Preorders for our Codex and new Start Collecting box next week!

While I've always preferred the Coven units for aesthetics and fluff, I was never able to build a proper TAC list with them exclusively.
Looks like I'm done feeling guilty about those Kabalites, and some extra Command Points are always welcome!

'Ere we go peeps!

So... scourges, Incubi, Mandrakes.. these are "free agents?" Maybe 1-2 others as well?

At first glance, I liked it. then i realized that every tournament I have been to, EVERY SINGLE ONE has limited you to 3 (count em 3) detachments. So the whole +8 command points for 6+ detachments will never be realized.
It is more points efficient to just go with a spearhead, outrider or the such, due to the increased slots available in fast, heavy, etc...

I see where they were going with this, and i like where their thoughts were at, but sadly, it will not benefit us on the battlefield except in friendly games.

Kinda frustrating actually.

I do like that the article implies that there'll be faction rules for the free agents as well...

As a completely casual player, who has never wanted to play competitively, I really like this. However, the article does say that there will be incentive to forgo Raiding Force in favour of something else. It's just designed to make the tripartite method of list building easier.

I like it, it is just a shame that we nees to pay a premium to unlock it.

I mean my average list does not have more then 2 hq's at best... nevermind that i need 4 to unlock the raiding party so far.

but is is nice that there is a option ^^

I have always liked the idea of 3 different HQ's going to battle. The stereotypical evil overlord (Archon) with his mad scientist (Haemy) and ass kicking sidekick (Succubus). Being able to give them all a warlord trait is decent for 1CP.

Thinking back to Chapter Approved this means your Archon would be re rolling 1's to hit and wound in the fight phase, your Haemy is regenerating D3 wounds and the Succubus would be generating additional hits on the roll of a 6.

I think that's the important thing to take from this: it's an option. We'll have others. That said I feel for the competitive players among us that want that juicy +8 CP.

Maybe we will be given different detachment rules?

Those are the only three we know of right now my guess is there will be 3-6 for each faction ... Also ... If tournaments don't make an exception for the Druhkari to take more than 3 of any detachment as it is:
1 part of our rules. And
2. Only usable with patrol detachments
It would be kinda dumb as it looks like this was a major design around which the codex was balanced and is our way of getting a ton of CP. We can max out at 11 cp as far as we know with the raiding party. And I'm gonna guess we are gonna get one or more ways to regenerate CP. I'm excited to learn what our strategems and faction bonuses are.

"If you’d rather commit yourself entirely to one element of the Dark Kin’s forces, however, you’ll find some interesting new options available to you".

It's tantalisingly vague, but yeah, I'd assume that there'll be some sort of compensatory rule. If my highest hopes are fulfilled and the mercenaries get something too...ooh that makes me excited.

The only reason I'm not super pumped for the new raiding force idea is that it forces us to take a lot of characters, many of which are mediocre at the moment but if that changes (which I strongly suspect it will), then taking 3+ characters won't be an issue at all. Also efficiency wise I think 3 patrols actually is fairly worth it, since in return for taking one extra character over a battalion you get an extra cp, and a whole lot of extra elite/fa/hs slots, I think it's actually double for fa/hs since battalion is 3 of each and 3 patrols is upto 6. With that many slots I wouldn't even need to use outrider or spearhead detachments.

I mean what if we get a variation of the Battalion Detachment?  Like perhaps it is dropped to 1 HQ and 2 Troops and we gain only +2 CP rather than 3?

Or what if we get Kabal/Coven/Cult specific detachments?

I'm liking it so far.
They seem to be addressing the internal balance in their first post with regards to the army, also if you consider what was said yesterday they are pushing that there is internal balance and its been fixed.

Now if they make HQ's actually worth their salt again, we are on to a winner.
I'm very hopeful from what i'm seeing at the moment. the raiding party seems cool btw and the alliance of agony sure helps getting each of those detachments a warlord trait.
It all greatly depends on auras and traits now, but its a damn good step to address the internal synergy, other than points costing was our biggest problem.

