The 5 Kinds of Units You Should Always Bring to the Table

With over a dozen armies available from Games Workshop alone, there's a huge level of diversity between the different kinds of units that the armies have access to. However, most of these unique units seem to serve the same purpose in all armies across the board, leading to the axiom that there are always things you're going to need in a competitive army. They may take different forms, but they serve the overall same purpose as a whole. So, let's take a look at what exactly these units/models do and why you always see them. Note that these are not listed in any order, they're just placed at random because in my mind they're almost all equally necessary in a competitive army.

#5: The Footmen Horde
Quantity is a quality in and of itself, and one need look no further than the humble infantry horde. However, a lot of people misinterpret this unit. For a lot of players, a horde formation brings to mind the cheapest infantry unit from the Core section in a 10x4-5 formation with full command to act as an effective tar pit for stopping monstrous cavalry and other nasty units like that. But that doesn't always need to be the case. Unless you're playing Bretonnians you will always need to have to have boots on the ground, and with artillery and bomb spells being as prevalent as they are, having a lot of guys to back up the ones that get killed off before then comes in handy. The Footmen Horde acts as a very flexible unit that can be used to tie up enemy units, punch through enemy lines, and act as a bunker to provide shelter for your General, BSB, and Level 4. Depending on what kinds of troops you're using, the horde will function more effectively in different capacities. For example, a horde of Ironguts will function differently than a horde of Longbeards will. Whether you want to make an offensive or defensive build, you will use different infantry for the different uses. However, you will inevitably find a use for a horde in any situation. It's a great mental intimidation tactic, because even Goblins looks scary when there's fifty of them gumming up your battle plan. Trust me, no army is complete without a horde of some kind in it. Even MSU lists tend to have a single horde to help provide the extra punch due to it's necessity. Seriously, it's an indispensable tool in the toolbox that is your Warhammer Fantasy Army. With the prevalence of artillery and big bomb spells that absolutely kill lone characters, having some bodies to form a meat shield can come in real handy.

#4: Level 4 Wizard
I know I've said it once already, but a Level 4 Wizard is completely necessary for any and all competitive army lists. Even for armies like Orcs n Goblins and Skaven where they're pretty much restricted to their signature lores, the power of adding +4 to any casting or dispel value is damned irreplaceable in any situation. Ask a Dwarf player why he brings a Runelord, because +4 to dispel kicks ass even for an army that can't use magic (not counting the Anvil of Doom cause that thing sucks now and nobody takes it anymore) and has all kinds of tricks and runes to counter magic. No matter what kind of list you're building, he's a piece that's well in your advantage to have regardless of what he costs. If you're building an MSU style list, I suggest lores that have a lot of Direct Damage or Magic Missile spells to help clear dangerous chaff and shave the numbers off of a few units your opponent may have in bigger formations. The Lore of Fire and the Lore of Metal I find compliment MSU lists very well. For a Horde style army, I tend to find that lores with more of an emphasis on Augments and Hexes help gain an advantage in the dreaded horde-on-horde grinding that sometimes comes with a combat-oriented army with lots of guys in a single unit. The Lores of Life and Shadow seem to be most effective in my experience. In Gun Line armies, look no further than the more utilitarian lores like Heavens and Death. Lores that have spells that cover certain niches that your build can't cover very well. Like sniping a character out of a horde with Death Magic or making all enemy artillery have to a roll a 4+ in order to hit their target. However, I've heard many proponents of a different magical synergy theories and I can't say for sure that my theory is in fact the axiom of magical use in various army builds. At the end of the day, bring a Level 4. Consult my article on Combat Lords vs Support Lords for more information, but please, if the point allowance is high enough, take a Level 4.

#3: Expendable Units
In war people die, and since warhammer is a game revolving around war, it stands to reason that models are going to die. No matter how lucky or how superb you are at list building, you are always going to loose models. In fact, Games Workshop makes quite a few models that are specifically designed to simply get killed right off. These units are as essential to an army as the other two subjects mentioned above are. The have many names, you may recognize a few of these; Chaos Warhounds, Pegasus Knights, Harpies, Terradon Riders, Dark Riders, Pistoliers, the list goes on and on. Mostly, they have three main purposes. A) They are used to redirect and put enemy units out of position. B) They are effective for hunting lone characters, other weaker units, and artillery pieces. C) They are used to engage enemies in support in the flank or in kamikaze engagements designed to detain or whittle down enemy units. No matter what scenario you roll up, chaff will almost always have a necessary place in warhammer fantasy. Considering how important the movement phase is in this game, redirecting and out positioning can be the difference between winning and loosing the game. Most of the time these guys are cheap, fast moving, and may have long range capabilities for going after other people. Regardless, all MSU lists, Gun Line lists, and Horde list all have a need for expendable units and chaff.

#2: Shooting Unit(s)
Now, before all you people start dropping comments about how bad BS-based shooting is in 8th edition, I am well aware of that fact. However, I do feel that a lot of people view this phase as a whole is simply wrong. See, people tend to have a habit of treating each phase individually. There's a vague inkling of realizing that they all work together in certain ways, but people seem to think that each phase is to cause as much impact in that particular phase as possible. Need I say more than bomb spells? So many people I know think that the magic phase is just there to shoot off a Purple Sun with six dice. I think it's more to support your different units given their positions on the battlefield. The same goes for the Shooting Phase, it's not their to remove whole blocks on models at a time, it's designed to support the strategy of your army. Most especially when two big blocks are about to crash into each other. In grinding situations, any shred of advantage you can get, any small amount of kills will help you. For example, when I play my Bretonnians, my Trebuchets and Peasant Bowmen are there to take a few models off those hordes I charge my lances into in an attempt to eliminate Steadfast that so troubles Bretonnians. They're not there to completely destroy units, unless it's chaff that's going to block up my units. I think that all four phases of the game are important, but I will grant you that this one is probably the least important of the four in total. Still important, but not as important as the other ones. Unless you play Wood Elves or all artillery lists, in which case you've already gone off the reservation more than I can fathom.

#1: Killy Unit
Yes, the humble unit that everyone dreams of having in their army, standing in the middle of the board, slaughtering enemies left and right. This takes many forms and many guises so it's hard to really describe what exactly this unit is. The more accurate thing I can use to describe it is by what it does. Even if you play Wood Elves, you have to get into combat eventually. You need a unit that can compete in combat, that can kill and avoid being killed as much as you can. The list for these guys is insane, but I will try to list as many as I can to describe exactly what I'm talking about. White Lions, Demigryph Knights, Hydras, Maneaters, Minotaurs, etc. See what I mean? This unit can be a monster, a block of elite infantry, elite cavalry, monster cavalry, monster infantry, basically anything that's got high stats, lots of combat potential, and some form of protection. They're also usually very expensive and also usually the best units to send into combat unsupported. Every army has a unit designed to do this, even those avoidance loving Wood Elves. Treemen specifically. Hell, some armies specialize in fielding these units. Warriors of Chaos armies are filled with all kinds of nasty things that are just designed to be erasers in combat. This is also what ties up all of these factor together, without a killy unit, your army would be essentially a meal with no meat and potatoes, something that I have a  problem with. Now, you do need to know exactly what units you need to given the situation. For example, a Giant can kill a whole lotta shit. However, it's not the best thing in the world, especially given it's performance and price. A wizard can kill it with magic, a flank charge can result in loosing combat and being run down. So, this results in seeing elite infantry and cavalry more often then not to be used for in this situation.

So that's all I have for today, and I hope all you tactical guys got a kick out of this list, and if you agree or disagree please leave a comment below.    
  
    

Bringing Bretonnian Into the Future: Part 4

Now we get into the core section, the section that really needs to be improved to keep Bretonnia anywhere near usable. So, we're going to start with one of my bread-and-butter units of my army, the Knights Errant. So for 20 points, you get a unit that has automatically has heavy armor, a lance, a shield, a hand weapon, and mounted on a barded horse. They're also rocking a stat line of M8, WS, BS, I, S, T of 3, A1, and Ld7. Now, for 20 points, that's a damned good bang for my buck even at this point in time. However, I would like to see them a little cheaper just to allow more models to help deal with those damned Stubborn or Steadfast hordes. You're going to be hearing that a lot in this series by the way. Now, for the cheaper cost of the two mounted knight options in this book, you do have to pay the piper. Their special rule (Impetuous) means they must take a Leadership test to restrain from a possible charge, meaning they can be Frenzy-baited. However, they are ITP on the charge, which allows the Cruise Missile Lance (refer to the Virtue of the Impetuous Knight) to take out nasty things like Soulgrinders and Daemon Princes. They're also one less WS than their big brother in the same section, but being cheaper balances this out for me. Now, they get a champion upgrade for free, but the Musician and Standard  upgrade needs to be balanced out with the other army books at 10 points per upgrade. They can take a 25 point magic standard, which I gladly will trade for sole access to the Errantry Banner. Also, the last thing is that they need to have their unit size restriction increased to more than 15. Maybe 21 or something, I don't know if that's truly feasible, I'm just throwing a number out there right now. But that's all that needs to be changed for me. Their stats are fine, their cost is not in that desperate for a decrease, and they're still one of the most effective Core units in the game in my humble opinion. Now we go to their big brother in the Core section, the Knights of the Realm. They have the same stat line as an Errantry Knights, with the exception of having +1 WS and Ld. They cost 24 points a piece, and they have the same equipment as the Errant Knights. They also get a free champion upgrade, and yes their Standard and Musician upgrades need to be upgraded. They can also take a magic standard worth up to 25 points. Again, I have practically the same opinion of these guys as I do the ones above this. They need to be tweaked slightly, but not my too much and they're not in that desperate of a need of an overhauling. I think they should not have access to magic standards, but that's just my opinion. By now you may be wondering why I was so forewarning about this section needing to be fixed. Well, it's coming up right now. Men-At-Arms. These guys seem like a brilliant idea at first. You can take a huge block of these guys as a tar-pit without running the risk of panicking any of your important units. Then you look at their cost, 5 points a piece. You're idea seems even better at this point. Then you get to their stat line. WS and BS of 2, S, T, and I, of 3, M4, A1, Ld5. That's when all hope begins to fail. Then you see their only defense is 5+ armor. These guys are too slow and too weak to actually be even effective at this. They need to be tweaked very seriously in their stat line, and their cost would still be effective in my opinion. They should have WS3 right off the bat in order to make them anywhere near as close to usable as Peasants can get. Just, just horrible. The only redeeming grace of these guys is that they are cheap both points and actual money. Next we have Peasant Bowmen, a much better choice in my opinion. For 6 points you get a Peasant with a BS3 and a Longbow. Having 36" range on anything can really make you a threat anywhere on the battlefield. They also have a really cool ability to take braziers (which means they get Flaming Attacks) and defensive stakes (the best way to make BS shooting units destroy fast cavalry). I will be sad to say that the defensive stakes will probably be gone in the next book, because it's just a little wonky in 8th edition. But still awesome and I would really like to see it stick around. They can skirmish, which is interesting but I've never done it and I know of no one who has. These guys are so much better than Men-At-Arms, it's ridiculous. Having a unit or two of these guys on the board makes your knights a little safer with some shooting to help support them. I have seen these guys with a brazier wipe out Troll blocks. The best Peasant bang for your buck until we get into the Rare section. So, most of our stuff just needs to be repriced and have some slight things re-worked. I don't think we're missing anything except for a fast cav unit. Almost every book nowadays has chaff available in their Core, Dark Riders for Dark Elves, etc. The Mounted Yeomen, those bastards need to be in here in the next book. That's really all I would like to see on our Core section. Stay tuned next time to here about the Special section.
 

