Fog of War, Part 2: Easterlings & Khand

FOG OF WAR

Part 2: Easterlings & Khand
(Updated in September 2020 to include latest FAQs)

After beginning the series with High Elves, I decided to move onto an army that has not seen much love in the recent years, or in fact most of the game's history. My experience with it goes back over a decade. Last time I used Easterlings, they were led by Khamul on Fell Beast in an alliance with Harad at the 2007 Eastern Europe Grand Tournament, where I finished 2nd. Since then, I have stashed them so deeply into the box, that I haven't been able to find them since. I still hope they will one day make a glorious comeback. 

The premise of this series from the beginning has bring to bring together some of the brightest minds of Middle-earth SBG and ask them to share their experiences of the game in order to help new players discover the factions and intricacies of this incredible game. The guest in this part is Tim Hixon, a California player with whom I have debated SBG since as long as I can remember, going back all the way to Games Workshop Forums around 2005, through to The Last Alliance forums and now on GBHL Facebook page. We first met in real life about a decade ago at Warhammer World, though I think that's excusable, since we do live about 5000 miles from each other! He is someone who over the years has had a major influence on my gaming and taught me to look at the game from different perspectives. His input into my armylists has made me a far better player than I ever thought I would become. I have asked Tim to help me write this article, as for most part of the last 15 years I have known him to be an avid Khand player.

Before we begin, I would like to thank Zachary Adamczyk for providing me with some excellent pictures of his amazingly painted Easterling army, which won the Best Painted Army Award at the Polish Team Championships in 2018. 

THE EASTERLINGS

Mik: The thing that stands out for the Easterlings is their Army Bonus. Although I'm not generally concerned about Courage after breaking, as correctly played heroes tend to take care of that, I like the +1 Courage bonus that armies like Easterlings or Minas Tirith get, as it makes it easier for them to fight Terror-causing enemies without the need to bring someone like a War Priest (East) or models with Bodyguard (MT). Easterlings get something extra special though - the Scenario-specific re-roll, which can have an enormous effect and will come in handy in all scenarios that have an end-game condition depending on a roll of 1-2 after an army has been broken. Frankly, there are so many of them that you will probably play at least 1 in every tournament. 

First look at the Easterlings shows that Amdur is what I call a 633 - A Hero with Fight Value of 6 or higher, 3 Attacks and 3 points of Might. What this means is that he can easily outfight all rank and file troops in the game, with the exception of King's Guard and a rare few others. His special rules are also very interesting, as he can either help with the core fighting or go after heroes without the fear of automatically losing to Heroic Strikes. As it stands, Amdur is one of the best heroes of the Evil side and possibly one of the best heroes in the game - not necessarily in power level alone, but rather by his efficiency, ie. how much a player gets for the amount of points spent. 

Easterlings use the unique Phalanx rule, allowing them to fight in 3 ranks without trapping the warriors in the front rank when they lose combat. Uruk-Hai and Fiefdoms Pikemen always suffer from a very high variance - when they win fights, they usually kill, but when they lose fights, their warriors usually die to double strikes from the enemy. Easterlings don't suffer this penalty thanks to the Phalanx rule. 

Final thing that Easterlings have going for them is their ability to carry shields and pikes and still receive the shield bonus, meaning that they don't leave you in a situation where you'll have to choose if you take a pike or a shield like in the case of Isengard, instead you get best of both worlds. 

List 1: Mik's 500 Points of Easterlings

Warband 1:

Amdur, Lord of Blades on an Armoured Horse

9 Easterling Warriors with Shields and Pikes

3 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes

2 Black Dragon Kataphrakts

Warband 2:

Easterling Captain with Shield on an Armoured Horse 

1 Black Dragon Kataphrakt with a War Drum

9 Easterling Warriors with Shields & Pikes

2 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes

Total 500 Points, 28 Models, 5 Might. 

To start off I think arming all of your foot models with Shield and Pike is better than having some with just shields. It means that you’ll be able to freely move, turn, face whatever direction and always have 2 or 3 attacks in every fight. However, the way GW packages Easterlings doesn't give you this choice, so you may need to convert or stick to more shields & swords, which is okay too, since the front rank will be able to faint keeping the Fight value 4 of Black Dragons. 

The 5 Black Dragons are there as a reassurance that if you need the Fight 4 (facing Minas Tirith, Mordor, Dwarves, etc), then you’ll have access to it at all times, as the Fight Value is passed into combat whether you’re directly in it or just supporting. You can put them in the back rank to keep them protected, whilst providing Fight 4 to the front rank.

The second Warband with the drum greatly improves the speed of the army and the total of 5 mounted models make the army really fast. Not only will you be able to outmaneuver most opponents, you can also get to objectives and better positions quicker. I opted for 0 bows, as I don’t think they’re great here.

