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Tigers: Other
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Themed Army Ideas Armies of the Jungle:
The Kurindans (updated 05/2011) by
Kenton Kilgore I can easily see Lizardmen playing a part in the 40K universe similar to that of the Gungans of Star Wars, Episode I: a race of “primitives” with little technology and naught but numbers and tenacity on their side (given that this is 40K, however, they would never allow a doofus like Jar Jar Binks to survive past infancy). Though I needed another army like I needed a swift kick to the ‘nads, I built a Lizardmen 40K force called “The Kurindans,” based on a Themed Army Idea I had done. Because Lizardmen are not officially part of the 40K game, I applied the rules from the Tyranid codex to my reptilian warriors. Why Nids? Because they’re a low-tech race that relies on close combat, just like the Lizardmen from the Warhammer fantasy game, and thusly, I could minimize or even negate the need to do any conversions to the miniatures. It’s pretty easy to convince opponents that a Lizardman Saurus Warrior figure with an axe and a spear is the equivalent of a Genestealer. By being a “proxy” army, the Kurindans break the WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) rule big-time, and I only use them with my opponent’s permission. You might think it would be confusing to play against this army, seeing as how Lizardmen are not currently a part of the 40K range. My experience has been that once I tell my opponents which figures represent which types of Tyranids, they don’t have any confusion.
Army Background
Jungle visitors who have followed this army’s origins in the Themed Army Idea will know that they already have a backstory: the Kurindans--reptilian aliens--briefly established a small empire within the galaxy before falling into a barbaric decline. But where to go from there? Given that 40K is a game all about fighting battles, what are the Kurindans fighting for? Answering that question took longer than I thought. One idea I had was that the Kurindans could be trying to reclaim their lost empire--but that sounded too much like the Eldar. They could be trying to strike back at the Imperium, their former rival for power--but that sounded too much like Chaos and Tau. They could be interested solely in looting and pillaging--but that’s too similar to Orks and Dark Eldar. Being xenophobic, they could be trying to wipe out all other sentient lifeforms--but that’s what Tyranids and Necrons have built their careers on, isn’t it? Eventually, I settled on a motivation that I haven’t seen done very often in 40K: a quest. Led by !Klrt*, a recently-elected tyrant-king of exceptional strength, intelligence, and (for Lizardmen, anyway), charisma, one band of Kurindans has begun traveling among the planets of their former empire, gathering together their scattered people. Sometimes other Kurindans have swayed by !Klrt’s oratory; usually, they submit only after !Klrt defeats their leader in single combat. *The exclamation point at the beginning of “!Klrt” means that when speaking the name, one should press one’s tongue against the roof of the mouth and release it, making a sort of clucking sound.
!Klrt is no mere warlord: he has a vision for the Kurindan race. Once all the Kurindans have been united under him, they will set off for a distant world named only in the most ancient myths. What do they hope to find once they finally reach this place, if it really exists? Certainly not safety and a chance to rebuild--this is 40K, after all, not Battlestar Galactica. No, at the end of their quest, they hope to find redemption--and the destruction of the entire universe. !Klrt insists that the only reason the universe exists is so that the Kurindans could rule it under an empire, with all other races subjugated as slaves. The Kurindans were on their way to attaining that goal when they began to fight among themselves and lost their empire. Having fallen, their people are no longer worthy to live, and neither is the universe that was to be theirs to rule. Therefore, the Kurindans and the universe must die. Mere suicide or allowing themselves to be destroyed by any of the inferior beings--humans, Eldar, Orks--that infest the galaxy would be even more shameful. The only way for the Kurindans to redeem themselves is to travel to the home world of their supreme deity—“The Slayer of Gods”—report their failure, and accept his punishment. So great will The Slayer’s wrath be, !Klrt claims, that it will destroy the physical universe. Those Kurindans alive today are surely doomed, but all might not be lost. If, in their course of their journey to The Slayer’s world, the Kurindans continue to display their bravery and skill at arms, The Slayer might—might–concede that their race still had some small worth. Perhaps, after a long time, the Slayer will re-assume his female form of The Cosmic Mother and re-create the universe and the Kurindan people, allowing them to try again to fulfill their destiny.
!Klrt has convinced thousands of Kurindans to follow him on his apocalyptic quest. Kurindans are omnivorous, warm blooded, hatch from eggs, and though not unintelligent, lack much of the human capacity for creative thought and independent decision making. While !Klrt’s quest may sound utterly mad to more philosophically sophisticated cultures, it resonates well with most Kurindans who hear of it. Kurindans have an irrational hatred of all other races and almost always attack if they perceive themselves to be stronger, devouring the slain and enslaving the survivors. !Klrt’s followers are gripped by the same xenophobia and are also motivated by religious zealotry, convinced that the more “aliens” they kill, the more likely The Slayer of Gods will deign to re-create the universe.
