If the original release roadmap had held true, Imperial Knight players would have seen their glorious war engines take the field long before the most recent waves of Chaos—or even the long-teased Emperor’s Children. That clearly didn’t happen. But while the timelines may have slipped, the reward is finally here, and it’s hard not to be impressed.
Through the fog of war, the towering silhouette of a new Questoris-pattern Knight emerges: the Knight Defender. A walking cathedral of devastation and relic tech, the Defender brings with it a devastating new armament loadout and an imposing battlefield presence.
Its twin weapons—the scorching plasma executor and the punishing conversion beam obliterator—are powered by advanced energy relays, marking it as one of the most potent gun platforms in the Knight arsenal. But its most distinctive feature is the bulbous void shield generator atop its carapace, projecting a flickering dome of protection not just for itself, but for nearby allies as well.
These noble pilots aren’t just field commanders—they’re shields, placing their titanic forms between their allies and incoming fire. And while some may scoff and call them mobile bunkers, few survive long enough to repeat the insult. The Defender is a death sentence for anything on the wrong end of its guns.
We expect this new variant to release alongside the updated Codex: Imperial Knights, which brings new lore, datasheets, and four unique detachments to play with. While there’s no new Combat Patrol in this wave (typically never has been the case for Knights), the book includes a deep dive into Knight heraldry and painting, giving hobbyists the tools to truly make these centerpiece models shine.
The Knight Defender also marks a new chapter for the Questoris kit. Moving forward, it will be split into two boxes: one supporting the Knight Defender with a new upgrade sprue, and the other building classics like the Knight Preceptor and Canis Rex. Complementary items like themed dice and datasheets round out the release.
It may have taken longer than expected, but the ground now shakes with the return of the Emperor’s mightiest champions. Stay tuned as we march toward pre-orders—because the Age of Knights is on the way.
Stay tuned here and around the web for the latest on this new release.