Warhammer Army Project/Bretonnia

This article needs rules updates. Upgrade plz.

Bretonnia: Warhammer Army Project, 9th Edition Tactica

Created by Mathias Eliasson, this project was a homebrew attempt at giving many of the nations and factions that never got Armybooks of their own (and those left behind and never got one in 8th Edition) such a thing. For this specific page, those items that are completely new will be described in detail (at least to my standards, so don't expect much).

It should also be noted that Eliasson is constantly updating his work, so don't expect this page to stay current forever. If anyone wishes to actually update this page and the items that need it later on, go ahead.

Why Play Bretonnia

• You like to be the french round table.

• You love playing as Bretonnia but you're tired of only having mounted Knights and dirty peasants as your whole army. Not only is the roster expansion of the army fluffy (except for a unit or two).

Notable Changes from 8e

Pros

• Men at arms are no longer dog shit.
• New hero choices can buff your Knights and massively buff your peasants(Basically got a hatred granting paladin and a ghetto life wizard).
• Universal cavalry buff does not go a miss for the cavalry faction.
• Removal of Horde, nerfing of steadfast, and return to unit strength combine to make massive units of halberd/GW infantry much weaker. Which just so happened to be knights greatest counter.
• Grail and Questing vow are much more substantial.
• Lore of the Lady makes your ward save even stronger, and has spells to ensure charges succeed and challenges are won.
• Your special characters are significantly cheaper, and some of the new ones are borderline broken.
• Grail Knights are T4.
• SO MANY new units.
• Pegasus Knights went from being the strongest unit on your roster but limited to a single unit per army to an even stronger unit with typical limits. 10pts cheaper and a better armour save for the loss of vanguarding.

Cons

• Peasant Bowmen went from being the most cost-effective core missile troops to mid-tier.
• Trebuchets are more expensive, and you can take less of them.

Army Special Rules

• The Lance Formation: Basically the same as before, except now they only benefit from the Formation whenever the unit is precisely 3 models wide like monstrous calvery along with getting bonus strength on impact hits each to full rank, Double their unit strength on a successful charge and win the combat round for the purposes of denying enemy steadfast, and Fight in Extra Ranks (1) and each rider make up to 3 supporting attacks because why not. Can uniquely have 5 ranks for 15 horse buses. Your Spellcasters get to be protectively sandwiched between knights and still support (but also has line of sight for the hell of it); maybe a small bonus (actually a big one), but so a big help.

• Peasant's Duty: Your chaff can use a knightly unit's Ld if they are within 6" of each other. Also, their raggedy standards don't give enemies VP when captured.

• The Knight's Vow: Base knight rule. They can only join other basic knights. Ignore panic tests caused by friendly models.

• The Questing Vow: the Knight's Vow + reroll failed Psychology tests and join Knight's and Questing knights. They ignore the Initiative penalty of a Great Weapon on the charge, but they can't take lances.

• The Grail Vow: Immune to Psychology, a 5+ ward from Blessings of the Lady, and have Magical attacks. Characters gain +1 Leadership and can join any unit with a Vow.

• Blessings of the Lady: Gain a 6+ Ward save that becomes 5+ against ALL missile weapons. The blessing is lost if the model had fleed or refused a challenge. While this gives your knights a better chance of getting into combat, especially against shooty armies (looking at YOU Dwarves), they're also less protected when they actually get into combat against those more dangerous units/characters.

The Lore of the Lady

Lore Attribute: Favour of the Lady: When you cast a spell on a friendly unit, that unit can reroll 1's for Ward Saves. Eh, not bad. Works well with The Lady's Virtue of Valour to give that Lord of yours trapped in a challenge against a Chaos Lord a bit more survivability.

• Signature Spell: Steed of the Lady: (5/8) It's an augment only for mounted knights with a range of 18"; the upgraded version is 8+ to cast with a range of 36". The target unit acquires a Movement Characteristic of 10 and becomes Ethereal for the purposes of movement. Since making the charge is crucial for any Bretonnian army focused on knights, Movement 10 is welcome. The Ethereal helps ensure that buildings and blocking units don't stop you from getting to your target. An excellent spell, especially for Bretonnia but certainly not a game-breaker.

1. Mist of Chalons: (6/12) It's an augment that affects the caster's unit(augment effects all within 6"); Remains in Play either way. Enemy units targeting those units affected by this spell have an additional -1 to their To Hit rolls. Combine this with the new Blessings of the Lady, and your enemy will have a tough time trying to whittle you down with their shooty units. Again, an excellent spell for Bretonnia since you want to ensure your charges have as much power as possible but again, nothing to rave about.
2. Doom of Dol: (7/10) Hex spell with a range of 24". The upgraded version is cast on a 10+ with a range of 48", Remains in Play either way. Select an enemy model and a friendly character (must be a knight) that are both within the range. Whenever the friendly model targets the enemy, it will wound them on a 2+ with ignoring Armour Saves to boot! One of the areas Bretonnia lacks is in challenges, and this alone will scare any enemy general from attempting to kill your own.
   • Excellent for area denial (who in their right mind will send their general/monster/critical model against this guy?) But, this alone does not ensure victory. An enemy with high Strength and Initiative will still be able to kill you before you even have a chance to strike. It's a very nice spell, but don't expect this to save your general every time you use this.
3. Beguilement of Blondel: (8/12) Hex that Gives a unit within 24" Stupidity. Remains in Play either way. All enemy units within the range have to take a Leadership test. Should they fail, they count as having failed a Stupidity test. Overcasting also halves their Leadership when they make their Stupidity test. It turns enemy shock infantry into lumbering olfs, so your shock calvery gets the lance charge first.
4. Wrath of Righteousness: (10/15) A Direct Damage spell that affects all enemy units within a 12" radius (18" if augmented). It causes all enemy units affected to suffer D6, Strength 4 Lighting attack hits. This spell can be entertaining when involving multiple enemy units, but don't think this will save your lone KOTR unit surrounded by that block of 50 Clanrats and flanking Rat Ogres. A decent spell, plus your knights will likely be surrounded by multiple units.
5. Spiteful Glance: (11) Hex with a range of 12". Your wizard targets an enemy model. That model must take an Initiative test or be turned into a frog and removed immediately as a casualty. On its face, it is a good character sniper spell. However, almost all good characters have an Initiative of 5 or better. Target those wizards, BSB's or characters weighed down with magic items with I4 or worse (Oldbloods and pretty much all Lizardmen characters except for Skinks come to mind), and this spell should do you good for what it does.
6. The Lady's Virtue of Valour: (12/18) An Augment that affects a single unit. Roll a D6 for the unit (pick the highest on a 2d6 when Augmented), and the affected unit add +1 to their statistics for a turn with the following results:

   1: +1 Weapon Skill

   2: +1 WS & Initiative

   3: +1 WS, I, & Strength

   4: +1 WS, I, S, & Toughness

   5: +1 WS, I, S, T, & Attacks

   6: +1 WS, I, S, T, A, & Leadership.

   A very good spell, that...when used right ( and with the proper rolling luck)...you'll tear through that enemy your charging like a Bretonnian Hippogryph tearing apart a Goblin. A 9 man unit of Grail Knights rolling a 5 for this spell gives you 25 attacks at S7, I8 (with Matthias's lances anyway; otherwise I6), WS6. You won't be able to tear through that giant block of Clanrats, but against units like Chaos Warriors...you'll get your money's worth. In the description, it's implied only knights are affected by this spell...but the actual rule says no such thing. Take that as you will. On the charge and with a large enough result, knight units will see this spell used at its best but remember it is a D6 result..and your charge upon which could hinge your victory could only be aided with something that might not help it in the smallest way. Still, this spell has excellent potential in the Bretonnian army.

Overall, this Lore really well compensates for many of Bretonnia's weaknesses, and you should always consider taking this unless your running a peasant army (for whatever ill-found reason).

