Are cheapo Wulfen an option?

[ranulf the revenant]

Hello fellow Wolflords,

 

I recently watched a tactics video on Wulfen and Thunderwolf Cavalry (Anvil of War), and the guy was very much against taking Wulfen with just the Wulfen Claws. Which kind of got me thinking... What if he's wrong

[Triszin]

I think with the introduction of assault ints, wulfen claw max builds aren't as good

[TiguriusX]

I view each unit in my army as a tool in my tool kit.

It has a specific job or set of jobs I need it to do.

 

I also weigh the pros/cons of taking that unit instead of another unit

 

 

 

What do you want the wulfen to do for you? 

 

What do S5 AP2 D1 buckets of dice accomplish for you?  Is that a dedicated troop killer?

 

Are there better alternatives?  

[ranulf the revenant]

Yeah, well, I don't know, for me it's mostly theory since I'm lacking in experience. I was maybe thinking about taking multiple small units and putting pressure on my opponent on various points of the battlefield. So target saturation in a way. Maybe they're actually still to expensive for that role, that's certainly a possibility.

I guess my argument is that even in their cheapest configuration they are still a considerable threat for a lot of things. I'd recon their more or less on par with blade guard veterans damage wise (considering the Frost Claws on the leader), give or take, for 10 pts less. They're obviously less survivable without access to transhuman physiology and the worse save, I get that.

They're biggest competitor would probably be the Assault Intercessors who have a different kind of value as troops though?

On the other hand Wulfen are still a bit faster then all the power armoured units, but I don't know how much of a difference that makes.

...Hmmm. Like I said, it's all theory for me at this point, and I'm open for opinions ☺️.

Edited December 23, 2020 by ranulf the revenant

[Axilleas]

I think they have some utility value as a source of charge rerolls, especially if you've got a decent amount of bloodclaws. If you can sufficiently hide them as they move up the board, then I'd imagine the utility would be worth their points and any killiness would just be bonus.

[Dark Shepherd]

Id go slightly harder and go all Frost Claws for 150 points. On average theyd kill 8 marines/do 16 wounds on the charge against T4 3+

 

A couple of units would cause major mayhem if you wanted to spam them. Even one On The Hunt is a serious threat albeit a 50/50 charge chance even with reroll

 

I think the nuisance is everyone built them with hammers and shields, maybe a few axes

[TiguriusX]

A 5 man squad with wulfen frost claws is 150

 

That squad by itself isn't a death star to take on anything it faces...so what is the combo to make it better?

 

Wulfen aren't core so you can't buff them like other units with rerolls or litanies

 

The next question is what are you investing 150 points to accomplish?

 

You can get 4 BGV for less and they annihilate marines too while providing superior defense.

 

You could get a jump WG squad with LC/SS for less than that wulfen squad and add mobility over BGV by trading d2 swords for rerolling LCs

 

The major item wulfen provide is a reroll aura but you can use a wulfen stone of company champion with WL trait (or even ragnar) to add it to the army.

 

The wulfen opportunity cost is the problem IMO

[Dark Shepherd]

Wulfen are far cooler and better looking than BGV and faster :). Plus Wulfen are liable to go down in points if anything, BGV will definitely go up

 

Theyre not in my list any more but for non tournament games they be ok as an autonomous unit or at worst enjoyable to field. Theyll blend MEQs, will scare opponent, and absolutely have to be dealt with. And not everything can hover around a Chaplain for charge buffs

 

Theres some nasty, nasty combos that can be done with Wulfen as a successor chapter too eg triple exploding 6s

 

Edit: 6s = 3 hits

Edited December 24, 2020 by Dark Shepherd

[Squark]

Theres some nasty, nasty combos that can be done with Wulfen as a successor chapter too eg triple exploding 6s

Not until Turn 3 or they change the wording.

 

As for Wulfen... at their current price, they're too fragile, and too expensive to be running around with D1 weapons. If their price dropped, things could change but then we'd have to see what happens to Custodes and Harlequins (and Death Guard, once their codex hits; Disgusting resilience will almost certainly make them the third gatekeeper in the metagame) to decide what loadout.

Edited December 23, 2020 by Squark

[CCE1981]

Looking at Wulfen, I can’t justify their cost unless I am using them to re-roll charge rolls for Blood Claw or SkyClaw units. If I’m not taking two of those units I can’t justify the cost of Wolfen in my army. With all of that i have a giant swarm yo hit my opponent.

[Dark Shepherd]

 

Theres some nasty, nasty combos that can be done with Wulfen as a successor chapter too eg triple exploding 6s

Not until Turn 3 or they change the wording.

.

Nope, its in their datasheet wording.

All their attacks are always treated as is assault doctrine is active for the ARMY not unit (unlike various strats)

 

117% hit rate on the charge for claws/axes with successor traits of plus one to hit and exploding sixes

Edited December 24, 2020 by Dark Shepherd

[Axilleas]

 

 

Theres some nasty, nasty combos that can be done with Wulfen as a successor chapter too eg triple exploding 6s

Not until Turn 3 or they change the wording.

.

Nope, its in their datasheet wording.

All their attacks are always treated as is assault doctrine is active for the ARMY not unit (unlike various strats)

 

117% hit rate on the charge for claws/axes with successor traits of plus one to hit and exploding sixes

I would think that combo of abilities would just make an already fragile unit even more of a target priority. I can only see wulfen finding any chance of success if they present themselves as a lower threat compared to what else you have charging into the enemy.

[Dark Shepherd]

They (with claws) would really need to wrap and trap or consolidate out of sight/into cover or at the very least tag other targets to get full utility

 

They sure aint the most survivable distraction Carnifax of all time