It’s Like Tactics: Chaos Sorcerer Review

My Tactics pledge: I am not the greatest player, nor a seal pup. I will endeavor to speak from my experience and always be honest about what is theory and what is play tested. Never will I assume to know better than anyone else... unless I must call out ego or pretension.

Before we dive right into the good and bad of Chaos Sorcerers, let us start by looking at the differences between the 2007 and 2012 versions of this unit.

Here is a side by side comparison.

(Click to Enlarge)

 Compare & Contrast

• Point cost reduction from 100 to 60 points
• Reduction of Base Line stats
• Loss of Invulnerable save
• Additional Wargear Options
• Psychic Power Changes

--Is it worth it...--

At first glance, the point drop is pretty amazing. If the Chaos Space Marine codex and the Dark Angels codex is any indication cheaper Psykers will be the norm. The Chaos Sorcerer price drop comes with a lot of give and take, but mostly taking.

--Can't handle it Guy--

The Chaos Sorcerer might be cheaper, but it lost a wound, an attack, a point of Ballistic Skill, Weapon Skill, and Initiative. The losses that hurt the most are BS and wounds. It would have been nice to see a Witchfire powers could hit on 2s, but only having two wounds really hurts.

--Now it will cost ya--

Gone is the stock Invulnerable save now you will have to pay at least 15 points for it. As you will start to see Sorcerers often don't come cheap once you try to get them up to snuff.

--Sellers Market--

Sorcerers get the same amount of wargear options as Chaos Lords, but most upgrades are useless in the hands of a two wound model, with the major exception of Spell Familiar which makes Chaos Sorcerers one of the most reliable Psykers in the game.

--Psychic Powers --

Instead of dedicating an entire post just to the Chaos Psychic Powers we will discuss them here. The biggest thing you have to keep in mind, is you cannot take all powers from the chosen Chaos God if you are Mastery Level 2 or higher.

Putting it all together.

Chaos Sorcerers have many limitations, namely you can only take two of them. In addition to the number you can have, Chaos Sorcerers have the double problem of being only two wounds and lack Fearless. The two wounds really hurts; it means you cannot reliably send Sorcerers into assault without risking a very quick death. As well, Chaos Sorcerers take a valuable spot away from other characters that can give Fearless to Chaos Space Marines or Chaos Cultists. Also, Sorcerers only unlock Thousand Sons as Troops.

So what uses are their for Chaos Sorcerers?

Chaos Sorcerers still make a great secondary HQ choice if you have the points. Once you take your Chaos Lord to unlock your Troop of choice; taking a Sorcerers isn't a bad idea for buffing and some extra punch. Slannesh and Nurgle Sorcerers can either use maledictions or blessings to improve the combat effectiveness of your Noise or Plague Marines.

Since Chaos Sorcerers will most likely be a secondary choice don't drop too many points into them. It is not worth dumping exotic wargear into a Sorcerer. Sorcerers should never exceed 165 points, spending more than that only leads to a bloated unit that can easily be doubled out or run off the board. The new Sorcerer stat line just doesn't support a heavy investment.

Sigil of Corruption and Spell Familiar are the must buy for any Mastery Level two or higher Sorcerer.

Chaos Sorcerers do have a few other options. If you want to run lots of Thousand Sons units taking a cheap Sorcerer is a good idea. The Sorcerer alternative to Ahriman means more Thousand Sons to take. Sorceress also make great Burning Brand of Skalathrax handlers, as you will often want to keep your Sorcerers far away from assault as possible. Sorcerers offer the cheapest HQ choice possible running bare bones with Telepathy and taking whatever the dice gives you for a power. This cheap alternative works great with MSU armies or Icon of Vengeance based armies. This gets to another important point: Chaos Sorcerers don't need a Chaos Mark.

Chaos Sorcerers without Chaos Marks are not beholden to taking multiple disciplines, which means you can go all in Biomancy or Telepathy. These Sorcerers can also join any unit regardless of Chaos Mark. A Biomancy Sorcerer has a very good chance of getting Endurance or Enfeeble enabling the Sorcerer to run along an assault unit providing great utility. Players also have to remember a Chaos Sorcerer does provide Deny the Witch bonuses for any unit they're attached to.

With Chaos Disciplines not being as powerful as they could, expect undivided Sorcerers to be the norm. Have two wounds and Runes of Warding still running around, Chaos Sorcerers will have a problem finding themselves into many army lists, still this doesn't mean they're a bad unit. The key is finding the extra points for a Chaos Sorcerer and balancing worth because just taking extra guys is often a better option.