Too many coices

Well i have almost nailed the list that i think will be both fun and competitive for the Dark Elves. I would hate to be on either end of these which is always a good indicator. Maybe i will do one and then the other latter on. Who knows. I'm rambling now. List one (the most likely list) is...

Malus Darkblade

Supreme Sorceress (lvl 4, shadow)

Master BSB (cold one, 1+ save, other tricksters shard, dawnstone)

Master (cold one, 1+ save, ring of hotek)

Sorceress (lvl 1, fire, scroll)

33 Corsairs (2 hand weapons, full command)

2*5 Dark Riders (repeater crossbows, shields, musicians)

11 Cold One Knights (full command)

29 Executioners (full command)

3 Repeater Bolt Throwers

No subtlety at all but plenty of hitting power (what is happening to me that i would come to this list first).

The second list is...

High Beastmaster (scourgerunner chariot, charmed shield)

Supreme Sorceress (lvl 4, shadow)

Master BSB (sword of might, 1+ armour, dawnstone)

33 Corsairs (2 hand weapons, full command)

2*5 Dark Riders (repeater crossbows, musicians)

3 Hydras (flaming breath)

3 Repeater Bolt Throwers

2 Kharibdyss

 

So how many hydras can you kill?

thought it would be a bit of fun really.

what do people reckon? plausible?

Skitterleap 2013

Ow ow ow ow ow, just five ways of describing the weekend. High praise for Sam for his laid back approach to running the tournament (helped by the majority of the players being able to sort their own problems out without having  to resort to the TO) and the introduction of the new paint score chart (a great way of getting feedback on your army and where you can go from here on) led to a great, if bloody weekend.

Unfortunately I forgot to bring batteries for my camera to the event (no, I don't have a smart phone yet. phones should be for calling, computers for internetting and camera's for picturing. Call me a dwarf if you want but its better to be specialized and not a jack of all trades) so i do not have any pretty pictures for you to puruse at your leasiure, you will have to make do with this pictures relating to my opposition...

1: Mike King; Lizard men (Dawn Attack)

Slaan, far too many Skinks for my liking, two ancient Stegs (with adorable baby Stegs in tow), temple gaurd and terradons. i was forced to deploy mainly on my left flank while mike was forced to deploy mainly center-left . the game swung a bit during the middle of the game but for a few very unlucky rolls mike lost his flank (Kroxi-Skink unit, ancient Steg and 3 Skink units) and lost the second ancient Steg to a carress and the great weapon of the Wight King and then had his temple gaurd charged in the front by the vamp and his ghost riders and the flank by some ASF Skellies (yay the Corpse cart did something). in the end the dust settled with a 15-5 victory to me. this was actually quite annoying for me as it ment i would have to Vs the lists i didn't want to like...

2: Caleb Rouse; Chaos Warriors (Blood & Glory)

Yaaay. I play near his list most weeks (the only problem at the club, no fluffy games) vsing Hamish. Nurgle Daemon prince, unkillable BSB, Throgg, 8 Trolls, 2 Chariots, 2 Chimeras, 3 Skull Crushers. he picked the side that had the only building, leaving me nowhere to hide from his monsters, chariots and cav. Yeah. So Scaedugengan did well to turn the flank while the Black Coach held up the Daemon Prince and Throgg for two turns. Scaedugengan then came in with the wraithes and ended up killing Throgg in combat while the wraiths dealt with the rest of the unit. Scaedugengan then did the impossible and KILLED THE UNKILLABLE BSB. However he could not pull off a perfect set and was killed (as usual) by the Daemon Prince. while this was all happening the Chimeras ate a unit of Zombies each and the Skeletons where walked over by the Crushers. in the end i had a unit of wraiths left. that's it. 0-20 (back to my usual performance).

3: Hamish Forbes; Ogres (Watchtower)
Hamish was running the dead 'ard (to use an Orc term) Ogres gutstar with a Slaughtermaster, Butcher, Firebelly, Bruiser, 11 Ironguts, 6 Bulls, 4 Leadbelchers, units of 2 and 4 Mournfang the Doggies and a Cannon. Now this was a case of READ THE RULES, as Hamish got the tower and proceeded to garrison it with the bulls. this was WRONG as only infantry can man it. this was huge as i would have been able to push my Skellies into it and hold it indefinitely. oh well. he moved the bulls out, the Ironguts in, and then was crapping himself as Scaedugengan came in turn after turn, slaughtering the butcher, then the bruiser, and then putting the Slaughtermaster on 1 wound. while this was happening he lost his Leadbelchers, large Mournfang and Bulls to ONE unit of Wraithes, as the other was magiced off the field. Hamish breathed a huge sigh of relief as the game came to an end at turn 6 as he could not survive another round of combat. without the tower it would have been a 11-9, with it he got a 15-5.

