Build Me an Army Worthy of... Mordor

Hello readers, I have another 'Build Me an Army Worthy of...' post today. This time we look at the hugely versatile forces of Mordor. Once again, I have a 500pts and an 800pts list which I would bring to an EAHC event, the local fluffy yet still competitive community. For anyone in the East/South East of England, please join the East Anglia Hobbit Community group of Facebook so that you are aware of any events we have upcoming and can share your hobby work. We are always happy to see new faces at our events!

Before I share my first list, it is important to note that Mordor is a vast faction and I could have created countless lists which all achieved different things. Mordor is one of the most flexible factions in the game and its roster gives players access to many different play styles and approaches. For any new players reading this, Mordor is ideal for a beginner as it allows you to expand in many directions and will teach you most of the rules in the game. Anyway, let's march to war for Sauron!

Cirith Ungol-ish - 500pts

Shagrat with heavy armour and shield of Cirith Ungol

5 Black Numenoreans

5 Morannon orcs with spear and shield

1 Morannon orc with spear, shield and banner

1 warg rider with shield

Gorbag with shield

5 Black Numenoreans

6 Morannon orcs with spear and shield

Shelob

26 models

This force is largely inspired by Cirith Ungol, with the heroes all hailing from around that area of Mordor, but it deviates from theme with the inclusion of black Numeoreans. The Numenoreans could easily be traded in for Mordor uruk-hai if you wanted to fully commit to the theme. At 26 models, with all but 1 at D6 or higher, you have a hard to kill, well-numbered force to do the Dark Lord's bidding, not to mention a 6 wound monster.

The leader of this list is the powerhouse Shagrat. Despite having a quite ridiculous name, he has overcome that adversity to become quite possibly the best value combat hero in the game. For the points you pay, you get, rare for an Evil hero, 3s in all the right places (3 attacks, wounds, Might, Will and Fate). Not only that, Shaggers is great at cutting down enemies with his S5 and should always pick up heavy armour and his unique shield of Cirith Ungol to get to D7. With all that combined, Shagrat is already a strong offensive and defensive option to lead your Mordor forces. However, he further adds to his value due to a few extra rules. First, his shield of Cirith Ungol grants him the knockdown bonus when he charges as if he were cavalry. What's better than 3 S5 attacks? 3 S5 attacks with double strikes! Blood and Glory is the second rule which helps Shagrat shine. Giving Shagrat a point of Might back each time he kills an enemy hero, Blood and Glory means Shaggy-boy can hunt down your opponents low-mid tier heroes, Strike up to win the fight and then use his 6 S5 strikes to kill them and regain the Might he just spent. Very nice! 

Shagrat is backed up by 5 black Numenoreans. Possibly my favourite troops in the game, the Numenoreans are less killy than your Morannons at only S3 but they come with a whole host of other benefits. At FV4, D6 and causing Terror, they are an excellent front line troop. The FV4 helps you to match or sometimes better your opponents FV, an issue when only fielding orcs. Further, their solid D6 means they often hold their own when they do lose a fight. However, Terror is where the real benefit comes in. Even if only 1 or 2 enemies fail to charge, each failed charge tips the combat more in your favour. Facing a terror wall front line is a real pain for any player and the decent C4 the Numenoreans come with also help to combat any Terror your opponent has. Back them up with the great S4, D6 Morannon orcs to do the killing and you have a strong shield wall, complete with a banner for those crucial duel rerolls. The lone warg rider in the warband helps to add a little mobility for grabbing objectives or denying a key charge from opposition cavalry.

Next up we have Gorbag. I think Gorbag is a hugely underrated model and offers a lot for his points. On initial inspection, Gorbag has the very average orc captain profile but costs a little more for an extra Might point and access to Strike and Strength instead of March. FV4, S4 and 2 attacks is far from inspiring but it is through his special rule, Orcish Brawler, where Gorbag shines. Any time Gorbag is outnumbered in a fight (spear supports don't count), he gains +1 FV and A. All of a sudden, you have a 3 Might, 3 attack, FV5 hero with Strike for little more than a captain! The rule is easy to trigger when you have priority as you can just chuck Gorbag into two enemies and stick a spear support on him for 4 dice at FV5 in a duel. But is also creates a problem for your opponent if they have priority. If they charge Gorbag with 2 models, they increase his stats so don't want to do that. However, if they only charge him with one model, it gives you the opportunity to call a Heroic Combat with a good chance of winning as long as you have a spear support. You can then use this to move into two enemies and boost Gorbag anyway. All in all, Gorbag is a plucky little orc who you will find often exceeds your expectations. His waband is completed with a mix of black Numenoreans and Morannon orcs to further extend your dangerous, terror-causing shield wall.

