Empire Army List

[Meow_Mix]

Well, after a couple hours of "Theoryhammer" on Army Roster I've come up with a 2000 pt. Empire List. As I have never played a game of Fantasy and have only a basic understanding of the rules I was wondering if I could get some critique on how well this might do in real gameplay and whether or not I'm on the right track to effectively commanding this army or if I'm doing it horribly, horribly wrong. Anyway, here it is:
Heroes:
Wizard w/ level up and rod of power, stick him in with handgunners or Pistoliers (of course I'd get a horse first) for fire support. -130 pts.

Wizard w/ level up, wizard's staff and dispel scroll, stick him in with troops or gunners for basically the same thing. -135 pts.

Battle Standard Bearer with Banner of Valor, full plate, hand weapon and shield, stuck in with troops or Greatswords for morale boost. -115 pts.

Warrior Priest w/ Van Horstmann's Speculum, Sword of Justice, Heavy armour and shield, stuck in with troops or Greatswords for prayers, morale boost AND character assassination all in one neat little package. -146 pts.

Core:
2 X 24 man swordsmen units w/ banner, music, duellist and 8-man free company detachment for 209 pts. each, line holder units and all around fodder.

3 X 10-man (one 11 man) Handgunner units w/ marksman w/ Hochland Long Rifle (for the love of the headshot), for that delicious firing line feeling. -105/113 pts. each

Special:
2 X Great Cannons for shooting big things. -100 pts. each

1 X 8 man Pistolier team w/ musician for bugging formations. -151 pts.

1 X 14 man Greatsword Unit w/ banner, music and champion for getting to that line, holding it and slicing up as much stuff as possible before they finally die. -170 pts.

Rare (well not really since I have a Warrior Priest but you know what I mean):
1 X 20 man Flagellant Squad w/ Prophet of Doom. -210 pts.

TOTAL: 1998 pts.

My impression from the rules I've read is that morale is this army's biggest weakness and so I've done what I can to shore this weakness up with banners, musicians, prayers, etc. Additionally, I went for the best balance of fighting, shooting and casting I felt it was practical to maintain. Some decisions were made for the army to function well (I've never been crazy about wizards but needed some dispel dice) (speaking of wizards I was thinking of going with the lores of light and shadow for a defensive and offensive mix), but some were made because I wouldn't forgive myself for not doing them, like getting some Greatswords and Flagellants (Big, tough beardy dudes with giant swords and crazed flail-wielding nutjobs who willingly impale themselves just for the rush? Yes, please).
So, that's my first plan. Thoughts? Ideas? Biting, harsh criticism? [sarcasm] Praise for the tactical genius on display [/sarcasm]?

[FriedTaterExplosion]

Not a bad army list, through I think there's some fat that could be trimmed.

First, I think you need another core unit, 3 is minimum? I could be wrong, check your army book.

I find that splitting my hero choices between melee/casters doesn't work that well, it just tends to balance things out. I suggest either going full wizard or full combatant (buffed with anti-magic) Warrior priests are pretty good, especially for their enhancing spells but they stand little chance on their own against chaos warlords or vampires. Don't put him in your units of greatswords, they can handle themselves and should be used primarily as a means of holding down a strong unit so you can flank it with another (works better with flaggelants)

Make sure to select targets and whittle them down before destroying them. Empire doesn't do well on headlong charges without proper preparation. Use fastcavalry to disrupt enemy movement and harass smaller units.

Those are just my two cents

Tony

[Jadin]

I see 5 core units there I believe?

[Meow_Mix]

I see 5 core units there I believe?

Correct, unless you count the Flagellants (having a Warrior Priest lets one unit of them count as Core), then you've got 6.

Warrior priests are pretty good, especially for their enhancing spells but they stand little chance on their own against chaos warlords or vampires. Don't put him in your units of greatswords, they can handle themselves and should be used primarily as a means of holding down a strong unit so you can flank it with another (works better with flaggelants)

I know that other armies are usually tougher, stronger, and all around more buff than the Empire in general, including my Warrior Priest, which is why I gave him Van Horstmann's Speculum. It allows me to swap my A, S, T, WS and I with anyone he's dueling, and the way this would work would be to hopefully stick him with a unit that looks tender AND points-heavy to tempt enemy melee monsters into challenging him and getting the tables turned on them. The Sword of Justice (re-roll failed wounds) is there to help ensure the enemy just doesn't survive the duel.
So yes, he'd probably do better stuck in with the swordsmen and using Unbending Righteousness (prayer grants Immunity to Psychology) (which I chose over other State Troops because they get +1 WS, I, and a shield for 1 pt. more than either Halberdiers or Spearmen which I felt made them a better deal) now that I think about it. The only reason I suggested it was to make a Stubborn unit Immune to Psychology, which is a bit of a waste now that I think about it. Fearlessness for the win.

Make sure to select targets and whittle them down before destroying them. Empire doesn't do well on headlong charges without proper preparation. Use fastcavalry to disrupt enemy movement and harass smaller units.

Yeah the fast cavalry came highly recommended to me by a Fantasy player I know and Outriders, though they pack much more death per point, did not supply the sheer thrill of the ride-by shooting (fast cavalry that can't move and shoot? Boring) I was seeking, and what's the point of winning if it's not as much fun?

I find that splitting my hero choices between melee/casters doesn't work that well, it just tends to balance things out.

As I said, balance was one of the themes for this force. Is there really no good way for the two forces to work with each other? Like that Light spell that lowers enemy WS to 1, making them easier for my soldiers to smack around. Or is this type of coordination just a pipe dream?
Thanks for all the advice so far, if anyone has any more please share it. This has given me a good bit to think on.

[FriedTaterExplosion]

Ops. Yeah, you got five core. My bad.

Having a fun army is what its all about. Through, I usually expect empire generals to have that little swappy-do (I believe that's the technical term) item, so careful with his placement and make absolutely sure you can get him into battle and not flanked (probably good words of wisdom for anyones general)

The thing with wizards is that if you only take two lower levels, you'll find them not really doing anything in the game. Most people have a handful of dispel dice (and scrolls) and can weather most of the game against them. I mean, you can certainly play your cards correctly and maybe get off that right spell at the right time but its hard to do. But most of the time, I find players will gladly allow a unit to eat a magic missile knowing there's another more dangerous spell held in reserve. People can use as many dispel dice as they want, whereas you can only use 3 for a level 2 wizard. Don't rely on double 6's to get a spell through, you need to either drain the enemies dispel dice (killing their wizards not only gains VP but does this as well) or force them to use all those dice before casting that much needed spell. The nice thing about warrior priest is that they have bound spells, right? So, you'll force players to use those dispel dice or face fearless/tougher units. I think.

Then again, you'll find yourself facing balanced and non-balanced armies. Some you'll do well against and some no matter your tactics, you'll be crushed by. Live and learn.