Top 5 Profile Changes - Thorin's Company Edition

Good morning gamers,

We're back in anticipation land, looking forward to the upcoming new edition of MESBG and proposing models that should get some revamps. Today's focus is on Thorin's Company - and while others have put forward some very interesting ideas for changes to Thorin's Company, most players agree that there's just something missing about these guys (and what's missing might not be fixable with a Legendary Legion - or instead of getting a Legion, we should just fix the profiles in the first place).

Like I did last time, I'm going to limit my scalpel to a single rule for each model - and while there are fifteen members of Thorin's Company, I'm going to limit myself to only fixing five of them. I'd like to begin by listing the models that will NOT be showing up on this list - mostly because they provide interesting utility options right now and as such don't need any incentives to make them more appetizing choices:

• Thorin Oakenshield - like many beater Dwarf heroes, you get an excellent combat profile and one of the most resilient Dwarf Heroes of Legend in the game (with 3 Attacks/Wounds/Might/Will/Fate) for 100-115pts. His only real downside is that his only mount option is a pony, which means he can move faster, but can't knock anyone prone (the required courage test to charge is rarely an issue).
• Gloin the Dwarf - at 85 points, Gloin has a better combat profile than a Dwarf King (who maxes out at 85pts, but is probably fielded for 75-80pts in most cases) and as the only other member of Thorin's Company above D6 (besides Thorin), I usually field Thorin with Oakenshield and Orcrist with Gloin in any Thorin's Company-heavy list for 200pts.
• Dwalin the Dwarf - look, for 95 points, I don't always take Dwalin because with D6 and only 2 Wounds/2 Fate, he's not ALWAYS going to survive, but 3 Attacks with S5/Burly is going to get work done, especially against grunts.
• Bifur the Dwarf - 45 points for potentially free Heroic Moves (usually if you can get a 5+ on a To Wound roll) and 2-Might-and-Strike from F4 (or 2-Might-to-boost-that-wounding-roll)? Yes please . . .
• Bombur the Dwarf - if you didn't follow any of my crazy Balin-Floi-Bombur builds from earlier in the year . . . yeah, I love this guy! Even if getting Will points back is secondary to your strategy, 3 Wounds/1 Fate with 2 Might and Heroic Defense makes him a pretty good road block against some of the nastiest beaters in the game. You cannot, however, use his Might for Heroic Moves, which is both fine and sad (and totally thematic - please don't change that, GW!).
• Ori the Dwarf - 40 points for a slingshot guy that might auto-wound and pass in-the-way tests and can also get you Might points back after you kill big things? Um, yeah! Sure, he's squishy as heck, but if he's running behind Thorin, Gloin, and possibly Dwalin, he's usually pretty safe (and boy are extra resources useful).
• Gandalf the Grey - yes, I wouldn't mind seeing his Attacks-equal-to-remaining-Wounds rule from the Vanquishers applied to his Grey form (I talked last time about being okay with that in his White form), but I'm not going to talk about revamping Gandalf because frankly, I think he's fine the way he is (or more appropriately, he can't be fixed neatly with a single rule).
• Bilbo Baggins - while I'd like to see the One Ring cost points instead of having the points cost for the Ring included in the base price of all Ringbearers, there isn't much you can change about the Young Bilbo profile without also making changes to other Hobbit profiles. So, let's leave that one as-is and enjoy using Bilbo, okay?
• Dori the Dwarf - I could see some changes to Dori's profile to make him compete more with his Champ version, but honestly, I think for 55pts, you could do a lot worse than this profile - you have slightly higher Fight Value and much better Courage than a vanilla Hunter Orc Captain for only 10pts more. I think this one's fine.
• Nori the Dwarf- Same song, different orchestra. Having S4/Burly will kill a lot of things, and while I think Nori wants to be clearing out warriors as much as possible, having F5/Strike with 2 Might is pretty good (and since he's about the same cost as a Knight of the White Tower, I don't think his cost is outrageous - -1 Defense, +1 Courage, 5pts cheaper).

