New Rules - Part V: The Fallen Realms, Part II

Good morning gamers,

Today we’re wrapping up our discussion of the armies of evil by tackling the other side of the Fallen Realms book, where we’ll talk about Isengard (two lists) the Eastern Kingdoms (two lists) - we've already covered Mordor, Angmar/Moria, and the other Fallen Realms armies in case you've missed those. As mentioned in our previous posts, you should also check out Mik's Veni Vidi Vici blog for thoughts from the “experts.”

1) The New Lists: Isengard, the Easterlings, the Variags of Khand, and Sharkey’s Rogues

These four lists haven’t changed too much since the last version (besides being broken out from each other). The Easterlings and the Variags of Khand are virtually unchanged, except that most of the Easterling models got common rules that encourage running them as large blocks of units. Isengard, on the other hand, has seen many changes: they got one of the best army bonuses in the game, their captains have increased slightly in price (offsetting what used to be a free Strength point) and Lurtz finally got improved to be what we always wanted. Saruman also got improvements to make him more like the Saruman the White profile that we’ve loved for the armies of Good since forever (and ultimately making him a very powerful piece on the board now). Perhaps the greatest shift is seeing Sharkey’s Rogues turn into their own list again. While I liked Ruffian archers as a cheap volley team in the Warbands sourcebooks, the army rule provided to Sharkey’s Rogues allows you to run warbands without leaders, which can be a very, VERY powerful thing (but no spoilers yet).

2) The Army Bonuses: Army Composition and Courage

Let's start with this:

The army bonuses for these armies – in the main – should be kept. 

Khand’s bonus allows you to take as many horsemen and bow-armed chariots as you like, which greatly improves your mobility (don’t really need infantry) and your ability to skirmish with people (though running things over with chariots is fun). While this isn’t a necessary army bonus, it’s very, VERY nice (though it does limit your ally choices). Without the Sharkey’s Rogues special rule, you’re limited to a single warband of guys (17 guys + Worm), which is not going to be a good allied contingent on its own, ignoring the fact that your alliance becomes Impossible allies with everyone. Plus, thanks to the Sharkey’s Rogues bonus, Sharkey’s Stand Fast! Covers the entire battlefield, so you can keep him hidden for most of the game, and then make him pop up somewhere high up and visible when your force is being beaten down to keep everyone on the field.

Isengard’s bonus (as stated previously) is one of the best – allowing you to avoid those darn courage tests for when your army is broken until far closer to the end of the game (saving you costly units running away for no good reason), as well as allowing you to chase through woods or run screaming to an objective with some of your warriors and many of your heroes more easily. The only group I think that can easily lose their army bonus is the Easterlings – while occasionally useful, it’s not really that necessary to the “turtling” strategy that they run. That said, might as well keep it sometimes (but don’t feel like you have to).

3) The Lists: Isengard

Isengard was the third army I heartily pursued and it’s been a long struggle to find something I like to run with them (despite bringing them to every other tournament, it seems). :-) With the new rules, Isengard has been reinvigorated for me, giving you lots of options for create use and loads of fun to play on the table. We’ll be looking at a themed scout list first and then an allied team that drops the army’s special bonuses in favor of cheaper, durable troops.

List #1: Find the Halflings!
Lurtz with shield – 90

Ugluk – 65

Mauhur – 60

Uruk-Hai Drummer – 35

1 Orc Warrior with shield – 6

20 Uruk-Hai Scouts with shields – 180

6 Uruk-Hai Scouts with maces - 54

11 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai Bows - 110

We have 1 warrior slot left (using to hold the Drummer right now in the Marauder warband), but you could very easily drop the drummer and pick up a banner-carrying Warrior. Now some of the things we’ve done here might seem a little odd. First off, the lone Orc Warrior is there simply as chaff for Ugluk’s Head Taker rule (which now affects heroes as well as warriors, which is nice – of course, you’ll not be taking Courage tests as early as you used to, but still). We’ve taken a prodigious number Uruk-Hai Scouts with shields – average defense models who can now run through woods without hindrance.

We’ve also included my favorite type of Marauders (the kind that can shoot while running really fast), and with a Heroic March to push these guys further than the drum/Marauder upgrade normally do, you can move a good 7.5” and still shoot with your bows (which are now S3) – perfect for gaining ground while softening up your opponent (which you’ll need since you lack spears). The final pack of guys we’ve included are some un-shielded Uruk-Hai Scouts with maces (who cost just as much as their shield-touting comrades). Why????

