Death Archon

File:Mercenary Logo.jpg File:Minion Logo.jpg

Template:FH2

This model is playable only in an Unlimited format.

As the war between the Infernals and the Archon-backed mortals of the Iron Kingdoms wages on, a new and strange entity has made its presence known: massive, hooded creatures born aloft on wings of bone and wielding fierce Iron Reapers, the Death Archons have come. No one is sure where these creatures came from or who they answer to, if anyone.

Basic Info

Mercenary - This model will work for Template:Crucible Guard mercenary, Template:Cryx Mercenary, Template:Convergence Mercenary, Template:Cygnar Mercenary, Template:Si, Template:Khador Mercenary, Template:Protectorate Mercenary, or Template:Retribution Mercenary.

Minion - This model will work for Template:Circle Minion, Template:Grymkin Minion, Template:Legion Minion, Template:Skorne Minion, or Template:Trollblood Minion.

Abilities

• Template:Flight
• Template:Bring Out Your Dead!
• Template:Carnage Incarnate
  • Template:Divine Inspiration
  • Template:Mortal Fear
  • Template:Spectral Flicker
• Template:Divine Manifestation
• Template:Vendetta

Weapons

Iron Reaper (x2)
File:Sword icon.jpg		RNG				POW				P+S
		2				6				15
Template:Magical Damage Template:Blood Reaper Template:Chain Attack Death Chill }}

Theme Forces

• Mercenary
  • Template:Soldiers of Fortune - This model gains Mark Target in this theme.
  • Template:Strange Bedfellows - This model gains Swift Vengeance in this theme.
  • Template:Talion Charter - This model gains Sacrificial Pawn [Sea Dog trooper] in this theme.

• Minions
  • Template:Blindwater Congregation
  • Template:Will Work for Food

• Other Factions
  • Convergence players can use this model in the Strange Bedfellows theme. It becomes a "friendly Faction" model and gains Swift Vengeance in this theme.
  • A few themes allow you to take the full FA of Death Archons plus another Mercenary solo. However the Archon does not become a "friendly Faction" model. These themes are:
    • Crucible Guard - Prima Materia
    • Cryx - Scourge of the Broken Coast
    • Circle - Secret Masters
    • Legion - Oracles of Annihilation
    • Skorne - Disciples of Agony
  • Aside from that, Mercenary/Minion models can be hired by other Factions. Normally those Factions' themes will have a limit on how many models they can hire. Refer to #Other Theme Forces, below.

Thoughts on Death Archon

Death Archon in a nutshell

Death Archons are unlike other Archons in that they collect corpses and do not protect the souls of friendly models. Additionally, Death Archons have Animosity [other types of Archon] and Vendetta [other types of Archon], meaning they cannot be included in an army with non-Death Archons, and they are particularly good at destroying them.

The Death Archon can utilize corpses it collects to increase its own damage output, mobility, or to reduce the damage of enemy models near it. In combat, the Death Archon reaps entire swathes of enemy models with a pair of Range 2 Iron Reaper melee attacks, both of which have the Blood Reaper ability that allows them to hit every model in their melee range with each attack. This is all topped off by its Chain Attack: Death Chill, which means anything that survives the two swings of its Reapers will find itself stationary and waiting for death.

Many models have soul protection but next to nothing has corpse protection, meaning it should get its fill of dead bodies (unless you play against a construct-heavy army). Unfortunately it was fairly savagely nerfed in the October 2021 rebalance, with the board area covered by the attack approximately halved (from a 4" radius to a 3" radius with it being the center 1" or from 15 units down to 8) as well as its cost being increased, and it not providing anti-soul tech or being quite as devastating to living models including warbeasts.

It's main job is infantry blending, which is does exceptionally well thanks to Divine Inspiration and two 2" reach Blood Reapers, and Archon hunting, which it does trivially thanks to Vendetta. Against harder targets that can survive both of it's initials, it still has it's Chain Attack, which leaves the target vulnerable to be finished of by hard hitting infantry, or a warbeast/warjack that no longer has to boost to hit, and can focus on buying attack or boosts to damage instead. This means it should always have a way to contribute.

Combos & Synergies

General

• The Spirit Cauldron, the Well of Orboros, the Death Knell, all have abilities that can fuel the Death Archon with corpses.
• Most ARM skew lists with enough corpses to fuel it will appreciate a Death Archon for Mortal Fear.
  • Azazello might like him in Will Work for Food in lower point levels for this reason. As will most warjack or warbeast heavy lists, multi wound infantry lists such as Devourer's Host or Armored Korps, cavalry based lists such as Soldiers of Fortune or Dark Host.
  • Thagrosh1 or Agathia can double stack their Death Shroud with his Mortal Fear for extra beefiness.

