Trollblood Scrum!!!

Calandra and Cryx
by Sevwall

There has been some discussions recently on how to handle Cryxian opponents. Cryx is arguably one of, if not the most threatening factions you can face, especially in a tournament environment. I personally find that Calandra is one of the best casters you can take to hamper cryx on a turn by turn basis. This article was written to convey the knowledge and strategies that I have learned to you. Hopefully it may help some of you, and if not, maybe it made you think a little. This whole article is based on months of tourney experiences. If you believe that this renders the article anecdotal or without merit, please feel free to read the article, but avoid making comments of that nature. Any helpful criticism or advice is fine. If you don’t feel that you understand Calandra very well, or want to know where I’m coming from with this advice, please feel free to read my article on Calandra to see where I’m coming from.

Last year it was a big hit so we did another one. Excuse the picture all we had at the time was a phone to take the photo with. Yeap those are pink skinned Gobbers with a pink rimmed base. Enjoy

Crushing Crescendo: A Grissel Guide
by Saerko

When I first picked up my friend’s copy of Primal to see about this “Hordes” jive he was spewing, I was having a hard time deciding what faction to play. I hate elves, so Legion was out immediately, and Circle was never going to fit my aggressive, melee-oriented playstyle. So it came down to Skorne and Trollbloods, and I was on the verge of picking up a Skorne army when I leafed through the Trollblood section again and decided to take a look at Grissel Bloodsong a little bit closer.

There was no turning back.

“Why” you might ask, is Grissel that great? The answer is that Grissel can do everything. With melee ability only out-stripped by Borka and Madrak, support abilities equivalent to anything Calandra, Grim, or Doomshaper can bring to the table, a killer feat, a spell list to die for and denial usually reserved for Cryxian warcasters, there’s no list she can face that she doesn’t have an answer for. If some warcasters/warlocks can be thought of as Swiss Army Knives, she’s a fully loaded Leatherman. She has so much potential, I didn’t really feel up to the task of writing this guide, but I’m going for it anyway and hoping I can give you a glimpse at how I use her. This guide will by no means be exhaustive--it’s a starting point and you’ll have to take it from there.

Crushing Crescendo: A Grissel Guide
List Making & Tiers
by Saerko

List Building

I play most of my games at 35 and 50 points, so this section of the guide will focus on those two point levels. Rather than cover every single list you could possibly make (there are lots), I’ll just introduce the reader (you) to some of my favorites, say why I think they’re awesome, and also go into an in-depth analysis of her Theme list and the benefits gained at each Tier. I’ve got quite a bit of time in using her with her Theme and and without, and have won several tournaments with the ones I’m going to post. Each list does have weaknesses though, and it’s important to identify other warlocks or build lists to combat those weaknesses when noted, so that you don’t run up against a bad match-up and feel like you’re running uphill.

Next in my line of Pyre Trolls, this guy has been named by my 4 year old son. The Scrolle Monster... yeah I don't know either. Seeing the most wear and tear due to the fact that he has adorned my son's book shelf for the last six months. Here you have him the Scrolle Monster (and yes I know I need a lightbox)

Original Paint by Smurfs, scratch and dents by Charlie.

Hoarluk Doomshaper buzzed through his small army like an angry wasp. "Human's only get worse when they die," he muttered to himself drawing a guffaw from Skaldi. Skaldi irritated him but Doomshaper let the irritation slide, he owed Borka and Skaldi made even his Champions look like greenhorns. Hoarluk never had any problems getting the respect owed him by his station but Skaldi possessed the same ability that Borka posses that seemed to elude himself. The Kriel all liked Skaldi and wanted to fight with him not for him. It suited Doomshaper's needs to have him anyway. Janissa was a new addition to his current force, she neither did what Hoarluk said nor did she defy him in any way. Almost as irritating as Grissel in her ability to think herself always correct. Again he let the irritation slide as he looked at his undead foe's across the field, he would need her abilities... Dhunia help him, because she had clearly blessed her. Now to the task at hand as he turned to Skaldi and Janissa he said, "cush their bones to dust and make it so they lie there permanently." Janissa nodded curtly ready to go. Skaldi put down his keg and each of the Champions with him quietly put in a large mug. They each drank silently and on cue began a ear splitting warcry as the undead army advanced toward them.

Captain Harmek Ironfist.

