Category Archives: Tournament Preview

Age of Sigmar, Fantasy, Games Workshop, Meta Analysis, Peter Holland, Tournament Preview, Tournaments

Broken Realms and Minis for War GT Preview

March 31, 2023 Peter Holland Leave a comment

It’s going to be the biggest tournament ever held in Scotland. So big, that Games Workshop are offering the winner a golden ticket to the Atlanta Open! 72 Players are registered to fight it out this weekend as Scotland’s top dog.

We’ve been kindly given a run down of all the lists for this years events (of those submitted anyway), and we can now start going through them and comparing this to the Meta. We’ll also look at the players and their performances over the last year to try and get an idea who’ll finish top dog.

Broken Realms have also shared some of their own stats!

Six Lumineth Lists with four containing Teccy! Two players feeling particularly confident there! Alongside Teccy, across five of the six lists, there are a total of 180 Sentinels. Yes, someone didn’t take Sentinels and has gone heavy on the Angus!

Three Daughters of Khaine players and only one Morathi among them? What’s going on?!

Four Gloomspite Gitz lists with two of those going for the Cream of Mushroom Soup – Jaws of Mork. Three of these lists also contain Skaggy.

Faction Popularity

The Broken Realms player split, doesn’t at all follow the current worldwide meta trend. Slaves to Darkness are the most popular faction still, but this is followed by Lumineth Realm-Lords and Fyreslayers rather than Stormcast Eternals or Ogor Mawtribes.

Seraphon also have a large representation of 5 armies, where when using the worldwide trend, we’d have only expected 1 army.

Grand Strategies

Most players chose either a Strategy from their factions Battletome or Take What’s Theirs (More units than the opponent, inside opponent’s territory).

And, understandably, no one went for Tame the Land (control all the objectives on the battlefield wholly outside your territory).

Triumphs

Players that have lists with 1,980 points or less are more likely to be able to use their triumph

Drops

The average amount of drops for an army at Broken Realms is 5.7. If you’re attending and you have less than this, you’re more likely to have the choice of priority in turn 1.

Player Rankings

Here is our full run down of everyone’s stats that is attending since July 2022, and has previously attended at least one GT (that we’re aware of), sorted by their win rates,

So, JJ (Stormcast) is probably the odds on favourite with a huge win rate of 83% this year that can’t be ignored. Trev Moffat (Big Waaagh!) and Hogg Euan (Bonereapers) are close behind with 80% but have only attended a single GT each this year, I also think Boneboyz will struggle in a larger GT. My pick for 2nd would go to David Jack (Lumineth), another seasoned veteran with a win rate of 79% and a meta leading faction as his army choice. Nathan Watson (Gloomspite) – vice captain of the Scottish AoS Team is my choice for third, who also has the experience and another meta leading faction choice to possibly see him though to four or five wins.

Exciting event, I’m looking forward to seeing the results and talking to the top three about their lists. Good luck to everyone taking part a

Age of Sigmar, Fantasy, Games Workshop, Meta Analysis, Peter Holland, Tournament Preview, Tournaments

Las Vegas Open Preview

January 25, 2023 Peter Holland Leave a comment

It’s going to be the biggest event in the Age of Sigmar tournament calendar. A title previously held by CanCon in Australia. Now with over 300 players attending from all over the globe, the Las Vegas Open (or often referred to affectionately by players as LVO) is the jewel in the AoS crown.

Faction Popularity

The LVO split roughly follows the current Meta trend on the army splits, with Stormcast Eternals being the most popular army. However, where Sylvaneth are the second most popular faction in the meta, they’ve been surplanted at the LVO by Ogor Mawtribes.

For those not into graphs, the below compares the LVO uptake against what would have been expected to have been taken based on the meta.

Grand Strategies

Most players chose either a Strategy from their factions Battletome or Take What’s Theirs (More units than the opponent, inside opponent’s territory).

Two crazy cats went for Demonstration of Strength (3 or more Galletian Veteran units from your army remaining), which is considered by many easy to deny.

And, understandably, no one went for Tame the Land (control all the objectives on the battlefield wholly outside your territory).

Triumphs

Players that have lists with 1,990 points or less are more likely to be able to use their triumph

Battalions

Most players chose to go with either 1 or 2 battalions.

The majority of players seemed to include a Battle Regiment, with perhaps half the lists having Bounty Hunters. Command Entourage and Warlord also see a fair amount of use to benefit from those additional enhancements.

Drops

The average amount of drops for an army at LVO is 5.5. If you’re attending and you have less than this, you’re more likely to have the choice of priority in turn 1.

