Time to talk ADR.

This weekend I took part in a Steamroller event which had the ADR variant from the Masters Rulespack - this weekend coming I take part in another, and next week I'll be heading to the UK Masters to play two ADR Warlocks. Earlier this year, I played two Warlocks from Season One ADR in the Welsh Masters. 

Love it or loathe it, the ADR is certainly popular, and now for me at least seems a good time to discuss my experience of it.

Season One.. and how the hell did Mordikaar make it into the mix?!

I think that more than anything else, the defining characteristic of the first season ADR Warnoun selections was that they were (and still are) perceived to be the bottom end of their respective factions. Now.. don't get me wrong, before we go any further. I should probably qualify that remark. There were obvious exceptions. Using the Skorne as an example, Void Seer Mordikaar for example is widely regarded nowadays as one of the strongest options available. But he is in with strange bedfellows here. Both Naaresh and Hexeris1 are not considered to be strong tournament pieces. Morghoul2? Well... if I understand what the internets tell me, he was terribad to begin with in Mk.II, became amazeballs once Hit Squad landed, and then plummeted back into oblivion after being hit by the nerf bat in the recent errata. 

Sigh, those kids and their strange ideas. I could talk for hours on why I don't agree with near any of that, but I won't bore anybody reading this unless prompted. I will say that my choices for this season were Lord Tyrant Hexeris, and Master Ascetic Naaresh. 

Firstly, Hexeris1 is an excellent Warlock in the right circumstance. His feat can break the back of an entire army in a single turn against the right opponent and build, but even so, he brings tools for almost every occasion. What hurts him in my experience is that you rarely get the ideal match up for him. Any player with a list that doesn't want to see their own models eat into their comrades or be removed from play en masse will simply drop that second list. Suddenly, your infantry annihilating machine sputters, and realises that it doesn't have a feat any more, or worse yet, any heavies to face down the inevitable beef across the table. ADR is absolutely the answer for this. I was able to drop Hexeris1 without  that issue, knowing that I could simply substitute models for the best mix against my opponents list and Warnoun. Being able to so acutely build a list focuses him nicely. and really plays to his strengths.

Naaresh is another matter entirely. I play Naaresh at Tier four, and with probably the simplest battleplan the world has ever known, charging headlong into the opposition. If I'm entirely honest, the only reason I took Naaresh is that I love using him, and he was great armour breaking skew to fit alongside Hexeris. That said, there was some level at which he benefited from ADR; dependent upon my opponent, my two Rhinodon could easily become Archidon as needed.

My experience was that ultimately, although both Warlocks received a huge boost in competitive play as a result of a list sideboard (even more so in games where my opponents played a static list), ultimately they couldn't quite compete at the highest levels once the draw took me closer to the top tables and the established lists that you'd expect (despite a Runes victory for Hexeris, and a Saeryn victory for Naaresh along the way).  

So is season two any different? You bet.

Season Two - more bang for your buck.

The season two Warnouns are, continuing with the established conventions that players worldwide clutch to with an alarming regularity (if you hadn't guessed, I'm all about the individuality, man...), the middle rank options. I'll keep the same disclaimer as before, although I'm not sure that you see it in the Skorne lineup - there are a handful of exceptions, such as Father Lucant, or Vyros2, but for the most part there are none of the power pieces that you see proliferate at the top level. 

But the difference is that this time around, the Warnouns are more able to compete with the big boys. Play experience has shown this player at least that often the sideboard is enough of a little push to maximise those lists and cut out the elements which you need to include as an answer that might not be needed (take the Baslisk Krea as an example, suddenly pointless if you find yourself against an army with no guns), and ensure that you've wrung every available point to get the most favourable match up possible. Does that guarantee results? Of course not. But its a big step in list equality.

My choices here are Xerxis, Fury of Halaak, and Archdomina Makeda. Why? Well, Xerxis2 is flat out fun. He's also doing a very similar job as Rasheth and Morghoul1, but has the advantage of suiting how I play better. Time has shown me that I prefer a Warlock that can get work done in the end game if necessary, and that absolutely is the big lad on the rhino. 

I'm using Makeda1 to test elements I don't usually take or are new to me - Venators, Aradus, Scarab Packs, Keltarii. Being a Tier2 Armies of the Western Reaches theme force, the essential core of the list are two min units of Venator Reivers with UA attachments, which can never be switched out via ADR, along with the Praetorian Keltarii which I am very reluctant to remove - with Defenders Ward, they become an extremely capable jamming piece which has proven their worth to me time over in the few games I've used them. The remaining pieces are a little more flexible - but the base point is three units of Scarabs, and two Aradi Soldiers. These can be switched around slightly if necessary to make way for the reserves - Saxon Orrik for pathfinder where needed, a Baslisk Krea to make the list really tanky against a gunline, and a max unit of Slingers for those occasions that you wish Cryx would just spend their time melting into the floor in front of your eyes.