~Iron and Flesh, blood and gears, they all fall when Dire Trolls and Warjacks walk side by side.

Born an albino among his kith in the Thornwood , Harmek was destined to be a sorcerer among his people. Someone should have told this to Harmek. Smaller than the average Trollkin he set out daily to prove himself a warrior watching and training with a local Hero all the while ignoring his sorcerous ability. Soon a door opened for him to hone his skills as a warrior when Greygore Boomhowler came through the Thornwood collecting fresh recruits.

Life as a mercenary took to Harmek well as he learned to contract work for the Humans. As Harmek’s name grew, so did Greygore’s dislike of Harmek. Greygore continually put Harmek into harm’s way, hoping, but to no avail. Greygore finally rid himself of Harmek by sending him off on a job on small privateer vessel for a Captain Linas Smalls while the rest of the band left for Khador without telling Harmek. Determined to complete the job Greygore abandoned he soon found himself sailing along the coasts from Cygnar to Ord protecting Captain Small’s wares… old warjacks.

Hoarluk Doomshaper, Rage of Dhunia - Trollblood Trollkin Epic Warlock

by Gython

Epic Doomshaper is THE Trollbloods ultimate dire troll warlock. With his feat & spells, he is our prime delivery system of massive muscle, tooth and claw. He is a warlock who requires a bit of set up and positioning to be played effectively, but if done right your opponent's large and/or juicy targets will feel the full brunt of your dires.
Red: Muy MUY IMPORTANTÉ!
Orange: Very VERY GOOD
Black: Average, for eDoomy's purposes anyway

Statline
Epic Doomshaper's stats won't be winning him any awards, by far. All of his stats are below average except for his FURY of 7. He has sub-par defense, only one more that the majority of the rest of our army's Def. His ARM isn't great either, the same as our Kriel warriors. His CMD is poor and his health boxes are a little below average as well. But despair not! We aren't taking him for his stats, aside from his FURY…

Sample 35 point Edoomy list:
by Gython

Hoarluk Doomshaper, Rage of Dhunia -6
Troll Axer +6
Dire Troll Bomber +10
Earthborn Dire Troll +10
Earthborn Dire Troll +10
Trollkin Runebearer +2
Troll Whelps +2
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) +1

The bomber is there to explode the forward units, the axer's animus helps the EBDT's get where they need to be on feat turn. And Moses is there to put Wild agression on the second EBDT - 'nuff said!

By Lord Xalys

Hello there, dear community,

Since it has been a while for me writing a full tactica (starting the Retribution discussions at the faction's inception was my last endeavour), I figured I'd pick a Trollblood model I love on all fronts; looks, stats and fluff (the quote below warms my heart every time I read it): Horthol, Long Rider Hero. Of course I aim to have this thread taken up in the 'For Kith and Kriel'-sticky, so I'd better make this read worthwile for you all...

Horthol, Long Rider Hero"That one is all heart. If I put him at the front of battle, victory is certain, If I ask him to watch my faniliy, I sleep assured of their safety" -Madrak Ironhide

Due to an errant omission on Lost Hemisphere Radio, it came out that I had six painted Pyre Trolls. Yes six of them. Thanks to that event and great postulation, a huge 'what if' scenario is becoming a reality. In the future, probably some time after Templecon, there will be a burning brawl of firey goodness. This brawl will be two separate models. Captain Gunnbjorn and count em 13 Pyre Trolls. Crazy you say, maybe, but due to the generosity of too many people (wanted or not) the Pyre Trolls keep pouring in. In Lieu of said battle I introduce you to my first two Pyre's, the twins, Soot and Fuego.

Paint by Marie.

These were my first two Pyre's in what was a glorious time from the days of Primal when these fellas were the only non-warlock AOE in the Trollblood arsenal. Who are the other Eleven? Six of them are painted and named, one of them is painted and awaiting a name. Pyres Eight and Nine are awaiting assembly, and Pyre's Ten through Thirteen are not yet made known to me. In honor of the glorious event more will be revealed including tactica, battle reports on their progress, and spectacular fails of moves. You wanna know what Reznik thinks of Pyre Trolls... ask the last one that tossed him from relative safety over to the feet of a waiting Impaler and Calandra.

Why six Pyre Trolls you ask? Why the heck not!!!

