Warriors of the Old Faith is one of the Oblivion cross-faction themes. There is only one proper Khador ‘caster. The other ones are all Protectorate ‘casters. So, clearly running this theme points directly at the third incarnation of Vlad: Vladimir Tzepesci the Great Prince of Umbrey. This is probably the fastes Khador list one can make with plenty of cavalry. 

Warriors of the Old Faith is an almost pure cavalry theme. The natural home of Vlad3; perhaps the only home. It allows Vlad to run all sorts of Protectorate models, who are both Khador and Protectorate models in this theme. It also gives cavalry models Line Breaker, which gives an additional die on Impact Attacks (so three die on both impact and charge attacks for cavalry models). Finally, a reroll is allowed for the starting roll. This is good, as Vlad almost always wants to go first. 

My version of this theme is as follow:

Vlad, the man himself

The third incarnation of Vladimir Tzepesci finally sees him on his trusted steed Vasada. He is the natural choice for leading a Warriors of the Old Faith list.  

Vlad3 is in many ways a well rounded ‘caster, without being super fantastic to one of the things he do. He is fast and has a 3″ Reposition (he is on a horse). He can also gain Pathfinder when charging. When he gets into it and have to beat stuff up on his own, Blood-Quenched give him an extra STR and ARM for enemy destroyed (which have an interesting, yet situational interaction with his spell Flashing Blade).  He also gets Pathfinder on the charge thanks to Relentless Charge. This is handy, as this list doesn’t really have a way of handing out Pathfinder.

Despite appearing as if he wants to get into the middle of the melee, he is, however deceptively brittle. At DEF 15, ARM 17 and 18 boxes, he will die to somebody making an effort. Something like an enemy ‘jack, ‘caster, stuff shooting at him or Weapon Master infantry (if they can catch him). 

His feat, Charge of the Horse Lords, is the epitome of his hit and run approach to battle. It allows Warjacks and Cavalry to move 2″ if their initial attack hits (side step), and make a full advance and the end of activation, if they manage to kill something. Side step is clearly super with models with more than one attack. Yet, it is also interesting with the two possible (heavy) cavalry units he can bring to the table (Iron Fang Uhlans and Exemplar Vengers). 

Vlad brings six spells to the table: Dash for extra movement, Flashing Blades for more attacks, Hand of Fate the discount version of the signature spell Signs & Portens. Infernal Machine for faster ‘jacks, Razor Wind his single damage spell, and Wind Wall to keep him safe from shooting. 

Even with 7 focus, Vlad tends to be a bit strapped for focus. In a perfect world, he would like to upkeep both Infernal. Machine and Hand of Fate, and he will probably be casting Dash every round. This is already four focus, leaving him with only enough to either cast Wind Wall or fuel a ‘jack. This leaves him naked and not really good for either attacking or defending himself. Also, Vlad often likes to go first (at least before the cavalry) for using Dash. 

When not casting or upkeeping too many spells, he actually do have an assassination potential. Under normal circumstances he can charge 12″. To gain both impact attacks and both hand-weapons, this is a far as he can go. There are of course options under his feat (an extra 2″ via side step) and Dash for an extra inch. All in all, this allows Vlad to poke stuff with his spear 16″ away (with Pathfinder). He can arrive at 16″ with five focus, which is not too shabby. Unfortunately, his spear is only a POW 12 weapon, so any options for using Blood-Quenched on the way will be highly appreciated (see Flashing Blades below). 

Dash is the spell that makes the army even faster. It adds +1 SPD to friendly faction warriors models within 14″. In this army the most important models affected are obviously Vlad himself, giving him SPD 9; all the cavalry, giving them SPD 9; and also the Archons, giving them SPD 7. This means that all cavalry can tie up stuff 18.5 to 20 inches away, and can charge stuff 14″ away. Also, the Archons becomes highly mobile with flight. Dash will probably go up every round. Dash also have a very nice interaction with Vlad’s feat. More on this later. Finally, it also gives Parry!

Flashing Blades is also known from Butcher3. When casting, Vlad makes one basic attack against each enemy model in range. This is always handy. Yet, the spell has a very nice interaction with the ability Blood Quenched; in particular when Vlad is on an assassination run. When Vlad charges, let’s say a ‘caster, he can pump up the charge attack by casting Flashing Blade between ending his charge move and carrying out his charge attack. He will receive a +1 to STR and ARM for each enemy model destroyed. Unfortunately, his two weapons are not the most potent ones. You can pick either a range 2″ P+S 12, or a range 1″ P+S 13 (Chain Weapon). Nevertheless, pumping up before using his spear for a charge attack will make it P+S 14, plus any number of models killed on the way in. 

This is Vlad’s signature spell. Poor mans version of Signs & Portents. It gives a friendly model or unit an extra die on attack and damage rolls. Then discard the lowest. Everybody clearly loves an extra 1.5 on the average two die roll. However, the Judicator really loves it. It already has Reliquary, which is basically them same, yet it stacks. So, using both Hand of Fate and Reliquary add a nice 2.5 on the average two die roll. This is brilliant, in particular for the shooting of the Inaccurate Rocket Pods that only has an effective RAT of 2. This allows a Judicator to actually hit DEF 11 and DEF 15 (if boosting) on average roll.

This spell adds love to Vlad’s ‘jacks, or in this case ‘jack. It adds +2 SPD and murderous. The latter adds an additional die to attack rolls against warrior models. I’m not envisioning the Judicator attacking too much warrior models, so it is primarily there for the speed buff; which the Judicator needs to keep up with the fast list. 

Razor Wind is in the standard arsenal for many Khador ‘casters. It’s just a POW 12 range 10″ spell. 

This is Vlad’s protection spell against non-magical ranged attacks. It also protects models completely within 3″. As a side note it also hinders models from making ranged attacks. In this list this doesn’t really matter. 

Vlad’s feat is a hit and run feat. Friendly ‘jacks and Cavalry models (remember this also applies to Vlad himself) gain Side Step and Sprint. The former allows a model to advance up to 2″ if it hits an enemy model with its initials. The latter allows a model to make a full advance at the end of its turn; if it killed a model. As a small note, the Judicator can’t Side Step nor Sprint as it is a Colossal.

Combined with Dash, the Feat caters to a beautiful alpha strike. Vengers and Uhlans can charge and hit something 14″ away and then, if the target is killed move 11″ (SPD 8″ + Dash for 1″ + Side Step for 2″) away; and be ready for the next charge. Away can also go into the enemy’s lines, for some weird flipping sides action. Also, remember that Dash gives Parry.

These are the proud horse lords who followed Menoth, but has finally re-rallied under Tzepesci’s banners. Exemplar Vengers are a pretty good heavy cavalry unit. It can be argued that they are flat out better than their Khador counter part, the Uhlans. They come with the classic Reposition 3″, which all cavalry has. In addition the also come with Battle Drive, which gives +2 to ARM and STR, as well as Pathfinder for one round, if the unit is damaged by an enemy attack. This bringes them to ARM 20 and P+S 17 on the charge (remember that the Cavalry rule gives them 3 die on charge attack rolls). This is pretty good. Often it is a good idea to bait the opponent to damage one of the models to overcharge to unit. It is an even better idea if the attack does less than 23 points of damage, so the model survives.

This unit also has the strange Lance rule. They are equipped with a Blessed Lance (thus also Magical), which can only be used on the charge. Blessed ignore spells or animi that adds to DEF and/or ARM. So, Vengers really wants to charge and not being tied down in melee. This is why Vlad’s combo og Feat and Dash is so cool.  Obviously they can also do a POW 12 impact attacks from their mount. Remember that the theme gives them Line Breaker, which is an addition die on attack rolls for impact attacks. This will then hit a DEF 17 on the average.

If they are tied down in melee, they only have a sword. However, compared to the Uhlans’ pommel spike, this is a pretty good melee weapon. Vengers are Weapon Masters with this weapon. So, assuming Battle Driven, they are going to hit at P+S 12 on three die (average of 22 point of damage).  

Charge of the mighty Uhlans

These are the heavy cavalry of Vlad’s homelands. Compared to the Vengers they have stayed true to Motherland and tradition. Uhlans are to a large degree similar to the Vengers. Arguably they are worse for the same point cost. However, I’m not completely on that band wagon. I think that each unit fills a slightly different role, and I would not bring neither two units of Vengers, nor two units of Uhlans.

Uhlans also come with the classic Reposition 3″. They also have build in Pathfinder on the charge, thanks to Relentless Charge. Having proper horses, and not ponies like the Vengers, they are also Steady. Finally, if base to base with one of their comrades they gain +2 ARM (bringing them up to 19). In today’s meta, ARM 19 is still on the low side, despite having 5 boxes. 

This unit also has the strange Lance rule. On the charge, they hit at P+S 16 (average 26 points on damage). Remember that both their impact attack rolls and charge attack rolls are on 3 die (thanks to Line Breaker and Cavalry, respectively). In addition to obviously hitting better on 3 die, there is also an extra bonus, since both impact and the lance have Critical Knockdown. On 3 die, the chance of a critical is around 44%, which is pretty good (ignoring rolls that will not hit the target).

As with the Vengers, Uhlans really don’t like being caught in melee. They only have their Pommel Spike, which is just a pathetic P+S 10. You are actually better off using the mount as a melee weapon. That is POW 12 and the critical knockdown. However, it is only range 0.5″ compared to 1″.

Finally, it is worth remembering that this list also includes Uhlan Kovnik Markov. He grants Tactician to Uhlans when within 10″ of him. Being able to ignore fellow Uhlans for LOS and move through them makes life so much easier. Make sure to plan accordingly.

I think that Vengers and Uhlans fill two slightly different roles. They are equally adapt at removing models that they can kill in a charge attack. Yet, when charging more robust models, Uhlans are to be preferred as they have a reasonable chance of knocking them down.  

The Choir singing their praise to the Empress

The famous choir finally available to Khador. They are now praising the Empress with their songs. As there is only on ‘jack in this list, albeit a rather big one, this is a good investment. The Choir of Khador offer three hymns: i) Hymn of Battle, which gives the Judicator +2 on damage rolls. This makes the fists P+S 23. Yet, perhaps even more interesting it makes the rocket pods POW 14 with a blast of POW 9, and the flame thrower POW 14; ii) Hymn of Passage, which stops the Judicator from being targeted by non-magical ranged attacks; finally, iii) Hymn of Shielding, which stops the Judicator from being targeted by enemy spells. Normally either Passage or Shielding will go up in the beginning, whereas Battle goes up when the Judicator starts bringing pain to the enemy.

As a side note, they are also pretty good at scoring zones since there are only four of them and the other two units are often preoccupied with charging something.

Mini Doom Reavers?

Vlad is often strapped for focus. Luckily, there is a solution to this. The Protectorate of Menoth has learned from our simple and elegant solution to traitors to the Motherland. In this case, it is people showing sorcerous abilities who are chained and masked, thereby resembling our Doom Reavers.

Contrary to the Doom Reavers who are homicidal maniacs, the Vassals are sorcerous maniacs. They offer Empower which gives a focus to the Judicator. On the rare occasion that they are not empowering, they can also do an Arcane Bolt for a POW 11 blast 12″ away. 

Having two in this list is the optimal. Combined with Power Up the Judicator can be fully loaded without Vlad spending a single focus. As a bonus they are free in this theme. However, they are also a favourite target for long range shooters, ambushers or similar, as loosing them quickly puts strains on Vlad. So protect them. Being base to base with the Judicator does a little towards this as their DEF and ARM goes to 14. Not impressive, but every little thing helps.     

Mechanics

Having only one ‘jack in the list is a hefty investment. So, ensuring that it runs smoothly is paramount. Enter the Vassal Mechaniks who are quite adept at maintaining ‘jacks. 

They are solos and at 1 point a head they are a bargain (they are actually for free here). They are slightly more expensive than our own Battle Mechaniks. However, they are also slightly better at repairing stuff, d3+1 compared to d3; and you can have them in any number between 1 and 3. I never leave home without two. 

