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I'm a new player starting in a journeyman league in a few weeks. I saw that in addition to the retail battlebox there's the option for an 'alternative battlebox' with the Butcher. Piecing together the Butcher list would be a little more expense in real dollars, but I'd be willing to do that if it buys pieces I'm more likely to use in the future at higher point levels. Which would you recommend, both for learning the game as well as providing the best base to build on for expanding the army.


Retail Battlebox
• pSorscha
• Juggernaut
• Destroyer


'Alternative' Battlebox
• pButcher
• Decimator (would need to get the 4 in 1 heavy warjack kit - am I correct that it could be magnetized to swap between versions?)
• Kodiak

I bought the Retail battlebox. I was new about 2 months ago to warmachine and its worked out great for me. Sorscha is a great new player caster in my opinion!!

Sorscha is a good learning caster, she'll teach you about finesse in your army. Plus she'll give it a good go on an assassination run.


However, she isn't too fond of MoW, they are far to slow to keep up with our little Snow Queen (Who'll happily dart around 18 inches a turn.) and they might leave her high and dry.

The Destroyer is also a slightly 'dodgy' Jack, you pay extra points for that gun, although it does hi hard, hitting is the hardest part and Sorscha, like most Khador casters, is focus hungry and focus greedy.

However, Butcher is a pure beat stick and he works well with the Kodiak and Decimator. Drop full throttle and give 3 focus to the decimator and pop your feat. Watch as Kodiak hits twice, double handed throws for free and then have the Decimator charge (for free with full throttle) and hit 3 times due to sustained attack. Also in lower point games, Butch will happily mince an army on his own. It is always fun to pop your feat and then do this for your opponent.

"Right so Butcher is P+S16." Puts down two dice "That's regular damage." Puts down another "Thats for charging." Puts down another. "Thats for Weapon Master." Puts down one more. "Thats for the feat." Needless to say, anything that Butcher connects with will more than likely be dead by the end of the turn.

Do you plan on going for the assassination or atritioning your opponent? pSorcha is amazing for assassinating on turn 2 or 3, whilst Butcher1 is great at waiting behind the front line and enabling his army to more easily kill your opponent before moving up and finishing off the enemy on turn 4 or 5. Though if your opponent is foolish enough to let their caster in his charge range he will kill them.