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Hi LOTR players

I've been trying to create an Easterling list and have been wondering if I should be investing in some Morgul Knights, Warg Riders or Morgul Knights. Please give your opions.

Morgul Knights are like mini - nazgul! They're so cool!

Well first off, what do you want them to do? Warg riders are cheap, mobile S4 that you can afford to sacrifice, while Morgul knights are the very cream of the heavy cavalry crop with their armour, lances, terror and respectable fight value. They're basically opposite ends of the spectrum.

I take it you either already have or don't want kataphracts? Anyway, if you want cheap fast cav, consider Harad raiders as an alternative to wargs, they do a similar thing.

Well I wanted to use the Wargs as cheap scouts to move ahead and annoy the enemy or steal objectives while I'd use Morgul Knights as a hard hitting charging unit at the front of my pike and sword men troops.

If the rest of your list is on foot, I'd suggest the wargs, since they add something you don't have. Easterling pikemen tend to hit pretty hard already, and while the knights would add a lot of clout, they're very pricey, and you might be better opting for cheap wargs to add an element of manuverability.

Wargs are a pretty solid unit, if you tool them up with throwing spears they can do a lot of damage on the charge - great for snuffing out groups of archers and other annoying things.

Morgul knights are arguably more useful for Orc armies, since they add fight value and hitting power that the Orcs themselves lack - Easterlings don't need the support as much, and since they're already expensive, adding knights will eat away your model count. If you're playing with a high points value, though, they're definitely worth considering if you need a heavy hammer unit, they're one of the nastiest things in the game to recieve a charge from.

Ultimately it boils down to a mix of playstyle, game size and what you usually fight against.

A Kvlt Ghost wrote:If the rest of your list is on foot, I'd suggest the wargs, since they add something you don't have. Easterling pikemen tend to hit pretty hard already, and while the knights would add a lot of clout, they're very pricey, and you might be better opting for cheap wargs to add an element of manuverability.

Wargs are a pretty solid unit, if you tool them up with throwing spears they can do a lot of damage on the charge - great for snuffing out groups of archers and other annoying things.

Morgul knights are arguably more useful for Orc armies, since they add fight value and hitting power that the Orcs themselves lack - Easterlings don't need the support as much, and since they're already expensive, adding knights will eat away your model count. If you're playing with a high points value, though, they're definitely worth considering if you need a heavy hammer unit, they're one of the nastiest things in the game to recieve a charge from.

Ultimately it boils down to a mix of playstyle, game size and what you usually fight against.

I have a foul Rohan/Gondor Cavalry problem, even with Pikes the Easterlings get cut down by the enemy. I use a small force that's got room for points to spare for them.

Well the terror you get from Morgul knights will probably help you there more than anything the wargs bring to the table. Wargs are good at killing squishy things they get the drop on, but against other cavalry they need the kind of specific support you're only really going to find in dedicated Orc lists.

If you need to smash Gondorian cavalry, Morgul knights will do that for you, especially with a character to back them up. Black Númenórean marshalls are vicious, and the knights' decent fight value makes a banner worth considering as well.

Yeah, if you are having heavy cavelry problems you will want the Morgul Knights.


Are you using your Pikes to full potential? full 2 ranks of support? That is going to be your 3 dice against a charging Minas Tirith knight/RoR's 2 dice which you will win more often then not and you have equal fight values. The only issue is when the cavelry does win and knock your dudes down, but that is less likely then the opposite. Also, if you have 2 of your foot soldiers fighting one of their cavelry you can potentially have 6 dice to his 2(2 fighting, each supported by 2 pikes = 6 dice)

The key to pikes is to go deep so you have plenty of supporting attacks and you can replace losses. I would actually reccomend you check out some historical formations of pikes, namely Greek Phalanxs. The same formations work in the LotR game quite nicely.

You can keep the Morgul Knights behind the phalanx so they can counter charge either as support or to peel away their support. example: Good player has inititive. 2 Knights of Minas Tirith charge a single Easterling supported by 2 pikes. That is 4 dice against your 3. but then you counter charge a Morgul Knight into the fray, now one of the Knights must fight the Morgul Knight. Now 2 combats are happening, one with your 3 dice against 3 with tied fight values and one with your 3 vs 2 with you having the superior fight value. it went from one combat in his favor to 2 fights in your favor.

For an easterling army, no choice you gotta go for the morgul knights, i always put them in my fallen realms army, they work well in my 725p force

2 companies of easterlings
dragon knight (fight 7!!!)

1 company of easterling archers

3 companys of morgul knights
commander

witch king on nazgul (for the magic)

it is a very elite force and im always outnumbered

but yes morguls work well with easterlings

Companies eh? Sounds like WotR heresy to me

YELLOWBLADES wrote:For an easterling army, no choice you gotta go for the morgul knights, i always put them in my fallen realms army, they work well in my 725p force

2 companies of easterlings
dragon knight (fight 7!!!)

