08 Apr 2014
Hey guy's and welcome back to my overviews. Sorry this one took so long to put up but winter is Hammer season in my area so I was a little busy taking names and kicking butt. So without further adooooo
General Book Opinion
I enjoyed my time with my Vampire Counts army as it offered me really my only "Herohammer" army. I would not recommend this army for players just starting. You really need a good grasp of the game as this army requires a lot of finesse and correct positioning is key. They are slow moving and you will be removing models in droves which can be very intimidating, but that is just the Vampires way. They are quite magic dependent as well but have a great magic list. As far as books go this one is a 7.5 in terms of power. As I stated it is NOT an easy army to play and I would not recommend it as your first army unless you are really dedicated to it. It really is a fun army to play and a great challenger.
Army Special Rules
Undead - Your basic Immune to psycology, Unbreakable/Unstable and fear causing. UNLIKE the other undead army these guys CAN march if they are within 12" of the general OR have vampiric.
The Generals of Undeath - Your general MUST be a wizard, and MUST use Lore of Vampires. Easy considering they have only 1 none wizard character.
Slain General - If your general is slain at the end of the phase he is slain in every unit in the army takes a LD test and suffers wounds = to what you failed by. If you have another another wizard in your army he can take over the "binding" of your army however if you DON'T then at the start of your remaining turns you will take this test again. Now the new wizard does not become a new general, just keeps the army together.
Vampiric BSB - Simple enough, as well as its normal effects it -1 from any wounds lost from combat resolution or general death test. So if say you lost combat by 3 you would take an additional 3 wounds but if within 12" of the BSB you will only take 2.
Vampiric - Models with this NEVER suffer wounds due to Destroyed general and unless they join a non vampiric unit they can march as they please. Very useful
Lords and Heroes
THE HUNGER - Both Vampire lords and Vampires have the ability that at the end of any combat phase in which they dealt at least 1 unsaved wound they roll a d6. On a 6 they regain a wound. Wont come into play VERY often but could be a deciding factor eventually.
Vampire Lord - King of the hill in the vampiric world these beasts are the one thing you do NOT want to meet in combat. One of the best stat lines in the game they have GREAT base WS/Ini/and attacks as well as a respectable S5/T5. I think my biggest complaint is ONLY 3 wounds. I just imagine a Vampire would take a bit more of a beating than a human.Points wise they are about what you would/should be paying for them. They are base level 1 wizard that can get an additional 3 levels, have great equipment choices and BEST of all get 100 points worth of Vampiric powers. Vampiric powers are additional perks that get there own points pool. The best one is called Red Fury and it is pretty much a must have on any killy lord. For every successful wound you do you get an extra attack. This only happens once a combat phase so its not quite a steam roller but it can be a nightmare. 9/10 for power, the only other lords that compare would be a Chaos lord or a Greater Daemon. Its funny how 100 extra points in toys can make something so powerful that you will be throwing chaff in its way just praying it can hold it up.
Vampire - The little baby Vampire is no push over. Cheaper but weaker than a Vampire lord they are comparable to most other armies Lords. These also are auto level 1 wizards that can go up to a level 2. Vampires are one of the best bargains in the game. You could fill your entire hero choice with naked vampires and never be disappointed. 8.5/10 Amazing statline for the cost if I have one problem its the low LD. Only a LD of 7 that's the same as goblins >.>
Strigoi Ghoul King - The Red Blender... if you see one run the other way. Don't touch them, don't look at them, just run. A well kitted out SGK will easily do upwards of 10+ wounds before anything has a chance to blink. Infinite Hatred/Poison Attacks/and as fast as the fasted elf. Your downsides to this murder machine are lower WS than the Lord and a general low protection. They have built in regen 5+ which normally makes the choice to give them a 4+ ward hard due to cost, and for some reason that I cannot understand they cannot wear armor. I have tried to look into the reason for this but nothing makes sense, in the book it says due to the magical interference they cannot take armor.... but the Vamp Lord and Vamp CAN. Its a little silly but hey I wont complain. 8.99999999/10 I really want to give it a 9 but without proper protection I just can't. I will say this much, when I built my VC army I opted for the King over the Lord. Just think about it.. Kings>Lords. Best I ever did was 12 wounds to a High Elf spearmen unit.
Wight King - Wight kings are surprisingly powerful. First off Killing blow just because. As tough as a Vampire Lord, they lack a bit of power and WS and faster Ini than most undead. They cannot be wizards but can take the BSB making a very hard to kill BSB. Killing blow really is icing on the cake for them. I used them for challengers, no one wants to fight something that can lop there characters head off.7/10 Will need a good weapon if you want it to be swatting things down but can make a great BSB due to its T5 combined with AS possibilities.
Master of the Dead - One Master necromancer or necromancer may take this ability. That Necromancer can increase skeleton warriors. Completely worth the small point cost if you plan on running skeletons over zombies. Will make its points back almost every time.
Master Necromancer - Pretty basic level 3 wizard. Can become level 4 and are made of paper. They can take lore of Death or Vampire . 7/10 Your typical heavy caster
Necromancer - Cheap level 1/2 casters. 7/10 Carbon copy of every other hero choice wizard out there.
Cairn Wraith - Ethereal ghosts with Great weapons would normally scare me... but not at this cost. I will give them credit tho they can easily be used as terror bombers. S5 3 attacks OR exchange all attacks for 1 that automatically wounds and does not allow an armor save.It would be hard to get enough combat res to keep them alive. You COULD bus a group of them but it would make a very expensive front line that would just fold to 1 character with any kind of magic weapon. 5/10 I have used them, I ran 2 and they were used to terrorbomb chaff or low LD armies. They did that job well but if they touched combat they normally melted in a turn or 2.
Banshee - These can be very annoying in groups of chaff. Ethereal Hey guy's and welcome back to my overviews. Sorry this one took so long to put up but winter is Hammer season in my area so I was a little busy taking names and kicking butt. So without further adooooo
General Book Opinion
I enjoyed my time with my Vampire Counts army as it offered me really my only "Herohammer" army. I would not recommend this army for players just starting. You really need a good grasp of the game as this army requires a lot of finesse and correct positioning is key. They are slow moving and you will be removing models in droves which can be very intimidating, but that is just the Vampires way. They are quite magic dependent as well but have a great magic list. As far as books go this one is a 7.5 in terms of power. As I stated it is NOT an easy army to play and I would not recommend it as your first army unless you are really dedicated to it. It really is a fun army to play and a great challenger.
Army Special Rules
Undead - Your basic Immune to psycology, Unbreakable/Unstable and fear causing. UNLIKE the other undead army these guys CAN march if they are within 12" of the general OR have vampiric.
The Generals of Undeath - Your general MUST be a wizard, and MUST use Lore of Vampires. Easy considering they have only 1 none wizard character.
Slain General - If your general is slain at the end of the phase he is slain in every unit in the army takes a LD test and suffers wounds = to what you failed by. If you have another another wizard in your army he can take over the "binding" of your army however if you DON'T then at the start of your remaining turns you will take this test again. Now the new wizard does not become a new general, just keeps the army together.
Vampiric BSB - Simple enough, as well as its normal effects it -1 from any wounds lost from combat resolution or general death test. So if say you lost combat by 3 you would take an additional 3 wounds but if within 12" of the BSB you will only take 2.
Vampiric - Models with this NEVER suffer wounds due to Destroyed general and unless they join a non vampiric unit they can march as they please. Very useful
Lords and Heroes
THE HUNGER - Both Vampire lords and Vampires have the ability that at the end of any combat phase in which they dealt at least 1 unsaved wound they roll a d6. On a 6 they regain a wound. Wont come into play VERY often but could be a deciding factor eventually.
