[TOW] (2K) Tournament Outcome

Chaos Dwarf Discussion Army List and Gaming Discussion
1

IMG_0951
IMG_09512015×825 353 KB

I recently attended a 34-person tournament where I placed third in generalship but ultimately won the tournament overall, thanks to painting and sportsmanship.

Even more satisfying was that I won all three of my games! My Chaos Dwarfs army performed brilliantly throughout the event, and here’s a breakdown of how it all went down.

Tournament Recap:

Round 1 vs. Wood Elves (12:8): A close match to start the day against a tricky Wood Elf army. My Hobgoblins, bolstered by the Storm of Ash, held the line impressively, their increased toughness making them far more resilient against three pillar of fire and arrows. Combined with effective magic support, I managed to take down two teeemen with them taking heavy damage from the bolt throwers in the end I edged out a 12:8 victory. We called it in round four as my opponent felt he couldn’t really do anything and it wouldn’t be a fun game of me trying to run him down.

List below:

++ Characters [995 pts] ++

Spellweaver [254 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Talismanic Tattoos
  • Level 4 Wizard
  • Elven Steed
  • Oaken Stave
  • Elementalism

Treeman Ancient [325 pts]

  • Level 4 Wizard
  • General
  • Battle Magic

Treeman Ancient [295 pts]

  • Level 3 Wizard
  • Battle Magic

Waystalker [121 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Hagbane Tips
  • Ruby Ring of Ruin

++ Core Units [588 pts] ++

5 Glade Guard [65 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Asrai Longbows
  • Swiftshiver Shards

5 Glade Riders [118 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Cavalry spears
  • Asrai Longbows
  • Trueflight Arrows
  • Reserve Move
  • Glade Knight
  • Standard bearer
  • Musician

6 Deepwood Scouts [96 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Asrai Longbows
  • Hagbane Tips
  • Lord’s Bowmen

6 Deepwood Scouts [96 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Asrai Longbows
  • Hagbane Tips
  • Lord’s Bowmen

16 Dryads [213 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Light armour (Sapwood flesh)
  • Nymph

++ Special Units [140 pts] ++

5 Sisters of the Thorn [140 pts]

  • Hand weapons
  • Blackbriar javelins
  • Handmaiden of the Thorn
  • Standard bearer
  • Musician

++ Rare Units [275 pts] ++

Treeman [215 pts]

Great Eagle [60 pts]

Round 2 vs. Dwarfs (17:3): The second round saw a much more decisive win. My shooting and magic were devastating against the Dwarfs, who struggled to keep up with my mobility and firepower. My Black Orc Warboss on Wyvern led the charge in combat, and I was able to secure a strong 17:3 win, keeping control of the battlefield from start to finish.

List below:

++ Characters [511 pts] ++

King [160 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Full plate armour
  • General
  • On foot
  • Master Rune of Spite

Thane [67 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Full plate armour
  • Pistol
  • Shield
  • On foot

Thane [87 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Full plate armour
  • Shield
  • Battle Standard Bearer
  • On foot

Thane [67 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Full plate armour
  • Pistol
  • Shield
  • On foot

Thane [62 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Full plate armour
  • Shield
  • On foot

Thane [68 pts]

  • Hand weapon
  • Crossbow
  • Full plate armour
  • Shield
  • On foot

++ Core Units [892 pts] ++

15 Thunderers [205 pts]

  • Hand weapons
  • Handguns
  • Heavy armour
  • Great weapons
  • Shields
  • Standard bearer
  • Musician

15 Quarrellers [190 pts]

  • Hand weapons
  • Crossbows
  • Heavy armour
  • Great weapons
  • Shields
  • Standard bearer
  • Musician

19 Dwarf Warriors [219 pts]

  • Hand weapons
  • Heavy armour
  • Shields
  • Drilled
  • Veteran
  • Standard bearer
  • Musician

19 Longbeards [278 pts]

  • Hand weapons
  • Heavy armour
  • Shields
  • Drilled
  • Standard bearer
  • Musician

