Introduction
Hey everyone, I’m truly sorry for the lack of updates recently. I haven’t been playing much Cryx the past few months and to be truly honest, haven’t really felt motivated to write blog posts either. But what better reason to write something anyway, than the lists for the Virtual Team Championship being released!
I’m sure by now most, if not all, of you have already heard that the current pandemic has forced the WTC to be cancelled, which is of course very sad. Luckily, the good people at Knightsmachine have stepped up and are offering a virtual event to somewhat fill the void. It will be held using Wartable, which has been built, basically from the ground up, to accommodate.
You can find all the lists at https://knightsmachine.com/blogs/news/vtc-lists, or at https://conflictchamber.com/?event=1293, but note that the latter isn’t entirely correct as some models were not available at list-lock.
Stat breakdown
At the moment of writing, the Conflict Chamber event page is unavailable, so I can’t do much in the way of a stat breakdown, but
It is certainly worth noting that 7 9 out of the 8 10 following list have Asphyxious 4 in them, and the last one literally can’t have him, because it’s Asphyxious 3.
I really like the addition of this model to the faction, because it does breathe some new (un)life into it, but it might be just a tad worrying that he’s everywhere, and that’s not even looking at Mercenaries.
The Void Archon makes 5 out of 8 10 appearances.
Aside from that, our most used models are the Necrotech at 12 pops, which is not that strange as you can get 3 for 1 Requisition Point in 6 of the lists played. Following are the Stalker at 11 inclusions, of which 7 are in the same list. The Deathripper, as our cheapest arc node closes out the top 3, at 10.
Other notable mentions are the Warwitch Siren, Machine Wraith and aforementioned Asphyxious 4, each being included 9 times.
1 team (Australia) actually brings 2 Cryx players, which is a great way to inspire some confidence in the faction, though in total there are only 4 5 people playing Cryx, which is slightly disappointing. Surprisingly, Skarre 1 is not present, perhaps because people got bored of her Only 1 list features Skarre 1, and both Scaverous and Skarre 3 make 2 appearances. This is probably not too surprising as they are both good generalist casters and both speed up Asphyxious 4 to scary levels.
Australia – Quokka Soccer
Scaverous BI / Skarre3 SotBC
A pair I could see myself playing. Both are fairly resilient against shooting and bring some of our cool new toys, like the Void Archon and Asphyxious 4.
Both can turn up Asphyxious to 11; Skarre with Dash, Dark Waves and potentially even Draconic Blessing, and Scaverous with Telekinesis of course, and potentially Death Ward or an additional ARM debuff through Feast of Worms. As such, I think bullying the table with the latest incarnation of our Lich Lord is going to be one of the major game plans.
On the other hand, I’m not entirely sure if I like the Scaverous list as a whole; with only a handful of work models it’s going to really need to get a lot of work done between them. Then again, Scaverous is of course in the perfect position to capitalize should the opponent make a mistake, be it by going for assassination or cheating out a scenario win.
I do appreciate that the Void Archon can collect souls as the Cutthroats die and is also no slouch that can get into very uncomfortable places, especially with a TK caster.
The specific Skarre list isn’t entirely up my alley either, as it has very little in the way of infantry, so there are less Sucker! targets and not so much attrition potential. It also plays 2 Leviathans, which I can appreciate for their potential to hunt valuable opposing models *cough*Archons*cough*, but their potential to low roll has always made me feel bad about including them in my lists.
There are a lot of tools available in general though, such as Guidance, repairing models, clouds, best sprays in the game, and, as said, the far-reaching threats of Asphyxious and Kharybdis. The list will force the opponent to close due to its respectable shooting, then strike hard and fast, and afterwards mop up the survivors if necessary.
I’m a sucker for Cankerworm so the addition of this nifty little jack scores at least one extra point from me.
Goreshade1 BI / Mortenebra2 BI
I’m going to be honest and say that I don’t really get that Goreshade list, which may be this player’s intention in the first place. It’s in Black Industries, which gives it access to Carapace, all the character heavies, and another Merc unit in addition to Lich4, but it doesn’t seem to be capitalizing on those advantages. Goreshade can already trivially give his battle group Stealth and there’s only 2 heavies anyway. Then on top of that, there’s Asphyxious, who, among other things, can provide Dark Shroud, which is also rather redundant. It’s nice to not have to Shadowmancer every turn, but even then, there’s still the Bane Warriors from the feat.
The Withershadow Combine is great in general, but a bit overcosted, especially if you don’t have any great spells to Spell Slave.
I could see myself playing a version of this in Scourge of the Broken Coast, and have, where Gang Fighter synergises well with the battle group and the Blood Priestess provides the free upkeep you want from the WSC. However, I’m not sure of the niche this list is trying to fill.
The Mortenabra list, while an unconventional caster, does have some potential. Deathjack can provide the double Locomotion, Asphyxious is there to provide Blood Thirst and/or Dark Shroud with his fast Shrike, and Kharydbis goes naturally far. The Slayer is a good model to start piece trading with and an extra one to benefit from Carapace. The Stalkers are fast and can get to uncomfortable places, especially for/with the feat.
In general, I think the latter will be the main drop, looking for the assassination, and maybe Goreshade is actually there to throw people off?
England – Lions
Scaverous1 BI / Deneghra1 SotBC
Another Scaverous, which is actually fairly similar to what we saw before. I personally really like Deathjack here, but I can see the appeal of splitting the footprint out in 2 cheaper heavies over the single one. The list has 3 heavies in total, as well as clouds on demand, which should give shooty opponents some pause.