Vampire Lord - King of the hill in the vampiric world these beasts are the one thing you do NOT want to meet in combat. One of the best stat lines in the game they have GREAT base WS/Ini/and attacks as well as a respectable S5/T5. I think my biggest complaint is ONLY 3 wounds. I just imagine a Vampire would take a bit more of a beating than a human.Points wise they are about what you would/should be paying for them. They are base level 1 wizard that can get an additional 3 levels, have great equipment choices and BEST of all get 100 points worth of Vampiric powers. Vampiric powers are additional perks that get there own points pool. The best one is called Red Fury and it is pretty much a must have on any killy lord. For every successful wound you do you get an extra attack. This only happens once a combat phase so its not quite a steam roller but it can be a nightmare. 9/10 for power, the only other lords that compare would be a Chaos lord or a Greater Daemon. Its funny how 100 extra points in toys can make something so powerful that you will be throwing chaff in its way just praying it can hold it up.
Vampire - The little baby Vampire is no push over. Cheaper but weaker than a Vampire lord they are comparable to most other armies Lords. These also are auto level 1 wizards that can go up to a level 2. Vampires are one of the best bargains in the game. You could fill your entire hero choice with naked vampires and never be disappointed. 8.5/10 Amazing statline for the cost if I have one problem its the low LD. Only a LD of 7 that's the same as goblins >.>
Strigoi Ghoul King - The Red Blender... if you see one run the other way. Don't touch them, don't look at them, just run. A well kitted out SGK will easily do upwards of 10+ wounds before anything has a chance to blink. Infinite Hatred/Poison Attacks/and as fast as the fasted elf. Your downsides to this murder machine are lower WS than the Lord and a general low protection. They have built in regen 5+ which normally makes the choice to give them a 4+ ward hard due to cost, and for some reason that I cannot understand they cannot wear armor. I have tried to look into the reason for this but nothing makes sense, in the book it says due to the magical interference they cannot take armor.... but the Vamp Lord and Vamp CAN. Its a little silly but hey I wont complain. 8.99999999/10 I really want to give it a 9 but without proper protection I just can't. I will say this much, when I built my VC army I opted for the King over the Lord. Just think about it.. Kings>Lords. Best I ever did was 12 wounds to a High Elf spearmen unit.
Wight King - Wight kings are surprisingly powerful. First off Killing blow just because. As tough as a Vampire Lord, they lack a bit of power and WS and faster Ini than most undead. They cannot be wizards but can take the BSB making a very hard to kill BSB. Killing blow really is icing on the cake for them. I used them for challengers, no one wants to fight something that can lop there characters head off.7/10 Will need a good weapon if you want it to be swatting things down but can make a great BSB due to its T5 combined with AS possibilities.
Master of the Dead - One Master necromancer or necromancer may take this ability. That Necromancer can increase skeleton warriors. Completely worth the small point cost if you plan on running skeletons over zombies. Will make its points back almost every time.
Master Necromancer - Pretty basic level 3 wizard. Can become level 4 and are made of paper. They can take lore of Death or Vampire . 7/10 Your typical heavy caster
Necromancer - Cheap level 1/2 casters. 7/10 Carbon copy of every other hero choice wizard out there.
Cairn Wraith - Ethereal ghosts with Great weapons would normally scare me... but not at this cost. I will give them credit tho they can easily be used as terror bombers. S5 3 attacks OR exchange all attacks for 1 that automatically wounds and does not allow an armor save.It would be hard to get enough combat res to keep them alive. You COULD bus a group of them but it would make a very expensive front line that would just fold to 1 character with any kind of magic weapon. 5/10 I have used them, I ran 2 and they were used to terrorbomb chaff or low LD armies. They did that job well but if they touched combat they normally melted in a turn or 2.
Banshee - These can be very annoying in groups of chaff. Ethereal and terror, the true power comes from the Ghostly Howl. Shooting attack that can be made even if they marched/charged/in combat. Pretty much as long as it has line of sight and is within 8" it can shoot at whatever. If its IN combat it can only shoot at what its in combat with. ANYWHO to resolve the shot roll 2d6+2. Take the amount and compare it to the units LD, and for every point over they suffer a wound with no armor save. I cannot tell you how devastating a few of these could be against the right things. 8/10 Unlike Cairns these are absolutely worth piling points in to. Turn units to dust before you ever have to fight them.
CORE CHOICES
Zombies - Weak,slow and will die by the dozens. And in this gamers opinion the best core choice for counts. They are dirt cheap and can be brought back faster than most things will kill them. Best of all units can be taken above the starting unit size. Skip to the magic section to understand just how silly this can be. 8/10 You take them knowing they are going to die and PROBABLY wont be doing much in return but if your expecting that then your doing it wrong. Use them to bog down everything indefinitely.
Skeleton Warriors - A good substitute for zombies they are a bit more expensive but come with an armor save. They don't heal as fast as zombies but with the save can take a bit more beating. I still prefer the zombies tho, 2d6 over 1d6 is toooo good. 6/10 Lower statline than most basic core I would take just take zombies.
Ghouls - An interesting choice for core. T4 so they are a tough choice. 2 AT /w poison so they hit fairly well for a core. End of the day tho.. they cost a pile of points and cannot take standards OR musicians. Still they make a great block of tank and spankers. Not to mention each one you bring back is just a ton of points in your pocket 8/10 Your damage core, toss a character in a block and whooo boy.
Dire wolves - Cheap and very very quick with vanguard. Perfect warmachine hunters or re directors. Any army could/should find room for 2 groups of 5 at least. 7.5/10 They wont be killing much but they will be harassing
SPECIAL
Corpse Cart - These are kind of a pointless unit. They are slower than any other chariot in the game and have no real combat value other than the impressive saves. I understand that they are meant to make your undead swing first in combat but the small area bubble and the expense makes them lackluster. 3/10 You don't see them in armies for a good reason. But like everything they have a use somewhere.
Grave Guard - The elite soldiers of the VC world these are a pretty solid choice. Killing blow and a Great weapon upgrade choice these can be hell on wheels. Keep them close to the general so you can keep your mobility up. Don't be surprised if you have to work to get them into combat, there is not a LOT of stuff that will want to tango with this block. 8/10 If they had WS4 they would be perfect, but toss the Banner of Barrows in them and watch them walk over stuff.
Black Knights - Black bus's are common now a days because they work very well. Cheaper than most knights out there but just as tough. Toss into that they have Killing Blow these are the easiest choice to make. Most players use them to get the Killy Lord Vampire where he needs to go and being able to heal them back as fast as you can..... 9/10 End of the day every upgrade is well priced and these are easily a bargain. Same thing with the graveguard they would be perfect if they only had WS4+. A great foundation unit.
Crypt Horror - Tough as nails would be the best way to describe these. T5 with 5+ regen save makes them hard to wound. And even when you wound them they are 3 wounds a piece... and even when you KILL them 1 decent round of magic will have the unit from 1 model to full easily. And to sweeten the pot 3 attacks each with poison and boy are they quick for a bunch of overgrown ghouls. 9/10 A strong choice if you need something to hold a flank by itself OR just run them straight forward and bog stuff down.
Fell Bats - Big evil bats these would be a perfect warmachine hunter IF they had vampiric. Alas as they do not I don't find them particularly fast enough to perform that job.5/10 I find dire wolves perform better than these every time and for much cheaper. I dunno they just never clicked for me.
Bat Swarms - These are great 1-2 of's. Units in contact with them get Always Strike Last is the big plus of them. The big minus would be the statlines. These things are abysmal in the combat area and will most likely add to the opponents combat res. Try and keep them on a flank or rear or ram them into monsters. 6/10
Spirit Hosts - Just brilliant units. Ethereal swarms for cheap cheap. Perfect for bogging anything without ranks down. Send them up against monsters or knights and they wont be going anywhere for the rest of the game. Keep them away from anything that will have a large amount of combat res. 8/10 Toss a few in any list to make it the most annoying thing ever.
