Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Order/Stormcast Eternals: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 17:16, 17 September 2017

Lo and behold the might of the Stormcast Eternals!

If you want to always have multiple wounds and fight for Sigmar, the Stormcast Eternals are for you! Stormcast Eternals all have at least a 4+ save and 2 wounds per model making them a really tough force to take down in hand to hand combat. At the moment they seem more focused on having X models and ensuring those X models survive until the end of the game through various hero abilities (immune to Battleshock, regain wounds, increase their already durable (for AoS at least) 4+ save and bonuses to hit). At the same time, your guys don't punch all that hard, though your Paladins (read: Elite) more than make up for that. Thanks to their hardiness and comparatively low damage output, they are the epitome of "easy to learn, hard to master", much like their 40k cousins. They recently got an update as of February 2017, tactica page in the process of being updated.

New book included the vanguard wing auxillary chamber, rules for using specific Stormhosts and new batallions. Also included are new warlord traits, relics, prayers for your priests (read Lord-Relictor and Lord-Veritant), and mount traits to make that stardrake an even bigger threat.

Allegiance Abilities

Battle Traits

If your army has a STORMCAST ETERNALS allegiance and chose to take the STORMCAST ETERNALS allegiance abilities, it has the following rule:

Scions of the storm:

You may hold any number of units in reserve instead of deploying, and in each movement phase roll a dice for each unit, on a 3+ they arrive on the field, setting up anywhere more than 9" away from any enemy models. Potentially useful, but can also shoot yourself in the foot. It does let Paladins get across the board really fast so definitely has its uses.

Command Traits

A STORMCAST ETERNALS General of an army with a STORMCAST ETERNALS allegiance and has chosen to take the STORMCAST ETERNALS allegiance abilities can choose one of the following Command Traits:

Shielded by Faith: A 5+ save for your general for mortal wounds.
Consummate Commander: Choose another hero, who gets to also use any command abilities it may have as if it were your general whilst your actual general is alive.
Cunning Strategist: D3 STORMCAST ETERNALS get a 5" move before the first battle round begins.
Zealous Crusader: Your general can re-roll charge distances.
Staunch Defender: Your general and every STORMCAST ETERNALS unit within 6" add 1 to saves if they have not charged this turn. This doesn't stack with cover bonus.
Champion of the Realms: +1 attack for a non-mount weapon on your general.

Artifacts of Power

One HERO in your army (+1 per additional warscroll battalion) may take a relic from the following tables:

Blessed Weapons: Pick a weapon that is not used by a mount for one of the following bonuses

Strife-ender: +1 attack for a melee weapon (+2 against a CHAOS unit).
Blade of Heroes: re-roll failed hit rolls made with a melee weapon against HEROES or MONSTERS.
Hammer of Might: wound rolls of 6+ cause double damage for a melee weapon.
Fang of Dracothian: re-roll wound rolls of 1 for a melee weapon.
Obsidian Blade: improve the rend characteristic of a melee weapon by 1.
Gift of the Six Smiths: pick a melee weapon, each turn you may re-roll one hit, wound or damage roll for an attack made with this weapon.

Enchanted Armour:

Armour of Destiny: A 6+ save after the save for an unsaved wound or mortal wound.
Armour of Silvered Sigmarite: -1 to hit for melee weapons directed at the HERO
Drakenscale Armour: Re-roll failed saves for this HERO against weapons with a Damage characteristic greater than 1.
Mirrorshield: -2 to hit for missile weapons directed at this HERO.
Spellshield: This HERO may unbind a single spell in each enemy hero phase as if it were a Wizard
Featherfoe Torc: Units which can fly must re-roll successful hit rolls for attacks directed against this HERO.

Magical Artifacts:

Talisman of Endurance: +1 wounds.
Obsidian Amulet: negate a spell used on this hero on a 4+, other units are affected as normal.
Luckstone: Once per battle you can change the results of one hit, wound, damage or save roll for this HERO to the result of your choice.
Seed of Rebirth: On a 4+ in each hero phase you heal 1 wound.
Sigmarite Pendant: When this hero is slain, cause D6 mortal wounds to the unit that slew them on a 4+.
Quicksilver Draught: Once per battle this HERO may pile in and attack in the combat phase before any other units, even if it is your opponent's turn.

Treasured Standards:

For heroes with the TOTEM keyword, AKA Knight-Vexillor

Hurricane Banner: This HERO and any friendly STORMCAST ETERNALS units within 12" can re-roll all rolls of 1 when running and charging.
Lichbone Standard: Friendly STORMCAST ETERNALS units other than heroes within 6" of this HERO heal one wound in each of their hero phases.
Pennant of Sigmaron: If a friendly STORMCAST ETERNALS unit within 12" of this HERO fails a battleshock test, on a 2+ only one model flees from that unit.

Mystic Lights:

For any hero with a lantern - Lord-Castellant, Lord-Veritant or Knight-Azyros

Shriving Light: +1 to enemy battleshock tests (+D3 for CHAOS) within 6" of this hero.
Fury Brand: In hero phase, give +1 to attacks for one weapon on a HERO within 6".
Lantern of the Tempest: Enemy units that direct missile attacks against this HERO of friendly STORMCAST ETERNALS units within 6" must re-roll hit rolls of 6+.

