The Sinners' Lament (Jump Sorcerer/Fist of Decay Lord)

[Doom Herald]

My local game store has a variation of a pyramid league, for which I've decided to go with Night Lords. Its WYSiWYG, and requires painted models after the first bracket, so it's a great chance for me to get some work in kit-bashing and painting.

 

In the 500 point bracket, I found a winning army with a winged Daemon Prince (Nurgle, One Piece at a time, & Misery of the Meek) with a Warp bolter and 2 talons, a Jump Lord with power sword (Flayer) and combi-bolter, 2 units of Cultists, one unit of Marines and an Obliterator. For the 750 bracket, I think I'm going to add in a Venomcrawler (seems pretty solid at this point level with use of Daemon Forge), a second Obliterator, and a unit of 2 spawn.

 

Because it seems like I'm leaning pretty heavy on the DAEMON marines here, I've decided I'm going to focus my warband as a Night Lords Daemonkin army. With that in mind and knowing that most Night Lords would look in disgust at such a group, I need a name for this warband to reflect that. One idea I had was the "Sinful Hunters." All would have hands painted red, showing they failed Curze with their corruption. An other was to name them the "Abberant Brothers," in contrast they would embrace the changes wrought by corruption and seek out other mutant Night Lords who's own warband despise them. Thoughts on both of these and even other name suggestions would be apreciated.

 

I will be posting pictures of them later tonight, both characters are kit bashes. I will also be updating as I get more models painted and the warband grows. I think I'm going to keep the theme of horror movies when I name my characters and units and any ideas would be appreciated. For now, I'm going with naming my Daemon Prince and Lord Karloff and Lugosi, respectively. Feedback and unit name ideas would be apreciated.

Edited March 18, 2020 by Doom Herald

[dice4thedicegod]

Konrad Curze’s Cursed Comrades?

[Doom Herald]

Sorry I didn't get around to uploading the pictures as soon as I wanted. I need to do a little work cleaning up the models before I prime, but here are the two characters.

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Edited February 23, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Zeke]

Nice conversions!  The blade on the sword is very Night Lords-esque.

 

As for names, maybe "Of Those Who Fell", "The Damned of Nostramo", "The Red Sinners", "The Call of Damnation" or even "The Weak", implying that they were unable to resist the call of daemonhood.

 

If they embraced daemonhood, I have to feel like they would be very proud of it and have a very Emperor's Children style naming convention.  "The Transcended", "His Perfect Form", or something of that caliber could get the desired results.  

Edited January 18, 2020 by Zeke

[Special Officer Doofy]

@Doom Herald that is a really nice conversion on the Daemon Prince. Where did you get the non DP bits from?

[Dr_Ruminahui]

 

If they embraced daemonhood, I have to feel like they would be very proud of it and have a very Emperor's Children style naming convention.  "The Transcended", "His Perfect Form", or something of that caliber could get the desired results.  

 

I was thinking the same - if they are adopting strays from other warbands, likely they have also adopted an ideology that accepts or even glorifies what more traditional nightlords would view as degeneracy.  So, I don't see them adopting the name "aberration" as it is a slur on what they see makes them great.

 

So I particularly like the Transcended (or its close variant Transcendent), but other names along the same lines would also work - the True Path, the Uplifted, the True Heirs, the Terrible Truth.

Edited January 20, 2020 by Dr_Ruminahui

[Doom Herald]

@Doom Herald that is a really nice conversion on the Daemon Prince. Where did you get the non DP bits from?

Thank you!

 

The Warp Bolter is a Bolt Rifle from the Shadowspear box, there's 2 that have straps. The arms/wings and head are from AoS Vargheists. In my case, I believe I bought the Start Collecting: Flesh-Eater Courts box. I originally got it primarily for the zombie dragon's wings but it ended up being much larger than I expected. Everything else ended up being very useful though. Even using the wings and heads, I still have all the parts for 3 Crypt Horrors which I will be using as Spawn. There's also a pretty nice winged helmet head and lots of decorative gothic horror bits.