++ Special Units [596 pts] ++

16 Slayers [192 pts]

  • Hand weapons

18 Hammerers [349 pts]

  • Hand weapons
  • Great hammers
  • Heavy armour
  • Shields
  • Drilled
  • Veteran
  • Musician

Bolt Thrower [55 pts]

  • Bolt thrower
  • Hand weapons
  • Light armour

Round 3 vs. Chaos Dwarfs (16:4): The final match was an intense derby matchup against another Chaos Dwarfs army, which featured two Iron Daemons, Bale Taurus, two magma cannons, two wolf riders with khans in each plus a large block of blunderbusses. Over three rounds, my ranged units managed to chip away at one of the Iron Daemons, dealing about one wound per turn. When my Black Orc Warboss entered the fray, he quickly dispatched the weakened Iron Daemon, leading me to a 16:4 victory. Once again, Storm of Ash played a pivotal role in making my Hobgoblins incredibly durable. A picture of my opponents army below.

List below:

CHARACTER:
Sorcerer-Prophet (195)

  • Level 4 wizard [Demonology] (30)
  • Darkforged Weapon (10)
  • Bale Taurus (160)
  • Mantle of Stone (30)
    [425]
    Hobgoblin Khan (45)
  • Calvary Spear (2)
  • Replace throwing weapons with Short bow (2)
  • Light Armour (3)
  • Charmed Shield (5)
  • Giant Wolf (10)
    [67]
    Hobgoblin Khan (45)
  • Calvary Spear (2)
  • Replace throwing weapons with Short bow (2)
  • Light Armour (3)
  • Charmed Shield (5)
  • Giant Wolf (10)
    [67]
    CHARACTER TOTAL: 559

CORE
21x Infernal Guard (231)

  • Deathmask (6)
  • Hellshard (Champion) (20)
  • Standard Bearer (6)
  • War Banner (25)
  • Musician (6)
  • Hailshot Blunderblusses (105)
  • Shield (21)
  • Drilled (21)
    [441]
    10x Hobgoblin Cutthroats (30)
    [30]
    10x Hobgoblin Cutthroats (30)
    [30]
    CORE TOTAL: 501

SPECIAL:
Iron Demon (275)
[275]
Iron Demon (275)
[275]
Magma Cannon (125)
[125]
Magma Cannon (125)
[125]
SPECIAL TOTAL: 800

RARE:
5x Hobgoblin Wolfriders (60)

  • Calvary Spears
  • Short bow (5)
  • Reserve Move (5)
    [70]
    5x Hobgoblin Wolfriders (60)
  • Calvary Spears
  • Short bow (5)
  • Reserve Move (5)
    [70]
    RARE TOTAL: 140
    ARMY TOTAL: 2000

IMG_0952
IMG_09522013×874 409 KB

Key Strategy Highlight:
The Storm of Ash spell was the MVP of my list, particularly for keeping my Hobgoblins alive and effective throughout each battle. Buffing their toughness turned them into an unexpected wall of resilience, which caught many opponents off guard. The army really is structured around points denial as my opponents every time was like is that all I killed.

The synergy between shooting, magic, and combat capabilities proved to be a winning formula.

It was a fantastic experience, and I’m thrilled with how the army performed.

My Army List (2000 pts):

Characters (939 pts):
Sorcerer-Prophet (395 pts)
* Equipment: Darkforged weapon, Heavy armour
* Mount: Lammasu (Sorcerous Exhalation)
* Level 4
* Magic Items: Talisman of Protection, Armour of Meteoric Iron
* Wizard: Level 4 Wizard (Lore of Daemonology)
Black Orc Warboss (365 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapon, Full plate armour
* Mount: Wyvern
* Magic Items: Sword of Might, Charmed Shield, Trollhide Trousers, Effigy of Mork
Hobgoblin Khan (87 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapon, Shortbow
* Mount: Giant Wolf
* Magic Item: Ruby Ring of Ruin
Hobgoblin Khan (47 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapon, Shortbow
* On foot
Hobgoblin Khan (45 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapon, Throwing weapons
* On foot

