Chaos Space Marines Summary Page

This is the summary for my reviews of the Chaos Space Marine Codex. Entries are listed according to Force Organization Chart position rather than any other order. Also included are entries such as Be'Lakor which come from data slates rather than the hardback book. At the end of the list are other reviews on this codex, including Warlord Traits.

HQ
Abaddon the Despoiler
Ahriman
Be'Lakor
Chaos Lord
Daemon Prince
Dark Apostle
Fabius Bile
Huron Blackheart
Kharn the Betrayer
Lucius the Eternal
Sorcerer
Typhus the Traveller
Warpsmith

Elites
Chaos Terminators
Chosen Chaos Space Marines
Helbrute
Khorne Berzerkers
Mutilators
Noise Marines
Plague Marines
Possessed
Thousand Sons

Troops
Chaos Cultists
Chaos Rhino
Chaos Space Marines

Fast Attack
Chaos Bikers
Chaos Spawn
Heldrake
Raptors
Warp Talons

Heavy Support
Defiler
Forgefiend
Havocs
Land Raider
Maulerfiend
Obliterators
Chaos Predator
Chaos Vindicator

Related Articles
Daemonic Steed
Familiars
Gift of Mutation
Ichor Blood
Icon of Despair
Icon of Excess
Icon of Flame
Icon of Vengeance
Icon of Wrath
Warlord Traits

CSM and Daemons Review: Be'Lakor

I admit it: I bought the Be'Lakor dataslate when it became available. Well, it was actually a holiday season gift from my wife (I have the best wife!).

At a basic level, Be'Lakor is a new HQ choice for either chaos daemons or for chaos space marines. He is a pricey unit - to be clear - but probably correctly (i.e. fairly) priced. Hence there is no "discount" for taking him.  But his abilities are a force to be reckoned with - he is a real "force multiplier" in a number of ways. And: he DOES have eternal warrior which is a great bonus to have in there.

Stat line wise, he is very similar to a regular daemon prince. His sword is pretty special, having both types of 'bane and strength modifier (and then some).  On top of this is his 4+ invulnerable save coupled with a Nurgle-like shrouding ability (which ties in to his whole "shadow" theme that he has going on). But he does not have any alignment to the big four chaos power in warhammer: he is the only undivided chaos daemon prince available. 

To my mind though, the real benefit (and the reason to take him) are on the psychic side of things. He has access to all telepathy skills.  Why is this such a great thing? Well: think of being able to guarantee invisibility.  But it gets better: mental fortitude or hallucination can be extremely potent in their own rights if played right. Want more? Well, Be'Lakor gains bonus warp charges if enemies fail morale checks.  Hello terrify!  There's little not to like about such a combination in the game! Use Endurance on him if possible to help him keep alive and kicking should the flying shrouded jink'ed basic version be not to your liking.  And use puppet master (and the rest) to utterly disrupt your opponents battle plans. Especially those Tau that you're starting to really be annoyed with.

Play wise, I think I'd be seeing him as a chaos space marines HQ mostly. Even if I were fielding daemons, I would use Be'Lackor as an HQ of an allied chaos space marine force organization chart (so as to keep the warlord traits of someone better, like Fateweaver!). In such a mould, Be'Lakor brings a little extra pain to the table of the daemons flying circus style lists that are popular at the moment. And he doesn't remove too much either (possible a Tzeentch daemon prince, rather than a Slaanesh one, plus a few daemonettes).  Hence I can easily see him being taken with a minimal detachment of cultists to make it work.

In short: tailored to the right list, Be'Lakor will see competitive play and will be a pain to opponents in the hands of a competent player. And I think he will certainly see play in casual games too, for variation and shadowy themed armies (Night Lords? Alpha Legion?).

2012 Review: The New Chaos Space Marine Codex

In 2012, the new chaos space marine codex was reviewed.  Warpstone Flux took an indepth look at all the options contained within the new codex, gathered together under the CSMin6thReviews label.  These posts were, naturally, very popular with readers and were the most read articles on Warpstone Flux this entire year.  But which of them topped the reading charts?

In reverse order, the top 5 were:

5. Chaos Terminators.  The changes to the rules see chaos terminators as popular as ever: they're still cheaper than the loyalists, but there are shortcomings by comparison, yet they're highly customizable.  What battlefield role would you like them to execute?

4. Heldrake. Its new.  Its being talked about extensively.  And I hope many other chaos players got one from Santa.  He's going to be awesome I think.  Except I still think the name should have two "l"s in it.

3. Daemon Prince. Despite a power drop in comparison to the previous codex, the daemon prince clearly remains popular.  I'm saddened at how the daemon prince has gone down myself, but its still got a place in my heart.

2. Chaos Space Marines troops themselves score second place.  The bread and butter of the chaos force (even despite the cultist option) remains exceptionally popular.

1. Chaos Lord.  Naturally, one of the cheapest and most customizable HQ selections out there, the chaos lord topped readers interest in 2012.  There's so many ways to think about the humble(?) chaos lord, that its no surprise that this review was so popular.

There were a few other CSM posts that were also highly popular, particularly the rumours and early image leak discussions (e.g., challenges in the new codex and dark apotheosis). Indeed, dark apotheosis would have topped this chart if I'd have put the CSMin6thReviews label on it!

