Gday,

Ok guys! I've created a new thread for the tactica (one that I can update...), link is as follows:

http://www.librarium-online.com/forums/fantasy-work-progress-tacticas/119027-beasts-chaos-tactica-take-2-a.html#post1148743

Now, for all those that can contribute and wish too, simply post your interest here! Just tell us what you want to write about, then post your article in this thread when it;s done. Let people look over it for a couple of days and if everyone is happy, presto, the article is in!

As much help as we can get would be great and we should knock this over quick smart!

Cheers,

Tim

well im interested in writing an article about some of those magic weapons but i don't think i have enough experience too.

well im interested in writing an article about some of those magic weapons but i don't think i have enough experience too.

Well, you're more than welcome to give it a crack! Write up an article, and post it here. If you prefer, you can PM me. I'll tell you what I think.

Tim

Dealing With a Specific Enemy:
Vampire Counts

Facing a Vampire Counts army can be quite daunting for the Beasts indeed and they will always pose a great challenge. However, he we will look at what can be done to help send the dead back to their graves.

Contents:
Being Undead
Other army Points
Know thy Enemy, army list Breakdown
-Vampiric Powers
-Magic Items
-Lore of the Vampires
-Unit Breakdown.

Being Undead

Vampire Counts have quite a few unique rules, when compared to ‘living’ armies, which are as follows:

* All units Immunity to Psychology
* All units causing Fear
* Limited Marching
* Unbreakable, but take additional wounds
* The General and Crumbling.

Don’t count on making Vampire Counts run, because they simply won’t! This point can be used to the Beasts advantage and by setting up favorable charges, as there’s no way they can flee from them.

Everything also causing Fear is a big problem for a Beasts army, not exactly boasting the best Leadership going around. There are a few things that can be done to combat this. Unit selection goes a long way into helping against fear. Minotaurs are an excellent unit choice, causing fear themselves, so being immune to it, while also having huge hitting power and a lot of attacks to get rid other heavy hitters. Bestigors are another good unit to bring. The Mark of Chaos Undivided gives good resistance to Fear, especially when the General tags along. The Mark of Khorne will give immunity to Fear but only while frenzied. Be careful not to charge this unit into a losing combat, as being outnumbered will still cause an Insane Courage test. Slaanesh and Nurgle offer complete immunity to Fear, all the time, so are great choices. The Mark of Tzeentch will actually weaken a Bestigor unit against Fear, with the loss of all psychology advantages. If taken, keep the General close.

Bringing a Doombull along as the Army General is also an excellent way to combat Fear, bringing with him the best Leadership a Beast can have - 9. Bring him along with a Bestigor bodyguard, keep the Beast Herds close, and not much should be running away at all.

Another great way to protect from Fear is by using the Mark of Nurgle on characters. This becomes particularly useful for Beastherds, who cannot be Marked themselves. Join them with a character with the Mark of Nurgle, and the unit will gain all advantages of causing fear themselves as well, in the form of being Immune to it.

It should be noted that Ambushing against Vampire Counts should be carefully considered, and probably avoided. Unless used for march blocking, getting in the way, or supported by a character with the Mark of Nurgle, there isn’t much chance of even getting off a charge. Vampire Counts armies contain next to no shooting units though, the Banshee being the sole shooter in the army, so this isn’t a huge loss, as there tend to be no soft targets for Ambushers anyway.

Limited marching is a disadvantage of being Undead. Unless within 12 inches of the General, or withing 6 inches of a Vampire, Undead cannot march. Make sure you learn what is and isn’t a Vampire, and if the opportunity arises, take them out. This will slow a Vampire Counts army considerably. Just beware throwing your units into losing combat against these fellows, they can be quite tough to kill, being usually well protected and hit back very hard.

Facing an Unbreakable army is quite a challenge for Beasts, who rely on close combat themselves and breaking through the enemy lines. Undead will lose extra wounds by whatever they lost the combat by, however, so try and stack the odds in your favor the best you can. Frontal charges supported by flank charges easily achieve this, as well as charges supported by geared up Characters and Chariots.

We then come to General, the single most important model in a Vampire Counts army. This is the one big weakness they have, as when the General dies, the entire army will start to rapidly vanish. Throw a Doombull, Beastlord or even a Shaggoth at him, with any magic weapon or even a Great weapon, and chop him up. Again, these guys are very tough customers. Expect a Vampire Counts player to give him all the protection possible, in the form or Armour and Ward saves. Because of this, The Black Maul and Great Fang are great choices against a Vampire Lord.

