ISSUE 5 - 1ST MARCH 2014

Editor: Jes Bickham
jes@whitedwarf.co.uk

Assistant Editor: Matt Keefe

mattk@whitedwarf.co.uk

Senior Staff Writer: Adam Troke

adam@whitedwarf.co.uk

Staff Writer: Daniel Harden
dan@whitedwarf.co.uk

Production Lead:
Rebecca Ferguson
rebecca@whitedwarf.co.uk

Digital Editor: Melissa Roberts
melissa@whitedwarf.co.uk

Lead Designer: Matthew Hutson

matt@whitedwarf.co.uk

Designer: Kristian Shield
kris@whitedwarf.co.uk

Designer: Ben Humber
ben@whitedwarf.co.uk

Photo Editor: Glenn More
glenn@whitedwarf.co.uk

Photographer: Erik Niemz
erik@whitedwarf.co.uk

Photographer: Martyn Lyon
martyn@whitedwarf.co.uk

Publisher: Paul Lyons
paul@whitedwarf.co.uk

One of the most exciting aspects of the Imperial Knight – aside from the fact that it’s an absolutely terrific model – is their background. The writers and artists in the Games Workshop Design Studio have really gone to town in establishing a magnificently detailed history for these titanic fighting machines, and in this issue we talk to some key people about the houses and the heraldry of the Imperial Knights. It’s fascinating reading.

Dan and Adam also take the Imperial Knights to war this issue in a Battle Report against the forces of Chaos; it’s a titanic clash and the forces of the Imperium have certainly got their hands full as a Khorne Lord of Skulls or two make an appearance.

We’re also proud to present a fun minigame that gives you another way to use you Imperial Knights miniatures; check out our Knightly Duels (and make sure you’ve got some playing cards handy.) See you next week!

The Imperial Knights are towering war machines that march into battle against the enemies of Mankind. Codex: Imperial Knights contains the background for these noble warriors and their ancient culture, and the rules for unleashing them in your games.

Within Codex: Imperial Knights you’ll find the story of the human settlers who journeyed out into the stars many thousands of years before the birth of the Imperium, and how their descendants came to be warrior societies now known as the Knight Worlds. All this is portrayed in a fascinating history section, along with a timeline tracing the major events from the history of the Imperial Knights, including the many battles they have fought.

This 64 page hardback book also contains a wealth of information on the colours and heraldry of the Imperial Knights, along with a gallery depicting the Imperial Knight models in battle. There are also comprehensive rules for using your Imperial Knights in games, either as allies for a variety of existing Warhammer 40,000 armies (most prominently the armies of the Imperium), or as a primary detachment. There are also new Warlord Traits and knightly ranks for the latter.

Also released this month is a special limited edition Codex, presented in a lavish slipcase featuring the heraldic motif of the Imperial Knights, and a limited edition number stamped on the reverse. The Codex comes with a hardbound folio containing seven full colour prints of elevations of famous Imperial Knights. AT

Left: The amazing Codex cover, by Ray Swanland.

Right: The Limited Edition Codex comes stowed in this impressive slip cover.

The history section includes a galactic map revealing the locations of key Knight worlds.

The Imperial Knights Companion is a spectacular, large-format tome that delves deep into the origins and history of the Imperial Knights, the culture of their noble houses and their complex relationships with the Imperium and the Adeptus Mechanicus.

One of the things that is immediately apparent about the Imperial Knights is the richness of their background and the sheer scale and complexity of the heraldry of the knightly houses and Freeblades. The Imperial Knights Companion collects an unprecedented amount of information on the origins of the Imperial Knights, and the long march that saw them reach out into the stars. It delves into their first contact with the exploratory fleets of the Great Crusade, and how the knightly houses came to forge alliances with the Imperium and Machine Cult.

Within the Companion, seven major knightly houses – Terryn, Hawkshroud, Griffith, Cadmus, Krast, Raven and Taranis – along with seven famous Freeblades are described in detail, with a full exploration of their heritage and traditions, and stories telling the exploits of some of their most famous heroes. You are introduced to heroic nobles, famous bands of warriors and the exploits that have made them men – and machines – of legend.

This expanded history is interlaced around scores of glorious elevation images of Imperial Knights, clearly showing the placement of their heraldry and honour markings, along with further annotations and explanations of the history and meaning behind these symbols. AT

The evolution of a knightly house’s heraldic crest, from their founding to the 41st Millennium, is explained in detail.

A clear graphical diagram showing where each type of badge and icon should be placed.

Many famous Imperial Knights are detailed.

Codex: Imperial Knights is also available for Android, Kindle and iBook devices.

Whether you’re into iPads or eReaders, Codex: Imperial Knights is a great way to learn more about these towering war machines. Complete with full rules, colour galleries and an extensive background section, they’re just what you need to help you field your Knights in battle.

Each of these digital editions provides all the background, rules, miniatures galleries, army list entries and other material you’d find in the printed Codex, while the iBook edition also provides 360° showcases, interactive showcases, quick reference pop-up boxes for rules, and a host of other interactive features, making for an indispensible, easy-to-navigate, all-in-one-place source for all things Imperial Knights.

This iBook download includes a wealth of stage-by-stage painting guides for Imperial Knights.

The Imperial Knight offers one of the most elaborate painting opportunites ever to grace a hobbyist’s workbench. With endless opportunities for personalisation and distinctive heraldry, you might well be left wondering where to begin.

How to Paint Citadel Miniatures: Imperial Knights provides the perfect starting point, with stage-by-stage painting guides for Houses Terryn and Raven, and the Freeblades Amaranthine, Gerantius the Forgotten Knight, the Obsidian Knight and the White Warden, while the wealth of tips on offer will be of use in devising and painting your own colour schemes and heraldry. Some might say the grim darkness of the far future just got a little bit more colourful.

By Graham McNeill
Hardback | 126 pages

House Cadmus, having recently thrown off the yoke of the Adeptus Mechanicus, must now ride to war to keep their freedom.

In Knights of the Imperium, Graham McNeill weaves the tale of House Cadmus, an ancient and glorious knightly house, that has recently distanced itself from the cloying grasp of the Priesthood of Mars. Even as the head of the house, Baron Roland, seeks to define their treaty with the Mechanicus, shadowy agents within the Machine Cult seek to make an example of the wayward Cadmus, lest other knightly houses take their lead. The result of this politicking is Baron Roland consenting to lead his Imperial Knights en masse in a daring mission to recover a precious relic from the ruins of Gryphonne IV – one so valuable to the Adeptus Mechanicus that perhaps they would even overlook Cadmus’s insurrection if the relic itself can be recovered.

Fans of Graham McNeill’s work will recall his novel Mechanicus, which deals with Imperial Knights during the time of the Horus Heresy, and in this new novel he delves further than ever. The depictions of House Cadmus, the Nobles and their consorts are both fascinating and wholly convincing. Baron Roland is portrayed from the first person perspective, which gives an incredible insight into the mind of a prominent Noble, and how he chafes at intrigue and routine, craving the simplicity and honesty of warfare instead.

And, when the Imperial Knights do go to war, it is exultant. McNeill crafts vivid descriptions of these towering war machines cleaving into the ranks of Tyranids. Even in the midst of battle, however, the story never relaxes its overall narrative, and through the knights of Cadmus we see simmering rivalries, resentments and a passionate loyalty to their ancient noble house.

In every aspect, Knights of the Imperium is a roaring success; the characters within it are compelling, from the gruff Roland, to the cunning and loyal Cordelia. The intricate plot and bloody action scenes roll along in exciting fashion. The greatest achievement of the tale, in my opinion, however, is the insight it gives you into what it means to be an Imperial Knight, and survive not only on the battlefield, but also within the circles of deception and conspiracy that threaten their much-cherished independence. Knights of the Imperium is a triumph, and a superb introduction to a fascinating and inspiring part of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. AT

FURTHER READING

If you’re interested in reading more about Imperial Knights, you really should try out Mechanicum, also by Graham McNeill. It’s a cracking book from the Horus Heresy series. In the novel, the Imperial Knights of House Taranis stand against the traitors on the critical Forge World of Mars, while dreaded machinations threaten the heart of the Mechanicum.

