Nighthaunt, tourney, 2k

[Aren73]

Hey all, first-time poster here

I am getting ready for a tournament in April and I'm working on my list now as I have yet to get half the models, then they all need to be painted (as per the rules pack). 

The list I've come up with currently is: 

Allegiance: Nighthaunt

Leaders
Dreadblade Harrow (100)
- General
- Trait: Ruler of the Spirit Hosts 
Guardian of Souls with Nightmare Lantern (140)
- Lore of the Underworlds: Shademist
- Infernal Lantern (Artefact): Lightshard of the Harvest Moon
Guardian of Souls with Nightmare Lantern (140)
- Artefact: Pendant of the Fell Wind 
- Lore of the Underworlds: Soul Cage

Battleline
9 x Spirit Hosts (360)
5 x Hexwraiths (160)
5 x Hexwraiths (160)

Units
10 x Bladegheist Revenants (180)
10 x Bladegheist Revenants (180)
2 x Chainghasts (80)

Behemoths
Black Coach (280)

Battalions
Deathriders (130)

Endless Spells
Chronomantic Cogs (60)

Total: 1970 / 2000
Extra Command Points: 1
Allies: 0 / 400
Wounds: 98

The idea is to have the mobility to hit wherever I need to and hit hard. I'd split the army probably into 3 sections:

The Bladegheists with the GoS (with pendant) and Chainghasts as a front facing damage blob (each gheist unit does 26.7 hits to 22.2 wounds).

 The Spirit Hosts with the Black Coach, GoS with Harvest Moon and Harrow, to be teleported behind enemy lines thanks to Harrow taxi for Hosts and deep-strike for Coach and GoS, They're there to take out enemy leaders, wizards and backfield units thanks to their mortal wound output, which for one combat phase gets quite disgusting thanks to the Harvest Moon (mortal wounds on 6s to hit with reroll hits is nice when you have 54 attacks hitting on 5s). Thanks to the Black Coach and the command trait I'm getting 2d3 Spirit Hosts back each hero phase, plus maybe another d6 wounds back thanks to the spell. 

The Hexwraiths make the last third, these two units are there to zip about and grab objectives, they're not super easy to kill and fast enough to get where they need to be, as an additional they can help screen. Cogs cast by the GoS here, movement, resulting in move 13'' Bladegheists :) 

I have the Coach, a GoS, 10 Bladegheists, 6 Spirit Hosts already and I'd like them to be included in any permutation of this list, however the rest of the units can be played around with. I'd prefer to avoid hordes too, because of painting, money and me not liking that playstyle much. 

 

 

All in all it's quite an elite force that can really hit hard with a good chance of being able to choose its targets, the downside might be my lack of bodies on the board, I can't really get bogged down in a grind in the centre of the board. What do you think? 

[Jaxler]

Remove bladeghasts, they are worse than reapers 1:1 and cost more. 2 inch range and more reliable rerolls makes this so. They are also battle line. Removing the blade ghasts gives you enough for 30 reapers, which is quite a killy unit

 

Also, you may want someone with a command ability.

[Ove]

Bladegheist is almost always my MVP in every game i played. Play them right and they are great assassins.

[Undeadly]

On 12/27/2018 at 12:38 PM, Jaxler said:

Remove bladeghasts, they are worse than reapers 1:1 and cost more. 2 inch range and more reliable rerolls makes this so. They are also battle line. Removing the blade ghasts gives you enough for 30 reapers, which is quite a killy unit

And this is why Grimghasts should get a price hike in the GHB. 

[Jaxler]

20 hours ago, Ove said:

Bladegheist is almost always my MVP in every game i played. Play them right and they are great assassins.

I did not say that bladeghasts are bad. In fact, they're not. They're very good. My point, is that reapers are 1:1 better.

[Aren73]

@Jaxler are they though?

Grimghasts: 

+ cheaper

+ 2'' range

+ auto rerolls vs 5+man units

 

Bladegheists:

+ More manoeuvrable (due to fall-back and charge)

+ auto generate extra attacks when charging

+ hit on 3s not 4s

+ get full rerolls really easily, either from Chainghasts or Torments

 

I think it's much closer than is given credit, I do think they'll be sent at different targets though. Because Grimghasts, you're sending them at hordes. Not only do they for sure get the rerolls but you have a chance of getting every single dude from the 30 in, due to being able to wrap nicely around a horde. Bladegheists however are better suited for clearing up more elite squads.

You have your horde chaff that just gets eaten by Grimghasts, then you have your unkillable 1+/2+ save tank units that you send Spirit Hosts with rerolls at (22 MW anyone?) but in between are the elite units that don't have super high numbers or super survivability but are still scary, the glass canons. Here is where I think Bladegheists shine. In units of 10, because you won't get more than 10 in, buffed by chainghasts and a knight of shrouds, these guys will really put the hurt on without needing to spend the 360pts for 30 Grimghasts and then more for support. 

TLDR: I think Bladegheists are more efficient against elite units than Grimghasts, which are better suited to a horde clearing role. 

[dmorley21]

As others have noted, I have found that Reapers and Bladegheists are just very different units. 

I would run them in the list in question, but change the strategy. Use the multi wound units as your front blob and teleport the Bladegeists where they need to go. They excel at slicing up heroes and small elite units. 

[Aren73]

Could well do, this list really let's me throw whichever blob wherever I like which I'm a big fan of, I might not play it the same way every game but adapt to the opponent's army as I'm setting up - I like that flexibility. 

 

For example, I agree that teleporting the bladegheists might be a better way of doing it, however in my local meta there is a Sylvaneth player who likes to have Alarielle in his backfield, so against him I'd prefer to teleport the Spirit Hosts, try for that charge and hopefully kill her with mortal wounds.

[Jaxler]

I suppose my problem is I play LON and to me bladeghasts dont do anything that a vampire lord dragon does better, so I look at them as a meat grinder instead of a scalpel, which is why is see reapers as just so much better.

[Aren73]

Yeah, coming from LoN here as well - I totally agree that the grims are a better meat grinder. Funnily enough a VLoZD never worked well for me, for its points I found it did too little and died too quickly. 
Against that Sylvaneth player I mentioned one game he raised a load of woods all over the board to such a point I couldn't even get my VLoZD into combat - the base size was too big to fit in the woods which took up half the board. It was 400+ points that was essentially not doing anything. Maybe that's why I like the idea of a teleporting army so much more now.

[Jaxler]

16 hours ago, Aren73 said:

Yeah, coming from LoN here as well - I totally agree that the grims are a better meat grinder. Funnily enough a VLoZD never worked well for me, for its points I found it did too little and died too quickly. 
Against that Sylvaneth player I mentioned one game he raised a load of woods all over the board to such a point I couldn't even get my VLoZD into combat - the base size was too big to fit in the woods which took up half the board. It was 400+ points that was essentially not doing anything. Maybe that's why I like the idea of a teleporting army so much more now.

I've found if he gives himself rerolls he turns into a nightmare. The 3+ unrendable save and fastness as well as those bites and the spear make him really spooky. You just need to make sure he charges.