Makeda spotted brawling with eDoomshaper

Hello fellow baby-elephant-torturers!

Wednesday I played a game with a Warlock I was quite keen on on playing. She seemed very powerful and very toolboxy. Her spells seem to have a use in every situation! I am of course talking about Archdomina Makeda!

Firstly, I must admit that the list I played was not my own! Especially for games at 50 points I feel I don't know how to build lists (except for Makeda3, but her list builds itself, in my opinion).

So I went with this list:

• pMakeda
• Tiberion
• Molik Karn
• Gladiator
• Brute
• Krea 
• Marketh
• Nihilators
• Paingiver Beast Handlers
• Agonizer
• Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew

It's pretty brutal and if you haven't tried it already, then really do! 

My opponent brought eDoomshaper:

• eDoomshaper
• Mountain King
• Earthborn
• Mulg
• Winter Troll
• Janissa
• Krielstone shizzle
• Fell Caller

He wanted to play straight Caster Kill, and I was all right with that (mwahahahaha).

The area of engagement

There was forest to my right, and a hill to my left. There was also a pool behind the forest. We just wanted to play (it was 23:00 at the moment). The forest did block a good chunck of Line of Sight but that only proved to be helpful than annoying to me (because he had no way of granting Eyeless Sight). I went first.

Deployment

Why is this a separate paragraph? I deployed everything centrally, with my Nihilators up front, and Makeda in the middle.

The Game

And so it began. I was pretty nervous because I had never played a gargossal before, but fortunately I had heard stories about the Mountain King. It was his first game with this list.

First round

In my turn stuff runs! I put Defenders Ward on the Nihilators, and Savagery on Tiberion. Then Marketh casts Savagery on the Gladiator. Not needed at all but Makeda is all new and shiny to me so I really wanted to do that!.

In his turn, he stuffs the Krielstone and gives Wild Agression to the Mountain King. He runs everything.

Second round

I upkeep Defenders Ward but let Savagery drop. I just ran up more forward, using the forest as a screen for Makeda. I feated as well. All Nihilators were in my Control Area. I Paralysed the Fell Caller because I could.

His turn he feated as well (which I found a strange decision). He couldn't trample with the King because of my placement with my Nihilators, Mulg was too far away and the Earthborn couldn't do much either. He did spray and boy did that hurt! My Brute took 2 Mountain King spray shots to the face and was barely alive. The Fell Caller killed a Nihilator, and the Winter Troll as well. He then ran Mulg up to a better position, and charged with his Earthborn. He targeted one Nihilator. Later on I realised the move wasn't bad in se, because I now had to deal with a heavy and next turn Mulg would squatch Tiberion and the Mountain King would do some damage as well, but he hadn't realised Makeda has the tools for everything.

Third round

The reason I am posting this report: I've put some really cool stuff to use: Firstly I paralysed the Mountain King, which stopped it from Charging and Running, but more importantly from Trampling! My heavies were safe on that side of the table. I then Muzzled Mulg (needing a 10 and rolling a 10!). That meant I could kill the Earthborn with Tiberion and I would not need to fear any form of reprisal. 

Indeed, in his turn, he couldn't do much. The King sprayed, killing my brute. Mulg walked backwards, behind Janissa's wall.

The feat discussion: This was the round I had a discussion with a friend. He said that the models you brought back, are removed from the table at the end of the round. I didn't think it  was like that, but we did it anyway. I have checked now, and it seems I was correct. Oh well, it were only three Nihilators.

Fourth round

The game was pretty much over. I charged the King with the Gladiator and Molik Karn, killing it. I then charged Tiberion with Mulg, killing it as well! He conceded because he had simply no way of finding a way to kill my Warbeasts. I had also learned from previous experiences and Makeda was far in the back, with two transfers. Good game indeed.

Aftermath

I'm pretty happy how this game went. Sure, his list wasn't optimal. Sure, he made some strange decisions. But now I know what weapons Muzzle and Paralysis really are. I also had a change to one-round a gargossal, even if it was "only" a Mountain King. His head now hangs in my living room.