They are also a favourite target for shooting and ambushing so try to keep them safe. They are also good for scoring or contesting. Just run them and annoy your opponent.

One of the burning Archons

The Menite Archon is one of the many new models in Wingsmachine. As with all the archons this model has a whole lot of rules on its card. It has a few build in (passive) abilities that are always on. It has Flight, which is handy. It is immune to fire, which is handy being on fire. It cannot be knocked down, cannot suffer Blind, nor can enemies take control of it. It also hinders enemy models in gaining souls from friendly models within 10″. Finally, Ashen Veil gives this model Concealment (up to DEF 15 against shooting) and living enemy models who are not immune to fire suffers -2 to attack rolls while within 2″.

On the active side of build in abilities it has build in Hand of Fate (Divine Inspiration), allowing it to hit DEF 16 on the average. Archons are on the average also quite annoyed with the world, so Righteous Fury gives it +2 STR and ARM (11 and 21, respectively) if a friendly warrior model is killed within 10″. So, keep it within 10″ from the charging cavalry. There might even be argument of keeping it within 5″, as it also has Swift Vengeance, which gives it the 3″ move and basic attack during the Maintenance phase.  

Finally, Menite Archons can also fuel flames. If a model (friend or foe!) suffers fire damage within 5″, add 2 to the die roll. This interacts very nicely with the Judicator’s flame thrower, bringing up to POW 14 is the archon is close. Strangely, despite doing Continuous Fire, neither of the archon’s weapons actually has damage type: fire. So, no +2 for itself. 

However, the two weapons carried by the archon can still do some work. It has a 2″ sword, which in addition to being P+S 15 also dispels spells and animi. This is on hit, so any ARM buffs will have expired when damage is rolled. The second weapon is a huge flail. It is a 2″ Chain Weapon (ignoring shields and Shield Wall) at P+S 13″. Even more likeable it denies Tough and can do Thresher. 

The archon is highly mobile, in particular under Dash, making it SPD 7 and Parry; enabling it to go most places. This could for an example be near something the Judicator wish to spray. Also, being imune to fire it doesn’t matter if it gets caught in the spray. 

Dorek “Stalin” Markov

Kovnik Markov is a more expensive and better Uhlan. He has the same basic abilities: Reposition 3″, Relentless Charge, and Steady as the other Uhlans, except Shield Wall. I guess it is because he has his shield hanging from his sadle, rather than on his arm. 

One of the main reasons to pick him is Tactician. It allows Iron Fangs to ignore each other for LOS and move through each other. This does obviously also include himself. Having this ability makes managing 6 modes on large bases so much easier. 

He has the same Pommel Spike for melee attacks, and the same type of horse. So, as with his brethren it is often better to use the horse, having d3 to hit and an OK potential for knockdown. He also has a lance, which is a slightly better lance. In stead of the normal small powder charge, his actually has a warhead. This allows him to put down a 4″ AOE when hitting, which causes a POW 10 blast to everybody in the area except himself. It also causes knockdown on a critical hit. Again, on the charge, a guy on a horse has 3 die on the charge attack roll. 

He is a bit expensive at 7 points, and his primary ability is actually giving tactician. So, he should be kept alive for as long as necessary, or at least until he can get a devastating charge off. 

The High Paladin

To a certain degree, Dartan Vilmon fills a substitute roll as he is the only thing left on the Requisition list worth taking. At 6 points, he is probably too expensive if the theme didn’t give him away for free.

Despite that he has a role to fill. He is a pretty good Shield Guard, and who doesn’t like a shield guard? Keeping him with 3″ of Vlad (or something else that for some reason shouldn’t be hit by a shot) and making sure that he has the option to go into his Stone-and-Mortar Stance (giving up either movement or combat action) allows him to take a shot at ARM 21. At 8 boxes this makes him pretty survivable. 

Having no horse, he can have trouble keeping up. The traditional approach is to have him running in the first turn, and then making his stance for the rest of the game. If he isn’t on Shield Guard duty, he also makes a very good flag-camper. He is quite difficult to remove when doing his dance, I mean stance. 

The Judicator in proper colours

Vlad only has one ‘jack in his list. But what a ‘jack. The Judicator is finally available to a proper faction (and in the case of this list, finally in a colour approved by the Empress).

The Judicator is slightly less robust that our own Conquest and Victor. Also, slightly less brutal in melee. It has two fists at P+S 21, normally at 23 when the choir is near and sining Battle (which they should do if it is in melee). However, its main selling point, weapon wise is actually the Flame Throwers. Sprays rule in Warmahordes. The two Flamer Throwers are rand 12″ and POW 12. Remember, this is POW 14 is the choir is sining, and POW 16 if an archon is near the targets. That is clearly not too shabby.

It also has two Rocket Pods. at range 14″ and POW 14 (16 with the choir) they can do some damage. In addition to the AOE 3″ where it hits, a deviation roll is also made for one more AOE 3″ at POW 7 (or 9 when listening to the choir). Unfortunately, the Rocket Pods are Inaccurate, which means that it has an effective RAT of only 1. Exactly the same as our own Mortar Crew. However, this is where the trump card comes in: Reliquary is the same effect as Hand of Faith, just with another name. This also means that they stack. So, 4 die rolled, remove the two smallest. The combination of Reliquary and Hand of Faith basically shifts the distribution of die rolls to the right (higher number). The table below describes the average DEF and max DEF the Judicator can hit under the different combinations of the base roll, aiming, boosting and Hand of Faith. 

B B+A B+A+Bo B+A+HoF B+A+Bo+HoF B+Bo B+Bo+HoF B+HoF Rockets Avg. 9 11 15 12 16 13 14 10 Max 13 15 21 15 21 19 19 13 Flamer Avg. 13 15 19 16 20 17 18 14 Max 17 19 25 19 25 23 23 17 Fists Avg. 14 N/A N/A N/A N/A 18 19 15 Max 18 N/A N/A N/A N/A 24 24 18

Average DEF the Judicator can hit (B = base; A = aim; Bo = boost; HoF = Hand of Fate)

My Warriors of the Old Faith list

Suggested unpacking to take advantage of all auras

Wolves of winter is the perfect past time in a crazy period. It consists, primarily of crazed half-naked people hurling them selves at the enemy without any regard for their own safety. I am told that Vlad2 is the perfect leader of the crazy bunch. I have to admit, I have never really gotten Vlad2. He seems to be carrying an interesting toolbox, yet not really being really good at anything. 

I have been playing quite a lot of Vlad1 in Winter Guard Kommand, so lots of squishy infantry is nothing new. However, where Winter Guards are disciplined and equipped with ranged weapons, Doom Reavers are quite the opposite. Let’s give it a try.

In the text below, I’ll go through the different models and some rationale behind the composition of the army.

Vlad2 is the second incarnation of Vladimir Tzepesci. He it to a certain degree still a purely support caster with a hail Mary potential to finish a game by assassination. On paper, he looks like a front line fighter. As with Vlad1, this is a trap. 

He has three passive abilities: Great Power, which allows him to upkeep a single spell for free (of which he has four); Might of Kings, which gives him +2 STR (making his blade P+S 16) and +2 ARM (making him ARM 18), if he is damaged; and Righteous Vengeance, which gives him Vengeance if a friendly model is killed within 5″ of him – there should be amble opportunity here with all of the easily killable Doom Reavers around. Finally, his sword is a 2″ reach weapon with P+S 14 and Thresher.

Vlad brings six spells to the table: Arcane Might, which allows friendly Faction models to boost using Vlad’s focus; Assail for improving ‘jacks; his trademark spell Hand of Faith, which is a discount version of Signs & Portens from his earlier incarnation; Martial Paragon for improving himself; the standard damage spell Razor Winds; and his area control spell Wind Blast. He probably wants to upkeep Hand of Faith (for free thanks to Great Power). Assail will most likely also be an upkeep (on the Marauder, I would think). On the approach, he probably wants to cast as many Wind Blast as possible, which is three if he is happy being naked. Once the lines meet he probably wants to switch Assail with Arcane Might. This should give his army 5-7 boosts depending on whether or not he wants to be naked and/or cycle Hand of Faith. All in all, he can quickly be starved of focus.

His assassination potential is good if the moon and stars are all aligned. Assuming that he has managed to get Martial Paragon up in the previous round, and has been damaged, he will be MAT 7 on three die (hitting DEF 17 on the average), having one Thresher attack on the charge with the possibility to buy an additional 7 at P+S 16. I do, however think that this might be a trap. If he is not damaged, he will only be P+S 14 (which is actually rather weak, with an average damage output of just 21); Casting Martial Paragon on a assassination round will cost him two attacks and “just” allowing him to hit DEF 17 instead of DEF 14 (on the average); and if he fails, he dies! In the current meta, having ARM 18 (and this assumes that he has already been damaged), a just slightly above average DEF of 15, and just a maximum of 18 boxes are old man stats.

All in all, I think that where Vlad1 is a good, simple and powerful support caster, Vlad2 requires much more finesse to unleash his full potential. 

Arcane Might is an interesting spell. It basically allows a warrior model (friendly faction) to use Vlad’s focus for boosting. This is particularly interesting in an army where most of the infantry cannot be targeted by spells. This is a way to increase a Doom Reaver’s efficiency, whilst getting around the issue of not being able to cast spells on them. However, as with many things about Vlad2 it can easily become a trap. He will quickly run out of focus if warriors start using it. So, use with care.

Where Vlad1 had Boundless Charge, Vlad2 has this spell. It allows a Warjack to charge, slam and trample  for free, whilst getting +2″ Movement, and increase the distance something is slammed by 2″. On the downside it does not give Pathfinder. However, it is an upkeep (potentially for free) and applies not only to charges. This should go on a ‘jack as early as possible, and could even be cycled on the right turn. My choice would be a Marauder to begin with, and then cycled to Ruin if required. 

This is his signature spell. It is a reduced version of his previous incarnation’s signature spell Signs & Portents. This version is half the price to cast and an upkeep; unfortunately it is also only unit/model. Here this only means either the ‘jacks, himself or some of the Greylords. I actually think that in this list, it will be less important than other spells. It does, however work as a deterrent, as I think it is perceived much more dangerous than it actually is (in this list).

A spell for making Vlad better at hitting and getting places. It gives him an additional die on attack rolls and Parry (immune to free strikes). Either up-keeping this or casting it could allow for an assassin run. 

The standard damage spell (POW 12, range 10) currently in the arsenal of eight of our casters. I can’t remember ever casting it for any of our caster. It has a range of at least 1″ shorter than Vlad’s charge range.

Wind Blast is Vlad’s best utility spell and the one that should be able to keep the Doom Reavers alive when they approach the line. It is a 5″ AOE that can be placed completely within 14″. It removes cloud effects, which is handy if the Doom Reavers are ready to charge something. It also hinders models in making ranged attacks when they are in the AOE. This should offer some protection from being shot off the table. However, I suspect that placing these AOEs (up to three) requires some finesse. Vlad will probably be casting a lot of these at the beginning of a battle. 

Vlad’s feat is where it really gets interesting. It allows d3+3 friendly faction warrior models to gain +3 SPD, STR. MAT, RAT, DEF, and ARM; and you get to choose the models. Thus, it bypasses the Spell Ward on the Doom Reavers. It can supercharge a Doom Reaver to SPD 9, MAT 10, DEF 16, ARM 17, and hitting at 4d6+15 on the charge. This allows a Doom Reaver to reach out at touch something 13″ away, hitting DEF 17 on the average for an average damage of 29. Four can now kill a standard Khador ‘jack. Even a Ternion is now dangerous at MAT 8, P+S 13; or a Koldun Lord now has a more probable way of using his Battle Wizard at MAT 9, P+S 13. Unfortunately, it can’t go on Vlad himself, nor the ‘jacks or Archons. 

