Goatboy here going over the top 40K CSM mini detachments. From Legions to Renegades, here’s the best Chaos is bringing your way!
40K is getting a big shift, flip, and update with 11th Edition. The Chaos Space Marine mini detachments leave a bit to be desired as they just don’t feel nearly as strong to take. I think it has more to do with there are a few main CSM book options that are just better. If you can’t beat one of the 3DP ones with this and a 2DP why would you take it? Here’s the best of what GW gave us to work with.
Cabal of Chaos – 1DP – the Psyker Chaos Space Marine Detachment
This is a rework of one of the digital releases that has you wanting to use CSM Psykers to power up your units when they make Dark Pacts. The big goal with this one is to somehow let your Daemon Princes get a bit better and make you want to take a Sorcerer or Master of Possession in your units of guys. I think the biggest miss with this one is not letting some of the small upgrades some units can get (Balefire Tome for Legionaries) or an Enhancement that would let you create “Psyker” units that don’t need an attached character. If you could spread out some of this powered up Dark Pact love would let this unit be a lot more interesting. I also feel the benefits to Daemon Princes are just not nearly as interesting as they could be. This just feels like a weird one that just won’t show up that often.
Devotees of Destruction – 1DP – A Havoc/Obliterator Heavy detachment
The big missing piece is removing Multiators from this and not giving them some kind of bonus like +1 to hit and Cleave. In fact I think that is the worse thing in all of this as you could have put any of the “infantry” heavy weapon like options – which should include melee options – into this whole part to get better. I would have also given more options to let certain units join these Heavy weapon jerks and just make it feel like an old Iron Warriors detachment. It just feels like it misses the point by being so limited.
Murdertalon Raiders – 1DP – the Jump Pack Night Lord detachment for the other Nightlord Detachment
I get the idea to make Nightlords neat but don’t we have a detachment that does a lot of this already? Are we just stacking this or looking at making a more scalpel like choice for other 2DP options? It feels like a weird way to get more rules into the newish updated option in Nightmare Hunt and giving a few more Enhancements. The Chaos Lord gain Daemon is cool as I think it should be able to join Warp Talons but there isn’t a rule that lets him. This has me wondering if it will get updated. It just again feels like a weird small Detachment that has parts that are already part of other options. We’ll see if this all gets combined and removed whenever CSM gets a new book.
But… Why?
Overall I just wonder what these are all supposed to do? I could think we could have had a mini Daemon Engine option to make things cool. You could have added Helbrutes to this as well to make something unique to add to some of the 2DP detachments. I even think one that pushes the ally side of things a bit more and gives some cool rules to the cult troops you could have added. I don’t think a lot of these will be used with the Murdertalon Raiders being one of the few ones that might show up just due to the nature of causing some extra Battleshock options being useful.
Death to the False Emperor!
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Thomas Reidy, aka Goatboy, the ever-evil member of BoLS. I do arts, play 40k, and even paint a lot of stuff. I have been playing Warhammer 40K since the 1990s, and have won multiple national events including Adepticon and GW GTs. I’ve been writing for BoLS for 15 years. Look at my Instagram to see what I am working on – or working on for someone. I am always doing something hobby related.
Source: Bell of Lost Souls
