I picked up a couple of Mortitheurge Willbreakers the other day, partly because they provide incredible utility, and partly because I'm planning to throw both of them into my shooty pMorghoul list at 50pts. The list has been fairly successful so far, and I'm hoping that the Willbreakers will really open up the list's ability to bombard people as well as make the Krea-Torment assassination even more threatening than it already was.
Previous versions of the list can be found here and here.
Here's the list:
Master Tormentor Morghoul (+7pts)
*Bronzeback Titan (10pts)
*Titan Cannoneer (9pts)
*Titan Cannoneer (9pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Cyclops Brute (5pts)
*Basilisk Krea (4pts)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2pts)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Mortitheurge Willbreaker (2pts)
Mortitheurge Willbreaker (2pts)
Extoller Soulward (2pts)
Specialists:
*Cyclops Raider (5pts)
*Cyclops Shaman (5pts)
Overall, the list wants to grind its opponents down with the Cannoneer bombardment before closing to melee with all 4 heavies. I'm a little nervous about the amount of support in the list - 21pts all told, and might swap some of it for the Specialist beasts.
The teamwork scheme is pretty straightforward.
Teams 1 & 2: Cannoneer, Willbreaker
The two Cannoneer teams will work closely together and with the Willbreakers. They'll snipe out enemy solos, and lay down a bunch of templates against enemy infantry units. Puppet Strings will help them hitting dodgier models, and Ancillary Attack will let them threaten infantry more seriously when they're working together. The Cannoneers are also my frontline attrition beasts. They'll be fairly durable with the defensive buffs I can throw up, and hold the enemy for a counterattack from the Bronzeback and Gladiator.
Team 3: Bronzeback
The Bronzeback is my main counterattack Beast, and will also remove a lot of heavies and infantry when the game closes to melee. It adds a lot of power to the Cannoneers with its own melee threat and Animus, and it benefits well from the Cannoneers' Diminish animus if I want to do any "discover" counter charges (Cannoneer Admonitions to the side with Diminish up, and the BB charges in).
Team 4: Gladiator, Extoller, [Raider]
The Gladiator is a counterattack model who will also be helping the Cannoneers get up the field more quickly. I can Rush+Abuse both Cannoneers on turn 1 for a 14" run forward followed up by Ancillary Attacks (wicked grin). Not the most accurate, of course, but sometimes people aren't ready for that early on. It'll be more likely that I'll just keep the Cannoneers moving 6-8" and having them shoot on their own activations. The Extoller will hand out Eyeless Sight/ Magic Weapons to whoever needs it, and works well with the Gladiator for letting my beasts charge through forests. When I run it, the Raider will mostly be in this team, buffing the Cannoneers' range, adding its shots, and picking off solos.
Team 5: Brute, Krea, Agonizer, [Shaman], Morghoul
Team 5 is defensive support, basically. The Brute and Krea are around to protect my models from being knocked down and damaged at range, and the Agonizer is there to help me protect my models from melee by warbeasts. Against 'jacks, the Agonizer will find a good turn to run up and prevent Focus allocation. Morghoul is with this team both because he wants to be near the Brute and Krea, and because he wants to support the front lines relatively closely with his own melee threat against infantry as well as Abuse, Admonition and his Feat. The Shaman will vacillate between Team 5 and Team 4 depending on what I need from it. It's a great model to snipe solos with, but its main job will be Animus support. The Krea, while it's a great defensive model, can easily pop up to deliver a Spiritual Paralysis to a key target. With Puppet Strings boosting its dice, Spiritual Paralysis is a pretty reliable 1st move for a ranged assassination, which Morghoul, the Cannoneers and the Soulward can help finish.
Team 6: Paingivers, Paingivers
Beast Support. With 2 units, I have a lot of Order of Activation options.
I've had some good success with the previous incarnations of this list, and I'm optimistic about this one being more focused and dangerous. Table time will tell whether I'm right or not.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Battle Report eHexeris vs Saeryn (35pts)
Here's the 35pt game I got in about a week and a half ago.
I played:
Lord Arbiter Hexeris (+6)
*Bronzeback Titan (10)
*Titan Sentry (9) - Bonded to eHexeris
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Cyclops Savage (5)
6 Venator Rievers (5)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
This is one of my favorite lists at 35pts. It fits together, it's fast to play, and it has a lot of options against both heavies and infantry. This is the first time I've played this list in a couple months (since October or something), and it's nice getting back in the groove with eHexy and some shooting. This list is pretty well balanced for 35pts, although something like an Arm 24 Gargossal would certainly test its limits, and it doesn't have many major blind spots.
My opponent, Jen played:
Saeryn, Omen of Everblight (+5)
*Scythean (9)
*Scythean (9)
*Angelius (9)
*Angelius (9)
*Harrier (2)
The Forsaken (2)
This list has two very hard hitters in the Scytheans, and two maneuverable assassins in the Angelii. The Harrier was a bit of an unknown quantity, but it would be fast. Rather than being geared to adapt to opponents' lists, this one has a plan, and makes opponents adapt to it. Saeryn will either use her Feat to launch the Angelii on an assassination run or make her army immune to melee attacks while she sets one up.
I ended up going first. I deployed in a loose brick in roughly the center of the table. Jen deployed on the left side where she could have Saeryn lurking around in a forest for safety while she plotted her assassination.
Turn 1: Skorne
I ran (or equivalently Rush-Trampled) forward with everything except Hexeris, who cast Ashen Veil on the Sentry. I positioned around so my Sentry would be my foremost beast for Locker protection in the coming turns.
Turn 1: Legion
Jen ran her beasts forward a little more cautiously, keeping out of my charge ranges. The Scytheans came at my center-left, and the Angelii circled around both flanks. Saeryn put Respawn on one of the Scytheans.
It seemed pretty likely that Jen was trying to set up for an Angelius assassination run on her turn 3 or 4. I'd have to make her use Saeryn's feat for attrition (not a super plan, given that it's very good at attrition, but better that than having Hexeris get tail stabbed to death).
Turn 2: Skorne
I ran a little more cautiously this time. I screened my Bronzeback and Gladiator a little with my Venators, who took a shot at a Scythean with their Extend Fire mini-feat. The Sentry advanced to the front of my line, likely in range of the non-Respawning Scythean, but not in range of the other one.
Not much more action this turn. I was pressuring Jen with the Sentry, which has the same threat range with Rush as a Scythean has. I didn't know if she'd try to kill it, but it seemed good to try to remove one of her heavies before it was optimal for her to feat.
Turn 2: Legion
Jen charged the Scythean into the Sentry, and flew the Harrier into the midst of the Venators. The Scythean did some heavy damage, but failed to kill the Sentry thanks to Ashen Veil. Saeryn cast Blight Bringer on the Harrier, which killed a couple of Venators. The Angelii flew up a little further, and took some potshots at the Venators, but didn't kill any.
Saeryn hadn't Feated, so I'd need to make this turn count. If I could kill off the Scytheans, I'd stand a better chance of winning a war of attrition. Angelii can do a lot of damage with Armor Piercing, but don't have many attacks.
Turn 3: Skorne
My Bronzeback charged the Scythean engaging the Sentry, and killed it. The Savage charged and killed the Harrier. The Venators shot at one of the Angelii. The Gladiator Rushed the Sentry, who charged the living Scythean, but failed to kill it.
There was an awful lot of Legion stuff still alive, and Saeryn was about to Feat. I'd protected myself from the assassination run, but my heavies were likely going to die over the next two turns.
Turn 3: Legion
Saeryn advanced (still in that forest though) and Feated. The Scythean killed the Sentry. One Angelius charged the Gladiator, doing a lot of damage. The other charged the Savage, but rolled triple 1's on its AP attack. The Forsaken advanced and took some Fury off the Scythean.
There wasn't a whole lot I could do at this point except shoot, cast offensive magic, and hope my beasts would survive Jen's next turn intact enough to retaliate.
Turn 4: Skorne
The Savage turned to face Hexeris, and used Prescience on him to let him boost attack and damage rolls after rolling. Hexeris advanced, and cast Ashes to Ashes on the Scythean, killed the Forsaken, and did a little damage to Saeryn. Then he used his Feat to steal a bunch of Fury from the Legion beasts, healed some of his battlegroup's damage, and camped a bunch. The Gladiator and Bronzeback circled up around Hexeris to prevent any Legion beasts from mulching him next turn. The unengaged Venators advanced a bit, shot the Scythean a bit, and Reformed to block its charge lane on the Gladiator and Bronzeback.
Last turn had been Jen's setup. This turn, she was poised to do a lot of damage to my beasts. We'd see just what the dice decided.
Turn 4: Legion
It looked like I'd successfully protected Hexeris. Saeryn cut herself a bit to build up her Fury again. One Angelius did a bunch of damage to my Bronzeback, while the other killed the Savage. The Scythean Trampled over some of the Venators to get to the Bronzeback, and finished it off.
I was down to Hexeris, 3 Venators, and a half-dead Gladiator. There was no way I'd be able to do enough damage to Saeryn's beasts to win on attrition, but there was a small window for assassination, and Saeryn's beasts were all full on Fury.
Turn 5: Skorne
The Gladiator tried to take out the Scythean, but didn't quite do it. One lucky Venator advanced into the forest to within 5" of Saeryn, and the rest got out of Hexeris' way. Hexeris advanced to within range of the Venator, and shot him in the back with Ashes to Ashes. The fire splashed onto Saeryn, and I boosted damage, barely doing enough to finish her off.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
Earlier that night, I'd had a game where I should have lost because I left no transfer slots available on my beasts. This game I eked out a victory thanks to the same mistake. I played a fairly solid game, but so did Jen, and Saeryn's feat turned out to be too much to handle for this list. Despite its decent shooting/magic abilities, my list does live and die in melee, especially against heavies. My biggest mistake this game was not focusing the firepower I had enough on one target. If I'd used Hellfire and my Venators consistently to take out, say, the Scythean with Respawn, I might not have lost my key beasts on Saeryn's double turn.
Jen only made one real mistake, which was not leaving a transfer slot available for Saeryn on the last turn. To some extent, that was hard to avoid. The Bronzeback absolutely needed to die, because it could have killed two of her heavies, while Hexeris and the Gladiator finished off the last one, and I don't remember how many attacks Jen needed to use to kill it. Otherwise, she played a strong, conservative game, using the potential of Saeryn's Feat to pressure me, and timed it well to do a lot of damage. This Saeryn list is also scary. It's a little weak against heavy shooting, but it's very fast, and the one turn of melee immunity means it can tear melee oriented lists apart. Finally, the Angelii are a huge threat. I was forced to play Hexeris pretty far back until after Saeryn had popped her Feat, because flying and immunity to free strikes would let them assassinate him pretty easily.
I played:
Lord Arbiter Hexeris (+6)
*Bronzeback Titan (10)
*Titan Sentry (9) - Bonded to eHexeris
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Cyclops Savage (5)
6 Venator Rievers (5)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
This is one of my favorite lists at 35pts. It fits together, it's fast to play, and it has a lot of options against both heavies and infantry. This is the first time I've played this list in a couple months (since October or something), and it's nice getting back in the groove with eHexy and some shooting. This list is pretty well balanced for 35pts, although something like an Arm 24 Gargossal would certainly test its limits, and it doesn't have many major blind spots.
My opponent, Jen played:
Saeryn, Omen of Everblight (+5)
*Scythean (9)
*Scythean (9)
*Angelius (9)
*Angelius (9)
*Harrier (2)
The Forsaken (2)
This list has two very hard hitters in the Scytheans, and two maneuverable assassins in the Angelii. The Harrier was a bit of an unknown quantity, but it would be fast. Rather than being geared to adapt to opponents' lists, this one has a plan, and makes opponents adapt to it. Saeryn will either use her Feat to launch the Angelii on an assassination run or make her army immune to melee attacks while she sets one up.
