Wood Elven Shadow-Hunters

Wood Elven Shadow-Hunters

v. 1.1

Wood Elves originate from the forest of Athel Loren. Typically isolationists, they are ruled by the demi-gods Orion and Ariel, the King and Queen of the Woods. Ariel has great sorcerous power and wisdom beyond mortal ken. With the falling of the comet known among men as the Hammer of Sigmar, she felt the approach of a great and evil power; a fallen Chaos lord cast out of the dark Realms by the other Gods whom it had tried and failed to destroy. Known to man as Malal, this evil power was now incarnate on the physical plane and not subject to the instability that keeps other powers of Chaos somewhat in check. Ariel saw in her wisdom that the coming of the Lord of Shadows to the Old World would be a harbinger of dark times and the beginning of a blight upon the land. It was clear to her that Malal must be destroyed early or he would grow in power and spread his poison across the lands. By the time the Shadowlord turned his eye to Athel Loren he would be too powerful to stop. Therefore a call went out and the bravest Wood Elves of the glades of Athel Loren volunteered to make the dangerous journey across the lands of the men of the Empire and search out the evil that is Malal and destroy it.

Starting Funds

The warband starts with 500 gc to spend as it wishes following unit numbers and weapons restrictions.

Choice of Warriors

A Wood Elven Warband must include a minimum of 3 models, and can have a maximum of 12 models including 5 Heroes and 1 leader. A starting warband must be lead by a Warleader, but should he be killed they may not acquire another; one of the warriors of the band will step forth to become the Leader.

Becoming the Leader

A warrior that steps up to become the Leader upon the death of the existing one gains the 'Leader' special ability, but otherwise stays the same.

Wood Elven Maximum Profile

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
5	7	7	4	4	3	9	4	10

Wood Elven Special Abilities

Move thru woods	Wood Elves do not treat wooded areas as difficult terrain.
Wood Elf Archery	When using normal Longbows, all Wood Elves benefit from an extra 6" of range and an additional -1 Armour save. Therefore a standard Longbow has a 36" range and a -1 armor save vs normal armor.

Recruitment

Wood Elves are fewer in number than most of the other groups staking their claims in Mordheim. To represent this, it is harder for them to recruit replacements than other warbands. When a Wood Elven warband wishes to employ new members, the gold coin cost is paid for all reinforcements is paid, but the warriors don't show up immediately; the new recruits must make the journey from Athel Loren to Mordheim. Therefore the entire group of reinforcements will arrive after 1d3 games have passed.

Hirelings and Dramatis Personnae

The following standard hirelings will work for the Wood Elvens: the Elf Ranger, the Halfling Scout, and the Freelancer. Of the Dramatis Personnae listed in the Mordheim rulebook, Aenur will work for a Wood Elven band. Player created and future supplemental Personnae and Hired Swords will have to be adjudicated on a case by case basis as appropriate to their background. In general all non-evil/chaotic people can work with Wood Elves unless they are dedicated to a specific cause or group (like Bertha Bestraufrung). The exception is new Dwarven hirelings, who will work with the Elves but will always charge double their normal fee as they still bear a grudge against the Elves from the War of the Beard.

Heroes

Wood Elven Warleader	1
Wood Elven Mage	0-1
Wood Elven Waywatcher	0-1
Wood Elven Wardancer	0-1
Wood Elven Scout Apprentice	0-2

Henchmen

Wood Elven Archers	0-5
Wood Elven Glade Gaurds	0-5
Dryad	0-1

Equipment

Wood Elven Warbands Equipment List
Hand to Hand weapons
Dagger (first free)	2
Mace	3
Axe	5
Sword	10
Spear	10
Thrown Weapons
Javelins	10
Missile Weapons
Long Bow	15
Armor (Heros Only)
Shield	5
Helmet	10
Light Armor	20
Elf Cloak	50

The Wood Elven warriors are very specialized in their armaments. See each warriors entry for available equipment options.

