Path of Conquest: Dave’s inSPIREing Blog – Part 1

So here we are again. Another Path of Conquest series where you dear readers get to enjoy me slowly losing my mind painting up a 2000 point army through a series of milestones.

This time around I am amassing a Spires Army. Whenever I begin a new project I always like to pick a theme that I then shape my force around. My theme for this particular army is “MEAT WALL!”. I want to have a massive horde of Force Grown Drones led by supporting characters to keep replenishing their ranks. The full 2000 point army I have planned will look like this:

As you can see, there are a LOT of Force Grown Drones! These humble spear wielding meat-sacks will be the backbone of my force. They certainly have number on their side, but are individually weak. In my own experience, they benefit greatly by having characters attached to them to boost them, either by providing them with a boost to the number and quality of attacks they dish out or by increasing their resolve so that less of them run away (fall apart?) in combat.

The Biomancer will be the powerhouse of the list. I have shamelessly stolen this idea from Andy Sparks who used this build against me (to my absolute horror!). The Tier 3 mastery of flesh allows me to replenish the ranks of one of the frontline regiments with Essence Transfer and then activate them immediately. He then replenishes the casualties suffered by the first biomancy with his Biotic Renewal. It is really thematic and horrifying to face. His warband brings a pair of awesome Abominations for some late game rip’n’tear.

The Pheromancer is there to also heal up casualties with his Accelerated Hibernation Pheromancy ability. He also has the expensive-but-useful Pheromantic Drive which can allow a regiment to act twice, but taking decay in the process. This is really useful for Marksman clones firing double volleys at something or for really amplifying the damage that an abomination can do in a crucial turn. Worst case scenario you could even stick it on a Force Grown Drone regiment to unleash a total storm of rubbish attacks for a giggle. His warband also unlocks the wonderful Brute Drone regiment, who are fast and hard hitting with a decent number of attacks.

The Assassin will become a decay bomb with the lovely Cascading Degeneration mutation. He is also really tasty in combat anyway, doubly so with the Venom mutation. Whatever they connect with in combat will have the triple threat of a combat character, a storm of weaker drone attacks, and will receive Decay which will thing their numbers in their own activation.

My Warlord will be a High Clone Executor who will have a small bodyguard warband of Vanguard Clones (He won’t sully himself with Drones!). This regiment is incredible good in close combat, especially as i’ve upgraded them with an Assault Preceptor Commander. This grants them the Fury draw event for a massive number of attacks. The Executor also unlocks a regiment of Marksmen Clones. This ranged regiment is rightly feared for the large numbers of long ranged attacks that they can dish out. His supremacy ability is utterly brilliant (Possibly too good? In line for a nerf? Who cares! For now I’m activating 3 cards in a row on a crucial turn!). He’ll also add a nice bit of cleave to the force.  

So to summarise, The idea is to intimidate the enemy with walls of meat that simple wont die and who will engage the enemy in a war of attrition. The characters will lead the Drones, and will keep them alive and punching. The Clones, Abominations and Brute Drones will be the heavy hitters of the force that will deal with anything truly nasty.

The Path of Conquest challenge requires me to split the army into 5 milestones. Milestones 1 and 2 will initially be for the First Blood Ruleset. Then milestones 3-5 will bulk out the army to its final 2000 point total.

Milestone 1 begins with a 400 point First Blood force. Force Grown Drones are very cheap so we can afford to have a pair of fairly big units. When a Force Grown Drone regiment has 8 or more models, they get a free Pheromantic Node (which gives the benefits of a Leader and a Banner) so these chaps are hopefully going to be rather effective for their points. The force will be led by a pair of characters. A Pheromancer who is equipped with Accelerated Hibernation for healing shenanigans, and a High Clone Executor who is decent in combat, and who also brings his amazing Supremacy ability. We will round off the small force with an Abomination for a fast moving and heavy hitting punch. This gives us a bit of variety as well from a painting point of view, with two wonderful character models and a mighty monster straight away.

I’m looking forward to see how this force comes together. After painting a lot of metallic armour for my Hundred Kingdoms and Dweghom, I’m making it my personal mission to not use a single metallic colour for the Spires. The main scheme will be as follows:

  1. a bone colour for the weapons, rags and skin.  
  2. Blue/teal for the armour
  3. Purple for the Cloth and various other details

Hopefully I will be able to keep smashing out the large number models I’ll need to complete each month for such a horde army. To this end, my scheme will be fairly basic, using Games Workshop paints and shade washes. The bases will be done in my standard fashion.

Looking forward to seeing how we get on!

