Warhammer 40K Armageddon: The New Detachments Explained
Warhammer 40K Armageddon: The New Detachments Explained
Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon – The Return of Yarrick brings vehicle warfare back to the centre of the conflict with six thematic Detachments for the Astra Militarum, Orks, and Space Marines.
These Detachments represent the fast-moving armoured columns, roaring Speed Freeks, super-heavy tanks, and mechanized Space Marine assaults associated with warfare on Armageddon. Each one supports a distinct army style, ranging from infantry mounted in transports to armies built almost entirely from tanks.
This guide explains the new Warhammer Armageddon Detachments, how their main rules work, which units benefit most, and what players should consider before building an army around them.
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Quick Summary
- Astra Militarum: Armoured Infantry and Steel Hammer
- Orks: Speedwaaagh! and Blitz Brigade
- Space Marines: Headhunter Task Force and Armoured Speartip
- Best Mechanized Infantry Detachment: Armoured Infantry
- Best Super-Heavy Tank Detachment: Steel Hammer
- Best Fast Vehicle Detachment: Speedwaaagh!
- Best Ork Transport Detachment: Blitz Brigade
- Best Space Marine Tank Detachment: Headhunter Task Force
- Best Space Marine Transport Detachment: Armoured Speartip
Armageddon Detachments at a Glance
| Faction | Detachment | Main Army Style |
|---|---|---|
| Astra Militarum | Armoured Infantry | Infantry and light vehicles working together |
| Astra Militarum | Steel Hammer | Heavy tanks and Titanic vehicles |
| Orks | Speedwaaagh! | Warbikers, buggies, Trukks, and extreme speed |
| Orks | Blitz Brigade | Boyz transported in Battlewagons and Rigs |
| Space Marines | Headhunter Task Force | Tank Aces and armoured firepower |
| Space Marines | Armoured Speartip | Infantry deploying from heavy transports |
Astra Militarum: Armoured Infantry
Armoured Infantry is the classic mechanized Guard Detachment. It is designed around infantry squads riding into battle inside transports while lighter Squadron vehicles provide fire support and battlefield control.
Detachment Rule: Squadron Command
Squadron Command expands the units that Astra Militarum Officers can affect with Orders. Officers can issue Orders to eligible Squadron units, allowing Command Squads and other leaders to coordinate vehicles without requiring every armoured group to remain close to a dedicated Tank Commander.
Eligible smaller Squadron vehicles also gain access to the On My Signal Order. When an enemy finishes a Normal or Advance move within 9 inches, the ordered vehicle can make a reactive move of up to D6 inches.
Why This Rule Matters
- Scout and support vehicles can retreat from approaching melee units.
- Fast vehicles can move toward exposed targets or objectives.
- Officers become more useful in mechanized lists.
- Vehicle positioning can be adjusted during the opponent’s turn.
- The army can combine infantry Orders and vehicle support more naturally.
Opening Salvo
The Opening Salvo Stratagem improves the Wound rolls of an Astra Militarum unit that disembarked from a Transport during the same turn.
This can make ordinary infantry unexpectedly dangerous when they emerge from a Chimera, Taurox, or another transport and concentrate fire into an important target.
Combined Fire
Combined Fire allows an Armoured Skirmisher to mark an enemy it has hit. That target loses the Benefit of Cover, and subsequent attacks from other Armoured Skirmishers receive increased Strength against it.
This rewards players for coordinating several lighter vehicles instead of firing each one at an unrelated target.
Best Units for Armoured Infantry
- Chimeras
- Tauroxes
- Infantry Squads
- Cadian Shock Troops
- Kasrkin
- Command Squads
- Sentinels
- Hellhounds
- Smaller Squadron vehicles
How Armoured Infantry Plays
Armoured Infantry is a mobile combined-arms force. Transports move troops into useful positions, infantry disembark to clear objectives, and lighter vehicles combine their fire against priority targets.
The Detachment rewards careful sequencing. Players should generally:
- Position transports before exposing infantry.
- Use a vehicle to remove cover or improve attacks against a target.
