Warhammer Army Project/Norsca

This article needs rules updates. Upgrade plz.

Why Play Norsca?

Because you wanna play Vikings but don't necessarily want to sleep with daemons. Unfortunately, their weakness in having limited ranged combat still persists. Counter charge and Blood Rage also encourages more aggressive play, but will your formations apart and leave flanks exposed.

Pros

• Your rules give you all you need to be constantly offensive.
• werewolves

Cons

• You're the light-armored side of Chaos.
• You have pitiful shooting, with no war machines and limited answers to armor
• That aggressive playstyle may come back to bite you when your force counter charges an enemy and leaves their flanks exposed to a buddy unit.

Army Rules

• Counter-Charge: As a reaction to a charge to their front, the Norse can instead chargeback. Before charging, the unit test Leadership for your vikings to move up Random Movement(2D3). The enemy rolls their charge distance, with success letting both sides count as charging.
  • a beneficial cavalry ability and most of your infantry to get off their charge abilities like impact hits, Lances, and Berserkergang.
  • opponents will often not even want to fight you, even if you guarantee a useful charge. They would rather march towards your flanks or get too close for you to Counter-Charge.
    • You will find, especially with faster units, that they prefer flanking, or you will be within their movement range after a round of marching.

• Blood Rage: Norscan units gain Frenzy on their first turn of combat following a charge. This translates to +1 attack and Immunity to Psychology for that turn's combat.

Equipment

• Fur Cloak: get the equivalent of a Lion Cloak, a natural armour (6+) against missile attacks. additional protection to get your nacked madmen to the target.

Artefacts of Midgard

• Mjolnir, the Crusher: (100p) a giant-slaying Multiple Wounds (D6) Great Weapon that rerolls wound. once per game you can also throw it to cause D6 S4 hit that ignores armour. Something for monster hunting and obliterate enemies in a dual.

• Gungnir, The Swaying Spear: (85p) A Spear + Javelin that alway hits on 2+ and with Heroic Killing Blow.

• Tyrfang: (65p) a +1 to hit Sword that ignores armour and Regen but damages the wielder if he doesn't make a kill in combat. keep in mind Most opponents will try to challenge him in a dual so the sword will finish him.

• Shield of Svalinn: (30p) Each time the bear makes a successful armour or ward save, the aggressor model will get defanged until the end of the next turn with -1 WS and A. Pairs well with other protections.

• Armour of Beowulf: (55p) Medium armour with Regeneration(4+) and +1 wound.

• Brisingamen: (40p) +1 Ld, and all in B2B must pass a Ld test at the start of combat or else be unable to attack and attacks auto hit against them.

• Bone of Ulir: (15p) once per Magic phase, your wizard can get one random spell from any available lore. Very flexible, but you may not get the spell you need or properly make the most out of.

• Girdle of Might: (70p) 2xStrangth, a Jarl with 10S!!!!

• Gjallahorn: (50p) once per turn at the start of your turn, all units within 12" can move closer and enemy make a panic test(?)

• Raven Banner: (60p) Banner gives Fear and friendlies within 12" get Immunity (Fear, Panic).

Unit Analysis

Lords & Heroes

Named Characters

• Erik Redaxe: 375pts. Here's a guy who's almost like a Chaos Lord in stats but with Valten's inability to die. Alongside that, he has the ability to make one enemy get struck with d6 S4 armour-ignoring hits while making missiles take -1 to hit him. His axe also grants him Ignores Armour and a 4++ Ward.
• Sturmjarl: 325pts. Here's a super-wizard on steroids. On top of being a CL4 Wizard with WS5, he also an additional die to all casting checks that can cause FUN to happen on a 1 (Ld check or miscast) and Runes to re-roll a casting or dispel roll each turn.
• Keorl Thunderhand: 250pts. This guy here's your beatstick +1. Throw him at a monster, he gets HKB. His weapon gives S8 and d3 wounds, upping to wound on a 2+ with d6 wounds and giving Fear when facing a dragon. And to top off the dragonfuckery, he's immune to fire and breath weapons with a chance to bounce it back on them.
• Styrmir Rimefrost: 465pts. King of the Frost Giants. While similar to his kin, he also has a weapon with HKB and heavy armour that renders him immune to ice and a 4++ ward against missiles.

