Do I want a change?

I have a bit of a dilemma going into round 4 of the clubs Slow Grow league. We can change warcaster/warlock and swap out 10 points of the force that we’ve all built up over the previous rounds. The latter was quite easy for me as I have taken out the Spitter and Feralgeist and changed it for my second Wrastler. That was an easy decision for me to make as I don’t think the Spitter has quite got what it takes. Ok the ranged attack is pretty good and can be devastating, but everything else about it is just meh. So the second Wrastler comes in for some more heavy hitting power. I’m hoping that I can use this change to be a bit more aggressive in my play style, and leave my conservative style behind (maybe).

Back to the tricky bit; the option to change caster/lock. There is no need to change, but I have all three of the Gatorman Warlocks available to me. They all have the same amount of warbeast points so do not affect the composition of my 35 point army at all, but they may affect the final 50 point list due to their Tiered options. So here’s what I’m thinking of at the moment;

 Bloody Barnabas: My starting Warlock. He comes from the Mikael Kreoss School of Feating and can be a tough nut to crack with the likes of Iron Flesh (on himself or a beast) and can mobilise his beasts with Warpath. I like him a lot. Already painted up, although has got a chip on his snout (Gators have snouts don’t they?). The Feat alone should be golden against high Def models.

 Calaban, The Grave Walker: I moved him in for the Fluff Week game (and managed a second game with him the week before). I really enjoyed his feat and the damage it can cause. I like the debuffs to opponents and the chance of turning them into Arc Nodes with his ranged attack. Definitely a lot of fun.

 Maelok, the Dreadbound: The unknown quantity for me as I have barely broke him out of the blister. Can make tough troops stupidly tough and bring them back. Revive is fast becoming my favourite spell with Mordikaar and the fact that Maelok has this, makes me really want to field him. Testament of Menoth as well, but that’s for another post. I think the challenge for Maelok would be to use Revive effectively as, unless he stuff is killed close to him, he is just not going to be able to gain as many additional fury like Mordi can. If he upkeeps Death Pact and Malediction, then he only has the chance to Revive one Gator.

In short, I’m excited about using all three. If I look at it practically, Barny and Calaban are fully painted, but Maelok needs work over this coming weekend. As Marcus (whom I played in my last game – he took Maelok) told me last time, Maelok is a bitch to paint. Which isn’t good news for me.  With regard to the Slow Grow League, the differences would show at the 50 point level where the Tiers all differ from each other; things like Barny’s cheaper warbeasts or Calaban’s Bone Grinders (which are painted). Maelok’s Tier list would only really begin to feel good when the Witch Doctor models are released in a couple of months’ time. One thing is for sure, I’ll be throwing Wrongeye and Snapjaw into the mix. I’ve wanted to use them for some time and would like to see them in action. I did think about Bog Trogs and the threat they pose, but I think they don’t quite have a place in any of these warlock’s 50 point lists.

Not an easy decision for me to make going into Round 4; my head and heart keep changing their minds. I may just end up rolling a dice.