CSM in 6th Review: Warlord Traits

The CSM codex allows the chaos general to roll on a new table for warlord traits, or have the option of rolling on the standard table contained within the 6th ed. rulebook. Which is worthwhile? Let's have a look at the possible outcomes.

1. Black Crusader. Preferred enemy to space marines is a potent cocktail when mixed with Veterans of the Long War. The is doubly so if the (local) meta-game is space marine heavy. Afterall, this is what chaos space marines are there for.  Hence I think this is a useful roll if you're likely to be playing against space marines (or their variants).

2. Flames of Spite.  The Soul Blaze rule for the warlord and his unit seems kind of cool on the surface.  But scratch down a little bit, and soul blaze isn't too "hot".  Take a look at my earlier evaluation of the Icon of Flame for some insight.  An extra bolter shot is neat, but its not a game changer.

3. Master of Deception.  Having infiltrate on up to three units is certainly a good outcome.  The havoc that can potentially be caused from this makes Master of Deception an excellent outcome.  Infact, its so good, that chaos commanders I know are seriously looking at building lists around Huron and Ahriman to guarentee that this is the warlord trait they're going to get! 

4. Hatred Incarnate.  Granting hatred to the warlord and his unit is useful in many situations.  But this is a waste if they're facing space marines thanks to Veterans of the Long War. 

5. Lord of Terror.  Because there are so many fearless and "They Shall Know No Fear" units out there, this one is not so great.  Poor Typhus gets this one automatically.

6. Exalted Champion. And finally, the most interesting ability is to re-roll rolls on the Chaos Boon table without having to resort to a Dark Apostle.  A nifty ability for the chaos lord kitted out for melee, not so cool for long-range warlords (e.g., Ahriman). 

For me, I count one great one (#3), one really bad one (#5), one potentially good one (#6), one mediocre but still okay one (#2), and two iffy ones that depend on the situation/s and army builds (#1, #4).  Will you be rolling on this chart, or deferring to the main rulebook charts?
 

CSM Options: Familiars

The new chaos codex offers two different flavours of familiar for the best dressed chaos lord: a spell familiar and a combat familiar.  Speaking as an old-timer (read: Realms of Chaos era), I fully welcome the addition of these two familiars to the codex family!  Its great to see them both have a place!  We'll have a look at each in turn.

Firstly the combat familiar.  This guys is a cheap-ish way to purchase two extra attacks per round.  The only drawback is that they are S4 AP- attacks.  Hence, the combat familiar isn't too great.  If the attacks were made at the same Strength as the chaos lord, then this would be fine and a reasonable upgrade.  But given the price tag, a power weapon would prove a better investment surely.

Secondly: the spell familiar. I like the idea presented in the codex relating to the Thousand Sons.  Particularly that these familiars are tutelaries as we read about in the Horus Heresy books! The spell familiar allows the user to re-roll failed psychic tests.  This is quite valuable in the long game.  Having said that, all the dark sorcerers have Ld10.  Even the aspiring sorcerers of the Thousand Sons beat out the other cult units in having Ld10!  (e.g. plague champions "only" have Ld9).  So, such psychic tests are going to fail 3 times in 36, which is once every 12 times.  But if we're considering a Sorcerer Lord with a level three mastery level, they could be throwing out 3 spells per turn: a total of 15 spells per (5 turn) game.  Hence in a game of 5 turns, we could expect (on average) at least one failure.  Is it important to have 15 passed tests instead of 14?  Probably not.  But knowing my die rolls, its probably going to be the one time that its really, really needed!  Even so, I cannot contend that the spell familiar is a good investment of points. 

For interest, in the previous codex, a spell familiar cost 5 points and granted the player an extra psychic power.  This was a totally superior familiar, but I can see why it was done away with!  As an additional note, the version 3.5 codex also had the same familiar: 5 points for an extra "major power".  But I think a full discussion of what a "major power" was (as opposed to a randomly rolled "minor power") is best left alone for the time being!

CSM Options: Evaluation of Ichor Blood

One of the more interesting options in the new codex is the Ichor Blood upgrade. Harking back to the old Realms of Chaos rewards, the Ichor Blood strikes back against any unit that is good enough to mistreat a Chaos Lord.

Ichor Blood is very situational.  Basically, it strikes back against a unit with a S3 AP4 hit.  Let's imagine that this is directed against a standard space marine and compare it to (for the sake of argument) a combi-bolter (i.e. a twin-linked bolter) which costs only fractionally less on a marine lord (slightly more on a terminator lord).

S3 hits automatically and wounds on 5+.  The unit gets a 3+ save (hypothetically), so each wound from ichor blood stands a 0.111 chance of causing a wound.  Compare that to a combi-bolter.  It hits on a 3+ (re-rolling missed hits).  Wounds on a 4+ and the unfortunate hypothetical marine survives on a 3+.  That makes a 0.148 chance of an unsaved wound.  Hence, I think that the offensive option (combi-bolter) outweighs the defensive option (ichor blood).  But then again, if the chaos lord is a close combat orientated chap, then how much use will the lord get out of the combi-bolter in comparison to the ichor blood is questionable.  But equally, ichor blood also relies on a wound being caused on the lord himself.  Shouldn't the lord be winning against opponents if constructed well? :)

So to conclude, I'm torn on Ichor Blood.  I want to take it if I think I'm going to get the lord in to melee and take an odd unsaved wound from another character that we've challenged.  Mayhaps I'll save the points for something offensive to be fair: better to cause problems than react to them?

