The Best Value Heroes You Never See? – My Next Army Is Full Of Them

My loyal followers will note that in some of my previous blog articles, I have written at length about

my storied exploits with a Théodred’s Guard Army at a range of events. Now, sadly, almost exactly a year and 55 tournament games (with a record of 45 wins, 3 draw and 7 defeats) later, it may be time to move on. I actually still enjoy using them, and they have served me well; a roll-call of their success includes three 3rd place podiums, three 2nd place podiums, and four event wins (many of which helped me to claim the Great British Hobbit League [GBHL] Championship in 2021). I am, however,ready for the next chapter, and I’ve been looking to explore other ideas.

Something Unique

I have been referred to by some as a kind of callipygian hobby hipster when it comes to my armies of choice. Rather than following the trends, I revel in trying to come up with something unique that I rarely see used on the Top Tables. This is what inspired some of my previous choices in recent time, for example Théodred’s Guard, or a Morgul Stalker-heavy Mordor List. There is something to be said for the achievement of winning, but I find it more rewarding if you can do it with an Army no one else has done it with before.

I have had one such List waiting in the wings; I devoted a large portion of the COVID lockdowns here in the UK to building and painting it up. It also includes one of my all-time favourite (and criminally underrated) Heroes, but I think now is his time to shine…

Eorl The Young

Eorl the Young is a Character, Model, and Profile that I love. He featured in one of my favourite early sourcebooks – ‘A Shadow in the East’. Since then, I have had a soft spot for the founder of Rohan. However, I have not yet fielded an army with him in. That is about to change.

The Most Underrated Hero In The Game?

I honestly believe Eorl to have one of the best Profiles in the Rohan Army List. With a great Stat-line, he is up there with the best Heroes Rohan has to offer, arguably only just outshone by the more-expensive Éomer (once equipment is factored in).

Like Éomer, he has 4 Attacks at Strength 5 on the charge, and can easily strike fear into most models; he’ll even mow Defence 7 Dwarves down quickly. He has Defence 7 himself, and with 3 Wounds he constitutes a pretty tough model. He is only slightly let down with 2 Will and 2 Fate; not bad, but not great. However, Eorl has some extra interesting features. A 12” Move means you can keep pace with the fastest units in the Game, or make those extra-long Charges round a flank. Whilst he may not have been granted the rank of Hero of Legend, he is a Legendary Hero, and this Special Rule bequeaths unto him the potential to get free points of Might.

Lastly, he has one of the best sets of Heroic Actions you could hope for, featuring Heroic Strike, and Heroic Defence. Equipped with a Throwing Spear, I believe he is a bargain for 115 Points. Additionally, he makes the Sons of Eorl into monsters, but I’ll get to that later.

Why Don’t We See Him?

I believe the reason that Eorl doesn’t frequently feature on the Tabletop is pretty simple – if you wish to keep your Army Bonus with him, you must adhere to one of the strictest Army roster limitations in the Game (outside of Legendary Legions [LL]); no other named Heroes can be included, and it is only possible to ally to Minas Tirith. This means that you cut yourself off from a lot of other Models and Profiles that players like to use.

Sons Of Eorl

Clearly Eorl the Young was a very promiscuous individual to produce this many Sons, although I suspect the name of this Model is referring to some title or rank, rather than a direct relative (although you never know, he’s a good-looking Model after all).

In this Edition, Sons of Eorl are another Profile that rarely seems to grace the Tabletop. They have a pretty impressive Stat-line, with a base Fight Value 4, Defence 6, Courage 4 and Strength 4, whilst mounted upon an Armoured Horse they are a solid heavy-cavalry option. They are usually beaten out by mounted Rohan Royal Guard (in the standard Rohan List) as they are cheaper, get the Bodyguard Special Rule, and with Théoden around they can reach Fight Value 5 when charging.

However, as soon as they appear in a List with Eorl the Young, this calvary unit suddenly becomes one of the heaviest hitting troop options in the Game, as they increase to 2 Attacks (base) when within 6” of him. This bequeaths them a mighty 3 Attacks when charging, at Strength 5 no less (thanks to the Army Bonus – and you can even Piercing Strike to reach Strength 6). This means that anything they hit and win Combat against will likely die, and the Sons of Eorl have the Fight Value and number of Attacks to make that a reliable outcome. Even if they lose their Horse, a potential 2 Attack, Strength 4, Defence 6 model on foot is still a handful to deal with.

Why Don’t We See Them?

Put simply, I believe these models are only really worth it in a List with Eorl the Young, and as I previously mentioned, you don’t often see him (meaning these models follow the same fate).

Kings Of Men

Rather than sticking to pure Rohan, my plan is a rather themed one, and is based on The Battle at the Field of Celebrant. It was here that Eorl and his riders responded to the appeal for aid from the Steward of Gondor, turning the tide against the Wainriders from the East. This act led to the gift of lands by the King to Eorl the Young, and the founding of Rohan.