4: Charlie Lloyd; Dark Elves (Battle for the Pass)

Poor poor Charlie, mine was the worse list he could ever have drawn. a Khainite list led by Crone Helebron herself, and she was packing the only magical gubbins in his list. This turned into the coolest game of the weekend as it all came down to one redeeming combat, where Crones unit was completly surounded. with Skeletons in the front (that a hydra had failed over three rounds to do any damage to), Hex Wraithes in the flank, a Black Coach in the OTHER flank and Scaedugengan in the rear. Scaedugengan challenged out Crone (drawing Sam's attention as  the most epic combat of the round). Pretty much the brief was thus. Scaedugengan had to get three wounds out of his 6+ attacks (red fury) or crone would murder him without a second thought and endanger the entire army. I rolled. all 6 hit and then all 6 wounded... I could do it! but then the gods of fate, who had deserted Charlie all game, laughed in my face as he made 5 5+ ward saves! i had ignored one of his two cauldrons as it was turn 5 and needed to kill Crones unit. needless to say she turned him into offal. luckily the whole army survived the magical backlash and went on to kill all but crone and a unit of 10 Witches. 15-5 to me and both of our votes for best game of the weekend.

5: Ryan Lister; Warriors of Chaos (battleline)

Noooo! I was so close to the perfect pentagonal lineup this tournament! oh well. I had no high hopes going into this game, as Ryan's Warriors have run rampant in Scaedugengan's forces once before. packing the Slaanesh Daemon Prince (hisss), Unkillable disc BSB, a fire Sorcerer, 18 Warriors, 2 chariots, lots of dogs, a Chimera, 3 Dragon Ogres and 3 Skull Crushers. i bunkered my characters within a building and left the skeletons to bait the majority of his army in while i turned his flank. nothing went overly well this game except for the Black Coach once more severally stalling his Daemon Prince for 3 rounds (even with the warrior block backing them) and the disc BSB going into the flank of my Hexwraithes (currently mowing down Dragon Ogres at the time), failing to would them, then breaking and dying without a single wound being delt to him. however the combo of the other trickster shard and an irresistible Choir saw all chances of the Vampire surviving fade. 18-2 to Ryan

in the end i ended with 37 battle points and  22/25 painting points, much more than i thought i would get. in the end i came 20th, so at least i didn't add another wooden spoon to the collection.

Warma/Hordes journeymens league

With the clubs journeymen league starting in a weeks time my new Circle Orboros dudes (or dudets for my caster, Kaya). here she is!

For such small details they really managed to make it crisp.

I spent about 10 minutes trying to get the pupils on. in the end it was a "F*** it that will do" situation.

Pics of the warbeasts will follow soon.

1st Colour tests

Its been far far far too long since i have posted pictures of my work benches output. To be fair this is because its very very low, but with the dark elves putting the wheels back on the hobby wagon i have some pics for you again (yay)

Not sure on the tummy, but then its the first time doing freehand abs

work in progress shades. just needing to do weapons and belts

Mark II list

I think this will lay down alot more hurt (and be harder to deal with at range too)

Supreme Sorceress (270)
LVL 4 (shadow), ring of Hotek
Master (157)
BSB, great weapon, heavy armour, sea dragon cloak, talisman of preservation, luck stone
31 Corsairs (381)
additional hand weapons, light armour, sea dragon cloaks, full command, standard of discipline
2×5 Dark Riders (220)
spears, repeater crossbows, shields, light armour, dark steeds, musician
28 executioners (411)
great weapons, heavy armour, full command, razor standard
2×5 Shades (180)
great weapons, repeater crossbows
3×Repeater Bolt Thrower (210)
hand weapons
2× Kharibdyss (320)
teeth, lots of teeth
2×5 Warlocks (250)
hand weapons and dark steeds

"Well that didn't seem to work..."