CSM Options: Icon of Wrath

The Icon of Wrath is for the Khorne Boys amongst us.  In short, the equipped unit can re-roll charge distances and gain furious charge.  Both are totally worthwhile on a close combat squad!

The average price for the icon is 20 points, but a little less for some squads, e.g.: Khorne Berzerkers. This is understandable since they already have furious charge.

So, some players may hesitate to purchase an Icon of Wrath for Berzerkers.  But you'll only do that once.  That'll be the time that you roll 3 or less for your charge range, but needed a 6 or so to get in to combat.  With Kharn in your unit as well.  After that, I assure you that you will want to take this icon!  (although it'd be even better if it still acted as a teleport homer, but thats another post!).

CSM Options: Icon of Flame

The Tzeentch marked boys have the option of getting the Icon of Flame: an interesting tactical icon that grants the soul blaze special rule to anyone armed with bolt-spitting weapons. 

Now, soul blaze in itself is an interesting idea.  If a unit takes an unsaved wound, there's a 50% chance it'll take a further d3 S4 hits at the end of each turn.  That's basically a mean of 2 extra bolter rounds.  Sure, they still have to wound.  So that means 1 wound (if against a space marine).  And said space marine stands a 1 in 3 chance of perishing from this.  This isn't great, but can be enough to finish off a pesky unit that has been whittled down to the last man (or two) on occasion.  Its probably better against beasts (e.g. chaos spawn), the odd low toughness character (or even monstrous creature), and hordes of tyranid gaunts (in which case, take an icon on every squad so that you can soul blaze every opposing unit!).  It could be worthwhile with havocs armed with bolters, but here's the but:

Given the average price of this icon is about 15 points, we must weigh it up against something like purchasing a heavy bolter (5 points cheaper!) or a plasma gun (same price).  Due to the high S and low AP, the plasma gun is going to win every single time. 

Hence, I might consider the odd Icon of Flame on a (fluffy) Tzeentch-themed army, particularly on havocs or terminators, but that's about it.  Otherwise, in a generalist list, I can't particularly see the worth in them.  Invest in a plasma gun instead.  Or a heavy bolter plus flamer.  Or meltagun plus flamer.  Or a missile launcher.  Any of these are probably going to earn their points back quicker than an icon of flame, sadly.

CSM Options: Icon of Vengeance

The ability to confer the fearless rule on any unit that takes this option can be a fantastic investment (as well as the +1 combat resolution that all icons get).  In the old chaos marine codex, the equivalent icon (icon of chaos glory) simply allowed the re-rolling of failed leadership rolls.  Hence the new codex is strictly different.  Depending on the unit in question, the icon of vengeance's price varies from 5 points, through to 35 points, with the median cost being 25 points. 

Instead of reviewing why fearless is so good, let me point out a few negatives about being fearless and having this icon (in general).  Firstly, if you lose the icon, the unit loses fearless.  Clearly snipers can cause this, and also poor positioning within a squad.  Secondly, fearless means that the unit can never go to ground voluntarily.  You've got to keep the unit going onward and upward all the time!  Thirdly, they cannot elect to fail morale checks simple due to having useless weapons against a target.  They will nibble the enemy to death!  Personally, I don't like this latter one, as it confuses "fearless" with the old-fashioned "stupidity" rules (must go to nearest enemy, and try to kill them!).  Clearly this latter one is a problem if the unit is not kitted out correctly.  Being tarpitted against a soul grinder is not fun for a fearless unit that cannot hurt it, ever.

So, I regard this icon as being totally worthwhile on the correct unit.  And that unit is probably going to be a front-line close-combat unit that does not have a character associated with it.  That said, there is a mild case to be made for devastator squads (etc.) since we don't want them running off when the first couple of casualties come in either.  But the price of these icons do add up pretty quickly.  I think adding a fearless-conferring character to a squad, where possible, is preferable to the icon.  A few choice look-out-sirs and it should be all fine if the die are rolling well.

CSM Options: Icon of Excess

Late in 5th edition, there were a number of players who espoused the view that feel no pain had become too wide-spread in many armies.  To me, feel no pain means just that.  The narrative reason behind this had been one of two things: either the human(oid) body in question really wasn't wired for pain, whether due to degenerate disease (Nurgle!) or something similar; or the creature had taken certain chemical concoctions / drugs / psychic weirdness to bypass their pain receptors (Dark Eldar!).  And then necrons were just robots, but they have other rules.  But we'll ignore that!

So, upon reading the new chaos codex, it was a surprise and a narrative fit that I saw the Icon of Excess.  For the Slaaneshi devotees, they now have the option to also feel no pain.  The narrative reason falls under the second concept from above: a bit too much inhalation of "cloying musk" that drives them to seek fresh sensations regardless of the current state of their being.

The price is reasonably high for most units though.  I therefore think that we wouldn't want to be paying more than about 5 pts per marine for this icon for it to be truly effective.  Hence a slightly larger squad than minimal seems ideal for taking this icon, at least 6 (for fluffy reasons) and certainly a full squad of 10.

