Khorne Daemons Warband – Guide, Tactics & Overview

This is a guide for the Blades of Khorne: Khorne Daemons warband in Warcry.

Khorne is the Chaos God of War, master of slaughter and Taker of Skulls.

His daemons are the personification of his will in the Mortal Realms, are you ready to shed some blood in His name?

What changed in the new edition for the Khorne Bloodseekers?

Nothing major changed for the Khorne Daemons apart the usual point updates: few wounds went down, the Skullmaster increased his minimum damage and the Bloodletters their Strength.

The abilities remained similar. Briar and Bone added an optional battle trait.

Background and Lore of the Khorne Daemons Warband

Khorne is one of the four Chaos Gods, representing violence in its purest form. He does not care from whence the blood flows, only that it flows.

Skulls of worthy enemies are taken as a tribute to the Blood God, the Taker of Skulls.

Every war, every single life taken empowers Khorne and his followers do not gather in temples to offer prayers: they fight in the battlefield to honour their dark god.

Khorne Daemons derive from Khorne essence itself. Whenever the conflict becomes so violent that the blood flows like rivers, then reality splits and the Blood Legions can invade the Mortal Realms.

They can stay in this physical form until slain or called back by Khorne, and then be reformed in the Realm of Chaos to restart the cycle.

Daemons of Khorne despise concepts of peace or compassion and share with their lord an innate hate for magic and cowardice (two things that are often associated with each other).

A Blood Legion called forth is an organized red army voted to endless war and slaughter formed by close ranks of Bloodletters armed with hellblades followed by powerful engines of war like the Skull Cannons or the Blood Thrones.

On the flanks prowl the Flesh Hounds sniffing the air in search of the scent of their next victim, while the powerful Juggernauts make the earth tremble when they charge the enemy in close formation of Bloodcrushers.

But the most dangerous of the Blood Legions are the Greater Daemons of Khorne, powerful Bloodthirsters divided in 8 ranks in a rigid military structure and all capable of annihilating entire armies by themselves.

Since the Eightpoints is a never-ending battlefield, it’s no surprise the followers of the Blood God are seen in abundance here. Demonic warbands known as Bloodseekers roam these lands performing tasks like sacrificing particular magic wielders to please Khorne.

But how do the Khorne Daemons play on the tabletop? Let the rage subside for a moment so that we can have a look at them in detail.

Overview and Points for the fighters in the Khorne Daemons Warband

Hinweis: Wenn du die Grundregeln von Warcry noch nicht gelesen hast, bevor du diesen Artikel liest, ist es vielleicht hilfreich zu wissen, dass die Fähigkeiten des Spiels durch 6 Würfel aktiviert werden, die du zu Beginn deines Zuges wirfst.

Zeigen zwei der Würfel den gleichen Wert, können sie zur Aktivierung einer Doppelfähigkeit verwendet werden. Zeigen drei Würfel den gleichen Wert, können sie für eine Dreifach-Fähigkeit verwendet werden, usw.

Wenn also in diesem Artikel von einer Fähigkeit als Double, Triple oder Quad die Rede ist, bezieht sich das auf dieses System. Es mag ein wenig verwirrend klingen, aber man gewöhnt sich schnell daran, wenn man anfängt zu spielen

The Khorne Daemons warband is made from 3 kits with 6 options in total, of which 3 options are leaders.

Skullmaster, Herald of Khorne: 285 points

The Heralds of Khorne are the strongest Bloodletters chosen for their ferocity and leading by example. The Skullmaster charges in battle atop a Juggernaut.

He is a more powerful version of a Bloodhunter, the leader of Bloodcrusher packs. He has the same attack profile (5 Attacks at Strength 4 for 3/5 damage) and same ability: Mörderische Anklage (damage an enemy at the end of a movement towards him).

What characterizes him is instead the highest Toughness in the Bloodseekers: 5, coupled with the highest Wounds (35).

Bloodcrushers

• Bloodhunter: 230 points
• Bloodcrusher: 170 points

Die Bloodcrushers are the heavy infantry of Khorne Daemons with decent Movement (6”) and resilience (25 Wounds, 30 for the Blutjäger and Toughness 4).

Khorne Daemons have similar weapon profiles, making it easier to remember: Bloodcrushers have 4 attacks (5 for the leader) at Strength 4 for 2/4 damage (2/5 the Bloodhunter).

Their personal ability is the classic damage on charge: for a Triple, Mörderische Anklage, allows you to allocate as much as 6 damage to the next enemy model you enter in contact with.

The leaders’ special ability, Locus of Fury, instead increases by 1 the number of melee attacks for every friendly fighter within 6” as long as the leader took down an enemy in the same activation.

While being on the expensive side, they are good all-round profiles with decent stats.

Fleischhunde

• Gore Hound: 240 points
• Flesh Hound: 185 points

The Flesh Hounds are the real Khorne cavalry with a Movement of 8” and the ability, for a Double, to get closer to an enemy with a bonus move if it was at least within 6” of the starting position.

For the rest the Flesh Hounds have a weapon profile similar to a Bloodcrusher (4 attacks, Strength 5 and damage 2/4 with the Gore Hound increasing by one the attacks and the damage on critical hit), the main difference being less wounds (20 or 25 for the Gore Hound) and no damage on charge.

