Editing Warhammer/Tactics/6th Edition/Chaos (section)

====Mark of Tzeentch====

For reasons that will become apparent as we go on, there is no such thing as a Sorcerer or Shaman of Tzeentch: this Mark is not available to those models.

Daemon Princes, Chaos Lords and Beastlords all become level 4 wizards, who have to use the Lore of Tzeentch. (It's heckin' expensive, at 140-150 points.)

Exalted Daemons, Chaos Champions, Wargors, Shaggoths and Doombulls all become level 2 wizards, who have to use the Lore of Tzeentch. (It's still pretty pricey, at around 75 for most models.)

Mortal characters also gain access to the Disc of Tzeentch, a cheap flying monstrous mount that can't fight worth a damn but doesn't need to because there's a goddamned Chaos Lord standing on its back doing the heavy lifting.

Everyone else generates an extra Power die for the pool, as long as they're not fleeing.

Now. It's easy to look at this and think you have to go big or go home. For Mortal players in particular it's easy to look at the Mark of Tzeentch and think you MUST TAKE IT ON EVERYTHING EVER, UTTERLY DOMELNATING THE MAGIC PHASE, but - stop. For one thing, it's seriously expensive, and yes a Chaos Lord's statline and a Sorcerer Lord's casting power are not to be sneezed at, but the points add up fast and Chaos armies already run expensive. For another, a pure Marked Tzeentch army may have a lot of Power dice to throw around, but it'll be light on numbers (as none of the cheap bodies can carry the Mark) and crumple to a run of bad terror or panic tests (which you'll be taking a lot if you've loaded up on small Marked units to spam dice).

Far better to have Tzeentch casters backed up by Undivided units (which remain an option even if your General has the Mark of Tzeentch), or even elements in a mixed army with Khorne or Slaanesh line troops. That's an army that won't break and run when things start to go south, but will still deliver the fighting power of a good Tzeentch Champion alongside options for other Lores and tactics.

If you're going to go pure Tzeentch, Chariots are a really good way to sneak a few extra power dice into your army, make sure all your wizards have enough to cast at their full potential, and then fill out on solid Undivided bodies or Marauders to give your casters the meatshields they need to get the job done.

It's less of an attractive option for Beastmen, as well. Beast armies don't have the ability to load up on cheap Marked units and really stack the dice in their favour, and they feel the Panic hit worse than most. Their best Lord options don't become level 4 wizards because even Gav Thorpe thought that was a bit excessive.