Troglodyte and
Mutant Dracosaur The Kurindan people have two species: a small, agile race—Imperial records usually refer to them as “Newts”—and a larger, more physically powerful race—usually called “Troglodytes.” In battle, Newts usually serve as scouts, harassing flanks or tying up the enemy with numbers. There seem to be two types of Newts: “Regulars,” who display no extraordinary abilities; and “Hoppers,” who, as their nickname suggest, can leap great distances. Disturbingly, there is no way for humans to visually distinguish “Regulars” from “Hoppers” until they attack. As his army has grown, !Klrt has promoted a particularly able Newt, !Gmbi, to assist him in leading their people. Troglodytes are the main warriors: strong, tough, vicious, and prone to creeping very close towards enemy positions, unnoticed until the Kurindans strike. A few of the more experienced, battle-hardened Troglodytes ride reptilian mounts that Imperial forces have nicknamed “Dracosaurs.” These mounted Troglodytes serve as captains, directing others. Dracosaurs possess intelligence comparable to a horse, and have powerful jaws and razor-sharp claws. Some spit a powerful acid, others man make enormous leaps, even while carrying a Troglodyte captain. Mutant Dracosaurs (such as the one used by !Klrt) are larger and have even more terrible abilities.
When they lost their empire, the Kurindans also lost their knowledge of spaceflight: no matter. On more than one occasion, !Klrt and his forces have commandeered alien starships and forced their crews to take them where they want to go. They also have been able to call upon the warp-manipulating abilities of mutant psyker Kurindans—usually referred to as “Shamans”—to create temporary wormholes through the space/time continuum, allowing whole armies of Kurindans to literally walk from one planet to another. Progress along the quest has been slow. Inevitably, captured starship crews attempt to rebel, sabotage their ships, or are simply killed and eaten by the Kurindans after landing. The wormholes created by Shamans are difficult to create—requiring a great expenditure of psychic energy—and do not extend very far in astronomical terms (stretching, at most, from one solar system to the next closest). In addition to creating wormholes that allow the Kurindans to move from planet to planet, Shamans act as advisers to !Klrt, assisting him in inspiring and controlling the others and helping him to divine the way towards The Slayer’s world. Shamans do not eat physical food: instead, they gorge on the on the spirits of the slain, becoming so bloated that their legs can no longer hold them up and they are forced to levitate to move about. On the battlefield, they unleash psychic bolts of energy that cripple tanks and kill enemy troops, releasing more spirits that they quickly devour.
The Kurindans do not possess any significant technology, but they are aided in battle by several species of reptilian creatures, in addition to Dracosaurs, from their home world. These critters have varying degrees of intelligence and can accept commands from Kurindans. Imperial forces who have encountered these creatures have given them descriptive nicknames, used below. “Newtsaurians” are huge, bipedal monsters that serve as a sort of transport for the smaller, fragile Newts. Newts do not ride on these creatures—rather they ride inside the ‘saurians’ bodies, and are excreted out as needed to complete their mission. Though seemingly nothing more than beasts of burden, there appears to be a very strong bond—perhaps hormonal?—between Newtsaurians and their charges.
Newtsaurian of the “Cottonmouth” variety, first encountered
during the Qellizarr VII Incident “Venosaurians” are six-limbed creatures with great strength and razor-sharp claws. They seep venom--harmless to Kurindans and their attendant war-beasts, lethal to all others--from their pores. Venosaurians often skulk in the rear of the Kurindan attack, looking for counterattackers and protecting the vulnerable Shamans.
“Finbacks” and “Spikers” are squat but move very quickly, flinging themselves along with their bellies mere inches above the ground. Approximately as intelligent as dogs, they are used for hunting, running down and tearing apart their quarry.
“Hydrasaurs” are large, sturdy creatures whose multiple heads can spit flame. Hydrasaurs are approximately as intelligent as gorillas and can fulfill simple orders with minimal supervision. “Carnodons” are bigger, more massive monsters who are virtually immune to all but the most powerful weapons. Carnodons are often carried into battle by dim-witted flying brutes called Anklyopterosaurs, the latter placidly waiting until the more-intelligent Carnodon finishes butchering its victims and orders the Anklyopterosaur to carry it to another target… “Megasaurs” are bigger still, which would be a disadvantage on a battlefield were it not for their disturbing habit of burrowing through earth and stone to reach enemies. Finally, there are “Titanosaurs,” which rival Imperial war machines in size and destructive capability.
