Lizardmen v Skaven Campaign

So today I wrap up the saga of the Lizardmen and the Skaven – possibly the most called for pairing among the Warhammer Online community. Having presented my 8 classes I conclude with the Tier 1-4 campaign map; however, this concept alone poses several problems (even one I constructed for myself). I will do my best to tackle these problems and come up with a map that is reasonable.

• Problem 1: Lizardmen rarely go on the offensive. This means that the war would be confined to their ‘home territories’. In my Lizardmen Prelude I posed a scenario which would allow for the Lizardmen to go somewhat on the offensive, and that is an alliance with the High Elves (no mention of the Dwarves or Empire here although presumably they would be ‘allied’ with them as well, just not actively participating in their struggle).
• Problem 2: Only Clan Pestilens has a stake in Lustria/The Southlands. The other skaven Clans would not aid Clan Pestilens, they would much rather see them fail. In my Skaven Prelude I dug my own hold by having the Skaven join Destruction on the condition that they are taking Dwarven Holds. Arguably they can fight the Empire, Bretonnia, and Wood Elves as well – but Ulthuan has no Skaven presence and struggles against the aforementioned Order entities would again be one Clan versus that Order army. Potentially the biggest problem lore-wise is bending an alliance between the Great Clans.
• Problem 3: Any ‘capital’ of the Lizardmen is eons away from Skavenblight. With this in mind a tier 4 campaign stretching from Lustria to Skavenblight seems rather ridiculous.

Now if we follow for the concept of the Empire and Chaos that the path to victory is never a straight line and the concept of the Dwarves v Greenskins that no distance is too far, then having the Lizardmen v Skaven campaign stretch from Lustria to the Old World is no great issue. I am no particular fan of Mythic’s mind-boggling concept of cartography however and would prefer to follow the High Elf v Dark Elf concept of the most direct route leads to victory.

My solution to these problems – the struggle between the Lizardmen and Skaven in fact is the epitome of the struggle between Order and Destruction. Elements of all factions of Order besiege the home-front of the Skaven, while elements of all factions of Destruction besiege the home-front of the Lizardmen. This way the Lizardmen ‘home-regions’ are located in the lands of the Lizardmen as they fend off not only Skaven, but also other armies from Destruction; likewise, the Skaven ‘home-regions’ are located primarily in the Old World as they fend off the armies of Order. The result is a map more akin to the High Elf v Dark Elf paring which focuses the war on the south but (with Tier 5) spills the war over into the Old World. It’s not a solution I’m entirely happy with because I do not like having the entire campaign take place in the southern hemisphere while pulling these two armies into their respective alliances and following the High Elf v Dark Elf style where the ‘bad guy’s’ capital is thousands of miles away as safe. However for the purpose of this hypothetical scenario I will focus Tier 1-4 on the Clan Pestilens struggle  and throw all the other Clans in Tier 5.

So I present my ‘solution’ to this terribly difficult problem –

Kroxigor – Lizardmen MDPS

“Among the first creatures created by the Slann, the Kroxigors are large reptilian creatures with small brains – it is for this reason that they are used for menial tasks such as labor and sentry duty. The large beast can often be seen on solitary guard duty of city perimeters, with weapons chained to their wrists. It has been said that it can take around one hundred skaven to bring down a kroxigor; they are that tough and resilient.” Myrien Silverbranch, Mage of Saphry

Kroxigor

Archetype – Melee DPS

Armor – Medium

Weapon – Great hammer/axe

Mechanic – Tropical Poisons

• You apply the poisons of the jungle to your blade enhancing it, but beware, poisons can hurt you too. As the battles goes on, the poison from your blade seeps into your wounds and taints your blood. Should your blood become poisoned you will mindlessly attack for thirty seconds until your blood has cleared.

Mastery Trees

• Tlanxla – you focus on single target burst damage
• Huanchi – you focus on wearing a single target down or hitting multiple targets
• Itzl – you focus on debuffing your enemy

Chameleon Skink – Lizardmen RDPS

“The creatures spend hours in the jungle gathering potent poisons from plants and animals, setting traps, stalking their prey. Due to the nature of their skin one can walk but a few feet near them and never notice their presence. They are indeed among the greatest and most persistent hunters I have ever seen – I would dread to be the target of their darts!” Juan de Bilbao, Soldier of the 4th Expedition to the New World

Chameleon Skink

Archetype – Range DPS

Armor – Light

Weapon – Blowgun and Daggeer

Mechanic – Jungle Stalker

• Trained in the dense jungles of Lustria, you excel at hunting your pray from afar and from up close. Your skill allows you to gain different skills in combat. While out of combat you have five stalker points which you can use to access special abilities. While in combat you gain a point every thirty seconds

