Starting swifthawk agents

[russ29]

Hi everyone, I'm currently planning to start a swifthawk agents army and was wondering if there were other things I could add to bolster my forces from the high elf range since I like some of their models. I am thinking of adding some white lions and maybe dragon princes for rule of cool, but would like to ask what else are good to be put inside my army from the high elf range since I have never played anything out of undead before?

[Gecktron]

I just started Swifthawk Agents too. I don't think you need much from the old High elf range.  The Swifthawks are one in fact one of the biggest aelven factions!
You have:

• High Warden 
• Skywarden on Skycutter 
• Skycutter
• Reavers
• Spire Guard
• Shadow Warriors
• Chariots 

Sure, not all of them are equally good. But its enough to get a fun and thematic army. 
If you really want to add other units I recommend the two Silver Tower aelven heroes (Mistweaver Saih and the Tennebreal Shard), they are quick enough to fit into the Swifthawks main motiv (SPEED). Also, the old Eagleclaw Boltthrower could be a fitting addition to a Spire Guard heavy list.

[GammaMage]

Magic is nice to have, so an Archmage would be useful. Or a Loremaster to buff your High Warden. If you do play a couple spellcasters, an alternate option to a dragon is a Frostheart Phoenix ridden by an Annointed, which gets a boost to it's save from magic being cast, and tends to be really hard to harm.

[russ29]

Thanks for the replies Gecktron and GammaMage! 

Yeah currently its a little hard to find out the playstyle I want with them since they seem to be missing a punch compared to my undead with blood knights and morghasts with bodies using skeletons. I am now contemplating on a tempest eye battalion or using the spire of dawn formation and wonder if they are any good. Tempest eye seems fun just because they can move fast and I love fast moving armies.

[GammaMage]

Be aware that the Spire of Dawn battalion is not listed in the GHB2017 so some people might give you a hard time about using it.

Tempest's Eye does seem cool! If you're going that route, the only 'high elves' you can only play are Swifthawk Agents and Eldritch Council, so you'd have to forgo Dragons or Phoenixes. You can, however, play some dwarves! Tempest's Eye has Kharadron Overlords, meaning you can compliment your Skycutters with the big Kharadron ships and build a really cool skyfleet! You could even throw in some Stormcast - Knight-Azyros is good with all the ranged attacks Swifthawks and Kharadron get, and Prosecutors fit in well with the speedy flying unit theme.

You should take a look at what Tempest Eye units can deal mortal wounds, as I think that's an area that the Swifthawks are lacking in.

[Cinncinnatus]

If running just Swifthawks allegiance, I'd look at throwing in a Dragonlord. It's a highly mobile unit, very durable if you equip with Enchanted Shield, can kick out mortal wounds, and does a ton of damage. If your opponent focuses on it that just leaves the rest of your army free to get into prime positioning. If you are running a Tempest's Eye list, they you could also use an Archmage on Dragon or a Drakeseer as most of the same arguments still apply, although they aren't quite as durable.

Basically, I'm a big proponent of dragons!

[Tiger]

1 hour ago, GammaMage said:

You should take a look at what Tempest Eye units can deal mortal wounds, as I think that's an area that the Swifthawks are lacking in.

Mortal wounds, taking a hit, having something with rend. I plan to take a unit of Ironbreakers or Hammerers with Runesmith. Ideally I'd want to take something from the highborn range, however those can sometimes be a bit too frail. Phoenix Guard can soak good amount of damage but there really needs to be something that can finish the deal. SHA can be annoying and will trade neatly against equally frail targets, just not against the elites.

Pheonix Guard, Annointed on Pheonix should be decent supplement to SHA. However that's also quite a lot of points.

[belgarath97]

On 10/12/2017 at 5:43 AM, Gecktron said:

I just started Swifthawk Agents too. I don't think you need much from the old High elf range.  The Swifthawks are one in fact one of the biggest aelven factions!
You have:

• High Warden 
• Skywarden on Skycutter 
• Skycutter
• Reavers
• Spire Guard
• Shadow Warriors
• Chariots 

Sure, not all of them are equally good. But its enough to get a fun and thematic army. 
If you really want to add other units I recommend the two Silver Tower aelven heroes (Mistweaver Saih and the Tennebreal Shard), they are quick enough to fit into the Swifthawks main motiv (SPEED). Also, the old Eagleclaw Boltthrower could be a fitting addition to a Spire Guard heavy list.

