Warhammer/Tactics/8th Edition/Vampire Counts - Revision history

185.220.101.166 at 16:16, 20 May 2026

2026-05-20T16:16:26Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:16, 20 May 2026
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			{{cleanup}}
			{{Autism}}

	==Why Play Vampire Counts==		==Why Play Vampire Counts==

imported>Administrator: 417 revisions imported

2023-06-23T16:33:18Z

417 revisions imported

← Older revision	Revision as of 16:33, 23 June 2023
(No difference)

imported>Administrator: 1 revision imported

2023-06-19T14:46:38Z

1 revision imported

← Older revision	Revision as of 14:46, 19 June 2023
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176.72.50.190: /* Playstyle */ Fixed grammar.

2022-08-28T07:21:35Z

Playstyle: Fixed grammar.

188.238.237.181: /* Lords & Heroes */ Fixed grammar.

2022-08-18T13:34:50Z

Lords & Heroes: Fixed grammar.

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:34, 18 August 2022
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	He's back! Krell is a Wight King with a better statline who gets Heroic Killing Blow (in challenges) if in the same unit as Kemmler (which obviously means he'll always be in the same unit as Kemmler). He has regular Killing Blow otherwise, but the drawback is that he MUST issue a challenge whenever possible, Oh, and having a T5 W4 hero for his meager 205 point cost (not to mention his other rules) is very very good. By the way, his model is fucking ace. '''Alternate take:''' Krell is significantly more expensive then a normal Wight King and only marginally better offensively, defensively he is inferior. His special rules are fairly situational and only useful against medium to weak enemy heroes (a strength 7 lord/hero will completely ignore his armor). A mundane Wight King will almost always be a better option over Krell because they can be kitted out specifically for your needs. His model IS pretty amazing though.		He's back! Krell is a Wight King with a better statline who gets Heroic Killing Blow (in challenges) if in the same unit as Kemmler (which obviously means he'll always be in the same unit as Kemmler). He has regular Killing Blow otherwise, but the drawback is that he MUST issue a challenge whenever possible, Oh, and having a T5 W4 hero for his meager 205 point cost (not to mention his other rules) is very very good. By the way, his model is fucking ace. '''Alternate take:''' Krell is significantly more expensive then a normal Wight King and only marginally better offensively, defensively he is inferior. His special rules are fairly situational and only useful against medium to weak enemy heroes (a strength 7 lord/hero will completely ignore his armor). A mundane Wight King will almost always be a better option over Krell because they can be kitted out specifically for your needs. His model IS pretty amazing though.
	*'''[[Konrad von Carstein]]:'''		*'''[[Konrad von Carstein]]:'''
	Nothing short of psychologically damaging if your opponent happens to bring Monstrous Infantry (to him, not his models). That being said combat is all he really does well (though he does it VERY well) while being the uncle of all glass cannons. His stats are on-par with am ordinary Hero level Vampire, and he only has Heavy Armor, so it's his special rules you want to take him for. He rings in at 160 points.		Nothing short of psychologically damaging if your opponent happens to bring Monstrous Infantry (to him, not his models). That being said combat is all he really does well (though he does it VERY well) while being the uncle of all glass cannons. His stats are on-par with an ordinary Hero level Vampire, and he only has Heavy Armor, so it's his special rules you want to take him for. He rings in at 160 points.
	His insanity is reflected by a special rule called "One Bat Short of a Belfry" which has you roll for his current mental state. At the start of the turn you roll a D6, with a result of 1-3 granting him Stupidity and a result of 4-6 giving him Frenzy.		His insanity is reflected by a special rule called "One Bat Short of a Belfry" which has you roll for his current mental state. At the start of the turn you roll a D6, with a result of 1-3 granting him Stupidity and a result of 4-6 giving him Frenzy.
	So be wary of using him... and be aware that Ogre Kingdoms players will die a little inside each time you field him.		So be wary of using him... and be aware that Ogre Kingdoms players will die a little inside each time you field him.
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	*'''Master Necromancer:'''		*'''Master Necromancer:'''
	For only 165 points, this is a cheap level 3 Wizard (which can be upgraded to a level 4) in either Lore of Death or Lore of Vampires (NOT Shadow) that can be used to support a a fighty Vampire Lord, or to be the main caster and general should you decide to bring a slew of ordinary Vampires. If you are considering making him your general, that certainly frees points for the other great choices you have, but remember that your army will start crumbling as soon as he dies. If you assign the other Vampires to Lore of Vampires then at least one of them can take over as general, although this is not ideal.		For only 165 points, this is a cheap level 3 Wizard (which can be upgraded to a level 4) in either Lore of Death or Lore of Vampires (NOT Shadow) that can be used to support a fighty Vampire Lord, or to be the main caster and general should you decide to bring a slew of ordinary Vampires. If you are considering making him your general, that certainly frees points for the other great choices you have, but remember that your army will start crumbling as soon as he dies. If you assign the other Vampires to Lore of Vampires then at least one of them can take over as general, although this is not ideal.

