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So, the profile behind the model, the Dragon Cult Acolyte profile, is released! Is it a good profile and addition to the Easterling army though?
Initial thoughts
After the teases we got and the bit of information, the profile ended up very much what many people expected (at least those I talked to). For many, it initially feels somewhat underwhelming with no strength four and a peculiar rule omission of Phalanx at first glance. However, these negatives do not make it a bad profile on its own, and I believe that many were hoping this one profile would fix all the Easterling army lists problems. The Reality is the model won't but nor should it. Having a model that a list is so dependent on for its success is not an example of a solid, well-rounded list. The points cost is not too prohibitively expensive either which I was concerned about personally.
Pro's
Any model with two attacks is strong in the game. 2 attacks are doubling your chances of winning the combat and wounding. This helps out the list which often felt like Minas Tirith without any teeth. Throwing weapons are excellent in this edition; even with a shoot value of 4+, you get a free strength three hit half the time when a model charges. It may not seem like much, but that's a dead defence 5 model for every 6 of these guys. You can even take out a heroes horse or slay a big scary model like Gûlavhar if you're lucky.
Throwing weapons also give you a significant short-range threat that can give your opponents a headache to try and stay out of range, when moving full with a war-drum and a captain in your threat range could be 18". Courage 4 is a significant benefit. These guys are going to be charging to get the most out of them. Courage 4 means that even against terror causers with a harbinger of evil, you still stand a pretty good chance at that. Also, when you break, these guys go up to courage 5! Nice for holding objectives.
Unyielding Combat stance and Supreme Agility are both special rules that are situational. Both are nice to have and will come in handy throughout an event but probably not worth a whole point. Luckily at 11 points for the model, I don't think you are paying a point for each but rather for both the special rules. Something that often models get punished for these models don't. It also may tempt you to use terrain in a different way tactically.
Con's
As mentioned earlier, no strength 4 leaves the Easterling list missing some punch. However, the additional attack and throwing weapons increase the lists hitting power, just in a more subtle way.
Defence 4 is probably the biggest weakness. Like many other two attack evil models, these guys will go down quickly when they lose the fight. Even moderate bow fire can scare these guys. You will need to use the list's other models to protect them and get them across the board as fast as possible.
No Phalanx rule for the Acylotes. These are designed to be skirmishers, it appears the rules definitely support that idea. While I do not believe I would have been double supporting these guys in a pike block anyway, they do not benefit from one of the positives of the Easterling list.
For me, the biggest disappointment of the profile is that Dragon Knights cannot lead them. I hope this is a short-term issue until the book is released. Right now, though, it means that you have less flexibility in how to build your Easterling list and one of your biggest hitters in the Dragon Knight is stuck taking the expensive Black Dragon warriors instead.
Example list
Looking at how I would build a pure Easterling force with the Dragon Knight Acolytes, I found it much easier and more enjoyable just coming up with lists with their addition, making the faction feel less stale than it used too. Here is an initial list I came up with for 700 points:
Amdur, Armoured horse X4 Dragon Cult Acolytes
X8 Easterling warriors, pikes, shields
x1 Kataphract, war-drum
Captain, shield
X4 Dragon Cult Acolytes
X1 Easterling warriors, shields
X7 Easterling warriors, pikes, shields
Warpriest
X4 Dragon Cult Acolytes
X1 Easterling warriors, shields
X7 Easterling warriors, pikes, shields Dragon Knight
700pts
41 models
8 might
It may not be the perfect list, but it's a reasonably competent one and something I would be happy to take to an event and believe I could do well using. You could change it around a little to personal taste with some bows, cavalry or different hero options. It has solid numbers at 41, with 2/3 of it being D6. The line's lower defence elements can be kept behind the D6 models to get yourself through any bow fire relatively protected. The Captain and the Wardrum also enable the whole army to move incredibly quickly if needed, reducing the amount of time your opponent can shoot at you if required.
I like the mix of heroes for an all-comers list, Amdur while fragile is a solid hero who also doubles as a banner re-roll for your army.
The Dragon knight provides an extra strike and some killing power to your line but is generally pretty dispensable, so not too much of an issue if he dies. Like Amdur, the model can also hunt smaller heroes to get some extra might back.
The Warpriest is an excellent shaman type hero; it provides a fury bubble if needed, and the other spell blade wrath can make your models a lot more potent in combat. A Dragon Cult Acolyte with this cast on him vs a trapped model suddenly becomes another significant threat.
The Captain is a nice little might caddy to call any heroic moves and marches you may need. He also can deal a little bit of damage, but those are his primary duties.
When combat hits, you can deploy your infantry in 2 ways.
The first option is a defence 6 block in the centre to anchor your line. The Acolytes attack and harass around the flanks. To get around the sides fast, position your war drum, so the warriors in front rank are out of its range. Once the warriors have charged, the Acolytes can move 9" ready to surround and get the jump on the enemy next turn. Even in this turn, they can assist with their throwing weapons to take out spear support (to you now just in to combat being evil and all).
The 2nd method of deploying the mainline is to have the Acolytes with pike support to create a fighting line with overwhelming attacks in the center. Shield armed models are then used to protect and hold up the flanks, deployed single line if required.
Conclusion
The Dragon Knight acolytes are a worthwhile addition to the standard Easterling army list. They may not solve all of the list's problems, but I don't believe they should do. The profile is incredibly well balanced compared to many profiles, and while I do have some issues with it, these don't have a significant impact in-game, or I think they may be solved when we get a whole new release for them in the future. Apparently I'm not the only one to say 'Yay' to these guys though as they have already sold out of the initial batch so i am going to have to wait a bit before getting my 12.