Additionally, I think the icon should certainly be deployed for front line marines (melee).  But for rear line marines, I have mixed feelings.  I can see how it would be of benefit for sonic weapon squads, or havoc squads, to grant them a little added durability and protection from incoming ballistics.  But the price kind of puts me off.  So I'll be sticking with front line units to use this icon with.

CSM Options: Icon of Despair

The icon for Nurgle marked units is the Icon of Despair.  As well as adding 1 to the combat result, the Icon of Despair confers the fear rule to the unit.  Naturally, fearless units don't care.  And They Shall Know No Fear units also don't care.  Yet, the ability to cause fear (reducing opponent's to WS=1 on an unsuccessful Ld check) can be neat.  But, the meta-game features a strong amount of fearless and space marine armies.  The latter in particular make the fear rule one that is very easy to forget.  I've played against eldar, tau and others under 6th edition and not once yet remembered to force a fear check.  Why? Because the majority of my opponents are space marines.  I fear, fear, that I will not remember you. I also fear that fear is not terribly fearful.

Therefore the only reason to take the Icon of Despair is the benefit to combat outcome.  If equipped on tar-pitting units, this is pretty good (see my tactica about plaguebearers and instruments).  So, perhaps I could entertain an Icon of Despair on plague marine squads once in a while.  But, they have more attacks than plaguebearers.  So the case for an Icon of Despair even on plague marines is poor.  Given that the points cost is double the cost of a chaos daemons instrument, my answer becomes a firm no.  Forget the Icon of Despair.  Its a waste of points in my opinion and I won't be taking them.

(Aside: Pity they don't double up as homing icons, otherwise they'd be worthwhile! -- I feel the codex writers and playtesters really dropped the ball on this one -- homing icons have been with chaos for several editions and I'm still shocked at their absence).

CSM Options: Daemonic Steeds

Having gone through all of the units in the Review of CSM in 6th, I now want to turn to a few of the options available to them.  The first one: daemonic steeds.

My only negative comment is that there isn't an "undivided" option. I'm pretty disappointed about this - I really rather liked the concept of daemonic horsemen lords!  Indeed, the general lack of "obvious" undivided chaos in the new codex is an all-round downer.  I guess that the "undivided" mark is now the lack of a different mark, rather than something specific as it used to be.

Those chaos lords with the mark of a specific chaos god have access to the Juggernaut of Khorne, the Disc of Tzeentch, the Palanquin of Nurgle or Steed of Slaanesh.

The Juggernaut gives +1 T, W, A and grants the cavalry rule to the chaos lord.  For the points cost, the extra wound and point of toughness goes a long way.  And of course, the extra attack is positively Khorne-orientated.  I'm impressed by the cavalry rule as well, especially considering that the bloodcrushers of the daemons codex are infantry.  One potential chaos lord build to take advantage of the steed is the following:
Chaos Lord, Mark of Khorne, Juggernaut of Khorne, Axe of Blind Fury, Sigil of Corruption, Veterans of the Long War (175 points).

The Disc of Tzeentch gives the sorcerer or lord a jetbike and an extra attack. I'm unconvinced that the points are quite worth it over a chaos bike, but I can certainly see how a unique build could be made out of it (see: Chaos Sorcerer for examples).  But a reasonably plain disc-riding Tzeentch Sorcerer seems about optimal for the points.  Consider this one:
Chaos Sorcerer, Level 3 Psyker, Mark of Tzeentch, Disc of Tzeentch, Sigil of Corruption (180 points).

The Palanquin of Nurgle grants a remarkable extra 2 wounds, 1 more attack, and the model becomes very bulky.  That's not a bad exchange rate, but it is pricey for low points cost games.  And what do we need 2 extra wounds for?  Sticking around, obviously.  If only I could outflank or deepstrike the lord on the palanquin, I'd be happy.  But hey.  Perhaps stick him in a large blob of cultists, behind an Aegis Defence Line, and hang tight on an objective!  Example:
Chaos Lord, Mark of Nurgle, Palanquin of Nurgle, Sigil of Corruption, Ichor Blood (150 points).

The Steed of Slaanesh should be swift, but it only adds 3'' to run moves and only 1 extra attack.  Nonetheless, it is cavalry, and gets the acute senses and outflank rule (horrah!).  How do we take advantage of these?  Well, the build has to be something swift, targeted (pick the target and charge!), deadly and works well with outflank.  Something like this:
Chaos Lord, Mark of Slaanesh, Steed of Slaanesh, plasma pistol, the Murder Sword, Sigil of Corruption, Veterans of the Long War (180 points).   

CSM in 6th Review: Chaos Predator

The final entry in the codex proper (I may review some further units from Forge World later) is the chaos predator.  Much like the Imperial version, it can be constructed with autocannon or twin-linked las-cannon as the primary turret weapon, with the usual sponson options.  In addition, it also gets access to the chaos vehicle equipment list for extra load-outs.

The predator needs a role realistically.  The triple-lascannon set-up (the annihilator) will be popular to take down opposing vehicles and monsters, whereas the autocannon (the destructor) and heavy bolter option is much better suited to anti-horde duty.  The cross-over variants are rarer. I regard only the lascannon sponson one as viable since the other variant tries to do two jobs at once and never gets much bang for its buck; whilst I've not seen the mono-turret version played anywhere in a long long while.  Still, the points cost is very comparable to havocs.  i.e. if you want 3 lascannons amongst those havocs, you're paying about the same points cost as for the predator.  So you've got to make the choice: is a vehicle better than infantry?  Maybe and maybe not, depending on circumstance, set-up and opponents.

