- The Bloodline Legacies Project -
Foreword:
This army list attempts to make each of the five known bloodlines of vampires a bit more unique in nature, both as their fluff goes and also how their armies look and function on the tabletop itself.
The list is loosely based on the one in the 8.ed army book, with a small set of variations as far as the options for each bloodline goes. The most noticeable change is perhaps the Rare section of each list, which vary the most.
I’ve worked hard to keep the limitations of each list to a minimum, while at the same time having the correct limitations in place, so that there are some actual differences to the various army builds.
Even though many units might seem to be the same in most lists, there is a lot of upgrades only available to one bloodline, which can potentially tempt a player to take his army in a bit of a new direction. These upgrades are described in the individual unit entries.
One of the most noticeable changes is perhaps that the Master Necromancer is gone. This is on purpose. This list is all about the bloodlines first and foremost, and if the Master Necromancer was included, he would undermine the weaknesses of some of the bloodlines, while making the already magically potent ones even better.
To compensate somewhat for this loss, the various vampires have access to a broader range of spell lore’s overall, the vampires are arguably somewhat cheaper, the IoN spell is free for the general in addition to his normal spells (even if he selects another lore than the Lore of Vampires), and some of the bloodlines now have wizards more powerful/reliable than the master necromancer could ever hope to be. The Necrarch’s in particular will be very dominating in the magic phase, but still affordable, because of their reduced close combat potential. In larger games, the lack of magic in some armies will make it perhaps too difficult for them to manage, so I’ve decided to let Kemmler become a second Lord option as a sort of allied wizard to even things out (much like Mannfred used him in the new story in the 8.ed book).
I should perhaps point out, that the Von Carstein army is overall the most flexible and powerful, and the one with most in common with the one in the 8.ed book, but this is for a reason. They are by a good margin, the most powerful vampire bloodline, and the most realistic threat on a nation-wide scale after all. I have tried very hard not to make the Von Carstein’s a diluted “average” of the other bloodlines, as was often the case in earlier editions, and I hope this comes through in the list as well.
A noticeable difference overall is that a few ranged weapons apart from screams and similar have found their way into the list, especially as the Von Carsteins and the Lahmians are concerned. People’s opinions on this seems to vary a lot, and while I agree that a VC army should not be one dominating in the shooting phase, I also think that some bloodlines are more than capable of seeing the foolishness of not having any missile support in larger battles, particularly sieges and the like, which is part of the reason why some of the bloodlines now have a limited ranged capability. The other reason is that this helps separate them further tactically as well.
The most important reasons why I began this project however, were to:
•Make the Vampires of the various bloodlines more unique from one another, without imposing the same kind of limitations that we had back in the earlier editions of the game. This has been done by including some unique vampiric powers, some unique magic items, having different magic lores available to each bloodline, having some fixed vampiric powers for each bloodline as well as having different stat lines etc for the five bloodlines.
•Make Vampires stand out from the general “Undead” element of the list. I really disliked Vampires being vulnerable to becoming dust due to the skeletons next to them dying (a factor hugely important in 8.ed) due to being unstable etc. Vampires are personalities as well, and to have them portrayed with rules which effectively removes this element to them never sat well with me.
•Make Vampires be just that, Vampires or bloodsuckers if you will. I thought this came across very badly in the 7.ed book, but the reality of it in the 8.ed book is not much better. The Lore of Vampire Lore ability really negates any real necessity for the Hunger special rule, which makes the game mechanic that defines vampires more than anything into something trivial. In this list, this has been turned on its head, with Vampires not being able to heal by any means except through blood, and they have increased invulnerabilities to compensate. I did increase their attacks in general, but this was also done in the 8.ed VC book, so that I was happy with.
•The most important reason for starting this project however, was to try to fix some of the imbalances in the list as far as our near useless Core options goes, especially if measured up against the kind of killer Vampire Lords we have to make to compensate for their losses in close combat, and due to instability. To try to fix this, I have done a lot to the Core section of the army to improve it overall, especially how the Core units work together despite the Unstable rule hanging over them. The cost, has perhaps been the reduction of a Vampire Lord’s maximum close combat potential, even though he can still be considered at the proverbial top of the food chain. The benefit of this overall, or at least the goal is, to provide a list with more realistic alternatives for vampire builds, as well as to have Core Section which you will perhaps design your strategies around, and not just have because you have to have 25% of them in the first place.
- Bloodline Legacies Army List -
Common:
This is the list which is the basis for all the various Bloodline Armies, with each bloodline having some modifications to it.
Lords: Bloodline Vampire Lord/Lady (or the additional Count Option in the case of the Von Carstein Bloodline), Bloodline Special Characters, Heinrich Kemmler –The Lichemaster, Master Necromancer
Heroes: Bloodline Vampire Thralls, Tomb Banshee*, Cairn Wraith*, Necromancer, Wight Lord*, Bloodline Special Characters, Krell -Lord of Undeath
Core: Crypt Ghouls, Dire Wolves, Skeleton Warriors, Zombie Horde
Special: Bat Swarms*, Black Knights*, Corpse Cart*, Fell Bats, Grave Guard, Hexwraiths*
Rare: See Bloodline entries below…
Magic Items: see 8.ed VC book.
Mounts:
Skeletal Steed*, Nightmare*, Hellsteed*, Abyssal Terror*, Terrorgheist*, Zombie Dragon*
All units marked with an * are currently as per the 8.ed VC book. Units marked with a ‘?’ are being considered, but are not decided upon yet.
