Possessed as they...

WARBAND SIZE: 15
HIRED SWORDS: As per rulebook

WARBAND SPECIAL RULE

UNHOLY CHANT
- For each 3 models with this rule that are within 12" of the Possessed, the possessed gains: +1 M, +1 WS, +1 S, +1 T, and +1 Init.
- As long as there are 6 or more models with this rule within 12" of the Possessed, the possessed also becomes a Wizard that know all of the Chaos Magic Spells.

WARBAND SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

SACRIFICIAL DAGGER 15gc rare 8+
- If warrior takes an enemy out of action in close combat, he counts as two models with the 'unholy chant' rule for the rest of the battle.
- Each time warrior takes an enemy out of action in close combat, he counts as one more model with the 'unholy chant' rule. (So if warrior took 2 enemies out of action he would count as 3 models with the 'unholy chant' rule for the rest of the battle , 3 enemies out of action he would count as 4 models with the 'unholy chant' rule for the rest of the battle and so on...)
- *** Can only be used by magisters***
- Misc. Equipment

SHADOW ROBES 20gc rare 9+
- Special Rule: Stealth: When warrior is in Cover, Shooting against him suffers an additional -1 BS.
- *** Can only be used by magisters***
- Misc. Equipment

SHRIEKING DAEMON BLADE 35gc rare 11+
- One Handed Sword
- Any skill or modifier that affects swords affects this
- Wielder Causes Fear
- Unique Item: There can be only one such item in the entire campaign

DAEMON SCALES 15gc rare 9+
- 6+ armour save. Can be combined with other armour as normal.
- *** Can only be used by Darksouls***
- Misc. Equipment

HEROES

0-1 POSSESSED 80gc
- Starting XP: 20
- Skills: Combat, Academic, Strength, Speed
- Stats: 3 2 - 2 2 2 2 2 8
- Special Rule: Cause Fear
- Equipment: Club, Axe, Sword, Great Weapon, Light Armour, Heavy Armour, Shield, helmet

0-2 MAGISTERS 20gc
- Starting XP: 4
- Skills: Academic, Speed, Mutations
- Stats 4 2 2 3 3 1 3 1 6
- Special Rule: Unholy Chant
- Petty Wizard: Starts with 0 spells. Can learn up to 2 spells, and can only reduce difficulties each a single time.
- Equipment: Club, Axe, Sword, Spear, Short Bow, Bow, light armour, helmet (no shield!)

0-2 DARKSOULS 35gc
- Starting XP: 8
- Stats: 4 4 3 3 3 1 3 1 7
- Skills: Combat, Shooting, Strength
- Equipment: Club, Axe, Sword, Flail, Great Weapon, Throwing Axes, Crossbow, Light Armour, Heavy Armour, Helmet (no shield!)
- Immune to Fear, Panic, All Alone

HENCHMEN

0-2 MUTANTS 35gc
- Stats: 4 3 3 3 3 1 3 1 7
- Equipment: Club, Axe, Sword, Short Bow, Bow, Light Armour, Heavy Armour, Shield, Helmet
- Special Rule: Start with a single free mutation of your choice. If you have two mutants in the warband, they cannot have the same mutation from start.

CHAOS CULTISTS 15gc
- Stats: 4 2 2 3 3 1 3 1 6
- Special Rule: Unholy Chant
- Equipment: Club, Axe, Sword, Spear, Short Bow, Bow, Light Armour, Heavy Armour, Shield, Helmet

0-2 HARPIES 30gc
- Stats: 4 3 - 3 3 1 5 2 5
- Animals: Fights Unarmed, Cannot Capture Scenario Objectives
- Flying: Can fly 12” instead of moving (Cannot hide at the end of a flying move.)

0-3 UNGOR AMBUSHERS 25gc
- Stats: 5 3 3 3 3 1 3 1 5
- Equipment: Club, Axe, Sword, Spear, Short Bow, Bow, Light Armour, Shield, (no helmet!)
- Special Rule: Lurkers: You do not have to deploy Ungors at the start the battle; you may hold them in reserve and deploy them in any of your recovry phases.
- Special Rule: Ambush: You may deploy Ungors anywhere on the table edge, not just in your deployment zone; they may charge the turn you deploy them

CHAOS SPECIAL SKILLS: MUTATIONS

DAEMONIC WISP
Warrior counts as being armed with a Missile Weapon that has range 24" S2 and ignores BS penalities for Cover and Moving and Shooting. (Other penalties, such as dodge and armour saves still apply.)

TENTACLE (replaces 1 arm)
Warrior has Parry with this arm. Arm still attacks at warrior's base strength.
Warrior rolls 2 dice for climb tests and picks either.

GIANT CLAW (replaces 1 arm)
Warrior has +1 S on attacks with this arm.

DAEMONIC MAW
Once per game, warrior can fire the Flame Template with S2 and poison (6 to hit = autowound).
***Cannot be taken by magisters***

BLACKBLOOD
Whenever warrior suffers a wound, all models within 2" take 1 automatic S3 hit.
armour saves as normal.

HORNS
Extra S3 attack when charging. Use warrior's WS. Armour saves as normal.

HIDEOUS
Warrior causes Fear.

HOOFS
+1 Movement, +1 to init. tests jumping down

A clever twist - and you had the common sense not to let Wounds get increased with the chant (that would just be hell to factor). I just have 2 concerns about the chant-

1. You railed on the Witch Hunters for only being played "one way"... well, if you don't want your Leader to suck, you need to surround him with 6+ cultists at any given moment. I don't think it would lend itself to many different strategies- you'd look like a Dwarf warband, moving in a solid clump, every damn time. Other than a few stray Ungors, your group would have 1 tactic and use it until people are sick of it.

