Traitor Guardsmen are one of the most grounded and disturbing forces serving Chaos in Warhammer 40,000. They are not genetically engineered Chaos Space Marines or Warp-born Daemons, but ordinary human soldiers who once belonged to the Imperium's vast military machine and later turned their lasguns, tanks and battlefield training against it.

Some fall because they worship the Chaos Gods, while others rebel against brutal commanders, follow a corrupted officer or simply become trapped on the wrong side of an uprising. Whatever begins the process, a fallen regiment can become extremely dangerous because it retains the organization, weapons and military experience of the Astra Militarum while abandoning the Imperium's authority.

That background also makes Traitor Guard one of the best factions for conversion projects. Standard Astra Militarum kits already provide the uniforms, lasguns, officers, specialists and vehicles; Chaos Cultists and spare Chaos components can then add damaged equipment, trophies, masks, mutations and forbidden symbols without losing the disciplined military look that separates Traitor Guardsmen from ordinary cult mobs.

For conversion projects, browse the Astra Militarum range at TistaMinis for the military foundation, then combine those kits with Chaos Cultists, basing materials and hobby supplies to push the army toward a corrupted 40K aesthetic.

Who Are the Traitor Guardsmen?

The Astra Militarum contains soldiers from countless worlds, cultures and regiments spread across an empire of extraordinary size. Maintaining absolute loyalty across a force that large is impossible, especially when Guardsmen regularly encounter Chaos cults, daemonic invasions, corrupt commanders and horrors capable of destroying ordinary human morale.

When Guardsmen turn against the Imperium, they are often grouped under terms such as Traitor Guard, Renegade Guard or Militarum Traitoris. The exact form varies considerably because there is no single standardized Traitor Guard army comparable to the disciplined regimental structure of Cadia.

One renegade force might still resemble a conventional Imperial regiment with its insignia scratched away. Another might have served Chaos for decades, with mutated soldiers, corrupted priests, crude icons and officers who rule through terror rather than military discipline.

Why Would an Imperial Guardsman Turn to Chaos?

It is easy to imagine every Traitor Guardsman suddenly deciding to worship a Chaos God, but the reality of the setting can be more complicated. The Imperial Guard fights horrific wars under brutal conditions, and Chaos often exploits resentment, desperation and fear long before open worship begins.

A Guardsman could turn because of:

• Exposure to a Chaos cult.
• A corrupted commanding officer.
• Resentment toward Imperial authority.
• Abandonment during a disastrous campaign.
• Promises of survival or power.
• Religious corruption.
• Mutation or Warp exposure.
• Coercion by Chaos Space Marines.
• A planetary rebellion that takes the regiment with it.

An entire regiment can fall together if its command structure becomes compromised. Once senior officers, commissars or local rulers embrace rebellion, ordinary soldiers may find that following their unit is easier than resisting it.

Some Traitors Still Fight Like Guardsmen

This is one of the most important differences between Traitor Guardsmen and generic Chaos Cultists. A former Guardsman knows how to maintain a lasgun, move as part of a squad, use battlefield communications and operate military equipment. Specialists may retain experience with plasma guns, meltaguns, grenade launchers, sniper weapons and heavy support equipment.

The official Blooded represent exactly this idea: Chaos followers who remain recognizably trained soldiers. Their appearance is corrupted, but underneath the trophies and damaged uniforms there is still a functioning military organization.

The Militarum Traitoris

Militarum Traitoris is the broader name used for Imperial Guard forces that have turned against the Imperium. These armies can include infantry, officers, heavy weapons, Ogryns, artillery and armoured vehicles, giving Chaos access to something ordinary cultists rarely possess: organized conventional warfare.

That makes them valuable to Chaos commanders. Chaos Space Marines are incredibly powerful, but there are comparatively few Heretic Astartes. Human renegades can hold territory, man defensive positions, operate equipment and absorb losses while their superhuman masters concentrate on decisive assaults.

Traitor Guard During the Horus Heresy

The idea of human Imperial soldiers turning against the Emperor is almost as old as the Imperium itself. During the Horus Heresy, massive numbers of Imperial Army troops, planetary forces and human auxiliaries followed the Warmaster into rebellion alongside the Traitor Legions.

This matters because Chaos corruption in the 41st Millennium did not begin with isolated cultists hiding in underhives. The original civil war split enormous military organizations, creating a tradition of renegade human armies stretching back ten thousand years.