I cant promise that list especially will produce many results over the coming weeks, but it certainly does underscore the premise that ADR allows you to optimise your lists again - especially with the addition of new pieces like the Gremlin Swarm and River Raiders, pieces which you'll find absolute game changers in the rare situation, but worthless outside of that. Plus of course, its a lot of fun. 

Especially if you're a Starship Troopers fan.

This is literally how facing three units of Scarab Packs and two Aradus Soldiers feels apparently.

I'll keep you all in the loop - watch this space as results come in. Last weekend managed a tournament victory, although I seriously doubt I can keep that up!

Until next time.

 

..unleash the Siege Animantarax!

The title says it all. After far too long in the shadow of... well, everything in the entire game, the errata of yesterday has made significant steps to salvage the noble Siege Potato. And, as one of the few, proud and the brave to have (extremely foolishly) built lists prior to this with not one, but two of the lumbering beasts, I find myself in a good place to discuss the changes, and what they might mean.

 Coming back to a Tabletop near you in Fall 2015.. The Mighty Siege Potato

Firstly, lets look at the changes. They reads simply enough - When this model is damaged by an attack, it gains one rage token ... during its activation, this model can spend rage tokens to boost attack or damage rolls.

So, the change is twofold. Firstly, friendly models can now generate rage tokens. That's a pretty big deal. One of the biggest issues facing the Animantarax prior to this was that unless you took Siege Column or Footsteps of Giants, the creature would only ever generate rage tokens the turn your opponent decided to kill it - meaning that it could never truly benefit from the ability. Even then with one of the two lists mentioned, the tokens were a one use item, with you spending them once it arrived in melee and then exhausting your boosts for the game. No one ever attacked an Animantarax for a couple of points, generated a token and then left it alone. Now that Beast Handlers can add tokens to it every turn, this is a much better and more reliable mechanic, offering three boosts a turn, and not a passive ability which requires your opponent to help out.

The second change is what makes this work though. Previously, all boosting was limited to the tail - now, with the text stipulating any attack, the Animantarax becomes a much more interesting piece. The most obvious change is to the spears, which can start at POW13 / POW12 and then both be boosted, going some way to closing the disparity between the POW of the spears and tail. But better yet, the gun goes from something which you can reliably improve your chance to hit. The piece can charge a target, attack with all three melee ( benefiting from the +3STR) on the attacks, then shoot at secondary targets, using the tokens to boost the mediocre accuracy. 

This is a big deal. Previously, the guns had been a dubious afterthought, even against Trollblood or Khador Warjack DEF.

So the next question would be who does this benefit the most I guess.

The obvious contenders remain the three best lists to run it in from before. The changes are good, but simply don't go far enough to make this a strong addition without a little extra help, and the points reductions from Siege Column, Footsteps of Giants, and Armageddon are all extremely welcome. Starting with tokens is now less useful (translating into +3 Boxes) of course, but two 9pt models for 16 points or better yet, 14pts is a definite step in the right direction, and difficult to ignore.

Of course, its a dubious question how well any of those lists support it otherwise. Makeda3 and Xerxis2 can do some good for the Animantarax via Vortex of Destruction and Ignite / Hand of the Ancients respectively, but then so they can do the same with these abilities for everyone in their army, and both crucially want an extremely Warbeast heavy build, reducing the potential points to sink into a Battle Engine, even at a discount. Siege Column fares a little better; Plague Wind offers it a little survivability (especially when combined with an Agonizer and/or Dimish), and Blood Mark and Plague Wind stacked offer a solid -4ARM to most targets which can really ramp up the effectiveness. 

Outside of those three, and at 9pts, the Animantarax becomes a model that is useful only in its newfound self sufficiency for the most part. Most Warlocks will be able to leave it alone on one flank to be able to take care of itself with a little help from the whips, and offering a flexible alternative to a Warbeast for those at Fury5 and Fury6 that might not want to run too many beasts. There are even a handful of spells that can help - Fury, Defenders Ward, Vision, Road to War et al. However, special note probably has to go to Hexeris2, whom is really the only Warlock to step up to the plate, rubbing his hands together with glee. 

Why you ask? Black Spot.

Black spot effectively enables a bonus three shots with the newly useful gun, for something which is relatively easy to pull off on the table. With boosts, you can now be sure that they'll hit too, or at least half of them will. Remember that because of weapons platform you can both types of Initial attacks, so its perfectly legal to trigger a ranged attack with a more powerful and accurate melee attack. Add in the Croak Raiders and a unit or two of Cataphract Incindiarii, and you've got yourself a real infantry spam clearance list...

So, the obvious question now is.. will I run them? The answer is yes. I used to before, and this really just makes them more useful. I think I'll focus on Makeda3 and Hexeris2 for my fix initially, but we'll have to see. Maybe one day I'll find the love for Rasheth that I've sorely missed throughout my entire Skorne career.

Some would question why I use Anchorman pictures so much. They would be missing the point.

So my hat off to you PP once again, you managed the impossible, you magnificent bastards, in a way that almost seemed elegant. Back next time fellow Tyrants, with hopes and dreams for that magical dream entry we're all hoping that will catapult Zaal2 into the 'usable' category.