Headhunter

Trying out the wide variety of warlocks I have using the same template list has been... difficult.  Most of the time I'm finding them unusually exposed or a little counter-intuitive to how I want to play them.  I'm having particular difficulty with Grim Angus and the stupidly long range on his gun.  I'm not sure why, but he's just not playing how I'd like him to play.  I'll muddle through a few more games and see whether he opens up for me though.

For all the good the Impaler does, I think it's something of a trap.  You're taking a light warbeast that generates fury like it would end world poverty and has a 50% chance of doing almost nothing in the entire game.  I have a similar problem with the Bomber, I'm not getting production value out of the fury that's being generated.  It works with eDoomshaper, but that's due to Refuge and I honestly don't care if it frenzies most of the time or there are whelps being spawned left, right and centre.

I picked up eGrissel (or Grissel2?  With the next layer of epics I think the number terminology may finally come into effect) while I was Christmas shopping with Hannah on Saturday, she might be worth a spin.  I like the idea of taking her against Menoth to force their issues with pathfinder.  I'll certainly have a think about it before my game against Ricky's Retribution tomorrow.  Or just bring my Mercenaries and rocket him to death.

Drunken Antics

Well, Barry read my blog post before our game but didn't see the one I posted on Tuesday so he clearly wasn't expecting Borka and the Wall of Tough.  He brought along Reznik and pretty much an all warjack army, which I promptly jammed up with my tough, insanely hard to hit, high armour, medium bases and thus won on scenario without much hassle.  I'm still disappointed in the performance of the list in general however, and the number of cards I had out.  There were a LOT of cards.

As Family Reunion goes, it's good at jamming people up, but really...  if you don't destroy everything in your initial charges, you are well and truly boned.  The list feels very vulnerable to something like bile thralls.

My unit of champions did its job, but it wasn't quite all that I wanted.  My main problem is that Borka typically only leeches 3 fury off his warbeasts at the start of his turn.  This makes running multiple damage buffing warbeasts quite difficult as you end up with a massive excess on the table and can't leech enough to get the best performance out of your battlegroup.  I get away with this on Doomshaper/Calandra because I can usually drain off 5 fury and whatever else that happens to be near a whelp.  So that heavy I needed to smash something?  Totally fine with a 7 fury warlock, totally boned with a 5 fury one.

What does this mean?  Am I going to end up with Calandra/Doomshaper/Doomshaper as my trio of lists?  DAMN RIGHT I AM!  Maybe...  Next up for testing is eGrissel I think, with her single Axer and the Sons of Bragg.

Reinforced Concrete

So, the final stretches of the SR2012 draft document are underway apparently.  I've only glanced through it if I'm honest, but I'm not happy with the phrase 'artifices'.  'Supplemental Rules' or some such name which is easier to grasp might have been a better design decision, but I have faith in Hacksaw76, he has been tried and tested before and come out swinging.  Not many of you will remember the early days of Steamroller and the level of broken those scenarios brought to the table.  Those days were the Dark Ages.

Personally I dislike the idea that these artifices are mandatory, and it is optional to remove them, rather than the other way around.  My biggest gripe is Reinforcements.  These function basically as models with Ambush but only along a certain length of the board.  It just screams of additional paperwork to me, but I will admit that ambushing models/units are immensely fun.  Bad Seeds Saxon Orrik remains my hero.  That said, the rules are still in draft, and may change.  And like I said, I have faith in Hacksaw to produce a good scenario package.

I've come to realize that most of my Trollblood lists now all conform to the same basic layout.  There are some slight variations with each warlock, but the basic premise is the same:

1.) 3 heavies.  When I can manage it, never leave home without 3 heavies.  Certain lists get by with two, but those lists usually forgo a Bomber in favor of a War Wagon - pDoomshaper and eGrissel for example.

2.) 2 Axers.  Always, with only one exception - eGrissel since I was thinking about bringing the Sons of Bragg with her instead of the second Axer.

3.) KSB+UA.  There is never, ever, ever a reason NOT to take the Krielstone in a list.  Ever.

4.) Whelps.  With so many warbeasts, I'd be insane to leave home without them.

So my lists now look something like this:

Hoarluk Doomshaper, Shaman of the Gnarls (pDoomy)

+ Mulg the Ancient

+ Dire Troll Mauler

+ Troll Axer

+ Troll Axer

+ Troll Bouncer

Krielstone Bearer & Stone Scribes (min)

+ Stone Scribe Elder

Janissa Stonetide

War Wagon

Feralgeist

Reinforcement: Dire Troll Bomber

Borka is my notable exception, but his list has yet to be tested.  I think I'll use it tonight against Barry and his hogs.  It will be an exercise in making a grown man cry as I attempt to buff Boomhowler & Co to ludicrous levels.  I only wonder about the list's hitting power.