AoS What do we want from an update?

Could turn our summoning into a signature spell or Slaan lore spell for the Slaan that when cast your options depend on how well you rolled or have a risk vs reward factor by having different levels of that summon spell. Example being you could cast it at Level 1 to get some skinks or chance it at level 3 to get a stegadon but you get nothing if you don't meet the requirements for the level you aimed for since just cus a slaan tried to think up a big dino into existence and failed doesnt mean it suddenly turned in something else.

Seems appropriate since our summoning was originally spells before and this doesn't force a slaan in forgoing all its casting just to be a battery. Also the Engine of the gods could count as auto casting a low level result of that spell instead of its usual summon roll.

On another note let's say they don't change our summoning mechanic what would it take for a saurus/skink general to be on par with a Slaan one?

 

that how it used to be if you check out all the old warscrolls they each have a spell to summon that unit

 

Saurus generals need to have more of a combat presence. As it is, most of them (except maybe the sunblood) also have the same limitations as other saurus units in AOS - for a heavy combat unit, they're rather squishy.

Skink generals need to be craftier little bastards to be worth taking, as like with the slann there is no expectation of them being front line combatants. As more of a support unit, I fully expect skink generals to focus on allowing a seraphon army to 'fight dirty' (poisoned attacks, hit and run tactics, etc).

 

they'd need some absolutly ridiculously powerfull traits since as it stands a slann can always just summon the skink and saurus heroes anyway, or just take it as a random hero in your starting army. So unless their traits are freaking amazing there's simply no reason to ever make them your general. As right now the most you gain by getting a saurus general is +1 to save on him or something equally minor.

Though the easiest solution would be to just say the slann can generate points without being the general assuming you don't actually want to change anything. And then just limit us to one slann per army.

 

I agree with @LizardWizard than the CCP system is pretty cool, although I do wish there were more ways to generate CCP outside of the Slann, maybe ways for heroes to generate CCP. Other than that I feel that a sacrificed spell should generate slightly more points but overall I like the system.

now I wonder what will happen to the beloved carnosaur....

 

It needs to be the monster killer it should be

 

Agreed. It needs to be our big Target seeker missile. Sauras heros in general need to be more like a beat stick. Being buff oriented is fine, but they don't get to do much otherwise.

Troglodon needs rend. Then it can be the jack of all trades it's meant to be.

 

Everytime I play a new opponent they look at my Trog or Carn and throw everything at it.. as it looks menacing.

Next time I play the same opponents they usually don't both and concentrate all fire power on my Slann or Basti..

Carn/Trog. look crazy tough.. but they don't last long

 

If carnosaurs and troglodons got a 3+ save and more rend they would be incredible. Although if you use the right artifact they can still be half decent as I have had an oldblood wallop a zombie dragon

edit: and mount traits would be nice

 

we will get mount traits. imnot worried about that. we just don't have them yet cuz our book is what, 5 years old?

 

meh, if we're going to have to stick to this boring system I'd at least like to see the following:

1) Better spells so there's a harder choice in more situations, and more importantly so we don't just sacrifice 90% of our spells by default. With balewind a slann already reaches 25 spells per game, make it cast more than a handfull...
2) Failing that, give the slann something else to do. A decent command ability, an aura, combat prowess, a ranged attack. Whatever it takes to not just have him sit in a corner and teleport away the moment an enemy gets close.
3) Failing that, just make him into our faction terrain. At least then he no longer defines half of our lists in bigger games, plus it takes the sting out of having a general that doesn't actually participate much.
4) Give some options for alternate slanns. E.g. a casting heavy slann, or a combat focussed slann that rips into enemies with his magic attacks, possibly riding a big dinosaur, (fun fact, the slann is already one of our better combat heroes on foot, goes to show how terrible our saurus heroes are...). Just something to switch it up.
5) Something significant besides the slann that plays into summoning. Right now all we have is the astrolith bearer.
6) Remove the requirement for him to be a general, you can limit it to only 1 slann generating points.

 

Man, a Slann riding a Stegadon would be nice. Good ol'Mazdamundi needs to come back.

 

Not at all what I expect, but my biggest wish list items are:

• Something unique about our casting. Make the dispel range for us much shorter? Make us able to duplicate spells back in the enemy phase? Something that makes Slann feel like the casters they are in lore.
• A big flyer. An ‘alpha of the skies’, above Rippers.
• Some way to run larger battleline, whether full behemoths or terradons/Rippers. Probably in conjunction with the above.

 

Behemoths no longer have restrictions if they're battleline for your faction (see the recent update). So I'd imagine we get that too.

 

I'd like to see changes in summoning in a way that Slann still is the focus point and summoner but is supported by skink priests. So the Slann doesn't need to do all summoning work by himself and can still cast spells. Maybe limiting the generation of conjuration points to one spell per turn and caster, but making that skinks starpriests can also contribute if they are around. There should be restrictions on summoning additional starpriests, to avoid potentially broken rules.

That way summoning doesn't just rely on hidding a single model and can become a more dinamyc system. Conjuration should diminish through the game without necessarily losing it all at once. That way you can speculate more with the risk of using conjuration pointsr right away or saving some until later.

This system can somehow be seen together with "arcane vassal" to represent that they create a kind of magical network with the Slann. Maybe an endless spell could also expand that "geomantic network" by creating beacons/portals.

This temathic would be less "demonish" and more "spaceshipish"/"timetravelish" (proper Lords of Space and Time).

The Slann should have its own spell lore. And it should be better than the skink one to represent how good at magic they are.

I would like to see a new Warscroll for the Skink Starseer that gives him Slann-like abilities for summoning in armies that don't have a Slann. The model is awesome. I would also merge the warscrolls of skink priests and starpriests into one, somehow.

I would like to have more variation in the conjuration table in regards of conjuration cost. So conjuring something other than skinks is more viable.

I would make that conjuration points become a little bit random (rolling dices for example), and that using many points at once late in the game pays off. I'd maybe limit summoning to one unit per turn, to incentivate variation over skink spam.

I'd like also to have a terrain piece, kind of an engine of the gods/astrolith/star portal, that supports summoning and magic. I wouldn't mind if that replaces somehow the current astrolith bearer's role and model.

 

merging the two skink priests could actually be interesting. Both priests suffer from not doing all that much besides casting a single buff. Combining them allows them to do multiple buffs which does mean 1 priest will feel far more impactfull. Plus, if you take the right stuff it also becomes a halfway capable model.

Combine:
the 4+ save of a priest with cloak
the ranged attack of the skink priest
the celestial rights of a priest with trappings
the venom and spellcast of the starpriest.

It'd be quite good. It can provide some ranged support. It can provide various buffs & debuffs. It can cast a spell. It's reasonably durable with a rerollable 4+ save (since its aura affects himself as well).

 

I just looked through @Rikard ‘s entire sculpting tutorial...this is what we need our models to look like.

 

This.

 

Like the Leonopteryx to the Banshee, or the Quetzalcoatlus to the Pteranodon. Or maybe they could add the Coatl...