This is the top three lists for the Old World: Doubles Clash that took place in Milwaukee on the 31st of January 2026. It saw 8 teams with 16 total players vying to be crowned doubles champions in a 3-game tournament. One of each of the doubles scenarios from the Matched Play guide was used and alliances were allowed to be chosen freely so we were able to see some unorthodox team combinations.
This tournament also used the latest faq that was released just a few days prior to the tournament so enjoy the latest results from a tournament format that has always personally been my favorite to play in.
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This is a tournament that happened locally for me and they players requested it be covered so here we are. It is true if you would like us to cover something you ran or played in please let us know!
The Top Three Old World Lists
===
Chris Connolly
Ambush [1248 pts]
Warhammer: The Old World, Beastmen Brayherds, Wild Herd, Grand Melee + Combined Arms
===
++ Characters [504 pts] ++
Beastlord [282 pts]
– Hand weapon
– No armour
– Shield
– General
– On foot
– The Black Maul
– Full Plate Chaos Armour
– Gouge-tusks
– Gnarled Hide
Wargor [222 pts]
– Hand weapon
– No armour
– Shield
– Battle Standard Bearer [Monster Hunter’s Tapestry]
– On foot
– Horn of the Great Hunt
– Heavy Chaos Armour
– Slug-skin
++ Core Units [574 pts] ++
Primal Warherd [228 pts]
– Foe-render (champion) [Great weapon]
– Standard bearer [War Banner]
– Musician
– 18x Gors [10x Hand weapons + Shields]
– 10x Ungors [10x Thrusting spears + Shields]
15 Gor Herd [132 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Additional hand weapons
– Ambushers
– True-horn (champion) [Great weapon]
– Standard bearer
10 Ungor Herd [60 pts]
– Shortbows
– Ambushers
10 Ungor Herd [50 pts]
– Shortbows
– Ambushers
1 Razorgor Herd [52 pts]
– Hand weapons (tusks)
– Light armour (calloused hide)
1 Razorgor Herd [52 pts]
– Hand weapons (tusks)
– Light armour (calloused hide)
++ Special Units [170 pts] ++
Preyton [170 pts]
– Hand weapons (Claws and fangs)
– Twisted antlers
– Ambushers
===
Kellen Binder
1249pts Wood Elf Realms
===
++ Characters [485 pts] ++
Treeman Ancient [275 pts]
(Oaken fists, Strangleroots, Full plate armour (Arboreal armour), Wizard [Level 2 Wizard], Ambushers, General, Battle Magic)
Spellweaver [210 pts]
(Hand weapon, Wizard [Level 3 Wizard], Warhawk, Glamour Weave Kindred, Lore of the Wilds)
++ Core Units [331 pts] ++
10 Eternal Guard [130 pts]
(Hand weapon, Asrai spears, Light armour, Shields)
14 Dryads [201 pts]
(Hand weapon, Light armour (Sapwood flesh), Ambushers, Nymph)
++ Special Units [208 pts] ++
4 Tree Kin [208 pts]
(Hand weapon, Heavy armour (Hardwood flesh), Ambushers, Elder)
++ Rare Units [225 pts] ++
Treeman [225 pts]
(Oaken fists, Strangleroots, Full plate armour (Arboreal armour), Ambushers)
What was different about list building for doubles than singles tournaments? What was the process and what were the end goals of your list when building?
I’ll start with the end goal. That was effectively to build something that was off-meta. We were calling it the Meme list, because it was mostly Ambushers. I think we had 5 drops total. The difference in list building this time was just finding ways to compliment each others lists, but also have them stand on their own, if needed. I sort of brought the board presence gameplan with the big Primal Warherd brick, and multiple US10+ scoring units in Ambush, and Kellen brought more heavy hitting units like Treemen, Tree-kin and his Spellweaver. It made it easy in the games to know what our roles were.
What worked well with your armies? Did you have any surprise off meta units that did better than expected?
Honestly, running a majority Ambusher off-meta list actually worked extremely well for us. I don’t know if that would translate to singles 2k events, but a lot of our opponents had to play a very reactive game and didn’t really take some of the lower profile Ambushers into account, like the Ungors. They seemed prepared for the scarier units like Treemen, Tree-kin and Preyton, but the Ungors got our opponents’ baggage trains in the two scenarios it was there for and contributed heavily to the Domination secondaries. Having a low number of drops on the table for turn 1 and 2 forced our opponents’ to close in and engage lower value targets like the Razorgor. A bunch of our off-meta units did great. The Treeman Ancient and regular Treeman absolutely carried game 3 for us. That was an incredibly impressive showing from them. I think they collectively scored over 1,200 kill points. But the Preyton was also a surprisingly good unit. All 3 games it outperformed my expectations, and never gave up points. Turns out dropping a T5 monster with decent output into your opponents’ backlines is actually pretty good.
