Age of Sigmar: Sewer Masters – 3 Incredible Things in the Skaven Battletome
It might be the Year of the Tiger, but it’s at least the month of the Rat.
I have loved the Skaven since the days of Warhammer Fantasy; they were one of my first armies, and easily my favorite thematically. Unfortunately, Age of Sigmar was not kind to the ratmen, and almost since the inception of the game, they have been gutter tier. Still, I loved them, and when I saw that they were the “off” codex for the new battlebox pairing, I braced myself for the worst. I have never been so happy to be wrong. While I can’t promise they’ll be top table, there are definitely a few things in the new book that will bring them into their verminous own at long last.
New Battleline
One thing I always loved about Skaven is that, while they canonically despise each other, you could build an army composed of all the clans to fill in any gaps. Age of Sigmar changed how that worked, making you focus on a single clan to get their Battlelines for the tax. The new book brings us back to our Under-Empire roots, allowing Skaven players to bring certain clan-aligned units as Battleline for every clan hero you bring along. While you still get more fun things for focusing on a single clan, allowing players to play a more varied list without worrying about tax is an amazing change.
“Strength in Numbers” Update
Before 3.0, Skaven were rewarded for bringing massive units by getting buffs to their Hit and Wound rolls. Unfortunately, 3.0 gutted all hordes armies with their reinforcement restrictions, and the Skaven suffered greatly with their heavily diminished numbers. While the new book doesn’t increase what they can bring to the table (which I’m a little salty about) it does solidify their skills at a higher level. The exciting thing, however, is that every 10 models in a unit now adds range to the weapons they’re wielding, representing Skaven hordes piling on their enemies like…well, like rats. I think this is the best thing they could do without backtracking on their reinforcement caps, and it’s awesome thematically as well.
New Hero Rules
The way clans work has dramatically changed in the new book. While heroes can still select unique weapons and traits, they also get clan-specific powers and skills that help the playstyle their clan is known for. What’s more, the more heroes you bring from a specific clan, the more powerful those buffs become. Skryre gets extra sparks to buff their units, Moulder can make their beasts deadlier, and Eshin warriors become absolute killing machines. You still get buffs for bringing just one, allowing you to spread the love, but if you focus, you will be rewarded with extra sauce.