Keep in mind you have to play order as your force not swifthawks... Because swifthawk can ally with aelf... smh

[flamingwalnut]

Yeah, big trouble with Swifthawks is maintaining battleline requirements while fixing their troubles, like durability and such. Reavers are always battleline, so if you are fine with 3 units of Reavers (or 2 at 1000) then you're golden. Tempest's Eye is a cool allegiance, and gives you a lot of cool flavor options.

[russ29]

Yeah, I was looking at tempest eye too and it seemed really fun since you add more to your movement during the first phase including saves to keep them in the game for longer! For now I might just do a generic order army with reavers as battleline(thank god they look amazing!) and wait till more stuff are introduced for the swifthawks. 

[TheGreatEnchanter]

Just finished a game with my brand new set against Flesh Eater courts. I had the SoD battalion and a Skywarden which bought it to 1k. I won, but barely. Some observations:

- if the Dawnspire battalion does indeed become invalid in matched play, that will be a huge blow to the faction. Skywarden making my Swordmasters wound on 2+ is insane, and won me the battle.  These guys and Archmage were real MVPs with the Elemental Shield bubble. 

- Spireguard are useless objective holders at save 5+. They were gone in a turn. Thinking of breaking Swifthawks and replacing with some Phoenix Guard. 

Worried that I wasted money on my Skywarden. I bought it before I saw FB post about the Dawnspire battalion. Now without Swordmasters, I dunno if the +Wound is worth it, especially if I go mixed Order and invest in Phoenix Guard. 

[Tiger]

I'm thinking the same. A unit of Phoenix Guard and annointed on Phoenix, using Spireguard as plain Highborn spearmen to save points, objective capping and battleline tax. Further plan is to include a highborn bolt thrower and adding two human wizards as a source of mortal wounds.

I still feel the list is going to get steamrolled, although it should be an improvement.

[TheNotebookGM]

Yeah, I've embraced Mixed Order- Spireguard and SW as battleline isn't reward enough for leaving the Swordmasters and other heroes home. Once I've made a respectable amount of progress with the minis I have I'll pick up a Fyreslayers SC and a box of Vulkites and run the following 1500pts.

 

 

 

High Warden (Gen)

Legendary Fighter, Obstinate Blade

Tenebrael Shard

Archmage 

Runesmiter

2x5 Reaver

1x20 Vulkites

1x20 Swords

(1460)

Can't decide where the next 540 come from. Well, 420 really since I'll definitely run another Tenebrael Shard at 2k. 

[bonzai]

My wife plays mostly swifthawks, but is a mixed order list really. Her list;

High Warden w/ quicksilver potion 220

Sea warden w/ banner 100 Warlord- inspiring 

Celestial hurricanum 380

5 reavers 160

5 reavers 160

5 reavers 160

5 reavers 160

10 Sisters of the watch 220

Gryph hound 40

Gryph hound 40

High elf repeater bolt thrower 120

High elf repeater bolt thrower 120

High elf repeater bolt thrower 120

Total: 2,000

The hurricanum, bolt throwers, sea wardens, and hounds form a central fire base with the sisters of the watch bubble wrapping them. The sea warden and hurricanum buff all the units around them making them even more effective. The hounds protect against deep strike/ charge shenanigans. The sisters are expensive, but my wife loves the models. They also shoot twice, and can shoot into units charging them which further protects the bolt throwers and hurricanum. The sky warden is counter assault. He jumps on and finishes up units that get too close and pops his potion when he gets assaulted himself. Reavers are in my opinion the best battle line units in the game.  Their ability to move, shoot, and run make them stupidly good harrassers and objective grabbers.

This list has been brutal. It solves the issues with swifthawks on their own. Namely a lack of punch and mortal wound output. Otherwise a unit of Fulminators could walk through your entire army. The bolt throwers force them to try and engage as their range is great, and they will demolish nearly anything over a few rounds. Plus they are top notch character snipers.

