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Zombie

2020-03-05T05:54:13Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Modern zombies */

'''Zombies''' are mindless [[monster]]s created from humans, usually via their corpses, that are essentially the most exploited type of monster in any and all forms of fictional media, to the point that "[[Old meme|zombie fatigue]]" is very well-established. Such qualities are usually the only common thread between them - everything else depends on the legend, tradition, or other context they're presented in.

==IRL zombies==
The origin for the term, if not one of the modern concepts, can be found in various African and Haitian Voudou stories and religious practices; the zombie (or "zombi") is created by administering a potion that places its drinker into a state of near-death, where they obey the commands of whoever made the potion. In Voudou practices, zombies are created using a powdery substance created from pufferfish poison that renders the victim into a near-death paralyzed state, effectively making them look "dead" for a long period of time. Of course, this "zombie powder" is obviously impractical for coercing servitude from the heavily paralyzed victim, unless the only command you want to give them is "play dead". If anything, [[ghoul]]s and other similar undead likely served as the basis for the "original" fictional zombies.

The [[Servitor]]s are conceptually based on this style of zombie, augmented with cyborg body parts.

==Fantasy zombies==
[[File:Plague horde.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Plague zombies of Papa [[Nurgle]]. This is pretty much how zombies are depicted today, though probably smellier than normal]]
Zombies in fantasy are corpses re-animated through dark magic. Usually, they are animated and controlled by [[necromancer]]s. They tend to be slow, clumsy, and weak, but because they are relatively easy to make in large numbers (especially if there are any graveyards or battlefields close at hand -- in fact, particularly nasty necromancers will do things like annihilate an entire town or army and re-animate everyone). They remain a staple of the [[undead]] hordes, right next to skeletons.

Depiction of zombies tend to vary widely through each setting. Some have enough intelligence to use weapons, magic, and even crude tactics, some are able to fully or mostly retain their higher functions after reanimation, while some are just shambling undead corpses who want to take a bite out of you.

===Dungeons & Dragons===
Zombies have been a part of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] since the beginning, since they are such as an iconic monster that is also guilt-free to exterminate. Technically, the largest variety of zombies appeared during [[Advanced Dungeons & Dragons]], due to that game not being able to really handle "levelling up" monsters and thus needing to create more monsters just to fill up the potential opponents slot. Furthermore, most of the zombie species appeared in the [[Ravenloft]] setting, due to its status as the Horror D&D Setting.

In AD&D, the following zombies existed:
* Common Zombie: Your standard mindless walking corpse. Comes in humanoid and monster versions.
* Ju-ju Zombie: A zombie created through black magic rituals, typically involving ceremonially draining a living humanoid to death with necrotic energy. This traps a fragment of the soul inside the corpse, creating a dimly intelligent zombie with greater combat abilities and enhanced magical resistances.
* Sea Zombie: A standard zombie, but created from somebody who drowned, and thusly specialized for an aquatic environment.
* Zombie Lord: A fully intelligent zombie with a number of mystical powers, mostly the ability to reanimate other corpses as new zombies. This poor-man's-[[lich]] is native to the [[Demiplane of Dread]]. Upgraded to a template in 3e [[Ravenloft]] material, but [[Pathfinder]] has its own version as well.
* Cannibal Zombie: Your standard Romero-type roaming mindless flesh-eating corpse. Native to the [[Demiplane of Dread]].
* Desert Zombie: A zombie animated from the dessicated, dried-out carcasses found in desert environments. Again, this was first introduced in the [[Ravenloft]] setting.
* Lightning Zombie: Bizarre, sapient zombies that are sometimes born when people die in areas of intense magical energy. This gives them the ability to deliver deadly electrical shocks with a touch.
* Mud Zombie: Despite its name, actually a skeleton caked in thick, gooey, sticky mud, which fouls any wounds it makes and which it can use to try and suffocate anyone it grabs hold of.
* Netherese Zombies: Basically a more powerful version of the Ju-ju Zombie native to the [[Forgotten Realms]].
* Red Zombie: A [[Mystara]]n zombie created from the corpse of someone suffering the mutagenic effects of [[Red Steel]].
* Salt Zombie: A blood-drinking zombie strain native to the deserts of [[Dark Sun]], usually forming from either corpses left lying in salt flats or which died of thirst.
* Thinking Zombie: Another [[Dark Sun|Athasian]] zombie strain, created when a restless spirit possesses its own body to continue its goal. Essentially a variant [[revenant]].
* Zombie Fog: A malign [[elemental]] thing of mist that feeds on the souls of the dead, animating corpses as zombie minions to kill its prey.

Why that "technically" above? 3E made zombie a template in the core rulebooks that can be applied to any corporeal creature with a skeleton system. This makes 3E's possible zombies endless, especially when combined with other templates. This is not the only variant of the zombie template in 3E however, as the ''Draconomicon'' introduced the Zombie Dragon template since the normal zombie template produced poor results on a dragon and "dragon zombie" is such a striking image it deserved better. The most dreaded type of zombie in 3rd edition however is the Hydra Zombie, which overcomes a zombie's slowness due to rules quirks.

===Magic: the Gathering===
The main 2 [[undead]] creature types in [[Magic: The Gathering]] are zombie and [[skeleton]] ([[vampire]]s also have a creature type). As such things like [[lich]]s have the zombie creature type (on their cards).

====[[Innistrad]]====
Innistrad zombies come in 2 flavors. The black zombies are the typical reanimated with black magic zombie that is almost ubiquitous throughout fantasy. The blue zombies are more SCIENCE themed (think Frankenstein's monster).

====[[Amonkhet]]====
The Egyptian themed plane of Amonkhet has made a novel change to the Zombie type by adding white mana zombies. Technically they are mummies, being embalmed and wrapped up nice and tight with a ridiculous amount of linen bandages (probably to keep out that delicious zombie musk), but throwing in a "mummy" creature type after nearly three decades of zombie creatures would be dumb. It is an interesting take on the "sacred dead" schtick that is affiliated with Egyptian lore, though at the end of the day they really are just glorified servants. Some creatures also have an ability called "embalm" where you cast them from the discard pile, making them come back as a copy of themselves, only they are now white zombies. None of them seem particularly powerful though, and while players aren't scrambling to throw white mana into their zombie decks, their art and design is [[awesome]].

===Warhammer Fantasy Battle===
They are [[Vampire Count]]'s primary meat shield as well as summoning spell used to annoyed the fuck out of the crossbow men/artillery crew in the back line.

===Monster Girls?!===
[[File:MGE Zombie.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The MGE Zombie shows how you can turn "corpse of a woman" into a monstergirl.]]
{{Monstergirls}}
Yes, even animated corpses get the monstergirl treatment. In fairness to them, these weird dabblings into necrophilia are usually not your standard hideously decayed and mutilated corpses, but beautiful and curvaceous women who just happen to have corpse-colored skin or exotic, almost beauty-mark-like scars on their frames. Behaviour-wise, zombie monstergirls are usually depicted as akin to bimbos: near-[[golem]]oid mindless drones who just want pleasure, either searching endlessly for men to screw, or raised as sexual automata by a particularly perverse/desperate [[necromancer]]. Those that aren't usually take advantage of the ill-defined barriers between zombie, [[revenant]] and [[wight]], so you have a perfectly normal woman who just happens to be dead.

Zombie movies have even exploited this phenomena; a beautiful naked woman is one of the zombies wandering around in the original "Night of the Living Dead", whilst in "Return of the Living Dead 3", the female lead becomes a very attractive zombie and is still weirdly hot even after she pierces herself with random metal and glass junk and starts eating random criminals. To say nothing of the way that B-movies like "Zombie Strippers" exploit it.

Naturally, the zombie appears in the [[Monster Girl Encyclopedia]]. Here, the corpse of a woman can get brought back as a lustful rape monster with grey to porcelain white skin, retaining their memories but losing most of their intelligence and reason until they fuck someone enough times. As they have more and more sex, their body and wits are more and more restored until they are as smart as their living selves and more attractive as well. If a zombie's womb was intact or gets restored, she can even [[wat|give birth to zombie children]].
{{clear}}

==Modern zombies==
Zombies in modern settings tend to be the by-products of science rather than necromancy. Some animating agent, usually a chemical or virus (though radiation is not unknown), causes corpses to move around, and for some reason makes them hunger for living flesh. Although this is sometimes explained as the reptilian part of the human brain, which is only centered around finding something to eat, still being prevalent while the other parts responsible for higher reasoning and functions are dead. Thus, without anything really else on their minds but to hunt and eat, all they do for the rest of their undead lives is lumber about and occasionally relentlessly chase someone down to devour, even if they don't have any real reason to do so. This, however, doesn't explain why they don't eat each other...(though Romero Zombies' inability to attack anything that isn't sapient explains this)

Optionally, people who are killed or bitten by zombies may themselves rise again as zombies; in such cases, this reanimation can usually be prevented by destroying or removing the head or incinerating the corpse (decapitation and fire usually work well on putting down zombies post-reanimation as well). George Romero's ''[[Wikipedia:Night of the Living Dead|Night of the Living Dead]]'' (1968) movie set the tone for the archetypal modern zombie, to the point that zombies of this archetype are sometimes called "Romero zombies", even though nobody actually says the word "zombie" in the movie itself. George Romero did another zombie movie, ''[[Wikipedia:Dawn of the Dead|Dawn of the Dead]]'' (1978), where there's an implied return to the idea of zombies from supernatural origins ("When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth").

Another more recent trait was the need to eat brains, introduced in the horror-comedy movie ''[[Wikipedia:Return of the Living Dead|Return of the Living Dead]]'' (1985). In this movie, the zombies can feel their bodies decompose, and eat brains because it stops the pain (likely via ingesting its endorphins). The zombies in this film are also the same person they were when alive (except psychotically slaved to their hunger for brains), hard to destroy (chop them to pieces and the pieces come after you), and are capable of climbing and running ([[Skub|despite many people thinking 28 Days Later (see below) introduced the running zombie]]).

More recently, especially in video games, another pattern of zombie has gained popularity: the so-called "fast zombie" or "[[Wikipedia:28 Days Later|28 Days Later]] (2002) zombie" (though the creatures in ''28 Days Later'' are not proper zombies at all, as they are still alive, albeit infected with a rabies-like behavior-altering virus). As the name suggests, these creatures are fast and aggressive and can be terrifying in small numbers, especially if they can infect with a single bite. And though they are still "alive," they are usually incapable of feeling pain, so an attack that would incapacitate a normal human may be shrugged off. Even a blow to a vital organ short of the brain or heart may be ignored, though they'll likely bleed out eventually.

So-called "real world zombies" are mostly just people who have taken some powerful mixture of substances and exhibit zombie-like behavior, including cannibalism. Fortunately, they are not contagious (at least if you don't do the drugs along with them), but do note that while you won't turn into an actual zombie, being bitten by a zombie-like human ''is'' still lethal even with a non-critical bite wound, due to infection and/or septic shock if the wound isn't disinfected in time.

==See Also==
*[[Revenant]] - The spiritual predecessor of the zombie.
*[[Zombie Plague]] - Zombies in 40k

[[Category:Monsters]]
[[Category:Undead]]

Games Workshop

2020-03-05T01:55:01Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Current Events */

{{Fail}}
{{heresy}}
[[File:GW Logo.png|center|900px]]

{{topquote|A fool and his money are soon parted.|Dr John Bridges}}
{{topquote|A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart.|Jonathan Swift}}
{{topquote|For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.|1 Timothy 6:10}}

'''Games Workshop''', known to /tg/ as '''Geedubs''', or '''GW''' is a company which produces miniatures and despite their former CEO's best efforts, games. Their three most notable games are [[Warhammer Fantasy]], [[Warhammer:_Age_of_Sigmar|Age of Sigmar]] and [[Warhammer 40,000]].

The first thing that you must know is that in /tg/'s general opinion, Games Workshop used to be good, and then it was shit, run into the ground by idiots. Thankfully since [[Kevin_Rountree|a new guy took over]] it's been doing a lot better and most believe it could become good again. See [[Mordheim]], [[Beakie]], [[Rogue Trader (Sourcebook)|Rogue Trader]] and [[Talisman]].

The second thing you must know is that Games Workshop is the reason /tg/ exists in the first place: it was originally created as a containment board to isolate Warhammer threads from the general population on [[/b/]]. Warhammer is also a massive part of tabletop gaming culture history; as such, the importance of Warhammer in /tg/ cannot be overstated.

The third thing you must know is that Games Workshop is extremely protective about their precious intellectual properties. This is funny because you can count the number of original ideas in their core games on one hand, with the original creators outright admitting they ripped off existing works wholesale. The vast majority of backstory in Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 is a rehash of established fantasy/sci-fi literature, padded out with stuff the writers half-remembered from A-level history lectures. This is particularly true in the case of Warhammer Fantasy, which actually makes sense when you realize most of GW's founders actually had history degrees. 40k by contrast is mostly Fantasy ''IIIIN SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE'', with a heaping helping of tropes from everything sci-fi that was popular in Britain in the 1980's.

Finally, and this is very important to understand why they have become the dominant company of the miniature market and are no longer a failing business that constantly shot itself in the legs (thanks to their own failings and tarnished reputation): GeeDubs likes the toplines in the news and shows it off. Thanks to the old fucking idiot who was crippling the company deciding to leave with a large stash of money, like a rat jumping off a sinking ship, the new management was able to realize that putting out more than a catalogue was a good way to draw in new buyers and win back some old ones. Any given week you can see them bringing articles, comics, tutorials, interviews, short stories, miniatures, codices, novels and other features, this zealous dedication to '''growth''' allows them to promote and sell their diferent lines, which in turn allows them to make even more profit and produce more stuff while periodically trying different niches, creating a (somewhat) virtuous economic circle, Games Workshop's resources are comparatively vast and they use them at their full (with varied although generally favourable results) add to this the extensive use of their brands in the videogame industry and you see they are THE powerhouse when it comes to tabletop gaming.

==History==

===Ancient History===
The original Games Workshop was established several hundred years ago BC, originating in China. However, when the Emperor placed a commission for thousands of life-sized soldiers, this predecessor began to collapse, as with all production being geared to the creation of these soldiers and the murderous ire of the first Emperor, they were unable to introduce price rises. As one, their board of directors resolved that they must fall into hibernation, to wait out the storm, screaming defiance at the one man who ever had defeated them.

===Almost-as-Ancient History===
[[File:John Peake and Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson.jpg|thumb|center|300px|Steve, John, and Ian with their first products.]]
Games Workshop was established in 1975 in London as a small literal workshop that created wooden [[Board Games|boards]] for public domain games, such as [[Chess]] which it sold through mail-order catalogs (not its own). The original staff was just three men in a flat in London. John Peake, Steve Jackson (not to be confused with the other /tg/ Steve Jackson), and Ian Livingstone. Livingstone was a massive games fan, and was captain of the Chess club in school, while Peake carved wood as a hobby. They soon made a business of selling boards for Chess, Go, and Backgammon.
[[File:O&W!01.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Owl And Weasel, issue #1.]]
In the same year Games Workshop put out its own newsletter, called "Owl And Weasel" which somehow wound up crossing the Atlantic and ending up in the hands of pen-and-paper-gamings' Jack Kirby, [[Gary Gygax]]. Gygax sent the trio a copy of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] to playtest for a review in their publication. Jackson and Livingstone were hooked and ordered six more copies. Gygax, thinking they were a much more established (as in established at all) company, offered them exclusive distribution rights in the entirety of Europe.

In 1977, Jackson and Livingstone accepted and began selling copies of the game straight out of the flat by using Owl And Weasel to get the word out. Gygax himself had also been selling out of his apartment at the time, and neither found out the other group was just a couple of nerdy kids selling shit out of their home. Peake left the company as he had no interest or patience in new games (yep, people complaining every time something new comes along have been in since the beginning). After he left, D&D exploded in popularity and people who came to buy a game were continually knocking on the floor-level homes in the building, before being directed to talk to Livingstone and Jackson on the top floor. Predictably, this earned them a boot out the door from the landlord.

They rented a small office to be the original Games Workshop, slept in a van in the car park, and bathed in the restrooms of a nearby sports club while pretending to be patrons. They continued distributing D&D through mail order but had absolutely no success in convincing established hobby shops to carry the product. Without alternative, Livingstone and Jackson bought a place in west London in 1978 to sell mostly imported American gaming accessories from Dungeons & Dragons to Call Of Cthulhu and more. The two entered into negotiations to merge with [[TSR Games]] to retain exclusive distribution rights, but the owners of TSR (other than Gygax, who supported the idea greatly) turned the offer down.

===Citadel===
[[File:White Dwaf Issue 1.jpg|thumb|right|300px|White Dwarf, issue #1.]]
The new building allowed them to host gaming conventions which would later become the famous [[Games Day]]. This was followed Owl And Weasel being discontinued and replaced with [[White Dwarf]], a small magazine (originally just black and white on colored stationery) written by the now obsessed tabletop gamer Livingstone, which covered industry-wide tabletop gaming news. White Dwarf was supposed to be sci-fi and fantasy neutral, referring both to a dying star and to, well, [[Dwarves]]. Originally the magazine was everything Livingstone felt like writing about, from movies to publishing short stories to computer and computer gaming-related articles. The letters section quickly became THE forum for tabletop gaming in <strike>the Old World</strike> Europe, where everything from rules clarifications to personal reviews were published. Interestingly, Livingstone published letters that were critical of both him and Games Workshop.

Games Workshop's very first new product, [[Reaper]] (not to be confused with [[Reaper Miniatures]]) was a basic fantasy skirmish game for between 5 and 30 miniatures. In 1978, [[Citadel Miniatures]] was established under a man named Bryan Ansell as the miniature manufacturing division for any future Games Workshop products, which would produce them in bulk. Although initially a separate company simply owned by the same people as Games Workshop, it would eventually merge in the 90's into one company with the name only being a vestigial remainder of independence.
[[File:GW 1982.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Games Workshop team, circa 1982. Pictured from top right to bottom left: Andy Patterson, <strike>John Lennon</strike> Anthony Epworth, <strike>Abraham</strike> Bryan Ansell, Diane Lane, Gerry Ball, Chrissie Lane, Alan Merritt, [[Rick Priestley]] pre-barber, and an unknown woman.]]
This was followed in 1980 by the release of [[Valley Of The Four Winds]], a mostly forgotten fantasy game where two players fight over the fate of a realm. The side of evil consists of demons and the undead while the side of good consists of Elves, humans, and <strike>Dwarfs</strike> Dwarves (that spelling comes later). Battlecars was next, as a Mad Max style game. The first RPG created by Games Workshop was a licensed [[Doctor Who|Dr. Who]] roleplaying game. [[Fighting Fantasy]] was a project of Livingstone and Jackson, a fairly popular game they would leave the company to pursue.

Nothing Games Workshop made was as successful as Dungeons & Dragons, which was now being carried by competitors. Citadel sold generic fantasy miniatures for use with D&D, but players only ever made small purchases and were not in the market to collect one of everything leaving some stock hard to move. Ansell had become the primary boss of the company, and his solution was the wargaming market that had begun to catch on internationally. At this point, Games Workshop was still very much a small business with most employees putting in work as needed; a writer or mail sorter would load shipments into the building or package products.
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===Warhammer===
In 1983, [[Warhammer Fantasy|Warhammer]] was released. It was created by Games Workshop writer Richard Halliwell and his friend (former mail order department) [[Rick Priestley]] (known by [[Meme|many nicknames on /tg/, often "The Based"]]). Priestley was mostly inspired by growing up and delving headfirst into both science fiction and history, the news of the Atomic Age, and World War 2; all of which led him to the first wargames, and eventually getting a job at Games Workshop with the goal of working on his own.
The requirements for the new product were simple.
# Take advantage of popular fantasy favored by gamers like [[Conan the Barbarian]] and [[Lord of the Rings]].
# Every model must have rules, so everything gets sold.
# Use six-sided dice since almost everyone everywhere already had some they could scrounge up to play the game.
Halliwell did the first draft for the game and did most of the work on raw mechanics, Priestley did development and editing. Originally having no actual miniatures associated with it, it simply consisted of a single set of three books giving a basic rule system and scenarios. The first book, '''Tabletop Battles''', and has the core rules plus a bestiary and list of potions to be found in addition to an example scenario called '''[[The Ziggurat of Doom]]'''. The second book is '''Magic''', containing the rules for magic where spellcasting characters with the right equipment and wizard level (1-4, with the highest level being Archmages) can spend Constitution to use their chosen spells. The final book, Characters, adds the roleplaying game aspects including leveling up, alignment, upkeep costs, and the '''The Redwake River Valley''' example scenario.

While filled with typos, contradictory rules, and BADLY needing an FAQ that never came (so they quickly set the standard for what GW would aspire to) it was well accepted for introducing the concepts of magic failing and of the psychology of forces on the field. The setting was almost non-existent, and what little lore there was only existed in the flavor text of magic items. Of special interest is the game was originally conceived partly as a wargame, partly as a roleplaying game with actual guidelines for leveling up your general and interacting with the world— even an alignment system! If anything, the game combined the role of Dungeonmaster and player into one as a character led a force of generalized encounters against each other and looted the dead. Every group of friends had a different world, as the results of a previous battle fitted into the unending campaigns of war. A major difference between current and early Warhammer is an extra player was required as a Game Master for a battle to take place.
[[File:Citadel Design Team 80s.jpg|thumb|right|400px|The Citadel Design Team in the early 1980's.]]

Ansell used the success of Warhammer to move Games Workshop HQ from London to Nottinghamshire, in what was presented as a merger but many at Games Workshop saw as a Citadel takeover. By that time there were six other Games Workshop locations, and cost appears to have been the only reason the name was not changed to Citadel. Few Games Workshop staff stayed on, as Nottinghamshire was in the midst of a nasty Thatcher-era labor dispute that saw employees harassed.

Due to popularity, an expansion for Warhammer called '''Forces of Fantasy''' was released in 1984 which began to describe the factions in the world (all still extremely generalized, mostly Dungeons & Dragons based). Once again containing three books (Forces of Fantasy, Fighting Fantasy Battles, and Arcane Magicks), it made the skirmish roleplaying game into a war roleplaying game with a fairly important magic system. The final booklet included, The Book Of Battalions, contained example armies for the game and included the favored armies of the Games Workshop staff, including the Perry Twins, Bryan Ansell, Nigel Stillman, and Based Priestley. The same year also saw Games Workshop stop importing printed books from the United States, and instead print them in the UK while also expanding into having a US headquarters and manufacturing division so as not to have to physically import goods in reverse.

Later in 1984, the second edition of Warhammer was released. It combined the expansions with the core game as well as suggested supplementary rules from White Dwarf. Combat was the core rules, like Tabletop Battles. Battle Magic is the same as Magic, although it reduces equipment requirements and instead adds the lores of Illusionists, Demonologists, and Elementalists plus the example scenario '''The Magnificent Sven'''. The final book, Battle Bestiary, includes the stats of all the factions and models in the game and guides for forming armies out of them as well as homebrew additions. Still having very loose rules, the game was three books although this time they were actually professionally printed rather than looking like something off a photocopier. Paper punchouts were included to represent troops rather than any miniature although Citadel produced a range of minis which were advertised in White Dwarf (although the rulebooks still said in those days to simply use whatever you want), and the very first Warhammer lore was established.
:The [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Empire]] was a vague kingdom of men in decline, [[Chaos]] was some kind of Demonic extra-planar threat that prophesied the [[End Times|end of days]], there was some kind of ancient race that created the monsters of the world called [[Slann]], and [[High Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Elves]] had some kind of [[Dark Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|civil war]] going on although the version presented in this book was a clash of kingdoms rather than a two way war of genocide.
:Three supplements were released, the first adding the very first Warhammer villain, [[Heinrich Kemmler]], in the [[Terror Of The Lichemaster]] campaign. The second, Bloodbath at Orcs' Drift, introduced the first [[Orcs & Goblins|Orcs to the setting]] (although they weren't the asexual greenskins of today, but rather generic Dungeons & Dragons Orcs and Half-Orcs). The third, '''Tragedy of McDeath''' was basically Warhammer Macbeth, involving a plot of necromancy with Dwarfs and humans who would eventually come to be the [[Bretonnia|Bretonnians]]. "Blood In The Streets", was just rules for fighting with buildings as well as paper scenery. The final expansion, Ravening Hordes, made the army choices much specific rather than relying on overlapping options.

On the side, Citadel had acquired the rights to produce miniatures for everything from [[Judge Dredd]] to [[Doctor Who]], and collaborated with many other companies including [[Ral Partha]] (one of their most successful partnerships, which launched Citadel into the mainstream of tabletop), Iron Claw Miniatures (which went out of business with their molds and copyrights being absorbed by Citadel), and Marauder Miniatures (technically another company owned by the founders of Games Workshop, much like Citadel itself, which was absorbed into the company in the early 90's much like Citadel would be absorbed by Games Workshop not long after).

Games Workshop saw aggressive expansion during this time, as White Dwarf went from a general nerd culture newsletter to specifically just a magazine for Games Workshop products which also functioned somewhat like a catalog and order form for new products. By opening physical retail stores to encourage gamers to meet at, they got easy advertising as Games Workshop products were on the shelves all around them. Many smaller companies began to suffer and close due to the slow death of the mail-order catalog business model that many companies relied heavily on.

Third edition Warhammer was also released in 1987, and was just a single hardback book (the ancestor of the [[Big Red Book]] of <strike>today</strike> yesteryear). The rules were finally ironed-out although the magic system remained the same. Players now controlled large forces with specialized troops including elites and warmachines, movement was extremely important tactically as there was Charge actions, and generally the game was considered a bit more complicated to pick up and learn than your average tabletop game. Games Workshop began to push it's own miniatures more and more, and the rules for certain types of troops came bundled with them rather than in the core book. The Warhammer setting was more fleshed out, and many consider this to be the first true edition of a Warhammer game fluffwise. Orcs and goblins were not connected and had females, undead didn't really have a reason to exist, Chaos only really mattered if you were talking about Chaos, the Empire's decline was because of cultural problems rather than being buttfucked by everyone else with twelve men or more at their command every other season, Elves were pretty much just snooty Elves and douchey Elves, Dwarves had no real flavor beyond Joseph Bugman existing, and the rest of the world was just kind of assumed to be like our own somewhat.
:Even going beyond this, [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] was released which introduced an entire world outside the not-Europe of the [[Old World]] by touching on Ind, Araby, [[Nippon]], [[Cathay]], [[Naggaroth]], and more.

Third edition had two expansions; [[Realm of Chaos]], written by Ansell as a blatant ripoff of Moorcock, which introduced everyone's favorite (or hated) [[Chaos Gods|Evil Sues]] and established Chaos in a way it would basically remain from that point on; Slaves To Darkness, which detailed pretty much everyone in the actual physical world who wanted to kill you for no particular reason; The Lost And The Damned which continued giving reasons why living in Warhammer would fucking suck; and finally Warhammer Siege which gave scenarios. So more or less the late 80's/early 90's introduced [[Grimdark|grimderp]], nicely paralleling the trend in comic books.

Also in 1983, to much less fanfare but still modest success, the board game [[Talisman]] was first released. In it, players are adventurers trying to obtain the Crown of Command and kill their opponents. In 1985 Talisman received a second edition, different only in that the pieces were printed in color. In 1986, an expansion set for Talisman, called Talisman Expansion Set (clever) was released which had an FAQ, more characters, alternate endings, and enough stuff for up to 12 players to play at once. Talisman: Dungeon came out in 1987 as well and came with an additional game board and rules for navigating it on the side of the main board.

GW also acquired the license to make Lord Of The Rings miniatures in '85, taking over from competitor Grenadier Miniatures. They'd lose this in 1987 GW, which passed to Mithril Miniatures.
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===[[Indrick Boreale|Spess: Tha Finuhl Frunteer]]===
Later that year, Games Workshop released [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader|Rogue Trader]]. Rogue Trader was Priestley's first creation, before he became the mail packager at Games Workshop HQ. Based on the idea of having a ship and using miniatures to play the game, and he'd refined the game as he did rules articles and sci-fi discussions in White Dwarf.

Conceived as a Frankenstein's Monster of of Warhammer/Judge Dredd/[[Dune]]/Moorcock/Heinlein/Lovecraft and John Milton's Paradise Lost (the latter work inspired the [[Horus Heresy]]) with a sprinkling of anything else perceived as cool, the game was functionally a combination of Warhammer 1st edition with Warhammer 3rd edition as a roleplaying/skirmish/wargame. It was mostly just an updated version of the game Laserburn by Ansell, who after the financial failure of his solo creation re-imagined it for Games Workshop.

Forces were originally just a [[Space Marines]] faction decided by rolling dice rather than listbuilding, which was added later as well as with most of the story in White Dwarf. The [[Imperium]] was given fluff, [[Orks]] were created as green skinned assholes described briefly in 3rd Edition although now with asexuality to go with it. Extremely complex rules for vehicles were added, and finally Ansell's Chaos was copy/pasted from Warhammer to Rogue Trader with the overt Moorcockyness removed. Priestley designed the Rogue Trader setting as part irony and part parody, with only self-deluded antivillains as protagonists.

It was hinted at various points that Warhammer 40,000 was Warhammer Fantasy in the future, then later than Sigmar was a "son" (its complicated) of the Emperor of 40k and thus all of Fantasy was a planet in the 40k universe, later that the 40k universe entirely existed in a box on a wizard's shelf in Fantasy, before finally the creators decided both Warhammers are reflections of each other in a multiverse.

===For Those About To Rock, We Sell-out You!===
Many employees in 1988-1990 left the company, unhappy with the increasingly profit-driven model of the company. Many created their own games, publications, and even went to Games Workshop's (few remaining) competitors. Notable was Fantasy Warlord, which barely sold enough to break even before shutting down. The miniatures created for Fantasy Warlord by Alternative Armies are actually still available, although some were sold to Mayhem Miniatures (which became Kennington Miniatures).

Unchallenged in the market (being the Apple of miniatures in that day), Games Workshop sought to expand its customer base into the mainstream. Television commercials were made, Games Workshop expanded aggressively into France and Australia, and the miniature lines were made less grotesque and more like the artwork. Any place that could support a major sports team was designated a potential, even eventual, Games Workshop location. Later on Games Workshop prospects were locations that could afford to support high end clothing stores like Marks & Spenser or toy store retail chains like Early Learning Centre. Games Workshop stores were designed to be friendly, with owners and employees being outgoing and knowledgeable about tabletop games while popular music like Grunge and early Alternative was played over speakers.

Ansell in the meantime had begin to expand the company into entirely different mediums, and due to his love of music had begun to use Games Workshop as a publisher for bands like Sabbat, Saxon, and Bolt Thrower. He opened a Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000-themed clothing line, licensed novels set in the universe, and funded [[LARP]] events. Ambitions that were not realized even included a gameshow set in 40k where players built robots to fight other robots (so a themed version of the television show Robot Wars).

In 1988, Talisman: Timescape was released in which players in the medieval core game could randomly be thrown through space and time into other time periods, mainly those inspired by Warhammer 40,000.

In the same year, to compete with rival [[FASA]] and their [[Battletech]] game, Games Workshop released [[Adeptus Titanicus]], a 10mm scale tabletop game where twelve [[Titan (Warhammer 40,000)|Imperial Titans]] fight each other in a city. Games Workshop tied the game to the 40k franchise to boost both games. White Dwarf expansions added rules for vehicles, infantry, and aerial combat.

Talisman: City came out in 1989 which added a new board, a city for players to interact with the city guards and buy/sell items. It was likewise followed by [[Space Marine]], which was a battle between two Space Marine armies and included miniatures for vehicles as well. In the same year, Codex Titanicus was released which combined Space Marine and Adeptus Titanicus together into one game, the first edition of [[Epic]].

Over the next year the game received major additions including Knight, artillery, and infantry models in not only Space Marines, but also Imperial Guard (1991 Armies Of The Imperium), Chaos and Eldar (1992 Renegades), Orks and Squats (1992 Ork and Squat Warlords), and finally Tyranids (1995 Hive War).

===Bitch, Where's My Money?===
In 1991 Ansell left Games Workshop, and sold his shares to the General Manager [[Tom Kirby]]. Kirby's first order of business was to grow the company to quickly pay off what he had borrowed to buy it, and he was presented with two choices; grow the company with more diverse games or focus heavily on the two Warhammers. Kirby opted for the latter, and pushed the idea of more games in the two settings along with much bigger editions.

Warhammer 4th edition was released in 1992, with changes to rules bringing the term "Herohammer" into the fanbase as most of any given army was simply there to protect the powerful characters the game was REALLY about. This was the first edition that had miniatures specifically for everything in the rulebooks, had specific race selection that prohibited using troops of another type in your army, and had a starter set which contained a two-force starter game which was High Elves VS Goblins. Magic was entirely redone, and was marketed as an expansion and used cards as spells. Magic had two further expansions, one for general magic and one for Chaos. Warhammer lore was more fleshed out, coming to resemble more or less the factions of today. The Empire was the human focus of 4th edition, with the valiant knights having no mention.

In 1993, Games Workshop came out with ''Warhammer 40,000'', normally called ''Second Edition''. Like Warhammer (now "Warhammer Fantasy Battles"), it was built around small units of infantry supporting ridiculously munchkinized special characters with complicated rules and wargear and appropriately pricey lead models, but at this stage Games Workshop actually cared somewhat about customers; models were made in plastic or wallet-friendly, Roman-Empire-collapsing lead, game sets included serviceable army lists and collections of miniatures, and paints were provided in 20ml pots, later 17.5ml. This switch was perhaps the first sign of the next age (and every other age, by the looks of things as paints are now just 12ml per pot).

===Special NEERDS!===
In the same year the very first of what would later on fall under the label of "[[Specialist Games]]" (anything not Warhammer or Tolkien) was released; [[Man O' War]]. Warhammer Fantasy setting, but rather than commanding an army the players were heads of an armada on the high seas!

1993 also saw the release of the final 2e Talisman expansion, Talisman: Dragons. It added new characters, locations, spells, and items, all themed with dragons, into the game.

In 1994 the third edition of Talisman was released, adding miniatures, experience points, alterations to the board, and the biggest change of all; it was set in Warhammer Fantasy. Later that year, White Dwarf contained mini expansions to the game while the first true expansion, City Of Adventure, reintroduced the city board as well as a forest. Dungeon of Doom came next, adding the dungeon and a mountain.
The year also saw the launch of Second edition Epic, still consisting of two games. The first was a rerelease of Space Marine that had Space Marines, Orks, and Eldar. The second game was Titan Legions which had the same factions.

In 1995 Dragon's Tower expanded Talisman 3e as an alternative end goal as players climbed a tower and killed a dragon (duh). It came with another White Dwarf expansion.

In 1996 [[Necromunda]] was released. Priestley was inspired by his meetings with the creator of Judge Dredd during the days of Games Workshop licensing the IP, and used it to resurrect the forgotten RPG aspect of Rogue Trader.

Fifth edition Fantasy was released in 1996 as well, along with its magic expansion which rebalanced and simplified the magic system and included all three 4e expansions. Cards remained available to buy, although all the Winds of Magic-based magic spells were included in the core rules (meaning you still had 20 more spells you had to buy cards for).

Of particular note is the Slann finally being fleshed out, creating the [[Lizardmen]] army with the starter being Bretonnia VS Lizardmen. Campaigns were released which were heavily involved in the lore; [[The Grudge Of Drong]] featured a conflict between Elves and Dwarfs which lead to the [[War of the Beard]], Tears Of Isha involved the bitter war between the High and Dark Elves, Idol Of Gork was the first time that Orcs were truly Orcy as known today with the introduction of [[Gork]] and [[Mork]] (or was it Mork and Gork?), Circle of Blood as the [[Vampire Counts]] (then still one army with the [[Tomb Kings|Mummies]]) VS Bretonnians as the first introduction of the [[Abhorash|Blood Dragons]], and Perilous Quest as a war between the Bretonnians and [[Wood Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Wood Elves]] during their introduction to the lore.

Each campaign came with multiple endings decided by player involvement (becoming the precursor to Warhammer events and one of GW's biggest fuckups), paper scenery which defined the architectural styles of the featured races from then on (although this was sadly the last time these races got scenery before everything simply became Empire and Chaos), and a campaign book summarizing the story.

At some point it was determined that the stock army lists weren't enough, and so "Army Books" (for Warhammer) and "Codex Books" (for 40Kl, later simply "Codex:(faction)") began to come out, each bringing new models and rules into the game. The last round of these for 40K (''Codex: Tyranids'' in particular) tended to make the army ridiculously overpowered and make everyone ''else'' want a new Codex to rectify the balance. Perhaps the ultimate example of ''Second Edition'' philosophy was the last book, ''Codex: Assassins'', which consisted of nothing but four hideously powerful special characters. These included [[Culexus|this asshole]] who caused the psychology effect ''Terror'' to all psykers, regardless of anything, meaning Greater Daemons and Hive Tyrants would occasionally shit themselves and run for the hills when faced with a normal-sized human.

[[Image:Haet trees.jpg|thumb|FUCK TREES]]
One notable aspect of this period was that Games Workshop hated trees, and would thus include several million cards in every boxed set if given the slightest provocation; the core sets for ''Warhammer'' and ''Warhammer 40,000'' both received an update governing the magic / psychic system which consisted solely of cards and templates (which were card). Some entire games (''Doom of the Eldar'', ''Battle for Armageddon'', ''[[Horus_Heresy#The_Board_Game|Horus Heresy]]'') came out in this period which consisted of nothing but a board and lots of high-density card counters to lose down the back of the sofa or inside the dog.

[[Gorkamorka]] came out in 1997, and was Priestley's answer to Mad Max meets 40k, featuring Orks in different groups crashed on a desolate planet using vehicular weapons to slaughter each other.
Third edition Epic was released as well as a single game with simplified rules, but it was a financial failure after barely moving any units in six months and was recalled. This is unfortunate because [[Jervis Johnson]] and [[Andy Chambers]] consider it the greatest game they ever made. Most of the planned models were never released.

[[Mordheim]], the Fantasy version of Necromunda set in the ruins of an Empire city where all factions are scrambling for control was released in 1998.

The last Specialist Game was [[Battlefleet Gothic]], essentially Man O'War in space using massive battleships.

And did no one think of [[Blood Bowl]]?

<gallery>
Image:Talisman 3e.jpg
Image:5e Fantasy.png
Image:Grudge of Drong Cover.jpg
</gallery>
===Learning The Wrong Lessons===
Despite the Specialist Games being massively popular, Kirby had expanded Games Workshop incredibly fast into unknown markets and as a result a massive amount of Gorkamorka sets in French, Spanish, and Italian were left unsold while English demand was high. Games Workshop was left almost on the verge of bankruptcy, causing a new sales philosophy to be decided upon. Rather than one based on restraint and market research as one would expect, the new direction was "only sure things, minimize risk". Suddenly, the irony of the 40k setting was dropped. The Imperium suddenly WAS the heroes, and Chaos was the evil that always wins in the end rather than these things being the punchline at the end of a sarcastic joke.

One of Bryan's policies for the company was that the production studio and creative minds must always be kept in charge of marketing or the company would die. Kirby, after Gorkamorka, decided the opposite was true. Given today's hindsight it turns out Bryan was right and this was one of many of Kirby's bad decisions.

Plans were made to phase out all of the Specialist Games, and over the next few years the only things available were simply unsold stock. An excuse was made for the first, Man O'War, that the molds had broken and somehow couldn't be fixed (bullshit for many reasons). The rest were quietly and unceremoniously dumped while all references to them were dropped as well.

Sometime in the run-up to ''Third Edition'', it was decided that models should switch from toddler-murdering lead to safe, pointy pewter (or "white metal" as the industry (not just GW) insisted on calling it). This led to a 25% cross-board increase in all metal mini costs, even those ordered through Citadel's back catalog (because those figures from their back catalogue were cast up, when ordered, in the new white metal). At this point, it seemed something clicked in the heads of GW's management; they had just made a ton more money without actually doing anything. Perhaps they could do that again.

''Third Edition'' 40K came out in 1998 and Warhammer Fantasy Battles 6th Edition (featuring Orcs VS Empire, and the last edition to come with paper scenery) came in 2000, both reducing the dominance of single munchkin characters in favour of large armies, conveniently meaning players had to buy far more models. Then along came the fucking screw-tops, and proof that any pretense of caring about the customer had been cast aside.

===Ringhammer===
Games Workshop had begun to suffer financial troubles in the late 90's with competition from the surging (and independent) Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition, [[Magic: The Gathering]], and [[Pokemon]] (no seriously, Pokemon was THAT fucking big back then).

The answer? Huge cash cow intellectual property. Priestley suggested to Kirby they cash in on the upcoming Lord of the Rings movies with the Lord Of The Rings Strategy Battle Game. Kirby was unable to see Priestley's ulterior motives through the dollar signs in his eyes and approved the project at once, so that particular series moved away from large and complex kits back to the roots of single characters and groups of soldiers.

[[Alessio Cavatore]], a major developer of Mordheim and supplement materials, was also put on the project and it was applauded by the gaming community. Games Workshop blew through the movie material and even began making miniatures based on things from Tolkien's works that weren't in the movie such as Tom Bombadil and Goldberry. Not only that, but they also expanded armies that were barely even mentioned in the books or seen in the movies (the Easterlings in particular) and then bragged about it in White Dwarf.

The miniatures were required to be produced in 25mm scale by contract, rather than the 28mm heroic scale used by Warhammer. Its been theorized by fans this was to keep the Tolkien miniatures out of Warhammer and keep their IP from becoming an expansion to GW's existing IP.

===Short Term Gain, Long Term Pain===
The issue is that as hype from the movies diminished, so did sales. Kirby by this point had expanded sales and marketing into autonomy, and when the interest in the game died down (something creative teams said would happen but marketing had shrugged off) the result was marketing attempting to drive up profits with unpopular schemes, the first among these being a major change the range of paints sold.
[[File:Citadel Paint Pots.jpg|thumb|right|300px|As time drug on, pots had less paint and worse seals.]]
The "problem" with the older flip-top paint pot designs that had been sold up until this point was that they actually kept [[paint]] usable for a long time. While the Citadel flip-top pot suffered from shit hinges and opening tabs which would both break after about four uses, [[rip and tear|a real man opens paint with his teeth anyway]] so that was not a problem. Obviously, these flip-tops were no good to GW, and so a new pot, the Screw(you)top, was designed which would gunk up its own thread and either glue itself shut forever or prevent an airtight seal forming after a couple of uses.

Apparently forgetting ''every other company in existence'' that made model paints, GW also raised the price of these new and terrible things; clearly justified, since they contained a mere 30% '''less''' paint than the old design. It was also around this point that photographs of the [['Eavy Metal]] studio started to vanish from the pages of ''White Dwarf'' (along with all other content that could be considered useful for anything at all other than advertising models) since they kept forgetting to hide all their non-Citadel gear for photoshoots. Even though, of course, everyone had known for ''years'' that the painters didn't "mix Snot Green with a little Chaos Black" to get a paint shade that was in Tamiya or Vallejo's stock range. Nowadays of course we can get the good stuff for cheap from [[Privateer Press]] (problem, GW?), but back then it was just ''fucking terrible''. GW managers and staff also suffered a change in personality, pushing the idea that anything other than GW was a ''plague'', and it was to be treated as such. "Saw you just bought some Knights of Minas Tirith, well, what about a Stompa?"

Games Workshop, highly resistant to change (ironically), began to see the shifting face of tabletop gaming towards electronics as unimportant with Kirby even calling video games "a fad". Just as Games Workshop had crushed their competition with physical stores, the internet distribution saw many new companies begin to emerge as they brought their products directly to the consumer via the internet. Games Workshop attempted to compete in this regard, although they never moved past having anything more complex than a digital version of a catalog and a little-moderated forum (which was closed down to much rage in the 2000's). Games Workship kneejerked and made White Dwarf exclusively Games Workshop products, allowing longtime competitor [[Dragon Magazine]] to reign triumphant as the source of tabletop gaming news in the last age of printed publications. Meanwhile a new market had emerged of making miniatures specifically designed to look like Warhammer models and be used in the game. This...did not go over well, and Games Workshop came to be known as ready to sue anyone at the drop of a hat, even once famously attempting to copyright "[[Pauldrons]]" and sue over the concept of a wolfskin cloak on a viking-looking warrior.

