Games Workshop has released the first Warhammer 40k Balance Dataslate of 2026, bringing points updates and rules rebalances for tournament play. The current metagame bogeymen, the Necrons, have been hit with targeted points increases and debuffs to the C’tan star gods – but it may not be enough to bring them back in line with the rest of the meta.
For context, Stat-Check’s 10th edition Meta Data Dashboard currently records a 59% win rate for Necrons, the highest of any Warhammer 40k faction and the only one to perform above the 45-55% win rate that Games Workshop considers ‘balanced’. This is a relatively recent performance jump for the Necrons that coincides with the release of updated C’tan datasheets alongside the new Nightbringer model at the end of January.
The latest Balance Dataslate updates the stratagems in the Starshatter detachment so they no longer affect Monster units. Likewise, it stops Necrosor Ammentar’s ‘Infectious Murderer’ aura, and all the Silent King’s auras, from affecting Monsters, cutting the C’tan off from some powerful buffs.
The accompanying Munitorum Points Manual increases the cost of the C’tan shards of the Deceiver, Nightbringer, Void Dragon, and the Transcendent C’tan by +10 points in most lists, while the (mandatory) C’tan enhancements in the Pantheon of Woe each increase by +15 points.
The C’tan lose access to some powerful support abilities, and running multiples (particularly in the Pantheon of Woe) will mean trimming support from elsewhere in the list. But it doesn’t touch the raw power of the updated C’tan stat line. They have a deep stack of defensive technology, including the toughness of a tank, a hero-level invulnerable save, Feel No Pain 5+, and damage reduction. They don’t suffer from stat degradation as they take damage, and Necron lists can easily heal them.
In other words they’re a stat check, and part of Necron tournament dominance is because some lists aren’t well equipped to pass it. While the debuffs to their offensive power will make them less universally potent, the points changes will be quite manageable for lists that only run a single C’tan. They remain a question that some factions will struggle to answer.
What do you think – will the C’tan remain the terrors they have been for the last month, or will the other changes in the Balance Dataslate counteract them? Are we overlooking a bigger threat? Let us know in the Wargamer Discord community. For a roundup of the biggest stories on the site each week, make sure you subscribe to the regular Wargamer newsletter.
Source: Wargamer