The theme. Wolves of Winter offers two main benefits: it gives access to Void Archons, which are clever pieces giving a way of improving the damage by Doom Reavers and somewhere to store all souls that will be released, whilst denying the enemy souls; and giving one unit of Greylord or Doom Reaver unit Apparition in the Control Phase. The latter is marvellous for getting Doom Reavers into places the enemy will hate. 

In general, Wolves of Winter revolves around having enough Doom Reavers. They are going to die in droves, so bring plenty. They are supported by primarily Greylord Ternions, and some things to use souls and/or corpses. The list presented here, revolves around four units of Doom Reavers, which I suspect is the minimum; two Void Archons and Ruin for using souls; and a Marauder, and two Koldun Lords for good measure. 

Doom Reavers are enemies of the Motherland, who has been sentenced to a glorious death by being chained to ancient Orgoth swords (that are Magical). This basically makes them into homicidal maniacs, who will hurl themselves at friends and foes alike. A unit consists of 6 maniacs who are Tough, has Spell Ward (can’t be targeted by spells), and Advance Deployment. The latter allows them to be 13″ up the board if you go first, which is always advisable! One unit can be 27″ up the board in the first turn (30″ if going second). This is fast! 

Their Orgoth blades allows them to reach out and touch something 11″ away, at MAT 7 and P+S 12. However, remember they are Weapon Masters. This means an average damage output of 26 on the charge. They also have Berserk. Combined with the 2″ reach they can really chew through a lot of models once they get started. A word of warning, though: Berserk does not distinguish between friend and foe. So, unfortunate placing can also make them wipe out their own entire unit.

Doom reavers can be a messy crowd to keep alive and under control. This is why Greylord Escorts exist.  

The Greylord Escorts are wizards that keep Doom Reavers in line. They are equipped with a very scary big green stick, which is feared by Doom Reavers. Besides begin a 2″ reach P+S 10 stick, it also grants Silence. This is quite important as Doom Reavers do not have to take a Berserk attack, which improves their reliability a lot. The stick also give the Escorts Sacrificial Pawn (within 3″), as Doom Reavers are quite happy to take a shot instead of their Escort overlords. Of course, they have the same Spell Ward as the Reavers they are escorting. 

Greylords can of course cast spells in the traditional way. They can cast: Death Strider, Fell Curse, and Frostbite. Yet, their most important ability is perhaps their ability to cast a spell at the beginning of a Press Forward order (Combat Caster). This is where the money is. An Escort can cast a spell and then run or charge. This is important in particular for the first two spell.

Death Strider gives the unit Relentless Charge (giving Pathfinder), which is brilliant for solving terrain problems. Fell Curse makes sure that enemy models within 5″ loose Tough. So, the Doom Reavers are still safe. This is brilliant for dealing with the many Tough no-knockdown combinations that are currently out there. 

There is a cool interaction with the Koldun Lords. They give Escorts Battle Wizard, which enables an Escort to cast two spells per turn: one as Combat Caster, and then one after charging and killing something. The latter is where Frostbite often comes in handy. It is a POW 12, 8″ spray; and as we all know: sprays wins Warmahordes battles.

In the perfect world, all units would include an Escort. However, at three points each they eat through point allowance pretty fast. I am opting for three units with Escorts and one throw away unit without.

Greylord Ternions are what make Doom Reavers really shine. In particular as they can be taken for free as Requisition Points in this theme. Taking three units is a whooping 21 points for free. They rival the Protectorates Initiates of the Wall in cost. However, I’m not convinced that they would be worth their points if we had to pay for them. 

They do two major things for the Doom Reavers, and one for everybody. First of all, they can make an 3″ AOE, which is a cloud effect. Contrary to most other spells, this does not need a target, you simply choose a model. Thus, you can get around the Spell Ward and place a cloud on a Doom Reaver. Secondly, Bonds of Woe, which is a POW 12, range 10″ spell. If it kills a warrior model, you can bring back a Doom Reaver within 3″. Finally, they are also equipped with  Ice Cage, which will lower the DEF of the target hit by 2 (cumulative), and potentially make it stationary if it is hit by three.

As with the Escort, Ternions also benefit som having a Koldun Lord around. They also gain Battle Wizard. This opens the possibility of charging something, killing it, and the casting a spell. This is probably not something to build a plan around, as MAT 5 only hits DEF 12 on the average, and P+S 10 only kills ARM 19 or less on the average. So, targets should be chosen carefully. But having a Void Archon around improves the odds (more on this later).

All in all, Greylord Ternions are pretty good utility units for keeping Doom Reavers going. They can even kill stuff on a good day, and are nice for scoring and contesting. They do, however often have a problem with keeping up with the fast Doom Reavers. So, as with most other things in this list, finesse is probably required. I’m opting for three units. Perhaps two would be sufficient?

Koldun Lords are the epitome of Greylords. Old and venerable with many interesting abilities. Their close combat abilities are not fantastic. They are equipped with a Magical axe with P+S 10 and have a MAT 6. It does, however have a critical display; and they are Battle Wizards.

It is their passive abilities and spells where the money is. First of all, they give Battle Wizard to other Greylords within 9″, which is worth a measurement (see Escorts and Ternions, above). Secondly, they also have Lore Master. Having Lore Master allows Koldun Lords to cast spells from any Greylord model within 9″. In this list, the Bad Santas will be able to cast the following spells (number 7 doesn’t make sense as it targets the caster’s unit):

1. Brittle Frost (Koldun Lord)
2. Puppet Master (Koldun Lord)
3. Wind Ravager (Koldun Lord)
4. Blizzard (Ternion)
5. Bonds of Woe (Ternion)
6. Ice Cage (Ternion)
7. Death Strider (Escort)
8. Fell Curse (Escort)
9. Frostbite (Escort)

In addition to the spells they can borrow (for a description see the relevant parts above), they have their own; all cast at a Magic Ability of 8: Brittle Frost, Puppet Master, and Wind Ravager. Brittle Frost is a range 10 POW 10 spell, which also reduces the ARM by 2 of the target hit. Sometimes the latter is the only reason to cast it, as POW 10 is not terrible powerful (in particular when supporting a Marauder in killing huge-bases. More on this later) . Puppet Master is alway good, when you really need something to go well. It allows for a reroll of one attack or damage roll; either on a friendly model or enemy. Wind Ravager is a very useful spell. Albeit, as with must other in this theme it requires finesse. While within 9″ of the casting Koldun Lord, enemy models cannot make ranged attacks. This is actually more useful than what it sounds like. In particular against models with Assault. However, being just within 9″ it often brings the Bad Santa a bit too close to the frontline to be safe.

Perhaps more interesting is the ability to borrow spells. Again, it is within 9″ so careful positioning is important. The first spells that spring to mind are the ones borrowed from the Ternions: Bonds of Woe is always nice to have to have yet another possibility to bring back Doom Reavers. Blizzard is also nice, in particular on the advance where another cloud always helps. an extra Ice Cage is also handy, if something needs to become Stationary. From the Escorts only two spells make sense: Fell Curse and Frostbite. The former removes tough, whilst having another spray via Frostbite is always good.

There is an argument to be made for including the Greylord Adjunct and perhaps even a Greylord Forge Seer. This would give the Lords access to more spells. Perhaps most importantly Guidance and Empower. However, points are tight. Only two Koldun Lords are allowed, so I’m taking two. I think even more would have been nice.

This theme is the only one that allows Khador to take Void Archons. So, why not take two. They are flying weird things with so many rules on the card that I suspect that they are actually Crucible Guard models. In general, they are really a catalyst for the theme. Running Wolves of Winter as a Doom Reave heavy list really benefits from having two of these guys around. Their main problem is to stay alive. They have large bases and are rather squishy at only DEF 14, ARM 17 and 12 boxes. Also note that Soul Phase makes them Incorporeal, but only in the turn they use it! So, they can get hit in the opponents turn (many a Void Archon has died from me overlooking this). The main use of Incorporeal is to ignore free strikes whilst flying (hoping for non-magical weapons), or to allow your own troops to move through it, if it have placed itself somewhere silly. 

Among the many passive abilities they have, the one that covers most area is the ability to protect the souls of our own models within 10″ (Soul Ward). This is good, as there are plenty of armies and models out there that wish to consume our souls, and we can use them. Having protected the souls, the Archons can use them, both friendly and enemy alike. Each can carry three. They can be used to boost attacks of damage, and to make them Incorporeal (remember another trap). 

They also do Dark Shroud lowering the ARM of enemies within their 1″ melee range by two. Finally, they do Entropic Force, which removes tough from enemy models within 5″. 

It is when attacking that their true potential shows. First of all they fly. They also have Dual Attack allowing them to do both their two initial melee attacks, which are range 1″, P+S 13 (effectively P+S 15 due to Dark Shroud), Magical; and their spray, which is 10″, POW 14. Both allows the Archon to collect souls, which then can be used to boost. So a fully loaded Archon could charge, boost the first melee, collect a soul, boost the second, collect a soul, spray something, boost, and collect souls. Sprinkle a Void Walk, allowing the Archon to be placed anywhere within 8″. Beware if the opponent has an Archon nearby, as it will prevent your Archon from getting souls.

A typical activation would look something like this: Charge something and kill it. Then Void Walk to somewhere near a model or unit that some Doom Reavers are going to charge. Spray whatever should be sprayed. The models to be charged by the Doom Reavers are now denied touch (saving the Escort’s Fell Curse) and with a bit of clever positioning will also have ARM -2.

There is of course always the option of doing a Cygnar Advance instead, where the Archon charge in, kills stuff and then retreats by teleporting.  

All in all. Void Archons are brilliant here. So, I’m taking two. The main issue is keeping them alive until then can get som work done.

Any Warcaster worth anything will bring a sensible assortment of Warjacks. Vlad2 has 27 Warjack points to play around with. It is actually not a lot, as almost all other points are already used by non-Warjack models. Also, Vlad2, as most of our casters are strapped for focus. So, he really don’t want to fuel too many ‘jacks. 

On paper, our marvellous Khador ‘jacks are fantastic constructions, build to last. Unfortunately, the standard ARM of 20 really do not cut it these days. Our greatest strength, which we pay for in points, doesn’t really help. There are plenty of low cost units out there that can trivially one-round a Khador ‘jack. So chose carefully, and protect them.

Being Strapped for focus, Vlad really want’s something self contained. Our prime example here is Ruin. Also, there are many huge-bases out there. Thus, my favourite ‘jack, the Marauder is here. Never leave home without it.

My favourite ‘jack. It is a standard, no nonsense Khador ‘jack. It works marvels against huge-bases, and is OK for smaller targets. I never leave home without at least one (actually I prefer three). As Khador ‘jacks go it is really inexpensive. Just 11 points for this bundle of joy. A bargain, if you ask me.

The draw back is the same as with all Khador ‘jacks. They are so slow and do not survive any serious attacks. ARM 20 and 34 boxes is not enough in today’s meta. Vlad doesn’t really offer any ways of protecting ‘jacks. He can speed one up by casting Assail on it. A Marauder can now charge 11″, and touch something 12″ away. It is a bit on the short side, but is ok.

Warjacks in this list are really second wave models. Let the Doom Ravers engage and soften the opponent up, before engaging with the ‘jacks. Just keep them alive until they are needed. 

The Marauder really excels at killing huge-bases, thanks to Siege Weapon, which gives an addition damage die against huge-bases. This is why you should always bring one. Marauders tend to keep huge-bases honest. In this list, the Marauder synergises really well with a Void Archon’s Dark Shroud; or even a Koldun Lord casting Brittle Frost. The table below describes the amount of damage a Marauder can do against a huge-base.

Attack type	Damage, sum	ARM 16	ARM 18	ARM 19	ARM 20
Charge, combo	112	48	40	36	32
Charge, no combo	138	54	44	39	34
Charge, Dark Shroud, no combo	148	68	58	53	48

It has been around a year since I decided to focus on Winter Guard Kommand and try to actually figure our how it works. I have played basically two different lists. One Stalingrad-style list under Irusk2 and one Gun Carriage based list under Vlad1 (in addition to a few variations of the themes). I think it is about time to evaluated how Winter Guard Kommand has worked, what is good and bad, and what I have learned.

