Dwarf Slayer Cult
Grade: 2a
Source: By Dave ‘Styrofoam King’ Joria, based on Mark Havener's Dwarf Treasure Hunters (PDF)
Setting: Mordheim
Lore
It is a fallacy to assume that every Slayer acts the same. There are many reasons that Slayers join the Cult of Grimnir, and to seek their deaths facing monstrous creatures. For those who have failed their clan and their family, it is the only way to recover honor to the family name… a martyr for the sake of their living relatives. Others are dwarfs that have been disowned, betrayed by loved ones, and seek the solace of a gathering of embittered souls. For a few more ignoble dwarfs, it is the Foreign Legion, a chance to escape past mistakes.
But the greatest, grimmest, and the most memorable of all Slayers are the ones who have lost everything. No clan members will be there to remember them when they die, no family members to mourn them. These grim slayers have steeled their nerves, and teeter on the brink of madness. In any cult, they long for death the most, and as a testament to the cruelty of fate, often survive the longest. They seek stronger foes, fiercer monsters and more desolate lands to wander. Younger Slayers gravitate to them, gleaning what they can from the wizened warriors. The Giant Slayers are silent and direct in their instruction. Indeed, sometimes the only sound a Giant Slayer is heard making is the singing of his own Deathsong when heading into battle.
Special Rules
DWARF SPECIAL RULES
All Dwarves are subject to the following special rules:
Hard to Kill: Dwarfs are tough, resilient individuals who can only be taken out of action on a roll of 6 instead of 5-6 when rolling on the Injury chart. Treat a roll of 1-2 as knocked down, 3-5 as stunned, and 6 as out of action.
Hard Head: Dwarfs ignore the special rules for maces, clubs, etc. They are not easy to knock out!
Grudgebearers: Dwarfs hold an ancient grudge against Elves from the days when the two races fought for supremacy in the Old World. A Dwarf warband may never include any kind of Elven Hired Sword or Dramatis Personae.
Hatred: The Rememberer, Stubbles, and Axe Hurlers all Hate Orcs and Goblins. This is ignored if the warrior later becomes Immune to Psychology.
SLAYER SPECIAL RULES
Deathwish: Slayers seek an honorable death in combat. Unless stated otherwise, all members of this are completely immune to all psychology and never need to test if fighting alone. This includes Hatred, Frenzy & Stupidity.
Damnable Luck: While Slayers SEEK death, it often eerily avoids them. In the postgame, after rolling for all injuries, you may reroll one result of Death for a single slayer hero or henchman, accepting the second result.
No Armour, No Toys! Slayers may never use armour of any kind, nor cloaks that provide a constant save bonus (though they may use Lucky Charms). Also, they may not use any missiles that aren’t thrown, nor may they learn magic.
Only in Victory: Slayer heroes do NOT gain exploration dice at the end of the battle if they were defeat or routed; they only gain them if they win the scenario, were allied with the winner, or tied. (Does not include the Rememberer)
Record of Valor: If a Slayer hero is taken out of action while the Rememberer was present on the board, you receive +1 Exploration dice in the post-game phase; this represents their patrons in Karak Kadrin rewarding their courage with money and hirelings. This only applies if the Slayer was taken out of action directly or indirectly by an enemy or NPC attack (ex. Attacked by a warrior, falling off a cliff after a crossbow bolt, removed by a hostile random event, etc.) A Slayer that is taken out of action without any opposing influences (ex. deliberately walking off a cliff, failing a jump) does not grant you an exploration dice. If a Slayer is somehow brought back to the battlefield, this extra die is lost (as they are saved from the jaws of death).
Back-up Records: If your warband includes a Bard Hired Sword, the bard gains the Rememberer ability, “Record of Valor”; however, two rememberers do not stack (i.e. 1 slayer taken OOA gives you a max of 1 exploration die, even if both the Rememberer and the Bard witness it). This rule merely provides a backup if the Rememberer somehow misses a game or is taken out of action.
Choice of warriors
A Slayer warband must include a minimum of 3 models. You have 500 gold crowns to recruit and equip your warband. Maximum number of warriors is 12.
Heroes
Giant Slayer: Each warband must have one Giant Slayer — no more, no less.
Doomseeker: You may include up to 2 Doomseekers.
Rememberer: You may include up to 1 Rememberer.
Henchmen
Troll Slayers: Your warband may include any number of Troll Slayers.
Stubbles: Your warband may include any number of Stubbles.