	The Master Necromancer can be mounted on Barded Nightmares, Hellsteeds, Abyssal Terrors, and something Vampires can't ride: Corpse Carts. The main point of putting him on a Corpse Cart is making a combo out of casting Invocation of Nehek on the Corpse Cart, which ensures that Vigor Mortis activates, giving all friendly Undead units within 6" the Always Strikes First special rule, but it's not a great idea - siege machines are already pointing at him to start with, and putting him on the cart makes him that much easier to shoot down.		The Master Necromancer can be mounted on Barded Nightmares, Hellsteeds, Abyssal Terrors, and something Vampires can't ride: Corpse Carts. The main point of putting him on a Corpse Cart is making a combo out of casting Invocation of Nehek on the Corpse Cart, which ensures that Vigor Mortis activates, giving all friendly Undead units within 6" the Always Strikes First special rule, but it's not a great idea - siege machines are already pointing at him to start with, and putting him on the cart makes him that much easier to shoot down.
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	*'''Tomb Banshee:'''		*'''Tomb Banshee:'''
	95 points. Ethereal , Terror, Undead. Crap stats and two Wounds. Can use Ghostly Howl, which targets an enemy unit and is used in the shooting phase and can be used in close combat. 8" range, needs LOS. Roll 2D6+2, for each point you beat the enemy's LD score they take one Wound with no armor saves against it (although they DO count as magic attacks so there's still Ward Saves and immunity to that).		95 points. Ethereal , Terror, Undead. Crap stats and two Wounds. Can use Ghostly Howl, which targets an enemy unit and is used in the shooting phase and can be used in close combat. 8" range, needs LOS. Roll 2D6+2, for each point you beat the enemy's LD score they take one Wound with no armor saves against it (although they DO count as magic attacks so there's still Ward Saves and immunity to that).
	Generally not the best investment for points. Any competitive army will have at least 9 Leadership in important units, most will have 10, so the hysterical woman is unlikely to earn her points back (she will ~~deal~~ on average deal less than 0.5 casualties per turn in those cases). She can take out a low LD unit very quickly however (seeing 10 Skaven Slaves drop dead bleeding from the ears from one single attack can be fucking hilarious). As a result, she's best used to wipe out ranks of anvils and let you wash over everything that was supposed to flank charge you, though thanks to the range of the scream she's not very good at that, and at LD 5 has the same problem as the Cairn Wraith.		Generally not the best investment for points. Any competitive army will have at least 9 Leadership in important units, most will have 10, so the hysterical woman is unlikely to earn her points back (she will on average deal less than 0.5 casualties per turn in those cases). She can take out a low LD unit very quickly however (seeing 10 Skaven Slaves drop dead bleeding from the ears from one single attack can be fucking hilarious). As a result, she's best used to wipe out ranks of anvils and let you wash over everything that was supposed to flank charge you, though thanks to the range of the scream she's not very good at that, and at LD 5 has the same problem as the Cairn Wraith.

	=====Mounts=====		=====Mounts=====

1d4chan>Hamfool at 19:57, 31 August 2021

2021-08-31T19:57:16Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:57, 31 August 2021
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	'''Buying a Vampire Counts army in a post-AoS World'''		'''Buying a Vampire Counts army in a post-AoS World'''

	The good news: Vampire Counts got hit not nearly as hard as some other factions, and arguably actually benefits from the new start collecting! boxes GW does, which have replaced the old battalions/army boxes. The range has now been split across 3 different factions in AoS: All the traditional ~~strigoi~~ stuff (terrorgheists, crypt ghouls/horrors etc) have become the flesh eater courts, while your traditionally Lahmian stuff (mortis engine, hexwraiths, black coach etc) have become assimilated into the nighthaunt range. Everything else was stuffed into the Legions of (Guess who!?) Nagash. Your named characters have become generic Vampires/Necromancers/Wight Kings.		The good news: Vampire Counts got hit not nearly as hard as some other factions, and arguably actually benefits from the new start collecting! boxes GW does, which have replaced the old battalions/army boxes. The range has now been split across 3 different factions in AoS: All the traditional Strigoi stuff (terrorgheists, crypt ghouls/horrors etc) have become the flesh eater courts, while your traditionally Lahmian stuff (mortis engine, hexwraiths, black coach etc) have become assimilated into the nighthaunt range. Everything else was stuffed into the Legions of (Guess who!?) Nagash. Your named characters have become generic Vampires/Necromancers/Wight Kings. Update for 2021: RIP VC named characters, guess we're waiting for the Vampire Wars in [[The Old World]] to get a few back.

	The bad news: Have fun trying to get hold of square bases. While some of the older units, such as zombies, may still come with square bases, your start collecting sets and new units do not, and you're probably going to want a few of them.		The bad news: Have fun trying to get hold of square bases. While some of the older units, such as zombies, may still come with square bases, your start collecting sets and new units do not, and you're probably going to want a few of them. Someone on eBay always has a pile of old Warhammer stuff that has a few dozen bases; if you ever need more just find someone selling a bits pile you like.

