New Warscrolls in Dawnbringers: Book III
The next installment in Dawnbringers is approaching quickly, and with it on the horizon comes a massive slew of new options for armies. While most Warcry warbands tended to be unceremoniously dropped onto Warhammer Community with little fanfare, this time each of them is receiving proper love in the new book, alongside new hero models for both the Stormcast Eternals and Sylvaneth. There’s brand-new game pieces for Ogor Mawtribes, Fyreslayers, and Kruleboyz though, and I can tell you right now that one of those is going to radically shake up the way their army is approached. It’s a mixed bag, and a great assortment of options & opportunities, so let’s strap in for a miniature deep dive into the current previews for Dawnbringers: Book III – The Long Hunt.
Via Warhammer Community
First off is Fyreslayers’ new kit, the Vulkyn Flameseekers. It goes without saying but this army needed a win here — the entire faction has a whopping 4 kits to its name which don’t include the Hero keyword, and the majority of those are relatively static poses. That said, aesthetically these are perhaps the single best model in the range, made to work in tandem with the monstrous Magmadroths the faction loves. Unfortunately, this is where the praise ends, as for 140 points for 9 models (15.5 points-per-model), they’re not bringing anything to the table. Compared to the rank-and-file Vulkite Berserkers, they’re sporting less base damage than those with handaxes, and less defense than those with sling-shields.
Each model boasts an additional 2 attacks, bringing them to 3, but the caveat comes in the form of their keywords: Nothing in the army readily synergizes with these models. There’s the new Army of Renown, the Lofnir Dragonkeepers, but as far as we’re aware the best benefit you get from taking this subfaction is merely the option to have Flameseekers & Magmadroths as Battleline, which the Lofnir subfaction already allows. To some extent, I understand this, as the Vulkites weren’t doing much on their own in Lofnir, and potentially Flameseekers are a better standalone unit, but I just don’t think it’ll come together.
Via Games Workshop
In the middle of the pack comes the Gorger Mawpack, a tremendous ambush unit for Ogors which gives Gutbusters a tool they had prior lacked. These brutes come in at 220 for 5 (44ppm), which is a rough initial sell; that said, there’s a few tricks up their nonexistent sleeves which makes them a potential option in dedicated Gutbuster armies. These are the first models without the Beastclaw Raiders keyword in the army to have an ambush, being able to deploy 9” away from enemies, and coupled with a modest command denial ability, and high-quality attacks on the charge, a suicide bomb of these monstrous infantry could spell disaster for an unprepared enemy. The sad part is that there’s certainly no way to play a dedicated army with these guys, unless there’s rules we’ve yet to see which support this.
The actual meat of the Ogor’s portion, however, is with a true rarity for Age of Sigmar — A second terrain option. We’re going to talk about the Mawpit in the context of the Roving Maw Army of Renown, as you’ll never take it without that. You’re getting an aggressive area-denial terrain piece which debuffs bravery, doles out mortals, and rewards Ogor Butchers nearby, likely meaning you’ll take one as your general. Crucially, this terrain is brutal for 1-wound enemies, as you’re able to cut them down once per turn, potentially dealing 3 mortals on 3+, or 1 on a 2+, which add to your tally. I absolutely love this design, and it’s been a while since we’ve gotten a terrain piece you’re meant to put in the midboard. The Mawpit even comes with a punishing feature for monsters which whiff their rampage, dealing 3d6 to those which roll low on a 3+. This terrain piece alone has almost gotten me to start Ogors, and I look forward to seeing what unrevealed rules are left for the Roving Maw AoR; who knows, maybe Gorgers could see the light of day in droves?
Via Warhammer Community
Lastly comes the proverbial golden child, the Monsta-Killaz, for Kruleboyz. This is a special kind of kit, where the rules it has essentially don’t matter, and the math works out based on their points & damage alone. This 8-model unit comes in at a cool 135 points (16.9ppm), with the following attack profile on 7 of their models: 2”/3a/4+/3+/-1/1. If you’re a Kruleboyz or Big Waaaugh player, that should immediately trigger some alarm bells! Giving Kruleboyz an efficient melee infantry unit is really what the army needed, and while the Monsta-Killaz aren’t battleline, consulting the table below shows how wildly they’re outcompeting Gutrippaz in every conceivable way. They’re about 1.5 damage higher than Stikkaz at the same range, at almost every threshold, and go above Hackas with fewer bodies in the unit and a greater reach. A reinforced unit(s) of these guys are going to be in every Kruleboyz’ list from here on out, unless I’m missing something. By that same notion, I think we’ll be seeing far more Big Yellers as a subfaction, so you can take Boltboyz as your battleline tax while 16-man units of these perform the job of the outclassed Gutrippaz.
Rules-wise, these target Monsters, but in truth that’s just gravy. All of their abilities punish monsters nearby, and while that’s going to come up against some larger Heroes in the current meta, you’re really taking them to roll the Kruleboyz lottery, and hit some 6s in melee.
As a proof of concept, I wanted to provide a potential avenue for Kruleboyz which really flexes the capabilities of the new unit. This list is running 2 Vulchas, for their efficiency & Gobsprakk’s magical prowess, as well as a Snatchaboss to hold up the rear and buff your double-reinforced Boltboyz. Ideally, you’re going to deploy such that you have the Swampcalla tucked away by the 9-man Boltboyz, the Snatchaboss nearby, and the other 3-man Boltboyz close as well; meanwhile, your 32 total Monsta-Killaz will take the front line, and try to simply out-trade enemies that get nearby, each unit able to take advantage of the double-commands from the Killabozz on Corpse-Rippa Vulcha. This is a fantastic combined arms force which takes full advantage of everything Kruleboyz gets after their many buffs, from a 200pt Vulcha, to the new hotness of Monsta-Killaz.
Soon we’ll be able to cover the rest of Dawnbringers Book III, available soon! There’s two more Armies of Renown yet to be revealed, as well as their respective heroes, but I’d say this has me way more excited than Book II! I’d love to see your lists including the units I talked about, so post them in the comments below, and we’ll get brainstorming!