Chaos Space Marines and Traitor Guard

Chaos Space Marines may command Traitor Guard forces, but the relationship is rarely equal. A Chaos Lord might regard thousands of human soldiers as expendable resources rather than comrades, using them to occupy ground, soften defences or simply draw enemy fire.

Different Legions can produce very different themes. An Iron Warriors warband might field disciplined renegades beside tanks and artillery, while Word Bearers could surround their mortal troops with priests and cult symbols. Alpha Legion forces might keep their true allegiance hidden until the moment of rebellion.

Traitor Guard vs Chaos Cultists

Feature	Traitor Guardsmen	Chaos Cultists
Background	Former trained Imperial soldiers	Chaos followers from many civilian or militant backgrounds
Appearance	Military uniforms, armour and Guard equipment	Robes, scavenged gear, improvised weapons and cult clothing
Weapons	Lasguns and military special weapons	Often improvised or scavenged weapons
Organization	Can retain squad and regimental discipline	Usually more irregular
Conversion Style	Astra Militarum base with Chaos details	Chaos base with military details if desired

The two styles can still work together extremely well. A renegade army might contain professional Traitor Guardsmen at its core while mobs of cultists follow behind them, creating a visual hierarchy from trained soldiers to barely controlled fanatics.

The Blooded Kill Team

The modern Games Workshop range gave Traitor Guard a particularly strong visual identity through the Blooded. These are soldiers who have left the Astra Militarum and embraced Chaos while retaining recognizable Guard weapons and battlefield roles.

The Blooded set contains 12 miniatures: ten Traitor Guardsmen, a mutated Traitor Ogryn and a Traitor Enforcer. The Guardsmen can represent specialists or basic troopers, making the squad a useful visual reference for anyone planning their own conversions.

Blooded Specialists Show What a Fallen Regiment Can Become

The team includes roles such as a Chieftain, Commsman, Grenadier, Corpsman and other corrupted specialists. These characters mirror the functions found in a conventional military squad but reinterpret them through Chaos.

A medic becomes a disturbing field surgeon. A communications specialist broadcasts the commands of tyrannical masters. Officers become brutal warlords, while ordinary soldiers decorate their equipment with trophies and symbols of the Dark Gods.

The Traitor Enforcer

The Traitor Enforcer represents the twisted equivalent of Imperial discipline. Rather than maintaining loyalty to the Emperor, these figures keep renegade troops fighting through intimidation, violence and fear.

Some can even be imagined as former commissars who themselves turned traitor, making a converted Commissar or heavily decorated Cadian officer an excellent basis for a custom Traitor Guard commander.

The Traitor Ogryn

Corrupted Ogryns give a Traitor Guard force a much larger and more brutal model without immediately introducing a Chaos Space Marine. They fit naturally into the army because loyal Astra Militarum forces already employ Ogryns as heavy shock troops.

The difference is what Chaos can do to them. Mutations, crude armour, chains, trophies and corrupted weapons can transform an Imperial auxiliary into something far more unsettling while preserving the recognizable silhouette.

Best TistaMinis Kits for Traitor Guard Conversions

You do not need an entire dedicated Traitor Guard range to build convincing renegades. Several existing Astra Militarum and Chaos kits provide excellent conversion foundations, and the most effective results often come from mixing pieces rather than replacing every Imperial component.

Kit	Best Use	Conversion Potential
Cadian Shock Troops	Core Traitor infantry	Excellent
Cadian Command Squad	Officers and specialists	Excellent
Chaos Cultists	Heads, weapons and corrupted details	Excellent
Cadian Upgrades	Extra heads, equipment and character details	Very Good
Kasrkin	Elite Traitor storm troops	Very Good
Ogryns/Bullgryns	Mutated heavy infantry	Excellent

1. Cadian Shock Troops – Best Core Conversion Kit

The Cadian Shock Troops kit is probably the best starting point for building a larger Traitor Guard force. It builds ten soldiers and includes standard lasguns, multiple special weapons, a vox-caster and numerous cosmetic options.

More importantly, the kit already looks exactly like what Traitor Guardsmen should have been before they fell. By keeping most of the uniform intact and changing selected heads, shoulder markings, weapons and accessories, you can make the corruption immediately readable without losing the military identity.

Easy Cadian Traitor Conversions

• Remove or damage Imperial aquilas.
• Cut scratches through regimental markings.
• Add Chaos symbols to shoulder armour.
• Replace several heads with Chaos Cultist heads.
• Add chains, skulls and trophies.
• Use mismatched equipment to suggest years of scavenging.
• Weather uniforms more heavily than a loyalist regiment.