	Collecting an army however is even better than pre-end times. Buy a couple of FEC starter sets and a box of crypt ghouls? You've now got a very respectable Strigoi force that will put a dent in whatever you face them up against. Want some Lahmians running around the battlefield? Buy a couple of Malignant start collecting sets and you've now got 2 Coven Thrones/Mortis Engines, 10 Hexwraiths and a good squad of Spirit Hosts. If you want to go down the more traditional von Carstein or Necrarch route, then buy a Legions of Nagash starter set and a metric fuckton of skeletons or zombies, with some Grave Guard and Black Knights to help them out. Only buy 1 LoN SC set, or you'll end up with lots of Abyssal Terrors, of which you really only need one.		Collecting an army, however, is even better than pre-end times. Buy a couple of FEC starter sets and a box of crypt ghouls? You've now got a very respectable Strigoi force that will put a dent in whatever you face them up against. Want some Lahmians running around the battlefield? Buy a couple of Malignant start collecting sets and you've now got 2 Coven Thrones/Mortis Engines, 10 Hexwraiths and a good squad of Spirit Hosts. If you want to go down the more traditional von Carstein or Necrarch route, then <s>buy a Legions of Nagash starter set and a metric fuckton of skeletons or zombies, with some Grave Guard and Black Knights to help them out. Only buy 1 LoN SC set, or you'll end up with lots of Abyssal Terrors, of which you really only need one.</s> weep for the end of the old Skeleton Warriors kit. The new basic boneboys are pretty cool as AOS updates go, but they're just not the same, and their poses make them near impossible to rank up on squares. The new Soulblight Gravelords starter is a fantastic deal, though- the other parts of the classic skeletal triad, Grave Guard and Black Knights, come at a slight discount, and you get the new mounted Wight King, who has been shown by /wfg/'s top scientists to fit on a square cavalry base with minimal work. At the moment, this is the only place you can get him. Classic GW.

	The Black Coach has got a fantastic new model- much more dynamic and detailed- but is too big to fit on the right base. To fix this, cut the front 2 ghost horses from the Coach to reduce the size and take some Wraiths off to reduce the profile. Cairn Wraiths have a fantastic new unit (Grimghast Reapers are ghosts with scythes, they're basically the same), so just stick them on square bases and you have a good-sized unit for your rare slot. Blood Dragons are still the enigma they've always been when it comes to finding (and funding) good conversions for them, except it's got a bit harder - Dragon Princes and Brettonians are long gone, so you'll have to do some more hardcore conversions.		The Black Coach has got a fantastic new model- much more dynamic and detailed- but is too big to fit on the right base. To fix this, cut the front 2 ghost horses from the Coach to reduce the size and take some Wraiths off to reduce the profile. Cairn Wraiths have a fantastic new unit (Grimghast Reapers are ghosts with scythes, they're basically the same), so just stick them on square bases and you have a good-sized unit for your rare slot. Blood Dragons are still the enigma they've always been when it comes to finding (and funding) good conversions for them, except it's got a bit harder - Dragon Princes and Brettonians are long gone, so you'll have to do some more hardcore conversions.

	Characters are even easier to convert - the Nighthaunt Dreadblade Harrows kit builds you 2 Wight Kings on skeletal steeds if you're brave enough, while Reikenor the Grimhailer is quite possibly the best Hellsteed base for a conversion I've ever seen.		Characters are even easier to convert - the Nighthaunt Dreadblade Harrows kit builds you 2 Wight Kings on skeletal steeds if you're brave enough, while Reikenor the Grimhailer is quite possibly the best Hellsteed base for a conversion I've ever seen.


	==Tactics==		==Tactics==

174.64.6.201: /* Buying Your Army */

2021-07-06T00:49:18Z

Buying Your Army

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:49, 6 July 2021
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	'''Buying a Vampire Counts army in a post-AoS World'''		'''Buying a Vampire Counts army in a post-AoS World'''

	The good news: Vampire Counts got hit not nearly as hard as some other factions, and arguably actually benefits from the new start collecting! boxes GW does, which have replaced the old battalions/army boxes. The range has now been split across 3 different factions in AoS: All the traditional strigoi stuff (terrorgheists, crypt ghouls/horrors etc) have become the flesh eater courts, while your traditionally Lahmian stuff (mortis engine, hexwraiths, black coach etc) have become assimilated into the nighthaunt range. Everything else was stuffed into the Legions of (Guess who!?) Nagash. Your named characters have become generic ~~vampires~~/~~necromancers~~/~~wight kings~~.		The good news: Vampire Counts got hit not nearly as hard as some other factions, and arguably actually benefits from the new start collecting! boxes GW does, which have replaced the old battalions/army boxes. The range has now been split across 3 different factions in AoS: All the traditional strigoi stuff (terrorgheists, crypt ghouls/horrors etc) have become the flesh eater courts, while your traditionally Lahmian stuff (mortis engine, hexwraiths, black coach etc) have become assimilated into the nighthaunt range. Everything else was stuffed into the Legions of (Guess who!?) Nagash. Your named characters have become generic Vampires/Necromancers/Wight Kings.

