OLD:Saurians Tactics

Saurians
File:Saurians.webp
Setting:	Age of Fantasy
Games:	Age of Fantasy, Age of Fantasy: Skirmish, Age of Fantasy: Regiments
Species:	Saurian

Note: as v2.50 is in constant development the following might not be accurate.

Why play Saurians?

Saurian infantry is split between the flighty shooty geckos who can't take a blow and the ferocious but single-minded saurian warriors. However, their common bond is in their monsters, all terrifying creatures that are just as capable of supporting as they are devouring the opposition.

Pros

• Predator makes melee a particularly deadly threat, short of Poison
• Frog mages ar one of the strongest wizards out there
• Plenty of monsters
• Near-universal presence of Fearless to handle Morale issues
• Geckos possess Strider to avoid terrain issues

Cons

• Most of your shooting is short-ranged without resorting to costly add-ons to your monsters
• Your geckos are pretty flimsy
• Units are pretty costly

Special Rules

• Predator: Property of Saurian Warriors, Guardians, Gators, Raptor Riders and Spinosaurus. Available also for Spiked and Dragon Lizards. When they roll a natural 6 to hit, they roll an extra attack. It's pretty much your incentive to keep your lizards on the offense.
• Primal Roar: Available only for Veteran on T-Rex, Gator Veteran, Spinosaurus and Dread Gator (titan). Once per activation grants two friendly units within 6" with the Predator rule the ability to proc it on a 5+ the next time they fight. Powerful, especially on units with better quality. With some luck unit can score more hits than it had initial attacks.
• Drop rocks: When a model with this rule flies over an enemy unit, it can deal three AP(1) hits on a 2+. Pterodactyls come in units of [3], so with some positioning it can deal 9 AP(1) hits - pretty devastatning bombing run. However they can end up in exposed position, so be mindful.
• Bait: Ripjawdactyl unit (or hero on Ripjawdactyl) can mark one enemy unit to get +2 to hit in melee against it. It means jumping from poor Q5+ to elite Q3+. Combined with their Impact hits and flying it makes ripjawdactyls strong offensive unit, especially against low-defense foes.
• Destined Leader: +2'' on the Advance action and +4'' on Rush/Charge. Effectively grants Fast to any normal moving units and Very Fast (10'' Advance and 20'' Rush/Charge) to Fast units: Raptor/Beast/Pterodactyl/Ripjawdactyl Riders.
• Hit & Run: Shoot and hide by up to 3''. With Competitive Rules only two shooting units (Geckos and Chameleons) can have hero added, so this ability has limited use.
• Ancient Wraith: Hero and its unit get +1 attack in melee while charging. Effectively Furious. More dice = better charge. Pretty strong, especially on Warriors with [10] guys.
• Ferocious: Hero and its unit get +1 to hit in melee. Usually outshined by Ancient Wraith (see above), with one exception: hero on one big monster, that can not join unit under Competitve Rules.
• Release Snakes: Once a game unit spawns two models' unit of Snake Swarms. They are cheap and weak chaff, but can give another activation or help in holding the objective.
• Good Shot: Chameleons and their hero shoot at Quality 4+. Shooting is a bit rare in this army, so every little bit helps.
• Carrier: Transport(X) from Grimdark Future. Unit can carry another unit inside, but when destroyed, carried unit rolls for dangerous terrain and is Wavering. Rarely used - this upgrade requires Dread Titan with the most expensive variant costing more than 700 pts.

