STARTING A GREY KNIGHTS ARMY IN 11TH EDITION: SILVER, STORM BOLTERS AND SANCTITY
The Grey Knights are a small, elite brotherhood of silver daemon-hunters, and 11th edition is an ideal time to swear your first oath to Titan. This is the army for hobbyists who want quality over quantity: a full force is often two dozen models, every one of them a psychic knight in ornate silver warplate. Like the Necrons, silver armour is wonderfully forgiving — a metallic basecoat, a wash, a drybrush, and you're most of the way to tabletop-ready — but where the Necrons are cold, the Grey Knights are gothic and holy, all scripture, filigree and force weapons. Few armies go from sprue to genuinely impressive this quickly.
The first box
Start with the current Combat Patrol-style set, or go straight to the classic foundation: Strike Squads. The Grey Knights infantry kit is one of the most generous multi-builds GW makes, assembling as Strike Squads, Interceptors, Purgators or Purifiers from the same sprues — which means your first two boxes teach you the whole army's anatomy. Build strikes first; storm bolter and nemesis force sword is the faction in miniature. Then paint them before buying more. Silver rewards clean technique, and one finished squad will teach you more than three grey ones.
The second oath
Terminators are the next purchase — on Titan, even the rank and file wear Terminator plate eventually, and the models are appropriately monumental. After them, add a character to carry your banner: Grand Master Voldus is the modern pick, hammer aloft and every inch the warrior-librarian, while Brother-Captain Stern carries decades of lore on his shoulders. One infantry wave, one Terminator wave, one leader — that's already a legal, lovely, and nearly complete army. Elite factions are kind to your wallet if you let them be.
Recommended: Brotherhood Terminator Squad
Recommended: Grand Master Voldus
Choosing your centrepiece
The Nemesis Dreadknight is non-negotiable — the towering war-frame with a knight strapped to its front is the faction's signature silhouette, and the Grand Master variant makes it a character in its own right. If you want a prestige project beyond it, Kaldor Draigo, Supreme Grand Master, is the army's legend made model. Dreadknight first, Draigo as the anniversary gift to yourself.
Recommended: Nemesis Dreadknight
The new edition, briefly
Points and datasheets were refreshed for 11th edition, and starter sets rotate over time, so verify current contents and current points before you commit to a roster. With an army this small, a points shift matters proportionally more — check before you build your list, not after.
Purchases to defer
- A second Dreadknight before the first is painted; one unfinished war-frame is a project, two is a reproach.
- Every flavour of the infantry kit at once — the multi-build means you can specialise later without rebuying.
- Vehicles borrowed from the wider Marine range; the knights barely need them and your shelf space is finite.
- Named characters beyond your first. Titan promotes slowly, and so should you.
The Chapter's sacred ledger
The 666th Chapter keeps its rolls with liturgical precision, and your collection should too. Record each kit when it arrives and mark its true state — boxed, built, or finished — then watch the finished column climb. With a two-dozen-model army, a fully painted force is genuinely achievable within a season, and there is no better feeling in the hobby than fielding it. For the complete catalogue of everything the brotherhood can summon to war, see the Grey Knights faction page under Data. The Emperor's silver sword is waiting to be polished — by you, one model at a time.