Again, the list will attempt to bully the table between Asphyxious and the Void Archon, while skirmishing with the Cutthroats to draw in the unwary.
The Deneghra list appears to be the one that will blend infantry, with the fast Raiders and potentially some Overlords, not to mention Gerlak, as a second wave. There’s also the Void Archon, and again Asphyxious, to contend with. This list can also make some cheeky plays with a surprise Dark Seduction, and as always has the ever looming threat of the back breaking feat.
On top of that, Dark Seduction can really surprise a number of meta-relevant models out there, so it is not to be slept on. Opponents will usually keep said models out of harm’s way, and it might not be worth sacrificing an arc node for, but the threat of it is a psychological advantage.
I must say that I do very much like Deneghra in Scourge in general. Axiara’s Reposition can really help you to dig deep with the feat and still stay relatively safe, you get Stygius as a good Spell Slave, or the Blood Priestess for Sucker! if you don’t feel quite safe enough. A Misery Cage for that extra focus in a pinch is also always nice and the infantry in the theme is very versatile which leaves you with lots of list building options.
The only remark I would make is that it’s perhaps a bit too much infantry hate, especially with double Overlords, but I can definitely see the niche that this is trying to fill.
All in all, I do like this pair; both lists have a clear game plan and can cover some of each other’s weaknesses.
Ukraine – Boars
Asphyxious3 BI / Skarre3 DH
I’m not entirely sure why the Corruptor, but for the rest I do appreciate this Asphyxious list. The Desecrator is a decent tech piece that is immune to knockdown and the Inflictor is extra tanky over a regular Slayer. The inclusion of Darragh, even though he is great in his own right, indicates that this list will probably try to tank anything it can’t outthreat.
The Overlords and Void Archon are also useful tech pieces here, especially with the latter feeding off the former and potentially supplying anti-healing.
Gurglepox’s Leadership doesn’t do much here, but he’s still a useful solo that can get some work done even when he’s not arcing spells.
Skarre 3 in Dark Host is also an intriguing build for me. Between Dash and Death Ride, Banes are suddenly quite fast, and still hit hard. Their main weakness of having relatively low MAT of course still exists, but the cavalry can help a bit with more evasive targets. Unhallowed from the Wraith Engines coupled with Deceleration can make these units frustratingly hard to deal with at range. And after all that, there’s Asphyxious again to take advantage of Dash/Dark Waves, and he even brought along a Diffuser to potentially extend threat ranges even higher. Its only RAT 3 here, but a boostable Lucky gun still has a fair chance of hitting a lot of things, not to mention your opponent can’t just count on the fact that it’ll miss, so needs to keep it into account.
The Irregulars
I hear there’s another team coming with, as of yet, unknown members, so perhaps there is a Cryx player among them. If there is, I promise to update this space with more info.
Well, I promised, and I intend to deliver; the final team does turn out to have a Cryx player, featuring a brace of Skarres.
Skarre 1 SotBC / Skarre 2 SotBC
Skarre 1 brings about the maximum amount of Stalkers, Asphyxious 4 and some support. Note that Asphyxious himself has a Deathripper, which can be useful for simply sniping out a valuable solo somewhere with Hellfire.
Gunslingers, and Severa, are there to do some early skirmishing and unjam the Stalkers if need be. Stygius will most likely be sacrificing Asphyxious’s bots, or possible the Dirge Seers if they happen to be too far, as well as healing up Skarre post-feat.
This list intends to hit fast and hard, and hope it does enough damage to survive the retaliation, because outside of Asphyxious, there doesn’t seem to be a lot in the way of second wave. 1 or 2 of Aiakos’s Stalkers might end up as bait to set up for a good feat turn; he has 3 anyway and they’re the most threatening pieces on the board, besides the Lich.
If the first list is the sledge hammer, the second is more of an anvil. The Blockader can fully benefit from Black Spot, so should make short work of any infantry in its way. Death Ward and the feat will hopefully be able to keep it safe while it does its job. Barathrum is an excellent addition to the list, as a great Admonition target and a decent beater that also benefits greatly from the feat. Can get into awkward places with Drag Below as well. Asphyxious with this kind of feat will also be a massive pain to deal with for the opponent.
It again features the gunslinger package as a way to allow the Blockader to do its work and take care of some early pests.
I miss having a Void Archon here, but points are tight, and there’s not a lot of friendly souls to go around anyway. I also really like having the Blood Hag available for the Witches, but again, points are tight and just having something in Ambush is probably more valuable than having the bells and whistles.
The list is very low on models, so if the Blockader can get crippled before pulling its weight, Skarre will struggle to claw back into the game.
I like this pair, and I’ve always had a soft spot for Skarre 2; the first list can play into a wide array of the field, and if it doesn’t look good for the Pirate Queen, our Queen of the Broken Coast can always try to grind it out.
Summary
Not that many lists to discuss this year. That’s not entirely surprising, seeing as there’s only 20 teams, 100 people, as opposed to literally hundreds of players that usually attend the WTC. Still, Cryx seems a little underrepresented, while Mercenaries might be slightly overrepresented.
At least they have Strange Bedfellows and Fiona, which are both amply present, which is kind of like Cryx, right?
That being said, there’s definitely some unexpected builds included this year, at least not seeing Skarre 1/Stalkers/Slayers literally everywhere feels like a breath of fresh air. We’ll have to wait and see how the faction performs this year, but I do have high expectations of some of these players (no pressure).
If you have any questions, remarks, or clarifications, feel free to contact me through any channel you can think of.
Smeerlapperij 