Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant

99% of this website is about Mark 3 (mk3), which is the previous edition of the game (2016 to 2022). The reasons for this are explained here. 1% of the website is about Mark 4 (mk4), but only in regards to which mk3 models are useable in mk4 Prime and which are mk4 Unlimited. See Legacy Armies for more detail.

Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant Cygnar Trencher Solo - ("Junior Warcaster")

Prime This model is available in one Prime Army, First Army. It can also be used in the Unlimited game mode. You can view the other Mk3 models that made it into a Legacy Army at this page. Note that the rest of this page is about the model's Mark III rules.

No journeyman’s life is without peril, but some brave men and women opt to take a nobler and more dangerous path. Enlisting in the trencher corps upon completion of basic warcaster training, these junior warcasters specialize in wielding magic to aid their fellow soldiers. Trencher warcaster lieutenants bunker down with the grunts and help secure crucial ground on the field of battle. With the aid of the warjacks they command, these soldiers can often turn the tide of battle.

Basic Info

Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant
Missing Info
	COST {{{cacost}}} UNIT SIZE {{{casize}}} FA {{{cafa}}} Warcaster 0 BASE Small SPD 6 STR MAT 6 RAT 6 M.A. N/A DEF 14 ARM 14 CMD N/A ESSENCE {{{essence}}} FOCUS 4 FURY N/A THRS N/A HP 5 F. Field N/A WJP {{{wjp}}} WBP {{{wbp}}} IHP {{{ihp}}} FA 1 UNIT SIZE N/A COST 3 N/A N/A N/A Warcaster 1 COST N/A N/A Understanding the Statblock

Abilities

• Tough
• Battlegroup Controller - (1) This model is not a warcaster but has the following warcaster special rules: Battlegroup Commander, Focus Manipulation, Power Field, and Spellcaster. (2) This model must have at least one warjack in its battlegroup at the start of the game.
• Dig In (★ Action) - This model gains cover, does not suffer blast damage, and does not block LOS. The model remains dug in until it moves, is placed, or is engaged. It can begin the game dug in.

Weapons

• Carbine - 10" range, POW 10 ranged attack
• Mechanikal Trench Blade - 0.5" reach, P+S 11 melee attack
  • Damage Type: Magical
  • Brutal Charge - This model gains +2 to charge attack damage rolls with this weapon.

Spells

	COST	RNG	AOE	POW	DUR	OFF
Fire Group	2	SELF	-	-	Turn	No
While models in the spellcaster's battlegroup are in its control range, their ranged weapons gain +2 RNG. Fire Group lasts for one turn.
Rift	3	8	4	13	Round	Yes
The AOE is rough terrain and remains in play for one round.

Theme Forces

• Cygnar
  • Heavy Metal. He gains Reposition [3] in this theme.
  • Gravediggers. He gains Rise in this theme.

• Other Factions
  • Infernal players can use this unit in the Hearts of Darkness theme, but only if Sloan is leading the army.

Thoughts on Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant

Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant in a nutshell

The Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant can allow you to run more warjacks than you could typically use by expanding your focus pool. He has more of an affinity for ranged jacks because of his Fire Group spell allowing him to leverage more range.

Defensively speaking, he has several elements that keep him safe. If he is running ranged jacks, 4 focus lets him stand 8" behind your our jacks. With a Charger that's around 22" away from the front lines, a decently safe distance. His focus pool is frequently good enough to have something to camp, combining with his Dig-In, he can be unusually hardy. Finally, he has tough. Hopefully you don't have to use it, but it's there.

He will be best used by warcasters who do not have several buffs to their battlegroup. Kara Sloan, Kraye, and Caine3 do far too much for their warjacks to justify taking the Lieutenant. Casters like Stryker1, Stryker2, and Haley3 with less spells that don't specify Battlegroups are more able to make use of the extra focus he has to offer.

Battlegroup thoughts

The Lieutenant tends to favor ranged Warjacks thanks to Fire Group. With 4 focus, it's even possible to have him control 2 Warjacks and stay safe thanks to Dig In.

Grenadier

• The Lieutenant is a Trencher, so he's one of the two Trencher models you need within 1" to increase the Grenadier's number of shots.
• With Fire Group and a Snipe spell from elsewhere (i.e. your warcaster) you can aim and still threat 16", while being dug in, with the potential to boost damage if you need to take out an enemy solo or CA.
• Considering all that, you might even pick two to really defend a position, but it's a bit of a point investment.

Charger

• The Charger of course makes great use of an extra point of focus - and Fire Group doesn't hurt either.
• With Fire Group, they're excellent cavalry hunters. Boosted POW12s can reliably kill a lot of cavalry models while the 14" range means they're usually out of charge range if you don't kill it.
• They're also very capable in melee if the cavalry unit tries to run to engage. Instead of casting Fire Group you can fully fuel your Chargers instead and bring out the P+S13 hammers.
• Take 2 and destroy the world.

