Nico

My Matriarch Teclisa, agent of Malerion, welcomes you to the NicoLab. I’ve been reborn (or perhaps magically cloned) for the Third Edition of Age of Sigmar. In this post, we’ll: Look at the long-ignored subfaction (Great Nation) of the Lumineth, Iliatha, now reborn for version 3! Teach you how to play with and against these Clone-Twins. Explore the hierarchy of rules in Age of Sigmar along the journey. Perhaps the best faction for mastering the Core Command Abilities (Ossiarch Bonereaper players may be interested in a change). What is Iliatha and why should I care? Iliatha is one of the original 4 Great Nations (subfactions) for Lumineth. The narrative for Iliatha relates to one aspect of the experimentation with volatile magic that nearly brought down the Lumineth Race, namely magical cloning. Iliatha is Matriarchal and focussed on life and improvement through “propagation” and “communal and generational change”. This extended to creating “clone-twins” and even quintuple doppelgängers of themselves: Ultimately these led to “paradoxical miracles” and “breaches in the laws of reality”. Naturally this opened the door to Slaanesh. Since the Reinvention, new clone-twins have been limited to “two physical iterations”, but some of the original clones remain: They take measures to contain the dangers of clone-twins, sometimes by having each twin dress differently or study different military arts (the emphasis is on Vanari Wardens with spears and Vanari Sentinels with bows, but also Aelementiri (Stoneguard and Roo-Riders). See page 26 of the Battletome. The narrative talks about Iliatha being “disturbingly” “close-knit”. Their shining hosts house “clone twins that are essentially one mind in two bodies”. One regiment “will instinctively know which course of action another will take, lending them an uncanny unity….” The narrative talks further of simulacra amulets, which create a clone on the bearer’s death (who proceeds to slay the killer of the bearer). All of this calls to mind hints of Drukhari and hints of Sparta. It's worth bearing in mind that while the narrative may give examples of a specific pair of twins, when looked at as a society, the families of these twins intersperse them (randomly) throughout the companies. It is not a case of a single unit being twinned with another unit. The aggregate effect of having twins interspersed throughout the army and a healthy dose of forbidden sorcery gives the army its heightened unity and efficiency. One further point is that the narrative text for Unity of Purpose specifically mentions Wardens and Sentinels. The rule applies to VANARI keyword. The reason why it mentions only Wardens and Sentinels is that these were the only public VANARI units at the time when Iliatha was released. The Vanair Lord Regent (Regent), Vanari Starshard Ballista (VSB), Bladelords and Bannerblade arrived in wave 2 of Lumineth. Iliatha in Version 2 Due to underwhelming rules in version 2 of AoS and other compelling options (Syar), Iliatha was rarely seen in competitive play despite being the most populous of the Great Nations. The addition of Alumnia and Helon did nothing to improve Iliatha’s appeal. The original version of Iliatha's Battle Trait, Unity of Purpose, (Unity) simply didn't function under version 2 rules. Some asked GW for clarification of how Unity worked. Ultimately, GW rewarded us with a total blank slate rewrite of Unity, which seems tailor-made for version 3 together with Ellania & Ellathor, an exceptional model that eventually received the correct ILIATHA keyword: Now for the first time, Lumineth have all 6 subfactions relevant! This is unheard of amongst Battletomes (Legion of Blood, Skullbugz, Barak Nar) The Hierarchy of Rules in AoS Version 3 has made it easier to see a hierarchy of rules in AoS, which previously lurked out of sight in FAQs. The 5 "Exception" Rules The clearest explanation of the hierarchy of rules is within each of the 5 Exception Rules. One can find these by searching for the word "exception" in the Core Rules: Rule 1.6.5 Cannot shoot or fight thrice. Rule 13.3(1) Hit roll modifiers cap at net +1 or -1. Rule 13.3(2) Wound roll modifiers cap at net +1 or -1. Rule 13.3(3) Save roll modifiers cap at net +1. Rule 13.4 Don't be a 40K player! You can't use a Command Ability to improve your rend after looking at your opponent's save rolls. You have to use it before the attack sequence begins. You cannot load the Hellfire Shell or Flakk Missile into the chamber of your gun after you already hit the target with it.... The 5 Exception Rules reign supreme over all other rules. There is design space for a future ability to break them, but it would need to include clear and explicit wording such as "disregarding the exception in Rule 1.6.5". The Fundamental Principle All 5 share the bracketed "exception" wording to the principle that: Abilities take precedence over core rules. It is worth emphasising this principle as it is a radical departure from past rulesets (before AoS when big rule books were more important); and the full implications can be striking. Notably, if 13.3(1) did not have the exception bracket, then any ability that applied -2 to hit would simply override 13.3(1) (because an ability takes precedence, overrides or trumps a core rule). 13.3(1) would end up being confined to only limiting other Core Rules that applied negative modifiers to hit (like Unleash Hell). Another way to look at this principle is that every ability, however minor, is "breaking the Core Rules" by definition (whether it is rerolling 1s to hit or running and charging). This shouldn't come as a surprise, it is exactly what abilities are meant to do. It follows that the Core Rules are forever being overriden and, if you keep reading, you can find they are pretty low in the hierarchy! FAQ to a Warscroll or Battletome Ability FAQs typically provide a targeted answer to how two things interact and resolve conflicts. Designer’s Commentary to a Warscroll or Battletome Designer's Commentary to an ability will often give a precise indication of how a rule works or deal with a question in advance. See the commendable Designer's Note for "Derek's" Sludgeraker Venom (Swampboss Skumdrekk) for a perfect example! Abilities What is an Ability? Rule 1.6 defines abilities more clearly by dividing them up into effects and restrictions. The sidebar example for Hawk of the Celestial Skies gives examples. Abilities include almost everything on a Warscroll other than characteristics, weapons and mounts. Warscroll spells, Lore Spells, command abilities, battle traits and enhancements are abilities. The Sidebar to Rule 1.6 ("Soft" Contradictions) The sidebar to Rule 1.6 also explains the Fundamental Principle in a different way: It is worth noting that a given ability does not need to call out or cross-refer to a Core Rule in order to contradict and hence trump it. Any casual or slight or soft inconsistency between an ability and the Core Rules is resolved in favour of the ability (hence soft contradictions). This is in keeping with the idea of favouring the specific over the general. It is good games design insofar as the more-freestanding Warscrolls and Battletomes can be, the more accessible the rules are to casual and new players. They, rightly, are GW's primary audience, rather than the Matched Play tournament crowd. The KO FAQ Fail Perhaps the worst of the Kharadron Overlords FAQs (provoking gasps of rage in some quarters) has somehow survived and made its way into the Core Rules for version 3 as the sidebar to 1.6.2: This might have been useful if a series of examples were given. In isolation, however, the "specifically notes otherwise" test is difficult to apply. It doesn't sit easily alongside either the Exception Rules or the Sidebar to 1.6. It doesn't mean that an ability allowing you to "run and charge" does precisely nothing on the basis that it doesn't "specifically" override 8.3 (which otherwise prevents you from attempting to charge after running). If the word "modify" is interpreted narrowly (for example to abilities that keep the vast majority of a given core rule intact and modify only a small part), then perhaps we can understand what this rule is trying to achieve. One area where this is useful is for out of phase actions. The Glottkin’s Blightkrieg ability allows a unit to charge at a different time for example (specifically overriding the timing). However, just because it says “can attempt to charge” doesn’t mean that you override the positional restriction (unit cannot attempt to charge “if it is within 3” of an enemy unit.”). There’s no specific override of this positional requirement. 