by lords2001

The last of the special characters – with added random Snog, Marry, Avoid photo’s I’ve found on Google Image Search!

Grand Master Mordrak – Avoid as you can never make full use of his abilities

Grand Master Mordrak comes with a standard Grand Master statline, apart from having one additional attack and wound, and costing 25 points more. He comes with the standard Hammerhand and Psychic Communion powers, the second of which we will cover later.

For this 25 points, you gain one special rule : First to the Fray. This allows him to come down Turn 1 when he deep strikes with any attached unit, and not scatter. “Awesome” I hear you say. “Why don’t we see this guy all the time?”.

Well, Mr Tin Man, the issue is that Grand Master Mordrak lacks at least one thing – the Independent Character special rule. This means that instead of getting that T1 deep strike with a really good unit suited for the role (Paladins, I’m looking at you – wouldn’t they be awesome with a proper T1 deep strike?) he has to Deep Strike alone. Unless…

you use his one special option – Ghostly Bodyguard. This allows you to buy 1-5 bodyguards. They cost the same and have thet same statline as Grey Knight Terminators, have Stealth, but must always stay a part of Mordrak’s unit with Mordrak acting in the same way a Sergeant/Exarch/whatever does in a regular squad. And when Mordrak loses a wound, roll a D3 – if equal greater than remaining wounds, he gets an additional Ghost Knight.

So why is this still not good, getting Stealth on a unit that can deepstrike and not scatter turn 1? The main part is that if Mordrak dies, the bodyguard unit is removed from play – so any S8 or force weapon hits can potentially kill the unit entirely. And with only a 4+ Look Out, Sir roll, it isn’t impossible for well aimed shooting/barrages to do so.

And the Ghost Knights cannot take any ranged weapon upgrades or a warding stave. Which means you are left with a deepstriking unit that often finds itself without close by allies and no real shooting capacity leaving it open to mass fire from the enemy or avoidance if they can move away. So don’t try, just Avoid.

Brother Captain Stern – If you can see him, he’s too close. Run.

Brother Captain Stern has the exact same statline as a Brother Captain, possibly the worst generic HQ option in the Grey Knight codex. And he costs 50 points more. Well.

He does get to reroll one To Hit, To Wound or save each turn. Not bad, huh? Except your opponent gets to do the same, and can save the roll for later in the game. So that critical combat or shooting your opponent wants to get in later? Now he has rerolls if you have used one. Great work, Brother Captain Stern.

He also comes with Zone of Banishment – the upside is that ever model within D6 inches of Stern must make a strength test or be removed from play. Daemons must reroll this result. The downside? ALL models must make this test – including your own. Which means that either a) you have to send your 200 point Brother Captain into combat alone and hope the enemy fails the test, b) you send him in with support and hope that you fail less tests than the opponent does or c) leave Brother Captain Stern at home.

Note : C is the correct answer.

Inquisitor Valeria : Avoid. Just avoid.

Inquisitor Valeria isn’t actually as terrible as I was going to suggest, and she didn’t really change between 5th and 6th edition. She comes with a standard Inquisitor statline, and a 3+ save, along with Stubborn, a laspistol and some special weapons and wargear.

The first of which is the Forceshield – giving a 4++ to Valeria. She also has Runes of Destiny, ensuring enemies reroll successful saves versus her shooting and CC.

Third is the Gravitron Beamer – a single shot, S10 AP1 12″ range pistol, that enemies have to reroll saves against. A very situational but powerful option, especially against the right target.

Fourth is the Hyperstone Maze – a one use close combat attack in lieu of any others – the enemy model must roll equal to or under its wound value or be removed from play. Again, extremely situational but powerful – assuming she hasn’t already been crushed in close combat.

Finally, she comes equipped with The Dagger of Midnight are dual power weapons that take her total attacks to 5 in CC. Now at this point she really isn’t that bad of a character, even if she comes with no psychic powers, troop choice unlocks or massive unit boosting capability.

However, there but her 2 additional attacks are rolled separately – if they come up as doubles, the attacks are resolved against the Inqusitor instead of the enemy. Thanks, GW, for more random downsides cinematic rolls!

The biggest impediment to Valeria apart from her potential to kill herself is that all of her special options require her to get within 12″ or less of the enemy – and usually into combat. And as she costs 140 points with T3 and a 3+/4++, it’s a bad choice to do so. So avoid.

Inquisitor Karamazov – too situational to do anything other that Avoid

The fluff for Inquisitor Karamazov makes him out to be a tough dude – and his statline mostly lives up to it – he comes standard with Strength and Toughness 5, 3 wounds, and a 2+ save. He is also armed with a large variety of gear – master crafted multi melta, power sword, standard grenades, rad grenades!!! and an orbital strike. Not bad.

However, he costs 200 points. For that, he better come with some awesome rules – and he sort of does.

By Any Means Necessary enables him to deliberately target any friendly unit with his orbital strike – situational due to model placement but it can come in handy if you are being swarmed in CC – especially as one of the options is a D3 shot S6 AP4 large blast – lots of chances to put on wounds.

Otherwise the Orbital Strike can be targeted normally, but is less useful due to mandatory scatter – though relentless allows him to move and fire this weapon.

Dread Reputation is also decent- it allows Karamazov to choose to pass or fail any morale or pinning test of his choice, and allows friendly units within 12″ to do so as well.

So why do I say he is too situational? Because for 200 points, having a model that is decent at CC without having an AP2 weapon or an invulnerable save is bad. Having that model be giant and hard to get a cover save with is also bad. He saw some use with Paladins and wound pool allocation rules in 5th edition as well as giving what was effectively Fearless to the unit to stop your 1000 point investment from running.

However, due to the other, better options available (Coteaz, Crowe + Purifiers, generic Inquisitors and Librarians) and his mixed bag of special rules making him neither exceptionally good at range, CC or unit buffing, leave him for the friendly games, where you can pile up your opponents models at the end of the game and judge them as Karamazov would do – with fire and low self esteem!