Bringing Bretonnia Into the Future: Part 3

Now onto the Heroes section of the book, but not before a disclaimer of some sorts. This post will not be very long, but I promise you the next one in the series will. So, without further ado, the Combat Hero of the Bretonnian army and in my opinion the unsung hero of many a battle, the Paladin. At a base cost of 60 points, he's identical to the Lord with the exception of having one less Initiative, Attack, Weapon Skill, and Wound on his profile. Now, he does have a few things that need to be changed in the new book. He needs to cheaper slightly, I think 50 points base is a fair and reasonable cost. Also as a side note something I didn't mention (or at least go into detail) about the Lord and wanted to. Consider this applicable to both Lord and Hero sections. The cost to take the Grail Vow and the Questing Vow for characters is much too high. For 8 points, being able to (only) take a Great Weapon for an additional 4 points, is broken as all hell. As for the Grail Vow itself, on a Lord it's broken as all hell. However, a fluffy player of sorts, I would not cry if this did not make it back for the Paladins. Grail Vow should be a lot more powerful to the point where only Lords (in my opinion) should have access to it. Now that I got that out of the way, let's go back to the Paladin. He can take 50 points worth of gear and a Virtue. And this is what makes the Paladin so powerful. For a 110 points, you don't want to build a character who has only one function because it's just an extreme waste of points. Now, for a 60 point character, that's a different story. If you need a little more knowledge on what I'm talking about, take a look at my post on my Top 5 Favorite Bretonnian Knightly Virtues list. This guy is one of the few generic Heroes I'm actually comfortable kitting out for combat only situations. So, in conclusion, all that needs to be done in the new book is have the prices dropped on his base cost, mount options, and Vow options/option. Now we get to the Damsel, the Level 1 and Level 2 caster for Bretonnia. Much like her big sister in the Lord section, she is very much overpriced for what she can do at this point in time. She has the same stat line as the Prophetess but with one less wound and her Magic Resistance is lowered to MR1 instead of MR2. She has a base cost of 70 points, and has access to only the Lores of Life and Beasts. For 35 points, she can be a level 2 caster, and has access to 50 points worth of magic items, though she may not use magical weapons or magical armor, also like the Prophetess. So right off the bat, she needs to be much cheaper and have access to a lot more Lores, considering the only one you're ever going to see her running is the Lore of Beasts. Life on anything less than a Level 4 is just a complete waste anyway. She also needs to have access to more than just a horse. I would very much like to see a Level 2 or Level 1 for cheap on a Pegasus in the newest book. Give her access to Heavens, that's the best possible Lore besides Beasts to have on a Level 1 or 2. So, in conclusion, cheaper, more lores, and more mountable options. If you want my wishlist for new models in the Hero section of the new book, refer to Part 2 of the series and then take the Lord ideas and simply translate them into Heroes. Again, sorry for the briefness of this post, but since I'm tacking the Core section next time, I think you can give me a little break on this one. So, tune in next time to hear about how much our Core needs to be fixed up.
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Top 5 Favorite Armies

So you've heard me mention Bretonnians and Lizardmen a lot, but what other armies do I think are worth writing about? Well, read this and find out. Mostly I'm posting this to make people laugh at my choices, because when I put it up I think several people will collapse in complete and total hilarity. So, without further ado, my Top 5 Favorite Armies. Note that the competitiveness of this army is not the primary reason for this list. It's more like a personal list so that my few readers can get to know my tastes a little more so as to know when I'm being biased.

#5: Ogre Kingdoms
You will hear me rant and wail on about Ironblasters, Leadbelchers, and the other busted stuff in this army. However, as much as I hate the stuff in this army and all the broken shit in it, I cannot deny that this was indeed the first army I learned to play with. Yes, before Lizardmen and Bretonnians, Ogres were my first love. Dave Eiler, if you're reading this, I can never repay you for the kindness and patience you showed me because I probably had you explaining the Magic Phase over 100 times! Regardless, this was the first army I ever played and it will always hold a special place in my heart. Plus, I love the fluff about the Ogres. Their entire motivation for doing anything is food. An army modeled after my own heart! Why do they start wars? Food. Why do they hire themselves out to other races to be used as mercenaries? Food. Why did they eradicate the civilization of the Giants? Food. God bless these guys! Plus, I just love the reason that they fight. Hit enemy with club, enemy dies. Simple, effective, and deadly. Something that in this era of Elven domination I fear often gets left behind. Just having a huge horde of big, fat, mean, monstrous infantry is just a beautiful sight. Also, I can't help but admire the models in this army. They are beautiful as they are varied. Some of the best models in my opinion are the Maneater models, specifically the Ninja and Pirate Ogres. In terms of gameplay, Ogres are not pushovers in any phase of the game. While I think they're an army based mostly around combat and movement, they're access to some pretty good lores and black powder weaponry makes them as dangerous from a distance as they are up close and personal. While I've played a lot of Ogre armies over the past few months and learned to hate them with a burning passion, I can't truly hate them as much a Elves. Nothing can make me hate anything more than elves. If I had more money coming in, I might consider making a small fluffy 3000 point army of Ogres just for fun games. Unfortunately, the pizza business does not generate enough capital to do so!

#4: Dark Elves
I know, I know, I hate Elves. I hate all of them, with the exception of the Dark Elves. Why? Because my girlfriend plays them and absolutely adores the army. Given that I'm the one who makes her competitive lists (the ones she makes are laughably fluffy), I've started appreciating a lot of the things Dark Elves can do. Plus, I love their fluff. High Elves be like: Let's make beautiful music and art, and sing as we prance about in the meadow! Dark Elves be like: BLOOD ORGY!!! How can you fault them for the love of total slaughter and pursing selfish interests? The models are incredible, if tedious to put together to the point of making me cry under my sheets crying; "No more spiky armors! No more spiky armors!" over and over again. I also like how almost all of their units are semi-imitations of High Elf models. Lothern Sea Guard = Black Ark Corsairs. White Lions = Executioners. Phoenix Guard = Black Guard. I've been playing a lot with them recently, so I've gained a new appreciation for having army wide ASF. Compared to Initiative 1 Saurus, it's like being in a different universe. Witch Elves are absolutely insane being Core choices now, and to be honest my favorite unit is the Sisters of Slaughter. I love taking a unit of these chicks to slow down enemy cavalry and/or monster cavalry and give myself some more shooting. Regardless, my hated for Elves remains the same, but I do apprecaite Dark Elves for all the stuff that they can do. Props to you GW, you made me like an Elf army. That, and the woman I'm living with would skin me if I ever said anything bad about her favorite army. Honey if you're reading this, I love Dark Elves, even if I make fun of their Toughness sometimes.

#3: Tomb Kings
Now you may roll around on the floor laughing. Go ahead, I'll wait while you stop... Done now? Awesome. Tomb Kings are definitely a victim of GW's inability to balance an early army book in a new addition. While not quite on the same level of Beastmen in terms of competitive ability, TK's are basically just an army of unfortunate circumstances. In 7th edition, they were without a doubt the worst army in the game. With more holes in their book than Swiss cheese, a lot of TK players were beginning to feel discouraged that their army would ever see the light of hope again. Some people even gave up on the army all together, selling them or just putting them on an abandoned shelf next to their 8-tracks and Member's Only jacket. That all changed when the 8th edition rules came out, along with several new 8th edition army books. One of them being Tomb Kings. All around the world, Tomb King players rejoiced when they opened their books, seeing many of the issue that had plagued them before gone or mitigated to a point that it no longer mattered. However, that joy lasted until they realized other armies got new books. Other armies like Ogres and Empire. Tomb Kings went from crap to a dirty urinal in the space of an edition. However, the models are so damned cool! While a lot of people get turned off by the often disgusting Vampire Count models and just plain fucked up Daemons models, Tomb Kings are a lot easier on the eyes. The Egyptian theme is cool enough as it is, making the army very much based around Chariots, Archers, and lots and lots of magic. The models are easy to paint, easy to put together, but still very handsome as a whole. With the exception of the Bone Giant (I know it's called the Bone Colossus or something, but it's always going to be called a Bone Giant by me) and some of the special characters. Again, this army is by no means in the top 5 in terms of competitiveness, but it's still an impressive looking army with a lot of cool things that it can do.

#2: Bretonnia
I have always loved the stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, even when I first read them as a kid, I had daydreams (mostly in class) of riding around on a horse rescuing damsels and slaying monsters and dragons. Years later when I started playing the game, I was between Lizardmen and Bretonnians. The only reason I choice Lizardmen first was because Bretonnians looked scary. Not scary looking or scary to play, but absolutely terrifying to paint. I hate painting, the only reason I have a Bretonnian army now is because my younger brother and girlfriend love to paint models. People who see my Bretonnians after seeing my hilariously horrendously painted Lizardmen army wonder if aliens abducted me and replaced me with an identical android. While I'm not going to claim that they're my primary army, Bretonnians have always been something I've loved and adored. People think I'm crazy when I take my Bretonnians to a tournament, but when they see what they can do when the list is made right they immediately change their minds. The face of an Empire or Chaos Dwarf player when your Lord Heroic Killing Blow's their Steam Tank or Iron Daemon is priceless. My friend Will insisted he and I take a picture of our opponent's faces when my Bretonnians and his Beastmen actually beat their list. He's a bit more intense in this subject then I am. But regardless, I love the feel, look, and just plain existence of this army. Call me a sucker for a hard luck case, but my love for this army will never end.

