eStryker 35 list, any advices?

[Goblin97janitor]

Hi, im thinking of making an eStryker list and this is what i have tought: -eStryker (+6). -Squire (2), Lancer (6), Ol'rowdy (9), Journeyman warcaster (3) with Hunter (6), stormblades (5) + ua (3) + wa (1), Black 13th (4), Ruphert carvolo (2) or instead of him Gorman di wulfe, rouge alchemist (2). Any advice?

[tankrandall]

eStryker
-Squire
Lancer
Ol'rowdy
Journeyman warcaster
-Hunter
stormblades
-UA
-WA
Black 13th
Ruphert carvolo

Gorman and Rhupert are both great but your playing a melee infantry centric list so pathfinder and tough turn out to be more important.

While a hunter on JR is great you could go with a charger and grab 2 more stormgunners, which would be a important upgrade for many reasons. Deflection only works on warrior models, rolling thunder is much better on 2 gunners and a bad melee jack than just a bad melee jack, arcane shield is most efficient on more models it can effect, more gunners means a higher % chance for the whole unit hitting because our boy doesn't have deadeye, allows 3 models to shoot while the others run during a "assault" order.

Lists are much easier to read like this (above). The lancer is useful but I don't like him at 35 points. While I love Rowdy I have been thinking lately that given his feat and positive charge the stormclad would be better, if you did drop the lancer the focus load on eStryker goes down and the rerolls on rebuke become less needed, if you dropped the squire lancer and rowdy you could grab a stormclad, another stormblade WA or 2 and some more infantry like sword knights or stormguard. With that said I have played similar lists and enjoyed them and plan to play them again, these are just some tweeks I haven't had enough time to play test.

[bStyker]

@Goblin97janitor - All the advice above is good. Tankrandall did a very good job summing up many opinions and feelings here on the Cygnar Forums regarding those models and that type of list. Personally I wouldn't drop Rowdy, as no model can lay down the punishment that Rowdy can while paired with eStryker... okay, maybe the Stormwall, but besides that Rowdy wins in all cases. Positive charge on a crippled Rowdy still allows him to hit almost any other heavy with a single die, as well as deal straight damage with a single die. He's a beast and has an excellent affinity.

The list you've got above (with Rhupert Corvolo) is a very effective list, if not a little typical. One thing is that, seeing that you're fielding Stormblades but no Stormclad, you may wish to consider the idea of purchasing Sword Knights later on. A full unit with UA cost 8pts, and they're much more survivable than the Stormblades, especially under Deflection and they have a slightly longer melee threat range. If you add in Alain Runewood, they become pretty ridiculous, especially under Positive charge and Flank (which makes your Lancer more effective in the force as well.)

A list could look like this:

eStryker (+6)
-Rowdy (9)
-Lancer (6)
Swordknights (max) w UA (8)
Alain Runewood (3)
Rhupert Corvolo (2)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
**Hunter (6)
The Black 13th Strike Force (4)
=35pts

... I can vouch for its effectiveness on the field.

Best,

[Goblin97janitor]

Thank's, i might change the hunter for the charger and two storm gunners, but ill keep the ol'rowdy, and i wrote it that way because i wrote it on my ipod so i couldn't make it to fit that way.

[Goblin97janitor]

Thank's, now with both of the advises i might make a list and an alternate one:

eStryker
-Squire
Lancer
Ol'rowdy
Journeyman warcaster
-Charger
stormblades
-UA
-WA
Black 13th
Ruphert carvolo

and:

eStryker (+6)
-Squire (2)
-Rowdy (9)
-Lancer (6)
Swordknights (max) w UA (8)
Alain Runewood (3)
Rhupert Corvolo (2)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
**Charger (4)
The Black 13th Strike Force (4)

Ill do what tankrandall said, but now with the last list ill change the hunter for the charger and the squire, or what do you think?

[Bauknefer]

I have been playing a list simular to your top list (using runewood instead of Carvolo)

Estryker
-squire
Lancer
Ol Rowdy
Jr
-charger
Stormblades
-UA
-2x WA
Black 13th
Runewood

To very good effect in my meta.
Pos Charge on Rowdy and stormblade can easy clean up (stormclad works better at this of course I just like Rowdy)
or charge with rowdy (again pos charge) and tremor to go for caster kill with stryker (runewood buffed either more dmg or pathfinder depending on situation)

An idea that could work depending on playstyle is dropping the squire and the lancer for sylus (the merc attachment for warcasters, cant remember or spell it for the life of me) and a unit of swordknights to go with runewood and the list could look like

Estryker (+6)
-Ol Rowdy (9)
-sylus (2)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
-Charger (4)
Stormblades (5)
-UA (3)
-WA (2)
Sword Knights (4)
-UA (2) could instead be more bodies for knights
Black 13th (4)
Runewood (3)

I understand epic stryker has no upkeeps but that is not why you would take sylus you would take him to increase spell range and not need an arch node

[Lankycheese]

I've only been playing Warmachine for around 6 months now but epic Stryker is easily my favourite Cygnar caster, and he's the first that I've started to win with. I actually think he's a really good caster to learn with as he's very forgivable. If you make some critical mistakes and lose most of your army the big man himself can still get the job done.

