13 Custodes Detachments Give 40k Players More Army Options

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See all 13 Custodes detachment options and what the split between Shield Host and open choices means for your army, now.

Six of the new 13 Adeptus Custodes detachments are locked behind the Unique: Shield Host keyword, and that pretty much sets up how every army list works in this Adeptus Custodes Codex now.

Pick one Shield Host, then the other seven sit there waiting to be stacked on top for extra support. Warhammer Community puts it somewhere between the Ork free-for-all and the Space Marine filing cabinet, and yeah, that sounds about right.

The detachments also feel pretty different once you actually put them on the table. Aquilan Shield wants Custodians planted on objectives, while Dread Host is all about getting into combat and staying there. With so few models in an Adeptus Custodes army, that choice is going to have a pretty big say in how your whole game plan comes together.

Detachments were really the last major piece of the 11th Edition Custodes rules we hadn’t seen.

How Shield Hosts Work in the New Custodes Codex

Updated on September, 28th, 2026 by Rob Baer with the new Custodes Detachments for 11th Edition.

For an army this small, having one keyword handle the restriction actually works pretty well, honestly.

So the six new unique Shield Host detachments are

• Aquilan Shield
• Dread Host
• Emissaries Imperatus
• Emperor’s Chosen
• Shadowkeepers
• Solar Watch

Each Shield Host also gets a favored ka’tah. Fire up that stance for a bonus effect on top of the normal one, but you’re not locked out of using the others. So with this, you’ve got an extra reason to use that stance without being pushed into it, especially now that the army rules tripled the ka’tah options.

Aquilan Shield Is Built to Hold Objectives

If you want Custodes sitting on an objective and making somebody work to move them, Aquilan Shield is pretty clearly built for that. Gilded Guardians only works while a non-Monster, non-Vehicle unit is within range of an objective, which is already where you want T7 Custodian Guard hanging out. Rules-wise, this is what you’re getting:

• Gilded Guardians (detachment rule): ranged attacks with a Strength higher than your unit’s Toughness get -1 to wound while it’s on an objective.
• Salvus (favored ka’tah): ranged attacks get +6″ range on top of the normal Salvus effect.
• Pareldor’s Caducatrix (enhancement): once per battle, at the start of any phase, the bearer heals D3+3 wounds.
• Not a Shell Wasted (enhancement): Infantry only, and the bearer’s unit gets +1 Attack on its ranged attacks.
• Maneuver and Fire (1CP): Fall back in your Movement phase and still shoot or charge.
• Tip of the Talon (1CP): +1 Strength on ranged attacks at targets within 9″.

• Rapid Reactions (1CP): When an enemy unit ends a fall back from your Infantry, that Infantry shoots it right there in the enemy’s Movement phase.

So what happens when somebody tries to fall back from these guys? They can get shot for doing it. Tip of the Talon also gives you extra punch at targets within 9″. Sure, the -1 to wound only kicks in when the weapon’s Strength is higher than your Toughness, but those are exactly the lascannons and meltas people are pointing at Custodes in the first place.

Dread Host Makes Charges More Reliable

If you’ve ever failed a 9″ charge when you absolutely needed it, Dread Host is going to get your attention. Instruments of the Emperor’s Wrath gives every Custodes unit a free charge re-roll, and pretty much everything else starts kicking in once you get into combat:

• Instruments of the Emperor’s Wrath (detachment rule): Adeptus Custodes units can re-roll charge rolls.
• Dacatarai (favored ka’tah): enemy units engaged with yours get -2″ on pile-in and consolidation moves. WarCom says activating Dacatarai here also gets re-roll 1s to hit against non-Monster, non-Vehicle units.
• Auric Exemplar (enhancement): the bearer’s melee attacks have [CLEAVE 1].
• Flawless Bladework (enhancement): the bearer’s melee attacks have [SUSTAINED HITS 1].

• Lightning Wrath (1CP): in the Fight phase, pile in up to D3+3″.
• Golden Light of the Moiraides (2CP): when a unit makes an ingress move, attacks against the unit are -1 to hit, and it can’t be targeted by snap shooting until your next turn.
• Preternatural Rapidity (1CP): advance and still declare a charge.

Dacatarai is one of the most interesting. Think about a big horde trying to get bodies into combat, but with 2″ knocked off its pile-in and consolidation. Flawless Bladework on a Blade Champion‘s eight Precision Victus attacks make it a pretty straightforward way to guarantee you’re bringing down whatever it’s fighting. Then you’ve got Golden Light giving a unit in with -1 to hit on top of all that.

What the Other 7 Custodes Detachments Do

After GW sent a pile of Custodes units to Legends last week, this is the section where the surviving units get to shine. Pretty much every unit type that’s still around has a Custodes Detachment here made for it, although WarCom only gave us one line on each:

• Guardians of the Throne: a big 3 Detachment Point pick with balanced bonuses for most units.
• Emissaries Imperatus (Shield Host): play the mission, fight first, and ignore modifiers to hit and wound.
• Emperor’s Chosen (Shield Host): more flexible and reliable units, plus a mid-round ka’tah switch.
• Shadowkeepers (Shield Host): brawl in close combat and swamp the enemy.
• Solar Watch (Shield Host): extra speed and slipping in and out of engagement.
• Auric Champions: Characters single out targets and earn their titles.
• Honored Companions: Custodian Guard, Sentinel Guard, and Wardens fight over key objectives.
• Lions of the Emperor: Terminators Deep Strike, charge, and split mid-battle, which is great news for anyone holding the new Aquilon Terminators.
• Might of the Moritoi: Dreadnoughts get escalating combat bonuses as they take damage.
• Grav-assault Force: grav-tanks back up the army and outflank to grab objectives.
• Null Maiden Vigil: a Sister of Silence as your Warlord, with Battleline Prosecutor squads.

For an army with this few units, that’s still a lot of ways to build around what you own too. One pretty natural idea is to take your Shield Host, then bolt on something that helps the Terminators or Dreadnoughts you’re already bringing, for example.

Final Thoughts on the New Custodes Detachments

While we’ve seen two full detachments out of 13, there’s still a whole lot of this Codex we haven’t seen yet. Emissaries Imperatus ignoring hit and wound modifiers and Lions of the Emperor splitting Terminators mid-battle both already give you a reason to want the full rules in front of you, but we won’t really know until the Codex lands with every page to review.

WarCom says tomorrow’s preview will cover what the Ten Thousand should actually worry about, which probably means the new counters to their toughness, etc.

Regardless, though, if the rest of the Codex works the same way, Custodes players may actually have a reason to build around different parts of the army instead of just reaching for the strongest datasheets.

🔗 Related Reads:

• Adeptus Custodes Codex Review
• New Custodes Datasheets Make Custodian Guard T7 With 5 Wounds
• Aquilon Terminators Hit T8 W6 in the New Custodes Codex
• GW Pulls The Plug on Custodes, Sends More Units To Legends
• New Custodes Codex & Aquilon Terminators: 40k Sunday Preview
• Warhammer Big Autumn Preview 2026: Every New Reveal From GW Analyzed
• Warhammer 40k 11th Edition Rules: Release Date, Detachments + Every Change

Which Custodes detachment are you building your next list around: Aquilan Shield or Dread Host?

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