Getting Started with Goblins

So, you’re full of love of Goblins and want to have and army. But where do you start? What do you need? What kind of green is that?

We’ll be tackling these questions in the next couple of days here on the blog, beginning with putting your first army for Kings of War.

Before we dive into writing a list, it’s worth a quick review of the force building rules in Kings of War. Models are organized into units and each unit only has a certain number of models, which does not change. Regiments are your core building blocks – for each Regiment in your army, you may take either a Hero, a monster, or a war machine and two Troops. If you take a horde or a legion, you can take a hero and a monster and a war machine and up to four troops. Units with a ‘*’ next to their name always count as troops. All of that sounds a little complicated, but it’s very simple in practice.

The army below is built around the Goblin Starter Force –which, as the name suggests, is the perfect place to start a new force. It contains a regiment of Shaprsticks, a regiment of Rabble, a regiment of Spitters, a regiment of Fleabag Riders and a Mincer – seventy-one models in all! This is all an example of how to start, so remember you can change anything you like, or start with whichever units you want.

For your first games, I find 500 points works the best. It’s a large enough force to get your head around, but not so large as to be daunting. As you can see from the force building rules above, Regiments are our core units, so I’ll be starting with many of those. Goblin Infantry never comes in anything smaller than a regiment, as they are too cowardly to face a foe in small numbers.

Kings of War is a melee game, so my first two units will be melee focused; a Rabble Regiment and a Sharpsticks Regiment. The Rabble are cheap and cheerful troops, good for screening or being sacrificial. They aren’t elite, but you’ll out number your opponent. Sharpsticks, despite being not much better, should not be underestimated. Their spears give them extra attacks and can stop a cavalry charge in its path – never leave home without them.

Knowing that goblins aren’t great in close combat, I’m going to add a little shooting to back them up – a Spitters Regiment. Their fire won’t take out a unit in it’s own right, but will whittle down enemies before you charge with your melee Regiments.

Fleabags are some of the fastest and most nimble cavalry in the game (actually having the Nimble special rule!). They are great for charging into an enemy’s flank – which doubles their attacks – or hunting enemy war machines and heroes. Thunderous Charge (1) will give my army a bit of punch against more armored foes, so I’ll take a Regiment of these.

I’ve put the Mincer in the starter force to one side in favour of a Biggit. This hero has the Inspiring special rule, which keeps your units from fleeing the battlefield. Goblins are more likely to do this than most, so a hero to lead them is vital. Plus it gives me an excuse to get my hands on the new Biggit model we have just released!

Finally I have some extra points spare, which I’ll spend on some Magical Artefacts to boost my units. The Fleabag Riders get a Helm of Confidence, which will keep them inspired even if they are away from my main force. The Rabble get the Pipes of Terror, which gives them the Brutal special rule – a little nasty surprise for a cheap unit. Finally, the Biggit will take Kevinar’s Flying Hammer – a small ranged weapon that can add that extra point of damage to cause a foe to flee. Here’s the list:

All I have to do now is build and paint it all! Hopefully this will help new players to build their first army up. If you are just starting, what else would you like to see as help? Veterans, what do you think? Would you take something different?

The Goblin Starter Force is a avilable for pre-order and will ship at the end of January! Their rules can be found on our Free Rules page or of in the Kings of War Rulebook!