Sarrion shook his head to rid himself of his dark thoughts. The voice of his young adjutant, Amanthas, called again. 'Why is that unit attending the battle, my lord?' He asked again. 'I thought we were planning to fight a missile duel with our foes?'
Sarrion did not answer, simply because he could not. Why on earth had he requested the aid of the Cavalry of Caledor. He turned to look at the arriving troops of Prince Tallanrim.
The magnificent Dragon Prince regiment, with their proud banners fluttering in the wind, rode forward. Carried by the hand-picked steeds of Caledor, the noblest sons of Ulthuan were clad in jewel-encrusted armour and armed with diamond-bladed swords and lances. A beautiful sight. But futile. The whole enemy army was entrenched behind barricades, with missile-weapons ready. There were no knights for the Dragon Princes to joust with.
Sarrion remembered the small band of Shadow Warriors that had offered their services to him. He had turned them away with harsh words: 'This is the Royal Army of Ulthuan, not a haven for vagabonds and busy-bodies! Begone you wastrels!' he had sneered. The leader of the Shadow Warriors, a pale elf-maid who had lost her husband in a Dark Elf raid, just nodded her head and her group melt into shadows. Now he dearly wished that those keen-eyed archers were here.
Prince Tallanrim bowed lightly on his saddle, and fixing his eyes on the Elf general he asked 'What are your orders, Sire?' Uncomfortably, Sarrion's mind raced to find an answer. He found none.
I imagined the above question being asked from my erudite Elf General as he surveyed his forces before a great battle and placed myself in his position. Why do I bring particular troops to the field? Why is the general requesting their presence? Below are my conclusions.
One of the greatest problems that aspiring WFB commander faces is not to make plan, but to stick to it! I've seen many, many carefully constructed arimes crumble simply because their General did not actually know what to do with their troops! Their units lack a purpose: while individually strong and well thought out, they were still beaten because their units moved around the battlefield in a confused manner, allowing their enemies to dictate the battle.
This is a sure way to defeat when playing against an experienced opponent. While I and most other WFB fans play for fun, it is frustrating when you cannot see what is wrong with your army. In fact getting around this is relatively simple: be ruthless and singleminded. For example, if I have decided that my Heavy Cavalry unit is going to attack the opponent's infantry unit with Wizard Lord, I will not abandon this mission for trivial reasons. Many players are intimidated by massed missile regiments, but if I have decided to attack, I will plan my units carefully and charge in determinately.
This is the core of my advice in this article: give a mission to your unit and try to fullfill it! Be sure to adjust your plan if needed, but do notbe intimidated!
The efficiency (in my eyes at least) is not dictated by the damage the unit can cause, but rather how many points you spend on achieving some particular goal. For example, my Kislev Horse archers might not cause a single casuality, but if they manage to prevent a unit of Chaos Knights from marching and thus keep them out of battle, I think that the few points spent in them are well worth it! With this in mind I try to anticipate my opponent's choise of troops and find some way of neutralizing his/her plans.
Below is a list how I go about giving orders to my units. First I describe a unit type and how I use it, and then I have included an example of a unit that I have used in some former battle in my past and who I played against, and finally I will describe the actual orders I used and explain why I did so.
The main problem of cavalry is it's very high point cost value (not to mention the actual price in the shops!) this limits the size of the units and leaves them vulnerable to a concentrated enemy fire, as well as War of Attrition. Try to counter this with speed and by destroying the most threatening War Machines.
Usually Heavy Cavalry is expensive, but relatively fast and very powerful when it comes to H-T-H combat. This tends to make the Heavy Cavalry regiments rather small, and consecutively easy to deal with if your opponent has any War Machines to speak about.
There is little else to say except CHARGE! Due the limited size and the high enemy attention, these units must get to H-T-H as soon as possible, and very preferably by charging. A good line of orders might be like this for a With heavy cavalry, it is more important than ever to study the strenghts and weaknessess of your enemy. Certain units fall like a a scythed Grass before the charge of the Heavies, but some troops, like Trolls can be very, very bothersome. As your Heavy Cavalry is almost prizeless, you must use it against right opponent if you want them to be point-cost effective.