1.6.3 Hard Contradictions "Hard" contradictions by contrast are head-on collisions between two abilities. Rule 1.6.3 resolves these (last applied effect trumps). These hard contradictions are mercifully rare. One reason for that, is that automatically unbound (i.e. you don't have to roll the dice) is not the opposite of cannot be unbound. Two vanishingly rare examples are: Parting Shot is a must retreat, whereas Hosts Duplicitous (surely Derplicitous or Tree-Fiddy?) is cannot retreat. Parting Shots wins because SKINK keyword because of 1.6.3. The cannot retreat effect has already been applied when the Skinks are standing within 3" of the Tzeentch unit, but the effect of Parting Shot is applied after the command ability has been used, so it is the last applied effect. If you cast Levitate in your turn (can fly), then this does override Warp Lightning Vortex (WLV, cannot fly) if you start the move within range of WLV. The Yndrasta sidebar to Rule 1.6.4 clarifies that the effect of an area of effect ability is deemed “applied” when the relevant unit in question is first within the relevant range: not (later) when it benefits from that effect (or in this case when it suffers from that effect). This means that the effect of Warp Lightning Vortex is already deemed applied when the WLV is setup and the unit is first within range. When the opposing commander casts Levitate in her next hero phase, the effect of Levitate is applied later. Levitate is last applied, so it takes precedence under rule 1.6.3. Kudos to Admiral Leigh of the great ship Aethercast for spotting this! Abilities within a Warscoll or Battletome The Sylvaneth Battletome is a great illustration of the way in which Warscrolls trump other rules. The Navigate ability is once per turn and instead of a normal move. However, Treelords, Derpu, TLAs and Tree Revenants are able to use Navigate instead of a normal move or a retreat and (implicitly) in addition to the once per turn rule. The specific rules on the Warscrolls trample (pun unavoidable) over the general Battle trait rules. FAQ to a Core Rule An FAQ to a Core Rule (obviously) prevails over the Core Rule that it is clarifying. Sidebars in the Core Rules The sidebars are a welcome development and generally explain how different core rules interact with each other or with abilities or provide helpful examples. Bring specific, they have a higher status than: The Core Rules Bottom of the pile! The new Core Command Abilities Core or universal command abilities existed in version 2, but their reforging into the new Core Command Abilities has been one of the best parts of the version 3 Core Rules (along with the codification of strike first and strike last and the exception rules). The Core Command Abilities, along with Heroic Actions and Monstrous Rampages have created much of the interactivity in your opponent's turn that was missing in previous editions and could make being double turned a dull experience (especially combined with strike first/last or shooting spam that further reduced interactivity). The Core Command Rule 6.0 is not an Exception Rule, so it’s subject to 1.6 soft contradictions. As a noteworthy example, the amended Using Relentless Discipline Points overrides 6.0. There is an interesting question over whether the individual Core Command Abilities are classified as Core Rules primarily (and as abilities secondarily), particularly for the purposes of 1.6. My operating assumption is that they are primarily Core Rules (80%). Notably, the Core Rules FAQ 8.0 provided that a unit that received a Redeploy command ("cannot shoot later in the turn."), and later receives an Unleash Hell command ("can shoot...."), cannot shoot! The opposite conclusion would have been reached under Rule 1.6.3 (see above 1.6.3 Hard Contradictions) if Redeploy and Unleash Hell were primarily abilities. If they were primarily abilities, then a further problem could arise with abilities that modify Rally and Redeploy for example Ardboyz Rallying on a 4+ roll, Vanquishers Rallying on a 5+ or Gobsprakk's Rerollable Redeploy. The existence of this type of ability suggests that they are primarily Core Rules. Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield and the universal enhancements are more likely to be abilities. As we’ll expand upon later, the clarification of the core command abilities into use, issue and receive steps allows for more complex interactions than in version 2. GW is already putting this new design space to good use. Unity of Purpose With all that said, we now move onto the Iliatha Battle Trait, Unity of Purpose (Unity). The v3.0 FAQ completely rewrote Unity: Unity allows relaying of commands: 1 use, 1 issue, multiple different units receive. This puts it the company of these other abilities that override aspects of 6.0: The amended Maw-Krusha (Skull-shaking Bellow😞3 uses of the same CA, although the second and third use don’t use a CP, so it’s effectively 1 use, 3 issues, 3 different units receive). The Killaboss on Vulcha, which allows for another use of the same CA in a given phase, whether in response to the same trigger or a separate trigger: (2 uses, 2 issues, 2 different units receive). This allows 2 Boltboyz units to use Unleash Hell in particular. Notably the unamended Maw-Krusha’s ability had a problem insofar as it technically allowed you to pick the same unit 3 times to receive the same CA. Being an ability, this would override the rule of not receiving more than one CA in 6.0 (under 1.6 soft contradiction). This was unintended as we can see from the later amendment. Unity: the Indefinite Relay Unity is a Battle Trait, applicable to every Vanari unit. When unit X receives a command, you can pick unit Y, which then receives the same command. Unit Y receiving that command satisfies the trigger for Unity (“After a friendly ILIATHA VANARI unit receives a command….”). It is a new instance of a Vanari unit receiving a command. So, you can pick a third unit unit Z, which then receives the same command. This can continue indefinitely. Upon showing the new rule to a club mate (who plays Nurgle and is not encumbered with baggage from the version 1 Battletome), I was pleased to see that they also saw the indefinite relay effect. In practice, this is less powerful than it may sound. The main applications are that multiple units can receive AOD in the same phase (though it’s unlikely that more than 2-3 meaningful combats will be involved). Multiple units can move an extra 6” instead of running. Multiple units can Unleash Hell at the same target. This reduces the risk of a single casting roll for Power of Hysh on a 30 block of Sentinels (as is seen in every Syar and Zaitrec list). Instead you can Unleash Hell with a 20 Block, a 10 Block and a Vanari Starshard Ballista (VSB). Power-level wise, this is similar to the Cabbages and Vulchas that we’ve already discussed above. Unity causes the target to receive a command (rather than allowing it to receive a command in the normal way). This has the following implications. Unity and Unleash Hell As discussed above, the structure of the core command abilities allows for more complex interactions. Unleash Hell is perhaps the best example. I’ve highlighted the text to illustrate the structure. The red text contains the trigger for use and any restrictions on use. The restrictions on issuing are in yellow text contained in 6.0 (distances from HEROES and TOTEMS, and unit champions). The green text sets out restrictions on receiving the command. However, for the second and third unit in the relay, Unity skips straight past all of these steps “that other unit also receives the command.” There is one use and one issue, but multiple units receive one after another. The blue text is the effect of the ability. All units that receive the command can shoot (at -1 to hit). Finally, the purple text is the restriction on the effect. Units X and Y are both forced to shoot the charging unit. Unit X must satisfy the 9” restriction in green text to receive the command. However, unit Y does not need to satisfy this restriction as it receives the command via an ability (not via the Core Rules), and to the extent there is a soft contradiction, the ability prevails. This allows an Iliatha army to deploy deep and still Unleash Hell. This is particularly the case as the first unit to receive the command can be a VANARI Warden unit, that then relays the command along the chain to the shooting units far behind. The danger of this approach, which I’ve seen against Stormcast Vanguard Raptors is that an enemy that can shoot out one of the links on the chain can disrupt the whole army (which is so very narrative). It’s worth noting that even though a unit within 3” of another enemy unit can receive the Unleash Hell command via Unity, it still cannot shoot out of combat due to rule 10.1.1, which prevents targeting any other units outside of 3”. This is less powerful and flexible than the Vulcha, which allows for a second independent Unleash Hell in the same phase (which is hard to counter). The structure of other Core Command Abilities is similar and simpler: A similar analysis applies. One of the upsides is that this allows units Y and Z to receive the Rally command even if they are in combat. This has proven to be a nice-to-have in practice rather than anything pivotal. Triangulation The other implication is that it’s possible to issue commands in a triangle formation such that one unit receives two different commands in the same phase. Due to rule 1.6, Unity overrides the specific part of rule 6.0 regarding receipt of commands. Specifically, unit X issues a command to itself, Unity relays the command to unit Y. Now Unit X has issued and received. Unit Y has received. Unit Z now issues itself a different command. Unity relays this to Unit Y (and potentially onwards to Unit X). So Unit Y receives both commands. It’s worth flagging at this point that AOA is of limited value for Vanari units (reliant on Mortals from unmodified hit rolls), and VANARI units have very few CAs. No +1 attack doubled up with +1 to hit and wound here. This is really only usable in the combat phase to give a key unit of Wardens AOD and Reroll Hits of 1 (the Iliatha CA, Strike in Unison). Purposive interpretation from the narrative text around the Rules As discussed above, the narrative of Iliatha is units interspersed with magical clone-twins. The net effect of this is that the units act in a unified manner and copy each other as clones would do. This is in keeping with the effect of the rules: multiple units copying the lead of one unit by Unleashing Hell at the same target, clones putting up their shields in unison, fleeing clones seeing their respective twins rallying to the fight and following suit. ”The aggregate effect of having twins interspersed throughout the army and a healthy dose of forbidden sorcery gives the army its heightened unity and efficiency.” The narrative is not that unit 1 is twinned with only unit 2, which would imply a more limited relay effect for Unity. Games Played I’ve played a handful of games with Iliatha and have tasted both defeat and victory. Unity is a cool mechanic, but the 3” restriction is meaningful, and the sheer efficiency and counter-meta toolbox of Syar is hard to match (Goading Arrogance). Another wave of Tyrionic Aelves with the VANARI keyword may be the thing that pushes Iliatha to the forefront! On the other hand, it’s unlikely that we’ll see many more command abilities, looking at recent Battletomes. I’ll continue to recount my battles here as I play more games.

