gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 24, 2012 17:08:05 GMT
With the clock ticking down till the first week of league games, I would like to get each factions battle box basics entry done before then. So without further ado:
Battle Box Basics
Menoth, Protectorate of (Fahyr Krey-zd, Ri-lij-uhs Nuht-erz) If religious zealots with a penchant for fire are your thing you have struck gold with Menoth. A lot of their technology and weaponry is based on what they salvaged after breaking away from Cygnar, but they are quickly developing more 'pure' technologies of their own, including the use of 'Menoth's Fury' (basically crude oil) to burn their heretical enemies. Menoth have the choice of two different battle box configurations because of the two player starter set, each have some common elements and one alternate model.
High Examplar Kreoss is another spell slinger, but in the theme of most Menoth models, he feature as denial, buffs and FIRE! His straight forward damage spells consist of an AoE that cause continuous fire on a critical hit and a single shot fire attack again with critical fire effect. What sets him apart are his denial spells one forces enemy models to pay double casting costs for any spells or upkeeps while in his control area (Lamentation), another to clear all continuous effects, upkeeps and anima in his control area (Purification) and finally a nice little defence & armour buff for a model/unit. So while he may not directly make things easier for his army, he can remove any effects that will hinder them in their endeavours. Fortunately his feat does help make life for his army easier as it knocks down everything in his control area allowing them to go to town beating on who ever they please, though watch out for models that are immune to being knocked down.
While Kreoss's feat will often be your pivotal/assassination turn, though he can still grind down your opponent due to Lamentation and more importantly all the fire continuous effects he and his army have.
Repenter (Light Warjack – both box sets) has all the tell tail signs of Menoth, fire and denial in the form of its chain weapon (no shield bonuses) and flame thrower. The real strength of the Repenter is in its flame thrower as it is great for dealing with multiple targets and then sets them on fire if it hits, meaning if you don't kill them with the damage roll there is a good chance of killing them as the fire continues to burn.
Revenger (Light Warjack – battle box only) is Menoth's version of Cygnar's Lancer while it is not as advanced it does have a nice ability to keep it safe in the form of its Repulsor Shield which pushes back any models it hits or that hit the Revenger with a melee attack. But just like the Lancer the main feature of the Revenger is its arc node, which Kreoss can shoot fiery death from.
Crusader (Heavy Warjack – both box sets) is again very similar to a Cygnar warjack, this time the Ironclad, though instead of a hammer the Crusader boasts something a little more medieval and biblical... an Inferno Mace. Though the fire is only caused on a critical, it's not likely to be needed as the mace is POW 18. Other than that it is a little slower than the Ironclad but also slightly better armoured.
Vanquisher (Heavy Warjack – 2 player box set only) is basically a heavy version of the Repenter, instead of a spray weapon it has a large AoE, which is great as it simply needs to land the AoE over a model to set it on fire and an even bigger flail with the thresher special attack which will make a mess of any troops that make it past its fiery pie plates of doom.
Menoth like to buff their their army, while denying their enemies the same privilege and then setting them on fire for good measure and Kreoss optimises this. Often it will be easier to ware down your opponent before delivering the coup de grace, but that is far from saying you will lack the ability to go straight for the kill, though Kreoss relies heavily on his feat for a caster kill.
Next up soldiers of fortune and glory.
|
|
PaleKing
Club Member
I see lead people.
Posts: 2,452
|
Post by PaleKing on Apr 25, 2012 8:45:37 GMT
This is great stuff Callum. Can I suggest that once the club website is up and running that this could be pulled together into some content for the site?
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 25, 2012 10:07:14 GMT
Glad you've enjoyed it.
I have been typing it up in a word document before hand so it would not be too difficult to do if it's wanted, though I would add in a few photos so it is a little more appealing to the eye.
Though it is somewhat redundant for those of you who have spent time on battle college wiki, which covers everything in more depth than I have gone in to, but I'd like to think it is a fun little intro.