• The Ravenswyrd: 260pts. You've got a loner of a guy who can never be general. He's flocked by a pair of ravens with WS3 S2. If he's ever hurt, he can roll a d6 to reduce his S,T, or A by -1 (and this can be recovered at the top of the turn with another d6 roll) but a 1 kills a bird - killing both sees him dead. In combat he's no slouch either, with a pair of swords granting ASF, +1S in the first round and Pierce 1.
• Drenok Johansen: 140pts. This guy's claim to fame is his big-ass axe, one that deals Piercing 1 hits and adds an extra attack for each model in b2b with him. His armor's not much to speak of, being a 6+ (5+ against missiles) armour save with FNP.
• Jora and Bjorn: 245pts. A woman and a bear, teamed up not unlike Thanquol and Boneripper. They're both skirmishers with hatred against Chaos and immunity to psychology while together, but while Bjorn has regen 4+, Jora has a weapon that doubles all successful hits. Bjorn also acts as a meatshield for Jora, taking hits on a 4+. If Jora dies, Bjorn gets Frenzy and Unbreakable while Jora gets Unbreakable and Hatred towards Bjorn's killer if the big guy bites it.

Generic Characters

• Norse King/Jarl: Your classic beatstick HQ. Norse Kings got a statline slightly below the Exalted Hero of Chaos and Jarl are above Marauder Chieftain. Jarl can be a BSB, but you would prefer a Skald for a foot unit if you can afford it, as then the Jarl can take more magic items. They can use quite a variety of playstyles while also being great beatsticks.

• Vikti/Seer: The Wizards of the Norse. Their lores are Fire, Beasts, Heavens, Shadow, or Death.

• Skald: 70pts. A Norse Musician in the way that Wood Elves have dancers and also a BSB. They can become a unit's musician (letting you cheep out on 10 points) and can use one of three songs. Unlike the Warrior Priests, these are all single-use (+1 attack, Stubborn and Immune (Psychology), or +1 to wound rolls) per unit and last for a single round, use them wisely. Taking a Skald for an on-foot deathstar is points well spent.

• Valkyries: 70pts. The Mythical Warrior Maidens who take the slain up to Valhalla, aka what Valkia the Bloody is without the Khorne. Like Valkia they are fast-moving overseers, acting as a secondary general with 6" Inspiring Presence. Keeps army in line over a wider distance.

• Ulfjarl: 175pts. A lone werewolf with +1 S/T over his were-kin, he only keeps Frenzy and Regen (4+), but has the ability to hide in any unit like a Skaven Assassin, providing a frightful monster to an unassuming unit of Vikings. Sadly no magic items allowance.

• Beastmaster: 35pts. one the same reason you take Master Moulder in Skaven. Joins War Wolves, Ice Wolves, or Snow Trolls as Mixed Units, not only 8ld to a unit that not always near the general, but also giving them the Devastating Charge rule.

Mount

• Warhorse: A horse
• War Wolf Chariot:
• War Mammoth:

Core

• Bondsmen: Essentially Viking State Troopers. Average human states, these guys will tend to be your mainline troops as they have the best balance between combat and defense with shields as stock. If you play them aggressively and use Counter-Charge you may find them pulled out of position and have their flanks exposed.

• Marauders: You've got Greatswords, with armour sold separately. More like naked Empire greatswords instead of The WoS breed. Even with armour and shield they die quick but supply that needed sprinkle of WS4 S5 attacks to supplement your Bondsmen.

• Reavers: Trained Bondsmen, being truer Choas Marauders with WS4 and optional throwing axes, but are also Ambushers. They can either be used as upgraded Bondsmen or would cover distances by coming on the board edge. Paired weapons are good on Fighting units, and can be used to do more damage on close range charges.

• Whalers: Your Skirmish Javelin throwers. Likely to be in front of your army to pelt enemies. Their only means of protection are optional shields and loose formations.

• Thralls: Your trash unit but also for slinging. They're even poorer in combat than your other guys and have Expendable, so use them as the useless meatshields they are. Default with slings and you can also give them other throwing weapons or spears depending on how you want them to die heroically. Slings are their other main use other than bodies as they have the longest range in the army and they have AP.

• Norse Horsemen: Marauders as Fast Cavalry, their numbers are capped by how many Bondsmen, Marauders, and Reavers you pick up. This lets you get in your opponents face around the first turn. They hit fairly hard with spears for their price (2 WS4 S4 I4 attacks per 14pts.)

