19 replies to this topic

[Luethar]

Hey all,

Last night I was fortunate to play a demo (500 point) game of Warlord with a very patient and thorough psyberwolfe. I just wanted to get some other opinions on which faction would be the best Gateway to the game? I guess what I am looking for is a faction that is good to play as a newcomer to the game. Any suggestions?

Lue.

[Warwick]

The core rules have the best factions for easy play. Go with Mercs. Lots of play styles can be used and the Faction Doctrines are quite easy to understand. Rerolls, baby! Mercs was my first army and stays high on my list.

[Inarah]

I think the original 8 (?) factions in the first book are all relatively balanced. Go with one that has models and/or abilities you'd like to use. Also, you might look up some of the threads on 'how to make the smallest/cheapest' army for each faction.

[Evilmonkey]

Crusaders are pretty forgiving but i think Dwarves would be more so.

[joshuaslater]

Take the blue pill!! Too late huh? Once you get into Warlord, you're gone baby.

[wildger]

Last night I was fortunate to play a demo (500 point) game of Warlord with a very patient and thorough psyberwolfe. I just wanted to get some other opinions on which faction would be the best Gateway to the game? I guess what I am looking for is a faction that is good to play as a newcomer to the game. Any suggestions?

You should concentrate on the one that interests you the most.

[Qwyksilver]

I would recommend picking a few factions whose models or style/theme you like. Then use some generic models to proxy and kick the tires on those factions if you haven't played them already. This way you can make an informed decision based on playstyle and aesthetics before you make a decision to invest you time and money buying/assembling/painting that winning faction.

Also consider factions where you can repurpose other models. Part of why I started with Reven and Crusaders was because I can cross purpose them for D&D. I've lost count of the armies and models I have from other factions now, but those were my first loves.

[cristomeyers]

You should concentrate on the one that interests you the most.

What he said.

I've always said that you should always go for the army you like. There's too much money in this hobby to get the army that's good only to discover you don't actually enjoy playing it.

[Luethar]

Thank you all for your input. I rather like many of the original factions. Since the only thing that matters to me as far as likes is that my army cannot have guns! So no pirate factions for me.

I have decided that I like the Dwarves and Crusaders the most. So I have developed a 500 point Crusader army. I tired to consider all SA's and tactics to try and develop a "round" army. I would be interested in getting some feedback from all of you:


Crusaders - 498 points

Troop 1

Lady Jehanne
Ivy Crown Light Lancer x 2
Herne, Light Lancer

Troop 2

Acacia, Ivy Crown Ranger
Ivy Crown Archer x 2
Ivy Crown Skirm isher x 2
Book of Tactics

Troop 3

Templar Ironspine x 2
Templar Knight
Ian, Mage Apprentice
Sir Broderick, Justicar

Troop 4

Luck Stone

Did I leave anything out? Was there something I should have included that I did not? Are there some characters with other special abilities that make it a "must have' that I may have overlooked due to "noobness"? Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

Lue.

[Shakandara]

Jehanne and Herne are both leaders, and therefore cannot b in Troop 1 together. Otherwise, the list is legal. I would, however, caution you against using 3 minimal model troops like this at the 500 point mark. First and foremost, with only a couple of models in Jehanne's troop, you will get minimal impact from her Warlord Ability; if you are going to spend the points on a Warlord, especially at this point size, make it count. Second, by spreading your points across 3 troops, it may give you more activations, but you'll be able to bring less points to bear at a single time, and that can be key, especially if your opponent brings something with DR or a high DV. Compare the following to your list:

Crusaders - 499 points

Troop 1
Lady Jehanne w/Magic Weapon, Book of Tactics
Ian, Mage Apprentice
Templar Knight x 2
Ivy Crown Skirmisher x 2
Templar Ironspine x 2
Ivy Crown Archer x 2

Troop 2
Herne, Light Lancer
Ivy Crown Light Lancer x 2
War Dog x 4

Luck Stone

I've tried to keep largely the same models as what you used, but be re-organizing down into 2 troops, I've actually increased the model count to 17 models. Further, Jehanne now has 10 models total in her troop, and more critically, your archers are now there. Being able to turn Focus from a +1 into a +2 for them is very valuable. By moving the cavalry off to their own troop, you now have a defined purpose for them; they can reach out across the table and hit a target quick and hard, then let the grunts in Troop 1 wade in to finish the job. Troop 1 also now benefits from combined arms, being able to execute all 3 combat action types (Shoot, Fight, and Spellcast), which is excellent for taking down hard targets.

