BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
Having said that, I am again looking into the local scene, and trying to decide which faction to maybe eventually spend money on. Right now, I'm thinking of trying to aim for a Jack heavy Cryx army. Granted it will be a while before I can afford to field something more than the starter box, but my tastes are in-line with what I understand to be MKIII's main drive. Giant stompy robots.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Having said that, I am again looking into the local scene, and trying to decide which faction to maybe eventually spend money on. Right now, I'm thinking of trying to aim for a Jack heavy Cryx army. Granted it will be a while before I can afford to field something more than the starter box, but my tastes are in-line with what I understand to be MKIII's main drive. Giant stompy robots.
Cryx isn't a jack-heavy faction, and there isn't even a jack theme on the horizon AFAIK. I love jacks too, but Cryx isn't the best faction to try to go jack heavy with. Their jack casters are not very strong, and their jacks are easily shot up even by infantry with regular guns.
That said, the Coven with 8 Slayers and a bit of support would probably actually do okay?
The most successful Cryx armies right now have two arc nodes and one heavy, and some have two heavies. That's for tournament play, of course, not regular play. You won't see more than three or four heavies in most Cryx armies though.
Having said that, I am again looking into the local scene, and trying to decide which faction to maybe eventually spend money on. Right now, I'm thinking of trying to aim for a Jack heavy Cryx army. Granted it will be a while before I can afford to field something more than the starter box, but my tastes are in-line with what I understand to be MKIII's main drive. Giant stompy robots.
Cryx isn't a jack-heavy faction, and there isn't even a jack theme on the horizon AFAIK. I love jacks too, but Cryx isn't the best faction to try to go jack heavy with. Their jack casters are not very strong, and their jacks are easily shot up even by infantry with regular guns.
That said, the Coven with 8 Slayers and a bit of support would probably actually do okay?
The most successful Cryx armies right now have two arc nodes and one heavy, and some have two heavies. That's for tournament play, of course, not regular play. You won't see more than three or four heavies in most Cryx armies though.
I guess maybe some of the stuff I've been reading has been outdated. Something about MKIII Venethrax providing good Jack support. I seem to be having a hard time finding current writeups on actual casters/locks, as opposed to old information, or a faction wide fluff piece.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Venethrax provides good jack support in specific matchups--mainly against Hordes. He can give all his jacks free charges, and +2" and boosted attacks against living models. Those latter are super valuable but fall off the table against Warmachine armies, mostly.
He also wants to cast either Terminal Velocity (that warjack buff) or his debuff every turn, which is probably 3 or 4 focus spent, so he won't have much left to give to the jacks themselves. It's not actually all that efficient, given that what Cryx jacks want help with is damage output, not accuracy.
He also has no way to deliver those fragile Cryx jacks, so that's a huge problem if there are a lot of guns across the table. He does give them all counter charges, but you often don't want to counter charge your jack into combat and get it wrecked!
If you do end up fighting a hordes army with few guns, I think he can be very effective (and mortality is just a great debuff, and Lamentation is very annoying since he's tough enough to play far up the table).
The Coven is probably the best at running a lot of jacks just because of high focus and a variety of powerful delivery options. Mortenebra 1 can fuel them and move them up really quickly, but can't protect them, though she can repair them. Asphyxious 3 can mobilize them very effectively and make them really tough in melee, but again, he has trouble with them getting shot.
You can take some Brute Thralls to soak the shots in any army, but I haven't tried that and it seems like an expensive way to try to deliver your jacks.
edit: for warjack-heavy armies, Cygnar, Khador and Convergence seem to be the best suited.
BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
edited June 2017
Is there an easy to browse gallery of the various factions casters/jacks? Trying to go through their website with the tiny ass thumbnails is driving me crazy.
Edit: I mean, I guess it doesn't have to be 'Jacks only. But something with at least a couple of Jacks/Beasts. Maybe Legion? I guess I just always find one part of the army design lacking.
Brody on
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Is there an easy to browse gallery of the various factions casters/jacks? Trying to go through their website with the tiny ass thumbnails is driving me crazy.
Edit: I mean, I guess it doesn't have to be 'Jacks only. But something with at least a couple of Jacks/Beasts. Maybe Legion? I guess I just always find one part of the army design lacking.
