8th Ed. Untypical Tournament List: 101 Skinks

[helipilot13]

I've been running this list since 8th came out. It's done very well. I think it is a very tactical list to play, unlike the normal hammer and anvil with Saurus stuff. Every army I have played I have won. However, I haven't played against Empire, Dwarves, or Bretonia. I'm a little worried about Bretonia because of all the 2+ armor saves. Any thoughts on what standard tournament armies from any race that might be a threat. Thanks for all the advice ahead of time.

Slann
Focus of Mystery: Life
The Focused Rumination
The Becalming Cogitation
Cupped Hands
BSB

Skink Priest
Level 1
Dispel Scroll

Skink Skirmishers
7 units of 10
2 of the units have champs to get to the minimum core

Temple Guard
20
Musician
Standard Bearer
War Banner

Chameleon Skinks
2 units of 6

Salamander Hunting Pack
2 units of 3

Total: 1997

Unfortunately this is my weakest list, at least in my opinion. It does better at 2250 and 2500 as I can afford 3 units of chameleons, but there is a tournament at the end of February for 2000 pts, so I guess it will have to do. I have toyed with removing the standard bearer and war banner to get more chameleons, but I love that static res of 6. I'll keep tweaking it.

I would love some critique, and any questions on how this takes out horde and monster armies is very welcome. Thanks again.

 

[nightmareius]

ive read some of your previous post and youve talked this list up quite a bit. from what i can see you have 7 core being the skinks, (how many are you allowed in a 200pt game)
why is this a weaker army in your opinion,
and can you please explain the basic reason for each unit and how you use them.

thanks
nightmareius

 

[helipilot13]

This is a 2000 pt army. There is a tournament coming up in February, so I've been tuning it for that. Still not perfect but I'll tell you how I play it.

First: the slann with dwellers is very good at taking a chunk out of a big unit, or killing a war machine, if necessary.

Second: the salamanders are very good at taking a good chunk out of a unit. Obviously there utility has diminishing returns, as the more you kill, the less there is left for the next salamander to hit. However, I try to alway place them in a flank. If this flank happens to be a horde unit. Usually most of the unit will be wiped out. By the way, I run both units together next to my Temple Guard. Basically trying to throw everything I have at one unit. I play VC a lot, and have gotten in my head that if I don't wipe out the unit completely, they will all be back next turn. God those guys are annoying.

Third: The chameleons and skirmishers are very good at wiping out small units. At this point you have cast dwellers, sent 6 fireballs from the salamanders, and have a very small unit left to deal with. The blowpipes do great to eliminate the remaining threat.

Fourth: You may ask yourself, why do you need 7 or 8 units of skirmishers and 2 or 3 units of chameleons? If they are not aiding the above mentioned tactic, they are generally harassing, killing, and redirecting the rest of your opponents army. This allows you to do the same tactic every turn, one by one killing all of your opponents units, and your opponent can't hold their battle line or get to your temple guard or salamanders. They can try to ignore the blowpipes, but they can't because of all of the shots.

Note: A good friend of mine has tried both techniques, 1. going after the temple guard at all costs and 2. trying to kill all of the skinks. He has done this with tailored lists. He has not yet been successful. We played last night again. He got very close, and I was scared I would have my first loss, but he was unsuccessful. I have lost my slann and Temple Guard before, but still wiped out my opponent. I have also lost every single skink, but still won the match.

I am by no means trying to boast or say that I am a tactical genius. I make plenty of mistakes like most of us. I'm just trying to illustrate a different way of playing the game, more specifically, getting away from the standard saurus list. I don't want to go toe to toe with my opponent, mostly because I don't think our troops are the best in the game. So I chose to distract, redirect, and not allow my opponent to play their game. Makes sense in my head.

Other notes: the chameleons and skinks, the guys with the blowpipes, are very good at killing 4 things. 1. monsters, 2. war machines, 3. small units, 4. lone characters. I'm probably missing something but my wife is telling me to build some chairs. Don't ask.

Thanks for reading my rambling. Any questions are welcome. Long live skinks!!!! I probably need more sleep...

 

[Arli]

how many are you allowed in a 200pt game

Because they are core, you can take as many as you want (as long as you meet the minimum requirement for your points, in a 2000 pt game, you can have 500+ core). The only core choice that does not count toward the core amount is the swarms.

 

[helipilot13]

bump

I could use a little feedback on what you think I would have a problem with. For example what not to do, what armies to look out for, and what units will create a problem. Any words of wisdom is much appreciated.