2K Competitive Death list with moderate abuse/stupidity

[Peegee]

Hi guys !

New here and moderately to the game as well. 

I'm trying to build a tournament list with a Death army, not abusing stupid spams (chariots, Necro Knights...)

The thing is, my tournament meta is pretty stupid : 18 Skyfires list (even 27), 18 Necro Knights, Hurricanum on Balewind... I don't want to take that road but don't feel like fighting a bazooka with a knife neither.

Here is a take on what feels for me acceptable (single Mourngul only I mean) :

 

Leaders

- Settra The Imperishable - Ruler of the night (360)

- Vampire Lord On Abyssal Terror (220)

Deathlance & Shield

Artefact : Cloak of Mists and Shadows

- Necromancer (120)

Nightmare

Artefact : Ring of Immortality

 

Units

- 3 x Necropolis Knights (160)

- 40 x Skeleton Warriors (320)

Spear & Shield

- 40 x Skeleton Warriors (320)

Spear & Shield

- 10 x Zombies (60)

 

Behemoths

- Mourngul (400)

Total: 1960/2000

 

Using the 4x Movement-double attack combo for the skeletons brick, support/threat with the Mourngul, zombies for objective and Necro Knights for fast movement hunt.

I already know that using 12 Chariots or 18 Necro Knights is "better" but as I said, not on my watch.

What do you think ?

[Sception]

is this for a specific event?  Do you know for sure that the previewed GHII points values won't be in effect?  Also, as of the latest FAQs, in order to use the ring of immortality you need to pay the full price of the hero again out of your reserve points, so you'll probably want to drop it.  You have to drop one artifact anyway, as you're only allowed to take one per army, plus one per battalion your army includes.  Since you have no battalions, you can only have one artifact in your army anyway.

[Peegee]

Yes it's for a specific tournament. I've just re-checked the event rules and they're using the GH1 points. BUT, I've discovered that FW profiles are forbidden (as in many french tournaments it seems). So no Mourngul.

Thx for the clarification about the Ring, anyway you're totally right I can only take one artifact.

400 pts to fill in my list... Still a good idea to go with that type of army ? Or should I rethink the whole thing with VLoZD for example ?

With such a shooty meta and considering that you'll almost never start as a Death player with no battalion, I'm really looking for something to absorb the fist turn fire...

[Peegee]

First turn fire. Sorry for the misspell ^^

[Sception]

Using GHI points my instinct would be to take settra, spam necroknights and chariots, and take enough heralds to keep settra alive a couple turns and also refill your units to full or near full from any number of survivors, but...  I'm not actually much of a tournament player, so you'll probably want feedback from someone more experienced.

[Peegee]

I guess you're right. I wanted to avoid that option but Heralds + NK + Chariots are too strong to put aside. I just need to keep their number "reasonable" to feel like a fair opponent.

[mmimzie]

Settra cant not ruler of the night. Special characters cant take artifacts or command traits. 

[Peegee]

So it's better to give up on Settra's command ability and put the Vampire Lord (for example) as a general with the Ruler of the Night trait, right ?

[Sception]

haha, wow, can't believe i missed that.

In general, I prefer non-named models as general in order to take a command trait because we have a couple particularly choice ones, but settra is a special case because of just how potent his command ability is, especially when combined with that of one or more tomb kings or royal warsphinxes, but even on its own +1 both to hit and to wound is just a huge buff for deathrattle units, especially when combined with effects that trigger on high rolls, like the attacks of tomb guard, grave guard, or necropolis knights, or the spell buff from a lich priest.

I'm not sure he's still worth it post GHII point adjustments, but under the GHI he is absolutely the strongest choice of general for Deathrattle-heavy Death armies, even if it means giving up on ruler of the night, though he is kind of squishy so again a herald or three is pretty important - though you'll want them anyway if you're taking necroknights and/or chariots, so its all good.

[WoollyMammoth]

This list is a showcase of how Death has been kicked repeatedly in the balls.

