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This is SprueSentry strategy commentary, not official rules. Confirm the specifics and points against the free Space Marines Faction Pack before a game.
Your units get the Benefit of Cover against ranged attacks made from more than 12" away. The previous -1-to-hit was removed in the June 2026 pack.
Better accuracy and extra AP against distant targets, and killing models can force Battle-shock.
An evasive reposition to dodge or blunt a charge, retargeted in 11th edition to an infantry unit within 12" of the charging enemy.
Pull an infantry unit off the board into Strategic Reserves to disengage and redeploy elsewhere.
Rig an objective so enemies moving nearby take mortal wounds.
Precision melee to snipe an attached enemy character.
The universal AP-worsening save-saver.
The bearer's unit gains Infiltrators, deploying up the board more than 9" from the enemy.
Stealth plus Lone Operative, making a lone character extremely hard to shoot.
A short reposition move after shooting. Phobos character.
Disrupts enemy stratagem use near the bearer; the 11th-edition pack limited this to once per turn. Phobos character.
Deny enemy deep-strike in a 12" bubble and screen your backfield.
See the box: price and offersObjective-holders with scanner utility, durable under Shadow Masters.
See the box: price and offersSignature snipers; long-range precision fire that loves the >12" cover bubble.
See the box: price and offersAggressive infiltrating harassers for early pressure and objective grabs.
See the box: price and offersMobile jump-pack fire support with anti-heavy shooting.
See the box: price and offersCarry the Phobos-only enhancements and lead the stealth core.
At 2 DP it leaves 1 DP for a Speeder support.
At 2 DP it leaves 1 DP for a psyker support.
How to play Vanguard Spearhead in 11th edition — the 2-DP Phobos recon detachment, its (nerfed) Shadow Masters cover rule, stealth stratagems, and objective-holding game.
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.
Vanguard Spearhead is the Space Marines Phobos stealth and recon detachment: a 2-Detachment-Point package that plays a mobile, evasive, board-control game and is frustratingly hard to shift off objectives. It reflects Warhammer 40,000 11th edition (launched June 2026).
This is SprueSentry strategy commentary, not official rules. One 11th-edition change is important and confirmed below (its detachment rule was toned down); other stratagem and enhancement details carry over from the previous codex and are likely current — always confirm against the free Space Marines Faction Pack before a game.
Shadow Masters gives your units the Benefit of Cover against ranged attacks made from more than 12" away. In practice your infantry are always "in cover" versus anything shooting from range, so they weather long-range fire while holding the midfield.
Important 11th-edition change: the previous version also subtracted 1 from those hit rolls (stacking toward -2 to hit with Stealth). That -1-to-hit was removed in the June 2026 pack — Shadow Masters is now cover-only. If you're reading older 10th-edition guides, they will overstate this rule; the current version is the cover bonus alone.
(Points weren't independently confirmed for 11th edition.)
Take Vanguard when you want an attrition and board-control army that is very hard to shoot off objectives and plays a mobile, evasive game rather than a hammer-blow alpha strike. It rewards a Phobos-heavy, Raven-Guard-flavoured collection. At 2 DP it fits a 2,000-point (3 DP) list alongside a 1-DP support, or stands alone at 1,000 points.
Sample gameplan: deploy an infiltrating screen to push up early, deny reserves and grab midfield objectives turn one. Sit units where Shadow Masters hands them Benefit of Cover against anything shooting from 12"+ away. Snipe key targets with Eliminators plus Strike from the Shadows, trade space with Guerrilla Tactics and Calculated Feint, and win on primary and secondary scoring rather than tabling the opponent.
2 DP. At a 2,000-point (3 DP) game that leaves 1 DP for a support detachment like Fulguris Task Force or Librarius Conclave; at 1,000 points it can stand alone.
Yes. Its Shadow Masters rule used to also subtract 1 from enemy hit rolls at range; the June 2026 pack removed that, leaving only the Benefit of Cover against shooting from more than 12" away. Older 10th-edition guides overstate the rule.
Shadow Masters: your units get the Benefit of Cover against ranged attacks made from more than 12" away — so your infantry are effectively always in cover versus long-range fire, making them hard to shift off objectives.
Phobos units: Infiltrators for deep-strike denial and screening, Incursors for objectives, Eliminators for sniping under the cover bubble, plus a Phobos character carrying an enhancement like Ghostweave Cloak or The Blade Driven Deep.
Written by Sprue Sentry, grounded in the cited sources. Original commentary, not Games Workshop rules text.