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I am dabbling at the Circle druidry for some time already, got some models and a little understanding of the rules. I already have a Feral Warpwolf , my third Warpwolf will most certainly be a Pureblood, but what about the second? Currently I am weighing two options - another Feral, or a Ghetorix character beast. I would prefer to stay away from Stalker, it being the least attractive of all, unless, of course, it is (or proves to be, or is proven to be) a must include choice, in which case I'll start looking around for a Rackham.

My current and for a time being only warlocks are Kaya (prime) and Mohsar, with a possible addition of Morvahna. Other warbeasts - argii (arguses?), satyrs and a gorax. Units - druids, skinwalkers and at some future point - wolves.

I would appreciate any insight into this problem. Thanks!

The Stalker is the best out of all the Warpwolves, except for Ghetorix.

There are many reasons why.

1) Reach.

2) Bezerk. Combine it with reason 1 for wholesale infantry slaughter.

3) Animus. Sprint is amazing. Charge/teliport in, kill a bunch of infantry with Bezerk, and then run away. And because it can be cast on other things too its got a lot of utility.

4) Good pow on the sword, when warping for Strength. There is nothing a Primal'd Stalker that warped Strength can't kill.

5) Pathfinder. This is huge. He can actually hide in forests without getting slowed down.


All these things together make the Stalker a staple in nearly all Circle lists. Many run 2.


Sadly, the Pureblood is not impressive. Its rather expensive for what you get.

Its pillow fisted compared to the Stalker and Feral. The spray is decent, but not at its price tag.


The Feral is a good beast, only slightly worse than the Stalker. More raw damage output and more accurate, but no Reach or in-built Pathfinder.

Yeah take a Stalker before either Pureblood or Ghetorix.

The Stalker is definitely the one that'd see the most use. The Pureblood and Feral both have applications but they're a bit more specific in their use. Ghettorix has more homes, but is still pretty narrow as a pure beat stick.

The Stalker is a very powerful and versatile beast that brings a lot of tools. It's solid and often the first pick when it comes to fuzzy beasts. If you hate there are certainly lists where it's far from auto-include though.

Why not magnets and then you have all 3 options?

Stalkers are the most balanced out of the three.

Now, to be fair:
In terms of costs Both the feral and pureblood are cheaper. Ghetorix costs more.
In terms of damage output, the feral and ghetorix are capable of more sheer raw damage, and come in at a higher mat. Although he does dish out more than the pure blood.
In terms of warps, I'd argue the feral has arguably better and more universally useful warps than the stalker.

That said, the stalkers isn't vastly more expensive. The stalker can still dish out the pain - I had one one-round a stormwall once, so don't think for a moment that they're pillow fisted. He can wreck heavies, and with berserk, can shred infantry. The stalker has three other features that make him a fantastic buy though.
Reach. Never underestimate reach. Reach is amazing.
Pathfinder. No other warpwolf has this. It means rough terrain does not slow him down. Crucial.
Lightning strike. You could take away everything else that's good about the stalker, and leave him with this, and he'd still be worth taking. Giving sprint to circle warbeasts is amazing, and opens whole new avenues of play, and the potential for a second turn of alpha striking, or more movement shenanigans.

I wouldn't necessarily say he's the best. I don't feel any warpwolf can claim to be the best, as each brings something different to the table. The pure blood is utility and support, and a beta striker. The feral and ghetorix are beatsticks. Stalker is a huge bit of everything, but masters none.

You don´t even need magnets btw. The plastic pieces hold pretty well on their own.

Thank You! An interesting point about a "multi-tool" aspect of Stalker.

Grey Templar wrote:The Stalker is the best out of all the Warpwolves, except for Ghetorix.

There are many reasons why.

[Five important points]

All these things together make the Stalker a staple in nearly all Circle lists. Many run 2.

...

The Feral is a good beast, only slightly worse than the Stalker. More raw damage output and more accurate, but no Reach or in-built Pathfinder.

Yes, Reach is a nice thing to have, but isn't unit placement one of the first skills to learn, to avoid too many models being hit by a single template or a model with a Reach? Stalker can buy another attack or boost just twice before using its animus, and when going Berserk he can't warp for strength. Plus, Berserk may backfire, especially in an all-out dogfight. But Sprint being Range 6 is nice too. When warping for strength and going against a heavy target, aren't 4 attacks from the Stalker (before sprint) less than 7 attacks from Feral? Yes, Feral is going to be screwed while Stalker may live to see another fight (especially considering the Pathfinder), but missing one of these 4 may actually force to spend the Stalker too. And hiding in the forest, while not slowing Stalker down, may still force him to walk rather than charge out. I may be looking too deep or in all wrong places, but these are my "tactical" misgivings about fielding the Stalker.

Deadnight wrote:Stalkers are the most balanced out of the three.

