Special Hydras in Age of Sigmar
Posted: Mon Jun 27, 2016 5:59 am
I swear I will get back to Hawkseer and the PLOG, and future posts on "Show Us [insert unit here] but I am on a roll with a few chapters so I want to finish them and maybe post another when I get writers block on.
In any case, a long time back when GW made it easy and cheaper to do kit bashing, they had three hydra variants that were just for fun (so not turny leagle) but added a little flair to your army. Last edition we came up with a way to bring em back.
SO how would we have the variant hydras in Age of Sigmar?"
The Variant's in question are:
THe Royal hydra. When a hydra performs exceptionaly well, the Witch king has it and the two beastmasters that were teamed with it spend a debotcherous two weeks feasting and celabrating while he enchants the three. At the end of the two weeks, the beastmasters are fed to the hydra who beguines to mutate on levels that leave it mentaly scared. It developes thic armored plates, and has both an acetic breath weapon and blood that work pretty much like Xenorph blood from the Alien franchies. Most of these rare monstrosities die in the dark manageries under Malekeith's personal tower but every now and then awards a highly sucsessful highborn with such a beast.
What I see: add 2 to its armor and remove 2 or 3 from its movement. THe beast should also be weaker, but eat through more armor, so say wounds on a 5+ but has -3 rend. When it takes damage in close combat, it inflicts just as many Wound on 5+ -3 rend wounds on the enemy.
Not sure how to have panic, as it is more likly to break in combat in the old rules if its below half, so maybe half the to hit role score as it flails around maybe?
Spellthirster: In one of the largest battles in dark elf history against the high elves, Beastlord Rakarth lead a massive warhorst of elves, with ten hydras (back then you could only have X amunt a units in certain catagories and under a certan point count, so this was easily a weeklong game by today's standards). However three archmages not only held the army off, but bashed it to peaces. Rakarth swore never to be beaten by high elf magic again, so took the lone hydrea that didn't either run away or die and had it enchanted by the sorceressess.
The end product was a seemingly sickly weak hydra but one with greater sell resistence, that it extended to all around it. the origional hydra was retired and made into a stud, with plenty of females to mate with. However this was never a breed that would be a game changer for the witch king as it was incredibly rare. As one in ten hydras born of this bloodline had their forefather's traits, they were only taken out with the supervision of a sorceress.
FOr this one its healing I can see be reduced to one or two wounds a friendly hero phase, and with less attaks, both close combat and shooting. It can also only be taken in a army with at least one sorceress, but then again you could get another unit to dispell enemy spells.
Veteran: This hydra has been there, seen that, eaten that warrior, and pooped him out on his most sacred of groves.
THis one's only difference was it started the game with one of 6 abilities, to show all the nifty tricks its learned over the years.
1. Rage: I can see this one getting rerolls on attacks.
2. Camafloge: Its been enchanted to be very chamilion lie, so maybe a -1 to hit penalty form shooting attacks.
3. Fetch: Not sure how this would work, but when charecters could be protected by being in the midst of a unit, he could challenge the charecter and thus dingle him out fom all the rest, and the rest of the unit couldn't fight it. Not sure how this would work now. Maybe bouses against specific charecter minies or defending specific points on the map.
4. Escort: Pick a friendly unit. It has to move along side them. If they charge an enemy, it also makes a charge attempt. If the enemy charges, it counter charges.
5. Battle Lover: Add 2D6 to movement so it can get to the fighting faster.
6. Your pick.
What do you think?
In any case, a long time back when GW made it easy and cheaper to do kit bashing, they had three hydra variants that were just for fun (so not turny leagle) but added a little flair to your army. Last edition we came up with a way to bring em back.
SO how would we have the variant hydras in Age of Sigmar?"
The Variant's in question are:
THe Royal hydra. When a hydra performs exceptionaly well, the Witch king has it and the two beastmasters that were teamed with it spend a debotcherous two weeks feasting and celabrating while he enchants the three. At the end of the two weeks, the beastmasters are fed to the hydra who beguines to mutate on levels that leave it mentaly scared. It developes thic armored plates, and has both an acetic breath weapon and blood that work pretty much like Xenorph blood from the Alien franchies. Most of these rare monstrosities die in the dark manageries under Malekeith's personal tower but every now and then awards a highly sucsessful highborn with such a beast.
What I see: add 2 to its armor and remove 2 or 3 from its movement. THe beast should also be weaker, but eat through more armor, so say wounds on a 5+ but has -3 rend. When it takes damage in close combat, it inflicts just as many Wound on 5+ -3 rend wounds on the enemy.
Not sure how to have panic, as it is more likly to break in combat in the old rules if its below half, so maybe half the to hit role score as it flails around maybe?
Spellthirster: In one of the largest battles in dark elf history against the high elves, Beastlord Rakarth lead a massive warhorst of elves, with ten hydras (back then you could only have X amunt a units in certain catagories and under a certan point count, so this was easily a weeklong game by today's standards). However three archmages not only held the army off, but bashed it to peaces. Rakarth swore never to be beaten by high elf magic again, so took the lone hydrea that didn't either run away or die and had it enchanted by the sorceressess.
The end product was a seemingly sickly weak hydra but one with greater sell resistence, that it extended to all around it. the origional hydra was retired and made into a stud, with plenty of females to mate with. However this was never a breed that would be a game changer for the witch king as it was incredibly rare. As one in ten hydras born of this bloodline had their forefather's traits, they were only taken out with the supervision of a sorceress.
FOr this one its healing I can see be reduced to one or two wounds a friendly hero phase, and with less attaks, both close combat and shooting. It can also only be taken in a army with at least one sorceress, but then again you could get another unit to dispell enemy spells.
Veteran: This hydra has been there, seen that, eaten that warrior, and pooped him out on his most sacred of groves.
THis one's only difference was it started the game with one of 6 abilities, to show all the nifty tricks its learned over the years.
1. Rage: I can see this one getting rerolls on attacks.
2. Camafloge: Its been enchanted to be very chamilion lie, so maybe a -1 to hit penalty form shooting attacks.
3. Fetch: Not sure how this would work, but when charecters could be protected by being in the midst of a unit, he could challenge the charecter and thus dingle him out fom all the rest, and the rest of the unit couldn't fight it. Not sure how this would work now. Maybe bouses against specific charecter minies or defending specific points on the map.
4. Escort: Pick a friendly unit. It has to move along side them. If they charge an enemy, it also makes a charge attempt. If the enemy charges, it counter charges.
5. Battle Lover: Add 2D6 to movement so it can get to the fighting faster.
6. Your pick.
What do you think?