EXAMPLE: 6 Chaos Knights, with Chaos Armour, carrying the Banner of Rage, and led by a Chaos Champion of Khorne with Strenght Potion. Led by a Chaos Hero of Khorne with Collar of Khorne and Starblade Lance, Chaos Armour, Shield, additional hand weapon, Chaos Steed, Barding, lance.
OPPONENT: Skaven.
ORDERS: Skaven are numerous so a plenty of Killing power is needed. This unit should have it. High Save protects you somewhat from the Jezzail fire, and your M 7 will get you Charging in no time. Collar of Khorne discourages any attempts to target this unit with spells. Steer clear from Poison Wind Globadiers, and be sure that you don't engage the 'main Block' of Skaven alone -a Beastman regiment should do the trick. The Starblade Lance grants the Hero a S of 8 (!) While charging, and this should bother even the mightiest monsters and heroes. Engage smaller, supporting Stormvermin and Plague monk units first and then combine your efforts with other regiments to rout the 'main blocks'.
Some cavalry units, like the Kislev Horse Archers, can rarely defeat the entire enemy army by themselves. ('Never' might be more appropriate.)
Their role, while not as glorious, is just as important to the overall efficiency of the Army as your Heavy Infantry or Cavalry.
EXAMPLE: 2 * 6 Kislev Horse Archers in Skirmish formation.
OPPONENT: Bretonnia.
ORDERS: Since the Grande Army of Bretonnia relies on their Knightly Orders when it comes to real combat, slowing these excellent Shock troops is a good idea. Kislevites orders are to ride close to the knights using terrain or other troops as cover so that they will not be shot to pieces. Once they reach the Knights, they will stay reasonably close to them to stop their march moves anf try to keep out of their Charge range. (High M and ability to skirmish should take care of that.)
If you are able to field cavalry that is both cheap and numerous, there is a great temptation to build a large, fast-moving and hard-hitting unit as your main cavalry regiment. What do I have to say about such a temptation? GIVE IN! If you can build such a unit properly, it is easily one of the most powerful things in the whole game. Savage Orc Boar Boyz are a prime example of this, being both relatively cheap pointswise and very powerful in combat.
EXAMPLE: 20 Savage Orc Boar Boyz with Standard of Shielding, spears, Led by A Savage Orc Lord with Crown of Command, Black Amulet and the Morgor the Mangler. Also with the unit is Savage Orc Big Boss, with Strenght Potion and a Blade of Darting Steel. Also included is a Savage Orc Boss with ring of Volans and a Savage Orc lvl 2 Shaman with Warrior Familiar.
OPPONENT: Empire.
ORDERS: Wiv' gotta get stuck in 'fore dem Big Gunz get uz! Humies arr yellow gitz, and can't stand and fiwt, so weel stomp em for good! Dem pansy 'oomies shoot uz wiv Big Gunz, so wee mush get stuk in fast. Wee doo not havta vorry aboot the arrez, and no gurly humie can beat uz in hand-fer-hand! Wee have 1+ save, and dem tattoos, so wee iz unstoppbul. Just get near da right oonits so frenzy not make uz charge wrong bunch!
Medium cavalry is perhaps the trickiest troop type in the whole game. Many such units, like the Dark Elf Dark Riders can be boosted to a higher H-T-H potential with spears or such. This is often a very a tempting option, but it does make them even more expensive. I myself give such units (Reaver Knights, Wood Elf Knights, Kislev Winged Lancers and Dark Riders, for example) all possible equipment and suitable magic standard if allowed to take such. This gives my troops a great deal of flexibility. It is risky, as you can very easily lose the entire regiment in a one unlucky shooting phase, but them again, a unit that can perform as a fast missile/medium H-T-H/General Annoyance unit is very handy indeed.
When attacking opposing units that are built for H-T-H, try to charge from flanks or from rear. The melee-specialists in the first rank are too much for medium cavalry.
EXAMPLE: 10 Reaver Knights with bows and spears and a standard. Led by a Champion with Dragonblade Lance.
OPPONENT: Skaven.
ORDERS: As a Fast Cavalry unit (save 5+ and M 9) the Reavers are very fast moving and manoeuverable and have some small potential in H-T-H with Spears. Initially they are set near the Repeater Bolt Throwers and will race towards any unfriendly Gutter Runners that might have some ideas about taking out your prized War Machines. they will either shoot at them if the unit is small, or use their Fast Cavalry rules and change into two ranks and charge them. After this they will get in the way of the enclosing units, shooting and moving away, possibly even getting in the enemy flanks and preventing them from marching, all while shooting with all they are worth.