1-Soot
2-Fuego
3-???
4-???
5-???
6-???
7-???
8-???
9-???
10-???
11-???
12-???
13-???

I just gotta say, Trolls have the coolest sculpts. Check out the latest in their complete line of awesome with Skaldi Bonehammer on the Privateer Press front page.

"The mighty Trollkin warrior Skaldi Bonehammer is a champion among the champions of the bitter North, his thirst for glory and carnage an infectious tide that spreads like wildfire among the Trollkin he leads. His thirst for battle is legendary, and his relentless fighting style combines bone-cracking strength and a fearsome swiftness that leaves allies in awe and enemies broken and bleeding."

Just saw this on the PP Store website. Not a bad place to start if you are thinking about Trolls. Take a peek HERE and see what you think. They actually have one for each army.

At first glance it appears the savings are around 20-40 bucks, which isn't too bad when you're getting stuff that will get a lot of use. Unless you hate Scattergunners, but then depending on who you ask, I love the SG so methinks its a good deal.

It's been a short while from posting due to a huge paper for my last semester of school, so until my latest battle report is done it seemed prudent to at least make this announcement.

The Earthborn Dire Troll Kills Casters!!!

To date my opponents have fallen 62 times.
46 of my opponents losses have come from their Caster dieing horribly.
10 of those Caster kills are at the hands of my Earthborn Dire Trolls, a.k.a. Cannonball & Grapeshot.
22% of the time when I win by caster kill, it is at the hands of my Earthborn.

Here is my current kill list.
Warcaster/Warlock Killing Blows

Earthborn Dire Troll - 10
Dire Troll Bomber - 5
Grim Angus - 5
Mulg, The Ancient - 5
Pyg Burrowers - 4
Troll Axer - 3
Troll Impaler - 2
Trollkin Skinner - 2
Nyss Hunters - 2
Trollkin Champions - 2
Madrak Ironhide, Thornwood Chieftan - 1
Fel Caller Hero - 1
Leto, Brother of the Kriels - 1
Madrak Ironhide, World Ender - 1
Dire Troll Mauler - 1
Troll Bouncer - 1

You can see why guys at my league groan whenever I field the Earthborn, or as is usual in my case a pair of Earthborns. Don't know how it is for other Troll players, but in my house they rule the roost. The next closest amount of caster kills in my army is only half of what the Earthborn accomplishes. Simply put, he has the speed and capability of destroying a caster from the safety of my backlines thanks to adaption his added speed and a buff or two.

So for the sake of repetition, I'll say it again.

The Earthborn Dire Troll Kills Casters!!!

Grissel found that she like Grim's Earthborn called 'Cannonball'. Being a Dire Troll did not hide the intelligence in the eyes of Cannonball, and Grissel was even suprised when he began speaking to her in very broken and simple Molgur-Trul. He had carried a message to her from Grim warning her of Elven activity in the area... Elven activity? Grissel was pretty sure she had never seen an elf, though Cannonball seemed to know them as indicated through the bond. The Dire Troll didn't seem to like them much.

One of her Scattergunners Grib quickly moved over to her side. With a large foul smelling cigar it his mouth, Grib began speaking to her around it, "The elves are near, though we haven't seen them yet, four of my men lay beyond regeneration because of their arrows." Grissel frowned and barked, "setup defensive positions here, we will wait for them to come to us." Trough the bond she felt Cannonball's eagerness for battle and almost staggered at his ferocity... Dire Trolls, even smarter than average ones, still made her uneasy at their quick easy access to such rage.

One of the oldest Trollblood strategies, beginning from our Alpha warlock Chief Madrak Ironhide. The Troll caster that every Trollblood players owns, yup its our battle-box caster. One of his signature spells 'Surefoot' means him and his Trolls pack themselves so tightly together that they quite literally form a 'Brick' of Trolls. Add in things like the Kriel Stone Bearer and Gobber smoke and now Janessa Stonetide playing pMadrak gives you more and more reasons to make sure large aoe's hit all of your army. Other Troll casters can brick to some degree, Borka with Ironflesh, does a decent minibrick. But no Troll caster can play clumped up with the effeciency of our buddy Madrak.

