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So, I have finally finished the stardrake, taken since 8th january and its been done along side the beastclaw raiders, some terrain and more dark angels for my 40k army. Im pretty happy with how its finished, except for the purple armour plates, not sure if im happy as I think they look a bit dust from the drybrusing. I will see how I feel in a few days, I may end up redoing them. Its all had a coat of Vallejo matt varnish and the metals and armour plates have been ard coated to match the rest of my stormcast. I hope you enjoy, theres also some more pictures of my beastclaw whcih are next up to be finished and then on to Nighthaunt, which, thanks to the mortla realms magazine, is growing quite nicely. Finally, I took a few days from painting to make a new mat and some terrain, the buildings are for 40k and are foamboard, the rocks are just insulation foam and the mat is acrylic caulking, sand and paint over a vinyl flooring off cut and airbrushed. Inspired by RFD hobbies on youtube. Its the 60x44 inches size mat which fits 40k and Im sure its going to be AOS standard when the new edition arrives this summer. Just realised I have some skulls I missed off the Stardrake's base.

So I have made abit more progress on the beastclaws, but I have been a hobby butterfly due to getting a set of the Series D brushes for christmas and, they are fantastic for drybrushing. I thought I was making a good dent in my models to paint list including some terrain, a stompa for my 40k orcs. The one thing I forgot about was my last 2, maybe 3 months worth of the mortal realms subscription. Anyway, hope you enjoy some pictures of my progress or lack there of...... My Jacob Bugmanson that im tempted to use a Gotrek in my KO army, need to finish some high lighting on him yet. The Beastclaw The terrain from mortal realms And Finally the mortal realms backlog, the Incantor, Lord Arcanum and a few of the other SCE with end up on an army's on parade board im planning for october this year.

well, its not been to productive of late, but more progress has been made on the as of yet un-named Beastclaw raiders warband, and mistakes were made...... So, I went to get the bases from the cupboard as I wanted to get them done so I could start attaching the stonehorns as they are a pain in the butt due to them being front heavy. Upon placing them on the table I noticed a bit of an issue with the filler I used. All apart from 2 bases had large cracks and gaps in them, I presume it was because the bark, even though i dried it in the oven was still not 100% dry and as it has dried further over the weeks it just pulled the filler away and left cracks an gaps.🤬 Fustratedly , I put them back in the cupboard so I could sulk for a few days. When I decided to sort them it got some acrylic caulking from the local shop and set to work just filling in the gaps, some bases i completely removed from the plastic as the gaps were HUGE and then put a layer of caulking around the edges to fill the gaps and glue them back down and they were set aside to dry and cure. Couple of days later it was time to get them sorted, a layer of black primer went on the caulking first and I just blending the Dryad Bark and Steel legion Drab over the top to make it all seem like 1 and a quick dry bruch of zandri dust, exactly the same as before. I added skulls in various spots and viola.... mistake fixed!! So, now was my first attempt at snow and rather than cleverly testing the mix first on a spare bases or such, I just ploughed on in. I mixed a cheap white acrylic paint, PVA glue, Bicarbonate of soda ( make sure you dont use baking powder) and water into a fairly wet paste. and started to apply it to the bases. I found the trickiest part was trying to make it look natural as I didnt want to just cover all of my previous work with snow. It does look a bit grainy from close up but to be honest, I dont think its too bad of a job. If anyone thinks they have any improvements I can make, feel free to let me know but in the mean time........ Remember to fully dry your bark!!!

So, A few months ago I was listening to the Just play podcast when Ian was talking about his heat 1 mawtribes army, and the idea of a small model count army appealed to me. I currently have a Legions of Nagash army which includes Nagash and 80 skeletons, A stormcast army including many wings, Nighthaunt and my pride and joy, the Kharadron Overlords. So fast forward a few months and I decided to bite the bullet, I got 1 start collecting box from a friend when he had only used a couple of the gargant hackers from it ( some minor conversions needed) and assembled the frostlord on stonehorn. My plan was to use the gargant hackers on the mournfang as I just think they're cooler, big ogres with big weapons!! I managed to pick up a second start collecting from my local gaming store and the project began. With the Gargant Hackers that had been used by the previous owner for his genesteeler cult, I had to make some minor conversions so all of the Mournfang riders had the hackers. I used the prey hackers and attached cotton bud or Q tip tubes to make them the required length and added a randon horn or spike from the kit to the end. I think they have come out quite well. I know that the command count as having the same weapon as the unit but to me, they need to actually look like it. With the both sets fully assembled, my mind moved onto the bases, I was going to try lava style bases but couldn't find a result I like to off to the woods I went. And came back with a carrier bag full of tree bark, and some creepy crawlies to boot! After drying the bark out in the oven I used Hot glue and wood filler to assemble the bases. The next job was to start on the mournfang, I decided on a brown fur. A base of funnily enough, Mournfang Brown, Drybrushed up with skrag brown, zandri dust and the ushabti bone. , For a wash, Snakebite Leather Contrast paint. more to follow soon..........

