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Wrackspawn
ChristopherGroves
Warlord
6093 Posts
    
 | | 12/02/2005 3:20 PM |
| By Jesse Dean (doubtofbuddha) and Christopher Groves (ChristopherGroves)
Lawful Evil has gone very far in the last year from being the bottom of the barrel faction that only made a minor showing at Nationals, to being among the strongest of the four factions, with a variety of options available both at the multi-hitter and titan level. Underdark has been good for this set, and it now has plenty of options that avail it well when dealing with all of the other factions.
Core Toolkit
These are the “must have” pieces for competitive play. If you wish to build around the pieces are at the bleeding edge of efficiency and the most useful for competitive play, then these are the pieces you should acquire. Please note that the number at the end of the stat block is the quantity that you are most likely to need for warband building purposes.
Azer Raider (Lawful Good/Lawful Evil; 5 points; Harbinger; 4)
The Azer Raider is one of the best low-cost units in the game, serving as an excellent fodder choice for both lawful good and lawful evil bands. It combines decent speed (especially for lawful armies), armor class, and damage potential into a combination that is difficult to beat in similarly priced units. Oftentimes its better to take an Azer Raider and a 3 point unit then it is to take two 4 point units.
Beholder (Lawful Evil; 83 points; Deathknell; 1)
The best titan option that Lawful Evil currently has available, the Beholder sits as the best option for a potent, high-variance piece. It suffers from the inclusion of pieces that are able to resist its abilities, but when combined with the right support (such as Lord Soth), it can overcome these limitations to some extent.
Blue (Lawful Evil; 5 points; Giants of Legend; 3)
The second, equally useful, 5 point option for Lawful Evil, the Blue has the advantage of having a muli-use long range attacks that allows for the potential of early activation control. His utility decreases with the 8-figure limit, but only barely. He will still be useful against high-fodder warbands such as those lawful evil is likely to field, and even against tougher opponents there is still a chance he will be able to swipe 5 hit points off of their total, a chance that is high enough for him to be worth his 5 points.
Chraal (Lawful Evil; 35 points; Angelfire; 4)
The most efficient hitter that Lawful Evil has available to it, the Chraal combines a high hp: cost ratio, an effective breath weapon, high saves, plenty of immunities, and the ability to punish opponents who kill it. It has one major weakness in that it is destroyed it the commander it is tied to is also destroyed, which while devastating can be minimized with effective play strategies. Its preeminence has been reduced slightly with some of the new figures released in Underdark, but it is still the best choice for many Lawful Evil bands.
Dark Naga (Lawful Evil; 42 points; Underdark; 1)
One of the three effective 40ish point commanders that Lawful Evil has available to it, the Dark Naga works best when combined with warbands that feature aberrations (often a single Gauth or Beholder is enough), though any band that can benefit from the offensive spell power it has available to it in the form of lightning bolts and bigby’s slapping hands. The Dark Naga is often the better choice for Lawful Evil bands that feature hitters besides the Chraal.
Duergar Champion (Lawful Evil; 33 points; Underdark; 4)
A mid-ranged beater option available for Lawful Evil, the Duergar Champion is differentiated enough from the slightly more efficient Chraal to be a viable option in many warbands. The Duergar Champion is not quite as tough as the Chraal (having 20 less hit points and 1 less point of AC), and lacks its breath weapon capabilities, but makes up for it with its Cleave, Conceal 6, higher attack bonuses, and reasonable, non-elemental damage (15). The Chraal will still end up being a better choice in many cases, but the Duergar works better with Lawful Evil commanders, such as the Dark Naga and Rakshasa, who don’t posses the same level of toughness as the Orog or Blackguard but are still useful pieces.