Cheers
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 25, 2012 10:32:06 GMT
Mercenary ( Sel Sawrdz) There are three Mercenary battle box equivalents: Magnus the Traitor, Rhulic and Pirate. These only show a small selection of the mercenaries that fight in the Iron Kingdoms and what they fight for. Magnus the Traitor was against the coup to over throw King Vinter and went rouge vowing to do what ever he could to reinstate the deposed king, so now he sells his services to all enemies of Cygnar. He himself is tough as old boots and quite the fighter. His list of spells sees a varried amount of use some like Blur, Snipe (as seen on Stryker, above), Iron Aggression allowing free run/charge/slam and boosted attack rolls and Tempered Metal immunity to continuous effects will often be cast as they all help to buff Magnus's army. However Obliteration and Arcantrik bolt see less use as Magnus usually has better things to do with his focus. Magnus's feat allows his battle group to either full advance or run at the end of your turn once everything else has finished activated, allowing you to truly hit and run or press your advantage and really squeeze your enemy. Renegade (Light Warjack) is Magnus's own creation with lots of little extras. It's one shot Obliterator rocket can make a mess of anyone's plans with its 5” pie plate of knock down goodness. While it also has a fun chainsaw on its other arm with sustained attack and critical shred that can potentially give unlimited attacks if your very lucky! Last but not least it has an arc node just in case Magnus ever needs to throw out some spells from its location rather than his own. Talon (Light Warjack) is the predecessor to the Lancer and is therefore less advanced but retains similar features. It has a simple shield purely for the armour bonus and extra melee attack it provides, though its lance has the extra ability to stall other warjacks it hits. Mangler (Heavy Warjack) does exactly what the name suggests, it may not be as fancy as some faction warjacks but it makes that up with raw power. It has two melee weapons the Wrecker which is a huge spiked ball on a chain that thanks to reach and thresher will make a mess of troops and warjacks alike, while the Punching Spike is an nice extra attack that has a little more bite thanthe average open fist. --- --- --- Gorten Grundback is a Rhulic (Dwarf) warcaster, while the Rhulic nation is one of the oldest in the Iron Kingdoms they don't really like to get involved in the affairs of others, though this is beginning to change as war envelopes the whole continent. Gorten is tough and slow like you would expect from a dwarf, he has some interesting spells Eruption an AoE that stays in play for a round that causes fire damage, Molten Metal which is useful for damaging high armour warjacks, Rock Wall that provides well a rock wall for you to hide behind, Solid Ground stops friendly models in his control area from being knocked down or suffering blast damage and lastly Strength of Granite which gives one of his battle group a nice strength buff. Gorton's feat is quite different to anything else as it moves all enemy models in his control area 8" towards a table edge of your choice, meaning there are all sorts of crazy shenanigans you can get up to, it also debuffs a few stats and stops orders being given in to the bargain! Grundback Gunner (Rhulic Light Jack) is a straight forward little jack with a nice little gun on its back. Powerful attack lets it boost its attack and damage roll for the low, low cost of one focus and that's basically it. Though you can always use it to slam models about if you feel like something different. Gorten brings no less than three of these guys along so in one turn you can make a real mess of a light jack with them, or on feat turn their warcaster/lock. Ghordson Driller (Rhulic Heavy Warjack) is again a fairly straight forward warjack with an open fist and a dirty great big drill that has sustained attack, while neither attack is very high POW Gorten's Strength of Granite remedies that easily. --- --- --- Captain 'Broadside' Bartolo Montador is a true privateer and he likes his cannons like his ladies big and loud! His spell list support this with the likes of broadside to gain an extra ranged attacks from all his battle group, Hot Shot grants boosted damage rolls to a model in his battle group as long as the upkeep is paid, besides that he has Batten down the hatches which adds some extra armour to his battle group as well as preventing them being knocked down but at the expense of some defence, lastly Deadweight and Powder Keg are damaging spells but with extra affects though are rarely cast as Bart has a limited pool of focus. Add to all this his feat that provides a knock down effect when a model finishes an advance in his control area and a