Based on experience, here is what my opinion on the various units are.

Sky wardens: you are going to want one, and it is going to be your general. There are several reasons for this. First, the High Wardens are going to be in combat, and are going to die. He is more survivable as he re-roll failed saves and goes to a 4+ vs shooting. It will support your characters with his banner. His warlord trait is better as well.

High Warden: your only real melee option. He is decent damage out put, but he is not going to last. You want to use him to clean up units softened by your shooting to make the most of him. I find that he assaults, guts a unit, then gets charged and dies. The Quicksilver potion on him is a godsend, as it lets him survive if he gets charged more often than not. His warlord trait is decent, but I like the sky wardens better as a general and again they are probably going to die. I would recommnd a couple in a list.

Reavers: As I said, the best battle line in the game. 14 inch movement, 16 inch range, 3 shots, and able to run 2d6 before or after you shoot? Amazing! You are going to want to field these.

Spireguard: pretty average across the board. Not great, but not teribble either. I think that was the point though. Sometimes you just need bodies, and this is where you get yours. I'd take a brick or two of them for those missions where you need numbers to claim objectives.

Shadow warriors: who doesn't like elven ninjas? These guys are superior to spireguard in every way but one, but it's kind of a deal breaker... and that is price. These guys are expensive. Probably too expensive, which is a real shame as they are pretty cool models.

Skycutters: the secret lynchpin of the army. At first glance they don't look all that great. Not terrific at combat or shooting, but have amazing speed. The secret to using them comes from knowing how the army plays. These guys are your tarpits. 16 inch flying move, can roll 2 dice to run, can still shoot, and with the sky wardens command ability can then charge. Make it even more stupid with a tempest eye allegiance ability. So first turn the can run up, snipe units and characters, then charge. They have 8 wounds a piece and can tie units up while the rest of your army works on eliminating threats. Keep units isolated with them, and prevent them from scoring. Good tactics with them are key to success.

Chariots: they are cheap, but kind of redundant. I haven't found a use for them that wasn't better served by skycutters or reavers.

Allies: you want something hard hitting, and possibly with mortal wound output. My pick would be Eldrich Council with a Drakeseer and Loremaster for 400 points. 

The list that I would run as "pure" swifthawks?

Tempest Eye

Sky warden/ banner, inspiring 160- warlord

High Warden w/ quicksilver potion  220

High Warden 220

2 sky cutters 240

2 sky cutters 240

5 reavers 160

5 reavers 160

30 spireguard 300

Ally: Drakeseer 300

Total: 2,000

It's about as well rounded as I can make it.

 

[russ29]

Thanks for the detailed uses for the units! Currently I am going to start doing up my reavers first as they seem to be quite reliable from the comments so far. And without them I can't even do even a proper order army anyway. Adding on, I might just add in phoenix guards to camp objectives in my deployment zone with some phoenixes to go around with the sky warden. I'm still on the fence with the spireguard since I don't need them to fulfil battleline anymore since I have the reavers.

The current 2k army I'm planning to get have the following.

Skywarden

Annointed on frostheart phoenix x2

archmage on horse

Loremaster

2 units of 20 phoenix guards

3 units of 5 reavers.

 

I wonder if I should remove the skywarden or not and get more units?

[Tiger]

I don't think Skywarden does anything relevant for that army. The Archmage also isn't ideal as his spell conflicts with the Phoenix units.

[GammaMage]

The Archmage's spell actually stacks with the Phoenix unit's ability. So you get thier 4+ save, followed by the Archmage's 6+ save.

[TheGreatEnchanter]

 

17 hours ago, Tiger said:

I don't think Skywarden does anything relevant for that army. The Archmage also isn't ideal as his spell conflicts with the Phoenix units.

Ditto on the Skywarden. It doesn't help this army much. 

[TheNotebookGM]

Me three re: Skywarden- he's only doing work for your Reavers and he's not very tanky or punchy. For the 160 you have MUCH better options. Hell, I'd probably just get another 5 Reavers and make one unit a 10. Or, since you're well into mixed order anyway get two Mistweaver Saihs, makes you super magical and their spell can peel away low bravery units, thus helping you vs. #Hordemeta.