Ravyn, Rampaging through Kahdor

[Mastershake]

I?ve been running the rounds trying to get some experience at 35 pts and Khador seems to be a common army. The 3-4 local opponents who run Khador, tend to have various casters and the ability to build multiple lists, so that makes things more interesting and lets me see what they got. The list has been shuffled around a good bit, and I?ve ultimately settled on the stealth-heavy army below.

Ravyn
Manticore
Phoenix
MHSF (full size w/ UA)
2x Ghost Snipers
2x MHA
Arcanist
Lady A & Holt


So here are a collection of the various caster kills the army has picked up against Khador in their campaign against the humans. Seems appropriate considering Khador is Ravyn?s theater of operations.

eButcher

Behemoth
Doom Reavers (6x man)
Man?o?War Shocktroopers (5x man)
Winterguard Riflemen (big looked like a 10x man)
Kovnik Grigorovich (Not sure on this one, he was giving the winterguard Tough and Fearless)

At the time of the caster kill, the units I had left were a largely intact MHSF and both MHAs. He had 4 Doom reavers, all of the MoW and 2 of the winterguard. This ended up being the most complicated of the caster kills I?ve had so far. Ravyn was engaged with one of the doom reavers, off to her left were both MHAs who were each engaged by a single doom reaver and winterguard. The butcher was easily inside of charge ranges from both MHAs with the only obstacle being the enemy models. After an unsuccessful attempt to get the Doom Reaver off of Ravyn with shooting from the MHSF, I finally had to cross my fingers and give the guy his free strike, but fortunately even with the bonus he failed to hit her. Ravyn charged the doom reaver on one of the MHAs and killed both him and the winterguard, she then used her free shot with a boosted attack roll to kill the other winterguard and the additional movement from the ranged kill to move next to the last reaver and bought an attack that promptly killed it. A nice bit of showing off for the Eternal Light as both of the MHAs go sailing at eButcher. Unfortunately the MHAs continue to have performance anxiety against enemy casters and only score 8 damage between them even though average rolls would?ve dropped the butcher. The only thing now standing between butcher and a charge on Ravyn is two high def solos. The last two doom reavers and the only two MoW who can get there try to clear the girls off of the butcher, but their def was just too high, so in the end to Butcher had to handle it himself which meant not only the death of the MHAs, but also the last two doom reavers and both MoW within his melee range. Ravyn, with vortex active, then proceeded to walk up to the Butcher and beat the last few boxes out of him.

eIrusk

Spriggan
2x Mortars
Great Bears
Man?o?War Shocktroopers (5x man)
Winterguard Riflemen (big looked like a 10x man)
Kovnik Grigorovich (Same Tough and Fearless mutha as before)

He and I both still had pretty much everything at the point of assassination. I?d love to say this was an epic battle as I tried to break through his shield wall of murder, but I just said ?screw it? gave Snipe to the MHSF, popped Ravyn?s feat and murdered Irusk from the other side of a forest. I was getting a tad concerned that I might have to fight the tough shield wall from hell, but with fairly mediocre def and arm, Irusk was pretty easy prey for the then 8-strong MHSF.

The Old Witch

Kodiak
Juggernaught
Winterguard (another big block, but this time with Blunderbuss, had UA as well)
Mortar
Widowmakers
Man-O-War Drakhun
Kovnik Grigorovich (Same Tough and Fearless mutha as before)

At the time of the Assassination here I think I had only lost the Manticore and Holt, my opponent was down the Scrap Jack, the Widowmakers, the Kodiak and Man-O-War Drakhun. The Old Witch popped her feat and my opponent measured her control range. I watched pretty intensely as I had kept Snipe on the MHSF and she had a 16? control. I saw pretty quick the entire unit was already in range and facing the witch. Ravyn did her feat and I basically gambled that the 9 MSHF models that weren?t engaged with the Juggernaught could drop the old bat, otherwise they would explode at the end of their activation. The gamble worked and the MHSF pick up another trophy for the rack.

Irusk

2x Destroyers
Kodiak
2x Mortars
Winterguard (same as previous)
Kovnik Grigorovich (This guy is everywhere)

By the time the caster kill is set up I?ve lost Lady A and 4 of the MHSF, I don?t think he had lost anything. My opponent misjudged the 14? threat range of a MHA and she one-shotted Irusk. Turns out a Mage Hunter Assassin can assassinate a mage. It?s nice to actually see it happen as those ladies fumble a lot when fighting enemy casters.


