Satyxis Blood Priestess

Blood priestesses preserve the ancient traditions of Satyxis blood magic, worshipping the very act of bloodletting itself. Able to harness the arcane force of spilled vitality, these priestesses perform sacred rituals of primal power that predate Toruk's reign. Wetting their sacral blades in the blood of their fresh victims they evoke potent spells and safeguard the lives of those they deem worthy, including such preeminent figures as the Queen of the Broken Coast.

Basic Info

Abilites

• Template:Stealth
• Template:Arcane Assist
• Template:Temptations of Fate

Weapons

Sacral Blade
File:Sword icon.jpg		RNG				POW				P+S
		1				7				13
Template:Magical weapon Template:Attack Type Template:Dispel Template:Distillation Template:Rites of Blood
Horns
File:Sword icon.jpg		RNG				POW				P+S
		0.5				3				9
Template:Critical Knockdown

Theme Forces

• Cryx
  • Template:Scourge of the Broken Coast

• Other Factions
  • Infernal players can use this model in the Template:Hearts of Darkness theme, but only if Mortenebra is leading the army.

Thoughts on the Satyxis Blood Priestess

Satyxis Blood Priestess in a nutshell

The Blood Priestess is a support solo that grants its warcaster three major things: Sucker, Arcane Assist, and killing your own troops to generate free spells.

Increasing the durability of some of the more fragile Cryx Warcasters can be very powerful. Focus efficiency in the form of Arcane Assist is also a very compelling choice for some of Cryx’s more buff-oriented caster options. We also would like to see the Blood Priestess join the fight in the mid-to-late game where her Sacral Blade’s menu of abilities can really come into effect. With the utility abilities to Heal, Dispel, or cast spells the toolbox of options are quite unique in this model.

Combos & Synergies

• Any caster who doesn't want to be hit. The various Deneghras and Skarres are obvious examples.
• Venethrax has a particularly nasty array of spells she can cast. She has a better magic ability than a Skarlock and since she can charge, kill, and cast the spell, she also has a longer threat range.
• Perform your sacrifices near a Misery Cage for extra focus efficiency.
• Rahera1 or Skarre2 have the Black Spot spell, potentially allowing you to use the Priestess' special Attack Types three times in a single activation. That requires the Priestess to get to and kill four enemy models, so you need luck, but still...

Drawbacks & Downsides

• Sucker isn't optional. If your caster is lower DEF than the troops around them, the enemy may be happy to target the caster to kill the troops. (This is especially true for Skarre3 who combines low-ish DEF with a huge base.)
  • If there are no other troops in range, Sucker must be used to kill the Blood Priestess herself.
• Arcane Assist is tethered to the Priestess's CMD range, instead of the caster's CTRL.

Tricks & Tips

• Rites of Blood can trigger from friendly living models.
  • It can be worth earmarking some cheap living models for the Priestess to sacrifice for fuel when she's with casters who would like her to function as a pseudo-Spell Slave. Especially in the early stages of the game, and extra especially if she has access to utility buffs like Ghost Walk or Telekinesis.
  • The cheapest sacrifices you can field, when playing in a theme,
    • Blood Witches in Scourge of the Broken Coast, not ideal because you'll essentially have to give up Ambush to keep them near the Priestess.
    • Scharde Pirates also in Scourge, again not ideal this time because their Tough may make you fail.
    • The Mercenary Swamp Gobber River Raiders are another appealing option, if you want to spend your Merc unit slot on them.
  • When picking which schmuck she's going to sacrifice, remember you can't charge your own models; and also you want the Priestess to finish her movement somewhere that your caster will benefit from Arcane Assist next turn.
  • If possible, activate the schmuck first so that you at least get a Combat Action out of it before it dies.
  • Ideally, position the schmuck next to an enemy model so the Priestess can get a charge (for extra distance), use her horns for the charge attack, then stab the schmuck for a free spell.
  • Don't forget to expose the schmuck's back arc to the Priestess.

Other

Trivia

• Released in the Black Fleet expansion (2017.11)