Von Carstein:
When the Von Carsteins go to war, they typically do so in a much larger scale than the other vampire bloodlines, the main reason for this being that they have the pseudo-province of Sylvania behind them, greatly increasing their numbers, as well as the number of vampires they are able to gather together. They are by far the greatest threat on a large scale as far as vampires go, especially with the cunning Count Mannfred leading them.
Special Characters: Count Mannfred Von Carstein (Lord), Victor Von Carstein –Captain of the Black Hand (Hero)
List modifications:
• add Vargheists (Special)
• add Sylvanian Vampire Brood (Special)
• add Sylvanian Militia (Core)
Rare: Black Coach*, Mortis Engine*, Skull Chukka, Spirit Host, Terrorgheist*, Varghulf
Von Carstein Army Options:
• Skeleton Warriors may trade in their Hand weapon/Spear and Shield for a Halberd for free.
• Units of Skeleton Warriors, Grave Guard and Sylvanian Militia may have a Sylvanian Vampire Seneschal as a unit Champion instead of the normal one, at +20 points, instead of the normal Champion upgrade at +10 points. He has the same profile as that found in the Sylvanian Vampire Brood’s Seneschal, has the Immortal, Vampire and Swiftstride Special rules. He has the same equipment as the Vampire Brood unit. If he is the only remaining member of the unit, then the unit cannot be re-raised, and count as destroyed.
Unique Bloodline Items:
The Carstein Ring (80 points): see. 8.ed VC book, p.54.
Drakenhof Banner (65 points): The Drakenhof Banner is the ancient banner, belonging to Castle Drakenhof, once enchanted by Vlad himself, to aid in keeping the shroud of darkness effectively covering his vast army.
Magical Standard. The banner’s normal effects such as Hold your Ground! and the -1 casualties lost due to the Unstable rule etc, are all extended by +6” (which will usually mean 18” in total). In addition to this, any undead unit accompanied by the Drakenhof Banner, suffers half (rounding up) the normal casualties as a result from the Unstable special rule if they lose a round of close combat.
Blood Chalice of Bathori (30 pts): see 8.ed VC book, p.55
Blood Dragon:
The Blood Dragon Vampires live to challenge themselves through fighting, but sometimes one of them can have personal motivations which can only be fulfilled with a proper army behind one, regardless of how good a warrior one is. The Blood Dragons do however prefer smaller but more elite forces, acting as an extension of their will and fighting prowess. The majority of Blood Dragons are former knights of one sort or another, but exceptions do exist, and they tend to favor armies with strong cavalry elements, which allow them to pick the battles they wish to fight, and decide how they are fought.
Special Characters: Walach Harkon (Lord), Anastasia –The Crimson Bride (Hero)
List Modifications:
• add Barrow Riders (Core)
• remove Corpse Cart
• add Blood Knights (Special)
• No more than one Necromancer (including Master Necromancer) may be included in the list, for each Vampire character chosen.
Rare: Black Coach*, Blood Wagon, Spirit Host, Warrior Hermit
Blood Dragon Army Options:
•Skeleton Warriors may upgrade their Light armour to Heavy armour, at +1 pts/model.
•Grave Guards may exchange their hand weapons for Halberds at +1 pts/model.
Unique Bloodline Items:
Dread Lance (40 pts): The chosen weapon of the infamous Vampire knight Varison, this lance is uncannily accurate, said to always find the most vulnerable spot on the unfortunate victim.
Magical Weapon. Lance. The Lance confers the Heroic Killing Blow and Armour Piercing special rules when charging.
Blades of Bloodshed (50 pts): These two near identical blades are believed to once have been claimed from the corpse of a mighty champion of the dark gods.
Magical Weapon. Paried Weapons. Attacks from these weapons counts as being at +1 Strength, and they also grant the bearer the benefit of the Parry save if he is on foot (Infantry).
Strigoi:
The Strigoi rarely go to war, except to protect their individual territories or in some rare cases, one of them has the idea that he should try to recreate the ancient Kingdom of Strigos, either in the Badlands or somewhere in name only.
When the Strigoi actually do go to war, their armies consist of large hordes of unruly Crypt Ghouls, whom the Strigoi have a kinship with which allows them to be used in way that other vampire bloodlines could only dream of.
The Strigoi are poor magic wielders at best, which is why they tend to rely to such a large degree on living Ghouls, but in return, they are probably the most fearsome of vampires if their anger is roused, and even a blood dragon would think twice before facing one in single combat.
Special Characters: Urzen the Unrelenting (Lord), Gashnag –The Black Prince (Hero)
List Modifications:
• add Strigoi Court (Special)
• add Vargheists (Special)
• add Crypt Horrors (Special)*
• remove Banshee
• remove Wraith
• remove Hexwraiths
Rare: Black Coach*, Spirit Host, Terrorgheist*, Varghulf
Strigoi Army Options:
•If the Strigoi player rolls a Mysterious Forest when generating random terrain, he may instead choose to place the Garden of Morr terrain piece on the table, following the rules found in White Dwarf (issue 380). Only one Garden of Morr may be placed on the table however.
Unique Bloodline Items:
Royal Standard of Strigos (35 pts): In the days of the ancient kingdom of Strigos, this banner was enchanted so that it would be a symbol of the virtues of the kingdom of Strigos. Today, with the kingdom fallen long ago, the ragged banner has been corrupted by all the resentment, spitefulness and outright hatred found in the Strigoi Vampires whom have kept this banner over the centuries…
All models in the unit are considered to have the Hatred (all) special rule, even if normally immune to psychology.
Wristbands of Black Gold (30 pts): Believed to once have been worn by Ushoran himself, this pair of solid gold wristbands shields the bearer from harm from all manner of ranged attacks.
Enchanted Item. These items grant the wearer a 4+ Ward Save against all forms of ranged attacks, including magic missile spells. They also grant the wearer magical attacks, if one does not already have a magic weapon.