Die Schnüffelhund does not have the leader runemark, therefore no access to Locus of Fury, however has access to Brennendes Brüllen.

For a Quad you could end up doing as much as 12 damage to a single enemy within 8”.

That is a lot of free damage and relatively reliable (you still need to roll 2+ on each die, and as many dice as the value of the ability).

Bloodmaster, Herald of Khorne: 165 points

As the Skullmaster represents the Bloodcrushers, the Bloodmaster represents the Bloodletters, sharing a similar profile to the Bloodreaper and same Enthauptungsschlag Fähigkeit: Erhöht den Schaden bei kritischen Treffern des nächsten Nahkampfangriffs um bis zu 3.

He is more expensive than a Bloodreaper but this is justified by his higher damage potential (2/5 instead of 2/4) and Toughness (4). He has also 2 more Wounds (20).

Blutsbrüder

• Bloodreaper: 135 points
• Bloodletter: 80 points

Die Blutsbrüder are the cheap infantry of Khorne Daemons, on the squishy side (10 wounds with Toughness 3) but quite cheap considering the amount of attacks (4 at Strength 4 for 1/4 damage).

Der Anführer, der Bluträuberkostet fast das Doppelte für etwas mehr Wunden und ein Waffenprofil, das dem der anderen Anführer entspricht (5 Angriffe bei Stärke 4 für 2/4 Schaden).

He has access to Locus of Fury, however of all leaders he is probably the worst option, at least considering durability with his lower Wounds and Toughness.

Bloodletters special ability, Enthauptungsschlag, adds up to 3 damage only to the damage on critical hits for the next attack action, making it much less reliable than other similar abilities. Depending on the situation you may have much better use for a Double, especially a low Double.

Fähigkeiten für die Khorne Daemons Warcry Warband

• Blut für den Blutgott (Double, Everyone): Wenn ein Kämpfer in der gleichen Aktivierung einen Feind ausschaltet, kann er eine Bonusbewegung oder einen Bonusangriff ausführen.
• Enthauptungsschlag (Double, alle Bloodletters und der Bloodmaster): Erhöht den Schaden bei kritischen Treffern von Nahkampfangriffen um bis zu 3.
• Hungrig nach Fleisch (Double, alle Fleischhunde): Kann nur eingesetzt werden, wenn sich mindestens ein Feind innerhalb von 6" befindet, dann kann dieser Kämpfer eine Bonusbewegung in Richtung des nächstgelegenen Feindes ausführen.
• Locus of Fury (Dreifach, alle Anführer): Wenn ein Anführer in dieser Aktivierung einen Feind ausschaltet, addiere 1 zu den Nahkampfangriffen aller sichtbaren Kämpfer der eigenen Seite innerhalb von 6" um den Anführer.
• Mörderischer Angriff (Dreifach, alle Bloodcrusher und der Skullmaster): Am Ende der nächsten Bewegungsaktion kannst du einem angegriffenen gegnerischen Kämpfer bis zu 6 Schaden zufügen.
• Brennendes Gebrüll (Quad, Gore Hound): Wirf bis zu 6 Würfel, für jede 2+ füge einem einzelnen sichtbaren Feind innerhalb von 8" 2 Schaden zu.

Reaktion auf die Khorne Daemons Warband

Eingeführt in der neuen Staffel von Warcry, Reaktionen sind Dinge, die unter bestimmten Umständen getan werden können, aber immer während des gegnerischen Zuges. Sie kosten eine Aktion, so dass sie nur von Kämpfern eingesetzt werden können, die noch nicht aktiviert wurden oder noch warten. Es gibt 3 universelle Reaktionen und eine spezifische für jeden Kriegsverband:

Khorne's Due (Alle)

• Wenn: Während einer gegnerischen Nahkampfangriffsaktion, aber vor dem Trefferwurf.
• Was: 2 Schaden für den angreifenden Kämpfer für jeden Fehlschuss und 1 mehr für den verteidigenden Kämpfer für jeden kritischen Treffer.

Kampfeigenschaft für die Kriegsbande der Khorne-Dämonen

Blut ruft nach Blut: Am Ende jeder Kampfrunde würfelst du 2D6 und bei einer 8+ erleidest du 3 Schaden an einem einzelnen verletzten feindlichen Kämpfer.

Strategy and Tactics for the Khorne Daemons Warband

The Khorne Daemons are a well balanced warband with no standouts but a few cards up their sleeves.

They are extremely oriented towards doing as much damage as possible in the shortest period, they may suffer from prolonged melees with average Toughness although they have a good pool of wounds.

Their main ability, Blood for the Blood God, for a Double allows them a bonus move or attack if they fell down an enemy in the same activation. Extra attacks or board control for a Double is quite good.

If it’s a leader to put an enemy down then you can use Locus of Fury for a Triple instead, giving everyone in melee in a 6” bubble an extra +1 attack.

Movement is not a concern for this warband with Bloodcrushers on 6” and Flesh Hounds on 8”, plus the bonus move from Blood for the Blood God and Flesh Hounds signature ability, Hungrig nach Fleisch, allowing them a bonus move if within at least 6” of an enemy.