Main Themes (Minions & Mercs)

• The Death Archon gains Swift Vengeance in this theme. This is an absolutely insanely strong rule for the Death Archon, giving it additional threat range and the potential to pick up corpses before activating.
• Additionally this is the only theme playable outside of Mercs or Minions in which the Death Archon can benefit from friendly faction effects.
• Aurora2 does quite a lot for flying models, protection from shooting is probably the most important thing.
• Convergence have affordable access to soul management with the Enigma Foundry, and prefer Archons for their output.
• The Death Archon's direct competitor in this theme is the Void Archon. Both are flying balls of death, but in terms of sheer output the Death Archon is usually going to win.

• In the Talion Charter theme it gets Sacrificial Pawn [Sea Dog], keeping it safe and fueling it with corpses when struck. Add in Shae's feat and Storm Rager and you get yourself one scary, scary avatar of death.
• Bart loves infantry clearing for his Battlegroup and Batten Down the Hatches plus Mortal Fear makes for a beefy battlegroup.

• Soul Collectors so you can double up on the token collection mechanics. Mostly that is Crosse2 and Alexia2, both of which can play with an Archon in Soldiers of Fortune. Crosse can also create a +5 ARM skew on a unit of Steelhead Heavy Cavalry and give the archon a turn of Ghostly plus Stealth.
• Damiano has a feat that gives it +3 STR and ARM, similar to Azazello in Minions. Naturally this is great on this model.
• Magnus2 loves some infantry clearing for his battle group, Bullet Dodger makes it better defensively and Mortal Fear + Field Marshal: Unyielding make for a very beefy battlegroup.
• Ashlynn2 - True Path lets it zoom across the battle field and dig deep with Spectra Flicker.
• The Steelhead Ironhead can crane the Archon 2" further.

• Maelok is a brick caster and the Deathchons make his list even brickier with Mortal fear while also bringing some significant melee power to hist list.
• Gatorman Posse - The theme benefits make them beefy as hell, which is excellent when backed up by Maelock's kit and Mortal Fear.
• Spirit Cauldron - If you run Maelock, two of these are required because Death Archons cannot actually collect corpses from friendly undead, which most of your list will be under Death Pact.

Secondary Themes (Factions with Double DA)

Scourge doesn't really lack for infantry-clearing tools, so you generally need to have a plan for what you want the double DA to achieve, rather than sticking two in the list "just because you can". Secondly, the Void Archon is a valid alternative because a) there are lots of living troops and b) the troops sometimes pillow-fisted and an extra source of Dark Shroud is great.

• There's a popular list floating around using two Death Archons, Scaverous, and a Steelhead Ironhead to increase the DA's threat range by 4" (or even 6" if you can TK the enemy charge target).
• Skarre2's feat can be used on friendly models and squeeze one more turn out of the Death Archon.

Much of what was said for Cryx's Scourge is equally applicable to Disciples of Agony.

Prima Materia is known for little melee options (outside of warjacks), so the double DA is a popular option.

• Crucible Guard are generally a debuff faction, Prima Materia especially so. This means the DA not being a "friendly Faction model" is a less significant downside.
• Lukas - Disintegrate, Telekinesis and Burning Ash don't care about Deathchons not being friendly faction to Lukas and he thus turns them up to eleven. Mortal fear and his Iron Flesh also make a unit of Failed Experiments very difficult to deal with.
• Failed Experiments love Mortal Fear and are your readiest source of corpses for him.
• Ascendant Mentalists - More ARM stacking with Force Aura.
• Trancers - Getting a cheeky smite of against an opponents model can let the Deathchon snowball into the enemy list with Spectral Flicker.

• Krueger2 - Has Telekinesis for threat projection and a 14" Wind Storm bubble to protect it from guns. With the feat you can even get an alpha strike twice and line up models for blood Reaoer attacks.
• Spirit Cauldron can also be taken here.
• Well of Orboros - Supplies it with further corpses.
• Chuck Dogwood - Puppet Master on a stick.
• Blackclad Wayfarer - Hunter Mark can extend its threat range.

• Thagrosh1 - As mentioned above can run quite a brick list if you stack Mortal Feat and Death Shroud
• Abyslonia1 - Blight Burst lets you take a heavy out of the game with out killing it if you apply Stationary.
• Thagrosh0 - Same as Abby1 above, but irrespective of your Warlock.

Tertiary Themes (Factions with Single DA)

• Man-o-War Demolition Corps - They love stationary models which they can Shatter. Mortal Fear is also great with high-ARM multi would models and they appreciate models who can clear chaff.

Grymkin is likely to be a natural home for the Death Archon. The Death Knell can channel corpses directly to the Archon, in Dark Menagerie he starts with an extra corpse, and he can benefit from the free friendly corpses produced by a Malady Man & Mad Caps.

• Additionally, several Grymkin warlocks have buffs/debuffs which can affect Minion models included in the army. the King of Nothing's entire suite, the Wanderer's Star-Crossed, and Zevanna Agha's full range of debuffs. the Heretic & the Dreamer stand out as having almost nothing that work with the Death Archon.
• Dread Rots are one of the most cost effective sources of corpses for the Death Archon, especially when you consider that they can funnel corpses from enemies slain.
• Grave Ghouls pair really nicely with the Death Archon. Both are fueled by the same corpses, and both want to get stuck in deep into the enemy lines.
• The biggest downside is how the Death Archon competes with the higher utility Defiled Archon.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• It generates too many "what is the proper way to hold a scythe?" conversations.
• Can't use other Archons. This is a bigger downside for some themes more than others, notably those with friendly access to other Archons.
  • Grymkin has to give up the extreme utility of the Defiled Archon
  • Convergence loses out on the flying threat-ball that is the Void Archon
  • Minions and Trollbloods have to choose between fury management & troop support with the Dhunian Archon.
  • Legion's Blight Archon is an absolute mainstay for the faction, proving fury management, Veteran Leader, Impending Doom among other things.
  • Perhaps the worst part of being unable to include other archons however is the Death Archon's lack of interaction with souls. It will be difficult to justify including a Death Archon in both sides of a Steamroller pair, once one considers how important souls are as a resource for many top tier lists.
• Constructs don't generate corpses. This is significant both with your enemies army composition and your own, most notably in Strange Bedfellows.
  • They still generate souls often, thanks to the presence of the Soul Vessel rule throughout Convergence. This will most often work against you however, as one of the functions of a normal Archon is to control the flow of souls across the battlefield.
• Blood Reaper is not optional. Even with only a 2" reach on a large base, you probably don't want him getting into combat anywhere near your own troops.
• No access to "friendly Faction buffs" outside of Mercs, Minions, and Strange Bedfellows.
• It has no ranged game and thus relies on being delivered by the rest of its list so it can get a charge off on an enemy model. If you can deny this you can neuter its output.
• It also has no ranged defence other than mortal fear, which is "only" a 10" bubble. So most guns will be able to shoot outside of that and do it in with enough shots. And on a large base it's a bullet magnet.
• Its 11" basic threat range is good but nothing exceptional. Even getting the extra 2" spectral flicker it's still nothing special.
• At Def 14, Arm 17, 15 wounds, and only its Mortal Fear as defensive tech it's surprisingly squishy for 9 points. Of course if it can be screened and shield guarded this isn't so much of a worry and it protects everyone else.
• Its damage output isn't that great for its cost.
  • Against jacks/beasts it gets two POW 15 (or about 17 with Divine Power) attacks, at most one boosted - and Death Chill is something beasts and jacks just shake.
  • Against infantry they take out a wide area of those in reach of its base - but so do a lot of things from Doom Reaver Swordsmen onwards. It's overkill having this all in one place with no real way of getting back to safety. But it certainly does the job of leaving a couple of fairly big holes in the infantry line if it has a couple of corpse tokens.

Tricks & Tips

• He can only have 3 corpses (other versions of Bring Out Your Dead can have 5 corpses)
• You can't collect corpses if you attack your own models, but you can set your own models on fire/corrosion and then collect corpses when (if) they die in your next Maintenance Phase.
  • Retribution's Stormfall Archers could have some Soulless Escorts, then use their Star Strike ability on Turn 1 to set the Escorts on fire.
• If you want to use Spectral Flicker, you need to spend the corpse before you make the attack roll.
• If you are going to kill stuff with the Death Archon, you probably want to spend the corpses before making attacks to make room to collect more corpses. However:
  • It depends how confident you are in your chances of killing and collecting new corpses.
  • If you have other corpse collectors nearby (such as the Death Knell) you may want the Death Archon to stay at max corpses so it doesn't take all the new corpses for itself.

Other

Trivia

• Sculpted by Doug Hamilton
• Released 2021.02