Pyramid Guard

The Pyramid Guard of Lord Bon-cho'fi

This Page aims to give you a look at Iain's Lizardmen army, the Pyramid Guard of Lord Bon-cho'fi, and how they are used in battle.

Read the Legend of Lord Bon-cho'fi, or view his profile.

See a sample army list and read a battle report.

The Slann Mage-Priest

Naturally, the army is led by Lord Bon-cho'fi himself, although he is not necessarily used as a Lord level character. He is usually put in a supporting role, using his powerful magic to demolish enemies from afar. However, at higher levels, and with the correct magical armament, he is capable of taking on and beating almost any other opponent.

The choice of magic for any general is crucial. Normally I would take High Magic, especially against the Undead or Daemons, but when fighting against an army with no wizards e.g. Dwarfs, Battle Magic is more useful as it has more purely offensive spells like Fireball, Destruction and Blast.

Magic items are generally the Amber Amulet (for protection) The excellent Sword of Justice (for close combat) and support items like the Plaque of dominion.

Saurus Warriors

Saurus are one of the best basic infantry units around and should form the core of any Lizardman battle-line. They get two attacks at strength 4, and with toughness 4 and a 4+ armour save, they will hold their own against just about anyone. Bolstered with a champion, or better a hero and command group, they can be tailored to fight agaist specific opponents.

Even better are Saurus spearmen. For only 1 extra point, all the models in the second rank can attack, giving you half as many attacks again. This makes them an extremely resilient unit, as it is hard to kill enough of them to prevent some retaliation. They are just as good as ordinary Saurus on atttacking, and can hold their own in prolonged combats because of sheer weight of attacks.

Skinks

At first sight, Skink archers look puny, weak and generally useless. However, they are in fact one of the most versatile troops in the whole army. Skirmishing makes them hard to hit, and they can turn for no cost. This allows them to flank charge enemy units in combat so that they lose their rank bonus. The miniscule range of short bows is also a problem, but combined with a

march move of 12", once they get in the right position, a hail of poison arrows can be devestating. A word of warning, though. Although mixing Skinks and Kroxigors sounds good in theory, it is not a good idea. The enemy will just slaughter lots of skinks so that they break, taking the Kroxigors with them.

Cold One Riders

Cold Ones make excellent counter-attack troops and can also be used to take out 'soft' targets like skirmishers, and exposed war machine crews. The skinks get +1 strength

on the charge, and Cold Ones do lots of damage anyway. The main thing to watch for is letting them get shot at. Because they are cavalry, the rider's toughness 2 is used for working out wounds. Even with a 3+ save, this still causes an uncomfortable number of casualties. I once had an entire regiment reduced to only a hero by a High Elven Repeater Bolt Thrower on mulitple shot mode...

Stegadons and Kroxigor

Both these kind of troops have one major advantage - they cause fear. Just try taking these against armies like Orcs & Goblins and watch them turn and run. I find lone Kroxigor particularly useful because of their mobility and 12" charge range. The Stegadon is deadly, especially when armed with one of these two banners. The Banner of Might, allows the Stegadon to actually hit someone with its low weapon skill, or you could take the Jaguar Standard to get quickly into charge range of the enemy. The only thing to watch out for is cannons, which can wound on a 2+ and cause D4 or D6 wounds. Another hint is not to take a giant bow because, when you are on the move (ie. most of the time), it will have trouble hitting anything. Also, lots of skinks (at least 6) are a must, becuase there is nothing more annoying than a Stegadon which has rolled low on the Moster Reaction Table and ends up charging your own lizards...

Terradons & Salamanders

If Terradons have one great advantage it is their 'drop rocks' attack. Basically, you can pinpoint one enemy character and kill him outright, or at least give him major concussion. Their 24" fly move or the ability to fly high, means that you can land behind the enemy lines and stop them marching, meanwhile peppering them with poisoned javelins. Terradons are particularly effective in groups of three or more, when they will usually be able to take out a single character with one devastating charge.

