GW dropped free new rules for the Celestian Insidiants, Chaos Raptors, and Warp Talons, meaning the 40k Killteam Shadowhunt pre-order is coming soon!
Chaos Space Marines and Sisters of Battle are about to get some serious reinforcements. A recent leak from an upcoming Kill Team dossier shows that Raptors and Celestians are set to star in a brand-new box dubbed Shadowhunt.
Not only that, but since Games Workshop has a habit of tipping its hand, this time, they made it pretty obvious what is on the way next week. They dropped free rules in the latest update for the new Celestian Insidiants and the refreshed CSM Raptors and Warp Talons, which usually means one thing: plastic is about to follow.
If you’ve been eyeing the Shadowhunt Kill Team box and are wondering when the kits will land, you’re not alone.
And if history’s anything to go by, this Kill Team release might have bigger implications for Warhammer 40k proper.
New Kill Team Shadowhunt: What’s in the Box?
Updated on January 13th, 2025, by Rob Baer with the latest confirmed pictures, rules, lore from GW, new leaked model pictures, and comparisons.
Release Date & Retail Price:
- Shadowhunt Release Date: February, 7th, 2026 (estimated)
- Retail Price (MSRP/RRP): Expect pricing to land in the $140–$170 USD range. The terrain’s always hit or miss in terms of value, but the kits themselves usually debut here first, so if you want early access, this is how you get it.
40k Kill Team Shadowhunt Contents:
- 10x New Celestians Insidiants
- 1x Chaos Lord
- 10x Raptors/Warp Talons
- Themed terrain (we have a picture of the chaos models standing on top of it)
- A rulebook/dossier setting up a new campaign arc
New Releases Incoming, and Why the Pre-Order Timing Looks Like Next Week
Games Workshop has a habit of tipping its hand, and this time, GW made it pretty obvious what is on the way next week. They dropped free rules in the latest update for the new Celestian Insidiants and the refreshed CSM Raptors and Warp Talons, which usually means one thing: plastic is about to follow.
Well, GW hasn’t even solicited the Kill Team: Shadowhunt box to stores yet, but went ahead and dropped rules for both sides before the kits are actually available to buy. That combo usually points at one outcome: the box is hitting pre-order fast, we’re guessing that means this Saturday (January 24th, with a street date of early February.
The timing feels a little weird on paper. GW tends to let the big Kill Team box hit shelves, or at least hit pre-order, before dropping rules. The Celestian Insidiants are a brand-new unit, and maybe GW is using the rules as a little carrot on a stick to get people to buy it. But it did line up with the January Dataslate, so maybe they just didn’t feel like doing two sets of rules so close.
Celestian Insidiants Datasheet Rules
Celestian Insidiants are not here to stand around reciting litanies and pretending the Warp is somebody else’s problem. They are a purpose-built witch-hunter hit squad that picks a target, starts deleting the important bits with Precision, and shrugs off the psychic and mortal wound nonsense that usually ruins small infantry units.
- Built to ignore psychic nonsense: Rituale Nullificatus gives them Feel No Pain 4+ against Psychic Attacks and mortal wounds, so the usual “splash mortals and move on” plan starts failing fast.
- Pick a quarry, then start character shopping: Virtue of Intolerance lets you mark one enemy unit as the quarry at the start of the battle, then attack it, gain Precision, and you re-roll the Hit roll.
- Keeps rolling targets all game: Denuncia Oratory lets you select a new quarry each time the current one is destroyed, so the hunt does not stall out after the first kill.
- Miracle dice farming on objectives: Simulacrum Imperialis rolls at the end of your Command phase for each objective you control with a unit in range, and on a 4+, you gain a Miracle dice showing that result.
- Their kit matches the job: Condemnor bolt pistols and null maces bring Anti-Psyker 4+ and Devastating Wounds, then you can season to taste with hand flamers, blessed swords, a virge of admonition, and an inferno pistol on the Superior.
Raptors Upgrades: New Sprues, New Loadouts, Bigger Bite
Raptors are not here to politely tag an objective and bounce. The new kit’s rules turn them into a jump-pack bully unit that hits harder than it has any right to. They stack brutal melee upgrades in small squads, and even lob grenades on the way in like they are trying to win the fight before the charge roll finishes.
- The big glow-up is melee stacking: Raptors can load up on heavy melee weapons per five models, with a power fist on the champion plus two more heavy melee weapons in a five-model unit. That means you can cram silly numbers of power fists into a small squad and turn a “trading unit” into a real blender.
- Mutations add a nasty volume profile: One in five can swap the chainsword for mutations, basically an Accursed Weapon style option with four attacks at Strength five, AP -2, one damage.
- Special weapons stay flexible, just less spammy: You still get flamer, plasma gun, and meltagun, but five models cannot double up. At ten models, you can take a second pair, still no duplicates, so the ceiling is two plasma and two melta in a full unit.
