i mean really... (for those that not know the stats: it costs 50 ranked skink price. or 20saurus warriors + full command Stats Move 7-6(dont remember) WS 3 BS who cares S6 T6 W6 I2 A6 on charge it doeas 3d3 impacts so really alot more than stegadon, if on charge roll you roll 10+ you get 3d3+3 impacts monster like. but if he does impact he doesnt do his regular ataks, big deal. skin made of stone, any multiple wound rolls are halfed and rounded up, sick. AS 4+ Now more and more Stegadons luke like little ponys. meiby theywill become light cav some day?
It is big, it is nasty, but I dont think its broken.... or too broken at least. Its stupid number of impact hits and normal attacks is bad enough, but not as bad as the arachnarok or Sphinx imo You stick a skink chief on top with the stegadon war spear, 2D6+1 impact hits. Granted that makes the stegadon more expensive than it already is but I think its worth it Now, I still think the ancient stegadon (with chief) is easily better. Wanna know why? 4D6+2 Poison shots. So if you dont get the charge you make your stand and shoot and do some wounds to the bad boy.
Meh, ogres need the help. I'd take odds on a stegadon with Slann support over a stonehorn with slaughtermaster support any day.
I think the two units are about even. The stone horn is a bit better in close combat, but the stegs both have ranged attacks. Both are good options.
Complaining about a monster with a 4+ save? Come on, I've faced one this weekend and it hit the ground in turn 3 without reaching combat. Skinks ftw!!
The stonehorn is so much better than the stegadon both in close combat and survivability.and they are basically the same points! The only real difference is the howdah weapons, and they are not that good.
At the same time, take a lvl 4 slaughtermaster, with any lore he's allowed to have (Maw, Beasts, Heavens, Death). He costs more than an entry level Slann, but is far inferior in terms of magical power, leadership, free ward save, and all around usefulness. Ogres rely on charging things, so they get a better monster for the points. Lizardmen wield powerful magic, so we get a much better magician. I think the tradeoff is fair.
Yeah it is hard to compare units between armies... Really, every army needs things more or less. HE have fairly good cheap magic items, that doesn't instantly make everyone elses magic items useless. It all works out. And really, if you want to complain about ridiculously good rare choice monsters... The varghulf for a starts packs a lot more bang for its buck, the DE Hydra is insane, and the hell pit abomination is... Well, I don't need to say more. In our list, a steg is still good and worth taking even though there are better value monsters out there.
true it is much stronger in combat, but Stegs have more versatility in terms of choices for combat, long range or magic support. I think this is where the expensive points go.
I play ogres, but I have not looked at the new book yet. I am sure that it is not as bad as you think. Things ALWAYS seem worse from the other side of the table. Lizardmen have many responses to things like this, just don't try to match it up in combat with a stegadon.
I suppose it is a good choice even if it is not quite as good as the stonehorn. I just find that it always has a hard time making up its points. Another question to consider: is it worth it to equip engine of the gods with a skink priest?
Support units do not need to kill at least their points value to be worth it. If a steg combo charges with some saurus, and only kills 5 men, but those 5 kills mean you win the combat and break your opponent, then thats probably worth it. As good as saurus are, the vast majority of units still need some support in combat to be able to break through and win, otherwise you could have them sitting there hacking it out for 3+ turns with no result. Less if the opponent uses their own support units well. I believe an EotG is not really worth it in 8th ed, it just puts way too many points into characters if you have a Slann as well. And lets face it, you should since he is much better. The skink on the engine can also be a bit vulnerable despite having a 2+ save, it won't take much to snipe him off the top and leave you with an overpriced stegadon.
I agree about everything everyone said about comparing monsters and would like to add that you are comparing the newest 8th edition bad boy to a 7th edition monster. Just wait and see! In the meantime, Stegadons are still a very viable option.
As soon as the Stonehorn steps into the steaming jungles of Lustria, it gets heat stroke and dies. Then the Stegadon stomps all over it's corpse.
As others have said you have to remember that individual units are not balanced out - but armies as a whole. Yes the stonehorn is better than the steg and nearly the same price - however where as a stonehorn is unlikely to be supported by a unit large enough to disrupt or out number the enemy a steg is - this means that a stonehorns apponant is likely to be stubbon all the way through a fight, whilst a stegs opponant isn't. That simple fact alone makes up the points difference, and as others have pointed out the difference in magic ability even though the mages cost the same is similar too. It boils down to how you play - lizardmen are a tactical/magical force so get cheap tactical/magical units with impact troops being more expensive. Orges are an impact/combat army - so they get cheap impact/combat troops with expensive magical/tactical choices, but overall the two armies are still fairly balanced, with possibly Ogres having a slight advantage due to having a book designed for 8th edition.