Prayers of the Stormhosts

Every PRIEST in a STORMCAST ETERNALS army gains an additional prayer to a which can be used in addition to their other abilities in the hero phase, in the same vein as spells for other armies mages.

Divine Light: 3+ to cast, choose a unit within 12". If it is an enemy, you may re-roll 1's to hit when attacking that unit until your next hero phase. If you choose a friendly unit, enemy units re-roll hit rolls of 6+ when attacking that unit until your next hero phase.
Bless Weapons: 4+ to cast, a unit within 12" gains an additional attack for every hit roll of 6+ until your next hero phase. Cast on Retributors with a Lord-Celestant nearby and watch the tears flow like a river.
Bolster Faith: 4+ to cast, friendly units within 12" do not have to take battleshock tests until your next hero phase.
Lightning Chariot: 3+ to cast, transport the PRIEST or a friendly unit within 3" anywhere up to 24" from it's previous position and more than 9" from an enemy. This counts as its movement for the subsequent movement phase.
Abjuration: 2+ to cast, the priest can attempt to unbind a spell in each enemy hero phase until your next hero phase.
God-King's Aspect: 4+ to cast, on a roll of 1 the PRIEST takes a mortal wound, enemy units within 12" add 2 to any battleshock tests they have to take until your next hero phase.

Steeds of the Celestial Realms

One mount in your army (+1 per additional warscroll battalion) may be "exceptional" and take a trait from the relevant tables.

Dracoth Traits:

Lithe-Limbed: +1 to move characteristic.
Savage Loyalty: If this HERO is slain in the combat phase, on a 4+ the unit that slew them takes D3 mortal wounds.
Keen-Clawed: Any wound rolls of 6+ in the combat phase for this HERO's mount are resolved with a rend of -3.
Drake-Kin: If this HERO suffers damage from an attack with a damage characteristic greater than 1, on a 5+ the HERO only suffers 1 Damage from the attack.
Thunder Caller: The HERO's Dracoth's Storm Breath ability has a range of 16" rather than 12".
Pack Hunter: +2 to Attacks of the HERO's Dracoth's Claws and Fangs if there is another friendly model riding a Dracoth within 6".

Stardrake Traits:

Lithe-Limbed: +1 to move characteristic.
Savage Loyalty: If this HERO is slain in the combat phase, on a 4+ the unit that slew them takes D3 mortal wounds.
Keen-Clawed: Any wound rolls of 6+ in the combat phase for this HERO's mount are resolved with a rend of -3.
Storm-Winged: Roll a dice for one enemy unit this HERO passes over in the movement phase. on a 2+ the unit takes D3 mortal wounds. Impractical in most situations due to the size of the Stardrakes large size.
Thunderlord: Roiling Thunderhead ability has a range of 24" rather than 18".
Star-Branded: When referring to the Damage table of this HERO, treat it as having suffered one fewer wounds than it actually has.

Gryph-Charger Traits:

Lithe-Limbed: +1 to move characteristic.
Savage Loyalty: If this HERO is slain in the combat phase, on a 4+ the unit that slew them takes D3 mortal wounds.
Keen-Clawed: Any wound rolls of 6+ in the combat phase for this HERO's mount are resolved with a rend of -3.
Wind Runner: When this HERO rides the Winds Aetheric, roll an extra dice on the distance they can move.
Aethereal Stalker: When this HERO is set up, choose an enemy HERO. This HERO can re-roll all failed hit and wound rolls made for its Gryph-charger's Razor Beak and Claws attacks that are directed against the chosen HERO.
Indefatigable: re-roll the distance when this HERO runs.

Warscrolls

Common keywords in these warscrolls are ORDER, CELESTIAL, HUMAN and STORMCAST ETERNAL.

Leaders

Celestant-Prime: Only one can be included in a Pitched Battle army. While not exactly named, this here is, bar Vandus Hammerhand, your unique character to hold you over while we wait for the rules for Sigmar that'll probably also come whenever FW decides to make rules for that bastard. The Prime has a very powerful shooting attack, dramatically one-upping the Lord-Celestant on Dracoth by tossing a comet onto the battlefield. His close combat potential seems lacking at first, having only 2 attacks. That said, for every turn you don't set him up, he gains two additional attacks with Ghal Maraz. In addition, whenever he deploys, all enemies within 12" of him suffer -2 Bravery until his next Hero Phase. Unfortunately, Age of Sigmar games tend to be over by turn three, so the use he sees in all but the biggest games is somewhat limited. Let's put it this way: Nagash will kick his ass. The Glottkin will kick his ass. Archaon... will probably think twice, as might the Mortarchs. The point is, this guy only looks like a combat monster, but he's really your artillery equivalent, except for really big games, where you can afford to leave him off the table for two or three turns.
- Alternatively if you build your army to be hyper defensive with a bunch of shielded Liberators with a Castallant's lantern, you could very easily just set up on the extreme far edge of the board and camp there to force your opponent to spend ages trekking over to you, while you take turns lasting only a couple of seconds (Use a Command Ability, use the Lantern, maybe a quick snipe with the Knight-Venator, turn done.) This way you'll be on Turn 3 by the time you reach combat, and will be able to last a few more turns after that due to your high defense. By the point you need to bust out the Celestant-Prime to counter-attack, so many turns will have passed that he'll dominate anything he gets into combat with.
- In fact, the Prime is a lot better than it would seem at first glance. With his "Orrery of Celestial Fates", once per turn you can CHANGE one of his rolls to any result you want. Meaning, each turn you can either: almost guarantee 3 Damage in combat if you change the Hit dice (Ghal Maraz wounds on 2+ and has -3 Rend), or almost guarantee that 9" charge the turn he enters play, or avoid one non-mortal wound to him if you change the Save roll (even against -3 Rend opponents!), or make his meteor attack work in a 12" bubble (that will also give you perfect control to avoid hitting your own guys!). This last option is the best one: usually you'll hit at least 3 units, meaning an average 6 mortal wounds, and Battleshock tests for 3 units, at -2 Bravery if they're at 12" or less! If you make him appear in the right spot, and when many enemy units are at combat with your guys, you'll force A LOT of Battleshock test at -2 Bravery. Your second turn is ideal for this: most of your units will be engaged, and with 4 Ghal Maraz attacks, if you change the hit dice, the Prime deals each turn something like 9 wounds in combat (except against a handful of super-protected units, like Stonehorns or Phoenix Guard), which is MIGHTY. But in your own turn it's probably better to change the radius roll for the comet and deal myriads of mortal wounds. This guy requires a lot of skill to play, but if you do it right his 350 points cost will be repaid in no time.

