dmorley21

January 14, 2019

10 hours ago, Undeadly said:

I would really love to hear your opinion on why the Spirit Torment and KoS(On steed, correct?) are good. I'm trying to figure out to play Nighthaunt are, as well as getting a hold on how to properly play them. I also have a problem with playing Nighthaunt offensively; mainly, I can't seem to kill units to claim objectives. I feel like Reikenor or Olynder would be a great source of damage, and help actually do damage.

I'm not the person you're asking, but both KoS and the ST are great support for the more killy units in NH (Blades, Reapers, Harridans, Banshees).

I don't think they're great support for Spirit Hosts, which you said you were running.

January 13, 2019

1 hour ago, ianob said:

I can’t remember if I gave a top x specifically, but in a nutshell my top leaders are the GoS (both), KoS, and Reikenor depending what your army is doing. Spirit Torment is also good and Arkhan is a great ally too.

I'm surprised the VL ally didn't make it for you.

Also, has anyone looked at the list that Ben Savva is taking to UK Masters? It'a very interesting - I can't wait to see how it does.

December 26, 2018

On 12/25/2018 at 10:57 AM, CanHammer-darren said:

Anyone use the briar queen in their games? That spell seems pretty awesome. Although casting cost of 7 and then having to roll above move characteristic

It just seems too tough to use in NH. The spell is tough to cast, there's no way to buff her casting, then you have to beat the movement. Maybe she'd be better in a LoN army where a mega character can cast her spell.

December 26, 2018

On 12/21/2018 at 4:48 AM, Neck-Romantic said:

Ive been noticing the way the army plays tends to want me to clump up in a very tight ball of 'within x inches' auras... the GoS, STorment, Shroudguard, Deathless saves etc.. which I end up with about 2 large clusters of models without much board control.

Its starting to become a hard habit to break.. but if I spread out to enagage more targets/objectives my Heros get picked off, or Ill stray out of 'within' aura range, or heal/res range etc.

Anyone having similar tendencies cropping up?

*edit*

Oh; and 1" melee on nearly all our stuff is absolutely maddening

I have found my games go better when I don't rely on the hero buffs. This allows me to have more board control and to be more selective with what I target. Reapers don't need buffs to take on hordes. Small units of Blades, Harridans, or Death Stalker units are good hero hunters.

I will surround a Guardian with Chainrasps, especially if I take that battalion.

December 19, 2018

20 hours ago, Nevar said:

The warscroll in the build instructions states it is a HERO. Not only is it a HERO but it has a rule called "Obvious Target" which makes it count as a MONSTER for the purposes of Look Out Sir! Everything else is the same.

I know people were talking about how it needed to be a HERO earlier in the thread and I found it interesting.

That is interesting. I honestly don't get why it's not. Maybe there's hope for the future.

December 13, 2018

I just returned to the hobby this summer and had success using the white primer by Army Painter for my Nighthaunt models. It was the one my hobby shop recommended to me.

December 4, 2018

On 11/29/2018 at 7:40 AM, Tropical Ghost General said:

OK spooky team. I ran my Black Coach is a three 2k games the other day and while it was OK, it whiffed in combat and I was having good dice rolls, it's just that it's damage potential is so meh. And I know that it's more of a support unit but nearly all of it's levels of power relate to it's own combat prowess, which is really lack luster. At 280pts I feel it's too expensive and not the behemoth that the army needs, especially without the hero keyword (which won't happen anytime soon).

Just curious, since you've actually played with it, how different do you think giving it the "hero" keyword would be?

On 11/30/2018 at 11:01 AM, Tropical Ghost General said:

The main trick is to test and tweak and test and tweak. Recently I've been running really large drops armies (12-15+ drops) with lots of multi small units of 10-12 to a unit. It let's me see how well they perform in tiny groups and during games it also let's me see where they're weaknesses and strengths are, such as unit longevity, how many are required in a squad to help them survive into the next round, without needing to waste CP on inspiring presence, while at the same time not be too large a unit to be considered a priority threat target.