Photo courtesy of Battlecollege

Chief Madrak Ironhide

Stats- Madrak has decent stats for a Warlock, nothing glamorous but it's okay two of his spells make up for his defeciencies in Defense and take his good MAT and make it great.
Weapons- He has one that he can use in melee or range. At range it doesn't go far but that is what Farstrike is for, if you happen to kill something on your first throw then you get to throw again. Top that off since its a throw STR buffs increase the ranged damage along with the melee damage and his P+S is pretty good to begin with. In melee he has reach which was a glorious addition in MKII. Icing on the cake is Critical Grevious wounds, which makes enemy Warlock's cry if you pull on off while hitting one of them.

Abilities- He has a few nifty abilities. Talisman on subdual means beasts that activate where Madrak can see them can't charge or slam him even when they frenzy. Snap Fire is discussed above. Scroll of Grindar's Perserverance is pretty awesome and is essentially Madrak taking a free hit that won't hurt him.
Spells- Surefoot is his signature spell and key to bricking, it takes low Troll DEF and turns them into being difficult to hit unless you can boost. Stranglehold slows things down from getting into your front lines and has good range, it's also cheap which is good because Madrak needs all the fury he can get. Carnage means that when your brick closes on their front lines your chances of hitting go way way up.

Brick Basics

Chief Madrak Ironhide ~ Surfoot is why he bricks so well. Cast it turn 1 or turn 2 (usually on himself) and upkeep the rest of the game. The added defense for him and everyone around him along with making it so none affected can be knocked down takes the Average low Troll Defense into respectable levels. Most of the othe Core-Bricking models have decent MAT and carnage just makes it that much better. Toss is his Scroll and a buff or two and he is very hard to kill in an assassination attempt. If they do rush the brick then Crusher on high MAT high DMG Champs is bad news.

Beware trollblood players. The Dark Mother brooks no disrespect, and her powers are insidious. She controls the dice, and through them, the game. Play her with regularity and you will expect the dice to respond to your beck and call. Addicted to the power, games with other casters seem hollow, as fickle dice refuse to bow to your whim. She is powerful, but once played she refuses to play second fiddle to anyone else.

If you are weak willed, I suggest you stop right here. If not, continue on, and see the face of true power.

Calandra
Alias: Cali, Sexy Trollkin, Dice ****er

Calandra doesn’t play the same game as everyone else. She manipulates models, but more importantly she manipulates the dice. Other casters have various powers, but they cannot turn a roll of a 3 into a roll of a 9. Calandra can, with ease, in two separate ways. She is fragile, but her spells and dice manipulation makes her one of the most survivable casters we have. She lacks some power to kill things herself, but even then she will stalk and kill the wounded with her vicious dagger.

Top Lists
This is the basic list that I use when I want to win. It is not a nice list and it’s not a good way to win friends. However, it will consistently win you games.

Points: 35
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (*5pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
Pyg Burrowers (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) (1pts)
Trollkin Fennblades (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Stone Scibe Chronicler (2pts)
Trollkin Runebearer (2pts)
Trollkin Champion Hero (3pts)

This is essentially a burrower list. I would read the Burrownomicon before playing it. Essentially, your main offense is burrowers, which you support with your copious support solos. The Fennblades play cleanup and the Bomber clears out high DEF stuff that you can’t hit, or boosts damage to cripple heavies. The game ends on scenario or in a quick attrition grind.

So, you want to have a non-burrower list, because you have some small measure of fairness and honor. Okay, another winning list. We will take it up to 50 points to compensate for the lack of burrowers.

Points: 50
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (*5pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
* Mulg the Ancient (12pts)
Cylena Raefyll & Nyss Hunters (Cylena and 9 Grunts) (10pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) (1pts)
Trollkin Fennblades/UA (Leader and 9 Grunts) (10pts)
Fellcaller Hero (3pts)
Janissa Stonetide (3pts)
Runebearer (2pts)

This is a slightly friendlier list. Fennblades are your massively first striking unit with the UA, and the feat and the Fellcaller mean that they will crush most opposition. The Nyss strike from the sides, picking off support on the feat turn and generally being a pain with Starcrossed DEF 15. Mulg follows in the back, slowly, inexorably making his way toward the caster to pummel them in the face. Janissa plays guard duty for Calandra, and prepares to dive into combat to forcelock any flanking threats. Its slightly experimental, because Janissa and the UA aren’t out yet and I’ve only gotten a few games in with them, but I’ve run the list with 5 other points in their place (hero and chronicler) and the theory is sound.

