This article will detail the Skaven army starting from its lore, describing the main units and their roles, how the army plays and finally our personal opinion of the army.
For a complete run-down of the different armies available in Age of Sigmar, consult our Age of Sigmar army overview article.
In this article we will refer often to Matched Play and other technical terms like allegiance abilities, command points, army roles in building a list, core battalions, Endless Spells/Invocations, etc. We assume the reader will be knowledgeable with those terms, otherwise please refer to the relevant guides for more details.
Overview of Skaven Army
The Skaven are a race of ratmen that represent one of the most iconic Warhammer armies. They embody Chaos better than any other race with their desire to destroy all reality through any mean possible.
They are cunning and devious, they literally backstab themselves to obtain even the slightest advantage in Skaven society. They live everywhere, mostly hidden from mortal eyes until is too late and are divided in 6 greater clans, each with their own sub-divisions.
In game, they play like a horde army with plenty of shooting options, with each of the greater clans having its own different playstyle and options available.
The current range of models has been almost entirely refreshed with newer sculpts so that they are all in plastic now. Only Eshin and Moulder are left behind with outdated sculpts, but the disappearance of metal and resin is a welcome sight, and many iconic war engines and miniatures saw a re-sculpt worth the waiting time.
The latest battletome (September 2024) is a re-printing of the index released with the fourth edition with some minor changes. As the first battletome of the new edition, we can see the direction recent tomes will be taking but the lack of significative changes maintains the Skaven as an average army in competitive matches.
Lore of Skaven Army
Skaven are a race of evil ratmen, extremely cunning and spread across every corner of the Mortal Realms. The only thing preventing them from completely overrunning every other race is their constant infighting and backstabbing where every single vermin believes to be superior to all others and blames friends and foes alike for its own failures.
The Great Horned Rat is their god, a malevolent presence that joined the Chaos pantheon as a reward for the Skaven involvement in the destruction of the World-That-Was. He skulks in shadows rather than exposing himself as the other gods, and it is for this reason that some races were still unaware of the threat the Skaven posed.
While all Skaven worship the Great Horned Rat out of fear and ambition, the way the follow his plans greatly changes from clan to clan. All ratmen are grouped in Great Clans, each representing a particular tactic used to achieve the grandeur that their god requires to ultimately conquer all Mortal Realms.
So, while the Clans Pestilens hunt for the Thirteen Great Plagues that once released in the world would consume it, Clans Eshin lurk in the shadows and employ the best assassins that ever stalked the Mortal Realms.
Other clans found great use of the Warpstone, a substance corrupted by Chaos forces with great mutating properties that allows Clans Skryre to build powerful, yet not quite reliable, war machines and Clans Moulder to merge different being together to create the ultimate monstrosities.
Clans Verminus, on the other hand, cares little about mutations, machines or subterfuges: their force is in numbers that they use without care of the disposable pawns involved in their tactics.
The Masterclan is formed by the Grey Seers that interpret the will of the Great Horned Rat and “guide” through manipulation and fear the Skaven masses.
While they are present in every corner of the Mortal Realms except Azyr, their Under-Empire has a capital in Blight City, a giant megalopolis situated in the Realm of Chaos and connected to the other realms through literal tunnels in reality called Gnawholes.
The Skaven discovered they have the ability to warp reality to create a tunnel through the fabrics of reality avoiding the use of the Realmgates. This “science” is quite the opposite of predictable and can end up disastrously, like when one of these tunnels opened at the bottom of the Khaphtar Sea in Shyish draining the entire sea and flooding Blight City with water and… zombies.
Chaos is a constant in Blight City and this anarchy is only partially controlled by the Council of Thirteen, a congregation of 12 rapresentants of the various clans with the 13th place symbolically left to the Great Horned Rat. While Skaven follow their directives (interpreting them in their own way), the real powerhouse is the Shadow Council, another parallel congregation of Verminlords that control the Grey Seers and warlords whispering in their ears.
