'Bag On Your Head' by Hardcore Superstar is incredible, really simple but really heavy, leads up to an all around great song. (yay 1000th post!)

NIle's 'Dusk falls upon the temple of serpent on the mount of sunrise' is memorable indeed, its dark atmosphere and melody remains well-stuck in our minds!

Regin in Blood and South Of Heaven are fuckin awesome but one of my favorites is The New Order by Testament. the intro is so fuckin intense!!!!!!!!!

The Trooper - Iron Maiden
Raining Blood - Slayer
Paranoid - Black Sabbath

it's one of those three

For me it is Cruelty Brought Thee Orchids by Cradle of Filth: "Hear Me now!/All crimes should be treasured if they bring thee pleasure somehow..." and after that those kickass drums! It is absolutely stunning, especially if you experience it live!

an entire album I recommend for great intros would be "Children Of The Black Flame" by Wolf, theres one track in particular that sticks out called 'At The Graveyard' it has an amazing dual guitar harmony intro. I highly recommend this album to anyone whos a fan of melodic metal.

Ok for me would be like this:
COB - Hate Me! - (Follow the Reaper)
Gamma Ray - Introduction (No World Order)
Nightwish - Devil and Dark Ocean ( Ocean Born )
Marduk - Still Fucking Death ( Infernal Eternal )
Metallica - Master of Puppets ( S&M )

another one: dark angel-merciless death- you think depeche mode is dark well???? pop this in your player.

Lamb of God - Laid to Rest... The spoken: "If there was a single day I could live. A single breath I could take. I trade all the others away" and with the awesome melodi. Starts out the song so damn good.
Nightwish - The Kinslayer... What can you say, a masterpiece.

Metallica - For Whom The Bells Toll
Metallica - Battery
Slayer - Catalyst
Testament - Eyes of Wrath
Blind Guardian - Another Holy War
Megadeth - Hanger 18

All of those intros are fucking classic !

Agalloch - "Falling Snow"
Opeth - "April Ethereal"
Cryptopsy - "Crown of Horns" (*rawr* I do that rather well.... don't ya think? )
Morbid Angel - "Dawn of the Angry"
Death - "Spirit Crusher"
Bloodbath - "Cry My Name"
Meshuggah - "Rational Gaze"
Iron Maiden - "Run to the Hills"
Carcass - "Corporal Jigsore Quandary"
In Flames - "Resin"
Dark Tranquillity - "Dry Run"
Decapitated - "Spheres of Madness"

So many more...

Metallica - Blackened!! It just cuts in you brain, and wont leave!!

those intros i consider to be really cool (in alphabetical order - no preferences between those) :

After Forever - Monolith Of Doubt
Avantasia - Farewell
DragonForce - Dawn Over A New World
Fairyland - Of Wars In Osyrhia
Iron Maiden - Dance Of Death
Iron Maiden - Fear Of The Dark
Manowar - Battle Hymn
Manowar - Courage
Manowar - Hail And Kill
Manowar - Warriors Of The World
Nightwish - 10th Man Down
Nightwish - Dark Chest Of Wonders
Nightwish - Ever Dream
Nightwish - Ghost Love Score
Nightwish - Nightquest
Nightwish - Stargazers
Nightwish - The Kinslayer
Nightwish - The Poet And The Pendulum
Nightwish - Where Were You Last Night
Rhapsody - Gargoyles, Angels Of Darkness
Rhapsody - Holy Thunderforce
Symphony X - The Oddysey
Turisas - Battle Metal

think it is still not the complete list of my favorite metal song intros

Slayer - Hell Awaits (masterpiece intro)
Slayer - Kill Again
Sepultura - From The Past Comes The Storms

edit: I used freetranslation.com ... dont blame me if it sounds rediculous

but these intros gives me "goose bumps" just listening to them

now listening to Iced Earth - The Devil To Pay...wow, thats an intro

I really like the intro on the new Helloween album Gambling With The Devil...you know....when they turn the wheel and when you feel that its time for it to stop turning.....ThE MuSiCk KiCkS iN!!!

"Tarot Woman" by Rainbow. Starts whit a keyboard solo, then Blackmore comes in whit his riffing, constantly getting louder.


Also seconding "Merciless Death" by Dark Angel.

Opeth - When: I love the way they suddenly all start to play at once
Opeth - The Moor: It's so very relaxing. And then the way the heavier part starts, so cool.
CoB - Bodom Beach Terror: Nice In Your Face stile intro

Summoning - Passing Of The Grey Company...it ties me to this band from the first measure, when i "tried it to see how good are they"

Helloween stage intro on Hellish rock.

Blind Guardian - Imaginations Form The Other Side (great intro by Olbrish and Stauch)
Susperia - Chemistry (totally great guitar intro)

The clean intro to Fight Fire With Fire by Metallica is awesome.

Dissection - At The Fathomless Depths: The guitar starts with a nocturnal sound, and a haunting melody which assures something really dark is approaching, the best one for me.

X Japan - Es Dur Piano No Sen: a very melancholic and romantic intro for a very emotive album, you can feel the emotions flowing out of the piano.

Ensiferum - Ferrum Aeternum: I LOVE this intro, it makes me travel to another world, and I can easily imagine those finnish forest and warriors, it fits very well with the music.

Crematory - Resurrection - An electronic intro, with an emotion qouta, the crystal keyboard fits perfect with the overall sound and is disctintive with the guitar.

Iron Maiden - The Trooper (very well done, fits in perfectly with the song)
Slayer - Raining Blood (for it's darkness )
Metallica - Enter Sandman (well, it's just fantastic )
Black Sabbath - Zero The Hero (the same reason as Raining Blood)

Metallica - Battery thtat acoustic intro ... omg !

I really like the intense harpsichord introduction of the Nightwish song "FantasMic"....

any rhapsody intro is awesome... so epic

intro to necrophagists "only ash remains", now that is fucking sweet bass

The intro song to the album Dechristianize by Vital Remains. It is too powerful.

The opening to what can be safely be written by nile is amazing, i wasnt sure about how good ithyphallic would be, but that is a killer intro, i swear once i was listening to it, it was so intense (i was probably stoned) i was so turned on! (in a weird death metal way...)

Nile - Dusk Falls Upon The Temple Of The Serpent On The Mount Of Sunrise
Morgul - (Intro) The Mask Of Sanity
Týr - The Beginning