Supreme Kommandant Irusk
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Supreme Kommandant Irusk |
Unlimited Only This model can only be used in the Unlimited game mode. You can see the other models with / without mk4 rules on this page. Note that the rest of this page is about the model's Mark III rules. |
Having failed in his first assault on Northguard, Irusk received a severe dressing down by Empress Vanar. The accusation that he had wasted the lives of his men cut particularly deep. He took a short leave in which he considered falling on his sword, an honorable death for a disgraced soldier such as himself. However he was summoned by the Empress before he could act and promoted to Supreme Kommandant, a direct challenge to his legacy. Irusk knows the empress' unspoken command is that only total victory will suffice. Irusk now enters battle determined to earn his new rank by using all his stratagems and strategic planning to utterly defeat the motherland's enemies.
Basic Info
Irusk2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Warcaster - All warcasters come with a stack of standard special rules - most notably being awesome. Click here for a newbie-friendly recap, or click here for the full rules.
Feat: Desperate Ground
- Friendly Faction models currently in Irusk's control range ignore cloud effects and forests when determining LOS and gain Pathfinder.
- Affected models currently knocked down immediately stand up, unless they became knocked down earlier this turn.
- Enemy models/units beginning their activations in Irusk's control range suffer -3 SPD.
- Desperate Ground lasts for one round.
Abilities
- Tactician [ Faction warrior ] - While in this model's command range, friendly Faction warrior models can ignore other friendly Faction warrior models when determining LOS. Friendly Faction warrior models can advance through other friendly Faction warrior models in this model's command range if they have enough movement to move completely past them.
- Total Obedience - While in this model's command range, friendly living non-warcaster/warlock Faction warrior models gain Tough.
Weapons
Hand Cannon | ||||||||||||||
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RNG | ROF | AOE | POW | ||||||||||
12 | 1 | - | 12 | |||||||||||
Endgame | ||||||||||||||
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RNG | POW | P+S | |||||||||||
0.5 | 7 | 13 | ||||||||||||
Spells
COST | RNG | AOE | POW | DUR | OFF | ||
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Airburst
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3 | Control | 4 | 8 | - | Yes | |
Target any model in the spellcaster's control range, ignoring LOS. When resolving Airburst, ignore cover, concealment, and Stealth. Models hit suffer a POW 8 blast damage roll. | |||||||
Artifice of Deviation
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2 | Control | 5 | - | Upkeep | No | |
Place a 5" AOE anywhere completely within the spellcaster's control range. While completely within the AOE, friendly Faction models gain cover. Enemy models treat the AOE as rough terrain. | |||||||
Battle Lust
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3 | 6 | - | - | Turn | No | |
Target friendly Faction warrior model/unit gains an additional die on melee damage rolls. Battle Lust lasts for one turn. | |||||||
Energizer
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2 | SELF | - | - | - | No | |
Each model in the spellcaster's battlegroup that is currently in its control range can immediately advance up to 2". Energizer can be cast only once per activation. | |||||||
Fire for Effect
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3 | 6 | - | - | Upkeep | No | |
Boost the attack and damage rolls of target friendly Faction model's first ranged attack each activation. | |||||||
Solid Ground
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2 | SELF | Control | - | Upkeep | No | |
While in the spellcaster's control range, friendly Faction models cannot become knocked down and gain Blast Resistance.
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Theme Forces
- Armored Korps
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Flame in the Darkness - Jaws of the Wolf
- Legion of Steel
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Warriors of the Old Faith - Winter Guard Kommand. In this theme the caster gains Sacrificial Pawn [Winter Guard trooper model].
- Wolves of Winter
Thoughts on Irusk2
Irusk2 in a Nutshell
Still a peerless tactician, Supreme Kommandant Gurvaldt Irusk continues to exemplify the notion of a classic military general. After his sarcastic promotion to Supreme Kommandant following his failed assault on Northguard, Irusk has shifted gears to become a superlative backfield support warcaster among the best - if not the best - in Khador. Compared to his previous incarnation, the Supreme Kommandant favors large-scale infantry strategies with strong ranged components to batter the opponent as they advance. He has adapted his suite of control tools to set the terms of engagement and manipulate the very battlefield into fighting for him. He is able to deliver his forces to the enemy while minimizing the opponents' ways of retaliating, traversing even rough terrain with ease but denying the opponent that ability.