Axe Hurlers: Your warband may include up to 5 Axe Hurlers
Starting Experience
A Giant Slayer starts with 20 experience.
Doomseekers start with 8 experience.
Rememberers start with 8 experience.
Henchmen start with 0 experience.
Dwarf Slayer Cult Skill Table
| Combat | Shooting | Academic | Strength | Speed | Special | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giant Slayer | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Doomseekers | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| Dwarf Rememberer | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Special Skills
Deathwish
The hero is completely immune to all psychology and never need to test if fighting alone. [Stubbles and Axe Hurlers Only. See ‘Stubbles’ and “Axe Hurlers” for details.] Slayers Only
Ferocious Charge
The Slayer may double his attacks on the turn in which he charges. He will suffer a -1 ‘to hit’ penalty on that turn. Slayers Only
Monster Slayer
In close combat, the Slayer always wounds any opponent on a roll of 4+, regardless of Toughness, unless his own Strength (after all modifiers due to weapon bonuses, etc) would mean that a lower roll than this is needed. Slayers Only.
Berserker
The Slayer may add +1 to his close combat ‘to hit’ rolls during the turn in which he charges. Slayers Only.
Deathblow
If the Hero is taken out of action in hand-to-hand, he may immediately make the remainder of his attacks before being removed, if he hasn’t made all of his attacks already this turn. He may use this skill if he is knocked down or stunned. Slayers Only.
Relentless
If the Hero charges a model but the charge fails, the Hero may still move the full distance of his move. This skill may only be used against enemies within sight or that the Slayer can detect. Slayers Only.
Axe Mastery
The Hero is well taught in the hand-to-hand arts of axemanship. He may reroll all missed attacks if he was using an axe or a dwarven axe in the hand-to-hand phase of the turn that he charges. May not be used with Whirling Blades.
True Grit
Dwarfs are hardy individuals and this Hero is hardy even for a Dwarf! When rolling on the Injury table for this Hero, a roll of 1-3 is treated as knocked down, 4-5 as stunned, and 6 as out of action.
Thick Skull
The Hero has a thick skull, even for a Dwarf. He has a 3+ save on a D6 to avoid being stunned. If the save is made, treat a stunned result as knocked down instead.
Songster
A Bard's rousing war songs steel the hearts of all those around him. Any friendly model within 6" of a Bard may re-roll any failed Leadership test with a +1 to Leadership, to a max of 10. This includes rout tests. Rememberer only.
Song of Honor
In the postgame, if one or more Slayers in your warband died, all heroes and henchmen gain +1 Experience. Rememberer only.
SLAYER RITES
THE RITE OF TROLLSLAYING
If a slayer henchman takes an enemy out action, if it was Large and started the game with multiple wounds, then in the post-game phase, the henchman gains experience enough to bring it to the next advancement (or if maxed out, to 16 exp), and treat it as if that henchman rolls “That Lad’s Got Talent!” If you have 6 heroes already and do not wish to replace an existing hero, you may roll a henchman advance as normal. If promoted, be sure to gift it an appropriate title, like Ogreslayer.
THE RITE OF DRAGONSLAYING
If a slayer that takes out a model with all the following conditions:
- large or gigantic monster
- scaled (including but not limited to: Hydra, Dragon, Wyvern, Sea Drake, Merwyrm, Turtigon, or any of their young versions)
- It has Skull of Iron and/or 4+wounds
- Is an NPC or it rolls a death injury If all the above apply, then in the post-game, the slayer may tan the hide and gain a Sea Dragon Cloak for free, provided they don’t own one already. They may not sell or it give it to another warrior. This is the exception to the rule that a Slayer may not wear armour. If it’s lost or stolen, they may not buy a replacement, but only win another through Dragonslaying. If the slayer is a henchman, the Rite of Trollslaying also applies (see above); if they can’t be promoted, it may wear the Misc item, even if it remains a henchman.
Sea Dragon Cloak
From the Lustria Dark Elf warband
Acquiring: Special -
Special cloaks fashioned from Sea Monsters that
dwell deep in the oceans depths. These cloaks are
tough and resilient and offer their wearer a very
good amount of protection.
SPECIAL RULES
Scales: 5+ armour save in close combat, 4+ armour
save against missiles.