Equipment

Bretonnian characters love their lances so much that when they charge with a magic weapon, they can use their lances in the first battle round instead of normal magic weapon priorities.

Virtues of Bretonnia

• Virtue of Heroism: 35p. Heroic Killing Blow. It can be paired with a magic weapon and no longer only affects large targets.

• Virtue of Stoicism: The older one lets you reroll failed Break tests while this one gives you Cold-Blooded. Both cost the same, and whilst this one is an improvement, you won't find much use of this except against armies that rely heavily on Fear and the like.

• Virtue of the Impetuous Knight: 30p. you add D3" to all your charges this model is involved in. Combine this with Steed of the Lady and scare the pants off your enemy as your knights move halfway across the board to trample their units into the ground. Remember, this only helps you get IN to combat. It doesn't help any further, so be sure you have good combat gear or a spell on this guy if you intend to fight something nasty.

• Virtue of the Ideal: 30p. +2 WK, +1 I & A. May was not the general, and he brings everyone's mood down. He'll act as a nice challenger, especially with Doom of Dol. Just keep him away from your peasants, unless you want them running when the enemy so much as breaths on them.

• Virtue of Audacity: 30p. against an enemy with higher strength, reroll failed hit and wound rolls. But now, with the Lore of the Lady, this Virtue has even less viability than before. The Virtue itself is fine. It's just situational.

• Virtue of Knightly Temper: 25p. on the charge, for every hit that wounds, make another attack after saves. Generated attacks can't generate more. A nice Virtue made even better. Always consider taking this. Combine with Silver Lance of the Blessed on a Lord for a close combat monster that will reliably get 7-8 auto-hitting S6 attacks on the charge against most targets.

• Virtue of Duty: 25pts. It may not be General but adds +1 to combat resolution as long as the general is alive.

• Virtue of Confidence: 25pts. must always challenge and reroll all failed rolls to hit and to wound when challenging. With Doom of Dol and a Magic Weapon that raises Initiative, a character will rip and tear through nearly anything that it can drag into a challenge.

• Virtue of the Penitent: 20 pts. He becomes Stubborn with the stipulation he cannot join a unit for any reason...skip this unless you have a VERY specific strategy in mind.

• Virtue of the Joust: 20pts. reroll failed hit rolls when charging or using lances

• Virtue of Purity: 15pts. Knights now have a +1 to Blessing of the Lady. Grail Knights, however, now gain a 4+ Ward...for 15pts...certainly not something to put your nose up to (however, if you only want a 4+ Ward, take Talisman of Protection instead. The Grail Vow itself can cost a lot of points for something you can take for 45pts. If you're using the Grail Vow to take other things, go ahead and tag this on him).

• Virtue of Noble Disdain: 15pts. hates enemies with a Missile weapon and War machine crews. Its' unit is also doesn't take a panic test when taking 25% casualties.

• Virtue of Discipline: 15pts. enemies can't gain Outnummber bonus bearers unit. Generally, stay away from this unless you know you're fighting against a horde-reliant army.

• Virtue of Empathy: 10pts. Become a backup general for peasant's duty units and join them in giving them a hero challenger. Take this on your general. His bubble becomes 18" for peasants. If you're heavily peasant reliant, this is a near necessity. Otherwise, it's pretty meh.

Blessed Heirlooms of Bretonnia

• Silver Lance of the Blessed: 70pts. A lance that, for as long as you have the Blessing, causes all close combat attacks to auto-hit and forces successful enemy armour, and Ward saves to be rerolled, but if the wielder of this Lance flees for any reason, the Lady of the Lake bitch slaps him with D6 hits that are Flaming and Strength 4 with Ignores Armour Saves! Even more killy than before, but be sure you never ever put this guy in combat you think he won't find victory in, or he will pay for it. Expensive, but potentially very nasty, especially against high WS opponents where getting hits to stick can be a challenge. Combos extremely well with the Virtue of Knightly Temper, albeit at the cost of your entire equipment budget for a Lord.
• Sword of Heroes: 40pts. You get an extra tax of 5 points, but you also get +2 Strength instead of +1 against foes with T5 or better. It Synergizes well with Virtue of Audacity, though this combo will have to be against a specific foe to be worth it; so avoid taking this in a general list.
• Sword of the Lady's Champion: 30pts. Grail Vow only. Hey, hey, hey! 10 points taken off, and everything else stays the same. Nice. Against high Toughness armies, this 30pt wrecker will ruin the days of Lizardmen/Ork/Ogre armies and allow you to cut down their dragons/monsters like anything else. Just be sure to take some good Armor or Talismans (I recommend taking this with Virtue of Purity as both are only 45pts, and you can still take more defensive gear).

• Cuirass of Fortune: 25pts. An extra 5 points are tacked onto this one. But, you also get to reroll To Hits of 1 and Armour Saves of 1 and the natural reroll To Wound rolls of 1. A good, general piece of equipment (excellent to take with Sword of the Lady's Champion and Virtue of Purity).

• Sirienne's Locket: 55pts. Lord or Paladin only. You can't lose more than one wound each phase, Even gaining immunity to Killing blow and Multiple wounds rule. You still only have 3 wounds (2 if on your Paladin). When palling around with a life Damsel, you're going to last a long time. An excellent accessory for a Hippogryph Lord if you're worried he's going to be playing catch with enemy cannonballs.

• The Silver Mirror: 45pts. An extra tax of 5 points...must have come from the Virtues. You use this on a spell specifically targeting the magic user wielding this and its unit. The enemy can stop the spell being bounced back to them by using Dispel Die or Power Die. This magical item can only be used once and can't be used on spells that have Irresistible. However, this baby does have its uses. Example: A Slann Mage Priest has already cast 3 spells for the turn, and now he's attempting to use Fiery Convocation on your giant block of Men-At-Arms that have a Level 1 Damsel. He used the remainder of his die to successfully cast it, but your Damsel just so happens to have the Silver Mirror. The Slann has no more die to even try to dispel his own attack, and his Temple Guard along with him are set afire AND he must use future Power Die later on just to dispel it. For spells that affect an entire unit and have a high casting value, this is the perfect counter. Just be sure to engage your Troll Face beforehand for maximum levels of Lols and Rage.

• Chalice of Malfleur: 15pts. Exactly the same as before. Still pretty meh. If you do take this don't and I mean don't put this on your Level 4 Prophetess. No reason to risk your best magic-user to get one Dispel Dice.
• The Ruby Goblet: 25pts. 5 points shaved off this one, otherwise the same. But, with the new Blessings of the Lady leaving you more vulnerable in Close Combat, this is worth taking if you have plans on taking on big baddies.
• Tress of Isoulde: 15pts. Another item with 5 points reduced in price, otherwise the same. Combine this with Doom of Dol and it'll feel like your making the enemy roll for their Anal Circumference. 'Nough said.

• Banner of Defense: 25pts. Essentially gives whatever (knight) unit that has it, a 4+ Ward against ranged attacks (including magic missiles). So long as they have Blessings anyway. It's only 25 points...take it...take it and ruin the relationship you have with your best friend who just so happens to field an Artillery heavy Dwarf army...go ahead...

Expansion Magic Items

Weapons

• Sword of the Quest: 25pts. Questing Vow only. Pretty handy that you can use this as a hand weapon or a greatweapon, but whichever way you go gives you Ignores Armor. Awesome.
• The Wyrmlance: 30pts. A flaming lance that's only usable when mounted, but it provides an S3 breath weapon. Scary good, since you'll be able to mess with mobs a little.
• Birth-Sword of Carcassonne: 25pts. This sword adds +1 to Strength and forces enemies to reroll armor saves. Not bad for managing lesser forces.
• Heartwood Lance: 25pts. Another lance is only usable on horseback, this lets you reroll to wound, which is pretty meaty.
• Lance of Artois: 10pts. Yet another lance only usable on horseback, but this one suffers hard. It only grants Killing Blow on the charge, which means it will fall flat against monsters and heroes.