With a history of games design pre-dating even the humble word processor, you might think Jervis would be slow to warm to Games Workshop’s new Digital Editions, but you’d be wrong. And here’s why…

I’ve already mentioned some of the Digital Editions – the iBooks and eBooks – we’ve been bringing out in previous instalments of my column. For those of you that don’t already know about them, we have been bringing out a growing range of digital books and supplements over the last year or so. These include electronic versions of some of our codexes, as well as ‘digital only’ books that include new rules, army lists and scenarios that you can use in our games. You can find out more about all of the books in the digital range by visiting our website at www.games-workshop.co.uk and clicking on the link at the top of the page for Digital Editions.

If you are a regular reader of my column, you will know I am a fan of our digital books, and I thought I would take the opportunity to explain just what it is I like about them in this month’s column. Now, there are a couple of pretty obvious reasons to like eBooks and iBooks. The first is that they utilise a fantastic new technology, and can do clever little electronic tricks that are simply not possible with an old-fashioned ink and paper book, like having hyperlinked indexes and pop-up rules information and what not. Sadly, I am too much of a Luddite to get terribly excited about such things and, while I find them useful, that’s not the primary reason that I’m such a fan of our digital books. Is it, then, because they mean I can carry around the equivalent of a bookcase full of reference books in one slim iPad or laptop computer? Again, no, not really; useful as that ability is, I quite like having bookcases full of reference books!

No, as wonderful as the benefits of this new electronic media may be, the reason I like our digital books so much is because they have given me the chance to write books I would not have had the chance to write in the past. They do this because electronic books can be of pretty much any size, and we do not have to print thousands of copies in advance. This gives unprecedented flexibility in what we can bring out; electronic books can be as long or as short as they need to be, rather than having to fit into 16-page chunks like a regular book, and they can cover very niche subjects that will only need to appeal to a few hundred people (or even a few score), rather than having to appeal to several thousand. The bottom line of all of this is that we can bring out books that we could not have brought out in the past.

Now, all of these things (new electronic tricks, portability, and wide range) are obviously good for the people that collect the books, but they also happen to be a fantastic boon for the people that create them too. You see, sad man that I am, I really enjoy writing rules books. I love coming up with scenarios, and new ways to play games, and I have found it wonderfully liberating to know that I can now get those things out to a wider audience. Don’t let management know, but it has given me just the excuse I needed to finish off projects I have been wanting to write for years, but couldn’t justify in the past. A good example of what I mean are the Warhammer Battlefields campaign packs that are available as iBooks. These allow you and a friend to fight a small campaign, based around a common theme. For example, a Warhammer border war between two kingdoms, or a raid on a hidden temple in the jungles of Lustria. Before each battle, the players each pick an option from a list of five choices, and then the choices are compared to see what type of battle is fought. This allows you to outwit your opponent and make them fight a battle on your terms: guess the strategy they will pick and you can choose the perfect counter. But make the wrong choice, and it will be you that must battle their way out of a trap!

This system – which I call the Campaign Matrix System for want of a better term – is something I have been tinkering with for my own games for, quite literally, years. However, the big matrixes the system needed would only fit onto an A3 sheet, and in any case I was pretty sure that a campaign pack wouldn’t be popular enough to justify a print run. Then along came digital, and suddenly I was able to dust off my old Matrix Campaign System, and justify the time needed to finish off my prototype. As it happened, the system I had come up with was well-suited to digital products, who could use the electronic trickery mentioned above to make the process of picking a strategy and comparing it to your opponents a breeze, compared to the clunky A3 sheets I had used in a pen and paper version of the game. I was overjoyed, and even more so when asked if I could come up with some more campaigns, including one for Warhammer 40,000, as the first had proved popular enough to warrant making some more.

All of which is, of course, fabulous, and all of which, of course, means that you can get hold of some interesting new rulebooks and supplements to use in your own games, and which we would not have been able to bring out in the past. However, there is another reason that I like our digital books and will continue to beat the drum for them. That reason is that they can serve as fantastic examples of different ways you can play our games, and which I hope will inspire creative players to come up with similar ideas of their own. Or to put that another way, creating things like the campaign matrix system isn’t just something I can do, you can do it too. What’s more, you don’t have to worry about pesky things like print runs, page counts and deadlines! If only my life were always so simple…

Jervis Johnson is a 30-year veteran of games development and has had a hand in the design of most of our classic games.

One of the defining features of the Imperial Knights is the complex arrangement of icons, sigils and crests that form their heraldry. Each symbol on an Imperial Knight has a powerful resonance for its wearer, and as Adam Troke discovers, a deep inner meaning.

Long before the rise of the Emperor and the birth of the Imperium, humanity reached out to the stars, eager to occupy new worlds and Even a cursory glance at the Imperial Knight models shown throughout Codex: Imperial Knights, the Imperial Knights Companion or even this magazine reveals a wealth of heraldic imagery, quite unlike anything else within the Warhammer 40,000 universe. As we began to read more about the Knights and their noble houses, and then build our own Imperial Knight models here in the White Dwarf bunker, it became clear there was a lot to learn. We spoke to Tammy Nicholls, a key part of the team that developed the imagery and heraldry of the Imperial Knights. For months she was steeped in heraldic lore.

“Our goal with the Imperial Knights was to present as full and evolved a culture as possible,” Tammy says. “The knightly houses find their origins thousands of years before the Imperium, so it’s important that we present a visual language that looks like it has evolved through time. Take the house crests, for example. Each began as a simple device, such as the white horse of House Terryn. Over the millennia new alliances and significant events caused it to evolve into something grander, reflecting the complex relationship between the knightly house and the Imperium itself.

“Using Terryn as the example again, the white horse is symbolically linked to a vision that the house founder had way back in its distant past,” Tammy adds. “Over the millennia, more heraldry, such as the helm above the crest and the swords behind were added (symbolic of an ancient battle), as was the house name. Later, when Seuitonius Terryn swore allegiance to the Imperium, the crest was marshalled, with the half-Aquila falling on the right side, and resplendent eagle wings as supporters. This half-and-half shows the observer the relationship between the knightly house and the Imperium, and the dichotomy of loyalty to their house and the wider imperium.

“Each of the knightly houses we have portrayed has a detailed history,” Tammy adds. “And you can see subtle nods to events in that history in the crest and secondary devices they employ, and these are often very grand, with a mythological appeal. House Griffith have wars against dragons in their ancient history, and wear dragons as their crest as a result. What truth lies behind that symbol is now the subject of legend as much as historical fact, but to the warriors of House Griffith, it’s very important.

“Essentially the same is true of the Adeptus Mechanicus-aligned houses,” says Tammy. “Their imagery tends more towards the industrial, with harder edges to their designs, tools replace the swords and axes of other houses. In the place of Imperial Aquilas, these Imperial Knights wear the half-cog. The same dual-split remains here, with loyalty divided between the house and the machine cult.

“Finally, each Imperial Knight has the right to wear his own personal heraldry,” Tammy adds. “Those of Imperial-aligned houses wear this on their front-right shoulder pad. The form it takes is a matter of personal choice, although different houses have their own traditions. Adeptus Mechanicus-aligned houses don’t typically bother with this at all. The Nobles from houses such as Krast and Raven are willingly subsumed, and don’t fear for their independence.”

House Raven

House Raven is foremost among the knightly houses aligned to the Adeptus Mechanicus. Their ancient alliance was brought about when a lord of House Raven witnessed the Magi of Forge World Metalica rouse to life Knight suits that had lain inoperable for centuries. The seat of Raven’s power is their indomitable fortress known as the Keep Inviolate, a foreboding structure on the knight world of Kolossi. The full house crest of Raven bears homage to their heritage with the duel image of the Keep Inviolate and the Opus Machina.

House Griffith

In its earliest days, House Griffith fought many battles against the deadly dragons that inhabited their world. This desperate struggle served to harden the Nobles into skilled and fierce warriors. Millennia later, Griffith is sworn to the Imperium, and has earned a reputation for producing some of the most formidable warriors ever to sit upon the Throne Mechanicum. The heraldry of House Griffith is halved with a dragon motif, connecting to their ancient history, and a red-winged Aquila, professing loyalty to Terra.

THE GAUNTLET

The symbol of a gauntlet crushing a serpent symbolises House Krast’s hatred of Chaos. Such is their venom that there is a secret place on their world, known as the Hammer of Traitors. Here they carve the names of Chaos worshippers they have destroyed – and, rumour has it, bring prisoners to die in the poisonous air.

KNIGHTLY HONOURS

Glorious kills are celebrated by Imperial Knights with icons to be worn on their personal banner or suit of knight armour. These take many forms, from targetting symbols or small skulls to rings around weapon barrels.

