Battles in Thondia took place in the home of GW, Nottingham, UK on 14th and 15th May. It involved 47 players vying to be crowned champion in a 5 game tournament.
Before I jump into the Top Three, I wanted to remind everyone of our friendly Discord server where you can join in the conversation with the Woehammer crew and suggest articles or series for the website.
1st Place – Ric Myhill
Ric won all five games over the weekend. Along the way he beat Stormcast Eternals/Hammers of Sigmar in round 1, Stormcast Eternals/Hammers of Sigmar in round 2, Maggotkin of Nurgle/Drowned Men in round 3, Stormcast Eternals/Tempest Lords in round 4 and Ogor Mawtribes/Boulderhead in Round 5.
Allegiance: Legion of the First Prince
– Grand Strategy: Prized Sorcery
– Triumphs: Bloodthirsty
Leaders
Be’Lakor, the Dark Master (360)*
– Lore of Ruinous Sorcery: The Master’s Command
Kairos Fateweaver (435)
– Lore of Ruinous Sorcery: The Master’s Command
Slaves to Darkness Daemon Prince (210)*
– General
– Axe
– Command Trait: Ruinous Aura
– Artefact: Armour of the Pact
– Mark of Chaos: Khorne
Synessa, The Voice of Slaanesh (260)*
Battleline
10 x Bloodletters (115)*
10 x Pink Horrors of Tzeentch (250)*
10 x Pink Horrors of Tzeentch (250)*
Endless Spells & Invocations
Umbral Spellportal (70)
Chronomantic Cogs (45)
Core Battalions
*Battle Regiment
Total: 1995 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 0 / 4
Allies: 0 / 400
Wounds: 75
Drops: 2
Danny: Legion are the Best Hits of Chaos, so it stands to reason they can shift effectively with the Meta. Control is the name of the game, but it’s not exactly like they can’t punish you for over-reaching either.
This particular list leans more into magic than usual (no Bloodthirster for example) – and the lynchpin here is Synessa, who is a fairly kick-ass wizard who knows all the Slaanesh spell lores – even though she only casts 1 herself. I’m guessing the plan here is she tags along with big bird (aka Kairos) – with his 3 casts and multiple ways of manipulating dice to make damn sure what he wants to go off….goes off – because he ALSO knows all the spells of a nearby wizard. And between those Lores, you have a tool for almost every problem. Smart tech piece and clearly went the distance.
2nd Place – Chris Myhill
Chris also managed five wins over the two days. Along the way they beat Idoneth Deepkin/Mor’Phann in round 1, Gloomspite Gitz/Glogg’s Megamob in round 2, Cities of Sigmar/Living City in round 3, Seraphon/Thunder Lizard in round 4 and Maggotkin of Nurgle/Drowned Men in the final round.
Allegiance: Seraphon
– Constellation: Dracothion’s Tail
– Mortal Realm: Ghur
– Grand Strategy: Prized Sorcery
– Triumphs: Indomitable
Leaders
Slann Starmaster (265)*
– General
– Command Trait: Ancient Knowledge
– Artefact: Godbeast Pendant
– Ancient Knowledge 2nd Spell: Mystical Unforging
– Spell: Stellar Tempest
Saurus Astrolith Bearer (150)*
Engine of the Gods (265)*
– Mount Trait: Starborne
– Universal Prayer Scripture: Heal
Battleline
5 x Saurus Guard (115)*
10 x Skinks (75)*
– Meteoric Javelins Celestite Daggers & Star Bucklers
10 x Skinks (75)*
– Meteoric Javelins Celestite Daggers & Star Bucklers
Units
2 x Salamander Hunting Pack (280)*
– Reinforced x 1
2 x Salamander Hunting Pack (280)*
– Reinforced x 1
Behemoths
Krondspine Incarnate of Ghur (400)*
– Allies
Endless Spells & Invocations
Chronomantic Cogs (45)
Core Battalions
*Battle Regiment
Total: 1950 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 2 / 4
Allies: 400 / 400
Wounds: 79
Drops: 1
Danny: There’s a part of me at this point that sees NOT playing Thunder Lizards as a flex, but Draco Tail lets you teleport a unit a turn around the board, which obviously isn’t half bad in its own right, especially combined with the summoning (both as an allegiance rule AND on a lucky Engine of Gods roll).