Core Units (506 pts):
10 Infernal Guard (160 pts)
* Equipment: Hailshot blunderbuss, Heavy armour
56 Hobgoblin Cutthroats (173 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapons, Shortbows
* Standard bearer
56 Hobgoblin Cutthroats (173 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapons, Shortbows
* Standard bearer

Special Units (490 pts):
Iron Daemon (310 pts)
* Equipment: Steam Cannonade
* Upgrades: Hellbound
4 Hobgoblin Bolt Thrower (180 pts)
* Equipment: Bolt thrower, Hand weapons, Light armour

Rare Units (65 pts):
5 Hobgoblin Wolf Riders (65 pts)
* Equipment: Hand weapons, Light armour, Shields, Shortbow

7 Likes
2

Sounds like you had a great time! Really cool to see Chaos Dwarfs perform well. Thanks for representing us over there :slight_smile:

Hope you recruited the Chaos Dwarf opponent for our group, here. We need everyone!

I’m a bit surprised to see Storm of Ash perform so well. You mean toughness as in durability, right? I mean a flat -1 to hit is great, but I’m often put off by the 9” range around the caster. How did you use it, I guess you used your flying Sorc to be around the most dangerous opponent and then cast the spell?

1 Like
3

I’ll check with him and suggest to join :slight_smile:

I positioned the Sorcerer-Prophet to follow closely behind the Warboss, which allowed me to shut down enemy shooting and minimise their combat effectiveness.

For survivability, I compounded the Storm of Ash with Daemonic Vigour, applying these buffs to either to the Hobgoblins or the Warboss as needed.

This made them much harder to take down, and with the Trollhide and Storm of Ash combined, my Warboss became especially tough in combat, reducing the opponents ability to hit him by (-2).

3 Likes
4

I also just marched my Hobgoblins up on the first turn, and they were like a red rag to a bull. My opponent couldn’t resist throwing units into them, where they’d get stuck for two to three turns, giving me time to pick off everything else with my Warboss and Iron Daemon. Meanwhile, the Sorcerer-Prophet acted as a super mobile caster, moving around the battlefield to provide Storm of Ash bubble, Gathering of Darkness and Daemonic Vigour support wherever needed.

2 Likes
5

Mhm, I’m not sure, i think there’s some mixup with spell and item names/rules:

  • Storm of Ash can only be cast on the wizard itself. All enemy units in 9” get a -1 to hit anything. It doesn’t matter if the target is in 9” or not
  • Trollhide Trousers give +1 to armour save (and a 5+ Regen), they don’t affect the to-hit roll or toughness at all
  • Daemonic Viguor increases Movement and Toughness
  • Gathering Darkness decreases enemy Initiative and Leadership

I mean buffing the Hobgoblin toughness and also decreasing enemy to hit rolls is of course awesome. Is that what happened?

2 Likes
6

Yes, you’re right! Mea culpa on the mix-up—it wasn’t Trollhide I meant, Effigy of Mork, which provides a -1 to hit in combat. Combined with Storm of Ash, which affects all enemy units within 9” of the Sorcerer-Prophet, that brings the total to a -2 to hit in combat (though natural 6’s still hit) when they are near each other.

Also Yes, that’s kind of what I was doing with the Hobgoblins—buffing their toughness to keep them more annoying and resilient so the enemy would get bogged down dealing with them.

3 Likes
7

Additionally, with my Warboss pressing into the opponent’s lines, Storm of Ash turned out to be even more effective than I initially anticipated.

While I had planned to only use it primarily to make my Warboss harder to hit in combat, the 9” bubble, when positioned correctly, also hindered a portion of my opponent’s shooting. It had a much broader impact on my opponent than I expected

2 Likes
8

Whoa! Gratz on the good result!

I like the style of succinct battle recaps, I think I’ll try to emulate that, to give the broad strokes of the battle, instead of a round-by-round run through.

Such large units for only 170-something points each. Damn. I’m afraid your list is illegal though? A Black Orc character needs his boys, or he’ll feel lonely on the battlefield.

