Kings of War 3rd Edition: Undead Army Review

This review has been updated for Clash of Kings 2024. I have done my best to highlight Clash changes in red.

Wow, it’s finally here! The big shake-up, the Clash of Kings update which gives some game-wide tweaks, and army-specific updates. We at Dash28 are using this update as a chance to do some major revisions to our previous army reviews. Units will shuffle, descriptions will change, and hopefully, they will all reflect even wiser advice for armies that have now had several years of Third Edition to play in.

Below you will see an explanation of the Tier system we use, and at the end of every review, we will include a sample list describing how it might play.

Tier Rankings:

Trying to rank units in Kings of War is not a perfect science. By pure design, many units are meant to work in combination with other choices in the army and can be hard to judge on their own. For this exercise, it’s assumed the unit is being used to its utmost potential within the army. This is not just a math problem to determine the most cost-effective unit but is to also see how units compare in scope, role, and impact across not just a single army but all Kings of War armies.

S Tier: Reserved for units that are widely acknowledged as either being significantly undercosted or having a combination of rules that perform well above units in similar roles. These units are often called “auto includes” as any list stands to be made better with their inclusion. Expect these units to be addressed in future CoK book updates.

A Tier: These units are some of the best the army has to offer. They excel in their specific roles and commonly help form the core of most competitive lists. While not auto include, they are great in almost any army they are taken in and will be seen frequently.

B Tier: This unit choice has a mix of strengths and weaknesses that makes it very playable, but balanced. These units work great with specific roles in mind; however, their weaknesses mean they do not help every list. In a perfect world, all units would fit into this category.

C Tier: C Tier units may still shine in niche lists and roles; however, they will feel underpowered when compared to similar units in other armies. Decidedly suboptimal, you could make them work, but you will frequently see other things that are just better. You will rarely see many lists take these units.

D Tier: Units that need some considerable love and attention. You will struggle to find any role for this unit that another unit couldn’t do better. Very often you will see these units labeled as “unplayable.”

Check out our other articles in this series!

The Undead

Formation- The Shambling Blight- C Tier Rating

The Shambling Blight is made up of 2 Legions of Zombies at +10 points per legion, and a Goreblight at +5 points. Everything in the formation gains the Shambling Blight keyword, both Zombie Legions get Iron Resolve and Phalanx, and the Goreblight gains the Rallying 1 – the Shambling Blight.

I love what this formation does. Giving a place and reason to take Zombie Legions is great! In this formation, they form the ultimate tar pit, with an incredibly high Nerve and Phalanx to survive changes, and Iron Resolve/Life Leech to heal a few wounds.

The Goreblight is also a great unit to come along with the mob, as it puts out some damage with Cloak of Death, and lends some damage potential with its Crushing Strength 2/

Unfortunately, I think this formation still doesn’t do quite enough to make Legions of Zombies completely viable. Their enormous footprint means they will get combo charged for days. Defense 2 means almost all hits convert to wounds, and basic shooting is a major threat. Worse yet, stripping Thunderous Charge doesn’t actually help Zombies at all, making part of the gain from Phalanx pointless.

I would have loved to see this tweaked to give the units Stealth, as shooting is a major problem for Undead, and especially for D2 Zombies. As is, this formation is fun, but more for theme than an effective use of points.

S Tier

I don’t think Undead have any S Tier units. Wights are our closest, but Irregular and a higher points cost keeps them from being broken. In general, Undead is defined by having a pretty deep bench of solid choices, but few completely standout choices.

A Tier

Wights – Wights bring incredible punch to the list, and are the go-to hammer for the army. If they weren’t irregular they would be S Tier, but as is, taking them requires you to build your line carefully, otherwise you run out of unlocks.

They hit on 3s with Crushing Strength 2 and Brutal making them as punchy as anything in the army. Their Fly and Speed 7 gives them some great tricks they can pull, such as flying over screens, flying out of terrain without being hindered, and being just a hair faster than most other large infantry.
Wights’ flying does have one downside, they get impacted by Phalanx; however, their Melee 3+ means even a hindered front charge from them, when properly supported, will do solid damage.