Special Equipment Description

Javelin	Range: Users Strength x3; Damage: Users Strength +1

Starting Experience

Experience and Skills
Hero	Skill Categories	Starting XP
Warleader	Combat, Shooting,, Speed, Wood Elf Skills	20
Mage	Academic, Speed, Wood Elf Skills	12
Wardancer	Speed, Combat, Wardancer, Wood Elf Skills	12
Waywatcher	Shooting, Speed, Wood Elf Skills	12
Scout Apprentice	Shooting, Wood Elf Skills	8

Special Skills

Wood Elven Skill Category
Glade Runner	The warrior may run even if an enemy model is within 8" at the beginning of his turn
One with the Target	The warrior has trained himself to enter a trance like state when firing a bow. If he does not move in the movement phase he may automatically hit one target within range with a single shot.
Fast Knock	The warrior is able to draw and fire a bow rapidly. If he does not move in the movement phase he may rapidly fire many shots. The first shot is at -1 in addition to all normal shooting penalties and each additional shot is at an additional cumulative -1 (ie the second shot is -2, the third is -3, the fourth is -4, etc). The Elf may continue to shoot his bow until he misses. NOT combinable with Quickshot.
Fey	The Elf is unaffected by hostile magic spells on a roll of 4+.
Elven Luck	The Elf can re-roll one of his dice rolls once per game.
Elven Eyes	Doubles Initiative value for spotting Hidden models.
Wood Elven Wardancer Skill Category
Whirling Death	The Wardancer may add +1 Attack. This may take him over profile maximum.
Woven Mist	The Wardancer spins in such an intimidating manner that enemy models must pass a Leadership check or will only hit the Wardancer on a 6 in HtH.
The Shadows Coil	The Wardancer forgoes all of his attacks to nullify the attacks of a single opponent in base to base contact for that HtH phase.
Storm of Blades	The Wardancer may re-roll failed rolls to wound in HtH combat.

Spells

Wood Elf Magic Spells
1. Lesser Curse of Anraheir	The wizard curse a single enemy model. If successfully cast the target may only hit opponents on a roll of a 6 with either ranged or HtH attacks. Lasts until the casters next Recovery. Difficulty: 8, Range 24".
2. The Writhing Worm	The target must roll less than or equal to their Strength or be cocooned in magic and count as Knocked Down. In each of their own recovery phases the target may attempt to roll under or equal to their S on a d6 to break free, following all the rules regarding a model that recovers from being Knocked Down. Difficulty: 8, Range: 24”.
3. Hunting Spear	The wizard hurls a mystical spear at any enemy model within LOS not fighting in HtH, rolling to hit using his BS. Any model struck by the spell suffers a single S6 hit that causes d3 Wounds. Normal Armor saves do not apply. Difficulty: 9, Range: 24"
4. Peace	If cast on a friendly model, the model automatically rallies. If cast upon an enemy model, the model must make a Leadership check to attack any models in the casters warband in any way. Lasts until the casters next Recovery phase. Difficulty 7, Range: 24”.
5. The Green Eye	The wizard projects a bolt of mystic green energy 18" long and 1" wide that ignores terrain and obstructions. Any model whose base is even partially under this line must roll under their Initiative or suffer d3 S4 hits. Difficulty: 9, Range: 18"
6. Lesser Flesh of Stone	The wizard assumes the aspect of Stone, doubling his Toughness and gaining an unmodified save of 4+ vs any attack, but halves his Movement rounded up, and only rolls 1d6 for distance should he break while the spell is active. The spell remains in effect, but the wizard must make a Ld test every Recovery Phase to prevent it from fizzling out. Difficulty: 9, Range: Self only.

Heroes

Type				Number				Cost
Warleader				1				115
The Warleader is an experienced Wood Elven hero, and is often several hundreds of years old.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	5	5	4	3	1	7	1	9	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: the Warleader may be equipped as desired from the Wood Elven Equipment List.
Special Ability: Leader: Other warriors of the warband within 6" may use the Warleaders Leadership value in lieu of their own.

Type				Number				Cost
Mage				0-1				95
The Mage is a young practitioner hoping to earn the favor of Ariel by carrying out her will.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	4	4	3	4	1	7	1	8	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: the Mage may be equipped as desired from the Wood Elven Warbands Equipment List. However, the Mage is a spellcaster and must abide by the rules regarding spellcasters wearing armor.
Special Ability: Spellcaster. The Elven Mage is a spellcaster and starts with one spell chosen randomly from the Wood Elven Magic Spell List (above). He may choose to randomly generate a new spell from the list in lieu of a skill raise as he gains in experience.

Type				Number				Cost
Wardancer				0-1				135
Wardancers are perhaps the greatest and are certainly the most unusual of the Wood Elven warriors, possessing incredible acrobatic abilities and a strange fighting style designed to resemble a dance.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	5	5	3	3	1	6	1	8	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: may choose from the HtH section of the Wood Elf Equipment list.
Special Ability: Leap: Wardancers start with the Speed Skill 'Leap'
Special Ability: Immune to Psychology: Wardancers are Immune to Psychology
Special Ability: Agile: Wardancers have a special 6+ Unmodifiable save vs any physical attack
Special Ability: Talismanic War Paint: Wardancers have a special 4+ Unmodifiable save vs magic attacks
Special Ability: Special Skills: Wardancers may choose from the Wardancer skill list instead of other skill lists when they get a skill raise.