Slayer Equipment Lists
Slayer Hero & Henchman Equipment List
Hand-to-hand Combat Weapons
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Dagger | 1st free/2 gc |
| Mace/Hammer | 3 gc |
| Axe | 5 gc |
| Dwarf Axe | 15 gc |
| Sword | 10 gc |
| Double-handed weapon | 15 gc |
| Gromril weapon | 3× cost |
Missile Weapons
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Throwing Axes | 15 gc |
Doomseeker Equipment List
Hand-to-hand Combat Weapons
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Dagger | 1st free/2 gc |
| Mace/Hammer | 3 gc |
| Axe | 5 gc |
| Dwarf Axe | 15 gc |
| Sword | 10 gc |
| Double-handed weapon | 15 gc |
| Flail | 15 gc |
| Whirling Blades | 30 gc |
| Gromril weapon | 3× cost |
Missile Weapons
None
Rememberer Equipment List
Hand-to-hand Combat Weapons
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Dagger | 1st free/2 gc |
| Mace/Hammer | 3 gc |
| Axe | 5 gc |
| Dwarf Axe (Dwarf only) | 15 gc |
| Sword | 10 gc |
| Spear | 10 gc |
| Double-handed weapon | 15 gc |
| Gromril weapon (Dwarf only) | 3× cost |
Missile Weapons
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Throwing Axes | 15 gc |
| Pistols | 15 gc / 30 brace |
| Crossbow | 25 gc |
Armour
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Light Armour | 20 gc |
| Helmet | 10 gc |
| Shield | 5 gc |
| Buckler | 5 gc |
*Any weapon a Dwarf may normally purchase may be bought as a Gromril weapon instead. This multiplies the cost of the weapon by x3. For rules on Gromril weapons see the Mordheim rulebook. Note that this price is only for a starting warband, as it represents the Dwarfs outfitting themselves at their own stronghold. Later purchases of Gromril weapons are done using the price chart in the Mordheim rules (or the campaign setting).
Special Equipment
Dwarf Axe
Cost: 15 gold crowns
Availability: Rare 8 (Dwarfs only)
Dwarf axes are smaller-hafted weapons made of lighter (but stronger) materials than normal axes. Dwarf Warriors are specially trained in their use and are able to use them as deftly as a Human warrior might wield a sword.
Range: Close Combat
Strength: As User
Special Rules: Cutting Edge, Parry
Cutting Edge: Dwarf axes have an extra save modifier of -1, so a model with Strength 4 using a Dwarf axe has a -2 save modifier when he hits an opponent with the axe in close combat.
Parry: Dwarf axes offer an excellent balance of defense and offense. A model armed with a Dwarf axe may parry blows. When his opponent rolls to hit, the model armed with a Dwarf axe may roll a D6. If the score is greater than the highest to hit score of his opponent, the model has parried the blow and that attack is discarded. A model may not parry attacks made with double or more its own Strength – they are simply too powerful to be stopped. A model may not parry more than one attack in a single Close Combat phase; a model armed with two Dwarf axes (or a Dwarf axe and a sword, etc) does not get to parry two attacks but may instead re-roll a failed parry.
Throwing Axe
Cost: 15 gold crowns
Availability: Slayers-Common, (Non-slayers, Rare 5)
A smaller axe specially weighted for hurling from dangerous distances.
Range: 6"
Strength: As User
Special Rules: Thrown Weapon, Axe Thrower
Thrown Weapon: Throwing axes suffer no penalty for throwing over half range, or for moving and shooting.
Axe Thrower: All heroes armed with Throwing Axes and have access to Shooting Skills may learn the following skill, Axe Thrower.
Axe thrower: “The warrior can throw a maximum of two axes in his shooting phase, both of which gain +1 Strength, and may divide his shots between any targets within range as he wishes. Note that this skill cannot be combined with the Quick Shot skill or the Knife Fighter skill.” The skill Knife Thrower does not allow the user to throw multiple Throwing Axes.
Whirling Blades
Cost: 30 gold crowns per pair
Availability: Rare 9 (Slayers only)
The signature weapon of the Doomseeker, the Whirling Blade is an axe on a chain. Even expert slayers have trouble mastering such a difficult weapon, but once mastered, the damage dealt can be staggering.
Range: Close Combat
Strength: As User
Special Rules: Cannot be parried, Cutting Edge, Pair, Dance of Doom, Whirlwind of Death
Cannot be parried: The Whirling Blades is a flexible weapon and a Doomseeker use it with great expertise. Attempts to parry its strikes are futile. A model attacked by a whirling blade may not make parries with swords or bucklers.
Cutting Edge: Whirling Blades have an extra save modifier of -1, so a model with Strength 4 using a Whirling Blade has a -2 save modifier when he hits an opponent with the blade in close combat.
