Warhammer: The Old World FAQ updates Grand Cathay, Furious Charge, monsters, army lists, and new core rules to make games tighter.
The new Warhammer Old World FAQ is not a “your army is toast” update. It’s more like GW looked at the game after the 1.5 rules update and said, “Cool, now let’s make the armies actually line up with how this thing plays.” The core rules stay put, but Ravening Hordes, Forces of Fantasy, Grand Cathay, several Arcane Journals, and the Matched Play Guide all got fresh attention.
If you’ve been waiting for an Old World FAQ that makes aggressive infantry more worthwhile without blowing up the whole meta, this one has some real bite.
- It’s army tuning, not a reset: GW says the core rules remain untouched, but army entries, points, profiles, and FAQs got a broad cleanup.
- Furious Charge is the headline: Orc Mobs, Chaos Warriors, Gors, Bestigors, Slayers, Greatswords, Dryads, and more now hit harder when they get moving.
- Grand Cathay gets a focused pass: the Jade Banner now gives +2 combat result, Cathayan Dragons can’t transform out of base contact, and the updated Grand Army composition list is now the current list-building reference.
- Core FAQ answers should matter every game: Wizards in units, Stand & Shoot timing, Skirmisher arcs, cannon shots, mandatory saves, Ambushers, characters, and challenges all got clearer.
- Meta impact: infantry gets more proactive, monsters get tougher or more reasonably priced, cavalry minimum sizes shift, and Grand Melee now shuts down one-unit model-count nonsense.
Warhammer Old World FAQ: New Changes
Updated July 9th, 2026, by Rob Baer with new information, the latest Old World FAQ, and links to relevant content.
GW’s intent is pretty clear here: the big 1.5-style core rules update already happened, and the new core book has gone up for pre-order. This FAQ is about getting the armies and common rules questions caught up with where the game is now.
This round focuses on:
- Clarifying messy rules interactions that keep slowing down games
- Tweaking points and profiles across Ravening Hordes and Forces of Fantasy
- Making aggressive infantry feel aggressive again
- Cleaning up Arcane Journal rules and list-building references
- Adding a Grand Melee limit to stop extreme mega-unit builds
Treat this new Old World FAQ like a serious army maintenance pass. You don’t need to relearn the game, but you absolutely need to recheck the units you bring every week. If your local group has been arguing over Wizards hiding in back ranks, cannons bouncing through questionable gaps, or whether Skirmishers have flanks in combat, this update just saved everyone some rules archaeology.
Old World FAQ Grand Cathay Changes: Small List with Real Impact
Grand Cathay isn’t the biggest part of this FAQ, but the changes are still worth checking before your next game.
- The Jade Banner now gives a unit a +2 combat result points when calculating the combat result. That makes it a clean grind-and-hold tool, especially for Cathay units trying to win fights through discipline, static combat res, and banner math instead of raw blender damage.
- Cathayan Dragon transformation also gets a hard boundary. If the Dragon is already in base contact with an enemy unit when it transforms, it cannot move out of base contact during that transformation. No dragon yoga escape from combat, no “technically I’m a different shape now” nonsense.
The Grand Army composition list has also been updated. It mostly follows the Arcane Journal version, but this is now the current list-building reference. Cathay players probably aren’t rewriting whole collections over this, but they should double-check lists before showing up at an event.
Old World FAQ Ravening Hordes Changes: Infantry Gets Meaner
Ravening Hordes gets some of the biggest changes in the update, especially if your trays are packed with angry infantry.
- Orc Mobs gain Furious Charge, which is exactly the kind of rule Orc infantry needed to feel like more than a green speed bump. Chaos Warriors and Chosen Chaos Warriors also gain Furious Charge, while regular Chaos Warriors pick up Chaos Armour (6+). Chaos Knights gain Chaos Armor (6+) and Counter Charge, and Chosen Chaos Knights drop to Unit Size 3+.