Hexwraiths - Ethereal fast cavalry there is not MUCH to dislike about them. They cost what cavalry should but cannot be hurt my mere weapons.With great weapons swinging the Hex's attacks are Flaming/Magical and allow NO armor saves. And to sweeten the pot you can run them through enemy units and take a swing at them at the same time. 8/10 These cost you a pretty penny and have no armor whatsoever but only magic can harm them... or combat res. O that pesky combat res.
Vargheists - The first flying monstrous infantry in the game they pack one mean punch. Flying so also skirmishing, Frenzy so a LOT of attacks AND vampiric so 20" march. And now for the bad part, T4 and NO saves at THEIR cost makes them quite hard to pick with so many choices out there. If you do take them understand the frenzy test at ld7 you may be getting pulled into fights that you dont want.7/10
RARE
Look in Lords/Heroes for Cairn Wraith and Crypt Banshee
Varghulf - A big angry vampire these are quite a formidable beatstick. Cheaper than a Vamp lord but pretty close to the same statline. These were always one of my favorite choices. They don't count flank/rear's against them, they have hatred/terror/vampiric/regenerate, and they are just so darn beefy for the size of base.No flight would be my only complaint but its minor. 8.5/10 My opinion the best rare choice.
Blood Knights - The only non character vampires ( I of course mean Humanoid Vampires, not some hulking bat mutant) these are iffy to me. They are great in most every way, they hit hard are quick and man do they throw a lot of attacks out. But ONLY t4 and expensive (both points and $ wise, cmon 120$ for 5 models? really?) Also due to vampiric and NOT being multi wound the most you can get per sig cast is 1 model. GRANTED thats a 50 point model so
. I am only giving them a 7.5/10 they are a little better than special choice knights but may get shot to pieces before they get to the target, but that's not always a bad thing. These will ALWAYS be a big target.
Black Coach - Its gone down a little bit in most peoples opinions. A magical chariot with ST5 T6 4+ ward Terror, I am surprised these are not more commonly seen. The real push to these is the ability Evocation of Death. In every magic phase both yours and the opponents roll a d6 for every power dice earned ( so they roll 8 for winds, you roll 8 d6) and for every 6 you roll you "drain" some magic. The black Coach gets accumulative bonuses that run +1 to impact/+1S to the Wraith and horses/Killing blow + Flaming to the Cairn/MR2 and Strider/ETHEREAL!!!/and finally Flight. These bonuses can come very quickly and are very very helpful altho you only get to get the bonuses on 1 per magic phase so multiple of these can be slow on the upgrade. Now I have been making these sounds pretty good but everything has its downside and these happen to be combat res death. You cannot take these against anything with even a small amount of combat can melt these quickly. These are another great choice for Rare, you can toss them on a flank and wont have to worry a ton. With t6 with a 3+/4+ combat res is about the only thing that WILL wound these, and if you can get them ethereal it can get ugly fast. 7.9/10 Great if you can get a few of their bonuses before you get into the fray but can lack the punch sometimes. Pick your fights.
Terrorgheist - Ohh the terrorgheist, every VC players dream. Hard to shoot at and with flight can be pretty hard to pin down. These are not a combat monster at all. Its power comes from its scream. Exactly the same as the banshee's save for 1 BIG difference. Instead of adding +2 you add the remaining wounds which starts at 6. I don't care what you are, at 2d6+6 its very likely this is going to hurt. Great at its job I would only say that if it gets INTO combat you will most likely lose it. S5 4A and ONLY a 6+ regen its a gamble but thunderstomps always pay off
8.5/10 I will be argued with for not giving them a 9 or even 9.5 but you are paying a large point sink into something that will fly around screaming. Don't get me wrong that's not a bad thing at ALL, this thing is a nightmare and if you have 2...whoo boy.
Mortis Engine - One of the newer little toys in a VC's arsenal these are a both a great offensive and support unit. A St5 Tou5 chariot with a large range of attacks it includes a Banshee (and so a Scream) and the ability The Reliquary. This goes off at the start of every turn. Roll 2d6 and add the turn number to it, this is the range of its Dark aura. All enemy units within the bubble suffer 2d6 hits with Str= to the turn number. All FRIENDLY undead get a +1 to regen up to a 4+. If they don't HAVE regen they do now. Additionally if you rolled doubles for the 2d6 the engine suffers 1 wound NO save. When the Engine finally kicks the bucket every unit within 12" suffer 2d6 Str=Turn# hits. It bears a 4+ regen just base so it can be hard to hurt sometimes. It has an UPGRADE that adds 2 to all Lore of Vampire Casts within 12" and if ANY wizard within 12" miscasts he rolls twice and the opponent decides the outcome . 7/10
Mounts -
Skeletal steed - An undead horse. Spectral Steed so it is considered ethereal for movement and does not suffer barding penalty.
Nightmare - A harder hitting horse but without Spectral Steed.
Hellsteed - A flying nightmare, not a bad choice it for a killy vampire.
Abyssal Terror - Big fat bat/dragon/.. thing. Flying terror S5 T5. You don't see them that often which is a little surprising.
Terrorgheist - Only a Ghoul King can take this as a mount.. which is pointless because as I stated it is not really a combat monster. You can see them the odd time mounted if the army is a Scream list. 3 Terrorgheists /shudder
Zombie Dragon - Grrrr Dragons. You get what you think. 6's across the board, a smaller breath weapon. The great thing about these is the swarm of flies ability. Enemies in base contact -1 from their To Hits. This can make a Lord ontop of one hard to hit. So think nurgle.
Coven Throne - A vampires seat of power. Lots of fun with these, you have to build a vampire around this thing really. It comes packing with 2 Vampire "companions" with ASF St5 2 Attacks each. Bears a 5+/4+ save so pretty durable. T5 5W. Annnnd its abiltiy Battle of Wills. Before the first enemy rolls to hit they roll a d6 and adds their LD. Next the throne rolls a d6 and adds ITS LD. Minus the first LDtest from the 2nd and you have yourself the Battle of Wills total. 0 or less nothing happens, 1-2 the enemies suffer -1 WS and BS, 3-5 the enemy must reroll all successful TO HIT rolls, ANNND finally on a 6+ The unit attacks itself. EVERY MODEL in the unit makes an attack resolved against .. the unit. Warmachine's suffer str3 attacks resolved against the crew. Affected units cannot attack or shoot for the rest of the turn. I cant tell you how menacing that can be and with the right set up it is VERY possible to have this result quite often in combat. Lastly Scrying pool is a bound spell plvl3 that if cast bestow rerolls to EITHER failed To Hit or To wound rolls for the Throne and ALL its parts/crew. I played one of these for a short time and I really enjoyed what it did. Its a major target and you need to move it quickly which is hard considering its a chariot. I wish it had flight.. that would be great. 7/10 Its an investment but built correctly can grind through stuff like nothing else.
LORE OF THE VAMPIRE 9/10
Lore Attribute - The Curse of undead - Whenever a spell from LotV is successfully cast a model within 12" regains 1 wound. Obviously this is very helpful keeping multi wound vampiric things alive. Great Lore attribute.
Sig Spell - Invocation Of Nehek
The bread and butter spell for vampires. Heals units within 6-18" by d6+wizard level wounds OR if you happen to be zombies 2d6+Wizard level. Large target or vampiric only heal 1 wound ever tho. But this means things like Crypt Horrors or Black Knights are a HARD grind to get rid of. 9/10 This spell makes this army what it is.
