8th Ed. BRB Lores of Magic - A Deep Dive

[Scalenex]

I would add something I noticed with the lore of Beasts. I haven't seen a lot of Level 4 Beasts casters hitting the table top but level L1 and L2 Beast casters are relatively common.

This should probably be covered for all the lores, not just Beasts. You can go all out with a level 4 caster or you can run with a level 1 or 2 caster. Or you can go crazy and take a Level 4 and a level 2 caster so you can be more or less guaranteed to get all the spells between them.

Level 3 casters do not exist. They are an urban legend.

Some benefit more than others, but every unit in the game likes +1 Strength and Toughness. If you can get a low level caster casting Wyssans Wildform on a critical melee now and then, that's lovely, but it's not game breaking if you fail to cast it, so you don't have to base your whole strategy on it, just a tiny aspect.

While it's technically possible to run a level 4 Beast caster with Vampire Counts and it would theoretically synergize well with the hero based power of a VC army, most of the few times I saw Lore of Beasts used on the Carpe Noctem forums it was a level one or two caster mostly for Wyssans.

I have never pulled this off successively, but I often hope I roll Transformation of Kadon on a low level wizard and tempt Irresistible Force with five or six dice figuring that once I have a new monster on the table, it won't matter if my wizard can't cast again.

That's pure theoryhammer. I have never managed to pull off that trick with a Skink priest or Empire wizard actually casting Transformation of Kadon successfully in a real game.

 

[Scalenex]

I was just thinking that on the Empire forums, there is a strategy of taking 3-4 level one wizards all with a different lore. This was nicknamed the wizard council, but there was no consensus on which 3-4 lores to take.

But it ultimately boils down. "If I roll insert spell name here I will be very happy. If I have to settle for the signature spell, I will be content."

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

Here we go then, a rare @Scalenex style post from me - managed to get much of this out early, but it's still a bit of an ongoing analysis, so I will add any additional findings to the end of the post and make it even BIGGER!



The Lore of Beasts, a Detailed Analysis, by Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl

First, I shall commence by breaking down and discussing each spell in the lore:

Signature Spell: Wyssan’s Wildform – A lovely Signature Spell that , Wyssan’s gives a target unit +1 Strength and Toughness. This of course works best on large units of infantry (as much as I dislike praising Hordes) as those units maximise the number of attacks that benefit from the increased Strength, and have the most staying power to benefit from the +1 Toughness, but this is a welcome boost to any unit that can fight somewhat decently in melee, and at a pinch could even be used to protect a missile unit from an enemy that would otherwise make mincemeat of it in combat.

1. The Flock of Doom – This is the first of many clear attempts to try and glow-up the Lore of the Wild given to the Beastmen in their 7th Edition army book, and arguably the worst, because the equivalent spell in the Lore of the Wild – Viletide – is a lot more useful against enemies of Toughness 4 or higher, as both spells wound such units on 6s, but Viletide inflicts 5D6 hits rather than the 2D6 of The Flock of Doom, meaning the maximum number of hits will be significantly greater with Viletide. Even against Toughness 2 or 3 enemies, while The Flock of Doom has a slightly improved chance of wounding, the number of hits it inflicts to start with will generally be significantly fewer than Viletide, meaning much of the time it’s going to be slightly inferior (though at least this is justified by its lower base casting value). Both spells are thus pretty much equally poor in damaging anything other than Swarms (which sadly nobody takes in 8th anyway unless purely for thematic reasons), but the one trump card of The Flock of Doom is that its range can be extended to 48” in its empowered version, giving it some vague use as a missile for killing War Machine crews. Even then, though, it’ll be wounding on 6s against Dwarf crews of both stripes and 5s against all others, so don’t expect it to work 100% of the time, or even 50%. Fortunately, though, because Wyssan’s is so wonderful, you’ll have no qualms about exchanging this spell for it.

2. Pann’s Impenetrable Pelt – A significantly better spell that gives the Wizard or a friendly character within 12”of him +3 Toughness – great for protecting your Wizard against a would-be challenger, or giving your own most powerful character a buff-up before he declares a challenge himself. Works best, of course, if your character already has a decent Toughness, armour and ward save for maximum defensive capabilities, as with this spell he’ll become more of a rock than Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson hiking in the Rockie Mountains.

3. The Amber Spear – The one relic from the 7th Edition Lore of Beasts with an additional glow-up, the normal version gives you a Bolt Thrower, while the empowered version gives you almost the equivalent of a Cannon (with decreasing Strength as it passes through units, yes, but also no risk of misfire other than miscast) which can be excellent when employed against the right target. This spell is, however, situational. In the hands of an army that has no war machines, this is most useful indeed, in particular the empowered version that can easily be used to damage or even take out a beloved monster belonging to your opponent. However, in the hands of any army that has at the very least Bolt Thrower of its own, if not a Cannon as well, the usefulness of this spell deteriorates significantly. I will talk about the full extent of this spell’s synergy in-depth later, but for now, it’s clear that this one is a mixed bag – if it fills a niche in your army, keep it, if not, swap it for Wyssan’s.