The answer is pretty simple: we need to kill things. While hand axes might be a tempting choice (the initial post of this army had hand axes to fight D5/D7 units better), maces allow you to put someone on the ground via Bash (your S4 should give you an edge over most warrior units and an even shot against heroes). Since anyone who charges a unit on the ground is immune to being killed by that unit, you can send lighter units to attack those guys OR march in a hero in safety. Of course, nothing precludes you from Bashing someone who is also fighting Lurtz/Ugluk/Mauhur, in which case, you get the wounding roll on the same turn as the Bash roll. Unlike most Uruk armies, this army has more than 40 guys (42 to be exact) and it includes some of our favorite heroes from the mix (though you could replace Ugluk with Vrasku if you wanted…though you should then drop the Orc and give shields to all those mace-wielding Uruk Scouts).

List #2: The Might Drain
Saruman the Wise – 180

Grima Wormtongue – 25

6 Uruk-Hai Warriors with shields - 60

5 Uruk-Hai Warriors with pikes - 50

6 Uruk-Hai Warriors with crossbows - 66

Ally: Mordor

The Dwimmerlaik - 120

5 Morannon Orcs with shields and spears – 45

6 Black Numenoreans - 54

I’ll be honest: I’ve always wanted to run this list. Though we’ve given up our army bonus, we’ve done the thematically appropriate thing of bringing Saruman’s army to join forces with the Dark Lord’s minions. While the glaringly obvious problem with this list is the almost complete lack of Might points, you’re not going to be that hurt by your opponent’s Might, since this deck is all about draining their Might (and Will and Fate) points as quickly as possible. Let’s take a look.

Saruman is powerful – you’ve got a great array of spells including Command at 18” on a 3+ and Flameburst at 6” on a 5+ (though Sorcerous Blast is still my go-to on a 4+). With a free reroll each time Saruman makes a cast, he doesn’t need to spend a lot of Will each time, making him a game-long caster and a deadly adversary. If you target your opponent’s heroes as soon as they get within 18” of Saruman with Command, he’ll need to spend his Will point to resist you (or stay out of the fight for the entire game).

Whoever isn’t targeted by Saruman will be around the Dwimmerlaik (who casts Drain Courage on a 2+, making it very, VERY hard to charge your Terror models, like the Black Numenoreans or the Dwimmerlaik or Saruman). Any foes who try to use Might/Will/Fate near the Dwimmerlaik (including people resisting the spells of the Dwimmerlaik) may need to spend extra points to make their first point work (which is often impossible in the case of Will/Fate, since many characters only have 1 point of either). The magic coming from these two guys is incredible (though don’t cast too much with the Dwimmerlaik – you need your Will for the Might/Will/Fate drain rule).

And skulking around the enemy ranks causing as much havoc as he can is Grima, who makes any hero nearby him spend 2 Might points to call Heroic Actions. We’ve left one spot in Saruman’s warband in case your opponent has full warbands on his side of the table, but obviously you want him deployed with your opponent if you possibly can. While Grima can be tied down, putting him near an infantry hero (generic Captains are my favorite, since they only have 2 Might) will keep them from calling heroic actions as much, giving your team a sizeable advantage. Never EVER attack someone with Grima – it’s better to have him standing around on a rear objective or chatting with a hero trying to focus as they march towards the army of Uruks.

And to protect these three units, we have the fist of Isengard (17 Uruk-Hai Warriors with shields, pikes, or crossbows), as well as some hardened units from Mordor (5 Morannon Orcs – mini Uruks – and 6 Black Numenoreans). While we could have spammed more models, we wanted our units in this list to be resilient (since we only have 31 models in this list). All told, this list is fun (and not VERY competitive), but don’t underestimate it (and try not to be a jerk while using it). :-)

4) The Lists: The Easterlings

Ah, Easterlings. The army I love to see, the army I love to face, and the army I’ll never own. Easterlings are a lot like many other civs – their basic infantry are basically mirror-images of Warriors of Minas Tirith, they can be upgraded to look like Uruk-Hai (but with better Courage instead of Strength), and their cavalry are a lot like Knights of Minas Tirith (but without the lances). With almost no named heroes (besides Amdur and Khamul – who shows up in the Mordor list), you’ve basically got an evil version of Minas Tirith. EXCEPT that while Minas Tirith has one of the most robust warrior selections of any army in the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game, the Easterlings have … basically nothing. Ergo, armies of Easterlings, like High Elves or Numenor, must rely on one or two kinds of models (and a handful of generic heroes) to win the day. As such, I have no intention of owning these guys, but we’ll talk about them anyway.

