. Instead, Vulkan’s warriors unknowingly turn back towards their annihilation – the guns of the Iron Warriors arrayed against them in betrayal. Their presumed allies unleash a ruthless barrage of fire into the Salamanders’ lines, turning the black sands into a mire soaked with Nocturnean blood.

Raptors Land Raider MkIIb

The Land Raider MkIIb is probably my favourite Land Raider variant. I do have one of them in my collection. I knew that if I was going to get a Land Raider it would have to be the Forgeworld MkIIB Land Raider. I did get one in the end at GamesDay 2006. Sadly it was retired from the range.

This Raptors Land Raider MkIIb was on display at Warhammer World in April 2026.

The Mark IIb Land Raider Phobos is one of the earliest marks of the standard pattern of Land Raider, and it still bears similarities to both the Land Raider Proteus and the Spartan Assault Tank that served as the models for the design. The Mark IIb Land Raider Phobos is the only pattern of the standard Land Raider Phobos that uses the older armoured sponsons, as they do not allow the weapons they hold to fully rotate. This pattern of Land Raider is mostly extinct within Space Marine Armouries, having been replaced with newer marks and patterns of the standard Land Raider Phobos. However, some Chapters may still possess one or two as treasured relics of their ancient past.

Go to the MkIIb Land Raider Miniatures Gallery.

I wrote up some reflections on my MkIIB Land Raider, on the current state of the painting and what I needed to do next. In the end I went down a different route.

Minotaurs Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider

Minotaurs Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider on display at Warhammer World.

This Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider is from the Minotaurs Space Marine Chapter. The Minotaurs is a Loyalist Space Marine Chapter whose true origins and genetic lineage remain unknown. The Space Marine formation by this name at large in the Imperium today appears to bear little resemblance to accounts of its past.

The Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider is the most durable vehicle currently in the service of the Legiones Astartes. These vehicles shrug off weapon strikes that would cripple other battle tanks, and are proof against even the most toxic environment. The weaponry of these vehicles is formidable, featuring an advanced quad launcher and powerful volkite batteries.

I quite like the up-armoured appearance of this pattern of Land Raider, and the weaponry looks quite formidable. I can imagine this being used to clear barricades in the ruins of an Imperial City.

This conversion kit was from Forge World and is now no longer available.

More photographs of the Achilles-Alpha pattern Land Raider.

Legio Custodes

With the new plastic Legio Custodes models on pre-order I was reminded that I have photographed lots of the Legio Custodes models over the years at Warhammer World.

Legio Custodes Orion Assault Dropship

Legio Custodes Caladius Grav-Tank

Legio Custodes Sagittarum Guard at Warhammer World

Legio Custodes Telemon Heavy Dreadnought

Legio Custodes Aquilon Terminators with Infernus Firepikes

Known as the Legio Custodes during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras, the Adeptus Custodes, is the Imperial Adepta responsible for protecting the Imperial Palace and the physical body of the Emperor of Mankind, as well as serving as His most important emissaries, His companions, and the keepers of His many secrets. The Custodes is an elite cadre of genetically-engineered transhuman warriors who are even more potent in combat than the Adeptus Astartes.

More photographs of Legio Custodes models.

Deimos Pattern Vindicator

The Vindicator is a dedicated siege tank, deployed by the Legiones Astartes to breach enemy fortifications and destroy the heaviest enemy vehicles. Slow, ponderous, but heavily armoured, these tanks rumble into range before unleashing a devastating salvo of demolisher shells or piercing bursts of energy from a magna laser destroyer. Vindicators are especially useful in the confined terrain of cities or other enclosed battlefields, where they can smash buildings to broken ruins and forge a path through otherwise impassable obstacles.

This is the plastic kit version released for The Horus Heresy. Before this, there was a resin conversion kit from Forge World.

Plastic Macharius Heavy Tank, perhaps?

Will we see a plastic version of the Macharius Heavy Tank?

The Macharius Heavy Tank stands as a testament to the ingenuity and desperation of the Imperium of Man. Born from a necessity to field potent armoured firepower when the legendary Baneblade super-heavy tank is unavailable, the Macharius represents a “second-generation” approach to heavy tank design.

I guess the question is whether the Macharius is a Horus Heresy era tank like the Malacador, or is considered more of a 40k Imperial Guard tank.

This is one of my favourite models, and is probably at the top of the list of wanted models.

Sadly the Macharius Heavy Tank and its many variants have been removed from the Games Workshop range. If the Macharius Omega had been in stock when I visited Warhammer World last year I would very likely have picked one up. The second hand market prices have gone up considerably as a result.

So I for one would be pleased if we did eventually see a plastic kit of the tank, well even a re-release of the resin kit as a made to order special.

More photographs of the Macharius Heavy Tank.