4. The Curse of Anraheir – At first glance the only debuffing spell from the lore looks pretty subtle, but the various small debuffs it inflicts all add up to be a real pain for an enemy unit. Having to treat all terrain as dangerous is a nuisance enough, but having to suffer casualties on a 1 or a 2 is even worse, and if your opponent is foolish enough to move his unit you can expect to, on average, kill off around 1/3 of his unit with this spell, potentially triggering a Panic test into the bargain. Additionally armour counts for nothing against dangerous terrain tests, so cast it on that Chaos Warrior horde that’s scaring the life out of you and either shut it down for a turn or watch it be reduced to a much more manageable size. Banner of the World Dragon giving you grief? Dangerous terrain tests are not magical so that shouldn’t trigger the banner’s Ward Save. To add insult to injury, the enemy unit also must suffer a -1 penalty to Hit rolls in both shooting and close combat, so even if the target is in combat or can shoot, the spell is capable of causing trouble. Useful against pretty much any enemy unit except Monsters, which can only suffer a single wound from Dangerous Terrain as I understand it, and they have their counters. Keep this one if you’re lucky enough to roll it.

5. The Savage Beast of Horros – The beefier cousin of spell 2 and a rip-off of Mantle of Ghorok from the Lore of the Wild, this spell gives you the same +3 bonus, but to Strength and Attacks of the target character rather than Toughness, and while there is no chance of getting a +6 bonus as in Mantle, there is also no chance of inflicting any wounds on the character as a result of this spell. Another great spell that’s worth keeping much of the time, and can be a real life-saver if your prized General ends up in a challenge out of his depth.

6. Transformation of Kadon – At face value this looks like a pretty darn strong spell – turn your Wizard into a mighty monster and watch it ravage the enemy lines – but there are some big flaws with it in my eye – one, your opponent can attempt to dispel it again in subsequent turns, meaning at only a moment’s notice the Monster can turn back into your Wizard again, and two, in order to get any use out of this spell, you have to move your Wizard into combat, which is exactly where he doesn’t want to be. Combine this with flaw one, and it becomes a prime way to get your Wizard into deep doody. Thirdly, if the monster transforms back into your Wizard, any wounds it has suffered are automatically carried over, meaning if the monster has suffered at least 3 Wounds it will automatically kill your Wizard unless you’re using a Slann. Finally, Cannons (and ironically the empowered version of The Amber Spear) present a prime threat to your new Monster, so don’t even bother keeping this spell if you’re up against an army with one or even both of those. Again this is a rip-off of a Lore of the Wild spell, Savage Dominion, and people often compare this spell favourably against that one, but I would actually say Savage Dominion is slightly better, in that your Bray-Shaman doesn’t turn into the monster, but instead controls it with his mind, meaning you can keep him hidden in his unit away from combat while the monster is in the thick of it and wrecking stuff, and though the risk of your caster suffering a wound whenever the Monster does is still there, the Bray-Shaman has at least some chance of avoiding it by passing a Toughness test. All in all, while it looks a particularly fun spell, and can be effective so long as your opponent hasn’t brought any cannons along, or even if you get it on a low-level Wizard for whom the monster boost would be more cost-effective and whose sacrifice would cost you less VPs, I would personally relegate it to another one to be swapped for Wyssan’s much of the time.

Synergies

The armies that can use this Lore are:

• Beastmen – despite being one of the most consistently lowest-ranked armies in the game, Beastmen become a particular threat with this lore behind them, as the entire army receives a reduction in the casting value of the buff spells. Not only that, but they also benefit more from those buffing spells than some of the other armies – Gors, Bestigors and Minotaurs all become a lot more brutal with the addition of Wyssan’s, and Beastlords and Minotaurs, already decent characters in their own right, become death incarnate with the bonuses from Pann’s Impenetrable Pelt and The Savage Beast of Horros, combined with the magic item loadouts they will have been given before the battle’s start. They also gain a huge amount from the use of The Amber Spear, as they don’t have any War Machines at all and the closest they normally get to one is the Cygor’s Stone Thrower attack (which is often eschewed anyway in favour of a Ghorgon or Jabberslythe), and even The Flock of Doom, as, given their lack of shooting units, they need something to be able to deal with enemy war machines to stop them taking out their monsters. Oh, and the icing on the cake – Curse of Anraheir can bring back the days of 6th Edition where your opponent always had to suffer a -1 penalty to shoot at your Core troops. Quite fittingly, Beasts is seen pretty much as an auto-take in a Beastman army, and mine will certainly be no exception!

