Nearly every race or power throws up exceptional individuals who stand out above the normal herd. Veteran warriors, brilliant officers, inspired prophets and ferocious war-leaders can take to the battlefield and make a difference. They inspire others to greater feats of heroism (or fiendish bravery as the case may be) and are often quicker, stronger and more powerful in combat. Some may wield fearsome psychic energies or channel unearthly powers to destroy their enemies. In Warhammer 40,000 these kinds of powerful individuals are called Characters and there are certain special rules that apply to them.

There are two kinds of characters:

• Upgrade characters are fielded as part of units from the start of the game, representing a squad leader or unit champion. They are effectively another trooper in the unit with enhanced characteristics and usually a superior Leadership value, as well as a wide selection of weapon/wargear choices. The Character rules given here do not apply to them.
  
• Independent characters are represented by individual models, which fight as units in their own right. One of the most useful abilities of independent characters is to join other units in battle, so that they can move in to bolster the battle line where the lighting is fiercest.

In addition, various Codexes may also include independent models that only ever tight as units of one model. These are not independent characters, and the following rules do not apply to them.

Characters follow the Movement rules for models of their type, be it infantry, jump infantry or beasts/cavalry. In addition, characters can move through difficult terrain more quickly and safely than ordinary troops. All characters have the Move Through Cover and Skilled Rider special rules. This advantage does not extend to vehicles they may be travelling in.

Characters are allowed to move freely around the battlefield and can temporarily join other units. While a character is part of a unit, he must obey the usual Coherency rules until he leaves the unit, as detailed below. The combined unit moves and assaults at the speed of the slowest model while they stay together. In order to join a unit, an independent character simply has to move within the 2" coherency distance of the unit during his Movement phase and be declared as joining it. Note that a lone character cannot join another character to create a character unit.

• An independent character can leave a unit during the Movement phase by moving out of coherency distance with it.
• An independent character may only join or leave a unit during the Movement phase - once assaults are launched it is too late to join in or duck out!
• A character may not join or leave a unit while it is falling back - he/she/it must wait until the unit has regrouped.
• If the unit has been pinned, the character may not leave it until it is no longer pinned.

When an independent character joins a unit, it might have different special rules from those of the unit. Unless specified in the rule itself (like in the Stubborn special rule), the unit's special rules are not conferred upon the character, and the character's special rules are not conferred upon the unit. In some cases though, (he character or the unit may lose their special rules as a result of the character joining the unit. For example, if a character that does not have the Infiltrate special rule joins a unit of Infiltrators, the unit loses the Infiltrate rule. Such exceptions are addressed case by case in the Universal Special Rules section.

One advantage of a character being part of a unit is that any Leadership tests the unit takes are then made using the character's Leadership value, if it is superior to the unit's. Remember, if a character is part of a unit that falls back he may not leave the unit until it regroups. Characters never need to take Last Man Standing tests, as they are used 1o fighting heroically on their own.

Some characters are able to lead a special retinue, bodyguard or other HQ unit in battle. Where this is the case it is specified in their Codex book entry. If a character is fielded with such a unit, he may not leave them and join another unlit while they remain alive. Should the unit be destroyed, the character may once again move between units.

Characters function in the same manner as normal troopers during the Shooting phase, though they will often have abilities superior to the press of men around them.

In the heat of battle it is often hard to distinguish individuals, and even harder to pick them out as specific targets. Characters who've joined a unit are considered part of that unit and so may not normally be picked out as targets. Characters that are not part of a unit can only be chosen as targets if they are the closest target to the firer. Characters that are Monstrous Creatures can always be picked out as separate targets unless they've joined a unit of monstrous creatures or a unit with special rules that offer them protection, such as the Tyranid Tyrant Guard.

All characters shoot just like ordinary troopers, although in many cases they will have better Ballistic Skills or exotic weaponry that sets them apart. Where this is the case, either roll for them separately or use different coloured dice to differentiate their shooting. Characters must still fire at the same target as any unit they are with.

If a unit including a character charges into close combat, the character must charge in too - they cannot hold back like cowards! A character on his own can charge into close combat if within range of the enemy in the Assault phase.

Characters are treated as a separate unit when resolving close combats, following the normal rules for multiple combats. This means that they must be in base-to-base contact with an enemy model in order to fight, and may not make attacks for being within 2" of another friendly model. If the unit they have joined is locked in combat with the enemy, the character is locked with them. However, wounds suffered by a unit never carry over onto a character that joined them. This also means that only the enemy models that are engaged with the character may allocate their attacks against it and can be hurl by its attacks.

In the Codex books, you'll find characters you can field as part of your army. As with squads of troops you can choose for your army, the character's profile tells you how tough he is and what weapons and armour he can have. It is left to you to name your heroes, and follow their illustrious careers across bloody battlefields.

Nonetheless, the 41st millennium is filled with famous characters renowned as legendary heroes or infamous villains. These individuals are called special characters and can be found in the Codex army books and in other sources, such as White Dwarf magazine. Special characters are highly skilled and dangerous individuals who have incredible traits or skills that make them particularly valuable to an army.

For example, Commissar Yarrick is without doubt the most respected Imperial Guard Commissar of the 41st millennium, his inspiring presence securing the world of Armageddon against two massive Ork invasions within the space of fifty years. An army led by him can expect great benefits in terms of morale and leadership. On the other hand, Kharn the Betrayer, an Exalted Champion of the Dark Gods, is a mad butcher and slaughterer of men with no thought for anything other than personal combat (at which, it must be granted, he excels).

Special characters represent unique individuals, past and present, that many players like to use in their games. In order to prevent such powerful characters dominating small engagements there are usually restrictions on their use to certain sizes of army, particular opponents and so forth. In some cases, with particularly legendary and celebrated (or infamous and reviled) characters, they may only be used in battles where both players have agreed to their use beforehand.