Kings of War/Tactics/Empire of Dust

Why Play Empire of Dust

Empire of Dust is the second undead army to choose from, being more Egyptian in flavor than the regular undead army. They do share a lot of units in common, however, so feel free to try both to get the feel you prefer. This list is the Mantic equivalent of Tomb Kings, so if you have that army already most of your units have an analogous unit here.

Army Special Rules

• Casket of the Damned: Any unit with this special rule has a Casket of Souls. Once per game when the unit is targeted by a Surge spell, you may add 5 dice to the spell roll and add those results to your Surge result.

• Evil Dead: All units in this army have Lifeleech (1) unless otherwise noted.

Unit Analysis

Hero

• Ahmunite Pharaoh: Your combat hero who also have Surge (8). These rulers are pretty strong with Crushing Strength (2) and hitting in melee on a 3+, but like a lot of these type of hero units there just aren't a lot of attacks on this one. If you want a source of Surge, the Cursed High Priest is cheaper and has a better version of Surge. If you want a combat hero, choices are kind of rough none of them have a particularly large amount of attacks. You might be better served by buying some monsters instead.

• Ahmunite Pharaoh on Royal Chariot: Your Ahmunite Pharaoh on his personal pimp mobile. He's got 2 more attacks and speed, but 1 less defence for some reason. He also gains Thunderous Charge (1), for what it's worth. Not a very effective use of points, but if you're thinking of bringing a pharaoh on a chariot you're probably going more for style and not caring about raw effectiveness.

• Cursed High Priest: Your dedicated spell caster. Comes standard with Surge (10), which is exactly the sort of spell you want, but can also buy Heal (4) and Wind Blast (5). You can also mount your priest on a skeleton horse. You can also buy a Breath Attack (12) and Vicious together, which isn't terrible but you'll probably be using them for Surge and not shooting. One of the better caster heroes available and a perfect fit for the army.

• Idol of Shobik: Your living legend hero. This is a living statue with a pile of special rules that costs a pile of points. It gives every friendly, non-allied unit within 6" Iron Resolve, plus it also has Crushing Strength (4), Heal (6), Shambling, Strider, and Very Inspiring. This thing hits harder than any other unit in the game, always wounding on a 2+ against everything. It's also going to be healing your nearby units between the Heal spell and Iron Resolve. This idol of stone is really good and worth the points, but does require a steep investment to use.

• Revenant Champion: The budget combat hero. Crushing Strength (1), Individual, and Inspiring (Revenants only) on a decent stat line for less than 100 points. Not great, but not terrible. You don't have a lot of options if you really want that combat hero and you can buy one of these and an Undead Army Standard Bearer for less than an Ahmunite Pharaoh.

• Revenant Champion on Worm: The large cavalry version of the Revenant Champion. Adds Thunderous Charge (2), 1 point of speed, and 3 attacks for 50 points. Not a good deal at all. If you want to buy some gaudy hero, stick with an Ahmunite Pharaoh on Royal Chariot. Your pharaoh is more useful, has better abilities, and actually hits harder. Neither choice is great, but you got to have some standards.

• Undead Army Standard Bearer: Your standard issue standard bearer. Sadly you cannot put one on chariot, but you'll probably be running a few regardless. Stick them behind your lines and get that Inspiring bonus.

Infantry

• Mummies: Your most elite infantry unit. Crushing Strength (2) and Regeneration (5+) on a decent stat line. Your opponent will target these guys mercilessly, but they are hard-hitting and will heal back lost wounds in melee and movement quickly. They do have low nerve, but unless they are targeted very heavily this won't be as big a problem as it appears. These guys are what you want to use your troop slots on.

• Revenants: The more elite infantry formation. They're a point better in melee and defense than Skeleton Warriors. They can also switch out their shields to gain Crushing Strength (1) at a cost of 1 point of defense. In general you're going to be better served by Skeleton Warriors as the price bump doesn't add a lot, while Mummies are a much better elite infantry unit.

• Skeleton Archers: The cheaper ranged skeleton unit. They have the same range as Skeleton Crossbowmen, but don't have Piercing (1). They can also move and shoot, unlike their more expensive brethren, which is huge. If you take them, don't bother with a Casket of the Damned as you don't want them in melee. Do remember though that you can shoot and then have a someone cast Surge on them to move them forward.

• Skeleton Crossbowmen: The more elite ranged skeleton unit. They have the same range as Skeleton Archers, but gain Piercing (1) at the cost of Reload! While Piercing (1) is a nice boost, you are paying more points for them and they can't move and shoot. If you take them, don't bother with a Casket of the Damned as you don't want them in melee. Do remember though that you can shoot and then have a someone cast Surge on them to move them forward.

• Skeleton Spearmen: Phalanx formation skeletons for you. Slight point bump to cancel out Thunderous Charge. You'll have to judge your local meta as to whether you need this or not.

• Skeleton Warriors: Your basic infantry formation. You don't have Zombies (or Husks anymore, like they did in the beta list) in this list, so this is your spam melee unit. They're good for a tarpit horde when that's what you need and not terribly expensive on that front.

Large Infantry

• Enslaved Guardians:

• Enslaved Guardians Archers:

• Scavengers:

• Swarms:

Cavalry

• Skeleton Archer Cavalry: The shooty cavalry option. They gain bows and lose Thunderous Charge (1). They're also slightly worse in melee and defense than regular Skeleton Cavalry. If you want a shooting unit, stick with Skeleton Archers. If you want a cavalry unit, stick with Skeleton Cavalry.

• Skeleton Cavalry: The chargey cavalry option. They have a pretty standard Cavalry stat line and Thunderous Charge (1). They are fairly cheap for cavalry, which is nice. They're not going to hit as hard as the large cavalry options, but they're not bad as flak units. They can move almost twice as far as Mummies, but won't hit nearly as hard. If you got the points, Mummies are the better unit for these tasks, but they do require more points and more support to Surge them into foes early game.

Large Cavalry

• Revenant Chariots: The cheaper of your large cavalry units. These guys have a point less defence then the worm riders, but also gain a 24" ranged attack. Offset somewhat, they have less attacks overall then worm riders and instead of Crushing Strength (1) and Thunderous Charge (1), they have Thunderous Charge (2), making them weaker against Phalanx units. They are also Shambling, unlike the riders, but this also means they can take a Casket of Souls. If you're taking advantage of Surge with these guys, they're potentially better then Worm Riders, but if you are looking more for a unit to flank hard, stick with the riders instead.

• Revenant Worm Riders: The more expensive large cavalry unit. They're faster and aren't Shambling, plus they have more attacks then Revenant Chariots. They do not have a ranged attack, but they are not as hurt by Phalanx as their wheeled compatriots. Being faster then the chariots allows them to be used more effectively for getting flanks in on your foes, but remember they get nothing from the use of Surge your army is strong at so don't use them in the same way you would your Shambling undead friends.

Monsters

• Bone Dragon:

• Bone Giant:

• Giant Undead Scorpion:

• Reanimated Behemoth:

War Engines

• Balefire Catapult:

• Monolith:

• Soul Snare:

Tactics

Tactica here.