Bell of Lost Souls posted a pDoomy Tier teaser today. You can check the full article out HERE.

Cheaper Dire Trolls... yes please. And contrary to the general idea on the PP forums. I like the Skinner enough to bring him on purpose.

Game Trade Magazine Issue #127 has on its cover today Captain Gunnbjorn and inside the front cover his actual book entry from the Trollbloods book. The full entry can be found HERE . For your pure reading enjoyment, go take a look.

Grim had to admit he was liking his new Swamp Troll. He and it seemed to have the same ideas about how to track and capture prey. Much to the frustration of his long time Impaler who repeated attempts at making dinner out of the Swamp Troll failed. As he chuckled at the Swamp Troll taking another shot at the Impaler with its tongue one of the woodsman appeared at his side. Grim had to respect them, not very many things could get that close to him without his notice. "We found him," said the Skinner, "Gudrun and Alten both seem to be working for them." Grim chuckled, "their man posing as Alten is our bounty, we will hold them off as long as possible while you help sucure him." Blythe and Bull are here to help as well, Alten is sparing no expense for the capture of his would be doppleganger.

The pyre troll is one of my favorite models in the Trollblood army, so i thought i would do a little write-up on him so other people might be inspired to give him a try. If you already play him with regularity, then props to you! By the way, I named mine “Torch” before that lame Khador Jack came out...so there...anyway, lets get into the good stuffs.

Stat Line

SPD: Typical Troll beast
STR: Bouncer
MAT: Impaler
RAT: Calandra
DEF: Typical Light
ARM: Imapler
CMD: Impaler
Fury: Typical Light
Threshold: Winter Troll
Cost: 5pts; one less than the Slag
Immunity Fire: This is nothing to scoff at. With the large amounts of fire in the game, he really increases his survivability by leaps and bounds with this alone.

Nothing overly impressive on his statline, he’s very similar to the other elementals and he shares many of his stats with the Impaler (who I find to be one of his best friends, but more on that later).

Thanks to our friends over at Bell of Lost Souls we have the Grim Angus Tier List Spoiler.

The Skinner being hugely unpopular on the PP forums doesn't bother me a bit, I'll be buying a few of them because I like them. I always take Alten Ashley so that is gravy for me. Add in the Burrowers and Bushwackers as well as some Bomber's and Blitzers and we're good. Dannon Blythe & Bull are new to be as I have only played them once or twice since they came out. The mystery for now is the Scouts... they'll probably be good, and we all know I'll buy them.

Just played two games with him.

BACKGROUND: I played vs my friend, and the best player I know. I usually lose to his circle, so that doesn't play into my thoughts on him. I have Gunnbjorn's cards in front of me, so all the info is based on real stats. Caste Kill first game, No Man's Land second.

Played two games, First list was:

Gunn
Bomber
Slag
Winter
Impaler
Bushwhackers
3 champs

vs

Kaya
Wilder
Stalker
Gnarlhorn
Druids/UA
Stones/UA
Stones
Blackclad

I got stymied by blackclads (clouds on them is crazy, DEF 18... blech), then wrecked by druids puling the bomber into the waiting arms of a stalker, who got teleported back. I focused mainly on guided fire, got some nice kills, but was unable to kill all that much. I got worn down, attritioned, and killed. I haven't played my friends circle in almost, hmmm, 6 months now, so it was a relearning experience, and a bad way to learn Gunnbjorn.

Second game
Pygs -> Dygs/whelps
Champs -> Runebearer/Feral/Fellcaller

vs

Morvhana
Stalker
Guardian
Stones/UA
Druids/UA
Bloodtrackers
??????

A little better. I focused on rock wall (which I hadn't even cast the game before) to keep my trio of lights safe, and the game was a longer grind. In the end, it came down to regrown (and regrown, and regrown) bloodtrackers overwhelming my ability to kill them.

Thoughts:
He's no Grim, thats for sure. While his spell list is more powerful, he lacks the same mitigation that Grim does with is feat, his spell that provides Hunter, and natural True Sight, its much, much harder to shut Grim down. Gunnbjorn makes his beasts shoot great, but none of our shooting beasts are all that great in melee, so if you fail, its over. You can survive a bit, but the grind will get you.

I'll have to play more games vs less capable opponents. But right now I'm hugely impressed with how fun he is to play, how new his style is, and how solidly in the middle of our casters he is. Not someone I see myself taking to tourneys I want to win, but definitely someone I will be playing with in friendly games.