1- Vanhel's Danse Macabre - Rerolls for failed To Hits is a great spell. Being able to move 8" after the cast is GREAT. Being able to hit all friendly units within 12" for a MERE 12+ This spell is just FANTASTIC. 8.5/10
2- Hellish Vigour - Rerolls to failed To Wound in close combat. Pretty self explanatory. 7/10
3- Gaze of Nagash - 2d6 S4 Magic missile. Nothing special here. Costs what it should so not a bad little pew pew lazor beam. 7/10
4- Raise Dead - A nifty little spell here, you can create new zombie units. You gain 2d6+3 zombie unit within 18" but 1" away from units or buildings, any direction you so choose. A good spell to help watch your flanks or to just get more bog down units. Free is never bad. 8/10
5- Curse of Years - This is my favorite spell in the arsenal. Hex 18"range Remains in Play. The unit its cast upon rolls a d6 for every model in it. On a 6 it suffers a wound no armor save. Then NEXT magic phase ( your opponents) this happens again but on a 5+, then 4+ and so on and so forth. I cannot tell you how this spell can melt large units and if they choose NOT to get rid of it on their turn whoo boy that unit will be in pain. 9/10 I kind of wish this spell cost more to cast than it did so it was harder to get RID of but it works very well.
6- Wind of Death - The usual bad vortex spell. This one is actually decent against horde/armored army's with lots of ranks. Shoot the vortex out and any unit it touches get dealt d6 str3 hits for each rank it has with no armor saves. I like this spell against Bretts and Empire most of all. T3 knights make the best kind of pop. 6/10
VAMPIRE POWERS
These are all the bonuses that can be given to your vampires. These are separate in cost from points and make the vampires very destructive.
Master of the Black Arts - A vampire with this ability can reroll 1 of the dice when determining the winds of magic. Decent enough but its costs a pile of points .
Curse of the Revenant - +1 to your wounds. To expensive for my taste.
Red Fury - THIS.. this is why I hate playing against VC. This ability should be on EVERY vampire out there. For ever unsaved wound a the vampire with this causes they immediately make ANOTHER attack. You only get 1 round of extra attacks from this but jeeze this just ruins days. If you play against VC expect Red "Blender" on the main vampire if not all of them. The best ability in the book.
Flying Horror - On foot only. Gives the vamp flying. Just use a Nightmare, its cheaper and gives you horse attacks
Quickblood - Always Strikes First. This is another of those "On every Vampire in existence" abilities. Most of the time they take it to get the rerolls but also helps vs Quick stuff like elves.
Aura of Dark Majesty - All enemies within 6" suffer -1LD, this accumulates with other effects so you COULD stack them and they are 1 of the 2 Combo abilities I like. Inexpensive as well I think this is just a great ability.
Dark Acolyte - When you cast invocation of Nehek you add d3 to the casting total. You have to successfully cast it tho so a 2 or 3 this wont help with. Cheap but probably wont see it very often.
Forbidden Lore - A vampire with this can generate spells from ANY of the Warhammer RB except Life. This is fun to use just for shock value. No one expects a vampire with say beasts or heavens. Pretty cheap as well. Adds that extra spice of choice.
Supernatural Horror - Gives the vamp Terror. Interesting but in this day and age of 8+ LD with constant rerolls might never help. Of course it obviously depends on what army your against. Good price tho.
Fear Incarnate - Fear tests the vampire causes that pass must be rerolled. If there is a BSB reroll within range then the 2 abilities cancel each other out. Good price
Beguile - At the start of close combat AFTER challenges have been done choose 1 model in contact, that model must pass a LD test at -3 LD . If they fail they must reroll successful TO HIT rolls. This is the 2nd part of the combo. A test at -4 LD will almost ALWAYS fail I dont care what your LD is. Very good at knocking characters down a peg or 2. This on a Coven throne with AoDM and FI.. oh leadership bombs you so fun. Of course that build has no room for red fury but it can be a lot of fun.
Master Strike - The vamp with this may exchange ALL attacks for 1 Heroic Killing Blow attack. I would recommend this one on just a baby vamp that's sort of built to use it. So pretty much naked I guess. Its cheap so that's a plus.
Dreadknight - Bestows +2 to WS but the vamp MUST declare and accept all challenges unless he is in a unit with Krell or a higher LD vampire. DIRT dirt cheap I would use this on every vamp I had. Vampires should never be afraid of Challenges and yea the enemy can just accept with a champ but you will cut it down and get tons of Combat res.
Summon Creature of the Night - The vamp can use Invocation to increase the size Dire Wolves,Fell Bats and Batswarms. Cheap enough this can help out a lot but you don't really see it much.
Items And Tools
Skabscrath - The only weapon in the vamps arsenal. Bestows Devastating Charge,Frenzy, and flaming attacks. In addition bestows the Death Shriek ability. Such is this swords need for blood that if the bearer does NOT cause any wounds in close combat by the end of the game then it kills its bearer. Jerk Sword. I don't see them very often unless its vs a Shriek Army. Not a BAD sword but its very expensive.
Nightshroud - An armor even necromancers can wear. Gives +1 to the armor save and models in base contact lose all Strength bonuses from weapons, magical or otherwise.
Banner of the Barrows - Expect to see this a lot. All Graveguard/Blackknights/and Wight Kinds in a unit with this get +1 to hit rolls. So you will usually be hitting on 3's Just a great standard
The Screaming Banner - Another of those little ca ca ca combo breaker items. Units taking a fear test in combat with a unit with this banner must add an extra dice to the test and drop the lowest. Cheap seems to be a common thing in this army and this is a great banner for getting things to be afraid.
Black Periapt - Allows you to save 2 of your unused power or dispel dice and add them to your pool next phase. Its expensive and I have never really had a phase where I didn't use up all my dice. Its expense is what it should be but I find it TOO expensive Does not fit the whole " Cheap " theme of the army
Staff of Damnation - DAAAAAMNation, allows you to cast the boundspell DAAAAAMNATION ( thats what i named it ) Power level 4 Augment 6" range. An undead unit gains the Extra Attack rule. Expensive and you wont normally have the dice to use on this. Not recommended.
The Cursed Book - Best item in this books arsenal. At the start of the magic phase after Winds have been rolled you can sacrifice d3 Power dice to cast a random spell decided by a d6 roll. The list IS
1-Melkoths Miasma
2-Enfeebling Foe
3-The Withering
4-Soulblight
5-Doom and Darkness
6-Curse of Midnight Wind
All these spells are SOLID and you would usually roll at least 3 dice to try and get one of these. They can be dispelled but you use the base power of the spell. So if you only sacrifice 1 dice its just amazing. I would recommend if you can make room for this you would be silly not to take it. I always MADE room for this item on my level 1. Its just so darn cheap.Also it can STACK the spell effects. So yeah, a possible double Doom and Darkness or.. ANY of those spells /shudder.
Book of Arkhan - Bound spell book. Can cast Danse Macabre. Cheap and a nifty way to get a second use of the spell. I have no opinion on this item really. I never used it but i know 2 players who swear by it so.
Rod of Flaming Death - The worst kind of death.. Flaming. Bound spell Magic Missile Plvl3 18" range. Causes d6 str4 hits to the unit, If it suffers a wound it must take a panic test. Now here's the BIG draw to this, if the unit moves for any reason during its next turn then every model in the unit takes a str4 hit. If it does not move the this effect goes away at the start of the casters phase. I like it, it forces your opponents hand and no one likes that. It is rather expensive tho so take that into consideration.
Conclusion
Thats the end of the write up. Hope you lads enjoyed this one, I know I enjoyed reading the book again:D I will be posting some army lists that I have saved to give you guys an idea of what might be out there. But you can always go to the Vampire forums Carpe Noctum. I mean its no Ogre stronghold but other than a few bad apples its a fairly decent place. I will also be looking at posting the special characters but I am currently working on a the SC's from past books I've reviewed so it may be a while.