penalty to hit for anyone still standing, provides great board control. Buccaneer (Light Warjack) while not a killer in of itself is a great support warjack and even better when being jack marshalled by someone with a drive that allows them to charge for free. This is due to it having a ranged attack that causes no damage but knocks the target down if it hits and the assault rule allowing it to make the attack after it makes a charge move, this gives it a very long threat range, even if it doesn't end up in combat. Freebooter (Heavy Warjack) is really best though of as a tough light jack as it is neither very tough or powerful on its own. However it does have a few nice tricks such as being able to get plus to movement for a turn if it damages one of its movement boxes and if its target is knocked down it gets an additional damage dice on its clamp attacks (which works well with the Buccaneer). Mariner (Heavy Warjack) sadly the only warjack with a damaging ranged weapon to take advantage of either Broadside or Hot Shot (though Bart can also take advantage of them). It also has an anchor as its melee attack which has thresher but unfortunately not reach which would really make it shine. Still a couple of shots, under Hot Shot, on a vulnerable warcaster/lock will be devastating. Last of the Warmachine factions up are the Elves of Ios.
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 26, 2012 14:51:59 GMT
Battle Box Basics
Retribution of Scyrah (Re-truh-byoo-shuhn uhv Sigh-rah) While the Elves of Ios are not the only Elves in the Iron Kingdoms they are the most numerous, though there are still few in comparison to the any of the human nations and even they are only represented outside of their boarders by a small proportion of their race. They are the most technologically advanced race in the Iron Kingdoms and rely on that and their strength of combined arms within their forces to over come any opponents they set their sights on.
Having only recently played against Retribution, I think I am now better placed to offer some suggestions beyond the most general pointers.
Kaelyssa, Night's Whisper is one of the few truly able ranged warcasters and is well capable of picking off solos that may threaten her. The only spell she has to directly benefit her force is Phantom Hunter which allows a model in her battle group to ignore LoS )which in small games is often best put on Kaelyssa herself), though she does have a couple of other support spells Banashing Ward helps wipe the slate clean of any enemy upkeeps and continuous effects on a friendly model/unit and then prevents them being targeted by enemy sells or anima, while Arcane Reckoning cause a enemy spell that misses to hit the opponents caster to be hit instead. Of her offensive spells she can put Backlash on an opponents warjack so that when it takes damage from an attack the controlling warcaster also takes one point of damage (though this will likely only due a few points of damage over a game, every little helps, though in bigger games involving units it may be possible to cause some serious damage) on top of that there is Arcantric Bolt which it a basic point and shot spell with the extra bonus against warjacks that if it damages them they also become stationary, and a damaging AoE which remains in play for a round as rough terrain though it causes no further damage (Rift). Kaelyssa can be very useful used either offensively (allowing you to grab objectives early and hold them) or defensively (simply holding the line), depending on what you may need it for as it prevents models in her control area being charged and also granting them stealth if they don't have it already.
For the most part though in battle box sized games Kaelyssa's battle group will have to do the hard work while she supports them from the rear, only coming forward when the opportunity arises for an assassination run.
Chimera (Light Myrmydon) like all Retribution warjacks or 'Myrmydon' the Chimera is full of tricks and features, such as force field technology meaning even arm systems are difficult to take out in the first hit. It is also one of the few light warjacks to have two open fists meaning it can throw things about, it can be placed 2” from where it stands at the start of its activation, the combo strike ability to take on tougher targets and comes fitted with an arc node to allow Kaelyssa to make more use of her offensive spells.
Griffon (Light Myrmydon) is the most basic of Kaelyssa's battle group warjacks, in terms of abilities, though it is capable of inflicting some damage or assassinating a vulnerable warcaster/lock, most likely though its best use will be to run interference for your other models. This is due to its high armour (or a light jack) and reach giving it a large area to put out free strikes on models trying to move past it.