I'm looking forward to the champs with guns. If they provide durability and ranged firepower, as well as a capable melee presence, I will be taking them. Even possibly over burrowers, who don't work particularly well with him, and who can't provide the tough wall he needs. Or I might just focus less on guided Fire, and take out a beast and the whelps for full fennblades.

He's promising. Just not better than what we have.

Kriel Stone Bearers.
People range from loving the unit to never touching them. The most common reason that I hear for them not being taken is: They don't fit my playstyle. In this guide, I'm going to try to make a case for the following two points.

1. Kriel Stone Bearers can be a worthy addition to many lists.
2. They shouldn't be cramping your style as you play with them.

I think the Kriel Stone Bearer and Stone Scribes have gotten an unfair stigma from MK1 brick lists as well as the first games that people play against casters such as pMadrak. The stacking of buffs creates extremely hard to kill Champions. Because the pMadrak style of play results in a very clumped army, the Kriel Stone Bearer is blamed as the culprit for this. I'm going to try to set the record straight here.

Lists and Strategies

Whenever I consider Shaman of the Gnarls list, I must consider two things. "How do I protect him" and "how do I assassinate with him?" If you are lucky you will have models that can do both.

My usual 35 list goes like this

Hoarluk -7

Bomber 10 (The animus protecting from blast damage is so good for someone so fragile and pow 16 AOE)
Mauler 9 (Cheap beatstick for those hard stuff.
Bouncer 5 (Shield guard from direct shooting)

Scattergunner 8 (best fortuned infantry clearing option for us)
Fennblades 8 (Fortune works on vengeance)
whelps 2 (manage fury and heals while blocking charge lanes)

the primary strategy with this list is that you use the wall of medium and large base as a wall as you run up the field. and when the beasts charge/trample use goad to position your beast to the caster and kill. Or grab and smash with the Mauler while you use your reach and shooting to finish the job. This list is far from perfect. I'll admit that this list has very low success as Doomshaper is a very needy man that functions best at 50pt games, but it incorporates the best targets for fortune and two powerhouses that can take down anything in game with little work. The Bouncer is a dedicated body guard and a transfer battery.

This army building philosophy can alter depending on how you want your army to function. Some people see Hoarluk's defense as utterly hopeless lost cause and focus purely on offense.
If you seek this list know that shooting will utterly demolish him and any incorporeal and "place" movement based armies will reach around quickly. The quick offense army is really best against other glass cannon armies using your own toughness while you push your way through. Anything with spd 6 or more is the key for these armies and so is capitalizing on the pathfinder of Earthborn and the axer. Any model with steady rule is also viable for this.

The other army building philosophy is the quintessential brick. This doesn't work no where near the level of Madrak or even Borka, but do note that unlike those two , the army is the one that supports the warlock. This list basically constitute cramming much body and survivability increasing stuff and blocking LOS. Models with steady, chronicler, the kriel stones, whelps and bouncers are great choices for this theme. Things will be tough to kill and you basically use it as a meat wall. Heavy density shooting will put a dent into your plan if they play keep away. make sure to have somekind of ranged element that they can't ignore so you can force a closer encounter.

Hoarluk Doomshaper, Shaman of the Gnarls
Warlock that makes Ninja Gaiden and DMC3 look like a child's play.

Hoarluk Doomshaper is the most maligned warlock in troll arsenal. If you win with him, you should lament, because you should've used your luck to buy a lottery ticket. His fragile nature and lack of any really dedicated ability or spell lists really means that you are always playing with a hand tied around your back.

Statline
As an old man, his stats are rubbish. even Nemo outranks him in command and Def. His slow movement speed also means that he is horrible at running away from any threat against him. His fury stat is quite good however, boasting a whopping 7 that is a rarity in hordes.

The Trollblood Lexicon ~ by Saerko

Some of us post around here often. REALLY often. It gets hard to type the full name of everything all the time, so we resort to acronyms. Listing lots of acronyms every time we talk about a broad class of things starts to get old too, so there’s some slang that’s thrown around to refer to certain groups of models and abilities. Hopefully, this will clear some of this up--feel free to keep it side by side when reading some posts until you catch on.

Madrak Ironhide, World Ender.
or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Axe.

