Adepta Sororitas | Warhammer 40,000 Tactical Guide

Avatar The Chef October 15, 202119  3 19 Likes

Adepta Sororitas Go to Contents


The Adepta Sororitas are a predominately mid ranged army with a strong melee presence in certain units, some decent defensive aspects and elements of long ranged support, creating a balanced army that rewards the player able to synergise their rules well whilst also being fairly forgiving otherwise.


Contents



Pros and Cons Go to Contents


  • A great short and mid ranged game, with access to strong anti-infantry and anti-tank weapons
  • Certain units are very powerful in melee, able to trade effectively and deal with units seemingly above their weight class
  • Solid army rules that can make them extremely reliable in a variety of circumstances
  • A good spread of units, enabling them to create a variety of effective builds and armies
  • Strong weaponry that is quite easily accessible across a number of units, letting you hit hard and have redundancy
  • Have you seen the models?
  • The majority of units aren’t that tough, with middling defensive stats, and whilst there are ways to boost their survivability they can fall fairly quickly against concentrated firepower
  • Their tanks are all quite expensive, and whilst they can kick out good firepower, they aren’t quite as efficient as they could be
  • Some units, particularly Characters, are effectively worthless for certain army builds or subfactions
  • Being a fairly mid ranged army means they can be quite susceptible to counter assaults
  • Aspects of their rules can be quite niche, or difficult to benefit from, depending on the match up, taking some time to master
  • Quite reliant on Characters for support buffs, meaning the army can start to fall apart if they get picked off, as well as potentially bleeding Secondary Points

Tactica Primer Back to Contents


Here are some key points to remember when reading this Primer, mainly to save it being typed out every time. Don’t forget that this presumes you have the Codex, so some basic things may not be explained here.

 

Any of the rules discussed below apply only to ADEPTA SORORITAS models with the same <ORDER> Keyword, so no overlapping or crossing of Auras (no MARTYRED LADY Auras or powers affecting BLOODY ROSE units, for example). There are occasional exceptions that will affect all ADEPTA SORORITAS units, these will be called out. 

All SORORITAS units have the ADEPTUS MINISTORUM Keyword as well, but not all MINISTORUM units are SORORITAS, so don’t presume the two overlap. 

Some common shorthand terms found throughout-

  • X++ means an invulnerable save
  • X+++, or ‘shrug’, ‘Feel No Pain’ or ‘Ignore Damage roll’ depending on how you’re feeling, means it is a dice roll to ignore each point of damage, which is taken after any failed saves.
  • ‘6s explode’ essentially translates to ‘An unmodified 6 to Hit does an additional hit’, so read that as ‘Does 2 Hits instead of 1’. Per the Core Rules, anything that might also happen on a 6 to hit (such as auto-wounding) does not apply to the additional hit, only the original. 
  • ‘First turn of combat’ means any rules that trigger when you Charge, are Charged, or Heroically Intervene. 
  • ‘Deep Strike’ essentially means the unit can be placed into Reinforcements and arrive more than 9” away from enemy units.

Detachment Rules Back to Contents


If your Detachment is Battle-Forged (which will be most armies) and only has SORORITAS units in it. 

  • All your Troops get Objective Secured. Standard
  • Decree Passive- A max of one CANONESS per Detachment, and one MISSIONARY, as well as a limiting CULT IMPERIALIS PRIESTS in a Detachment to less than the number of SORORITAS CHARACTERS. You’ll rarely find you’d not have wanted to run some of the Sister Characters, so this is unlikely to have ever impacted you.
  • Order Convictions- The usual sub-faction rules, outlined below

Every ORDER unit gains a Conviction, depending on the Detachment they are in, granting them unique abilities, as well as a Stratagem and Warlord Trait. Should your WARLORD have the associated Conviction, you are also eligible to have the Relic too. 

Conviction- The Blood of Martyrs

Gain a Miracle Dice at the end of any phase one or more of your units are destroyed, on top of any others you might get, and any unit below Starting Strength gets +1 to Hit. A useful trait that improves units as they take casualties, whilst also letting them fuel other units if they are destroyed. Whilst has no overt offensive benefits for CHARACTERS or lone VEHICLES, the benefits can build over time to ensure the rest of your army gets access to plenty of Miracle Dice to ensure peak efficiency even when damaged. The only issue might be spending all those dice, so make sure you have ways to do that be it via Stratagems, Blessings or Acts of Faith (Simulcram’s are pretty much mandatory here).

Stratagem- Honour the Martyrs

When a CHARACTER is destroyed by an enemy unit, provided they stay dead (no Divine Interventions here), your entire army gets +1 to Wound against that unit. Which for 1 CP is pretty great. The downsides being a canny opponent can try and finish off a Character with a unit they don’t mind losing, but for those occasions where this crops up and a key unit destroys one of your leaders, you can punish them pretty significantly with this.

Warlord Trait- Shield Bearer

A nice defensive buff of -1 Dmg, as well as automatically making any Miracle Dice you gain as a result of this Warlord destroying a unit, or any Dice gained via Sacrifice, an automatic 6. Note the wording specifically states ‘or this Warlord was destroyed, not and, for the purposes of Sacrifice, meaning a Character halfway across the Battlefield will grant an automatic 6 should they die. A good all round trait.

Relic- Martyr’s Vengeance

A mega Inferno Pistol with double the range, +1 Str and always on Melta that grants +3 Dmg. As far as Pistol style Relics go, this is pretty good, letting the bearer help assist with tanks and other heavier units, or packing a horrible surprise for a combat Character that wanted to throw down with her.

Book of Fire Supplement- Coming Soon!

Conviction- Stoic Endurance

A 5+++ vs Mortal Wounds grants niche defense albeit to one that can be fairly common, and reducing AP -1 and -2 by 1 helps prevent lighter firepower from tearing through your lines as easily as other units. Purely defensive, you’ll need to rely on your basic output to inflict damage, though as Sisters are already pretty good there it’s not a huge undertaking. Whilst the second element will come up far more often than the shrug, having it when you do encounter them will make you very happy indeed.

Stratagem- Blind Faith

Let’s a unit ignore any and all modifiers and WS/BS Modifiers for a Phase. A great ability that applies in a wide variety of situations, and will generally always be useful throughout the game, though don’t feel the need to spam it even if it is 1CP, especially if you have other units to help support and you might not need to hit normally.

Warlord Trait- Impervious to Pain

Lets your 5+++ work vs all damage not just Mortals, and everytime they personally perform an Act of Faith, they heal a Wound. Fairly decent, and can help make a surprisingly tanky character, though the Act of Faith component could potentially lead to some tough decisions where she might need the heal but another unit might be better placed to use an Act. Consider the heal a bonus, rather than something to go looking for.

Relic- Casket of Penance

Enemy units within 3” are at -1T, and if they’re CHAOS they’re -1Str as well. A good Relic that can help buff your melee units, and even support your shooting elements if the bearer is skirting Engagement Range, but the short range does limit the effectiveness of it, and it may not come up all that often.

Conviction- Quick to Anger

+1 Attack and +1 AP in the first round of combat. Purely melee based, and rewards aggression, or at least being aggressively close and looking to engage in combat. Whilst will of course benefit your melee specialists the most, even the humble Battle Sister can get a bit of extra punch (pun entirely intended) from this should they find themselves in combat, and whilst it won’t help them too much against dedicated units, it can help them overwhelm a weaker unit they need to remove. The downsides with this are of course it loses steam should you get stuck in combat, so pick targets you know you can remove in a turn or two to prevent getting bogged down and losing your power.

Stratagem- Tear Them Down

6s to Hit in the Fight Phase autowound. Good to help offset the often low strength of Sisters, or at the very least ensure wounds go through on tougher targets. Obviously synergises better with units that have more attacks and are benefiting from Quick to Anger.

Warlord Trait- Blazing Ire

A flat +1 Attack and also grants Advance and Charge. Good for a combat character and ensuring they get there, though this does compete somewhat with the generic Righteous Rage, which will generally be better, ensuring your attacks both land and stick.

Relic- Beneficence

The Chainsword of Many Slayings, buffing your “humble” chainsword granting +2 Str, Ap-2 and +3 Attacks, with an additional +D3 if there are 6+ enemy models within 3”. A good horde blender, and can be handy against heavier targets just by sheer number of attacks, though not to be relied on as the Dmg 1 will let you down even if you are a veritable whirlwind of gore.

Conviction- Daughters of The Emperor

You pick two Sacred Rites instead of one, and you can use two Miracle Dice together to make it count as a single 6. The two Sacred Rites gives you good flexibility and lets you combine some of the better abilities, especially if leaning towards melee, whilst being able to guarantee a 6 on a Miracle Dice gives you great reliability when you need it, though spending two each time can add up quickly if you’re constantly looking to use 6s. Overall not a bad choice as a jack of all trades style Order, especially if you’re looking for both pregame flexibility and in game reliability.

Stratagem- Cleansing Flames

A unit’s Flamer weapons all get +4” Range, and inflict an additional Mortal Wound on unmodified 4+ to Wound, to a max of 3. Both are decent benefits for a low cost, though bear in mind the Mortal Wounds are capped on the unit using the Stratagem, not units they target, meaning deciding to split fire might result in a unit taking all the Mortals possible before the others, so if you do want to do that, start with the unit you’d rather do them on. Overall a good Stratagem for both utility and a bit of extra offensive punch.

Warlord Trait- Terrible Knowledge

Your first Miracle DIce is a 6, and you can refund each CP you spend on a 5+. Both aspects need your Warlord to be on the battlefield (so no being in a Transport for either benefit), making this only really viable for someone on foot, but makes for an excellent second trait on a Character that is likely to be running around supporting other units.

Relic- Annunciation of the Creed

A mega Condemnor Boltgun, able to ignore Look Out Sir, and the Stake profile getting boosted to AP -2 and doing a flat 3 Mortal Wounds when the attack is allocated to a PSYKER. As with the main Condemnor, the Mortals are inflicted when the attack is allocated, meaning you only need to wound to do the Mortal Wounds. Yes even if saved against, the 3 Mortals will be inflicted, severely damaging if not outright killing a Psyker Character. Very niche, but extremely potent when facing psychic units and characters, however certainly not a go to choice, and you have plenty of other options for anti psychic shenanigans.

