Armies of Renown are a great way to add some extra theming to your Warhammer Age of Sigmar armies and trade a little flexibility for fun and characterful rules. Today, we’re seeing what the Sons of Behemat have to offer.
The new gargant witch Ma Maegran can gather a gaggle of LITTLE* units into the Matriarch’s Mob – a roving entourage of attendants and true believers who hope to prove themselves and earn a blessing from the Chooser of the Mighty. Even those closest to her have no idea how far her powers truly flex, and many far-fetched stories that start with “I Heard She Can…” end up proving shockingly true.
MATRIARCH'S MOB
Once Per Turn (Army), Your Hero Phase
I’VE HEARD SHE CAN…
Ma Maegran's true abilities are shrouded in mystery, but rumours will always exist, and gargants are nothing if not susceptible to a good yarn.
Effect: Pick 1 of the following effects:
...Shoot Fire From Her Eyes!: Inflict D3 mortal damage on each visible enemy unit within 12" of the friendly Ma Maegran.
...Turn You Into a Human!: Pick a visible friendly unit wholly within 12" of the friendly Ma Maegran. Until the start of your next turn, enemy units have a maximum control score of 1 while they are in combat with that unit.
...Make Ya Big and Strong!: Pick another visible friendly unit wholly within 12" of the friendly Ma Maegran. Add 1 to the Attacks characteristic of that unit's weapons for the rest of the turn.
...Whiz the Biggest Bangers!: Add 1 to casting rolls for the friendly Ma Maegran until the start of your next turn.
Many of the battle traits, enhancements, and spells unique to this Army of Renown affect targets within 12” of Ma Maegran, so it works best as a close-knit wrecking ball that rumbles from one objective to the next. The witch is so vital to the game plan that many of her gargants will gladly throw themselves in front of harm, for fear of disappointing the Chooser and catching a curse that saps them of their strength.
MATRIARCH'S MOB
Passive
DON’T LET NUFFIN’ HAPPEN TO HER!
Ma Maegran is a figure of veneration and no small amount of fear among gargantkind. Hoping to be made 'really, really big', most gargants will do everything they can to keep her alive.
Effect: While the friendly Ma Maegran is within the combat range of another friendly LITTLE unit:
She has WARD (5+).
Each time you make a successful ward roll for her, allocate 1 mortal damage to another friendly LITTLE unit within her combat range after the damage sequence for her has been resolved (ward rolls cannot be made for those damage points).
Ignore negative modifiers to hit rolls and wound rolls for that other friendly LITTLE unit's combat attacks.
The next Army of Renown, the Stomper Tribe,** also rewards keeping smaller gargants around a locus of power, though this time one of the towering Warstomper Mega-Gargants. With a name like that you can probably guess what their favourite activity is, and the battle trait Stomp! Stomp! Stomp! Stomp! is a very thematically appropriate way to pile mortal damage into your foes.
STOMPER TRIBE
Once Per Turn (Army), Any Combat Phase
STOMP! STOMP! STOMP! STOMP!
The Stomper Tribe are famous for one thing, and you'll never guess what it is...
Declare: Pick an enemy unit in combat with a friendly STOMPER TRIBE unit to be the target.
Effect: Roll a dice. Add 1 to the roll for each friendly STOMPER TRIBE model in combat with the target. On a 5+:
The target has STRIKE-LAST for the rest of the turn.
Inflict 3 mortal damage on the target.
Where the Matriarch’s Mob has loads of utility abilities that can heal friendly units, fortify their hides, or order them out of risky combats, the Stomper Tribe is all about killing squishy little mortals as much as you possibly can. The Gettin’ Stuck In ability is a flexible way to boost both your LITTLE horde and your BIG unit in combat, giving the melee weapons used by the former an extra point of Damage – upping their swings with their weapon to an impressive 3 Damage and their ‘Eadbutt to Damage 4 – while the latter’s melee weapons have more Rend to bust through pesky armour.
STOMPER TRIBE
Once Per Turn (Army), Any Combat Phase
GETTIN’ STUCK IN
Warstompers and their followers relish the visceral thrill of battle, wading in wherever the fighting is most bloody.
Declare: Pick a friendly STOMPER TRIBE unit in combat to be the target.
Effect: If the target is LITTLE, pick a model in the target unit. Add 1 to the Damage characteristic of that model's melee weapons for the rest of the turn.
If the target is BIG, add 1 to the Rend characteristic of its melee weapons for the rest of the turn.
In addition to these Armies of Renown, you also get five Regiments of Renown all based around legendary Sons of Behemat who’ve been known to work with factions across the Mortal Realms:
Odo Godswallow fights alongside DESTRUCTION armies – A Beast-smasher Mega-Gargant especially effective against Monsters.
Bundo Whalebiter works with ORDER and DESTRUCTION armies – A Kraken-eater Mega-Gargant smart enough to pull off a cunning trap.
One-eyed Grunnock battles with CHAOS and DESTRUCTION armies – A Warstomper Mega-Gargant who disrupts enemy attacks with seismic stomps.
Big Drogg Fort-Kicka accompanies DEATH and DESTRUCTION armies – A Gatebreaker Mega-Gargant with breath that can literally kill.
Krong the Club can be used by ANY army – A Mancrusher Gargant whose own body is a lethal crushing weapon.
Between them, you can field a Mega-Gargant in any army in the game, so if you ever feel the need for some extreme damage to back up your disciplined Ossiarch legions or reaving Idoneth Deepkin, there’s a Regiment of Renown for you.
The new Battletome: Sons of Behemat goes up for pre-order this Saturday, alongside the new Ma Maegran and Boss-stompers kits and the riotously fun Brawlers of Behemat box set. If you want to find out how that game of titanic duels between Mega-Gargants plays, come back tomorrow and we’ll tell you.
* We covered the difference between Big and Little units in our look at the Sons of Behemat army rules.
** Fancy collecting a Stomper Tribe army? There’s a new themed box set up for pre-order soon that’ll get you started.
