Using Church of the Acarid for Wargaming | Trench Crusade

A foul stench of rot and decay lingers in the air. Welcome back to this mini-series focusing on proxy models for Trench Crusade. I’m your host, Necreator, and today we’re diving into the grim world of the Black Grail.

The Black Grail are plague-bearing, rotted, flesh-warped monstrosities serving the dark Lord Beelzebub. Their mission? To claim dominion over the earth and spread a horrific blight known as the Black Grail itself.

These units are a blast to play. Expect to field large numbers, using horde tactics designed to overwhelm your opponent. They also introduce a unique game mechanic: Infection Markers. If you’re familiar with Blood Markers, these work similarly but add an extra edge to gameplay.

From that description alone, you can see why the Bestiarum catalogue holds tons of potential for proxy models. In particular, the Church of Acarid range nails most of the faction’s aesthetic and vibe.

By perfect coincidence, the second part of the Church of Acarid set just released in September 2025, giving you plenty of options to customize. Coupled with a few other modular sets, I’m here to guide you through the catalogue and help you kit out your warband with the most grotesque, blighted monstrosities imaginable.

Also to bring that unique edge, the Church provides little critters. Narratively, you can bring these guys into the guy as plague spreaders or even have a few deployed on the board as Grail Devotees.

Plague Knights

These guys are awesome. Heavily armoured warriors of the Lord of Flies, and Bestiarum offers loads of options here (plus some killer kitbash combos I’ll cover later).
My personal favourite?

The Infested Knights, hulking church knights that scream melee menace. You get three loadout choices, all perfect if you want to kit your Plague Knights for brutal close combat.

Corpse Guard

The plague-blessed humans who basically take the hits and protect the Grail’s masters. These guys are essential to any warband build.

They’re easy proxies, but also great for kitbashing if you want to get creative. For a straightforward 1:1 match, Infested Warriors are the way to go, tons of melee options and that perfect corrupted armored human look you want.

Stick around, I’ll show you more kitbash ideas later.

Thralls

The lurching horrors of the Grail. If you’re into horde tactics, these are your go-to guys.

Like Corpse Guard, these are simple proxies, just grab some Infested Pilgrims. Whether you want mutated husks or twisted humans, they’re spot-on. Plus, the base Black Grail doesn’t arm Thralls with ranged weapons, so these models fit perfectly.

Also worth a shout: The Faded. Outside the Church of Acarid range, they’re simpler but still make great-looking thralls if that’s your style.

Hounds

Every faction needs a good boy, and the Black Grail gets a stinky good boy. These hounds are the nightmare on the table. Fast, deadly, and perfect for spreading infection like wildfire.

Bestiarum has plenty of hound options, but sticking with the theme, the Infested Wolves are your best bet. With their insectoid tentacles and creepy withdrawn vibe, they nail that unique Acarid aesthetic and bring some nasty flavour to your warband!

Heralds of Beelzebub

If turning into a Thrall isn’t bad enough, imagine getting turned into a giant winged hell fly! These disgusting beasts are flying cannon fodder, hard-hitting mini tanks that add real punch to your core.

My top pick? The Acarid Brutelouse. Not exactly a fly, I know but just imagine it with wings and you’ve got yourself a perfect stand-in!

Amalgam

When the plague is so powerful it pulls all infected organic material together into one massive, hulking monstrosity, that’s your Amalgam.

This one’s tricky to proxy, but the Infected Giant is a solid melee-focused choice. Big base, grotesque, and terrifying it might not be a perfect 1:1 match, but it’s perfect for striking fear into your opponent’s heart!

Some of Bestiarum's kitbash examples.

Let’s start with the basics your staple kit: the Trench Invasion set.

Honestly, you can’t get more Trench Crusade than this. It nails the dieselpunk vibe while adding those little, aesthetically grim details that turn a standard model into a trench-lurking nightmare. The Trench Invasion kit includes key components like:

• Bulky weapons (machine guns, flamethrowers)
  
  
• Pouches, backpacks, gear
  
  
• Mutated yet militaristic bits

You can combine these with almost any other Bestiarum range that catches your eye. Simply glue on the trench gear, and boom you’ve got a custom TC model.