They are more expensive than Soul Reaver Infantry, Soul Reaver Cavalry, or Werewolves, but what you get for those points is well worth the upgrade.

I consider this unit an almost auto-include for every Undead army.

Zombies – Zombies may not seem like much. With Defense 2 and Melee 5+ they aren’t going to do much. But Regiments of Zombies are one of the most efficient unlocks in the game. They allow Undead to keep the cost of unlocking down, while still adding a little Unit Strength.

Their use is vulnerable to the massive uptick in small-arms shooting we see in the game. Bows, bombs, Firebolt, literally any shooting is a problem for Regiments of Zombies which will quickly evaporate off the board. They are still good, but the game has moved to a place where taking them in certain matchups equals easy kills for the opponent.

Necromancer– This unit has had some major changes along with all casters in the game. They have been reduced to 30 points, but start with no spells. This essentially lets them be an amazingly cost efficient toolkit for all the random spells Undead can benefit from.

Generally, most Necromancers will probably just pay 20 points to get Surge 6, putting them back up to a very affordable 50 points. However, the chance to get Veil of Shadows 2 for only 55 points is also something I think will see play.

Necromancers also fulfil a special role with their Vicious Aura for Zombies, which synergizes really well with Goreblights and Zombie Trolls.

Overall, the already cheap Necromancer became even more flexible, which made it even better.

Zombie Trolls – With a good defensive profile, Defense 5 and -/17 Nerve Zombie Trolls are a great mainline unit. They are regular providing unlocks. And they have decent damage output with 18 attacks and Crushing Strength 2, though they hit on 4s. They are also very affordable coming in at 190 points for a horde!

Two hordes of Zombie Trolls with a Necromancer backing them up for cheap Surge and a Vicious aura is a great start to a battle line.

Zombie Trolls are excellent targets for Surge Shenanigans because, if you Surge into a flank and either flub the Surge roll or fail to break a unit, it’s not a huge deal to lose the Zombie Trolls.

Mhorgoth the Faceless– Mhorgoth has had some major rework in Clash ’24. Rather then compare his previous profile lets just list what he does now.

For 200 points, you get “Super Liche” profile. Speed 7, Defense 5, 14/16 Nerve, Regen 5+. Mhorgoth also gets a great combination of spells, Bane Chant 3, Drain Life 7, Mind Fog 3, Surge 10, which are made even better with his Special Rules.

He has Very Inspiring and Dread, which is awesome. But his role defining rule “Unholy Levitating Arch-Lich” (terrible name) means he can move at the double and still cast AND once turn he can use a different spell against the same or a different target. TWO SPELLS IN A TURN!!!!

The range of possibilities Mhorgoth’s rule opens is really wide. He isn’t cheap, but for 200 points you get a truly awesome caster. I suspect he will become a favorite of Undead players.

Soul Reaver Infantry – Soul Reaver Infantry put out a tremendous amount of threat. 20 attacks, hitting on 3s, and Crushing Strength 2; they are a threat to most enemy units. At 15/17 Nerve with Defense 5, they have an average defensive profile which means they are vulnerable to wavering. Life Leech 2 is nice to heal back wounds, but you need to be striking in combat to achieve this.

Generally, you need to plan on the correct support to help feed them into combats, and block charges when possible. I find that they really benefit from a supporting hero or unit combo charging with them if you are looking to break things in one turn.

Conventional wisdom argues to give this unit Chalice of Fury so that once it hits combat it keeps going. I have found my game-ending wavers tend to be versus Shooting more than combat, so when I do take Waver protection I take the riskier Dwarven Ale to get Headstrong all the time.

It’s also important to note that Soul Reaver Infantry unlock, this can be helpful.

Zuinok Iceblood – Zuinok is basically a specialized Necromancer. They have Fireball 10, Surge 8, and Veil of Shadows 3, as well as Inspiring. If you take Zuinok, you cannot take any other Unique Heroes, because they are shunned, which isn’t a huge deal since generally each Undead Unique choice is thematic and specialized on certain builds.