Conviction- Deeds, Not Words

Units making a Normal Move or Advance count as having Remained Stationary for their next shooting phase, and you can reroll a single Hit or Wound roll when selected to Shoot or Fight. A powerful Order that lets you get into position and range a bit quicker, as well as good reliability in a large number of situations. Whilst the reroll doesn’t work with Armorium Cherubs (as the unit isn’t “selected” again), it’s still fantastic on units packing powerful single shot weapons, and will add up over time on other units, with the increased speed allowing you to threaten units that thought they might have been otherwise safe out of range or line of sight.

Stratagem- Faith is our Shield

Use in any Phase to get a 4+++ vs Mortal Wounds suffered, lasting for the rest of the Phase. Quite powerful albeit situation dependent, it’s not something useful every game, but potent when it pops up, be it against a barrage of Smites, or an erstwhile explosion that would otherwise kill a wounded unit you need to stick around.

Warlord Trait- Selfless Heroism

A 6” Heroic Intervention and Always Fight First. A decent combat trait, with the two combining nicely to help a Character make it to a fight and force the opponent to make a decision who and where to attack with first lest the Warlord effectively interrupt and maybe do some damage to the chargers. Not without its risks of course, as they could just be attacked by chargers, and of course they will need to be geared to fight in order to offer a suitable threat, but can be situationally useful.

Relic- Quicksilver Veil

+3” Mv and -1 to be Hit are a decent set of boosts, helping the character get to where they need to be a bit easier, and survive longer than normal. An all round solid choice, especially for a Character that needs to get buffs or auras into position.

Conviction- Devout Serenity

Your units auto pass Combat Attrition checks, and each time you use an Act of Faith, you roll a D6 and gain a new Miracle Dice on a 4+. The first part encourages bigger units, and whilst not always relevant can occasionally come up to ensure you’re not at risk of losing a unit that is holding a key objective. The Miracle Dice generation can be helpful, effectively giving you a refund though you do need to roll each time, and similar to Our Martyred Lady you need to ensure you have enough units and abilities able to actually benefit from the potentially large pool you have access to. Not the easiest Order to use, and favours certain builds meaning the benefits won’t always be useful.

Stratagem- The Emperor’s Judgement

Grant a unit exploding 6s in the Shooting Phase. A great ability on a wide variety of units, though obviously has no use for things like Flamers. Whether it’s a max unit of Battle Sisters, or looking to fish for some extra hits from powerful weapons like Multi-meltas or Exorcists, this will generally always be useful.

Warlord Trait- Light of the Divine

Once per turn you can turn any Miracle Dice used for this model’s Act of Faith to be a 6 instead, and in addition they have a 6” Aura of Fall Back and Shoot for CORE units. The first part offers great reliability, especially if you have low Miracle Dice, and the second part really helps your shooting units maintain full effectiveness even if tagged or bogged down in melee. An excellent trait if building around shooty CORE units, which a good chunk of your army will likely be.

Relic- Light of Saint Agnaetha

A Brazier of Holy Fire that doesn’t run out. Whilst this sounds great on paper, with potentially 6 Mortal Wounds every turn, it’s still D6 shots, still 12” range, and still only on 4+ (2+ vs DAEMONS), meaning on average you’ll do maybe 2 wounds a turn, but only realistically for 2, maybe 3 turns. It’s by no means a terrible Relic, and there will be times you get games where it nukes entire units every turn, but it’s not realistically reliable.

Otherwise known as Custom Orders, letting you create your own Order rules by choosing any two of the following. As ever you technically must use these rules if you aren’t painted as one of the above main ones, but it’s just a roundabout way of saying use “In the Footsteps of Saints” below.

 

  • Shield of Aversion- Valorous Heart Jr, only ignoring AP-1 attacks. Not bad if you’re expecting a lot of them to come your way.
  • Hallowed Martyrs- Be like Our Martyred Lady, getting +1 to Hit when under Starting Strength. A good trait, making your units potentially more powerful if they aren’t outright destroyed, but again is useless for units with only single models. 
  • Conviction of Faith- Reroll 1s on your Miracle Dice. Pretty useful to avoid those pesky low numbers, this can help ensure you don’t get stung with consistent poor Miracle Dice.
  • Devout Fanaticism- +1 to Hit in the first round of combat is great for a melee oriented army, making your melee focused units hyper accurate as well as providing a bit of a boost for your less choppy units. Doesn’t stack with Holy Rage.
  • Guided by The Emperor’s Will- The Argent Shroud’s rerolls, getting to reroll a hit or wound each time. Great reliability, letting your units ensure damage sticks.
  • Holy Wrath- The Bloody Rose Starter Set, giving the AP boost in the first round of combat. As with them, it helps your melee units really punch through armour, and even helps to make your humble Battle Sister sneak the occasional wound through. 
  • In the Footsteps of Saints- Your standard “Pick one of the main ones and get all their stuff” trait, and obviously can’t combine with any of the other custom Orders here.
  • Perfervid Belief- Be like the Ebon Chalice, able to sacrifice a second Miracle Dice to make the Act of Faith be a 6 instead. Useful to have in order to mitigate low rolls, or for when you just need that 6 on a Damage roll or something, but can be tricky to use as it can burn through your pool quickly if overused.
  • Purifying Recitations- Adds 3 to any Deny the Witch test you make, and whilst it doesn’t make you auto deny on a 3+, it can be helpful to help deny middling casting rolls. Realistically this is only going to help you against casts of a 5-7, as anything on 8+ will need the 6 to Deny regardless, on top of being incredibly niche as it is. Might have use in a mixed army for some Psychic defense, but otherwise you can safely pass. 
  • Raging Fervour- Effectively adds 6” to the Melta range of your Multi-meltas, and your Meltaguns and Inferno Pistols are “always on”. Whilst not extending the overall range of your weapons, ensuring you basically always get the +2 Dmg gives you an extra layer of safety for some of the weapons that you will almost certainly have a lot of. Mutually exclusive with the Flamer and Bolter buffing Orders below.
  • Rites of Fire- +4” Range to all Flame weapons is a decent buff, though probably unnecessary due to wanting to fight over the midboard and the generally smaller board sizes as is. Coupled with the 12” Range most Flamers have now, and this isn’t as amazing as it would have been previously. Still not bad, but there’s generally better choices. Can’t be combined with Raging Fervour or Unshakeable Vengeance.
  • Righteous Suffering- Baby Transhuman, with attacks always failing to wound on unmodified 1s and 2s. Not that bad considering the majority T3 in the Army, lending your Infantry better resilience vs Str 6+ attacks. Less useful for any Tanks you might be running, but not a bad defensive ability.
  • Slayers of Heretics- +1 to Hit when attacking CHARACTERS is pretty niche, and whilst can be useful at times, this will generally only crop its head 3-4 times a game, depending on your match up. Can generally be passed on.
  • Unbridled Fervour- Sacred Rose Lite, adding 1 to your Attrition checks rather than outright passing them. Effectively makes you autopass when above Half Strength, as well as helping to mitigate other modifiers, but if they concern you that much just run Sacred Rose unless there is another Minoris Conviction you desperately want alongside some minor Attrition defense.
  • Unshakeable Vengeance- Ignore all hit modifiers made with Bolt weapons. You will generally have a lot of Bolt weapons…but they’re just Bolt weapons. Can stack up a bit over time, and if you’re really leaning into lots of basic Sisters this can help out on Dense laden boards and other modifiers. It’s not terrible, but by no means a game changer. Can’t create a weapons focus Order with this and the Melta and Flamer ones above.
  • Witch Hunters- Reroll Hit rolls of 1 in Melee vs PSYKERS, and if they’re a CHARACTER reroll Wounds of 1 as well. Given its melee only, this won’t help a huge amount of your units, and chances are you had access to these buffs in some capacity already. Add on to that the limited Keyword, and this can be skipped.

Stratagems Back to Contents


In 9th there are now sub-categories of Stratagems, essentially giving them a Keyword that has interactions with certain rules. It won’t come up all that often, just something to look out for.

The Sisters have a strong list of Stratagems, with many offensive and defensive abilities, though they often come at a high cost, and some require Miracle Dice to be used in addition to CP, so might be out of reach depending on what you need to do. Whilst there are a few less general utility Stratagems here, the ones they do have are particularly strong.