1 company of easterling archers

3 companys of morgul knights
commander

witch king on nazgul (for the magic)

it is a very elite force and im always outnumbered

but yes morguls work well with easterlings

Um, I play LOTR SBG, not War of the Ring.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Grey Templar wrote:Yeah, if you are having heavy cavelry problems you will want the Morgul Knights.


Are you using your Pikes to full potential? full 2 ranks of support? That is going to be your 3 dice against a charging Minas Tirith knight/RoR's 2 dice which you will win more often then not and you have equal fight values. The only issue is when the cavelry does win and knock your dudes down, but that is less likely then the opposite. Also, if you have 2 of your foot soldiers fighting one of their cavelry you can potentially have 6 dice to his 2(2 fighting, each supported by 2 pikes = 6 dice)

The key to pikes is to go deep so you have plenty of supporting attacks and you can replace losses. I would actually reccomend you check out some historical formations of pikes, namely Greek Phalanxs. The same formations work in the LotR game quite nicely.

You can keep the Morgul Knights behind the phalanx so they can counter charge either as support or to peel away their support. example: Good player has inititive. 2 Knights of Minas Tirith charge a single Easterling supported by 2 pikes. That is 4 dice against your 3. but then you counter charge a Morgul Knight into the fray, now one of the Knights must fight the Morgul Knight. Now 2 combats are happening, one with your 3 dice against 3 with tied fight values and one with your 3 vs 2 with you having the superior fight value. it went from one combat in his favor to 2 fights in your favor.

I'm trying to get as many pikes as I can but due to the sheer lack of pikes in the Easterling box set (Why isn't there more?) I'll probably only have 10 though I think I can put them to good use, thanks for the advice as I'm annoyed at the fact in my beginner games (My GW runs them) the Knights of the good side always slaughter my Easterlings.

blood reaper wrote:

YELLOWBLADES wrote:For an easterling army, no choice you gotta go for the morgul knights, i always put them in my fallen realms army, they work well in my 725p force

2 companies of easterlings
dragon knight (fight 7!!!)

1 company of easterling archers

3 companys of morgul knights
commander

witch king on nazgul (for the magic)

it is a very elite force and im always outnumbered

but yes morguls work well with easterlings

Um, I play LOTR SBG, not War of the Ring.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Grey Templar wrote:Yeah, if you are having heavy cavelry problems you will want the Morgul Knights.


Are you using your Pikes to full potential? full 2 ranks of support? That is going to be your 3 dice against a charging Minas Tirith knight/RoR's 2 dice which you will win more often then not and you have equal fight values. The only issue is when the cavelry does win and knock your dudes down, but that is less likely then the opposite. Also, if you have 2 of your foot soldiers fighting one of their cavelry you can potentially have 6 dice to his 2(2 fighting, each supported by 2 pikes = 6 dice)

The key to pikes is to go deep so you have plenty of supporting attacks and you can replace losses. I would actually reccomend you check out some historical formations of pikes, namely Greek Phalanxs. The same formations work in the LotR game quite nicely.

You can keep the Morgul Knights behind the phalanx so they can counter charge either as support or to peel away their support. example: Good player has inititive. 2 Knights of Minas Tirith charge a single Easterling supported by 2 pikes. That is 4 dice against your 3. but then you counter charge a Morgul Knight into the fray, now one of the Knights must fight the Morgul Knight. Now 2 combats are happening, one with your 3 dice against 3 with tied fight values and one with your 3 vs 2 with you having the superior fight value. it went from one combat in his favor to 2 fights in your favor.

I'm trying to get as many pikes as I can but due to the sheer lack of pikes in the Easterling box set (Why isn't there more?) I'll probably only have 10 though I think I can put them to good use, thanks for the advice as I'm annoyed at the fact in my beginner games (My GW runs them) the Knights of the good side always slaughter my Easterlings.

sorry, i just realised


Automatically Appended Next Post:

A Kvlt Ghost wrote:Companies eh? Sounds like WotR heresy to me

but WotR is the game that uses companies

I'll be starting War of the Ring soon but, I won't be using many Morgul Knights.

blood reaper wrote:
I'm trying to get as many pikes as I can but due to the sheer lack of pikes in the Easterling box set (Why isn't there more?) I'll probably only have 10 though I think I can put them to good use, thanks for the advice as I'm annoyed at the fact in my beginner games (My GW runs them) the Knights of the good side always slaughter my Easterlings.

That is the bite with that box.

If you are steady with an exacto knife you can scratch build your own pike heads and then stick them on brass rods. Then you drill out the hands of the sword dudes and insert the pike shaft.