The Stormcast Eternals are the paladin of justice sent by Sigmar to reclaim the Mortal Realms from the forces of Chaos, Death and Destruction. Of all the souls who went though the reforging process, those in the Ruination Chamber are the one closer to completely lose their humanity.
Stormcast Eternals have several Warcry warbands and many profiles are usable across different warbands. The Ruination Chamber, despite sharing the new style with the new slimmer armour, are not part of the Thunderstrike warband but you can still find the Knight-Azyros in the Vanguard chamber and the Prosecutors in the Warrior chamber.
But how do they take their last fight in Warcry?
Background and Lore of the Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
The Stormcast Eternals are the mortal heroes taken by Sigmar a moment before their death to create the most powerful weapon he could imagine to fight Chaos: an army of supernatural warriors almost immortal.
Almost being the key, as every time they die and they are reforged in the Anvil of Apotheosis, they lose part of themselves and their humanity. Ionus Cryptborn, a veteran Lord-Relictor that has long worked to try to find a cure to this process convinced Sigmar that the flaw in the reforging process was to be accepted as it was: a flaw with no cure.
As such, all souls who are close to lose completely themselves, should be grouped together in a single chamber, so they could be monitored and when the time comes, their souls extinguished providing them the eternal rest they deserve after serving for so long.
And so the Ruination Chamber was born, led by Iridan, a young warrior who greatly impressed Sigmar. The Ruination Chamber is still attached to a Stormhost, but because of their transformation, their burn with an Azyrite aura which washes off Chaos corruption and spells alike.
For this reason, the Ruination members are better suited to face the incoming Skaventide and defend the Mortal Realms from the effects of Vermindoom, the catastrophe that saw a portion of Skaven’s capital, Blight City, to manifest in Aqshy, Realm of Fire.
Fighters in the Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
Note: if you haven’t read the basic rules for Warcry before reading this article, it might be helpful to know that the game’s abilities are activated by using 6 dice that you roll at the start of your turn.
If two of the dice show the same value, they can be used to activate a Double ability. If three show the same value, they can be used for a Triple ability, and so on.
So, when this article refers to an ability being a Double, a Triple or a Quad, it refers to this system. It might sound a bit confusing, but takes no time to get used to when you start playing
The Stormcast Ruination Chamber warband is made of 9 different fighters, of which 6 are leaders.
Lord-Vigilant on Gryph-stalker: 280 points
The Lord-Vigilant on Gryph-stalker is the most expensive fighter in the warband and also the only one mounted meaning he has some restrictions when moving through enclosed terrain (no climbing, etc.). For the rest, he has a great profile with 10″ of Movement and Toughness 5 and a dangerous melee profile: 3 attacks at Strength 4 for 3/6 damage.
The Ruination fighters have access to some shared abilities, with the Double being interesting as it allows theoretically to save up to 6 damage otherwise allocated: you gain as many dice as the ability’s value, and when you receive damage you roll a die and on a 3+ ignore the damage. Considering the high Wounds characteristic of most fighters in the warband, is situational, but still useful.
The warband reaction, Ancient Aura, allows to nullify an opponent ability by rolling higher than their ability’s value. It is also the only time the Memorian tokens can be used (they provide a +2 to the roll). These are accessible only by the Reclusians and Lord-Terminos when they activate their ability.
The Lord-Vigilant has also access to the only warband Quad which allows to activate again another friendly Ruination chamber fighter who was already activated. Comparing with the universal ability Rampage, it can have a surprise effect which will disorientate your opponent.
Knight-Azyros: 255 points
The Knight-Azyros, in his latest iteration, with a gorgeous new model, has the same characteristics as his counterpart in the Warrior Chamber (10″ of flying movement, Toughness 5, 4 attacks at Strength 4 for 2/4 damage) so what really changes is the ability he has access to.
