By Amasarac
The millennia’s of the Warhammer World’s history is stained with the blood of countless battles, most usually futile. Were one army to rise head and shoulders above the others for even a short length of time, then the world would be overrun by its power. So numerous are the tactics for armies, that I have opted to go for only the mighty hordes of Chaos in this Liber Tacticus. Within these prized pages you will find the secret of destroying your foes upon the battlefield, and most especially useful in Campaigns.
The tactics for the Chaos armies are so vast that I will only cover the plus, minus and interesting of all the abominations and Daemons of the Dark Gods’. I have also included a section on each of the gods, Slaanesh, Khorne, Nurgle and Tzeentch.
Soon to be added
Beastmen
Plus:They’ve got two wounds and four toughness, so they can take a heap of
punishment, they are also the cheapest troops Chaos can lay their hands on. Characters can
be given Chaos Gifts without an Eye of God test.
Minus: They’ve only got three strength and one attack, they’re also
subject to infighting.
Interesting: Perhaps use them as cannon fodder to absorb all the damage that would
otherwise hit your more expensive troops. Use them in huge regiments and engage those
small elite regiments your opponents always have, even if they don’t kill any, the
rank bonus will ensure victory.
Chaos Warriors
Plus:They have lots of armour, two attacks, four strength and toughness and huge
weapon skill, a Chaos Lord is virtually immortal.
Minus: They cost lots and don’t have many wounds. Being foot troops they are
also fairly slow. Champions have to take Eye of God tests after a Chaos Gift.
Interesting: They are really good against elite cavalry, as they can have just as
much armour, and fight better usually. In large regiments they are great as a steamroller.
Chaos Knights
Plus: They’re virtually indestructible, have high weapon skill, toughness,
strength and wounds, they’ve got two attacks. Chaos Steeds are better than normal
horses.
Minus: They cost a packet(money and points), so they’re difficult to get into
larger regiments. Always attract lots of missile fire and magical offences.
Interesting: They are amazingly destructive on a charge, so if you have any allies
with access to transportation spells, keep your Knights back initially, out of the way of
missile fire, then zap them forwards to charge those annoying missile troops or war
machines.
Minotaurs
Plus: They are really fast, strong, tough and have lots of wounds, they also have
two attacks and high leadership, to overcome their Bloodgreed. Frenzy if disturbed while
feeding.
Minus: Bloodgreed stops them from tearing enemy troops apart when pursuing, as they
can’t. Low initiative, and quite expensive.
Interseting: A Minotaur with the mighty leap Chaos Gift has a potential charge of
24 inches ignoring terrain, if, by some miracle- or house rule- a regiment of Minotaurs
could all be given Mighty Leap, they would be able to overcome the penalty of Bloodgreed.
Well deployed against Chariots and other war machines, as they are amazingly resilient to
damage.
Chaos Chariots
Plus: Very fast and the only war machine available to Chaos armies. Scythes make
them devastating against rank-and-file troops, particularly elves and Skaven, as low
toughness makes them most vulnerable. Relatively cheap if you use Beastmen. Can carry a
magic standard.
Minus: Vulnerable after the charge, especially Beastmen. Prone to charge out and
end up separated from the rest of the army.
Interesting: Ideal against elite elf troops such as Phoenix Guard and Black Guard,
as their armour is rendered useless by the strength of the charge, as is their weapon
skill if they are only a small unit. Best deployed with Daemonettes on Steeds to support
them, or Chaos Knights, but they are very expensive.
Chaos Hounds
Plus: Fast, tough and strong with two attacks, can have a character to lead them.
Very cheap(by Chaos standards).
Minus: The character slows the regiment to infantry speed. Low leadership without a
character. No standards or equipment options.
Interesting: Giving the champion a Daemon Steed(Magic Item) to speed him up to the
speed of the Chaos Hounds, gives the Hounds the Leadership bonus, and the regiment keeps
its speed.
Harpies
Plus: Able to fly, strong, tough, two wounds. Very cheap. They can be arranged into
ranks.
Minus: Cannot take a character, even if capable of flight. Low leadership, only one
attack. No equipment options or standards.
Interesting: With several ranks and the ability to fly high, they are exceptional
anti-wizard troops. They can also catch fleeing troops that the Minotaurs are unable to
pursue.
Dragon Ogres
Plus: Fast, tough, superhuman strength, heaps of attacks and three attacks. Light
armour gives them 4+ save. Double-handed weapons are actually good in their hands, as they
can take heaps of punishment. Fear. Lightening Frenzy.
Minus: Cost absolutely HEAPS! Low Leadership, attract too much missile fire. Low
initiative.
Interesting: Use a sorcerer on a disc with the Skull Staff to find the Banner of
Wrath(High Elves love it), and send your Dragon Ogres to attack it, as the Banner has
to strike the nearest targets. As long as they don’t break, the Dragon Ogres are
frenzied.