Wizard Spells

• Scrutiny (4+): Enemy 2 enemy units within 12" take -1 to their next hit roll in melee. Pretty important for protecting your geckos, but it'll also have uses for your bigger warriors.
• Serpent Egg (4+): Enemy unit within 12" eats 5 hits with no AP. Pretty much made for handling chaff rather than doing anything beefy or with good saves.
• Energy Reservoir (5+): Two units within 6'' get +2''/+4'', effectively granting Fast to non-Fast units and Very Fast (10'' on Advance and 20'' on Rush/Charge) to Fast ones. Great, since most of the army is melee-focused.
• Jaguar Pounce (5+): Enemy model within 12" takes 2 AP(4) hits. Sniping spell useful in eliminating enemy heroes or command groups.
• Transcend (6+): Unit within 12" get Regenerations next time it takes wounds. Roll 5+ to get 5+ Regen. Less useful, but may be handy before some bigger clash.
• Piranha Swarm (6+): Two enemy units within 6" take six AP(1) hits each, The to-go choice for troops and elite infantry alike, but risky, as it works on 5+ and requires close proximity.

Unit Analysis

Heroes

• Frog Mage: Quite expensive, but it's also your most powerful wizard and most elite unit with 2+ in quality and defense. Despite that tough, it's weapons are quite average: Magic Beam with Deadly (only source of Deadly among core units) or 18'' Magic Shock. Better to focus on casting with both great and rare Wizard(2).
  • Mounts: You can buy Ancient palanquin for a mount, costing 105 pts but also providing Fear, more attacks in melee and more wounds to support it. Another possible mount is Queztalcoatl. For alomost 700 pts it gives additional 18 wounds and 18 melee attacks. Useful in larger games.

• Saurian Veteran: Your honest-to-goodness beatstick and a half. A 3+ to quality and defense ensures that it'll hold in a fight and it has AP(1) on even its base weapons, so you can handle not buying something bigger if need be - and if you do, they will also keep that AP(1). Predator also allows some extra attacks. Weapon upgrades depend on planned use: Spear for Phalax unit, Lance for charging with Raptors, Great Weapons to boost AP and Dual Weapons to roll 6 dice at a time.
  • Mounts: Your veteran has two options for steeds. The raptor is your basic horse-equivalent, providing speed, Impact, and one more attack to the offense. Your more costly option is the Tyrannosaurus, a mighty beast that provides ample Tough, a devastating attack and Primal Roar to support your fellow units with Predator.
  • Buffs: Veteran provides one of three buffs: one standard (Fear) and two unique - described in the Special Rules section.

• Gecko Chief: Most likely your go-to hero if you're going for cheap or if you're supporting a stronger hero. While vulnerable, the chief has a few options to handle itself. That said, this will definitely require protection from a herd of geckos.
  • Melee: If you're planning to focus on melee, your only option is to dual wield. If you're riding a pterodactyl, then the lance becomes available if you intend on charging.
  • Shooting: The chief is your only hero with shooting, and it's likely that you'll pick one of these options up just to support the herd. The javelin has AP(1) and Poison, a nice combination for handling larger foes if you get lucky. Fire Bolas also have AP(1) but sacrifice Poison for an extra shot. The blowpipe gives you the best range (18'') out of all these short-ranged weapons and Poison, but will fall flat against any defenses.
  • Mounts: Deinonychus is better and more beefy raptor: apart from Fast, two extra attacks and Impact(2) it grants also extra 3 wounds. The pterodactyl is interesting because it offers a lot to the gecko: Flying, Fast, extra wounds, more Impact hits and bomber capability with Drop Rocks. Ripjawdactyl is more offensive: grants Fast, extra attacks and wounds, Furious, more Impact hits and Bait on top of that, to make sure, that all those attacks land.
  • Buffs: Gecko Chief can choose from three upgrades. Priest grants Wizard(1). Two other, Destined Leader and Hit & Run, are described in the Special Rules section.
• Gator Veteran: Almost as costly as Frog Mage, but with Tough(6) and Defense 3+ it can take some hits before going down. Probably he could be used alone, without joining a unit, to increase number of activations. His gear can no be changed, so AP(4) Great Weapon is the only option
  • Buffs: Primal Roar is interesting, since this is the cheapest way of adding this ability to the army. This ability, as well as two other buffs (Ferocious and Ancient Wraith) are described in the Special Rules section.

