The two warlocks in the HORDES 10th Anniversary box set are models many have been anticipating. The powerful and bestial Kromac now resides on a large base, and the twins Saeryn and Rhyas have joined into a single warlock unit for their epic incarnation.

Kromac has been at the center of certain events that are sure to shape the future of the Iron Kingdoms. I won’t spoil anything now, but be sure to pick up the next HORDES expansion, Devastation, to witness the Champion of the Wurm’s evolution.

Saeryn and Rhyas, the Talons of Everblight were possibly the most challenging warlock we’ve ever made from a game development standpoint. The idea was compelling, but the game balance side was daunting. How could we possibly combine two warlocks into a single warlock unit in a way that showcased their power without unbalancing them? Lots of brainstorming and lots more playtesting brought us the result, and it’s one I’m very happy with.

We hope you’ll get to pick up the HORDES 10th Anniversary box set and hope that you enjoy these two great new warlocks.

Using Kromac, Champion of the Wurm

Though his gameplay is markedly different from his previous incarnation, Kromac, Champion of the Wurm maintains a key play style similarity to Kromac the Ravenous—he can support the battle from a distance with his magic, and he can personally wade into combat to perform devastating melee attacks. His base stats support both modes of operation very well thanks to an impressive control area and spell list on one side and high combat stats for both offense and defense on the other.

From the backfield, Kromac can pick off key targets with Primal Shock, increase a warbeast’s efficiency with Awakened Spirit, give all warbeasts in his control area Hyper Aggressive, or grant his entire army +2 on melee attack rolls with Carnage. When Carnage is combined with model abilities like Heart Eater and Power Swell, the added accuracy quickly turns into added destruction. Kromac’s Blood Lust feat takes this one step further, allowing his forces to hit automatically with charge attacks no matter how daunting an enemy’s defenses.

As useful as that may be, committing Kromac himself to the battle during the turn you use Blood Lust is often preferable to commanding from the rear. Kromac and his living warbeasts gain +2 STR and ARM in addition to the charge auto-hits, placing the chieftain at a massive P+S 19 and ARM 20 for the turn. Thanks to Heart Eater, Kromac also has the ability to carve through living enemies with ease, using each one that falls for future attacks or boosts without dipping into his reserves of fury. This often leaves him with enough fury points to cast the debilitating Primal Howl and retain plenty of fury for transferring damage. Outside of the feat turn, you should take advantage of Circle’s hit-and-run play style, utilizing the Lightning Strike animus and/or Shifting Stones to fall back to a safe distance after eviscerating the Devourer’s foes.

Using Saeryn & Rhyas, Talons of Everblight

For the first time, two warlocks have been combined into a single warlock unit for their epic incarnations, providing a truly unique gameplay experience. The Talons of Everblight activate as a single unit, and they share a single battlegroup, but they force and leach individually using their own control areas. This allows the pair to run quite a few warbeasts, even without the aid of Shepherds or Forsaken. The twins can also channel spells through one another or transfer damage to one another if necessary, further opening up their tactical options.

Saeryn & Rhyas do not individually have a great many damage boxes, but the Conjoined Spirits feat allows you to return one to play if she should fall in battle. Should that be unnecessary in a given game, Conjoined Spirits can also be used to allow Saeryn & Rhyas to exchange positions on the battlefield, allowing them to attack their foes in unexpected ways.

As Legion players would expect, Saeryn is the more arcane member of the team. She’s the Officer of the warlock unit, and she has a lengthy spell list before even considering animi. Channeling through Rhyas or Spell Martyrs will come in handy when casting Blood Rain, Marked for Death, or Razor Wind. Saeryn can also cast Banishing Ward or Psychic Vampire from a safe distance to stymie magic-oriented opponents.

Naturally, Rhyas maintains her position as the more martial twin, keeping her deadly melee accuracy and damage output, her Acrobatics ability, and her Riposte ability. She even grants Riposte to Saeryn while both sisters are in play. Rhyas’ Flashing Blade spell emphasizes her deadliness in melee combat while Onslaught and Occultation can support the army led by the Talons of Everblight. Against enemy armies with ranged assassination capabilities, however, don’t hesitate to selfishly keep Occultation for Saeryn & Rhyas to protect them from harm.