The Emberwatch - Warband Review

The first warband for the new edition of Warhammer Underworlds, Embergard, features the Age of Sigmar poster boys, the Emberwatch. This group consists of three Stormcast Eternals who have spent many years in the fiery, emotion-riven realm of Aqshy.

The warband includes the leader, Ardorn Flamerunner [1], alongside the assassin, Farasa Twice-Risen [2], and the marksman, Yurik Velzaine [3].

Fighter Characteristics

Each of the Emberwatch warriors has similar basic characteristics.

Ardorn Flamerunner, the leader of the Emberwatch, has a Move of 3, a Save of 1 Block, a Health of 5, and a Bounty of 3. He wields a melee weapon with Range 1, 2 Hammers for 2 Damage, and a ranged weapon with Range 3, 2 Hammers for 1 Damage. Upon Inspiration, Ardorn's Save increases to 2 Block, and both his ranged and melee weapons improve from 2 to 3 Hammers, boosting his accuracy significantly.

Farasa Twice-Risen, the assassin, also has a Move of 3, a Save of 1 Block, a Health of 5, and a Bounty of 2. She wields a melee weapon with Range 1, 3 Swords for 2 Damage, and a ranged weapon with Range 3, 2 Hammers for 1 Damage. Upon Inspiration, Farasa’s Save improves to 2 Block, and her melee attack upgrades from 3 to 4 Swords, while her ranged attack changes from 2 Hammers to 3 Swords. Although her attacks are the least accurate of the Emberwatch, they can potentially achieve the most successes. Additionally, her melee attack with four dice could be useful for scoring objectives that require rolling varied results (such as "Branching Fate" from Blazing Assault) or a higher number of dice (like "Overwhelming Force" from Countdown to Cataclysm).

Yurik Velzaine, the marksman, has a Move of 3, a Save of 1 Block, a Health of 5, and a Bounty of 2. He wields a melee weapon with Range 1, 2 Hammers for 2 Damage, and his primary attack is a ranged weapon with Range 4, 2 Hammers for 1 Damage. Upon Inspiration, Yurik’s weapons gain additional attack dice, increasing from 2 to 3 Hammers, which boosts his accuracy.

All ratings out of 5 (What do the stats mean?)

How Do the Emberwatch Inspire?

Each Emberwatch fighter inspires individually after an Action Step if they began that Action Step in enemy territory and used a core ability (Move, Charge, Guard, etc.).

This is a straightforward Inspire condition, though it often requires each fighter to activate twice to complete and involves positioning them in risky areas. Despite the risks, the benefits of Inspiration, especially the improved Save, are worthwhile, especially for Ardorn and Farasa.

Warscroll Abilities

The warband’s faction ability, Alone We Stand, allows you to push each friendly fighter in a different territory from another friendly fighter, ensuring they do not end up adjacent to another friendly fighter. Essentially, this allows you to push friendly fighters during the last Power Step of a round. While this requires some planning, it becomes easier if one or more friendly fighters are out of action.

This ability is strategically valuable. When used well, it can help claim a Treasure Token to score an objective, position a fighter in another territory, or set up an attack for the next round. Pushes are highly valuable in Underworlds, and this ability pairs well with Take and Hold decks. I would rate it 4 out of 5, as the positioning requirements can occasionally make it challenging to use.

One-Use Abilities

All one-use abilities from the Warscroll are Surge abilities:

Vanguard Dash is an intriguing tactical ability. After your Action Step, pick a friendly fighter, remove them from the board, and place them in an empty edge hex. Notably, it doesn’t have to be the same fighter used in that turn, so it could set up an Inspire in your next turn, which is especially useful combined with ranged attacks. It could also deny your opponent the ability to score Objective cards that require no enemy fighters in friendly terrain, such as "Denial." This ability is particularly effective after the final Action Step of a round, especially when combined with Alone We Stand to hold a Treasure Token. The only restriction is moving to an edge hex, but this still offers a broad range of options. Overall, 4 out of 5.