Core units

• Saurian Warriors: Your workaday close-combat infantry, decently protected with a 4+ defense and quite efficient in the offensive with Quality 4+. Weapon upgrades include Spears to create strong defensive Phalax. With Fearless (or better: with Saurian Veteran added) this formation will be difficult to break. Second option is Halberds to gain Rending against targets with regenerations or armour. Predator can help provide a small boost to their attacks if some lucky sixes are rolled.
• Geckos: Your small scouting infantry, offered in small packs for maximum mobility and lower cost. Though flimsy, they come with options for shooting via the AP(1) javelins and longer-ranged blowpipes. Poison on all weapons (also melee ones) make them useful suicidal chaff that wants to take something down with it.
• Saurian Guardians: The most elite warriors, blessed with a 3+ Quality and Defense to make an elite bunker. They're also considerably more expensive, enough to discourage taking more than one block. While arguable on whether or not it is a restriction, they are restricted to either their stock halberds (for Rending) or great weapons with AP(3). Predator works greatly with them, since additional rolls have nice chance of landing with Quality 3+.

• Chameleons: Geckos with blowpipes already equipped with addition of Stealth, Scout and Good Shot. Scout is helpful for getting them in position for sniping enemies down. Combined with Strider they can be deployed e.g. in the forest for additional cover and difficult terrain to shoot the enemy while being harder to reach. Poison and no AP make them more useful against lower Defense targets. With Defense 5+ they are as flimsy as Geckos, so careful positiong, maneuvering or some screens may be required.
• Raptor Riders: Your saurian cavalry is your Saurian (Warrior) infantry mounted, so again 4+ Quality and Defense, with Fast, Impact and extra Claw AP(1) attack provided by mounts. Lances, adding another Impact hit for each model, are almost no-brainer. Predator can grant some extra hits. Just be aware of enemy shooters or artillery, since riders still have only one wound each.

• Beast Riders: Four different units in one stat line. All of them share poor quality and defense (5+) offset by useful Impact(2) and tough(3), and weapon upgrades: lances for iadditional mpact or javelins and fire bolas for short range shooting. For regular beast riders this is all. Deinonychus riders gain more Impact and strider, making it more like hit and run harassing unit. Ripjawdactyls gain flying, bait and another Impact hits, turning them into offensive monster. Pterodactyls also has flying, but Drop Rocks make them efficient bombers.

• Gators: Bigger bruisers than the saurian warriors, boasting Tough(3), great 3+ Defense and devastating AP(3) weapons that can crush cavalry and heavy infantry alike. Also Predator may add some attacks. Their weakness lies in their average 4+ quality, meaning that those hits have a good chance at missing and, more troubling, a bad turn might do more damage to them than it might an equivalent unit of Saurian Warriors.

• Snake Swarms: Swarms tend to be little more than distractions and fodder, allowing to increase activation count in this quite expensive army. Though these are a bit better offensively with Poison. Strider is also a good help here, allowing them to run to cover if you need to bait the enemy. Ambush allows placing them in unexpected places to threat vulnerable units, like artillery. Avoid hits from Impact like a plague - with 6+ Defense they are almost guaranteed wounds.

• Dragon Lizard: Hybrid unit, that can shoot at short range with Rending, but also has Furious. Strider makes it easier to position in range of shooting, but out of range of enemy charge. 5 pts for upgrade with Predator increases damage potential and is a no-brainer. Tough(6) and Defense 4+ make it moderately vulnerable to enemy attacks.

• Spiked Lizard: Medium range (18'') spikes with Blast make this lizard efficient against low-defense hordes. In fact, this is the only source of Blast among core units, apart from Frog Mage's staff. Upgrade with Predator is again highly useful. Defense 3+ is one notch better, than of the Dragon Lizard, but still better to keep this unit out of enemy range.

