So, the Earthborn Dire
Troll – where to start... well, obviously all Trollblood
players are gonna be fielding at least one Dire Troll in their
armies, and for good reason – they can dish out a fair amount
of beating, can take just as much in return and can then regenerate
it all back, and even if played conservatively (!), their animus,
Rage (+3 strength) is awesome on so many minis. Then along bounded
the Earthborn, deftly leaping over terrain, smashing rocks on
the way and with crazed look of destruction in its screwed up
little eyes. Public opinion was mixed on its look – some
people loved the dynamism and the in-yer-face approach of this
Dire Troll, others thought the face looked a bit squashed and
“Where's its crest?! Thats not a dire troll!”.....
review continues below ››
Earthborn Dire Troll
Item
Code: PIP71022
About this item: The earthborn dire troll's skin ripples and changes as it charges at its prey. These beasts exemplify troll adaptability by growing stronger, faster, or mimicking their enemies' power. They create a sympathetic harmony with other dire trolls to heal the gravest wounds rapidly and surpass the petty innovations built by the cunning machinations of man, skorne, or dragon.
Contents:
This pack contains 1 miniature
RRP: £30.00 OUR
PRICE: £27.00
Personally I loved it from the go – my only reservation
was the greenish colour scheme – sure it's supposed to be
more in touch with the elements, but even still... when I got
mine it got painted up the standard kinda blue, but with a more
magical tinge to it, adding purples and greens and reds –
as it passes by different elements of terrain, it takes on advantages
to its armour, defence and/or speed, just by being in close proximity.
This shifting nature was something I was keen to convey in the
mini and hence the slightly irridescent effect I went for.
It was a real joy to paint, and the
assembly went pretty smoothly too, especially for such a large
mini – there was minimal greenstuffing needing doing, and
no real issues with the flash and mold lines. Obviously pinning
was gonna be needed if you wanted it to stay in one piece (i think
i ended up with 3 pins attaching its fist to the ground –
slight overkill perhaps...!), but its a lot more stable than you
might expect looking at it – its centre of gravity is pretty
much dead on. One small construction note – the back hand
trailing behind it on the box is facing palm up – i think
this was a mistake – its fits better and looks right if
attached palm down.
And so, how does it play? When Privateer Press released their
alpha warbeasts, the implication was that they would have some
kinds of beneficial effects on or from neighboring warbeasts –
the Earthborn does indeed have some effects that means it benefits
from standing side by side with another Dire Troll – it
can borrow the Armour stat of any mini its in contact with (and
that includes the +2ARM from a Kriel Stone Bearer, so as long
as both Dire Trolls are in the aura, the Mauler (or Axer for that
matter) gets the increased ARM of 20, the Earthborn takes that
ARM and adds a further +2 for an awesome ARM 22). It can also
take the POW of any weapon its within 1” of – alongside
and against most enemies this will be a boost to its P+S, given
the Earthborns otherwise quite low powered fists – especially
good for going after those warlocks that carry weapons with a
STR often of 6 or more – add a Rage Animus to that and you're
putting out huge amounts of damage – I took down a Titan
Bronzeback with two boosted hits from my Earthborn in the last
game I played!
When in contact with another Dire Troll, its regenration goes
up to D6; its animus gives the Armour borrowing ability to another
mini (especially good for keeping squishy warlocks like Hoarluk
alive). Having said all that, you don't always want the Earthborn
and your Maulers so close to each other – knock downs, table
coverage, keeping the Mauler back for second waves are all good
reasons to keep 'em separate, but flexibility is what the Earthborn
does best taking advantages form everything around it, and its
a beast that can take on anything your enemy puts in its way and
without too much trouble should be able to finish it off and even
heal some damage in the process!
Since I bought him, I don't think I've
played a game without him – even when I've tried to leave
him out to try something else instead, the mini is just too cool
to leave in the case and he always makes an appearance –
I'd highly recommend the Eartborn to any Trollblood player –
he's worth every point and every penny, and looks awesome on top
of all that. 5 Stars!
