Lists:
My List:
Obavnik Kommander Zerkova - WJ: +4- Reaver Guard
- Rager - PC: 6
Kovnik Andrei Malakov - PC: 3
- Conquest - PC: 19
Greylord Outriders - Leader & 4 Grunts: 9
Greylord Ternion - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
Greylord Ternion - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
Kayazy Eliminators - Leader & Grunt: 3
Lady Aiyana & Master Holt - Lady Aiyanna & Master Holt: 4
- Koldun Kapitan Valachev - Valachev 2
This is one of the first lists I came up with after Zerkova2 showed up in War Room, and I haven't tinkered with it much since then (waiting for tabletop feedback before futzing with it). It has the same core as pretty much any Zerkova2 list will have - Ternion (1-3), Outriders, Valachev + (A&H or TAC) - with Malakov running a Conquest to give the list some more melee threat. And, since Zerkova2 still has to spend her WJP and I'm not a fan of her getting shot, the Rager makes its proxy debut!
- Hunters Grim (Muggs & Krump)
- Trollkin Runebearer
- Dire Troll Bomber - PC: 10
- Troll Impaler - PC: 5
Horgle Ironstrike - PC: 3
- Slag Troll - PC: 5
Stone Scribe Chronicler - PC: 2
Krielstone Bearer & Stone Scribes - Leader & 3 Grunts: 3
Pyg Burrowers - Leader & 9 Grunts: 6
Trollkin Fennblades - Leader & 9 grunts: 8
- Fennblade Officer and Drummer - Officer & Drummer 2
Trollkin Highwaymen - Leader & 9 Grunts: 8
My Friend's List:
Hunters Grim - WB: +4- Hunters Grim (Muggs & Krump)
- Trollkin Runebearer
- Dire Troll Bomber - PC: 10
- Troll Impaler - PC: 5
Horgle Ironstrike - PC: 3
- Slag Troll - PC: 5
Stone Scribe Chronicler - PC: 2
Krielstone Bearer & Stone Scribes - Leader & 3 Grunts: 3
Pyg Burrowers - Leader & 9 Grunts: 6
Trollkin Fennblades - Leader & 9 grunts: 8
- Fennblade Officer and Drummer - Officer & Drummer 2
Trollkin Highwaymen - Leader & 9 Grunts: 8
This is a list very similar to what my friend has run with Grim2 in the past, but with some re-allocations to get the Highwaymen into the list (because they're pretty damn fantastic). It kicks out a very respectable amount of firepower, and can do a decent job of sweeping either infantry or heavy targets (especially colossals with Horgol's Slag Troll).
Note: The Berserker is a proxy for the Rager this game.
Zerkova won the roll off and opted to take first turn.
Zerkova Turn 2:
Zerkova upkeeps Telgesh Mark, lets Banishing Ward drop. Malakov lets Redline drop, allocates 2 focus to Conquest.
Conquest aims and shoots the Slag Troll, hitting (no critical) and doing 8ish damage with a boost, then lays down Creeping Barrage templates to dissuade Burrowers. The Eliminators charge/run into the Highwaymen and into the Burrower landing zone, killing a Highwayman in the process.
Everything else either retreats or bunkers down behind Conquest/the nearby forest (the Ternion cloud each other and nearby models). Zerkova gets Banishing Ward onto Conquest.
Grim Turn 2:
Grim upkeeps Mirage on the Fennblades, who use the 2" place to move forward. Horgol upkeeps Hot Shot. The Burrowers emerge from their subterranean paradise to the never ending world of war they thought they had left behind.
The Burrowers pick off the Eliminators and put some shots into the Conquest and Rager (doing minimal damage). The Slag Troll and the Bomber both get Far Strike (from the Impaler and Grim) and put shots into Conquest. The Rager Shield Guards one of the shots, resulting in a good chunk of damage going onto both warjacks.
Everything else continues to run/advance up.
Zerkova Round 5:
Zerkova drops Banishing Ward. Malakov allocates 2 focus to Conquest.
AHV activate; Holt aims while Valachev advances. Valachev sprays down two Highwaymen (killing both) and Holt finishes off that unit and the Krielstone with Handcannon shots. Aiyana continues to provide Stealth.
Malakov advances slightly and casts Redline on the Conquest. Conquest then charges the Bomber, barely making melee range. The subsequent melee attacks kill the Bomber (Grim reaves the fury), and Conquest takes 2 more damage from Redline.
The Reaver Guard in combat with the Fennblades kills the Officer and remaining unit member, leaving only the drummer. Zerkova toes into the woods, with her other Reaver Guard trailing behind.
Grim Round 5:
The Impaler has to make another frenzy check due to remaining fury, and unfortunately fails. The resulting frenzy attack kills Muggs. The Impaler discards the fury on it to get back to zero.
Horgol advances and casts Molten Metal twice on Conquest, killing it.
Grim aims while Crump advances. Crump tries to knock down the Reaver Guard, but misses, however Grim is able to kill it with ease.
The Chronicler and Fennblade musician move towards Zerkova's flag.
Zerkova Turn 10:
Zerkova full camps and runs back into base contact with her flag, surviving the freestrike.
End of turn, Zerkova scores 1 CP for dominating her friendly flag.
CPs: Zerkova 5 - Grim 2
Scenario: SR2015 Close Quarters
Deployment:
 |
| Deployment and Round 1 |
Zerkova won the roll off and opted to take first turn.
Round 1:
Standard "buff and run" turn on both sides.
Zerkova gets out Telgesh Mark on a nearby Ternion and Banishing Ward on the Outriders. Malakov casts Redline on the Conquest, allowing it to run 12" into the table and doing 2 points of damage to it. Everything else runs up.
Grim gets Mirage out on the Fennblades and Horgol casts Hot Shot on his Slag Troll. Everything else runs/advances, except the Burrowers who utilize their namesake and burrow.
Standard "buff and run" turn on both sides.