Monsters

• Triceratops: Hybrid monster with stock AP(1), Poison javelins for some shooting, but better geared for melee, especially with Fear and Tough(12). Unfortunately the only melee upgrade are Impact hits. For its shooting, your options are either giant blowpipes for rapid-fire Poison, a giant crossbow with Deadly and long range, which which both are scarce in this army. Alternatively you can choose Altar of the Gods, giving Wizard(1).

• Spinosaurus: A more offensive monster, able to spit a Blast and Poison to harry blobs from medium range, while its claws are the shining feature, bolstered by the presence of Predator. Its upgrades are also more focused on supporting, with Primal Roar allowing it to bolster units with Predator and the Priest Rider allowing you to have a monster that can also cast spells.

• Ankylosaurus: Another Tough(12) monster, but with better, 2+ Defense, making it efficient tanking unit. With upgrades, you can add in either a solar beam with Blast for a more respectable cannon made to melt most infantry and dent monsters or the Ark of Snakes to once a game summon some chaff Snake Swarms. Its sole melee upgrade is also interesting: Tail Strike gives Deadly(6), which is useful against enemy monsters, especially given how rare Deadly is in Saurian army.

• Dread Titan: An absolute behemoth, with most elite 2+ Quality and Defense, gifted with the ability to crush whatever it confronts but is so costly that you'll likely be forced to skimp out on troops and heroes just so you can fit it in. Vanilla version has Tough(18) and two melee weapons (one with Deadly). Dread Gator gets also Predator and Primal Roar to increase its offensive power, and Strider for better mobility. Dread Pterodactyl obtains Flying and Wizard(1). Dread Behemoth gets another 6 wounds, Blast attacks and can be further upraged with Carrier(21) - fantasy equivalent of Transport - that can safely bring your melee units close to the enemy lines.

List Building & Tactics

General Advice

1. Avoid making too elite list with too low number of activations. Most of your units is costly, so consider taking some chaff units (e.g. Geckos, Snake Swarms) to increase number of activations and to have more units to control objectives.
2. Use hybrid units (with both shooting and melee attacks) with care. Unit can only shoot or charge in its activation, so in most cases only one type of weapon is used, but you pay for both. On the other hand, those units are dangerous, if you know, what you are doing.
3. Do not try do too many things at a time. Saurians offer plenty of choices and possible playstyles. Try to choose one and focus on it. Spreading out too thin in many directions can lead to a disaster.

Tactics

Below you can find two entirely different army lists with explanation and idea behind them.

Primally Roaring Predators

List is built around Primal Roar and Predator. Every unit has Predator, so rolling sixes is the main skill required :) Main trick is using units with Primal Roar to boost their predatory friends.

• Buffing units are: Saurian Veteran on Tyrannosaur, Gator Veteran and Spinosaurus. Position them between units with Predator and be sure to use this ability every turn (remember, that it can be used even after moving). At the beginning of the game spread it between other units and starting from round 2 consider using it on yourselves, especially on Veteran on Tyrannosaur to boost his sick number of attacks.
• Spinosaurus apart from roaring can shoot at enemy hordes - lucky 6 grants not only another attack, but also triggers Poison, multiplying hit by 3 (sadly, capped by number of models due to Blast).
• Spiked Lizard can serve similar function with 18'' of range and Blast(3) attacks.
• Dragon Lizard also shoots, but only 12'', and again: lucky 6 grants another attack, as well as Rending.
• Saurian Veteran and his unit of Saurian Warriors with Phalanx are your tanks. Place them on the objective and watch hopeless enemy charges. Warriors should win melee even when fatigued thanks to Phalanx, command group, and hero with Fear. Quality 3+ with Fearless should make morale test easy. Beware artillery and shooters with AP, since they can safely remove your warriors.
• Gator Veteran and his Gator unit are your monster hunters: with tough, Defense 3+ and AP weapons they can withstand some punishment and bring down monster bigger, than them. Watch out for enemies with Deadly attacks, especially at range.
• Raptor Riders are your shock units - with 10 Impact hits they can quickly crush enemy hordes. Just try not to be charged and do not charge into Phalanx.
• The rest of the army (Saurian Warriors and two units of Saurian Guardians) are your objective takers/holders. Keep them in some distance from enemy to make sure, that noting one-hits them and place them near the objectives.