~v

[Luethar]

I would, however, caution you against using 3 minimal model troops like this at the 500 point mark.

Shak,

Don't quite know what you mean by Minimal Model Troops.

I was looking for three troops because of the demo I played. If I traded out the Warlord for another leader and perhaps a soloist, how would you recommend that exchange?

Lue

[Shakandara]

Each leader has a minimum and maximum number of soldiers they can lead. In the force you listed, there were only 2-4 soldiers in each troop, which is close to the minimal amount of models necessary. The two troops I listed in my build were at or near the maximum numbers. More models in the troop = more attacks at a single time. While there are times when it is advantageous to spread your attacks, there are also times when you need to be able to concentrate firepower to take down a model quickly. This is harder to do when you have small troops of only a few models.

If you wanted to ditch Jehanne and instead bring a solo, your build could look something like:

Crusaders - 499 points

Troop 1
Sir Broderick, Justicar
Book of Tactics
Ian, Mage Apprentice
Templar Knight x 2
Ivy Crown Skirmisher x 2
Templar Ironspine x 2
Ivy Crown Archer x 2

Troop 2
Herne, Light Lancer
Ivy Crown Light Lancer x 2
War Dog x 4

Troop 3
Hound of Judgment

Luck Stone

Again, rather than try to reinvent the wheel, I tried to use what you'd started with, and mostly add to it. Notice that again, the two regular troops are at their maximum number of soldiers, rather than the minimum. I've retained that "strike package" in Troop 2, and the points freed from dropping Jehanne made room to add the Hound of Judgement. As for which of these two lists is better... *shrug* it's probably more a matter of preference than anything else. I like having Jehanne's Warlord ability, though if I were going to try to bring her, I'd also probably try to bring a different caster, like Marcus for his Bless and Divine Vigor. Alternately, I'd use Isarah's Burst of Speed with the cavalry and dogs for some real quick-strike potential.

~v

[Luethar]

Crusaders - 499 points

Troop 1
Sir Broderick, Justicar
Book of Tactics
Ian, Mage Apprentice
Templar Knight x 2
Ivy Crown Skirmisher x 2
Templar Ironspine x 2
Ivy Crown Archer x 2

Troop 2
Herne, Light Lancer
Ivy Crown Light Lancer x 2
War Dog x 4

Troop 3
Hound of Judgment

Luck Stone

Again, rather than try to reinvent the wheel, I tried to use what you'd started with, and mostly add to it. Notice that again, the two regular troops are at their maximum number of soldiers, rather than the minimum. I've retained that "strike package" in Troop 2, and the points freed from dropping Jehanne made room to add the Hound of Judgement. As for which of these two lists is better... *shrug* it's probably more a matter of preference than anything else. I like having Jehanne's Warlord ability, though if I were going to try to bring her, I'd also probably try to bring a different caster, like Marcus for his Bless and Divine Vigor. Alternately, I'd use Isarah's Burst of Speed with the cavalry and dogs for some real quick-strike potential.

~v

Shak,

Thanks. That's the exact type of feedback I was looking for. My rule book is on the way, so I should be better prepared in starting up soon. Now to just hunt through my models.

Lue.

[Shakandara]

No problem. All this chatter in the Warlord forums lately might just get me to head out to the FLGS for some games soon. It'd be nice to avoid last year's dry spell of ReaperCon-to-Reapercon without any games.

~v

[Stubbdog]

By the way, Lue, Shak is in Houston. Shak, Lue is between Austin and SA if I remember correctly.

Just in case an opportunity arises from that.