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Chaos hath no Fury...
Chaos Furies, the most forgotten Daemon of all time, if you didn't play Fantasy you wouldn't really ever known they existed. Surprisingly, Games Workshop didn't remove them from Deamon codex all together. Instead, Chaos Furies have a new lease on life, having a owing a few elements unlike any other.
To see just how far Chaos Furies have come there is no better place to start than comparing the latest codex with the previous one.
(Click to Enlarge)
Compare & Contrast
- Point decrease from 15 to 6
- Loss of an Attack 2 to 1
- Increased Initiative 3 to 4
- Loss of Toughness 4 to 3
- Daemon of Upgrades
--Daemon Peasants –
This simple change has taken Furies from an afterthought to a possibility. Chaos Furies are now the same price as Tyranid Gargoyles and just as deadly. They are ideal for lower point games and along with any Herald provide an unexpected punch.
--Less bite for your Buck—
The loss of an attack is worse of the changes Furies had to endure, but as I will refer to on multiple occasions for 6 points apiece what were really asking for? This is where picking the right Chaos God to join helps Furies immensely!
--Hollow Bones—
Furies are also hit with a drop in Toughness, but once again I refer you to the 6 point cost as reason to just shrug. Furies should be dying in droves so having one less Toughness isn’t going to matter much, especially when you can field 20 of them with ease.
--Faster, Flying Monkey, Faster--
In a great move to balance the losses Furies have a decent Initiative. Now even in their weaker state you will at least have Furies striking Marines and the majority of units at the same time, making up for the loss of Toughness easily.
--Tell me who do you really Love—
Instead, Chaos Furies have a new lease on life, having a owing a few elements unlike any other.
Putting it all Together...
Chaos Furies are pretty amazing, as I am always a sucker for cheap, fast, and effective units. Their biggest drawback though is their leadership of 2!
This makes it very dangerous to attack any unit without a Herald. That is why even losing an assault by one can be downright heartbreaking. That leaves picking the right targets as the most important decision you can make as a general.
Furies are best served by using their speed and hunting down the less fortunate of units. It means Furies should do unit clean-up of pesky wounded units and go after late turn objective grabbers. I am looking at units like Eldar Guardian Jetbikes, Cultists, and Artillery. Really, any single wound small-sized unit is a good idea.
Striking from flanks and getting into your opponent's backfield. Since Furies are fast don’t worry if they never engage anything till later turns, it is all about making your move at the right time. Likely, your opponent won’t waste that much shooting against Furies because of how cheap and easily beaten in Assault they can be. Unlike other units forcing the issue with Furies isn’t a good idea, skulking and hiding is a much better use for them.
Those tactics are well and good if you plan on running Furies without a Herald to tag along. The best part of Furies is just how malleable they are to any Chaos God. With Heralds of Tzeentch they are great ablative wounds. If you go with Herald of Slaanesh or Khorne you get a unit that can really benefit from a Locus. The Herald of Nurgle are the only poor fit for the fast Chaos Furies.
Whether you go with Greater Locus of FuryThis model, and all models in its unit, have the Rage special rule. Models with Rage gain +2 attacks for charging. for Khorne or Exalted Locus of BeguilementThis model, and all models in its unit, re-roll failed To Hit rolls in close combat. In addition, challenges issued cannot be refused, and the challenge must be accepted by model of the Herald's choosing. for Slaanesh make sure you know what you’re getting your Heralds into. If you only have one Herald attached don’t be afraid to refuse a challenge, if it means the Herald is in danger from an opposing Character. That is why it is preferable to have at least two Heralds join to any unit of Chaos Furies.
The best part of taking Furies is you save the points needed for that extra Herald, even in smaller point games, so don’t be afraid to experiment, as Furies are a great option when better units are unattainable. The pliable nature of Furies means you can easily amplify their prowess with psychic powers, which is another reason for multiple Heralds join to up.
If you are a real cheapskate Furies don’t even need to join a god, just run them around an distraction or objective contesting. This is important, especially if you play Chaos Daemon armies that aren’t strictly mono-god.
If you play mono-god having a place to hide a Herald sometimes becomes necessity. Usually incurring from a drawn out assault that leaves a original Herald's unit decimated. Thus, having an a Furies unit is a boon as he can join them and continue the massacre without being singled out.
Just another reason to keep Furies low on your opponent’s priority list. Furies low leadership, no matter the situation, should be a reminder of just how fragile they are.
Even with a relativity large unit size available, they are not designed for tarpiting. They usually have one chance to break a unit before attrition eventually gets the better of them.
--Ways to play Chaos Furies--
Death Star Configuration: 125 pts 15-man unit of Chaos Furies with Mark of Khorne
Balanced Configuration: 110 pts 15-man unit of Chaos Furies
MSU Configuration: 45 pts 5-man unit of Chaos Furies with Daemon of Nurgle
Horde Configuration: 165 pts 20-man unit of Chaos Furies with Daemon of Slaanesh
A Word about Allies
Chaos Furies make for an average ally unit and are really only useful in low points games, where you want an escort/hammer unit to go with a Herald. They are also good as an ally if Fast Attack can claim objectives, having cheap scoring unit is never bad, but if you are going to take a Fast Attack ally and the points are available you are better off with one of the more threatening Chaos Daemon units.
Remember unlike other Battle Brothers Daemons ICs cannot join with Chaos Space Marine units under any circumstance.
Final Thoughts...
Overall, Chaos Furies are excellent choice. They do suffer a bit by being in the crowded Fast Attack slot, but if you going Flying Monster Circus or Troop Blob spam having a cheap unit that can harass and deny objectives is a great asset. If only Games Workshop would get around to updating the model then we would really have something!
Warning
It's Like Tactics is rated theory hammer because these are general observations and assumptions based on only few tested games.
Email Me!
For tactical articles feel free to email me to continue the discussion or if you discover an inaccurate interpretations of the rules-- edits will be made accordingly.
Also check out other articles in this series...
- Chaos Space Marine Tactica Link Page
- Chaos Daemons Impressions
- Breaking Down Chaos Daemons
- Bloodletters of Khorne Review
- Pink Horrors of Tzeentch Review
- Plaguebearers of Nurgle Review
- Deamonettes of Slaanesh Review
- Bloodcrushers of Khorne Review
- Flamers of Tzeentch Review
- Beasts of Nurgle Review
- Fiends of Slaanesh Review
- Flesh Hounds of Khorne Review
- Screamers of Tzeentch Review
- Plague Drones of Nurgle Review
- Chaos Furies Review
- Seekers of Slannesh Review
- Soul Grinder Review
- Skull Cannon of Khorne Review
- Nurglings Review
- Skarbrand Review
- Kairos Fateweaver Review
- Ku'Gath the Plaguefather Review
- Bloodthirster Review
- Lord of Change Review
- Great Unclean One Review
- Keeper of Secrets Review
- Daemon Prince Review
- Skulltaker Review
- The Changling Review
- The Blue Scribes Review
- Epidemius Review
- The Masque Review
- Herald of Khorne Review
- Herald of Tzeentch Review
- Herald of Nurgle Review
- Herald of Slaanesh Review
- Exalted, Seeker, Hellflayer Chariots of Slaanesh Review
- Burning Chariot of Tzeentch Review
- A Look Back and Final Chaos Codex Daemons Breakdown