The Ogors of the Ghur Jungles Hello everyone. So this is the start of my Aztec themed Ogor army, to be exact i will be using the Beastclaw raiders army book. This is going to be my first proper Age of Sigmar army and I wanted something that was unique and didn't require me to slave away on like 20 models for just 100 points. Current aim is to work on my 1000 point army list. Huskard on Thunderrusk 4 Mournfangs 1 Stonehorn Only 6 Models!

To celebrate the imminent release of Mawtribes, I finally got around to finish my stonehorn conversion. Greasus lives! Hope you like it.

Hello Everyone, I'm starting a blog to document my workings on a Beastclaw Raiders Army. So far I have the start collecting box assembled as well as an Icebrow Hunter that I've kitbashed from spare parts. I'm currently waiting for paints to arrive so here are some WIP shots of the models. I felt that the models didn't quite line up with the lore so I sculpted fur cloaks/shawls on all of the riders, as well as a big leather bag for the Hunter to carry his gear in. Also, I'll add a few pictures of the Fimirach that I painted up for fun but that I'll end up using as Allies for the Raiders. And Finally, some Spiderfang Grots from an older army that I built repurposed as Swamp goblins for my Fimir. C+C's are always greatly appreciated! Bores

One of my friends is starting out by playing beast claw Raiders, and he is asking me if the bees call writers huge general guys can be built as a thunderhusk, or is it just a stonehorn.

