Beast Master Xekaar

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

Though Beast Master Xekaar is now chief among skorne beast handlers, he had to reach that position by rising above his own defeat. During a clash with trollkin in the desert, an explosion sent him crashing in a heap of broken bones and charred flesh, left for dead. Enduring through sheer will, he drew strength from his pain and eventually restored himself, though the pain never leaves him. He is the embodiment of the skorne principle that suffering is a crucible for strength. Joined in agony, Xekaar and his beasts have earned a reputation for ruthless brutality and limitless endurance in the face of even the most grievous wounds.

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 : Whispers of Torment

While in Xekaar's Template:CTRL range, enemy models suffer -3 STR, MAT, RAT and THR. Whispers of Torment lasts for one round.

Abilities

• Template:Parry
• Template:Alpha Hunter
• Template:Maltreatment
• Template:Reposition 5

Weapons

Barbed Whip (x2)
File:Sword icon.jpg		RNG				POW				P+S
		2				4				10
Template:Chain Weapon Template:Magical Weapon Template:Weapon Master Template:Dispel

Spells

{{Category: Template:DeadweightTemplate:MortalityTemplate:Psycho SurgeryTemplate:Pursuit }}[[Category: Template:DeadweightTemplate:MortalityTemplate:Psycho SurgeryTemplate:Pursuit ]]

Theme Forces

Xekaar has a bonded beast, Chiron, he can take in any theme.

• Template:Disciples of Agony. He gains Sacrificial Pawn [Minion warrior] in this theme.
• Template:Masters of War. He gains "Optional Take Down" in this theme.
• Template:The Exalted
• Template:Winds of Death

Thoughts On Beast Master Xekaar

File:Beast Master Xekaar.jpg

2016 Battlebox sculpt

Xekaar in a nutshell

Xekaar is the Mk3 "battlebox caster" for Skorne. As such he is designed to be relatively simple to learn and straightforward to use. If you're learning the game, it is best to use him vs one of the other battlebox casters because they're all designed to have roughly the same power level. None of them are top tier casters, as they lack the flexibility or strength to be top contenders.

There is a lot of stuff floating around the internet mocking Beast Master Xekaar as the worst warlock in the game, but that stuff was written before the Immortal Vessel came out in late 2018 and then he was improved further with the November 2020 update. All of this unlocked Xekaar into an effective mid-tier debuff warlock; giving him Alpha Hunter, Reposition, Parry, and extra DEF has renewed interest in him, giving him both some defensive tech and some actually good reasons to play aggressively.

The new look Xekaar is pretty close to being a complete package of a warbeast warlock:

• He has buffs on speed, accuracy, and damage
  • SPD and MAT through Alpha Hunter
  • Accuracy and Damage through Mortality
  • Movement through Pursuit
• He has defense and control
  • Defense through a strong defensive feat (although it mostly protects from melee; if he's close enough to shut down shooting he's close enough to be shot)
  • Limited threat of control through Deadweight.
• After moving forward to cast his spells he can now reposition to safety.

Feat thoughts

Xekaar's feat provides your army with amazing protection in melee, effectively providing +3 DEF and ARM vs close combat attacks (or negating boosts) - and this in a faction that's known for some already pretty high ARM values. It's an excellent feat and simple to use.

• The RAT debuff is a bit of a trap; if Xekaar is forward far enough to protect his army with it he's forward far enough to be shot, and that damage isn’t reduced. Instead it protects his army from assault-charges, gunfighter and angled sprays.
• The THR debuff is interesting against Hordes factions and occasionally useful but in general very situational. He can get interesting combos with Paingiver Beast Handlers and his pet Chiron by inflicting pain to get at least some frenzies the enemy doesn't want. If you see an opportunity to use it, great. But don't rely on it.

Spell thoughts

• Deadweight - a great spell, not for its raw damage, but to limit your opponents options on key models and to trigger Alpha Hunter on enemy models that got too close.
  • Squishy support models like repair crews are excellent targets to decrease a heavy or huge based model's usefulness for a turn.
  • Combining it with a knock-down effect on the target model will completely put it out of action for a turn, if it cannot shake it off.
  • When casting Deadweight, don't forget that a model cannot charge if it has to give up its Normal Movement.
• Mortality is an excellent debuff spell, and the default option for Aptimus Marketh. Combined with Alpha Hunter

, your beasts will punch accurately and have improved armour crushing.