#1: Lizardmen
Lizardmen are one of those completely middle of the road armies in my opinion. They've got heavily armored infantry and skirmishing guerrilla troops. They've got excellent magic and quite a few units that can cross the board rather quickly. You need it, they've got, which made them a very good starting army for me. I know that a lot of new players think that the two armies in the Island of Blood (Skaven and High Elves) are the best armies to start off with, but that's really only half true in my opinion. High Elves are a great basic army. They've got all kinds of units and models, they're popular so they'll always have a new book and models, and they're able to compete very effectively with very little of a learning curve. Skaven, not so much. I'll get into this a little more in the post that's the corollary to this one, but I can tell you this much. Teaching a new player that loosing troops by the bucket loads because of internal mistakes is not okay. Lizardmen, just like High Elves in that regard, but also not an army that everyone's familiar with. Everyone's familiar with the Book of Hoeth. Not everyone knows what the Cube of Darkness is. Plus, they're one of the easy armies to mass assemble. Apart from the Slann and any special models you may want to have, you can find these models and units at almost any store that carries GW products. Lizardmen are also able to be any kind of army you want. While you're almost never going to find Elven infantry beyond T3, you're going to find that all over the Lizardmen book. At my store when people see me coming in, they start taking bets whether I've brought Lizardmen or Bretonnians. Not to say it's my signature army, but when it's not a tournament, there's a 60% chance I'm bringing the Lizards out to complete the plans of the Old Ones.

So that's my Top 5 Favorite Armies, and if you don't like them keep in mind that this list is based off of personal experiences more than anything else. Tune in next time to the Top 5 Armies I'd like blown into tiny smithereens and then raped by a pack of rabid wolverines.                

Bringing Bretonnia Into the Future: Part 2

One of the things that really gives Bretonnia a leg-up in the game is the power that our Knight Lords are able to generate for a very cheap amount of points. For 110 points, we get a Weapon Skill 6, Strength and Toughness 4, and Initiative 6 Lord with 3 Wounds. Now, that's not counting the cost for a mount, barding, magic items, and Virtues. So, in the new book he'll probably be a bit cheaper or have a new rule to help them be worth that amount of points. I think as is, this guy doesn't need any modifications to him, but there are some things I would like to see. One, keep the Virtues and the magic items allotment separate. Two, auto include the price of the armored horse unless Foot Knights become a staple of the army. Apart from that, he's good right now and all I want for him is to be good in 8th edition. Next, we go to the Prophetess. Where as the Knight Lord is fine, the Prophetess is most certainly in need of an upgrade. For a level 4 caster, unmounted and with no special items, we pay 225 points. That is horseshit. Now, again, it's an older book where the points are higher all around across the board. This needs to be rectified in a big way. After making her a level 4, mounting her, and giving her magic items, she's going to clock in at around 340 points. To put that in perspective. That's equivalent of my Slann Mage Priest with two Disciplines of the Ancients on him. No level 4 besides maybe a Chaos Dwarf Sorcerer Prophet should even come anywhere near that price. Not just that, but she has access to only three lores. Beasts, Heavens, and Life. Beasts is almost never seen because it's a waste to take on a level 4. Heavens is good and Life is very useful, but the amount of lores we have access to is pitiful. While more and more armies are getting access to more and more lores, so should Bretonnians. I think access to Lore of Light and maybe one other lore like Fire or Metal would really bring this army up to speed in terms of magic. So in conclusion, she needs to be dropped in points and have access to a few more lores. Other than that, I think her stat line and everything else is fine, because she basically never sees combat given where she's positioned in a lance of knights. Now we go into the wish list section of this post, and believe me it's not going anywhere anytime soon. What needs to be added to this section? Well, nothing. In my opinion, but knowing GW's theory of making two or three different fluff lord and hero level characters you will rarely see with an absolutely bitching model, Bretonnia will be getting a few new generic Lord characters. So, a few things I think might be cool to see, an Unbreakable Penitent Knight that can be used as lone chaff or just a lone killy character. A Crusader Knight, maybe something equivalent to an Arch Lector of the Empire. A semi-magic user who can hold his own in combat with a few interesting bound spells attached to him and maybe grants something like +1 attack to whatever unit he's in.  And last but not least, a Peasant Lord-level character, something I think that would make all the people who love Peasants (which is more than you would think) to buy in excess. I won't cry if these things don't make it in the book, just fix our existing characters to be as effective as other generic characters in the game (Chaos characters please!). Next post I talk about the Hero section of the book.  

Bringing Bretonnian Into the Future: Part 1

So talking with my friends at my local store, we came upon the discussion of two armies. Bretonnia and Beastmen, Warhammer Fantasy's way of making Tomb Kings feel good about themselves before Nagash's release. One of the the main things we were talking about was if GW did make new books for these two armies, what would be some of the things they would most likely do the armies? Well, theory-hammer is awesome, so the more we talked the more we came up with some ideas. My buddy Will loves his Beastmen and would probably kill me if I said this, but my focus isn't going to be on the former Beasts of Chaos. Nope, it's back to talking about good old Bretonnia for me! So keep in mind a lot of what I'll be talking about is just speculation on things I would like to see and/or GW will most likely have to do keep this army relatively balanced. This is all my opinion, so if you disagree with me, kindly leave it in the comment's section and I'll be happy to message you back when I can get back to you.

So for this post I'm really not going to touch on the fluff too much, but I will say this. It would be nice to see more history relating to what's going on with the Old World rather than just reinforcing what Sir Goody-Two-Shoes did to become a Knight. Don't get me wrong, I love fluff, it's one of my favorite things about Warhammer Fantasy in general. However, I wouldn't even know how to begin to approach this one other than I want a good explanation why Lizardmen and Bretonnia were the 5th edition version of Island of Blood. I mean, they're not even on the same continent for Christ's sake! If you do know a little about that, please send me a message or leave a comment regarding, because I am legitimately confused why those armies were featured together.

Now for the Army Special Rules, something that many Bretonnian players consider to be one of the strengths of the book. And I'd have to agree. While this book is not aging well with time in the least, the Blessing of the Lady and the Lance Formation have withstood the test of time for more that two editions, something that very few armies could claim to be able to do. I'll begin by addressing the former of the two rules. The Blessing of the Lady is hands down one of the best rules in all of the Army Special Rules that Fantasy has at this time. It gives an army where a majority of the effective troops you see in the army, who already have a 2+ armor save, a 6+ ward that goes to a 5+ save at S5 or higher attacks. Now, this rule is not without one big caveat, the entire army must pray and forfeit the first turn of battle in order to receive the blessing. Meaning that Bretonnians will almost always go 2nd, unless you don't pray for reason I couldn't possibly understand or you play another Bretonnian player. At the time, it made sense. Such a powerful ability had to come at a price. It's the simple risk/reward system that warhammer seems to go through. However, this is 8th edition, the era where stuff like that is simply built into a unit or model as a whole. There are two option that can be taken in order to make this rule logical in 8th edition. The first option is to keep the rule as is and get rid of the caveat. High Elves don't need to forfeit a turn to have army-wide ASF. Dwarves don't have to forfeit a turn to have army-wide (possible) Hatred. Why should Bretonnians? Also, why the hell would anyone choose to pray when the battle starts? Wouldn't it make more sense to do that before the battle in which you may be killed? Anyway, option two would be to alter it so that it covers every model/unit in the army and/or increase to a permanent 5+ save regardless of the Strength value of the attacker. This would help balance the caveat of having to pray and give up first turn rights and make Peasants a bit more usable in combat. Or at least die at a slower rate. Either way, that's what I would like to see the Blessing of the Lady look like in an 8th edition Bretonnia army book. The Lance Formation, that's a totally different story. While one can argue that Bretonnia could survive without the Blessing, they would not able to argue that they could survive without this rule. There is one thing that absolutely kills cavalry in 8th edition above anything else. Cavalry cannot generate static combat resolution worth a shit. The Lance Formation helps immensely to solve this problem for an army who's entire basis is that of cavalry. It's probably the most iconic thing about the army. When I picture Bretonnia, I still think of a row of three knights wide in slim but powerful formations ready to charge across the board. Taking this away would be like taking Animosity away from Orcs and Goblins, or the Undead special rule for Zombies. Not only would it spurn current players, but also those who just love the army and fluff of the land of chivalry. Not only does the Lance Formation keep Bretonnia, but in a way it is Bretonnia! If GW gets rid of this rule for Bretonnia, they will effectively being ridding the game of Bretonnia. The only reason I can see it not being incorporated into the army is for possible Monster Cavalry, but more on that later. This rule had better not being going anywhere, not just for my sake, but for all those who love and play this army! Now onto the last current Army Special Rule, the Vows. This is a bit of a grey area for me, because unlike most Bretonnian players I currently know, I don't get all hung up on them for some reason. I think I'd prefer a more generally applicable rule rather than four different rules that depend on the unit/model's composition. The Peasant's Duty, it can stay. They're fucking Peasants guys, if I really wanted something with a cool special rule, I'd be fielding something else. Maybe increase the leadership effect area knights provide for them to 12", but that's not at the top of my list for things I want the new book to have. The Knight's Vow is just fine too, especially considering it's an ability the Lord and Paladin's get for FREE. If my knight's had to worry about every time my Men-At-Arms broke in combat, I'd have won maybe a third of the victories I scored with Bretonnia. Again, keep it as is, but don't up charge just for this. Because honestly, knights really don't give a shit about peasants GW, they really don't. The Questing Vow, this is the one I think needs to be looked at a little bit. Re-rolling the failed Panic Tests seems a little under-powered, I think ITP would be a lot better rule. Plus it would save text space. Two birds, one stone. Plus they get to ignore panic from Peasants just like regular Knights. Okay, not that bad, but still not a problem ITP wouldn't solve. As for not being allowed to carry a lance, I think it's interesting, but that's a discussion for a later paragraph. Hell, I'm not even faulting the fact that characters with Knight's Vow can't join them. I think it's a perfectly fluffy and cool special rule. The Grail Vow, now here's the part that needs some serious overhauling. Most of the abilities are pretty cool, anything with the Grail always has the Blessing of the Lady, has ITP, and all the attacks they make (but not their horses) count as magical. However, it's the amount of points you spend for both a Lance of Grail Knights and characters with Grail Vow. ITP? That's bullshit. In the new book, they're going to need Stubborn and ITP for as much as they cost right now. The magical attacks thing is cool, but I wouldn't cry if it didn't make a reappearance. And if GW does the Blessing right in the new book, them automatically having the Blessing will be of no consequence. I'm going to bitch a lot more about the Grail Vow and Grail Knights later, but one thing at a time. In conclusion regarding what should be done in the new book here's what I think should and can be done: Keep the Blessing of the Lady but alter so that it either doesn't require you to sacrifice a turn or make the Ward Save permanently 5+ and keep the caveat about praying. Don't touch the Lance Formation, keep it as is and let us hold onto what makes us love Bretonnia very much. The Vows are all over the place. The Peasant's Duty is fine, as is the Knight's Vow. However, you could retool the Questing Vow and Grail Vow to make them a little more worth their while. Next part of the series we'll be talking about the Lord section of the book.



