Being a thread on the Sun Killers

[LSM]

Like the other threads I've made, this was inspired by the fact that I frequently see requests for a "Sun Killers" unit to be added to 40k's Emperor's Children.

 

A little thread about their (scant) history, and some thoughts on where they could be taken. Additions and corrections most welcome.

 

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The place to start would seem to be 2003's Horus Heresy CCG.

 

The Asceton Heavy Support Squad appears in the Base Set (2003), where they were joined by the Eidolon, Eithlochin, Goldoara, and Sylvanor Heavy Support Squads, as well as the Torvinal Tactical Support Squad. All Emperor's Children Infantry units, all depicted wielding Lascannons. (The art used for the Sylvanor Heavy Support Squad card is present in Visions of Heresy Vol 1, 2013, page 113, but labelled as 'Katheron - Steve Belledin', and likewise the art for squad Eidolon is presented as squad 'Thellion' instead, on page 200.)

 

'Asceton - Franz Vohwinkel' Visions of Heresy Vol 1, 2013, page 186

 

'Eitholchin - David Hudnut' Visions of Heresy Vol 1, 2013, page 124

 

'Thellion - John Gravato' Visions of Heresy Vol 1, 2013 page 200

 

The Sedition's Gate (2004) set then included two more Lascannon wielding Heavy Support Squads (Cyrius, and Vuscodil) and the Traitor's Gambit (2004) set added one more (Telcantor).

 

'Telcantor - Torstein Nordstrand' Visions of Heresy Vol 1, 2013, page 199

 

So that's nine Lascannon equipped Emperor's Children Heavy Support Squad cards in the Horus Heresy CCG across 2003 and 2004. Definitely setting a visual preference for how the Emperor's Children fought. (In fact, if the Horus Heresy CCG was your only exposure to the universe, you might assume they were the iconic unit of the Third.) While my knowledge is not extensive enough to say this definitively, I can't actually find any mention of "Sun Killers" at this point in time.

 

(A quick google search from before 2012 turns up zero pertinent results.)

 

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As far as I can recall (happy to be corrected!) there's no special note in the subsequent Horus Heresy book series about the Emperor's Children fielding tons of Lascannon equipped Heavy Support Squads. (It is a pretty natural fit though - the obsessively "perfect" Legion making use of a high-precision weapon like the Lascannon.)

 

The 2012 The Horus Heresy: Book One - Betrayal (page 107) then includes the following note: "Alongside the division of units commonly found within other Space Marine Legions, the emphasis and regard placed upon skill and excellence also notably led to the formation of a wide number of unique ‘elite’ or veteran units within the Emperor’s Children. Some were highly specialised such as the ‘Sun-Killers’—lascannon equipped support squads formed from the creme of the Legion’s heavy weapon specialists... [it then mentions the Phoenix Guard and Palatine Blades]." 

 

While the Palatine Blades would get rules in the same book, and Phoenix Terminators in the following The Horus Heresy: Book Two - Massacre (2013), Sun-Killers wouldn't receive any in the 1st edition of the game. They seemed to be a nice bit of fluff - one of the "wide number" of such units that could be realised at some point in the future.

 

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In 2020, Fabius Bile: Manflayer releases. It includes a character named Helion who "had once belonged to the infamous ‘Sun-Killers’, or so he claimed." Helion wields a cherished Lascannon, is festooned with extra charge-packs, and the pauldrons and greaves of his brightly painted armour are blackened by kill markers. His helm is fashioned into a smiling cherub face set into a stylised sun. 

 

Helion is said to command a squad of ten marines, along with around forty slave-soldiers. The latter are said to use Heavy Bolters and Stub-Cannons, though I can't confirm what his actual squad are wielding (only that they're proficient at long range warfare). Also might be worth noting that it's only Helion who's called a 'Sun-Killer', and not his "cronies".

 

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2020 is also the copywrite date on 30k's Emperor's Children Legion Transfer Sheet, though it doesn't actually come out until 2022 (during the 2nd edition of the game). On it, amongst other iconography, is the skull-in-sun symbol that we're told is the iconography of the Sun Killers.

 

Warhammer Community put out a series of Exemplary Battle articles during 2nd edition, introducing new narrative missions and special units for the Legions. The Battle of Kalium Gate is one such article, recreating said battle from 2016's The Path of Heaven (which Andy Hoare wonderfully notes as one of his favourite reads in the HH series. I concur wholeheartedly, though don't recall any Sun Killers being present). Unfortunately, the original PDF was pulled off the site when they collected the various articles into Exemplary Battles of the Age of Darkness: Volume One (2023).

