One of my long-time Warmachine/Hordes buddies has been the Press Ganger running events over at the Battle Standard for a few months now and, despite living in CT, I haven't made my way out there yet. I've been tempted to do so a number of times, but with a lease on my car and limited mileage, I have to be careful to keep track of how far I drive. This will change, however! There is a 25 point Steamroller tournament in less than 2 weeks that I think I want to attend since it's a good opportunity to get some guaranteed gaming in. What makes this tournament so interesting to me is twofold. First, it's an "Ambush" themed Steamroller where all of the scenarios will use Reinforcements and secondly, even if I don't win anything, if I can get my army fully painted then I will be entered into a raffle drawing. With this being summer vacation for me I could certainly use some motivation to get more models painted so this seems as good of an opportunity as any! So what lists am I considering taking? Well for the next three days I'll look at creating lists that I would feel comfortable bringing considering the factions I own/play. Today I'll start with the 2 lists I'm considering for Cygnar.
For my Cygnar I have a handful of models painted and the lists I'm considering running will have a good number of warjacks (which I think will be useful at 25 points) and those that I have not painted will be quicker to paint than whole units anyway. I've considered bringing the Stormwall to be a jerk but it depends on whether I'll get the model and have it painted in time for the event. For now, I'll share with you two warcasters that I'm considering bringing: Kraye and Darius.
"TWO warjack casters!?" Why yes, I think they will be quite helpful with the scenario. Before you roll your eyes, I do want to share the lists at least before you judge me:
- Minuteman (5)
- Sentinel (4)- Hammersmith (8)
- Ironclad (7)
- Squire (2)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)Harlan Versh (2)
Reinforcements:
Minuteman (5)
At 25 points you only have 5 points for a reinforcement and that makes me really excited to have a Minuteman as a reinforcement. The turn he comes in he will receive the full 3 focus he needs to go crazy while Kraye can focus on more important things. The Journeyman will be really useful for Arcane Shield (obviously) on the Hammersmith as it trundles up the field and the Sentinel can do a fine job of protecting Jr. and Kraye from any potential shots from my opponent. Even if I come against a lot of infantry, the Minutemen can be useful in removing them fairly reliably with their Flak Field. Even if I see a unit with Defender's Ward or some other nonsense, Harlan Versh will do a great job at making my enemy think twice about using upkeeps, as Purgation and his Multi-Fire pistol can shred infantry with ease and the Sentinel is no joke either when it's aiming, let alone with boosted shots from Guided Fire.
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| The quintessential outflanker? |
All of this is just to make sure that I'm able to take out key models of my opponent when I can and hopefully apply enough pressure with two Minutemen to keep them on their toes until I get the kill. After my experiences with a similar list in the local League, I'm feeling pretty good about this one.
For my second list, I was thinking that I need some kind of option to deal with any Hordes players I might see. Granted, they will probably be relatively rare, but even my Kraye list will struggle to deal with multiple heavy warbeasts or, gods forbid, a Stormwall *shudder*. No, I need a list that can take the hits and then punch back even harder, and Darius is the man for the job.
Wrecking Crew, Tier 3 Darius (+5)
- Centurion (8*)
- Ironclad (6*)
- Ironclad (6*)
Sword Knights (min, 4)
- Officer and Standard (free*)
Sword Knights (min, 4)
Reinforcements:
Arlan Strangeways (2)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
Darius is one of the few warcasters out there who can reliably deal with an enemy Colossal. He makes his warjacks tough to crack and the opponent has to dedicate a lot of energy to take down one warjack because I can just repair it to full when I pop my feat on the following turn. Not only that, but this list essentially gives me 5 free points worth of models which is pretty awesome at such a low point level.
Since the tournament scenarios all involve Reinforcements being used, that means that I can rely on the fact that I will have Strangeways and Jr. show up. While they might not hold the flank well, it'll be great to ensure their survival until I need them and Strangeways does have a spray if I really need to clear out some infantry. The Journeyman will be quite useful too for Arcane Shield on a warjack who needs it or even Darius, to keep him safe (ARM 21 warcaster without overboosting? Yes, please!)
The only problem? The only models I have painted that I want to use are the 2 Minutemen and an Ironclad. Hoooo boy... time to get painting!