In my meta through my own testing I've found that max unit size isn't the best option, even though it's the cheapest, because how units perform when in buff auras from heroes compared with how units perform when running solo is like day and night. So in order to keep my units performing at peak level throughout the entire game I don't take 30 grims I take 20, I don't take 20 blades I take 10-15, because the flexibility it offers during gameplay while still keeping within buff bubbles incredibly easily. I'd much rather have 10 blades attacking with re-rolls that are all in range to attack, than having 20 blades that don't get re-rolls and only 10-15 are in range to attack.

TL:DR : Don't buy more stuff or copy lists without doing your own tests.

How do you like running an MSU style list? I know one like that recently won a tournament in Sweden. It seems like a good way to get board control, deepstrike, and have more options to get the Wave of Terror.

Also, I wish testing was more of an option for me. But, reading actual reports is probably the next best thing.

November 22, 2018

As someone new to AoS, I don't get the love for the Mourngul. I get that it used to be good, but it's not anymore and it does not fit the aesthetic of Nighthaunt at all. Honestly, it doesn't even look like a ghost.

I would much rather figure out uses for the black coach and/or see it get the "Hero" keyword that it really ought to have.

Also, has anyone used the Coven Throne as an allie yet?

November 13, 2018

12 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

No to deathmages. Necromancers and grims are too strong, as shown via LoN grim spam recently. As much as I'd love it to happen but I don't think changing/adding allies will help to address our issues.

I thought that the problem with Reapers in LoN was more that they can bring them back and less about Vanhel's.

All of your other changes would have to be addressed in the next GHB (points adjustments, battalions) or a new book, which for all intents and purposes is not happening. I do think that the Shroudguard and Black Coach are both at least feasible. And plenty of armies get updates from FAQ's/Errata/GHB. I don't see why Nighthaunt wouldn't.

10 hours ago, Vasshpit said:

Chiming in with a vote for: changing the foot KoS +1 to hit from a command to an aura.

Didnt it use to be that?... O_o

I didn't know about this, as I never played 1.0. That would be quite nice.

10 hours ago, Espy85 said:

I hope there will be a way to change the result of wave of terror, or lower it to an 8+, provided that 10+ is not possible. would serve a second save to 5+ or 6+ independent of Heroes. and the black coach hero, ed need a black coach hero.

I don't see Wave of Terror getting any better. If they were to change it, I would changed it to any successful charge made by a unit that just came up from the underworlds or a 10+ any other time. Makes the army more like the shock troops they're meant to be.

I'm glad to see there's a lot of support for making the Black Coach a leader. I really don't understand why it's not a leader.

November 11, 2018

11 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

Fully agree that she is big presence, but she can dish out 2x3d6 mortal wounds in a turn, with 1d6 once per game.. Most armies don't have mortal wound saves as well. None of those mortal wound attacks are susceptible to look out sir either. Now I am not a massive fan of Lady O, she's way too expensive in points and way too squishy, but she really is an assassin character more than anyone else in our army, as she needs no hero support, can be deployed within range for her shooting and has a small enough base size (compared to a small unit) that she can worm her way into range for small character sniping. If you want a 7 wound or less hero dead, and s guaranteed dead, she's the lady to do it.

You make very valid points. Maybe I'll purchase her one day... after I finish having a playable 2k list. I wish she was in a battalion.

And on that note...

I'm not sure how Errata/FAQ's typically work, but come December, we'll be halfway through this season of AoS. So a bit of wish listing, but if they were to make a few small, realistic tweaks for Nighthaunt, what would you all like to see? Here's mine:

Make it so Shroudguard gives the hero the 4+/5+ as well. Pretty self explanatory... after all the Blades are supposed to be guarding the hero.
Make the Black Coach a Leader. This would be a game changer, and make the model go from rarely used to frequently used IMO. It would be our most durable character, a solid choice for general, and would be something that could really take advantage of some artefacts that our army can't take advantage of currently.
Make Deathmages allies. This makes sense for fluff reasons - and the Mortis Engine really looks like it ought to be Nighthaunt. Both Necromancers and the Mortis Engine would be useful allies.

