Faction Choice

[Razorx1970]

Khador and Cygnar both seam like the heavy hitters jack-style if you ask me. They both have the largest range of big jacks too, and with MKII rules, they encourage more jack-style play too boot, making either the ideal choice. Both I think have the coolest looking jacks too out of them all.

I too play to have fun, and like to use the models that I prefer the most, versus having the absolute best competitive army.

[odinsgrandson]

Ok, you have two things to account for when you're talking about a given force's strengths and weaknesses- the faction and the warcaster.

The game balance is such that no faction gets left behind- at all really. However, some specific 'casters fair better than others in the big tournament circuits.


Each faction has some things it does better than others, but each warcaster has those also, and a warcaster can alter the way that a force works far more than a warcaster.


So, here's a short rundown:

Cygnar- these guys have strong ranged attacks, and some good tricks to run around. They have great options for ranged warjacks and infantry, along with a few hard hitting melee infantry and heavy warjacks.

Their armor isn't as tough as Khadoran armor, but they are more maneuverable- or they can keep the opponent from being maneuverable. They have some good buffing spells and most of their 'casters operate by making their force stronger.


Khador operates without buffs. They have some of the strongest troops and warjacks in the game, but for the most part don't have a lot to give them. Their 'casters each have their own tricks (and a few buffs here and there). Overall, they rely on the power of their troops over the power of their spells.

Khadorans 'jacks and heavy infantry tend to have extremely high armor values and extremely low movement scores- so they are often played as a blunt instrument.


Menite troopers live to stack buffs. They can put piles of buffs on everything they field- so much that players have a tough time figuring out exactly how to make their lists. A lot of their synergies rely on them getting more powerful as they are damaged.

Menites tend to have a lot of denial factors also. They can keep your opponent from doing his thing, so that the two armies hit head one- and one is denied most of his effects and buffs. This can be brutal when pulled off right.


Cryx is the most maneuverable force, and the most intent on dirty tricks. Their troopers tend to die easily, but they can often attack and kill the enemy warcaster more easily than other factions. Their spells operate on assassinations and debuffs primarily, so they really just make your opponent easier to kill when that one shot comes off.

Cryx has a good domination over magic, and has a lot of use for the cheap arc nodes available to them (even if they aren't as cheap as they were in Mark I).


The Retribution combines the denial of Menoth with the ranged finesse of Cygnar. Their warjacks, and a lot of their troopers have very strong ranged capabilities, while their warcasters often focus on keeping the opponent from acting as he should. They tend to take damage more easily than a Menite force, and have a little more in the way of assassination tactics available to them.

-by the way, the Retribution has not changed at all from Mark I to Mark II (since their rules were designed for Mark II anyway). So go ahead and check them out on Battle College that way.

Remember- these are all general statements about the factions. Each 'caster has his own