There is nothing more Khador defining than disciplined Winter Guards pushing forward towards the enemy. It is pure human resolve (OK, supported by a few of Khador’s finest Warjacks) against all the strange horrors of this world; and lately not of this world.

While it was the lure of the wonderful Khador ‘jacks (and Man-O-Wars) that originally drew me into the Khador ranks; it is fair to say that, to a large degree, it is the ranks of lowly Winter Guards that have kept me here. There is something strangely satisfying about placing a bunch of painted Winter Guards on the table. Despite the fantastic Warjacks at our disposal, masses of Winter Guards just looks better than a large number of ‘jacks.

I have been playing almost exclusively Winter Guard Kommand for the last year and a half. My second list have been Armored Korps under Sorscha3 (see here for a description of that list). Even though, my daily schedule doesn’t allow a lost of games, I have managed somewhere in the vicinity of 50 games with my Winter Guards. I haven’t managed to write up all of them. However, most of them has been detailed here at The Greylord Archives.

I originally started with a Stalingrad style list under the command of the Winter Guards best friend: Supreme Kommandant Irusk’s (Irusk2) orders. The Winter Guards were led be him through two different iterations of the lists. Later, Irusk was send to care for other duties, and Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Prince’s (Vlad1) was put in charge of a very different version of the Winter Guard Kommand. He went through two iterations.

Here follows an attempt to write up my experiences with the Winter Guard Kommand under two different commanders, and two very different lists.

There is hardly anything more cinematic than waves of Winter Guards surging forward led by the grand old man himself, Supreme Kommandant Irusk. Irusk2 is in many ways a Winter Guards best friend. He inspires so much confidence that the Winter Guards that they are masters in operations from his Tactician ability. They are also Total Obedient, granting them Tough and Immune to Blast. On top of that, Irusk can cast his Solid Ground spell, which also makes them immune to knockdown. All in all, a rather robust package. As a bonus, he can also cast Artifice of Deviation, making a Winter Guard DEF 16 against shooting.

Irusk not only helps Winter Guards staying alive, he also has a few tricks up his flag to make them more dangerous. Fire for Effect really helps artillery, and Battle Lust combined with Kovnik Joe’s Bear Strength turns a Winter Guard into a P+S 12 Weapon Master. This is equivalent to our Doom Reavers! There is nothing more satisfying than having a unit of Winter Guards charge through a forest (thanks to Irusk’s feat) and kill a colossal or gargantuan (see an Archangel go down here).

Finally, he has a really big flag. Who doesn’t want to follow a really big flag?

Irusk has been in command of two different armies. The first one was a proper Stalingrad list, where he used as many Winter Guards as he could find (for a thorough discussion of the list, see here). The main idea was to have enough Winter Guards to outlive the opponent; a Marauder for dealing with huge bases; possibly in cooperation with Battle Lust’ed Winter Guards; and a Spriggan for long range charges and dealing with clouds. The Lady and his boyfriend were there to hand out magical attacks. The complete list can be seen to the left below.

The second attempt at the list did some changes (for a more detailed discussion, see here). First of all, Lady Aiyana and friend simply did not do anything. At 8 points, they are far too expensive compared to what they do. Also, in the mean time the fantastic Greylord Adjunct had appeared. He solves a lot of Irusk problems. Most importantly, he upkeeps a spell for free and can also handle clouds far better than the Spriggan. Speaking of the Spriggan, this is another example of something too expensive; at least in this list. So it also went away, and in came the fabulous Triple Marauder Goodness. Marauders are a dream when it comes to huge bases, of which there are so many; and combined with the Field Guns there are now so many knockdown possibilities; something which the Winter Guards and Mortar love. The full list is detailed to the right above. The picture below depicts the complete army in its second edition.

The main plan behind Irusk’s battles were to throw him at everything an anything to figure our what works. The table below summarises the battles and their results (some of them also has links to their battle reports). It is quite clear that Irusk did not have a lot of success. Out of 15 battles, he only managed to win four of them.

Let’s look at the ones he won. He beat Mackay1 and her Crucible Guards; Absylonia and he Legion of Everblight; Makeda and her Skorne; and Morghoul and his Skorne (the latter actually doesn’t count, as Irusk won on a technical error by Morghoul’s handler, who forgot that Morghoul is a Weapon Master). So besides Irusk apparently being able to only beat women, why did he win?

Mackay1 is, herself a huge-base and here she also brought another huge-base, the Railless Interceptor (battle report here). The main reason that Irusk was victorious here was the fact that Mackay is a huge-base. She got scared of the Marauders (and rightly so), attempted to avoid them, but finally succumbed to them. In only three rounds, she was killed by the biggest strength in Irusk’s list. The rest of his army was more or less decimated.

More or less, the same story can be told for the match agains Absylonia (battle report here). She brought an impressive three huge-bases. The game was, more or less about keeping them occupied by feeding Winter Guards to them, and then hitting them with Marauders and overcharged Winter Guards (Irusk’s Battle Lust and Joe’s Bear Strength). That did the trick.

Finally, the battle against Makeda is probably the odd one out (for battle report, see here). She did bring a single huge-base, which also spend most of the time being scared and not joining the battle. Irusk won on the clock after an assassination attempt on him failed. I think this was kind of deliberate (not surviving the assassination) as at this point Irusk could play his Winter Guards pretty fast, and the opponent had a lot of Immortals to move around. Nevertheless, lady luck smiled at Irusk.

In general, the three wins were won on the ability to kill huge-bases and keeping them sufficiently safe to actually make it into battle. This typically involves a lot of dead Winter Guards. This is a valid strategy, leaning of survivable Winter Guards to get the Marauders to finish the show. 

Let’s look at the many losses. We can divide them into two different groups: The winnable (Mackay, Siege and Harbringer), and the un-winnable (Iona, Ossrum, Goreshade, Syvestro and Reclaimer.

The winnable should obviously have been won. However, the gods do not always favour the bold. The match against Mackay1was actually progression quite ok (battle report here). However, I played too slow and managed to clock myself. The next two games were using the old list with only one Marauder and a Spriggan. The first was against Siege2 and his Gravediggers (battle report here). This one was touch and go; at least until a used some Rifle Corps as charges instead of shooters. I think I lost this because of poor planning. Finally, Harbinger, which is a match up that should be manageable (battle report here). This was another example where I was too slow. Irusk was, more or less in control, but I spend far too much time and ended loosing on the clock. So, to sum up two of them were lost on being too slow, and the last one on basically just not playing good enough.

Most of the un-winnable were known before the games began. However, on purpose Irusk was pitched against anything and everything. It is a good way of learning a list’s weaknesses and its possibilities. To begin with was Ioan and her Tharn (battle report here). Irusk simply haven’t got the tools to deal with tough, healing, no knockdown, unit surfing Tharn Ravagers. Next up were Ossrum and his bunch of bunnies (battle report here). This is one of those match-ups where I haven’t got a clue. I have also tried Armored Corps under Sorscha3 against such a list. Yet, I always come up short. Those bunnies are either spraying the pants of my troops or shooting them to smithereens. The are really fast as well. I’m clueless. Goreshade4 is one of those that potentially could have gone both ways (battle report here). I basically just lost to a better player. More speed would have been nice here. Syvenstro is actually Winter Guard unfriendly, in particular when they are supported by Irusk. Crucible Guards have all sorts of sprays and clouds that removes the thing that keeps Winter Guards alive. This was also under the old list, where there are not enough Marauders to be a threat. Finally, the Reclaimer with his handfull of faith on the Judicator (battle report here). Nothing here to see, move along.

All in all, most of the un-winnable are just that with the Irusk list. In particular with the first list, where the Spriggan simply did not pay off; and there weren’t enough Marauders. With the amount og huge-base around, a single Marauder is too easy to neutralise. Also, despite Irusk keeping his troops alive. Their threat ranges (for charging) are too short to keep the enemy honest. 

Irusk clearly has a few thing going for him. First of all, he excels in keeping Winter Guards alive. Thus, begin able to deliver the ‘jacks to the enemy. There is also the surprise move of Winter Guards killing colossal when under Battle Lust and Joe’s Bear Strength. However, there are far too many things out there that can kill Winter Guards, and Khador ‘jacks without a speed buff simply doesn’t cut it. Speaking of ‘jacks. It is clear, that with all the huge bases out there, triple Marauder is a thing. The original combination of a single Marauder and a Spriggan doesn’t work. Backup is important. From now on I will only run ‘jacks in, at least pairs (not character ‘jacks obviously). There is also an issue with low MAT/RAT and general damage output.

All of these issues led mw to the second version of the Winter Guard Kommand list with: Vlad1, triple Marauders, double Gun Carriage and Winter Guards.

Vlad is probably a Winter Guard’s second best friend. Where Irusk keeps them alive, Vlad makes sure that they can actually hit and damage stuff from his signature spell Signs & Portents. This spell adds roughly 1.5 to a 2d6 roll. This brings Rifle Corps just over the bar begin able to hit stuff, and fixes any other low MAT/RAT issues. The Winter Guards love him and his little spell.

In addition to the MAT/RAT fixer, Vlad brings two other important things that Irusk could not help with. Namely, Boundless Charge and most importantly his feat, which doubles the base speed of his Warjacks. This is huge for a Khador ‘jack. A Marauder can now threaten things a mighty 14″ away under both feat and Boundless Charge. Normally, only 12″ as Vlad tends to be focus strapped. Yet, 12″ threat range really keeps opponents, and in particular huge-bases honest. 

Army composition

Khador Army – 74 / 75 points [Theme] Winter Guard Kommand [Vladimir 1] Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Prince [+28]  – Marauder [11]  – Marauder [11]  – Marauder [11] Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich [4] Winter Guard Artillery Kapitan [3] Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [0(4)]                    Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [0(4)] Winter Guard Mortar Crew [0(5)] Winter Guard Rifle Corps (min) [8]  – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6] Winter Guard Rifle Corps (min) [8]  – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6] Winter Guard Gun Carriage [17] Winter Guard Gun Carriage [17] Also at conflict chamber.

Khador Army – 75 / 75 points [Theme] Winter Guard Kommand [Vladimir 1] Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Prince [+28] – Marauder [11] – Marauder [11] – Marauder [11] – Greylord Adjunct [0(4)] Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich [0(4)] Winter Guard Artillery Kapitan [0(3)] Winter Guard Artillery Kapitan [0(3)] Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [4] Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [4] Winter Guard Rifle Corps (min) [8] – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6] Winter Guard Rifle Corps (min) [8] – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6] Winter Guard Gun Carriage [17] Winter Guard Gun Carriage [17] Also a conflict chamber.

Vlad and his valiant Winter Guards (1st edition)

The plan for Vlad was to a large degree the same as the one for Irusk: throw him at everything and anything. This is simply the best way to learn the strengths and weaknesses. The long term goal was to figure out what the list is good against, and what it is bad against. This can then form the basis for a good paring. 

It is clear that Vlad was much more successful than Irusk. Of the 22 battles I have been keeping track of, he won half! He should have won more, but was sometimes let down by the man behind the line (that’s me, in case you were wondering). 

Let’s look at the impressive list of the games he won: He easily beat Orion1 and its Convergence of Cyriss; he beat Gearhart1 and his Crucible Guards twice (he should also have won the last match); He beat both Siege1 and Sloan1 running Cygnar; he beat Butcher3 twice and Irusk2 once (just demonstrating that he is better); He beat Harbinger1 and her Protectorate twice (and lost once); and finally, Gorshade4 and the crazy elves once (and lost twice).

 

Convergence is a bit peculiar with their weird focus manipulation. It turned out to be a surprisingly easy match (battle report here). There wasn’t a lot to be learned from this match, except for Joe demonstrating how to kill a huge-base, and perhaps the joy of Blood Boon. 