Manticore (Heavy Myrmydon) is not a specialist of either ranged or melee attacks but performs admirably in both when it is required too. At range it can either provide a up to three separate shots or set down a covering fire template to help prevent troop movement, while in melee it has two open fists giving it access to every power attack and a nice little damage boost for when it comes across tougher targets.
Between Kaelyssa and the Manticore the Retribution battle box is very capable of pulling off a ranged assassination, and all the models given the right circumstances could do the same in melee. But unlike most battle boxes this is unlikely to come on Kaelyssa's feat turn, it is more likely that her feat turn will be the set up for an assassination run on the next turn, or to cover your backside if you fail. Though depending on your opponents force some may take little notice of her feat so be aware of what your opponents force ignores and is capable of.
Tomorrow comes the first of the Hordes factions and they are a bunch of tree huggers.
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 27, 2012 14:54:24 GMT
Battle Box Basics
Circle of Orboros (Sur-kuhl uhv Awr-bawr-aws) A Druidic nation of wanderers and caretakers who's task is it to keep natures balance, lest the Devourer Worm return to Caen and destroy all life. This generally means throwing a spanner in everyone else's plans. In some ways Circle plays a lot like Cryx in that they are very fast and have some nice movement tricks... though this is where the similarity ends, as Circle concentrate on using the power of nature, primal powers and beasts to destroy their foes.
Kaya the Wildborne as with all Warlocks she only has a handful of her own spells (while the remained come from her warbeasts) and few of those make your forces life directly easier, however they do give you a few tricks you can pull off. The more straight forward spells are Occultation to grant stealth to one model/unit, Spirit Fang is an offensive spell with the handy extra of reducing the targets speed and defence. What will see more use are Soothing Song to allow you to remove one Fury from each of your warbeasts in your control area meaning you can run hot and still be fairly sure your warbeasts wont frenzy and Spirit Door that lets either Kaya be placed within two inches of a warbeast in her control area or vice versa which can let you dish out some serious pain and then zip away to relative safety. She also has a nice little feature called Pack Hunter that means that when a group of her warbeasts pick on a target they get an extra dice on their attack rolls. Her feat is a stronger version of Soothing Song, that allows you to place as many fury as you want on her warbeasts in her control area and then immediately retrieve as many of those fury as she can hold, making for some interesting possibilities if she can charge a vulnerable target and if she does not kill it zip away with Spirit Door.
So while Kaya herself may not be a great spell slinger or melee monster she is very capable of maintaining a manageable pool of fury on the table, meaning her warbeasts are more effective than other unsupported warlocks.
Argus (Light Warbeast) is very fast, but you must be careful to keep them in Kaya's rather meagre control area. It has the choice of a spray attack that lowers the defence of models it hits or two melee attacks that it can combine against targets with higher arm, making it a great solo hunter in bigger games. Kaya's pack hunter stacks nicely with a pair of Argus, which she just happens to bring along. Its animus provides another warbeast with its own abilities of circular vision and pathfinder, both very useful for models that don't already have them.
Feral Warpwolf (Heavy Warbeast) is Kaya's only other companion in the battle box and really lives up to its name of warbeast. It has three base melee attacks (two of which are open fists), regeneration for when things go bad and the choice of one of three boosts each turn an armour, speed or strength. While its animus allows you to discard a fury from another nearby warbeast, while the Warpwolf may not cast it very often Kaya can always have some fun with your opponents warbeasts.
So to look at each model in a vacuum the battle box may not seem like much but the combinations it can turn out can be truly terrifying. For example through all the different abilities the Warpwolf could move six (or eight if you use its boost) inches through a forest (thanks to an Argus's animus) lay down up to seven attacks (which if you don't need the speed you can buff the strength) and then Kaya can Spirit Door the Warpwolf away again out of harms way and then reduce any fury to manageable levels again and that's on top of what ever the Argus get up to.