I think those three changes are all reasonable and would all be boons for the army. What are everybody else's thoughts?

November 10, 2018

4 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

I honestly believe that small heroes assassins for us is either Lady O, or 5 blades or 5 harridans.

I'm reminded of a quote from Amy Tan's short story, "Rules of the Game." The quote is, "Strongest wind cannot be seen."

I bring this up because a) I'm a teacher, and b) I feel like Lady Olynder is a terrible smell hero assassin because she's such a presence. I know that if I was facing an army that featured Lady O, I'd make her a target. Meanwhile, if I was facing an army with two units of 4 Glavewraith Stalkers, I'd probably just ignore them until they got in my way.

You have some merit about the Harridans and Bladegheists. However, that's also 30 more points for one more trooper.

Granted, they're still not the greatest; but maybe they do have a use.

November 10, 2018

On 11/7/2018 at 5:08 PM, Tropical Ghost General said:

The harridans also really pulled their weight, a lot more so than I was expecting. I ran them in a unit of 10 as well. Again if they had the support of a torment and were in 15+, they could be a really horrible unit. Having the guaranteed 3 attacks and not needing to have charged to get that bonus attack meant when the unit was still engaged in combat during the opponents turn, they still put out a lot of damage, especially when rolling 6s on the wound rolls. I'm definitely going to invest in some more for future games. They work a lot differently from the blades but can be just as effective, if not more so at times. In my game tonight, they outlasted the 2 units of blades by 2 turns, which is a lot.

So in summary: The best support unit option for blades and harridans is the torment, the difference in how those units perform with and without that torment support is like day and night.

I felt similar when I played my first games (1k) with a unit of 10 Harridans. They were quite good, and didn't necessarily need support. I wished for Bladegheists at times just because with the ability to retreat and charge I could have taken out support heroes pretty easily had I had them instead, but the Harridans worked well without support.

I do wonder if we focus too much on getting our troops support heroes; when our support heroes are squishy, expensive, and difficult to keep things lined up so they can support anyway.

On 11/8/2018 at 4:54 AM, Tropical Ghost General said:

The other school of thought with myrmourns is in minimum units of 4 and deepstriking in to maybe unbind a spell. It's basically an 80pts gamble to get a +1 to an unbind for a unit that will 100% then die that turn. The average damage from attacks in an unbuffed unit of 4 being 0-2 if you are lucky. I think they excel against other mediocre magic armies, like SCE, but against super magic armies like Tzeentch and LoN, they become so neutered against the greater magic shenanigans.

I'd have no problem taking both a unit of 12 myrmourns and a unit of 4. In my limited experience playing AoS and playing WHFB for years before, the advantage of small units is that they tend to get ignored by opponents, especially if you set them up to be away from objectives and the rest of your army. Opponents don't necessarily want to commit to dealing with them and not dealing with more pressing matters. Maybe that's just the opponents I play though.

On another note...

Let's talk about Glavewraith Stalkers. I've been completely overlooking them as it seems like they're outclassed in almost every way by other units. However, I'm starting to think I was looking at them wrong.

First off, they're a unit that doesn't need support heroes. With a drummer, they can retreat and charge. If they charge or get charged, they get to re-roll their attacks. Quick math, but a unit of 4 then statistically scores 6 hits, 4 wounds. This means each model ought to deal a wound in combat. Now granted, they have no rend so a lot of those wounds will be saved. But, they seem like an ideal unit to hunt down the lesser characters of other armies, which is kind of their point in the fluff. For instance, when I played LoN, they would have excelled at hunting down my opponent's Necromancers and Wight King.

What are people's thoughts on this use for them? I've seen people say they used them to sit on objectives, but has anybody ran them to hero hunt?

November 7, 2018

1 hour ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

Another unexpected positive that came from today's game was having 10+ CP to use. Being able to re-roll all the charges, even ones where I'm 3" away, to get wave of terror, was ridiculous.

I wonder if this is also a case for running battalions. That extra CP it gives you can be clutch.

November 2, 2018

There was another strong Nighthaunt finish at a tournament in California. The list isn't posted, but the top 10 armies are in a thread in the general discussion.

