Editing Warhammer/Tactics/8th Edition/Lizardmen (section)

==Building Your Army==
===Buying Your Army===

As always, the Battalion Box is a good start. It comes with 10 Temple Guard, 20 Saurus Warriors, 8 Cold One Cavalry and 12 Skinks.

After that you will need to buy probably 2 more Saurus Warrior boxes unless you're going light on Saurus due to crippling fear of victory. Also the Skinks you get aren't really enough to run more than a single unit of skirmishers, so buy box of Skinks. The TG are also undersized so you might want to get another box to get them up to strength. This gives you a total of 20 Temple Guard, 52 Saurus Warriors, 8 Cold One Cavalry and 32 Skinks. Mainly this gives you a smattering of units for a lower cost than buying the boxes and the amount you get in the boxed sets will be slightly less than what you need so there is no overflow... or by the sounds of it might just be easier to buy a second Battalion.

*2 Battalion: 20 Temple Guard, 40 Saurus Warriors, 16 Cold One Cavalry and 24 Skinks. 132£
*The other option: 20 Temple Guard, 52 Saurus Warriors, 8 Cold One Cavalry, and 32 Skinks. 152£

Aside: it's a very minor thing, but the Cold One Cavalry sprue has decorative bits that can be used as jungle swarms (2 per 8 CoC, if you can rustle up some bases). So if you want jungle swarms the 2nd Battalion may be better. Also, the excess Cold One Cavalry can be modified into a pair of Scar Vets on Cold Ones. Can give you some cheap hitting power and a way to hit a points limit in your initial games until you figure out what you want to buy to flesh out the army.

Getting a Slann is mandatory. No you can't just say "screw it" even if you never play with it. Not having a Slann will get you laughed at by every neckbeard who hears of your foolishness.

If you want to start an army cheap and build up slowly, buy 1 box of Saurus and convert the 16th one to be something else (eg Scar Vet). This is a small army of about 250 points. After that, buy another box of Saurus unless you want to go all Skink.

===Army Composition===

They key to winning with lizardmen is learning to make wildly different units work for each other. You'll be probably begin with two infantry blocks- one saurus and one TG to go with your Slann. That said, some people have run succesful lists with literally only skinks and a Slann with saurus cowboys, so there is certainly room for creativity as long as your magic toad sticks around. Securing the magic phase is something the Lizards can and will do if given the chance, so don't be afraid of bringing extra skink mages- cheap and efficient access to Wissan's Wildform plus additional power for the Slann and control over Predatory Fighter's obligatory pursuit- to wrestle control of magic from other casting-intensive armies. Killing their wizards is something you can and must do, and luckily lizardmen have a bevvy of ways to snipe off vulnerable targets. Both your flying units pack a meaty punch and so do chameleons who manage to get a firing lane on an unprotected wizard, but before you start thinking of your specials you really wanna stuff your core allowance (and then some) with skinks. Minimal size skirmisher units flooding the battlefield- so MANY poisoned attacks! Skinks are the proof that there is definitely quality in quantity, and unlike cheap throwaway units like skavenslaves and ungors, your enemy will be forced to recognize the existance of your skinks or pay very dearly for it. A larger size unit can be devastating with walk between worlds, setting up volleys of multiple poisoned shots.

This is the base of the army and there is really little that you'll be forced to add save for one, but if possible two, saurus characters on cold ones. Saurus cowboys are terrifying in a fight, lodging themselve sin a unit's flank like a bunch of extremely obstinate thorns, and work wonders with your skink spam and the blocks of saurus. After this, your go where your heart tells you. More dinos? Carnosaurs and Stegadons of both kinds are terrifying flank units and you can reliably field more monsters than many armies can warmachines. Skinks can pick off the cannons and catapults, but otherwise the same rules as for killing mages apply- get something on it and do it quickly. Even Kroxigors and Cold One Cavalry can be a decent pick, albeit ovecosted, if you need a large, multidamage hammer, and they can work in small flanker units like smaller but less cannonball-attracting hammers.

Salamanders and Razordons are in a weird spot: both work well with supporting skinks- who doesn't- but in different ways. The salamanders lost traction from their glory days of 7th edition, where large units of them rained terror on the battlefield: if you pick them, committ to large packs (4+) and use them to burn large units to the ground, blanketing them with templates. Razordon are more of a defensive unit, but nothing will want to charge a flank defended by these goons.

===Magic Items===

Yes the Lizardmen have some of the best okay gear available, unfortunately you will pay heavily for that advantage.

====Magic Weapons====
*'''The Blade of Realities:''' A new version of this and still pricey as hell but now ignoring Ward AND Armour Saves. The only downside is that it now takes up all of a Lord's points for magic items and thus robs you of the ability to take any Ward Saves of your own. As such it should probably be left at home for friendly games. On the other hand, since it means that opponents Lords/Heroes will have to rely on Toughness and Weapon Skill to avoid dying, it means you can use it on an Oldblood to go and destroy a specific target. If you put the Oldblood on a Cold One or Fuck-You-A-Saur, you can get a 1+ Armour Save (4+ Scaly Skin + Shield = 3+ - add the Cold One's or Carnosaur's +2 and you're up to 1+. Light armour can be added in case your mount dies so you stay at 2+). You then head straight for that Lord/Hero and unleash hell. Lore of Life's +2/+4 Toughness will make you even more resilient. Lore of Lights Weapon Skill/Initiative augment means you're going to hit more often. Lore of High Magic Movement/Initiative/Weapon Skill at +D3 is useful, but when you can make it so you improve all three it means your Oldblood and his Mount are going to get there quicker and when they do, they're going to be more likely to hit. +3 Movement will mean 9-10 Movement for the Mounts, +3 Initiative will mean your Oldblood is at Initiative 6 (and 7 if near Solar Gem) and +3 Weapon Skill means hitting at Weapon Skill 9. So, while Elves, Vampire Lords and Chaos Lords will still out-Initiative you (and Elves most likely will get re-rolls too) everything else will be hitting after you or at the same time. With WS9, you're likely to hit (bar specific specific Vampire Lord builds, named Elves and certain Elf and Chaos Lord builds, who will also be around WS9... Also any unit with Fencing Blades) and S5 means you're not too bad when it comes to wounding and since you're packing 5 Attacks, you're very much capable of killing any Lord/Hero in one go (though the likes of Tyrion, it'll be difficult). That's ignoring your Mount and the buff it got from the spells. A T9 Fuck-You-A-Saur is pretty fun. So is one with WS6, especially since it has 5 attacks and each one is D3 Wounds. Being able to smile when you tell your opponent that his Lord/Hero or Special Character can't make any saves would be glorious. The best bit, though, would be against the likes of Malekith, who has a 2+ Armour Save (when on mount) and 2+ Ward Save (against non-magical attacks) or against 1+ Armour Save and 3+ Ward Save Chaos Lords. All those points, wasted as you cleave through them. However, many people won't take named characters or spend so many points on a Lord, so the Blade of Realities has very limited uses in competitive play. However, against WAAC's in friendly games, it's delicious. Try this with a Slann just for the lulz (only once though). Laugh as you chew through tanks and still have a Ward Save!
*'''The Piranha Blade:''' Still a little bit expensive but now getting the bonus of reducing enemy armour. Against monster and Heroes probably a good idea but a hefty price to pay. Although as the Armour Piercing stacks on Impact Hits this item should be used on an Oldblood with the Stegadon Helm on a Carnosaur with Swiftstride. This combo is fucking hilarious, and leaves some points for other magic items.  
::Another use is to give it to a Scar Vet on foot and challenge as it allows you to rack up the combat bonus with Overkill.  With only 4 attacks you have the potential to get one Wound to kill the champ and the +5 Overkill bonus for a total of +6 to combat res.  Pretty good for only 4 attacks.  On average you'll get around +4ish which is still like Hitting and Wounding AND having your opponent fail all saves. 

====Magic Armour====
*'''Sacred Stegadon Helm of Itza:''' The only Magic Armour the Lizardmen get but what an armour! For its bonus to Toughness and Impact Hits it's fricking cheap and your Saurus can also play mini-Minotaur on a Carnosaur for the lulz. For those who don't know, it gives +1 to Armour Save, +1 Toughness AND +D3 Impact Hits.  Impact hits don't benefit from your weapon though. Your weapons stats only affect you when striking with it.

====Enchanted Items====
*'''The Cloak of Feathers:''' Yes, the same old thing that was in the <S>Codex</S> Armybook for like 10 editions. Still makes a flying Skink but now with a little bonus of some extra Magic Resistance. As it's cheap, you can use it to get the Priest in nice positions for the Arcane Vassal rule to help get in range for the shorter ranged spells a Slann may have. 
*'''The Horn of Kygor:''' A musical instrument carved from a long dead dinosaur. When your Hero blows it, all Monsters and Beasts in your army within range, will gain the Frenzy rule for one turn. As it will not affect the riders and is extremely expensive for a One Use Only item that does fairly little, it's best to leave this at home.
*'''The Egg of Quango:''' Again a little dinosaur souvenir, but this still has life in it. You can summon the ancient dinosaur from its egg and with a little luck (on a 4+) he will clobber your enemies. As a One Use Only and requiring quite a bit of luck this should probably be left at home, but when you like dinosaurs (and that's why you're playing Lizardmen) then it's not bad. Although if it doesn't get so lucky, the poor bird inside dies :'( While it's 'fun' it's also rather silly. The whole point of the Quango was that it was some rare, mystical creature which could change the outcome of the War against Chaos, with Mazamundi deciding when it should be opened... He's decided it is now and it doesn't do anything to help the War in terms of fluff. But it is an amusing item.

====Arcane Items====
*'''Cube of Darkness:''' Basically a 5 point more expensive Dispel Scroll that works on a 2+. In addition, you roll a die for each Remains In Play spell on the board (including your own) and on a 2+ it ends.  After taking a Dispel Scroll this is a near "must take" (if you can). Be careful as this item, by RAW, can dispel also your spells!   
*'''Plaque of Dominion:''' A Bound Spell that makes enemy mages Stupid. If your opponent has his mage parked within range of a General/BSB leave this at home. If not... probably still leave it at home.  Dispel Scroll first, Cube second.

====Magic Standards====
*'''Skavenpelt Banner:''' This banner grants the Frenzy and Hatred (Skaven) rules, and all other Skaven gain Hatred when attacking the bearer. As it is more than 50 points this banner can only be used on the BSB, and taking a Magic Banner on a BSB is a shitty idea as he can't take any other magic items for protection. Except the Slann, who can take much better banners at a cheaper price (e.g. Banner of Discipline) and still take magic items. Skip this item as a smart general will have you're unit chasing chaff as they are frenzied: 3 attacks per model will let you have a stupid amount of fun with your Temple Guard, however, the mandatory Overrun will screw over your deathstar if your opponent has any sort of chaff unit, or even a unit they don't mind feeding to the blender (which I really cannot imagine being fielded by Skaven, /irony). Also, if you lose combat you may not run, but your BSB is now holding 65 Points of Hatred(Skaven). Fun, but certainly not worth it. 
*'''Jaguar Standard:''' Just cheap enough to be used by a unit of Temple Guard, the Jaguar Standard gives the unit Swiftstride. It's an OK choice for a banner but there are others that could probably work better. Nice way to make sure that if the Temple Guard run off after a unit due to their Predatory Fighter rule, they catch and kill whatever fled.

====Summary====
The ones to seriously consider are Cube of Darkness, Piranha Blade, Stegadon Helm, and perhaps the Cloak of Feathers. For any serious lists, don't bother with the rest though they have their uses.

===Rulebook Items===

'''Magic Weapons:'''

* ''Fencer's Blades'': WS 10 for 35 points, but you can't use a shield with it. Our Saurus have pretty bad Weapon Skill, so this is nice for us. Makes us killier, and a bit more resistant in one package. Also a nice pick for a Skink Priest you want right in the front lines to cast through so he doesn't instantly die. If you have 35 points left over on a Slann, it's a hilarious pick, and might actually save some wounds on him. Combo this, the Crown of Command, Dragonbane Gem, Transcendent Healing, and Higher State of Consciousness for a very unorthodox, yet oddly effective Slann tarpit.

* ''Sword of Swift Slaying:'' Grants Always Strikes First. Our Initiative is so low that we're not getting rerolls with this without magic support, so basically just a premium paid for a second Gold Sigil Sword. Better if you have magical initiative support.

* ''Gold Sigil Sword:'' Grants Initiative 10. Our Initiative is trash, our damage output is great, we like sending Scar Veterans and Oldbloods to murder characters, this is often the difference between our Scar Veteran walking away triumphant, or dying before he lands a single hit. Very useful.

* ''Sword of Striking:'' 15pts for +1 to hit. Good, simple weapon, to hit modifiers are nice for our Saurus. If you don't know what else to take, this is a good one.

* ''Giant Blade'': 60 points for +3 Strength. Bleh. 8 vs 7 Strength is barely noticable, and those 20 points are painful.

* ''Ogre Blade'': 40 points for +2 Strength. This is better. 7 Strength is generally the sweet spot for most purposes. A bit pricey on a Scar Vet, but an Oldblood can easily take this and still be very durable.

* ''Sword of Might'': You're paying 20 points for the ability to take a shield on your Saurus over a Halberd. Situationally useful, otherwise just take the Halberd. Better pick on a Skink Chief, who can't take a halberd anyways, and appreciates the punch.

* ''Sword of Bloodshed:''' 60pts for +3 Attacks. Our Oldbloods generally have much better things to be doing than blending, and usually have enough attacks to win fights with other characters as it is, and would probably like other, more supportive items more anyways. Pass unless you're insisting on a unit babysitting Oldblood. Then only probably pass. Worth noting for this, and all the other +Attacks items, though is that you CAN proc Predatory Fighter off of the extra attacks. Probably not enough to take them when you otherwise wouldn't, but a nice tiebreaker.

* ''Sword of Strife'': 40 points for 2 extra attacks. Nearly as nice for 2/3 the price, this is actually worth a look on an Oldblood leading a unit, since there's plenty if budget left for other stuff. Scar Vet still probably wants something else more, but a Scar Vet with this and the Seed of Rebirth is a very present and active force in a unit.

* ''Sword of Battle'': 20 points for 1 extra attack. See above, but a bit more flexible since it fits neatly on a Scar Vet, too.

* ''Berserker Sword'':20 points for Frenzy. basically the above item, except we very nearly get ItP from a Cold One, Carnosaur, or Ripperdactyl anyways, which will most certainly be in use if alone. Strictly worse than the SoB above... but such a small difference that you can take it if you want a second. The forced charge can be disastrous though.

* ''Sword of Anti-Heroes'': 30pts for +1S & +1A for each enemy character in base contact with the wearer or his unit. Not too bad, we're usually kitting our Saurus for ramming into units to kill a character anyways. Worst case, it's two decent weapons wrapped into one at a conveniently priced discount, and in the event they have two, be that a Wizard hiding in with the enemy general, a magic item stooge supporting a unit leader, or anything else, this bumps up to an absolutely terrifying weapon. Respect the cost, and remember that it does nothing at all if you're attacking a unit with no characters. Must-have if you know you're fighting Brettonia.

* ''Relic Sword'': 10pts for wounding anything on 5+, unless you need less. Might be funny on a Skink Priest or a Slann with points left over. Two more Skinks mean two more poisoned attacks, which are very nearly as effective... but it IS pretty funny to see your Skink shank an Ogre or something. Your Slann has much better ways to spend the points, even if the boost to their offense in a Temple Guard unit might actually be handy.

* ''Shrieking Sword'': 10 points to cause Fear. You have other sources of Fear, your own troops are damn near immune to it, and it's expensive as "any old" magic weapon. Just take a Cold One if you want Fear in a unit.

* ''Tormenter's Blade:''  5pts for granting Stupidity to a character/monster wounded by this. If your Saurus wounds something than hopefully it's dead, if you got killed by a Vampire Lord, it probably attacked first so it didn't get wounded anyways, and your Skink Priests and Slann ain't wounding shit, captain. Might have niche use on a Skink Chief on a Terradon or something to damage something Ethereal, but you probably have enough magic to not even worry about that.

* ''Warrior's Bane:''  5pts. A monster of character who takes wounds from this weapon loses 1A per wound taken. See above. Almost always better, though, and can add a secondary purpose to a Skink character. Actually worth more than that extra Skink in most games.

* ''Spellthieving Sword:'' 25pts and each time you wound a wizard, he forgets a random spell. If a wizard is still alive after combat with a Saurus, something has gone very wrong. Niche utility on a Skink Chief hunting for big, beefy named wizards... but this is half an MSU of skinks pissed away on a terrible plan.

* ''Obsidian Blade'': 50 points to ignore armor saves. Overpriced for one, Strength 5 is already decent against armor for two, and for the knockout third, if it's gimmicky enough to even consider this, we have the Blade of Realities to just say "fuck you" to *EVERY* layer of defense a character has, not just their armor. Hard pass.  

* ''Biting Blade:'' 10pts for Armor Penetration. Unlike the above, this is cheap enough to play with a bit. Pretty much useless on a Saurus, just take a halberd or Sword of Might if you're considering it, but has a place on a Skink Chief to let him hunt tougher targets. Might be useless in some games, but in others, can make the difference between a useless Skink character and an effective assassination.


'''Magic Armor:'''

* ''Dragonhelm:''. 5pts for 2+ ward save against flaming attacks, as well as +1 to your armor save from the helm itself. You know it, you love it, and if you have a Scar Veteran on a Cold one or Carnosaur he may well already be wearing it.

* ''Enchanted Shield:'' 5pts for essentially double a normal shield's effect. Cheap. Good. Definitely take it if you don't have other armor plans.

* ''Glittering Scales:'' 25pts light armor that grant -1 to hit against attacks targetting the wearer. Fantastic choice, shores up our resilience to great levels nicely. We like this item a lot, especially since we don't do mundane heavy armor. Combos well with Fencer's Blades to make a Saurus character seriously hard to hit, on top of being tough as nails.

* ''Armour of Destiny:'' 50pts for heavy armor with 4+ ward save. We don't get mundane Heavy Armor, making all three of these items a bit better for us, and worth taking over the amulets if magic item allowance allows it. Rock solid choice on an Oldblood leading a Saurus block, but a proper Saurus cowboy probably wants a few more points for other slots, unless he's expecting zero magical support.

* ''Armour of Fortune:'' 35pts for heavy armor with 5+ ward. Might be nice on a BSB Scar Vet, or an Oldblood character hunter. Scar Vets really hurt for those 15 points over the next one for character hunting.

* ''Gambler's Armor:'' 20pts for heavy armor with 6+ ward. Very nice for keeping a Scar Veteran protected while still taking a good weapon, which is what you probably want anyways.

* ''Trickster's Helm:'' 50pts to cause the enemy to re-roll successful wound rolls. Also a helm, so bring on the armor save. On a unit babysitting Oldblood, this turns him into a nigh unkillable monster. More mixed results as a character hunter.

* ''Armor of Silvered Steel'' 45pts for 2+ armor save which cannot be improved by any means. Nigh worthless on Saurus, less so on Skink Chiefs, but still almost always outclassed by Gambler's Armor and Armor of Fortune for us. Barf.

* ''Helm of Discord:'' 30pts. Helm which makes a single character in a unit in base contact with wearer's unit check Ld each turn. If a character fails his Ld test, he cannot attack and is hit (not wounded) automatically that turn. Not reliable enough to put on your Saurus characters... but might be worth putting on a stooge Skink Chief primarily holding another item, more for fun. Might be worth it if you're committed to leadership shenanigans, Lizardmen aren't great at it, but anything is possible with a Slann.

* ''Shield of Ptolos:'' 25 points. Grants 1+ armor save against shooting. Also a shield. Meh. Your characters are definitely being shot at, but you generally want armor that will keep them alive once they actually get into combat. Might be worth running on a Skink Chief on a Terradon.

* ''Charmed Shield:'' 5pts for a shield which allows you to ignore the first hit suffered on a roll of 2+. Meh. Cheap, so it's easy to fit, but your Slann is drawing most warmachine fire, so it probably won't block a cannonball. Fine for a Scar Vet on a budget, I guess.

* ''Spellshield:'' 20pts for a shield with Magic Resistance (1). Eh. Tax you pay if you want two Obsidian Trinkets. Can fit on a Skink Chief caddying other items too, I guess.

'''Enchanted Items'''

* ''Wizarding Hat:'' 100pts for becoming level 2 Wizard who uses a random school. Also your new wizard gets stupidity. The Slann spend centuries locked in deep, unending contemplation of why the absolute fuck you want this item as Lizardmen. (If he could speak, Lord Kroak would tell them the answer is if you ever play Storm of Magic, an Oldblood on a Carnosaur with this is damn near THE best way to defend an Arcane Fulcrum in the entire game. But alas, Kroak can't speak, so Slann continue to ponder in vain.)

* ''Fozzrik's Folding Fortress'':100 points to create a tower during deployment. This is a janky, gimmicky item in armies that can actually use it. We... can't really use it.

* ''Arabyan Carpet'': 50 points for flying. We have this, but cheaper for Skink Priests already, Slann are too fat to get the safety harness on, Skink Chiefs can already get flying mounts, and it is, sadly, incompatible with mounts, so alas, no flying Carnosaur that shows the enemy a whole new world of pain. Can create a janky flying Oldblood (consider using the Stegadon Helm if you do so), which is funny and can catch people off guard, but isn't especially good.

* ''Crown of Command:'' 35 points for Stubborn (which extends to the entire unit). Actually really good for us, on account of the way we use our characters. Remember that Temple Guard + Slann get it by default, as do a few of our monsters. Otherwise, damn near essential on a lone Slann, and can help a Carnosaur mangle a unit by itself, or help a flying Skink Chief survive combat to take down something essential.

* ''Potion of Speed:'' 5 points, drink it and get +3 initiative for a turn. Dirt cheap, has a good chance of letting a Scar Veteran swing first, and frees up the weapon slot for something else. Not terrible, though mind the characters that will still outspeed you and pick targets accordingly. Probably better than drinking a skink, usually.

* ''Potion of Foolhardiness:'' 5 points. Drink it for Immunity to Psychology and Devastating Charge for a turn. Your Saurus is already probably immune to Fear at the minimum and has great ld besides, and is already plenty killy. Probably not better than drinking a skink, usually.

* ''Potion of Healing:'' 35pts for restoring d6 wounds. Has its place on a Slann not running a Lore it can heal itself with. Expensive for what it does, but if what it does is let you Slann survive to cast for one more turn, then it's worth it. Skip it on an Oldblood, invest in survivability instead, and 100% not worth it on Heroes.

* ''Potion of Strength'' 20 points for +3 Strength for a turn. Can be handy on an Oldblood you want to be able to wreck a Chaos Lord in combat without magical support. If you DO have magic support for your Saurus... use it instead.

* ''Potion of Toughness'' 20 points for +3 Toughness for a turn. If it were a *bit* cheaper, it might be useful for keeping a Skink character alive for a turn. But as it stands, the only other case, a Slann running solo, probably wants the Crown instead. Pass.

* ''Featherfoe Torc:'' 35pts to make flying creatures and their riders re-roll successful to hit rolls against the wearer and his unit. Too expensive for what it does, especially since our Saurus are facing harsh to-hit math. Maybe if you know you're going up against birdspam, a Skink could caddy it.

* ''Ironcurse Icon:'' 5pts for a 6+ ward save versus warmachine attacks for the bearer and his unit. If only we had a fatass magnet for every single warmachine the opponent owns. Needless to say, if your Slann has the points after buying whatever else you want, take this. Might also be worth it on a Carnosaur mounted character, though they may have actual competition for the slot. Do note that this doesn't stack with the protection from an Engine of the Gods Stegadon. A Skink Chief or Priest can also carry it for a unit, though this isn't worth a whole Skink caddy by itself.

* ''The Other Trickster's Shard'' 15pts for forcing enemies in base contact with the bearer to re-roll successful ward saves. Yes. You want this. This is how your Saurus cowboy kills characters with layered defenses. Take it.

* ''Ruby Ring of Ruin:'' 25pts for a bound Fireball. Probably not better than a Solar Engine, but can fit onto someone to burn leftover magic dice if you're running Slannless. Between being starved for banners and our only other non-magic fire options are expensive, keep this in mind if you notice your army has none. Obviously skip it if you have a Fire or Signatures Slann.

* ''The Terrifying Mask of EEE!:'' 25pts for Terror, at the additional cost of disallowing allies from using this model's Ld. Would be overpriced even without the downside. Pretty bad, we have Terror at our fingertips. Only for mindgames, where you run this on a unit otherwise without Terror, so your opponent sends their units vulnerable to Terror at them, so they get afflicted by Terror, because no Lizardmen player would ever choose this item. Just as planned.

'''Talismans'''

* ''Dragonbane Gem:'': 5pts for 2+ ward save against flaming attacks.  Cheap, but useful. My favorite kind of useful. Extra defense on a Slann or Carnosaur character that wants armor besides the helm, since they're definitely drawing fire. Groovy.

* ''Talisman of Preservation:'' 45pts for a 4+ ward save. Useless on a Slann, and your Oldblood would rather wear Armor of Destiny. Still has its uses, especially on an Oldblood that wants other armor. Can make a very hard to kill Scar Vet or Skink Chief that can still use a (niche) magic weapon, or protect a Skink Priest that isn't carrying your scroll.

* ''Talisman of Endurance:'' 30 points for a 5+ Ward Save. We usually want Armor of Fortune more, but has a sometimes convenient price point, and again, lets us pick other armors.

* ''Talisman of Protection'': 15 points for 6+ Ward Save. Again usually outclassed by its armor equivalent for us, though the price point means it's easily layered with other armors. Not super dramatic, but fits easily on a load out, and can definitely make the difference between your Scar Veteran successfully killing something or dying trying.

* ''Seed of Rebirth:''* 10pts for 6+ Regen save. Your Slann or is already ground zero for many of your opponent's Flaming attacks, so, avoid giving this to him. Otherwise, actually a bit better than it usually is for the same reason, almost nobody will bother hitting that Skink Priest over there with their Flaming hits as long as Papa Toad and that Carnosaur over there are still on their feet. Keep track of where your opponent's fire attacks are, though.

* ''Obsidian Lodestone:'' 45pts for Magic Resistance(3). A Slann wastes a point of it, but still provides maximum protection to his Temple Guard, which can be worth it. Too expensive for a Saurus, but can be caddied by a Skink.

* ''Obsidian Amulet:''30pts for Magic Resistance(2). Provides the most efficient magical protection for your Slann and his unit, though the protection IS more for the unit, anyways. This can also fit on a Saurus while still letting him do his job, or on a Skink Priest using a cheaper Arcane Item, making it much easier to actually use.

* ''Obsidian Trinket:'' 15 pts for Magic Resistance(1). This can fit on the Skink Priest that took your Scroll, and STILL leave room for something decent, making it easy to find a home for. If you can get better, take it, but this is fair enough.

* ''Dawnstone'': 25 points, reroll failed armor saves. We can easily get 1+ or 2+ on Saurus characters, making this incredibly potent for a Saurus in a unit that simply won't die. Less incredibly for character hunters, as they can often face strength high enough to put their armor save at only 6+, which is much less good.

* ''Luckstone:'' 5pts for rerolling a single failed armor save. I'd say just buy the Skink instead, but there's actually a bit more of a case for this. Our Saurus characters have low initiative, so this can actually make the difference between them surviving combat and killing the other guy, or dying before they throw a single hit. Ideally you have a better plan than this for surviving combat, though.

* ''Opal Amulet'': 15pts for 4+ ward save against the first wound suffered. Usually too expensive for the chump change effect. Niche use if you're relying on a Skink Priest to use Arcane Vassal and cast a critical spell.

* ''Pidgeon Plucker Pendant:'' 5pts for 5+ ward save against wounds caused by fliers in CC. Normally pretty useless unless you're tailoring, it actually has a sliver of conventional use for us. Skink Chiefs on fliers can very cheaply gain a nice bit of resilience against enemy fliers, which are reasonably likely to be what the opponent  tries to use to stop him from killing whatever you want him to, while still being able to afford a good weapon or armor, or decent options for both. This plus Shield of Ptolos makes for a surprisingly difficult to cost-effectively deal with little bastard. If on a Ripperdactyl, this can allow your humble Skink to actually pose a very real and hard to ignore threat to characters FAR above his weight class. I wouldn't consider it on anything else, though, outside of a tailor.

'''Arcane Items:'''
* This is a hotly contested category for our Slann, much more than some entire armies care about this category besides the omnipresent Dispel Scroll. Spellcasting is very important for us, our Slann are tough enough to sacrifice a lot for more spellcasting, and while already expensive, every single point put into a Slann can be repaid at a premium. The 1 item limit is likely a bigger factor than the cost, consider what your choice does for your Slann, your Lore, and your army.

* ''Book of Ashur'': 75 points for +1 to casting and dispel attempts. Useful, but very very expensive, meaning your Slann is a bit vulnerable and one-note. Better if you are planning on playing a very spammy Slann, like Lore of Signatures or Fire. If you just want the dispel half, the Staff of Sorcery does that.

* ''Dispel Scroll'': 25 points, automatically dispels something. Don't think that just because we're incredible at magic we're leaving this at home. If you ever think about not bringing it, just imagine the evil glint in the other guy's eyes as he announces Purple Sun, and you having nothing to dispel it with. You will likely have an abundance of Skink Priests, one of them can definitely hold it, and it is worth every last hide of the five Skinks sacrificed for it.

* ''Feedback Scroll:'' 50pts to roll a dice for each power dice rolled. On a 5+, the casting wizard takes a wound with no armor saves allowed. Unlikely to kill most wizards, eats the entire allowance of a Skink Priest, and your Slann wants something else for sure. Any mage important enough to cast the kinds of spells needed to make this worth it is also probably sporting a hefty Ward Save, meaning it does even less. Pass unless you know you're fighting Nagash or something.

* ''Scroll of Leeching:'' 50pts to gain dispel dice equal to the power dice used for the spell they just cast. Almost worthless, even if it were half its price. Doesn't actually stop that big spell, and requires the opponent to cast multiple big spells per turn. Your Slann can be built for spooky levels of dispel control every single turn for around the same price as this one item that often does nothing.

* ''Siverjir's Hex Scroll:'' 50pts to attempt to transform a casting wizard into a toad. He has a chance to resist by testing on his wizard level. The irony and fun of this item aside, this is pretty useless, and expensive to boot. High level wizards will usually resist it, low level ones aren't worth the trouble, you can dispel well enough anyways, and your cowboys are hard at work making sure anything with a name is dead already anyways. Pass.

* ''Scroll of Shielding:'' 15pts to get the target unit of enemy spell a 4+ ward save against that spell. "We have Dispel Scroll at home", more or less. Not terrible, can easily save well more than its cost in strapping lizard lads, and can fit on a Skink Priest caddying something else easily. Definately don't accept it as a substitute for your Dispel Scroll, though, it's extra, throwaway protection against something else.

* ''Power Scroll:'' 35 points to halve the casting value of a spell, but you can't boost it. Slann are good at making their casts, but might be handy if you desperately need to get Mindrazor off. Has slightly better use on a Skink Priest of Beasts that you want to be able to get Savage Beast of Horros or Transformation of Kadon off. Power Stone often accomplishes the same thing for cheaper, though, even with the greater miscast risk.

* '' Earthing Rod'' 25 points to reroll a miscast. Might be worth taking on a Slann not taking Life or maybe Signatures. You do *not* want your 400+ point toad to croak over a miscast. Buuut... just take Soul of Stone. If you're paranoid enough to take both, spellcasting might not be for you anyways.

* ''Trickster's Shard'' 25pts for an item that can be used before a bearer's magic phase, causing a wound to each dispelling wizard on a roll of 5+ for each dispelled spell. Can be worth it on a Slann, especially one taking a cheap lore like Fire or Signatures, or with a lore that has spells an opponent MUST dispel, like Purple Sun. Your Slann is going to be casting spells at a rapid rate, and can easily fry all the wizards an army has, or else secure an uncontested turn to violate the board, either way is a win for you. 

* ''Forbidden Rod'': 35pts for d6 additional power dice, causing d3 wounds to the wizard. Actually very decent for us. Slann have a fair chance of not taking any damage at all, Slann can survive even the worst case with room to spare, and may well have ways to heal off the damage. Risky if the opponent has a lot of war machines trained at your frog's head (if they have them, they probably do), but can result in a devastating Magic Phase that can win a game outright.

* ''Power Stone:'' 20pts for two bonus power dice, must be used before rolling for the spell. Safer, cheaper version of the Forbidden Rod. Can make for some spooky magic phases, which you can absolutely take advantage of. Nice in the pocket of either a Slann or a Skink Priest, though your Slann likely has better options.

* ''Wand of Jet'': 35pts for what amounts to an additional power dice, after attempting a cast. Basically insurance on a spell. Slann shouldn't have too much problem making their casts, but can be handy on a Skink that *needs* to get off a high end spell... but the Power Stone does the same thing, more reliably, for cheaper, for the cost of potentially being wasted on that critical spell you needed to cast either way. Pass unless you're swimming in Skink Priests with empty pockets, somehow.

* ''Sceptre of Stability'': 15pts for adding a dice to a dispel attempt. Insures a dispel, like the Wand of Jet. Handy if you're running only Skink Priests, Slann are good enough at dispels to leave this at home. Also, just take Becalming Cognition, bro.

* ''Staff of Sorcery'': 35pts for a +1 to every dispel attempt by the bearer. Make sure to practice your regal, dismissive hand gestures if running this and Becalming Cognition on a Slann, because your opponent ain't casting shit. Bring your straw to drink the salty, impotent tears of the Vampire Counts or Tomb Kings player who is locked out of the toolbox that keeps their army working. Additional side benefit for Slann over other casters, because everyone was gunning for him anyways even before he locked up the fun cabinet. Niche use on a Skink sitting in the back. Half of the Book of Ashur, for just over half the price.

* ''Channeling Staff:'' 15pts for a permanent item, which adds +1 to channeling attempts. A solid pick for most armies, you simply ARE taking this if you don't have a specific item in mind if you take Harmonic Convergeance with your Slann. Cheap cheap cost for the magical sexual assault charges your toad is about to be arrested for. Don't bother if not taking Harmonic Convergeance, your Arcane Item slot is worth way more than this without the combo.

'''Magic Standards:'''
* Worth noting off the bat, taking these is a bit of a special challenge for us. Temple Guard are the only standard unit that can take them, and nine times out of ten, they're shacking up with a Slann anyways. This means you're almost always taking an Oldblood, Scar Veteran, or Skink Chief to hold one, and only the Chief really wants to spend their allowance on them, meaning these cost a premium that is coming out of their kit. A banner has to be doing something big for a unit in general to be worth it for us most of the time.

* ''Gleaming Pennant:'' 5 points to reroll one failed leadership test. Cheap, but unnecessary with our Leadership and Cold Blooded. Only if you know you're going up against Leadership shenanigans, and even then. Keep going.

* ''Lichbone Pennant:'' Much beloved source of magic resistance. Great option if you have no better ideas, protecting our pricy Saurus from being fucked with is important. But... the main benefit of Magic Resistance without needing a character is essentially lost on us, and a Skink Chief can take an Obsidian Trinket to get the same effect, saving a banner. Might be worth it on the Temple Guard your Slann is embedded in, to share a few points of love with your frog.

* ''Ranger's Standard'': 50pts for ignoring all difficult terrain. Very very expensive, usually not worth it, especially since CoC is also too expensive. Fine if you are committing to CoC for some reason.

* ''Banner of Swiftness'': 15pts for +1 Move. Nice and cheap, and much appreciated on your Saurus or Temple Guard, and definitely worth a Skink caddy.

* ''Banner of Eternal Flame'': 10 points, gives the unit Flaming Attacks. Cheap access to Flaming Hits, definitely consider this if you don't have any other sources of fire. Be cautious of putting it on your only Saurus character though, since it will seriously blunt their attacks against whoever the opponent gave their Dragonhelm to. Handy on a Skink Chief.

* ''Rampager's Standard:'' 55 points to let the unit reroll failed charges. The price means it's BSB only. Anything that extends our threat range is good, but the Banner of Swiftness very often ends up having a similar effect for a fraction of the price. This is an entire MSU of Skinks, plus 1, by the way.

* ''Standard of Discipline'': 15pts for 1+ Ld, but the unit cannot use General's bubble. Actually not a bad pick on Slann or their Temple Guard, ld 10 is nice for some spells, too. Consider it, at least. Might see use on a Saurus Cowboy with a posse.

* ''War Banner:'' 35pts for +1 Combat Resolution. Can be nice on the odd Slann-less Temple Guard, or maybe on an Oldblood if your Crown of Command is spoken for.

* ''Razor Standard'': 45 pts for Armor Penetration. Fine choice for Temple Guard to cut through the toughest armor, could be worth a Skink Chief on a big block of Saurus, but mind the cost.

* ''Scarecrow Banner'': 5 pts to cause fear to Flying units. Trading something we never have enough of (Magic Standards) for something we have in abundance (Fear) would be a terrible deal even without the hilarious limitation. Would almost never be worth it even if it was free.

===Magic===

Yes please.

Now after the new book, the Lizardmen have gotten High Magic (the High Elf magic) for their Slann. Well not bad at all but the real thing is in the Lore Attribute: Contemplation. It allows you to forget a spell you successfully cast, and generate a new one out of High Magic or any normal Lore. This means you can drop spells you don't need and get new ones. Playing against Daemons? Light magic is there. Fighting against Chaos Knights? There you go: Searing Doom.
If not taking High Magic, generally Life is regarded as the best for Slann as it can prevent Miscasts from nuking your Mega-Toad. Plus, who doesn't like Toughness 6 Saurus? Aside from your opponent, I mean. Generally it's best to take a lore based on your opponent's army. Metal and Shadow are pretty good choices. Heavens is a big NO as you already have Skink Priests to cast that one for you.
Typically, people opt for either Life or Light, with Life being more popular of a choice.

'''Lore of Life''': While Slann can only be a Loremaster in High Magic as of the most recent Armybook, Life is still awesome but Slann can't count on always having the Throne anymore. Throne of Vines helps make your Slann from killing himself and lets Flesh to Stone buff your Saurus to Toughness 8 (as well as buffing the effectiveness of the other spells)! Finally, Dwellers Below is possibly one of the most ridiculous spells in the game and can nuke entire units with no looking back. Generally this is probably the best of the lores to use for a balanced or defensive list. Remember that any good opponent will packing at least 1 Scroll so never depend on your first Dwellers working. In fact depend on it not working.

'''Lore of Light''': Although Life is probably better in a large tournament game Light can be devastating in Saurus-heavy armies with a Slann in the center. Birona's Timewarp and The Speed of Light are probably the best spells as they make up for the Saurus' low Initiative and mediocre Weapon Skill. The Timewarp will also give you an extra Attack and double the Movement, turning the Saurus into something more akin to Ogres in power (that's 3 attacks and 8 movement by the way) . Best of all is that both of them and their little cousin Pha's Protection (an Augment that will help against shooting and getting hit in combat at a -1 To Hit) can all be cast as 12" bubble buffs that can affect all units, allowing an army with a Slann in the center to be twice as effective. On another note the lore has some pretty good utility spells that can clear chaff (and also get a bonus versus the foul Undead and Daemons) and help stop your opponent from getting dangerous flank charges (The Net of Amyntok). All in all probably the second best lore for Lizards. One other thing to note is if you get some lucky rolling you can cast bubble Speed of Light and Phas Protection. The astute among you will notice that means most core (WS4 and lower) will be hitting your mighty Saurus on 6's. This is obviously huge and the fact that more people don't do this makes me sad.

'''Lore of High Magic''': The signature Lizardmen lore, shared with High Elves(the Slann did teach them how to use magic after all). It is a pretty well balanced Lore for Lizardmen and much better suited for them than for High Elves. Hand of Glory gives +D3 Initiative/Movement/Weapon Skill, with its High Casting option giving +D3 to all of the stats, not just one. This counters Lizardmens average Weapon Skill (Saurus, warmachines created to fight, have WS3, unless they're on a Cold One or are Temple Guard, then you have WS4, Skinks have WS2) and Initiative. The Movement buff is just gravy. This is much better for Lizardmen than High Elves, since High Elves are rocking WS4 on their basic troops, and WS5/WS6 on their Rare/Specials. Walk Between Worlds is also useful for Lizardmen, especially for units such as Fuck-You-A-Saurs, Kroxigors, Cold One Cavalry and, most importantly, Salamanders. This allows you to move into perfect flanking positions, allowing your units to dish out some hurt while the opponent is tar-pitted against Saurus. The Salamanders are perfect for this spell as you can have as many as you want, a unit of 5 Salamanders shooting five S4 Flame Cannon Template shots over a horde of something or a tough unit to weaken them for your Saurus, is golden.  Vaul's Unmaking is useful for removing powerful magical items from Lords/Heroes, especially named/special ones. I'm looking at you Tyrion (+3S sword, 1+/4++ Magic Armour, Gem) or Grimgor Ironhide (+2S ASF axe) and so on. The final High Magic spell, Fiery Convocation, is useful as it will constantly cause hits on the unit, regardless of how big it is. That 40 block horde? They all take a hit. It can whittle them down for your units to finish them off. We get a unique Lore Attribute that lets us swap out a spell for a spell from another list, that we can then also swap for the signature if we roll something we don't like. This is a fantastic because it lets you get a spell from a lore that might counter something currently in front of you, like Metal for Warriors of Chaos, or Light for Daemons. You do need to actually cast the spell first, though, so you might need to cast something mediocre just to get rid of it; this isn't quite the same as having every spell right at your fingertips as a result. Special mention fkr swapping goes to Vaul's Unmaking, since you probably had a target in mind when you cast it, and the spell immediately becomes far less useful after it's gone. Light and Life are probably better in their own areas, but if you just want a flexible, fun Slann that you can slap just about anywhere, High Magic is a good way to go. Especially if your scene plays End Times, this gets even better then.

'''Lore of Signatures''': (Requires Wandering Deliberations) If playing End Times, this gives you every single standard Lore for 30 points... so just do that instead of taking a standard lore, unless those 30 points are really breaking your army. Outside of end times... it's decent? The signature spells and lore attributes of most spells are pretty good, even if some of the attributes don't really work under these conditions. Getting all of them lets your Slann cover a ton of specialized bases decently, without ever feeling like they have a useless list. However, part of what makes a Slann so good is how reliably they can cast the big guns, and this keeps them from doing that. You're certainly still going to be able to get your money's worth on your magic phase, few wizards can rapidfire spells quite like a Lore of Signatures Slann, and it might be worth running especially if you have a very active game scene, and want just one Slann to handle all of it, but you definitely feel the lack of power.

'''Lore of Shadow''': The Lore Attribute is interesting as it allows the Slann to leave the unit on a succesfull cast.. this will free up space for the TG to pile slightly more damage in, if you really need that boost. On the casting side of things Shadow is the most expensive lore to cast in the game; most of the spells are Hexes that lower the capability of your opponent's units, which can help letting the Saurus survive the brunt of a first combat turn and retaliate safely or even let Skinks tie up an enemy for a long time. Of course, Mindrazor can be fantastic, Lizardmen usually have massive Leadership, with Jungle Swarms having 10, but don't fixate on it. And if needs be, lore comes with yet another template spell, and a line spell helpfully able to be aimed by an expendable Skink, so... 

'''Lore of Death''': Bit of an odd relationship. On the one hand, Lizardmen are arguably the best casters of the lore; few armies can make quite as good of use as the massive surplus of power dice you'll be generating as Lizardmen, and the chief drawback of the lore, the short range on most of the spells, is more or less entirely mitigated as your Slann can just cast through a Skink, rather than get within spitting distance of that Bloodthirster himself. On the other hand, the lore excels at character sniping, and if there is one thing Lizardmen really don't need help with, it's murdering characters. Additionally, while Purple Sun is tantalizing, one even slightly bad scatter, and you will fuck your own army far harder than you will the enemy. It's not a dead lore for us, but it's not something you should just slap on a standard army list; you need to build your army with consideration for the lore. In very large games, where you can run more than one Slann, a Death Slann can generate absurd amounts of dice, that the other can absolutely violate the board with.

'''Lore of Metal''': Situationally good pick. The Lore itself is kind of hit or miss by matchup, and if you're dropping points for a Slann, you really don't want that investment to just sit there, but it's not like there aren't spells to cast. It can be handy against Warriors of Chaos specifically, but Lizardmen actually generally do alright against most moderately armored armies, making this already situational lore even moreso. If you know you're fighting Warriors of Chaos, maybe you can make a tin foil hat for your frog and convince your opponent your Slann was always a Metal Lore caster. Not bad by any means, but a bit less flexible and generally useful than other picks.

'''Lore of Heavens''': One of your choices for your Skinks, so you will almost always have one or two on the board. Actually pretty handy, the signature spell can mess with war machines something fierce, which we always appreciate, the Lore Attribute is nice for consistently chipping off flying units or characters, which is always welcome, and Thunderbolt might be able to finish off a character that your Scar Vet barely missed a kill on, and the buff and hex are okay for Saurus. Never take it on a Slann, though; if you want a high level Heavens caster, it's probably for Comet of Cassendora, but Tetto'ekko gives bonuses to that spell specifically, and is cheaper to boot. His bonuses to Comet make us significantly better at hitting with it when we want to, making the spell jump from a gimmicky toy to a genuinely threatening move. Just take him if the thought of a Heavens Slann crosses your mind, or leave the Lore to your Skinks otherwise.

'''Lore of Beasts''': The other Skink lore. Generally quite decent. You'll almost always have a monster for the Lore Attribute and a cheap scroll caddy Skink can get some consistency from it, but the real draw is getting Wildform off on a big block of Saurus Warriors, Temple Guard, or maybe a Scar Vet to shovel some coal into the Saurus rape train. The Amber Spear is neat, as it can fill a niche Lizardmen sometimes struggle with. Impenetrable Pelt and Savage Beast can help a Scar Veteran or Oldblood survive or kill a Vampire Lord or Chaos Lord in combat, but the rest of the lore is kinda meh. Don't bother taking it on a Slann unless butchering a Vampire Lord is something you anticipate needing to do regularly, even then, Light is probably the better counterpick. Skink Priests can cast what we really want in most cases. In case you wanted to try it, unfortunately Slann uniquely cannot cast Transformation of Kadon, because the fat bastard refuses to get off his mobility scooter due to the Palanquin rules.

'''Lore of Fire''': A bit straitlaced, this lore can help fill the gap of long range firepower that Lizardmen have, and put down fast, long ranged units. Flaming Sword of Rhuin can situationally make your Skinks a good bit more dangerous, aiming through a Skink Priest means lining up perfect Flaming Heads has never been easier and your own units generally have high enough Toughness and Leadership to mitigate friendly fire, and Fulminating Cage can straight up delete problematic units that could otherwise harass and stay out of range of your Saurus blocks. Don't let the associations of the lore being mainly used by lower level casters discourage you from the raw blasting power a Fire Slann offers, but do be aware that blasting is pretty much all you're doing, and besides the ranged units, Fire excels at killing things your dudes already great at butchering. 

'''Lore of Undeath''': Kinda funny meme pick. RAW you can take it on Kroak for maximum lulz, but the lore actually isn't terrible. You don't really have much use for zombies and skellies besides the odd flank or fear test, but Lizardmen as an army tend to have a lot of niche holes that the raised units can handily plug. From proper archers, to cavalry that isn't the hideously overpriced Cold One, to doubling down on the monsters, to getting a Necromancer or Liche Priest just to flex on having access to even more "unique" lores, the extra units this can get you are surprisingly synergistic with the Lizardmen. Taking a full Undeath Slann is probably overkill, but a Skink Priest or two can add some decent utility and counterplay to your army. Also gives you an excuse to kitbash that Relic Skink Priest you've always wanted. Not exactly a great choice, but better than it deserves to be. A High Magic, Loremaster Slann with the Book of Ashur and a Heirotitan spawned from this Lore can achieve some truly disgusting spellcasting capability, should you get the combo off.


There are many viable Lores, but you can't get Loremaster any more, making it a bit of a problem. Even with Lore of Life, you're still only getting 4 spells out of 6, and you're definitely feeling it if you miss Throne of Vines. You can't count on a Slann getting that one spell that makes your army work every game.

Heads up people! With the new End times Khaine book, Slann are stupidly strong. If they know one spell from a lore then they know the entire lore now! Meaning the signature spell discipline they can take? Yeah, they can know all spells from all the basic lores now... And if they are Loremasters of a lore then they get to Reroll Casting attempts of that lore! So you can stick to High Lore and have a higher chance of casting all the spells you need! And ONE MOOOOORE THING!(Shush Uncle!) When the Slann use the High Magic Lore attribute then the moment they get a spell from a Lore they learn the '''Entire Lore'''.
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