Here's a few potential builds that are worth consideration.

Chaos Predator, Autocannon, Heavy Bolter sponsons (95 points)
Cheap and great at pumping out plenty of shots every turn.  The classic "dakka pred" is still a cheap cost option to threaten squads of infantry and hordes, whilst having a reasonable reach and also able to threaten light transport style tanks.

Chaos Predator, Autocannon, Heavy Bolter sponsons, Havoc Launcher, Warpflame Gargoyles (112 points)
Something that the Imperials still can't do: add a havoc launcher.  A twin-linked S5 small blast with a 48" range is awesome.  Especially when equipped on every tank you run!  Coupled with the new warpflame gargoyles option, this enhanced dakka pred is one of my favourite builds to take down large gaunt units when you need to, and also put enough hits on marines and terminators to take a few down.

Chaos Predator, Autocannon, Lascannon sponsons (115 points)
This is the one to take down monstrous creatures and provides anti-tank capability to boot.  It also has a reasonable price tag.

Chaos Predator, Twin-Linked Lascannon, Lascannon sponsons (140 points)
The tank-buster.  And can put hurt on greater daemons, big tyranids and other monsters to boot.  It can even take on flyers with a reasonable probability.  But I personally don't play this variant.  I prefer alternate ways of taking down tanks, so please take this entry as a suggestion for apocalypse only.

Chaos Predator, Twin-Linked Lascannon, Combi-Melta, Dozer Blade, Extra Armour, Destroyer Blades (140 points)
Strange.  Yes.  Here's the idea.  Its a tank hunter that once its done its job goes for a tank shock with the destroyer blades.  Okay - don't take this one too seriously: its too expensive to be perfectly honest.  Perhaps take a rhino with a combi-melta and destroyer blades if you're semi-interested instead.  I simply include it as a concept.

CSM in 6th Review: Chaos Vindicator

The vindicator just got slightly better in my opinion. Firstly, the basic chassis costs less than the previous codex and secondly, it gets access to a true siege shield for the first time - as an option! Combine that with access to the regular chaos vehicle equipment list and you have a very nice customizable tank for a reasonable points cost. I think this one is competitive for the heavy support slot ... depending on the type of army we're wanting to field of course. I can't see too many Iron Warriors players passing up the opportunity to field one of these! (but then again, Iron Warriors have soooo many vehicles to select from these days that the newer miniatures must be appealing!).

The reason I'm quite excited by the vindicator and its access to the armoury is that we now have an upgradable vehicle that won't be saying bye-bye to its demolisher cannon on every weapon destroyed roll.  Grab an extra weapon to lower the chances.  Take daemonic possession.  Extra armour.  Its all good.  Roll forward with your S10 cannon and shoot away!  This is the only S10 ranged weapon available to chaos players, so enjoy it!  Let's look at a few builds that may appeal.

Chaos Vindicator, daemonic possession, siege shield (145 points)
This costs the same as the old codex, but replaces the dozer blade with a true siege shield.  BS3 is a small price to pay for a 2+ ignore shaken and stunned.  Add on a cheap second weapon to taste and you've got a winner.  This should/would be the basic set-up for most "standard" chaos vindicators.

Chaos Vindicator, siege shield, destroyer blades, warpflame gargoyles, combi-bolter (155 points)
Move forward.  Shoot.  If still alive repeat until the vehicle gets even closer.  Then ram a unit off an objective, remembering the destroyer blades as you go.  The warpflame gargoyles are there for any amazing unit that manages to survive a S10 AP2 blast (terminators!).

Chaos Vindicator, siege shield, daemonic possession, destroyer blades, warpflame gargoyles, combi-melta, combi-bolter, extra armour (190 points)
This one has the lot!  And you're paying dearly for it.  So this is just a points sink and not to be used outside apocalypse!  Or ever!  Still, I'm entertained by the possibilities here!  (and yes: you *can* take both the combi-bolter and combi-melta on a single vehicle).

CSM in 6th Review: Land Raider

Its AV=14 all round.  It transports everything (even chaos spawn) and they can assault the turn they disembark.  It has a twin linked heavy bolter and two twin linked las cannons.  It can be heavy support or a dedicated transport for chaos terminators.  Its a land raider! 

The points cost got 10 points more expensive than the last edition, but its still cheaper than the Imperial standard land raider.  And with justification too: it lacks the power of the machine spirit.  Even a corrupted machine spirit, sadly. But hey, the two twin-linked lascannons are sufficient to overwatch regularly: they even pose a threat to flyers if we do the maths.

That said, the land raider also gains access to the chaos vehicle upgrades.  So lets take a look at a few potential builds.

Land Raider, dirge caster, dozer blade, combimelta (250 points)
I think this will be a variant that will see a lot of play.  The dirge caster is there to help when the contents of the land raider get out of the assault ramp and charge.  The dozer blade is there to help with terrain.  The combimelta has two functions: threat, and to also lessen the chance of one of the twin-linked lascannons getting blown off.