Path of Conquest: A Wee Start

New Beginnings

I started my Conquest experience years ago with a demo by a local friend (Audun54 actually). The only released armies at the time were 100k and the Spires, and neither really caught my attention. Fast-forward to Winter 2020, and he gives me a Nords starter he won in a giveaway. I now have a pile of unbuilt Nords models that are waiting to be assembled, with more on the way. This journey we will take together will be about finding a place for many of those models in a ready-for-battle 2k point The Last Argument of Kings army, and a couple of First Blood lists along the way. I will be sharing pictures, lessons learned, and tips as I discover them during this Path of Conquest. Below I will share my lists if you wish to build the same as I, but I encourage you to find inspiration from what I share and not directly follow step-by-step as we all conquer differently, and what works for me may not work for you.

I am including purchasing tips so you know what you need to buy for a given milestone if you follow my footsteps, so you don’t end up like me and spend your whole budget on something you don’t need right away. (Full list at the end)

First Blood

Our first (of two) First Blood forces we will build during the course of May and June are as follows at 400 and 600 points:

Milestone I

Our first force! 400 points of Nords just waiting to kill something. This will be a taster of the rest of our 2000 point force, which will expand on this foundation.

Buying Guide:
  • 1x Nords First Blood Starter OR 1x Jarl and 1x box Huskarls
  • 1x box Trolls
  • 1x box Bow Chosen (this might be on backorder so order early)
  • 1x Blooded character
The Nords – 395/400

Blooded [70]: Warlord

  • Trolls (4) [80]
  • Bow-Chosen (4) [80]

Jarl [100]: Vinda the Dancer, Dragon

  • Huscarls (4) [65]

Characters: 2
Light Regiments: 1
Medium Regiments: 2
Heavy Regiments: 0

Milestone II

Expanding on our 400 point force, we will be adding additional units to the First Blood army for a total of 600 points, plus roughly 200 points towards our final force. We will do this by painting the rest of the contents from the milestone 1 boxes.

Buying Guide:
  • 1x box Huskarls (if First Blood starter was purchased for milestone 1)
The Nords – 599/600

Blooded [70]: Warlord

  • Trolls (6) [120]
  • Bow-Chosen (6) [120]

Jarl [185]: Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1, Thegn, Vinda the Dancer, Dragon

  • Huscarls (8) [104]

Characters: 2
Light Regiments: 1
Medium Regiments: 2
Heavy Regiments: 0

Milestone III

Our 3rd milestone is creating another First Blood force, this time focused on our good friend the Jarl and his Huskarls. This list (and its expanded form) will take us through July and August.

Buying Guide:
  • 1x Jarl character
  • 2x boxes Huskarls
The Nords – 393/400

Jarl [185]: Warlord, Thegn, Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1, Vinda the Dancer, Dragon

  • Huscarls (8) [104]
  • Huscarls (8) [104]

Characters: 1
Light Regiments: 0
Medium Regiments: 2
Heavy Regiments: 0

Milestone IV

With milestone number 4 we add and redistribute Huskarls and add another Jarl. Again, we will round out the extra 200 points with models from milestone 3. This would also be a good time to buy and work on one of the additional Trolls boxes for the 2000 point list.

Buying Guide:
  • Nothing! (We reuse the Jarl from our previous First Blood force)
The Nords – 595/600

Jarl [185]: Warlord, Thegn, Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1, Vinda the Dancer, Dragon

  • Huscarls (7) [91]: Leader
  • Huscarls (7) [91]: Leader

Jarl [150]: Combat Tier 3, Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1, Rjóða the Red Bringer, Dragon

  • Huscarls (6) [78]: Leader

Characters: 2
Light Regiments: 0
Medium Regiments: 3
Heavy Regiments: 0

Conquest: The Last Argument of Kings

Milestone V

With milestone 5 we are rounding out our remaining forces. To be frank 3 boxes is a lot for one 400 point sprint, so I would advise getting a box or two during the lighter milestones 2 and/or 4 to keep things rounded out more evenly.

Buying Guide:
  • 2x boxes Trolls (if you have not purchased extra along the way)
  • 1x box Huskarls (only if you did not purchase the First Blood Starter)
Nords – 2000/2000

Blooded [95]: Warlord, Wolf, Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1

  • Trolls (5) [430]: Leader, Standard Bearer
  • Bow-Chosen (3) [250]: Leader
  • Trolls (4) [350]: Leader, Standard Bearer

Jarl [155]: Dragon, Combat Tier 3, Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1, Vinda the Dancer

  • Huscarls (5) [295]: Leader, Standard Bearer, Thegn

Jarl [130]: Dragon, Combat Tier 3, Combat Tier 2, Combat Tier 1, Rjóða the Red Bringer

  • Huscarls (5) [295]: Leader, Standard Bearer, Thegn

Characters: 3
Light Regiments: 1
Medium Regiments: 4
Heavy Regiments: 0

Summary

There we have it, the plan for our zero to hero 2000 point Nords Path of Conquest.

