40k Xenos Champions (LoV Berehk Stornbrow / Tau Twin Lance / Tyranid Prime with Lash Whip)

[Dr. Clock]

Am I wrong in thinking they each have one half of a broken bonding knife on the white thighs?

 

It does certainly seem like the perforated armor on the blue side is the remains of another suit - there's even fabric binding used on those armour plates, and I imagine the gold popping through the perforations is intended to read more or less as kintsugi (that japanese vibe of using gold leaf in ceramic repair). It does look kinda symbolic, linear and 'regular', but it could also read as pitting/corrosion that's been scraped down and then repaired.

 

Anyway - I think they do look better in solid colours, but I think they'd also look good in just a proper halved scheme with the line on the torso mid-line, not so slavishly insisting all plates are one colour or the other. I appreciate that for purposes of promotion they don't really love presenting split colour panels because people are often afraid to try and paint those kind of straight lines. On these I imagine it could indeed be a devilish time getting a straight line on that main articulated gorget panel... but I still think it'd make the composition better overall. I'm definitely biased as a Storm Lord tho.

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor. 

[TheVoidDragon]

35 minutes ago, Dr. Clock said:

Am I wrong in thinking they each have one half of a broken bonding knife on the white thighs?

 

It does certainly seem like the perforated armor on the blue side is the remains of another suit - there's even fabric binding used on those armour plates, and I imagine the gold popping through the perforations is intended to read more or less as kintsugi (that japanese vibe of using gold leaf in ceramic repair). It does look kinda symbolic, linear and 'regular', but it could also read as pitting/corrosion that's been scraped down and then repaired.

 

Anyway - I think they do look better in solid colours, but I think they'd also look good in just a proper halved scheme with the line on the torso mid-line, not so slavishly insisting all plates are one colour or the other. I appreciate that for purposes of promotion they don't really love presenting split colour panels because people are often afraid to try and paint those kind of straight lines. On these I imagine it could indeed be a devilish time getting a straight line on that main articulated gorget panel... but I still think it'd make the composition better overall. I'm definitely biased as a Storm Lord tho.

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor. 

 

It doesn't really come across this way to me. I can see why many think the blue parts are salvaged components of the commanders suit, but I think if that was the intention that would have been mentioned as part of the description we were given. Instead it just says that after that event, they were given these prototype suits.

 

The that markings on that blue armour aren't damage but rather it's the same pattern in the same places on both suits, and that even the 2 drones have that same sort of opposite scheme, indicates to me it's just 2 characters who have asymmetrical mirrored armour, because they're twins.  Thematically ones positioned with their extra armour shielding and weapon oriented to the left, and the other with the focus on the right side mirroring them. 

[SalamandersBro]

That Votann champion looks bad ass.

[Indy Techwisp]

6 hours ago, Dr. Clock said:

Am I wrong in thinking they each have one half of a broken bonding knife on the white thighs?

It does appear to be 2 halves on the bonding knife.

 

6 hours ago, TheVoidDragon said:

The that markings on that blue armour aren't damage but rather it's the same pattern in the same places on both suits, and that even the 2 drones have that same sort of opposite scheme, indicates to me it's just 2 characters who have asymmetrical mirrored armour, because they're twins.

Are they actual Twins?

I don't think they explicitly are.

[TheVoidDragon]

4 hours ago, Indy Techwisp said:

Are they actual Twins?

I don't think they explicitly are.

 

No, not literally. It just seems they're two veteran battlesuit pilots who work have formed an inseparable bond that they complement each other fighting as a pair. 

[Fire Golem]

17 hours ago, TheVoidDragon said:

 

No, not literally. It just seems they're two veteran battlesuit pilots who work have formed an inseparable bond that they complement each other fighting as a pair. 

A big part of the lore that we’ve been given so far is the fact that they were a trio, and their fighting style evolved from the loss of said third Tau. Which is why I think the salvaged suit is certainly strongly implied, whether they explicitly said so or not. 

[TheVoidDragon]

20 hours ago, Fire Golem said:

A big part of the lore that we’ve been given so far is the fact that they were a trio, and their fighting style evolved from the loss of said third Tau. Which is why I think the salvaged suit is certainly strongly implied, whether they explicitly said so or not. 

 

The idea of it being a salvaged suit is based off the strange markings/pattern and the colour scheme, even though that pattern isn't damage but a consistent pattern that's in the same places on both suits (just opposite) indicating something intentional, and the scheme on the drones is mirrored in the same way as the suits are, suggesting the other colour isn't because it's they're parts taken from elsewhere. 

 

It being a salvaged suit would be quite a distinct and unique feature so I think if that was what they were meant to be, would surely have been mentioned in a broad overview of the characters lore as given by the article. Especially with it being visually relevant to the models shown.

[Commander Dawnstar]

On 11/10/2025 at 8:19 AM, Magos Takatus said:

That in itself is really interesting to me too.  These two eschewing sept markings and going on tour like some rock band around the empire seems so against the tenets of the Greater Good. Personal markings instead of sept markings? It almost reads as Tau "celebrities" to me for lack of a better term, which seems curious after Farsight "departed" from the empire. The Ethereals must be giving them a unique level of autonomy. I'm not saying it doesn't make sense, but it sounds like a really curious lore development. 

 

Little bit of headcanon, little bit of inference, but I feel like this is quite deliberate.

 

As far as we know nobody's really inherited Farsight's "Master of Mont'ka" mantle since his secession centuries ago*, and what little we've heard of the Twin Lance so far suggests they're far more about personal battlefield prowess than leadership and command. I think it's likely that their coronation is a (necessary in these dark times) propaganda move seizing on their story to catapult them into celebrity as a symbol for the whole Empire. They're an image of T'au bloodied but unbowed by tragedy who can appear and strike back wherever they're needed, and acting as semi-independent executioners can cover for any of their shortfallings when set against more traditional commanders like Shadowsun. 

 

They haven't earned their title any more than any other T'au, they just have a story the Ethereals thought would sell - and they want them making headlines.

 

*That is: GW's never told us about anyone doing it (so far).

 

 

[Fire Golem]

13 hours ago, TheVoidDragon said:

 

The idea of it being a salvaged suit is based off the strange markings/pattern and the colour scheme, even though that pattern isn't damage but a consistent pattern that's in the same places on both suits (just opposite) indicating something intentional, and the scheme on the drones is mirrored in the same way as the suits are, suggesting the other colour isn't because it's they're parts taken from elsewhere. 

 

It being a salvaged suit would be quite a distinct and unique feature so I think if that was what they were meant to be, would surely have been mentioned in a broad overview of the characters lore as given by the article. Especially with it being visually relevant to the models shown.

I don’t know why the pattern being damage or not makes any difference to the suit being salvaged. When I say salvaged, I mean it was rescued from the battlefield, and then repaired and integrated into the two survivor suits. The pattern is clearly decoration, as if from one more highly decorated suit, for example that of a commanders… 

 

The drones could have been recoloured to match easily enough. 
 

It’s not explicitly said but I think it’s implied by the models and is a really nice bit of implicit storytelling in the models. We’ve barely got any lore on them either way, it’ll be interesting to see what’s said about them when they come out.