Army List: pMadrak 50pts, Winter Kin Tier 4

There doesn't seem to be a lot of hype about the new Madrak tier, which is odd to me - it seems pretty good. I figured I'd run through it quick, just for the heck of it.

Bear in mind, I'm not exactly a competitive strategic powerhouse when it comes to list building, so comments would be very helpful.


Theme Force: Madrak's Winter Kin

Warlock - Madrak Ironhide, Thornwood Chieftan
Warbeasts - Trollblood non-character warbeasts
Units - Krielstone Bearer & Stone Scribes, Northkin units, Trollkin Scouts, Trollkin Warders
Solos - Stone Scribe Chronicler, Trollkin Runebearer, Trollkin Sorcerer, Trollkin Skinners

TIER 1
Requirements - The army can only include the models listed above.
Benefits - Trollkin Skinners in the army gain Immunity: Cold and their Skinning Knives gain Beacon. (Replace the Trollkin Skinners card with the Theme Force Trollkin Skinners card.)

TIER 2
Requirements - The army includes three of more models/units with Pathfinder.
Benefits - Models in the army have concealment during the first round of the game.

TIER 3
Requirements - The army includes a Stone Scribe Elder.
Benefits - Friendly models/units can begin the game affected by Madrak's upkeep spells. These spells and their targets must be declared before either player sets up models. Madrak does not pay fury to upkeep these spells during your first turn.

TIER 4
Requirements - Madrak's battlegroup includes a Troll Axer and two or more other warbeasts.
Benefits - Add a Troll Impaler to Madrak's battlegroup free of cost.

So, besides a free Impaler, Concealment, and a first turn upkeep (not as big a benefit; pMadrak only has 1 upkeep spell, though it will let him charge up the KSB), the advantages are a little odd at first glance. The first one I can see is that the restrictions and requirements are stuff I would take in a Trollblood list anyway - Stone Scribes and UA, Axer, Warders, Runebearer, Fire Eaters, etc. The only thing that's really lacking is access to Mulg, Rok, Whelps, and more varied infantry, but with the models already there, it's pretty close to a basic Meat Mountain list.

The second advantage are the Skinners. Lets take a moment and marvel at the utter absurdity of that sentence - one of the few things most Trollblood players agree on is the relatively universal uselessness of Skinners, but in this case they are one the of the list's hidden strengths. 'Beacon' is effectively just Hunter's Mark on a melee weapon rather than spell, except that it can do a bunch of damage (a ludicrous amount against a Warbeast) and can benefit from Carnage, making it very likely to hit just about every warjack/warbeast without much trouble. Since this will give everything in the list a speed boost (including Warders!), this will help immensely to get everyone where they need to go on Feat turn, and serve as a nasty counter to Colossals/Gargantuans, 'Jack/'Beast bricks, and forward-leading Warcasters/Warlocks. Even Butcher3 will have some problems with a unit or two of warders charging in with +2 Movement and Carnage.

The final advantage is that fulfilling the requirements is downright easy. 3 models with Pathfinder? 2 Skinners and an EBDT or Glacier King fit the bill. Stone Scribe Elder? Pretty much required in every trollblood list anyway. An Axer and 2 more beasts? Besides the always-amazing Axer and pathfinder-beast, toss in a low-maintenance defensive/utility light beast like a Bouncer, 2nd Impaler, or Pyre and call it a day. Getting a free Impaler is just solid bonus.

The first real downside I see is that you can't take Whelps, which, in a list with this many beasts, is actually a problem. The GK can easily outpace pMadrak's FURY just by shooting, and I expect a bunch of frenzies once the list hits melee range. The lack of a Fell Caller isn't as bad as I would have initially thought (Surefoot and Carnage can do pretty much the same thing), and the Chronicler, while allowed, is somewhat redundant if you include a Glacier King.

The List

pMadrak 50pts Winter Kin Tier 4
Madrak Ironhide, Thornwood Chieftain - WB: +6
- Trollkin Runebearer
- Glacier King
- Troll Bouncer
- Troll Axer (Bron)
- Troll Impaler (Jor, free)
Trollkin Skinner (Winter Kin)
Trollkin Skinner (Winter Kin)
Krielstone Bearer & Stone Scribes (max)
- Stone Scribe Elder
Trollkin Warders - Leader & 4 Grunts
Trollkin Warders - Leader & 4 Grunts

I could drop a unit of warders for 2 units of Fire Eaters, which would probably make this a much more competitive list all around I think, but I think I prefer double warders. The Bouncer is in there because I needed a beast with more static abilities, since Whelps aren't an option in the tier list; the Bouncer is there to keep pMadrak alive, and take any nasty crippling shots directed at the Glacier King (less of an issue after the errata, but still annoying).

The Glacier King synergizes so well with pMadrak it's almost uncanny. Carnage can mitigate the low MAT, Surefoot on him stacks with concealment from Snowfall (and he's large enough half the army can fit in), his animus is amazing behind a line of Warders and with pMadrak, and with this many weapon masters in the list, Freeze is downright dangerous. His ranged-attack board control is just what pMadrak is looking for, and gives this list a surprisingly good shooting element while it gets into position. Heck, Snowfall even grants Prowl to the Skinners, so that's a win-win as well.


I like it. It's a bit MMM, a smidgen beast brick, makes for one nasty battle line. I'll have to play it to be sure, but it looks alright.