Theme Force Deleted
This mk3 Theme Force has no equivalent in mk4.
You can build a similar army in Unlimited Khador (if/when the models in this theme get ported to mk4 rules)
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The brotherhood of the Iron Fangs maintains traditions arising from ancient warriors who battled the beasts of the north armed only with spears and the indomitable courage all true Khadorans possess. Iron Fang assault forces are tasked with breaking enemy lines regardless of whether those lines are composed of towering warjacks or masses of infantry. Surrounding a hard center of warjacks, an Iron Fang legion marches in lockstep behind a wall of shields, supported by swift and brutal cavalry to protect their flanks.
Theme Rules
- For the core rules on how Theme Forces work, see this article.
Theme Restrictions
An army made using the Legions of Steel theme force can include only the following Khador models:
Full Model List
The models allowed in
Legions of Steel are:
[Show/Hide]
This list was last updated: 2019.07 (Edit)
Warcasters
Warjacks
- All non-character Khador warjacks
- Character warjacks can be taken, but only if they're in their bonded model's battlegroup.
Units
Solos
Mercenaries
- Up to one solo
- Up to one unit
Requisition Points
You can spend each Requisition Point on either:
- One Khador command attachment
- One small- or medium-based Khador solo with a point cost of 5 or less
Theme Bonuses
- The Great Bears and Iron Fang solos in this army gain Countercharge.
- Countercharge - When an enemy model advances and ends its movement within 6" of a model with Countercharge and in its LOS, the model with Countercharge can immediately charge it. The model with Countercharge can use Countercharge only once per round and not while engaged.
- You can reroll your starting roll for the game. Your starting game roll can be rerolled only once as a result of this special rule.
Thoughts on Legions of Steel
Legions of Steel in a Nutshell
Legions of Steel is Khador's official Iron Fang theme force. It optimizes a highly exclusive, Khadoran warrior-centric and melee-focused play style, boasting a table stuffed with elite, strictly regimented Iron Fangs. Legions of Steel are all about rushing up the battlefield to mix things up in close quarter combat, where they reliably deliver devastating amounts of damage, and take a punch to do it again. If you enjoy fielding an elite force of medieval-style pikemen and lancers that crushes the opponent with a single overwhelming charge up the field, you've come to the right page.
Iron Fangs are tied together by some very strong common through lines. They have a lot of movement abilities like Reposition, they ignore rough terrain on their charges with Relentless Charge, and they boost their Armor by maintaining base contact with their allies or targets, using Shield Wall, Wall of Steel and Unyielding. They are deadly in melee through generous applications of Combined Melee Attacks with reach weapons, Flanking, Rapid Strikes, Precision Strikes and Weapon Mastery. And finally, they often times refuse to go down, due to No Sleeping on the Job, Steady and similar abilities and knock others to the ground with Critical Knockdown on their lethal polearms.
In addition to being extremely thematic and satisfying to play, Legions of Steel is an excellent theme force for new players because it is a straightforward theme with a manageable amount and complexity of models to assemble and paint. Furthermore, Iron Fangs are extremely self-reliant, which means that they are compatible with a wide range of Khadoran warcasters. The downside to this is that they generally can't be played in other theme forces, so investing in them doesn't help you flesh out other forces.
Theme Weaknesses
- As an almost entirely melee force, Iron Fangs can be extremely vulnerable to opponents with superior mobility or the ability to frustrate your movement, and those with powerful attacks at range. If you can't reach your targets (quickly enough), you can find yourself doing a whole lot of nothing and then losing.
- Be especially aware of enemies that ignore Armor; most of your force has one health.
- A reliance on base contact for protection also means a vulnerability to blasts and to effects that move or displace your troops.
- Additionally, Legions of Steel can crumble if you fail to effectively connect charge; Iron Fangs typically aren't very survivable on the back swing after a charge turn, and simply tying them up with disposable jamming models can be very problematic for them.
