You’ve seen a house fly, you’ve seen a horse fly, but have you ever seen a dwarf fly? If you haven’t, look out for Age of Sigmar’s Kharadron Overlords iron balloons.
Not all dwarves live below the mountains, hammering out artifacts and stealing shiny rocks from dragons. Some prefer floating steampunk cities, pressure suits, and physics-defying dirigibles. The Kharadron Overlords flip the “slow and steady” dwarf stereotype on its head, taking to the skies in massive war balloons and raining hails of gunfire down on their enemy as speedy skyriggers take down monsters with harpoon guns. If you ever wanted to play an army of dwarf pirates with a little sprinkle of steampunk madness, the Overlords are the army for you.
Who Are the Kharadron Overlords?
The Overlords are the opposite of their naked, Fyreslayer cousins in almost every way: melee vs. ranged, monsters vs. machines, naked vs. clothed. Even their form of payment is different, switching the fiery ur-gold for the more magical aethergold. While the Fyreslayers follow the war god Grimnir and emulate his fiery temper, the Kharadron Overlords chose the path of Grungni the Smith, perfectly encapsulating his ingenuity and artifice. Launching from their mighty sky-ports high above the Realms, they bring percussive death to any that stand against Order…or any who didn’t pay them enough.
Why Play Kharadron Overlords?
Since their inception, the Kharadrons have had a stranglehold on the shooting phase. While their mobility has suffered a bit in their latest update, they’re still a living thunderstorm when it comes to shooting, and their massive Skyvessels are a powerful force multiplier. Even standing NEAR one of these behemoths is dangerous!
Kharadron Overlords Strengths
- Shooting!
- Your skyvessels can help you get your few melee units out of a tight spot
- Surprisingly resilient for a mostly shooting army.
- New melee units give you more to do in the combat phase and round out your effectiveness.
Kharadron Overlords Weaknesses
- You have range, but it’s mostly shorter range. This means you want to be close, but not engaged, while the enemy will want to engage with you.
- While effective, your army can get small, and high number of objective missions could be hard for you.
- You can get bogged down in melee if you aren’t careful.
Signature Rules
Battle Traits
- Flying High– deploy units In the Clouds off board in your boats.
- Descend from the Clouds– Boats and Skyfarers that were In the Clouds deploy anywhere on the board outside 9″. They arrive in a clump, so you’ll have a big nasty flotilla of doom right where your enemy doesn’t want it.
- Skyvessel Cover– Ironclads and Frigates have an aura of -1 to hit against enemy shooting for friendly Infantry units within 6″.
- Transport Skyfarers- boats can grab units within 6″ and set them back up within 6″ after the boat moves.
- The Flagship- One of your Skyvessels can pick an Endrinwork at deployment, allowing you to tailor your list on the fly (ba-dum tis). This also allows a Skyvessel to take an extra Endrinwork even if they already have one.
Battle Formations
- Pioneers and Scavengers– Your Harpoon and Scavenger crews get a 6+ Ward when defending an objective.
- Rapid Redeployment Squadron– Your smallest boats can bring an extra unit along, and their capacity increases to 6 (for a total of 12).
- Veteran Ground Troops– Up to three Infantry units can reduce enemy Rend by staying boots on the ground.
- Endrineers Guild Expeditionary Force– Give a friendly hero an Artefact of Power in the Deployment phase. While you can’t double up, it again allows you to tailor your list for each situation.
Heroic Traits
- Shrewd Opportunist– Allows two Infantry units to make a Scout move.
- Bold as Brass– Increases the Hero’s control score by 5.
- Combat Grafter– Your Hero can make a second round of attacks with the Strikes Last rule.
Artefacts
- Blazebeard and Sons Bamboozling Flakgun– Once per turn you can attempt to remove a dice from a charging enemy unit.
- Celestium Burst-grenade– Once per turn, cancel ward saves for a unit for the rest of the turn.
- Voidstone Orb– Once per battle auto unbind a spell.
Key Kharadron Overlords Units
Arkanaut Admiral
This guy will probably be your general, and for good reason. He’s a combat monster, has great support, and turns your Skyvessels up to 11.
Aether-Khemist
The ultimate buff/debuff character improves nearby friends rend and reduces enemy hit rolls.
Aetheric Navigator
The Aetheric Navigator is close to a Wizard, though all he does is channel the power of the aethergold they hoard. The Read the Winds ability can get him out of a tight spot AND give him a snazzy Skyvessel escort.
Null-Khemist
The newest Hero in the Kharadron arsenal, this guy plays HAVOC on enemy Wizards and Priests. All his weapons deal double damage to Wizards, Priests, and Manifestations, and he can buff nearby friendlies against harmful magic and prayers. He’s most definitely an auto-include.
Arkanaut Company
Your standard line troopers. They are plenty useful, though, mostly as warm bodies and screens.
Grundstok Thunderers
Thunderers are elite, shooting style dwarves, who are extra hearty and equipped with the best weapons aethergold can buy.
Vongrim Harpoon Crew
The new melee hotness, these guys are a nightmare for enemy monsters. They can redeploy past screens, so those Greater Daemons hiding behind their lesser kin are no longer safe!
Vongrim Salvagers
Your objective hounds, and they’re really good at it. They have a buff that allows them to absolutely decimate enemy defenders on a 3+, balancing what has famously been Kharadron’s biggest weakness.
Arkanaut Frigate
Your medium ship, tougher than a Gunhauler and cheaper than an Ironclad. My personal favorite of the skyvessels, and probably the best bang for your buck until you have the points for the big boy.
Endrinriggers
A repair squad for your vessels with plenty of pain to share with your enemies, these floating gents are an incredible support piece.
Skywardens
These are the combat balloon boys, and they are harassers supreme thanks to the Timed Charges ability allows them to deal Mortals and Retreat with End of Turn timing.
Arkanaut Ironclad
The largest of the Kharadron ships is truly a sight to behold. The Ironclad boasts excellent durability, with a score of wounds and a 2+ save, while also transporting two-and-twenty stout dwarves in three units! In addition to this, the Ironclad is absolutely bristling with weapons. Though they all have the same profile now, they also have a nifty new ability that discourages enemy charges.
Zontari Endrin Dock
Finally, a terrain piece for the Skydwarves! This amazing floating scrap shop can repair your boats and send out little harassers of its own. The Auto-Endrins it deploys are surprisingly useful, able to dispel Manifestations, lower enemy control, or just hit them with a good old-fashioned depth charge!
Sample Kharadron Army
Faction: Kharadron Overlords
– Battle Formation: Veteran Ground Troops
Regiment 1
Arkanaut Admiral- Shrewd Opportunist
Arkanaut Ironclad
Arkanaut Ironclad
10 Grundstok Thunderers
10 Arkanaut Company
Subscribe to our newsletter!
Get Tabletop, RPG & Pop Culture news delivered directly to your inbox.
Regiment 2
Endrinmaster with Harness- Voidstone Orb
3 Endrinriggers
3 Endrinriggers
2 Grundstok Gunhaulers
How to Play Kharadron Overlords
Don’t let up with shooting! Drown your enemy in aethershot, then move in with your sweepers to secure key objectives. Avoid getting charged. Rinse and repeat until the enemy is slag.
Yarrrrrr!
Twenty year Games Workshop Hobbyist, Gamer, and Writer. I love Necromunda, Horus Heresy, (40K), and Age of Sigmar (and Mordheim- let’s get a reboot of that!).