I hope you enjoy my article on Destiny Dice - Change for Change’s Sake. https://aosshorts.com/destiny-dice-warhammer-age-of-sigmar/ Many thanks to @AoS_Shorts @Antipodean7

Cheers! The original article can be found on AoS Shorts or in the NicoLab: https://aosshorts.com/nicolab-sequencing-warhammer-age-of-sigmar/ The second chapter in the activation wars is here: https://aosshorts.com/nicolab-the-activation-wars-part-2/ I knee-stabbed many Stonehorns to kick off*the Activation Wars back in October 2016 here: *I didn’t know what I had started, but I’d do it again 😉.

Please see Part 2 of my article on the Activation Wars as kindly published on AoS Shorts: https://aosshorts.com/nicolab-the-activation-wars-part-2/

‪Scout move like an Untamed Beast down to the South London Legion any Wednesday for AoS, 40K, Bloodbowl, WarCry, Middle Earth, Necromunda and more! We are pleased to announce that The South London Legion has a new home - Playnation Games. This is located at Unit 1113, 1117 Whitgift Centre, Croydon, CR0 1UX. This is accessible from the High Street opposite Metro Bank (not from inside the Whitgift Centre). This is between the Whitgift Centre and the Centrale Centre. This is a central location and readily accessible from East Croydon/West Croydon and other stations. Club night is still Wednesday. The opening times have changed and are now 5-10pm. Please make sure games are finished and terrain packed away neatly before 10pm. A selection of drinks are available. @sthlondonlegion https://m.facebook.com/sthlondonlegion/  This week! We cheered on Arthur at CanCon and @Age of The Erstwood, Owen Jackson and Matt Gouldesbrough at Heat One. Bloodbowl season is powering forward - carnage everywhere! Draws are for cowards! Adding more scenery! @Leonardas and his Chaos Team! Benjamin Savva’s latest creation for the Slaves to Derping Next week There will be the usual mixture of 2,000 point games going on. If you have a smaller force, then someone should be happy to give you an introductory or demo game as well. Winter Update The Legion is in good shape with new members, exciting new armies, very solid tournament results (Leo winning Bloodshed in the Shires with Ironjawz!) and excitement over new releases. We’re looking forward to getting a lot of games in at our new venue over the winter and enjoy some drinks!  Tournaments Recently the club has seen good results at The London GT (Leo Rautonen and Ben Murphy) Bloodshed in the Shires (Go Leo!); and monthly War in the Mortal Realms events (Matt Gouldesbrough). The highlight of the first half of the year was Blood Tithe - an international team event running for its second year now. A full cohort of Legionaries were in attendance and performed admirably.  The irreplaceable Marc Wilson organised the event - feedback received was positive! Bring on Blood Tithe 2020! I supported Marc behind the scenes but was gutted to miss out - edit - delighted for my son’s birthday! Ben Savva continued his strong performances - coming second at the South Coast GT and winning 3 one-dayers at the Bad Moon Cafe.   Spot the difference Other club mates have put in strong performances. Leo doing very well with Dreadwood (bagging a third place trophy) and John smashing up Malifaux events and finding success in his initial forays into Middle Earth! Many of us are looking forward to good times at Heat 3 and Blackout @Chris Tomlin Earlier in the year, Team Fiction @Leonardas, Leo, @Age of The Erstwood and Alex Kew performed well at the AoS Team Event - getting 4th Place! Hobby Corner On the hobby front, people are building up new armies esp. Slaanesh, Khorne and Gitz. Warcry Warbands, Bloodbowl Teams and Genestealer Cults also going strong: Craig’s Death Guard: Ben Savva attended Vince Venturella’s 2-day painting class in May, with striking results:  I finished my first ever 40K army after purchasing an airbrush - great tool!   Ben Savva’s latest commission finished off Alex Kew’s striking Stormcast:  @Age of The Erstwood Ben Savva finished painting Leo’s Dreadwood commission:   Craig has nailed his Custodes army:   I showed my true colours: Kudos to Jon Scrivens @jonscrivens Jon also immortalised that chariot of fire, that home away from home that we know and love:  Lord Castellant Jimbo and the Battlebus  Comedy corner     Khorne vs Legions of Azgorth! Another close one. 40K There’s plenty of fresh blood for 40K. Some of us are competing in the Bad Moon League. Two of us are preparing for a one-dayer next weekend at Bad Moon Cafe.   Seb’s Guard   John commanding the Blood Angels! Bloodbowl Rob Bradley managed a commanding victory over Matt’s Chaos Dwarves to take the trophy! Preparations are afoot for the 2019 Season brought to you by Bloodweiser. Bloodbowl is such an amazing game! New players are very welcome! Warhammer Underworlds (Nightvault) We had a great time at a recent tournament hosted at the club and kindly organised by the delightful Matt from GW Croydon.  Necromunda Excitement over the Latest box set and scenery! I have a ludicrous number of Escher models from my GSC army! Will be going strong this year and the level of support from GW (e.g. Squat Mercenary and Genestealer Cults in White Dwarf). @Thanatos Ares @Leonardas @Bowlzee  @Marc Wilson Give me a shout on the forum or post below and Ican add you to our AoS WhatsApp chatroom (we broke a quarter of a million messages recently and counting - I swear fully half of it is John talking about Khorgoraths). Middle Earth Simon Fro has a great time at Throne of Skulls!  Huge amount of excitement over the new releases!

The Activation Wars have rumbled on for a further 8 months since my first article on the topic (NicoLab: The Activation Wars - Sequencing in Age of Sigmar). Of the 6! new Battletomes since the article, some have brought new tools for the Activation Wars. The Arms Race continues with the emergence of clear winners and losers. The first article was being edited as the Fyreslayers and Slaanesh books were dropping. In that first article, I noted that the special rule in the final paragraph of Locus of Diversion (now called the Slaanesh Proviso) would be “very interesting” and so it has proven: Slaanesh proved dominant off the back of their excessive summoning and Locus. Now Locus (and Slaanesh in general) are reeling from nerfs to the dice roll to trigger Locus (and summoning changes). However, the Slaanesh Proviso remains intact, which should keep Slaanesh in the top tier of armies (if no longer dominant). A Recap - phase dependent rules and subphases We can briefly recap the key principles set out in the previous article. Some have been refined since then by FAQs. The Start, During and End parts of a phase are important distinctions in the rules. The Start, During and End parts of each phase can be likened to discrete subphases. Certainly a subphase model makes it easier to explain these rules. The concept of a Start part is meaningless if normal During part