Land Raider, Extra Armour, Daemonic Possession, Destroyer Blades, Combi Plasma (280 points)
The survivor.  Roll forward with impunity.  Tank shock enemies off objectives and destroy them with the aptly named destroyer blades.  Use the combi-plasma once, and then hope it gets destroyed instead of a twin-linked lascannon.  You could even risk having troops transported inside this one (assuming the possessing daemon isn't hungry for a mid-morning snack?).  These troops will then disembark to claim the objective off the unit that the destroyer blades hit.

Land Raider (230 points).
Make your imperial cousins jealous with the low points cost.  But don't tell them anything else about how it compares to their codex!!! (they'll laugh).  But seriously, this beast is still a land raider with AV=14.  Its a threat whatever way you look at it.

CSM in 6th Review: Maulerfiend

The maulerfiend is the second new entry in the Heavy Support category of the new chaos codex and retail-wise comes bundled with the forgefiend as a possible alternate build.

When I first read the rules to this one, I was confused.  The main reason for my confusion is that I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do with this guy.  Well, that's not entirely true.  I figure I'm meant to throw it at fortifications - that's what the +1 armour penetration against buildings (siegecrawler) does for us.  But what fortifications?  Am I seriously going to buy this option to counter an imperial bastion?  Nope.  That's what I've got melta guns, power fists, and a slew of other devices and chaos daemon allies besides for.  So, I'm guessing that there is going to be some new fortifications released during 6th edition that these guys are going to be the answer to.  Perhaps I should be buying three of these?  Nah. 

But let's take a closer look.  The maulerfiend is a walker with two power fists and 2 attacks.  That will result in 4 attacks on the charge.  That's not really all that powerful since a pair of terminators can manage that. Heck, even the dreadnought ... ahem ... helbrute can copy that manoeuvre.  The twist is the magma cutters.  If the maulerfiend scores a hit, then the magma cutters make an additional S8, AP1, armourbane attack as well.  Bye bye defences in all likelihood.  And certainly capable of taking tanks out in a single charge short of a land raider. 

Siegecrawler means that the maulerfiend is always moving 12" in the movement phase and fleet plus move through cover make the threat range even greater.  As with the forgefiend, it gets daemonic possession, daemon and "IT WILL NOT DIE" special rules to make it stick around longer.  Additionally, this guy gets the daemonforge special rule which means it can re-roll penetrate / to wound rolls once per game.  Use at the first opportunity I say!  (unless you really hate the imperial bastion over there as much as Angron might).

The only option is to replace the magma cutters with lasher tendrils (125 points vs 135 points, respectively).  These tendrils will reduce the attacks of those in base to base contact with the maulerfiend by 1 for each set.  To a minimum of 1.  This can be potent against high volume attack infantry (orks on bikes, terminators and the like), but ultimately isn't going to be stopping a thunder hammer from striking it.  Might as well keep the magma cutters for the potential extra attacks in my opinion and not bother with the lasher tendrils.  Instead, rely on the maulerfiends inbuilt toughness to see off any incoming attacks.  So, for me, I'd be taking the 125 points set up with the magma cutters and charge forwards. 

But then again, I'd be thinking about alternatives to the maulerfiend in the first place unless some new codexes and campaign expansions include terrifying fortifications.

CSM in 6th Review: Forgefiend

And finally we get to the Forgefiend - a new entry in the codex and a new appealing model on the tabletop to assemble and paint.

To me, the forgefiend is a long range support option. It can take either a pair of Hades Autocannons, or a pair of ectoplasma cannons.  Each of these configurations can be backed up by a separate ectoplasma cannon.  Although the name "ectoplasma cannon" doesn't do much for me (other than to cause a little giggle), these weapons are powerful and can be stunning (literally) with a bit of luck and the right lines of sight.  With heavy 4, the Hades Autocannons will be averaging 4 hits per turn at S=8.  Even without skyfire, that's a threat to most things on the board.  The ectoplasma cannons on the other hand are more close range (24"), but equally strong (S=8), but in a blast form with AP2.  This spells doom for terminators and the like, whilst simultaneously being a threat to many transports (etc.). 

The forgefiend is a daemon, which gives it a 5+ invulnerable save, daemonic possession (ignore shaken / stunned on 2+) and coupled with "It Will Not Die" USR, this beastie will be hanging around a while with a bit of luck.  It also gets fleet (but you're going to be shooting with it, not running), and daemonforge special rule which allows re-rolls to wound and armour penetration for one turn.  Might as well activate this on your first turn, I contend. 

Two attacks in close combat at S=6 isn't brilliant, but it'll do in a pinch.  The forgefiend is a walker afterall and might be able to tarpit a unit late on in the game.

There are 4 possible configurations (at least, the way I read the options).

(i) Two Hades Autocannons (175 points).
8 shots, averaging 4 hits per turn.  This is pretty neat!

(ii) Two Ectoplasma Cannons (175 points).
Two small blast templates that are going to tear down terminators (with a bit of luck) and be a threat to minor vehicles.

(iii) Three Ectoplasna Cannons (200 points).
Like (ii), but blastier for when you need to get the job done.

(iv) Two Hades Autocannons and one Ectoplasma Cannon (200 points).
A mixed bag.  The range of the two weapons don't match, which is an issue.  But I think you'd be using all three from turn 2+.  I suspect options (i), (ii) or (iii) are superior though.

