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I am thinking of starting a Dwarf army in Warhammer Fantasy, which will be my first try of a fantasy force.
I have posted here to ask about what i should get first (par the army and rule book) and what tactics/paint schemes i should use!
I was thinking of starting via boxes, rather than getting the battalion.
Please post any tips that dont just say "check the Army book"
Thanks!

Best to look at large blocks of infantry and war machines.
Infantry - High toughness and 5+ heavy armour makes dwarf standard infantry better then most, give them great weapons and you have some nasty horde bashing units. Hammerers are the in thing at the moment as special infantry
War Machines - more the better. Cannons for large monsters, grudge throwers for blocks of infantry and organ guns to scare the pants off of your enemy.
Also dwarf lords / runesmiths are bad ass so you wont need many of them. look at a BSB with lots of protection and a runesmith/lord to shut down the enemy magic.
If you want I can probably elaborate further...

Battalion is quite useful. I would not overlook it.

3 battalion boxes (converting some of the standard infantry into hammerers) then a couple of characters and grudge throwers you will have a good 2500 points if not more army. Simples....

Thanks for help, only reason i not getting battleforce is so i dont blow all my budget on the game when i havent got to grips with it!
Also, i not going to paint it all, am midway through 40k Dark Eldar!
Was also wondering if anyone had any tips for a good army for any other noobs? (my freinds will start if they can get a nice easy army... Or if i can persuade them XD)

Any other useful tips will be greatly appreciated!
(BTW: Would getting the skull pass set be a good idea? Could be going cheap by now but are any models outdated?)
Thanky kindly!

Warriors with great weapons is the best option for dwarves. Actually any dwarf with a great weapon is the way to go.

Dont waste money on the long beard models just use warriors with a white painted beard . Thats money saved!

The best way to get to grips about the game is to buy a battalion box(sorry ) and a character. You would have almost 1000 points to begin playing with plus the battalion gives you everything you would run normally for a way cheaper price than buying boxes individually.

I have just started playing dwarves too agianst WoC and Skaven. Currently 4 wins and 2 losses(these were my first 2 games!). In my games my grudge thrower has worked miracles. I am also a big fan of hammerers, Stubborn Str 6 is really nice. They slapped a block of clanrats and most anything that gets into combat with them(except hell pits, you need cannons with Rune of Burning to kill those suckers).

Hope it helps

OK I'll give you a quick buy list, if you can get a dwarf skull pass set it would help down the line. This is just a beginners list:
Runesmith (RoSpellbreaking, RoStone, Shield) - 102
Thane (BSB, MRoGromril) - 115
29 Warriors (Great Weapons + Full Command) - 315
16 Quarrellers (Great Weapons + Full Command) - 233
Cannon (Rune of Forging-Lets you reroll any misfires, Rune of Burning-flaming attack) - 130
Grudge Thrower (Rune of Accuracy-reroll scatter dice) - 105

For this you will need a battalion and a grudge thrower. You can convert 2 warriors into BSB and Runesmith, but the actual BSB model is awesome. This should get your foot in the door and learn the ropes. Also look into converting the warriors into hammerers as you expand in points you will want 1 larger unit of about 30-40: http://www.bugmansbrewery.com/topic/20562-a-converters-guide-to-plastic-hammerers/

Yes, for dwarves a battalion is definetly the way to go. It gives you a solid core of both combat troops and ranged troops and a cannon. All of these are pretty much essential to a dwarf army. Add in a thane/lord and another box or warriors and you're pretty much sorted for a beginners list to learn the ropes.

Dwarves can be very shooting or CC orientated (or a bit of both), and it's up to your and your prefered playstyle to decide which one of these paths you want to follow. This'll also influence what you but to start off with. Personally, I'd reccomend a mixture.

I haven't got my army book on me, but when I am reunited with it once more I'll try to come up with a list for you.

I also agree that the battalion is good value for money. Even 2 can be useful. As then you can get 1 cannon, 1 organ gun and a lot of infantry with many extra sprues to convert them how you like. its good value for money.

Failing that get a few warrior boxes and some artillery if you really want to go individual. Though you'll save alot of money still with a battalion.