[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

I just want to thank the people that responded. This place is super awesome and i'm glad I found it. I'll tell you how I did with the 1k list. Come 2 weeks it will be 1500 and I assume nighthaunt get better there. 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

1 hour ago, Thamalys said:

From a strictly competitive point of view, that's the sad truth as we speak... at least, that's my opinion... but! The moment you manage to snatch a victory with pure Nighthaunt against a cheesy list (did someone say Tzeench?), you suddenly realise you are actually good at this game... 

What's LoG and how is it played? 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

6 minutes ago, Thamalys said:

A. Grimghast Reapers regularly wound on 3+.  If you manage (tricky...) to have them wholly within 12" of a Guardian of Souls, the latter has an ability (Nightmare Lantern) that grants +1 to wound to friendly Nighthaunt units.

B. 30 Reapers * ( 2 attacks [base] + 1 attack [Vampire Lord command ability, Blood Feast] + 1 attack [Knight of Shroud on Etheral Steed command ability, Lord of Gheists] ) = 120 attacks. If a Necromancer successfully casts Vanhel's Danse Macabre, you can pick the unit to pile in and attack twice. Of course, the unit will probably suffer some damage before it gets the chance to swing twice - hence, 240 is definitely over-optimistic... and the Bell [the Extoller of Shyish, the leader of your Reapers unit] does its own thing...

C. No, don't do it - unless you're in for a laugh. You have 930 out of your 1000 pts into one place... and this is an objective-based game. In a 1000K Nighthaunt list I usually tend to bring at least three different "chunks", so as to threathen/hold three different objectives. In addition, despite their 4+ etheral save, your Reapers are not that durable. Say, a unit of 10 Blood Knights on the charge (with a re-roll all failed hits buff, which costs just a CP if you have a Vampire Lord on Zombie Dragon around) would on average wipe out 24 Reapers. The rate at which you bring them back is slower compared to the rate high-damage units kill them. And, sadly, in Nighthaunt the unit does not come back for a CP (as it does in LoN).

Makes sense?

It makes sense lol. I was honestly thinking about doing it for the lulz. In all honesty though i'm stuggling coming up with a 1k list. Do I go Dolorous Guard and then some heroes and troops or so I just say ****** that and go no battalion and try something else. I've lost ever 500 point game and getting pretty tilted 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

1 hour ago, Thamalys said:

It's an interesting list, fairly balanced and with some potential for decent damage. The Vampire Lord (VL) is an auto-include in every Nighthaunt list of mine. The +1 attack on a blob of 30 Reapers is just incredible, and far superior to the Knight of Shrouds on Ethereal Steed (KoS) Command Ability (CA) - which last for one combat phase only. The VL CA lasts until your next hero phase, and in addition to that its' much, much easier to use, especially on said big blob of Reapers, as you need to be within 15", not wholly within 12" (as in the case of the KoS). To that you add the fact that the VL is a caster that returns D3 wounds for up to 3 summonable units within (not wholly within!) every hero phase and can fly up to 10" (always take the flying horror variant!), and there you have it. Mandatory auto-include.

The Necromancer is also quite good - I did run one in a couple of LoN lists some time ago... I think he's best used in conjunction with Spirit Hosts, though. That's because he moves really slowly and Vanhel on 6-9 Spirit Host is actually quite nasty. On glass cannons such as Revenants, by the time you pick them the second time to fight, most of them will be gone. Still a solid choice - not sure is an autoinclude, but definitely worth thinking about it.

Note that the Sons of the Lichemaster is meant to buff some skellies/zombies... sure, you can just take a single Necromancer, but I'm not sure...

At this point, let's just have a laugh and contemplate the possibility of The Reaper Bomb... 30 Reapers (420 pts) + 1 VL (140 pts) + 1 Necromancer (130 pts) + 1 KoS on Steed (120 pts) + 1 Guardian of Souls give you, for 930 pts and 2 CPs, 240 attacks (neglecting that the bell does its own thing and assuming that [1.] you can pile in 30 Reapers and [2.] Vanhel does go off) hitting on 4s (hopefully re-rolling, as this is The Horde Killer Bomb...), wounding on 2s, -1 rend, 1 damage. That, would be enough to clear three 20-man units of Phoenix Guard in one go. And, every hero phase, you are returning 2D3 (+1D6 if the Guardian of Souls spell is cast) Reapers... not very competitive an option (as it costs more than Nagash...), but I'd love to roll 240 dice...