Player Rankings

Here we go, earlier in the week we published our top 8 choices based on the win rates and then a best of the rest. But, here is our full run down of everyone’s stats that is attending, and has previously attended at least one GT (that we’re aware of), sorted by their win rates,

Age of Sigmar, Big Waaagh!, Declan Walters, Destruction, Fantasy, Games Workshop, Tournament Preview, Tournaments

Tournament Preparation – Warfare – Age of Sigmar

November 12, 2022 Declan and Eeyore 2 Comments

Gloomspite Gitz

My last outing with the Gloomspite Gitz ended with a 2-3 result and me playing against Gitz for game 5… so a good result for Gitz although not for most armies; but when it came to deciding which army to use for Warfare (12th – 13th November, 2022) I was very tempted to go back to Big Waaagh as it can smash (and bash) and win a few more games than the Gitz.

But, with the new Battlescroll and the reduction in points for Squig Herd and the Mangler Squig I couldn’t ignore GW’s attempt to make the Gitz playable – so I’ve gone back to them for a second time.

I tend to use a lot of Squig Herd models, and this was a significant cost saving for the lads. (100 points for the herd alone). It also meant I could look at an upgrade of my Grot on Giant Squig… (see below)

The List

Allegiance: Gloomspite Gitz
Grand Strategy: Show of Dominance

Leaders
Loonboss on Mangler Squigs (270)***

General
Command Trait: Dodgy Character
Artefact: Arcane Tome (Universal Artefact)
Lore of the Moonclans: Itchy Nuisance
Madcap Shaman (80)***
Artefact: Moonface Mommet
Lore of the Moonclans: The Hand of Gork
Madcap Shaman (80)***
Lore of the Moonclans: The Hand of Gork

Battleline
36 x Squig Herd (420)** Reinforced x 2
12 x Squig Herd (140)*
12 x Squig Herd (140)*
10 x Squig Hoppers (180)**
10 x Squig Hoppers (180)**

Units
5 x Boingrot Bounderz (105)
5 x Boingrot Bounderz (105)
6 x Sneaky Snufflers (75)
6 x Sneaky Snufflers (75)
1 x Marshcrawla Sloggoth (150)***

Core Battalions
*Expert Conquerors
**Bounty Hunters
***Warlord

Additional Enhancements
Artefact

Total: 2000 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 2 / 4
Allies: 0 / 400
Wounds: 236
Drops: 13

This is similar to the previous list with a few small changes. The first is a reduction in the Boingrot Bounders from 10 models (reinforced units) to 5 models. This frees up 210 points to spend on more Gitz… I’ve gone for 2 Madcap Shamans with Hand of Gork to threaten the backfield of my opponent’s objectives. One of the little chaps also has the Moonface Mommet – effectively giving my Herd -1 rend against one unit each turn – not bad for a little chap.

My other big change, allowed by the reduction in points on Squig Herd, is to swap out the Loonboss on Giant Squig with a Loonboss on Mangler Squig. This allows me to assist all the Squigs in combat – a thing I struggled with at Warhammer World.

This turns the Squig Herd into 3+/2+ (with the Marshcrawler) and I won’t be low on command points whilst he is alive. And to help with that he is a ‘Dodgy Character’

Not helpful against spells, but he can mostly stay out of the way, or rely on the dispelling rolls of him and his mates. This does mean I lose two benefits in the last army. +3″ movement from the Giant Squig and re-roll random movements. But I think this more than makes up for that. At Warhammer World I didn’t advance far beyond my lines and doing damage was the main issue.

Having avoided ‘bottom Chump’ last time with 2 wins, I’m aiming for 2 wins again, but will be trying for 3! Let’s see if my last tournament of the year can be a fun one.

— Declan & Eeyore

Age of Sigmar, Big Waaagh!, Declan Walters, Destruction, Fantasy, Games Workshop, Tournament Preview, Tournaments

Tournament Preparation – Warhammer World – Age of Sigmar

September 23, 2022 Declan and Eeyore 1 Comment

Gloomspite Gitz – Jaws of Mork

(Header picture from Games Workshop website)

Tomorrow the Age of Chumps club is travelling en-masse to Warhammer World to take part in a two day Age of Sigmar tournament. It’s my last for a while, so I was torn about what to take.

After the success last year of the Big Waaagh, they were the obvious decision – brute force, cunning application – all backed up by an improving profile which means that 2+/2+ doesn’t take long to get to…

But… I haven’t used my Gitz in a while and there is a new GHB, as well a small change to the Loonshrine warscroll.