General Book Opinion
I enjoyed my time with my Vampire Counts army as it offered me really my only "Herohammer" army. I would not recommend this army for players just starting. You really need a good grasp of the game as this army requires a lot of finesse and correct positioning is key. They are slow moving and you will be removing models in droves which can be very intimidating, but that is just the Vampires way. They are quite magic dependent as well but have a great magic list. As far as books go this one is a 7.5 in terms of power. As I stated it is NOT an easy army to play and I would not recommend it as your first army unless you are really dedicated to it. It really is a fun army to play and a great challenger.
Army Special Rules
Undead - Your basic Immune to psycology, Unbreakable/Unstable and fear causing. UNLIKE the other undead army these guys CAN march if they are within 12" of the general OR have vampiric.
The Generals of Undeath - Your general MUST be a wizard, and MUST use Lore of Vampires. Easy considering they have only 1 none wizard character.
Slain General - If your general is slain at the end of the phase he is slain in every unit in the army takes a LD test and suffers wounds = to what you failed by. If you have another another wizard in your army he can take over the "binding" of your army however if you DON'T then at the start of your remaining turns you will take this test again. Now the new wizard does not become a new general, just keeps the army together.
Vampiric BSB - Simple enough, as well as its normal effects it -1 from any wounds lost from combat resolution or general death test. So if say you lost combat by 3 you would take an additional 3 wounds but if within 12" of the BSB you will only take 2.
Vampiric - Models with this NEVER suffer wounds due to Destroyed general and unless they join a non vampiric unit they can march as they please. Very useful
Lords and Heroes
THE HUNGER - Both Vampire lords and Vampires have the ability that at the end of any combat phase in which they dealt at least 1 unsaved wound they roll a d6. On a 6 they regain a wound. Wont come into play VERY often but could be a deciding factor eventually.
Vampire Lord - King of the hill in the vampiric world these beasts are the one thing you do NOT want to meet in combat. One of the best stat lines in the game they have GREAT base WS/Ini/and attacks as well as a respectable S5/T5. I think my biggest complaint is ONLY 3 wounds. I just imagine a Vampire would take a bit more of a beating than a human.Points wise they are about what you would/should be paying for them. They are base level 1 wizard that can get an additional 3 levels, have great equipment choices and BEST of all get 100 points worth of Vampiric powers. Vampiric powers are additional perks that get there own points pool. The best one is called Red Fury and it is pretty much a must have on any killy lord. For every successful wound you do you get an extra attack. This only happens once a combat phase so its not quite a steam roller but it can be a nightmare. 9/10 for power, the only other lords that compare would be a Chaos lord or a Greater Daemon. Its funny how 100 extra points in toys can make something so powerful that you will be throwing chaff in its way just praying it can hold it up.
Vampire - The little baby Vampire is no push over. Cheaper but weaker than a Vampire lord they are comparable to most other armies Lords. These also are auto level 1 wizards that can go up to a level 2. Vampires are one of the best bargains in the game. You could fill your entire hero choice with naked vampires and never be disappointed. 8.5/10 Amazing statline for the cost if I have one problem its the low LD. Only a LD of 7 that's the same as goblins >.>
Strigoi Ghoul King - The Red Blender... if you see one run the other way. Don't touch them, don't look at them, just run. A well kitted out SGK will easily do upwards of 10+ wounds before anything has a chance to blink. Infinite Hatred/Poison Attacks/and as fast as the fasted elf. Your downsides to this murder machine are lower WS than the Lord and a general low protection. They have built in regen 5+ which normally makes the choice to give them a 4+ ward hard due to cost, and for some reason that I cannot understand they cannot wear armor. I have tried to look into the reason for this but nothing makes sense, in the book it says due to the magical interference they cannot take armor.... but the Vamp Lord and Vamp CAN. Its a little silly but hey I wont complain. 8.99999999/10 I really want to give it a 9 but without proper protection I just can't. I will say this much, when I built my VC army I opted for the King over the Lord. Just think about it.. Kings>Lords. Best I ever did was 12 wounds to a High Elf spearmen unit.
Wight King - Wight kings are surprisingly powerful. First off Killing blow just because. As tough as a Vampire Lord, they lack a bit of power and WS and faster Ini than most undead. They cannot be wizards but can take the BSB making a very hard to kill BSB. Killing blow really is icing on the cake for them. I used them for challengers, no one wants to fight something that can lop there characters head off.7/10 Will need a good weapon if you want it to be swatting things down but can make a great BSB due to its T5 combined with AS possibilities.
Master of the Dead - One Master necromancer or necromancer may take this ability. That Necromancer can increase skeleton warriors. Completely worth the small point cost if you plan on running skeletons over zombies. Will make its points back almost every time.
Master Necromancer - Pretty basic level 3 wizard. Can become level 4 and are made of paper. They can take lore of Death or Vampire . 7/10 Your typical heavy caster
Necromancer - Cheap level 1/2 casters. 7/10 Carbon copy of every other hero choice wizard out there.
Cairn Wraith - Ethereal ghosts with Great weapons would normally scare me... but not at this cost. I will give them credit tho they can easily be used as terror bombers. S5 3 attacks OR exchange all attacks for 1 that automatically wounds and does not allow an armor save.It would be hard to get enough combat res to keep them alive. You COULD bus a group of them but it would make a very expensive front line that would just fold to 1 character with any kind of magic weapon. 5/10 I have used them, I ran 2 and they were used to terrorbomb chaff or low LD armies. They did that job well but if they touched combat they normally melted in a turn or 2.
Banshee - These can be very annoying in groups of chaff. Ethereal Hey guy's and welcome back to my overviews. Sorry this one took so long to put up but winter is Hammer season in my area so I was a little busy taking names and kicking butt. So without further adooooo
General Book Opinion
I enjoyed my time with my Vampire Counts army as it offered me really my only "Herohammer" army. I would not recommend this army for players just starting. You really need a good grasp of the game as this army requires a lot of finesse and correct positioning is key. They are slow moving and you will be removing models in droves which can be very intimidating, but that is just the Vampires way. They are quite magic dependent as well but have a great magic list. As far as books go this one is a 7.5 in terms of power. As I stated it is NOT an easy army to play and I would not recommend it as your first army unless you are really dedicated to it. It really is a fun army to play and a great challenger.
Army Special Rules
Undead - Your basic Immune to psycology, Unbreakable/Unstable and fear causing. UNLIKE the other undead army these guys CAN march if they are within 12" of the general OR have vampiric.
The Generals of Undeath - Your general MUST be a wizard, and MUST use Lore of Vampires. Easy considering they have only 1 none wizard character.
Slain General - If your general is slain at the end of the phase he is slain in every unit in the army takes a LD test and suffers wounds = to what you failed by. If you have another another wizard in your army he can take over the "binding" of your army however if you DON'T then at the start of your remaining turns you will take this test again. Now the new wizard does not become a new general, just keeps the army together.
Vampiric BSB - Simple enough, as well as its normal effects it -1 from any wounds lost from combat resolution or general death test. So if say you lost combat by 3 you would take an additional 3 wounds but if within 12" of the BSB you will only take 2.
Vampiric - Models with this NEVER suffer wounds due to Destroyed general and unless they join a non vampiric unit they can march as they please. Very useful
Lords and Heroes
THE HUNGER - Both Vampire lords and Vampires have the ability that at the end of any combat phase in which they dealt at least 1 unsaved wound they roll a d6. On a 6 they regain a wound. Wont come into play VERY often but could be a deciding factor eventually.