• Bretonnia – One of three lores Damsels and Prophetesses can take, alongside Life and Heavens, Bretonnia synergises almost as well as Beastmen with this lore, because their armies, alone of those in 8th, still consist of a lot of cavalry, all of whom will benefit from the Wildheart lore attribute. Additionally with their 2+ armour saves and penchant for charging and lances, Knights become a formidable threat with Wyssan’s boosting their Strength in the first round of combat to a mighty 6 for Knights of the Realm and Errant and 7 for elite Grail Knights, giving them a fair chance to shatter any enemy unit they can reach in a glorious Bretonnian charge. Additionally, Questing Knights can retain this super strength with their Great Weapons every turn if you can cast it on them every time, making them all the more fantastic at butchering Monsters and heavily-armoured elites. The Flower of Bretonnia also gets a lot out of The Amber Spear because again the only form of artillery she can muster is the stone-pelting Trebuchet, and with fewer and less effective monsters to their name than Beastmen they will get more of a kick out of Transformation of Kadon. However, they will suffer particularly if inflicted with The Curse of Anraheir, because as well as getting a reduction to its casting rolls against their cavalry units, it forces them to either avoid doing what they do best (generally galloping around the field and over enemy units) or suffer dangerous terrain tests that ignore their beloved 2+ armour saves, so if there was ever a time for a Damsel to unfurl her Dispel Scroll, it should be against Anraheir.

• Daemons of Chaos – I wouldn’t be surprised if this lore was pretty rarely seen in Daemon armies, as only two of their special characters can access it – The Blue Scribes and Kairos Fateweaver, and those casters can choose from any of the eight rulebook lores. Given those casters are Tzeentchian they will probably more often choose the lores that can melt the enemy at magical range such as Fire and Death, but if the Daemon army has Bloodletters or Plaguebearers it will benefit a lot from Wyssan’s, and give either Pelt or Savage Beast to a Bloodthirster and your opponent will struggle to resist the temptation to throw the rulebook at you. However, it’s something to consider only upon the occasional whim of the Changer of Ways that grants you one of his chosen servants to command.

• Dark Elves – All the Elf armies are a mixed bag when it comes to being able to benefit from this Lore, as with Strength and Toughness 3 their Core troops are incapable of tapping into the full potential of Wyssan’s, and their characters have the same trouble with Pelt and Savage Beast. However, being the most melee and monster-focussed of the three means their Special and Rare choices benefit the most from it, with Black Guard, Executioners, Witch Elves, Hydras, Kharibdysses and Cold One Knights all becoming even nastier with Wyssan’s, Transformation of Kadon adding further monsters to your menagerie and The Curse of Anraheir being great at making your opponent look all the more cumbersome and giving you an extra layer of protection against shooting if they have any, particularly important for Elves who usually die to a stiff breeze when it comes to ranged attacks. A good one to pick for Dark Elves for whom Specials and Rares do all the donkey work but are particularly brutal while doing it.

• Empire – Empire I think benefit the least from this lore, as their massed ranks of sword-fodder won’t be insurmountable foes even with Wyssan’s, their characters are not the best to give Pelt or Savage Beast to, The Amber Spear is pointless unless for some reason you don’t have a Cannon (and if that’s the case Karl Franz will be considering a replacement for you) and Knights are rarely chosen because of the greater availability of aforementioned State Troopers. The only spells that are of any worth to an Empire player are Wyssan’s if you have Demigryphs and Griffons around, or Transformation of Kadon if you’re in need of an extra monster at a moment’s notice (your Wizards being particularly cheap means you won’t lose as many Victory Points compared to other factions if your Monster transforms at an inopportune time). Certainly there are better lores out there for Sigmar’s Heirs.

• High Elves – High Elves benefit from this lore much in the same way as their Dark Elf cousins, though being less melee-oriented and more defensive gives them some different (but no less effective) applications for this Lore. White Lions and Phoenix Guard can reliably tank enemy shooting with Wyssan’s buffing them and Curse of Anraheir hampering the foe. Silver Helms and Dragon Princes can play at being Bretonnia more effectively with Wyssan’s boosting their Strength and Toughness and Transformation of Kadon can increase your diversity of monsters to match that of your evil twin faction. Certainly not a bad choice for the Sons of Asuryan at all, though the character-boosting spells will be less effective on yours than those of some of your foes.

• Lizardmen – Capable of taking this lore both for Skink Priests (who can choose between it and Heavens) and Slann, a Beasts-heavy Lizardman force should always take lots of Saurus and dinosaurs to get the best out of this lore. Saurus Warriors become all the more deadly when their Strength and Toughness are boosted to 5, and Oldbloods can properly get on with being the predatory killing machines they are if they’ve got +3 Strength, Toughness or Attacks. Carnosaurs, Stegadons and even Bastiladons get nastier with some help from Wyssan’s, and while the ordinary version of The Amber Spear isn’t much different from the Stegadon’s Great Bow, the empowered version will certainly be of great help in assisting you with winning the Monster Mash. The Flock of Doom can again protect your precious monsters from enemy War Machines and Curse of Anraheir can help mitigate Saurus’ weakness of meagre Weapon Skill. Certainly one of the factions that’ll get more out of the Wind of Ghur (unless you favour Skink cloud spam, in which case pass). Not convinced? @Scalenex's articles on this site will enlighten you further.