Edit: Also, keep posting battle reports! They're a great learning tool when you don't have people to play test games with.

October 22, 2018

There's some legitimate gripes with the book, but I feel like the gameplay for this army is different than what's been discussed.

This isn't an alpha strike army or an attrition army; it's a hybrid of the two.

We can deep strike to set up mismatches and take out or hurt key units. Our troops in general are fast, tanky against non-mortals, and can hit hard.

Hit the enemy and board in strategic spots. Set up mismatches so that our units can be as effective as possible. Then after that initial wave, it becomes a battle of attrition with our ghosts being able to outmaneuver most opponents.

But we won't win the battle of attrition unless we deep strike first IMO.

October 22, 2018

12 hours ago, Dauzy said:

Hi Everyone,

I would like to share with you an army list that I would like to build.

I don't really know if this list can be competitive.

I really like your list! I think it definitely has some potential.

1 hour ago, Neck-Romantic said:

Thinking the first turn charge with cogs strat is just too dependent on dice to be viable...maybe not for deathriders battalion.

If you inflict the mortal wound on yourself and avoid an unbind, you've got over a 91% chance of casting Cogs. There will be the odd game where you don't get it off, but it's fairly reliable.

With Cogs, you need to roll a 7 on the charge that can be re-rolled if you have a CP and a close enough hero. I'm not sure of the math on that, but it's definitely more likely to pull off than not.

And, as you mentioned, Death Riders need a 6, though Hexwraiths are so fast they may not need to hide in the underworld.

I think Reikenor+Cogs+Deepstrike is very viable, but certainly not automatic.

October 21, 2018

2 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

I've asked this question on one of the spooky fb groups. What is everyone doing about bases and basing?

We have some awesome bases with the ETB models, but then plain boring bases for everything else. Has anyone found any good 3rd party suppliers making spooky basing materials? I feel GW have forced us to have some models on bases with gravestone and roses and stuff, yet haven't provided anyway of getting consistency throughout the army.

I have also looked at not putting the ETB models on the fancy bases, but some of them are so intertwined with the bases (such as the myrmourns) that there is no way to separate them from the fancy bases. So what is everyone else doing?

I'm still trying to learn how to paint, but I'm hoping to base my Nighthaunt so that it looks like they're coming out of the fog. Something like this link: https://imgur.com/e6uDltB

1 hour ago, Undeadly said:

Eh, I see the support heros as having some value, and I would class the Mounted KoS as a more combat focused hero when properly built. I usually give him the Balefire blade, giving him a reliable 3 damage; when properly paired, he can be rather deadly for a 120 point model. Plus, his buff can be a massive bonus to pretty much any unit.

Spirit Torment has impressed me more as a Chainrasp baby sitter, more than anything else, but he's good to have around. That 2" range lets him help fend off enemies that get clogged with the rasps.

The mounted KoS is 140 pts. My problem is the characters simply get targeted so quickly. My opponents and I were all brand new to the game, and they still took out my characters by the end of the 2nd turn. I don't see a way to keep them alive and I feel like their buffs are nice, but not mandatory for our army. Reapers, Bladegheists, Harridans, and Myrmourns all don't mind getting buffed by characters but can also work on their own.

36 minutes ago, miguel_fernan said:

Hi there! Long time reader, first time asking. I see a lot of lists running vampire lord, but they dont specify wich version. And as I dont want to buy more than one, wich is the consensus here, wich one is better? I looked at the one with ethereal ride because it is the more similar to KoS on ethereal steed. And thanks in advance for all the answers!

If I include one, I'm going with one that flies so that it has the same movement capabilities as the rest of our army. I don't think the one riding an ethereal steed gets Ethereal or Fly.

October 21, 2018

10 hours ago, Neck-Romantic said:

Went to a tourney today, with fairly meh results.

Slaves to Darkness with Mammoth; barely beat due to burning his objectives last turn

Deepkin Elves; rediculously OP horsesh*t lol. All I'll say.