Vermindoom is the giant catastrophe orchestrated by the Verminlord Skreech Verminking with the blessing of the Horned Rat who is finally seen as an equal by the other Chaos Gods. By corrupting with warpstone the ley lines that form the fabric of reality, the Skaven were able to make part of Blight City erupt in the eastern part of the Great Parch in Aqshy, the Realm of Fire, obliterating anyone who lived there. Now all forces have to withstand the invasion of uncountable and unending hordes of vermin hell-bent to conquer all Mortal Realms and reshape them in their hellish vision. The Hour of Ruin has come.
Army rules for the Skaven
But how does a Skaven army play on a tabletop? First let’s go through the main rules for this army.
Skaven battle traits highlight their treacherousness and include:
- The ability to put in reserve any number of units to resurface them in your movement phase next to a Gnawhole and 9″ away from enemy units.
- During the enemy Hero Phase a unit non-monster can make a normal move (always three clawsteps ahead)
- Skaven Infantry and Cavalry do not take damage when retreating
- At the start of the battle round a new Gnawhole can be set up if there are less than 3 already.
Skaven battle formations benefit units from a specific clan:
- In your shooting phase up to 3 Skryre units can empower their weapon at the risk of exploding.
- In your hero phase up to 3 Moulder non-hero can try to mutate to get more melee attacks or a ward at the risk of self-inflicting damage.
- At the end of any turn up to 3 Pestilens units can make a pile-in move and some mortal damage.
- In your combat phase up to 3 Verminus units can improve their rend by 1
Skaven heroic traits include excellent choices like Scurry Away which allows a hero to retreat before the combat starts or Short-Tempered which provides a +1 to run and charge to Skaven within 13″ of that hero.
Skaven artefacts of power have also a good selection like Warpstone Charm which gives a chance to reduce an opponent unit’s save characteristic and is perfect for melee heroes leading the charge.
Skaven’s spell lore is the Lore of Ruin, whose unlimited spell is Skitterleap, a teleport for friendly heroes. The other spells are Warpgale which gives an enemy unit strike-last and Wither for some mortal damage. Their manifestation lore, Manifestations of Doom, are all spells.
Skaven have also a prayer lore, Noxious Prayers, whose unlimited prayer is Filth-crust, which gives a Skaven infantry +1 to wound to their melee weapons and, if enhanced, Crit(Mortal) as well (mortal damage on a 6 to hit). The other two prayers are Bile-torrent which gives mortal damage to a unit and and Rabid-touch which increases a Skaven infantry resistance.
Units and their roles in the Skaven Army – Heroes
Monster Heroes
Vizzik Skour, Prophet of the Horned Rat is the latest Daemon model released for the Skaven. He is a Warmaster and a Priest(2) with his own prayer (which can be cast in the enemy turn without spending command points) that can either reduce the attacks of an enemy unit, or allow a friendly Infantry unit to attack twice, the second time with strike-last.
His melee attacks are negligible, but he has 2 combat abilities, one that forces a unit engaged with him to attack Vizzik with a -1 to hit and wound, and the other gives some mortal damage to engaged enemy units.
Overall he is more of an utility box than a scary daemon like the other Verminlords, but he should be able to find his place.
Thanquol on Boneripper is an iconic hero known since the World-that-Was. Thanquol is actually the Grey Seer on top of the Rat Ogor that is replaced with a new “Boneripper” every time the previous one ends miserably.
He is a Warmaster and a Wizard(2) with a bonus to cast of +1 and a spell that prevents an enemy unit from using commands until your next hero phase with a chance of some mortal damage.
He is also a good fighter with dangerous shooting attacks, mortal damage at the start of the combat phase and healing at the end of any turn. Despite this, he may still struggle to see action considering he does not add much utility.
All Verminlords come from the same kit and represent the Skaven daemons, each personifying a specific clan, except Lord Skreech Verminking who represents them all as the only one to be able to maintain a place in the Shadow Council.
He is a Warmaster and a Wizard(2) and each of his hero phase can issue a bonus to the units in range of a specific Clan, but can’t use the same buff more than once per game. If a list with mixed units was the trend, he would be a useful support hero with amazing attacks and the ability to restore Clanrats units, but those type of lists are pretty rare and he is quite expensive.
