December Detachment Review: Vessels of Wrath

I hate to be the guy to report this, but no, World Eaters did not get a Flow of Magic detachment. This is so sad.

What they got instead was actually really sick so let’s talk about it. Might even say we’re charging right into it.

We played a game with it on stream today, and it was pretty cool, even into the tragic match up. Check it out! I’m really proud of it.

The detachment rule is Wrath of Khorne and it lets you pick three models at the start of the battle round. The model selected can be a…

Character (Not Epic Heros)
Eightbound Champion
Exalted Eightbound Champion
Khorne Berzerker Champion
World Eaters Terminator Champion

The three models you pick give the Vessel of Wrath keyword to their unit. Vessel of Wrath units, after you roll your blessings of Khorne, get to pick a blessing of Khrone to be active for those units. In other words, this is on demand Sustained Hits or Advance and Charge. It’s a very different but similar World Eaters, and I’m all for it.

Enhancements

The enhancements are much like the Blood Legion detachment where they’re all super straight forward, as you might expect from World Eaters. Flavor can be reached in many ways. Sometimes all it takes is “Kill harder” to feel good.

Archslaughterer is 25 points and gives you +1 AP. If the bearer is a Vessel of Wrath, they also get +1 damage. A Jugger-Lord starts to slap really quick. A

Vox-Diabolus is 20 points and gives you 1 CP on a 4+ if you destroy an enemy unit with a melee attack. You get +1 if the bearer was a Vessel of Wrath. I’m not crazy about having to destroy a whole unit, but is killing a unit in Melee with World Eaters really that much of an ask? I’d say not. The +1 is a nice bonus. A

Avenger’s Crown is 15 points and gives the bearer a 2+ fight on death. It doesn’t go on the whole unit. Put this on a Daemon Prince, make them fear charging you, and prevent all heroics. At that price point? A+

Gateways To Glory is 10 points, and lets you ignore walls. Guys, just bring three Daemon Princes and you’re laughing. This is probably an auto-take. Gaining more mobility in an army which wants to walk in straight lines, but can’t always, it’s tight. A+

Stratagems

Aspire To Infamy gives Jakhals or Khrone Berzerkers +1 AP and Strength if they’re within 8″ of a World Eater Character. Any characters in those units don’t gain the benefit. I think this is cute, but nothing amazing. It helps loss of attacks and strength from the other detachment, but being locked to the two little-guy units is less cool. B

Overshadowed By None: Is 1 CP and gives an Infantry, Mounted or Daemon Prince model full wound re-rolls against Monsters and Vehicles. Remember all that stuff about bringing three Daemon Princes into World Eaters? Because I do. Really helps punch upwards. A+

Gory Dedication gives an objective sticky after you destroy an enemy unit on it. Would you ever say no to sticky objectives? In an army about going forward? Like, in a straight line? This gets a solid Shadow Box+

Punish The Craven is one of those niche but amazing stratagems that your opponent needs to be told about before the start of the game or you’re a loser. You use it when an enemy unit is selected to fallback form an infantry unit or Daemon Prince. They take a desperate-escape test. If you’re a Vessel of Wrath, it’s at -1. YIKES. Half your models die from running away, that’s mouth watering buddy. A+

Meet Force With Force lets you Blood Surge with anything that’s infantry, mounted, or Daemon Prince. Don’t know what Blood Surge is? Look up a Khorne Berzerker datasheet. It’s nuts. If you’re a Vessel of Hatred you can re-roll the dice. Holy shit, Daemon Prince go BRRRR. S+

Brazen Contempt is used in the shooting phase, and makes gives your World Eater unit -1 to be wounded if the strength is higher than their toughness. Very good. If you’re a Vessel of Wrath unit, you get -1 to wound regardless. Daemon. Freaking. Prince brother. S+

I’m blown away by the quality of stratagems in this detachment. I got to start playing World Eaters, this is super sick. I don’t know what else you could ask for in a Khorne themed detachment. Yee-haw murder cowboy.

Lists

This weeks expert is a guy who needs very little introduction. (B)Ryan Mayer, known for his obsession with the Baldurs Gate 3 character Halsin and his bear form, (B)Ryan is an excellent World Eaters player who, regardless of his faults as a human being (there are many) should have his advice and thoughts listened to on this topic (and only this topic.)

Ryan “Keep me away from bears” Mayer’s List and Thoughts

CHARACTERS

Khârn the Betrayer (100 points)
• Warlord
• 1x Gorechild
1x Khârn’s plasma pistol

Lord Invocatus (140 points)
• 1x Bolt Pistol
1x Coward’s Bane
1x Juggernaut’s bladed horn

World Eaters Master of Executions (135 points)
• 1x Axe of dismemberment
1x Bolt pistol
• Enhancement: Berzerker Glaive

BATTLELINE

Jakhals (65 points)
• 1x Jakhal Pack Leader
• 1x Autopistol
1x Jakhal chainblades
• 1x Dishonoured
• 1x Skullsmasher
• 8x Jakhal
• 8x Autopistol
8x Jakhal chainblades

Khorne Berzerkers (180 points)
• 1x Khorne Berzerker Champion
• 1x Berzerker chainblade
1x Plasma pistol
• 9x Khorne Berzerker
• 7x Berzerker chainblade
7x Bolt pistol
1x Icon of Khorne
2x Khornate eviscerator
2x Plasma pistol

