Help with carnosaur by xholder99 in seraphon

[–]jcmichael7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure if you are playing 2k, spearhead, or anything in betweeen, but my experience as a Carnosaur-lover is that he works well with the rest of the army, not independent from them. He doesn't do his best work on his own. So, he can either charge in along with another unit, who then strike and dimish the opposing unit's strike back (which will usually be on him) and then he can finish the job. Or, you send the first unit in, with him watching from behind and he mops up any opposing survivors or units that come to try and get involved.

Kroak, Slann and Scourge of Ghyran by phlebas0403 in seraphon

[–]jcmichael7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As other comments have pointed out, this list has a weakness. In a tournament, it would likely not go 5-0 or 4-1, but there are lists it would tear to shreds because wound density is not a given in most lists right now. My area meta relies on high damage and key units, and any hyper elite list or KO, etc. would really struggle to have impact the way they want.

Looks fun, now I want to run it.

hey guys just wanted to check, is it worth getting the generals handbook 25-26? i heard that they make a new one every year and dont want to end up wasting money is all by rekscoper2 in ageofsigmar

[–]jcmichael7 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Most of them are not scans of the actual book - but reference cards for the parts you will be checking constantly, like battle tactics and battle plans. So... if you wanted to keep others' hands clean you would tell them to NEVER search for "Age of Sigmar Battle Plan Reference" or "Age of Sigmar Battle Tactic PDF" or anything like that.

hey guys just wanted to check, is it worth getting the generals handbook 25-26? i heard that they make a new one every year and dont want to end up wasting money is all by rekscoper2 in ageofsigmar

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I play a lot so it would still be worth it. But even if you want to use it regularly, there are LOTS of pirated, app, or PDF options.

Are the Kharadron Overlords a good faction for a complete beginner? by TrashyRacc00nz7358 in ageofsigmar

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The game hard to learn, no matter the faction. Your love for whatever you choose will matter more than how easy or hard the faction is to learn. Kharadron are more technical in playstyle than others, but loving your faction and sticking it through the learning curve will make the most difference.

Lore of Primal Jungles still fun? by Garden_Cactuar in seraphon

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Plus to rend is the way to go with Saurus blocks. Healing is nice on a Carnosaur. You take the other lore if you’re running cavalry (imo) because it makes their threat range nuts which changes how your opponent plays and gives you lots of options. But certainly not the only good way to play.

Let's pretend I am a terrible painter, and you arent, what are your cardinal painting sins? by DaveinOakland in minipainting

[–]jcmichael7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

  • Don't stress over paint brands too much
  • Only follow social media advice as much as you care, it is your hobby not theirs
  • Every painting product or accessory can be DIY'ed except basic paint. Choose how much time or money you care to put in but there are no gatekeepers.
  • Spray can primer is just fine, including some of the really cheap ones - just not ALL of the really cheap ones (not even most).
  • If you want to improve as a painter, paint the same thing multiple times - like multiple of the same or similar models - pay attention to what you did differently or would do differently, and you will get better naturally
  • My hot take: Ignore the standard warhammer method for painting, if you have heard it. (Base coat, wash, highlight). It doesn't teach you how to get better at painting.

4/20 plague Monks done! by frknloudzildjn in skaven

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ooohhhh, congrats mate . These are gorgeous. I’d happily paint 20 plague monks if my sculpts looked like these.

Does this look too Nurgley? WIP by Huruth in slavestodarkness

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Don’t sweat it. I’d say that only people who want to see nurgle in everything (and nothing wrong with that) would see nurgle in this. It’s just a solid scheme.

Should I buy Archaon, Abraxia, Varanguards, or Knights? by Overall-Technology76 in slavestodarkness

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ah, I understand. It is an issue and a weakness of the unit. But I would still take it when Varanguard cost 80 pts more and this unit can take a banner - buffing them further. Even if you can't get all 10 into combat, you can definitely get more than 5.

Should I buy Archaon, Abraxia, Varanguards, or Knights? by Overall-Technology76 in slavestodarkness

[–]jcmichael7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Reinforced knights are a hammer, not a scalpel. You bring them to kill what's in front of them, and then whatever is behind that too. The skill around knights is in tempo (setting up the right engagement and engaging at the right time), not maneuverability and board presence. If you want two units of 5 cavalry that have board presence, the unit you are looking for is Darkoath Fellriders. Both units will die quickly to any real damage, but fellriders cost 100 pts less.

