GG Horde

[Patrunkenphat7]

For those of you who have run this strategy, how many points do you put into the horde + characters? The GG block of 50 + Banner of Barrows and full command is over 600 points. The characters can get you to about 1200 depending on what you put in there (Wight King + Fencer's Blades and Other Trickster's Shard for challenges / maybe a couple hero vamps or a lord depending on your list). Is this an effective strategy? Is it easy for the opponent to chaff it up? What other units would you run to compliment this strategy? I am guessing more mobile units like Terrorgheists and Vargheists help prevent the opponent from controlling your army's movement, but there are only so many points to spend on non-core at this point. Lots of dogs seem like a must to redirect what you need to, as the rest of the core seems pretty useless.

 

[Seneschal]

40 is enough. GW's, command and Barrows.
My VL clocks in at just over 500 points, I don't use any other characters in that unit. One or two level one necros in a zombie bunker behind them is all I have for other characters.

Vargheists and Hexwraiths are good units to have in a GG list. I can't remember if I had 2 TG's in my list using Grave Guard as I switched over to Crypt Horrors as my anvil/hammer a long while ago.

Our core units aren't useless at all. Zombie blocks are great for holding up almost anything. Skellies are nice because they survive longer than zombies and can take a magic banner like swiftness so they can serve as a bus for a vampire. 40 ghouls in horde was a popular setup and can still be used to some effectiveness today depending on your meta.

 

[Aedin]

Im currently trying 28 with 2 banshees FC and Banner of Barrows. Im also running 2 engines.

 

[Minty]

I agree with Seneschal.

Forty Grave Guard, full command, that banner and Great Weapons. 560 points if my brain still works.

The extra ten bodies won't add as much as spending those points elsewhere.

Nor do I find myself thinking that the unit needs character support. It's choppy enough for most things and we have other blocks which benefit far more from the addition of a combat character.

It's a threat the enemy cannot ignore, but adding extra models or characters does not make it more threatening, only more valuable to you, and a bigger problem if you lose it.

I think the only character I might put in there is a Wraith or Banshee, just for Terror, end even that's not something I'd consider mandatory.


Of course, only a fool or a fluff player uses Grave Guard when Crypt Horrors do everything they do better and cheaper. (Did I mention I just bought 40 Grave Guard?)

 

[Patrunkenphat7]

Of course, only a fool or a fluff player uses Grave Guard when Crypt Horrors do everything they do better and cheaper. (Did I mention I just bought 40 Grave Guard?)

For the record I own 16 Crypt Horrors and 0 Grave Guard.

Just curious about how to use Grave Guard since I haven't touched them yet.

 

[Demian]

Having Krell sit in a GG horde might be overkill. Ok it is overkill, but when it comes to bringing stuff down, he does it very well! Krell needs Barrows!

That aside, Crypt Horrors do something entirely different than GW Grave Guard:

Yup, both usually strike after all enemies.

Yup, both get to make almost the same number of attacks.

But Horrors get their best with attrition, when they recieve very few wounds and then dish out the pain (at S4).

Grave Guard get to hit on 3+ most things. Get to Wound on 2+ most things, and munch half an Empire Knight's armour and maybe kill them outright with KB. With 2 mortis Engines, they mitigate some damage, considerable, but not as much as Horrors, sure.

Horrors do best against infantry, not so good against Cavalry, and specially well agains other M. Infantry and Monsters altogether (poisoned attacks)

Grave Guard do very well agains infantry, very well against Cavalry (Killing Blow), not so bad against monsters and sufficiently well against M. Cavalry and M. Infantry.

Both get raised pretty well with IoN

Grave Guard suffer less against flaming attacks that take out their Regen. Grave Guard benefit much more from VDM than Horrors.