Epic Madrak is the Trollbloods ultimate infantry warlock. He has lost all of the defensive measures of his prime incarnation in exchange for pure offensive power. He is a warlock who requires a massive amount of set up and positioning to be played effectively, but if done right your opponent won’t know what hit them.

by Bakaryu ~ Author of The Lost Kriel

Example List

Type: Skirmish (1 caster, 50pts)
Points: 50
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (*5pts)
* Pyre Troll (5pts)
* Swamp Troll (4pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
* Trollkin Runebearer (2pts)
Kriel Warriors (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
* 2 Kriel Warrior Caber Thrower (2pts)
* Kriel Warrior Standard Bearer & Piper (2pts)
Krielstone Bearer and 3 Stone Scribes (3pts)
* Krielstone Stone Scribe Elder (1pts)
Trollkin Runeshapers (Leader and 2 Crew) (4pts)
Trollkin Runeshapers (Leader and 2 Crew) (4pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Stone Scribe Chronicler (2pts)
Troll Whelps (2pts)

by Bakaryu ~ Author of The Lost Kriel

Long have the Runeshapers been misunderstood, underestimated and unloved like a red-headed stepchild. Perhaps it has to do with their price cost, or perhaps it has something to do with the man-sized hands and chins more epic than the Mauler Extreme. Rest assured valued reader, that it does not however have anything to do with their capabilities on the battlefield. However I digress, moving on to the basic introduction:

This was one of the first models I purchased. I was was in awe of how dynamic his model was and have been captivated and impressed with it’s performance every game he’s been in. Here’s some tips, strats and a break down of our most versatile beast.

Calandra (5 Beast points)
Impaler-5
Dire Troll Bomber-10
Dire Troll Blitzer- 9
Min Pyg Burrowers-4
Runeshapers-4
Min Fennblades-5
Fellcaller-3

My donation to the troll tactica forum for all who wish to listen... read, will be for my favorite caster, Calandra.

The Intro: so to begin, this wonderful lady is Calandra Thruthsayer, Oracle of Glimmerwood. She is one of our support casters, along with E Doomy, or Grissle, but instead of finding a niche solely in infantry or beasts, our pretty lock finds a awkward but nice place in the middle.

"Born an albino and a sorcerer, Grim has a unique talent for tracking and has focused his inborn powers to assist his love of the hunt. Grim has hunted wanted men across western Immoren and has earned a name as a tracker whose quarry never escapes. Even the rumor of Grim Angus on a man's trail has prompted outlaws to surrender immediately to the nearest authorities."

(Please note: I am still using the Final Online Update PDF to write this, will edit when I get the card deck, if there were any changes. Also, I'm going to note other characters from other armies that I have much love for, so don't be offended.)

First off, Grim Angus is arguably our most mobile warlock. He is also very accurate. This will be a very brief guide on how to use him.

Ever felt your friend likes Allister Caine a little too much? How about Ashlynn D'Elyse? Do you think he/she is fielding so many high DEF models that you just want to pound your head against the table? Fear not, when your opponents see this guy on the field, they'll wet themselves. That being said, he can also do well against high armour targets, like a mainstream Khador list.

For starters, Borka is the hardest warlock to kill in Hordes. Only a few Khador warcasters can compete with his survivability. This will be the highlighting factor in playing and running your drunken warband.

Hey everybody! Here's my contribution to our growing troll tactica. Keep in mind I'm writing this pretty much off the top of my head, so it's going to be pretty basic, at least at first. Everybody else is organizing these things by stats, attacks, casters and whatnot, and I'll make an effort to do the same, but be kind in your judgements. Feel free to add to it.

Mulg Smash: Your Step-by-Step Guide to the King of Trolls

Mulg is the lord of all Dire Trolls, the Omega Troll if there ever was one. He is the biggest, the
baddest, and the strongest of them all, and has the stats to back it up. In melee, he'll destroy
anything that falls within the shadow of his club, and the testicles of lesser warbeasts have been
known to retract reflexively at the sight of him. He is a walking mountain, unleashing an
avalanche of power at the command of warlocks whose whims he heeds out of affection and
brotherly understanding, not servitude.

