How to Start an Imperial Knight Army in Warhammer 40K - a Beginners Guide

[@cptkrank6802]

One thing Auspex didn't really mention is how 'painter friendly' Knights are. I mean, if you WANT to go whole hog and paint it to the limit, you can! But, if you're not that confident in your painting skills, Knights are still surprisingly easy to paint, because they are big models that look good just using basic techniques. If you leave the armor plates off to paint separately, you can just basecoat the 'skeleton' of the knight, give it a wash and a drybrush, then attach the separately painted armor panels afterwards. I speedpainted most of my knights army over a Christmas vacation and I was banging out an Arminger every day (4-5 hours of painting total). The big knights took longer, 2-3 days, but that's still nothing for such a large model. Once you get the hang of it they're actually a lot of fun to paint compared to hordes of infantry dudes where an evening might get you 50pts painted.

[@Bluecho4]

Another thing that makes them easy to paint is their large, relatively flat armor panels. Great for free-handing, because you aren't needing to do it on such a small scale as, say, Space Marine shoulder pads. It's a good idea to practice free-handing the intended design on separate sheets of paper, before committing to the armor itself. It's not unlike painting banners in this regard.

[@MrFairbanksak1]

Oh yeah, trying to get 5 units of Fire Warriors painted was soul crushing. I spent an entire day just painting the black bits. This weekend I should be able to actually finish them. But basing them, and magnetizing the bases for storage will take another day I imagine.

[@maxxieboy271]

Less than 15 minutes ago i was thinking of making an imperial army, this is a sign!

[@marvdroet4437]

Come and join the dark side! Chaos Knights have much fun Toys waiting for you.

[@thetubbyunicorn4085]

Sure is.

[@TheEventide]

Join the dark side, we have kitbash bits

[@MiniTechniks]

Everytime I've thought about making an ambiguous alignment knight army, Auspex has a video come out the next day about it 😅😅🤣🤣 (Edited for clarity, couldn't find the word, then Auspex said it)

[@khalebrobertson9907]

Do it, it's cost effective too! As well as insanely awesome, and potentially runnable as both chaos and imperial Knights:)

[@andrewpollard9684]

As a chad Knight enjoyer, here's how to start a Knights army: DON'T IT'S WAY TOO EXPENSIVE YOUR WALLET WILL HATE YOU

[@akumaking1]

What about 3D printing?

[@cptkrank6802]

Actually, not really. You get a LOT of points for your dollar, so it's actually better than the horde-style armies. And you can magnetize them so you only ever need 3-4 knights in the 2000 point range. Try costing out a Sisters of Battle or Admech army some time! Armingers are actually really good on a dollar/point ratio, so an Arminger heavy army is one of the cheapest you can buy. GW has released really good boxes for Knights in the past (Renegade, Apocalypse Box), if you can track one of those down you'd save a lot of money. And there's always the chance they put out a Knights Christmas Battleforce in any given year, so keep your eyes peeled.

[@strategicambiguity8390]

Can confirm, you need 3 armiger boxes that are 85 bucks a pop, if you get a dominus pattern knight that's a -190 and each canis Rex box gonna run you 170. For my 2000 points I spent close to 600.

[@liveanotheranime3526]

@@strategicambiguity8390 If you buy at GW prices and not a LGS discounted one. Missed $60+ in savings.

[@CheeseWheelEnthusiast]

@@liveanotheranime3526 Not everyone lives near an LGS sadly. Or if they do, their LGS doesn't sell Warhammer since it may not be popular in their area. (like my LGS for example).

[@nikot.9920]

Quick tip from a newer knights player depending on your faction it's definitely wise to paint a knight you wouldnt want to field at the moment as a neutral scheme so they can act as a freeblade or be part of your main household if you so choose. If you do it that way, then definitely look at basic heraldry for the Imperialis and Mechanicus variants so you have a base to work from or just keep your force in the same compliments of colors so they are cohesive in some way when you play them

[@Acetylcholin]

Well, i just painted them in Macragge Blue, because i like the color. But i play them ruleswise differently and i see no problem there

[@Whoknows21356]

@@Acetylcholin he may mean for tournaments

[@nikot.9920]

@@Acetylcholin Nothing wrong with that. I was just speaking in terms of newer players if they havent committed to one of the main houses in the codex so that why they have a base to start from.

[@nikot.9920]

@@Whoknows21356 This works for tournaments as well, in general though I think that it depends on what the player may want, I was just giving an example if they werent sure about one of the main houses in 40k but wants to try the rules out for either Mechanicus or Imperialis knights they can do that without people getting confused on what they're playing

[@ashg9023]

​@@Whoknows21356 you can play custom factions with established rules. my grey and red space marines use the same rules as ultramarines, calgar and all.