I'm on a real wishlisting kick at the moment (avoiding coursework, you know how it is). I put together a Duardin future release speculation thread, and it made me think of a faction with similar problems: Ogors. Ogres, with their hungry boi Sumo Mongol aesthetic, were my first army; my first love in WFB. On the current webstore, there are two substantive Ogor factions: Beastclaw Raiders (with a book that is universally considered to be weak) and Gutbuster (without any). Should they be combined in one Skaven/LoN style book? While I was initially saddened by Ogors splitting in two, I’d say no. The Beastclaw raider lore is quite interesting and benefits from having this unique mixed identity of reaving nomad and downtrodden refugee. BCR and GB are, like Fyreslayers and Kharadron Overlords or Bonesplitterz and Ironjawz, seemingly too culturally divergent to mesh (though, who knows, that might be overruled). So I'll outline my hopes for both factions, starting with BCR (I think Gutbusters will be updated FIRST, but let's start with the shorter one). As with the last post, I don't wish to get far into the weeds when it comes to specifics of army rules (I'm not a crunch expert), I more want to explore aesthetic design space of these factions, and how their lore gets translated to tabletop. Beastclaw Raiders While BCR have a post-allegiance battletome, it’s problematic state does call for an update within the next few years (after a Gutbuster release). Anyway, aside from balancing certain warscrolls and improving allegiance/artefact utility, I want to speculate about new models. I feel like a little goes a long way here. Part of this, too, is adding a wrinkle in the already promising foundation of the BCR's Everwinter story. I want to add ambiguity and conflict to its nature, as well as introduce a belief sect dedicated to breaking the curse. Frost Sabres. I love the idea of fantasy Sabrecats, but the current model is universally derided. I’d want resculpted kitties coming in a pack of 5 (Gryph-Hound style), and to make be viable as both chaff screen AND the BCR’s cheap source of bodies (3 wounds making up for their 6+ save). New Yhetees. Feral ice creatures, Yhetees are one of the coolest aspects of the army (visually and thematically) and would really benefit from a redesign. Following from that... Yhetee Frostcaller. Yhetees are creatures with natural magic affinity to the Everwinter, so it makes sense that the occasional individual harnesses their innate power to cast spells. A -2 rend CC character and spell-caster, the Frostcaller would create the option to theme a BCR force around Yhetees. It would add an additional dimension to the mysterious, feral beasts which live symbiotically with the Ogors. Perhap, too, it could raise an ambiguous question: were the Ogors truly cursed by Gorkamorka, or is there something more insidious going on? Are these bestial being the Ogor's allies, or are they slyly shepherding them (and the realms) into icy extinction? Icebrow Hunter on Bull Rhinox. As I’d imagine a Gutbuster release would be sooner than a Beastclaw release, we can assume this would have already been released as a multi-kit that builds either a mounted hunter or a tyrant. For the BCR this sprue should also grant them their first special character: Fjorg Spring-Seeker, Named Hunter on Rhinox. Having transcended the scorn associated with the status of 'Icebrow Hunter', this chap has attained fame from his quest for a way to lift the Everwinter curse (which probably doesn't make Yhetees like him very much). I think having someone with a proactive goal to 'save' the BCR from their plight would be an interesting addition to their background. One more unlikely addition: an upgrade sprue. It’s a slim chance, but it should be noted that the base Ogor body sprue is one of the best older kits on sale. It’s detailed, modular and, while not the most dynamic, does a good job at conveying a lumbering gait. GW *could* combine the base sprue with a BCR ‘upgrade’: heads and gutplates adorned with winter-themed furs and salvaged bones, and a javelin weapon option (giving the faction some extra shooting potential). The Everwinter is crucial to BCR lore and mechanics, so IMO the faction’s terrain needs to be a dynamic representation of the encroaching winter. I imagine the terrain to be large protrusions of ice and frozen ground, let's say call it 'everwinter's touch'. There could be similar summoning mechanics to Sylvaneth Wildwoods, where the boards gets slowly overwhelmed by them as the battlefield freezes. I know there are some people who find wildwoods irritating for counterplay, but I think that the BCR's interaction with it would be less frustrating. For one, the low model count means having access to impassable (except to Yhetees) blocking terrain helps them defend against more manoeuvrable armies. The ice blocks needn't have a direct mortal wound bubble either: a freezing debuff aura similar to a Thundertusk would be more thematic. The only downside to this would be the requirements to purchase more terrain than most factions (same problem as the Sylvaneth), but BCR are generally one of the cheaper armies so it probably works out. I'd say this representation of the Everwinter is more visual and tactically rewarding than the current allegiance ability. As for endless spells, giving the Frostcallers a toolbox of Ice spells would be rather simple. A blizzard predatory spell, a spear of ice and frozen wall… none of this is inspiring but it does write itself. Well, those are my condensed thoughts on BCR: an interesting army with lots of potential, and could benefit from a small release to flesh out the feral side of the faction. Release size: small Updated Battletome Icy Endless Spells Frozen Terrain 3 new model kits Possibly an upgrade sprue Gutbusters Onto the OG beefy bois. Recently, Maneaters and Firebellies have been re-absorbed into Gutbusters on the webstore. It's not certain proof of reunification, and both Keywords represent a single unit with a strong theme that could serve as a basis for an entire subfaction. The Firebelly invites a more tribal, shamanic culture of fire-worshipping voodoo (the Bonesplitterz to the Gutbuster’s Ironjawz). And Maneaters as a concept (wandering bands of mercenaries and explorers) have endless potential, allowing for Ogors that reflect the cultures of various realms and factions. Either of these could end up becoming its own thing. Or both. Or neither. For the purposes of this wishlist, I’ll assume that Maneaters ARE reabsorbed (they're older models) while Firebellies eventually get the Ironjawz treatment (a faction built around one unit). This ends up being pleasingly symmetrical. Gutbusters are the 'modern' Ogors, worshipping the Maw and also dabbling in more trade than is customary for Destruction races. Then you have two ‘wilder’ off-shoots: ice-themed nomadic beast-tamers and primal fire-worshipper tribes. In separating the BCR and Firebelly elements, several unique aspects of the Gutbusters come into starker focus: Janky tech. Gutbusters are among the more technologically inclined factions in Destruction. They aren’t artisans like Duardin or mad scientists like the Skaven, but have a cavalier approach to salvaging other cultures’ tech and bashing it together to create something new. Friendly foodies. Going hand-in-hand with that, Gutbusters are the most diplomatic race in Destruction. Where Urruks have a constant urge to fight, Ogors have a wander-lust to go with an insatiable hunger, and so many happily work with whoever provides coin and food. The Maw! They remain the most directly tied to the ‘Great Maw’ (probably just a façade of Gorkamorka, like the Bad