And on the menu tomorrow, dragon spawn!
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 28, 2012 11:59:14 GMT
Battle Box Basics
Legion of Everblight (Druh-kon-ik Bee-stees) Legion are a created nation built to serve their own Dragon Lord. Unlike any other Hordes faction each and everyone of their beasts is created to fulfil a role in each Warlock's army, this is done through a mix of magical genetic engineering, blood sacrifice and a splash of dragon soul. Because of this they have some really terrifying and gribbily creatures at their disposal.
Lylyth, herald of Everblight is one of the many blighted servants of Everblight, and boasts many of the common abilities bestowed on his servants such as eyeless sight and pathfinder. Like many from her former race (the Nyss, another type of elf) she is an expert archer and combines it with her magic, making her more able than most warlocks to use offensive spells. Even so she only has limited fury and spells so make the most of her archery skill when you do want to cast the odd spell. Lylyth only has three spells at her disposal Bad Blood is a nasty little spell to let you mess around with an opponents beast, Parasite an armour debuff I have talked about already and lastly Eruption of Spines which not only hit the model targeted but an extra D6 nearby models be careful though as it hits friend and foe alike. While her feat is a nice little boost to her army when faced with high defence models, so it is great for assassination runs etc.
Lylyth may not have a great quantity of things to offer but she makes up for it with quality, as she will never be short of targets for her bow which she can then hit easily with any spells if needed. Even better any targets you hit with her bow your beasts can charge for free, which means the rest of your fury goes further.
Shredder (Lesser Warbeast) these are little terrors, smaller than light beasts but just as devastating. Though they only have average stats they have plenty of abilities to make the most of what ever situation is put in front of them. Its Rabid ability (they have no animus) lets a Shredder get some extra movement, pathfinder and boosted attack and damage rolls. This only leaves you one more fury to use but as Lylyth can allow it to charge for free it opens up more possibilities. And you get four of these these bad boys!
Carnivean (Heavy Warbeast) is your only other model in the battle box and its a total monster, it has no less than three melee attacks and one spray ranged attack, that it can also use when it charges! The only problem is that it has a low RAT and a slightly higher MAT, so quite often you will be generating fury to boost attack rolls. Its animus is rather nice though in that it provides an armour boost and any warbeast or warjack hitting it in melee will take some damage for its trouble.
With this army you will want to use blitzkrieg style tactics, making the most of the fast speeds and high damage output of the models at your disposal. Due to all the eyeless sight and pathfinder make sure to use terrain to your advantage and limit their ability to put early damage on your force, remember you can charge unimpeded through forest (but not obstacles like buildings) and its most likely they can't, giving you a great alpha strike. With all the warbeasts you will have on the table you might want to be a little careful of all the fury you can generate, as the temptation will be max out everyone and Lylyth will struggle to bring much of it back in, but then Hordes is all about risk.
Tomorrow brings a nation of sadomasochists with penchant for wild beasts (rawr).
