Madrak Ironhide, Thornwood Chieftain

Template:Trollbox This model is playable only in an Unlimited format.

The mighty trollkin warlock Madrak Ironhide is a powerful leader of the united kriels, granting the trollkin he leads a relentless savagery in battle that few enemies can withstand. Armed with the ancient axe Rathrok, magical scrolls and talismans, and his own considerable martial and sorcerer talents, Madrak is well equipped to bring death and ruination to the enemies of the Trollbloods.

Basic Info

This model is a Warlock.

Warlock Rules A warlock is an Independent Model. a Leader model. a Battlegroup Controller controls warbeasts. Warlocks use Fury Manipulation Uses ARC to determine how many fury points it gains each turn. Begins the game with a number of fury points equal to its ARC. Cannot exceed its ARC stat in fury points as a result of leeching. Can spend fury points only during its activation (unless a special rule states otherwise) for the following: Buy additional attacks Boost attack rolls Boost damage rolls Shake some effects Can leach fury points from warbeasts in its battlegroup in its control range. Spirit Bond allows the warlock to gain a fury for each of its dead battlegroup warbeasts. Reaving allows the warlock to pull fury points from a warbeast in its battlegroup when it dies.

Feat: Grim Determination

1. Remove d3 + 3 damage points from friendly Faction models currently in Madrak’s Template:CTRL range.
2. While in Madrak’s Template:CTRL range, friendly Faction models cannot be charged or slam power attacked.

Grim Determination lasts for one round.

Abilities

• Template:Tough
• Template:Scroll of Grindar's Perseverance
• Template:Tactician

Weapons

Thrown Rathrok
File:Gun icon.jpg		RNG			ROF			AOE			POW
		8			1			Template:-			15
Template:Magical Weapon Template:Blood Boon Template:Ricochet Template:Thrown
Rathrok
File:Sword icon.jpg		RNG				POW				P+S
		2				7				15
Damage Type: Magical - As above Blood Boon - As above

Spells

{{Category: Template:Even GroundTemplate:Guided HandTemplate:Jackhammer }}[[Category: Template:Even GroundTemplate:Guided HandTemplate:Jackhammer ]]

Theme Forces

• Trollbloods
  • Template:Band of Heroes. In this theme he gains "Optional Take Down".
  • Template:Kriel Company
  • Template:Power of Dhunia. In this theme he can start the game with friendly upkeeps in play.
  • Template:Storm of the North. In this theme he can upkeep spells on (almost) any friendly model for free.
  • Template:Vengeance of Dhunia. In this theme he gains Attuned Spirit [Trollblood/Minion Warbeast].

• Other Factions
  • Minion players can also use this warlock in the Vengeance of Dhunia and he gains Attuned Spirit as mentioned above.

Thoughts on Madrak1

Madrak1 in a nutshell

Madrak1 is an infantry support warlock who wins by attrition and holding the objective. +2 DEF for the entire army plus no knockdown makes his entire army very annoying to kill. He doesn’t have a huge pool of Fury so his turn is mostly dedicated to this 1 spell unless he kills something with Blood Boon. The Runebearer is key to how he plays in bigger games as the extra 2 inches of ctrl and a extra cast of Guided Hand is always welcome.

When selecting models for a Madrak list you are mainly looking for high Def (for trolls) or multiple boxes - Trollkin Champions fill both conditions nicely and it’s not uncommon to see him running 2 units.

Madrak has a really powerful ranged attack so a bit of support to leverage that is always welcome the Krielstone CA improves the power slightly and the Far Strike animus is particularly handy.

Feat thoughts

Grim Determination is much better used proactively than reactively; the healing is nice but very seldom game changing. The healing only really comes into its own with Trollkin Champions as they would have likely needed to have used Sanguine Bond before they get into melee.

Spell thoughts

• Even Ground is his signature ability. +2 DEF and no-knockdown-tough means that grinding through Madrak's army is frequently trying. This spell is frequently cast via Blood Boon from Rathrok.
• Guided Hand is useful - but with Madrak's lack of Fury it's frequently cast via a Trollkin Runebearer
• Jackhammer lets him get excellent use out of hard hitting warbeasts.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• His small CTRL area makes him extremely vulnerable to Lamentation, making you rely on Rathrok and Blood Boon to get Even Ground
• He has no damage buffs so needs really hard hitting infantry. Of course much of his favoured infantry hits hard.
• He, like many troll warlocks is incredibly reliant on a Runebearer as he struggles to load the Krielstone and cast Even Ground.
• What he is going to do on a turn by turn basis is fairly obvious to a seasoned opponent.

Tricks & Tips

• Rathrok can force the enemy to keep their head down.
• Jackhammer attacks can’t be boosted, but they are useful for finishing off an enemy you failed to kill in your warbeasts activation OR for destroying that one model tiring you up before you activate.

List Building Advice

Strategy

Madrak wins by attrition and holding the objective. For this reason he will suffer more against ranged opponents than melee, and will often need to be careful of alpha strikes although his feat can hold off many of them. Madrak himself does best to stand behind a line of units/warbeasts and to throw Rathrok to soften up targets for his warbeasts to kill.

Theme Thoughts

Chief Mandrak Ironhide is the infantry caster of the Kriels. With Tactician he can prevent all your numerous medium bases from gumming each other up, Guided Hand makes their melee game that much more dangerous and Even Ground and his feat keeps them going. As such he has little reason to embrace the full Power of Dhunia and eshews gunlines in Kriel Company as well. Band of Heroes is his natural home, since there isn't a melee Trollblood units that he does not have synergies with and optional takedown is a great theme benefit. Storm of the North can be similarly appealing with its Battle Bears and Fire Eaters, units that need no real input from their caster to do well.

Band of Heroes has the remove from play effect and allows Champions, Warders, the Sons of Bragg, Fennblades, and the Stone Scribe Chronicler.

• Trollkin Warders - the formidably tough unit gainns no-knockdown-tough to make it a really hard to break screen.
• Trollkin Champions - Sanguine Bond is amazing with the healing feat, and Defensive Line plus Even Ground makes them DEF 16 in melee.
• Long Riders love being able to charge straight over their skirmish screen and have eight wounds to be healed.
• Trollkin Fennblades are great infantry mulchers.
• Kriel Warriors are an exellent tarpit unit.

Storm of the North has an advance deploying army and allows DEF 13 Raiders Fire Eaters, and the Bears, and keeps the army safe from Sorscha's feat and the like.

• Note that the Champions and Long Riders mentioned above, can be taken in this theme too.
• Northkin Bear Handler & Battle Bears have multiple wounds and are effective in melee.
• Pyg Lookouts take Def buffs well and can help land an important Rathrok shot.

• Krielstone Bearer & Stone Scribes - Staple unit in most Trollblood armies, for obvious reasons, also note that the STR buff increases the power of his thrown weapon.
• Runebearer - A free Guided Hand is great.
• Fell Caller Hero has great buffs for infantry, always bring one, two if you have the space!
• Boomhowler2 or Boomhowler3 for the same reason as the Fell Caller Hero - but with different buffs depending on your fancy.
• Stone Scribe Chronicler has some good stories of yore to tell. Aka, the other buff solo for infantry.
• Troll Whelps since he only has 5 Fury. As such he appreciates any form of fury management. Tactician is also surprisingly useful on the little guys and stacking Def with annoyance while not game breaking, will annoy an opponent.

Madrak sometimes calls for outsiders to assist the Kriels! Here are his favourred allies.

• Dhunian Archon - She can heal his champions, manage his beasts's fury and negate damage rolls, which makes him really obnoxious with his scroll.
• Hermit of Hengehold another damage negate and a damage fixer to boot.
• Lanyssa - Hunter's Mark is always great, even more so on a Fury 5 Warlock that love free charges for his beasts.
• Swamp Gobber Chef - Fury management, again.
• Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew - Cheap throw-away contesters and a source for screening clouds.
• Saxon Orrik - Pathfinder on a stick.
• Dannon Blythe and Bull - they mostly look after themselves but with +2 Def, no knockdown and the Krielstone aura they may actually survive to win their points back.
• A Gremlin Swarm or Feralgeist as an incorporeal roadblock or contester.
• Gatorman Husk - Ambush this abomination and run it up to a faraway zone or flag to contest.

Battlegroup

• Dire Troll Mauler - it's just good and Rage really helps anyone in the battle group.
• Troll Bouncer - likely to enjoy the feat healing after eating a few shield guard shots. On the surface earths blessing looks redundant, but the fact that the enemy can’t slam or push you means even ground will always be where you want it to be.
• Swamp Troll - swarm is not a great animus, but if you are skewing for defense having a no knockdown potentially def 16 beast isn’t awful.
• The Ice Troll can be interesting as it has crit freeze on its melee weapon, which synergises with Guided Hand while it grants Madrak Swift Hunter.
• Bomber if you just want Far Strike and a really good heavy.
• Any Gargantuan - have plenty of health for sure, but they make for a great Jackhammer target.
  • The Glacier King especially its usually all you need in both BoH and SotN. It's concealment aura is invalubale in protecting you support models against shooting and is also triggers the prowl of the bears and Lanyssa. With it's chilling breath it can give you some good ranged presence, too and auto stationary on its fists goes a long way.

Starting a 25 point Brawl list

In 2021.03 Phillip Melvin, one of the LOS authors, put together this list for the Brawlmachine format. He even wrote about it's playstyle and expanding it beyond 25 points, which you can read here.

Theme - Storm of the North

Madrak Ironhide, Thornwood Chieftain: [+29 WBP]

• Earthborn Dire Troll: [16 pts]
• Troll Impaler: [9 pts]
• Pyre Troll: [8 pts]

Valka Curseborn, Chieftain of the North: [Free] Template:Grey

Dhunian Archon: [6 pts]

Troll Whelp: [1 pt]

Trollkin Champions (Max unit): [16 pts]

Total RRP: USD $202 (based on PP's online store prices 2021.06)

Other

Trivia

• Released way back in Primal Mk1 (2006)
• There is a short piece of fiction about Madrak's history, when he first claimed Rathrok as his own, in an Insider article. In Darkness Bound, by Douglas Seacat, 2018.12

Video Battle Reports

• 2019.02 Tiny Men, vs Butcher1
• 2018.08 Guerilla Miniature Games, vs Ossrum1
• 2018.06 Guerilla Miniature Games, vs Irusk2
• 2018.05 Deathclock Dave, vs Anamag
• 2018.04 Deathclock Dave, vs Old Witch3
• 2018.03 Deathclock Dave, vs Axis
• 2018.03 Guerilla Miniature Games, vs Old Witch2
• Template:VBR