Moon) means that food should be an oft-repeated beat. Gnoblar, Gnibblar, Ogor, Spy. A species of Grotz even more pathetic than Moonclan cave dwellers, Gnoblars form the proletariat of Gutbuster society. This aspect was best captured in the 6th edition Ogre Kingdoms book, with the 8th Edition book and kits shifting the focus to the faction’s beasts, but I feel the Ogors’ fondness for their indentured servants is fertile ground for fun stories (especially since Urruks and Grotz no longer have the same interplay as they did pre-AoS). All that considered, I think there's potential for a strongly themed, medium-sized faction. Let's start with making a few changes to the existing kits. Appropriating existing kits: Bragg the Gutsman becomes a generic Gutsman hero type. Drawing from some of the old Bragg lore, these executioners are feared and shunned enforcers in Gutbuster society, usually hired temporarily by tribes to enforce certain justice before being cast out. Any Ogor who has perfected the art of disembowelling is, after all, not to be trusted. The change I’d make to this base is that Gutsmen are sadistic Great Maw zealots, acting as enforcers to Butchers. That way, between Butchers, Gutsmen and Larder-wagons, you've got a strong contingent of the 'religious class' represented in the army. Maneaters. Oh, Maneaters. My favourite unit from WFB, they’re a little out of place now (and pretty expensive, too). The name has to go for a start – Golgfag is dead, so we need an appropriately colourful name for this class of mercenary. I’ll get to the new kit which replaces the role of Maneaters in a sec, but for now, let’s call them Realmtrotter Mercenaries. The existing Maneater models have delightful character, so they could represent a hero-level Realmtrotter Veteran (with highly varied loadout options). Gnoblars are where they have an opportunity to pull a FEC and make new warscrolls from existing 'bits'. Supply Gnoblars, or Graft Gnobz. This is a five-model unit of Gnoblar aides, the miniatures coming from the Gnoblars included in the Ogor and Leadbelcher sprues. Similarly to the Moonclan’s Sneaky Snufflers, these would have buffing utility. Graft Gnobz could buff on a nearby unit: +1 attack for Ogors/Ironguts (weapon carriers), +1 to hit for Leadbelchers (torch lighters) or heal D3 wounds for any Ogor unit (food bearers). You already get 6 free with each box of 6 Ogors. Crotchbashers. These are bravest, hardest Gnoblars around (which isn’t saying much). They get their egos inflated from being favoured by an Irongut owner, so become the de facto Gnoblar bosses. In terms of rules, they’re the equivalent of a Grot Boss: super-cheap heroes with modest CC stats and a command ability. You get two of these for every box of four Ironguts. All that considered, I think we need to say goodbye to the humble Gorger. With Skrag’s character gone, these troglodytic outcasts are an aesthetic anomaly and an ugly one at that. What is the whole 'gut-less exile' angle providing, exactly? That's probably the only thing I'd 'squat'. New Kits Tyrant on Bull Rhinox. This is the kit shared across the BCR/Gutbuster factions, with the Tyrant option being an armoured 250pt combat monster. Since Gutbusters get updated first, let's count it as their release. Realmtrotters (unit of 3). This is the unit to replace the Maneaters, and is an opportunity for GW to really knock it out of the park when it comes to customization (think Rockguts but more, MOAR!). To have some visual cohesion, I’d want them to generally embody Order factions (Free Peoples, Fyreslayers, Kharadron Overlords, perhaps some Aelven regalia there too). After all, most of the resin Maneaters look like they've served in Free People cultures. They'll have customizable warscrolls and flashy rules, perhaps the unit champion can take an artefact, representing their exotic collections. Tinker-thugs (hero). The closest thing to a ‘master engineer’ an Ogor can get, these visionaries are responsible for building Gutbuster war machines along with their dextrous Gnoblar minions. Thugs are sometimes called ‘Ear-Nibblers’ by those suspicious of their Gnoblar affinity: Ogors mark Gnoblars as their own by biting their ears, so some suspect Tinker-Thugs give not a proper chomp but a dainty nibble. Tunker-thugs chaps are support pieces for the Leadbelchers, Maneaters and Artillery shooting. Bone-gruel Canteen (hero/Behemoth). Taking Scragg the Slaughterer’s concept and raising the volume, this is a Rhinox-pulled larder wagon dor a Butcher's cauldron. Think the DoK Cauldron of Blood, but with a hungry fat boi instead. This would obviously be a buff-wagon, possibly with a Black Coach style ramp-up of power (nearby models die, go into the cauldron and the buff aura intensifies). This unit would provide a chance for named Butcher character alternative build (the option to deploy the spare hero as infantry effectively updating the old resin Butcher). Lastly, we have the Terrain + Endless spell slots. The Maw offers more creative millage than the ice theme for spells. The Great Maw is the obligatory centrepiece and along with that, I envision a Belch-fume Smog (a pendulum style projectile) and perhaps an apparition of foooood as the 'buff-piece'. In terms of faction terrain, it's actually kind of hard to decide which thematic beats to hit. I could see a ramshackle larder, a holy icon of The Great Maw or a Gnoblar salvage scrapheap. There's a lot of ways to go with this one. None of them strike me as inextricably crucial to the faction identity as the BCR Everwinter stuff, perhaps you've got better ideas? Anyway, that's a summary of the new stuff I'd bring in. I think new Gutbuster models should reinforce an aesthetic of cobbled together exoticism along with their belief in the Great Maw. The army should have the 'look' of masses of monstrous infantry, accompanied by varieties of wagons and diminutive Gnoblar servants. That way, I think AoS could eventually support three very distinct identities of Ogors: tragically cursed nomads riding giants beasts; scrap-tech, Gnoblar-powered mercenary chiefdoms dedicated to The Great Maw, and primally tribal, bonkers volcano worshippers. Here’s a TL;DR summary of the entire faction: Heroes (9) Named Butcher on Bone-gruel Canteen (new dual kit) Butcher on Bone-gruel Canteen " " Butcher Gutsman Tyrant (Old Golgfag model. That dude is just TOO cool) Tyrant on Bull Rhinox (new model) Wandergut Veterans (Old Maneater models become heroes) Tinker-thug (new model) Crotchbasher (from Irongut kit) Units (8/9) Ogors Ironguts Leadbelchers Realmtrotter Mercs (new Maneater-style models) Ironblaster Gnoblars Graft Gnobz (from Ogor kit) Scraplauncher Rhinox Riders (Forgeworld only) Release size: fair Updated Battletome Maw-themed Endless Spells Terrain 4 new model kits I do hope that they maintain the split between BCR and Gutbuster (and in the far future add a faction of Firebellies), but I guess if they do them in one, I'll only have to paint one army. Since they'll no doubt be allies to one another, I don't see anything lost by keeping the divide. Indeed, I'm excited about the prospect of several distinct 'flavours' of Ogor, like we have with the Aelves or Duardin. 7 new kits between two factions (not counting the terrain/spell stuff): that's a conservative take, IMO. I hope that I've grossly underestimated it For you Ogor fans out there: do you agree, disagree? Heard any rumours of your own (I know there was a discredited one, but a GB release this year would make perfect sense: it's destruction's turn to shine, and both Grotz and Urruks have gotten brand-new models)? It'll be pretty funny if they do none of this and announce Battletome: Gorgers.