Lesson #9: Use any tools at your disposal. Paralysis and Muzzle are awesome tools to protect your beasts from their beasts! I believe this would make her a viable pick against Saeryn, though I would need to check that.

Lesson #10: Just to say it again: keeping your Warnoun in the back really pays off.

See you soon,

The_A.

(The picture above is not my own. It was taken from the front picture of the Privateer Press Novella  "Instruments of War".)

Faction ADD - How I try to get over it, and fail.

Well hello Skorne-Blog-Loving World!

Today I am planning on writing some stuff about my faction ADD and hopefully about something else as well ^^.

Skorne is my fourth faction. That's right. And I started late 2012. That's how bad it is.

Late 2012: bought Hordes 2-player box. Started Circle.
January 2013: Bought Retribution
April 2013: Started Protectorate
                   Sold Retribution
August 2013: Started Skorne.
                      Sold Legion of Everblight.
                     Started a blog about Convergence of Cyriss. I still don't want to play them, but the blog is staying - you never know!
December 2013: Said in my New Year's Resolution that I was going to start Khador.
January 2014: Bought Cygnar (what was I thinking?)
February 2014: Sold Protectorate and traded Cygnar for Circle 2P box.
                         Bought Retribution.
                         Traded Circle for Legion.

So right now I have Skorne, Retribution and Legion. That's not that bad if I hadn't sold them earlier. But hey, I'm not the only one who makes stupid decisions out there!

My plans remain relatively unchanged though: I am still going to play Skorne exclusively until September. In the meantime, I am going to paint Retribution (Pink!). Legion is there just for the lolzzz (and I want to paint them aquablight).

So that's it: no Khador for me.

I am now going to write an article that's actually about Skorne!

The_A.

Makeda3 spotlight

Hi trusty old readers, A. again for a quick battlereport/tactica/Makeda3 introduction :)

It has been a very long time since my last post, but having a little time on my hands, I decided to take up the metaphorical pen and write a little thing about my current favourite Warlock: Makeda and the Exalted Court (Makeda3 for the friends, iMakeda for the Apple-fans).

My last battle report was with the Master Tormentor, but since then, I moved on. pMorghoul is a fun warlock for sure, but I felt he lacked something. I started digging in the available warlocks (for me, that is) and after playing a few games with pHexy and GuitarheroHexy, I settled on Makeda3. Gorgeous model, awesome fluff and a solid selection of Spells, Abilities and Weapon(s), all the while having a feat that will help you in any situation (more on that later). And if that's not enough, she comes with two female bodyguards.

A quick introduction:

Makeda her stats are fine as always, very similar to her Prime and Epic versions, but she got an additional (and welcome) point of MAT, seeing that she has no other way to 'boost' it (except with boosts of course). Her defence is quite high, and it can skyrocket with a gobber cloud and a Krea, which you bring anyway. Her ARM is the same as her epic version, but her Majesty the Supreme Archdomina has a way to push it up a little bit higher. Her SPD is normal for Warlocks her size/age/physical potential/way of suiting up. Her Weapon (The talon of Murzoul) is an impressive piece of gear. It has Reach, is Magical and just looks like it can and will kick ***. Even better, she has a boost to her STR, making her a true paragon of Destruction. She also has Blood Boon on her Weapon, making her cast one of her Spells (they are all eligible) for free, immediatly after killing a living model. Note that Blood boon can also be used to cast an Animus.

You noticed I spoke about a way to boost her STR and ARM. This is caused by her Battle-Driven. When she or one of her bodyguards get damaged, they gain +2 STR, +2 ARM and Pathfinder. It's the same ability the Warders have. She also has inspiration, making your Paingiver Beasthandlers even less likely to run away (her other choices of Troops are, for the most part, Fearless anyway). Still a nice ability, try to remember it!