Irusk has truly mastered infantry command and can lead any force with confidence. All his attention is aimed towards pushing his forces to their absolute zenith as he leads from within thick infantry formations thriving under his iron will. His 10" Tactician aura keeps his forces from getting tangled up and lets them pull of some very unpredictable maneuvers while Tough thanks to his unique Total Obedience ability. Friendly Faction warriors advancing with Irusk always have a leg up in maneuverability and survivability. Gone are Irusk's targeted Battle Plans, he now commands with an almost subconscious ease.
Irusk's forces should consist of a large volume of Khador warriors of any kind to benefit from his support toolbox. He has relinquished all his battlegroup-specific tools and abilities so there's no reason to do more than use up his 27 WarJack Points (WJP) and spend everything else on warriors. While his devastating Fire for Effect spell can be cast on non-battlegroup models it makes sense to put a warjack under his control with a good ranged weapon that doesn't rely on a high ROF to be effective. That's code for "he's great with a Colossal" by the way.
Irusk can be characterized as a micro- and macro-support warcaster this time around. Compared to his earlier incarnation his abilities have shifted away from micromanaging specific units to a less hands-on, more strategic combat style. His Feat, Tactician, Total Obedience and Solid Ground establish wide, general influence over his forces while disrupting the opponent whereas Battle Lust and Fire for Effect retain his penchant for tactical intervention on specific units/models. A tertiary theme to his toolkit is his ability to control the board and disrupt enemy mobility, again shown in his Feat, but also Artifice of Deviation and Solid Ground. As before, you'll be marching Irusk with a large Infantry formation, but he shouldn't be mixing things up in combat anymore and instead be kept slightly further back now that he doesn't use Battle Plans anymore.
Feat thoughts
The feat is a toolbox of abilities so let us unpack it:
- Friendly faction models in control ignore forests and clouds for LOS: A great counter to certain lists that rely on forest (Circle) or clouds (most factions in some form or another) to block LOS to their important models.
- FF models gain Pathfinder: Makes forests completely useless to your opponent for a turn combined with the above part of the feat.
- Knocked down models stand up unless they were KD this turn: Less useful now that Irusk has Solid Ground as a spell, but good for things that managed to wander out of your control range somehow.
- Enemy models/units activating in Irusk's control range suffer -3 SPD: Generally used to blunt an opponent's initial charge along with rough terrain from Artifice of Deviation.
All of these independent parts make the feat hard to time properly, knowing when to use it can be difficult. It is often hard to get to use every facet of the feat on the same turn, but making sure to get more out of it than just the SPD penalty is when it is used is very important.
Spell thoughts
- Airburst: It's low POW, and the fact that numerous units are (or can be) resistant to blast damage, first make this spell seemingly lackluster. However, it nullifies most of the ranged defence tech and can effectively threaten squishy, elusive models. Supporting solos (like Mechaniks or Beast Handlers) and CRA-capable ranged combatants, (like Long Gunners or Blighted Nyss Archers) are all available targets. Its high FOC cost restricts spamming, but it can become very handy in certain situations. You can also center it on your warjacks to clear jamming infantry as its low POW is unable to harm most of the Khadoran ARM.
- Artifice of Deviation: Another Control range spell with 2 main uses. A 5" AOE granting cover when and where you need it to help protect and deliver key peices, or 5" of rough terain dropped in front of your enemies non pathfinder melee troops to stop their charge.
- Battle Lust: Works wonders on hard hitting units, making them psuedo-Weapon Masters for the turn. Even weaker troops -such as the 'lowly' Winter Guard Infantry- become sudden melee threats (even moreso with Joe giving them a much-needed strength buff). It's best on models that can make multiple melee attacks in an activation like the Great Bears, Iron Fang Uhlans making impact attacks and even Kayazy Eliminators in a pinch.
- Energizer: While a bit of niche spell on a non-'jack 'caster it is surprisingly useful for shifting Irusk's battlegroup into and out of firing range and melee. It frequently lets your warjacks Aim where they would otherwise need to shift a few inches to get their guns into range.
- Fire for Effect: You want at least one scary gun to make use of this spell. It's possible to juggle it but it's massive casting cost means it's typically less cumbersome to just upkeep it on one big weapon throughout the battle. Because it boosts boosts the to hit and ALL damage rolls on the first ranged attack from the model so AOE guns are advised as it will boost all blast damage as well.