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 29, 2012 9:24:22 GMT
Battle Box BasicsHow about this for timing Paul Skorne ( Ska-horn) A nation driven by service and subjugation, though it took an outsider to bring them out of their infighting to make them the dominating power they are now. In fact it was the deposed King Vinter of Cygnar, who battled his way across the Storm Lands and proceeded to amalgamate each of the houses that now make up the Skorne Empire under his rule. Skorne are a nation of slavers both their own people and the warbeasts they use for battle, even their strongest warriors in death are enslaved by trapping their souls in stone form to continue fighting, though this is considered the greatest honour for any Skorne. Master Tormenter Morghoul is head of the Paingiver Caste, the kind of organisation the Spanish Inquisition could have only wished to be and also ply their trade on beasts in order to subjugate them in to more pliable servants. Morghoul is a by name and reputation a master of his trade and his abilities and spells demonstrate this Abuse gives a speed and strength buff to one friendly warbeast but at the expense of a few damage (he is a Paingiver), Adomination also a battle group model to move three inches when an enemy moves within six inches of it and Torment is a direct damage spell with the added bonus of the model losing tough, any chance of being healed or healing and will be unable to transfer damage for a round if you damage the model with it. His feat Pain and Suffering says it all, it stops all models spending focus, enemy warbeasts from being forced and damage transferance. Morghoul has plenty to offer his battle group and his feat is a pain in the backside for your opponent, but he is also a bit of a killer as in a turn he could make up to fourteen attacks with his Ripper blades. If your target is living he can choose to not roll for melee damage and instead simply deal one point regardless of the targets armour, which can be very useful against heavy warbeasts or warcaster/locks with just a couple of points left. Or if you want to tear through a unit thanks to Overtake giving him a free one inch move each time he kills and finally once he has finished killing Sprint lets him make a full advance at the end of his activation. Cyclops Savage (Light Warbeast) are a subjugated nation under the umbrella of Skorne. The Savage is a fairly useful melee warbeast but its big selling point is that it has Future Sight which also you to boost rolls after you have rolled them, making it very fury efficient, and what's more its animus allows it to give the same ability to other models for a turn! Titan Gladiator (Heavy Warbeast) represents one of Skorne's favourite warbeasts a dirty great big elephant like beast. This variant is a straight forward beat stick, with three base attacks and some extra abilities focused on slamming models around. The issue with the Gladiator is that it is slow but its animus grants it pathfinder and a speed buff, what's more Morghoul's Abuse will give it another speed buff and up its strength turning it in to a utter monster and thats before you have a Savage give it Future Sight. This battle box is utterly focused on melee and with all the buffs you can pile on to your models anyone of them should be able to go in for the kill. An interesting trick to have a go at is to use the Gladiator's slam abilities to slam an intervening model back through, hopefully sending the slam target past, their warcaster/lock knocking both targets down and allow you to use its follow up ability followed by using its four fury to lay the smack down on their caster, combined with either Morghoul's feat or Torment it will be a devastating attack. Some kilted blue skins to follow tomorrow (no the aliens from Avatar haven't put more clothes on).
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on Apr 30, 2012 17:24:55 GMT
Battle Box Basics
Trollblood (Free-duhm!!!) There is no doubting the Scottish nature of the Trolls, be it there love of kilts, bagpipes or booze Trolls mirror the Scots. Trolls tend to be much bigger, stronger and tougher than humans and is why you will not find any Trolls on anything smaller than medium bases (40mm), other than the odd Pygmies you may come across. This has its advantages and disadvantages for example you will just about never be subject to trample attacks, however your army will never be able to bring as many models to bear as most other armies or in other words you will be more easily bottle necked.
Chief Madrak Ironhide is a fairly typical Troll warlock in that he is built for melee, though he is able to throw his axe like a boomerang... twice if he is lucky. His weapon, Rathrok, denies tough, healing and damage transfer on a critical, both at range and in melee, which is nice. Like many low fury warlocks Madrak only has three base spells at his disposal Carnage which provides friendly models boosted attack rolls against enemy models in his control area, Sure Foot provides immunity to being knocked down and also a defence buff and lastly Stranglehold which is a very situational spell due to the eventual cost of boosts to it as if you damage a target with it that model must forfeit either its movement or action on its next activation. His feat meanwhile grants friendly models in his control area Overtake (a one inch move after killing an enemy warrior model) and an extra melee attack, so this stacks nicely with Carnage.
On most turns Madrak will be busy trying to best manage his fury pool, casting Carnage when it is required and most likely upkeeping Sure Foot from turn one. But don't let that fool you, when the turn comes he will turn in to a total killer and turn his army (especailly in bigger games) in to a whirlwind of death.
