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Let's Chat: Chosen Axes


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10 hours ago, dillonjay21 said:

The Fyreslayers have definitely been my favorite war-band to play with and have a pretty good record with them since settling on the type of deck I wanted to play. Much like some others have been doing I run an aggro deck that try to get people into my half and inspire Fjul and either Tefk or Vol to start punching. There is honestly nothing like getting inspiration strikes in your opening hand then oneshotting the aggro opponent who comes in and kills or try to kill the maegrim or Vol I have as bait. Turns 2 and 3 consist of me usually pushing up with my inspired fighters and throwing formless key and glory to meet on someone who is just gonna sit back and survive. This deck works great against Aggros, but is a bit tougher against defensive decks, specifically Farstriders. However, with hidden paths, quick thinker, treasure lust and another push ploy its been getting along a bit better than before. 

I'm excited to play in a casual tourney this Saturday with them and will report back on how I do. I'm a big advocate for these guys and love when people are surprised that I'm playing them and say they are so bad. They're so fun and rewarding. Especially once you get Fjul and Tefk powered up with tons of upgrades. 

Have you tried using earhquake and great concussion to help push all your fighters into their territory? That could help against defensive warbands. You can score unstoppable advance, swift advance, and maybe conquest while doing so

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14 hours ago, Anthony225 said:

Have you tried using earhquake and great concussion to help push all your fighters into their territory? That could help against defensive warbands. You can score unstoppable advance, swift advance, and maybe conquest while doing so

Ya I use great concussion but not earthquake. I have struggled with the idea of putting unstoppable advance and swift advance since that will be 1/6 of objectives on having to push into enemy territory and that could earlier than I want against most warbands that seem to be Aggro. I agree though it would be really good against defensive and I do use conquest as my third end phase scorer. However, I’m always switching that with superior tactician (I’m pretty sure that’s the one where you have to score 6 objectives in a game for 3 glory), since it makes it so I don’t have to rely on pushing everyone into enemy territory. Most of my objectives are either passive or have to do with killing. 

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superior tactician is great in decks with a lot of score immediates. i think it can work in lots of decks with easy 1 glory scores though.

On Unstoppable Advance and Swift Advance against aggro warbands:

- When Vol and Tefk are Inspired, they are are equivalent statwise to the best fighters in the game. Fjul probably only has Gurzag as a counterpart when inspired

- No-one starts the game inspired. It is relatively rare to have 3 damage uninspired and requires ploys in hand round one to boost damage. Steelhearts and Gurzag are probably most dangerous in this regard (gurzag because of the amount of extra attack ploys available to orrucks).

- an inspired dwarf at the back of your own board is out of the action unless you use hidden paths, spectral wings, tantalising prize. 2 inspired dwarves in enemy territory around the midline present a double threat to your opponent who has to make decisions about who to target. Especially so if you have great fortitude on the non-Fjul dwarf because they're now both in 2 shot range

What you are gambling on is that your opponent, while trying to achieve their own objectives, won't be killing more than 2 of your guys without burning all their resources for your crack back. Ironjawzs are a problem with this (daemonic weapon+spoils of battle, brutal but kunnin, kunnin but brutal, more choppin). Steelheart can also be a slight issue with obyrn and steelheart having 3 damage base. Against those, I'd still take that gamble if i have something like quick thinker in my hand, hopefully neutralising 1 of those charges.

 

The probability of drawing a particular objective in your opening hand is 1 in 4. the chance of drawing either Unstoppable Advance or Swift Advance when they are in your deck is 2 in 5. The chance of drawing both is around 4%. So it's not going to crucify your opening hand most of the time and you can afford to mill them out.