Mastery Trees

• Oxatyotl – You follow your target from afar preferring long range attacks and stealth
• Inxi-Hunizi – You pursue your target closely preferring poisons to weaken them and speed
• Itzi-Bitzi – You prefer to set traps to weaken your target and to finish them off up close in person

Skink Shaman – Lizardmen Healer

“A strange class the Skink Shaman are… they believe that their minor grasp of the powers that the Slann wield leads them to be superior to all other lizardmen, with the exception of the Slann of course. They like to separate themselves from other skinks in the skink barrios and form an elite society of their own. Nevertheless, their small stature and knowledge of magic makes them a welcome companion in any battle, now if only they didn’t think themselves so much better than the rest of us!” Melunir Tycalis, Librarian of Lothern

Skink Shaman

Archetype – Healer/Support

Armor – Light

Weapon – Dagger and Totem

Mechanic – Old Ones’ Auspices

• You serve as a conduit between the time of the Old Ones and the present casting blessings on your allies to aid them against your foes. Because your link with the Old Ones is so tenuous, these blessings are small bursts of their former power. Each group member may only have one offensive and one defensive auspice.

Mastery Trees

• Tzunhi – You channel the energy of the God of Water and use water as a healing force
• Sotec – You channel the energy of the God of Vengeance and use its powers for damaging spells
• Tepok – You use the God of Air as a conduit to the past where you channel blessings for your allies

Saurus – Lizardmen Tank

“Deep in the pyramids of the lizardmen cities lay the saurus barracks. A network of tunnels span the inner pyramid emerging to concealed openings on the outside. Any invader attempting to scale a pyramid of a mage-priest will be met every step by the vicious saurus temple guards. These fearsome warriors are a sight sure to make ones blood run cold, much like their own.” Artio Vengetti, Tilean Explorer

Saurus

Archetype – Tank

Armor – Heavy

Weapon – Sword/Axe & Shield or Great Weapon

Mechanic – Piercing Shrills

• You give out a Reptilian Shrill either rallying your allies or demoralizing your opponents. The longer you are in combat, the hotter your blood gets until it gets too hot and you release a Piercing Shrill. Each Reptilian Shrill lasts thirty seconds, during this time while in combat your Cold-Blooded Meter will rise – should it reach its maximum level, your Reptilian Shrill will turn into a burst Piercing Shrill and the buff will go away. Reapplying a new shrill will reset your Cold-Blooded meter.

Mastery Trees

• Quetzl – A path focused on offensive attacks and increasing your allies fighting power
• Tlazcotl – A path focused on defensive attacks and increasing your allies survivability
• Chotec – A path focused on debuffing attacks and decreasing your enemies fighting power

Lizardmen Prelude Part II

Spring, Lustria

Days had passed since Belashar Cordalis and the crew of the Silver Dragon made landfall on Lustria and spoken to Lord Adohi-Tehga, Lord of Tlaxtlan. His crew grew uneasy being kept under armed guard in the lizardmen city even though they were treated well; Belashar felt an even greater unease that he would fail at his mission and have to return to Ulthuan with no words of hope. His mission had been to convince the lizardmen that the cause of the Asur was their struggle as well. Alas, Belashar was a Dragon Prince of Caledor, no silver-tongued diplomat and he felt his presence and rash words did little to convince the mage-priest that the cause was worthy. He comforted himself with the thought that irregardless of who came the lizardmen would refuse to join any war outside of Lustria. Though he did not know it, he was right. The mage-priests were far more concerned with trying to fulfill the Old Ones plans for this world than aiding the struggle against Chaos, even though they already did their part.

Lizardmen Prelude Part I

Spring, Lustria

First it was the days spent at sea, now days trekking through the jungles of Lustria. Belashar Cordalis, Dragon Prince of Caledor, was not thrilled with his assignment but duty and loyalty bound him. The Phoenix King had personally asked Belashar to take on this task and did not fail to mention several times that the fate of Ulthuan rested on Belashar’s shoulders.

Belashar was called from his war-torn home of Caledor by the Phoenix King himself to travel as ambassador to Lustria. Although the High Elves were making Malekith pay dearly for every step of soil in Ulthuan, the hosts of the Druchii were vast and Malekith only need send word for more troops from Naggaroth – the High Elves had no reinforcements to call in on. That is why the Dragon Prince must sail to Lustria and try to convince the lizardmen of the necessity of war. No easy task to convince the neutral lizardmen that war beyond Lustria was necessary…