Arkadius Fan Club [Archive] - Privateer Press Forums

Krom

01-07-2011, 02:29 PM

I'm a fan as he is the beast-hvy Farrow caster. I'd love to see 2 things for the Bacon Brigade: 1) More Warbeasts, a heavy and a light, and 2) A medium base 8 wound heavy infantry pig melee unit.

I wish the Thornfall alliance could take the gobbers and some other merc units/solos, too.

Dr. A is painted up for me and ready to go. Looking forward to his feat turn especially. -K

Lord Carver BMMD Esq. III

01-07-2011, 05:07 PM

2) A medium base 8 wound heavy infantry pig melee unit.

With good armor and a Reach weapon please!

The background for the Gun Boars, in that their an unstable bloodline of Farrow makes this a bit more likely, but at the same time one might wonder why these particular ones arent treated like warbeasts if their cousins are.
Considering that Carver is about as beefy as normal farrow get, I wouldn't be surprised (or care overmuch) if the melee unit was on a small base.

Reemule

01-07-2011, 06:05 PM

I don't feel some animi would break the game with Carver.

Tenacity. With Carver that would make the beasts he cast it on with Batten Down armor 22, def 11. The def bonus isn't big, and the armor bonus isn't huge either.

Carver doesn't have much focus to spare. Infact a bunch of the time for me he is sitting int he back, with no focus, as I upkept Quicken, Cast Batten and Pathfinder.

Some other animi that would help Dr. A.

Tracker. Pathfinder that doesn't help Carver really.
Lightning Strike. Kinda not sure this would help at all. But it would be fun.
Flesh of Clay. This would give Dr. A some help with shooting, but I can't see Carver using it.
Train wreck.
Fate Walker.
Lurker. This would make him almost viable in HTH.
Excessive Healing
Swarm
Bump. I'll admit it, this one is the one I'd most love.
Transmute
Freezer

talquizar

01-07-2011, 06:42 PM

As a fan of el doctor in the LoE fluff and now seeing his feat an spell list I have to say. Ya this guy is win I like everything about him.

gobby

01-07-2011, 07:27 PM

Dr. Arkadius is quickly becoming my favorite Warlock. I love that he takes careful consideration to use well.

talquizar

01-07-2011, 07:56 PM

I too enjoy that trite in a warlock. I would play some games with this guy if my PG would let me use his pig army. Oh and his art in the book is fantastic I love it

FearLord

01-08-2011, 03:00 AM

I really like him! Both in character and on the board. He isn't an easy button win, that's for sure, but there is so much depth there for a player willing to look...

As for his inability to assassinate a caster in melee, while this is true, there are plenty of other casters this applies to who should really steer clear (and most of them don't have the ability to make all but a few go stationary for something else to beat them up... Brigands only need RAT 5 to pump plenty of POW 12 shots into a stationary caster...)

maxxev

01-08-2011, 07:05 AM

Ordered Dr A even though I'm hesitant that I will be able to win with him, I've got a really bad memory and I don't think Dr A is going to be very forgiving in that area... we'll see.

I hate the model though so have already planned a conversion with another non PP miniature which I've always liked but never had a use for (I don't play in tourneys so don't panic).

Reemule

01-08-2011, 04:24 PM

Played Dr. Ark today in a Steamroller tourny (Needed to have Tier3-4 to play)

I won on dice down time against E Kreoss with Dr. Ark.

I lost to Bloody Barnabas. With Carver. I would have won but time caught me litterally as I was moving a unit in to contest and I would have won the game. I had also out killed Blood B by a huge margin. Caver > Bloody B by alot.

Won against Zael after a failed assassination run on Carver. (It failed by just a tiny bit)

I got 3rd off strength of schedule. I am very happy. I came with in a 5 second of winning it all I feel.

I was enthused to win with Dr. A against the Kreos horde. Against the gatormen, You almost have to take Carver, and against the Skorne, I was very tempted on Dr. A, but the mission was the outlast out fight one. I didn't have a chance with Dr. A's low model count so I had to take Carver.

deadboytat2

01-10-2011, 10:23 AM

I feel the 3 things we need the most are a solid HtH unit for both carver and Dr.A, a good farrow solo i picture a dumeb down rosh, pig with gun big sword breserk and tough with 8 damage box's and quick kill or what ever so after he kills something he can shoot. And a cheap light warbeast that can do hth. Like a Warthog on 4 legs covered in armor and spikes for 3 points that can get boosts on slams attacks and has a solid but cheap animus. again like a 1 or 2 point animus as hopefully it could be used with carver and he has a hard time generating furry as it is.

PUFNSTUF

01-10-2011, 02:34 PM

The docs tiers make me want to start pigs along with my gators >.<

Alex C

01-11-2011, 06:55 AM

I like the good Doctor also. Nice feat, great spell list and characterful rules. Not too keen on the model but I think I could make it work. If only there were more Farrow Warbeasts. Ho-hum...

MagnustheJust

01-11-2011, 06:59 AM

Ordered Dr A even though I'm hesitant that I will be able to win with him, I've got a really bad memory and I don't think Dr A is going to be very forgiving in that area... we'll see.

