Post by Fadril Adren on Jan 31, 2018 18:44:42 GMT -5
Death armies have long been renowned for their magic in the lore of Warhammer Age of Sigmar and the world-that-was. There’s something particularly stirring about the thought of covens of Necromancers releasing howling gales of amethyst magic on the battlefield and armoured Vampire Lords dispatching foes with amaranthine lightning. In Battletome: Legions of Nagash, the aforementioned forces of Death more than ‘live’ up to their reputation, with two new lores, a powerful new magical ability to combine them with, and a whole Legion designed to harness them to their full potential!
Magic In Legions of Nagash
Legions of Nagash provides Death players with a wider range of magical spells than ever before, thanks to two new spell lores. Don’t worry – your favourite spells are still in the game and, rest assured, Arkhan can still unleash the horrifying Curse of Years upon his foes. Instead, the new Lores of the Dead add to your toolbox of spells and open up new options for your army. Deathmages from your army – such as the humble Necromancer – will be able to sap the vigour of your foes with the Lore of the Deathmages, while Vampire Lords will be able to unleash magical wrath with the Lore of the Vampires. Meanwhile, Deathlords Wizards will be able to choose from both!
Whichever Lore of the Dead you’re using, you’ll benefit from the Locus of Shyish. Cast any spell from any lore on an unmodified casting roll of 9+, and you get to resolve the effect twice – particularly useful for spells such as Soul Harvest, a spell that draws the life of nearby foes towards the caster:
Whether you resolve this once or twice, you’ll be able to deal horrific damage to the foe while keeping a more valuable caster (like a Mortarch!) alive for longer.
Vampire Wizards, on the other hand, will find Amaranthine Orb a risky but powerful way to blast a hole through enemy battle-lines.
The Legion of Sacrament
If you’re looking to take full advantage of the new spells in Legions of Nagash, you’ll want to use the Legion of Sacrament, the army of Arkhan the Black. The Legion of Sacrament are notorious for their mastery of Death magic, and many mages in the Mortal Realms make the long pilgrimage to Shyish to learn from Arkhan himself.
On the tabletop, the Legion of Sacrament gains additional bonuses to cast – a small but welcome ability that increases the chances of getting these powerful new spells to work when you need them:
Meanwhile, your gravesites will be even deadlier thanks to The Master’s Teachings, an ability that can turn dead enemy units into fresh reinforcements for your army:
In this way, armies serving under Arkhan will benefit from both the endless regeneration provided by Deathly Invocation and their gravesites, as well as sudden spikes in the later game when you begin to wipe out enemy units. We’d recommend fielding your army as a castle based around the gravesites in your territory, battering the enemy with a hail of magical spells. Should anyone get close – well, that’s when you can unleash the Black Gem:
The Black Gem is a high-risk artefact, but one that’s well worth taking for the moments when it works – just be careful not to leave your friendly units too close!
If you’re looking to play more defensively, the Wristbands of Black Gold are a great choice, helping to shield your more valuable characters from getting shot down – ideal for a Vampire Lord on Zombie Dragon:
If you’re looking to truly master the magic of Death, you’ll want to take the Lords of Sacrament warscroll battalion, a formation centred around Arkhan, a Mortis Engine and a coven of Necromancers. Each unit in the battalion is shielded from attacks by the Mortis Engine, while they’ll also benefit from being able to cast an additional spell every turn! While this formation might consume a good number of points, it’ll be sure to catch your opponents off guard and is a great way to pay tribute to Nagash’s greatest pupil.
Fancy destroying your opponent by more direct means? The Legion of Sacrament represents just one way to play your army with the new battletome – check back tomorrow when we’ll be taking an in-depth look at the vampire elite of the Legion of Blood.