Ossiarch Bonereapers
The Ossiarch legions are an undead force like no other. Created to be autonomous, they are trusted to enact Nagash’s will on a hundred war fronts at once. Their empire gathers war materiel from the cadavers of each battle, harvesting bone with which to create new warriors, build fortifications and begin the cycle of death over again.
This page contains all of the rules you need to field your Ossiarch Bonereapers miniatures on the battlefields of the Mortal Realms, from a host of exciting faction rules to a range of warscrolls. The rules are split into the following sections:Books
| Book | Kind | Edition | Last update | |
 Ossiarch Bonereapers | ||||
| Ossiarch Bonereapers | Battletome | 4 | September 2024 | |
 Nighthaunt | ||||
| Nighthaunt | Faction Pack | 4 | September 2024 | |
 Battle Profiles & Rules updates | ||||
| Battle Profiles & Rules updates | Rulebook | 4 | September 2024 | |
 Warhammer Underworlds Legends | ||||
| Warhammer Underworlds Legends | Warscroll | 4 | August 2024 | |
Faction Rules
Battle Traits
Ossiarch Bonereapers armies can use the following abilities:
 Your Movement Phase |
UNSTOPPABLE ADVANCE: The Ossiarchs advance at a remorseless pace.
Declare: If no friendly units have used a RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE ability this phase, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS HERO to use this ability. All friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units wholly within 12" of that HERO are the targets.
Effect: Add 2" to the Move characteristic of each target for the rest of the turn.
Effect: Add 2" to the Move characteristic of each target for the rest of the turn.
| KEYWORDS | RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE |
| Any Charge Phase |
COORDINATED CHARGE: At a signal, the Ossiarch legions charge in unison.
Declare: If no friendly units have used a RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE ability this phase, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS HERO to use this ability.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, add 1 to charge rolls for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, add 1 to charge rolls for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
| KEYWORDS | RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE |
 Any Combat Phase |
BLUDGEON: The Bonereapers deliver blows that make a mockery of armour.
Declare: If no friendly units have used a RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE ability this phase, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS HERO to use this ability.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, add 1 to wound rolls for combat attacks made by friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, add 1 to wound rolls for combat attacks made by friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
| KEYWORDS | RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE |
| Your Movement Phase |
RE-FORM RANKS: Bonereapers swiftly disengage and charge back into the fray.
Declare: If no friendly units have used a RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE ability this phase, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS HERO to use this ability.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO, friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units can use CHARGE abilities even if they used a RETREAT ability in the same turn.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO, friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units can use CHARGE abilities even if they used a RETREAT ability in the same turn.
| KEYWORDS | RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE |
| Any Charge Phase |
COUNTER-STRIKE: The Ossiarchs ready their weapons for an enemy assault.
Declare: If no friendly units have used a RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE ability this phase, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS HERO to use this ability.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, friendly units’ melee weapons have Anti-charge (+1 Rend) while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, friendly units’ melee weapons have Anti-charge (+1 Rend) while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
| KEYWORDS | RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE |
 Any Combat Phase |
IMPENETRABLE RANKS: Ossiarch warriors snap into defensive formations that grant them even greater resilience.
Declare: If no friendly units have used a RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE ability this phase, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS HERO to use this ability.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS have WARD (5+) while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS have WARD (5+) while they are wholly within 12" of that HERO.
| KEYWORDS | RELENTLESS DISCIPLINE |
Battle Formations
You can pick 1 of the following battle formations for a Ossiarch Bonereapers army. Each battle formation grants a different ability you can use in the battle.
Mortisan Council
 Passive |
NECROTIC SYMPHONY: Each Mortisan thrives in the presence of their fellow craftsmen, their arcane might spiralling as the collective magnifies their individual potency.
Effect: Add 1 to casting rolls for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS INFANTRY WIZARDS.
Kavalos Lance
| Once Per Battle (Army), Deployment Phase |
SWIFT AS DEATH: Kavalos formations dominate the battlefield with their sheer speed, seeking out the enemy’s weakest point before sending a deadly charge crashing home.
Declare: Pick up to 3 friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS CAVALRY units to be the targets.
Effect: Each target can move 6" but cannot end that move in combat.
Effect: Each target can move 6" but cannot end that move in combat.
Mortek Ballistari
 Your Shooting Phase |
CRAWLING BARRAGE: Ossiarch artillery is best utilised en masse, unleashing their necrotic payload from a secure position behind the Mortek ranks.
