Two new units of the Golden Company have just been leaked! Braoum!
A fan-favorite elite sellsword army, the Golden Company is a late-comer in the books, rallying to the cause of Aegon Targaryen and helping him to take back his rightful throne. They are currently supposed to be winning the assault on Storm’s End, and yes, they have elephants!
For the show watchers only, they appeared in the last season, let’s say… briefly. Quite unceremoniously dispatched by Drogon in the infamous “The Bells” episode. And they didn’t bring their elephants. Sad.
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Golden Company Swordsmen
These guys sculpts have already been shown a while back, embodying quite fittingly the golden look of these sellswords, with a certain adequate roughness to them. Now we have their profile, and it isn’t too bad!
For (supposedly) 7pts, they are a pretty well-rounded unit, not great but not bad either. Their movement of 5 makes them quite mobile for their appearance, going well with their defense of 4+ and morale of 6+. Those are the stats of a typical infantry unit, with a small boost in morale, further enhanced by their “Iron Resolve” ability. Speaking of “Iron Resolve”, I called it when the Golden Company Crossbowmen came out, that it would be the “standard” rule of GC units, so pretty happy about that!
Their attack profile is where their value rises a little bit, with a 7/5/4 on 3+, which are a staple for 7pts units. Their stack goes up thanks to the keyword “Sundering”, allowing them to pierce through more heavily armored foes (Baratheons at Storm’s End, coincidence? I think not!), and a small bonus when controlling the Letters zone, allowing them to hit with their highest attack value.
So overall not a bad unit, even if a bit expensive for 7pts when comparing them to Rose Knights, Greataxes or Kingsmen as examples. This goes in line with the Golden Company Crossbowmen which most consider overpriced at 8pts, turning the whole sellsword sub faction into a very elite and costly list. I’m calling it again, but I’m expecting some discount from Golden Company commanders or attachments coming in the next Neutral Heroes box! Maybe the opposite of Stormcrow Mercenaries, with the attachments being free instead of a discount within the unit, to represent their higher status and fame?
This unfortunately makes them quite hard to use with an attachment at the moment, and the only one I can really think of would be Vargo Hoat commander in the Neutral faction: the Letters is the Neutral’s faction’s favorite zone, and their Sundering and defensive stats make them a good mix for an offensive bunker for the Goat of Harrenhall.
BUT… there is an attachment card on the picture!
The name seems to be something like “Golden Company Blablaer”, and he comes in with 2 abilities, one of which seemingly similar to Renly Lord Paramount of the Stormlands “Bolsterous Charisma” (you can see “ted”, “ds” and “CUs.”, so most probably something akin to “can’t be targeted by tactic cards and influenced by enemy NCUs”). The second ability ends with “nd.”, so maybe something with Tactic hand? In any case, it could turn them into a very self-sufficient unit, impervious to enemy tricks, and I’m very curious to learn more…
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Golden Company War Elephants
Braoum!
Free Folks are not the only faction with pachyderms anymore, since anyone and their squire can hire a grey beast! But should they? At (also apparently) 7pts a beast, it is a legitimate question to ask…
First thing first, it is not a Cavalry unit, meaning it doesn’t get a free maneuver. So don’t expect to have elephants flying around the battlefield, they are more Colonel Hathi than Dumbo-like.
Second, they can’t hold objectives, so can be considered as a purely offensive unit (granted, they do it well), and will be basically useless if not charging or attacking anything.
Third, you will need to hire another Golden Company unit in your army to make the most out of them: if no GC unit is around them in Long range when doing an Action, a failed Morale Test cancels this Action. With an average morale of 6+, it makes them highly dependent on other GC units, limiting your movement options.
But it’s not all bad! They definitely have a great offensive profile, basically a Mountain that Rides on steroids…
4 attacks on 3+ is quite nice, with an added die for every defender’s rank when charging. And no defense rolls (take that poachers!).
“Vicious” is a great keyword, with more and more factions getting stronger against panic, and combines perfectly with the Defenders not rolling Defense Dice: similar to Qarl in House Harlaw Reapers, auto-wounds make auto-panic tests, and “Vicious” is the little push they need to fail it.
So a good charge from a War Elephant has the potential to wipe out 2 ranks of any unit.
Defense-wise, they have the potential to resist attacks thanks to a 3+ defense, but their 8 wounds will make them quite vulnerable to heavy offense, so they should be used with caution. Despite their average morale, they do have the bonus of only losing a maximum of 2 wounds on failed panic tests, pushing their resistance a bit.
I really like these elephants overall; they have fantastic potential in a Neutral list and are a great fit for the “Issue Commands” card. A surprise charge or attack from such an offensive unit can turn the tide in the neutral player’s favor, which is great! So far, Vargo Hoat commander seems the best choice for both units, and I’m looking forward to try a Golden Bloody Mummers Company list…
I also really like the fact that they become unreliable without another Golden Company unit: this will definitely prevent them to turn into Flayed Men, necessitating a costly investment, and will keep them fresh instead of being used in every list of every faction.
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Hope you enjoyed this brief analysis and are as excited as me to get your hands of these elite sellswords!
Stay tuned for more articles and updates coming soon…
Grob’
Chez Grob 