Ok so maybe I'm cherry picking a few opinions but lately I've seen a few posts around the forums where some people think Ogors/Gutbusters/Beastclaw Raiders should be in a combined book....with the orruks and grots (non ogor grots like gitmob). For example Now ok I get it, for some excuse ogors now follow gorkamorka (although the quoted idea bring back the Great Maw) and are under the destruction banner and how WFB is dead and faction compositions have radically changed. But I just don't know if it really makes sense to have a Battletome where Ogors and Orruks pal around. Ok yes on one hand making a big combined battletome will allow everyone to get updated at the same time which would be great (So it would be in essence a better made GA: Destruction 2.0.), but I fear this would dilute the differences between Ogors and Orruks especially since they already designed Beastclaw Raiders and the Everwinter. I mean it would almost be like Ogors are just bigger Orruks...and we already have that with Ironjawz! Plus the synergies between ogors and orruks are (currently) non existent. An Orruk Warboss waaagh only affects orruks, not even green grots. Ogors would be an even bigger stretch (imo, I mean I know the fluff has changed where ogors and orruks do work together more). Now I understand not every model should help every other model. A Bullgor's command ability doesn't do anything to Thunderscorne. But the 2 "big soup" books we have make sense with nostalgia and theme glasses. Legions of Nagash is Vampire Counts 2.0 (minus ghouls). Beasts of Chaos is literally the original book back in WFB (minus trolls and ogres). It's not like Beasts of Chaos absorbed Skaven or even combined with Slaves to Darkness. That said I do see the arguments for Order Free Cities since we already have the concepts and even loose rules for Free Cities. Yet the Firestorm Destruction allegiance is just orruks and grots, not Ogors. As I said maybe I'm seeing a vocal minority, do you see other people suggesting ogors and orruks be combined? Do you think it may be the better compromise to take the "neglected" aspects of destruction and update them in one big book so no one is left behind?