The symbol shown above is a modified badge of the Traitor Titan Legion, Legio Mortis, with a crack to denote a Titan kill. Specific to House Krast, this is the greatest battle honour a Krast Noble can receive.

HERALDIC DEVICES

“Each suit of Knight armour worn by Nobles of an Imperial-aligned House will always show three things,” says Tammy. “The major plates display house symbols, most typically the crest and lesser icons. The minor plates show Imperial heraldry. Finally, the knight’s front right shoulder

guard is reserved for the personal heraldry of the Noble pilot – this is a design which is unique to that specific warrior and none other.

“It’s a great hobby challenge. Following this system embeds your model in the universe,” Tammy adds, “giving it an air
of authenticity.”

FORGING THE NARRATIVE

While Tammy compiled and codified the imagery of the houses, the role of establishing their histories fell to other hands. Citadel writer Owen Barnes took the lead on the Imperial Knights Companion, and the stories within it. “Just as the Imperial Knights have heraldry which has evolved over thousands of years, there are also rich histories of bloodshed and warfare to explore,” he says. “My task was to delve deeper into the lore of the houses, and tell more of the struggles that have forged them and the famous nobles who fight for them.

“It was a joyful task of exploring an almost completely unexplored part of the Warhammer 40,000 background,” Owen continues. “House Krast, for instance, has the motif of an armoured fist clutching a serpent as its house icon. As we looked into the stories, the symbolism of this became apparent – Krast are violent opponents of the forces of Chaos. Historically they were the first knightly house to join their forces to the Great Crusade, and they took great honour in their part of the Emperor’s galactic conquest. But when the Horus Heresy reared its head, they suffered terribly.

“Chrysis, the home planet of House Krast, was utterly ravaged by the traitors, and left as little more than a husk, reduced to a poisonous wasteland by the virus weapons unleashed upon it,” Owen says. “Even 10,000 years later, the nobles now live in void-shielded enclaves, and look out at their ruined world and feel a burning hate. Their icon is now the embodiment of their quest for vengeance, and they proudly tally the many Chaos worshippers they have defeated. Prosecuting this endless battle against the forces of the Dark Gods has become their driving motivation. Their greatest hate is for the Titans of the Legio Mortis, who they hold accountable for the horrors unleashed on Chrysis.

“Most of the Imperial-aligned knightly houses have a fierce independence which developed in the long years of isolation,” Owen adds. “Thousands of years fending for themselves before fresh contact was made with humanity has made them reluctant to rely on others. House Cadmus forged an alliance of necessity with the Mechanicus, centred around the nearby Forge World Gryphonne IV. Now that Forge World has been destroyed by Hive Fleet Leviathan, their leader is vying for greater independence once again.

“Their heraldry has reverted to that used in ancient times,” Owen says, “with images such as heraldic beasts and antiquated weapons now appearing on their armoured plates. This return to tradition is a source of great pride for the Imperial Knights of Cadmus, although the more even-keeled among them might well perceive the trouble turning away from such an alliance could bring in the future.

“There is a great hope for us behind the stories we tell, and it’s that they will inspire people to collect the models and armies to recreate them, or maybe conjure up some of their own. We have only begun to scrape the surface of the knightly houses – each has many more warriors than we have detailed, and that’s before people get around to creating knightly houses of their own.” AT

MARKS OF FEALTY

Every Imperial Knight wears an icon upon its carapace that proclaims the loyalty house to all that behold it.

THE IMPERIAL EAGLE

The Imperial Eagle, or Aquila, is the icon worn by Imperial-aligned houses. It is worth noting that, while his icon proclaims a close military alliance, it does not imply any form of subjugation. Indeed, knightly houses see themselves as equals (if not betters) to the Imperium, alongside whom they fight for mutual benefit and as a sign of friendship.

THE MACHINA OPUS

The icon of the Adeptus Mechanicus is worn by Imperial Knights in houses which are aligned with the Priesthood of Mars. Houses that wear this mark not only fight alongside the Adeptus Mechanicus, and will answer a call for aid without hesitation, but can also rely on the industrial might of the Forge Worlds to supply and repair their war machines.

THE LAURELS FIDELIS

Knights who take the mantle of Freeblades cast aside the heraldry of their former houses. Tradition dictates that these Nobles adopt the Laurels Fidelis, a laurel-wreathed skull which indicates their continued loyalty towards the Imperium of Man, despite leaving their houses. An Imperial Knight wearing this symbol will fight for Mankind, even until death.

Part of the joy of collecting Warhammer 40,000 is creating stories and narratives for your army, and there are few better opportunities to do this than by creating your own Freeblade Imperial Knight.

Ancient tradition ensures that every Noble pilot has the right to leave his knightly house and strike out on his own as a Freeblade. These Freeblade Knights are tragic heroes, driven to leave their houses to pursue a cause of their own.

Every Freeblade Knight gives you a chance to tell a story of tragedy and adventure, and to forge a narrative for your new miniature. All you need is an idea for a story of your own, and a colour scheme and heraldry to bring it to life.

Here we look at some Freeblade Knights from the White Dwarf team: Jes Bickham’s Madrigal and Glenn More’s Firebrand, plus Dan Harden’s Kappa Mu, an Imperial Knight from a house of his own devising… along with a few other tales, too.

MADRIGAL THE NIGHT’S WATCHMEN, LAST INVIGILUS OF DAMNED STYGIA

Jes: I was directly inspired by the Obsidian Knight in Codex: Imperial Knights – I wanted a similarly mysterious individual, and so Madrigal was born.

He’s a tragic figure, whose status as a Freeblade is a result of great loss. The last line of defence against a massive Daemonic incursion, Madrigal was unable to halt the murderous predations of the servants of Chaos, and so his homeworld of Stygia fell. As the lone survivor, Madrigal’s guilt at his failure led inexorably to a self-imposed penance that has no end in sight; rejecting the heraldry of his house, Madrigal relentlessly patrols the benighted remains of Stygia, a dark figure outlined against a pale moon, striding through blackened forests and the empty shells of dead cities. As a result of the Daemonic invasion, Stygia is a victim of fell sorcery and the dead rest uneasily beneath its surface. Madrigal haunts the dark places of his world to ensure the victims of his failure stay in their graves, and he watches warily for fresh Warp taint, ever vigilant for signs of the Daemon.

RETRIBUTION INCARNATE

The Freeblade Knight known as Retribution Incarnate was first sighted during the Macharian Crusade, when an Imperial Guard task force was fighting through the jungles of Synn Secundus against the Chaos armies of the Jade King.

The Imperial advance was on the brink of collapse. At the peak of the battle, Noble pilot Lothar saw his brother’s knight suit pulled down and destroyed. Such was his rage that he single-handedly charged the Chaos forces, buying time for the Imperial troops to regroup. Lothar was never seen again. Instead Retribution Incarnate limped out of the jungle to join the Imperial forces.

GERANTIUS

Gerantius is the self-imposed defender of Sacred Mountain, on Alaric Prime. If legends are true, this Freeblade Knight is truly ancient, and if they are not he still far pre-dates any living memory on the world he so righteously protects.

Not only is he considered a mighty warrior, Gerantius is also the subject of considerable superstition and myth. Some claim that when he walks to war, the sick are healed and pure rains fall from the skies, driving drought away. Others claim that he has eldritch power, for he has cheated death only to return again and again. Nobody knows the truth about this strange guardian, save only that he steadfastly protects Sacred Mountain and those around it.

AURIC ARACHNUS

Few Imperial Knights, Freeblade or otherwise can lay claim to such glorious accolades as Auric Arachnus during his labours in the Battle for Macragge. Alongside the Ultramarines Chapter and their Planetary Defence Force soldiers, Auric Arachnus valiantly fought at Cold Steel Ridge, killing many Tyranid monstrosities during the fighting. When Lord Macragge sounded the retreat, Auric Arachnus fell back in good order, and was able to rejoin the Imperial forces mustering at the Southerm Polar Fortress, where he was instrumental in the fighting there.

Very few survived the fighting during the final hours of the Battle for Macragge, but when the Ultramarines relief force came, they found Auric Arachnus standing tall, surrounded by the warriors he had fought and bled beside.

