ethereal units?

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Dread_knight666
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ethereal units?

Post by Dread_knight666 »

How do you deal with ethereal units?

In my most recent 2000 pt game I faced a black coach, during the coarse of the battle it became ethereal, could fly and had KB.. It didn't have much effect during the game and I earned a crushing victory, loosing only 5 COK, 5 DR, and 3 infantry models, but I quickly realized I had virtually no way of stopping it after it became ethereal.. I don't run any magic weapons in my 2000 point list and my only characters are a death hag BSB on a COB, a master and an assassin..

Is there any other way of destroying it other than using a magic weapon, or magic? I keep trying to think of ways to destroy it with combat resolution, but that seems less than reliable, it's also hard to block with harpies and such since it causes terror.
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Sulla
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Post by Sulla »

Your best weapons to destroy the coach are chariot popping assassins with manbanes and rending stars. Get it before it becomes etheral (this should be fairly easy to do if you use him in shades).

More risky, but more manouverable, are masters/dreadlords with potion of strength or caledor's bane and a dark steed or monster.

You will struggle to destroy it with CR or with assassins in cc because of the ward save and almost guaranteed proximity to the VC BSB, combined with invocation spamming.

Magic should be largely shrugged off due to a combo of corpse carts with balefire, the resilience of the chariot and MR once it gets buffed enough.

Of course, you could take a DoW cannon instead of a pair of RBTs (which are largely useless vs VC anyway).
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Dyvim tvar
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Re: ethereal units?

Post by Dyvim tvar »

dread_knight666 wrote:Is there any other way of destroying it other than using a magic weapon, or magic? I keep trying to think of ways to destroy it with combat resolution, but that seems less than reliable, it's also hard to block with harpies and such since it causes terror.


Short answer -- no.

The best you can hope for is to bait it into a position where you can charge with a cheap, ranked unit (spears) that can use combat resolution to at least tie it up.
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Stonecutter
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Post by Stonecutter »

Another act of desparation I have used is to charge it with something disposable that I know will lose combat and result in a pursuit by the black coach (it must since it has hatred by the time it is ethereal). The charge is set up so that the pursuit runs it off the board. If you can get to it before it goes ethereal, a set up that results in bringing the coach into difficult terrain is ideal as it can damage the coach and make moving it out another damaging event until it becomes ethereal. Harpies are ideal due to range and 360 charge ability along with a near certainity of losing combat!!
Dread_knight666
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Post by Dread_knight666 »

Stonecutter Using hatred to drag it into difficult terrain is a great idea, although it may prove challenging I will defiantly be watching for the right opportunity. But I don't think harpies are well suited for this since terror makes it hard for them to get close enough, or to get into combat.

Your best weapons to destroy the coach are chariot popping assassins with manbanes and rending stars. Get it before it becomes etheral (this should be fairly easy to do if you use him in shades).

More risky, but more manouverable, are masters/dreadlords with potion of strength or caledor's bane and a dark steed or monster


Is it official that rending stars and manbane actually stack for S7? I did this in one game and it resulted me slaying a star dragon with my assassin in two turns... After that I felt it was too dirty..

As for caladors bane and potion of strength, they are defiantly well suited for this task, but not much else... How often does S7 make a difference over S6 and is it worth paying 35 points? I also can forget it ignores scaly skin saves, lol :P. I am also not a fan of one use items, like potion. :P Beyond that it's 4+ ward could really hurt your S7 master if he fails in the first round...
Stonecutter
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Post by Stonecutter »

DK - keep the harpies within 12" of the general and they will do just fine on the terror check but it is a desparation move afterall :lol: For the rending stars, the DE FAQ states S7 for rending stars + manbane.
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Post by Kargan daemonclaw »

You are lucky your VC opponent didn't take 2 large units of wraiths. That's a really nasty VC build and without loads of magic to get past the VC defence you have nothing to deal with them.

They would be far worse than a black coach. I have not found a way to defeat them yet.
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Malmorte
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Post by Malmorte »

I have a magic weapon on my dreadlord and a magic weapon on my black guard champ and they in combo with my static res have kept me in good stead vs VC with 2 units of wraiths...a massacre
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Post by Sulla »

dread_knight666 wrote:Is it official that rending stars and manbane actually stack for S7? I did this in one game and it resulted me slaying a star dragon with my assassin in two turns... After that I felt it was too dirty..

I am also not a fan of one use items, like potion. :P Beyond that it's 4+ ward could really hurt your S7 master if he fails in the first round...
The DE FAQ clarifies that rending stars + manbane can go higher than s6. It's a stupid answer and really should be ignored, but when chariots can be as powerful as the coach, of MoKhorne chariots, or there are so many stegadons floating around, I find my morals wavering a little about using them.:twisted:

As for the potion, I agree about one use items. What I have been using it for is my dreadlady with heartseeker and the pendant on a dark steed. Combined with the cauldron, she can kb most enemy fighters, but occasionally, they are immune to kb, so then I pop the potion of strength for a turn if need be. Good enough to kill any hero or knock a wound or two off the toughest lord.
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