Pair: Whirling Blades are traditionally used in pairs, one in each hand. This off-hand weapon provides an additional attack like normal. A warrior armed with a pair of whirling blades may not wield a different off-hand weapon, and may never split up the pair (unless he loses a hand).
Dance of Doom: Whenever the Doomseeker charges, the blade in their main hand provides a +1 attack in the first round of combat. The main hand also grants an additional attack in any turn in which the doomseeker is charged by one or opponents; this attack must be used against one of the chargers. If the wielder is simultaneously charged by two or more opponents they will still only receive a total of +1A. “Dance of Doom” does apply to the off-hand Whirling Blade.
Whirlwind of Death: Whenever the Doomseeker is charged, the free attack from the Dance of Doom attack and the additional attack from the off-hand both gain ‘Strike First,’ like a Steel Whip for that turn. All of the Slayers other attacks strike at normal speed.
(Example: A Doomseeker with a pair of Whirling Blades has a Stat of Attack 1 and is charged. The Doomseeker gets +1 bonus attack from Dance of Doom, and a second bonus attack from the off-hand, for a total of 3 attacks. The two bonus attacks Strike First because of Whirlwind; but because the charger also has Strike First (from charging), the two fighters use initiative order to see who strikes first, or roll off if equal. After that, if the slayer is still standing, it makes it’s normal third attack.)
Heroes
1 Giant Slayer
85 gold crowns to hire
The most experienced and battle-scarred of all Slayers in the warband. Having dipped his hands in the blood of giants, he is off to Mordheim is search of the next big hunt: Daemons.
| M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
Weapons/Armour: A Giant Slayer may be equipped with weapons chosen from the Slayer equipment list.
SPECIAL RULES
Leader: Any models in the warband within 6" of the Giant Slayer may use his Leadership instead of their own.
Dwarf: See special rules above for Dwarves.
Slayer: See special rules above for Slayers.
0 – 2 Doomseeker
50 gold crowns to hire
Doomseekers plow recklessly into the enemy, whirling their weapons madly around their heads. They are armed with axes on the end of chains, which they spin about themselves, slicing through their foes with surprising speed.
| M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
Weapons/Armour: A Doomseeker may be equipped with weapons chosen from the Doomseeker equipment list.
SPECIAL RULES
Dwarf: See special rules above for Dwarves.
Slayer: See special rules above for Slayers.
0 – 1 Rememberer
40 gold crowns to hire
The one sane member of the warband, the Rememberer is a bard charged with the task of recording each Slayer that falls in battle.
| Race | M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dwarf | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| Human | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
Weapons/Armour: A Rememberer may be equipped with weapons chosen from the Rememberer equipment list.
SPECIAL RULES
Dwarf: See special rules above for Dwarves.
Record of Valor: See above.
Rememberer: The Rememberer’s task is to record the doom of each of the slayers. When he is close by, the slayers will fight even harder to make their death more honourable. Once per game, any Slayer Hero fighting against a Large creature or a creature with Toughness 5 or greater, and is within 6" of the Rememberer, may re-roll any failed To Hit rolls once only.
Pick up the Slack: If he was not taken out of action, the Rememberer may make a rarity or Dramatis Personae roll for each Slayer hero that was taken out of action this game in addition to their normal rarity search.
Not a Slayer: A Rememberer is not a Slayer, and the slayer rules don’t apply. Also, they may not learn “Slayer Only” skills, and may never be warband leader.
Henchmen
Troll Slayers
40 gold crowns to hire
Trollslayers are the most numerous part of a slayer cult, a collection of solitary souls, who have pushed them themselves beyond fear. They have whetted their blades in the blood of Orc bosses and Black Orcs without flinching. The only thing to sate them now is bigger game, or death itself.
| M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
Weapons/Armour: Troll Slayers may be equipped with weapons chosen from the Slayer equipment list.
SPECIAL RULES
Dwarf: See special rules above for Dwarves.
Slayer: See special rules above for Slayers.
0 – 5 Axe Hurlers
40 gold crowns to hire
In a past life, they were probably Thunderers or Rangers. No one dares ask, but their skill with throwing axes is more than enough to prove their worth.
| M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
Weapons/Armour: Axe Hurlers may be equipped with weapons chosen from the Slayer equipment list.
SPECIAL RULES
Dwarf: See special rules above for Dwarves.
Strong Arm: The Axe Hurle can use his strength to hurl thrown weapons farther still. When throwing weapons, the Axe Hurler may throw the missile extra inches equal to his Strength (ex. S3 = +3”).
Born Marksmen: If an Axe Hurler rolls a “That Lad’s Got Talent” as an advancement, he may always choose Shooting skills as one of his two skill list choices. He may do this even if there are no heroes with Shooting Skills in the warband. Reminder: Even with Weapon Mastery, he may not use any missile weapons that aren’t thrown.
Skittish: As newly crowned Slayers, Hurlers do not have the skill ‘Death Wish,’ and suffer psychology like normal. When a Hurler gains ‘That Lad’s Got Talent’, instead of making an immediate roll on the Hero Advance Table, he MUST learn the skill ‘Death Wish.’
Stubbles
25 gold crowns to hire
Stubbles are new Slayers, their shaven heads still covered in stubble and the ink in their beards still wet. They are not all young and brash dwarfs… some are mature adults, still shaking from the breakdown of their past life.
| M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Ld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
Weapons/Armour: : Stubbles may be armed with weapons chosen from the Slayer equipment list.
SPECIAL RULES
Dwarf: See special rules above for Dwarves.
Skittish: As newly crowned Slayers, Stubbles do not have the skill ‘Death Wish’, and suffer psychology like normal. When a Stubble gains ‘That Lad’s Got Talent’, instead of making an immediate roll on the Hero Advance Table, he MUST learn the skill ‘Death Wish.’
Tactics
The most effective strategy I've encountered is a subtle maneuver called the 'Move-In-A-Clump-&-HammerIt-To-Death' strategy. Okay, it’s not subtle, but it works. In a perfect situation, find yourself a gate or an archway to bottleneck your opponent. Your guys won't be the strongest fighters on the board, but they’ll probably the strongest with a 20mm base. This means if you space your front screen of stubbles more than 20mm apart but less than 25mm, your henchmen will prevent them from going past, but allow your guys to slip through- let the henchmen take the brunt of the first charge, and then countercharge the snot out of them with your heroes. While the strike-first Doomseeker axe is nice on defense, a charge from a leveled up Doomseeker will claw its way through nearly any henchmen, making mince of THEIR screens. If you’re lucky, your Doomseeker will bounce from henchmen to henchmen each turn. Stubbles are amazing for the cost, so don’t underestimate their worth in the early campaign.
In long-term campaigns, your Slayers will start feeling the hurt from lack of armour. A few friendly alternatives: Lucky Charms, defensive skills (Thick Skull, Step Aside, etc.). It might be worth specializing your heroes- which are your tanks to bear the enemy’s charge, and which sweep in with Ferocious Charge to reap havoc. Also, remember: Two Dwarf Axes gets you a parry AND a reroll. Luckily, the dwarves themselves are pretty tough, and nearly every weapon they wield has a -1 AS modifier… if you can’t have armour, no one can! Also, with such limited equipment available to them, you’ll have extra money to spend on henchmen and hired swords.
As your band gets tougher, the clump strategy still works. Resist the urge to divide your forces too much… if one half gets in trouble, your other half won’t get there in time! A nice alternative is to invest in some speedy third party help; a Wardog can harass your opponent long enough to disrupt their Sprinty Youngblood. If you can afford the money, an Ogre Bodyguard can walk twice as fast as a dwarf. A Tilean Marksmen definitely helps put your opponent over the edge into rout level (although, I’ve never personally used one… hardly the ‘Slayer’ style.) A Tactician helps move your warband up another 4” (that may be nothing to an Elf Warband, but to a dwarf, that’s almost an extra march move!)
Shooting Battle: Sadly, in a shooting battle, you WILL lose. Sad truth. However, with their Toughness 4 and ‘Hard to Kill’ rule, your Dwarves will be much harder to kill than most warbands (though constant stuns will slow your warband even more so.) Stay behind cover in early campaigns, hide in later campaigns, and hope you can get a shot or two in with your Hurlers and Rememberer. If you’re lucky, they can act as counter-snipers, but their biggest use is helping bridge the distance when the terrain is rough, and for being the wings on your V- formation. Have them stay close by your chargers, and picking off models just out of your charge range, or their heroes hiding behind their henchmen screen. Don’t forget, your Giant Slayer can take a Throwing Axe too, adding a small 6” boost to your warband’s deadliness.
For additional advice on Dwarves, read Ian Davies’s article on Dwarf Treasure Hunter tactics, “Axes All Areas”. So go out there, and share the hurt. Spike that hair and take the oath!
-Dave Joria, aka the self-proclaimed ‘Styrofoam King’