Editing Warhammer/Tactics/8th Edition/Bretonnia (section)

==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 neckbeard that want to stick to games workshop minis Cawdor from necromunda make excellent peasants and monks with some conversion.
Empire pistoliers using bits from Cawdor like the heads and spears and shields from empire or Sigmar make great yeomen. If you watch eBay a lot you can find bits but if you don’t want to wait, Forgeword has a 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 even though they tower over regular troops. The Lord of the Rings Minas Tirith trebuchet model is perfect for obviously the trebuchets. The new luminary aelf cavalry with head and shield swaps would made decent Bretonnia cavalry- Maybe influenced by Araby.
If you can find wings (really hard to find wing bits on eBay from gamesworkshop) knight pallador(the Sigmar guys riding giant gryph hounds) make great Pegasus.
Lord arcanum on tauloron is a great hypogryph. Hardly any conversion 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- usually 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 gamesworkshop shit is but all of the models are ace, and will look amazing all converted and painted so don’t be too discouraged.

(The old days)
Unfortunately GW knows that you will need boxes of Knights to build your army, you will get neither enough in a single box nor a decent price. The basic plastic set can do either of the Core choices, but in typical GW fashion you will pay much more for Questing and Grail knights. Convert your own out of bits from the basic knight's box instead, the grail knights should be stripped down in terms of heraldry and you'll need to find a set of arms with two handed weapons for Questing knights, who also have less heraldry than Realm Knights. (Actually it's not that bad for Questing Knights. As long as the weapons you give them look big and chunky it doesn't matter if the arms you use are a pair. Putting a hand on the reigns or pointing heroicly will do fine.)

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 knight 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.

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 <s> meatshields </s> bowmen

Deployment is boldfaced simple.  Peasants and artillery form your soft, vulnerable, expendable centerline, flanked by knights.  Subtlety is out the window here, you should be so lucky if the enemy charges your center and then you flank them for a good lancing.  But if your opponent has any brains at all they'll care almost as little about your bowmen as you do.

===Magic Items===

* '''Vows of Bretonnia:''' Remember that a character may not join a unit with a vow higher than his own (ex: lord with knight's vow joining questing knights). Take that into consideration when planning your characters and their bodyguards. In addition, you won't confer the benefits of your vow to your unit, so you can't have Knights of the Realm immune to psychology (sorry).
** ''Knight's Vow:'' Your standard vow, it allows you to ignore panic from peasants (who are the most likely to run anyway). Nothing special, but it comes for free and most magic item options are available without the other vows, so this should be your pick unless you want something specific.
** ''Questing Vow:'' In addition to the Knight's Vow benefit, you can reroll failed psychology tests '''(Edit: the Bretonnian Errata states that the Questing Vow only allows for the reroll of Fear and Terror now)'''. This is mostly useless unless your battle standard bearer is far away or dead, but you never know. Still, there are two reasons to pick this vow: access to great weapons instead of the lance, which provide the much needed punch after the charge, and access to two solid magic items (check below). Also, remember that human initiative is crap compared to that of most other races and you don't have ASF, so always striking last isn't as big a disadvantage as it sounds, only not taking a shield is.
** ''Grail Vow:'' [[Lawful Stupid|Immunity to psychology]] is good and so is being able to join grail knights. The vow also makes all your attacks magical attacks, which is mainly useful on paladins as your lord will most likely take magic weapons but still opens new combo choices for lords (for instance, you can take the virtue of knightly temper and still be able to take ethereals down). The grail shield is also a very solid defensive item (10 points cheaper than the talisman on the book). Overall a good choice, but it costs as much as a knight of the realm, so have a clear goal in mind when taking it.