You do not need to alter every component. In fact, leaving several recognizable Cadian helmets and lasguns intact often makes the result more convincing.

2. Chaos Cultists – Best Source of Corrupted Details

The Chaos Space Marines: Chaos Cultists kit builds ten mortal followers of the Dark Gods and includes ragged clothing, masks, crude weapons, mutations and obvious Chaos details.

Using an entire Cultist model as a Traitor Guardsman can sometimes make the force look more like an ordinary cult mob, but mixing Cultist components into Cadians is extremely effective. A few corrupted heads, knives, chains or trophies can completely change the personality of an otherwise disciplined Guardsman.

3. Cadian Command Squad – Build Your Traitor Officers

The Cadian Command Squad is especially useful because Traitor Guard armies need leaders just as loyal regiments do. The kit provides five models and numerous specialist options that can become a corrupted commander, standard bearer, vox operator, medic or veteran bodyguard.

A simple banner conversion can define the entire army. Replace or deface the Imperial imagery, add an eight-pointed Chaos symbol and weather the cloth heavily. Suddenly the squad looks like soldiers who have deliberately rejected their former allegiance rather than generic post-apocalyptic fighters.

Converting a Traitor Commander

Keep the officer's military coat, armour and command equipment, but change the details that identify loyalty. A scarred face, trophy taken from an Imperial officer, corrupted power weapon or Chaos pendant is often enough.

For a recently fallen regiment, the commander might still look almost Imperial. For an army that has served Chaos for generations, you can go much further with mutations, ceremonial armour and daemonic imagery.

4. Cadian Upgrades – Small Parts With Big Conversion Value

The Astra Militarum Cadian Upgrades set is useful because conversions need variety. It contains additional cosmetic components designed for Cadian infantry and command models, giving you more heads, accessories and equipment to differentiate squads.

Even though these are loyalist components, they help prevent a converted force from looking like the same ten soldiers repeated several times. Combined with Chaos bits, they can create veterans, scouts, brutal officers and corrupted specialists while preserving a shared regimental appearance.

5. Kasrkin – Elite Traitor Guardsmen

Kasrkin provide an excellent basis for an elite renegade unit. Their heavier carapace armour, hot-shot weapons, specialist equipment and respirators immediately communicate that these are not ordinary infantry.

A corrupted Kasrkin squad could represent veterans who followed their regiment into rebellion, bodyguards serving a Chaos warlord or heavily equipped troops who have survived numerous campaigns since abandoning the Imperium.

Keep Elite Traitors More Controlled

Rather than covering Kasrkin with large mutations, consider a more restrained conversion style. Defaced Imperial symbols, darkened armour, Chaos markings, skull trophies and corrupted helmets can make them feel disciplined and dangerous.

This creates an interesting contrast with more mutated Ogryns and ragged Cultists elsewhere in the force.

6. Ogryns and Bullgryns – Build Your Own Corrupted Brute

The Astra Militarum Ogryns/Bullgryns kit is one of the best conversion opportunities for a Traitor Guard project. The large bodies provide plenty of room for scars, chains, symbols, armour damage and sculpted mutations.

A corrupted Ogryn does not need to be completely transformed into a daemon. Keeping recognizably Imperial armour or equipment can make the model more disturbing because the viewer can still see what it used to be.

Traitor Ogryn Conversion Ideas

• Break sections of armour and expose damaged flesh.
• Add chains around weapons or wrists.
• Use a gas-mask head for an industrial renegade theme.
• Scratch Chaos symbols into armour plates.
• Add skulls and battlefield trophies.
• Use green stuff for limited mutations or swollen flesh.

What About Traitor Guard Vehicles?

Once the infantry is established, vehicles can turn a small conversion project into a true renegade regiment. Because Traitor Guardsmen are former Imperial soldiers, Astra Militarum tanks require very little structural conversion to fit the theme.

A Leman Russ, Chimera, Sentinel or other Guard vehicle can simply be shown after years of neglect and corruption. Remove loyalist symbols, damage armour panels, add chains and trophies, then apply heavier grime and corrosion than you would on a well-maintained Imperial vehicle.

Do Not Make Every Vehicle a Daemon Engine

A Traitor Guard army becomes visually interesting when it still uses recognizable military hardware. Chaos Space Marines already have Forgefiends, Maulerfiends and other overtly supernatural machines, so a renegade Leman Russ covered in improvised repairs can provide an effective contrast.

