Important Note
Throughout this army list, we refer to a Blood Angels army. However, it is possible to use this army list to play a battle using one of the Chapters that also uses the Blood Angels gene-seed as its basis, such as the Blood Drinkers, Flesh Tearers, Angels Vermilion, Angels Encarmine, Angels Sanguine or perhaps a Successor Chapter of your own invention. If you wish, you can use the Blood Angels army list as it is written to field an army from one of these Chapters, although you will have to devise your own special characters if you want to use them in your games. This allows you to devise your own colour scheme, Chapter history and other details, yet still play with a non-Codex army if you want to.
Using the Blood Angels Army List
The Blood Angels army list is different from other army lists you may have already seen. Instead of being a stand alone army list it is used in conjunction with the standard army list in Codex: Space Marines. A Blood Angels army is chosen in the same way as any other Space Marine army, except where noted on the following pages. Although the Blood Angels and their Successor Chapters vary from a 'Codex' Space Marine army, there are more similarities than differences. For this reason, and to avoid unnecessary repetition, the following pages detail the different organisation and army list options available to the Blood Angels. Full entries for most of the troop types available to a Blood Angels Commander can be found in Codex: Space Marines.
Unless noted in this volume, all of the rules, options and limitations that apply to a Space Marine army also apply to a Blood Angels army.
Choosing Your Army
When you are choosing your army, you may make choices from the Codex: Space Marines army list and/or the Blood Angels list, within the normal limitations of the Force Organisation chart, points value of the battle etc. Some of the entries that follow replace an entry or option from the Codex: Space Marines list. If this is the case, you may only choose the entry or option presented in this Codex. For example, Blood Angels characters are accompanied by an Honour Guard rather than a normal Space Marine Command squad. In addition, the following rules apply:
Blood Angels Scouts
Blood Angels Scouts are taken from the most fiery individuals in the Chapter: battle-eager warriors who hunger for close combat. For this reason, one Scout squad in your army may be chosen using the normal options for Space Marine Scouts (ie, with the option of sniper rifles and heavy weapons). Any other Scout squads are limited in the weapons they can choose as indicated in the Blood Angels Scout squad entry.
Blood Angels Armoury
A Blood Angels army has access to all of the weapons and wargear from the Space Marines army, except where noted differently in the Blood Angels Armoury section. In addition, there are a number of special items of wargear which are only available to a Blood Angels army and cannot be taken by an army representing a different Chapter.