Age of Sigmar: Cold-Hearted Snake – A Review of the Melusai Ironscale
With the new Daughters of Khaine book officially out, the Melusai have really come into their own.
Since we’ve had the DoK book for a while, the changes have had time to marinate, and frankly I’m happy with some of the changes. Sure there have been a few nerfs (losing the horde discount was a little painful), but for the most part, things seem good for the future of the murder ladies. One stand-out for me is the Melusai Ironscale, the new hero from the Shadow and Pain box, who brings a powerful bit of serpentine thunder to the standard roster.
The first thing about the Ironscale that I love is that she makes other Melusai battleline if she is taken as the general. This is great because it means you don’t have to bring a Bloodwrack to run a full snake list (though with her updates in this book, I would advise giving her a look), and you can go full melee with your army. She got her own command trait table that allows her to use her command ability once for free, increase her armor save, or generate an extra command point every turn. She makes a great general with her ability, which allows a nearby Melusai unit to run and shoot and/or charge in the same turn, as well as add an extra d6 to their run roll, and if she kills any models in the combat phase, nearby Melusai increase their attacks by 1. And even if she doesn’t kill them right away, she can throw out an extra mortal wound at the end of the combat phase on a 3+, possibly offing a pesky hero.
However, she will PROBABLY kill whatever you point her at, especially with the proper equipment. Her bladed Keldrisaith can both shoot and slice, both with three attacks that hit and wound on a 3+ with a -1 save, but the shooting attack only does 1 damage while the melee phase does d3. However, if she shoots and charges in the same turn, she can potentially lay down 12 wounds, especially if you hit her with her own command ability and allow her to run and still shoot and charge. The Shadracar’s Fang is an artefact of special note for her, allowing her weapon to hit on a 2+ and dealing out an extra mortal wound on a natural 6. If you want a super-powerful melee character to lead your snakes into battle, this is the general for you.