* '''Virtues of the Chivalric Knight:'''
** '''''Virtue of the Penitent''':'' Oh boy, a more expensive crown of command that doesn't allow you to join units or take additional items? Yeah, skip it.
** '''''Virtue of the Knightly Temper''':'' A bit on the pricey side, but on a Lord, this one could really help you stack up the casualties. This is one of those virtues that can be really effective, but you need to build your army around it. With the savage beast of horros, you are looking at a lord that will kill 8 or more models on the charge, or an enemy general if you took the tress of Isoulde. This makes your lord excellent at obliterating small elite units like chaos warriors, characters and, most importantly, if you give him a morning star he becomes one of your best solution to dealing with units in buildings. Just remember that if he doesn't get the charge, well, you've spent 40 points for nothing. One of the few charge-only "items" that can be recommended.
** '''''Virtue of Heroism''':'' Received a righteous buff in our FAQ. Killing blow against all targets? And we can now take magic weapons with it? Yes please. This is a great way to not rely solely on trebuchets to deal with the toughest nasties while still providing a bonus against enemy characters. Take note that your lord is also the general of your army, not a killing-blow delivery system: builds like the armour of agilulf + sword of striking may seem fun, but if your lord does not survive long enough to kill the enemy then there is no point in bringing him.
** '''''Virtue of Stoicism''':'' Good for a flank unit that will be out of the range of your BSB. Mainline units should be in range of your BSB, so use this guy for peasants in the flank (assuming the enemy does not have template weapons), if at all.
** '''''Virtue of the Ideal''':'' Make your guy a chaos lord/exalted hero without the strength, toughness or armour in exchange for making his unit and all units near him more likely to break from a fluffed round of combat. He can't be the general either. It can work (namely on a paladin on a pegasus), but in most cases it's a pass.
** '''''Virtue of the Impetuous Knight''':'' Not a bad choice, not bad at all. Remember, if you don't get the charge, you're probably fucked, so anything that helps you get the charge is good. If your opponent moves up turn 1, this could help you get a Turn 1 Charge, which is always funny.
** '''''Virtue of Audacity''':'' Since the base Strength for a Bretonnian Hero/Lord is 4, this is only going to be worthwhile against Monsters and really nasty units (you wouldn't even get it against most Monstrous Infantry). That said, it works wonders against many lord-level characters that would otherwise give you trouble: chaos, lizardmen and vampires mostly, as well as dragon-mounted elves. Don't expect it to be of use every game, but it can be a lifesaver.
** '''''Virtue of Duty''':'' Once you've gotten the charge, you need to break the enemy and a free point of static CR (as long as your general is breathing) is always worth 30 points. That said, giving your paladin a better weapon so he inflicts more casualties usually does the same.
** '''''Virtue of the Joust''':'' Decent choice and not too pricey, can be combined with items like the lance of artois to make your charge more deadly. The thing is, Bretonnia needs help AFTER the charge, so you have better choices out there.
** '''''Virtue of Confidence''':'' Challenges are a place where Bretonnian Lords/Heroes need improvement, but I can really see this one coming back to bite you when you end up in combat with a Tyrant kitted out for Bloodthirster. Or waste all your lord's attacks on a champion that keeps coming back thanks to healing magic. It can be excellent, but it can also be exploited by some armies. The problem tends to be that in friendly games your opponent knows he can exploit you. In non-friendly games challenge heroes will murder the shit out of your lord and use his ribcage as an attractive toast rack. That makes paying anything for a challenge specific (and double edged) bonus has a hard time justifying it's cost.
** '''''Virtue of Noble Disdain''':'' Good for a Paladin on Pegasus who you want to go War Machine/Shooting Unit hunting.
** '''''Virtue of Purity''':'' Well it's paying 20 points to up his Ward save from 6+ to 5+. Probably not worth it. '''Alternate take''': Considering the fact that other armies have to pay 30pts. for a 5+ ward (ie the talisman of endurance) this isn't that bad. If you're playing a smaller game this could be worth while if you have 20pts. to spare. This is also pretty good if you're not planning on praying.                                                                           
** '''''Virtue of Empathy''':'' Very questionable. You never want a paladin on foot: their stats are just too crappy and they will become free points for the enemy without the 2 extra armour from being on a horse. So the only reason you'd take it is if you want to help peasants who are away from the General or BSB (who both have 12'' range to their abilities already). That basically means it will only find use helping archers/trebs who are dead if they get sneezed at anyway.
***'''Alternate Take:''' One way I have seen this ability used effectively is to grab it for the army's standard bearer, shove him in a gigantic nest of Men-At-Arms, and give him the Ruby Goblet. The result is this bizarre nightmare of an Infantry unit that for under 300 points consists of 31 models and will consistently refuse to get off a fucking terrain objective. While pricey and gimmicky, there's something to be said for a unit capable of soaking that much fire and causing that much aggravation for the enemy formation, though it depends entirely on your own army setup.