Collecting the Army
After scribbling down what unit types I liked, I went to the Lizardman section of the Complete Games Workshop Catalog and Hobby Reference, 2004-2005 Edition and picked out models that could represent those units. While I was doing that, I spotted certain Lizardman figures that I liked very much, so I went back to the Tyranid book and picked out units that I could apply those models to. A very circular process, the final result of which was that, like many of my other armies, this one grew larger than I had planned. Embarrassing, but there it is. I felt a micro-moment of shame as I was ordering the figures. Then I cackled with evil glee and hit the “Enter” button on my computer to complete the online transaction. Screw the budget! You only live once. Modeling and Painting
Seeing as how my Kurindans already break the WYSIWYG rule just by being a proxy army, I had little compunction about breaking that rule again when it came to weapons and biomorphs. I did not attempt to model deathspitters, barbed stranglers, or stranglethorns: instead, I said these were all breath weapons. Nor did I attempt to put wings on the “Dracosaurs” or “Hoppers”: even if I had gotten them to fit, they just wouldn’t look good.
Trogs on Dracosaurs, which count as Tyranid Shrikes or Tyranid Warriors Because I was working on other 40K projects, I commissioned my friend Patrick Eibel to paint this army for me. I thought that Pat’s very gritty, realistic, “natural” painting style would much better suit the Kurindans than my clean, “cartoony” style. My only requirement was that I wanted the Kurindans painted purple. Why purple? Because it’s one of my favorite colors and it’s not one you often see in 40K games. Though I hadn’t asked him to, Pat wisely chose to paint the mutant “Shamans” and the various Kurindan monsters green instead of purple, which gives the army some contrast. I painted the Spikers, the Newtsaurians, Carnodon, Anklyopterosaur, and the Megasaurs, which I found after Pat had finished most of the army. The Spikers are Warhammer Fantasy Razordon models. The Newtsaurians, Carnodon, and Anklyopterosaur are toys my kids weren’t using. The Megasaurs are inexpensive plastic Godzilla figures that I think perfectly embody the theme of the army. The figures stand over 6" high, much bigger than any of the Lizardman figures, and make great Trygons. I’ve nicknamed them “Larry” and “JoJo” after two of the “crockydiles” from my favorite comic strip, Pearls Before Swine.
Purists may sneer at using toys
instead of official Games Workshop figures, but then, sneering is what many
purists do best, and it makes them happy. I’m happy with how I didn’t have to
assemble the toy figures (some of those GW kits are a PITA to put together),
how they look painted, and how I saved a heap of money.
Anklyopterosaur (counts as a Mycetic Spore). In actuality, it’s a Happy Meal toy based
off the movie How to
Train Your Dragon. Laugh all you want, then think about how much time and money it might
take to make a “real” Spore model. Current Army List
In the list below, I’ll give the name of each unit, the corresponding Tyranid unit that those figures emulate, and their point value. You’ll notice that in some places, I’ll refer to a group of Kurindans as a “rampage;” this is analogous to a Tyranid “brood” or a Space Marine “squad.”
Carnodon with Newt driver Using the Army--"Leapin'
Lizards!"
Kurindans take on Hive Fleet Ravana Let’s
talk about the “Jump” part first.
This section consists of the winged Hive Tyrant, the Shrikes, the Gargoyles,
and the Raveners (Ravs don’t actually jump, but you get the idea). These are
all very fast units whose goal is to get up in the enemy's face tout de
suite. !Klrt, the leader of
the army, uses the stats for a Hive Tyrant with wings (okay, really it's his Mutant Dracosaur leaping to the
attack). The stranglethorn cannon
(represented as a breath weapon used by his mount) has great range and uses
the big blast marker, which compensates for his mediocre Ballistic Skill of
3. It can also pin opposing troops, holding them in place and keeping them
from firing. Once !Klrt gets in close, it's lights out for the other guys. The lashwhip knocks their Initiative down to 1, and the bonesword can Instant-Death hardcases like special characters. If !Klrt's wounded, I can use Leech Essence to restore some Wounds, and Paroxysm can mess with a troublesome squad (like, say Devastators, Dark Reapers, or Ork Nobz) until the Kurindans can neutralize them. Hive Commander will help get the “Dig” guys (more about them later) on the board sooner. The Old Adversary ability is just too good to pass up: re-rolls in close combat for all Kurindans, including !Klrt, within 6"? That's better than Kate Upton doused in Wesson Oil. Well, almost better. The Gargoyles (Newt Hoppers) are there to provide a mobile 4+ screen, and the Shrikes (Troglodytes on Dracosaurs) provide backup for !Klrt. Twin boneswords + adrenal glands (which provide Furious Charge) = Nothing Not To Like.
