Age of Sigmar: How to Play – Blades of Khorne
Today we look at how to play the Blades of Khorne in Age of Sigmar. Who needs magic when you have RAAAAGE?
The Blood God and his mortal followers hate magic in all forms, preferring to solve their problems with good old-fashioned violence. If you want to bring the murder machine to the battlefield as well, check out this quick starter on how to get the most out of your barbaric brutes.
Who Are The Blades of Khorne?
The Blades of Khorne are the combined forces of Khorne’s mortal and daemonic followers. They are one of the primary antagonists of Age of Sigmar, and were the featured baddies in the 1.0 starter set. Like their bloodthirsty god, they despise all forms of magic, and can bring some of the most powerful melee units to the battlefield. In place of magic, they have powerful divine prayers, calling down the fury of their god on their enemies. Even in death they are serving their god; after all, Khorne cares not from where the blood flows.
Why Play Blades of Khorne?
The Blades of Khorne are one of the most powerful melee factions in the entire game, and reward you for killing enemy units or losing your own. This can be a good starter army for new players, as it is forgiving while offering powerful rewards when piloted well. For more advanced players, the BoK can dance circles around their enemies, survive protracted combat much longer than most would expect, and punish the enemy for every kill.
Strengths
- Powerful melee units that make a mockery of all but the thickest armor
- Deadly Greater Daemons that can remove entire units a turn
- Arguably the deadliest large character in the game (Skarbrand- say his name!)
- Potent prayers that can empower your units or harm your enemies
- Even unit loss is a benefit for you
Weaknesses
- Because of how strong Khorne is, they are expensive and can lack board presence in some builds
- The army is pretty ‘techy’- this means it is easy to get lost if you aren’t familiar with all your parts
- Limited shooting means you need to do everything in combat
Signature Rules
- The Blood Tithe – Every time a unit, friendly or enemy, is destroyed, you get a Blood Tithe point. You can spend those points to buy a variety of powerful rewards or summon daemons.
- Hatred of Sorcery – a 5+ spell ignore, with each success giving you a Blood Tithe.
- Murderous to the Last – Khorne Mortals do mortals on death within 3″.
- Locus of Fury – Khorne Daemons get a 5+ ward while over 8″ away from enemies.
Subfactions
The Blades of Khorne have six subfactions, called Slaughterhosts, three for Mortals and three for Daemons. Each one is suited to a different style of play, from the Bloodthirster-heavy Baleful Lords to the anti-hero Reapers of Vengeance.
Blades of Khorne Key Units
Every Khorne player will have a slightly different playstyle, but these are five units you should check out.
Skarbrand
The most bloodthirsty of Bloodthirsters, Skarbrand is your premiere Greater Daemon in Blades of Khorne. Most armies include him and he has a truly prodigious damage output.
Mighty Lord of Khorne
A massive hulk of armor and muscle, accompanied by a deadly Flesh Hound. He can dish out a ton of attacks, and unbind spells. While he’s not as strong as he used to be, he’s still a terrifying threat on the battlefield.
Bloodsecrator
More of a support piece than a damage dealer, the Bloodsecrator is nonetheless quite nice. Once per game he gives out a nice and large +1 attack bubble, and he always issues 4+ Rally to Bloodbound units.
Wrathmongers
These murder machines have a large number of attacks and also have a +1 attack aura! Every day is upper body day for these guys!
Slaughterpriest
Your support piece, able to buff your units with prayers and unbind enemy spells. You need a Slaughterpriest for access to all of your powerful Prayers.
Blood Warriors
One of your primary Battleline, and the ones you’ll may want as your lynchpin unit. They roll extra mortals when they die, deal mortals back on successful armor saves, and some can carry the deadly Goreglaives. A very solid unit.
Sample Army (2K pts)
Allegiance: Khorne
– Slaughterhost: The Goretide
Leaders
Lord of Khorne on Juggernaut
– General
Slaughterpriest
Skarbrand
Battleline
6 x Mighty Skullcrushers
– Ensorcelled Axes
– Reinforced x 1
3 x Mighty Skullcrushers
– Ensorcelled Axes
20 x Bloodletters
– Reinforced x 1
10 x Bloodreavers
– Meatripper Axes
10 x Bloodreavers
– Meatripper Axes
10 x Bloodreavers
– Meatripper Axes
10 x Bloodreavers
– Meatripper Axes
Wounds: 155
Blades of Khorne Tips
Charge! Unit death matters little, so long as you take down more than you lose! This army favors aggression, so give it what it wants.
~BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!