List #1: Armored Assault
Amdur, Lord of Blades with armored horse – 145

Easterling Dragon Knight – 65

Easterling War Priest – 60

7 Black Dragon Warriors with shields – 70

16 Black Dragon Warriors with pikes and shields – 176

6 Easterling Kataphrakts - 84

This is the kind of list I’ve grown accustomed to seeing (except for maybe the horses) – long line of Black Dragons led by Amdur and a Dragon Knight, War Priest making the Dragon Knight or Amdur do more damage, Kataphrakts to cause trouble or smash into your flank/supporting units/archers. It’s not exciting, but it does work. The Black Dragon upgrade (paired with the army special rule after you’re broken) makes this battle line remarkably good at charging terror units, as well as makes your line F4. While a two-deep line was always a thing, the new Phalanx rule allows a three-deep line to be much more viable (which we’ve chosen to do, with some models supporting the Dragon Knight). Having a battle line like this can lead to trapped models if you’re not careful (it’s not particularly long as far as battle lines go), but provided you use your cavalry (with Amdur at their head) to protect your flanks so your front-liners can power through, you should be fine.

One thing I’d consider doing is this: drop 1 Easterling Kataphrakt to give your Black Dragons with shields and your other Kataphrakts hand axes. Being able to be S4 (especially since the Kataphrakts gain the Shieldwall rule, despite being Cavalry) allows Easterlings to do the one thing they normally can’t: kill stuff. Yes, getting 3 dice to wound is good, but if you need 6s, it can still be hard to come by. Axes help a lot with that. While weapon swaps add up if you do them across a lot models, dropping one model to make a bunch of your other models more effective seems like a good trade to me.

List #2: Hammers and Anvil
Amdur, Lord of Blades – 130

Easterling Dragon Knight – 65

11 Black Dragon Warriors with shields – 110

10 Easterling Warriors with pikes and shields – 90

Ally: Moria

Moria Blackshield Captain – 45

2 Cave Trolls with hand-and-a-half hammers - 160

You know how I just got through saying that Easterlings have problems wounding people? Well, this solves all those problems. :-) While you only have 26 models, you’ve got a solid anvil battle line, supported by two 3A heroes as well as an allied contingent flushed with two-handed weapons. Moria Blackshield Captains are reasonably Courageous (Courage 4) and come with a two-handed sword, while the Cave Trolls have Burly two-handers (great for pulverizing things). All your Easterlings need to do is hold out long enough for the monsters and heroes to do their thing. If facing siege engines, you’ve got plenty of guys to scatter on to protect your Trolls (watch maelstrom deployments), making this list hard to deal with. Probably not as competitive as the last list, but very, VERY fun.

5) The Lists: The Variags of Khand

Khand, like Far Harad, is hard to do as a solo army. Yes, you can pick up lots of Chariots, a veritable horde of warriors, or tons of cavalry archers. Whatever you choose to do, it won’t be very exciting. Period. You’ll have a bunch of the same. Old. Warriors. Not much fun. However, as an allied contingent, Khand is one of the most powerful additions you can have, as they provide you with fast, durable chariots (great at charging and absorbing archery) and reasonably cheap horse archers. These lists all assume an alliance (one Historical, one Convenient), but Khand remains the central focus of each army.

List #1: The Eastern Hammer and Anvil
1 Khandish King with Chariot – 125

13 Khandish Horsemen – 169

1 Khandish Charioteer with bow - 30

Ally: The Easterlings

Amdur, Lord of Blades – 130

8 Black Dragon Warriors with shields – 80

6 Black Dragon Warriors with pikes and shields – 66

Khandish infantry, while cheap, are not very effective or resilient. Their profile (and cost) is similar to a Corsair or a Dunlending, but their Defense isn’t as good as Dunland and their ability to skirmish isn’t as good as Corsairs (and the cost is comparable). Easterling infantry, by comparison are good – albeit a bit expensive. While Easterling infantry pride themselves on marching in tight formations and keeping the arrows out (a Tseudo formation if you will), their cavalry are just a tad too expensive for my taste. Khandish horsemen are a bit cheaper but have the ability to skirmish (and if the horse dies, you can spring up a two-handed warrior where the horse died to support your block of infantry). I will note that we could have taken 2 Dragon Knights to lead this allied group instead of Amdur and used some of the extra cash to pick up some additional Khandish warriors, but we love Amdur (and he really helps the battle line function better).

