Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Old/Order/Phoenix Temple

These rules have been succeeded by the Cities of Sigmar Battletome.

These guys have now become their own faction. You can run then alone (as they actually have leaders and battleline units) or as part of an allied force.

Why Play Phoenix Temple

Pro

• Because you want an entire army of awesome looking models.
• Because you want an army that laughs at morale while your opponent suffers from worse battleshock tests.
• Because you want an entire army that can easily laugh off cannonballs and mortal wounds.
  • In addition, you want to remember the glory days of WHFB where Phoenix Guard and High Elves in general were obnoxious.
• People with no prior experience against PG will underestimate you with your lack of proper allegiance rules!(but you also probably should run PG themed army using GA Order to get some more tasty support pieces).

Con

• Limited unit options. You're not exactly spoiled for choice with only 4 warscrolls.
• No unique allegiance abilities, meaning you'll be left lagging behind the unique mechanics of other factions. Hopefully GW will fix this one day by releasing a battle tome for all non-Daughters of Khaine or deepkin Elf armies.
• No access to any ranged units without allying in other armies. Your force is entirely close-combat oriented, which is not entirely a bad thing as the game places more emphasis on movement and close combat.
• Expensive in both money and points. While you don't have it quite as bad as other armies (Daughters of Khaine), your basic troops cost $41 for 10.

Rulebooks

There isn't currently a Battletome for Phoenix Temple.

• The Grand Alliance Order book has all the Warscrolls and Battalions.
• This should be supplemented with the Grand Alliance Order Errata and Designers' Commentary from the FAQs.
• Matched play points are in the General's Handbook 2019.
• Alternatively up to date Warscrolls can be found in the WH AoS app.
• Due to be included in the upcoming Cities of Sigmar battletome.

As with all factions you'll want:

• The core rules are either downloadable or in the Core Book.
• Games taking place in a Realm need the Realm of Battle rules from the Core Book.
• In you want to take advantage of realm specific artefacts you'll need the Artefacts Of The Realms section from the Malign Sorcery book.
• Matched play battleplans are split across the Core Book and General's handbook 2018.
• All books should be supplemented with any updates from the FAQs.

Warscrolls

The common keywords of these warscrolls are: ORDER, AELF and PHOENIX TEMPLE.

Leaders

• Anointed: Same brutal save as Phoenix Guard, makes them not take Battleshock tests (but they don't need it, they're very brave by themselves), unbinds one spell per turn like a wizard and is decent at combat. He has a command ability that allows PHOENIX TEMPLE units within 8 inches to re-roll failed wound rolls, making him an excellent force multiplier since your army only knows how to get stuck in to close combat.
  • Unless you really need to fill out Hero slots in your army, or you explicitly want to be able to unbind enemy spells then your first choice should always be to take an Anointed on a Phoenix of one form or another. If you have the GW model for the Anointed then you will have a Phoenix anyway, since they both came in the same box.

Troops

• Phoenix Guard: Battleline if your army has the PHOENIX TEMPLE allegiance. Elves that have been revealed how and when will they die, so if today is not the day they don't have a reason to flee, and if today is the day they don't have a reason to flee. That makes them so serious they don't talk, EVER. This right here is, wound-per-wound, one of the most powerful (if not the most) infantry of the game: 4+ save, 7 Bravery, and ridiculously good halberds, with the range of a spear (2"), the wounding power of a hammer (3+), the number of attacks of paired hand weapons (2), and all at 3+ to hit, because the Phoenix Guard is also frickin' skillful. But the thing that makes them broken is their save-after-the-save of 4+ against wounds/mortal wounds. So, against things without Rend, they will suffer 1/4 of the wounds the enemy manages to inflict upon them. And this secondary save is a "ward", meaning Rend doesn't do a thing to it, so even against the most powerful Monsters or Heroes, they'll only take half damage. Also any enemy unit within 3" of them suffers one more loss as a result of a Battleshock test, while the Guard doesn't even take the test if an Anointed of Asuryan is within 8". To sum it all, they hit like a truck, they're gods on the defense, they win any attrition fights, and they laugh at shooting/artillery/magic. They only have one "weakness": they lack any Rend, so it will take them a little more than usual to defeat heavily armored opponents (but they'll do it). They'll excel at whatever task you use them for: holding the line, spearheading the offense, killing Monster/Heroes, protecting vulnerable areas, they do it all. The ultimate all-rounders. Did I mention these guys took a price reduction in AoS 2.0?