Mirror match vs nearly identical Nighthaunt army; dice crapped out HARD. Though I was able to wipe half a 30x grim unit with Reikenor's targeting specific model ability and subsequent unit cohesion check.

2 torments and a GoS healed exactly; 4 wounds total in 3 games.

Chronomantic Cogs being cast by Reik with a self-harm +3; succesful zero times.

The more I hear stuff like this, the more I think that the "support" heroes aren't truly worth it when you could just get more troops. I'll still always take a GoS and Reikenor, but I'm really not sold on any other characters at this point.

October 20, 2018

On 10/19/2018 at 9:52 AM, Vasshpit said:

A lot of GW decisions on Nighthaunts raise my eyebrow.

Dont get me wrong, the range is one of my favs to date but it seems like they didn't have an exact plan when designing it.

Examples being Dreadblades, im pretty sure these were ment as a unit and last min were decided as leaders.

Chainghast, our only ranged unit, are sold with a hero that most never use more than one of. Odd.

Another being the anniversary GoS. This leader is a very popular and effective unit and even multi build but they decided to release two LE...

And now this choice.

Still love the range and is my current project.

On 10/19/2018 at 10:11 AM, Neck-Romantic said:

I agree. There are some apparent last minute shuffles I suspect; with both of these LE making me think they were scrapped at the last second.

DHarrows feel much more like an elite or semi elite light cavalry bodyguard for MKoS or Reikenor, taken in squads of 2 to 4 perhaps with wound re-allocation ala Nagash and the Morghasts.

Chainghasts also feel so awkward, both in their warscroll and their bizarre itemization, but Harrows coming in a box of two for a hero slot with no synergy between themselves takes the cake for odd boxing.

I doubt it was due to being rushed, as it seems unlikely so much would change so quickly, but yeah there's a lot of strange choices/synergies throughout the book.

Dreadblades due seem like they ought to have been a small, elite cavalry unit. It would also make sense if they were part of the Shroudguard battalion, instead of Bladegheists, which are supposed to have the least control of any unit in the army.

Chainghasts, meanwhile, seem like they should have been a special unit that could only be taken in addition to a Spirit Torment kind of like the Briar Queen and her Thorns. It also seems like the Chainghasts and ST should be naturally buffing Chainrasps and not Bladegheists.

It makes no sense to me that the Black Coach is not a leader as it features a Cairn Wraith and the spirit of a Necromancer or Vampire Lord.

And as many others have stated, it seems like the Guardian of Souls dual kit should have been a regular release. Then the LE could have been the store birthday release or could have been the 500th anniversary release with the Bladegheist character being an actual character.

But I suppose we can all wish list!

5 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

So my order of best to worse goes: 1 - Death Riders, 2 - Death Stalkers, 3 - The Condemned, 4 - Chainguard, 5 - Shroudguard, 6 - Shrieker Host, 7 - Execution Horde.

I love your breakdown, but disagree with your rankings. Death Riders just requires too many units that aren't good enough. I'd say the battalions that are definitely useful are Shroudguard, Chainguard, The Condemned. Then Death Stalkers (as it requires a weak hero and 2 weak units) and Death Riders. Then Shrieker Host and Execution Horde.

October 20, 2018

11 minutes ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

Pretty much a massive gamble list, hit hard and hit fast, rely on a 12"-15" fly movement to wreck face quickly. Using the BC and the general to bring back the lost models. It's super gamble but 2xD3 models a turn when they are 2 wounds a piece should 'theoretically' give them enough longevity to last unit the later part of the game. Ideally I'd sack off the 5 man unit and run 2 x 15 but I'm making this list super thematic, everything on horseback (including GoS who will just have standard movement) and I need the 3 battleline. I've tried doing it with 30 grims in there as well but then the hexwraiths or heroes have to get chopped and they all need to stay as they are for optimum unit size and buffing auras/abilities. If hexwraiths were 40pts cheaper then I'd be happy ?.

I still don't think Death Riders can work as the core of an army, even though it's so expensive it has to be more or less. But, hey, I'll be happy to be proven wrong!