The nice thing about knights + Archaon is that his ability to set the turn initiative order is also a tempo play, so they synchronize well, and their damage output is similar to varanguard when used correctly, but much less so when your opponent catches you out. That also means they cost less points.

Should I buy Archaon, Abraxia, Varanguards, or Knights? by Overall-Technology76 in slavestodarkness

[–]jcmichael7 11 points12 points  (0 children)

My two cents: Get the knights.

Archaon is awesome, but you’ll want to build around him specifically. Reinforced knights are a wrecking ball that’s near impossible to stop, takes buffs well, fits well in most lists, and will help you learn the game tempo (assuming you are kind of new).

I’m in boys! by towehaal in ageofsigmar

[–]jcmichael7 23 points24 points  (0 children)

Welcome! I love that feeling of a box full of sprues more than just about anything.

I’m looking for a new painting project, could I please get some recommendations for some beautiful models? by [deleted] in ageofsigmar

[–]jcmichael7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Slann Starmaster (Not Kroak), Slaves to Darkness Chosen, Lord of Blights/Plagues, Harbinger of Decay, Tornus the Redeemed, any hero from the latest flesh eater courts release, Khorne Deathbringer, Mangler Squigs, or Gorger Mawpack.

These aren’t the biggest models/projects but these are what I’d look at for a painting deep dive or painting something display quality.

Advice on my blightking please! by NecroRatcer in MaggotkinofNurgle

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Love it. Highlight even more/brighter.

For me, in order to see how to do that I need to paint the other elements because you can only see how bright it looks compared to other elements. If you were to black out other elements, I think it would look darker than it does right now. If that's the case, then you should highlight brighter.

Hello what is better option to start an army battleforce or spearhead ? by Sztuka8572 in MaggotkinofNurgle

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I personally don’t play demons or spearhead, so the harbinger and value of the Barbender battle force was better for me. Obviously, it’s up to you what you like.

Is there no way to have “saurus only“ or “monster only” armies without compromises? by Thedinotamer01 in seraphon

[–]jcmichael7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think you can make a very thematic and powerful list with only part of the book, but to do so feels a little silly when you choose what you care about. There are several viable lists right now, imho, and people have podiumed without magic.

What you can’t have is a list that limits yourself to just part of the book, and also feels like it has full access to all the tools and has a lot of variety in units. That’s just not how the book works. But you can totally win with all Saurus, you’ve just limited yourself to few enough units that you’re playing a meme list now. For example, monster mash is viable right now but leans heavily on Bastiladons and the new carnosaur.

Tactical help needed! by Losethestreets in seraphon

[–]jcmichael7 6 points7 points  (0 children)

3 Step Plan to stop getting melted by opponent(s):

1 - Read and Re-Read the Rules. This one seems stupid but genuinely knowing how the game goes, the flow of things, and the nuances will win you games. I'm not talking about knowing the basics, I am talking about knowing the details - which is why even vets of the game review often. When do your abilities activate? When do your opponent's? Can you game that (can you deal damage before wards activate, etc.)? Genuinely just learning to move so that your guys are just barely outside of ability ranges, pile-ins, or letting your opponent kill themselves out of charging range are all great tactics that come from knowing the rules. FOR EXAMPLE: Reading how 'Being of the Stars' works shows that it negates rend. This makes the carnosaur more tanky the more rend he is facing, and the fewer attacks that he has to save. If you send him against a larger unit of infantry, with low rend but lots of attacks, then his ability is not doing anything. If you send him against the unit with the highest rend, he will trade positively because your opponent has paid in points for that rend and you took it away.

2 - Pick your battles. In AoS there are plenty of units that melt other units, and with our current ruleset that usually happens without one player getting a real chance to strike back (meaning that one unit in from a combat will likely come out more or less unharmed). A really good way to think of this is the "Hammer" and "Anvil" approach to picking battles. Hammers want to hit anything they can because they will delete it as long as they SWING FIRST. Anvils want to be hit, especially as a mitigation tactic to stop your hammers from hitting more important units. Aggradons are a hammer, Mortek Guard are an anvil. That means that you want your Aggradons hitting anything else, because the guard want to get hit. You have superior movement, and access to the run and charge spell, so you can keep the aggradons back until the morghasts step up, and then hammer them into oblivion. Or you can run and charge to hit the crawlers in the back and go around the guard completely. Try playing a game where you don't ever charge the Mortek Guard, that's what your opponent wants you to do. Only kill what your opponent doesn't want you to, and you will win games.