Type				Number				Cost
Waywatcher				0-1				115
The Waywatcher is an experienced Elven warrior of great skill and acumen. Incredibly stealthy and with senses honed to a razors sharpness he provides a formidable presence to any Wood Elf band.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	5	5	3	3	1	6	1	8	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: the Waywatcher may be equipped as desired from the Wood Elven Equipment List.
Special Ability: Elven Eyes: Doubles Initiative value for spotting Hidden models.
Special Ability: Infiltrate. The Waywatcher may be placed anywhere on the board outside of the enemies detection range after all other models have been set up.
Special Ability: Loner. The Waywatcher is Immune to All Alone tests.

Type				Number				Cost
Scout Apprentice				0-2				80
Elven Scouts represent the consummate balanced warrior, equally skilled at hand to hand and ranged attack. They are keen of eye and sure of hand, making them able additions to any band in any environment. With some seasoning the young Scout Apprentice will be ready to take his place among the guardians of the glades.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	4	4	3	3	1	6	1	8	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: the Scout Apprentice may be equipped as desired from the Wood Elven Equipment List.
Special Ability: Elven Eyes: Doubles Initiative value for spotting Hidden models.

Henchmen

Type				Number				Cost
Elven Archers				0-5				75
Trained from childhood and practically immortal, Elven warriors become quite skilled in all aspects of warfare, but are particularly renowned for the accuracy of their archers.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	4	4	3	3	1	6	1	8	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: May be equipped from the Wood Elven Equipment List HtH and Missile sections.

Type				Number				Cost
Elven Glade Guards				0-5				70
Trained from childhood and practically immortal, Elven warriors become quite skilled. the Glade Guards form a line of spears to stop any who would seek to strike down their bow-wielding brethren.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	4	4	3	3	1	6	1	8	As Armor
Weapons and Armor: May be equipped from the Wood Elven Equipment List HtH, Throwing, and Armor sections.

Type				Number				Cost
Dryad				0-1				150
Creatures of the forests, the Dryads are dangerous foes when angered. They fight with their Elven allies to prevent harm coming to their lands. Some few were moved to assist the Shadow-Hunters in their task. Dryads shape shift to take on the aspects of various trees as they fight, gaining additional benefits as needed.
M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD	SAVE
5	4	3	4	4	2	4	2	8	5+U
Weapons and Armor: None
Special Ability: Tree Forms: The Dryad may shift into various tree forms when fighting in HtH. The Dryad may only be in one form at a time. The Dryad stays in a given form until the begining of a HtH phase in which it shifts into another form. The Dryad must be in HtH to shift form, but may shift when charging.
Special Ability: Oak Form: +1 S and +1 T while in this form.
Special Ability: Birch Form: +1 A while in this form.
Special Ability: Willow Form: All enemies in BtB lose 1 Attack down to 0 while the Dryad is in this form.
Special Ability: Supernatural Animation: The Dryad is Immune to Poison, cannot be Stunned, and has a special 5+ Save vs all attacks.
Limitation: Wood Spirit: The Dryad does not learn as a truly living creature would; she gains no experience
Limitation: Large: The Dryad counts as a Large creature
Limitation: Warband Rating: The Dryad adds +20 to the warbands rating

Playing a Wood Elven warband

A Wood Elven Warbands band has several obvious advantages, but these are balanced by a couple of significant disadvantages. The Elven warriors are all supremely talented and their profile max is the best of all the mortal races. However all the available units are correspondingly extremely expensive. Furthermore, the list of usable equipment is very small. In addition the band will have a very difficult time recruiting new members and replacements and will almost always be outnumbered. Finally, they have a very power spell list, but its power is offset by very high difficulties.

Ultimately, the forces greatest strength is that it has very powerful characters, excellent Henchmen, and a very good selection of skills for its Heroes and promoted Archers. The force definitely favors a shooty warband, but the Wardancer, Glade Guards, and Dryad are pretty tough in HtH as well. In all a very tight and exciting band to play, as every man counts and any errors might be the last.

Forward any comments to: killershrike@home.com

Updated April 6, 2000
Updated April 13, 2000
Updated April 24, 2000