This leaves us with five profiles, so naturally, those are the ones we're going to work on today! We'll start with . . .

Profile #1: Bofur the Dwarf

Look, I don't think this guy is bad - I wrote a whole article on why he's good. I also don't think that he needs Burly or Weapon Master to be useful because I don't think two-handed weapons with penalties are bad (I wrote a whole article on that too). What I don't like about Bofur the Dwarf is that he has a Mattock (a two-handed weapon - which are also not bad) instead of a Pick-Hammer (a hand-and-a-half weapon, which is naturally awesome). My change to this profile is simple: change the Mattock to a Pick-Hammer.

While I'm perfectly fine fielding Bofur as-is in a Thorin's Company list - and even in an alliance - in an all-hero list where your surplus of Might is one of the biggest appeals (it's certainly not the pervasive F4/D5), having to fight two-handed all the time does make most players avoid this guy . . . and on some days, I'm one of them. I don't mind per se that mattocks are two-handed weapons in the game - Dwarf Warriors were some of the first models I bought for SBG and they have two-handed axes instead of hand-and-a-half axes - but on a hero model, I'd prefer to have the flexibility of being able to choose. There are situations for two-handing (to Bash or Piercing Strike/strike normally - though special strikes appear to be going away in the new edition) and there are situations for one-handing (mostly to not die when surrounded) - and on a hero model, it would be nice to pick (did you see what I did there?).

This isn't a rule change per se, but it changes one of his existing rules (attached to a piece of wargear), which is similar enough for our purposes. If he had the option to one-hand, the on-paper appearance of the profile improves dramatically - a cheap F4 hero who can shrug off magical powers that target him directly or affect his area is really good (he doesn't have Strike in this form, so he's probably still not as good as Bifur), but it does make him an interesting hitting piece for storming a magical bastion or a F3/D6 shieldwall.

Okay, on to my least favorite Thorin's Company member . . .

Profile #2: Balin the Dwarf

Okay, so my opinion of this guy has improved some since messing around with Impossible Alliances between Thorin's Company and the Kingdom of Khazad-Dum with Floi (because you can't run the Kingdom of Moria if you take Balin from Thorin's Company . . . blame identity crises and timeline breaks). There are a lot of issues with this profile, not least of which is that Balin is only S3 and only has 1 Attack. Yes, he can help you get priority when you really need it and rolled terribly (the reroll's utility goes down dramatically if you rolled high to start or if you're opponent got a 6-high), but if you're going to run an all-hero list, everyone has to be (or at least should be) somewhat capable of killing stuff. And this version of Balin . . . just isn't.

While I'm on record for saying that this version of Balin is better than Champ-Balin when he's not driving a chariot, that's mostly because THAT version of Balin has to fight two-handed (an opinion which I should probably back off from, given my more recent article on why two-handing is okay), costs a bit more, and while the increase in resilience is good (D8 is just better than D5), having a 40pt hero who isn't going to reliably kill a model a turn is better than a 65pt hero who isn't going to reliably kill a model a turn once he's out of Might (which he still only has 1 Might, so that could happen rather quickly). If our goal is to kill things more reliably, there's a good thematic way to do that for Balin: Balin gains the Hatred (Orc) special rule.

Like one of my recommended fixes for OsVets last time, Hatred is a seldom-used rule in MESBG, but it's one of the best ways to narrowly-tailor a rule so that you can have thematic awesomeness without overall brokenness. If Balin got Burly and his sword-mace got +1 To Wound against everything . . . well, why? I mean, he hits things hard with that sword-thing, but is it really going to do more damage than Aragorn's ranger sword (which should totally be a hand-and-a-half sword, but more on that some other time)? Is the solution really just to give some models +1 To Wounds against everything if you need them to hit harder? I don't think so . . .

