Introduction
The Wight King is always one of the first things to go in my Death lists. It is modestly priced at 120pts (2018), is resilient and synergises well with other deathrattle units.
In-Game Guide
The flat 3+ to save is the first thing to take in. Ok? Good. Now, stick him on terrain. Yes? 2+. Alright then. If you take Legion Of Night that’s going to be 1+ in your own soil or on a balewind in Legion Of Sacrament- but we’ll come to that in a moment.
So we accept he’s resilient, what else? Well, with his free mount he becomes movement 12, if you take the Deathmarch that becomes 16 and if you want more, make him your general and take an allegiance ability.
Did I mention that he can add an attack to a deathrattle unit? He can.
The downside? He is no beatstick . He’ll never set the world on fire offensively but that’s not his role.
Units That Synergise With It
1. Black Knights. They can keep up with him when mounted and offer one of the fastest options in the army for getting where you need to be to snatch an objective or deliver an attack.
Artefacts
options, options.
1. I like to equip mine with the smouldering helm. With the 1+ builds above, this will save on a 2+ even against rend 1 and will deal scary amounts of mortal wounds when attacked as the helm will activate on a 4+.
2. Crown of the Betrayer. You can engage your enemy’s prized horde unit with this mobile character fairly easily and delete a third of the models with this artefact. I like to use the command ability on the accompanying Black Knights and use my necromancer to put Vanhel’s on them and use them as an alpha strike force (even 5 Knights buffed this way will do significant damage on the charge.
Spells
this is an option in Legion Of Sacrament and it can be fun to have a resilient caster on an objective making use of the realm spells. Plus, you have access to both strands of Death spells so choose vile transference or soul harvest to make him even more survivable.
Battalions
Works best in the Death March formation as it improves mobility and he synergises well with the rest of the battalion.
Scenery
Always try to get the bonus to save from scenery – especially if your opponent has rend.
How to Use the Unit in Game
For me, the Wight king shines in duality of death or 3 places of power. This is due to his durability. I look at the battlefield and if an objective is on terrain, this fellow is your man. Send him over with a deathrattle retinue and he’ll infuriate your opponent as they invariably undercommit to dealing with him. Make the force small and move a larger portion of your army (maybe everything else) to the other objective so your opponent commits there.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
•durable, mobile, lots of options with command traits
cons:
• low damage output, low wound count, vulnerable to mortal wounds
Hobby Notes
I use a converted Leitpold the Black. Always take a mount!
Brilliant. Thanks for this, I really like the idea of an army around this unit