The New Custodes Datasheets Make Every Model Matter More
When Games Workshop announced the Custodes overhaul, the promise was straightforward: fewer warriors, with each one fighting more like the exceptional individual described in the lore. The September 24 datasheet reveal finally puts numbers behind that idea, showing the Custodian Guard Sodality, Trajann Valoris, and Telemon Heavy Dreadnought. This is our first proper look at what the rebuild means on the table. Warhammer Community
The important part is not simply that the numbers are bigger. It is how much responsibility those numbers place on a very small collection of models.
Custodian Guard Are Doing More With Less
The Custodian Guard Sodality arrives with Movement 8", Toughness 7, five wounds, a 2+ armor save, and a 4+ invulnerable save. Each warrior makes six melee attacks with a guardian spear, hitting on 2+ at Strength 8, AP -2, and Damage 2. That is a substantial package before any wider army abilities enter the picture.
Their objective rule deserves careful reading. Impenetrable Defence grants Sustained Hits 1 against targets that are not Monsters or Vehicles, provided either the Guard or their target is within range of an objective. A Vexilla also raises each warrior’s Objective Control from three to four.
We like that combination. It gives the unit a reason to contest ground rather than simply chase the most expensive enemy model. The extra hits are conditional, though, not a blanket bonus against everything standing near an objective.
Three Models Is Now the Ceiling
GW confirms that Custodian squads cannot exceed three models before adding Leaders, with some units containing fewer. The Guard datasheet itself specifies three warriors.
For us, this is the change that most clearly defines the new approach.
A three-model unit cannot casually spread across the battlefield. Each casualty removes a third of its original bodies, and committing it to one fight means those same warriors are unavailable somewhere else. Better individual profiles could compensate for that, but they do not automatically solve positioning, screening, or mission coverage.
The interesting question is whether the finished army gives players enough tools to manage those limitations.
Trajann Is a Commander, Not Just an Axe Delivery System
Trajann has Toughness 7, ten wounds, and a 5+ Feel No Pain. His Watcher’s Axe delivers six attacks at Strength 12, AP -3, and Damage 4, with Cleave 1. Moment Shackle offers a once-per-battle choice for a single phase: three additional axe attacks or a 3+ invulnerable save.
That defensive option creates a useful decision. Spending the ability to finish something important means surrendering the emergency protection later.
His Captain-General aura is equally noteworthy. Friendly Adeptus Custodes units within 6" can re-roll hit and wound rolls of one, but Monsters and Vehicles are excluded. The Telemon therefore does not receive those re-rolls.
That restriction matters when planning around him. We would read Trajann as an infantry-support centerpiece with considerable personal damage, not a universal buff for everything painted gold.
The Telemon Has a Clear Job
The Telemon combines Toughness 11 and fourteen wounds with a 2+ armor save and 4+ invulnerable save. Guardian Eternal reduces the Damage characteristic of incoming ranged attacks by one. That protection specifically applies to shooting, not melee.
Its weapons offer distinct roles. The arachnus storm cannon brings twelve shots with Devastating Wounds and Sustained Hits 1, while the adrathic desolator fires four Strength 10, Damage 4 shots. The dual-caestus configuration delivers seven Strength 14, AP -3, Damage 4 attacks with Twin-Linked.
Our interest here is less about finding one spectacular damage number and more about choosing the right support for the infantry. A small army needs its larger pieces to cover specific weaknesses. Whether the Telemon does that efficiently will depend heavily on its points cost and the rest of the list.
Our Take
This reveal makes the Custodes redesign much easier to understand. The army is being built around a handful of warriors whose individual actions should feel consequential, rather than relying on larger squads to create that impression.
That is an appealing direction, but durability and damage are only part of the game. The real test will be whether these small units can accomplish enough across the battlefield without making every mistake impossible to recover from.
This preview does not provide points, and GW has reserved the expanded Martial Ka’tah rules for its September 25 follow-up. We are not treating the previous edition’s version as a substitute.
For now, the profiles support the promise. The next question is whether the complete army makes those exceptional individuals work together.