- Disembark the correct infantry unit for the job.
- Apply Opening Salvo to the unit with the most valuable shooting.
- Use reactive vehicle movement to avoid charges or contest space.
Best for: Players who enjoy Chimeras, mechanized infantry, and mobile objective play.
Astra Militarum: Steel Hammer
Steel Hammer moves in the opposite direction. Instead of relying on light vehicles and transported infantry, it focuses on the largest tanks available to the Imperial Guard.
Leman Russ tanks, Rogal Dorns, Baneblades, Stormlords, and other massive vehicles become the centre of the army.
Detachment Rule: Ceaseless Cannonade
Ceaseless Cannonade allows eligible Squadron and Titanic Astra Militarum vehicles to fire at enemies within Engagement Range, including with Blast weapons, provided another friendly unit is not also engaged with that target.
These vehicles also avoid the normal Hit penalty associated with firing while engaged.
Why This Rule Matters
- Enemy infantry cannot easily silence a tank by charging it.
- Blast weapons remain useful at extremely close range.
- Super-heavy tanks can continue operating after being surrounded.
- The army is less vulnerable to cheap melee screening units.
- Large vehicles can be played more aggressively.
Titanic Characters
Steel Hammer allows selected Astra Militarum Titanic vehicles to gain the Character keyword. This means a super-heavy tank can become the Warlord and gain access to Detachment Enhancements.
Assault Hatches
The Assault Hatches Enhancement allows infantry to charge after disembarking from an eligible Titanic Character Transport that made a Normal move.
This creates aggressive combinations involving Stormlords or other super-heavy transports carrying Bullgryns, infantry, or close-range units.
Engine of Wrath
Engine of Wrath improves the melee attacks of a Titanic vehicle against one engaged enemy unit. It adds attacks and improves Armour Penetration, turning the vehicle’s enormous hull into a legitimate close-combat threat.
Best Units for Steel Hammer
- Baneblades
- Stormlords
- Shadowswords
- Rogal Dorn Battle Tanks
- Leman Russ Battle Tanks
- Bullgryns transported inside super-heavy vehicles
- Tank Commanders
- Support units that protect the tanks from enemy reserves
How Steel Hammer Plays
Steel Hammer wants to occupy space with extremely durable vehicles and force the opponent to answer multiple armoured threats.
The army should still include screening and scoring units. A collection made entirely from expensive tanks may destroy enemy models while losing the mission because it cannot efficiently hold several objectives.
Best for: Tank collectors and players who want to field Baneblades or other super-heavy vehicles aggressively.
Orks: Speedwaaagh!
Speedwaaagh! is built for Speed Freeks. Warbikers, Trukks, buggies, and fast characters race across the battlefield before unleashing close-range shooting or devastating charges.
Detachment Rule: Turbo Boosters
When an eligible Speed Freeks or Trukk unit Advances, it can activate its turbo instead of rolling. Its Move characteristic becomes 24 inches for the phase, but it must travel in one straight line and cannot charge that turn.
Its ranged weapons gain Assault, allowing it to continue shooting after the turbo movement.
Why Turbo Boosters Matter
- Units can rapidly cross large sections of the battlefield.
- Warbikers and buggies can claim firing lanes early.
- Trukks can reposition their cargo for later turns.
- Fast units can reach distant objectives.
- The army can threaten several areas at once.
The straight-line restriction is important. Terrain and enemy models can block the route, so players must plan turbo moves before committing to them.
Kustom Shokk Box
The Kustom Shokk Box Enhancement allows an eligible Deffkilla Wartrike unit to move through terrain when using its turbo.
This greatly improves reliability on dense tables where straight-line movement would otherwise be difficult.
Ded Killy Construction
Ded Killy Construction improves the melee output of an eligible Speed Freeks or Trukk unit. The unit gains Lance, and its melee weapons receive additional Damage after charging.
This is particularly valuable against elite infantry with two or three Wounds.
Speshul Ammo
Speshul Ammo gives an Ork unit Anti-Monster 4+ and Anti-Vehicle 4+ on eligible ranged weapons.