by Bakaryu ~ Author of The Lost Kriel

Sample Army Lists

Army: eMad 50 dirty
Type: Skirmish (1 caster, 50pts)
Points: 50
Mardrak Ironhide, World Ender (*5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
* Dire Troll Mauler (9pts)
* Trollkin Runebearer (2pts)
Kriel Warriors (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
* 3 Kriel Warrior Caber Thrower (3pts)
* Kriel Warrior Standard Bearer & Piper (2pts)
Krielstone Bearer and 3 Stone Scribes (3pts)
* Krielstone Stone Scribe Elder (1pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) (1pts)
Trollkin Champions (Leader and 4 Grunts) (10pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Stone Scibe Chronicler (2pts)
Trollkin Champion Hero (3pts)

by Bakaryu ~ Author of The Lost Kriel

Well here be my first contribution to Trollblood tactica in MkII, and while it will not be awesomely cool as Sev's it is my hope that everyone will find some value in it and maybe help people see how amazingly awesome Kriel Warriors are. Who knows, it might even change the way some people play Trollbloods.

Dunno how it happened, but somehow comments were turned off... I was wondering why none of you piped in for so long.

So, be that as it may, comments have been re-enabled. Feel free to comment to your hearts desire, I'll feel free to start monitoring them again.

....Top Lists

Please, reconsider. You have read so much, come so far, and yet you crave deeper knowledge. To properly master burrowers, you must experiment for yourself, learn their secrets. Perhaps you may find a way to master them without tainting you soul, losing yourself. Try this list, and you will try no other. You will be consumed.

Army:
Type: Duel (1 caster, 35pts)
Points: 35
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (*5pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
Pyg Burrowers (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew (Leader and 1 Grunt) (1pts)
Trollkin Fennblades (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
Fell Caller Hero (3pts)
Stone Scibe Chronicler (2pts)
Trollkin Runebearer (2pts)
Trollkin Champion Hero (3pts)

A recipe for evil if ever there was one. Lets examine it, shall we.

The Burrownomicon

Beware trollblood players. The knowledge contained herein is powerful, but should only be absorbed by those with the fortitude to resist its dark lure. Even strong souls have been corrupted by its power, forever warping their view of the faction and the army lists they build. The author of this tome struggles daily with his inability to build a list without this knowledge. He has become a pariah. People refuse to play him lest he leave his dark magics in the carrying case.

If you are weak willed, I suggest you stop right here. If not, continue on, and see the face of evil.

I'm sure we have all been in the situation where you miss that critical double handed throw or your Mauler looses his Mind aspect due to free strikes on that all important trample.Dealing with that situation can be hard in some cases so here is how i usually handle it.

First thing to do is take a step back and not panic! It is incredibly easy to enter a state of panic when you see that Trample distance die just tip over onto the one eyed side. This is perfectly natural, your plan failed and your in a bad spot, but to make sure you dont do something hasty and loose the game, its so very important to just take a step back from the table and let that feeling of panic pass.

eHoarluk, 50 PT level.

I'm a beast player at heart, but I like to have the best matchups that I can across the board. This is a problem, since infantry likes to eat beasts. So what's the answer? Ranged attacks. The bomber eats the infantry that eats the beasts and doesn't do badly against beasts. Let's take two. Good. Let's throw in an Impaler for the extra range. What if they have Solid Ground? Well, we'll throw in a Pyre for the Continous Effect: Fire and Strength Animus against high ARM. Add an Axer for the movement and pathfinder. I'm throwing in a Bouncer because I like Shield Guarding against CRAs and the Reaper's Drag. Add the KSB in for extra durability, some whelps, and the Runebearer (for the fury reduction on your animi) and you're good to go.

Alright, but which caster?

Grim is a good one. He has a SPD buff for your beasts on his gun, He can knockdown the enemy, can debuff DEF, make your beasts get Hunter, and has tremendous board denial - BUT the beasts run REALLY fury hot, and as a 6 FURY caster, it's hard to handle.

Calandra is also a good one, but she has no speed buffs for your troops or debuffs to speed for the enemy. She can make your beasts SING with rerolls, Star Crossed, and Soothing Song. Without her feat, your troops aren't really that great in melee. She doesn't have DEF debuffs like Grim and Stealth Lists are a serious problem.

Initially, I just considered the above two... as they were the ones that came to mind. I had developed a preconception that a certain angry old troll only wanted to work with a diversity of Dire Trolls and Mulg. Oh how wrong I was.

Finally, the list:

Rewritten HERE

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