Now, to be fair:
In terms of costs Both the feral and pureblood are cheaper. Ghetorix costs more.
In terms of damage output, the feral and ghetorix are capable of more sheer raw damage, and come in at a higher mat. Although he does dish out more than the pure blood.
In terms of warps, I'd argue the feral has arguably better and more universally useful warps than the stalker.

That said, the stalkers isn't vastly more expensive. The stalker can still dish out the pain - I had one one-round a stormwall once, so don't think for a moment that they're pillow fisted. He can wreck heavies, and with berserk, can shred infantry. The stalker has three other features that make him a fantastic buy though.
Reach. Never underestimate reach. Reach is amazing.
Pathfinder. No other warpwolf has this. It means rough terrain does not slow him down. Crucial.
Lightning strike. You could take away everything else that's good about the stalker, and leave him with this, and he'd still be worth taking. Giving sprint to circle warbeasts is amazing, and opens whole new avenues of play, and the potential for a second turn of alpha striking, or more movement shenanigans.

I wouldn't necessarily say he's the best. I don't feel any warpwolf can claim to be the best, as each brings something different to the table. The pure blood is utility and support, and a beta striker. The feral and ghetorix are beatsticks. Stalker is a huge bit of everything, but masters none.

This is interesting and concise argument. So, the choice is actually whether I need another beatstick or a smaller stick with a nice option... Ghetorix has the Reach (same as Stalker), Snacking (not exactly an anti-infantry option but allows denying enemy some fury?) and Hyper Aggressive (another movement trick). No Pathfinder, no Sprint and no tier except Kromac ... but Unyelding and Terror. So, how much "The Stalker is the best out of all the Warpwolves, except for Ghetorix"???

Magnets are limiting painting and modelling choices. Furthermore, they can only be used with the plastic kit, and I am "not a fan of it enough" to field more than one model based on it.

Even with your opponent having perfect model placement, you can still catch 3-5 models in his reach easily. Its actually quite a large area.

Not to mention models will eventually bunch up either in the aftermath of a melee or because of a special rule like Shield Wall or Defensive line.

Not being able to warp strength while Bezerking isn't a big deal either. Stuff you use Bezerk against will die to his regular P+S.


And yes, the Feral has more raw damage output, but again he doesn't have Reach. That extra 1.5" of threat range is huge. Better damage output is worthless if you can't actually get to the target. Pathfinder helps too.


So basically the Stalker is a great toolbox beast while also being the best at hit and run style tactics. Charge/Teliport in, kill stuff, and then run away.

The Stalker is also more durable against ranged attacks because he can warp for Prowl. Stealth is the difference between a dead warpwolf and and undamaged one.

I have a Stalker but I like running the Feral and Pureblood. Two handed throws have won me many a game and Ghostly has worked great getting the Pureblood out of combat to spray kill a caster.

You definitely need a stalker. Sprint is just fantastic. Use your warlock or a wilder to toss it on a Feral, then send him in to murder something and prance off to avoid retaliation. Use it on the Lord of the Feast and have him zip himself over, slaughter some infantry, then prance off behind their lines. Pretty much everything in Circle is better with Sprint to avoid piece trades or make really annoying issues of one shot models. Very few lists don't want it.

As for berserk, depending on your caster it can be useful or fantastic. With Kromac and Warpath, it just ruins infantry units, meaning your beat stick wolf can serve awesome double duty. Plus you put Wild Aggression on him to mitigate the lowish Mat. On other casters it still helps a great deal, as you can get 3-4 guys fairly handily, especially when placing with Shifting Stones.

Usually if I am running any furry beasts, one of them is a Stalker.

As for Ghetorix, I don't use him a lot, but I keep meaning to. The only reason I don't is that I got so used to the feral/stalker combo. Ghetty can just crush damned near anything, however, and with an arm boost from a caster can also be super survivable in melee. He also loves Sprint.
Snacking isn't always obvious, but it does lead to removing infantry from play so they can't be brought back, so long as he heals a bit. Snacking also means that if your opponent tries to kill him with infantry and fails, Ghetorix can be back up at full capacity next turn very easily. Against living infantry heavy lists that is a serious boon.

Purebloods are... less exciting. They can be good for sniping out solos (especially stealthed ones) as well as UA's and the like. The animus can be really good in some instances, as it is often better than Primal if your opponent relies on def/arm buffs. You can use it to avoid Ironflesh and Arcane Shield without your beast frenzying next turn. The pureblood itself also isn't so bad for damage, as two Pow 16 claws aren't so terrible, and primal taking them to 18 isn't bad at all. Plus that Pow 14 spray can really threaten casters.
That said, I almost never field mine. I feel like most of the 9 point heavies with guns are just not competitive for slots except for the Ravagore, and there are lots of things in Circle that are damned tempting for 9 points or less. Still, I rarely feel stupid for taking him, or not taking him, for that matter. He is pretty ok.