Armour

• Armour of the Midsummer Sun: 35pts. Heavy armor that deals a -1 to hit with both melee and missile weapons, making it strong against most mundane weapons. However, this is useless against some spells and artillery.
• Gromril Great Helm: 30pts. A dwarfy 6+ helmet that lets you reroll armor saves.
• Armor of Agilulf: 25pts. Heavy armor and shield as well as WS10?! BY THE LADY!
• Grail Shield: 15pts. Grail Vow only. This adds +1 to the Ward provided by the Blessing of the Lady.
• Orcbane Shield: 15pts. This shield forces Orcs and Goblins within 12" of the bearer to fail their Animosity rolls on a 1 or 2. The issue with this is how at this range they'd already be stuck in.
• Gilded Cuirass: 10pts. Grail Vow only. Heavy armor with 6+ regen. A good way to keep kicking.

Talismans

• Holy Icon: 40pts. Grants Immunity (Psychology) and Magic Resistance(3).
• Insignia of the Quest: 25pts. Questing Vow only. This provides a 3++ Ward, but only on the bearer's last wound. Unlike most items with a similar rationale, this actually works even against a multi-wound hit that would have otherwise killed them.
• Token of the Damsel: 20pts. Lord or Paladin only. Ignore the first wounding hit suffered before breaking, just like a certain CRB item.
• Braid of Bordeleaux: 5pts. Grants Aquatic to the bearer and any attached unit.
• Mantle of the Damsel Elena: 10pts. Grants immunity to poison and Killing Blow, which is a modest gift.

Arcane Items

• Sacrament of the Lady: 40pts. Adds +2d3 die to the Power Pool each magic phase, but you have to roll 1d6 at the end of each magic phase - a 1 means it went out and no longer works.
• Verdant Heart: 40pts. Adds +d3 to the casting roll of any Life spell. Quite useful since you want your few strong men to last.
• Prayer Icon of Quenelles: 45pts. give +1 to the Blessing of the Lady saves.
• Potion Sacre: 10pts. A cheap potion that gives +1 to a single casting or dispel die once per game.

Enchanted Items

• Mane of the Purebreed: 30pts. This requires your model to ride a horse (and only a horse, so no pegasi or unicorns), and this grants the bearer and any attached ponies +1 Strength, which...well, it helps for trampling.
• Antlers of the Great Hunt: 10pts. Lord or Paladin only. Let's you roll 3d6 and drop the lowest on a Pursue roll, which lets you crush the enemy further.
• Battle Stone of The Marquis: 15pts. One use. give +3 attack.

Magic Standards

• Valorous Standard: 25pts. Knight's, Questing, or Grail Vow only. This grants your unit Empire-style Leadership rolls, which is great.
• Twilight Banner: 25pts. This grants a unit Ethereal for a turn, which can help with focusing on a single unit.
• Conqueror's Tapestry: 25pts. A truly combat-focused standard, this adds +1 to Combat Resolution for any enemy units killed in melee or in pursuit. The iffy bit might be whether this makes ALL kills qualify or just the ones the bearer's unit made.
• Banners of Chalons: 10pts. Enemy units cannot Stand and Shoot as a charge reaction, which is incredibly useful against gunlines and archers.

Units

Characters

Special Characters

• King Louen Leoncoeur First off, the guy is now 385 points (546 mounted on Beaquis with barding). His previous, hefty as-hell price of 728 left him all but ignored, and for a good reason. Characters at half of his score could still beat and kill him, making him impractical altogether and only worth taking in fluffy or fun games. With his price reduced by 353 almost half of the original, that in itself reawakens the possibilities of a worthwhile character. First off, his stats: The new Louen has Leadership 10 (kinda strange that a king imbued with mythical powers wouldn't already have that in the first place) with no other changes to base stats. Beaquis, on the other hand, loses 1 wound and attack.
  • Magical Items: The Lion Shield remains the same. The Sword of Couronne, instead of +1 Strength, receives re-rolls failed To Hit rolls. The Crown of Bretonnia gets a small change in that all friendly units within his Inspiring Presence are automatically Immune to Panic, not just to everyone within line of sight. However, he gets a new armor piece called Armour of Brilliance; counts as Heavy Armour, and all enemies suffer -1 penalty to all To Hit rolls (close and ranged both). This affects his mount as well. NEW ITEM Lion Lance, each hit is multiplied to two hits, like mundane lances can only be used when charging. Combined with a good roll on Virtue of the Lionheart, you're potentially looking at 10 strength 9 hits. Honestly, that's some serious bling bling he's got going on. A sword that blinds people up close, a crown so shiny it inspires people, and now armour that straight up blinds people when they look at him. Louen's officially the new pimp Lord of the Old World.
  • Special Rules: The Lady's Champion rule now only has the shiny bastard a +1 armor, +4 ward from the Blessing of the Lady.
  • Now, this is where the two characters branch off considerably. The old Louen also has The Puissant Virtue, which allows him to reroll failed To Hit and To Wound rolls in challenges and counts as having a 5+ Ward. He also has the Beloved Son of Bretonnia, which means if he's removed as a casualty, all Bretonnian units must take a panic test and then become Stubborn. And finally, The Army of the King which removes the 0-1 restriction on Grail Knights and Men-at-Arms and Bowmen, becomes special choice.
  • The new Louen only has The Virtue of the Lionheart. This lets him roll a D3 at the beginning of every close combat phase, and the result is added to his Strength statistic for the phase. Now, the old Louen only has rerolls to hit in challenges whilst the new Louen has them constantly with his new pimped-out sword that shares the same name. And while he won't be able to reroll failed To Wound rolls, he does have the D3 extra Strength when he fights, as well as The Armour of Brilliance, which helps considerably since he's riding a Monster. All in all, this new Louen is a major wake-up call. Hell, his cost is cut in half should be enough, but now his survivability is aided by the fact he has a constant -1 To Hit on him at all times. Can he be competitive, I currently see no reason why he couldn't (though I still haven't had an opportunity to actually use him, mind you).
  • If you cost out all of his special rules and items to the BIG BOOK equivalents, you get about 300 pts (The Grail Vow= 30 points. Virtue of Lionheart= 15-45 points, either Might, Ogre, or Giant Blade. Lady’s Champion= 30 points (3 seeds of rebirth). Sword of Couronne= 25 points Sword of Swift Slaying, 5 for the initiative test. Lion Lance = 45 points, one round only Dragon Blade and Ogre Blade. Armor of Brilliance= 25 points glittering scales. Lions Shield= 15 points (in between obsidian amulet and trinket). Tabard of Kings= 20 points (situational, slightly weaker feedback scroll) Crown of Bretonnia=30 points (no direct comparison but 6 inches greater Inspiring Presence is double the area, and the immunity to panic less than useful, considering anything that is benefiting from it is already at leadership 10. +1 Attack & WS = 20 points, semi-fencers, blade/sword of striking.) add that to the cost of a standard Bretonnian lord, and you get 395pts. King Leon is cheaper than an impossibly pimped-out Lord. If you're in a 4000-point game, taking him is a no-brainer.

