Chaos Daemons’ best rules are locked behind stratagems used during list building, and so your typical competitive Daemons list will spend anywhere from 4 to 10 CP before the game even starts, leaving you with fewer options once the first turn begins. There are some decent Warlord Traits for Chaos Daemons but the faction has no way to give additional Warlord Traits to models. Although it’s not as bad as it was for Daemon lists before the changes to the Bring it Down and Abhor the Witch secondaries, Daemons lists will frequently leave themselves open to an opponent being able to max out kill secondaries, particularly Assassinate, but Abhor the Witch will also likely still be a viable option against many competitive Daemon builds even if it’s harder to max. If Daemons want to hit at a distance, they typically need to do it with Psychic Powers or add in Chaos Space Marines. Daemons have very little shooting, and while they have a few longer-ranged options, most of their shooting attacks are short-ranged.
And with the changes to Abhor the Witch, you won’t be feeling the pain of taking 3+ psykers per game quite so severely. Most HQs in the codex are Psykers, giving the army a way to take plentiful Psyker units to help make up for a lack of shooting and buff the rest of the army. Daemons – with the exception of those devoted to Khorne – have some decent psychic powers in their arsenal, even if some of them are overcosted. As AP continues to increase across the game, their lack of armour save and reliance on 5++ (or better) invulns has continued to shift from a weakness to a strength.
Whether it’s teleporting in with Denizens of the Warp, Advancing and Charging with Slaanesh Daemons, Scout-deploying with Nurglings, or making a long charge with the Banner of Blood, you’ve got ways to close the gap and make opponents regret getting too close. Daemons have a lot of speed and tricks to show up and move all over the table. This was written in February, 2021 after the release of the January FAQs and points updates and Codex: Death Guard. The core strength of Daemons is in their Greater Daemons and Troops, leading to builds that see players marching hordes of lesser daemons across the table led by towering Monsters… or just pushing a few units of Daemonettes around with as many Keepers of Secrets as they can.Īs always, a guide like this represents a time and place. Further investigation reveals a deep, versatile faction that can work well either on its own or as part of a soup army. Mike Pestilens’s Recommendation for Pure Tzeentch DaemonsĬhaos Daemons are an army that at first glance, may seem very straightforward and limited.Bjorn Cantrell’s Mostly Undivided Daemons.Seeker Chariots / Exalted Seeker Chariots.Heralds on Seeker Chariots and Hellflayers.