It’s not much, and it’s not a White Dwarf article like Beasts, or Khorne… but it does make a small difference. The Moon allows Moonclan to rally, and Squigs to charge after running. Perfect for getting Boingrot Bounders into the right place, or bouncing over units with Hoppers before finishing off lone heroes! Sure it’s range isn’t perfect, but it’s large on the smaller table.

Finally, the General gets an extra command point each turn – great resource benefit.

Squigs, Spiders, Trogs, or Grots

I have options for all Gitz forces, but my favourite has always been the Squigs… especially as they trigger the rally benefit and the run and charge… also; red looks great.

The List

Allegiance: Gloomspite Gitz
– Option: Jaws of Mork
– Grand Strategy: Show of Dominance
– Triumphs: Inspired

Leaders
Loonboss on Giant Cave Squig (110)
– General
– Moonclan Stabba
– Command Trait: Envoy of the Overbounder
– Artefact: Syari Screamersquig

Battleline
10 x Squig Hoppers (180)
10 x Squig Hoppers (180)
36 x Squig Herd (480)*
– Reinforced x 2
12 x Squig Herd (160)**
12 x Squig Herd (160)**

Units
10 x Boingrot Bounderz (210)*
– Reinforced x 1
10 x Boingrot Bounderz (210)*
– Reinforced x 1
6 x Sneaky Snufflers (75)
6 x Sneaky Snufflers (75)
1 x Marshcrawla Sloggoth (150)
– Allies

Core Battalions
*Bounty Hunters
**Expert Conquerors

Total: 1990 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 4 / 4
Allies: 150 / 400
Wounds: 242
Drops: 11

It’s not going to chose first or second, has no magic, lacks the punch to get out of a wet-paper bag, and the battle tactics are difficult but who’s counting! It has 242 wounds, Squigs come back in my battleshock phase on a 4+, and if I can get the foot squigs into all quarters I get my Grand Strategy… this includes the ones that come back thanks to the FAQ:

So that’s a bit of a trick – I’ll be sure to make my opponents aware at the beginning of the game, as it’ll be my aim all tournament.

I’m hoping for 1 win, and to avoid being bottom Chump but the Gitz will be a challenge – Tune back next week to see how I got on!

— Declan

Age of Sigmar, Big Waaagh!, Declan Walters, Destruction, Fantasy, Games Workshop, Tournament Preview, Tournaments

Tournament Preparation – Boards and Swords

July 9, 2022 Declan and Eeyore Leave a comment

Big Waaagh in GHB22 – Skrappa Spill

The time has come, GHB21 is dead and GHB22 (part one?) is live. The Battleline is back with Galletian Veterans and there are some ‘fun’ FAQs floating about.

But is Battleline really back? Is Purple Sun now essential? Should we ignore everything and go monsters? What changes?

To answer some, all or none of the above I am taking Big Waaagh to Boards & Swords in Derby (UK) this weekend for a two-day Age of Sigmar tournament. This has some basic comp around Grand Strategies and Battle Tactics – Strategies from the GHB22 and max 2 Battle Tactics from books. Given that (some) book Battle Tactics are allowed and Gloomspite Gitz don’t have any… I pivoted effortlessly back to Big Waaagh!

The List!

Allegiance: Big Waaagh!
– Grand Strategy: Demonstration of Strength
– Triumphs: Inspired

Leaders
Orruk Megaboss (140)*
– General
– Command Trait: Touched by the Waaagh!
– Artefact: Arcane Tome (Universal Artefact)
– Lore of the Weird: Da Great Big Green Hand of Gork
Orruk Warchanter (115)*
– Warbeat: Fixin’ Beat
Orruk Warchanter (115)*
– Warbeat: Fixin’ Beat
Wurrgog Prophet (150)
– Artefact: Glowin’ Tattooz
– Lore of the Savage Beast: Gorkamorka’s War Cry

Battleline
10 x Orruk Brutes (320)**
– Jagged Gore-hackas
– 2x Gore Choppas
– Reinforced x 1
10 x Orruk Brutes (320)**
– Jagged Gore-hackas
– 2x Gore Choppas
– Reinforced x 1
15 x Orruk Ardboys (255)**
– 2x Gorkamorka Banner Bearers
– 1x Gorkamorka Glyph Bearers
– Reinforced x 2
5 x Orruk Brutes (160)***
– Jagged Gore-hackas
– 1x Gore Choppas
5 x Orruk Ardboys (85)***
– 1x Gorkamorka Banner Bearers
5 x Orruk Ardboys (85)***
– 1x Gorkamorka Banner Bearers