Centaurs
Plus: Fast and the only missile troops in a Chaos Horde. Good shots, strong enough
to matter, two wounds and two attacks. Can carry lances and many other weapons(including
bows). Can be lead by a Champion and can carry a magic standard. Cheap for cavalry.
Minus: Low weapon skill and toughness for cavalry. Low initiative and leadership.
Can’t carry much armour.
Interseting: Used with a Chaos Sorcerer of Slaanesh on a Steed of Slaanesh. The
Mage traps the enemy and the Centaurs shoot them up from a distance, charging with lances
if they get free. Slaanesh spells really good at trapping enemy regiments and turning
characters to spawn.
Trolls
Plus: Strong, three attacks and they have three wounds. Quite fast. Fairly tough
and a bit of protection. Special rules.
Minus: Cost lots, Stupidity, poor fighters, almost no initiative and tiny
leadership. Cause Fear and can regenerate.
Interesting: Get Rock Trolls against wizards and River Trolls against Goblins and
the like, if they don’t run in fear, their inability to hit or wound will make them.
Give them a Champion with some sort of movement bonus to ignore stupidity and maintain
movement.
Daemons
Bloodthirsters
Plus: Awesome warriors(M6 WS10 BS10 S8 T7 W10 I8 A10 Ld10!), near indestructible,
different Daemon Save, Axe of Khorne, able to fly, causes terror.
Minus: Have no magic, unlike other Greater Daemons. Costs more than anything else
in the whole game! They always seem to attract too much incoming fire.
Interesting: Use your imagination! Remember though, a Bloodthirster flying high
can’t be hit by missile fire from the ground, and it also stops the enemy from flying
high(especially after you crush an entire regiment of Harpies in one round!) as an added
psychological bonus.
Bloodletters
Plus: Weapon skill 5, strength 4, two attacks, Daemonic saving throw and Hellblades
make for a very nasty anti-anyone regiment, quite cheap as far as Daemons go. They also
cause fear.
Minus: Only three toughness and four movement, so they get beaten up by a lot of
missile fire before they can be put to use.
Interesting: Great anti-character troops, especially if they get to charge, sheer
numbers, attacks, and most importantly wounds, will take down even the mighty
Nagash(I’ve seen it done!). Daemons are fairly susceptible to magic, though, so be
careful.
Flesh Hounds
Plus: Very fast(M10) and good fighters(WS5 S5 T4) they also have two wounds and a
Daemonic Saving Throw. The Collar of Khorne protects them from magic and magic weapons.
They cause fear.
Minus: Only one attack, quite expensive.
Intersting: They make excellent ‘hunters’, especially when hunting
Wizards, as there isn’t much the wizard can do about it, they’re dogmeat…
Great unclean Ones
Plus: They are potentially deadly foes, and remarkably resilient to all attacks(T8
W10). As with other Greater Daemons, they are virtually indestructible Chaos Sorcerers,
although they can only draw from one deck. Causes Terror, has a Daemonic Saving Throw and
can power-vomit.
Minus: Very slow as far as Greater daemons go, not as powerful as other Greater
daemons, low initiative. Always tends to get beaten up a lot before they can make to the
battle.
Interesting: Give them a horde of Nurglings to lead, and when(if) they get to the
battle, they are well capable of devastating the enemy. If you can somehow get them around
to behind the enemy, they cause a lot of turmoil, especially with the vomit, which makes
the enemy flee straight towards the rest of your army!
Plaguebearers
Plus: Good fighters(WS5 S4 A2) and coupled with the Plaguesword, they are amazingly
destructive. Quite cheap for what you get(one wound kills on 4+!) and the added bonus of
magic. Daemonic Saving Throw and cause fear.
Minus: Low toughness, and not exactly fast.
Interesting: Excellent against monsters and characters if used in large regiments,
as they almost always kill in one round of combat, especially against Elves, Humans and
Skaven. Nurgle Magic is made to get in close, so they are in their environment. If you can
cast Miasma of Pestilence on the Plaguebearers, then they can cut the enemy to ribbons,
quite literally.
Beasts of Nurgle
Plus: Very tough, has three wounds and potentially lots of attacks. Their Slime
Trail is handy also, no armour save permitted on any hits made by the Beasts. Daemonic
Saving Throw and they cause fear.
Minus: Amazingly slow(unless you’re a Dwarf), not such great fighters or even
very strong. Low initiative and leadership for a Daemon. They cost quite a lot for what
you get(an insidiously evil lump of blubbering slime).
Interesting: They can be excellent in groups of about five against rank-and-file,
as no amount of armour will save them, so even at strength three they can be deadly. They
don’t break too frequently, as the slime trail stops the enemy from attacking