[@Mr_Waffle.]

If anyone else looking into Knights gets confused by the Knight Questoris, the box art shown at 10:00 (Knight Preceptor Canis Rex) was repackaged as "Imperial Knights Knight Questoris" earlier this year (with a blue Knight on the cover), but apparently the box contents are identical. I was looking Knights up and became confused by both boxes being visible in online stores with no obvious difference... there is none, they're the same box but with different art and branding. Confusing for a newbie, but at least the whole Knights range has standardised boxes going forward.

[@americankid7782]

Upside is that you no longer need to pick what one you want to build in advance. Downside is that you now have a couple extra pounds of loose plastic if you get more than one.

[@weeklygamer6247]

This man is a machine pumping out these video's.thanks man these videos really help.

[@derionone]

Omnissiah approves

[@furious5009]

When I wanted to try getting into the hobby I loved Warmahorde sculpts but there just weren't available army boxes or patrol kits, 40k didn't really tickle my fancy so I went my own way. Saw Adeptus Titanicus and Imperial Knights and they have really captured my interest and kinda fit that itch I had for giant robots from warmachine.

[@CAMSLAYER13]

Step 1: buy a knight Step 2: cry because it has so much trim Step 3: black out and be possed by the spirit of James Workshop himself Step 4:???????? Step 5: enjoy your newly painted knight

[@rantymcrant-pants9536]

1. Grab a knight, build and paint it. 2. Play. Quickly learn the adage 'eggs in one basket' 3. Take it as a mascot in another army 4. Leave it on the shelf in favour of tanks with more guns than it.

[@hammanhouse]

I was literally looking up last night how to start an imperial nights Army. thank you so much for making this video! maybe it's my go-ahead to do so

[@adamdemaray3330]

Love that Auspex's idea of a decent 2k list is exactly just my 2k list.

[@rodneygaul2227]

Step 1) How much plastic crack can you afford ? Step 2) watch older video's about magnetizing Step 3) buy magnets 1st or you will forget to use in your excitement to build Step 4) watch a few videos about making silicon forms Step 5) decide if 3D printing or silicon molds work best for you . Then make 2 to 5 copies of all the armor plates before painting originals of each knight ( or buy parts on eBay ) Step 6) magnetize weapons at the very least while building the frame , waist for storage , armor plates to swap out Step 7) watch a few videos on painting Step 8 ) look at decals for historical miniatures for heraldry Step 9) If you Magnetized weapons / armor and made extra armor plates you should be able to build 1 home brew , 1 free blade , 2 Mechanicus and 2 Imperialis for each frame ( 5 copies plus original armor ) Step 10 ) don't for get to matte varnish when done

[@Fortunes.Fool.]

I needed this video, thank you. I have 4 knights and 2 armigers on sprues to build over the semester break so this should be great.

[@themodelrailwayman5470]

Ironically enough, the Christmas Battleforce for Knights is exactly the "Id Start With" suggestion

[@nizarius]

My very first 40k army since codex came out this year! Why collect? - Pacific Rim. - Knightly Code of Chivalry, Honour, Courage and Respect. - One of the cheapest armies to collect. - Easy to store and keep them and weapons can be magnetized to save money. - Convenient for fluffy and new casual players like me to pick up and play... lots of fun especially with Tempest of War. - Can be used in both Warhammer 40k and Horus Heresy 2.0 (where you don't die as easily and don't have to buy another army). Thank you Auspex Tactics and have fun fellow Barons! 😊

[@joebaker5581]

Got two of the Christmas boxes pre-ordered and paid for. I can't wait

[@americankid7782]

How’s the modeling been going?

[@joebaker5581]

@@americankid7782 Honestly, pretty meh. I friggin love giant robots and table top minis. I've been building Gundam models for almost 20 years. Having said all that I HATE painting robots. I've got both boxes assembled, primed, and base coated. I've got one of the big guys and 2 of the little guys mostly done, but I've hit a wall. It doesn't help that the rest of my gaming group all got new the AoS boxes, so no one wants to play 40k only AoS. Not that I'm complaining too hard about that, AoS is still a load of fun.

[@michaelcollins4534]

Step 1: get knights Step 2: assemble knights Step 3: add spiky bits Step 4: BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

[@Deredeo13]

Auspex almost got me back to joining social media for these giveaways! Love ya bro!

[@stripeybag6977]

God I wish Knights had more playable characters with all the Freeblades and Renegades running around.