Hunter

• A little expensive, the Hunter can be 16" away from the Warcaster Lieutenant and still operational. Oh, and benefits from Fire Group.

Defender

• If you want to really invest, for 14pts the Defender offers more ranged utility against ARM buffed targets compared to a Hunter. Being able to aim to RAT8 and still fire a shot at a target 18" away gives you a lot of coverage (And can be well outside of various CTRL area effects). It also has some serious melee punch against anything that tries to get into your rear echelon.

Stormwall or Hurricane

• If you are using a caster with access to Snipe, you can stack the range increase with Fire Group. The result is absolutely monstrous threat ranges reach across the board firing as early as turn one. Shooting targets from 22" away almost guarantees you will have 2 turns to fire your weapons (switch to an armor buff when snipe is no longer necessary). Obviously this is weighed against the risk of placing a Colossal in the care of a journeyman warcasters, but if you are tailing behind 8" dug in, you can be reasonably safe.

Non-jack synergies

• Commander Anson Hitch gives Trenchers Tactician.
• Warcasters with Snipe tend to have fewer vital battlegroup specific bonuses.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• Lieutenant Allison Jakes generally does more for her battlegroup than the Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant if you want to use melee Warjacks, and costs the same.
• Dig In can be hard to use although you frequently just want to hand out focus and keep this guy safe
• In the Gravediggers theme, it can be hard to fit this model. Trenchers in particular have a very high amount of synergy and interactions with one another. You'll want Finn with infantry, dog with long gunners, hitch with busters. Points spent on the Lt.'s warjacks are points not spent on trenchers!
• There is a strange push pull in the Heavy Metal Theme. If you are playing Heavy Metal with a battlegroup oriented warcaster, trading all the potential benefits, battlegroup spells, field marshal abilities, and other effects means a warjack under the Warcaster Lt. might be weaker than one just under your actual warcaster.
  • Those Warcasters with a more...agnostic...approach to their buffs, such as Siege1 or Stryker1 can really value models that can lighten their focus burden such as the Lieutenant.
    • Basically any warcaster with a lot of upkeeps, few battlegroup-only spells and/or no Field Marshal (or similar ability).

Tricks & Tips

• Thanks to his Dig in ability, he's immune to blast damage. One of the greatest risks of running a journeyman is losing a relatively fragile solo to a boosted large template aiming for the 'jack, rendering the 'jack inert. Thanks to this ability, he can stay close to and hide behind a warjack pretty well.
  • Just beware of AOE weapons that apply continuous effects. Although he won't take blast damage, any secondary effects like Continuous Fire will affect him.
  • As mentioned above, this especially makes sense if you consider the Grenadier, which needs a Trencher within 1".
• Remember, he can use Dig in and still cast spells before or after that.

Other

Trivia

Released in the Gravediggers CID (2017.06)

Other Cygnar models

Cygnar Index       (Edit)
Battlegroup & Similar
Warcasters	Caine1 - Caine2 - Caine3 - Constance - Darius - Haley1 - Haley2 - Haley3 - Jakes2 - Kraye - Maddox - Nemo1 - Nemo2 - Nemo3 - Sloan - Stryker1 - Stryker2 - Stryker3 - Siege1 - Siege2 - Sturgis1
Warcaster attachments	Squire (Cygnar) - Madelyn Corbeau (Merc) - Reinholdt (Merc) - Wyshnalyrr (Merc)
Other Warjack Controllers	Battlegroup Controllers: Caine0 - Nemo4 - Jakes1 - Journeyman - T. Warcaster Lieutenant 'Jack Marshals: Runewood - Strangewayes - Anson Hitch - Stormblade Captain - T. Master Gunner - Gun Mage CA - Stormblade CA - Sword Knights CA
Light	Charger - Firefly - Grenadier - Hunter - Lancer - Minuteman - Sentinel Ace - Thorn
Heavy	Avenger - Centurion - Cyclone - Defender - Hammersmith - Ironclad - Reliant - Stormclad Brickhouse - Dynamo - Gallant - Ol' Rowdy - Thunderhead - Triumph
Colossal	Stormwall - Hurricane
Units, Solos, Battle Engines, & Structures
Units	Arcane Tempest Gun Mages - Black 13th Gun Mage Strike Team - Field Mechaniks - Legion of Lost Souls - Long Gunner Infantry - OoI Resolutes - OoI Vigilants - Precursor Knights - Rangers - Silver Line Stormguard - Storm Lances - Stormblades - Stormguard - Stormsmith Grenadiers - Storm Tower - Sword Knights - Tempest Blazers - Tr Cannon Crew - Tr Chain Gun Crew - Tr Commandos - Tr Express Team - Tr Long Gunners - Tr Infantry - Tr Mechaniks Special CA : Captain Jonas Murdoch (Mercenary unit) - Special WA: Morrowan Battle Priest (any unit)
Solos	Arcane Tempest Rifleman - Archduke Runewood - Captain Arlan Strangewayes - Captain Maxwell Finn - Commander Anson Hitch - Dreyfus1 - Dreyfus2 & Flubbin2 - Grand Master Gabriel Throne - Glyn Cormier, Illuminated One - Gun Mage Captain Adept - Journeyman Lieutenant Allister Caine - Journeyman Warcaster - Harlan Versh, Illuminated One - Lieutenant Allison Jakes - Lieutenant Bastian Falk - Lieutenant Gwen Keller - Major Katherine Laddermore - Major Harrison Gibbs - Morrowan Archon - Savio Montero Acosta - Squire - Stormblade Captain - Stormcallers - Tr Buster - Tr Master Gunner - Tr Patrol Dog - Tr Warcaster Lieutenant - Viktor Pendrake
Battle Engines & Structures	Nemo4 - Storm Strider - Trencher Blockhouse
Theme Forces
Flame in the Darkness - Gravediggers - Heavy Metal - Sons of the Tempest - Storm Division
Mercenaries
Refer to Who Works for Whom and/or Category: Cygnar Mercenary
This index was last updated: 2021.11