- Beastmen get a big aggression pass, too. Gor Herds, Bestigor Herds, Warped Gors, and Primal Warherds all gain some form of Furious Charge support. That makes the army feel more like a stampede and less like a clump of goats politely waiting to be charged.
- The monster side also gets tuned. Giants, Chaos Giants, Bonegrinder Giants, and Ghorgons move to Toughness 7. The Daemon Prince changes to five Wounds, becomes a Monstrous creature (character), and gains Stomp Attacks (D3+1). The Chimera moves to five Wounds, 170 points, and Stomp Attacks (D3), while the Chaos Dragon shifts to a 100 x 150mm base and gains Impetuous.
- Tomb Kings get targeted edits rather than a full shakeup. Ushabti drop to Ballistic Skill 2, Skeleton Horsemen become Unit Size 4+, Sepulchral Stalkers shift to 49 points, and the Icon of Rakaph now clearly allows a free reform after moving unless the unit charged.
For Ravening Hordes players, this is the “pull your regular list back up and actually read the unit entries” section. Orcs, Chaos infantry, Beastmen, Trolls, and big monsters all have enough changes to affect real games.
Old World FAQ Forces of Fantasy Changes: Dwarfs, Empire, Elves, and Bretonnia All Get Touched
Forces of Fantasy gets a broad pass, and the pattern is easy to spot: cheaper tools, clearer rules, smaller cavalry options, and infantry that can actually punch back.
- Dwarfs get several useful changes. Miners’ blasting charges drop to +1 point per model, Troll Slayers and Giant Slayers gain Furious Charge, and Gyrocopters get Dispersed Formation. That lets them maintain Skirmish formation within three inches instead of one inch, but they only have a 90-degree front arc rather than 360-degree vision. Cannons move to 95 points, Organ Guns to 115, and Flame Cannons to 120.
- Empire infantry gets a nice boost. Free Company Militia gain Furious Charge, while Greatswords and Count’s Champions go to Strength 4. Greatswords also gain Furious Charge, which makes them a lot more interesting as a unit that can actually threaten something when it commits.
- Empire cavalry and artillery get points and profile changes, too. Pistoliers move to 15 points, Empire Knights to 20, Inner Circle Knights to 28, and the Helstorm Rocket Battery changes to Strength 4 with AP -2.
- Bretonnia gets cleaner Pegasus rules and smaller knight units. Pegasus and Barded Pegasus models use a 90-degree front arc instead of the usual 360-degree Skirmisher vision. Knights Errant and Mounted Knights of the Realm both become Unit Size 3+, which makes little support lances easier to fit into real lists.
- Wood Elves probably have some of the most interesting adjustments. Branchwraiths, Dryads, and Nymphs move to Movement 6 and gain Armour Bane (1) and Furious Charge. Tree Kin and Elders go to Toughness 6. Wardancers and Bladesingers hit Strength 4, with Wardancers at two Attacks and Bladesingers at three.
- High Elves get point and unit-size changes across several staples. Elven Spearmen move to 8 points, Elven Archers to 9, Sea Guard to 10, Silver Helms become Unit Size 4+, Dragon Princes become Unit Size 3+, and Eagle-claw Bolt Throwers drop to 70 points. Martial Prowess also gets rewritten so units gain +1 Weapon Skill in the first round of combat and can make supporting attacks to the flank or rear as well as the front.
This is not a “throw out your army” update either, but it is a “your 2,000-point list may not be 2,000 points anymore” update that is worth a once over for sure.
Old World FAQ Core Rules and Matched Play: The Argument Killers
The core rules themselves are not changing, but the FAQ answers are doing a lot of work.
Some of the biggest table-impact clarifications include:
- The active player chooses first when both players must decide at the same time.
- Models cannot choose to skip Armor, Ward, or Regeneration saves.
- A unit cannot obscure itself for line of sight.
- Magic missiles that draw a line from the caster’s base do not need a target.
