Reuben Parker

The command trait for double summon also works on the royal family GK summon so you get two. Most lists I run it in have 50 points spare for extra CP and probable triumph. Turn 1 summon double varghulf and double GK. Then either summon ghouls or save for Inspiring and then through the course of the game you get to summon ghouls (as long as GK don’t die first). GK when they have spells to cast via realm rules or endless spells are actually very good. 140 points for a tanky, regen decent Melee wizard that also has a keyword a number of FEC units trigger on. At that point the ghouls are sort of just bonuses and you get the better regen on your horror / flayed units which is very handy. To me the battalion is great. Most lists want GK on monster and one foot GK for his spell. So only tax is a second GK who as I said with additional spells is solid anyway. ———————— i would be interested to some attendants at court builds though.

Agree on all those points Glaurung. As I always repeat I am a lover of Royal Family. The push from GW for Realm Rules just helps it more. Also if your playing Add models above starting its by far and away the best. I have sent a query to GW FAQ but they only update every 6 months. I guess in interim just confirm with TO before hand if you want to run it. I am a huge fan of big horror blobs 36 wounds with save after save is normally enough to not get one shot (and if facing a super damage output unit try to cut down contact space), as an aside I think suffocating gravetide can help us in several ways (space control, bravery debuff and a spell for GK to cast). If you have a couple of Varghulf and royal family your restoring an average of 6 per hero phase. Then its important to try to play second to stop double turns (as they can be deleted that way). I do really like FEC in 2nd edition and I would agree that they can't compete with the raw damage output of the battletomes mentioned. However I still think they can be very competitive. A lot of missions now have multiple objectives. FEC need to minimize big battles. Screen and grind then use our summons (at least if playing Royal family) to steal objectives. There is still a lot to improve in the book though. I feel with the use of all command abilities now riderless monsters are almost pointless. Ghouls overpriced, I would argue that horrors and flayers also are by a bit. 160 gets you 5 blightkings or 120 gets you 3 yhetees. I sort of feel FEC should be in the middle around 140. This is made up for though with summoning and regen as over the course of the game FEC can bring 50-75 wounds extra to the table pretty easily.

Cheap screen / objective holders. 7 points per wound / model. is way more efficient than anything in the IDK book. Also cheapest IDK selection is 100 points so can help fill points. Seems to be eternal guard which I was put into by another user here or DoK heart renders that normally get allied in.

Quick aside Storms ability on charge the wording seems a little open to interpretation. Does he re roll all 1s on the charge or just for the spear? There’s no full stop and then it goes to mention just the spear in regards to also plus 1 damage so not sure. With all the talk of storm vs sea I really wanted to make a list with both. At first I couldn’t find a list I liked the look of but for now have settled on. Volturnos Storm - cloud of midnight Sea - tide of fear 20 thrall 6 spear eel 3 shield eel 10 eternal guard cogs 1990 I think I may build towards this as it’s nice, no spam lots of unit variety so future proof and can be built out to other lists easily. As someone mentioned above probably run Ionrach for the boost on Sea. Cogs slowed down makes sea super tanky and a 3rd spell can also be sped up to compensate for no soulscryer.

I’m probably going to buy a second and do it as aspect of sea. You can have a bare bones list with both but not sure how good it would be as lacks screens and numbers.

I think they’re both good. I just used storm and he was amazing, he also is the best hero to take cloud of midnight on as he can retreat and charge again. He got charged by FW mammoth and some other stuff. Clouded then in my turn jumped out and charged something else. Also he has a large bubble of re roll 1 to wound. Then he also gets more out of Volturnos high tide pump. Aspect of sea I’ve not used but can also see as being very good. Use cogs and slow time plus no rend artifact he’s on 3+ re rollable and 3 spells which is baller. I wish you could fit in both to a list but it would be difficult. My main thing with magic though in AoS 2 is that death and tzeentch just trump you. Then other armies are bringing magic hate. It feels like it’s best to either be mass magic or none.