Other Army Points:

* Magic
* Speed
* Monsters
* Ethereal creatures

All Vampires are wizards and a Vampire Counts player can bring quite a few Power Dice to the field. It is through magic that Vampires and Necromancers heal units, and create new ones, as well as directly damaging their enemies. Unfortunately, not a great deal can be done about this, don’t expect to stop every spell, not by a long shot. Bring a few extra Dispel Dice to field to stop the big spells, as the smaller ’Necromancy’ spells can be re-cast anyway, and that’s about it. Dispel Scrolls also help, but will only help in the opening turns, as there tends to be a high volume of spells being casts, as well as an abundance of Power Dice.

If possible though, simply kill those darn Wizards! The General will more often than not be the most powerful Wizard in a Vampire Counts army, so killing him becomes even more useful.

Another important part to the Vampire’s magic is the amount of Bound Spells available. Corpse Carts and several magic items contain bound spells, so be wary of them.

Even though the Vampire Counts have an average Core selection, in terms of speed, the rest of the army can quite fast. Pack an army with speed as well, to try to counter this and pit the Vampire Counts’ against unit they should lose to. Such as, Centigors vs. Dire Wolves. They can’t flee, so once in charge range, should be easy picking. Also remember that Beasts CAN flee, and doing so to setup counter charges is a great tactics. We’ll look at each unit later on.

Vampire counts can also summon quite a few Monster to their sides. Again, bringing your own can quite often be the best defense against it. Giants, Shaggoths and Chaos Spawn will all help kill or slow down Monsters. Bringing along the Rune of the True Beast will help against a Zombie Dragon and others as well, just be sure to bring the Mark of Nurgle or the Slaughterer’s Blade, with little to no defense against the Vampire on top of him! More on these units later.

Ethereal creatures are another little trick Vampires can bring along. Only being hurt by magic weapons can make them quite hard to kill indeed. There is a simple solution to this however - magic. Bring a couple of Wizards as well as some magic weapons, and you’re sorted! These creatures can be defeated by static combat resolution as well, so Bestigors with ranks and Warbanner can do quite a number on them.

Know thy Enemy, Army List Breakdown.

An important part of facing any enemy is not allowing them to take you by surprise! Where the first half of this article discussed specific strategies to counter the Vampire Count's strengths, the next half will simply look at the army list itself and possible deadly combinations to watch out for.

Vampiric Powers

Here, we’ll look at a the list of Vampiric Powers and what to watch out for. Vampiric Powers are what makes a Vampire so customizable and so hard to predict what they can do. Keeping these in the back of your mind, and watching out for what a Vampire could do, is all that be done. Here we go:

Spectral Form - Killing an Ethereal Vampire can seem daunting at first, but remember they have quite obvious weaknesses. Firstly, the usual weakness to Magic and Magic Items. A Vampire with Spectral Form cannot use Magic Items either, or be mounted, so target him with all the Magic you have. Next, he can only join Ethereal units, meaning if you can blast the hell out of the inevitable Wraith bodyguard he will have, he cannot redeploy in a hurry. See further down for information on Wraiths.

Ghoul kin - Another way Vampires can gain a boost of speed, allowing Ghouls a March Move before the game. Beware this power, and if Ghouls are put down on the table, expect it. Vampire Counts players can place Characters in this unit as well, to gain a march themselves.. A Vampire that can Fly with a Great Weapon could potentially join this unit and move 28 inches in the first turn, enough to destroy a chariot or two, charge your prized Beast herd (who won’t get ranks against a single model) or anything like that. Keep you distance and simply expect it to happen, then you shouldn’t be caught off guard.

Supernatural Horror - This Power allows a Vampire to cause Terror. As much as Fear is a pain for Beast, Terror is even worse. Building on your armies defense against Fear will also boost your defense against Terror, so taking earlier suggestions will help in this department.

Master of the Black Arts - A simple way to boost a Vampire’s magic, with 2 extra power dice. Quite a common upgrade for any magic heavy Vampire army. It can’t be countered, except by simply killing the Vampire.

Forbidden Lore - This allows a Vampire to choose his spells from 7 of the Lores from the Rulebook, or the Lore of Vampires. Additionally, he will gain all spells in that lore AND Invocation of Nehek. Again, quite popular amongst magic heavy armies, and just something to be aware of.

Dark Acolyte - Simply grants an extra magic level. Useful when combined with Master of the Black Arts, to allow a single Vampire to generate an absurd amount of power dice, up to 6 just on his own! This power is the only way for a Hero level Vampire to become level 2, so take note at the start of the battle, that any Vampire Heroes with this power won’t have too much more in the way of other powers, as this takes up quite a good chunk of his points allowance.

Flying Horror - Grants a Vampire the Fly special rule. Vampires with this power will normally do one of two things. First is enter a support role, with a little magic and the Helm of Commandment, simply passing on his Weapon Skill to nearby units, and raising them back up, too. Second, is in combination with Ghoulkin, as mentioned earlier, so keep your distance, as they can easily come with a Strength 7 weapon. These are just examples, though, and a flying Vampire becomes hard to kill, and difficult to catch. Gun him down with magic if possible.