Hey man... no where in the rules does it say you are not allowed to make yourself a *cheat sheet* with all the reminders you need!! ;)

Hell... Back in the dark days of MK-I, I used to write *MOVE FIRST!!!* on my Reinholdt card due to the coward rule he thankfully lost in MK-II...

YabaBaga

01-11-2011, 03:21 PM

I'm waiting for someone to try an assassination against the doctor with Counterblast up and Dr. Ark just pokes him with the syringe and makes him stationary.

thag-rush

01-11-2011, 03:34 PM

I'm waiting for someone to try an assassination against the doctor with Counterblast up and Dr. Ark just pokes him with the syringe and makes him stationary.

Brain bang... A reason to buy the gun boar with dr. A, thanks.

Kievien

01-11-2011, 04:08 PM

Or better yet, the opponent tries an assassination and you Mind Control it to smack something else ^^
I myself am picking dr. Arkadius up tomorrow. LGS called this afternoon he came in. Can't wait to give m a spin.

Grtz. Kiev

Mosk

01-12-2011, 06:57 AM

Going back to the melee unit for farrow. I would actually like to see a small base close combat unit, similar to Searforge's Forgeguard. Though if that happens, wont Thornfall and Searforge have similar play styles (kind of and I think thats a stretch. I play both, but I play a bunny swarm for my searforge.)

Oh might want to add my thoughts on the OP,

I have not actually played the Doctor, and as of now don't plan to until I have at least 3 Warhogs. I currently have 2 Warhogs, and 2 Gun boars. Does the doctor play well with Gunboars?

Dino-Czar

01-12-2011, 06:28 PM

Reemule

01-12-2011, 07:16 PM

His mat 5 means expecting to use Counterblast over saving 2 Transfers is more a hope than a tactic

Lord Carver BMMD Esq. III

01-12-2011, 08:08 PM

Okay, tell me if I'm wrong here. If the good Doctor has Counterblast up he can use mind control serum against an incoming model. Used on a warbeast this has all kinds of applications, but can blunt even infantry charges.

Counterblast only works against one model before it expires. While it could potentially mess with an infantry charge, depending on the situation most of the time a large majority of the enemy models will still be able to make it.

psychichobo

01-13-2011, 03:45 AM

If I recall Counterblast attacks cannot be boosted? Or am I just making that up for some reason...

It'd be at its best when you're dealing with warbeast assassins. A heavy beast charging you would hate to fall asleep and provide a lovely big screen. But if you can't boost... well, MAT 5 don't hit squat these days. Even when it's a Carnivean.

Kievien

01-13-2011, 03:57 AM

IF I remember correctly (which I do not know a 100 % sure) you cannot boost outside of your own turn, so Counterblast wouldn't be able to be boosted. I hope someone else corrects me though. I'd love it to be boosted.

Grtz. Kiev

Dino-Czar

01-13-2011, 05:31 AM

Against a DEF 12 beast I'd take the risk, especially if 2 transfers wouldn't save me anyway.

But yeah, you can't boost the attack roll outside activation.

mellchia

01-13-2011, 05:57 AM

Against any DEF value, if I know I'm not going to survive, I'm going to take that risk with the good doctor.

Dino-Czar

01-13-2011, 06:00 AM

Good point. I phrased that poorly.

Still, an option to think about. It comes down to 2 transfers and praying for misses VS. something like a coin flip to avoid all damage.

Tamwulf

01-13-2011, 06:53 AM

I'm trying to like Dr. Arkadius. I really am! I love his spell list, good feat, and his melee abilities... wow! And then I look at three of his stats. MAT 5. DEF 15. ARM 14. These are not the stats you want on a melee warcaster.

The counter blast tactic is great! But you can't boost the Doc's melee attack to hit anything (out of activation actions can't use Focus/Fury).

He is going to have an uphill battle against a Warmachine army- all his melee abilities are vs. living models. Heck, Skorne could give him a rough time.

On the surface, it would seem the best/most viable tactic with this guy is to somehow get your War Hogs within charge range of the enemy Warlock, feat, and then finish off the Warlock. Problem is, this is just about the same tactic as every other Warlock out there. :)

Let's hear about more tactics! So far, we have:

1. Using the Gun Boar Animus of Counterblast to protect Doc Ark
2. Crippling Grasp a unit, then trample through it with a War Hog (favorite Deneghra tactic)
3. ???

Dino-Czar

01-13-2011, 07:12 AM

I won my game last night with Arkadius by charging at Barnibus and Mind Controlling him into walking range of my Warpigs (and backwards). Made for a heck of an assassination run.

mellchia

01-13-2011, 07:26 AM

You're unable to mind-control Barnabus (target non-warcaster/warlock model).

PUFNSTUF

01-13-2011, 07:15 PM

I'm just waiting for my models to arrive :(

sanj

01-15-2011, 01:16 PM

I used Dr Arkadius three times today against Bloody Barnabas.
The good doctor's feat is fantastic.
I had no trouble using a sacrificial unit of bone grinders to direct the warhogs to where I needed them before activating each one.