- The lack of ranged weapons and abilities that let Iron Fangs move past enemies means that it can be difficult to dislodge troublesome support models, or push past a skirmishing force to get to the actual opposing threats.
- Iron Fangs don't carry weapons that do magical damage, which means that Incorporeal foes can be a big problem if you don't prepare for them.
- It's a straightforward theme, and therefore quite predictable. It can be difficult to catch an opponent unawares.
List Building Tips
There are many viable warcasters for this theme (see Casters of Note), but Lord Kozlov comes highly recommended as a starter, not only because he's a battlebox 'caster and thus comparatively easy to learn, but also because he's the superlative Iron Fang warcaster who works well with everything they offer. Looking beyond the battlegroup, Legions of Steel generally function best with a very singular game plan. You divide your force into a first- and a second wave, and set them up to have a wide front line. Typically, you'll run two units of Pikemen up front along with the relevant warjacks, closely followed by your Battlegroup, perhaps Great Bears and any solos. Any Uhlans will be on the flank or separate from the main formation, looking to charge in from the sides, or perhaps through your own troops if supported by Kovnik Markov's Tactician ability.
A full unit of Pikemen with their Officer & Standard and supported a Kovnik represent the core of a Legion of Steel; from there you can expand in various viable directions; Markov and Skirova are both safe early buys if you're having trouble deciding. The only inadvisable early picks are the Battle Mechaniks (it's hard to Repair front-line 'jacks) and the Black Dragons: they look awesome and they're still good, but they're only superior to the default Pikemen when you're specifically facing another melee-centric force, especially if it boasts a lot of 'jacks and/or beasts. The superior mobility and flexibility on the standard Pikemen are better for all-comers lists. And finally, if you're specifically interested in building a core of Uhlans it is recommended to look to the Warriors of the Old Faith theme force instead. Here, consider them supplemental to the infantry contingent.
Countercharge is the major theme bonus, and it's a big one. It's currently granted to the Great Bears, Kovniks, Skirova and Markov, and they all benefit from it substantially because they're all great melee combatants who hang out close to the front lines. In practice, it makes it very difficult for the opponent to either charge you first or to retaliate the turn after your charge. Markov's Tactician is especially valuable here. Be careful about overextending your expensive solos however; it is often more beneficial to keep them safe for another turn.
Warcaster Attachments
Both in-Faction options are viable depending on the 'caster and match-up. The Greylord Adjunct is great for providing magic support extra Focus and a portable cloud. The War Dog is a great guardian against melee assassins (although you already have a lot of Counterchargers), supports your 'caster's attacks by granting them Parry, and is just a powerful model for its cost generally.
Mercenaries
There are quite a few options, but only a select amount of especially interesting ones:
- Alexia1, Alexia2 and Alexia3: She generates more troops for you, and adds magic support.
- Croe's Cutthroats: They're a great flanking force that is hard to stop.
- Eiryss1 and Eiryss2: Eiryss is great at hunting (Incorporeal) solos that are hard to reach.
- Gobber Tinker: The Tinker is very good at holding far-flung objectives, especially at that cost.
- Kell Bailoch: Just parking a reliable sniper with a magical weapon in a bush is worth its weight in gold.
- Ogrun Bokur: Bokurs provide protection against ranged assassination and a powerful melee combatant to combat 'casters.
- Orin Midwinter: Orin denies enemy spellslingers and clears out low-ARM chaff with lightning.
Starting a 25 point Brawl list
In 2020.10 Phillip Melvin, one of the LOS authors, put together this list for the Brawlmachine format. It was then updated for the 2021.10 errata. He even wrote about it's playstyle and expanding it beyond 25 points, which you can read here.
- Lord Kozlov, Viscount of Scarsgrad: [+28 WJP]
- Iron Fang Kovnik: [4 pts]
- Kapitan Sofya Skirova: [Free] (4 pts)
- Iron Fang Pikemen (Max unit): [13 pts]
- Command Attachment: [3 pts]
For more Brawlmachine list ideas, see Category: Brawl List
Casters of Note
There are two types of 'casters that work well in Legions of Steel: those who support Iron Fangs, and those who prefer to do their own thing. Iron Fangs are highly self-contained and don't require support to function so there are a lot of viable options. Only Kozlov1 warrants extensive discussion because he's specifically optimized to lead an Iron Fang army.
