These are the good old days.

Our annual highlight of hobby magic and the peak in our shared Horus Heresy enthusiasm is in the books again. It was spectacular to return to the Civil War with such a dedicated crew and experience all new armies, unit additions and character reinforcements make their debuts after months of work on the hobby desks.

I really admire both the level of creativity as well as the bravery in how our participants were out to forge memorable and narratively inspired armies - as we took turns revealing our new forces one unit at a time there was twists and surprises at every turn. Civil War's artistic beauty is in its scale - patrol sized armies are much more approachable as hobby projects, and definitely enough to tell a complete story with as we witnessed again this Saturday.

Massive gratitude to all of the crew for making this special tradition what it is - the pinnacle of our joint hobby and something that keeps us inspired all year around.

All event photography by the brilliant Manel @mp_miniatures!

14 Salamanders (Ollie) vs Ordo Reductor (Manel) 6
14 White Scars (Noa) vs True Mechanicum (Joel) 6
5 Death Guard (Lauri) vs Thousand Sons (Teemu) 15
8 Imperial Militia (Scott) vs Dark Angels (Eric) 12

Round 2: Battle Brothers (2v2)

15 Thousand Sons & Dark Angels (Teemu+Eric) vs Salamanders & White Scars (Ollie+Noa) 5
12 Death Guard & Militia (Lauri+Scott) vs Ordo Reductor & True Mechanicum (Manel+Joel) 8

Round 3: Carnage (4-way free-for-all)

Dark Angels (Eric) 5
Thousand Sons (Teemu) 5
Ordo Reductor (Manel) 3
White Scars (Noa) 3
Salamanders (Ollie) 4
True Mechanicum (Joel) 4
Death Guard (Lauri) 5
Imperialis Militia (Scott) 6

Final Standings

1. Thousand Sons 35
2. Dark Angels 32
3. Imperialis Militia 26
4. Salamanders 23
5. Death Guard 22
6. White Scars 22
7. Ordo Reductor 17
8. True Mechanicum 16

+ Army List Compilation +

Civil Warrior: Joel @fellfyre
Faction: True Mechanicum
Army: Experimental Weapons Field Test Sigma-18

HQ: Magos Dominus, Artificia Cybernetica, Master-Crafted Photon Gauntlet, Machinator Array, Power Lance, Cyber Familiar
Troop: 10 Adsecularis Tech-Thralls Covenant
Troop: 4 Scyllax Guardian-Automata Maniple, Kraken Bolters
Fast: Vorax Battle-automata Maniple, 1 Irad-Cleanser

Civil Warrior: Eric @wrhd.eric
Faction: The Dark Angels
Army: The Final Sanction

HQ: Optae, Artificer Armour, Nemesis Bolt Gun
Elite: Dreadwing Interemptor Squad
Troop: Legion Tactical Squad, Stormwing
Troop: Legion Despoiler Squad, Deathwing
Fast: Sabre Strike Tank, Volkite Saker, Heavy Flamer, Ironwing
Transport: Rhino APC

Civil Warrior: Lauri @lateheresy
Faction: The Death Guard
Army: The Hollow Harvest

Elite: Legion Apothecarion Detachment, 2x Apothecary
Elite: Legion Rapier Battery, Gravis Heavy Bolter
Elite: Legion Rapier Battery, Gravis Heavy Bolter
Troop: 12x Tactical Marines, Augury Scanner, Sergeant with Power Scythe and Toxin Bombs
Troop: 12x Tactical Marines, Augury Scanner, Sergeant with Power Fist and Toxin Bombs

Civil Warrior: Olli @wrhd_ollie
Faction: The Salamanders
Army: Survivors of the Trogdor System

HQ: Legion Overseer, Power Sword
Retinue: Solar Auxilia Rifle Section, Auxilia Vexilla, Sergeant with Chainsword
Elite: Legion Apothecarion Detachment, Apothecary
Troop: Tactical Squad, Sergeant with Chainsword
Troop: Despoiler Squad, 2x Power Lance, Sergeant with Power Mace
Troop: Scout Squad, 2x Shotguns, 3x Bolt Pistol & Chainsword

Civil Warrior: Scott @wrhd_scott
Faction: Imperialis Militia
Army: Thracian First, Death World Conscripts

HQ: Force Commander, Charnabal Sabre, Iron Halo, Cyber Familiar, Needle Pistol
Provenances of War: Feral Warriors & Legacy of the Great Crusade
Troop: 16 Grenadiers, 2x Shotgun, Flamer, Heavy Stubber, 14x Chainaxe
Troop: Fire Support Squad "Traplings", Remote Detonators (Missile Launchers)
Fast: Thunderbolt Attack Fighter "Betsy"

Civil Warrior: Teemu @gowarhead
Faction: The Thousand Sons
Army: 5th Archivist & Development Group