A King of Men is not to be confused with myself, the King of Just A Men. It is essentially a buffed version of a Captain of Minas Tirith in many ways, and is the source of Heroic March in my Lists. With Fight Value 5, they have the edge over many unnamed (and even named) Heroes of some Races. Combined with a Horse and Lance, the Model can also pack a hefty punch when required to. Rather uniquely for an unnamed Hero, the King of Men also has Heroic Defence, which I find to be one of the more useful Heroic Actions. The ability to act as a speed bump for a couple of Turns against big threats like Azog can help to contain them until you’re ready to deal with them effectively.

Kings of Men are also one of the Profiles that received a bump in their Heroic Tier in the FAQs. Now a Hero of Valour, the extra few troops they can lead provides more flexibility for List-building, and even means he could be the Leader of my force (if I wanted him to be).

Why Don’t We See Them?

The King of Men is a Profile that again is rarely seen, but a solid Profile nonetheless (are you sensing a pattern here?). This is because much like Eorl, he is a ‘time-locked’ Profile, and his inclusion prohibits you from taking any of the other named Heroes in the Minas Tirith Army List. However, this is not an issue when being allied to Eorl from Rohan, as they exist as Historical Allies, but it will remain an issue for your normal Minas Tirith Lists.

Knights Of The White Tower

One of the issues in fielding an Army with only a single named Hero is that it often results in the List being limited to only having one Model with Heroic Strike. Luckily for me, Minas Tirith is one of the Lists that has access to an unnamed Hero with that Heroic Action; the Knight of the White Tower.

Coming in around the cost of many of the smaller 3 Might Heroes in the Minas Tirith List, this unit often struggles to find a place in most Armies. However, once you do get passed the only having 2 Might issue, these guys have the potential to catch people out. Fight Value 5 is again a very solid base; it’s combination with Heroic Strike and the Mighty Blow Special Rule (if going 2-handed) means these guys can quite easily take down a mid-level Hero. Whilst not Burly, they do get to keep a natural roll of a 6 on the dice to win Combat, making this a ready prospect.

Why don’t we see them?

Simply put, there isn’t normally the need for an unnamed Hero with Heroic Strike in a normal Minas Tirith List. Nearly all the Leaders in the List (Boromir/Aragorn/Gandalf), and at least one other named Hero (like a Hurin or Faramir) possess Heroic Strike too, leaving a Knight of the White Tower potentially further down the pecking order.

King’s Huntsman

This is possibly the most debatable inclusion in my List. Whilst the other Models aren’t often criticised much as Profiles (but are instead overlooked for various other reasons), the King’s Huntsman is one I don’t see much, and only really hear negative things about when you ask another player. So, why I am considering him?

Simply put, he fills a role in my List I don’t otherwise have, and may end up having use for. The ability to take out Mounts is a potentially invaluable one. Thanks to his Master Archer Special Rule, he can pass all In-The-Way tests on a 2+. This means it’s fairly reliable to hit the Mount, and with 2 Might backing up a Strength 3 Longbow, you have a very good chance of taking that Mount out from under them. It’s worth mentioning that you need to declare before you Shoot if you are targeting the Mount or the Rider for the 2+ In-The-Way to apply (as per the FAQ). He also brings Heroic Accuracy to the List, which certainly can have its uses, and is a nice option to have.

The King’s Huntsman also has an interesting trick up his sleeve. If he slays an enemy Hero or Monster, he regains all his Might. This applies to both Combat and ranged kills. So if you are facing an enemy Hero with 1 Wound and low Fate, it may be worth burning his Might to boost up that Wound roll, as you will likely get it back anyway. If you can team him up with another Model or Hero, he can also potentially take out a Hero in Combat with his one Attack at Strength 4. It’s by no means reliable, but certainly an option that is worth bearing in mind.

Finally, as a Model whose Combat potential is limited (and instead mainly provides a ranged threat), positioning the King’s Huntsman behind the battle line to use as a Might-caddy for your Heroic Moves, or to hold an Objective, or provide a Standfast are also solid uses for him. This then frees up my more Combat-capable Heroes to focus on what they are good at.

Why don’t we see them?

In an Army in which the majority of people field mounted troops, the King’s Huntsman can’t keep up (quite literally). Only being able to be taken on foot rules him out of most Rohan Armies. If you are taking a foot Rohan force, it is likely you will be taking a Legendary Legion, with only Helm’s Guard and Defenders of Helms Deep providing him as an option. In Defenders of Helms Deep Legolas fufills the same roll and is the better option usually. Additionally, Helm’s Guard as a Legendary Legion is also one that I believe struggles once you go over 700 Points. Despite some of the benefits he brings, the Huntsman is a 700 Points or above inclusion for me.

Their First Battle – Lord of the Imps

The Lord of the Imps Event in Lincoln was one of my favourite Events from last season, run by ‘Mr. Entmoot’ himself, Harold Parkhill. This Event is one of the more interesting ones, with a few custom Scenarios, and an additional List-writing challenge where your Leader and their Warband are slain after Day 1 (and therefore need replaced)! If you want to see the full Rulespack, you can find it here. I will go through my List and tactics for that Event in another article soon. Until then, I have some painting to do as I cobble together the last bits of the Army in time.