Adeptus Titanicus - Shadow and Iron - Titan Legions and Maniples

Welcome back to our coverage of the Adeptus Titanicus supplement Shadow and Iron. This supplement continues the fine tradition of adding new Titan Legions and maniples to our games of Adeptus Titanicus.

THE TITAN LEGIONS

The supplement provides rules for:

· The True Messengers, the Legio Praesagius

· The Death Bolts II, the Legio Oberon

· The Sentinels of the Edge, the Legio Lysanda

· The Fire Masters, the Legio Suturvora (a.k.a. Legio Infernus)

· The Death Dealers, the Legio Mordaxis

· The Ember Wolves, the Legio Audax

As usual, each is given a quick blurb about what makes them special along with a full page of rules, stratagems, and traits. Some of the Legios were also given unique equipment. We’ve included brief descriptions of each Legio to give you a taste of what is coming, but we’ll continue full breakdowns of each Legio as we go.

PRAESAGIUS

· Precision fire is the order of the day, with Legio traits and a stratagem to reflect it.

· A fluid command structure keeps your command bonuses (but not traits) going even when your command is knocked out of the fight.

OBERON

· Strategists without compare, rewarding you for successful command rolls and a willingness to fight in a defensive manner while doing so

· Phalanx style warfare is your friend.

LYSANDA

· A risk/reward kind of Legio that takes a patient nature and understanding of what your patience will cost, but rewards it with bonuses.

· Hard to shake and receives command check buffs for various conditions.

SUTURVORA/INFERNUS

· The “Roof is on Fire” Legio that is the master of flamecraft and can make even terrain a hellscape.

MORDAXIS

· The Legio Mordaxis reflects a type of poisonous warfare that focuses on “chipping” damage or wider AOE.

· Resilient and hard to kill or turn around; slow and ponderous though.

AUDAX

· Scout hunters that give even Solaria a run for their money, but limited to Warhounds only.

· Effective pack hunters that have a bonus to Ursus Claws.

THE MANIPLES

The book gives us four new maniples, including:

· Canis maniples composed of 3-5 Warhounds that focus on wolf pack tactics and obscure deployment to create confusion and allow for their tactics to have the optimal chance of success.

· Arcus maniples comprise a Warbringer and 2-4 Warhounds, with the Warhounds allowing the Warbringer access to indirect fire and improved scatter.

· The Ruptura maniple pairs two Warbringers with 1-3 Reavers and allows Reavers to advance up the field quickly under the protective fire of the Warbringers.

· Mandatum maniples combine a Warlord with 2-4 Warhounds with the Warhounds receiving buffs to Command checks and Hit rolls depending on certain conditions.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The new Legio rules certainly give flavor to many of the fan-favorites and also add some new Titan Legions. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the maniples, which feel a bit lackluster. They are not bad, per se, but none of them are particularly groundbreaking. That is not to say that they cannot be played, but they will be very niche and will clearly work much more favorably for some missions and Titan Legions than others.