After Action Review
I gotta say I?m happy with where the list is at and other than minor tweaks I don?t see it changing. I hadn?t really thought about the Ravyn + MHSF caster kill, but upon reflection it?s pretty brutal against non-stealthed casters who have armor 15 or less (16 is pretty iffy). In general though, the MHSF is such a consistent high performer, especially with Ravyn around, that I can?t see taking them out and not fielding the UA would practically be criminal. Even when the MHAs don?t caster kill, the damage output is pretty staggering. Thanks to some help from Lady A, one of the MHAs one-shotted the Man-O-War Drakhun in the third game and the pair tore the scrap jack to ribbons. I always feel like something has gone a little off if Ravyn is personally doing the assassination, but every time I?ve called on her to handle it personally she?s come through. In a smaller 25 pt match against Vlad she dropped the dark prince in 2x hits to some obscene damage rolls and in another game v. Khador she beat the last few damage boxes out of Karchev. It seems a little odd that minus my first Mangled Metal, I?ve racked up a 6-win streak against some more experienced Khador opponents. I?d like to pretend I?m good, but maybe the just don?t fight RoS that much.

[Tevesh]

At the time of the Assassination here I think I had only lost the Manticore and Holt, my opponent was down the Scrap Jack, the Widowmakers, the Kodiak and Man-O-War Drakhun. The Old Witch popped her feat and my opponent measured her control range. I watched pretty intensely as I had kept Snipe on the MHSF and she had a 16” control. I saw pretty quick the entire unit was already in range and facing the witch. Ravyn did her feat and I basically gambled that the 9 MSHF models that weren’t engaged with the Juggernaught could drop the old bat, otherwise they would explode at the end of their activation. The gamble worked and the MHSF pick up another trophy for the rack.

OW's feat causes POW 14 at end of movement, not activation. They should have died. Chalk one up to an opponent not knowing his own cards.

I only know because it almost cost me a game. :P

[Mastershake]

I read the card too and could've sworn it was activation. If I had thought it said movement I would've popped her a turn prior, I just charged and mauled the Kodiak instead thinking I had a turn of advance notice before the unit went poof and wasn't 100% on everybody's range.

[Marth]

After an unsuccessful attempt to get the Doom Reaver off of Ravyn with shooting from the MHSF, I finally had to cross my fingers and give the guy his free strike, but fortunately even with the bonus he failed to hit her. Ravyn charged the doom reaver on one of the MHAs and killed both him and the winterguard, she then used her free shot with a boosted attack roll to kill the other winterguard and the additional movement from the ranged kill to move next to the last reaver and bought an attack that promptly killed it. A nice bit of showing off for the Eternal Light as both of the MHAs go sailing at eButcher.

Beautiful. Must've been quite a show.

[PG_GilDK]

OW's feat causes POW 14 at end of movement, not activation. They should have died. Chalk one up to an opponent not knowing his own cards.

I only know because it almost cost me a game. :P

But if they forfeit movement, they dont pop, cause it says "advancing and ending movement" and so far as I´ve been told(and what I can gleen from the rules) they are safe if they forfeit movement.

[Mastershake]

The unit did forfiet it's movement for the aiming bonus although admittedly I'm not familiar enough with the rules to know if a unit will still count as ending a movement action if one was forfeited.

[Tarrant]

Pg. 65 WM Prime MK II under the Forfeiting section:

"When a model forfeits its movement, resolve the effect to which the movement is being forfeited, then the model ends its movement, triggering any relevant effects."

So they would have received their +2 aiming bonus and then trigger the end of movement effect.

[Marth]

So... if they stand still - they die? (to the Pow 14 feat)
I'm just asking because I thought it was handled differently.

[Tarrant]

Yep. Even if a model doesn't move, they have to end their movement portion of their activation to go to their action/attack portion of their activation.

[bloodspiff]

So... if they stand still - they die? (to the Pow 14 feat)

No. Models that advance and end their movement in the Ow control area take the POW 14. If you forfeit your movement, you end your movement in the Ow's control area, but you did not advance in the ow's control area => you don't take the POW 14.

While in the Old Witchʼs control area, enemy models cannot run, charge, or make special attacks. Enemy models that advance and end their movement in the Old Witchʼs control area immediately suffer an unboostable POW 14 damage roll. Field of Talons lasts for one round.

emphasis mine.

Spiff

[Tarrant]

I don't have access to the Old Witch card but if a figure doesn't advance (move) in her control area then it appears they don't take any damage. Good to know. Thanks, Bloodspiff!

[PUFNSTUF]

Don't forget changing faceing counts as an advance.

[Marth]

@Bloodspiff: Thanks for clearing that up. Proves that those who can read actually are in an advantageous position, I could have noticed myself.
@PUFSTUF: Thanks for the - I think important - remark. Being stuck with your facing can be highly detrimental...

[Mastershake]

So apparently it was completely legal to simply forfeit movement for the aiming bonus to drop her (the whole unit had her in range and front arcs). Nice, I don't like victories that turn out to be cheating.

[Marth]

Actually, you can simply forfeit your movement. You don't even need to do it for the aiming bonus.