Gauth (Lawful Evil, 39 points; Archfiends; 2)
The Gauth goes up and down in popularity depending on the popularity of its most powerful counter (the Large Red Dragon) and the strength of other Lawful Evil figures, but its always been an effective piece. The combination of special ability-based 15 fire auto-damage and the chance to paralyze any creature (besides those that are immune to paralysis) is a powerful combination and will only become more so as Lawful Evil gets creatures that have automatic save reducing abilities (like stench) or DC boosting effects (like the Dark Naga).
Goblin Skirmisher (Lawful Evil; 3 points; Dragoneye; 7)
The goblin skirmisher and the warrior skeleton are the main options for lawful evil fodder, with enough utility between them to allow for a variety of possible configurations. While the warrior skeleton provides an immunity to cold that synergizes well with chraals and serves as an interesting form of protection against beholders, the goblin skirmisher has both a greater potential for damage (especially when combined with snig) and a greater threat range due to their ranged 6 attack. Both are effective, but the warrior skeletons effectiveness increases with the more chraals that are played on either side of the table.
Helmed Horror (Lawful Evil; 45 points; Underdark; 2)
One of the “new” construct units who actually have a bit of competitive viability, the Helmed Horror combines an excellent cost: hp ratio with all of the immunities that constructs benefit from, additional immunity to fireball, lightning bolt, and magic missile, a high attack bonus and armor class, and great mobility thanks to its ability to fly. It costs a little bit more than Lawful Evil’s other primary hitter-level components and thus takes some thought before including, especially considering its low damage considering its cost, but it still provides interesting options for many builds.
Human Blackguard (Lawful Evil; 46 points; Harbinger; 1)
The Human Blackguard has the honor of being the cheapest “tough” commander that Lawful Evil has access to, and thus the one with the greatest ability to maximize the offensive potential of Chraal bands. His Tyrannical Morale commander effect has the added bonus of making it so the Chraals (and many other lawful evil pieces) are virtually fearless, with his sneak attack and smite good abilities being merely happy bonuses.
Orog Warlord (Lawful Evil; 71 points; Angelfire; 1)
A tough commander that combines some level of activation control (in the form of two minions) with a reasonable commander rating and effect, and potent melee ability, the Orog Warlord is one of the best options for running a warband with Chraals. He works well with other warbands as well, but is slightly less efficient when combined with pieces who have less of a need for a commander who absolutely must survive an entire skirmish.
Snig the Axe (Lawful Evil; 20 points; Archfiends; 1)
Snig is a great support commander for most any lawful evil band, providing with you the ability to boost your activations 3 beyond your limit by including just a single piece. On top of that Snig provides all of the normal benefits of a commander as well as a bonus to damage for all small pieces. His only down-sides are his low commander rating (0) and his relative fragility, but neither of these are out of line for his cost.
Warrior Skeleton (Lawful Evil/Chaotic Evil; 3 points; Archfiends; 4)
The Warrior Skeleton has gained increased popularity lately due to the increase viability of cold-based effects in the metagame. As it is though he is reasonably effective for his cost, giving the benefits of cold immunity and fearlessness at the cost of having only a +1 bab. This is not very significant if you are involved in a fodder war against orc warriors or goblin skirmishers but it can become so if you are going against men-at-arms.
Extended Components
These are the pieces that, while nice to have, aren’t mandatory for highly competitive bands. These pieces can and will be used in competitive play, but aren’t the ones you “need” to own.
Duergar Warrior (Lawful Evil; 4 points; Archfiends; 3)
The only real option for 4 points in Lawful Evil merits owning at least a few of them. Generally you are typically better off running with a goblin skirmisher or warrior skeleton instead unless you have a warband that is uniquely suited to take advantage of the duergar warrior’s strengths. (Mainly its conceal 6.)