The final warband is but a single model: Shelob. A divisive choice, Shelob is often the subject of debate for SBG fans as to whether she is excellent or a walking waste of points. For me, she is brilliant and gives you great tactical flexibility for a reasonable price. FV7, S7 and D7 is a super start and makes everyone's favourite giant arachnid a worrying prospect for your opponent. With 6 wounds, she is tough to wound and is able to move 10" whilst traversing obstacles without issue. So why the division? Well she only has 1 attack. Despite having 8 legs and a giant stinger, her 1 attack is an issue although Monstrous Charge does get this to 2A on the charge with Knock Down against all models. Further, Shelob has no Might of her own and suffers from the Survival Instinct rule, meaning every time she suffers a wound, she must pass a Courage test or flee the battlefield. At only C4, this is a concern but with 6 Will points, she is usually pretty safe. For me, Shelob is the ultimate distraction. Your opponent will always be worried when she is around, particularly given she also has the Venom rule meaning she rerolls all falled wounds in combat. She is great at picking up objects and her mobility, combined with access to Brutal Power Attacks like Hurl, means she is a constant thorn in the side for your opponent. 

This army brings great killing power and a strong, durable shield wall. The lack of March means you may face a few turns of enemy shooting but your high defence is usually enough to keep casualties minimal. When battle lines meet, your Numenorean/Morannon pairings should outperform your opponent whilst you heroes cut down enemy heroes (Shagrat) and troops (Gorbag). Shelob is your trump card to using wherever she is best needed. 

The Wraith and his Protege - 800pts

Shagrat with heavy armour and shield of Cirith Ungol

5 Black Numenoreans

5 Morannon orcs with spear and shield

1 Morannon orc with spear, shield and banner

1 warg rider with shield

Gorbag with shield

5 Black Numenoreans

6 Morannon orcs with spear and shield

1 warg rider with shield

Ringwraith (2/13/2) with horse

5 Black Numenoreans

6 Morannon orcs with spear and shield

1 warg rider with shield

Kardush

6 Morannon orcs with spear and shield

5 Mordor orcs with spear

1 warg rider with shield

52 models.

With 52 models, this 800pts force packs in great numbers as well as having a number of other tricks up its sleeve. The core force is the same as the 500pts list, with a Terror front line of black Numenoreans supported by Morannons and Shagrat and Gorbag leading the troops. Interestingly, all the heroes are Heroes of Fortitude so you can be flexible with who your leader is. I would usually go for the wraith as you can really chuck Shagrat into combat then but Shagrat is also a solid choice. So what do the additions to the list bring to the table?

First up, I'm bringing a standard wraith to the table. I always max out Might and Fate on wraiths and then tailor the amount of Will to the points size. At 800pts, 13 or 14 pts is a good shout as it gives you plenty of resources with which to hamper opponent's heroes. The spooky wraith uses the mobility of his horse to get where he needs to be and hangs behind the front line, wreaking havoc in relative safety. His Harbinger of Evil rule also lends itself well to the Terror front line, further messing up your opponent's tactics. 

The real star of the force though is Kardush. Kardush is a named orc shaman and comes with a few extra tricks when compared to his nameless brethren. First, he is a Hero of Fortitude as opposed to a Minor Hero. This open up six more troops slots for your army and removes one of the key drawbacks of orc shamans. An even bigger and more important difference between a nameless shaman and Kardush is his mastery of fire. Kardush the Flamecaller replaces the standard 5+ Transfix spell with the stupidly good Flameburst on a ridiculous 3+. This causes a S6 hit on the targeted model within 6" of Kardush. There are numerous uses for this: removing spear supports, unhorsing models, killing models holding objects and many more. A favourite of mine is to get the Ringwraith to compel a banner bearer so they are no longer in base contact with a friendly model and then get Kardush to light him up. If you succeed, Kardush has already paid for half his cost and your opponent has lost his important banner. One issue with orc shamans is that they only have 3 Will, just like Kardush. But he refuses to be restrained to only having 3 casting opportunities! Through his Heart of Darkness rule, Kardush can remove a friendly orc within 6" of him before priority to regain D3 Will points. That is why he has 6 Mordor orcs in his warband, all there to fuel Kardush's bonfire party. Even after all that, Kardush has one further bonus, you can sacrifice him through his Shadow Pawn rule. This rule removes Kardush and allows a Ringwraith regain D6 Will points. For a few points over a standard shaman, who you only bring for Fury which Kardush has anyway, it is a no-brainer to take this orcish pyromaniac!

This is a tough army to face on the tabletop. With good magical support and damage, a decent amount of Might, high defence troops, a terror causing front line and March to aide with mobility, it really covers most bases. It allows you to adapt your tactics and playstyle effectively and can deal with most threats effectively. When lines meet, let your troops hold their own as Shagrat and Gorbag apply extra pressure to the opponent. Just make sure you protect Kardush and the wraith from any Heroic Combatting heroes and they can spend the game Transfixing key models or, failing that, setting them on fire!

So there's my two Mordor lists. As mentioned at the beginning, there are so many more options to explore. Gothmog, his lieutenants and a horde of Morannons can be excellent, the Witch King is a wonderful leader and the Mouth of Sauron and Troll Chieftain in a Black Gate LL are all competitive choices for a Mordor army. What's your preferred flavour for Mordor?

Thanks for reading,

Kieran