The Necrotechs Workshop LXII – Nova Battles
At NOVA, I was able to get in 4 games with Scaverous. It’s not as many as I wanted (8) but it was more than I expected as I was in charge of the tournaments. Three were in the team tournament, and two were pick up games that I was able to sneak in. Let’s take a look at them!
I’ve been ranting about Scaverous since before Lock and Load. He’s a caster I’ve found to be flexible and fun, and I may play him continuously into the future. That Said, He is a caster that can be extremely unforgiving. I ran into that unforgiving side a number of times.
Team Tournament
In the first round of the team tournament, I played the Scaverous I’ve been playing forever into the new Crucible Guard Caster, Athanor Locke. The list was pretty close to this:
Crucible Guard Army – 74 / 75 points
Prima Materia
Aurum Lucanum Athanor Locke [+29]
– Suppressor [13]
– Toro [13]
– Vanguard [10]
– Vanguard [10]
– Vindicator [15]
Hutchuk, Ogrun Bounty Hunter [0(6)]
Prospero [5]
– Suppressor [13]
– Toro [13]
Trancer [3]
Trancer [3]
Combat Alchemists [0(7)]
Combat Alchemists [0(7)]
Dragon’s Breath Rocket [5]
This list was cool to fight against – It has a number of different avenues to take down both armor and troops, with a strong denial presence and Chaff troopers to get in the way. I figured that it’d be a tough fight for Scaverous, but that I’d be able to eke out a victory if I played it safe and didn’t sacrifice anything I didn’t need to.
So, the first thing I did was to accidentally give away almost the whole unit of Cutthroats. I figured that the Suppressor had the ability to make both ranged and melee attacks in the same round, but I didn’t figure it was dual attack. Losing 3-4 Croes is very different from losing 8. From there, the game snowballed into perpetually worse situations. I was able to get through the front chaff fairly easily and was able to take down a couple of the heavies, but I was fighting an uphill battle and wasn’t able to keep it together. Looking back on it, I’d picked the wrong side to fight over. I figured that I could slide the Croe’s around the edge of the board and get into Prospero’s rear, taking him down, but it wasn’t going to happen with the suppressor on that side with fire for effect. If I’d have taken the other side, with no caster and no journeyman, I probably could have collapsed that flank and made a better game of it. Instead… no. Lessons learned, and man I want to play into this list a bunch more.
The Second game I used Scaverous in was against Legion and Anamag. I thought that the list has pretty solid play into primal terrors, with a bunch more bodies and the ability to hit moderately hard. I’d been really itching to try this matchup out.
It was this version of the list:
Legion Army – 75 / 75 points
Primal Terrors
Anamag the Doom Feaster [+27]
– Blightbringer [32]
– Golab [17]
– Ammok the Truthbearer [4]
Spell Martyr [1]
Spell Martyr [1]
Spell Martyr [1]
Blighted Ogrun Warmongers (max) [13]
– Gorag Rotteneye [6]
Blighted Rotwings (min) [7]
Chosen of Everblight (max) [20]
Hellmouth [0(6)]
Hellmouth [0(6)]
I really had some plans for taking out some chosen – Between Icy Grip and TK, for at least one turn, they are just walking, and then for the rest of the turns, I can often shoot a few with Smog Belchers. Shooting them from behind with a Feast of Worms could take out a chosen or two. However, much like the first game, my brain left me, and at the end of the croe’s activation, I blithely asked what the blightbringers range was, was jovially informed that it was 14, and then I measured from my front pair of Cutthroat, and they were both in range, with the rest of the unit just hugging them. It was bad, I had at least 6 in the AOE. I just needed to ask the question before I moved my dudes. That may just have helped. Instead, I get most of the unit of Croe’s pulled off the board before I could use them.
The Smogs did an admirable job of shooting Chosen, denying them the ability to run or charge, and blocking LOS from the warmongers to the Black Ogrun Boarding Party. It wasn’t perfect, and I was once again fighting an uphill battle. with 16 points off the board on the bottom of 1. I wasn’t really able to make a convincing go of it, but I did learn a lot about the matchup, and I need to find a way of killing Golab. It’ll be interesing to play into again, though I don’t know when that’ll be.