Deadly Sentries is a versatile strategic ability that gives a weapon +1 Range, enhancing your threat range. It’s useful for reaching enemy fighters that your opponent believes are safely positioned. I would save this ability until it’s truly needed, likely using it later in the game to keep opponents’ fighters at a distance while still attacking. Increasing a melee weapon’s range to 2 could also be beneficial. While it may not be game-winning, it’s certainly helpful. Overall, 3 out of 5.

The Raptors of Sigmar is a powerful ability. After a successful attack that leaves an enemy fighter Vulnerable, deal 1 additional damage. This ability has no range restriction, so it can even be used with Yurik’s Range 4 attack. Although it requires the enemy to be Vulnerable, it’s a high-impact ability I would use at the first opportunity. Overall, 5 out of 5.

Possible Playstyle Pairings

Main Playstyle: Flex

Strike: This warband’s durability allows them to engage with enemy warbands, though they may lack the damage output to excel fully at Strike. Overall, 3 out of 5.

Take and Hold: This will be challenging for this warband due to their low Move and small fighter count. With careful use of their Warscroll abilities, they might still find some success. Overall, 2 out of 5.

Flex: This is likely the best playstyle for the Emberwatch. Against Take and Hold warbands, they can adopt a more aggressive approach, while against Strike warbands, they can use their durability to resist attacks and claim Treasure Tokens. Overall, 4 out of 5.

Mastery: The Mastery playstyle often revolves around specific objectives set by a plot card. The only available deck, Countdown to Cataclysm, is geared toward advancing the Cataclysm Counter, which could suit the Emberwatch. Rating: 3 out of 5.

My experience, so far

Having played the Emberwatch a few times, I have found them to be a solid warband. Their main draw backs have been the lack of access to 3 damage from the start of the game and their move of 3 hexes. They are, however, quite durable and accurate, especially when inspired. 

In every game, I have played with them I have always managed to inspire both Ardorn and Farasa within the first round. Their access to both missile and melee weapons on all three fighters means they have a good threat range, but as already mentioned it is their damage output that reduces their effectiveness. When building a deck for this warband, every effort should be taken to boost this aspect of their game. 

I like to use all three of the warbands one use abilities I the first round of the game, giving the warband a large power boost. If used well, these abilities means at least one of my fighters are inspired, an enemy fighter is slain and I have gained Glory allowing me to apply some upgrades.

Yurik is an interesting fighter, which opponents often underestimate. He is seen as a long range fighter who only causes 1 damage. However, his melee attack is as good as Ardorn's, who is normally viewed as the primary threat. As such, Yurik can be upgraded to become a melee 'monster' with some damage boost cards. His one downside is that his Save does not improve upon inspiration, but this can be remedied with a Save upgrade.

Conclusion

I am excited to use this warband. I honed my skills in the last edition by focusing on Xandire's Truthseekers, and the Emberwatch feels like an evolution of the Farstriders rather than the Truthseekers. These Stormcast Eternals may be the warband that helps me master the new edition.

The Emberwatch has impressive durability, particularly when inspired, though they lack high-damage attacks; none of their fighters deal more than 2 damage per attack. They are also somewhat slow, with a Move value of 3, which is mitigated by their abilities and by each fighter’s combination of ranged and melee options. In many ways, they resemble the Farstriders from Shadespire.

Their durability is a major asset, though they may struggle to achieve the Strike playstyle’s damage potential. Instead, they seem best suited to opportunistic kills and Treasure token holding, adopting a Flex playstyle (I’m a fan of Flex myself). This warband’s true strength lies in their ability to reposition unexpectedly, making it hard for opponents to predict their location at the end of a round.

What are your thoughts on the new warband? How do you think they might play?

Checkout my Warhammer Underworlds for more articles.

Thanks for reading and I hope to see you soon in the Underworlds.