And let's not forget her Bodyguards, or the Exalted Court as they are better known. They have the same SPD as Makeda (such high SPD, it's unprecedented for a Skorne construct). They are Constructs, have Battle-Driven and sport two middling P+S weapons. They also have Shield Guard, making it easier to trigger Battle-Driven.

Then we have her Spells. She has four: one will be cast every game, the other two are useful and have potential in certain situations, and the last one is dead space on the card unfortunately. It's up to you guess which of spells fall in which category ;)

Her first spell is Vortex of Destruction. Damage rolls against enemy models in her melee range are automatically boosted. This makes her an effective P+S 17 Weapon Master under Battle-Driven. Even better, continuous fire damage rolls, ranged damage rolls and even Ground Zero damage rolls are all boosted! It's really one of those spells with a very fitting name.
Her second spell is Ground Zero. You place a 5" AoE centered on Mak3da and all models in it (except for Makeda herself of course) suffer a moderately strong damage roll. Damaged models are then pushed (This has won me a game).
Then we have Eliminator. Kill something, move 2". Marketh can use it to place Makeda in a better position. With the feat, this awesome because for every model you kill with this spell, you gain a Fury, and then you move! Woop woop!
And at last we have Sunhammer. It might be usefull against a Shredder spam list? Should test that. It's cornercase and because it's an Upkeep: Self, it stands in the way of Vortex of Destruction. It does however trigger Finisher (on Slaugherhousers) and armies that rely on movement abilities (say, Sprint, Admonition, Refuge), the damage can be quite significant! 

Her Feat Looks simple and non-intimidating. If a member of her battlegroup kills a model in her control area, Makeda either gains 1 Fury point, or one Warbeast in her control area loses a Fury point on it. Examples of uses are legio in this article. 

So, now you have a better knowledge of what's on Makeda her card. Let's move on to the more interesting part of this Spotlight: lists and Battle reports!

The list I used and changes I am going to make

So the list I built was geared towards optimizing Makeda her feat. 
Makeda and the Exalted Court (*2pts)
* Basilisk Krea (4pts)
* Bronzeback Titan (10pts)
* Molik Karn (11pts)
* Titan Gladiator (8pts)
Gatormen Posse (Leader and 4 Grunts) (9pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Mortitheurge Willbreaker (2pts)
Paingiver Task Master (2pts)
Saxon Orrik (2pts)

On feat turn, Molik Karn gets Beat Back from the Bronzeback and simply wrecks infantry. I do have my thoughts about this list though.

• Bronzeback can be switched out for more infantry. Train Wreck sure is nice, but an additional screening unit or some ranged support might be more useful and less 'gimmicky'.
• Marketh is a consideration. Upkeeping VoD (Vortex of Destruction) for free gives you that additional Fury to buy an attack with, and casting eliminators can help positioning Makeda. Note that he is not a part of the battlegroup.
• The Agonizer and the Krea are both situational pieces. I have the Drake and Orin Midwinter nearby.
• Because Makeda does not support anything really well, she needs self-sufficient infantry. Slaughterhousers, Posse, Incindiarii and Nihilators come to mind. Tyrant Commander, Saxon and Task Master are valuable infantry support pieces as well.
• Slaughterhousers can deal with tough, but they are expensive.
• The raider, Cannoneer and the Mammoth can give the list ranged support. An idea by Lord Tyrant Watt was to build a ranged list and use Makeda to kill their heavies. 
• That same Tyrant also pondered on using the Savage with her, for Prescience. 
• I still feel Molik Karn is an auto-include in this list. Side-Step with her Feat is just so much in-built synergy..