     
      

Top 5 Least Favorite Bretonnian Knightly Virtues

So in conjecture with my last post, I thought it only fair to also list the virtues that I think don't quite cut the mustard. Again with my usual disclaimers, it is my opinion, but it is also my opinion supported by fact and my blog. So nah, nah, nah! So, without further ado, what virtues should you be taking only if you want to truly fuck with your opponent's mind and tank your list building reputation.

#5: Virtue of the Joust
For 25 points, the knight re-rolls all failed to-hits when charging and using a lance. This is basically like having Hatred for a single round. Granted, for Bretonnians it's the most imperative round in which you well and truly want to make as many attacks as is possible, but that doesn't really excuse this virtue. Like a lot of things in the Bretonnian book, you have to pay more points that you would usually like to. Myself and most Bretonnain players have accepted that is something you simply have to do to play Bretonnians. But paying 25 points for Hatred for one character is ridiculous even without having to over-pay for everything anyway. Now, if it allowed the whole lance to doe this, then I would have no problem and may have made it unto the Top 5 Favorite Virtues List. However, it does not. It's not that the virtue is bad, it's simply that there are much better ones for a much more reasonable price that are much more utilitarian. Sorry Virtue of the Joust, you're just not cut out for competitive Bretonnian play.

#4: Virtue of the Penitent
For 40 points, the Knight is Stubborn, however he may not join any units, take any magical items, or ride either a Royal Pegasus and/or a Hippogryph. Stubborn is good, stubborn is very good especially for Bretonnia. I can even except not being able to join units. It fits with the fluff and I think it's a neat aspect. However, my acceptance of this virtue end here. Why can't he do those things?! The whole point of being Stubborn, as a lone character, is to load up on as many goddamned magical killing items as is possible and take the really cool, but vulnerable, monstrous mount so you can fly into an enemy's flank and then tear them a new asshole! If, he could take the items and mounts, I would be much more tolerant of this virtue, but as it is, it's just laughable. Unless you want to have a lone character (Paladin only) as the cheapest possible sticky chaff, then I see absolutely no reason why you should take this virtue. I think that if you do put this on a Lord, other Bretonnian players should be legally able to shoot you. Stupid virtue, stupid restrictions, should be wiped out completely, made 5 points or less, or modified and then reduced slightly in cost.

#3: Virtue of Audacity
For 30 points the knight may re-roll failed to-hit and to-wound rolls against enemies with a higher Strength then himself. This is perhaps the most ingenious idea for a virtue with the most ridiculous payoff. I think Bretonnian knights should have a virtue that benefits them fighting a more powerful opponent. It fits in with their fluff, it allows humans to compete with supernatural monstrosities, and it just seems really cool. But just re-rolling failed to-hits and to-wounds is horrible. Absolutely underwhelming. For 30 points, I think perhaps getting ASF in addition to re-rolls would be a lot more useful. Or +1 Attack for ever point of S difference between the two models and re-rolls would also be a lot more useful. However, they both would be fair. Again, almost everything in this book is overcosted, I understand that. But even by the standards in which it was written, somebody had to know that this was complete bullshit. This is definitely a virtue that needs to be re-tooled in the new book. While the Virtue of the Penitent is horrible all around, this is even worse. Why? Because it has such unique potential and then becomes horrible. Seriosuly, GW, if you're reading this. A for effort, F for execution. Try it again, but for the love of God, GET IT RIGHT!!!

#2: Virtue of Empathy
For 10 points, you get a knight who as the option to be fielded on foot. If he's not the army's General, units with the Peasant's Duty may use his leadership if he's within 12" rather than just the normal 6". Oh yeah, cause I've always wanted to take a Bretonnian knight on foot before! There are three conditions that must be met. First, this had better be put on your BSB, otherwise it's just not usable. Second, you better have a metric fuck-ton of Peasants in your army and a Grail Reliquae. Thirdly, you must under no circumstances field this knight on foot. If there is one saving grace to this virtue, it's the price. Even by 8th edition standards this is pretty well priced for what it does, in my opinion. I once fielded a list that included two Trebuchets, a block of fifty Men-At-Arm with full command, two groups of twenty Peasant Bowman with stakes and braziers, and a Grail Reliquae with as many Pilgrims as I could take. This all being tied in with a Questing Knight BSB with this virtue. It was relatively enjoyable to see what Peasants could actually do, and more often then not, could not do. If you're a fluff fanatic that absolutely MUST have an all Peasant army, then this is your virtue. I wouldn't mind seeing it again in the new book, but I would never take it. To me, it's one of those fluffy options GW likes to throw in their new books. Much like the 8th edition Anvil of Doom, fluffy and fun, but not in the least bit competitive.

#1: Virtue of the Ideal
Never hard of this one? There's a reason why. For 35 points your knight receives the following modifications to his stat line: +2WS, +1 Initiative, +1 Attack. He may not be the army's General and any units within 6" (even Peasants using his Leadership) suffer a Leadership decrease of -1. Why, for 35 points, does it even have the potential to have negative effects? This has got to be the most laughable virtue in the entire list. No amount of stat modification is worth a negative effect on Leadership for Bretonnians. Our combat outside the charge rely on high Leadership values to keep us sticking around and preventing us from loosing a free army-wide ward save. We need as much Leadership as we can get in grinding situations. This could be a +2 to all stats and I still don't think you'd see it ever. What makes this my least favorite virtue, because much like Flock of Doom in my Top 5 Least Favorite Spells From the BRB list, it's the only virtue with absolutely no potential. The negative effects of this virtue so outweigh it's stat increases, that's akin to taking 35 points to roll at -1 Leadership. A complete waste of ink. In the new book, I think it's savable. Perhaps if you could hybrid this with Virtue of the Penitent, it would make sense. A lone knight with the stat increases that can't ride anything but a horse, can't use magic items, is stubborn, and can't join units would be an effective chaff tool. So much so that you might see one in every Bretonnian army, much like Dark Riders are to Dark Elves. As it is, nothing is right with this virtue. If this virtue didn't make it into the next book, I might throw myself a little party.

So that's it, the last list I will be doing on Bretonnian Virtues until the next book. I hope you guys enjoyed it, and please comment below if you want to see more or less of what you're currently seeing on the blog. Until next time, peace!           

Top 5 Favorite Bretonnian Knightly Virtues

In this era of weakened cavalry Bretonnia really seems to have received the cold shoulder from GW, if not the shaft in general. However, what really allows the Lords and Paladins of Bretonnia to be such a formidable force in my opinion are the knightly virtues and variety of unique items that they have in their army book. So as a Bretonnian player, I thought it only fair to list the ones that I think are the most effective on the battlefield. Note that this with the 2003 army book, and when the newest Bretonnian army book does come out, I will be doing a similar list but with the new book. So, without further ado, let's take a look at the virtues that seem to help tip the balance of the scales ever so slightly in the favor of Bretonnia.

#5: Virtue of Noble Disdain
For 20 points, the Knight has Hatred for all enemies with ranged weapons, this includes war machine crews. Additionally, the unit that the knight is in never take Panic tests if 25% or more of the unit is killed off by shooting, magic, etc. (basically everything not close combat related). One of my favorite ways to deal with artillery is to put a Paladin (you can use a Lord if you want to remove the 0-1 unit restriction on Pegasus Knights but I always run with the Paladin) on a Royal Pegasus with this virtue in a group of Pegasus Knights. I don't care if it's Chaos Dwarves I'm dealing with, this unit combination will tear through anything that has the potential to shoot at me. The key to making this work though is to take the attention away from this group. The need to avoid enemy chaff and unwanted magical attention is the key to making this strategy work. Whenever I take my Bretonnians to a tournament, this is a Paladin build I almost always take due to the presence of large amounts of Empire and Dwarf players. Even Ogre Ironblasters fall before this build. If you're having a problem dealing with artillery in general as a Bretonnian, then this is a solution that might work for you. There are two things that absolutely must happen for you to make this work. First, you need to make sure your enemy is not very familiar with Bretonnians. Players who come into contact with them a lot know that the Bretonnian Paladins and Lords are most certainly to be feared. Second, you need something to take the pressure off of this unit. A decoy unit so to speak. Mounted Yeoman work relatively well for this, but lone character are even better. Especially ones with little more than their base armor and Blessing of the Lady attached to it. Counter their chaff, blow it to pieces, get their artillery and magic users attention away from them, I don't care. If you want a sure fire way to blow through artillery, then those are some things that might help you do so.