What was your general strategy going into the tournament?
Have fun haha. We really didn’t think we’d do so well with this list, so our goal was to just play well and have fun. In seriousness though, we tried to use the terrain and our high mobility units (and Ambush deployment) to create smaller winnable combats rather than risking big open battles. Using the massive Warherd brick as a deterrent unit was very effective too. Nobody wants to engage a Beastlord with d6+4 S7 AP-4 attacks. Then using the Ambushers, generate as many points through objectives as we could.
What would you change in your lists going forward? I
t was so impressive, I’d find a way to fit a second Preyton haha
This tournament was days after the old world faq drop and this tournament went full send using all the new rules. Did you notice any differences with the new rules? What was better or worse with it?
Well we played against a list that had Cathay in round 1. And we immediately found that the balloons were less game dominating. They had a character balloon and a regular balloon. Since the output has been decently reduced on them, we just kind of ignored the character balloon and focused on taking out the regular one since its defensive profile is significantly weaker now. Worked in our favor quite well. Dryads having the extra pip of movement really worked well for us too. Bringing them out of Ambush, letting them get that bit closer to artillery and other favorable match-up units made them that bit more consistent, I think. Aside from that our armies didn’t really have anything impacted by the changes. But we like the changes overall.
Any closing thoughts?
Everyone should start running spam Ambushers, and if you’re a Beastmen player, run max Preytons, they’re actually much better in practice than I thought. S-tier unit.
===
Chris
Wolves of the Sea
===
### Characters [532 pts]
– Sorcerer Lord (Sraheda the Lord of Ravens) [301 pts]
-# (Hand weapon, Heavy armour, Mark of Chaos [Mark of Tzeentch], Wizard [Level 3 Wizard], General, Chaos Steed, Lore Familiar, Spell Familiar, Enchanting Aura, Daemonology)
– Exalted Sorcerer (Dymetri the Craven Crow) [231 pts]
-# (Hand weapon, Light armour, Mark of Chaos [Mark of Tzeentch], Wizard [Level 2 Wizard], Chaos Steed, Grimoire of Ogvold, Diabolic Splendour, Shadowlands)
### Core Units [315 pts]
– 5 Marauder Berserkers (The Mad Shadows) [68 pts]
-# (Hand weapons, Flails, Light armour, Ambushers, Headtaker (Champion), Unnatural Fortitude)
– 20 Chaos Marauders (The Tribe of Turui) [247 pts]
-# (Hand weapons, Great weapons, Light armour, Shields, Chaotic Cult [None], Formation [Close Order], Marauder Headman (champion) [Enchanted Shield], Standard bearer, Musician, Unnatural Fortitude)
### Special Units [402 pts]
– 8 Marauder Tribe Huscarls (The Hammers of Fate) [292 pts]
-# (Hand weapons, Flails, Light armour, Shields, Drilled, Mark of Chaos [Mark of Tzeentch], First Sword (champion) [Brazen Collar], Standard bearer [Totem of Wrath], Unnatural Fortitude)
– Chaos Chariot (The Ice Runner) [110 pts]
-# (Hand weapons, Halberds, Mark of Chaos Undivided)
===
Paul
Beastmen Brayherds [1246 pts]
===
++ Characters [301 pts] ++
Doombull [301 pts] (Gholgak the Brutalizer) *TEAM GENERAL*
– Hand weapon
– Heavy armour
– General
– The Black Maul
– Charmed Shield
++ Core Units [349 pts] ++
29 Gor Herd [245 pts] (Gholgak’s Manflayers)
– Hand weapons
– Additional hand weapons
– True-horn [Great weapon]
– Standard bearer [Banner of Outrage]
– Musician
1 Razorgor Herd [52 pts] (Chris P. Bacon)
– Hand weapons (tusks)
– Light armour (calloused hide)
1 Razorgor Herd [52 pts] (Wilbur)
– Hand weapons (tusks)
– Light armour (calloused hide)
++ Special Units [337 pts] ++
4 Dragon Ogres [264 pts] (Sons of Derghur)
– Great weapons
– Heavy armour
1 Dragon Ogres [73 pts] (Takshar the Shartak)
– Great weapons
– Heavy armour
– Shartak
++ Rare Units [259 pts] ++
Dragon Ogre Shaggoth [259 pts] (Derghur the Blackened)
– Great weapon
– Light armour
– Heavy Chaos Armour
What was different about list building for doubles than singles tournaments? What was the process and what were the end goals of your list when building?
The biggest difference between doubles and singles is looking out for all potential rules and gameplay interactions between you and your partner’s army. For example using my friend’s team, they ran a Cathay and Wood Elf double gunline list which on paper would have worked well, but in practice they forgot to account for the extra free forest terrain the Wood Elf player got to place, which REALLY blocked his cannons LOS and shooting arcs. The effects of stuff like that in play is hard to foresee unless you bring your lists to the table. So I recommend doing a trial run of your armies before joining any doubles tournaments.