* '''Magic Weapons:'''
** '''''The Silver Lance of the Blessed''':'' Holy Lady, look at that price tag. On average, you are hitting with two more attacks while not boosting your ability to wound/ignore armour for an outrageous amount of points. Losing this item if you lose the blessing doesn't help at all either. Like the Virtue of Knightly Temper, it has some great synergy with the Savage Beast of Horros, and it is in fact more reliable as it works every turn, but for the same price you could get the aforementioned virtue and the Tress of Isoulde. Or a sword of bloodshed which would provide more damage against non-hero enemies.
** '''''Sword of the Quest''':'' The mandatory "ignores armour" item of your army. It costs the same as the one in the Big Red Book, but the key here is that you can use it either as a one-handed weapon or a two-handed weapon, so it provides a good deal of versatility. An absolute joy to have against dwarven lords and the like. A Lord with this and the Gromril great helmet is equipped to deal with most things by either tanking (using a shield) or obliterating (using the weapon two handed).
** '''''Sword of the Lady's Champion''':'' An alternative to the virtue of heroism. Instead of being an all or nothing deal, this weapon allows you to reliably wound everything, so it can be used along with a knight charge or a trebuchet shot to deal with the most resilient monsters. Unlike the virtue of heroism, it is of little use against common soldiers (even against dwarves it's just an overpriced sword of might), and most lords immune to killing blow will blast you to kingdom come if you don't have a weapon specifically made to kill them (tip: this one ain't it). A decent weapon for dealing with monsters and very tough characters and while it can be better than the virtue of heroism in very specific instances, it's not as good overall.
** '''''Sword of Heroes''':'' Hmpf. Your third and final choice for dealing with high-toughness enemies and not nearly as good as the others. While it can be hilarious against T5 characters if the lady is on your side (as instant kills always are), not only does it not help against most enemies (like the other two do), but it is nigh-useless against really tough monsters. With the savage beast of horros or even a modest potion of strength you may very well kill even a star dragon in one turn of fighting. The problem is that unlike the virtue of heroism, there may be many games in which it will do nothing (even the sword of the lady's champion is nearly guaranteed to give you at least +1S in near every battle).
** '''''The Heartwood Lance''':'' Decent choice, makes your lord more deadly on the charge for a decent price, especially if coupled with items or virtues that allow him to hit more often. That said, during the charge against the rank and file, and even most characters, the cuirass of fortune does the same for a lower price, so this is only a better alternative in subsequent rounds of combat (when you are unlikely to wound on a 2+) or against tougher enemies. Works nicely with the virtue of heroism, if you don't mind skipping on defense.
** '''''Birth-sword of Carcassonne''':'' An all-around good choice. The extra strength is always welcome after the charge and the armor save reroll is not too bad either. Of course, if you know the enemy will only have 5+ armor saves, you are better off buying a sword of might or the like, but if you are running an all-comers list this is a good item to take, if only to help against characters who will likely have a decent (and possibly rerollable) save.
** '''''Morning Star of Fracasse''':'' A personal favourite and an absolute must when dealing with many enemy lords. Since your lords and paladins have a pretty good armor save and a ward save on top of that, usually the biggest threats against them are magic weapons that ignore armor or offer killing blow, and you can nulify these (usually much more expensive) items for only 25 points. The +2S in the first round of combat is always welcome too, since it works even if you are charged. Just make sure that you either strike first (hint potion of speed hint) or that the enemy character cannot kill you in round 1 (yeah, some of them can do that if you don't take care in with your defense/buff your character with magic). 
** '''''The Lance of Artois''':'' Killing blow on the charge for only 25 points. Works best if you have multiple attacks obviously and if you can reroll misses (hint virtue of the joust hint). Same problem as all items that are useful only during charges. Really not much else to say.
** '''''The Wyrmlance''':'' It is a cheap source of a breath weapon that, sadly, cannot be used in close combat. However, it can work great in either a paladin on a pegasus or your battle standard bearer (who cannot take mundane lances, or any magic items if they take a magic banner) to mess regenerating units up: as long as he gets one wound in, the other knights, who strike later, will ignore regeneration as well.

