Post by subversive on Mar 22, 2017 20:03:00 GMT
Ported from the PP Circle forum:
For me, one of the most exciting changes to a model that occurred from MK 2 to 3 was the Wild Argus. Maligned in the previous edition for its then-niche animus and other issues, the new edition has brought it new usefulness and versatility. Although I won't put it in every list, I've never been disappointed when I have. Considering that many new Circle players who have gotten the battle box will have one, I thought a tactica on the furry little guy was in order.
Stats
SPD/DEF: 6/14. Good mobility and decently hard to hit, although if it can get his consistently it will be destroyed.
STR: 8. Decent enough that in the uncommon event that another light tries to throw it there's the possibility that it won't be thrown. Don't expect to win against heavies.
MAT: 5. Fortunately, it doesn't matter too much (see below).
RAT/CMD: Irrelevant.
ARM: 15. It's not likely to be crippled by a boosted POW 10, but don't expect it to hold up against someone who wants it removed, even with its good DEF.
FURY/THR: 3/9. Standard and nothing to complain about. Boosting to hit will rarely be needed.
Boxes/Damage Spiral: 21, divided evenly between its three branches. Very squishy - boosted POW 12s will cripple an aspect, and if it can be hit frequently, it will die.
Point Cost: 7. The Wild Argus is our second-cheapest warbeast and one of the cheapest in the game overall. A bargain, and it's easy to fit one in most lists.
Attacks
Bitex2: POW 12, RNG .5. Decently powerful attack for a light. It has the option to Combo Strike for at POW 16 in exchange for losing its initials; this attack can tear chunks out of lighter-ARM heavies, maul lights, and kill almost any infantry model/solo it goes against.
Abilities
Pathfinder: Always nice to have.
Circular Vision: Opponents don't get back strikes against you. Somewhat corner case, but better to have than not. However, keep in mind it won't prevent Backstab, as Backstab doesn't require you gain a backstrike bonus, counterintuitive as it might seem.
Animus: Doppler Bark, a COST 2 RNG SELF-spell. Living and undead enemy models within 2" of the spellcaster cannot run, charge, slam, or trample for one round, and their DEF is reduced to 5 for the same amount of time. A very useful and powerful animus to have. It's great into anything high-DEF like Kayazy or Warpwolves or DEF 12 heavies so you can guarantee that your heavy hits every time, and the control aspect is equally powerful. Combined with Combo Strike, you can almost guarantee a hit against an enemy affected by it, or set up for another of your models to finish it off. It even works against Gargantuans, although you're unlikely to need the DEF debuff.
One of the great things about the animus is for setting up ranged assassinations; even engaged you'll still be hitting the affected enemy most of the time unless you have exceptionally poor RAT or the enemy has extensive DEF buffs. Additionally, with the animus the Wild Argus can be used to hunt high-DEF models such as Eiryss, Kayazy Eliminators, or Raeks.
Another trick is the Doppler slam. When you slam an enemy, as soon as the movement is done but before you make the attack roll you can use Doppler Bark. This will serve to reduce the DEF and prevent the slammed model from charging afterwards. Even if you roll a 6 it's unlikely that the slammed enemy won't be able to walk back and attack; however, it's still a useful control piece, and in conjunction with other slams or push/place effects can prevent retaliation.
The next post will deal with warlock/non-warlock synergies.
Stats
SPD/DEF: 6/14. Good mobility and decently hard to hit, although if it can get his consistently it will be destroyed.
STR: 8. Decent enough that in the uncommon event that another light tries to throw it there's the possibility that it won't be thrown. Don't expect to win against heavies.
MAT: 5. Fortunately, it doesn't matter too much (see below).
RAT/CMD: Irrelevant.
ARM: 15. It's not likely to be crippled by a boosted POW 10, but don't expect it to hold up against someone who wants it removed, even with its good DEF.
FURY/THR: 3/9. Standard and nothing to complain about. Boosting to hit will rarely be needed.
Boxes/Damage Spiral: 21, divided evenly between its three branches. Very squishy - boosted POW 12s will cripple an aspect, and if it can be hit frequently, it will die.
Point Cost: 7. The Wild Argus is our second-cheapest warbeast and one of the cheapest in the game overall. A bargain, and it's easy to fit one in most lists.
Attacks
Bitex2: POW 12, RNG .5. Decently powerful attack for a light. It has the option to Combo Strike for at POW 16 in exchange for losing its initials; this attack can tear chunks out of lighter-ARM heavies, maul lights, and kill almost any infantry model/solo it goes against.
Abilities
Pathfinder: Always nice to have.