Efreeti (Lawful Evil; 42 points; Angelfire; 2)
While the Efreeti has been superseded somewhat by the tougher Helmed Horror, the Efreeti still provides some interesting capabilities that the Helmed Horror lacks. The Efreeti does slightly more damage than the Helmed Horror (15 + 5 fire rather than 10 +5 fire), has a greater ranged capability (line of sight and range 6 fire attacks as opposed to a single slow ranged attack), immunity to fire, and possesses reach. Unfortunately, it has 30 less hit points, a vulnerability to cold, and the maneuverability problems that come with a large base (though these are alleviated slightly by its ability to fly.) In most cases the Helmed Horror is a better option, but the Efreeti’s other advantages are enough to warrant consideration.
Gravehound (Lawful Evil/Chaotic Evil; 11 points; Archfiends; 2)
The best miniature in its particular point range for Lawful Evil, the Gravehound provides a fast, fearless upper-end fodder that has access to infinite stunning attacks. These are useful both in combination with units that have sneak attack damage and against enemies with low saving throws. Unfortunately, with the rise of hitters high armor class, stun immunity, and damage reduction, the Gravehound's utility is decreased slightly. It is still useful in many situations though, and serves as a nice option for bands with 11 points left over to spend.
Green Dragon (Lawful Evil; 28 points; Aberrations; 1)
The Green Dragon’s main utility lies in the three areas: 1) His cost/hp ratio; 2) His breath weapon; 3) His extraordinarily high speed. The combination of these factors create a versatile, yet survivable, figure that can serve a number of roles. He can grab victory areas, even in maps where most victory areas are in tough locations. He can serve to assassinate weaker commanders such as Snig, the Tiefling Captain, and the Cleric of Order. He can weaken tougher enemies thanks to his ability to place himself in exactly the correct position to unleash his breath weapon. He can do all of these things while still surviving any but the most concerted efforts to defeat him thanks to his high hit points. And any turn an orc champion or ogre ravager is focusing on him, is a turn where he isn’t focusing on a more important threat in your warband.
Kobold Miner (Lawful Evil; 3 points; Underdark; 3)
The kobold miner is almost completely ineffective in combat, lacking any real capability of being a near credible melee threat, and being forced to make a morale save if it is so much as attacked. However, it has two advantages that make it worthy of consideration: 1) It is not worthy any victory points to the enemy; 2) It is a wandering monster. Being a wandering monster is also a bit of a disadvantage for the kobold miner, making it something of a gambit to use in a warband, but with the decreased utility of the mongrelfolk and its low cost, it is frequently worth risking.
Kobold Sorcerer (Lawful Evil; 20 points; Aberrations; 1)
The kobold sorcerer serves are as a reasonable second commander, but in most cases is a suboptimal choice when put in competition with Snig the Axe. He is more useful when using multiple kobolds in your warband or when magic weapon would be helpful in a DR-heavy metagame. His magic missiles are useful at picking off enemy fodder, but this is less useful in the faction that is currently the most effective at controlling activations. Still, when compared to the advantages that Snig provides (particularly the three activations that come with him), he is rarely the best choice.
Lord Soth (Lawful Evil; 98 points; Giants of Legend; 1)
Lord Soth suffers quite a bit from his high cost, though with the arrival of chraals and the beholder he has gotten a new look. Lord Soth benefits from being the single toughest commander in 200 points, allowing him to be a safe tether for chraals as well as a reasonable opponent (thanks to the effects of his abyssal blast.) In addition, when combined with a beholder, he benefits from being a tough commander in that the beholder can heal or slide him even when they aren’t any other good options for ray effects.
Mind Flayer Telepath (Lawful Evil; 38 points; Aberrations; 1)
The Mind Flayer Telepath has a number of abilities that synergize well with other pieces that Lawful Evil has to offer, but suffers in comparison to other pieces in its price range. It has the typical stun cone that mind flayers bring to the table (which is now enhanced by the Dark Naga), with the added ability to force every creature in the enemy warband out of command for one round. This can have exceptional effects in negating critical commander effects (such as that of the Couatl) and maximizing the effects of things like the Steel Predator’s swift sonic cone (preventing routing creatures from rallying and creatures making morale checks from getting the commander bonus to their check.) The Mind Flayer Telepath’s viability will go down with the change in rules that War Drums is providing, but it remains to be seen whether that will be enough to make the Mind Flayer Telepath unusable.