Zerkova gets out Telgesh Mark on a nearby Ternion and Banishing Ward on the Outriders. Malakov casts Redline on the Conquest, allowing it to run 12" into the table and doing 2 points of damage to it. Everything else runs up.
Grim gets Mirage out on the Fennblades and Horgol casts Hot Shot on his Slag Troll. Everything else runs/advances, except the Burrowers who utilize their namesake and burrow.
Round 2:
 |
| Start of Round 2 |
Zerkova upkeeps Telgesh Mark, lets Banishing Ward drop. Malakov lets Redline drop, allocates 2 focus to Conquest.
Conquest aims and shoots the Slag Troll, hitting (no critical) and doing 8ish damage with a boost, then lays down Creeping Barrage templates to dissuade Burrowers. The Eliminators charge/run into the Highwaymen and into the Burrower landing zone, killing a Highwayman in the process.
Everything else either retreats or bunkers down behind Conquest/the nearby forest (the Ternion cloud each other and nearby models). Zerkova gets Banishing Ward onto Conquest.
Grim Turn 2:
Grim upkeeps Mirage on the Fennblades, who use the 2" place to move forward. Horgol upkeeps Hot Shot. The Burrowers emerge from their subterranean paradise to the never ending world of war they thought they had left behind.
The Burrowers pick off the Eliminators and put some shots into the Conquest and Rager (doing minimal damage). The Slag Troll and the Bomber both get Far Strike (from the Impaler and Grim) and put shots into Conquest. The Rager Shield Guards one of the shots, resulting in a good chunk of damage going onto both warjacks.
Everything else continues to run/advance up.
Round 3:
Zerkova upkeeps both of her spells. Malakov allocates 3 focus to Conquest.
One unit of Ternion runs into position for the feat, while the other advances and sprays into Highwaymen and Burrowers, killing a few. The Outriders advance into the Fennblades, killing the front line with Frostbites and advancing further into the unit for feat turn.
Zerkova advances to get all the Greylord models in her control area, then pops her feat. She casts Occult Whispers with her free spell, then Frostbites rip through the Trollblood lines, killing a sizable chunk of the Highwaymen and Burrowers, and also put a lot of Fennblades on their backs (lots of Tough rolls this round). The Runebearer is also forced to make his first Tough check of the game this round. Zerkova throws a Hoarfrost into clumped up Burrowers, missing the initial attack but catching and killing one with the blast.
The Rager advances and picks off a knocked down Burrower with its Shield Cannon. Conquest shoots at the Slag Troll again, hitting (no crit again) and doing some more damage. The Secondary Barrages pick off one more Fennblade.
Aiyana, Holt, and Valachev (AHV) continue to advance up the table, with Aiyana & Holt maintaining Stealth.
Grim Turn 3:
During the Maintenance Phase, the Fennblades who can advance and attack the Outriders, doing some damage.
Grim upkeeps Mirage and uses the 2" placement to move more of the Fennblades into melee with the Outriders. Horgol upkeeps Hot Shot on the Slag Troll.
The Runebearer stands up and attempts to land a Mortality on the Outriders, but misses. Grim follows up by landing a boosted Mortality onto the Outriders. The Fennblades then lay into the Outriders, killing all but one (who fails his command check and flees).
The remaining Highwaymen and Burrowers retaliate against the nearby Greylords, wiping out one unit entirely but missing the other unit.
The Slag Troll and Bomber continue to lay ranged damage into the Conquest and Rager (via Shield Guard), though the Slag Troll has to advance into range as there is only one Far Strike available (due to Grim needing to cast the boosted Mortality). Another round of shooting breaks the Shield on the Rager and puts more damage on Conquest.
The Krielstone continues to advance and put up it's protective aura while the Chronicler continues to read Tale of Mist to the Fennblades.
Round 4:
Zerkova Turn 4:
Zerkova upkeeps Banishing Ward, lets Telgesh Mark drop, and allocates 3 focus to the Rager. Malakov allocates 3 focus to the Conquest.
Zerkova starts off the turn by giving the run/charge order, then charging one of her Reaver Guards who charges off into a Fennblade (killing it). Zerkova gets the lone Outrider into her CMD range, automatically rallying it, then casts Occult Whispers.
The Ternion advance and spray into the Burrowers, Krielstone, and Fennblades. The Burrowers are wiped out, one of the Krielstone is killed, and one Fennblade dies.
AHV advance, Holt tries to kill a Highwayman and fails (miss and Tough) while Aiyana gives them Stealth. Valachev lurks.
The Rager charges into the Slag Troll, kills it after spending all of its focus, and explodes afterwards, taking out a Krielstone Bearer, forcing a Tough check on another, and killing a nearby Ternion.
The lone Outrider advances to catch 4 Fennblades in a spray, killing 2 and putting the Officer on its last damage box.
Conquest aims and shoots the Bomber, hits (no crit) and does 6 or so damage. The Secondary Batterys reduce the Krielstone to just the unit leader.
Grim Turn 4:
During the Maintenance Phase, the remaining Fennblades advance under Vengeance and attack the Reaver Guard, missing one attack and hitting with the other for a couple points of damage.
Grim lets Mirage drop during the Upkeep Phase. The Impaler has to check for frenzy due to having fury on it, but passes its threshold check.
Grim shoots Conquest for some damage and casts Far Strike on the Bomber. Muggs knocks down the Outrider with its Snare Gun while Crump shoots it but leaves it alive. The Chronicler charges in and finishes it off.
The Highwaymen take out the nearby Greylord Ternion unit via CRAs. Horgol runs over to the left flank.
The Bomber aims and puts two more boosted bombs into Conquest, knocking off the left arm.
The Fennblades swing at the Reaver Guard, but miss both attacks. The Krielstone moves to interpose itself between Conquest and the Bomber.
<Picture Missing!>
Zerkova Turn 3:Zerkova upkeeps both of her spells. Malakov allocates 3 focus to Conquest.
One unit of Ternion runs into position for the feat, while the other advances and sprays into Highwaymen and Burrowers, killing a few. The Outriders advance into the Fennblades, killing the front line with Frostbites and advancing further into the unit for feat turn.
