After going tournament crazy last year I’m having a more relaxing season and having some fun with the game. My Free Dwarf Masters list had 3 Living Legends in it which was a lot of fun. Living Legends add a lot of character and theme to armies which only increases the immersion in the battle, making more of a story to the game. In fact, I enjoyed the experience I’m going Living Legend TO THE MAX!!!! I shall be attending the Northern Kings tournament in a couple of weeks (one of the best tournaments I attended last year and I would highly recommend it, only it already sold out within weeks it’s THAT good!) and as I’m no longer chasing the masters list and only out for fun I’m taking the Northern Kings! That’s right, a Northern Alliance army with all four Living Legends! The Northern Kings are going to Northern Kings. Plus I’m Northern too (I try not to broadcast it because I live in Surrey these days and, you know, standards) so that’s a lot of Northern. It’s so Northern I want you to go and read all that again with Sean Bean’s voice in your head.
Will this army be any good? Who can tell? Well, let’s have a look! In my opinion, which is totally correct (piss off internet, it’s MY blog!!!!) here are the BEST Living Legends in Kings of War!!!
JARVIS!!
The only Living Legend in the game who is so awesome he actually changes the entire army alignment. He really is that good. While a basic Necromancer with surge (6) may only be 50 points, it can only perform that one role. For 140 points Jarvis has everything and more. Bane chant, heal, lightning bolt and surge means that he has a use in every single turn of the game. He can support your battle lines however you need it and that lightning bolt can cause chip damage in the first couple of turns and can even snipe wounded units in the last couple of turns too. That 12/14 nerve is also very respectable and will keep him alive when other characters would pop. Where he really shines however is his Ophidian book of secrets which adds 6” to all his spell ranges. As the battle progresses and units spread out you can’t always get the spells you want where you need them but that isn’t a problem for our boy! In addition he is very inspiring which also covers a large area and both of these mean he can often do the job of two characters by himself, saving points for elsewhere. He excels in smaller points level games but can do the job regardless. His only downside is that you can’t take other Living legends in the same army, but an Undead army is not shy in the character department so that isn’t too much of a problem overall.
ECKTER!!
Def 6 on an individual is great. Def 6 with ensnare AND phalanx and you have the toughest individual in the game. With 6 attacks at Crush (2) hitting on 3+ he can reliably put out the hurt too! I’ve had him out-grind hordes, hold entire flanks on his own and take charges that would make a greater earth elemental pebble his pants!. As an individual he doesn’t get multiple attacks for hitting someone in the flank, BUT it also means he doesn’t take them either, making him even harder to kill! His ability to wound with his wind blast is good too for either tactical play or just putting wounds on something. Though I had one embarrassing game were he was chasing a unit towards an objective for 3 turns who were faster. Every turn I windblasted them further away while hurting them and eventually blew them onto the objective without passing the nerve roll! And that highlights his biggest weakness…. He is slow at Speed 5. But slow and steady win the prize!
MAGNILDE!!
This girl is hard as nails! 7 Attacks hitting on 3+ is pretty nice but with Crush (2) AND elite she can comfortably take on most things and win. That Def 5+ fearless 15 AND iron resolve will keep her slapping stuff down all day long. 175 points is a lot for an individual but a speed of 7 and the ability to fly 10 once per game means she has an enormous amount of board control. This is great for tactical play as she can be where she needs to be at the right time and mainly avoid things that can hurt her. Either going hunting on her own or joining your hammers to take off enemy units in one go, she is a must take! Weaknesses? Sod off! She’s a Northern lass!
BA’EL!!
Everyone loves the Beast of Nature, and the Manifestation of Ba’el has a lot of the same attributes. 7 attacks hitting on 3+, Crush (2) and vicious on a nimble-flying mini-dragon size base is great. For 60 points more than the BoN you lose pathfinder and a point of nerve but gain Brutal, stealthy, Inspiring, Regen (5+), fury and a lighting bolt (7). So many special rules that his biggest weakness is that you might forget some! Oh, I did! He also has a range attack where all enemy units within 6″ become disordered. It is very situational but if played at the right time to strip a thunderous charge, stop a wizard casting (meaning he can get close enough to use the ability without getting surged in return!) or deny a couple of units of glade stalkers shooting then it could turn the battle. I wouldn’t rely on it though as he has plenty of awesome stuff to play with already. The stealthy and regen (5+) should keep him alive if you are careful and that lightning bolt (7) means he has a use in every single turn.
THE WILTFATHER!!
Treemen are already stupidly tough, this guy is tough AND nasty! He trades the radiance of life for the cloak of death and that bonus wound per round is well worth the upgrade points. Over the course of a game they can really add up and help swing fights. Only being speed 6 might not be too attractive to the casual observer but having scout means he can start on the centre line already and gives other scouting ‘verdant’ units the punch they lack. If you have heal in your army then he’s nigh impossible to kill and can spend all game chewing through your opponents and with 10 attacks, hitting on 3+ with pathfinder, crush 3 AND vicious he does it with style. At 300 points he is pricey, so loses a bit of his shine in small point games, but anyone who sees him in your list will inevitably loose bowel control when they see him there!
SVERI!
Combat characters are great but characters that are ‘force multiplyers’ (eg. Have an ability that makes your army better) can often make their points back in other ways. Sveri does both! His wild charge +1 aura for berserkers only mean that your brock riders can now charge 17” and outdistance other enemy cavalry, often the bane of slower moving dwarfs.
And he is no slouch on his own either. Again, while Free Dwarfs are a slightly faster list than their loser Imperial cousins, they still lack in that department. Being speed 8 and nimble means Sveri can get in their and scratch that itch that other dwarfs simply can’t reach. 10 attacks, hitting on 3+ with crush, thunderous and vicious is simply beautiful and while only being def 4, his survivability is in his whopping 18 fearless nerve! Nimble him around the back and in later turns he can quite happily take off enemy hordes in the rear in one go! His main weakness is lack of pathfinder or strider which can reduce his bite by quite a bit but he’s still a must have for virtually any Free Dwarf list!
There are many more, Hrimm, Nomagarok, Groany Snark, Shobik, Esenyshra, Skudsbnfhfjrfndjdndjdjskksklwmm and others who could all feasibly make the list but they didn’t. Feel free to argue with me and change my mind, but I’m feeling exceptionally stubborn so you won’t.
I’ll let you know how the Northern King at Northern Kings with the Northern Kings goes.
Get older. Don't grow up. 