I just got a bunch of gators and my buddy is coming over tonight for my first game of WarmaHords (his first of mk3).
Any tips for a first run? Planning on a 10 point game, which for me is basically battlegroup plus a min Gator Posse, because I have to get some gators in there.
I was perusing the rules this morning on War Room, and am I reading right that Warcasters can shed 5 damage per attack by using a Focus but Warlocks can only move 10 damage to a warbest in their area of control by using a Focus? So WM gets to straight up stop damage with their focus but H just gets to move it? Although I suppose Focus is at a little more of a premium for Warcasters, since their 'Jacks can't do...jack without the Caster giving them his Focus?
There's no limit to the amount of damage transferred except the health of the beast you're transferring to. Note that you can't transfer to a beast if it's maxed out its fury.
This is a much stronger mechanic than the Focus damage absorption in almost every scenario. It allows you to ensure that you can soak an entire attack's worth of damage for every fury point, AND warlocks typically have far more fury to save because they don't need to spend it on their warbeasts. In general, Fury is a more powerful mechanic than focus, even with the new power up rules; warjacks are just cheaper (sometimes much cheaper) and tend to have more health and armour.
Also remember, if someone thinks they can't kill your warlock, they'll probably not go for the assassination (since it often places you in a bad position if you fail). So just having those 2 or 3 fury on the warlock will prevent players from even trying to kill you, often, unless they have a ton of attacks or think they can make you transfer a beast to death.
I guess that makes sense. A Caster can only save 5 damage per attack, but a Warlock can shed more damage at the cost of allocating it to another beast.
Legion runs armies right now that are almost entirely made of beasts and support, and it works quite well.
I'm literally thinking of running a list that is my warlock (kryssa) her character beast, a Naga, a seraph, four Neraphs....and then the Blackfrost shard, a Hellion, two forsaken and two Shepards
I guess that makes sense. A Caster can only save 5 damage per attack, but a Warlock can shed more damage at the cost of allocating it to another beast.
Also combine it with the fact that warbeasts are easier to heal than warjacks--there are plenty of healing support units but the warlock can also spend fury to heal one point of damage anywhere, so even if your beast is badly damaged by the transfer, they can usually be restored to fighting shape pretty easily (though they might go down soon after)
For my first game I've got Barnabas, Wrastler, 2 Snappers then a minimum unit of either Blindwater Gator Posse or Croak Raiders. I want to Gator, but 3 models seems so tiny...
Very short battle report:
Ended up taking the Croak raiders, who eventually got lit up by some spitty Cryx baby jack thing? I charged both Bull Snappers at the Reaper, who both promptly died. But their deaths opened the way for my final turn, Barnabas cast Rage on the Wrastler, moves up and Feats to drop half the Cryx force (including Asphyxious). Wrastler charges Asphyxious and proceeds to eat him in two attacks.
So, I think I won? We're not entirely sure if we actually played the game right, but it was fun! I'd really like to get into a local store and play with someone who knows the rules really well so I can learn them proper and play correctly.
Yeah, I knew about the immunity. I think it was from a Nightwretch? And I don't recall seeing corrosion on the ranged attack, but we just might've missed it.
Yeah, it can be hard to tell them apart if you're not used to fighting Cryx since the Prime bonejacks look so similar.
There's the Defiler that has the acid spray and Nightwretch that launches grenades (AoE ranged attack).
They both look really similar, especially next to a Deathripper that has a big lower jaw to make it stand out.
Had a game of Coven vs. Butcher 3 today. I wasn't sure if I could clear out his five warjacks, but I managed to take them all off the board--even after Butcher himself simultaneously killed three heavies and one light with his murder vortex.
In the end, I managed to keep the terrified witches just out range until the last round, when the Butcher managed to vacuum in the cauldron and take them all down to one or two health. But then a Seether (run by an Iron Lich Overseer) ate him.
I really like the Coven--allowing alternating activations for crucial spells like Ghost Walk or hotswapping the armour debuff in one turn makes them so versatile. I do miss the old Perfect Conjunction.
Trencher CID is up! Looks a bit strong, unsurprisingly, mostly because their structure is ridiculous (add three trenches to the battlefield? They have to be contiguous with the structure but come on).