  • Cleansed by Fire- Make a unit’s Flame weapons do max shots in the Shooting Phase. It’s a strong ability, albeit pricey at 2CP, so generally don’t use this on units with only 1 or 2 flamers. An Immolator, or unit of Retributors with Heavy Flamers? Go to town.
  • Embodied Prophecy- +1 to Wound with a ZEPHYRIM unit in melee can really help them take down a key unit with their already solid statline, though 2CP means you’ll not be wanting to use this every turn. Make sure the unit you’re attacking either needs this boost to be killed, or will at the very least be worth the expense. 
  • Exceptional Proficiency- A CELESTIAN unit gets +1 to Hit in either Shooting or Melee. A great boost for only 1 CP, especially on a unit of SACRESANTS on the charge to help them clear a unit away.
  • Extremis Trigger Word- Generate 3 attacks instead of 2 on your ARCO-FLAGELLANTS, though at the end of the Fight Phase you roll a D6 for each model in the unit and outright kill them on 1s. Flagellants are already decent Infantry blenders, and this can help them really pummel if not outright clear a horde, and even put in a big dent on heavier units. Best used when Zealot is active for maximum carnage. 
  • Suffer Not The Witch- Anti PSYKER nastiness, granting +1 to Hit for a unit against the witch, and a +1 to Wound if the attacks are made by a CHARACTER. Whilst niche, being usable on any unit in either Shooting or Fighting does allow a bit of flexibility, and spell doom for a PSYKER in combat with a melee Character.
  • Divine Intervention- Immediately after a CHARACTER is destroyed, you can use this instead of other rules, for 2CP and 1-3 Miracle Dice, reviving them at the end of the Phase with a number of Wounds equal to the Miracle Dice you just spent, as close as possible (but not in Engagement Range) to where they died. Can’t be used on Named Characters, cos Morvenn Vahl standing back up again would be nuts, and can only be used once per battle, but can help deny VP, ensure you still have a key buff or combat character hanging around in your next turn, or be used to “slingshot” away from the combat and onto an Objective. Time it right however, as a Character shot to death near a unit poised to charge them is just going to waste your CP and Miracle Dice. 
  • Fiery Oratory- Automatically intones a Hymn with a PRIEST at the start of any non-Command Phase, with the usual caveats of it can’t have intoned any this turn and no duplicate Hymns. Only 1CP, which is nice given some of the Hymns are quite potent, so ensuring an important one goes off can be very useful. 
  • Martyr’s Immolation- An IMMOLATOR with Flamers auto explodes. Given these are often deep in enemy lines, it’s not a bad use of the CP, especially if near a weakened unit or enemy Character. Can also be used to kill units of your own in the conflagration, if it will free up an enemy unit to be shot at by the rest of your army.
  • Rites of Restoration- Revive D3 models to a CORE INFANTRY squad within 3” of a HOSPITALLER at the end of your Movement. Decent in a variety of circumstances, with obviously greater benefits on units like RETRIBUTORS or SACRESANTS, though don’t neglect the ability to bring back a humble Battle Sister if it can help turn an Objective over to your control.
  • Martyred- Spend a CP to get an additional Miracle Dice when a CHARACTER is killed, and a further D3 if it was your WARLORD. Miracle Dice are already potent, so getting more is not a bad thing, so long as you have the capability of spending them. Obviously try not to get your Characters to die if you can help it, but this at least can help offset the sting when they do.
  • Moment of Grace- After you make a Hit, Wound or Save for a SORORITAS model, spend 1 CP and then up to 2 Miracle Dice, adding 1 to the result for each Dice you spend. Fantastic if you fail a by a single pip of the dice as this is far more reliable than a Command Reroll, or to help offset negatives.
  • Suffering and Sacrifice- A WARLORD or LIVING SAINT (So CELESTINE outside of Crusade) basically uses a video game taunt, forcing any models in Engagement Range of them to only be able to allocate attacks to them in the Fight Phase. Obviously won’t come up very often, but useful to have in your pocket if there are multiple units in combat and you need another unit to survive, this can help edge it in your favour.
  • Open the Reliquaries- The usual “More Relics” Stratagem. There’s lots of good Relics, but lots of good Stratagems as well, so don’t go crazy on this just cos you can. 
  • A Sacred Burden- The “Sergeant carries a Relic” Stratagem common for Imperium armies. Some of them are particularly potent on certain units, though others probably wouldn’t be worth the time. The Relics in question will be discussed in the Relics section.
  • Saint in the Making- Your standard “Give someone a Warlord Trait”. Most of the SIsters Warlord Traits are quite niche or specific but can be vital for certain builds or at least helps elevate them a bit. You might use this once, but as with the Relics don’t go overboard with all of them lest you starve your CP pregame and can’t use some of the better Stratagems.
  • Angelic Ascent- A JUMP PACK unit goes into Deep Strike at the start of your Movement. Good for small units of Seraphim that have now completed Secondaries and need to go elsewhere, or to help redeploy something like Celestine or Zephyrim into a more threatening position. Whilst you do have to wait until your next turn, the flexibility is useful to have. 
  • Battle Rites- Once per game you can roll a D6 at the start of a Battle Round, generating a new Sacred Rite (rerolling if it’s already active), then you can swap out one of your current ones for it. Not terrible if you rolled for them and got a duff one, but it’s still a risk of getting something meh or otherwise not suitable. If you have a battle plan in mind you’ll have already picked a Rite that suits you most so this won’t have much use.
  • Deadly Descent- A unit of SERAPHIM can shoot after arriving from Reinforcements. It’s only really Bolt Pistols and Hand Flamers, maybe a Plasma Pistol, as your Inferno Pistols will be out of range. It’s not a terrible ability on a unit that is cheap and cheerful, especially if they can help clear a light infantry unit, or are about to do an Action like Octarius Data and you want to add a bit of extra firepower (as both are end of Movement Phase, so you can choose to do this then the Action), but it’s pretty niche and you have plenty of anti infantry firepower without depending on Seraphim.
  • Defenders of the Faith- If a unit of BATTLE SISTERS is in range of an Objective Marker at the end of your Movement, you can use this to give them Transhuman as well as always Rapid Fire for their Bolt Weapons, both until your next Movement Phase. A good defensive and offensive boost, albeit only for a unit of basic Sisters, and at 2CP no matter what, it obviously has better mileage on larger squads. Can still be useful on smaller squad to help them resist a bit of extra damage on a crucial Objective.
  • Desperate for Redemption- Models in a REPENTIA unit can attack on death, provided they haven’t already attacked this Fight Phase. Doesn’t help you if you attack first, but punishes units looking to cripple or remove them before they can do their work. At 2CP, it’s effectively the same as an interrupt, though with the downside of losing models at the same time, so use the two accordingly- if you have the opportunity to interrupt with the Repentia and no other decent melee units, then do so. If you find yourself stuck between interrupting with the Repentia and another unit, consider the other unit and use this so the Repentia can at least take a pound of flesh.
  • Devastating Refrain- Lets an EXORCIST ignore line of sight with their organ rockets, letting them attack units that thought they were safe, or keeping the tank itself safe. Not cheap at 2CP, so don’t use it too liberally.
  • Holy Rage- Used in the Charge Phase to give a CORE unit the Zealot rule, or Fall Back and Charge. Useful on many units, but of course more useful for those geared for melee that can make the most from Zealot, or likewise want to charge a more useful target, or trigger abilities like Zealot or Quick to Anger. Costs 1CP if the unit is within 6” of a PRIEST, or 2CP otherwise, so take that into consideration for positioning.
  • Purity of Faith- Deny a Psychic Power on a 4+, which can be used after a normal Deny. Gives you good chances to stop a key power, and at only 1CP it’s worth doing on those really important powers (Warptime, Doom etc).
  • Faith and Fury- 1CP to double dip a Miracle Dice, letting it count for both a Hit and Wound. Great when you just need something to go through, though it will then preclude you from using it for Damage, important on things like Multi-melta, so make sure it will do the business without that reliability. 
  • Final Redemption- Used on ENGINES OF REDEMPTION, letting them a melee explosion on a 4+ for D3 Mortals if destroyed by a Melee attack. Decent on a unit that is likely to get taken out, able to exact a decent toll in return. Particularly nasty on Mortifiers, as they can attack on a 4+, then roll for this to explode.
  • Judgement of the Faithful- 1CP to grant a CORE unit Fall Back and Shoot. Fantastic to ensure important units like Dominions and Retributors don’t get tagged or otherwise tied up.
  • Righteous Impact- PARAGON WARSUITS and ENGINES OF REDEMPTION can shoulder barge a unit on the Charge, rolling a D6 for each model in your squad and doing a Mortal Wound if you equal or beat the enemy units Toughness, or D3 on a 6 regardless of Toughness. Not terrible, but with small unit sizes you’re not getting a huge number of chances, and realistically any of these units can deal with a target in melee if you’ve put them into the right enemy, so these extra wounds will usually be unnecessary.
  • Blessed Bolts- A unit’s Artificer-crafted Storm Bolters do 2 Mortal Wounds on a Hit, ending the attack sequence, to a max of 6 Mortal Wounds (total, not per enemy unit, so be wary of order if split firing). Cheap at 1CP, and whilst requiring specific weapons, they’re cheap enough to sprinkle through your basic Sisters so this can always be handy in a pinch.
  • Holy Smokescreen- Smokescreen, but with extra incense and High Gothic chanting! Granting a tank a -1 to Hit can help offset their general frailty in 9th edition, though by no means a guarantee, but useful if there are only a few threatening weapons to worry about.
  • Holy Trinity- Provided you target a single enemy unit with all your attacks, and use at least one Bolt, Flame and Melta weapon, all of those attacks get +1 to Wound. Cheap at 1CP and great in mixed units, and well worth the price for taking a Combi-weapon on a Dominion or Retributor Superior to complement the specialised weapons.
  • Inviolate Shieldwall- -1 to wound for a unit of SACRESANTS or CRUSADERS in the Fight Phase. Solid defensive buff, though remember with only T3 they will generally still be wounded on 4s, if not 3s against the real scary stuff out there, but for 1CP every little can help
  • Thrice-blessed Hull- Grants a HALLOWED unit (so a Tank) a 12” Aura that causes any PSYKER in range to Perils any time they fail a Psychic Test. Can be utterly horrific against Psyker heavy armies, but of course very niche, and you’ll want to try to get into a position to cause as much mayhem as possible.

Blessings of the Faithful Back to Contents


Any CANONESS or PALATINE in an army can be given one of these upgrades, granting them both a Passive Ability and a Miraculous Ability, a once per game aura (that isn’t affected by Aura affecting rules, so no extra range from stuff but also can’t be turned off or negated) that is activated in your Command Phase and requires 1 Miracle Dice to activate- A 1 grants a 1” range, 2-5 gives a 3” range, and so of course a 6 equates to 6”. Each Miraculous Ability lasts until your next Command Phase, are <ORDER> locked, and each Blessing is one per army, which given the power of some of them is justified.

The most expensive of the Blessings at a massive 40pts, almost as much as the Character that bears it, but for that you get two very powerful abilities. 

  • Passive- Lets you pick an enemy unit within 3” at the start of the Fight Phase and force them to fight last. Dictating combat order is extremely good and often game winning, as you can effectively not worry about a unit in the combat order, letting you gain the upper hand.
  • Miraculous- If an enemy unit is in range when a melee attack is made against them by a friendly CORE or CHARACTER, they cannot use Invulnerable Saves. Can utterly ruin an opponent’s game plan, and can even help a unit add on damage to units that rely on Invulnerables such asDaemons or units enhanced with abilities like a Chronomancer.

25pts puts this in the midrange, and focuses again on melee boosts.

Passive- +1 Strength and Damage to non-Relic Melee Weapons. It’s simple but effective, and can turn even the humble Power Sword into a decent melee weapon, though you get the most mileage from a Blessed Blade, basically making it better then the already existing Relic version.