Zuinok’s big selling point is Veil of Shadows 3, which provides some much needed access to Stealth for the army. In general this is the spell you will cast in early game, followed by Surge, with an occasional Fireball. Witchfire means Zuinok’s Fireball is more effective, but this still isn’t the main reason to take them.

This all comes in at 120 points, which is much cheaper then a similar blend of spells on a Liche King. Generally, I think you need to have a plan for shooting with Undead, Shambling is a major negative when walking across the board. Zuinok is a major answer to that weakness, but with Liche King changes I think we now have some other options too.

Revenant Cavalry – Easily Undead’s best form of Chaff, Troops of Revenant Cav are surprisingly tanky with Defense 5 and -/14 Nerve, for just 115 points! Speed 8 lets them project threat, and keep up with Soul Reaver Infantry. Don’t rely on Troops to do damage though, while they have 8 attacks with Thunderous Charge 2, they hit on 4s which I have found to be very swingy.

Revenant Cav can provide an interesting place as cheaper hammers/Surge threats, with Regiments a very affordable 175 points. They get double the attacks, and a boost to -/17 Nerve. 2-3 Regiments of Rev Cav could be really tough to stop from getting clever Surges off, though at that point you have invested quite a bit into the unit.

Hordes are a legitimate threat with a whopping 32 attacks and -/24 Nerve. Their massive base means you will frequently be Hindered, so be sure to take some Bane Chant to up their killing power.

The Undead Standard Bearer now also has an Aura of Wild Charge D3 for Skeletons. I think Revenant Cav present the most interesting use for this unit, bumping their charge threat to 17″-19″ which is pretty great!

I do think the best and most common way you will see them used is a Troops for chaff, but particularly with Wild Charge I think the Regiments and Horde have a legitimate place in the army.

B Tier

Liche King  – Cheaper Necromancers has really made it tough justifying taking Liche Kings. Thankfully they have had a pretty major rework with some major price reduction.

They are Speed 7, Defense 5, -/14, and Inspiring, for a bargain of 80 points. They lost Fly and Regeneration 5+, as well as built in Surge 10, but this dropped them down from 155 points! Almost half the cost!

Liche Kings provide access to much higher casting number spells then Necromancers, and importantly, provide access to better offense spells light Lightning Bolt and Blizzard.

With their rework, you can get a Liche King with Heal (6) and Lightning Bolt (5) for 155 points, which is what they costed previously for just Surge 10! This is one of the instances I think being able to pick spells will really help the unit. You can take a Liche with just Heal, or just an offense spell, and not pay an arm and a leg for it.

I think Necromancers still serve a better role for Surge, they are just so cheap for it. But I am really happy to see the viability of higher Heal in Undead return.

Undead Army Standard Bearer- Standard Bearers across the game have gotten reworked, with each gaining Very Inspiring as well as an Aura. I LOVE this change, and I hope to see more Army Standards on the table.

Undead get Aura Wild Charge D3 for Skeletons only. While this slightly boosts our Skeleton Warriors and Spears, I think the biggest winner from this is Revenant Cavalry. Pay 25 points and you can mount your Standard to keep up with the Cav. Army Standards also greatly benefit from some of the casting items in the game, I think Lute Of Darkness for Bane Chant 2 is the best choice when accompanying Cav.

Vampire on Undead Pegasus – At 215 points, the Vampire on Pegasus is an excellent unit for some Speed and combo-charging. It has Speed 10, 7 attacks that hit on 3s with Crushing Strength 2.

With Defense 5 and 14/16 Nerve it is vulnerable to shooting or hammers, so its best used to threaten flanks or pounce in to break units in one go.

Important, it also has Unit Strength 1, which lets it contribute to Objectives.

While it can take spells, generally you don’t want to make this character any more expensive.

Overall a solid unit, I think the main thing that holds it back is that Undead character slots are in high demand, and unlike a Surge caster, a Healer, or other support caster, the Vampire on Undead Pegasus isn’t a must for most lists.

