Can I let you in on a secret? I’ve never been that keen on the Ossiarch Bonereapers. More specifically, they’re the one Warhammer Age of Sigmar faction that I don’t “get.” What’s their unique selling point? They’re an army of relentless skeletons, yes, but we already have one of those in the (magnificently gothic) Soulblight Gravelords. We even have an army of ghosts filling the “restless spirits” niche. So, what makes them stand out?
It took the latest miniatures to change my mind. When the new Ossiarch Bonereaper models were revealed at the New Year Warhammer Preview 2026, I sat up and took notice for the first time in a while. Rather than the rigid legions we’d had before that would walk roughshod over you without a second thought, these reinforcements are lithe and dextrous. These “Mortis Reapers” were assassins, not skeletal Terminators; their poses are dynamic enough to challenge some of Warhammer’s best. It’s also something their Soulblight siblings can’t manage, what with them being mindless undead of the shambling kind. There’s an intelligence to their expressions and an implied speed to the poses that, for me, radiates menace.
Muster the legions
(Image credit: Warhammer Community)
Now that the new miniatures are up for pre-order, where can you get them? While they’ll obviously be available direct from Games Workshop, it’s worth checking in with third-party retailers like Miniature Market in the US and Wayland Games in the UK. They typically stock Warhammer models at a heavy discount, even those that have only just come out.
It was enough to make me look back at the rest of the range. And you know what? I’m starting to get it. While I still think the theme is a bit hamstrung by the fact that they are, at their core, another army of skeletons (perhaps they’d have been better as a battalion of robots like Warhammer 40K’s Necrons?), I’d missed the outrageous weirdness obscured by those faceless legions. If you’re also unfamiliar with the Ossiarch Empire, these guys make entirely new, purpose-built bodies out of bones and fill them with indoctrinated souls. That means some very bizarre constructs are made to fit specific needs, like, I dunno, a dirty great skele-gargoyle.
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That’s what I like about the brand-new Mortek Triaxes, too. These fill the much-needed niche of ranged support, and while they could easily have been bog-standard bone archers, they’re… well, strange. Their faces have been molded into crests to give them an eye on their forehead. These guys are freaky, and while their pose is still a bit staid for me, I appreciate that they’re like a Picasso painting given life.
While I don’t think I’m going to become a diehard Ossiarch Bonereapers fan any time soon, these additions helped me see the faction with all-new eyes.
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