I hate to say it, but I love Space Marines now thanks to the Deathwing Assault box

The new Deathwing Assault army box has me doing my best Paul Rudd impression. I mean, look at us – who would've thought a Chaos fan would enjoy putting together some Space Marines? Not me.

But here we are. That's exactly what's happened, and these new Dark Angels are partially to blame. Although my black, Chaos Space Marine-loving heart had already been tempted by the first Legion thanks to some Scouts I painted for Kill Team: Salvation (I spent longer than I'd care to admit looking through Chapter color schemes until I settled on these monks with a guilty conscience), Deathwing Assault sealed the deal once Games Workshop sent this thing over early.

I am very sorry to say that I like Space Marines now. Please excuse me. 

For the Emperor

Much like the recently-announced Kroot army box that fans are going wild for, Deathwing Assault gets you a treasure-trove of warriors that'll kick the stuffing out of your foes without a second thought – in this case, Deathwing Terminators and Knights of the Dark Angels Chapter. Led by grim Grand Master Belial and enjoying the assistance of some… uh, weird little guys in robes, these Space Marines are the blunt instrument with which humanity smushes aliens and heretics alike. Thanks to the Dark Angels Codex (complete with an alternate cover featuring classic artwork), this box also allows you to field Unforgiven or Ravenwing armies at large.

So, what's new here? The simple answer is: everything. More or less, anyway. While the revised Space Marine Terminators came out a couple of months ago, you can transform them with the contents of this box into something distinctly Dark Angels. 

This kit also features all-new sculpts of models that will be sold separately, but not yet. As such, this is the only way of getting everything – including a Codex that revitalizes this faction for Warhammer 40K 10th Edition – early.

That leads us to the million-dollar question: should you buy Deathwing Assault now that it's up for pre-order? The answer is a distinct 'probably.'

I was lucky enough to gent my hands on the box ahead of time, and my initial impressions are positive. As you'd expect from modern Warhammer, these miniatures are painstakingly detailed. But the real takeaway? How customizable they are. Fellow long-time fans will know what to expect, but it still impresses me that there are so many greebles you can stick on. Actually, I often lost sight of where certain bits were on the sprue to begin with, making the whole affair feel like a 3D jigsaw puzzle. Only, with more swords and blasters. And those weird little guys. (Seriously, what are they?)

Plus, those Deathwing Knights are leaps and bounds ahead of the old versions. While those seem out of proportion by comparison, these are suitably imposing sentinels who would win in a showdown with a full-speed freight train. The Deathwing leader, Belial, isn't quite as much of a leap because his previous models hold up today, but the replacement is a lot more dynamic.

In other words, fans of the Dark Angels should definitely get involved.

Forgive me, Chaos

What about beginners, then? If your main experience of 10th Edition comes from the Warhammer 40K starter sets, these Terminators are definitely harder to build… but they're also so much more satisfying than the mono-pose, push fit alternatives. Don't get me wrong, those are still great; but these new ones allow you to get increasingly creative, largely because each leg, arm, torso, and head is attached separately – to say nothing of accessories.

Speaking of which, I think I appreciate the fresh Dark Angels upgrade frames most here. Besides allowing you to sprinkle some extra personality into your Terminators, these pieces can be used in making other units you already have / are going to buy tie in with your First Legion force. I bought the previous upgrade sprue separately when I decided to turn my starter set into a Dark Angels host, but this is better. Even though the contents are similar, you get a lot more here – and it works across the entire Dark Angels range, speedy Ravenwing included.

I'll admit that I've not managed to use my Deathwing Assault army in combat yet, and I'll remedy that as soon as I can. But from what I've seen of the data cards and Codex rules so far, they pack a punch. Yes, the fluff is fascinating (I'm obsessed with grumpy legend Asmodai), and you get to ogle at lots of beautifully-painted models that make you feel like a child rifling through a toy catalog. But it's the special rules that hammer home how good a choice these defenders of the Imperium are. Take the Deathwing Terminators. Their 'Deathwing' rule allows you to ignore any and all Ballistic Skill or Weapon Skill modifiers while attacking, or to the Hit roll. Plus, you add one to the Hit roll whenever a model in the unit targets an Oath of Moment target. Ouch.

Similarly, the Knights can just subtract one from the Damage characteristic of an attack due to their 'Inner Circle' rule. Hit with a rocket? Nah, not today.

The downside? You'll need Codex: Space Marines to be able to use all these rules. That's a bit frustrating for those hoping to buy this box and only this box, but hey – that's not really the fault of Deathwing Assault, because you get basically everything you need for the specific units inside. 

So, in a nutshell: I'll admit I was wrong to assume Space Marines were boring. While it's true that nothing will come close to surpassing my beloved Chaos lackeys, I'm not too proud to say that the Deathwing Assault team is giving it a good go. Games Workshop, I hope you're ashamed of yourselves – you've turned a faithful Chaos boy into a fan of the Emperor's pawns. May Papa Nurgle forgive me.

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