Hey there! I’ve converted an Icebrow Hunter from left over bits from the Thundertusk/Stonehorn box. Wearing the crimson pelt of Charngar, he wanders about with his saber wolves killing stuff. However I’m not sure what colour his bird friend should be. I don’t think red would fit, maybe clashing with the pelt. Just a normal brown vulture seems a bit boring too. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance!

Hi all, For making a pure 2k beastclaw list that's (at least somewhat) competitive and thematic: would I be better off going the Jorlbad route, with more mournfang, or the Eurlbad route, with minimum mournfang and more stonehorn riders? Jorlbad makes the mournfang faster and braver, but (almost) army-wide mortal wounds from Eurlbad seem fantastic... especially with 4 stonehorn.... Thoughts appreciated!

So I'm checking out the leaked Generals Handbook thingies trying to determine where I want to take my hobby in the near future. I'm fatally attracted to big beastly models of monsterously prodigious size and power. You could say a Timmy. The Beastclaw Raiders is a sub-faction of Ogors where they piled the Stonehorns, Thundertusks, Yheteens, Frost Sabres and Mournfang Cavalry. But there's a few units I don't understand where I can find the stats for or what they do. They are Leader characters called Frostlords and Huskards on Thundertusks or Stonehorns respectively. They cost ~100 points more than their Battleline counterparts the Stonehorn and Thundertusk Beastriders (which I presume to be the normal models). Are they the same, simply paying a premium for becoming leaders? Are they something I've missed? Is there new models in the pipeline?!

Greetings, this thread is where I'll update my progress building and painting my very first army: Beastclaw Raiders! I just finished priming all the models so everything is dark and boring atm, and I'll have pictures of all the units tomorrow - but first: my first attempt at conversion: the gutbuster ally Butcher with Cauldron! I hate how the official model aka Gross Stumpman and Bloodpot look (how can you drag that thing during a battle? preposterous!) so I'm making my own out of a scrap launcher and greenstuff and bits from my icewind assault box. It's also my first time working with green stuff, but I think the stew turned out alright with textures I pressed on: Yes I'm making two With the launcher's cart, wheels, support tusks and mournfang pulling it I think it looks properly mobile at least. The Butcher himself is a frankenstein ogor I made of all sorts of parts, a meathook plus the great looking chaintrap. Best of all it uses the same sized base as the butcher with cauldron model! More pictures of units to come, but for now here's some mournfang cavalry that are currently drying and look like I didn't thin my paints although I assure you I did - this is fur layer 4!

