VCandUD_review_UndeadCoreAndBSB

The Vampire Covenant army book was perceived to be just a little below the desired power level. So, whereas most of the changes are for internal balance, overall the army was made a little more competitive. Here is a look into some of the upcoming changes and the reasons behind them.1. In order to improve the VC core units, there will be some minor changes. One, a new weapon option will be available for skeletons so that there will be more than one type of combat unit design in core. Also, ghouls will see an increase in Initiative, which we felt would help them be more distinct from other units and fulfill a distinctive role in the army.2. The Court of the Damned has rarely been used, so it is being moved into the Special section. Also, it was designed to fill a new purpose in the army, which is to be another buff wagon, but with completely new ability.3. We didn't like that the Varkolak was such an obvious choice (we are trying to avoid auto-include units), so part of one of its abilities have been changed to an upgrade. As a result, you will still be able to play the Varkolak as it is now, but will pay slightly more and will not be able to take further upgrades.4. Barrow Knights were designed to be very cheap for the first 5, and more expensive for additional models. We wanted to make them useful for something other than a character delivery system, so Invocation was changed to increase their survivability.5. We felt that Ghasts were a little overpriced and that they worked well only with the Altar of Undeath. So, they are receiving a minor point decrease and will synergize better with one of the bloodlines.6. In the interest of the internal balance of the army, Vampire Knights are receiving a slight point increase for basic vampires and a reduction by the same amount for the bloodline option. Also, we reduced its invocation rate. Also, the minimum size for this unit is being reduced, which will provide a cheap and resilient scoring 7. The Shrieking Horror’s performance declined sharply when wounded, which made it an unpopular choice. So, we have stabilized its power by improving its scream when it has few remaining wounds. This benefit comes with a slight price increase, as now the shriek is undoubtedly better.8. The Black Coach will have an option that, among other things, will allow it to be used on a larger base (50x150). This change was requested by the community because for players using the old GW model , there was a problem in that it would not fit on a smaller base. Additionally, the Wraith is being streamlined with all other wraiths in the army.9. Both foot and mounted Wraiths are being compiled into one unit , with some characteristics from the previous mounted ones, and some characteristics from the previous foot ones. This change is due to simplicity and to balance both options.10. Winged Reapers will be cheaper and have improved combat skills, but will lose some rules in return. The reason for this change is that they were an unpopular choice, and we felt that they needed to be improved for better internal balance.11. Many in the community felt that the Banshee did not work very well. Therefore, its role has been redefined to help deal with things that up to now we could handle only with small magic missiles. Having more options in these situations will allow greater flexibility in our magic phase 12. There will be several changes in the Bloodline system. Some powers are being removed; some are being added. There will be no more flying strigoi , but this will be replaced with something that has been highly requested by the community. One of the Lamia powers will be replaced too, as well as the big Nosferatu power.13. The BSB of the undead will become more helpful to big units by giving bigger bonuses for units that have more ranks. This change across both of the undead army books is intended to make the BSB a more useful – and therefore more frequently taken – upgrade.14. Since the reform of magic, VC armies suffered excessively from a bad roll for the winds of magic in key turns. Players will now be able to take a new magic item and a new nosferatu power that will help them gain stability in the magic phase 15. The Monstrous Revenant will be receiving new options to make it a more versatile mount.16. The Path of Necromancy will be a more attractive choice with a new spell and the return of an old acquaintance (for those players who used to play a now-dead fantasy game).You can listen to an audio recording when changes to the VC and UD books were discussed.Snapshot for UD and VC about Undead Core and BSB:Please keep in mind that the issues and proposals discussed in those recordings may not always reflect the latest rules update you will see when we finally release the armybook, but we hope it will give you nevertheless an interesting sneak peak.