Infinite Hatred - The Vampire will Hate all enemies, but the re-rolls last after the first round of combat. Popular on Combat orientated Vampire. If you suspect a Vampire has this power, you can try and use it to your advantage, knowing that they MUST pursue your unit when broken. This should allow you to setup an easy counter charge afterwards. One combo to keep in mind, is when this power is combined with a Zombie Dragon. Remember, that the Vampire will confer his Hatred onto the mount, so suddenly you will have a LOT of attacks ALL re-rollable! The Rune of the True Beast is the best we have against this combo.

Hunter in the Dark - Allows a Vampire to use the Scout special rule. Usually left at home in favor of the Ghoulkin power, but could still crop up. Expect this to be used in combination with a movement enhancing power or item, suck as Flying Horror, or Talisman of the Lynci. He will be all alone, however, so once again, gun him down!

Red Fury - For each unsaved wound the Vampire inflicts, he will get another attack. Brutal to say the least and very popular on Combat Vampires. Not much you can do, really, except kill the guy back! Look out when combined with the Dread lance - Auto hits at Strength 7 are nasty with this Power, an almost certain 6-8 wounds on anything. It’s also boosted by the Infinite Hatred Power. It may not Auto Hit, but pretty close to it and far cheaper. It should be noted that Red Fury cannot be combined with a Great Weapon.
Avatar of Death - This is how Vampires get Great Weapons, Heavy Armour, Shields and Additional Hand Weapons. Not too much to worry about here, it’s just mundane gear in the form of a Power.

Dread Knight - This is how a Vampire gets Barding for a Nightmare and a Mundane Lance.

Aura of Dark Majesty - This Power causes all units with 6 inches to lose 1 point of Leadership. It’s quite a problem to an army that already has poor leadership, however, it’s very expensive, so Vampires with this Power will have little room for much more. Watch out if used with a Flying Horrors and Scabscrath, as you’ll be taking Terror checks at -1 Leadership! Beguile is another god one to use with this, so beware when accepting a Challenge from a Vampire!

Walking Death - and easy +1 Combat Resolution for a Vampire. Common on mounted or lone Vampires that don’t generate much static Combat Resolution.

Beguile - Allows a Vampire to re-roll to-wound rolls, but the target has to fail a Leadership check at -3 first. Don’t line your characters up against a Vampire or accept a Challenge against a Vampire until you’re sure he DOESN’T have this power, if possible!

The Master Powers - Vampires then have access to Powers the help them use Invocation of Nehek on certain unit types, granting them +1 to the casting roll, and the ability to increase the unit above starting size. These Powers are a common way for a Vampire to boost his magical ability, so look out for it in a Magic Heavy army.

Magic Items

Vampires have access to lots of Magic Items, and it should be noted these are in addition to all Vampiric Powers chosen. Here, we will look at them in detail:

Frost blade - Rarely seen in most lists due to it’s points cost but still can crop up. A single wound on any model with this weapon will kill a model outright. Seems deadly at first, but taking this item means the Vampire will have NO other magic items at all, which is the only way for him to gain a Ward save. So, he should be fairly easy to kill, even for a Great Weapon equip Beastlord. Expect a Vampire to come along with Dreadknight, to get some sort of armour, and Infinite Hatred, in order to maximize his effectiveness.

Dread lance - This is one of the powerhouse weapons available to a Vampire count. Auto hitting lance hits with plenty of points to spare. Anything automatic in Warhammer in invaluable, so watch out for this lance. This item is almost certain to come along with Red Fury. A combat vampire like this will have to sacrifice magical ability, so you won’t be coming up against as much magic, but in combat he will hurt. Either avoid him as much as possible, tie him up with cheap units, or charge him with something tough, like a Beastlord or Shaggoth. Getting charged by this Vampire will almost always end badly for Beasts.

The Black Axe of Krell - This a Wight Kings deals out D3 wounds. Models wounded but not killed also take a Toughness test each turn or suffer a wound. Usually left home for the Sword of Kings, which is half the cost.

Blood Drinker - A weapon that heals the Vampire and unit he is with. It’s basically Invocation of Nehek that looks like a sword. Not much can be done about it, other than trying to limit the amount of wounds caused by the Vampire with Challenges, or by facing him off with tough models, such as the Beastlord, as the Vampire will have to strike at it’s base strength.

Skabscrath - This sword make the Vampire cause Terror. Pretty cheap for what it does, so watch out. Terror has been discussed previously however - build resistance to Fear, and you automatically build
resistance to Terror.