Hi I'm making this thread for battle reports with pictures in my quest to git gud with beast claw raiders! I've taken some brief notes in my games leading up to this point, but I've decided to go ahead and do some actual battle reports in an effort to make our tga destruction forum more than just endless Ironjaws discussions - our GA is more than just orcs! I'm new to the hobby and wargaming in general, got my army assembled and base coated just in time to play one game pre-GHB17, so much of my journey to improve tactically has also been dealing with loss . The poor artist blames his tools, though, and so even though it was quite clear that BCR were dumpster-tier after the changes, theorycraft and playtesting are different beasts. I come from a very competitive MtG background, and my team regularly competes at thousand person grand prix day 2s, scg invitationals, and the pro tour, and one of our mantras when we feel like complaining about bad beats or an underpowered list is "Just Play Better". As in, yes, you could have a bad matchup or the wrong sideboard and these are very relevant, but don't underestimate the power of making less mistakes. Furthermore GW apparently listens to feedback and playtesting, so lets figure out what to recommend for ghb18! Early Games: My lists are eurlbad or jorlbad, with a thundertusk and either a 2nd tusk or a skal. 2-man msu mournfang as is the prevailing wisdom. sometimes no battalions, sometimes frostlord, sometimes 12 ogor allies, etc. honestly just trying all the combinations, even ones I think aren't very good. it pays to see first hand why something isn't recommended. These early games are from memory or one-sentence notes after the battle, so are sadly very short on useful info, but anyway. *First game ever: all I remember is that frostlord on stonehorn died from full life to 5 brutes that charged him during a waagh (pre-stone skeleton nerf). I think I won by running away from Gordrakk while scoring points. I critically won the double turn on t5 to be able to turtle up on my objectives. Major Victory. honestly felt like a cheap way to win. not sure I like the random timewalk mechanic. *duality of death. -skal list vs balanced Ironjaws w/ 30ard, mawboss: I'm given first turn, drop skal on right point to capture while lining up for potential counter charge. He gets much farther than I anticipate, puts most of my army into combat, kills the frost sabers first and proceeds to smash and bash his way through every combat before I can activate even one unit, killing everything. He then wins the double turn and that's game. Major Loss. What I learned: chaff units only feed ironjaws power, smashing and bashing is great, they cover more distance than you think, and they are ridiculously killy thanks to amazing buffs and synergies. rolling for initiative really slams the door shut when you're behind, I think I don't like the random timewalk mechanic. *frostlord and skal w/ butcher v ironjaws: I try to kill the ardboy unit because it will auto-capture and just get me on points. charge SH beastriders in, shoot with tusk (roll a 1). long story short the ardboys kill stonehorn with damage 1 attacks and they take my whole army's full offense for 2 turns and don't die while he racks up double my points and I'm mostly tabled. Major Loss. What I learned: my whole army can't kill 30 'ardboys. thundertusks actually suck when they can't snipe heroes. butcher is frustratingly random. capturing objectives in 5/6 battleplans based on number of models nearby is possibly a crippling weakness of BCR that needs to be solved with allies. I hope this isn't true, however, because the whole reason I chose BCR was so that I could play an army that didn't have to run hordes of tiny idiots to win. Even so, wouldn't it be better to play an army where your battleline are numerous and good? *seraphon v 2x thundertusk list: Opponent makes a critical mistake, teleporting slaan and a unit next to a thundertusk, fails the charge, then on my turn vulture+frost cannon the slann off with over 800 points of summoning now trapped off the table. He concedes for a Major Victory. What I learned: if an army with really important 5-6-7 wound hero majorly ****** up I can steal a victory. *seraphon rematch: He plays conservatively and wins on points. Major Loss. What I learned: this matchup is seraphon's game to lose. skink units capture automatically and can retreat on my turn, coupled with powerful teleporting and rend -1 ignoring units. I felt like the dumb aggro deck being easily dealt with by blue/white control. *seraphon balewind kroakk astrolith list v 1 thundertusk eurlbad: my thundertusk gets hit with some spells charting it down to d3 mw on the fwi right away, and he never gets out of chart hell all game, so kroakk on balewind is literally invulnerable to my whole army. He pulses aoe mw on all my units every turn, slowly killing them while I lose on positioning and points by over 15 and get tabled on turn 4. The Majorist of Losses. *kroakk rematch but on duality of death v frostlord butcher butcher list: He gives me first turn, so I run a mystic shielded frostlord on a point, scoring. For the rest of the game I stay 1pt ahead and he can't actually kill frostlord since all his damage comes from mortal wound spells which are still halved with stone skeleton. Major Victory. What I learned: the one battleplan that doesn't reward models might actually be fair for BCR. An army that relies on spells has a hard time dealing with frostlord, whom I had considered pretty fragile up until now, as he would get consistently merced by the most common weapon type in the game (damage 1). *Khorne archaon v eurlbad: Played a few games in various battleplans against this and it's 50/50. trying to strand archaon on an obj so his points are spent inefficiently babysitting an objective instead of one-shotting a 400pt behemoth is a legit strategy, as is trying to alpha strike him off the table. Khorne blood tithe movement is very strong on archaon, and the player was honing his tactics very well each game. I think I'm down to 40/60 at this point as he gets used to the army. What I learned: don't let varanguard charge, khorne priests are amazing. bronze flesh, scorpion get-over-here, and 1d6 mw, you're almost spoiled for choices. a skal that doesn't drop in to capture a point is a complete waste of 250 points. Bloodreavers suck, even with a million buffs. Blood Warriors with punch-fists are underwhelming. Starstrike. Eurlbad v GA death: I position mournfang just out of charge range on t2, then opponent moves them 4" in his hero phase from the battalion that I forgot about and so I get charged by 40 buffed skeletons re-rolling hits and wounds from mystical. Pictured is 960 points of mournfang being kindly welcomed into the Bone Zone. They do not survive. I do not survive. Major Loss. Things I learned: when you think you're out of charge range, it is very possible that you are not. Eurlbad Huskard on Stonehorn is just as/slightly more killy than a frostlord, and can expect to just delete a vampire lord on zombie dragon if you get the charge. a skal can drop in to capture a point, but will definitely not hold it. Battle for the Pass. 2 butcher 2 tusk 1 frostlord v balanced list ironjaws w/ 2 grot chariots (proxied using my mournfangs in pic). I play a little too defensively this game and suffer from not developing my board presence enough. The blob of ardboys is sent front and center, obliging me to have to deal with it even though I don't want to. Two turns of everything in my army attacking it and it survives while most of my guys die and he wins on points hugely by turn 4. Major Loss. What I learned: my whole army really can't kill 30 ardboys. an opponent who properly hides his buffing heroes in terrain makes the 380 point thundertusks feel like bloated garbage. Two butchers is great, probably something I always want. frostlord is just too expensive. Once again I just don't have enough models and our behemoths are not strong enough to cover for that downside. Starting to think that the prevailing wisdom of 2-man msu mournfangs, while indeed being resistant to battleshock, are just too weak and susceptible to missing. I'm losing the activation war, and I think I'm just going to have to risk getting blown out by ranged+battleshock and bite the bullet on units of 4 mournfang. Playing conservatively is a luxury and privilege that armies with great unit options and warscrolls have. We don't got that. Sometimes you gotta bet big to win big - it might be my only chance. *Nurgle demons v eurlbad w/ 1 tusk. Duality of death. He was mostly a 40k player and wasn't very experienced with AoS. He didn't want to use artefacts or traits because he 'didn't like the GA ones'. I held back to help him learn the game (and even secretly didn't place 2 mournfang so was on 1700 pts to his like 2200). I regret not re-rolling the battleplan, as duality of death is the only battleplan where BCR isn't at a massive disadvantage, but figured the point diff was enough. I won despite him having the tools to definitely win easily. What I learned: new players think thundertusks are insanely overpowered. Potential AoS players hate rolling for initiative and it turns them off from the game entirely. Every new player friend watching complained about double turns the whole time, and I couldn't really disagree, it's the least satisfying way to win a game, and feels bad to lose to.