THE FIREBRAND

Glenn: The story for my Freeblade Knight came to me when I was painting the model. I had some very specific ideas for the modelling and painting techniques I wanted to use on the model, and as I was working I found myself cooking up (no pun intended, honestly) the story behind the enigmatic warrior known as the Firebrand.

The legend surrounding the Firebrand describes him as a foolhardy and impetuous knight who favoured direct action over the subtlety and tactics espoused by the Baron of his house. His legend purports that long ago the Firebrand led many Imperial Knights of his house into a foolhardy confrontation they couldn’t hope to win – they were outnumbered and decimated. Appalled at his lack of foresight and the loss of so many of their number, the survivors named him ‘Firebrand’ and banished him from their doomed – and now long since forgotten – house. Scholars have speculated over the years which noble house the Firebrand brought so low, but none dare to ask it aloud.

Now, the Firebrand can be seen where the fighting is thickest. Some say he is trying to pay penance for the destruction of his house; others say he still fights with the same wild abandon regardless of history. Of his name, the Firebrand bears no shame in it, instead embracing the venom with which he was labelled, and unleashing it in the crucible of battle against the enemies of Mankind.

KLORIAN SAICHE, THE FORGOTTEN WARRIOR OF HOUSE TRAINOR

Dan: It’s no secret that I love anything to do with the Adeptus Mechanicus, so when these towering war machines came on the scene, I knew I wanted to base mine on a Mechanicus-aligned house.

Reading through Codex: Imperial Knights and the Knight Companion, I found the dubious relationship between the knightly houses and the Adeptus Mechanicus highly entertaining. I especially liked the idea of Mechanicus adepts infiltrating a fortress to steal the pre-Imperial technology owned by the Knights.

Klorian Saiche belongs to House Trainor, who long ago threw in their lot with the Adeptus Mechanicus, though they remain justifiably suspicious of them.

Having fought alongside Titan Legions and the Imperial Guard on Betalis III, Klorian’s phalanx was virtually wiped out in an ambush by Eldar Aspect Warriors. His suit battered and broken, Saiche spent weeks in the icy wilderness making repairs before limping back to the Imperial lines. By the time he returned, the war on Betalis III had ended and many of the troop ships had already left for new war zones, leaving Saiche behind. Seeking assistance from the Mechanicus artisans and techpriests that still remained, Saiche was able to repair his Knight armour and seek passage to a new war zone, where he would fight alongside them until he could make his way back to his home planet of Mancora. The price was costly, however: unfettered access to his armour’s high technology.

Alan Merrett presents a fun minigame that gives you another way to use your magnificent new Imperial Knight miniature.

FACE VALUES

This knightly duelling game is played with playing cards. For the purposes of Shooting, Fighting and Damage Results, Queens have a value of 10. Aces have a value of 11 (and cannot be blocked in a fight).

The Imperial Knights are bound by ancient courtly rituals and behaviours. As well as dealing out death and destruction on the battlefields of the 41st Millennium, the Nobles who pilot the Imperial Knights also take to the field to duel one another for glory, honour or over a perceived slight. We’re pleased to present a minigame for duelling with your new miniatures. All you need is a Knight Paladin, a Knight Errant, and a pack of playing cards.

HOW TO DUEL

Player 1 is the Knight Paladin, and takes the four Kings from the deck of cards. Player 2 is the Knight Errant, and takes the four Jacks. The Kings and the Jacks represent Knight’s Shields (the red cards) and Lives (the black cards). Line these up where both players can see them.

Next, place both Knights on the table near each other, but not in base contact. As you’ll see, the Knightly Duels minigame provides a fairly abstract method of fighting, but players will need to move their knights in and out of base contact.

Decide who takes the first turn in a mutually agreeable manner. The players then draw a hand of five cards each. The player who has the first turn (the Active Player) draws an additional card.

The Active Player then decides to Move, (or not) as they wish. They then choose an action: Shoot, Fight or Repair Shields. You must choose to do one (and only one) of these three actions a turn.

MOVE

To Move, the Active Player discards a card from their hand, and moves their Imperial Knight in or out of base contact as desired.

To Shoot or Repair Shields, a Knight must not be in base contact with the opposing Knight. To Fight, a Knight must end its Move in base contact with the opposing Knight. (Moves are thus quite abstract, simply in or out of base contact, based upon a player’s choice of following action.)

SHOOT

The Knight Paladin is armed with a rapid-fire battle cannon, while a Knight Errant is armed with a thermal cannon. Both work slightly differently, and the rules for each are as follows:

Thermal cannon

To Shoot with the thermal cannon, the Active Player must play three cards and nominate a suit. Only cards of the nominated suit count. The face values of the nominated suit are added together to give an Attack Value. (Of course, having three cards of the same suit provides the best chance of getting a high Attack Value). The Defending Player then plays three cards; add the values of any cards that match the Active Player’s nominated suit to give a Defend Value. Compare the total Attack Value and Defend Value and see the Damage Results table.

Rapid-fire Battle Cannon

To shoot with the rapid-fire battle cannon, the Active Player plays two pairs of cards (representing two shots). The Active Player then nominates a suit in each pair. Only cards of the nominated suit count. Add the values of any such cards in each pair to give two Attack Values.

The Defending Player must play two pairs of cards; add together the values of any cards that match the Active Player’s nominated suits in each pair to give two Defend Values. Compare each set of Attack and Defend Values separately and see the Damage Results table.

FIGHT

To Fight, the Active Player plays three cards, of any suit, one at a time. These are known as Fight Cards. The Defending Player attempts to nullify each Fight Card by playing a card from his own hand, known as a Blocking Card. (Note that the Defending Player must play a Blocking card, even if unable to match the value of the Fight card.) Compare the face values, not suits, of each set of Fight and Blocking cards on the Damage Results table.

Aces cannot be blocked in a fight, even by another ace, and will always score a Crushing Blow! The Defending Player must still play a Blocking Card. Unlike Shoot attacks, Fight attacks can affect both Shields and Lives in the same turn.

The Joker: The Joker represents the Imperial Knight’s heavy stubber making an opportune blast at the enemy as it charges, and can be played by the Active Player at the start of a Fight, before any other cards are played. If the Joker is played, the defending player must randomly discard one of his cards.

REPAIR SHIELDS

To Repair Shields you must discard one card from your hand. All Shield cards are then flipped face up.

END OF TURN

At the end of each turn, if the players have fewer than five cards in their hands, they each draw enough cards each to ensure they have five cards in their hands. The player whose turn it is next always draws an extra card at the start of their turn. If the deck runs out, shuffle the discards back in to create a new deck and carry on.

The Knightly Duel is over when one of the Imperial Knights has all of its Shields and Lives flipped over, and has therefore lost the duel. Losing Knights must retire in shame, their honour forever sullied!

DAMAGE RESULTS TABLE

Defend Value is equal to or higher than Attack Value: Attack Nullified, no damage is caused.

Attack Value is higher than Defend Value: Glancing Blow, inflict 1 damage.

Attack Value is double or more Defend Value: Crushing Blow, inflict 2 damage.

Note: If the Defending Player has no Defend Value (because none of the cards played match any of the nominated suits) the Active Player automatically does 2 damage.

Aces are always high (that is, 11) for both Shoot and Fight attacks.

For each point of damage inflicted, flip over a Shield card. Lives are only affected once both Shield cards are flipped over. Important: Shoot damage can only destroy shields or lives, not both in the same turn.

EXAMPLES

Thermal Cannon

Adam fires his thermal cannon by playing three cards: a 6 of Hearts, a 10 of Hearts, and a 5 of Diamonds, nominating Hearts as his attacking suit. Jes plays three cards: a 2 of Hearts, a 5 of Hearts, and a 3 of Clubs. Only cards from the Hearts suit count for either player, so Adam’s total is 16, while Jes’s is 7. Adam’s Attack Value is thus more than double Jes’s Defend Value, so Adam inflicts two damage on Jes’s Knight.

Battle Cannon

Jes retaliates with his rapid-fire battle cannon, playing two pairs of cards. First, a 10 of Spades and a 2 of Diamonds (nominating Spades), then a 4 of Diamonds and a 7 of Diamonds (nominating Diamonds). Adam defends with a 4 of Clubs and a 6 of Spades, and a 3 of Diamonds and a 2 of Clubs. For the first pair, Jes nominated Spades, so his total is 10, while Adam’s is 6. Jes’s Attack Value beats Adam’s Defen d Value, and inflicts one damage on Adam’s Knight. For the second pair, Jes nominated Diamonds; his total is 11, while Adam’s is 3. Jes’s Attack Value is thus more than double Adam’s Defend Value and inflicts two damage. However, as shooting cannot affect both shields and lives in the same turn, the first two hits knock down both of Adam’s shields; the third is discarded.