I still don’t like Crucible Guards, despite now getting the hang of them. Gearhart1 is, more or less the standard ‘caster I see across the table. Vlad manage to fight him thrice and emerge victorious twice. The first game saw the joy of the Triple Marauder living up to the idea of a backup to the backup (battle report here). Also, the two Gun Carriages really did solve a lot of infantry-related issues. The second game, which unfortunately haven’t got a battle report, did go more or less the same. The Gun Carriages doing crowd control, and the Winter Guards being killed to bring the Marauders to their targets. Finally, the third game was one of those that should have been won (battle report here). Vlad was in control for most of the game. However, he was let down by me when I got overly greedy trying to kill stuff instead of thinking. This was one of those examples where a toe in a zone is better than a dead enemy trooper.

Cygnar is Cygnar. A lot of blue guys running around claiming running away from the fray is a “tactical retreat”. Vlad managed to beat Siege1 and his Heavy Metal (battle report here). Siege brought two huge-bases, so party time for the Marauders. Siege did try to shoot Vlad to death (a lot). But, cleaver positioning of the Winter Guards ready to scarify themselves brought victory to Vlad. The second win was against Sloan1 and trenchers, actually more ‘jacks than trenchers (battle report here). Six Hunters and two Grenadiers are a lot of shooting under Sloan1. However, it doesn’t matter how hard you shoot, you are going to kill only one Winter Guard per shot. Finally, Vlad lost to Nemo3 and more lightning that one cares to remember. Winter Guards are clearly not a good match against lightning jumping around.

What can be said about Infernals. They are clearly not something Vlad and his Winter Guards should be thrown at. Nevertheless, they were (battle report here). There really isn’t anything to say besides that.

Civil war is never pleasant. Yet, Vlad has been sent to the front to deal with imposters and frauds. He managed to beat Butcher3 in Jaw of the Wolf twice (battle report here, none for the second). In both cases it was the same story: Vlad ensured that assassination runs by Butcher were unsuccessful and retaliated by killing him. One highlight was assassination by Gun Carriage (in the battle report). A knocked down Butcher is a sad Butcher. Vlad also beat his predecessor, who apparently have been assigned a lot of crazy half-naked men (battle report here). I honestly feel that Wolves of Winter under Irusk2 is not really a match for Vlad1 and his Winter Guards. 

Unfortunately, Vlad did also manage to loose to other Khador players. He lost once to fake-Vlad playing Jaw of the Wolf (battle report here). This was an example of the man behind the line laying Vlad down. I made too many mistakes. Most importantly moving Vlad out of cover and into the range of an overcharged Behemoth. Don’t do that. Speaking of mistreating Vlad, this is exactly the same situation for the last loss. This time to Strakhov1 running also Jaw of the Wolf (battle report here). Again, Vlad was doing pretty well until the man behind the line thought it would be a brilliant idea moving Vlad without thinking too much about it. This time it wasn’t Behemoth that Vlad came within range of, it was Beast 09. The result was the same. I should learn to stop and think sometimes! 

Ossum is still trouble. It simply can’t seem to get the hang of it (battle report here). Yet, this time it was really really close. Ossrum got saved by a hail Mary, where he pulled some fancy foot work out of a Driller and killed Vlad; seconds before a Marauder would have killed him. 

Harbinger and her Faitfull Masses has been so ubiquitous that it is almost boring. Vlad managed to win twice (battle report here and here). Both were by assassination by Marauder. For Harbinger to be efficient she has to play within threat range of a supercharged Marauder. She really doesn’t like that. The strategy is to weather the storm until an opening for a Marauder appears. Then feat and win. The lost game against Harbinger was proceeding according to plan. But, Vlad having played Harbinger a lot assumed it was a walk in the park. I got sloppy – and lost.   

The Crazy elves are difficult. Vlad lost three matches, twice against Goreshade4 and Legion of Dawn (battle report here, none for the second match). This matchup should actually be ok. He did manage to win once (battle report here). Yet, matches against the elves are always pretty close. I think I just got beaten by better players. Vlad also lost against Garryth2 and his Defenders of Ios. That was a matchup lost before the first dice was rolled. It contained double Trident and an Arcantrik Force Generator. There really isn’t anything this list can do about that.

Finally, Skorne is one of those factions that I, surprisingly haven’t see a lot across the table. This game saw Vlad beating the fat guy and his two turtles, or so it should have been (battle report here). Once again Vlad was let down by the man behind the line. I got preoccupied with killing stuff and not actually winning the game.   

I think the second iteration of the Winter Guard Kommand list under Vlad1 is done. I can’t see what I would like to change. It has everything that makes sense in this context. 

As I have played the last list I have really learned what separates a good player from a mediocre (I’m clearly the latter). Many of the losses I have incurred were basically down to me making sloppy and annoying mistakes, like not toeing a zone or being preoccupied with killing stuff rather then actually winning the game. 

Some of the games were lost basically before the first dice was rolled, just because it was a matchup that Vlad couldn’t deal with. 

Finally, some were also lost simply because the opponent were a better player. This is fair and there is only one way to deal with this. Be better yourself. 

There are clearly some matchups it is really bad against. It struggles against multi-wound heavy infantry, as well as tough and healing units. Also, soul or corpse manipulating armies are bad news. It is so so against armies that do not enjoy the long game. Some it can deal with, some not (read Infernals). To deal with this it needs to be paired with something that can deal with one or more of these issues. This might be a well played Armored Corps list (I have never managed to play one well) or perhaps Jaws of the Wolf (under Old Witch2?). Since this list is not a classic Stalingrad-style list, it might actually be paired with a Wolves of Winter list under Vlad2?

Nevertheless, this Winter Guards and Vlad1 list is now solid, and I will happily return to going forward.   

What can I say? I love Winter Guards. There is something about the stoic men and women of Khador valiantly battling all sorts of magical beasts and horrors. They do so without any fancy tricks of souls, corpses or magic mumbo jumbo. 

The current list is, in my view as good as it gets and I don’t think I will modify it any more. It will now just be a steady tool in the wonderful toolbox of Khador. 

There are, however many other ways to take a Winter Guard Kommand list. I have always wanted to try a ‘jack heavy list where the Winter Guards are kept to a bare minimum. Perhaps Butcher3 with a lot of (clam) ‘jacks and just enough Winter Guards to offer Sacrificial Pawn. That could deliver him for the assassination run he so craves. I have also been playing with the (crazy) idea of running Strakhov1 and, wait for it, two min units of Assault Kommandos with all the trimmings. Strakhov offers a similar feat, and the Assault Kommands can deal with tough and healing units. Finally, Sorscha might be in play again. Her main problem is lack of ‘jack speed. 

Dear reader, if you have made it here, I’m impressed. All in all, Winter Guard Kommand is a fantastic theme and I think Vlad1 has found his home in it. If you haven’t tried it, give it a spin. It is effective and a lot of fun to play.

Until next time.

For the Motherland!

What is not to love about an Armored Corps list. Plenty of heavily armoured Man-O-Wars slowly advancing until axe is close to the enemy’s face? It was actually Man-O-Wars that originally attracted me to this faction. I had to wait so many years before they finally became any good. There are several good warcaster that can run this theme. However, Kommandant Sorscha Kratikoff seems the natural choice – she is in a Man-O-War armour, after all.

The whole Armored Corps list

In the text below, I’ll go through the different models and some rationale to the composition of this list.

Sorscha in her Man-O-War armour

Sorscha3 is the obvious choice for leading an Armored Corps list. She is interesting in the sense that her passive abilities actually doesn’t really do a lot for Mar-O-Wars as such. She offers a 9″ bubble of Concealment to her army. This if of course always nice, but for Man-O-Wars in general, a DEF increase from 10 to 12 doesn’t really do a lot. Herself goes from 12 to 14, which is more interesting. The other passive ability, Field Marshall [Flank Man-O-War] doesn’t do anything for Man-O-Wars either, but man does it crank up the ‘jacks (+2 to attack rolls and an additional dice on damage).

It is her feat and spells that really helps and Armored Corps list. Her feat, Dead of Winter, helps Man-O-Wars getting forward without being shot to death. It gives her from four to six AOE 3″ clouds to hide behind. Any model not having immunity to cold also suffers one point of damage. Note that none of the models in this list has immunity to cold, save for Beast ’09 and Sorscha herself.

She brings four spells to the party: Iron Flesh, which is just marvellous on the Shocktroopers; Stoke the Fires, which accelerate the ‘jacks and gives them Counter Charge; Wind Rush, which allows her a full advance and +2 DEF (brining her all the way to DEF 16 against shooting); and Winter’s Wrath, an AOE 4″ Stationary (something the Demolition Corps love), which also does a bit of damage. Unfortunately, she is only a focus 6 caster. She really wants to upkeep Iron Flesh every round, and most likely cast Stoke the Fires twice, this leaves her with exactly 3 focus to cast Winter’s Wrath and then naked – if we can speak about being naked in a Man-O-War armour?

On her own, she is surprisingly brittle (she can be repaired, though). One would think she is a front-line ‘caster. However, she is very easy to hit, and only has 17 boxes. ARM 18 in her armour is seldom enough to keep her alive. This presents some issues, as she would like to cast Winter’s Wrath on something, and whack something with her hammer, which is Stationary on a stick (and critical Slam). However, Whacking and Winter’s Wrath are often mutually exclusive, as Whacking more often than not requires her to also cast Wind Rush to get away again. She also possesses a little cannon, which is POW 13, range 12″ and AOE 3, it also has Arcing Fire. It is always good for taking potshots at infantry in particular.

Iron flesh is the bread and butter ARM spell for Khador. It offers +2 ARM and immunity to blast damage. The latter is not too important in a list consisting primarily of heavily armoured Man-O-Wars. In my view, there are two prime targets for Iron Flesh: the Shocktroopers or the Demolition Corps. Using it on the former give an impressive ARM 23 (if also in Shield Wall), which generally is difficult for opponents to overcome. Using it on them subscribes to the idea that it is better to take something good and make really good, rather than taking something average and make it good. Taking something average is using Iron Flesh on the Demolition Corps. This will take them to ARM 18, which is ok, but nothing more. Where Iron Flesh on the Shocktroopers results in an anvil unit that is very difficult to remove, using it on the Demo Corps makes it easier from them to actually arrive somewhere with their hammers, rather than being shot to death (which happens far too often).

This is spell is potentially much better than it looks at first sight, and it looks pretty tasty already. It basically gives the target ‘jack +2 SPD and Countercharge, which in itself is nothing to frown upon. Yet, it becomes really good when thinking about one of the forces of Sorscha, namely her Field Marshall ability. Having effectively Weapon Master ‘jacks is pretty good, if they can get there. The additional speed really helps here. Also, in particular on Beast ’09 (see below), Countercharging something with a 2″ reach allows for surprising hits from behind e.g. Shocktrooper Shield Walls. I always make sure to cast it on both ‘jacks every turn. 

This is kind of Sorscha’s signature spell. It allows her to make a full advance and gain +2 DEF for one round. This will bring her to an impressive DEF 16 against shooting and DEF 14 against melee. Not too shabby for a Man-O-War armour. Besides giving her better defence, it also allows a comparable slow ‘caster to more easily get into position to use her Stationary on a stick (or get out again). When Atanas is around, she can also use his Tactician and ignore Man-O-War units. Thus, she can actually step out from behind a Shocktrooper Shield Wall, hit something to make it stationary and then Wind Rush back into safety again.  

This is in many ways the bread and butter spell. Causes Stationary in an 4″ AOE, which then can be the perfect target for the Demolition Corps (see below). It some sense, it is a bit expensive, between upkeeping Iron Flesh and casting Stoke the Fires. It often leaves Sorscha with no focus, which is always a dangerous avenue to travel.

