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Summarised from the free Games Workshop rules download named in the sources. Check the current Battle Profiles before a game.
Points, unit sizes and regiment options live in the free Battle Profiles download, last republished 29 July 2026. A newer Battle Profiles always replaces an older one, so check the current version before a game.
Unit picks are SprueSentry commentary, not part of the formation rule. The formation ability itself is summarised from the free Faction Pack: Seraphon.
Pick up to 3 friendly Skink Infantry or Skink Cavalry units that are not in combat. Each moves a rolled distance, and none of them may move into combat during that move.
The cheap Skink Infantry block that turns the extra move into objective grabs.
See the box: price and offersSkink Cavalry with shooting, so the move and the shooting phase happen in the same breath.
See the box: price and offersSkink Cavalry flyers that use the extra move to contest ground the rest of the army cannot reach.
You pick exactly one battle formation for your army, so choosing this one means you do not take these.
How to play Shadowstrike Starhost, the Seraphon battle formation that moves up to three Skink units in your shooting phase.
Sprue Sentry strategy commentary for Age of Sigmar 4th edition, not official rules. Games Workshop updates points and rules regularly; always confirm against the current official rules and latest update before a game.
Shadowstrike Starhost is the Skink battle formation for Seraphon in Age of Sigmar 4th edition: an objective-game formation rather than a combat one.
SprueSentry strategy commentary, not official rules. Summarised from the free Faction Pack: Seraphon, last updated 8 July 2026.
The formation ability is Nimble and Quick, used once per turn in your shooting phase. Pick up to 3 friendly Skink Infantry or Skink Cavalry units that are not in combat. Each one moves a short rolled distance, and none of them may move into combat during that move.
Three units moving after the movement phase is a lot of board control for one ability, and because it happens in the shooting phase you already know what survived your opponent's turn before you commit.
Two limits define it. The units must be Skink Infantry or Skink Cavalry, so Saurus, Kroxigor and Monsters get nothing, including Skink-crewed Monsters like the Stegadon and the Bastiladon, which are Monsters rather than Infantry or Cavalry.
And the move cannot end in combat. This is not a way to reach a fight, it is a way to take an objective, break line of sight, or step out of an opponent's charge range after you have seen where they are.
Players who want to win on scoring with a wide Skink-heavy list. It is the most mission-sensitive of the four Starhosts and rewards knowing the battlepack's scoring windows, because moving three units at the right moment is worth far more than moving them on schedule.
Pick Shadowstrike Starhost when Skinks are a real share of your points and the mission rewards holding ground rather than killing. If your Skinks are just screens for a Saurus or Monster core, one of the other three formations will do more for the units that actually matter.
Once per turn in your shooting phase, up to three friendly Skink Infantry or Skink Cavalry units that are not in combat each move a short rolled distance, and none of them may move into combat during that move.
No. Those are Monsters, and the ability picks Skink Infantry or Skink Cavalry units. Thunderquake Starhost is the formation for a Monster-heavy Seraphon list.
No. The move cannot end in combat, so it is for scoring, screening and dodging rather than for reaching a fight.
Written by Sprue Sentry, grounded in the cited sources. Original commentary, not Games Workshop rules text.