You can have a War Priest, a Dragon Knight or a Captain to lead the second Warband. For me at 500 points the War Priest is too weak in combat, whilst Bladewrath is too much of an overkill for Amdur, who will manage with no help. Dragon Knight is interesting thanks to his 3 attacks, but his status as a Minor Hero is a problem, since we want to maximise numbers. As such, the best option here is to go for a Captain (also Heroic March stacks with the drum, so you can have those board-leaping marches if you need). 

Lack of a banner may be a hindrance for certain scenarios, but we still get the combat re-rolls through Amdur's special rule. It's worth noting Amdur benefits from his own banner, so will always roll 4 dice to win combat and 5 when charging mounted - a total beast! 

List 2: Mik's 800 Points of Easterlings

Warband 1:

Amdur, Lord of Blades on an Armoured Horse

10 Easterling Warriors with Shields and Pikes (1 also carries a Banner)

5 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes

Warband 2:

Khamul on Fell Beast

6 Black Dragon Kataphrakts 

1 Kataphrakt with a War Drum

Warband 3:

Easterling War Priest on an Armoured Horse

9 Easterling Warriors with Shields and Pikes

3 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes

Total: 799 points, 6 Might, 37 models. 

There is an argument here to add bows and by all means get 10-12 of them if you wish. Bows will cost you a point of Defence, so it’s a trade off that you could make if you think that they will be useful and they can be kept in the second rank of the Phalanx, instead of shields, thus staying safe at least at the start. 

Khamul is a worthy addition at 800 points. An important thing to note is that I would make Amdur the Army Leader and let Khamul roam around behind enemy lines, trying to pick off banners, heroes or other unprotected targets. Then, if Khamul dies, we haven't given away Victory Points for losing the Leader. Being one of only two Wraiths with access to Heroic Strike makes Khamul incredibly valuable, as he's not going to be too afraid going after enemy Heroes, especially since his special rule allows him to increase his Fight Value to 6 too. 

10 Cavalry models, including a Fell Beast, all moving at 15-17" per turn, alongside a 5x3 Phalanx and a 4x3 Phalanx with 9" movement makes a very mobile force. The War Priest's Bladewrath in this instance can essentially turn Amdur into a second Fell Beast, as he'll be charging with 4 Attacks , Banner re-roll and 8 Strength 6 (or 10!) strikes when he wins, ensuring easy kills.

The primary weakness of an Easterling force is going to be its low Fight Value and Strength in combat. You can invest in a lot of Black Dragons, but they will cut into your numbers. You can not do anything about Strength 3 however. To play this army properly you'll have to learn how to utilise your centre piece heroes, as well as how to mitigate the lower Fight Value by bringing in as many attacks into each combat as possible, so making the most of your Phalanx. The numbers are not your strength either, as the above 800 points list has 37 models, which is somewhat of a low-end at 800 points. Your models are generally weaker than your opponent's, so it's your movement speed, manoeuvrability and combination of War Priest, Khamul and Amdur that will define your results. It might be an idea to swap 4 Black Dragon Kataphrakts for 8 Warriors, but whether you want to do it is up to you - I like the look of a force full of heavy cavalry. 

You could also go with Captains and more Warriors instead of the Fell Beast, but where's the fun in that?

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VARIAGS OF KHAND

(Mik's converted Khandish King/Ringwraith in a Chariot)

Tim: Khandish Kings are a rare breed of three attack unnamed heroes and are the back bone of any Variag force with their killing potential and their 6" Commanding Presence special rule.  The King also has access to Heroic Strike which allows him to go toe to toe with any hero or monster.  Finally, the Kings have access to Heroic Resolve which can provide a crucial turn of Magical defense when facing a magic capable opponent.

All Variag heroes and models are armed with a hand-and-a-half axe which give them access to Piercing Strike in addition to going two-handed.  The chariot provides an additional layer of protection by taking strikes for the rider 2/3s of the time when they lose duels and during the shoot phase. 

Khandish Chariots are scythes that can cut down rank and file models as they hit them, with cavalry being more vulnerable as both the rider and the mount take the impact hits.  With a hero at the reigns, the chariots can potentially move twice in a turn by using a Heroic Combat.  Chariots are also cheap enough that they can be used in larger numbers.

Khandish Horsemen are in my opinion the best light cavalry in the game.  Their Fight Value is higher than 3, they can be 100% bow armed if using a pure theme or allied with Easterlings and they have a hand-and-a-half axe which allows them to piercing strike and/or two handed strike.  This gives this warrior the potential to hit at strength 4 with a +1 to wound and double strikes when they win.

Khandish Warriors are nothing special other than their Fight Value and weapon choices.  They are good for adding numbers and holding objectives.  Against the right opponent (Rohan and Gondor) they can also provide additional support in combat.