Sword of Kings - A common weapon for a Wight King, increasing his Killing Blow from 6+ to 5+. It has obvious uses in killing characters. Try a nd pack a Ward save of you want to try a kill a Wright King with this sword, or face him with Ogre sized models or bigger - Wights don’t like Minotaurs or Giants! This sword also gives a Vampire killing blow on 6+, but isn’t seen often, as there’s usually more useful weapons for a Vampire.

Tomb Blade - A cheaper version of Blood Drinker that can only heal a Skeleton unit joined by the Character.

Walach’s Bloody Hauberk - This suit of armour is one of two ways a Vampire gains a Ward save. It grants a 5+ Ward with a 4+ armour save. This power is typically combined with Dreadknight, to increase the armour to a 1+ save. This is a very hard Vampire to kill, so be sure to bring along something with Strength 7 to Punch through that armour.

The Accursed Armour - Vampires with gain +1 Toughness, but at the cost of -3 Weapon Skill and Initiative. Not seen a whole lot, because of what it does to the Vampire’s weapon skill. Still, when seen, hit the Vampire with high Strength attacks.

The Flayed Hauberk - Grants a 2+ save. Again, bring along those high Strength attacks.

Armour of Night - Won’t affect Beasts, who have no shooting at all.

Night shroud - Anything attacking a Vampire with this armour will ALWAYS strike last and lose all charging bonuses. Impossible to stop, but as it’s light armour, the Vampire will still be a little easier to kill. Beastlords with the Slaughter’s blade will like this Vampire, as he can heal back any wounds caused by the Vampire anyway.

The Cadaverous Cuirass - Doesn’t affect Beasts, who have no access to Poison or Killing blow.

The Hand of Dust - Contains a bound spell that causes 2D6 S5 hits on a unit in base contact. Very bad for beasts! Its only power level 3, so make sure it gets dispelled. It exhausts it’s power on a roll of 1, so make sure you remind your opponent of this each time it’s used!

Rod of Flaming - D6 S4 hits at 18 inches, bound spell power level 3. Not a big deal until you realize it causes a panic check. Try and dispel it, unless the target unit is expendable enough to not waste dispel dice. This item can also exhaust it’s power.

Helm of Commandment -





So there's the start. Suggestions welcome. To be continued and proof read......

All suggetions with this one welcome, as it's looking like it could take a while! I'm going to hold off on the Marks of Chaos, 'til i get some other done, but this one will be finished soon.

Any thoughts on the format guys? Im trying to cover as many aspects of facing Vampire Counts as possible,,,,

Tim

Like the format Tim nice one.

Ok, I've managed to finish off the Vampireic Powers.

I've also added another section, that will talk about the Lore of Vampires.

Hope to finish this one soon!

Tim

Hi!
Ive got a first draft of my tactica about Morghur, Master of Skulls. I wasnt sure where to just post it without asking, so here I am asking ^_^

Ok guys, I'm bak on the tactica, I'll work through it the beast I can. We don't have a date for the new book, so I may as well keep going.

Facing Vampires has been furthered a little. I'll work on something else next though, and get back to it here and there.

I'm also runnign a Vorewar, so I'll see how I go :)

Tim

Hi!
Ive got a first draft of my tactica about Morghur, Master of Skulls. I wasnt sure where to just post it without asking, so here I am asking ^_^

Just post it in this thread - no dramas. I can then link it up with the main tactica anyway.

Tim

Common Magic Items.

In this section , we’ll see what uses Beasts have the the Common magic items available to them.

Sword of Striking - Very expensive for on +1 to hit. Usually left at home for Sword of Might. However, it does have a good use against lightly armour infantry. With a Beastlord’s high Weaponskill, he should be hitting most enemy infantry on 2’s then wounding on 2’s. Just keep in mind, he needs to target Toughness 3 opponents to get the most from this weapon. Against Toughness 4 or more, the Sword of Might, again, becomes a better choice.

Sword of Battle - Another infantry targeting weapon, granting +1 attack. Great if combines with a Shield, Chaos Armour and even Mark of Khorne. To get upto 6 attacks with a decent armour save. Can be left at home for simply 2 hand weapons if strapped for points, however.

Sword of Might - A simple sword, granting +1 Strength. The main advantages of this sword has are it’s cheap cost, it allows the bearer to use a shield and a Stength boost is good against every kind of opponent, as it becomes easier to hurt them while also reducing their armour save. A good choice all around.

Biting Blade - Basically grant armour piercing. it’s a very cheap weapon, and primarily used to give a Beast magical attacks for cheap. Unless another hero has it, swap it for the Sword of Might, as it has the same effect from increased strength, while also hurting the enemy more easily.