[@XiphosXL]

I know they have a few mentions in the last few codexes but no rules, surely it'd be quite easy to dedicate a few pages of rules for a few notable freeblades

[@nikot.9920]

👏👏👏 Love this guide, definitely forwarding this to other people who are think about getting into knights. Thanks for helping me start my House Raven

[@rainyphoenix0595]

just started one this is super on point

[@patykaarplegos6282]

I just finished painting my Guard army. Now I'm considering knights. But the new Guard codex drops soon-ish. The dilemma.

[@CMTechnica]

No reason not to get both. You can bring a knight as a reinforcement via freeblade

[@harrybutimnot]

I'm just now thinking about getting into 40k, and my friend who's teaching me the game recommended this video since I'm gonna do knights. Absolutely tragic that I missed the giveaway lol, but great video. All your content is really informative

[@captainflapjax7240]

I maintain that adding a Freeblade Castellan to a Bloody Rose list is amazing. That is all

[@Balls26672]

Perfect, I waited for this video since a month a blessing from the lord

[@andrewwoodward7579]

I am a knight player. Been playing since December. Used to play orks back in fifth. I have enjoyed all you vids but I do like your knight vids. And I was surprised to see your list at the end is very similar to the list I have worked out to play

[@SubduedRadical]

Never played Warhammer but followed its lore for a while now. Not sure I ever WILL get to play it, but honestly, I kind of like the idea of the Imperial Knights as a faction (at least some of the lore seems to allow for things like rediscovered worlds on the fringes of Imperial space rejoined to the empire where the existing leadership from the colony world days are basically looking out for their people with these heirloom armored suits passed down through generations from the Golden Age) in a bit less of a depressing take on the typical Imperial army, lol It also seems that they're relatively price-friendly to get into, if I ever decide to go for a 40k army, which - let's all face reality - is highly appealing, especially if one also likes the underlying lore. And from all I've read, they're both good looking models and new hobbyist/painter friendly. Their biggest con seems to be "can be a bit same-y", but for a super novice to the game who lives in a rural area in the US and so likely will rarely, if ever, actually play against someone, I imagine that isn't going to be an issue. Moreover, for someone new to the game, it probably won't be an issue either, since the rules engaging enough that a "simple" army with fairly limited tactical options is probably best since it will overwhelm people the least. I dunno, I haven't quite decided yet, but if nothing else, having some miniatures to paint and display would me kind of neat, and these look good and would double as actual pieces for a game to play. :) Still doing some research overall, but love the information. Great video, thanks!

[@americankid7782]

You right here mentioned one of the reasons I love Imperial Knights. The imperium doesn’t really care how a Knight house manages there planet(s) as long as they stay loyal. It gives the player all the freedom they want for how there Knight House acts and what they do. My personal house is at constant war with a Chaos House right next to them. They used to be one big house but HERESY! So now the only thing they hate more than each other is Xenos.

[@darkknight8702]

Gonna be honest, biggest downside I have playing knights is whiners. 4 people I play at my LGS 3 of which still agree to play me do little but go "I can't kill that thing!" or "You melee anything to death in 1 go!" it apparently never occurring to them to play objectives or take advantage of the fact it is nigh impossible for me to hide my models from shooting or psychic or that I have little to no invuls in close combat, and I'll be honest I have no sympathy for people only bringing in "anti infantry" lists as all that tells me is that they wanted to bully Guard and Ork players whereas a "anti tank" list against me would be laughed at by them, bring something to fight anyone and everything suddenly feels less imbalanced ether by accident or purpose.

[@trith72]

Yep, smites wreck knights. I am building a Imperial Knights army right now and played a game with my son bringing a Castellan as a heavy detachment with Ultramarines. My son was playing Tyranids and he smote me down to about 10 wounds and then shot it off the table right after that. Granted I had no stratagems bc of the detachment but they just have no way to deal with psychic phase shenanigans. I still won on points but the Castellan was gone at the end of turn one.

[@darkknight8702]

@@trith72 Not sure what game type you were playing, but Knights Imperial, Mechanicum or Choas in a Super-heavy Auxiliary Detachment still gets detachment abilities like stratagems, they specifically have a rule in their detachment rules that state they do as an exception to the normal Auxiliary detachments. Not that Imperial Knights have anything to deal with psychic wyrdness in terms of stratagems, but it is useful to remember in future games.

[@32Loveless50]

Starting my Knights army soon. Got a Knight Styrix on the way from forge world as the start :D

[@orthy853]

Knights might be peak Timmy, but where else and I gonna get big stompy walkers! Knight guys are chads and probably the happiest guys behind Orc lads in the community. Hopefully in 10th I’ll actually be able to use the DAMN HARPOON!