So with a title like that can you guess what happened? I said before that a gun line would remove the list from the field and the Wood Elves proved this to be completely and disastrously correct. At least in the second game the Executioners got to make Hamish wet himself slightly. However the ability to not fail your 3++ saves is so annoying, surely putting 20 wounds on him over 3 rounds would do something other than 1 wound but nooooooo.

So what would i change in the list for next time...

I: Drop the shooting

Dark elves cant compete with some as a shooting list, and it just doesn't have the punch without a shadow witch to back it up. So im gonna drop the large unit of riders and make the large shade smaller.

II: More hitty

With the riders dropped i think dropping the Bleakswords to bring a large unit of corsairs will be necessary. I'm not going to go for the witches as you need to invest a shiteload of points into them to keep them alive and their harder to control (i both love and hate frenzy on my savages). The 4+ armour and 2 attacks should be good enough.

III: More dakka

Another bolt thrower. Jesus Christ why didn't i do it before. Out ranging wood elves will be so fun.

IV: DINOSAURS

i think i will bring some cold ones next time. I6 and lances are going to make problems for some, i just have to manage the stupidity somehow...

those are my thoughts. Anything people reckon i missed?

A counter blast for Mr Foote

My Dear friend Rex, how you have misjudged the situation in your recent post (The Dice Odyssey: Warlocks). Warlocks are so much more than a ward saved dark rider, and heres todays lesson on why...

FEAR ME, I'M A WARLOCK

I: Not just a dark rider

Where to start with this one. S4 base, 2 attacks base, poison BASE. Just in their profile they are so much more than a basic Dark Rider.

II: Miscasts be DAMNED!

Feel free to 6 dice the 4D6 S5 shots, as a miscast, rather than roll on the table and lose dice, causes D3 wounds on the unit that you still get to ward save. Classy, a unit with next to zero drawbacks for smashing out what might be the most abusive spell in the dark elf's arsenal, and no fear of sucking your general down the hole like the Grey Seers, Daemon Princes or Wood Elves do or losing any extra die from the casting pool.

III: Channel, the name of the game

Rex, four wizards means four channels. I'm not going to try and cast with every wizard every turn but they all grant me a modicum of additional power and allow me to pick and choose whats right for the job at hand that turn. Do i need protection? Come forth the metal sorceress. Do i need to drop stats? Come forth the Hag. Do i need to melt a face? Hello WARLOCKS.

So worth the 25. Just as their fluff dictates, they are a suicide unit of the highest caliber. A Tool to be used and thrown away. This is the Dark Elf creed. the week wither and only the strong shall survive. Thus will it be Thursday Rex. Thus shall it be...

P.S: If i lose on Thursday i will blame anything but the warlocks, Rex's list seems to be a good counter to mine...

Unmentioned bonus's in the new Dark Elves

Perusing the new book is great fun, Matt Ward has expanded on the Dark Elves history (albeit with a very strong biased, which i love) and created great rivalries between the major factions of the cities. The best part though is the rules themselves. Yes we know witch elves are now very strong, and that murderous prowess has turned the dark elves into the nastiest combat troops of the Elven kingdoms. however their are some small gems i think were not covered properly in the Kiwihammer podcast's review (if you haven't listened to it yet, i recommend it, though put a bit of time aside if you are going to http://kiwihammer.co.nz/kiwihammer-episode-5-dark-elf-review/)

I: High Beastmaster on Scourgerunner Chariot

now everyone's kinda lampooned the Scourgerunner as a waste of points, well their kinda true for the normal version, but as a mobile artillery piece when a High Beastmaster is mounted on it could be a good time. BS 7 will mean that long range and move will still hit on a 2+, and at S7 bolt thrower (meaning it can pierce ranks and allows no armour saves doing D3 wounds) makes it a strong contender for anti Daemon Prince, just pepper it with the repeaters first to remove that annoying charmed shield.

II: Corsairs

Breezed over in the podcast, i reckon these guys are going to end up being the favorite choice over the unpredictable Witch Elves in my opinion. They have lost their slaving rule (unless Lokhier is in the unit) and their sea serpent banner and have gone up 1 point when armed (additional hand weapon or repeater crossbow pistol, your choice depending on what you need. Probably the additional hand weapon though), giving them the same cost as a Witch Elf. Where a Witch Elf is the glass cannon though the corsair is the rock you can build a reliable force around. The sea dragon cloaks now just grant scaly skin 5+ straight, with no drop in combat, making them a reliable 4+ armour save to back up their 2 attacks. Also not having frenzy makes them easier to control, not having to worry about racing off after a fleeing enemy if you don't want too. Personally they would be my first choice over the Witches.