Zerkova advances to get all the Greylord models in her control area, then pops her feat. She casts Occult Whispers with her free spell, then Frostbites rip through the Trollblood lines, killing a sizable chunk of the Highwaymen and Burrowers, and also put a lot of Fennblades on their backs (lots of Tough rolls this round). The Runebearer is also forced to make his first Tough check of the game this round. Zerkova throws a Hoarfrost into clumped up Burrowers, missing the initial attack but catching and killing one with the blast.
The Rager advances and picks off a knocked down Burrower with its Shield Cannon. Conquest shoots at the Slag Troll again, hitting (no crit again) and doing some more damage. The Secondary Barrages pick off one more Fennblade.
Aiyana, Holt, and Valachev (AHV) continue to advance up the table, with Aiyana & Holt maintaining Stealth.
Grim Turn 3:
During the Maintenance Phase, the Fennblades who can advance and attack the Outriders, doing some damage.
Grim upkeeps Mirage and uses the 2" placement to move more of the Fennblades into melee with the Outriders. Horgol upkeeps Hot Shot on the Slag Troll.
The Runebearer stands up and attempts to land a Mortality on the Outriders, but misses. Grim follows up by landing a boosted Mortality onto the Outriders. The Fennblades then lay into the Outriders, killing all but one (who fails his command check and flees).
The remaining Highwaymen and Burrowers retaliate against the nearby Greylords, wiping out one unit entirely but missing the other unit.
The Slag Troll and Bomber continue to lay ranged damage into the Conquest and Rager (via Shield Guard), though the Slag Troll has to advance into range as there is only one Far Strike available (due to Grim needing to cast the boosted Mortality). Another round of shooting breaks the Shield on the Rager and puts more damage on Conquest.
The Krielstone continues to advance and put up it's protective aura while the Chronicler continues to read Tale of Mist to the Fennblades.
Round 4:
 |
| Start of Round 4 |
Zerkova upkeeps Banishing Ward, lets Telgesh Mark drop, and allocates 3 focus to the Rager. Malakov allocates 3 focus to the Conquest.
Zerkova starts off the turn by giving the run/charge order, then charging one of her Reaver Guards who charges off into a Fennblade (killing it). Zerkova gets the lone Outrider into her CMD range, automatically rallying it, then casts Occult Whispers.
The Ternion advance and spray into the Burrowers, Krielstone, and Fennblades. The Burrowers are wiped out, one of the Krielstone is killed, and one Fennblade dies.
AHV advance, Holt tries to kill a Highwayman and fails (miss and Tough) while Aiyana gives them Stealth. Valachev lurks.
The Rager charges into the Slag Troll, kills it after spending all of its focus, and explodes afterwards, taking out a Krielstone Bearer, forcing a Tough check on another, and killing a nearby Ternion.
The lone Outrider advances to catch 4 Fennblades in a spray, killing 2 and putting the Officer on its last damage box.
Conquest aims and shoots the Bomber, hits (no crit) and does 6 or so damage. The Secondary Batterys reduce the Krielstone to just the unit leader.
Grim Turn 4:
During the Maintenance Phase, the remaining Fennblades advance under Vengeance and attack the Reaver Guard, missing one attack and hitting with the other for a couple points of damage.
Grim lets Mirage drop during the Upkeep Phase. The Impaler has to check for frenzy due to having fury on it, but passes its threshold check.
Grim shoots Conquest for some damage and casts Far Strike on the Bomber. Muggs knocks down the Outrider with its Snare Gun while Crump shoots it but leaves it alive. The Chronicler charges in and finishes it off.
The Highwaymen take out the nearby Greylord Ternion unit via CRAs. Horgol runs over to the left flank.
The Bomber aims and puts two more boosted bombs into Conquest, knocking off the left arm.
The Fennblades swing at the Reaver Guard, but miss both attacks. The Krielstone moves to interpose itself between Conquest and the Bomber.
Round 5:
 |
| Start of Round 5 |
Zerkova drops Banishing Ward. Malakov allocates 2 focus to Conquest.
AHV activate; Holt aims while Valachev advances. Valachev sprays down two Highwaymen (killing both) and Holt finishes off that unit and the Krielstone with Handcannon shots. Aiyana continues to provide Stealth.
Malakov advances slightly and casts Redline on the Conquest. Conquest then charges the Bomber, barely making melee range. The subsequent melee attacks kill the Bomber (Grim reaves the fury), and Conquest takes 2 more damage from Redline.
The Reaver Guard in combat with the Fennblades kills the Officer and remaining unit member, leaving only the drummer. Zerkova toes into the woods, with her other Reaver Guard trailing behind.
Grim Round 5:
The Impaler has to make another frenzy check due to remaining fury, and unfortunately fails. The resulting frenzy attack kills Muggs. The Impaler discards the fury on it to get back to zero.
Horgol advances and casts Molten Metal twice on Conquest, killing it.
Grim aims while Crump advances. Crump tries to knock down the Reaver Guard, but misses, however Grim is able to kill it with ease.
The Chronicler and Fennblade musician move towards Zerkova's flag.
Round 6:
Zerkova Turn 6:
Zerkova and her Reaver Guard advance on her flag, with the Reaver Guard entering contesting range.
Malakov advances and puts a fully boosted shot into the Chronicler, killing it.
AHV start moving towards Grim's flag, killing Horgol along the way (Harm + Frostbite + Handcannons).
Grim Turn 6:
Grim pops his feat and shoots Zerkova, hitting her and doing light damage. Crump knocks down the Reaver Guard.
The Impaler advances and finishes off the Reaver Guard. The drummer advances up to Zerkova's flag while the Runebearer hoofs it over towards Grim's flag.
Round 7:
Zerkova Turn 7:
Zerkova advances into base contact with her flag and stabs the drummer to death.
Malakov aims and shoots Crump, forcing a Tough check which he passes.
AHV attempt to kill the Runebearer, but it survives between misses and Tough checks.