Lord-Celestant on Dracoth: A guy in pompous golden armour and a big cloak who swings a giant warhammer and rides a dragon on lightning. Couldn't be more Power Metal if he tried. He's very killy in close combat and his command ability grants a huge bubble in which Stormcast Eternals don't have to take Battleshock. His ranged attack is potentially devastating, but only if the enemy was stupid enough to bunch up all his important stuff and you get very lucky. With a 50% chance to deal damage, it's nice to have but you shouldn't rely on it. Due to being mounted, he moves at a fast pace and has 7 wounds as opposed to the "general" hero base of 5. This guy is hard hitting, fast and durable meaning you want him up in the front line where he can lead the charge and give everyone the benefit of his aura.
- Vandus Hammerhand: Lord-Celestant of the Hammerhands, the first chamber of the Hammers of Sigmar. He's Sigmar's favorite Stormcast and it shows. On the tabletop he has a brutal command ability, granting all Hammers of Sigmar units within 6 inches an extra attack. His tempestos hammer, Heldensen, deals 3 wounds rather than D3 and his dracoth Calanax has 4 attacks rather than 3. He automatically grants battleshock immunity to all Hammers of Sigmar units within 24 inches.

Lord-Celestant: A strong hero on foot that can do an average of 1.75 mortal wounds in the shooting phase and 1,77 damage at -1 rend + 0,66 damages in the melee phase (more if he charges). His command ability gives nearby Stormcast Eternals units(including himself) a +1 to hit during the combat phase. At first, he seems to lose out to his brother on the Dracoth, but in the end you're exchanging personal killing power against powerful support that might end up being worth more than the hilariously unreliable breath attack of the Dracoth. Just make sure you surround him with lots of melee units and keep him alive. He's harder to use than the mounted verion, but with careful positioning he'll be more effective while taking up fewer Wounds. If you want to get really powerful, get his Command Ability on some Retributors so that they activate Blasted to Ashes on a 5+ instead, making for a potentially game-breaking combo.

Lord-Celestant on Stardrake: aka Rage Made Manfest Hoo boy. Looking at the stat-wheel, this guy compares quite well to Nagash, with sixteen wounds at a 3+ save and a high flying Move. Melee-wise, the Drake looks lacking at first, having just about the same profile as a Vampire Lord, with four attacks at 3+/3+/-1/D3, which is a good profile, but not stellar for such a huge model. The Celestant on top adds to the beastie by wielding either the same Hammer you're used to from the starter set Celestant or a Sword with much worse To Wound rolls (4+ instead of 2+) but which makes 3 To Wound rolls instead of 1 if you rolled a 6+ To Hit, making him nice and blendy and as usual, both profiles get more attacks if you charge. He also bears a Shield, which does the exact same thing you're used to and can cause Mortal Wounds on the guys who punch your Celestant. And then you see why the Drake looks so lacking in melee: At range, he can either barf lightning, which works like a Grey Seer's unique spell, rolling as many D6 as the enemy unit has models and every 6 deals a Mortal Wound or he can instead shoot comets, which have infinite range and hit D6 units for D3 Mortal Wounds, then before combat, he can just flat-out eat up to 3 enemy models, with higher chances to succeed if their Wound-stat is low and after combat, he swings his tail, which deals Mortal Wounds and is more accurate against larger units. His command ability grants all Drakes and Dracoths in your army rerolls To Wound with their Claws, Jaws et cetera, including the Celestant's own mount. And he can also adjust casting rolls for all Wizards around him by +/-1. Simply put, this guy is not an auto-win button and his Command Ability is somewhat lackluster, but he raises holy hell by having a huge threat bubble and crapping out an enormous amount of Mortal Wounds all over the field.