Man-O-Wars must be the coolest infantry around. I mean, what’s not to like about people in huge steam-powered lumbering red armour, with huge axes, hammers, or chainsaws? Man-o-war units comes in three flavours: Shocktroopers, Demolition Corps, and Bombardiers. There is also a growing number of solos, here I’ll only concentrate on the Kovnik and the Suppression Tanker. Finally, there is the two man unit of Atanas and flag (I’m on purpose ignoring the chariots here).

The crazy Demolition Corps

The Demolition Corps is easily my favourite Man-O-Ware unit. They are already Man-O-Wars, and in addition equipped with huge hammers used for only charging ahead a smashing enemies with. What’s not to like? They are, however more brittle than one would expect from huge steam-drive heavy armour. This can be mitigated by casting Iron Flesh on them, making them (most likely) DEF 12 and ARM 18, which is kind of survivable.

This unit is basically five guys with P+S 16, 2″ reach hammers who really wants to charge stuff and get into the frey. They do have Critical Freeze, but perhaps more importantly they have Shatter. This gives an additional dice on damage if the target is Stationary. This is lovely in combination with Sorscha’s Winters Wrath, which gives a 4″ AOE of stationary. Charging something that Sorscha have tagged with Winter Wrath is an auto hit with a P+S of 16 + 4d6, an average of 30 points of damage. They are also fun with Atanas Unstoppable Fury Battle Plan, giving them Retaliation Strike, and perhaps even in combination with Dragos mini-feat (see below). Is whatever hitting a Demo Corps sure it can kill one model, or the whole unit, and willing to risk a Retaliation Strike, with a potential Stationary?

Dragos Dragadovich

Dragos is the Command Attachment to a Demolition Corps. He is twice as cool as a normale Demolition dude – he has two hammers. They do appear smaller, but they are not. So, that is twice the chance of a Critical Freeze. He is native tough and has quite a few nice abilities that benefit the Demo Corps he is attached to. For a bit of lore background, check out the short story “The better part of valor“.

He grants 3″ Vengeance (works whilst he is in formation), and has Tactics Defensive line (unit gains this even if he dies), which gives the unit DEF 12 against melee attacks and immunity to knockdown, whilst base-to-base with another model in this unit. DEF 12 is still not remarkable, but every little bit helps. This is golden in combination with Heroic Call from Atanas (see below), as it makes them tough and immune to knockdown. Throw in Dragos’ mini feat, Band of Brotherhood, and a Demo Corp unit becomes pretty robust. Band of Brotherhood allows the unit to distributed damage amongst all members instead of just the one model getting hit (it’s the same as Sanguine Bond, if you have ever faced Trollkin Champions or Exemplar Bastions). This is super good for keeping a unit alive and weather the storm so as many as possible can hit back.

The robust Shocktroopers

Shocktroopers are the backbone of an Armored Corps list. They often play the role of anvil, typically holding the middle of the field; where they slowly but steadily advance in Shield Wall, whilst other troops “hide” behind them. Typically, they will be in Shield Wall as often as possible, and Sorscha will also upkeep Iron Flesh on them. This gives then an effective ARM of 23, which is pretty OK. When accompanied with the Officer, they are also immune to Knockdown and Push. All in all, pretty solid. I do, however recommend having a unit of Mechaniks nearby, as ARM-cracking is currently abundant.

Also having the Kovnik (see below) nearby (within 9″) allows him to give them Desperate Pace, for another 2″ in movement, allowing them to move an impressive 6″ in Shield Wall. Finally, using one of the Advance Moves (4″) on them, put them 10″ up the board (at the 20″ line, if going second) in the first round – in Shield Wall. They also threat 11″ when charging and with a potential assault shot up to 15″ (thanks to the officer).

The Officer in all his frozen might

Having this wall of steel advancing makes for all sorts of interesting combinations. When Atanas (see below) is present, Man-O-Wars can ignore each other for LOS and can move through each other: This is fun having the Demolition Corps hanging back behind the Shocktroops, to charge through them; Also, Beast ´09 has a 2″ reach, which is just over 1/2″ more that a Man-O-War’s base; thus, under Stoke the Fires he can charge up behind a Shield Wall and still hit something in front of it (which is at MAT 10 and four dice for an average of 33 points of damage); The Bombardiers can also, in reactively safety lob grenades over the; Finally, Sorscha is also a Man-O-War, so she can charge through them (she does have Stationary on a stick), and Wind Rush back into safety.

Shocktrooper Officer

The officer adds quite a lot of nice features. Some of them has already been detailed above. Not only does he give the troopers Steady and Sturdy, which remains even if he dies (Tactics); he also give them Assault, which the unit looses if he dies (Granted). He does have a slightly better axe, with an extra P+S and critical Stationary; and one better MAT and RAT. He is also an extra body in a small unit. I never leave home without him.

The grenade lobbing Bombardiers

The Bombardiers are the last of the standard Man-O-War units. Steam powered armour carrying grenade launching chainsaws – what is not to like? The impressive chainsaw-cannons is a 1″ P+S 13 melee weapon that also has Critical Shred, which allows an addition attack agains the model hit. The grenade launcher is range 12″ and POW 14 with a 3″ AOE. Being elite troops they have RAT 6 and not the normal 5, which is nice. Luckily, they can do CRA. This allows for actually hitting stuff. The table below summarises the expected DEF that Bombardiers can hit and the expected damage (Dam) they can output on a direct hit, and blast damage.

CRA	None	None+Officer	Aim	Aim+Officer	Dam	Blast
1	13	14	15	16	21	14
2	15	16	17	18	23	16
3	16	17	18	19	24	17
4	17	18	19	20	25	18
5	18	19	20	21	26	19
6	19	20	21	22	27	20

As a normal unit the Bombardiers are kind of OK. They can hide behind the wall of Shocktroopers and lop grenades over them. However, adding the Officer really helps them a lot.

The officer giving directions

Bombardier Officer 

The Bombardier Officer adds quite a few useful abilities to the unit. He adds another attack (melee and ranged), but also a RAT of 7, which is helpful if he is the point of origin of a CRA (see table above). Quite importantly he Grants Pathfinder to the unit when they make a Full Advance (remember that Granted goes away if he is killed). This is a very nice ability in an army with very little Pathfinder (except the Kodiak). He also gives Quick Work (this is Tactics, so it does not go away if he is killed), which allows for a ranged attack if a model kills an enemy model with a melee attack. Personally, I can’t remember this ever coming to effect.

His most important addition is the mini-feat Support Fire. This gives two ranged shots per model, if they aim. This is potential 12 shots hitting DEF 14 and giving an expected damage of 21 per shot; or some combination of CRAs. Unfortunately, this volley of grenades are less frequent that one could hope for.

The two Suppression Tankers

They are even bigger and even more heavily armoured Man-O-Wars. So, they are slow, but these actually have Bulldoze. In this incarnation with two heavy machine guns incorporated into their shields. They are base ARM 17 and with two shields they’ll be ARM 21, with 10 boxes. This is pretty good. However, they are deceptively brittle, in particular against heavy fire.

Suppression Tankers can actually hit stuff in close combat (2 times P+S 12 shields at MAT 7 per tanker). But their main purpose is to remove light infantry, which they excel in. Their two Volley Guns are POW 10 with between one and three shots per activation. They shoot at RAT 6 with three dice when they attack warrior models (hits DEF 16 on the average). So, on a perfect day one tanker can dish out six shots hitting DEF 16 for 17 points of damage; enough for light infantry, not for heavy. For heavy infantry, a tanker can put out one RNG 8 spray instead at POW 14, bringing it to 21 points of damage on the average. Finally, they can opt for putting down Covering Fire.   

The Kovnik

The Man-O-War Kovnik is slightly meaner than the average Shocktrooper. He has one better MAT; a slightly shorter axe, but at P+S 15; a shield cannon that can shoot 2″ longer, he can even hit people with this shield; build-in Assault; and finally, he clocks in at ARM 18 (including the shield).

A Kovnik does three things for an Armored Corps list. First and foremost, he brings Desperate Pace to the Man-O-Wars. These extra 2″ of movement to a unit means a lot to slow Man-O-Wars; in particular to Shocktroopers who really like to stay in Shield Wall. Secondly, he can actually Slam models! Finally, he is not a helpless solo in melee, he actually brings three attacks to a charge: one assault shot (hitting DEF 14, bringing 21 points of damage of the average), one charge axe attack (hitting DEF 15, bringing 25 points of damage on the average), and one shield attack (hitting DEF 15, bringing 18 points of damage on the average).

The Kommandant and his banner

Atanas and his banner consists of two models and counts as a unit. This in itself is nice as it add another Advance Move from the theme bonus. The latter model is the easiest as it basically just add 2″ to Atanas command (when he is with in 5″, so keep him within). He can also function as screening of Atanas, charge blocker, and hinder landing zones.

The Kommandant, on the other hand is where the money is. First of all, he offers Tactician in a 12″ bubble (assuming the banner is alive and well). This is almost essential for an Armored Coprs list. First of all, it allows for easy unpacking and manoeuvring; but perhaps even more important, it allows for all the cool shooting and charging tricks described elsewhere. If this wasn’t enough, he also does Battle Plans.

There a three Battle Plans available: Heroic Call, Relentless Charge, and Unstoppable Fury (all of them with a range of 5″). Heroic Call gives Tough to a Man-O-War model or unit. This works really well with either the Shocktroopers or Demolition Corps, who both can be immune to knockdown.  Relentless Charge basically gives a Man-O-War model or unit Pathfinder when charging. Finally, Unstoppable Fury allows a Man-O-War model or unit to make a basic melee attack as a response to a melee attack against it. This is good on an anvil unit. Combined with the Demolition Corps’ mini feat this can be a powerfull tool. It ask a question to the opponent: “are you willing to accept a P+S 16 and potential a Stationary when hitting a unit?“.

The two units of Mechaniks keeping the show on the road

Battle Mechaniks is, in my opinion an absolut must in this list. Not only can they repair everything in this list (except themselves), the even do it at d3+1 due to theme. Having two units allows one on each flank, and they also contribute with two Advance Moves to Man-O-War models or units due to theme. They are also excellent for scoring zones and contesting.

Plastic Juggernaut and an old metal Kodiak

A Kodiak is a very versatile warjack, with many tricks up its sleeves (on in this case, big black none-bucklers). As a rare treat it has build-in Pathfinder, which is golden in a list where Sorscha really can’t help out. It can also run 10″ thanks to Heavy Boiler. Under Stoke the Fires, it can actually run for an impressive 14″, not bad for a Khador warjack.

It has an interesting attack profile. It has two open fists, which are only POW 16, though. Sorscha really helps here due to her Field Marshall ability. If the Kodiak’s target is in the melee range of a Man-O-War model, it has an effective MAT of 9 (hitting DEF 16 on average), and effectively becomes Weapon Master. This is POW16 + 4d6 on the charge, for an average of 30 points of damage. It also has its signatur Grab & Smash, which actually gives it three initial attacks (assuming it hits on the first two). A single charge will, on the average give 30 + 26 + 22 points of damage, and a knockdown; for just one focus (if it does Headbutt). That will take out half a Khador warjack (18 points of damage) on average rolls.

Beast ready to smash the world

Beast ’09 is a beast. It is Sorscha’s pet Juggernaut who is then bonded to her. The bond gives it Shield Guard within 3″. This is pretty good for Sorscha, since she is not as robust as one would think. This in combination with its other build in ability: Hyper-aggressive presents an interesting question to the opponent. Should I shoot something near Beast and have him Shield Guard it, and have him advance up to 4″ (or 6″ under Stoke the Fires)? He is also the only one with Immunity Cold, so he can e.g. walk through the clouds from Sorscha’s feat without any issues.

