Well, there's a 50pt tournament at Tower this weekend, and I'll probably be able to make it. I've decided to go with Makeda 3 and pHexeris for a couple of reasons. First, they're the warlocks I probably have the most practice with, although I haven't played pHexeris in a little while. Second, I really like their respective play-styles, and I think they complement each other. Makeda 3 is very aggressive, and tends to run more of a brick list where she can put her offense wherever it's needed to support the list. She can be shut down with some denial, which Hexeris can play around thanks to a stronger ranged and magic game. Hexeris is more control-oriented. He likes to get rid of support solos and jamming elements early on with his spells. He can have some trouble with very high armor, which is something Makeda handles fine.
Here are the lists I'm considering:
List 1: Makeda and the Exalted Court
Makeda and the Exalted Court (*2pts)
*Molik Karn (11pts)
*Bronzeback Titan (10pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Basilisk Krea (4pts)
Nihilators (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
Tyrant Commander and Standard Bearer (3pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Orin Midwinter, Rogue Inquisitor (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Mortitheurge Willbreaker (2pts)
Specialists
*Cyclops Shaman (5pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (1pt)
Extoller Soulward (2pts)
I've been playing Makeda 3 a lot lately, and this is the list I'm most comfortable with right now. It's well rounded enough that I'd take it against most opponents and in most scenarios. The plan is to try to start scoring scenario points early, and grind down the opponent's army until I win on scenario, or there's an assassination lane open. The Nihilators are mostly a screening and jamming unit, Makeda and Molik Karn will do most of the work against enemy infantry, and the Bronzeback and Gladiator will do most of the mid/late game piece trade with enemy heavies. The rest is support - the Tyrant Commander and Mortitheurge Willbreaker will focus on supporting Makeda, since she'll be doing so much of the offense. The Agonizer and Orin Midwinter will focus on reducing incoming damage from enemy models by denying spellcasting or Focus allocation, or just reducing damage rolls.
The one thing I'm really worried about for this list is denial. I can lose tempo really quickly if I'm denied LoS by cloud effects or if Makeda is shut down by a speed debuff. The Shaman can strip debuffs, while the Extoller lets models see through cloud effects. I'd be dropping the Krea and a 2-pt solo (any of the three depending on my opponent) when I switch in the Shaman, so I decided to take Swamp Gobbers to fill the extra point. They'll be able to block LoS to Makeda and Molik after Fate Walker moves, and provide Concealment if I still need the defense against ranged attacks.
List 2: Lord Tyrant Hexeris (Kingdom of Shadow Tier 1)
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (*6pts) (Starts the game with Psychic Vampire)
*Bronzeback Titan (10pts)
*Titan Cannoneer (9pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Archidon (7pts) (Starts the game with Soul Slave)
*Cyclops Savage (5pts)
*Aptimus Marketh (3pts)
Praetorian Swordsmen (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts) (Start the game with Death March)
*Praetorian Swordsmen Officer and Standard Bearer (2pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Extoller Soulward (2pts)
Specialists
*Cyclops Shaman (5pts)
*Cyclops Raider (5pts)
Kingdom of Shadow
Tier 1 Benefit: Friendly models/units can begin the game affected by Hexeris' upkeep spells. These spells and their targets must be declared before either player sets up models. Hexeris does not pay fury to upkeep these spells during your first turn.
This is my current pHexeris list. It's pretty well balanced. Hexeris doesn't have any way to boost hitting power, especially for beasts, but he has a strong anti-infantry game between his Feat and his ability to channel spells. The Bronzeback, Cannoneer and Gladiator are the heavy hitters here, and help Hexeris take care of heavy armor. The Archidon is a fast Soul Slave target for chanelling, and hits pretty hard in melee. The Savage is mainly around to provide Hexeris with Future Sight to make his spellcasting more efficient. The Swordsmen are mainly a screen, but also help clear out enemy infantry. The Extoller Soulward will mainly be giving Hexeris Guidance, but might use it on the Cannoneer as well if needed. The Agonizer does its usual denial of either stopping Focus allocation or reducing damage from enemy Warbeasts.
I'm not completely settled on the Specialists here. I'll either be putting the Raider or Shaman in for the Savage if I need the extra shooting, but don't feel I need Future Sight for spells. Against Cryx infantry lists and the like, I'll probably put both of them in for the Bronzeback. The armor cracking isn't necessary against Cryx, but all the shooting I can bring, especially boostable sniping, will be very helpful.
Overall, I'm pretty confident of my abilities in most matchups. Makeda will probably be my go-to warlock in this tournament because I have the most experience with her recently. I'll be faster and more confident with her in general, and her list can actually handle most matchups. I'm a little worried about serious denial like p/eDeneghra and Haley, but Hexeris is decent in those matchups, and if I think Makeda will be in serious trouble, I'll use him. He also handles high-Def a little better than Makeda does, so I'll consider him for the Iron Flesh matchups as well.
I'm also worried about Menoth, especially Harbinger. Self-Sacrifice and Martyrdom mess with both of my Feats, and Makeda will be seriously impeded without Blood Boon. Both Warlocks want to target the enemy with spells, and Menoth is great at denying that. Oddly, I'm not very worried about Purification. Neither Hexeris nor Makeda relies on upkeep spells that much, and neither uses them for defense. It's not so bad recasting offensive upkeeps if I need them.
That's it for the lists. I'll probably play a couple of games tomorrow night with pHexeris, just to get used to him again, and make sure I have the list I want.
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