Declare: Pick up to 3 friendly Mortek Crawler units that are wholly within friendly territory and that have not used a MOVE ability this turn to be the targets.
Effect: Add 1 to hit rolls for each target’s shooting attacks for the rest of the turn.
Effect: Add 1 to hit rolls for each target’s shooting attacks for the rest of the turn.
Mortek Phalanx
 Once Per Turn (Army), Your Movement Phase |
SEND IN THE RESERVE: The Mortek Guard are deployed in deep ranks, with strategic reserves ready to enter the fray whenever the cohesion of the battleline is threatened.
Declare: Pick a friendly Mortek Guard unit that has been destroyed to be the target.
Effect: Roll a dice. On a 5+, set up a replacement unit with half the number of models from the target unit (rounding up) on the battlefield more than 9" from all enemy units.
Effect: Roll a dice. On a 5+, set up a replacement unit with half the number of models from the target unit (rounding up) on the battlefield more than 9" from all enemy units.
Heroic Traits
Teachings of the Tithe-Reapers
HERO only| Passive |
DIVERSIONARY TACTICS: Infused with especially cunning souls, this hero uses all manner of snares and ruses to hinder a foe’s advance.
Effect: Subtract 2 from charge rolls for enemy units while they are within 12" of this unit.
| Passive |
MIGHTY ARCHAEOSSIAN: The fossilised bone from which this hero is formed is supernaturally hard.
Effect: If the unmodified hit roll for an attack that targets this unit is 1-3, the attack fails and the attack sequence ends.
| Passive |
AURA OF STERILITY: Ending magics shroud this hero, sapping the force from arrows and other projectiles.
Effect: Subtract 1 from wound rolls for shooting attacks that target friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS units while they are wholly within 12" of this unit.
Artefacts of Power
Relics of the Empire
HERO only| Once Per Battle, Any Combat Phase |
MARROWPACT: The glyphs borne to war by this champion bind those who view them in arcane pacts that siphon the energy from their bone marrow.
Effect: For the rest of the turn, if the unmodified hit roll for a combat attack that targets this unit is 1-2, inflict 1 mortal damage on the attacking unit after the FIGHT ability has been resolved.
| Passive |
LODE OF SATURATION: This ingot of nadirite–iron alloy, when pressed against a bone construct, renders its structure nigh invulnerable.
Effect: This unit has WARD (5+).
 Passive |
HELM OF TYRANNY: This helm radiates the oppressive will of the wearer, filling nearby foes with supernatural dread.
Effect: Subtract 2 from the control scores of enemy units while they are within 12" of this unit.
Spell Lore
Lore of Ossian Sorcery
| Your Hero Phase | 5 |
EMPOWER NADIRITE WEAPONS: The caster imbues nadirite weapons with deadly power.
Declare: Pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS WIZARD to cast this spell, pick a visible friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS unit within 12" of them to be the target, then make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: The target’s combat attacks score critical hits on unmodified hit rolls of 5+ until the start of your next turn.
Effect: The target’s combat attacks score critical hits on unmodified hit rolls of 5+ until the start of your next turn.
| KEYWORDS | SPELL, UNLIMITED |
| Your Hero Phase | 7 |
DRAIN VITALITY: This cursed spell saps a foe’s strength, leaving them weak and vulnerable.
Declare: Pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS WIZARD to cast this spell, pick a visible enemy unit within 12" of them to be the target, then make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: Until the start of your next turn, subtract 1 from hit rolls for the target’s attacks and subtract 1 from save rolls for the target.
Effect: Until the start of your next turn, subtract 1 from hit rolls for the target’s attacks and subtract 1 from save rolls for the target.
| KEYWORDS | SPELL |
| Your Hero Phase | 7 |
SHARD STORM: The caster conjures forth a great cloud of bone-shards and hurls them at the foe.
Declare: Pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS WIZARD to cast this spell, pick a visible enemy unit within 18" of them to be the target, then make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: Roll a number of dice equal to the number of models in the target unit. For each 5+, inflict 1 mortal damage on the target.
Effect: Roll a number of dice equal to the number of models in the target unit. For each 5+, inflict 1 mortal damage on the target.
| KEYWORDS | SPELL |
Manifestation Lore
Horrors of the Necropolis
| Your Hero Phase | 6 |
SUMMON SOULSTEALER CARRION: Soaring from its caster’s spread fingertips, the Soulstealer Carrion takes wing above the battlefield.