Beast is also equipped with an open fist (P+S 15), but more importantly it has a humongous axe, which is a larger Juggernaut axe (reach “2 instead of reach 1″). So, it has Critical Freeze and Beast can do a Thresher attack with it. Further more, it is also Murderous, so it will roll three dice to hit agains warrior models. If a Man-O-War is nearby, it will roll three dice at MAT 10, with at P+S of 19+3d6. This means hitting DEF 20 on average and doing 29 (33 on the charge) points of damage on the average. Getting it near Man-O-War Shocktroopers or Demolition Corps is often a good idea, as they also have reach 2”, making Flank easier.

This is it. My Armored Corps list under the control of Sorscha3. The picture above depicts the deployment that best facilitates all the cool trick when hiding behind a wall of Shocktroopers. I have to admit, I rarely deploy like that.

It is worth remembering the Advance Moves in this theme. As there are six units in this army, there are six Advance Moves. In the deployment above, I would move the Shocktroopers, the two Tankers, Sorscha, the Bombardiers, and Atanas.

With the arrival of Oblivion the Armored Corps theme benefits changed a bit. The old theme gave Advance Move as follows: “For each Khador unit in this army, one Man-O-War model/unit in this army can gain Advance Move” Now Advance Move is given as follows: “Man-O-War units and Tanker solos in this army gain Advance Move“. This is perhaps a slight nerf. Now Sorscha and the Kovnik cannot get Advanced Move anymore. On the other hand, there is no longer any need to bring Mechaniks if they are primarily there to give Advance Move.

Khador Army – 75 / 75 points
[Theme] Armored Corps

[Sorscha 3] Kommandant Sorscha Kratikoff [+28]
 – Beast 09 [18]
 – Kodiak [13]
Man-O-War Kovnik [4]
Man-O-War Suppression Tanker [0(6)]
Man-O-War Suppression Tanker [0(6)]
Battle Mechaniks (min) [3]
Battle Mechaniks (min) [3]
Kommandant Atanas Arconovich & Standard [7]
Man-O-War Bombardiers (max) [16]
 – Man-O-War Bombardier Officer [5]
Man-O-War Demolition Corps (max) [14]
 – Sergeant Dragos Dragadovich [0(6)]
Man-O-War Shocktroopers (max) [16]
 – Man-O-War Shocktrooper Officer [4]

Also at conflict chamber.

Assuming you, me dear reader has arrived all they way down here, I hope you have enjoyed these wild speculations. With a bit of luck, battle reports will appear in the foreseeable future.

The whole Armored Corps list

For the Motherland!

Vlad is a Winter Guard’s second best friend after Irusk2. Where Irusk2 keeps them alive to fight another day, Vlad1 makes them fight today. This post details my approach to Winter Guard Kommand under Vlad1. As a special treat, this list contains two of the Empress’ finest Gun Carriages. A marvellous addition to a WGK list under Vlad1.

Winter Guard Kommand has quite a few good ‘caster. I have traditionally been running Irusk2 in a Stalingrad style list (see here for a description). Where Irusk2 keeps Winter Guards alive, Vlad helps them actually kill stuff. Further, Irusk2 is missing opportunities to speedup our ‘jacks, which ofte resulted in them not really doing anything. Vlad can really propel a Khador ‘jack almost unreasonable distances.

The whole Winter Guard Kommand list

In the text below, I’ll go through the different models, and the rationale behind the army composition.

Vlad 1

Vlad1 is, in my view a good runner up to Irusk2 as being a Winter Guards best friend. However, where Irusk2 is there to keep Winter Guards alive in an I’ll outlast you style of game play, Vlad1, on the other hand is there to make Winter Guards actually hit stuff and hit above their weight.

In exchange for the Winter Guards’ willingness to sacrifice themselves (thanks to the theme benefit) if their leader is being shot, Vlad offers them primarily a bubble with the ability to hit and damage stuff, and a smal bubble with a little bit of protection from ranged attacks.

The bubbles are pretty large, and can easily encompass his entire army. Vlad can fit in two units of Winter Guards, three pieces of artillery, three ‘jacks, two carriages, and a few solos; whilst being protected by an ample number of Winter Guards.

Vlad’s spell list can help both Winter Guards and ‘jacks in performing at an optimal. The main spell in Vlad’s arsenal is Signs & Portents. Also, Boundless Charge and Wind Wall works wonders. Finally, his feat really fires up under the Warjacks.

This spell is the reason we bring Vlad1 to the table. It adds one additional dice to attack and damage rolls, and the lowest dice is discarded. As a rule of thumb, this little trick add roughly 1.5 to the result (more on this later). This is within his Control Area, that is a 14″ bubble. Unfortunately, and fortunately this is not an upkeep spell. It is unfortunate because Vlad will have to cast it most turns, and at a cost of four, it leaves only three focus to play around with. It is fortunate because most, if not all spell removal tricks only works on upkeeps. So nasty things like: Purification, Dissolution, Unbinding, and Hexblast just doesn’t do anything!

Straight forward charge extender by +2″. Also charge for free and gain Pathfinder. This is always golden for our slow ‘jacks. Note that is does absolutely nothing for Trampling. 

This spell is what can help deliver both the ‘jacks and Vlad himself. Non-magical ranged attacks automatically miss completely within 3″ of Vlad. 

This is Vlad’s emergency break. Sometimes he has to step up and do some killing on his own. Casting this spell makes Vlad SPD 9, STR 9, MAT 10, DEF 18, and ARM 19 for one round. That gives him a charge threat range of 11″ (10.5″ for the small weapon) with 4 (5) attacks hitting DEF 20 on the average.

A POW 12 range 10″ spell. It might come in handy at some point. I have never heard about it being used.

Forced March – Feat

This is the second huge reason to take Vlad1. Warjacks in his battlegroup that begin their activation in his Control Range double their SPD, and can Run, Charge and make Power Attacks for free (including Trampling). This is huge! It allows a standard Khador Heavy Warjack to charge 11″. Under Boundless Charge it is even better. A lowly Marauder can threat stuff 14″ away!

Artillery Kapitan

This is our artillery’s best friend. The Artillery Kapitan really helps our artillery hitting things. His most used ability is probably Artillerist, which give +2 RAT for the first AOE attack, and the ability to re-roll deviation dice. This is most often used on the Mortar (see below). But can also be applied to Gun Carriages. Clear makes Weapon Crews automatically miss friendly models, which can be helpful for clearing out stuff too close to the Winter Guards. Finally, Fire & Displace gives Reposition 2″ to a Weapon Crew.

I would actually like to have two in a list. But points are scare.

Joe in all his might

Jozef Grigorovich, or Joe to his friends, is the epitome of Winter Guards. His many years of impeccable service to the Motherland has made him revered among his troops. So much, in fact that normal winter guards happily will be a Sacrificial Pawn for him if somebody shoots him. Contrary to the Sacrificial Pawn ability from the Winter Guard Kommand theme, Joe can actually use a Gun Carriage as a Sacrificial Pawn!

Joe fixes many of the issues with winter guards. His battle plan Bear’s Strength gives the lowly Winter Guard a +4 to their STR. Combined with Signs & Portents, this actually make them somewhat dangerous (more on this later). He can also help the Winter Guards actually hitting stuff through his inspirational speech For the Motherland, giving them a +2 to hit. Finally, he can make them Tough be remembering the Courage of the Forefathers. He is natively Tough on his own. Joe is an auto-include.

He can also score flags, and actually have a Hand Cannon (quite obvious on the model). For some reason I tend to forget the latter.

Knockdown of a stick aka Field Guns (the right one on loan from the 5th Border Legion)

The Field Gun is our “knockdown on a stick” tool. It offers automatical knockdown on a hit up to 14″ away (a whooping 18″ if it advances). This is huge as our winter guard normally only have RAT 5. DEF 5 from being knocked down is easy to hit, even for a winter guard.

As with all other winter guard, Jozef can help its low RAT of five by using his battle plan For the Motherland. This should allow a field gun to hit DEF 14, and DEF 16 when aiming. With all the bells, including Signs & Portens a Field Gun will actually hit DEF 17 with auto-knockdown. As Joe most often is occupied otherwise it will most likely “only” be DEF 16. The Winter Guard Artillery Kapitan can employ Fire & Displace, allowing it to aim, shoot and still advance by repositioning 2″.

I prefer two of these fine pieces of artillery, giving me two potential knockdowns per turn. Shoot something to knock it down, hit it with everything you got.

The mighty Mortar

The Mortar Crew is really good when it hits. It offers a POW 16 up to 18″ away (all the way to 21″ if it advances). It also offers a decent AOE 4″ blast of POW 10 (due to High-Explosive). Unfortunately, it only has an effective RAT of one (1)! Meaning, anything with a DEF of eight or more will most likely dodge the shell.

In general, I think this can be used for two things: 1) shooting somewhere and hoping to drift into something. It does an average of 18 points of damage inside the 4″ AOE. In that case it might as well just move and shoot, as RAT 3 and RAT 1 is basically the same; and 2) actually trying to hit something. The combination of aiming, For the Motherland from Jozef, Artillerist from the Kapitan, and Sign & Portents actually makes it hit DEF 15 on the average.

Winter Guard Rifle Corps

Two min units and of the trusted Winter Guard Rifle Corps and their Rocketeers

The rifle corps is the shooting version of the Winter Guards troopers. Where the Infantry has a blunderbuss, the Rifle Corps has the more modern rifle. The rifle has an impressive range of 14″, and a somewhat unimpressive POW 10. Fortunately, they can do CRA and is also helped by Vlad’s Signs & Portents; and are also subject to Joe’s range of inspiring speeches. All of these different buffs allows the standard Winter Guard to actually hit impressive DEF. The table below summarises the DEF that can be hit on an average roll, given the different options; as well as expected average damage output.

CRA	None	S&P	Aim	FtM	Aim+S&P	FtM+S&P	Aim+FtM+S&P	Dam	Dam S&P
1	12	13	14	14	15	15	17	17	18
2	14	15	16	16	17	17	19	19	20
3	15	16	17	17	18	18	20	20	21
4	16	17	18	18	19	19	21	21	22
5	17	18	19	19	20	20	22	22	23
6	18	19	20	20	21	21	23	23	24

In addition to the standard grunts, a Rifle Corps can also include three Rocketeers (which they always should). They do not carry a rifle, so no CRA on their part. They do, however have the impressive Rocket. It has the same range but is POW 12 and Brutal Damage (additional dice on a direct hit). This is an average of 22.5 points damage (24 points under S&P) on a direct hit, and 14.5 points of damage under its 3″ AOE, under S&P. Unfortunately, they suffer from the standard RAT of five. So, they should either Aim, be under Joe’s For the Motherland; or even better wait until one of the Field Guns have applied the Knockdown on a Stick.

Finally, the Rifle Corps has Practise Maneuvers, which allows models to ignore other models when determining LOS, and they can advance through each other. I tend to forget this. Probably because I have been playing Irusk2 too much, where his Tactician basically does the same.

Two of the Empress’ finest Gun Carriages

The Gun Carriage is a marvellous piece of machinery. It it a real infantry killer from its Impact Hits and two main guns. which drops two AOE 4″ of infantry killing blast damage – and Rough Terrain, which is very nice if the opponent can’t do Pathfinder. It can also be another knockdown tool (in addition to the Field Guns). However, with all the rules associated with this model, it can be a clock killer. The table below summerises the activation sequence os a Gun Carriage. It describes the actions including a short description (where dice rolls in brackets are assuming S&P), the specific rule applied, and the average dice roll with and without S&P.   