Mongrelfolk (Lawful Evil; 3 points; Aberrations; 2)
Useful only for his cave set-up capabilities, the Mongrelfolk will become an artifact of the past unless future maps have cave set-up. Considering that the maps most likely to have such a set-up (such as the Mithral Mines) haven’t had such locations, then the prospects are grim for the poor, deformed Mongrelfolk.
Rakshasa (Lawful Evil; 41 points; Giants of Legend; 1)
The Rakshasa was the first real competition for Urthok He doesn’t do nearly as much damage as Urthok, but is more mobile, has DR and Spell Resistance and has spells that make it so he isn’t required to engage enemies to be effective. His ability to turn an enemy’s commander effects against them is occasionally useful, but not frequent enough to be relied on.
Steel Predator (Lawful Evil; 94 points; Angelfire; 1)
Another example of a high-variance titan, the Steel Predator has the capability to devastate warbands that do not have a way to deal with a swift, 40 damage sonic cone. It suffers from its relatively poor hp: cost ration and inability to benefit from commander ratings, preventing it from being a core toolkit piece, but still allowing it to be something that has to be considered and planned against.
Urthok the Vicious (Lawful Evil; 34 points; Dragoneye; 1)
For awhile Urthok was the commander of choice for Lawful Evil bands for a sheer lack of better options for his point cost. With the shift in competitiveness that the most recent sets have brought, Urthoks utility has diminished but he still works as a primary lawful evil commander, especially in combination with Snig and a number of goblins. His utility is currently at a low point, but if future goblins increase in competitiveness, he could gain a new level of usability.
Wolf Skeleton (Lawful Evil/Chaotic Evil; 9 points; Harbinger; 1)
A reasonable tile grabber, the Wolf Skeleton is a tough, fast, fearless option for getting tile points in many situations. While it is a bit costly for what it provides, if you have few other options for filling out your remaining slots, then the Wolf Skeleton provides an interesting solution. You could also just upgrade one of your Chraals to a Helmed Horror.
Orog Warlord Options
The following is a list of the reasonable options for the Orog Warlord’s warband building effect.
Orc Warrior
Mountain Orc
Orc Raider
Orc Savage
Orc Brute
Orc Skeleton
Notes and Comments
By ChristopherGroves
LE is my favorite faction, so I'm not quite sure where to even start with the ones to watch, runners-up and honorable-mentions. I tell you what, let's start with one of my favorite subjects:
Red Wizard Bands
Ah the ultimate eggs-in-one-really-squishy-basket approach ... Red Wizard bands are something that the moderately insane player brings out from time to time. Since they can be nearly completely shut down by a single leading Spell Resistance: All figure and really get murdered by Beholder/Soth (SR and the AntiMagic Eye coupled with an Abyssal Blast and Beholder Eye rays, blues, etc. coming right back at them) they are a classic high-variance band. Fun, but high-variance. If you want to run the Red Wizard band you'll want to keep the following in your toolkiet:
- Red Wizard
- Kobold Sorcerer (2 to 4)
- Deathlock (4-6)
- Direguard (2-4)
- Blue (4+)
- Cultist of the Dragon (2)
- Abyssal Maws, Azer Raiders, Lemures (at least 6 of each for summoning)
Not for the faint of heart, but deserves mention ... Red Wizard bands are a frequent topic for discussion. Note that some players like to include Efreeti w/ the Red Wizard for some additional melee presence.
Honorable Mentions
There are a number of creatures in LE that are close ... and six months ago would have been in everyone's LE kit as they were simply the best options available. Heck, even now they may be close but there may be another figure that simply does a better job.