This also reinforces the lore: these soldiers did not necessarily receive new equipment after rebellion. Much of what they use may be the same gear they stole from the Imperium when they defected.

Building Different Types of Traitor Guard

There is no single correct appearance, and choosing a background before converting the models can make the army much more coherent.

Recently Fallen Regiment

Keep the uniforms and equipment largely Imperial. Deface insignia, add small Chaos symbols and introduce only minor mutations. This works especially well for a narrative campaign where the rebellion has just happened.

Veterans of the Long War

Increase corrosion, trophies and mismatched equipment. These soldiers may have fought alongside Chaos Space Marines for decades and replaced damaged Imperial gear with whatever could be scavenged.

Nurgle Traitor Guard

Use diseased flesh, corroded armour, dirty uniforms and damaged respirators. Mutations can remain relatively subtle so that the models still read as soldiers rather than Plaguebearers.

Khorne Traitor Guard

Introduce brutal melee weapons, blood-stained armour, trophy skulls and aggressive red markings. Keep enough rifles and military equipment to distinguish them from ordinary berserkers.

Tzeentch Traitor Guard

Use strange masks, arcane symbols and vivid Warp colours. Officers or specialists can appear more obviously corrupted while rank-and-file soldiers maintain disciplined uniforms.

Slaanesh Traitor Guard

A fallen regiment devoted to excess could use personalized armour, ornate trophies, bright accents and increasingly elaborate equipment rather than the crude industrial appearance associated with many Chaos forces.

Iron Warriors Traitor Guard

An Iron Warriors-aligned regiment is one of the easiest themes to build because their military and siege-war aesthetic complements Astra Militarum equipment naturally. Cadian infantry, heavy weapons, tanks and artillery all look appropriate supporting a Chaos Space Marine warband obsessed with grinding warfare.

Paint the Guard in dark greys, steel and dirty fatigues, then use occasional hazard stripes to connect them visually with their masters. The result can look like a professional human auxiliary army rather than a disorganized cult.

Word Bearers Traitor Guard

Word Bearers create almost the opposite conversion opportunity. Their mortal followers can appear more religious, with scripture, icons, ritual markings and priests moving among military squads.

Mixing Cadian bodies with selected Chaos Cultist components works especially well here because the army can visually show the transition between organized soldiers and religious fanatics.

Alpha Legion Traitor Guard

Alpha Legion-inspired Traitor Guard offer perhaps the most restrained approach. These soldiers might not look corrupted at all until closer inspection, particularly if they are meant to represent infiltrators or forces manipulated into rebellion.

A mostly conventional Guard army with altered unit markings and just a few hidden Hydra symbols can be more thematic than covering every soldier in obvious Chaos icons.

Painting Traitor Guardsmen

Traitor Guard painting works best when you begin with a military scheme and then degrade it. Choose one consistent fatigues colour and one armour colour across the regiment, then add individual variation through weathering and corrupted details.

A straightforward workflow could be:

1. Prime the models.
2. Paint fatigues in one regimental colour.
3. Paint armour and helmets.
4. Block in weapons and equipment.
5. Add skin and leather.
6. Paint Chaos markings and trophies.
7. Apply washes and shading.
8. Add chipped armour and dirt.
9. Finish with blood, rust or mutation effects where appropriate.
10. Use consistent basing across the entire force.

Weathering Is More Important Than Mutations

You can create convincing Traitor Guard without sculpting a single tentacle. Chipped armour, dirt, rust, scratched-out Imperial symbols and badly maintained equipment can communicate years of rebellion on their own.

This approach also has a practical benefit: it keeps the army visually different from Chaos Space Marines. The mortals remain recognizably human while the Heretic Astartes appear far more corrupted and imposing beside them.

Painting Defaced Imperial Symbols

An intact Imperial aquila can actually become useful storytelling material. Instead of removing every symbol completely, scratch through it, paint a Chaos icon over it or cover part of it with grime.

That makes the miniature's history visible. The model is not simply a generic Chaos soldier; it is someone who once served the Imperium and has consciously rejected it.

Basing Traitor Guard

Basing can connect models assembled from several different kits. If Cadians, Cultists, Kasrkin and Ogryns all stand on the same ruined industrial ground, they immediately begin to look like one army.

Good themes include:

• Destroyed Imperial cities.
• Ash wastes.
• Muddy trench systems.
• Industrial complexes.
• Chaos-corrupted planets.
• Siege battlefields.