. . . but what if it only worked against one race or faction? It makes sense for the men of Arnor to hate the filth of Angmar, so they have Hatred (Angmar). It makes sense for the enraged Wildmen of Dunland to hate the "murderers" from Rohan, so the Wildmen of Dunland have Hatred (Rohan). It makes sense for the Blackshields of Moria to hate all Dwarf folk, so they have Hatred (Dwarf). It all makes sense - and if you run anything that doesn't have these keywords, you won't be affected by these rules (just because your random Dunland hillman or your stoic Arnor guardsman doesn't like one group of people, it doesn't mean he's going to transfer that same hatred to someone else just because he can give them a good thumping).

If we want more damage coming out of Balin - and ideally a change that will pair nicely with his two-handed weapon that he's going to have in his Champ form (and heck, his Young Balin form in the Army of Thror while we're at it - possibly Hatred (Goblin) on his Moria form too, but we might be stretching here) - we want the bonus To Wound to not have to be "just give this version of Balin a two-handed weapon" (and the Army of Thror version as well). Instead, since he spends his time fighting Orcs (and Goblins in Goblin-town), giving him Hatred (Orc) will give him the extra damage that he wants without giving him the same damage output against non-thematic foes. We could have done Ancient Enemies (Orc) if we wanted to, but that is currently an Evil-exclusive rule, plus it would stomp on the Thorin's Company army bonus, so I'm sticking with Hatred.

Okay, so with this change in mind, let's turn to one of my favorite members of Thorin's Company, who I used to put in every Thorin's Company list . . . until I saw the light with Bofur: Oin the Dwarf.

Profile #3: Oin the Dwarf

Oin has good rules, okay - he can heal friendly models (which is very rare in MESBG - and really helpful for Dwarf heroes and average-Defense heroes . . . which we have in abundance in this list), he can grant a banner-like reroll (which would stack with a banner if you happen to have both in the list), and he's blissfully cheap at 45pts. He's not a great combatant with F4/S4/1A, but he's also not terrible, all things considered - especially for 45pts. An Orc Captain (roughly the same cost) will look like a better overall combatant, but the C6 on Oin is really good, as are the tactical special rules.

What needs to be fixed with this guy is that one scene in Goblin-town where he's just swinging his hand-and-a-half staff (see, yet another reason why Bofur should be able to have one - other guys have hand-and-a-half weapons in Thorin's Company!) above his head and clunking out a bunch of guys! This is a neat (though silly - I don't care) moment in the films but is absolutely not replicateable in the game . . . unless we give him the following rule:

Whirling Staff ACTIVE - If Oin uses his hand-and-a-half staff, he may use the Whirl special strike. Oin does not reduce his Fight Value for using the Whirl special strike.

This rule is a mix of Balin's Sword-Mace special rule and Azog's Stone Flail special rule - it doesn't give him additional attacks (he's still capped out at 1 dueling die), but no matter how many people pile into him, he can duel with F4/1A and then land one die on each foe that's in base contact with him. It won't always be like in the movie, but sometimes it will - and that's a better place for the model. He's still a bit fragile and he's still very much a support element (1 Attack at a pretty blah Fight Value is still quite beatable), but in a pinch, you can try to win a desperate fight and have a chance of converting that tough fight into actual damage.

Now I know what you're thinking: aren't special strikes going away? Why are we giving him Whirl? What I've written had the familiar concepts of the current edition and the exact wording should be adapted based on how the new game looks. I think the basic rules for Whirl - without reference to the reduction in Fight Value, of course - are good and wouldn't be a problem if they're isolated to a few heroes (like Oin and Azog - and maybe a few others). Make that change and I'm happy.

Okay, on to another cool model . . .

Profile #4: Kili the Dwarf

Kili and Fili are two of the most boring profiles in Thorin's Company, even though they're two of the most important Dwarves in the films. Kili's combat stats aren't bad - F5 with 2-Might-and-Strike, 2 Attacks at S4, only 50 points, access to a ranged weapon, and a neat-but-highly-situational/difficult-to-trigger special rule that allows him to switch places with Fili. All in all, not a bad model . . .