When I first started the army, I had taken five Raveners (Finbacks) with rending claws, scything talons, and deathspitters, but I quickly realized that if I didn’t fire the ‘spitters, I could use Fleet to get into close combat sooner, where Raveners naturally excel. By dropping the ‘spitters, which I probably weren’t going to use anyway, I could afford another Ravener. This is what we call a “no-brainer.” While wandering around the excellent store Dream Wizards one day, I saw two of the new, kickass Razordon models, and I had to buy them. I call them Spikers but count them as Raveners, and now my brood numbers eight. I think Deep-Striking Raveners is a colossally bad idea, so I just deploy them normally and let them run across the board. There’s not a lot to the “Sneak” part: it’s three broods of Genestealers (Troglodytes) who Infiltrate to get uncomfortably close to the enemy. I'm not enchanted by how GW has nerfed the Broodlord (I whine about that a lot here), but I have a model that I can't use for anything else, so one of my Troglodyte rampages is led by a “Captain” (aka, a Broodlord). Because basic 'Stealers are just awesome anyway (Infiltrate, Fleet, rending, WS 6: what's not to like?), so I don't spend any points on upgrades. Trogs, by the way, are so named so in homage of these guys.
Trog Captain (a
Kroxigor figure) and two Trogs (Temple Guard figures), that serve as a
Broodlord and Genestealers Let’s get to “Digging.” I used to run “Jojo” and “Larry” (the Megasaurs) as Tyrannofexes, but the problem with being a great big monster is that, well, you’re a great big target. I was also less than enthralled with how poorly they did at shooting and being overwhelmed by Hormagaunts in the Lizards vs. Bugs battle. So now I think I’ll proxy them as Trygons, popping up in the enemy’s face. Following after them (thanks to the Trygons’ Subterranean Assault ability) will be the Pyrovores (Hydrasaurs): they can use the holes the Trygons create, mitigating the short range of their flamespurt (which I explain away as a breath weapon).
Anyone besides me
remember pyrohydras from the 1st Edition AD&D Monster Manual? Zoanthropes (Shamans) also need to be relatively close to use their powers, so Subterranean Assault helps get them in position faster. I sneered at Venomthropes (Venosaurians) when I reviewed the new Nid codex, but since then, I’ve come to appreciate them for their Toxic Touch and Spore Cloud.
I also include in this group the Carnifex (Carnodon) and its Mycetic Spore (Anklyopterosaur). True, they drop in from
above rather than tunnel up from below, but in game terms, they Deep Strike similarly to the Trygons,
and that’s what really matters. The problem with the Carnifex has always been
that while it’s tough as all get-out and can crunch its way through anything,
it’s sloooooooooooow. Using the Spore gets it up-close-and-personal-like
plenty quick-quick.
Carnodon (that
Tyrannosaur-looking thing) with Newt driver and Anklyopterosaur (that winged
fellow) Finally, there’s “Hold.” It’s all well and good to have a bunch of guys who can get across the board quickly and kill the other dudes, but you need to have Troops to take objectives. That’s the job of the Termagants (Newt Regulars), Tervigons (Newtsaurians) and the Tyranid Warriors (Trogs on Dracosaurs, the Spitting, Not-Jumping Version). The models I use for Newts are Skinks from the Warhammer Fantasy range, and back under the previous edition of the codex, I used to run them as Hormagaunts. However, even when upgraded with toxin sacs and adrenal glands and such, they weren't that good. I recall very vividly a game against Deathwing where, in one turn, the Hormies literally threw over 100 dice and still only managed to kill 1 Terminator. Moo.
Adding insult to injury, my Purple People Eaters were beaten down by unpainted minis Tervigons (Newtsaurians) are great because they buff up other units with Catalyst, can be Troop units (to hold objectives) and can squeeze out no-cost Termagants to either help the Terv hold its objective, or go off to claim another objective. The Trogs on “Spitter” Dracs provide some shootiness, a quality Nids are lacking. The Dracosaurs are represented by Cold One models, which are assumed to spew a breath weapon similar to deathspitters. While these units will never be confused with a Space Marine Devastator Squad, 15 S 5 shots at BS 3 don’t suck (for proxied Tyranids, anyway). For Apocalypse games, I can add on a Titanosaur, whom I’ve nicknamed “Big G.” He’s a 12” tall Godzilla figure, and he uses the rules and stats for the Hierophant Bio-Titan from the Apocalypse book. The Hierophant is a big, nasty, tough-as-nails critter, and it takes only a little explaining to make some of its rules fit this model. In the same way as I did for the Warriors and Carnifexes, the Hierophant’s bio-cannons can be proxied by a breath weapon. I’ll take a cue from Cloverfield and say that the effects of the spore cloud come from scores of loathsome parasites dropping off the monster and attacking anyone nearby.
I really like the character of the army and how it's turned out. Right now, it’s probably my second-favorite army, after my Fighting Tigers. Related
Pages Originally posted January 2005; revised
March 2010 and May 2011 |
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Fighting
Tigers: Other
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