Browse basing materials at TistaMinis for textures, rubble, tufts and other details that can unify a converted force.

Should You Use Green Stuff?

Green stuff and similar modelling putties are useful, but they are not required for a strong conversion project. Beginners can achieve a convincing result simply through component swaps, cutting away Imperial details and careful painting.

Once you are comfortable, modelling putty can add torn cloth, scars, tentacles, swollen flesh or corrupted armour. Use it selectively; a small mutation on one soldier can have more impact than identical mutations across the entire squad.

Best Beginner Traitor Guard Project

Start with one box of Cadian Shock Troops and one source of Chaos components. Build most of the squad normally, then give each soldier one or two corrupted details instead of attempting elaborate conversions immediately.

For example:

• Sergeant with a Cultist head and trophy.
• Vox operator with scratched Imperial symbols.
• Plasma gunner with Chaos pendant.
• Two Guardsmen with alternate heads.
• One heavily mutated veteran.
• Remaining troops mostly unchanged but heavily weathered.

This produces a believable squad while keeping the project manageable.

Best Advanced Conversion Project

For a larger army, create visual ranks of corruption. Core Guardsmen can remain relatively normal, elite Kasrkin become darker and more sinister, officers carry increasingly elaborate Chaos symbols, and Ogryns display obvious mutation.

Add converted tanks and Cultist mobs around them, and the army starts to look like a complete renegade military organization rather than a collection of unrelated miniatures.

Can Traitor Guard Be Used in Kill Team?

The Blooded are the dedicated Traitor Guard-style faction for Kill Team. Their roster represents disciplined renegades supported by specialists, an Enforcer and mutated Ogryn, making Kill Team an excellent format for someone who wants to paint a small, highly individualized squad rather than a full army.

TistaMinis also carries Kill Team: Blooded Datacards, which support the current Blooded team rules. Players should still check the latest Kill Team rules resources before building specifically for organized play.

Can You Build a Full Traitor Guard Army?

From a modelling perspective, absolutely. Astra Militarum infantry and vehicles provide almost everything needed to create an entire renegade regiment, and hobbyists have been converting Traitor Guard armies for decades.

Game rules are a separate question because legal army construction changes between editions, supplements and event formats. If you are converting an entire Astra Militarum collection as renegades, decide whether the project is intended as an Astra Militarum army using custom models, a narrative Chaos force, or models for another current rules framework before purchasing large numbers of units.

Great Kits for a Traitor Guard Conversion Project

Project	Recommended Kit	Why
Basic infantry	Cadian Shock Troops	Strong military foundation and many head/weapon options
Renegade officers	Cadian Command Squad	Command gear, banner and specialists
Chaos parts	Chaos Cultists	Masks, mutations, trophies and ragged equipment
Extra customization	Cadian Upgrades	Additional heads and equipment
Elite soldiers	Kasrkin	Heavy armour and specialist weapons
Corrupted brute	Ogryns/Bullgryns	Large surfaces and strong mutation potential

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts: Traitor Guard Are One of 40K's Best Conversion Armies

Traitor Guardsmen occupy an unusual place in Warhammer 40,000 because they show Chaos from a human perspective. They are not towering Heretic Astartes who fought beside Primarchs ten thousand years ago; many were ordinary soldiers carrying lasguns, wearing flak armour and following orders until something convinced them that the Imperium was no longer their master.

That makes them particularly effective for narrative armies. A recently corrupted Cadian regiment can still look disciplined and almost Imperial, while a force that has served Chaos for generations can become increasingly brutal, scavenged and mutated. Both are valid because the Militarum Traitoris encompasses countless independent rebellions and fallen formations.

The hobby potential is equally strong. Cadian Shock Troops provide the military foundation, a Cadian Command Squad gives you officers and specialists, Chaos Cultists supply corrupted details, Kasrkin can become elite renegades and Ogryns offer a dramatic heavy conversion project. Vehicles can then expand the theme into a complete fallen regiment without needing to abandon the recognizable Astra Militarum aesthetic.

The key is restraint. A Traitor Guardsman does not need three horns, a tentacle and twelve skulls to look corrupted. Sometimes a scratched-out aquila, stolen trophy and Chaos symbol painted over an old regimental badge tell a much stronger story.

Explore the Astra Militarum range at TistaMinis for conversion foundations, then add Chaos Cultists, hobby supplies and basing materials to create your own regiment of the Militarum Traitoris.