The problems I had were keeping Dr. A safe after making good use of crippling grasp or his combat syringe.

I lost the first game by getting over excited when I saw my opponent had left two wrastlers standing next to each other.
Dr. A charged in and mind controlled one of them several times to kill the other.
Unfortunately my plan to finish off the remaining wrastler with a gunboar charge failed miserably and Dr. A became a death roll casualty.

In the Second game my gunboar threw a bull snapper at Barnabas to knock him down, then a unit of brigands tore him a new one with Hog Wild.

In the last game Barnabas had a little health left with nothing to transfer to.
I took a risk by attempting to mind control a Gatorman to finish Barnabas but missed and left Dr. A in the open, Barnabas then ate him up.

Very fun games.
Dr Arkadius' life would be a lot easier if he could arc crippling grasp (maybe a Farrow solo with something like Psycho venom) or could make a move to safety after his activation (possibly an animus like refuge or even sprint on the next farrow beast) but he is still very fun to play and can definitely hold his own.

PUFNSTUF

01-15-2011, 03:00 PM

@ sanj - howd it go on barnies feat turn? i've been curious how to deal with or force it with pigs/the doctor

sanj

01-15-2011, 03:45 PM

@ sanj - howd it go on barnies feat turn? i've been curious how to deal with or force it with pigs/the doctor

The first game I was trying to show off Dr. A's threat range.
I ran my warhogs first turn then popped feat, just to show I could put several fully boosted attacks into his line from 21.5" away (+2SPD, run 12" and charge/frenzy 9").
Barnabas promptly knocked down all my warhogs and destroyed them.

After that game I tried to present my warhogs roughly 14" from his front line with infantry further back to avoid giving him an advance from 'warpath'.
If Barnabas moved up to pop feat it would be largely wasted as nothing would be able to reach me on his feat turn.
If Barnabas doesn't pop his feat I can frenzy 7" with monster mayhem then charge a further 7"

It was relatively easy to take out his heavies with the warhogs on my feat turn.
After that they were far too slow to chase down Barnabas and that is pretty much what lost me the third game.
Rorsch and Brine would have been useful to catch Barnabas once my feat had gone.

PUFNSTUF

01-15-2011, 04:01 PM

Yah I have R&B in my Akadias 35 pt list just so there is some fast heavy hitting in there. Good to know how your games went though

NIK2286

01-16-2011, 06:34 AM

Let me say that for the record I LOVE Dr. A! Now heres my problem:

Do you A: Run with your Hogs/Boars, keeping them far enough away from each other, but close enough for a successful frenzy attacks (Of which you will probably only get 4 in a 35 pt game) on their front-line, usually boring or tarpit unit.

or B: Bait them with a gun boar or something equally expendable so that you can setup a Bonkers turn where you max-out all the other beasts in an attempt to setup the frenzy on high-priority targets or finish off the meaty guys they already beat-up?

My vote almost ALWAYS goes for B. Some borderline cases like targrosh, Karchev or terminus who could be leading from the front are my only exceptions. With Dr. A its obviously about the feat, but how you use it needs to me FAR more thought out than I think most people take time to do. And this is NOT a knock on people playing him or me saying "I'm right you're wrong".

If your opponent knows its coming, he's most likely getting ready for it. So you can probably play some mind games with him and keep him in check. Throwing R & B out there to cause a ruckus and a min or max unit of brigands to clog up the way usually works for me. It lets me setup my charges where I do as much damage as I can with all my beast, and THEN frenzy into new, better targets or finish off the guys like I said earlier.

If your opponent DOESN'T know its coming.......well then you've probably already shaken hands before you even get to finish explaining his feat. Which is nice, but there are going to be fewer and fewer people who fall into this category especially since the book dropped.

Just my thoughts on our good Doctor!

FearLord

01-16-2011, 12:54 PM

Very fun games.
Dr Arkadius' life would be a lot easier if he could arc crippling grasp (maybe a Farrow solo with something like Psycho venom) or could make a move to safety after his activation (possibly an animus like refuge or even sprint on the next farrow beast) but he is still very fun to play and can definitely hold his own.

Its funny, but I was thinking about Arkadius earlier while flipping through the Minions book, and a thought struck me - wouldn't it be cool if Arkadius grafted an Arc Node to a Gun Boar sized Farrow? This would up his power significantly, while being only a minor boost to Carver. And it would be very very cool thematically - I want to see Arkadius strapping more things to pigs!

Reemule

01-16-2011, 01:46 PM

I'd love to see a Gun Boar with a pair of cleavers. Perhaps pwer 12.

Or a gunboar with a hand held Razorback bazooka.

I would settle for a war hog arc node.

I'd like to see Farrow Cav.

sanj

01-17-2011, 08:16 AM

Warning! Controversy alert:

The more I think about it, the more I find myself wanting to ditch Dr. Arkadius' theme list for Saxon Orrick.
That effectively makes Saxon cost 5 points but I have little trouble dropping a min unit of Brigands (which I only took for teir 3 anyway) if it means I can fire a Warhog 14.5" at the enemy caster, regardless of any swamp pits/inhospitable ground/forest of judgement etc.