So my next iteration for the Makeda3 list will be:

Makeda and the Exalted Court (*2pts)
* Basilisk Krea (4pts)
* Molik Karn (11pts)
* Titan Gladiator (8pts)
Cataphract Incindiarii (Leader and 5 Grunts) (9pts)
Gatormen Posse (Leader and 4 Grunts) (9pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Tyrant Commander & Standard Bearer (3pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Mortitheurge Willbreaker (2pts)
Paingiver Task Master (2pts)

I was thinking about putting Incindiarii in my list but I wasn't really sure. Then someone on the PP forums posted his list and that's the one posted here. I really like the looks of it! 
I thought a while about using Nihilators instead of Incindiarii, but the ranged element proved after some games to be very useful.

I have also tried using Tiberion instead of Molik Karn, but I wasn't impressed. Sure, he's a big piece of meat, but I really missed Fate Walker.

Some quick and dirty Battle Reports

Now I am going to write down the few notes I took when fighting with Makeda3. Note that some Battles were fought a few months back, so I won't go into detail with some. 

Game 1: pGrissel

So my first game was against Trolls. It's a long time ago now but I learned that Tough is a ***** and an infantry swarm with Tough is even worse. 
In this game I took the first list, with the Bronzeback. Due to Tough, my feat turn was nothing spectacular unfortunatly. It was a real slugfest and I really needed more infantry. 

Game 2: eVayl

My first win with Makeda3. It was against a beast-heavy list. The scenario was the one with the zone in the middle.
First note: it's incredible how much carnage my Bronzeback made during the Feat turn with Beat Back. It killed an Angelius, the pot, a lot of those pot-guys and a lot of legionnaires, and then he controlled the zone. I then slammed his warbeasts out of the zone with my Gladiator and kept Molik ready in case Vayl came too close. I dominated. His turn he then killed the Gladiator and the Bronzeback :( Nothing was forlorn though, I killed a controlling Angelius with Molik, destroyed the enemy objective with a Posse and then Pushed his Carny and Shepherd out of the zone with Ground Zero! I won that game - he had not much left.

Conclusion: Ground Zero is awesome in the right situation!

Game 3: Ossyan

Another win, but not really deserved. During my feat turn, I decided to assassinate Ossyan with Molik, which failed.. Instead of going for the kill, I should have out-attritioned him and killed the SFA instead of side-Stepping into Ossyan. During his turn, he could knock down Makeda, but failed to kill her, even with feat (Krea Animus, Battle Driven, Shield Guards and Transfers mean she is hard to kill from range). 

Conclusion: Makeda

Game 4: eCaine

This is a very recent game, so I'll try to make a more enjoyable Battle Report for this one.
I used the second list, but with Tiberion instead of Molik Karn.
He took:

Captain Allister Caine (*5pts)
* Stormclad (10pts)
* Squire (2pts)
Black 13th Gun Mage Strike Team (4pts)
Greygore Boomhowler & Co. (Boomhowler and 5 Grunts) (6pts)
Stormblade Infantry (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
* Stormblade Infantry Officer & Standard (3pts)
* 2 Stormblade Infantry Storm Gunner (2pts)
Sword Knights (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
Captain Arlan Strangewayes (2pts)
Gorman di Wulfe, Rogue Alchemist (2pts)
Journeyman Warcaster (3pts)
* Ol' Rowdy (9pts)
Reinholdt, Gobber Speculator (1pts)
he also had Alexia and Friends Somewhere, not sure if I remember incorrectly or if he's a cheater, but I'll give him the advantage of the Doubt :P

I get first turn, scenario is Incursion.
I deploy my Battlegroup centrally, my Posse to my left, my Incindiarii to my right and behind them I placed my Tycomm.
He deployed everything centrally, except B13 (my left) and Ol'Rowdy and Junior (my right).

First round: I ran everything up, put 4 focus on my Agonizer.
He ran everything up, placed Heightened Reflexes on Boomhowler&Co and True Sight or something on himself.
Flag on the Posse-side goes away.

Second round: I drop some templates with my Incindiarii on Boomies. I will tell you this: I failed to kill a single Boomie in the entire game. So that was my shooting. I ran my Posse more to the middle.
His turn, he began his onslaught, rolling 13 damage in one hit with one of his Boomies against my Krea and killing 3 of my Posse. He then threw a Black Oil at Tiberion, which I Shield-Guarded (blinding my Agonizer, but that's better than a blinded Tibbers amirite?). Most important event: he had no FOCUS left on Caine.