Balefire Catapults – The best ranged option in Undead. Like most similar War Engines, they have 2 shots that hit on 5s, and ignore intervening cover (however not cover a unit is in). Each hit becomes D3+1 rolls to wound with Piercing 2 and Unholy Flames.

Unholy Flames allow you to reroll D3 failed damage wounds, this is great! Its much better then just being Vicious, and means your Catapult hits generally stick.

Typically, if you are investing points in Catapults you want at least 2, most likely 3 to get a critical mass of fire power to actually threaten opponents. This means that you have to invest nearly 300 points in the unit to get good use from them, but I have found it to be well worth it.

Some threatening shooting goes a long way to forcing opponents that might normally stand off from you to attack your line. It also means when facing a shooting heavy opponent, you can do a bit more the just grit your teeth and run forward into the hail of fire.

Mummies – A great choice for a tough, grindy unit. Mummies are ideal objective grabbers and holders. With Defense 5, -/18 Nerve, and Regen 5+ they can be extremely challenging to shift. If they survive a combat, between Lifeleech and Regen they will heal a good chunk of damage back; if backed up with Drain Life or Heal even better. They are able to do some damage enemies with Crushing Strength 2, but only 12 attacks hitting on 4s means they won’t be killing things on their own too frequently.

I am a big fan of Mummies if you want something similar to Zombie Trolls, but with less damage and more resilience. Mummies are particularly effective versus shooting able to recover if not killed in one go, which means they can really absorb a ton of shots!

Revenants – Revenants are a tankier and better fighting version of a Skeleton. They come base Defense 5, with solid Nerve. Generally you should take them in Regiments or Hordes, rather then Troops. Regiments can be solid to fulfill objective play, anchor a flank, and give unlocks. A horde though, can be a legitimate asset if you get an opponent stuck. With -/24 Nerve they are super tough to shift, and 25 attacks, even at Melee 4, they can hit back decently well. I would usually take Giant Rats in the horde to buff Lifeleech to 2 for even more staying power!

In Clash ’24 they gained the ability to reduce their Defense to 4 and gain Crushing Strength 1. I’m not certain if this is the best choice, as reducing their Defense does impact their survivability; however, if backed up by Bane Chant 25 attacks with Crushing Strength 2 is pretty scary.

Overall Revenants are a solid choice, but I think struggle to see play with the many other similar style units Undead can take.

Vampire Lord– If you want a damage-dealing character, look no further. 7 attacks, Crushing Strength 2, and hitting on 3s, the Vampire is a BEAST. With Duelist it is a major threat to enemy characters, and Lifeleech 2 keeps it alive. Importantly, Mighty lets it hamper enemy units, and 14/16 Nerve means it can possibly survive charges.

You will pretty much always want to mount your Vampire Lord. The extra Speed is crucial.

They do have a free option for Blood Rage, which lowers their Defense to 4, but increases Crushing Strength to 3 and Lifeleech to 3. If taken they can’t take a mount. Unfortunately, this upgrade is pretty bad. Reducing Defense makes the Vampire even squishier, and not being able to take a mount also makes it slower, which is bad.

They can take spells, but Vampires become WAY too expensive once you start layering spells on, and you want them charging into combat instead of casting. The only spell I would consider is Host Shadowbeast.  

Cursed Pharaoh (with Wings) – With Wings the Cursed Pharaoh becomes rather good, Defense 5 and Regen 5+ it’s going to be quite difficult to slay. Surge 5 is solid and lets you pivot and fly to provide vital support when a game-winning surge appears. A Cursed Pharoah with Wings is a great utility piece but is a little expensive coming in at nearly 200 points.

Without Wings, this character is pretty pointless as an option. Either way it isn’t a common choice though.

Goreblight – A Zombie monster, the Goreblight has some nice synergy with Zombie heavy lists, especially with a Necromancer providing Vicious. It is slower than most monsters with Speed 6, but the ability to Surge it, alongside its smaller base size, opens up some great options to hit flanks. Cloak of Death is an interesting rule, that will steadily distribute damage, which, with the right support, could make removing support units and casters much easier for characters or chaff. 

Revenant King –  Pretty cheap, at 80 points, you will always want to pay the extra 25 points to mount them. They Inspire, letting them be another cheap option.