III: Executioners are now your pals

OK Executioners were covered extensively. Lets face it the can openers are going to be everywhere  nowadays but it is a buff that was not mentioned that i am addressing (and will be exploiting). Their is no longer the Khainite rule in the army book. For those who never played Dark Elves under previous additions the units marked Khainite could not be joined by non Khainite heroes, limiting you considerably to Assassins and Hags. Khainite however is history, and though the Witch Elves have a special rule for any uninducted heroes their is nothing to stop you putting Masters, Dreadlords or Sorceress's into the unit.

IV: The armour of grief

Kouran Darkhand is a great anomalie in the dark elf book. not only does he make Black Guard good again, but the wording of his equipment might make him one of the most hilarious suiciders in the book. with the usual always strike first, murderous prowess and eternal hatred that marks his profession, he also grants unbreakable to his unit (always handy). however the combo of the Crimson Death and the Armour of Grief is brilliant. 3 ASF S6 attacks that re-roll 1's to wound will hurt alot, but then when you go to strike him back he gets to inflict an instant S5 hit on his opponent for every attack that HITS him. Not wound. HITS. the opponent i assume will still be able to wound if he is killed by these out of sinc attacks but it allows you to play some great mind games with anyone who would dare challenge the Captain of the Black Guard.

V: Darkblade

The tales of Malus Darkblade are possibly one of the most successful Black Library series, and was the catalyst into my love of the Dark brethren. His ruthless exploits, his backstabbing, his arrogance and his hate made for a series of novels that oozed with character. Now the Darkblade has shrugged off the poor Herodom of the last Army book and has stacked his claim to Lordship. One of the few non Black Guard to have the Eternal hatred rule (alongside Malekith himself) Malus not only sports an epic profile and constant re-rolls to hit (no matter what) but also a weapon that allows no armour save and re-rolls to wound. Match this with the power of the Daemon Tz'arkan and you have a character who is possibly the second best glass cannon in the new book (close behind Hellebron herself). Not only this but Spite has been buffed. 3 attacks (one more than the average Cold one like last incarnation) and again removing stupidity from his unit will make Malus and his steed a must for the Black Knight bus these days, but Spite also now has eternal hatred too, the only creature in the book to have any form of re-roll. I really hope to see Malus gracing the battlefields a lot more than he did, for he is now well and truly worth his points.

First musings on possible Dark Elf lists

The Elfes Noir have arrived and i have been racking my brain for the last hour working on what i reckon would be the best combination of the AMAZING options available in the list. In my opinion everything bar the Scourge-runner and Medusa has a definite use in the lists to come. However this is the one i suspect might have the best balance when it comes to scenarios with drops, banners and building huggers. We will see how it pans out.

My final plan was a run around set to put lots of shots out and set up the bus to use their can openers on anything the rest cant deal with. so...

Supreme Sorceress: 320
LVL 4 (lore of dark magic), the cloak of twilight, dark Pegasus

Sorceress: 150
LVL 2 (lore of metal), tome of furion, dark steed

Master Battle Standard Bearer: 132
halberd, heavy armour, sea dragon cloak, dragonhelm, opal amulet

9 Dark Riders: 210
spears, light armour, shields, repeater crossbows, dark steeds, full command

5 Dark Riders: 105
spears, light armour, repeater crossbows, musician, dark steeds

5 Dark Riders: 105
spears, light armour, repeater crossbows, musician, dark steeds

20 Bleakswords: 210
hand weapons, light armour, shields, full command

30 Har Ganeth Executioners: 435
great weapons, heavy armour, full command, razor standard

10 Shades: 190
hand weapons, repeater crossbows, full command

5 Shades: 80
hand weapons, repeater crossbows

Repeater Bolt Throwers: 70
Repeater Bolt Throwers: 70
Repeater Bolt Throwers: 70

5 Doomfire Warlocks: 125
hand weapons, dark steeds

5 Doomfire Warlocks: 125
hand weapons, dark steeds

TOTAL: 2397

So only two units that aren't in some small way expendable, but generally a tip & run setup (for those who play Brits in FOW)

The Lore Of Dark Magic

We are less than four days away from the release of the new Dark Elves, and so far the general consensus has been alot of good with a dash of terribad. With the grainy pre-release pictures of the miniatures and rules surfacing I, understandably curious, squinted my eyes to see what I could make out about the Lore if Dark Magic. Boy was I in for a shock when I read it! as evil a lore I have yet to read in the current game, and can now see why the High Elves needed their 2+ ward against magic. heres the breakdown...

