AoS WhW Grand Tournament Heat One Overview

So went to the GT last weekend and was the only Seraphon player there! This was my list:
Shadowstrike starhost (120)
Skink priest (100) priestly trappings
3 x Rippers (140)
5 x chameleon skinks (120)
5 x chameleon skinks (120)

Eternity starhost (80)
3 x 10 guard (600)
Eternity warden (140) Phoenix Stone

Old Blood on Carnosaur (320) Quicksilver potion
Starseer (160)
Scar Vet on cold one (G) (100) Legendary fighter, relic blade

Game one: Bloodbound (blood and glory)
Perfect match up for me lots of attacks and -1 rend but with my celestial rites a 2+ reroll save on my guards meant they bounced off but I couldn't kill them all!
Result: Minor Victory (13 vps)

Game two: Flesh Eaters (gift from the gods)
Comets landed on opposite corners so we both guarded them with most of our armies. Came down to kill points and I managed to kill his terrorgheist thanks to the starseer re-rolls
Result: Minor Victory (13)

Game three: Sylvaneth (take and hold)
Kuroth hunters with scythes rolled a 6 after moving through woods, charging me before i could buff and killing 26 out of 30 guards in the first turn! Still managed to cause a fair bit of damage, nearly won in turn 4 before eventually getting tabled but not losing my objective
Result: Minor Loss (7)

Game Four: Sylvaneth (three places of power)
Had 5 heroes to his 3 for this game, scar vet hid in a building holding an objective all game. Eternity warden surrounded by guards took the middle objective before durthu and drycha steamed in and killed all the guards. Oldblood saved the day, steamrollering drycha then durthu in two successive combat rounds!
Result: Major Win (20)

Game Five: Bonesplitters with 2 thundertusks and a stonehorn (escalation)
The mission worked in my favour with his behemoths starting so far back, his 20 arrow boyz caused a bit of damage but managed to kill all the orks by the end of turn 3. 2 failed 3 inch charges in turn two from thundertusks swung the game for me when i got the double turn straight after. We endecd with 3 models left each!
Result: Major Win (20)

Overall I came 17th out of 90 with 73 points, was such a fun weekend and happy flying the Serephon flag and doing so well for us!

 

Way to go ! Seems like you did an extremely good performance ! Kudos and thank you for representing us in such a strong manner !

 

Thanks, I think a lot were surprised to see the dinosaurs ripping into them so effectively!

 

Great write up! Thanks a lot. Congrats on performing well! When you get a chance I would love to hear your opinions on how some of your lynch pin units performed.

- Did you find the Rippers to be effective in groups of 3? Were they killy enough to pay back the 120 points of battalion?
- Any tips for playing Thundertusks and Mortal wounds? I would imagine the guard took a beating that game. I'd love to hear more about this game. It sounds like you had a bit of luck, but in a multi round tournament you always need a little (well deserved for being the only Seraphon player )
- How was the Coldone Vet? I'm excited to try out my Coldone Vets with Relic Blades. I feel like opponents might be surprised if you pull off 10 attacks from him (buffed by Oldblood and you passed the 4+ roll. Only 100 points!)
-Did you feel the power of the Starseer? Manipulating the Double Turn chance always feels good.

Thanks for the report and I'd love to hear more!

 

Thanks man
Point 1: The rippers in a unit of 3 are a kamikaze unit, they took out characters and light units out on their own but mostly died quickly after though they wiped a unit and hero in game 5 to hold an objective, first turn they come in reroll hits and wound with +1 to wound makes it worth the points.
Point 2: I tend to ignore the thundertusks and go for the rest of the army, play the mission not the army. Only way i can deal with mortal wounds is trying to kill what deals them out! thats where the rippers and skinks come in usually
Point 3: The cold one vet was actually my general, his command ability was much better for my army, giving re-rolls of 1 to 3 guard units (d3 damage when not moving) and the carnosaur means you cut through units. Plus the extra attack from the cold one and legendary fighter means potentially 12 attacks a turn (8 at -1 rend and 2 damage) was good at taking down isolated heroes
Point 4: Starseer is one of if not the best use of 160 points in the game imo, the ability to make the game flow the way you want it is massive (at one point my opponent caused 11 damage i made him re-roll and he got a 3, that unit then killed his terrorghiest)

Hope that helps!

 

Great army, great write up. Fantastic showing! You have done us all proud by repenting representing!! big bad lizards!
Edit: quite the typo there!

 

Thanks! Good info.

When I considered Guard in the past, I always thought that they were too expensive to just watch them be wiped off the board by mortal wounds, but your list and write up have definitely piqued my interest. The games that your opponents aren't stacking mortal wounds or the games that you can take out a few of their MW threats, with rippers/skinks, the Guard seem very good.

 

Could you have done anything different in game 3 to prevent that charge? Would you mind explaining how that happened?

 

Not really, I had to defend my objective. He put a clump of woods down in the middle of the board and teleported into them. He had to stay 9 inches away but on a roll of 6 could move his hunters which he duly rolled lol if he hadn't it would've been a completely different game which we both agreed after, that 6 was the most important roll of the game!

 

And outside of the eternity starhost I would probably only ever run one unit of guard tbh so it would just be a mystic shield or cover away from that 2+ save

 

Awesome job! Turns out we are going to different GTs, I live in the US!

Curious why you chose the Olblood on Carnosaur over the Scar vet?

 

Personal preference if I'm honest! Already have enough good defensive units unit the list so wanted a hard hitting monster killer. The shooting attack is a nice bonus too. Keep the scar vet on cold one close and he's re rolling 1s to hit, mystic shield gives a 3+ save and the priest re rolls of run charge and save rolls. Quicksilver potion means you should get a hard hit in regardless

 

Really cool write up! Shall be using these tactics as my army develops. Thanks.

 

Oldblood's command ability is super strong if you're running a few more attacking monsters/vets on cold ones, but I think for this list you were smart to use the Vet as your general. Rerolling 1's when you are hitting on 3's is very good!

 

Glad I could help once you get your synergies working Seraphon are one of the best armies in the game!

 

Last question ( I promise ) Do you include chameleon skinks in most of your competitive Seraphon armies? They're an interesting unit. They aren't battle-line,which stinks, and their damage output is a little less than you would want for 120 points. They are squishy, unless they are in cover, but even in cover they are still only 1 wound models. Their strength is in their movement and ability to support any Saurus unit on the field.

Would you mind sharing your experiences with the Chameleons and any tactics you may use?

 

I think they're one of the best units in the game, especially in a shadowstrike starhost. Remember in matched play its all about the mission,they can support attacks, take objectives, kill heroes and are great against demons (killed skaabrand in one shooting phase with 10). They cause your opponent to focus on them which takes focus off your other units (esp heroes). However in my experience you really have to think hard of not just where you put them but when. Sometimes it's better to wait a turn before bringing them in. All in all a great unit, especially if you're a tactical player

 

Great report! Thank you for the write ups!

I would be curious to know what types of armies placed higher than you did. From my limited tournament viewing I always see a very disproportionate number of Ogors and Sylvaneth armies. Just curious.

As to the chameleon skinks. Keep in mind that you can make them disappear later on and reappear somewhere else on the battlefield. You can use this trick to force the opponent to dedicate resources to trying to kill them, and then make them poof and reappear somewhere else they are needed.

I think that Chameleon skinks act like a blot toad in that you gain a lot of board control with them. When the opponent doesnt know where they may creep up, they have to play around that unknown, which could be worth more in itself than the damage output.