Greetings Gentle folk!
Today I'm going to be talking about my experiences with using Bloodreavers from Age of Sigmar as stand-in models for Chaos Cultists in Warhammer 40k, specifically when I am playing Khorne Daemonkin.
Looking back upon the release of the first cultists for Chaos that came with the 6th Edition Starter Set, the world was awed by the new sculpts, I myself was one of them, the sculpts for all the Chaos models in the set were amazing.
And yet, upon the release of the Age of Sigmar starter set with the new Bloodreavers, the 40k Cultists started to look a little bit weedy, especially for the scions of Khorne. Now don't get me wrong, I still think the 40k cultists are great models, and should be used in my opinion for Nurgle (unless they make fat pustulent cult models), Tzeentch and Slaanesh. However for Khorne the presence they hold just isn't quite the same. Khorne models should be egregiously muscle-bound, including the trusty cultists.
So I have turned to the Bloodreavers as my go to cultists models for when I am playing my Khorne Daemonkin. Now as you can see in the images below I haven't converted any of the base models to have autoguns, but this seems very easy to accomplish. A quick search on Google should help you out if you want to get your hobby knife out.
Isn't his tan just awesome 😝
So what do I do about the shooting phase then, when all my mini dudez are toting knives and axes? I'll tell you... NOTHING!!!
Khorne is most pleased when blood is shed in the joy of close combat when you can see the light fade from your enemies eyes, their head arcing through the air as you claim another skull for the Skull throne!!!!
Hmmm... Might have gone off on one there....
Anyways getting back to the cultists, aesthetically they will slot straight into your Daemonkin army, will similar sizing and themes. Now I hear you say, "but, but, they aren't on the correct basing size!!!" and yes you're right, when compared to their 40k counterparts. However from the games I have played so far, the base size has played little to no difference in their survivability or ability to attack a unit. Blast templates have covered a comparable amount of units, for if each model is 2in apart they will still get hit by both small and large blast templates. If anything being on the larger base sizes have made it easier to hit my dudez more accurately compared to the smaller!
Another benefit of using the Bloodreavers are that they are currently sold as a larger unit compared to buying cultists on their own piecemeal (Yes I know eBay may be cheaper but not everyone is comfortable or capable of buying models in this way). Therefore you can increase the quantity of cultists you can get a hold, of for less cost overall. And you really need cultists for Daemonkin, their survivability, and damage output should always be a bonus to the free walking blood tithe point that they are, so keep 'em cheap and small to maximise on the potential for more blood tithe.
Plus there is nothing quite so hilarious as sacrificing a Cultist champion to bring a Bloodthirster onto the field, and if you're very lucky, multiple bloodthirsters over the course of a game!
The plucky lil stabby dudez have served me well so far, and I will continue to use them cackling maniacally as they die for my benefit!
Shameless plug image for bloodhound and Daemonkin project....
What ideas have you got for substitute models? Have any AoS models crossed over to 40k or vice versa for you? If you have any how are they working out? Bonus points for quick and easy conversions! Let us know in the comments.
Until next time
Jonathan