Circular Vision: Opponents don't get back strikes against you. Somewhat corner case, but better to have than not. However, keep in mind it won't prevent Backstab, as Backstab doesn't require you gain a backstrike bonus, counterintuitive as it might seem.
Animus: Doppler Bark, a COST 2 RNG SELF-spell. Living and undead enemy models within 2" of the spellcaster cannot run, charge, slam, or trample for one round, and their DEF is reduced to 5 for the same amount of time. A very useful and powerful animus to have. It's great into anything high-DEF like Kayazy or Warpwolves or DEF 12 heavies so you can guarantee that your heavy hits every time, and the control aspect is equally powerful. Combined with Combo Strike, you can almost guarantee a hit against an enemy affected by it, or set up for another of your models to finish it off. It even works against Gargantuans, although you're unlikely to need the DEF debuff.
One of the great things about the animus is for setting up ranged assassinations; even engaged you'll still be hitting the affected enemy most of the time unless you have exceptionally poor RAT or the enemy has extensive DEF buffs. Additionally, with the animus the Wild Argus can be used to hunt high-DEF models such as Eiryss, Kayazy Eliminators, or Raeks.
Another trick is the Doppler slam. When you slam an enemy, as soon as the movement is done but before you make the attack roll you can use Doppler Bark. This will serve to reduce the DEF and prevent the slammed model from charging afterwards. Even if you roll a 6 it's unlikely that the slammed enemy won't be able to walk back and attack; however, it's still a useful control piece, and in conjunction with other slams or push/place effects can prevent retaliation.
The next post will deal with warlock/non-warlock synergies.
Warlock Synergies
Doppler Bark makes the Wild Argus useful whenever you're using a warlock who doesn't have a MAT fixer and you expect to deal with high-DEF enemies. Because of that, I'll go into specific warlock combinations that stand out to me as having great synergy.
Kaya 1: Spirit Door enables you to move an Wild Argus in, Doppler Bark, and teleport it back so you can do it against without worrying about the Argus. Dropping the DEF of a potential target to 5 makes it easy pickings for our shooting, such as the Reeves, Sentry Stones, Woldwyrd, Pureblood, and Storm Raptor. Also, Kaya 1 can safely use the animus due Spirit Door allowing for a quick retreat. One trick you can do is, on feat turn, Spirit Door next to an enemy, Doppler Bark, feat, and Spirit Door away. It's obviously cost expensive, but using it at the right time can be very powerful. Additionally, Spirit Fang and Doppler Bark on the same target will slow the enemy model to a crawl, although it's usually excessive.
The Wild Argus appreciates the MAT buff that Kaya 1 provides via Pack Hunter for when you want it to hit without using the animus. Unless you're going against very high-DEF models it's not incredibly you'll need to use Doppler Bark for the MAT buff.
Kaya 2: Kaya 2 can pull off the same Doppler Bark trick as Kaya 1 if you're willing to hang Laris back; however, she doesn't have enough FURY for the trick and Shadow Pack, so be careful. Unlike Kaya 1 she appreciates the MAT buff.
Kaya 3: Kaya and the Wild Argus make a good pairing. Fog of War helps him survive on the way in, and free charges/slams from Blood Spiller are equally appreciated. Synergy is amazing - with the Combo Strike it can hit at POW 19, POW 21 if it has Primal on it. It's cheap, and is almost guaranteed to hit its target if it's living if you need its animus, although it isn't necessary. Kaya 3 can make great use of the animus on her feat turn, applying it and Repositioning/Sprinting away afterward. Otherwise, you shouldn't need to use it with her to hit stuff.
Kromac 1: Besides the threat extension and therefore Doppler Bark threat that Warpath provides, Kromac 1 can personally leverage the Bark for his assassination run. As Doppler Bark is an animus, he can cast it while in beast form; combined with his feat, he can make 14 attacks against a DEF 5 model within 13" of him. This will kill many, if not most warlocks/warcasters outright; even buffs are no guarantee of survival due to volume of attacks and applying Wraithbane (the Pureblood's animus) after the bark. You're not likely to be able to pull it off against a careful opponent, but the threat of it is very potent in forcing the enemy's hand.
Kromac 2: Kromac 2 turns the Wild Argus into a miniature killing machine on his feat turn, while Carnage allows it to hit without using Doppler Bark or boosting. Awakened Spirit is also useful on it, although not necessary. Kromac 2 isn't likely to need Doppler Bark to hit due to his high MAT and Carnage, although it's better to use it over Wraithbane or Carnage against DEF-buffed enemies such as Caine 2 or Surefoot'd Kayazy.