Most of the rest of the list is standard fare – apart from slapping in a Krondspine. It’s not the first time a Seraphon list has done it, and combined with the Salamanders (who cares if they give up VP still, apparently!), that’s a lot of Rend 2 melee threats that the army doesn’t usually have access to. It’s interesting that the Krondspine is increasingly seeming like a truly viable inclusion in high level play – but it’s not in every list, which smacks of an interesting and balanced new unit!
3rd Place – Nicky Martin
Nicky finished the weekend with one loss and four wins. His path saw him beat Lumineth Realm-Lords/Helon in round 1, then losing to Cities of Sigmar/Hammerhal in round 2. In round 3 he beat Stormcast Eternals/Celestial Vindicators in round 3, followed by Stormcast Eternals/Hallowed Knights in round 4 and Stormcast Eternals/Tempest Lords in round 5.
Army Faction: Maggotkin of Nurgle
– Subfaction: Befouling Host
– Grand Strategy: Hold the Line
– Triumph: Bloodthirsty
LEADERS
Great Unclean One (495)
– General
– Command Traits: Nurgling Infestation
– Doomsday Bell and Plague Flail
– Artefacts of Power: The Witherstave
– Spells: Fleshy Abundance
The Glottkin (700)
– Spells: Gift of Disease
BATTLELINE
Plaguebearers (300)*
Plaguebearers (300)*
Plaguebearers (150)*
CORE BATTALIONS
– *Hunters of the Heartlands
TOTAL POINTS: 1945/2000
Danny: Ooh – a NON Drowned Men list. It’s a deep book, so it’s nice to see people trying other stuff out, it’s all good really.
5 units TOTAL makes deployment a very non-stressful set of decisions and there’s something to be said for that. This list clearly relies on gumming up the board with plaguebearers while the Glottkin stands around mid-board daring you to come within 12″ so he can roll for Blightkrieg – which lets him charge you in YOUR movement phase. And you don’t want him doing that. Nasty stuff and nice to see the daemons being represented!
Did I mention how scary Blightkrieg is?
Wildcard – Mikey Gilson
Mikey won four games and lost one, ending his weekend in a very respectful 4th… And with Bonesplitterz! Along the way he beat Stormcast Eternals/Celestial Vindicators in round 1, Maggotkin of Nurgle/Droning Guard in round 2. He then lost to Stormcast Eternals/Tempest Lords in round 3, before going on to beat Seraphon/Thunder Lizard in round 4 and Stormcast Eternals/Hammers of Sigmar in round 5.
Army Faction: Orruk Warclans
– Army Type: Bonesplitterz
– Subfaction: Icebone
– Grand Strategy: Beast Master
– Triumph: Indomitable
LEADERS
Kragnos (720)*
Wurrgog Prophet (150)*
– General
– Command Traits: Heroic Stature
– Artefacts of Power: Glowin’ Tattooz
– Spells: Levitate Bonding: Krondspine Incarnate of Ghur
Wurrgog Prophet (150)*
BATTLELINE
Savage Boarboys (140)*
– Chompa
Savage Boarboys (140)*
– Chompa
Savage Boarboys (140)*
– Chompa
BEHEMOTH
Krondspine Incarnate of Ghur (400)*
OTHER
Savage Big Stabbas (80)*
ENDLESS SPELLS & INVOCATIONS
1 x Emerald Lifeswarm (60)
CORE BATTALIONS
*Battle Regiment
TOTAL POINTS: 1980/2000
Danny: Purists will say a Bonesplitterz list with Kragnos and Krondspine (1080 points) isn’t really Bonesplitterz, and they’re more or less right – but hey, this is still a way to stuff nearly half your list with your lovely near-naked greenskins! And loads of boarboys make sense with Glowy Green Tusks for rend 2 (if you get it off…which is currently one of the biggest weaknesses of Savage Orruks – relying on spells with no real bonuses to cast). The speedy hogs also synergise loads from Kragnos’s 3d6 charge aura, and Big Krag is hardly a slouch himself – crucially in his list he brings objective bullying (counting for loads of models) while everything else attacks key threats. Looks like a TONNE of fun to pilot too, and big congrats to the general for 4th place!
Final Tournament Placings
