The 2024 Edition of Kill Team has overhauled the game, changing rules, datasheets, and bringing with it an updated set of rules for every team in the game. In this series we’re taking a look at each team, how they’ve changed, and what it means for how they play in the new edition.
Give prayer to the Old Four, and feel their blessings upon your flesh, it is time to review Chaos Cultists. No team has had a bigger roller coaster ride than Chaos Cultists, the most powerful (broken!) upon their release with Ashes of Faith, peaking with their victory at the World Championship of Warhammer in 2023. Multiple balance dataslate updates since then have seen the team spiked pretty thoroughly into the lower ranks, which is a shame because it has one of the more fun team mechanics. Will Kill Team 2024 be their chance to regain the favor of the Warp?
Before we dive in, we’d like to thank Games Workshop for providing a preview copy of these rules for Review purposes.
The Video Version of the Review
We have a video version of this review courtesy of Can You Roll a Crit?
Team Overview
This is the definition of horde melee with two-thirds of your team beginning as perhaps the weakest operatives in the entire game. As things progress your goal is to transform your gang of incompetents into increasingly deadlier mutant monstrosities. Just to emphasize how much this team revolves around close combat, you have only a single ranged profile deadlier than an autopistol at your disposal.
Special Rule: Mutation and Accursed Gifts
This rule is largely unchanged from how it operated as of the latest balance data-slate. You’re allowed to Mutate a number of operatives based on the Turning Point (2/2/3/4). Mutating does different things based on your choice and the operative it is being performed on, but to refresh: Turn a Devotee into a Mutant, Mutant into a Torment (1 per TP), or Heal D3+1 Wounds. The number of Mutants on the table is limited to 5, while Torments are limited to 3. When operatives transform they still retain all the lost wounds of their previous version. If you’re doing the math you have a total of 11 mutations to spend throughout the course of a game. Additionally, Devotees can still Mutate if they incapacitate an enemy meaning leaving enemies with a low wound count is an important strategy for increasing your mutation number.
Accursed Gifts remain almost entirely unchanged. The first time a Devotee transforms into a Mutant you select your Primary Accursed Gift, all future Mutants will have this gift chosen, select a second gift when you get your first Torment. Barbed receives some slight improvements now that Reap is no longer a weapon special rule.
Team Composition
Chaos Cultists are still 14 operatives putting them at the current maximum of any team. No new operatives have been added, and they remain one of the most prescribed teams in the game with zero ways to tailor to fit their opponent. In this sense it is a good team for newer players who don’t want to get too bogged down.
Playing This Team
Playing Chaos Cultists has changed significantly over time as their power level has decreased, but at the end of the day you want to keep your guys alive long enough to turn them into Torments. The inner circle of the team, The Dark Commune, are important to have around to keep your team in the fight until this happens, and losing a Mutant early on can easily cost you the game. The team has Seek and Destroy and Infiltrate as its Tac Ops meaning holding back and waiting for your opponent to come to you is not a strong strategy, especially based on how scoring works in KT24.
What’s Changed?
Short answer? Not much. The ploys are basically unchanged, having their wording adjusted to fit the new addition.
The Demagogue has lost his ability to Mutate an operative, but this is a slight buff as an extra mutation has been given for the first TP to account for this loss. This also means that losing the Demagogue isn’t nearly as game ending as it was before. The Iconarch’s Burning Censer is now 4/4 damage but only four attacks making it technically better than your standard Flamer.
Mutants and Torments have lost their Feel No Pain and now reduce damage on attacks of 3 or more, by 1, if a 5+ is rolled. Torments can also now open doors, so I guess that is good?
Some readers may notice that this is the least amount of changes we have seen on a team going from ‘21 to ‘24, leaving us with just equipment to cover. Covert Guises and Vile Blessing return, providing the same buffs as before, while Unholy Script and Baleful Talisman are our new additions. Script allows you to change one of your Accursed Gifts, once per Battle, which is clutch if you find yourself able to complete a previously impossible charge. The Talisman allows operatives to retain a normal save and a critical success once per Turning Point, which can also be useful, but is far from game breaking.
Three Cool Things About This Team:
- Ease Of Play. Sometimes having less options means you have less to think about.
- Awesome Model Range. The Accursed Cultist model range is easily one of the coolest ones yet, perfectly capturing the horror of the faction.
- Flavorful Rules. While this team is unlikely to find itself on the podium its rules absolutely fit its aesthetic, and it can be loads of fun to have a horde of rampaging monsters falling onto your opponent.
Final Thoughts
Chaos Cultists are unfortunately not in a great position going into KT24. They’re one of the least adaptive teams in the game, and all the nerfs they received in KT21 are in effect, which may be an over reaction in light of the buffs many other teams received. This team was already firmly out of the competitive limelight by the end of KT21, and is likely to remain there until they receive some help. Now that Feel No Pain and full wound regeneration is no longer a factor it probably wouldn’t be too much to return them to 15 operative size, and grant a few wounds to Mutants and Torments.
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