Third round: Due to my inexperience I perceive an infantry swarm as an immediate loss. It was only later on that I realised that his Sword Knights could not harm the All Mighty Tiberion. But that's something I now know for future games. Instead of going for the Attrition, I decided to go for the ASSASSINATION! Caine was at the other side of the board. I felt like nothing could stop me I upkept Vortex of Destruction. I put Press Forward on Makeda, walked her 8" toward Gorman (I forgot to walk with my other Exalted, which could have netted me another two fury and/or an additional 2 STR), then I hit him, killed him, and Blood Booned an eliminator onto a clump of infantry who were also blocking the way (very convenient). I killed four, boosting every single damage roll so I really get the kills, and then I move 8" into Caine's face. The game was over for Cygnar.

Aftermath 

Because I wrote some Battle Reports, I guess I can learn something out of those!
lesson #5: If you have just one unit, don't use it to put it on your flanks. Instead, use it to cover up the advance of your Battlegroup
Lesson #6: Never ever forget Ground Zero!
Lesson #7: Speaking intimidatingly on your opponents turn can be helpful (but don't be rude!) but don't say things that spoil your own plan (like say: "Now where will we put Puppet Master the next turn?)
Lesson #8: Unlike pMorghoul, Makeda is very survivable!

Conclusion

I really like Makeda3. She is very agressive and her feat has a lot of Synergy with her other abilities (except with Ground Zero ofcourse). 

So, that's all for this write-up! Next I am going to write some articles about my Faction ADD (this is a personal blog after all!), pHexeris and I will also try to write a sequel to this article.

Greetings

The_A.

New Year's Resolution

Hi sweet readers o' mine,

Being a good blogger, I decided to make some resolutions. I know, I know, it's a little too early, but as long as the intent is there, I'm sure it won't hurt!

1. Exclusively play Skorne during 2014: This is going to be a rough one. I suffer from Faction ADD, making me want changing factions every month/week/day. The best way to solve this, is to write something on my blog about exclusively playing them, that's a written obligation and I better not break it!
2. Play some tournaments: The reason I started playing with plastic toy soldiers, was because I wanted to play tournaments with them. Having a decent collection of Skorne and a little experience under my belt, it's time to take the big step.
3. Paint, paint, paint: I want my whole collection of Skorne, Protectorate and Cygnar painted. Skorne alone is 80 models, including Minions. For someone who hasn't ever painted a full unit of anything, this really is a lot. That's why I plan on subscribing for 'A tale of WMH 2014'. Now where is my camera...
4. Study more: I really need to study more, and I mean laws, not Warmachine! No fails means more time during summer for not only Warmachine, but also friends and girlfriend.
5. Do some sport: I know it's probably the most heard resolution (for students it's nr.4 of this list) of all times, but I mean, really. Sitting in front of a computer and writing for a blog is not going to improve my stamina nor my looks. And Warmachine is not going to do it either!

I also made the decision to start buying Khador by September. That's the period I get the money I worked for during the Holidays, so I should be able to buy a good 50 point list. Post about this is coming soon!

I'm already curious to see how these will work out!

The_Archdominar

ARM 28 Warjacks, Power Attacks and Skorne Victory!

3th game with pMorghoul

Gladiator, brute, savage, nihilators, ago, BH and WB

pStryker, Centurion, Ol'Rowdy, Squire, B13, Arlan, junior

AS + pStryker Feat: ARM 28 warjacks

Throws + slams + pMorg feat/ago = disabled jacks

Scenario victory

A couple of weeks ago, I played a game versus pStryker.
It was 25 points, and he brought a high ARM list: Two ARM 25+ 'jacks on feat turn, in a scenario game.
I'll tell you how it went.