• Ogre Kingdoms – Another greater beneficiary of this Lore, while you have to give one of your Butchers the Lore of the Great Maw, if you have at least two then Beasts will certainly achieve fun results in an Ogre Kingdoms army. Not content with the rate at which your Bulls and Ironguts stomp the enemy flat? Give them a serving of Wyssan’s at your next tribal get-together and it’s a simple matter of pointing, clicking and weathering the first round of pinpricks from your puny enemy. Not impressed with the way Chaos Lords, Doombulls and Vampire Lords hack your Tyrant to death before he can even get his attacks in? Pann’s Impenetrable Pelt may taste gristly to him, but if you can convince him to wear it he’ll certainly have a better chance of being able to rock a challenge, or failing that, get him to take a bite out of The Savage Beast of Horros to give him even more oomph. However, The Flock of Doom, The Amber Spear and Transformation of Kadon are all of much more limited use, so you’d best hope you get a 2, 4 or 5 after you’ve swapped your first duff spell for Wyssan’s.

• Vampire Counts – Vampires get a look-in with this lore, despite being Undead, because one character can potentially choose that silly power that allows them to be able to use any magic lore from the Rulebook bar Lore of Life. The character buffing spells will certainly be of use in making Vampire characters crazier in combat than ever, Curse of Anraheir can remedy your mobility problems by slowing your foes down, The Amber Spear helps cover your lack of artillery (or shooting in general), Blood Knights, Crypt Horrors, Vargeists, Zombie Dragons and Terrorgheists will all become unholy terrors with Wyssan’s, and Transformation of Kadon can give you a monster that doesn’t need to be within 12” of your general to march, but given you need some spare Lore of the Vampires Wizards to replace your general if he dies and keep your Undead hordes alive and groaning, it’s unlikely you’ll get chance to use this lore in games below 2000 points, and if you are, you’re making a gamble.

• Wood Elves – Wood Elves won’t benefit the most from this lore, as they are primarily a shooty army and Beasts is used give combat units added clout. Still, if you’re going heavy on Eternal Guard, Rangers, Wild Riders and Dryads, getting in touch with your Elves’ inner beast becomes more appealing, and your cavalry, Hawks and Treemen will get that all important casting value reduction. However if you prefer going the preferred route of massed ranks of Glade Guard hiding in the woods and turning your enemies into pincushions, you’d better skip this Lore, as only The Amber Spear and perhaps Curse of Anraheir can help with this tactic.

This is most of it, but it’s likely to evolve into something even bigger once I get a chance to do more comparison of casting values and think about effects of casting order.

To Be Continued (probably)...

I'll be enjoying this later on tonight with a nice cup of tea.

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

The Lore of Beasts, a Detailed Analysis, by Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl

Awesome write-up with some great insights! And you finished it super quick too (I'm just at the beginning stages of my Lore of Metal analysis).

Banner of the World Dragon giving you grief? Dangerous terrain tests are not magical so that shouldn’t trigger the banner’s Ward Save.

That is very clever! I never thought of that, but it would be priceless!

6. Transformation of Kadon – At face value this looks like a pretty darn strong spell – turn your Wizard into a mighty monster and watch it ravage the enemy lines – but there are some big flaws with it in my eye – one, your opponent can attempt to dispel it again in subsequent turns, meaning at only a moment’s notice the Monster can turn back into your Wizard again, and two, in order to get any use out of this spell, you have to move your Wizard into combat, which is exactly where he doesn’t want to be. Combine this with flaw one, and it becomes a prime way to get your Wizard into deep doody. Thirdly, if the monster transforms back into your Wizard, any wounds it has suffered are automatically carried over, meaning if the monster has suffered at least 3 Wounds it will automatically kill your Wizard unless you’re using a Slann. Finally, Cannons (and ironically the empowered version of The Amber Spear) present a prime threat to your new Monster, so don’t even bother keeping this spell if you’re up against an army with one or even both of those. Again this is a rip-off of a Lore of the Wild spell, Savage Dominion, and people often compare this spell favourably against that one, but I would actually say Savage Dominion is slightly better, in that your Bray-Shaman doesn’t turn into the monster, but instead controls it with his mind, meaning you can keep him hidden in his unit away from combat while the monster is in the thick of it and wrecking stuff, and though the risk of your caster suffering a wound whenever the Monster does is still there, the Bray-Shaman has at least some chance of avoiding it by passing a Toughness test. All in all, while it looks a particularly fun spell, and can be effective so long as your opponent hasn’t brought any cannons along, or even if you get it on a low-level Wizard for whom the monster boost would be more cost-effective and whose sacrifice would cost you less VPs, I would personally relegate it to another one to be swapped for Wyssan’s much of the time.