Wonder what compelled your chaos dwarf opponent to only put a single magic item on his Bale Taurus prophet. Baffling, I’d say.

Storm of Ash is boss, I agree completely. Especially when the caster is so mobile.

2 Likes
9

Thanks, mate! Appreciate the congrats! Glad you liked the battle recaps—I’ve found the broad strokes approach is not only quicker but keeps the report more fun to write. Also, my memory isn’t great tbh.

And yeah, those big Hobgoblin blocks for only 173 points are a steal! Keeps the opponent busy for ages. I completely missed that rule about needing Black Orcs. I thought I was good to go when I put the list together, and nothing flagged red in the army builder, back to the list writing! I’ll definitely make sure it’s spot on next time. Thanks for letting me know!!

Storm of Ash was a game-changer, though—with it being on the Lammasu it’s so mobile and shut down a lot of shooting/ combat hits. Worked out way better than I expected!

1 Like
10

Okay revised list:

Chaos Dwarfs [2000 pts]

Characters [935 pts]

Sorcerer-Prophet [395 pts]
Darkforged weapon,
Heavy armour,
Level 4 Wizard,
General,
Lammasu [Sorcerous Exhalation],
Armour of Meteoric Iron,
Talisman of Protection,
Lore of Daemonology

Black Orc Warboss [365 pts]
Hand weapon,
Full plate armour,
Wyvern,
Sword of Might,
Charmed Shield,
Trollhide Trousers,
Effigy Of Mork

Hobgoblin Khan [85 pts]
Hand weapon,
Throwing weapons,
Giant Wolf,
Ruby Ring of Ruin

Hobgoblin Khan [45 pts]
Hand weapon,
Throwing weapons,
On foot

Hobgoblin Khan [45 pts]
Hand weapon,
Throwing weapons,
On foot

Core Units [550 pts]

10 Infernal Guard [126 pts]
Hand weapons,
Heavy armour,
Shield,
Standard bearer

5 Black Orc Mob [60 pts]
Hand weapon,
Full plate armour

59 Hobgoblin Cutthroats [182 pts]
Hand weapons,
Shortbows,
Standard bearer

59 Hobgoblin Cutthroats [182 pts]
Hand weapons,
Shortbows,
Standard bearer

Special Units [445 pts]

Iron Daemon [310 pts]
Steam Cannonade,
Hand weapons,
Hellbound

3 Hobgoblin Bolt Thrower [135 pts]
Bolt thrower,
Hand weapons,
Light armour

Rare Units [70 pts]

5 Hobgoblin Wolf Riders [70 pts]
Hand weapons,
Light armour,
Shields,
Shortbow,
Reserve Move

Created with “Old World Builder” [old-world-builder.com]

1 Like
11

Hehe, absolute minimum Boyz :sweat_smile: That warboss must not be in very high esteem.

2 Likes
12

Your army looks amazing!

I just want to ask about Black Orcs. Taking a Wyvern and not taking BO seems illegal. Did I miss something? I use 5 Slave Orc unit myself recentl;y. With shields and 2HW. They are very cool addition.

2 blocks of Hobgoblins - I have one 40 strong. Adding a second feels like a good idea but painting all those models is stopping me ATM.

Storm of Ash with Wyvern is great. -2 to hit makes 1:1 duels so much easier when Your opponent hits on 6+ :smiley:

I see You did not use Feigned Flight on wolves. I have it on mine but I rarely used them. This is very match up dependent really… Might try them without it!

Smallest possible unit of Ironguard - I know points are short but I feel taking non-shooting dwarfs makes them… well… usless. Especially when You can Fly youe 10 dwarfs (with blunderbusses) 36" behind Your opponent :smiley:

2 Likes
13

Thanks for the kind words about my army! I’m glad you noticed the details.

I structure my list for points denial and to maximise the number of wounds on the table, giving my opponent plenty to chew through.

The Infernal Guard, to me, is more of a core tax. Compared to Dwarfs, where a similar unit costs 8 points per model, we’re paying 11 points, and sadly, they’re just not effective in a competitive environment.