[@gameslap96]

*“So hopefully fingers crossed it won’t be updated too soon” 10th edition and the removal of codexes*

[@benn1181]

I want a House Hawkshroud melee heavy list. I don't care if it's not the best.

[@Mr_Waffle.]

I was looking up prices for the Knight Dominus, it's about $20-$30 more expensive than the old stand-alone Knight Castellan where I live. I guess if you're only going to buy one of those things, it's better to buy the modern box since it has more equipment in it?

[@bryantprak7129]

I belive the newer box allow you to build both castellon/valiant patter, so yes just buy the newer box and magnetize.

[@TheWolfDude91]

Sadly, I most of the time can't add to my army kit by kit slowly, because in my country, these are in a very limited supply, so if I don't grab them all at once, someone else will.

[@matjov]

First step: shelf all your FW Knights (apart from Moiraxes) and your Dominus classes.

[@joseffrolik8799]

Moirax with one of the teaching from Preceptor, house Vulker (i think it is the correct house) stratagem to 6s add another hit and Lightning locks can get 4 additional hits on *ONE* 6-to-hit

[@Tremadog102]

I bought a Castigator for my Knight collection a while back before I really seriously considered a whole Knight army. I got challenged to a game by my friend (who it turned out was secretly building a Chaos Knight army). I was so crestfallen when I couldn't make my centrepiece Knight my Warlord. I did pay a command point to make it a character though, mainly because Blessed by the Sacristans sounded like so much fun with a Castigator Bolt Cannon. The gun really wasn't optimised for engaging other Knights but the steady flow of mortal wounds did wear down some Knights. I eventually lost the game due to lack of numbers and board control. The moral of the story is that the codex is not Imperial Knights currently but Imperial Squires (Not that I am opposed to owning more Armigers, they are still fun to paint and I like the models). It was a great battle and in my opinion one of the more fun games I have played.

[@matjov]

@@Tremadog102 the fact that GW haven't even bothered to give the biggest Knights Bondsman abilities is lazy and stupid. The highest ranking Nobles of the Houses are supposed to pilot the biggest Knights. So they can't actually order their servants around? Weird.

[@Tremadog102]

@@matjov Yes, the updates to the Forge World Knight datasheets were downright pathetic. They didn't have to make ridiculous pay-to-win rules for the FW Knights but introducing at least a tiny bit of synergy with the rest of the Codex wouldn't have hurt?

[@nikot.9920]

@@matjov agreed

[@UnholyTerra]

Gf and I were just talking about how we should build a knight army

[@falloutboy9993]

I’m 3D printing my entire army of knights. Don’t limit yourself to alternative heads and armor. I am getting a full army for less than the cost of the codex. And 2 knights is the same cost as the printer.

[@Obscursus]

That sounds really cool, how'd they end up turning out?

[@Quagfield]

Buy big robot 2 electric bogaloo

[@Colonel-Sigma]

Real solution: one page rules + gunpla Muuuuuuuuuuch cheaper, don't need paint, poseable after the fact, you just can't lose

[@AsbestosMuffins]

Step 1) Have a lot of money Step 2) Have a lot of paint Step 3) Buy some very big storage cases Step 4) Follow this guide

[@benparsons6874]

Auspex, are you a mind reader/have links to intelligence agencies because EVERY TIME I look into a new army you post a vid about them 🤣 love your stuff 👍

[@vailenlives]

2 questorus Crusaders with other load outs off ebay to start then 2 warglives 4 helverin to start get them either of ebay or elementgames/glasshammer

[@-Benedict]

Is the Dominus kit just the same as the Questoris kit but with an extra sprue?

[@oliverbanton4738]

No the dominus is completely unique, in stature they’re about an inch taller than normal nights with more hunched shoulders

[@-Benedict]

@@oliverbanton4738 Cool, thanks.

[@dr1f7k1n6nf55r]

Imperial Knights: Chainbreaker Lance is a big discount option! Buy 2 of those and you are already at 2k points.

[@tokylot7877]

You can't take Revered Knight on a little knight it's locked to the big ones, so it's an illegal list

[@nikot.9920]

Kinda sucks but that totally makes sense.

[@-Benedict]

So why was it accepted at a major tournament?

[@tokylot7877]

@@-Benedict who knows but it says in the rules that little knights can't take that Warlord clear as day

[@thegleeman7535]

It is still legal. The Revered Knight warlord trait can still be taken on an armiger as long as that armiger is not the warlord and gets a trait from the Knight Baron strategem instead. At least RAW. You can argue it shouldn't work that way RAI, but if the tournament didn't use that interpretation, it is legal.