If you have spare Doubles and you cannot use the 2 abilities above, then you can use Enthauptungsschlag on your Bloodletters to increase up to 7 their damage on critical hits.

It relies on rolling 6s on 4 dice (5 if you activated Locus of Fury) so it may not do much most of the time but remains quite thematic when a single Bloodletter can impale a much more blazoned enemy with a couple of critical hits. And now works for the entire activation.

Bloodcrushers can damage at the end of their movement using a Triple (Mörderische Anklage) and with a profile similar to the Flesh Hounds, they cost less for a bit more wounds but 2” less movement. A combination of the two can cover most situations where the Hounds can pursue and engage early any enemy, while the Juggernauts can do impact damage on the biggest enemy hitters.

Bloodletters will be left there to increase your numbers in objective-based scenarios but be careful to not over-expose them in scenarios where killed models are counted.

The Gore Hound has access to Brennendes Brüllen for some extra damage, but not being a leader he counts more as a super elite fighter whose cost you need now to need in consideration when forming your warband. The choice for leader is between the Bloodletter or the Bloodcrusher leader and their upgraded versions (the heralds).

The Bloodreaper is probably the loser as it does not add much regarding special abilities and its relative fragility puts him at odds with the bigger cousins.

The warband reaction is extremely thematic as it distributes extra damage when you are being attacked. The attacking fighter gets 2 damage for each miss and you get 1 extra for each critical. When low-Strength enemies attack you, could be a convenient way to get rid of them before it’s your activation. Avoid using it on Bloodletters, cause the chances are mostly against them. As always, it’s a trade-off as your toughest fighters are also able to do more damage by simply attacking in their turn, but if you are on the verge of dying, or you are attacked by a melee attack 2″ or 3″ away (that would require a move action anyway) then it’s a good alternative.

To summarize: this warband, while missing tanks, counts on getting close quickly, attack savagely with abilities that can improve damage and attacks, and control the board by killing as much as possible.

The absence of ranged options will mean that sitting on an objective may not be possible in certain situations but the warband has plenty of options to cover the distance between you and the snipers rapidly.

Protect your leader until he can get the mortal blow on an enemy and activate the Locus of Fury for some more juicy rampage of Khorne Daemons.

Vor- und Nachteile der Khorne-Dämonen

Vorteile:

+ Viele Angriffe
+ Ausgewogene Einheiten

Nachteile:

- Keine Fernkampfeinheiten
- Nicht viele Optionen

Some thematic warbands for the Bloodseekers

Nur zum Spaß stellen wir hier ein paar thematische Warbands vor, die mehr für den Spaß oder den erzählerischen Kontext als für das kompetitive Spiel gedacht sind. Beachtet, dass ihr im narrativen Spiel eine Quest abschließen müsst, die es euch erlaubt, einen Helden zu rekrutieren, bevor ihr ihn zu eurem Dienstplan hinzufügen könnt.

Chaaaaaaarge!!!: Skullmaster, 3 Bloodcrushers and 1 Flesh-Hound as a loyal companion. If you are not in cute little doggies you can swap him and the Skullmaster for the Bloodhunter and another Bloodcrusher

We walk to work: 1 Bloodmaster, 9 Bloodletters and 1 Flesh-Hound. If you prefer 8 Bloodletters as Khorne demands, then you can upgrade the Flesh-Hound to a Gore Hound.

How to buy a Khorne Daemons Warcry Warband

Anmerkung: alle verwendeten Preise sind Standardpreise von Games Workshop. Es ist möglich, die verschiedenen Dinge billiger zu bekommen (siehe die Links für Preise).

The Khorne Daemons warband can be purchased from 5 boxes making it quite easy to collect quickly all you need.

Furthermore, the Start Collecting! Daemons of Khorne (£55) is a good starting point as it provides 10 Bloodletters and 3 Bloodcrushers that are more than you need unless you want to play with a stampede of these beasts. You could also obtain a Bloodmaster if you assemble the Bloodthrone as a Skull Cannon instead.

Couple the Start Collecting with a box of Flesh Hounds and you are good to go.

Alternatively, you can buy all boxes separately with 6 Bloodcrushers (£60), 10 Bloodletters (£22.5) und 5 Flesh Hounds (£30). All containing at least one leader option.

Die Schädelmeister und die Blutmeister are also sold as separate miniatures for £23.5 and £17.5 respectively.

Tips on painting a Khorne Daemons Warband for Warcry

The Khorne Daemons are quite old and available across different Games Workshop games, including Warhammer 40K and Horus Heresy, therefore there is plenty of guides online of how to paint them.

Although to be fair, they are mostly tones of red… Warhammer Community uses Bloodletters as an example on how to paint Khorne Daemons in both classic und contrast method.

If you use oils, a guide using a mixture of oils and acrylic presents how to paint a Bloodcrusher.

From the Apathetic Fish you can find a guide for Blutsbrüder und Bloodcrushers, while for Flesh Hounds from Warhammer Community there is an older guide for Korghos Kuhl very own Fleischhund.