Warhammer 40K: ‘Black Templar Vows’ Rule Preview

The ultra fanatical Black Templars have their own Vows they take before combat and they don’t like breaking them.

One of the unique mechanics for the Black Templars has always been their Templar Vows. In previous editions you’d have to declare them before a battle and they could impact how your army worked to a great extent. Today we’re getting a look at them to see how and if they have changed all that much. So let’s dive into the new Templar Vows!

via Warhammer Community

The Vows get chosen at the end of the ‘Read Mission Briefing’ step of the game. So you do get to choose which one you want to take before the game. That hasn’t really changed. The names are almost unchanged from previous versions. So what do the Vows do? Well we got a look at two of them so far…

Accept any challenge, no matter the odds really kicks this army into high-gear when it comes time to swing at your enemies in close combat. They are going to get the benefits of the Assault Doctrine anytime they are in Engagement Range and also will always get a bonus attack – but it doesn’t stack with Shock Assault. The trade off is that they can’t Fall Back. Seems like a very Black Templar ability!

Abhor the witch, destroy the witch is another classic Black Templar Vow. This one helps them specifically deal with Psykers in a very Black Templar way. To start the game off, if the enemy has any Psykers in their army, you get a once per battle bonus of 3″ in your first movement phase. In addition you get a bonus re-roll to wound rolls of 1 vs Psykers. The trade off is that your units cannot perform actions if there is a Psyker within 18″ of the unit that is attempting to perform that action.

That seems like it could be pretty punishing for certain missions and totally irrelevant for others. Make sure you read that mission BEFORE you choose it! Then again, you’re going to be close to a turn one charge with specific units…

The Black Templars still have two more Vows yet to be seen – what do you think they are going to do?

So full of zeal!

Author: Adam Harrison

Writer, Editor, Texas Native, and Austinite for 15+ years, Adam covers all things Tabletop Gaming. Which includes Warhammer 40,000, Age of Sigmar, D&D, Board Games and everything else that involves dice, boards, cards and a table. A hobbyist, player, and collector of miniatures and games, Adam's current obsession are his Death Armies for Age of Sigmar, his Blood Angels and Tyranids for 40k, and his ever growing Arkham Horror: The Card Game Collection.