• Morgiana le Fay - The Fey Enchantress: 460pts. Stat-wise, the only change is Silvaron has been reduced to 1 Wound from 3. So be sure to keep her out of combat...I don't care how much you want to see a Unicorn impale an enemy don't take her into combat. Magic-wise, the newer one got kicked a bit. Instead of being able to use all 8 basic lores and having +2 to cast rolls for spells in the Lore of Life; she now gets to use the Life, Beasts, Heaven, Light, or Lady lores whilst adding +2 to her cast rolls for Life and Lady lores. If you loving using the Enchantress because she's the only one that can use the Lore of Shadows or Death, you won't like this one. Otherwise, it should be fine since the Lore of the Lady is very good for a Bret army (obviously).
  • Special Rules: The Supreme Aura of the Lady and Favour of the Fey remain the same. For the Blessings of the Lady, the older rules say you no longer have to pray to get the Blessings (something the new army already has without her), and any unit she's joined with gains a constant 5+ Ward Save. For the new rule, units that join her also get a 5+ Ward whilst Grail Knights get a constant 4+ Ward Save...you know what...take her into combat...with a unit of 9 or more Grail Knights. The older rules also have Spiteful Glance, only getting 1 more wound at most but not that bad.
  • Silvaron's Rules: The older one has a 5+ Ward, +2 Strength on the charge, Magical Resistance (2), and his attacks count as magical and cause fear. The new one only gets +2 Strength on the charge and Magical attacks. The advantages for the old one are kind of meh to begin with since you don't want her fighting either way.
  • Magical Items: The Chalice of Potions is changed only because her lore changed from Lore of Heavens to Lore of the Lady. Really a preferred choice here. The Girdle of Gold remains the exact same as well as the Toad Familiar. Finally, the changes in prices in minimal; the new is 510 compared to 545. This price seems to adjust only for the less usefulness of Silvaron and the Enchantresses' fewer choices in Lore; the older one is a bit better for a bit more, and the new one is a bit more focused for a bit less. Both are pretty good, but if you plan to use the new Enchantress, use a Grail Knights unit as her bunker to keep her safe (and they get that juicy, constant 4+ Ward). Overall, not bad though still just a bit on the pricey side.

• The Green Knight Both cost the same, 275pts. Stat-wise: the new is slightly better with Ld 10 for the knight himself and an extra attack for the Shadow Steed. Other than that, he remains exactly the same (with a few rules worded slightly differently, but there's a big difference between 6th Edition wording and 8th Edition; they all still result in the same way). Is he worth it though? In smaller games, he's really fun, and it is debatable if he's competitive in smaller games. In larger games, he's a fun character but not for larger competitive games.

• Bohemond Beastslayer, Duke of Bastonne: At 285pts, he is a comparatively expensive Bretonnian Lord kitted out to deal with other Lords/Heroes and Monsters. He comes with the Grail Vow, Virtue of Heroism, and gets Hatred against Beastmen, Skaven, and Orks & Goblins. However, if you're going to take him, it's going to be because of the next two unique pieces of wargear he has.
  • First: a badass mace whose head was carved from meteoric iron by dwarven smiths and the shaft carved from the thigh bone of a dragon. It increases Bohemond's Strength by 2 for a constant S6 and Multiple Wounds (2); making him a pretty scary character/monster hunter. Use Lore of the Lady on him and prepare to wipe the floor with everyone aside from resilient, named characters.
  • Second: a shield that actually breaks other magical weapons. For however many hits that this model suffers, roll a D6. On a 6, the magical weapon used against this model breaks and can't be used for the rest of the game.

• Tancred, Duke of Quenelles: 235pts. Like Bohemond, this Duke is just a Bretonnian Lord specialized for a certain type of enemy...this one is specialized for Undead. His blade of banishment wounds undead models automatically...not a 2+ rerolling 1's...AUTOMATICALLY. And in case that wasn't enough, you get to ignore any armour undead models have. His shield also forces all models with the Forces of Destruction to hit him with a -1 modifier (and not in the AoS sense: but all chaos forces, Dark Elves, Vampire Counts, Orks & Goblins, Beastmen, and Skaven). He also has a small draught that lets him gain D6 Strength for a single turn, should you find yourself against a non-Undead enemy. If you know your fighting Vampire Counts, he's not a bad choice though wounding automatically with 4 attacks won't help much against a V.C. army completely made up of Zombies, Skeletons, and Necromancers...but against a Deathstar of Blood Knights with a Vampire Lord...you'll relish the horror etched on your opponent's face.

NOTE: Unlike in previous editions, currently in the 9th, Vampires and Blood Knights no longer have the Undead special rule. Tancred's sword specifically states it only works against things with the Undead special rule. Hopefully, this is an oversight Tancred's weapon will get updated.

• Joan of Arc Repanse de Lyonesse: 185/201pts. A pretty odd Character. She's a Standard Bearer...with Terror...and a Magical Resistance of 3. Her sword saps other magical weapons of their properties and makes them mundane, but only for as long as the model is in base contact with Repanse. Her flag is also an oddity in that it only gives you one power die from your enemy, and you add it to your dispel die, more of an unsubstantial gimmick than anything else. Hell, she's just about as expensive as a geared paladin with the stats of a faster Knight of the Realm Gallant. She's definitely not a fighter, though she isn't...Bad per se. Hell, seeing a single, crazy peasant woman chasing around whole units with terror can create a few laughs. Her best use is pairing up with a Dueling lord to turn off his opponent's best gear (it's cheating, you know, to use enchantments against a servant of the lady). Also, don't dismiss how much protection getting a 4++ ward against magic attacks is.

• Armand D'Aquitaine: 215pts. Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to introduce the bane of all Skaven and Goblin lists everywhere. He has the Bretonnian Lord profile except for 3 attacks...but it is not for him specifically that you bring this guy...it's his banner. Now, allow me to quote directly from the source so you don't miss a single, glorious word.
  • Banner of the Lady (Magic Standard): This banner was first carried by Gilles le Breton himself, who rode to victory under the Lady's benevolent gaze, instilling fear of Her wrath into his enemies. It was blessed by the Lady of the Lake herself and bore her image.
  • All enemy units with at least one model in base contact with the bearer of the Banner of the Lady get no combat bonus for ranks. In addition, they lose 1 point to their Leadership (after applying any other bonuses) for every point of rank bonus the unit carrying the Banner of the Lady has.
  • HELLLOOO Skaven...your unit of 50 Clanrats is looking mighty fine tonight...you wouldn't mind if I just slide over and POUND YOUR ASSES INTO THE FUCKING FLOOR LIKE THE LITTLE WHORES YOU ARE!!?.... Ah-hem...anyway. And if you weren't sold yet, he also has Virtue of the Knightly Ardour, meaning he can counter-charge an enemy, literally. Not a little bonus like 40k's version, but an "Oh...you wanted to charge me? Nah, bitch, I'm uh charging you." If an enemy declares a charge against the unit this model is a part of (and that unit is in its front arc), you can choose to countercharge. First, you must pass an Initiative test then you both roll your charging distance. If your roll is higher than your enemies, their charge is nullified, and you charge that enemy with all the bonuses of a regular charge. Do I really need to type anymore? Just bring Armand, alright guys? It's that simple.

• The Hermit knight of Malmount: 165pts. An unknown Grail Knight with a Penitent Vow and a major deathwish. He's pretty much your melee monstrosity built for the single purpose of mauling things, and he has three uses of a special wine that lets him add +d3 Strength to make him kill the enemy harder than before.

• Sir Amalric of Gaudaron: 175pts. This guy's pretty much made for killing the undead. Though he has a 4++ Ward and Magic Resist 1 to keep him from being so useless, he pretty much always dispenses instant wounds against any undead in base contact.

• Odo d'Outremer and Suliman the Saracen: 220pts. If you get Odo, you can get Suliman, and they act as a team. They can be attached to a unit. Why would you want them? Odo's Morning Star of Fracasse - he gets +2 S on the first round of combat, and for every hit in close combat in the first round, roll a d6. For each 4+, destroy a magic weapon. His Gauntlet of the Duel forces those he challenges to fight. With a basic WS of 6, he can be a good magic hunting unit for 135 points. Suliman is a toss-up - 85 points for what's basically a Paladin with +1 I and causing Fear on the charge.

• Tristan the Troubadour and Jules the Jongleur: 175pts. Hard to kill Knight and Bard. Decent gimmick unit. Fortunately, the two of them can split up after deployment, allowing you to throw the bard to act with an annoying band of peasants while Tristan's songs bolster his own band.