Prices began to ramp up ridiculously as GW realized they could charge whatever the hell they liked and their longterm fans would still pay. While GW was never particularly cheap, their chunky kits ended up in the same price bracket as top-quality scale miniatures by other companies; today, a [[Citadel Miniatures|Citadel]] Space Marine Hunter( 125-parts entirely cast in opaque plastic) costs about the same as AFV club's Churchill mk3 (400+ parts with 2 vinyl tracks, 22 metal springs, 29 Etched Brass pieces and a turned aluminium barrel). At some point, someone remembered that back in ''Second Edition'' days they actually had people willing to pay for gigantically expensive, limited-edition lead Thunderhawk Gunships. To hit this niche of "people with more money than sense," [[Forge World]] was created; all you had to do was get mom and dad to sign that second mortgage and stop being so damn selfish and a 40K-scale Titan would be yours.

===Minimize Effort, Maximize Rage===
In the year 2000, [[Warmaster]] was released. Designed by Based Priestley, it was essentially the Warhammer Fantasy version of Epic.
[[File:Gw_logo.png|thumb|400px|[[/pol/]] approves of the new logo]]
Fourth edition Warhammer 40k was released in 2004, and was more an advertisement for more models than an actual edition. It was advertised as being "backwards compatible", mostly because by itself it was barely a game. The rulebook was mostly sections of painted licensed plastic terrain and large models than anything else.

In 2005, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay was given a second edition which was largely the same but was up to date with the lore, and had a better magic system. It was used more to advertise the wargame however than as a frontline product. This came with a single unified rulebook for Lord Of The Rings that included the (greatly) expanded line in the form of the One Rulebook to Rule them All.

Around this time the bulk of plastic Warhammer scenery was released, with almost all of it in Fantasy geared towards the Empire or Chaos (with some trees maybe representing Elves?) and 40k towards the Imperium or Chaos (with a few Necron and Tau pieces from Forgeworld). Games Workshop had seemingly decided who the main characters were, and some factions in either game from this point on only were mentioned in passing while receiving no support or updates.

Seventh edition Warhammer Fantasy Battles in 2006 luckily avoided this, with Battle For Skull Pass as the starter set between Dwarfs and [[Goblins|Night Goblins]]. This marked the last major change for Warhammer Fantasy, as the next update only really changed by adding more models and having minor rebalancing. Many fans of armies like Bretonnia and Wood Elves were left very unhappy their army was not updated in 7e, relying on outdated rules and thus being extremely underpowered all in favor of an event.
Looking to resurrect the dying Lord Of The Rings game, Games Workshop released Legions Of Middle Earth, an "expansion" suggesting buying larger groups of models to use in a theme force using the existing rules.

[[Storm of Chaos]] was released as the major event of the 2000's to much pomp and circumstance, supposedly being the canonical transition from the old into the new as Chaos made its great attempt to destroy reality while every faction strapped on their wardrums and marched into the clusterfuck. Players were selected to actually play the factions to drive the narrative, and the community was kept informed of what was going on. There was a problem however... Chaos couldn't win. The bulk of the story for the event was driven by the fact a fuckhuge Chaos army was invading, but the players for Chaos couldn't even manage to scrape out of the starting gate. So the narrative kept going that Chaos was a fuckmassive force that made all the other fuckmassive forces pretty much not worthy of note, and every time a player on another faction beat a Chaos player before turn four the story would state that the other player had ''barely'' delayed the forces of Chaos for only a brief time and at great cost, sometimes their complete destruction occurring anyway despite the actual battle report results saying no Chaos survived the battle and almost none of the other army was killed.

In the end, Chaos was given one last chance in the very last match as the defenders (meaning they had the advantage) in the last battle. Even this, they lost. Badly. In a phone-in result where Games Workshop made a desperate bid that fans would choose for Chaos to win and make all the actual promised narrative unnecessary, players chose to let Chaos deservedly lose. So the event ended with [[Grimgor Ironhide|a single crazy fucking Orc]] headbutting [[Archaon|Chaos Darth Vader]] in the balls, laughing at him, and walking away and thus saving the world in an ending befitting a Saints Row game. Games Workshop quickly stopped promoting the event and from that point on pretended it never happened. Combined with their Eye of Terror campaign for 40k, where Chaos conquered Cadia but lost their entire fleet in Battlefleet Gothic games (leading GW with nowhere to go aside from 'Chaos sits on a planet until the Imperium shoot them off of it') caused GW to lose faith in player-driven narrative, due to the fact [[derp|that the players were driving the narrative.]]

In 2008, fifth edition Warhammer 40k was released and borrowed heavily from 7e WFB as well as implemented a HEAVY emphasis on cover rules while making shooting much more important. In 2009 Games Workshop launched released War Of The Ring, which made the skirmish game into a full-fledged wargame. The rules were highly simplified to enable quick games with larger groups of models.

===Dawn of the Great Derpening===
[[File:GWstockfail2.jpg|thumb|300px|right|GeeDub's stock taking a very hard fall. Coincidentally, their drop in stocks coincided with the 6th Edition release of the ultra-nerfed [[Tyranid]]s codex. Hilarious when you consider them to be the "shadow across the warp", it would appear that the Tyranids became GW's shadow across their profits, something they have yet to recover from after half a year. (The share price collapse was actually caused by a less-than-promising financial report released that day.)]]
The early 2010's could generously be described as GW's '''UNHOLY FUCKING DISASTER'''.

To start with, in 2010, Based Priestley left Games Workshop forever, saying that "the creative team was no longer doing anything creative" and "game development and game design wasn't of any interest to them. The current attitude in Games Workshop is that they're not a games company, that they're a model company selling collectibles."

In May 11th 2011, Games-Workshop's new terms of use [[Embargo | restricts sales of all of their products to the European Economic Area]], (EU + Norway, Switzerland and Iceland). This essentially removed Games Workshop products from online distributors other than themselves, and furthermore made their actual in-store stock of products highly limited with many models only being available directly through them (although many Friendly Local Game Stores will order from their website to fulfill requests). Oh, and they spiked the prices another 10-15% for most models.

Additionally, all metal models were on their way to being discontinued, to be replaced with much more expensive [[Finecast|Resin]] kits which were INCREDIBLY unpopular with the community due to low quality casts and high price without the sense it was worth it. Unlike the pewter kits (which are basically tin), the resin kits are loaded with carcinogens; strange, since last anyone checked the reason for switching to pewter in the first place was that lead was toxic (and nothing to do with hiking the price). The quality of the product could lead one to believe it was much much cheaper, but [[Casting|resin damages the mold more than pewter because it sticks to the mold more]]. It gets expensive when you have to replace molds more often, and they also break fairly easily so that all the little ten year old Smurf players have to buy new ones when they snap them in half. So essentially, Games Workshop not only ruined the quality of their models, they jacked up the prices and made it nearly impossible for anyone outside the EU and 'murrica to obtain it. Kinda like going from fine French wine to your corner-store cheap beer... and the beer is more expensive than the wine. And the beer gives you cancer.

Then-Chairman Tom Kirby mentioned in a 2011 press release that they were increasing cost cutting measures and making more products while avoiding mention of actual profits (note this is a summary, not his exact words). Given their charts, it was easy to see why he chose not to disclose the company's profits (or lack thereof).

[[File:Games Workshop Stocks.png|thumb|right|300px|Not being able to increase your revenue in a decade is a bad sign.]]
In 2013, Games Workshop decided to transfer their sales restriction to Canada, just as they had to Europe. As the United States had already had international sales cut back in 2003, this had lead to a large online market for Canadian retailers, selling their products at discount sales to US customers. However, with this new change, all international sales in North America are now completely gone, as GW once again decided to fuck over long term customers and local retailers in favor of luring more small children with disposable income to their overpriced, neckbeard-run stores.

MiniWargaming, a well known FLGS with an extensive online store, decided to close shop because of these new rules. Their store manager made [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnPpfs120DA an entire video explaining their reasons and going over just how asinine Games Workshop's new rules are.] Between jacking up prices, locking down international sales, and screwing over online sales and bitz sales, Games Workshop intentionally set itself on the fast track to running itself into the ground in the eyes of long term followers. Possibly due to their apparent belief that removing the entire world (excluding European Economic Area and Canada) from their consumer base is a good idea.

As far as games went, they at least made a dent on that front.

Eight Edition Warhammer Fantasy was released in 2010, introducing 40k-esque large models (and pretending Storm of Chaos didn't happen). Many fans hold that this is the most balanced the game ever was, despite some particularly nasty cheese existing and some factions STILL not getting long overdue updates and having to rely on 6th edition books in a system that had nerfed the core mechanics their models relied on. It was also best not to think about how a number of the situations that could arise would realistically play out or else your head would explode, since this was the edition in which fuckhuge orcs on boars would charge a unit of skinks, and they'd all die before they could even attack. It also had units dedicating their entire lives to protecting a weak frog turn and flee, while the weak frog stayed back and fought to the death in order to ensure his guards escaped. In 2011 it was expanded with [[Storm of Magic]] which introduced fuckhuge monsters from Forgeworld that could be summoned, as well as a redone (and pretty broken) magic system. This did poorly however as the magic was terribly balanced in the main game anyway, the additions here just made it worse and the additional spells/bonuses meant to help the weaker lores were only useful to a small number of armies/situations, while the prices of the monsters were laughably high and the rules for them were not worth taking over basic infantry.

Blood in the Badlands came out in 2012 and added siege combat and advanced scenarios to the game, strangely echoing the early days of Warhammer. As Lord Of The Rings interest had largely waned, it was rereleased with updated rulebooks, new models, and licensed The Hobbit miniatures in 2012 as well.

Between all that in 2012 came sixth edition Warhammer 40k, borrowing even more heavily from Warhammer Fantasy with psychic powers becoming a clone of Fantasy's magic phase while scenery became interactive. Furthermore, armies were no longer exclusive with mixed-faction lists being possible.

In 2013, Sigmar's Blood came out with a campaign between the Empire and Vampire Counts lead by [[Mannfred von Carstein]], introducing advanced diplomacy rules mostly involving misfortune, and The Desolation Of Smaug expansion to Lord Of The Rings finished off 2013 releases.

In late 2015, pop culture business site ICv2 reported that [[X-Wing]] [http://spikeybits.com/2016/03/warhammer-dethroned-top-5-miniature-games.html had dethroned Warhammer 40K as the top-selling miniatures game in the United States]. GW ''could have'' tried to sue George Lucas and Disney over the concept of a fascist galactic empire with fully-armored soldiers who enforce the Emperor's will, but sadly even they weren't that stupid, and they instead retaliated by refusing to renew [[Fantasy Flight Games]]' licences to the Warhammer IPs. (It could also be due to FFG being bought by Asmodee, a company GW views as a direct competitor to their new line of "Boxed Games".)

===The Fall of Warhammer===
[[File:Gymz Porkchop.jpg|thumb|300px|left]]
In 2014 the [[End Times]] event was announced for Warhammer Fantasy while Warhammer 40k got its seventh edition. 7e 40k removed restrictions even more on armies and simply allow you to mostly take whatever you want if you are okay with not getting some bonuses, although you get advantages for sticking to groups existing in the canon. Otherwise it added a lot more to the game, not all of it good. Notably Gargantuan Creatures and Super-heavies were added into the game and the world was introduced to the horrors of Unbound lists (as well as GW's obsession with formations). They also added even more Warhammer Fantasy-esque psychic and terrain rules.

Meanwhile, End Times... ended Warhammer Fantasy. Billed as the next big thing, the event consisted of staggered releases of extremely expensive books, nearly as much as a new starter set, and new (very large and expensive) models. The books contained scenarios, massive amounts of lore, and also removed a great deal of restrictions on how armies are built; first by allowing an army to be 50% low-level characters (Heroes) and 50% high-level characters (Lords) so long as the default core requirement of 25% of your army on basic troops was fulfilled while turning every spellcaster into a master of magic, then by making magic even more fucking insane by diddling with spells and giving a metric fuckload of dice to cast them, then in the final book simply throwing all listbuilding rules out the window and saying "take whatever the fuck you want and put it on the table". Meanwhile the story consisted of nearly everyone except the Undead and Skaven taking it up the ass HARD from Chaos as it slowly meandered its way through all opposition to the heart of the Empire (read: what they wanted from Storm of Chaos); the undead got forcibly united under a reborn [[Nagash]] and the Skaven trolling everyone who was fighting Chaos. In the end the final faceoff occurred between Chaos (joined by the Skaven) and the "heroes" of the setting (both including and joined by the Undead). The "heroes" all failed miserably and were consumed by black nothingness filled with plagues, gnashing teeth, evil intellects, and naughty tentacles as the world simply '''ENDS'''. Fantasy fans were left feeling cold and full of hate, and for nearly a year simply assumed their setting had been completely and unceremoniously raped to death while all the resources and time they'd invested into the hobby had become worthless.

On a side note, multiple video games for Warhammer Fantasy were announced with some being released in this time, leaving fans tearing their hair out in frustration at the idiocy of killing a setting, then FINALLY making decent video games for it. This games include [[Total War: WARHAMMER]], [[Mordheim: City Of The Damned]], [[Man O' War: Corsair]], and [[The End Times: Vermintide]].

===Age Of Skubmar: The Great Derpening===
[[File:El Presidente Gym Porkchop.jpeg|thumb|left|500px|"El Presidente Gee Double U, the people wish to express their love and dedication to you. They may have used different words."]]
[[File:Age Of 40k.png|thumb|right|500px|Like a gut-torn rabbit hiding in a wooded thicket.]]
When it seemed it couldn't get any worse, Games Workshop then decided that since it had made 40k mostly like Fantasy, it would make Fantasy into 40k. A happier, LSD-fueled version of 40k.

That version, believed by some to have actually been made with [[Skub]] mixed directly into the material, was [[Age of Sigmar]] which removed literally ALL limitations on army building (as in you can take any models in the game from any faction in any number and call it an army, with rules for your opponent to play the game with an easy win condition if your army is x3 the size of theirs) and consists of a skirmish game which only has four rules, officially making it even less of a Warhammer than Warhammer 1st edition.

If that wasn't enough, almost everything was arbitrarily renamed to be trademark friendly. Zombies became "Deadwalkers", Elves became "Aelves", and Lizardmen were given the hilariously terrible name "Seraphon" which, if googled, brings up the career work of a [[furry]] tickle-fetish artist (in their defense, the name already existed as the name of Elf Darth Vader's dragon in Warhammer, although the connection between that and Lizardmen was never actually given so its a moot point). The only faction that escaped the renaming was the Bretonnians and Tomb Kings, but that turned out to be foreshadowing akin to seeing a huge silver line on the horizon on the day you plan to go to the beach.

The story was worse still, consisting of Norse mythology mixing with superhero comics in an awkward combination where Chaos Gods can be kidnapped by Elves, Warhammer Darth Vader becomes the master of the Dark Side rather than the other way around, and characters introduced and given importance in one book immediately die in the next.

The advertising for Age of Sigmar was the rules (all four pages of them) and the stats of existing models being free on launch, followed by outrageously expensive digital content that updated the game, the core lore advancement being contained within scenario books that are ludicrously expensive, and a requirement for many scenarios to have specific models which includes the expensive as hell new terrain, the rules of which can only be viewed by buying the model. To put it simply, Games Workshop managed to take the hated practice of DLC content in video games and push it fully, hard and deep into tabletop gaming.

To top it all off, Games Workshop, almost overnight, took down their iconic Space Marine statue that had sat in front of their headquarters for years and replaced it with a giant statue of a Stormcast Eternal (the <strike>Sigmarines</strike> Space Marines of Age of Sigmar). They also replaced the Imperium Eagle with Stormcast-style wings and a Ghal Maraz replica to really hammer the point home (pun intended). [[RAGE| The beloved servant of the Emperor was relegated to being hidden under a staircase and behind an advertisement for Age of Sigmar.]] We... really wish we were making this up.

Games Workshop had promised their investors in 2014 that 2015 would be a massive year of financial returns, although by the time of the [http://www.iii.co.uk/research/LSE:GAW/news/item/1792782/half-yearly-report-and-trading-update?context=LSE:GAW Half Yearly Report] they had grown a mere 1%. To make matters worse, this included the ample revenue from their new video game licenses as Age of Sigmar had been largely rejected by large portions of the gaming community as many stores were completely unable to even move starter sets, resulting in a few months of them being at clearance prices online through third party distributors. Further still, many [[FLGS]] dumped all Fantasy Warhammer stock, some even dropped Games Workshop stock entirely.

Considering the 2015 Financial Report of Games Workshop, Age of Sigmar was going nowhere and GW outright stated they do no market research and did not plan to start. [http://www.iii.co.uk/news-opinion/richard-beddard/games-workshop-agm%3a-relentless-profit-machine They believe that only 20% of their fans actually play the game or give a fuck about the story so in their eyes the plot and rules are not to blame for any major decrease in sales and anyone who doesn't like it can fuck off.] Like it or not, Warhammer Fantasy is dead and buried while Age of Smegmar is here to stay.

Games Workshop plugged on ahead regardless by rebranding themselves, changing the names of Games Workshop Hobby Stores worldwide to Warhammer Stores after the deathrattle of The Hobbit merchandise.

===The Hangover===
Following the disastrous launch of Age of Sigmar, Games Workshop announced a plan in December 2015 to resurrect the Specialist Games division and the games Blood Bowl, Epic, Necromunda, Battlefleet Gothic, "And Many, Many More" while resurrecting the Tolkien games.

In February 2016, it was believed that Games Workshop used a Cease And Desist order to shutdown [[Warseer]], the largest Warhammer community forum other than /tg/, but thankfully that turned out to be a simple virus and database corruption (but to be fair, one could hardly be blamed for thinking GW responsible). In more substantiated dick-move news, Josh Reynolds, a freelance writer employed by Games Workshop known for actually answering fan questions about the setting and filling in plot holes in End Times (as many, MANY characters and plots were forgotten in the event even between books) and attempting to assure fans [[Sigmarines]] and Space Marines are totes different, was essentially told to shut the fuck up about GW IPs on social media while his entire list of lore mending was declared non-canon via being told to say nothing he writes reflects GW outside novels.

Going even further into community-souring, the popular Tomb Kings line and faction was squatted unceremoniously in the same month (worse than Squatted, at least the Squats got an explanation in-fluff as to why they disappeared), putting an end to Warhammer Egyptians and axing the faction that gave rise to all remaining Warhammer Undead. Needless to say, this was NOT well-received by fans, especially those who played Tomb Kings themselves and those sick of Age of Sigmar Stormstormed Stormbolters and their leader, the Celestial Primarch. This doesn't make sense, even for GW given their love of copyrights and patents, since the Tomb Kings faction was one of GW's more original creations (an Egyptian-themed non-evil undead civilization) and thus are easier to copyright (they could even have patented the name unlike with Space Marines or elves).

The only positive of axing the Tomb Kings is that it somewhat toughened the fanbase to endure when GW continued their douchey warpath by axing the Bretonnians faction and a large chunk of the Warhammer Fantasy models still in production. This included almost all named characters, while survivors of the purge were renamed to be generic (in a horrifying twist of fate, the very first Warhammer character Heinrich Kemmler was reassigned the name "Necromancer"). This wave of axing was mixed with wave after wave of Khorne Chaos, Archaon Chaos, and Sigmarine updates leaving everyone either with balls bluer than Tzeentch's ass (and Slaanesh's imprisoned everything) or dreading when their faction book came out and gutted classic and beloved models forever.

To sum up - GeeDubs started to fix their shit, but decided it was too much effort and went back on being raging dickmongers as usual.

A report that the 30k boxed set ''Betrayal At Calth'' had outsold the entire Age range coupled with a stock value steadily dropping down to their 2012 status in early/mid 2016 may have shocked stockholders, because the armies of Order that were squatted had selected models returned to the store for a "Last Chance, for reals this time guys!" sale on 4/18/16. Within the day most of the models had already sold, leaving the newest Sigmarines to remain collecting dust in their place.

===In Summary===
''It is the 3rd Millennium. For more than a hundred months Games Workshop has sat immobile on the Golden Throne of Nottingham. It is the foremost of wargames by the will of the neckbeards, and master of a million tabletops by the might of their inexhaustible wallets. It is a rotting carcass writhing invisibly with business strategies from the early Industrial Revolution Age. It is the Carrion Lord of the wargaming scene for whom a thousand veteran players are sacrificed every day, so that it may never truly die.''

''Yet even in its deathless state, GW continues its eternal vigilance. Mighty battleforce starter-sets cross the online-store-infested miasma of the internet, the only route between distant countries, their way lit by a draconian retail trade-agreement, the legal manifestation of the GW's will. Vast armies of lawyers give battle in GW's name on uncounted websites. Greatest amongst its soldiers are the Guardians of the IP, the Legal Team, bio-engineered super-assholes. Their comrades in arms are legion: the writing team and countless untested rulebooks, the ever vigilant redshirts, and the writers of White Dwarf, to name only a few. But for all their multitudes, they are barely enough to hold off the ever-present threat from other games, their own incompetence, Based Chinaman - and worse.''

''To support Games Workshop in such times is to spend untold billions. It is to support the cruelest and most dickish company imaginable. These are the tales of those times. Forget the power of sales discounts and Warhammer Fantasy Battle, for so much has been dropped, never to be re-published again. Forget the promise of cheaper digital content and caring about the fanbase, for in the GW HQ there is only profit-seeking, Space Marines and Sigmarines. There is no fun amongst the hobby shops, only an eternity of raging and spending, and the laughter of former employees who left GW to join better companies.''

===New Games Workshop™: How Do You Do, Fellow Gamers?===
It was not expected, we couldn't have known, since the resignation of supreme leader [[Tom Kirby]] and the ascension of new CEO [[Kevin Rountree]] there has started to appear a pattern, sporadic reports of real discounts at [[Forgeworld]] and [[Black Library]], and then, in the last days of 2015 it has been revealed that major changes are coming, the sudden resurrection of specialist games, Games Workshop releasing starter sets with real ''saving'', all around the internet neckbeards are discussing and watching, wondering what's going on, perhaps the new guy in charge has decided is time to take some contingencies for the inevitable demise of tabletop gaming with the ever increasing development in 3D printing and the emergence of new alternatives. It seems like the boxes are a replacement for the old Battleforce packs, and while you don't get as many units as the old box, they are cheaper and usually come with a good mix of units to start a small army.

And now, there's an [http://warhammerworld.games-workshop.com/the-bugmans-xxxxxx-league-cup/ official (as in hosted and ran by the almighty GeeDubs themselves) Blood Bowl tournament] going on at Warhammer World on May 21st. Truly these are strange times. GW also appears to be preparing to start selling their product in toy stores (Toys-R-Us Etc.) as well as producing various Warhammer Merchandise such as pillows and journals (For Some Reason). Also now they've made a 40k starter set with simplified rules and all the paint you need to assemble the models. Clearly the sky is falling. (Also they've started making conversion tutorials and stuff, for some reason).

They also actually maintain their Facebook page now, and the other night they had an Age of Sigmar live tournament...

Also a number of the staff now have twitter accounts.

They've also taken over the internet leak game. When a sprue for the new Ahriman model was found on E(vil)Bay, GW not only showed off the sprue, but also the upcoming Kharn model. And recently, they've shown not only Daemon Primarch Magnus, but also new artwork, teased the Thousand Sons sprue, and made a reference to plastic SoB. Strangely, they had the Magnus video up and running mere hours after the model was leaked. And the red trashcan seen in the video looks similar to the background of the leaked photos. Is GW leaking their own products to get the Hype train up and running? Just as Planned, so it seems. Discussions with my local GW guy indicated it was a rogue employee, as nobody else would be allowed anywhere near the new models, probably a cleaner, who leaked the pictures.

BUUUUUTTT... They rehired Matt Ward.
May or may not be responsible for the return of Roboute Guilliman (which ironically has earned a lot of character development thanks to his return to 40k), or maybe Bobby G's return it's a symbolic gesture that they have finally decided to start fixing everything.

While some people will never be happy, there are few than can deny that GW has been making a massive improvement in the last year or so with their products, content, and relationship with the community. Genuinely good deals, well received releases and ad campaigns (the recent hero bases one is positively goofy, but in a "that's the GW we used to know and love" kinda way.), combined with actively encouraging and showing off fan input and content (even producing a house rules data sheet for a conversion AAAAAND putting pictures of [[Your Dudes]] ON THE MODELS PAGE ON THE ACTUAL WEBSITE!!!!!!!!!), altogether it's almost as if, dare I say it, GW has remembered how to be... [[Warhammer Fantasy|fun!]] They even made a new model for [[slambo]]!

Hell, GW is even straight up asking fans what they want brought back in the next made to order wave. Answer: [[Warhammer Fantasy]] (Well, at least we still have Total War: Warhammer as a consolation prize)... But behold friends, They cast Resurrection, hence Warhammer: The Old World!

As of January 2017, Games Workshop stock spiked 41% from November of 2015, '''bringing the stock's value higher than it was before the crash in 2014.''' Secret surveillance done by some fans reveal that after the crash a new board of directors was formed, it includes [[Sigmar]] and [[Roboute Guilliman]] (Matt Ward and Mortarion are teaming up), this may explain the sudden influx of good policies.

Games Workshop has been announced as the biggest riser in FTSE All-share index.

On a tragic side note unrelated to business, one of their most esteemed writers, Alan Bligh, died in May 2017. He will be sorely missed. In his absence the HH released have drastically slowed, probably because this leaves just 3 people in rules detachment for Horus Heresy '''and''' FW WH40k (two of those has little to no experience as rules writers, by the way). New releases still come out here and there, but they're about as common as they delays.

===Current Events===
By the middle of 2018 Games Workshop has gone through many changes, the first indicators were not mere bluff, it seems the company is now in a new phase of expansion and successfully recovering terrain both in the skirmish, tabletop and specialist genres, let us see the list of achievements:
*Necromunda is back
**And the Squats with them, or at least a remnant in the form of a beardy mercenary, effectively killing the 20 years old meme (although they were at least mentioned again as far back as the 2012 6th edition rulebook). Not only that, but when they revealed his return, they referenced the meme themselves, making fun of the "Squat Clock" joke.
*In Warhammer Fest 2018 they released a photo of one of the new Sisters of Battle plastic models, the level of detail is exceptional, and it's just a line trooper.
*Adeptus Titanicus came back, in plastic, which, while it may be expensive, lets you use your knights, which mean it may be accessible even to people which "just" can buy knights.
*While Dawn of War 3 didn't go as well as expected, a new line of videogames are here, including the aforementioned Total War series with legacy tomb kings and Bretonnia, Adeptus Mechanicus, Vermintide 2 (which has sold over a million on PC), a videogame version of Titanicus, an enhaced edition of Spacehulk: Deathwing, the strategy game Gladius and Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2 (which is set in the Gathering Storm).
*Duncan Rhodes and Chris Peach painting tutorials and tips of the day have become recurrent.
*Forgebane has become the first starter set with factions other than Space Marines, featuring [[Necron]]s and [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] trying to out-geek each other.
*Did we mention [[Kill Team]] is coming back?
*With Warhammer Community and Facebook GeeDubs has fully taken into the web and social media, with regular updates as well as regular, if controlled, interaction between the admin and the people posting in Facebook.
*Most units and armies of 40k can give now a decent fight, with long-time dead loads like mandrakes, Pyrovore, flayed ones and the likes now being useful.
*Age of Sigmar is bringing quite original factions such as the Kharadron Overlords and the Idoneth Deepkin, with less emphasis in Tolkienesque armies and more in "let's try to make this faction unique", also they have toned down the noblebright with Malign Portents, which gives a lot of focus on Nagash and his centuries-old plans to take over the Mortal Realms.
*Black Library has worked out to give more deep to the characters and settings of 40k and AoS, the former is exploring the aftermath of the Noctis Aeterna and the Indomitus Crusade, while setting some of the books in Holy Terra itself and its denizens, in AoS there has been more focus in exploring the background and personality of the Stormcast Eternals, their former lives, as well as giving some much needed focus to other mortal races and establishing potential new characters.
**On that note, Gotrek is back, with his first novel Realmslayer, looking for Felix in hopes he has reborn in this new reality.
*Some models from the squatted factions, Bretonnians and Tomb Kings, have been briefly returned for the Warhammer classic range.
*GW has gotten fully aboard laughing at themselves, with much of their recent media awash with memes, jokes, and jolly good humor. The reveal trailer of the Stormcast Eternals Sacrosanct Chamber, for instance, has an opening animation that [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9daI6m4KsM looks for all the world like something, well, ''we'' would make].
*Age of Sigmar has gotten a 2.0 edition that looks pretty good so far. The only big downside is the May 2019 Sylvaneth release was delayed with the merchandise stuck in customs, but that was due to Brexit related political and economic problems, which Geedubs acknowledged with good humor. The new Sylvaneth release came out late July and was very good and well-received, so all is fine on the arboreal front.
*With the advent of 40k's Psychic Awakening, GW seems fully intent on keeping the narrative rolling forward (even advertising the promise of wrapping up a number of loose ends), for better or worse. At least in regards to the "better", they fully intend to go into detail about ''all'' the factions in 40k with a slew of new models for good measure.
**''Phoenix Rising'': First on deck is the Craftworld [[Eldar]] feuding with their [[Dark Eldar|sado-masochist kin]]. Jain-Zar paves the way as the first [[Awesome|plastic Phoenix Lord]] leading her Howling Banshee aspect against Drahzar and his Incubi disciples (all of which are also now in plastic). A battlebox set titled ''Blood of the Phoenix'' was released alongside this book featuring the aforementioned units alongside a gaggle of other plastic kits for each faction.
**''Faith and Fury'': Next brings the [[Black Templar]] against the combined might of several [[Chaos Space Marines|Chaos Space Marine Legions]]. Unfortunately, while the book includes expanded rules for the factions within, no new chapter/legion models or battleboxes are being released for the Templar or any of the mentioned CSM Legions. At least a brand new generic CSM [[Sorcerer (Warhammer 40,000)|Sorcerer]] launches with the book.
**''Blood of Baal'': The faceoff between the [[Blood Angels]] against resurgent [[Tyranids]]. A new plastic model for [[Mephiston]] graced the Blood Angels.
**''Ritual of the Damned'': The [[Dark Angels]] & [[Grey Knights]] square up against the [[Thousand Sons]], with a brand new Primaris Company Master for the Dark Angels being released (and no, it's none of the pre-existing ones, they opted to just make a completely new character).
**''The Greater Good'': A three-way war of propaganda erupts between the [[Imperial Guard]], [[Genestealer|Genestealer Cults]] and [[Tau|T'au Empire]]. A fancy new [[Shadowsun]] model launched with the book, as well as a new Start Collecting! bundle for Genestealer Cults, but the Imperial Guard received nothing outside the usual rule supplements.
**''Saga of the Beast'': An appropriately named conflict between the [[Space Wolves]] and [[Ork|Orks]]. More to come soon.
**''Engine War'': The most inclusive Psychic Awakening slated for 2020 yet, the [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] and [[Imperial Knight|Imperial Knights]] fight their [[Chaos Knight|corrupted kin]] and the [[Chaos Daemons]] accompanying them. AdMech is getting the single largest batch of new units they've seen since the Skitarii launched back in 7th edition, with a new flier, cavalry and flying infantry (each with two variants) planned for a simultaneous release.
*Plastic Sisters of Battle. That is all, even though they ran out of boxes in under three minutes. To be fair, GW apologized and said that, while they expected new SoB to be popular, they never expected them to be THAT popular. [[Shadow War: Armageddon|Because sometimes GW just, doesn't, learn]]. GW also promised to address insufficient number of limited edition boxes (hey, that's capitalism for ya) after new factory is constructed.
* Warhammer: The Old World is technically the return of Warhammer Fantasy, although it won't be released for another three years.
**Despite (or perhaps because of) the continual stream of new releases pouring out monthly, prices still seem to be gradually creeping up to record heights, with the ''Blood of the Phoenix'', ''Adeptus Sororitas: Sisters of Battle Army Set'' and ''Necromunda: Dark Uprising'' box sets well above $200 USD, with the Necromunda set dancing just around $290 USD. This is topped off by the exponentially expanded library of required reading players will need access to in order to play 40k in an official competitive manner (the annual Chapter Approved, the most up-to-date Codex (for Space Marine players, at least), any relevant Codex Supplements, Forge World Armoury Indexes, Campaign or Psychic Awakening books). While the latter issue may not be a concern to more freestyle or casual players, the increasing prices of the box sets make the prospect of getting new players into 40k ever more daunting.
We are not sure how long this may last, but it seems like, for the recent years, GeeDubs is keeping a nice record, for a time, we may look to the immediate future with optimism (now go get more money, what you think they are, social charity?).

One minor complaint is that their Youtube comments section is almost always turned off. The fact that this is still better than the previous decade and a half shows how bad things really got. Thank fuck for sensible economic choices being finally deemed necessary.

==/tg/ Analysis Of Games Workshop==

===Blind Deaf-mutes===
In a [http://www.iii.co.uk/news-opinion/richard-beddard/games-workshop-agm%3a-relentless-profit-machine meeting with shareholders], Games Workshop exhibited their attitudes quite plainly.
*"- the word “Game” in Games Workshop encourages the misconception that games are its business, but that only about 20% of Games Workshop’s customers are gamers. The rest are modellers and collectors. Maybe half of them think about playing now and then. The other half have no intention. People actually walk into the stores because they’re curious about modelling fantastic armies."

When asked "-if the company would sell games with pre-painted easy to assemble miniatures like the popular Star Wars themed X-Wing game" they said:
*"It wouldn’t be a hobby business then, it would be a toy company."

*"-introducing products at new price points is different to reducing the recommended retail price, something the company resolutely refuses to do. It’s considering “putting more value in the box”, discounting in other words, when people buy in number. That ought to encourage gamer-modellers."

*"Potentially lucrative income from licenses granted to video games producers like the much anticipated and soon to be released Total War Warhammer will always be incidental because video gamers do not become modellers, and Games Workshop doesn’t know how to make good video games."

In their 2015 Financial Report, they stated:
*"The Group does not undertake research activities."
In the same report, the words "market" and "research" never referred to the same subject. They claim their main audience is teenagers, although they also state that the hobbyist crowd is their main fanbase. Furthermore, they make assumptions about their fanbase despite admitting that they do not research about them.

So what can be learned? Games Workshop has absolutely no long-term plan other than to make more expensive models, and cater to those who can drop thousands in a single impulse buy. Rather than expanding and reaching out to new customers, they are intentionally becoming a niche market for an elite crowd. In other words?
"Fuck you, you smelly hatless Irishman."

===The Digital Age (And Completely Missing the Point)===
Games Workshop would sign a deal with Apple to sell eBooks on the interwebz, instead of Amazon (the largest retailer worldwide), because then the books would have to be cheaper. Games Workshop refused to understand the fact that eBooks ''almost always'' cost less than what they would if bought from a book store. That 1 pence discount doesn't count.
(From GW point of view, even tho it's stupid to put the same price on eBooks as the Hardcover Army Books/Codices, it makes sense. Because if they were to sell them cheaper, they would sell much less books, meaning they'll lose money from the traditional books. Yes, it cost $80 in Australia for both the eBook and the Hardcover, which again is bullshit.)(A load of crap, 90 dollars for Hardcover Codex, 70 for ebook, in Aus.)

Though in this regard, GW does seem to be slowly figuring out what works: Dataslates are a cheap effective means of deploying models without committing to entire armies/detachments. Essentially like microtransactions. While around £3 might seem like a lot of money for only a few pages of crunch and only two or three new units/formations, they are some of the cheapest products GW have released in a good long time and they do also use these to repost entire rules sections dragged out of the codices in addition to the product itself, so you never needed the codex if you never owned it in the first place.

Some of the Dataslates are extremely high quality (like [[Cypher]]) and are virtually must-haves, while some others are complete dross (Reclusiam Command Squad?) that were dreamed up over a 5 minute coffee break just to sell something. But with the advent of 7th Edition, armies can be made up entirely of dataslates ''(or just go unbound)'' so they are no longer telling you how to build your army any more and you can keep it cheaper by bringing only a few models to make up your chosen formation.

[[File:Gamesworkshopinanutshell.png|thumb|300px|right|Games Workshop's probable downfall.]]

Oh, and they sell them in various formats so you don't need that iPad if you don't have one since eReaders can be downloaded for free and if you still don't have anything to read them on, then have a [[FAIL|think]] about how you got onto the Internet.
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="100%">
===Why Games Workshop is Bad and Should Feel Bad===
One anon's perpsective on why GW hasn't collapsed in on itself yet. Keep in mind that was written some time during the Derpening when reading this.
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
Never mind that large groups are often less efficient due to the fact that most people like to agree and be part of a group, even if the group is wrong. Forget that the burden of hard work is often shrugged off thanks to the assumption that everyone else will be carrying enough of the real challenges to pull things through (and that when things go wrong, it's a flaw of human nature that people don't like to admit and accept when they screw up). Instead, focus on the fact that the people heading GW – or most large corporations for that matter – are successful, rich, ordinary men who are blessed by good fortune in an unfair universe and probably don't realize the reality. Further, examine the knowledge that, according to Sun Tzu and a variety of psychological studies, successful rich people with the aforementioned profound luck are the folks most likely to make stupid mistakes out of anyone!

Now you know why GW (or the entire world, for that matter) is run the way it is.

A source of some debate on /tg/ is whether or not it is actually charging prices that make sense for the hobby. All logic points to a resounding “no”, but another interesting social phenomena is this: fanboyism is an inbuilt human process. Whenever money is spent on a good, especially a luxury item, man has a way of increasing the illusionary worth of that item.

Imagine buying tickets to see your local team play football, and they lose. It's not even a good game, to be honest. People around the country were disappointed. However, those tickets cost a lot of money, and having spent all that money for so little in return makes a person feel stupid. We grope for other things, then, to make the tickets worth while rather than admit we were wrong (even if we were only wrong due to events beyond our control) and learn from it. Yes, it was cold, but your wife was there, so you bonded! The beer was too expensive as well, but they sold your favorite brand! You had an experience! It was fun! Yes, those tickets were worth it in the end.

We'll even do this with soft drinks. Even if brain probes reveal a man likes Pepsi more than Coke, going back and telling the man what he was drinking can actually ''alter his memory'' so that he remembers liking the Coke more. It's amazing.

GW products are exactly the same way. They're ludicrously expensive. Even people who support GW fervently wish they weren't. It hurts. In a rough economy, it's hard to play the game. You spend months, years – who knows how long waiting for that new codex, it turns out to be awful compared to expectations (hello, Tyranids!) (UP YOURS ASSHOLE.), and now you've either got to suck it up and keep playing (got to buy the new Trygons, I guess, even though they aren't ''that'' great), or take a huge monetary loss and give up. Fanboyism steps in and makes it all okay. You're not just buying the models, but the game and the network utility too, so 40k is still totally fun and cool!

Big corporations, and GW as well, are predators. They feast on fanboyism. Like the [[Dark Eldar]], they prey on your suffering and write sick, stomach-turning poetry about the flowing, green streams of vital wealth they siphon from your being. You are a toy (''moreso than the articles they sell''). [[Hot Chicks|That cute girl at the convenience store you see all the time?]] Thanks to GW, you have to choose between inviting her to the theater and buying that new squadron of Guardsmen. Those of you scoffing at the dilemma, shut up; those Guardsmen are not going to nag nearly as much after you've had them for a little while, so it's <s>[[Neckbeard|totally a tough call.]]</s>{{BLAM|'''*BLAM!* HERESY!!! NOT CHOOSING THE EMPEROR'S FINEST IS HERESY!!!'''}}
But putty in their hands you may be, there are still some principles of basic economics that imply GW ''might not be earning enough revenue,'' and surprisingly, they can only lose more money by raising prices! There's no real way of knowing how things really are within GW without a look at the delicate, inner machinery of their business. But it does all come back to our first consideration: GW is run by the type of person most notable for making poor decisions – lucky, successful people, and a group, no less.

Whatever idiot wrote the following has no _actual_ business sense. Revenue ≠ Profit. Profit = Revenue - Cost... yes, but still give you a good idea about GW policy.

The situation is thus: there is more to money flow than just the bottom line, though often it's all we think of, but basically there's income, cost, and revenue. What is of most concern is revenue, which could also be thought of as [[profit]]. GW sells their models for a greater amount than what they cost, and the amount they make is revenue!

So now, there's revenue, and then there's marginal revenue. Revenue is just how much you make. Sell a thousand Guardsmen and make ten thousand dollars? Your Guardsmen revenue is $10,000! Marginal revenue, on the other hand, is how much you make ''compared to selling one less of the item''. In this case, the Guardsmen have a marginal revenue of $10. Each Guardsman made a profit of $10, and if you sold one less Guardsman, you'd make $10 less. See? Easy. Well, for this simplified example anyway (in reality there are a lot of fixed start-up costs, but point made).

Now let's raise prices. From now on, we'll sell half as many Guardsmen per box, and the boxes will cost the same. Now marginal revenue is $22, because every time a Guardsman is sold, we bring in $20 per Guardsman plus an additional $2 gets saved thanks to the Guardsmen we didn't make! This is cool – we're in business, just like GW, /tg/! Let's do that again – our customers are fans, they'll bear it! Now we'll sell five Guardsmen to a box, and we have a marginal revenue of $45!

Okay, wait, wait. I've got it. I'm a genius. Let's sell one Guardsman. Sell it for the same price we used to sell twenty of them! We're going to be rich! Marginal revenue is going to be amazing! Like, what, over a hundred dollars a purchase?

So what's our profit in the end? What! Negative? How!? We're making ''so much'' per model! The marginal revenue is ''so high''!

The answer is simple. Not enough people are buying one crappy Guardsman for $200 dollars. A few of the fans are sticking it out, hating us relentlessly, but newcomers to the game see the price tag and run screaming. People who can't afford it leave because they have no other choice, but they're happy in retrospect. Even some of our most loyal customers finally decided to just date that girl after all – one gets more of their money's worth from her ([[This Guy|one way]] [[Hot Chicks|or]] [[Promotions|another]]) and they'll deal with her constant bitching. Actual revenue is at an all time low.

Believe it or not, lots of other companies really do make this mistake, albeit not often to this extent (unless you check out [[Forge World]], anyway. Anyone want a Tau [[Manta]]? Under £1,000). It's because maximizing marginal revenue is very easy. It's simple arithmetic, and if your market base is rather inelastic (and GW's market base certainly is due to the high investment requirements of their games), a lot of times price changes won't have a huge impact, so it's easier to focus on. GW is at some point in the middle here, where it has started to become questionable.

It's hard to say if they're making right decisions or if their pricing makes the most sense. It's becoming the status quo that their games are really a hobby of those with absurd disposable income, which is not a quality described of the young men who are presumed to make up 40k's primary demographic. It's possible that they're targeting young teens with parents who will buy the models for them, but that's hard to say as well since parents will lack the dedicated fanboyism to continually invest in the absurdly priced hobby.

Mix in unbalanced rules that unfairly favor certain factions, long wait times between army updates, [[Casting|inferior model quality]] compared to what's provided to model hobbyists outside of the wargaming industry, and GW may have a recipe for a failing market.

In fact, by using some math and basic market theory, we can actually take a look at how much GW is supposedly spending to bring our hobby to us.