  • Miraculous- CORE and CHARACTER units within range inflict an additional Mortal Wound on 6s to Wound in melee. Can be particularly strong if you’ve bundled multiple units into a single unit that just needs to die.

The cheapest at 15pts, and synergises somewhat internally, but overall fairly niche.

  • Passive- In each of your opponent’s Command Phases, you can pick one enemy unit within 6” of the Character and roll 3D6. If you equal or beat the enemy unit’s Leadership, one of their Aura abilities you choose is turned off until their next Command Phase. A strong ability, but let down by the short range. Can be pretty clutch but overall not something to rely on.
  • Miraculous- When a CORE or CHARACTER unit within range Shoots, each time those attacks destroy an enemy model, that model’s unit suffers -1 Ld (to a max of -3Ld). Can be useful if you’re against an army susceptible to Morale, or are looking to inflict enough damage to all but force a failure on an important unit to help bypass other toughness.

Provides some solid defense ability for its fairly cheap cost of 20pts, though both abilities are quite niche and require good, or at least convenient, timing.

  • Passive- The Character heals D3 Wounds in each of your Command Phases. Obviously not so helpful if you aren’t injured, or die, but can be useful if you’ve borne the brunt of an explosion or Psychic Power, perhaps revived with Divine Intervention, or otherwise managed to take some hits in a previous turn. Not always relevant, but useful when it crops up.
  • Miraculous- CORE and CHARACTERS within range cannot have Hits, Wounds and Damage Rolls against them rerolled, offering great defenses against a variety of abilities and reliability that many armies and units rely on. Can be very useful at key moments to help tip the scales.

A weirdly costed one at 25pts, as whilst the Miraculous ability is potent, the Passive is fairly middling, though does have some interesting utility with certain units. 

  • Passive- Basically makes the Character a holy sniper, letting them ignore Look Out Sir, and making their ranged attacks do an additional Mortal Wound on 6s to Wound. Given most of the ranged weapons they have access to are weak to begin with, or low range, this won’t appear to be that useful. However it can mesh very nicely with certain Relics, and even Braziers of Eternal Flame to try and pop some Mortal Wounds on a softer target.
  • Miraculous- Gives CORE and CHARACTER units ignore cover for their ranged attacks, giving you a bit of extra punch on entrenched enemies or those with abilities offering them the same protection.

A fairly high cost of 30pts, though it does offer a great Miraculous ability, and a strong albeit not always applicable Passive.

  • Passive- -1 to Wound the Character with Ranged Attacks is a decent buff, if they find themselves under threat from such attacks. Whilst it does help a bit against snipers, if this is something that comes up often then chances are something has already gone wrong for other units. On top of that, with a T3 that -1 to Wound won’t go too far, generally making them be wounded on 4s rather than 3s. By no means a bad ability, but not the reason for taking this Blessing.
  • Miraculous- Grants any CORE and CHARACTERS in range a -1 to be Hit by Ranged attacks, which can be pretty significant for your footsloggers. Given it’s a bespoke modifier as well, it will stack with other negatives like Dense, which whilst still capped at -1 does help against positive modifiers the enemy might have, so this can be useful even if you are around terrain. A great ability that can give you a turn of extra staying power that you might need.

Warlord Traits Back to Contents


  1. Inspiring Orator- Grants a 6” Aura to CORE for ignoring Half-Strength for Combat Attrition, as well as giving +3” to any Hymns or other Command Phase abilities (not Blessings). It’s fine, ignoring a negative on Attrition can occasionally be useful, though only realistically useful for larger squads. The range boost on Command phase abilities is fairly niche, but this is pretty good as a secondary trait on a Dogmata, synergising with her abilities and her role as a “line holder” for your Infantry. Junith Eruita has this, as it’s hard not to be inspired by a floating pulpit of marble and fire.
  2. Righteous Rage- Reroll Hits and Wounds in Melee. It’s simple, yet selfish, but when you want to make a melee machine this is the best pick in the book, giving you fantastic reliability. Morvenn Vahl has this, as she is the angriest of angry nuns, and hates pretty much anything non-nun.
  3. Executioner of Heretics- An aura that imposes -1 Ld and -1 to Combat Attrition on enemy units within 6”. Decent, but Sisters at that range would rather, and indeed should be, dealing with enemy units effectively enough that Morale shouldn’t be an issue…as they should be dead. Ephrael Stern is one of these, on brand with that whole “murder everything Chaos” schtick.
  4. Beacon of Faith- If the Warlord is on the battlefield, generate an extra Miracle Dice in your Command Phase, that only they can use. Whilst it can be used even if you’ve used another that phase, it’s lost at the start of your next Command Phase, so no storing them up, and it can only be used on Acts of Faith, so low numbers aren’t all that useful to you (unless you want to fail something). Given the limitations, you can probably pass on this. Aestred Thurga has this, meaning this will realistically only ever be relevant in Crusade.
  5. Indomitable Belief- A 6” Aura of +1 to the Shield of Faith Invulnerable on your CORE INFANTRY, to a max of 4++. Effectively granting your Infantry a 5++ is great, letting them stick around a bit longer against heavier elements of both Shooting and Melee. A great pick on any Character, but better on one that will be predominantly supporting your main battleline. Celestine has this, what with being belief made manifest.
  6. Pure of Will- You can Deny an additional time (so usually twice), and get +3 to doing so. Remember Shield of Faith is specifically an unmodified 6 to auto deny, so no you don’t get to shut down Magnus on a 3+. It’s fine, and can help a little if enemy Psykers are rolling below average, but there are better picks. The Triumph of St. Katherine, in keeping with her overall mediocrity, has this.

Hymns of Battle Back to Contents


Your PRIESTS all know War Hymn, and certain characters know an extra one. If they’re a SORORITAS they have access to all six, otherwise it’s just the first three. These are all activated in the Command Phase and last until your next Command Phase (apart from Refrain), so make sure you get set up in the previous turn to use them, but bear in mind only going off on a 3+ means you shouldn’t hinge a plan on them, and each can only be attempted once per Command Phase.

War Hymn- +1 Attack to a single CORE, CHARACTER or ENGINE OF REDEMPTION unit in 6”. On a Battle Sister squad, it’s situational. But on a unit of Repentia, or melee focused Canoness? Much better. Obviously use it where it will be the most useful. 

  1. Refrain of Blazing Piety- A unit within 12” and visible takes D3 Mortal Wounds, or flat 3 if they are CHAOS. Whilst that 12” range can be limiting, being able to pick the target is worth it’s weight gold, letting you go for weakened Characters, or more optimal targets instead of a screen. 
  2. Chorus of Spiritual Fortitude- A CORE, CHARACTER or ENGINE OF REDEMPTION unit within 6” becomes immune to Psychic Powers, and any Powers on them are immediately removed. Niche, and Sisters have lots of tools for dealing with Psykers already, but useful to turn off or preempt particularly crippling things like Doom or Death Hex. And those days you come up against Thousand Sons or Grey Knights and get this off on your screen? Well then the Smite Train will indeed have brakes that day. 
  3. Psalm of Righteous Smiting- The PRIEST themselves gets +1 Str, +1A, +1 AP to non-Relics, and Fights Again at the end of the Phase. Can make even the humble Preacher a mini blender, and works nicely on the Dogmata who is already semi-decent in combat. Less useful on things like the Dialogus, who isn’t the best in melee as it is and probably has better Hymns to shout.
  4. Litany of Enduring Faith- A SORORITAS CORE or CHARACTER within 6” gets +1 to their Shield of Faith Invulnerables, maxing at 4++. Stacks nicely with Indomitable Belief above, or on a unit of Zephyrim about to throw down, but useful elsewhere if a key unit needs the extra bit of survivability. 
  5. Verse of Holy Piety- Pick a Sacred Rite that isn’t active, and give it to a SORORITAS CORE or CHARACTER within 6”. Useful if you have a unit that isn’t benefiting from the active Rites, or you have a particular plan in mind for a unit that needs a specific buff. It’s fine, but probably not worth the Hymn slot. 
  6. Catechism of Repugnance- Grants a SORORITAS CORE or CHARACTER within 6” a buff to their Bolt Weapons, making 6s to Hit autowound and also getting -1AP if at half range. Actually pretty useful on a number of units, especially big squads of Sisters, Retributors with Heavy Bolters, or Seraphim. Doesn’t interact with Divine Guidance (as the autowound doesn’t become a 6 to Wound), but useful nonetheless.

Relics with a * can be given to a SORORITAS Superior via the A Sacred Burden Stratagem. 

Relics with a ^ are for SORORITAS models only. 