Elite: Numerologist Cabal Mhosis T'kar, 4x Life Wards "The Reborn"
Elite: The Whisper Occult Cabal, Khenetai Blades
Troop: Corvidae Tactical Squad, Sergeant with Combi-Grenade Launcher
Transport: Rhino APC, Hunter-Killer Missile Targeter
Transport: Rhino APC, Hunter-Killer Missile Targeter
Transport: Rhino APC, Hunter-Killer Missile Targeter

Psychic Power Markers: Wyrd-Remembrancer Seth An-Khamun & Thrall Scribe
Wysiwyg Token: Cloud Scarab UAV, Prosperine Mind-Link, Missile Configuration

Civil Warrior: Manel @mp_miniatures
Faction: Ordo Reductor Mechanicum
Army: Thavrax's Ashen March

Elite: Tech-Priest Auxilia, 4x Servo-Automata, Magos-Auxilia, Conversion Beamer
Troop: Adsecularis Tech-Thralls Covenant
Troop: Adsecularis Tech-Thralls Covenant
Troop: Thallax Cohort, Chain Bayonets
Heavy: Ordo Reductor Artillery Tank Battery, Whirlwind Artillery Tank

Civil Warrior: Noa @wrhd_noa
Faction: The White Scars
Army: Hunting Tiger

HQ: Moritat Consul, 2x Volkite Serpenta, Warhawk Jump Pack
Troop: Legion Despoilers, 2x Power Axe, Heavy Chainsword
Fast: 9 Legion Seekers Squad
Transport: Rhino APC, Heavy Flamer
Transport: Rhino APC, Heavy Bolter, Dozer Blade

Thanks for checking out our results coverage, please stay tuned for individual unit pics, musings and reports in our Instagram @gowarhead and everyone's individual accounts! Thanks again to @mp_miniatures for the brilliant photography.

Time to wrap up the War Head gaming season! This year we made our way back into the tournament scene after the pandemic break, reassembling our terrain reserve and inviting players back to the battlefields of the 41st and 31st Millennia! The focus was firmly on casual, narrative gaming with the Echoes of Thracia campaign expanding on the story started by ourselves in the in-house Thracian Insurgency games. It's been incredibly rewarding to arrange events for such enthusiastic players - the best reward for the organizer is the great interest in the form of rapid sign-ups whenever a new event is announced. Our thanks go to all of our great and skilled event participants throughout the hobby year of 2023!

The amazing hobby tradition of War Head Civil War is now past us for another year - what a treat it was once again! I feel that this year's event was one of the best in the heritage's history, as the inspired rules package, team's hobby commitment and our joint enthusiasm for The Horus Heresy all helped to nourish a memorable gaming day. I've often stated that the wargaming hobby might be entirely different depending on who you surround yourself with - in a like-minded company where everyone feeds off each others' inspiration and shares the same gaming values, it's a creative and social joy like no other.

Civil War is as much about the journey as it is of the destination, as the preparations begin early on before the actual gathering. The tradition calls for secret mustering of new assets, unexpected reinforcements or completely new surprise armies, which are presented to other players in the morning of the gaming day. On Sunday we unveiled the secret schemes long in the making and took turns describing and displaying our 500 point patrols for other participants to admire. Some of the Thracian Insurgency armies had evolved into completely new iterations due to cool unit additions and we also witnessed three completely new forces - a White Scar Recon host, a Blood Angels "boots on the ground" task force and a Emperor's Children III Company Elites detachment! It was delightful to hear everyone describe their projects and get excited about the oncoming games, as stunners like Scott's unforeseen Xiphon Interceptor completely caught many of us off-guard!

The format this year was Horus Heresy patrols (500 points, one required Troop, no mandatory HQ, no more than 2 wounds on any model, max one model with a 2+ save, no vehicles with armour value total over 33) and skirmish gameplay. We played three rounds and the dynamics changed in each one - after the traditional duel on the first round the participants were paired for two-versus-two tag team games. The four-player Carnages wrapped the day up and final victory points were calculated; each scenario had many different mini-missions focused on maneuvering and objective control performed with any non-vehicle units. All in all the 500 point roster size worked perfectly, it was a fresh breeze of "grassroots meta" where Tactical Marines could shine and the size of the armies was a very feasible mini-project even for a busy hobbyist.

Sunday's epic games leave a deep craving for more amazing hobby with the crew - luckily War Head's Halloween in the Mortal Realms is just a couple of months away!