First off, I'm not the biggest fan of stormblades as a full unit. To me they work much better hiding in your second wave as high armour crackers.

Stormguard, on the other hand, are my go to unit with eStryker. They are amazing on feat turn due to reach and the electroleap as you charge in and take out the 1st and 2nd line of a unit all in one turn.

I then use a solid 2nd line min unit of either stormblades or sword knights to hit heavier armoured targets. I take the stormblades if I have a stormclad but since I usually take Runewood and a lancer with eStryker the swordknights usually make it in.

Runewood is awesome as he can give pathfinder to a model so he can assist Stryker's assassination run if it appears. And the Lancer is very hard to drop as arced rebuke has won me games before.

Also as a note, you can bond to Rowdy which makes his first melee attack role gain an additional die. And yes that includes termor roles.

My current list for 35 points is below:

- eStryker
- Rowdy
- Lancer
- Squire

- Journeyman

- Full Stormguard
- Min Swordknights
- B13

- Runewood
- Stormsmith

[Goblin97janitor]

First, i think you can't bound Ol'rowdy because it says "non character friendly warjack" and rowdy is a character, also who is the journeyman warcaster marshaling? no one?, and the stormsmith is the stormsmith storm tower or stormcallers?

[JohnOSpencer]

Your list looks pretty good. Similar to what I bring just with Rowdy instead of a Centurion. At this few points, I might drop the Journeyman to max out the Sword Knights and add another Stormsmith.

Goblin97janitor: Ol' Rowdy can be bonded due to his Affinity(Stryker).

[Lankycheese]

First, i think you can't bound Ol'rowdy because it says "non character friendly warjack" and rowdy is a character, also who is the journeyman warcaster marshaling? no one?, and the stormsmith is the stormsmith storm tower or stormcallers?

As said above you can bond character jacks if the caster has affinity with them.

I'm not the biggest fan of putting a jack on the journeyman as there are usually much better places to martial a jack. If I want a jack marshal I'll take gun mages for a ranged jack or sword knight UA for a melee one. The journeyman is an arcane shield battery which is an amazingly versatile spell that can buff up our normally low armour.

And I just take the stormcaller. They're great for when you have 1 point left over. Useful to sniping solos, disrupting jacks or peeling off enemies in melee when you want to disengage your units.

[Bloodsplatter artist]

The other huge thing about runewood is that he can hand out pathfinder to stryker himself while rhupert cannot as his songs only effect units. Stryker with pathfinder opens up many new vectors and alot of opponents don't expect to see him with it. Plus he's gold with sword knights for maximum movement shenanigans on feat turn. While not advisable at the 35 point level runewood and the piper work well together. Rhupert hands out tough and runewood can stand up the ones who make their saves. Although at 5 points it's a damn expensive module.
Also for other infantry precursors wool well with Stryker because both of his infantry buffs(positive charge and deflection) don't need to target them to work. Rhupert hands them tough deflection puts them up to arm 20 with shieldwall and positive charge makes sure they never miss or fail to wound infantry.

[Goblin97janitor]

I might run this list:
eStryker (+6)
-Rowdy (9)
-Lancer (6)
Swordknights (max) w UA (8)
Alain Runewood (3)
Rhupert Corvolo (2)
Journeyman Warcaster (3)
**Hunter (6)
The Black 13th Strike Force (4)
But what do you think if i drop two grunts and get the squire?

[tankrandall]

you mean 4 swordknight grunts? No.

[Lankycheese]

I'd recommend dropping Ruhpert for the squire. You don't really need both the piper and runewood in the same list at 35 points.

[Goblin97janitor]

But it's the squire really necessary? because if it isn't ill keep rhupert

[Lankycheese]

Squire gives an extra focus 3 times per game, which is very handy as Stryker only has 6.

He gives + 2" control range which is good for Stryker as deflection is control ranged based, plus lets him be more flexible relative to his jacks and arc node.

Gives a reroll to an offensive magic attack, which means rerolls on rebuke!

The question is do you think Rhupert is necessary considering you only have 1 melee unit and you already have Runewood as a melee buffer?

[Goblin97janitor]

So today i played a couple of games with the stormblades + ua without rhupert or runewood, they died very easily and got to do nothing so i find the sword knights more durable and cheaper, now i´m sure of my 35 pts. list, maybe for a bigger one i'll use the stormblades as a second infantry.