Total Buying Guide:

  • 1x box Nords First Blood Starter OR 1x Jarl and 1x box Huskarls
  • 3x boxes Huskarls
  • 3x boxes Trolls
  • 1x box Bow Chosen
  • 1x Blooded character
  • 1x Jarl character

You can find me on the official Para Bellum discord as Karnthis, feel free to reach out with questions!

Path of Conquest, A Call to Arms

It’s been an exciting few months in the Conquest world and I’m sure everyone is excited to kick off the second Path of Conquest, featuring everyone’s favorite dinosaur riding orcs, The W’adrhŭn. This is now my second foray into the Path of Conquest event and I am incredibly excited to get underway with this one as the W’adrhŭn are very near and dear to me. I had the absolute pleasure of playtesting this army and without a doubt this is the most fun army I have ever played in all my years of miniature games. All this aside let’s break into what the Path of Conquest is, what your part will be in it if you want to join in, and what’s in it for you by following along.

So, what is the Path of Conquest? Simply enough, we set a goal, any goal will do. For the group of dorks I have roped into this the end goal will be a 2000 point The Last Argument of Kings army, starting with a First Blood army to get things rolling. Our goal is to hit Five 400 point milestones and show off our progress along the way. While painting we will be uploading articles about our builds along with any advice for painting and playing the army we can come up with. Going more in depth, Milestone 1 will be a 400 point First Blood army. Milestone 2 will expand that army to 600 points while adding an extra 200 to our Last Argument of Kings Army. Milestone 3 we will start again, a second 400 point First Blood army and Milestone 4 will have the same goal as number 2. Finally we will wrap up with Milestone 5 and add the last 400 points to finish up our full 2000 point army. It sure sounds simple now but i’m sure things will get hectic.

With that out of the way, where do you come in on this equation. My goal for this event is to, as a community do something we can be really proud of, get some more people into the game, show off and celebrate what we can paint, and most of all show people how great this game is and its community. By signing up below you can sign up to join this Path with us, set your own goal and join us in blowing up social media everywhere with the amazing game that is Conquest. We will follow your posts, see your progress, and at the end there will be some fun rewards for those who followed along.

On that note let’s talk about what’s in this for you. First off. For those who signed up we will be raffling off a First Blood starter kit of your choice to help you get started with milestone one. This will be a great opportunity for those wanting to start a new army or if you have a friend who hasn’t quite taken the plunge just yet. Second, when all is said and done, the six of us will decide who produced our favorite army, that lucky person will receive a founders model of their choice from the original four. Our second favorite army will receive 100 dollars to be used on the eshop, and last but not least our favorite First Blood army will receive 50 dollars to the eshop. Now, finally and most importantly, we will all receive the opportunity to grow this community and show people that this game is here to stay as we walk this Path of Conquest.

So that’s The Path of Conquest, I encourage everyone to sign up below and join in so we can make this as big as possible. It’s time to get those minis out that are collecting dust, get that friend into the game that’s been thinking about it for months, or get that army that you have been eyeing on the side. Get painting, get posting, and get ready to listen to six guys who barely understand the game try to form coherent sentences for the next 5 months.

Path of Conquest Sign Up

Path of Conquest: Audun54’s Dweghom

Raegh Theurodhin of Ghleulgas from Para Bellum Wargames

Hello there! I’m normally a Hundred Kingdoms player but I’ve been feeling an inexplicable draw towards painting beards and testing out some unconventional colorschemes. Therefore it was clear that my area needed a fully painted Dweghom army stomping around and setting the field ablaze! By the end of this event I plan to bring the below force to bear:

=== The Last Argument of Kings ===

Dweghom – 2000/2000

Grel’Hof

Hold Raegh [80]

– Dragonslayers (3) [255]: Standard Bearer

– Hold Thanes (5) [320]: Standard Bearer

Tempered Sorcerer [95]: Fireball

– Hold Ballistae (3) [150]

– Inferno Automata (3) [200]

– Hellbringer Drake (1) [180]

– Hold Warriors (5) [220]: Standard Bearer

Tempered Steelshaper [125]: Select as Warlord, Potent Scryer, Unmake Armour

– Fireforged (3) [235]: Flamecaster

– Hold Warriors (3) [140]: Standard Bearer

Characters: 3

Light Regiments: 2

Medium Regiments: 4

Heavy Regiments: 2

As can be seen this will be a Dweghom force very firmly along the Tempered path with a focus on close quarters firepower and brawling. Moreover these are all models I’ve been really looking forward to painting. My colorscheme, at this time at least, will center around Turbo Dork’s Let Them Eat Cake and Sweet Dreams paints. Both of these are a very nice colorshifting purple/blue color.