Game 3: The Game I learned how usefull Power Attacks can be

Skorne                                                

• pMorghoul 
• Gladiator
• Brute
• Savage
• Nihilators (max)
• Agonizer
• Beast Handlers (min)       
• Willbreaker                                                                                                                          

Cygnar

• pStryker
• Centurion
• Ol'Rowdy
• Squire
• Black 13
• Arlan Strangeways
• Journeyman Warcaster

I can't recall how the game went exactly, but I do remember the Highlights :)

Map Overview and Scenario

Scenario was Incursion ( the disappearing flag - the middle one this game)
Nihilators, Savage and Willbreaker on right flank, gladiator, brute, ago, morg and paingivers in the middle.
His two 'jacks in the middle, with Stryker behind them. The rest sets up to my right.

[...]

On my second turn, I run my Agonizer forward to deny him focus allocation.
His turn, he charges my agonizer with Ol'Rowdy (kills it obviously), 'jams' my Nihilators with a Centurion, and pops his feat. ARM 28, have fun.

Now I start to think. I can't damage his jacks, so I need to change plans. And then I realized that I could win on CP if only his jacks were Knocked down and under Morg's feat. I throwed Ol'Rowdy and slammed the Centurion, popped the feat and I controlled the right objective and contested the left., and charged into his infantry with my Nihilators, killing some B13 and Arlan.

[...]

During the Cygnar turn later in the game, he runs Stryker towards my left objective, and the Squire follows suit. My turn I dominate the right one, knock down his Centurion, and put the Savage in front of Ol'Rowdy, while my Nihilators block the way towards the right objective. I also kill the Squire with my brute and contest the left objective.

I win if he doesn't contest.

And because the Squire was killed, the Centurion couldn't shake the KD of. Ol'Rowdy couldn't trample because my Savage was in the way.

GG Skorne victory !!!

Lesson #3 The goal is not to destroy the other's army. The goal is to win, and that sometimes means you have to play dirty. Notice that both of his 'jacks were still standing at the end of the battle! Always try to seek ways to score objectives or to kill the other Warnoun. The game is only over when it's done :)

Lesson #4 Power attacks are good! Use them when you see an opportunity!

That was probably a bit of a ramble, but I think I made my point :) Also, the batrep was a bit weak, but the battle was at the end of June, and at the moment of writing this, it's August 26.

Happy conquering!

Archdominar

I'm not done with blogging yet!

Hay all, Archdominar here.

It has been a while since my last post, but I can assure you I'm not done with blogging yet! 

I just couldn't find the time to play sadly, so I had nothing to write about.
I also have to study for my finals, so I'm lacking in time to find a game.

However, 6 of september, I will play my first game with Skorne after more than two months, now with models, and I can't wait! 

Right now I have 4 paingiver Beasthandlers and an Agonizer, 35% painted! They should be done by the end of the weekend, and I'll see if I can post any pictures.

Happy conquering

The_Archdominar

pMorghoul theorymachine (possibly a tactica)

Greetings fellow Tyrants,

In this (admittedly huge) post I will try to put together a successful play style for pMorghoul. As you might know, list-building is not everything in this game, playing it and practising it. 

I have already played two battles with pMorghoul, I've read some articles about him. That coupled with the experience I had before I started Skorne, should suffice for some theory crafting :)

I came up with the idea of theory crafting 15 points (really not a lot of points) when I figured how I could make it work. For instance, deployment: where do you deploy everything to maximise your potential. Or the first turn - often one of the most crucial, especially at 15 points -, do I want to fill the Agonizer or do I want to cast Rush and Abuse, or Rush and Admonition, or ... The possibilities are endless and the main reason for writing this is to give myself some room for writing down my thoughts - simple Word documents, and even less pen and paper, do not suffice for a world conqueror, after all!