I agree with your points, which is why I've never really liked the Transformation of Kadon spell. It sounds awesome, but losing the ability to cast spells and having any wounds suffered transferred back to your wizard really ruins it.

the ordinary version of The Amber Spear isn’t much different from the Stegadon’s Great Bow

Aside from the fact that the Amber Spear hits automatically while the Stegadon's giant bow is notorious for consistently missing!

Personally, the Amber Spear is one of the spells that I most love to field, but that is probably because, as you mentioned, my armies [TK, CD, WoC & LM] lack access to cannons or cheap bolt throwers.




Would you agree that the Curse of Anraheir and Wyssan's are generally the best spells in the lore, while Flock of Doom and Transformation of Kadon are generally the first ones you'd want to trade for the signature?

Which, if any, of the BRB lores do you feel are outright better than Beasts (in most situations or for most armies)?

Do you feel that the Lore of Beasts works better for level 1 & 2 wizards (due to the strength of Wyssan's Wildform) or would you prefer to have it on a level 4? Would you ever give it to a Slann (considering all the other options available to him)?

Which army that has access to the Lore of Beasts most benefits from it? Beastmen for the reasons you highlighted? Which army that normally can't access it, do you feel would most benefit from it? (similar to how I proposed the Lore of Life for Chaos Dwarfs)

 

[Cptn Timmy]

Hey all. For some reason I didn't get a notification from that tag. I'm just catching up on this thread now and will read the beasts write up today. I can tackle shadow as it is probably the lore I am most versed in. If there are no takers already.

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

I can tackle shadow as it is probably the lore I am most versed in. If there are no takers already.

AWESOME! I've added you to the list! Looking forward to reading your analysis.


Lore of Fire - @ASSASSIN_NR_1
Lore of Beasts - @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl
Lore of Metal - @NIGHTBRINGER
Lore of Light
Lore of Life
Lore of Heavens - @Lizards of Renown
Lore of Shadow - @Cptn Timmy
Lore of Death

 

[Lizards of Renown]

AWESOME! I've added you to the list! Looking forward to reading your analysis.


Lore of Fire - @ASSASSIN_NR_1
Lore of Beasts - @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl
Lore of Metal - @NIGHTBRINGER
Lore of Light
Lore of Life
Lore of Heavens - @Lizards of Renown
Lore of Shadow - @Cptn Timmy
Lore of Death

This is getting kind of exciting. Need to get my skates on to finish Heavens!

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

This is getting kind of exciting. Need to get my skates on to finish Heavens!

I've still got quite a bit of work to do on metal. I have it started though!

 

[Lizards of Renown]

I've still got quite a bit of work to do on metal. I have it started though!

Based on the quality of the write-up from @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl and what I'm expecting from you, the bar has been set pretty high!

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

Would you agree that the Curse of Anraheir and Wyssan's are generally the best spells in the lore, while Flock of Doom and Transformation of Kadon are generally the first ones you'd want to trade for the signature?

Which, if any, of the BRB lores do you feel are outright better than Beasts (in most situations or for most armies)?

Do you feel that the Lore of Beasts works better for level 1 & 2 wizards (due to the strength of Wyssan's Wildform) or would you prefer to have it on a level 4? Would you ever give it to a Slann (considering all the other options available to him)?

Which army that has access to the Lore of Beasts most benefits from it? Beastmen for the reasons you highlighted? Which army that normally can't access it, do you feel would most benefit from it? (similar to how I proposed the Lore of Life for Chaos Dwarfs)

@Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl

Any thoughts on the points/questions I raised in response to your excellent Lore of Beasts Deep Dive write-up?

 

[PlasmaDavid]

cool and good high effort post here

You ought to find an active WFB blog/podcast/whatever to submit this to, always get more WFB content to the wider fanbase!

 

[Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl]

Aside from the fact that the Amber Spear hits automatically while the Stegadon's giant bow is notorious for consistently missing!

Personally, the Amber Spear is one of the spells that I most love to field, but that is probably because, as you mentioned, my armies [TK, CD, WoC & LM] lack access to cannons or cheap bolt throwers.

That's fair, I missed out The Amber Spear being able to hit automatically, but you're right in that it is at its most beneficial to armies that normally can't access Cannons or Bolt Throwers. Armies that do have one or both of these war machine options will find a lot less use for it.

Would you agree that the Curse of Anraheir and Wyssan's are generally the best spells in the lore, while Flock of Doom and Transformation of Kadon are generally the first ones you'd want to trade for the signature?

Do you feel that the Lore of Beasts works better for level 1 & 2 wizards (due to the strength of Wyssan's Wildform) or would you prefer to have it on a level 4? Would you ever give it to a Slann (considering all the other options available to him)?

Which army that has access to the Lore of Beasts most benefits from it? Beastmen for the reasons you highlighted?

Answered these questions in amendments I've applied to my original post (told you it would be continued!)

Which, if any, of the BRB lores do you feel are outright better than Beasts (in most situations or for most armies)?

