8th ed Bretonians...Worth the time and trouble?

[Dooley]

So for Christmas I got me the book and two boxes of Knights. I have wanted to start a Bretonian army for a while now, but are they going to be worth the time and money to be effective on the tabletop battle field? They dont strike first on the charge anymore, whoever they run into will get to strike back (thanks to the step up rule) and pretty much everyone they run into is gonna be steadfast. Not to mention now EVERYONE with a stick and a shield gets a 6+ Ward save in CC.

Am I an edition too late in my Knightly endeavor? Or can a Bretonian Army still be fun to play......

[novatomato]

Brettonians can still be a good army, you'll need a sizable chunk of peasant bowmen and Men at Arms as the entire cavalry army is a lot less effective even though knights are still very good. They can break ranks with the lance rule according to GW's FAQ and that is the only real fix they needed, just either get multiple charges to the front or flank charges as they still drop down in effectiveness after the charge.
Questing knights might be something to look at as they maintain their high strength and always strike last anyways.

[Frimbleglim]

As a wood elf player there is no army I fear more than the Brettonians. Even Knight Errants are as hard as nails.

I would have thought you could still get away with an all knight army thanks to the lance formation giving you a rank on a unit 3 models wide. If you had a unit of 12 knights then they would remove the steadfastness of a 19 strong infantry unit or even 34 infantry in a 10 wide horde formation. It probably wouldn't be the most powerful army but it could still give many armies a run for their money.

But in short yes. Brettonians are still good... compared with wood elves anyway (which isn't saying much).

[Nikephoros]

If you max trebuchets, you'll have a chance.

[novatomato]

An all knight list is feasible yes, but you absolutely HAVE to charge in with two units. The reason why is in because infantry are either hard as nails (WoC and Saurus) and with the step up rule they will be able to kill 3+ knights removing that important rank then the knights are stuck at S3 and unable to deal any serious casualties, the flip side is infantry that is so damn cheap but pathetic (clan rats/slaves, goblins of both variety) so they'll have an enormous amount of ranks that you'd need to whittle through before something nasty comes smashing into your own flank (Rat Ogres, Trolls, boar boyz etc.)

Until the next book where I suspect the 0-1 restriction on Grail nights is removed (I don't particularly agree with it for fluff reasons but oh well) using your rare allotment for trebs is a solid investment, but if so you'll still need a couple units of Bowmen to act as a meat shield, preventing those warmachine hunters from getting to them.

[Dooley]

Ok so here is my tentative List Idea

Bret Lord: Grail Vow, Sword of the Ladys Champion, Dawn Stone, Potion of Speed, Virtue of Audacity, Shield, Warhorse

Paladin: Grail Vow BSB (War Banner), Virtue of Duty, Warhorse

Damsel: Channeling Staff, Crown of command

Damsel: Terrifying Mask of EEE! Dispell Scroll

2x 12 KotR, Full Command

7 Grail Knights Full Command

2x 16 Peasant Bowmen: Villain, Braziers, Musician

Trebuchet

Comes in a 1994

[Aenir]

Are both damsels on foot?

if not, perhaps drop one, make the other one a level 4 prophetess? :D

[Dooley]

No both Damsels are on unbarded horses. One will give a KotR unit Terror and the other will make the other unit Stubborn (if I understand the rules correctly)