Infantry is, in my eyes the backbone of most WFB armies. Numerous, often reasonably powerful, and easily capable of supporting other regiments, I rarely take the field without infantry regiment or two. The main weakness of infantry in my my eyes is that it is very unvwieldy and not good at responsing to unexpected, like an enenmy unit that is suddenly transported behind the regiment via Bridge of Shadow's spell.
Infantry in General and Dwarf infantry in particular is too slow to really serve as Shock Troops. Thus it might be a good idea to just pick the unit with best defensive capabilities, tailor the characters within these units to a defensive role, guard the flanks of such a unit, and let the enemy come to you! Good armour saves are recommendable, and try to think some good ways to counter your opponent's advantage of the first strike when he/she charges. Sword of Swift Slaying, Black Amulet, Black Gem of Gnar, Master Rune of Spite and Mork's War Banner.
EXAMPLE: 24 Iron Breakers with Standard of Shielding, led by a Champion with a Horn engraved with the Master Rune of Dismay. Led by a Dwarf Lord with an amulet inscribed with the Master Rune of Spite and two runes of Luck, carrying an Axe with the following Runes: Skalf Blackhammer's Master Rune and two runes of Cutting. He also carries the Golden Sceptre of Norgrim. Unit is also accompanied by Burlok Damminson with the Flying Axe(TM): Master Rune of Flight, Rune of Smiting and the Rune of Breaking. Burlok also wears the Black Amulet. Also with the unit is a Battle Standard Bearer with a Runic Banner: Master Rune of Valaya and the Rune of Courage.
OPPONENT: Chaos.
ORDERS: Stand Firm and expect the onslaught of the enemy. Move only very slightly to interpose the unit so that you won't be flanked. Remember not to disrupt the overall battle-line with reckless charges. When the foul spawn of Chaos is near enough, start using the Burlok's flying hammer on toughest possible target while boosting his S with the Golden Sceptre. Rune of Courage will protect you from Fear/Terror Tests, and your potential to survive damage should be spectacular.
When you want to win the game in hand to hand and you don't want to rely on fragile cavalry, the toughest infantry unit you can muster is the answer. Infantry is blessed with great numbers, small base width, and due the greater numbers it has a higher resiliency when it the time comes to take panic checks for fleeing troops and casualities. Characters can also be included in a lower price, as they do not require mounts or monsters, and can spend the extra points on some nice magical toys. Crown of Command is a very good choise for a infanry core unit, as one failed test might otherwise bring your plans to a catastrophical end.
Some opponents have very efficient ways to deal with 1 W infantry: High and Dark Elves with their Repeater Bolt Throwers and the armies of the Empire, for example, are easily capable tearing your infantry apart unless you have taken suitable precautions.
I have a few ways of keeping my main infanrty blocks alive if I am expecting to face a virtual Hail of Death.
First is to have more wounds than one for each model in the unit! Ogres, Trolls, Dragon Ogres, Beasmen, Minotaurs and Mummies are very good troops in H-T-H, have astounding resilience, and on the top of it, they usually cause Fear, also!
The second method is effetive when facing an enemy that uses War Machines and weapons that rely on Ballistic Skill, like Bolt Throwers and Crossbows/Bows/Hand Guns/Whatever. Quite simply, equip your unit with magic items that give penalties to missile fire! Ruby Chalice is the best such choise but there are others like the Bad Moon Banner of the Orcs and Goblins.
Lastly, you are relatively safe from enemy fire when in H-T-h, so get stuck in! Moving with determination, and getting some help from a wizard with the Bridge of Shadows/Bridge of Ice/Radiance of Ptolos will be extremely useful. Charge in, kill, and immediately go looking for another target. If fight starts to drag on, remember to envelope your opponent if you are winning.
Finally, Standard of Shielding is also a worth of some thought. That 6+ Unmodified save is very useful when taking a lot of casualties, as is the way of the large infantry blocks.
EXAMPLE: 24 Witch Elves with a Banner of Might. Unit is led by a Witch Elf Champion with Sword of Swift Slaying and Witch Elf Hero with Ruby Chalice, Heavy Armour, and sword of Enscorcelled Iron (if faced with WS 5 or lower troops, will hit automatically with the Banner of Might!) And Halberd in the case of higher armour saves.
