Dogs of War

While I was a member of Heresy Online, I started the developed of a "Feral Dragon", as a rare unit for the Kislev Army Book. Would you be interested in it?

Here's the skinny -

FERAL DRAGON
There are those in the less harsh and unforgiving lands, who believe that there are no such things as Wild Dragons - and that the Emperor Karl Franz is the last Dragon Master of the Olde World. While Deathclaw, his Gryphon, is the most well known steed, the Imperial Dragon is the only such creature that many in the Empire have seen, or will ever see.

However, in the more extreme, and dangerous lands of the outer borders of the Empire, in the Worlds Edge Mountains, the Forest of Loren, and the Grey Mountains, not to mention the Troll Country north of the River Lynsk itself, Dragons are, if not abundant, present. They are hard to find, and that is a good thing. An Ice Dragon, from the frozen tundra of Troll Country, is capable of smashing apart an entire Stanitsa, and even the famed Winged Lancers are hard put to drive them off.

The first thing that anyone knows of the presence of an Ice Dragon, is the air turning frigid, icy wind whipping down, cutting through armour and clothes, freezing the dragon's prey to bone, for it likes to eat it's food raw, and uncooked. Snow falls, from a previously clear sky, now covered by big black clouds. Then, the world explodes, as the dragon drops into the midst of it's lethargic foes, and rips them to shreds.

Occasionally, the Kislevite pulk is lucky enough to have one tag along, should the dragon itself deem the intent important enough to join it. However, there is no bargaining with a Feral Dragon - don't make the mistake of thinking them intelligent, like the mythological Elven firedrakes, they are little more than cunning predators, who will make the best of any occasion. They cannot be controlled, and unlike the Imperial Dragon of Altdorf, is impossible to ride, even if trained from birth.

It is thought that the Old Ones created these Dragons as guardians against the Daemons before they left this existence. They are described as being as large as a Mansion, with wide bat-like wings. Their legs are reptilian, and their short snouted horn ridged noses are always stained red, green, or black, depending on the types of enemies they usually face. However, the rest of their bodies range from a pure white, to a mottled grey, the better to hide in the barren, snow swept wilds of the North.

Points - 250
M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld
6 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10

Unit Size = 1

Weapons and Equipment = Claws and Teeth (Counts as a Single Hand Weapon), and Frost Aura

Special Rules-
Unbreakable, Large Target, Cause Terror, Fly, Scaly Skin, 3+

Feral
An Ice Dragon is a pure force of nature, forged by the magic of the land, rather than that of Chaos. It is violent, and uncontrollable, and forever hungers for prey, orders are beyond its animalistic brain's capacity to comprehend, and will go tearing off after the enemy.

• An Ice Dragon must always move towards the nearest enemy unit in Line of Sight. It must always move the maximum distance possible (usually by Flying). If it is able to charge an enemy unit, it may do so. If there is more than one potential target, then you may choose which unit to charge.
  

Frost Aura
Whenever a Feral Dragon is preparing to make an attack, it is said that air goes cold, freezing the air in the lungs and sticking skin to metal. No-one is safe, and entire regiments can be ripped asunder by a single Feral Dragon charge.

• Any enemy unit in base contact with the Feral Dragon at the start of the Kislevite Combat Phase must take a number of Toughness tests equal to half the unit strength of the unit, rounding up.
• The target unit takes a wound with No armour saves or Regeneration allowed (although Ward Saves may be taken as normal) for every failed test.
• In the case of units with Multiple Toughnesses (for example a Character in a unit, or a Character riding a Monstrous Mount/Chariot), resolve the Toughness tests as if they were seperate units.
• Eg; An 3 Ogre Bulls (T4) are lead by a Tyrant (T5). The Unit Strength of the Unit is 9, and the Tyrant is US3. The Tyrant must take 2 Toughness Tests, and the Ogre Bulls must take 5 Toughness Tests.
  

Freezerburn
A Feral Dragons attacks embody the landscape like no other creature, save perhaps the great Bears of Ursun of Kislev, in so far that even the attacks of the beast can burn, it is so cold.

• A Feral Dragons attacks are Magical (including those from the Frost Aura). For the purposes of Regeneration, the attacks are Flaming.

[/i]

Fire-Fear
A creature formed from the magic of the land of Kislev, it is an innately cold being. Fire is it's natural enemy.

• Flaming Attacks against the Feral Dragon may re-roll failed to wound rolls.

[/b]

Looks cool, but I decided right from the start that Kislev wouldn't include any dragons. There are just so many armies that have them already, so I would like to keep from that. I did however consider it for a special character, so if you feel like it, you could write one up. With good enough fluff I am easily persuaded

I remember seeing this, actually. My advice would be to remodel it after the Slavic dragons and give it three, seven, or nine heads. I think you're going for the more savage Azdaja with this. You might want to replace the Slavic dragon's fire-breathing with some kind of icy breath if you're looking to maintain the ice theme.
I'd also give it a 0-1 restriction. Putting multiple feral dragons in an army just strikes me as being bad juju.