Krueger 1: I was a bit hesitant to put Krueger 1 here. He appreciates the hit buff, and Gale Winds brings the Argus' DEF to Caine 2's level against ranged attacks. However, it's Krueger 1's mobility that via Skyborne, he can apply Doppler Bark to various points across the board. It's best if you follow up such a manuever by something game-winning, as Krueger 1 is very fragile, even with such a high DEF.
Krueger 2: Krueger 2 extends the threat range of the Wild Argus, and he appreciates DEF 5 enemies for assassination runs with his gun. Additionally, Doppler Bark has great applications with his feat; an enemy that can't run or charge while affected with a SPD debuff isn't going anywhere. Combined with Rebuke, you can stall a large portion of the enemy army. Due to his mobility (similar to Krueger 1), Krueger 2 can apply Doppler Bark in a variety of areas.
Mohsar: Can I just pretend he doesn't exist? No?
*Sighs*
My distaste for Mohsar notwithstanding, his ability to apply Doppler Bark across the field dwarfs that of Kromac and Krueger. Simply run a infantry model within 2" of an enemy, Sands of Fate said infantry model, and apply the Bark. By doing this, you threat with Doppler Bark at 18", with the only ways to prevent it being preventing Mohsar from casting spells or the enemy killing your infantry models. However, due to Mohsar's stats it's recommend that you either teleprt away or win the game after it's applied after applying the Bark; he has amongst the worst stats in the game and will die if left vulnerable. Additionally, due to his poor stats he's unlikely to be able to melee assassinate most warlocks/warcasters on his own, and his spells are too high-cost to make that a viable outcome either.
Tanith: Tanith is a force multiplier of Circle models, and she works very well with the Wild Argus. Doppler Bark is yet another DEF buff for her arsenal, and Scything Touch brings the Argus' Combo Strike to heavy-warjack levels of POW. Additionally, combining Doppler Bark with Affliction makes the Reeves/Affliction combination extremely potent - as you're almost guaranteed to hit an opponent with both on them, and 22 points of damage is never something to sneeze at.
Unit/Model Synergy
Not much to it; if you want to be able to hit something high-DEF with your models/units, take the Wild Argus. There are a few special cases below.
Cavalry Models: If you're like me, you hate depending on Impact Attacks to reach your charge target. The Wild Argus/Doppler Bark is the answer to your problem, although it's not easy to set up.
Druids of Orboros: Besides allowing the Druids to hit reliably even while their target is engaged, you can use Wind Strike to push back an enemy model outside of walking distance of the Wild Argus (or whatever) after they've been hit by Doppler Bark. It's not exactly points effective due to the low volume of attack and the difficulty of setting it up, but it's still worth remembering.
Reeves of Orboros: The Tanith/Reeves Affliction combo, as mentioned above.
Sentry Stones: Since Sentry Stones would rather boost damage than attack die, reducing the DEF to 5 is an excellent tactic. You don't need to worry about in-melee penalties for their sprays, and the chance of hitting the Wild Argus is low since the attack can't get a backstrike bonus against it.
Doppler Bark makes the Wild Argus useful whenever you're using a warlock who doesn't have a MAT fixer and you expect to deal with high-DEF enemies. Because of that, I'll go into specific warlock combinations that stand out to me as having great synergy.
Kaya 1: Spirit Door enables you to move an Wild Argus in, Doppler Bark, and teleport it back so you can do it against without worrying about the Argus. Dropping the DEF of a potential target to 5 makes it easy pickings for our shooting, such as the Reeves, Sentry Stones, Woldwyrd, Pureblood, and Storm Raptor. Also, Kaya 1 can safely use the animus due Spirit Door allowing for a quick retreat. One trick you can do is, on feat turn, Spirit Door next to an enemy, Doppler Bark, feat, and Spirit Door away. It's obviously cost expensive, but using it at the right time can be very powerful. Additionally, Spirit Fang and Doppler Bark on the same target will slow the enemy model to a crawl, although it's usually excessive.
The Wild Argus appreciates the MAT buff that Kaya 1 provides via Pack Hunter for when you want it to hit without using the animus. Unless you're going against very high-DEF models it's not incredibly you'll need to use Doppler Bark for the MAT buff.
Kaya 2: Kaya 2 can pull off the same Doppler Bark trick as Kaya 1 if you're willing to hang Laris back; however, she doesn't have enough FURY for the trick and Shadow Pack, so be careful. Unlike Kaya 1 she appreciates the MAT buff.