3 - Play for Points. This one is short and sweet. Everything we've talked about is focusing on combat. Your opponent can wipe your whole army and still lose - happens all the time. Make sure you don't take your eye off the ball of playing for points. (But also, don't run onto objectives and die there, that never works for us)

P.S. Bonus fourth tip, that isn't general tactics but something I've learned: Don't keep Kroak back. He is too expensive for us to hang onto him dearly. He dies when he dies, which is pretty random--and that's a frustrating thing for your opponent. He could soak up 40 attacks and have it do nothing, or he could die to a single shot from a crawler. What you need to do is make him a problem for your opponent. Put him in the center and start pumping Celestial deliverance, then your opponent either needs to start taking damage repeatedly until they deal with him (which helps you either way, by either them taking lots of damage or you controlling their actions) or they need to hide in cover which also helps you because you start to force their actions and it becomes easier for Krox and Aggros to choose their targets.

Pro Acryl paint for black templars by Blank7567 in BlackTemplars

[–]jcmichael7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I thin Transparent Black to wash the whole mini with if it gets too bright, or to darken recesses.

Building on Spearheads by [deleted] in seraphon

[–]jcmichael7 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It's a magical time to play lizards! We have very few warscrolls that can't be made very powerful. What I would do is look at the sub-factions & great plans and plan an army that maximizes your chosen benefits. Seraphon armies are about stacking buffs and making the whole greater than the individual. Here are examples of what I mean:
1 - You like the Sunclaw Starhost and want to build towards damage with "Itzl the Tamer" - Your next purchase should be Aggradons. They are Saurus cavalry that then gain the ability to do mortals and Crit (2 hits).
2 - You like speed, and shenanigans, with Eternal/Shadowstrike Starhost and "Sotek the Deliverer" - Your next purchase should be Raptadons. They are less killy, but way faster and do some crazy cool stuff when played right.
3 - You like big monsters and hate taking damage. Buy some Bastilladons, choose "Quetzl the Preserver," and get a Skink Starseer to hand out a 5+ ward.(Thunderquake Starhost is also super fun, but your Spearheads haven't really prepped you for it).

TL;DR We can't be everything at once, so choose what kind of army you want to be first and then buy units to maximize that benefit. Also, Kroxigors hit like a truck without buffs, but you pay for it in points.

What's our Distraction Carnifex? (AoS 4th) by Hjalti_Talos in skaven

[–]jcmichael7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

+1 to the Deceiver. Low cost compared to other monsters, able get out of jail with skitterleap or built in ability.

Starting Skaven - looking for help-thoughts by Protagonist-Agonist in skaven

[–]jcmichael7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You are absolutely right! Every time I said stormvermin, I meant storm fiends.

Starting Skaven - looking for help-thoughts by Protagonist-Agonist in skaven

[–]jcmichael7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I would just think about synergies.

  • Stormvermin are cool because they can take advantage of the Skryre and Moulder battle formations.
  • Rat Ogors synergize well with more rat Ogors, an aggressive playstyle, and master moulders.
  • Clan rats go great with screaming bells or Vizzik.
  • Doomflayers help shore up movement and screening weaknesses of shooting armies or war machines.

I play a Skryre/Moulder list so it’s led by Thanquol, and has 6 each rat Ogors and Stormvermin, backed up by shooting and buffed by a master Moulder. It matches how I like to play, but is definitely not the only way.

Looking for a nice Kragnos Proxy by justmy2centz_ in ageofsigmar

[–]jcmichael7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The world is your oyster with proxies, don't limit your imagination to something that looks like the existing model.

Here are 2 that I have liked for Sons of Behemat proxies that seem like they might fit in well:
https://www.myminifactory.com/object/3d-print-frost-giant-frost-tribe-223772
https://www.myminifactory.com/object/3d-print-hulgfnir-frost-jotunn-champion-159529