Grim Turn 7:
Grim advances into the wreck marker while Crump stands up. Grim shoots Zerkova again, doing minimal damage. Crump misses his Snare Gun shot.
The Impaler charges into Zerkova but misses its boosted attack roll. The Runebearer continues to guard Grim's flag.
Round 8:
Zerkova Turn 8:
Zerkova stands on her flag and holds her focus. She stabs at the Impaler but does no damage.
Malakov is able to finish off Crump between another boosted Handcannon shot and Razor Wind.
AHV finish off the Runebearer.
End of turn, Zerkova scores 1 CP for controlling the enemy flag.
CPs: Zerkova 1 - Grim 0
Grim Turn 8:
Grim pulls the fury off the Impaler, advances into base with Zerkova's flag, and stands there.
The Impaler again tries to stab Zerkova, but fails to break ARM.
End of turn, Grim scores 2 CP for dominating the enemy flag and Zerkova scores 1 CP for controlling the enemy flag.
CPs: Zerkova 2 - Grim 2
Round 9:
Zerkova Turn 9:
Zerkova continues to full camp.
AHV advance towards Grim's flag, making sure to get within contesting range but not doing much else.
Zerkova runs from her flag to Grim's flag, taking a free strike from the Impaler that does a few points of damage.
End of turn, Zerkova scores 2 CPs for dominating the enemy flag.
CPs: Zerkova 4 - Grim 2
Grim Turn 9:
Grim aims and shoots Aiyana, but Holt hits his Quick Draw attack and forces the attack to miss.
The Impaler runs to contest Grim's flag.
CPs: Zerkova 4 - Grim 2
Round 10:
 |
| Start of Round 6 |
Zerkova and her Reaver Guard advance on her flag, with the Reaver Guard entering contesting range.
Malakov advances and puts a fully boosted shot into the Chronicler, killing it.
AHV start moving towards Grim's flag, killing Horgol along the way (Harm + Frostbite + Handcannons).
Grim Turn 6:
Grim pops his feat and shoots Zerkova, hitting her and doing light damage. Crump knocks down the Reaver Guard.
The Impaler advances and finishes off the Reaver Guard. The drummer advances up to Zerkova's flag while the Runebearer hoofs it over towards Grim's flag.
Round 7:
 |
| Start of Round 7 |
Zerkova advances into base contact with her flag and stabs the drummer to death.
Malakov aims and shoots Crump, forcing a Tough check which he passes.
AHV attempt to kill the Runebearer, but it survives between misses and Tough checks.
Grim Turn 7:
Grim advances into the wreck marker while Crump stands up. Grim shoots Zerkova again, doing minimal damage. Crump misses his Snare Gun shot.
The Impaler charges into Zerkova but misses its boosted attack roll. The Runebearer continues to guard Grim's flag.
Round 8:
 |
| Start of Round 8 |
Zerkova stands on her flag and holds her focus. She stabs at the Impaler but does no damage.
Malakov is able to finish off Crump between another boosted Handcannon shot and Razor Wind.
AHV finish off the Runebearer.
End of turn, Zerkova scores 1 CP for controlling the enemy flag.
CPs: Zerkova 1 - Grim 0
Grim Turn 8:
Grim pulls the fury off the Impaler, advances into base with Zerkova's flag, and stands there.
The Impaler again tries to stab Zerkova, but fails to break ARM.
End of turn, Grim scores 2 CP for dominating the enemy flag and Zerkova scores 1 CP for controlling the enemy flag.
CPs: Zerkova 2 - Grim 2
Round 9:
 |
| Start of Round 9 |
Zerkova continues to full camp.
AHV advance towards Grim's flag, making sure to get within contesting range but not doing much else.
Zerkova runs from her flag to Grim's flag, taking a free strike from the Impaler that does a few points of damage.
End of turn, Zerkova scores 2 CPs for dominating the enemy flag.
CPs: Zerkova 4 - Grim 2
Grim Turn 9:
Grim aims and shoots Aiyana, but Holt hits his Quick Draw attack and forces the attack to miss.
The Impaler runs to contest Grim's flag.
CPs: Zerkova 4 - Grim 2
Round 10:
 |
| Start of Round 10 |
Zerkova full camps and runs back into base contact with her flag, surviving the freestrike.
End of turn, Zerkova scores 1 CP for dominating her friendly flag.
CPs: Zerkova 5 - Grim 2
Result: Zerkova wins via scenario!
Post-Game Thoughts:
Good lord was this a long game! Let this game serve as a shining example of two things:
1) Always play with a clock. The game can devolve into madness if you just keep playing until someone manages to scrape together a win.
2) Never give up. I thought I was screwed after Conquest went down (nothing in my list was going to be able to take out the Impaler, let alone really threaten Grim), but keeping my head in the game allowed me to squeak by with a win in the end (though honestly this game would have gone to time far before that point).
Things That Went Well:
1) Always play with a clock. The game can devolve into madness if you just keep playing until someone manages to scrape together a win.
2) Never give up. I thought I was screwed after Conquest went down (nothing in my list was going to be able to take out the Impaler, let alone really threaten Grim), but keeping my head in the game allowed me to squeak by with a win in the end (though honestly this game would have gone to time far before that point).
Things That Went Well:
Banishing Ward ended up being hugely valuable this game. So much so that I needed it in two different places at once (Conquest and Outriders). Ultimately it was much better served on Conquest; with out Banishing Ward he would have been eating a Mortality (first from the Runebearer, then from Grim) on at least two of those shooting turns, which would have hurt tremendously.
That's another 6-8 damage on those turns, and considering it only had 14 or so left when it charged the Bomber, a Mortality anywhere in those earlier turns would have either finished it off earlier, or broken more systems. So being able to prevent that was a big deal.
The infantry sweeping potential of this list was demonstrated pretty effectively. Frostbites were killing Trollbloods left and right; the only thing keeping them on the table were Tough checks (more on that in a minute). Granted, none of the Trollblood infantry in this game was particularly hearty, but I already know what this list will do against something like Warders (weep quietly in the corner) or other hearty infantry. And there is something to be said for a list that so easily and almost totally ignores concealment/cover/Stealth; Highwaymen are otherwise a big pain to deal with when backed by a Chronicler.