Definitely get a Stalker though.

Ferals Beat Face on a single hard target. Stalkers are an infantry blender, and still do alright vs a hard target. Purebloods are toolbox. Ghetorax is a another face beater who's a super tough nut to crack. The only Warpwolf you'd really want doubles of is the Stalker.

Oh, and if you can, get your hands on the metal Pureblood. That model is ace.

Wirecat wrote:
Thank You! An interesting point about a "multi-tool" aspect of Stalker.
]Yes, Reach is a nice thing to have, but isn't unit placement one of the first skills to learn, to avoid too many models being hit by a single template or a model with a Reach? Stalker can buy another attack or boost just twice before using its animus, and when going Berserk he can't warp for strength. Plus, Berserk may backfire, especially in an all-out dogfight. But Sprint being Range 6 is nice too. When warping for strength and going against a heavy target, aren't 4 attacks from the Stalker (before sprint) less than 7 attacks from Feral? Yes, Feral is going to be screwed while Stalker may live to see another fight (especially considering the Pathfinder), but missing one of these 4 may actually force to spend the Stalker too. And hiding in the forest, while not slowing Stalker down, may still force him to walk rather than charge out. I may be looking too deep or in all wrong places, but these are my "tactical" misgivings about fielding the Stalker.

I think you’ve got the animus thing wrong. It was errata’ed – the stalker needs lightning strike up and running before he kills stuff in order to trigger sprint. You’re also a bit off with the math – the stalker is fully capable of putting out 6 attacks if he runs hot on his fury. Regarding the animus – have another stalker, or else have your caster put it on him. (or he can cast it on a feral) More fury for attacks. So it becomes a question. 5 attacks with reach at a target the feral cant get to, at a top P+S with a decent MAT, or these with a bonus average POW attack courtesy of the open fist. Versus a feral with 7 attacks without reach, at a slightly lower topped out P+S than a stalkers sword (but more than his fist), but with great MAT to compensate.
Regarding hiding in the forest. Assuming youre within 3” of the edge, you can see out, and charge. Otherwise, use a blackclad wayfarer. And if you’ve got prowl up, he has stealth, so ranged attacks from greater than 5” auto-miss. Great situational ability. Feral can’t hide. If you’re walking, you still have an 8” threat range, which is a lot greater than the feral who moves less due to lack of pathfinder in the first place, and who doesn’t also have reach.
Regarding berserk. Fine, you’re losing the strength bonus, but do you need it when you’re shredding infantry? P+S16 attacks kill virtually all single wound infantry in the game, even if you whiff the damage rolls with a double 1 (they still take 18 damage). Only think I’d be wary about is multiwound high ARM models with an ARM buff on top. And even then, you have other avenues with strength buffs (kayas forced evolution, primal) and arm debuffs (cassius and mohsar both have curse of shadows) to help out, if needed.

Wirecat wrote:
This is interesting and concise argument. So, the choice is actually whether I need another beatstick or a smaller stick with a nice option... Ghetorix has the Reach (same as Stalker), Snacking (not exactly an anti-infantry option but allows denying enemy some fury?) and Hyper Aggressive (another movement trick). No Pathfinder, no Sprint and no tier except Kromac ... but Unyelding and Terror. [b]So, how much "The Stalker is the best out of all the Warpwolves, except for Ghetorix"???

Ghetorix has the highest damage output of all of them. But the worst warps, if you ask me. And his animus is very limited, if you ask me. He is also the most expensive, and as a character, can only be taken in one of your lists. I often find my beatstick choice boils down to a feral, or ghetorix. Stalker is very good in terms of the beatdown, but cannot really compete with ghetorix here. What he lack in the beatdown he makes up for in utility. That said, ghetorix has the cool factor.  that alone makes him awesome.

His animus is ok to throw on himself.

It can discourage a jack or beast from coming up and attacking him. Even a single attack from his axe can potentially cripple a system.

Yea, Ghetty's animus isn't rocking worlds, but what else is going to go on him?

Primal: not before the turn he charges, and not much use outside his activation anyway
Bounding: Neat if he charged, but after that, might as well put up his own if he has spare fury
The Shadowhorns.... no open fists, and why on earth would he slam?
Argus... who takes them?
S.Griffon: why?

So yea, if you are going to rile anyway, or just accidently 2 shot an enemy heavy (happens) go ahead and pop his animus, An extra attack never hurts (you.)

Still better than the Feral's animus.

 Wehrkind wrote:


Still better than the Feral's animus.

The feral has an animus!? J/k

Yea, it's called "Rile".

Point taken. Thank You, everyone, Sprint (Lightning strike) and Pathfinder take the cake. It will be Feral-Stalker-Pureblood for my warpwolves. Now, to choose between the khopesh and the falx for my Stalker and to start cutting!