“Warhammer The Old World” – Why Pegasus Knights are the best unit in the game and how to fix them

“Warhammer The Old World” – Why Pegasus Knights are the best unit in the game and how to fix them

Breton Pegasus Knights are super good in Warhammer: The Old World; most likely to Good.

If you’ve been paying attention to the current state of the game, you’ve undoubtedly heard of Pegasus Knights. They have truly become the current boogeyman of the Old World scene. In the most recent London GT lists, the Bretons and the Pegasus Knights took all three top positions. At NOVA I took Best Overall with a Pegasus-heavy list, and also topped Best General. They have become and in my eyes are one of the most dominant units in the game preferably Non-character unit around. So today I thought it would be useful to take a close look at Pegasus Knights, what really sets them apart and what, if anything, should be done to mitigate them.

Pegasus Knights Basics

Pegasus Knights are one of the distinctive units of the Kingdom of Bretonnia. They are a unit of flying, splashing monstrous cavalry. Well, if you just look at their stats, they really don’t stand out much. They are especially lacking when compared to other monstrous cavalry. WS 4, S&T 4, 2 wounds and a single I3 attack are really nothing special. They are actually inferior to some regular heavy cavalrymen in this regard. The Pegasus does add two additional S4 attacks, but that’s still not amazing. Most units in this class are well positioned with 3-4 attacks and 3 wounds at a base of S5. Pegasus Knights do receive a lance, but this only strengthens their attacks and not the horses.

On the other hand, they have a few other basic things to offer. A save of 3+ is pretty decent. They also have a smaller base size than most comparable units, allowing them to have more models in base contact. This is actually an underrated buff for her. Overall, however, it is not these core values ​​that make the unit good.

Pegasus Knights have the rules you want

What makes Pegasus Knights really good isn’t its stats, but its special rules. The most important pair of these is that the unit has Flying and Skirmishing (they also have a rule that gives them 2″ Coherence instead of 1″). This makes them one of the most mobile units in the game. You can move 20 inches in any direction at any time. They can ignore things that get in their way. And they can be charged in a 360-degree arc up to 19 inches (with a maximum movement of 22 inches). In most cases, they can choose their target as they wish. They can avoid anything they don’t want to fight, and it’s very hard to avoid them. You almost always get the fee.

Charging brings us to the next set of rules. Furious Charge gives riders +1 attack to attack, allowing them to make up to 2 lance attacks and 2 stake attacks. This means that their damage output is much more comparable to that of other units in their class. To ensure they can charge, they also have counter-charging. In the rare event that your knights are attacked, you should be able to repel a counterattack yourself. Thanks to Skirmish, this also means you can do a 360-degree counterattack. This makes the device very tolerant, as you can still charge even if it is used slightly incorrectly.

Additionally, they have the Lady’s Blessing, which gives them a saving throw and makes the unit more survivable. First Charge, Swiftstride, the Lance Formation and the Knights Vow round out their stacked rules. Swiftstride is clutch for the unit but also expected, giving them an amazing charge range. The other three rules are much more niche, but sometimes they help. Thanks to these rules, Pegasus Knights can hold their own against other monstrous cavalry and form a good unit. But it’s not quite what makes them the best unit.

Characters exaggerate

What really makes Pegasus Knights the best unit in the game in my opinion is the ability to join some really powerful characters. On their own, they have amazing mobility. However, their impact is lower than many other units and they cannot bounce off the target. Characters largely fix this problem and provide the extra punch needed. Now you can take a level 4, put it on a Pegasus and join the unit. This gives the unit some buffs, magic attacks and MR 2 are nothing to sneeze at. That’s before you even get to their magic. However, most of the time you will see one or more of the three combat characters in the unit.

This really sets them apart from others. There are simply no such flexible units for the best characters in your army to join. On a Royal Pegasus, each character adds between 8 and 13 attacks to the unit. These are usually stronger and more precise attacks than the unit itself. Two of these characters in a unit (since you realistically won’t be entering combat again) will boost your unit to over 20 attacks per attack. They also give you something to deal with enemy characters and really heavy units. In fact, the Pegasus Knight unit often becomes quite disrespectful in these situations. They are a delivery system for the characters, protecting them from attacks and making it easier for them to enter combat.