#4: Virtue of the Impetuous Knight
For 35 points, the knight and any mounted unit he is in add +D6 for the first charge that they declare. If the charge is failed, they do not receive the extra +D6 to their failed charge movement. It's generally a good rule never to put characters in a unit of Errant Knights. However, this is the one exception in my humble opinion. The key to Errant Knights is to get them into a combat you know that you will loose. Think if this lance as a kamikaze pilot of sorts. You want to keep it as under costed as is physically possible. Pay the points for the Paladin (never a Lord for this one), the lance for the Paladin, this virtue, and as many Errant Knights as you deem prudent for the situation. However, there is one caveat to this combination. They absolutely must have the Errantry Banner. This lance has one primary purposes, seek and if that's not possible then die trying to hold the enemy back as long as is possible. What you will have is a unit that can charge a potential of 26" with 10-12 (for ranks of 3-4 deep respectively) S6 attacks, not including the attacks made by the horses. Even units with heavy armor and shields (infantry) will get no save and the unit is ITP when it charges. I have used this tactic to destroy a bunker of 23 Chaos Warriors and their BSB. I killed 10 of them, they swung back nailed me for 4, I won combat, I broke them, ran them down, and it was so very beautiful. I've used it to also slow down a horde of Hammerers long enough for me to get a few more Trebuchet shots on them before beating them down with another lance. It's really great at dealing with lone monsters. If you need a Cygor or a Hell Pit Abomination taken out, this is a great way to do it. Again, I cannot stress enough that you must keep this unit as cheap as is physically possible. If this virtue remains untouched and GW follows their usual habits, then this tactic will become more cost efficient then ever before. However, I probably shouldn't have said that, and if there are any GW executives reading this, forget what I just said. I command you!

#3: Virtue of Stoicism
For 35 points, the knight and the unit he is in may re-roll failed break tests. For 35 points, you get a unit-sized version of a BSB. Do I even need to say how awesome that is?! I mean, that's almost as cool as a Slann being both a BSB and a General. And there's no restrictions on how many times this can be done, you can effectively tie up a horde simply by making re-rolls. Combined this with Bretonnia's army wide Ward Save and high Armor Saves, and you get a unit that's just as capable of tar-pitting as a host of Undead units. While it's not the most blatantly powerful virtue, it is a very useful one, especially if you want a lance designated for operating outside of the reach of your normal BSB. For example, a lance designated for going after fast cavalry and getting into combats where they will be unsupported. That being said, do not take this on the unit you want to make your BSB. I wouldn't suggest this on a Lord that's capable of being your General, but on a normal Lord or Paladin I think it works just dandy. It's also very utilitarian, making it useful in almost every army build and almost every situation. Great virtue to have, never gone wrong with it before, it's relatively well costed, I see no down sides to it, and that alone makes it very good for an army that seems to be dependent on getting into combat.

#2: Virtue of Duty
Before we go any further, I would like to clarify that I didn't put this virtue on here because it's the same as my last name. Although that doesn't hurt it either! For 30 points, your Paladin or Lord (cannot be taken by the army's General) adds +1 combat resolution to whatever fight(s) he takes part in. If you thought that the Orc Warboss ability to call a Waghh! was awesome, then you have no idea how powerful this virtue is. This virtue helps mitigate one of the biggest weakness that the Bretonnian army has. Generating static combat resolution. Turns on which we charge into combat, we are an army to be feared. However, the following turns we become little more than paper tigers. Being at -2S is not good. Hitting at anything below S4 is never good! Thus, Bretonnian knights run into the problems when we cannot break the enemy on the turn in which we charge. Even then, because of our superior defensive abilities, we can remain on the board even after charging, we simply cannot hit back for very much. This means the combat resolution tends to be very slight after the turn that we charged on. Thus, having an automatic +1 is so very useful. Opinions on who to give this virtue are varied. Some players like to hand it over to their BSB, others just like to kit out an extra Paladin or Lord and call it good. Either way, you cannot really go wrong in my opinion. If we were an army with a new book, I would think this is kinda cheesy. However, since our list of disadvantages never seems to end, I think all's fair in love and espeically warhammer! I made a pun!

#1: Virtue of Heroism
I know, I know, it's the copout of all copouts, but can you really blame me? I mean, what else in the game is really capable of dealing out this kind of power? For 40 points, you get the Heroic Killing Blow special rule. Not familiar with the rule? Allow me to explain with so much affection. Killing Blow is a rule that automatically wounds on a roll of 6. No armor saves may be taken against these attacks or pretty much any other kind of save with the exception of a ward save. This rule does not work on monsters or multi-wound models. Heroic Killing Blow removes the last two restrictions. That's right, this ability can one-shot anything in the game. Steam Tanks die from a single 6 rolled by knights with this rule. Deamon Princes are sent back into the Chaos Realm without making a single action because of this rule. If your General does not have this virtue, or at the very least another Lord (putting it on a Paladin is a ridiculous waste) you have made a mistake. If you make a list that does not include this virtue, you have made a mistake. Make your list again, and then come back. People often speak as a warhammer army being a bag of tools. Sometimes you need hammers, sometimes you need corkscrews. This is not even in that same realm. This, this is a goddamned nuclear missile to be launched at whatever you absolutely positively must kill. I don't care if you bring Nagash, an HKB Lord is like the end all equation. It doesn't really matter what he hits, he will, luck and dice providing, kill whatever he fights. If this virtue does not make into the next book in the exact same form as this one, GW had better have a good mother fucking reason why! We'd better have a minimum Strength and Toughness value 5, on our goddamned peasants before this rule can be allowed to go away! When/if it does, I will cry. I will cry long and hard, and I will never truly recover.

So that's the Top 5 Knightly Virtues in my personal opinion, and if you don't like them, then make a youtube channel or your own blog and then write your own list up. Either way, I couldn't care less. If you really like this list and would like to see more Bretonnian related posts on the blog then please comment below. If you'd like to see something else, then comment too, I really need feedback to determine the future course of this blog.
  

Top 5 Most Overrated Spells in the BRB

Seems I just can't stop posting all of a sudden, probably because I'm off of my hiatus and actually have some time to post now. So as you can tell by the title of the post, this is going to be the Top 5 spells that I think get way too much credit and have way too big of a reputation for their own good. All the usual disclaimers with my other posts in addition a little reassurance. Purple Sun and Pit of Shades will not be on here. They're good spells and they can do some really nasty damage and therefore not overrated. So, without further ado, let's begin,

#5: Banishment
Again, I seem to have Empire players sharpening Great Swords and ready to put my head on a chopping block. Let me be a little more specific. This is a great spell if you play Empire. Using this as a bound spell on the War Altar and having two or three casters running around with this can be really really nice. However, if you're anyone else besides this set up, then the spell is pretty much over hyped. Now, keep in mind my opinion of whether a spell is good or bad is based off of what it can do unsupported in the most common of scenarios. By itself, it's just a Magic Missile with a range of 24" that causes 2D6 S4 hits for a casting value of 10+. It can be boosted for an increased range of 48" for an increased casting value of +. The only difference between this spell is three distinct things. One, these attacks count as flaming attacks, cool, but not something to right home about. Two, all successful ward saves made by the targeted unit must be re-rolled, that's really cool. Here's where I have an issue. Any Light Wizard (except the one casting the spell) within 12" of the caster increases the Strength value of the spell. That's great, if you're running 3 or 4 Light casters and a War Altar. The amount of issues with the running the Light Counsel that's infamous because of this spell just seems to create too many problems to justify it for me. However, it is a deadly and powerful spell, so for that reason is it rated at #5 on the list. Is it a spell I would ever intentionally be gunning for (let alone build a whole army around)? No. Do I think that the Light Counsel and the Banishment rape-train are really powerful and usable? Yes. I simply think this spell doesn't deliver enough payoff for the amount you invest in it.

#4: Throne of Vines
Boy, I just seem to be picking on all the popular lores today, don't I? For this spell, it's not necessarily the effects of the spell I think is overrated, but rather the reaction to it that so many people seem to have to it. On both sides of the magic phase too. If you're not familiar with this spell, it's basically the ultimate way to boost the effects of the spells in the Lore of Life. Basically, for a 8+ casting value, you increase the effects of most of the spells in the lore. Meaning you basically need at least a level 4 caster if not a Loremaster of the Lore of Life in order to make it useful. It makes Earthblood give your unit a 4+ Regeneration, Flesh To Stone grants +4T, Awakening of the Wood causes S6 hits, Regrowth brings back D6+1 wounds, and Shield of Thorns inflicts S4 wounds. In addition, as long as the spell is up, you get to ignore miscasts on a roll of a 2+ on a D6. Again, like Banishment I'm not going to deny that this spell is weak. It's not. It's just not as powerful as I think some people make it out to be. First off, none of the spells in Lore of Life except for Dwellers Below can be boosted, so needing a spell specifically to do that seems kinda like a big design flaw to me. Secondly, this spell can be dispelled like any other augment in the game, so if you really want to get rid of it, then just be patient and  save up your magic dice. Thirdly, why not let this spell go? It doesn't change the casting value of any of the spells. Let it go and just save your dispel dice to block the incoming spells the Life caster will then use. While not as specific in it's use as Banishment, Throne of Vines does have a few flaws that I think make it hard to truly loose your mind over when your opponent rolls it up. Chiefly among them is the fact that unless you have this spell on a Level 4 it's effectively useless (although that's pretty much the Lore of Life in a nutshell) and that it's still possible to block all the spells incoming after the Life caster puts up Throne of Vines as easily as one would be able to block them normally. Guys who chuck their dispel scrolls at this spell the first chance they get mystify me. Just like Banishment, there's too much relying on synergy (again, the Lore of Life in a nutshell) for me to definitively say that this an awesome spell. It's a good spell with a lot of potential, but just not enough directly measurable payoff to be worth it in my opinion.    

#3: The Speed of Light
Now, this is the beginning of spells that are overrated for a reason that I think makes them not quite as good as some people make them out to be because there's a similar spell in either that lore or another one that just seems to be better. Speed of Light is definitely one of them. With a range of 24" and a casting value of 8+, it grants a targeted unit Weapon Skill 10 and Initiative 10. It can be boosted to turn into a 12" bubble for a casting value of 16+. In 7th edition, this was a great spell to have because the initiative of most units (barring some characters) never exceeded more than 5 and ASF was reserved for characters and anyone who took the Sword of Swift Slaying. It meant you were always striking first and hitting almost every time. That's the past, now let's take a look at the present. ASF is almost everywhere now. All Elves have it, all vampires have it, and to make it worse, Light Magic is everywhere now, making Bironna's Time Warp highly accessible. Speaking of the Timewarp, this another reason Speed of Light has suffered a lot. Timewarp not only grants ASF, but it also doubles the Movement and increases the units Attacks by 1 per model. Think of this spell as Luigi and Timewarp as Mario. In a pinch, you'd probably want the latter over the former. Now, WS10 is still a nice thing, but I think this spell has been hurt so much by age and by 8th edition army books, that it just has a hard time making as big of a splash as it used to. Sorry Speed of Light, I still love you.   