Drakesworn Templar: If you like your Drake better without a meh Command Ability. Like Paladins, Dracoths and Dracoth Celestants, the Templar gets the obligatory choice of your three favorite weapons and again all of them do different things: The Axe gets 6 swings at 1 damage and has a chance of drastically worsening enemy Pile-in moves, great to keep your Templar safe from small gribbles. The Hammer is more or less a Retributor's hammer but with damage 3, but with the extra goodness of 6+s To Hit making 2 To Wound rolls instead of 1. This can ruin a monster's day all on its own. The Lance also gets you a nice effect: If you roll a 6+ To Hit against a monster with it, you instantly deal D6 Mortal Wounds. Be aware that D6 Mortal Wounds can potentially be worse than your normal damage of 2, though. Again, the Hammer is the more balanced choice, right between Monster killer and tarpit cleaner, but it's not as specialized as the other two; just pick the one you think is most appropriate, the Drake will probably do most of the work on its own anyway. And instead of an awkward Command Ability, he simply raises the Bravery of Stormcasts around him by 1, leaving you more room to employ the awesome force multiplier-Command on the on-foot Celestant and he gets a bow that can pretty much light the enemy up with phosphorus, granting +1 To Hit for Dracothian Guard in the combat phase. Use this with Concussors for best effect.

Lord-Aquilor: The post given to the leader of the Vanguard Auxiliary Chambers, aka the Stormcast Eternal Rangers. He's got decent combat stats and some ranged capability, and also comes with both the "flanking" ability of Vanguard-Hunters and the "jump" of the Vanguard-Palladors (not both at the same time, though). Nice and all, but his real meat comes with his Command Ability: it's the same flanking thing of the Vanguard-Hunters, but for him AND a unit of either Vanguard-Hunters, Vanguard-Palladors, Vanguard-Raptors or Aetherwings that it's wihtin 24" of him. The possibilities are endless: set up an alpha strike with Vanguard-Palladors, save a unit in peril, grab TWO objectives, make Vanguard-Raptors infuriatingly inmortal, controlling the flow of the battle, or just mess with your opponents' plans (and head). But most of all, he's loads of fun: teleporting every turn lets you do some strange things and have some strange battles, what with being unpredictable and keeping your opponent guessing. Particularly good if you're going for a hit-and-run-and-shoot-you-to-death Vanguard Auxiliary Chamber army.

Lord-Relictor: A mediocre foot-slogger who can control the storms. This means he can choose to either heal a friendly model for D3 wounds, best used on other Heroes, or to loose what is basically Arcane Bolt without a casting roll on an enemy, with the slight difference that anyone hit also takes a To Hit-penalty in the following turn. While no slouch in combat, he's nowhere near as good as a Lord-Celestant; of course, this isn't why you take him. The best use for him is in the "secondary" line, using his healing buff to keep your men in fighting shape and lending a hand with the lightning storm anywhere they're struggling. Heroes and paladins of all types will find him a very good "best bud". The comparison between him and the Lord-Celestant is easily explained: the Celestant is the fighter of the party while the Relictor is the ~~chaplain~~ cleric. Remember that the healing storm can't actually bring things back to life, it only heals stuff that's still alive.

Alternate Take: Frankly, the guy is awesome. The advent of Prayers gives him two options to influence the game in the Hero Phase, neither of which can be unbound. Favourite combo - "the FUCK YOU button": Give him the prayer Divine Light, and then use his Lightning in enemy mode. With luck you'll have a unit that's taken D3 wounds, is -1 to hit, and your whole army gets to re-roll ones against them. All for the cost of two Gryph-hounds! Bargain!

Lord-Castellant: 1 wound more than the standard hero on foot, this hero is slightly better than Lord-Celestant in the combat phase (2,66 damages at -1 rend and 2" range). His lantern's ability inflicts 1 mortal wound to a Chaos unit or an average of 1,5 mortal wounds to a Chaos daemon unit. If there aren't any such foes around, it can make Stormcast Eternals units more resistant and occasionally heal them. As above, the Celestant may be the fighter, the Relictor is probably the cleric and the Castellant is definitely the paladin. He's at home up front where the Celestant could be (though the Castellant lacks any command ability of his own), but equally at home in the secondary line warding your Eternals with his lantern (wording means that you can gain and lose wounds at the same time while your units will have a majority 3+ save thanks to him) or even as a beastmaster if he fights with a bunch of gryph hounds in close proximity. His lantern's other ability is very nice if a little circumstantial, autosniping a Chaos Marauder equivalent or letting him damage daemons something fierce without even trying. Finishing off a Chaos hero who's down to his last wound is fun. All in all he's a flexible choice. He's good at buffing up units that are going to be taking some saves ensuring you've got enough men to hold on that little bit longer. Extra rage points when all your opponents attacks simply heal a wound back on your Liberator squad.

Lord-Veritant: Has an extra wound compared to standard heroes just like the Castellant, and gets a pretty good melee profile (4 attacks at 3/3/-1, 2 damage each). Again, like the Castellant, he gets a pet gryph hound (see Fast Movers below). This guy is a wizard killer. He can unbind in the same way as a wizard, and has a 50/50 chance of doing D3 mortal wounds to an enemy wizard within 7". In addition if the gryph hound is within 6" of the enemy wizard you get +3 to your unbinding roll. The gryph hound is no slouch in combat either, doubling its attacks as long as the enemy is within 3" of the Veritant.

