We’ve talked a fair bit about how the Skitarii of the Horus Heresy era are the personal, elite relic hunters of the Fabricator General and a real danger on the battlefield, but so far you’ve just had to take our word for it. With only a few days left until they go up for pre-order – on Saturday, in case you missed it – it’s high time we had a look inside Journal Tactica: Skitarii: The Steel Hand of Mars to find out what they can actually do in battle.
Your average Battle-Pilgrym is especially durable even by Space Marine standards, packing 2 Wounds and Toughness 4 with a respectable Save of 4+ – not too shabby, especially against basic boltguns and lasrifles. A 6+ invulnerable save means they’re resilient even against the most powerful weapons – unlike Space Marines, they even have a low chance of tanking lascannon shots. This extra resilience doesn’t bog them down either, as the Fast (2) rule gives them an extra burst of speed when they make a Rush move, helping them get into position quickly.
You’ll want to get up close too, as their voltlock arquebuses are relatively short-ranged by boltgun standards but pack a real wallop. Like all volkite weapons, they have the Deflagrate rule, which scores some extra hits when damage is dealt. This is especially valuable when you use them in large units of up to 16 Skitarii. While they won’t be punching through power armour any time soon, they can still do some serious damage to a Space Marine unit.*
Skitarii Battle-Pilgrym
M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A |
6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
LD | CL | WP | IN | SAV | INV | ||
7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 4+ | 6+ |
As a complete package, they have the toughness, speed, and hitting power to duke it out in the middle of the battlefield with usual suspects like Tactical Squads and Lasrifle Sections, but it’s their adaptability that really makes them shine. When you start filling in the Detachment containing your Battle-Pilgryms, you can choose one of four Faction Traits that each come with a special ability, which can radically change how you utilise your Skitarii in battle.
The first two, Acquisitor and Expurgator, grant a unit either the Line (1) or Vanguard (3) rules respectively, making them top shelf objective-takers whether you like to hold ground from the outset or wrestle it off your opponent. This versatility makes them a great choice as an Allied Detachment, granting Space Marine, Solar Auxilia or Mechanicum players an easy way to round out their force. Even better, when allied to a Mechanicum Primary Detachment, they’re not limited to 50% of the total points value, so you can really stock up on Skitarii. The other two depend on your status as either a staunch Loyalist or dastardly Traitor – loyal Skitarii can choose Vindictor to boost the power of their Deflagrate abilities by one, while Traitors with Scourger add an extra inch to their Set-up Moves when going in for a charge.
… Did we mention that the voltlock arquebus has a big, choppy bayonet on the front?
It doesn’t stop there, as the Skitarii Conclaves also have an extremely handy Reaction that allows them to shift authority from their Battle-Pilgrym Marshals onto another suitable candidate when they perish. The leaders of a battle pilgrimage are simply selected from the most veteran Ordinator squad leaders, and in times of great need they can convene via mind-impulse links to determine the best replacement in mere moments.
Marshal Elect
When the marshal falls in battle or is otherwise judged to have failed in their allocated task, the ordinators of the conclave convene via their mind-impulse link, conducting hours of ritual deliberation in just moments, in order to appoint a replacement marshal from the worthy candidates that are present.
This Reaction allows the Controlling Player to select an Ordinator to gain the Command Sub-Type and improved Weapon Skill and Leadership.
Trigger: Once per Battle, the Reactive Player may declare the Marshal Elect Advanced Reaction when a friendly Skitarii Battle-Pilgrym Marshal Model is reduced to 0 Wounds.
Cost: The Reactive Player must spend 1 point of their Reaction Allotment to declare the Marshal Elect Advanced Reaction, this cost paid as soon as the declaration is made.
Target: For the Marshal Elect Advanced Reaction, the Target Unit is always a Friendly Unit with the Skitarii Trait with at least one Ordinator Model.
Process:
In the End Phase of any Turn in which this Advanced Reaction was Declared, the Reactive Player must select one Ordinator Model from the Target Unit.
The selected Model gains the Command Sub-Type, and has its Base Weapon Skill, Attacks and Leadership Characteristics each increased by +1. Additionally, the Controlling Player may select one Melee Weapon that the selected Model has to gain the Icon of Authority Special Rule.
The Legiones Astartes only wish they could download a fallen champion’s combat skills and keep the chain of command watertight.
Along with the units that make up the Skitarii Conclaves army list, the Journal Tactica also contains one more unit profile – an updated entry for the hulking Myrmidon Destructor Host that was revealed soon after their leggy compatriots.
The profile is broadly unchanged – besides a bit of bookkeeping for their weapon options – but since they’ll also be coming out in the not too far future, we thought you’d probably want to have a PDF copy handy so you’ve always got the most up-to-date version. And besides, if their impressive stats inspire you to add a few to your army, we’d call it a win.
* Woe betide any poor soul with a 5+ Save that strays into their crosshairs.
