Hobby Update: Direfang Riders

I've been off of work this week, and although I'm just now getting over a nasty cold (some week off), in between numerous naps and bowls of soup, I am also making some blog and hobby progress, as evidenced by all these recent posts.

After posting yesterday, I was tidying up, and I realized that there was one project in-process that got a lot of painting done in November, but I had not touched on in the blog yet: Zombies!

So there are (heh) 69 Zombies waiting to be based... this will take some time.

My girlfriend has been hobbying on these bloody guys for a few months now, and finished the blood effects up on the last of the models a week or so ago. So now... I just need to base them. I am planning on basing these guys on four regimental and two troop MDF bases; and running the whole gang as a Horde and a Legion... eventually. I had hoped to get started on this this week, but 5-6 hazy days of a cold made me forget about them entirely. I'll finish them off as soon as I am able... hopefully by the end of the year.

I have gotten some repaints done though! Here are two brand new hordes of Varangur Direfang Riders!

The first group.

The original models were painted up in very Khorne fashion. Silver for the metal joints of the Juggernauts, red armor all-around and gold/brassy metallic highlights for all the raised metal accent bits. Very Khorne.

The second group. I think this one turned our better, spacing-wise.

I don't have a consistent paint job for the Varangur, but I wanted the new paint job to be different for these guys. I browsed online for a bit, and found these guys painted up by someone known as Flint13. They were crazy well-done. I knew I couldn't hit that level of a paint job but I figured a scheme like that would fit in well with what I have already. I mean, I already had some things with black armor and some with white armor... As expected, my painting is no where near as good as Flint13's, but it works. 

Game-wise, they are a bit of an odd unit. I am obviously tempted to compare these to the Mounted Sons. Both are mounted dudes, after all. 

Here are the stats for those unwilling to open up their book or a new tab. See? Look at all those similarities! Same Nerve values; same option for Gifts; same exact costs for the smaller and larger unit sizes... a comparison is begging to be made!

The obvious difference, Large Cavalry vs regular Cavalry, isn't that big a deal. Frontages gets a bit bigger with the Large Cav, but they grant more unlocks, if you need them. Not much to say.

The first big difference in these units, is Speed. The Mounted Sons are typical knights, with a decent 8" threat range. Direfangs apparently have stubby legs, and are gimped 2 inches, making them barely faster than normal 5" infantry. Ouch. So, right off the bat, Sons are knights, good charge-you-from-far-away cavalry. The Direfangs? Cavalry really in name only.

The second big difference is the attacks. Mounted Sons are pretty typical knights. They have a few more attacks than a normal knightly unit, but hit on the typical 3+ for comparable knights. They can be stuffed up by terrain or phalanx units. Direfangs, however, seem to be more berserker-oriented. Like Elves' Hunters of the Wild; or the Varangur Reavers; or Abyssal's Succubi, the Direfangs shift to a 4+ to hit, and then gain a more attacks. They gain Strider to make sure they enter combat unhindered, ready to unleash all they have. 

The third big difference in these units is how and when they can deal damage. Whereas again, the Mounted Sons are pretty typical knightly units, relying heavily on Thunderous Charge, the Direfangs rely on Crushing Strength, meaning the 'Fangs can grind out combats more, and aren't nearly as concerned with getting the initial charge.

So... how would I run these units? Well, the Mounted Sons I'd still run as normal Knights and your typical heavy cavalry. That's what they are, and how they perform. These new Direfangs... I'm not entirely sure. So permit me to brainstorm a bit.

Gift wise... I still think Lifeleech 1 is generally not worth it. Depending on your list, you may be able to eek out some use from it on these guys.. but you can probably do better if you have the points to invest. Given their high number of attacks and CS2, Brutal is probably overkill. They'll be doing enough damage to break things, particularly if there is any other unit helping out. I think giving them Headstrong and Fury would be the way to go. You need them to do their damage, and their low speed means that they may be hurting by the time they reach combat. Giving them the ability to make a final counter charge could be huge.

In a faster list, with chaffy wolves, Horse Raiders, and some Mounted Sons... the Direfangs could be that final push. A unit or two of them, any size, advancing slowly behind the rest. Whatever survives that first onslaught, still has to deal with them.

In a slower list, say an infantry list, they could simply anchor your line... a stalwart horde with a solid 5+ Defense and 16/18 Nerve tying up important enemy units while Bloodsworn, Sons and Warbands clash alongside their savage bastion. Or conversely, a group of Thralls or Warband could tarpit something in order to allow the Direfangs to crash into the enemy flank. Imagine that. A whopping 60 CS2 attacks against something...

Ok, so, howsabout a more typical list. A mixed, balanced, toolboxy list. One that brings some light and heavy cavalry, light and heavy infantry, chaff units, and maybe a spooky monster or two? This is probably a good place for the Direfangs. Your faster elements are more likely to both chaff things up and draw early game fire, allowing the Direfangs to either arrive later and then support/clean up fights, or just be free to do other things with the mid-speed Monsters and slower infantry. Their biggest liability is their speed. In a list with other, speedier, more imminent threats occupying your opponent's attention, the Direfangs should arrive in combat mid-game largely unharmed, and given their durability, serve you until the end of the game, deleting units all the way. 

Enough theory for now; I'm rambling. I will be giving these a try sometime, in a mixed list. They seem like a pretty powerful and unique unit to explore. And, I'm glad they're done!