First thing's first: Some bona fides. I'm part of a group who consistently places in the top 3 of local team tournaments (sharing the honor with the NJ SOBs and PA's "Pants-off-Dance-off" squad). I consistently place in the top 2 (along with my roommate/regular opponent Jarred Robaitille) in local tournaments. I don't have a Templecon/GenCon/Warmachine Weekend win under my belt, but frankly, bar Templecon, I don't have the interest in outlaying $1000+ to travel to play Warmahordes.
Suffice to say, feel free to argue with anything I put forth, but a "STFU noob; L2P" response isn't going to hold much water.
Hey look, its the BoLS comment section...
(Side note: God, I hate internetz bona fide posturing, because it was feels like a limp attempt at I R BEST chest thumping. The best way to communicate is on the table, which loses a lot here. What I'm getting at is: if you're local and want to discuss this, please hit me up on the tabletop and not via the tubez).
Anyhow, back to the meat of the matter...
When Tier list were first dropped ~2 years ago via the Retribution book, I was reasonably dismissive from a competitive stand-point. Sure, you could do some rude things with Rahn and Garyth, but they were 2D builds that suffered severely from bad match-ups.
As I got more table time with and against Tier lists (and as more were released), my opinion quickly changed. Mostly because the game shifted from 35 to 50 pts as a standard size as more of Mk II was released and mostly because people were getting the hang of the new mechanics/the local metagame started settling in.
That said, not all Tier lists are over-the-top or, for that matter, especially good. Some are pretty good and some are downright terrifying. With 100+ warcasters/warlocks (and the advent of additional Tiers being released via No Quarter), its going to be tough to field test every single list and stress test them with authority. So, how do you know where to look for signs of an extremely powerful tier list? Let's take a look at some tier lists that are known to be quite powerful:
eButcher Tier list
eKreoss Tier list
Rahn Tier list
Terminus Tier list
pHoarluk Tier list
What's the unifying thread? Well, the first three lists allow for FA:U of some powerful specialist troops who normally have a low FA. All three of these lists also act as force-multipliers for these specialist troops (e.g. - eButcher grants his Doom Reavers extra movement via the feat, eKreoss ensures his melee troops will hit and grants them extra attacks, and Rahn's feat is the bee's knee's for Battle Mages).
The latest internet sensation: LOLRahns
The two of these three lists also help with movement, as does Terminus' list. Any bonus that grants either Advanced Movement, additional inches of deployment, a SPD bonus on turn 1 (especially for melee troops) or Advanced Deployment for a portion of your army is going to be powerful. While Terminus lacks the ability to spam a powerful troops type, he does grant his horde of pirates additional speed and Incorporeal the first turn, ensuring that they'll be delivered to the enemy lines while Big T moves in for the kill (or positions to win via scenario).
You're probably wondering about the last list (Hoarluk Tier 4). This list (along with the eButcher list) grants a reduced cost of a specialist troop. Moreover, said specialist troops (Runeshapers) are very, very difficult to put down and come with reasonably powerful attacks that synergize well with models included. Having multiple, cheap units of Runeshapers knocking stuff down and putting up Force Lock against enemy heavies (and having Tough with Steady) can really put a damper on enemy forces. Its not a list with a subtle kill condition (Mulg), but its efficient.
Ummm... again?
- Take models that synergize well with the warcaster/warlock and have an expanded or unlimited FA. A reduction in cost also helps.
- Look for positional or movement bonuses (e.g. - Ashlynn's Tier granting HER AD, the Advanced Move in the eKreoss list).
- Look for spam with a win condition. Admittedly, a single unit of Doom Reavers is scary. Seven units at 50 pts with eButcher is unmanageable for almost everyone (bar pHaley or extremely shooting heavy lists). Spamming utility units without a multiplier that grants them a kill condition isn't going to cut it.
- Ensure you've got necessary support in the army. If you're a relatively squishy melee assassin and you've feel you need Corbeau, don't mess with Tier lists (Garryth tends to suffer from this).
A special mention needs to made of Mercenary and Minion tiers. Generally speaking, sometimes the Tier is what makes these models playable (Shae and Arkadius, I'm looking at you!). Weigh your contract/compact bonuses against the Tier and go for whatever is stronger. Almost without exception, I'd argue there are no over-the-top tier list in this category, though if you're playing one of these armies its something to consider.
In closing, here's a Tier 4 35 point eKreoss list I won a 10 man tournament with this weekend. It caught a lot of people off guard and gives you an idea of just how powerful spamming a "weak" unit like Knights Exemplar can be:
eKreoss
- Fire of Salvation
Knights Exemplar
Knights Exemplar
Knights Exemplar
Knights Exemplar Errant (10)
Exemplar Vengers (3)
Errant Seneschal
Knights Exemplar Seneschal (free from Tier bonus)
Tier Bonuses - FA: U Knights Exemplar, Free Seneschal, Advanced Move for Knights Exemplar, +2" to my deployment.
As always, questions and comments are welcome.
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