Who's with me?

*silence*

EDIT: duh, Saxon can only give pathfinder to a 'WARRIOR model/unit'.

Razhem

01-17-2011, 08:48 AM

Warning! Controversy alert:

The more I think about it, the more I find myself wanting to ditch Dr. Arkadius' theme list for Saxon Orrick.
That effectively makes Saxon cost 5 points but I have little trouble dropping a min unit of Brigands (which I only took for teir 3 anyway) if it means I can fire a Warhog 14.5" at the enemy caster, regardless of any swamp pits/inhospitable ground/forest of judgement etc.

Who's with me?

*silence*
Just don't, his trick doesn't affect beasts so it is only useful if by some unholy chance you needed Arkadius to be pathfinder or like having pathfinding brigands with tough.

Sevwall

01-17-2011, 08:48 AM

Warrior only I thought?

sanj

01-17-2011, 10:02 AM

Warrior only I thought?

Just don't, his trick doesn't affect beasts.

Argh!
You're right, I skim read 'MODEL/unit' and got far too excited far too quickly.

Couchmonster

01-18-2011, 12:33 AM

Sanj, I'm glad you managed to stick to the facts about Arkadius & there was no ZOMG ARKADIUS IS TEH WINZ shenanigans going on....

Although you forgot to mention you lost game 3 even though I was playing with all the cunning of a particularly dull tea spoon! ;)

As the Gator player in question I have to tip my hat to Arkadius his alpha game is brutal & forced me to play on the hind foot 2 games in a row. However I feel the fact that neither of the farrow units are particularly resilient means he can often be left without anywhere to hide.

He's definately in the need of either an arcnode or something akin to troll bouncer or cyclops brute.

dayminkaynin

01-18-2011, 05:27 AM

He's definately in the need of either an arcnode or something akin to troll bouncer or cyclops brute.

cant he channel a spell though a beast?

Couchmonster

01-18-2011, 05:34 AM

Can't remember exactly, but if he can it's within a certain distance & needs to be a true arc node (control area).

NIK2286

01-18-2011, 05:49 AM

Its not an arc node. not in the tradition sense. You make a magic attack roll against something within 8" of one of your beasts. If it hits, that model takes a POW equal to the "channeled" beasts' STR.

WAY less cool than an arc! but useful for clearing charge lanes and such (Especially on a Warhog, POW 11 hurts!)

Sevwall

01-18-2011, 05:50 AM

Arkadius can't channel at all.

NIK2286

01-18-2011, 06:09 AM

Correct you are Sevwall, I was just trying to make the connection between the actual spell and what people thought was happening

Mod_Faultie

01-20-2011, 11:00 AM

I'll tell you what the pigs need: Primal (Animus). It gives the bonegrinders something worth waiting around for, and it could have great interactions with Arkadius and Carver.

Space Donkey

01-20-2011, 01:11 PM

I think the Bone Grinders are worth it anyways just for the RNG 10" Crippling Grasp, although it's funny that they are waaaaaayyyy better for Calaban than they are for either of the Thornfall locks. The ability to have a 10" Bone Shaker *snicker* 10" Parasite and 12" Hex Blast are just insane. On feat turn he can have a ludicrous amount of board coverage if he can manage to meat node a model 10" on both sides of him. At that point he's able to reach all the way to both board edges on the flanks even without the +2" range on the meat noded spells. /end hijack

MagnustheJust

01-20-2011, 02:06 PM

Your numbers are a bit squiffy there Space Donkey...

Bone Shaker is a base range of 8", and Hex Blast has a base of 10"...

Space Donkey

01-20-2011, 03:15 PM

I realized that as soon as I sat down in my car after leaving work.

Lord Carver BMMD Esq. III

01-20-2011, 08:15 PM

I'll tell you what the pigs need: Primal (Animus). It gives the bonegrinders something worth waiting around for, and it could have great interactions with Arkadius and Carver.

I'll happily jump on that train.
In a 'perfect storm' situation with Arkadius, if Primal is on a War Hog that also has Forced Evolution on it, the target is Crippling Grasped and the War Hog Agression Dials and Arkadius pops his feat thats 5 pow 26 attacks, 1 pow 25 with knockdown, and 1 more pow 26 thats fully boosted. At effectively MAT 10.
I dont think I would bother using Aggression Dial in that situation though, instead I might opt for 6 pow 24's and another pow 24 fully boosted.

captainspud

01-21-2011, 06:10 AM

...and that's exactly why we'll never get an animus like that.

FearLord

01-23-2011, 01:56 AM

I'd love to see Arkadius' genius applied to some new beasts for Domination - a short wish list of stuff I'd love to see:

- A light beast with an Arc node - I can see Arkadius welding an arc node on to a boar from a fluff perspective and it would be a vast improvement to him game play wise (and would be a significant boost to Arkadius, while not benefiting Carver as much). Gun Boar stats, but no gun, Repulsion for an Animus and give it Dig in as well...

- A War Hog with a giant Flame Thrower for one arm (not sure about the other arm?) - Continuing the grand tradition of Farrow "pig puns", I'd like to see it called the Hog Roast. Maybe Flaming fists for an Animus?

