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How do the different war bands play?


Teuchter

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I have purchased the core set as well as Ironskull's Boyz and the Sepulcural Guard. I have only played a couple of games with the core set (in one sitting) with the recommended decks from the core set. I am pretty keen to buy the Chosen axes, and the Spiteclaw's Swarm, however as I am waaaay behind on getting games in, would someone out there like to give an up-to-date summary of how the different factions play, or different options of play style for the various factions... and If I am not asking too much how effective each faction is at different play styles. 

If it helps to narrow if down, I am keen to play fairly aggressively, rather than to sit back and defend back board objectives, however I am basing that on no real experience what so ever.  

Cheers!

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Super quick rundown, not very in depth:

Stormcast: Best baseline stats in the game (other than Inspired Fyreslayers). Fairly hard to kill if they get rolling, generally focus on being aggressive and pushing forward as a phalanx to cripple the opponent's army. Losing a single fighter is a huge blow.

Khorne: Fast, with 3 fairly killy characters. Need to pick engagements carefully since they're squishy, but Saek and Garrek can be real monsters if they aren't cornered. Arnulf and Targor are for dying. If you try to straight up charge the middle of a tanky Warband without thinking, you lose immediately, but if you can spread out and hit them where they don't expect it, you're in a huge spot.

Orruks: Fairly straightforward - walk forward and hit things. Gurzag is one of the strongest single pieces in the game, most people just stack all their upgrades on him and then use the others for supporting/bodyblocking. Good force for new players or people who just want to run headlong in and punch.

Skeletons: Start off extremely slow, but very good at board control since there are so many bodies and there are 3 very strong fighters on the team. Generally, people use the Petitioners to lock down objectives and harass with the named Characters who can actually do serious damage if they get upgraded and in good positions.

Skaven: Tricky. Not sure exactly how they play yet since they're so new, but initial impressions are that Skritch is very strong, Krrk has good flanking potential, and the other rats are for distraction. Fastest Warband in the game and can't kill the small ones for good. Very squishy if you catch them uninspired, though.

Fyreslayers: Start off fairly weak (good offense but poor speed and HP), but extremely powerful cards and insanely good Inspired stats. Gameplay is generally going to be around getting 2 strong fighters Inspired on Turn 1 and then wrecking face with them. If the opponent stops them from doing so, it's gonna be a bad day to be a Duardin, but if they get to power up, they're fairly hard to stop.

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Stromcasts can also play very defensive: lot of objectives scored by doing... nothing: not being armed (another universal, if no one has been armed), not having a enemy close to you, sitting on a objective 2 turn n a row, a new card to not have made a move action, a another new to not have play a any ploys in a round etc.

For the Reavers, i would say that Arnulf and Targor are here to be upgraded with weapons. This band will have most of the time charge first, make it count. 

Skavens: can be played to grab objectives, in enemy territory if possible: a Skaven on guard is very hard to kill.  Keys (upgrades giving you glory thris end phase if you sit on the right objectives) are easy to use thanks to their speed. Fighting withe Skritch and Krrk can be rewarding, but they are fragile (even inspired) and their is no skaven ploy to re roll failed attack, so it remain a dicey move.

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Thanks guys. Perhaps the Orruks would be a good starting point for me, however I do like the sound of the Fyreslayers for a slightly more nuanced game. The guard also interest me for an alternate play style. 

When deck building for the Fyreslayers is it worth covering up for their weaknesses with the + movement cards? Time for me to read through all the Shadespire Let's Chat, I think!

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@Requizen or anyone else who has an opinion! Do you think that the Chosen Axes do anything in particular better than Ironskull's Boyz? After spending a little too much time during work looking into this all, it seems that the orruks have the same number of fighters, with a lean on a powerful leader. However the Orruks have a better move and a much easier inspire condition. I want to, want to play the Chosen Axes (and go for a Dark Iron Dwarves from WoW look), but I'm slightly hesitant to invest into paints/time etc if I end up with a sub par choice. 

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23 minutes ago, Teuchter said:

@Requizen or anyone else who has an opinion! Do you think that the Chosen Axes do anything in particular better than Ironskull's Boyz? After spending a little too much time during work looking into this all, it seems that the orruks have the same number of fighters, with a lean on a powerful leader. However the Orruks have a better move and a much easier inspire condition. I want to, want to play the Chosen Axes (and go for a Dark Iron Dwarves from WoW look), but I'm slightly hesitant to invest into paints/time etc if I end up with a sub par choice. 

The Axes just came out so no one is exactly sure how they'll play out yet. Basically, their fighters are weaker to start (though do a bit more damage), and way stronger once Inspired. Orruks are a consistent power through the game, while Duardin have to power up, so the way that plays out will have a big impact on the game. 

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