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In previous editions of the game, only five of the vampire bloodlines were treated: Lahmians, Von Carsteins, Blood Dragons, Strigoi, and Necrarchs. With the re-release of the Vampire Counts army book in March 2008, Games Workshop has diverted focus onto the Von Carsteins. However the ability to diversify vampires with the new 'vampiric abilities' section has kept the option of fielding bloodlines other than Von Carsteins in the Vampire Counts army list, at least from a narrative point of view. For example, a Blood Dragon could technically be fielded by taking a vampire with the 'avatar of death' upgrade.
The armies of the Vampire Counts feature some similar units to the Tomb Kings, another undead army, but the two operate very differently. Vampire Count armies are primarily hordes of low-quality infantry, made up of classic undead creatures like skeletons, zombies, ghosts and ghouls, alongside elite units of Black Knights, Grave Guard, and various other creatures typically depicted as being in league with vampires, such as wolves or bats. These hordes are led by powerful Vampires, Necromancers, Wights (a form of undead warrior), or other undead. When comparing the armies it is easiest to use the appearance of the army and a general rule of thumb: if the army is 95% bone (skeletons, bone giants, bone scorpions, etc.) with an 'Egyptian' theme, it is Khemri. If there are anywhere from 20-40% fleshed units (vampires, ghouls, zombies, zombie dragons, etc.), it is Vampire Counts. The only 'war machine' for the Vampire Counts is the "Black Coach", driven by a wraith bearing a scythe and drawn by two skeletal steeds.
A big difference has come since the Undead were separated into the Tomb Kings and Vampire Counts. Vampire Counts have access to strong heroes and much of the troops from the old Undead, making it more of a successor to the formerly united army. They also are able to raise undead in the game. Tomb Kings have the larger number of troops, tougher/bigger troops and never miscast spells. In short, Vampire Counts rely more on combat and attrition tactics more than Tomb Kings, whereas the latter rely more on the spells of the liche priests and strong blocks of elite undead (Tomb Kings can field entire armies of heavy skeletal horseman and light chariots without a single foot-soldier in sight).
The resurrected dead are bound to the service of Vampires by foul Necromantic magic. The bulk of their armies consists of skeletons and zombies, with small units of Ghouls - living cannibals, driven insane by the flesh of humans. Bats are naturally drawn towards the power of Vampires. Elite units of Grave Guard, heavily armoured skeleton champions, march to war alongside the immortal vampires, and the dread Black Coaches thunder into battle, able to move even if the skeleton horses pulling it have been shot down. Necromancers are living wizards who have turned to darkness, and provide magical support. Vampires are almost indomitable in combat. Vampires also possess magical abilities which they use to destroy foes, and cover the sunny skies with clouds while marching to war. Cairn Wraiths are wizards who failed to become immortal, only their soul is left, wrapped in a cloak of darkness - these Rare choice units can be led by a howling banshee.
In the army's newest edition (7th) a few new units were introduced. Corpse Carts are an un-living mess of zombies on wheels, and can serve as a mount for a Necromancer. Varghulfs are Vampires who allowed their bestial instincts to overwhelm them, and have mutated and devolved into huge bat-like monsters possessed of enormous fighting power and boundless ferocity. Blood Knights are another Vampire unit, an elite brotherhood of vampire knights hailing from the fortress of Blood Keep in the Grey Mountains. In 2011 Tomb Banshees and Cairn Wraiths received a visual remake, having this time only one type of each model instead of having three different variants with different poses.
Read more about this topic: Vampire Counts (Warhammer)
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