+ Civil War V Combat Camera: Facebook Gallery +

Round 1: Escalation (1v1)

10 Blood Angels vs White Scars 10
6 Dusk Raiders vs Dark Angels 14
14 Imperial Fists vs Alpha Legion 6
10 Emperor's Children vs World Eaters 10

Round 2: Battle Brothers (2v2)

20 Emperor's Children & World Eaters vs Alpha Legion & Dusk Raiders 0
6 Blood Angels & White Scars vs Dark Angels & Imperial Fists 14

Round 3: Carnage (4-way free-for-all)

Dark Angels 7
Blood Angels 0
Imperial Fists 5
World Eaters 6
Alpha Legion 2
White Scars 6
Emperor's Children 3
Dusk Raiders 5

Final Standings

1. World Eaters 36
2. Dark Angels 35
3. Imperial Fists 33
4. Emperor's Children 33
5. White Scars 22
6. Blood Angels 16
7. Dusk Raiders 11
8. Alpha Legion 8

Player: Teemu Valve
Legion: XII World Eaters
Army: 308th Void Assault

TROOP1: Assault Squad, Power Fist, Power Axe, Power Sword
ELITE1: Rapier Gun Platform, Gravis Heavy Bolter Battery
FAST1: Sky-Hunter Jetbikes, Volkite Culverins, Chainaxes
FAST2: 7 Seekers Squad, Kraken Boltguns
TRANSPORT1: Rhino APC, Combi-Bolter

A couple of weeks ago we marched to Kuopio, where the local gaming crew KuoFi had organized a narrative Horus Heresy event centered on the drama arc of the Eternity Gate during the Siege of Terra. Before the journey I had been hard at work pushing the World Eater roster to 3000 points, adding another Assault Squad and (a bit reluctantly to fill the points...) a Contemptor Dreadnought to the existing army. Unfortunately my painting time just ran out before I got to convert the Lascannon sponsons on my Javelins, but these will for sure feature in the next army list iteration. When we reached the event venue the World Eaters got to perform violent drop operations against two robust Imperial Fist armies and the knightly Dark Angels in the asymmetric scenarios during the weekend, recording to wins and a narrow defeat. Good times and the siege for the Imperial Palace has now begun! 

HQ2: Legion Warmonger, Berzerker, Twin Lightning Claws, Meltabombs [150]

HQ3: Legion Master of Signals, Chainaxe [95]

ELITE2: Contemptor-Cortus Dreadnought, Power Fist, Conversion Beam Cannon [195]

ELITE3: The Red Hand Destroyers, Add 2 Destroyers, Jump Packs, Artificer Armour, Lightning Claw, Thunder Hammer, Chainaxes [225]

TROOP2: Despoilers, Chainaxes, Power Axe, Artificer Armour, Power Fist [130]

TROOP3: Assault Squad, Chainaxes, Power Axe, Power Sword, Artificer Armour, Power Fist [180]

TROOP4: Assault Squad, Chainaxes, Power Axe, Power Sword, Artificer Armour, Power Fist [180]

TROOP5: Recon Squad, Chainaxes [85]

FAST2: Javelin Attack Speeder, Chainaxe, Multi-melta, Hunter-Killer Missile [105]

FAST3: 2 Proteus Speeders, Multi-Meltas, Grav-Guns, Hunter-Killer Missiles, Chainaxes [200]

HEAVY2: Legion Caestus Assault Ram "Coliseus" [350]

The narrative missions really put the pressure on the brave Loyalists defending the Eternity Gate and Traitors took the upper hand in many occasions. My first game against the Imperial Fists was especially memorable and we had a proper nail-biter in a scenario where renewing waves of Traitors tried to take over the defenders' deployment area. The battle culminated in the final rolls where the World Eaters would have earned a round victory for the Traitor side if the last two Imperial Fist Tactical Marines would have either died to three missile launcher shots or failed their Leadership 7 Morale Check. This time luck was on the Terrans' side and the brilliant game ended in a draw!

All in all the event was well organized and the amazing spirit of the Finnish Horus Heresy scene was ever present - the "hobby first" attitude in army painting and the relaxed, casual army lists made sure all participants had a great time. Thanks to all participants and the hardworking KuoFi crew for a quality wargaming experience. The World Eaters will return!

Contemptor-Cortus "Crossbones", enslaved by the 308th Void Assault. I combined a classic Chaos Space Marine sarcophagus with the modern Contemptor kit for a ramshackle, field-repaired look. A couple of unfortunate Assault Marines have also lost their chainswords trying to bring the Dreadnought down.

I wanted the mechanics of the Contemptor appear unconventional and like the construct was put together in haste, with all kinds of wiring and inner workings exposed on the backside. The Conversion Beamer felt like a proper space warfare gun and not as optimized choice as some of the other Contemptor loadouts.

The Assault Squad was built with a dual purpose in mind, our thinking was that they could also be used as World Eater Rampagers in the future. The sergeant is probably my favourite model in the unit.

We kitbashed the modern Khorne Berzerkers with Necromunda Corpse Grinder Cult armament to create Caedere Weapon specialists with a bit of a gladiator feel.

The Berzerker kits combined with angled basing elements made for quite dynamic poses. The excess chaos trim was scraped off from the armour surfaces before the primer went down.

The entire unit had to be painted in one sitting to meet the tournament deadline, so I relied on our usual army painting techniques powered by airbrush basecoats, strong contrast colours and oil washes.

These warriors can't wait for the next deployment, and neither can I! Luckily the traditional War Head Civil War looms in the horizon.