Lord Carver BMMD Esq. III

01-23-2011, 11:59 AM

- A light beast with an Arc node - I can see Arkadius welding an arc node on to a boar from a fluff perspective and it would be a vast improvement to him game play wise (and would be a significant boost to Arkadius, while not benefiting Carver as much). Gun Boar stats, but no gun, Repulsion for an Animus and give it Dig in as well...

I was pondering vertually the exact same thing. I would be happy with stats along the lines with of a Bull Snapper though. I'm more than half tempted to model one out of the new warhammer orc boar-boyz and the Scrapjack arc node.

Soul King

01-24-2011, 06:19 AM

I played a 15 point game with Arkadius on Sat. in a free for all against Cygnar, Trolls, and Cygnar. My list was 2 war hogs a unit of bone grinders, and orrik

I like Arkadius' spells. I think that they are quite powerful and fun.

Having said that, I find that Arkadius has several fundemental problems that really hurt him.

1. Arkadius has no way to increase the speed of his warhogs. In the game I played, I was being shot at every turn by Triumph, a charger, and a trencher cannon crew. I did not want to walk closer from aggravator as I would have then been in range of a storm tower and Siege. I was then several inches short when I wanted to charge them, which I could have done if I was playing Lord Carver. Forced Evolution helps defend against ranged, but DEF 14 wont stop a boosted shot from a charger or Triumph.

2. In order to use your spells, you need to be dangerously close to the enemy. While this was my own fault ( I should have made him stationary instead) I tried to assasinate Doomshaper by casting crippling grasp, primal shocking him, and then blowing his feat. Were it not for bad dice rolls, I would have succeeded. However, I didn't and Arkadius was left with 2 fury on him, standing in Mulg's charge lane (the other war hog, who went to finish off a skinner, had to attack orrik from the feat)

Those are my only two problems with him. He is a challenging and unique warlock and I hope to play him again soon

Ergonus

01-24-2011, 07:42 PM

With his feat it specifically says that you can choose to have a warbeast frenzy or not, so using your ctrl you can usually tell if your going to be forced to attack your own models or not.

FearLord

01-24-2011, 10:49 PM

I was then several inches short when I wanted to charge them, which I could have done if I was playing Lord Carver.

This is what the feat is for - with careful positioning, its basically a free charge advance toward the enemy line, before the Hogs activate! As mentioned above, you aren't forced to frenzy, so if one of your own models will be the target, don't do it (unless it will give you a positioning advantage).

sanj

01-25-2011, 05:33 AM

I was then several inches short when I wanted to charge them, which I could have done if I was playing Lord Carver.
This is what the feat is for - with careful positioning, its basically a free charge advance toward the enemy line, before the Hogs activate!

Lord Carver's threat range with a warhog is 9.5"
Dr. Arkadius can use his feat to send a warhog 14.5"

There are plenty of ways to position your warhogs to get the most out of them.
The easiest way with two warhogs is to stagger one an inch behind the other.
Run a bone grinder 7" in front of the lead warhog.
Arkadius pops feat.
The lead warhog frenzies towards the closes model it can see (the bone grinder).
The second warhog now frenzies towards the lead warhog but should fall an inch short.
Both your warhogs are 7" further up the board before even activating.
Now you can charge your warhogs to your heart's content.

There are also plenty of things that can ruin this plan of course.
For example; if you are surrounded by infantry your frenzy distance is limited.
However, in that case you could clear some of them out with pig iron fire.

Dr. Arkadius is definately harder to use than Lord Carver.
Even his tricks are difficult to explain without diagrams!
Like the 'Tricky Tripple Truffle Shuffle'

Kovaas

01-25-2011, 06:15 AM

Last Sunday I've been able to get a 6th Place at a 35pt. Qualifier Tournament here in Italy, we were 26 players, I played only with an Arkadius Tier 4 List, I lost just one match against eDenny in a control Scenario but then my positioning has been bad due to SoS.
I think Arkadius is a caster for experts, it's hard to get the best from him, but the fact that he's the most challenging 'lock with the Minions makes him my favorite.

Happy to sign in in his Fan Club

Soul King

01-25-2011, 12:47 PM

With his feat it specifically says that you can choose to have a warbeast frenzy or not, so using your ctrl you can usually tell if your going to be forced to attack your own models or not.
O...I honestly thought it was all warbeasts have to frenzy....it didnt matter anyways, as my dice missed him

This is what the feat is for - with careful positioning, its basically a free charge advance toward the enemy line, before the Hogs activate! As mentioned above, you aren't forced to frenzy, so if one of your own models will be the target, don't do it (unless it will give you a positioning advantage).
I was contemplating using it, but it would have been one attack against Triumph...kind of a waste
Scratch that read the bottom post so nvm....but still, using a feat to take down Triumph? Kind of a waste

what ended up happening was that Mulg and Menoth distracted Cygnar and pulled the jacks away from me. I then cast psycho surgery a couple of times to heal

Lord Carver's threat range with a warhog is 9.5"
Dr. Arkadius can use his feat to send a warhog 14.5"

There are plenty of ways to position your warhogs to get the most out of them.
The easiest way with two warhogs is to stagger one an inch behind the other.
Run a bone grinder 7" in front of the lead warhog.
Arkadius pops feat.
The lead warhog frenzies towards the closes model it can see (the bone grinder).
The second warhog now frenzies towards the lead warhog but should fall an inch short.
Both your warhogs are 7" further up the board before even activating.
Now you can charge your warhogs to your heart's content.