- Wizard combat rules like Killing Blow or Armor Bane do not apply to spells.
- Wizards in units must be in the front rank or first fighting rank to cast unless a rule says otherwise.
- If any charging unit is too close for Stand & Shoot, the charged unit cannot Stand & Shoot at all.
- Line of sight and cover for Stand & Shoot are checked when the reaction is declared.
- Press of Battle can apply against enemies in the front, flank, or rear.
- Ambushers set aside in reserve do not count as deployed.
- Drilled units can redress ranks before Counter Charge.
- Killing Blow and Monster Slayer do nothing if the model cannot wound the target.
- Skirmishers do not have flank or rear arcs for combat result while engaged.
- Cannons do not need line of sight to the strike point, but they cannot bounce through things that would stop the shot.
- Cannons on hills still cannot shoot over woods, buildings, or hills to target ground behind them.
- Drain Magic increases the Casting Value of Bound spells.
Matched Play also gets a very relevant Grand Melee change: no single unit may contain more than half of the total number of models in the army. That’s not banning big units per se, bt it is stopping the “my army is one ridiculous brick and some paperwork” style list from turning events into movement tray accounting.
Warhammer Old World FAQ Meta Impact: What Changes On the Table
This Warhammer Old World FAQ makes the game more active and less weird.
- More infantry aggression. Furious Charge showing up across Orcs, Chaos Warriors, Beastmen, Slayers, Greatswords, Dryads, and other units encourages blocks that actually want to charge.
- Monsters feel more relevant. Toughness 7 Giants, adjusted Chaos monsters, and Beastmen monster tweaks make big pieces harder to dismiss and easier to justify.
- List building gets cleaner. Updated Grand Army composition, changed unit sizes, and points adjustments mean several armies can build smaller support packages or rethink old staples.
- Rules pauses should drop. Wizard positioning, Stand & Shoot, Skirmisher arcs, cannons, characters, Ambushers, and saves all got clearer.
- Grand Melee gets healthier. The 50% model-count cap on a single unit should push armies toward a broader spread of bodies instead of one mega-brick doing the whole job.
Quick prep before your next match:
- Recheck any unit that gained Furious Charge.
- Update points and unit sizes before packing your case.
- Review monster profiles if you run Giants, Dragons, Chimeras, Ghorgons, or Cygors.
- Save the core FAQ if your group plays regularly.
- Check Grand Melee lists for the new 50% model-count limit.
GW Is Also Giving Battle March Away as a Free PDF
One nice bonus in this Old World update is that GW is making Battle March available as a free PDF. That’s a smart move with the updated core book going up for pre-order, since players can keep up without buying the same rules twice. Battle March can shape events, store leagues, and casual campaigns, so free access helps keep everyone on the same page.
Final Thoughts on the Latest Warhammer Old World FAQ
The best Warhammer Old World FAQ updates are the ones that make games smoother without making your army case feel like a crime scene. This one gets there pretty well (maybe not once we play some games, lol): more aggressive infantry, better-defined monsters, useful list-building tweaks, and core rules answers that should cut down on mid-game arguments.
Between Furious Charge and tougher monsters, the Old World just got a little more willing to meet in the middle and start swinging.
The bigger question now is whether this becomes the pace for The Old World going forward: steady army maintenance, cleaner event play, and fewer rules gremlins hiding under movement trays.
Because if GW keeps nudging the game this way, the Old World meta could stay lively without turning into a quarterly panic buy. For now, we all have fresh list math to sort, new charges to respect, and plenty of reasons to get those blocks moving again!
Download All the Changes Here!
🔗 Related Reads:
- New Old World FAQ: Fixes, Nerfs, and Pure Chaos
- Huge New FAQ For Old World Includes Legacy Armies
- Warhammer: The Old World Rules & How To Play
- How to Build an Army in Warhammer: The Old World
- Matched Play Comes to Warhammer: The Old World
- Old World Builder: Best Free Warhammer Army List App