	The bad news: Have fun trying to get hold of square bases. While some of the older units, such as zombies, may still come with square bases, your start collecting sets and new units do not, and you're probably going to want a few of them.		The bad news: Have fun trying to get hold of square bases. While some of the older units, such as zombies, may still come with square bases, your start collecting sets and new units do not, and you're probably going to want a few of them.

	Collecting an army however is even better than pre-end times. Buy a couple of FEC starter sets and a box of crypt ghouls? You've now got a very respectable Strigoi force that will put a dent in whatever you face them up against. Want some Lahmians running around the battlefield? Buy a couple of Malignant start collecting sets and you've now got 2 ~~coven thrones~~/~~mortis engines~~, 10 ~~hexwraiths~~ and a good squad of ~~spirit hosts~~. If you want to go down the more traditional ~~Von~~ Carstein or Necrarch route, then buy a Legions of Nagash starter set and a metric fuckton of skeletons or zombies, with some ~~grave guard~~ and ~~black knights~~ to help them out. Only buy 1 LoN SC set, or you'll end up with lots of ~~abyssal terrors~~, which you really only need one of.		Collecting an army however is even better than pre-end times. Buy a couple of FEC starter sets and a box of crypt ghouls? You've now got a very respectable Strigoi force that will put a dent in whatever you face them up against. Want some Lahmians running around the battlefield? Buy a couple of Malignant start collecting sets and you've now got 2 Coven Thrones/Mortis Engines, 10 Hexwraiths and a good squad of Spirit Hosts. If you want to go down the more traditional von Carstein or Necrarch route, then buy a Legions of Nagash starter set and a metric fuckton of skeletons or zombies, with some Grave Guard and Black Knights to help them out. Only buy 1 LoN SC set, or you'll end up with lots of Abyssal Terrors, of which you really only need one.

	The ~~black coach~~ has got a fantastic new model- much more dynamic and detailed- but is too big to fit on the right base. To fix this, cut the front 2 ghost horses from the ~~coach~~ to reduce the size and take some ~~wraiths~~ off to reduce the profile. Cairn ~~wraiths~~ have a fantastic new unit (Grimghast ~~reapers~~ are ghosts with scythes, they're basically the same), so just stick them on square bases and you have a good-sized unit for your rare slot. Blood ~~dragons~~ are still the enigma they've always been when it comes to finding (and funding) good conversions for them, except it's got a bit harder - ~~dragon princes~~ and ~~brettonians~~ are long gone, so you'll have to do some more hardcore conversions.		The Black Coach has got a fantastic new model- much more dynamic and detailed- but is too big to fit on the right base. To fix this, cut the front 2 ghost horses from the Coach to reduce the size and take some Wraiths off to reduce the profile. Cairn Wraiths have a fantastic new unit (Grimghast Reapers are ghosts with scythes, they're basically the same), so just stick them on square bases and you have a good-sized unit for your rare slot. Blood Dragons are still the enigma they've always been when it comes to finding (and funding) good conversions for them, except it's got a bit harder - Dragon Princes and Brettonians are long gone, so you'll have to do some more hardcore conversions.

	Characters are even ~~more easy~~ to convert - the ~~nighthaunt dreadblade harrows~~ kit builds you 2 ~~wight kings~~ on skeletal steeds if you're brave enough, while ~~reikenor~~ the ~~grimhailer~~ is quite possibly the best ~~hellsteed~~ base for a conversion I've ever seen.		Characters are even easier to convert - the Nighthaunt Dreadblade Harrows kit builds you 2 Wight Kings on skeletal steeds if you're brave enough, while Reikenor the Grimhailer is quite possibly the best Hellsteed base for a conversion I've ever seen.

