Boneswarm

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Boneswarm Minion Gatorman Light Warbeast

The boneswarm is an undulating mass of osseous debris given horrid life and animation by lingering necromantic energies in places where many have died. Gatorman bokors have learned to control these horrors, directing them to envelop foes in a mass of biting, toothy skulls. The bones of its slain victims are incorporated into the boneswarm itself, allowing it to heal damage and grow stronger and more resilient.

Basic Info

Boneswarm
Missing Info
	COST {{{cacost}}} UNIT SIZE {{{casize}}} FA {{{cafa}}} Warcaster 0 BASE Medium SPD 5 STR 8 MAT 6 RAT N/A M.A. N/A DEF 13 ARM 15 CMD N/A ESSENCE {{{essence}}} FOCUS N/A FURY 3 THRS 9 HP 20 F. Field N/A WJP {{{wjp}}} WBP {{{wbp}}} IHP {{{ihp}}} UNIT SIZE N/A COST 7 N/A N/A FA U N/A Warcaster 1 BASE N/A SPD N/A STR N/A MAT N/A RAT N/A DEF N/A ARM N/A CMD N/A FOCUS N/A FURY N/A THRS N/A HP N/A WJP N/A WBP N/A UNIT SIZE N/A COST N/A FA N/A N/A Understanding the Statblock

Abilities

• Warbeast - All warbeasts share a huge stack of special rules. The short version is they're big, furious, and beat stuff up pretty good. Click here to read the long version.
• Amphibious
• Pathfinder
• Undead
• Bone Picker - When this model destroys a living or undead enemy model with a melee attack, this model gains the destroyed model's corpse token and the destroyed model is removed from play. This model can have up to three corpse tokens at any time.
• Death Feast - During its activation, this model can spend corpse tokens to remove d3 damage points for each token spent.
• Death-Powered - This model gains +1 STR and ARM for each corpse token currently on it.
• Steady - This model cannot become knocked down.

Weapons

• Bone Strike - 1" reach, P+S 12 melee attack

Animus

	COST	RNG	AOE	POW	DUR	OFF
Swarm	2	SELF	-	-	Round	No
The spellcaster gains concealment. Living enemy models suffer -2 to attack rolls while within 2" of the spellcaster. Swarm lasts for one round.

Theme Forces

• Minion
  • The Blindwater Congregation
  • The Thornfall Alliance (only if in Midas's battlegroup). It gains Salvage in this theme.
  • Will Work for Food

• Other Factions
  • Skorne players can use this warbeast in the Disciples of Agony theme.
  • If taken by a Gatorman Lesser Warlock (Wrong Eye or Underchief Mire), it can be taken in a butt-load more themes (omitted for brevity).

Recent Changes

No changes since 2017.12

Thoughts on Boneswarm

Boneswarm in a nutshell

The Boneswarm is a cheap light melee warbeast with Steady and Pathfinder. If you have a good way to power it up with corpse tokens (e.g. a Boil Master & Spirit Cauldron) it's definitely worth it - if you can't power it up it's probably too pillow fisted.

Combos & Synergies

• Boil Master & Spirit Cauldron hands out corpse tokens. Suddenly this light beast will pack a bigger punch.
• Gatorman Witch Doctor - it's already undead, so Death Ride is useful.
• Park it in a blob of Gatorman Bokor & Bog Trog Swamp Shamblers to create a truly obnoxious tarpit.
• Maelok the Dreadbound can bump the Boneswarm all the way up to armor 20 on his feat if it's sitting on max corpse tokens.
• Barnabas, Lord of Blood can stack Execration of Blackest Night on top of the Boneswarm's Swarm animus to make it effectively debuff enemy attack rolls by -4 , promoting the warbeast from being simply annoying to legitimately a problem. Plus Barney's Boneshakers are essentially pocket sized Boneswarms. It's like poetry, it rhymes.
• in Disciples of Agony they can benefit from Enrage and Prodding, which mean they hit just as hard as an Archidon.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• They need Corpse Tokens to be anything other than walking casualties. And they don't have good threat ranges even with Pathfinder.
• Only one basic attack at a mediocre POW. You will need some additional damage buff for it to pull its weight.
• Undead mean it can't benefit from Primal or Abuse. Or from the feat of Naaresh.

Tricks & Tips

• Use Gatorman Posse to screen it so that it can get up the field. The Posse is more durable than the bone swarm. With the Boneswarm hiding behind the gatormen/screening unit, it can use it's animus to make the Posse harder to hit in melee.
• Put Rage on the Boneswarm and it can hit much harder, combine this with it's corpse tokens and it can suddenly start denting heavies.
• Cheap Warbeast for Midas to revive with his feat and able to heal itself with corpse tokens.

Other

Trivia

• The Boneswarm originally appeared as a model to accompany the Iron Kingdoms Roleplaying Game, which used the D&D 3.0 ruleset.
• It was released into the Hordes game in Hordes: Domination (2011)

Who can take this warbeast

With the way Minion battlegroups work, this warbeast can't simply be taken by any Minion warlock, and instead it must be controlled by one of the following:

Gatorman Warlocks (Edit)
Warlocks	Barnabas1 - Barnabas2 - Calaban1 - Jaga-Jaga1 - Maelok1 - Rask1
Lesser Warlocks	Underchief Mire - Wrong Eye

Alternatively, a Skorne warlock can take this warbeast in the Disciples of Agony theme. Also, Midas can take this warbeast.

