Theme - Dark Menagerie
This mk3 Theme Force has no equivalent in mk4. Nearly the entire Grymkin range was put into their Legacy Prime Army, instead, which is both better and worse in some regards. |
Each of the Defiers has some special preference for how to unmake Menoth’s twisted civilization. When the opportunity to strike arises, a Defier gathers a dark menagerie of his or her worst nightmares in a terrifying show of force. Towering beasts of twisted flesh and bounding swarms of frightful creatures gather together to enact the Defier’s will, leaving behind only a handful of demented survivors to spread word of the host of shadows that emerged from the night.
Theme Rules
- For the core rules on how Theme Forces work, see this article.
Theme Restrictions
An army made use the Dark Menagerie theme force can include only the following Grmykin models:
- Grymkin warlocks
- Non-character warbeasts
- Template:Dread Rot models/units
- Malady Man units
- Twilight Sisters
- Baron Tonguelick, Lord of Warts
- Defiled Archon solos
- Glimmer Imp solos
- Gremlin Swarm solos
- Witchwood solos
- Lady Karianna Rose
- Weird Wendell, Gremlin Wrangler
- Death Knell battle engines
- You may also include one Minion solo and one Minion unit that will work for Grymkin.
- These models can be included even if they have the Partisan [Grymkin] rule.
- Minion units in this army can include non-Ranking Officer attachments.
Full model list
Requisition Points
You can spend each Requisition Point on either:
- Two Crabbit lesser warbeasts
- Two Gremlin Swarm solos
- One small- or medium-based Grymkin solo
Theme Bonuses
- The FA of Gremlin Swarm solos in this army becomes 4 (instead of 2)
- Gremlin Swarm solos in the army gain Serenity.
- Each Witchwood and non-trooper Living and Construct model in this army that can gain corpse tokens gains one corpse token before the first player's first turn.
Thoughts on the Dark Menagerie
Dark Menagerie in a nutshell
Dark Menagerie is the beast theme of the Grymkin and rewards you for taking battlegroup models and the death knell.
The primary way to play Dark Menagerie is a very powerful beast brick where the backbone is formed by cage ragers and skin and moans, both of which benefit a lot from the corpse they recieve as a theme benefit.
Very notably while being a slow brick theme it has a way of mitigating the standard weakness of slow bricks. Gremlin swarms which are free in theme and assist in fury management are able to contest extremely well which allow you to play a slower list and not lose scenario.
Being a very tough brick that has excellent contesting models, Dark Menagerie is hard to beat in attrition, has excellent denial tech through Arcana, Wraithbane on Cage Ragers and Arcane Vortex, and your caster benefits from all of this tech making many assassinations simply untenable.
Without any exception, all grymkin warlocks are playable in this theme and have compelling synergies.
Competitiveness
Dark Menagerie is the staple themeforce of the grymkin and is considered extremely competitive. It alone propels them to being very powerful in the current meta. Almost any of their casters can be highly succesful in this theme force.
List building tips
- Cage Ragers and Skin & Moans form the backbone of the theme and there is essentially no reason to not bring at least one of these models
- All warlocks are viable in this theme, However they will have a different composition.
- The King of Nothing can play a radically different style where he focuses on the factions light warbeasts and turns them up to 11. He's an extremely odd caster with a very high skill cap.
- All three of the light warbeasts have a place. Rattlers are dedicated anti infantry and with enough buffs can threaten weaker heavies. Gorehounds are powerful skirmishers using their mobility to scalpel out key models, kill infantry, or just jam. Frightmares have the true sight animus and are usually brought when its important such as on the old witch or the king of nothing.
- Crabbits are one of the best lesser warbeasts in the game and are brought to improve your match into not just guns, but key guns with effects such as a drag gun.
- Death Knell is not mandatory, but is a very strong piece. Expect to see it with the majority of casters in this theme unless they have strong delivery tech that compensates for the lack of the knell such as Old Witch 3.
- Dread Rots are not usually brought in force, but its not uncommon to see a minimum unit who can screen, do some work, and become corpses for the Death Knell.
Starting a 25 point Brawl list
In 2021.04 Phillip Melvin, one of the LOS authors, put together this list for the Brawlmachine format. It was then updated for the 2021.10 errata. He even wrote about it's playstyle and expanding it beyond 25 points, which you can read here.
- The Wanderer: [+28 WBP]
- Skin & Moans: [14 pts]
- Clockatrice: [13 pts]
- Crabbit: [3 pts]
- Isaiah, Dread Harvester: [8 pts]
- Witchwood: [Free] Template:Grey
- Lady Karianna Rose: [3 pts]
- Dread Rots (Max unit): [12 pts]
Other
Trivia
Released 2017.06