While they have yet to see the table... the only other sizable collection I have with a complete 3rd Edition army list right now are my Abyssals. My collection is currently:
1x Horde of Molochs
2x Regiments of Flamebearers
1x Regiment of Succubi
1x Regiment of Abyssal Guard
3x Troops of Abyssal Guard
2x Regiments of Imps
2x Hordes of Imps
1x Winged Archfiend
1x Wingless Archfiend
1x Abyssal Champion
2x Efreet
Overall, my Abyssals collection decreased around 5%; a couple hundred points. No units were retired/invalidated in the Edition change, but the overal collection has been hamstrung a bit by the changes to unlocks and the increase in irregular units with Third Edition.
Fortunately, I missed the double-whammy that hit the seemingly ever-present Tortured Souls. Third Edition turned them Irregular, turning them from unlocking units into something that needs unlocks. This will confound many competitive Abyssal armies I'm sure. But I think it's a good call. They were an interesting unit, but unique among the Abyssals list (being a shambling, life-leecher), so I think this change makes sense.
With the changes, I only have 6 Troops slots, and now 9 troops that want them. Additionally, I've got 5 Heroes fighting over 3 slots. (Looking at the chart on p. 41, I thought you could double up. On a re-read, the Large and Monstrous Hordes give you two hero/monster/titan/war machine slots, but you can't repeat a choice.)
Flamebearers
Flamebearers are now irregular, so my two regiments now need something to unlock them, rather than unlocking things themselves. Bummer! As stated in the last few posts, Mantic has been making more units irregular, I believe in an attempt to better shape the particular army meta o where they want it to be, for either balance or fluff reasons. That's fine, and it's a slick way to do it, but it does pull the rug out from some builds. Oh well. Part of a new edition I guess.
In Third, Flamebearers gain the Steady Aim special, removing the penalty for moving and shooting. That's awesome! They lost a point of Nerve and got a price hike, which is less great. Still, they look like a potent unit to toss around some supporting Firebolts.
Molochs
The mighty Molochs lost their innate Brutal, and got a slight points increase too, but overall gained a lot. Their lower Nerve value was boosted up, they hit on 3's instead of 4's, and now have Speed 6 instead of Speed 5. Nice improvements all around. Still, they only unlock 2 troops now, so the collection is still underwater.
Their upgrades are also interesting. For 20 points, I can give the Horde a Despoiler Champion (a new character) to lead the unit, granting Fearless and Brutal. While Fearless is always welcome on a unit, the Molochs already have Fury, letting them counter-charge even when Wavered, making it just a bit less attractive. Brutal is nice, but not a must-have for me. With 18 attacks now hitting on 3's with CS2, the Molochs are going to do some damage. If's a neat upgrade, but I will likely skip it for now.
In Second Edition, the Abyssals had Regeneration as their army special rule. It's still there, and now they have an upgrade to it. For a price, you can take a Sacrificial Imp to reroll failed Regen rolls for a turn. It's a pretty cheap upgrade, and I will likely take one on my Molochs here, but I'm so-so on buying it for any other units currently.
Imps
The imps are still little furious, vicious swarms. The Regiments decreased in cost; their Hordes increased. Their Nerve decreased by 1 in Third Edition. My list will likely prioritize the Hordes.
Succubi
The Succubi got a nice points decrease, and gained Fury, Stealthy, and Ensnare. Awesome! Each choice did lose attacks though, but that's ok by me. Kicking out double the normal attacks for their unit size seemed a bit much.
Abyssal Guard
The Abyssal Guard gained Fearless, which is a welcome little bonus. Since they won't be wavered.. the Sacrificial Imp could be a good investment on Regiments. We'll see. My minis are Bloodletter models, so I'm swapping out shields for the two-handed weapons.
Given my lack of unlockers... I may combine two troops into a Regiment. Bloodletters are notorious for being difficult to rank up though, so rebasing may be required.
Heroes
Both my big boys are looking great. They've gotten some changes (no Thunderous Charge, and swapping in the fluffier Fireball in for Lightning Bolt), but are still looking quite strong. The Abyssal Fiend in particular looks great to me; hard to argue with an inspiring beatstick for under 200 points.
The Efreet has been changed... basically with every Clash of Kings update. With Third Edition, it's back to it's basic self, losing Fury and Pathfinder is a small hero just around to chuck Fireball. Fireball 16 seems like a good spot, and it's received a small points decrease, and 115 points seems like a nice spot for it. Fireball is still Fireball, lacking any Piercing and taking a hit on hit rolls against targets that are in cover or Stealthy. Early game, they can clear chaff, and if you can keep them alive until the late game, they should be able, through weight of dice, to get the last few points of damage in to finish off enemy units. We'll see.
The Abyssal Champion looks to have a lot of options, being able to grab Wings or Lighting Bolt. Since he is Mighty, the Champion could potentially fly up to disorder or roadblock a unit, or hang back tossing a few Bolts to weaken up enemy units before combat.
...The Future!
Gargoyles are still a thing, and still look very strong. Who doesn't want flying regenerating chaff? I think I may cave and buy a box (or two) at some point. They're just too iconic of an Abyssals unit not to have some in this army... but this army now needs unlocks, and they would just exacerbate the issue right now.. plus, I'm really trying to hold off on spending money on minis these days.
I already have a Regiment's worth of Lower Abyssals who just need shields, and I've also already picked up some models (on sale!) to use as regiment of Abyssal Horsemen. They'll need some converting, but that should be doable over the winter, and they should be ready to paint up come springtime. Those will help me out a bit, and we'll see what else transpires for this army.
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