  • Blade of Saint Ellynor^- A Blessed Blade with Dmg 3… that’s it. It’s nothing fancy, but it gets the job done. The main issue is, if you have 25pts spare and no other Blessing takes your fancy, you can just use Rapturous Blows on a Canoness to get the same effect, save a Relic slot, and also get access to the strong Miracle ability it gets. It’s fine, but they’re better choices.
  • Brazier of Eternal Flame^- Upgrades a Brazier of Holy Fire to grant the bearer -1 to be Hit by DAEMONS, and an 18” Aura that causes enemy Psykers to Perils on any double instead of 1s and 6s. Both are niche abilities, on an already fairly niche wargear, but when it comes up it’s incredibly strong. If Psykers or Daemons are rife, it’s certainly not a bad choice, but otherwise its a hard pass. 
  • Wrath of the Emperor^- A Holy Uzi Bolt Pistol, with 4 Shots, +6” Range and +1 to all it’s stats. As far as Pistol Relics go, it’s not shabby, and can be pretty hilarious combined with Righteous Judgment to make a Sniper Character once you get within 18”. Not bad for the funsies. 
  • Litanies of Faith*^- If the bearer is on the battlefield, you can reroll one Miracle Dice per Battle Round. A nice bit of reliability, and can be useful on a unit that will be spending their time hiding in the backfield, letting you take more potent Relics on your Characters. 
  • Mantle of Ophelia- CANONESS only, this reduces all Damage to 1. Yes, to 1, not by 1. Which is pretty cool as far as defensive benefits go, combined with your 4++ and ways to heal and otherwise tank damage, this can lead to a hilariously tough gal that can walk up to scary elite characters and hold them there for a decent time. This is by no means a guarantee, and not so useful against sheer quantity of low Damage attacks, but can really throw a spanner in the works of certain big hitters. 
  • Triptych of the Macharian Crusade- SANCTIFIED or CULT IMPERIALIS only. A nice slew of defensive buffs, granting +1 Toughness, a 4++ and reducing the first failed Save each turn to Dmg 0. Decent on these otherwise fragile support Characters, but at the same time you should be looking to keep them away from suffering damage in the first place.
  • Book of Saint Lucius- +3” to Auras. It’s simple, but useful, and works with a good number of rules in the book. Pop this on a unit with an Aura based Warlord Trait and become the ultimate buffer.
  • Iron Surplice of Saint Istaela^- Another defensive Relic that grants a trio of good survivability buffs, granting a tasty +1W, 2+ Sv and permanent Transhuman (so unmodified wounds of 1-3 auto fail). Given you’re only T3, that third benefit alone represents a huge boost in survivability, with the others being icing on the cake. If you’re looking for a Character that is expecting to get stuck in, this is a good choice to keep them sticking around even longer. 
  • The Ecclesiarch’s Fury*- The sister weapon to the Bloody Rose Relic, this one being The Chainsword of Mighty Slayings. Want that Legends Canoness with an Eviscerator, well here you go, granting a not insignificant +2 Str, -3AP and 2 Dmg, alongside a nice +1 to Wound. It does carry the downside of -1 to Hit, meaning Righteous Rage is almost a necessity when using this to ensure you hit. It’s pretty good, however you can get the same stats with a bog standard Blessed Blade, without the hit/wound modifiers. Is it worth it? Debatable. Is it fun? Yes, and can pack a nasty surprise on a cheap Missionary or tucked away on a Superior. 
  • Redemption*^- An always Overcharged Plasma Pistol that doesn’t explode, and hits every unit under the line between the wielder and the target. A 12” range means this won’t come up all too often, and whilst it can be fun when the stars align, needing a perfect scenario to come up does not a good Relic make. Probably not even worth chucking on a Superior either.
  • The Sigil Ecclesiasticus- A PRIEST both knows and can intone an extra Hymn. Useful for the flexibility, letting you pop off two support based Hymns, or mix it up with the +1A and an extra buff as well. If there’s a particular set of Hymns you want to use and only one Priest to use them, this is a decent pick, but remember it’s still only on a 3+, and the dice gods are fickle…
  • Blessings of Sebastian Thor*^- The bearer (and their unit in the case of a Superior) picks two Sacred Rites to be active for them instead of the ones used for the rest of the army. Great if you have a specific plan for a unit that doesn’t mesh with the rest of the army. Predominately a shooting based army with Divine Guidance but you have a unit of Sacresants, give them Passion and Hand of the Emperor to boost their combat prowess. Using the Aegis vs a psyker heavy army but want a 20 gal unit of Sisters with Light of the Emperor and Divine Guidance, hey here you go. It’s not the flashiest of Relics, but certainly has its uses.
  • Simulacrum Sanctorum- A Magic Marble Statue for the IMAGIFIER, letting them use two of their Tales rather than one. Given the fairly narrow uses of the Tales, this only really has a use in certain armies, specifically melee heavy armies looking for the Str and charge buffs. Not always going to be useful, but decent enough for those building around it.
  • Chaplet of Sacrifice^- Grants a trio of benefits, letting you reroll Hits, an Epic Deed Stratagem (except Divine Intervention) for 0CP, and lets you Fight or Shoot on death, even if you’ve already done so in that Phase. A great spread of benefits in terms of reliability and utility, and whilst the downside is you can’t use Intervention to bring them back to life (as the two are mutually exclusive), it is a worthy trade off, especially on a melee Character looking to get in the thick of things. 

Secondary Objectives Back to Contents


The following are available if you have a SORORITAS WARLORD when playing Matched Play or Grand Tournament Mission, with the usual restrictions (namely no using two from the same category), and you can only take one SORORITAS Secondary per game regardless of its category.

No Mercy, No Respite - A Leap of Faith

Score 1VP if you perform 2 Acts of Faith in your turn, 2VP if you perform 2 Acts of Faith in your Opponent’s turn, and score an additional 1VP if you perform 3 or more Acts of Faith in a turn (yours or your opponents). On paper this sounds pretty good, however your capped at 12VP, Incesor Cherubs don’t count, and often this might make you feel forced to do Acts you either don’t want or need to do, and given you’ll be at the mercy of how many Miracle Dice you have, it might not always be easy to do. If you’re often finding yourself with an abundance of Miracle Dice at your disposal, this isn’t the worst Secondary to pick, but there are generally better ones in this category.

Purge the Enemy - Slay the Heretic

Destroying at least one enemy unit in your Shooting Phase with a Bolt, Flamer or Melta weapon nets you 1VP for each of the weapons, and an additional 1VP if you do it with all three. Again this sounds pretty good on paper, but realistically is quite difficult to achieve. Any excess kills in a turn for a particular weapon will be wasted, anything that isn’t one of these (which admittedly is few but they do exist) won’t count, melee is right out, and this can cause you awkward moments where you may need to decide between using a weapon against a sub-optimal target in order to score the VP, even if it might not be a tactically prudent move. You can probably expect 5-6VP with this, making it pretty low scoring all told.

Battlefield Supremacy - Defend the Shrine

Your Opponent picks an Objective Marker not in their Deployment Zone (unless for some reason its the only one, but that’s some narrative missions where Secondaries aren’t used anyway so….), and if you control that Objective at the end of your turn you score 3VP. You also score 3VP at the end of the battle if you hold the Objective, but lose 3VP from this Secondary (to 0 max at least) if your Opponent controls it. Very mission dependent, as your opponent can pick an Objective far away from you, or where it will be beneficial for them to counter you. Not a bad Objective if you have the army capable of doing it, as you can feasibly score 9-12VP over the course of the game depending on Marker placements, and especially with fast units to cap it early or tougher units to hold it through the game. Just be wary of last minute Objective grabs by your opponent looking to deny you VP, especially if they have gone second.

Shadow Operations - Sacred Grounds

One SORORITAS INFANTRY or MINISTORUM PRIEST can consecrate an Objective as an Action at the end of your Movement, provided you’re in range, no enemy units are in range, and it hasn’t already been consecrated. The Action completes at the start of your next Command Phase, or the end of the Battle (whichever happens first), and grants you 1VP if the Objective was wholly in your Deployment Zone, or 4VP if it was anywhere else. The key thing here is wholly, as some missions will have their Objective Markers only partially within your Deployment Zone, and thus would net you the full 4VP. A fairly decent one, let down by the length of time to complete and limited to one unit a turn, however it can net a decent 8-12VP if you have the army built for it, especially the Priests who will be harder to target due to LoS! and will be eligible to use their Hymns before and afterwards. Also the Objective grants Inspiring to you for +1 Ld in 6” around it, but whatever.


Army Rules Back to Contents


These are rules that will be commonly found across multiple, if not all, units in the Adepta Sororitas Codex.

All of your non-OUTCASTS SORORITAS units have this, even your tanks, granting you a 6++ and a single Deny the Witch, with the catch that it’s only on a single D6, but always counts as a success on an unmodified 6. A minor defensive buff which effectively means anything past AP 3 is wasted and you at least always have a chance to save, no matter how small. The sheer number of Deny attempts you’ll have will mean Psykers will be hard pressed to get all of their powers through. Whilst only working on a 6, that 6 will come up. Certainly nothing to be relied upon, but handy to have given your overall lack of psychic defense. 

Reroll Hit rolls in the first round of combat. A great offensive booster, granting great reliability and reduces the need for Character rerolls. Remember however most units with this ability will generally be hitting on 4s in the first place, so once this expires these units will be a lot less efficient. As a result make sure whatever they hit dies or is crippled so badly you can go off and destroy something else, triggering this again.

Your “pure army” rule, provided every model is SORORITAS but still allowing UNALIGNED, CULT IMPERIALIS and AGENTS OF THE IMPERIUM (cos Imperium). You get a few ways to generate Miracle Dice (by rolling a D6 at the time of generation and keeping that to one side), in order to fuel your Acts of Faith. You gain one Miracle Dice at the start of each Battle Round, one at the end of any Phase where an enemy unit was destroyed by a SORORITAS unit, and one at the end of any Phase where a SORORITAS CHARACTER was destroyed, with a few other ways to generate via Stratagems and special rules. 

Each Miracle Dice lasts until used to call an Act of Faith, and an Act of Faith can be called once per Phase (again with some ways to call more via special rules). When you call an Act of Faith, you pick a Miracle Dice, and before making a roll (so no replacing after a bad result) you use that Miracle Dice instead, in place of a Hit, Wound, Damage, Save, Advance, Charge or Morale. You can only use one Miracle Dice per Act, with the exception of Charges where you can replace both dice rolls with two different Miracle Dice. They always count as unmodified rolls and can never be rerolled. 

So Acts of Faith turn you from a fairly reliable army, to an extremely reliable one. Need to make a 7” Charge and have a 4 and 3 in your pool, congratulations you make it. Got that Meltagun through the enemy Invulnerable and have a 6, boom 6 Damage. Need that lone Superior to not fail Morale and keep holding that Objective, good thing you have a 1 in your pool! Now of course they are subject to the whims of fate, given they’re rolled for, so there may be times you’re left with less than ideal Miracle Dice, and as they are often generated at the end of the Phase, you might not get one until after you want it. On top of that you need to consider carefully when you’ll be using them as, outside of a few exceptions, once an Act is called that Phase, that’s it. 

Carefully weigh up what each is worth and when. 5s and 6s are of course great for Damage rolls, but don’t discount them for Advance and Charge rolls. 3s and 4s are useful for most rolls, whilst 1s and 2s are realistically only good for Morales and fuelling certain Stratagems. You can however use them in certain niche instances to effectively auto fail a save and kill a model, thus freeing you to shoot the unit next turn, or pull them just out of charge or shooting range (also very fitting given the whole martyrdom schtick they have going on), so there are some fringe uses of all the dice. 