Rules Clarifications

Rules Clarification:  : Magical Damage      (Edit) (Click Expand to read)

* 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) All spells have "Damage Type: Magical" (refer errata). This is inherited by "immediate" secondary damage (such as Eruption of Spines). (Infernal Ruling) and might be inherited by "lingering" secondary damage (see below). If a spell leaves a template in play that does damage to models that walk around in it, then: if it is not described as a hazard it will do magical damage to models that walk around in it. (Example: Razor Wall) if it is a hazard then it will not do magical damage to models that walk around in it. Instead, it does whatever damage type is specified by the spell description. (Example: Breath of Corruption). (Infernal Ruling) If a weapon/spell includes Magic Damage and another kind of elemental damage it will still damage Incorporeal models. Incorporeal models are not affected by the rule "if an attack does multiple types of damage and a model is immune to at least one it is immune to the entire attack." The phrase "immune to non-magical damage" should be interpreted as "immune to damage that doesn't include Damage Type: Magical" (not interpreted as "has immunity to Corrosion and Electricity and Cold and etc.")

Rules Clarification : Powerful Charge  and/or Brutal Charge     (Edit) If you declare a charge but move less than 3", then the attack doesn't count as a "Charge Attack" and you won't get the bonus.

Rules Clarification : Tough - None yet. (Edit)

Rules Clarification : Battlegroup Controller      (Edit) This model has a completely separate battlegroup to your main warcaster. Your main warcaster cannot allocate focus to warjacks under this model's control (and vice versa). Any spells/effects that apply to your main warcaster's battlegroup (such as Energizer) do not apply to warjacks under this model's control (and vice versa). This model is not a warcaster It is affected by stuff which specifies "non-warcaster models" (such as Seduction). It is not affected by stuff which specifies "warcasters" (such as Black Arts). Even if it has "Warcaster" in its name (such as the Journeyman Warcaster or Trencher Warcaster Lieutenant) it is still not a warcaster, and won't benefit from warcaster-only stuff (like free upkeeps in Sons of the Tempest). (Infernal Ruling) Warjacks this solo controls can still benefit from Power Up exactly as if it were a warcaster. (Closed thread) When this model dies, any warjacks they are controlling go inert exactly as if it was a warcaster. (Infernal Ruling) See this article for the Inert warjack rules and how to re-activate them. Inert warjacks Abilities that say they cannot be used if the model is stationary (such as Shield Guard) cannot be used while a warjack is inert, either. Refer "Warcaster Destruction", page 59 of the core rulebook.

Rules Clarification : Dig In and/or Foxhole Buddy     (Edit) Unlike nearly every ability in the game, Dig In doesn't have a "expires after one turn/round" clause. Thus you could spend your action on turn 1 to Dig In and (assuming you don't move or get engaged) stay Dug In on turn 2 and use your action to make ranged attacks. Being pushed counts as moving. (Locked thread) If a model with Dig In is added to play or returned to play, it does not count as "starting the game". It can't be put into play already Dug In. (Infernal Ruling) You can use Dig In while you're in someone's back arc. You are engaging, but not engaged.

Rules Clarification : Fire Group      (Edit) Battlegroup members (Edit) Spells that target/affect "models in the battlegroup" can also target/will also affect the caster, the caster's unit (if they have one), and the caster's Companion (if they have one). It won't target/affect models which are Attached, though.

Rules Clarification : Rift - None yet. (Edit)