OPPONENT: High Elves.
ORDERS: Engage the opposing foot regiments while our artillery takes care of enemy War Machines and Cavalry with the aid of Harpies and Cold Ones. Avoid Shadow Warriors that will only slow us down. Choose a suitable target RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING, because even with Ruby Chalice, there will be casualities. Head towards the target mercilessly and make sure other troops support the advance. Do not get into frenzy too early and charge some unit that is there deliberately to slow you down, like the Shadow Warriors.
When it comes to missile troops, I personally have a very firm opinion about them: they are to be used for laying a curtain of fire over the enemy, moving as little as possible, and picking targets they can wound. I've seen many, many blood-crazed Generals who have made vicious charges with their archers against enemy melee-specialists. Belive me, it has been messy! There are execptions, of course, like when you have an opportunity to charge a low-LD unit on flank or rear with your archers, causing a Panic test. But as a thumb rule, you should build and deploy your infantry missile troops with orders of 'FIRE!' in your mind. There are two approaches to build these units under the Longsword Military Doctrine: Big blocks and numerous small units.
Large units can placed on a hill where they will have an excellent field of fire, they will take up relatively small part of your deployment zone, and a combined shot from 24 crossbows can be truly devastating as it is easier to pick targets because the wide frontage that gives a good visibilty over the field.
Some troops, like Wood Elf and Dark Elf Scouts can Skirmish, and they can forefeit their 'Stand and Shoot' option in favour of moving slowly away from the enemy while still firing their arrows, as they can turn freely and thus move 5' away from the enemy and fire at them!
EXAMPLE 1: 20 Crossbowmen of the Empire.
OPPONENT: Orcs and Goblins
ORDERS: Deploy near to your general if possible, as LD 7 leaves a lot to hope for. Two ranks of 10 archers each on a hill is ideal-this gives you a wide line of fire. The potential of Crossbows is immense -it both Wounds better (a good idea against T 4 Orcs) and also reduces an armour save of the opposing troops. Pick a suitable target amongst the advancing units. There is no sense of wasting your massive killing power on five Goblins that were taken by your enemy just to field the Doom diver when you could stop the incoming unit of Big 'Uns!
EXAMPLE 2: 3*6 Dark Elf Scouts.
OPPONENT: Empire.
ORDERS: The Empire is notorious for it's ability to to field many 'Wunder Weapons' that can be very dangerous to the Dark Elves. (Hellblaster is a good example) These things must be dealt with before yourown Close Assault units get stuck in. Therefore Scouts must deploy as close to the Empire War Machines as possible, and shoot 2 bolts each against the Crews as soon as possible. After this, they can make a general nuisance of themselves by shooting lightly armoured targets.
Some troops have a benefit of the special rule Infiltration, and such troops are almost all missile troops. Their ability has a two-fold advantage. First, they have a good chance to choose a suitable place for their mission, and second, they can start executing it almost immediately.
EXAMPLE: 10 Gutter Runners with add. hand weapons and slings.
OPPONENT: Undead.
ORDERS: Silence the Screaming Skull Catapults as soon as possible, either in H-T-H or with the Slings. As the Undead rarely have lots of missile troops, Gutter Runners can sometimes operate in a relative peace. After Chukers, use that M 6 and get where the fight is. With S 4 and add. Hand Weapons, you should get by handsomely. Watch out for Carrion.
Flyers are a very special case, and thus I have separated them from the other units. Their main advantage is (surprise, surprise) their wings! With possibility to move very quickly indeed, they can execute 'Blitzkrieg' missions.
All armies have an excellent choise of very powerful monsters, with Manticore taking the pride of place. Such creatures are very fast if they fly, hideously powerful in H-T-H, and on the top of it, they usually cause Terror and have other special rules!
EXAMPLE: 2 Manticores (simple, isn't it?)
OPPONENT: Dark Elves
ORDERS: Take out Repeating Bolt Throwers as soon as possible, starting with the ones that have best fields of fire. Charge enemy regiments from behind as soon as combat gets Close and Personal. Remember to force your opponent to take all the required Terror tests! Manticores are ideal against armies with basic S of 3 and no high S War Machines, as their T 7 makes them immune to strikes made with S lower than 4.