'
See now this makes more sense....I didnt know that a warbeast could activate after it frenzied from Arkadius' feat. I thought that that was it for them.....wish that I had known that then

ah well, it was my first game with him...Im sure Ill do better next time....plus if it werent for bad dice rolls, then I would have been able to win, as Menoth just barely managed to scrap cygnar before Mulg owned reznik

crashg1972

01-30-2011, 11:11 AM

NVM - Mispost....

petegrrrr

01-30-2011, 03:36 PM

Bastille

01-30-2011, 07:29 PM

...and that's exactly why we'll never get an animus like that.
To be fair, eKaya has forced evolution and access to the gorax's animus and it hasn't broken the game to date. Primal is on-theme for Thornfall and it does offer interesting interactions with both our locks. I don't expect to see it though:p.

As far as Arkadius is concerned I think the closest comparison is the Searforge commission. Gorten is an undeniably strong caster and Madhammer is fun and can be strong. The same applies to Carver and Arkadius. I think a light beast 'pork-node' as has been mentioned would be a welcome future addition to help shore up Arkadius' weaknesses (not unlike the new ogrun assault corps for Durgen).

FearLord

01-31-2011, 12:45 AM

I am building a "character" war hog just for arkadius. I am swapping out the non juggernaut arm for a juggernaut forearm, converting both cleavers into double sided axes, replacing his tail with a templar chain flail, and I have swapped his chest plug for one of the screaming souls from Malice (so he has a screaming extoplasm soul exploding out of his chest cryx style).

Because damnit, Arkadius deserves it! (I also swapped Arkadius' hand for a cyclone hand). He's the beast caster I have always wanted :D

Nice! I'm planning to convert my next War Hog with Cygnar parts (replacing Axes with Hammers, hopefully replacing the boiler with Thunderhead's coils). Because once you've got a couple of Butchers, you need a Tenderiser!

Reemule

01-31-2011, 05:44 PM

I'll tell you what the pigs need: Primal (Animus). It gives the bonegrinders something worth waiting around for, and it could have great interactions with Arkadius and Carver.

Why do pigs need this?

Primal is awesome for killing things. My pigs do not have a problem with killing stuff (With Arkadius). They have many other problems. Rough terrain, Slow speed, weak armor, and even anything basically protective at all.

But certainly not killing things.

Bastille

01-31-2011, 06:52 PM

I wouldn't say they need it, but it is a strong animus that would be nice to have. I'd be more excited to see a defensive light beast (ex. Troll Bouncer) to help out Arkadius like an earlier post mentioned.

FearLord

02-01-2011, 01:20 AM

Rush would be a great Animus for Pigs...

Lord Carver BMMD Esq. III

02-01-2011, 12:22 PM

Rush would be a great Animus for Pigs...

Yes please. War hogs having a 12" threat range with Carver would be amazing. Plus I would actually take Bone Grinders to keep it around. Put that animus on an Arc-Boar and I'll be a very happy piggy.

Reemule

02-01-2011, 07:49 PM

There are a bunch of animi I'd love to have. Bump would be great. With counterblast being so dismal, I'd take almost any defensive animi.

I use to doubt we would get rush, but, I don't see why not. Skorne can easily boost beasts to unbelievable speeds, perhaps why not pigs? And Rush would really assist our boy Arkadius.

Choco

02-12-2011, 01:05 AM

I'm really glad I got to read this thread before spending money on him (I want a T4 list, but it's something I'm going to wait on), and it seems that I would have loved to see him get Telgesh Mark and/or Boundless Charge. But I'm not complaining too much as he's going to be a blast to play.

Animis I Like:

Tracker
Bounding
Virility

(I'm a Circle player and only have the card deck to work with right now)

FearLord

02-12-2011, 01:53 AM

On the plus side, it looks like we'll be getting new stuff as early as May, which means there's every chance of some more stuff (hopefully a new beast) which can only benefit Arkadius. I really do believe that with an Arc node available, Arkadius would be one of the nastier casters out there...

Reemule

02-13-2011, 08:07 AM

Slaughterhouser's maybe a good sign of things to come. I don't expect them to help Arkadius much. He is all about beasts and more beasts.

rydiafan

02-17-2011, 08:25 AM

I just picked up Farrow this week and have a couple Arkadius games under my belt. I'm in love. Cramming four War Hogs right down my opponent's throat, wrecking everything under the sun...yummy!

I know some people think he's "the worst caster in the game" because once all his beasts are dead he's screwed, but what warlock isn't that true with? By that logic eDoomy is unplayable garbage. :p

ajay29

02-25-2011, 04:38 AM

8 days isn't enough to be necro'ing a thread right?