Lord Kozlov, Viscount of Scarsgard is Khador's unofficial Iron Fang warcaster, and he's quite the beginner-friendly powerhouse with them. His battlegroup gets Gang Fighter, which lets him and his 'jacks wreak some absolute havoc in melee. His spell list supports both warriors and warjacks, and his Feat--Onrush--exemplifies the Iron Fang creed. He prefers to run about 3-4 cheap melee warjacks: evergreen picks like Juggernauts and Marauders won't steer you wrong, but if you want to go whole-hog with the theme you could even consider two pairs of archaic Berserkers and Ragers. Kozlov runs them extremely well thanks to Gang Fighter and Jackhammer, and several of the other thematic warcasters for Legions of Steel do as well (eg Vladimir and Zerkova).
- (Mostly) Supporting Warcasters
- Butcher1: It's classic Butcher, he's a perfect fit. Just screen him with his 'jacks.
- Irusk1: The original Khadoran warrior support 'caster does his thing with Iron Fangs.
- Irusk2: The sequel somehow does it even more, and brings ranged threats with his battlegroup.
- Vladimir1: It's the Dark Prince, he works with just about anything. And he's a great thematic fit.
- Vladimir2: Another great thematic fit, and the Dark Champion is competent with Iron Fangs.
- Zerkova1: The Koldun Kommander can deny incoming ranged attacks, and her spellslinging is quite the asset to a Legion.
- (Mostly) Independent Warcasters
- Butcher2: Iron Fangs love Feeling the Hate and work with Orsus' battle plan.
- Butcher3: Again, Butchers and Iron Fangs are great things that go great together.
- Old Witch1: Zevanna's quite the melee assassin who can creep behind a shield wall and devour souls.
- Sorscha1: Fog of War and her Icy Gaze play well with Iron Fangs, and she's a melee assassin to boot.
Other
Trivia
- Released 2017.03
- The 2017 Khador All-in-One Army box contained a Legion of Steel force led by Irusk1.
Other Khador themes/models
Rules Clarifications
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Rules Clarification: : Countercharge (Edit)
(Click Expand to read)
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Timing
- If the moving model has Assault, the Countercharge is resolved before the Assault attack. (Infernal Ruling).
- If the moving model has a rule that resolves "at the end of Normal Movement" (such as Slipstream), the Countercharge is resolved before the other rule. (Infernal Ruling)
- The moving model cannot use an "Any Time" after finishing their advance but before your Countercharge. They can use it only after the Countercharge is resolved.
- If the non-countercharging player has a similar "ends an advance" trigger (such as Admonition) then they can trigger and resolve that from your countercharge movement.
- Example: Model [A] charges, and triggers Countercharge on [B]. Model [B] countercharges, and triggers Admonition on [C].
Resolve Admonition on [C]. Then finish resolving Countercharge on [B]. Then finish model [A]'s activation.
Triggering Countercharge
- You can trigger Countercharge if you're engaging, but not engaged.
- You can trigger Countercharge during your own turn, if your opponent has an ability to move during your turn (such as Admonition).
- Some abilities let you "ignore intervening models when declaring a charge" (such as Flight). Unfortunately, you still need LOS to trigger Countercharge, and it's only after CC is triggered that you actually get to declare a charge. In other words, Flight and Countercharge don't work together for LOS purposes.
- What does trigger Countercharge
- Countercharge triggers off any advance, not just in-activation stuff.
- Standing still but changing facing is an advance.
- What doesn't trigger Countercharge
- Aiming, or forfeiting your movement, is not advancing.
- If a model doesn't move, doesn't change facing, doesn't aim ... does nothing but skips straight ahead to its Combat Action, this is not an advance. (Infernal Ruling)
- Being placed (such as Teleport) is not an advance.