Death, Heavens and Fire are a lot more killy than Beasts, but Beasts is meant to be a buffing and debuffing lore rather than a damaging one, so comparing it to those is pretty much chalk and cheese. Shadow has decent buff and debuff spells (The Enfeebling Foe, The Withering and Okkam's come to mind) but those are the only three that are of any contest to it, and Beasts has in general more spells that are of use in most armies (The Flock of Doom is the only one that could really be called useless much of the time). Personally I think the only lore that stands as a real challenge to Beasts is Life, with its ability to resurrect fallen models in non-Undead armies and buffing and debuffing spells aplenty. Perhaps Light as well, but I'm no expert in that lore and the only spell I can think of off the top of my head is The Speed of Light which is the reason why I've mentioned it.

Which army that normally can't access it, do you feel would most benefit from it? (similar to how I proposed the Lore of Life for Chaos Dwarfs)

An easy answer to that would be Orcs and Goblins - Orcs and Trolls of all stripes would become a lot more dangerous with Wyssan's, Pelt and Savage Beast, the army would benefit a lot from the empowered version of Amber Spear and The Flock of Doom will give them more of an incitement to go monster-heavy.

 

[Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl]

And @The Great White Lizard, my fellow Beastlord, now that you're back perhaps you'd care to join in this effort to evaluate the Lores of Magic? Apologies for grabbing the Lore of Beasts before you could get chance, I just couldn't help myself thanks to my desire to learn it for when I build my own Warherd to a suitable size for gaming. I still hope you enjoy reading my evaluation of it, though.

Death is usable by the Cloven Ones though, perhaps you'd like to share your thoughts on that one?

 

[Lizards of Renown]

@NIGHTBRINGER I'm 4 Word Document pages in... Really trying to do it justice after seeing @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl's offering...

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

@NIGHTBRINGER I'm 4 Word Document pages in... Really trying to do it justice after seeing @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl's offering...

That is exciting... I can't wait to read it!!

 

[Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl]

@NIGHTBRINGER I'm 4 Word Document pages in... Really trying to do it justice after seeing @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl's offering...

I'm unsure if mine would exceed 2 pages let alone four... perhaps I haven't written enough, but to be honest I can't think of anything more I can say regarding my lore of choice.

Anyway, it should be interesting to see how the two evaluations square up. I look forward to reading it soon!

 

[Lizards of Renown]

I'm unsure if mine would exceed 2 pages let alone four... perhaps I haven't written enough, but to be honest I can't think of anything more I can say regarding my lore of choice.

Anyway, it should be interesting to see how the two evaluations square up. I look forward to reading it soon!

I wasn't referring to the length. I think you did a great job of breaking the lore down, so feel I need to put some decent work in to make mine at least as good.

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

Put some work into my Lore of Metal Deep Dive analysis. Not as far along as @Lizards of Renown , but well on my way. Just about to get into what will form the very heart of my breakdown.
Plenty of work to do, but I like what I have so far.

I'm hoping everyone will find my take on the lore interesting and my method of examination useful.

 

[NIGHTBRINGER]

Spell Ranking
1. Wyssan's Wildform - You knew this was going to reach top all day long, didn't you?
2. The Curse of Anraheir - A lot of little debuffs combined make for a highly unpleasant hex spell for whichever enemy unit happens to be on the receiving end.
3. The Savage Beast of Horros - Giving your character the Warhammer Fantasy answer to steroids is never a bad thing.
4. Pann's Impenetrable Pelt - If you've gone all-out offence on a character and need to give him some defensive protection, or even if you think that 1+ Armour Save plus Ward still isn't enough to keep him safe, this spell is for you.
5. The Amber Spear - You're after the empowered spell here, which is fantastic if your army doesn't have cannons, but less so there are already at least two in your roster.
6. Transformation of Kadon - Bully's Prize Gamble - Warhammer style. Casting it on a Level 4 Wizard is bonkers, casting it on a more expendable Level 1 might give you some kicks if your opponent doesn't decide to inflict two wounds on the resulting creature and then dispel it.
7. The Flock of Doom - If your enemy has artillery, consider it, if not, swap it for Wyssan's.

That's pretty close to how I would rank them. It's a rare day when we are in such close agreement.

 

[Lizards of Renown]

LORE OF HEAVENS

This lore has a nice mix of the various types of spells, such that it lends itself to some forward planning with your army.

The different types of spells, for me, give this lore a strategic edge. Not just giving you an edge on combat, but really messing with gunlines, moving troops around and denying sections of the battlefield.

SPELLS

Lore Attribute – Roiling Skies:

This Lore Attribute is not a great one. Giving a model with Fly D6 S4 hits doesn’t really make anyone shudder with fear, but occasionally this will help you out. It occurs so infrequently for me that I also sometimes forget to apply it.

Signature Spell – Iceshard Blizzard (7+)

This, in my opinion, is the most useful spell from the lore. Not the most powerful or intimidating, but most useful. Why? It has a relatively low casting cost and, as the signature spell, can be taken automatically and also taken multiple times by Level 1 fodder-wizards.

To give one of your units a -1 to hit in combat is huge. With the 8th edition WS grid you have to be double +1 compared to your opponents WS to make you 5+ to hit. The Strength vs Toughness chart remained as it was in earlier editions, where every single point of difference changes the odds (e.g. S3 to T3 = 4’s to wound, S4 to T3 = 3’s to wound, S5 to T3 = 2’s to wound). So in combat if you can push the percent of hits from 50% to 33% or from 66% to 50% this is quite major.

To cause a set of enemy missile troops to have -1 to hit is also pretty good. It can tip shooting over the edge for most armies (Empire, Orcs & Goblins, Dwarfs, Chaos Dwarfs, Ogre Kingdoms) as if you are also at long distance (likely) then this is -2 to hit. Suddenly your opponent needs 5’s or 6’s to hit. If cast on a war machine, you are effectively giving your army a 4+ ward save against it’s hits, as your opponent needs to roll a 4+ to hit. If you have a couple of wizards you could even luck out and neutralize two war machines.

How about casting this on a unit twice? -2 to hit in close combat or missile troops that are at -2 to hit your troops? For a 6+ spell? This is, if you’ll pardon the pun, magic.

1. Harmonic Convergence (6+)

Augment spell so that your troops re-roll to hit, to wound and armour save rolls of 1. Can be boosted to affect all troops in 12” for a 12+. This is okay. I would have preferred that it was slightly less than the Iceshard Blizzard on casting as you get a 1 in 6 chance of a re-roll which still might end up being naff. This is a spell to fire off with your spare power dice or to draw out dispel dice from your opponent. Don’t get me wrong, every so often this will be very helpful and could sway a combat in your favour. However, given a choice I’d go with Iceshard Blizzard which has a definite affect which is superior.

2. Wind Blast (7+)

Third favourite spell of the lore because you have to be in the right position to really use this effectively. This pushes a target D3+1 inches directly away from the caster or boosted (14+) to D6+2. If you collide with a unit, both take D6 S3 hits. If you collide with an object (or if the affected unit cannot move) take D6 S3 hits.

Obviously no-one is quivering about S3 hits. Not when the average is going to be 3 or 4. However, strategically this is a good one. Not as good as the Hand of Gork (or is it Mork? ) where you can move one of your own units around, but still good.

Push a unit back so it is out of charge range. Push a supporting unit back so you have a chance to defeat a different unit in combat first. Push a Chariot or unit into dangerous terrain and force the dice rolls for this. Or a Mangler Squig into a friendly unit and watch the fun unfold as it now becomes subject to random movement. The disadvantage is that it has to be directly away from the caster, so you need a mobile wizard to take full advantage. But Arabyan carpet is a free-for-all item. How about pushing a unit into range of missile troops? Or away from a BSB re-roll bubble or General’s leadership bubble?

3. Curse of the Midnight Wind (10+)

Slightly crappier cousin of Harmonic Convergence. Make enemy re-roll to hit, to wound and armour saves of 6+. Ostensibly not bad, but when you consider it 10+ to cast then it becomes a spell you should just switch for harmonic convergence.

4. Urannon’s Thunderbolt (10+)

Decent Magic Missile. D6 S6 hits. Nothing amazing considering 10+ casting cost. Still good and can have boosted range for 13+. ‘Nuff said.

5. Comet of Cassandora (12+)

Second favourite spell of the lore. If cast successfully, then you put a marker down and in EACH magic phase (not just your own) you roll a dice and either you get an immediate 2D6 inch blast of 2D6+2 S6 hits, or you add a counter making a possible S7 2D6+3 hits. And it just keep building. And you can put it ANYWHERE. (There is the boosted version that starts with 2 counters and adds 2 each turn for the higher casting cost)

If it lands in a timely fashion (which sometimes doesn’t happen at all or is way too late) it will do a lot of damage. But this isn’t the main benefit of the spell. You are effectively creating a major danger zone for the opponent. Who wants to have their prize unit destroyed because they chanced moving through that space? How about freaking out a gunline general with his war machines by placing it overhead. Used properly, you can deny a section of the battlefield to the enemy, force well-placed troops to move or destroy a slow moving but deadly unit.

The other value is psychological. Make sure your opponent knows that you have this spell. Watch them hoard their dispel dice to make sure you can’t cast it. Cast your Iceshard Blizzards with little or no opposition. Force dispel scrolls to be used. If used correctly you can intimidate the enemy without casting it once.

6. Chain Lightning (15+)

Just like Urannon’s Thunderbolt, but there is a 3+ chance the lightning will jump to another unit within 6”. Sounds great, but in real life either you can’t line up that theoretical immense chain reaction or, if you do, the dice gods send you a roll of 1 just when you need it. Considering Comet of Cassandora is 12+ casting cost, it is the superior choice given that there is a high chance of doing the same effect as a 10+ spell.

PROS & CONS

Like I said above, there are some strategic spells in this lore that can definitely help you do a strategy. You can always get Iceshard Blizzard so can factor this in to opposing gunline or very-shooty armies (Dwarfs, Wood Elves, etc.)

Downsides is that aside from the very tempermental Comet spell, there is nothing that will help you kaboom some big monster. Urannon’s is okay, but it’s just D6 hits. All in all, aside from not having that heavy-punch spell, it is a good all-rounder for any army.

ARMY INTERACTIONS (Legal Disclaimer: As I have not played with every army, I will freely admit that there is a certain amount of Theory-Hammer happening here.)

LIZARDMEN: Good lore to use, especially with Tetto’Eko who has the Loremaster rule for this as well as special rule for Comet of Cassandora which makes it a lot more effective. Even though Lizardmen don’t have any war machines, it is still a decent lore considering the effects on combat which plays into one of their strengths and the Iceshard Blizzard is key so that you can negate as much of gunlines/missile troop attacks as possible before entering combat. Specifically, Iceshard is excellent when used as the lore to hamper war machine fire on your Steg’s or Carno’s.

I will say that Lizardmen Generals who don’t use Wandering Deliberations to get Iceshard Blizzard are missing out as this is a much more well-rounded way to get the best spell of the lot. I would always do Wandering Deliberations or Focus of Mystery if I’m fielding a Slann.

EMPIRE: A good lore to use. Since the Empire has many options of high strength (and with 8th Edition rules, laser guidance) cannons that can be used to nerf monsters and other war machines, so this lore can give you the edge you need in combat, mitigate damage from missile troops with Iceshard and otherwise help you use your superior numbers against a higher quality army (HE, DE, WoC, etc.) by moving some troops around and denying sections of the battle field.

BRETTONIA: Still decent. Brettonia does have some war machines, but the main worry that I can see would be ensuring that the opposing war machines are stopped from taking out your knight formations before they arrive into combat (or missile troops taking their toll). The augment/hex spells are always useful and CoC can be used to force enemy troops to move in a certain way or take out the gunline.

HIGH ELVES: Based on the High Elf high movement, good missile troops, high WS, it seems like High Magic is the better choice or a lore that augments strength and toughness (as the primary weakness to shore up for this army).

WOOD ELVES: This seems like a bad choice for this army. Wood Elves have High WS and BS, LOTS of missile troops and the main weakness is sold anvil troops to take the charges and no major war machines. If anything, I’d be wanting to get some punchy spells to shore up my weakness there, so that I can take out the opposing monster/lord/war machine so that my highly mobile troops can continue to run rings around the enemy.

DARK ELVES: Mediocre choice for this army, but only because Lore of Dark Magic is great synergy for Dark Elves. Dark Elves also have a lot of shooting troops, can take a bunch of Repeater Bolt Throwers and have a generally very fast moving army. They have high WS, Always Strikes First and a high initiative so the hex/augment spells are really just overkill here. One of the best uses of magic is to shore up weaknesses. If I was not taking Lore of Dark Magic (which has some very killy spells), then I would go with Beasts for augmenting my Stength/Toughness which is the greatest weakness of an Elf army. I will say that Iceshard Blizzard is a great spell for anyone to counter war machines, so this still fits here.

OGRE KINGDOMS: Decent choice, but with one HUGE drawback which I will explain in a minute. Protecting your generally lightly armour ogres from missile fire is good and giving them an edge in combat is good. Using comet to combat gunlines is good. It's all useful. HOWEVER, to get a magic user with this lore means you have to take two expensive Ogre characters, as the first needs to take Lore of the Great Maw. As all Ogre Kingdom models are expensive (bar Gnoblars, gotta love the little guys), taking two wizards just to get this lore is pointless. Lore of the Great Maw has a good synergy with the army and is a good choice. I would even go so far as to say a great choice.

DAEMONS OF CHAOS: This lore can be accessed via the Blue Scribes (randomly generated spell) or Kairos Fateweaver. The lore is decent, as this army possesses no missile infantry and their shooting comes from Khorne Cannons and the expensive Soul Grinder with upgrades. So protecting with Iceshard is good, the combat augments are okay and the comet is still good to combat gunlines or heavy-shooting troop armies. However, the Blue Scribes generates a random spell that cannot be the signature spell so this is missing out on the best one and Kairos is 565 points which (in my opinion) he is not worth so just to take this for this lore isn't a good choice.

VAMPIRE COUNTS: Lore can be accessed through one of the Vampire upgrades (bizarrely pointed out by their greatest adversary @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl ). This lore is a good choice in that there is little shooting from this army so protecting units is good. The combat upgrades are always welcome and will assist in the mass advance of the crappy basic infantry. The army is mostly slow moving, so dictating and controlling parts of the battlefield with Comet is very useful. However, the Lore of Vampires has (in my opinion) the best army synergy in the game and you'd be a fool to give up regenerating units, making NEW units, etc. just for these benefits.
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So that’s my review of the lore. Hopefully helpful to someone and hopefully not full of major holes!