Vampire Lord - King of the hill in the vampiric world these beasts are the one thing you do NOT want to meet in combat. One of the best stat lines in the game they have GREAT base WS/Ini/and attacks as well as a respectable S5/T5. I think my biggest complaint is ONLY 3 wounds. I just imagine a Vampire would take a bit more of a beating than a human.Points wise they are about what you would/should be paying for them. They are base level 1 wizard that can get an additional 3 levels, have great equipment choices and BEST of all get 100 points worth of Vampiric powers. Vampiric powers are additional perks that get there own points pool. The best one is called Red Fury and it is pretty much a must have on any killy lord. For every successful wound you do you get an extra attack. This only happens once a combat phase so its not quite a steam roller but it can be a nightmare. 9/10 for power, the only other lords that compare would be a Chaos lord or a Greater Daemon. Its funny how 100 extra points in toys can make something so powerful that you will be throwing chaff in its way just praying it can hold it up.
Vampire - The little baby Vampire is no push over. Cheaper but weaker than a Vampire lord they are comparable to most other armies Lords. These also are auto level 1 wizards that can go up to a level 2. Vampires are one of the best bargains in the game. You could fill your entire hero choice with naked vampires and never be disappointed. 8.5/10 Amazing statline for the cost if I have one problem its the low LD. Only a LD of 7 that's the same as goblins >.>
Strigoi Ghoul King - The Red Blender... if you see one run the other way. Don't touch them, don't look at them, just run. A well kitted out SGK will easily do upwards of 10+ wounds before anything has a chance to blink. Infinite Hatred/Poison Attacks/and as fast as the fasted elf. Your downsides to this murder machine are lower WS than the Lord and a general low protection. They have built in regen 5+ which normally makes the choice to give them a 4+ ward hard due to cost, and for some reason that I cannot understand they cannot wear armor. I have tried to look into the reason for this but nothing makes sense, in the book it says due to the magical interference they cannot take armor.... but the Vamp Lord and Vamp CAN. Its a little silly but hey I wont complain. 8.99999999/10 I really want to give it a 9 but without proper protection I just can't. I will say this much, when I built my VC army I opted for the King over the Lord. Just think about it.. Kings>Lords. Best I ever did was 12 wounds to a High Elf spearmen unit.
Wight King - Wight kings are surprisingly powerful. First off Killing blow just because. As tough as a Vampire Lord, they lack a bit of power and WS and faster Ini than most undead. They cannot be wizards but can take the BSB making a very hard to kill BSB. Killing blow really is icing on the cake for them. I used them for challengers, no one wants to fight something that can lop there characters head off.7/10 Will need a good weapon if you want it to be swatting things down but can make a great BSB due to its T5 combined with AS possibilities.
Master of the Dead - One Master necromancer or necromancer may take this ability. That Necromancer can increase skeleton warriors. Completely worth the small point cost if you plan on running skeletons over zombies. Will make its points back almost every time.
Master Necromancer - Pretty basic level 3 wizard. Can become level 4 and are made of paper. They can take lore of Death or Vampire . 7/10 Your typical heavy caster
Necromancer - Cheap level 1/2 casters. 7/10 Carbon copy of every other hero choice wizard out there.
Cairn Wraith - Ethereal ghosts with Great weapons would normally scare me... but not at this cost. I will give them credit tho they can easily be used as terror bombers. S5 3 attacks OR exchange all attacks for 1 that automatically wounds and does not allow an armor save.It would be hard to get enough combat res to keep them alive. You COULD bus a group of them but it would make a very expensive front line that would just fold to 1 character with any kind of magic weapon. 5/10 I have used them, I ran 2 and they were used to terrorbomb chaff or low LD armies. They did that job well but if they touched combat they normally melted in a turn or 2.
Banshee - These can be very annoying in groups of chaff. Ethereal and terror, the true power comes from the Ghostly Howl. Shooting attack that can be made even if they marched/charged/in combat. Pretty much as long as it has line of sight and is within 8" it can shoot at whatever. If its IN combat it can only shoot at what its in combat with. ANYWHO to resolve the shot roll 2d6+2. Take the amount and compare it to the units LD, and for every point over they suffer a wound with no armor save. I cannot tell you how devastating a few of these could be against the right things. 8/10 Unlike Cairns these are absolutely worth piling points in to. Turn units to dust before you ever have to fight them.
CORE CHOICES
Zombies - Weak,slow and will die by the dozens. And in this gamers opinion the best core choice for counts. They are dirt cheap and can be brought back faster than most things will kill them. Best of all units can be taken above the starting unit size. Skip to the magic section to understand just how silly this can be. 8/10 You take them knowing they are going to die and PROBABLY wont be doing much in return but if your expecting that then your doing it wrong. Use them to bog down everything indefinitely.
Skeleton Warriors - A good substitute for zombies they are a bit more expensive but come with an armor save. They don't heal as fast as zombies but with the save can take a bit more beating. I still prefer the zombies tho, 2d6 over 1d6 is toooo good. 6/10 Lower statline than most basic core I would take just take zombies.
Ghouls - An interesting choice for core. T4 so they are a tough choice. 2 AT /w poison so they hit fairly well for a core. End of the day tho.. they cost a pile of points and cannot take standards OR musicians. Still they make a great block of tank and spankers. Not to mention each one you bring back is just a ton of points in your pocket
8/10 Your damage core, toss a character in a block and whooo boy. Dire wolves - Cheap and very very quick with vanguard. Perfect warmachine hunters or re directors. Any army could/should find room for 2 groups of 5 at least. 7.5/10 They wont be killing much but they will be harassing
SPECIAL
Corpse Cart - These are kind of a pointless unit. They are slower than any other chariot in the game and have no real combat value other than the impressive saves. I understand that they are meant to make your undead swing first in combat but the small area bubble and the expense makes them lackluster. 3/10 You don't see them in armies for a good reason. But like everything they have a use somewhere.
Grave Guard - The elite soldiers of the VC world these are a pretty solid choice. Killing blow and a Great weapon upgrade choice these can be hell on wheels. Keep them close to the general so you can keep your mobility up. Don't be surprised if you have to work to get them into combat, there is not a LOT of stuff that will want to tango with this block. 8/10 If they had WS4 they would be perfect, but toss the Banner of Barrows in them and watch them walk over stuff.
Black Knights - Black bus's are common now a days because they work very well. Cheaper than most knights out there but just as tough. Toss into that they have Killing Blow these are the easiest choice to make. Most players use them to get the Killy Lord Vampire where he needs to go and being able to heal them back as fast as you can..... 9/10 End of the day every upgrade is well priced and these are easily a bargain. Same thing with the graveguard they would be perfect if they only had WS4+. A great foundation unit.
Crypt Horror - Tough as nails would be the best way to describe these. T5 with 5+ regen save makes them hard to wound. And even when you wound them they are 3 wounds a piece... and even when you KILL them 1 decent round of magic will have the unit from 1 model to full easily. And to sweeten the pot 3 attacks each with poison and boy are they quick for a bunch of overgrown ghouls. 9/10 A strong choice if you need something to hold a flank by itself OR just run them straight forward and bog stuff down.
Fell Bats - Big evil bats these would be a perfect warmachine hunter IF they had vampiric. Alas as they do not I don't find them particularly fast enough to perform that job.5/10 I find dire wolves perform better than these every time and for much cheaper. I dunno they just never clicked for me.
Bat Swarms - These are great 1-2 of's. Units in contact with them get Always Strike Last is the big plus of them. The big minus would be the statlines. These things are abysmal in the combat area and will most likely add to the opponents combat res. Try and keep them on a flank or rear or ram them into monsters. 6/10
Spirit Hosts - Just brilliant units. Ethereal swarms for cheap cheap. Perfect for bogging anything without ranks down. Send them up against monsters or knights and they wont be going anywhere for the rest of the game. Keep them away from anything that will have a large amount of combat res. 8/10 Toss a few in any list to make it the most annoying thing ever.