I don't see a purpose for the unit of 5 Hexwraiths. I know it's thematic, but I'd rather have 20 Chainrasp Horde to sit on an objective. Even with the 9+ Wave of Terror, I just don't see you killing enough with that list to make such a small list effective.

October 17, 2018

7 hours ago, Wartoy said:

I am just now getting into Nighthsunts. I am new to AoS. I love playing Themed lists. Instead of me buying a bunch of models I won't use I am looking for themes to consider building. Help me out folks. Come up with some cool themes!

The best solution is probably to choose a battalion and run with that as a theme.

October 17, 2018

On 10/15/2018 at 6:51 PM, Smavo said:

The thing about the high drops is as I've said before.

NH players need to look at the high drop as standard. Aiming for low drops makes them take hard tax units and hence the bad performance.

Having high drops works in with our allegiance ability of deep strike. For every one unit we get one deep strike. So having a 2 or 3 drop army limits our deployment tactics.

There's definitely merit to the first part of what you're saying, as the list from the GT showcases. However, I was under the impression that if I a run a 4 drop list (Death Stalkers, Shroudguard, GoS, Chainrasps) that I could deep strike part of the battalions and thus 5 units in that particular setup so it wouldn't harm the deployment tactics too much.

17 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

@dmorley21 might have asked this already but where are you based? I might be able to pick up an extra one and ship it out.

It is great that we did well in the GT. I was shocked at the list tbh. In my local meta it's pretty competitive. I found always going second left me with a much smaller force, as lots of my opponents can easily close that 24" no man's land (and some extra if need be). Not having the first hero phase for us as an army isn't too bad, as we can't really buff or debuffs anything, yet denying your opponent the chance to plant their standards/banners, denying them a chance to get prayers off is a huge advantage.

Personally I don't think that our battalions are great, none of them let us get all our battleline units down in a single drop except the execution horde (which is not good battalion as it only benefits a mediocre hero ?) but a few are worth it to help to negate a unit's natural weakness, such as death stalkers for grims or glaives as they can death mark a large creature and get the +1 to hit and wound against a unit where they aren't getting their natural re-rolls. Chainguard works well for rasps as it can make them almost indestructible (as long as the GoS doesn't become a priority target ?). The only other one that is worth it is the death riders one, getting a 9+ charge bonus instead of 10+ is huge for hexwraiths who aren't a great unit, but in that battalions the hexwraiths become gross. All of the others are a bit of a trap or give benefits that don't suit the current meta (sorry to say it but shrieker host falls into the latter category).

...

I'd like to see some of the battle reports if any exist to see how he played the army, as it's not how I personally would run a ghost horde yet it did so well and the more I can learn from those better than me the less I'll have to rely on spamming grims to stand a chance in my local meta.

I cut off a lot of your post to make it more manageable. I'm located in Michigan in the US and thanks for the offer but don't worry about it. I'm still trying to build up to a 2k force, so I really shouldn't be throwing money at pretty replacement models as that's all it seems that it is at this point.

I agree that the battalions are lacking. The one I can't quite get a feel for on paper is Shroudguard. After facing 4+/4+ Phoenix Guard, I like the idea of unrendable 4+/5+ but worry that Reikenor (who I would take) is just too squishy.

I'd also love to hear some battle reports or even just a quick summary of the strategy used.

13 hours ago, Neck-Romantic said:

Got my first game in with Reikenor and Olynder...

I went first and proceeced to fail to cast Cogs with +3, every single unit failed to charge, then Reikenor AND Oly got killed off in turn one!

Wow! I played 3 games and had no problem casting Cogs. Glad you still managed to have a good game!

12 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

@Neck-Romantic I've also found that our 'big' heroes don't tend to have much impact on the game, I've been leaning more and more to not bothering with the named characters and spending the points on lesser heroes and more 'foot' soldiers.

I've also been trying to work on a 'no battalion' super variety mix and it's proving lots of fun but I'm not sure on how viable it will be. ?

I still think that Reikenor + Cogs are musts if you plan to deep strike. Though, it's another reason why lowering your drops and getting the first turn is so important as he is pretty easy to delete if someone really wants to.