	==Tactics==		==Tactics==

1d4chan>CorinthianHelm at 13:12, 17 June 2021

2021-06-17T13:12:08Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:12, 17 June 2021
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	The first of three designated hammers, representing the jack of all trades which has the speed of the Terrorgheist without being as flimsy.		The first of three designated hammers, representing the jack of all trades which has the speed of the Terrorgheist without being as flimsy.
	46 point Monstrous Infantry with Fly (when charging roll 3d6 and discard the lowest value and add it to the Movement score and get to also do that to Flee, get to Move 10" anyway regardless of their lower M score, and can March a whopping 20"), and Frenzy. M6, WS4, S5, T4, W3, I4, 3 Attacks, and a Leadership score of 7. They are Vampiric, so they cannot crumble.		46 point Monstrous Infantry with Fly (when charging roll 3d6 and discard the lowest value and add it to the Movement score and get to also do that to Flee, get to Move 10" anyway regardless of their lower M score, and can March a whopping 20"), and Frenzy. M6, WS4, S5, T4, W3, I4, 3 Attacks, and a Leadership score of 7. They are Vampiric, so they cannot crumble.
	They compete with Empire Outriders and High Elf Swordmasters for the title of premier glass cannons; these guys do pack considerable punch at break-neck speed. They can hunt War Machines if they must, but they really work better hitting flanks and hunting enemy support troops. Don’t ever think they'll last against even mediocre infantry unsupported though as that T4 is all they have keeping them alive despite their 3 Wounds~~, and that low Initiative will let even humans with pointy sticks get a jab in before they move~~.		They compete with Empire Outriders and High Elf Swordmasters for the title of premier glass cannons; these guys do pack considerable punch at break-neck speed. They can hunt War Machines if they must, but they really work better hitting flanks and hunting enemy support troops. Don’t ever think they'll last against even mediocre infantry unsupported though as that T4 is all they have keeping them alive despite their 3 Wounds.
	Be careful though, because they are Flyers they're also Skirmishers. Keep this in mind when you send them out into the juicy flanks as they cannot disrupt enemy Units. Can be taken in units of 3+.		Be careful though, because they are Flyers they're also Skirmishers. Keep this in mind when you send them out into the juicy flanks as they cannot disrupt enemy Units. Can be taken in units of 3+.

2600:1700:7D0:60B0:BD07:65E4:CA0B:C67A: /* Vampiric Powers */

2021-06-08T19:28:44Z

Vampiric Powers

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:28, 8 June 2021
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	*''Quickblood:'' ASF. The OTHER most taken killy ability. If you are going to be in combat, you want this.		*''Quickblood:'' ASF. The OTHER most taken killy ability. If you are going to be in combat, you want this.
	*''Aura of Dark Majesty:'' When you're gambling on Fear/Terror, abilities like Beguile or the effects of the Coven Throne, and similar abilities can all be amped up with Aura. One of the better non-blender lord abilities. Combine with the Coven Throne, Banshees, Terrorgheists, or Screaming Banner to really fuck with your opponents. 30 pts.		*''Aura of Dark Majesty:'' When you're gambling on Fear/Terror, abilities like Beguile or the effects of the Coven Throne, and similar abilities can all be amped up with Aura. One of the better non-blender lord abilities. Combine with the Coven Throne, Banshees, Terrorgheists, or Screaming Banner to really fuck with your opponents. 30 pts.
	*''Dark Acolyte:'' This adds D3 to your vampire's casting value after successfully casting the lore of vampires' signature spell, Invocation of Nehek. Unfortunately, because it comes into effect only after successfully casting the spell, it does not help you cast the spell with less dice. However, that extra D3 may force the enemy to spend an additional dispel die to stop that spell which may prevent them from being able to dispel another spell later in the same magic phase. It is situational as it only affects one spell and may or may not make the enemy spend one extra die to stop that spell. However, a vampire with Dark Acolyte and a Mortis Engine with Blasphemous Tome nearby can make ~~your Invocations~~ very difficult to dispel. 25 pts.		*''Dark Acolyte:'' This adds D3 to your vampire's casting value after successfully casting the lore of vampires' signature spell, Invocation of Nehek. Unfortunately, because it comes into effect only after successfully casting the spell, it does not help you cast the spell with less dice. However, that extra D3 may force the enemy to spend an additional dispel die to stop that spell which may prevent them from being able to dispel another spell later in the same magic phase. It is situational as it only affects one spell and may or may not make the enemy spend one extra die to stop that spell. However, a vampire with Dark Acolyte and a Mortis Engine with Blasphemous Tome nearby can make that Invocation very difficult to dispel. 25 pts.
	*''Forbidden Lore:'' Allows you to use any lore from the BRB other than Life. See the below evaluation of the spell lores for usefulness. 25 pts.		*''Forbidden Lore:'' Allows you to use any lore from the BRB other than Life. See the below evaluation of the spell lores for usefulness. 25 pts.
	*''Supernatural Horror:'' Terror. Good to still get the edge on armies who take the Wailing Banner, Shrieking Blade, or pesky options like Phoenix Guard. 25 pts.		*''Supernatural Horror:'' Terror. Good to still get the edge on armies who take the Wailing Banner, Shrieking Blade, or pesky options like Phoenix Guard. 25 pts.