Units
3 x Rippa’s Snarlfangs (70)*

Endless Spells & Invocations
Chronomantic Cogs (40)
Purple Sun of Shyish (70)
Ravenak’s Gnashing Jaws (60)

Core Battalions
*Warlord
**Bounty Hunters
***Expert Conquerors

Additional Enhancements
Artefact

Total: 1985 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 4 / 4
Allies: 0 / 400
Wounds: 157
Drops: 11

The Old…

Some of the list is the same as by GHB21 list; there’s a Wurgogg for the staring competition and two casting whilst he gets there, 2 Warchanters, and two units of ten Brutes. They pretty much do the same as they did in GHB21, except they are brutal against other Galletian Veterans (GVs) due to their ‘Bounty Hunters’ Battalions.

The New…

Having already taken some GVs I’ve decided to lean into it in style… so adding 15 Ardboyz (rallying on a 4+ near the Warchanter), 2 x 5 Arboyz for objective capturing / holding and 5 Brutes for a last minute smash! The small units are all Expert Conquerers (counting as 3 models each for objectives) and the large unit is my third (and final) unit in the Bounty Hunters Battalion – for damage 2 v other GVs.

The Ugly…

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that some of the Endless Spells have got better!

Do I ignore it, and hope I don’t lose a Maw-Krusha or dive into the madness and take the toys! Well there’s only one option — more toys! Lots of toys!

So I’ve taken a Purple Sun & Chromatic Cogs (probably for the extra spell, but the re-roll charges is not bad for Big Waaagh late game). My slightly left field choice is the Ravening Jaws – I’ve loved the model since it was released and so couldn’t resist adding him to the list!

The Fast…

With all the points being used, I have limited options and have to drop the Maw Krusha. This wasn’t too bad though as – although he is good – I don’t fancy him running around with all the Purple Suns in the game. So I’ve downgraded him to a Megaboss on Foot — allowing me to go back to my favourite unit!

Rippa’s Snarlfang are back, baby… and they still rock. To find out why check out my secret post!

Da Plan

So I don’t really have one. I can do all the Battle Tactics, although the Megaboss may require some Wurgogg assistance if he needs to kill something; and the army is slower without the Gore Gruntas and Maw Krusha – but there’s a lot of 4+ save bodies and a lot of screens. Added to that if I keep 3 units alive (except Rippa) I get my Grand Strategy — don’t mind if I do.

I’ll try to take some photos and notes and let you know how I get on.

— Declan

Postscript (added 10th July 2022)

It’s been pointed out that – whilst I adhere to the 3 Endless Spell maximum – there is an additional requirement of 1 wizard per Endless Spell so this list is illegal! Ooops. Not sure what I’d drop, but I’d probably try to fit in a Weirdnob Shaman for an Ardboyz unit to keep it legal — Declan

Age of Sigmar, Army Lists, Fantasy, Games Workshop, Order, Stormcast Eternals, Tournament Preview, Tournaments

Tournament Previews – Stormcast Eternals

July 2, 2022 Declan and Peter 2 Comments

We’ve been discussing at Woehammer how we can bring even more lists for you to look at! So someone (Declan) had the clever idea of doing tournament Previews where we focus on lists form a specific faction each week! This week we’ll mostly be talking about Stormcast Eternals! (Fast Show anyone?)

Declan – So firstly a confession – I have played against Stormcast extensively under GHB21, but I haven’t read GHB22 yet as I had a tournament last weekend. But hopefully I can add some insight!

List 1 – David Hernandez – Open DKHM Verano (GHB 22)

Allegiance: Stormcast Eternals
– Stormhost: Hallowed Knights (Stormkeep)
– Mortal Realm: Ghur
– Grand Strategy: No Place for the Weak
– Triumphs: Inspired

Leaders
Gardus Steel Soul (150)**
Lord-Relictor (145)**
– General
– Command Trait: High Priest
– Artefact: Mirrorshield
– Prayer: Translocation
Lord-Castellant (155)**
– Artefact: Arcane Tome (Universal Artefact)
– Spell: Celestial Blades

Battleline
10 x Liberators (230)*
– Heavens-wrought Weapon and Shield
– 2x Grandweapons
– Reinforced x 1
10 x Judicators with Skybolt Bows (400)
– Reinforced x 1
5 x Liberators (115)**
– Heavens-wrought Weapon and Shield
– 1x Grandweapons

Units
10 x Protectors (450)*
– 4x Starsoul Maces
– Reinforced x 1
2 x Stormdrake Guard (340)*
– Drakerider’s Lance

Core Battalions
*Bounty Hunters
**Warlord

Additional Enhancements
Artefact
Holy Command: Unleash Thy Hatred

Total: 1985 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 3 / 4
Allies: 0 / 400
Wounds: 118
Drops: 8

Declan – This list has a little bit of everything, and it’ll no doubt be able to deal with anything that can be thrown at it. Translocation (teleport) is insanely good with High Priest (re-roll prayer), allowing for great manoeuvrability and coverage of the board.