I am moving away from the proxy stage and going into Deepkin now as my next army. I know the norm is mass eel Fuethean or Dom but that doesn't really interest me as I want to play the "fun" models but still try to have a good list. It seems Nautilar is seen as being "bad" but I still want to see if it can work in a beta strike list helping you reach high tide. Main question I had was I am thinking of the following and couldn't fit in the turtle as well, I then realized I could drop battalion and 20 thralls, left over 20 points and it can fit but does it improve or make the list worse? Bearing in mind the plan for the list is to delay and play defensively then try to win on high tide. Volturnos Scryer - Brooch of CP farm Caster Aspect Storm - Cloud of Midnight 30 Thrall 3 Shield Eel 6 Spear Eel 10/10 Eternal Guard Royal Council Losing the battalion does hurt the beta strike as you will have on average 2-3 less CP on high tide. On the flip side turtle can help you get to high tide maybe its something I will need to play and test out a few times.

To be fair I personally think thralls make terrible screens. Points wounds are worse and lower save. They are IDK glass cannons so either second rank till high tide or outflank seems the right way. There was a discussion a page or two back where someone made the case that eternal guard allied in are our best screens. Having looked at some theory lists I agree with the view.

How did this work out? I think it’s a core of a nice list apart from I’m not sold on the aspect of sea. Him plus cogs is 25% of the army. Maybe tidecaster, battalion then 6 more eels would give the army more punch.

If you have choice just make your opponent go first every round as protects you from double turn. As you note the regen horror show is vulnerable to double turn. I’m a huge fan of royal family but it is better with endless spells (or realm rules) so you have something worth it for all the GK to cast. GW have basically said realm rules should be used so that does help the mass GK build.

Seeing it on paper a very interesting list. I do think maybe fit royal court in for the extra artifact (cloud of midnight on king maybe) gives you another model to score on wizard/artifact only missions and it helps to stall till turn 3. Maybe 10 eternal guard as well after they were mentioned earlier Every list I think of they help. You would still start with 2 CP (50 under and battalion). So 5 on turn 3 plus whatever you farm should be more than enough to pump and win. Hopefully the tweaks I suggest make the list more survivable till turn 3.

I guess upto the TO but I would very much push the old FAQ 6 counts as 6+ stands. There’s so many historical examples of GW just writing poorly or missing things after updates it seems the most likely.

Ok so I have a tournie coming up and I am probably going to go with my old faithful bloodthirster list. I like it as it’s a melee army that requires thought. It can make insane plays but also is very fragile. I think Ulgu gives it two great artifacts but I miss GH1 which allowed triple crimson crown (those were the days). Rage thirster - Slaughterborn, crimson crown Rage thirster - doppelgänger cloak wrath thirster - sword of judgement (god tier hero/monster killer combined with his high attacks and re rolls) bloodsecrator 2 priest - killing frenzy for + hit on crimson crown and sword 20/10 reavers 10 warriors Garreks reavers (60 random points) gore pilgrims Council of blood nice number of unbinds and all three thirsters can score on the silly artifact or wizard missions if they come up. Obviously weak vs shooting your main hope is your opponent doesn’t realize the first turn charge potential and deploys close to the line. Saying that it seems the meta is shifting from shooting a bit.

Yeah 4CP with a battalion turn 3 is probably enough to instantly win the game (as long as you have 3 good units left) if not CP farm relic gets you to nearly 6 on average. Getting bonus CP by not spending points just means there’s more chance you lose before turn 3 I think.

Tournament didn't allow command abilities to stack from what I saw. Also quite a few other house rules as well. To the point that I wouldn't use the results or lists from it to really inform the meta and list building as I don't think most TO's will be running the pack they ran.