The list below will give us some basic numbers to work with. We know that GW currently sells its rule books at $74.25. What we don't know is GW's actual costs or how many books they're selling. These things have an impact on the math, but we'll sort of fudge it. Now, based on that alone, we want to price our book at twice what it costs to make the thing. In the real world all this nice math has the tendency to fly apart, but generally speaking that's the ideal manner of doing things. For example:

Quantity sold: 0
Price of book: $0
Estimated cost to GW: $0
Marginal Cost: $0
Marginal Revenue: $0
Total Revenue: $0

Quantity sold: 1
Price of book: $74.25
Estimated cost to GW: $37.13
Marginal Cost: $37.13
Marginal Revenue: $37.12
Total Revenue: $37.12

Quantity sold: 2
Price of book: $74.25
Estimated cost to GW: $74.25
Marginal Cost: $37.13
Marginal Revenue: $37.12
Total Revenue: $74.25

And so on. Since we're assuming that every book has a fixed cost to produce, we just get a rough idea of what it's actually costing GW to make rule books for us. Or so such is true only if we figure they're trying to price things according to a competitive market where the consumer sets the price. Basic economics says we want to have a marginal revenue equal to our marginal cost if we want to work with a price we can't really control, and that's what this does.

See, there's a few things to consider. The first is that, in a competitive market, people are just going to buy the cheapest product. That means whoever is selling cheapest kind of wins the day, but while GW could maybe sell their rule books at $20 each, they'd be suffering huge profit losses that are not directly proportionate to the change in price. Instead, they'll try to follow along with what the market is doing, and to their very best possible effort, they'll try to lower their costs so that the marginal costs equal the marginal revenue (or, again, their prices are basically double their production costs per item). That just simply maximizes revenue, since if they raise prices their competitors will undercut them and GW will be able to sell nothing.

But honestly, if you've read this far, then hopefully you're braced for this shock. According to estimates from a few publishers, it only costs about $3 per book to publish 5,000 hardback books, and that cost decreases as you publish in greater bulk. 40k books do have a lot of pretty pictures, so maybe that increases costs somewhat, but again, costs generally tend to get smaller as you order more of an item, and it's pretty likely that GW is not just settling for a measly 5,000 books internationally. They sell all over the world.

So where are all these other costs popping up that should cause GW to spend $37 on every single book they produce? In small production quantities, we'd consider the cost of labor. Who knows how much Matt Ward demands to be paid to lick every rule book before it leaves the factory! What do the photographers want in compensation? Actually, ''stop''. At GW's production rates, those expense considerations become almost ''completely negligible.'' You pay Matt Ward a salary to lick all the books. It's a yearly thing. You pay him once and you're done, so by the time you've produced a million books, even if you paid Matt a million dollars to slobber on every single page, Matt is only increasing the cost of the books by a dollar each.

Margins are all that matter. GW talks about overheads and so forth as an excuse, but that's insanity. In a perfectly competitive market you don't increase prices to cover overheads. You reduce the overheads because they're predictable annual costs that you more or less established on your own! Besides, you shouldn't be able to arbitrarily raise prices like that, seeing as how your competitors are supposedly keeping you in check! So really, what we can infer is the following:

A. Basically, GW has no competitors controlling their pricing right now. (This was especially true in the old days. Nowadays, this is less of an excuse as wargames and miniature companies branched out into all sorts of different fields. Thus, the monopoly GW used to have is no more.)

B. They are price gouging their players to fill the pockets of the people who run the company. (This scares off a lot of players, especially ones who have to buy a bunch just to keep up with the inconsistent update schedule or wish to start with a full army. Thus, the only people left are the people rich enough to afford it and those too ignorant to really think otherwise/the GWIDF)

C. Their pricing is not directly related to their costs, and anything they say to the contrary is a big fat lie. (This particular argument is used by Recaster supporters and proponents of 3-D Printers as they slowly advance in complexity to begin making more accurate and good-quality resin models.)

D. You could play another game, but all your friends are playing 40k anyway and you don't want to feel left out.

'''E. Fuck Games Workshop'''. ''' ''FUCK THEM WITH A FUCKING CHAINBLADE. NO. MAKE THAT A DAEMONHAMMER.'' '''

This article also explains the problem with Australian prices, in a slightly less detailed manner; [http://www.kotaku.com.au/2013/04/the-iron-fist-how-games-workshop-intends-to-monopolise-the-online-sale-of-products/]

Games Workshop have sat pretty at the top of the miniature wargames shit-heap for many years (indeed, the scale models industry tries to ignore that they're the biggest single seller of miniatures) and have abused this position to increase their own profits. However, fortunately for the long suffering gamer alternatives are emerging. [[Privateer Press]] for example produce the games [[Warmachine]] and [[Hordes]] and offers slightly cheaper models and starter sets. In the market for wargames Privateer Press and Coolminiornot are rapidly emerging as a viable challenger to GW's monopoly while Reaper Miniatures takes them on using the same tactics that made them in the first place; licensing IP's, and making things for other games. They are the Tau, Dark Eldar, and Chaos to GW's Imperium.

Also worthy of note is [[Mantic Games]] who produce [[Kings of War]], a fantasy battle game in a similar vein to Warhammer. The rules system was even written by former GW man Alessio Cavatore (essentially succeeding at what every frustrated ex-GW employee since 1988 has dreamed of) and it is fast, fluid and a lot more "fun" than Warhammer. The company is pioneering the use of plastic-resin alloy (or 'restic') as a cost effective alternative to pewter. Oh, and equivalent plastic models cost about HALF what GW charge (e.g. GW High Elf Spearmen (16 models) - £20, Mantic Games Elf Spearmen (20 models) - £13.99) the trade-off however is that Mantic models look like hammered dogshit. Mantic are basically the war gaming equivalent of Asylum films.

One can only hope that these new upstarts will beat down GWs monopolistic hold on the [[wargame]] market.
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</div>

===A Sobering Look at GW's Near Collapse===
On top of all the other financial considerations involved with a company like Games Workshop, there's one major concern that was probably gravely overlooked by the company as it raised prices and cut smaller retailers out of the picture: a concept called "network utility". A lot of products are useless unless they're used by a ton of people. A fax machine is a good example - if everyone owns a fax machine, then one person can use his own fax machine to send pictures of his ass to everyone on earth. That's a good value for a single person, and really makes the fax machine worth buying! However, if fewer people buy fax machines, it becomes less and less desirable to own one. After all, why buy a machine that's only capable of sending a picture of your butt to your grandmother, the only other person who still has a machine? Grandma is never impressed, anyway.

A similar concept exists with GW, and they've ignored it over the past couple of years, especially as they've cut models out of starter sets to reduce costs. If you go down to your local game store and everyone is playing Warhammer 40k, not only are you more likely to get into it because of friendly recommendations, but you're also likely to start playing because you know everyone has an army and everyone can play with you! Even if you aren't personal friends with the folks at your local game store, you know that anywhere you go, the people you meet at the FLGS can play the game with you!

Well, several things have happened to the hobby. First and foremost, the models have gotten more expensive; granted, many models only scaled in price with inflation, but since wages have largely stagnated in a lot of markets these past couple decades, to the typical consumer the costs still feel like they've gone up and the players notice the hikes. When a product gets more expensive, people naturally quit buying it. This thins the herd.

Meanwhile, GW also drags its feet when it comes to codex updates, and when it does update, there's no telling whether or not a new codex is going to be a complete load of shit. The Tyranid codex being a huge let down for two editions running is probably one of the most critical examples. Anyone who collected Tyranids as a main army has pretty well given up hope by now, and they've quit collecting. Other players with armies in similar straits, likely feeling abandoned during 5th edition when GW focused exclusively on Space Marines, have also probably drifted away from the hobby. Of course, there have also been a few people who just quit playing out of disgust because their local meta was a bit too hardcore and there was no way to win games without exploiting the broken, disjointed lack of balance.

Although Games Workshop continued to hike up prices and showed fantastic profits in the short term, these issues probably alienated too many people, and as they roll along with the next edition and new codices, they're probably discovering, with great horror, that there aren't enough players buying into it anymore. Worse, the effect can snowball out of control, and GW will probably lose their market control in one big flash of failure. Almost overnight, it'll suddenly seem that 40k has evaporated.

When there are too few players in the game, it's no longer true that you can go to your FLGS and play with any stranger in the store. There's always that one guy - that rich asshole who owns every army in the book and consequently has some of the most boring, broken, frustrating army lists to play against. But do you really want to play against that guy every single weekend? Eventually, you quit showing up to play 40k as well, and once you're gone, even that dick with all his money has no more reason to play. The final pillar falls, and Games Workshop is no more.

In other words, the player base has always been the most important foundation of the company, and it was always GW's greatest strength. Not the model quality, not the rules, not the setting or any of the IP that they keep suing their fans over. The reason Games Workshop dominated was because everyone played their games. As soon as that's no longer the case, the company can't save itself by releasing new models or updating the rules. Their reign is over. They topple, because the foundations have shrunk.

===GW The Bully===
Games Workshop has long had a history of being one of the most litigious companies in regards to its IP in ''existence''. One needs look no further than our own [[Pauldrons]] article to get an idea of how bad it is, in that it uses its designs to openly fight any company that dares have any remote similarity to its own models in any way, shape, or form. You have any wargame with armored dudes with big pauldrons? Lawsuit. You run a company that makes third-party components for existing models? [[Derp|Lawsuit]]. You make anything remotely resembling any GW IP ever and aren't a massive company that could actually contest the giant copyright stick GW is swinging around and make them look like the idiots they are? [[Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies|LAWSUIT]].

Whilst GW has a lengthy history of overstepping boundaries in its war to enforce its copyright, it only recently decided to go [[Deathstrike Missile Launcher|nuclear]]. [http://boingboing.net/2013/02/06/games-workshop-trademark-bully.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter In 2013, GW launched the claim that it owns the phrase ''Space Marine''], ignoring that sci-fi has used the terminology for the better part of eighty years (and showing their hypocrisy as Games Workshop shamelessly stole the term 'Eldar' from [[Tolkien]]; yes, he invented the word 'Eldar'). The story in question "Spots the Space Marine" is about a middle age housewife, nicknamed Spots, being recalled back to the Marine corp (ie a Real Marine, in space) to fight giant enemy crabs (in space). It had nothing to do with GW's Space Marines or the Warhammer 40K setting.

*The History of the term "Space Marine"; The term 'Space Marine' was made famous by sci-fi author Bob Olsen (real name; Alfred Johannes Olsen, 1884-1956), who may be the true creator of the term. He first used 'Space Marine' in his short story "Captain Brink of the Space Marines" from his "Amazing Stories" series, first published in '''1932'''. Warhammer 40K started as the Second Edition of Rogue Trader and was released in 1993, while [[Rogue Trader]] itself was released in 1987. Games Workshop was founded in 1975; even its oldest founding member (Ian Livingstone) was born in 1949. Therefore the term Space Marine was in use for forty-three years before Games Workshop existed (even James Cameron has more right to trade mark the term than GW, as his 1986 movie 'Aliens' came out one year before Rogue Trader did). <s>Clearly GW needs to sue Bob Olsen</s>. Sarcastic jokes aside, seeing GW fall on their ass for trying to sue Bob Olsen, the rightful owner of the term 'Space Marine' (also remember he '''died''' over fifty years ago), would be hilarious. Even in 2026 (seventy years after Bob Olsen died) when the term Space Marine should become public domain, that doesn't help GW as they can no longer trade mark it then.

This means that what GW tried to do was plagiarism, which is a direct violation of copyright law. Games Workshop's strategy to make "space marine" less generic involved launching high profile, bullying attacks on every professional author or artist who isn't associated with a huge company who uses it, so that there may yet come a day when people hearing the phrase immediately conclude that [[Derp|it ''must'' be related to Games Workshop]], because ''everyone'' knows [[Eldrad|what enormous cocks]] they are whenever anyone else uses the phrase. These attacks were not, again, targeted at any opponent that could credibly fight back; this is because if it actually came to attempts to litigate over the phrase, GW would be laughed out of court. It wasn't not going to stop GW from being cocks, though. In fact, as of 2014, [[Herp|Games Workshop's website still has 'Space Marine' listed as one of their copyrights]]. This copyright backlash made them rename the Imperial Guard "Astra Militarum" (This is not the correct Latin declension for "Star Military." If it was the correct declension, then it would be just as hard to trade mark as "Imperial Guard"), but their hard-on for Space Marines stopped GW from renaming the codex something original, such as "Adeptus Astartes".

After the failure and fiasco of the suit against Spots the Space Marine, GW would post a lengthy and self defeating rant on their own Facebook page, which basically displayed the ignorance of those writing the post. Shortly afterwards, the Facebook page went down after the backlash it caused. Several who queried GW over the pages removal were told that GW wished for the experience with the fanbase to be more personal, thus people should be following their own GW stores.

Their bullying came back to bite them in the ass after a failed attempt at suing third-party manufacturer [[ChapterHouse Studios]]; when they refused to back down from GW's threats to sue them for making unauthorized models (specifically Mycetic Spores, the Doom of Malan'tai, and the Parasite of Mortrex), the lawsuit went to court- which GW [[FAIL|failed]] to argue the majority of alleged copyright breaches. Apparently, just writing up the rules for a model doesn't give you the sole rights to making that model after all. Undaunted, GW did the next best thing-[[Rage|they removed the offending entries from the Tyranid codex]], cutting off its nose to spite its face. Way to put the customer first, GeeDubs.

Now, despite their changes for the better, their hypocrisy has also come back to haunt them, as of August 2017 [https://spikeybits.com/2017/08/games-workshop-is-being-sued-for-62-5m.html Games Workshop is being sued in the US to the tune of 62.5 million for, among other things "...stolen Intellectual property of others to establish it’s Warhammer 40,000 game in the 1980s"] Fans either feel bad, worry about the future of the hobby or cheer that what goes around comes around (the latter since GW sued people for far less; see "Spots the Space Marine" above). However, given that the lawsuit is bizarre, poorly written, has some truly shaky legal understanding (H.R Giger does not own the idea of aliens who use other species for their reproductive cycle), and makes some truly outlandish accusations such as unironically calling a corporation like Games Workshop European Communists in what can only be said to be the most stereotypically Americuntish thing ever put in a lawsuit; Moore's case is almost definitely going to fall apart. And did. Case dismissed as of October 2017.

Of course GW's early copyright mistakes have also bit them in the ass; [[Tony Ackland]] still owns his Daemon designs as discussed above, and [[Kev Adams]] was only ever sculpting generic greenskins which he still owns the molds for. Both lend their talents (and IP work) to the company [[Knightmare Miniatures]], who produce Daemons based on the original [[Realm of Chaos]] art, the scults of Kev's greenskins both new and old, and a number of 40k-related works as well. If you're wondering why GW never went after them, the two are VERY popular among the tabletop gamer community so they could easily raise the funds needed to defend themselves in court (Kev himself has already demonstrated that given the money the community raised to fund surgeries for him after he got stabbed in the fucking eye by a burglar), and since GW themselves ripped off their work the same way most 3rd party companies rip off theirs then there's always a chance they could lose the rights to make Daemonettes/Plaguebearers/Horrors/Bloodletters/Black Orcs/Night Goblins and so on in a countersuit.

===The ₽R¥€£$===
[[Image:1271198871887.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zSxQnZ3TM8 Games Workshop's typical meeting board]]]
'''In the grim darkness of the near future, there are only price raises.'''

GW is infamous for their steep prices, and they would have been replaced by a more reasonable company for gaming dominance if their popularity wasn't XBOXHUEG compared to their competitors. These price hikes have been around forever, as the rise of video games (people buying fewer models in general over time) and currency inflation have necessitated "adaptation to a more niche market". The infamous price hikes that /tg/ will remember (and be ass-mad about) forever occurred within the decade span from 2005 to 2015. Between these dates, it is safe to say that every model kit raised its price 150%, with some kits doubling in price. Note that /tg/ came into being during the price hikes, and spent most of it's lifetime (and all of it's formative years) suffering under them.

Games Workshop also have a nasty habit of making prices proportional to how good a model/unit is in-game, rather than the actual cost of materials and manufacture.

Of course, if we really want to stop the price hikes, [[/tg/]] should probably start a legitimate campaign to give perspective and shine the spotlight on other wargames like Warmachine, but /tg/ can't get REAL shit done!
==Positives about Games Workshop==
Take this as virtues that outshine the bad, being damned with faint praise or anything in between as you will...

*Their art departments are (usually) top notch, with every race or faction being rich in visual details, and cool minis with great conversion potential.
*GW has legitimately ''good'' customer service. If you order something from them and it gets lost in the mail or it's got a botched cast on the sprue, they will replace it without hesitation, and stick a warp drive on it to make sure you get it as soon as possible.
*They usually have something for anyone when it comes to fantasy or scifi, their armies, while not often the most original, are still fun to collect and paint, and will often have fun lore with lots of characters, itneresting plot twists and a lot of potentiality for YOUR DUDES.
*They have influenced the entire fantasy genre from staples like green orcs and Meso lizardfolk to evolving wargames and creating the modern fantasy miniature market.
*Growth! They have become the entry point for many people into tabletop gaming, which in turn has allowed the tabletop industry to expand.
*Sense of humour, as a company they like to joke about themselves and their settings, while they can often be grimderpy and bland they use their social media to make clear they are aware about their own thematic shortcomings (And now open more Sigmarine Chambers!).

==See Also==
* [http://www.iii.co.uk/news-opinion/blogs/share-sleuth/ticker?ticker=LSE:GAW The current Games Workshop stock values, and articles on their financial status.]
* [[Rage]]
* [[Casting]]
* [[Heresy]]
* [[Proxy]]
* [[Counts As]]
* [[C.S. Goto]]
* [[Matthew Ward]]
* [[Black Library]]
* [[Citadel Miniatures]]
* [[Forge World]]
* [[Citadel Combat Cards]]
* [[40K Rules Blooper Reel]], for GW's long history of shoddy editing
* [[Army compatibility between Warhammer settings]]

==External Links==
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zSxQnZ3TM8 This Video]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnPpfs120DA A measured response to changes in the Trade Agreement]

{{Model Manufacturers}}

[[Category:Warhammer Fantasy]][[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Age of Sigmar]][[Category:Publishers]][[Category:Games Workshop]][[Category: Model Manufacturers]][[Category:Tabletop Game Paint Manufacturers]]

Book of Grudges

2020-03-04T23:47:26Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* List of notable "Extraordinary" individuals recorded in the book */

The '''Great Book of Grudges''' (Dammaz Kron in Khazalid) is a sacred item to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy Battle)|Dwarven folk]].

In essence, it's pretty much the place where they record everyone and everything that ever "extremely" wronged them. The book itself came into being since the time when the Dwarfs came into being, and was since then passed down from High King to High King, with the current one being [[Thorgrim Grudgebearer]]. Whenever someone did something really horrible, like hiring them to build a palace then refusing to pay them, or attacking a trade cart killing dozens if not hundreds of Dwarfs for no reason other than you didn't like them (and not stealing a keg of beer for example, something ignored in Total War: Warhammer where 'shortchanging them for a palace by two coppers' counts), then that person's name/group's name/army's name/or even race's name would go into the book with the description of the grudge-worthy act.

However Dwarfs being Dwarfs if you did do something 'petty' like steal a keg of beer then that deed would very likely go into some dwarf's own personal book of grudges. An example of such a personal book can be found in Vermintide where Bardin's Book of Personal Grudges is a trinket in the game. So be aware then any slight you do against a dwarf is likely not to be forgotten for a long, long, long time.

The good old Dwarven tradition is to settle these grudges the old fashioned way. And by old fashioned, we mean AN AXE TO THE FACE. Alternatively, since Thorgrim is not fucking retarded like most of the other Dwarf kings before him, he lets the act go if they make up for it, like actually getting paid for that palace they didn't get paid to build, even if it is very late in coming. According to Total War: Warhammer they are not above declaring grudges against mountains, literally, for a landslide or something that killed some dwarfs (then again it's the same series where the Orcs are mentioned as collecting Teef and that also doesn't happen in Fantasy). Such a grudge would be settled by strip mining the shit out of the place until nothing useful is left. Other times, the Book is used as a means for the population to petition the Longbeards to aid them with something such a Khazak being poorly defended and helping with the public order or to provide material aid to alleviate a crisis.

When a grudge is settled, it is crossed out. Of course this being Dwarfs, until Thorgrim came along grudges were rarely crossed out even after they were avenged because most Dwarfs consider it more fun to reminisce about the vengeance. In addition, more grudges appear than are settled as each battle means dead Dwarfs or injured equipment, which means more grudges as a cycle of revenge. Due to what's going on in the Old World, these grudges will dramatically grow in numbers.

It is also said that the more of these grudges fill the book, then the Dwarven race is more probable to die out...unless they actually overcome their stubbornness.

Surprisingly, despite all these grudges, you never hear about a Dwarf Book of Grudges running out of pages. Lore implies that at least the High King's book magically either has an endless number of pages or generates more when needed; it's confirmed that the magic allows it to remain the same size and weight no matter how many pages it has.

There was however one situation when a grudge was not written down. When the Dwarfs under Thorgrim Grudgebearer's command met with [[Tyrion]] in order to save the [[Everqueen|High Queen's]] daughter from [[Mannfred von Carstein]], yet when the vampire escaped with her, Tyrion blamed the Dwarfs for it and insulted them so offensively it was as if he physically struck them. After this the bearded powderkegs urged Thorgrim to write what Tyrion did into the book, yet the High King chose not to, probably seeing it that they might have screwed up. He also didn't want to perpetuate the vicious cycle of vindictiveness. This also shows that Grudgebearer is actually cool-headed for a Dwarf.

== List of notable "Extraordinary" individuals recorded in the book ==

'''[[Skarsnik]]''' - The one mention having the most entries in the book. A cunning goblin as well as the warlord of the Eight Peaks. Congrats, you filthy grobi, hope Griminir feasts on your dirty greenskin blood, you little shit.

'''[[Grimgor Ironhide]]''' - Committed several acts of dawi-slaughter with his magic axe Gitsnik, as well as cooking captured Dawi alive inside their armor.

'''[[Neferata]]''' - The first recorded undead grudge. She invaded and conquered a Dwarf hold, The Silver Pinnacle, and thus began the Dawi hatred for undead. Though Ushoran was first undead entered to be entered into a Book of Grudges, it was unknown that he was undead so he was just entered as zanguzaz (blood drinker, which after Neferata became the Dawi word for vampires).

'''[[Malekith]]''' - [[War of the Beard|Broke Snorri Whitebeard's promises and caused massive devastation on both elves and dwarfs after he disguised his agents as high elves to assault a dwarf caravan]]. Apparently has so many grudges against him that a complete record outside the page-generating Book of Grudges would fill libraries and equals Nagash's grudges (yet still not as many as Skarsnik the aforementioned goblin, who is much younger than Malekith, mind you). Fuck Malekith, you Elgi'drazh piece of shit!

'''Caledor II''' - This arrogant Phoenix king is the second reason why the [[War of the Beard|<s>War of the Beard</s> WAR OF VENGEANCE]] started. He insulted the Dwarfs when they came to compensate for their lost caravan and even go as far to shave the beard of Grimbok, the Dwarfs emissary that was sent to negotiate. This led Grimbok to become a slayer out of humiliation and Gotrek Starbreaker, the high king at the time had sworn a mighty oath to get the compensation in either gold or blood from the Elves or he else will shave his beard. Such terrifying oaths and tragedies has led Caledor II to have 437 separate grudges against him, along with many insults the Dwarfs created to demean and ridicule him (see below). As of now, this grudge has been avenged with the elf king's death and the high king got the Phoenix Crown in compensation. Still, many grudges against the elven race as a whole remain and the war will forever be remembered as proof that the elves are untrustworthy. He's also acknowledged by both races as CALEDOR THE IDIOT for what he did.

'''[[Queek Head-Taker]]''' - Killed many Dwarves during his fight for the Karak Eight Peaks as well as wasted an entire armory of expensive, powerful runic weaponry at Karak Azul in a pitch battle where he tricked the Orc of black crag to fight with the dwarves of Karak Azul. His grudge got redeemed in the End Times where Queek was publicly beheaded by Thogrim with his axe during the Skaven siege on Karaz-a-Karak.

''' [[Krell]] ''' - A powerful Khornate champion who had killed many Dwarves in life and death, even sided with the despicable Night Goblins to assault the Dwarf strongholds of Karak Ungor and Karak Varn. His grudge is a notable one since it began in ancient time before the time of Sigmar. Initially, his grudge was supposed to be redeemed after he was slained by a Dwarf hero named Grimbul Ironhelm during the assault on Karak Kadrin, he made a return after 1500 years, raised as an undead wight under the control of the dreaded necromancer Nagash. Even after Krell and Nagash were defeated by Sigamr himself, he made '''ANOTHER''' return centuries later, raised by a necromancer named Heinrich Kemmler, the Lichemaster, who now has him as his thrall (until the retcon). Krell finally fucking died after he was beaten down to a soul during a duel with Sigvald, who was punching him in a frenzy after he thought his face was ruined. So yeah, Krell is a badass who is the only individual on this book that had their entry appear '''3 TIMES''' for every time the grudge was redeemed, but actually 5 times if you count [[The End Times]] with him finally killed by Sigvald being the 6th times.

'''[[Nagash]]''' - A very ancient and powerful necromancer who is really, REALLY fucking evil to everyone (even chaos) that not even the book of grudges can ignore him. He is responsible for created vampire (aka Zangunaz) and the undeath in general, created two other extraordinary individual: Krell and Neferata that is already on the list. He was a [[Nehekhara]] nobility so he has his own share of Dawi raiding game during his time. His Nine Books of Nagash is made of parts from various species, that include Dawi's beard. He even tried to killed Sigmar, Dwarfs' best friend but failed. He probably had a grudge for every time a random necromancer casted his spell on a Dawi OR raised a Dawi as a living dead. It is also because of him the Tomb kings (aka Uzkuli'gorl) were created and is now haunting every Dawi who had their jewelry as the kings' heirloom or included some of the stolen gold from the kings' in their heirloom.

== Warhammer 40k ==
While the 40k had their [[squats|own dwarf]], they do not have such grudge keeping culture. But it was mentioned that White Scars has this "scroll of vengeance" which they used to record any enemies who had managed escape from their ridiculously speedy bike. These enemies will then be killed by the '''Master of the Hunt''' (a particular space marine of the White Scars who is obviously a strong member of the chapter with a high standing such as a captain) during the '''Great Hunt''', its head decapitate, its skull masked in silver and staked along the road that leads through the Khum Karta mountains towards the Palace of Quan Zhou, White Scar's greatest fortress-monastery. Every enemies and their misdeeds on the scrolls is then recited at every quarter of the century by a chaplain during the '''Rites of Howling''' with the Chapter Master decided the next target for the great hunt. There is one mentioned the scroll was used by Kor'sarro Khan, where after the events of '''Escape from Cano'var''', he wrote down the name of the necron who killed and imprisoned his battle brothers: '''Nemesor Zahndrekh''' and '''Vargard Obyron'''.
== Gallery ==

<gallery>
File:Caledor 2 insults.jpg| Caledor II, the Elven Settra of '''INSULTED'''.
</gallery>

[[Category:Warhammer Fantasy]][[Category:Dwarfs]]

Book of Grudges

2020-03-04T23:45:10Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* List of notable "Extraordinary" individuals recorded in the book */

The '''Great Book of Grudges''' (Dammaz Kron in Khazalid) is a sacred item to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy Battle)|Dwarven folk]].

In essence, it's pretty much the place where they record everyone and everything that ever "extremely" wronged them. The book itself came into being since the time when the Dwarfs came into being, and was since then passed down from High King to High King, with the current one being [[Thorgrim Grudgebearer]]. Whenever someone did something really horrible, like hiring them to build a palace then refusing to pay them, or attacking a trade cart killing dozens if not hundreds of Dwarfs for no reason other than you didn't like them (and not stealing a keg of beer for example, something ignored in Total War: Warhammer where 'shortchanging them for a palace by two coppers' counts), then that person's name/group's name/army's name/or even race's name would go into the book with the description of the grudge-worthy act.

However Dwarfs being Dwarfs if you did do something 'petty' like steal a keg of beer then that deed would very likely go into some dwarf's own personal book of grudges. An example of such a personal book can be found in Vermintide where Bardin's Book of Personal Grudges is a trinket in the game. So be aware then any slight you do against a dwarf is likely not to be forgotten for a long, long, long time.

The good old Dwarven tradition is to settle these grudges the old fashioned way. And by old fashioned, we mean AN AXE TO THE FACE. Alternatively, since Thorgrim is not fucking retarded like most of the other Dwarf kings before him, he lets the act go if they make up for it, like actually getting paid for that palace they didn't get paid to build, even if it is very late in coming. According to Total War: Warhammer they are not above declaring grudges against mountains, literally, for a landslide or something that killed some dwarfs (then again it's the same series where the Orcs are mentioned as collecting Teef and that also doesn't happen in Fantasy). Such a grudge would be settled by strip mining the shit out of the place until nothing useful is left. Other times, the Book is used as a means for the population to petition the Longbeards to aid them with something such a Khazak being poorly defended and helping with the public order or to provide material aid to alleviate a crisis.

When a grudge is settled, it is crossed out. Of course this being Dwarfs, until Thorgrim came along grudges were rarely crossed out even after they were avenged because most Dwarfs consider it more fun to reminisce about the vengeance. In addition, more grudges appear than are settled as each battle means dead Dwarfs or injured equipment, which means more grudges as a cycle of revenge. Due to what's going on in the Old World, these grudges will dramatically grow in numbers.

It is also said that the more of these grudges fill the book, then the Dwarven race is more probable to die out...unless they actually overcome their stubbornness.

Surprisingly, despite all these grudges, you never hear about a Dwarf Book of Grudges running out of pages. Lore implies that at least the High King's book magically either has an endless number of pages or generates more when needed; it's confirmed that the magic allows it to remain the same size and weight no matter how many pages it has.

There was however one situation when a grudge was not written down. When the Dwarfs under Thorgrim Grudgebearer's command met with [[Tyrion]] in order to save the [[Everqueen|High Queen's]] daughter from [[Mannfred von Carstein]], yet when the vampire escaped with her, Tyrion blamed the Dwarfs for it and insulted them so offensively it was as if he physically struck them. After this the bearded powderkegs urged Thorgrim to write what Tyrion did into the book, yet the High King chose not to, probably seeing it that they might have screwed up. He also didn't want to perpetuate the vicious cycle of vindictiveness. This also shows that Grudgebearer is actually cool-headed for a Dwarf.

== List of notable "Extraordinary" individuals recorded in the book ==

'''[[Skarsnik]]''' - The one mention having the most entries in the book. A cunning goblin as well as the warlord of the Eight Peaks. Congrats, you filthy grobi, hope Griminir feasts on your dirty greenskin blood, you little shit.

'''[[Grimgor Ironhide]]''' - Committed several acts of dawi-slaughter with his magic axe Gitsnik, as well as cooking captured Dawi alive inside their armor.

'''[[Neferata]]''' - The first recorded undead grudge. She invaded and conquered a Dwarf hold, The Silver Pinnacle, and thus began the Dawi hatred for undead. Though Ushoran was first undead entered to be entered into a Book of Grudges, it was unknown that he was undead so he was just entered as zanguzaz (blood drinker, which after Neferata became the Dawi word for vampires).

'''[[Malekith]]''' - [[War of the Beard|Broke Snorri Whitebeard's promises and caused massive devastation on both elves and dwarfs after he disguised his agents as high elves to assault a dwarf caravan]]. Apparently has so many grudges against him that a complete record outside the page-generating Book of Grudges would fill libraries (yet still not as many as Skarsnik the aforementioned goblin, who is much younger than Malekith, mind you). Fuck Malekith, you Elgi'drazh piece of shit!

'''Caledor II''' - This arrogant Phoenix king is the second reason why the [[War of the Beard|<s>War of the Beard</s> WAR OF VENGEANCE]] started. He insulted the Dwarfs when they came to compensate for their lost caravan and even go as far to shave the beard of Grimbok, the Dwarfs emissary that was sent to negotiate. This led Grimbok to become a slayer out of humiliation and Gotrek Starbreaker, the high king at the time had sworn a mighty oath to get the compensation in either gold or blood from the Elves or he else will shave his beard. Such terrifying oaths and tragedies has led Caledor II to have 437 separate grudges against him, along with many insults the Dwarfs created to demean and ridicule him (see below). As of now, this grudge has been avenged with the elf king's death and the high king got the Phoenix Crown in compensation. Still, many grudges against the elven race as a whole remain and the war will forever be remembered as proof that the elves are untrustworthy. He's also acknowledged by both races as CALEDOR THE IDIOT for what he did.

'''[[Queek Head-Taker]]''' - Killed many Dwarves during his fight for the Karak Eight Peaks as well as wasted an entire armory of expensive, powerful runic weaponry at Karak Azul in a pitch battle where he tricked the Orc of black crag to fight with the dwarves of Karak Azul. His grudge got redeemed in the End Times where Queek was publicly beheaded by Thogrim with his axe during the Skaven siege on Karaz-a-Karak.

''' [[Krell]] ''' - A powerful Khornate champion who had killed many Dwarves in life and death, even sided with the despicable Night Goblins to assault the Dwarf strongholds of Karak Ungor and Karak Varn. His grudge is a notable one since it began in ancient time before the time of Sigmar. Initially, his grudge was supposed to be redeemed after he was slained by a Dwarf hero named Grimbul Ironhelm during the assault on Karak Kadrin, he made a return after 1500 years, raised as an undead wight under the control of the dreaded necromancer Nagash. Even after Krell and Nagash were defeated by Sigamr himself, he made '''ANOTHER''' return centuries later, raised by a necromancer named Heinrich Kemmler, the Lichemaster, who now has him as his thrall (until the retcon). Krell finally fucking died after he was beaten down to a soul during a duel with Sigvald, who was punching him in a frenzy after he thought his face was ruined. So yeah, Krell is a badass who is the only individual on this book that had their entry appear '''3 TIMES''' for every time the grudge was redeemed, but actually 5 times if you count [[The End Times]] with him finally killed by Sigvald being the 6th times.

'''[[Nagash]]''' - A very ancient and powerful necromancer who is really, REALLY fucking evil to everyone (even chaos) that not even the book of grudges can ignore him. He is responsible for created vampire (aka Zangunaz) and the undeath in general, created two other extraordinary individual: Krell and Neferata that is already on the list. He was a [[Nehekhara]] nobility so he has his own share of Dawi raiding game during his time. His Nine Books of Nagash is made of parts from various species, that include Dawi's beard. He even tried to killed Sigmar, Dwarfs' best friend but failed. He probably had a grudge for every time a random necromancer casted his spell on a Dawi OR raised a Dawi as a living dead. It is also because of him the Tomb kings (aka Uzkuli'gorl) were created and is now haunting every Dawi who had their jewelry as the kings' heirloom or included some of the stolen gold from the kings' in their heirloom.

== Warhammer 40k ==
While the 40k had their [[squats|own dwarf]], they do not have such grudge keeping culture. But it was mentioned that White Scars has this "scroll of vengeance" which they used to record any enemies who had managed escape from their ridiculously speedy bike. These enemies will then be killed by the '''Master of the Hunt''' (a particular space marine of the White Scars who is obviously a strong member of the chapter with a high standing such as a captain) during the '''Great Hunt''', its head decapitate, its skull masked in silver and staked along the road that leads through the Khum Karta mountains towards the Palace of Quan Zhou, White Scar's greatest fortress-monastery. Every enemies and their misdeeds on the scrolls is then recited at every quarter of the century by a chaplain during the '''Rites of Howling''' with the Chapter Master decided the next target for the great hunt. There is one mentioned the scroll was used by Kor'sarro Khan, where after the events of '''Escape from Cano'var''', he wrote down the name of the necron who killed and imprisoned his battle brothers: '''Nemesor Zahndrekh''' and '''Vargard Obyron'''.
== Gallery ==

<gallery>
File:Caledor 2 insults.jpg| Caledor II, the Elven Settra of '''INSULTED'''.
</gallery>

[[Category:Warhammer Fantasy]][[Category:Dwarfs]]

Book of Grudges

2020-03-04T23:44:39Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* List of notable "Extraordinary" individuals recorded in the book */

The '''Great Book of Grudges''' (Dammaz Kron in Khazalid) is a sacred item to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy Battle)|Dwarven folk]].

In essence, it's pretty much the place where they record everyone and everything that ever "extremely" wronged them. The book itself came into being since the time when the Dwarfs came into being, and was since then passed down from High King to High King, with the current one being [[Thorgrim Grudgebearer]]. Whenever someone did something really horrible, like hiring them to build a palace then refusing to pay them, or attacking a trade cart killing dozens if not hundreds of Dwarfs for no reason other than you didn't like them (and not stealing a keg of beer for example, something ignored in Total War: Warhammer where 'shortchanging them for a palace by two coppers' counts), then that person's name/group's name/army's name/or even race's name would go into the book with the description of the grudge-worthy act.

However Dwarfs being Dwarfs if you did do something 'petty' like steal a keg of beer then that deed would very likely go into some dwarf's own personal book of grudges. An example of such a personal book can be found in Vermintide where Bardin's Book of Personal Grudges is a trinket in the game. So be aware then any slight you do against a dwarf is likely not to be forgotten for a long, long, long time.

The good old Dwarven tradition is to settle these grudges the old fashioned way. And by old fashioned, we mean AN AXE TO THE FACE. Alternatively, since Thorgrim is not fucking retarded like most of the other Dwarf kings before him, he lets the act go if they make up for it, like actually getting paid for that palace they didn't get paid to build, even if it is very late in coming. According to Total War: Warhammer they are not above declaring grudges against mountains, literally, for a landslide or something that killed some dwarfs (then again it's the same series where the Orcs are mentioned as collecting Teef and that also doesn't happen in Fantasy). Such a grudge would be settled by strip mining the shit out of the place until nothing useful is left. Other times, the Book is used as a means for the population to petition the Longbeards to aid them with something such a Khazak being poorly defended and helping with the public order or to provide material aid to alleviate a crisis.

When a grudge is settled, it is crossed out. Of course this being Dwarfs, until Thorgrim came along grudges were rarely crossed out even after they were avenged because most Dwarfs consider it more fun to reminisce about the vengeance. In addition, more grudges appear than are settled as each battle means dead Dwarfs or injured equipment, which means more grudges as a cycle of revenge. Due to what's going on in the Old World, these grudges will dramatically grow in numbers.

It is also said that the more of these grudges fill the book, then the Dwarven race is more probable to die out...unless they actually overcome their stubbornness.

Surprisingly, despite all these grudges, you never hear about a Dwarf Book of Grudges running out of pages. Lore implies that at least the High King's book magically either has an endless number of pages or generates more when needed; it's confirmed that the magic allows it to remain the same size and weight no matter how many pages it has.

There was however one situation when a grudge was not written down. When the Dwarfs under Thorgrim Grudgebearer's command met with [[Tyrion]] in order to save the [[Everqueen|High Queen's]] daughter from [[Mannfred von Carstein]], yet when the vampire escaped with her, Tyrion blamed the Dwarfs for it and insulted them so offensively it was as if he physically struck them. After this the bearded powderkegs urged Thorgrim to write what Tyrion did into the book, yet the High King chose not to, probably seeing it that they might have screwed up. He also didn't want to perpetuate the vicious cycle of vindictiveness. This also shows that Grudgebearer is actually cool-headed for a Dwarf.

== List of notable "Extraordinary" individuals recorded in the book ==

'''[[Skarsnik]]''' - The one mention having the most entries in the book. A cunning goblin as well as the warlord of the Eight Peaks. Congrats, you filthy grobi, hope Griminir feasts on your dirty greenskin blood, you little shit.

'''[[Grimgor Ironhide]]''' - Committed several acts of dawi-slaughter with his magic axe Gitsnik, as well as cooking captured Dawi alive inside their armor.

'''[[Neferata]]''' - She invaded and conquered a Dwarf hold, The Silver Pinnacle, and thus began the Dawi hatred for undead. Though Ushoran was first undead entered to be entered into a Book of Grudges, it was unknown that he was undead so he was just entered as zanguzaz (blood drinker, which after Neferata became the Dawi word for vampires).

'''[[Malekith]]''' - [[War of the Beard|Broke Snorri Whitebeard's promises and caused massive devastation on both elves and dwarfs after he disguised his agents as high elves to assault a dwarf caravan]]. Apparently has so many grudges against him that a complete record outside the page-generating Book of Grudges would fill libraries (yet still not as many as Skarsnik the aforementioned goblin, who is much younger than Malekith, mind you). Fuck Malekith, you Elgi'drazh piece of shit!

'''Caledor II''' - This arrogant Phoenix king is the second reason why the [[War of the Beard|<s>War of the Beard</s> WAR OF VENGEANCE]] started. He insulted the Dwarfs when they came to compensate for their lost caravan and even go as far to shave the beard of Grimbok, the Dwarfs emissary that was sent to negotiate. This led Grimbok to become a slayer out of humiliation and Gotrek Starbreaker, the high king at the time had sworn a mighty oath to get the compensation in either gold or blood from the Elves or he else will shave his beard. Such terrifying oaths and tragedies has led Caledor II to have 437 separate grudges against him, along with many insults the Dwarfs created to demean and ridicule him (see below). As of now, this grudge has been avenged with the elf king's death and the high king got the Phoenix Crown in compensation. Still, many grudges against the elven race as a whole remain and the war will forever be remembered as proof that the elves are untrustworthy. He's also acknowledged by both races as CALEDOR THE IDIOT for what he did.

'''[[Queek Head-Taker]]''' - Killed many Dwarves during his fight for the Karak Eight Peaks as well as wasted an entire armory of expensive, powerful runic weaponry at Karak Azul in a pitch battle where he tricked the Orc of black crag to fight with the dwarves of Karak Azul. His grudge got redeemed in the End Times where Queek was publicly beheaded by Thogrim with his axe during the Skaven siege on Karaz-a-Karak.

''' [[Krell]] ''' - A powerful Khornate champion who had killed many Dwarves in life and death, even sided with the despicable Night Goblins to assault the Dwarf strongholds of Karak Ungor and Karak Varn. His grudge is a notable one since it began in ancient time before the time of Sigmar. Initially, his grudge was supposed to be redeemed after he was slained by a Dwarf hero named Grimbul Ironhelm during the assault on Karak Kadrin, he made a return after 1500 years, raised as an undead wight under the control of the dreaded necromancer Nagash. Even after Krell and Nagash were defeated by Sigamr himself, he made '''ANOTHER''' return centuries later, raised by a necromancer named Heinrich Kemmler, the Lichemaster, who now has him as his thrall (until the retcon). Krell finally fucking died after he was beaten down to a soul during a duel with Sigvald, who was punching him in a frenzy after he thought his face was ruined. So yeah, Krell is a badass who is the only individual on this book that had their entry appear '''3 TIMES''' for every time the grudge was redeemed, but actually 5 times if you count [[The End Times]] with him finally killed by Sigvald being the 6th times.

'''[[Nagash]]''' - A very ancient and powerful necromancer who is really, REALLY fucking evil to everyone (even chaos) that not even the book of grudges can ignore him. He is responsible for created vampire (aka Zangunaz) and the undeath in general, created two other extraordinary individual: Krell and Neferata that is already on the list. He was a [[Nehekhara]] nobility so he has his own share of Dawi raiding game during his time. His Nine Books of Nagash is made of parts from various species, that include Dawi's beard. He even tried to killed Sigmar, Dwarfs' best friend but failed. He probably had a grudge for every time a random necromancer casted his spell on a Dawi OR raised a Dawi as a living dead. It is also because of him the Tomb kings (aka Uzkuli'gorl) were created and is now haunting every Dawi who had their jewelry as the kings' heirloom or included some of the stolen gold from the kings' in their heirloom.