 

Is it flawless strategy that wins every time? No. But I find the problems presented to your opponent compensate for the risk you take by pushing forward early.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Anyone seeing value in the leader cards? I've put Tyrant's Command (for Hidden Path synergy), Quick Advance (because double push), Commanding Shout (for more push shenanigans) and Rising to the Challenge (because Tefk or Vol become 5 wounds, 4 damage and either 3 or 4 dice, so sub in for Grimnir without Cleave)

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@riddlesworth I threw in Tyrant's Command for your same reasons, Commanding Reach for a sneaky one shot with Grimnir without having to necessarily charge or by simply attacking from 2 hexes away,  Inspired Command for the versatility of either a push or a putting a fighter on guard to score an easy change of tactics , and finally the objective shining example because its so damn easy to score as a passive.  

 

Edited by dillonjay21
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I got my butt well and truly handed to me last night by aggro skellies. I still think the deck works, but I do think my piloting skill is not up to par - much more comfortable with defensive dwarves. I wasn't so keen on Tyrant's Command as my hidden paths target is usually inspired Grimnir, so it didn't really come up.  Quick Advance was gold though.

 

I have a tournament on Sunday and I'm torn on continuing to get reps with the aggro deck, or going back to a relatively successful defensive hybrid deck. Leaning towards going with what I'm comfortable with. Right now it stands at 22 cards. Would love to get it down to 20 but there's some seriously hard cuts in there on both the ploy and upgrade side.

Faction: The Chosen Axes

Objectives (12)
119 - Ferocious Charge
124 - Scion of Grimnir
235 - Alone in the Darkness
248 - Contained
252 - Defensive Strike
253 - Denial
257 - Escalation
278 - Our Only Way Out
284 - Precise Use of Force
292 - Supremacy
296 - Tactical Supremacy 1-2
297 - Tactical Supremacy 3-4

Ploys (11)
132 - The Earth Shakes
133 - Treasure-lust
310 - Confused Priorities
329 - Great Concussion
331 - Hidden Paths
332 - Illusory Fighter
334 - Inspiration Strikes
347 - Quick Thinker
348 - Ready for Action
361 - Spectral Wings
L42 - Quick Advance

Upgrades (11)
136 - Activated Runes
142 - Grimnir's Fortitude
143 - Grimnir's Speed
376 - Awakened Weapon
387 - Flickering Image
391 - Great Strength
402 - Legendary Swiftness
420 - Soultrap
421 - Sprinter
424 - Tethered Spirit
433 - Trusted Defender

 

Usually with this deck I'm looking at pulling one of the supremacy time objectives in my first hand to get some glory rolling. Minimum 2 objectives on my board means if I have confused priorities (or I fish for it...) i should be able to score the tacs. 3 objectives on my side is gravy (i never seem to win that dice roll). Of my inspired fighters, 2 guys with 4 (or more) movement covers my whole side of the board to bop anyone coming across plays defence for contained and denial (though not getting contained because of wipeout is a pain). There are 2 upgrades in there to help my 2 dice dwarves hit. Flickering image is a godsend on Tefk. Against defensive decks like skellies, stormcast (both types), hidden paths and grimnir's movement plus push shenenigans is a terror in the opponents half. I've had success with this style of deck in the past at 20 cards, so maybe 22 is too weighty. But as I say, cuts are difficult here. The only one I'm really considering is Illusory Fighter (and one of the +1 speed upgrades). But it's so nice to take Inspired Grimnir from the back of the board to the front of my board and bust off a charge of 3,5 or 7.

Edited by riddlesworth
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I have been trying to use flickering image in my last games, but never pulled the combo. I am trying to use it on Mad Maegrim with the shadeglass darts (usually him or Vol are back scoring hold objectives). The idea is for him to shoot, trigger Flickering image, and attack in the next activation or simply support Fjul or Tefk, How are you using it, @riddlesworth?

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Maegrim and Tefk are the 2 possibilities for flickering image because they roll 3 dice. Tefk has crit cleave, so is my second inspiration goal after grimnir and maegrim has the reroll on inspire, so can use it quite well to hit, then push into support. Tefk is the priority for it though, especially If I'm up against stormcast, magores, fyreslayers or ironjawz.