Ring of Immortality requires reinforcement points (check the FAQ) so this list is 2080.

I don't mind the lack of artifacts, but Having Settra as the general means you get no allegiance trait - the trait being the 5++ save which is the most important thing for keeping death armies competitive. 

Many tournaments are adopting the experimental rules. Settra is 460, Necro Knights are 240 and an Abyssal Terror is 300, putting your list at 2,340. People might be nice and say they don't care, but many people are going to think you are trying to exploit and regardless, this list is a ticking time bomb. So take advantage of the power while you can enjoy it, or maybe re-arrange your list a bit to not have so many units with nerf-targets on their heads.

The Cursed Book is the key artefact to have, I'd just put it on both non-named characters so you can try and triplestack the negative hit bonuses. This will help make the list competitive while Settra is the general. Just don't kneel down to tie your shoes!! 

 

[Peegee]

I tried this with the new points GH2 update and your advices :

 

Leaders

Vampire Lord On Abyssal Terror (300)

- Deathlance & Shield

- Artefact : Cursed Book

Settra The Imperishable (460)

- General

Tomb King in Royal Chariot (160)

Necromancer (120)

- Nightmare

- Artefact : Cursed Book

 

Units

30 x Skeleton Warriors (240)

-Ancient Spears & Shields

3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)

3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)

3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)

3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)

 

Battalions

Royal Legion of Chariots (140)

 

Total: 1980/2000

Leaders: 4/6 Battlelines: 5 (3+) Behemoths: 0/4 Artillery: 0/4

 

Heralds don't fit anymore, NK neither if I want the Battalion (and extra artefact). 

Is the VLoAT that necessary in the list ? I feel that the double movement is huge but I'm still new to the game... Heralds might be more mandatory in terms of repop and protection of Settra.

 

12 + 2 Chariots could appear cheesy and "déjà vu"... I guess we don't have that many options tournament-wise as Death players.

[Bradifer]

2 hours ago, Peegee said:

I tried this with the new points GH2 update and your advices :

-LIST-

Is the VLoAT that necessary in the list ? I feel that the double movement is huge but I'm still new to the game... Heralds might be more mandatory in terms of repop and protection of Settra.

I do not think Abyssal Terror is worth 300 points. Especially not in an army where you already have Settra, who has a reliable 2+ speed buff.

Abyssal was fine an expensive Sayl aka. Supportive unit that made other units much faster. But it is so expensive itself that you are sacrificing ~15% of your army in points to make other units better if you don't fail the spell. Decently High Reward, but very very high risk now.

I would start with something like this (small mod of the list you posted):

Allegiance: Death
Settra The Imperishable (460)
- General
Tomb King in Royal Chariot (160)
- Artefact: Cursed Book
Tomb Herald (100)
3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)
3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)
3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)
3 x Skeleton Chariots (140)
Royal Legion of Chariots (140)
Total: 1420/2000
 

That's 100% TK and has room for skeletons + necromancer, more tomb heralds, Necroknights, Screaming skull catapults etc..

It can also branch out into generic Death for Morghast Archai as your source of Rend-2, or even 400 pts for a monster like Mourngul or Necrosphinx.

Your meta seems very hostile, so you really have to fight back quite as dirty if you want to have enjoyable games. That or look for opponents with more balanced lists.

[WoollyMammoth]

The cursed book on the TK is better, if a necromancer gets close enough to use it, hes probably dead before it matters much.

A lot of people are concerned about the insane point hike for the vampire lord on terror. Hes kind of an anvil which is cool but he really doesn't do much other than give double movement and take a long time to die. Hes great for holding objectives or getting across the board, but he rarely does anything in combat. Since he is so hard to kill, hes great for the cursed book though.

What I hope is going to happen is that death will FINALLY get a legit book with spell lores which include the double movement spell (or similar) so that the Abyssal Terror is no longer necessary. You cant even buy the ugly model anyway.
 

[Peegee]

Hello again !