Lahmia
Most so called expert in such matters foolishly believe that of all the various vampire bloodlines, the Lahmia are the least dangerous, because they do not wage war on humanity. They are wrong. The Lahmian have learned to use other means at their disposal to get what they want, and the Vampire Wars have taught them to avoid large scale confrontations to gain what they desire, that is true, but the Lahmians still occasionally wage war in the name of their queen, when she so desires.
Most Lahmian vampires only surround themselves with a small number of loyal henchmen, so when the call to war comes, they are typically placed in charge of a small army on loan from the Silver Pinnacle, their Queen’s Palace. Their queen has an ancient and vast army at her disposal; the majority consisting of legions of skeleton warriors from long lost Lahmia, but the ethereal element of a lahmian army also tends to be quite strong, as these are easily concealable regardless of where one is.
What makes scholars believe that the Lahmians don’t wage war, stems from the fact that the when the Lahmians do wage war, it is typically on a smaller scale, typically in more remote locations such as the Badlands, but the most important fact is that they work hard and diligently to suppress all knowledge of it having taken place in the first place.
Special Characters: Neferata –Queen of Mysteries (Lord), Arzu Banu –The Queen’s Wrath (Hero)
List Modifications:
• add Lahmian Furies (Special)
• add Lahmian Minions (Special)
• remove Cairn Wraith (Hero)
• A maximum of two units in total from one of the following units; Bat Swarms, Crypt Ghouls, Dire Wolves and Fell Bats. Three may be selected in a Grand army.
Rare: Black Coach*, Handmaidens, Spirit Host
Lahmia Army Options:
• Skeleton Warriors may exchange their Shields for Crossbows at +1 points/model. Spears are not an option if Crossbows are chosen.
• Grave Guards may exchange their hand weapons for Halberds at +1 points/model.
Unique Bloodline Items:
Crimson Gown (50 pts): Believed to once have belonged to Katarina, the infamous Vampire Queen of Kislev. This once white gown has throughout the ages absorbed so much of the blood, gore and with it a spark of the life forces snuffed out around it, that it has come alive with the desire to strangle victims of its own.
Enchanted Item. The wearer causes Terror, and any one model in base contact with the Lahmina Vampire selected at the start of every close combat phase must make an Initiative test, or have the attacks on their profile reduced to 1), until the start of the next close combat phase.
Asp Bow (30 points): This bow hails back to the ancient kingdom of Lahmia, and was blessed by Asaph. The arrows fired are transformed in flight, becoming rigid, venomous snakes.
Magic Weapon. Bow. All attacks from this weapon counts as Poisoned Attacks, and are considered Magical. Hits are resolved at Strength 5, and attacks are considered to have the Sniper special rule.
Brooch of Laniph (20 points): This gold brooch, is rumored to once have belonged to an infamous Arabyan Sorceress named Laniph, and was at one time picked up in a Bazaar in Bel-Aliad by one of Neferata’s handmaidens, and has been with the Lahmians ever since.
Arcane Item. One use only. Bound spell (power level 3). The Brooch of Laniph contains the Caress of Laniph spell (see Lore of Death).
- Bloodline Legacies Army Special Rules -
Legacy of Blood: The General must be a Vampire selected from one of the five Bloodlines; Von Carstein, Blood Dragon, Strigoi, Necrarch or Lahmia.
All Vampires in the army must be from the same Bloodline as that of the General, and the opponent has a right to know which bloodline he is destined to face before creating his own army (assuming non-tournament play).
One to Rule them all: Vampires crave power, and they do all they can to rid themselves of any serious competition to their position, before it is too late. It is simply too dangerous not to do so.
Because of this, a Vampire Counts army may only ever include one Vampire Lord Option from the army list. The general always counts as a Lord option as far as point allowance goes, even if technically selected from the Hero options.
The Vampire Counts army must have a General with the Vampire special rule, and he must have a magic level of 1 or more. If a Vampire is elected from the Lord section of the list, he must be the General. Regardless of which Lore the General selects to roll his spells from, he always has the Invocation of Nehek spell in addition to his other spells.
The General: If the general is destroyed, his army will slowly start to crumble. When the General is killed or permanently removed from the game, all Vampire Count units with the Alive and Vampire special rules must make a panic tests at the end of the phase (even if otherwise Immune to Psychology). All Undead units must take a leadership test at the end of the phases, as well as at the beginning of every Vampire turn thereafter. If the test is failed, the unit suffers wounds equal to the amount the test was failed by, with no saves of any kind allowed. These wounds are distributed as from a shooting attack.
If, at the start of any of your turns, following the death of the General, there is a friendly Wizard on the table that knows the Invocation of Nehek spell, he may attempt to stop the army from crumbling further, by passing a LD test to become the new General of the army. Only one such test may be made after the death of each General.
Battle Standard: Undead units that are within the Battle Standard Bearer’s Hold your Ground! Range, suffer one less wound that they normally would when defeated in close combat or when suffering wounds because of the death of the general. Otherwise, it follows all the normal rules for the Battle Standard.
Resurrecting Fallen Warriors: This works just as in the 8.ed VC book, except that any model/unit with the Vampire special rule may not be affected at all.
There are three different types of unit classifications in the Bloodline Legacies army lists, and those are as follows:
The Vampires
Vampire: Models with the Vampire special rule cause Fear and are Immune to Psychology, but they do not suffer from the Unstable and the Unbreakable special rules; instead Vampires do take Break Tests as normal.
If a Vampire has joined a unit with the Undead special rule he does not have to take a Break Test before every non-character model in the unit has been removed as casualties. The Break test is modified by an amount equal to any excess casualties due to the Unstable special rule.