== Warhammer 40k ==
While the 40k had their [[squats|own dwarf]], they do not have such grudge keeping culture. But it was mentioned that White Scars has this "scroll of vengeance" which they used to record any enemies who had managed escape from their ridiculously speedy bike. These enemies will then be killed by the '''Master of the Hunt''' (a particular space marine of the White Scars who is obviously a strong member of the chapter with a high standing such as a captain) during the '''Great Hunt''', its head decapitate, its skull masked in silver and staked along the road that leads through the Khum Karta mountains towards the Palace of Quan Zhou, White Scar's greatest fortress-monastery. Every enemies and their misdeeds on the scrolls is then recited at every quarter of the century by a chaplain during the '''Rites of Howling''' with the Chapter Master decided the next target for the great hunt. There is one mentioned the scroll was used by Kor'sarro Khan, where after the events of '''Escape from Cano'var''', he wrote down the name of the necron who killed and imprisoned his battle brothers: '''Nemesor Zahndrekh''' and '''Vargard Obyron'''.
== Gallery ==

<gallery>
File:Caledor 2 insults.jpg| Caledor II, the Elven Settra of '''INSULTED'''.
</gallery>

[[Category:Warhammer Fantasy]][[Category:Dwarfs]]

Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Order/Seraphon

2020-03-04T23:31:07Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Why Play Seraphon */

{{Age of Sigmar Faction|Faction=Seraphon|Logo=Lizardy.jpeg|Alliance=Order| Lore=Lizardmen|Motto=Aztec dinosaurs riding bigger dinosaurs that shoot lasers and fuck shit up.}}

==Why Play Seraphon==
Because they are [[Lizardmen]] in AoS. Motherfucking mesoamerican dinosaur people riding motherfucking dinosaurs, what is not to love?

Want more details?, fine:

'''Pros'''
* They are [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]].
* The Lizardmen Citadel miniatures are truly the [[End Times]] survivors (space ship pyramids FTW); only 4 characters are out of printing: Oxyotl, Tenhenhauin, Skink Chief and Jungle Swarms, yet you can find Skink Chief and Jungle Swarm bits on flying cavalry/stegadon and Saurus Knights sprues respectively, and with some simple conversions you can make your own Oxyotl or Tenhenhauin.
* Since they survived so well the End of Times, they have 27 different units available; more than any other surviving miniatures without splitting into smaller subfactions (at least for Order players, since Slaves to Darkness also survived really well).
* They are [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]].
* Having so many miniatures makes room for extreme flexibility: you can go all Saurus, all Cavalry, all Skinks, all dinostomp, with tons of leaders buffing all of them. Simply you have many options available to choose from.
* They are [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]].
* Excellent synergy. Your heroes will buff and buff [[your dudes]].
* They have arguably the two most powerful, non-Monster keyword, wizards in the entire game: Lord Kroak is still around, being able to cast FOUR spells each hero phase, while having extremely aggresive abilities, but the regular Slann got a massive buff on GHB 2017, more of this on Battle Traits and Battle Traits, making your regular froggies even more verstile than Kroak. (there is still a fight akin to the Kirk vs Picard fights over whether Tzeentch or Legions of Nagash have the best wizard, even if probably Nagash IS the best wizard of the game, followed by krok)
* The lowest bravery value of this army is 10. This guys will only run away if they are pounded to the ground.
* They have a strong community and a really passionate fanbase. It's fun to play a faction that has so much love behind it. There is an entire website dedicated to Seraphon/Lizardmen called Lustria Online.
* Did I mention that they are [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]]?

'''Cons'''
* None, they are [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]] after all.
* Well, you could say that having the '''DAEMON''' keyword could be troublesome, but the vast majority of anti-daemon abilities are for '''CHAOS DAEMONS''', so the few and spare universal anti-daemon abilities are nothing to lose your sleep. Take this more as a trivia than a Con.
* Also, all of your heroes keep your units together; individually Seraphon units can pull of a fight but are not nearly as strong without a leader nearby, so expect them to be the prime target of your enemy.
* In Summoning army lists, your Slann general's safety is critical. If the Slann is killed, there is not much of a backup option to bring additional points to the table.
* Only 1 unit in the entire army has a Rend characteristic greater than -1. (2 units, the salamander and the stegadon when at good wounds)
* While [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]] are surely dangerous enough, ironically they lack of reliable ways to deal mortal wounds outside their Slann. Not only that, they also lack ways to PREVENT mortal wounds. This is likely for balancing purposes, because they are [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]] and otherwise it would be overkill.
* They don't make for the best ranged army, even considering their binocular theropod vision. Yet again, this Age of Chargmar.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Most of this article was written some time ago. All the rules are more or less up to date, but as of the date of this edit Seraphon are one of the oldest battletomes in the game. With the upcoming Tzeentch v. Kharadron box set and battletome update, they will be THE oldest battletome in the game. New battletome is coming out at some point in time in the near future, probably March 2020.

==Rulebooks==
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Seraphon|points=General's handbook 2019}}

Note: updated battletome coming soon....

==Seraphon Warscrolls==

Forenote: The following section will be arranged with similar units and formations being grouped together for easier reading.

This is by no means a complete guide. Also due to the relatively recent release of Age of Sigmar, most of this is based on theory and bound to be altered as the Battletome is released. Take everything with a grain of salt.

'''Common rules'''
Every saurus troop unit has the following common rules:
*Stardrake Icon (reduces bravery of nearby enemies by 1),
*Wardrum (can move twice as long in the movement phase, but is unable to run or charge after),
*Stardrake Shields/Star-Bucklers (ignore rend unless is -2 or better).

==Allegiance Abilities==

===<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Battle Traits</span>===
If your army has a '''SERAPHON''' allegiance and chose to take the '''SERAPHON''' allegiance abilities, it has the following rule:

'''Masters of Order:''' {{AOSKeyword|SLANN WIZARDS}} in a '''SERAPHON''' army can attempt to unbind enemy spells and dispel endless spells that are cast ''anywhere'' on the battlefield, rather than being limited by the usual 30" range.

'''Contemplations of the Ancient One:''' To go with the new spell lore from GHB 2019, at the end of your hero phase, 1 friendly {{AOSKeyword|SLANN WIZARD}} can swap their Seraphon Lore spell with another. Gives you a nice extra level of adaptability to battlefield conditions.

'''Lords of Space and Time:''' Once per turn, in your hero phase, you can pick one of your {{AOSKeyword|SERAPHON}} units anywhere on the battlefield to be transported through space and time. If you do so, remove the unit from the battlefield and set up again anywhere more than 9" from any enemy unit (This counts as the unit's movement for the next movement phase). GHB 2019 removed the dice roll, so no more chance for a fun teleport and move. But then again, your lizards won't occasionally spend a turn staring at the stars either.
Carnos flanking for days to come and quick escapes for your heavily damaged Slann. Deep striking is kinda what AoS is all about. If you have any experience with it, you know how valuable it is.

'''Celestial Conjuration''' New summoning method brought in from GHB 2018. There are three ways to generate Celestial Conjuration points:
#If your general has the {{AOSKeyword|SLANN}} keyword (so this can be Kroak if you want), then he can choose to forego one or more of his spellcasting attempts to give you 3 Celestial Conjuration points each time. Note that only the General can do this.
#At the end of your hero phase, if your general is a {{AOSKeyword|SLANN}} and is still alive, you receive 1 more Celestial Conjuration point.
#Also at the end of your hero phase, you receive d3 more Celestial Conjuration points if you have any Astrolith Bearers alive on the table. Note that you might have several Astroliths but you'll still only get d3 points a turn.

You can spend these points at the end of your movement phase to summon stuff from the following list. The unit has to arrive wholly within 12" of a friendly {{AOSKeyword|SLANN}} or friendly Astrolith Bearer, and more than 9" from all enemy models.
Note that you can summon several units per turn if you've saved up enough points. Also note that while the General is the main source of conjuration points, if he dies you can still spend them to bring units in near the Astrolith or a different Slann. Finally, note that you can increase the number of spell cast attempts your Slann gets with the Balewind Vortex or the Chronomantic Cogs (or both), thereby increasing the number of conjuration points you can generate <i>instead of</i> casting spells.

'''Summoning table'''
Additional reference to [http://www.lustria-online.com/threads/the-art-of-summoning.22178/ Lustria Online The Art of Summoning] for commentary on units:
* Excellent (exceptionally useful, you should always have it at hand)
* Good (almost always useful, sometime can be a suboptimal choice)
* Suboptimal (can be useful, but it's situational; usually there are better choices)
* Poor (bad unit to summon, useful only under exceptional circumstances)

Seraphon unit --- Cost

1 Dread Saurian - 40 (''suboptimal'')

1 Bastiladon --- 24 (''excellent'')

1 Saurus Old-Blood on Carnosaur --- 24 (''excellent'')

1 Saurus Scar-Veteran on Carnosaur --- 24 (''good'')

1 Stegadon --- 24 (''excellent'')

1 Engine of the Gods --- 18 (''good'')

3 Kroxigor --- 18 (''suboptimal'')

1 Saurus Astrolith Banner --- 18 (''suboptimal'')

20 Saurus Warriors --- 18 (''suboptimal'')

1 Skink Starseer --- 18 (''suboptimal'')

1 Troglodon --- 18 (''excellent'')

5 Chameleon Skinks --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

3 Ripperdactyls --- 12 (''excellent/suboptimal'') dependent if you have a Bloat Toad on the field before summoning.

1 Saurus Eternity Warden --- 12 (''good'')

5 Saurus Guard --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

5 Saurus Knights --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

1 Saurus Oldblood --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

1 Saurus Scar-Veteran on Cold One --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

1 Saurus Sunblood --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

10 Saurus Warriors --- 12 (''poor'')

1 Skink Priest --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

1 Skink Starpriest --- 12 (''suboptimal'')

3 Terradon Riders --- 12 (''good'')

3 Skink Handlers --- 6 (''poor'')

10 Skinks --- 6 (''good'')

1 Razordon --- 6 (''excellent'')

1 Salamander --- 6 (''suboptimal'')

===<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Command Traits</span>===
There are nine traits for a {{AOSKeyword|SERAPHON}} General of an army with a '''SERAPHON''' allegiance that has chosen to take the '''SERAPHON''' allegiance abilities. You can choose one of three depending on which keyword your general has: {{AOSKeyword|SLANN}}, {{AOSKeyword|SAURUS}} or {{AOSKeyword|SKINK}}. (If you roll for picking one; use a 1D3 instead of the regular 1D6).
====<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Slann Command Trait</span>====
All of them are pretty interesting and, while not exactly situational, all of them work better under certain circumstances. because of Celestial Conjuration, these are the first Command Trait you will consider.

#'''Arcane Might''': Re-roll one casting and unbinding or dispelling roll each hero phase. A modest trait, and the most "generic" of the three.
#'''Vast Intellect''': The general can use the ''Curse of Fates'' and ''Summon Starlight'' spells from the Skink Starseer and Skink Starpriest warscrolls. This is quite great, honestly, given how unreliable the regular ''Light of the Heavens'' is. Casting both of them will let you summon a Mystic Shield or Arcane Bolt and all four of them are arguably way, way better than LotH. Yet, you might want to save some Celestial Points, so pick if you want to.
#'''Great Rememberer''': as long as the general is still alive, you can use the Lords of Space and Time battle trait twice in each of your hero phases rather than only once. Teleport, as previously mentioned, is awesome. Doing it twice is just twice as awesome. In doubt, pick this one. There is no way this will disappoint you.

====<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Saurus Command Trait</span>====
Sadly, Saurus generals didn't get that much love from GW this time around. They were slightly improved by the 2018 GHB though.
#'''Disciplined Fury''': Re-roll hit rolls of 1 for attacks made with the general's melee weapons.
#'''Thickly Scaled Hide''': Re-roll saves of 1 for the general.
#'''Mighty War Leader''': If your general is on the battlefield at the start of your hero phase, roll a d6. On a roll of 5+ you receive an extra command point. Quite possibly the one you'll want if you play a Saurus General, which will happen very rarely.

====<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Skink Command Trait</span>====
Fortunately, Skinks got more useful Command Traits than their beefier brothers. It's as if GW wants us to buy more Skinks than Saurus...
#'''Master of Star Rituals''': If the general is a Skink Priest, they can use Celestial Rites twice. If not, they learn said ability. This is a good ability for a Cloaked Priest, but it has to be properly re-worded for a Priest with Priestling Trappings. While this means a second chance to make a Ritual in case the first one was screwed, does that mean that the Ritual can stack? <s>Probably not, but still...</s> (No. Dice can never be rerolled more than once. It's in da roolz) Remember, your general has to be a {{AOSKeyword|SKINK}}, <s>so this works with Trogs, Stegies and Basties.</s> your general has to be a HERO too which these monsters are not, although the Engine of the gods is. Have fun.
#'''Nimble''': Add +1 to the general's Move characteristic. Add +1 to its save if they are not on a mount. This way you wont be [[that guy]] who has a 2+ saving Bastiladon. As long as GW don't FAQ the Starseer' Palanquin as a mount, this is a useful trait for survival but not as good for buffing your army.
#'''Cunning''': If the general is at 3" of an enemy {{AOSKeyword|HERO}}, on a 4 said enemy hero suffers 1 mortal wound. Unless mounted, you don't want Skinks in melee. Even mounted, it is still meh, unless its you Engine of the Gods.

===<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Artifacts of Power</span>===
One HERO in your army (+1 per additional warscroll battalion) may take a relic from the following tables:

*'''Zoetic Dial''' Roll a d6 at the start of the battle. On the turn that corresponds to the number you rolled, you can reroll your failed saves. If you roll a 6 you can choose which turn to use it. Not bad, but you have better options.

*'''Incandescent Rectrices''' Roll a dice the first time this model is slain. On a roll of 1 or 2, it is slain as normal. On a 3 or more it heals d6 wounds. <strike>If the model is not slain then you can move it up to 12", so long as it's more than 3" away from an enemy unit. Yep. 3 FUCKING INCHES! As you can imagine, this is especially hilarious in the combat phase.</strike> No more movement since GHB 2018, just healing. <strike> Stack Lord Kroak's rerolls on it for added fun! </strike> Well no more re-rolls

*'''Blade of Realities''' Adds -1 to the rend of a weapon your hero uses. Pretty good if used with a weapon that already has -1 rend and more than 1 point of damage, such as the Oldblood's Sunstone Spear or the Eternity Warden's mace. Otherwise, it's not worth it. If you want more rend you can do better with the Dimensional Blade or the Rune Blade from Malign Sorcery, either of which set your hero's weapon rend to -3.

*'''Light of Dracothion''' Once per battle, the bearer can automatically unbind a spell used by an enemy spellcaster within 15". Take this only if you expect a wizard heavy opposition. Otherwise, skip it. It's not like you're short on spellcasters anyway.

*'''Coronal Shield''' At the start of the combat phase, roll a d6 for every enemy unit within 3". On a 4 or higher, that unit gets a -1 to hit for the rest of the combat phase. If you're using a Carnosaur Hero as your general and you're facing hordes of low accuracy enemies, this is probably a better choice than the Retrices. Also note that it can be used in either combat phase.

*'''Prism of Amyntok''' Once per battle, at the start of your movement phase, you can target an enemy unit within 12". On a roll of 1 it is struck with 1 mortal wound. A roll of 3-5 inflicts d3 mortal wounds and on a roll of 6 strikes d6 mortal wounds. Great if used in conjunction with <strike>Smite</strike> Arcane Bolt to kill Heroes. One use only though...

===<span style="color:#00DDF3;">Seraphon Spell Lore</span>===

#'''Celestial Apotheosis:''' CV5, 1 visible friendly unit wholly within 18", heals 1 wound and gets a 3" aura of -1 Bravery.
#'''Claws of Glory:''' CV6, 1 visible friendly unit wholly within 18", re-roll hit rolls of 1 until your next hero phase.
#'''Walk Between Realms:''' CV6, 1 visible friendly unit wholly within 18", that unit fly until your next hero phase.
#'''Meteoric Convocation:''' CV7, pick 1 visible enemy unit within 24". Roll 8 dice, for each 5+ they take 1 mortal wound.
#'''Mystical Unforging:''' CV8, pick 1 visible enemy <b>Hero</b> with an artefact of power within 12". They take D3 mortal wounds and on a 5+ their artefact no longer has any effect.
#*this can break a hero Strategy.
#'''Stellar Tempest:''' CV8, pick 1 visible enemy unit within 24". Roll a dice for every model in the unit, for each 5+ they take 1 mortal wound.

==Units==
===Heros===
*'''Lord Kroak:''' (Slann; Unique; 430pts) Kroak is still strong despite being nerfed due to errata. For starters, the big guy doesn't have an exact number of wounds. During the Battleshock phase, roll a die and add the amount of wounds he suffered in the turn. If it's higher than his Bravery, he is <strike>dead</strike> unconscious for the rest of the game. Otherwise, he heals all wounds. This makes him essentially immune to anyone attempting to chip away at his wounds over several turns. In addition, if anything would flat out kill him, he instead takes d6 mortal wounds. He has two unique spells: Celestial Deliverance, which he can cast 3 times per turn, allows him to inflict d3 (3 on Chaos Daemons) mortal wounds on up to three enemy units within 10" on a 2+. It gets more difficult to cast each time, starting at a casting value of 8, then 9, and finally 10. Comet's Call inflicts d3 mortal wounds on d3 (d6 if you rolled 10+ when casting) units of your choice. D3 mortal wounds... on up to any six enemy units. This spell has a global range, and only a small handful of units can shrug off mortal wounds. Do you know what you do on turn 1 with this spell? Start peppering as many enemy heroes as you can with this spell, two good shots and on average that's a kill. The enemy is a Legions of Nagash player with an annoying necromancer who'll summon a bunch of reinforcements? Comet's Call. Does your enemy general have a really devastating Command Ability? Comet's Call. Kroak is basically an assassin who traded his sniper rifle for small meteors and he can be devastating from the first turn if you capitalize on this. In addition, in a game where the average number of spells a wizard can cast is one per turn, Kroak can cast four. FOUR! If he is your general, he can generate 13 Celestial Conjuration Points per turn instead of casting, allowing you to summon up to two units ''every turn''! And if you're thinking that a dead body would make a poor general, think again. His command ability lets Kroak see the freakin' future, granting you a chance at extra command points. This has you roll three dice, for every roll that is a four or higher you get a command point. It's not as good as it used to be, and will net you an extra command point every other turn on average.
** '''Kroaknado''' A popular and absolutely hilarious strategy thanks to the advent of Endless Spells. Set aside the points and put Kroak on top of a Balewind Vortex with Chronomatic Cogs nearby. Kroak now throws a whopping '''6 spells per turn with an extra 6" to the range!''' Just going off of his base spells, that gives him 3 Celestial Deliverances, Comet's Call, Arcane Bolt and an Mystic Shield each turn. But if you're playing with the Realm of Battle rules, this combo jumps from "Dick Move" to "I didn't really want friends anyways"; Throw more mortal wounds around in Aqshy and Chamon. Make Kroak into a total tank in Ghyran. Debuff your enemies something fierce in Ulgu... but for maximum fun, play against Daemons of Chaos in Hysh. Exorcising Beam+Celestial Deliverance+Comet's Call+Arcane Bolt= 1d6+9+1d3+1d3 = up to 21 Mortal Wounds! Ribbit Ribbit mothafuckas! (Or give up the spells, and summon an Engine of the Gods ''every turn''!)

*'''Slann Starmaster:'''(Slann, 260pts) Oh boy, did the [[Old Ones]] buff these lovable fat frogmen. They went from "hey, they are pretty good, give 'em a chance" to "you are playing this game wrong if you don't have one". Having two powerful battle traits backed up with a choice of three strong command traits, expect to see this guy everywhere until nerfed to the ground (or get new competition for the spot). Can cast and unbind 3 spells per turn, gives every fellow Seraphon within 10" the ability to fly and reroll saves in the Shooting Phase, can move constellations allowing either rerolls 1 to hit, add 1 to every spell casting attempt or add 1" to run and charge; you can change the constellation before casting spells in your Hero Phase on a 4+, but a 1 on that roll will negate spells for that turn. His exclusive spell makes every Daemon on the field roll their Battleshock tests on 2d6, keeping the highest if it's a Chaos Daemon or the lowest if it's a Celestial Daemon (read: a Seraphon/Lizardman/whatever); pretty unreliable, since it only affects battleshocks for '''DAEMON'''s; every single one of them has a natural 10 Bravery, so you will start to have bad battleshocks only with a heavily debuffed unit, and worst of all, Chaos Daemon troops regularly have standards to return more models on rolls of 1, which you can't really guarantee even with this spell. <s>He can also summon any non-Slann unit in the Warscrolls,</s> NEW EDITION COMING, SUMMONING SPELLS IS A BIG NO-NO NOW; GHB2018 WILL HAVE NEW SERAPHON SUMMON RULES and can cast through any Skink hero and Troglodons rather than only through Priests.

*'''Scar-Veteran''' ''on Cold One:'' (Saurus, 100pts, 12 Summon points): Leader of the Saurus Cavalry. He can get tons of extra attacks with some rolls (3 attacks, after that on a 4+ you can get 3 more attacks, and 3 more after that on a 6+). His CP allows rerolls on 1 to charge and to hit to every Saurus within 8" and giving an extra attack to Cold One Cavaliers.

*'''Scar-Veteran''' ''on Carnosaur:'' (Saurus, Behemoth, 240pts, 24 Summon points): Carnosaur is the big show. The Carnosaur allows any Saurus unit within 15" to get extra attacks for each 6 to hit. The Carnosaur itself is filled with interesting abilities: his bite attacks get +2 to hit if he targets a monster he already hit with both his claw attacks in the same turn. In addition, if his bite attack kills an enemy model he can run and charge in the same turn for the remainder of the game and can make D3 models flee from an enemy unit within 8" in the Battleshock Phase <i>regardless of whether the test is passed or not</i> (you just have to roll over their battleshock roll not counting bonuses)This is a decent ability against most, but send this guy against some kind of elite multi-wound units like brutes, ironguts, or storm fiends, and they will dive over the table trying to kill you after all three of their hyper elite carry units run).

*'''Saurus Sunblood:''' (120pts, 12 Summon points) Living avatars of <s>Dracothion</s> Sotek, the Sunblood is a dedicated combat hero that hits shit with his shield and hits even harder with his club. He's pretty good in combat as he deals a total of 7 attacks before his special ability. If he rolls a 6 to hit, that attack becomes d3 wounds. And then, a 6 to wound deals d3 damage with that single attack. And his shield blocks every Rend up to -2, making him quite the tank. Also, he can make a very fine general too with his awesome Scent of Weakness Command Ability. You can pick one enemy unit within 15" of the Sunblood. He then tells his troops "fuck that unit up," which lets every Saurus unit reroll failed to hit rolls against that unit until your next turn. Great for when you really need to crush a specific enemy unit fast.

*'''Saurus Oldblood''' ''on Foot:'' (Saurus, 120pts, 12 Summon points): Has FOUR different weapon options (please refer to his warscroll); he also allows every Saurus within 5" to reroll 1s to wound and his command ability allows every unit within 10" to rearrange themselves. They are Good things to but to throw alongside Scar-Veteran on Cold One with blocks of Saurus.

*'''Saurus Oldblood''' ''on Carnosaur:'' (Saurus, Behemoth, 240pts, 24 Summon points): Aside the potent Carnosaur abilities, he loses his Stardrake Shield and regular weapons for a Sunbolt Gauntlet (shoots D6 times at 18", kinda regular profile, with -1 Rend and 1 damage, but get +2 To Wound if he targets CHAOS DAEMONS) and a Sunstone Spear (strong weapon, 3 attacks, 3+ to hit and wound, -1 rend and D3 damage). His Command ability can be quite stupid: pick a weapon from <strike>ANY</strike> all Seraphon Heroes from your army within 20" or less from him <strike>(doesn't clarify if it can be its mount if it has one)</strike> (CAN target mount attacks, it's a command ability not an item of power). Add 2 attacks to said weapon. Considering how almost EVERY melee Seraphon Hero has already TWO OR EVEN MORE ATTACKS and that THE WORST TO HIT OR TO WOUND ATTRIBUTE IS 4+, you can make a Heroic Wrecking Ball with this. Scar-Veterans on any presentation are your best option to abuse this; on Carnosaur they can get 8 attacks with their Warblades or Spear, on Cold One they can get 5 attacks plus 2 possible extra sets for his ability. They all move at 10". Just use your Oldblood on Carno, fill the Behemoths cap with Scar-Vet on Carnos and then fill the Leader cap with Scar-Vets on Cold Ones. Be ready to be [[That guy]].

*'''Saurus Astrolith Bearer:''' (Saurus, Totem, 160pts, 18 Summon points) A Scar-Veteran with a totem. It allows any Seraphon wholly within 12" to reroll failed to hit and also gives +1 to casting spells and +8" to spell ranges which are all extremely desirably abilities (combine this with a unit of Temple Guard that hit on 3+, and laugh as your formerly I1 get revenge on those pesky elves, HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING HIT WITH REROLLABLE 3+ TO HITS, YOU PONCES!?,). As if that wasn't enough, these guys can also be used as a focal point for celestial summoning. Usually, you have to summon units close to your Slann, but if you have an Astrolith bearer you can also summon units near the Astrolith bearer. So, you can use Lords of Space and Time to teleport your Astrolith wherever you want and then summon out of it, up to and including dropping Carnosaurs 9" behind juicy enemy battleline and other just as planned goodness, and all without risking your invaluable Slann. Have fun.

*'''Saurus Eternity Warden:''' (Saurus, 140pts, 12 Summon points) Saurus Guard-type hero, wields a big fuck-you-stick that is pretty good on its own, but ultimately you're taking him to bodyguard your Slann and buff nearby Saurus Guard. All nearby Guard units gain +1 Attack with their polearms. And yes, this stacks with the battalion to give them D3 damage. Ouch.

*'''Skink Starseer:''' (Skink; Wizard; 160pts; 18 Summon points) The new generic [[Tetto'eko]] and CP generator. Mostly useful as a utility-mage, usually generating a CP each of your Herosphases. He also has a cheap and dirty spell to grant you the ability to each phase, increase or decrease a single dice roll by one for a single unit. is Capable of making or Breaking an important roll for a hero.

*'''Skink Starpriest:''' (Skink; Wizard; priest; 80pts; 12 Summon points) When Age of Sigmar was first released, Tetto'Eko was the only non-Slann wizard Seraphon had, but the Battletome gave them this second guy too. His only weapon's unremarkable, but he has two abilities: His staff, which can give any nearby Seraphon that use their bites and roll a 6 to wound to double the damage, and his special spell, which can either reduce any hit rolls made on a fellow Seraphon unit by 1 or reduce the hit rolls of an enemy unit by 1 (And also dealing d3 damage to Daemons as well because fuck'em). They are cheap extra Wizards that will let you cast/dispel another Endless Spell per turn and extend the Slann's range when casting spells.

*'''Skink Priest:''' (Skink; priest; 80pts;12 Summon points) Allows a unit within 8" the ability to reroll charge, run and saves if he rolls a 4+ first. Can either get Priestly Trappings (allowing the aforementioned ability to be used on every unit in the range) or a Cloak of Feathers (+1 save, +6" Move with fly, plus a 3 shot missile weapon with decent rend). Really both can be very effective.

*'''Engine of the Gods:''' (Hero; Priest; Behemoth; 240pts; 18 Summon points) Replaces everything we said about the Priest from above with a fucking Triceratops and a table: you roll a number of d6 that depends on how many wounds he still has (3 usually, 2 if he suffered 5+ wounds, 1 if he has only one wound: a Slann within 10" allows you to throw an extra dice and discard one of them) and you can either damage yourself, heal yourself, damage a single unit, damage many units, summon <strike>''any unit from the Seraphon Warscrolls, Slann included'', and even stop time which forces the opponent to skip a turn (though you must scream ZA WARUDO at the top of your lungs if you ever roll this effect. Not an in-game rule, but still.)</strike> It's totally random, but almost all of its effects are deadly as fuck. It's a bunch of skinks on a GIANT DINOSAUR! Why aren't you playing it? EDIT: Rolling an 18 on the table has been updated and no longer grants a second turn, instead it gives all of your units double movement and attacks. Still good, but not quite as cool.
** NEW EDITION UPDATE: New FAQ updated the result when you roll a 14-17. Now you're forced to choose between 10 Saurus Warriors, 20 Skinks, 3 Terradons or 3 Ripperdactyls. (always pick Ripperdactyls if you roll this on turn 1, as they will bring the Bloat toad with them)

===Battleline===

*'''Saurus Warriors:''' (Saurus; Battleline; 90/330pts; Min:10; Max:40; 12 Summon points for a unit of 10, 18 for a unit of 20) Saurus Warriors are one of the best Battleline units of any faction, period. With Bravery 10, 5+ Save that doesn't get affected by -1 Rend, two attacks each, and guaranteed "Run" move of 5", they're rock solid. Get +1 to hit if the unit has 20+ models, and everyone gets an extra attack when they're 30+. Nice. Only the meanest Heros and Monsters will kill them fast; in every other circumstance, you can rely on them to [[get shit done]]. Tarpitting things, holding objectives, killing hordes, or anything you want, they will do it, and do it well. Make them the anchor of your army, and you won't be disappointed.
** Alternate Opinion: While the above may have been true about Saurus Warriors when the battletome was new, Saurus Warriors in the current meta struggle to accomplish... well, anything. Within the Seraphon community they are widely regarded as the most useless unit in the Seraphon faction, and essentially no competitive lists utilize them in any significant way. In fact, this is true of Saurus generally. As of the time of this edit, it is essentially unheard of for "competitive" Seraphon lists to utilize Saurus of any kind in any significant way. Current Seraphon lists center on summoning, smart use of Skink battleline, and monsters. Most lists employ either the Shadowstrike or Thunderquake battalions--neither of which call for any Saurus.

*'''Saurus Guards:''' (Saurus; Seraphon Battleline; 80pts; Min:5; Max:20; 12 Summon points for a unit of 5) Nice to guard any hero, giving the saurus guard +2 Bravery and +1 Save as long as they are within 8". SG hit and wound on 3+ with their halberds, make two attacks apiece, and rend at -1, plus those bite attacks that are can make for one or two extra wounds, they hit very very hard. Unfortunately, they can only be summoned in groups of five, so they make poor reinforcements. Note: These guys last long as shit against anything not designed for mowing down infantry thanks to the above rules. There is even a video in which a single temple guard lasts four rounds with a runeson on magmadroth, the first two rounds completely solo.
**Sadly, this guy only has one wound per model, and they come in units of multiple of 5, so better give them an anti-magic umbrella if you want them alive, or simply don't bring them if you expect heavy MW opposition.
** Also, see alternate opinion on Saurus Warriors, above.

*'''Saurus Knights:''' (Saurus; Seraphon Battleline; 80pts; Min:5; Max:20; 12 Summon points for a unit of 5) A bunch of lizards riding lizards, each able to be armed with a bevy of tools. Weirdly, these Movement is akin to Monstrous infantry rather than cavalry(they are as fast as Skinks). If armed with spears, a 6 to wound inflicts a wound + mortal wound (when charging). The Wardrums lets them guarantee run 14". Run a Scar-Vet on Cold One with a Skink Starpriest to Bite enemy devour Peasants in a blink of an Eye.
** Also, see alternate opinion on Saurus Warriors, above.

*'''Skinks:''' (Skinks; Seraphon Battleline; 70pts; Min:10; Max:20; 6 Summon points for a unit of 10) They get a +1 to hit in Shooting Phase if the unit has 20+ models that becomes a +2 if they're at 30+, and can retreat when charged. They are stupidly fast for infantry and not that squishy because of their shields, unlike the plenty of skirmishers of the game. The hit-and-run tactic should not be overlooked because in AoS, even if you get charged, your enemy can't attack swing with all his units. The must ask: Do they deal damage to your annoying Skinks that will flee, or do they prioritize dealing with your high-value targets? Great for mind games. One of the underrated rockstars.
** The standard box comes with the pieces to build 24 Skinks, though, with a bit of kitbashing, you can turn those 4 extras into a team of Skink Handlers and a Priest.
** Alternate Opinion: Along with the Summoning mechanic, Skinks are the heart and soul of any "competitive" Seraphon list in the current meta. They require some mind-gaming to make work, but are absolutely necessary for objective taking, and with a little fanagling, they are capable of truly impressive movement.

===Other===
*'''Chameleon Skinks:''' (Skinks; 110pts; Min:5; Max:20; 12 Summon points for a unit of 5) They can personally teleport around instead of moving. Also, scenery gives them a 3+ save (doesn't stack with the normal terrain bonus), and attacks in Shooting Phase deal 2 wounds (3 on Chaos Daemons) if you scored a 6 to hit.

*'''Terradon Riders:''' (Skinks; 120pts; Min:3; Max:12; 12 Summon points for a unit of 3) First flying cavalry. Once per game they drop mortal wound-causing boulders on units they passed through in Movement Phase, Sunleech Bolas make every scored hit into d6 wounds, they can reroll hit and wound in close combat and the champion can get a sword that rerolls failed hits against flying units. Used as Flying Harassing Shooting and Objective Grabbing with its 14" of movement.

*'''Ripperdactyl Riders:''' (Skinks; 140pts; Min:3; Max:12; 12 Summon points for a unit of 3) The other vicious one. They have the same gliding ability as Terradons but lose the rocks and the bolas. In exchange, they can make allot of beak attacks, making 3 attacks if a Blot Toad token has wandered near and each attack becomes d3 hits per hits. Six of these guys make for 18 beak attacks. Nasty. Wizards don't stand a chance.
**Does anyone know how the toad works if the unit is summoned since you are supposed to place them in the first hero phase for every unit of these guys you have. If you summon them later do you place it then? --no, summoned units will not have an accompanying Blot Toad.--Yes, BUT ONLY if they are summoned with the EOTG in the first round only... otherwise no.
**errata: they automatically re-roll ALL hits and wounds on their turn, with no worries about measuring from base vs model

*'''Skink Handlers:''' (Skinks; 40pts; Min:3; Max:12; 6 Summon points for a unit of 3) Weak as heck lil' guys with goads that automatically wound on a to hit roll of 6. However, they synergize well with some of the monsters, which will be discussed below.

*'''Salamanders:''' (Artillery; 50/120pts; Min:1; Max:3; 6 Summon points) Fucking hell, these guys are deadly. They only make a single shooting attack now rather than using a template, but that shot hits and wounds on 3+ and does D6 DAMAGE! A unit of these guys can really mess up an enemy monster or character. In addition, any hit unit rolls a die at the end of the shooting phase, on a 4+ they take d3 ADDITIONAL MORTAL WOUNDS. Did I mention it has rending -2? Yeah, -2. Because fuck your enemies. When within 3" of a Skink handler, their fire breath goes from 8" to 12".

*'''Razordons:''' (Artillery; 50/120pts; Min: 1; Max:3; 6 Summon points) Another ranged unit, Razordons make 2d6 attacks at 12" which gain rending -1 within 6". In addition, on a roll of 4+ they can OVERWATCH CHARGING UNITS. If a Skink handler is within 3", they reroll 1s to hit, which means they only miss on 2s. Nice. Might make a nice wall to march in front of your other units.
** Alternate Opinion: Razordons are, pound for pound, the best unit in the Seraphon faction, bar none. These are basically the only units I have that my regular opponents are actually afraid of. In practice, their stat line makes them capable of some truly punishing fire. They are terrifying to charge, both because of instinctive defense overwatch shots and, well, being in melee with them means you are a captive target for their positively punishing shooting attacks (plus rending). They aren't great in melee per se, but they aren't helpless either. Same goes for their durability. They aren't really tanky by any stretch of the imagination, but just survivable enough that they can hold something up for at least a turn or two. Also, smart use of Lords of Space and Time teleportation in conjunction with razordon shooting is often referred to as the "Razorbomb" tactic, and is an absolute joy to play. Razordons rule. Razordons for president.

*'''Kroxigor:''' (150pts; Min: 3; Max:12; 18 Summon points for a unit of 3) Melee beatsticks that have 4 hammer attacks. 1 in 3 can take a moonhammer(4+/3+/-1/2D), instead of gaining attacks equal to all enemies within its 2" range. If their bite successfully wounds an enemy they have a chance to latch on. You roll off with your opponent. If they win, nothing happens but if you win you cause mortal wounds equal to the difference in the roll (meaning your opponent technically wins ties). If any Skink unit is within 3" of the Krox, they can reroll failed to wound results of 1. Wrap them up with a Skink Cohort and let the Kroxigor hammer.

*'''Realmshaper Engine:''' The obligatory setpiece exclusive to this army like the Ossiarch Bone-Tithe Nexus, this is a giant Aztec Pyramid your wizard or priest can live on. During a Hero phase, you can have them select one terrain setpiece on the field. Roll a d6 for each enemy unit within 3" of the setpiece, adding +2 if this is all within 18" of the engine and subtracting 2 if the setpiece is beyond 36" of the engine; on a 4+, the unit suffers a mortal wound. Note that this has no compunctions about where this takes place, though ideally this makes it so that the enemy would think twice about trying to snipe from cover while on your side of the board.

===Monsters===

*'''Stegadon:''' (Behemoth; 200pts; 24 Summon points) A monster that buffs skinks and isn't too shabby in combat itself. Unlike the carnosaur, the stegadon seems more fit for range combat with all the ranged attacks it gets. Unlike the next monster, however, it can defend itself in combat a decent amount. Either take a Giant bow (25"/3A/4+/3+/-1/D3d) or What stands out most is its Sunfire Throwers. Remember those giant blowpipes? Yeah well, we replaced the darts with FIYAAAA! Basically they're now flamethrowers, and they make a single attack for every enemy within range. Against Ogres? Not so good. Against a massive horde of zombies? Fuck me, that's a lot of attacks. And really, what's more metal than a giant war-dinosaur piloted by smaller dinosaurs with fucking flamethrowers? Nothing.

*'''Bastiladon:''' (Behemoth; 280pts; 24 Summon points) A crazy tanky monster that ignores rend and can even ignore mortal wounds. It has a GIANT CRYSTAL POWERED LASER on its back or can send out snakes in an AoE for point defense. However, this is a ranged beast. 20" range, 2d6 attacks with -1 rend that do 2 damage? Yes please! Oh and by the by, the Bastiladon is a true monster of a tank. Seriously, have a wizard mystic shield for re-rolls on armour saves of 1 or have a skink priest give it rerolls to all failed armour+* saves. A rerollable 3+ armour save that cannot be reduced by ANYTHING (Not entirely true. Bastiladons ignore rend, they do not ignore modifiers to their save rolls from other sources - for example, Festus the Leechlord has a spell that straight up gives you -1 to your save rolls for the rest of the battle). And they are one of the few monsters that don't have a damage table, so none of its attributes get worst the more damage they get. Fuck.

*'''Troglodon:''' (Behemoth; 140pts; 18 Summon points) No longer the loser it was in WFB. Has the ability to use both range and melee decently. Its skink oracle rider can even unbind magic! It can be hilariously fast since its ranged attack gives it a +3 to charge distance if it charges a unit it wounded. It gets a bunch of decent attacks in melee and causes enemies within 8" to subtract 1 from their bravery. Cool sculpt, jack of all trades, master of none tho, it might have used here and there, but you sadly will find someone who does the job better. Thankfully it is the cheapest of the dinos available, so it could make up a nice filler piece. What you can't take away from him is being somewhat tanky Slann range extender that won't mind being in melee.

{{anchor|FWDread}}
*'''[https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/resources/fw_site/fw_pdfs/aos_warscrolls/Downloads-AoS/aos-warscroll-Dread-Saurian.pdf Dread Saurian] (Forge World)''' (Behemoth; 420pts; 40 Summon points): so you have more gold than an entire Starhost and want to show it? fine, do it. What do you get from 420 points and 3 kilograms of resin you ask? well, at max healtH... 10" move 16 wounds and save +3, Gargantuan Jaws (2"/3x/3+/3+/-2/FUCKING 6, NO D6, STRAIGHT 6), Raking Claws (2"/10/3+/3+/-1/1) and Armoured Tail (1"/1/4+/3+/-1/D6). [[Meme|NOW DAT'S A LOTTA DAMIDGE]]. Seriously, the killing power of this thing makes Khorne angrier with envy and gives him a whyboner. You could eat 3 fucking heroes on foot with this guy (assuming your enemy is stupid enough to allow him to do that). Re-roll 1s to hit and wound monsters, heal D3, -1 Bravery at 12" aura, and a nice little buff to Skinks, making them not to take battleshock if they are at 24" of this baby-boy. Like if you need one of those with default +10 Bravery. You could fuck Archaon up and be the new Everchosen as well. Take it with Kroaknado because who needs friends anyway. Target it with the Skink Starpriest's Staff ability and make those jaws do 12 damage on 6's to wound, and throw its spell on him so he's -1 to be hit cuz why not? the only problem is his base is MASSIVE!!! 280mm x 210 mm (that's 11" x 8.25" or the size of a standard piece of printer paper with the corners rounded off for us American types)

==Battalions==
===From Battletome Seraphon===
'''Sunclaw Starhost:''' (130pts; Min:520pt; Max:1240pts)
''1 Sunblood + 3 Saurus Warriors''
*They all get an extra attack on their bite and their weapons gain -1 rending and 2 damage against daemons. Meh. Least it's easy to build.
**Alternate opinion, while this Battalion is mediocre, not only will you almost certain already have the units for it, extra attacks are always useful, but the most important bit is it's the base for much better Fangs of Sotek Battalion, so build it so it's always on hand!

'''Eternal Starhost:''' (150pts; Min:530pt; Max: 1250)
''1 Eternity Warden + 3 packs of Saurus Guard. ''
*All Guard gain +1 to their save when near the Warden and if they don't move, their polearms get d3 damage. This benefit still works even if your Saurus Guards pile in this Combat Phase. Since the Guards already have 4+ saves, when they get close enough to the Warden they increase it to 3+, and then, the battalion increases it again to 2+. Keep in mind, however, that they still die quite fast to Mortal Wounds.

'''Firelance Starhost:''' (150pts; Min: 490pts; Max: 1350pts)
''A Scar-Vet on a Carnosaur or Cold One leads 3 packs of Knights'''
*Any Knights near the Hero add +3 to their charges and if they roll a 6 to wound with their Celestite weapons following that charge, it becomes Mortal, which also stacks onto the rules for spears. This can be scary.

'''Shadowstrike Starhost:''' (180pts; Min:520pt. Max: 1700pts)
''A Skink Starpriest or a Skink Priest takes two units of the following list: Skinks or Chameleon Skinks; as well as one unit of either Terradon Riders or Ripperdactyl Riders.''
*You get three abilities: '''Stealthy Advance''': You roll 2D6 for every unit in this battalion after setup and move it up to at most these inches. '''The Trap is Sprung''': Your Priest picks a visible enemy unit and marks it in your hero phase. All units in this battalion reroll hit and wound rolls of 1 against that unit until your next hero phase. '''Strike from the Skies''': Instead of setting up your Terradon or Ripperdactyl Riders, you can hold them in reserve and set them up in any of your movement phases at least 3" away from any enemy. The unit will add 1 to their wound rolls in the following combat phase. It might be a good idea to pick Ripperdactyl Riders instead of Terradon Riders for their superior melee stat and the toad rage ability (since they can swoop down right next to the toad).

'''Thunderquake Starhost:''' (120pts; Min: 750pt; Max:1520pts) '' Troglodon or Engine of the Gods + two of any combo of either Stegadons or Bastilodons + either Kroxigor or a Salamander/Razordon with Handlers.''
*this one's got a lot of variety for a formation. The biggest Unit (Troglodon/EotG) and anyone nearby can either gain re-rolls to hit/charge or re-rolls to wound/save. To make this even more insane, everyone here heals a wound in the Hero phase, upping to d3 wounds when next to a Slann.

