Today we continue to go over the changes from the 2020 General’s Handbook with a focus on the Death faction and how they play in the newest edition.
Let us continue our dive into the new General’s Handbook after going over the new rules and battleplans last week (check that out here). Today we are going to start our faction dives and see what kind of point changes we have going on. The first up is the Death faction.
2020 General’s Handbook: Death Changes
2020 General’s Handbook
Flesh Eater Courts:
Remember when everyone said Flesh Eater Courts were OP because they could take zombie dragons and strike first in combat. Then GW said hold my beer and made the whole order of combat thing. Yea, these guys haven’t changed much. Other than being slightly less OP when compared to the newer armies since their release.
- No point changes from December FAQ
All in all, these guys are in a pretty good spot competitively. And with all the new releases I would even say they are one of the “fairer” armies. Sure, when they first came out with their battle tome everyone cried foul on the behemoths being battleline and the striking first. But since then all sorts of counters have come out and there are way worse armies to complain about. Looking at you Bonereapers.
Legions of Nagash:
These guys had a good run (still running) for the best death faction for a while. Until the Bonereapers showed up and stole the show that is. With the nerfs to the Bonereapers these guys might get some more play time. But there won’t be huge differences in your army lists unless you played a vampire-themed army.
- Coven Throne: down 20 points
- Prince Vhordral: down 20 points
- Blood Knights: down 20 points
- Deathmarch: down 10 points
- Hexwraths: down 10 points
Generally, people played Legions of Nagash with a body heavy army and Nagash being a beat stick. All in all, I think the most intriguing aspect of these point changes are the ones that played vampire-themed armies. With the Blood Knights, Coven Throne, and prince Vhordral all decreasing in points. Or they just want to sell more 100-dollar kits for the Blood Knights, which given, they are cool models but still. So, I guess a win for the vampires?
Nighthaunt:
This is probably what would be considered the “weakest” of the Death factions and are in dire need of a new or updated Battletome. While that may be a while off, they did drop the points on a couple of units in the range from the winter FAQ:
- The Briar Queen: down 20 points
- Guardian of Souls with Nightmare Lantern: down 10 points
- Reikenor the Grimhailer: down 10 points
- Dreadscythe Harridans: down 10 points
- Hexwraiths: down 10 points
- The Condemned: down 10 points
- Mourngul: down 10 points
- Guardian of Souls with Mortality Glass is back!: 140 points
All in all, this is not a bad second wave for the Nighthaunt players in terms of how expensive their units were points wise for what they did. Unfortunately, it isn’t enough of a drop right now, especially because, arguably their best battleline unit, the Grimghast Reapers is still way too expensive because of how good they were in a Legions of Nagash army. While this army can be competitive you’re going to be playing an uphill battle against the other armies out there, due to outdated rules and models that still are not worth the points it costs to take them. (How is the Black Coach not a leader model…)
Ossiarch Bonereapers:
These guys would be considered the cream of the crop the past 6 months and had COVID not shut down a lot of the tournament scene, I think they would have stayed at the top of the tournament scene. By that, I mean the Petrifex Elite, which got a slight nerf with the new rules. While they are not as tanky as they were, I think these guys should still be considered a top tier army.
- Immortis Guard: up 20 points
- Morghast Archai: up 20 points
- Morghast Harbringers: up 20 points
- Necropolis Stalkers: up 20 points
All in all, I think the point increase is needed for this army, along with the nerfs to the save rolls that Petrifex Elite received. I still think they are an incredibly strong army and the best of the Death factions, but against gun lines, they might struggle a little bit now. Though Nagash is still a bargain at 880 points compared to the other centerpiece models out there.
Final Thoughts
Points wise, I think the big winner is the people that play vampires in Legions of Nagash, as all those models decreased in points. (outside of the vampire lord) I do think that without a new Battletome you’re going to see Nighthaunt be continuously beaten down(unless they get hot dice on the charge rolls). I am ok with no point changes in the Flesh Eater Courts but think the Ossiarch Bonreapers could have used some more point increases even with the nerf. Nagash overall I think is still a bargain at 880 points and he should have at least gone up over 900.
There you have it, outside of Nighthaunts, the Death faction remains in a good spot to stay at the top of tournaments and leaderboards.
Next week we will jump into the order side of things. Until then, stay safe!
What do you think about the 2020 Generals Handbook Death Changes?
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About the Author: Travis Perkins
An avid homebrewer and Detroit sports fan (yes even the Lions). I am new to the world of wargamming and very much enjoying the journey. If you have any suggestions or comments feel free to comment on the article or email me at perki116@msu.edu