Fighting

Adam attacks with a 7 of Clubs, but Jes blocks it with an 8 of Hearts. (Face values, not suits, count in fighting.) Next Adam plays a 10 of Clubs; Jes plays a 2 of Hearts, suffering one damage. Finally, Adam strikes with an Ace! It cannot be blocked and inflicts two damage.

Alan Merrett knows more about the worlds of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 than the Emperor himself – which is fitting, as he’s worked on them both for over 30 years. So excited is he by the Imperial Knights that he developed this game.

Eager to see what the Imperial Knights could do on the battlefield, Dan and Adam used them in a scenario of their own devising. With Adam fielding five Knights alongside his Dark Angels, Dan used the power of Chaos to summon some Super-heavies of his own.

THE UNFORGIVEN

Company Master Zephon with Command Squad Librarian Ramael
Tactical Squad Uzziel – 10 Tactical Marines
Tactical Squad Sephram – 10 Tactical Marines
Tactical Squad Uriah – 10 Tactical Marines
Scout Squad Hyphon – 5 Scouts
Veteran Squad Nameth – 5 Company Veterans
Ancient Thomar – Venerable Dreadnought
The Ravenkin – Ravenwing Squadron
Skystalker – Nephilim Jetfighter
Might of Caliban – Predator Annihilator Inquisitor Rex and Retinue
Knight Seneschal Havlorn of House Raven
Knight Walkorn of House Raven
Knight Monteryn of House Terryn
Knight Apparent Capulan of House Terryn
Freeblade Amaranthine

THE BLACK LEGION

Chaos Lord Morion and Terminator Retinue
Umleth’s Raiders – 10 Chaos Space Marines
Zakion’s Destroyers – 10 Chaos Space Marines
The Bloodslaughterers – 15 Khorne Berzerkers
The Fleshreapers – 7 Khorne Berzerkers
Harkon’s Suppressors – 5 Havocs
The Cult of Destruction – 2 Obliterators
The Sky Shards – 5 Raptors
Xa’kriesh – Heldrake
Castigator – Vindicator
Oberonius – Maulerfiend
Firebrand – Forgefiend
Uranesh the Reaver – Khorne Lord of Skulls
Goreash the Undefeated – Khorne Lord of Skulls

Dan: When it came to picking sides for the Battle Report, both myself and Adam wanted to use the new Imperial Knights. Tossing a coin for it, Adam won and decided to field five Knights alongside his Dark Angels in a combined force of around 3500 points. In response, I borrowed the Black Legion Chaos Space Marines from the Studio, along with a couple of Super-heavy walkers: two Khorne Lords of Skulls.

My mission was to destroy the two Aquila Strongpoints in Adam’s deployment zone. Adam wouldn’t be firing them in the game (thank the Dark Gods!) as we imagined they were targeting a distant part of the invading Chaos army. Adam’s mission was to stop me destroying them, but it quickly became obvious that his best chance of doing so would be to eliminate the two Lords of Skulls. With two objectives each, we were ready for war.

The forces of Chaos surged forward, intent on closing the gap between the two armies as quickly as possible. Uranesh the Reaver advanced, his blood-rage driving him towards the Dark Angels at a furious pace. On the other flank, Goreash the Undefeated also roared forward, intent on getting to grips with the enemy as quickly as possible. Firing his hades gatling cannon at Capulan, the Knight Apparent of House Raven, the Daemonic war machine scored several glancing hits but failed to slow the hot-headed young Knight.

Responding to the reckless charge of the Daemon engines, the Knights also advanced, striding over the defence lines where the Dark Angels sheltered, their battle horns blaring out challenges to Khorne’s war machines. Following Havlorn’s example, Monteryn and Walkorn fired at Uranesh, tearing chunks out of his armour and causing grievous damage. Roaring in anger, the Lord of Skulls began to re-knit its wounds before their eyes.

Realising the danger of letting the machine live, the Seneschal lowered his thermal cannon and raised his reaper chainsword, challenging Uranesh to a close combat duel. Stepping carefully into the crater before him, the Seneschal was caught off-guard by the berserk fury of the wounded Lord of Skulls. Its massive teeth whirring, Uranesh brought the great cleaver of Khorne crashing down upon the Knight commander’s carapace, tearing the suit clean in half. The resulting explosion shook the battlefield with titanic force, obliterating Uranesh and showering the nearby Daemon engines with debris.

The death of Uranesh drove Goreash into an unstoppable rage, and he roared forward to engage the enemy up close and personal, supported by the Sky Shards and the Bloodslaughterers. On the left flank, the Heldrake descended to the battlefield, unleashing a gout of warp-fuelled flame upon the Dark Angels. Backed up by the ectoplasmic fury of Firebrand, it incinerated the Tactical Squad, leaving just Sergeant Uzziel and a lone battle brother to hold the line. Nearby, Oberonius advanced swiftly, intent on getting to the Aquila Strongpoint before anything spotted it, while the Vindicator tore into Squad Uriah, forcing them to take cover in the trench line.

His mind driven to destruction, Goreash smashed into Capulan with the force of a meteor. Despite being more agile, the Knight Apparent was no match for the Lord of Skulls, the damage he caused driving it further into madness. With a swing of his great cleaver, the Daemon engine bisected the young Knight at the waist, causing a chain reaction that claimed the lives of power-armoured warriors on both sides. Undaunted, the Raptors laid into the nearby Squad Hyphon, though failed to kill the Astartes aspirants.

With casualties mounting and the enemy drawing close to the Aquila Strongpoints, the Dark Angels called for reinforcements, but the comms-net remained dead. Steeling their resolve, the Dark Angels readied their bolters for the onslaught, while the two remaining Knights strode forward to delay the Chaos advance. Yet despite the proximity of the towering war machine, Walkorn was unable to reach the Lord of Skulls, the ruined trenchline proving too treacherous for his piloting skills. Monteryn had no such trouble on the opposite flank and ran full-tilt at the Maulerfiend, kicking it over before ripping it apart with his reaper chainsword.

With a Knight among them, the Chaos forces on the left flank were in disarray. Unfazed, Goreash drove over the defence line and crushed the Might of Caliban beneath its armoured tracks, a pair of Obliterators materialising nearby, summoned by the carnage. Roaring in delight, the Lord of Skulls turned on Walkorn, unleashing a torrent of ichor and a hail of bullets into its armoured shell. Protected by its ion shield, the Knight survived the onslaught but was left badly crippled. In an attempt to stop Monteryn racing after Goreash, the Black Legion charged in. Backed up by the remaining Fleshreapers, they successfully held it up, but found that their krak grenades were unable to penetrate its formidable armour.

With Monteryn about to be swamped by a second warband of Khorne Berzerkers, Walkorn turned his rapid-fire battle cannon on them, blasting twelve of their number to red ruin before they could charge his comrade. Striding forward while firing backwards, he crushed the Obliterators with impunity, aiming to stop Goreash reaching the Aquila Strongpoint.

A crack of lightning announced the arrival of Morion and his retinue of Terminators, who materialised next to the second Aquila Strongpoint. As if waiting for their arrival, the Ravenwing appeared immediately after, launching an assault that left several Chaos Terminators dead before they could advance on the Strongpoint. Overhead, Xa’kriesh flew the length of the trenches, claiming yet more Dark Angel lives before it was blown from the sky by the newly arrived Nephilim Jetfighter. Tracks grinding on the wrecked Predator, Goreash turned on Walkorn, but failed to penetrate the Knight’s ion shield. The Vindicator had no such trouble, its siege shell tearing through the Knight’s reactor. As Walkorn fell, Goreash turned his attention to the Aquila Strongpoint, reducing it to shattered ceramite.

With the timely intervention of the Ravenwing, the second Aquila Strongpoint was denied to the Chaos Terminators, leaving Goreash the only Chaos unit able to destroy it. Gears grinding and blood leaking behind it, the wounded behemoth advanced on Inquisitor Rex, who stood defiantly before it. “Stand aside, Inquisitor!” Blared Amaranthine through his loud hailer, arriving behind the Ravenwing host. Squaring off against the Lord of Skulls, the Freeblade thundered forward fearlessly, closely supported by Monteryn. Bellowing his defiance even as his damned essence was banished back to the Warp, Goreash the Undefeated was ripped violently asunder by the combined might of the two Knights. Victory belonged to the Imperium.