Enchanted Shield - Usually left at home for Chaos Armour, as using a Great Weapon means you can’t use a shield, so that shield may as well be mundane. Still, as long as a Beast is willing to use a hand weapon in combat, this shield is a cheap way to get a 2+ save.

Talisman of protection - Beasts have a ton of good Talismans available to them, and this isn’t one of them. A 6+ Ward is better than no Ward though, so chuck it on a Shaman of you have a spare 15 points.

Staff of Sorcery - +1 to Dispel, but for a huge price. 2 Dispel scrolls will always be a better choice.

Power Stone - A handy way for non-Tzeentch armies to get extra powerdice, granting 2 extra dice for a spell, one use only. Great for players who want to be more effective is the magic phase.

Dispel Scroll - Standard defence against enemy wizards, granting an auto dispel. Always try to pack 1 or 2 minimum.

War banner - A great choice of banner of the Battle Standard or for a cheap extra ‘rank’ for Bestigors. Bestigors will be able to increase their frontage for more attacks, while still generating decent static combat resolution, while the Battle Standard can add +2 combat resolution to any unit he’s needed in.

Ok, so I'm now starting on the magic items. Something nice and easy, that will quickly bulk out the tactica a little.

Tim

Magic Weapons

Magic Weapons

Here we’ll look at the magical weapons only available to a Beasts of Chaos general.

Axes of Khorgor - Grants +1 Attacks, and re-rolls to hit. These are great for targeting enemy infantry and some Cavalry should be worried. The big downfall of this item is it’s points cost, and a Beastlord won’t have much room left for anything else, though a Ward save can still be thrown in.

The Black Maul - grants +2 Stength and Frenzy. A handy weapon, as it strikes at Initiative and allows the bearer to use a shield. Though it’s costly, there’s still enough room for Crown of Horns and Chaos armour with a mundane shield to be thrown in. This grants a Beastlord great hitting power and also a decent defence.

Bone Crusher Mace - Always wounds on 2+, but modifies armour with the basic strength of the bearer. It’s good for targeting Large Monsters, who tend to rely on their high toughness more than anything, but enemy characters with lots of armour will give a Beastlord with this weapon trouble.

Great Fang - Negates the armour save of an enemy struck by the bearer of this sword. Great against enemy Cavalry, but since this sword grants no real bonuses as such, it can be a struggle against enemy characters, who also tend to be tough with high Weapon Skill.

Slaughterer’s Blade - A magical Great Weapon that can heal lost wounds from the bearer as well. This weapon gives a Beast a good amount of offensive ability, granting +2 strength, and also good defence by healing lost wounds. Particularly good when combined with Mark of Nurgle, since these characters start with an extra wound, so there’s more that can be healed. Models with this weapon will sacrifice a little armour, since it’s two handed, so a Ward save is recommended.

Scimitar of Skultar - Rolls of 6 to wound allow no armour save. Far too random to be depended on against characters, but if targeting model with only 1 wound, basically counts as Killing Blow, so not bad value. The Biting Blade or Sword of Might tend to be better choices than this weapon though. But if they’re all taken, this weapon can offer cheap magical attacks.

Woo! Okay, here's everything so far ^_^

MORGHUR, MASTER OF SKULLS

This Beasts of Chaos special character is the epitomy of Chaos. The nature of his rules changes the basic Beasts army so much you must centre your army design around him if you wish to use him, simply putting him in your list will do no good as his chaotic presence completely changes how all of your units function and can make a very unique and characterful army, especially if you take the time to convert Morghur and your Spawn

Morghur has a relatively high points cost compared to other Beasts characters, except a Shaggoth or Doombull, and takes up both a Lord and Hero choice. This usually makes him the most expensive character, or even unit, of any list he's put in, unless you have a fully kitted out Shaggoth or Doombull in your horde.

First of all, his stat line

At first glance, it's quite similar to a Beastlord's stats. The differences are his random movement, and he has one extra Wound over the Beastlord, in exchange for losing 1 point of Strength, Initiative and Attack. However, he does have a Braystaff, which can be used as a Great Weapon, and Hatred. This makes Morghur a very competant combat character against basic infantry, though he might not be able to stand up against other Lords, especially combat-orientated ones, and those Hero special characters, like Skulltaker and Konrad Von Karstein

Morghur's Special Rules

The Hordes of Morghur
This is Morghur's first major effect on your army.
First of all, all the Bestigors under your command have the Raiders rule, which mean they move, charge and fight like a Beast Herd, allowing them to move faster and more fluidly, and ignore terrain.
Bestigor Herds are awesome units, but when they get 360 degrees of vision and can charge in any direction without bothering with all that turning and terrain nonsense, they are terrifying for the enemy.