==Super-Battalions==
===From Battletome Seraphon===
*'''Starbeast Constellation:''' (230pts; 3570pt. min.) An Oldblood (On foot or Carnosaur) and a Starseer add in every other Starhost, making a massive Strike Force Ultra. Aside from every other bonus here, <s>the Oldblood also gets the ability to use his Command Ability at all times while also enabling anyone within 20" to use theirs as well.</s> New edition rules change introduce command points to use command abilities, so the Battalion's ability now gives you D3+1 command points at the beginning of the battle

===From General's Handbook 2017===
*'''Fangs of Sotek:''' (320pts; 1090pt. min.) Consists of an Oldblood on Carnosaur (lets face it, you already have a load from the Start Collecting sets) a Slaan Starmaster, and a Sunclaw Starhost, this gives every unit but the Slaan +3 move on the first turn.. You can also take up to FOUR other Battalions (choose from Sunclaw, Firelance, Eternal and Thunderquake Starhosts) with this (as well as any other Seraphon unit) and, gain 1 extra command point at the beginning of the battle if the oldblood is around. If he's around and you started the game with the max battalions in this you get D3 instead.

*'''Dracothion's Tail:''' (230pts; 830pt. min.) A Slann alongside a Firelance Starhost and up to 4 other Battalions chosen between Sunclaw, Firelance, Eternal and Shadowstrike Starhosts plus whatever you want, gain an extra command point on a 4+ every hero phase as long as the Slann is around. If the battalion started with the maximum number of battalions contained in it, gain one on a 2+ instead. Half of everything in the Battalion can go in the reserves and deepstrike within 18" from the Slann. You can deepstrike more than one unit per turn, but not two units of the same kind. Deep strike that Dread Saurian. You know you want to.

==Army Building==

<s>(''Note: '''''WE NEED TO UPDATE THIS LISTS. THEY ARE 4 YEARS OLD BY NOW'''''</s> Working on updates and linkages.
The point here is to <s>share, rape, pillage, and steal</s> collaborate ideas to build an army on shape, but you should think about playing what you like the most (as always, fun is first, as long as you don't act like [[That Guy]]). Also, we'll try to suggest you easy ways to get a strong force while trying to save the most money possible, which shouldn't be that hard, since [[GW]] have been releasing bundles with decent saving on a constant basis <s>WHAT KIND OF [[HERESY]] IS THIS?</s>''). Keep in mind that with all the different special rules, opponents may get a bit tired of hearing Seraphon ignore that (e.g. Slann wizards can dispell or unbind spells anywhere on the battlefield). Sucks to be them.

===The Art of Summoning===
Credit due to [http://www.lustria-online.com/threads/the-art-of-summoning.22178/ Lustria Online forums].
Basic build information:

* Slann--Main frog. Forgo all spell casting, generates 9 CCP/turn (generates 10 CCP/turn if Slann is your General). Best to take with Great Rememberer for double LoSaT.
* Lord Kroak--THE MAIN frog. Could easily generate 13 CCP/turn (4 spells instead of 3 for Slann). Typically want to use him for his specific spell casting (especially with difference of +190 points versus vanilla Slann) instead of CCP.
* Either way, as previous previously, playing a Seraphon army without a frog is just playing the game wrong.
* Astrolith Bearer--Gives 1d3 CCP/turn. Gives the variable for getting over the 24 CCP at beginning of turn 2 with Slann + Astolith Bearer combo.
* Endless Spell Balewind Vortex--One additional spell translates to 3 additional CCP.
* Endless Spell Chronomantic Cogs--One additional spell translates to 3 additional CCP. Also can flip to the +2 move/charge to help get that Carnosaur you are going to summon engaged.
* Engine of the Gods--While not contributing to the CCP, does have independent summoning abilities. If you are going to create a summoning list, might as well go all in.

The basic summoning list would include a Slann and an AB. No casting and by Turn 2 you get 20 + 2d3 CCPs (66% chance to summon your big dinos (Carnosaur, Stegadon, Bastiladon)

Aside from the EotG, a heavy summoning list includes Slann, AB, Vortex, Starpriest, and a Cogs (casted by the Starpriest and used by the Slann). By Turn 2, if you totally forego casting, you can collect up to 29 + 2d3 CCP.

===Matched Play GHB2019 List===
Credit again to [http://www.lustria-online.com/threads/matched-play-list-ghb2019.23300/#post-281635 Lustria Online Matched Play GHB2019] and all the contributors. Below are highlights. Use the link for details, as they are updated in the forums.

'''2000 Point Lists:'''

* Dracothion's Tail/Shadowstrike Starhost--Single drop army with Slann, Oldblood on a Carnosaur, Scar Vet on a Cold one, and Starpriest. Add Rippers, Skinks, Knights, and Razors to round out. Alpha strike list with summoning.

* Shadowstrike Starhost--Slann, AB, couple EotG, and Starpriest. Add Rippers, Skinks, and Razors. More summoning focused.

* Thunderquake Starhost--Slann, AB, EotG, and Starpriest. Razors, Skinks, and couple Bastiladons (with friggin LAZORS!!!)

* Kroak+Slann Mortal Wound Spam--Because one frog just ain't enough. Slann, Kroak, AB, Scar Vet on a Cold One, Starpriest, Knight-Incantor. Add Knights and Razors. Move of a casting list to rain down magical goodness on the enemy. Also is 2-drop.

* Fangs of Sotek

* Kroaknado--Kroak, EotG xFOUR, and AB. Add Skinks and Razors. Summon from the EoTG and cast from the frog.

* Shooting--Slann, AB, and Starpriest. Add 3 units of Razor X3, Skinks, and Bastiladons x3 (with friggin LAZORS!!!)

* Eternal Starhost

* Eternal Starhost & Shadowstrike Starhost

* Dracothion's Tail

* Triple Carnosaur

* Dread Saurian w/Dracothion's Tail

'''1500 Point Lists:'''

Dracothion's Tail (@Lizerd's list)

Shadowstrike Starhost

'''1000 Point Lists:'''

Shadowstrike Starhost

Shooting

Sunclaw Starhost

Eternal Starhost

'''Meeting Engagement:'''

Eternal Starhost

Shadowstrike Starhost

Double Carnosaur

Shadowstrike Starhost w/Ripperdactyls

Dread Saurian

Purple Sun

===Start Collecting Buildup===

Arguably the best way to start your army, is get two Start Collecting! boxes.

Really, that easy. 2 Saurus Warriors units, 3 Saurus Knights units and an extra Knight that can be converted to a Scar-Veteran on Cold One, and two Carnos/Trog as you want, and 4 extra Warriors that can be used as summoning fodder or conversion material. Also if you're willing to field some cheeky conversions, there's a [http://www.lustria-online.com/threads/getting-the-most-from-your-start-collecting-seraphon-box.20560/ useful post] at Lustria Online that details how to really pimp this kit far beyond GW ever intended, squeezing out a solid 800+ points per box.

From there, you can take many different choices, thanks to how wide is the Seraphon range.

You could simply buy more Start Collecting! boxes, maybe another 3. This is because one box comes with 12 Warriors (because is a relatively old sprue and the regular box has 20 Warriors), so you can have 60 Warriors between the 5 boxes. You will also get another 24 Knights, but they are a pretty viable unit (unlike Oldhammer latests editions), and you will never, ever, will have extra Carnosaurs. They are just beautiful models, worth every cent.

The Thunderbeast Host bundle from GW is also a good way to save around 15% worth in the big boys of the faction: 2 Stegadons, another Carno and one flying unit.

An honorable mention to the Arcane Heroes bundle for Silver Tower: it has a Skink Starpriest, and if you have a friend who could use the other heroes of the kits, or you yourself have another army or small force, its a good purchase.

So, yeah, you have quite few options to get some Seraphon miniatures in easy to get blocks. '' -Hold on, hold on, are you sure this is [[GW]]?''

===Matched points===

Fortunately, Seraphon have a wide array of units, and everyone is viable.

From a single Start Collecting! you get:

* 100 points from 10 Saurus Warriors.
* 90 points from 5 Saurus Knights. **points updated!**
* 160 points from a Troglodon OR 240 from a Saurus Scar-Veteran on Carnosaur OR 260 from a Saurus Oldblood on Carnosaur. **points updated!**
*''Total:'' 420 points using a Troglodon OR 480 points using a Scar-Veteran on Carnosaur OR 540 points using an Oldblood on Carnosaur.

Not counting the possible extra models you can use: 100 for a Knight converted or counting as a Scar-Vet on Cold One (damn, you could simply use the 3 extra Knights as Scar-Vets too), 100 from using the free Saurus Oldblood on foot if you buildt a Troglodon and 100 from getting creative to use your Skink Oracle as a Skink Priest or Starpriest, and you could even use Jungle Swarms from the Cold Ones bits if you are allowed.

NOTE AND UPDATE: with general's handbook 2017, every Seraphon unit received an huge discount (Balanced by the fact that their awesome warscroll battalion now cost a lot more). This mean you now can field both a Trog and and Oldblood on Carnosaurus using units in two Start Collecting boxes. Exactly, both. Have fun supporting and attacking with Oldblood and Troglodon while receiving the screening from Warriors and Knights, have fun! A lot!!

===1000 pt.===
Here the core tax is 1 '''Leader''' and 2 '''Battleline''' units, you can have up to 4 '''Leaders''', 2 '''Artilleries''' and 2 '''Behemoths'''. Your minimum tax is 220 points; 2 10-units Skins and a Skink Priest or Starpriest.

Two Start Collecting! kits gives you a quick and easy to get force, as well as a multi-task list, with some spared models to use in larger games.
* 20 Saurus Warriors (Battleline).
* 10 Saurus Knights (Battleline).
* Scar-Veteran on Carnosaur (Leader/Behemoth).
* Saurus Oldblood on Foot (Leader).
* Troglodon (Behemoth).

This uses exactly 1000 points.

This is a heavy focused melee list.

Depending on what you are facing, the Scar-Veteran and the Saurus Oldblood are good generals; excellent weapons and stats. The Saurus Oldblood is more defensive, favouring a stead approach, and the Scar-Vet is generally more offensive.

Use your Warriors in one or two blocks as you wish; you get a +1 To Hit if you have at least 20 on the same unit, but this will last just one turn or even less. Bring them along your Saurus Oldblood on foot if you are using him as your general.

Use two units of Knights, using the weapons you find the most useful. They are quite slow for regular cavalry tho, at 7". Use them as flankers and alongside your Scar-Vet if he is your general.

The Troglodon is a great addition here, since its a jack of all trades. D3 ranged attack with good profile and damage (and the only ranged unit on this list), and get 3" extra if it can charge succesfully and damaged with his poison, which can be quite effective since it has 7 attacks at +4 hit (with enough luck and not having taked so much damage, it can be able to deal 15 wounds on melee), it has its own roar that substracts 1 from enemy Bravery and, most importantly, can unbind one spell just like if it was a wizard (something this list lacks).

Not a specialist, but it [[gets shit done]]. However, never expose it to get 8 or more wounds. Its ranged attack has 18", gets worst if by 3" each time it suffers 2 or more wounds, it gets 1" for each two wounds and its bite starts at +2 to wound, reduces to +3 the next for wounds and get worst by one each time it suffers two additional wounds.

It biggest flaw is that it fills lots of roles. Expect to see some heavy focus upon it.

===2000 pt.===
Here the core tax is 1 '''Leader''' and 3 '''Battleline''' units, you can have up to 6 '''Leaders''', 4 '''Artilleries''' and 4 '''Behemoths'''. Your minimum tax is 260 points; 3 10-units of Skinks (60 points per 10) and one of the following leaders: Saurus Oldblood, Saurus Scar-Veteran on Cold One, Skink Priest (80 points) or Skink Starpriest.

Keep using 2 Start Collecting! kits, now you can deploy all the models included:

* 20 Saurus Warriors (Battleline).
* 15 Saurus Knights (Battleline).
* Scar-Veteran on Cold One (Leader).
* A Firelance Starhost (using the Cold One Scar-Veteran)
* Saurus Oldblood on Carnosaur (Leader/Behemoth).
* Saurus Oldblood on Foot (Leader)
* Troglodon (Behemoth).

This alone costs 1340 points. But if you can replace the Oldblood on foot or [[Counts as|count it as]], you can pick a Saurus Sunblood for 20 additional points.

Now, lets assume you also got a Thunderbeast Host kit, now add:

* An Engine of the Gods (Leader/Behemoth).
* 1 Stegadon (Behemoth).
* 3 Terradon/Ripperdactyls Riders.

This will costs 1980 points, or 2000 if you play a Sunblood instead the Oldblood on foot.

Other option is use a Skink Priest or Starpriest instead the Oldblood on foot: you will have one spare Priest from building a Stegadon anyway, and with some convertion you could use your spare Oracle as one of those two. You can get a Starpriest if you wish, its a nice little sculpt.

This list features more ranged options.

Having 16 Cold One Knights, you can easily convert one into a Scar-Vet and make a Firelance. The Scar-Vet on Cold One is a good choice for a general because his command ability synergizes strongly with the Knights: re-rolling hits and charges is important, more considering how the Blazing Lances stacks with Blazing Cohort (yet another mortal wound), and the Cold Ones gain an additional attack. This battalion can easily snowball if left unchecked.

While lacking the Stardrake Shield, the Oldblood on Carno might be a little more killy than the Scar-Veteran by virtue of his sunbolt beams, while his spear is still as good as the regular. His command ability is strong for heroic wrecking balls.

The Thunderbeast models are great supportive options: the Engine of the Gods speaks for itself and the Stegadon can deal a good amount of AoE or single target damage. Both of them should be keeping distances when not overly necessary, but can be dangerous when charging towards the enemy. The flying cavalry is quite useful. Terradons should be prefered by virtue of their ranged attacks, while the Ripperdactlys can dish out important damage for evasive but fragile enemy units.

The Oldblood on foot is a strong support for your Saurus, even without its command ability. The Sunblood is [[DISTRACTION CARNIFEX|a big, bulky, scary lizard, able to soak decent amounts of damage and dealing it back]]. The Skink Star/Priest are reliable support options; the Priest can be a strong buff machine, while the Starpriest is a cheap wizard that can help your units with magic.

As a bonus, deploying this whole army should be a sight to behold!

===2500 pt.===
Here the core tax is 1 '''Leader''' and 4 '''Battleline''' units, you can have up to 8 '''Leaders''', 5 '''Artilleries''' and 5 '''Behemoths'''. Your minimum tax is 320 points ; 4 10-units Skins and one of the following leaders: Saurus Oldblood, Saurus Scar-Veteran on Cold One, Skink Priest or Skink Starpriest.

From the previous example list, not much more to add here.

If you picked a Sunblood, you could get third Warriors unit and upgrade them to a Sunclaw Starhost. Add a Slann Starmaster is a fantastic idea; 3 spells/unbinds, can cast through skink heroes and Troglodons at 15" away and buff your whole army.

This costs 2440 points. If your place allows older scrolls, you could pick a Skink Chief to close at 2500.

==Allied Armies==
Stormcast Eternals, that's all these guys get

===Mercenary Companies===
With the inclusion of Mercenary Companies in GHB2019, These guys now have slightly more allied unit options.
*'''Blacksmoke Battery:''' With these guys, your [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs]] become [[Awesome|Aztec lizardmen riding dinosaurs with guns and a chopper]]
*'''Greyfyrd:''' The Fyreslayers ally you never had, essentially.
*'''Grugg Brothers:'''
*'''Gutstuffers:'''
*'''Nimyard’s Rough-Riders:'''
*'''Order of the Blood-Drenched Rose:''' Excellent calvary unit to go with your already excellent cavalry units.
*'''Rampagers:'''
*'''Skroug’s Menagerie:'''
*'''Sons of the Lichemaster:'''
*'''Tenebrous Court:'''

==External links==
Rules are here
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="100%">
Here are links to all the warscrolls for the army, in the same order as they are listed in the article.
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">

* [http://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Compendiums/warhammer-aos-lizardmen-en.pdf Their Warscroll Compendium]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-lordkroak-en.pdf Lord Kroak]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-slannstarmaster-en.pdf Slann Starmaster]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-saurusoldblood-en.pdf Saurus Oldblood (On Foot)]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-oldbloodcarnosaur-en.pdf Saurus Oldblood (On Carnosaur)]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-veterancarnosaur-en.pdf Scar Veteran (On Carnosaur)]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-veterancoldone-en.pdf Scar Veteran (On Cold One)]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-saurussunblood-en.pdf Saurus Sunblood]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-astrolithbearer-en.pdf Astrolith Bearer]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-eternitywarden-en.pdf Eternity Warden]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-sauruswarriors-en.pdf Saurus Warriors]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-saurusguard-en.pdf Saurus Guard]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-saurusknights-en.pdf Saurus Knights]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-skinkstarseer-en.pdf Skink Starseer]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-skinkstarpriest-en.pdf Skink Starpriest]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-skinkpriest-en.pdf Skink Priest]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-skinks-en.pdf Skinks]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-chameleonskinks-en.pdf Chameleon Skinks]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-terradonriders-en.pdf Terradon Riders]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-ripperdactylriders-en.pdf Ripperdactyl Riders]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-salamander-en.pdf Salamander]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-razordon-en.pdf Razordon]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-kroxigor-en.pdf Kroxigor]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-engineofthegods-en.pdf Engine]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-stegadon-en.pdf Stegadon]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-bastiladon-en.pdf Bastiladon]

* [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls/aos-warscroll-troglodon-en.pdf Troglodon]

</div></div>

*[http://www.lustria-online.com/ Lustria-Online.com, the main Seraphon army forum.]
{{Age_of_Sigmar_Tactics}}
[[Category:Age of Sigmar]] [[Category:Age of Sigmar/Tactics]]

Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Death/Ossiarch Bonereapers

2020-03-04T23:04:34Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Famous Legions */

{{Age of Sigmar Faction|Faction=Ossiarch Bonereapers|Logo=Immortis-WC2.jpg|Alliance=Death|Motto=The Skeleton War is upon us! We ride against the fuckboys!}}

Nagash has got a bone to pick with the Mortal Realms!

==Why play Ossiarch Bonereapers?==

===Pros===
* They're SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS!
* You liked playing super-elite units like Blood Knights? Well you now play a different elite FACTION!
* These guys have default, army-wide [[Awesome|'''immunity''']] to Battleshock, baby! Not just bravery 10 like other death factions or the Dinosaur Men (Starborne version), these guys DO... NOT... FLEE... EVER!
* They're durable, even for undead. On top of tough, well-armored troops, they have ways to boost saves, re-roll saves and a tanky bodyguard unit for HEROES. They become even more durable if you use the Petrifex Elite Legion.
* Point-for-point, they have probably some of the strongest warscrolls of the game. At base, few units can beat their ossiarch counterpart.
* Relentless Discipline Points must be used instead of Command Points. That means things that screw with CP won't work on them, and you have mechanics to gain RDP throughout the game. Despite this, they still benefit from Command Abilities.
* They don't rely on heroes as much as other Death armies; unit champions have the HEKATOS keyword and can give a smaller radius of 6+ Deathless saves and don't use command points. Losing heroes isn't the game-ender that it is for other undead armies.
* Almost everything is 3+ to hit, which is augmented by...
* Lots of rolls modifiers, especially the terrain piece and spells.
* A few pleasant reminders of Nehekhara for you Tomb Kings fans, such as a vulture being called a Carrion and war machine that hurls flaming skulls.
* They collect protection payments of bone like a skeletal version of the Mafia.
* Part of the reason for their existence is to troll Sigmarines.
* Mortek Guard and Kavalos Deathriders are strong contenders for best battleline units in the game.
* Nagash, [[Arkhan the Black|bro-tier mini-Nagash]] and the Morghasts are part of the army roster; [[Awesome|they also benefit from keywords and Battle Traits]].
* You can heal every unit or character, self-heals are a thing and they're not spells so opponents can't block them.
* If you like bone puns...

===Cons===
* Most of your army is slow, with a few exceptions. There are a few abilities to mitigate this.
* Shooting is almost non-existent apart from the Mortek Crawler, as there's only the mediocre Gothizzar Harvester's and Nagash's laser eyes only work once a turn.
* No protection at all against shooting. Most notably, morteks and stalkers reroll saves only in combat, so shooting armies tend to really hurt the Ossiarchs.
** On that note, Kharadron Overlords will likely give you a hard time.
* No summoning or deepstrike/teleportation mechanic at all. The army is quite straightforward and previsible as a whole, and lack many tricks. Any decent opponent know what you will do.
* No strike first/strike twice/attack in hero phase mechanics at all, which are VERY important when you want to win the fight.
* The army lack in Mortal Wounds. While good rend and multi-damage are easy to find, Mortal Wounds are much rarer, and Ossiarchs tend to bounce on really armored units if stalkers aren't around.
* Magic is average and mostly around buffing allies and debuffing ennemies. Sure, Nagash and Arkhan are there, but the magic lore is still unimpressive, especially compared to real magical factions (looking at you, Tzeentch and Seraphon).
* [[Fail|No allies]]; their foreign policy makes the Daughters of Khaine look like the Stormcast Eternals. (still have mercenaries though - unless you bring Nagash or Arkhan).
* Apart from the Mortek Guard, when you bring 5 guys, almost everybody else brings 10. So if your opponent is on a objective you need to <s>smash him in the knee caps</s> can't smash knee caps, you need them for the tithe... just cut their legs out from under them.
* Some of the models look a bit cheesy or weird depending who you ask, especially Katakros' model (seriously, a bone bulge?)
* Hope you like bone puns...

==Rulebooks==
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Ossiarch Bonereapers}}

==Allegiance Abilities==
===Battle Traits===
*'''Ranks Unbroken by Dissent:''' [[Awesome|Do not take battleshock tests for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPER units]]. Yes, you read that right, immunity to Battleshock. Your enemy's only options are killing, flee or be killed. In addition, you do not generate Command Points. Instead, you generate Relentless Discipline Points at the start of each battle round but lose them when you generate your next batch (they should be all spend before that happens).
**Generate a Relentless Discipline Point if:
*** EACH {{AOSKeyword|Ossiarch Bonereapers Hero}} - 1
*** EACH Warscroll Battalion - 1
*** EACH Friendly {{AOSKeyword|LIEGE}} - 1
*** If KATAKROS is the general and on the battlefield - 3
*** Roll a die for each UNIT with the {{AOSKeyword|OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS}} keyword, including the previous {{AOSKeyword|HEROES}}. On a 6, you get 1.
**Unfortunately, you can't use the Generic or Scenario command abilities (rerolling Run, charge, shooting rolls) but you have a ton of CAs that will Guzzle your DP.

*'''Deathless Warriors''': It's Deathless Minions from Legions of Nagash, albeit with a rename. It allows you to ignore wounds and mortal wounds on a 6+. However, you'll be able to get more mileage out of it than other Death armies, as any unit wholly within 12" of a {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS Hero}} or 6" of a Hekatos (i.e: the leader for your battlelines) count for the ability, removing the need to have your Heroes babysitting your units. Units that are {{AOSKeyword|HEKATOS}} (elite bone warriors units) always benefit from the ability, allowing them to strike out entirely unsupported.

*'''Unstoppable Advance (CA)''': In Movement Phase. Pick 1 unit within X" of a hero or hekatos. +3" movement. It can still run OR charge. You cannot pick the same unit more than once per phase.

===Command Traits===

====Liege-Kavalos====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dark Acolyte:''' Becomes a 1 cast/unbind {{AOSKeyword|WIZARD}} with one Mortisan Lore spell.
*'''Peerless Warrior:''' Melee wound rolls of 6 deal an extra mortal wound.
*'''Hatred of the Living:''' +1 to hit in melee (including their mount) against non-{{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} units.
*'''Life-stealer:''' If they kill any models in combat, heal 1d3 wounds at the end of that phase.

====Mortisan====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dire Ultimatum:''' -2 to Bravery for enemies within 12". Although it requires coordinating a couple of units, you can cause a MASSIVE debuff to enemy Bravery by combining this and the Scroll of Command (see below).
*'''Grave-sand Bones:''' Knows an extra spell from the Lore of the Mortisans.
*'''Oathbreaker Curse:''' Every time your opponent gets a CP, on a d6 roll of 6 it is lost. Obviously Katakros does it better, but this does work more than once per turn if your enemy has CP-generating abilities.
*'''Soul Energy:''' You can re-roll casting, unbinding and dispelling rolls, but whenever you do you take a mortal wound.

===Artefacts===
*'''Relics of the Kavaloi (Liege-Kavalos)'''
#'''Mind Blade:''' Pick one of bearer’s melee weapons. If unmodified hit roll is a 6, and target is a hero, opponent loses a Command Point and the hero can’t use command abilities for the rest of the battle. Apart from only working on sixes this is incredible.
#'''Lordly Phylactery:''' Once per battle start of any phase, gain D3 RD points.
#'''Scroll of Command:''' Subtract 2 Bravery from enemy units within 6” of bearer. Only really recommended if you're going for Mortis Praetorians (see their Legion description for more information). Although, a Liege-Kavalos with this, with a Mortisan general with the Dire Ultimatum command trait nearby drops enemy Bravery by a whopping -4!
#'''Grave-sand Boneplates:''' At the end of the combat phase, roll dice for each enemy unit within 3”, on a 4+ that unit suffers a mortal wound. Vies with Helm of the Ordained for best choice.
#'''Marrow Pact:''' Once per battle, in hero phase pick one enemy unit within 6” of bearer. On a 3+, unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, heal the same number of wounds.
#'''Helm of the Ordained:''' Add one to hit rolls for attacks made by {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} units and mounts while wholly within 12” of the bearer. One of the best choices for a Liege-Kavalos.

*'''Tools of the Boneshaper (Boneshapers)'''
#'''Artisan's key:''' Before using the bearer’s bone shaper ability, roll a dice and on a 4+ either you can pick two units instead of one, or the same unit twice within 6”. The best of the three by a narrow margin.
#'''Lode of Saturation:''' At the start of the Hero phase, choose a unit within 1”, deathless warrior battle trait on 5+ instead of 6.
#'''Crafter Gems:''' Hero phase, heal up to 3 wounds. Once the total wounds healed in the battle is 3 you cannot use it any longer.

*'''Treasures of the Soulmason (Soulmasons)'''
#'''Gothizzar Cartouche:''' +1 to melee wound rolls for units wholly within 9” of bearer if target does not have Death keyword. The best option if you're not facing {{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} armies.
#'''Soul Reservior:''' +2 to cast, but if casting roll is unmodified 10+ artifact cannot be used again.
#'''Thorne of Dzendt:''' +2 to wounds and +2 attacks for mount. A good all around choice, especially for keeping your chair bound wizard safe.

*'''Weapons of the Soulreaper (Soulreapers)'''
#'''Luminscythe:''' minus 1 for hit rolls targeting bearer. +1 casting rolls for bearer for Lore of Mortisans or warscroll spell.
#'''Vial of Binding:''' Once per battle in hero phase, pick enemy model within 12" of bearer and roll a D6. If roll is equal or greater than the wound characteristic they are slain. The best choice if you take a Soul Reaper, and the obvious choice for offensive.
#'''Guardian Reavsoul:''' Negate wound on a 5+ instead of 6+ for deathless minions. Can shatter to negate last wound if about to die. If you're not taking Vial of Binding, this is the go-to choice.

===Spell Lore===
#'''Arcane Command:''' CV5. Gain D3 Relentless Discipline Points. Nice if you've got an extra spell, or had some bad luck with your rolls.
# '''Empower Nadirite Weapons: ''' CV5. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, the units Nadirite Weapons ability explodes on a 5+ instead of 6, or 4+ if its a {{AOSKeyword|DEATHRIDERS}} attacking with spears after charging.
# '''Protection of Nagash: ''' CV6. 5+ FNP for the caster. If any wounds get through your FNP, and the caster isn't slain, remove them from the battlefield after all wounds have been allocated, and place them anywhere on the board 9" away from enemy models then dispel this spell. Great for getting important casters out of sticky situations, or absolutely hilarious on Nagash if you wanna fuck with your opponent.
# '''Reinforce Battle-shields: ''' CV6. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit armed with Shields or Nadirite Battle-shields wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, they gain a 5+ FNP but only for mortal wounds. Pair this with a gothizzar harvester, the reroll saves command ability and the fossil legion for some truly unkillable troops.
# '''Drain Vitality: ''' CV6. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. Until your next hero phase, reroll unmodified hit and save rolls of 6 made by that unit. Good for blunting a spooky unit's charge, but less useful than the other options available.
# '''Mortal Contract: ''' CV7. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. For the rest of the '''BATTLE''', roll a die at the end of any phase that the unit dealt damage to a friendly {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit (but only if it was with an attack). On 3+, the cursed unit suffers D3 mortal wounds. Lawdy, this is probably the most obnoxious spell we can sling, if you can remember who you marked the entire game. Great into low unit-count armies.

===Endless Spells===

An important distinction to note between these Endless Spells and others that exist is that the ones presented below have the '''Soul-Linked''' ability, meaning they always move before Endless Spells without the Soul-Linked ability and are controlled by the casting Player only, meaning your opponent cannot control these Endless Spells to mess with your plans. However on the flip side, the Wizard who cast the spell has a -1 to his casting rolls and cannot cast anymore soul-linked spells while their soul-linked endless spell is up. If the caster dies then the soul-linked spell is also dispelled, so keep him alive if you want the spells to last.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Bone-tithe-Shrieker-en.pdf Bone-tithe Shrieker]''': Gives -1 bravery, and +1 to be hit to enemy units within 12" of it. Simple, but effective. Place it just in front of your battle line to make the enemy think twice, or use it to make holding an objective less than desirable.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Soulstealer-Carrion-en.pdf Soulstealer Carrion]''': Gives LOS to the Soul-Linked wizard. You won't be taking it for this. Instead, you'll be taking it for it's actual ability: Soul Thief. Roll a D6 at the end of each Phase if any Chaos, Order, or Destruction models were slain within 6" of it. On a 1 or 2, the Wizard this Endless Spell is Soul-Linked with heals a wound. On a 3 or 4, it does 1 Mortal Wound on each Chaos, Destruction or Order unit within 6" of it, and on a 5-6, it does both effects. AMAZINGLY fun, if you're not playing into death, so do with that as you will.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nightmare-Predator-en.pdf The Nightmare Predator]''': You standard causes Mortal Wounds Endless Spell (dealing D3 Mortal Wounds to all non-bonecasts within 3" of it), but with a twist - when cast, pick an enemy Hero to be marked as it's prey. If this spell gets within range of them, it spits out d6 mortal wounds instead. For it's dirt cheap point cost, this is almost auto-include.

==<span style=color:Gray>Famous Legions</span>==
<big>Mortis Praetorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''The Dread Legion''':-1 bravery to enemy units within 12".
*'''Command Trait''': '''Katakros' Chosen''': Once per battle if the general is on the Battlefield, gain D3 RDP points.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Counter-strike''': Pick a friendly unit within 6" of a HEKATOS or 12" of a HERO. If charged, they can re-roll hits.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Artificer's Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons. It has -3 Rend.
The poster boys, the jack-of-all-trades and the best choice if you’re bringing Katakros, otherwise it's quite situational since other death armies do "fear-bomb" better (looking at you, Legions of Grief and Blood).

<big>Petrifex Elite</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Unstoppable Juggernauts''': Add +1 to their saves.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Mighty Archaeossian''': +2 Wounds.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Bludgeon''': In the combat phase, give a unit +1 rend on one weapon, can't stack.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Godbone Armor''': The first wound allocated to the bearer in each '''phase''' is negated.
The tanky choice, the best all-rounder and <s>arguably</s> IS the best overall. Makes your entire army (including Nagash) stupidly tanky, gives your commander a few extra wounds for a chuckle, lets you put some durability on a caster via the relic (especially useful if you're bringing some Endless Spells), AND comes with a command ability that makes you killy, just to throw your opponent for a loop.

<big>Null Myriad</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Eldritch Nulls''': Ignore the effects of spells on a 5+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Unsettling and Sinister''': -1 to Bravery in 3", and -1 to be hit during combat phase.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Holdfast''': Make the battle trait work on a 2+ instead of 5+.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Baleful Blade''': Pick 1 of the bearer's weapons. [[Awesome|Saves can't be made against attacks from this weapon and wounds can't be negated]] (though they can later be healed).
The magic choice. Their innate rules mean you can focus more on offensive magic, and the Artefact is perfect for any combat character... but is obviously best on a Liege-Kavalos. Competes with the Petrifex Elite for the best default choice, but if your meta is very magic heavy, this choice is clear (hint: it's probably still petrifex). Make those six hallowheart battlemages cry because they can do nothing to you (and then notice that you can't probably do much to them either, so the battle is probably a void of winds of magic).

<big>Ivory Host</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': If a unit has suffered wounds or a friendly IVORY HOST unit within 6" (not wholly within, just within) has suffered wounds, get +1 to hit, but -1 save.
*'''Command Trait''': Every hero phase your general gains 1 attack for all his melee weapons on a 5+. Best to have a Liege-Kavalos as your general for this.
*'''Command Ability''': Cancel the -1 save from the battle trait. This is what makes the Ivory host interesting, letting you pull some shenanigans with a screen unit or pulling some clutch damage out at a vital time.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Beastbound Blade''': One of the bearer's melee weapons gets +1 attack.
The combat choice, though dependent on good dice rolls. Decent, but there are better options. On that note, DO NOT TAKE THEM AGAINST KHARADRON OVERLORDS. The penalty to your save will just make their job easier.

<big>Stalliarch Lords</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': Run and charge. Pretty good for increasing your threat range on a slow army.
*'''Command Trait''': Pick an enemy hero within 3" at the start of the combat phase. Gain +1 to hit against it but -1 to anything else. Pretty situational and lackluster.
*'''Command Ability''': Retreat and charge in the same turn. Good for repositioning or getting your charge bonuses again. Here's looking at you, Deathriders.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Nadir-Bound Mount''': Can only be taken by a Liege-Kavalos. They roll D3 additional dice for their Unstoppable Charge ability.
The speedy and somewhat trollish choice. Do you wanna go fast? Do you want a liege or Zandtos to run fast next to fast cavalry? Or if you take a Liege make them hit like a ton of bricks? Then go these guys. They let you skimp out of the costly battalion with their inherent command ability, and make your already fast cavalry even faster. They even pair well with Stalkers, Morghast Harbingers or Harvesters, to just really irritate your opponent.

<big>Crematorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Immolation''': When a model dies you get a chance to cause MW to an enemy within 3" on a 5+, with monsters and characters adding 1 to their roll/going off on a 4+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Wrathful Avenger''': If the general dies, add 2 to the dice roll for Immolation and it does D3 Mortal Wounds rather than 1.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Levelers of Cities''': One friendly CREMATORIANS unit with 6" of a Hekatros or 12" of a hero ignores cover saves.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Searing Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons and add 1 to the Damage characteristic.
the TRUE trolling choice. Paired with some revives and harvesters, and laugh as your opponent realizes that killing your models meant their guys died and then revived the dudes they just tried to kill, rinse and repeat.

==<span style=color:Gray>Warscrolls<span>==
The common keywords of these warscrolls are: '''DEATH''', '''OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS'''

===Leaders===
====Named Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Katakros-Mortarch-of-the-Necropolis-en.pdf Orpheon Katakros, Mortarch of the Necropolis]''': (500pts) Like Skarbrand, his attacks get stronger the more wounds he takes. Katakros himself has [[Awesome|Rend and Damage 3]] and he can bop foes with his shield to dole out Mortal Wounds, so he can dish out some hurt in combat, but not until he's taken some wounds representing his companions dying so Katakros himself joins the fray. However, he is one of the slowest characters in the game - 4" move (which doesn’t much matter when he’s on a '''12 centimetre''' base, and you can use the Relentless Advance to make Katakros move 7'') and can't fly, but Mortarch of Necropolis allows Katakros to heal up to three friendly OBR units wholly within 24" of his model for 3 wounds worth on your hero phase. Katakros is a friendly OBR unit within 24" of himself, so he can choose to heal himself for 3 wounds every one of your hero phases. Because he is so slow, he hates cannons even more than his boss so engage shooty armies at your own risk. He's pricey in points and cash, but you get what you pay for - no more no less - as he's a good beatstick and support character, just don't try to send him up against other super combat lords who have a damage of 3 or better because he can easily get his shit kicked in, especially if they're wearing the Ethereal Amulet or have some serious wound negation. If your opponent is fielding a character with either (or worse, both) then make sure to screen him out. It's better to not get him in combat and keep your Relentless Discipline points, heals and Command Point sabotage than it is for you to possibly lose all of those.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nagash-Supreme-Lord-of-the-Undead-en.pdf Nagash, Supreme Lord of the Undead]''': (880pts) Changed from his early forms, Nagash is now 30 points more expensive, and no longer loots the spells from all of his Death-based allies. (but he does know the whole spell lore by default.) Instead, he can now restore wounds/models to 5 of his Bonecast Eternals, and can sling Mystic Shield and Arcane Bolt as much as his undead heart (and casting limit) desire.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arkhan-the-Black-Mortarch-of-Sacrament-en.pdf Arkhan the Black, Mortarch of Sacrament]''': (360pts) Much like Nagash, Arkhan is more expensive now, at a "whopping" 20 points more than before. With an extra cast and deny, and the ability to sling Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield like his Boss, (along with learning the whole spell lore,) it sounds like that price increase came with some buffs. However, overall Arkhan's in a slightly more disappointing place. Curse of Years no longer succeeds on 1s, meaning it's slightly more fair, and his command ability has now been limited to one use a turn, spoiling an awful lot of fun that could have been had.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arch-Kavalos-Zandtos-en.pdf Arch-Kavalos Patru Zandtos]''': (220pts) A named Mortis Praetorians Liego-Kavalos, with additional abilities like more damage on the charge, rerolls to wound, and another CA that grants a Praetorians unit the same reroll ability. A good choice for leader, especially in Mortis Praetorians, unless you have a specific Legion or combo in mind.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Volkmortian-Master-of-the-Bone-tithe-en.pdf Vokmortion, Master of the Bone-tithe]''': (180pts) He is a Wizard that should be very close to the front lines. He has a chance to prevent a model within 3" from attacking him on a 5+ as a defense. He also has a 12" aura of -1 to bravery and -1 to any Wizard attempting to unbind any spell he casts (which improves in that rare instance an enemy General dies near him). His Unique spell can instantly kill any model within 1" of him on a 5+, and the range on it cannot be modified, which can be used to punish any foolish combat heroes or big monsters he ends up fighting - though it is a bit unreliable to make him a dedicated assassin. Overall, he should be standing behind your troops (ideally Immortis Guard or Mortek Guard), providing the debuff and using his 2 spells per turn.

====Generic Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Liege-Kavalso-en.pdf Liege-Kavalos]''': (200pts) Your commander on a big-boned mount that gives two guaranteed Relentless Discipline points. Lots of decent attacks, but nothing too nutty. When he charges he has an increased pile in and the ability to fling out some extra mortal wounds. His Command Ability gives a unit wholly within 12" +1 attack. He probably functions best running with some deathriders for a spoopy cavalry wing, though having him roam around your anvils can make for some good time damage output.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulreaper-en.pdf Mortisan Soulreaper]''': (120pts) Our CC battlemage, though with his weapon the most he'll be reaping is chaff mobs. His unique spell lets him smack one unit at range, or every unit in CC with him with a few mortal wounds. Probably our worst unit, as outside of his spell-slinging, he's basically a really expensive cairn wraith from nighthaunt. Look elsewhere, unless you really love his amazing model.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Boneshaper-en.pdf Mortisan Boneshaper]''': (130pts) Probably your most included HQ. With the ability to restore 3 wounds (or 3 wounds worth of boys (raise 3 Mortek Guard, or 1 Kavalos Deathriders everything else has 4+ wounds)) to a friendly squad and sling a few spells, he feels close to auto-include, especially if you left Nagash or Arkhan at home. His unique spell lets him fling [[Awesome|BONESTORM!]] at an enemy unit, roll for each model within 18" and every 6 deals a mortal wound, a nice anti-horde spell being easy to cast on 5. Keep him out of combat and out of LoS so he can spend your whole game building bonecasts in a dark corner away from anyone else.
** Boneshapers and Immortis Guard are a good match, as they can take wounds for him and he can heal them if they take too many hits.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulmason-en.pdf Mortisan Soulmason]''': (140pts) The grand vizier will see you now. He's got a passable melee profile, but that's not why you take him. He's a wizard with 2 casts and unbinds and a unique spell, Soul-Guide, that gives a friendly Ossiarch Bonereapers unit the ability to reroll 1's to hit. Pretty good so far, but it gets better. At the end of your hero phase, on a 2+ cast Soul-Guide more times even if it was already attempted that turn. Basically, bring him when you're spamming catapults (or anything, really) and spread the re-rolling to hit love.
** For extra fun, his potential multiple casts force the enemy to consider whether to unbind these spells or other spells.

===Battleline===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Guard-en.pdf Mortek Guard]''': (Battleline, 130/440pts, Min:10, Max:40) Your basic skellies are a decently-protected lot with a 4+ save. Their basic weapons are 2 attacks with -1 Rend sword or a spear, both can double the hits inflicted on a 6+ to hit. The greatblade, on the other hand, trades that for a slightly better wound score, which isn't remarkable but at least keeps the sword's Rend. Their slow speed is helped by their banner giving them +1 to runs and charges, and the +3" move order mentioned above. A good choice for loadout is sword for smaller units and spears for bigger units.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': This boy is a mini-HQ that gives to your Relentless Discipline pool and keys to a lot of other things. (in big units you have to pack a lot of models very close together to have Deathless Warriors). He's only got an attack more than the base guard, but he also confers a command ability that lets his pack re-roll all saves for the combat phase - much more valuable for their survival.
** With the Petrifex Elite, you can take the spears and use the Petrifex command ability to give them rend, just save the spears for larger units of Mortek Guard.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Kavalos-Deathriders-en.pdf Kavalos Deathriders]''': (Battleline, 180/460pts, Min:5, Max:15) Your basic skellies, but on a horse! When compared to their foot-slogging brothers, these guys have +1 attack and 3 wounds each, the 2 extra pony swings we all know and love (actually, even their horses are on steroids, wounding on a 3+), and a whopping 12" move compared to the former's 4". Not only that, but their spears have exploding hits on a 5+ roll on the charge, giving you a bit more reason to consider selling the rend on your swords.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': Much like the Mortek Guard, the Deathrider's hekatos has +1 attack with their weapon, but his command ability gives you some mortal wound output on the charge and a double-range pile in. FAQ'd to confirm a unit can only benefit from this once per phase.