Frostlord Ótambær sat astride his Stonehorn, the cold whisper of the Everwinter everpresent on his mind. Ahead lay conflict and violence, war and ruin. Many thought the Raiders were cold, unthinking beings, little more than ravenous beasts. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. They prided themselves on honour and power, challenging themselves to ever greater feats of martial strength. Ótambær embodied this nobility. He was a warrior borne from the most steadfast lineage, a proud follower of the Great Predator. But his was not a story of glory, but of tragedy. Almost a century ago, he and his Alfrostun had struck a bargain with Sigmar. Their people, the wives and children, would be free from the clutches of the Everwinter, allowed to settle in the cold regions of Azyr. Once a year the Vetefreki would be allowed to return home, to see their people and their lands untouched by the Everwinter, to father new songs and sing new songs. On this day, the Gull-Vetrar, the Golden Winter, they would know piece. In exchange, the Vetrfreki warriors would take on an even greater curse, to further the Golden Gods goals. Ótambær and his warriors would roam the realms, hunting the denizens of chaos and destroying their corruption wherever they dwelt. No mortal food could satiate their hunger, only beings borne from chaos would fulfill them. And yet, the Vetrfreki were viewed as legends by their people. Ogors far and wide would come to join their ranks, to be a part of the Alfrostun that beat the Everwinter. Their city grew ever larger, expanding until the city of Ríkfirjalís was a bastion for Ogors. Ótambær had lived a long life, and had won many battles. His hall was filled with trophies, his name sung in great ballads across the realms and his sons were mighty warriors all. But a great sorrow had settled in him, biting deeper than any cold. Decades ago, his elska, his bride, had been killed in retaliation by Daemons. The red skinned cowards had ambushed her and tortured her for days, whispering her screams into Ótambær’s dreams. He had taken many brides since then, and all had bred him mighty sons who filled his belly with pride, but he knew he would never be at peace until the Daemon that had taken her life was his to he devoured. Skarbrand would fall. Hey guys, so I finally got around to painting my Beastclaw Raiders and wanted to put a bit of backstory to them. I envision them as tragic, Norse like warriors, who live for the thrill of battle. Very little of where they come from is shown in their Battletome so I came up with my own take on their settlements and culture. I want to have them painted up before February, so hopefully this goes quickly. I’ve started work on some allied in Ironguts, who are represented by Mantic ogres as they looked a little more feral. These three are Ótambær’s eldest sons, and they accompany him as his elite bodyguard. Frœken (the bald one), Garpir (the ponytail) and Vaskir (the dreadlocks) are all brave warriors, and will someday lead their own Alfrostuns. Frœken is the oldest and most serious of the three, whip Vaskir lives to fight and is somewhat of a berserker. Garpir views himself as a conqueror or settler at heart and wants to expand Ríkfirjalís into an empire. I’ve also begun two giants who I got as a gift. I don’t know how often I’ll use them but I love the models. Their names are Berja (the horned one) and Lemja (the top knot). They were rescued from a Khornate sacrifice by Ótambær and have followed him ever since, the Azyrite magic infused in him also sleeping into their veins. I have four Mournfangs, a Frostlord on Stonehorn (Ótambær) Thundertusk with two beast riders and four Frost Wolves (played as Sabers) also ready to be painted. Unsure what I should use for my last few hundred points, suggestions welcome!