#2: Pann's Impenetrable Pelt
I think the wider targeted audience of a spell, the more effective it is. Especially where Augments are concerned. That's what kills Pann's Pelt. For an 8+ casting value, you can boost one character (it may be the caster him/herself) within 12" and gives them +3T. It can be boosted to include characters (including the caster) within 12". If you play Bretonnia (which few people do it seems) like me, then this is a great spell. Suddenly your now T7 Lords and Paladins are shrugging off hits from Chaos Lords like they were water balloons. If you play anyone else, this spell definitely looses some of it's mojo. Especially compares to this spell's evil twin brother, The Savage Beasts of Horros. Works the exact same way, but instead add +3S and +3 Attacks. Personally, I prefer that spell, especially since I like getting into challenges and just liquefying my opponent's characters (btw, for Bretonnian players out there, Gauntlet of the Duel is great item for this). If you error on the side of caution, then this may be the spell for you, however it has two things that make it difficult for me to get over when so many player I know just fawn over this spell. One, it's so selective in it's application. I would much rather have my Prophetess on Life use Flesh to Stone then have my Damsel on Beasts use Pann's Pelt. The +2T for all models (+4 with Throne of Vines) versus +3T for characters only, I prefer the former. Two, Savage Beast will make your characters into killing machines. Pann's Pelt will make them respectively more survivable. In for a penny, in for a pound, don't fuck around and just cast Savage Beast. Again, like the other spells on this list, it's not that they're bad spells, just that I don't think they deserve the reputation that they get. 

#1: Spirit Leech
Now before you Death fans get your panties in a twist, I want you to admit something. I want you to admit that this is not the best sniping spell you have in your lore. Admit that, I will push the subject of my eternal loathing for Death Magic no further. In case you've been living under a rock, Spirit Leech is considered the sniping spell of all sniping spells, and for reasons I cannot truly understand. I'll type here so you can see exactly what I mean. This is a direct damage spell that targets a single model (even in a unit) within 12" of the caster. On a casting value of a 7+, both the caster and the target add their respective unmodified leadership to a roll of a D6 (rolled separately for each character). For every point the caster wins, the targeted model takes a wound with no armor saves allowed. It can be boosted to have a range of 24" for a casting value of 10+. That's a damned good spell, if you're trying to kill Skaven characters. Leadership values on characters are generally exceptionally high, especially on Combat Lords and Combat Heroes. Why would you go after a stat that's the highest available stat on that model? That's like trying to kill an Elf with Purple Sun, it won't reap good results. Not to mention that once you cast this spell there's a startling large chance you won't do anything at all even after hitting the model. Also, note the clause unmodified Leadership values. If you could combo this spell with Doom and Darkness (-3 Ld Hex, in the Lore of Death), I would avidly agree it's the best sniping spell in the 8 standard lores, hands down. However, you cannot, you specifically cannot combo this spell with anything that might lower the highest number on the targeted model's stat line. To put that in comparison, Fate of Bjuna (also in the Lore of Death) targets a single model and inflicts 2D6 minus the targeted unit's Toughness, always hits on a roll of a 2+, allows no armor saves, gives the model Stupidity for the remainder of the game if it survives, and can be combined with Soulblight (-1S and -1T Hex, in the Lore of Death). Personally, I'm going with Bjuna! Why so many people are terrified of this spell, I will never know. Sure, there will be times where you just roll like complete and total shit and this spell just kills off one of your characters. It happens and it sucks, but that's what happens when people use Death Magic. But the amount of weight players give this spell always seems to be way overboard to me. It's a Signature Spell guys! It's not really that hard to stop! Now granted, it's the only sniping spell that has a range greater than a possible charging distance, but that still doesn't give it enough juice to make it this terrifying monster that everyone makes it out to be.

So there you go folks, the last of my Top 5 lists having to do specifically with spells from the BRB, and I'm glad it's over with. Comment below if you have any suggestions on my next series, and until then good luck and have a good life.  

Top 5 Most Underrated Spell from the BRB

Yep, I seem to be on a roll with this whole magic list, but can you blame me? I'm a Lizardmen player for Christ's sakes! It's what I do! Anways, I'm here no to list the Top 5 most underrated spells, the spells that never really seem to get too much recognition but always seem to really help out or just have some really nice abilities. Again, if you disagree with me and you use or know people who use these spells all the time and made it renown then I'm sorry. Keep in mind I play in the Reno-Tahoe area, so what you may experience in your meta maybe much different than mine. So without further ado, let's get started.

#5: Earth Blood
Despite being in the same lore as some of the most powerful spells like Dweller's Below, Flesh to Stone, and Regrowth, it always seems that this poor little guy can never stand out very much in the Lore of Life. For an 8+ casting value, the wizard and the unit he's in get 5+ Regeneration. Now, for that small clause alone is at the technical bottom of the list. The lack of a range really kinda hurts this spell, but not when you think in depth about it. Keep in mind, the primary purpose of Life caster is to keep Throne of Vines up, and Augment/Regrowth as many units as he can. The most practical place for a wizard like that is in a unit of troops, primarily infantry. However, you can't give a unit further away Regeneration, so it's not without it's weaknesses and inefficiencies. But it does provide an additional form of save, something very few spells in all of Warhammer are capable of. Most just increase the probability of a save, like Glittering Robe and Pann's Impenetrable Pelt. But Earth Blood goes one step beyond. For that reason and the fact that a Slann on Life Magic is AWESOME do I put it on this list.

#4: Transmutation of Lead
Lore of Metal is almost entirely a lore comprised of underrated spells, isn't it? Transmutation of Lead is no exception in this regard. Much how Wyssan's Wildform is really a help in horde-on-horde grinding situations, Transmutation is very much the same. Instead of buffing however, it debuffs. And oh boy, does it do that! For a fairly high 12+ casting value, this spells has targets a single unit within 24". that unit suffers -1 to it's Weapon Skill, Ballistic Skill, and Armor Saves. Can be boosted to have a range of 48" for a casting value of 15+. Unlike other popular Augments and Hexes, this spell targets a lot of different stats at once, instead of specifying what stat for an amount more than just one or a list of possible stats to drop/increase and giving the caster the option to pick which one given the situation. It makes the enemy do slightly less damage and allows you to do slightly more in return. In a pinch the spell can also be used to drop ranged units down a little bit, but primarily it is more useful in close combat situations. I've found this is actually very useful against Elves, dropping them down to no save or at most a 6+ (factoring in the Strength of my troops) and making it much harder for them to hit with their puny S3 attacks. Not much more I can say about this other than it's a good spell to have in your hand if you're rolling with the Lore of Metal.

#3: The Curse of Anraheir
This is kinda the inverse of Transmutation of Lead. Just like that spell, it's a Hex, but instead of reducing the weapon skill and ballistic skill of the target, it just suffers a -1 to-hit penalty in both close combat and ranged attacks, which can actually be better than just dropping a stat or stats. In addition, it makes that unit treat all terrain as Dangerous Terrain. It has a range of 36" and a casting value of 10+. It can be boosted to have range of 72" for an increased casting value of 13+. Where do I begin with the hilarity that this spell causes? If your army has chariots and/or cavalry in it, they're just dead. If you need a horde whittled down to size before engaging it in combat, this is a great spell. If there's a river on the board and you are feeling especially sadistic, this is a great spell. One of the scariest things to face is an Empire Gun Line with a Beasts Wizard casting this spell left and right. The very first magic phase you have, cast this spell. It will put your opponent so out of whack or have him lose more troops that he was expecting that it will reap only benefits for your army. This spell will outright destroy a Bretonnian army. How do I know this you ask? A long and very very touchy story that I'm not going into right now thank you very much. As much attention as Wyssan's gets, I'm actually a little surprised more people haven't embraced this spell as well. Even if there's no terrain on the board, the enemy is still looking at -1 penalty to do anything in the realm of attacking. Really no downside to this spell other than it doesn't just kill whatever it touches if it's victim fails an Initiative test.

#2: Wind Blast
To be sure, it's no Comet of Casandora, but it's still a very nice spell to have in your hand because the situation it's best in will almost always come around. If you're not familiar with this little gem, allow me to fill you in. For a 7+ casting value, you may "push" a targeted unit within 24" directly away from the caster D3+1". If the unit comes in contact with impassible terrain when blown back it suffers D6 S3 hits. If it hits another unit when blown back, they both suffer D6 S3 hits and you place the blown back unit 1" away from the unit it was blown into. If for some reason the targeted unit cannot move, they just suffer D6 S3 hits. For an increased casting value of 14+, the unit is pushed back 2D6+2" directly away from the caster. Most people see S3 and then leave this spell at home. However, those are the people who do not see the true power of this spell. The power of this spell does not come from the damage it deals directly. It comes from the damage it does to your opponent's strategy. Sun Tzu once said that to defeat your opponent you must attack his strategy, and this is a lesson that definitely applies to Warhammer Fantasy. Players will most often play conservatively, keeping their units/ models just far away enough to make it a difficult charge for you, but a relatively possible charge for them. Those Bretonnian Knights 12" away? Move them 9" (the average amount for the boosted version) and totally wreck their chances. This spell basically allows you to play keep-away with your opponent. If you're the cautious kind of person, then this spell should be your bread and butter. The important thing to note is that the units are flung in the direction directly away from the caster, not flung directly back from the targeted unit. Keep this in mind when using this spell. When you think about, this is the only spell that kinda negate spells Walk Between Worlds and Hand of Gork. That should count for something I think. Great spell, always overlooked and I never really know why. That's why it's on this list.