* '''Magic Armour:'''
** '''''Gilded Cuirass''':'' Regeneration, you have to pay a bit more than most of those who have an equivalent item in their armies. Since regeneration no longer stacks with ward saves, ignore this and skip right ahead to the grail shield.
** '''''Armour of the Midsummer Sun''':'' Way too expensive on the average lord or paladin. That said, if you plan on taking a monstrous mount for some reason (there is no reasoning with you, is there, you just want to field that hyppogryph), THEN it becomes worth its points, as it will help protect your mount too.
** '''''The Grail Shield''':'' Upgrades your ward save to 4+ against all attacks for a very good price. If you want to boost your general defense, this (and the item we will get to next) are your best choices. There are two problems though: first, your save is already 5+ base against most powerful attacks (so you are paying for a somewhat small upgrade), and second, you have to take the grail vow, which does not cost against magic items points but does mean two less knights in the army.
** '''''Gromril Great Helm''':'' One of the best items in your armory, period. It allows you to have two characters with rerollable armor saves. Combine it with the crown of command and enjoy your enemy's tears. If you take this and the Morningstar of Fracasse you can hold characters on dragons for the whole game (especially if there's someone with the lore of life nearby) and even kill them if you take the virtue of heroism.
** '''''Armour of Agilulf''':'' An interesting item. Most enemy combat character will hit you on a 3+ while you hit them on a 4+. Now you've turned the tables around. You've also made yourself more resistant to melee attacks of non-elite infantry and cavalry (and heck, even some monsters). And for a low price too. Essentially, a compromise between offense and defense, don't expect it to be as good at deflecting blows as the gromril helmet, but in exchange it will help you kill things dead. As a side note, the Armour of Agilulf is far more useful when used on a paladin.
** '''''Cuirass of Fortune''':'' Pretty good. It's cheap, and on the charge it's basically a reroll failed wounds. Really, the only reason this item doesn't shine is Bretonnia has other very good choices in this category. 
** '''''Orcbane Shiel'''d:'' Take it if you are facing orcs, don't take it otherwise. Simple, no?

* '''Talismans:'''
** '''''Sirienne's Locket''':'' Far too expensive. It seems like a good idea, but really the gromril great helm would do the same or better in 90% of the cases. The only way this thing can justify its points is if you decide to have your lord parade alone in front of a cannon to take shots instead of your unit. And even then, your opponent will fall for it exactly once, so you are saving at most two knights... which are cheaper than this item.
** '''''Token of the Damsel''':'' Meh. Can help you against a cannon ball or something, but are you really willing to spend 35 points to prevent the first wounding hit before knowing if your armor or regular ward save would remove it anyway?
** '''''Insignia of the Quest''':'' 3+ ward save as soon as you hit 1 wound? For 30 points? Hell yes! Also, nothing prevents you from healing those wounds afterwards. The only problem here is that it requires the questing vow, which prevents the use of lances, but otherwise this is a great item. This is one of the few items that actually works better on a paladin, as he will reach the 1 wound faster and your lord will likely want less risky (although not as balls-out powerful) defensive items. 
** '''''Braid of Bordeleaux''':'' Too situational to be recommended. It can help you get a charge you otherwise wouldn't be able to (and if you charge a ranged unit they will have a hard time hitting you if they stand and shoot) and the bonus leadership can be handy. But, again, too situational.
** '''''Dragon's Claw''':'' Like the virtue of purity, <strike>only for 5 more points you also get immunity to fire</strike>. This one might actually be worth it if you don't have anything else to spend your points on (how did you do that?) due to the amount of breath weapons and flaming attacks in this edition. '''FAQ states it no longer grants immunity, but a 2+ ward save vs flaming attacks. The dragon helm in the book is 15 pts cheaper, grants extra armor, and doesn't lose effectiveness if you lose the blessing. So unless you really love virtue of purity, skip this.'''
** '''''Mantle of Damsel Elena''':'' The Morningstar of Fracasse usually does the same and then some for only five points more. The Mantle does protect you against the few killing blows that don't come from magic weapons and from poison, so it's not a bad item by any stretch (it costs about as much as items that grant immunity to killing blow in other armies). The problem is that it will not make your defense by itself and may leave you with too few points to spend on offense, but it's always fun to have a lord hold a horde of grave guard or bloodthirsters for a game. 