Revenant Kings have 3 attacks which hit on 3s with Crushing Strength 1. This means they have decent chances of grounding flyers or bogging up other units.

They also are Defense 5 with -/14 making them surprisingly tanky for 80 points.

For 10 points, you can also take Surge 5, giving a nice boost to the surge output of your army.

Overall, I don’t see or use Revenant Kings much, but I think they are solid. Particularly if you want a character that can fill a few roles for a cheap price.

Revenant on Undead Great Burrowing Wyrm– Speed 7, Melee 4+, Defense 5+, 12 Attacks, -/18 Nerve, Brutal, Crushing Strength 3, Lifeleech 1, and Strider all make a pretty solid choice. Very similar to a Giant. I think it’s a pretty enticing option. I have recently been running two in my army with Plagued Breath (15 extra points) for some shooting threat.

One important thing to note, they don’t Shamble, which means they can move up relatively quickly compared to the rest of the Undead line. Strider also is AMAZING, providing some much needed terrain mitigation.

In Clash ’24 all Titans get boosted to Unit Strength 2, which also helps assure you aren’t sacrificing Unit Strength by taking them. It also benefits from the Undead Standard Bearer Aura of Wild Charge D3, which means it could have a charge threat of 15″-17″ potentially outspeeding most cav! There isn’t space for them in every list, but I think people who try them are often surprised by how solid they are.

C Tier

Ghouls– Ghouls are my personal favorite chaff choice in Undead. Coming in at a bargain 70 points, they are surprisingly fast, with Speed 6 and Wild charge D3. 12 attacks hitting on 4s means they can also do some damage, especially while hitting flanks. But, with defense 3 and a 9/11 Nerve, they die fast!

In a game that has increasing amounts of low Piercing but high volume fire, Ghoul troops are really easy to remove.

I still like them, but I think with where the game currently is, they struggle to find a place in Undead builds. 

Vampire Lord on Undead Dragon -In general, the Vampire Lord on Dragon is like almost every Dragon in the game, expensive, but with high Crushing Strength and 10 attacks at Melee 3. Fly and Nimble means it (like all dragons) is extremely fast.

The Vampire specifically gets Lifeleech 2 helping it in a grind, or heal some shooting damage back. Icy Breath on the dragon is a let down, 10″ range rather then 12″ pops up a lot during play.

Clash ’24 reduced it points to 300, and boosted its Unit Strength to 2. Overall, I still think its a risky choice. Its a lot of points, more then any hammer in the list, for less damage output. It needs to be seeking flank charges or combo charges. But, against shooting heavy armies it has a big target on it, and is pretty tough to hide. Dragons are cool, but I still think will struggle to see play without boosting their damage output.

Lady Illona – Lady Illona is one of the few remaining characters with Defense 6 which, when combined with her “The Promise of Love Eternal Rule,” means enemy heroes have -1 to hit her, and Lady Illona is extremely difficult to kill. She has all the perks of Vampires on Foot, but 8 attacks and Speed 7! However, she also pays for 4 separate spells, Enthrall (5), Heal (3), Lightning Bolt (3), and Surge (3), this gives her a LOT of options.

Her points have been reduced to 250, which is really pricey. This combined with her slower Speed of 7 means she isn’t a choice that is often worth her points. She can be fun to break out every now and then, but in general a regular Mounted Vampire will offer what she brings to the table, at a faster speed and a discount.

Soul Reaver Cavalry – Soul Reaver Cavalry are only really worth taking in Regiments at 240 points. This isn’t a bad price point, it gets pretty solid offensive stats with Speed 8, 20 attacks hitting on 3s, Crushing Strength 1 and Thunderous Charge 1.

Their defense stats are average, with Defense 5 and a 15/17 Nerve. Lifeleech 2 is nice to heal back damage, but overall you want this unit to break things the turn it charges.

Overall, I think Soul Reaver Cavalry are still tough to justify when compared to Soul Reaver Infantry and Wights. Speed 8 is nice, but when the rest of your army is either Shambling and/or Speed 7 and down, its tough to really take advantage of.