- Involuntary movement (being slammed, thrown, or pushed) is not an advance.
- When a unit is moving, countercharge is triggered on a model-by-model basis. So you can countercharge after any model in the unit has finished its move within range, but you can only countercharge that model who just finished its movement. You can't "save it" until the entire unit finishes moving and then say "I'm going to Countercharge the first guy you moved."
Attacks, Boosting, & Other Triggers
- You only get one attack when making a countercharge, regardless of how many initials you normally have.
- The charge attack damage is only boosted if the Countercharger moved 3" or more, as with a regular charge.
- Countercharge occurs outside of activation so you can't spend fury/focus to boost a countercharge attack, nor buy additional attacks afterwards, not trigger stuff that only happens during your Combat Action (like Berserk).
- Even if you trigger Countercharge during your own activation, for the duration of you resolving the CC it "no longer counts" as being in your activation. (Infernal Ruling)
After the Countercharge
- The countercharging model cannot use any abilities that trigger on "during activation" or "during combat action" (such as Sprint), as Counter Charge is not an activation. (Locked thread)
Other interactions
- Countercharge during your own activation (Countercharge vs Admonition etc) ( Edit )
- You can trigger Countercharge during your own activation, but only if an enemy model moves during your activation. For instance, you move towards a model who has Admonition and they trigger that to try to move away. (You do a normal move, they trigger admonition and move, you trigger countercharge from their admonition-move.)
- However countercharge always counts as being out-of-activation, no matter when you trigger it. (Infernal Ruling)
- As a result, you can't trigger only-during-activation effects (such as Critical Shred & Sustained Attack).
- On the other hand, you can potentially get two charge attacks (one for your normal charge, one for the counter charge). (Infernal Ruling)
This ruling still applies even after the 2018.07 update (Infernal Re-ruling)
- Countercharge plus Admonition
- If a model has both CC and Admonition, it can trigger both at the same time. A model moves nearby, it admonitions away, then countercharges back in.
- Countercharge Inception
- If a model [A] has Countercharge, and it charges an enemy model [B] that has Countercharge and Admonition, then ...
- Model [A] charges and triggers CC and Admo on [B]
- Model [B] Admo moves but before it can resolve its own CC, it triggers CC on [A]
- You now have two models that have triggered CC simultaneously. So the Active player gets to resolve their one first.
- Assault vs Countercharge ( Edit )
- Countercharge & Cavalry ( Edit )
- A model with Countercharge and Cavalry can make Impact Attacks during the countercharge. (Refer "Charges Outside of Activation" in the rulebook).
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Rules Clarification: Theme Forces (Edit)
Themes that change a model's Faction [Show/Hide]
- Many themes swap which Faction a model counts as. They're slightly inconsistent with how exactly this is worded. Despite this inconsistency - whenever a model is considered a different faction to normal, it will not be its original faction. (Infernal Ruling)
- For instance Lukas stops being a Crucible Guard model when taken in an Infernal army, and as a consequence he cannot take Toros or Vanguards in Infernals. (Infernal Ruling)
Rerolling the starting roll [Show/Hide]
- You cannot use the theme benefit to reroll if it is a draw. Instead both players reroll until there is a loser, and then the loser can use their reroll benefit (if they have it). (Infernal Ruling)
- If both players have a reroll, first the original loser uses their reroll.
- If the original loser still loses, fine.
- If the original loser now wins, the other player can use their reroll.
- If it is now a draw, both players reroll until there is a loser. Then the player that hasn't used their theme benefit reroll can still use it, if they want.
Warjacks/Warbeasts with bonds [Show/Hide]
- A warjack/warbeast with a bond can always be included in a theme force, whether or not they're in the list of allowed models, but only if they're controlled by that bonded model.
- This applies even if that bonded model isn't a full warcaster/warlock (changed as of 2018.06).
Including Mercenaries [Show/Hide]
Number of Mercenaries
- If your "up to one Merc" ...