CSM in 6th Review: Defiler

Since Abaddon commanded its construction from the dark forges, the defiler has been a mainstay of the chaos space marine force.  But for 6th edition, I can see fewer and fewer defilers being fielded.  One of the biggest changes in the new codex is the increase in points.  Upgrades being extra takes the total for a single defiler to over 200 points.  Considering the price of other heavy support options, this is a lot of points. But let's look closer before being too judgemental.

Clearly the defiler has a metric ton of weaponry.  Battle cannon, reaper autocannon, heavy flamer (twin linked), power fists all add up to a heck of an arsenal, especially combined with the daemonforge rule.  Here's the first issue though: if you want to fire the battle cannon -- and to be fair, I would want to -- then you're taking snap shots with the rest of the gear.  Darn!  So, we have to decide whether we want this beast to be a long-range pseudo-obliterator, or a close combat specialist.  I'm already thinking there's better options for *both* roles for the points cost.

Digging further, the defensive capabilities of the defiler is strong.  Its a daemons, meaning a 5+ save, it has AV12 on the front (not quite soul grinder standard), but it does have 4 hull points.  Coupled with "It Will Not Die" special rule means that it should hang around a fair while to do both battlefield roles (shooty and choppy).  On the flip-side BS and WS=3 isn't great.  Especially with only 3 close combat attacks.  Fleet, Smoke Launchers and Searchlights round out the generic equipment for the defiler, but don't add too much for the cost.

The defiler can also access the chaos armoury for vehicles.  Obvious upgrades that one could consider are the warpflame gargoyles (for soul blaze), extra armour, and a dirge caster (prevent overwatch when charging).

Here's a couple of potential configurations to toy about with.

Defiler, warpflame gargoyles, havoc launcher (replacing twin linked heavy flamer) (205 points)
Stand back and shoot.  Repeat.  If approached, charge.  Simple.

Defiler, power scourge (replacing twin linked heavy flamer), twin linked heavy bolter (replacing the reaper autocannon), dirge caster, extra armour (235 points)
A close combat variant.  Shoot on the way to melee, and engage.  Exchange the reaper for another power fist perhaps, to taste.  But really for the points, why aren't you going for a daemon prince instead?  Or land raider?  Its hard to justify this expenditure.

Defiler.  No upgrades.
Simple, but still pricey.

Overall, I think the defiler has priced itself out of the heavy support slot now - its an all rounder that's got expensive.  The cynical amongst you may see this as a way to get players buying forgefiends and maulerfiends... but they're a review topic for a different day.

CSM in 6th Review: Obliterator

Obliterators have long been held by chaos player to be excellent choices for a heavy support option. This is not without reason and those reasons persist in the new codex, but there's also a few caveats to think about as well now.

Their strengths are obvious: the ability to manifest whatever energy based weapon (twin-linked variety at short range as well) is awesome.  In the new codex, they get the assault cannon added to their list of weapons.  This is yet another excellent outcome for chaos!  (on the flip side, in days of yore, they used to also have access to heavy bolters and frag missiles ... but the access to the plama cannon makes up for this I think!).  On the downside, they now must "rotate" which weapon they choose: we cannot select the same weapon twice in two consecutive shooting phases.  But there are always going to be plentiful targets, so this rule is not a bother!  Additionally, all the obliterators in a unit must fire the same weapon - not such a biggie, but worth mentioning.

They have the daemon rule (so thier 5+ invulnerable save stays intact), they're bulky (which means that they could be transported in a land raider should you want to) and they can deepstrike potentially (useful on occasion). The powerfist means that their close combat effectiveness is also reasonable, but with the caveat that they'll be striking at I=1.  Slow and purposeful is there as well, but that's not a biggie either since in terms of playstyle, I think many chaos players will situate them in some ruins / buildings with a good line of sight in their deployment zone for most of the game.  Deepstriking is okay and valuable as a decoy: but these boys are pricey and can die from instant death.  But given that they're essentially terminators with 2 wounds each, its often worth the risk to cause a little mayhem against the right army.

The upgrades available are minimal: extra obliterators, marks, and veterans of the long war.  So let's have a think about each in turn.

The extra obliterators can take your unit up to three strong.  Unless you're 100% relying on obliterators (and these days, you might not since they don't possess skyfire), going for three in each squad seems a little high.  I prefer to run mine in squads of 2, or go solo.  I use the latter when I don't have other slots in heavy support that I'm filling with other stuff (havocs, vindicators, etc.) as that means I can then have 2 obliterators in 2 different squads.  This has advantages: choose different targets and different weapons every turn for each obliterator and see what one of them does before activating the next one.  Two obliterators in a squad means that you can statistically rely on lascannons should you wish to fire them.  I actually prefer plasma cannons for the opening salvo in most cases as the scatter isn't usually too large, and we get a high S combined with significant AP.  That said, the assault cannons must now be looking more favourite for an opening salvo from a pair of well positioned obliterators. 

The mark of Slaanesh on obliterators is pointless in my opinion -- they don't have the close combat weapons available to take advantage of the increased initiative short of switching off the powerfists!  And why would you do that?  Fluffy reasons only.  (and yes: that is sufficient reason for many players! especially given how cheap this mark is!)