Example: After having lost a round of close combat by seven points, the four last skeleton warriors are removed from the unit, leaving the Vampire Thrall alone, having to take a Break Test with a -3 modifier to his LD.
Characters with the Vampire special rule that are riding a Monstrous mount of any kind, need not take a Break Test before his Steed have been killed. The Break Test is still affected by excess wounds due to the Unstable special rule as above.
Characters with the Vampire special rule may never be healed with the Invocation of Nehek spell or by the Curse of Undeath Vampire Lore attribute.
Vampires otherwise count as Undead for the purposes of the Lore of Vampires spells, and any other Undead related special rule, which does not involve raising, crumbling or the unstable special rule.
Bloodthirst: When a Vampire with this special rule kills at least one enemy model in a round of close combat; he regains one previously lost wound at the end of the close combat phase. This may not take him above his starting amount, nor does it affect combat resolution.
Immortal: Vampires are highly resistant to physical damage, unless caused by a hawthorn stake through the heart, silver-plated weapons, magic or fire. To represent this, any successful to-Wound roll from any non-magical source (magic weapon or spell), or an attack with the flaming attacks special rule; must be re-rolled.
The Walking Dead
Undead: Units with the Undead special rule cause Fear, are Unbreakable, are Immune to Poison (see below) and suffer from the Unstable special rule.
Units with the Undead special rule cannot March unless they are characters, or start their turn within the General’s Inspiring Presence range or is joined by a Vampire Character.
Immune to Poison: Poisoned Attacks cannot wound Undead with this special rule automatically –they must always roll To Wound as normal instead.
Dead Flesh: Dead Corpses can be very hard to deliver any meaningful blow to, and wounds which would leave any mortal bleeding on the ground have no meaning for them.
Any attack against a model with this special rule with strength of equal to or less than the target’s toughness value, has the strength of the attack halved (rounded up).
The Living
Alive: Units with the Alive special rule follow all the normal rules for units in the game. They may not be joined by a character with the Undead special rule, and they may not be affected by any Augment spells from the Lore of Vampires. They also have to take a Panic Test at the end of any phase in which their General is slain.
The Battle Standard will affect them as for normal mortal armies (i.e. a Re-roll to all LD tests), unless otherwise stated (Crypt Ghouls being the primary example here). Units that are Alive, are not Immune to Psychology, unless they have this special rule. Units that are Alive may also March, following the normal rules in the rulebook, and they may elect to flee or stand and shoot as a charge response.
- Bloodline Legacies Vampiric Powers -
Vampires may select Vampiric Powers from the Common list, but also from the list unique to their bloodline. These may be combined in any way fit, within the normal point limitations.
- Common -
Lord of the Walking Dead (55 points): The Vampire was born into his new existence with the ability to command the dead, to share with them some of his essence at will.
If the Vampire is not in close combat himself at the start of any close combat phase, he may focus his attention on one unit of friendly Undead within 12”, and imbue them with a small measure of his own considerable martial abilities. The unit counts as having half his WS and Initiative score (both rounding up) for that close combat phase. This power does not affect mounts of any kind. General only.
Red Fury (45 points): The Vampire’s rage knows no limits, but he has learned how to use this, to let if feed on the potency of his blood and not let it overcome him, sending him into a downward spiral to the embrace of the beast within.
The Vampire gains the Frenzy special rule, but instead of gaining +1 attack, he gains +D3 attacks. The D3 may be re-rolled if the Vampire carries and additional hand weapon or if he has paired weapons.
If the Vampire only has one wound left, he can’t use this power in its full potential, but still follows the normal rules for Frenzy (including gaining +1 attack). A Vampire with this power can never by additional Wizard Levels.
Walking Death (35 points): The Vampire believes that he is beyond the reach of mortals to hurt him, and he carries with him the aura of death wherever he walks. Few dare stand against him…
For each Vampire with this power in a close combat, you add +1 to the combat resolution score. The Vampire also has the Stubborn special rule.
Unnatural Reflexes (35 points): The Vampire possess a speed and dexterity far beyond what is humanly possible, easily sidestepping attacks that would pierce a man’s hart.
This ability grants the Vampire a 5+ Ward Save, as well as the ability to re-roll any failed Initiative Test.
Kinslayer (30 points): The Vampire has successfully hunted the most dangerous prey of all, namely other Vampires. For whatever reason, the potency of Vampiric blood has strengthened him physically, gradually eroding his weakneses, but at the same time, he is not one other vampires trust, or indeed wants anywhere near them.
All successful To-wound rolls against the Vampire must be re-rolled. This replaces the Immortal special rule entirely. A Vampire with this rule cannot join a unit that already includes a model with the Vampire special rule, nor the other way around.
Flying Horror (30 points): The vampire may shape shift so that he gains the ability to fly.
The Vampire has the Fly special rule. This ability may only be selected by a model on foot (Infantry). Blood Dragons Vampires may not select this power.
Dark Acolyte (30 points): The Vampire has an affinity with the winds of dark magic and death, drawing it too him and mastering it effortlessly. Typically, any area in which he stays in too long, tend to see its vegetation start to wither and die...
The Vampire Channel Power Dice on a roll of 4+. Dispel dice are still generated on a 6+ as normal. Regardless of chosen spell lore, the vampire also knows the Spirit Leech spell from the Lore of Death. Blood Dragons may not select this power.
Supernatural Horror (25 points): see 8.ed VC book. Lahmian Vampires may not select this power.
Curse of Ages (20 points): The Vampire has long since lost a full grip on reality, and now has great difficulty distinguishing reality from his delusions.
