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Hey all! This is my first attempt at a 2K tournament list with my Word Bearers successor warband. Many of my choices are made to display showpieces, but I would really enjoy not getting completely smashed. C&C welcome!

Word Bearers, 9 CP
1,998 Points

Patrol #1: Acrimonious Ascendant

Daemon Prince
-Tzeentch, Wings, two sets of malefic talons
-Dark Hereticus powers: warptime, smite
-Warlord: Diabolist
-Relic: Crown of the Blasphemer

Warpsmith
-Combi-melta, melta, flamer

10 Cultists
-Autoguns, heavy stubber
-Mark of Slaanesh

10 Cultists
-Autoguns, heavy stubber
-Mark of Slaanesh

5 Terminators
-Power swords, 5 combi-bolters
-Mark of Slaanesh

5 Terminators
-2 power axes, 2 powerfists, chainfist, combi-meltas, 1 reaper autocannon
-Mark of Slaanesh

Defiler
-Battle cannon, defiler scourge, reaper autocannon, combi-bolter
-Mark of Tzeentch

Venomcrawler
-Mark of Tzeentch

Patrol #2: Exegesis of Desecration

Master of Possession
-Force staff, plasma pistol
-Malefic psychic powers: cursed earth, infernal power, mutated invigorations, smite
-Mark of Tzeentch
-Relic: The Malefic Tome

Chaos Sorcerer
-Force sword, jump pack, plasma pistol
-Dark Hereticus psychic powers: prescience, weaver of fates, smite
-Mark of Tzeentch

5 Chaos Space Marines
-Bolters and bolt pistols, plasma gun, aspiring champion with combi-plasma and bolt pistol
-Mark of Slaanesh

Helbrute
-Helbrute power fists with two heavy flamers
-Mark of Slaanesh

14 Possessed
-Mark of Tzeentch

3 Obliterators
-Mark of Slaanesh

The goal is to have a strong mid-board presence and get in my opponent's face with daemonic threats. Works out great when obliterators do their thing. Not so well when they don't.

IW and AL make the oblit bomb better... but they really don't fit my theme. Units I have at my disposal: cultists & CSM, apostle, jump lord, sorc on foot, greater poss'd, helbrute las/ML, raptors w/ plas, raptors w/ melta, 5 havocs RCC/HB, 5 havocs ML/LC, rhino. Open to expanding my collection but I don't love having duplicate units.

Are your games slow enough that you can get use out of a warpsmith? Cause I think you'd be better off with a Lord Discordant, MOP and Sorcerer, and a single detachment.

Either way, I'd do a single detachment based on what I see, and likely dump the warpsmith.

Also your helbrute isn't really doing much. Either go with all shooty or dump it for something faster and choppier.. if you had more terminators?

And to afford that dump the 5 space marines for 10 cultists.

Something like that.

Oh any I wouldn't use anything but lightning claws, reaper autocannons and combi-bolters on the terminators.

Looks like a fun casual list. It will get ripped apart in a competitive setting, but so would any other CSM list.

Your 5 CSM and 20 Cultists can sit on backfield objectives. Meanwhile you send your Helbrute, Defiler, Daemon Prince, and Possessed up a flank. On Turn 2 your 3 Oblits and 10 Termies can open up another flank. Against competitive opponents (DE, Admech, Redemptor heavy SM, etc) your Deffy, DP, brute, 'Brute, and Possessed will be neutered or killed on Turn 1 before your deepstrikers come down. But against a casual opponent they will gain you very useful board control on Turn 1.

I do have two suggestions:

1. Drop 4 Possessed for a Rhino for your Possessed. I've found that this edition is so killy that my Possessed are be better of with the Rhino's 10 wounds in 2,000 point games. In lower points games I can take my Possessed on foot, but larger games are too deadly.

2. Drop the Warpsmith for a Dark Apostle and 2 Dark Disciples. With the Word Bearers ability to chant twice a turn I think you will find him much more thematic and effective than a Warpsmith. The 5++ invulnerable save is solid gold for my Helbrutes and Chaos Rhinos. Hopefully you will be less forgetful than me and actually remember your chants.

I've found that with 2 damage stratagem and character support Word Bearers Possessed are a solid melee unit in casual 9th edition games. I've also found that with the Malefic Tome my attempts to cast Cursed Earth actually tend to be successful.

Have fun!

For the Dark Gods!

Thanks for the amazing feedback, guys!

@Sazzlefrats: I kitbashed my own warpsmith so I wanted to try him out. I doubt he'll do much aside from getting blown up by vehicles he is trying to fix. If I drop him I will include a Dark Apostle as @Tallarn Commander suggests. The 5++ is nice on helbrutes and cultists, so I might take more of both of them. Alternatively I can drop him for the rhino and drop down to a single battalion...

@Tallarn Commander: I like the idea of throwing the possessed in a rhino. At that point I'd look at taking the Malefic Tome on the sorcerer instead and dropping cursed earth.