I ended up going first. I deployed in a loose brick in roughly the center of the table. Jen deployed on the left side where she could have Saeryn lurking around in a forest for safety while she plotted her assassination.
Turn 1: Skorne
I ran (or equivalently Rush-Trampled) forward with everything except Hexeris, who cast Ashen Veil on the Sentry. I positioned around so my Sentry would be my foremost beast for Locker protection in the coming turns.
Turn 1: Legion
Jen ran her beasts forward a little more cautiously, keeping out of my charge ranges. The Scytheans came at my center-left, and the Angelii circled around both flanks. Saeryn put Respawn on one of the Scytheans.
It seemed pretty likely that Jen was trying to set up for an Angelius assassination run on her turn 3 or 4. I'd have to make her use Saeryn's feat for attrition (not a super plan, given that it's very good at attrition, but better that than having Hexeris get tail stabbed to death).
Turn 2: Skorne
I ran a little more cautiously this time. I screened my Bronzeback and Gladiator a little with my Venators, who took a shot at a Scythean with their Extend Fire mini-feat. The Sentry advanced to the front of my line, likely in range of the non-Respawning Scythean, but not in range of the other one.
Not much more action this turn. I was pressuring Jen with the Sentry, which has the same threat range with Rush as a Scythean has. I didn't know if she'd try to kill it, but it seemed good to try to remove one of her heavies before it was optimal for her to feat.
Turn 2: Legion
Jen charged the Scythean into the Sentry, and flew the Harrier into the midst of the Venators. The Scythean did some heavy damage, but failed to kill the Sentry thanks to Ashen Veil. Saeryn cast Blight Bringer on the Harrier, which killed a couple of Venators. The Angelii flew up a little further, and took some potshots at the Venators, but didn't kill any.
Saeryn hadn't Feated, so I'd need to make this turn count. If I could kill off the Scytheans, I'd stand a better chance of winning a war of attrition. Angelii can do a lot of damage with Armor Piercing, but don't have many attacks.
Turn 3: Skorne
My Bronzeback charged the Scythean engaging the Sentry, and killed it. The Savage charged and killed the Harrier. The Venators shot at one of the Angelii. The Gladiator Rushed the Sentry, who charged the living Scythean, but failed to kill it.
There was an awful lot of Legion stuff still alive, and Saeryn was about to Feat. I'd protected myself from the assassination run, but my heavies were likely going to die over the next two turns.
Turn 3: Legion
Saeryn advanced (still in that forest though) and Feated. The Scythean killed the Sentry. One Angelius charged the Gladiator, doing a lot of damage. The other charged the Savage, but rolled triple 1's on its AP attack. The Forsaken advanced and took some Fury off the Scythean.
There wasn't a whole lot I could do at this point except shoot, cast offensive magic, and hope my beasts would survive Jen's next turn intact enough to retaliate.
Turn 4: Skorne
The Savage turned to face Hexeris, and used Prescience on him to let him boost attack and damage rolls after rolling. Hexeris advanced, and cast Ashes to Ashes on the Scythean, killed the Forsaken, and did a little damage to Saeryn. Then he used his Feat to steal a bunch of Fury from the Legion beasts, healed some of his battlegroup's damage, and camped a bunch. The Gladiator and Bronzeback circled up around Hexeris to prevent any Legion beasts from mulching him next turn. The unengaged Venators advanced a bit, shot the Scythean a bit, and Reformed to block its charge lane on the Gladiator and Bronzeback.
Last turn had been Jen's setup. This turn, she was poised to do a lot of damage to my beasts. We'd see just what the dice decided.
Turn 4: Legion
It looked like I'd successfully protected Hexeris. Saeryn cut herself a bit to build up her Fury again. One Angelius did a bunch of damage to my Bronzeback, while the other killed the Savage. The Scythean Trampled over some of the Venators to get to the Bronzeback, and finished it off.
I was down to Hexeris, 3 Venators, and a half-dead Gladiator. There was no way I'd be able to do enough damage to Saeryn's beasts to win on attrition, but there was a small window for assassination, and Saeryn's beasts were all full on Fury.
Turn 5: Skorne
The Gladiator tried to take out the Scythean, but didn't quite do it. One lucky Venator advanced into the forest to within 5" of Saeryn, and the rest got out of Hexeris' way. Hexeris advanced to within range of the Venator, and shot him in the back with Ashes to Ashes. The fire splashed onto Saeryn, and I boosted damage, barely doing enough to finish her off.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
Earlier that night, I'd had a game where I should have lost because I left no transfer slots available on my beasts. This game I eked out a victory thanks to the same mistake. I played a fairly solid game, but so did Jen, and Saeryn's feat turned out to be too much to handle for this list. Despite its decent shooting/magic abilities, my list does live and die in melee, especially against heavies. My biggest mistake this game was not focusing the firepower I had enough on one target. If I'd used Hellfire and my Venators consistently to take out, say, the Scythean with Respawn, I might not have lost my key beasts on Saeryn's double turn.
Jen only made one real mistake, which was not leaving a transfer slot available for Saeryn on the last turn. To some extent, that was hard to avoid. The Bronzeback absolutely needed to die, because it could have killed two of her heavies, while Hexeris and the Gladiator finished off the last one, and I don't remember how many attacks Jen needed to use to kill it. Otherwise, she played a strong, conservative game, using the potential of Saeryn's Feat to pressure me, and timed it well to do a lot of damage. This Saeryn list is also scary. It's a little weak against heavy shooting, but it's very fast, and the one turn of melee immunity means it can tear melee oriented lists apart. Finally, the Angelii are a huge threat. I was forced to play Hexeris pretty far back until after Saeryn had popped her Feat, because flying and immunity to free strikes would let them assassinate him pretty easily.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Retribution, Lists in Progress and New Directions
I picked up the Retribution of Scyrah Battle Box earlier today. It contains Kaelyssa, a Griffon, a Chimera (both light 'Jacks), and a Manticore (heavy). Since my model collection has expanded a bit, I can modify my lists a bit. Here's what I've got for now at 35pts
Lord Arcanist Ossyan (+6)
*Banshee (10)
*Manticore (8)
10 Dawnguard Invictors (10)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
10 Mage Hunter Strike Force (8)
*Strike Force Commander (2)
Arcanist (1)
I replaced the Phoenix with the Manticore for a couple of reasons. The first is to bring the Strike Force up to maximum, which adds some nice hitting power and flexibility to the list. The second is that the Manticore has slightly better synergy with Ossyan. It has 3 shots for the feat to boost, can lay down a Pow 12 Covering Fire AoE to help Admonition prevent enemy alpha strikes, and hits at Pow 20 in melee with Concentrated Power and its Force Generator ability. The Manticore does lack Reach, which hurts the Invictors a little, and I do have to give up the second Arcanist. Overall though, I think it's well worth the trade off.
And here's Kaelyssa at 35pts.
Kaelyssa, Night's Whisper (+7)
*Phoenix (10)
*Banshee (10)
*Sylas Wyshnalyrr, the Seeker (2)
10 Dawnguard Invictors (10)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
6 Mage Hunter Strike Force (5)
*Strike Force Commander (2)
Arcanist (1)
This is pretty similar to the Ossyan list I made originally, but I expect it to play very differently. For one thing, Phantom Seeker on Kaelyssa and/or the Banshee is going to be a huge threat. For another, Kaelyssa will want to do some actual offensive spellslinging through the Phoenix. Overall, I think that this list is going to get some early hits at range, then rely on Kaelyssa's Feat (and Rift and such) to either get a Flank charge off, or just stand and shoot for another round. I'm really looking forward to trying it out.
There are two other lists I've been thinking about, and both would be pretty easy to proxy. The first is going to be a Garryth list since sweet Nigel gave me a Garryth model a few weeks ago. Here it is:
Garryth, Blade of the Retribution (+5)
*Phoenix (10)
*Chimera (6)
10 Dawnguard Sentinels (9)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
*Daemon (9)
House Shyeel Magister (2)
Arcanist (1)
Arcanist (1)
I have no experience with Garryth, but he has some very cool spells and abilities to leverage. Here's what I'm thinking for this list. Garryth can use Gallows and Death Sentence to play attrition pretty well, so he wants two arc nodes for spell vectors. The Phoenix brings a whole mess of other tools to the table as well. The Sentinels, while pretty awesome can openers on their own, get to benefit from Mirage as well as Vengeance, so they can potentially charge 15" if a few die. They're also 'Jack Marshalling a Daemon with its Hellmouth gun. Drive: Pronto will give me a lot more mobility and options with the gun, which I'll mainly use to wipe out infantry and pull things around for Garryth. Eiryss does her thing, and the Arcanists support the Myrmidons.
EDIT: Looks like I misremembered Garryth's Warjack points when typing this up the first time. He has 5, meaning I need to drop a point. Right now, I'm liking the idea of a Mage Hunter Assassin or House Shyeel Magister instead of eEiryss. However, this list is a pretty long way off, so I'll have plenty of time to futz around with it.
The other list I've been considering (because it would be very easy to expand to) is:
Vyros Incissar of the Dawnguard (+5)
*Phoenix (10)
*Manticore (8)
*Griffon (4)
*Griffon (4)
10 Dawnguard Invictors (10)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
Arcanist (1)
Arcanist (1)
All I'd need is eVyros, the second Griffon, and the Second Arcanist. The idea is to use the multiple 'Jacks for Synergy on offense. The Invictors can shoot or Flank, which will be easy in this list (3 Reach 'Jacks!). Vyros will use the Phoenix to arc a few offensive spells into the enemy. Twister and Lock the Target, combined with Covering Fire, will be good for the list's board control. Easy Rider and Vyros' Feat can give me some good options for mobility.
That's the State of the Lists with Retribution for the moment. Two lists I've got that I'm pretty happy with, and two that I'm going to work toward in the coming months.
Lord Arcanist Ossyan (+6)
*Banshee (10)
*Manticore (8)
10 Dawnguard Invictors (10)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
10 Mage Hunter Strike Force (8)
*Strike Force Commander (2)
Arcanist (1)
I replaced the Phoenix with the Manticore for a couple of reasons. The first is to bring the Strike Force up to maximum, which adds some nice hitting power and flexibility to the list. The second is that the Manticore has slightly better synergy with Ossyan. It has 3 shots for the feat to boost, can lay down a Pow 12 Covering Fire AoE to help Admonition prevent enemy alpha strikes, and hits at Pow 20 in melee with Concentrated Power and its Force Generator ability. The Manticore does lack Reach, which hurts the Invictors a little, and I do have to give up the second Arcanist. Overall though, I think it's well worth the trade off.
And here's Kaelyssa at 35pts.
Kaelyssa, Night's Whisper (+7)
*Phoenix (10)
*Banshee (10)
*Sylas Wyshnalyrr, the Seeker (2)
10 Dawnguard Invictors (10)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
6 Mage Hunter Strike Force (5)
*Strike Force Commander (2)
Arcanist (1)
This is pretty similar to the Ossyan list I made originally, but I expect it to play very differently. For one thing, Phantom Seeker on Kaelyssa and/or the Banshee is going to be a huge threat. For another, Kaelyssa will want to do some actual offensive spellslinging through the Phoenix. Overall, I think that this list is going to get some early hits at range, then rely on Kaelyssa's Feat (and Rift and such) to either get a Flank charge off, or just stand and shoot for another round. I'm really looking forward to trying it out.