abilities can be used in the start part (e.g. Morathi). Many abilities (7 or more from both players) can be used in a given Start of a phase. The active player (the player whose turn it is) does all of its simultaneous abilities in an order of its choice, then the non-active player does all of its simultaneous abilities in an order of its choice. The phases and sequencing rules have been interpreted strictly even where this leads to odd results. The Slaanesh Proviso (see above). The Triggered Exception. During part abilities can be triggered in the Start part of a phase. For example, Savage Strike (Strike First in the Start part) does count as happening in the During part for the sole purpose of triggering other abilities such as Feeding Frenzy (fight again in the combat phase) or No Respite (Blood Warriors’ phase-dependent fight on Death). It’s worth emphasising that the Triggered Exception is a narrow one – this doesn’t turn the Start/During distinction into a free-for-all. Units of the Active Player that Fight Last and move within 3” of enemy units that did not fight earlier in the During part of the combat phase, will make those enemy units eligible to fight in the end of the combat phase. This is not true of units of the non-active player’s units that have been made to fight last and then move within 3” of non-activated enemy units. This is because of 4. above - the active player has to do all its end of the combat phase abilities first). This is a bad ruling that is overly complicated. There should be no eligibility to fight in the end part without a specific ability. Tough luck if you’ve missed your chance. There is no reason to restart the selection of units to activate which was already completed in the During part. If there are two contradictory abilities affecting a unit, then the second to be applied takes precedence. The most recent ability trumps. This is not a new rule (originating in the Beasts of Chaos FAQ for the Taurus and High Tide), but the December 2019 FAQ has granted it greater prominence. Contradictory abilities could include Strike First and Strike Last but also Strike Last and a triggered ability to Strike (e.g. Smashing & Bashing or Tyrants of Blood). See below: A more recent Strike Last may not help? You would think that a Start of the Combat Phase Strike Last would be pretty good right? The Alvagr Ancient Command trait is triggered in the start of the combat phase and causes enemy units to Strike Last. However, in the Alvagr Ancient player’s turn, he must use Strike Last before the opponent in the start of the combat phase (principle 4. above), so the opponent can immediately trump this with its own Start of the Combat Phase Strike First (e.g. Hermdar). On the other hand, in the opponent’s turn, the opponent uses Strike First and... resolves this activation - before the Thundertusk can use Alvagr Ancient. It’s lose-lose. One sliver of good news is that the Lords of the Lodge fight again ability merely allows the Hermdar unit to be selected to activate for a second time in the combat phase (even though it has already fought once in the start of the combat phase). There’s no hook for it to activate for a second time in the Start of the Combat Phase. Hence, in the Fyreslayer’s turn, the order would be: Start of the Combat Phase Hermdar (HGB fight) Alvagr Ancient Applies to HGB Combat Phase Other activations alternating order (starting with the Fyreslayers). End of Combat Phase HGB fight again (Lords of the Lodge) Any other End of Combat Phase abilities of the Mawtribes player. A Hierarchy of Abilities With full credit to Vince and Tom of Warhammer Weekly fame, here’s a fleshed out list of weapons for the Activation Wars. Start of the Battle Immortal Champion (S to D) Halo of Blood (Khorne) Swift as the Wind (Tempest’s Eye) Start of the Third Battle Round High Tide (Idoneth) Hero Phase Itchy Nuisance (Gitz) Soul Cage (Nighthaunt) Binding Damnation (S to D) Shooting Phase Flinger (Gitz) Charge Phase Wave of Terror (Nighthaunt) (not subject to the Slaanesh Proviso) Savage Strike (FEC) Spear of the Hunt (Cities of Sigmar) Helm of Many Eyes (S to D) End of the Charge Phase Locus of Diversion (note the Slaannesh Proviso still applies if this combines with a Strike First ability). Start of the Combat Phase Hermdar (Fyreslayers) Strike Quickly (Hysh) Alvagr Ancient (Mawtribes) Stomp (Sylvaneth) Khartoth the Bloodhunger (Khorne) Quicksilver Draught (Stormcast) Doppelganger Cloak (Ulgu) Halo of Blood (Khorne) Combat Phase Tyrants of Blood (Khorne) (not subject to the Slaanesh Proviso) Smashing & Bashing (not subject to the Slaanesh Proviso) Death Frenzy (any time - also not subject to the Slaanesh Proviso) Abilities towards the bottom of the above hierarchy are less likely to be trumped than those at the top. What can I do to navigate the Activation Wars? Generally speaking buffs are stronger than Debuffs in the activation wars (as the Debuffs tend to be earlier in time e.g. spells) or their timing is such that they always get outfoxed by a Start of the Combat Phase Strike First (e.g. Stomp and Alvagr Ancient). If you’re playing with one of these debuffs, you should check for any Strike First abilities and as the opponent you should volunteer information about these (and discuss how they will interact befire deployment). It’s worth noting that the presence of the word “immediately” in a rule is essentially poetic or decorative language and has no impact on sequencing: Doppelganger Cloak remains one of the best answers to Slaanesh/Strike First or Fight Last. It’s particularly strong in the Slaanesh player’s turn as Locus will cause the Slaanesh player to be unable to attack at all (as it must resolve all of its End of Combat Phase abilities before the Locused player - see principle 8. above). Against the Doppelganger Cloak, the Slaanesh player is better off not using Locus at all. Fight on Death is also a reasonable solution to Strike First abilities. For example Plague Monks or StormVermin with Death Frenzy can make positive trades with your opponent. Death Frenzy - like Smashing & Bashing - is a triggered ability, so it will be resolved at that trigger, trumping any Strike Last ability (as more recent). Conclusion With the proliferation of Strike First and Strike Last abilities out there, the Activation Wars are still going strong. However, the rise of Ossiarch Bonereapers shows that there are alternatives. Despite having almost no Activation Wars tricks of their own (only a lesser quality 6” pile in on the Kavalos Death Riders); and Mortek Guard losing their Reroll saves against Strike First, OBR remain competive through sheer efficiency and astute resource management. The absence of the expected nerf to the Soulscream Bridge also encourages heavy shooting lists like Hallowheart or Tempest’s Eye (particularly those that benefit from not moving by being setup instead). KO and Tzeentch also loom large on the horizon! All to play for!

