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So I'm just trying out Warmachine for the first time since I'm becoming disillusioned with 40k. I just bought the Cygnar plastic starter box, and I'm wondering what else I need to pick up for a solid starting list.

Specifics:
-What other models do I need to buy (sticking with Cygnar)? i.e. "must-haves" and good synergy units.
-As a starting player, what point level games should I be building to? Not sure what the most common point levels are for most casual/tournament play.
-I know the starter box comes with Stryker. Is he a solid commander? Should I be looking at other commanders in my chosen faction?

Like I said, I'm a brand newb when it comes to Warmachine and any guidance/advice would be helpful.

Egregious. Welcome to WM!

Most people are going to tell you to play the battle box for a while. Get to know the basic rules and get a feeling for interactions, synergy, feets ect.

When you're comfortable move up to 15 points, then 25, 35, and 50 (about as big a game as you'll want to play kinda like 2500pts in 40k IMHO).

As far as what to add or get right away I'm not a Cygnar player but I will tell you that just about every unit in the game is playable. Spamming "good" units doesn't work in WM. There are better and worse synergies between different casters and units/warjacks/solos. They all have a place and it depends on your style of play and the casters that you like to run.

I know that doesn't really give you an answer.....

Things that are mainstays in Cygnar armies are
Junior warcaster.
ATGM with UA
Rangers
Eventually you will want a few infantry units.
Gregor Boomhowler and Co are great Merc infantry that will work for Cygnar.
Last and probably "best" of the Colossals Stormwall.

edited for spelling errors and words left out.

Welcome to Warmahordes Egregious!

Great choice with Cygnar! That is my main faction and I absolutely love it.

Playing a few games with the battlebox is not bad advice however one thing to note is that the Cygnar battlebox does not give you a true feel for the way Cygnar plays.

The reason being is that pStryker is a support caster he likes giving out his focus and upkeeping his spells. The best casters Cygnar has to offer are quite the opposite of that. eHaley loves keeping her focus for her spells and eCaine HATES units that cannot perform well on their own. So while pStryker is not a bad caster you will quickly learn that there are much better options and he is kind of rare in the Cygnar army for what he brings to the table.

All that being said the first thing you should pick up when moving to 15pts is the Black 13th. There is no other option for Cygnar players when playing at 15pts with the Battlebox. Ok... well there ARE other options but at the same time there isn't. The Black 13th is hands down the most point efficient 4 pts any army could hope to spend. They can fill pretty much any battlefield role and do not require any support from the caster to be effective in their task. That being said depending on your caster here is a list of stuff that as a Cygnar player I love to have or will have at some point.

- eCaine - This guy is an absolute killing machine. He has ended the game for me countless times with his ability to fire as many times as he has focus. With his feat increasing the POW of his guns every time he hits the enemy surely will have to keep an eye out.
- eHaley - This is my love right here (gaming wise!). She is the definition of board control/denial. She has a trick for every situation and with her high focus, a squire and an arc node can pretty much spend the entire game standing at the back of the board and have an unbelievable effect on the game.
- eStryker - I do not own him but I plan to. He would be considered our melee caster. He is like eCaine in that he is made to end enemy casters but he does so in melee. Of all the casters eStryker is the one in Cygnar that likes to jam the most get up the board as fast as possible and cause problems.

I am only going to comment on these 3 because they are the ones I know the most. Either pCaine or pHaley would fit into the descriptions given for their epic versions above but they have more support abilities than the two listed.

- Black 13th - Best toolbox Cygnar has and for only 4pts are pretty much an auto-include in Cygnar armies.
- ATGM + UA - These guys much like their Black 13th brethren bring amazing utility and board control/denial as well as the ability to negate stealth, camo and concealment. with their high base DEF they are hard to hit and make a great front line unit.
- Squire - This guy is an excellent addition for 2pts giving your caster the extra range and focus.
- Rangers - These guys are great with most casters (Both Caines and Sloan for sure) increases the ability of the rest of your army by providing RAT bonuses.
- Ol' Rowdy - The most focus efficient beat stick Cygnar has. He can run and Charge for free which means he doesn't need much to be effective. Have Strangeways follow him around/repair him and let the fun begin.
- Stormwall - This guy is expensive but is arguably the best Colossal in Warmahordes. I currently do not own one just because of the price (I am a cheap skate) but all his praise is well deserved and if you are willing to pay he should be at the top of your purchase list.
- Then you have the Sword Knights/Precursor Knights/Stormblades - All of these guys fill pretty much the same battlefield role. Get forward and get into combat. They have different ways of doing it and vary in their effectiveness in certain things but they fill the same role generally on the battlefield.
- Stormsmith Stormcallers - Excellent 1pt unit that can disrupt jacks (stop them from getting focus) or pick up pesky solos and stealth units.
- Journeyman Warcaster - Excellent model that basically gives you 3 focus to use on a jack every turn. Give this guy his own jack and then keep him alive and your life will be easier.