++ Primally Roaring Predators - Saurians [AOF 2000pts] ++

Saurian Veteran [1] Q3+ D3+ | 375pts | Fearless, Hero, Predator, Tough(3), 1x Temple Protector(Ancient Wrath), 1x Tyrannosaur(Fear, Tough(+12), Primal Roar)

Lance (A3, AP(1), Impact(1)), Crushing Jaws (A6, AP(1)), Stomp (A4, AP(1))

Saurian Veteran [1] Q3+ D3+ | 85pts | Fearless, Hero, Predator, Tough(3), 1x Army Standard Bearer(Fear)

Spear (A3, AP(1), Phalanx)

# Joined to:

Saurian Warriors [10] Q4+ D4+ | 185pts | Fearless, Predator, Musician, Battle Standard

10x Spears (A1, Phalanx)

Saurian Warriors [10] Q4+ D4+ | 135pts | Fearless, Predator

10x Hand Weapons (A1)

Saurian Guardians [5] Q3+ D3+ | 115pts | Fearless, Predator

5x Great Weapons (A1, AP(3))

Saurian Guardians [5] Q3+ D3+ | 105pts | Fearless, Predator

5x Halberds (A1, AP(1), Rending)

Raptor Riders [5] Q4+ D4+ | 145pts | Fast, Fearless, Impact(1), Predator

5x Claws (A1, AP(1)), 5x Lances (A1, Impact(1))

Gator Veteran [1] Q4+ D3+ | 155pts | Fear, Fearless, Hero, Predator, Tough(6), 1x Primordial Warden(Primal Roar)

Great Weapon (A4, AP(4))

# Joined to:

Gators [3] Q4+ D3+ | 170pts | Fearless, Predator, Tough(3)

3x Great Weapons (A3, AP(3))

Dragon Lizard [1] Q4+ D4+ | 115pts | Fearless, Furious, Strider, Tough(6), 1x Lizard Handlers(Predator)

Claws (A3, AP(1)), Spit Flames (12", A6, Rending)

Spiked Lizard [1] Q4+ D3+ | 120pts | Fearless, Strider, Tough(6), 1x Lizard Handlers(Predator)

Claws (A3, AP(1)), Shoot Spikes (18", A2, Blast(3))

Spinosaurus [1] Q4+ D3+ | 295pts | Fear, Fearless, Predator, Tough(12), Primal Roar

Spit Venom (18", A2, Blast(3), Poison), Stomp (A4, AP(1)), Toxic Bite (A6, Poison)

Welcome to the Jungle

List emulates ambushing enemy in the jungle. Plenty of Ambush, Scout, Strider, Poison, casting and shooting units requires some skill and clever use of terrain, but can render enemy hopeless and outmaneuvered.