Want some Pegasus Knight combos for Overkill?

Like every unit in the game, Pegasus Knights are better at dealing with combos. So let’s talk about a few. The simplest combination is to use a wizard to cast the Queen’s Gift onto the unit. This gives them a regeneration roll. Under ideal circumstances, this can give the knights a 3+/5++/5+++ save, making them very durable. This is a fairly common combination.

If you set up your army as exiles like I did, you also have some nice options available. You initially lose the lady’s blessing, but gain some buffs. The unit gains Stubbornness and Veteran. Combined with Countercharge, this makes them very, very forgiving. They can ignore LD for the most part, don’t have to worry too much about being accused, and even losing a battle isn’t much of a risk. They also have access to the Banner of the Zealous Knight, which gives them Vanguard. This gives them a first-round threat range of 29″ (and as Exiles, they can go first), allowing for relatively easy first-round attacks. Exiles also gain access to a wider range of spells, and let me tell you, frenzy and hatred are not to be missed in Pegasus Knight. All of this also makes it pretty easy to kill a unit and get the blessing.

There are other combinations out there. Errantry Crusade can actually increase charge range even further. However, these, along with some of the characters in the unit, are the main ones you’ll see.

Can and should Pegasus Knights be toned down?

So Pegasus Knights are good, really good. But does that mean they should be abolished? Well…yeah. I think that’s true. The fact is that they are probably too good and too effective. Every serious Breton list lists at least one unit, often even two. They are a dominant force on the tabletop. Dealing with them like a dragon is what games are all about. Furthermore, they simply crowd out most other non-character/non-core options in the army. It’s hard to justify spending a lot of points on other units when you can just get more Pegasus Knights.

And look, I say this as someone who famously or infamously played Pegasus Knights with all the tricks and combos. I want them to feel worse. Both for the good of the game and to make different types of Breton armies more viable. How do we do that?

How to weaken them

Well, a lot of people say you should take away “Skirmish” or change it somehow. A change to Skirmish may be necessary for the rule as a whole, but it’s not about fixing a unit. And I’m not a big fan of taking skirmish away from them myself. Not only is this part of what makes them a unique unit, but they are also simply not a unit that can be upgraded! That’s why I’m initially in favor of small changes. So what would I do? I would give the device to Loner. Simply put, this would result in characters being unable to join the unit.

This keeps them a fast and flexible unit, but also makes them far less deadly. Your chances of bouncing off a tough target will increase tremendously, and you will have to seriously struggle with enemy characters and monsters. It also limits a lot of combos, or at least limits their effectiveness. And yes, you can have characters walk alongside you and try multiple fights, but that’s much riskier since more units have to make attacks and tests etc. Also, the enemy can attack the Pegasus Knights without involving the characters. or vice versa.

I think this move, perhaps combined with a slight points increase, would really put Pegasus Knights in a better position. The loss of crazy combos and striking power puts them in more of a flanker/skirmisher role. You won’t be able to just knock down every unit you want. Still, it makes them feel unique and a good unit. It also opens the space for army construction. Now, if you want to run a bunch of characters in a unit, you’ll need to look at one of the normal knight units. You might even see a Breton fighting character on a regular horse! Of course it would need some testing, maybe more are needed, but I think that’s where I would start. It’s also a super simple change that doesn’t have a huge impact on others.

Let us know what you think of Pegasus Knights and how you would fix them in the comments!

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Abe is very special, an Austin native who was born and raised here. Even though he keeps moving around, whether in DC, Japan, etc., he always seems to find his way back at some point. Abe has decades of experience with a wide range of tabletop and RPG games, from historical games to Star Wars to D&D and 40K. He has been involved with BOLS almost from the beginning, back when he worked at and then owned a local game store. He used to be heavily involved in the competitive Warhammer tournament scene, but he has mellowed with age and now appreciates a good casual game. He currently covers 40,000 tactics and backstories and all things Star Wars, although he occasionally delves into other topics as well. Abe still mourns the loss of WFB to this day.