But they also get an adorable little trench dog with a vest aaaahhhhhh
I think the two player battle box may be the best deal, assuming that you're interested in both Cryx and Cygnar (or have a buddy to split it with). It gets you the starter boxes and a unit of infantry for each faction.
Could be wrong though, didn't really go in depth with price checking.
A word of warning in regards to the All In One boxes (if you're new to tabletop gaming), that's a lot of minis at once and it can be easy to get overwhelmed with that big of a pile of unpainted staring at you and your tiny brush.
And if you want just a battle group box to start out, visit store.privateerpress.com (as plugged by Jerry on the stream) and you can pick up most of the faction battle group boxes along with the accompanying command book for 39.99 (free shipping). Great deal and you get a cool book with your starter!
BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
Sorry, I meant the All in One box. I guess part of my question is whether or not they are decent lists, as the MSRP on the box is pretty clearly a solid savings vs buying the parts individually.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
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I am overall very satisfied with the paint job, especially because I rushed it in a single day so it would be ready last Sunday.
Kryssa is probably my favorite warcaster I've ever played, I don't know why. She just clicks with me, in a way that a bunch of others never have.
Also it helps having Azreal means I basically can't lose.
COME FORTH, AMATERASU! - Switch Friend Code SW-5465-2458-5696 - Twitch
also pretty accurate kill-to-survivability ratio on those helljacks...
Except that it is mainly a table-top miniatures game.
Oh yes. I am very well aware of that, and I both play and run it. No so much anymore, but my group and I had a great time with the IKRPG.
One of these days I'll have enough money to drop $200-300 on a game without my wife having an aneurysm.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
COME FORTH, AMATERASU! - Switch Friend Code SW-5465-2458-5696 - Twitch
Cryx isn't a jack-heavy faction, and there isn't even a jack theme on the horizon AFAIK. I love jacks too, but Cryx isn't the best faction to try to go jack heavy with. Their jack casters are not very strong, and their jacks are easily shot up even by infantry with regular guns.
That said, the Coven with 8 Slayers and a bit of support would probably actually do okay?
The most successful Cryx armies right now have two arc nodes and one heavy, and some have two heavies. That's for tournament play, of course, not regular play. You won't see more than three or four heavies in most Cryx armies though.
I guess maybe some of the stuff I've been reading has been outdated. Something about MKIII Venethrax providing good Jack support. I seem to be having a hard time finding current writeups on actual casters/locks, as opposed to old information, or a faction wide fluff piece.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
He also wants to cast either Terminal Velocity (that warjack buff) or his debuff every turn, which is probably 3 or 4 focus spent, so he won't have much left to give to the jacks themselves. It's not actually all that efficient, given that what Cryx jacks want help with is damage output, not accuracy.
He also has no way to deliver those fragile Cryx jacks, so that's a huge problem if there are a lot of guns across the table. He does give them all counter charges, but you often don't want to counter charge your jack into combat and get it wrecked!
If you do end up fighting a hordes army with few guns, I think he can be very effective (and mortality is just a great debuff, and Lamentation is very annoying since he's tough enough to play far up the table).
The Coven is probably the best at running a lot of jacks just because of high focus and a variety of powerful delivery options. Mortenebra 1 can fuel them and move them up really quickly, but can't protect them, though she can repair them. Asphyxious 3 can mobilize them very effectively and make them really tough in melee, but again, he has trouble with them getting shot.
You can take some Brute Thralls to soak the shots in any army, but I haven't tried that and it seems like an expensive way to try to deliver your jacks.
edit: for warjack-heavy armies, Cygnar, Khador and Convergence seem to be the best suited.
Edit: I mean, I guess it doesn't have to be 'Jacks only. But something with at least a couple of Jacks/Beasts. Maybe Legion? I guess I just always find one part of the army design lacking.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
http://privateerpress.com/warmachine/gallery
http://privateerpress.com/hordes/gallery
edit: I dunno what constitutes tiny, but all images are clickable for embiggening.
Any tips for a first run? Planning on a 10 point game, which for me is basically battlegroup plus a min Gator Posse, because I have to get some gators in there.