OTHER DATASHEETS

Eightbound (140 points)
• 1x Eightbound Champion
• 1x Lacerators
• 2x Eightbound
• 2x Eightbound eviscerators

Exalted Eightbound (310 points)
• 1x Exalted Eightbound Champion
• 1x Paired Eightbound chainfists
• 5x Exalted Eightbound
• 5x Eightbound chainfist
5x Eightbound eviscerator

Exalted Eightbound (155 points)
• 1x Exalted Eightbound Champion
• 1x Paired Eightbound chainfists
• 2x Exalted Eightbound
• 2x Eightbound chainfist
2x Eightbound eviscerator

World Eaters Chaos Spawn (70 points)
• 2x Chaos Spawn
• 2x Hideous mutations

World Eaters Forgefiend (145 points)
• 3x Ectoplasma cannon
1x Forgefiend claws

“The new world eaters detachment has dropped and it is incredible. The new detachment has righted so many weaknesses of the index and has given me so much hope for the impending codex in the new year. I’m genuinely so excited to build some new lists with this.

The Detachment rule itself is incredible, allowing you to choose up to 3 units (excluding epic heroes) and give them all a 3rd blessing of khorne effect. This is genuinely insane, guaranteed turn one advance and charge, +2″ movement with a 3rd effect (usually sustained or feel no pain 6+) adds an incredible amount of consistency. And for the turns your duking it out midfield feel no pain, lethal, sustained on 3 units is just disgusting.

Enchantments are definitely the weaker part of the detachment, but still pretty viable, Archslaugtherer improves the ap of melee weapons by 1, and if the unit is your vessel, +1 damage. This is the best one by far, adding this to a daemon prince or MOE boosts it’s kill power immensely.

Vox Diabolus gives you a good chance of generating extra cp every time the enhanced unit kills a unit. Very solid in world eaters since we need plenty of cp to actually do any tricks.

Avengers crown gives you a 2+ fight on death. I like the idea but I feel like this is the worst enchantment out of the 4, countering this is easy, just kill it in shooting and it does nothing, and it being on a 2+ instead of guaranteed is worrying. There isn’t really a good character to put this on since most are already gonna have one of the other Enhancements already.

Gateway to glory is solid and I’m actually a fan, letting a lord on juggernaut run through walls is great for 10 points. I’ve been using a solo jugg lord for ages to do secondaries and deal with screening units. This is a solid enhancement to throw on if your bleeding a couple points.

The strats, oh my god the strats, pure freaking gold. The strats in berserker warband were amazing, these strats take it to another level. Another reason I love this detachment is that Angron actually isn’t an auto include in this. With no way of getting extra Khorne dice rolls his chances of coming back go way down.

Aspire to infamy is amazing. Increasing strength and ap by 1 brings Berserkers up to strength 6 ap 2 on the regular attacks, this will shred infantry and terminators, it also really helps when trying to hit up against monsters and vehicles, especially with the next strat Overshadowed by none, infantry, deamon prince, and mounted get full re-rolls to wound against a monster or vehicle. This is incredible, outside of eightbound re-rolls to wound are in short supply with world eaters, this is very good when paired with large units (like 10 man zerker units and 6 man ex eightbound) paired with aspire to infamy you’ll be dishing out a boatload of attacks!

Gory dedication is awesome, sticky an objective as long as you kill a single model on it. Great for early game as it applies pressure to people infiltrating on no mans land objectives. It being in any fight phase also goes crazy with the 10 man berzerker with MOE unit.

Punish the craven is something I’ve been waiting for for ages, something to stop people from falling back! This goes great with exalted eightbound as well as it’s insurance if they succeed the leadership test to fall back. Meet with Force gives any infantry, mounted or daemon prince unit Bloodsurge, as long as they took 1 damage. This is actually insane, stage them midfield and just let the mind games commence, this should be used literally every turn, especially since you can re-roll the bloodsurge test. As if world eaters weren’t scary enough before.

Brazen contempt is our defensive strat for the detachment, -1 to wound if higher strength OR -1 to wound period if you are targeting one of your vessel of wrath units. Genuinely insane, especially if someone’s swinging into eightbounf with strength 5 attacks, have fun wounding on 6’s now.

Overall I am in love with this detachment, it’s consistent, it’s lethal, and it’s really freaking scary. I’m excited to bring this to some upcoming tournaments and see the terror on my opponents face when I bloodsurge every single shooting phase.”

Thanks to (B)Ryan for having me spell check that for him. I’m sure I missed a few.

Final Thoughts

This detachment rocks. Play 3 Daemon Princes. Max Eightbound. Leave Angron at home.

Shadow box your opponent, crack a beer, tell them about how you’re not fighting a war against capitalism run amok or an America long gone. It’s a battle against fucking entropy man.

Hell yeah.

Tomorrow’s the last day. It’s gods least favorite faction, the Space Dawgs. The article might just be the word WOOF over and over again for 5 pages.

We’ll see.

Be safe everyone, drink water.

If you’re around early enough tomorrow, we’ll be playing another game with World Eaters on Stream at 11 A.M. Could be fun, hope to see you there.