[@tokylot7877]

@@thegleeman7535 no the little knights can only take the first 3 traits in the book, says so in the codex

[@joshuasmyth3115]

Imperial knights are expensive, that's why I 3d print them and basically have a bad ass mech army for literally a 6th of the price.

[@dracometeors3010]

I would really like a updated Tyranid One.

[@timlake3472]

I think Imperial Knight are more fun a supplement army then its own standalone army. Add one or two as a lord of war.

[@lifeoflake3180]

If i die here on the spot and get reborn i will speedrun going bankrupt and set a world record

[@henryjamesnigel]

Would have started if the Xmas box had not sold out within 30 minutes of the preorder announcement!! Ridiculous.

[@sleepsinleaves]

My codex is showing up today!

[@frostytheram7490]

Sounds dumb but do imperial knighys and chaos knights have the same points cost dude to being so similar in look n feel

[@theobericeford4112]

Roughly

[@theobericeford4112]

Different rules though

[@frostytheram7490]

Ohhhh ok now it makes sense 😅 cause i was thinking how do they make these dudes fair on either side

[@JoshMC2000]

Me: should I My Wallet: Im in danger!

[@emperormornteth]

Still no Death Guard

[@dankcat9923]

Could you do chaos knights next? Just bought the army set box and would like some tips on them

[@HenryC04]

He did 8days ago

[@alphariusomegon8507]

if i ever gonna get one. I'd rather use a titanicus warlord model as a proxy for a knight. as I like their models more than a knight one.

[@YellowDevil442]

Can anyone point me in the right direction for samurai parts for the knights, please?

[@nagekilamentation]

I just adore big stompy robots, I've been much more interested in running a Questoris Households for horus heresy

[@maly9903]

I love your videos.

[@The_Third_Catman]

On the list by Eero his Armiger Helverin has Revered Knight, but it can only have the first 3, so how is that possible?

[@Meuduso1]

I literally just "bit the bullet" and finally bought a Questoris Knight as a project lmao

[@carlneumaier2752]

If only this video had come out 7 months ago

[@johnstevens6063]

i have always wanted to run these with assassins, is that even viable these days?

[@PostProteusKitten]

goddamnit. you couldn't have posted this a week ago?! 💀

[@AndrewOfCitium]

I'm a patreon supporter, how will I know if I win any of your giveaways? Email?

[@ohwnosrepeht]

Are the giveaways limited to the UK only?

[@auspextactics]

No, it's worldwide provided I can post to you from the UK

[@loganbrown7164]

Me who has a fully painted imperial knight army "oh look a knights video."😂

[@wolfVFV]

for the giveaway is it global or just USA/EU?

[@auspextactics]

Global provided I'm able to post to you from the UK :)

[@bushwahhhinc.5762]

Step 1: buy a knight Step 2: buy a knight Step 3: repeat

[@sherlock9397]

I’m a space marine player, can I have imperial knight as part of my army

[@marcuspapst]

HAha! Make sure your opponent is not a gaurd player with a shadowsword or you are in for a horrible experience.

[@canceledlogic7656]

I think the give away slide accidentally says x2 instead of x3?

[@auspextactics]

It's two sets of three big knights :)

[@Damnedlegion40k]

Add a comment...

[@Blubb_Blubber]

Greetings I am a fan of your work but recently got a scam message here directly in youtube that I should report, they wanted to make me believe that I had won a PS5 and an Appelle cell phone. Today's scams are so annoying -.-

[@auspextactics]

They are - let me know if you get another one, I've been blocking the spammers!

[@viciousyeen6644]

Step one: buy a 3D Printer

[@pronumeral1446]

I feel like this "army" is for people who don't want to play 40k, don't want to play a wargame. They want to play a skirmish game or gundam or something. Because you're not really playing 40k, not really playing a wargame, when you play Knights.

[@datguy3907]

People almost always pick knight army's as a second army, especially if their first army was imperium or chaos, simply due to the ability to chuck in an armiger duo or a castellan alongside your main army if you want to shake things up

[@piotrjeske4599]

Yes because your army consists of 9 carnifexs , flyerants and a bunch of swarms and warriors it is real w40k . Or when the army consists of Void and star weavers or DE transports.

[@pronumeral1446]

@@piotrjeske4599 I agree with your point to an extent, however those are bugs (haha, you see what I did there) not features. As in, that's one way to play Tyranids or Eldar. With Knights, the only way to play is to have a a small number of Knights (unless you bring allies).

[@auspextactics]

Big robot go stomp :)

[@Quagfield]

Haha big robots brrrr