The Vampire has the Unbreakable and Stupidity special rules. The stupidity test cannot be affected by any special rule that would normally influence a LD test, or allow a re-roll.
Beguile (15 points): See 8.ed VC book. This power may not be taken by Vampires from the Strigoi Bloodlines.
The Beast Unveiled (15 points): The Vampire struggles to keep the beast within at bay when angered, and this may result in the Vampire temporarily changing physically, like growing large claws, sprouting horns, having clawed wings, gaining a lashing tail and his or her flesh generally seeming to become very strained when as if stretching to accommodate a larger thing inside. While this might seem like a boon to some, it is usually a sign that succumbing to the beast within is not far off. Luckily for most, the change tends to subside once anger is reduced…
The Vampire has the Slavering Charge (see Dire Wolves) special rule. This ability may not be selected by a Blood Dragon Vampire.
Night Stalker (15 points): The Vampire is a hunter with few equals, able to stalk his prey at night, while still being utterly aware of the smallest movement in his vicinity.
If on foot (Infantry), the Vampire has the Scout Special rule. The Vampire also counts all four of his base sides as being his Front for all intents and purposes. This ability is temporarily lost if the Vampire joins a unit.
Sewer Rat (10 points): This Vampire has hidden himself in the darkest and foulest places for so long that he now seems to be little more than a walking, foul smelling corpse. The Vampire no longer takes any notice of his appearance and all his vanity is long gone.
Unlike other Vampires, he may join a Zombie Horde unit. The Vampire also benefits from a 2+ Look Out Sir! Save as long as he is within 3” of a Zombie Horde. This ability may not be selected by a Blood Dragon or Lahmia Vampire.
Might of Arms (10 points): The Vampire has spent decades practicing his melee skills, seeking out champions of all races, and challenging them to personal combat.
The Vampire increases his WS by +1.
Collector of the Arcane (5 points): The Vampire has a great affinity with magical trinkets and artifacts, and has learned how to properly attune himself with them.
The Vampire is allowed two Arcane magic items, instead of the normal limit of one. This power may not be taken by any Blood Dragon Vampires.
- Von Carstein –
Herald of Woe (55 points): When the greatest of the Von Carsteins go to war, it seems as if they can call upon nature itself to turn against their enemies; a fact which never fails to horrify anyone standing against them.
In game terms, this has one of several effects (selected at start of deployment):
• In the first D3 turn of the battle (both player’s turns), all missile fire suffer a -1 to all BS Tests, and the VC player may force a re-roll on any misfire chart roll made by his enemy if he so choose.
• Up to half the total number of (rounding up) Bat Swarms, Dire Wolves, Fell Bats and Spirit Hosts in the army may deploy using the Ambush deployment rule.
• The enemy suffers a -2 penalty to all Panic Tests and all tests to Rally fleeing troops, and all units not Immune to Psychology must make a LD test to be able to march in their first turn.
General only.
Ethereal (40 points): The Vampire can transform himself into mist, and when doing so, he may move through any obstacle.
At the start of the turn, the Vampire may declare that he is taking a mist form, which will last until the start of his next turn. If he choose to do so, he become Ethereal, temporarily loose the Bloodthirst and Immortal special rules and all attacks he makes loose the benefit of all weapons (normal and magical ones). He does however gain the Leech Attack special rule (see Spirit Hosts). Model on foot only (Infantry).
Summon Creatures of the Night (10 points): see 8.ed VC book.
- Blood Dragons –
Fallen Knight (45 points): When a mortal, the Vampire was a noble Knight from Bretonnia, in all likelihood encountering his Sire while on the quest for the Grail.
The renowned Bretonnian Lance formation becomes available for any Cavalry unit led by the Blood Dragon Vampire with this power. The Vampire also loses the Always Strike Last special rule from any weapon he uses. General only.
Coup de Grace (35 points): The Blood Dragon has travelled extensively in the Old World, having sought out and defeated all manner of enemies, and having learned their weaknesses.
The Vampire’s attacks are made with the Killing Blow special rule. In addition to this, if he manages to hit a single enemy with all his attacks (including all attacks from various bonuses); he counts as having the Heroic Killing Blow special rule, but for that close combat phase only. This power may not be combined with a magical weapon.
Dreadknight (20 points): The Vampire was formerly a famous Knight, has since his mortal days perfected the art of mounted combat, especially the execution of the perfect charge.
In the round that a Blood Dragon successfully completes a mounted Charge against an enemy unit, he gains the Always Strike First special rule.
The Vampire may also fight effectively with two hand weapons even if he is mounted on any kind of a Steed. If mounted on a Barded Nightmare, he does not receive a movement penalty for the Nightmare having Barding.
- Strigoi –
Hulking Monstrosity (55 points): The Strigoi is a huge, muscled creature, easily seven or even eight feet tall.
The Vampire gains +1 Wound and the Devastating Charge special rule. General only.
Curse of the Revenant (25 points): The Strigoi come from a long line of Vampires used to feeding on the impure blood of the already dead, or even the Ghouls that make up their courts. As a result of this foul habit, the Vampire’s body has changed, enabling him to deal with most substances which would be harmful, even to other Vampires, as well as granting him claws that reek with poison.
The Vampire has the Poisoned Attacks special rule and the Immunity to Poisons special rule, which is described in the Vampire Counts Army Special Rules section.
Infinite Hatred (20 points): The Strigoi’s hatred for his enemies never cools, and it is a source of great strength in times of need.
Re-roll all to-hit rolls in close combat.
- Necrarch –
Master of the Black Arts (55 points): See 8.ed VC book. General only.