The Thayan Knight has excellent stats albiet a slow speed. In the days when Graycloaks ruled the skies, she was a requirement to stick beside your Gauth. Now, not so much. Sure, she can protect one thing pretty well from low-damage archers but the lack of meaningful healing, the advent of high-damage archers (read: HEBI) and a multitude of other 30-ish point LE units has made her nearly obsolete.
Other figures like the Justicator and Hooked Horror meet some of the basic stat-points as well ... but simply are in the wrong price area to be used. The Hooked Horror is simply too slow and relies on the rend to be really effective. Perhaps if combined with a greater slide ability (more than a single square) or the ability to slide any creature (not just closest enemy or ally) and he could see action. This doesn't exist, and until it does he'll stay at home. The Justicator has nice enough stats ... but given the Efreeti, Helmed Horror and other nice (and cheaper) 40-ish point units I don't see much need for him. His one advantage is his large base on a relatively efficient flying creature ... but LE doesn't really need blockers in that way (and the Chraal at speed 8 is a darn good blocker anyway). The Ghostly Consort is a fun piece but too unreliable and has too little damage output.
The other 80-ish and higher titanic pieces in LE (Thaskor, Aspect of Nerull, etc.) don't generally make an impact on 200 point play. They generally aren't better than two lower cost creatures.
LE is also loaded with figures that hit the 60 hp mark ... but sadly don't have 65. The Salamander, Skullcrusher Ogre, Destrachan and others are all fairly efficient figures for their cost, have good saves/level and are reasonably solid. That extra five hit points though are simply huge ... it's the difference between two and three hits to kill from the typical big hitter. If the game goes in a direction where the Ravagers, Orc Champs, Frenzied Berserkers and others don't see action maybe they'll make a showing. Until then, I wouldn't keep them in the tackle box.
There's another set of interesting LE figures in the teens. Some of these have great stats or abilties for their cost but they simply die too easily. The Half-Illithid Lizard Folk (too easily killed or routed), Vargouille (alot of points riding on 5 HP), Sahuagin Ranger (not enough output) and Bugbear Footpad (too easily killed) are great little pieces but have their drawbacks. They show up from time to time in fun bands but won't make a huge splash on the competitive scene. I'm also watching the Equiceph as a nice, fearless, undead blockingn piece.
Things to Watch
Jesse and I went back and forth over a few figures that need mentioning. Heated debate on this topic and maybe the community should lend their voice as well.
The Half Orc Fighter from Harbinger (commander 3) is the best, cheapest non-zero commander option available. He provides a nice to-hit bonus and a bonus to morale saves. Is he optimal? No ... but he's priced at such a point that sometimes you simply can't fit Urthok or another commander you want into the band and the lack of a bonus to morale saves with Snig is an issue. Lately I've seen him run alot with bands like Beholder, Gauth x2 or Beholder, Beholder or dual Thaskors. He's not a great piece, but he fills a hole that no other piece can fill ... espescially since in those bands the extra two points between him and a Hobgoblin Sgt. might mean an extra activation. He's got the added benefit of being non-threatening. Opponents go after Snig since he adds a great damage bonus, but they will often leave the HOF alone.
Someone needs to mention the Dark Moon Monk. The Dark Moon Monk + Blue versus Kobold Sorcerer debate comes up every few weeks. As it stands, the DMM is the cheapest way to get a magic weapon ... but DR isn't that big of an issue in the OP tournament scene. Still, she shows up (not sure how many of her were at Nationals).
With all of the Paralysis that LE is throwing around these days you can't overlook the Barbarian Mercenary. Speed 8 and 15 damage (30 on a paralyzed creature) for 9 points makes these guys handy to have. You've already got 4 in your tackle box for your LG toolkit right?
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BudLeiser
Warrior
218 Posts
| | 12/05/2005 5:47 PM |
| | Bugbear Footpad is CE. | |
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Orion72
Underboss
1917 Posts
| | 12/05/2005 5:54 PM |
| | BBFP can be warbanded in by Urthok. | | | |
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Wrackspawn
ChristopherGroves
Warlord
6093 Posts
| |
BudLeiser
Warrior
218 Posts
| | 12/05/2005 9:34 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by ChristopherGroves
The Bugbear Footpad almost never sees play in CE. In LE with Urthok and his warband building is his most common deployment model.