Hexwraiths - Ethereal fast cavalry there is not MUCH to dislike about them. They cost what cavalry should but cannot be hurt my mere weapons.With great weapons swinging the Hex's attacks are Flaming/Magical and allow NO armor saves. And to sweeten the pot you can run them through enemy units and take a swing at them at the same time. 8/10 These cost you a pretty penny and have no armor whatsoever but only magic can harm them... or combat res. O that pesky combat res.
Vargheists - The first flying monstrous infantry in the game they pack one mean punch. Flying so also skirmishing, Frenzy so a LOT of attacks AND vampiric so 20" march. And now for the bad part, T4 and NO saves at THEIR cost makes them quite hard to pick with so many choices out there. If you do take them understand the frenzy test at ld7 you may be getting pulled into fights that you dont want.7/10
RARE
Look in Lords/Heroes for Cairn Wraith and Crypt Banshee
Varghulf - A big angry vampire these are quite a formidable beatstick. Cheaper than a Vamp lord but pretty close to the same statline. These were always one of my favorite choices. They don't count flank/rear's against them, they have hatred/terror/vampiric/regenerate, and they are just so darn beefy for the size of base.No flight would be my only complaint but its minor. 8.5/10 My opinion the best rare choice.
Blood Knights - The only non character vampires ( I of course mean Humanoid Vampires, not some hulking bat mutant) these are iffy to me. They are great in most every way, they hit hard are quick and man do they throw a lot of attacks out. But ONLY t4 and expensive (both points and $ wise, cmon 120$ for 5 models? really?) Also due to vampiric and NOT being multi wound the most you can get per sig cast is 1 model. GRANTED thats a 50 point model so
. I am only giving them a 7.5/10 they are a little better than special choice knights but may get shot to pieces before they get to the target, but that's not always a bad thing. These will ALWAYS be a big target.Black Coach - Its gone down a little bit in most peoples opinions. A magical chariot with ST5 T6 4+ ward Terror, I am surprised these are not more commonly seen. The real push to these is the ability Evocation of Death. In every magic phase both yours and the opponents roll a d6 for every power dice earned ( so they roll 8 for winds, you roll 8 d6) and for every 6 you roll you "drain" some magic. The black Coach gets accumulative bonuses that run +1 to impact/+1S to the Wraith and horses/Killing blow + Flaming to the Cairn/MR2 and Strider/ETHEREAL!!!/and finally Flight. These bonuses can come very quickly and are very very helpful altho you only get to get the bonuses on 1 per magic phase so multiple of these can be slow on the upgrade. Now I have been making these sounds pretty good but everything has its downside and these happen to be combat res death. You cannot take these against anything with even a small amount of combat can melt these quickly. These are another great choice for Rare, you can toss them on a flank and wont have to worry a ton. With t6 with a 3+/4+ combat res is about the only thing that WILL wound these, and if you can get them ethereal it can get ugly fast. 7.9/10 Great if you can get a few of their bonuses before you get into the fray but can lack the punch sometimes. Pick your fights.
Terrorgheist - Ohh the terrorgheist, every VC players dream. Hard to shoot at and with flight can be pretty hard to pin down. These are not a combat monster at all. Its power comes from its scream. Exactly the same as the banshee's save for 1 BIG difference. Instead of adding +2 you add the remaining wounds which starts at 6. I don't care what you are, at 2d6+6 its very likely this is going to hurt. Great at its job I would only say that if it gets INTO combat you will most likely lose it. S5 4A and ONLY a 6+ regen its a gamble but thunderstomps always pay off
8.5/10 I will be argued with for not giving them a 9 or even 9.5 but you are paying a large point sink into something that will fly around screaming. Don't get me wrong that's not a bad thing at ALL, this thing is a nightmare and if you have 2...whoo boy. Mortis Engine - One of the newer little toys in a VC's arsenal these are a both a great offensive and support unit. A St5 Tou5 chariot with a large range of attacks it includes a Banshee (and so a Scream) and the ability The Reliquary. This goes off at the start of every turn. Roll 2d6 and add the turn number to it, this is the range of its Dark aura. All enemy units within the bubble suffer 2d6 hits with Str= to the turn number. All FRIENDLY undead get a +1 to regen up to a 4+. If they don't HAVE regen
they do now. Additionally if you rolled doubles for the 2d6 the engine suffers 1 wound NO save. When the Engine finally kicks the bucket every unit within 12" suffer 2d6 Str=Turn# hits. It bears a 4+ regen just base so it can be hard to hurt sometimes. It has an UPGRADE that adds 2 to all Lore of Vampire Casts within 12" and if ANY wizard within 12" miscasts he rolls twice and the opponent decides the outcome . 7/10 Mounts -
Skeletal steed - An undead horse. Spectral Steed so it is considered ethereal for movement and does not suffer barding penalty.
Nightmare - A harder hitting horse but without Spectral Steed.
Hellsteed - A flying nightmare, not a bad choice it for a killy vampire.
Abyssal Terror - Big fat bat/dragon/.. thing. Flying terror S5 T5. You don't see them that often which is a little surprising.
Terrorgheist - Only a Ghoul King can take this as a mount.. which is pointless because as I stated it is not really a combat monster. You can see them the odd time mounted if the army is a Scream list. 3 Terrorgheists /shudder
Zombie Dragon - Grrrr Dragons. You get what you think. 6's across the board, a smaller breath weapon. The great thing about these is the swarm of flies ability. Enemies in base contact -1 from their To Hits. This can make a Lord ontop of one hard to hit. So think nurgle
. Coven Throne - A vampires seat of power. Lots of fun with these, you have to build a vampire around this thing really. It comes packing with 2 Vampire "companions"
with ASF St5 2 Attacks each. Bears a 5+/4+ save so pretty durable. T5 5W. Annnnd its abiltiy Battle of Wills. Before the first enemy rolls to hit they roll a d6 and adds their LD. Next the throne rolls a d6 and adds ITS LD. Minus the first LDtest from the 2nd and you have yourself the Battle of Wills total. 0 or less nothing happens, 1-2 the enemies suffer -1 WS and BS, 3-5 the enemy must reroll all successful TO HIT rolls, ANNND finally on a 6+ The unit attacks itself. EVERY MODEL in the unit makes an attack resolved against .. the unit. Warmachine's suffer str3 attacks resolved against the crew. Affected units cannot attack or shoot for the rest of the turn. I cant tell you how menacing that can be and with the right set up it is VERY possible to have this result quite often in combat. Lastly Scrying pool is a bound spell plvl3 that if cast bestow rerolls to EITHER failed To Hit or To wound rolls for the Throne and ALL its parts/crew. I played one of these for a short time and I really enjoyed what it did. Its a major target and you need to move it quickly which is hard considering its a chariot. I wish it had flight.. that would be great. 7/10 Its an investment but built correctly can grind through stuff like nothing else.LORE OF THE VAMPIRE 9/10
Lore Attribute - The Curse of undead - Whenever a spell from LotV is successfully cast a model within 12" regains 1 wound. Obviously this is very helpful keeping multi wound vampiric things alive. Great Lore attribute.
Sig Spell - Invocation Of Nehek
The bread and butter spell for vampires. Heals units within 6-18" by d6+wizard level wounds OR if you happen to be zombies 2d6+Wizard level. Large target or vampiric only heal 1 wound ever tho. But this means things like Crypt Horrors or Black Knights are a HARD grind to get rid of. 9/10 This spell makes this army what it is.
