Warhammer 40K: Five Famous Freeblades
The Engine War is coming soon and it’s the perfect time to call in a Freeblade!
The Adeptus Mechanicus might be getting all the attention with Engine War but let’s not forget this book also features Imperial Knights, Chaos Knights, and Chaos Daemons. Knights in general are a pretty potent addition for most factions and are really easy to slot into most armies. Thematically, however, it might not always make sense – which is where Freeblades come in.
Freeblades are Knights who have left their home planet and travel the galaxy. They owe allegiance to no one specifically and act kind of like mercenary forces. Obviously there are loyal Freeblades and then there are possible traitorous Freeblades – but that’s the fun of them. You get to decide your Freeblade’s history any why they are linking-up with your army. You can make-up your own or you could pull a Freeblade directly from the lore which is what we’re doing today.
Auric Arachnus
“With blade and battle cannon, the Knight known as Auric Arachnus wades into battle against the Imperium’s foes. With its distinctive bright yellow livery and contrasting stylized arachnid symbol, the bold Freeblade is designed to draw attention and the enemy’s fire. From whence the Knight came there is no clue, nor does its pilot ever emerge. When the shadow of Hive Fleet Behemoth fell across the Ultima Segmentum, however, the legend of Auric Arachnus began. As Imperial armies rallied to repel the foe, the Knight Paladin was a tower of firepower, and when eventually overrun, its reaper blade scythed down swarms of foes. As the Tyranids pressed in upon the Ultramarines, the Chapter was forced back to its home world and Auric Arachnus traveled with them. There, the Freeblade earned great renown by slaying a Dominatrix.”
Auric Arachnus has a really distinct paint scheme and is one of the more famous Freeblades – if you’re looking for a hobby challenge try to tackle the Dominatrix slayer!
Crimson Reaper
“The Crimson Reaper is a Freeblade Knight who was first sighted during the Rithguard Crusade and has since then participated in battles on scores of worlds alongside the armies of the Imperium. Those who have fought at his side, however, struggle to admire him, as he does not care for the lives of his allies on the battlefield and has readily trampled them to death in his eagerness to clash with the Imperium’s enemies.”
The Crimson Reaper has a pretty straightforward paint scheme and fit’s with any army out for blood. This Knight acts as a true independent force in the lore not caring about his allies as long as it gets to destroy the enemies of the Imperium.
Mydos Almighty
“The Knight world of Mydos was fabulously wealthy – one of the reasons that the forge world of Antax was founded nearby. It was not xenos invaders that brought about the ruin of Mydos, however, but the greed of Mankind itself. As the knightly houses of the world tore themselves apart in vicious civil wars to control that wealth, one Knight alone left Mydos, taking with him transport and retainers. Soon afterwards catastrophic explosions blew the world apart. Renaming himself after his lost home world, and replacing his house’s iconography with a skull symbol, Mydos set out into the stars. The Freeblade joined any battle where Mankind was beset. There, with his two cannons, Mydos sought to redeem his own kind with acts of valor. However, it was never long before he was forced to move on – the gold plating of his archaic armour always brought forth the same old weakness of greed in his fellow man.”
A Gold Plated Knight? That’s going to stand out on the battlefield! Mydos Almighty isn’t just a play on words or a commentary on human greed – Mydos is a potent ally in the fight against the enemies of mankind. But serious – if you’ve ever just wanted a Gold Plated Knight this one’s for you.
Obsidian Knight
“Little is known about the Freeblade that some of the Astra Militarum call the Obsidian Knight. The first recorded sighting came during the Damocles Gulf Crusade over two hundred years ago. Out of nowhere strode the dark behemoth, covered in fell symbols. He single-handedly halted a Tau river crossing, and appeared in dozens of battles. The Knight disappeared by campaign’s end, remembered only in legend. Two centuries later, when the Tau general Commander Shadowsun launched her invasion of Agrellan, the Obsidian Knight appeared once again. Whether or not it was the same Knight is unknown, but it fought with the same zeal, leaving behind a wake of crushed and blasted Tau. Although the xenos eventually triumphed on Agrellan, the Obsidian Knight has since been sighted elsewhere, fighting alongside the Imperium.”
Hobby wise, this is a pretty easy paint scheme – Black and off-white? Looks good and is fairly easy to do. If you want to keep it simple but have a bit more of a mysterious Knight Freeblade check out the Obsidian Knight.
Living Litany / Litany of Destruction
“For a long time this Freeblade fought for the Imperium, but then something went wrong with this Knight Gallant, known as the Living Litany. All vox hails received in answer only a droning sermon in High Gothic. The words were garbled, unfamiliar even to those that know that archaic language. On and on the phrases were murmured, almost as if the voice were struggling to master human speech. The little that can be understood beseeches the Emperor, while damning the woes of the universe. Only when the Knight, whose markings reveal little about its past, reached close combat does the voice change – rising in tone and inflection until it bellows its verses like a war cry. The forces of the Imperium might not tolerate such obvious madness, yet for a long time there was nothing amiss with the Freeblade’s combat prowess. The Knight Gallant was a whirling, stomping force of purest destruction, chanting its hate with every swing of its mighty weapons.
For reasons unknown, however, the Freeblade Knight later betrayed the Imperium and became the Renegade Knight Litany of Destruction, who has since left a trail of destruction and terror. Once such world that suffered his destruction was Tellerax Prime, but as the Renegade Knight rampaged across its surface, he was attacked by the House Terryn Knight Balthazar, who sought to end the former Freeblade’s mayhem. However, Balthazar was defeated by the Litany of Destruction, who then traveled to the Nachmund System and since his Knight, the Ever-Stalwart, was left nearly destroyed by their battle, the House Taranis Knight Drantar was charged with destroying the former Freeblade.”
This one’s for all you Chaos Knight Players out there – you didn’t think we’d skip you, did ya? Why not go for a Freeblade that turned traitor with the Litany of Destruction?! Cool name and the paint scheme is a traitor-fied version of the loyalist one.
Want to a list of other Freeblades? Check out the Lexicanum for more!
There are a TON of Freeblades out there – like Gerantius or Blackthorne. Which one’s your favorite and why?
