7th Ed. Question about creating an army list

[Quillum]

I've been idly debating with myself over the past couple days about the best way to build an effective army list. So I'm curious...besides the obvious "have a plan in mind" for your army as a whole, what do people do when creating their list.

Do you start with heroes first, upgrading them into the most insane killer they can? Perhaps you start out with your Core choices, move to your Special, then Rares and finally work on your characters? Or is it more of a combination of the two?

I would love to hear people's reasoning behind their decisions to build lists the way they do.

Also, I just saw DonkyHotep's MMU list and couldn't help but chuckle since I was actually thinking about how a list with just one character would work, or even how it might look.

 

[Barotok]

I'll offer a few thoughts in this thread. I think that everyone has a different way of building lists, but despite that fact, we all end up with the same relative results. The method of list creation is ultimately to serve the purpose of what you want your army to do. This can be determined by the opponents that you expect to face, your personal preferences and of course how you prefer to play. I think that ultimately you have to decide how you want to mix magic, shooting, infantry, flankers and characters into a list that works for your playstyle and also is viable against the opponents you expect to face. Your priorities then can dictate your method for the most part.

As far as the MMU issue, I'm excited that Donkey posted that list for reasons that you'll be able to understand if you read my post in that thread. I'm a firm believer in this concept and feel that it is viable in many cases and can produce overwhelming results from a very balanced list. The simple fact of the matter is, characters frequently are not worh the points spent to put them on the field (there is always exceptions to this rule though).

 

[lupercal]

i guess that i typically build my army by starting with the core choices and general once those are out of the way you can pretty much build how you want for what you think you will be facing (within the rules) i usually like to have a strong magic phase and good close combat units so i usually end up going down that route

 

[strewart]

It really depends.. Sometimes I know there are a certain few things I want in a list, and put them in first then make stuff around them. Other times I want a theme for a list and base it around that. With LM in particular (and undead moreso) a character or two should generally come first because they will usually shape what the rest of the list looks like to a degree. I don't bulk out characters first, I put down a couple that I want and give them a few things, then go back to them after units are done and use any spare points on them.

In a LM force you almost always start with deciding whether you want an old blood or Slann to lead the army. Or in some cases, neither as mentioned above. I haven't looked at the list, but it is true that characters are usually quite expensive for what they give. It is important to have a role in mind for a character, and not just deck them out as much as you can for the hell of it. Often, you can get them to perform far more efficiently with less points if you know what you want them to do, if they are just sitting there bulked out with magic armour and weapons, what are they doing for the army as a whole? Very little. Sure they can provide extra kills for a unit, but certainly don't need to be maxed out to do it.

 

[The Hunted]

For a balanced list i too like to start with the most basic 'core':
2x12 Saurus,
20 skinks (cohort or skirmishers)
3 terradons. These guys would fit into any of mine armies. I usually go for 2 skirmishers and 2x4 terradons.
but after this i need my general. And in the lizardmen army that means: Close combat or Magic. Old-blood or Slann. This really makes the rest of your list or have a big impact on it.
But i've seen lists against me were i'd think: 'That ain't gonna work!" and then they just slaughtered me
It's mostly down to personal preferences and playing styles then to real effectivity on the tabletop. However, most generals use effective units because they prefer them....
Hope this helps

The Hunted

 

[Celticfire]

If you are not making a tounament list i would recomend using a list you have not used before. in my last game, i decided to try a JSOD, the skink cohorts and 3 kroxigors. this next time im not sure, maybe a skink assasin, and the chamelon skinks, and maybe even the dreaded swarms. i find these list to be some of the most fun to plaay, because you may have no preconceptions, or you may find something new which you might swear by from then on. any way good luck

 

[Thebestlazyguy]

well, when i make an army list, i start in one of two places, with the core and the essentials i need, or with one or two units that i want. then i just work my way up from there. for example, with my magic army list, i started with my Slann, skink priests, and Chakax. Then i went and did my core units, got a special unit, and then went back and added upgrades where needed. If anything i would just suggest to not start by buffing up one unit that you want and then add other stuff, because you might run out of points, and then that one guy is worthless no matter how buffed he is, because the rest of ur army will get slaughtered. so put in the stuff you want, then you need (or vise versa) then apply all ur buffs. i got a pretty effective magic list out of this. hope this helps its my first informative post!