Axer (Light Warbeast) is Madraks only straight melee beast in the battle box and is best suited to take on other lights or infantry thanks to reach and thresher. Its animus, Rush, is useful for getting warbeasts to where the action as it provides a speed buff and pathfinder. The last thing of note is that as with all Troll beasts it has Regeneration allowing it to be force to heal D3 points of damage (your choice of location(s)).
Impaler (Light Warbeast) Madrak brings along two of these guys to make up the rest of his battle group, which is kind of strange as it means he has no heavy beast. But they do add a little utility to his army as they are just as useful at range as in melee, as they mimic Madrak throwing the same spears they use in melee. Its animus, Far Strike, is handy too as it provides both the Impalers and Madrak with a little extra range. Using an Impaler on the flank can cause all sorts of havoc thanks to its critical Smite which slams any model hit on a critical roll, so while this maybe unreliable to pull off it does make for some interesting possibilities.
Probably the biggest issue this box set has is that there is no heavy warbeast, so it will struggle a little to break heavy armour. When a few Troll warbeasts and Madrak gang up on something there wont be much left, but be sure not to leave yourself exposed to counter attack. Sadly Madraks feat wont see much use until expanded games using more troops, which doesn't really help the situation either. But don't give up hope, really what you need to do is use the range threat and terrain to your advantage, deal some damage before letting your enemy close and it may be worth while to pick off softer targets first (depending on your opponent) to thin out the herd.
Tomorrow is the last of the Battle Box Basics which covers the remainder of the 'creatures'.
|
|
gcflash
Veteran
Hoo ha huh!
Posts: 332
|
Post by gcflash on May 1, 2012 18:18:48 GMT
Battle Box BasicsMinions ( Mis-uh-ley-nee-uhs Krit-ers) As well as a few independent contractors minions come in two flavours bacon or chicken... sorry I meant to say Gators (The Blindwater Congregation) or Farrow (The Thornfall Alliance). Both are fighting for their native territories that are being infringed upon by wars and expansion of other races, rather than rolling over (well the Gators still do that) and being crushed they choose to take up arms against their aggressors. Bloody Barnabas is the leader of the Blindwater Congregation and a warrior without equal amongst his people. Barnabas while not the strongest in magic amongst his follower has some very useful spells to support his army Swamp Pit lets him place some five inch shallow water templates in his control area as well as slowing up your opponent they also buff your own models while in them, Iron Flesh buffs a model/units defence at the expense of their speed (meaning they cannot charge while the spell is up-kept on them, so remember to drop it the turn you wish the model to do so), Warpath allows a warbeast in Barnabas's battle group to make out of activation move of a few inches when an enemy model is killed, lastly Flesh Eater is his only direct damage spell that also heals D3 points from the caster or one of his warbeasts when it boxes a living model. Barnabas's feat, Black Tide, is another knock down feat but this time with the fluffy addition that it only knocks down non- amphibious enemy models, though this is not much of an issue as there are only a handful of models outside of Gators that have amphibious. Really though Barnabas's strength is his melee ability as he has three base attacks, one has reach, a good MAT and his armour increases when engaged in combat, in fact he is so keen to get in to melee he has counter charge to let him get the first hit on any enemy model that moves within six inches of him and if he kills a model with his Bone Cleaver he gets to cast a spell for free. Beyond that his spells are there to get him and his force in to combat as undamaged as possible and his feat is there to give his army easy targets once there. Blackhide Wrastler (Heavy Warbeast) really captures the alligator theme well it has loads of characterful abiltities to set it apart from the norm, obviously like all Gators it comes with amphibious, it also has Man Eater to let it charge living warrior models for free (warcaster/locks fall in to this category), then Snacking for when it kills them to heal D3 damage, but to seal the deal it has the Wrastler ability so it can still attacked while knock down and the special attack Death Roll on its Bite which adds a boost to the damage roll and knock down it and its target. Its animus allows it or target friendly faction model to immediately stand