Knight-Venator: Your flying shooty Hero. Has a whole bunch of good shots at a ridiculously high 30" range, but is by far the worst Stormcast Hero in melee. He can also shoot a special arrow once per game that can either hurt a Monster real bad or murder the face off of a normal Hero with D6+3 Damage. Use his bullshit range to stay away from the enemy and laugh while you drop a ton of damage exactly where you need it each turn. Just keep him away from the enemy unless you're feeling VERY desperate or hitting a target of opportunity, such as an artillery crew.

Knight-Azyros: Your flying support Hero. Has the same lacking melee profile as the Relictor, but gets 3 special rules to make up for it. One is huge in concert with the Thunderstrike Brotherhood, providing a homing beacon that lets you ignore the 9"-from-the-enemy restriction so long as your deep strikers hug the Azyros. The next lets any unit re-roll 1s To Hit against enemies during the shooting phase if their target is close to the Azyros and finally he can forgo moving, charging and fighting to deal a bunch of Mortal Wounds to all enemy units within 8" once per game. If you find a situation where this is useful, go for it. Otherwise, the guy isn't a powerhouse, but he doesn't want to be. If you want him, simply tweak your army a bit to accommodate him. Prosecutors with Javelins profit a lot from his buff and a Thunderstrike Brotherhood might utterly annihilate opponents thanks to him. Keep in mind that Judicators already reroll 1s to hit against Chaos, so he's better for supporting Prosecutors in general or Judicators against any other army.

Knight-Heraldor: Your only Hero with a 4+ save. In melee, his profile is slightly worse than the Relictor and the Azyros. Why do you use him? Because he's got a big, honking Trumpet. With it, he can make a Stormcast unit run and charge or retreat and charge AND cause damage to opponents huddled up in a terrain piece. Pick a Chaos Dreadhold and cackle ~~maniacally~~ righteously. Just remember his horn doesn't specify that enemy units get hit, so pick your targets wisely or else that Retributor squad might find itself a man short right before a charge.

Knight-Vexillor: Your Standard Bearer. In melee, he's a Hammer-Liberator with twice the attacks and he can have a pick of two banners. No matter which you pick, Stormcast Eternals around him get to reroll charge rolls. In addition, the banners have these effects: The Meteoric Standard grants you a one-shot version of the Prime's Cometstrike Scepter, which means a big boom. The Pennant of the Stormbringer, on the other hand, lets you pick up a Stormcast unit and then redeploy it anywhere so long as you stay 9" away from enemies, sadly no longer guaranteeing a charge or dropping mortal wounds on nearby enemies. No Longer the go to option it was, but still potentially very useful. This guy is the polar opposite of the Lord-Castellant; he's slow and hard to use, but the potential payout is far greater if you find creative ways to employ him.

Knight-Questor: (From Warhammer Quest: Silver Tower) Well IF you want to field him, be our guest. The Questor is very self-sufficient, meaning he's not dependent on any buffs but doesn't dish any out either. He tries to be a duelist, but in the end, his mediocre combat potential holds him back. On the other hand, he never ever dies thanks to his rerollable 3+ Save. He's five Wounds that will always pull their weight but will never bring you in more than you paid for him.

Errant-Questor: Warhammer World exclusive, so expect to pay inflated eBay prices if you can't get there yourself or ask a friend. Similar profile to the Knight-Questor except instead of a rerollable save, he ignores Rend. This might be preferable when facing armies that pile it on. At setup he can take one of three oaths; the first one lets him take wounds for a nominated Stormcast Hero as long as he's within 3", like an automatic Look Out Sir. The second lets you name a Hero in the enemy army, which gives the Errant free rerolls to hit and to wound versus that guy. The final and arguably best oath gets you an extra attack, cumulatively, for every 10 wounds you inflict - and with a base of three attacks at 3+/3+/-1 doing D3 damage each, that isn't too hard. He also rerolls all failed charge rolls, no catch. All in all a pretty strong character; team him up with a Celestant on foot and Castellant for your own little Stormcast Adventuring Party.

Neave Blacktalon: The new Stormcast Eternals Hero Hunter. 7 Attacks that generate more attacks on any hit roll of 6. Her axes and pistol go from D1 to D2 if you target an enemy HERO. She can run and shoot in the same turn. Her best ability is "Windrider" - When a friendly Stormcast Eternal unit within 6" uses their Ride the Winds Aetheric ability, Neave Blacktalon can follow in their wake; she can immediately move in the same manner up to the distance moved by the unit she is following, provided that she ends this move within 6" of them and more than 3" from any enemy models. If she moves in this way, Neave Blacktalon may not run or charge in that turn. Neave Blacktalon is taken from the Hammers of Sigmar Stormhost and always wears their colours in battle.