• Betrand the Brigand: 140pts. Basically, Robin Hood, Bretonnian style. Comes with 2 additional models, Hugo le Petit (Little John) and Gui le Gross (Friar Tuck), and the option to attach a unit of Herrimaults for BS4 at 10 pts a model.

• [[[Alberic of Bordeleaux]]: 175/199/360 pts. The knight with Trident of Manann. He got rules because he was playable in total war. A cheap support lord, rerolling 1's to hit and trident that summons a 2d6 S3 bound spell tidal wave.

• Roland the Marshal: 145pts. Paladin Support hero, in addition to his Virtue of Stoicism(gives unit lizardman coldblooded), he gives 12" +1ld to rally test, he counts as a musician, and has a horn that turns off all flying rules for the enemy for a turn. Ok at the role of keeping knights in the fight, presents form run of the field, and shutdown flying units.

• The Knight of the Perilous Lance: 140pts. Nameless Paladin with +1 WS&I, that's all about his lance, Virtue of the Joust(reroll lance hits) with a lance that ignores armor on the charge, plus has a parry(6+) save. Makes for a Strong shock-assault duelist (it's like Jousting).

• Jasperre the Fair, Slayer of Malgrimace: 180pts. Paladin on Pegasus that focuses on monster slaying. Has Virtue of Audacity (so rerolling hit and wound rolls against big things), the lance that lets him Deal 3 S7 Multiple Wounds (D3) attacks that, and when fighting a monster, if you add up wounds inflicted + 6D, if you get 6+, the monster instantly dies. Also well protected with a boosted 5++ Blessing of the Lady, Fire immunity, and -D3 attacks from monsters (exploding rider).

• Reynard the Hunter: 125pts. Paladin, who loves hunting, comes with two hounds and a bird range attack(like Wood-elves). Gives Mounted Yeomen he is with The Knight’s Vow, and his lance ignores Natural armour saves and prevents them from attacking if he wounds them first(if he beats them in initiative).

Generic

• Bretonnian Lord: On par with the Empire's Grandmasters. His basic gear, rules, and stats remain the same as well as his points, 110 vanilla. But with many virtues having a 5pt discount, they get a bit more money to spend on other things for their Magic Item allowance. However, the Questing and Grail Vows now cost more, so it balanced out. (However, since the Vows aren't under the Magical Item allowance, they still get just a sliver more allowance with particular Virtues meaning you can now take that Magic Item that used to be JUST out of your budget for him. All basic weapon options (Lance, G. Sword, etc.) remain the same price, but a Warhorse is now 3 more points for him but 5 fewer points if he takes a Pegasus.
  • And while you can be upset that you have a specific pool of Magical Items about a fourth the size of the original, chances are you probably didn't use them too much. And you'll probably find a suitable replacement in the Rulebook's generic Items. Overall, pretty much the same Lord except for a much better Hippogryph.

• Prophetess: Your lord caster with Life, Beasts, Heavens, Light, and the Lady and has magic resistance of 2. you can ride up in on a horse, unicorn, Pegasus, or a Sacrosanctum of the Lady. She is protected in the second rank when riding with knights while still lending full support.

• Damsel: Your hero level Prophetess but with magic resistance 1. She can only ride a horse.

• Faceless: These are generally the leaders of the Herrimaults and don't show their face for great justice. For each Herrimaults you buy, you can get a Scout and Sniper longbower with some magic allowance. Proper for sniping out an enemy Wizards and other support heroes.

• Paladin: Your BSB and Hero/Monster Hunter

• Templar Crusader: Those knights that have taken apart of the crusades and had found themselves Bretonnian structure. At 55pts, you are not buying a Paladin, but a supporting character that grants Hatred to a unit of knights. A Big Death square of KotR with Templar + War Banner or Knight Errant with Errantry Banner.

• Priestess of Shallya: Serving the pleasant Goddess of healing. These gals are good for one thing: turning that Men-At-Arms or Grail Pilgrims tarpit unit into an inescapable quagmire. She sits safely in the second row, for starters, making her practically unattackable except by character sniper spells. She Gives the unit she's a part of a Regen(6+)(though she doesn't benefit from this). At 50pts and with potent prayers, the Priestess of Shallya is always a worthy investment, even if you take a single unit of Men-At-Arms. If you're taking an all knight army, don't take her. Her worth is solely with the peasants. These gals know three Augments prayers (Power Level of 3):
  • Shallya's Endurance: The unit she's a part of gets +1 Toughness though she again doesn't benefit from this. This is the main reason why she makes Men At Arms so good at tarpiting. A unit with models only 4pts at Toughness 4 (with 6+ Regen to help turn that 20 wounds into 36) is definitely something your enemies will avoid taking headlong. However, once they realize all of these bonuses are coming from her, they will gun for her.
  • Compassionate Mind: Her unit gains Immunity (Psychology) and Stubborn. So not even Terror and enemy stacking up Combate score bonuses will make the brick run.
  • Purify: All Hex spells affecting friendly units within 12" are automatically dispelled. This alone is worth the cost...but you also get to inflict D6 S5 hits on Undead or Daemonic Units when in base contact with the Priestesses unit.

Mount

• Warhorse: you know about horses, their fast humans that stronger humans ride on. Bretonnia characters get better humans as they are not affected by Barding penalties (only this is only relevant if you're running a knight solo).

• Royal Pegasus: better tougher, fighter, winged humans.

• Royal Hippogryph: this baby has gotten some nice upgrades. Monster for 150pts. You also have the option of giving it several upgrades: including Armour Piercing, Multiple Wounds (2), Frenzy with Hatred, and Devastating Charge with Charge Bonus (1). So, while you won't want always to put this on your Lord, you should do it if you have the right kit and a sufficient amount of points to put into him without jeopardizing the overall performance of your army too much.

• Unicorn: a bigger, stronger, faster horse with a magic horn, if you ever want to charge your wizard lord to lead the lance formation or more sensible reason of more points of movement and Toughness.

• Sacrosanctum of The Lady: a Support cart that Generates a magic dice and has 3 bound spells. See below for more.

Core

• Knights Errant: Any list will do well to include a bus of 9 of these bad boys with the Errantry Banner for cheap S6 attacks on the charge. However, they are harder to control like any frenzy unit. I'd recommend forgoing Knights of the Realm in smaller games if these filled up your core.

• Knight of the Realm: your standard and most plentiful among Bretonnian knights. They Have better WS and Ld than an Errant and can take magic standards. They are your minimum cost elites, not as powerful as other knights, but you can take more of them for board presence.

• Man-At-Arms: No longer are these guys an awful, sub-par, piss-poor unit suitable only for tarpiting. Trade shields and halberds for +1WS, +1Ld, and -1pt. You can give em back shields and halberds for one point each. And upgrade them to medium armor for another point. You can give them a good variety of loadouts, making them a bit more fun and now ̶t̶h̶e̶y̶'̶r̶e̶ ̶f̶i̶n̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ ̶a̶b̶l̶e̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶s̶t̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶o̶e̶-̶t̶o̶-̶t̶o̶e̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶b̶a̶s̶i̶c̶ ̶i̶n̶f̶a̶n̶t̶r̶y̶ Hell they are a pt cheaper than Halberdiers for only one less leadership. Now, even still, don't expect them to carry the game or be able to do things your knights do (which is anything awesome)...but now they're a nice, standard infantry unit you can entrust to "hold the line."

• Peasant Bowmen: The general buff to missile units does not go amiss on these units. They are deadlier than ever with no long-range penalty and the ability to fire two shots if they didn't move. Light Armour is only 1/2ppm now. Flaming arrows are more expensive if you're taking units bigger than 10 (5pts per unit vs. 1/2pt per model) also lose the ability to skirmish. Lastly, they gotta pay 1ppm for defensive stakes.