up, so once the Wrastler is done chowing down on its target it can get back up again so as not to be an easy target for your opponent. Ironback Spitter (Heavy Warbeast) really is a bit of fire support thanks to its Spit Blast, other than that its melee attacks will struggle going toe to toe with another heavy beast/jack. It does have some useful abilities, Back Plates will make trooper models think twice about taking free strikes on it as it will take D6 damage for its trouble and Girded provides it and any friendly models in base to base with it immunity to blast damage. Its animus, Orner provides more reason for your opponent to be careful around it as it gains Retaliatory Strike, meaning on one occasion it is hit and not killed he gets to make an attack back and remember Barnabas can always cast this no himself too. It's perhaps a little strange that Barnabas does not bring along a pair of Bull Snappers rather than the Iron Back, however War Path and the Ironback do stack quite nicely when you start playing beyond the battle box as its ranged attack is powerful enough to easily take out a warrior model or two allowing the Wrastler to move in to charge range of its target. While Ornery makes Barnabus a model you just don't want to end your movement near as he can have a free charge and then if your opponent decides to hit him you get another free hit back. --- --- --- Lord Carver, BMMD, Esp. III fancies himself to be the equal of any human Lord and certainly a more fearsome warrior and thanks to a some what Frankenstein Doctor ally, Lord Carver has some rather terrifying war beasts at his disposal. To aid his battle group he has Mobility which is a pulse effect that grants pathfinder and a speed buff to his beasts, Batten Down the Hatches for an armour buff and immunity to knock down but reduces their defence, Carver also has Quagmire (giggity) that will tie up enemy models in bases to base with the target friendly model/unit and Rift which is the same spell as Kaelyssa's (Retribution) which is a damaging AoE that remains as rough terrain for one round. While Lord Carvers feat gives all friendly Farrow models Overtake and an additional damage die in melee. As I have mentioned before don't forget about waracster/locks ranged weapons, Lord Carver has a Sawed-off Shotgun which provides either two six inch sprays at an average power or one high power shot when he fires both barrels at once, great for clearing out troops. Otherwise this is a fairly rounded battle group but most likely a warcaster/lock kill will come though melee as the Gun Boars don't have the RAT to reliably hit them, though its far from impossible. Gun Boar (Light Warbeast) centres around its 'Big Gun' even though it does have two melee attacks, as they are low power but are both open fists letting it throw things which is always fun. Its Big Gun is an average range and power AoE attack but its animus allows it to fire, or make a melee attack, at models that end their movement within six inches of it and as you have two Gun Boars and Carver in battle group who can take advantage of this animus it might make your opponent think twice about ending their movement too close to you. It also has one last oddity which is the Bacon affect which when the Gun Boar is destroyed each living warbeast in base to base heals D3 damage, well everything's better with bacon I guess. War Hog (Heavy Warbeast) is a prime example of the Frankenstein like experiments going on, its part Farrow part warjack (though it is still a warbeast rules wise) and has an Aggression Dial to buff its strength, though it takes D3 damage, which is great for its three base melee attacks as it will bring them all to high power levels. Its animus lets it tear through troops as it gets to make a one inch move and make another attack, though without reach you will need to plan your trail of destruction carefully for maximum effect. Because of the combine arms feel of the battle box it is likely you will need to soften up your opponent with the Gun Boars, before you let the War Hog loose as it is likely to get outnumbered against more melee orientated battle boxes. So stick them up front as cannon fodder and let them deal some early damage before the War Hog and Lord Carver roll in to finish the job, on feat turn these two will make a real mess of your opponent. That's it now for the battle boxes, hopefully this will help give you an idea of what to expect from your opponents force as well as your own if its new to you. I will try to link in things I spot in the early games for the next topics, but of course feel free to ask any questions you have on tactics or rules and good luck with your first few games on Thrusday night! Cheers Callum
|
|