The mark of Khorne supposes that you'll get a charge in .... less likely with slow and purposeful that you've positioned them to do that in the first place.  Counter-assault is good, but... then again, I just think the final two marks make superior choices. 

The mark of Tzeentch is good here: a 4+ invulnerable save will prove excellent.  Combine with deep-striking obliterators to create a strong threat in the opponent's deployment zone that stands a chance of hanging around.

The mark of Nurgle is similarly good: T=5 obliterators also increase survivability.  And the synergy with Epidemius is obvious to the daemon players amongst you.

Veterans of the Long War on the other hand is not too special on the surface.  But poke a bit deeper and the +1Ld bonus is good: note that obliterators have lost their fearless rule, so anything will help here.  Hatred of space marines doesn't really matter to shooty obliterators though, but can add flexibility to a deep strike threat.  Feel free to add a very shooty character to mitigate the fearless loss (e.g. Tzeentch sorcerer).  Add in a bastion with quad-gun as well - that could work out very well, but I've not tested it out yet.

So, I think my favoured set up will be this one:
2 Obliterators, Mark of Nurgle, Veterans of the Long War (158 points)
Solid, defensive, shooty and going to stick around for a while!  Swap out mark of Nurgle for mark of Tzeentch for a few more points (feel free to recover them by ditching Veterans as well) and try some risky deepstrikes and use this unit as a distractor instead.  There's very little not to like about these two set-ups.  But my personal favourite will be the Nurgle build.  They're just going to be tough to remove, full stop.

CSM in 6th Review: Havocs

In all the codexes out there, chaos havocs are the only ones to so far be given access to Flakk missiles. Of course, this will change over time, but for the moment it is potentially one advantage that havocs have. But they're not cheap. Coming in at 25 points each, they are an expensive upgrade. Chaos havocs can have any four of their members take special or heavy weapons (including flakk shooting missile launchers; lascannons; plasmaguns; meltaguns; autocannons; heavy bolters; and flamers). With some of the special weapons, the havocs are clearly competing with chaos chosen for a slot and duplicating what they can achieve on the battlefield. That said, they are a few points cheaper than chosen and do occupy a different FOC slot. But as with the Elites slot, there may be superior options elsewhere in the heavy support slot that one would like to investigate prior to selecting havocs.

As with chosen and other basic marines entries in the codex, they get access to the full gamut of marks, icons, aspiring champion regular upgrades and can also take a chaos rhino if they wish.  In concert with a quad-gun they should also make mince out of many units in the game if set up correctly.  So, with that, let's take a look at a few builds.

5 Havocs; 4 with missile launchers plus Flakk; 1 Bastion with Quad-gun (300 points)
Pricey, but it can beat down flyers with regularity.  4 flakk missile plus the aspiring champion operating the quad gun makes for an expensive way to down aircraft and monstrous flying creatures.  But this could be an option for those playing flavourful lists.  Swap out the missile launchers for autocannons to taste.

5 Havocs, 4 plasmaguns, Mark of Nurgle, rhino with havoc launcher (197 points)
Team up with Huron and infiltrate these guys to the back line for some plasma-tastic fun.  Rapid firing 4 plasmaguns if you've never done it before is quite an experience.  The havoc launcher is there to ensure at least some heat is taken by the transport itself and the mark of nurgle means that they're going to be slightly hardier than some alternatives.

9 Havocs, Mark of Khorne, Icon of Wrath, Veterans of the Long War, 8 close combat weapons, 2 flamers, 2 meltaguns, champion with melta bombs and power weapon, Rhino Transport with Havoc Launcher (287 points)
Strictly cheaper than the chosen alternative but with less attacks, this squad can still pack a mean punch when run with someone like Kharn to lead them.  The mix of special weapons allows them to be deadly to both vehicles and hordes.  Angron would approve of the hate. 
Alternatively, seek Fulgrim's praise by swapping to a Mark of Slaanesh plus Icon of Excess.  Equally brilliant in the right circumstances!

5 Havocs, Mark of Tzeench, Icon of Flame, 4 Heavy Bolters, Bastion with Quad-Gun (265 points)
Got a horde to deal with?  Then this is the setup that could be useful!  The heavy bolters lay down a withering, soul blazing fire combined with the quadgun that the champion is operating.  Meanwhile the bastion ensures that the squad has every type of save possible for these guys.  Team up with a chaos sorcerer for a good vantage point and fire at will.

10 Havocs, Mark of Tzeentch, 4 Missile Launchers (2 with Flakk), Skyshield Landing Pad (315 points)
With a potential 3+ invulnerable save and the ability to deep strike allies on the pad without scattering, this one screams "threat" for any army that relies on deep striking shooters.  Hello soul grinder allies?
5 Havocs, 2 meltaguns, chaos rhino with combi-melta (142 points)
A pure distraction unit meant as a sacrifice that if run with others of its ilk can likely pull off some serious meltagunning of enemy fortifications and tanks.  Risky, but cheap-ish.

5 Havocs, 4 autocannons, Aegis Defence Line with comms relay (185 points) Ensure your reserves arrive by taking the aegis defence line with a comms relay whilst suppressing enemies with your long range autocannon shots.  Sure, these guys will die quickly to infiltrating, outflanking, flying, and otherwise sneaky foes, but once turn 2 has hit, they've done their job, right?!