Kaya 3: Kaya and the Wild Argus make a good pairing. Fog of War helps him survive on the way in, and free charges/slams from Blood Spiller are equally appreciated. Synergy is amazing - with the Combo Strike it can hit at POW 19, POW 21 if it has Primal on it. It's cheap, and is almost guaranteed to hit its target if it's living if you need its animus, although it isn't necessary. Kaya 3 can make great use of the animus on her feat turn, applying it and Repositioning/Sprinting away afterward. Otherwise, you shouldn't need to use it with her to hit stuff.
Kromac 1: Besides the threat extension and therefore Doppler Bark threat that Warpath provides, Kromac 1 can personally leverage the Bark for his assassination run. As Doppler Bark is an animus, he can cast it while in beast form; combined with his feat, he can make 14 attacks against a DEF 5 model within 13" of him. This will kill many, if not most warlocks/warcasters outright; even buffs are no guarantee of survival due to volume of attacks and applying Wraithbane (the Pureblood's animus) after the bark. You're not likely to be able to pull it off against a careful opponent, but the threat of it is very potent in forcing the enemy's hand.
Kromac 2: Kromac 2 turns the Wild Argus into a miniature killing machine on his feat turn, while Carnage allows it to hit without using Doppler Bark or boosting. Awakened Spirit is also useful on it, although not necessary. Kromac 2 isn't likely to need Doppler Bark to hit due to his high MAT and Carnage, although it's better to use it over Wraithbane or Carnage against DEF-buffed enemies such as Caine 2 or Surefoot'd Kayazy.
Krueger 1: I was a bit hesitant to put Krueger 1 here. He appreciates the hit buff, and Gale Winds brings the Argus' DEF to Caine 2's level against ranged attacks. However, it's Krueger 1's mobility that via Skyborne, he can apply Doppler Bark to various points across the board. It's best if you follow up such a manuever by something game-winning, as Krueger 1 is very fragile, even with such a high DEF.
Krueger 2: Krueger 2 extends the threat range of the Wild Argus, and he appreciates DEF 5 enemies for assassination runs with his gun. Additionally, Doppler Bark has great applications with his feat; an enemy that can't run or charge while affected with a SPD debuff isn't going anywhere. Combined with Rebuke, you can stall a large portion of the enemy army. Due to his mobility (similar to Krueger 1), Krueger 2 can apply Doppler Bark in a variety of areas.
Mohsar: Can I just pretend he doesn't exist? No?
*Sighs*
My distaste for Mohsar notwithstanding, his ability to apply Doppler Bark across the field dwarfs that of Kromac and Krueger. Simply run a infantry model within 2" of an enemy, Sands of Fate said infantry model, and apply the Bark. By doing this, you threat with Doppler Bark at 18", with the only ways to prevent it being preventing Mohsar from casting spells or the enemy killing your infantry models. However, due to Mohsar's stats it's recommend that you either teleprt away or win the game after it's applied after applying the Bark; he has amongst the worst stats in the game and will die if left vulnerable. Additionally, due to his poor stats he's unlikely to be able to melee assassinate most warlocks/warcasters on his own, and his spells are too high-cost to make that a viable outcome either.
Tanith: Tanith is a force multiplier of Circle models, and she works very well with the Wild Argus. Doppler Bark is yet another DEF buff for her arsenal, and Scything Touch brings the Argus' Combo Strike to heavy-warjack levels of POW. Additionally, combining Doppler Bark with Affliction makes the Reeves/Affliction combination extremely potent - as you're almost guaranteed to hit an opponent with both on them, and 22 points of damage is never something to sneeze at.
Unit/Model Synergy
Not much to it; if you want to be able to hit something high-DEF with your models/units, take the Wild Argus. There are a few special cases below.
Cavalry Models: If you're like me, you hate depending on Impact Attacks to reach your charge target. The Wild Argus/Doppler Bark is the answer to your problem, although it's not easy to set up.
Druids of Orboros: Besides allowing the Druids to hit reliably even while their target is engaged, you can use Wind Strike to push back an enemy model outside of walking distance of the Wild Argus (or whatever) after they've been hit by Doppler Bark. It's not exactly points effective due to the low volume of attack and the difficulty of setting it up, but it's still worth remembering.
Reeves of Orboros: The Tanith/Reeves Affliction combo, as mentioned above.
Sentry Stones: Since Sentry Stones would rather boost damage than attack die, reducing the DEF to 5 is an excellent tactic. You don't need to worry about in-melee penalties for their sprays, and the chance of hitting the Wild Argus is low since the attack can't get a backstrike bonus against it.