If you want a faster hammer (and have already given a Horde of Wights Brew of Haste) they aren’t a terrible option, they just aren’t great either.

Additionally, Clash ’24 has tried to increase the viability of Phalanx units, and more Phalanx on the board makes Soul Reaver Infantry even more appealing over the Cav.

Wraiths– Wraiths are an odd unit. They are Defense 6, but in Troops only -/12 Nerve, and in Regiments -/16 meaning they are tough to wound, but once a few wounds collect can be in danger of breaking.

They hit on 4s with Crushing Strength 1 and Strider, which, along with Shambling, Fly, and Nimble, makes them one of the best units to threaten for sneaky Surges. However, a Troop even on the Flank is only averaging like 3-4 damage to a Defense 5 unit, meaning they are best for combo charging, or chaffing a unit in a pinch.

Speed 7 is at an awkward point where they are slightly faster then infantry, but slower then everything else, making using this unit sometimes difficult. They are also a bit on the pricey side for what they bring to the table.

Ghoul Gast – Speed 6 and Wild Charge D3, alongside 6 attacks hitting on 3s, means this hero can catch enemies out.

At 95 points, its also just at the sweet spot of affordable, but good. However, it is only defense 4, with a 12/14 nerve, leaving it vulnerable to Wavering or dying at the smallest counter charge.

Inspiring is nice, but the ability to take Aura Thunderous Charge for Ghouls for 20 points is basically a thematic only choice. Since Ghouls in general are only troops its just not worth the points to boost the already fragile unit.

There are many better character choices in Undead, but situationally, the Ghoul Gast might work ok for you, just keep them cheap and assume they die the second something touches them. They could be a good option for the Gnome-Glass Shield if you do take them.

Skeleton Warriors/Spearmen – In an army filled with Regular options, with tarpit options, and with cheap options, Skeletons just don’t manage to shine out in any way.

Zombies are cheaper, with comparable Nerve, and damage output. Many units in the army are better at unlocking, and projecting threats.

Overall Skeletons sadly have no place in the army. If you want an infantry choice tougher than Zombies, with some damage projection, take Revenants or Mummies.

You can make them work in a similar role to Zombies, tar pitting enemies, holding objectives, boosting your Unit Strength, but each time you take Skeletons over Zombies you are mostly just throwing away points … Skeleton Spearmen are slightly better, thanks to Phalanx, but still not great.

Skeleton Spearmen got discounted, with the Regiment a pretty cheap 100 points and the Horde 165 (10 points cheaper). I still think the other choices are just better. Skeleton Warriors can lower their Defense to gain Crushing Strength 1; however, they still hit on 5s… so I would just keep your Defense up.

Overall, I still don’t really see a place in the army for these units, except maybe at the Regiment level, where they are more expensive then Zombies, but more survivable too.

D Tier

Jarvis – Jarvis changes the alignment of Undead to Good, the only way to take him is under the “Noble Undead” army in the companion app. With allies mostly gone from the game, his main gimmick of letting you use Good aligned allies is gone.

Taking him gives you a 120 point caster with Very Inspiring, Bane Chant (2), Heal (3), Lightning Bolt (3), and Surge (8). All relatively middling casting levels, though a nice compliment of spells. He can add 6″ to the range of his spells which is nice. But Zuinok is a better caster for 120 points, or you could take a Liche King and just use the Jarvis model. Overall, I didn’t see him much before, now I think you will never see him.

Lykanis– Fast with Speed 9 and Nimble, the Lykanis unfortunately still gets left behind the competition. It has Crushing Strength 2 and Melee 3+ but only 5 attacks. This also comes with a fairly hefty price of 150 points.

You have the option to take Howl of the Wolf for 25 points to give Aura (Slayer (Melee D3) – Beast Only). But the only Beasts are Beastpack (bad), Werewolves (bad), and Lycanis (still not good). Purely a thematic choice for someone wanting to do a beast theme.

I have also mentioned, Undead tends to have a lot they want to get from character options. This means this underwhelming choice is even harder to justify as it only synergizes with poor choices.

