8th Ed. 2000 point vs. Ogres, a return to Warhammer game.

[tankrothchild]

Hi!

So I've been a Wood Elf player through 7th, took some time off, and now my friend and I are getting back in with all the good stuff 8th has brought. Apparently WE are terrible now, so I have my old Lizzies I'd like to field. Here is my list:

Slann Mage-Priest Loner
BSB, Focus of Mystery, Focused Rumination, Lore of Life

Saurus Scar-Veteran Cowboy
Cold one, Dragonhelm, Dawnstone, Venome of the Firefly Frog

Skink Skirmishers x 10
Brave

Skink Skirmishers x 10

Skink Skirmishers x 10

Saurus Warriors x 30
Stardard Bearer Musician, Champion, Hand Weapon /w Sheild

Saurus Warriors x 30
Stardard Bearer Musician, Champion, Hand Weapon /w Sheild

Stegadon

Chameleon Skinks x 6
Stalker

Chameleon Skinks x 6
Stalker

Salamander
Skink Handlers x 4

Salamander
Skink Handlers x 4

Total: 1998

So this is our first battle in 8th edition. My game plan is to shoot the heck out of the Ogres while they march towards the blocks of Saurus warriors, have the slann hang out with them, use the cowboy and the stegadon as the hammer once the Ogres hit the hopefully buffed up super tough Saurus lines.

My only fear is my Slann being too weak.

What do you guys think about my list?

EDIT: Thinking about Higher State of Conciseness for the Slann (for more protection) and drop a unit of skinks...

 

[Omar]

As you will start seeing in the forums soon, if you take a solo Slann you better give him some protection with Higher State of Conciousness or Plaque of Protection.

At the points level I don't think the lone cowboy Scar-Vet will be a very effective hammer.

 

[Anton_S]

As an Ogre player I'd say definitely go for Higher State of Consciousness. My Leadbelchers and Ironblaster would absolutely love to have a go at a Slann with only a 4+ ward to protect him.

I think the cowboy is good too, most Ogre units will only put a -2 save on you and that means he can go in solo against otherwise dangerous units like Mournfangs and be fairly confident of winning. He's got move enough to pick his fights too.

 

[tankrothchild]

I'm definitely agreeing with you on the HSoC. I going to add it and shuffle some points. Thanks guys, I'll update soon.

 

[tankrothchild]

Ok, so the matchup turned into a 2400 point game and for me to get there I'll have to add a unit that isn't the most popular and probably not the most efficient unit I can take, but It's the only model I have left to make up the point difference. Here is the list as it stands:

Slann Mage-Priest Loner
BSB, Focus of Mystery, Focused Rumination, Higher State of Consciousness, Lore of Life

Saurus Scar-Veteran Cowboy
Cold one, Dragonhelm, Dawnstone, Venom of the Firefly Frog

Skink Skirmishers x 10

Skink Skirmishers x 10

Skink Skirmishers x 10

Saurus Warriors x 30
Standard Bearer, Musician, Champion, Hand Weapon /w Shield

Saurus Warriors x 30
Standard Bearer, Musician, Champion, Hand Weapon /w Shield

Stegadon

Chameleon Skinks x 6
Stalker

Chameleon Skinks x 6
Stalker

Salamander
Skink Handlers x 4

Salamander
Skink Handlers x 4

and the addition:

Skink Chief, Ancient Stegadon, Warrior Bane, Luck Stone, Bane Head, Shield

Total: 2399

Model wise, besides switching magic items and equipment, I don't have much flexibility.

One thing I do know is, he does not have any mournfang cavalry models (unless he surprises me). and we don't proxy.

What do you guys think, will I get dominated? I know the Skink Chief is pretty iffy from what I read on here, but I tried to give him some love. I'm thinking if I can actually challenge his character, with the skink chief's initiative I might I have a shot at killing or reducing his number of attacks back to make it a fair(er) fight.

 

[Vallek]

The main person I face plays an Ogre Kingdoms army almost exclusively. So allow me to impart just a little helpful advice.

Lore of Life is fantastic if you plop your Slaan in a unit of Temple Guard. Usually all the Ogre player sees is an armor save they can easily punch through but when you give them a 4+ regen save it usually makes them regret tangling with you. Ontop of that, the ability to regrow those 4+ regen TG enfuriate Ogre Kingdoms players to no end because you'll keep your rank bonus while theirs dwindles.

IF, and this is a big if, you truly must field your Slaan as a loner then might I suggest Lore of Death or Lore of Shadows? Dwellers below from Lore of Life is nothing compared to purple sun from Death (big gamble) or pit of shades (no gamble). Lore of Shadows has great debuffs to take away the only real advantage that Ogres Kingdoms has (high strength and toughness) and exploits one of their biggest weaknesses (low initiative.) BOTH Purple sun and Pit of Shades are a template attack that requires those struck to make an initiative test of be slain.. not take a wound, SLAIN. 3+ wounds? Who cares! A roll of a 3 or higher on a d6 pops the entire model off the field.

Ontop of this is you empower purple sun you get to use the large template and this one sweeping moves for artillery dice x3 inches. Thats up to a 30 inch swath cut with the LARGE template that causes initiative test or death.. it's so destructive I don't even use it against my friend because he got PISSED when I wiped 5 out of 6 iron guts with ONE spell. Downside, a roll of a misfire puts the template ontop of your Slaan and scatters it.. so it's suicide if you misfire.. thus the gamble.

Also, Lore of Death has a nasty habit of sniping enemy wizards out of units with it's direct damage spells that actually get the sniper rule, then regenerating power dice compliments of it's lore attribute.. NASTY when coupled with Focused Rumination.

On the topic of Focused Rumination I'd also point out the rather cheap Plaque of Tepok. Having 5 spells pretty much guarantees you'll get all the spells you want and throwing an extra spell die with every casting attempt means even a mediocre winds of magic roll becomes a HUGE threat for opponents. More spells = more chances to roll the spells you want/more chance to roll doubles and CHOOSE the spells you want. It's a win/win for so few points.

Just tossing in my two cents and what I've seen work.

 

[Moniker]

Having just played a few games against Ogres, here's my biggest tip:

Don't get charged by Ironguts! They, in one turn, can take out a twenty strong unit of Saurus in one turn. Use your skinks to redirect them. Sacrifices must be made. Ensure you get the charge so as not to take their impact hits and try to mitigate the damage.

 

[tankrothchild]

Thanks for the advice guys, I'll look out for those Ironguts!

The good thing about playing this weekend is we will be able to get more than one game in. I have been pretty torn on which lore, so after hearing your advice I'm definitely going to try life and death. If we do get 3 games in I'll go for the trifecta and try shadow too.

I like the idea of shadows, if I can successful avoid his charges and hit him with some debuffs, as you said, I will really cripple his army.

Great stuff guys, I'll definitely report back.

 

[Gor-rok]

I'd be awfully tempted to change out the new stegadon chief's gear for the War Spear. If he's running a full fledged combat character the chief will get splattered regardless, and if he's running a wizard losing attacks isn't that big of a deal, and he can heal the wounds when he casts Maw spells.

2D6+1 impact hits with the spear, on the other hand, can really tip a fight in your favor. It'll be a magnet for shooting, but the stegadon will be a real threat if you make it across.

Especially running the Slann solo, I'd say Shadow is your best bet. Use your mobility as a single model and drop them into pits until they hit your battle line, then debuff/mindrazor them to pieces. When I play ogres there's nothing I fear more in the hands of a skilled opponent than Shadows.