Hello there! Today is the one-year anniversary of my first blog post, so I wanted to commemorate that with a special article! So here are the Top 5 warbands one can use to play a Stagger and Forget playstyle!
First of all, I would like to thank you for reading my articles this past year! I hope to deliver even more articles with better quality than before this year, so I hope to see you again during 2024!
5TH PLACE
5th place is given to the bane of Wyrdhollow, prime candidate for Forces of Frost, Domitan’s Stormcoven!
Yes, Domitan made it into yet another top spot. Other warbands that clashed for this spot for their stagger ability include Skabbik’s Plaguepack (for their Befouler keyword) as well as The Headsmen’s Curse (for their Condemn mechanic usually involving Stagger as well), but these guys take the cake.
Domitan’s Stormcoven ability to Stagger comes mainly from Domitan’s ability: Aethershock. While it can only be used once per round, it can give out a bunch of Stagger tokens at the same time, potentially setting up lethal charges from Leona and Sarpon (not that they are inaccurate themselves).
Power-card wise, the Stormcoven does not disappoint, but isn’t too impressive either. Howling Gales is a card found commonly in their decks, Blades of Azyr helps hand out those wonderful tokens as well. Their combined power card and ability output of Stagger tokens is what let them overtake The Headsmen and Plaguepack.
Keeping the Stormcoven from a higher spot is their lack of Stagger-related objectives as well as them not really benefiting from Stagger too much. Their accuracy is already great, so a re-roll is welcome but not required for them.
4TH PLACE
4th place has got to go to The Farstriders. Previously they stood no chance, but with their rework, these pistol-wielding Stormcasts will be re-rolling the whole day!
These guys are here mainly for the amount of Stagger they can pump out, as well as their ability to benefit from it.
All 3 of them can Stagger when inspired and uninspired to! Uninspired, they benefit from it a lot due it being on their Range 3 attacks. This is crucial as the average Round 1 will need you to inspire: and they inspire via making 2 different attacks. The stagger being on a Range 3 is vital as it lets you shoot, potentially Stagger an enemy, and follow up with a more accurate melee attack.
Power-card wise, they aren’t really impressive Staggerers. Only Crackling Blade lets them Stagger and even that is a power card. Still, their attacks alone let them enter the Top 5 of Staggerers.
Keeping these guys from advancing forward on this list is like the Stormcoven, lack of objectives and relative carelessness toward Stagger. It isn’t required for their warband to function but is much more welcome than for the Stormcoven.
3RD PLACE
3rd place will be taken by the Hammertide-spamming, Phase Ink-ing, sense deprivers, Cyreni’s Razors!
A massive jump in Stagger output and benefit from the previous spot, Cyreni and her squad are here for a reason.
First of all, Hammertide. This ability alone lets you Stagger enemies from any range for just an action. Second, these guys have Cephanyr and his Phase Ink. Chances are the squid will be attacked, and when he does, he hands out a Stagger token in turn. Both of these abilities can and will be used multiple times a round.
Looking at power cards these guys are great Staggerers. Spiteful Riptide is a very reliable method of Staggering, Channeled Torment gives Phase Ink to everyone, and Defensive Swarm makes Cyreni even more ping-crazy. All 3 of these cards aren’t too popular but do see play, something that can’t be said for other Stagger cards.
The first warband on this list to actually have Stagger related objectives, Cyreni’s Razors bring Sensory Deprivation, a killer 2 glory surge, as well as Mind Erosion, a super-reliable end phase card. Both of these are one of the most popular cards in a Razors deck.
Benefits wise, these guys do benefit. While Stagger isn’t required for them to hit attacks, it’s a welcome accuracy buff, especially uninspired. Overall, uninspired they welcome Stagger more than Inspired. Cyreni herself likes it a lot, as it can prevent backlashing on her spell attack.
2ND PLACE
2nd place has got to go to these electric zombies, Overloading their enemies before tearing them apart. The Exiled Dead deserve this spot for sure!
While their Stagger output is arguably lower than Cyreni, it’s still a lot. And Overload alone is enough to justify this spot.
The only Staggerer in this warband is actually Deintalos himself. He’s got Stagger on all his attacks, and his Range 3 attack starts on Channels (lightnings) when uninspired, making it an accurate attack as well. Inspired, he also gets the Stave Dynamic and can bonk people with his 3 Hammers to Stagger them as well.
Looking to power cards, we’ve got Necrotic Curse, a decent stagger-ping, Dynamic Bolt, a slight downgrade in accuracy from Deintalos’ normal attack but still fine, and one of the best Stagger upgrades in the game: Prison of Grief. This lets you stagger almost any enemy after their activation! Both Marcov (50% cast chance) and Deintalos (75%) can wield it, letting them dish out some serious Stagger.
Unfortunately, the Exiled Dead don’t have any Stagger objectives (unless you count Direct Strike, which technically can be achieved without Stagger).
Deintalos’ Arcwalkers are were the true Stagger power in this warband lies. Inspired, they all have the Overload ability, granting them +1 Damage if the target is staggered. This increases your potential damage output per activation from 6 (all inspired) to 10 with Overload! This is massive. Additionally, most warbands can only make use of Stagger once per activation. These guys make potentially 5x the use of one Stagger token, due to their inaccurate but large quantity of attacks. When facing these guys, my only advice to you is to try not to get yourself Staggered: you’ll regret it.
1ST PLACE
Since I know how popular of a playstyle Staggering enemies is, I know you’ve all been waiting for the best warband for this playstyle. The original mass-stagger, the first warband who can play a fully Stagger and Forget playstyle, the ninja rats from Skittershank’s Clawpack take first place!
There is no out-Staggering the Clawpack. With a mix of good abilities, great power cards, and one Stagger attack, be sure to bring your Stagger tokens when playing against them!
First of all, abilities. They have 1. Smoke Bombs from Padpaw will be one your biggest Staggering methods. An AOE explosion of Stagger happening after Padpaw gets activated, you can charge him into a big pack of enemies and Stagger all at once or Stagger the enemy’s leader for a more guaranteed kill. The one Stagger attack this warband has comes for Inspired Skulk. Which could be better, let’s put it that way.
Power cards are where this warband’s Stagger ability (without sacrificing Padpaw) lies. Poisoned Traps immediately comes to mind, letting you stagger an enemy after their move for an entire round. Spitting Cobra Technique is a long range Stun and can rarely ping an enemy as well. Sweep the Leg is Stun before Stun was an action. Some decent power cards, one of which is a long duration one and 2 of which are no-dice-involved Staggers.
The most Stagger-heavy objectives in the game belong to the Clawpack. Dazed and Confused is always nice, a 2 glory end phase for Staggering more than half the opponent’s warband. Rattled is a decent card, fairly reliable but forces you to keep your opponent alive. Still, scorable with a simple move from Padpaw. Finally, Daggers in the Dark is a cool kill surge, scored after killing a Staggered enemy. Staggering an enemy makes you more accurate, so for a Stagger and Forget playstyle this is easy.
The benefit this warband reaps from Stagger doesn’t lie only in accuracy. Still, their tendency to kill enemy leaders makes Stagger worthwhile for the accuracy boost. Additionally, they have got some power cards that benefit from Stagger. Closing for the Kill is an obvious example, turning into a 2 hex push when you Stagger an enemy. Merciless is like Overload from the Exiled Dead, and +1 damage is always nice!
In the unlikely event you couldn’t find a warband to play your favorite playstyle of Staggering, I hope this helped 🙂
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this article. In this year I hope to deliver more articles with higher quality, so I hope to see you again soon! Once again, thank you for joining me this year!
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