The Stormdrake Guard (Dragons) are always good with high movement, mortal wound shooting, and a decent close combat attack, all wrapped in a 3+ armour save. That all said I think that the power in this comes from the deceptively good units of 10; Liberators (cheap points per wound, good save), Judicators (24″, 3+/3+/-1/1), and Protectors (3/3+/3+/-1/1). The volume of damage 1 attacks is great in the current meta with Thunder Lizards (-1 damage) still being popular. I’m not sure how to deal with all the 4+ armour saves, and then adding Gardus into the mix! A great list with so many tools.

List 2 – Pete Brizio – Worlds tSports Champions Event (GHB 21)

Allegiance: Stormcast Eternals
– Stormhost: Hammers of Sigmar
– Grand Strategy:
– Triumphs:

Leaders
Lord-Relictor (145)*
– General
– Command Trait: High Priest
– Artefact: Mirrorshield
– Prayer: Translocation
Lord Commander Bastian Carthalos (300)*

Battleline
5 x Liberators (115)*
– Heavens-wrought Weapon and Shield
– 1x Grandweapons
5 x Vindictors (130)*
5 x Vindictors (130)*

Units
6 x Vanguard-Raptors with Longstrike Crossbows (480)*
– Reinforced x 1
4 x Stormdrake Guard (340)*
– Drakerider’s Warblade
– Reinforced x 1

Core Battalions
*Battle Regiment

Total: 1985 / 2000
Reinforced Units: 2 / 4
Allies: 0 / 400
Wounds: 86
Drops: 2

Declan – Pete is playing in GHB21 at the Champions (Worlds) event and he’s brought everything we’ve spoken about and written about before. Longstrikes with teleport will take off most important units before you’ve had a chance to play with them, whilst the Stormdrake Guard are in your face doing damage and pinning into your deployment.

The Liberators & Vindictors are useful little objective holders, and Bastian is hard as nails. The only thing that may cause Pete trouble is a low wound count, but it’s all wrapped up in 3+ and 4+ armour saves; this was a good army throughout GHB21 and will continue to be a popular choice.

Good luck to Pete and his fellow competitors this weekend at the T-Sports Arena.

List 3 – Deinok Xavi – Open DKHM Verano

Army Faction: Stormcast Eternals
– Army Type: Scions of the Storm
– Subfaction: Knights Excelsior
– Grand Strategy: Take What’s Theirs
– Triumph: Inspired

LEADERS
Lord-Arcanum (155)*
– Artefacts of Power: Arcane Tome
– Spells: Celestial Blades
Lord-Relictor (145)*
– General
– Command Traits: High Priest
– Artefacts of Power: Mirrorshield
– Prayers: Translocation
Battlemage (100)*

BATTLELINE
Retributors (470)**
– Retributor-Prime
– 4 x Starsoul Mace
Protectors (450)**
– Protector-Prime
– 4 x Starsoul Mace
Vindictors (130)**
– Azyrite Signifier
– Vindictor-Prime

OTHER
Vanguard-Raptors with Longstrike Crossbows (480)*
– Raptor-Prime

ENDLESS SPELLS & INVOCATIONS
1 x Ravenak’s Gnashing Jaws (60)

CORE BATTALIONS
*Warlord
**Expert Conquerors

TOTAL POINTS: 1990/2000

Declan – Deinok’s gone for a combination of the 2 lists above with a High Priest and Longstrike Crossbows, but no Stormdrake Guards. The Longstrikes are not alone though and have brought the Protectors and Retributors (2/3+/3+/-1/2). These two large units pack a hell of a punch, and with the heroes providing teleport and celestial blades, they can be where needed, and wounding on 2s.

The true genius of this list is the new Gnashing Jaws being taken, leaning into the new GHB22 and what may turn out to be the age of the Endless spell!

Lots of mortal wounds on a 2+ against anything with with a low move characteristic. This is a massive step up to the previous version which only caused mortal wounds on a 6+. Tempted to take it myself.