1- Vanhel's Danse Macabre - Rerolls for failed To Hits is a great spell. Being able to move 8" after the cast is GREAT. Being able to hit all friendly units within 12" for a MERE 12+ This spell is just FANTASTIC. 8.5/10
2- Hellish Vigour - Rerolls to failed To Wound in close combat. Pretty self explanatory. 7/10
3- Gaze of Nagash - 2d6 S4 Magic missile. Nothing special here. Costs what it should so not a bad little pew pew lazor beam. 7/10
4- Raise Dead - A nifty little spell here, you can create new zombie units. You gain 2d6+3 zombie unit within 18" but 1" away from units or buildings, any direction you so choose. A good spell to help watch your flanks or to just get more bog down units. Free is never bad
. 8/105- Curse of Years - This is my favorite spell in the arsenal. Hex 18"range Remains in Play. The unit its cast upon rolls a d6 for every model in it. On a 6 it suffers a wound no armor save. Then NEXT magic phase ( your opponents) this happens again but on a 5+, then 4+ and so on and so forth. I cannot tell you how this spell can melt large units and if they choose NOT to get rid of it on their turn whoo boy that unit will be in pain. 9/10 I kind of wish this spell cost more to cast than it did so it was harder to get RID of but it works very well.
6- Wind of Death - The usual bad vortex spell. This one is actually decent against horde/armored army's with lots of ranks. Shoot the vortex out and any unit it touches get dealt d6 str3 hits for each rank it has with no armor saves. I like this spell against Bretts and Empire most of all. T3 knights make the best kind of pop
. 6/10VAMPIRE POWERS
These are all the bonuses that can be given to your vampires. These are separate in cost from points and make the vampires very destructive.
Master of the Black Arts - A vampire with this ability can reroll 1 of the dice when determining the winds of magic. Decent enough but its costs a pile of points .
Curse of the Revenant - +1 to your wounds. To expensive for my taste.
Red Fury - THIS.. this is why I hate playing against VC. This ability should be on EVERY vampire out there. For ever unsaved wound a the vampire with this causes they immediately make ANOTHER attack. You only get 1 round of extra attacks from this but jeeze this just ruins days. If you play against VC expect Red "Blender" on the main vampire if not all of them. The best ability in the book.
Flying Horror - On foot only. Gives the vamp flying. Just use a Nightmare, its cheaper and gives you horse attacks
Quickblood - Always Strikes First. This is another of those "On every Vampire in existence" abilities. Most of the time they take it to get the rerolls but also helps vs Quick stuff like elves.
Aura of Dark Majesty - All enemies within 6" suffer -1LD, this accumulates with other effects so you COULD stack them and they are 1 of the 2 Combo abilities I like. Inexpensive as well I think this is just a great ability.
Dark Acolyte - When you cast invocation of Nehek you add d3 to the casting total. You have to successfully cast it tho so a 2 or 3 this wont help with. Cheap but probably wont see it very often.
Forbidden Lore - A vampire with this can generate spells from ANY of the Warhammer RB except Life. This is fun to use just for shock value. No one expects a vampire with say beasts or heavens
. Pretty cheap as well. Adds that extra spice of choice. Supernatural Horror - Gives the vamp Terror. Interesting but in this day and age of 8+ LD with constant rerolls might never help. Of course it obviously depends on what army your against. Good price tho.
Fear Incarnate - Fear tests the vampire causes that pass must be rerolled. If there is a BSB reroll within range then the 2 abilities cancel each other out. Good price
Beguile - At the start of close combat AFTER challenges have been done choose 1 model in contact, that model must pass a LD test at -3 LD . If they fail they must reroll successful TO HIT rolls. This is the 2nd part of the combo. A test at -4 LD will almost ALWAYS fail I dont care what your LD is. Very good at knocking characters down a peg or 2. This on a Coven throne with AoDM and FI.. oh leadership bombs you so fun. Of course that build has no room for red fury but it can be a lot of fun
.Master Strike - The vamp with this may exchange ALL attacks for 1 Heroic Killing Blow attack. I would recommend this one on just a baby vamp that's sort of built to use it. So pretty much naked I guess
. Its cheap so that's a plus. Dreadknight - Bestows +2 to WS but the vamp MUST declare and accept all challenges unless he is in a unit with Krell or a higher LD vampire. DIRT dirt cheap I would use this on every vamp I had. Vampires should never be afraid of Challenges and yea the enemy can just accept with a champ but you will cut it down and get tons of Combat res.
Summon Creature of the Night - The vamp can use Invocation to increase the size Dire Wolves,Fell Bats and Batswarms. Cheap enough this can help out a lot but you don't really see it much.
Items And Tools
Skabscrath - The only weapon in the vamps arsenal. Bestows Devastating Charge,Frenzy, and flaming attacks. In addition bestows the Death Shriek ability. Such is this swords need for blood that if the bearer does NOT cause any wounds in close combat by the end of the game then it kills its bearer. Jerk Sword. I don't see them very often unless its vs a Shriek Army. Not a BAD sword but its very expensive.
Nightshroud - An armor even necromancers can wear. Gives +1 to the armor save and models in base contact lose all Strength bonuses from weapons, magical or otherwise.
Banner of the Barrows - Expect to see this a lot. All Graveguard/Blackknights/and Wight Kinds in a unit with this get +1 to hit rolls. So you will usually be hitting on 3's
Just a great standardThe Screaming Banner - Another of those little ca ca ca combo breaker items. Units taking a fear test in combat with a unit with this banner must add an extra dice to the test and drop the lowest. Cheap seems to be a common thing in this army and this is a great banner for getting things to be afraid.
Black Periapt - Allows you to save 2 of your unused power or dispel dice and add them to your pool next phase. Its expensive and I have never really had a phase where I didn't use up all my dice. Its expense is what it should be but I find it TOO expensive
Does not fit the whole " Cheap " theme of the army Staff of Damnation - DAAAAAMNation, allows you to cast the boundspell DAAAAAMNATION ( thats what i named it ) Power level 4 Augment 6" range. An undead unit gains the Extra Attack rule. Expensive and you wont normally have the dice to use on this. Not recommended.
The Cursed Book - Best item in this books arsenal. At the start of the magic phase after Winds have been rolled you can sacrifice d3 Power dice to cast a random spell decided by a d6 roll. The list IS
1-Melkoths Miasma
2-Enfeebling Foe
3-The Withering
4-Soulblight
5-Doom and Darkness
6-Curse of Midnight Wind
All these spells are SOLID and you would usually roll at least 3 dice to try and get one of these. They can be dispelled but you use the base power of the spell. So if you only sacrifice 1 dice its just amazing. I would recommend if you can make room for this you would be silly not to take it. I always MADE room for this item on my level 1. Its just so darn cheap.Also it can STACK the spell effects. So yeah, a possible double Doom and Darkness or.. ANY of those spells /shudder.
Book of Arkhan - Bound spell book. Can cast Danse Macabre. Cheap and a nifty way to get a second use of the spell. I have no opinion on this item really. I never used it but i know 2 players who swear by it so.
Rod of Flaming Death - The worst kind of death.. Flaming
. Bound spell Magic Missile Plvl3 18" range. Causes d6 str4 hits to the unit, If it suffers a wound it must take a panic test. Now here's the BIG draw to this, if the unit moves for any reason during its next turn then every model in the unit takes a str4 hit. If it does not move the this effect goes away at the start of the casters phase. I like it, it forces your opponents hand and no one likes that. It is rather expensive tho so take that into consideration. Conclusion
Thats the end of the write up. Hope you lads enjoyed this one, I know I enjoyed reading the book again:D I will be posting some army lists that I have saved to give you guys an idea of what might be out there. But you can always go to the Vampire forums Carpe Noctum. I mean its no Ogre stronghold but other than a few bad apples its a fairly decent place
. I will also be looking at posting the special characters but I am currently working on a the SC's from past books I've reviewed so it may be a while.When maw gives you lemons, APPEASE HIM!
W/L/D Tourney List
14/5/0
Latest win/s - Warriors of Chaos x 2
Latest loss/s- Dark elves, Lizardmen
W/L/D Tourney List
14/5/0
Latest win/s - Warriors of Chaos x 2
Latest loss/s- Dark elves, Lizardmen
