Sylvaneth Battletome

Hi all!

Today we are having a look at the new Sylvaneth Battletome. It doesn’t feel that long since the last one but it’s great to see continued support for the faction with some endless spells and a new set of trees.

If you have got any of the newer battletomes then you won’t be surprised to find that this follows the same format. There are the usual new faction specific spells, command abilities, relics, allegiance abilities etc etc. Some of the warscrolls have been updated too. To be honest, it is a really great looking book and since receiving it I have ordered a tonne of Sylvaneth models. I had been waiting for an army that tickled my fancy and this is it. I am really looking forward to getting my hands on them. I think I will give the contrast paints a bash and see about making them autumnal with browns, reds and orange. 

Once I have more time with the book and hopefully played a few games then I will do another post looking at my findings - as a relatively inexperienced player I think this is the best option. For now though, I will share the text from Warhammer Community:

From Warhammer Community:

It’s preview time! Ahead of the release of Battletome: Sylvaneth, we’re leafing through the pages of your new army book to round up all the new goodness – from allegiance abilities to new magical spells and key warscroll changes. Let’s get stuck in…

Navigate Realmroots

Sylvaneth are known for their ability to navigate the arcane realmroots that lace the Mortal Realms. In the game, this gives your army fantastic flexibility in the movement phase, allowing them to teleport across the board and ambush weaker foes or grab objectives at the last minute.

Navigate Realmroots has been simplified and is now more reliable than before – you won’t have to roll to see if you succeed, meaning it’s much easier to plan around, letting you surround your foes with ease, or make daring last-minute objective grabs. With clever use of your Awakened Wyldwoods, you’ll have a level of board control few armies can match.

The Lore of the Deepwood

It’s rare for a Sylvaneth army to go without a Wizard, whether that’s a Branchwych or Alarielle herself, and with the Lore of the Deepwood, you’ll have a powerful new range of options for them to unleash in battle. Verdurous Harmony, for instance, lets you restore lost models to nearby units.

Similarly, Regrowth is great for keeping your Treelords kicking, allowing you to restore an impressive D6 wounds to them.

Throne of Vines, meanwhile, is a cracking option early in the game, making it much easier to cast particularly tricky spells and much harder for your foe to unbind them.

The Lore of the Deepwood also allows you to summon new Wyldwoods mid-battle, letting you quickly establish some cover, obstruct your enemies or to give you more opportunities to use Navigate Realmroots.

Glades

The Sylvaneth are as varied as the Mortal Realms themselves, and the new battletome allows you to express their dizzying diversity with no fewer than 7 sub-factions you can dedicate your army to! Called Glades, each has an ability, command trait, artefact and command ability to master, offering new twists on the army and rewarding you for using themed lists and favourite units. The terrifying forces of Dreadwood, for example, are perfect for fans of Spite-Revenants.

Dedicate your army to the noble warriors of the Heartwood, meanwhile, and you’ll gain access to an Artefact that makes your Kurnoth Hunters exceptionally deadly.

Alternatively, if you’re looking to make the most of Treelords, Spirits of Durthu and Treelord Ancients, Oakenbrow lets you keep fighting at peak efficiency for longer, representing the storied resilience of this grove.

Command Traits and Artefacts

Not counting those found in groves, the Sylvaneth Battletome contains 12 command traits and 24 artefacts with which to customise your Heroes, with some superb potential combos. A Branchwych with the Glade Lore command trait and Luneth’s Lamp, for instance, is a fantastic magical lynchpin capable of shutting down enemy magic with ease…

…while a Spirit of Durthu with Dread Harvester and the Greenwood Gladius will utterly obliterate foes on the charge!

Warscroll Updates

Alongside the Sylvaneth battletome, we’re updating a number of Sylvaneth warscrolls, offering new niches for units, welcome increases in the power of certain units and small tweaks to make certain rules simpler or faster to play with. Take Tree-Revenants– these can now ambush foes pretty much anywhere on the board, without even having to use realmroots. Our recommendation would be to grab a unit of 5 Tree-Revenants for any army and to hold them back for last-turn objective grabs.

Drycha Hamadreth has been hugely improved in the new battletome. Rather than having to choose between giving her a colony of Squirmlings or a colony of Flitterfluries, you get both, with each offering her a blizzard of attacks. You’ll be able to switch Drycha’s focus between melee and ranged attacks, making her a dangerous combatant in both the shooting and combat phases.

Treelords of all types will be a core unit in any Sylvaneth army thanks to their changed Groundshaking Stomp, which now forces enemies to fight last in the combat phase, potentially giving you a devastating advantage.

Kurnoth Hunters with Greatswords now have a key edge on their scythe and bow-wielding kin, dealing mortal wounds in addition to their normal damage on a wound roll of a 6, making them particularly excellent against well-armoured foes.

You’ll have to wait until the weekend to see all the new warscroll changes for yourself, but rest assured there’s more still to be uncovered

Greetings, follower of Alarielle! In our latest preview of the Sylvaneth battletome, we’re checking out the new endless spells, complete with some top tips on using them. We’re also taking a closer look at how you can use the all-new Awakened Wyldwood in your army – and just what the book means for your older woods! First up, the endless spells…

Gladewyrm

What’re better – endless spells that heal, or endless spells that do harm? With the Gladewyrm, you don’t have to choose! This crushing magical creature will destroy your foes and restore friendly units – like Treelords and Kurnoth Hunters – to health. Having one of these on your front lines will pay dividends over longer battles.

Spiteswarm Hive

Another incredibly flexible endless spell, the Spiteswarm Hive is a static node that provides your choice of nifty buffs to your army. If you’re on the offensive and want to unleash devastating charges with units like Spite-Revenants and Tree-Revenants, the Vital Venoms effect is excellent. Meanwhile, Shielding Swarm is great when you’re looking to weather an enemy assault, working superbly with models with a reliable Save characteristic, like Treelords or Alarielle. 

Vengeful Skullroot

Categorically Warhammer Age of Sigmar’s scariest tree (well, perhaps barring the Feculent Gnarlmaw), the Vengeful Skullroot is a simple and brutally effective endless spell that deals mortal wounds to enemies while making failed battleshock tests even worse for them. Dealing a hefty D6 mortal wounds near an Awakened Wyldwood, it’s perfect for thinning out even the most heavily armoured of foes.

Awakened Wyldwoods

Awakened Wyldwoods are a core part of the Sylvaneth army – as well as starting the game with one, you’ll be able to summon more with a variety of spells and abilities. Wyldwoods block line of sight to non-flying units, allowing you to save your units from spells and shooting, while the Navigate Realmroots rule turns each into a potential site to ambush your enemies from. What’s more, casting spells near Wyldwoods can potentially cause devastating damage to your enemies. 

The new Wyldwood model was designed with ease of play in mind, and you’ll find them much, much easier to use than their counterparts. Cunning construction means that you’ll easily be able to move units through them, while a modular design means that you can combine kits to create larger Wyldwoods – perfect for concealing bigger units! 

Check back soon after I have had a few games and we can look into it more thoroughly!

Kaelo