Here are all the Traits & Relics rules for the Black Templars Warhammer 40k codex that’s part of the Army Box set.
With the Black Templars Army box in hobbyists’ hands and rules previews aplenty from Games Workshop, we can get a better picture of what all the new rules are looking like for crusaders of Dorn.
These rules are collected from all the following reviews on YouTube, and Warhammer Community alike, so be sure to watch your favorite presenters talk about their take on the book at the links below!
- The Glacial Geek
- Bell of Lost Souls
- Sprues & Brews
- SkaredCast
- StrikingScorpion82
- Guerrilla Miniature Games
- Tabletop Tactics
Similar to the Sisters of Battle, Lumineth Realmlords, and Beast Snagga Orks rollouts, this codex will first be available inside a new Army Box. In the future, it will be available separately. If you are curious about the Black Templars Army box, you can check the contents and values here.
New Black Templars 40k Traits Rules:
Starting out with Warlord traits, we actually didn’t get to see any during the previews, meaning these are all brand new! As for our best picks… Master of Arms looks good, especially if you have a very killy-character like an Emporer’s Champion. Getting them to fight first is a huge boon, especially when they are already a melee fighting machine.
Front-line Commander also looks good giving a slight bonus to its own charge and everyone charging near their target! As a CQC-focused army, this is a lot more impactful than it looks on paper.
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Now let’s move on to relics!
New Black Templars 40k Relic Rules:
The Crusader’s Helm was one of the previewed relics and WHC had this to say about it:
…Supported by a Marshal with the Crusader’s Helm (to ensure they’re all in range of his Rites of Battle aura ability), and a Primaris Ancient to keep them fighting to the last, is certainly an intimidating prospect.
Increasing the range of Auras is always strong and being able to buff up your units for combat is obviously also a plus, as the army is heavily geared towards smashing the enemy in combat.
The Aurillian Shroud also looks fantastic. Being able to give a bunch of units 4+ Invulnerable saves for a turn can be a clutch! If you face up against a ton of ranged threats, this in the first 2 or 3 turns can prevent troops from dying and in turn increase how many bodies will get into melee on your turn.
The biggest counter to melee lists is ranged firepower, and this helps prevent that threat from taking place.
As for the second page of regular relics, there seem to be some decent weapon upgrades, along with two great stat modifiers.
Tanhauser’s Bones can come in clutch, essentially forcing your opponent to use chaff weapons on your character, which usually have low AP. If they still use their high AP options, their extra damage is all forced to 1 making them much less efficient! However, if they are a swarm list, this won’t really change much as those usually want to use the volume of dice to get past high armor values instead of high ap/high damage.
Artificer Armour is of course also a great option. Giving a model a 2+ save with a 5+ invuln makes them extremely durable without having to pay the extra points for better wargear options.
With the regular relics done, it’s time to touch on the Black Templar Relic Bearers ability and options.
By swearing vows to a Chaplain on the eve of battle, a Black Templar can become an honoured Relic Bearer. This commitment demonstrates the warrior’s unspeakable devotion to the Emperor, and it lets you field a powerful piece of wargear.
Well, this makes a Chaplain basically a must for every Black Templars army. Getting relics on 4 units in your game is just really strong, even if they don’t do that much, it’s better than nothing.
Holy Orb is once per game but is still very powerful. D3 Mortal wounds are nice, but forcing a unit to fight last is big. If you have a couple of units in combat and don’t want either of them to be hit before they can hit back, this solves that problem. Basically, you can pick one unit attack first, then your opponent can’t strike back with the other one before you get to.
Icon of Heinmann is perfect for a unit you need to survive from smaller weapons with high volume. With all the weapons picking up AP, this becomes super strong and your opponent will have to focus more heavy fire on the unit, or just shoot way more -1 or -2AP weapons at them.
And finally, for good measure, Sigismund’s Seal can be super powerful, but it is a Relic Bearer’s item so it only applies to that one unit. Still, if you can get your unit into combat with the marked enemy unit, this is just insane. As you will be guaranteed to do a ton of damage.
Overall it’s a great time to be a loyalist and an even worse time to be a heretic! Need more on everything Black Templars? Here are the latest rules updates for these crusaders!
- Black Templars Stratagems
- Litanies & Vows Rules
- Wargear, Points, & Secondaries
- Black Templars 40k Datasheets
- Traits & Relics
All the Latest on the New Black Templars
What are your thoughts on all these rules? Which is your favorite new option?
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About the Author: Andrew Schrank
Andrew Schrank
Job Title: Miniatures & Warhammer Hobby Staff Writer
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About Andrew Schrank: Over the past 15 years, Andrew has played all the games, including tabletop and video games, and immersed himself in the associated lore. Andrew joined the Spikey Bits team in 2018 and covers the Warhammer hobby and tournament scene, along with the latest in tabletop miniatures, each week.
Aspiring diplomat, Lord of Fluff, and Master of Ice Hammer, He loves Star Wars, Chaos Undivided, and Gundam. During his free time, he hunts Platinum trophies on PS5 and reads international news. On weekends, Andrew plays commander and cEDH games, often with unique strategies that push the limits.
He believes each day presents a new opportunity to grow and be challenged.