I tend not to put it on maegrim because best case he inspires turn 1 IF i have 3 objectives AND inspiration strikes in my hand. usually i'm trying to buff up 2 guys, so flickering image goes on tefk or vol. I have tried shifting image on grimnir, which combos nicely with grimnir's fortitude and trusted defender, but its a lot of investment to make.

 

In my aggresive dwarves, i'm rarely on objectives in turn 2. In the defensive objective build above (which i'm leaning towards right now), shadeglass darts may be an option.

 

Will caveat that by saying I am not the best player with positioning and decision making with cards :D

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I am playing a mixed objectives/aggro deck, with around 1/3 of the ploys and upgrades focused on moving to objectives, swapping them, shadcaller, etc. and the same amount of ploys and upgrades for aggresive playstyle. I try to inspire Grimnir and Tefk in the first turn, and usually leave Mad Maegrim forgotten in the rear to score the keys or another hold objective card that I may get. I found the darts very useful, because bad positioning from your side (or a wise move form your opponent) can leave an uninspired duardin (Vol and Mad) out of the fight way too easily. It may feel overkill, but I think activated runes with flickering image (and maybe also the darts) will make Mad a force to be reckoned with when facing skavens and SG. I have two friends playing these two bands, if I ever pull it out I will let you know ;)

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I think the combo works on Maegrim or Tefk equally well. If you want to use the darts, Maegrim is a prime candidate (why his personal upgrade is straight worse than the darts i don't know...)

Being left out of the fight is a problem. One of the reasons I think I'm more comfortable with defensive hybrid decks - there's less room to make that positioning error. That and it lets me play very glory hungry (23 glory total, 9 glory on objectives, 4 on score immediate, 6 end game, 4 on passive).

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I'm interested in running the UK Games Expo winning deck as its already similar to mine, but with more movement ploys than mine. It is a pretty interesting build and makes use of pushing all your dwarves into enemy territory and getting Grimnir inspired. I will probably switch out a few cards, but it looks super fun to play in the aggro meta. 

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6 hours ago, riddlesworth said:

I think the combo works on Maegrim or Tefk equally well. If you want to use the darts, Maegrim is a prime candidate (why his personal upgrade is straight worse than the darts i don't know...)

Same reason many other fighters have restricted cards that are worse than their universal counterparts: because those cards are intended to help you double down on a particular card, not to be better than the universal options. So the Chosen Axes get another option for ranged combat, but they’re not supposed to be so good at it that they can load up on Shadeglass Axe, Shadeglass Darts, *and* an even better card. 

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I've piloted it. I'm not a good enough player to make it work, though clearly the guy that did gets it. My guess is he placed his objective markers slightly closer to the enemy, then pushed into enemy territory in round 2. What I found was my poor positioning with it meant it was too easy for my opponent to get 2 damage+trap/twist the knife or 3 damage to consistently have the fighting power left in round 2 and 3. The theory is sound, but I think you need to be a better player than me to make it work.

 

On another note, I went 1-5 in a best of 1 tournament this weekend with defensive Chosen Axes. I think the deck is solid, but my placement of boards, objectives and positioning let me down. There's one or two tweaks to the deck, but Imma keep going with it til i git gud.

 

Spoiler

Faction: The Chosen Axes

Objectives (12)
119 - Ferocious Charge
124 - Scion of Grimnir
235 - Alone in the Darkness
248 - Contained
252 - Defensive Strike
253 - Denial
257 - Escalation
278 - Our Only Way Out
284 - Precise Use of Force
292 - Supremacy
296 - Tactical Supremacy 1-2
297 - Tactical Supremacy 3-4

Ploys (10)
132 - The Earth Shakes
133 - Treasure-lust
310 - Confused Priorities
329 - Great Concussion
331 - Hidden Paths
334 - Inspiration Strikes
347 - Quick Thinker
348 - Ready for Action
361 - Spectral Wings
L42 - Quick Advance