2. Because the Possessed's stats are dependent on the number of cultists around him, you now have a greater importance to order of attacks during combat- what if one player wanted to resolve that combat first, while another wanted to pick another one? Seems like it might lead to a few undiplomatic situations.

The ambush, as written, is just too strong. The ability to attack from any edge means these throw-aways will attack from the same side every time, like clockwork. Either make them infiltrate, or add a randomness to it, i.e. they are deployed 1D6 x 3 inches from the spot of your choice in a random direction, or you have to roll a 4+ for them to appear.

but the sacrificial dagger! the sacrifical dagger will make it all okay! :'(

Make it another way. Every model my spend his whole turn chanting. For that you may increase one stat at your wish. You can wish to make a very powerfull killing maschine, but all of his men will left behind or you get them with you, but without your chanting...

perhaps you should tweak this chanting, but it would allow you a very flexibel way to play.

Or, what if it was determined during the first turn, and then then stayed fixed for the rest of the game? How's this:

M WS BS S T W I A LD
* * - * * 2 * 2 8

At the start of every game, roll randomly to see what stat the Possessed has. Roll 1D6 for each stat with an *, and reroll any results of 6. For every 3 Chanters within 12" of the Possessed at the start of the game, you may reroll any dice roll, accepting the second result.

Sacrificial Dagger - Everytime you take a model ooa, if the possessed is within 12", you may Immediately reroll any of the stats of the possessed, accepting the second result.

Like the Condemned (BTB), a Possessed that advances can "lock" a stat. I forget the exact rules.

EDIT
To be honest, I'd be interested in a Demon Summoning warband... what if, instead of a Hero, the Possessed was a sort of Super Daemon henchman- sort of like the Carnival's Plague Bearer, but on crack?

He might be super easy to take out of action, (ex. 1-3 Knocked Down, 4-6 OoA). Maybe you roll 2D6 each Recovery phase- on a 2, he loses a wound (or if has only 1, rolls for injury.)

but as long as you have a Spellcaster in the warband, he can never be KILLED/removed from the warband. Thus, he can't gain skills or advances, but the summoners can gain skills that increase the DAEMON'S stats, thus making him grow in strength (& mutations) indirectly- or he looses the instabliity roll during the recovery phase. Maybe the leader can even learn a skill that lets him purchase 0-2 instead of 0-1 (although he has to roll a 10+ on 2D6 or something.)


Also, I would give the Dark Souls back their S4- you currenlty have no models higher than S3.

"To be honest, I'd be interested in a Demon Summoning warband... what if, instead of a Hero, the Possessed was a sort of Super Daemon henchman- sort of like the Carnival's Plague Bearer, but on crack?"

you're a GENIOUS, styro!

like a weak, weak henchman (even make them 0-2) and then give the 0-2 amgisters the ability to buff them with spells etc. ! i love it!!

two problems:
- how does sacrifical dagger fit it (ooa an enemy, you immediatly get to attempt to cast another buff?)
- how does cultists' assistint the chant work?

Well, the cultists would learn the Eye of God spell like normal.

The daemon would have a special rule that reads:
"If Eye of God would increase ONE of it's stats, it instead increases all stats by +1. Cannot increase a stat beyond 10."
Thus, your eye of god becomes 1- yoinked away, 2-6 +1 to all stats.

Killing someone with a dagger would "recharge" the eye of God Spell, allowing the Magister to cast it again during his shooting phase.

To do that, though, it would have to be EXPENSIVE and weak. Maybe fights at +1 Armor Save, and the enemy HAS to be taken out with the Dagger, not another weapon. At least 15gc.

Also, the daemon would have kinda weak stats, but not terrible... maybe a lot of 3s? 2 daemons would be a great example of not "putting all of your eggs in one basket", but the eye of god spell system would make sure that only ONE daemon can be pumped up at any given time.

The Leader starts with a Chaos Ritual OR the Eye of God spell (player's choice). The two support heroes can learn "Eye of God" as a skill, but can't learn other spells, and can only cast it on the daemon (unless they become full fledged wizards or learn Arcane Knowledge.)

maybe that is too risky. i think the eye of god should remove the caster rather than the daemon then.

also, we would need to stipulate that the spell remains in play even if caster is OOA, or the bookkeeping would run amuck!

Why not allow the dagger to take out a cultist as well to 'recharge'? You have minions around for a reason, right?

Well, it SHOULD be risky!

"Hm.... I have a Daemon with S5, T5. He had 4 wounds, but is on his last wound. I could heal one wound AND pump him up to S6 T6 (and +1 everything else), but I have a 1 in 6 chance of him disappearing. Do I risk it?"

That, my friend is a perfect way to build up tension into a game! If a weak little caster disappears, it makes less sense thematically, and gives the player no reason NOT to. "So I lose a youngblood hero. Big deal."

Besides, Eye of God only removes him from the battlefield, with no chance of dying. The worst thing that happens is that he blinks out and can be fielded next game without any trouble.

Also, unless I'm crazy, the rules for Eye of God state "for the duration of the battle," not "until the caster is taken out of action." So it's redundant to put it in (although redundancy is sometimes necessary.)

BalrogTheBuff wrote:

Why not allow the dagger to take out a cultist as well to 'recharge'? You have minions around for a reason, right?

Now that's a cool idea. Players would probably not use it often, but it would really spice things up.