• Peasant Levy: These guys/gals are just peasants with absolutely no training nor military equipment to speak of. These guys are your cannon fodder...that is their sole purpose... don't ever think they'll amount to anything else. At 2 points a model, these guys can come in ungodly large blocks without breaking your point allowance, even if you give them a weapon (Spear and shield are worth a thought for minor durability). And when your enemy sees a unit as big as Levies can be, it'll be very hard not for them to waste a shooting phase on them. Seriously, if the enemy dares even use one unit to shoot at these guys, you've probably got the value of your points from the Levies by having your enemy shoot at what is basically air and not shooting at your knights. However, they're LD4 and will run like the wind when the opportunity presents itself.

• Truffle Hound: Mushroom hunting dogs that eat some bad shrooms. They are deployable chaff. They start as models in a unit of Peasants; then, you can release them as their own skirmish unit during the charge phase. They always fail their Berserk Rage test, but they can act as seconder chaff for your chaff to block deadly lance charges.

Special

• Brigand: Bretonnia mercenaries, an interesting place in Bretonnia's armies because they are your Men-at-arms can-openers and have smuggled in the weapons of the future. They don't have Peasant's Duty, but they come out of the box with Great weapon, or they can replace it and become Crossbow or gunlines. Providing peasants line with some AP or surprise the opponent with armour piercing projectiles.

• Foot Knight: Really just KOTR without their horses and barding. If you're looking for infantrymen that are actually competent by themselves or a unit you can fairly well trust to hold an object or act as a blocking unit, you can do worse. You can give these guys Great Weapons for 2pts each to provide them with more killing power. And since they have a constant 5+ Ward (from Blessings anyway) against all ranged attacks, their footslogging nature will leave them less at the mercy of skirmishing, fast-moving enemies trying to pry them from the area they're protecting. Altogether, a nice unit.

• Grail Pilgrims: Like the Men-At-Arms, but harder to break and better in a brawl with its hatred. Can turn six of their models into a Reliquary that lets them benefit from Blessings of the lady, giving them a needed ward, especially when paired with their hand weapon and shield, one of the best anvil units you have.

• Squire: Generally nobles themselves, they serve as the personal retinue for a full-fledged knight; cooking his food, preparing his baths, polishing his armor, and generally coddling the noble bastard, all the while learning heraldry, swordplay, and learning how to behave like an uptight asshole Bretonnian nobility. Pay one point more than Peasant Bowmen for the unit with the same BS. You are paying to have WS (but they're archers) but more importantly +1 LD and Skirmisher. They can get closer to their target and maneuver while taking hits, being -1 to shoot at, more likely to pass a panic test, and still shoot the turn after they run from a charge. The question is if you need some mobile footslogging longbows in your list.

• Herrimault: Robinhoods outlaws, they're basically squires and pay another point for a scout. They're crappy in melee, meaning you don't want just to use Scout to get them closer to the enemy, so you'd probably want to use these in groups of 5 for 40 points and deploy them behind the enemy to give your enemy a nuisance or two.

• Yeoman: Your Fast Calvary peasants, provide the flanking pressure and back row hunting that barded horses often can't do. A reduction to 10pt per model can buy bows (or now crossbows) and spears back for 2 and 1pt respectively. Shields for 1pt, light armour for 1 pt, medium armour for 2pts. You can now better specialize the unit by making bows/mobile-crossbows with shields for 13ppm or Create a light calvery for 14ppm to maneuverable charge into people's rears.

• Pegasus Knight: effectively paying more to buy Knights of the Realm on better horses that can fly. With 5pts reduced to 50 points per model and given Barding as standard, they get an effective buffing. Although, they lost Stomp for the situational Impact Hit. Your air force should be sent to disable the enemy's back row. They don't get the Lance formation and all of the buffs with it. These should NEVER be taken in units larger than 5. Lastly, flying cavalry rule is no longer a thing, so they can no longer vanguard.

• Questing Knight: +1 point in cost and Strength, they are your long game knights. Welding Greatweapon instead of Lances, they start fights on the charge with S6 I4 and the next at S5 I2 without external buffs. Questing knights will hold the hill and crack some monster skulls if you're not spending money on other knights.

Rare

• Grail Knight: Your Super knights, with stats that rival generic characters. They're expensive, but they can devastate most monsters and common heroes with proper buffs. Also, finally toughness 4, so the fluff circle jerk finally has some backing on the tabletop.

• Hippogryph Knights: Practically Questing knights with lances riding Hippogryphs (Technically) flying Empire Demigryph Knights that cost 13pts more and have Blessing of the Lady but 2 worse Armour Save), they're worth 75pts per model (150points at min)! I mean...they have a pretty boss mount for something that isn't a Lord/Hero...but remember, they're a unit of Monstrous Cavalry. They'll draw the attention of every single enemy cannon and monster killing unit (Banner of Defence or Standard of Shielding is Mandatory for that 4++ Ward against shooting). They'll be going to suck up your allowance for Rare Choices quickly, and if not used right, they could just be a giant wad of wasted points and potential. Ergo, don't use them in the same fashion as the Pegasus Knights. Your Pegasi are useful as Warmachine Hunters and getting rid of those pesky Fast Cavalry puncturing your infantry with arrows. Use these guys in much more proactive ways, and don't be afraid to let them get into the enemy...at S5 with 3 attacks from their mounts, they aren't pushovers in prolonged combat (just remember to give them Barding). You can take 5 of them full Command, barding, and a standard of shielding for 460pts. Or you can take 9 Grail Knights and a Field Trebuchet for 472. One is fun, one will win you the game.

• Spirits of the Fey: Nature spirits in the form of Ghost knights. They must be deployed by ambush, entering from a water or forest feature if present. These guys count as Ethereal Animated Constructs, have a 4+ Armour Save, and have a constant 5+ Ward while also replacing D3 wounds previously lost at the end of each Close Combat when they're partially in a forest or water terrain piece! These spirits are pretty tough though their stats are nothing to go nuts about. But these spirits aren't killy. They're a tarpit almost without equal. Just be sure to remember what enemies have Magical Attacks, and you'll be fine.

• Sacrosanctum of the Lady: Your magic cart. Oh, boy. This unit is pretty good. Now, it doesn't belong in combat despite being a chariot (it'd probably be better to count it as a Warshrine) and it doesn't have any ranged abilities. Instead, the Damsel is a priest that drives along sides galloping knights to give them her blessing. And man oh man, she is good. With Toughness 5 and 5 Wounds, enemies won't be able to blow on this to make it fall apart. Just be sure you don't leave this thing open to attack because when the enemy finds out what this thing can do, they'll gun for it.
  • Shield of Faith: All Bretonnian units within 12" of the Sacrosanctum acquire +1 to their Ward save that comes from Blessings of the Lady. This needs little explanation for why this is good. (And remember that The Fay Enchantress gives Grail Knights in her unit a 4+ Ward? Well, with this, it's now a 3+ Ward AND if she casts a spell on them, they reroll 1's for Ward Saves...with this blessing, shrug off cannonballs and attacks from the likes of Kroxigor) Derp, ward saves from Blessing of the Lady can't be improved beyond 4++. Still, this will get most of your units to a 5++ (4++ against missiles) and your Grail Knights to a 4++, which is still plenty useful.
  • Radiant Light: All enemy units within 12" have -1 to both Weapon and Ballistic Skill. It helps in a pinch, especially when your knights fight against a unit with the same Weapon Skill level.
  • Renewed Valour: All friendly, fleeing, knight units within 12" automatically rally AND REGAIN THE BLESSINGS OF THE LADY!!

• Ballista: Just a standard Ballista that counts as a Bolt Thrower...oh, and you can buy a Wall Warden for 15pts (Note: you can also get these for Trebuchets, Mangonels, and Bombards) that lets you reroll an Artillery Die or a To Hit roll. Sure, it's a once-use-per-game thing, but it'll be worth it if you're targeting the Zombie Dragon that's charging your Knights of the Realm in the side when they're setting up to win that game-winning charge and you happen to miss with your first shot. It can take two as a single rare choice.