The second effect of the Hordes of Morghur rule is that your army has no General, and as such you may choose Marks of Chaos for your units and characters with no limitations, allowing you to take whatever Marks you want to customise your army and get a very varied force. The downside is you lose the benefits of having a General. I wouldn't go mad with this though, your army should retain at least some focus.

The third and final Hordes of Morghur effect is all your units are Unruly. This is not as disadvantageous as it may seem. The general tactic for this type of army is "go towards the enemy" and Unruly does just that, except you lose control of the unit, and due to the Raiders rule any unit with Raiders that fails its Unruly test could suddenly fly off in an unexpected direction. That's Chaos for you. A canny opponent might attempt to put expendable units in your flanks or rear in the hope of your units moving towards them if you fail the Unruly test, but that's unlikely.
Unruly in my experience doesn't effect Minotaurs and the like that much, as you generally want them to charge. A canny opponent might make use of expendable units that are angled, making your monsters overrun at difficult angles to correct. Fortunatly, the Minotaur's Bloodgreed rule goes some way to foiling this.

Oh yeah, you can't have Mortal of Daemonic units in your army, but that doesn't apply anymore

The Taint
This rule depends on what type of terrain you have and how much there is of it, but it's quite handy non-the-less, and can mess up your opponent's battle plan quite effectively. It affects lower Leadership troops easier, and they might be less inclined to enter a wood, constricting their movement. Wood Elves will find it easy to ignore this rule however, as they can simply move the woods out of the way, and Vamprie Counts, Tomb Kings, Ogre Kingdoms and Daemons of Chaos will simply ignore this rule because the majority of their units cause Fear, and so don't have to take Fear tests.

Insane Wanderer
Morghur moves just like a Chaos Spawn; you pick your direction and hope for the best. Therefore, Morghur could be surprisngly fast one turn and annoyingly slow the next. It helps to think of Morghur as a kind of Super-Spawn, as you get him into combat in much the same way, except you dont have the disadvantage of random attacks

Spirit-Essence of Chaos
This is the second major effect Morghur has.
The main effect of this is that proximity to Morghur might result in random wounds and unexpected Spawn during the Beasts shooting phase, and is one of the few shooting "weapons" the Beasts get. This has two uses.
1: Get him near the enemy and watch the Spawn fly. This effect works quite well on low Leadership troops, but due to its average Strength it allows it to wounds most troops, and can harm high armour things like dwarfs and knights quite easily. The flipside of that is that most high save units have high Leadership!
Still either way, you're likely to get free Spawn, which is one of Morghur's main strengths. Remember this effect is constant and happens even if Morghur is in combat
2: Sacrifice your own units. Seriously.
Surround Morghur with Warhounds as soon as the battle starts. This has multiple benefits. Warhounds are quite fast, so they can easily keep up with Morghur if he suddenly runs off, remember the Warhounds are Raiders too and can follow him into terrain with no penalty. They can also act as a sort of bodyguard for Morghur
Thier low Leadership and Toughness will easily allow you to create hordes of Spawn quickly and easily. Even if only one wound is caused to them, you've just turned a 6 point dog into a 60 point monster.
Remember that this rule affects any Spawn in its range too, including Spawn created by the rule. For example, a four wound spawn could take 2 wounds from the Spirit-Essence, and split into 2 two-wound spawn.
Morghur can't join any units due to this power. Usually this would make him vulnerable to enemy shooting, but fortunatly his Spirit-Essence takes care of that, simply negating any spell or ranged attack used on him. It does have a 12" range of not working around Morghur though, but by the time any enemy units get inside that range the rest of your units should have tied them up. My advice is to watch out for any sneaky skirmisher units, as they often have multiple shot weaponary that can shred Morghur easily.
Morghur also deals hits to anyone in base contact with him, which helps if he's suddenly ambushed by any lone character hunters. However, if this does happen, use any nearby Spawn or Warhounds to help Morghur, dont take the chance that Morghur will survive on a fight on his own. Note that these base contact hit will affect friendly models that are in base contact due to the quirks of ranking up during a charge. You don't get Spawn from these hits either, but they still hurt.
The Spirit-Essence is a very powerful effect if used properly, and can swing the game your way easily if you get it right. Morghur himself may be above-average in combat, but these extra armour ignoring hits make him a killer. However, as I have said, don't send him in alone on this premise. You only have one Morghur, so don't waste him!

Despiser of Civilisations
This makes Morghur Unbreakable, Immune to Psychology and have Hatred, despite the ITP part. Very handy.
Again, don't put Morghur in a combat by himself, as he might be overwhelmed by extra wounds from not running away when he loses.