Blazing Lantern, for a Triple, allows to treat all enemy critical hits in range as normal hits instead. The range depends on the ability’s value so it would be maximum 6″, but if you have a good Triple available, it could really protect your otherwise exposed fighters (critical hits are really the only thing that brings them down).
Lord-Terminos: 225 points
The Lord-Terminos is the heaviest-hitter and probably our recommended Leader option. With 4 attacks at Strength 5 for 3/6 damage, the only thing really slowing him down is the 4″ of movement, typical for the on-foot Stormcast fighters.
His ability, aside from giving him a Memorian token to use on the warband reaction, allows all Ruination fighters with 5 or more wounds visible to the fighter to perform a bonus attack action. In later turns, with everyone already engaged and with a bit of wounds, it may be the most devastating activation ever, and it costs only a Triple. Of course, timing is essential.
Lord-Veritant
- Lord-Veritant: 190 points
- Gryph-crow: 60 points
The Lord-Veritant is our blind-folded hero, able for a Triple to reduce the ability’s value of opponent fighters to 1. The range varies from Triple’s value to the entire battlefield if a friendly Gryph-crow is nearby him. Honestly, it could be better. It clashes with the warband reaction that completely cancels an ability (but relies on a dice roll and of course an action slot) and many abilities don’t need a value.
Aside from that, it has a melee profile similar to the Lord-Vigilant (but for only 2/4 damage) and a 3″-7″ ranged attack also for 3/7 damage.
His companion, the Gryph-crow, is the cheapest fighter in the warband. With 5″ movement and 3 attacks at Strength 3, it is mostly used for reconnaissance or slow-down an enemy, and in this role, at that cost, it is perfect.
Prosecutors
- Prosecutor-Prime: 205 points
- Prosecutor: 180 points
The Prosecutors all share 10″ of flying movement and, despite their shield, just Toughness 4. Compared to their counterpart in the Warrior Chamber, their profile are much more simplified as there’s only 2, both remembering the equivalent one with Hammer and Shield although with extended range (3″-12″).
The Prosecutor-Prime, the leader, has 1 melee attack more and more health, but compared to the other leaders is cheaper than the Lord-Vigilant but is less resistant and less damaging.
The Prosecutor, instead, is a great scout as 10″ movement and 12″ shooting attacks allow him to position where needed, to hold an objective or hunt a fugitive.
Their ability allows them to teleport for a Double anywhere on the battlefield as long as they re-appear 5″ or more away from any enemy unit. That’s also a good way to leave a fight without doing a disengage action, and excellent for repositioning, especially on later rounds.
Reclusians
- Reclusian-Prime: 195 points
- Reclusian: 160 points
The Reclusians are the classic tanks: with Toughness 6 and high wounds, they will stand the hardest tests. And when is their turn, with 4 attack at Strength 4 for 3/5 damage, there will be retribution!
The Reclusian-Prime, other than being the leader, increases the Strength to 5, making him a good contender as second-best leader of the faction.
Reclusians for a Double can obtain a Memorian token (to use with the warband reaction), add 1″ to their movement and half the ability’s value to their Strength. It may not be necessary most of the time, but considering all, it’s better than the universal Rush.
Abilities for the Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
- Lightning-scoured Soul (Double, Everyone): This fighter obtains up to 6 Ruination dice. For each damage allocated, roll a die and on a 3+ that damage is ignored.
- Through Darkened Skies (Double, all Prosecutors): Teleport this fighter anywhere outside 5″ from enemy fighters.
- Memories of Past Glories (Double, all Reclusians): Give this fighter a Memorian token (max 1) and +1″ move and up to + 3 to the Strength of melee attacks.
- Sense Unholy Sorcery (Triple, Lord-Veritant): Enemy abilities used within 6″ of this fighter, or in the whole battlefield if there’s a friendly Gryph-crow within 6″, are reduced to value 1.
