Post by Fadril Adren on Mar 6, 2017 21:46:58 GMT -5
Age of Sigmar Spotlight – Sylvaneth: Part 1
As part of our “Road to AdeptiCon” coverage, we’ve caught up with Tyler, from the Scruby & Wells podcast, and he’ll be joining us for an in-depth 8-part series on the sylvaneth. Whether you already have a force of sylvaneth, fight against them regularly, or are thinking of getting started with an army of Alarielle’s children, this series is for you.
At AdeptiCon, Tyler and company are looking to join in and cover the Warhammer Age of Sigmar Warhost Tournament on Thursday, Warhammer Age of Sigmar Doubles Tournament on Friday, and the Warhammer Age of Sigmar Championship on Saturday and Sunday. The forces they are taking will be showcased in upcoming articles in this series.
The Warhammer Community team will also be out in force at AdeptiCon, bringing you live coverage from the event (and a painting seminar with Warhammer TV’s Duncan). We will be joined by members of the Design Studio – Pete, Ben, Jes and Rob – who will be participating in the Warhammer 40,000 Team Tournament and presenting a few seminars of their own. There is a huge list of great events to attend this year, so have a look, and join us – on the Road to AdeptiCon!
Why Sylvaneth?
Why should you collect and play sylvaneth? I think they’re a landmark release for Age of Sigmar, with phenomenal depth for hobbyists and gamers of all sorts. In this new series, we’re going to explore their lore and diverse style of play, list building for matched play games, community tips, painting, and more.
If you love multi-faceted factions, this is the force for you. Sylvaneth have myriad elements that make them incredibly enjoyable, including:
* the capacity to compete in every phase as a stand-alone faction: set up, magic, movement, shooting, combat, and battleshock.
* a unique, play style built around the Sylvaneth Wyldwood terrain for rapid movement, board control, ability bonuses and mortal wounds.
* two of the most powerful heroes currently available, Alarielle the Everqueen and the Spirit of Durthu, who become especially resilient together.
* an overall durability against wounds that is almost unmatched in Age of Sigmar at the moment, but watch out for mortal wounds!
* a potent, elite army that works well with as few as 35-50 models.
* clearly-defined, complementary roles across every unit.
* the phenomenal Kurnoth Hunters (we’ll cover them in more depth Part 2).
* a great mix of battalions promoting multiple distinct styles of play.
* and an almost endless variety of ways to convert and paint your warriors of the glade, whether by season, glade, clan, or realm, meaning almost every sylvaneth army looks different.
Those are just a handful of the topics we’ll cover in this series. Let’s start, though, by looking at one of the strongest aspects of the faction: the lore.
Guardians of Life
Sylvaneth are the children of Alarielle – goddess of life magic, Queen of the Radiant Wood, and protector of Ghyran, the Realm of Life.
They are the expression of her will, born from seed-like wellsprings of life known as soulpods. Soulpods are sacred to the sylvaneth as living conduits of their past, present, and future. They are imbued with Alarielle’s greatest dreams and hopes, and carry the imprints of souls across the ages since even the world-that-was.
In the Age of Myth, all across verdant Ghyran, Alarielle sowed seeds of life, some of which she recovered from the world that was lost. At this time of new beginnings, she gifted her children-to-be with a powerful innate enchantment: the spirit-song. A chorus beyond comprehension to non-sylvaneth, the spirit-song binds Alarielle and all her children to each other through a transcendent melody only they can hear. This magical phenomenon also created timeless realmroots that link locations saturated in life magic and allow the sylvaneth to communicate and travel across incredible distances using these spirit-paths. The strength of the sylvaneth is intertwined with this spirit-song, the melody and their potential for power swelling as more of them are present; a fading sorrow sets in the more they are separated or isolated in silence.
The sylvaneth are striving to bring their spirit-song back to soulpod groves that have fallen dormant or been lost since the Age of Myth. The acts of wakening these far-flung glades and reinvigorating sacred sites of life magic epitomizes their purpose, and any force that seeks to stop them or hinder their efforts soon suffers the forests’ wrath.
More to Explore
The above only begins to scratch the surface of the sylvaneth’s lore. Take a look at the following books to learn even more about the forest spirits:
Order Battletome: Sylvaneth – Everything you need to begin collecting the faction, including background, abilities, warscrolls, and battalions.
Legends of the Age of Sigmar: Sylvaneth – A one-stop guide to the warriors of the woods. Malevolent forest spirits, dangerous spites and Alarielle herself, with stories from top Black Library authors.
Up Next
In Part 2, we’ll dig into playing sylvaneth in matched play games, including some of their play styles, battalions, synergies, and tips from experienced players.