That's another 6-8 damage on those turns, and considering it only had 14 or so left when it charged the Bomber, a Mortality anywhere in those earlier turns would have either finished it off earlier, or broken more systems. So being able to prevent that was a big deal.
The infantry sweeping potential of this list was demonstrated pretty effectively. Frostbites were killing Trollbloods left and right; the only thing keeping them on the table were Tough checks (more on that in a minute). Granted, none of the Trollblood infantry in this game was particularly hearty, but I already know what this list will do against something like Warders (weep quietly in the corner) or other hearty infantry. And there is something to be said for a list that so easily and almost totally ignores concealment/cover/Stealth; Highwaymen are otherwise a big pain to deal with when backed by a Chronicler.
Things That Did Not Go Well:
Tough checks suck for this list. Its an extrapolation of what I learned the previous game using Outriders with Vlad3: when you're only generating a few attacks (that have lots of individual offensive potential) it sucks real bad when any of those attacks are mitigated (either via Tough, missing, etc).
The whole list as-is hinges on 11 models to do almost all of the anti-infantry work. With Zerkova2's feat and Occult Whispers, those 11 models can actually do that job, but if you end up with a string of bad luck the reprisal will be absolutely crippling. Its a stark contrast to something like Winter Guard Infantry, which is 12-15 models itself, cheap, and usually has the luxury of some redundancy.
Eating shots on Conquest without Mechaniks sucks (even with a Shield Guard to take one of those off a turn). I've become spoiled by the swing factor those Mechaniks play against ranged softening; damage piles up very quickly when you aren't scraping off 6-10 damage a turn. It requires a different approach to using the model - more of a focus on getting into melee than sitting back and swapping shots - which is fine, but not what I was ready for this time around.
Very minor gripe: Conquest didn't critical all game. So much of the potential of his gun shots is wrapped up in that critical, and it sucks when it doesn't proc (especially since I had three different chances for it to kick in). However, I'll take being 3/3 on hitting over missing any of those shots but getting a critical elsewhere. Every time a huge based model misses its one ranged attack a turn, you want to die inside.
The whole list as-is hinges on 11 models to do almost all of the anti-infantry work. With Zerkova2's feat and Occult Whispers, those 11 models can actually do that job, but if you end up with a string of bad luck the reprisal will be absolutely crippling. Its a stark contrast to something like Winter Guard Infantry, which is 12-15 models itself, cheap, and usually has the luxury of some redundancy.
Eating shots on Conquest without Mechaniks sucks (even with a Shield Guard to take one of those off a turn). I've become spoiled by the swing factor those Mechaniks play against ranged softening; damage piles up very quickly when you aren't scraping off 6-10 damage a turn. It requires a different approach to using the model - more of a focus on getting into melee than sitting back and swapping shots - which is fine, but not what I was ready for this time around.
Very minor gripe: Conquest didn't critical all game. So much of the potential of his gun shots is wrapped up in that critical, and it sucks when it doesn't proc (especially since I had three different chances for it to kick in). However, I'll take being 3/3 on hitting over missing any of those shots but getting a critical elsewhere. Every time a huge based model misses its one ranged attack a turn, you want to die inside.
Key Mistakes/Things To Do Differently:
The two biggest mistakes I made this game were made out of cowardice.
First: I should have advanced Conquest forward an inch or so on turn 4. I ended up being very lucky that I was in charge range of the Bomber on turn 5, but practically there was no reason I should be; a Bomber with Far Strike has a 12" range on its bombs, so it has an inch of wiggle room outside of Conquest's Redline melee threat range.
Advancing that one inch or so ensures that if the Bomber doesn't back up I can charge it (since I'm at minimum 11" away at that point). It also puts Grim in a bit of an awkward situation, as he can't back up due to Killbox (or at least doesn't want to). I'm not sure how much better it works out overall - the Bomber can still kite Conquest and bomb it into oblivion with all the damage it had done beforehand - but it does seem like the better pressure play at that point in the game.
Second: I retreated the Ternion too far back on turn 2. I was right in running the Outriders the hell away from the Fennblades (they have ridiculous melee threat ranges with Mirage, No Quarter, and their native SPD), but I was worried that Grim would pop feat and pick off the Ternion if I left them behind that wall.
Looking back on it, he may have gone for it, but I either the Ternion would have been alright (DEF 17 against the shots) or it would have been worth the trade (getting the feat off the table alleviates some of the threat on Zerkova). And I probably would have been able to stage a decent comeback on that flank still with AHV. Retreating the Ternion as far back as I did ended up costing me three sprays on feat turn, which would have been nice to have considering how Tough everything ended up being all game.
I feel like I wasted Telgesh Mark in this game. I couldn't get it onto the models that I really wanted it on - the Eliminators - and that sort of toilet bowled into never being able to arc anything or really project any threat with Zerkova herself. Part of that is this being the first outing with the 'caster I'm sure, and part of it is also that her assassination threat isn't quite as potent against Hordes (especially Trollbloods, with their often beefy 'locks).
Speaking of the Eliminators, I threw them away. I wanted to try and gum up the Burrowers a bit, and I suppose they did by attracting all of their ranged attention that turn, but it probably would have been way, way better to have the Eliminators around as a resource mid-game (when I was otherwise out of stuff to throw into the mix). I wasn't really prepared to use them in an alternate role after I abandoned using Telgesh Mark on them, and I essentially played the game 3 points down as a result.
First: I should have advanced Conquest forward an inch or so on turn 4. I ended up being very lucky that I was in charge range of the Bomber on turn 5, but practically there was no reason I should be; a Bomber with Far Strike has a 12" range on its bombs, so it has an inch of wiggle room outside of Conquest's Redline melee threat range.