Flying creatures have, due their ability to Fly High, an excellent chance to rid you from those pesky enemy War Machines and Missile troops. Some flyers are a bit too expensive for this role, however, and while using your Manticore to eat the opposing Repeater Bolt Throwers and using the Terror to scare away any opponents near by is certainly NOT a bad idea, it is worth noting that it is not easy to take out enough opposing War Machines when your own PV is 200 and Repeater's is measly 50! This is because once Manticore lands, it becomes a prime attraction to any ememy Characters and War Machine fire. Thus, cheaper flyers are sometimes just as good in killing the War Machine Crew, and don't get so much enemy attention.
EXAMPLE: A unit of 8 Harpies in two ranks. Opponent: Chaos Dwarfs.
ORDERS: To fly High immediately and descend upon the inevitable Earthshaker Cannons. After dealing with these, attack either the Death Rockets or Blunderbuss Regiments (from behind) or, if such target are not present, charge units allready engaged from behind or from side, causing panic test and increasing Combat resolution.
The distinctive point about War Machines is that, apart from Chariots, War Wagons, Steam Tanks and very few other exceptions, their crews are THE weakest things in H-T-H you can imagine. It is quite difficult to protect them (if you are not a Dwarf with access to the Rune of Disguise) and they are easily frightened away for the most part.
Some War Machines, like the Death Rocket, Bolt Throwers and in some extent, the Stone Throwers, are at their best when taking out R-N-F. When they also cause panic test, like the Flame Cannon, they are very good against armies without high LD.
EXAMPLE: A battery of 6 Skull Chukers.
OPPONENT: Empire.
ORDERS: As the LD of humans is not very high, wanted them to take plenty of panic tests. Thus I ordered the Skull Chukers to concentrate their fire on units without character leaders.
Some War Machines are specialized: Flame Cannons and Warpfire-Throwers are wonderful against flammable targets, while Poison Wind Globadiers specialize taking out very tough and/or well armoured troops.
EXAMPLE: A unit of 6 Warp-Fire Throwers.
OPPONENT: Undead.
ORDERS: This was an extremely High Risk test that I pulled through. As I was correctly expecting lots of Mummies, I decided that with Ikit leading my army they could get along as long as they were near him and his LD 9. They opened fire at the close range and toasted a whole unit of 16 Mummies! A classic act of mass destruction! Later they routed a unit of Ghouls. Not very typical example, but it aptly shows that War Machines CAN cause termendous damage. Their orders were simple: fry mummies and then turn on anything else on the field!
Some War Machines invoke almost supernatural fear in most opponent's. Try to use this to your advantage as detailed below. As the enemy will rather go around than get in the range of these devices, they are great at dictating the events of the battle.
EXAMPLE: 2 Hellblaster Volley Guns.
OPPONENT: Skaven.
ORDERS: The purpose of the Hellblasters is to herd the Skaven towards the other, less threatening artillery pieces and the main units of the Empire army that are positioned centrally. With this in mind, they are placed on the flanks of the deployment zone, protected by the Horse Archers and ready to shoot! If Skaven Regiments are foolish enough to come towards them, oblidge to them and fire away!
Repeater Bolt Throwers are best when used in Large numbers, as this produces the famous 'Kebab' effect that can slaughter whole units. These weapons have long range, they are accurate, and against R-N-F they are deadly.
EXAMPLE: Battery of 8 Repeater Bolt Throwers.
OPPONENT: Skaven.
ORDERS: Shoot a concentrated volleys on units in the descending order dictated by the threat that each unit represents. Or keeping it simple: Kill all big blocks of Skaven, Starting with the largest, and ignore Skavenslave units.
As a variant, concentating the fire of all eight RBTs on Screaming Bell might very well do the trick and rid you of a Striker and a Grey Seer.
Chariots have always been my favourite, and thus I have spent a considerable time in devicing tactics for them. There are two roles for them: Offense with the rest of the army, and agressive defence (eg. waiting behind buildings until the enemy comes within Charge range.
EXAMPLE: Unit of Three Wolf Chariots, with Skarsnik in one of them, equipped with Skarsnik's Prodder, Ruby Chalice and his Chariot is equipped with the 'Eadbang Banner.' All have Scythed Wheels and extra crew.