Before I start, I must say it has always felt strange when I read a tactics article. Most of them looked at the model in a vacuum, and just stated the obvious - great for a new player, but not so much when you want to delve into some deep and hidden tactics. That is why this article will not just talk about pMorghoul, but it will look at him in a set point value (15 points) with a list. I will see if this format works.

1) The list

This is about a fairly simple and straightforward 15 points list.

pMorghoul

Cyclops Brute
Cyclops Savage
Titan Gladiator

Paingiver Beast Handlers (min)

Agonizer

2) The tactic

Skorne basic tactics are all about applying Titans or Molik Karn. You can play some other type of games of course, like control or denial, but I don't think Morghoul is an ideal caster for this (although he has some huge denial elements incorporated in his Feat and spell list, I would not consider him a denial 'lock; he's more like an axe-to-the-face warlock with some gimmicks).

Now, with some help from his friends, the Gladiator in this list really has a large threat range. With Abuse, Rush and Enrage, our armed elephant charges 11" for free, and swings at P+S 20 with three initials (one at P+S 19) and has 4 fury. This will our primary 'trick'. After your charge, you will most of the time have succeeded in killing either the opponents caster or his heavy, which, at 15 points, can be devastating.

It's really just like this

3) The Problems (and some solutions)

1. Knockdown: This problem can be solved by applying the Brute's animus, which prevents KD. On the other hand, 2 fury is a lot, and you'll have to make decisions (I talk about fury management below). When facing pKreoss, never end your turn without Safeguard on pMorghoul. Same can be said when facing pDeneghra or pStryker.
2. Retaliation: Often, your heavy who just charged is ready to get pummelled. Consider the Khador battle box for instance - killing a heavy leaves you at at least 4 P+S 17 hits in retaliation, and if he's playing Butcher, well, let's just say killing a heavy sometimes is not enough to warrant the safety of your heavies. How can we deal with that? Simple: Admonition: he walks into melee range? Just walk away. The feat is also a good tool to help this - if you catch enough of his 'jacks, they will only be attacking with their initials, and if he's playing Hordes, he won't be able to force if they venture too close to Morghoul.
3. Stationary: When facing pSorscha, remember she has a huge threat range. Screen your 'Lock accordingly. Not much that can be said, I still need to face her. 
4. being out-threatened: It is possible the other army has a way to out-threaten you. I'm thinking about a Feral Warpwolf with pKaya and a Blackclad Wayfarer. That's 13", and Kaya just zips him back to her, although the Feral does hit fairly weak (at 13", he hits at dice -4). Having played her myself, the only way to try to beat her is to play with Objectives :D . Not really sure what to do when it's just Caster Kill.. When I come up with something, I'll add it. I can say what you should not try: split up. At batllebox level, the average speed of her battlegroup is approx. 6,  she can just focus on one element and out-attrition you! (#4 might need some clean-up, I'll see what I can do about it)
5. Being Debuffed: An easy solution would be to just swap a Savage with a Shaman, but playing at 15 points with 14 points of 'support', might not be the best idea. Losing your Heavy means losing the game if the other caster is a tough nut to crack (and not-living). When you are unable to charge, a possible solution is to run to engage, and then pop feat. You limit the retaliation this way (also, when you pop your feat and you are able to catch the opponent Warcaster in it, he won't be able to upkeep the debuff! However, be careful with this, being 10" away from the opponents caster might end badly for you). Not optimal, and I'm still thinking about other possible solutions. Playing Objectives might help.
6. There are other problems, and when a new one pops up (either during playing or someone mentioning one in the comments), I'll add it to this list (or make a whole post about, who knows)

4) The real problem: Fury Management with pMorghoul

Reading the above list, you might want to criticise that Morghoul can't do all those things in the same turn and still have fury left for transfers. That's true, and that's why I have made a whole additional chapter about it :)

