STARTING A SALAMANDERS ARMY IN 11TH EDITION: FORGED IN FLAME, PAINTED IN PATIENCE
The Salamanders are the Fire-born: slow to anger, protective of ordinary people, and obsessed with craftsmanship, in deep green armour with black trim. This page covers the Intercessors and Infernus Squad to start with, Aggressors and Eradicators, and He'stan or the Redeemer.
Intercessors and an Infernus Squad
Start with the current Space Marine starter or Combat Patrol; these rotate, so check the shelves rather than chasing an older set. Whatever the contents, you want two things early: a squad of Intercessors as the dependable backbone, and an Infernus Squad, because flamer-armed Marines are the most Salamanders thing in the entire catalogue. Add the Salamanders upgrade sprue and transfer sheet so the shoulder pads and iconography look the part from the first model. The 11th edition points are new, so look them up as they stand before you write a list; none of that changes what a good first box looks like.
Aggressors and Eradicators
Your second wave should lean into the chapter's signature: short-ranged, brutally hot firepower. Aggressors are the classic pick, big armoured bruisers who look magnificent in green, and Eradicators bring the melta weapons the Fire-born adore. A Captain or Lieutenant leads the force while you decide which named hero calls to you. Paint as you go. Three finished squads teach you more about your scheme than six grey ones, and every flame effect you learn gets used a dozen times over, because this chapter never met a problem it could not set on fire.
He'stan, a Redemptor, or the Redeemer
Every Salamanders collection eventually gathers around Vulkan He'stan, the Forgefather, a gorgeous single model draped in a drake-scale cloak and a joy to paint slowly. For something bigger, a Redemptor Dreadnought is a centrepiece and a painting masterclass in one, and the Land Raider Redeemer with its flamestorm sponsons might be the most on-brand tank any chapter has ever fielded. Pick one, finish it properly, and let it anchor the display shelf.
Recommended: Land Raider Redeemer
One Land Raider at a time
- A second Land Raider before the first has its tracks painted. Even Vulkan finished one project at a time.
- Every flamer-adjacent unit in the range at once. The forge is eternal; your hobby budget is not.
- Named characters beyond He'stan until you have played enough games to know who you want leading.
The forge's stock book
Craftsmanship starts with knowing exactly what is on your workbench. Log each kit the day it reaches the forge and mark it boxed, built or finished, since the Fire-born would never leave a blade half-forged and unrecorded. The finished column glowing brighter month by month, like coals, is quiet motivation for anyone who enjoys the making as much as the playing. Everything the chapter fields, from Infernus Marines to the Forgefather himself, is on the Salamanders faction page under Data.