• Mangonel: Acting as the smaller, more maneuverable cousin to the Trebuchet, it counts as a normal Stone Thrower. 85pts. It can still include two catapults in a 2000pt game.
• Bombard: Essentially acting as a Trebuchet that's a cannon...it can't pivot on the spot nor move. Still, it packs quite a wallop...with the additional disadvantage of having an additional -1 Modifier when rolling on the Black Power Misfire Chart. Up to you if the more limited mobility is worth the greater killing power (although you can easily buy two Ballistas as a single rare choice and still have about twenty-five points leftover instead of a Bombard.)

• Field Trebuchet: Unlike almost all other units, the Trebuchet has now lost a good part of its viability. First, it's now 10pts more. And with other units able to handle elites much better, especially with the new lore of the lady it is no longer an auto-include.

Building Your Army

Start with a BSB Paladin on a horse (dur), any other Hero/Lord character on a horse, and a unit of 9+ Knights of the Realm. These are the basics of the Bretonnian army. After that do whatever you feel, use peasants if you want to recreate a peasant rebellion or a Crusades era army.

Buying Your Army

Update: for those devout neckbeards that want to stick to games workshop minis Cawdor from Necromunda make excellent peasants and monks with some conversion. Empire pistoles using bits from Cawdor like the heads and spears and shields from empire or Sigmarmarines make great yeomen. If you watch eBay a lot you can find bits but if you don’t want to wait, forgeword has the bright crusader upgrade kit which gives you knight-looking heads and torsos and the tokens in the set can make great standard-bearers with some brass rod using a drill bit. Sigmarines -sequitors the ones with robes make great foot knights although they tower over regular troops. Lord of the rings minas Tirith trebuchet is perfect for obviously the trebuchets. The new luminary aelf cavalry with head and shield swaps would make decent Bretonnia cavalry- Maybe influenced by Araby. If you can find wings (really hard to find wing bits on eBay from Games Workshop) knight Pallador(the Sigmar guys riding giant gryph hounds) make a great Pegasus. Lord Arcanum on Tauloron is a great Hypogryph. Hardly any conversion is required. The new lumineth chick on foot with the giant chalice is a perfect damsel on foot. Wood elves: sisters of the thorn and the great stags they ride would make the best or closest to mounted damsels [lol sexual pun not intended] Using the two-handed swords from the empire great sword kit- usual bits from eBay but if you get the kit the heads are great for knights, you can convert the lumineth cavalry into questing knights. Sigmarines have a lot of holy-looking heads and iron halos so you can make a bit of them with the lumineth cavalry to make grail knights. btw this army will be expensive as all Games Workshop shit is but all of the models are ace and will look amazing all converted and painted so don’t be too discouraged.

Unfortunately, GW had booted most of all its human knights (for now), can still use flagellants as Grail Pilgrims, and remount AOS Remlord horses with human parts.

There is an alternative for those who love mass conversions for themed armies and that is the "Legion of the Grail Damned" route.

Basically, you can use a large chunk of the Undead models from Mantic Games' Kings of War game as undead Bretonnians, they're way fucking cheaper than GW prices, they look very similar to French Medieval armour designs and the models can cover most of your unit types: the Trebuchet, Grail Reliquary, Pegasus Knights, Lords and Prophetess/Damsels of the Lady are the only ones you can't do, or rather you can but the model designs look less like fallen from grace and more like actively embracing the dark side.

Another route for obtaining cheap knights is fireforge games. They do; Teutonics (KOTR or Grail knights), Templars (KOTR or Errants), Mounted Sergeants (Yeomen) and Sergeants on foot (MaA/Bowmen as each pack comes with 24 crossbows) each box has decent size units (12 knights per pack and 48 infantry per pack), what makes it even better you say? They are also PLASTIC and come with a fuckton of extras for conversions (Questing knights?). All in all a perfect way to say fuck you GW! Although smaller than current GW plastics (what isn't?) they do scale perfectly with OOP bretonnians who can also be bought dirt cheap off eBay and used as grail knights... just an idea. Whilst I'm shamelessly plugging other miniature companies I have used in my own collection (proof) i might as well give a shout out to the lazy forger who does the best (and cheapest in terms of appearance at 10 euros) trebuchet on the market.

Another good thing to remember; if you use 3rd party miniatures in GW stores staff members will tell you to fuck off out the door and ban you, all before your models get out of the carry case. However, Perry Miniatures do some War of the Roses and Hundred Years War miniatures that you *might* be able to pass off as GW archers- just don't draw attention to them. Actually, who gives a shit, it's not like you'll play in a GW store anymore.

Army Composition

Aim for a majority of knights, Knights, Knights, and Knights. You cannot play this army without Knights, so embrace the men of horse and steel.

The question is what percent and flavor of peasant should make up your anvil and knights for your hammers.

Full of peasants, with hoards that outnumber even goblin and skaven, supporting Hypogrigh and grail knights, or go full lances with your core only being knights with Grail pilgrims holding the line.

Peasants are a secondary concern, but there's room in most armies for some Bowmen and Men-At-Arms. Grail Pilgrims are a solid flank unit.

Trebuchet are good take 2 and surround them with meatshields bowmen

Magic

• Life: protecting knights more with natural armour, Regen, and rais slain modles.

• Beasts: buff knights more with Strength and toughness, while also being a mobile bolt thrower.

• Heavens: start with an ice attack, then get lighting attacks at higher levels to fry heavy armour.

• Light: keep peasants in line, let knights go before elf cav, stop enemy cav from getting the charge before you

• Lady: Designed for a Damsel riding with grail knights, buffing them, and hexing enemies.

Tactica

• Dysentery, or the power of the lowborn: Many Bretonnian players ignore the peasant units (other than the trebuchet) and to be fair it's not hard to see why: they are slow-moving units in a fast-moving and generally offensive army, made all the worse by the fact that their leadership is miserable if they are away from the knights. Unlike the shinier nobles, they also die to a swift breeze and deal low damage. However, each of them (except for Mounted Yeomen) can do something that no other unit in your army can. The role of men at arms and pilgrims was already discussed: they are the only units in your army that can die without you caring. Sometimes the best way to deal with some units is simply to send these peasants their way: a horde of men at arms with the prayer icon is more effective than the pilgrims but will suffer without a knight nearby, while the latter are more independent and start with the blessing (and stubborn to replace the steadfast). Archers fill a completely different role. While they are still expendable, they are even squishier than the other two and their higher price (compared to men at arms) means they should not be used the same way unless absolutely necessary (but DO charge a unit that is threatening your knights if you can get away with it). Besides the already mentioned distraction and light ranged damage, there are two things archers can do: they can help you in the deployment, and they can scare your opponent. Now, starting with the latter as it apparently makes no sense: who would be afraid of such weak ranged units? Well, let's say you have then fire against a dwarven Warmachine crew. Statistically speaking, they will deal very little actual damage. Still, the Warmachine is expensive, and the dwarven player does not want to risk losing a costly unit to a few lucky shots: you've forced your opponent to deal with a throwaway unit, and you've gained an advantage. Using bowmen against expensive units that are relatively squishy is a good bet. The other use for bowmen is to take them in 10 men units since they can still do their job in low numbers, unlike men at arms. Place them first during the deployment: your opponent will have to place at least a few of the units vital to his strategy, and since you are deploying your knights after them, you can place your own important units to counter them. So, while your peasants are not vital to your army and you can play Bretonnia without them, they offer you new tactical options and are far from useless. As always, play your army your way, but don't shut your eyes to potential opportunities.