• Psycho Surgery helps you to restore 2 crippled aspect at once. Be wary of Grievous wounds, though.
  • Remember Xekaar is a part of his own battlegroup, and consequently can be healed via Psycho Surgery.
  • Using Maltreatment on an undamaged warbeast to then heal your entire battlegroup for 1 fury is a valid tactic.
• Pursuit - A superb defensive spell that can be difficult to use on a Fury6 caster but can save a model or to put one into a really nasty spot for an opponent.
  • Despite the name, Pursuit is often used defensively. Use it to make Xekaar flee the scene before he can be assassinated (Parry really helps here) or to put a bodyguard in the middle of the charge lane. Watch out for using it against a charging opponent with counter-charge, though; if you move away from the initial charge, you just might give him an excuse to use his counter-charge, but Xekaar's SPD 7 means that you should get far enough.

Battlebox Fights

Xekaar is probably at his least effective in battlebox games now - it's very hard to trigger Alpha Hunter against pure warbeasts and the Enrage ability he lost was almost exclusively useful in battlebox games where you didn't take Paingiver Beast Handlers. On the other hand free charges are great, Mortality landed on a caster is a killer, he's ... adequate in melee while being able to reposition, and pursuit can be great for setting up assassinations next turn.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• He's a high-risk, high-reward caster that's easy to leave too close to the enemy
• Titans have a low enough DEF that even under his feat most enemies aren't going to bother boosting to hit so he loses part of his feat.
• Outside of feat turn his own armour isn't great.
• He lacks Pathfinder and knockdown immunity.
• If you can run and charge for free don't forget to rile on turn 1 so you have fury for turn 2.

Tricks & Tips

• Shield guards can be put between 2.5 and 3 inches of him, so that they can shield guard direct hits, but aren't close enough that an AoE centered on them will hit Xekaar.
• You don't need to walk your paingivers up to your beasts for free charges.
• Deadweight can be used to trigger Alpha Hunters second effect.
• you can hit your own models to trigger dispel and remove enemy effects.

List Building Advice

Strategy

As a debuff caster Xekaar can work with literally anything - in Skorne or minions. Alpha Hunter means that he works well with a strong battlegroup, and your first includes should, of course, be Paingiver Beast Handlers to buff your battle group and Aptimus Marketh for extra Mortality. By himself Xekaar can only reposition to be 13" away from an enemy he cast Deadweight on; distance is life, his natural stats won't save him outside of feat turn.

• The Immortal Vessel was what first made Xekaar playable and is exactly what he wants other than not appearing in Disciples of Agony
• The Blind Walker is the Disciples of Agony option.
• The Cyclops Shaman and Farrow Bone Grinders can both extend his direct cast range 2"
• Even before he gained the ability to channel about two years into Mark 3, never mind with his 2020 update there were some basilisk spam lists that used Chiron for fury management that were successful.

Theme thoughts

The Skorne Battlegroup theme is, of course, Disciples of Agony as it gives access to minion warbeasts - however you lose access to a really important model for Xekaar; the Immortal Vessel which offers channeling and telemetry, a great way to use Deadweight and trigger Alpha Hunter. Your equivalent in Disciples is the Blind Walker. If you are not playing Disciples the only thing you offer infantry is your feat and Mortality.

• This theme lacks the Immortal Vessel whom Xekaar loves, but on the other hand it gives him Sacrificial Pawn, and allows him both DEF 12 heavies (who get a real boost from his feat) and the Blind Walker to channel his spells through.
• This is also the Chiron + Basilisk Spam option and has actually taken some tournaments. Tyrant Zaadesh for fury management, some battle engines, Chiron, drakes, and free flanking kreas.
• Wrong Eye & Snapjaw - Star-Crossed under Feat means nothing close to Wrong Eye is hitting anything. Also, having a beast that can't be shot is really nice. On the other hand no Pack Alpha.
• Farrow Bone Grinders give him a great Sac Pawn target and 2" extra threat range for his spellcasting.
• The Battle Boar and the Blackhide Wrastler both hand out damage buffs.
• The War Hog is a very good value hard hitting heavy at MAT 6, SPD 5. Alpha Hunter makes it exceptionally unpleasant to face.
• The Swamp Horror's major weakness is either its slow speed or its MAT 6 meaning it can't chew through infantry the way it would like. It has the same threat range as the Archidon (although neither the Long Leash nor the flight). It also of course really likes Paingiver Beast Handlers and any Fury 3 heavy likes free charges
• The Terrorizer is rush on a stick without needing to spend the full cost of a Titan Gladiator. The ability to Maltreat the Terrorizer is an easy way to activate that third Fury, and Alpha Hunter works really well with a model with four initial attacks and side step.
• The Blind Walker can channel. And a battlegroup MAT buff plus Paingiver Beast Handlers plus a speed boost means that it can actually do the sort of work in melee you'd expect from a 10 point model.
• Void Archon is just very good and likes both the feat and mortality.
• Farrow Valkyries likewise.
• Paingiver Bloodrunner Master Tormentor has Veteran Leader for a +1 to hit buff for Xekaar

And then there are the three themes that allow for Extollers, and hence the Immortal Vessel. It's all three can use the Supreme Guardian.

• Mortality really works well with shooting lists - and Winds of Death uses two or even three battle engines as a matter of course and those battle engines are good and like the melee debuffs that make them harder to hurt on feat turn.

Template:Header Masters of War offers Xekaar Optional take down - a fantastic buff when you want to trigger Alpha Hunter in melee rather than via Deadweight.

• Cataphract Cetrati under Xekaar's feat are just plain unpleasant for the enemy. DEF 16 vs charges, ARM 25 with Agonizer support, no-knockdown-tough-spell ward with Vorkesh. And everyone appreciates both Mortality and Deadweight.
• Praetorian Karax similar to Cetrati they become obnoxious on his feat turn, but by being cheaper than their counterparts you can focus more points on warbeasts - while still contesting zones.

• Xekaar gets more threat ranges from the Immortal Vessel thanks to Resonance on the Ancestral Guardian. Also his feat can rival Zaal the Ancestral Advocate for protecting Exalted, and he can copy Morghoul 2's incorporeal charge trick.

Battlegroup

• Chiron is his pet warbeast that he can take in any theme. It gets boosted attacks for its nasty spray template due to bond and helps with some fury management with other basilisks
• Rhinodon - generally a good beast with 3 initials and a bit more threat range than your standard Titan. It doesn’t really punch above it’s weight on its own but free charges and mortality really help. It’s animus is also situationally useful if you want to sit in range of an Agonizer on feat turn you will essentially be Def 16/Arm21 vs melee.
• Cyclops Brute An excellent bodyguard to Xekaar. Unlike Tiberion, he is almost as fast as Xekaar, and the combination of shield guard, an anti-knockdown animus, and a base to hide behind is what Xekaar needs.
• Agonizer - a five point STR/ARM swing on feat turn is a little ridiculous. The anti-spell slinging is also relevant for a squishy caster who wants to run so close to the front lines.
• Cyclops Shaman - Increased range on Mortality is really nice for keeping him safe. Of course this is an 8 point warbeast - but the Shaman is good for a huge range of other purposes.
• Archidon - If you can trigger Alpha Hunter (generally through Deadweight) SPD 9 MAT 8, flight, long leash and free charges (preferably with a STR boost from Beast Handlers) makes an excellent assassin beast.
• Basilisk Drake is a light warbeast with a gun that can match many heavies. It's also a good way to let Xekaar get Pathfinder, and synergises with a Chiron Fury Management build.
• Basilisk Krea is the Krea. Every list should have at least one and Xekaar sometimes spams basilisks.

Xekaar in Journeyman Leagues

The first thing to do with the Journeyman League is make sure you're playing the 2020 version of Xekaar on the grounds it's actually good (although may technically be weaker in weak 1 with just the battlegroup). Week 1 is fixed; Xekaar, a Titan Gladiator, a Cyclops Savage, and a Cyclops Raider works. Week 2 leaves you with basically two very good choices - whether to add a Titan Sentry or a Basilisk Drake and a Basilisk Krea to your battlegroup; the basilisk pair is probably the stronger choice long term but in the burly brawl of mangled metal you may find the titan to be the better choice.

For week 3 you'd be a sucker not to choose a theme force - you get between 5 and 7 points free. Fortunately everything you've picked so far can go in literally any theme force. You've a big battlegroup, which means that your first unit almost must be Paingiver Beast Handlers for 5 or 7 points. You then have a few choices, but the models you should be looking at are Aptimus Marketh for extra Mortality, a Void Archon again for armour debuffing (remember that with the Beast Handlers you're already up 2 points of STR), an Immortal Vessel (or even two as a Requisition option in The Exalted), possibly an Extoller Soulward if you're in a Hordes-heavy league, an Agonizer to debuff the enemy's STR or possibly a skirmish screen like Paingiver Bloodrunners. Remember that in Disciples of Agony you can either take a Basilisk Krea as a requisition option or if you took one in week 2 move your Krea to a requisition option, freeing up seven points to spend on what you want.

After this point play it by ear. Both Disciples of Agony and The Exalted are good theme forces.

Other

Trivia

• Xekaar first appeared in a story within Forces of Hordes: Trollbloods (2010). He gets blown up by a combination of Captain Gunnbjorn's Bazooka and a Dire Troll Bomber, but it seems he got better.
• Physical model released in 2016.06 in the battlebox set
• Resculpted in 2021 as a standalone model.

Video Battle Reports

• 2018.10 Not Snakes Gaming, vs Anamag
• Template:VBR

Rules Clarifications

Template:RC Deadweight Template:RC Mortality Template:RC Psycho Surgery {{RC Pursuit