Master of Puppets (30 points): The Necrarch has done many an experiment on the recently dead, and his familiarity with them and the magic needed to keep them animated, makes it very easy for him to hold on to the magic which binds them to their undead existence.
Any Zombie Horde unit within 12” of the Vampire reduces casualties as a result from the Unstable special rule by an amount equal half the Necrarch’s Wizard level (rounding up).
Alchemist (20 points): The Vampire is an accomplished alchemist, and has over the years managed to acquire various dangerous knowledge, both material and immaterial.
In addition to his normal spells, the Vampire is allowed to roll one spell on the Lore of Metal spell list. Unless he has the Lore of Metal, this spell is always cast as if the Necrarch was a level 1 Wizard.
He also carries on him bottles of acid, burning liquids, etc; which he may throw at his enemies. These counts as a normal missile weapon, with the following special rules: Range 12”, always wounds on 4+, No armour Save, Quick to Fire, Flaming Attacks.
- Lahmia –
QuickBlood (45 points): Regardless of it being pure speed, or a trick of the mind, the Lahmian Vampire seems to be in more than one place at the same time, confusing her foe.
Any enemy unit or model wishing to hit the Lahmian Vampire in close combat must roll a natural 5+ on their To-Hit roll to be able to hit the Vampire. This cannot be modified in any way.
The Vampire may not wear Heavy Armour or Full Plate armour, mundane or magical. General only.
Widow’s Web (30 points): The Lahmians are masters of disguise and subterfuge, having extensive networks of ignorant but devout followers across all levels of society as well as stretching over most of the Old World. In the rare instances when the Lahmian’s go to war, this network of contacts is brought into play, to undermine and cause as much confusion amongst their foes as possible before the battle starts, even at the expense of their loyal henchmen if need be.
When a Scenario calls for both sides to alternate in deploying their forces, the opposing player always start, and he must deploy D3+1 Units instead of just one on his first deployment placement. In a Scenario where the players roll-off to see who goes first, the Lahmian player always roll a D6+1, while the enemy player just rolls a D6 (even if he was done deploying his forces first etc).
Innocence Lost (25 points): The Lahmian Vampires know how to bewilder a foe, and strike at just the precise moment that this causes the greatest impact, typically transforming from an innocent young maiden, to a clawed fiend in literally a split second.
The Vampire gains the Always Strike First special rule when attacking in close combat
- "Beastiary" -
Below follows all the various characters, units and special characters that are either new, or have had some changes done to them which makes them deviate from the official ones in the 8.ed VC book.
- The Lords of the Night (Lords and Heroes) -
- Von Carstein Vampires -
Of the five known Bloodlines by the more dubious scholars of the Empire, the Von Carsteins are without peer. They alone have been a threat to the Empire as a whole, and one many occasions as well. The Von Carsteins are known to just about every man, woman or child in the empire, and to most others beyond its borders.
TheVon Carsteins consider themselves to be the aristocracy of the night, and perhaps rightly so. Since the time of Vlad, they’ve ruled Sylvania on numerous occasions, and they have come close to topple the Empire many times. They may indeed appear as noble men or women; they certainly often dress the part, but behind this façade, lay a true beast, with only the rarest of them having anything vaguely resembling nobility about them at all.
When the Von Carsteins raise their banners and go to war, there are some things that make them stand out from the other Bloodlines. The first is that they have the pseudo-province of Sylvania at their back, allowing them access to a great number of undead, the ancient power of Castle Drakenhof, but most importantly, access to an unequaled blood supply, allowing for more Vampires than in any undead army since the time of Nagash.
In short, where the Von Carsteins walk, death follows.
Von Carstein Vampire Count: M 6 (9); Ws 7; Bs 5; S 5; T 5; W 3; I 8; A5; LD 10
Von Carstein Vampire Lord: M 6 (9); Ws 7; Bs 5; S 5; T 5; W 3; I 7; A 5; LD 9
Von Carstein Vampire Thrall: M 6 (9); Ws 6; Bs 4; S 5; T 4; W 2; I 6; A 4; LD 8
Troop Type: Infantry (Character)
Special Rules: Vampire, Bloodthirst, Immortal
Aura of Dark Majesty (General only): The Von Carsteins are the true nobility of the night, it is in their blood, and all the dead seems to know that this is so…
A Von Carstein Vampire Thrall General counts as having a 3” extended Inspiring Presence range, and will thus most commonly count as having an Inspiring Presence range of 15”.
If the General is a Lord or a Count, this is extended to 6” extended range (typically 18” in total).
Fear Incarnate: Finally coming face to face with the pale face of your enemy after what might have been months, or even years of terror, having repeatedly been served a lesson as to whom is the predator and whom is the prey, the feeling of being inferior, and not up to the task at hand, can be very hard to overcome.
Fear tests caused by the dreadful Von Carstein (or his unit) that have been passed by an enemy unit, must be re-rolled. If a Battle Standard Bearer is conferring the Hold your Ground ability to the testing unit, the two special rules cancel each other out.
Wolf Shape: The Von Carsteins all have an innate ability to change into large, black Dire Wolves at will.
If on foot (Infantry), and an armour save not better than 6+, all Von Carstein Vampires count as having a Movement characteristic of 9, as they may temporarily change into a Dire wolf to move faster across the battlefield. The Vampire also has the Swiftstride special rule.
If the Vampire joins a unit of Fire wolves, he may benefit from the Look Out Sir! rule, even though he is a different base size.
Vampire Count: Unless specifically stated otherwise, the Vampire Count follow all the rules of a Vampire Lord.
Army List:
Von Carstein Vampire Count (Lord) -285 pts:
Magic: A Von Carstein Vampire Count is a Lvl 3 Wizard. He may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires, the Lore of Heavens or the Lore of Beasts.