As you might have noticed, a lot of the above problems can be solved by casting spells - Retaliation can be lessened by good use of Admonition, and you can't be knocked down when you have the Cyclops's animus up. However, just casting those two will leave you at 0 Fury, one if you Maltreated. And you won't have casted Rush or Abuse, nor will you have filled the Agonizer. How do we solve this? On the other hand, after a good turn of having cast safeguard with the Brute, and having had a good time with the Gladiator and the Savage, you have 9 fury on the table, and Morgoul can only leach 5 (4 if he left one for transfers). Now you risk losing out on an activation of one of your beasts! Fury Management is no doubt the most important  dogma in Hordes. This puny mortal will try to cover it with pMorghoul (note this is subject to change - opinions change over time, and I will acquire new insights over the next few months). Later on, I will try to post about the dogma of fury management in general.

1. What does pMorghoul want to do with all his fury?
1. Cast Abuse (Most plausible thing you are going to do)
2. Cast Admonition (Often a really good choice - moving your models his turn is nerve-shattering)
3. Cast animi (See 2.5 for sometimes the best option for this)
4. Spend on extra attacks or boosts (pMorghoul should only do this later in the game though)
5. Fill the Agonizer with it (Turns 1 & 2, later on your fury might be better spent - or you agonizer is dead)
6. Cast Torment (Most of the time, your fury is better spent)
7. Keep them for Transfers (consider it an insurance, and try most of the time that he won't be able to reach you)
2. What enables/helps him to do all of that?
1. His meagre 5 fury (leaching)
2. Maltreatment (needs beasts as well)
3. [Aptimus Marketh (3 point investment)]
4. [Cyclops Shaman (5 point investment)]
5. Letting his beasts cast their animus themselves
3. How does he keep his Beasts at bay (the other spectrum of Fury Management)
1. He can leach up to 5 Fury himself
2. The previous turn, he can maltreat a beast for 1 fewer fury
3. The previous turn, paingiver beast handlers can Condition warbeasts so they drop to the desired amount of Fury

(Some options are in brackets: that is because although we have those options, I do not have them in my current list. 15 points doesn't allow for much :p)

So, how does a turn of pMorghoul proceed. He'll have 5 fury, 6 if he opts to maltreat.

I realize this might be a little straightforward for the most, if not all of you because in fact I am stating the obvious - I am however, doing more than that: I am stating the options. With these in the back of my head, it's easier to go over my turn - might just be me, but schematics do help us remember :)

5) How does a turn look like

So, in the previous chapter I went through all the things Morghoul can possibly do in one turn. The best way to illustrate fury management (and to be honest, the reason I started thinking about a tactica) is to imitate the opening turns of the game. We have some decisions to make then

• Do we want an Agonizer filled with Fury?
• Do we want our beasts halfway up the board?
• Do we want Admonition on the field?

Obviously, you can't do them all at once. 

Turn 1.

We have different possibilities here. Sometimes you feel that you need to fill that agonizer quickly, for instance against Warmachine armies, and sometimes you need to go up the board quickly, so you don't lose momentum (this is especially true if you are going first) Here are some possible paths I suggest:

Cast Admonition on either the Gladiator or Morghoul himself (would advise the Gladiator, but only if you keep Morghoul in the back) and then put the remaining fury on the Agonizer. In SR2013, when you go first, that will put your Heavies at 15", 9" from the middle of the board.

When you are up against a Purification Caster, Admonition usually isn't the best choice, because you have so low fury. I would then cast abuse 2 times  and put the remaining fury on the agonizer. This is also viable if you feel you need to rush op the board!

Now your heavies go up the field faster ( If you are going first, 6" away from the middle line).

Obviously, you could also cast Admonition, Abuse and then put the remaining fury on the agonizer. I would advise using this one most of the time. You have your upkeep up, you have a heavy far up the field, and you have started filling the Agonizer! Now your heavy of choice will be 12" further. 

6) epilogue

I feel this post is a little strange and I feel I should have stayed on course. I will just post this up and take note of any remarks, and upon rereading this and after playing some more games with Morghoul, I will change it accordingly.

Thank you for reading this, and see you next time,

The Archdominar