- ... can take warbeasts/warjacks, then you can add warbeast(s)/warjack(s) (without exceeding your "up to one" allowance)
- ... comes with a Companion model, then you'll get that Companion (without exceeding your "up to one" allowance)
- There is a bug in Warroom that allows you to not only take one Merc solo/unit, but the entire FA of that Merc solo/unit. It's a bug.
Mercenaries and Ranking Officers
- Adding a Ranking Officer to a Merc unit doesn't increase the number of Merc units you can take.
Other
- See also the section on Partisans
Including Partisan Mercenaries [Show/Hide]
Partisans & Theme Forces (Edit)
- Partisans are Mercenary/Minion models, so there are two ways you can add them to a theme force:
- Freely: If the Partisan is on the list of allowed models, then you can take as many as you want plus another Mercenary unit/solo. (Infernal Ruling)
- They can be explicitly allowed (for example Jaws of the Wolf allows "Kayazy models/units" so Partisan Kayayz can be used freely).
- They can be implicitly allowed (for example Scourge of the Broken Coast allows "living Cryx models/units" and Partisan Cephalyx fit that criteria, so they can be used freely). (Infernal Ruling)
- Limited: If the Partisan isn't on the list of allowed models, it does use up your "Up to one Mercenary/Minion" slot, so you can only have the one.
- Whether you used option 1 or 2 above, once they're in your theme force they count as a Faction model and so:
- They can be taken as a Requistion Option (if they fit the Requistion description).
- For example Lanyssa can be taken as a free solo in the Legion of Dawn theme. (Infernal Ruling)
- They will get any theme benefit that they fit the description for.
- For example Storm Division gives all Cygnar models Immunity Electricity, so Partisan Mercs in that theme get immunity too.
- For example Nemo4's Mechaniks get Reposition [3] in Heavy Metal. (Infernal Ruling)
Requisition Points [Show/Hide]
- You can choose the same Requisition option as many times as you like, as long as it doesn't put you over a FA limit.
- You can't mix and match models from different options. Say one option allows 3 Machine Wraiths and another allows 3 Necrotechs. You can't use your Requisition Point to get 2 Wraiths and 1 Necrotech.
- If you have an option that allows one other solo, you can't use it to get something already on the list. For instance, Ghost Fleet allows 3 Misery Cages (which are FA 4) for one Requistion Point, and it allows 1 other solo. That "other solo" can't be a 4th Cage.
- If your theme allows "3 weapon attachments" as a Requistion Option, you can spread them into different units. (Locked Thread)
- Models with the Man-Sized rule count as small-based models for the purposes of being a Requistion Option. (Locked Thread)
Free models and Specialists (ADR) [Show/Hide]
- If your theme only allows one merc solo, you can't have one in your main list and a different one in your specialists.
Unit Attachments [Show/Hide]
- If a unit is allowed in a theme, any-and-all of its attachments are allowed too. Exception: Ranking Officers are not allowed unless explicitily mentioned.
- If the theme force gives a benefit to a specific unit, any-and-all attachments to that unit will benefit too. Even if it is a "generic" attachment like the Void Leech. (Infernal Ruling)
For example, a Trollkin Sorcerer will gain Serenity if its attached to a Dhunian Knot unit in a Power of Dhunia theme force.
- If your theme allows "3 weapon attachments" as a Requistion Option, you can spread them into different units. (Locked Thread)
- A non-character unit with a character attachment (i.e. Captain Karli) still counts as a non-character unit. (Infernal Ruling)
When to apply theme benefits [Show/Hide]
- With reference to special abilities that themes give to models, Ranking Officers, adding new models, and/or taking control of models:
- Theme force benefits are applied when you construct your list or put a new model into play. A model already in play will not lose or gain any theme benefits mid-game based on any changes of faction status or otherwise. (Infernal Ruling)
- However, if the theme gives a benefit to models "at the beginning of the game" (such as Devourer's Host letting models begin the game with 1 corpse token) then this benefit does not apply to new models that are put into play mid-game. (Locked Thread)
- Example 1: Sons of the Tempest says "ATGM units in this army gain Pistoleer". If your opponent takes control of one of them, it keeps Pistoleer while under their control even though it's currently not "in the army".