#1: The Penumbral Pendulum
Remember the disclaimer above? Keep that in mind. The reason I put this spell on the list was not because it's overlooked intentionally like Wind Blast, but because the two spells above it are so infamous and so well known that I feel this one occasionally gets forgotten about. It's a Direct Damage spell with a casting value of 13+. It acts like a cannonball bouncing in a straight line extended from the caster 6D6" (which should be an average of about 21"). Each model in the way must pass an Initiative (God I hate that phrase!) test or suffer a S10 hit with the D3 Multiple Wounds special rule. The range of the spell can be increased to 12D6" (averages out to be about 42") for an increased casting value of 18+. I am honestly confused how people don't seem to prefer this spell over Pit of Shades and Purple Sun. There I said! Hunt me down and crucify me if you will Shadow and Death fans, but this spell is WAY better. I mean, let's face it. Purple Sun and Pit of Shades are kinda random, and in order to do the massive casualties that those spells need to do in order to make up for their insane casting value they need the boosted versions, which means a bigger template, which means more scattering, which means more randomness, which means it's all the more a gamble because at this point, you're hunting for a Miscast and you know it. This spell is not only safer, but it also has the potential to inflict more damage because it's a lot more focused that it's older brothers. Sure, it's not an instant kill and does have a 1/6 chance of not wounding. But come on people, what won't S10 instant kill when given the chance? This spell is best used on a more mobile caster, able to get in a flanking position where a nice straight line will pierce through the ranks of your enemy and therefore inflict lots more damage. Hordes can be annihilated with this spell. Lines of artillery on a hill are just wiped off the face of the earth when this spell hits them. Pendulum > Pit of Shades and Purple Sun. It's math people, deal with it!

So that's the most underrated spells in the standard lores and I have to say I am pretty proud of myself with this post. Please comment below if you have questions, concerns, or suggestions. Until next time people, I'll keep posting if you get commenting!

     

Top 5 Least Favorite Spells from the BRB

Yes, since I did my absolute favorite spells I thought it would only be fair to list the ones I would like to use as toilet paper if given the chance. Again with the disclaimers, I don't mean to offend anybody, just voicing my opinion. If you're favorite spell is in this list, then apologies, but you're spell sucks. Without further ado, my least favorite spells in the standard lores of warhammer fantasy.

#5: Flame Storm
You know, as a general rule, the #6 spells are generally supposed to be the best spells in that lore. Not with the Lore of Fire though! No, instead we get a spell that is not only unimpressive and random, but also a complete waste of paper. But I digress. I actually feel bad for a Lore of Fire, it gets shit on a lot by warhammer players despite not being the worst lore in the game (Lore of the Wilds takes that prize by far). It's basic and very much direct damage based. However, I really like it, except for this spell. To give you reference, this spell is basically a magic vortex (small round template) that you can place anywhere within 30" of the caster and then scatter D6". All models hit by the template suffer a S4 flaming hit and it goes off on a roll of a 13+ to cast. A S4 hit on a #6 spell? Really guys? S4? I mean, I would expect that out of a Signature Spell or a #1 spell, but a #6 spell? It should be at least S5 to make it somewhat viable It can be boosted to have a large round template instead and also scatter 2D6" for an increased casting value of 16+. For reference, Fireball, which is the signature spell and a bound generic item in the form of the Ruby Ring of Ruin, can inflict 3D6 S4 flaming hits a 48" at a specified unit, for a casting value of 18+. Starting to see why this Lore is the butt of all the magic jokes in warhammer? I think what I dislike most about this spell is that a gives a perfectly good lore a bad name. I mean, if I heard that the Signature Spell in the lore was able to do more damage than the #6 spell, I would probably mock it mercilessly too. Bad spell, especially for it's ranking.

#4: Transformation of Kadon
How can something that sounds so badass be so damned laughably easy to beat? If you were a new player and you heard some guys talking about Transformation and you asked what it was, the simplest way to describe it to you would probably be; it's a spell that allows you to turn your wizard into a dragon. Lie and tell me that sounds stupid. Unfortunately, it is. Much like Flame Storm it's not necessarily that the power of this spell is low or just plain ineffective. It's the caveats in it that make this spell very difficult to justify a #6 spot. So for a casting value of 16+, it allows your unmounted wizard to transform into either a Feral Manticore, a Black Hydra, or a Horned Dragon. However, no one really gives a shit about these guys. It's the bigger version everyone cares about. For an increased casting value of 20+, the wizard can turn into a Mountain Chimera or a Great Fire Dragon. Those are the two most viable options, and that's not just my opinion, that's just plain fact. If the wizard is in a unit, he can remain in it, which I think is the one thing that's actually kinda neat about this spell. However, this is the part where we reach the point of no return. If there's no room in the unit, the spell does not work. A total waste of power dice if you're not careful then. After transforming, the wizard can no longer cast magic, channel power dice, and use any mundane or magical items he was previously equipped with. Sucks, but makes perfect sense. This is where it gets worse though. Any wounds acquired between transformations carry over. Didn't catch that? TRANSFORMATIONS. That's right, this transformation can be dispelled in following magic phases. Now some of you may be scratching your heads as to why this is a problem. Let me give you a hint, two or three wounds on a Dragon or a Chimera, not a big deal. Two or three wounds on a wizard, very big deal. So besides making it even easier to kill of your precious wizard, it also maims your magic phase by taking away a model capable of channeling dice in the magic phase. That's the best case scenario on a Level 1, on anything higher, it's a huge waste. God help you if your Level 4 uses this spell. To me, the risk and weaknesses of this spell are simply not worth the rewards. Unless my balls are too the wall, I really don't want my casters anywhere near combat anyway. And it's such a shame too, because this spell sounds like the coolest thing ever! Seriously, if I ever attended the Imperial College of Magic, this would be the first spell I'd want to learn. Fuck Wyssan's, Pann's Pelt, and all that other shit! I just wanna turn myself into a motherfucking dragon!

#3: Steed of Shadows
Spells like Walk Between Worlds and Hand of Gork provide a unique tactical edge in the gameplay of fantasy. The game is won or lost in the movement phase, so a spell that can correct or even exponentially increase your position on the battlefield is definitely a good tool to have in your magical toolbox. Then there's Steed of Shadows. It's not the worst spell in the world, but it's certainly the worst one in the Lore of Shadows. It targets the caster or another friendly character within 12" and allow them to make a move with the Fly special rule as it were the Remaining Moves sub-phase (means no charges are allowed to be made by the targeted model). This goes off on a rather impressive 5+. So my main gripe with this spell is that I see it as an answer looking for a question. It's not as if characters don't have access to mount options. If that were the case then I would understand this spell. However, it's not. I will admit, it may come in handy if you need to re-position a Death caster so he can fire off a Purple Sun or maybe get a vulnerable wizard or character out of the way of a potentially nasty charge. But there are so few times that those kinds of situation will come up in a game.There's a BIG difference between moving horde of Black Orcs into a flanking position and moving a wizard farther away from harm. If this spell gave your character a magical chariot that allowed you to charge and inflict impact hits, I think it would be a lot more interesting and utilitarian. But as it is, it's just not a very useful spell. It has two main purposes, balance out the ridiculousness of the Lore of Shadows and having something you can just chuck one dice out for shits and giggles if you're running Lore of Shadows.

#2: Aspect of thee Dreadknight
If Steed of Shadows is an answer looking for a question, that Aspect of the Dreadknight is a complex equation looking desperately for a simplified solution. So it's an Augment spell with a respectable 24" range, something not common in Death magic, that grants that targeted unit Fear for an incredibly low casting value of 4+. Do I really need to continue? I mean, it's fucking common knowledge that in 8th edition, Fear and Terror are so weak. Oh yeah, should probably mention that! The boosted version of the spell gives the targeted unit Terror instead of Fear for a 9+. Whoop-de-fucking-doo. I'm not going to pretend that I've never been fucked over by Fear and Terror before, it's happened and it sucks. But it's not so much of a problem that I throw 6 dice at this spell because of the power of Fear and Terror. I'm also not going to pretend that it's a common occurrence where I think to myself; "Huh, I wish I really had Fear on my Bretonnian Knights right now! Or Terror on my Grail Reliquary!" It's just a nice little perk that monstrous infantry, monstrous cavalry, and monsters get. I know that you can combo this spell with Hex spells that reduce Leadership for some impressive results, but the amount of dice and luck required for that just isn't enough to make this a decent spell. Or even a half-way decent spell for that matter. I think this spell was the last one they made when the wrote they rules for Death Magic. After writing something like Purple Sun, I'd feel like a piece of shit too. Maybe this was a roundabout way of an apology by the guy who wrote Death Magic? Sorry for making the most ridiculously overpowered spell in the game guys! Here's a shitty one to balance it all out!

#1: Flock of Doom
Oh yes, you knew this one was coming. You're lying to yourself if you thought otherwise. Now let me make one thing very, very clear. I think Magic Missiles and Direct Damage spells are great. It allows armies with little to no shooting like Vampire Counts and Warriors of Chaos compete at a distance instead of being blown to pieces. They're great ways of equalizing the power that artillery can put out for the unfortunate armies that have none. And sure, some of them are only hitting at S4 or S3 at the most. That's fine by me. In a meta where Elves dominate, T3 stuff is really susceptible to these spells, allowing you to wipe annoying chaff and re-directing units without having to have a unit specifically go after it. Plus, most of these spell have added effects like Flaming Attacks and can get rid of the occasional Ethereal pests that always seem to wind up plaguing people because they're magical. However, none of that is present in this spell. For a casting value of 5+, you inflict 2D6 hits at an enemy unit within 24". If I left it at that, you'd probably be thinking; "Well that doesn't sound so bad! Why's he got his panties in bunch over this poor spell?" That's because it's at STRENGTH 2!!! FUCKING STRENGTH 2?! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME GW??!! I mean, what is the fucking point of this spell?! You can boost it to have a range of 48" for a casting value of 8+. Whatever, who gives a shit. This spell is the worst in all the standard lores of warhammer because it is, in my opinion, the only spell with truly no application. Aspect and Steed can be argued to have potential application, I can't deny you there. The application is just very selective and therefore very rarely useful. This spell is just trash. I mean, total complete and utter rubbish. You can't use it snipe lone mounted characters, you can't use it to clear chaff, even Skinks only have a 50/50 shot at actually being wounded by the hits from this spell and then he get a 5+ armor save. Skaven will laugh at this spell. SKAVEN!!! I mean, not disrespect SkavenAZ, but good God man! When Skaven aren't dying from the damage caused by a spell, you know it's crap. And it's so weird when you think about it! I mean, why would you even have a spell that doesn't hit with the official (but not competitive) average Strength level? What possible use could it have? Has this spell been FAQD yet? Was this just a typo or something? It's that strange. Useless spell, absolutely useless and therefore my absolute east favorite spell in the 8 standard lores of Warhammer Fantasy.