 

Hoare notes that Sun Killers (now not hyphenated) are a classic unit in the lore, first from the CCG (though as I said I'm not sure if they were actually called Sun Killers at that point) and then also mentioned in 'Betrayal.

 

The new, expanded lore (in that they actually have lore) is that the name Sun Killer was an "informal cognomen" (ie. just a nickname?) for the Third Legion veteran Heavy Support Squads which exclusively used energy weapons (expanding from the previous Lascannon focus; now Multi-Meltas, Plasma Cannons, and Volkite Culverins were also available) - refusing to use "primitive" and "indiscriminate" weapons like Heavy Bolters and Autocannons. They operated in advance of the battle lines, hunting down massive enemy bioforms and warmachines to claim the biggest kills. (As well, they would provide covering fire for tactical retreats.) A special note is that there is essentially no trace of them ever having failed in a deployment, resulting in speculation that any such occurrences have been removed from databanks in order to protect their "perfect" record.

 

Lore also notes that: "On rare occasions, multiple squads of Sun Killers would operate in the same sector, competing amongst themselves to hunt out and eliminate the largest foes." While this could just be funny phrasing, it does make it seem like Sun Killers were relatively rare. (Of course, 'Betrayal also mentions that an entire Millennial could field around a half-dozen Palatine Blades, and that there were only 200 Phoenix Guard in the galaxy, so... numbers have always been a little funny.)

 

Rules wise, their basic profile included a Ballistic Skill of 5. The ability 'Precision Fire' allowed them to ignore enemy cover saves or damage mitigation (unless making a Snap Shot), while 'Designated Quarry' allowed all models with the rule to re-roll Wound rolls of 1/add 1 to the Vehicle Damage rolls, when shooting at a pre-designated "~titanic" unit.

 

Model wise, they're just presented as Heavy Weapon troops in MkIV with Phoenician Pattern helmets. (Plasma Cannons are on display.)

 

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2025's HH Legends document includes Sun Killers. Down to a base BS4, the rule 'Designated Quarry' now allows them to (once per battle, when targeting a Vehicle unit, if they didn't move) increase their BS to 5 for that phase.

 

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As for the future: I really like the idea of a lone "big game hunter" character. (Which could also be used to help with the faction's problems dealing with high Toughness enemies.)

 

I was fishing around for a name, and thinking about a way to incorporate "supernova" when I noticed that the 30k Sun Killers' squad leaders are called Novaetors. "Lord Novaetor" has a pleasant ring to it, though "Sun Bringer" or "Sun Maker" could work as well. The main thing for me, though, would be that this is a Noise Marine who is hitting the battlefield to "light up" his prey; a monster who is absolutely obsessed with finding the biggest and toughest (bio/mechanical) monsters and making them explode spectacularly. 

 

They'd have a pretty basic melee profile, and then some kind of crazy daemonic las-plas-melta-ray gun. Longer range (~36"), but with the [Melta] keyword incentivising them to get closer to enemies, in order to play into the faction's aggressive style. (The silly name I'm working with is a Kaleidoscoped Plas-pulser... unfortunately "Las-Talon" was already taken...) 

 

I've been putting some thought into the sonic weapons "worked into grenade harnesses" mentioned in the Codex, and the classic (2nd edition) option for Noise Marines to take Photon Flash Flares (essentially 40k flash-bangs). I like the idea that such a thing could turn a "Sun Bringer" into a walking fireworks display if anyone got too close to them, so I'd incorporate that into the character.

 

I'm playing around with three ability ideas:

• Runaway Supernova: In your Shooting phase, after this model has shot, if one or more of those attacks made with its kaleidoscoped plas-pulser [name pending] scored a hit against an enemy VEHICLE or MONSTER unit, that unit is subject to this ability. For the rest of the Phase, each time an attack is made against that unit, add 1 to the Wound roll. (This would hopefully help against hard targets via straight damage dealt, but then also assist other units in being able to take them down. Maybe even extend this past the Phase, to the rest of the turn?)
• Explosive Crescendo: When this model destroys a model with the Deadly Demise ability, do not roll one D6 to determine whether mortal wounds are inflicted by that model’s Deadly Demise ability. Instead, mortal wounds are automatically inflicted. (Again, I'd like the lore focus to be not just on taking down big game in general, but specifically on making them go BOOM!)
• Photon Flash Flare Harness: Each time an enemy unit within Engagement Range of this model makes an attack, subtract 1 from the Hit roll. (Maybe extend to a 6" aura rather than Engagement Range? But would provide them a reason to run close to the rest of your forces, right in the thick of it.)

 

I'd give them [Lone Operative] and then (as a cheeky extra), give them [Deadly Demise 1] themselves. When they go out, they try to go out with a bang.