All told the Acts are a great tool for reliability, but ironically not one to rely on. In addition there will be times you have more Miracle Dice than you know what to do with. Don’t fret if you have a big pool of them, or even no situation to use them in, look at them instead as a layer of protection if you do come up against a situation where you just know you need a certain result to enact your grand plan

After you know the mission, you determine your Sacred Rites (note this means they do not need to be written on your Army Roster, granting you a modicum of flexibility), by either choosing one or rolling 2D6 (rerolling both on doubles until you have two different results). The Rites you gain last until the end of the battle, and offer a variety of different benefits

  1. Hand of the Emperor- +1 to Advance and Charge rolls. Obviously more useful for a combat oriented army build, but can still be handy in a pinch when used to claim Objectives or move into position in the early stages
  2. Spirit of the Martyr- Models slain by a melee attack roll a D6, and on a 6 explode strike out with great vengeance and furious anger, doing a Mortal Wound to the attacking unit, up to a max of 6 Mortal Wounds per phase. Doesn’t happen if a VEHICLE explodes, and certainly not the most reliable of abilities, but can punish a melee heavy army over time. Obviously not so useful if you’re not facing much in terms of melee threats, and offensively there are better Rites.
  3. Aegis of the Emperor- The Deny the Witch part of your Shield of Faith auto passes on unmodified 5s and 6s now. Goes without saying this is worthless against armies with no Psykers, and frankly questionable against those with only 1. But against armies with 3+ Psykers, or against Thousand Sons and Grey Knights, it’s very much worth it. A 33% Chance to just say “No” to usually powerful and important Psychic Powers can immensely sway the battle in your favour. 
  4. Divine Guidance- 6s to Wound with Shooting attacks get an extra -1 AP. A great all round choice, unless you’re going heavy melee. This will stack up over time and is widely applicable. If you’re stumped on what to pick, or aren’t looking at the melee ones for your army build, you can’t really go wrong with this one. 
  5. The Passion- Exploding 6s in melee. If you’re going melee heavy, just pick this. Whilst it can be tempting to roll and hope you get this and Hand of the Emperor as well, the offense boost this offers to your melee units is often too strong to not have guaranteed.
  6. Light of the Emperor- Ignore any Leadership and Combat Attrition modifiers. If you’re going with smaller sized or minimum sized squads, this is likely not all that useful, as any modifiers will likely come too late if they come up at all. With larger squads this can be quite helpful, and if there is a large amount of Leadership shenanigans in the opponent’s army it could be useful, but this is generally going to be one you’ll want to pass on.

Datasheets Back to Contents


Units with a * are SANCTIFIED, OUTCASTS or CULT IMPERIALIS, meaning they never benefit from Order Convictions but conversely never take them away, and can still use Sacred Rites and Acts of Faith provided they have those rules on their Datasheet.

Canoness

Your basic Captain esque HQ, with a respectable 5W and 3+/4++ on defense, and offering the standard 6” reroll 1s to Hit Aura for your CORE units. Offensively you get access to a decent mix of melee and ranged weapons, including some nice stuff like the Blessed Blade for a +1 Str +1 Dmg Power Sword, as well as some ancillary wargear, though some are limited in terms of combinations. The Rod of Office (letting you give reroll 1s to Hit for a CORE or CHARACTER within 12” in your Command Phase) can only be used with a Power Sword and Plasma Pistol, whilst if your melee weapon is a Chainsword, you can have a Null Rod (making you immune to all Psychic Powers as well as getting a 12” Aura of -1 to Psychic Tests) or the Brazier of Holy Fire (a once per game Flamer that always wounds on a 4+ and does a Mortal Wound each time, or wounding on 2s vs DAEMONS). Regardless, the Canoness is cheap at 50pts base and 70 max depending on wargear, but with access to Blessings Relics and Warlord Traits can be customised quite extensively depending on what you need, be it a frontline fighter or a more support oriented leader.

Palatine

The second in command Character, coming stock with 3A with a Power Sword, 4W and a 3+/4++, and only a single wargear choice (Bolt or Plasma Pistol, that’s your lot), but more importantly reroll 1s to Wound. She’s also incredibly cheap at a mere 45pts (or 50 with Plasma), and whilst nowhere near as killy as a buffed up Canoness, the Palatine is an ideal candidate for support oriented Relics or Warlord Traits.

Missionary*

The first of the IMPERIALIS PRIESTS, this guy knows one of the first three Hymns, and can intone one. He also offers his Ld8 to CORE units within 6” him, which is realistically only helpful for units that have lost their Superior, or some of the crazed type units. Wargear wise he doesn’t have access to anything all that exciting, and really you should only be taking him for his Hymns. The issue becomes, there’s other PRIESTS which are just, well, better. They don’t take up an HQ slot and are often SORORITAS giving them more flexibility in terms of Hymns and other rules interactions. The upside is he is slightly cheaper, packs a 4++ and being a HQ does mean you can use him as a cheap compulsory slot filler if you want bodies elsewhere, though for 5pts more a Palatine can do the same thing and offer more reliable buffs.

Morvenn Vahl*

The High Abbess herself, if you want something done, Morvenn Vahl will see it done. Coming in at a frankly undercosted 265pts, she does a bit of everything, and she does it well to boot. Offensively she packs a Str 6 Heavy Bolter, what amounts to a twin-linked Missile Launcher with 36” range, and strikes with 5 Str 8 -3 Dmg 3 attacks in melee with an additional Mortal on 6s, or can sweep for 10A at Str 5 -2. If that wasn’t enough she can Fight Again once per game at the end of a Phase. On the defense she’s rocking 8W at T5, ideal for a CHARACTER letting her benefit from LoS!, alongside a 2+/4++, 4+++ vs Mortals and halving all Damage. On top of all that she supports your battleline exceedingly well, granting both reroll 1s to Hit and Wound in 6” for your CORE, and in the Command Phase can give a CORE or CHARACTER within 6” reroll ALL HITS AND WOUNDS, making her an incredibly force multiplier as well as a brutal damage dealer. She does have a few downsides, mainly that she has to be your Warlord (not the end of the world, and Righteous Rage is great for her), and being a VEHICLE means she has to footslog and can be a bit limited by terrain, especially Breachable, as well as being susceptible to certain rules (whilst also being resistant to others, so swings and roundabouts). A fantastic choice and can fit into almost any style of Sisters army seamlessly, be it a melee focused one where she joins the speartip, or a shooting focused army where she anchors a battleline and offers melee counterthreat, you literally have to go out of your way to go wrong with Vahl. 

Celestine and Geminae Superia*

The holiest gal in town, she’s brought her besties as a single unit once again, and what a unit they are. They have a ton of special rules, but they boil down to “Nasty Combat Death” and “Be Hard to Kill”. Celestine and Friends are a beatstick, pure and simple. Yes they offer a 6++ to IMPERIUM INFANTRY in 6”, but whatever. With longer Heroic Interventions, Fly, tons of attacks with good Strength and AP and Celestine herself having a chance to do Mortal Wounds instead of normal Damage, they can dish the pain. On the defensive, everyone is a 2+/4++, with Celestine also subtracting 1 from all Damage (to a minimum of 1, to the absolute shock of no-one with a brain cell). The key thing is the Geminae must take all damage first, but if you are able to do an Action, you can give up your Movement and Shooting to revive one and heal all wounds to anyone else injured in the unit, including Celestine. Plus she has that whole revive fully healed when killed the first time fully healed on a 2+ thing everyone loves hates has no strong opinions on. Now despite all this, she has some issues. As mentioned, she is just a beatstick. A good one, and offers nice counter charge options, but she won’t be doing anything else. Also despite the defense buffs, we’re still only talking T3 and 6 or 2W each, so concentrated attacks can drag them down surprisingly quick, and the healing/reviving aspects almost need to be “timed” – you can’t use Healing Tears if you’ve moved or are in Engagement Range, and reviving happens at the end of a Phase and you must be as near as possible (outside of Engagement Range), so dying in your turn, or in your opponent’s Shooting Phase, might make you susceptible to further attacks. Finally given each Geminae has the explicit CHARACTER Keyword means the unit will give up 9VPs on Assassination if destroyed. At 200pts, they aren’t cheap either, so they need to make their points back in some capacity. As such don’t throw them away or use them as a distraction, as you can get fairly punished for it, but you need them to be doing something to justify their points. Fortunately as mentioned they are killy when used on the right targets, and the sheer threat of them is often enough to make an opponent think twice between attacking them, or potentially something else. 

Triumph of Saint Katherine*

Another Character with a full page of rules, though far greater meh-ness than Celestine. Effectively 6 Characters in one (though thankfully only worth the 1 for Assasination), they form a big processions throughout the battlefield, offering varying buffs depending on how many wounds they have remaining (ie how many Relics they still carry around). They range from the “fine” like having all 6 Rites Active for themselves, to the “actually quite good” ability to let a single CORE or CHARACTER within 6” count a Miracle Dice they use as a 6 instead. They also have a decently tough profile of -1 to Hit and a 4++, and despite their 18W they count as having 9 for the purposes of Terrain and Look Out Sir!, albeit they can’t ride around in Transports. The issues are they just kind of don’t do much, and at a pretty steep 220pts, you really need them to.Whilst some of their abilities are good, they’re predominately short ranged or limited in scope, and their melee output is somewhat decent they’re not amazing compared to other beatsticks, At least they’ll look awesome on the display cabinet. 

Ephrael Stern and Kyganil of the Bloody Tears*- A double act here, each one packing Zealot, a 4++, -1 to Hit and Wound, and can Deep Strike. Whilst Kyganil is alive, they strike first in melee, and he has to take damage first but does have a 5+++, whilst Stern imposes a 6” Aura of -1 Ld to CHAOS units, as well as forcing an extra model to flee on fails, and packs what is effectively an undeniable Smite in the Shooting Phase, doing D6 on 10+ and adding 2 to the roll if any CHAOS units are in range (she doesn’t like Chaos in case you can’t tell). Melee wise they pack a bunch of attacks at decent strength and AP, as well as 2Dmg, with Stern being even punchier and ignoring Invulnerables to boot. No Rites or Acts of Faith, but they do have Zealot, making them reliable in the first round. Can be a pain to shift, and act as a good distraction in your opponents backline, just be wary of losing them and thus giving up 6 VP for Assassination, and picking your targets carefully is a must as whilst they can hit pretty hard they need to ensure they continue to roam around as a bully, rather than being bogged down by hordes or engaged with a unit that could tear them down.