Rules Clarifications

Rules Clarification:  : Warbeast      (Edit) (Click Expand to read)

See also the Warbeast page for a recap of the core warbeast rules. Forcing If an ability doesn't specify how much it costs to force, it costs 1. (Infernal Ruling) Animi A single Animus can be on several models at the same time. (Infernal Ruling) Unlike in Mk2, in Mk3 if a model has an animus on it from any source and then another animus is cast on that model, it will lose the first instance of an animus and will be replaced by the second. It does not matter if either the first animus or the second animus is from a warlock or warbeast. (Infernal Ruling) An animi cast by a warlock is an animi and a spell. (Infernal Ruling) Transferring Damage If both the warlock and the warbeast are damaged by the same attack (such as an AOE), then you need to apply the 'normal' damage to the warbeast before the transferred damage. This distinction can be important when you're working out who/what actually destroyed the beast. (Infernal Ruling) Frenzy You cannot trigger optional abilities during a Frenzy (such as Cleave). (Infernal Ruling) You must trigger compulsory abilities during a Frenzy ... unless that ability generates an extra attack (like Berserk). In that case, you don't get the Berserk attack. (Infernal Ruling) A warbeast may not make an Assault shot as part of a Frenzy activation. (Refer latest errata) If the closest target to a warbeast resolving a Frenzy cannot be charged, then the warbeast will forfeit movement and action (as per the rules of having to charge and not being able to). (Infernal Ruling) If a frenzying warbeast can't reach its charge target (because the charge lane is blocked by terrain, etc) then it will make a failed charge and end its activation. (Locked thread)

Rules Clarification : Amphibious - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification : Pathfinder      (Edit) Pathfinder (Edit) - Pathfinder does not apply to involuntary movement (pushes & slams). (Infernal Ruling)

Rules Clarification : Undead - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification : Bone Picker and/or Bone Pile     (Edit) This model only gets the corpse if it's the closest eligible model. Bone Picker doesn't have the "regardless of proximity of other models" wording like Dark Fire does. This will hardly ever come up, considering the short range of most melee weapons. It'll come up slightly more often for Barnabus2. RFP on Destroyed (Edit) Corpse/Soul generation and collection isn't an ability that you trigger, it just happens the instant a model is destroyed. As such, if an attack RFPs the target on destroyed (such as Bone Picker), it will not stop corpse/souls. (Infernal Ruling) In saying that though, Golab's Carrion Feast ability messes everything up. You can read more about that weird rule interaction here.

Rules Clarification : Death Feast      (Edit) You roll a new d3 each time you spend a token. Restrictions on "Any Time" abilities     (Edit)         [Show/Hide] "Any Time" abilities can be used at any time during a model/unit's activation, except: Before any compulsory forfeiture of movement/action. See step 2 of the activation sequence, appendix A. After the model with the "Any Time" ability has had their activation end "prematurely". By this I mean you resolved something which includes the phrase "its activation ends". Examples include: Running, failing a charge, or failing a slam. Abilities that include "then its activation ends" (such as Reposition and Teleport). In between declaring your charge target and making your charge movement. (Infernal Ruling) In between completing your charge movement and determining whether it was a successful charge. (Infernal Ruling) When you're in the middle of moving. (Note: Impact Attacks count as being in the middle of movement). When you're in the middle of an attack. Which also includes effects that occur "after the attack is resolved". (Although the attack is "resolved" at Step 11, in terms of using an "Any Time" ability the attack is not "finished" until after Step 14. Refer to the first paragraph of Apdx A.) Your opponent interrupted your activation to trigger one of their own abilities (such as Countercharge). Warcasters/warlocks/etc can normally cast a spell or use their feat "At any time". However, there is a core rule saying they cannot do so on the same activation that they run. So, they are subject to all the same restrictions listed above, plus they can't cast/feat before running. Units: See below. In general you can use "Any Time" abilities while you're knocked down or stationary (except Spells and Feats which specify you can't). If you have a gun with a random ROF, you can use an "Any Time" ability inbetween rolling the number of shots and actually making the first attack. (Infernal Ruling) Units with "Any Time" abilities You cannot use an "Any Time" ability before issuing/receiving orders. See step 1 and 2 of the activation sequence, appendix A. A model in a unit can't use an "Any Time" ability after they run (Infernal Ruling) or fail a charge. Because that makes that specific model's activation to end even though the unit's activation is still ongoing, and you can't use abilities on models that are not active. You can use an "Any Time" ability before running, however. A model in a unit can't use an "Any Time" ability after anyone in the unit has begun a Reposition move. (Infernal Ruling)

Rules Clarification : Death-Powered - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification : Steady      (Edit) Steady models are still susceptible to other effects of knock-down attacks (if there are any). For example, a steady model hit with a Head butt won't be knocked down but will take damage. A knocked down model that gains Steady will remain knocked down, because the "cannot be knocked down" is not retroactively applied.

Rules Clarification : Ashen Veil and/or Swarm     (Edit) The concealment bonus and the attack roll penalty stack with each other. If a living model targets you with a gun/spell, and they're within 2" of you, they effectively suffer -4 to the attack. The attack roll penalty applies to all types of attacks. The attack roll penalty applies even if the enemy model is trying to target something completely different.