Anyway, brought up a question in the rules forum, possible more milage for Arkadius if it hasn't already been noticed...
http://privateerpressforums.com/showthread.php?53898-Arkadius-Massacre-and-Feat

If I'm right, Massacre applies to the feat charge too!

HannibalTheGreat

03-02-2011, 10:38 AM

I dig Arkadius´ model, I dig his rules, I really want to start with him, but the limited model selection right now...

...let some doubts arise wether it´s a good idea to start with him or not.

Well, regarding his feat:
A warbeast with the bullheaded (slams instead of charges if the beast frenzies) would be great with him simply because it would give him one powerful assasination tool.

Mhh, maybe I should get him soon...

HTG

dboeren

03-02-2011, 11:08 AM

HTG: Good point on Bullheaded, that would go really nicely with his feat.

Model selection is an issue with starting Farrow in general, I don't think it's specific to Arkadius. But, with his Tier bonus of cheaper War Hogs he really seems like he's designed to run with several of them and this may not be likely to change much with more releases - just what you run AROUND the War Hogs probably will over time. For instance, since he doesn't grant CRA to the Brigands like Carver I can easily see the Slaughterhousers taking over for Brigands in Arkadius lists depending on exactly what they end up doing and how much they cost.

I like that he can get up to Tier 4 pretty easily at low point values (22 is the minimum), so unlike many Tiers you should be able to have a reasonably amount of flexibility even at 35 to mix in different models once they're available.

Anyway, my Farrow stuff should arrive tomorrow and hopefully soon I'll have some guys put together to try out. I'm not sure yet how well Crippling Grasp is going to work without an arcnode, but with Bone Grinders there to up the range I'm hoping he'll still be able to get some good use out of it. He's not the sledgehammer that Carver is, but I think I'm really going to like the good doctor. He's got a pretty solid spell list and his feat looks like one that will reward creativity with plenty of mayhem.

HannibalTheGreat

03-02-2011, 12:41 PM

Model selection is an issue with starting Farrow in general, I don't think it's specific to Arkadius. Whenever I read through Carver´s rules, I can see a spell / ability / feat that allows to run any one Farrow model to great effect. Reading through Arkadius rules...

...well, there are warhogs. And warhogs. Oh, I might miss warhogs. ;)

But, with his Tier bonus of cheaper War Hogs he really seems like he's designed to run with several of them and this may not be likely to change much with more releases Oh, I have to reread his rules. Didn´t notice that it specifically says warhogs – I ever had the assumption that it´s Farrow heavy beasts. Maybe that will change something because I´m not going to waste money on heavy beasts then.

HTG

dboeren

03-02-2011, 07:06 PM

It says "Reduce the cost of War Hog warbeasts in this army by 1", you can see a copy online here:
http://steampoweredtv.blogspot.com/2010/11/shed-no-tiers-35pt-steamroller.html

Now, the wording is interesting though because it seems to imply there could be other "War Hog warbeasts". Basically I think any sort of mecha-pig they come out with will likely have this tag while "100% natural" pigs will not. The balance between the two is yet unknown, but I think it's a safe bet there will be at least one more someday. There's so much work to fill out the faction though that it may or may not be in the next book.

Nothing in his spells or feat require War Hogs, it's just that the other models that really benefit from them aren't out yet ;)

I don't know if it's "running to great effect" but I would strongly want at least one unit of Bone Grinders with him. It's more a case of them supporting him than vice versa, but I REALLY want that extra 2" range on Crippling Grasp, and with that many War Hogs around you can bet there will be several chances for them to throw out a free Massacre. Plus with his Tier each BG unit lets you redeploy something.

rydiafan

03-02-2011, 11:04 PM

A range 12, pow 11 rat 9 magic bolt for 2 points is nothing to sneeze at either.

dboeren

03-03-2011, 05:12 AM

Nope. It's kind of like getting a 2 point solo with a magic attack that needs to be hit 4 times to die.

Feno12

03-03-2011, 07:47 AM

I personally cant get my head around the Grinders, they are dirt cheap but seem to do very little, best I can come up with is a tarpit to take the charge, as for the price they are expendable.

dboeren

03-03-2011, 07:56 AM

For 2 points, how much should they do? They can cast a free animus from a dead beast, they've got a magic bolt attack, and they can extend your spell range. They can also be a cheap roadbump unit and on Carver's feat turn actually do some reasonable damage. If you compare them to a typical 2 point solo, the solo is usually more focused on doing one thing well. The Bone Grinders are more of a toolbox, but I think you get a fair amount of functionality for the cost.

Anecdote time... So, I've only ever attacked something with Bone Grinders ONCE, and they weren't even mine. I was playing Hexeris vs. Kruegar. He was running out of army and moved up to try to kill my caster but failed. His Bone Grinders ran to encircle Kruegar and try to prevent me from getting into melee with him. Hexeris upkeeps Soul Slave, pops his feat, and drops an Obliteration on the whole group. Each Bone Grinder that dies to the blast damage gets to take a swing at Kruegar before he dies, but unfortunately none of them can hit his DEF. It would have been really cool I think for him to die to a Bone Grinder shot but it cleared the way for a Titan Sentry to charge him so he's dead either way (plus he already took big damage from the boosted POW 15 Obliteration).

