Andy Hoare

Andy: The 13th Company, along with the whole idea of the Lost Companies has always been the most compelling area of the Space Wolves’ background for me, and so I was really pleased when I was given the job of bringing it to life.

I had two main areas of concern when it came to writing the background, and the list that would spring from it. Primarily, the whole idea of the 13th Company is that it is an area of the background that relies on the fact that no one knows exactly what happened to the Wulfen-kind, where they went or what they’ve been up to since then. So, the first thing I did was to write an Index Astartes article, purely for my own reference, so I could identify the key areas to focus on in the list (this article will appear in next month’s White Dwarf). In order to maintain the mystery that gives the 13th Company its character, I presented three different versions of the legend of its disappearance, and constructed the list so that the player can choose to construct his army according to his own tastes.

Space Wolves Wulfen Pack

The second concern was how to make the 13th Company different from a mainstream Space Wolves army. One problem was that they should be a Space Wolves army, only better, but they still needed to focus on close combat. I decided that the army should essentially be a light infantry force, with no transports or heavy equipment like Dreadnoughts. This focus honed the force into a warband-type army, that concentrates on heroic leaders and highly skilled core troops using their natural scouting abilities to close in on the enemy rather than charge headlong towards him in Rhinos.

What really makes this army stand out for me is the Wulfen, an entirely new troop type available only to the 13th Company. They took a bit of testing, and I deliberately gave them an element of unpredictability as befits a bunch of howling-mad wolfmen! The Animal Rage rule means that the Wulfen are likely to go haring off after the enemy when you’d really rather they stood their ground, and unless you attach a Wolf Priest to them to keep them under control this can lead to some unexpected battlefield situations. In testing for example, a pack of Wulfen decided to tackle a Wraithlord, but thanks to their 4 Attacks on the charge at Strength and Initiative of 5, gave it a pretty good going over.

The 13th Company is undoubtedly a force for those who do well with small, elite armies, and I hope Space Wolves players, as well as those looking for a slightly unusual army to start with, will find them appealing, as much from a narrative point of view as from a game-play one.

Related Articles:
Space Wolves Miniature Gallery | The Blood Angels Death Company

Online Store:
Wulfen | Storm Claws | Grey Slayers