Dan: When it came to picking sides for the Battle Report, both myself and Adam wanted to use the new Imperial Knights. Tossing a coin for it, Adam won and decided to field five Knights alongside his Dark Angels in a combined force of around 3500 points. In response, I borrowed the Black Legion Chaos Space Marines from the Studio, along with a couple of Super-heavy walkers: two Khorne Lords of Skulls.

My mission was to destroy the two Aquila Strongpoints in Adam’s deployment zone. Adam wouldn’t be firing them in the game (thank the Dark Gods!) as we imagined they were targeting a distant part of the invading Chaos army. Adam’s mission was to stop me destroying them, but it quickly became obvious that his best chance of doing so would be to eliminate the two Lords of Skulls. With two objectives each, we were ready for war.

The forces of Chaos surged forward, intent on closing the gap between the two armies as quickly as possible. Uranesh the Reaver advanced, his blood-rage driving him towards the Dark Angels at a furious pace. On the other flank, Goreash the Undefeated also roared forward, intent on getting to grips with the enemy as quickly as possible. Firing his hades gatling cannon at Capulan, the Knight Apparent of House Raven, the Daemonic war machine scored several glancing hits but failed to slow the hot-headed young Knight.

Responding to the reckless charge of the Daemon engines, the Knights also advanced, striding over the defence lines where the Dark Angels sheltered, their battle horns blaring out challenges to Khorne’s war machines. Following Havlorn’s example, Monteryn and Walkorn fired at Uranesh, tearing chunks out of his armour and causing grievous damage. Roaring in anger, the Lord of Skulls began to re-knit its wounds before their eyes.

Realising the danger of letting the machine live, the Seneschal lowered his thermal cannon and raised his reaper chainsword, challenging Uranesh to a close combat duel. Stepping carefully into the crater before him, the Seneschal was caught off-guard by the berserk fury of the wounded Lord of Skulls. Its massive teeth whirring, Uranesh brought the great cleaver of Khorne crashing down upon the Knight commander’s carapace, tearing the suit clean in half. The resulting explosion shook the battlefield with titanic force, obliterating Uranesh and showering the nearby Daemon engines with debris.

The death of Uranesh drove Goreash into an unstoppable rage, and he roared forward to engage the enemy up close and personal, supported by the Sky Shards and the Bloodslaughterers. On the left flank, the Heldrake descended to the battlefield, unleashing a gout of warp-fuelled flame upon the Dark Angels. Backed up by the ectoplasmic fury of Firebrand, it incinerated the Tactical Squad, leaving just Sergeant Uzziel and a lone battle brother to hold the line. Nearby, Oberonius advanced swiftly, intent on getting to the Aquila Strongpoint before anything spotted it, while the Vindicator tore into Squad Uriah, forcing them to take cover in the trench line.

His mind driven to destruction, Goreash smashed into Capulan with the force of a meteor. Despite being more agile, the Knight Apparent was no match for the Lord of Skulls, the damage he caused driving it further into madness. With a swing of his great cleaver, the Daemon engine bisected the young Knight at the waist, causing a chain reaction that claimed the lives of power-armoured warriors on both sides. Undaunted, the Raptors laid into the nearby Squad Hyphon, though failed to kill the Astartes aspirants.

With casualties mounting and the enemy drawing close to the Aquila Strongpoints, the Dark Angels called for reinforcements, but the comms-net remained dead. Steeling their resolve, the Dark Angels readied their bolters for the onslaught, while the two remaining Knights strode forward to delay the Chaos advance. Yet despite the proximity of the towering war machine, Walkorn was unable to reach the Lord of Skulls, the ruined trenchline proving too treacherous for his piloting skills. Monteryn had no such trouble on the opposite flank and ran full-tilt at the Maulerfiend, kicking it over before ripping it apart with his reaper chainsword.

With a Knight among them, the Chaos forces on the left flank were in disarray. Unfazed, Goreash drove over the defence line and crushed the Might of Caliban beneath its armoured tracks, a pair of Obliterators materialising nearby, summoned by the carnage. Roaring in delight, the Lord of Skulls turned on Walkorn, unleashing a torrent of ichor and a hail of bullets into its armoured shell. Protected by its ion shield, the Knight survived the onslaught but was left badly crippled. In an attempt to stop Monteryn racing after Goreash, the Black Legion charged in. Backed up by the remaining Fleshreapers, they successfully held it up, but found that their krak grenades were unable to penetrate its formidable armour.

With Monteryn about to be swamped by a second warband of Khorne Berzerkers, Walkorn turned his rapid-fire battle cannon on them, blasting twelve of their number to red ruin before they could charge his comrade. Striding forward while firing backwards, he crushed the Obliterators with impunity, aiming to stop Goreash reaching the Aquila Strongpoint.

A crack of lightning announced the arrival of Morion and his retinue of Terminators, who materialised next to the second Aquila Strongpoint. As if waiting for their arrival, the Ravenwing appeared immediately after, launching an assault that left several Chaos Terminators dead before they could advance on the Strongpoint. Overhead, Xa’kriesh flew the length of the trenches, claiming yet more Dark Angel lives before it was blown from the sky by the newly arrived Nephilim Jetfighter. Tracks grinding on the wrecked Predator, Goreash turned on Walkorn, but failed to penetrate the Knight’s ion shield. The Vindicator had no such trouble, its siege shell tearing through the Knight’s reactor. As Walkorn fell, Goreash turned his attention to the Aquila Strongpoint, reducing it to shattered ceramite.

With the timely intervention of the Ravenwing, the second Aquila Strongpoint was denied to the Chaos Terminators, leaving Goreash the only Chaos unit able to destroy it. Gears grinding and blood leaking behind it, the wounded behemoth advanced on Inquisitor Rex, who stood defiantly before it. “Stand aside, Inquisitor!” Blared Amaranthine through his loud hailer, arriving behind the Ravenwing host. Squaring off against the Lord of Skulls, the Freeblade thundered forward fearlessly, closely supported by Monteryn. Bellowing his defiance even as his damned essence was banished back to the Warp, Goreash the Undefeated was ripped violently asunder by the combined might of the two Knights. Victory belonged to the Imperium.

GO FOR ITS KNEES!

Dan: Towards the end of the game, I charged the Knight, Monteryn, with every unit in range. My aim was to hold the Knight up long enough for the Khorne Lord of Skulls to complete the mission. Knights excel at killing Monstrous Creatures, Super-heavies and vehicles (as I’d already found to my cost), but struggle against Space Marines. Granted, its reaper chainsword made short work of everything it hit, but it only hit a couple of Chaos Space Marines each turn, and its Stomp attacks are only AP4, meaning the Chaos Space Marines got to take their Armour Save. If you’re using a Knight, avoid prolonged combats. You’ll emerge victorious eventually, but your Knight could be put to better use elsewhere.

MAULING FIENDS

Adam: Something Dan and I have hotly debated over the past couple of weeks has been the impact an Imperial Knight can have on a game. When Monteryn slaughtered the Maulerfiend, we saw the result in brilliant clarity. Storming over the trenchline, his war horn howling, he fired his heavy stubber into the Maulerfiend to ensure he could charge it, and then vaporised several Khorne Berzerkers with a blast of the thermal cannon. Then the real murder began as Monteryn dropped his shoulder and slammed into the Daemon Engine, inflicting a Strength 10 hit followed by a flurry of vicious blows. The result was total annihilation, the Maulerfiend exploding in a shower of metal and Daemonic flesh. A Daemonic aura is certainly no match for a reaper chainsword.

LORDS OF WAR

Dan: Watching the Knights take on the Khorne Lords of Skulls in combat was epic. When Adam and I looked at the Knights’ rules last week, we thought it might struggle against other Super-heavy walkers. We needn’t have worried. Havlorn’s thermal cannon was devastating, taking four hull points off Uranesh in a single shot. Combined with the rest of Adam’s shooting, the Daemon engine was lucky to survive the first turn. Only the fact that the Lord of Skulls was in cover gave it the edge over the Seneschal, negating its higher Initiative and allowing the Daemon war Machine to strike first. If you’re fighting Super-heavies and Gargantuan Creatures, always try to wound your foe with shooting before going in for the kill.