Black Orcs are great, I agree, but for competitive play, I feel they really need to be in units of 18 (being 6 wide) to make an impact, which comes in at around 320 points fully equipped. That’s a huge chunk of points in one unit, and it’s risky.

Honestly, if I had run them, I feel I may have potentially lost two out of the three games.

My first opponent was casting Pillar of Fire and putting three templates down—those Black Orcs would’ve been wiped out, and the point balance would’ve been a disaster. With my two 56+ Kharn block of Hobgoblins, I just walked through the templates and absorbed the damage.

In my last game, I faced two Magma Cannons, which were taking off 10-12 Hobgoblins per turn. It didn’t hurt me much with my Hobgoblin blocks, but if those cannons had two or three turns to hit a unit of Black Orcs, it would’ve been the same story—a massive loss in points.

As for the Wolves, I keep them cheap because, honestly, sometimes I forget to use Feigned Flight, and other times I think they’re going to be killed pretty quickly. If my opponent doesn’t deal with them, they can become a real headache, but if they do focus on them, it buys me time to move my blocks and big fliers into position.

I hear you about painting those big blocks of Hobgoblins—it’s definitely a commitment, but for me, they’ve been well worth it!

As for Storm of Ash with the Wyvern was fantastic. That -2 to hit really makes a huge difference, especially in duels where your opponent is struggling to land any hits. In fact, my first game, killed two treeman and in my last game my opponent didn’t want to get locked in combat with the Black Orc on Wyvern, he mentioned hitting on sixes and my caster locked in combat so no dispelling my debuffs, buffs at the start. Not worth worth it.

3 Likes
14

Also, Don’t underestimate the Lammasu’s utility, especially with Sorcerous Exhalation.

It provides a highly mobile, durable casting platform that can position itself for key spells and dispells while staying protected.

The breath weapon adds extra versatility, allowing it to swing combats or weaken enemy units when needed. It’s a solid mix of mobility, survivability, and offensive potential.

I’ve altered the list and dropped the Kharn on Wolf and put the Ruby Ring on the Sorcerer Prophet, as I very rarely put him in combat.

1 Like
15

The Hobgoblins painting was a chore.

Picture below taken on 1 September

IMG_0944
IMG_09442014×1387 549 KB

This one was taken just before midnight the day before tournament 7 September.

IMG_0950
IMG_09501512×2016 536 KB

6 Likes
16

Lammasu not Bale Taurus is because you had not enough points or the Prophet was there just to cast spells?

I find carpet an amazing tool recently myself.

1 Like
17

The Bale Taurus is a combat beast for sure, but I find locking a level 4 wizard in combat to be a waste—especially since you can’t dispel while engaged and are limited to assailment spells. For me, it’s just too expensive and limiting in a competitive environment.

I find the Lammasu to be much more versatile for a few reasons:

  1. It’s a very survivable, mobile magic caster, allowing me to position spells and support where they’re most needed without worrying about getting tied up in combat.

  2. The breath weapon is boss, especially when babysitting the Orc Warboss whilst in the middle of my opponent’s battle line. It can really swing fights in my favour.

  3. In the unlikely event my Warboss flees or falls back, the Lammasu plays a critical role. The pursuing unit often ends up running into the Lammasu, which nerfs magic weapons. This buys me time to regroup and get the Warboss back into the fight.

  4. Lastly, I’ve got an awesome model for the Lammasu that looks fantastic on the table. Never underestimate the power of the rule of cool!

IMG_0973
IMG_09733024×4032 834 KB

IMG_0975
IMG_09754032×3024 903 KB

IMG_0974
IMG_09744032×3024 918 KB

4 Likes
18

And Range “self” spells :point_up: Opens up Daemonic Vessel, which is a total boss spell for a Sorc on Taurus. Lack of Dispel is a serious issue though for sure. Needs to be accounted for when making the list, i.e. at least another Daemonsmith.

2 Likes
19

Amazing lammasu and hobbos!
Why the hell didnt you blog this! Haha. Id like to see your army on the forum somewhere

2 Likes
20

You encouraged me to finally take an army picture.

Link below

3 Likes