The Word Bearers got some much needed attention, with most of my time spent going back over my old paint job and improving it. I got a little over 1000 points table ready, and then got distracted. But are we really surprised at this point? I find that if I set myself long term goals, I seem to find every obstacle or distraction and plough headlong into it at terminal velocity. While this tends to be frustrating for myself at times, it has not been in vain.
I am mere models away from completely finishing my Bloodbound army! This is largely to blame for losing motivation with my Word Bearers, as there is only room for one red plate-armoured force on my painting desk at any one time. And on this occasion, the Crimson Crusade won out!
When I finish the last few models of my army, I'll be doing a full showcase of the army in all its furious splendour, but I'm sure I'll add to it here and there in the future as different strategies and combos present themselves!
As for Death; I love the Death range, but I was on a roll with Khorne, and I didn't want to break my painting groove on an army that is actually getting large enough to take to big tournaments and still have options. I was keen to get Khorne done to a certain points level, so that I could focus on my next project without the urgency of needing a finished army by a certain event or deadline.
And while the logical choice would be to leap back into Death, and give it a red hot go, my attention span doesn't operate on logic... Not one bit.
While GA Death is a force to be reckoned with, many of the subfactions simply aren't filled out enough to be the foundation of a whole army, with some exceptions of course (FEC, Soulblight, and Nighthaunt being the only subs with enough options to be legal and effective).
I decided to have a quick meander through the App, looking for a fun, themed army that wouldn't break the bank. I would have loved to do Fyreslayers, but this was before the points adjustment, and they were a little outside the price range I was aiming to spend on the army as a whole. Someday, my red-bearded, half dressed (on a good day... Yikes) friends...
Digging through Battletomes, I came across one that was not even on my radar!
Clan Pestilens.
These rabid, deranged evangelical rats had their own book!? That release had completely slipped past me! With very little hesitation, I dived in. I already own a significant Skaven army from 8th Edition so I dug through the collection, scavenging (Skavenging?) any Pestilens models I could find. This ended up being a Verminlord Corruptor, a Plague Priest and a regiment of Plague Monks. It was a start...
Next time I had the chance, I picked up the Pestilens Start Collecting Box to really kick this operation off! My collection is quickly growing and I can't wait to put it on the table! The one thing I wanted with this project, however, was a start and finish line. I wanted the army to be 2000 points and not a body more. Something I can plug and play at an event, or keep in a case for social games and battle reports. So I went to work on a list.
First thing was first. I absolutely had to have a Corruptor. I already had the model, and he makes a great centrepiece for the army! While he is not the beast in combat that his Verminlord brothers are, he makes up for it by being a very solid support character, with buffs and spells galore and the combat potential to mop up after the main hordes of robed maniacs.
Next was a Congregation of Filth, giving me a Plague Furnace (a second, amazing centrepiece) and three big units of Plague Monks with which to flood my enemies with infectious zealotry.
Plagueclaw Catapults look amazing on paper, and after using an army with no shooting at all, I couldn't resist picking up three of them and a Plague Priest to fill the requirements needed for the Foulrain Congregation. This gives me the ability to nuke large units in my enemy's force to establish myself with the numerical advantage.
With the few points left, I invested in ten Plague Censor Bearers, to tackle heavily armoured does, and a second Plague Priest to give me ad other hero and a few more prayers.
After finalising the list and sneaking in under 2000 points, I was pleasantly surprised to realise that I had at least one of every Pestilens unit available! Fantastic!
So, with the army list done, and half of the models in my possession already, the real question was... Would this army actually work?
It's biggest shortcoming (which is painfully obvious) is the almost complete lack of saves on my infantry. I know that I'll be losing bodies in droves, but there are certain mechanics that punish my enemies for killing en masse, such as piling in as they die, and causing mortal wounds when struck down.
Prayers and buffs are a huge part of making the army work. Command groups in Plague Monks, Priests and the Corruptor have tons of bonuses to hand out, and I think that managing these abilities will be one of the bigger challenges in learning how to use this army. There seem to be plenty of ways to dish out mortal wounds through different abilities, and prayers, while reliable to a degree, are crucial to use successfully at the right time.
The Catapults are ruthless, having immense range, not needing line of sight, great rend and hitting harder the bigger its target is. I'm really looking forward to using these war machines and actually participating in the shooting phase!
The other great thing about this army is that thanks to my two battalions, I get a total of three Artefacts, as well as my army being a measly five deployment drops! I'm genuinely considering taking three Crowns of Conquest (unless player packs ban multiple artefacts), which will give added protection to the hordes that will inevitably die in droves. I'll probably also take Cunning Deceiver as my command trait, to give me a little more survivability early-game. Lord of War is my go to, but I have re-rolls and buffs enough to counteract taking a different Trait, I think.
I know one thing... After I finish this army, I'll never want to paint a robe ever again.
Are there any experienced players that use this rather uncommon armies? If so, any tips for a new general?
Thanks for reading.
Gabe
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