Here is the list I sent for the tournament :

 

Leader 1 :  Settra the Imperishable [360] - General  (NB : they're using GH1 for the points)

Leader 2 : Necromancer [120] - Nightmare

Leader 3 : Liche Priest [120] - Steed

Leader 4 : Tomb Herald [100] - Steed

Leader 5 : Tomb King [100]

Leader 6 : Isabella Von Carstein [80]

 

Battleline 1 : 12 x Skeleton Chariots [560] – Horn Blower + Icon Bearer + Master

Battleline 2 : 10 x Zombies [60] – Noise Maker + Standard Bearer

Battleline 3 : 10 x Zombies [60] – Noise Maker + Standard Bearer

 

Other 1 : 2 x Tomb Scorpions [160]

Other 2 : 2 x Tomb Scorpions [160]

 

TOTAL : 1880

Reinforcement : 120

 

Heavy rock-solid Chariots screen, in one single unit to benefit from all the buffs, classic TK Leaders setup for the buffs/spells, Isabella as a cheap Mystic Shield caster and unbind option.

Scorpions are my wildcards to counter heavy gunlines (as long as they rely on servants...) or Kunnin Ruk. I split them in two units to mitigate the failed charge roll.

I kept summoning points for either Dire Wolf, Spirit Hosts or Zombies (multiple of 60 or 120) for objectives purpose or screening my back line and "protecting" the heroes" from deep strike.

We can change artefact round to round so I'll try to take what fits best. Guess I'll stick to Cursed Book on Tomb King most of the time.

 

Tournament is in a month, I'll try a shorter 1500 pts list in a mini tourney within 2 weeks.

I'll try to keep you informed of my feedback.

Long live the Death !!!

[Bradifer]

So really buffed up Skeleton Chariot seems lie the only way to kill stuff, that and piling your heroes on something (risky!)

Problem is if you lose first turn and they charge the single chariot unit on both the left and right sides, you can't pile in because of coherency.

Might want to add ~200-300 pts worth of hard hitting like Morghasts of 40 skeletons.

[mmimzie]

One thing you might learn, but it depends on the caliber of your opponent is that you only have one source of damage out out which is the chariots.

 

What this is going to do is make you kind if auto good at the game. Wow is all about focusing down sections of your opponents armies with half or more of your army. So, most things you charge you'll kill.

 

Where you'll be weak is you can only kill one or two units in a turn which could result in you struggling to really claim objectives. 

 

From there stuff. Like skyfires could in turn simply just blow up your chariots and leave you a sitting ducl. Addotionaly, storm cast could stretch your 12 man chariot unit by charge either side and thus wasnt your big kill unit for several turns. 

 

My zombie army i would fight yours by simply flooding the board and forcing you to tight my army 10 or 20 zombies at a time. While I passively sit on objectives for points and work of surrounding your chariots for one big zombie activation. 

 

Neither of these are to say your list are bad. This is just simply how i would think to pick apart your list with various armies. This could give you food for thought for list tailoring.

[Peegee]

Hi guys!! 

Thanks for your feedback. You're indeed very right, only one hammer is pretty dangerous, especially when it can be glued or shooted easily. 

I'm tweaking it into :

Leader 1 :  Settra the Imperishable [360] - General

Leader 2 : Necromancer [120] - Nightmare

Leader 3 : Liche Priest [120] - Steed

Leader 4 : Tomb Herald [100] - Steed

Leader 5 : Tomb King [100] or Isabella Von Carstein [80]

 

Battleline 1 : 12 x Skeleton Chariots [560] – Horn Blower + Icon Bearer + Master

Battleline 2 : 40 x Skeleton Warriors [320] – Herald, Hornblower... 

Battleline 3 : 10 x Zombies [60] – Noise Maker + Standard Bearer

 

Other 1 : 3 x Tomb Scorpions [240]

 

TOTAL : 1980 or 1960

 

I like very much the idea of 40 buffed Skeletons as a second wave or to deal with objectives. I lose the second unit of Scorpions but one is scary enough to mind f#&k the opponent in deployment phase. 