The Verminlord Deceiver is the Eshin daemon and the only one with a shooting attack. His main ability allows him (on a 4+) to leave combat and teleport within 13″ in another combat or combine this ability with others to move an insane amount of space on the battlefield (10″ move + 2D6″ charge + 10″ Scurry Away + 13″ rampage, etc.). He is a Wizard(1).
The Verminlord Corruptor is the Pestilens daemon and one of the few Priests available in the army (power level 1). He can get extra ritual point each combat phase for each unit engaged with him and considering his good melee profile, it’s a win-win.
The Verminlord Warbringer is the Verminus daemon and the most melee oriented of the lot. He is still a Wizard(1) but his attacks can be deadly with the addition of a mortal damage lottery that works best when the opponent is heavily damaged (D6 mortal damage on anyone with 7+ already allocated damage points). He can also allow two extra Verminus units to use the All-out Attack or All-out Defense command in the same combat phase (paying the appropriate command points).
The Verminlord Warpseer is the Masterclan daemon and a Wizard(2). His signature spell reduces by 1 the dice rolled during a charge for an enemy unit but more interestingly, he adds 2″ to the movement in the enemy hero phase (Always Three Clawsteps Ahead) and has a 50% chance to give Strike-last to an engaged enemy unit.
Infantry Heroes
The Grey Seer is the quintessence of Skaven wizardry with so many referred in novels and Warhammer literature. He is a cheap Wizard(1) who can roll 3D6 for casting at the risk of getting some damage back. Great hero to have in your list if you can afford the drop.
Skryre has a long list of heroes all with some shooting attacks and negligible melee profile. However, the Arch-Warlock is a bit better in melee and is also a Wizard(1). But the reason you take him is to use the command Covering Fire without paying command points.
The Warlock Engineer is a great addition to any Skryre army to “snipe” an enemy hero thanks to their ability to have them and Warplock Jezzail units in range ignore the Guarded Hero ability. This one gives a -1 to hit enemy heroes within blocks of infantry, and if they are infantry themselves they are invisible outside 12″ range.
The Warlock Bombardier doesn’t do enough damage to justify his presence on the battlefield.
The Warlock Galvaneer is a brand-new model and warscroll who goes on combo with a unit of Warpvolt Scourgers bringing their shooting attack from 2D6 to 10 (on a 2+).
Krittok Foulblade is the latest (and only remaining) named Clawlord. As such is better suited leading hordes of Clans Verminus, in particular Stormvermin who gets +1 to wound when around him. He can also choose an extra unit for the enemy turn movement ability Always Three Clawsteps Ahead, but at least one has to be a Verminus.
Thanks to his sword that gives him strike-first (at the cost to not activate any command in the same phase), he is probably a decent melee hero although on the expensive side.
The generic Clawlord could be a choice in a heavy-Verminus list as he can pair with another non-Hero Infantry unit and fight one after the other. His melee profile also gets better when wounded, but don’t expect him to stick around for long.
Master Moulder is the hero representing Clans Moulder, and unfortunately the only one with Lord Skreetch. He is a new sculpt that provided him a pistol and therefore a shooting attack.
Apart from that, he is a good addition to any Moulder list as he provides +1 to Charge and end of turn healing to any Moulder unit.
The Deathmaster is another recent re-sculpt, and the only Infantry hero for Eshin (the others being the Verminlord and Lord Skreetch). He has the advantage to be a “bonus hero” who can appear in other hero’s regiments and enemies can wound him only with unmodified hit rolls of 5+ making an otherwise fragile hero extremely survivable and deadly.
He can also buff Eshin units giving them run and shoot and/or charge in the same turn, but there’s not many Eshin units left.
Cavalry Heroes
The Clawlord on Gnaw-Beast is a recent model, the one leading his side in the launch box Skaventide and also, ironically, the only Cavalry unit available in the entire army. Apart from the amazing model, some shooting attacks and an ok melee profile, the only contribution to the army is the ability to increase the control score of a non-Hero Verminus Infantry after allocating 1 mortal damage to them.
War Machine Heroes
The Grey Seer on Screaming Bell is a Wizard(2) with a terrible spell, an ok random ability that has a 50% chance to reduce the wound roll of enemy units within range but more importantly provides a 6+ ward to Skaven Infantry within 13″, which could be a reason to take this model to stand behind your main line of Clanrats.
Outside of Skaven technology, we find the obnoxious and poisonous fumes generated by the religious leaders of Clan Pestilens, inextricably linked with Nurgle. The Plague Priest on Plague Furnace is one of the few Priests (power level 1) available in the army and would be at the centre of a Pestilens army with their 6+ ward for Pestilens units and -1 to enemy wards in range.
The main problem is the cost of the model (in points) and how reliable a Pestilens army is in this new edition. The Screaming Bell and Plague Furnace are assembled from the same kit.
Units and their roles in the Skaven Army – Non-Heroes
Skaven Infantry
The Stormfiends are both Clans Moulder and Clans Skryre. They represent all that Skaven brings to the table with the mixing of hulking monstrosities made in laboratories armed with the best weapons Clans Skryre can provide.
Looking at their weapon options can be confusing, but assuming a single unit of 3 models, each figure has a choice between 2 different weapons. Basically one is more shooting focused, one more melee and one can choose between a shooting and a melee profile. Overall they are a good unit, and they have been consistently for a while.
Our preference for a more shooting oriented Skryre unit is Windlaunchers, Ratling Cannons and Shock Gauntlets. For a more melee focus unit: Warpfire Projectors, Grinderfists and Doomflayer Gauntlets.
The Acolyte Globadiers are a re-sculpt of a really old unit and the way they work now is that they are a Skryre Weapon Team which makes them invisible to units further than 13″ away when in close proximity of a Clanrats unit. They are a cheap infantry which can be pretty damaging against numerous Infantry units.
The following three warscrolls all come from the same kit and are Skryre Weapon Teams as well.
The Ratling Gun has the highest amount of attacks with exploding hits.
The Warpfire Thrower has the highest rend and benefits a lot from the Skryre battle formation bonus.
But the best is probably the newest version available, the Warpvolt Scourgers as they can be buffed by a Warlock Galvaneer to have straight 10 attacks which makes them much more reliable.
If you have seen the Total War Warhammer 2 The Prophet and the Warlock trailer, you have seen the Warplock Jezzails in action (and the Ratling Gun) but in this edition of Age of Sigmar they are the best Skaven unit in a shooting list. Incredible range if they don’t move, they can snipe enemy heroes when close to a Warlock Engineer, and they can improve their to wound roll with the Skryre battle formation. A must for any Skryre oriented list.
The Plaguepack was born as a Warhammer Underworld warband and is now recycled as a generic unit who is also a Priest(1) without being a hero making this unit extremely interesting in many lists. The Plague Rat is a token which allows once per game to re-roll a chanting roll of 1 which is an added bonus.
If you are building a Pestilens army, then the only infantry unit is the Plague Monks (the Plague Censer Bearers are gone leaving these from 2005 as the second oldest unit in the range!). Pestilens battle formation allows an end of turn pile in, but is not that much for a unit whose entire strategy is having a priest chant an empowered Filth-crust to give them Crit(Mortal) and hope in the number of dice rolled to pass some damage. Which would be combined with their then unavoidable demise and a slim chance to do mortal damage back when slain.
The Clanrats are the quintessence of Skaven-hood and this re-sculpt is a great addition to the range. While their profile at a first sight is nothing to go by, their utility is amazing, starting from the fact that there’s 20 of them before being reinforced.
Their point cost is also appetising, and allows them to be used as a screen but also as an unexpected damaging unit thanks to the various buffs they can get like the Skavenbrew artefact that gives them +1 attacks, the Verminus battle formation that gives them +1 rend on charge and the prayer that gives them +1 to wound and Crit(Mortal), bringing 40 Clanrats to an insane amount of damage. Counting they are easy to bring back (D3 every end of turn to start with), they are the essential to any Skaven army.
The Stormvermin are the elite Verminus infantry which count as bodyguards giving an Infantry Hero a 5+ ward when around them, without receiving the ward themselves. They don’t have a bad profile, but 10 of them cost roughly as 20 Clanrats and the potential on the latter is much higher. Pity because this is another great re-sculpt.
The Rat Ogors are another re-sculpted model, and a great one. Coming now in units of 3 models, they still have a single one with a shooting attack and the ability to self-inflict mortal damage to increase their melee attacks. With the ability of a Master Moulder to heal them, and the battle formation that can give them an extra attack (and a ward with some luck), this unit can become extremely scary.
The Night Runners are the last non-Hero Eshin unit left in this army, and they are also officially the oldest kit remaining in the entire game of Age of Sigmar (from 2002!).
Apart from this record, they are a good cheap unit to accomplish battle tactics with a higher move characteristic than an average Skaven, a pre-game move and the fact that they can’t be targeted by enemies further than 9″ away when in close proximity of terrain features.
Skaven Monsters
The list of Skaven monsters is quite long, however they can all be resumed in 3 categories. We have alredy talked about Thanquol on Boneripper and all Verminlords (including Lord Skreech) so it’s time to talk about another iconic Skaven beast.
The Hell Pit Abomination represented the top of Moulder ingenuity, at least until Skryre perfectioned Rat Ogors creating the Stormfiends. They are different beasts merged together in an indescribable mass of claws and teeth all stitched together by master craftsmen.
In game it’s a monster with massive attacks (but not too precise), end-of-turn healing, a rampage against Infantry that has a chance to do mortal damage every combat phase (a single Abomination per turn) and the iconic ability to return back immediately after being killed on a 5+. Its problem is mostly the point cost.
The Brood Terror is the newest Moulder monstrosity with a Master Moulder embedded in this titanic horror and a Warpflame Scourger for some ranged damage. It has end-of-turn- healing and an interesting ability that provides a malus to hit to enemy units in range.
Skaven War Machines
Skaven have plenty of War Machines, almost all Skryre starting with the Warp Lightning Cannon, an iconic artillery piece. The way it works is that you roll to hit and if you hit is straightforward mortal damage. One cannon per shooting phase can empower himself for more attacks, but each 1 will make it self-inflict damage.
The Ratling Warpblaster is another brand-new artillery piece with the same risk mechanic. The main difference is that the Warpblaster is more efficient in shooting low-save units compared to the Cannon, while the latter is more effective against high-saves thanks to its mortal damage. The Warpblaster gets also a +1 to hit when shooting at a unit with 10 or more models, and can get a +1 to wound from the Skryre battle formation, with the risk of increasing its rend as well.
The Doomwheel is another legendary Skaven model with an ok shooting profile and the ability to “walk” over other models even if it is in combat while inflicting mortal damage in the process.
The Doom-Flayers is another re-sculpted unit this time coming in pairs but with the same concept: you want to charge Infantry as often as you can!
The last Skryre war machine is the Warp-grinder who would have been a nice ambushing unit able to carry another non-Monster unit with it, but the reality is that even if you find an isolated enemy unit, you still have 50% chance for this ability to not trigger.
The Plagueclaw is the only Skaven artillery piece that is Pestilens providing an alternative long range unit to non-Skryre lists. It comes from the same kit as the Warp Lightning Cannon and its main use is a chance to give Strike-Last to an infantry low-Health unit targeted by its shooting attacks.
Wizards and Priests in Skaven
These are the wizards available in a Skaven army (in brackets their power level):
- Thanquol on Boneripper (2)
- Lord Skreech Verminking (2)
- Verminlord Deceiver (1)
- Verminlord Warbringer (1)
- Verminlord Warpseer (2)
- Grey Seer (1)
- Grey Seer on Screaming Bell (2)
- Arch-Warlock (1)
These are the priests available in a Skaven army (in brackets their power level):
- Vizzik Skour (2)
- Verminlord Corruptor (1)
- Plague Priest on Plague Furnace (1)
- Plaguepack (1)
List of Skaven units by Clan
For reference, here we will relist all units divided by which Clan they belong to. Some warscrolls belong to multiple clans.
Masterclan
- Vizzik Skour
- Thanquol on Boneripper
- Lord Skreech Verminking
- Verminlord Warpseer
- Grey Seer on Screaming Bell
- Grey Seer
Clans Skryre
- Lord Skreech Verminking
- Arch-Warlock
- Warlock Galvaneer
- Warlock Bombardier
- Warlock Engineer
- Stormfiends
- Warp Lightning Cannon
- Ratling Warpblaster
- Acolyte Globadiers
- Warplock Jezzails
- Doomwheel
- Doom-Flayers
- Ratling Gun
- Warpfire Thrower
- Warpvolt Scourgers
- Warp-Grinder
Clans Pestilens
- Lord Skreech Verminking
- Verminlord Corruptor
- Plague Priest on Plague Furnace (Leader, Behemoth)
- Plaguepack
- Plague Monks
- Plagueclaw
Clans Verminus
- Lord Skreech Verminking
- Verminlord Warbringer
- Krittok Foulblade
- Clawlord
- Clawlord on Gnaw-Beast
- Clanrats
- Stormvermin
Clans Moulder
- Lord Skreech Verminking
- Master Moulder
- Rat Ogors
- Hell Pit Abomination
- Brood Terror
- Stormfiends
Clans Eshin
- Lord Skreech Verminking
- Verminlord Deceiver
- Deathmaster
- Night Runners (Conditional Battleline)
Endless Spells, Terrain and Start Collecting in a Skaven Army
Skaven are one of the few armies that have Endless Spells, Terrain and the new Spearhead box available.
Their Endless Spells are the Vermintide, a low-damage self-healing moving spell that can be useful for screening, the Warp Lightning Vortex, a multi-part unmovable summon that gives malus to run and charge to enemy units in range and sometimes some mortal damage, and the Bell of Doom, which is the best of the group providing a -1 to wound malus to any enemy unit targeting Skaven Infantry in range. Perfect to keep behind your main line of Clanrats to make them harder to shift.
Skaven scenery features a literal hole in reality: the Gnawholes. Up to 3 can be set up during deployment in your own territory, but if there’s less than 3 at the start of the battle round, one can be set up anywhere outside the usual range from enemy units.
The Gnawholes allow friendly units in ambush to re-appear in later turns from one of them and can be used to teleport units from one to another. But the most interesting ability is the one that can return on the battlefield half of a destroyed Skaven Infantry once each end of turn.
Skaven Spearhead box is a good collection of models for a Skaven army. As a hero you have a Grey Seer, a model not available outside of box sets, then 20 Clanrats, 3 Stormfiends and a Warp Lighting Cannon which can be alternatively assembled as a Plagueclaw.
This a good starting point for a Skaven army, allowing next to specialise in the clan that you prefer while maintaining a solid base. You could even add a second box as you can never have enough Clanrats. The Verminlord kit is probably a good purchase to follow-up.
Being at the forefront of the fourth edition, it is possible to see value-added boxes pitting Skaven against Stormcast Eternals. If you are interested in the golden warriors, or can split the boxes with a friend, they are a good value.
The Starter Set is the cheapest and contains a Grey Seer, a Warlock Engineer, 3 Rat Ogors, and 20 Clanrats. The Ultimate Starter Set adds a Clawlord on Gnaw-Beast. Finally, if you can still find the original launch box Skaventide, it adds an extra 20 Clanrats, 3 Warplock Jezzails and a Ratling Warpblaster, all new models.
Both the Skaven Spearhead and the Ultimate Starter Set can be played in the Spearhead format, one focussing on moving your units to screen the shooters, and the other swarming your opponent with hordes waiting in ambush. You can find more information in our Spearhead article.
Armies of Renown and Regiments of Renown in a Skaven Army
Skaven have two Armies of Renown.
The Great-grand Gnawhorde is led by Vizzik Skour and can have any non-unique Masterclan, Verminus, Skryre or Moulder unit. The battle traits revolve around Vizzik obtaining a 4+ ward when around other Skaven units and 3 mutually exclusive abilities which provide a bonus and a malus but only one can be used per turn. Not extremely competitive.
Thanquol’s Mutated Menagerie is limited to Thanquol, Master Moulder, Rat Ogors, Hell Pit Abomination, Brood Terror and Stormfiends. Thanquol gets the same 4+ ward redirecting damage to a nearby Skaven unit but the interesting part is that you can choose each of your hero phase a unit to be super pumped at the cost of receiving damage at the end of each turn. The kamikaze-style of this army continues with the two rampages available to the Abomination and Brood Terror which gives them Strike-first and some mortal damage/malus to attacks to enemy units around them but they are destroyed at the end of the turn. If you have the models it may be fun to try it out but is not that competitive.
