Commissar Graves leads Astra Militarum mechanised push with new vehicles

Commissar Graves arrived with a transport built to bully the table, not just pose beside it. Vigilance is no ornamental ride, but a heavily modified Centaur that can take a hit, punch back and keep Orders moving with Graves as the center of the push.

That was the real hobby signal in Games Workshop’s April 16 Astra Militarum reveal. Alongside Graves and Vigilance, Warhammer Community showed off the Hippogriff AFV and the Centaur RSV, and the whole package pointed straight at a refreshed visual identity for Guard armies: less static parade line, more armored convoy grinding forward under fire. Graves can still be fielded on foot, but the mechanised build clearly got the spotlight.

The rules push the same way. Mechanised Spearhead rewards Regiment units that disembark within 6 inches of Graves with a free Order immediately, which makes Centaurs and Chimeras feel like delivery systems for discipline as much as bodies. Duty and Honour! gives Cadians an OC 3 boost in the example shown, so the army is clearly meant to fight for objectives while the armor keeps rolling. Aquiline Prow adds another layer of menace, letting Vigilance ram enemy units for mortal wounds before Graves follows up with Manus Mortis, her power fist. This is not a lone hero model in search of a backdrop. It is a centerpiece wrapped in a battlefield plan.

For painters, that matters. Graves on Vigilance is the obvious showcase build, the kind of model that begs for chipped plate, unit markings and a nasty, war-worn base. The Centaur RSV looks like the sort of kit that could anchor a full convoy project, especially since it carries 10 Guardsmen plus two attached Characters, has Firing Deck 12 and can pick up to 4 extra OC depending on who is inside. Stuff it with infantry and it becomes a moving display piece, not just a transport. The Hippogriff AFV gives the same army a different silhouette, with one of four main weapons, heavy lascannon, vigilator cannon, melta cannon or chiron gatling cannon, which should make it a favorite for collectors who want variety without breaking the force’s visual language.

The timing also matters. At AdeptiCon 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Games Workshop tied the wider Armageddon push together with Armageddon: The Return of Yarrick, a three-book Warhammer 40,000 expansion and six new vehicle-focused detachments, split evenly between Astra Militarum, Orks and Space Marines. With Commissar Yarrick back in the conversation and Armageddon once again framed around mechanised warfare, Graves and her new vehicles feel like part of a larger armored story. For Guard collectors, that is the kind of reveal that changes what goes to the top of the painting queue.