===Hekatos===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Necropolis-Stalkers-en.pdf Necropolis Stalkers]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:6) Speedy, Re-rolling, <s>tyranid warriors </s> skeleton boys. Each turn, these massive lads pick whether they want to re-roll hits, wounds, saves, or add +1 to their weapons' Rend and Damage. While rerolling saves is nice when you get charged by something scary, you'll almost always use +1 rend and damage, as it turns your basic stalker into a stormcast blender, and your unit leader <s>into a literal monster</s> into an equally strong blender as the normal weapons, when enhanced with -1 rend and +1 dmg, are actually stronger than the special weapon, proven by Mathhammer. Their command ability that lets them re-roll run and charge rolls while also ignoring terrain as if they could fly.
** Another option is to run them with a Soulmason equipped with the Gothizzar Cartouche in support which gives +1 to wound rolls. Now, assuming you also have Katakros on the board and you can get Soul-Guide onto your Stalkers then the best Aspect to run is the Destroyer Aspect because this combo would then mean your hitting on 2's and re-rolling 1's '''AND''' wounding on 2's and re-rolling 1's (with spirit blades)
** Upon testing with Mathhammer, in this precise scenario, precision still pulls far ahead if you take 3 of the normal weapons and give them all of these buffs. There is around an average damage difference of 5 per round.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Immortis-Guard-en.pdf Immortis Guard]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:12)The Anvil to the stalker's hammer. These guys have a lower damage output, with 2 3+/3+/-2/2 damage (though the base rend 2 is nice), and the ability to bop someone with their shields for a bit of extra damage, with the occasional mortal wound when rolling a 6. Their main draw, however, is their base 3+ save and bodyguard ability. Whenever they're within 3" of a friendly hero, on a 2+ they must eat a wound or mortal wound that would have been applied to said hero. Their command ability lets them immediately pile in and swing again after their first go, but only with their shields. Less than impressive, but nice for positioning. Having two weapons means they get more out of the Liege's extra attack command ability, and with their own on top of that the mortal wounds do become bit more reliable.
*'''Morghasts [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Archai-en.pdf Archai] & [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Harbingers-en.pdf Harbingers]''': (210pts, Min:2, Max:6) Nagash's angels of death come in 2 flavors, with the archai having a chance to shrug off mortal wounds, and harbingers getting a 3d6 charge. Beyond those differences either one is monstrous combatants (always take the halberd for 3 attacks at 3+/3+/-2/3), and tough to boot, with 6 wounds 4+ armor and being Hekatos for the death save. They also have a bravery debuff as a bonus. It's worth noting that they are more expensive in a bonereaper army, but that may change in either direction depending on the next general's handbook, or some early FAQing.
** See the above option for Stalkers and apply to Morghasts - you'll loose out on the re-rolling wounds but up the rend to -2 and the damage to 3 (with halberds) so the Mathammer will result in more wounds on average (even if you run swords) - only real issue with this is keep up with the Morghasts on your bone throne

===Behemoths===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Gothizzar-Harvester-en.pdf Gothizzar Harvester]''': (200pts, Behemoth) Big guy has 10 wounds and a 4+ save. Has good damage potential with 4 solid ranged attacks and a BUNCH of 2 damage melee swings, with a choice between bludgeons or sickles. These weapons have the exact same melee stats, but different effects. Bludgeons do 2 mortal wounds on unmodified hits of 6 instead of normal damage, (basically giving the guy a Nighthaunt's frightful touch) while the sickles get +1 to hit against units with 5+ models. The Bludgeons are the better choice, as there are other ways to boost hit rolls and Mortal Wounds are useful whoever you're up against. More importantly than that, this guy is a healer. Each time any models (friend or foe) die within 3" of him, he can heal an Ossiarch Bonereaper unit within 6" on a 4+. The heals he gives depends on the wounds characteristic of the model slain. It's worth noting he can do this to himself, making his relatively fragile 10 wounds and 4+ save last a little longer.
**For the Crematorians, this guy makes the list even more trollish. Camp him by your Mortek Guard, and when they die and cause mortal wounds, he can heal them right back up. Free mortal wounds, anyone?
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Crawler-en.pdf Mortek Crawler]''': (200pts, Artillery, Behemoth) The most trolltastic catapult in all of AoS. With a nice 36" range and solid durability, it starts as a remarkably strong springboard for the absolute terror of its ammo types. Once per battle, you can fire a different choice of ammo from two different options and their effects are trolltastically memeable.
**Necrotic Skulls: Your normal shots. You're getting a pretty hefty 3 2+/3+/-/variable shots that start at 5 damage, and dips down to 1 as the model takes damage. Good as a general all-rounder, but pales in comparison to what follows.
***Just to reiterate however: 3 shots at 5 damage initially. Although lack of rend hurts, this is a horde killing volley beyond compare, particularly as their hit and wound rolls are so good.
**Cauldron of Torment: the first of the meme shots. Instead of firing like normal, you roll a dice for every model in the target unit, and whenever you meet or beat their '''UNMODIFIED''' Bravery, one model is slain. "But Anon," you reply, "lots of units have high Bravery! That's not good," To which I say, sure, you're right. this isn't good against undead, Stormcast, or Chaos, but do you know what it IS good against? grots, where you wipe half of whatever squad you fire at. Or freeguild, where you gun down a third of whatever unit you want in a ghostly fog. And we're STILL not done with this bad boy.
**Cursed Stele: Does your local meta not really do hordes? Or do they just love low model-count armies with high leadership? Well, have I got a unit for you! Instead of shooting normally, pick a model within range (so, characters, banners, unit leaders, etc.) and roll 2d6. If you roll equal to or higher than their wound stat, the guy dies (with some modifiers, starting at -3 to your roll, slowly turning to +3 as you lose wounds). This right here is disgusting. With an average roll of 4, you kill support heroes about 60% of the time or get to guaranteed snipe off important banners or unit champions whenever you're feeling cheeky. Did that daemon prince swoop in and drop you to 1 wound? Wouldn't it be great if his failure meant your average roll is now a 10 and insta-gibs the winged sexy, sexy biscuit daemon? (Lovely to consider, but the 6" minimum range on the Crawler's attacks means if it's in melee it's been neutered - protect at all costs!)

===Scenery===
*'''Bone-tithe Nexus''': (0pts) Your mandatory accompanying setpiece is a giant monolith surrounded by bones upon bones. In truth it acts more like a sentry that can chuck out one of four different Punishments each turn: -1 to hit, MW Sniping, causes problem for a wizard, or Can't run and only roll 1d6 for charges. The physical footprint of this thing is BIG. You're supposed to place the terrain before defining and placing any of the game's (neutral) terrain. Placing the damn thing can therefore be problematic in organized events, where terrain is pre-set before the game starts.

==Battalions==
Cohort 100
* The Super Battalion.

<big>'''Aegis Immortal'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''1 Archai, 2 Immortis.''
The ARCHAI from this battalion has the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS ability from the Immortis Guard warscroll. In addition, if you use the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS and the roll is a 5+, the wound/MW is negated instead of allocated to a unit from this battalion. Take with Petrifex Elite to make your characters near unkillable. Solid choice, pun intended, the only drawback is if you want a more offensive playstyle since this is defensive-based.

<big>'''Katakrosian Deathglaive'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''2 Stalkers, 1 Morghast Harbinger''
After units are set up but before the first battleround, if all units from the btn are WHOLLY WITHIN 12" of the Harbingers, you can move any of them up to 6" The best name for a Battalion in all of AoS. Useful for strategic positioning and claiming objectives, it's a decent choice. One foe it does help against is Kharadron Overlords, positioning your Morghasts and Stalkers to better catch their fliers.

<big>'''Kavalos Lance'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 680)
''Arch-Kavalos OR 1 Liege-Kavalos, 2 Kavalos Deathriders.''
Units from this battalion can retreat and charge if wholly within 12" of the Liege when the charge roll is made. In addition, once per turn, you can use the Deathrider Wedge CA for a unit from this battalion without spending RDP. Pretty good, especially if you bring a spellcaster with Empower Nadirite Weapons, moreso if you're running Petrifex to give the weapons extra rend. Just remember it's a waste of points if you're using the Stalliarch Lords legion, because they do this but better and for free.

<big>'''Mortek Ballistari'''</big> 100 pts (min points: 760)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Mortek Guard, 2 Crawlers.''
Roll a die before you allocate a wound/MW to a Crawler from this btn while it is within 3" of the Mortek Guard unit from the same btn. Add 2 if the Crawler is within 3" of the Boneshaper from the same btn. On a 4+, it is instead allocated to the GUARD instead of the CRAWLER.

<big>'''Mortek Shield-corps'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 510)
''Either Volkmortian, a Boneshaper, a Soulreaper OR a Soulmason, and 3 Mortek Guard.''
Once per turn, you can use Shieldwall for one unit in the battalion without spending RDP. The cheapest option, and a decent choice, making your Mortek Guard that much more durable and freeing RDP to be spent elsewhere. Petrifex Mortek Guard will be even tougher with a free re-roll for their 3+ saves, and it's a good safety net if a unit loses their Hekatos.

<big>'''Mortisan Trident'''</big> 110 pts (min points: 700)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Soulreaper, 1 Soulmason, 1 Harvester.''
EACH Mortisan from this battalion can attempt to cast 1 extra spell if WITHIN 18" of the harvester AND the harvester is within 3" of any enemy units.

<big> '''Volkmortian’s Retinue''' </big> 120 pts (min points: 840)
''Volkmortian, 1 Mortek Guard, 1 Stalker, and 1 Archai.''
The exclusive battalion from Feast of Bones. At the start of your hero phase, you can return 1 slain model to a unit within 8 inches of Morty.
This batallion is the armies only reliable method of brining back dead Stalkers and Arachai.

==Army Building==

==Tactics==

===Mr. Arkhan’s Wild Ride===
Take Arkhan the Black as your general, along with two Gothizzar Harvesters and a buttload of Mortek Guard. Finally put them all under the Crematorians legion. Your boney boys will proceed to explode in the faces of the enemy and then be brought back to un-life from the ashes thanks to the Mortarch and Harvesters’ restoration abilities. Is this trolling? Yes. Is it fun? ''Oh yes.'' Also take a Mortisan Boneshaper as a cherry on top for extra heals and bring an Endless Spell or two; cast with Arkhan to laugh off that casting penalty.

===Trolling with Catapults===
Take a Soulmason as your general and put him in a massive blob of 60 Mortek Guard with 4 Mortek Crawlers behind. With some amazing dice rolls (which can be helped by using the Soul Resevoir artefact) the Soulmason can give all 4 Crawlers rerollable hits of 1. The Guard can block any incoming attackers whilst the catapults bombard your enemies from across the table. Even if your skellie dudes are taken out and the enemy damages your Centipedes of Doom it just means that their characters are more likely to be decimated by the most trolling shot in AoS, the Cursed Stele. So just sit back, relax and watch your enemies die before they even reach you.

Alternatively, take 2 of Ballistari batallions. Lose the Soulmason but gain some mad defenses.

==Allied Armies==
No Allies. Nope, none. Nighthaunt hate your guts. Legions of Nagash hate your attitude. Not even the Flesh Eater Courts is crazy enough to be your friend. Don't like it? Go play Stormcast, and go fuck yourself while you're at it.

Really though, this isn't the end of the world. Ossiarch Bonereapers are still strong enough to handle most stuff on their own. The biggest downside here is that you can't really compensate for your weaknesses like some armies can with allies. The biggest upside is that you no longer have to worry that an ally detachment is going to be more efficient than something in your book.

===Mercenary Companies===
It's worth noting that if you ever include Arkhan or Nagash in your list, you're locked out of Mercenaries. However, we dodge the command point punishment, but because we're so expensive it'll be hard to fit much. Try to use these guys to squeeze in some cheap screen or synergies into your army.

*'''Blacksmoke Battery:''' Ranged rend, although even with that they're slightly worse than full health catapults, but then you see the price. Three cannons are going to cost similarly to two catapults (and two are less than 50% more expensive than a single catapult) and with a Cogsmith they will definitely outperform them. This can be mitigated by using your character's abilities to give the catapults extra attacks, but ultimately whether or not you do and which one you end up going for will be up to you, as the results are very similar.
*'''Greyfyrd:''' More elites, but now they have to take bravery tests and have crappier armor and need more synergies that require Command Points.
*'''Grugg Brothers:''' far to costly for not enough gain IMO. If our stuff was cheaper, it'd be a maybe.
*'''Gutstuffers:''' Could be cute with the new ogor rules making maneaters and firebellys both way better, but you bump into the cost problem again
*'''Nimyard’s Rough-Riders:''' Fast shooting is great for an army of slow, plodding melee guys like us. Still probably just ok since you can't use command points and there's no real synergy with your skelemen.
*'''Order of the Blood-Drenched Rose:''' Lore shenanigans aside, this could have been amazing, if only for the Vampire lord. The ability to spend a command point to chuck an extra, EXTRA attack onto a death unit could have been great! If only we had command points. That being said, Blood Knights are arguably superior to Kavalos Deathriders, having a better profile, way more damage on the charge, they have the same Battleshock immunity your guys do and they have a better save against rend - weapons. If you're not going into Petrifex Elite and you don't have something to buff up a lone squad of Deathriders or two, then consider getting the Blood Knights, they only cost slightly more for a rather large set of bonuses, as well as self-healing.
*'''Rampagers:''' This is probably what you want to take. 6 point per fugly marauder model that moves d6" after depliyment is a great forward screen. Take two units of 20 to occupy board space, grab early objectives, or even screen against opponent's deep strikes. For 120pts (instead of your regular 130pts for mortek guard) you get double the wounds, worse saves, better movement and vulnerability to battleshock. Bump the unit up to 40 dudes and you're only paying 5 points per model. This is skaven level of screening efficiency right here! Quantity is a quality of its own.
*'''Skroug’s Menagerie:''' A very high entry cost lets you take some inexpensive screens. Because of the giant's tax, those cheap dogs and spawn aren't so cheap anymore.
*'''Sons of the Lichemaster:''' The funniest option. Bring your necromancer and 3 squads of skeletons to have some baby skeletons take bullets (read charges) for your big-boy skeletons. Definitely take them if you want something to hold backfield objectives. Also the only way to include a corpse cart and a plus one to casting is always so sweet.
*'''Tenebrous Court:''' Probably your best choice for some speedy screen, could lead to some interesting combinations. Since we don't have command points, we are stuck with Courtiers to bring serfs back to full strength. If you can afford it, consider bringing Duke Crackmarrow and his Grymwatch to serve as dedicated monster hunters.

{{Age_of_Sigmar_Tactics}}

Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Death/Ossiarch Bonereapers

2020-03-04T22:58:22Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Cons */

{{Age of Sigmar Faction|Faction=Ossiarch Bonereapers|Logo=Immortis-WC2.jpg|Alliance=Death|Motto=The Skeleton War is upon us! We ride against the fuckboys!}}

Nagash has got a bone to pick with the Mortal Realms!

==Why play Ossiarch Bonereapers?==

===Pros===
* They're SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS!
* You liked playing super-elite units like Blood Knights? Well you now play a different elite FACTION!
* These guys have default, army-wide [[Awesome|'''immunity''']] to Battleshock, baby! Not just bravery 10 like other death factions or the Dinosaur Men (Starborne version), these guys DO... NOT... FLEE... EVER!
* They're durable, even for undead. On top of tough, well-armored troops, they have ways to boost saves, re-roll saves and a tanky bodyguard unit for HEROES. They become even more durable if you use the Petrifex Elite Legion.
* Point-for-point, they have probably some of the strongest warscrolls of the game. At base, few units can beat their ossiarch counterpart.
* Relentless Discipline Points must be used instead of Command Points. That means things that screw with CP won't work on them, and you have mechanics to gain RDP throughout the game. Despite this, they still benefit from Command Abilities.
* They don't rely on heroes as much as other Death armies; unit champions have the HEKATOS keyword and can give a smaller radius of 6+ Deathless saves and don't use command points. Losing heroes isn't the game-ender that it is for other undead armies.
* Almost everything is 3+ to hit, which is augmented by...
* Lots of rolls modifiers, especially the terrain piece and spells.
* A few pleasant reminders of Nehekhara for you Tomb Kings fans, such as a vulture being called a Carrion and war machine that hurls flaming skulls.
* They collect protection payments of bone like a skeletal version of the Mafia.
* Part of the reason for their existence is to troll Sigmarines.
* Mortek Guard and Kavalos Deathriders are strong contenders for best battleline units in the game.
* Nagash, [[Arkhan the Black|bro-tier mini-Nagash]] and the Morghasts are part of the army roster; [[Awesome|they also benefit from keywords and Battle Traits]].
* You can heal every unit or character, self-heals are a thing and they're not spells so opponents can't block them.
* If you like bone puns...

===Cons===
* Most of your army is slow, with a few exceptions. There are a few abilities to mitigate this.
* Shooting is almost non-existent apart from the Mortek Crawler, as there's only the mediocre Gothizzar Harvester's and Nagash's laser eyes only work once a turn.
* No protection at all against shooting. Most notably, morteks and stalkers reroll saves only in combat, so shooting armies tend to really hurt the Ossiarchs.
** On that note, Kharadron Overlords will likely give you a hard time.
* No summoning or deepstrike/teleportation mechanic at all. The army is quite straightforward and previsible as a whole, and lack many tricks. Any decent opponent know what you will do.
* No strike first/strike twice/attack in hero phase mechanics at all, which are VERY important when you want to win the fight.
* The army lack in Mortal Wounds. While good rend and multi-damage are easy to find, Mortal Wounds are much rarer, and Ossiarchs tend to bounce on really armored units if stalkers aren't around.
* Magic is average and mostly around buffing allies and debuffing ennemies. Sure, Nagash and Arkhan are there, but the magic lore is still unimpressive, especially compared to real magical factions (looking at you, Tzeentch and Seraphon).
* [[Fail|No allies]]; their foreign policy makes the Daughters of Khaine look like the Stormcast Eternals. (still have mercenaries though - unless you bring Nagash or Arkhan).
* Apart from the Mortek Guard, when you bring 5 guys, almost everybody else brings 10. So if your opponent is on a objective you need to <s>smash him in the knee caps</s> can't smash knee caps, you need them for the tithe... just cut their legs out from under them.
* Some of the models look a bit cheesy or weird depending who you ask, especially Katakros' model (seriously, a bone bulge?)
* Hope you like bone puns...

==Rulebooks==
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Ossiarch Bonereapers}}

==Allegiance Abilities==
===Battle Traits===
*'''Ranks Unbroken by Dissent:''' [[Awesome|Do not take battleshock tests for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPER units]]. Yes, you read that right, immunity to Battleshock. Your enemy's only options are killing, flee or be killed. In addition, you do not generate Command Points. Instead, you generate Relentless Discipline Points at the start of each battle round but lose them when you generate your next batch (they should be all spend before that happens).
**Generate a Relentless Discipline Point if:
*** EACH {{AOSKeyword|Ossiarch Bonereapers Hero}} - 1
*** EACH Warscroll Battalion - 1
*** EACH Friendly {{AOSKeyword|LIEGE}} - 1
*** If KATAKROS is the general and on the battlefield - 3
*** Roll a die for each UNIT with the {{AOSKeyword|OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS}} keyword, including the previous {{AOSKeyword|HEROES}}. On a 6, you get 1.
**Unfortunately, you can't use the Generic or Scenario command abilities (rerolling Run, charge, shooting rolls) but you have a ton of CAs that will Guzzle your DP.

*'''Deathless Warriors''': It's Deathless Minions from Legions of Nagash, albeit with a rename. It allows you to ignore wounds and mortal wounds on a 6+. However, you'll be able to get more mileage out of it than other Death armies, as any unit wholly within 12" of a {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS Hero}} or 6" of a Hekatos (i.e: the leader for your battlelines) count for the ability, removing the need to have your Heroes babysitting your units. Units that are {{AOSKeyword|HEKATOS}} (elite bone warriors units) always benefit from the ability, allowing them to strike out entirely unsupported.

*'''Unstoppable Advance (CA)''': In Movement Phase. Pick 1 unit within X" of a hero or hekatos. +3" movement. It can still run OR charge. You cannot pick the same unit more than once per phase.

===Command Traits===

====Liege-Kavalos====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dark Acolyte:''' Becomes a 1 cast/unbind {{AOSKeyword|WIZARD}} with one Mortisan Lore spell.
*'''Peerless Warrior:''' Melee wound rolls of 6 deal an extra mortal wound.
*'''Hatred of the Living:''' +1 to hit in melee (including their mount) against non-{{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} units.
*'''Life-stealer:''' If they kill any models in combat, heal 1d3 wounds at the end of that phase.

====Mortisan====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dire Ultimatum:''' -2 to Bravery for enemies within 12". Although it requires coordinating a couple of units, you can cause a MASSIVE debuff to enemy Bravery by combining this and the Scroll of Command (see below).
*'''Grave-sand Bones:''' Knows an extra spell from the Lore of the Mortisans.
*'''Oathbreaker Curse:''' Every time your opponent gets a CP, on a d6 roll of 6 it is lost. Obviously Katakros does it better, but this does work more than once per turn if your enemy has CP-generating abilities.
*'''Soul Energy:''' You can re-roll casting, unbinding and dispelling rolls, but whenever you do you take a mortal wound.

===Artefacts===
*'''Relics of the Kavaloi (Liege-Kavalos)'''
#'''Mind Blade:''' Pick one of bearer’s melee weapons. If unmodified hit roll is a 6, and target is a hero, opponent loses a Command Point and the hero can’t use command abilities for the rest of the battle. Apart from only working on sixes this is incredible.
#'''Lordly Phylactery:''' Once per battle start of any phase, gain D3 RD points.
#'''Scroll of Command:''' Subtract 2 Bravery from enemy units within 6” of bearer. Only really recommended if you're going for Mortis Praetorians (see their Legion description for more information). Although, a Liege-Kavalos with this, with a Mortisan general with the Dire Ultimatum command trait nearby drops enemy Bravery by a whopping -4!
#'''Grave-sand Boneplates:''' At the end of the combat phase, roll dice for each enemy unit within 3”, on a 4+ that unit suffers a mortal wound. Vies with Helm of the Ordained for best choice.
#'''Marrow Pact:''' Once per battle, in hero phase pick one enemy unit within 6” of bearer. On a 3+, unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, heal the same number of wounds.
#'''Helm of the Ordained:''' Add one to hit rolls for attacks made by {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} units and mounts while wholly within 12” of the bearer. One of the best choices for a Liege-Kavalos.

*'''Tools of the Boneshaper (Boneshapers)'''
#'''Artisan's key:''' Before using the bearer’s bone shaper ability, roll a dice and on a 4+ either you can pick two units instead of one, or the same unit twice within 6”. The best of the three by a narrow margin.
#'''Lode of Saturation:''' At the start of the Hero phase, choose a unit within 1”, deathless warrior battle trait on 5+ instead of 6.
#'''Crafter Gems:''' Hero phase, heal up to 3 wounds. Once the total wounds healed in the battle is 3 you cannot use it any longer.

*'''Treasures of the Soulmason (Soulmasons)'''
#'''Gothizzar Cartouche:''' +1 to melee wound rolls for units wholly within 9” of bearer if target does not have Death keyword. The best option if you're not facing {{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} armies.
#'''Soul Reservior:''' +2 to cast, but if casting roll is unmodified 10+ artifact cannot be used again.
#'''Thorne of Dzendt:''' +2 to wounds and +2 attacks for mount. A good all around choice, especially for keeping your chair bound wizard safe.

*'''Weapons of the Soulreaper (Soulreapers)'''
#'''Luminscythe:''' minus 1 for hit rolls targeting bearer. +1 casting rolls for bearer for Lore of Mortisans or warscroll spell.
#'''Vial of Binding:''' Once per battle in hero phase, pick enemy model within 12" of bearer and roll a D6. If roll is equal or greater than the wound characteristic they are slain. The best choice if you take a Soul Reaper, and the obvious choice for offensive.
#'''Guardian Reavsoul:''' Negate wound on a 5+ instead of 6+ for deathless minions. Can shatter to negate last wound if about to die. If you're not taking Vial of Binding, this is the go-to choice.

===Spell Lore===
#'''Arcane Command:''' CV5. Gain D3 Relentless Discipline Points. Nice if you've got an extra spell, or had some bad luck with your rolls.
# '''Empower Nadirite Weapons: ''' CV5. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, the units Nadirite Weapons ability explodes on a 5+ instead of 6, or 4+ if its a {{AOSKeyword|DEATHRIDERS}} attacking with spears after charging.
# '''Protection of Nagash: ''' CV6. 5+ FNP for the caster. If any wounds get through your FNP, and the caster isn't slain, remove them from the battlefield after all wounds have been allocated, and place them anywhere on the board 9" away from enemy models then dispel this spell. Great for getting important casters out of sticky situations, or absolutely hilarious on Nagash if you wanna fuck with your opponent.
# '''Reinforce Battle-shields: ''' CV6. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit armed with Shields or Nadirite Battle-shields wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, they gain a 5+ FNP but only for mortal wounds. Pair this with a gothizzar harvester, the reroll saves command ability and the fossil legion for some truly unkillable troops.
# '''Drain Vitality: ''' CV6. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. Until your next hero phase, reroll unmodified hit and save rolls of 6 made by that unit. Good for blunting a spooky unit's charge, but less useful than the other options available.
# '''Mortal Contract: ''' CV7. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. For the rest of the '''BATTLE''', roll a die at the end of any phase that the unit dealt damage to a friendly {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit (but only if it was with an attack). On 3+, the cursed unit suffers D3 mortal wounds. Lawdy, this is probably the most obnoxious spell we can sling, if you can remember who you marked the entire game. Great into low unit-count armies.

===Endless Spells===

An important distinction to note between these Endless Spells and others that exist is that the ones presented below have the '''Soul-Linked''' ability, meaning they always move before Endless Spells without the Soul-Linked ability and are controlled by the casting Player only, meaning your opponent cannot control these Endless Spells to mess with your plans. However on the flip side, the Wizard who cast the spell has a -1 to his casting rolls and cannot cast anymore soul-linked spells while their soul-linked endless spell is up. If the caster dies then the soul-linked spell is also dispelled, so keep him alive if you want the spells to last.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Bone-tithe-Shrieker-en.pdf Bone-tithe Shrieker]''': Gives -1 bravery, and +1 to be hit to enemy units within 12" of it. Simple, but effective. Place it just in front of your battle line to make the enemy think twice, or use it to make holding an objective less than desirable.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Soulstealer-Carrion-en.pdf Soulstealer Carrion]''': Gives LOS to the Soul-Linked wizard. You won't be taking it for this. Instead, you'll be taking it for it's actual ability: Soul Thief. Roll a D6 at the end of each Phase if any Chaos, Order, or Destruction models were slain within 6" of it. On a 1 or 2, the Wizard this Endless Spell is Soul-Linked with heals a wound. On a 3 or 4, it does 1 Mortal Wound on each Chaos, Destruction or Order unit within 6" of it, and on a 5-6, it does both effects. AMAZINGLY fun, if you're not playing into death, so do with that as you will.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nightmare-Predator-en.pdf The Nightmare Predator]''': You standard causes Mortal Wounds Endless Spell (dealing D3 Mortal Wounds to all non-bonecasts within 3" of it), but with a twist - when cast, pick an enemy Hero to be marked as it's prey. If this spell gets within range of them, it spits out d6 mortal wounds instead. For it's dirt cheap point cost, this is almost auto-include.

==<span style=color:Gray>Famous Legions</span>==
<big>Mortis Praetorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''The Dread Legion''':-1 bravery to enemy units within 12".
*'''Command Trait''': '''Katakros' Chosen''': Once per battle if the general is on the Battlefield, gain D3 RDP points.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Counter-strike''': Pick a friendly unit within 6" of a HEKATOS or 12" of a HERO. If charged, they can re-roll hits.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Artificer's Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons. It has -3 Rend.
The poster boys, the jack-of-all-trades and the best choice if you’re bringing Katakros, otherwise it's quite situational since other death armies do "fear-bomb" better (looking at you, Legions of Grief and Blood).

<big>Petrifex Elite</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Unstoppable Juggernauts''': Add +1 to their saves.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Mighty Archaeossian''': +2 Wounds.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Bludgeon''': In the combat phase, give a unit +1 rend on one weapon, can't stack.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Godbone Armor''': The first wound allocated to the bearer in each '''phase''' is negated.
The tanky choice, the best all-rounder and <s>arguably</s> IS the best overall. Makes your entire army (including Nagash) stupidly tanky, gives your commander a few extra wounds for a chuckle, lets you put some durability on a caster via the relic (especially useful if you're bringing some Endless Spells), AND comes with a command ability that makes you killy, just to throw your opponent for a loop.

<big>Null Myriad</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Eldritch Nulls''': Ignore the effects of spells on a 5+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Unsettling and Sinister''': -1 to Bravery in 3", and -1 to be hit during combat phase.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Holdfast''': Make the battle trait work on a 2+ instead of 5+.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Baleful Blade''': Pick 1 of the bearer's weapons. [[Awesome|Saves can't be made against attacks from this weapon and wounds can't be negated]] (though they can later be healed).
The magic choice. Their innate rules mean you can focus more on offensive magic, and the Artefact is perfect for any combat character... but is obviously best on a Liege-Kavalos. Competes with the Petrifex Elite for the best default choice, but if your meta is very magic heavy, this choice is clear (hint: it's probably still petrifex). Make those six hallowheart battlemages cry because they can do nothing to you (and then notice that you can't probably do much to them either, so the battle is probably a void of winds of magic).

<big>Ivory Host</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': If a unit has suffered wounds or a friendly IVORY HOST unit within 6" (not wholly within, just within) has suffered wounds, get +1 to hit, but -1 save.
*'''Command Trait''': Every hero phase your general gains 1 attack for all his melee weapons on a 5+. Best to have a Liege-Kavalos as your general for this.
*'''Command Ability''': Cancel the -1 save from the battle trait. This is what makes the Ivory host interesting, letting you pull some shenanigans with a screen unit or pulling some clutch damage out at a vital time.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Beastbound Blade''': One of the bearer's melee weapons gets +1 attack.
The combat choice, though dependent on good dice rolls. Decent, but there are better options.

<big>Stalliarch Lords</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': Run and charge. Pretty good for increasing your threat range on a slow army.
*'''Command Trait''': Pick an enemy hero within 3" at the start of the combat phase. Gain +1 to hit against it but -1 to anything else. Pretty situational and lackluster.
*'''Command Ability''': Retreat and charge in the same turn. Good for repositioning or getting your charge bonuses again. Here's looking at you, Deathriders.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Nadir-Bound Mount''': Can only be taken by a Liege-Kavalos. They roll D3 additional dice for their Unstoppable Charge ability.
The speedy and somewhat trollish choice. Do you wanna go fast? Do you want a liege or Zandtos to run fast next to fast cavalry? Or if you take a Liege make them hit like a ton of bricks? Then go these guys. They let you skimp out of the costly battalion with their inherent command ability, and make your already fast cavalry even faster. They even pair well with Stalkers, Morghast Harbingers or Harvesters, to just really irritate your opponent.

<big>Crematorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Immolation''': When a model dies you get a chance to cause MW to an enemy within 3" on a 5+, with monsters and characters adding 1 to their roll/going off on a 4+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Wrathful Avenger''': If the general dies, add 2 to the dice roll for Immolation and it does D3 Mortal Wounds rather than 1.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Levelers of Cities''': One friendly CREMATORIANS unit with 6" of a Hekatros or 12" of a hero ignores cover saves.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Searing Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons and add 1 to the Damage characteristic.
the TRUE trolling choice. Paired with some revives and harvesters, and laugh as your opponent realizes that killing your models meant their guys died and then revived the dudes they just tried to kill, rinse and repeat.

==<span style=color:Gray>Warscrolls<span>==
The common keywords of these warscrolls are: '''DEATH''', '''OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS'''

===Leaders===
====Named Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Katakros-Mortarch-of-the-Necropolis-en.pdf Orpheon Katakros, Mortarch of the Necropolis]''': (500pts) Like Skarbrand, his attacks get stronger the more wounds he takes. Katakros himself has [[Awesome|Rend and Damage 3]] and he can bop foes with his shield to dole out Mortal Wounds, so he can dish out some hurt in combat, but not until he's taken some wounds representing his companions dying so Katakros himself joins the fray. However, he is one of the slowest characters in the game - 4" move (which doesn’t much matter when he’s on a '''12 centimetre''' base, and you can use the Relentless Advance to make Katakros move 7'') and can't fly, but Mortarch of Necropolis allows Katakros to heal up to three friendly OBR units wholly within 24" of his model for 3 wounds worth on your hero phase. Katakros is a friendly OBR unit within 24" of himself, so he can choose to heal himself for 3 wounds every one of your hero phases. Because he is so slow, he hates cannons even more than his boss so engage shooty armies at your own risk. He's pricey in points and cash, but you get what you pay for - no more no less - as he's a good beatstick and support character, just don't try to send him up against other super combat lords who have a damage of 3 or better because he can easily get his shit kicked in, especially if they're wearing the Ethereal Amulet or have some serious wound negation. If your opponent is fielding a character with either (or worse, both) then make sure to screen him out. It's better to not get him in combat and keep your Relentless Discipline points, heals and Command Point sabotage than it is for you to possibly lose all of those.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nagash-Supreme-Lord-of-the-Undead-en.pdf Nagash, Supreme Lord of the Undead]''': (880pts) Changed from his early forms, Nagash is now 30 points more expensive, and no longer loots the spells from all of his Death-based allies. (but he does know the whole spell lore by default.) Instead, he can now restore wounds/models to 5 of his Bonecast Eternals, and can sling Mystic Shield and Arcane Bolt as much as his undead heart (and casting limit) desire.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arkhan-the-Black-Mortarch-of-Sacrament-en.pdf Arkhan the Black, Mortarch of Sacrament]''': (360pts) Much like Nagash, Arkhan is more expensive now, at a "whopping" 20 points more than before. With an extra cast and deny, and the ability to sling Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield like his Boss, (along with learning the whole spell lore,) it sounds like that price increase came with some buffs. However, overall Arkhan's in a slightly more disappointing place. Curse of Years no longer succeeds on 1s, meaning it's slightly more fair, and his command ability has now been limited to one use a turn, spoiling an awful lot of fun that could have been had.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arch-Kavalos-Zandtos-en.pdf Arch-Kavalos Patru Zandtos]''': (220pts) A named Mortis Praetorians Liego-Kavalos, with additional abilities like more damage on the charge, rerolls to wound, and another CA that grants a Praetorians unit the same reroll ability. A good choice for leader, especially in Mortis Praetorians, unless you have a specific Legion or combo in mind.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Volkmortian-Master-of-the-Bone-tithe-en.pdf Vokmortion, Master of the Bone-tithe]''': (180pts) He is a Wizard that should be very close to the front lines. He has a chance to prevent a model within 3" from attacking him on a 5+ as a defense. He also has a 12" aura of -1 to bravery and -1 to any Wizard attempting to unbind any spell he casts (which improves in that rare instance an enemy General dies near him). His Unique spell can instantly kill any model within 1" of him on a 5+, and the range on it cannot be modified, which can be used to punish any foolish combat heroes or big monsters he ends up fighting - though it is a bit unreliable to make him a dedicated assassin. Overall, he should be standing behind your troops (ideally Immortis Guard or Mortek Guard), providing the debuff and using his 2 spells per turn.

====Generic Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Liege-Kavalso-en.pdf Liege-Kavalos]''': (200pts) Your commander on a big-boned mount that gives two guaranteed Relentless Discipline points. Lots of decent attacks, but nothing too nutty. When he charges he has an increased pile in and the ability to fling out some extra mortal wounds. His Command Ability gives a unit wholly within 12" +1 attack. He probably functions best running with some deathriders for a spoopy cavalry wing, though having him roam around your anvils can make for some good time damage output.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulreaper-en.pdf Mortisan Soulreaper]''': (120pts) Our CC battlemage, though with his weapon the most he'll be reaping is chaff mobs. His unique spell lets him smack one unit at range, or every unit in CC with him with a few mortal wounds. Probably our worst unit, as outside of his spell-slinging, he's basically a really expensive cairn wraith from nighthaunt. Look elsewhere, unless you really love his amazing model.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Boneshaper-en.pdf Mortisan Boneshaper]''': (130pts) Probably your most included HQ. With the ability to restore 3 wounds (or 3 wounds worth of boys (raise 3 Mortek Guard, or 1 Kavalos Deathriders everything else has 4+ wounds)) to a friendly squad and sling a few spells, he feels close to auto-include, especially if you left Nagash or Arkhan at home. His unique spell lets him fling [[Awesome|BONESTORM!]] at an enemy unit, roll for each model within 18" and every 6 deals a mortal wound, a nice anti-horde spell being easy to cast on 5. Keep him out of combat and out of LoS so he can spend your whole game building bonecasts in a dark corner away from anyone else.
** Boneshapers and Immortis Guard are a good match, as they can take wounds for him and he can heal them if they take too many hits.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulmason-en.pdf Mortisan Soulmason]''': (140pts) The grand vizier will see you now. He's got a passable melee profile, but that's not why you take him. He's a wizard with 2 casts and unbinds and a unique spell, Soul-Guide, that gives a friendly Ossiarch Bonereapers unit the ability to reroll 1's to hit. Pretty good so far, but it gets better. At the end of your hero phase, on a 2+ cast Soul-Guide more times even if it was already attempted that turn. Basically, bring him when you're spamming catapults (or anything, really) and spread the re-rolling to hit love.
** For extra fun, his potential multiple casts force the enemy to consider whether to unbind these spells or other spells.

===Battleline===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Guard-en.pdf Mortek Guard]''': (Battleline, 130/440pts, Min:10, Max:40) Your basic skellies are a decently-protected lot with a 4+ save. Their basic weapons are 2 attacks with -1 Rend sword or a spear, both can double the hits inflicted on a 6+ to hit. The greatblade, on the other hand, trades that for a slightly better wound score, which isn't remarkable but at least keeps the sword's Rend. Their slow speed is helped by their banner giving them +1 to runs and charges, and the +3" move order mentioned above. A good choice for loadout is sword for smaller units and spears for bigger units.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': This boy is a mini-HQ that gives to your Relentless Discipline pool and keys to a lot of other things. (in big units you have to pack a lot of models very close together to have Deathless Warriors). He's only got an attack more than the base guard, but he also confers a command ability that lets his pack re-roll all saves for the combat phase - much more valuable for their survival.
** With the Petrifex Elite, you can take the spears and use the Petrifex command ability to give them rend, just save the spears for larger units of Mortek Guard.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Kavalos-Deathriders-en.pdf Kavalos Deathriders]''': (Battleline, 180/460pts, Min:5, Max:15) Your basic skellies, but on a horse! When compared to their foot-slogging brothers, these guys have +1 attack and 3 wounds each, the 2 extra pony swings we all know and love (actually, even their horses are on steroids, wounding on a 3+), and a whopping 12" move compared to the former's 4". Not only that, but their spears have exploding hits on a 5+ roll on the charge, giving you a bit more reason to consider selling the rend on your swords.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': Much like the Mortek Guard, the Deathrider's hekatos has +1 attack with their weapon, but his command ability gives you some mortal wound output on the charge and a double-range pile in. FAQ'd to confirm a unit can only benefit from this once per phase.

===Hekatos===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Necropolis-Stalkers-en.pdf Necropolis Stalkers]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:6) Speedy, Re-rolling, <s>tyranid warriors </s> skeleton boys. Each turn, these massive lads pick whether they want to re-roll hits, wounds, saves, or add +1 to their weapons' Rend and Damage. While rerolling saves is nice when you get charged by something scary, you'll almost always use +1 rend and damage, as it turns your basic stalker into a stormcast blender, and your unit leader <s>into a literal monster</s> into an equally strong blender as the normal weapons, when enhanced with -1 rend and +1 dmg, are actually stronger than the special weapon, proven by Mathhammer. Their command ability that lets them re-roll run and charge rolls while also ignoring terrain as if they could fly.
** Another option is to run them with a Soulmason equipped with the Gothizzar Cartouche in support which gives +1 to wound rolls. Now, assuming you also have Katakros on the board and you can get Soul-Guide onto your Stalkers then the best Aspect to run is the Destroyer Aspect because this combo would then mean your hitting on 2's and re-rolling 1's '''AND''' wounding on 2's and re-rolling 1's (with spirit blades)
** Upon testing with Mathhammer, in this precise scenario, precision still pulls far ahead if you take 3 of the normal weapons and give them all of these buffs. There is around an average damage difference of 5 per round.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Immortis-Guard-en.pdf Immortis Guard]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:12)The Anvil to the stalker's hammer. These guys have a lower damage output, with 2 3+/3+/-2/2 damage (though the base rend 2 is nice), and the ability to bop someone with their shields for a bit of extra damage, with the occasional mortal wound when rolling a 6. Their main draw, however, is their base 3+ save and bodyguard ability. Whenever they're within 3" of a friendly hero, on a 2+ they must eat a wound or mortal wound that would have been applied to said hero. Their command ability lets them immediately pile in and swing again after their first go, but only with their shields. Less than impressive, but nice for positioning. Having two weapons means they get more out of the Liege's extra attack command ability, and with their own on top of that the mortal wounds do become bit more reliable.
*'''Morghasts [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Archai-en.pdf Archai] & [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Harbingers-en.pdf Harbingers]''': (210pts, Min:2, Max:6) Nagash's angels of death come in 2 flavors, with the archai having a chance to shrug off mortal wounds, and harbingers getting a 3d6 charge. Beyond those differences either one is monstrous combatants (always take the halberd for 3 attacks at 3+/3+/-2/3), and tough to boot, with 6 wounds 4+ armor and being Hekatos for the death save. They also have a bravery debuff as a bonus. It's worth noting that they are more expensive in a bonereaper army, but that may change in either direction depending on the next general's handbook, or some early FAQing.
** See the above option for Stalkers and apply to Morghasts - you'll loose out on the re-rolling wounds but up the rend to -2 and the damage to 3 (with halberds) so the Mathammer will result in more wounds on average (even if you run swords) - only real issue with this is keep up with the Morghasts on your bone throne

===Behemoths===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Gothizzar-Harvester-en.pdf Gothizzar Harvester]''': (200pts, Behemoth) Big guy has 10 wounds and a 4+ save. Has good damage potential with 4 solid ranged attacks and a BUNCH of 2 damage melee swings, with a choice between bludgeons or sickles. These weapons have the exact same melee stats, but different effects. Bludgeons do 2 mortal wounds on unmodified hits of 6 instead of normal damage, (basically giving the guy a Nighthaunt's frightful touch) while the sickles get +1 to hit against units with 5+ models. The Bludgeons are the better choice, as there are other ways to boost hit rolls and Mortal Wounds are useful whoever you're up against. More importantly than that, this guy is a healer. Each time any models (friend or foe) die within 3" of him, he can heal an Ossiarch Bonereaper unit within 6" on a 4+. The heals he gives depends on the wounds characteristic of the model slain. It's worth noting he can do this to himself, making his relatively fragile 10 wounds and 4+ save last a little longer.
**For the Crematorians, this guy makes the list even more trollish. Camp him by your Mortek Guard, and when they die and cause mortal wounds, he can heal them right back up. Free mortal wounds, anyone?
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Crawler-en.pdf Mortek Crawler]''': (200pts, Artillery, Behemoth) The most trolltastic catapult in all of AoS. With a nice 36" range and solid durability, it starts as a remarkably strong springboard for the absolute terror of its ammo types. Once per battle, you can fire a different choice of ammo from two different options and their effects are trolltastically memeable.
**Necrotic Skulls: Your normal shots. You're getting a pretty hefty 3 2+/3+/-/variable shots that start at 5 damage, and dips down to 1 as the model takes damage. Good as a general all-rounder, but pales in comparison to what follows.
***Just to reiterate however: 3 shots at 5 damage initially. Although lack of rend hurts, this is a horde killing volley beyond compare, particularly as their hit and wound rolls are so good.
**Cauldron of Torment: the first of the meme shots. Instead of firing like normal, you roll a dice for every model in the target unit, and whenever you meet or beat their '''UNMODIFIED''' Bravery, one model is slain. "But Anon," you reply, "lots of units have high Bravery! That's not good," To which I say, sure, you're right. this isn't good against undead, Stormcast, or Chaos, but do you know what it IS good against? grots, where you wipe half of whatever squad you fire at. Or freeguild, where you gun down a third of whatever unit you want in a ghostly fog. And we're STILL not done with this bad boy.
**Cursed Stele: Does your local meta not really do hordes? Or do they just love low model-count armies with high leadership? Well, have I got a unit for you! Instead of shooting normally, pick a model within range (so, characters, banners, unit leaders, etc.) and roll 2d6. If you roll equal to or higher than their wound stat, the guy dies (with some modifiers, starting at -3 to your roll, slowly turning to +3 as you lose wounds). This right here is disgusting. With an average roll of 4, you kill support heroes about 60% of the time or get to guaranteed snipe off important banners or unit champions whenever you're feeling cheeky. Did that daemon prince swoop in and drop you to 1 wound? Wouldn't it be great if his failure meant your average roll is now a 10 and insta-gibs the winged sexy, sexy biscuit daemon? (Lovely to consider, but the 6" minimum range on the Crawler's attacks means if it's in melee it's been neutered - protect at all costs!)