Rando Games!
The third game I got in was against a Thyra list, and I felt pretty solid going into this one. It was a battle of infantry, and I like that game with Cryx. He was playing Something like this list:
Protectorate Army – 75 / 75 points
The Faithful Masses
Thyra, Flame of Sorrow [+29]
– Guardian [15]
– Indictor [14]
– Hierophant [3]
Allegiant of the Order of the Fist [3]
Allegiant of the Order of the Fist [3]
Champion of the Order of the Wall [8]
Champion of the Order of the Wall [8]
High Paladin Dartan Vilmon [0(6)]
Paladin of the Order of the Wall [4]
Paladin of the Order of the Wall [4]
The Covenant of Menoth [4]
Vassal Mechanik [1]
Wrack [1]
Choir of Menoth (max) [6]
Idrian Skirmishers (max) [15]
– Idrian Skirmisher Chieftain & Guide [0(5)]
Idrian Skirmishers (max) [15]
– Idrian Skirmisher Chieftain & Guide [0(5)]
This game was another loss, and it makes me feel bad writing about it. I was able, because my opponent didn’t understand what Feast of Worms did, able to scoop up 8 out of 12 Idriands in one of the units on the bottom of 1. It felt good to have 14 focus, but it didn’t end up mattering. The solos did awesome work, and the Champions are so hard to remove! He took one of them and just shoved it into the middle of my black Ogrun and for whatever reason it never died. I should have just turned it around and shot it in the ass with my Crossbows, though dismounting it would mean he can face the correct direction. There was a time where I had a bead on Thyra with eyeless sight on Scaverous, but I forgot that the book had yelled about spells, and when I finished moving the Dirge seer, it was still within 10″ of the Book, and therefore couldn’t give Scaverous the spell he needed. With 14 focus and clear range, I was pretty sure I was going to be able to take her off the board. Alas, I was not because, once again, I was dumb. It was a good game that I just wasn’t able to capitalize on. I’m going to blame those last three games on being in such a distracted form because I run the Warmachine part of the show and feel that I have to be on point.
The last game I played was the only game I won, and it was a revenge game from a couple years back.
The list was something like this:
Retribution Army – 74 / 75 points
Shadows of the Retribution
Garryth, the Blade of Retribution [+29]
– Moros [11]
– Phoenix [18]
Arcanist Mechanik [2]
Elara, Tyro of the Third Chamber [0(4)]
– Manticore [14]
Mage Hunter Assassin [4]
Mage Hunter Assassin [4]
Narn, Mage Hunter of Ios [0(6)]
Nayl [3]
Mage Hunter Infiltrators (max) [13]
– Soulless Escort (1) [1]
Mage Hunter Strike Force (max) [16]
– Soulless Escort (1) [1]
Spears of Scyrah [9]
– Eiryss, Mage Hunter Commander [6]
– Soulless Escort (1) [1]
I’m not sure about the Jack on Elara, but I’m pretty sure you get the concept.
This game ended fairly fast, as some of these games tend to do. He had a lot of stealth models and a pile of Soulless escorts. This was making my desire of getting Feast of Worms everywhere really tough. However, after moving the infiltrators into a pretty solid position, he moved Narn right into the center of what looked to be a fantastic AOE 5 target. I was able, the following turn, to get eyeless sight onto Scaverous and get within range of Narn for a feast of worms that got around his soulless. That started the soul train to Scaverous, and two turns later, when Garryth came forward to put feat pressure on my army, he did so within 7.5 ” of both of the Scavengers. I was able to run a Black Ogrun over to him to trigger Gang Fighter on them, pulling them up to MAT 9 P+S 13 Weaponmasters once Garryth took his first wound. The birds proved their MVP status once again!
I know its not a great amount of detail, but its been a couple weeks, and I’ve been pretty stagnant on games. Looking to get back into the thick of things here shortly!
Until Next Time!
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