The grimdark future of Warhammer 40,000 is constantly evolving, and with each new edition comes the promise of refreshed armies and new tactical opportunities. For the Sons of Fenris, that promise is finally being delivered with the highly anticipated Space Wolves Army Set and Space Wolves Codex Supplement. Packing brand-new sculpts, the essential new Codex, and a suite of datacards designed to get you howling into battle.
We’ve recently covered army sets from the warp with our reviews of the World Eaters Army Set and the Death Guard Army Set, so join us now as we take a sneak peek at this massive army set release.
Space Wolves Army Set Contents
So what’s included in the Space Wolves Army Set? A lot!
- 1x Wolf Guard Battle Leader
- 1x Wolf Priest
- 10 Grey Hunters
- 10 Blood Claws
- 6x Wolf Guard Headtakers
- 1x Special Edition Codex
- 25x Datacards
- 1x Transfer Sheet
Estimated MSRP: $230 USD
Space Wolves Army Set – Special Edition Codex
I really like the look of the Codex, and reading through it we get, as usual, a really great and extensive dive into the lore of this Chapter. From the start of the chapter on the death world of Fenris, to detailing how this Chapter battles with the ferocity of the wolves of their home planet.
There’s also an extensive section in the lore describing the heraldry of the Chapter, as well as how each of the different “packs” of warriors (like the Blood Claws and Grey Hunters, which we’ll speak to in a moment). Finally, the Codex includes all the rules you need to play, including how Sagas work for this Chapter.
Now let’s take a Quick Look at the individual units included in this Army Set!
Space Wolves Army Set – Units
The new Space Wolves Army Set comes with five units all ready to hit the battlefield (after some assembly, of course) and fight until the Wolftime dawns! As opposed to one of our more in-depth reviews where we break down all the stats, for this Army Set preview I really want to just take a Quick Look at what makes each unit feel different from one another and special.
Wolf Guard Battle Leader
Let’s start with the Wolf Guard Battle Leader – veterans of battle and some of the bravest warriors in the army. What makes this unit most unique is how customizable it is. You can choose from an array of melee weapons (a power weapon or a thunder hammer) and ranged options (Carbine, heavy bolt, or plasma pistol), and as a leader you can attach this unit to Blood Claws, Grey Hunters, or Wolf Guard Headtakers.
When you set them up as a leader, you give their unit the Sustained Hits 1 keyword and let them re-roll 1’s when you’re attacking within 6 inches. Not bad for a melee-happy Chapter like the wolves!
Wolf Priest
Next up is the Wolf Priest, the physical and spiritual leader of the group. And while they’re outfitted with decent weaponry, their abilities truly make the Wolf Priest an extreme standout.
You can attach them to Blood Claws, Grey Hunters, or Wolf Guard Headtakers, and as they act as leaders you’ll get two special abilities. First, you’ve got the Litany of Hate ability, which says if the Priest is leading a unit they add 1 to wound rolls.
But the real prize here, and what makes the Wolf Priest stand out, is the Healing Balms ability, which says “While this model is leading a unit, in your Command phase, you can return 1 destroyed model (excluding Character models) to that unit.” That’s not a once-per-battle thing, which is huge!
Wolf Guard Headtakers
The Wolf Guard Headtakers are tasked with breaking through enemy lines and taking down important figures in the enemy camp. To do that, they’re joined by their ferocious Hunting Wolves!
What makes this unit special is that, at the start of your deploy units phase, you actually split this unit up into two units – one for the marines and the other for the wolves! This unit can also can name one enemy unit as their quarry which gives the marine models in this unit Devastating Wounds and Precision keywords tied to attacking their quarry!
Grey Hunters and Blood Claws
Blood Claws are the youngest members of the Chapter, hungry to prove themselves in savage battle. Contrasting that are the Grey Hunters, who are older, more mature, and patient marines. These are two different units, but they each only have one thing making them each stand out – beyond the impressive weaponry of your standard space marine.
For the Blood Claws, their fiery and impatient nature is brought to life via their Berserk Charge ability, which let’s them charge in the same turn it Advanced, meaning these marines can cover some serious ground.
For the Grey Hunters, their stalking nature is portrayed in the Cunning Hunters ability, which let’s them re-roll Wound rolls of 1 and, if they’re within range of an object marker, the ability is upgraded to allow them to re-roll all Wound rolls.
Along with the Codex, Codex Cards – which do a great job of making it super easy to keep track of your units – and the models, this feels like a very solid offering, and similar to other Space Marine Army Boxes we’ve seen since the launch of 10th. I’ve got some playtesting to do with these models, but on first look – I think you could use this box as the start of an extremely aggressive Force!
The copy of the Space Wolves Army Set used in the creation of this review was provided by Games Workshop.