Chant like a Sister of Battle down to the South London Legion any Wednesday for AoS, Underworlds, WarCry, 40K, Kill Team, Bloodbowl, Middle Earth and Necromunda! We are pleased to announce that The South London Legion has a new home - Playnation Games. This is located at Unit 1113, 1117 Whitgift Centre, Croydon, CR0 1UX. This is accessible from the High Street opposite Metro Bank (not from inside the Whitgift Centre). This is a central location and readily accessible from East Croydon/West Croydon and other stations. Club night is still Wednesday. The opening times have changed and are now 5-10pm. Please make sure games are finished and terrain packed away neatly before 10pm. A selection of drinks are available. @sthlondonlegion https://m.facebook.com/sthlondonlegion/  This week! Excitement over the Ossiarch Bonereapers. Heresy campaign going strong! Bloodbowl season is powering forward - carnage everywhere! Draws are for cowards! Adding more scenery! @Leonardas and his Chaos Team! Benjamin Savva’s latest creation for the Slaves to Derping Next week There will be the usual mixture of 2,000 point games going on. If you have a smaller force, then someone should be happy to give you an introductory or demo game as well. Winter Update The Legion is in good shape with new members, exciting new armies, very solid tournament results (Leo winning Bloodshed in the Shires with Ironjawz!) and excitement over new releases. We’re looking forward to getting a lot of games in at our new venue over the winter and enjoy some drinks!  Tournaments Recently the club has seen good results at The London GT (Leo Rautonen and Ben Murphy) Bloodshed in the Shires (Go Leo!); and monthly War in the Mortal Realms events (Matt Gouldesbrough). The highlight of the first half of the year was Blood Tithe - an international team event running for its second year now. A full cohort of Legionaries were in attendance and performed admirably.  The irreplaceable Marc Wilson organised the event - feedback received was positive! Bring on Blood Tithe 2020! I supported Marc behind the scenes but was gutted to miss out - edit - delighted for my son’s birthday! Ben Savva continued his strong performances - coming second at the South Coast GT and winning 3 one-dayers at the Bad Moon Cafe.   Spot the difference Other club mates have put in strong performances. Leo doing very well with Dreadwood (bagging a third place trophy) and John smashing up Malifaux events and finding success in his initial forays into Middle Earth! Many of us are looking forward to good times at Heat 3 and Blackout @Chris Tomlin Earlier in the year, Team Fiction @Leonardas, Leo, @Age of The Erstwood and Alex Kew performed well at the AoS Team Event - getting 4th Place! Hobby Corner On the hobby front, people are building up new armies esp. Slaanesh, Khorne and Gitz. Warcry Warbands, Bloodbowl Teams and Genestealer Cults also going strong: Craig’s Death Guard: Ben Savva attended Vince Venturella’s 2-day painting class in May, with striking results:  I finished my first ever 40K army after purchasing an airbrush - great tool!   Ben Savva’s latest commission finished off Alex Kew’s striking Stormcast:  @Age of The Erstwood Ben Savva finished painting Leo’s Dreadwood commission:   Craig has nailed his Custodes army:   I showed my true colours: Kudos to Jon Scrivens @jonscrivens Jon also immortalised that chariot of fire, that home away from home that we know and love:  Lord Castellant Jimbo and the Battlebus  Comedy corner     Khorne vs Legions of Azgorth! Another close one. 40K There’s plenty of fresh blood for 40K. Some of us are competing in the Bad Moon League. Two of us are preparing for a one-dayer next weekend at Bad Moon Cafe.   Seb’s Guard   John commanding the Blood Angels! Bloodbowl Rob Bradley managed a commanding victory over Matt’s Chaos Dwarves to take the trophy! Preparations are afoot for the 2019 Season brought to you by Bloodweiser. Bloodbowl is such an amazing game! New players are very welcome! Warhammer Underworlds (Nightvault) We had a great time at a recent tournament hosted at the club and kindly organised by the delightful Matt from GW Croydon.  Necromunda Excitement over the new box set! I have a ludicrous number of Escher models from my GSC army! Will be going strong this year and the level of support from GW (e.g. Squat Mercenary and Genestealer Cults in White Dwarf). @Thanatos Ares @Leonardas @Bowlzee  @Marc Wilson Give me a shout on the forum or post below and Ican add you to our AoS WhatsApp chatroom (we broke a quarter of a million messages recently and counting - I swear fully half of it is John talking about Khorgoraths). Middle Earth Simon Fro has a great time at Throne of Skulls!  Huge amount of excitement over the new releases!