Junith Eruita

The only Named Character tied to a specific Order, Junith is a Canoness riding around on a floating pulpit fitted that shoots FIRE. At over double the cost of a normal Canoness, she does benefit from T4 and an extra 2W, can offer full rerolls to a CORE or CHARACTER within 6” in your Command Phase, Flys 10”, and grants Light Cover to INFANTRY wholly within 6” of her, which actually makes her pretty limited in terms of spreading that buff out. She hits decently enough with her Mace at Str 6 -2 Dmg 2, and being a VEHICLE means she can fire her two Munistorum Heavy Flamers into combat so she’s always capable of dealing with lighter units. She’s decent enough, but you can generally build a more efficient beatstick Canoness and have the tools to deal with light infantry elsewhere, and whilst her buffing capabilities are good but often a bit restrictive. By no means bad if you’re running OUR MARTYRED LADY, but don’t worry about using her too much if she doesn’t fit your army.

Currently you’re only Troops choice, a simple unit with a good spread of wargear choices, running from 5-20 models and able to pack a 1 Special and 1 Heavy weapon per 10 models, or a single choice if less than 10. Meltas are self explanatory for good albeit short ranged tank busting, both types of Flamers are +1 Str due to the Ministorum liking their heretics extra crispy, and for your bolt related needs you have the reliable Heavy Bolter or the Artificer Storm Bolter (A Storm Bolter with +1 Dmg). The Superior can use a respectable amount of equipment, with access to all the Pistols and Combi-weapons for shooting, and melee being backed up by a Chainsword, or Power Sword/Maul. Can also be given an Incensor Cherub for a once per game “Here’s a Miracle Dice only you can use”, as well as a Simulacrum Imperialis which lets you do an Act of Faith in a Phase even if another Act has been called elsewhere (hint start with units that don’t have Simulacrums to get the most benefit from them). You’ll want to keep them predominately back, or acting as a second wave to hold Objectives whilst other units go off somewhere else. The 3+ Sv can keep them around for a bit, but T3 does mean concentrated fire will start to be felt and casualties can rack up quickly. Not the most offensive or defensive units in your roster, but essential by virtue of being your only Troop choice, and they’re cheap enough with flexible options you can run them bare bones or with some upgrades to add a bit more firepower to your army.

These marble statue wielding Sisters offer one of three Auras for CORE units in 6”, chosen at the start of Battle Round 1, and if for whatever reason you have more than one the same one can’t be used more than once. Faithful gives you reroll Advance and Charge rolls, Warrior gives you +1 Str, and Stoic gives you -1 to Wound against Str 3 attacks. With two out of the three being melee focused, or at least assisting it, these are good for following around your melee units, though can be handy to give some of the less choppy girls a bit of extra punch and movement when needed. Stoic is very niche however, so these aren’t all that useful for a more shooty army. By no means the auto take they once were, they do have some use in a melee focused list, but aren’t essential depending on how you’re running your units (reroll charges isn’t all that handy if you have some Zephyrm with Pennants flying around to offer the same buff whilst also doing the chopping, for example).

A PRIEST that knows War Hymn and an extra one, can intone one of them, grants +1 Ld to CORE and CHARACTERS within 6”, lets you modify any Miracle Dice used within 6” by +1/-1 (to a max/min of 6 and 1 respectively), and doesn’t take up a slot if in the same detachment as a CANONESS. Overall not a bad choice, especially given her Hymns and the Miracle Dice manipulation offers nice flexibility (it affects all SORORITAS units, not just CORE) and acts as a good safety net for lower Miracle Dice.

The mini CULT IMPERIALIS PRIEST, they only know War Hymn, and impose a -1 Ld to CHAOS units in 6”. Can be given a few different weapons, though if you have the 5pts give them the Zealot’s Vindicator to pack a hidden surprise punch. If you’re only looking at War Hymn, or to let another Priest use an alternative Hymn, they aren’t a terrible pick, and at 25-30pts they can be slotted in without breaking the bank.

The first of the CELESTIAN units, acting as a 5-10 Battle SIsters squad with +1 WS, A and Ld, as well as getting a further +1 to Hit if within 6” of a CANONESS or PALATINE. They can also run both a Special and Heavy weapon in any size squad, but no more than one from each type, as well as the standard Incensor Cherub and Simulacrum. Their main schtick is the Bodyguard rule however, making sure that any ORDER or SANCTIFIED CHARACTER within 3” is untargetable by Shooting. Yes even if they’re closer. Yes even if there is only 1 Celestian. Yes even if that Celestian is out of line of sight or range. So they’re really quite good as, well, bodyguards, in addition to packing the usual array of equipment you’d expect from Sisters. Despite their improved melee stats, that’s not where they want or indeed should be, rather use them as an anchor for your ranged units and to provide protection for your squishier Characters.

The second CELESTIAN unit, and these decidedly do want to be in melee. T3 and 1W might not sound like much, but with a 2+/4++ they can tank a decent amount of damage, and on the return they pump out 2A at WS3, with either their Mace for Str 5 -1 Dmg 2, or with the Halberd at Str 6 -3 D1. Both are good options, though of course depending on what you’re likely to encounter the most, with the Halberd being the best all-purpose weapon and the Mace being ever so slightly better against 2W models and those with 4W+. The Superior can take a special Pistol, and has the option for a Spear of the Faithful, effectively combining both profiles of weapons into a tasty Str 6 -3 Dmg 2, and for 5pts you always should. On the defense they can Heroically Intervene, and can Set to Defend when Charged or Heroically Intervening. And like the Celestians above they have the Bodyguard rule for Character protection (despite the fluff explicitly saying they don’t serve as Bodyguards, but whatever I guess), and with their superior defensive buffs are a more reliable choice for doing so, especially if escorting a melee Character around like a buffed up Canoness or Morvenn Vahl herself.

Here to keep your warriors around a bit longer, giving a 6+++ to INFANTRY within 3”, and heals an INFANTRY model for D3 Wounds at the end of your Movement Phases. The shrugs can stack up across the game, though with the short range and with most units only having 1W anyways, it’s not the most potent of defenses, and the healing will likewise be useless for anything other than CHARACTERS. Like the Dialogus doesn’t take up a slot in the same Detachment as a CANONESS, but in general her rules are bit more limited due to the nature of the Sisters units as a whole not meshing incredibly well with her healing abilities, when compared to other armies with similar units like Space Marines.

A PRIEST that knows an extra Hymn, intones one, has an Aura to enable CORE units within 6” to Shoot and still perform Actions, as well as picking a CORE unit within 6” in your Command Phase to become ObSec, counting as double if they already are. She has a decent melee profile, but her buffs are the main strength. A bit more expensive than the Dialogus if all you are looking for is a Hymn, but her other abilities make up for it, letting you play the mission in a much stronger way, be it doing Secondaries without losing firepower, or using units like Sacresants to steal objectives from under your opponent’s nose.

The third of the CELESTIAN units, eschewing functionality such as Bodyguarding through walls and line of sight for being HOLY MECH SUITS! Coming stock in units of three (no more, no less…), each one packs a decently tough profile of 4W T5, a 2+ and -1 Dmg, and a good spread of wargear on the offense. Ranged goes for the Holy Trinity but in Heavy form (so a Heavy Bolter, Heavy Flamer or a Multi-melta), and a secondary weapon of either 2 Storm Bolters for some light anti infantry punch, or a Paragon Grenade Launcher, effectively an Assault 2 Krak Grenade Launcher, for some slightly heavier anti Marine style duties. Melee wise they wield Maces for 3A at Str 9 -2 Dmg3, albeit at -1 to Hit, or Swords for 4A at Str 6 -3 Dmg2. The Swords are the better all purpose weapons, unless you’re expecting to fight lots of stuff with -1 Dmg, or explicitly 3W models where the 2Dmg becomes slightly wasted in efficiency. Being VEHICLES comes with it’s own advantages and disadvantages, occasionally precluding them from some rules or making them susceptible to others, whilst allowing them to blaze away in melee and avoid certain interactions that apply to INFANTRY. Despite their decent profile, they are quite pricey, rocking at 80pts a model, more with a Multi-Melta, and with only Shield of Faith as an Invulnerable they are very susceptible to heavy firepower. They can do some work, but they pay a premium for their comparatively high stats and good wargear, and might not be the best choice if you’re looking for pure efficiency.

Here to lead the below Repentia and make them both faster and angrier. You will generally only get mileage out of their Aura, giving all REPENTIA within 6” +1 to Wound, making their already potent melee even more scary. They can also select a REPENTIA within 3” to grant them Advance and Charge, as well as rolling 3D6 and discarding the lowest for their Charge Rolls, making them very fast and reliable. The downside is that this is a Command Phase ability, so useless if you’re in a Transport, and if you find yourself in a position where a unit of Repentia is alive on the battlefield and you have the opportunity to use this on them, the opponent has bigger issues to worry about (like why they haven’t managed to kill the Repentia). At 40pts she’s cheap and provides powerful buffs, but only for the Repentia, so without them she’s worthless, and given her need to be near those maniacs, she will be dangerously close to the enemy most of the time, so Relics and Warlord Traits are probably wasted on her. She can fight with her whips, but you want to avoid throwing her into anything tougher than a Guardsmen Squad, as 5A at Str 3 -2 D1 isn’t going to threaten much, even with the slightly better wounding she gets vs Ld7 and below units. Keep her with Repentia, make them hit harder, and don’t worry too much if she doesn’t make it.

One of the glassest cannons on the tabletop, packing 2A at Str 6 -3 Dmg 2 base. -1 to Hit on their Eviscerators is a bit of a blow, but Zealot makes up for it a fair bit, as well as being CORE, so they do get access to a large number of ways to buff. They die though. With the standard Sister profile, but without the Power Armour, they only really have their 6++ to rely on (this can be buffed further of course, but requires more Character support). They do have a 5+++ on top, which can help of course, but concentrated firepower can swiftly remove them, though you do get a Miracle Dice for their Martyrdom when they are slain. Being on foot is a death sentence for them, which while nice for them, less so for you, so stick them in a Transport at the very least. They will die, so make sure they do some damage before they go, or at the very least act as a good distraction. Provided they make it into combat, even a 5 lady squad without character support can take a decent chunk out of things, though be wary of Invuns, 3W models or Dmg Reduction.