2600:1700:7D0:60B0:BD07:65E4:CA0B:C67A: /* Vampiric Powers */

2021-06-08T19:26:11Z

Vampiric Powers

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:26, 8 June 2021
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	*''Quickblood:'' ASF. The OTHER most taken killy ability. If you are going to be in combat, you want this.		*''Quickblood:'' ASF. The OTHER most taken killy ability. If you are going to be in combat, you want this.
	*''Aura of Dark Majesty:'' When you're gambling on Fear/Terror, abilities like Beguile or the effects of the Coven Throne, and similar abilities can all be amped up with Aura. One of the better non-blender lord abilities. Combine with the Coven Throne, Banshees, Terrorgheists, or Screaming Banner to really fuck with your opponents. 30 pts.		*''Aura of Dark Majesty:'' When you're gambling on Fear/Terror, abilities like Beguile or the effects of the Coven Throne, and similar abilities can all be amped up with Aura. One of the better non-blender lord abilities. Combine with the Coven Throne, Banshees, Terrorgheists, or Screaming Banner to really fuck with your opponents. 30 pts.
	*''Dark Acolyte:'' This adds D3 to your casting value after successfully casting the lore of vampires' signature spell, Invocation of Nehek. Unfortunately, because it comes into effect only after successfully casting the spell, it does not help you cast the spell with less dice. However, that extra D3 may force the enemy to spend an additional dispel die to stop that spell which may prevent them from being able to dispel another spell later in the same magic phase. It is situational as it only affects one spell and may or may not make the enemy spend one extra die to stop that spell. However, a ~~couple vampires~~ with Dark Acolyte and a Mortis Engine with Blasphemous Tome can make your Invocations very difficult to dispel. 25 pts.		*''Dark Acolyte:'' This adds D3 to your vampire's casting value after successfully casting the lore of vampires' signature spell, Invocation of Nehek. Unfortunately, because it comes into effect only after successfully casting the spell, it does not help you cast the spell with less dice. However, that extra D3 may force the enemy to spend an additional dispel die to stop that spell which may prevent them from being able to dispel another spell later in the same magic phase. It is situational as it only affects one spell and may or may not make the enemy spend one extra die to stop that spell. However, a vampire with Dark Acolyte and a Mortis Engine with Blasphemous Tome nearby can make your Invocations very difficult to dispel. 25 pts.
	*''Forbidden Lore:'' Allows you to use any lore from the BRB other than Life. See the below evaluation of the spell lores for usefulness. 25 pts.		*''Forbidden Lore:'' Allows you to use any lore from the BRB other than Life. See the below evaluation of the spell lores for usefulness. 25 pts.
	*''Supernatural Horror:'' Terror. Good to still get the edge on armies who take the Wailing Banner, Shrieking Blade, or pesky options like Phoenix Guard. 25 pts.		*''Supernatural Horror:'' Terror. Good to still get the edge on armies who take the Wailing Banner, Shrieking Blade, or pesky options like Phoenix Guard. 25 pts.

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:21, 28 August 2022
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	'''Fielding lords'''		'''Fielding lords'''
	The first thing that is apparent in the VC army is just how balls out powerful a Vampire ~~lord~~ can be, the only other generic ~~lords~~ in the game that can go head to head with them and survive with any frequency are Chaos ~~lords~~. The big draw back with this is the egg/basket problem, you can make ~~the~~ just about unkillable but it will cost you a huge number of points to do so. While tempting as this may be it is tactically unsound. In the current edition of Fantasy, for various reasons numbers are more important than individuals with high killing power. That tricked-out Vampire Lord ~~woth~~ 100 points of magic items, 100 points of Vampire upgrades riding a Zombie Dragon may win you one fight but if you spend those 400+ points on troops you can have 4 level 2 Necromancers raining spells down everywhere or a 60 Skeleton hoard with command and a magic banner. With Vampires its about value for points be it in survivability, magic superiority, killing power, or battlefield advantage. if properly kitted out can be ~~mad~~ a metric tonne more dangerous than a ~~chaos lord~~. Nightshroud+ Quickblood means that you're always going first. I7 means regular re-rolls to hit. Give him the ~~giant~~'s ~~blade~~, and that's S8. Barded ~~nightmare~~+shield= 1+ armour save. combined with the awesomeness that is ~~lore~~ of the ~~vampires~~, from a friendly ~~necromancer~~, +1A, re-rolls on ~~to hit~~ and ~~to wound~~ are possible. Take the ~~razor standard~~ nearby, and you are ignoring armour. Red fury ~~an dread knight~~ is just the icing on the cake. Against this, every character without a good ~~ward save~~ will die (though the ones that do have one and ignore armour will wreck him). Another way to build him is to take a Zombie Dragon, Glittering Scales, Sword of Striking, Dread Knight and Quickblood and LAUGH as your opponent has to roll 6+ MINIMUM to hit you in melee, while you need a 3+ at ~~WORST~~.		The first thing that is apparent in the VC army is just how balls out powerful a Vampire Lord can be, the only other generic Lords in the game that can go head to head with them and survive with any frequency are Chaos Lords. The big draw back with this is the egg/basket problem, you can make them just about unkillable but it will cost you a huge number of points to do so. While tempting as this may be it is tactically unsound. In the current edition of Fantasy, for various reasons numbers are more important than individuals with high killing power. That tricked-out Vampire Lord worth 100 points of magic items, 100 points of Vampire upgrades riding a Zombie Dragon may win you one fight but if you spend those 400+ points on troops you can have four level 2 Necromancers raining spells down everywhere or a 60 Skeleton hoard with command and a magic banner. With Vampires its about value for points be it in survivability, magic superiority, killing power, or battlefield advantage. if properly kitted out can be made a metric tonne more dangerous than a Chaos Lord. Nightshroud + Quickblood means that you're always going first. I7 means regular re-rolls to hit. Give him the Giant's Blade, and that's S8. Barded Nightmare + shield = 1+ armour save. combined with the awesomeness that is Lore of the Vampires, from a friendly Necromancer, +1A, re-rolls on To Hit and To Wound are possible. Take the Razor Standard nearby, and you are ignoring armour. Red fury and Dread Knight is just the icing on the cake. Against this, every character without a good Ward Save will die (though the ones that do have one and ignore armour will wreck him). Another way to build him is to take a Zombie Dragon, Glittering Scales, Sword of Striking, Dread Knight and Quickblood and LAUGH as your opponent has to roll 6+ MINIMUM to hit you in melee, while you need a 3+ at MOST.
	Ultimately, you must decide if you're going to use your characters for killing or casting. It's certainly possible to do both, but in almost every scenario it's better to divide those tasks between two characters.		Ultimately, you must decide if you're going to use your characters for killing or casting. It's certainly possible to do both, but in almost every scenario it's better to divide those tasks between two characters.
	Forbidden Lores can be very useful; after all, Time Warp and Danse Macabre both cast on the same Unit can put a Terror-causing Unit into the opponent's start area, Iceshard Blizzard take take yet another point away from your foe's LD while weakening those wretched shooting attacks you don't get, Final Transmutation on top of a crippled LD score can cripple his entire strategy, Pann's Impenetrable Pelt can turn an already impressive combat Vampire Lord into an untouchable monster, and so on. Just remember that the more casters in Lore of Vampires you can manage, the longer your force will probably survive.		Forbidden Lores can be very useful; after all, Time Warp and Danse Macabre both cast on the same Unit can put a Terror-causing Unit into the opponent's start area, Iceshard Blizzard take take yet another point away from your foe's LD while weakening those wretched shooting attacks you don't get, Final Transmutation on top of a crippled LD score can cripple his entire strategy, Pann's Impenetrable Pelt can turn an already impressive combat Vampire Lord into an untouchable monster, and so on. Just remember that the more casters in Lore of Vampires you can manage, the longer your force will probably survive.

