Skaven LOS

[Ullis]

Later on in the team development, when the Gutters have some skills (Block, Strip Ball, Wrestle etc) the pressure will be the Storms a little and maybe I can afford to strengthen up the LOS with them. This is just how I see it, I may very well be wide of the mark, as this is my first outing with the Rats.

Then you'll have Guard etc. on the Stormvermin. The great thing compared to other AG teams (elves) is that they have access to S skills. Guard has really good synergy with the ninja skills the GR's are gonna be picking up. The problem with the Stormvermin is that they're only S3 and AG3. That means that they can't really work on their own and you want to avoid dodging with them if possible.

I've given up the LOS as a lost cause for Skaven. Against other AG teams you could try and put a Rat Ogre on the LOS, but otherwise you've got to keep him back as well as he's only AV8. Playing with 9 or 10 players is a fact of life for any AV7 team.

[mattgslater]

There's one time you want to put a Stormvermin on the line: when your SV has Guard and your opponent has no Guard and no ST4+, like some elf teams and rookie Amazons/Skaven. Otherwise, don't bother.

And even then, it requires that you flank the line with at least two one-back linebackers (and practicality says you need two on each side unless your opponent is depleted). I don't usually do that with Rats, but against an elf team it can make sense. GRs actually make good linebackers if the opponent lacks Tackle, esp. if they're set up somewhere the oppo can get an easy assist at ST3, as in that case ST3 is the same thing.

[whitetiger]

Skaven need to play a bit like good Dark Elf teams play. A bit bashy against other Agility teams. Agility against bash teams. So, if you're playing an Agility team, sure, put your SV on the line to help bust a hole for your GRs up the middle. But if you're playing any kind of bash team, don't even think of putting them there. They'll just get the crap kicked out of them. You'll have to flank the LOS. Use the SV to blitz and make a hole and send the GRs through there.

Of course, you could always put those GRs on the line. I hear Rat meat tastes like chicken.

[mattgslater]

Veteran Skaven vs. rookie Dwarfs. There's another: often in perpetual leagues rookie Dwarfs will look to cut their teeth on low-AV dodge-heavy teams, and will thus sometimes challenge steeply superior Skaven. As if you needed any help under those conditions, a skilled Stormvermin at Nose Tackle can beat new (or new-ish) Dwarfs at their own game with a little support and really keep the body count under control. If the Dwarfs can't muster any Guard and don't have a SW to kill you with, you can use SV on the line to reduce your body count significantly, as you know he's going to be hitting you with Block and probably not much MB. At an advantage like that, you should be able to keep drives short by scoring every other turn, and that will minimize fouling. This works long as you don't go down numerically, and StormVermin are good for that vs. ST3/Block teams, especially if they have Guard and Stand Firm (good SV skills anyway) and are flanked with Wrestle Linerats.

But once those Dwarfs start bumping up their Longbeards, that strategy goes out the window, as a little Guard will always eat your line no matter what you put up. Sorry.