GLORIOUS VICTORY!

Adam: There was something genuinely liberating about unleashing five Imperial Knights in battle alongside my Dark Angels. Within minutes, these towering war machines were providing a strong sense of narrative to our game. Even moving an Imperial Knight is great fun – the way they tower over other models made them look like gods of war, and when the dice started rolling (and the models started getting wiped out) that impression was cemented.

The highlight of the game for me was when Seneschal Havlorn gave his life killing Uranesh the Reaver. I knew it was a poor choice of combats to send my knight into, considering the power of a Khorne Lord of Skulls, but I couldn’t resist giving it a go. After all, what commander stands by and lets his warriors fight for him? The fact that the Lord of Skulls cut him in half, and caused him to explode only made the scene cooler.

BACK TO THE EYE

Dan: I have to agree with Adam about the impact of the Imperial Knights on our battle – their presence turned a fun scenario into an epic battle. Having the two Khorne Lord of Skulls on the table only made it better.

I learnt a lot from this game – firstly that thermal cannons are devastating against Super-heavy tanks. If you get near one, reverse fast because you do not want to feel the heat. The melta rule makes a mockery of heavy armour and AP1 makes it likely that you’ll do extra damage (which Adam frequently did). I also realised that, while Knights are terrifying foes, they can be killed by regular units. My Vindicator proved that when he punched a hole clean through the Knight Walkorn. Interestingly, the Obliterators would have killed him a turn earlier if I’d actually hit with their twin-linked meltaguns. I’m not bitter…

Paint Splatter provides handy tips and stage-by-stage painting guides for the week’s releases. This week, we look at Gerantius, the Forgotten Knight.

Freeblade Knights are those that have left their house, voluntarily or otherwise, to fight the enemies of Humanity on their own terms. Gerantius is one such Knight, who defends the world of Alaric Prime and was painted by Duncan Rhodes.

“Right from the start, I decided to paint him green,” says Duncan, “as it was distinctly different to all the household Knights we’d already painted – it made this model really stand out. I liked the idea of using two shades of the same colour, in this case, Incubi Darkness and Kabalite Green. They worked really nicely with the gold trim and the simple black and white icons.”

“I painted the armour panels separately from the chassis, allowing me to drybrush the metalwork more effectively,” says Duncan. “For the armour, I basecoated all of it with Incubi Darkness before washing the dark areas with Nuln Oil and layering the light areas with Kabalite Green.”

Duncan has a useful tip for creating the heraldry of your Freeblade Knight: “Heraldry is a great way to describe the story of your Noble in picture form,” explains Duncan. “Gerantius is a guardian of a whole planet, which is why his personal heraldry is a barred gate.” DH

The Imperial Knight is just one of many Citadel kits that comes with a transfer sheet. Dan caught up with Forge World designers Phil Stutcinskas, Mark Bedford and Keith Robertson to see what useful tips they had for applying transfers to your miniatures.

Mark was the first member of the Forge World team to offer his advice. “The secret to success is ’Ardcoat Gloss Varnish,” says Mark. “Before applying a transfer, I always cover the area I’m painting with a layer of ’Ardcoat to make the area I’m applying the transfer as smooth as possible.” Phil was keen to elaborate on Mark’s point. “The layers of paint on a model will be bumpy and striated,” he says, pointing at a Spartan Assault Tank. “If you put a transfer straight on, it’ll trap loads of tiny air bubbles underneath. The varnish helps even them out to make the surface nice and smooth.”

Not wanting to be left out, Keith chipped in with a piece of advice about the transfer sheet itself. “On some transfer sheets, the carrier paper (that’s the clear bit around the image) is one continuous sheet, which means you have to carefully cut out the icon you want. Always cut as close as you can to the transfer you want – it’ll make it much easier to apply.”

“A lot of people suggest dunking transfers in water to get them off the backing paper,” says Phil. “Don’t do this! Transfers have water-soluble glue on the back of them. If you soak them in water, it’ll wash the glue away and the transfers won’t stick. Instead, take a small tub, fill it with damp kitchen paper and place your transfers on it. The water in the paper will soak in, loosening the transfers from their backing paper, but without washing away the glue.”

“When the transfer loosens from the backing paper,” adds Keith, “use a brush to carefully manoeuvre it onto the area of the model that you’ve gloss varnished. “The ’Ardcoat layer really helps,” adds Phil, “as it makes the transfer much easier to position on the model.”

Keith contributes a few more tricks. “Some transfers can be flipped. If they’re black or white, you can flip them to face in the opposite direction. You can also apply transfers over transfers, just ensure you put a layer of ’Ardcoat between each, or you may wash the previous one off.”

With the varnish dry, give the whole model a coat of Purity Seal to protect the model and dull down the ’Ardcoat. DH

WEATHERING TRANSFERS

Not content with just applying transfers, Mark, Keith and Phil offered some advice on how to battle damage and weather them too.

“If you’re applying battle damage and weathering to your miniatures, you’ll need to do it to your transfers too,” adds Mark. “Your model would look weird covered in mud, dirt and scratches, but with clean, damage-free markings.”

“My advice is to damage the transfer with a Hobby Knife before sealing it to the model at stage 5. Once it’s stuck, carefully pick at the edges of the transfer with the tip of a Hobby Knife, being careful not to damage the paint underneath. You’ll find that you can take pleasing chunks out of the transfer and still have it look recognisable.”

“I tend to add the battle damage using paint,” says Keith. “Using the colour beneath the transfer, I apply tiny marks and scratches to the transfer to represent the markings being scratched off.”

“I stipple the effect on using a sponge,” adds Phil. A small dab of the basecoat paint on a tiny bit of sponge looks great stippled over the transfer.”

With the battle damage complete, you can seal the transfer with a layer of ’Ardcoat. “Weather the transfer with the rest of the model,” adds Phil. “Applying dirt and grime as you would to the rest of the miniature.”

CRISP AND DRY

“If you’ve had a transfer sheet for quite some time, it can dry out and go crinkly, adds Mark. “To make it usable again, simply stick it in a zip-lock bag for a few days and let the moisture inside re-hydrate it.”

YELLOW WITH AGE

Following Mark’s point above, Phil also had a useful tip for old transfer sheets. “White markings can tend to go a bit yellow over time,” says Phil. “To make them white again, put a bit of sellotape on them, tape them to a window and leave them until the sun bleaches them white again.”

Join us for a round-up of the week as we share comment, opinion and trivia on the all latest releases, plus other fun tidbits that have cropped up in the White Dwarf bunker. This week we look at Imperial Knights, Black Library scribes and the Dark Age of Technology.

IMPERIAL KNIGHTS UNLEASHED

JERVIS JOHNSON AND SIMON GRANT GET KNIGHTLY

“Codex: Imperial Knights is the first Warhammer 40,000 Codex written to accompany just two units – the Knight Paladin and Knight Errant,” says Jervis. “While the majority of the book is given over to explaining the origins, culture and wars of the Imperial Knights, there are also rules for including them in your games – in more ways than you would first imagine.”

“Firstly, you can take an Imperial Knight army,” says Jervis’s co-conspirator, Simon Grant. “If you do this, the leader of the force is your Seneschal. He gets his own Warlord Trait and some handy bonuses to some of his characteristics to show that he’s the best of the best, and you roll for the remainder of the force to see how experienced the Noble pilots are. The second way is to add an Imperial Knight (or Knights) to an existing army. A number of Warhammer 40,000 armies have access to them on the allies matrix, and when you take Imperial Knights as allies you can have up to three in the detachment.”

“All of the rules are designed to connect to the story too,” adds Jervis. “Like a Noble pilot, players will need to plan ahead with their Ion Shields. Carelessness will get your Knights killed, while judgement and care see you through a lot of trouble.” AT

NOBLE LORE

KNIGHT WORLDS

Almost every Knight world is located near an Adeptus Mechanicus Forge World. “This is no coincidence,” says Jervis. “When the Adeptus Mechanicus discovered the Knights they were desperate to court their favour and learn their secrets. The galactic map in the new Codex shows this quite closely. We actually worked with our friends down in the Forge World office to get the details right, since they’re the experts on their namesake planets.”

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

“We had a lot of fun cooking up the names for the different technologies that the Imperial Knights utilise,” says Jervis. “There’s every chance that the Throne Mechanicum, The Ritual of Becoming and the Chamber of Echoes once had entirely less atmospheric, and more scientific monikers, but these have been lost in the annals of history. Replaced by that curious mix of technology and superstition that is one of the hallmarks of Warhammer 40,000.”