- Solid Ground: No knockdown and Blast Resistance to all FF models within 14" of Irusk. This means that warrior models who succeed their tough rolls thanks to Total Obedience are good to make another tough roll. Blast Resistance lets you cluster models without fear of most AOE's (though watch out for sprays still) and models such as the Kayazy Eliminators become extremely obnoxious to remove.
Drawbacks & Downsides
- Low personal damage output
- Tactician and Total Obedience use his 10" CMD range
- Vulnerable to assassination
- Vulnerable to upkeep hate
- Doesn't increase his army's movement speed
- Mk3 is less friendly to infantry
- People will know you're running infantry and can tech against you
Tricks & Tips
- Energizer also affects Irusk
- Be aware: Artifice of Deviation does nót create a cloud effect and does not block LOS.
- You can use Solid Ground to shoot blasts close to your own models
- He can free up Kovnik Joe and Atanas to do other things than dole out Tough.
- While Total Obedience doesn't work with non-Living models, Tactician does.
- Total Obedience and Tactician have 10" bubbles but Solid Ground extends 14".
List Building Advice
Strategy
Irusk2 likes a good attrition grind, providing dramatic upswings in damage via Battle Lust and better durability to his troops via no-Knockdown Tough. His feat and Artifice of Deviation allow for solid control of the board, and it can be difficult to stop his army from advancing due to the aforementioned factors and Tactician allowing his army to run like a well-oiled machine. He plays with the ability to constantly pressure his opponent via his army's durability as opposed to the bolder moves of his previous version, but is still a powerful, flexible warcaster and (one of) Khador's premier warcaster.
Irusk2 works great with all Khador units, so we won't discuss each individually.
Theme Thoughts
A true metal grind. Battle Lust can make up for the lower volume of attacks, while Irusk can keep his slower troops from eating an alpha via Artifice of Deviation and his feat. Having a wall of medium-based warriors in front of him keeps him safe, and he gets access to good anti-infantry tools in the form of the Assault Chariot, Bombardiers, and Suppression Tanker. No-Knockdown Tough makes your already tough troops even more obnoxious to remove, while his native Tactician means you don't need to take Atanas for maximum maneuverability (although he enlarges the bubble and provides useful Battle Plans regardless).
- Man-o-War Strike Tanker: What's better than an Armor Piercing, Grievous Wound, Siege Weapon gun? One that's fully boosted.
- Man-o-War Suppression Tanker: Fire for Effect will fully boost every attack it makes when using its spray, allowing you to tear apart all but the most heavily armored infantry.
- Man-o-War Siege Chariot: Packing the highest-base POW gun in the game, it makes an excellent target for Fire for Effect. It also offers board control via its smoke launchers.
- Behemoth - Being able to take on anything in melee makes Energizer very valuable to Big B to increats its threta range. You cna also use it to make Big B back up after shooting, too, to avoid it being retaliated against.
Legion of Steel is probably the most effective list when it comes to damage-per-point. Iron Fangs love Tactician and no-Knockdown Tough, are relatively fast, and start at MAT 8 thanks to Veteran Leader from Kapitan Sofya Skirova and can go higher with CMAs. Battle Lust makes any model/unit a Weapon Master, and when combined with Precision Strike (and potentially Knockdown via Critical) lets you carve out the Cortex/Spirit of opposing warnouns with ease. Tactician is also great for making use out of your models with Counter Charge, forcing your opponent to carefully plan out their next move lest they get a charging Weapon Master to the face.
AKA "Stalingrad". You're bringing as many bodies as possible to grind out both your opponents army and clock with guns and good Tough rolls. It's best to think of this list as several guns attached to blobs of disposable bodies, using CRAs and Rockets to whittle down opposing ARM while your feat and Artifice of Deviation helps keep your men safe. Taking Alexia Ciannor & the Risen allows you to get even more mileage out of your cheap bodies. Just make sure not to clock yourself while using these many bodies.
- Winter Guard Gun Carriage: Like the Siege Chariot, it offers high-POW guns and board control via throwing out rough terrain with its firepower.
- Sorscha0: Fog of War adds more defensive tech to your army, while Boundless Charge and Energizer gives Irusk's warjacks an additional 4" melee threat range.
- Beast 09 - Beast is a credible melee threat and the combination of Boundless Charge and Energizer give it a 13" threat, which is very respectable.
