Maximizing Your Gaming Dollar The Chaos Way: The Tzeentch Burning Chariot

Hey there Chaos fanatics! I know many of you are drooling over the soon to be released Apocalypse book (I know I am). While the Lord of Battles and the Tesseract are both expensive, I can forgive it because they are both huge models and are not necessary for regular games, so one doesn't actually need to get them (yes, for my own part I need to get a Lord of Battles at some point for my Khorne Bezerker warband). However, I was kinda upset about the fortification pieces. They are just too damned expensive- at least the Wall of Martyrs pieces are reasonably priced. These new pieces are too much money; in no way am I spending $115 on the Strongpoint... no freakin' way. To me, there's just so much I'm willing to spend- a Super Heavy is useful in battle, while the cannon is just terrain, really. I can't justify it.

In light of that, I have a new edition in my series "Maximizing Your Gaming Dollar The Chaos Way" which I hope you will find helpful or interesting. A couple of weeks ago, my wife surprised me by getting me the Tzeentch Burning Chariot for my daemon army (this is why I married her- she understands me!). So yesterday, I decided to assemble it.

I figured I would make it an Exalted Flamer chariot, as I love the look of the giant Flamer and I think some extra firepower may be what my Daemonic hordes need. The model went together quite quickly despite its size (getting the Screamers to stay up was the most difficult part, but even then not that bad). It is a really nice, detailed, and frankly imposing looking model. Very cool!

As I neared completion, I looked at all the extra bits on the sprues, and my brain started talking to me, as it is oft to do. The little voice said "Old Man Chaos... look at that sprue. There's so many bits on this... surely you cant just let this go to waste...". Suddenly, I was inspired. I decided not to put the Horrors on the Chariot, as I thought they would be distracting from the Flamer itself. I decided to put the 3 Horrors on bases. Yes, they are slightly smaller than the regular Horrors but so what? They are daemons, they can be a bit bigger or smaller- you could paint them pink/blue, put them in the mob, and you'd never notice it. I even gave one of them a book, so he could be an Iridescent Horror (and thus the regular squad leader can be a Herald) if I so chose.

As I was building the 3 Horrors, the voice again said "Give in to your anger...", oh wait, wrong voice. Actually, it said "There's still so many pieces here--- surely you can do more". And suddenly, I was inspired again. With a little bit of work, conversion, and inspiration, I could see it. I could mount the spare herald on a disc!! Huh? How? Madness you say...Ah. Perhaps madness, but it was my inherent Chaos Conversion Skills that got me going. Using some of the leftover pieces from the Herald Chariot (whose base IS actually quite different from the Exalted Flamer's chariot base) I was able to cobble together a Herald on a disc of Tzeentch.

See, since they actually give you 2 different chariots (but only one set of Screamers and only one bigger chariot platform) I eliminated the portions that needed the screamers. I then put the Herald's round platform on the chariot. Yes, it is without the other large piece (which went on the Flamer's chariot). but that's what made it a perfect size for a disc. I assembled the Herald, put him on and presto- a Herald on a disc. While he may not be as fancy as the Finecast one, he still does the trick, and is unmistakably a Herald on a disc of Tzeentch. And one could add more details, but I just wanted to keep it simple. Not a bad bit of work here eh?

So, let's look at the money. The Chariot box was $40. The Finecast Herald on disc sells also for $40. A box of Horrors sells for $29 (each individual Horror is $3 rounding up from 2.9). So, to get a Flamer Chariot, Herald on Disc, and 3 Horrors would be $89. Instead, using the Chaos Way, I built a Flamer Chariot, a Herald on Disc, and 3 Horrors- all for $40! That is a savings of $49!! 

So, if you were going to actually spend say $80 (the price of a Flamer Chariot and a Finecast Herald on a disc of Tzeentch), look at how the Chaos Way could save you even more money...That means, for the price of $80, using my method,  buy two Flamer Chariot kits and you actually get TWO Flamer Chariots ($80), TWO Heralds on Disc ($80), and SIX Horrors ($18). Holy Cow! You spent $80 but actually got $178 worth of stuff.... What a savings!! $98 bucks worth, to be exact.

Are they really that much different?

Certainly not a difference worth $40?

If you are building a Tzeentch Daemon Army, or just looking to bolster your current daemonic forces, my Chaos Way method can really save you big money. I hope that this helps your wallet and gives you more bang for your gaming buck.

Until next time...