Some Merc options that are a staple of Cygnar are as follows:

- Boomhowler & Co. - 4+ Tough troll with medium bases means your second wave will be safe. These guys simply do not die (Obviously they do but it takes quite a bit to take them out).
- Horgenhold Forgeguard - These guys are my fav. While they are a little slow the damage they can put out as a second line unit is absurd. POW 11 +4d6 on the charge? Yes please! I LOVE these guys.
- Gorman Di Wulfe - Add him to the Black 13th and treat them as one unit. Keep his smoke bombs up and the Black 13th now have stealth. His other grenades will always find a purpose for use. Excellent 2pt model.
- Rhupert Carvolo - Great for giving your units tough or extra defense. I like to run him with my HHFG to give them tough and help keep them alive.
- Reinholdt - This guy is considered by some to be necessary with casters like the Caines and Sloan if your not running them you can leave him at home but for 1pt he is great.
- Eiryss - Either version of her is simply too good. I like the Epic version with Cygnar because of the difference in her abilities.

This is a lot of information and I am sure I left some good stuff out. I am sure someone will fill in the gaps for me and I hope this is not overload. Cygnar is a great faction don't get stuck in trying to sit back with them because Warmahordes is not meant to be played that way.

Welcome to the community!

Thanks for the advice!

One of the reasons I am becoming disillusioned with 40k is the spamming of "good" units (heldrake anyone?), so I'll be glad to get away from that meta. It's good to hear that isn't the norm in Warmahordes. I really like the look of Cygnar, both their casters and their warjacks. Since I've never played a game, that's all I have to go from (they seem more Steam-punky than the other factions).

Looking forward to getting my box in the mail and getting started.

One thing if I might recommend is to magnetize your Ironclad from the battlebox. When you buy the Heavy Warjack kit it comes with the Defender/Cyclone and Ironclad. If you add magnets now you will be able to magnetize that one as well and then can create different combinations. Just a suggestion.

Here are some pictures if you are interested on just how to magnetize it so the switch can be made easily. I would recommend ignoring the head magnets as they are small enough to not really make a difference.

 Egregious wrote:
Thanks for the advice!

One of the reasons I am becoming disillusioned with 40k is the spamming of "good" units (heldrake anyone?), so I'll be glad to get away from that meta. It's good to hear that isn't the norm in Warmahordes. I really like the look of Cygnar, both their casters and their warjacks. Since I've never played a game, that's all I have to go from (they seem more Steam-punky than the other factions).

Looking forward to getting my box in the mail and getting started.

There are many great things to WM/H, one of my favorites is the fact that the win is much more dependent on the player than the faction or list. Heck that's why most tournaments have you bring 2 or 3 lists to avoid bad caster match ups.

Also please understand when you start out you are going to loose, you are going to loose a lot! There is a great deal more depth to this game than what you're used to. There are going to be quiet a few "He does what?!?" moments (Look up the Molik Karn Missile as an example) and when you do start winning its so so sweet.

I don't mind losing and taking my lumps while learning the game, that's part of the fun. The more the game leans towards player skill than having the new hotness unit, the better.

 Egregious wrote:
I don't mind losing and taking my lumps while learning the game, that's part of the fun. The more the game leans towards player skill than having the new hotness unit, the better.

Yeah, thats the spirit

I'm bad at this game I admit, and usually only have a vague idea of what my opponents stuff does.
That being said i'm currently 9 and 2 in my local league, both of those losses I could have won if I had not listened to the first person who told me how a rule worked (lol) simply because I try to form my army into a drill to reach the other caster, every single turn I'm looking for slam/throw/headbutt/push/ect. targets to shift people around and deliver some beatdown to that punk standing in the back. And virtually every win was from some funky shananagins that aren't rule bending, but outsmarted my opponent

I really like WM, it's great, when you start it can be overwhelming with trying to learn all the casters spells and feats and such, once I got over the "surprise! special rule!" issues that everyone has with every new game, its spectacular amounts of fun.