There are two other lists I've been thinking about, and both would be pretty easy to proxy. The first is going to be a Garryth list since sweet Nigel gave me a Garryth model a few weeks ago. Here it is:
Garryth, Blade of the Retribution (+5)
*Phoenix (10)
*Chimera (6)
10 Dawnguard Sentinels (9)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
*Daemon (9)
House Shyeel Magister (2)
Arcanist (1)
Arcanist (1)
I have no experience with Garryth, but he has some very cool spells and abilities to leverage. Here's what I'm thinking for this list. Garryth can use Gallows and Death Sentence to play attrition pretty well, so he wants two arc nodes for spell vectors. The Phoenix brings a whole mess of other tools to the table as well. The Sentinels, while pretty awesome can openers on their own, get to benefit from Mirage as well as Vengeance, so they can potentially charge 15" if a few die. They're also 'Jack Marshalling a Daemon with its Hellmouth gun. Drive: Pronto will give me a lot more mobility and options with the gun, which I'll mainly use to wipe out infantry and pull things around for Garryth. Eiryss does her thing, and the Arcanists support the Myrmidons.
EDIT: Looks like I misremembered Garryth's Warjack points when typing this up the first time. He has 5, meaning I need to drop a point. Right now, I'm liking the idea of a Mage Hunter Assassin or House Shyeel Magister instead of eEiryss. However, this list is a pretty long way off, so I'll have plenty of time to futz around with it.
The other list I've been considering (because it would be very easy to expand to) is:
Vyros Incissar of the Dawnguard (+5)
*Phoenix (10)
*Manticore (8)
*Griffon (4)
*Griffon (4)
10 Dawnguard Invictors (10)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
Arcanist (1)
Arcanist (1)
All I'd need is eVyros, the second Griffon, and the Second Arcanist. The idea is to use the multiple 'Jacks for Synergy on offense. The Invictors can shoot or Flank, which will be easy in this list (3 Reach 'Jacks!). Vyros will use the Phoenix to arc a few offensive spells into the enemy. Twister and Lock the Target, combined with Covering Fire, will be good for the list's board control. Easy Rider and Vyros' Feat can give me some good options for mobility.
That's the State of the Lists with Retribution for the moment. Two lists I've got that I'm pretty happy with, and two that I'm going to work toward in the coming months.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Battle Report - Hexeris 1 vs Kreoss 3 (50pts)
I got two games in the other day - one at 35pts, and one at 50pts. Here's the 50pt game.
I played pHexeris, because he's a lot of fun, and because I already had the list I wanted to use with him. Here's the list:
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (+6)
*Bronzeback Titan (10)
*Titan Cannoneer (9)
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Archidon (7)
*Cyclops Savage (5)
*Aptimus Marketh (3)
10 Praetorian Swordsmen (6)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Extoller Soulward (2)
Agonizer (2)
It's a Tier 1 Kingdom of Shadows list, so Hexeris would start with Death March on the Swordsmen and Soul Slave on the Archidon.
It has a lot of hitting power in the Titan herd, although super heavy armor will still give it trouble. It's pretty flexible with the Cannoneer's gun and Hexeris' spells. I decided to run the Savage instead of the Krea this time, because I really like the idea of Prescience on Hexeris. He really wants to sling a lot of offensive magic, and really wants to be as Fury-efficient as possible, especially with Soulfire. The Krea's paralytic beam and Animus are great though, so we'll see what I'm giving up.
My opponent, Ted, ran the following:
Intercessor Kreoss (+5)
*Templar (8)
*Reckoner (8)
*Redeemer (6)
5 Exemplar Vengers (11)
10 Exemplar Errants (8)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Choir of Menoth (2)
High Exemplar Gravus (5)
Saxon Orrick (2)
Vassal of Menoth (2)
3 Wracks (1)
This looks like a hard-hitting list which can play a ranged or assault game pretty well. Kreoss 3 can make his army hit hard, move fast, and be almost completely impervious to spells. The 'jack selection looks good, and the units will be able to do a lot of damage while taking a decent amount of punishment. This is my first game against Kreoss 3, so we'll see how it goes.
Deployment
We played with timed 10min turns and an SR 2013 scenario to practice for tournaments. The scenario was the one with a single small control zone in the middle of the table surrounded by 4 monoliths. I'd be trying to destroy the monoliths on my opponent's side, and he'd be trying to destroy the monoliths on my side. Kill Box is also a thing in this scenario.
- Total aside, but I kind of like the new Kill Box. Yes, it's very small, but handing over a control point is a much fairer price to pay for leaving your 'caster outside the Kill Box than just losing. -
Terrain was pretty even. There were a few forests and scattered around the battlefield which wouldn't have a big impact on a center scenario like this one, and one hill very slightly to one side of the control zone. There were also a couple of houses and a low wall.
I won the roll off, and chose to go second. I also chose the table side opposite the hill, mostly because I was already on that side of the table.
Ted deployed the Vengers and Gravus in a block on my center-left, the 'jacks in the middle with their Choir and Vassal in tow, and Kreoss on the right to take advantage of the wall.
I deployed my army in a tight formation with the Swordsmen and Archidon in front, the Titans and Savage behind them, and Hexeris and the support in the third row. The Cannoneer and Gladiator were deployed centrally, while I put the Bronzeback on the right to put some pressure on Kreoss if I broke through the line.
My opponent then set up Saxon on the right flank, and the Errants in the middle near the zone. The Wracks also went on the right near Kreoss.
Turn 1 - Protectorate
Everything ran except Kreoss and the Choir. The Choir used the Hymn of Shielding to protect the warjacks from spells. Kreoss advanced to the wall, and cast Ignite on the Errants, and tried to cast Holy Ward on the Vengers, but was just out of range.
A pretty good setup for my opponent. If everything had worked out for him, nearly all of his army would be completely untargetable by spells. As it was, I'd be able to target all the Cav (Kreoss included) this turn, but this kind of mass immunity can really mess with pHexeris' game.
Turn 1 - Skorne
I ran with almost everything. The Archidon hid behind one of my Monoliths for protection from the Vengers. The lead Swordsmen toed into the zone to throw down with the Errants next turn. Marketh shot the Swordsmen standard bearer in the back to give Hexeris extra fury, and he cast Obliteration twice at one of the Vengers. It fell far short, but the AoE's landed on the Errants, and killed one.
Hmm.... Spellslinging.... Well, with 7 Fury, Hexeris is pretty effective Rushbot at least. Otherwise, I was in a decent position to contest the zone and play attrition if the Swordsmen did well enough against the Errants.
Turn 2 - Protectorate
Kreoss used Ride By Attack to pop out from behind the wall, cast Holy Ward on the Vengers, put up Warpath, and scoot back into cover. The Exemplars charged, killing 4 of the front Swordsmen and damaging the Archidon. The Vengers and Gravus advanced to better positions. The Choir sang a Hymn of Shielding again. The Redeemer took a shot at my Swordsmen, but didn't kill anyone.
The situation was looking alright. The Swordsmen were in good condition, and the Errants were close enough together after their charge that I'd probably be able to take them out.
Turn 2 - Skorne
The Swordsmen killed 2 Errants with their Vengeance attacks, and got into a better position to take out the rest of them. Hexeris dropped both his spells, then he advanced, threw 3 Fury onto the Agonizer, and Feated. Marketh advanced, and cast Death March on the Swordsmen. They advanced deep into the Zone, used Perfect Strike to automatically damage warrior models, and killed all the remaining Errants except the Standard Bearer with a little help from Hexeris' Feat. Most of the Beasts ran to just in front of the Zone. The Cannoneer took a shot at Gravus. She missed, but the shot scattered right onto 2 of the Choir, though only one died. The Agonizer used Spiritual Afflition and ran up to Focus-block the Reckoner.
Things were looking pretty good now. I would probably lose most of the Swordsmen next turn, and give up a Control point or 2 depending on the monoliths, but my Titans were right next to the Zone, and ready to go.
Turn 3 - Protectorate
Kreoss upkept all his spells, and gave 2 Focus to the Redeemer. The Vengers charged the Swordsmen and one of the monoliths, killing a bunch of Swordsmen and doing some serious damage to the monolith. The Choir sang the Hymn of Battle to give the 'jacks +2 to attack and damage rolls. The Redeemer aimed, and killed some more Swordsmen. The Reckoner walked forward and killed the Agonizer, and the Templar just walked forward. Gravus charged and killed the last remaining Swordsman in the zone, leaving just one of them pretty far back. Saxon shot and killed a Paingiver.
One Control Point for Ted, but my beasts were about to charge in.
Turn 3 - Skorne
The Paingivers Enraged the Gladiator, Cannoneer, and Archidon, then Hexeris moved up, and cast Train Wreck on the Gladiator and Cannoneer, and Rush on the Bronzeback, and camped 3. The Extoller tried to put snipe off a Venger, but did 0 damage. The Gladiator Beat Back through 1 of the Vengers, and dismounted Gravus. The Cannoneer killed another Venger, and finished off Gravus. The Archidon charged the Templar, and did some damage. The Bronzeback advanced, and killed the last Venger in the zone.
A good round of damage for the Titans, and all my heavies were in the control zone. My opponent would have his work cut out for him to keep control of the scenario. Now I'd be playing for attrition and a scenario win.
Turn 4 - Protectorate
Kreoss upkept his spells, and allocated 3 to the Templar. The Choir sang the Hymn of Battle again. The Templar killed the Archidon, and Beat Back through a lot of the Gladiator's hit points. The Reckoner advanced up my right flank, and shot down a Paingiver. The remaining 2 Vengers used Ride By Attack to do a little more damage to the left monolith while repositioning for a charge on my left flank. The Redeemer aimed and shot at Hexeris. It did some damage, which he transferred. The Vassal gave it an Ancillary Attack at Hexeris, which missed, and did no damage. The Errant Standard Bearer ran to block off my Bronzeback.
It was looking pretty good for me at this point. I'd be able to take the zone next turn, and then my opponent would be responding to my moves.
Turn 4 - Skorne
The 2 surviving Paingivers Enraged the Gladiator and Bronzeback. Hexeris healed the Gladiator's mind, cast Train Wreck on it, and charged one of the Vengers in range. He killed it, and Beat Back a little to be well in CTRL of the control zone. The Gladiator reduced the Templar to a few boxes, and the Cannoneer finished it off. The Bronzeback Trampled over the Errant, killing it, and then killed the Redeemer and damaged the right monolith with bought attacks. The Extoller shot the surviving Venger, but did only 1 damage. The Savage declared a charge against the right Monolith, but I timed out just as it finished its move.
It was then that I realized that my injured Savage (from the transfer) was my only beast with any open Fury slots, and was right in front of the whole Protectorate army. My only consolation was that Hexeris was pretty far out on the left side of the battle, and that only three attacks could potentially reach him.
Turn 5 - Protectorate
Ted had a pretty good angle on Hexeris. Kreoss gave the Reckoner 2 Focus. The Choir sang the Hymn of Battle for the Reckoner. Then Kreoss charge the Savage, killed it, and Feated, putting Ignite on himself. He directed the rest of his attacks against the Bronzeback, but didn't quite kill it. The Reckoner advanced, and took a boosted shot at Hexeris, but missed! The Vassal advanced to Ancillary Attack the Reckoner, but was just an inch out of range.
It was all on the Venger. It charged Hexeris, and missed with its Impact attack, but hit with its Lance. Then it rolled tripple 6's for 16 damage to Hexeris. Fortunately for me, Hexeris has 17 hit boxes. Phew!