• Giant Wolves: They act as something fast to block charges and chase away skirmishers.

Special

• Huscarls: Tougher Norse with I4 and S4 and a hero bunker. Besides Stubborn, they also have the ability to form a Shieldwall during the Remaining Moves sub-phase, adding +1 to their armour against missiles (+2 if they didn't move this turn) and get +1 to parry saves if they get charged inaction to the +1 attack from Berserkergang.

• Ulfwerenar: You have werewolves. These fuckers are plenty threatening with M7 S/T4 and I5, and Skirmishers. Though they can't counter-charge, they do get Fear, always have Frenzy, Regen (4+) but occasionally can't move when they destroy an enemy unit.

• Einherjar: Uber-Norse destined for death, they only get another +1 WS over the Marauder, Natural Armour (5+), Regen (5+), and Unbreakable, making them much stickier. They act as a holding unit, not a deadly as other units, but being Unbreakable with high WS and Saves makes it hard to land wounds on them.

• Berserkers: The crazy motherfuckers. They take Reavers, gain Skirmishers and Frenzy with the ability to gain Devastating Charge while frenzied. Their pitiful saves are offset by the ability to force enemies to re-roll wound rolls against them. When paired with something to take the brunt of the damage, they can rip through most mortals.

• Shield Maidens: And who said women couldn't join an army? The cheaper hero bunker as they gain +1 to parry against melee and +1 to armour against missiles as proof of how skilled they are with their shields. If you want a bit of ranged support, then grab some javelins. Not as fighty as Huscarls and 1 point more than Reavers, but they will live longer for their price and your can divert points elsewhere.

• Norse Hunters: The Empire's Huntsmen, but with +1 WS/I. These skirmishing scouts are every bit as deadly with a bow as they are with their blades. If you want them to do more combat, they can nab dual-wielding.

• Sons of Thor: Only the most elite motherfuckers can get horses with eight legs and M10, making them a serious threat.

• Half-Giants: Big scary Ogre-tier motherfuckers. While they lack counter-charge, they have the force to make any charge they make be deadly.

Rare

• Snow Trolls: A variant of the trolls seen in other armies, Frenzy, and Stupidity is not something easy controlled (Stupidity tests happen before Frenzy test, so not banking on that). They can smack around many armour units with their 4 attacks per model, or each can vomit so a single it can ignore hit and armour saves.

• War Mammoth: 350pts. Yeah, you got your own giant war monsters. Their hugeness gives them immunity to psychology and 5+ natural armour, while their randomized attacks give them plenty of ways to manage the opposition without drawbacks.

• Frost Giant: 225pts. These guys are nothing like the typical giants. A mix of monsters and artillery pieces, These guys are Stubborn and immune to psychology as well as Hill Strider. On top of that, enemies in b2b with him eat -1 to hit while he has magical attacks and he is also a stone-thrower if he didn't march or charge that turn.

• Ice Drake: 225pts. You have a dragon. Getting up close to him is a bad idea not only because of his breath weapon (forcing a Toughness test or else eat an armour-negating regen-annulling wound), but also because models in b2b with him eat -1 to Strength and Init.

Building your army

Buying Your Army

GW still sells the Vikings, along with some of the newer Warcry models if you want to be creative with your Northmen.

3d partys can give you more like Avatar of war. shieldwolfminiatures can be your supplier of dragons, trolls, and Mammoths.

Magic

• Fire:
• Beasts:
• Shadow:
• Heavens:
• Death:
• Seidr:

External Links

The Project's website

Warhammer Army Project Tactics Articles
General Tactics	About 9th edition Magic Items Magic Tips Regiments of Renown
Forces of Order	Albion Amazons Bretonnia Cathay Cult of Ulric Dwarf Empire Estalia Halflings High Elves Kingdoms of Ind Kislev Lizardmen Nippon Wood Elves
Forces of Destruction	Beastmen Chaos Dwarfs Daemons of Chaos Dark Elves Orcs & Goblins Skaven Vampire Counts Warriors of Chaos Zombie Pirates of the Vampire Coast
Unaligned	Araby Dogs Of War Hobgoblins Norse Ogre Kingdoms Pirates of Sartosa Tomb Kings