Yeah I am thinking of running a strong horror list next. I did also ask GW FAQ about the royal family additional model "add" as well but I guess they wont answer for 6 months until the next FAQ date. I guess if I take it to tournies will just have to ask the TO how they want to play it. As if they allow the add I would probably run less horrors and some courtiers. GKoZD magestic horror, ITEM TBD 2*GK CP Brooch 6/9 Horrors 10/10/10 ghouls Royal Family Gravetide Really no idea whats best on the GKoZD probably just Garland. Or maybe move away from CP farm (although I think it massively helps FEC) to another realm that can give power items (-1 hit / 4+ MW save / Cant be attacked first). Above list would be used for playing that the units can't be brought above starting size. If they can go above I might go a bit risky against first turn alpha strikes and 6/3 horrors and throw in 2 courtiers and a pendulum.

There’s no double model here. The three characters make the council everything else bar the thralls make the Corp.

Another advantage of eternal guard is they’re on 25mm meaning units with 1” reach can still fight over their heads from a second rank.

I think it still works as it mentions it has to be the closest visible enemy unit I don’t think it matters if closest unit isn’t IDK. Obviously doesn’t work the other way your Allies can always be targeted. I also think some heartrenders can be useful as 80 points can sometimes left over and a flexible objective grabber.

People have sort of identified talking here a core issue IDK have to play around. Thralls / Reavers are one of the frailest unit for points (maybe allopex) in the book. But they’re are best units for screening and zoning. In all other books I can think of the most numerous by model units are generally the best also for points to wounds. This makes it hard for IDK to screen as the best units for that are shield eels but they don’t take up as much space. I do think some small thrall units are useful as a second rank that engages on high tide with their attacks pumped up. It seems a bit weird fluff wise but you have the full soul royalty screening the half soul workers.

Oh yeah I was meaning I wouldn’t like playing it rather than it’s OP (although I do think it would be good). Even with things like new SC and nurgle being a bit crazy having an entire fast flying army is a huge weapon. Especially as if you get to turn 3 with even a reasonable number of eels left it’s probably a win due to Volturnos multi pumping 3 units. Having proxied the big thrall ball style I do agree it’s fragile and actually frustratingly hard to make the healing work. Renders should be either both battkeshock phases or our hero phases.

All eels maybe the most competitive (I say maybe as I don’t think IDK are fully explored) but saying that the eels do seem to have the most power. So we could be reductive and play something like. Volturnos tidecaster scryer 3*6 spear eels 4*3 shield eels (sub in a unit or two of Thralls maybe for screening and zoning). Although the list is probably very good, to me it just makes my heart cold. I have a strange combination as I like competitive gaming and tournaments but only playing lists that I also like. To me there’s no point doing IDK if your not using Aspects and turtles maybe with an allopex or the other way playing a bunch of Thralls. As always though list building is horses for courses and what each person likes both in terms of models and play style.

Well I saw a post a while back saying Nautiler was useless (not that I particularly disagree with that on the whole). It made my mind juices flow though and I came up with the following. Aspects of storm ignoring a point of rend and re rolling when charged is maybe the best unit to use that enclave. As such I give you the ultra low wound count. Volturnos - general Aspect storm - cloud of midnight Aspect storm - Ignaxs scales scryer tidecaster - protective barrier 10 thrall 10 thrall 3 shield eel 2*5 heart renders Royal Council In regards to Mor’Phann there’s a couple of lists and previous discussion a page or two back. Personally I am now thinking they’re better without battalion and needs more than 1 render.

I like the look of this list no real wasted units and a lot of power (high wound count for IDK as well). Only thing I would tweak is run the big 9 shield eels unit in small units for flexibility.

Out of interest what are people’s fav endless spells to pair with FEC (excluding cogs as every melee army jumps on them it seems) Im thinking maybe in my next list going leadership bomb with gravetide and jaws on top of the garland. Perfect world I’m hitting multiple units with -4 bravery. Also I was thinking often FEC want to play a game of attrition so having gravetide, palisade and soul shackles as a group to restrict space and slow down the opponent could be a nice set. I’m looking into them as nearly all of my lists are based around royal family so having 5 wizards but only 2 good spells on scrolls.