Behemoth

• Flamespyre Phoenix: Also counts as LEADER if ridden by an Anointed. It is a hard to kill SOB who is 2W/1SV less than a dragon but is more than compensated for because of his awesome defensive abilities, and when coupled with an Anointed rider it becomes an annoying bird that SIMPLY REFUSES TO DIE. If is what you are looking for, the Flamespyre won't disappoint all the while turning enemies to ashes and potentially coming back over and over again for more punishment.
  • The Attuned to Magic ability extends his survival by adding +1 to saves on a 2+ roll each time a spell is successfully cast (whether unbound or not) within 12", this buff lasts until the players next hero phase. OH MY. Keep your allied wizards close and you can potentially get stacking bonuses since it doesn't actually specify that it only works once each turn.
  • The Flamespyre's real trick is not only during combat but also when it moves, since its Wall of Fire ability inflicts mortal wounds simply by flying over other units; no need to roll to hit, wound or cast, the wounds are simply added. (though only on one unit at a time) If this bird has taken less than three wounds then we are talking about a napalm spray of D6 Mortal Wounds moving 16" each turn, but decreasing as the Phoenix gets more wounds.
  • If you are lucky, If/when a Flamespyre Phoenix dies (remembering your Attuned to Magic Buff, plus any additional saves from having an Anointed means this bird is hard to kill) then you roll a dice, on a 4+ the bird comes back with ALL its wounds anywhere on the battlefield more than 9" from enemy units, yes, he also teleports.
  • The Flamespyre gains the Witness to Destiny ability when ridden by an Anointed. As if the other abilities were not enough to keep this bird flying you can now enjoy an additional 4+ save each time a wound/mortal wound is inflicted on it. Having the Anointed on board also lets the miniature wield a Great Phoenix Halberd (2"/4A/3TH/3TW/-1R/1D), but the Flamespyre prefers to keep moving around burning things rather than getting stuck in protracted combats, so take the Anointed for the extra saves.

• Frostheart Phoenix: Also counts as LEADER if ridden by an Anointed. Compared to the Flamesypre Phoenix, the Frostheart is an grizzled, old, durable bastard that can protect other units. While it doesn't dole out mortal wounds the same way as its younger cousin, it does have better close combat ability as Ice-Hard Talons have a better hit rate and more attacks overall when compared to Flaming Talons.
  • Frosthearts also have the Attuned to Magic ability just like the fiery phoenix, so glue it to Wizards for more survivability.
  • Frostheart Phoenixes trade Wall of Fire and the ability to respawn for Bizzard Aura. Enemies within 9" get chilled and must apply -1 to their wound rolls when they choose to attack. This does not explicitly specify whether melee or ranged, even though the range of the aura is short, don't forget this as it might become relevant particularly when your Phoenix gets close to the enemy. This is a huge help to fragile friendly units who get the bonus just by being close to your bird. It also means you always get the bonus when charged against enemies!! The range goes down if it gets wounded, but for the most part it will always apply to itself at least, making it harder to kill if nothing else.
  • Like the Flamespyre, it can be ridden by an Anointed. In the Frostheart's case it probably benefits more, since it is the bird that is more likely to get stuck into close combat, so you'll want those extra attacks granted by the halberd, along with the buff of re-rolling failed wounds granted from the command ability. Though since it also doesn't have the ability to come back from the dead you will be depending on the added protection of the Witness to Destiny ability to keep it on the table.
  • Whatever version you pick depends on the role you want it to perform: The Flamespyre prefers a mobile strategy of gliding around and looking for units to wipe out with its mortal wound ability and potentially redeploying later in the game to continue burning units. The Frostheart is more of an anchor unit who can protect units with its aura while getting stuck in with its superior attacking potential.

Battalions

Spyreheart Warhost

Found in the Grand Alliance: Order book.

An Anointed, 2 units of Phoenix Guard and 2-4 units chosen from the following: Flamespyre Phoenix or Frostheart Phoenix

Ability: Elemental Nova: A flight of phoenixes can beat their wings in union to batter the foe with freezing blizzards or searing firestorms. In the hero phase, select one enemy unit and roll a dice for each Flamespyre and/or Frostheart Phoenix from this battalion that is within 9" of it. For each result of 4 or more, that unit suffers D3 mortal wounds.

Army Building

A good setup would be 3 Anointed, 2 of them on a Frost and Flame Phoenix respectively, and 3 units of 30 Phoenix Guard. This is versatile and strong overall.

Allied Armies

Mercenary Companies

• Blacksmoke Battery:
• Greyfyrd:
• Grugg Brothers:
• Gutstuffers: They can re-roll charge rolls but they are forced to charge at the closest enemy unit within 12". It's your call if you want to use this company.
• Nimyard’s Rough-Riders:
• Order of the Blood-Drenched Rose:
• Rampagers:
• Skroug’s Menagerie:
• Sons of the Lichemaster:
• Tenebrous Court: