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This is SprueSentry strategy commentary, not official rules. The parts of this detachment amended in the Chaos Space Marines Faction Pack version 1.2 Rules Updates are confirmed against that document, checked on 27 August 2026. The rest of the rule, stratagem and enhancement lists come from the 10th-edition Codex: Chaos Space Marines by way of community rules mirrors. Detachment Point costs and enhancement points are not in the Faction Pack; they were read from the official Munitorum Field Manual on 27 August 2026 and are reprinted here as a planning aid. Points move with every update, so confirm them in the Warhammer 40,000 app before a game.
In the Battle-shock step of your opponent's Command phase, an enemy unit below its Starting Strength within 12" of one or more Heretic Astartes units from your army must take a Battle-shock test. Each time an enemy unit within 12" of one or more of your Heretic Astartes units takes a Battle-shock test, subtract 1 from the result. Enemy units affected by this rule do not need to take any other Battle-shock tests in the same phase.
1CP. One Heretic Astartes Infantry unit that has not fought improves the Armour Penetration of attacks against battle-shocked and Below Half-strength targets by 1.
1CP. Just after a Heretic Astartes unit destroys a Character unit, each enemy unit within 12" and visible must take a Battle-shock test.
1CP. One Heretic Astartes Infantry unit that has not shot can re-roll Hit and Wound rolls against battle-shocked and Below Half-strength targets.
1CP. Just after a Heretic Astartes Infantry unit Falls Back, it is eligible to declare a charge in a turn in which it Fell Back.
1CP. Set a Heretic Astartes Jump Pack unit in Reserves up more than 6" horizontally from all enemy units; it cannot charge this turn, then one enemy Infantry or Mounted unit within 9" and visible makes a battle-shock roll. Faction Pack v1.2 rewrites this Effect section.
1CP. One unengaged Heretic Astartes Infantry unit declares a charge as if it were your Charge phase against one enemy unit within 6" that Fell Back this turn, gaining no Charge bonus for it.
Jump Pack Chaos Lord model only. At the end of your opponent's turn, if the bearer's unit is not in Engagement Range, you can remove it and place it into Strategic Reserves.
Heretic Astartes model only. At the start of your Command phase, if the bearer is on the battlefield, roll a D6 adding 1 for each battle-shocked enemy unit on the battlefield: on a 5+ you gain 1CP.
Chaos Lord model only, excluding Terminator models. Models in the bearer's unit have the Stealth ability.
Heretic Astartes model only. In the Fight phase, after the bearer attacks, one enemy unit hit by those attacks must take a Battle-shock test.
Heretic Astartes Jump Pack Infantry, which is what Screaming Descent names, and the pack reprinted their datasheet.
See the box: price and offersThe only legal Warp-fuelled Thrusters bearer, which lets your assault character redeploy instead of dying to the counter-punch.
See the box: price and offersThe aura is measured from any Heretic Astartes unit, so spread cheap infantry to widen the 12" bubble rather than clumping it.
See the box: price and offersThe only legal Night's Shroud bearer, and a Willbreaker carrier that adds another Battle-shock test each Fight phase.
See the box: price and offersReprinted as a datasheet in the pack, and thematically the Night Lords terror squad this detachment is built for.
See the box: price and offersTerror Descends manufactures battle-shocked and thinned units across the board; Prey on the Weak converts that state into re-rolls and defensive penalties for your Infantry Fly units. Dread Talons carries no Unique Tag, so this pairing is legal where Nightmare Hunt would not be.
Fleshy Curse drops enemy units below Starting Strength at range, which is the trigger the Battle-shock step of the detachment rule needs.
How to play Dread Talons in 11th edition — the 2-DP Night Lords fear aura, and the untagged alternative to Nightmare Hunt when you want jump packs alongside it.
BySprue Sentry
ReviewedAug 27, 2026
SourceFaction Pack: Chaos Space Marines v1.2 (official GW PDF, legal from 26 August 2026)
Sprue Sentry strategy commentary for 11th edition, not official rules. Games Workshop updates points and rules regularly; always confirm against the current official rules and latest update before a game.
Dread Talons is the Chaos Space Marines terror aura: a 2-Detachment-Point package that applies a permanent penalty to every Battle-shock test taken near your army. It reflects Warhammer 40,000 11th edition (Chaos Space Marines Faction Pack v1.2, legal for matched play from 26 August 2026).
This is SprueSentry strategy commentary, not official rules. The pack does not reprint this detachment in full, but its Rules Updates section officially rewrites the Screaming Descent stratagem, and that amendment is confirmed against the pack, checked on 27 August 2026. The rest of the rule, six stratagems and four enhancements come from the 10th-edition codex by way of community rules mirrors. Its DP cost and enhancement points come from the official Munitorum Field Manual, and the Warhammer 40,000 app is the final word.
It is an aura, with three clauses:
The second clause is the one that carries the detachment, and it is broader than the first: it applies to any Battle-shock test taken within 12 inches of your units, not only the one this rule forces. Every Battle-shock test in the game, from Below Half-strength triggers to enemy stratagems to your own effects, gets worse for your opponent while they are near you.
And the crucial list-building fact: Dread Talons carries no Unique Tag. Nightmare Hunt, which does a similar job at the same 2 DP, carries NIGHTMARE and therefore cannot be taken with Murdertalon Raiders. Dread Talons can.
Six, all 1CP, and three of them convert the fear state into damage.
Merciless Pursuit is the trap-closer: an opponent who disengages from your melee unit can find themselves charged again in their own Movement phase.
(Points come from the Munitorum Field Manual and move with updates; confirm in the app.)
Take it when you want the fear game with jump packs attached. This is the important distinction in the Chaos lineup: Nightmare Hunt is a bigger detachment rule, but it carries the NIGHTMARE tag and so cannot be combined with Murdertalon Raiders. Dread Talons carries no tag, costs the same 2 DP, and pairs with Murdertalon Raiders for exactly 3 DP.
Be clear-eyed about the limits. A -1 to Battle-shock tests is a real but indirect effect: it does nothing against an opponent whose units are at full strength, and some armies barely take Battle-shock tests at all. Three of the six stratagems only pay off once something is already broken, so a slow start compounds.
Sample gameplan: spread Heretic Astartes units so the 12-inch aura covers the centre of the board. Shoot to push units below Starting Strength, and let the Command-phase clause do the rest. Put Eater of Dread on a rear character to bank command points, Night's Shroud on the Chaos Lord holding your objective, and Warp-fuelled Thrusters on the jump Lord leading Raptors. Spend Pitiless Hunters on the broken unit, Bloody Example the moment you kill a Character, and hold Merciless Pursuit for anyone who tries to disengage.
2 DP, which at a 2,000-point game leaves 1 DP for a support detachment. DP costs are not printed in the Faction Pack; the official Munitorum Field Manual lists it at 2 DP, and the Warhammer 40,000 app is the final word as points updates land.
Terror Descends, an aura. In the Battle-shock step of your opponent's Command phase, an enemy unit below its Starting Strength within 12 inches of your Heretic Astartes units must take a Battle-shock test. Any enemy unit within 12 inches of your Heretic Astartes units subtracts 1 from Battle-shock tests. Affected units take no other Battle-shock tests that phase.
Nightmare Hunt has the larger rule, with four clauses including +1 to Hit against Below Half-strength targets and +1 to Wound against battle-shocked ones. But it carries the NIGHTMARE Unique Tag, so it cannot be fielded with Murdertalon Raiders. Dread Talons carries no tag, so if jump packs are part of your 3-DP plan, Dread Talons is the detachment that makes it legal.
No. The Munitorum Field Manual lists Dread Talons at 2 DP with the Disruption force disposition and no Unique Tag. Chaos Space Marines have exactly one tag, NIGHTMARE, carried only by Murdertalon Raiders and Nightmare Hunt.
Written by Sprue Sentry, grounded in the cited sources. Original commentary, not Games Workshop rules text.