	The other options aren't so bad either, a Strigoi Ghoul King, with ~~Its~~ somewhat mediocre Regeneration can be boosted to a 4+ with the help of a Mortis Engine, and for an insignificant 5 points you could shove a Dragon Bane gem from the Core magic items on him for a 2+ Ward against Flaming Attacks (making it damn near mandatory) so even if the enemy brings ~~flaming attacks~~ or spells you just got a massive boost in protection. Ghoul Kings still have a great Initiative score at 8, meaning it will go first no matter what against most units and characters (other than elves). Oh, and taking Quickblood? Cancels out the ASF that what he's fighting might have (ahem elves cough) so that most won't get rerolls against him, but he will get them against THEM (though they'll strike simultaneously).		The other options aren't so bad either, a Strigoi Ghoul King, with its somewhat mediocre Regeneration can be boosted to a 4+ with the help of a Mortis Engine, and for an insignificant 5 points you could shove a Dragon Bane gem from the Core magic items on him for a 2+ Ward against Flaming Attacks (making it damn near mandatory) so even if the enemy brings Flaming Attacks or spells you just got a massive boost in protection. Ghoul Kings still have a great Initiative score at 8, meaning it will go first no matter what against most units and characters (other than elves). Oh, and taking Quickblood? Cancels out the ASF that what he's fighting might have (ahem elves cough) so that most won't get rerolls against him, but he will get them against THEM (though they'll strike simultaneously).
	Another fairly cost-efficient way to field him is taking the Book of Arkhan (Vanhel's Danse Macabre as a bound spell, which grants an extra 8" to move for his unit and re-roll for failed To Hit rolls, ideal for ghouls) and the Dragon Bane gem, as well as taking the Vampire upgrades Red Fury, Beguile, and Fear Incarnate. This will get his unit straight into combat where they'll tear the shit out of whatever they meet and is a psychology nightmare. Only take Dread Knight if you want him stuck against a unit champion or if you're chasing lone models and warmachines~~-then~~ again, overkill against a unit champion is also pretty okay.		Another fairly cost-efficient way to field him is taking the Book of Arkhan (Vanhel's Danse Macabre as a bound spell, which grants an extra 8" to move for his unit and re-roll for failed To Hit rolls, ideal for ghouls) and the Dragon Bane gem, as well as taking the Vampire upgrades Red Fury, Beguile, and Fear Incarnate. This will get his unit straight into combat where they'll tear the shit out of whatever they meet and is a psychology nightmare. Only take Dread Knight if you want him stuck against a unit champion or if you're chasing lone models and warmachines. Then again, overkill against a unit champion is also pretty okay.
	The above set-up would set you back 390 or 400 points, depending whether or not you take Dread Knight and nets you a really versatile character.		The above set-up would set you back 390 or 400 points, depending whether or not you take Dread Knight and nets you a really versatile character.