Turn 5 - Skorne
Exhale. I healed the Bronzeback, and it killed Kreoss.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
This was a great game. I did make a huge mistake that almost cost me the game when I forgot to leave a transfer target open for Hexeris besides the Savage. Bad rolls had forced me to max out both the Cannoneer and Gladiator, but I'd bought an attack against the monolith with the Bronzeback that I hadn't needed to, and I could have transferred to it. Luckily, Ted's dice were also not great for his assassination run, but I really need to keep those transfers open. Otherwise, I played a pretty solid game. I took care of the Errants well with my Swordsmen and Hexeris' feat, and thoroughly occupied the zone with my beasts. Kreoss had had to risk himself to stop me from winning on scenario. This might have been one of the tougher matchups for pHexeris. Having so much of my opponent's army untargettable by spells really limited the strategy I normally like to use for him. The scenario worked to my advantage, however. There was just one smallish zone in the middle, and I was able to clear out Ted's Weapon Master infantry and most of his cavalry to control it with my Titans.
I like the list with the Savage, although Prescience didn't really get the chance to shine. The Basilisk Krea's Paralytic Aura could have been big this game, as a lot of the Protectorate army had ranged weapons. I also missed having the max Paingiver Beast handlers from the extra point I save with the Krea. Ted was savvy enough to snipe them out whenever he had the chance, and I was missing the ability to Enrage and/or Condition all my beasts (which would have made it a lot easier to leave transfers open on the last turn).
Ted made a few tactical mistakes that we talked about after the game. On his third turn, he sacrificed most of his Vengers and Gravus to clear out the Swordsmen and score a control point, which wasn't worth the trade. The cavalry should have hung back or run around the flank, and charged the Titans when they had the chance. They could have done a lot of damage to the biggest chunk of my army. Ted also pointed out that if he'd Feated right away with Kreoss to get the damage boost from Ignite, and charged the Bronzeback, he could very well have killed both the Bronzeback and the Savage, and possibly lived through his turn. Ted did well to keep the pressure up on my support models with shooting. A 2-model Paingiver unit is nowhere near as effective as a 4-models unit, and the Agonizer would have shut his 'jacks down harshly if he'd let it live.
In terms of his list, I'm not much of an expert. Ted said he really likes the Vengers - and I can definitely see their potential - but isn't sure about Gravus. If he'd hung back with Gravus and the Vengers on turn 3, Gravus might have been more effective. He certainly could have done some nasty damage to my Titans with the Soul Tokens he was collecting. Ted also mentioned the possibility of taking a Guardian instead of a Templar. The Guardian is a heavy 'jack with an Arc Node, and I'd say a warcaster with Kreoss' offensive spells (Death Sentence, Crevasse, and Force Hammer) certainly wants an Arc Node. If the Templar stays in the list, I'd even say Ted should consider replacing the Redeemer with a Revenger just to have one.
Thanks for a great game Ted!
I played pHexeris, because he's a lot of fun, and because I already had the list I wanted to use with him. Here's the list:
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (+6)
*Bronzeback Titan (10)
*Titan Cannoneer (9)
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Archidon (7)
*Cyclops Savage (5)
*Aptimus Marketh (3)
10 Praetorian Swordsmen (6)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Extoller Soulward (2)
Agonizer (2)
It's a Tier 1 Kingdom of Shadows list, so Hexeris would start with Death March on the Swordsmen and Soul Slave on the Archidon.
It has a lot of hitting power in the Titan herd, although super heavy armor will still give it trouble. It's pretty flexible with the Cannoneer's gun and Hexeris' spells. I decided to run the Savage instead of the Krea this time, because I really like the idea of Prescience on Hexeris. He really wants to sling a lot of offensive magic, and really wants to be as Fury-efficient as possible, especially with Soulfire. The Krea's paralytic beam and Animus are great though, so we'll see what I'm giving up.
My opponent, Ted, ran the following:
Intercessor Kreoss (+5)
*Templar (8)
*Reckoner (8)
*Redeemer (6)
5 Exemplar Vengers (11)
10 Exemplar Errants (8)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Choir of Menoth (2)
High Exemplar Gravus (5)
Saxon Orrick (2)
Vassal of Menoth (2)
3 Wracks (1)
This looks like a hard-hitting list which can play a ranged or assault game pretty well. Kreoss 3 can make his army hit hard, move fast, and be almost completely impervious to spells. The 'jack selection looks good, and the units will be able to do a lot of damage while taking a decent amount of punishment. This is my first game against Kreoss 3, so we'll see how it goes.
Deployment
We played with timed 10min turns and an SR 2013 scenario to practice for tournaments. The scenario was the one with a single small control zone in the middle of the table surrounded by 4 monoliths. I'd be trying to destroy the monoliths on my opponent's side, and he'd be trying to destroy the monoliths on my side. Kill Box is also a thing in this scenario.
- Total aside, but I kind of like the new Kill Box. Yes, it's very small, but handing over a control point is a much fairer price to pay for leaving your 'caster outside the Kill Box than just losing. -
Terrain was pretty even. There were a few forests and scattered around the battlefield which wouldn't have a big impact on a center scenario like this one, and one hill very slightly to one side of the control zone. There were also a couple of houses and a low wall.
I won the roll off, and chose to go second. I also chose the table side opposite the hill, mostly because I was already on that side of the table.
Ted deployed the Vengers and Gravus in a block on my center-left, the 'jacks in the middle with their Choir and Vassal in tow, and Kreoss on the right to take advantage of the wall.
I deployed my army in a tight formation with the Swordsmen and Archidon in front, the Titans and Savage behind them, and Hexeris and the support in the third row. The Cannoneer and Gladiator were deployed centrally, while I put the Bronzeback on the right to put some pressure on Kreoss if I broke through the line.
My opponent then set up Saxon on the right flank, and the Errants in the middle near the zone. The Wracks also went on the right near Kreoss.
Turn 1 - Protectorate
Everything ran except Kreoss and the Choir. The Choir used the Hymn of Shielding to protect the warjacks from spells. Kreoss advanced to the wall, and cast Ignite on the Errants, and tried to cast Holy Ward on the Vengers, but was just out of range.
A pretty good setup for my opponent. If everything had worked out for him, nearly all of his army would be completely untargetable by spells. As it was, I'd be able to target all the Cav (Kreoss included) this turn, but this kind of mass immunity can really mess with pHexeris' game.
Turn 1 - Skorne
I ran with almost everything. The Archidon hid behind one of my Monoliths for protection from the Vengers. The lead Swordsmen toed into the zone to throw down with the Errants next turn. Marketh shot the Swordsmen standard bearer in the back to give Hexeris extra fury, and he cast Obliteration twice at one of the Vengers. It fell far short, but the AoE's landed on the Errants, and killed one.
Hmm.... Spellslinging.... Well, with 7 Fury, Hexeris is pretty effective Rushbot at least. Otherwise, I was in a decent position to contest the zone and play attrition if the Swordsmen did well enough against the Errants.
Turn 2 - Protectorate
 |
| Kreoss is feeling pretty safe behind that wall. |
The situation was looking alright. The Swordsmen were in good condition, and the Errants were close enough together after their charge that I'd probably be able to take them out.
Turn 2 - Skorne
The Swordsmen killed 2 Errants with their Vengeance attacks, and got into a better position to take out the rest of them. Hexeris dropped both his spells, then he advanced, threw 3 Fury onto the Agonizer, and Feated. Marketh advanced, and cast Death March on the Swordsmen. They advanced deep into the Zone, used Perfect Strike to automatically damage warrior models, and killed all the remaining Errants except the Standard Bearer with a little help from Hexeris' Feat. Most of the Beasts ran to just in front of the Zone. The Cannoneer took a shot at Gravus. She missed, but the shot scattered right onto 2 of the Choir, though only one died. The Agonizer used Spiritual Afflition and ran up to Focus-block the Reckoner.
Things were looking pretty good now. I would probably lose most of the Swordsmen next turn, and give up a Control point or 2 depending on the monoliths, but my Titans were right next to the Zone, and ready to go.
Turn 3 - Protectorate
Kreoss upkept all his spells, and gave 2 Focus to the Redeemer. The Vengers charged the Swordsmen and one of the monoliths, killing a bunch of Swordsmen and doing some serious damage to the monolith. The Choir sang the Hymn of Battle to give the 'jacks +2 to attack and damage rolls. The Redeemer aimed, and killed some more Swordsmen. The Reckoner walked forward and killed the Agonizer, and the Templar just walked forward. Gravus charged and killed the last remaining Swordsman in the zone, leaving just one of them pretty far back. Saxon shot and killed a Paingiver.
One Control Point for Ted, but my beasts were about to charge in.
Turn 3 - Skorne
 |
| All 'beasts crowd into the control zone. |
A good round of damage for the Titans, and all my heavies were in the control zone. My opponent would have his work cut out for him to keep control of the scenario. Now I'd be playing for attrition and a scenario win.
Turn 4 - Protectorate
Kreoss upkept his spells, and allocated 3 to the Templar. The Choir sang the Hymn of Battle again. The Templar killed the Archidon, and Beat Back through a lot of the Gladiator's hit points. The Reckoner advanced up my right flank, and shot down a Paingiver. The remaining 2 Vengers used Ride By Attack to do a little more damage to the left monolith while repositioning for a charge on my left flank. The Redeemer aimed and shot at Hexeris. It did some damage, which he transferred. The Vassal gave it an Ancillary Attack at Hexeris, which missed, and did no damage. The Errant Standard Bearer ran to block off my Bronzeback.
It was looking pretty good for me at this point. I'd be able to take the zone next turn, and then my opponent would be responding to my moves.
Turn 4 - Skorne
The 2 surviving Paingivers Enraged the Gladiator and Bronzeback. Hexeris healed the Gladiator's mind, cast Train Wreck on it, and charged one of the Vengers in range. He killed it, and Beat Back a little to be well in CTRL of the control zone. The Gladiator reduced the Templar to a few boxes, and the Cannoneer finished it off. The Bronzeback Trampled over the Errant, killing it, and then killed the Redeemer and damaged the right monolith with bought attacks. The Extoller shot the surviving Venger, but did only 1 damage. The Savage declared a charge against the right Monolith, but I timed out just as it finished its move.
It was then that I realized that my injured Savage (from the transfer) was my only beast with any open Fury slots, and was right in front of the whole Protectorate army. My only consolation was that Hexeris was pretty far out on the left side of the battle, and that only three attacks could potentially reach him.
Turn 5 - Protectorate
Ted had a pretty good angle on Hexeris. Kreoss gave the Reckoner 2 Focus. The Choir sang the Hymn of Battle for the Reckoner. Then Kreoss charge the Savage, killed it, and Feated, putting Ignite on himself. He directed the rest of his attacks against the Bronzeback, but didn't quite kill it. The Reckoner advanced, and took a boosted shot at Hexeris, but missed! The Vassal advanced to Ancillary Attack the Reckoner, but was just an inch out of range.
It was all on the Venger. It charged Hexeris, and missed with its Impact attack, but hit with its Lance. Then it rolled tripple 6's for 16 damage to Hexeris. Fortunately for me, Hexeris has 17 hit boxes. Phew!
 |
| Still there... barely. |
Turn 5 - Skorne
Exhale. I healed the Bronzeback, and it killed Kreoss.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
This was a great game. I did make a huge mistake that almost cost me the game when I forgot to leave a transfer target open for Hexeris besides the Savage. Bad rolls had forced me to max out both the Cannoneer and Gladiator, but I'd bought an attack against the monolith with the Bronzeback that I hadn't needed to, and I could have transferred to it. Luckily, Ted's dice were also not great for his assassination run, but I really need to keep those transfers open. Otherwise, I played a pretty solid game. I took care of the Errants well with my Swordsmen and Hexeris' feat, and thoroughly occupied the zone with my beasts. Kreoss had had to risk himself to stop me from winning on scenario. This might have been one of the tougher matchups for pHexeris. Having so much of my opponent's army untargettable by spells really limited the strategy I normally like to use for him. The scenario worked to my advantage, however. There was just one smallish zone in the middle, and I was able to clear out Ted's Weapon Master infantry and most of his cavalry to control it with my Titans.