Battleline

Liberators: Your basic melee troops, strong with average durability (4+ and 2 wounds). Sigmar tweaked those to be used against the strongest Chaos enemies, so always go for the biggest model on the field. Now let's talk a little about weapon options, because you can have four different flavours of Liberators. If you want to arm them with a weapon and shield, it doesn't matter which weapon, as the math is the same (0,66 damage per model and you can reroll save rolls of 1 improving them from 50% to 58%) so long as there are no buffs and other special rules to change the odds. As soon as you double up on weapons, the Hammers gain a slight edge. When their Lay Low The Tyrants rule comes into effect, the Hammers win out. If you have a Celestant on foot to buff their hit rolls, the Hammers win out. Even if you add both special rules and the Swords hit on ~~1+ (automatically, basically)~~ (Due to the three rules of one, a 1 is automatically a fail), they still lose out to the Hammers, though you should not underestimate the psychological edge of only needing one roll to hit and wound. Really though, the differences between Sword and Hammer are so marginal you won't really see them; just remember that your Liberators get a lot better at punching if you heap on the buffs, going from 0,66 Wounds up to 1,29 Wounds per model if you do it juuust right.
- Always choose to add the special weapon (same efficiency again between the two, but doubled compared to the normal weapons and with a -1 rend). But even with all this, don't start to believe that your Liberators are powerful melee units, as a lot of stuff will outclass them on a Wound-to-Damage basis. What they can do is outlast most of those. This is because their true purpose isn't to be an incredible unit on the board. They're a convenient way to turn your heroes' buffs into actual damage, and most of your Battalion options are going to let you shunt them around to where they'll be most useful. Having at least one unit is always advisable even if you aren't using the formations (but why are you doing that?).
  - Always go with shields. You don't take Liberators to kill stuff, you have paladins to do that, although they can help chip a few wounds off of a big beastie or two should the need arise. No, you take these guys to HOLD THE LINE, which a ten man squad will do any day of the week. If you combine the shields with a Lord Castellant, then laugh manically as your battleline units have the rough equivalent of a 2+ save against attacks without rend.

Judicators: your basic ranged troops, same stats as the Liberators. They can reroll hit rolls of 1 against Chaos in the shooting phase. If you arm them with Skybolt Bow, you can do 0,44 damage per model with -1 rend at 24". With a Boltstorm Crossbow, you can do 0,66 damage per model with at 12" and if you don't move this number goes up to 0,99 damage per model. As with Liberators, always add the special weapon (1,54 damages per model with -1 rend at 24" for the Shockbolt Bow, 2 mortal wounds with the Thunderbolt Crossbow if it hits; the larger the target unit, the better your chances. It has a 1 in 3 chance of hitting a lone monster, so it isn't quite impossible to land a hit if there aren't any blobs of infantry around to blow up). In melee you do an average of 0,33 damage, the bare minimum to reply in combat, which is where these guys don't want to be. When it comes to weapon choice, different tactics apply. Bows will see you getting a better payoff in the long run; let them hang back and pincushion the enemy's units and they'll do just fine. However, if you manage set up the the triple shots for the crossbows, you're going to darken the sky with bolts and chortle heartily at all the saves your opponent is forced to take. Spread your Liberators wide so they act as a net to trap the enemy, then put Judicators behind them to tear up anyone foolish enough to attack you. This way your crossbowmen will start where they're most needed and you needn't go to any extra effort to set them up.

Vanguard-Hunters: Serving as a mid-point between Judicators and Liberators, the Vanguard-Hunters act as your new, shiny, jack-of-all-trades battleline unit (Provided you have a Lord-Aquilor as your general). They are armed with either a sabre or handaxe (which, stat-wise, have the same relationship as the hammer vs. sword on your Liberators) and all carry a Boltstorm pistol. The pistol has only a 9" range, but they do kick out two shots each. These guys have the nifty trick of being able to run and shoot in the same turn. Further, one in 5 Vanguard-Hunters can be made to carry an 'Astral Compass', which affords an ability similar to 40k's outflank (but better!). Rather than deploying normally, you can leave them off the board. In ANY of your movement phases, you can just walk them on from any table edge - so long as you are within 6" of that edge, and more than 7" from enemy models. Meaning it's more probable than not you can make a charge against the thing you just shoot, making them pretty good at alpha strike/beheading first turn offensives.
- Coming in at more than Liberators and without the option to take that all-important Sigmarite shield, Vanguard-Hunters are notably more squishy than thier brethren. Thier lack of 'special' weapon makes them the only battleline choice that doesnt have something a little more choppy to fall back on (but between ranged and melee attacks they make 4 each, while Liberators make only 2). That being said, the application of a well-timed astral compass can really swing things in your favour.

Slow Movers

Vanguard-Raptors with Longstrike Crossbows: Snipers with magical giant crossbows that shoot thunders. They have 24" range, or 30" it they don't move; their weapons are very powerful but only shoot once each turn, but with a 6 to hit they instead deal 2 mortal wounds. These are they guys you want for killing commanders/wizards/support heros/warmachines, or just elite units that are highly armoured and powerful but not very numerous. Just find them some cover and/or high ground and start headshooting; some screening units, particularly Aetherwings, are also welcome. They can also hold pretty well if some fast melee unit catches to them, because they've got the basic Liberator statline (but only 1 melee attack and Bravery 7), but don't expect them to survive for very long and send them some support asap. Using a Lord Aquilor to teleport them everytime the enemy is gonna catch them will give your opponent repeated rage episodes and/or seizures, which are always funny things to see.