For the leaders, I'm hesitating between the Tomb King and Isabella. One is more synergic with the army, the other is a caster. 

 

What do you think? 

 

 

[ChippyRick]

Been reading this thread but not posted. Really like the idea of the unit of 40 Skeletons, wanted to add this to my army for a while now. With the ability to move it round the table faster makes it really appealing. 

I have used isabella recently and getting a cheap caster in is great. also vs some armies her spell is really good, and opponents tend to try and dispel it so frees up potential casting of other spells they then cant stop. happened a few times for me, and sometimes even goes off as well.

Would love to hear how you get on with the 40 Skeletons after a number of games with this list

[Bradifer]

Having a second caster makes the army more flexible I think. The Tomb King's buff is medicore when compared to Settra, Liche Priest, or Necromancer.

Here's my take on the list:

Allegiance: Death
Settra The Imperishable (360)
- General
Liche Priest (120)
Tomb Herald (100)
Necromancer (120)
Isabella Von Carstein (80)
12 x Skeleton Chariots (560)
40 x Skeleton Warriors (320)
- Ancient Spear & Shield
10 x Skeleton Warriors (80)
- Ancient Blade & Shield
3 x Tomb Scorpions (240)
Total: 2000/2000

OR if you drop the Chariots down to a single unit of 9 (still 45 wounds and regenerating 5W + Herald Banner + Magic Regen spell = Potential regen 15 a turn. That gives you enough to points to either add in 2 more tomb scorpions or to Take 2 scorpions and a unit of 2 Morghast Archai which hit very hard and are one of your 3 hammers + the distraction scorpion. Either way keeping 10 skeletons over zombies gives slight more survivability and the ability to late game Settra move them somewhere.

Allegiance: Death

Settra The Imperishable (360)
- General
Liche Priest (120)
Tomb Herald (100)
Necromancer (120)
Isabella Von Carstein (80)
9 x Skeleton Chariots (420)
40 x Skeleton Warriors (320)
- Ancient Spear & Shield
10 x Skeleton Warriors (80)
- Ancient Blade & Shield
2 x Tomb Scorpions (160)
3 x Tomb Scorpions (240) (Or Morghast 240)
Total: 2000/2000
 

[Peegee]

On 04/05/2017 at 6:54 PM, Bradifer said:

Having a second caster makes the army more flexible I think. The Tomb King's buff is medicore when compared to Settra, Liche Priest, or Necromancer.

Here's my take on the list:

Allegiance: Death
Settra The Imperishable (360)
- General
Liche Priest (120)
Tomb Herald (100)
Necromancer (120)
Isabella Von Carstein (80)
12 x Skeleton Chariots (560)
40 x Skeleton Warriors (320)
- Ancient Spear & Shield
10 x Skeleton Warriors (80)
- Ancient Blade & Shield
3 x Tomb Scorpions (240)
Total: 2000/2000
 

Hey ! Thanks again @Bradifer that's pretty much the list I sent with 9 chariots "only", one less Tomb Scorpions and 2 Morghast Archai as replacement.

I've just received the lists and it's gonna be legen... wait for it... butchery !! We have the "worst" of the current meta, except FW as it's forbidden in the tournament.

If you're interested, here are the lists : https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B3iVeZBibYjSWUt4b0hYSlI4dTA

I'm gonna learn a lot for my first tournament ^^ Hope to make at least one victory...

[Bradifer]

7 hours ago, Peegee said:

We have the "worst" of the current meta, except FW as it's forbidden in the tournament.

If you're interested, here are the lists : https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B3iVeZBibYjSWUt4b0hYSlI4dTA

Yikes, yes your meta is pretty hostile.

Lots of destruction spam, and even a 9 skyfires list (vomit). Only order lists are shooting focused. Your list is powerful, hopefully you have fun and interactive games and you don't get too much shot off the table!