I like the list with the Savage, although Prescience didn't really get the chance to shine. The Basilisk Krea's Paralytic Aura could have been big this game, as a lot of the Protectorate army had ranged weapons. I also missed having the max Paingiver Beast handlers from the extra point I save with the Krea. Ted was savvy enough to snipe them out whenever he had the chance, and I was missing the ability to Enrage and/or Condition all my beasts (which would have made it a lot easier to leave transfers open on the last turn).
Ted made a few tactical mistakes that we talked about after the game. On his third turn, he sacrificed most of his Vengers and Gravus to clear out the Swordsmen and score a control point, which wasn't worth the trade. The cavalry should have hung back or run around the flank, and charged the Titans when they had the chance. They could have done a lot of damage to the biggest chunk of my army. Ted also pointed out that if he'd Feated right away with Kreoss to get the damage boost from Ignite, and charged the Bronzeback, he could very well have killed both the Bronzeback and the Savage, and possibly lived through his turn. Ted did well to keep the pressure up on my support models with shooting. A 2-model Paingiver unit is nowhere near as effective as a 4-models unit, and the Agonizer would have shut his 'jacks down harshly if he'd let it live.
In terms of his list, I'm not much of an expert. Ted said he really likes the Vengers - and I can definitely see their potential - but isn't sure about Gravus. If he'd hung back with Gravus and the Vengers on turn 3, Gravus might have been more effective. He certainly could have done some nasty damage to my Titans with the Soul Tokens he was collecting. Ted also mentioned the possibility of taking a Guardian instead of a Templar. The Guardian is a heavy 'jack with an Arc Node, and I'd say a warcaster with Kreoss' offensive spells (Death Sentence, Crevasse, and Force Hammer) certainly wants an Arc Node. If the Templar stays in the list, I'd even say Ted should consider replacing the Redeemer with a Revenger just to have one.
Thanks for a great game Ted!
 |
| Ok, I just like this one. |
Thursday, February 14, 2013
4+ Tournament - pGrexy's reports
I played in a local tournament at Tower Games this past Saturday, and I'm finally recovered enough from the sleep deprivation, greasy food, and glue fumes (there was a lot of preparatory gluing the night before) to write about it. It was 4 rounds with 2013 rules, but no Specialists or Divide and Conquer.
Here are my lists:
List 1
Master Tormentor Morghoul (+7)
*Bronzeback Titan (10)
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Archidon (7)
*Cyclops Brute (5)
6 Paingiver Bloodrunners (5)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (1)
Bloodrunner Master Tormentor (2)
Agonizer (2)
List 2
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (+6)
*Titan Cannoneer (9)
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Archidon (7)
10 Praetorian Swordsmen (6)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Extoller Soulward (2)
Agonizer (2)
Round 1 vs Jen's Legion of Everblight
She played:
Rhyas, Sigil of Everblight (+6)
*Ravagore (10)
*Carnivean (11)
*Shredder (2)
10 Blighted Nyss Legionaires (6)
3 Blighted Nyss Raptors (6)
Anyssa Ryvaal, Talon of Everblight (4)
The Forsaken (2)
I went with Morghoul, and ended up going first. The scenario was Outflank - it had 2 circular control zones spaced pretty far apart in the center of the table.
Turn 1
I ran up with pretty much everything, put Admonition on the Bronzeback, and dumped 4 Fury on the Agonizer. My basic plan was to hit the Legionaires with the Bloodrunners and BRMT, and kill off Rhyas' warbeasts with mine. I'd probably try to contest both zones, but Morghoul doesn't spread out very well, so I would only be using the scenario to try to force Rhyas into my charge range.
Jen advanced with the warbeasts, and killed a few Bloodrunners. The Raptors and Anyssa ran down my flanks. The Legionaires ran to mostly behind a wall. The Shredder charged up. It looked like Jen was trying to clip around the sides with the Raptors, and shoot Morghoul to death with arrows.
Turn 2
The Bloodrunners got into the the Legionaires, and killed about half of them. Morghoul Abused the Archidon, popped his Feat, and camped a few Fury. The Gladiator Rushed the Bronzeback, who charged and killed the Shredder. The Archidon charged the Carnivean, and took it out.
Anyssa and the Raptors shot at Morghoul (who transferred 2 hits), and the Ravagore and Legionaires killed off all the Bloodrunners. A few Legionaires ended up in melee with the Archidon.
Turn 3
I saw an opening on Rhyas, and I took it. The Archidon killed off the Legionaires in melee with it, then the Gladiator Rushed the Bronzeback, and Morghoul Abused it. It charged the Ravagore and Rhyas, and I finished off the Ravagore with my initials since Rhyas was camping 4 Fury. I bought and boosted two attacks on Rhyas, and killed her.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
My Morghoul list was not very well suited to winning this game on scenario, but is a better list overall against Legion because it has a lot of tools to shut down their powerful beasts. Jen wasn't expecting Morghoul's insane charge ranges or hitting power. The Archidon killed the Carnivean with little effort, and the Bronzeback made it to Rhyas when Jen thought she would be safe.
Round 2 vs. Bryan's Mercenaries
He played:
Phinneus Shae (+6) - A Pirate's Life Tier 4
*Mariner (8)
*Nomad (6)
*Buccaneer (3)
*Commodore Cannon and Crew (4)
10 Sea Dog Crew (8)
*Mr Walls, Sea Dog Quartermaster (2)
Lady Aiyana and Master Holt (4)
First Mate Hawk (1)
Bosun Grogspar (1)
Doc Killingsworth (1)
Lord Rockbottom (1)
He had 2 more points, but I don't remember who he took.
I went with Hexeris, and ended up going second. I don't remember the name of this scenario, but it was another spread out one, with a control zone on one side of the table, and a flag you could only dominate (control with your warlock/caster) on the other.
Turn 1
Bryan ran most of his army. Shae put Storm Rager on Hawk. The Commodore shoved itself into position.
I ran my Archidon into position, and sniped out Killingsworth with Soulfire. I tried to kill Hawk as well, but fell short on the Damage roll. My Swordsmen and Titans ran too.
Turn 2
Shae activated first, and Feated, moving the army forward, then cast Coup-de-Main. Bryan charged the Archidon and a few Swordsmen with several of the Pirates, Hawk, and the Nomad. The Archidon lived, but the Swordsmen who were in range did not. A few more swordsmen died to the Mariner's deck gun. Rockbottom used Money Shot on the Commodore, and it shot at the Gladiator, doing some damage. The Buccaneer charged at the Cannoneer, and tried to knock it down, but missed.
The Swordsmen did a little damage with Vengeance, then Hexeris advanced, and popped his Feat. The Swordsmen and Darkly Dominionated pirates accounted for the whole Pirate unit as well as Hawk, and engaged the Mariner. The Gladiator charged and killed Grogspar, netting me a Control Point. The Cannoneer charged the Buccaneer, but didn't quite do enough damage to kill it. The Archidon did a bunch of damage to the Nomad.
Things were looking good for me at this point. Bryan was on his back foot, and would have to try to contest both zones with few resources in his next turn.
Turn 3
Shae toed into the second control zone. Aiyana and Holt advanced. Aiyana used Kiss of Lylyss on the Gladiator, and Holt advanced into the Swordsmen around the Mariner, but didn't quite free it up. The Commodore slammed it backward, but it was still in the Zone. The Nomad finished off the Archidon. The Mariner finished the Swordsmen engaging it.
The Gladiator shook off Knockdown. The Swordsmen finished off the Nomad with great plinking fury. The Cannoneer finished off the Mariner. The Gladiator Rushed itself, and trampled back into the Control Zone. Marketh advanced, and cast Soul Slave on the Gladiator. Hexeris picked off Aiyana with Soulfire, and camped a few.
Turn 4
The Commodore again slammed the Gladiator, but it stayed in the Zone. The Mariner advanced, but Bryan had forgotten to put someone Base to Base with it to load its gun. Shae ultimately decided to contest the zone and camp focus.
I started my turn, but then it was dice down. I had won, 1 CP to 0.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
I played a pretty solid attrition game, and was able to wear Bryan down. I used the Gladiator on the left zone to force him to split his army, and I was on my way to munching through his models when Dice Down was called. My best move overall was killing Killingsworth on turn 1. Bryan played a pretty solid attrition game too, and might have killed off my Swordsmen and alpha-striked my beasts if he'd had 4+ Tough on the pirates the whole time.
Round 3 vs. Todd's Cygnar
He played
Captain Alistair Caine (+5)
*Old Rowdy (9)
*Squire (2)
10 Horgenhold Forgeguard (8)
Greygore Boomhowler and 9 Co. (9)
6 Rangers (5)
Eiryss, Angel of the Retribution (3)
Reinholt, Gobber Speculator (1)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
I went with Hexeris because of all the infantry and solos in both his lists, and went second. The Scenario was Process of Elimination, which in 2013 has destructible monoliths in each zone.
Turn 1
The Cygnar stuff ran up, and Caine hid behind a forest. The Journeyman Warcaster cast Arcane Shield on Boomhowler and Co, making them Arm 19.
In my turn, the Archidon flew at the Rangers so Hexeris could kill them off with spells. Unfortunately, Hexeris was not so lucky, and only killed one. The rest of my stuff ran up. Some Swordsmen ran up behind a wall to oppose the Boomhowlers.
Turn 2
Caine and the Rangers killed the Archidon with some good damage rolls, then Caine Gatechrashed back into the forest. The rangers also killed a couple Swordsmen The Boomhowlers advanced, and shot at the Swordsmen, but didn't do much with their Low Rat. Boomhowler gave them 4+ Tough in honor of this blog. The Forge Guard ran to behind the Boomhowlers, and Eiryss ran around a building to flank me.
The Swordsmen Vengeanced over the wall, and charged the Boomhowlers. I completely blanked out, and forgot to use their mini-feat (letting them do an automatic point of damage to warrior models), meaning they killed one model. :/ The Cannoneer and Gladiator advanced. The Cannoneer destoyed the first monolith.
Turn 3
Most of the remaining swordsmen, including the officer, we killed by a combination of shooting and melee from Todd's army.
I was loosing the attrition war, and I needed to pull off a big turn with Hexeris' Feat. I advanced him, Feated, and shot a couple of Forge Guard with spells, but they didn't hit each other. The Gladiator destroyed the second monolith. The Cannoneer killed a couple of Boomhowlers. Marketh tried start a Dark Dominion chain in the Forgeguard, but the one he killed missed again.
Turn 4
Meanwhile, I'd left Hexeris just a little too close to Caine. He Feated, and shot Hexeris to death.
Victory to Cygnar!
Thoughts
I really should have popped the Swordsmens' mini-feat on turn 2, but I just forgot about it. The auto-plinking would probably have accounted for about half of the Boomhowlers, and I would never have exposed Hexeris like that on turn 3. After that, I could have destroyed the second objective and played for time, or focused on the Forgeguard to force Caine up into range of my spells. Todd played a very solid game despite a few minor mistakes, and capitalized on his army's great attrition when I panicked, and put Hexy into Caine's threat range.
Round 4 vs. Ryan's Mercenaries
He played:
Captain Bartolo Montador (+5)
*Galleon (18)
Lady Aiyanna and Master Hold (4)
Wrong Eye (9)
*Snapjaw (-)
*Bull Snapper (3)
Dougal MacNaile (2)
Thor Steinhammer (2)
There were 2 more points that I don't remember in there.
