On Factions, Warband Lists, and Warband Variants
by Brook Close and Jamie Parsons
The incredible success of Trench Crusade has allowed us to do many things we would have never thought possible, from creating a plastic range that can be available in retail across the world to much, much more in the future. As a part of this, we have also been presented with a priceless opportunity to build further depth into the game content we already have (as well as preparing for more things in the future…), starting with how and what constitutes a Warband.
The quick pitch here is that, when you create a Warband, you’ll first pick a Faction, then a Warband List available for that Faction, and, optionally, a Warband Variant for your Warband List. We’ll explain this refined structure below.
Factions
Factions represent the most established and influential forces in the Great War, and every Warband hails from or fights for one. The six factions (currently) engaged in the Trench Crusade storyline are: New Antioch, Trench Pilgrims, Iron Sultanate, Heretic Legions, The Black Grail and The Court of the Seven-headed Serpent.
Warband Lists
Given the size and scope of each Faction, there are many different archetypal fighting styles available to them. These are represented by Warband Lists. As it currently stands, each Faction has at least one, more generic Warband List available to it, for example: New Antioch has the Principality of New Antioch Warband List, the Black Grail has the Cult of the Black Grail Warband List, etc.
The Trench Pilgrims and Heretic Legions are the first to be getting two new Warband Lists: The Procession of the Sacred Affliction and the Heretic Naval Raiders respectively. Players familiar with these names may recognise them as once being Warband Variants (more on these in a moment) for Trench Pilgrims and Heretic Legions, however the release of the Carcass Front has allowed us to fully realise all of our ideas for these two specialist/unique/disturbed bands of warriors with bespoke art, lore, models and rules.
Warband Variants
After you’ve picked your Warband List, you can optionally add another layer of personality and history to your Warband by selecting one of their Warband Variants. A Warband Variant represents a specialised force that features the tactics, traditions and resources of local cultures or splinter groups. Each Variant is built from an existing Warband List but introduces tweaks by bringing new lore, Warband Entry profiles, battlekit and special rules to the mix. They make for a fun hobby and gameplay project, and can breathe new life into your existing Warbands by only requiring one or a few new models.
We aim to have at least one – maybe even two – Warband Variants for each Warband List, including the newly-expanded Procession of the Sacred Affliction and Heretic Naval Raiders!
As an example of these new Warband Variants, we’ve picked out The Knights of Saint Lazarus for the Procession of the Sacred Affliction, and The Drowned Choir for the Heretic Naval Raiders specifically to show off some of their new models.
The Drowned Choir
Art by Mike Franchina. Sculpted by Wilph and painted by Stéphane N’guyen.
Eschewing some of the more elite options in the Heretic Naval Raider roster, this warband focuses on a trio of Drowned Choristers and their enhanced Wretched choir. It is led by an upgraded Drowned Chorister known as a Leviathal Chorus (the Trench Crusade version of three kobolds in a trenchcoat) which is represented by this imposing new model.
The Knights of Saint Lazarus
Art by Martin McCoy. Sculpted by James Sheriff and painted by Martin Grandbarbe.
The Knights of Saint Lazarus warbands have a more elite core than warbands of their brethren Leper-Pilgrims. These are formed around a Lazarist Prophet and chivalrous Leper-Knights – included in a set of new, multi-pose miniatures – as well as being able to field a larger contingent of Stigmatic Nuns,
Both of these kits, as well as a full terrain pack to support Carcass Front, are available both digitally on our MyMiniFactory store HERE and as physical products through our official printing partners HERE. For more information on the Carcass Front STLs, check out our News article HERE.
…And More!
Art by Martin McCoy.
And as an example of Variants doing more with existing models, we have the Leviathan Shoal and the Procession of the Blessed Flock. Each of these focuses on mixing up the “big guys” of their warband: with some competitive and cannibalistic Anointed Heretic Raiders and maddened, grief-stricken Lazarist Communicants respectively. You’ve been warned though, the results are… voracious.
The models you’ll need to build these Variant Warbands – i.e. more Anointed Heretic Raiders and more Communicants – will be released over the coming months in plastic, alongside kits for everything else in the Warbands, so keep an eye out for those in due course. As for the digital elements…
Trench Crusade Digital
As we’ve said many times by now, we’re fully committed to developing our plastic range in order to make Trench Crusade as widely available as possible. What you’re seeing here is our first attempt at a digital release program that runs parallel to the main range, supporting and enriching it.
The best example of this are the Variant models: This is new and exciting content for veterans of existing warbands like the Procession of the Sacred Affliction and Heretic Naval Raiders and newcomers alike that we can provide without overloading our Miniatures team or bloating our physical release schedule. It also gives us a space to create fun conversion elements such as the parts to convert our existing Anchorite Shrine model to one that looks just like the new art by Loïc Muzy!
For the moment it’s Variant models, terrain and markers, but we’re open to doing more in the future if things go well here. As with everything else relating to the growth of Trench Crusade, it’s an ongoing process!
Conversion parts sculpted by Wilph and painted by Martin Grandbarbe.
Hopefully this gives everyone a much clearer idea of how we’re structuring Factions, Warbands and Variants – as well as our approach to digital releases – going forward.
Brook Close
Brook is a full time game designer at Factory Fortress and a lifelong wargamer. After years of freelancing in the gaming world, Brook joined the company in late 2025, and he has been Extremely Normal about the idea of working with the industry legends who shaped his childhood. When he’s not doing abominable things to miniatures, he spends probably a bit too much time reading books on esoterica. He is, however, very happy that he can now say “it’s for work” and it be the truth. Art by Moritz Kreb.