Exactly, that why I figured it could make a good special character, I wouldn't want to see all armies run around with generic dragons as rare, just doesn't fit. I'd still only go with one head though, to make modelling easier for people and to separate them from chaos dragons/hydra.

Eh, I figure the wings and butt-load of heads differentiated it enough. Ral Partha has a nine-headed miniature (no wings or legs, but wings can be modeled on as can the legs), while Reaper has a couple of six-headed hydras that can have wings added on. I haven't found any with three or seven heads, though.

Okay on the difference part, lets go with the modelling aspect then

The only dragons in warhammer with more than one head are the chaos dragons, and the frost dragons aren't chaos dragons, right?

Yeah, I was just presenting the information, so you're free to do whatever you want with it, as long as the flavour isn't lost.

And tbh, the description was designed in mind to represent a lesser breed of Dragon, not all Dragon's are Indraugnir in disguise, so thought that might be a nice to add in something like that.

By flavour, I mean purely that the Frost Aura is kept (rather than a breath attack), and it's Freezerburn ability. Those really set it apart from anything else - it's a cross between a Nurgle Gorger with Wings, haha.

If I would use the rules, that part would definitely stay, that's what I like about the dragon.

But by reading the fluff I have a difficult time comprehending why a frost dragon would ever join the Kislev army, since as it says, it is nothing more than a cunning predator. Rules are cool and whatnot, but it might be hard to find it a place in the book.

Frostfiend, then?

A Frostfiend as a rare choice? Well, I already put it in as a legacy, so that would be kinda of repetitive. It's basically just a bigger version of the Hawks of Miska anyway.

A unique character, fluffed as a ice witch who's permanently gone over long ago. Perhaps even Miskha herself, come back as a daemon/spirit thing.

As a special character you mean? The idea sounds kinda interesting, if unorthodox.

Yes, that's what I meant. 'Sides, unorthodox is fun.

Maybe, I'll think about it. I won't get around to do more special characters for Kislev just yet, I want to focus on Cathay atm. I work on Araby and Kislev more for balancing purposes right now, and Cathay as doing actual writing.

But if you are interested in helping out, you are more than welcome. Although that means I soon have to put you as a co-writer

(04-03-2010 06:53 PM)M4cR1II3n Wrote: [ -> ]Maybe, I'll think about it. I won't get around to do more special characters for Kislev just yet, I want to focus on Cathay atm. I work on Araby and Kislev more for balancing purposes right now, and Cathay as doing actual writing.

But if you are interested in helping out, you are more than welcome. Although that means I soon have to put you as a co-writer

Good to hear, 'cause I've already got three or four that I'm banging away on. Homebrewing is my specialty - I once rewrote 3rd ED D&D's d20 system almost entirely simply for something to do.

Kinda like me then

Lots of spare time + crappy gaming computer = lots of writing

I have a few characters in mind if you want to take a crack at it:
- Baba Yaga, Crone of the Forest
- Stephan Raisin, Warden of Praag
(these two were made by a guy who was interested in working on the kislev list with me at first, but I never heard back from him later)
- Some sort of Ranger/Hunter (could throw in the whole sibyrian comrade there, but allowing any infantry unit to enter, just hunters means you get a no-good close combat unit that misses a lot of turns of shooting).
- Thoromir, Captain of the Gryphon Legion

M4c do you have a thread/WIP for Cathay? Spent a lot of my teens playing Dynasty Warriors and read the Three Kingdom's quite a lot.

As to why the Dragon, whatever it is now would join the Kislevite army, merely just defending it's territory, as the people of Kislev fight against the Chaos Invader?

Perhaps like the Wood Elves never leave Athel Loren, so get to place a free wood on the battlefield, perhaps placing a free hill/snow drift as the "Dragon's" lair, with the Dragon having to start either on the Drift, or comng on from reserve from there?

I'll start a Cathay thread tomorrow

Having it come as a reserve would make more sense, rather than fielding it in the ranks of the Kislev army. However, in that case it would likely attack anything that comes near it, not just the enemies of Kislev. It would be even weirder if you are fighting in the empire or similar, with a frost dragon cave in the middle of the green landscape. So while the rules are cool, I have trouble seeing it implemented in a good way in the list.

(04-05-2010 10:11 AM)Vaz Wrote: [ -> ]M4c do you have a thread/WIP for Cathay? Spent a lot of my teens playing Dynasty Warriors and read the Three Kingdom's quite a lot.

As to why the Dragon, whatever it is now would join the Kislevite army, merely just defending it's territory, as the people of Kislev fight against the Chaos Invader?

Perhaps like the Wood Elves never leave Athel Loren, so get to place a free wood on the battlefield, perhaps placing a free hill/snow drift as the "Dragon's" lair, with the Dragon having to start either on the Drift, or comng on from reserve from there?

Actually, that does give me some nifty ideas. This creature just begs to have scenarios set around it... Hm.

I looked at what you have for the Cathayans so far. You're my hero, M4c.