I played Morghoul, because Hexeris could not deal with a Galleon, and went first. We played Incursion - the scenario with 3 flags where 1 of them disappears.
Turn 1
I ran forward with my beasts, put Admonition on the Bronzeback, and dumped a lot of Fury onto the Agonizer. The Bloodrunners ran toward Aiyanna and Holt to kill them off, and claim one of the flags. I positioned most of my forces so a forest was between me and the Galleon, where I could see it but it couldn't see me.
Bart hid behind a wall, cast Batten Down the Hatches and Hot Shot on the Galleon. The Galleon moved forward, and with some help from Dougal and Bart, managed to kill all but two of the Bloodrunners, including the Master Tormentor. Aiyanna and Holt advanced, but didn't have anyone to shoot.
The objective closest to Bart disappeared, leaving one near Aiyanna and Holt, and one in the center of the field.
Turn 2
The surviving Bloodrunners weren't in range of Aiyanna and Holt, so they ran to engage them. The warbeasts advanced to the edge of the woods, and the Swamp Gobbers put up an overlapping cloud so to block all line of sight to the beasts. The Agonizer ran up to deny the Galleon Focus next turn.
Bart stayed behind the wall, cast Batten Down the Hatches, and Feated. Wrong Eye ran to contest the center objective. Wrong Eye cast Spiney Growth on the Galleon, who advanced to help contest the objective, but had nothing to shoot.
Turn 3
Morghoul Enraged the Bronzeback, then I made a terrible mistake by forgetting to Safeguard him before entering Bart's CTRL range. He was knocked down, and ended the turn camping 3. I moved the Brute up near Morghoul, and Safeguarded the Bronzeback. The Bronzeback charged Snapjaw and killed it. The Gladiator and Archidon set up for charges on the Galleon, assuming Morghoul survived. The Gobbers made another cloud.
The Galleon advanced into the Gobber cloud to draw LoS to Morghoul. It rolled 4 shots on its Deck Guns, and barely failed to kill him through 3 transfers. Then it hit him with the Harpoon, but I Shield Guarded the shot to my Brute. Nothing else could attack Morghoul, so he would live! Then Bart cast Batten Down the Hatches, and Wrong Eye cast Spiny Growth, bringing the Galleon to Arm 24.
Turn 4
My best shot here was to kill the Galleon, and retreat a bit with Morghoul. I'd need decent rolls, since Arm 24 is just absurdly high on a model with 50 or so hit boxes. I enraged all the beasts except the Brute, who Safeguarded Morghoul. Then I abused the Gladiator and the Bronzeback. They charged the Galleon, but due to some mediocre rolls to go with that high Arm, they left it standing at about half its hit boxes. There was no way the Archidon could finish it.
I was about to lose half my battlegroup, and the lack of sleep from the night before was really starting to wear on me, so I decided to concede and pack up for the day.
Victory to the Mercenaries!
Thoughts
I had a chance to win it, but the dice just weren't with me. Three charging heavies ought to have been able to do it, but all the armor buffs meant they needed a little luck too. Bart with a Galleon and Bull Snapper is a really mean combo. I'm not sure how else I would have handled the main threat of the Galleon, but in the future, I'll definitely play both the Bloodrunners and the Archidon a little differently against this list. I would have run the Bloodrunners up the far flank at Aiyanna and Holt instead of the mid-flank where they were in range of the Galleon's AoE's. I also would have kept the Archidon open as an assassination threat against Bart. I might actually have been able to pull this off on the turn after Bart feated, but I'd committed to taking out the Galleon.
Overall Thoughts
So that was loads of fun. It's great to get a lot of games in against a lot of different players with different factions. There's a lot to this game that I don't think I would encounter much outside a tournament setting. It was also my first experience with timed turns, and they were definitely something different. I got pretty used to it by the end, but every turn felt rushed. The rushing did cause me to make mistakes I'd never have made otherwise, like forgetting the Swordsmen's mini-feat in game 3. It also lent a real feeling of hurried, desperate combat that was very enjoyable once I'd gotten used to it. Happily, I'll have a chance to do it all over again at a 50pt 3 list tournament with all the trimmings (Specialists, Divide and Conquer, etc.) that Tower is holding next month.
As a side note, Caleb, my opponent from these two games went on to take 1st, so major props to him!
Here are my lists:
List 1
Master Tormentor Morghoul (+7)
*Bronzeback Titan (10)
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Archidon (7)
*Cyclops Brute (5)
6 Paingiver Bloodrunners (5)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (1)
Bloodrunner Master Tormentor (2)
Agonizer (2)
List 2
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (+6)
*Titan Cannoneer (9)
*Titan Gladiator (8)
*Archidon (7)
10 Praetorian Swordsmen (6)
*Officer and Standard Bearer (2)
4 Paingiver Beast Handlers (2)
Extoller Soulward (2)
Agonizer (2)
Round 1 vs Jen's Legion of Everblight
She played:
Rhyas, Sigil of Everblight (+6)
*Ravagore (10)
*Carnivean (11)
*Shredder (2)
10 Blighted Nyss Legionaires (6)
3 Blighted Nyss Raptors (6)
Anyssa Ryvaal, Talon of Everblight (4)
The Forsaken (2)
I went with Morghoul, and ended up going first. The scenario was Outflank - it had 2 circular control zones spaced pretty far apart in the center of the table.
Turn 1
I ran up with pretty much everything, put Admonition on the Bronzeback, and dumped 4 Fury on the Agonizer. My basic plan was to hit the Legionaires with the Bloodrunners and BRMT, and kill off Rhyas' warbeasts with mine. I'd probably try to contest both zones, but Morghoul doesn't spread out very well, so I would only be using the scenario to try to force Rhyas into my charge range.
Jen advanced with the warbeasts, and killed a few Bloodrunners. The Raptors and Anyssa ran down my flanks. The Legionaires ran to mostly behind a wall. The Shredder charged up. It looked like Jen was trying to clip around the sides with the Raptors, and shoot Morghoul to death with arrows.
Turn 2
The Bloodrunners got into the the Legionaires, and killed about half of them. Morghoul Abused the Archidon, popped his Feat, and camped a few Fury. The Gladiator Rushed the Bronzeback, who charged and killed the Shredder. The Archidon charged the Carnivean, and took it out.
Anyssa and the Raptors shot at Morghoul (who transferred 2 hits), and the Ravagore and Legionaires killed off all the Bloodrunners. A few Legionaires ended up in melee with the Archidon.
Turn 3
I saw an opening on Rhyas, and I took it. The Archidon killed off the Legionaires in melee with it, then the Gladiator Rushed the Bronzeback, and Morghoul Abused it. It charged the Ravagore and Rhyas, and I finished off the Ravagore with my initials since Rhyas was camping 4 Fury. I bought and boosted two attacks on Rhyas, and killed her.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
My Morghoul list was not very well suited to winning this game on scenario, but is a better list overall against Legion because it has a lot of tools to shut down their powerful beasts. Jen wasn't expecting Morghoul's insane charge ranges or hitting power. The Archidon killed the Carnivean with little effort, and the Bronzeback made it to Rhyas when Jen thought she would be safe.
Round 2 vs. Bryan's Mercenaries
He played:
Phinneus Shae (+6) - A Pirate's Life Tier 4
*Mariner (8)
*Nomad (6)
*Buccaneer (3)
*Commodore Cannon and Crew (4)
10 Sea Dog Crew (8)
*Mr Walls, Sea Dog Quartermaster (2)
Lady Aiyana and Master Holt (4)
First Mate Hawk (1)
Bosun Grogspar (1)
Doc Killingsworth (1)
Lord Rockbottom (1)
He had 2 more points, but I don't remember who he took.
I went with Hexeris, and ended up going second. I don't remember the name of this scenario, but it was another spread out one, with a control zone on one side of the table, and a flag you could only dominate (control with your warlock/caster) on the other.
Turn 1
Bryan ran most of his army. Shae put Storm Rager on Hawk. The Commodore shoved itself into position.
I ran my Archidon into position, and sniped out Killingsworth with Soulfire. I tried to kill Hawk as well, but fell short on the Damage roll. My Swordsmen and Titans ran too.
Turn 2
Shae activated first, and Feated, moving the army forward, then cast Coup-de-Main. Bryan charged the Archidon and a few Swordsmen with several of the Pirates, Hawk, and the Nomad. The Archidon lived, but the Swordsmen who were in range did not. A few more swordsmen died to the Mariner's deck gun. Rockbottom used Money Shot on the Commodore, and it shot at the Gladiator, doing some damage. The Buccaneer charged at the Cannoneer, and tried to knock it down, but missed.
The Swordsmen did a little damage with Vengeance, then Hexeris advanced, and popped his Feat. The Swordsmen and Darkly Dominionated pirates accounted for the whole Pirate unit as well as Hawk, and engaged the Mariner. The Gladiator charged and killed Grogspar, netting me a Control Point. The Cannoneer charged the Buccaneer, but didn't quite do enough damage to kill it. The Archidon did a bunch of damage to the Nomad.
Things were looking good for me at this point. Bryan was on his back foot, and would have to try to contest both zones with few resources in his next turn.
Turn 3
Shae toed into the second control zone. Aiyana and Holt advanced. Aiyana used Kiss of Lylyss on the Gladiator, and Holt advanced into the Swordsmen around the Mariner, but didn't quite free it up. The Commodore slammed it backward, but it was still in the Zone. The Nomad finished off the Archidon. The Mariner finished the Swordsmen engaging it.
The Gladiator shook off Knockdown. The Swordsmen finished off the Nomad with great plinking fury. The Cannoneer finished off the Mariner. The Gladiator Rushed itself, and trampled back into the Control Zone. Marketh advanced, and cast Soul Slave on the Gladiator. Hexeris picked off Aiyana with Soulfire, and camped a few.
Turn 4
The Commodore again slammed the Gladiator, but it stayed in the Zone. The Mariner advanced, but Bryan had forgotten to put someone Base to Base with it to load its gun. Shae ultimately decided to contest the zone and camp focus.
I started my turn, but then it was dice down. I had won, 1 CP to 0.
Victory to the Skorne!
Thoughts
I played a pretty solid attrition game, and was able to wear Bryan down. I used the Gladiator on the left zone to force him to split his army, and I was on my way to munching through his models when Dice Down was called. My best move overall was killing Killingsworth on turn 1. Bryan played a pretty solid attrition game too, and might have killed off my Swordsmen and alpha-striked my beasts if he'd had 4+ Tough on the pirates the whole time.
Round 3 vs. Todd's Cygnar
He played
Captain Alistair Caine (+5)
*Old Rowdy (9)
*Squire (2)
10 Horgenhold Forgeguard (8)
Greygore Boomhowler and 9 Co. (9)
6 Rangers (5)
Eiryss, Angel of the Retribution (3)
Reinholt, Gobber Speculator (1)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
I went with Hexeris because of all the infantry and solos in both his lists, and went second. The Scenario was Process of Elimination, which in 2013 has destructible monoliths in each zone.
Turn 1
The Cygnar stuff ran up, and Caine hid behind a forest. The Journeyman Warcaster cast Arcane Shield on Boomhowler and Co, making them Arm 19.
In my turn, the Archidon flew at the Rangers so Hexeris could kill them off with spells. Unfortunately, Hexeris was not so lucky, and only killed one. The rest of my stuff ran up. Some Swordsmen ran up behind a wall to oppose the Boomhowlers.