- Earn an Honourable Death (Triple, Lord-Terminos): Give this fighter a Memorian token (max 1), then all visible friendly Ruination fighters with 5 or more damage allocated can each make a bonus attack action.
- Blazing Lantern (Triple, Knight-Azyros): Enemy critical hits up to 6″ away from this fighter are normal hits.
- Deliver Judgement (Quad, Lord-Vigilant on Gryph-stalker): Another Ruination fighter that has already activated can be activated again later this round.
Reaction for the Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
Introduced in the new season of Warcry, Reactions are things that can be done in certain circumstances, but always during the enemy turn. They cost one action, so they can be used only by fighters that have not activated yet or are waiting. There are 3 universal reactions and one specific to each warband:
Ancient Aura (Everyone)
- When: An enemy fighter within 6″ uses an ability.
- What: Roll a dice, add +2 if the fighter has a Memorian token (the token is then discarded), if the final value equals or exceeds the ability value, that ability has no effect.
Strategy and Tactics for the Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
The Stormcast Eternals Ruination Chamber is an odd one. It is born from the wave that accompanied the release of Age of Sigmar 4.0, but does not contain many profiles, really only 2 fighters and a plethora of expensive heroes. Some of the profiles come from existing warbands but with a different ability.
There’s really little support abilities available in the warband, meaning that the main Leader should be chosen by their impact on the battlefield rather than the buffs he can provide. And for that, the Lord-Terminos wins them all with the best attack profile, high defence and the best support ability in the warband.
Everything else should rotate around it, with plenty of Prosecutors for the ranged capabilities and high-movement, and the Reclusians for the fighting potential. And with the left-over you can fit a Gryph-crow.
More than a warband, it looks like a “let’s give profiles to everyone”. Would have been better to temporarily move the few Ruination-only profiles in the Thunderstrike warband, or give them few more fighter profiles from the other chambers.
Pros and Cons of the Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
Pros:
+ Hard to kill
+ Some good heavy-hitters
Cons:
– Only 3 (really 2) non-hero fighter profiles
– There’s really little to do, even from a narrative perspective
Some thematic warbands for the Stormcast Ruination Chamber
Just for fun here we present few thematic warbands, meant more for fun or narrative context than for competitive play. Note that in narrative play you need to complete a quest that allows you to recruit a Hero before being able to add him to your roster.
Only one that makes sense: Lord-Terminos, 2 Prosecutors, 2 Reclusians, 1 Gryph-crow.
How to buy a Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband
If you got your hands on the Age of Sigmar 4.0 launch box Skaventide, or can find the Stormcast Eternals half on the second-hand market, that’s all you really need. It contained:
- Lord-Vigilant on Gryph-stalker
- Lord-Terminos
- Lord-Veritant with Gryph-crow
- 3 Reclusians
- 3 Prosecutors
If you can’t find it, the 4.0 Ultimate Starter Set contains the Lord-Vigilant, Lord-Veritant and Prosecutors from above at £130 but with much more content (Skaven, terrain, etc.).
Alternatively, some sets can be purchased separately, starting from the Reclusians (£37.5 for 3) and Prosecutors (£37 for 3) up to Lord-Terminos (£26, alternative model) and Tornus the Redeemed (£31.5) which is also the kit used to make the Knight-Azyros.
The Gryph-crow is only available with the Lord-Veritant (is used as a token in Age of Sigmar), which is only sold in the Starter Sets for now, making extremely expensive a warband with multiple of them.
Tips on painting a Stormcast Ruination Chamber Warband for Warcry
Stormcast Eternals can be painted in any colour scheme, as they belong to different Stormhosts, each with their own template. If you need some inspiration, Warhammer Community has a tutorial with 5 different colour schemes, starting from the Hallowed Knights, the Stormhost most advertised in the most recent edition of Age of Sigmar.
If you are intimated by the intricacy of a model like the Knight-Azyros, Warhipster comes at the rescue with a tutorial for Tornus based heavily on using contrast paints.