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Warriors of Chaos builds · Chaos Warriors
Best Mark for Chaos Warriors, and the weapon to pair it with
The best Mark for Chaos Warriors is Khorne, and the best weapon to pair it with is the halberd. That build won 89.5% of its charges across my six benchmark opponents.
Quick answer: the best Chaos Warriors build depends on the job
- If they charge
- Khorne + halberds (89.5%)
- If they receive
- Nurgle Mark: the best defensive Mark (51.2% with 8 models)
- Against elites and monsters
- Khorne + great weapons
Every build has a job. I would pick the Mark for the job the unit does in your list, not for the best average.
How many simulations I ran
I ran 6,000 complete combats for each Chaos Warriors build on this page: 500 against each of six benchmark opponents, charging and receiving. The whole Warriors of Chaos lab ran 478,800, and these were the Chaos Warriors results.
These Chaos Warriors numbers are not the whole story, because my dice roll on an empty table without terrain, spells, characters or a real player on the other side. Every Warrior charge in the lab succeeded, which flatters Khorne, and with no magic the Mark of Tzeentch had nothing to work with. Read the Chaos Warriors results as a guide to roles and matchups rather than a forecast.
~140-point Khorne Warrior builds, averaged across six opponents. n = 500 combats per matchup
| Build | Charging | Receiving | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 halberds, 146 pts | 89.5% | 41.3% | 65.4% |
| 7 great weapons, 137 pts | 84.2% | 35.4% | 59.8% |
| 8 additional hand weapons, 146 pts | 75.2% | 44.3% | 59.7% |
Mark comparison with body count fixed at 8 Warriors. n = 500 combats per matchup
| Mark | Charging | Receiving | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| Khorne | 84.7% | 45.1% | Best offensive Mark |
| Nurgle | 59.7% | 51.2% | Best defensive Mark |
| Undivided | 53.0% | 41.3% | Baseline / psychology insurance |
| Tzeentch | 53.1% | 41.1% | My melee test misses much of its value |
| Slaanesh | 52.4% | 40.9% | Initiative is breakpoint-dependent |
Why I think this happens
I think halberds win because they keep the Warriors’ Initiative while still reaching S5 and AP−2 against the unit they charged. That makes them less matchup-sensitive than great weapons, and it is why the Khorne halberd unit came out on top across all six opponents.
Great weapons are not worse in themselves. When I fixed the body count, 8 Khorne great-weapon Warriors at 154 points averaged 92.8% when charging. The fully loaded unit simply costs more, so at around 140 points you lose a model.
In my opinion the practical split looks like this: Khorne halberds for a broad offensive unit, Khorne great weapons for maximum anti-elite and anti-monster burst, additional hand weapons into lots of bodies, and Nurgle with hand weapon and shield if you want a defensive, grinding block.
Unit-by-unit Battle March results
I also ran smaller, narrated Chaos Warriors batches against each opponent:
- Khorne Chaos Warriors with great weapons137 pts · Armour and monster breaker
- Khorne Chaos Warriors with additional hand weapons130 pts · Attack-volume infantry
More Warriors of Chaos builds
- Best Mark for Chaos Knights: is Khorne worth it?
- Best Chaotic Cult for Marauders, and are they good?
- Best weapon for Berserkers: flails or additional hand weapons?
- Best Huscarl build: a Mark of Chaos or a sixth model?
My conclusion
Based on these results, I would use Khorne halberd Chaos Warriors for a broad charging hammer, switching to great weapons when the targets are elites or monsters. I would not use them to hold a line: a Nurgle block with hand weapons and shields does that job better.
FAQs
Are Chaos Warriors with the Mark of Khorne good?
Yes, on the charge. Fixed at 8 models, Khorne Warriors won 84.7% of their charges in my simulations, far ahead of every other Mark. When receiving charges they dropped to 45.1%.
Which Mark is best for defensive Chaos Warriors?
Nurgle. It was the best Mark when receiving charges, at 51.2% with body count fixed at 8 Warriors, because enemies must reroll natural 6s To Hit.
Are halberds or great weapons better on Chaos Warriors?
At around 140 points, halberds: 89.5% charging against 84.2% for great weapons. Great weapons still hit harder per model, but the unit costs more, so you field one fewer Warrior.