. . . but he does a lot of shooing in the film and he's not that great at shooting. One shot each turn at S3 with a 3+ Shoot Value isn't bad, but it also isn't enough to justify him on its own - and since most of Thorin's Company can't deal meaningful damage at range (and only three models can deal damage beyond 8"), most of your games with Thorin's Company will involve a bold and glorious charge . . . which Kili's bow isn't going to help with much. If you want someone to sit on an objective, you might be better served by Ori or even Gandalf instead of Kili, which is not how it should be. So instead, let's give him the following rule:

Sure-Handed Archer ACTIVE - If Kili the Dwarf does not move during the Move phase, he may reroll failed To Wound rolls with his Dwarf bow.

S3 bows are already pretty good, but you get slightly more reliable damage by getting rerolls. I don't think the answer to making an archer "better" is giving him more shots (Legolas and Bard shoot lots of arrows quickly in the films, but Haldir doesn't - yet that's the rule he's got). While Expert Shot is awesome and all (and would be great on Kili, admittedly), I think something that makes his one arrow stick more often would be more thematically appropriate than making him a machine gun hero.

Alternatively, you could give him a ribbon rule that makes him go crazy if Fili dies or if Tauriel is fighting - I don't feel like fleshing these ideas out, however, and I kinda feel like it would end up as two rules, so I'm gonna leave this one out.

Okay, on to his brother to wrap this up . . .

Profile #5: Fili the Dwarf

Fili has a nearly identical profile to Kili - he has Heroic Strength instead of Heroic Accuracy (both have Strike and that's probably the one they use) and he's got throwing daggers instead of a Dwarf bow. Once you're within 6" of the enemy, I much prefer the throwing weapon option on Fili (especially since he still has the 3+ Shoot Value that his brother has), but he's still not doing QUITE what he does in the films. 

There's a great scene in the Desolation of Smaug where he has dagger after dagger after dagger removed from his person as he's being taken away by the Elves. This is alluded to in his wargear, where it says Fili has "Daggers and throwing daggers," but the unspecified number of hand weapons that he has doesn't actually do anything (besides making him a terrible Shatter target). My proposed change is simple: Fili gains the Many Blades special rule.

Many Blades is currently an Evil-only rule - and specifically only exists on Hunter Orcs (and Hunter Orc Captains). The rule gives him +1 Attack while he's on foot, which chances are good, Fili will always be on foot. This would, by extension, make him a 3-Attack hero, which this set of heroes could really use. Yes, Thorin's Company already has Thorin, Gloin, Dwalin, and Dori (and hopefully Gandalf if he gets the Attacks-based-on-your-Wounds rule in the new edition), but if you're going to have an average-Defense, low model count force, you need as MANY Attacks as you can (especially with no banner innately in the list). 

This would probably require a small price increase, but even if his base profile is compared to a Hunter Orc Captain, Fili costs 5pts more for +1 FV and +2 Courage - this probably means he'd need to cost 10pts more, once you factor in the throwing weapons and the heroic actions. If Fili's cost went up to 60pts, I'm not sure that the decision between Fili and Dori (a more expensive Strike hero vs. a less expensive Strength hero) would be any different than the decision between Champ-Dori and Champ-Nori/Champ-Gloin (a less expensive Strength/Defense hero vs. more expensive Strike heroes), which would be just fine, I think.

I don't think this would break the game - and I don't think there are any clear losers because of the improvement to this model. That's sort of what we're going for, right?

Conclusion

Those are my thoughts for turning Thorin's Company into a slightly better (and not game-busting) all-hero list. If you don't like that (heck, even if you do), I highly recommend checking out Sharbie's article on how to make good home-brew Legions (his example Legion is quite interesting). We'll see what kind of love Thorin's Company gets from the new edition. Next time, we'll be delving into the dark land of Mordor, looking for some profiles that really do need a lift (a slight lift) in the next edition. Hopefully you're getting as excited for this upcoming release as we are (let the optimism flow, everyone!) and until next time, happy hobbying!