As previously stated, I don't really like the Farrow warlocks. In fact, they are my least favorite (even though Sturm & Drang are supposed to be good). However, the two Blindwater warlocks are my favorite of that side of the faction, so it's an easy decision to choose to play those two.
In designing my lists, I took a hard look at the warlocks and their capabilities, as well as having a hard and fast rule - ONE of the lists (at least) had to have the DRACODILE!! Now that it's an official model, I will be playing it. Heck, it's even pretty close to the home-brewed version I made at the beginning of the year (that may be a blog post in the future!)
So, to start I'll talk about the old trusted and true - Bloody Barnabas! While I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on Barnabas, Lord of Blood this Saturday (I had someone ninja him at PAX, and get him Saturday), his first incarnation has always been one of my favorites.
His spell list first:
Death March: Upkeep spell that gives +2 MAT and Vengeance to a unit. Sounds perfect to put on Gatorman Posse, as they will be hard to remove, and then get free attacks.
Flesh Eater: Offensive spell (POW 13) that allows some healing of the warlock or a beast in his battlegroup.
Swamp Pit: Upkeep spell that makes Amphibious models completely in its 5" AOE untargetable by ranged attacks. This is AWESOME! It allows important models to get across the board without taking ranged damage. And coincidentally, the Dracodile's base is 5" :-)
Warpath: Upkeep spell that allows extra movement to his battlegroup if enemy models are destroyed in his control range. This is really good as well, because giving extra movement to a heavy warbeast is always good!
Barnabas' feat is Black Tide:
- Enemy models without Amphibious currently in Barnabas' control range become knocked down.
This is really cool, as knocked down models (especially melee models) are easy prey and basically lose a turn of usefulness. However, I need to watch out for abilities like Steady (which is more prevalent than you would think), since they basically negate my feat.
Finally, the abilities on the back of his card:
- Countercharge - Allowing him to charge out of activation seems nice on paper, but really - I don't generally want to get my warlock into the enemy for him. Mostly because I tend to run my warlock on empty (no Fury).
- Unyielding - This is awesome! While engaging enemy models (not engaged by), he gets +2 ARM. Takes his already great ARM into the upper reaches.
- Critical Consume - This is only on his bite, and only works on small-based warrior models - but on a critical hit he simply removes the model from play. That can be powerful, but not something to base a list around.
- Blood Boon - On his big axe (Bone Cleaver), this allows him to cast a spell of COST 3 or less (which is all of his spells) for free after he destroys an enemy model. It can only be done once per activation, and while free spells are nice, I don't see myself using it much.
So, with all of that, what models would be really good for him? I've come up with:
- the Dracodile. Duh! With Swamp Pit, you can't remove, or even damage, the monster with ranged attacks. That raises his survivability greatly, and will allow for all types of shenanigans with the Dracodile's animus.
- the Ironback Spitter. Hitting knocked down models with a 4" corrosive AOE is always awesome-sauce.
- Gatorman Posse. Perfect recipients of Death March, and can easily fuel Warpath.
With all of that in mind, I'm ready to start list building. However, a quick shout-out to LOS Warmachine during this, as I got a lot of the inspiration from listening to their podcast on list building for SR 2017 and their podcast on list building for ADR. My new Barnabas list will consist of the following:
The Blindwater Congregation theme force
Bloody Barnabas - [+28]
- Dracodile [36]
- Ironback Spitter [14]
Sacral Vault [17]
Totem Hunter [0]
Bog Trog Mist Speaker [0]
Feralgeist [2]
Feralgeist [2]
Gatorman Posse [16]
Gatorman Posse [16]
So, let's analyze the list, going from bottom to top:
- Gatorman Posse - these guys are here for two reasons: 1) They are very resilient and can easily hold or contest a zone. With two attacks, one with 2" range, and prayers they can deal major damage to most opponents' infantry. And with 8 boxes (due to theme), Snacking, Tough, and ARM 18 (due to Unyielding) they can take a hit and shrug it off. Very powerful! 2) They are naturally awesome targets for Death March and can also be used to proc Warpath very easily. This gives some great synergy with Barnabas.
- Feralgeist - these little guys are there for one reason - they are difficult to remove. Being incorporeal, they can only be damaged by magical attacks. On top of that, they are DEF 14. This means they are perfect for camping a flag - both mine and my opponents, creating scenario pressure and/or disrupting my opponent's plans.
- Bog Trog Mist Speaker - again, a guy in the list for a very specific reason - helping the Ironback Spitter. While having the ability to Summon a 3" AOE cloud is nice for hiding Barnabas, it's much more important to put Guidance on the Spitter, to keep him running at maximum efficiency.
- Totem Hunter - a high MAT (8), high DEF (8) model with Stealth, he's there for solo hunting. I want to be able to take out their support solos, and he gives me a pretty resilient option. If necessary, he can also hold a flag fairly well.
- Sacral Vault - I'm a little hesitant on this, but the ability to handle a swarm of infantry if needed is pretty nice. Dealing an automatic 1 point of damage will easily deal with infantry, and it's gun can do some good damage as well. Finally, while I've never used it, Arcane Vortex is an interesting tool in the toolbox.
- Ironback Spitter - he is there for that massive AOE. A 4" AOE is awesome, and with Corrosion and Continuous Corrosion, it the kind of damage that keeps on giving. He synergizes extremely well with Barnabas' feat, and with help from the Mist Speaker, his effectiveness is even better. I really thought of putting a Blackhide Wrastler in, but I think the versatility of the Spitter outweighs the Wrastler's animus.
- Dracodile - really, the main focus of the list. He's a huge, giant crocodile monster that can do almost anything. He has a 10" spray that deals Corrosion damage, with Continuous Corrosion (though his RAT 5 is a little disappointing). He also has assault - so he can charge and spray. And last (but definitely not least), his spray causes Blind. Yes, you read that correctly - anything he hits with that RAT 5 will be insanely easier to hit by everyone else, and basically be losing a turn of activation!
For melee, he has FOUR initial attacks, one at P+S 19 and three at P+S 17. With MAT 6 (actually average for a Gargantuan), FURY 4, and Territorial (charge large and huge based models for free), he is a monster (pun intended) in melee. With his ARM 20 and 54 boxes, along with Snacking, it will be extremely difficult to kill him. Finally, his animus makes a huge amount of mobile shallow water, granting cover to any amphibious model with 5" of him (or possibly Barnabas).
Anyways, there's my first list ready for the coming year. There will be changes, probably - especially with the Gatorman Soul Slave (free upkeeps) and Void Leeches coming out. This will be played tomorrow at a Steamroller, so we'll see how it goes!
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