For Milestone 1 however I’ll be starting a bit smaller and having the Dweghom of Grel’hof start with sending scouting parties to the surface. This will be a First Blood force of 400 points:

=== First Blood! ===

The Dweghom – 398/400

Grel’Hof

Hold Raegh [100]: Select as Warlord, Perfectly Balanced

– Hold Warriors (6) [60]: Leader

Tempered Sorcerer [95]: Fireball

– Hold Ballistae (6) [78]: Leader

– Inferno Automata (1) [65]

Characters: 2

Light Regiments: 2

Medium Regiments: 1

Heavy Regiments: 0

The idea is that the Tempered Sorcerer is bringing a scouting detachment to the surface so his warband is focused around light units. The Automata will take point and engage enemy skirmishers while the Hold Ballistae and Sorcerer provide support. Meanwhile the Raegh will lead a detachment of Hold Warriors to provide support and deal with any surface dwellers foolish enough to stand against the firstborn of War. This force provides a really good foundation to Dweghom since it is based around units that will form the core of really any army and can easily be made Ardent themed by swapping out the Raegh or Sorcerer for a Kerawegh.

For Milestone 2 the scouting detachment will receive more reinforcements with extra Hold Warriors and Inferno Automata. They’ll also be joined by the devastating Dragonslayers to take care of any heavy armor. These may be overkill for First Blood but come on, they have halberds. How can anyone resist Dweghom in plate with halberds?

=== First Blood! ===

The Dweghom – 598/600

Grel’hof

Hold Raegh [80]: Warlord

– Hold Warriors (12) [120]: Standard Bearer, Leader

– Dragonslayers (5) [95]

Tempered Sorcerer [95]: Fireball

– Inferno Automata (2) [130]

– Hold Ballistae (6) [78]: Leader

Characters: 2

Light Regiments: 2

Medium Regiments: 1

Heavy Regiments: 1

Milestone 2 will also be when the our First Blood forces begin to coalesce into the more conventional forces seen in the Last Argument of Kings. So as part of this we flesh out the First Blood forces into their proper sized regiments.

=== The Last Argument of Kings ===

Dweghom – 800/800
Grel’hof

Hold Raegh [80]: Select as Warlord

– Hold Warriors (6) [260]: Standard Bearer

Tempered Sorcerer [95]: Fireball

– Hold Ballistae (3) [165]: Leader

– Inferno Automata (3) [200]

Characters: 2
Light Regiments: 2
Medium Regiments: 1

Then in Milestone 3 we more properly move from the skirmishes of First Blood to the clash of armies in the Last Argument of Kings!

=== The Last Argument of Kings ===

Dweghom – 1195/1200

Grel’hof

Hold Raegh [80]: Select as Warlord

– Dragonslayers (3) [255]: Standard Bearer

– Hold Warriors (4) [180]: Standard Bearer

Tempered Sorcerer [95]: Fireball

– Hold Ballistae (3) [150]

– Inferno Automata (3) [200]

– Fireforged (3) [235]: Flamecaster

Characters: 2

Light Regiments: 2

Medium Regiments: 2

Heavy Regiments: 1

The army gets some reinforcements as the First Blood regiments get increased to battle strength and beyond. This creates a flexible and fast moving force with a decent threat range. It will certainly be outnumbered consistently but that is the Dweghom way from what I understand. Continuing the theme from the First Blood forces, this Dweghom hold very much venerates the close quarter aspect of war. In my mind this is a hold that has spent a very long time fighting underground and that tradition has shaped their general tactics.

Milestone 4 brings us to 1600 points and the force is now pretty solid.

=== The Last Argument of Kings ===

Dweghom – 1595/1600

Grel’hof

Hold Raegh [100]: Select as Warlord, Perfectly Balanced

– Dragonslayers (3) [255]: Standard Bearer

– Hold Thanes (3) [200]: Standard Bearer

– Hold Warriors (3) [140]: Standard Bearer

Tempered Sorcerer [95]: Fireball

– Hold Ballistae (3) [150]

– Inferno Automata (3) [200]

– Hold Warriors (5) [220]: Standard Bearer

– Fireforged (3) [235]: Flamecaster

Characters: 2

Light Regiments: 2

Medium Regiments: 3

Heavy Regiments: 2

—–

We can now see almost all the elements of the full 2000 point army here with the Raegh’s new bodyguard of Thanes to hold the line. And now even more Hold Warriors! Because what is a battleline without a solid shieldwall. But where is the Steelshaper in all of this?

He’s showing back up in Milestone 5 with the Hellbringer Drake! I figure it would be best to finish the Path with the big centerpiece of the army and even more Thanes. With these additions I feel I will have a very solid army focused around a few large durable regiments. Quite a few people like to have their characters do the heavy lifting but I’ve always been a fan of having more bodies on the field. For one thing that gives me more to paint which is why anyone is reading this.

Thanks for coming along and I can’t wait to see how this army comes out and to see what everyone else comes up with!