Highborn on a dragon, what to give him?

[Dalamar]

Chillwind versus machines isn't the best... you need to kill something, and every hit you make has only 1/3 chance of hitting the crew.

[Lord aldarith]

Aldarith: your HB is illegal because the heartstone of Darkness costs more points than you calculated for it

Quite true. I guess I got a bit confused there sorry
So here it is for real :

Gauntlet
Crown of Black Iron
Heavy Armour
Sea Dragon Cloak
Shield (which you can use in HtH since the Gauntlet is single handed though striking last).

So the WS is only 5+ which is riskier than 4+ (!) but you get a 1+ AS for normal shooting and 3+ in CC.
To me, although the armour is somewhat weak in this option, it is justified by my use of the dragon as a blunt weapon. I mean you want it to cause mayhem and IMHO having a S8 character in the game gives a lot of help against Heavy Cav or other annoying heavily armoured units - not even mentioning that S6 would otherwise be the highest Strength value a DE could get (except for the 80 pts axe but well, it is almost a useless item IMO). My Dwarven, Empire and Chaos opponents generally hate it when I field my Dragon because they know that if they don't manage to kill it in the first turn with their canons, then they are in big trouble (Flank charges on their heavy cav is generally the option I go for - replace "heavy cav" by "tin cans" for dwarves).

The most difficult moment is the first turn since no matter what you do, it is usually a free canon shooting phase for the opponent. And to use the dragon to its full (impressive) potential, you have to take the risk of being shot at in this first turn. It is rarely lethal... yet it does happen. I say that it is a risk worth taking. Hiding is another option but rarely effective for the following turns since it generally limits you to a few opposing units to attack... plus hiding a dragon is somewhat hard on a battlefield and soooo unfluffy ! It could also be argued that S8 VS S6 (with Crimson death for example) is not that much of an advantage or an advantage paid for too dearly... well being a little bit unlucky with the dice, I generally go for my "S8 no armour saves allowed" : it does help me a lot on a battlefield, that I can tell you out of practice.

[Prince daerlythe]

I agree with you that the first turn is the most dangerous for a dragon, but IMO the only races we realy need to fear when it comes to shooting them down are dwarves, Sakven (if they can work it or even have the necessary equipment), the Empire and an elven army with at least 3 Bolt Throwers. Those are really the only lethal races. Dwarfs being the most of a threat.

[Druchii marquis]

Well I just made a list with the following Highborn:
Highborn: Lance, Heavy Armour, Sea Dragon Cloak, Black Dragon, Heartstone of Darkness, Enchanted Shield (521pts)

I have a question though...what save would she have? I know there are various ways to look at it:
Shooting: Heavy Armour, Enchanted Shield, Sea Dragon Cloak (2+2+2) = 1+
Combat (charge with lance): Heavy Armour, Enchanted Shield, Sea Dragon Cloak (2+2+1) = 2+
Combat (2nd turn): Heavy Armour, Enchanted Shield, Sea Dragon Cloak, Handweapon and Shield (2+2+1+1) = 1+
Am I right to assume this? I am awefully confused how the combo of heavy armour and enchanted shield work together as both give a 5+ save by themselves. Does that mean that each give 2 "points" of armour each (unlike light armour and mundane shields that only give 1 "point" (6+ by themselves))?

[Prince daerlythe]

don't count the second round of combat bonus for having a shield. That only applies to infantry fighting to their front. Mounted models and infantry fighting to the rear or flank don't get that bonus. His CC armour save would be 2+

[Lamekh]

Shooting:
HA, Enchanted Shield, SDC: 5+ -> 3+ -> 1+
Combat:
HA, Enchanted Shield, SDC: 5+ -> 3+ -> 2+

Handweapon and Shield:
This won't work because:
- mounted on a Black Dragon (only models on foot)
- using a magical shield (only with mundane handweapon and shield)

[Izirath]

So what would you field your highborn with, if you had to only use items from our armybook and the common list?

[Aurellis]

I find the best setup for a highborn on dragon is:

Highborn: Black Dragon, Sea Dragon Cloak, Enchanted Shield, Heavy Armour, Sword of Might, Heartstone of Darkness [535]

That way you have a 1+ armour save vs shooting, 2+ armour save in combat, 4+ ward save and you're always Strength 5

[No one]

my dragonrider would have this when using onely items taken from our own list:
-shield
-lance
-armour of eternal sevitude
-crown of black iron
-sea-dragon cloack

hard to kill, his saves are: AS3+/4+ WS5+ RS4+

[Fingorn]

Highborn on Dragon : 557 pts
Blood Armour
Crimson Death
Sea Dragon Cloak
Heartstone of Darkness
Shield

During the first round, I use the shield to obtain 2+ AS against shooting and WS 4+.
When the time has come to charge, I put the shield on his back and with 4 attacks S6, I hope he will inflict some wounds to get a decent AS with the Blood armour.
The Heartstone can be turned into a Crown of Black Iron

[Raneth]

Highborn on Dragon : 557 pts
Blood Armour
Crimson Death
Sea Dragon Cloak
Heartstone of Darkness
Shield

Immensely popular combo, though overpriced in my mind (rather have a lance than CD). If you're bent on BA it's worth giving the HB a rxb; at BS6 he's got a decent chance of getting his ASv up a bit before entering close combat.

[Prince daerlythe]

i think the effect of BA can only be activated in close combat, as the description hints at the armour needing to be annointed (touched) by the blood of the enemy.

Besides, giving him the RXB is going a bit overboard. He's already a magnet for attracting damage; why make him worth more. For the price it takes to give him the RXB, you could get another Shade or Witch Elf, both prestigious troops not to be underestimated.

[Thanee]

Chillwind versus machines isn't the best... you need to kill something, and every hit you make has only 1/3 chance of hitting the crew.

Unless you have better targets, it's not too bad a chance, though. You just need to kill one to have it not shoot for one round.

Bye
Thanee

[Raneth]

i think the effect of BA can only be activated in close combat, as the description hints at the armour needing to be annointed (touched) by the blood of the enemy.

Besides, giving him the RXB is going a bit overboard. He's already a magnet for attracting damage; why make him worth more. For the price it takes to give him the RXB, you could get another Shade or Witch Elf, both prestigious troops not to be underestimated.

You are incorrect on Blood Armour (cr: Lifetaker-Blood Armour combo)

As for the investment: it's not like I'd do it myself. My own Dragonlord has to settle for mundane, Enchanted Shield + lance - but if you do go overboard you might as well make the most of it.

[Linda lobsta defenda]

Handweapon and Shield:
This won't work because:
- mounted on a Black Dragon (only models on foot)
- using a magical shield (only with mundane handweapon and shield)

That is 6th edition, you do get the parry bonus with a mundane hand weapon and magical shield.