• Using the Lance: The lance is essentially unique amongst Warhammer formations, and most of your hammer units need to form it to be effective. The minimum viable size for a Bretonnian Lance Formation is usually 9 or so (even Grail Knights are liable to get hammered in lower unit sizes). Here are a few tips about using it:
  • Mind the Flanks: The usual minimum viable size for a Bretonnian Knight unit is 9 guys in 3 ranks of 3. A Cavalry model has a flank as long as 2.5 to 2 and 2/3rds the size of a usual infantry unit, meaning a 3 by 3 unit has a flank the length of a unit of 7 to 8 ranks (for context, instead of 9 models, they would have a minimum of 35-40 models). What does this mean? You are ABSURDLY vulnerable on the flanks. A unit that gets pinned doesn't get lance formation, is easy to break its ranks, and will generally start to take casualties REALLY quickly. So you need to watch the fuck out on the flanks. Pegasus Knights on the flanks are great at discouraging small units but will crumble in the face of dedicated combat units above a certain size and strength (20 man units of High Elf special units, for example, will fuck your shit up). This problem can largely be avoided by playing a multiple small unit army since knights are surprisingly effective tarpit and a lance of 9 is not that expensive.
  • Minimum Frontage: The Lance Formation is only 3 guys wide, which, aside from compounding the above problem, gives you reallllly small areas you can draw a line of sight in. This only comes into play with fast-moving MSU armies (Elves mostly), but it can cause issues. Seeing you set up a next turn charge could cause a unit to go marching out of your Line of Sight, and you wheeling to try and get them back in could screw up your battle line or leave you open to flank charges. A couple of ways to avoid this is to stay far off (the farther you are away, the larger your line of sight) and to not be too proud to take a charge you're not as fond of. Unless it's not a fight you can win, taking the charge you want less is better than losing the unit wheeling around too much.
  • Lance Size: Most people prefer lances 9 men strong. Smaller lances generally can't beat anything (ranged units aside) on the charge and their only possible use would be to tarpit things with the knight's 2+ armour, a job best reserved for the peasants. Bigger lances have a few advantages. The first is the ease with which they break steadfast: a 15 men (including heroes if you want) lance will generally remove steadfast from nearly every elite unit that costs the same as them. They can also lose a few models without losing their efficiency and have a good synergy with items like the mane of the purebred and the ruby goblet. The problem is that you will have fewer units, which means that you really have to make the most of the charge, trebuchets, and archers to rout the charged unit on round 1 of combat, or you will be flanked and destroyed.

• Dealing with Infantry: In the age of the infantryman, the Bretonnians have suffered, but not as much as some people would have you believe. However, you do have to play smart because a bad charge will, at best, get your knights stuck in pointless combat against a tarpit or, at worse, kill your expensive unit. So, know how to identify what kind of block you are facing so you know what you can use against it.
  • Deathstars: By "deathstar," we mean an enormous unit of potent troops that is often the center of the opponent's strategy. These often have at least one character, usually multiple strong ones, and have many ranks, so they can have steadfast even after losing a lot of models. An army could technically have multiple deathstars, but this is usually to your advantage as such an army has extremely poor map control and little flexibility. In any case, your opponent expects you to engage this unit, so don't. I don't care what you think your grail knights will do, they won't break them on the charge, and then they will get slaughtered. Focus all your trebuchet fire and dwellers below on it, but otherwise, don't engage it unless you must. If you must, delay them with a mob of men-at-arms with the blessing. The knights should only attack if the deathstar is weakened enough and there are no other threats. An only exception is a suicide unit if killing a specific character in the deathstar is worth losing the unit.
  • Tarpits: Tarpits are units designed to keep your units busy, so, again, try not to engage them if you can. The problem here is that, unlike deathstars, tarpits are relatively cheap, so you will likely have to deal with one of them sooner or later. How you do so depends on the tarpit. If they are a horde of weak, cheap units, soften them up with archers and then charge with a unit of knights of the realm. The knights will have to grind through it, but they are unlikely to suffer losses, and as long as they are not flanked, they should win combat and eventually break the enemy (key here being eventually). We do not recommend men-at-arms simply because most tarpits are more cost-effective and have more ranks so that the low leadership peasants will cost you. Grail Pilgrims, on the other hand, work well. The different type of tarpit are things like warriors of Tzeentch with shields or dwarven hammerers. These are taken in smaller units and survive by not taking damage (warriors) or being stubborn/unbreakable (the latter). The knights should avoid these at all costs and, like the deathstars, make good trebuchet targets. In melee, they are good targets for men-at-arms, especially if they have the blessing, as they will lose combat but, being cheaper, will have steadfast and won't break for a decent amount of time, and with their halberds, they might just deal some damage back. As mentioned before, send your lord in a pinch: even the likes of white lions/hammerers will struggle to hurt 1+/1+/5++ when only 3 models can attack.
  • Elite Infantry: Warriors of Khorne, Saurus Temple Guards, Black Guard. You know 'em. You hate 'em. These guys are expensive but not enough that there are so few on the battlefield you can ignore them. They usually have good initiative and/or armor, two attacks, and good strength and leadership. And they are still cheaper than knights errant! These guys are of course still good trebuchet targets, but the two former kinds of infantry take priority, and thus you will be forced to fight these guys. Men at arms will simply be butchered, and knights of the realm will lose models even before they attack, and after the charge, it will quickly turn into a massacre. You have three options to deal with these guys. The first is to multicharge. This is the worst of the three because you lose the advantage of the low frontage of the lance formation, but you might just kill enough to break them. The second option is a "massive" unit of Knights Errant. Yes, it is expensive, but a unit of 15 knights-errant with a damsel with the mane of the purebreed will beat a 25 men unit of Khorne warriors with halberds and remove their steadfast at about the same cost while taking relatively few casualties. Not a lot of units can do that. The third is, of course, grail knights. They are more vulnerable than chaos knights, but on the charge, they pack the same punch or more by virtue of the lance formation, and since they benefit from ranks, they can actually remove steadfast on round 1 of combat. Flanking with questing knights is great but, of course, depends on you outmaneuvering the opponent.
  • Other Infantry: As the name says, your average infantry. Not too cheap, not too expensive, not too deadly, not too weak. These are the ones you want your knights of the realm targeting. They will deal decent damage on the charge and, as with weak tarpits, will grind through them eventually. Multicharging works great here, and two units of knights of the realm can punch through the enemy lines if they choose their targets right. They will likely deal minor damage to your 2+ armor save and WS4 and ward save. The exception is infantry armed with ranged armor-piercing weapons. Either flank them with pegasus knights or have one of your units carry the banner of Châlons. Otherwise, your knights will die before they even get close.

• Agincourt Gambit - You are Bretonnia. You have the cheapest longbowmen in the game, and 6 points a pop can buy you a lot of arrows. Your longbowmen are the leading killers of your force, you knights in position to counter charge and hammer units that arrows have softened. Your enemy will focus on the knight since, obviously!, that is the threat of a Bretonnian army, when it's the archers that will whittle down his units so your knights can lance them to bits.

• Dealing with Undead - These armies are unbreakable by default. This leaves you with some issues in that while you will most likely win the first round of combat, you will get mauled trying to finish off the unit. The best way to deal with them is unit by unit. Crush each one completely before moving on to the next. As far as to kill priorities, generals and Wizards should be at the top with things like Grave Guard or other elite infantry avoided or blapped. Challenges are a very unwise move unless you are ready to face one of the strongest duelist champions/lords in the game, the other being Chaos lords/champions.

External Links

The Project's website

Warhammer Army Project Tactics Articles
General Tactics	About 9th edition Magic Items Magic Tips Regiments of Renown
Forces of Order	Albion Amazons Bretonnia Cathay Cult of Ulric Dwarf Empire Estalia Halflings High Elves Kingdoms of Ind Kislev Lizardmen Nippon Wood Elves
Forces of Destruction	Beastmen Chaos Dwarfs Daemons of Chaos Dark Elves Orcs & Goblins Skaven Vampire Counts Warriors of Chaos Zombie Pirates of the Vampire Coast
Unaligned	Araby Dogs Of War Hobgoblins Norse Ogre Kingdoms Pirates of Sartosa Tomb Kings