Equipment: Hand weapon. Light armour.
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon.............................3 pts
-Great Weapon.......................................9 pts
•May upgrade Light armour to Heavy armour...........5 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare..................................10 pts
-Hellsteed.........................................25 pts
-Zombie Dragon....................................245 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 4 Wizard...................35 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 150 pts, but with a maximum of a 100 pts of either one category.
Von Carstein Vampire Lord (Lord) -235 pts:
Magic: A Von Carstein Vampire Lord is a Lvl 2 Wizard. He may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires, the Lore of Heavens or the Lore of Beasts.
Equipment: Hand weapon. Light armour.
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon.............................3 pts
-Great Weapon.......................................9 pts
•May upgrade Light armour to Heavy armour...........5 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare..................................10 pts
-Hellsteed.........................................25 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 3 Wizard...................35 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 150 pts, but with a maximum of a 100 pts of either one category.
Von Carstein Vampire Thrall (Hero) -120 pts:
Magic: None. If upgraded to a Lvl 1 wizard (see below), he may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires or the Lore of Beasts.
Equipment: Hand weapon. Light armour.
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon.............................3 pts
-Great Weapon.......................................9 pts
•May upgrade Light armour to Heavy armour...........5 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare..................................10 pts
-Hellsteed.........................................20 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 1 Wizard...................50 pts
-May further be upgraded to a Level 2 Wizard.......35 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 100 pts, but with a maximum of a 75 pts of either one category.
•May be the army’s Battle Standard Bearer (only one in the army) 25 pts
- Blood Dragon Vampires -
Blood Dragon Lord: M 6; Ws 9; Bs 5; S 5; T 5; W 3; I 7; A 5; LD 9
Blood Dragon Thrall: M 6; WS 7; BS 4; S 5; T 4; W 2; I 6; A 4; LD 8
Troop Type: Infantry (Character)
Special Rules: Vampire, Bloodthirst, Immortal
Aura of Martial Excellence (General only): The Blood Dragon imbues the undead close to him with a small measure of his fighting prowess.
Any Undead Infantry and Undead Cavalry unit within a 12” range of the Blood Dragon General has a +1 bonus to their WS statistic. This does not affect any Steeds.
Blade Master: The Blood Dragons whole existence revolve around bettering themselves, and whenever they encounter sufficient opposition, their blood rises and it brings forth the best in them.
When fighting in a Challenge or fighting with a Monster, a Blood Dragon Vampire gets a +1 bonus to both his To-Hit roll, and his To-Wound roll.
Magic of the Blood Dragons: Vampires of the Blood Dragon Bloodline don’t appear to be as attuned to magic as some of the other Bloodlines. This cause might be in their blood, or it might simply be the fact that all that armour they typically wear, interfere with their ability to use magic to some extent.
Blood Dragons may never Channel, and they may never select Arcane magical items of any kind.
Martial Honour: The whole existence of a Blood Dragon revolves around defeating dangerous foes in personal combat, much like the noble Knights they once used to be…
The Blood Dragon Vampire with the highest Leadership score in a combat, must always issue a Challenge, or accept one if issued.
Army List:
Blood Dragon Vampire Lord (Lord) - 255 pts:
Magic: A Blood DragonVampire Lord is a Lvl 2 Wizard. He may use spells from the Lore of Vampires.
Equipment: Hand weapon. Full Plate Armour (4+ armour save).
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon.................................4 pts
-Great Weapon...........................................12 pts
-Lance...................................................9 pts
-Morning star...........................................9 pts
•May have a Shield......................................3 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare.......................................20 pts
-Hellsteed...............................................25 pts
-Zombie Dragon..........................................245 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 3 Wizard........................35 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 150 pts, but with a maximum of a 100 pts of either one category.
Blood Dragon Vampire Thrall (Hero) - 130 pts:
Magic: None. If upgraded to a Lvl 1 wizard (see below), he may use spells from the Lore of Vampires.
Equipment: Hand weapon. Full Plate (4+ armour save).
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon..................................3 pts
-Great Weapon.............................................9 pts
-Lance....................................................6 pts
-Morning Star............................................6 pts
•May have a Shield.......................................2 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare........................................16 pts
-Hellsteed................................................20 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 1 Wizard.........................50 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 100 pts, but with a maximum of a 75 pts of either one category.
•May be the army’s Battle Standard Bearer (only one in the army) 25 pts
- The Strigoi -
Strogoi Lord: M 6; Ws 7; BS 0; S 5; T 5; W 3; I 7; A 5 (6); Ld 8
Strigoi Thrall: M6; Ws 6; BS 0; S 5; T 4; W 2; I 6; A 4 (5); LD 7
Troop Type: Infantry (Character)
Special Rules: Vampire, Bloodthirst, Immortal, Hatred (all enemies), Swiftstride
Beastial Brute: The Vampires of the Strigoi Bloodline are large, deformed and monstrous, granting them long and fearsome claws, thick hides and powerful frames.
They are not allowed to select any magical or mundane weapons or armour of any kind. They do however gain the following special rules instead; Armour Piercing attacks (claws), Extra Attack (included in profiles above) and Scaly Skin (5+).
Ghoulkin: The Strigoi are natural leaders of Ghouls and their kin, and they look to them as living gods of death. There is an instinctual bond between them, and as long as the Strigoi protect them, they overcome their fear of death, and the Strigoi himself knows he has unflinching allies to protect his back…
If a Strigoi Vampire joins a unit of Crypt Ghouls or a Ghoul Court, they gain the Stubborn special rule.