* '''Enchanted Items:'''
** '''''Falcon-horn of Fredemund''':'' Another one of those "what were they thinking?" expensive items. Now, it is true that flyers are faster than your knights, but remember that they are usually either too weak to deal with our knights or, if they are too strong (think star dragon), they are incapable of breaking you since you are steadfast and will have something akin to a 5+/5++ save. Not to mention you have the virtue of the impetuous knight, which is cheaper and works against non-flyers. This is not to say this is not a solid choice if you have points floating around and it can really mess an opponent's plans, but never take a hero just for this item. (The Horn made more sense back when the army book was written, at that time all fliers moved 20 inches instead of 10, but couldn't march, and as charging wasn't randomised then they could pull of 20 inch charges. Then add in that most fliers had infantry level ground movement and you can kind of see where they were coming from. Still very situational even then).
** '''''Holy Icon''':'' No. If you want protection from hostile magic, get one more damsel, as this item is far too expensive. A paladin with this costs almost as much as 6 (!) errant knights while having far less hitting power and sustainability. That leaves the lord, since he has a higher budget. So now you have a lord more resistant to magic, except you'll likely have to keep him out of combat against serious opposition (even some combat heroes) since he just spent half of his magic item points on this item. And we are not even taking into account how nerfed magic resistant got this edition. So no, avoid like the plague. '''Considering the fact that the paladin is a mandatory "choice" and you WILL be taking one regardless, the holy icon really only costs as much as 2 knights errant, not 6. The holy icon is also much cheaper then taking an extra damsel (30 points cheaper in fact). It's not the best enchanted item out their, but it can be useful.''' 
** '''''The Ruby Goblet''':'' A potentially interesting item. Since your knights have elven toughness this item is more useful than it would be for, say, chaos, but it is held back by the fact that it requires you to lose models for it to take effect (although you can always use regrowth later). This means that it would only get its points back in a very large lance or in a unit of men at arms, but unlike the prayer icon of quenelles, in order to get the benefit on the unit the damsel would have to follow the unit to combat, which will likely lead to painful results for you. On the other hand, it can be used to troll gunline armies and turn the tide against great weapon wielding units.
** '''''Mane of the Purebreed''':'' You know you are playing Bretonnia when you have an item that boosts not your soldiers but your horses. This is an interesting item. In a typical lance against most infantry, this item will on average get you one or two kills. This is not enough to earn its points back, but the edge in combat resolution may be what you need... assuming you are able to remove steadfast in a single charge, which will not likely happen unless the unit in question is of Grail Knights or a 12-15 men lance. Thus, it competes with the more reliable virtue of duty, and should only be taken in the two cases above.
** '''''Antlers of the Great Hunt''':'' Not really needed, you can usually catch enemy infantry anyway and if you need to use this to catch enemy cavalry you have to consider if you are not getting too far away from the main battle line. Not a terrible choice, but you can do better.
** '''''Tress of Isoulde''':'' Fun little item. Since Bretonnian WS is not very high, you will hit most characters on a 4+, so for 20 points you are basically doubling your hits for one turn. As mentioned before, it combines well with the virtue of knightly temper against a single target (whatever it is you are targeting, 4 hits at S6 that generate additional hits BEFORE SAVES will hurt). While it only works for one turn, it does not have restrictions like the virtue of the joust and the virtue of confidence (which basically do the same in certain conditions), so whether you take it or not is a matter of preference (and if you have not used those up in another character). Extra points if your unit has the razor standard (Bye bye monster/any lord without a 3+ ward save).
** '''''Gauntlet of the Duel''':'' Interesting item combined with the virtue of confidence. While this seems like a pretty fun combo, the problem with it (and to expand a bit on the aforementioned virtue) is that not only can you get stuck facing a big bad while the rest of your unit does nothing, but you have no control on who accepts the challenge. If the unit has a champion, well you just wasted your uber lord/paladin's charge killing a miserable champion. This is extra fun if your opponent can restore wounds to the unit. It can be put to great use, just don't count on it to always work. 

* '''Arcane Items:'''
** '''''Silver Mirror''':'' Like the feedback scroll, only better (unless a truly enormous amount of dice were used, and even then this item has the advantage of dispelling besides dealing damage). Sadly, you cannot take two to troll your opponent, but this is a great item as long as you have some way of dealing the remaining one or two wounds (a trebuchet, archers or yes, a feedback scroll). If you do not, then this item is still useful to have two auto-dispels per game, which can really ruin the day for some armies (a vampire player who is suddenly unable to resurrect a single warrior for a turn may well have to rethink his game plan and force his hand).
** '''''Sacrament of the Lady''':'' This item does not exist and neither does this entry. Or you.
** '''''The Verdant Heart''':'' A fun item, but sadly very expensive. Our FAQ says it only effects enemies now, so that's a plus (it would be kinda ridiculous otherwise) and in the right circumstances can be a real thorn on your opponent's side (is he really willing to risk a unit to kill a bunch of archers with a damsel/prophetess? And, if he is, isn't that an advantage for you?). The +1 to lore of life spells is fun too. But again, it costs a lot and requires the terrain to be in your favor, but it can make your bunker all the more fun.
** '''''Prayer Icon of Quenelles''':'' The good stuff. Have you ever wanted to turn your men at arms into a true combat unit? Then this is where you should go. As long as you have a big enough unit (why yes, even horde), they WILL hold anything with 5 or more strength. Since they will survive long enough to attack back, they will also hurt whatever bastard dares to attack them (never underestimate an absurd amount of S4 attacks). A very, very solid item for a good price. They also become better at dealing with lots of low S attacks, but in this case you should take spears instead and the item isn't as effective (6+ instead of a 5+ save), but remains decent.
** '''''Chalice of Malfleur''':'' The Russian roulette of dispel. While it does not guarantee a dispel like the scroll does, it works every turn, so it has the potential of being far more useful for a lower price. It also has the potential to kill you. So yeah, take this if you are confident the Lady will be with you.
** '''''Potion Sacre''':'' Cheap, and you can never argue with cheap, can you? Since it can no longer prevent a miscast, it is not as high a priority as it once was. Still, the chance to turn a normal spell into an irresistible force (or a failed spell into a successful cast) is very good, even if you can do it only once per game. Take it if you can spare the points.