1 hour ago, Vasshpit said:

@Neck-Romantic

Gasp, at that points cost players won't be tempted to buy the new shiny Black Coach behemoth.. ?

The poor Black Coach is such a cool looking model but I just don't see how it's worth its points. It should have been a hero and either a spellcaster or summoner IMO.

October 15, 2018

Unfortunately I won't be getting the new model - my closest store is 3 hours away.

Thanks @Tropical Ghost General and @Espy85 for sharing how you're finding success with your lists. There was some debate on another thread that one of the problems with Nighthaunt is simply the players not knowing how to play them yet, so it's great to see strategy shared. It's also neat that there were three different lists being discussed, all of which were finding success. As a new/returning player, this stuff helps me immensely.

On another note, a Nighthaunt list just had major success at the Warhammer GT. It was a very balanced list, but what struck me was the lack of battalions. I had got it into my head that our army really wanted to lower drops to have a chance to control the order of the first turn, but maybe I had it wrong. If one avoids the battalions, it allows one to take a really varied list with a lot of units and heroes. That list in particular had 98 infantry and I believe 5 heroes. So what are everyone's thoughts on that list? And did anyone have a chance to see how the list was being used?

October 15, 2018

10 hours ago, Espy85 said:

I play:

T Banshe general hatred for live (first command trait)

Spirit Torment with Midnight Tome

Knight of Shrouds with Sword of Judgement of ulgu

Guardian of Souls.

30 chainrasp

10 chainrasp

30 grimghast

20 dreadscythe

5 dreadscythe

8 Myrmourn

4 Myrmourn.

I dividethe army in 4 different departments, which I will send to attack or defend on 4 different objectives.
The reapers are accompanied by the guardian and 4 Myrmourn, the idea here is to have a unit that hits 4+ by rerol the failed and towounds at 2, with the Banshees canceling the opponent's shock tests.
The 20 dreadscythe are accompanied by 10 chainrasp and the spirit of torment, they target the opposing unit with the lowest bravery, the spirit also launches suffocating Gravetide for a further -1, chainrasp screen to avoid being charged and then they protect the hero.
5 Dreadscythe and the banshee usually remain in defense of the objective in my territory, along with 30 chianrasp that so repeat the 1 to hit and hurt, the dreadscythe give a -1 to hit the opponent, lined up just behind the chainrasp.
The Kos and the 8 Myrmourn instead hit heroes and small armored units, the idea is to bring save throws from 3 + / 4 + to 5 + / 6 +, and hope to make 5+ with the Knight of Shrouds and inflict some d6 of mortal wounds to enemy heroes.
It is not a simple list to manage, indeed, but I love the BG of the shrieker Host and banshee so I want to run a list focused on them, this is the one that from field tests seems more balanced, but the success and defeat are linked to many different factors. For example, against the demons or death the dreadscythe have no way of giving the -1 to hit, but they too must repeat the 1 on the shock tests and if they suffer 15 20 wounds will have to lose other models for the failed test.
I have never faced the order draconis, but it seems to me on paper an army that deploys few models, in that case I would try to take control of the field, but without facing them I can not tell you more.

Sorry again for Long post

No need to apologize for the long post - it's exactly what I was hoping for! It's really smart how you split your battalion into groups, though I'd be worried that the 4 Myrmourn Banshees would die too easily.

When I faced LoN, I wasn't causing enough damage to his units for them to even need to take a Battleshock test.

I was facing Phoenix Temple, not Order Draconis. Their infantry's (which gets a 4+/4+) rule is that they do not need to take battleshock tests if within 8" of a hero. Hero sniping is very difficult, as their hero rides a Phoenix.

Still, I'm glad to hear the battalion works for you. I don't think it will against the armies that I will be facing most frequently, but maybe I'll build it eventually and play it at a local store.

One more question - what's your intent with the Banshee in terms of making her your general and giving her the first command trait?

9 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

@dmorley21

Here are my current deathstalkers and Chainguard lists.