Although Irusk can't cast Battle Lust on Doom Reavers, Irusk can offer some protection to them with his kit (as well as Pathfinder). The equally-fragile Greylord.
- Valachev - With him you can make a merc unit a Khador unit, so all of his buffs now work on them. He also extends their mobility with Zephyr Notable mentions are:
- Order of Illumination Resolutes - They are essentially Man-o-War Bombardiers with better stats and magical shooting. Tough No-Knockdown makes them a hard nut to crack and Battle Lust makes them excellent in melee.
- Order of Illumination Vigilants - A flimsy skirmish unit, he does wonders for them with Artifice, Total Obedience and Solid Ground and once they get into melee they hit way above their points cost thanks to Battle Lust.
- Note that you can attach Battle Priests to both of these units.
Irusk isn't a warjack caster, but Jaws also has soem decent infantry to play around with.
- Kayazy Eliminators - You first two requisition choices as they are incredible models and quite enjoy being tough no-knock down.
- Kayazy Assassins - Speed is an issue for them and Irusk circumvents that with his feat by making the opponents models slower and giving the Assassins Pathfinder and Hunter. Obviously the love the rest of his kit; Solid Ground, Total Obedience, Artifice, Battle Lust are all great for them.
- Behemoth and Sorscha0 are also in this theme.
Support models - Various themes
- Greylord Adjunct - A free upkeep and Guidance are extremely valuable to almost any caster. Irusk is no exception. Guidance and FFE can make Victor downright terrifying.
- War Dog: Brings Irusk's DEF in melee to Kayazy Eliminator levels, and can Countercharge/Return through your own models for an added layer of annoyance.
Mercenaries
- Kayazy Eliminators: They love Solid Ground to keep them safe from blast damage and appreciate the additional damage provided with Battle Lust. Note that they can be taken in Jaws of the Wolf theme without using up your Merc slot. You can even take two units of them for free.
Battlegroup
- Conquest/Victor: Irusk2 would rather use his Focus on his spells to support his infantry, so using one big warjack makes sense. Both love to have their large AoEs fully boosted damage-wise via Fire for Effect, and they also offer additional board control (Victor via its shot types, Conquest with Creeping Barrage).
- Destroyer: A simple cost-effective choice. Like the Colossals, it loves having its AoE gun boosted to take out swathes of light/medium-ARM infantry.
- Decimator: Energizer helps increase the relatively short range of its gun, while Fire for Effect somewhat mitigates its Focus-hungry shooting.
- Rager: Irusk is fragile and appreciates the Shield Guard, and you can fully boost its shooting with Fire for Effect without worrying about it blowing itself up.
Other
Trivia
- Released in Warmachine: Legends (2008)
Video Battle Reports
- 2019.05 Tiny Men, vs Anamag1
- 2019.04 Connor's Retribution Analysis, vs Zaadesh2
- 2018.12 Tiny Men, vs Skarre1
- 2018.06 Guerilla Miniature Games, vs Madrak1
- See also Category: Video Battle Reports for more casters with videos.
Other Khador models
Rules Clarifications
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Rules Clarification : Feat: Superiority
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Rules Clarification: : Magical Damage (Edit) |
* The "Damage Type: Magical" is not inherited by "secondary" damage from a weapon. That is, stuff like arcs (Electro Leap) or hazards (Scather). (Infernal Ruling)
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Rules Clarification: : Warcaster (Edit) | ||||
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Rules Clarification : Tactician and/or Operations Command (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Total Obedience (Edit) |
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Rules Clarification : Pathfinder (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Airburst (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Artifice of Deviation (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Battle Lust - None yet. (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Energizer (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Fire for Effect (Edit)
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Rules Clarification : Solid Ground - None yet. (Edit)
- Khador
- Model
- Does have Mk4 rules
- Warcaster
- Ignore LOS Feat
- Pathfinder Feat
- Anti-Cloud Feat
- Anti-Forest Feat
- Anti-Knockdown Feat
- Tactician
- Total Obedience
- Magical Damage
- Airburst
- Artifice of Deviation
- Battle Lust
- Energizer
- Fire for Effect
- Solid Ground
- Armored Korps
- Jaws of the Wolf
- Legion of Steel
- Winter Guard Kommand
- Wolves of Winter
- Video Battle Reports