Check out all the new 40k Chaos Daemon rules that are coming inside Engine War, as Psychic Awakening has a ton in store for Warhammer still!
Warhammer Community dropped some of the new 40k rules coming inside Engine War for Chaos Daemons last week, but here’s everything else that’s coming our way on June 6th that was spotted on multiple Facebook groups, and on Imgur.
Engine War Contents
Engine War Table of Contents
Psychic Awakening’s Engine War is right around the corner and Daemons will be taking up a big chunk of the rules inside. From new Stratagems, relics, and more, they’ll be a real force that other armies will need to contend with.
All The New Chaos Daemon 40k Rules From Engine War
Starting off strong with Khorne, (ha, get it) If you’ve got a special place in your heart for the Bloodthirster, well they’re about to get even better. Looking at Stratagem support first:
For a single Command Point, you can declare one of your Bloodthirsters to be an Exalted Bloodthirster – giving it access to new abilities. You can either randomly determine two of these, or you can freely select a single one.
The bonus rules that this table gives access to are all solid. We could make the case of using just about any of these in a Bloodthirster list. Giving your BT a 2+ armor save is great if you think you’ll be going against a bolter spam list (it’ll almost make him impervious). But if you want to be extra aggressive and get into combat in the shortest amount of time, Unrivalled Battle-lust for that bonus 2″ turns a 9″ into a 7″ charge, which is huge.
For Slaughterborn, you’ll be getting +1 Strength and Attacks the first time this model is engaged in melee. The best part is that this stacks with Unstoppable Ferocity which also gives +1 Strength and Attacks! That means you could have a Bloodthirster drop in at S9 with 8 attacks.
- Rage Eternal is a 3CP Space Marine banner mechanic that you can pop on some Bloodletters. it might be worth it if you’re running a Bloodletter bomb that just got interrupted in combat. But 3CP is kind of expensive.
- Brass Stampede is where it’s at. This is a stupid powerful Strat at 1CP. You can do a mortal wound for each 2+ in the unit and if it’s a 6, you get D3. But that’s not all. If you kill the unit, you can charge again. By the way, the Strat is still active meaning that you can proc mortal wounds on a second charge if you make it. This is a great way to finish units off and springboard your cavalry up the board quickly.
- The Scent of Blood allows you, for 1CP, to add some speed to your list by letting some Flesh Hounds charge after advancing. You’ll also be getting +2″ to charge which almost guarantees you making it into combat. Flesh Hounds aren’t the greatest unit in the Daemon codex but if nothing else, it’s a 1CP “tie up a unit for a turn” maneuver.
For relics, we’ve got the Blood-Drinker Talisman which is going to give your Bloodthirsters that much-needed longevity in melee. It’s only natural to believe that they’re going to take some damage as they move/charge in and take overwatch. This artifact will give you a chance to heal up to 8 wounds in a single turn for every MODEL you kill.
The Talisman is dope but the new Khorne axe might take the cake. This is a weapon that will always force an invuln save from its -4 AP and will be doing a minimum of three damage a swing. You’ll also get a 50/50 chance of seeing him come back with up to 6 wounds. This might not be a big deal if he dies at the very beginning of your opponent’s shooting phase because as soon as he comes back he’ll just get peppered again. But if he’s soloing a Dreadknight in melee and falls, he could always get back up and charge during your turn. Timing is key.
Slaanesh Support
The Keeper of Secrets for Slaanesh is getting the same treatment as the Bloodthirster. You can spend 1CP to make them an Exalted Greater Daemon of Slaanesh, unlocking more rules.
Again, all of this is solid, depending on the build you want to do. Two of the traits, Quicksilver Reflexes, and Blessings of the Dark Prince are built on protection. It’s a coin flip on what’s better as a 4++ invuln is a big step up from a 5++ but having a flat -1 to wound is also huge.
This is a sweet rule, but it’ll take some finesse to use it right. There’s no range on this rule so as long as an enemy unit fails morale anywhere on the board, you’ll be able to move this model. The key thing is that you’ll either have to have some degree of shooting or have units in melee pushed further up than this Daemon to make it work. Otherwise, you won’t move anywhere purposeful. You’ll definitely want a broad view of the battle and not get tunnel vision.
For Stratagem support, Song of Discordant Despair pairs up with the Fear-Seeker rule we talked about earlier pretty well. All it takes is some decently-placed Fiends and you can subtract 2 from a unit’s leadership within 6″. That’s not bad at all, but remember for right now there’s still a 2Cp auto-pass morale Strat that’ll surely be used in some circumstances.