March like an Ossiarch down to the South London Legion any Wednesday for AoS, Underworlds, 40K, Kill Team, Bloodbowl, Middle Earth and Necromunda! We are pleased to announce that The South London Legion has a new home - Playnation Games. This is located at Unit 1113, 1117 Whitgift Centre, Croydon, CR0 1UX. This is accessible from the High Street (not from inside the Whitgift Centre). This is a central location and readily accessible from East Croydon/West Croydon and other stations. Club night is still Wednesday. The opening times have changed and are now 5-10pm. Please make sure games are finished and terrain packed away neatly before 10pm. A selection of drinks are available. @sthlondonlegion https://m.facebook.com/sthlondonlegion/  This week! Excitement over the Ossiarch Bonereapers. Heresy campaign going strong! Bloodbowl season is powering forward - carnage everywhere! Adding more scenery! Jimbo strikes a Power Pose My Fyreslayers battle to a draw vs @Leonardas Skaven. Next week There will be the usual mixture of 2,000 point games going on. If you have a smaller force, then someone should be happy to give you an introductory or demo game as well. Winter Update The Legion is in good shape with new members, exciting new armies, very solid tournament results (Leo winning Bloodshed in the Shires with Ironjawz!) and excitement over new releases. We’re looking forward to getting a lot of games in at our new venue over the winter and enjoy some drinks!  Tournaments Recently the club has seen good results at The London GT (Leo Rautonen and Ben Murphy) Bloodshed in the Shires (Go Leo!), and monthly War in the Mortal Realms events (Matt Gouldesbrough). The highlight of the first half of the year was Blood Tithe - an international team event running for its second year now. A full cohort of Legionaries were in attendance and performed admirably.  The irreplaceable Marc Wilson organised the event - feedback received was positive! Bring on Blood Tithe 2020! I supported Marc behind the scenes but was gutted to miss out - edit - delighted for my son’s birthday! Ben Savva continued his strong performances - coming second at the South Coast GT and winning 3 one-dayers at the Bad Moon Cafe.   Spot the difference Other club mates have put in strong performances. Leo doing very well with Dreadwood (bagging a third place trophy) and John smashing up Malifaux events and finding success in his initial forays into Middle Earth! Many of us are looking forward to good times at Heat 3 and Blackout @Chris Tomlin Earlier in the year, Team Fiction @Leonardas, Leo, @Age of The Erstwood and Alex Kew performed well at the AoS Team Event - getting 4th Place!  Spectacular turn one Alpha Bunkering of an entire Legions army! -2 to hit rerolling 6s on the 30 Plaguebearers! AoS Super League 2019 @Marc Wilson Team Event - modelled on the Champions League of Football/Soccer has now entered the second round. Initial round features games between players from the same club. This is an exciting new format and a way to spread a tournament over a year. Hobby Corner On the hobby front, people are building up new armies esp. Slaanesh, Khorne and Gitz. Warcry Warbands, Bloodbowl Teams and Genestealer Cults also going strong: Craig’s Death Guard: Ben Savva attended Vince Venturella’s 2-day painting class in May, with striking results:  I finished my first ever 40K army after purchasing an airbrush - great tool!   Ben Savva’s latest commission finished off Alex Kew’s striking Stormcast:  @Age of The Erstwood Ben Savva finished painting Leo’s Dreadwood commission:  I put the finishing touches on my Fyreslayers:   Craig has nailed his Custodes army:  AoS  I showed my true colours: Kudos to Jon Scrivens @jonscrivens Jon also immortalised that chariot of fire, that home away from home that we know and love:  Lord Castellant Jimbo and the Battlebus  Comedy corner     Khorne vs Legions of Azgorth! Another close one. 40K There’s plenty of fresh blood for 40K. I took my BA and Ad Mech force to a one dayer at Bad Moon Cafe - got the wooden spoon!   Seb’s Guard   John commanding the Blood Angels! I’m looking forward to the 2 Dayer at Bad Moon Cafe on 3-4 August. Bloodbowl Rob Bradley managed a commanding victory over Matt’s Chaos Dwarves to take the trophy! Preparations are afoot for the 2019 Season brought to you by Bloodweiser. Bloodbowl is such an amazing game! New players are very welcome! Warhammer Underworlds (Nightvault) We had a great time at a recent tournament hosted at the club and kindly organised by the delightful Matt from GW Croydon.  Necromunda Simon Fro is leading the charge and starting a campaign soon. I’m doing Van Saar! Will be going strong this year and the level of support from GW (e.g. Squat Mercenary and Genestealer Cults in White Dwarf). @Thanatos Ares @Leonardas @Bowlzee  @Marc Wilson Give me a shout on the forum or post below and Ican add you to our AoS WhatsApp chatroom (we broke a quarter of a million messages recently and counting - I swear fully half of it is John talking about Khorgoraths). Middle Earth Simon Fro has a great time at Throne of Skulls!  Huge amount of excitement over the new releases!