Quick question since i'm new to all of this
A: How do you get them to wound on 2s? 
B: How do you get 240 dice from just a 30 man group of reapers? 
C : My escalation league just went to 1k and i'm seriously thinking about taking what you put in last if I can figure out how it works @.@

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

3 hours ago, Thamalys said:

[edit: as righteusly pointed out by @Spears below, Arkhan cannot be taken as a General in a Nihgthaunt army, so no Dolorous Guard for him!]

 

Thank you so much for all the info. So yeah, I don't think i'm going to run him. I am apart of a slow grow league and we are now at 1k points. I think i'll be doing the Dolorous Guard in there and then I need to decide my general and what else i'm going to take. Thank you all for all the help

 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

1 hour ago, Thamalys said:

Really thorough - well done! Excellent for beginners, granted, but quite useful for scruffy veterans as well!

Two comments:

1. No mention of the Mourngul? Some will say it’s overcosted, and maybe it is.... but: Spirit Torment + Mourngul is a very durable combo (for Nighthaunt standards) with some surprising punch as well (for Nighthaunt standard). 6” of -1 to hit, rerolling ones, often healing 2D3, a neat blend of damage 2 attacks, minus 2 rend and mortal wounds as well. Plus, it’s the biggest ghost of them all...
2. Everything you wrote about using our movement shenanigans is very true. What is also very true, sadly, is the fact that Nighthaunt have almost zero shooting. The strength of factions such as Seraphons, Cities, Stormcast Eternals, Overlords... is that not only they can move stuff around with ease - but once they do, they don’t even need to make the charge. Their Razordons, Hurricanums, Ballistas and Ironclads will happily get 9” away from you and shoot most units off the table. We? We need the charge, especially against experienced opponents that know how to zone us out - and often they have the bodies to do it. Wave of terror is elusive, the Cogs are a big investment... yes, you really need the dice to help you out with our ghosts, no matter the extent to which you are a Creed...

Meanwhile, I have been experimenting with the Dolorous Guard elsewhere (Legion of Blood), because a very tough Olynder is scary, sure, but a Vampire Lord on Zombie Dragon with 20 wounds of Hexwraiths around is even scarier... this battalion is phenomenal for Death in general, coming in at exactly 400 pts worth of allies... again, is somehow sad that the best bits of the Nighthaunts often work much better in some other splinter of the Death GA.

It’s a start, though, and your guide captures a lot of what we can do, so... kudos to you!

I have a Arkhan the Black, Mortarch of Sacrament. Do you think he will be good with a Dolorous guard (if he is any good got him with my nighthaunts in a trade) and if so does he fit in any battalion or is he just solo? 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

9 hours ago, EnixLHQ said:

Good news, everyone! My guide is updated with list building strategies and a few example lists!

Go and tear it apart!

I love the lists. I'll be trying out the Knight Bomb this week. If I don't like it i'll be doing the Other bomb list. You are awesome for doing this thank you.! I see Knighthaunt are all the White Dwarf Battalions now. I assume the others are kinda dead at the moment? 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

For a Emerald Host super battalion, what's the best General to run in it (or nominate a general in it)? 

[AoS 2 - Nighthaunt Discussion]

I just got a BUNCH of nighthaunt in a trade. I was wondering if someone could point me out to some advice/playing/lists I can look at and learn the army and how to play them. Can I make a competitive army with what is below and if not what should I be looking for. Thank you.  I'm coming over from 40k so this is all new to me. 
What I got in the trade:   

2x – Cairn Wraith
x2 – Gaurdian of Souls
x1 – Knight of Shrouds
x2 – Knight of Shrouds on Steed
x1 – Lady Olynder
x2 – Lord Executioner
x1 – Reikenor the Grimhailer
x2 – Spirit Torment
x1 – Arkhan the Black
x1 – Nagash
x20 – Grimshast Reapers
x15- Hexwraiths
x12 – Spirit Hosts
x40 – Chainrasp Horde
x40 – Chainrasp Horde
X1 – Black Coach
x1 – Mourngul
x10 Bladegheist Revenants
x4 Chainshasts
x12 Glavewraith Stalkers
x4 Myrmourn Banshees