So that was it guys, and I hope you enjoyed another Top 5 list. I know they're short, but keep in mind, this is a blog and not a youtube channel, so it's best to have quality over quantity. Comment below f you have any comments questions or concerns with the blog. Until next time guys.   

Top 5 Favorite Spell from the BRB

So as you may have guessed from the title, this post is going to be a quick count down of top 5 favorite spells from the 8 standard lores of magic in WHFB. Now I'm just going to make one thing very clear. The spells you may think are the best spells in warhammer may no be on this list. Hint hint Purple Sun and Pit of Shades. So, let's get going with this list and hope all you Shadow and Death fans don't hunt me down with torches and pitchforks!

#5: Wyssan's Wildform
Yeah, you know it was coming, everybody in the world knew this was coming. Arguably the best signature spell in all of warhammer fantasy, this little gem from the Lore of Beasts is very nearto my heart because of how much it helps both my Lizardmen and Bretonnians compete with other nasty high S and T stuff like Monster Cavalry and elite infantry units like Greatswords and Ogres. The spell is an Augment that has a base casting value of 10+, pretty steep for a Signature Spell but not something that's too big of an issue to deal with. It's also nice that Lore of Beasts is a very effective lore for Level 1 and 2 Wizards, so it frees your Level 4 to take a more direct lore like Death or Life. There are no combat situations that can make this spell ineffective. Especially for hordes, making their quality of their striking power as deadly as the quantity of their hits. One of the first things I do in my magic phases when my army starts to get into combat is put up and/or maintain Wyssan's on my Saurus or Knights. Suddenly S3 and T3 knights on a charge with lances and Wyssan's look a lot scarier than they did a second ago. I guess I'm just going to put it bluntly, for a 10+ casting value, you can boost a targeted unit within 12" gets +1S and +1T. This can be boosted to have a range of 24" for an increased cating value of 13+. Great spell, very accessible and very common in the tournament scene.

#4: Net of Amyntok
The Lore of Light is a very common lore to see, particularly with the Empire able to bring the "Banishment Rape-Train" as it is commonly called. However, I feel like this spell gets overlooked so very much when people discuss the Lore of Light. Sure, Banishment, Bironna's Time Warp, and Shem's Burning Gaze are all great spells that reap serious rewards in terms of what can be measured. Net of Amyntok is not that kind of spell. It's not a spell that inflicts serious damage, but it's what it does to your opponent that makes this spell one of my favorites. Spells like Net and Fulminating Flame Cage are not direct spells, they are tactical ones. These spells, with focus on Amyntok because it's slightly better than Flame Cage I feel, give your opponent a difficult choice. Do nothing with an entire unit for the Movement Phase, or move, shoot, cast spells, etc, and have every model in that unit pass a S test in order to do anything like that. If they fail, the unit takes D6 S4 flaming hits. And if your opponent is Undead or Daemonic, that number skyrockets to 2D6 hits. This is all for a casting value of 10+ and a range of 24". Boost it to have a 48" range for a 13+. My suggestion is too boost in in the 1st magic phase you have to shut down your opponent's early movement phases. It gives your opponent a choice, move to seize or fulfill a tactical necessity or get a bloody nose from a very annoying spell. Also is an effective way of shutting down units acting as bodyguards for casters. This spell and Flame Cage are actually not too aggressive on paper, but they really mess with your opponents head. If you know you're opponent is aggressive, he will move and take the damage. If he's a bit more cautious, he'll stay put and figure a way around it. But it puts a sense of fear into him, making him indecisive if but for a moment. An enemy afraid to act is even better than an enemy who acts too rashly. And that is why I like this spell. This spell has helped me defeat opponents who could have waltzed right over and pounded me to a pulp, but feared taking the damage and did not commit his forces. Even in reality, this failure to act has lead to the defeat of armies that should not have been defeated in the manner in which they were. For more information, look up every general before Ulysses Grant in the American Civil War and for a more world renown example, Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo. BTW, use this on Elves, S3 is piss poor to try and make a Strength test.

#3: Searing Doom
If you watch SkavenAZ's channel, he has a segment where he discusses the Lore of Metal and why he finds it ineffective. I understand why he believes this, but I disagree wholeheartedly with him. First off, he plays Skaven, an army not known for having that many impressive armor saves. Against armies like this, yes Lore of Metal is not the most effective lore to use. However, against some of the most competitive armies like Empire, Dwarves, and Warriors of Chaos, Lore of Metal really comes in handy to help kill off the things you don't want to get into combat with. Searing Doom is really the only cut-and-dry spell that outright targets and causes wounds. Basically, this spell wounds on the armor save of the target. So, against Wild Riders and Clan Rats, this has at most a 1/3rd chance of wounding. Against Demigryph Knights and Chaos Knights, it has a 5/6th chance of wounding. In addition, you can't armor save wounds caused by the Lore of Metal and the attacks count as flaming. This now makes Treemen, Tomb Kings, and other such things very very vulnerable. This spell is really my end all and be all solution for Steam Tanks, Demigryph Knights, Chaos Knights, Bretonnian Knights, and all of those other +1 and +2 armor save things, preferably with no ward save. I really like running a Slann on the Lore of Metal. It feels better than just taking High Magic or Life Magic, and leads to some pretty funny things happening when he starts sniping characters and giving Saurus a 2+ armor save. As a Signature Spell, it's worth taking in case you roll up some of the stinkers in this lore. It takes a 10+ to cast and inflicts D6 hits with an impressive range of 24". It can be boosted for a casting value of 20+ for an increased wound infliction of 2D6 hits. Another spell I really like to have, even when playing Skaven. No disrespect meant to SkavenAZ, just disagreeing, and if you would like to disagree with my disagreement, please post below and get a cool debate starting in the comment section.

#2: Okkam's Mind Razor
That's right ladies and gents, it's copout time! I know, I know, this spells is everybody's favorite spell at one point or another. But I mean, come on! Think of it for a minute! You get to use your Leadership as your Strength value in close combat! This totally solves the problems with the Elves. Instead of hitting at S3, you know to get hit a S10. Suddenly you have Lothern Sea Guard just butt-raping things like Steam Tanks and Kadai Destroyers. This also why just another reason on the long list of things I hate about Elves. With a casting value of +18 and range of 18", this spell is definitely a difficult one to cast. especially if you're caster is 36", in which case you'll need to boost it and then cast it on a 21+. Basically you're going to need to 6 dice this spell, and at the right moment. Casting this spell too soon will give your opponent ample time to deal with your forces from a safer distance. The rewards it reaps are totally worth any risk to the caster. This spell can singlehandedly turn the tide of combat like no other. Sure, Wyssan's can help out a lot in grinding situations and when some douche bag Life Wizard is throwing out Dwellers left and right. However, there is a big difference between S4 or S5 and a Strength level equal to your base Leadership. Saurus going from S4 to S5 are not nearly as dangerous as Saurus at S8 or S9. People are terrified of this spell, and it's pretty much the crowning achievement that the dastardly Lore of Shadows has. It's one of the few things that will draw out any amount of dispel dice your opponent can muster. Experienced players who see you roll this spell up will save the dispel scroll until that spell is cast, it's really that powerful people. The only reason I put it at #2 instead of #1 is because unless I'm playing as my girlfriend's Dark Elves, I'm really not too comfortable using Shadow. It's just like Death to me, I never feel quite comfortable using it for some odd reason. However, I am terrified of what this spell can do and if you aren't too, you should be. You should be.

#1: Comet of Casandora
This is the only spell I feel I can effectively argue is the best one in all of warhammer. Now, disclaimer time, I am biased. As a Lizardmen player who started in 7th edition, this was the lore that Skink Priests were pretty much locked into this lore unless you took a special character. As a result, I became very comfortable with using the Lore of Heavens. Don't get me wrong, getting access to Lore of Beasts was the best thing that the 8th edition Lizardmen book gave us, but I was so used to using Lore of Heavens that I started taking my Level 4 Bretonnian Prophetess on Heavens, something many Bretonnian players consider sacrilege. But, hey, it's me people, expect the fucking unexpected, eh! This spell is really my answer to Gun Lines. Playing Bretonnians and Lizardmen, it's often frustrating to deal with people lobbing cannonballs and/or enchanted rocks at you from across the board. At least with my Bretonnians, my Trebuchets and Bowman allow me to at least return a little bit of fire. But what Comet does is defiantly equalize the playing field. Artillery is not meant to be mobile in fantasy, making a fixed impact for a comet a perfect way to destroy enemy artillery pieces. Particularly with the line of sight rules being as they are in 8th, the popular tactic of grouping all the artillery pieces on a hill makes for a deadly mistake when Comet is around. Even in a list with no artillery it's still effective! Need to delay an enemy advance? Plop a marker in front of that nasty horde of enemies. Wanna start a chain reaction of failed panic tests? Hit a unit of Rat Ogres on the flank that causes a brick of slaves to explode. For a 12+ casting value, their is almost no disadvantage to this spell other than a steep learning curve. It's not like any other spell in the game, and thus makes for an intimidating piece if paper. It's difficult to reason through, but when you finally figure it's odd mechanics, you come up with a spell that's second to none. 2D6 S4 hits, at the minimum, within a 2D6" range will kill just about any artillery piece in the game and do some pretty hefty damage to anything else. Especially if the comet doesn't land. Once, twice, when it fails to land two times in a row you can actually pinpoint the location of each drop of perspiration on your opponent's neck. If you need the comet quick fast and in a hurry, 6 dice it for the boosted version. Makes for an increased chance of landing for landing and with more power behind it. Either way, one of the most effective spells for me in all of warhammer and definitely my favorite. 

So that's it folks. my first Top 5 List, and definitely not my last. Please comment below if you differ with my opinions and why. Please recommend this blog to any WHFB player you know.