Skaven also have two Regiments of Renown.
Krittok’s Clawpack includes Krittok, 1 unit of 10 Stormvermin and 1 unit of 2 Doom-Flayers. It can be used in any other Chaos army and the concept is that the Stormvermin give ward both to Krittok and the Doom-Flayers and you can use the enemy turn Skaven movement to reposition any unit in this regiment. But is that enough for the Stormvermin to keep the pace of the Flayers?
Volt-klaw’s Enginecoven includes 1 Warlock Galvaneer, a unit of 3 Warpvolt Scourgers and 1 Ratling Warpblaster. It can also be used on any other Chaos army, particularly useful if you want to add some shooting potential. Khorne and Nurgle come to mind (but remember that shooting is for cowards and the Blood God would be displeased). This regiment is much more interesting as the Warpblaster can effectively hide the other units from shooting attacks farther than 13″ and once per game you can improve range and hit rolls of all units in this regiment.
For more details on Armies and Regiments of Renown you can read here.
Tactics and Final Verdict on the Skaven Army
Skaven in the fourth edition are a different type of army compared to the previous version. Many sculpts changed, and the oldest non-plastic miniatures are now gone. At the same time, the major focus of this refresh has been Verminus, Skryre and Moulder, leaving Pestilens and Eshin in a dire situation.
The former has a single infantry line and has to rely on a cheap non-hero priest, it lost a lot of damage potential and does not have an exceptional battle formation. The latter has basically only 2 units (4 counting the Verminlords), which are still useful, but not enough to create an army around it. especially considering they don’t even have a battle formation. Despite this, Eshin is in a better situation than Pestilens as their hero can be recruited in other regiments and their basic infantry can be used to complete battle tactics.
This leaves us with the other 3 clans (plus Masterclan, but they really are just the leaders), each with their own battle formation that favours a single aspect of the army.
Clans Skryre is definitely the more performant (and the one who got more sculpts), as it plays in a shooting meta with great options, especially if you don’t care about your units exploding after a powered up attack. Their battle formation plays on this trend and is incredibly thematic.
Clans Moulder has the Rat Ogors as their star, but is missing some cheap screening (Giant Rats are gone) and have to rely on Clanrats. Despite this, Rat Ogors can easily be played in other lists, and a Moulder list could see some play with Rat Ogors and Stormfiends at the forefront. The two monsters, Abomination and Brood Terror, are bit too expensive to be seen often.
Clans Verminus relies on Clanrats carrying most of the weight, as they are great options in all lists. Verminus’ battle formation would be more interesting if the Stormvermin were a bit more competitive (maybe a price drop is enough?).
Great units to use in mixed lists are the Jezzails, the Rat Ogors and the Clanrats, but our preference would go in a heavy-Skryre list protected by Clanrats and some other options to take battle tactics like the Night Runners and Plaguepack as cheap priests to give Crit(Mortal) to the best placed melee unit.
A Verminlord is also a great addition in many lists, with the Warpseer a good option as it can include in his regiment any Skaven unit. And if you are playing Moulder, a Master Moulder is a welcome addition.
A final note goes to the new range of miniatures, excellent sculpts, a bit on the traditional side, but as we explained in our intro, left two clans behind which will no doubt be updated in the future. So, stay tuned!
Overall Skaven have many options and there’s many lists to be made, although they have strong counters and they are currently struggling to get above average results. Don’t let this turn you off, as they are a fantastic army to collect, with a unique lore, and plenty of choices for any list builder!
Other resources
Some excellent information that we often use from articles like this one comes from YouTube channels like Warhammer Weekly with Vince Venturella, AoS Coach and of course The Honest Wargamer.
If you are interested in the competitive standpoint, when we talk about statistics, a tremendous effort is done by Rob from the Honest Wargamer, Ziggy and Tsports Network! in the AoS Stat Centre with precious information, constantly kept up to date.
Really good informative material is also collected by Dan from AoS Shorts.