Here’s the very first We Are Legion podcast. In this episode, @johncpfcburgess @ojay180, Leo and Seb take a look back at the recent Blackout AoS tournament: https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-c86r3-bc2643 Stay tuned for future episodes featuring more tournament reviews, faction analysis and hopefully avocado on toast... Follow the South London Legion on Twitter at @sthlondonlegion or follow us on Facebook by searching South London Legion. CREDITS: Intro and Outro Music: "Welcome to the Show" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Bring the Apocalypse down to the South London Legion any Wednesday for AoS, Nightvault, 40K, Kill Team, Bloodbowl, Necromunda and Middle Earth! You can now find us here: Lansdowne Hotel Carolyn House Lansdowne Road Croydon, CR0 2AD @sthlondonlegion https://m.facebook.com/sthlondonlegion/ The new venue is between East Croydon and West Croydon Stations. There are 15 minute trains to Victoria/London Bridge. It has a bar...  This week! 15 Legionaries heading to Heat 3 (AoS). Heresy campaign kicked off! Excitement over the new General’s Handbook. Several Slaanesh armies being rolled out. Adding more scenery! Matt and John playing Heresy! Jimbo strikes a Power Pose My Fyreslayers battle to a draw vs @Leonardas Skaven. Next week There will be the usual mixture of 2,000 point games going on. If you have a smaller force, then someone should be happy to give you an introductory or demo game as well. June Update The Legion is in good shape with new members, exciting new armies, solid tournament results and excitement over new releases. We’re looking forward to getting a lot of games in at our colourful venue over the summer and enjoy some drinks!  Tournaments The highlight of the first half of the year was Blood Tithe - an international team event running for its second year now. A full cohort of Legionaries were in attendance and performed admirably.  The irreplaceable Marc Wilson organised the event - feedback received was positive! Marc will Be piloting a revamped London GT AoS tournament later this year! Bring on Blood Tithe 2020! I supported Marc behind the scenes but was gutted to miss out - edit - delighted for my son’s birthday! Ben Savva continued his strong performances - coming second at the South Coast GT and winning 3 one-dayers at the Bad Moon Cafe.   Spot the difference Other club mates have put in strong performances. Leo doing very well with Dreadwood (bagging a third place trophy) and John smashing up Malifaux events and finding success in his initial forays into Middle Earth! Many of us are looking forward to good times at Heat 3 and Blackout @Chris Tomlin Earlier in the year, Team Fiction @Leonardas, Leo, @Age of The Erstwood and Alex Kew performed well at the AoS Team Event - getting 4th Place!  Spectacular turn one Alpha Bunkering of an entire Legions army! -2 to hit rerolling 6s on the 30 Plaguebearers! AoS Super League 2019 @Marc Wilson Team Event - modelled on the Champions League of Football/Soccer has now entered the second round. Initial round features games between players from the same club. This is an exciting new format and a way to spread a tournament over a year. Hobby Corner On the hobby front, people are building up new armies esp. Slaanesh Khorne and Gitz. Ben Savva attended Vince Venturella’s 2-day painting class in May, with striking results:  I finished my first ever 40K army after purchasing an airbrush - great tool!   Ben Savva’s latest commission finished off Alex Kew’s striking Stormcast:   Conor’s Tzeentch: @Age of The Erstwood Ben Savva finished painting Leo’s Dreadwood commission:  I put the finishing touches on my Fyreslayers:   Craig has nailed his Custodes army:  AoS  I showed my true colours: Kudos to Jon Scrivens @jonscrivens Jon also immortalised that chariot of fire, that home away from home that we know and love:  Lord Castellant Jimbo and the Battlebus  Comedy corner     Khorne vs Legions of Azgorth! Another close one. 40K Nathan is mourning Ynnari. There’s plenty of fresh blood for 40K. I took my BA and Ad Mech force to a one dayer at Bad Moon Cafe - got the wooden spoon!   Seb’s Guard   John commanding the Blood Angels! I’m looking forward to the 2 Dayer at Bad Moon Cafe on 3-4 August. Bloodbowl Rob Bradley managed a commanding victory over Matt’s Chaos Dwarves to take the trophy! Preparations are afoot for the 2019 Season brought to you by Bloodweiser. Bloodbowl is such an amazing game! New players are very welcome! Warhammer Underworlds (Nightvault) We had a great time at a recent tournament hosted at the club and kindly organised by the delightful Matt from GW Croydon.  Necromunda Simon Fro is leading the charge and starting a campaign soon. I’m doing Van Saar! Will be going strong this year and the level of support from GW (e.g. Squat Mercenary and Genestealer Cults in White Dwarf). @Thanatos Ares @Leonardas @Bowlzee  @Marc Wilson Give me a shout on the forum or post below and Ican add you to our AoS WhatsApp chatroom (we broke a quarter of a million messages recently and counting - I swear fully half of it is John talking about Khorgoraths). Middle Earth Simon Fro has a great time at Throne of Skulls!  Huge amount of excitement over the new releases!

Paddle like Lauchon down to the South London Legion any Wednesday for AoS, Nightvault, 40K, Kill Team, Bloodbowl, Necromunda and Middle Earth! You can now find us here: Lansdowne Hotel Carolyn House Lansdowne Road Croydon, CR0 2AD @sthlondonlegion https://m.facebook.com/sthlondonlegion/ The new venue is between East Croydon and West Croydon Stations. There are 15 minute trains to Victoria/London Bridge. It has a bar...  This week! Owen (Winterleaf) has a solid outing at the 6 Nations. Points speculation over the new General’s Handbook. Excitement over GSC! Several Slaanesh armies being rolled out. Adding more scenery! There will be the usual mixture of 2,000 point games going on. If you have a smaller force, then someone should be happy to give you an introductory or demo game as well. June Update The Legion is in good shape with new members, exciting new armies, solid tournament results and excitement over new releases. We’re looking forward to getting a lot of games in at our colourful venue over the summer and enjoy some drinks! Tournaments The highlight of the first half of the year was Blood Tithe - an international team event running for its second year now. A full cohort of Legionaries were in attendance and performed admirably. The irreplaceable Marc Wilson organised the event - feedback received was positive! Marc will Be piloting a revamped London GT AoS tournament later this year! Bring on Blood Tithe 2020! I supported Marc behind the scenes but was gutted to miss out - edit - delighted for my son’s birthday! Ben Savva continued his strong performances - coming second at the South Coast GT and winning 3 one-dayers at the Bad Moon Cafe. Spot the difference Other club mates have put in strong performances. Leo doing very well with Dreadwood (bagging a third place trophy) and John smashing up Malifaux events and finding success in his initial forays into Middle Earth! Many of us are looking forward to good times at Heat 3 and Blackout @Chris Tomlin Earlier in the year, Team Fiction @Leonardas, Leo, @Age of The Erstwood and Alex Kew performed well at the AoS Team Event - getting 4th Place! Spectacular turn one Alpha Bunkering of an entire Legions army! -2 to hit rerolling 6s on the 30 Plaguebearers!  Rob and the French Team! AoS Super League 2019 @Marc Wilson Team Event - modelled on the Champions League of Football/Soccer has now entered the second round. Initial round features games between players from the same club. This is an exciting new format and a way to spread a tournament over a year. Hobby Corner On the hobby front, people are building up new armies esp. Slaanesh Khorne and Gitz. Ben Savva attended Vince Venturella’s 2-day painting class in May, with striking results: I finished my first ever 40K army after purchasing an airbrush - great tool! Ben Savva’s latest commission finished off Alex Kew’s striking Stormcast:   Conor’s Tzeentch: @Age of The Erstwood Ben Savva finished painting Leo’s Dreadwood commission:  I put the finishing touches on my Fyreslayers: Craig has nailed his Custodes army: AoS I showed my true colours: Kudos to Jon Scrivens @jonscrivens Jon also immortalised that chariot of fire, that home away from home that we know and love: Lord Castellant Jimbo and the Battlebus Comedy corner  Khorne vs Legions of Azgorth! Another close one. 40K Nathan is mourning Ynnari. There’s plenty of fresh blood for 40K. I took my BA and Ad Mech force to a one dayer at Bad Moon Cafe - got the wooden spoon! Seb’s Guard John commanding the Blood Angels! I’m looking forward to the 2 Dayer at Bad Moon Cafe on 3-4 August. Bloodbowl Rob Bradley managed a commanding victory over Matt’s Chaos Dwarves to take the trophy! Preparations are afoot for the 2019 Season brought to you by Bloodweiser. Bloodbowl is such an amazing game! New players are very welcome! Warhammer Underworlds (Nightvault) We had a great time at a recent tournament hosted at the club and kindly organised by the delightful Matt from GW Croydon.  Necromunda Simon Fro is leading the charge and starting a campaign soon. I’m doing Van Saar! Will be going strong this year and the level of support from GW (e.g. Squat Mercenary and Genestealer Cults in White Dwarf). @Thanatos Ares @Leonardas @Bowlzee  @Marc Wilson Give me a shout on the forum or post below and Ican add you to our AoS WhatsApp chatroom (we broke a quarter of a million messages recently and counting - I swear fully half of it is John talking about Khorgoraths). Middle Earth Simon Fro has a great time at Throne of Skulls! Huge amount of excitement over the new releases!