 

I opted not to use the tail on the Daemon Prince as I felt it took away from the bat-like appearance. That does leave the back looking unfinished though, so I'm working on a rear loincloth. The Shoulder armor is actually the leg armor from the DP kit. Karloff is supposed to be a quick horror who dashes from unit to unit, mauling them for those that follow behind him, before darting off to the next while firing his bolter either into the survivors or into the next target. For that reason, I wanted to keep his armor light, and so he has mostly vestigial armor plates only on his shoulder. I've been having some debate with myself as to whether he needs more armor.

[Celtic_cauldron]

May I propose the Night Beasts as a potential name for those... lost brothers? Thus you have the Night Lord's affiliation through the first half of the name and a reference to possession/deamonkin with "Beasts" a la Beasts of Annihilation.

 

Celtic_cauldron

[Lord_Caerolion]

How about the Awakened?

[Doom Herald]

I think I'm going to go with either Sinners' Lament as a warband who feels unclean for their mutations or The Warband of the Worthy for those who embrace it. I might have to flip a coin if I can't decide since I will be painting red hands if I go with the former.

 

What if I keep the aspect of recruiting other mutated Night Lords even in the Sinners' Lament? It seems like many corrupted Night Lords are pretty well despised by their comrades. The only thing that makes it feel iffy is if the prospective recruits would see leaving their old units as a betrayal. But, Night Lords are good at that, especially if corrupted. They could offer the corrupted to join their man-on-fire crusade and die killing the enemies of their Primarch.

 

As for The Warband of the Worthy, I would say they are all mutated in some way, even if just minor mutations covered by armor. Because they tend to recruit corrupted Night Lords, the gene-seed when passed on always results in mutations to those implanted with it. Those that become Spawn would be known as The Unworthy, while those Night Lords free of corruption would be The Untested.

 

Also, Daemin Prince Karloff suffered some damages when an unexpectedly strong gust of wind suddenly came by while I was prepping for priming. As a result, I bought another DP kit to work on a new one, but upon re-examining the original I found that big things could be repaired and what couldn't seems to add a battle-worn quality. Since I already got the kit, I will make a more armored version which I'll post pictures of when complete and see which of the two you all seem to like more.

 

Finally, I will be having a test run of my 750 point set up this Sunday. I'll be sure to relay what happens.

Edited January 24, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Zeke]

In the end, it's whatever you decide to go with, as this is your warband and an argument could be made for both side, possessed and "clean".

 

One thing I think that needs to be confirmed is the difference between possessed and mutated.  For your warband, which is it?  Did they willingly accept gifts from a god of Chaos, or we're they sitting around one day and then their skin started to turn to scales or a third eye opened up?

 

You could say that for the Sinner's, maybe they don't recruit but rather harbor those who have been changed?  I'm not sure if it's explicitly mentioned anywhere what happens to those who embrace mutation or daemonic gifts, meaning if they would be put down, expelled from their warband but allowed to live, or just begrudgingly accepted (think Lucoryphus of the Bleeding Eye cult from ADB's Night Lords trilogy).  Either way, Astartes who have mutated/possessed could seek out your warband, knowing they would be accepted and allowed to hunt and raid with them.  Maybe the goal of each Astartes is to seek death at the hands of a worth opponent, thus purifying them of their mutation/possession?  

[Doom Herald]

Chaos Spawn are finished. I used the remaining Vargheist bodies and assembled them with the non-winged arms and used Daemon Prince heads and in one case the tail.

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Edited February 23, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Dr_Ruminahui]

Looking good, but the heads seem too big for their bodies.  If you do another, maybe give it a tiny head so that the disproportionate heads look more like a feature than a bug. :)

[Doom Herald]

Had a test run today at 750 points against primaris Crimson Fists that went extremely well.

 

I had an awkward deployment where cover was in fairly short supply so I unintentionally started with my Daemon Prince vulnerable. My opponent went first and moved a squad of Intercessors and Hellblasters up to get line of sight on my Prince. All together he ended up taking 7 wounds (I didn't use any strategems). At the start of my turn, I used Misery of the Meek which rolled a 1 for the wound heal but command re-rolled to a 5. He then retreated behind cover after some Cultists moved up to make room. My first turn was mostly moving around to be in a better position to take objectives.