Here are the kits I’ve used to bring my Black Grail units to (un)life:

• Allstein - Gunners + Bane Knights
  
  
• Church of Acarid - Pilgrims + Warriors + Acarid Kitbash Set
  
  
• Knights of Beast - Ravagers

These kits can cover most of your unit-building needs. In this article, I’ll be focusing on how to build Plague Knights, Corpse Guard and Thralls.

Melee Build Example:

• Head - Ravagers
  
  
• Body - Ravagers
  
  
• Arms - Ravagers
  
  
• Weapons - Trench Invasion (close combat loadout)
  
  
• Accessories - Trench Invasion

Slight variation for unit diversity:

• Head - Church of Acarid - Pilgrims + Warriors
  
  
• Body - Church of Acarid - Pilgrims + Warriors
  
  
• Arms - Skirmishers
  
  
• Weapons - Trench Invasion + Church of the Acarid
  
  
• Accessories - Trench Invasion

Less Mutated Thrall Example:

• Head – Church of Acarid - Pilgrims + Warriors
  
  
• Body - Trench Invasion Skirmisher
  
  
• Arms - Church of Acarid + Allstein
  
  
• Weapons - Tentacles > Guns
  
  
• Accessories - Trench Invasion

Now we’re into the fun stuff.

The Black Grail can be played a few different ways, but if you want to bring something truly different to the table, play them like a horde. I’m talking 10+ models, all lurching forward in unison, buffing each other’s attacks, and drowning your opponent in rot and infection.

Your goal? Control the board. Corner your opponent. Break their lines with infection mechanics and good ol’ body horror.

It’s gross. It’s aggressive. It’s awesome.

I’m working off a standard 750 ducat warband build. Here’s what we’re bringing to the table:

Lord of Tumours

Weapons:

• Beelzebub Axe

Armour:

• Reinforced Armour

Equipment:

• 2x Grail Devotees

You’ve got options for your leader in a Black Grail warband, but for this list we’re rolling with the Lord of Tumours. (You could go with a Plague Knight if you want a leaner build.) I’ve kitted him out with the biggest axe, the best armour, and a couple of Devotees for extra spice. This guy hits like a truck when your opponent’s backed into a corner.

Plague Knight (Companion of the Fly)

Weapons:

• Corruption Belcher

Armour:

• Reinforced Armour

Equipment:

• Compound Eyes Helmet

This is your plague sniper - a long-range spreader of rot and ruin. With Companion of the Fly and the Helmet, this guy can stack ranged buffs and dish out armour-ignoring gas attacks. Think of him as your mobile artillery platform.

Corpse Guard

Weapons:

• Infected Rifle
  
  
• Axe

Armour:

• Standard Armour

Equipment:

• Parasite Grenades
  
  
• Compound Eyes Helmet

This one’s key. Your Corpse Guard is a thrall bodyguard, and with the right abilities, he can literally help your Thralls swarm the enemy. He’s a solid all-rounder: can tank shots, shoot from a distance, and scrap up close. Essential support in a horde list.

Herald of Beelzebub

Weapons:

• Shotgun

Equipment:

• Maddening Buzz

That shotgun? Just for show. This beast is your skirmisher, get in fast, mess things up, and bounce out. No melee loadout penalties, still deadly. Great for rounding up stragglers and shoving them into the waiting jaws of your horde.

Hound

No weapons needed here, this is your infection grenade on legs. Super fast, great for chasing down isolated models. We’ve also tagged him with infected status so he spreads the good word of the plague even better. Every horde needs a stinky good boy.

The Horde: 5x Grail Thralls (Grounded)

Here’s your meat and bones, 5 grounded Grail Thralls. They work best when they stick together. As long as each Thrall is within 3 inches of another, they stack melee bonuses up to +4 attacks. You can lose one and still hit hard. Now imagine two of these hitting the same target. That’s some stinky damage right there.

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Total Cost: 746 Ducats

Not bad, right?