Declare: If there is not a friendly Soulstealer Carrion on the battlefield, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS WIZARD to cast this spell, then make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: Set up a Soulstealer Carrion wholly within 12" of the caster, visible to them and more than 9" from all enemy units.
Effect: Set up a Soulstealer Carrion wholly within 12" of the caster, visible to them and more than 9" from all enemy units.
| KEYWORDS | SUMMON, SPELL |
| Your Hero Phase | 6 |
SUMMON NIGHTMARE PREDATOR: The Nightmare Predator is a looming conjuration of Shyishan magic that takes the form of a disturbing terror.
Declare: If there is not a friendly Nightmare Predator on the battlefield, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS WIZARD to cast this spell, then make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: Set up a Nightmare Predator wholly within 12" of the caster, visible to them and more than 9" from all enemy units.
Effect: Set up a Nightmare Predator wholly within 12" of the caster, visible to them and more than 9" from all enemy units.
| KEYWORDS | SUMMON, SPELL |
| Your Hero Phase | 6 |
SUMMON BONE-TITHE SHRIEKER: The caster conjures a four-headed, all-seeing monstrosity to hunt down those who would escape the Ossiarch tithe.
Declare: If there is not a friendly Bone-tithe Shrieker on the battlefield, pick a friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS WIZARD to cast this spell, then make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: Set up a Bone-tithe Shrieker wholly within 12" of the caster, visible to them and more than 9" from all enemy units.
Effect: Set up a Bone-tithe Shrieker wholly within 12" of the caster, visible to them and more than 9" from all enemy units.
| KEYWORDS | SUMMON, SPELL |
The OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS and HERO keywords are used in the following Ossiarch Bonereapers warscrolls:
14.3 Charge Phase
| Your Charge Phase |
CHARGE: With a mighty battle cry, the warriors charge into combat with the enemy.
Declare: Pick a friendly unit that is not in combat and has not used a RUN or RETREAT ability this turn to use this ability. Then, make a charge roll of 2D6.
Effect: That unit can move a distance up to the value of the charge roll. That unit can move through the combat ranges of any enemy units and must end that move within 1/2" of a visible enemy unit. If it does so, the unit using this ability has charged.
Effect: That unit can move a distance up to the value of the charge roll. That unit can move through the combat ranges of any enemy units and must end that move within 1/2" of a visible enemy unit. If it does so, the unit using this ability has charged.
| KEYWORDS | CORE, MOVE, CHARGE |
Wound Roll
Roll a dice. If the roll equals or exceeds the attacking weapon’s Wound characteristic, the attack successfully wounds: move on to the next step. If not, the attack fails and the attack sequence ends. Unmodified wound rolls of 1 always fail.Combat attacks
Combat attacks are made with melee weapons. The target unit(s) must be within the combat range of the attacking model and visible to it. The model must attack with all of the melee weapons it is armed with.Anti-X (+1 Rend)
Add 1 to this weapon’s Rend characteristic if the target has the keyword after ‘Anti-’ or fulfils the condition after ‘Anti-’. Multiples of this ability are cumulative. For example, if a weapon has both Anti-charge (+1 Rend) and Anti-HERO (+1 Rend), then add 2 to the Rend characteristic of the weapon for attacks that target a HERO that charged in the same turn.18.1 Ward Saves
Units with the WARD keyword have the ‘Ward Save’ passive ability. The number after the WARD keyword indicates the ward value for the ward save. If a unit had WARD (5+), for example, its ward value would be 5. If a unit has more than one ward save, only the ward save with the lowest value applies to it; the other has no effect.| Passive |
WARD SAVE: Whether through their uncanny reflexes, unnatural toughness or a source of mystical protection, these warriors can avoid otherwise lethal attacks.
Effect: In step 1 of the damage sequence (see 18.0), make a ward roll of D6 for each damage point in this unit’s damage pool. If the roll equals or exceeds this unit’s ward value, remove that damage point from the damage pool.
6.0 Visibility
A target model is visible to another model (which we’ll call the ‘observing model’) if you can draw a straight line through the air (whether horizontal, diagonal or vertical) from any point on the observing model to any point on the target model that does not intersect any objects except for other models in the observing model’s unit. A target unit is visible to an observing unit if at least 1 model in the target unit is visible to at least 1 model in the observing unit. A model is always considered to be visible to itself.
| ||
| In some cases, il might not be immediately clear whether a model is visible. If so, stoop down to get a look from behind the observing model. If any part of the other model is visible, even if it is just the tip of a spear, then that model is visible for rules purposes. | ||
2.0 Spells
The declare step of each spell will tell you to make a casting roll of 2D6. If the roll does not equal or exceed the spell’s casting value (at the top-right corner of the spell), the spell fails and its effect is not resolved.If the unmodified casting roll includes 2 or more rolls of 1, the spell is miscast: the spell fails, its effect is not resolved, D3 mortal damage is inflicted on the WIZARD that used it, and that WIZARD cannot use any more spells in that phase.