The Variags of Khand are great allies to other forces, but do not greatly benefit from using allies in their own force.  Easterlings are their only Historical Ally which allows the Variags of Khand access to a Fellbeast mounted Khamùl. The Easterling and Variags keep their respective army bonuses and including Khamùl on a Fellbeast provides an anti-monster tool with some magical support, Harbinger of Evil and line breaking hurl capability to the Khandish army. Khandish Heroes on Chariots bring a punch the Easterlings lack on their own, alongside the ability to bring mounted horsemen for taking objectives, some additional combat support and sniping on the move.

Variags Heroes do make for great allies to other forces, even Impossible Alliances.  A King on a chariot can freely ally with any other force and provide a rank and file scything blade.  Because they do not affect allied heroes or troops they can call Heroic Moves independently of the main force without cancelling out any Heroic Move or March actions called within six inches of themselves.  This allows the chariots to disrupt enemy movements while the allied force manoeuvres without constraints.

List 3: Tim's 500 Points of Khand

Warband 1:

Khandish King with Khandish Chariot

5 Khandish Horsemen

2 Khandish Charioteers with hand-and-a-half axe

Warband 2:

Khandish King with Khandish Chariot

5 Khandish Horsemen

2 Khandish Charioteers with hand-and-a-half axe

Total: 500 Points, 16 Models, 12 bows

List 4: Tim's 800 Points of Khand

Warband 1:

Khamûl the Easterling with Fell Beast

Warband 2:

Khandish King with Khandish Chariot

15 Khandish Horsemen

Warband 3:

Khandish King with Khandish Chariot

14 Khandish Horsemen

Total: 797 Points, 32 Models, 31 bows

List 5: Tim's "Modern version of his best performing Khandish Army"

Warband 1:

Khandish King with Horse; 

15 Khandish Horsemen

Warband 2:

Khandish King with Khandish Chariot; 

14 Khandish Warriors

1 Khandish Horseman

Warband 3:

Khandish King with Khandish Chariot; 

14 Khandish Warriors

1 Khandish Horseman

Total: 800 Points, 48 Models, 20 Bows

Mik: I personally have very little experience playing with or against Khand, but the army has one of the most fascinating tricks in the game. Since Chariots are unaffected by spells that would knock them down, such as Sorcerous Blast or Nature's Wrath, there exists a cool interaction between Saruman and Khandish Chariots (as well War Beasts and Iron Hills Chariot on the good side):

- Sorcerous Blasts knocks over all models in combat except Chariots. 

- If a Chariot is in combat with multiple enemies, casting Blast on just 1 of them will knock them all down, including Trolls, Fell Beasts and all sorts of things like that. The Chariot will stay standing. As a result, getting your chariots surrounded is what you want to happen with a Wizard around. Naturally the S3 hit will then occur on both sides, possibly wounding or killing multiple enemies (and potentially the Charioteer!). 

This is especially good with Heroes, since they won't die from a single S3 hit. Additionally, they can call Heroic Move and choose not to call With Me! when doing so, resulting in some cool situations:

1. Move first, charge, trample someone. 

2. Opponent will counter-charge and surround the Chariot. 

3. One model will be blasted, leaving the Chariot in combat with enemies on the ground, resulting in a situation where even if the Chariot loses, opponents won't be able to strike (unless they have spear support). 

In the event of losing a Heroic Move roll-off, opponents will charge and then end up on the floor again. This creates an interesting situation where it is generally best not to challenge Heroic Moves called by Chariots and where winning Priority whilst using a Chariot is actively bad (because then the Wizard has to move before opponents get to trap the Chariot). Opponent may choose to engage the Chariot with only 1 or two warriors in fear of Sorcerous Blast, but that can result in a Heroic Combat from your Chieftain or King, killing those 1 or 2 warriors and moving again in the Combat Phase. 

Although it's a cool interaction, there really isn't an army that can deploy it competitively, because Saruman and King in Chariot take up so many points, it leaves very little for anything else. But if you want a fun list trying to abuse this trick, here's one for you:

Saruman on a Horse

18 Orcs with Spears

Khandish King on a Chariot

12 Khandish Warriors

Khandish Chieftain on a Chariot

12 Khandish Warriors

Total 700 Points, 45 Models, 7 Might. 

I'm not saying this will win you events and it might struggle to win games too, but I'd love to see my opponent's frustration dealing with the Chariots :) Alternatively you could try dropping in a King Chariot into an Isengard army or some other weird monstrosity. 

Summary:

So whether you're looking for a force full of heavy Golden Infantry, or an army full of nomadic horsemen, both Easterlings and Khand will provide a lot of memorable experiences. The armies may require more luck and skill than most other forces out there to achieve success with, but if you're up for a challenge, you should definitely try them out!

Good luck!

BlackMist & Tim

PS. Khand is one of those armies, which isn't seen on the tables very often, which is why on An Unexpected Podcast, Tim, Devin, Matt, Rainier and I had a little chat about them. You can check it out here and on iTunes: