SAURUS KNIGHTS
Here they are, our cavalry!
These guys were not spawned to wait for the enemy, or stand their ground: if they don’t move, they’re useful like sitting ducks. Nope, they are our shock troops, the can opener that we employ against defensive lines, our quintessential aggressive unit.
Sadly, they’re not perfect:
They are an elit unit: you summon them less easily than warriors, and they come in fewer numbers.
They have move 7, and other armies have units much faster than them.
They should excel in breaking defensive lines, but there are units that are much more efficient then them in “damage dealing” (see goblins on spiders), while they just deal 1 attack for each model, and with no rend!
...However, you can work around it (for example, they can march at 14”, so this makes ‘em one of our fastest units, barring flying ones), and if you know what you’re doing, they can really shine. Let’s see how.
The first and last thing you need to remember, always, is: they must charge, and they cannot stay in close combat for more than 1 round. They have no rend, and they don’t deal so many attacks to sustain a long combat.
What weapons should they have?
Celestite Blade is 3+ to hit, 3+ to wound
Celestite Lance, is 4+ to hit, 3+ to wound, and you deal 1 mortal wound on a 6
Let’s say you are using a unit with the minimum number of models (5): tnx to the leader, you deal 6 attacks: with the perfect average rolls, your 6 attacks will roll: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
With the blades, it’s 4 hits, that need to be confirmed with a to wound rolls. No rend.
With the lances, it’s 3 hits, that need to be confirmed. But on a 6 to wound, you inflict a mortal wound.
When lances wounds, they are better.
How many should I field?
It’s clear that you’re counting on that magical 6 to inflict mortal wounds, so you need to deliver them in a sufficiently good number.
5 knights is the minimum required by a unit, but they do only 6 attacks. 10 Knights are better. More than 10, you risk to water down your impact, if the enemy exploits terrains (choke points and similar).
How good is their Formation?
If, for other troops, formations vary from “debatable” to “useful”, for them it’s mandatory.
Firstly, they’ll have a +3 on charge rolls (remember, you
need to charge successfully)
Secondly, on a 6 to wound, they deal an additional mortal wound. So, it’s 2 mortal wound for each 6.
That’s good. Really good. It’s a pity we cannot increase our “to wound”, but we can work around it (see "heroes").
What heroes are good for them?
You need essentially 3 heroes for them to work.
Slann Starmaster: you need all the help you can get, and with the Great Drake constellation, you will re-roll the 1’s on to hit (thus increasing the "to wound" rolls, and the chances to roll 6)
The formation requires also a hero: a scar-vet (on cold one or on a carnosaur).
The command ability of the scarvet on cold one gives: additional attacks for cold one’ bites (kinda meh), reroll charges (useful but not decisive), reroll 1’s on to hit (we already have the constellation).
The command ability of the scarvet on carnosaur, gives: 1 additional attack each time you roll a 6 to hit (rerolling 1’s, so another chance to increase the number of subsequent "to wound"). Plus, the abilities of the carnosaur himself.
I’d normally pick the
Scar-Vet on Carnosaur.
Skink Starseer. He’ll be useful in 2 different ways: with Cosmic Herald, he can reroll dices, so this means it will be harder to fail charges (thus making less useful the scar-vet on cold one). Then, with Curse of Fate on your knights, they will have a +1 on a dice for each phase… this not only means another +1 on charges’ distance, but you can have a +1 on a dice during the combat phase.
This may not seem great, but you only need to pick a 5 to wound, and make it a 6: that single +1 means 2 mortal wounds. I’d say the spell repays itself pretty nicely.
The tactic should be clear: you are going to chase and charge precious targets, possibly with low bravery, without fearing too much strong defensive formations, exploiting the bonuses you can have.
That unit of 20 Eternal Guards, that save at 3+, rerolling 1s and 2s? hit them with your 10 saurus: between re-rolls of 1s, additional attacks granted by the Scar-vet on Carnosaur, and the +1 of Curse of Fate, you’re going to deliver 4-6 mortal wounds (plus eventual normal wounds)… add the effect of the Stardrake Icon, and the shocking phase should give you nice results. And then you will also have the Carnosaur’s Bloodroar (with a possible re-roll granted by the Starseer), to panic more models.
How about the rest of the army?
You could fit a Troglodon, keeping it near the knights: not only it will help with the spittle, but it will serve as arcane vassal for your Slann (he’s slow and he will stay in the rearline), and the Primeval roar will stack with the effect of the Stardrake Icon, for further fleeing models.
And you can support your Knights with a Stegadon, for a bigger impact (visually and thematically, it would be a really nice army: what’s more terrifying, for the enemy, to be pressed by cavalry on small dinosaurs, and 3 big dinosaurs?).