Morghur's final special rule. Despite him not being your General, he counts as having the brayhorn, allowing you to use Ambushers. Additionally, all of your fleeing units rally when you use it!
If you have many Warhound units to take advantage of the Spirit-Essence, most of your other units and character should be able to Ambush, be sure to time it well so they appear when Morghur nears the enemy.
The automatic rally effect is very handy for obvious reasons, Beastmen not having the best of Leadership. It also works if your tactics use the bait and charge method of taking down your enemy's stronger units

WARGEAR TIME!

Here we see one of Morghur's major weaknesses: no armour or ward save. His braystaff allows him a 5+ armour save, but at the expense of not having a great weapon, and his Spirit-Essence takes care of any long ranged shooting, but Morghur will succumb to huge amounts of attacks

Morghur has the Mark of Chaos Undivided for some reason, despite being Unbreakable, Immune to Psychology, unable to join units and isn't the General for picking your other Marks of Chaos. I guess its for fluff reasons.

Braystaff of Morghur & the Stones of the Skull Cave
This is a Braystaff, which can be used defensively for a 5+ armour save, or offensively as a great weapon. The choice is yours. It really depends on the situation, but using it defensively still lets Morghur attack, and without any Initiative penalties. The great weapon mode does have its uses, when you're fighting high toughness things, but you really should have something else take care of any enemy monsters.
This magic item also has the teeny chance of making another Spawn appear, this one right in the ranks of the enemy. This does depend on your opponent's wizards getting a miscast and then rolling a double, but its funny when it happens. This won't effect Khornate armies and dwarfs, because they have no wizards, Tomb Kings because they never miscats, and Ogre Kingdoms because their special miscast table only uses one dice
As a helpful bonus, Morghur generates two extra Dispel dice from this item, which is handy, especially if you've not taken any Shamans in favour of Wargors to hit things with or your against a magic-heavy army.

Skull-Weave
Morghur's final item, this helps Morghur's survival in close combat. He causes Terror, which is always helpful, but the -1 to hit him in combat is very handy and helps his survivability to no end. It doesn't make him invincible however.

In summary
Morghur will usually be the focus of a Beasts of Chaos army that contains him.
Don't let him charge alone, he's a great fighter, but can be overwhelmed.
Make sure to milk his Spirit-Essence for every Spawn you can get, it is a very deadly effect when used correctly
His ability to give your units the Raiders rule should not be underestimated. This gives usually slow and bulky units like Ogres, Trolls and Minotaurs more freedom of movement.
Morghur's major weakness is his lack of armour. Counteract this with a bodyguard of Warhounds, or even Beast Herds if you dont mind losing any to his Spirit-Essence. Bestigor and other units are worth too much to spawnerise.
Be warned, Morghur's abilities can make your army difficult to control at times, what with Unruly, random movement and such. Make sure to plan ahead where you want everything to go.
In general, Morghur is a great character, with a set of characterful rules that can really damage any enemy you put him against, especially shooty-based armies, which will find it very hard to deal with him at range. His chaotic Spirit-Essence boosts his combat potential, and that of your army by creating a tide of Spawn, and The Taint restrains the enemy as you close in for the kill.

I just hope he doesn't change much in the next Beasts of Chaos book...

Converting MOrghur
At the moment I'm using the standard model, but to me it doesnt feel...chaotic enough, so I'm planning on making my own.
I'm going to get one of the plastic Chaos Spawn boxes and use the body with the hoofs on the legs, and the bull-like head as the base. I'll use wire armatures and green stuff to make his bray staff and the Skull-Weave cloak, which i plan to pretty much cover his back with. I'll also sculpt some fur over the Spawn. The new skeleton box is a good source of skulls, of course, and after a rummage in my bitz box I should have enough spare bitz to cover his base in some interesting mini-Spawn.

Finally, here is my current Morghur's Horde list. Everything that may seem "strange" to take was taken because I liked the conversion possiblity (like the Bestigor Herd). Originally the Ogres had extra hand weapons and not much else, until I read the tactica for them, so my thanks to Frozencore!
Morghur - 378
Wargor
- Battle Standard Bearer
- Mark of Nurgle
- Vitriolic Totem
- 150
Bray Shaman
- Lvl 2 Wizard
- The Staff of Darkoth
- Chaos Armour
- 145
2 x Beast Herds
- Each with 12 Gor
- Each with 8 Ungor
- Each with Command
- 302
Bestigor Herd
- 15 Bestigor
- Command
- Mark of Slaanesh
- The Flesh Banner
- 280
Warhound Packs
- 20 Warhounds (usually in packs of five)
- 120
Chaos Ogres
- 3 Ogres
- Heavy Armour
- Shields
- Command
- 173
Centigor Herd
- 5 Centigor
- Command
- 120
Chaos Giant
- 205
Chaos Spawn Pack
- 2 Chaos Spawn
- 120
- 1999

Cheers for the input. I have added a Special Characters section of the Tactica to accomodate for your article. However, it's needs some things addressed:

1) Morgur doesn't give everything in the army Raiders. It gives everything in the army UNRULY. On Bestigors are given the Raiders rule when they normaly don't get it.