Advancing that one inch or so ensures that if the Bomber doesn't back up I can charge it (since I'm at minimum 11" away at that point). It also puts Grim in a bit of an awkward situation, as he can't back up due to Killbox (or at least doesn't want to). I'm not sure how much better it works out overall - the Bomber can still kite Conquest and bomb it into oblivion with all the damage it had done beforehand - but it does seem like the better pressure play at that point in the game.
Second: I retreated the Ternion too far back on turn 2. I was right in running the Outriders the hell away from the Fennblades (they have ridiculous melee threat ranges with Mirage, No Quarter, and their native SPD), but I was worried that Grim would pop feat and pick off the Ternion if I left them behind that wall.
Looking back on it, he may have gone for it, but I either the Ternion would have been alright (DEF 17 against the shots) or it would have been worth the trade (getting the feat off the table alleviates some of the threat on Zerkova). And I probably would have been able to stage a decent comeback on that flank still with AHV. Retreating the Ternion as far back as I did ended up costing me three sprays on feat turn, which would have been nice to have considering how Tough everything ended up being all game.
I feel like I wasted Telgesh Mark in this game. I couldn't get it onto the models that I really wanted it on - the Eliminators - and that sort of toilet bowled into never being able to arc anything or really project any threat with Zerkova herself. Part of that is this being the first outing with the 'caster I'm sure, and part of it is also that her assassination threat isn't quite as potent against Hordes (especially Trollbloods, with their often beefy 'locks).
Speaking of the Eliminators, I threw them away. I wanted to try and gum up the Burrowers a bit, and I suppose they did by attracting all of their ranged attention that turn, but it probably would have been way, way better to have the Eliminators around as a resource mid-game (when I was otherwise out of stuff to throw into the mix). I wasn't really prepared to use them in an alternate role after I abandoned using Telgesh Mark on them, and I essentially played the game 3 points down as a result.
Noteworthy Model Thoughts:
The model which impressed me the most this game was, amusingly, the Rager. I don't think it could have a more perfect game: it ate two shots aimed at a more important target, it got to kill something with its gun, it got to kill something in melee, and it exploded and killed some more stuff!
The ranged and melee output is unlikely to happen again, as the Rager's stats are...unfortunate. But just having an ARM 20 Shield Guard around was very, very nice. It ended up absorbing another 10+ damage that would have been on Conquest and it was able to cover a couple of other valuable models while it was loitering around (Zerkova and one of the Reaver Guard).
The Rager was also nice to have around because it wasn't at all a drain on resources. Every turn prior to its big finale it was able to run around wherever it was needed for zero focus, which was great. Even the turn it charged into melee could have been a focus-free turn (though it would have been much less effective without something like Ice Cages offsetting its miserable MAT) if I just needed to jam it in there. I can definitely see finding a place for one or two of these in the future.
Conquest is still Conquest: never quite as good as I'd hope, but never quite as bad as I worry it will be. It absorbed a ton of punishment this game (shots that easily could have been thinning out my already small army, very quickly) and still managed to set up the kill on the Slag (by more than half killing it with shooting before the Rager got to it) and taking the Bomber off the table before going to scrap-Valhalla.
My disappointment in Conquest continues to be that: a) if it doesn't crit, its gun is "okay", but if its gun crits it can be fantastic (several shots would have triggered very fun throws), and b) the secondary guns are sooooo bad. Trollbloods are probably the best single spot for trying to get direct fire kills with them - you can shoot knocked down models for high hit chances, and if they Tough you just shoot them again - and even then directly shooting with the Secondary Batterys was underwhelming. I do like the meager board control/light damage that Creeping Barrage brings, so maybe I should just be laying those templates out constantly to force POW 6 blast damage rolls as often as possible.
Or, more likely, the Secondary Batterys just suck and its one of the reasons Conquest usually rubs me the wrong way. That might be it too.
That grousing aside, I have a hard time finding a good heavy for Zerkova that isn't a colossal. She really appreciates the hiding spot, colossals bring a lot of the things she needs (Reach, Pathfinder, immunities, big guns), and I can't really come up with a set of normal heavies that I like as much for a similar cost. And she definitely needs the heavy lifting; while I'd try to avoid dropping her into anything too beefy, lists in general need to be able to deal with 1-2 heavies, and her list isn't going to do that without some hitting power from the battlegroup.
Malakov, much like with the Vlad3 list, is still terrifying to use. However, having him run a shooting based warjack is much, much less terrifying (since he can be 8" behind a warjack that is 10"+ away from the enemy), and even more so when its a colossal (and he has trees to cower behind to boot). I'm thinking I'll like him more running shooting/melee hybrid warjacks or colossals than running dedicated melee warjacks (which was my initial impression of him).
I appreciate having the extra source of focus in this list - there were some turns where Zerkova could have fueled Conquest, but plenty where she was tapped out - and Redline is a huge buff when it comes time to switch over to melee. It pushes all of Khador's hybrid warjacks up to a really good spot on the damage curve, and even if you can't afford to upkeep it (due to not wanting to sit and eat 1d3 damage every turn while shooting) its still very potent if you cast it and just allocate 2 focus (since the free charge sort of makes up the difference).
And, as illustrated this game, Malakov can step in and still contribute after his warjack has gone down. Having a boostable Handcannon or Razor Winds (especially with Occult Whispers) is pretty handy, even at RAT/MA 4.
Aiyana and Holt did well this game, but having played them with Valachev under Zerkova2, I think I now understand why people lean towards putting Valachev on the TAC (and just have A&H roaming around normally).
It all boils down to attack volume. As mentioned previously, this list (and probably many Zerkova2 lists) try to get a lot of attacks out of a small number of models. Her feat allows you to multiply out sprays (which are inherently capable of multiple attack and damage rolls) and Occult Whispers gives you crazy accuracy.
Aiyana and Holt, however, don't really do that with Zerkova2's feat. What you are instead banking on is the need to have Harm in place on a critical turn, have it in two places, or Harm something and retreat to safety (plus also potentially still have Stealth on A&H).
