Tomb King and pop-up defense

How to beat those cowardly High Elves?

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tmr
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Tomb King and pop-up defense

Post by tmr »

So we have a new enemy the Tomb Kings and one of their capabilities that drives me nuts is the Scorpions and Sepulchral Stalker with the ability to pop up anywhere on the board. Any suggests on how to defend against this?
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Phierlihy
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Post by Phierlihy »

I don't think there is a defense. While they can pop up and destroy a unit here or there, I've never found them to be game-breaking. I just try and get into combat as quickly as possibe so he can't shoot me.
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Dyvim tvar
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Post by Dyvim tvar »

the main thing you can do is take advantage of the following:

1) Although they can pop up on turn 2, they cannot charge in the turn they arrive. So the first time they could charge is turn 3. This effectively gives you 2 turns when you have a force advantage on the battlefield. Make the most of this by getting into combat quickly (stay away from tar-pit units) and trying to destroy a couple things before the Tomb Kings player can bring his forces to bear.

2) Target the pop-ups with magic and missile fire when they arrive but before they can charge. Necropolis Knights are pretty tough, but Scorpions and Stalkers can be killed or depleted with magic and missiles. To this end, be sure to include musicians in your crossbow units so you can swift reform and shoot even if the units pop up outside your field of fire.
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Tethlis
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Post by Tethlis »

You simply have to put up with it. Neither unit is particularly lethal in combat; stalkers have few attacks, while the Scorpion is just one model. It can be very disconcerting to see them show up on the table, but their actual ability is rarely game-breaking unless you're taking very small Dark Elf units or have an exposed Sorceress who can't be hidden before the Scorpion or stalkers are able to charge into combat.

If you're really worried about them, or if you suspect your opponent has tougher choices like Necroknights, then try to identify which of your units are most vulnerable and find ways to protect those units. You can keep them safely surrounded by better Dark Elf units, or keep a unit of Harpies nearby to redirect and deflect the TK units before they're able to charge into combat.

It can be very disconcerting, but I haven't see a unit pop up that ever really sabotaged my battle plan to a heavy degree. Try to stay flexible with your battle plan.
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Post by L1qw1d »

In his defence, I have seen them hold while one of the Cav came in, kinda like we do with the Harpies...
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Post by Geist »

As an old TK player I find the new beneath the sands rule annoying and just plain BS. So when I look at the new book and the way the rule plays now, I say so what? Ok so something pops up, unless its a huge block of knights or stalkers you can blitz it with one charge. If you cant charge it, shoot it, magic it. Loosing the power to do a charge the turn you come up makes them more annoying than dangerous.
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