2) Wounding a Spawn twice with the Spirit essence doesn't cause two more Spawn with 2 wounds - it will create 1 more spawn with 2 wounds.

3) I'd suggest putting it in a more readable format. Make the paragraphs clearer by putting a line between them, and bold the heading for each section so we know where we are.

Other than that, it's a pretty good insight on how to use Morghur - just need to sort those out, esp number 1.

Tim

thanks!

now i look at it, i wasnt clear about the spawn, i was talking how the first four wound spawn would be left with two wounds, and another would appear, with two wounds.

You're right, only Bestigors get the Raiders rule.

EDIT: I've corrected the mistakes about the Raiders rule now ^_^ and i'll give it a proper formatting when i can

Cheers for that. I'll link it up now.

Tim

Magic Armour

Beasts of Chaos have four suits of magical armour to choose from and here, we look at each set.

Pelt of the Dark Young - Confers 6+ scaly skin as well as Magic Resistance (1). Not too bad when combine with heavy armour, to give a 4+ save, and a cheap source of some Magic Resistance.

Trolhide Armour - Grants the wearer a 6+ Regeneration save. At first, this seems even more pointless than a Talisman of Protection, but there is one very important difference here - it stacks with a Ward Save. It's a pretty good when used with the Crown of Horns' 5+ Ward Save, and even though a 6+ save may not seem like much, it's better than nothing and about all Beasts have.

The Fur of Sharrgu - Gives the wearer +2 to his armour save against missile fire. This suit is pointless to say the least, as your character would have to be all on his own the really benefit and you don't want your Beasts characters all on their own, unless it's a Shaggoth. To top it off, +2 to the wearer's armour save isn't even really that good really. Leave this at home.

Chaos Armour - Grants a 4+ armour save. Standard issue stuff in every Beasts army here. Someone should always have this suit on, because it's just so cheap. Good when used with a Shield and Greatweapon, as it can give a Wargor of Beastlord great flexibility between high strength hits, or a 2+ armour save. It's also a handy way to protect your Shaman, who may also wear this armour. Combine it with a Braystaff's defensive technique to gain that 2+ save again. The best way to utilize though, would have to be the Shaman of Tzeentch. Chaos Armour, Shield and the Staff of Darkoth can stack up to a 1+ armour save.

Talismans

The Talismans chosen by a Beasts player will often be one of the more important choices they make, as the following items are some of the more potent items available.

Crown of Horns - Grants a 5+ Ward save and +1 to rally. Standard issue stuff here really. It's a cheap Ward save, but not only that, it's the only Ward save the General can get. One of the most survivable combinations available would be a Beastlord with the Mark of Nurgle, Troll hide Armour, the Crown of Horns and the Slaughterer's Blade. Pretty tough and hits hard. Another is the Staff of Darkoth on a Tzeentch Shaman, Chaos Armour, Shield and Crown of Horns. 1+ Armour Save with a 5+ Ward puts him right up there with some of the best.

Rune of The True Beast - Non Character monsters, steed, cavalry mounts and swarms cannot attack the bearer. Very situational, but can hep against one the Beast's banes - Dragons. Try to engage the rider and Dragon and issue them a challenge. Instantly, the Dragon's attacks are useless. You can then hack away at the Dragon with the Slaughterer's Blade to keep replenishing wounds. The only problem with this item is what the latest FAQ brought with it - characters are immune to it's effect. So, when fighting BLoodthirsters or the like, the Crown of Horns becomes a better choice, because it's impossible to get this Rune combined with a Ward save.

Horn of the Great Hunt - +1 LD for ambushing units. A great item for ambushing armies, but it's biggest problem is again, the Ward Save slot it takes up, as the only the General can use the horn. However, Ambushing is a unique and nasty technique the Beasts have, so if you want to utilize it well, this item is for you.

Bloodhunt Horn - A one use only item that forces a fleeing enemy within 12 inches to automatically fail it's rally check. Not a bad item if you have a spare Wargor and 30 points. You never know when it'll come in handy. Can be particularly useful with the Crossfire rules, as the enemy will be fleeing toward the table edge, so you know where he will go, it's just a matter of placing some Centigors or such behind them.

The Dark Heart - Adds D3 inches to a unit containing this item's charge range. Great again on a spare Wargor, to help get into charge range when it's tight, or help out charge a foe with similar speed. Elves come to mind here. once you know you have at least an eleven inch charge, and they can only charge 10, you can place the Herd to charge them for sure. Another use it has in increasing the Range of an ambushing Herd's range from the table edge, and can be a nasty surprise when the enemy think they are safe.