Revenant King on Undead Great Flying Wyrm – This unit serves a little bit like a discounted Dragon coming in 45 points cheaper at 255. It has the normal Dragon stuff, Fly, Nimble, Crushing Strength 3; however, it is Melee 4+ drastically reducing damage output.

-/18 is nice because you will never waver; however, then you remember you are getting several less hits a turn then the Vampire Dragon for only 45 points savings.

Like other Titans, this one goes up to Unit Strength 2; however, its not enough to push them into remotely a viable position within the army.

If you want a cheaper flying monster, go Vampire on Pegasus, if you want a Dragon, pay the extra points to hit on 3s, and if you want a fearless monster save the points and get the harder hitting Revenant King on Burrowing Wyrm (it has 2 more attacks!)

This unit also gets boosted Wild Charge D3 from the Army Standard, which gives some interesting long range flying threat, particularly if you give them Brew of Haste. However, its still expensive. I think I’d rather take the Horde of Revanant cavalry you can almost get for the same points.

Deathpack – Death pack struggle for a place in the army. They are another chaff option, coming in at a bargain 75 points. They are Speed 6, Nimble, and Stealthy which is a decent compliment of rules. However, they are Defense 2 meaning almost every hit converts to a wound.

I think Deathpack struggle because they are the slowest chaff option (Ghouls have Wild Charge) and they don’t really help fill any speed gaps in the army. In my experience they are basically never taken.

Werewolves – Ah Werewolves, I have used them a bunch, and constantly regret taking them. They are theoretically another Hammer at Undead’s disposal. They have Speed 9 and Nimble, Melee 3, 18 attacks, so far so good. However, they only have Crushing Strength 1, meaning they can struggle to take anything off the board unless hitting a flank.

They have average defensive stats with Defense 5 and 15/17 Nerve that means they frequently Waver either from shooting, or right after flubbing a combat roll.

However, the thing that really makes them tough to justify is they are just too expensive for how much finesse they need to pilot correctly.

Clash ’24 reduced the Werewolf Horde to 235 points, giving a 20 point drop. However, that still puts them at similar points to Soul Reaver Infantry and Cavalry which are both just hands down better.

Skeleton Archers – Irregular, poor defense, and Shambling all work against this shooting unit. Unlike other foot archer units, you can’t move these at the double to get them into position. In theory, Shambling lets you Surge them into range and still shoot; however, you have much better things for your casters to usually be doing.

If you absolutely wanted to take these, then a Horde is the way to go, and even then, think of them more as objective carriers and holders, rather than a unit that will do actual damage at range. 

Conclusion and Example List

I hope that review got both new and old players excited for my favorite faction. Undead are an army with a deep bench of viable units and some amazing characters for support and damager. Their biggest weakness is they are relatively slow and thus weak to shooting. Alpha strike also can pose problems. I generally line up a series of charges that aren’t great for my opponent, but tempting, and if I survive 50% of those hits, I envelope and start winning, but if I break more then 50% it gets bad quickly.

But lets see my example list, this is a pretty typical list that I take.

Mummies are an unusual choice for Undead, but I really like how much resilience and grind they add to the army. Backed up by Heal 6 from the Liche King and they can be really difficult to shift.

My hope is that the shooting from the catapults, as well as the Lightning Bolt from the Liche project enough threat opponents feel pressured to take charges.

I like finding difficult terrain to “castle” up in, and try to force Hindered charges to help improve my odds of surviving while also making it harder to shoot me.

My two main hammers are the Soul Reaver Infantry and Wights, but the way the list is build every unit in the list is a threat that you don’t want hitting your flank. Everything in the list is also pretty tough, meaning there aren’t any easy kills.

The Revenant on Burrowing Wyrm supplies some nice terrain mitigation as well as a unit that can be great at shoring up a flank. I like to try to use a pair at once to support each other; however, with some of the changes I wanted to add in a Revenant King on Horse and Lightning Bolt on the Liche.

Overall, I like this list because its tough, has a variety of threats, and has a lot of ability to heal from damage.