While that is great if it comes up, it is also the only thing Zerkova2's feat is doing for that unit. Holt's output is unchanged, and Valachev is going to be doing the same thing no matter what unit he is attached to. So you're "using up" Valachev in order to gain access to a fairly niche use of Aiyana's abilities.
What seems to play better into Zerkova2's game are the Tactical Arcanist Corps (TAC) under Valachev. They can give Zerkova (and/or Malakov) a pretty safe place to hide on the approach, and then under feat turn they can actually contribute attacks to that big push turn. At minimum, you're probably getting 3 Flame Blast shots out of the TAC on her feat turn, and you may be able to get more if you don't need as many clouds.
I can see where that module is more consistently useful and effective with Zerkova2 (the TAC are also still decent melee models which helps to keep the hitting power of the list from bottoming out) and I definitely want to use Valachev with them with my next outing.
The ranged and melee output is unlikely to happen again, as the Rager's stats are...unfortunate. But just having an ARM 20 Shield Guard around was very, very nice. It ended up absorbing another 10+ damage that would have been on Conquest and it was able to cover a couple of other valuable models while it was loitering around (Zerkova and one of the Reaver Guard).
The Rager was also nice to have around because it wasn't at all a drain on resources. Every turn prior to its big finale it was able to run around wherever it was needed for zero focus, which was great. Even the turn it charged into melee could have been a focus-free turn (though it would have been much less effective without something like Ice Cages offsetting its miserable MAT) if I just needed to jam it in there. I can definitely see finding a place for one or two of these in the future.
Conquest is still Conquest: never quite as good as I'd hope, but never quite as bad as I worry it will be. It absorbed a ton of punishment this game (shots that easily could have been thinning out my already small army, very quickly) and still managed to set up the kill on the Slag (by more than half killing it with shooting before the Rager got to it) and taking the Bomber off the table before going to scrap-Valhalla.
My disappointment in Conquest continues to be that: a) if it doesn't crit, its gun is "okay", but if its gun crits it can be fantastic (several shots would have triggered very fun throws), and b) the secondary guns are sooooo bad. Trollbloods are probably the best single spot for trying to get direct fire kills with them - you can shoot knocked down models for high hit chances, and if they Tough you just shoot them again - and even then directly shooting with the Secondary Batterys was underwhelming. I do like the meager board control/light damage that Creeping Barrage brings, so maybe I should just be laying those templates out constantly to force POW 6 blast damage rolls as often as possible.
Or, more likely, the Secondary Batterys just suck and its one of the reasons Conquest usually rubs me the wrong way. That might be it too.
That grousing aside, I have a hard time finding a good heavy for Zerkova that isn't a colossal. She really appreciates the hiding spot, colossals bring a lot of the things she needs (Reach, Pathfinder, immunities, big guns), and I can't really come up with a set of normal heavies that I like as much for a similar cost. And she definitely needs the heavy lifting; while I'd try to avoid dropping her into anything too beefy, lists in general need to be able to deal with 1-2 heavies, and her list isn't going to do that without some hitting power from the battlegroup.
Malakov, much like with the Vlad3 list, is still terrifying to use. However, having him run a shooting based warjack is much, much less terrifying (since he can be 8" behind a warjack that is 10"+ away from the enemy), and even more so when its a colossal (and he has trees to cower behind to boot). I'm thinking I'll like him more running shooting/melee hybrid warjacks or colossals than running dedicated melee warjacks (which was my initial impression of him).
I appreciate having the extra source of focus in this list - there were some turns where Zerkova could have fueled Conquest, but plenty where she was tapped out - and Redline is a huge buff when it comes time to switch over to melee. It pushes all of Khador's hybrid warjacks up to a really good spot on the damage curve, and even if you can't afford to upkeep it (due to not wanting to sit and eat 1d3 damage every turn while shooting) its still very potent if you cast it and just allocate 2 focus (since the free charge sort of makes up the difference).
And, as illustrated this game, Malakov can step in and still contribute after his warjack has gone down. Having a boostable Handcannon or Razor Winds (especially with Occult Whispers) is pretty handy, even at RAT/MA 4.
Aiyana and Holt did well this game, but having played them with Valachev under Zerkova2, I think I now understand why people lean towards putting Valachev on the TAC (and just have A&H roaming around normally).
It all boils down to attack volume. As mentioned previously, this list (and probably many Zerkova2 lists) try to get a lot of attacks out of a small number of models. Her feat allows you to multiply out sprays (which are inherently capable of multiple attack and damage rolls) and Occult Whispers gives you crazy accuracy.
Aiyana and Holt, however, don't really do that with Zerkova2's feat. What you are instead banking on is the need to have Harm in place on a critical turn, have it in two places, or Harm something and retreat to safety (plus also potentially still have Stealth on A&H).
While that is great if it comes up, it is also the only thing Zerkova2's feat is doing for that unit. Holt's output is unchanged, and Valachev is going to be doing the same thing no matter what unit he is attached to. So you're "using up" Valachev in order to gain access to a fairly niche use of Aiyana's abilities.
What seems to play better into Zerkova2's game are the Tactical Arcanist Corps (TAC) under Valachev. They can give Zerkova (and/or Malakov) a pretty safe place to hide on the approach, and then under feat turn they can actually contribute attacks to that big push turn. At minimum, you're probably getting 3 Flame Blast shots out of the TAC on her feat turn, and you may be able to get more if you don't need as many clouds.
I can see where that module is more consistently useful and effective with Zerkova2 (the TAC are also still decent melee models which helps to keep the hitting power of the list from bottoming out) and I definitely want to use Valachev with them with my next outing.
List Changes/Tweaks:
For as much as I like Malakov in this list, I'm not sure I specifically like him running Conquest. Conquest is an expensive investment, and unfortunately Zerkova2 only has +4 WJP, so you end up having to spend even more points on another warjack just to field a legal list. The Rager gives you a good, cheap general option that still has some utility (a Mad Dog is cheaper, but infinitely less useful). Which is fine and all, but that eats up points I'd love to have elsewhere.