- Example 2: Storm Division gives Immunity:Electricity to "Cygnar models in the army." If you include a Mercenary unit with a Ranking Officer, they will get the theme benefit and also keep it even after the Ranking Officer dies.
- Example 3: Stange Bedfellows gives solos Swift Vengeance. If Nemo4 creates a new solo mid-game, that solo will have Swift Vengeance.
See also these Theme-Specific Rulings [Show/Hide]
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Rules Clarification : Black Industries (Edit)
- The entry which allows "Cephalyx models/units" only applies to Partisan Cephalyx. That's because the theme's rules start off with "this army can only include the following Cryx models". Partisan Cephalyx are the only ones that fill that condition.
- The Cephalyx Agitator also works for Cryx and can go in Black Industries but, because it is not a Partisan, it will use up your Mercenary solo slot.
- (Infernal Ruling)
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Rules Clarification : The Creator's Might (Edit)
- Elias Gade is allowed in Creator's Might. (Infernal Ruling)
- You can spend the "Two Vassal solos" requistion option on one Vassal Mechanik and one Vassal of Menoth. Warroom has a bug and tells you that you can't. (Infernal Ruling)
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Rules Clarification : Flame in the Darkness (Edit)
- You can take any number of Mercenary jacks. You can also select two additional jacks from Khador and Cygnar in any combination you like. Character warjacks with a bond don't count against this limit of 2. (Infernal Ruling)
- There is a bug in Warroom that allows you to take two Cygnar and two Khador jacks.
- Morrowan Battle Priest:
- If your warcaster is a Cygnar model that makes every unit you take a Cygnar unit, and Battle Priests can be attached to any unit.
Warroom has a known bug where it doesn't allow this interaction.
- If your warcaster is a Mercenary or Khador model, though, the only units the Battle Priest can attach to are the Morrow ones.
- If you attach the Battle Priest to The Devil's Shadows Mutineers then it can be returned via Blood Bound. (Infernal Ruling)
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Rules Clarification : The Bones of Orboros (Edit)
- Una1 cannot be taken in this theme (yet) due to the conflict between the theme's "Only Construct warbeasts allowed" and Una1's "Must take warbeasts with flight". There are no construct warbeasts with flight (yet). But if/when there is, then Una1 can be taken in this theme. (Infernal Ruling)
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Rules Clarification : The Devourer's Host (Edit)
- Bradigus1 is not legal in this theme. The theme only allows living warbeasts, his rules only allow construct warbeasts, and you can't just 'skip' his battlegroup - you have to spend your warbeast points.
- If you create a new model mid-game (ie with the Well of Orboros and that model can have corpse tokens, that model does not enter play with a corpse. Because it's not the beginning of the game. (Locked thread)
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Rules Clarification : The Wild Hunt (Edit)
- The animus benefit doesn't apply to enemy warbeasts. (Infernal Ruling)
- The animus benefit doesn't stack with the Druid Wilder's Herding ability. (Infernal Ruling)
- When it comes to other things that alter COST (such as Lamentation), follow basic maths: Double/halve first, then add/subtract.
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Rules Clarification : The Exalted (Edit)
- If a Construct model loses the Construct advantage mid-game, it keeps the theme benefit anyway. (Infernal Ruling)
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Rules Clarification : Band of Heroes (Edit)
- Boomhowler2 uses up your Minion slot. His Fell Calls ability is not enough to make him a "Fell Caller model/unit". (Infernal Ruling)
- Boomhowler3 does not use up your minion slot on account of having the Champion keyword.
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Rules Clarification : Magnum Opus (Edit)
- If Mosby is attached to a Mercenary weapon crew unit, they would gain 3" reposition and would not lose it if Mosby is no longer in the unit. (Infernal Ruling)
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