	'''Troops, So Many Troops'''		'''Troops, So Many Troops'''
	Unless you are intentionally fielding a small high-value force you will probably outnumber your opponent. This is because Skeletons and Zombies are cheap, spammable, and you can end up with more then you started with and if you don't then you are doing it wrong. However, VC Core also tend to be useless at killing anything with WS5+ or T4. Regardless of this fact, a horde of troops can hold anything that's not packing some serious killing power in place until they have been whittled down to nothing or you bring something bigger to finish the job the twice-redshirts started. Something else about skeletons, is that unlike Zombies, Skeleton Warriors can take 25 points worth of magic standard. A good option is a horde carrying Screaming Banner (enemy units taking Fear tests in combat with the unit carrying the banner roll an extra dice and discard the lower one) marching with a Vampire who has the Supernatural Horror (causes Terror) and Fear Incarnate (enemies that pass their Fear test must reroll it and cancels out their Stand Your Ground from their BSB). Suddenly you increase the enemies chance of failing a test radically. You can also take Banner of Eternal Flame to push your horde up against anything with a regen save. Make sure to watch out for Lords, Heroes, and things with a save against flaming attacks. Ghouls on the other hand are your hammer in the Core selection, a unit of 20 will pack 16 poison attacks in a 5wide formation, unfortunately they are twice the cost of skeletons making a basic horde (10x4) over 400 points.		Unless you are intentionally fielding a small high-value force you will probably outnumber your opponent. This is because Skeletons and Zombies are cheap, spammable, and you can end up with more then you started with and if you don't then you are doing it wrong. However, VC Core also tend to be useless at killing anything with WS5+ or T4. Regardless of this fact, a horde of troops can hold anything that's not packing some serious killing power in place until they have been whittled down to nothing or you bring something bigger to finish the job the twice-redshirts started. Something else about skeletons, is that unlike Zombies, Skeleton Warriors can take 25 points worth of magic standard. A good option is a horde carrying Screaming Banner (enemy units taking Fear tests in combat with the unit carrying the banner roll an extra dice and discard the lower one) marching with a Vampire who has the Supernatural Horror (causes Terror) and Fear Incarnate (enemies that pass their Fear test must reroll it and cancels out their Stand Your Ground from their BSB). Suddenly you increase the enemies chance of failing a test radically. You can also take Banner of Eternal Flame to push your horde up against anything with a regen save. Make sure to watch out for Lords, Heroes, and things with a save against flaming attacks. Ghouls on the other hand are your hammer in the Core selection, a unit of 20 will pack 16 poison attacks in a 5wide formation, unfortunately they are twice the cost of skeletons making a basic horde (10x4) over 400 points.
	Dire Wolves generally have no role other than directors, and if you aren't taking Fell Bats or Cairne Wraiths (Rare version) are probably ~~you're~~ poor man's option in those roles.		Dire Wolves generally have no role other than directors, and if you aren't taking Fell Bats or Cairne Wraiths (Rare version) are probably your poor man's option in those roles.
	That being said, they work fantastic as redirectors. Most armies can benefit from having a Unit of 5-10 on each side, but generally it's a useless practice to field a massive army of them unless they're just there to soak up points.		That being said, they work fantastic as redirectors. Most armies can benefit from having a Unit of 5-10 on each side, but generally it's a useless practice to field a massive army of them unless they're just there to soak up points.

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	'''The Rape Train Has No Breaks'''		'''The Rape Train Has No Breaks'''
	The Rare options in the army are the heaviest. Barring the Mortis Engine, the Rare section is essentially a list of the strap-on varieties you can peg your opponent with.		The Rare options in the army are the heaviest. Barring the Mortis Engine, the Rare section is essentially a list of the strap-on varieties you can peg your opponent with.
	Every option (still not the Mortis Engine) is the biggest hammer in your army. Each of them is squishy for their points as well, so take them with a plan for use which involves getting them into position. The Engine itself is nice for it's passive damage-dealing, but is probably best taken to bolster your anvil if it has Regeneration and pimp your magic. For example, a naked master ~~necro~~ in range of a mortis engine cast at the same comfortably broken bonus power (+5) in LoV as Nagash, and Nagash casts LoV at the insane and ball shriveling +7.		Every option (still not the Mortis Engine) is the biggest hammer in your army. Each of them is squishy for their points as well, so take them with a plan for use which involves getting them into position. The Engine itself is nice for it's passive damage-dealing, but is probably best taken to bolster your anvil if it has Regeneration and pimp your magic. For example, a naked master Necromancer in range of a mortis engine cast at the same comfortably broken bonus power (+5) in LoV as Nagash, and Nagash casts LoV at the insane and ball shriveling +7.
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