This allows Warbikers or high-volume buggy weapons to threaten targets they might normally struggle to damage.
Best Units for Speedwaaagh!
- Wazdakka Gutsmek
- Warbikers
- Deffkilla Wartrike
- Shokkjump Dragstas
- Megatrakk Scrapjets
- Kustom Boosta-blastas
- Rukkatrukk Squigbuggies
- Trukks
- Other Speed Freeks vehicles
How Speedwaaagh! Plays
This Detachment wins through speed, pressure, and target saturation. It is not enough to move quickly—the army must use that speed to isolate targets, secure objectives, and create several simultaneous threats.
Best for: Players who enjoy Warbikers, Ork buggies, aggressive movement, and highly mobile armies.
Orks: Blitz Brigade
Blitz Brigade combines Ork infantry with large transports. Battlewagons, Kill Rigs, Hunta Rigs, and other vehicles deliver mobs of Boyz into the centre of the enemy army.
Detachment Rule: Eager for the Fight
When an Ork unit disembarks from a Transport, it can reroll Advance and Charge rolls for the remainder of the turn.
The rule does not automatically allow the unit to charge after every type of transport movement. Players must still plan their transport position and combine the rule with other abilities, including the Waaagh!, where appropriate.
Why Eager for the Fight Matters
- Disembarking units make more reliable charges.
- Boyz can reach objectives after leaving their transport.
- Transport armies become less dependent on one difficult charge roll.
- The army can launch several infantry units into combat together.
Impervious
Impervious helps protect Battlewagons, Kill Rigs, and Hunta Rigs from high-Strength shooting. When an attack’s Strength exceeds the vehicle’s Toughness, the attacker suffers a penalty to the Wound roll.
This improves the chance that the transport survives long enough to deliver its passengers.
Yooz in Trouble Now
After an eligible transport is hit by enemy shooting, Yooz in Trouble Now allows an embarked infantry unit to disembark and make a Surge move toward the closest enemy.
The unit may move into Engagement Range, potentially interrupting the opponent’s shooting plan by throwing a mob directly into combat.
Mount Up, Ladz
Mount Up, Ladz allows an infantry unit near a suitable transport to embark again at the end of the Fight phase, provided it is no longer within Engagement Range.
This gives the army an unusual cycle:
- Disembark.
- Advance or charge.
- Fight the enemy.
- Return to the transport.
- Move toward the next objective or target.
Best Units for Blitz Brigade
- Battlewagons
- Kill Rigs
- Hunta Rigs
- Boyz
- Beast Snagga Boyz
- Nobz
- Meganobz
- Warbosses
- Infantry units that benefit from reliable charges
How Blitz Brigade Plays
Blitz Brigade requires patience. The transports must reach useful positions without being destroyed too early, and the infantry must disembark only when it can meaningfully charge, score, or block the enemy.
Best for: Players who want a classic Ork Battlewagon army filled with Boyz.
Space Marines: Headhunter Task Force
Headhunter Task Force is the dedicated Space Marine tank Detachment. Eligible armoured vehicles become Tank Aces with improved mobility or shooting reliability.
Detachment Rule: Target Sighted
When a Tank Ace Advances, it receives a fixed six-inch movement increase rather than rolling. When it shoots without having Advanced, it can reroll its Damage roll.
This creates a meaningful choice each turn:
- Advance for reliable additional movement.
- Remain stationary or move normally to improve weapon damage.
Which Vehicles Become Tank Aces?
Eligible Adeptus Astartes Vehicles gain the Tank Ace keyword, excluding Fortifications, Drop Pods, Walkers, and units with Fly.
Up to three Tank Aces can also become Characters. They can receive Enhancements, and one can become the army’s Warlord.
Redoubtable Machine Spirit
Redoubtable Machine Spirit gives an eligible vehicle an invulnerable save and allows it to regain a lost wound during the Command phase.
This is most valuable on an expensive vehicle that the opponent must work hard to destroy.