Turn 2
Caine and the Rangers killed the Archidon with some good damage rolls, then Caine Gatechrashed back into the forest. The rangers also killed a couple Swordsmen The Boomhowlers advanced, and shot at the Swordsmen, but didn't do much with their Low Rat. Boomhowler gave them 4+ Tough in honor of this blog. The Forge Guard ran to behind the Boomhowlers, and Eiryss ran around a building to flank me.
The Swordsmen Vengeanced over the wall, and charged the Boomhowlers. I completely blanked out, and forgot to use their mini-feat (letting them do an automatic point of damage to warrior models), meaning they killed one model. :/ The Cannoneer and Gladiator advanced. The Cannoneer destoyed the first monolith.
Turn 3
Most of the remaining swordsmen, including the officer, we killed by a combination of shooting and melee from Todd's army.
I was loosing the attrition war, and I needed to pull off a big turn with Hexeris' Feat. I advanced him, Feated, and shot a couple of Forge Guard with spells, but they didn't hit each other. The Gladiator destroyed the second monolith. The Cannoneer killed a couple of Boomhowlers. Marketh tried start a Dark Dominion chain in the Forgeguard, but the one he killed missed again.
Turn 4
Meanwhile, I'd left Hexeris just a little too close to Caine. He Feated, and shot Hexeris to death.
Victory to Cygnar!
Thoughts
I really should have popped the Swordsmens' mini-feat on turn 2, but I just forgot about it. The auto-plinking would probably have accounted for about half of the Boomhowlers, and I would never have exposed Hexeris like that on turn 3. After that, I could have destroyed the second objective and played for time, or focused on the Forgeguard to force Caine up into range of my spells. Todd played a very solid game despite a few minor mistakes, and capitalized on his army's great attrition when I panicked, and put Hexy into Caine's threat range.
Round 4 vs. Ryan's Mercenaries
He played:
Captain Bartolo Montador (+5)
*Galleon (18)
Lady Aiyanna and Master Hold (4)
Wrong Eye (9)
*Snapjaw (-)
*Bull Snapper (3)
Dougal MacNaile (2)
Thor Steinhammer (2)
There were 2 more points that I don't remember in there.
I played Morghoul, because Hexeris could not deal with a Galleon, and went first. We played Incursion - the scenario with 3 flags where 1 of them disappears.
Turn 1
I ran forward with my beasts, put Admonition on the Bronzeback, and dumped a lot of Fury onto the Agonizer. The Bloodrunners ran toward Aiyanna and Holt to kill them off, and claim one of the flags. I positioned most of my forces so a forest was between me and the Galleon, where I could see it but it couldn't see me.
Bart hid behind a wall, cast Batten Down the Hatches and Hot Shot on the Galleon. The Galleon moved forward, and with some help from Dougal and Bart, managed to kill all but two of the Bloodrunners, including the Master Tormentor. Aiyanna and Holt advanced, but didn't have anyone to shoot.
The objective closest to Bart disappeared, leaving one near Aiyanna and Holt, and one in the center of the field.
Turn 2
The surviving Bloodrunners weren't in range of Aiyanna and Holt, so they ran to engage them. The warbeasts advanced to the edge of the woods, and the Swamp Gobbers put up an overlapping cloud so to block all line of sight to the beasts. The Agonizer ran up to deny the Galleon Focus next turn.
Bart stayed behind the wall, cast Batten Down the Hatches, and Feated. Wrong Eye ran to contest the center objective. Wrong Eye cast Spiney Growth on the Galleon, who advanced to help contest the objective, but had nothing to shoot.
Turn 3
Morghoul Enraged the Bronzeback, then I made a terrible mistake by forgetting to Safeguard him before entering Bart's CTRL range. He was knocked down, and ended the turn camping 3. I moved the Brute up near Morghoul, and Safeguarded the Bronzeback. The Bronzeback charged Snapjaw and killed it. The Gladiator and Archidon set up for charges on the Galleon, assuming Morghoul survived. The Gobbers made another cloud.
The Galleon advanced into the Gobber cloud to draw LoS to Morghoul. It rolled 4 shots on its Deck Guns, and barely failed to kill him through 3 transfers. Then it hit him with the Harpoon, but I Shield Guarded the shot to my Brute. Nothing else could attack Morghoul, so he would live! Then Bart cast Batten Down the Hatches, and Wrong Eye cast Spiny Growth, bringing the Galleon to Arm 24.
Turn 4
My best shot here was to kill the Galleon, and retreat a bit with Morghoul. I'd need decent rolls, since Arm 24 is just absurdly high on a model with 50 or so hit boxes. I enraged all the beasts except the Brute, who Safeguarded Morghoul. Then I abused the Gladiator and the Bronzeback. They charged the Galleon, but due to some mediocre rolls to go with that high Arm, they left it standing at about half its hit boxes. There was no way the Archidon could finish it.
I was about to lose half my battlegroup, and the lack of sleep from the night before was really starting to wear on me, so I decided to concede and pack up for the day.
Victory to the Mercenaries!
Thoughts
I had a chance to win it, but the dice just weren't with me. Three charging heavies ought to have been able to do it, but all the armor buffs meant they needed a little luck too. Bart with a Galleon and Bull Snapper is a really mean combo. I'm not sure how else I would have handled the main threat of the Galleon, but in the future, I'll definitely play both the Bloodrunners and the Archidon a little differently against this list. I would have run the Bloodrunners up the far flank at Aiyanna and Holt instead of the mid-flank where they were in range of the Galleon's AoE's. I also would have kept the Archidon open as an assassination threat against Bart. I might actually have been able to pull this off on the turn after Bart feated, but I'd committed to taking out the Galleon.
Overall Thoughts
So that was loads of fun. It's great to get a lot of games in against a lot of different players with different factions. There's a lot to this game that I don't think I would encounter much outside a tournament setting. It was also my first experience with timed turns, and they were definitely something different. I got pretty used to it by the end, but every turn felt rushed. The rushing did cause me to make mistakes I'd never have made otherwise, like forgetting the Swordsmen's mini-feat in game 3. It also lent a real feeling of hurried, desperate combat that was very enjoyable once I'd gotten used to it. Happily, I'll have a chance to do it all over again at a 50pt 3 list tournament with all the trimmings (Specialists, Divide and Conquer, etc.) that Tower is holding next month.
As a side note, Caleb, my opponent from these two games went on to take 1st, so major props to him!
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Journeyman League: Week 5
So, 35 points this week. As I alluded to in my previous post, I added back the Striders, as well as a Spell Martyr. One point arcnodes that can run, nice, nice.
Again, only one game this week, which I won. Having guns on my melee heavies is a real treat. I like the Harrower in Cryx for exactly this reason, only it’s even better in Legion. Assault and Repulsion on the Carnivean and Angelius respectively have opened up a lot of previously blocked firing lines. Oh, but’s a bit premature for recap.
On the hobby side, I assembled and magnetized a plastic heavy, so I can bring a Scythean into the final week.
Speaking of the final week (tomorrow), my plan is to replace the Striders with a Scythean and three Shredders with two Deathstalkers, a Shepherd, and a Spell Martyr. The Angelius is good at mauling heavies but not at killing them, and right now it feels like if the Carnivean dies while the enemy still has heavies I have one turn to assassinate their caster before I lose the game. Having a second strong melee threat should fix that.
Game Points: 30
Hobby Points: 2
Journeyman Points: 32
Next week: the endgame (that’s a pun, because the store I play at is also called- oh, nevermind)
Again, only one game this week, which I won. Having guns on my melee heavies is a real treat. I like the Harrower in Cryx for exactly this reason, only it’s even better in Legion. Assault and Repulsion on the Carnivean and Angelius respectively have opened up a lot of previously blocked firing lines. Oh, but’s a bit premature for recap.
On the hobby side, I assembled and magnetized a plastic heavy, so I can bring a Scythean into the final week.
Speaking of the final week (tomorrow), my plan is to replace the Striders with a Scythean and three Shredders with two Deathstalkers, a Shepherd, and a Spell Martyr. The Angelius is good at mauling heavies but not at killing them, and right now it feels like if the Carnivean dies while the enemy still has heavies I have one turn to assassinate their caster before I lose the game. Having a second strong melee threat should fix that.
Game Points: 30
Hobby Points: 2
Journeyman Points: 32
Next week: the endgame (that’s a pun, because the store I play at is also called- oh, nevermind)
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Tournament Prep: The Lists
So, there's a 35pt tournament this Saturday at Tower Games (yea, they need to update the online events page, but trust me, it's happening), and pGrexy, Caleb, and MacBen here at 4+Tough are turning out for it. The tournament is using the standard Steamroller 2013 rules without any variants (i.e. 1 or 2 lists, no specialists, no divide and conquer, etc.) Here are the lists and plans.
Caleb's Lists:
A 35pt tourny seems perfect for the first foray of my trolls into the tournament scene. This coincides nicely with the trollblood models I traded my old Tau for lately, so I've got a few more options. As it stands, here are the two lists I'm thinking about bringing:
35pt Trollbloods
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (*5pts)
* Pyre Troll (5pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
Krielstone Bearer and 5 Stone Scribes (4pts)
* Krielstone Stone Scribe Elder (1pts)
Trollkin Fennblades (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Trollkin Fennblade Officer & Drummer (2pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Lanyssa Ryssyll, Nyss Sorceress (2pts)
My bread and butter Calandra list, it's served me well in the past and I expect it to keep doing so. My one worry is that it is a bit pillow fisted against heavy armor, but since it's more of a tarpit/brick for those pesky objective missions, I'm less worried about that. Plus, if I really need to crack heavy armor, I can always use the 2nd list.
35pt Trollbloods
Grim Angus (*6pts)
* Slag Troll (6pts)
* Troll Axer (6pts)
* Mulg the Ancient (12pts)
Pyg Bushwackers (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
Trollkin Scattergunners (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
* Trollkin Scattergunner Officer & Drummer (2pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Troll Whelps (2pts)
I've never used this list before - since getting the Scattergunners, Slag troll, and Mulg, I haven't had much chance to play them beyond a game or two. However, this list looks so good on paper that I just can't seem to help it. The Scattergunners' general inability to hit is heavily mitigated by Grim's feat/spells, the Fell Caller, and their UA, and with the best armor breaking Heavy and Light Beasts in the trollblood range, I'll have little problem with high ARM.
pGrexy's Lists:
Woo! Tournament! Here are the lists I'm going with. I picked pHexeris and pMorghoul as my warlocks for this tournament, because they're good complements for each other. Morghoul is hard-hitting, fast and maneuverable. He has one round of excellent defense against warbeasts and warjacks with his Feat. Hexeris is cagier and more flexible, and his magic threat is a lot harder to avoid than Morghoul's melee threat. His Feat gives him one turn of crushing offense against most infantry.
I tried to make both lists more or less all-comers, but there are definitely matchups each list does better than the other. Morghoul is better against beast-heavy and 'jack heavy lists, and is definitely better against Colossals/Gargantuans. He's also better at center scenarios because his army is fast but dense, and can dish out a lot of damage. Hexeris is better against infantry with his Feat, and Obliteration for dealing with high-Def infantry. He can also spread his army out more with his larger control area, making him a little more flexible for spread out scenarios.
Caleb's Lists:
A 35pt tourny seems perfect for the first foray of my trolls into the tournament scene. This coincides nicely with the trollblood models I traded my old Tau for lately, so I've got a few more options. As it stands, here are the two lists I'm thinking about bringing:
35pt Trollbloods
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (*5pts)
* Pyre Troll (5pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
Krielstone Bearer and 5 Stone Scribes (4pts)
* Krielstone Stone Scribe Elder (1pts)
Trollkin Fennblades (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Trollkin Fennblade Officer & Drummer (2pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Lanyssa Ryssyll, Nyss Sorceress (2pts)
My bread and butter Calandra list, it's served me well in the past and I expect it to keep doing so. My one worry is that it is a bit pillow fisted against heavy armor, but since it's more of a tarpit/brick for those pesky objective missions, I'm less worried about that. Plus, if I really need to crack heavy armor, I can always use the 2nd list.