#	Action	Description	Rule	Avg.	S&P
1	Charge	Threat distance 11.5″ (+2″ BC)	Charge
2	Impact	Can move less than 3″ and still impact	Crushing Weight
		Can make any number of impact attacks	Crushing Weight
		To hit: 3d6+6 (4d6+6, drop lowest)	Line Breaker	16	18
		Models hit are knocked down	Mount
		Damage: 2d6+14 (3d6+14, drop lowest)	Cavalry	21	22
		Impact charge target	Cavalry
3	Attack	To hit: 3d6+6 (4d6+6, drop lowest)	Trampling Hooves	16	18
4	Damage	Model hit is knocked down	Mount	1	1
		Target is slammed d3″ (*)	Ton of Bricks	2
		Damage: 3d6+14 (4d6+14, drop lowest)	Charge	24	26
		Collateral: 2d6+14 (3d6+14, drop lowest)	Slam	21	22
5	Shoot	2 times Heavy Cannon – range 10″	Dual Attack
		To hit: 2d6+5 (3d6+5, drop lowest)	Heavy Cannon	12	13
		Damage: 2d6+16 (3d16+16, drop lowest)	Heavy Cannon	23	24
		Blast 4″: 2d6+8 (3d6+8, drop lowest)	Heavy Cannon	15	16
		AOE 4″ is rough terrain for one round	Heavy Cannon
6	Shoot	Military Rifle – range 10″ (360 degrees)	Dual Attack
		To hit: 2d6+5 (3d6+5, drop lowest)	Military Rifle	12	13
		Damage: 2d6+11 (3d6+11, drop lowest)	Military Rifle	18	19
7	Reposition	Advance up to 3″	Reposition

(*) Remember the slam rules

A word of warning though. There seems to be a little, either cock up or explicit style cramping of the Gun Carriage from Privateer Press. A carriage is a Cavalry model, so it is allowed to do initial attack with its Mounts (p. 75, Prime Rules MK3). However, a Cavalry model cannot make initial attacks when it charges (ibid.). Yet, Crushing Weight allows a carriage to make Impact Attacks when moving less than 3″. Here is the caveat! Trampling Hooves tells us that a carriage can make Charge Attacks with its mount. However, a Charge Attack requires a move of at least 3″ (p. 31, ibid.). So, if we charge a Gun Carriage to make any number of Impact Attacks and move less than 3″, it looses its initial Mount Attack; if there is less that 3″, and we want to make initial attacks only a move should be made, and alas no Impact Attacks.

I usually run one on each flak, just at the edge of Vlad’s Signs & Portents bubble (see also standard deployment above). This allows a lot of mobility and impressive threat to the opponent’s flanks. Gun Carriages normally have a large target painted on them, which normally attracts a lot of hostile forces. This is bad in the sense that they tend to die early, yet good as the middle of the field is spared all of this hostility.

I have grown funned of Marauders from my many games with Irusk2 as commander of the Winter Guard Kommand (see here for list discussions). There are so many huge bases around, and Marauders are currently our best bet against them. They are also really good at knocking stuff down from their Combo Smite, which is really helpful for the shooting part of the army. In theory, two Marauders should be sufficient (see below). However, I’m a great advocate of backups. So, three it is (this is also only three more points that Vlad’s Warjack points). Luckily, Marauders fit really well with Vlad1, as he helps them solve a lot of their issues.

Marauders’ damage output under Vlad1

All of this wonderful damage a Marauder can wreck is all good and well if it can’t get to the enemy. Luckily, Vlad is happy to assist with this as well. Boundless Charge gives one model +2″ movement and Pathfinder; and his feat doubles the base SPD (both also allow for free charge). This means that a Marauder can put pistons to face 14″ away (base speed 4″ + feat 4″ + charge/trample 3″ + Boundless Charge 2″ + Reach 1″). Suddenly a lowly Marauder out-threatens many of its favourite prey. Also note that Trample being a Power Attack makes screening and jamming with small based models difficult at best. Unfortunately, casting both Signs & Portens; and Boundless Charge leaves Vlad with only one focus to allocate, making it impossible to fully load a ‘jack.

All of the above basically sums up to my current Winter Guard Kommand list. This is the third iteration, when the first one was Irusk2 with a Spriggan and a Marauder; and the second one was Irusk2 with triple Marauder and an Adjunct. This latest iteration will hopefully fix some of the issues of actually killing stuff, and thereby winning more.

Khador Army – 74 / 75 points
[Theme] Winter Guard Kommand

[Vladimir 1] Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Prince [+28]
 – Marauder [11]
 – Marauder [11]
 – Marauder [11]
Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich [4]
Winter Guard Artillery Kapitan [3]
Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [0(4)]
Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [0(4)]
Winter Guard Mortar Crew [0(5)]
Winter Guard Rifle Corps (min) [8]
 – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6]
Winter Guard Rifle Corps (min) [8]
 – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6]
Winter Guard Gun Carriage [17]
Winter Guard Gun Carriage [17]

Also at conflict chamber.

Assuming you, me dear reader has arrived all they way down here, I hope you have enjoyed these wild speculations. With a bit of luck, battle reports will appear in the foreseeable future.

The whole Winter Guard Kommand list

For the Motherland!

1. Lady Aiyana & Master Holt have never really performed; and
2. The combination of a Spriggan and a Marauder have left the list with too little ARM-cracking.

So, to mitigate these problems, I have been thinking hard about what changes could be made. The list needs to fix ARM-cracking and magical weapons, without loosing too many of the benefits from the existing ‘jack, and the lady and friend.

Let’s start with the Lady and her friend. This small unit is there, primarily to provide some way of having magical attacks to counter things such as incorporeal, and in a pinch claim a round zone, or contest.  

The ability to hand out magical weapon has never really come in handy. Arguably, this is due to the fact that Irusk haven’t really faced that many armies, which counted on incorporeal. Nevertheless, eight points for this is a rather steep price. It could be argued that including Koldun Kapitan Valachev in this package would open up for using Ayiana’s Kiss of Lyliss (as Valachev makes the unit a friendly faction unit instead of merely friendly). Clearly +2 to damage rolls is not to be frown upon. However, that would put the entire package at 12 points. I simply cannot see these three models being worth 12 points; in particular not after the release of the Greylord Adjunct. 

Greylord Adjunct

This guy solves a lot of problems for most Khador casters and lists. He comes with both passive and active abilities. Let’s start by looking at his two really good passive abilities: Arcane Assist and Spiritual Conduit. 

Arcane Assist allows the caster, whom the adjunct is attached to, to upkeep one spell for free. For Irusk2, this is major. He would really like to cast Solid Ground and Fire for Effect during turn one; and sometimes even Artifice of Deviation. This leaves him with “only” four focus each turn after upkeep. The extra focus each turn suddenly give Irusk five, opening up a whole new range of options. For example, he can now cast both Battle Lust and Energizer, giving him much more tactical flexibility; he can fill up two ‘jacks, and still leave him with one focus – just in case; or if needs be, dropping one of his upkeeps and casting Battle Lust on two units. Two times Battle Lust combined with one unit under Joe’s Bear Strength actually gives a rather hard hitting combination.

Spiritual Conduit extends the caster’s range for spells with two inches. For Irusk2, this means that he can suddenly reach out 8″ with Battle Lust, and the same for Fire for Effect if he wishes to cycle it – which is not a completely unsound assumption. These two inches might not sound like much, but two inches can mean the world, in particular in a WGK list where the huge number of models, and the clutter they create easily can put Fire for Effect targets outside the six inches mark.

In addition to the two passive abilities, the Greylord Adjunct also brings three active abilities to the table: Blizzard, Frostbite, and Guidance. 

Blizzard is a magic ability, which creates a 3″ cloud on any (friendly faction) model within 5″. The main usage of this is to put it on himself (giving him DEF 15 against shooting), or even on Irusk. This will make Irusk even more difficult for take down with ranged weapons. It brings him to an impressive DEF 17, and in combination with Sacrificial Pawn and Solid Ground makes him very difficult to assassinate from afar.

Frostbite is an 8″ POW 12 spray, which in itself is not remarkable. However, sprays are super powerfull in this game, so the more the merrier. 

Finally, Guidance is where the money really is. This can be cast on a friendly model within 7″ and gives Eyeless Sight and magical weapon (both melee and range!). Eyeless sight allows a model to ignore clouds for LOS, concealment, and stealth. Despite being model only and not model/unit as Lady Aiyana’s Sigil of Power, and not as powerfull as the Spriggan’s two Targeting Flares, it goes a long way. Cast on a Field Gun (under Fire for Effect), makes this artillery piece marvellous for removing pesky solos, such as Eiryss1 or Eiryss2,

Eiryss1 and Eiryss2 are often used to Disrupt ‘jacks. This can really be terrible for any plan. One ‘jack out without focus is always bad. Both incarnations of this little lady have Stealth. Eiryss1 shoots 12″, which is within a Field Gun’s range. So, it can even aim, giving it a 71% chance of hitting. Hitting her means she is dead. Eiryss2 is slightly worse. She can also shoot 12″, however she can reposition 3″, brining her just outside a Field Gun’s range. Thus, the Field Gun would have to move, giving it a 50/50 chance of hitting her.

All in all, I think that the Greylord Adjunct is a pretty good substitute for some of the abilities that both Lady Aiyana, and the Spriggan brings to the table; and for only four points. 

The combination of the Spriggan and the Marauder has been lacking in damage output against heavily armoured targets. It also appears to be too easy to neutralise two ‘jacks before they can make an impact. Finally, removing Lady Aiyana & Master Holt and the Spriggan, and adding the Greylord Adjunct releases exactly 22 points for ‘jacks. So, it might be time for the triple Marauder battle group.

If we look at what Marauders are best at, it is knocking things down, and taking out huge based models. I almost always see one or more huge based models on the table. There are currently 53 huge based models (colossal/gargantuan (25), battle engine (21), structure (2), warcaster/warlock (5)). Assuming a Marauder is fully loaded, the following options exist (this is ignoring any issues regarding actually hitting the target): all structures, warcasters/warlocks, and battle engines can be taken out by one ‘jack; most colossal/gargantuan require two ‘jacks to be killed, only five can be taken out by one ‘jack. So, having two Marauders ready to deal with huge based models would be handy; thus, having a third in backup sounds prudent. Obviously, if everything goes completely wrong a Battle Lusted and Bear Strength Winter Guard unit can assist.

In general, Irusk2 do not do a lot for ‘jacks. His main tricks are obviously his feat, which allows them to ignore clouds and forests. He can also offer Energizer, which offers two inches more movement and non-linear charge lanes. Using Energizer, a Marauder can reach an enemy 10″ away. Finally, he can actually use Artifice of Deviation to bring them to an impressive DEF 14 against shooting, not bad for a Khador ‘jack (yes, three ‘jacks can be packed into the 5″ template).

Irusk and his Winter Guards ready to take on the enemies of the Empress

All in all, I think that the change from Spriggan, and Lady Aiyana and Master Holt to triple Marauder and Greylord Adjunct solves the main issue of ARM cracking, without loosing all the benefits of the old setup. So, without any further ado, here is the new version of Irusk2’s WGK list:

Khador Army – 75 / 75 points

Irusk2

Irusk2’s bubbles of good stuff

Battle Lust

Fire for Effect

Artifice of Deviation

Winter Guards

Winter Guard Infantry

Winter Guard Rifle Corps

CRA	RAT	Avg. DEF	POW	Avg. dam.
1	5	12	10	17
2	7	14	12	19
3	8	15	13	20
4	9	16	14	21
5	10	17	15	22
6	11	18	16	23
7	12	19	17	24
8	13	20	18	25
9	14	21	19	26
10	15	22	20	27

My Winter Guard Kommand List

Khador Army – 74 / 75 points
[Theme] Winter Guard Kommand

[Irusk 2] Supreme Kommandant Irusk [+27]
 – Marauder [11]
 – Spriggan [17]

Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich [4]
Winter Guard Artillery Kapitan [3]

Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [0(4)]
Winter Guard Field Gun Crew [0(4)]
Winter Guard Mortar Crew [0(5)]

Winter Guard Infantry (max) [10]
 – Winter Guard Infantry Officer & Standard [4]
 – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6]
Winter Guard Rifle Corps (max) [13]
 – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6]
Winter Guard Rifle Corps (max) [13]
 – Winter Guard Rocketeer (3) [6]

Lady Aiyana & Master Holt [8]

Also at conflict chamber.