OPPONENT: The Undead.
ORDERS: Skarsniks Red Chariots are one of my main attack units. Skarsnik gives them good enough LD to take tests and any wizard touching them will instantly die as they are an unit! (Cheesy, I know...). Orders are to find and destroy the main units, while Doom Divers silence the Skull Catapults. Ere We Go, Ere We Go Ere We Go!
Here are some examples of very special cases, where I have constructed units that are almost useless in any other mission than the one I had planned for them.
Many Generals regard some units so dangerous that they will commit enormous amounts of missile fire and close combat units to deal with these 'Nemesis' troops. For example, I've been known to be a bit paranoid about any unit of Bull Centaurs rolling towards my lines. Such phobias can be used against your opponent: if you think it is worth the risk to field a relatively small and cheap unit of troops that will make your adversary go pale, then try it out! I've seen people to waste amazing amounts of War Machine fire againts small mob of Savage Orc Boar Boyz that had no extras at all! Meanwhile rest of the Greenskin army was busy winning the battle by marching in without any distracting missile fire directed against them.
EXAMPLE: 6 Bull Centaurs, Bull Centaur Champion with Sword of Swift Slaying.
OPPONENT: High Elves
ORDERS: Charge towards some important Elf regiment (preferably one with the Mage Lord) and behave in a threatening manner. This should win you some time while Elves shoot at the Bulls and you can deploy your army better and start your attacks with the flying monsters.
The classic of very specially tailored units, the Trap is an old favourite:Get troops that will bog down the enemy that you won't fancy fighting. Wardancers, Unbreakable troops and Cheap troops with Crown of Command should do the trick.
EXAMPLE: 8 Wardancers with a Champion Carrying the Sword of Fortitude.
OPPONENT: Chaos.
ORDERS: Try to tie up the toughest possible unit with the Shadow's Coil. This will give your other troops a Chance in H-T-H. Sword of Fortitude will take care of any Terror/Panic/Fear tests that might otherwise rout your invaluable Wardancers. No other Orders.
Sometimes a particular Character, Regiment, Monster, War Machine or whatever that your opponent uses is so dangerous that you might want to equip a unit especially tailored to take this threat out. Sadly, the magic items make the Characters the best troops for this.
EXAMPLE: Chaos Hero on Griffon, with Sword of Destruction, supporting my Bloodthirster.
OPPONENT: Wood Elves.
ORDERS: To get rid of the Black-Gem carrier. As the Black Gem of Gnar is almost the only thing in the Wood Elf Army that is dangerous to the Bloodthirster, I decided to make a trap. I landed my Bloodthirster in the middle of the Wood Elf Army, forced the Woodies to take some Terror tests, and sure enough, a lone elf charged my Bloodthirster and used the Black Gem. Unphased, I used Grey Wings in the next magic phase and moved my Hero with the Sword of Destruction on base-to-base with the Gem-carrier. Then the orders were simple: KILL! KILL! KILL!
If your whole plan against Dwarfs is based to take out their War Machines and the wily Dwarf King takes the field supported only by slayers, Iron Breakers and Hammerers, it is easy to lose hope. I have only one piece of adivice: Improvise! Continuing with the example above, the flying creatures you took against the Dwarf War Machines can Fly High and then land behind the enemy regiments, ready to engage them from the rear once your other units get into H-T-H with the Dwarf regiments. Any long-range fire that was planned to take out the War Machine crews can now be directed against Slayers who also have a low (read:non-existent) armour save. So when your plan is no longer valid and you can't execute your orders, improvise!
There is a trick to learn when giving oredrs to your troops: if they are not compatible with each other your army will not be able to function properly and will be destroyed piece by piece. A good example of this are very small regiments that are placed as a 'Charge Cover' in the front of the main units. As these units will usually be cut to pieces by the enemy charges, their death will leave the attacking regiments exposed to your counter-charge.
Especially good in such a role are troops that are immune to psychology and/or unbreakable, as these will NOT run away and spoil your plan. There are other, more obvious ways to support units: Keeping units in a firm battle line prevents attacks to the flanks, shooting advancing enemy formations so they lose extra ranks and so on.
Here you go. I hope this gave you some ideas. Please let me hear about them.