Also worthy of note is that all Dark Elf Wizzards gain +1 to cast their spells (O.O)

Lore attribute: Spiteful conjuration

when a Dark Magic Hex, Direct damage or Magic missile is cast with a double of any kind and not dispeled, the unit will suffer 2D6 extra S1 armour piercing hits. if it is cast with a triple of any kind it will suffer 3D6 extra S1 armour piercing hits.

So starting off with a bang. All but two of the lores spells benefits from this, and you never know when an extra wound will help out.

Signature spell A: Power Of Darkness (8+)

An Augment spell that is cast on the sorceresses unit, granting it +1S. In addition the sorceress regains D3 magic die, but if a 3 is rolled then the sorceress will lose a wound.

So a sting in the tail, but when combined with the spell soul stealer its not that big a drawback.

Signature spell B: Doombolt (12+/24+)

 A Magic Missile with a range of 18". It causes 2D6 S5 hits on a unit, or 4D6 if boosted.

Wowwee, seriously having this as a signature means its a guaranteed pick up.  Also it is one of the two spells that the Warlock unit gets access to, making it a potent fast cavalry choice.

1: Chillwind (3+)

A Magic Missile with a range of 24", it causes 1D6 S2 hits. If any wounds are caused the affected unit suffers -1 BS until the start of the casters next magic phase.

usable, but most likely the one to be subbed out for Doombolt.

2: Word Of Pain (9+/12+)

A Hex with a range of 24", the target unit will suffer -D3 to their WS and BS. If you boost the spell it will also lose the D3 points from its S and I as well.

A very nice hex their. with high WS across the army, even dropping one point could really tip the balance further into your favor. Also combos well with Bladewind.

3: Bladewind (9+)

A Direct Damage spell with a range of 24". every model in the target unit must pass a WS test or suffer a S4 hit with the armour piercing special rule.

Heres the horde killer. Most large units  don't have stellar WS so should be seeing at least half being hit, and a 4+ saves are needed for their to be any chance of blocking it.

4: Shroud Of Despair (10+)

a Hex that affects any enemy unit within 12" of the caster until the casters next magic phase. Any affected units cannot use the hold your ground! or inspiring presences rules. if any affected unit fails any type of  LD test then all other affected units suffer -1LD per failed test.

wowowowowowo. WHAT A HEX! And for only a 10+ to cast when your lvl 4 has 5+ to cast!

5: Soul Stealer (11+/14+)

A Direct Damage spell that allows you to place a small template anywhere within 18" of the caster and then scattering it D6". Any model hit suffers a S2 hit with no armour saves allowed. For every wound caused you roll a dice, and for every 4+ you gain a wound (up to a maximum of 10) for the rest of the game. Its boosted version increases the range to 36".

Not a strong spell, but the ability to cover many troops with it will guarantee a couple of wounds, and theirfore about half of those will heal the caster. One way to keep her in the fight, and again at a relatively low casting value.

6: Anzipal's Black Horror (15+/25+)

A Magical Vortex that moves the small template an artillery dice × your magic level in inches in your chosen direction. Every model passed over must pass a S test or die instantly with no armour saves allowed (ward saves or regeneration saves are fine). It can be boosted to a large template. If a misfire is rolled center the template on the wizard and scatter it D6".

the typical horrible magic vortex of DOOM. however unlike the original rulebook spells it allows ward saves (which i think is what was needed really). At least the spell once more synchronizes with the word of pain.

Their it is. A nasty lore of damage and hex's designed to make your opponents cry like baby's (or High Elves). I will definitely be testing the viability of a Supreme Sorceress on dark Pegasus and two units of Warlocks (for fodering boosted Doombolts without fear for the sorceress)