Gunnery Honours
Gunnery Honours allows the bearer to reroll one Hit roll, one Wound roll, and one Damage roll during each phase.
This strongly supports vehicles with a small number of powerful attacks, such as Repulsor Executioners or Gladiator Lancers.
Kill Shot
Kill Shot improves Wound-roll reliability against Monsters and Vehicles. It becomes stronger against a target that has already fallen below its Starting Strength.
Target Weak Point
Target Weak Point improves the Armour Penetration of ranged attacks against a Monster or Vehicle.
The same unit cannot benefit from both Target Weak Point and Kill Shot during the same phase, so players must choose whether additional wound reliability or improved armour penetration is more useful.
Best Units for Headhunter Task Force
- Repulsor Executioners
- Gladiator Lancers
- Gladiator Reapers
- Gladiator Valiants
- Predators
- Vindicators
- Land Raiders
- Impulsors
- Other non-Flying Space Marine tanks
How Headhunter Task Force Plays
The Detachment wants several armoured threats rather than one isolated tank. Multiple vehicles make it harder for the opponent to concentrate every anti-tank weapon on the army’s only important target.
Players must still include infantry or utility units capable of screening, performing mission tasks, and holding objectives.
Best for: Space Marine players with a large collection of tanks and transports.
Space Marines: Armoured Speartip
Armoured Speartip focuses on Space Marines deploying directly from armoured transports. Land Raiders, Repulsors, and other heavy transports deliver elite infantry into effective shooting and objective positions.
Detachment Rule: Rapid Deployment
When an Adeptus Astartes unit disembarks from a Transport that made a Normal or Advance move, the unit can make an additional Normal move.
The movement is greater when the unit disembarks from a Heavy Transport. Space Marine Transports with at least 14 Wounds gain the Heavy Transport keyword.
Why Rapid Deployment Matters
- Short-range infantry can reach effective range more easily.
- Units can move onto objectives after disembarking.
- Transports can remain behind while passengers move into cover.
- The army can redeploy infantry over a large distance.
- Heavy Transports become central offensive tools.
This rule improves movement but does not automatically allow every disembarking unit to charge. Armoured Speartip is especially effective for shooting units and objective-focused infantry.
Liberator
The Liberator Enhancement allows an eligible character—or the Heavy Transport carrying that character—to secure an objective so that it remains controlled until the opponent meaningfully takes it back.
This helps a highly mobile transport army avoid leaving expensive units behind on previously captured objectives.
Machine Wrath
When a Heavy Transport is destroyed, Machine Wrath allows it to make a final move before resolving Deadly Demise and Emergency Disembarkation.
This can move the wreck away from vulnerable passengers, block enemy movement, or position the vehicle closer to opposing units before it explodes.
Purgation Doctrine
Purgation Doctrine improves the Hit rolls of an Adeptus Astartes unit. A unit that disembarked from a Heavy Transport during the same turn also receives improved Wound rolls.
This is an extremely useful offensive tool for infantry emerging from Land Raiders or Repulsors.
Best Units for Armoured Speartip
- Land Raider Redeemers
- Land Raider Crusaders
- Land Raiders
- Repulsors
- Infernus Marines
- Eradicators
- Hellblasters
- Bladeguard Veterans
- Aggressors
- Intercessors
How Armoured Speartip Plays
The Detachment creates a powerful mechanized army in which transports are not merely protection. They determine where and when the infantry fights.
Successful players must plan:
- Which unit rides in each transport
- Which target the passengers will attack
- Where the transport will finish its move
- Whether the passengers need shooting range, an objective, or cover
- How the army will continue scoring after the initial assault
Best for: Players with Land Raiders, Repulsors, and short-range elite infantry.
Which Armageddon Detachment Is Best?
The strongest choice depends on the models already in your collection.
| Your Collection | Recommended Detachment |
|---|---|
| Chimeras and infantry squads | Armoured Infantry |
| Baneblades and heavy tanks | Steel Hammer |
| Warbikers and buggies | Speedwaaagh! |
| Battlewagons filled with Boyz | Blitz Brigade |
| Gladiators, Predators, and Repulsor Executioners | Headhunter Task Force |
| Land Raiders, Repulsors, and elite infantry | Armoured Speartip |
Best Armageddon Detachment for Beginners
Armoured Infantry and Armoured Speartip are likely the easiest of the six Detachments to understand because both use a clear transport-and-passenger structure.