===Scenery===
*'''Bone-tithe Nexus''': (0pts) Your mandatory accompanying setpiece is a giant monolith surrounded by bones upon bones. In truth it acts more like a sentry that can chuck out one of four different Punishments each turn: -1 to hit, MW Sniping, causes problem for a wizard, or Can't run and only roll 1d6 for charges. The physical footprint of this thing is BIG. You're supposed to place the terrain before defining and placing any of the game's (neutral) terrain. Placing the damn thing can therefore be problematic in organized events, where terrain is pre-set before the game starts.

==Battalions==
Cohort 100
* The Super Battalion.

<big>'''Aegis Immortal'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''1 Archai, 2 Immortis.''
The ARCHAI from this battalion has the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS ability from the Immortis Guard warscroll. In addition, if you use the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS and the roll is a 5+, the wound/MW is negated instead of allocated to a unit from this battalion. Take with Petrifex Elite to make your characters near unkillable. Solid choice, pun intended, the only drawback is if you want a more offensive playstyle since this is defensive-based.

<big>'''Katakrosian Deathglaive'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''2 Stalkers, 1 Morghast Harbinger''
After units are set up but before the first battleround, if all units from the btn are WHOLLY WITHIN 12" of the Harbingers, you can move any of them up to 6" The best name for a Battalion in all of AoS. Useful for strategic positioning and claiming objectives, it's a decent choice. One foe it does help against is Kharadron Overlords, positioning your Morghasts and Stalkers to better catch their fliers.

<big>'''Kavalos Lance'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 680)
''Arch-Kavalos OR 1 Liege-Kavalos, 2 Kavalos Deathriders.''
Units from this battalion can retreat and charge if wholly within 12" of the Liege when the charge roll is made. In addition, once per turn, you can use the Deathrider Wedge CA for a unit from this battalion without spending RDP. Pretty good, especially if you bring a spellcaster with Empower Nadirite Weapons, moreso if you're running Petrifex to give the weapons extra rend. Just remember it's a waste of points if you're using the Stalliarch Lords legion, because they do this but better and for free.

<big>'''Mortek Ballistari'''</big> 100 pts (min points: 760)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Mortek Guard, 2 Crawlers.''
Roll a die before you allocate a wound/MW to a Crawler from this btn while it is within 3" of the Mortek Guard unit from the same btn. Add 2 if the Crawler is within 3" of the Boneshaper from the same btn. On a 4+, it is instead allocated to the GUARD instead of the CRAWLER.

<big>'''Mortek Shield-corps'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 510)
''Either Volkmortian, a Boneshaper, a Soulreaper OR a Soulmason, and 3 Mortek Guard.''
Once per turn, you can use Shieldwall for one unit in the battalion without spending RDP. The cheapest option, and a decent choice, making your Mortek Guard that much more durable and freeing RDP to be spent elsewhere. Petrifex Mortek Guard will be even tougher with a free re-roll for their 3+ saves, and it's a good safety net if a unit loses their Hekatos.

<big>'''Mortisan Trident'''</big> 110 pts (min points: 700)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Soulreaper, 1 Soulmason, 1 Harvester.''
EACH Mortisan from this battalion can attempt to cast 1 extra spell if WITHIN 18" of the harvester AND the harvester is within 3" of any enemy units.

<big> '''Volkmortian’s Retinue''' </big> 120 pts (min points: 840)
''Volkmortian, 1 Mortek Guard, 1 Stalker, and 1 Archai.''
The exclusive battalion from Feast of Bones. At the start of your hero phase, you can return 1 slain model to a unit within 8 inches of Morty.
This batallion is the armies only reliable method of brining back dead Stalkers and Arachai.

==Army Building==

==Tactics==

===Mr. Arkhan’s Wild Ride===
Take Arkhan the Black as your general, along with two Gothizzar Harvesters and a buttload of Mortek Guard. Finally put them all under the Crematorians legion. Your boney boys will proceed to explode in the faces of the enemy and then be brought back to un-life from the ashes thanks to the Mortarch and Harvesters’ restoration abilities. Is this trolling? Yes. Is it fun? ''Oh yes.'' Also take a Mortisan Boneshaper as a cherry on top for extra heals and bring an Endless Spell or two; cast with Arkhan to laugh off that casting penalty.

===Trolling with Catapults===
Take a Soulmason as your general and put him in a massive blob of 60 Mortek Guard with 4 Mortek Crawlers behind. With some amazing dice rolls (which can be helped by using the Soul Resevoir artefact) the Soulmason can give all 4 Crawlers rerollable hits of 1. The Guard can block any incoming attackers whilst the catapults bombard your enemies from across the table. Even if your skellie dudes are taken out and the enemy damages your Centipedes of Doom it just means that their characters are more likely to be decimated by the most trolling shot in AoS, the Cursed Stele. So just sit back, relax and watch your enemies die before they even reach you.

Alternatively, take 2 of Ballistari batallions. Lose the Soulmason but gain some mad defenses.

==Allied Armies==
No Allies. Nope, none. Nighthaunt hate your guts. Legions of Nagash hate your attitude. Not even the Flesh Eater Courts is crazy enough to be your friend. Don't like it? Go play Stormcast, and go fuck yourself while you're at it.

Really though, this isn't the end of the world. Ossiarch Bonereapers are still strong enough to handle most stuff on their own. The biggest downside here is that you can't really compensate for your weaknesses like some armies can with allies. The biggest upside is that you no longer have to worry that an ally detachment is going to be more efficient than something in your book.

===Mercenary Companies===
It's worth noting that if you ever include Arkhan or Nagash in your list, you're locked out of Mercenaries. However, we dodge the command point punishment, but because we're so expensive it'll be hard to fit much. Try to use these guys to squeeze in some cheap screen or synergies into your army.

*'''Blacksmoke Battery:''' Ranged rend, although even with that they're slightly worse than full health catapults, but then you see the price. Three cannons are going to cost similarly to two catapults (and two are less than 50% more expensive than a single catapult) and with a Cogsmith they will definitely outperform them. This can be mitigated by using your character's abilities to give the catapults extra attacks, but ultimately whether or not you do and which one you end up going for will be up to you, as the results are very similar.
*'''Greyfyrd:''' More elites, but now they have to take bravery tests and have crappier armor and need more synergies that require Command Points.
*'''Grugg Brothers:''' far to costly for not enough gain IMO. If our stuff was cheaper, it'd be a maybe.
*'''Gutstuffers:''' Could be cute with the new ogor rules making maneaters and firebellys both way better, but you bump into the cost problem again
*'''Nimyard’s Rough-Riders:''' Fast shooting is great for an army of slow, plodding melee guys like us. Still probably just ok since you can't use command points and there's no real synergy with your skelemen.
*'''Order of the Blood-Drenched Rose:''' Lore shenanigans aside, this could have been amazing, if only for the Vampire lord. The ability to spend a command point to chuck an extra, EXTRA attack onto a death unit could have been great! If only we had command points. That being said, Blood Knights are arguably superior to Kavalos Deathriders, having a better profile, way more damage on the charge, they have the same Battleshock immunity your guys do and they have a better save against rend - weapons. If you're not going into Petrifex Elite and you don't have something to buff up a lone squad of Deathriders or two, then consider getting the Blood Knights, they only cost slightly more for a rather large set of bonuses, as well as self-healing.
*'''Rampagers:''' This is probably what you want to take. 6 point per fugly marauder model that moves d6" after depliyment is a great forward screen. Take two units of 20 to occupy board space, grab early objectives, or even screen against opponent's deep strikes. For 120pts (instead of your regular 130pts for mortek guard) you get double the wounds, worse saves, better movement and vulnerability to battleshock. Bump the unit up to 40 dudes and you're only paying 5 points per model. This is skaven level of screening efficiency right here! Quantity is a quality of its own.
*'''Skroug’s Menagerie:''' A very high entry cost lets you take some inexpensive screens. Because of the giant's tax, those cheap dogs and spawn aren't so cheap anymore.
*'''Sons of the Lichemaster:''' The funniest option. Bring your necromancer and 3 squads of skeletons to have some baby skeletons take bullets (read charges) for your big-boy skeletons. Definitely take them if you want something to hold backfield objectives. Also the only way to include a corpse cart and a plus one to casting is always so sweet.
*'''Tenebrous Court:''' Probably your best choice for some speedy screen, could lead to some interesting combinations. Since we don't have command points, we are stuck with Courtiers to bring serfs back to full strength. If you can afford it, consider bringing Duke Crackmarrow and his Grymwatch to serve as dedicated monster hunters.

{{Age_of_Sigmar_Tactics}}

Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Death/Ossiarch Bonereapers

2020-03-04T22:57:37Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Cons */

{{Age of Sigmar Faction|Faction=Ossiarch Bonereapers|Logo=Immortis-WC2.jpg|Alliance=Death|Motto=The Skeleton War is upon us! We ride against the fuckboys!}}

Nagash has got a bone to pick with the Mortal Realms!

==Why play Ossiarch Bonereapers?==

===Pros===
* They're SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS!
* You liked playing super-elite units like Blood Knights? Well you now play a different elite FACTION!
* These guys have default, army-wide [[Awesome|'''immunity''']] to Battleshock, baby! Not just bravery 10 like other death factions or the Dinosaur Men (Starborne version), these guys DO... NOT... FLEE... EVER!
* They're durable, even for undead. On top of tough, well-armored troops, they have ways to boost saves, re-roll saves and a tanky bodyguard unit for HEROES. They become even more durable if you use the Petrifex Elite Legion.
* Point-for-point, they have probably some of the strongest warscrolls of the game. At base, few units can beat their ossiarch counterpart.
* Relentless Discipline Points must be used instead of Command Points. That means things that screw with CP won't work on them, and you have mechanics to gain RDP throughout the game. Despite this, they still benefit from Command Abilities.
* They don't rely on heroes as much as other Death armies; unit champions have the HEKATOS keyword and can give a smaller radius of 6+ Deathless saves and don't use command points. Losing heroes isn't the game-ender that it is for other undead armies.
* Almost everything is 3+ to hit, which is augmented by...
* Lots of rolls modifiers, especially the terrain piece and spells.
* A few pleasant reminders of Nehekhara for you Tomb Kings fans, such as a vulture being called a Carrion and war machine that hurls flaming skulls.
* They collect protection payments of bone like a skeletal version of the Mafia.
* Part of the reason for their existence is to troll Sigmarines.
* Mortek Guard and Kavalos Deathriders are strong contenders for best battleline units in the game.
* Nagash, [[Arkhan the Black|bro-tier mini-Nagash]] and the Morghasts are part of the army roster; [[Awesome|they also benefit from keywords and Battle Traits]].
* You can heal every unit or character, self-heals are a thing and they're not spells so opponents can't block them.
* If you like bone puns...

===Cons===
* Most of your army is slow, with a few exceptions. There are a few abilities to mitigate this.
* Shooting is almost non-existent apart from the Mortek Crawler, as there's only the mediocre Gothizzar Harvester's and Nagash's laser eyes only work once a turn.
* No protection at all against shooting. Most notably, morteks and stalkers reroll saves only in combat, so shooting armies tend to really hurt the Ossiarchs.
** On that note, Kharadron Overlords will likely give you a hard time.
* No summoning or deepstrike/teleportation mechanic at all. The army is quite straightforward and previsible as a whole, and lack many tricks. Any decent opponent know what you will do.
* No strike first/strike twice/attack in hero phase mechanics at all, which are VERY important when you want to win the fight.
* The army lack in Mortal Wounds. While good rend and multi-damage are easy to find, Mortal Wounds are much rarer, and Ossiarchs tend to bounce on really armored units if stalkers aren't around.
* Magic is average and mostly around buffing allies and debuffing ennemies. Sure, Nagash and Arkhan are there, but the magic lore is still unimpressive, especially compared to real magical factions.
* [[Fail|No allies]]; their foreign policy makes the Daughters of Khaine look like the Stormcast Eternals. (still have mercenaries though - unless you bring Nagash or Arkhan).
* Apart from the Mortek Guard, when you bring 5 guys, almost everybody else brings 10. So if your opponent is on a objective you need to <s>smash him in the knee caps</s> can't smash knee caps, you need them for the tithe... just cut their legs out from under them.
* Some of the models look a bit cheesy or weird depending who you ask, especially Katakros' model (seriously, a bone bulge?)
* Hope you like bone puns...

==Rulebooks==
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Ossiarch Bonereapers}}

==Allegiance Abilities==
===Battle Traits===
*'''Ranks Unbroken by Dissent:''' [[Awesome|Do not take battleshock tests for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPER units]]. Yes, you read that right, immunity to Battleshock. Your enemy's only options are killing, flee or be killed. In addition, you do not generate Command Points. Instead, you generate Relentless Discipline Points at the start of each battle round but lose them when you generate your next batch (they should be all spend before that happens).
**Generate a Relentless Discipline Point if:
*** EACH {{AOSKeyword|Ossiarch Bonereapers Hero}} - 1
*** EACH Warscroll Battalion - 1
*** EACH Friendly {{AOSKeyword|LIEGE}} - 1
*** If KATAKROS is the general and on the battlefield - 3
*** Roll a die for each UNIT with the {{AOSKeyword|OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS}} keyword, including the previous {{AOSKeyword|HEROES}}. On a 6, you get 1.
**Unfortunately, you can't use the Generic or Scenario command abilities (rerolling Run, charge, shooting rolls) but you have a ton of CAs that will Guzzle your DP.

*'''Deathless Warriors''': It's Deathless Minions from Legions of Nagash, albeit with a rename. It allows you to ignore wounds and mortal wounds on a 6+. However, you'll be able to get more mileage out of it than other Death armies, as any unit wholly within 12" of a {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS Hero}} or 6" of a Hekatos (i.e: the leader for your battlelines) count for the ability, removing the need to have your Heroes babysitting your units. Units that are {{AOSKeyword|HEKATOS}} (elite bone warriors units) always benefit from the ability, allowing them to strike out entirely unsupported.

*'''Unstoppable Advance (CA)''': In Movement Phase. Pick 1 unit within X" of a hero or hekatos. +3" movement. It can still run OR charge. You cannot pick the same unit more than once per phase.

===Command Traits===

====Liege-Kavalos====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dark Acolyte:''' Becomes a 1 cast/unbind {{AOSKeyword|WIZARD}} with one Mortisan Lore spell.
*'''Peerless Warrior:''' Melee wound rolls of 6 deal an extra mortal wound.
*'''Hatred of the Living:''' +1 to hit in melee (including their mount) against non-{{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} units.
*'''Life-stealer:''' If they kill any models in combat, heal 1d3 wounds at the end of that phase.

====Mortisan====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dire Ultimatum:''' -2 to Bravery for enemies within 12". Although it requires coordinating a couple of units, you can cause a MASSIVE debuff to enemy Bravery by combining this and the Scroll of Command (see below).
*'''Grave-sand Bones:''' Knows an extra spell from the Lore of the Mortisans.
*'''Oathbreaker Curse:''' Every time your opponent gets a CP, on a d6 roll of 6 it is lost. Obviously Katakros does it better, but this does work more than once per turn if your enemy has CP-generating abilities.
*'''Soul Energy:''' You can re-roll casting, unbinding and dispelling rolls, but whenever you do you take a mortal wound.

===Artefacts===
*'''Relics of the Kavaloi (Liege-Kavalos)'''
#'''Mind Blade:''' Pick one of bearer’s melee weapons. If unmodified hit roll is a 6, and target is a hero, opponent loses a Command Point and the hero can’t use command abilities for the rest of the battle. Apart from only working on sixes this is incredible.
#'''Lordly Phylactery:''' Once per battle start of any phase, gain D3 RD points.
#'''Scroll of Command:''' Subtract 2 Bravery from enemy units within 6” of bearer. Only really recommended if you're going for Mortis Praetorians (see their Legion description for more information). Although, a Liege-Kavalos with this, with a Mortisan general with the Dire Ultimatum command trait nearby drops enemy Bravery by a whopping -4!
#'''Grave-sand Boneplates:''' At the end of the combat phase, roll dice for each enemy unit within 3”, on a 4+ that unit suffers a mortal wound. Vies with Helm of the Ordained for best choice.
#'''Marrow Pact:''' Once per battle, in hero phase pick one enemy unit within 6” of bearer. On a 3+, unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, heal the same number of wounds.
#'''Helm of the Ordained:''' Add one to hit rolls for attacks made by {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} units and mounts while wholly within 12” of the bearer. One of the best choices for a Liege-Kavalos.

*'''Tools of the Boneshaper (Boneshapers)'''
#'''Artisan's key:''' Before using the bearer’s bone shaper ability, roll a dice and on a 4+ either you can pick two units instead of one, or the same unit twice within 6”. The best of the three by a narrow margin.
#'''Lode of Saturation:''' At the start of the Hero phase, choose a unit within 1”, deathless warrior battle trait on 5+ instead of 6.
#'''Crafter Gems:''' Hero phase, heal up to 3 wounds. Once the total wounds healed in the battle is 3 you cannot use it any longer.

*'''Treasures of the Soulmason (Soulmasons)'''
#'''Gothizzar Cartouche:''' +1 to melee wound rolls for units wholly within 9” of bearer if target does not have Death keyword. The best option if you're not facing {{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} armies.
#'''Soul Reservior:''' +2 to cast, but if casting roll is unmodified 10+ artifact cannot be used again.
#'''Thorne of Dzendt:''' +2 to wounds and +2 attacks for mount. A good all around choice, especially for keeping your chair bound wizard safe.

*'''Weapons of the Soulreaper (Soulreapers)'''
#'''Luminscythe:''' minus 1 for hit rolls targeting bearer. +1 casting rolls for bearer for Lore of Mortisans or warscroll spell.
#'''Vial of Binding:''' Once per battle in hero phase, pick enemy model within 12" of bearer and roll a D6. If roll is equal or greater than the wound characteristic they are slain. The best choice if you take a Soul Reaper, and the obvious choice for offensive.
#'''Guardian Reavsoul:''' Negate wound on a 5+ instead of 6+ for deathless minions. Can shatter to negate last wound if about to die. If you're not taking Vial of Binding, this is the go-to choice.

===Spell Lore===
#'''Arcane Command:''' CV5. Gain D3 Relentless Discipline Points. Nice if you've got an extra spell, or had some bad luck with your rolls.
# '''Empower Nadirite Weapons: ''' CV5. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, the units Nadirite Weapons ability explodes on a 5+ instead of 6, or 4+ if its a {{AOSKeyword|DEATHRIDERS}} attacking with spears after charging.
# '''Protection of Nagash: ''' CV6. 5+ FNP for the caster. If any wounds get through your FNP, and the caster isn't slain, remove them from the battlefield after all wounds have been allocated, and place them anywhere on the board 9" away from enemy models then dispel this spell. Great for getting important casters out of sticky situations, or absolutely hilarious on Nagash if you wanna fuck with your opponent.
# '''Reinforce Battle-shields: ''' CV6. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit armed with Shields or Nadirite Battle-shields wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, they gain a 5+ FNP but only for mortal wounds. Pair this with a gothizzar harvester, the reroll saves command ability and the fossil legion for some truly unkillable troops.
# '''Drain Vitality: ''' CV6. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. Until your next hero phase, reroll unmodified hit and save rolls of 6 made by that unit. Good for blunting a spooky unit's charge, but less useful than the other options available.
# '''Mortal Contract: ''' CV7. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. For the rest of the '''BATTLE''', roll a die at the end of any phase that the unit dealt damage to a friendly {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit (but only if it was with an attack). On 3+, the cursed unit suffers D3 mortal wounds. Lawdy, this is probably the most obnoxious spell we can sling, if you can remember who you marked the entire game. Great into low unit-count armies.

===Endless Spells===

An important distinction to note between these Endless Spells and others that exist is that the ones presented below have the '''Soul-Linked''' ability, meaning they always move before Endless Spells without the Soul-Linked ability and are controlled by the casting Player only, meaning your opponent cannot control these Endless Spells to mess with your plans. However on the flip side, the Wizard who cast the spell has a -1 to his casting rolls and cannot cast anymore soul-linked spells while their soul-linked endless spell is up. If the caster dies then the soul-linked spell is also dispelled, so keep him alive if you want the spells to last.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Bone-tithe-Shrieker-en.pdf Bone-tithe Shrieker]''': Gives -1 bravery, and +1 to be hit to enemy units within 12" of it. Simple, but effective. Place it just in front of your battle line to make the enemy think twice, or use it to make holding an objective less than desirable.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Soulstealer-Carrion-en.pdf Soulstealer Carrion]''': Gives LOS to the Soul-Linked wizard. You won't be taking it for this. Instead, you'll be taking it for it's actual ability: Soul Thief. Roll a D6 at the end of each Phase if any Chaos, Order, or Destruction models were slain within 6" of it. On a 1 or 2, the Wizard this Endless Spell is Soul-Linked with heals a wound. On a 3 or 4, it does 1 Mortal Wound on each Chaos, Destruction or Order unit within 6" of it, and on a 5-6, it does both effects. AMAZINGLY fun, if you're not playing into death, so do with that as you will.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nightmare-Predator-en.pdf The Nightmare Predator]''': You standard causes Mortal Wounds Endless Spell (dealing D3 Mortal Wounds to all non-bonecasts within 3" of it), but with a twist - when cast, pick an enemy Hero to be marked as it's prey. If this spell gets within range of them, it spits out d6 mortal wounds instead. For it's dirt cheap point cost, this is almost auto-include.

==<span style=color:Gray>Famous Legions</span>==
<big>Mortis Praetorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''The Dread Legion''':-1 bravery to enemy units within 12".
*'''Command Trait''': '''Katakros' Chosen''': Once per battle if the general is on the Battlefield, gain D3 RDP points.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Counter-strike''': Pick a friendly unit within 6" of a HEKATOS or 12" of a HERO. If charged, they can re-roll hits.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Artificer's Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons. It has -3 Rend.
The poster boys, the jack-of-all-trades and the best choice if you’re bringing Katakros, otherwise it's quite situational since other death armies do "fear-bomb" better (looking at you, Legions of Grief and Blood).

<big>Petrifex Elite</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Unstoppable Juggernauts''': Add +1 to their saves.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Mighty Archaeossian''': +2 Wounds.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Bludgeon''': In the combat phase, give a unit +1 rend on one weapon, can't stack.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Godbone Armor''': The first wound allocated to the bearer in each '''phase''' is negated.
The tanky choice, the best all-rounder and <s>arguably</s> IS the best overall. Makes your entire army (including Nagash) stupidly tanky, gives your commander a few extra wounds for a chuckle, lets you put some durability on a caster via the relic (especially useful if you're bringing some Endless Spells), AND comes with a command ability that makes you killy, just to throw your opponent for a loop.

<big>Null Myriad</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Eldritch Nulls''': Ignore the effects of spells on a 5+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Unsettling and Sinister''': -1 to Bravery in 3", and -1 to be hit during combat phase.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Holdfast''': Make the battle trait work on a 2+ instead of 5+.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Baleful Blade''': Pick 1 of the bearer's weapons. [[Awesome|Saves can't be made against attacks from this weapon and wounds can't be negated]] (though they can later be healed).
The magic choice. Their innate rules mean you can focus more on offensive magic, and the Artefact is perfect for any combat character... but is obviously best on a Liege-Kavalos. Competes with the Petrifex Elite for the best default choice, but if your meta is very magic heavy, this choice is clear (hint: it's probably still petrifex). Make those six hallowheart battlemages cry because they can do nothing to you (and then notice that you can't probably do much to them either, so the battle is probably a void of winds of magic).

<big>Ivory Host</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': If a unit has suffered wounds or a friendly IVORY HOST unit within 6" (not wholly within, just within) has suffered wounds, get +1 to hit, but -1 save.
*'''Command Trait''': Every hero phase your general gains 1 attack for all his melee weapons on a 5+. Best to have a Liege-Kavalos as your general for this.
*'''Command Ability''': Cancel the -1 save from the battle trait. This is what makes the Ivory host interesting, letting you pull some shenanigans with a screen unit or pulling some clutch damage out at a vital time.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Beastbound Blade''': One of the bearer's melee weapons gets +1 attack.
The combat choice, though dependent on good dice rolls. Decent, but there are better options.

<big>Stalliarch Lords</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': Run and charge. Pretty good for increasing your threat range on a slow army.
*'''Command Trait''': Pick an enemy hero within 3" at the start of the combat phase. Gain +1 to hit against it but -1 to anything else. Pretty situational and lackluster.
*'''Command Ability''': Retreat and charge in the same turn. Good for repositioning or getting your charge bonuses again. Here's looking at you, Deathriders.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Nadir-Bound Mount''': Can only be taken by a Liege-Kavalos. They roll D3 additional dice for their Unstoppable Charge ability.
The speedy and somewhat trollish choice. Do you wanna go fast? Do you want a liege or Zandtos to run fast next to fast cavalry? Or if you take a Liege make them hit like a ton of bricks? Then go these guys. They let you skimp out of the costly battalion with their inherent command ability, and make your already fast cavalry even faster. They even pair well with Stalkers, Morghast Harbingers or Harvesters, to just really irritate your opponent.

<big>Crematorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Immolation''': When a model dies you get a chance to cause MW to an enemy within 3" on a 5+, with monsters and characters adding 1 to their roll/going off on a 4+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Wrathful Avenger''': If the general dies, add 2 to the dice roll for Immolation and it does D3 Mortal Wounds rather than 1.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Levelers of Cities''': One friendly CREMATORIANS unit with 6" of a Hekatros or 12" of a hero ignores cover saves.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Searing Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons and add 1 to the Damage characteristic.
the TRUE trolling choice. Paired with some revives and harvesters, and laugh as your opponent realizes that killing your models meant their guys died and then revived the dudes they just tried to kill, rinse and repeat.

==<span style=color:Gray>Warscrolls<span>==
The common keywords of these warscrolls are: '''DEATH''', '''OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS'''

===Leaders===
====Named Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Katakros-Mortarch-of-the-Necropolis-en.pdf Orpheon Katakros, Mortarch of the Necropolis]''': (500pts) Like Skarbrand, his attacks get stronger the more wounds he takes. Katakros himself has [[Awesome|Rend and Damage 3]] and he can bop foes with his shield to dole out Mortal Wounds, so he can dish out some hurt in combat, but not until he's taken some wounds representing his companions dying so Katakros himself joins the fray. However, he is one of the slowest characters in the game - 4" move (which doesn’t much matter when he’s on a '''12 centimetre''' base, and you can use the Relentless Advance to make Katakros move 7'') and can't fly, but Mortarch of Necropolis allows Katakros to heal up to three friendly OBR units wholly within 24" of his model for 3 wounds worth on your hero phase. Katakros is a friendly OBR unit within 24" of himself, so he can choose to heal himself for 3 wounds every one of your hero phases. Because he is so slow, he hates cannons even more than his boss so engage shooty armies at your own risk. He's pricey in points and cash, but you get what you pay for - no more no less - as he's a good beatstick and support character, just don't try to send him up against other super combat lords who have a damage of 3 or better because he can easily get his shit kicked in, especially if they're wearing the Ethereal Amulet or have some serious wound negation. If your opponent is fielding a character with either (or worse, both) then make sure to screen him out. It's better to not get him in combat and keep your Relentless Discipline points, heals and Command Point sabotage than it is for you to possibly lose all of those.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nagash-Supreme-Lord-of-the-Undead-en.pdf Nagash, Supreme Lord of the Undead]''': (880pts) Changed from his early forms, Nagash is now 30 points more expensive, and no longer loots the spells from all of his Death-based allies. (but he does know the whole spell lore by default.) Instead, he can now restore wounds/models to 5 of his Bonecast Eternals, and can sling Mystic Shield and Arcane Bolt as much as his undead heart (and casting limit) desire.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arkhan-the-Black-Mortarch-of-Sacrament-en.pdf Arkhan the Black, Mortarch of Sacrament]''': (360pts) Much like Nagash, Arkhan is more expensive now, at a "whopping" 20 points more than before. With an extra cast and deny, and the ability to sling Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield like his Boss, (along with learning the whole spell lore,) it sounds like that price increase came with some buffs. However, overall Arkhan's in a slightly more disappointing place. Curse of Years no longer succeeds on 1s, meaning it's slightly more fair, and his command ability has now been limited to one use a turn, spoiling an awful lot of fun that could have been had.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arch-Kavalos-Zandtos-en.pdf Arch-Kavalos Patru Zandtos]''': (220pts) A named Mortis Praetorians Liego-Kavalos, with additional abilities like more damage on the charge, rerolls to wound, and another CA that grants a Praetorians unit the same reroll ability. A good choice for leader, especially in Mortis Praetorians, unless you have a specific Legion or combo in mind.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Volkmortian-Master-of-the-Bone-tithe-en.pdf Vokmortion, Master of the Bone-tithe]''': (180pts) He is a Wizard that should be very close to the front lines. He has a chance to prevent a model within 3" from attacking him on a 5+ as a defense. He also has a 12" aura of -1 to bravery and -1 to any Wizard attempting to unbind any spell he casts (which improves in that rare instance an enemy General dies near him). His Unique spell can instantly kill any model within 1" of him on a 5+, and the range on it cannot be modified, which can be used to punish any foolish combat heroes or big monsters he ends up fighting - though it is a bit unreliable to make him a dedicated assassin. Overall, he should be standing behind your troops (ideally Immortis Guard or Mortek Guard), providing the debuff and using his 2 spells per turn.

====Generic Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Liege-Kavalso-en.pdf Liege-Kavalos]''': (200pts) Your commander on a big-boned mount that gives two guaranteed Relentless Discipline points. Lots of decent attacks, but nothing too nutty. When he charges he has an increased pile in and the ability to fling out some extra mortal wounds. His Command Ability gives a unit wholly within 12" +1 attack. He probably functions best running with some deathriders for a spoopy cavalry wing, though having him roam around your anvils can make for some good time damage output.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulreaper-en.pdf Mortisan Soulreaper]''': (120pts) Our CC battlemage, though with his weapon the most he'll be reaping is chaff mobs. His unique spell lets him smack one unit at range, or every unit in CC with him with a few mortal wounds. Probably our worst unit, as outside of his spell-slinging, he's basically a really expensive cairn wraith from nighthaunt. Look elsewhere, unless you really love his amazing model.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Boneshaper-en.pdf Mortisan Boneshaper]''': (130pts) Probably your most included HQ. With the ability to restore 3 wounds (or 3 wounds worth of boys (raise 3 Mortek Guard, or 1 Kavalos Deathriders everything else has 4+ wounds)) to a friendly squad and sling a few spells, he feels close to auto-include, especially if you left Nagash or Arkhan at home. His unique spell lets him fling [[Awesome|BONESTORM!]] at an enemy unit, roll for each model within 18" and every 6 deals a mortal wound, a nice anti-horde spell being easy to cast on 5. Keep him out of combat and out of LoS so he can spend your whole game building bonecasts in a dark corner away from anyone else.
** Boneshapers and Immortis Guard are a good match, as they can take wounds for him and he can heal them if they take too many hits.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulmason-en.pdf Mortisan Soulmason]''': (140pts) The grand vizier will see you now. He's got a passable melee profile, but that's not why you take him. He's a wizard with 2 casts and unbinds and a unique spell, Soul-Guide, that gives a friendly Ossiarch Bonereapers unit the ability to reroll 1's to hit. Pretty good so far, but it gets better. At the end of your hero phase, on a 2+ cast Soul-Guide more times even if it was already attempted that turn. Basically, bring him when you're spamming catapults (or anything, really) and spread the re-rolling to hit love.
** For extra fun, his potential multiple casts force the enemy to consider whether to unbind these spells or other spells.

===Battleline===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Guard-en.pdf Mortek Guard]''': (Battleline, 130/440pts, Min:10, Max:40) Your basic skellies are a decently-protected lot with a 4+ save. Their basic weapons are 2 attacks with -1 Rend sword or a spear, both can double the hits inflicted on a 6+ to hit. The greatblade, on the other hand, trades that for a slightly better wound score, which isn't remarkable but at least keeps the sword's Rend. Their slow speed is helped by their banner giving them +1 to runs and charges, and the +3" move order mentioned above. A good choice for loadout is sword for smaller units and spears for bigger units.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': This boy is a mini-HQ that gives to your Relentless Discipline pool and keys to a lot of other things. (in big units you have to pack a lot of models very close together to have Deathless Warriors). He's only got an attack more than the base guard, but he also confers a command ability that lets his pack re-roll all saves for the combat phase - much more valuable for their survival.
** With the Petrifex Elite, you can take the spears and use the Petrifex command ability to give them rend, just save the spears for larger units of Mortek Guard.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Kavalos-Deathriders-en.pdf Kavalos Deathriders]''': (Battleline, 180/460pts, Min:5, Max:15) Your basic skellies, but on a horse! When compared to their foot-slogging brothers, these guys have +1 attack and 3 wounds each, the 2 extra pony swings we all know and love (actually, even their horses are on steroids, wounding on a 3+), and a whopping 12" move compared to the former's 4". Not only that, but their spears have exploding hits on a 5+ roll on the charge, giving you a bit more reason to consider selling the rend on your swords.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': Much like the Mortek Guard, the Deathrider's hekatos has +1 attack with their weapon, but his command ability gives you some mortal wound output on the charge and a double-range pile in. FAQ'd to confirm a unit can only benefit from this once per phase.

===Hekatos===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Necropolis-Stalkers-en.pdf Necropolis Stalkers]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:6) Speedy, Re-rolling, <s>tyranid warriors </s> skeleton boys. Each turn, these massive lads pick whether they want to re-roll hits, wounds, saves, or add +1 to their weapons' Rend and Damage. While rerolling saves is nice when you get charged by something scary, you'll almost always use +1 rend and damage, as it turns your basic stalker into a stormcast blender, and your unit leader <s>into a literal monster</s> into an equally strong blender as the normal weapons, when enhanced with -1 rend and +1 dmg, are actually stronger than the special weapon, proven by Mathhammer. Their command ability that lets them re-roll run and charge rolls while also ignoring terrain as if they could fly.
** Another option is to run them with a Soulmason equipped with the Gothizzar Cartouche in support which gives +1 to wound rolls. Now, assuming you also have Katakros on the board and you can get Soul-Guide onto your Stalkers then the best Aspect to run is the Destroyer Aspect because this combo would then mean your hitting on 2's and re-rolling 1's '''AND''' wounding on 2's and re-rolling 1's (with spirit blades)
** Upon testing with Mathhammer, in this precise scenario, precision still pulls far ahead if you take 3 of the normal weapons and give them all of these buffs. There is around an average damage difference of 5 per round.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Immortis-Guard-en.pdf Immortis Guard]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:12)The Anvil to the stalker's hammer. These guys have a lower damage output, with 2 3+/3+/-2/2 damage (though the base rend 2 is nice), and the ability to bop someone with their shields for a bit of extra damage, with the occasional mortal wound when rolling a 6. Their main draw, however, is their base 3+ save and bodyguard ability. Whenever they're within 3" of a friendly hero, on a 2+ they must eat a wound or mortal wound that would have been applied to said hero. Their command ability lets them immediately pile in and swing again after their first go, but only with their shields. Less than impressive, but nice for positioning. Having two weapons means they get more out of the Liege's extra attack command ability, and with their own on top of that the mortal wounds do become bit more reliable.
*'''Morghasts [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Archai-en.pdf Archai] & [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Harbingers-en.pdf Harbingers]''': (210pts, Min:2, Max:6) Nagash's angels of death come in 2 flavors, with the archai having a chance to shrug off mortal wounds, and harbingers getting a 3d6 charge. Beyond those differences either one is monstrous combatants (always take the halberd for 3 attacks at 3+/3+/-2/3), and tough to boot, with 6 wounds 4+ armor and being Hekatos for the death save. They also have a bravery debuff as a bonus. It's worth noting that they are more expensive in a bonereaper army, but that may change in either direction depending on the next general's handbook, or some early FAQing.
** See the above option for Stalkers and apply to Morghasts - you'll loose out on the re-rolling wounds but up the rend to -2 and the damage to 3 (with halberds) so the Mathammer will result in more wounds on average (even if you run swords) - only real issue with this is keep up with the Morghasts on your bone throne

===Behemoths===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Gothizzar-Harvester-en.pdf Gothizzar Harvester]''': (200pts, Behemoth) Big guy has 10 wounds and a 4+ save. Has good damage potential with 4 solid ranged attacks and a BUNCH of 2 damage melee swings, with a choice between bludgeons or sickles. These weapons have the exact same melee stats, but different effects. Bludgeons do 2 mortal wounds on unmodified hits of 6 instead of normal damage, (basically giving the guy a Nighthaunt's frightful touch) while the sickles get +1 to hit against units with 5+ models. The Bludgeons are the better choice, as there are other ways to boost hit rolls and Mortal Wounds are useful whoever you're up against. More importantly than that, this guy is a healer. Each time any models (friend or foe) die within 3" of him, he can heal an Ossiarch Bonereaper unit within 6" on a 4+. The heals he gives depends on the wounds characteristic of the model slain. It's worth noting he can do this to himself, making his relatively fragile 10 wounds and 4+ save last a little longer.
**For the Crematorians, this guy makes the list even more trollish. Camp him by your Mortek Guard, and when they die and cause mortal wounds, he can heal them right back up. Free mortal wounds, anyone?
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Crawler-en.pdf Mortek Crawler]''': (200pts, Artillery, Behemoth) The most trolltastic catapult in all of AoS. With a nice 36" range and solid durability, it starts as a remarkably strong springboard for the absolute terror of its ammo types. Once per battle, you can fire a different choice of ammo from two different options and their effects are trolltastically memeable.
**Necrotic Skulls: Your normal shots. You're getting a pretty hefty 3 2+/3+/-/variable shots that start at 5 damage, and dips down to 1 as the model takes damage. Good as a general all-rounder, but pales in comparison to what follows.
***Just to reiterate however: 3 shots at 5 damage initially. Although lack of rend hurts, this is a horde killing volley beyond compare, particularly as their hit and wound rolls are so good.
**Cauldron of Torment: the first of the meme shots. Instead of firing like normal, you roll a dice for every model in the target unit, and whenever you meet or beat their '''UNMODIFIED''' Bravery, one model is slain. "But Anon," you reply, "lots of units have high Bravery! That's not good," To which I say, sure, you're right. this isn't good against undead, Stormcast, or Chaos, but do you know what it IS good against? grots, where you wipe half of whatever squad you fire at. Or freeguild, where you gun down a third of whatever unit you want in a ghostly fog. And we're STILL not done with this bad boy.
**Cursed Stele: Does your local meta not really do hordes? Or do they just love low model-count armies with high leadership? Well, have I got a unit for you! Instead of shooting normally, pick a model within range (so, characters, banners, unit leaders, etc.) and roll 2d6. If you roll equal to or higher than their wound stat, the guy dies (with some modifiers, starting at -3 to your roll, slowly turning to +3 as you lose wounds). This right here is disgusting. With an average roll of 4, you kill support heroes about 60% of the time or get to guaranteed snipe off important banners or unit champions whenever you're feeling cheeky. Did that daemon prince swoop in and drop you to 1 wound? Wouldn't it be great if his failure meant your average roll is now a 10 and insta-gibs the winged sexy, sexy biscuit daemon? (Lovely to consider, but the 6" minimum range on the Crawler's attacks means if it's in melee it's been neutered - protect at all costs!)

===Scenery===
*'''Bone-tithe Nexus''': (0pts) Your mandatory accompanying setpiece is a giant monolith surrounded by bones upon bones. In truth it acts more like a sentry that can chuck out one of four different Punishments each turn: -1 to hit, MW Sniping, causes problem for a wizard, or Can't run and only roll 1d6 for charges. The physical footprint of this thing is BIG. You're supposed to place the terrain before defining and placing any of the game's (neutral) terrain. Placing the damn thing can therefore be problematic in organized events, where terrain is pre-set before the game starts.

==Battalions==
Cohort 100
* The Super Battalion.

<big>'''Aegis Immortal'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''1 Archai, 2 Immortis.''
The ARCHAI from this battalion has the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS ability from the Immortis Guard warscroll. In addition, if you use the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS and the roll is a 5+, the wound/MW is negated instead of allocated to a unit from this battalion. Take with Petrifex Elite to make your characters near unkillable. Solid choice, pun intended, the only drawback is if you want a more offensive playstyle since this is defensive-based.

<big>'''Katakrosian Deathglaive'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''2 Stalkers, 1 Morghast Harbinger''
After units are set up but before the first battleround, if all units from the btn are WHOLLY WITHIN 12" of the Harbingers, you can move any of them up to 6" The best name for a Battalion in all of AoS. Useful for strategic positioning and claiming objectives, it's a decent choice. One foe it does help against is Kharadron Overlords, positioning your Morghasts and Stalkers to better catch their fliers.

<big>'''Kavalos Lance'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 680)
''Arch-Kavalos OR 1 Liege-Kavalos, 2 Kavalos Deathriders.''
Units from this battalion can retreat and charge if wholly within 12" of the Liege when the charge roll is made. In addition, once per turn, you can use the Deathrider Wedge CA for a unit from this battalion without spending RDP. Pretty good, especially if you bring a spellcaster with Empower Nadirite Weapons, moreso if you're running Petrifex to give the weapons extra rend. Just remember it's a waste of points if you're using the Stalliarch Lords legion, because they do this but better and for free.

<big>'''Mortek Ballistari'''</big> 100 pts (min points: 760)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Mortek Guard, 2 Crawlers.''
Roll a die before you allocate a wound/MW to a Crawler from this btn while it is within 3" of the Mortek Guard unit from the same btn. Add 2 if the Crawler is within 3" of the Boneshaper from the same btn. On a 4+, it is instead allocated to the GUARD instead of the CRAWLER.

<big>'''Mortek Shield-corps'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 510)
''Either Volkmortian, a Boneshaper, a Soulreaper OR a Soulmason, and 3 Mortek Guard.''
Once per turn, you can use Shieldwall for one unit in the battalion without spending RDP. The cheapest option, and a decent choice, making your Mortek Guard that much more durable and freeing RDP to be spent elsewhere. Petrifex Mortek Guard will be even tougher with a free re-roll for their 3+ saves, and it's a good safety net if a unit loses their Hekatos.

<big>'''Mortisan Trident'''</big> 110 pts (min points: 700)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Soulreaper, 1 Soulmason, 1 Harvester.''
EACH Mortisan from this battalion can attempt to cast 1 extra spell if WITHIN 18" of the harvester AND the harvester is within 3" of any enemy units.

<big> '''Volkmortian’s Retinue''' </big> 120 pts (min points: 840)
''Volkmortian, 1 Mortek Guard, 1 Stalker, and 1 Archai.''
The exclusive battalion from Feast of Bones. At the start of your hero phase, you can return 1 slain model to a unit within 8 inches of Morty.
This batallion is the armies only reliable method of brining back dead Stalkers and Arachai.

==Army Building==

==Tactics==

===Mr. Arkhan’s Wild Ride===
Take Arkhan the Black as your general, along with two Gothizzar Harvesters and a buttload of Mortek Guard. Finally put them all under the Crematorians legion. Your boney boys will proceed to explode in the faces of the enemy and then be brought back to un-life from the ashes thanks to the Mortarch and Harvesters’ restoration abilities. Is this trolling? Yes. Is it fun? ''Oh yes.'' Also take a Mortisan Boneshaper as a cherry on top for extra heals and bring an Endless Spell or two; cast with Arkhan to laugh off that casting penalty.

===Trolling with Catapults===
Take a Soulmason as your general and put him in a massive blob of 60 Mortek Guard with 4 Mortek Crawlers behind. With some amazing dice rolls (which can be helped by using the Soul Resevoir artefact) the Soulmason can give all 4 Crawlers rerollable hits of 1. The Guard can block any incoming attackers whilst the catapults bombard your enemies from across the table. Even if your skellie dudes are taken out and the enemy damages your Centipedes of Doom it just means that their characters are more likely to be decimated by the most trolling shot in AoS, the Cursed Stele. So just sit back, relax and watch your enemies die before they even reach you.

Alternatively, take 2 of Ballistari batallions. Lose the Soulmason but gain some mad defenses.