• Your main force are riders of variuos beasts. Ripjawdactyl Riders with hero are your shock unit: with Bait and plenty of Impact hits they can wreck any low-Defense unit. Make use of Flying, their speed (with hero they have 20'' on Rush/Charge) and consolidation moves to keep them away from enemy damage dealers.
• Pterodactyl Riders are another offensive unit, but their main source of damage are rocks dropped on enemies over which they fly. In some circumstances shoot with Fire Bolas. Keep them away from enemies, if possible.
• Beast Riders should be used for harrassment: keep them in difficult terrain and rain down your enemies with javelins. Escape, if they come too close. Remember, that with Impact they can win a fight with weakened unit, so consider charging.
• Chameleons with Chief are medium range shooting unit. Place them properly with Scout and remember, that with Hit & Run they can movee 3'' to hide from enemy shooters. Target low-Defense units, especially shooters.
• Second unit of Chameleons serves similar purpose, but does not have hero with Hit & Run.
• Ankylosaurus is your tank. Keep him close to the objectives and enemy monsters to make use of his Deadly attack. Watch for their Deadly attacks. Once per game release snakes to gain another activation or unit to hold objective.
• Frog mage and his retinue of 10 Geckos is your caster and main supporting unit. Keep him a little behind your main line, cast buffs (especially Energy Reservoir for faster movement) or damage spells (Serpent Egg on enemy chaff) and shoot with Deadly, if tough enemy appears in range. In some cases consider charging, e.g. to finish enemy unit, beacause of Fear and number of attacks with Poision you have some chances to win.
• Last units are Snake Swarms. Use Ambush to place them close to vulnerable units, like artillery, or (due to Strider) in difficult terrain, or near the objectives (not in fourth round under the Competitive Rules). Avoid enemy Deadly attacks and Impact hits.

++ Welcome to the Jungle - Saurians [AOF 2000pts] ++

Frog-Mage [1] Q2+ D2+ | 260pts | Hero, Strider, Tough(3), Wizard(2), 1x Ancient Palanquin(Fear, Tough(+3))

2x Pulse (A3), Magic Beam (12", A1, AP(2), Deadly(3))

# Joined to:

Geckos [10] Q5+ D5+ | 120pts | Fearless, Strider

10x Hand Weapons (A1, Poison)

Gecko Champion [1] Q5+ D5+ | 85pts | Fearless, Hero, Tough(3), Strider, 1x Skirmisher(Hit & Run), 1x Chameleon(Good Shot, Scout, Stealth)

Hand Weapon (A3, Poison), Blowpipe (18", A1, Poison)

# Joined to:

Chameleons [5] Q5+ D5+ | 110pts | Fearless, Good Shot, Scout, Stealth, Strider

5x Blowpipes (18", A1, Poison), 5x Hand Weapons (A1)

Chameleons [5] Q5+ D5+ | 110pts | Fearless, Good Shot, Scout, Stealth, Strider

5x Blowpipes (18", A1, Poison), 5x Hand Weapons (A1)

Beast Riders [3] Q5+ D5+ | 170pts | Fast, Fearless, Impact(2), Tough(3)

3x Claws (A2), 3x Lances (A1, Impact(1)), 3x Javelins (12", A2, AP(1), Poison)

Gecko Champion [1] Q5+ D5+ | 180pts | Fearless, Hero, Tough(3), Strider, 1x Chief(Destined Leader), 1x Ripjawdactyl(Tough(+3), Fast, Flying, Impact(4), Bait, Furious)

Dual Hand Weapons (A6, Poison), Claws (A2)

# Joined to:

Ripjawdactyl Riders [3] Q5+ D5+ | 185pts | Fast, Fearless, Impact(2), Tough(3), Ripjawdactyl(Flying, Bait, Impact(+2))

3x Claws (A2), 3x Lances (A1, Impact(1))

Pterodactyl Riders [3] Q5+ D5+ | 245pts | Fast, Fearless, Impact(2), Tough(3), Pterodactyl(Flying, Drop Rocks)

3x Claws (A2), 3x Hand Weapons (A1, Poison), 3x Fire Bolas (12", A4)

3x Snake Swarms [3] Q6+ D6+ | 75pts | Ambush, Fearless, Strider, Tough(3)

3x Swarm Attack (A3, Poison)

Ankylosaurus [1] Q4+ D2+ | 310pts | Fear, Fearless, Tough(12), 1x Serpent Ark(Release Snakes)

Stomp (A4, AP(1)), Tail Strike (A1, AP(2), Deadly(6))

See Also

• Saurians
• Saurians Quickplay Armies
• Age of Fantasy

Saurians
Overview - Tactics - Skirmish Tactics - Miniatures - Quickplay Armies - Skirmish Quickplay Armies