- GRENADES joins the party: Raptors now have the GRENADES keyword, which gives them a clean chip-damage tool into bigger targets before they commit to the charge.
- Points went up, and the upgrades explain it: They climbed by twenty points per five models, and the extra melee access, mutations option, and grenades are the reason they suddenly feel like a “pay me, and I will do work” unit instead of a fragile gimmick.
Warp Talons
Warp Talons pick up the GRENADES keyword too, and that is the only change we saw here. No points hike, which makes it feel like a straight freebie stapled onto a unit that already wants to rocket in and start shredding.
The Necron Nightbringer Crossover
Don’t forget the crossover with the Nightbringer model. Leaked images, now confirmed by GW, didn’t just show the expected two-faction box; they revealed a brand-new C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer model hanging out on a striking Necron-themed terrain piece.
Whether it’s a one-off bonus or a hint at a bigger release strategy, with the upcoming Tomb World box, this model alone is enough to get Necron players sharpening their painting brushes. See the official reveal here.
Chaos Raptors: Finally Getting the Upgrade They Deserve?
Let’s start with the spikiest kids on the block: the Chaos Raptors. These jump-pack lunatics have been flying around the galaxy with the same models since… well, let’s just say they were sculpted in a more innocent time.
Chaos Raptors aren’t just jump pack infantry with a bad attitude, they’re a full-on airborne nightmare.
In Kill Team: Shadowhunt, they show up as part of the Murderwing, a crew of high-speed assassins who think “subtlety” means swooping in so fast you only hear the shriek right before the chainaxe lands.
These operatives thrive on asymmetric warfare, using their jump packs for sudden boosts that let them rip into nearby enemies, terrify squads with banshee-like howls, or even snatch operatives straight off the table and drag them away mid-flight.
Throw in a Chaos Lord who can keep these maniacs focused, and you’ve got a kill team that turns every mission into a vertical slaughterhouse. In both narrative play and competitive skirmishes, expect the Raptors to control the tempo, hit priority targets, and leave nothing but scorch marks and gore in their wake.
New Raptors Compared To Current Plastic Kit
With chainswords, plasma pistols, and the promise of new mutation bits, these Raptors might be finding spots in more lists.
Chaos Raptors: The Brutal New Redesign
It’s about time. The old kit was functional, but hardly inspiring, especially when you put it next to modern Chaos models like the Possessed or Legionaries. Plus, this is the year of chaos, so the timing makes sense.
We’re talking a box with lots of build options: chainswords, plasma pistols, power weapons, you know, everything you’d want to make them feel like actual shock troops again.
Celestians Return as Infiltrators (or Incidiators)?
Image from the leaks.
On the other side of the board, the Adepta Sororitas’ Celestian Insidiants bring holy precision to the fight. Outfitted with condemnor bolt pistols that fire silvered stakes and heavy maces bristling with null-field generators, they’re the ultimate anti-psyker specialists.
These Sisters aren’t just trained to resist the nausea and paranoia of null energy; they’ve embraced it as a weapon. Years of brutal drills and meditative conditioning have forged them into an unshakable wall of faith and steel, perfectly tuned to bring down rogue psykers and heretic sorcerers.
On the table, they’re a tactical answer to psychic threats, able to neutralize enemy buffs, shut down psychic offense, and grind through elite targets. Pair them with supporting units that can hold objectives while the Insidiants hunt priority threats, and you’ll turn your kill team into a sanctified scalpel, cutting heresy straight from the battlefield.
Instead of the standard defensive loadouts, these Sisters are trading shields and heavy melee weapons for a more flexible arsenal, pistols, maces, double-handed swords, special weapons, and a striking new banner.
Sisters of Battle and Kill Team, Always A Good Pairing
This will mark the third full Kill Team release for the Sisters, joining the Novitiates and Sanctifiers. And just like with those, this new box should mean an entirely new datasheet in 40k. Expect a unit that blends battlefield flexibility with some flavor-rich mechanics. Maybe some scouting rules. Maybe something that ties into their Acts of Faith or sacred rites.
In any case, they’re not just bringing incense and scripture. These girls look like they’re ready to fight dirty.
Final Thoughts From Us on 40k Kill Team Shadowhunt Box
GW basically handed us the smoking bolter here. Free 40k rules for brand-new Celestian Insidiants and refreshed Raptors and Warp Talons is the kind of “oops, didn’t mean to” move that usually shows up right before the preorder button goes live.
If Kill Team Shadowhunt lands the way it’s lining up, Chaos gets a real jump-pack punch again, Sisters get a nasty little witch-hunter tool, and this game system keeps doing what it does best: sneaking new Warhammer 40k toys onto the table under the cover of a skirmish box.
See The Nightbringer In All His Glory