List #2: Cavalry Charge
1 Khandish King with Chariot – 125

5 Khandish Charioteers - 150
1 Khandish Charioteers with bows – 30

2 Khandish Horsemen - 26

Ally: Far Harad

Mahud King with War Spear, Shield, and War Camel – 90

9 Mahud Raiders with War Spears – 162

1 Mahud Raider - 17

While the Easterlings provide heavy infantry to augment Khandish units, Far Harad provides high-impact charging cavalry. Since we lost the army bonus that allows us to take unlimited bows on our horse archers and chariots, we’ve decided to focus on the Chariot aspect of this army (7 total) and bring a ton of Camels to assist in the charge (11 total). Both of these kinds of cavalry deal impact damage to their targets, so it’s possible to remove some of your opponent’s units before the fighting even begins. Obviously this army will want to save its Might points for Heroic Moves to guarantee it gets to charge, but I’m not convinced how competitive it really is. Still, if you can run it, it would be very, VERY fun (as it maximizes one niche aspect of the game: impact hits).

6) The Lists: Sharkey’s Rogues

Okay, truth time: I’ve been looking forward to writing about this army for a long, LONG time. Sharkey’s Rogues is perhaps the most limited list in the game – it has one hero choice (which is really two heroes in one and they’re both terrible) and one warrior choice (which has very little gear options, with the only standard weapon option being a bow). Ruffians are some of the least combat proficient models in the game and while they’re blissfully cheap, they’re unlikely to best anyone that isn’t a Goblin or a Hobbit.

So why all the excitement? Because like Hobbits and Goblins, it’s not about how good the model is – it’s about how many you can field. Take a look at this for example:

List #1: Sharkey’s Chumps
Sharkey and Worm – 60

49 Ruffians with whips – 294

31 Ruffians with bows – 186

12 Ruffians - 60

This army sports a whopping 94 models – almost all of the Ruffians have one of the equipment options, giving you 49 low-strength, short-range throwing weapon attacks and 31 normal bow shots (granted, they have a terrible shoot value, but still). On its own, getting above 90 models isn’t THAT much of a bonus. What makes this team incredible, though, is that the army bonus 1) allows you to field these guys in small gangs without a hero to lead them, but also 2) Sharkey’s Stand Fast! Affects the entire battlefield, meaning that you can hide Sharkey until you’re nearing getting broken, run him up somewhere high that everyone can see, and then call a Stand Fast! To keep your monstrously large army in the field. Who wouldn’t want to do that?

List #2: Forget Whips – Just Bash Them!
Sharkey and Worm – 60

35 Ruffians with bows – 210

66 Ruffians - 330

This variant basically assumes that you don’t want equipment (except bows) and you just want numbers. I think having lots of bows (nearly 33%) is a good thing, since it allows you to get your Ruffians in action before they charge, but the rest of the strategy is literally just to have a bunch of Ruffians clogging up important points on the table. With 103 models in this list (9 more than the previous), it’s unclear to me if this is more competitive or less competitive. The MOST competitive list would probably be a variant of the first list, dropping 2 unequipped models, and allowing the remaining 10 unequipped models to take axes. Since Whips allow you to Whirl, each guy already has the options for Stun or Stab (let’s assume for a minute that you’re not Feinting), and Bash provides an incentive to having higher Strength or using a two-handed weapon (neither of which we have), Piercing Strike is the only attack that makes that much sense. All told, paying 6 points per model isn’t a bad thing (and you’d still have 92 models, which is still outrageously high).

We’re not covering any historic/convenient allies here because Sharkey’s Rogues doesn’t have any in either category. Since you lose your army bonus unless you’re taking a Historical ally, a true Sharkey’s Rogues army is going to be mono-themed (you TECHNCIALLY could have an Impossible Alliance with them, but I don’t think their allied contingent would provide very much and I don’t think they’d last very long).

With this post complete, we turn from the armies of evil to the armies of good. While the Warband era had only two sourcebooks dedicated to the armies of good, we’ll be dividing them into three parts. In our next post, we’ll cover the Kingdoms of Men, and we’ll wrap up with two posts on the Free Peoples of Middle-Earth. Until next time, happy hobbying!