* '''Magic Banners:'''
** '''''Banner of the Lady''':'' Too expensive. +3 (at best) bonus in combat resolution is not worth 100 points especially since it does not remove steadfast. It might be fun from time to time in friendly games but should be avoided in tournament lists.
** '''''Valorous Standard''':'' Don't bother. It's too expensive and you already have good leadership: just keep your units near your bsb and you will do fine.
** '''''Banner of Defense''':'' Not a bad choice for a unit of Grail Knights, or for your Battle Standard Bearer if you don't have any Grail Knights. Artillery is a big threat to knights even with the blessing and anything you can do to lessen its danger until you charge is welcome. The problem is that you already have a 5+ save against artillery, and against magic missiles you're better of getting a damsel. Still, far from terrible.
** '''''Twilight Banner''':'' No, not a statement that you love horrible movies and books. It is, in fact, a rather nasty banner that will catch many players by surprise: few people expect twelve knights to go through impassible terrain and right into their army's flank. If you have the spare points, take it.
** '''''Conqueror's Tapestry''':'' For its cost this is a great banner, and on a unit of grail knights it can really help you get the extra edge you need to win. Still, banners that actually help you win combat take precedence.
** '''''Errantry Banner''':'' If you take knights errant and don't take this, you are doing it wrong. True, their initiative is not great, their WS is not great, but their high armor and the blessing and the lance formation (which ensures low frontage) means that at least a few knights will get in S6 attacks. That's enough to ignore the armour of most infantry and wound on a 2+. A must have.
** '''''Banner of Châlons''':'' For its price it is incredibly effective, as it will help stop armor piercing ranged weapons and if you save even one knight you are earning your points back. Another recommended choice.

===Magic===

* '''Know your limits''' - pretty much your main concern in the magic phase should be protecting yourself. Knights have terrible statistics for their points and a single Purple Sun can earn your opponents tons of points, and the last thing you want is to charge an infantry unit with 3 knights kept alive by the power of love. Accept the fact that many armies will shut your magic phase down, not only dwarves. So for the love of the Lady, take damsels, even if you want to keep them level 1. They can do fine on foot with your peasants but if you have an expensive unit (like grail knights or a particularly large lance) take a warhorse (don't bother with barding) and send her with your knights: she is protected from combat due to the marvel that is the lance but she will still be able to cast spells (just don't spam dice to get the miscast) and has line of sight (FAQ) but, more importantly, she will provide precious magic resistance to the unit (which in the current edition isn't anything otherwordly but is still helpful: think lore of light). Now that you are protected, before you can do decently on your phase you'll have to kill the enemy's casters. Fortunately Bretonnia has her pegasus: a suicide unit of pegasus knights or a suicidal paladin (possibly with the lance of artois and virtue of the joust) are a price worth paying for being able to cast spells at will and to negate the enemy as well. As for your own spells, lore of life is a favorite and should be taken by at least one damsel, preferably by a damsel and a prophetess for that sweet sweet throne of vines -- dweller's combo. Beasts of course has the very useful buffs for your relatively weak characters/knights and is in no way a bad choice (also, you are the horses: you'd be surprised how much difference +1S makes with all those horse attacks on the charge). Heavens is interesting because your army has low static resolution (again, unless you like large lances) and only one unit with magic weapons, so the damage spells are a good way to deal with ethereals like Hexwraiths, and are a godsend against flying redirectors.