Graveyard King (General only): Sometimes, a powerful Strigoi manage to gather about him a large number of devout followers, truly believing that he is some kind of God of the underworld.
Any Crypt Ghoul or Ghoul Court unit within 6” of the General may re-roll any failed LD Tests (just as if he was a BSB).
Army List:
Strigoi Vampire Lord (Lord) - 215 pts:
Magic: A Strigoi Vampire Lord is a Lvl 2 Wizard. He may use spells from the Lore of Vampires or the Lore of Beasts.
Equipment: Claws and Fangs (Hand Weapon).
Options:
•May be mounted on the following:
-Terrorgheist........................................225 pts
•A Terrorgheist may have the following Upgrades:
-Infested.............................................10 pts
-Rancid Maw...........................................15 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 150 pts, but with a maximum of a 100 pts of either one category.
Strigoi Vampire Thrall (Hero) - 110 pts:
Magic: None. If upgraded to a Lvl 1 wizard (see below), he may use spells from the Lore of Vampires.
Equipment: Claws and Fangs (Hand Weapon).
Options:
•May upgrade to a Level 1 Wizard......................50 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 100 pts, but with a maximum of a 75 pts of either one category.
- Necrarch Vampires -
Necrarch Lord: M 6; WS 5; BS 4; S 5; T 5; W 3; I 7; A 4; LD 9
Necrarch Thrall: M 6; WS 4; BS 3; S 5; T 4; W 2; I 6; A 3; LD 8
Troop Type: Infantry (Character)
Special Rules: Vampire, Bloodthirst, Immortal
Beacon of Dark Magic (General only): To the older Necrarch Vampires, the real world fades into the background, as their Witch-sight gradually opens up a whole other world to them, one of magic, mystery and wonder.
A Necrarch General has a +1 to his casting rolls for all spells, and he may also roll an additional +1d6 when rolling on the miscast table, and he may select any two dice to generate the result.
Disciples of Nagash: Regardless of his area of focus, all Necrarch have Necromancy in their blood, a legacy of W’soran, the father of their bloodline.
Regardless of which Lore a Necrarch Vampire selects, he always knows the Invocation of Nehek in addition to his other spells.
Army List:
Necrarch Vampire Lord (Lord) -260 pts:
Magic: A Nacrarch Vampire Lord is a Lvl 3 Wizard. He may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires, the Lore of Death, the Lore of Heavens, or the Lore of Shadows.
Equipment: Claws and Fangs (Hand weapon).
Options:
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare........................................20 pts
-Hellsteed...............................................25 pts
-Abyssal Terror..........................................120 pts
*May be upgraded to have a Poisoned Tail.................15 pts
*May be upgraded to have Sword-claws.....................10 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 4 Wizard.........................35 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 150 pts, but with a maximum of a 100 pts of either one category.
Necrarch Vampire Thrall (Hero) -155 pts:
Magic: A Nacrarch Vampire Thrall is a Lvl 1 Wizard. He may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires or the Lore of Death.
Equipment: Claws and Fangs (Hand weapon).
Options:
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare.......................................20 pts
-Hellsteed..............................................20 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 2 or Level 3 Wizard............35 pts/level
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 100 pts, but with a maximum of a 75 pts of either one category.
- Lahmia Vampires -
Lahmia Lady (Lord): M 6; WS 6; Bs 5; S 5; T 4; W 3; I 9; A 5, LD 10
Lahmia Thrall: M 6; Ws 5; Bs 4; S 5; T 4; W 2; I 7; A 4; LD 8
Troop Type: Infantry (Character)
Special Rules: Vampire, Bloodthirst, Immortal
Aura of Submission (General only): The more powerful a Lahmian Vampires is, the greater the range of her submissive powers work.
All enemy units within 12” suffer a -1 penalty to their LD, following the rules for Weaken Resolve below. This ability is not cumulative with the Weaken Resolve ability.
Seduction: The Vampires of the Lahmian Bloodline are able to influence weaker minds with but a simple look and a smile.
At the beginning of the Close Combat phase, the unit(s) in base contact with the Lahmia Vampire must take a Leadership test. Any unit which fails this test is unable to direct any attacks against the Lahmia Vampire at all for this Close Combat phase.
This ability does not affect units that have the Immune to Psychology special rule.
Weaken Resolve: Being close to the Vampires of the Lahmain Bloodline, weakens one’s mind and saps ones’ mental fortitude.
All models in base contact with one or more Lahmia Vampires suffer a -1 to their Leadership. Work out which Ld value the model would use (its own, the General’s etc) and then reduce that number by -1.
Army List:
Lahmia Vampire Lady (Lord) -210 pts:
Magic: A Lahmia Vampire Lady is a Lvl 2 Wizard. She may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires or the Lore of Shadows.
Equipment: Claws and Fangs (Hand weapon).
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon..................................3 pts
-Throwing Weapons........................................12 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare........................................20 pts
-Hellsteed...............................................25 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 3 Wizard.........................35 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 150 pts, but with a maximum of a 100 pts of either one category.
Lahmia Vampire Thrall (Hero) -110 pts:
Magic: None. If upgraded to a Lvl 1 wizard (see below), she may use spells from one of the following; The Lore of Vampires or the Lore of Shadows.
Equipment: Claws and Fangs (Hand weapon).
Options:
•May be armed with one of the following:
-Additional Hand weapon..................................2 pts
-Throwing Weapons........................................8 pts
•May be mounted on one of the following:
-Barded Nightmare........................................20 pts
-Hellsteed...............................................20 pts
•May upgrade to a Level 1 Wizard.........................50 pts
•May take a combination of Magic Items and Vampiric Powers of a total of 100 pts, but with a maximum of a 75 pts of either one category.