Friday, October 4, 2013

Swingin' the Chain, Swingin' the Chain

After the last tournament, I've decided to try out a new warlock: Dominar Rasheth.  There are a couple of reasons.

1)  He's supposedly very good.  I keep reading about people taking him to conventions and doing well with him.  He certainly seems to have a lot of tools against a lot of opponents, and asks an important question himself: Can you deal with 3-4 Titans when they're protected by clouds, and your damage rolls are debuffed?

2)  His playstyle looks like it will complement Makeda 3's, and she's currently my favorite Skorne warlock (she's so fantastic, I'll probably write out a massive post on how great she is pretty soon).  A lot of the matchups Makeda 3 doesn't like to see are fine for Rasheth.  Rasheth runs more Titans, and gives better and more consistent defensive support than Makeda 3.  His Feat and ability to take multiple Agonizers make him very good at running a high-Arm list.  He also plays from the backfield, which makes him a pretty good complement in terms of not putting him at risk.  Makeda 3 tends to rely on a few pieces, herself included, to do most of the work, while Rasheth spreads buffs (and debuffs) around for everyone to use.  If I decide I like Rasheth enough, I may end up using the two together.

3)  He is one Skorne warlock who really, actually likes to be played in Tier.  And his Theme List, Chain Gang is good.  It's like he's hosting an infomercial about House Telarr's Titan-Based Products, and every 10 seconds, he pauses to say "But wait, there's more!"  For real, here's the Tier 1 benefit:

Buy now, and you'll receive all your Titans Warbeasts at a 1pt discount, but, call within the next 10 minutes, and we'll increase the FA of Agonizers by one for every Titan you purchase absolutely free!!!
- Forces of Hordes: Skorne, p 26.

Even after Tier 1, the benefits are solid, although they are mostly icing on the cheaper Titans cake.  They're all useful, and "require" you to grab choices you'd already be reaching for with the Theme list.  Gatormen and a Task Master?  Sure, that seems good.  Two or more Agonizers?  Well, you're letting me take more than one.  Three or more Titans?  Heck, I run 3 Titans regularly enough at full price, outside of Tier, with plenty of 'casters.

The Tier list does have a limited model selection.  The only beasts allowed are Titans and Basilisks, and the only solos allowed are Paingiver Task Masters and Agonizers.  The units are a little more open, especially considering what Rasheth wants in a list: Nihilators, Venators, and Minion units are all fine.  Special mention should go to the Gatormen Posse and the Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew, although Farrow Slaughterhousers are also good.

4)  I honestly like Rasheth's fluff a lot.  I'm a sucker for any kind of fluff that hints at Skorne society beyond the Army of the Western Reaches, and really anything that depicts Skorne who aren't proud warriors eager to suffer and die for their ideals.  Don't get me wrong - the warrior theme makes Skorne who they are as a Faction, and I wouldn't be nearly as into the fluff if uncompromising martial pride weren't a major part of the Skorne.  But the fluff has always alluded to the farmers, paper-shufflers, and everyday Joe-kesh Skorne of the Empire, and they're the ones who make the Faction come alive as a civilization for me.

Rasheth has nothing but disdain for the traditional Skorne values of hardship, privation, and glory in the crucible of honorable combat, and he isn't afraid to show it.  He's warrior caste by birth, but he won't even trouble himself to lift a weapon.  He rules one of the most powerful Houses in the Empire, but has made it powerful primarily by developing trade.  Still, Rasheth hasn't tried to escape feudal conflict; he actually enjoys it.  He loves taking the battlefield personally, and breaking his enemies himself, as though to rub in their faces exactly what their warrior's pride is worth.

I could go on, but this post isn't really a fluff post.  Rasheth is interesting, and he makes the Skorne more interesting by association.

5)  Co-Blogger and Trollkin-about-town Caleb is also talking the opportunity to try out a new warlock, and we decided to coordinate a couple of battles using the new ones, so expect some reports!  At some point in the next month or so, I'll probably pick Rasheth up if he works out for me.


Rasheth's Theme lists more or less build themselves up to a point, so here's my take on a 35pt list and a 50pt list for Rasheth.

Chain Gang Tier 2, 35pts

Dominar Rasheth (+5)
*Bronzeback Titan (9)
*Titan Cannoneer (8)
*Titan Gladiator (7)
5 Gatormen Posse (9)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (1)
Agonizer (2)
Paingiver Task Master (2)

I only decided to go for Tier 2 because I wanted both 3 Titans and full Gatormen with a Task Master.  That didn't leave room for 2 Agonizers, but oh well.  The list has a lot of high Arm, and Rasheth's Feat and the Agonizer's abilities will make it extra hard for many (non-Cryx) armies to deal with.  I went with a Cannoneer over a Sentry because I wanted a little shooting to combo with the Arm debuff from Rasheth's Feat and Blood Mark.  Having Diminish in the list is also nice, and can be back-breaking in conjunction with Gnawing Pain and the Feat for a total of -6 to melee damage rolls on living 'beasts.  The Swamp Gobbers are in there to block LoS to Rasheth and hand out Concealment as needed.

Chain Gang Tier 4, 50pts

Dominar Rasheth (+5)
*Bronzeback Titan (9)
*Titan Cannoneer (8)
*Titan Sentry (8)
*Titan Gladiator (7)
5 Gatormen Posse (9)
6 Venator Rievers (5)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (1)
Agonizer (2)
Agonizer (2)
Paingiver Task Master (2)

At 50pts, I decided to add in a Sentry, which works extremely well with Carnivore and Train Wreck, provides extra protection with Locker, and is kind of absurdly hard to take out if I can stack all the damage debuffs in the list.  It's also a Reach beast, and a staple for Rasheth.  I added in the second Agonizer to get to Tier 4, and because Agonizers are so unbelievably good.  I also added a squad of Venator Rievers to get a little more shooting into the list.  Burst Fire will give them good damage even against heavies combined with Blood Mark and the Arm debuff from the Feat.  They'll combine with the Cannoneer and arced spells to give me a pretty respectable ranged game.

That's the plan for now.  I'm pretty excited to try Rasheth out.

See you all later.

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