Dark Elf Dave wrote:

I mean what if we get a variation of the Battalion Detachment?  Like perhaps it is dropped to 1 HQ and 2 Troops and we gain only +2 CP rather than 3?

Or what if we get Kabal/Coven/Cult specific detachments?

That seems a bit doubtful to me, GW is already giving us a special detachment/cp thing with the raiding force, I think it would be a bit much to give us special detachments as well on top of that.

I'm almost positive they are going to improve our characters, if you look at useless characters from other codexes like the necron lord they went from having a reroll moral tests aura to reroll to wound rolls of one, so that gives me a lot of hope for the archaon's aura being redone.

I didnt even see that bit about the raiding force! lol  I am just reading it now.

So 3 patrol detachments give us +4 CP on top of having 3 for being battleforged is that right? So we would get 7 CP and quite possible lose 1 when we hand out the warlord traits?

Lord Asvaldir wrote:

I'm almost positive they are going to improve our characters, if you look at useless characters from other codexes like the necron lord they went from having a reroll moral tests aura to reroll to wound rolls of one, so that gives me a lot of hope for the archaon's aura being redone.

Aww but that leadership bubble is so useful...

Alright, I couldn't say it with a straight face.

But yes, I think what we've seen today hinges partially on the quality of our HQs. I think we'll be alright though.

I guess there are strategems that can only be used if all of your army belongs to a certain aspect. Like it should be in my opinion with all strategems.

Dark Elf Dave wrote:

So 3 patrol detachments give us +4 CP on top of having 3 for being battleforged is that right?  So we would get 7 CP and quite possible lose 1 when we hand out the warlord traits?

Now i haven't played in a bit so i'm rusty on this, but you would get 4 + 3 cp, then if you could do a battalion, an extra 3cp which seems quite doable atm, if wyches and wracks get better then this could be quite awesome, kabalites are great already though likely to get a points drop with wracks and wyches.

Yeah we get 7 cp from running the 3 patrols, seems pretty solid to me.

PartZebra wrote:

Lord Asvaldir wrote:

I'm almost positive they are going to improve our characters, if you look at useless characters from other codexes like the necron lord they went from having a reroll moral tests aura to reroll to wound rolls of one, so that gives me a lot of hope for the archaon's aura being redone.

Aww but that leadership bubble is so useful...

Alright, I couldn't say it with a straight face.

But yes, I think what we've seen today hinges partially on the quality of our HQs. I think we'll be alright though.

O yeah man I love my LD, I think it's come in handy in all of maybe one game tops? So worth it..

I think we'll be alright as well, the trend of GW improving characters from index to codex gives me a lot of hope.

I would be alright with certain stratagems only being usable by certain parts of the army, and if you're going to take say one patrol each of kabal/cult/coven that gives you access to all of our stratagems.

Yeah I like the idea of stratagems working like that as well. Gives incentive to run an army of just one faction as well.

I mean it still seems more enticing to me to have a nice balanced kabal/cult/coven list since that just unlocks such a wider range of units, while I feel like just kabal or just coven is a bit restricting, but that's just my opinion. Plus until we start seeing the kabal/cult/coven rules over the next few days we won't know for sure how they work.

This does mean I'll need to actually invest into the Cults and Covens now though...

PartZebra wrote:

This does mean I'll need to actually invest into the Cults and Covens now though...

Get 2 of the new SC boxes and you are set for Cult

Bad-baden-baden wrote:

Perhaps there is a special rule to make patrol detachment award CP's? That could be a good way to make the separate armies shtick a lot more viable.

I bloody called it!
Pretty stoked! Great set of rules so far. Taking all 3 elements is great, and even the warlord traits we do have right now are decent to take for 1cp. Good start so far, my detachment worries are abated.

Bad-baden-baden wrote:

I bloody called it!
Pretty stoked! Great set of rules so far. Taking all 3 elements is great, and even the warlord traits we do have right now are decent to take for 1cp. Good start so far, my detachment worries are abated.

Someone give this person a prize!!