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Are Chaos Sorcerers usually a good pick? My plan so far is to field a Chaos Terminator Sorcerer but i'm not really sure if they are worth the points. I'm pretty new to WH40k and REALLY new to Chaos! And if it's any help for you guys to answer my question I also want to field some Plague Marines and Defiler/s and heck, maybe even a Dreadnought or two.

Also, not sure if this is supposed to be in the General section or in this forum.

Also, if I use a Chaos Sorcerer is it worth giving him a combi/melta?

Most players prefer to use a Daemon prince for psychic (and undoubtably cc) support.
Comes out with a couple more points but it'll last you longer throughout the game with higher efficiency.

Well, Sorcerers are usually the better pick if you aren't fielding Dreadnoughts and Defilers. Dreadnoughts and Defilers provide target saturation for the AV12/T6 3+ crowd, so you bolster that by taking Daemon Princes and Greater Daemons. Target saturation means you present more targets than your opponent has weapons to deal with effectively; in this case, Lascannons and to a lesser extent Autocannons.

It is perfectly fine to take a Sorcerer, you just need to have a plan for him. The squad he rolls with is just as important as what wargear he takes. In my army, I run a Sorcerer with Warptime and some Plague Marines; the Sorcerer kills the enemies off the objective, and the Plague Marines absorb bullets until the game ends. I needed something durable to sit on the objective furthest forward, as that is often where his army will be most concentrated. However, the Plague Marines by themselves had trouble killing everyone off the objective.

By the way, questions like this do belong in this forum.

It depends on yourn list really. The sorc needs a ride. Demon prince, not so mutch.

If looking at HQs, you're really choosing between Daemon Princes and Sorcerors anyway.

Up to 1,500 points, Daemon Princes are great. The problem is that over 1,500 points, there are enough nasty things on the table that will paste them within a turn or two of shooting. Conversely, Sorcerors be protected in Rhinos, and/or in squads. They're far more survivable, even though their stat line isn't as hot.

DP's are nice, but sorcerers have gifts of chaos. There's hardly a more awesome way to handle obnoxious targets like imperial guard commissars or mephiston.

Nurgle Demon Princes are nice (T5 I believe), makes them much more surviable, and giving them warptime makes them that much more beastly in combat.

You also have the Slaanesh Princes that use lash of submission to mess with your opponents army.

Overall though, Choas psychic powers are pretty meh compared to their space marine counterparts.

Woah, 6 replies already! I suppose I will take DarkHounds advice and put my Sorcerer in a unit of Plague Marines then.

Any tips on what spells/magic I should take? And there's still one unanswered question yet - is it worth taking a combi/melta for my Sorcerer?

Take gifts of chaos. The other powers just replicate stuff that other wargear can do elsewhere in your army. There is nothing like gifts of chaos, though.

As for wargear, I'd probably limit it to either terminator armor or wings, depending on how you want to run him. That or nothing.

There are a few ways I run a foot soldier. The first is a lashman, using lash of submission from a rhino or a squad of raptors.

Another way, is a hidden sorc in a unit with winds of chaos. Kills MEQ and TEQ guys dead fast. Proper positioning and you can deny your opponents the ability to go into melee with him and still use the template of death.

The final way is using warptime to make him hit hard in melee. Termi armor or jump pack is recommended, but if you feel like it one of the steeds are better if he's going to be in a footslogging squad.

Thanks for the replies guys. Just a question, is it worth buying a familiar and use two powers? And is Nurgle's Rot a power you guys recommend?

Familiar is good, but gets the cost up. Most folks go with one power and keep the cost down to save points for other units. If you want to go with a familiar for extra power, Warp Time + Wind of Chaos is an excellent combo, since Warp Time allows you to BOTH re-roll rolls to wound in shooting and in close combat.

Lash of Submission is amazing. Warp Time is great for close combat; but even better on a Daemon Prince than on a sorcerer. Wind of Chaos is excellent. Gift of Chaos is okay; Nurgle's Rot is kind of neat but not up to the level of those first three.

I wonder how well a terminator lash sorcerer in a unit of champ termies w/combi weapons would do? It's an expensive death star, but could be worth the points. Add a couple of chain fists and it might work out.

You can't get much better than a Lash Sorcerer casting from a Rhino hatch. Past that, I like Gift. Nothing else is really very good.

As to the effectiveness of Lash, it can be easily nullified by psychic defenses or metal bawkses getting in the way.

Still a great power, and IMO, the only reason to take a Sorcerer.

Some options:
MoS, lash
MoT, warptime and wind of chaos
Also, any sorcerer with just warptime is good

My favorite, although also the most expensive generally is the warptime and wind of chaos variety, since warptime allows re rolls for the wind, whatever is under that template is in a world of pain

I'm running the following in a 50 person "mini GT" this weekend and I will post results when I get back. I plan on posting a battle report if I don't forget my camera!

Terminator Sorcerer with MoS/ Lash/ combi-plasma

6 Terminators
Combi-Plasma/Power Weapon
Combi-Plasma/Chainfist
Combi-Plasma/Power Weapon/ Icon of Chaos Glory
Reaper Autocannon/Power Weapon
Combi-Plasma/Power Weapon
Terminator Champion with Combi-Plasma/Power Weapon

410 points for the sorcerer and his termies but I have been testing this list for almost 3 months and I am VERY happy with their showing thus far!!!

P

I've got to point out Gift of Chaos is virtually unusable. You have to cast it at the beginning of the turn, even before movement, and it has a range of 6". You can cast it while in close combat, so the only time you'll see it used is the second turn of CC, at which point the Powerfist guy you'd use it on has already killed your Sorcerer.

Mannahnin wrote:with a familiar for extra power, Warp Time + Wind of Chaos is an excellent combo, since Warp Time allows you to BOTH re-roll rolls to wound in shooting and in close combat.

This is a great combo, but you have to take Mark of Tzeentch to do it. With a Familiar, despite having two powers, you can only cast one.

Personally, I currently run MoT, Doombolt, Warptime. I like having the option to combine Warptime with other things, be it my Force Weapon or shooting, and the 4++ is essential to surviving Powerfists.

Thanks for the correction, DH. Shows you how much I actually use a familiar (I don't).

You can also get Gift of Chaos off from inside a vehicle; or from outside it if the enemy has assaulted and killed it. It can also be used by an Aspiring Sorc in a unit of T-sons. Or as a second power on a MoT Warp Time prince. But yeah, it's not very practical.

Thanks for all the help guys, i'm going to experiment a little myself but will test out most things you guys recommended.

Terminator armor is usually not worth it. You lose your extra attack because you no longer have a bolt pistol, and you have to purchase a Land Raider as a ride. You also can't cast lash and other shooting powers out the top hatch of a Land Raider, so you lose a few turns of casting powers while you get to where you want to go.

A power armored sorcerer riding with cult marines in a rhino is never a bad choice. Barring that, take a Demon Prince.

Terminator armour for your sorceror is only good if he's deepstriking next to a cult squad with an icon, and if he's got a terminator escort. I played someone once who deepstriked his lone sorceror in termy armour in front of my Avatar, DA and Warp Spider squads. He didn't last very long.