 

Round 2 resulted in a lot of dead Cultists which actually worked to my benefit since the Cultist Champion ended up as a unit of 1 after morale and was able to take an objective in some tight terrain where it was pretty much impossible to get LoS on him. Other Cultists, Spawn, and Venomcrawler positioned for objectives. My opponent moving his marines up after my DP ended up a good thing since it left a good area for my Obliterators and Lord to drop in. Obliterators deleted his Chapter Master (warlord) which gave me victory points for both my card and Slay the Warlord. My Lord then charged his Primaris Chaplain 12" with Raptor Strike and Command Re-roll. With the Flayer relic (-3AP, 2D) my lord basicly assassinated him. My Prince moved up, used Chaos Familiar to replace Smite with Warp Time, then used it to get about 3" from the Hellblasters before charging. My opponent made some damn good saves and kept most of his Hellblasters until next round.

 

After that, I pretty much just cleaned up. The DP and Lord were melee blenders, Obliterators obliterated things, Venowcrawler tied up an Intercessor squad to prevent the characters from getting shot, and everyone else got objectives. Basicly, once the characters were gone and my characters got into melee, things went clearly in my favor.

 

Next time, I'm going to break the Spawn into two units for a smaller footprint and better versatility in grabbing objectives. I'm also going to have to watch my DPs placement a little better and try to get the Venomcrawler into melee sooner. Prey on the Weak and Death to the False Emperor together really helped my characters drop units. Getting an extra attack on a natural 5+ instead of 6+ helped me end some units quickly.

Edited January 27, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Doom Herald]

Got these guys all primed and started some work painting. I'm not particularly skilled in painting, but I guess theres no improvement without effort. Here's one of the Spawn (Incomplete) and a Cultist, which I'm unsure if I want to do more with and if so what.

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I like having the Cultists drab and plain, but there might be room for a little more on the ones with this sculpt. Thoughts and recommendations especially on the cultist would be appreciated. I dont want to spend too much time on the Cultists, but do want them to look decent.

Edited February 23, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Dr_Ruminahui]

I think the spawn and cultist look great.

 

One thing for the cultist, I would work in one element that is a major colour for your army.  So, maybe a dark blue hood if you are going standard nightlords colours.  That way it will make your army look more cohesive on the table rather than a unit that looks like you took it from some other army.

Edited February 3, 2020 by Dr_Ruminahui

[Doom Herald]

Well, next game will be a little under two weeks against Guard. Life put painting on a brief hold, but I've got a deadline now, so I'll be doing a lot of painting between now and then.

 

Most likely, it will be Pask in a Leeman Russ and a second Leeman Russ with an enginseer and conscripts, maybe one more lighter vehicle. Thoughts on how to best approach this match would be appreciated.

 

Im considering the possibility of dropping my Venomcrawler and Lord out for a Jump Lord with the Fist of Decay Daemon weapon and Warp Talons so that I can drop my Lord in without overwatch and crack the tanks open. With luck that's not terrible, he should be able to kill one from deepstrike and if not the Talons can pick up the last of it.

 

Alternatively, I can drop a Spawn to free points for the Fist of Decay and use the extra points for some minor weapons upgrades like heavy stubbers on Cultists, maybe even drop the second for a lascannon or rocket launcher marine.

 

There is, of course, also the possibility that the list will be fine as is. If I kill the smaller things first and work my way up while taking objectives, it might all work fine as is.

[Tallarn Commander]

The jump lord sounds like a good idea.

 

In terms of tactics, I play both Night Lords and IG so here are some tips:

-try to concentrate on 1 flank (don't disperse your force)

-take multiple fast threatening units (Spawn tie up my IG nicely)

-use the "We have come for you" stratagem so your opponent cannot jump out of combat and then use the "Get back in the fight" order)

-try to shoot away screening IG infantry so that your DP and jump lord can get at your opponents's meaty tanks. A large squad of rapid firing outflanking cultists can do this if the IG player doesn't screen their flanks or rear very well...and if your opponent is sitting units back so as to prevent you from outflanking then they are not gaining board control

-shooting is your opponent's strength, board control and melee is yours

 

Good luck!