Ahh I had no idea never seen one in LE, and the article didn't mention this. BTW:These should be sticky'd, or combined into 1 article and then sticky'd. A topic like this was posted on wizards boards and it helped me buy $40 worth of tier 1 pieces to build 3 whole armies. One of which was the one I used yesterday to win a $25 Gift Certificate. So I highly recommend lists like this be easy to find and updated. | |
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| The Defenestrator
AesophDarkfable
Warlord
5628 Posts
| | 12/05/2005 9:44 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by BudLeiser
quote:
Originally posted by ChristopherGroves
The Bugbear Footpad almost never sees play in CE. In LE with Urthok and his warband building is his most common deployment model.
Ahh I had no idea never seen one in LE, and the article didn't mention this. BTW:These should be sticky'd, or combined into 1 article and then sticky'd. A topic like this was posted on wizards boards and it helped me buy $40 worth of tier 1 pieces to build 3 whole armies. One of which was the one I used yesterday to win a $25 Gift Certificate. So I highly recommend lists like this be easy to find and updated.
If you check the ultimate DDM resource guide at the top it has links to all of these and several other very useful articles! | |
Im out- find me on Hordelings if you want to chat. | |
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bshugg
Underboss
1833 Posts
| | 12/05/2005 10:54 PM |
| I'm glad to see these got restored. Any plans on fleshing them out?
Perhaps include some "standard" builds, figure combo's or potential worries that the faction has trouble with? | |
Looking for someone to cosponser a midwest DDM event. let me know if your interested!
Check out my brand new blog:
http://bshugg.blogspot.com | |
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Vrecknidj
Warlord
10445 Posts
United States
| | 12/05/2005 10:57 PM |
| quote:
Originally posted by bshugg
I'm glad to see these got restored. Any plans on fleshing them out?
Perhaps include some "standard" builds, figure combo's or potential worries that the faction has trouble with?
Not only that, they could be put into a PDF. I suppose WotC would probably frown if they were put between some shiny covers and sold at cost though.
Dave | |
Knowledge Arcana editor issues 5-9, Phoenix Lore Magazine editor, assistant editor for Rite Publishing;
My Trade Thread and My Reference Thread; Winner of WBC IV, IX and XIII; Rule #0: bshugg is always right! | |
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Wrackspawn
ChristopherGroves
Warlord
6093 Posts
| |
Istari
Skirmisher
28 Posts
| | 12/06/2005 8:13 AM |
| How do you feel about putting Helmed Horror back on the main list?
It doesn't really matter much ultimately, but I know my playgroup would back that up. | |
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ShivanWurm
Sergeant
500 Posts
| | 02/15/2006 11:20 PM |
| | I'm surprised that the skeletal dwarf is not metnioned in the extended toolkit. | |
Trades--------Old style wants list
Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are CRUNCHY and good with ketchup.
Champion of Green Dragons. | |
| Hero of Skirmish
doubtofbuddha
Commander
3371 Posts
| | 02/15/2006 11:21 PM |
| | He is not in the extended toolkit because he isn't a good piece. | |
I am not gone. | |
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ShivanWurm
Sergeant
500 Posts
| | 02/15/2006 11:33 PM |
| And why do you say that? He's immune to cold, fearless, and has a 22 AC for a lowly 6 points.
Just trying to learn. | |
Trades--------Old style wants list
Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are CRUNCHY and good with ketchup.
Champion of Green Dragons. | |
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robbdaman
Underboss
2380 Posts
| | 02/15/2006 11:57 PM |
| It's because he's cost ineffective. He's speed 4 and has 5 HP. Just isn't useful enough compared to other options for 6 points or less.
R~ | |
Champion of the Titan
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