I was perusing the rules this morning on War Room, and am I reading right that Warcasters can shed 5 damage per attack by using a Focus but Warlocks can only move 10 damage to a warbest in their area of control by using a Focus? So WM gets to straight up stop damage with their focus but H just gets to move it? Although I suppose Focus is at a little more of a premium for Warcasters, since their 'Jacks can't do...jack without the Caster giving them his Focus?
This is a much stronger mechanic than the Focus damage absorption in almost every scenario. It allows you to ensure that you can soak an entire attack's worth of damage for every fury point, AND warlocks typically have far more fury to save because they don't need to spend it on their warbeasts. In general, Fury is a more powerful mechanic than focus, even with the new power up rules; warjacks are just cheaper (sometimes much cheaper) and tend to have more health and armour.
Also remember, if someone thinks they can't kill your warlock, they'll probably not go for the assassination (since it often places you in a bad position if you fail). So just having those 2 or 3 fury on the warlock will prevent players from even trying to kill you, often, unless they have a ton of attacks or think they can make you transfer a beast to death.
I'm literally thinking of running a list that is my warlock (kryssa) her character beast, a Naga, a seraph, four Neraphs....and then the Blackfrost shard, a Hellion, two forsaken and two Shepards
Someone stop me (don't stop me)
Also combine it with the fact that warbeasts are easier to heal than warjacks--there are plenty of healing support units but the warlock can also spend fury to heal one point of damage anywhere, so even if your beast is badly damaged by the transfer, they can usually be restored to fighting shape pretty easily (though they might go down soon after)
On the other hand, they're sweet gator men.
Ended up taking the Croak raiders, who eventually got lit up by some spitty Cryx baby jack thing? I charged both Bull Snappers at the Reaper, who both promptly died. But their deaths opened the way for my final turn, Barnabas cast Rage on the Wrastler, moves up and Feats to drop half the Cryx force (including Asphyxious). Wrastler charges Asphyxious and proceeds to eat him in two attacks.
So, I think I won? We're not entirely sure if we actually played the game right, but it was fun! I'd really like to get into a local store and play with someone who knows the rules really well so I can learn them proper and play correctly.
If it was the defiler, it shoots a blast of corrosion damage, and croak raiders have immunity: corrosion.
They are actually a really good unit to take against cryx, for that reason.
I mean, you won, but something to keep in mind for next time!
There's the Defiler that has the acid spray and Nightwretch that launches grenades (AoE ranged attack).
They both look really similar, especially next to a Deathripper that has a big lower jaw to make it stand out.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
In the end, I managed to keep the terrified witches just out range until the last round, when the Butcher managed to vacuum in the cauldron and take them all down to one or two health. But then a Seether (run by an Iron Lich Overseer) ate him.
I really like the Coven--allowing alternating activations for crucial spells like Ghost Walk or hotswapping the armour debuff in one turn makes them so versatile. I do miss the old Perfect Conjunction.
But they also get an adorable little trench dog with a vest aaaahhhhhh
That just turns off Stealth in 8'' and is just 2 points.
I really like the whole of the CID. Triumph is great, that structure is bonkers - neither will probably stay as it is.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
That...doggo....
never wanted to play cygnar until now.....
Do you mean the all in one army boxes (generally between $120 and $150)?
http://privateerpress.com/warmachine/gallery/starter-products/all-in-one-army-boxes
Or the starter battle boxes at ~40 bucks?
http://privateerpress.com/warmachine/gallery/starter-products
Or the two player battle box at ~$90?
http://privateerpress.com/warmachine/gallery/starter-products/warmachine-two-player-battle-box
I think the two player battle box may be the best deal, assuming that you're interested in both Cryx and Cygnar (or have a buddy to split it with). It gets you the starter boxes and a unit of infantry for each faction.
Could be wrong though, didn't really go in depth with price checking.
A word of warning in regards to the All In One boxes (if you're new to tabletop gaming), that's a lot of minis at once and it can be easy to get overwhelmed with that big of a pile of unpainted staring at you and your tiny brush.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
Kraye is getting looked at as well.
COME FORTH, AMATERASU! - Switch Friend Code SW-5465-2458-5696 - Twitch
Between the new trencher stuff, Kraye's rework (no way that version is going live), and the new stormblade solo I can live with a slight Hunter nerf.