[Doom Herald]

My opponent had car trouble, so I had a last minute opponent swap to Deathguard. Lord and Oblits sat in deepstrike. DP Warp-timed across into a unit of 7 Plague Marines and wiped them. All other units moved up, keeping cover. DP took some wounds from a second unit of plague marines from shooting and then got charged. Oblits and Lord Deepstriked to take out the enemy DP. Oblits got good weapon rules and killed him without Cacophony. Next turn, Oblits took out bloat drone with Cacophony while they and spawn were positioned to keep my characters from being shot. After that, it was basicly just clean up. I tabled him in turn 4 and suffered 0 model deaths.

 

I'll post pictures of my models thus far later. They are "painted" but theres still some work to be done for sure.

Edited February 22, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Doom Herald]

Spawn are probably the only things I consider truly finished. They were made from Vargheist/Crypt Flayers with Daemon Prince heads and the tail.

Daemon prince Karloff needs the metal and skulls done and I'm trying to decide on what ways I can add little accents for more color while keeping him dark and shadowy. Made from basic DP kit with Vargheist head and Wings. Warpbolter is a Boltrifle from the Shadowspear kit. Shoulder plates are the regular DP leg armor.

Obliterators were kind of rushed, but came out way better than I expected. Mostly they need cleanup. I still need to come up with names for these guys.

For these guys, I need to add some detailing, like the grenades, the Bolters, etc.. and do some basic cleanup. I decided on squad Voorhes in reference to Jason Voorhes to keep with my horror movie them for naming units.

The Lord is Lugosi, made from Haarken as a base. The right arm was replaced with a combi-bolter arm made from two identical Bolters (old CSM kit) smoothed on opposite sides and glued together. For Flayer in the left arm, I removed most of the spear shaft and the blade and replaced the blade with a scythe blade from Night Haunt models.

Venomcrawler was another rushed job that ended up better than I thought. I just need to finish some details and cleanup. I'm not sold on a name yet, but I'm thinking I'll name it Arachnophobia.

For the Cultists I used the same 4 sculpts (2 per unit) except for the champions who I used Renegade Guard from Blackstone Fortress for. Not sure how I feel about the Midnight Blue hoods. Of course, details and cleanup still need doing.

Edited February 23, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Doom Herald]

For my 1,000 point list, I'm considering dropping the Spawn, adding a DP on foot and a unit of Havocs. Havoc champion with Chainsword and Bolter, 2 missile launchers or lascannons and 2 autocannons along with an icon of vengeance. I can pull my 2 current heavies into a Spearhead with the new units for an extra CP. This will put me at exactly 1,000 points.

 

I would give the DP prescience and keep him with the havocs for an effective 2+ BS, re-rolling 1s. If prescience fails, the icon ensures I can use Prey on the Weak to bump them up to that effective 2+ BS if I really need to kill the targets.

Edited February 24, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Tallarn Commander]

The army is coming along nicely.

 

If possible, you might want to find the points to give the DP wings. That way, he has options. He can buff the Havocs or manuever around the board, depending on the situation.

[Doom Herald]

Had a practice match against World Eaters. The Havocs and Second DP felt like underperformers. Venomcrawler still proves to be worth it's points. Everyone else seemed to do well.

 

I also have an ITC doubles tournament coming up that I conveniently need 1000 pts for. I'm going to drop the second DP maybe for a Lord or Apostle (if Apostle I'll drop the Icon of Vengeance). It feels kind of dirty to use a Night Lords Apostle, truth be told. That will give me points to replace my current Jump Lord with one with the Nurgle Daemon Fist and a Combi-melta so we have something that can drop a Knight. My teammate says he has enemy heavy infantry pretty well covered, so my current Lord is redundant. This would leave me with 64 points to spend if I take the Apostle, or 62 with a bare bones lord. I would consider throwing my Spawn back in at this point, but I think they might be more of a liability in an ITC format. Thoughts?

Edited March 3, 2020 by Doom Herald

[Doom Herald]

Jump Sorcerer, based off of Master of Possessions model:

Jump Lord with Fist of Decay and Combi-melta, based off of Haarken:

Edited March 18, 2020 by Doom Herald