Sinuous Undulation is a 1CP, make a Cavalry unit into -1 to hit. Really no reason not to use this. Especially if you’re taking a double Battalion Daemonette list.
Another powerhouse Strat comes from Razor-sharp Caress. If you’ve got a big Daemonette blob getting some melee action, you spend 1CP to up the AP by 1 across the board?? That’s some incredible value.
Now let’s look at some artifacts they’ve got. Silverstrike turns your Witstealer Sword into a super mega Witstealer Sword. keeping the same basic profile and -1 to hit bonus for things that get smacked by it, you also get +2 free attacks with the weapon.
The whip of Agony is an Infantry mulcher. The only thing that could make this any better would be if it was S8. However, getting an auto-wounding assault 6 2-damage whip that you can fire into combat is outstanding utility.
Nurgle Support
If you turn your GUO into an Exalted GUO, you’ll get more rules just like what we’ve talked about above.
Of all the Nurgle goodies, the best of the bunch is probably Revoltingly Resilient because who wants to deal with a 4+++ FNP? A close second would probably be Bloated with Corruption to bring your chunky boi to T8. 
Avalanche of Rotten Flesh will be adding a little bit of surprise speed to Nurgle. You’ll be able to add +1″ to your charge roll and deal D3 mortal wounds on a 2+. That’s a day-and-night difference from dealing one mortal wound on a 4+ although it probably won’t be your first pick in most games.
The best part about all the Nurgle support is that the Stratagems are dirt cheap. To make the most use out Putrid Demise, you’ll want to send your Poxriders into the thick of it. For one CP, you can turn your losses into a mortal wound on a 2+ for every unit within 6″. It’s not the best Stratagem we’ve ever seen because you have to lose models in the process. However, if you’re in a Tau gun line you can do a decent amount of mortal wounds overall.
The mega MVP is going to be Nurgling Infestation. If you play ITC missions, you’ll know how annoying Nurgling squads on objectives are. They like to hide in places where nothing can shoot them and they’re deceptively tanky. Spending a CP to get a chance to bring a whole Nurgling model back will make them even more of a headache to deal with.
For artifacts, Effluvior is a relic flail for the GUO that has the same basic structure as the Slaanesh whip. It’ll wreck Primaris and can be used in melee/shooting at units locked in combat. However, it’s special ability is that no damage is lost. It spills over which is a mechanic that’s hard to come by.
The Tome of a Thousand Poxes is very strong. You get to know another Nurgle spell for free and if you roll a 7 on your casting value, it can’t be denied. That’s statistically average on 2D6 so you might find you roll that more than you might think.
Tzeentch Support
The weakest point about big Daemons is that they’re already squishy and can be targetted from the start of the game. Architect of Deception will add a little bit of protection making him -1 to hit against shooting which is nice.
Spell-Thief is a spicy meatball that’ll straight-up lock an enemy Psyker out of casting it again if it’s denied. Imagine shutting down Warp Time from a Chaos Daemon Prince/Primarch list How about Mephiston forgetting Wings of Sanguinius?… This one is bonkers powerful.
For Stratagems, we’ve got a 1CP “auto-cast a power on a 9” for a Horrors unit with Minions of Magic. It’s a great way to squeeze out a power/mortal wounds in a pinch. Plus it’s just 1CP. Flames of Mutation is another cheap Strat you can pop on a Flamer unit and cause wounds of a 6 to do a mortal wound in addition to other damage. That’s not bad at all for as cheap as it is. Just note that it says “unmodified 6″ so you can’t make it any better. 1 in 6 and no shenanigans, but still decent.
Warp Portal is probably the most useful Strat out of the list. Being able to pick a unit up and drop it down 9″ away for 1CP is an objective-heavy list’s dream.
Soul-Eater Stave is nutty! Cast a huge spell that wipes out half a squad? Well, now you have a 50-50 to gain a wound PER MODEL! Your Big Bird is probably already going crazy casting spells so this healing can actually come in super clutch if the opponent is trying to take your bird down.
The Crystal Tome is a Chapter Masters or Chaplain’s worst nightmare. You roll off adding leadership and if you win, you’ll turn off that character’s aura abilities until your opponent’s next turn.
With a pretty even spread of support coming to all the Chaos allegiances, Daemon fans of all types have something to look forward to.
After seeing all the support for each Chaos god, which one looks the strongest to you? Will GUO’s be the next battering ram for Nurgle? Is Tzeentch about to dominate the Psychic Phase even more?
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About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
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About Wesley Floyd: Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He is known for his satirist takes on trending topics and imaginative yet amazingly affordable hobby solutions to painting Warhammer miniatures.
Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4. If you like what he writes and want to contact him or have your tabletop minatures painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