Enemy reactions can only be used if the casting roll equals or exceeds the spell’s casting value. So long as the spell is not unbound (see 4.0), then it is successfully cast: resolve its effect.
EXAMPLE SPELL
| Your Hero Phase | 6 |
MYSTIC SHIELD: The caster's allies are bathed in an unearthly glow that protects them from harm.
Declare: Pick a visible friendly unit wholly within 12" of this WIZARD to be the target. Then, make a casting roll of 2D6.
Effect: The target has WARD (6+) this turn.
Effect: The target has WARD (6+) this turn.
| KEYWORDS | SPELL |
1.0 Wizards and Priests
WIZARDS are special units that can cast spells, and PRIESTS are special units that can chant prayers. Spells and prayers are powerful abilities that can have a dramatic impact on the battle.
The OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS, INFANTRY and WIZARD keywords are used in the following Ossiarch Bonereapers warscrolls:
The OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS and CAVALRY keywords are used in the following Ossiarch Bonereapers warscrolls:
Hit Roll
Roll a dice. If the roll equals or exceeds the attacking weapon’s Hit characteristic, the attack scores a successful hit: move on to the next step. If not, the attack fails and the attack sequence ends. Unmodified hit rolls of 1 always fail. If an unmodified hit roll for an attack made with a weapon is a 6, that attack is a critical hit.| Critical hits have no effect on their own but often trigger additional effects (see 20.0 Weapon Abilities). | ||
Shooting attacks
Shooting attacks are made with ranged weapons. The target unit(s) must be within a distance equal to the Range characteristic of the weapon being used and visible to the attacking model. Models cannot make shooting attacks if their unit is in combat, unless otherwise specified (see 20.0 Weapon Abilities).The HERO keyword is used in the following Ossiarch Bonereapers warscrolls:
17.2 Mortal Damage
Some abilities inflict mortal damage. If an ability inflicts mortal damage on a unit, add that number of damage points to the unit’s damage pool for that ability (see 18.2 Allocating Damage).
13.1 Fight Abilities
Abilities with the FIGHT keyword follow a different sequence to other abilities. When the players are using Combat Phase
abilities as described in 13.0, they cannot use FIGHT abilities.After the players have finished using
Combat Phase
abilities that are not FIGHT abilities, they must alternate picking 1 eligible unit to use a FIGHT ability, starting with the active player. Each unit in combat must use a FIGHT ability if it is able to.Once a player has no more units that are eligible to use a FIGHT ability, the other player continues to pick units that are eligible to use a FIGHT ability, one after another, until there are no more units that are eligible to use a FIGHT ability.
| ||
32.2 Objective Control
At the start of the first battle round and at the end of each turn, follow this sequence for each objective in an order chosen by the active player:- Starting with the active player, each player determines the control score of each of their units that is contesting that objective. A unit’s control score is the combined Control characteristics of all the models in that unit that are contesting the objective. Some abilities modify a unit’s control score, but it cannot be reduced to less than 1.
- Each player adds up the control scores of all of their units contesting that objective. This is their army control score for that objective.
- The players compare their army control scores for that objective. If one player’s score is higher, that player gains control of that objective. Once a player gains control of an objective, it remains under their control until their opponent gains control of it.
| Sometimes objective markers get accidentally nudged while you are moving models around. This is perfectly fine - just remember to put them back in their proper positions when determining objective control. | ||
The OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS and WIZARD keywords are used in the following Ossiarch Bonereapers warscrolls:
Save Roll
The commander of the target unit rolls a dice, subtracting the attacking weapon’s Rend characteristic from the roll. Unmodified save rolls of 1 always fail. If the roll equals or exceeds the Save characteristic of the target unit, the attack fails and the attack sequence ends. If not, it is a successful attack: move on to the next step.Army List
Warscrolls collatedCavalry Hero
Infantry Hero
Cavalry
Infantry
Monster
War Machine
Faction Terrain
Regiment of Renown