A beginner can follow a straightforward plan:
- Place an appropriate infantry unit inside a transport.
- Move the transport toward an objective or target.
- Disembark the passengers.
- Use the Detachment’s movement or shooting bonuses.
- Keep the transport involved in the mission.
Speedwaaagh! is easy to understand but difficult to master because its straight-line turbo movement requires careful positioning. Steel Hammer and Headhunter Task Force are simple conceptually but require a large collection of expensive vehicles.
Common Army-Building Mistakes
Taking Too Many Vehicles
Vehicle Detachments encourage tanks, but armies still need units capable of screening, holding several objectives, and completing mission tasks.
Ignoring Transport Capacity
Before building a mechanized army, confirm that every intended passenger unit can legally enter its assigned transport.
Using Only Short-Range Weapons
A transport army still benefits from long-range fire support. Otherwise, the opponent may control the opening turns without exposing anything valuable.
Overcommitting on the First Turn
Fast movement does not always mean immediate aggression. A transport or buggy that moves into the open without creating a meaningful threat may simply be destroyed.
Forgetting the Mission
Tanks can inflict tremendous damage but may struggle to be in several places simultaneously. Include inexpensive units that can remain on objectives.
Buying Tips
- Choose the Detachment that matches vehicles you already own.
- Do not purchase several identical tanks before testing the army.
- Check the latest Munitorum Field Manual before finalizing a points list.
- Confirm current Detachment Point costs when building an 11th Edition army.
- Include infantry or utility units alongside vehicle-heavy selections.
- Magnetize vehicle weapons when practical.
- Use transports that suit the size and battlefield role of their passengers.
- Protect expensive vehicles with screening and terrain.
- Download the latest rules and errata before playing.
- Expect points and balance changes as the edition develops.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Armageddon – The Return of Yarrick introduces six Detachments: two for Astra Militarum, two for Orks, and two for Space Marines.
The Astra Militarum receive Armoured Infantry, which combines transported troops with lighter vehicles, and Steel Hammer, which supports heavy tanks and Titanic vehicles.
Orks receive Speedwaaagh!, which focuses on Warbikers, buggies, and extreme movement, and Blitz Brigade, which delivers infantry using Battlewagons, Kill Rigs, and other transports.
Space Marines receive Headhunter Task Force for Tank Ace armies and Armoured Speartip for infantry deploying from Land Raiders, Repulsors, and other transports.
Steel Hammer is best for Astra Militarum super-heavy tanks, while Headhunter Task Force is the dedicated Space Marine tank Detachment.
Armoured Infantry supports Astra Militarum mechanized forces, Blitz Brigade supports Ork transport armies, and Armoured Speartip is designed for Space Marine heavy transports.
Steel Hammer allows selected Astra Militarum Titanic vehicles to gain the Character keyword, allowing one to become the army’s Warlord.
No. A unit that uses its turbo moves with a 24-inch Move characteristic in one straight line and gains Assault on its ranged weapons, but it cannot declare a charge that turn.
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Final Thoughts
The new Warhammer Armageddon Detachments provide six highly thematic ways to build vehicle-focused armies.
Armoured Infantry turns Chimeras and lighter vehicles into a coordinated mechanized force, while Steel Hammer lets the Astra Militarum drive its largest tanks directly into close-range combat. Speedwaaagh! gives Ork vehicles extraordinary movement, while Blitz Brigade delivers mobs of Boyz from durable transports.
Space Marine players can choose between the concentrated tank firepower of Headhunter Task Force and the aggressive infantry deployment offered by Armoured Speartip.
The best Detachment is the one that matches your existing collection. Start with the transports and vehicles you already own, add enough infantry to play the mission, and expand only after testing how the army performs.
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