Vanguard-Raptors with Hurricane Crossbows: "These magical lightning-shooting crossbows my guys have are nice and all", thought Sigmar one day, "but I can do even better". Then he gave them magical lightning-shooting machine guns. So, now they only have 18" range, but make 6 attacks, or fucking 9 if they don't move. Oh, and if they direct all their attacks against the same unit, it gets -2 to their next charge. Support them with some Aetherwings or something that can tarpit the enemy well (like Liberators), and even saints will start flipping tables: if all goes well, they'll never be in melee, while still peppering thing with lots of shots. Use terrain to your advantage, too. They're excellent against hordes with low saves, slow units, or units with good saves but low numbers (with enough paper cuts, even the mightiest armor will be breached). Be aware of units with both decent numbers and armor, tough, they will survive, reach you and kick your sorry ass. If you're still not convinced, because of their low range and high cost and all, use a Lord Aquilor to just go pof whenever the enemy is going to reach you. Guaranteed to break even the strongest, years-long, "you-saved-my-life-and-married-my-sister" friendships.

Paladins

All the paladins have the same basic profile, swapping an inch of movement for an extra wound and point of bravery over their Liberator brethren. All Paladins can alternatively get Starsoul Mace that automatically inflicts D3 mortal wounds (2 in every 5 models).

Retributors: It's Hammertime! Retributors are the jack of all trades when it comes to Paladins. You've also got a minimum squad size of 3 rather than 5~~, making them easier to cram into your army if you're using a wound cap~~ for open and narrative games, you still have to use 5 on matched games. With each of them getting two attacks at 3+/3+, they'll pile on the saves your opponent has to take, and 2 damage/Rend -1 your opponent will sorely regret every save he fails. While their special ability isn't as gimmicky as the others', it's the most reliable: with every six to hit, they auto deal 2 mortal wounds as they literally blast their unfortunate foes to ash. Probably the best and most consistent all-round choice out of the paladins, there's not much in the game that'll enjoy being in combat with these guys. If you have the Celestant on foot, let your Retributors hug him, because while his bonus to Hit is great for Liberators, it's absolute murder with Retributors as they now hit on 2+ and each roll of 5+ immediately inflicts mortal wounds.

Decimators: These guys have an axe to grind. They don't like horde infantry, and horde infantry doesn't like them. With a 2" range per guy you want these men in the thick of the fight, as deep in an enemy unit as possible. Why, you ask? Because each Decimator gets one attack for every enemy model within that 2" and at 3+/3+/-1/1 they'll certainly put a combine harvester to shame. Furthermore, enemies have to add 2 to Battleshock tests when within 6" of a Decimator, so even more of your opponent's models will decide to call it a day after seeing their buddies get blendered. The wording of this rule also means that Daemon infantry hates their guts, as their standard can't bring back lost models in close proximity to Decimators. They're far weaker to monsters or characters, since they will generally only get 1 attack per guy. You could potentially add a Starsoul Mace to deal with that, but a previous anon covered this merit of this idea quite nicely. You're trading a bucketload of attacks against horde infantry for a few guaranteed knocks against a monster you shouldn't have engaged with Decimators in the first place.

Protector: Guan Yu would be proud. Protectors come with Big Fuckoff Glaives and are almost as blendy as the Decimators with a whopping 3 attacks each. And thanks to their 3" reach, they can quite easily fight over the top of any other troops you want to put them with. These guys have pretty decent abilities too, deflecting a portion of shooting that is fired either at them or over them. Despite these fun abilities, though, they're most at home cutting down monstrous creatures. On a 6 to wound a big beastie, you'll deal a cool D6 damage, potentially cutting down even dragons with ease. Can also reach over a front rank to shank any dickheads who thought they were safe in the back with their 2" weapons. And never ever forget that, potentially, even a single Protector can murder the Glottkin at full wounds. Sure, the chances are about as high as winning the lottery, but the fact that it's even possible puts them head and shoulders over a lot of your other choices.

Fast Movers

Prosecutors with Lightning Hammers: With the ability to fly 12", these guys are basically assault marines. The hammers shoot 18" at 4+/4+. This goes up to a 3+/3+ when you close to face-smashing range, which won't be hard considering that they can charge 3D6; never forget that, especially when you are setting them up via Lightning Strike, as it grants them a significantly better chance of making that 10" charge. These guys will lend your army some much-needed mobility. Soften up a big enemy unit for a charge, pick off wizards and war machines, or zoom on to a much-needed objective. For every one in three, one can take a special weapon: Either the Grandblade or Grandhammer you were already used to, or 1" range version of the Decimators' greataxe. The main advantage of these is that, with one for every three Prosecutors, you get enough special weapons to really change the unit's role. With a Grandaxe or two, they can help you clear tarpits while not being as useless against single targets as an actual unit of Decimators, for example. The other two can add a good bit of punch, but do note that neither have a ranged profile. Also note that Sword and Hammer can also be used by the Prime, getting more mileage out of the better profile unless you are playing with 9 models per unit, you can't take plenty multiples from the same weapon on a minimum sized-squad, refer to the most recent FAQ; you can use weapons according to the profile and the words "and" and "or".

