The Chaos Warbands mechanic for Crusade in Warhammer 40,000 offers a fantastic blend of narrative-driven gameplay and tactical depth, perfectly capturing the essence of Chaos Space Marines. As these warbands grow in power, they reflect the ambitious, treacherous, and often destructive nature of the Heretic Astartes. In this blog post, we’ll take a deep dive into this system, exploring how it works step by step and how it enhances the thematic experience of playing Chaos Space Marines in a narrative-driven campaign.
Introduction
Chaos Space Marines are not simply renegades; they are the epitome of ambition and corruption, driven by their desire for power, personal glory, and the favor of the Dark Gods. The Crusade system’s Chaos Warband rules provide an immersive way to capture these narratives, as your Chaos Champion builds their warband, seeks glory across multiple categories, and faces the inevitable decline or rise that accompanies serving the Ruinous Powers. This system not only allows players to track the growth of their warband but also to engage with the treacherous consequences of pursuing power in the warp-tainted world of Chaos.
Forming Your Chaos Warband: A Champion’s Journey
The journey begins by selecting a Heretic Astartes Character to serve as your Warband Champion. This individual—driven by personal ambition, devotion to the Dark Gods, or the desire to amass a powerful fleet—becomes the focus of your warband’s Crusade. This narrative foundation mirrors the stories of many Chaos Lords who, through sheer force of will and martial prowess, attract followers and rise to positions of power. Notably, you cannot choose Epic Heroes, emphasizing that the Champion must carve out their destiny from the rank and file of Chaos, a detail that resonates with the lore of Chaos Space Marines where even the lowest renegade can rise to terrifying heights.
Once selected, your Warband Champion begins earning Chaos Points after each battle. These Chaos Points are central to the system, representing the character’s ever-growing influence, reputation, and power. They drive the progression of your warband, allowing the Champion to expand their warband’s power through three categories of Glory: Personal Glory, Dark God Glory, and Warfleet Glory. These categories bring a rich narrative to your campaign, each reflecting a different aspect of Chaos-driven ambition.
Chaos Glory: The Path to Power
The Chaos Warband Tracker is where the three categories of Glory—Personal, Dark God, and Warfleet—are logged and tracked throughout your Crusade. Every warband starts at Level 4 in each category, striking a balance between their initial power and their potential for growth. It’s important to note that each category offers unique rewards and penalties depending on its level, reinforcing the multifaceted nature of Chaos Space Marines’ pursuit of power.
Personal Glory: Rise to Infamy
Personal Glory reflects the Warband Champion’s personal achievements and standing among rivals and followers. The more Personal Glory your Champion accrues, the more feared and respected they become. As this category rises, it reflects the narrative of Chaos Lords whose sheer martial skill and cunning elevate them above others. This is especially thematic when considering Chaos Space Marines as warriors whose personal reputation is often as important as their devotion to any particular cause.
For example, while Favored in Personal Glory, the Champion has access to Blessed Champion, allowing discounted Requisitions like Renowned Heroes and Ascension to Daemonhood, key narrative moments for Chaos Space Marines who seek to ascend beyond mere mortal status. Mechanically, this rewards the player’s investment in their Champion’s martial prowess and personal narrative arc, potentially leading to a Daemon Prince ascension—a major moment in any narrative.
On the flip side, if your Champion becomes Forsaken in this category, they may face the Circling Rivals punishment, where other characters within your warband challenge your Champion for leadership. This mechanic wonderfully captures the cutthroat reality of Chaos, where leaders are constantly at risk of being overthrown by those they command, adding a layer of intrigue and internal conflict to your warband.
Dark God Glory: Fickle Favours of the Ruinous Powers
Dark God Glory represents the Warband Champion’s devotion to the Dark Gods. As this category increases, it narratively demonstrates the Warband Champion’s success in securing the unholy favor of the Chaos Gods through worship and sacrifices. When a warband is Favored in this category, rewards such as Worthy Offerings and Boon of Power become available, enhancing your army’s power by granting Chaos Boons to units that perform well on the battlefield. This ties directly into the narrative of Chaos Marines receiving direct blessings from their dark patrons, further enhancing their abilities and cementing their place in the dark pantheon.
However, this relationship is far from stable. If your Dark God Glory falls too low, your army becomes Forsaken, triggering the Anger of the Gods punishment. In this scenario, units that make Dark Pacts (a thematic mechanic for Chaos Space Marines) find themselves at a disadvantage, suffering penalties to their Leadership tests. This reflects the mercurial nature of the Chaos Gods, who withdraw their blessings as quickly as they bestow them, punishing those who fail to live up to their dark expectations.
Warfleet Glory: Power Through Domination
Warfleet Glory tracks the resources and forces at your Warband Champion’s disposal, from warships to munitions to slaves. As this Glory increases, more warriors are drawn to your banner, enabling your Champion to field a larger and more equipped force. This reflects the many Chaos Lords who, after raiding worlds and defeating enemies, build vast fleets to continue their campaigns of destruction.
When Favored in Warfleet Glory, the warband benefits from rewards such as Feared and Respected, which allows for discounted Requisitions that can expand your supply lines or enhance your veteran units. This narrative of accumulating resources and loyal followers is vital to any Chaos Lord’s growth in power, and the mechanic reinforces the idea of a warband expanding its dominion over the galaxy.
On the other hand, becoming Forsaken in Warfleet Glory leads to penalties like Dwindling Supplies, where your warband’s resources become scarce. In-game, this is reflected by the chance of losing Requisition Points after a battle, a tangible punishment that mirrors the chaotic and often unstable nature of a warband struggling to maintain control over its resources.
Chaos Points and Glory: A Cycle of Ambition and Decline
At the heart of the Chaos Warband system is the dynamic interplay between gaining Chaos Points and maintaining or increasing your Glory levels. Each time your Warband Champion participates in a battle, they gain Chaos Points based on the outcome—more for a win, less for a loss. These points are then spent to increase the Glory categories, but after each battle, every Glory category decreases by 1, reflecting the constant struggle to maintain power. This mechanic mirrors the ever-present entropy in Chaos warbands, where gains are fleeting, and even the most successful warlord must constantly strive to maintain their grip on power.
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