Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I’m a 40k player, not particularly sold on AoS, but I’d like to get an army to play in an escalation league and whatever the standard list size is for AoS. I don’t own Daemons or even play Chaos for the obvious crossover. My favorite army thematically are the High Elves, which don’t seem to be well supported anymore, so I’m not going in that direction either.

So what are the cheapest armies to pick up, assuming I’m buying the models new? I’d also like the army to be a Battletome army, or one likely to get a Battletome I guess.

I’m seeing Beastclaw Raiders as a common answer. Or buying starter set Stormcast and running those. Any suggestions from people who know an Orruk from an Ork is well appreciated, though!

You already have the cheapest down. Beast claw raiders. Sylvaneth are also fairly inexpensive for their units. 2 get started and you have a size-able force. You have to get a bunch of trees though. Stormcast are the other options with lots of army box sets that net you some savings.

Beastclaw, Stormcast (thanks to box sets), and somewhat surprisingly Flesh Eater Courts (again thanks to box sets).

Not as cheap, but many armies have elite units that are "battleline if", as in get to be battleline (troops) if you have stuff like a specific general. Which makes a low model army a option for many armies. But the ones with good box sets probably still cheaper.

well you want an elite army then and that means stormcast or beastclaw.

overall i would say stormcast since your not sold yet on aos and there are more boxes for stormcast then there are for beastclaw.