What worked well with your armies? Did you have any surprise off meta units that did better than expected?
Our lists had great synergy; both wanted to get up the board as quickly and possible and both of us had super killy units (the Gor-Doombull brick and my Huscarls) that could carry the weight if the other got destroyed. In game 2 for example we lost the Doombull and his gors turn 1 due to some unlucky combat rolls, but my Huscarls were around to clean up the board and bring it to a draw instead of a loss. Off-meta wise, the Tzeentch Huscarl brick is something I haven’t seen a lot in tournament WotS lists but it just feels so strong. Enchanting Aura alongside Daemonic Vessel, Totem of Wrath, and two assailment spells that function like Viletide (Daemonic Familiars and Shadowed Assailants) is no joke. Three attacks on each rider at S6 with AP4 and rerolling 1s to wound while striking before them, even when counter charging is just insane.
What was your general strategy going into the tournament?
For me and my partner, his Big Gor-Doombull brick and Dragon Ogre heavy list did a great job of distracting the enemy. He just marched everything forward while my Tzeentch Huscarl brick made its way into position and destroyed anything it got into combat with. It was impossible to stop too because everyone was so focused on the Shaggoth and regular DOs that enemy cannonballs and other shooting that could have threatened it never made its way towards the Huscarls. The Doombull brick itself was also extremely good in combat, allowing it to chew through whatever the sent to deal with it (except the Ogre Butcher brick in the second game, which managed to beat it as mentioned).
What would you change in your lists going forward?
The Chaos Chariot didn’t really do much, so if I were to run this again I would drop that 100%. Two or three skinwolves would have done a better job of clearing out chaff and running through their backlines.
This tournament was days after the old world faq drop and this tournament went full send using all the new rules. Did you notice any differences with the new rules? What was better or worse with it?
The only difference was the change to how characters retire when not in combat. Before the FAQ it seemed most people played it as characters not fitting in the front rank had to retire to the back but could still cast spells, which was great since I could enter marching column with the Huscarls and still get my buffs off. With the new FAQ strongly implying they can’t contribute at all even outside combat, it meant there was never any reason to enter marching column anymore.
Any closing thoughts?
Doubles really feels like the most fun you can have playing The Old World. I recommend it to anyone on the fence 100%! You see more interesting lists and negotiating/strategizing with a teammate in game adds another layer that is both fun and tactical.
===
Steve Sorenson
Hostile Resolve [1250 pts]
Warhammer: The Old World, Dark Elves, Open War
===
++ Characters [225 pts] ++
Supreme Sorceress [225 pts]
– Hand weapon
– Wizard [Level 3 Wizard]
– General
– Dark Pegasus
– Pendant of Khaeleth
– Battle Magic
++ Core Units [321 pts] ++
6 Dark Riders [114 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Cavalry spears
– Repeater crossbows
– Light armour
– Musician
16 Repeater Crossbowmen [207 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Repeater crossbows
– Light armour
– Shields
– Lordling (champion)
– Standard bearer
– Musician
++ Special Units [504 pts] ++
17 Har Ganeth Executioners [273 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Har Ganeth greatswords
– Heavy armour
– Draich Master (champion)
– Standard bearer
– Musician
6 Cold One Knights [231 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Lances
– Shields
– Full plate armour
– Dread Knight (champion)
– Standard bearer
– Musician
++ Rare Units [200 pts] ++
War Hydra [200 pts]
– Wicked claws
– Serrated maws
– Hand weapons
– Whips
– 5+
===
Michael Sorenson
High Elf Realms [1247 pts]
Warhammer: The Old World, High Elf Realms, Open War
===
++ Characters [295 pts] ++
Archmage [295 pts]
– Hand weapon
– Wizard [Level 3 Wizard]
– General
– Great Eagle
– Seed of Rebirth
– Talisman of Protection
– Lore Familiar
– Elementalism
++ Core Units [397 pts] ++
21 Elven Spearmen [235 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Thrusting spears
– Light armour
– Shields
– Shieldwall
– Veteran
– Sentinel (champion)
– Standard bearer
– Musician
6 Silver Helms [162 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Lances
– Hand weapons (Hooves)
– Heavy armour
– Barding
– Shields
– High Helm (champion)
– Standard bearer
– Musician
++ Special Units [555 pts] ++
21 Swordmasters of Hoeth [312 pts]
– Swords of Hoeth
– Heavy armour
– Bladelord
– Standard bearer
– Musician
6 Dragon Princes [243 pts]
– Hand weapons
– Lances
– Full plate armour
– Shields
– Barding
– Drakemaster
– Standard bearer
– Musician
