Get the full rundown on the new 40k Aeldari Harlequins Serpent’s Brood detachment rules, movement tricks, venom-laced buffs, and clown car shenanigans!
Ready to run a masque that doesn’t just kill the enemy, but dances around them, humiliates their positioning, and hits them with so many reactive moves that they start questioning if their tape measure has betrayed them?
The new Serpent’s Brood detachment lands with wild mobility tech, hit rate spikes, redeploy mind games, and enough movement reactions to make even Eldar jetbike players say, “Alright, calm down.”
Combine that with bonus hits flying everywhere, and you have a detachment that feels a little too good for something that arrived right after a shiny new Harlequins Combat Patrol went up for sale. Funny how timing works.
Let’s dig into why this mask of serpent-themed performers might be the most dialed-up Harlequin build we have seen in 10th Edition.
A Tactical Guide to the Serpent’s Brood Detachment
The Serpent’s Brood hits the table like a troupe that rehearsed every angle and already knows where you are going to stand before you do. They thrive on darting past your screens, jumping in and out of engagement, and stacking extra hits while they do it.
Once the momentum starts rolling, the enemy army gets sliced apart before they can get comfortable.
Mix in sustained hits for your bikes and boats, sustained hits for anything popping out of a transport, character buffs that crank your offense, and redeploy tricks that decide the game before deployment even ends.
Add in stratagems that hand out Advance and Charge, Fall Back and Charge, movement reactions, and battlefield exits. You get a detachment built entirely around hit-and-vanish cruelty.
Venom in Motion, The Serpent’s Brood Detachment Rule
This detachment rule is simple and kind of outrageous. Mounted units and Harlequins Vehicles all gain Sustained Hits 1. They start throwing extra hits the second you put them on the table.
If a Harlequins unit hops out of a transport, it gains Sustained Hits 1 for the entire turn. Your clowns literally roll out of the clown car and turn into blenders, oh yeah, and have more OC!
Is it strong? Yes. Is it overpowered? Maybe, so far it sure looks like it!
Serpent’s Brood Enhancements
These enhancements push your characters toward pure chaos ballet energy.
Key of Ghosts gives your unit Scouts.
Weavers’ Wail turns a Troupe Master into an apex predator with plus three Strength and plus one Attack. That is an obscene stat line spike on a model already swinging hot.
Fanged Leer lets your Death Jester pick two shrieker cannon modes at once.
Shedskin Raiment is the crown jewel. Redeploy up to three units, and you can even place them into Strategic Reserves past the normal limits.
Serpent’s Brood Stratagems
Every strat in this detachment feels like a new way to say, “We are leaving now” or “We were never actually standing there.”
Fangs of the Brood for Double Trick Shots
This one is your flashiest melee upgrade. Your Troupes get to pick two Dance of Death abilities, which turn their precision cuts into full stage choreography. Cleanup swings suddenly feel like stunt work.
Venomous Wrath for Hit and Run Firepower
Your skimmers absolutely love this. Fire your guns, then slip six inches out of danger like you meant to be somewhere else anyway. You cannot charge after, but the positional trolling is worth it.
Striking Stride for Advance and Charge Heat
This is the pure aggression button. Your infantry pushes forward, hits the gas, and dives straight into combat. Foot troops start acting like they forgot their legs were supposed to slow them down.
Weavers’ Coils for Fight, Flee, and Flex
Mounted units swing in, finish their performance, then glide out with a Normal or Fall Back move. It is classic Harlequin hit and vanish energy that keeps your opponent swinging at empty air.
Weaving Stride for Reaction Move Mischief
Anytime an enemy stops moving near your infantry, you get to move too. It ruins game plans instantly and turns every inch of the board into your personal stage.
Serpent’s Brood in 40k, Things To Remember
Troupes get Battelline and OC2, which is amazing since they are now your reliable scoring pieces. Triple Death Jester, triple Shadowseer, and triple Troupe Master are all on the menu. You can tailor the masque exactly how you like to play.
Your whole army becomes a movement puzzle wrapped in sustained hits and redeploy trickery. Once you understand the angles, this detachment snowballs fast.
Final Thoughts on the New Aeldari Serpent’s Brood 40k Detachment
The new Serpent’s Brood 40k Detachment is exactly what Harlequin players were begging for. It gives you wild movement reactions, redeploy mischief, consistent damage spikes, safer positioning, plus extra hits on everything that matters. Once the troupe starts twirling, your opponent’s army starts disappearing one unit at a time.
With all the stacked movement tech, hit boosts, and table control baked in, this looks like one of the strongest Harlequins setups we have seen since the days of Solitaire clown car shenanigans.
The timing right after the Combat Patrol release is a little on the nose, but hey, the clowns are back, and they brought venom.
Just don’t forget to grab these new 40k rules for free right here.
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What do you think about the Aeldari / Harlequins Serpent’s Brood detachment?