Prosecutors with Stormcall Javelins: Get a completely exclusive Warscroll for some arbitrary reason. While you would expect a goddamn winged armoured Spartan with Spear and Shield to be good in combat, they are actually really bad in melee, but pretty damn good at range. They get only 1 attack at 4+/4+/-/1 in melee, but also an 18" shot at 3+/3+/-/1, which goes up to 2 damage at ranges over 9". One in three can instead get a Stormsurge Trident so you can also rock freaking Poseidon while you're at it. The Trident is pretty much what you're used to from the Stormcasts, gaining -1 Rend and 2 damage both in melee and shooting. Their Prime also shoots twice, so stick (hehe) him with the Trident. And to top it off, they get some nice Sigmarite Shields for rerolls of 1s on saves. Never let these guys anywhere NEAR the enemy. Because their damage goes up to 2 outside of 9", they're going to do roughly 3.4 wounds per turn whether you stay back for the bonus or charge in to shoot and stab at the same time. One of those options keeps them almost entirely out of harm's way, so it shouldn't be a difficult decision. If you need some burst damage, throw your javelins at 10" and then use your 3D6" to make that charge.

Gryph-hounds: If you have a Lord-Castellant you must have one of this unit next to him. His 1,33 damages are a better wounds/damages ratio than liberators and at the same time with a bit of luck you can avoid being hit back with the Darting Attacks ability (which is always good since it has no save). His warning cry ability is useful, but you must remember to deploy this unit (and the Lord-Castellant) exactly in the middle of your army. with a bunch of these circling around or at least close to the castellant you can have a fairly decent beastmaster unit, doubling up on their attacks then darting off.

Aetherwings: ~~Attack birds~~ Defense birds. Lovely plumage. At 10 pts per wound for 4+/4+/-/1 it's a waste to use them to attack anything. They will kill nothing and promptly die due to "-" armor. Now look at their ability: if they are hanging out close to their masters Vanguard-Raptors, they can move in response to opponent declaring charge on Raptors. These are designed to be cheap chaff to protect your Vanguard-Raptors with their atrocious melee, and can use their 12" movement to swoop about and control objectives when necessary.

Vanguard-Palladors: Gryph riders - your new fast cavalry with either javelins or axes. Their mounts are surprisingly powerful for skinny demi-gryphs, having 5 Wounds and a 4+ Save, and -2 Rend mortal-wound-causing attacks, meaning they eat other armies' heavy cavalry for breakfast. So do not think of them as cheap cavalry, in fact they're pretty expensive and elite, use gryph hounds/aetherwings for that. They got a good 12" Move, but most of the time you'll just use their "jump" ability: instead of both moving and running/charging, you can make them move 6D6 inches (so an average 21 inches) as if they could fly. And you can shoot that turn, too! Remember you cannot charge that turn, so this is only for positioning them in strategic places or make them reach things faster. Fast and all-purpose, they're a simple but excellent unit.

Dracothian Guard

Concussors: Retributors +1 on dragons. As with the Retributors, Concussors are the jacks of all trades. They can shoot D3 Mortal Wounds with their Storm Breath (though you need to hit on 4+ before) per model, have the exact same Dracoth melee as the Celestant and swing a big hammer. This hammer is similar to the one Retributors have, but better in several ways. They get three swings and a 6+ To Hit doesn't just cause 2 mortal wounds, but causes 1 mortal wound and then you get to keep rolling To Wound for even more damage. They also have the same reroll-saves-of-1 shields you already know, but on a 3+ frame to really make them count.

Desolators: A "fuck you" to everyone at the table including the guy who bought them. Desolators are at first glance slightly worse than Concussors, with worse To Hit rolls and mostly the same otherwise, then you read their special rule, which increases their attacks the bigger the unit is, going from 3 attacks at 3 or less models up to 6 attacks with 6 or more models. Yes, GW expect you to buy four boxes of these just to reliably keep their bonus. Other than that, Desolators are plenty terrifying in small numbers already, but if you don't want to go the extra mile and field 7 or 8 of them, just use Concussors and have done.

Fulminators: YES. Cavalry with actual charge weapons. No, they're not spears, they're glaives, like the ones the Protectors get, but cooler. Same stats but shorter range, but here's where it gets interesting: They don't give a To Hit penalty to enemy shooters, they give you +1 to your saves against shooters, which stacks with the shields for rerollable 2+ saves against shooting. The glaives also don't get bonus damage against monsters, their damage just climbs from 1 to 3 in the turn they charge. Their breath attack is also optimized for melee, as you get 3 shots at a low range that deal double damage (2 instead of 1) if you shoot them at melee range. These are your linebreakers. They're pointless to shoot at with anything less than War Machines and raise holy hell if they make the charge. However, they are a bit less intimidating than Concussors if they don't charge. Also, remember that tidbit above about a Protector being able to kill the Glottkin at full wounds? Well, a single Fulminator can potentially murder Archaon and kill a Mortarch as a chaser. Certainly, it's less likely than being struck by lightning, but think who you're playing.

Tempestors: The odd one out. These guys want to be shooty, with a 4-shot crossbow. Unfortunately, they have the same optimized-for-melee breath weapon the Fulminators get and are even worse in melee than a Fulminator without charge bonus (which isn't to say they're useless in melee, just not amazing). The real meat is this: If the entire unit directs all its shooting at the same enemy unit, they take a To Hit penalty until your next Hero Phase. Given that "the entire unit" may well be just 1 Tempestor, this can fuck with your opponent really well. Just don't expect them to shoot something dead or out-damage the other variants. They're also just as tough with 3+ save plus shield.