Actually three separate units, these all follow similar principles, being exclusively melee CULT IMPERIALIS INFANTY that have CORE but don’t interact with many rules due to lack of other Keywords. They all have Zealot, and each IMPERIALIS PRIEST in the same Detachment lets one of them be taken without using up an Elite slot.

Crusaders

Guys with cool armour and shields, walking around with a 3++/4++, a 5+++ vs Mortals…and that’s about it. 2A at Str 4 -3 D1 is nothing to write home about, even with Zealot, and despite being called bodyguards in their fluff do nothing of the sort for the Priests they should be protecting. With a weird squad size of 2-6, they might be useful as extremely cheap action caddy in your backlines, but that’s about it.

Arco-flagellants

A (relatively) tough unit in the army, with T4 and 2W, and whilst no Sv to speak of, do pack a 5+++ to help make them a bit resistant to small arms fire. A decent Infantry blender, with 4A at Str 5 -1 D1, and 6A Str 6 on the Endurant if you upgrade one, they can carve through tougher units bit by bit as well through sheer weight of attacks. Only WS4, but Zealot helps a fair bit in that regard, and they can’t do Actions so use them as the expendable shock troops they are.

Death Cult Assassins

Similar to the Crusaders, but trade defense for offense, only packing a 5++, but with 4A WS2 Zealot, at Str 4 -3 D1 and Fight First, they can do a bit more damage. Of course getting them is the struggle, and realistically whilst choppy enough in combat, there are better units for that purpose.

Yet another “multiple Characters as one unit” with all the associated downsides as mentioned above. These two however don’t really offer much, with one being quite fragile and the other having some pretty mediocre rules. Astred (the actual Sister of Battle) carries a big banner which once per game can put every CORE unit within 6” into all 6 Sacred Rites until your next Command Phase, as well as making your first use of Open the Reliquaries free. She also gets +1 to her Armour Saves vs Dmg 1 attacks, and her Blade of Vigil hits at Str 5 -2 Dmg 2, ignoring Shrugs, but with WS 3 and 3A she shouldn’t be hunting anything. Agathae on the other hard (the Ecclesiarchal one) gives a SORORITAS CHARACTER within 9” a single reroll they can use on a Hit or Wound roll in melee only. It also gives you the option to reroll a Damage roll in melee, but guess how many random Damage melee weapons exist for Sisters Characters (if you said “None”, congratulations, I’d give you a prize but we don’t award trophies for participation). She also has a rule for Crusade, and has to die first, what with being from a long line of martyrs. You know, useful stuff. For 90pts, you get some extremely niche abilities and a free second Relic, but realistically you will never see or use them as they just don’t offer enough for their cost.


Fast Attack Back to Contents


A Battle Sister squad that can pack up to 4 Special Weapons, at the cost of no Heavy weapons, letting you pack tons of Flamers, Meltaguns or Storm Bolters in a small squad, and if looking at the Meltas, an Incensor Cherub is worth considering to make one of them more reliable in some capacity. In addition they get a pregame move of 6”, which also applies to any TRANSPORT they might be embarked upon, and even if there are other units inside. This lets them act as “booster” for small squads of units you might want to get up the field a little faster, such as Repentia or Sacresants, as well as offering them fire support from their special weapons. A good utility unit for the move alone, you’ll generally want them specialised for their task, and given the range of their weapons you’ll want to ensure they kill or at least cripple what they target as they will be unlikely to survive the counterattack. It’s also worth considering a combi-weapon of some kind on the Superior to make use of the Holy Trinity Stratagem, to make them even more effective at murdering their chosen target.

Veteran Sisters with Jump Packs and twin Bolt Pistols, that also get a built in +1 to their Shield of Faith invuns (to a a max of 4++) for a little bit more survivability. Two of them, regardless of squad size, can swap their Bolt Pistols for either Hand Flamers or Inferno Pistols, though these are probably unnecessary given you can get similar output elsewhere. Where do shine however is Secondaries and quick Objective capping, given their speed, small squad size and innate Deep Strike, and their shooting and melee output being fairly mediocre in comparison to other units. Instead use them for the utility they can cover that other units aren’t able to. 

A more melee focused Jump Pack unit, trading one of their Bolt Pistols for a Power Sword, as well as an extra Attack. The Superior can, and indeed should, take the Pennant to give all CORE units within 6” reroll charges. For 5pts, even if it was only for themselves, it’s a bargain. Repentia will generally hit harder, and Sacresants are tougher to shift, but Zephyrim fit a nice middle ground, as well as using their speed and Fly to threaten targets that might have been out of reach of other units. Can also be used in a similar way to Seraphim for Secondaries, Actions etc if no ideal targets are present, so they have nice utility if you don’t want to go full choppy.


Heavy Support Back to Contents


A Sisters squad that said “We really like Heavy Weapons”, packing up to four of them (Heavy Bolters, Heavy Flamers or Multi-meltas), as well as ignoring cover with their Heavy weapons, helping them shift units that are bunkered down. Combined with their Armourium Cherubs to let another Sister shoot again (the jury is still out on if you can use 1 or 2 Cherubs in the same turn, so check with your TO/Gaming Group), they can unleash a loooot of devastating firepower. Given their threat however, they will be targeted, so whilst it’s sometimes tricky to decide between taking the -1 to Hit after jumping out of a Transport, or standing still and hoping they live, generally shooting with a minus is better than not at all, so the Rhino/Immolator is an additional cost to consider. As with the Dominions, they probably won’t live past their initial salvo, so use what you can to ensure your target’s destruction.

Both of variants have effectively the same profile, being VEHICLES run in units of 1-4, packing T and W 5, 4A, and a 4+/5+++. Neither can do Actions, and can pack either Buzz-blades for Str 8 -4 D2, or Flails for Str 5 -2 D1 but double attacks, both of which can be mixed for utility, or paired for +1A. Both also pack Zealot for extra reliability in combat, meaning if they make it there they can make a mess of lots of stuff. Whilst not the toughest of things and can bleed Secondaries via Bring It Down, they’re quite cheap for their output, and need to be dealt with before they reach the sweet release that melee grants them.

Mortifiers

Actual Sisters in here, benefiting from the SORORITAS Keyword in a few instances, albeit no ORDER or CORE interactions. They have WS and BS 3, and can choose Heavy Bolters or Heavy Flamers as their weapons, either paired or one of each. Their unique rule lets them fight on death provided they haven’t already fought, then they get to do any “on death” effects (see the Final Redemption Stratagem). One can also be given a 3+ Sv for 5pts, which can be helpful to tank a modicum more firepower.

Penitent Engines

Can only have Heavy Flamers, and with a WS4 are slightly less efficient in melee (though Zealot helps a lot of course), their main benefit is being much faster and tricksier for combat, thanks to innate Advance and Charge and getting +2” to Pile In and Consolidation moves, letting them reach out at units slightly further away and engage with more targets.

A battle tank that launches missiles via a pipe organ. Oh right, what does it do. Well it’s a fairly standard Imperial tank profile (T7 W11 3+) and comes stock with a Heavy Bolter. The important bit is which missiles are loaded into your instrument of doom, either the anti infantry Conflagration Rockets for 3D6 Str 5 -1 D1 shots with Blast and ignoring cover, or the anti big things Exorcist Missiles that fires 3D3 Krak Missiles, which interestingly are not Blast, making tagging this version a bit more precarious, even if it is 30pts more expensive. There’s a lot of variables with the Exorcist though, with lots of dice rolls to get through especially on the Missile version due to D6 Damage. Quite pricey, and can kick out solid firepower, but that swinginess can and will come around to bite you when you don’t want it.

A more traditional battle tank than the Exorcist, with more Heavy Bolters as Sponsons and it’s turret being a 4D3 Shot Autocannon, or for a few points more you get a Battle Cannon that can either lob D6 Str 9 -3 Dmg3 Shots, or 3D3 Str 6 -1 D1 ignoring cover shots, giving you a bit of utility for a few points more. Like the Exorcist, it’s on the costly side with random shots, though a tad more reliable given the flat damage on all it’s profiles.


Dedicated Transports Back to Contents


The ubiquitous Rhino. Cheap and cheerful, it helps offer protection and speed for your Infantry, and can be useful to hang back on Objectives that aren’t under immediate threat so you can have units move off to other parts of the battlefield. With only a Storm Bolter, never be afraid to Advance it to get into position, as the firepower sacrifice is minimal.

The Sororita’s answer to the Razorback, being a Rhino that can only carry 6 Infantry but gets a Heavy Bolter and a turret with options of more Heavy Bolters, a twin Multi-melta or Immolation Flamers (twin Heavy Flamers with +6” Range and Str 6). You’re paying a premium for those weapons however, bringing it very close in cost to a fully fledged battle tank depending on loadout. As you’re paying a premium for the transport capacity and the weapons, make sure they get used, as defensively it’s no tougher than a standard tank. If the transport capacity is all you’re after, stick to the Rhino to save on points.

Try as they might, the Eccelesiarchy is still yet to convince the Tech-Priests of Mars that a giant Cherub fitted with Meltas is a viable idea.


Lords of War Back to Contents


Whilst Churches on Titans exist, they aren’t in the game


Fortifications Back to Contents


The Ecclesiarchy are big fans of “Bring Your Church To Work Day”, with the Battle Sanctum being effectively a Ruin that grants you Inspiring, imposes a -1 Ld to CHAOS units in 6”, and lets PRIESTS and SORORITAS units wholly within it do an Action to gain a Miracle Dice at the end of your turn. Given its size and benefits, it’s a good thing to bring, if you can fit it on the battlefield, which is the tricky part as it’s a big ol’ church.



Subscribe
Notify of
3 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Simon Rees
Simon Rees
2 years ago

I thought it was an added bonus helping me learn 40K as well as coding!