35pt Trollbloods
Grim Angus (*6pts)
* Slag Troll (6pts)
* Troll Axer (6pts)
* Mulg the Ancient (12pts)
Pyg Bushwackers (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
Trollkin Scattergunners (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
* Trollkin Scattergunner Officer & Drummer (2pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Troll Whelps (2pts)
I've never used this list before - since getting the Scattergunners, Slag troll, and Mulg, I haven't had much chance to play them beyond a game or two. However, this list looks so good on paper that I just can't seem to help it. The Scattergunners' general inability to hit is heavily mitigated by Grim's feat/spells, the Fell Caller, and their UA, and with the best armor breaking Heavy and Light Beasts in the trollblood range, I'll have little problem with high ARM.
pGrexy's Lists:
Woo! Tournament! Here are the lists I'm going with. I picked pHexeris and pMorghoul as my warlocks for this tournament, because they're good complements for each other. Morghoul is hard-hitting, fast and maneuverable. He has one round of excellent defense against warbeasts and warjacks with his Feat. Hexeris is cagier and more flexible, and his magic threat is a lot harder to avoid than Morghoul's melee threat. His Feat gives him one turn of crushing offense against most infantry.
I tried to make both lists more or less all-comers, but there are definitely matchups each list does better than the other. Morghoul is better against beast-heavy and 'jack heavy lists, and is definitely better against Colossals/Gargantuans. He's also better at center scenarios because his army is fast but dense, and can dish out a lot of damage. Hexeris is better against infantry with his Feat, and Obliteration for dealing with high-Def infantry. He can also spread his army out more with his larger control area, making him a little more flexible for spread out scenarios.
Master Tormentor Morghoul (*7pts)
*Bronzeback Titan (10pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Archidon (7pts)
*Cyclops Brute (5pts)
Paingiver Bloodrunners (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) (1pt)
Paingiver Bloodrunner Master Tormentor (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
So I've got no experience with this particular list, although I've played a similar one (Arcuarii instead of the Archidon and BRMT). It seems strong though. My basic plan is to jam infantry up quickly with the Bloodrunner contingent, and use my heavies' high speed and hitting power get the first strike in on enemy heavies. Then I've got 1-2 rounds of denial against 'jacks and 'beasts with the Agonizer and Morghoul's Feat. Few armies will be able to take an alpha strike, and then go toe to toe with enemy beasts while unable to force/spend focus. If I make any changes, I'll probably swap the Archidon and BRMT for a Cyclops Savage or Shaman, and a Basilisk Krea. All of them are good, and my Savage and Krea are fully painted.
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (*6pts)
*Titan Cannoneer (9pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Archidon (7pts)
*Aptimus Marketh (3pts)
Praetorian Swordsmen (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
*Praetorian Swordsmen Officer and Standard Bearer (2pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Extoller Soulward (2)
Agonizer (2)
Kingdom of Shadows Tier 1 - Hexeris can start with his upkeep spells in play.
This is the list I'm currently running that I'm most familiar with. It fits together very well, and can adapt to a lot of different challenges for Skorne. The basic plan is to hit the enemy's jamming and support on turn 1-2 with Hexeris' magic, then grind down the weakened army on turns 2 and up. The plan requires good target selection and a little luck, but is fairly reliable, and I have a lot of experience with it. This is also my go-to list against infantry spam and high-Def lists. It's weaker against 'beast and 'jack heavy lists where Hexeris' magic and Feat will have less impact, although it does still have good tools to deal with those lists. If I make any changes before the tournament, I'll probably swap the Cannoneer and Agonizer for a Bronzeback and 2 more Beast Handlers. This list's biggest potential blind spot is against heavy armor, and the Bronzeback
really fills that hole.
Ben's List
I'm a slow painter and modeler, so I've just got the one list that’s been mentioned before on this site. Five models left to paint, though, and then it's Durgen's turn in the limelight! Anyway, I'm featuring Drake MacBain and the Annoying Solo Brigade.
Mercenaries – Four Star Syndicate
Drake MacBain! (*6pts)
* Buccaneer (3pts)
* Nomad (6pts)
* Sylys Wyshnalyrr, the Seeker (2pts)
Kayazy Assassins (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Kayazy Assassin Underboss (2pts)
Lady Aiyana & Master Holt (4pts)
Eiryss, Angel of Retribution (3pts)
Gorman di Wulfe, Rogue Alchemist (2pts)
Alexia, Mistress of the Witchfire (4pts)
Ogrun Bokur (3pts) (client: eAlexia)
Rhupert Carvolo, Piper of Ord (2pts)
Saxon Orrik (2pts)
It’s never a good sign when you start listing the things your army struggles against, and the first two that come to mind are “High ARM” and “High DEF.” Oh, there are solutions to both – Aiyana helps with the ARM issue, and Gorman pitches in as well when he isn’t otherwise occupied locking down Colossals for long periods of time. The Kayazy can get Fortune and start swinging away at rerollable MAT 9, which is…fine. Still, the list has both limited killing power and extreme brittleness – by which I mean that once a few of the key pieces (Kayazy, Nomad) are dead or disabled, there’s not much left.
Pretty bleak, no? There’s at least a little more to it. Drake’s feat means that for one key turn, all the solos are guaranteed to stick around and provide full value to the rest of the army. Kayazy are pretty solid as a tarpit that, if ignored, can proceed to run through enemy models to kill the caster or other squishy bits – and they can be hell on gunlines when pushed forwards to jam with Countermeasures up. eAlexia and the Bokur are a great little independent module that runs up the flanks to pick off infantry, draw fire and threaten odd slams or Thrall Warrior charges. And of course, eEiryss and Gorman can win games all by themselves through disabling key enemy models. It’s a list that disables, distracts and attritions where it can until hopefully it can get a shot in at the caster.
Frankly, I’m not sure if that “little more to it” will be enough, given that this is my first tournament and the list bears a little too much resemblance to a Rube Goldberg machine (of death). We’ll see how it performs, though!
Look forward to battle reports and a tournament recap after Saturday! (...probably) -- Caleb, pGrexy, and Ben
*Bronzeback Titan (10pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Archidon (7pts)
*Cyclops Brute (5pts)
Paingiver Bloodrunners (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) (1pt)
Paingiver Bloodrunner Master Tormentor (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
So I've got no experience with this particular list, although I've played a similar one (Arcuarii instead of the Archidon and BRMT). It seems strong though. My basic plan is to jam infantry up quickly with the Bloodrunner contingent, and use my heavies' high speed and hitting power get the first strike in on enemy heavies. Then I've got 1-2 rounds of denial against 'jacks and 'beasts with the Agonizer and Morghoul's Feat. Few armies will be able to take an alpha strike, and then go toe to toe with enemy beasts while unable to force/spend focus. If I make any changes, I'll probably swap the Archidon and BRMT for a Cyclops Savage or Shaman, and a Basilisk Krea. All of them are good, and my Savage and Krea are fully painted.
Lord Tyrant Hexeris (*6pts)
*Titan Cannoneer (9pts)
*Titan Gladiator (8pts)
*Archidon (7pts)
*Aptimus Marketh (3pts)
Praetorian Swordsmen (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
*Praetorian Swordsmen Officer and Standard Bearer (2pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Extoller Soulward (2)
Agonizer (2)
Kingdom of Shadows Tier 1 - Hexeris can start with his upkeep spells in play.
This is the list I'm currently running that I'm most familiar with. It fits together very well, and can adapt to a lot of different challenges for Skorne. The basic plan is to hit the enemy's jamming and support on turn 1-2 with Hexeris' magic, then grind down the weakened army on turns 2 and up. The plan requires good target selection and a little luck, but is fairly reliable, and I have a lot of experience with it. This is also my go-to list against infantry spam and high-Def lists. It's weaker against 'beast and 'jack heavy lists where Hexeris' magic and Feat will have less impact, although it does still have good tools to deal with those lists. If I make any changes before the tournament, I'll probably swap the Cannoneer and Agonizer for a Bronzeback and 2 more Beast Handlers. This list's biggest potential blind spot is against heavy armor, and the Bronzeback
really fills that hole.
Ben's List
I'm a slow painter and modeler, so I've just got the one list that’s been mentioned before on this site. Five models left to paint, though, and then it's Durgen's turn in the limelight! Anyway, I'm featuring Drake MacBain and the Annoying Solo Brigade.
Mercenaries – Four Star Syndicate
Drake MacBain! (*6pts)
* Buccaneer (3pts)
* Nomad (6pts)
* Sylys Wyshnalyrr, the Seeker (2pts)
Kayazy Assassins (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Kayazy Assassin Underboss (2pts)
Lady Aiyana & Master Holt (4pts)
Eiryss, Angel of Retribution (3pts)
Gorman di Wulfe, Rogue Alchemist (2pts)
Alexia, Mistress of the Witchfire (4pts)
Ogrun Bokur (3pts) (client: eAlexia)
Rhupert Carvolo, Piper of Ord (2pts)
Saxon Orrik (2pts)
It’s never a good sign when you start listing the things your army struggles against, and the first two that come to mind are “High ARM” and “High DEF.” Oh, there are solutions to both – Aiyana helps with the ARM issue, and Gorman pitches in as well when he isn’t otherwise occupied locking down Colossals for long periods of time. The Kayazy can get Fortune and start swinging away at rerollable MAT 9, which is…fine. Still, the list has both limited killing power and extreme brittleness – by which I mean that once a few of the key pieces (Kayazy, Nomad) are dead or disabled, there’s not much left.
Pretty bleak, no? There’s at least a little more to it. Drake’s feat means that for one key turn, all the solos are guaranteed to stick around and provide full value to the rest of the army. Kayazy are pretty solid as a tarpit that, if ignored, can proceed to run through enemy models to kill the caster or other squishy bits – and they can be hell on gunlines when pushed forwards to jam with Countermeasures up. eAlexia and the Bokur are a great little independent module that runs up the flanks to pick off infantry, draw fire and threaten odd slams or Thrall Warrior charges. And of course, eEiryss and Gorman can win games all by themselves through disabling key enemy models. It’s a list that disables, distracts and attritions where it can until hopefully it can get a shot in at the caster.
Frankly, I’m not sure if that “little more to it” will be enough, given that this is my first tournament and the list bears a little too much resemblance to a Rube Goldberg machine (of death). We’ll see how it performs, though!
Look forward to battle reports and a tournament recap after Saturday! (...probably) -- Caleb, pGrexy, and Ben
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Journeyman League: Week 4
This is the week when we're finally able to change our warlocks. Lylyth is fun and all, but also pretty one-dimensional. No defense, no real control or denial, no maneuverability, just offense. Very potent offense, but that's it. In contrast, Saeryn has a more, well, Cryxian feel to her, and I've wanted to play her for quite a while. So I swapped her in, as well as dropping the Striders for an Angelius to aid with Saeryn's focus on her battlegroup. Here's my list as it stands:
Saeryn
* Carnivean
* Angelius
* Shredders x4
The Forsaken
I got one league game and one non-league game in, and won them both. Repulsion is a fun animus, especially when it lets me push most of an army out of my way to kill a warcaster.
I painted the unit attachment for the Striders, which increases the unit's size enough to net me another point. And... that will probably be it for my painting this league. Busy busy.
Game Points: 27
Hobby Points: 2
Journeyman Points: 29
Next week: return of the infantry.
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