With the deathstalkers the torment takes the Spectral Tether spell from the spell lore. It's designed around CP farming, Kurdoss denies in 5+, the cairn wraith gains back on a 5+. The cairn and one GoS sit at the back with the two units of glaives, usually at opposite ends of the board. Then the grims, other GoS deepstrike in. Depending on opponent and mission Kurdoss either starts on the board or also deep strikes in.

With the Chainguard it's all about board control, swamp with bodies and see who lasts longer. The GoS has the blade artefact to be permanently -1 to hit in shooting and combat, with look out sir he stays alive longer. The KoSos and torment go up with the blades. I give the KoSos the cloak again for extra longevity. I sometimes give him the blade to be permanently -1 to hit or give him a 5+ death save. The grims hold an objective.

Both lists are pretty simple and work on 3 things, objective holders, objective takers and big kill units.

They do seem like lists that are pretty easy to grasp. Neither's quite my style, but I see the merits of both.

How much success have you had with them?

October 14, 2018

2 hours ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

Amen to that.

I was against movement trays, but it helps to speed up play. I use them to get into the enemy and then take them out when they've charged and piled in. I have 100 models in my current 2k deathstalkers list, it's a lot of models to move. My Chainguard list has 120 models. I use the trays just to speed things up.

Well, I'm all for speeding up the game. I'll have to look into them once I gather my force. Have you posted your Death Stalkers and Chainguard lists? I'm always curious to see lists and hear about how they perform.

1 hour ago, Espy85 said:

Hi guys. I would like to talk about my experience with the shrieker Host. I had the chance to play it often and I have to say that it gave me great results, I put a lot on bravery using also the endless to lower it, today I deploy 1x20 + 1x5 dreadscythe, 1x8 + 1x4 myrmourn, with 30 grimghast, 30 chainrasp and 10 chainrasp . I'm still looking for the best combination of units, but the warscroll bonus is key to getting the better of it, forcing a unit that suffered 20 injuries to fail the shock test means eliminating it quickly, and the feeling is that our units they remain mired in the clashes in the long run they are defeated.

Someone else has played it, what do you think?

Thanks for sharing! I find it interesting that you don't go for a unit of 12 Myrmourns. When I had originally planned it, I planned to take to units of 10 Chainrasp and a unit of 30 Reapers to fulfill the battleline. A couple questions for you:

1) What heroes do you take? Obviously a Tomb Banshee... do you equip her with anything?

2) How often did you face armies that more or less ignored battleshock? I'm having doubts because it seems like I will primarily be playing against Legions of Nagash (bravery 10) and Phoenix Temple (they ignore battleshock). Did you still have success against these armies?

1 hour ago, Tropical Ghost General said:

@dmorley21 in answer to the shrieker host question. It's a good battalion but it requires 2 things, one is an opponent with low bravery, the other is an opponent with a horde army. If you go against an opponent that fulfils those conditions it's great, otherwise the battalion benefits are neutered, especially if going against an army like SCE. If you local meta has low bravery horde armies go for it, otherwise it's quite a large point investment for very situational benefits.

The other issue with the shrieker host is that none of the units are battleline. The myrmourns are expensive, good, but expensive and die quickly. The tomb banshee is utter garbage against 80% of current armies and units in the game. The harridans are great but equally function just as well outside of the battalion. So if you invest in the battalion, you still need to invest in battleline and HQ, so the fewer drops you get from having the battalion get lost by taking lots of other essential units such as battleline and HQ. I haven't been able to get a decent 2k shrieker host list to have less than 7-8 drops.

Yep! All of those are reasons why I'm having second thoughts about it.

17 minutes ago, Vasshpit said:

It would be amazing if they changed the shrieker host to include The Briar Queen or tomb banshee, similar to how Shroudguard can use KoS or Reikor.

It would be nice if it could also include Lady Olynder as she's not in any of the battalions. If we're wish listing, here's what I would love:

1-4 of Lady Olynder, The Briar Queen and her peeps, Tomb Banshees

1-2 Dreadscythe Harridans

1-2 Myrmourn Banshees

Then keep the special rule and add an additional -1 to bravery for units within 6" of the battalion if they're bravery is normally higher than 6.

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Posts posted by dmorley21