THE MASTER SCRIBE SPEAKS

Having read Knights of the Imperium, Adam got in touch with the author, Graham McNeill, to ask him all about it:

Adam: What made you choose House Cadmus as the subject of your story?

Graham: I chose Baron Roland and his house because I liked their background and saw potential for drama and conflict. The notion of a house who bestow rank by slaughtering the populace of their homeworld made for compelling characters. And the opportunity to include the Mechanicus was too good to pass up.

Adam: Knights make war on a different scale to Space Marines or Imperial Guard. What’s it like writing about them?

Graham: Knights are a new concept to some of our readers, so it was important to convey what a Knight looks like and how powerful they are right from the get go. To me, it’s the scale of the Knights that makes them interesting, as they can take on bigger enemies, more numerous opponents and at an entirely new level to a Guardsman or Space Marine. I love writing from the perspective of giant war machines, which is the main reason I chose to present Baron Roland’s sections in the first person, to plunge the reader as deep into the heart of battle as possible.

Adam: You have some history with Imperial Knights in Mechanicum. Are there more stories you hope to tell about Imperial Knights in the future?

Graham: If you’ve read ‘The Devine Adoratrice’ in Black Library’s The Imperial Truth, you’ll already know the answer. Let’s just say that the Knights featured in it play a major part in my upcoming Horus Heresy novel, Vengeful Spirit. AT

A KNIGHT TO REMEMBER

When Dan and Adam played their battle using the Imperial Knights, they had no idea how much destruction they would cause when they blew up. “Dan’s Khorne Berzerkers and Daemon Engines suffered badly when the Seneschal and the Khorne Lord of Skulls detonated nearby,” laughs Adam. “He got his own back when Havlorn, the Knight Apparent, was torn in half by Goreash. The resulting explosion totalled my Scouts and a few of my Company Veterans, leaving Dan’s Raptors looking confused as to where everything had gone. My advice: don’t stand near a Super-heavy on its last legs.”

CODEX: APOCRYPHA

Notes from the worlds of Warhammer. This week: the Dark Age of Technology.

INTO THE WARP

It was during the 18th Millennium that Mankind discovered the Warp and how to enter it. Over the following millennia, the Navigator gene was cultivated, enabling Humanity to traverse Warp space faster and more accurately then ever before and colonise the galaxy.

DARKNESS RISING

It’s not known what led to Humanity’s meteoric fall in the 25th Millennium. Some believe that it was the growing number of psykers turning men against each other. Others claim there was a galactic war against machines with artificial intelligence. Whatever the cause, AI machines are now forbidden throughout the Imperium and pskyers are barely tolerated.

FEUDAL WORLDS

In the wake of the Dark Age of Technology came the Age of Strife, where Mankind clawed itself back from the brink of extinction. Many colonies had been lost, and many more cut off by ferocious Warp Storms. It was on these worlds that many Knight Houses came to power and prominence.

STANDARD TEMPLATE CONSTRUCTS

Standard Template Constructs, also known as STCs, are rare machines created during the Dark Age of Technology. Said to contain the sum of human scientific and technological knowledge, they are highly valued by the Imperium, though none have ever been found wholly intact. Some Knight Houses are known to possess fragments of STC data that the Adeptus Mechanicus will do anything to get their mechadendrites on.

A DUEL OF HONOUR (AND CHAINSWORDS)

Alan Merrett’s knightly duelling game proved very popular in the White Dwarf office. The three of us who had painted Knights took them into the gaming room and pitted our wits (and our reaper chainswords) against each other.

From the outset, it was clear that Jes has as much luck with cards as he does with dice, his Knight, Madrigal, taking a pounding from Dan’s Knight, Klorian Saiche.

Matt kept his cards close to his chest, opting for dark shades and a sun visor to conceal his poker face. Despite his Knight, the curiously named Sir Kenrick, knocking out Madrigal’s shields with its rapid-firing battle cannon, it lost to Jes’s Knight in combat after a spate of low-scoring cards. The duels were concluded with Sir Kenrick finishing off Klorian Saiche over several rounds, a well-played Joker stripping Dan of the best card in his hand.

READER’S MODEL OF THE WEEK

Our model of the week is not one, but four models: a regiment of Skullcrushers painted by Ching Hsiu Hung. Ching Hsiu Hung painted the lacquered armour of the Juggernaughts a deep blood red, while the bare metal areas were painted using non-metallic metals. The brass is subtly weathered with verdigris, while the silver has a red tinge, representing the crimson armour reflecting off its polished surface.

If you’ve painted a miniature you think is worthy of a place in White Dwarf then why not send a picture to:

team@whitedwarf.co.uk

If it’s something we can use, we’ll be sure to get in touch.

ASK GROMBRINDAL

The White Dwarf team is a font of hobby knowledge, a metaphorical repository of useful facts. If you have a question about Warhammer 40,000 or Warhammer, need a bit of painting advice or you’re after a few tactical tips, drop us a line: team@whitedwarf.co.uk

HOLY ELVES

I’ve got a question about the Anointed of Asuryan. Is he a member of the Phoenix Guard or what? I’m wondering if should I join him to a unit of Phoenix Guard or something else in my army?
- Nate ‘The Elf’

GROMBRINDAL SAYS

I swear, if I get one more question about Elves, someone is getting hit with an axe. The answer is clear: have him ‘lead’ a unit of Shamefaced Mercybeggers, the only unit available to the High Elves.

Matt Hutson: Grombrindal’s advice notwithstanding, this caused a bit of debate in the office. Anointed of Asuryan were once Phoenix Guards, but have actually become reclusive, enigmatic oracles for the whole High Elf race. Phoenix Guard make excellent companions for them, but I’d actually mount him on a Frostheart or Flamespyre Phoenix, the Anointed of Asuryan’s own characteristic mounts.
- Grombrindal (and Matt)

HOW DID THEY DO THAT?

Dan’s Knight has a mottled effect on the armour that’s the envy of the office. “I imagine the metal armour to be lacquered with paint,” says Dan, “which has been damaged, chipped off and repainted many times. I achieved the effect by applying a basecoat of Khorne Red, washing the whole area with Nuln Oil and then stippling on patches of Khorne Red. A glaze of Bloodletter mixed with ’Ardcoat finished the effect.”

WEAPON OF THE WEEK: GRAV–CANNON

Where more conventional weapons fire projectiles, the grav-cannon fires graviton particles invisible to the naked eye. The resulting carnage, however, is extremely obvious, as the target buckles under the sudden increase in gravity before being pulped by the weight of their own armour. It’s customary to make a humming noise followed by a meaty squish when a model is crushed by a grav-cannnon.

BIT OF THE WEEK: SHIMMERSHIELD

The Shimmershield in the Dire Avengers kit is elegant, but functional – an iconic piece of Eldar wargear. The ball and socket joint on the shoulder makes it a versatile piece that’s great for dynamic conversions on both Eldar and Dark Eldar models.

This week in the White Dwarf bunker, Mel and Adam have been racing each other to paint new units for their armies. While Mel finished a sickly unit of Plaguebearers, Adam completed some of the new Hive Guard for his Tyranids. We were also graced by a visit from former ’Eavy Metal painter, Kornel Kozak, who’s been working on Orks. “This is the fifth time I’ve tried to start an Ork army,” says Kornel. “I absolutely love them, but I’ve never found the time to paint an army until now. Now I’ve started, I’m not going to stop. My advice when painting Orks is to put extra effort into the clan colours and the skin as they are the two most prominent colours on any Ork model.”

Mel’s Plaguebearers embody the sickly aspect of Grandfather Nurgle. “I used all of the Special Effect paints on this unit,” says Mel proudly. “Nurgle’s Rot is great for rotten entrails, while Agrellan Earth makes basing quick, easy and very effective.”

Adam has painted his Hive Guard following the colour scheme for the rest of his Hive Fleet Kraken Tyranids. Their bases have been adorned with the occasional piece of black and yellow power armour. “Scythes of the Emperor,” explains Adam. “The Tyranids ate them, hence all the discarded armour parts. They’ve been licked clean, of course, to get all the tasty bio-matter.”

Would you believe that Kornel’s Orks are painted in just a couple of stages? No, we didn’t either, but he’s promised to let us in on the secret in a future issue of White Dwarf.

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