Yes - the cheapness of Squig Herd as Battleline allows for a list with Skragrott General, an Arach Shaman, Loonmangler, then a unit of 15 Spiders as a mobile hammer. Works reasonably well.

Please see the article kindly published on AoS Shorts: https://aosshorts.com/nicolab-sequencing-warhammer-age-of-sigmar/

Thanks for this. Yes there are blog posts in the NicoLab stretching back to AoS v1.0: There are some more recent posts covering recent topics such as Sylvaneels (an extreme example of what can be done using Winterleaf’s 1 Order Unit) in the NicoLab as well.

So it was with great excitement that I took my Sylvaneels to Bloodshed in The Shires - a one-dayer at My list was a development of Winterleaf taking advantage of their new ally option Idoneth Derpkin: https://thehonestwargamer.com/aos-list-rundowns/surf-and-turf/ Basically, one uses the Order Unit in Winterleaf as 9 Morrsarr Guard (aka Eels, hence Sylvaneels) - which don’t count towards either cap on Allies - and then ally in the Soulscryer for deepstrike and charge buff. The list has built in CP for the inevitable reroll of a 6” charge and Inspo on Bravery 6 Eels. The TOs and organisation The TOs Dan George and Steve Curtis has clearly put a lot of thought and preparation into the event. It was particularly noteworthy as the first event of the Bucks Wargaming Collective and no doubt the first of many. Dan in particular was very helpful and understanding when the trains/replacement buses did their best to delay the arrival of players including me. The second game vs Hugh was one of my most enjoyable in a long time partly as Dan and Steve, Hugh and others had some quality banter (mostly about Hugh’s dice sock and Derpu’s derping). This was typical of the lively atmosphere in the event. Despite that, the game vs Hugh and his Freeguild bunker was careful and tactical. The scenery was high quality for a one-dayer and everything went smoothly (bar the trains😜). The pre-ordered Pizzas were an inspired choice. I could have ordered another it was so good 🍕. The attendees The attendees were mostly a healthy mix of Bucks Wargaming Collective and South London Legionaries - a great crowd overall - a real variety of experience levels from first time event all the way to @Age of The Erstwood Game One vs Clinton Liem (Ironjawz) (To be completed) Game 2 vs Hugh Halligan

9 Eel Winterleaf is really fun. A bit too swingy with Eels and Derpu. Sylvaneth can now ally in Deepkin (so the Soukscryer is the true ally). Came 6th at a highly competitive one-dayer event - Bloodshed in the Shires! Bucks Wargaming Collective.

I’ve posted the latest thing to come shambling out of Nico’s Hobby Lab on The Honest Wargamer, my Nurgle-themed Sylvaneth List: https://thehonestwargamer.com/aos-list-rundowns/surf-and-turf/

Agreed - it’s laughable to suggest that Deepkin are top tier or overpowered when Legions of Grimghasts or Daughters of Khaine are dominating the top tables. Idoneth are pretty predictable and basically a melee-only Cavalry army with Deepstrike (with some choppy but fairly priced elite infantry - Thralls). The game needs elite armies and Idoneth are the main one of those (everything else is spamming 30 of this or 40 of that and Grots aren’t even back on the menu yet). It takes 12 Eels on the charge to delete a block of 30 Witch Aelves and not by a wide margin. Only 8 Witches die to the Electro Discharge). If you roll poorly on the Spears, then the remnants are doing 4 attacks back at you. If they have Blessing of Khaine - you can assume that the 10 remaining Witches will kill most of your Eels (40 Attacks at 3+ with exploding, 4+ rerolling, -1 rend, 2 Damage),

The fact that the description of the table refers to Idoneth Deepkin Units without saying “friendly” is a pretty clear indication that there’s only one Tide for both/all players. Furthermore the table entries themselves refer to “all units” - not “friendly”. It would also be an absurdity if it was High Tide and Ebb Tide at the same time on the same table.

Like the Nurgle Wheel, the Tide Table applies to both armies.

It looks fantastic. Hope it’s a hero.

“A” can mean either “one” or “any” depending on context - the Gnarlroot FAQ just confirms the two possibilities. It does not mean that “a” is always “any”. Reading the rule in context, it’s clearly “one” unit, not least as the move 3 Units Ability would them be 100% redundant.

It’s a huge nerf given that they have a +1 to hit buff from the Shaman.

No need to select a target - the wording of Arcane Bolt etc. only involves selecting a target after it has been cast and not unbound.

Yep - you can’t ally them and no Artefacts for Allies either. Good shout for Mixed Order though.