That elsewhere being: some Mechaniks to patch up Conquest (to give it a really solid leg up in shooting exchanges), and/or TAC for use with Valachev. I can get those points by dropping the Eliminators (for the Mechaniks, at least) but I don't like the thought of dropping a good offensive unit/Telgesh Mark target for something passive.
Plus, I already had enough trouble managing Abomination with the Eliminators (one of the main reasons Telgesh Mark never made its way onto them). I think it would be a royal pain to try to manage Mechaniks around Conquest while Zerkova tries to bunker down there as well. Or at least try to do so without the Reaver Guard ending up largely irrelevant.
To that end, I'm considering breaking Conquest down into a "smaller" warjack for Valachev. You give up a lot in the exchange, but it also easily frees up points for the TAC, and you can hide a normal warjack behind smoke easily enough (giving it an advantage in gunfights without needing Mechaniks).
Right now, I'm thinking a simple swap of Conquest -> Behemoth, and use the points gained to work in the TAC and a random solo. Harlan Versh seems fun; he's an okay Telgesh Mark target thanks to Stealth and Fearless, and he brings a touch of upkeep hate to the list. I'd love to get Eiryss1 into the list for serious Warmachine prejudice, but I'll probably work my way there via iterations instead of trying to force it right now (though I absolutely see the value in it).
This will probably be what I use next outing:
Obavnik Kommander Zerkova - WJ: +4
- Reaver Guard
- Rager - PC: 6
Kovnik Andrei Malakov - PC: 3
- Behemoth - PC: 13
Harlan Versh, Illuminated One - PC: 2
Greylord Outriders - Leader & 4 Grunts: 9
Greylord Ternion - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
Greylord Ternion - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
Kayazy Eliminators - Leader & Grunt: 3
Lady Aiyana & Master Holt - Lady Aiyanna & Master Holt: 4
Tactical Arcanist Corps - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
- Koldun Kapitan Valachev - Valachev 2
Eventually I can try out dropping Malakov which ends up freeing up a bunch of points (since it nixes the "need" to take the Rager) which should let Eiryss1 easily skate into the list.
That elsewhere being: some Mechaniks to patch up Conquest (to give it a really solid leg up in shooting exchanges), and/or TAC for use with Valachev. I can get those points by dropping the Eliminators (for the Mechaniks, at least) but I don't like the thought of dropping a good offensive unit/Telgesh Mark target for something passive.
Plus, I already had enough trouble managing Abomination with the Eliminators (one of the main reasons Telgesh Mark never made its way onto them). I think it would be a royal pain to try to manage Mechaniks around Conquest while Zerkova tries to bunker down there as well. Or at least try to do so without the Reaver Guard ending up largely irrelevant.
To that end, I'm considering breaking Conquest down into a "smaller" warjack for Valachev. You give up a lot in the exchange, but it also easily frees up points for the TAC, and you can hide a normal warjack behind smoke easily enough (giving it an advantage in gunfights without needing Mechaniks).
Right now, I'm thinking a simple swap of Conquest -> Behemoth, and use the points gained to work in the TAC and a random solo. Harlan Versh seems fun; he's an okay Telgesh Mark target thanks to Stealth and Fearless, and he brings a touch of upkeep hate to the list. I'd love to get Eiryss1 into the list for serious Warmachine prejudice, but I'll probably work my way there via iterations instead of trying to force it right now (though I absolutely see the value in it).
This will probably be what I use next outing:
Obavnik Kommander Zerkova - WJ: +4
- Reaver Guard
- Rager - PC: 6
Kovnik Andrei Malakov - PC: 3
- Behemoth - PC: 13
Harlan Versh, Illuminated One - PC: 2
Greylord Outriders - Leader & 4 Grunts: 9
Greylord Ternion - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
Greylord Ternion - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
Kayazy Eliminators - Leader & Grunt: 3
Lady Aiyana & Master Holt - Lady Aiyanna & Master Holt: 4
Tactical Arcanist Corps - Leader & 2 Grunts: 4
- Koldun Kapitan Valachev - Valachev 2
Eventually I can try out dropping Malakov which ends up freeing up a bunch of points (since it nixes the "need" to take the Rager) which should let Eiryss1 easily skate into the list.
Closing Thoughts:
Zerkova2 is a tricky 'caster to use. She requires some very precise positioning: you want her models in the right positions at the right time to benefit from her feat, Occult Whispers, and maximize their sprays, all while not getting everyone killed. But the payoff is pretty spectacular; she is one hell of an infantry eraser, and she has nasty assassination potential in some match ups.
I'm torn right now between running more Zerkova2 and Vlad3, which is not a terrible place to be, all things considered. I could sort of run them as a pseudo-Steamroller pair, though I need to hack up Vlad3's list to free up characters (which is fine, as I don't really love my current Vlad3 list anyways).
That is to say that I like Zerkova2, but I'm not sure how much I'll get to play her in the near future (especially since it is sort of random when I'll get to play Warmachine in general). I am looking forward to trying that next list iteration, and continuing to work with her.
Plus this game sold me on the Rager, so I'll definitely pick one or two up when they come out in 2017.
Until next time, thanks very much for reading!
Zerkova2 is a tricky 'caster to use. She requires some very precise positioning: you want her models in the right positions at the right time to benefit from her feat, Occult Whispers, and maximize their sprays, all while not getting everyone killed. But the payoff is pretty spectacular; she is one hell of an infantry eraser, and she has nasty assassination potential in some match ups.
I'm torn right now between running more Zerkova2 and Vlad3, which is not a terrible place to be, all things considered. I could sort of run them as a pseudo-Steamroller pair, though I need to hack up Vlad3's list to free up characters (which is fine, as I don't really love my current Vlad3 list anyways).
That is to say that I like Zerkova2, but I'm not sure how much I'll get to play her in the near future (especially since it is sort of random when I'll get to play Warmachine in general). I am looking forward to trying that next list iteration, and continuing to work with her.
Plus this game sold me on the Rager, so I'll definitely pick one or two up when they come out in 2017.
Until next time, thanks very much for reading!
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete