Warmachine/Tactics/Cryx

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Note that this page is, for the most part, a placeholder, and will be added to over the coming months. Also note that, currently, it only contains units from Prime Mk. 2 and Forces of Warmachine: Cryx.

Why Play Cryx?

Because Undead/Zombies/Pirates/liches fucking Undead Techno Empire awesome. Srsly, why aren't you playing Cryx?

Cryx is, obviously, the designated evil faction of the Warmachine world. It's a necromantic nightmare of zombies, robots, zombie robots, pirates, and sexy demon pirate women with Racks that are so Great they count as melee weapons. Seriously. They're ruled by the evil dragon-god-king Toruk, led by a coalition of Iron Liches created from history's greatest monsters, and basically sit off the coast of the mainland being evil as shit and pirating bitches all day until Toruk decides it's time to fuck one of the other kingdoms to death so he can eat one of his dragon-god-children and absorb their essence.

In terms of gameplay, Cryx is by far the trickiest of the Warmachine factions. They rarely win any stand-up fights, as most of their units are hilariously fragile, but their whole strength is in being able to pick and choose their battles. They are by far the most mobile of the Warmachine armies, and they also do by far the highest amount of damage when on the offensive. In large part, Cryx could be said to be the Warmahordes equivalent of the Dark Eldar.

...which is the other thing. Cryx does play a hell of a lot like the Dark Eldar. They're fragile and very hard to learn, but they're also ludicrously fast and do disgusting amounts of damage. They also have some of the strongest warcasters available to any faction: Gaspy, Denny, and Skarre have no fear of direct combat and also pack some of the most bogglingly powerful spell lists in the game. If Cryx is played aggressively, they can hammer through almost any opposition without breaking a sweat.

In case that didn't get the point across, I'll spell it out: Cryx as a faction is OP as balls. Warmachine is all about playing aggressively, and Cryx has more tools to take advantage of an aggressive playstyle than anyone else. This is no longer nearly as pronounced as it was during the game's initial release, as many Cryxian units have been nerfed (Gaspy2 has taken multiple hits from the nerf bat) and other factions are steadily getting new models that provide answers to Cryx's tricks, but Cryx is still the most powerful faction in tournament play. Cryx wins more than twice as many tourneys as any other faction (though this may be in part due to Cryx being the most popular), and has no shortage of ways to crush any style of opposing army.

That said, there are still plenty of ways to play Cryx in a for-fun situation without making your friends want to strangle you. Just be aware that you should probably leave the bigger guns on the shelf if you want your friends to enjoy themselves.

General Strategy

Cryxian general strategy is hard to describe, since Cryx is one of the most varied factions in all of Warmahordes. They can field any type of army and do so well, and there's basically no strategy that they can't field.

This is further complicated by the fact that Cryx is even more warcaster-dependent than any other faction. Two Cryx 'casters might field identical lists, but run completely differently on the tabletop due to differences between spell lists and feats. This is true to an extent for every Warmahordes army, but Cryxian warcasters are often so strong that they end up dictating most of their army's strategy.

So, instead of going over each warcaster and all the intricacies of their interactions with every unit available to them (which you're really only going to learn by playing, though looking up other sources of information on the faction may help), let's look at the basics of what makes Cryx unique.

• Warcaster Strength

As mentioned above, the Cryxian warcaster in play is a huge part of the game. You generally have two types of casters in Warmchine. warcasters that exist to enable their armies to do the heavy lifting and rarely do much in person (looking at you, Protectorate) or casters that don't support there army as much but are a one man blenders (The Butcher, Allister Caine). Cryx splits the difference and does both. Cryx 'casters are rarely slouches in direct fighting, and some, like Gaspy2, are actually incredible threats in a brawl. Gaspy, Skarre, Terminus, and others can all dish out some serious pain, and can take a pounding in return (though, pf course, they still need some protection).

Aside from melee, Cryxian 'casters also pack some of the strongest spell lists in the game. Some are offensive powerhouses. Some are utility toolkits. Some debuff, some buff, and so on and so on. Many pack a mix of all of the above, which makes Cryx's 'casters toolboxes that have almost every answer you need.

Cryx also has a hell of a lot of Arc Nodes, which, in addition to being fast and damn hard to catch, generally come dirt fucking cheap. A Cryx player can easily swamp his opponent in the damn things, which extends his 'caster's reach even further across the battlefield and means that all that power can come from anywhere at any time.

• Debuffs and Corrosion

Cryx brings more debuff options to the table than any other faction. Even discounting the aforementioned spells from the 'caster, a lot of Cryxian units bring some seriously painful debuffs along with them. Terror, ARM and DEF breakers, SPD reduction (which prevents charges!) - we've got it all. Any army going up against Cryx is going to start falling apart even before the fighting starts.

Cryx also brings its trademark Continuous effect: Corrosion, which behaves like Fire except that it doesn't roll for damage. Instead, it automatically inflicts one wound, which makes it hilariously effective at eating through infantry and solos. Splash your opponents with xenomorph blood and watch the butthurt as their models melt away.

• Mobility

Like the Dark Eldar, Cryx hits hard and hits fast. Cryxian units can cover a surprising amount of distance in a staggeringly short amount of time, though this isn't always apparent if you just look at their SPD.

Oh, sure, bonejacks are quick little bastards most of the time, but most of your mobility options come from special rules and abilities. Incorporeal is nice, and lets some of your infantry just walk through barricades. Helldivers are tricky little burrowing bastards that can get in critical charges from angles that your opponent never expected. Some of your units can even teleport outright, letting them blink in and out of combat without provoking free strikes.

As a Cryx player, you have the ability to dictate when fights happen. Use it, because without that critical alpha strike, your units will crumple like tissue paper.

• Assassination Runs

Put it all together now. Your forces are extremely mobile, hit like a truck made of zombies and testosterone, and are supported by some of the nastiest magic being channeled through the fastest, cheapest nodes around. Cryx rarely wins on scenario, but it doesn't matter since they're so damn good at launching bombing runs on the enemy warcaster, no matter where they try to hide.

Unit Analysis

Warcasters

• Iron Lich Asphyxious (Gaspy1): A solid 'caster all around, Gaspy's original incarnation brings a bit of everything to the table. He's not the best at anything, but he can throw murder magic well enough to be threatening, smash face if he has to, and hand out some nice support to your infantry. His most notable ability is that he can teleport for just a few focus, which lets him duck into melee, smack a few heads, and then blink out without provoking free strikes. This makes him surprisingly durable on top of decently mobile.
• Lich Lord Asphyxious (Gaspy2): Pretty much the God-King of Warmahordes, Gaspy2 was long considered to be, hands-down, indisputably, absolutely the best warcaster in the game. He has since been nerfed from orbit with some of the most brutal power reductions in the game's history. Three times. And he's still considered one of the best Cryx has to offer (though he's no longer the) best. Still an incredibly popular and successful tournament warcaster. He takes Gaspy1 and cranks all of that up to eleven. He's a monster in melee who can't be killed because he teleports away and has a spell that makes him immune to charging, he can rip apart infantry with his spells, and his feat, used correctly, will practically guarantee a successful bombing run. Definitely not a 'caster to take for casual play.
• Asphyxious the Hellbringer (Gaspy3): Gaspy's final incarnation is a bit less... overbearing than his previous. He's still good, and definitely usable, but not as crushingly strong as Lich Lord. He's still durable, but has lost his ability to teleport and traded in his murderous, blasting-focused spell list in for one focused on infantry buffs. He's one of the few true support 'casters in Cryx, though he can still enter combat if needed. Very different and unique, and a lot of fun.
  • Vociferon: Not actually a warcaster, but an attachment stuck on to Gaspy3. Functionally a walking soul collector, only not actually good due to some special rules that make him liable to explode rather than just do his job and hand Gaspy some soul tokens. Mostly just sort of... there.
• Warwitch Deneghra (Denny1): the best Battlegroup Box warcaster. Her set of debuffs allow her to support infantry and jacks, without having to worry about faction or nonfaction status. Parry lets her move in and out of melee, but she's not a straight up fighter (her MAT is typical, and you'll be spending Focus boosting for crucial targets), like most Cryx 'casters. That is, unless you wear the enemy down with her feat (which is so good; forget that Hordes doesn't even use FOCUS), magic, or both first. If your opponent favors infantry and you've built your list properly, Denny should have no problem systematically shutting him down.
• Wraith Witch Deneghra (Deneghra); Unlike her original version, epic Deneghra does not have a long list of the best debuffs in the game. Instead, she focuses on being able to move your opponent's models around, or stop them cold. Her Feat is an absolute bitch - not only does it provide a potent defensive debuff to your opponent's models, but it flat out prevents your opponent from moving his models (barring a few abilities that "place" models without "advancing" them, which are rare outside of Circle Orboros). To repeat - for one turn, YOUR OPPONENT WILL NOT BE ABLE TO MOVE HIS MODELS. AT ALL. If your opponent has not yet moved his models in close enough to contest zones, well, you have one more turn where they're not contesting zones. If your opponent left his caster in front of his army, confident that nothing you have can reach him - you can move something obviously threatening in range to attack, and he can't send something in to kill it or screen his caster (or move his caster away). If your opponent left his army at that perfect position that you can't charge him, but have to get in his charge range - well, now you get to move up AND get the alpha strike.
• Goreshade the Bastard (pGoreshade): Coming soon.
  • Deathwalker: Coming soon.
• Goreshade the Cursed (eGoreshade); Coming soon.
• Master Necrotech Mortenebra: Cryx Warjack caster and probably the best in the list. She will definitely favour mostly Jack orientated lists. While most people think straight off the bat - Helljacks! Bonejacks are where its at for this caster, she makes these already cheap, fast and relatively average damage output Jacks, frighteningly fast and dangerous. Helljacks are still a must, Shooty Jacks like the Leviathan allow her to utilise the spell Overrun by shooting and killing something and allowing another Jack to run around or get to something previously obstructed. Spectral Steel really shines on the Bonejacks especially the Stalker being on smaller bases and being fast, allows the Stalker to dart between enemy troops for an Assassination kill. Terminal Velocity is basically like having Hulk say "Hulk Smash!" for all of your Jacks. The more Jacks you have the better it becomes! FEAT Turn is crazy scary...prepare to make someone cry! Dont put her on the front line unless you know your ending the game on that turn, while she cant be knocked down she cant take much of a beating.
  • Deryliss: Coming soon.
• Pirate Queen Skarre (pSkarre): As mentioned in the main article, she has a great rack. Literally, it's one of her weapons. She is perhaps the most straightforward caster in Cryx - she tends to only cast one spell herself, the skarlock thrall spams the same spell over and over, and her feat is a straight strength and armor buff. Her main spell, Dark Guidance, makes literally every melee model in your army super accurate. On feat, you will often destroy multiple jacks and/or colossals while remaining fairly save from retaliation. Her main weakness is that your opponent sees everything coming - you won't surprise him. Her main strength is that it doesn't matter, he can't stop it.
• Skarre, Queen of the Broken Coast (eSkarre): Coming soon.
• Lich Lord Terminus: Departing from the usual Cryx strategy, this guy is a melee powerhouse, though not quite at the Butcher's level (he also has a decent spray ranged weapon, but his RAT is too low to make much use of it), and is surprisingly mobile despite his durability, but is also easy to hit. His spell list focuses on damage spells, and allowing him to kill every living model near him, especially by putting Berserk on himself. He plays more aggressively than other Cryx casters, but is helped by giving himself and just about everything in his wide control radius Tough, as well as his ability to pawn off hits onto his buddies if he's shot at, which makes him all-but immune to ranged attacks if you know what you're doing.
• Lich Lord Venethrax: Decently strong fighter, not as much as Terminus, but the main reason you'd want to use him is because he packs a bunch of anti-warbeast abilities, so it's best to use him when playing against Hordes armies.
• Witch Coven of Gharlghast: Coming soon.
  • Egregore: Coming soon.

Warjacks

Bonejacks (Light Warjacks)

• Deathripper: A walking (you should be running it) Arc Node that stands a semi-decent chance of chewing its way through anything that tar pits it. Assuming taking the charge didn't junk it or cripple its Arc Node or Mandible. You're paying four points to get a spell where you need it or want it to be. If you're fighting Protectorate, don't even bother with this.
• Defiler: A walkingrunning Arc Node that spreads Corrosion continuous effects... Until it takes a powerful direct hit or eats a charge, and becomes useless or scrap. You may wonder if that's worth one more point than a Deathripper, but you also probably wonder if that cute girl you saw likes war games (hint: it isn't, and she doesn't).
• Helldiver: A great positional and imposed threat Jack. While not an overly powerful Jack, what this Jack does well is give you some form of board control and he is the master of the backstrike bonus. If your opponent is careless or forgets this Jack is hiding under his feet could prematurely end the life of his caster. If he plays it safe he could spend significant time and effort avoiding going near the these little beasties. For 3pts, theyre brilliant and with Mortenebra they can be game winning!
• Nightwretch: Your other cheap arc node. Taking this or the deathripper is really a matter of preference, as this one has a (short) ranged attack.
• Ripjaw: Arc Nodes. Arc Nodes everywhere. It can either take a poke at armored units or keep them pinned for a turn. Since you probably aren't all about spreading Corrosion continuous effects, this is a better Deathripper. Better luck next edition, Defiler and Nightwretch.
• Stalker: In another Forces book, this would truly be the stuff of nightmares. Field multiple Stalkers (three should be your limit) and go for assassination lists. Best played with Mortenebra!

Helljacks (Heavy Warjacks)

Cryx's weakest point is its heavy warjacks. Its infantry is simply too good, thus making the opportunity cost too high for most heavy warjacks; the points would be better spent on Moar Baenz.

• Corruptor: Nope, nope and nope. Maybe in some pSkarre theme lists for the healing. But if you're looking for a ranged jack that can still kill in melee, you're better off paying the extra point for a Leviathan.
• Harrower: Your other go-to jack for Dark industries, and a fine jack regardless. It can't be knocked down, it has an gun that ignores line of sight and has an AOE. Furthermore, it has reach and thresher on its melee weapon, making this jack an absolute nightmare for infantry. Most expensive non-character Cryx jack.
• Leviathan: Another Crabjack, the Leviathan has a RoF-3 gun with a 13-inch range, and it deals more damage against larger targets. A focus-hungry ranged jack that can grind down heavies from a distance, and its no slouch in melee with a high-pow open fist.
• Reaper: Coming soon.
• Seether: Your go to jack if you managed to trigger Dark Industries, as it's probably Cryx' most efficient jack. Basic stats are the same as a Slayer, except with better MAT. Can run or charge without spending focus, and gets 1 focus per turn for free anyway, and if it hits the same with both of its initials, it can make a free power attack against that model.
• Slayer: You basic heavy jack. It's fast and hard to hit (for a heavy), hits decently hard while packing three melee weapons, and has decent MAT. Compared to heavies of other factions, however, it's pretty fragile, but thankfully its only six points.

Character Warjacks

• Cankerworm: This would be a lot more useful if it could steal infantry weapons or abilities, or if it had an Arc Node. As it is, it's hard to see where Privateer Press's designers were going with this thing. Gaspy's Affinity, Advance Deployment, Pathfinder, Parry, and Stealth mean it'll reach what it's slithering towards, but its weapon damage isn't that impressive, and it's not going to take apart any heavy warjacks on its own (when it's pretty clear it's meant to be a solo hunter). Assuming you charge and then boost (leaving one focus for Salvage), it's probably going to be shot or chopped to bits before its next activation, healing or no healing. You're either encouraging the other player to commit resources to neutralizing it, or you're supporting it when a Stalker or Seether would be a better guided missile(s). Just a way for eGaspy and pGaspy to burn their warjack points... When neither incarnation are 'jack 'casters.
• Deathjack: Your most expensive jack, but also the most dangerous. For base stats, it's a stronger tougher Slayer, but that's no why you use it. You use it because for each system functioning on it, it automatically gets allocating focus, has Cull Soul (though in addition to keeping Soul Tokens to turn into focus, it can also spend them to heal itself), and to top it all off, it can use the focus it gains from the previous two abilities to cast any of your warcsters spells that don't have range of "self" or "control". As a result, this thing can find a home in the list of any Cryx caster, though Mortenebra and the Witch Coven will go fangirl for this bad biker boy.
• Nightmare: This is a good bodyguard for Denny. It's nice to be able to cast Ghostly for one focus, but it does eat into your focus allocation, so make sure you only charge Prey. Consider having it lie in wait behind cover (Stealth is not perfect insurance, but not a lot of people think to shoot through terrain), primed for a trample or counter-charge. As a frontline fighter, Slayers that you can slap Ghost Walk on are more cost-effective (in money and points). Nightmare will only run you two points more, and as has been said before, has broader appeal with a variety of Cryxian warcasters. Ask yourself if you really need those two points, and if Denny is still vulnerable.

Units

• Bane Knights: Bane Thralls are your hammer. These are your scalpel - Vengeance makes them surprisingly fast, reach gives them a better threat range, and ghostly not only makes you immune to free strikes and grants pathfinder, but means that you can move through solid obstacles.
• Bile Thralls: Would you have a hard time hitting a giant, waddling, bloated sack of acid? Yeah, neither does your average Winter Guard or Trencher. However, you will have the undivided attention of your opponent as soon as you deploy the little puke bags. These guys are absolutely meant to be sacrificed, and will either be your DISTRACTION PINATA, or potentially clear a nice, people mush-strewn charge lane. If you field a 'caster with Excarnate, then try and let them get killed normally rather than just Purge, because then you have a chance of getting one exactly where your mortal foe doesn't want one to be (yes, this was errata'd to be less effective). Since you're probably playing Cryx to troll your opponent, you may as well learn to make the most of your Bile Thralls. Closing advice? Go with the min unit of six, consider running them Conga line-style towards the enemy, bring pink sawdust, and work on your evil laugh.
• Bane Thralls: pGoreshade's axe carrying roadies. Oh, and they're quite good with other 'caster lists, too! Dark Shroud chips away at ARM, so they don't have to form the entirety of a charge. They're amazing with Ghost Walk on them, and it's pretty much a given that they'll have their Officer and Standard UA, because Tough rolls with no actual drawbacks will give you an ecto-boner. So go for the unit attachment. Don't even leave the store without it if you're buying Bane Thralls. Do you see Bane Lord Tartarus hanging on the rack by his lonesome? The person who left him is a fool.
• Bane Thralls Officer & Standard: What did I just fucking tell you to do? Do you require a reminder? You don't need shoes and clothing. You need to make your Stealthy, ARM-eroding Weapon Masters into champions, neckbeard.
• Black Ogrun Boarding Party: Coming soon.
• Bloodgorgers: melee shock unit that relies on Gang to do what they do best. When benefiting from Gang, they have elite MAT and their damage rolls on the charge have an impressive P+S with making them quite deadly. Blood Thirst gives them a large threat range against living models, and with two melee weapons each this unit is an armored beast with chainsaws for arms that get better when covered in blood, good against HORDES players {Tactics:charge into battle, win battle, repeat...}
• Cephalyx Mind Slavers: Coming soon.
  • Drudges: Coming soon.
• Cephalyx Overlords: Coming soon.
• Mechanithralls: Your tar pit. Disposable and pretty decent in melee. You can get a full unit with a minimum of points, which leaves more for add-ons. You'll want a max unit (or two) and you'll want add-ons, usually, unless you really need the points. Not every list requires McThralls to soak up attacks, though, and beware of area of effect, as it'll kill steampunk zombies faster than you can stitch them back together.
  • Brute Thralls: They're an extra layer of protection, and a means for your group of Rock'Em Sock'Em ghouls to put dings in warjacks. They effectively won't benefit from your Necrosurgeons, but they can still be blown into corpse token fodder.
• Necrosurgeon: Mandatory for Mechanithrall spammers. She can't add Grunts to a unit that's been completely blown to bits, which leaves her with a so-so melee weapon and Surgery, so she'll be running behind the warcaster or some other critical undead/living model to grant a little healing. Some players pair her with eSkarre to counteract her cutting herself for Blood Trade and Life Trader.
  • Stitch Thralls: Part of Necrosurgeon's unit. Placement is absolutely crucial. Don't ever sacrifice them in place of a Mechanithrall if you have a Mechanithrall. We're Cryx players. We're here to use every seemingly dirty, underhanded spell and ability to the uttermost. That is how we win. We don't win by making it harder for us to gather nourishing corpse tokens.
• Revenant Crew of the Atramentous: Coming soon.
• Revenant Cannon Crew: Coming soon.
• Satyxis Blood Witches: Coming soon.
  • Satyxis Blood Hag: Coming soon.
• Satyxis Raiders: Coming soon.
  • Satyxis Raider Sea Witch: Coming soon.
• Soulhunters: Coming soon.

Character Units

• Withershadow Combine: Coming soon.
• Blackbane's Ghost Raiders: Coming soon.

Solos

• Bloat Thrall: No. The undead version of yo' mama is slow, so running doesn't count as much (Bile Thralls leave him in the dust). His RAT is abyssmal, so he'll probably deviate IF he gets a shot off. His best attack requires him to die, so if you support or have someone tank for him, there's a chance he'll melt your guys. In fact, why did I even type this much about a bad unit? What am I doing with my life?
• Machine Wraith: It's only one point, and you can have three. If you're mindful of Magic Weapons and enemy ranks, the potential for hilarity is high.
• Necrotech: Repairs your warjacks... Assuming his fat ass can keep up with them. He stands a chance of getting blown up by his own scrap thralls. He's kind of a fifth wheel, as a lot of Cryx warjacks are pretty disposable and too quick for him to remain B2B. pGaspy's theme force allows for a slight discount on Slayer and Corruptor helljacks if you bring them along, which makes you wonder what kind of juicy blackmail they have on the guy.
  • Scrap Thralls: Like Bile Thralls, they explode and have no Stealth or the like for protection. Unlike Bile Thralls, a mean look can cause them to explode in a chain reaction if you don't space them out. Like most Cryx infantry, you're effectively spamming them, going for a max unit, or not using them.
• Pistol Wraith: He has a decent range, and can shoot in melee due to Gunfighter. Pick off warrior models and stragglers for souls to make him a little more annoying during his next activation, or just to thin out an enemy unit prior to charging with one of yours. He's not situational, but you can grief your opponent by robbing his big, hardy, and pricey Colossal or Gargantuan of an attack/action or movement for a turn. However you use him, you'll want to capitalize on any holes he makes in the enemy's armor, otherwise he's points you can spare on other figures.
• Satyxis Raider Captain: Coming soon.
• Skarlock Thrall: It's an extra spell per turn for you. It's cheap in both points and money. Cryx 'casters sometimes even have their own built-in Skarlock, which means it couldn't be more clearer that you'll want this (short of Matt Wilson knocking on your door, throwing one at your head when you open it, spitting on your porch for wasting his time, then flipping you off and riding on Coleman Stryker's back off into the sky).
• Warwitch Siren: Your very own mini-pDenny. Seduction is probably the only iffy power that she has, which is only a gimped Influence. Don't let Shadow Bind fool you; she's very much a support fighter.

Character Solos

• Captain Rengrave: Coming soon.
• Bane Lord Tartarus: Oh, are they cross because of the Bane Thrall sandwich you've force fed them? It's because you added some Tartersauce, boy-o! You can Curse a unit or model to increase your charge distance and also inflict a de-buff (with Dark Shroud, that means they're suffering -2 ARM and -2 DEF). BLT will add to your Thralls with each weakened, living model he mows down, or more accurately, reaps with Thresher. You can actually end up with more Banes than you fielded, so you may want to bring extra. It's a shame that you can't get souls from this. Remember that he's not a Necrosurgeon and your Banes aren't McThralls, though, or your overall strategy could suffer. He can also catch a bullet, bomb, or boosted spell before he enters the fray, which would be a Bad Thing.
• General Gerlack Slaughterborn: If he's taken with the right caster, he can eliminate entire units by himself, all in one turn. A bit on the slow side, bloodlust, high armor, 8 boxes and tough means that he'll usually get there anyway. Excellent second line unit. Also, if you like Bloodgorgers, he makes them better.
• Darragh Wrathe: In the earlier part of the game, he can move your undead units 1 inch, giving them just that little bit of extra speed they need to get there. As you get stuck in, he effectively provided + 2 ARM to much of your army. And in the late game, he's a reasonably accurate and powerful murderer who can cast spells for free when he kills something.