Krom

03-03-2011, 01:59 PM

Watz

03-06-2011, 08:40 AM

Played with Arkadius against Trolls, Pirates and Legion. Arkadius nearly slaughtert the Pirates to the last (only 3 Pirates standing after the game). He scored a Casterkill against Trolls and was beaten by Legion (dont know what to do against P-Thagrosh). I love his Spelllist (Psycho Surgery, Crippling Grasp and Forced Evo, his feat and his Needle Gun. IMO he is more fun to play than Carver.

dboeren

03-06-2011, 06:47 PM

Any chance of some battle reports?

dboeren

03-08-2011, 12:12 PM

I just noticed some interesting things about Arkadius and his War Hogs.

Both Massacre AND Aggression Dial last for an entire turn. That means on his feat turn you can potentially use both of them twice. Well, the free charge part of Massacre doesn't really work during their Frenzy, but the 1" move and free second attack does if your frenzy attack is a charge. For Aggression Dial to work you'd need to activate the War Hog first and feat afterward.

Neither is really game breaking but it's worth knowing, especially since Arkadius has enough Fury to throw out some Massacres that will pay off double if you activate him before the War Hogs. Anyway, just a little tidbit I wanted to share ;)

rydiafan

03-08-2011, 12:17 PM

I abuse both of those frequently. Often I will have one or two pigs put massacre on themselves, dial their anger up to 11, and then run into position for the feat.

sanj

03-08-2011, 01:15 PM

Both Massacre AND Aggression Dial last for an entire turn. That means on his feat turn you can potentially use both of them twice. Well, the free charge part of Massacre doesn't really work during their Frenzy, but the 1" move and free second attack does if your frenzy attack is a charge.

Primal MK2, THRESHOLD AND FRENZY, page 74:
"A frenzied warbeast...blah blah blah. The warbeast cannot make any additional attacks."

You can't generate an extra attack from massacre when a beast frenzies but you can move 1" if you meet the conditions of the animus during a frenzy.

ajay29

03-08-2011, 01:56 PM

Both Massacre AND Aggression Dial last for an entire turn. That means on his feat turn you can potentially use both of them twice. Well, the free charge part of Massacre doesn't really work during their Frenzy, but the 1" move and free second attack does if your frenzy attack is a charge. For Aggression Dial to work you'd need to activate the War Hog first and feat afterward.

I said that about half a page up... Nobody listens to me...
Still, yeah I asked in the rules forum and it got quashed pretty quickly.

I've had a couple of games with him now, really don't see why he gets so much hate. I find his spell list to be almost amazing if I'm honest, he's definately pulling me away from Carver's "same thing every turn" playstyle...

rydiafan

03-08-2011, 02:20 PM

I find his spell list to be almost amazing if I'm honest

Arcadius's spell/feat card is the best in Hordes. His feat is amazing and every spell is a jaw-dropper. You give that card to any warlock in the game and you have a monster.

dboeren

03-08-2011, 07:33 PM

I said that about half a page up... Nobody listens to me...
Still, yeah I asked in the rules forum and it got quashed pretty quickly.

I couldn't find your half-a-page-up post but I found the rules query:
http://privateerpressforums.com/showthread.php?53898-Arkadius-Massacre-and-Feat&highlight=massacre

It sounds like it's in agreement with what we're saying here - that you get the 1" move but not the extra attack. Nothing mentioned about Aggression Dial which should still work fine.

I've had a couple of games with him now, really don't see why he gets so much hate. I find his spell list to be almost amazing if I'm honest, he's definately pulling me away from Carver's "same thing every turn" playstyle...

I agree, his spell list looks solid to me. He has no arcnodes, but you can extend his range with Bone Grinders (mainly for Crippling Grasp). I'm planning on using him quite a bit and doing a writeup of my experiences to help bring more attention to Arkadius. Hoping to get my first games in this Thursday if I can get my models ready in time.

Lord Carver BMMD Esq. III

03-09-2011, 03:52 PM

I've played a few games with Arkadius now, and it was pretty enlightening in one regard. I had assumed that Brigands under him would be mostly a meat shield with moderate and occasional damage potential.
But then I cast Crippling Grasp on a unit prime to take some fire from the Brigands and I realized it effectively made them RAT 7 POW 14's, which is amazing and IMO the crux of the Arkadius/Brigand relationship. Carver gives them CRA, but Arkadius can make them individually more powerful.

Krom

03-09-2011, 05:51 PM

I agree, his spell list looks solid to me. He has no arcnodes, but you can extend his range with Bone Grinders (mainly for Crippling Grasp). I'm planning on using him quite a bit and doing a writeup of my experiences to help bring more attention to Arkadius. Hoping to get my first games in this Thursday if I can get my models ready in time.

I, for one, would love to read these when you write them up. Experience and actual battle results and uses mean so much more than theory-machine. I think if the pigs ever get a pseudo-arc node ability or unit/model, then the Dr. will really come into his own and his fan club will grow exponentially. -K