As we saw during the Black Library day of Warhammer Fest Online, Black Library superstars Gaunt’s Ghosts are returning to Warhammer 40,000 in miniature form. Alas, what good is having a squad full of beautiful models if you can’t use them to blast a few heretics on the tabletop? Luckily, the Ghosts come with a full datasheet including their points cost, so you can deploy them to all of your open, narrative, and matched play games just as soon as you’ve glued them together.*
As expert scouts and light infantrymen, the Tanith First and Only are adept at sneaking behind enemy lines and avoiding detection even on an active battlefield (and they’ve had plenty of chances to prove it). Accordingly, Gaunt’s Ghosts can pop up where your opponent least expects them and meld into the shadows for all but the closest targets.
In addition to this, each member of the Ghosts is a Character in their own right and many have skills that benefit the entire squad. As such, we’ll be looking at them one by one so you can get a good feel for what each of these specialists can do.
Gaunt is the squad’s premier close combat fighter in addition to being its leader, whirring through all kinds of heretic scum with his favourite chainsword.
As you might expect from his indomitable leadership, he keeps the squad in line so long as he’s alive and can serve as an inspirational figurehead when selected as your Warlord.
Colonel Corbec carries his hot-shot lascarbine into battle and serves as the squad’s voice of command, making it all the easier to activate Stratagems for the Ghosts (with some even becoming free).
Major Rawne is especially fond of getting his traditional Tanith straight silver knife** stuck into close combat and is an expert at keeping the enemy off-balance so the Ghosts can get their licks in without obstruction.
As the regiment’s master sniper, Hlaine Larkin is a crack shot with his long-las. The scope on his rifle also allows him to discover enemy positions, letting the rest of the squad know precisely where to shoot to avoid hitting defensive cover.
While most of the Tanith First and Only are known for their expert marksmanship, Trooper Bragg’s accuracy leaves a lot to be desired. Strong enough to carry and fire (albeit not very well) weapons usually reserved for Vehicles, his enthusiasm earned him the nickname ‘Try Again’ for his tendency to keep shooting until whatever he’s ostensibly aiming at drops.
Lastly, Sergeant Scout Oan Mkoll is the squad’s stealth specialist and is a particularly skilled fighter both at range and up close. His ability to guide his fellow Ghosts through enemy territory borders on the supernatural and keeps them out of all kinds of harm.
Gaunt’s Ghosts can be fielded as an HQ choice in any Astra Militarum army, as they often fought alongside other Imperial forces during the Sabbat Worlds Crusade. For a truly thematic choice, be sure to not appreciate the contribution the Tanith make to your success.
But what if you want to make the rest of your army represent other units from the Tanith First and Only? We asked the Warhammer Studio’s Rules Colonel, Robin Cruddace, for his thoughts.
Robin: There’s absolutely no reason you can’t use this datasheet as part of an ‘all-Tanith’ army if you want, simply by replacing the <Regiment> keyword on all your units with Tanith. If you do so, you can also take advantage of the Regimental Doctrines in Psychic Awakening: The Greater Good to reflect the First and Only’s unique battle styles.
The Tanith are a light infantry regiment renowned for their stealthiness and their marksmanship. As such, we recommend using the Wilderness Survivors and Disciplined Shooters regimental doctrines to best reflect their background on the tabletop.
The eagle-eyed among you will notice that the Gaunt's Ghosts datasheet has the Officio Prefectus keyword – as such, due to the Advisors and Auxiliaries rule, they won’t ever benefit from such Regimental Doctrines themselves. But worry not! The Gaunt’s Ghosts datasheet itself already accounts for the Tanith’s stealthy nature and the models within it (with perhaps the exception of ‘Try Again’ Bragg), are all already expert shots.
Pre-order Gaunt’s Ghosts when they arrive on Saturday, and make sure you check out the other Sabbat Worlds Crusades goodies coming soon to complete your collection.
* We recommend giving them a lick of paint, though – they stand out a bit without any camouflage on their cloaks.
** Which all of the Ghosts carry too, in fact.