Hey everyone! It’s been a very long time in the making but Chaos Knights is now playable in Alternate 40k Rules! I’ve been going through a ton of deliberations to try and determine the best way to go about Chaos Marks and Pure Blessings and have decided to keep it comparable to “standard” Chaos. This marks the 16th Codex out of 18, and they are both hot on our heels!
First thing, Chaos Knights are NOT a Chaos supplement. This means they cannot simply be used in whatever Slot they fill in a standard Chaos list. Like their loyalist counterparts, Chaos Knights CAN be used in any Chaos list using keywords to determine which Slot they fill. Spoilers, its simple. Baby knights are Heavy Support and everyone else is Lord of War.
Marks of Chaos are the same, with all Titanic variants gaining access to Pure Blessings of Chaos as well. This helps them seamlessly integrate with normal Chaos lists without disrupting the normal army building. This also allow the Chaos theme we were aiming for to stay consistent.
Unlike normal Chaos Warbands, Knight Lances pretty much grant only buffs! Not to worry, the game is still balanced. The points spent on these only buffs is baked into their profile already, much like Space Marines and Custodes.
Many kits have been combined into highly modular Datasheets allowing you greater customization of your army! Let’s get into what they do! Compared to their Loyalist counterparts, many of them have succumbed to madness resulting in very low Leadership and loss of Stubborn. However, the boons of the Chaos gods help offset this potential disadvantage.
HQ
The Commander is a Unique model, so you can only ever have one. The model hits on 2+, making them quite potent! They have access to all of the “basic” knight boxes and can equip either arm as such! It also boasts a better Ion Shield, which you have to rotate to protect against Melee or Range until your next Command Phase.
Only the HQ and Troop choices can hold Objectives, but since they have Objective Secured they can hold against most odds! Be sure to include a good variety of units for a balanced competitive list.
Troop
War Dogs have a wide variety of weapon options. They can handle any threat that approaches! Despite being “small”, they still pack a sold W12 and medium armor facings.
Armiger Moiraxes are another variant you may choose to use. They have less options, but can get access to more exotic weaponry. They also explode on a 4+ instead of a 6+ due to their unstable cores, so be mindful of what is near them if running with a traditional Chaos roster.
The Knight is all of the standard boxes combined like the Commander. Tons of weapon options to fulfill your dark purposes.
Elites
Atrapos is a specialist capable of stalling large units in their tracks thanks to its 7″ Blast Grav weapon. The Cutter will ensure that any Titanic threat is neutralized quickly thanks to its Destroyer rule.
The Gallant is a Melee specialist, gaining bonus Attacks with its designated Auxiliary weapon each turn! The redundancy also ensures you are less likely to be stuck without a good melee weapon if you get hammered by ranged attacks.
The Magaera is a horde clearer, capable of obliterating lightly armored units with its insane Telsa cannon (Heavy 8), ability to Ignore Cover, and optional Siege Claw with 2 Linked Rad Cleansors!
Styrix is another option that can get you a massive Grav cannon. This variant can get into the afore mentioned claw and flamers as a different way of approaching threats.
Fast Attack
The Acheron brings 2 Linked Hellstorm templates for the most extreme of horde clearing. It also brings a Destroyer weapon with wrist mounted Heavy Bolters to mop up any threats that survive the inferno. While one of the pricier Knights, it’s definitely one of the most offensive.
The Castigator is a great fire support for allied Chaos forces. Without the threat of scattering templates, it can punish heavy infantry and hardened targets at close range without risk to valuable specialists. It also has the ability to pick targets out with its sword in Melee, making it a great choice for assassinating enemy characters!
The Lancer is another Tesla heavy unit. It trades some offense for defense, essentially carrying a Stormshield into battle which counters the weakness of Ion Shields.
Heavy Support
The Asterius is heavily built and even more heavily armed. It is the closest thing Knights can get to long range artillery or a weapon emplacement.
The Tyrant is always a fan favorite. Large quantities of weapons are available to it, helping it handle hordes quite effectively without sacrificing defense. The weapons are too numerous to list in detail what they can be used for, but it can be equipped for any occasion.
Lord of War
The Lord of War, of the Lord of War army, the Porphyrion is the most intimidating of them all. Towering and heavily armed, it can throw shots with disgust and rage far across the battlefield while absorbing all but the most potent of weaponry with ease.
I have been eager to get this put out there for a while, but we had to make sure it was not broken mechanically or too effective when combined with the huge variety of Chaos forces. To the best of our knowledge, we cannot make them unbeatable, and so we release it to the public for your carnage entertainment! They can be found on the Rules page of this website. Please reach out if you have any questions!
Alternate 40k Rules 