Upgrades (10)
136 - Activated Runes
142 - Grimnir's Fortitude
143 - Grimnir's Speed
376 - Awakened Weapon
387 - Flickering Image
391 - Great Strength
402 - Legendary Swiftness
420 - Soultrap
421 - Sprinter
424 - Tethered Spirit

 

Objective deck is glory hungry, but it is definitely doable. Moving forward I'm making 1 change to the objective deck (Precise Use of Force out, No Remose in because chosen axes have such high damage stats). On the power deck, I'm going to try going back to 24 cards. Adding illusory fighter (because way too often i had a dwarf stuck at the back of the board) and Duel of Wits to cycle. On the upgrade side, Flickering Image is great when it works, but Great Fortitude is going in to be more consistent. Also adding Shardcaller to help with second round Tac Supremacy and Incredible strength to add redundancy. We'll see how it goes.

 

 

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  • 1 month later...
  • 1 month later...

I have recently played against the Thorns of the Briar Queen. I won 3 out of 4 games. The one I lost (the first one), I got surprised by the movement of the chainrasps, that were able to surround my inspired Tefk , Fjul and Vol and make dwarf-pulp of them. In the following games I was more careful, trying to keep my distance and looking for gaps in their defense to one-shot the guy that allows all chainrasps to move or the Queen. All games are a tight affair, and I really missed attacks that affect all adjacent enemies. Besides the horrible 2 swords upgrade of Vol, do the Fyreslayers have access to other area attacks? I recently played with SC in a 3 players game. I got Severin surrounded by Fyreslayers and Orruks and with his two swords, 2 damage area attack he was able to almost single-handedly annihilate both warbands. I want the same for my little greedy ****** :P

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10 minutes ago, RafaBO said:

I have recently played against the Thorns of the Briar Queen. I won 3 out of 4 games. The one I lost (the first one), I got surprised by the movement of the chainrasps, that were able to surround my inspired Tefk , Fjul and Vol and make dwarf-pulp of them. In the following games I was more careful, trying to keep my distance and looking for gaps in their defense to one-shot the guy that allows all chainrasps to move or the Queen. All games are a tight affair, and I really missed attacks that affect all adjacent enemies. Besides the horrible 2 swords upgrade of Vol, do the Fyreslayers have access to other area attacks? I recently played with SC in a 3 players game. I got Severin surrounded by Fyreslayers and Orruks and with his two swords, 2 damage area attack he was able to almost single-handedly annihilate both warbands. I want the same for my little greedy ****** :P

Mighty swing is a ploy that gives the next fighter an ape attack 

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On 10/15/2018 at 12:04 AM, PlasticCraic said:

Congrats!  What was your deck and gameplan?

I've pulled some out in anticipation of moving forward and can't remember fully what they were. Since playing I've bought the Echos and Leaders decks to supplement. Those I did take and will take in the next game were/are: 

Objectives (10)
Ferocious Charge
Scion of Grimnir
Unstoppable Advance
Contained
Denial
Ploymaster
Precise Use of Force
Supremacy
Tactical Supremacy 1-2
Tactical Supremacy 3-4

Gambits (9)
Living Wall
Oathsworn
The Earth Shakes
Treasure-lust
Earthquake
Fortify
Healing Potion
Ready for Action
Shifting Shards

Upgrades (8)
Activated Runes
Grimnir's Fortitude
Grimnir's Speed
Flickering Image
Great Fortitude
Great Strength
Legendary Swiftness
Soultrap

I went pretty aggressive, placing objectives close to or in opponents zone and pushed forward hard and fast. I basically focused on getting Grimnir upgraded and went for the big points from cards such as contained and denial. 

Really loved the in-your-face tactics but can see how it could be hitty missy.

