Flippy

GW is also known to cut some sub-factions entirely and/or replace them with something same-but-different (HE --> Lumineth). I'm specifically concerned with Bonesplitterz and Spiderfang. But it is safe to assume that even if these go, we will get something in return.

I do play predominantly against the Sylvanteh and HoS. Guess this is the main reason why I value the ability to soak a high number of low-rend attacks slightly higher.

Are they low quality though? 2W, 3+ save, 2 or 3 3+/3+/-1 attacks is a Stormcast profile. I expect them to go down to 200, but that's all. For me, this will already provide for some real choice between Ardboys (expensive, but more board space, more wounds, better save) and Brutes (cheaper, hard-hitters). As I said before, I'm really excited with the prospect of Da Choppas infrantry army with Warchanters-driven engine.

This is the single greatest benefit of this new IJ wave. Previously, the Gruntas were almost always the "correct" (and boring) choice. Now, we can really embrace the infantry force; with new Ardboys, old Brutes and new fast Brutes this army can be so much more than Krushas & Gruntas alpha strike.

Yes, they usually buy Hedkrakka's Madmob to include a nice Wurgog Prophet in their IJ army ad that's it.

I, for one, refuse to acknowledge this. Nobody wants to play Orruk Warclans, people are pulled in either by Ironjawz or Kruleboyz (or this third, almost extinct flavour). With so many new kits for IJ it's either Vanguard or Battleforce, at the very least.

Very nice! But not done… the base 😱

Isn't the Incarnate / Rupture change directly aimed at Seraphon? Last time I checked this was the prevalent build. As for the OBR, the change of Stalkers / Guards resurrection is huge.

This sounds interesting, but also brings us to a different topic altogether. How many factions (and specifically elf factions) is too many? Three Dark Elf forces sound like a lot.

I'm not opposed to that. Still, if the question is "why is Malerion even associated with DoS?" then the answer is rather obvious. Referring to your examples - KO and Fyreslayers are very different, but they are still racially homogeneous factions. The same approach is used for Destruction (even more than in WHFB) and Death (FEC are not so different from SBGL, I agree). Chaos is clearly a different story (always was). The whole Order (with the sole exception of CoS) is also divided by species. So, where should we put Malerion then? For me its either Druchii united (DoK + CoS elements + new models) or new (fourth) purely elven faction (Shadow Elves). Pick your poison.

True, but the Warforger is undercosted. Zoggrok, on the other hand, does not require constant protection from harassing skirmishers - this is the shared trait of the IJ heroes, which I really appreciate. One time, a unit of annoying, teleporting Tree-Revenants captured my Warchanter, treating him as any other stray supporting hero - the moment he retaliated with his 6 D3 damage attack, the Sylvaneth player realised that every Orruk slaps hard.

This depends on what you think of the racial key for the armies. It was fundamental in WHFB and, to some extent, it is still important in AoS (hence the constant Dwarf unification discussions). As for the Elves, we already have good(ish) elves (Lumineth), neutral and reclusive elves (Idoneth) and evil(ish) elves (DoK and old Druchii in CoS). So, if you: (i) use the racial key and (ii) assume that the elf-spectrum is complete and (iii) take into account the nature of Malerion, it seems natural he should join (or take the lead) of the evil(ish) elves. I know many people here are against the racial key in AoS, but I like it. Unlike our world, the races in Mortal Realms are real and vastly different from each other.

Since you consistently refuse to use his name I assume you are not really interested in hearing any answers 😄

The "Seraphon approach" is something else. You can use the same set of minis as two distinctly different forces and I really like this idea for the Dark Elves - having the Blood (Morathi) and Shadow (Malerion) version of the unified force.

This really depends on whether you decide to take the WFB into account. He was the Witch King after all. But even in AoS - my perception is that Morathi is a second-tier god and Malerion is the real Druchii Chad, just waiting to be unleashed.

A few lines in books but also a surprisingly high number of Dark Elves, currently residing, for a lack of better place, in the CoS faction. The unification of Druchii is not impossible.

I don't now how to rate the pigs yet. Zoggrok seems really good. Ragerz are strong for their points (just 100!); I can imagine Da Choppas with multiple Ragerz units, all buffed by Warchanters and that is scary. Ardboyz: I play mostly with my Seraphon now and the new Ardboyz are very much like Saurus. Very solid warscroll, both defensive and offensive use is viable.

Though I would be happy with new OBR models, they are definitely not a micro-army.

I’ve finished the Saurus - and my new PtG general, Saurus Oldblood. Now comes Skink Starseer.

I’ve brought my 5 Saurus to a basic tabletop standard - and I think that’s it for August. I will hopefully finish them next month.

What’s the point of buying directly from GW? Do you get any benefits? I’ve never ordered from them.

This is very much a personal preference. I have some very fond memories of long Talisman sessions - and I loved them exactly because the game had a lot of downtime and allowed for plenty of social interaction over the game table. Regarding the impact of alternating activation on the game, there were some nice WH40k-based observations on how any reactions affect the game length. In short, unlike the combat phase (where choices are usually simple), the alternating movement forces you to make more meaningful decisions more often. It's fine if you like crunchy games. I don't and I think it would turn AoS into even longer experience (the difference with other games may be due to many different factors).

I see this mentioned time and time again and I would like to offer a different perspective. The game is already on the lengthy side - are you not afraid that any alternating activation will make it even longer? I don't mind the "downtime" as this is ultimately a social game and I much appreciate the IGOUGO approach - you get "your" stuff done and then sit down, have a drink and chat a bit. I can make occasional redeploy or some unbiding rolls, but the need for constant focus that comes with alternating activation would change AoS a lot.

That’s the Warchanter problem. I wonder how will they solve this.

IJ should still be far more readable on the tabletop then Fyreslayers, thanks to natural (base) size progression. Ardboyz 32 --> Big Boss hopefully 32 --> Brutes / Warchanter / Shaman 40 --> Megaboss 60. The army is also very intuitive to understand for any opponent: bigger base = more wounds and harder hits.