==Allied Armies==
No Allies. Nope, none. Nighthaunt hate your guts. Legions of Nagash hate your attitude. Not even the Flesh Eater Courts is crazy enough to be your friend. Don't like it? Go play Stormcast, and go fuck yourself while you're at it.

Really though, this isn't the end of the world. Ossiarch Bonereapers are still strong enough to handle most stuff on their own. The biggest downside here is that you can't really compensate for your weaknesses like some armies can with allies. The biggest upside is that you no longer have to worry that an ally detachment is going to be more efficient than something in your book.

===Mercenary Companies===
It's worth noting that if you ever include Arkhan or Nagash in your list, you're locked out of Mercenaries. However, we dodge the command point punishment, but because we're so expensive it'll be hard to fit much. Try to use these guys to squeeze in some cheap screen or synergies into your army.

*'''Blacksmoke Battery:''' Ranged rend, although even with that they're slightly worse than full health catapults, but then you see the price. Three cannons are going to cost similarly to two catapults (and two are less than 50% more expensive than a single catapult) and with a Cogsmith they will definitely outperform them. This can be mitigated by using your character's abilities to give the catapults extra attacks, but ultimately whether or not you do and which one you end up going for will be up to you, as the results are very similar.
*'''Greyfyrd:''' More elites, but now they have to take bravery tests and have crappier armor and need more synergies that require Command Points.
*'''Grugg Brothers:''' far to costly for not enough gain IMO. If our stuff was cheaper, it'd be a maybe.
*'''Gutstuffers:''' Could be cute with the new ogor rules making maneaters and firebellys both way better, but you bump into the cost problem again
*'''Nimyard’s Rough-Riders:''' Fast shooting is great for an army of slow, plodding melee guys like us. Still probably just ok since you can't use command points and there's no real synergy with your skelemen.
*'''Order of the Blood-Drenched Rose:''' Lore shenanigans aside, this could have been amazing, if only for the Vampire lord. The ability to spend a command point to chuck an extra, EXTRA attack onto a death unit could have been great! If only we had command points. That being said, Blood Knights are arguably superior to Kavalos Deathriders, having a better profile, way more damage on the charge, they have the same Battleshock immunity your guys do and they have a better save against rend - weapons. If you're not going into Petrifex Elite and you don't have something to buff up a lone squad of Deathriders or two, then consider getting the Blood Knights, they only cost slightly more for a rather large set of bonuses, as well as self-healing.
*'''Rampagers:''' This is probably what you want to take. 6 point per fugly marauder model that moves d6" after depliyment is a great forward screen. Take two units of 20 to occupy board space, grab early objectives, or even screen against opponent's deep strikes. For 120pts (instead of your regular 130pts for mortek guard) you get double the wounds, worse saves, better movement and vulnerability to battleshock. Bump the unit up to 40 dudes and you're only paying 5 points per model. This is skaven level of screening efficiency right here! Quantity is a quality of its own.
*'''Skroug’s Menagerie:''' A very high entry cost lets you take some inexpensive screens. Because of the giant's tax, those cheap dogs and spawn aren't so cheap anymore.
*'''Sons of the Lichemaster:''' The funniest option. Bring your necromancer and 3 squads of skeletons to have some baby skeletons take bullets (read charges) for your big-boy skeletons. Definitely take them if you want something to hold backfield objectives. Also the only way to include a corpse cart and a plus one to casting is always so sweet.
*'''Tenebrous Court:''' Probably your best choice for some speedy screen, could lead to some interesting combinations. Since we don't have command points, we are stuck with Courtiers to bring serfs back to full strength. If you can afford it, consider bringing Duke Crackmarrow and his Grymwatch to serve as dedicated monster hunters.

{{Age_of_Sigmar_Tactics}}

Age of Sigmar/Tactics/Death/Ossiarch Bonereapers

2020-03-04T22:56:59Z

2406:3400:20F:FFC0:C437:59CD:E00:1D5D: /* Pros */

{{Age of Sigmar Faction|Faction=Ossiarch Bonereapers|Logo=Immortis-WC2.jpg|Alliance=Death|Motto=The Skeleton War is upon us! We ride against the fuckboys!}}

Nagash has got a bone to pick with the Mortal Realms!

==Why play Ossiarch Bonereapers?==

===Pros===
* They're SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS!
* You liked playing super-elite units like Blood Knights? Well you now play a different elite FACTION!
* These guys have default, army-wide [[Awesome|'''immunity''']] to Battleshock, baby! Not just bravery 10 like other death factions or the Dinosaur Men (Starborne version), these guys DO... NOT... FLEE... EVER!
* They're durable, even for undead. On top of tough, well-armored troops, they have ways to boost saves, re-roll saves and a tanky bodyguard unit for HEROES. They become even more durable if you use the Petrifex Elite Legion.
* Point-for-point, they have probably some of the strongest warscrolls of the game. At base, few units can beat their ossiarch counterpart.
* Relentless Discipline Points must be used instead of Command Points. That means things that screw with CP won't work on them, and you have mechanics to gain RDP throughout the game. Despite this, they still benefit from Command Abilities.
* They don't rely on heroes as much as other Death armies; unit champions have the HEKATOS keyword and can give a smaller radius of 6+ Deathless saves and don't use command points. Losing heroes isn't the game-ender that it is for other undead armies.
* Almost everything is 3+ to hit, which is augmented by...
* Lots of rolls modifiers, especially the terrain piece and spells.
* A few pleasant reminders of Nehekhara for you Tomb Kings fans, such as a vulture being called a Carrion and war machine that hurls flaming skulls.
* They collect protection payments of bone like a skeletal version of the Mafia.
* Part of the reason for their existence is to troll Sigmarines.
* Mortek Guard and Kavalos Deathriders are strong contenders for best battleline units in the game.
* Nagash, [[Arkhan the Black|bro-tier mini-Nagash]] and the Morghasts are part of the army roster; [[Awesome|they also benefit from keywords and Battle Traits]].
* You can heal every unit or character, self-heals are a thing and they're not spells so opponents can't block them.
* If you like bone puns...

===Cons===
* Most of your army is slow, with a few exceptions. There are a few abilities to mitigate this.
* Shooting is almost non-existent apart from the Mortek Crawler, as there's only the mediocre Gothizzar Harvester's and Nagash's laser eyes only work once a turn.
* No protection at all against shooting. Most notably, morteks and stalkers reroll saves only in combat, so shooting armies tend to really hurt the Ossiarchs.
* No summoning or deepstrike/teleportation mechanic at all. The army is quite straightforward and previsible as a whole, and lack many tricks. Any decent opponent know what you will do.
* No strike first/strike twice/attack in hero phase mechanics at all, which are VERY important when you want to win the fight.
* The army lack in Mortal Wounds. While good rend and multi-damage are easy to find, Mortal Wounds are much rarer, and Ossiarchs tend to bounce on really armored units if stalkers aren't around.
* Magic is average and mostly around buffing allies and debuffing ennemies. Sure, Nagash and Arkhan are there, but the magic lore is still unimpressive, especially compared to real magical factions.
* [[Fail|No allies]]; their foreign policy makes the Daughters of Khaine look like the Stormcast Eternals. (still have mercenaries though - unless you bring Nagash or Arkhan).
* Apart from the Mortek Guard, when you bring 5 guys, almost everybody else brings 10. So if your opponent is on a objective you need to <s>smash him in the knee caps</s> can't smash knee caps, you need them for the tithe... just cut their legs out from under them.
* Some of the models look a bit cheesy or weird depending who you ask, especially Katakros' model (seriously, a bone bulge?)
* Hope you like bone puns...

==Rulebooks==
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Ossiarch Bonereapers}}

==Allegiance Abilities==
===Battle Traits===
*'''Ranks Unbroken by Dissent:''' [[Awesome|Do not take battleshock tests for friendly OSSIARCH BONEREAPER units]]. Yes, you read that right, immunity to Battleshock. Your enemy's only options are killing, flee or be killed. In addition, you do not generate Command Points. Instead, you generate Relentless Discipline Points at the start of each battle round but lose them when you generate your next batch (they should be all spend before that happens).
**Generate a Relentless Discipline Point if:
*** EACH {{AOSKeyword|Ossiarch Bonereapers Hero}} - 1
*** EACH Warscroll Battalion - 1
*** EACH Friendly {{AOSKeyword|LIEGE}} - 1
*** If KATAKROS is the general and on the battlefield - 3
*** Roll a die for each UNIT with the {{AOSKeyword|OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS}} keyword, including the previous {{AOSKeyword|HEROES}}. On a 6, you get 1.
**Unfortunately, you can't use the Generic or Scenario command abilities (rerolling Run, charge, shooting rolls) but you have a ton of CAs that will Guzzle your DP.

*'''Deathless Warriors''': It's Deathless Minions from Legions of Nagash, albeit with a rename. It allows you to ignore wounds and mortal wounds on a 6+. However, you'll be able to get more mileage out of it than other Death armies, as any unit wholly within 12" of a {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS Hero}} or 6" of a Hekatos (i.e: the leader for your battlelines) count for the ability, removing the need to have your Heroes babysitting your units. Units that are {{AOSKeyword|HEKATOS}} (elite bone warriors units) always benefit from the ability, allowing them to strike out entirely unsupported.

*'''Unstoppable Advance (CA)''': In Movement Phase. Pick 1 unit within X" of a hero or hekatos. +3" movement. It can still run OR charge. You cannot pick the same unit more than once per phase.

===Command Traits===

====Liege-Kavalos====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dark Acolyte:''' Becomes a 1 cast/unbind {{AOSKeyword|WIZARD}} with one Mortisan Lore spell.
*'''Peerless Warrior:''' Melee wound rolls of 6 deal an extra mortal wound.
*'''Hatred of the Living:''' +1 to hit in melee (including their mount) against non-{{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} units.
*'''Life-stealer:''' If they kill any models in combat, heal 1d3 wounds at the end of that phase.

====Mortisan====
*'''Ancient Knowledge:''' While on the battlefield, get an extra RDP at the start of the battle round.
*'''Immortal Ruler:''' Deathless Warrior trait works on a 5+ for this general. Always good.
*'''Dire Ultimatum:''' -2 to Bravery for enemies within 12". Although it requires coordinating a couple of units, you can cause a MASSIVE debuff to enemy Bravery by combining this and the Scroll of Command (see below).
*'''Grave-sand Bones:''' Knows an extra spell from the Lore of the Mortisans.
*'''Oathbreaker Curse:''' Every time your opponent gets a CP, on a d6 roll of 6 it is lost. Obviously Katakros does it better, but this does work more than once per turn if your enemy has CP-generating abilities.
*'''Soul Energy:''' You can re-roll casting, unbinding and dispelling rolls, but whenever you do you take a mortal wound.

===Artefacts===
*'''Relics of the Kavaloi (Liege-Kavalos)'''
#'''Mind Blade:''' Pick one of bearer’s melee weapons. If unmodified hit roll is a 6, and target is a hero, opponent loses a Command Point and the hero can’t use command abilities for the rest of the battle. Apart from only working on sixes this is incredible.
#'''Lordly Phylactery:''' Once per battle start of any phase, gain D3 RD points.
#'''Scroll of Command:''' Subtract 2 Bravery from enemy units within 6” of bearer. Only really recommended if you're going for Mortis Praetorians (see their Legion description for more information). Although, a Liege-Kavalos with this, with a Mortisan general with the Dire Ultimatum command trait nearby drops enemy Bravery by a whopping -4!
#'''Grave-sand Boneplates:''' At the end of the combat phase, roll dice for each enemy unit within 3”, on a 4+ that unit suffers a mortal wound. Vies with Helm of the Ordained for best choice.
#'''Marrow Pact:''' Once per battle, in hero phase pick one enemy unit within 6” of bearer. On a 3+, unit suffers D3 mortal wounds, heal the same number of wounds.
#'''Helm of the Ordained:''' Add one to hit rolls for attacks made by {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} units and mounts while wholly within 12” of the bearer. One of the best choices for a Liege-Kavalos.

*'''Tools of the Boneshaper (Boneshapers)'''
#'''Artisan's key:''' Before using the bearer’s bone shaper ability, roll a dice and on a 4+ either you can pick two units instead of one, or the same unit twice within 6”. The best of the three by a narrow margin.
#'''Lode of Saturation:''' At the start of the Hero phase, choose a unit within 1”, deathless warrior battle trait on 5+ instead of 6.
#'''Crafter Gems:''' Hero phase, heal up to 3 wounds. Once the total wounds healed in the battle is 3 you cannot use it any longer.

*'''Treasures of the Soulmason (Soulmasons)'''
#'''Gothizzar Cartouche:''' +1 to melee wound rolls for units wholly within 9” of bearer if target does not have Death keyword. The best option if you're not facing {{AOSKeyword|DEATH}} armies.
#'''Soul Reservior:''' +2 to cast, but if casting roll is unmodified 10+ artifact cannot be used again.
#'''Thorne of Dzendt:''' +2 to wounds and +2 attacks for mount. A good all around choice, especially for keeping your chair bound wizard safe.

*'''Weapons of the Soulreaper (Soulreapers)'''
#'''Luminscythe:''' minus 1 for hit rolls targeting bearer. +1 casting rolls for bearer for Lore of Mortisans or warscroll spell.
#'''Vial of Binding:''' Once per battle in hero phase, pick enemy model within 12" of bearer and roll a D6. If roll is equal or greater than the wound characteristic they are slain. The best choice if you take a Soul Reaper, and the obvious choice for offensive.
#'''Guardian Reavsoul:''' Negate wound on a 5+ instead of 6+ for deathless minions. Can shatter to negate last wound if about to die. If you're not taking Vial of Binding, this is the go-to choice.

===Spell Lore===
#'''Arcane Command:''' CV5. Gain D3 Relentless Discipline Points. Nice if you've got an extra spell, or had some bad luck with your rolls.
# '''Empower Nadirite Weapons: ''' CV5. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, the units Nadirite Weapons ability explodes on a 5+ instead of 6, or 4+ if its a {{AOSKeyword|DEATHRIDERS}} attacking with spears after charging.
# '''Protection of Nagash: ''' CV6. 5+ FNP for the caster. If any wounds get through your FNP, and the caster isn't slain, remove them from the battlefield after all wounds have been allocated, and place them anywhere on the board 9" away from enemy models then dispel this spell. Great for getting important casters out of sticky situations, or absolutely hilarious on Nagash if you wanna fuck with your opponent.
# '''Reinforce Battle-shields: ''' CV6. Pick 1 {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit armed with Shields or Nadirite Battle-shields wholly within 24" and visible. Until the start of your next hero phase, they gain a 5+ FNP but only for mortal wounds. Pair this with a gothizzar harvester, the reroll saves command ability and the fossil legion for some truly unkillable troops.
# '''Drain Vitality: ''' CV6. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. Until your next hero phase, reroll unmodified hit and save rolls of 6 made by that unit. Good for blunting a spooky unit's charge, but less useful than the other options available.
# '''Mortal Contract: ''' CV7. Pick 1 enemy unit within 18" and visible. For the rest of the '''BATTLE''', roll a die at the end of any phase that the unit dealt damage to a friendly {{AOSKeyword|BONEREAPERS}} unit (but only if it was with an attack). On 3+, the cursed unit suffers D3 mortal wounds. Lawdy, this is probably the most obnoxious spell we can sling, if you can remember who you marked the entire game. Great into low unit-count armies.

===Endless Spells===

An important distinction to note between these Endless Spells and others that exist is that the ones presented below have the '''Soul-Linked''' ability, meaning they always move before Endless Spells without the Soul-Linked ability and are controlled by the casting Player only, meaning your opponent cannot control these Endless Spells to mess with your plans. However on the flip side, the Wizard who cast the spell has a -1 to his casting rolls and cannot cast anymore soul-linked spells while their soul-linked endless spell is up. If the caster dies then the soul-linked spell is also dispelled, so keep him alive if you want the spells to last.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Bone-tithe-Shrieker-en.pdf Bone-tithe Shrieker]''': Gives -1 bravery, and +1 to be hit to enemy units within 12" of it. Simple, but effective. Place it just in front of your battle line to make the enemy think twice, or use it to make holding an objective less than desirable.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Soulstealer-Carrion-en.pdf Soulstealer Carrion]''': Gives LOS to the Soul-Linked wizard. You won't be taking it for this. Instead, you'll be taking it for it's actual ability: Soul Thief. Roll a D6 at the end of each Phase if any Chaos, Order, or Destruction models were slain within 6" of it. On a 1 or 2, the Wizard this Endless Spell is Soul-Linked with heals a wound. On a 3 or 4, it does 1 Mortal Wound on each Chaos, Destruction or Order unit within 6" of it, and on a 5-6, it does both effects. AMAZINGLY fun, if you're not playing into death, so do with that as you will.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nightmare-Predator-en.pdf The Nightmare Predator]''': You standard causes Mortal Wounds Endless Spell (dealing D3 Mortal Wounds to all non-bonecasts within 3" of it), but with a twist - when cast, pick an enemy Hero to be marked as it's prey. If this spell gets within range of them, it spits out d6 mortal wounds instead. For it's dirt cheap point cost, this is almost auto-include.

==<span style=color:Gray>Famous Legions</span>==
<big>Mortis Praetorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''The Dread Legion''':-1 bravery to enemy units within 12".
*'''Command Trait''': '''Katakros' Chosen''': Once per battle if the general is on the Battlefield, gain D3 RDP points.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Counter-strike''': Pick a friendly unit within 6" of a HEKATOS or 12" of a HERO. If charged, they can re-roll hits.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Artificer's Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons. It has -3 Rend.
The poster boys, the jack-of-all-trades and the best choice if you’re bringing Katakros, otherwise it's quite situational since other death armies do "fear-bomb" better (looking at you, Legions of Grief and Blood).

<big>Petrifex Elite</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Unstoppable Juggernauts''': Add +1 to their saves.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Mighty Archaeossian''': +2 Wounds.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Bludgeon''': In the combat phase, give a unit +1 rend on one weapon, can't stack.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Godbone Armor''': The first wound allocated to the bearer in each '''phase''' is negated.
The tanky choice, the best all-rounder and <s>arguably</s> IS the best overall. Makes your entire army (including Nagash) stupidly tanky, gives your commander a few extra wounds for a chuckle, lets you put some durability on a caster via the relic (especially useful if you're bringing some Endless Spells), AND comes with a command ability that makes you killy, just to throw your opponent for a loop.

<big>Null Myriad</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Eldritch Nulls''': Ignore the effects of spells on a 5+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Unsettling and Sinister''': -1 to Bravery in 3", and -1 to be hit during combat phase.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Holdfast''': Make the battle trait work on a 2+ instead of 5+.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Baleful Blade''': Pick 1 of the bearer's weapons. [[Awesome|Saves can't be made against attacks from this weapon and wounds can't be negated]] (though they can later be healed).
The magic choice. Their innate rules mean you can focus more on offensive magic, and the Artefact is perfect for any combat character... but is obviously best on a Liege-Kavalos. Competes with the Petrifex Elite for the best default choice, but if your meta is very magic heavy, this choice is clear (hint: it's probably still petrifex). Make those six hallowheart battlemages cry because they can do nothing to you (and then notice that you can't probably do much to them either, so the battle is probably a void of winds of magic).

<big>Ivory Host</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': If a unit has suffered wounds or a friendly IVORY HOST unit within 6" (not wholly within, just within) has suffered wounds, get +1 to hit, but -1 save.
*'''Command Trait''': Every hero phase your general gains 1 attack for all his melee weapons on a 5+. Best to have a Liege-Kavalos as your general for this.
*'''Command Ability''': Cancel the -1 save from the battle trait. This is what makes the Ivory host interesting, letting you pull some shenanigans with a screen unit or pulling some clutch damage out at a vital time.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Beastbound Blade''': One of the bearer's melee weapons gets +1 attack.
The combat choice, though dependent on good dice rolls. Decent, but there are better options.

<big>Stalliarch Lords</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': Run and charge. Pretty good for increasing your threat range on a slow army.
*'''Command Trait''': Pick an enemy hero within 3" at the start of the combat phase. Gain +1 to hit against it but -1 to anything else. Pretty situational and lackluster.
*'''Command Ability''': Retreat and charge in the same turn. Good for repositioning or getting your charge bonuses again. Here's looking at you, Deathriders.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Nadir-Bound Mount''': Can only be taken by a Liege-Kavalos. They roll D3 additional dice for their Unstoppable Charge ability.
The speedy and somewhat trollish choice. Do you wanna go fast? Do you want a liege or Zandtos to run fast next to fast cavalry? Or if you take a Liege make them hit like a ton of bricks? Then go these guys. They let you skimp out of the costly battalion with their inherent command ability, and make your already fast cavalry even faster. They even pair well with Stalkers, Morghast Harbingers or Harvesters, to just really irritate your opponent.

<big>Crematorians</big>
*'''Battle Traits''': '''Immolation''': When a model dies you get a chance to cause MW to an enemy within 3" on a 5+, with monsters and characters adding 1 to their roll/going off on a 4+.
*'''Command Trait''': '''Wrathful Avenger''': If the general dies, add 2 to the dice roll for Immolation and it does D3 Mortal Wounds rather than 1.
*'''Command Ability''': '''Levelers of Cities''': One friendly CREMATORIANS unit with 6" of a Hekatros or 12" of a hero ignores cover saves.
*'''Artefact of Power''': '''Searing Blade''': Pick one of the bearer's melee weapons and add 1 to the Damage characteristic.
the TRUE trolling choice. Paired with some revives and harvesters, and laugh as your opponent realizes that killing your models meant their guys died and then revived the dudes they just tried to kill, rinse and repeat.

==<span style=color:Gray>Warscrolls<span>==
The common keywords of these warscrolls are: '''DEATH''', '''OSSIARCH BONEREAPERS'''

===Leaders===
====Named Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Katakros-Mortarch-of-the-Necropolis-en.pdf Orpheon Katakros, Mortarch of the Necropolis]''': (500pts) Like Skarbrand, his attacks get stronger the more wounds he takes. Katakros himself has [[Awesome|Rend and Damage 3]] and he can bop foes with his shield to dole out Mortal Wounds, so he can dish out some hurt in combat, but not until he's taken some wounds representing his companions dying so Katakros himself joins the fray. However, he is one of the slowest characters in the game - 4" move (which doesn’t much matter when he’s on a '''12 centimetre''' base, and you can use the Relentless Advance to make Katakros move 7'') and can't fly, but Mortarch of Necropolis allows Katakros to heal up to three friendly OBR units wholly within 24" of his model for 3 wounds worth on your hero phase. Katakros is a friendly OBR unit within 24" of himself, so he can choose to heal himself for 3 wounds every one of your hero phases. Because he is so slow, he hates cannons even more than his boss so engage shooty armies at your own risk. He's pricey in points and cash, but you get what you pay for - no more no less - as he's a good beatstick and support character, just don't try to send him up against other super combat lords who have a damage of 3 or better because he can easily get his shit kicked in, especially if they're wearing the Ethereal Amulet or have some serious wound negation. If your opponent is fielding a character with either (or worse, both) then make sure to screen him out. It's better to not get him in combat and keep your Relentless Discipline points, heals and Command Point sabotage than it is for you to possibly lose all of those.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Nagash-Supreme-Lord-of-the-Undead-en.pdf Nagash, Supreme Lord of the Undead]''': (880pts) Changed from his early forms, Nagash is now 30 points more expensive, and no longer loots the spells from all of his Death-based allies. (but he does know the whole spell lore by default.) Instead, he can now restore wounds/models to 5 of his Bonecast Eternals, and can sling Mystic Shield and Arcane Bolt as much as his undead heart (and casting limit) desire.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arkhan-the-Black-Mortarch-of-Sacrament-en.pdf Arkhan the Black, Mortarch of Sacrament]''': (360pts) Much like Nagash, Arkhan is more expensive now, at a "whopping" 20 points more than before. With an extra cast and deny, and the ability to sling Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield like his Boss, (along with learning the whole spell lore,) it sounds like that price increase came with some buffs. However, overall Arkhan's in a slightly more disappointing place. Curse of Years no longer succeeds on 1s, meaning it's slightly more fair, and his command ability has now been limited to one use a turn, spoiling an awful lot of fun that could have been had.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Arch-Kavalos-Zandtos-en.pdf Arch-Kavalos Patru Zandtos]''': (220pts) A named Mortis Praetorians Liego-Kavalos, with additional abilities like more damage on the charge, rerolls to wound, and another CA that grants a Praetorians unit the same reroll ability. A good choice for leader, especially in Mortis Praetorians, unless you have a specific Legion or combo in mind.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Volkmortian-Master-of-the-Bone-tithe-en.pdf Vokmortion, Master of the Bone-tithe]''': (180pts) He is a Wizard that should be very close to the front lines. He has a chance to prevent a model within 3" from attacking him on a 5+ as a defense. He also has a 12" aura of -1 to bravery and -1 to any Wizard attempting to unbind any spell he casts (which improves in that rare instance an enemy General dies near him). His Unique spell can instantly kill any model within 1" of him on a 5+, and the range on it cannot be modified, which can be used to punish any foolish combat heroes or big monsters he ends up fighting - though it is a bit unreliable to make him a dedicated assassin. Overall, he should be standing behind your troops (ideally Immortis Guard or Mortek Guard), providing the debuff and using his 2 spells per turn.

====Generic Leaders====
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Liege-Kavalso-en.pdf Liege-Kavalos]''': (200pts) Your commander on a big-boned mount that gives two guaranteed Relentless Discipline points. Lots of decent attacks, but nothing too nutty. When he charges he has an increased pile in and the ability to fling out some extra mortal wounds. His Command Ability gives a unit wholly within 12" +1 attack. He probably functions best running with some deathriders for a spoopy cavalry wing, though having him roam around your anvils can make for some good time damage output.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulreaper-en.pdf Mortisan Soulreaper]''': (120pts) Our CC battlemage, though with his weapon the most he'll be reaping is chaff mobs. His unique spell lets him smack one unit at range, or every unit in CC with him with a few mortal wounds. Probably our worst unit, as outside of his spell-slinging, he's basically a really expensive cairn wraith from nighthaunt. Look elsewhere, unless you really love his amazing model.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Boneshaper-en.pdf Mortisan Boneshaper]''': (130pts) Probably your most included HQ. With the ability to restore 3 wounds (or 3 wounds worth of boys (raise 3 Mortek Guard, or 1 Kavalos Deathriders everything else has 4+ wounds)) to a friendly squad and sling a few spells, he feels close to auto-include, especially if you left Nagash or Arkhan at home. His unique spell lets him fling [[Awesome|BONESTORM!]] at an enemy unit, roll for each model within 18" and every 6 deals a mortal wound, a nice anti-horde spell being easy to cast on 5. Keep him out of combat and out of LoS so he can spend your whole game building bonecasts in a dark corner away from anyone else.
** Boneshapers and Immortis Guard are a good match, as they can take wounds for him and he can heal them if they take too many hits.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortisan-Soulmason-en.pdf Mortisan Soulmason]''': (140pts) The grand vizier will see you now. He's got a passable melee profile, but that's not why you take him. He's a wizard with 2 casts and unbinds and a unique spell, Soul-Guide, that gives a friendly Ossiarch Bonereapers unit the ability to reroll 1's to hit. Pretty good so far, but it gets better. At the end of your hero phase, on a 2+ cast Soul-Guide more times even if it was already attempted that turn. Basically, bring him when you're spamming catapults (or anything, really) and spread the re-rolling to hit love.
** For extra fun, his potential multiple casts force the enemy to consider whether to unbind these spells or other spells.

===Battleline===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Guard-en.pdf Mortek Guard]''': (Battleline, 130/440pts, Min:10, Max:40) Your basic skellies are a decently-protected lot with a 4+ save. Their basic weapons are 2 attacks with -1 Rend sword or a spear, both can double the hits inflicted on a 6+ to hit. The greatblade, on the other hand, trades that for a slightly better wound score, which isn't remarkable but at least keeps the sword's Rend. Their slow speed is helped by their banner giving them +1 to runs and charges, and the +3" move order mentioned above. A good choice for loadout is sword for smaller units and spears for bigger units.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': This boy is a mini-HQ that gives to your Relentless Discipline pool and keys to a lot of other things. (in big units you have to pack a lot of models very close together to have Deathless Warriors). He's only got an attack more than the base guard, but he also confers a command ability that lets his pack re-roll all saves for the combat phase - much more valuable for their survival.
** With the Petrifex Elite, you can take the spears and use the Petrifex command ability to give them rend, just save the spears for larger units of Mortek Guard.

*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Kavalos-Deathriders-en.pdf Kavalos Deathriders]''': (Battleline, 180/460pts, Min:5, Max:15) Your basic skellies, but on a horse! When compared to their foot-slogging brothers, these guys have +1 attack and 3 wounds each, the 2 extra pony swings we all know and love (actually, even their horses are on steroids, wounding on a 3+), and a whopping 12" move compared to the former's 4". Not only that, but their spears have exploding hits on a 5+ roll on the charge, giving you a bit more reason to consider selling the rend on your swords.
**'''Mortek Hekatos''': Much like the Mortek Guard, the Deathrider's hekatos has +1 attack with their weapon, but his command ability gives you some mortal wound output on the charge and a double-range pile in. FAQ'd to confirm a unit can only benefit from this once per phase.

===Hekatos===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Necropolis-Stalkers-en.pdf Necropolis Stalkers]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:6) Speedy, Re-rolling, <s>tyranid warriors </s> skeleton boys. Each turn, these massive lads pick whether they want to re-roll hits, wounds, saves, or add +1 to their weapons' Rend and Damage. While rerolling saves is nice when you get charged by something scary, you'll almost always use +1 rend and damage, as it turns your basic stalker into a stormcast blender, and your unit leader <s>into a literal monster</s> into an equally strong blender as the normal weapons, when enhanced with -1 rend and +1 dmg, are actually stronger than the special weapon, proven by Mathhammer. Their command ability that lets them re-roll run and charge rolls while also ignoring terrain as if they could fly.
** Another option is to run them with a Soulmason equipped with the Gothizzar Cartouche in support which gives +1 to wound rolls. Now, assuming you also have Katakros on the board and you can get Soul-Guide onto your Stalkers then the best Aspect to run is the Destroyer Aspect because this combo would then mean your hitting on 2's and re-rolling 1's '''AND''' wounding on 2's and re-rolling 1's (with spirit blades)
** Upon testing with Mathhammer, in this precise scenario, precision still pulls far ahead if you take 3 of the normal weapons and give them all of these buffs. There is around an average damage difference of 5 per round.
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Immortis-Guard-en.pdf Immortis Guard]''': (200pts, Min:3, Max:12)The Anvil to the stalker's hammer. These guys have a lower damage output, with 2 3+/3+/-2/2 damage (though the base rend 2 is nice), and the ability to bop someone with their shields for a bit of extra damage, with the occasional mortal wound when rolling a 6. Their main draw, however, is their base 3+ save and bodyguard ability. Whenever they're within 3" of a friendly hero, on a 2+ they must eat a wound or mortal wound that would have been applied to said hero. Their command ability lets them immediately pile in and swing again after their first go, but only with their shields. Less than impressive, but nice for positioning. Having two weapons means they get more out of the Liege's extra attack command ability, and with their own on top of that the mortal wounds do become bit more reliable.
*'''Morghasts [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Archai-en.pdf Archai] & [https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Morghast-Harbingers-en.pdf Harbingers]''': (210pts, Min:2, Max:6) Nagash's angels of death come in 2 flavors, with the archai having a chance to shrug off mortal wounds, and harbingers getting a 3d6 charge. Beyond those differences either one is monstrous combatants (always take the halberd for 3 attacks at 3+/3+/-2/3), and tough to boot, with 6 wounds 4+ armor and being Hekatos for the death save. They also have a bravery debuff as a bonus. It's worth noting that they are more expensive in a bonereaper army, but that may change in either direction depending on the next general's handbook, or some early FAQing.
** See the above option for Stalkers and apply to Morghasts - you'll loose out on the re-rolling wounds but up the rend to -2 and the damage to 3 (with halberds) so the Mathammer will result in more wounds on average (even if you run swords) - only real issue with this is keep up with the Morghasts on your bone throne

===Behemoths===
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Gothizzar-Harvester-en.pdf Gothizzar Harvester]''': (200pts, Behemoth) Big guy has 10 wounds and a 4+ save. Has good damage potential with 4 solid ranged attacks and a BUNCH of 2 damage melee swings, with a choice between bludgeons or sickles. These weapons have the exact same melee stats, but different effects. Bludgeons do 2 mortal wounds on unmodified hits of 6 instead of normal damage, (basically giving the guy a Nighthaunt's frightful touch) while the sickles get +1 to hit against units with 5+ models. The Bludgeons are the better choice, as there are other ways to boost hit rolls and Mortal Wounds are useful whoever you're up against. More importantly than that, this guy is a healer. Each time any models (friend or foe) die within 3" of him, he can heal an Ossiarch Bonereaper unit within 6" on a 4+. The heals he gives depends on the wounds characteristic of the model slain. It's worth noting he can do this to himself, making his relatively fragile 10 wounds and 4+ save last a little longer.
**For the Crematorians, this guy makes the list even more trollish. Camp him by your Mortek Guard, and when they die and cause mortal wounds, he can heal them right back up. Free mortal wounds, anyone?
*'''[https://www.games-workshop.com/resources/PDF/AoS_Warscrolls//aos-warscroll-Mortek-Crawler-en.pdf Mortek Crawler]''': (200pts, Artillery, Behemoth) The most trolltastic catapult in all of AoS. With a nice 36" range and solid durability, it starts as a remarkably strong springboard for the absolute terror of its ammo types. Once per battle, you can fire a different choice of ammo from two different options and their effects are trolltastically memeable.
**Necrotic Skulls: Your normal shots. You're getting a pretty hefty 3 2+/3+/-/variable shots that start at 5 damage, and dips down to 1 as the model takes damage. Good as a general all-rounder, but pales in comparison to what follows.
***Just to reiterate however: 3 shots at 5 damage initially. Although lack of rend hurts, this is a horde killing volley beyond compare, particularly as their hit and wound rolls are so good.
**Cauldron of Torment: the first of the meme shots. Instead of firing like normal, you roll a dice for every model in the target unit, and whenever you meet or beat their '''UNMODIFIED''' Bravery, one model is slain. "But Anon," you reply, "lots of units have high Bravery! That's not good," To which I say, sure, you're right. this isn't good against undead, Stormcast, or Chaos, but do you know what it IS good against? grots, where you wipe half of whatever squad you fire at. Or freeguild, where you gun down a third of whatever unit you want in a ghostly fog. And we're STILL not done with this bad boy.
**Cursed Stele: Does your local meta not really do hordes? Or do they just love low model-count armies with high leadership? Well, have I got a unit for you! Instead of shooting normally, pick a model within range (so, characters, banners, unit leaders, etc.) and roll 2d6. If you roll equal to or higher than their wound stat, the guy dies (with some modifiers, starting at -3 to your roll, slowly turning to +3 as you lose wounds). This right here is disgusting. With an average roll of 4, you kill support heroes about 60% of the time or get to guaranteed snipe off important banners or unit champions whenever you're feeling cheeky. Did that daemon prince swoop in and drop you to 1 wound? Wouldn't it be great if his failure meant your average roll is now a 10 and insta-gibs the winged sexy, sexy biscuit daemon? (Lovely to consider, but the 6" minimum range on the Crawler's attacks means if it's in melee it's been neutered - protect at all costs!)

===Scenery===
*'''Bone-tithe Nexus''': (0pts) Your mandatory accompanying setpiece is a giant monolith surrounded by bones upon bones. In truth it acts more like a sentry that can chuck out one of four different Punishments each turn: -1 to hit, MW Sniping, causes problem for a wizard, or Can't run and only roll 1d6 for charges. The physical footprint of this thing is BIG. You're supposed to place the terrain before defining and placing any of the game's (neutral) terrain. Placing the damn thing can therefore be problematic in organized events, where terrain is pre-set before the game starts.

==Battalions==
Cohort 100
* The Super Battalion.

<big>'''Aegis Immortal'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''1 Archai, 2 Immortis.''
The ARCHAI from this battalion has the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS ability from the Immortis Guard warscroll. In addition, if you use the SOULBOUND PROTECTORS and the roll is a 5+, the wound/MW is negated instead of allocated to a unit from this battalion. Take with Petrifex Elite to make your characters near unkillable. Solid choice, pun intended, the only drawback is if you want a more offensive playstyle since this is defensive-based.

<big>'''Katakrosian Deathglaive'''</big> 80 pts (min points: 690)
''2 Stalkers, 1 Morghast Harbinger''
After units are set up but before the first battleround, if all units from the btn are WHOLLY WITHIN 12" of the Harbingers, you can move any of them up to 6" The best name for a Battalion in all of AoS. Useful for strategic positioning and claiming objectives, it's a decent choice. One foe it does help against is Kharadron Overlords, positioning your Morghasts and Stalkers to better catch their fliers.

<big>'''Kavalos Lance'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 680)
''Arch-Kavalos OR 1 Liege-Kavalos, 2 Kavalos Deathriders.''
Units from this battalion can retreat and charge if wholly within 12" of the Liege when the charge roll is made. In addition, once per turn, you can use the Deathrider Wedge CA for a unit from this battalion without spending RDP. Pretty good, especially if you bring a spellcaster with Empower Nadirite Weapons, moreso if you're running Petrifex to give the weapons extra rend. Just remember it's a waste of points if you're using the Stalliarch Lords legion, because they do this but better and for free.

<big>'''Mortek Ballistari'''</big> 100 pts (min points: 760)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Mortek Guard, 2 Crawlers.''
Roll a die before you allocate a wound/MW to a Crawler from this btn while it is within 3" of the Mortek Guard unit from the same btn. Add 2 if the Crawler is within 3" of the Boneshaper from the same btn. On a 4+, it is instead allocated to the GUARD instead of the CRAWLER.

<big>'''Mortek Shield-corps'''</big> 120 pts (min points: 510)
''Either Volkmortian, a Boneshaper, a Soulreaper OR a Soulmason, and 3 Mortek Guard.''
Once per turn, you can use Shieldwall for one unit in the battalion without spending RDP. The cheapest option, and a decent choice, making your Mortek Guard that much more durable and freeing RDP to be spent elsewhere. Petrifex Mortek Guard will be even tougher with a free re-roll for their 3+ saves, and it's a good safety net if a unit loses their Hekatos.

<big>'''Mortisan Trident'''</big> 110 pts (min points: 700)
''1 Boneshaper, 1 Soulreaper, 1 Soulmason, 1 Harvester.''
EACH Mortisan from this battalion can attempt to cast 1 extra spell if WITHIN 18" of the harvester AND the harvester is within 3" of any enemy units.

<big> '''Volkmortian’s Retinue''' </big> 120 pts (min points: 840)
''Volkmortian, 1 Mortek Guard, 1 Stalker, and 1 Archai.''
The exclusive battalion from Feast of Bones. At the start of your hero phase, you can return 1 slain model to a unit within 8 inches of Morty.
This batallion is the armies only reliable method of brining back dead Stalkers and Arachai.

==Army Building==

==Tactics==

===Mr. Arkhan’s Wild Ride===
Take Arkhan the Black as your general, along with two Gothizzar Harvesters and a buttload of Mortek Guard. Finally put them all under the Crematorians legion. Your boney boys will proceed to explode in the faces of the enemy and then be brought back to un-life from the ashes thanks to the Mortarch and Harvesters’ restoration abilities. Is this trolling? Yes. Is it fun? ''Oh yes.'' Also take a Mortisan Boneshaper as a cherry on top for extra heals and bring an Endless Spell or two; cast with Arkhan to laugh off that casting penalty.

===Trolling with Catapults===
Take a Soulmason as your general and put him in a massive blob of 60 Mortek Guard with 4 Mortek Crawlers behind. With some amazing dice rolls (which can be helped by using the Soul Resevoir artefact) the Soulmason can give all 4 Crawlers rerollable hits of 1. The Guard can block any incoming attackers whilst the catapults bombard your enemies from across the table. Even if your skellie dudes are taken out and the enemy damages your Centipedes of Doom it just means that their characters are more likely to be decimated by the most trolling shot in AoS, the Cursed Stele. So just sit back, relax and watch your enemies die before they even reach you.

Alternatively, take 2 of Ballistari batallions. Lose the Soulmason but gain some mad defenses.

==Allied Armies==
No Allies. Nope, none. Nighthaunt hate your guts. Legions of Nagash hate your attitude. Not even the Flesh Eater Courts is crazy enough to be your friend. Don't like it? Go play Stormcast, and go fuck yourself while you're at it.

Really though, this isn't the end of the world. Ossiarch Bonereapers are still strong enough to handle most stuff on their own. The biggest downside here is that you can't really compensate for your weaknesses like some armies can with allies. The biggest upside is that you no longer have to worry that an ally detachment is going to be more efficient than something in your book.

===Mercenary Companies===
It's worth noting that if you ever include Arkhan or Nagash in your list, you're locked out of Mercenaries. However, we dodge the command point punishment, but because we're so expensive it'll be hard to fit much. Try to use these guys to squeeze in some cheap screen or synergies into your army.

*'''Blacksmoke Battery:''' Ranged rend, although even with that they're slightly worse than full health catapults, but then you see the price. Three cannons are going to cost similarly to two catapults (and two are less than 50% more expensive than a single catapult) and with a Cogsmith they will definitely outperform them. This can be mitigated by using your character's abilities to give the catapults extra attacks, but ultimately whether or not you do and which one you end up going for will be up to you, as the results are very similar.
*'''Greyfyrd:''' More elites, but now they have to take bravery tests and have crappier armor and need more synergies that require Command Points.
*'''Grugg Brothers:''' far to costly for not enough gain IMO. If our stuff was cheaper, it'd be a maybe.
*'''Gutstuffers:''' Could be cute with the new ogor rules making maneaters and firebellys both way better, but you bump into the cost problem again
*'''Nimyard’s Rough-Riders:''' Fast shooting is great for an army of slow, plodding melee guys like us. Still probably just ok since you can't use command points and there's no real synergy with your skelemen.
*'''Order of the Blood-Drenched Rose:''' Lore shenanigans aside, this could have been amazing, if only for the Vampire lord. The ability to spend a command point to chuck an extra, EXTRA attack onto a death unit could have been great! If only we had command points. That being said, Blood Knights are arguably superior to Kavalos Deathriders, having a better profile, way more damage on the charge, they have the same Battleshock immunity your guys do and they have a better save against rend - weapons. If you're not going into Petrifex Elite and you don't have something to buff up a lone squad of Deathriders or two, then consider getting the Blood Knights, they only cost slightly more for a rather large set of bonuses, as well as self-healing.
*'''Rampagers:''' This is probably what you want to take. 6 point per fugly marauder model that moves d6" after depliyment is a great forward screen. Take two units of 20 to occupy board space, grab early objectives, or even screen against opponent's deep strikes. For 120pts (instead of your regular 130pts for mortek guard) you get double the wounds, worse saves, better movement and vulnerability to battleshock. Bump the unit up to 40 dudes and you're only paying 5 points per model. This is skaven level of screening efficiency right here! Quantity is a quality of its own.
*'''Skroug’s Menagerie:''' A very high entry cost lets you take some inexpensive screens. Because of the giant's tax, those cheap dogs and spawn aren't so cheap anymore.
*'''Sons of the Lichemaster:''' The funniest option. Bring your necromancer and 3 squads of skeletons to have some baby skeletons take bullets (read charges) for your big-boy skeletons. Definitely take them if you want something to hold backfield objectives. Also the only way to include a corpse cart and a plus one to casting is always so sweet.
*'''Tenebrous Court:''' Probably your best choice for some speedy screen, could lead to some interesting combinations. Since we don't have command points, we are stuck with Courtiers to bring serfs back to full strength. If you can afford it, consider bringing Duke Crackmarrow and his Grymwatch to serve as dedicated monster hunters.

{{Age_of_Sigmar_Tactics}}