Edited by lare2
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello I wish to try out my new painted Caegan lodge dwarves. I had the idea of an objective style deck using the ones posted above as a basis.  The deck list is posted below. Is the following board a suitable choice ? For long and horizontal respectively

Objectives (12)
119 - Ferocious Charge
124 - Scion of Grimnir
248 - Contained
252 - Defensive Strike
278 - Our Only Way Out
296 - Tactical Supremacy 1-2
297 - Tactical Supremacy 3-4
L24 - Shining Example
N310 - Denial
N319 - Fired Up
N357 - Opening Gambit
N374 - Supremacy

Gambits (10)
129 - Oathsworn
132 - The Earth Shakes
133 - Treasure-lust
310 - Confused Priorities
329 - Great Concussion
334 - Inspiration Strikes
347 - Quick Thinker
348 - Ready for Action
361 - Spectral Wings
N441 - Regal Vision

Upgrades (10)
136 - Activated Runes
142 - Grimnir's Fortitude
143 - Grimnir's Speed
373 - A Destiny to Meet
376 - Awakened Weapon
384 - Deathly Fortitude
387 - Flickering Image
416 - Shardcaller
424 - Tethered Spirit
N499 - Faneway Crystal

IMG_20181105_125732.jpg

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  • 2 months later...

Hi all,

 

which bands (well, cards that are shipped with the bands of course) are recommended if I like to get the most out of my Chaosen Axes?

 

In addition, what are the basic startegies that work well with the Chosen Axes.

 

Sorry if my questions sound dump, but I´m extremely new to the game, just finished painting my warband and now I wait for the first match...

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12 hours ago, Hannibal said:

Hi all,

 

which bands (well, cards that are shipped with the bands of course) are recommended if I like to get the most out of my Chaosen Axes?

 

In addition, what are the basic startegies that work well with the Chosen Axes.

 

Sorry if my questions sound dump, but I´m extremely new to the game, just finished painting my warband and now I wait for the first match...

Welcome to the best faction!

 

Farstriders - Inspiration Strikes. Required card to get Fjul going prior to the start of turn 2.  I like Spectral Wings too which is also in the Farstrider pack.

Eyes of the Nine - Fired Up, Great Gains, What Armour: 3 objectives I like for my Axes. Also the upgrade Sudden Growth can be found in this deck

Spiteclaw - Escalation objective and  Awakened Weapon upgrade 

Steelheart Expansion - Strong Start, Regal Vision (a ploy to inspire when on an objective but before your opponent can push you off), and Champion's fortitude upgrade

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Went to my first tourney the other night and won 2 out of 3 with the following: 

Faction: The Chosen Axes

0 Banned cards | 4 Restricted cards

Objectives (12)
119 - Ferocious Charge
124 - Scion of Grimnir
125 - Unstoppable Advance
248 - Contained
282 - Ploymaster
284 - Precise Use of Force (R)
292 - Supremacy
296 - Tactical Supremacy 1-2
297 - Tactical Supremacy 3-4
L24 - Shining Example
N308 - Dashed Hopes
N327 - Hale and Whole

Gambits (10)
128 - Living Wall
129 - Oathsworn
133 - Treasure-lust
321 - Earthquake (R)
323 - Flickering Step
330 - Healing Potion
331 - Hidden Paths
348 - Ready for Action (R)
L44 - Tyrant's Command
N420 - Haymaker

Upgrades (10)
136 - Activated Runes
142 - Grimnir's Fortitude
143 - Grimnir's Speed
144 - Returning Axe
389 - Great Fortitude
409 - Shadeglass Axe
420 - Soultrap (R)
433 - Trusted Defender
N488 - Cloak of Shadows
N546 - Tome of Glories

Lost to rats the first game but beat Tzeentchy boys and skellies in games 2 and 3. Played aggressively, placing at least one objective in the enemy turf.  

Cards I intend to drop moving forward: both tactical supremacy (never get these) and cloak of shadows. 

Still missing 2 of the original warbands and all new ones, save for the starter box, but I'll think of something to rotate in. What I'm after in my deck is essentially free ways to move/fight or give benefits to rolling in offence/defence. Most things I choose have either of these things in mind. We've got the power and can hit like a brick but our movement is woeful. 

Edited by lare2
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