STARTING AN AGENTS OF THE IMPERIUM ARMY IN 11TH EDITION: THE EMPEROR'S OWN CONSPIRACY
Agents of the Imperium may be the strangest army you can start in 11th edition: less a faction, more a conspiracy of Inquisitors, assassins and rogue traders. Honesty first: this is usually a soup faction, a cast of remarkable individuals most collectors field alongside another Imperial army rather than as a standalone force. That is not a weakness — it is the whole appeal. Every model is a character piece, every squad has a story, and no two Agents collections look remotely alike.
The first acquisition
There is no dependable Combat Patrol-style entry point here, so begin with a protagonist. An Inquisitor is the classic choice — named characters like Greyfax or Draxus, or a generic Inquisitor you can make your own. Around them, pick one retinue-shaped squad: an Exaction Squad of Adeptus Arbites enforcers, Voidsmen-at-Arms, or a Rogue Trader entourage like the Elucidian Starstriders. One leader plus one squad is a genuine, playable start — and an absurdly fun painting project, because nothing has to match. Take the chance to experiment: try a trench-coat leather recipe on the Arbites, a naval blue on the Voidsmen, gold braid on the rogue trader. Skills learned here transfer to every army you'll ever own.
Widening the network
- A second retinue in a different flavour — Arbites if you started naval, Voidsmen if you started with enforcers.
- An Officio Assassinorum operative: Vindicare, Eversor, Callidus or Culexus. Each is a single spectacular model and a weekend's joyful painting.
- Imperial Navy Breachers, if you want armoured boarding parties with real presence.
Recommended: Vindicare Assassin
Recommended: Imperial Navy Breachers
The centrepiece problem
Agents don't do giant war engines, so your centrepiece is a diorama in spirit: a beautifully painted Inquisitor on a scenic base, a fully assembled Rogue Trader entourage displayed as a crew, or an assassin frozen mid-leap. Lean into basing and storytelling — this faction wins painting cabinets, not size contests. If you crave something huge, that's the signal to pick the parent Imperial army your Agents will accompany.
Where 11th edition fits
Points and datasheets have been refreshed for 11th edition, and the way allied agents slot into other Imperial forces is exactly the kind of detail that shifts between updates — so check the current rules and points before building around any particular combination. The models, mercifully, never stop being gorgeous.
Purchases to defer
- A third Inquisitor before the first two have retinues. This is a conspiracy, not a committee.
- All four assassins at once — collect them like fine whisky, one at a time.
- Any purchase justified purely by a rules interaction you read about online. Rules move; paint jobs are forever.
Files worthy of the Inquisition
An Inquisitor's power is their records, and yours should be no different: log each kit as it arrives and mark it boxed, built or finished, with no charitable interpretations. A small elite collection deserves a spotless ledger — and it makes the moment everything reads "finished" genuinely achievable, which few 40k factions can offer. For the complete roster of units and their history, see the Agents of the Imperium faction page under Data.