Salamanders are great when shooting at a closely packed group of regiments so that even if the shot scatters off target, it will still hit something. The 'no armour save' spit is also deadly for attacking units such as heavily armoured Bretonnian Knights and Dwarf Iron Breakers. Like Terradons, they are best in groups since their low BS means that not all of them will hit anything. However, beware of spending too many points on what is really a supporting unit.

Temple Guard

Saurus Temple Guard are a relatively new unit in my army and so I have not had much chance to play with them yet. Their main advantage over normal Saurus is their weaponskill of 4. This allows them to hit that little extra bit more often, and allows their halberds to come into play. Their total strength of 5 allows these weapons to put a serious dent in even heavily armoured troops. They are also surprisingly resilient, as they get a 3+ save against shooting, making sure they make it to the enemy lines intact. With a unit size of around 15, a character to lead them, and a magic banner, they will take on pretty much anything. They also make an excellent bodyguard for a Slann Mage-Priest.

Swarms

There's not much to be said about these little beasts. However, they are great for slowing down the enemy attacks because of the fact that they don't break. Also, a flank charge causes an enemy to lose their rank bonus, and confers a +1 combat result bonus.

Lizards Not Painted Yet

Skink Shaman

The Skink Shaman is an invaluable addition to any Lizardman army. They get to take two magic items, one of which I always make a spell familiar. This means that he gets two spells, one of which is usually offensive like Blast or Destruction. Also, the shaman is small enough not to get shot at too much. However, if you end up with Teleport Self, you could try using him to stop the enemy marching, although he will probably be killed.

Special Characters

One of my favorite special characters is Oxayotl, the Chameleon Skink. His ability to infiltrate the battlefield, combined with his blowpipe attack, allows you to get near the enemy and soften them up before they close on your battle line. His -2 to hit also makes him very durable and unlikely to die from archery fire.

Tenehuini, the prophet of Sotek is good because of his ability to summon serpent swarms. If you do this to an enemy in a fight, it could easily turn the tide of the combat. He also has the abilities of a normal Skink Shaman which is always useful...

...Also, don't forget that the Dagger of Sotek is an invaluable aid when taking on large Skaven regiments.

One of the main problems with Cold Ones is their stupidity...

Model Not Painted Yet

...Inxi-Huinxi prevents this, and his ability to throw darts when charging can often win you the combat. He also has an improved mount, the fearsome Horned One.

On the subject of Cold Ones, Tichi-Huichi's Raiders are an excellent addition to your army. They are a Dogs of War regiment, who are basically identical to Cold One Riders with a hero, but they cannot be run down if they lose a combat. If you have any Cold Ones, you should replace them with Tichi-Huichi's Raiders to get this benefit. The added flexibility of hero is not to be underestimated. With a good magic weapon, he can challenge and kill many other characters on the charge.

That just about sums up the Pyramid Guard of Lord Bon-cho'fi in one brief look. I am looking at getting another Stegadon to increase my hard-hitting attack power, or perhaps another Slann to increase my Magical output. May Sotek be pleased with the sacrifices brought to him from the victories of this army.

Go Back

Saurus are one of the best basic infantry units around and should form the core of any Lizardman battle-line. They get two attacks at strength 4, and with toughness 4 and a 4+ armour save, they will hold their own against just about anyone. Bolstered with a champion, or better a hero and command group, they can be tailored to fight agaist specific opponents.
	Even better are Saurus spearmen. For only 1 extra point, all the models in the second rank can attack, giving you half as many attacks again. This makes them an extremely resilient unit, as it is hard to kill enough of them to prevent some retaliation. They are just as good as ordinary Saurus on atttacking, and can hold their own in prolonged combats because of sheer weight of attacks.

At first sight, Skink archers look puny, weak and generally useless. However, they are in fact one of the most versatile troops in the whole army. Skirmishing makes them hard to hit, and they can turn for no cost. This allows them to flank charge enemy units in combat so that they lose their rank bonus. The miniscule range of short bows is also a problem, but combined with a
	march move of 12", once they get in the right position, a hail of poison arrows can be devestating. A word of warning, though. Although mixing Skinks and Kroxigors sounds good in theory, it is not a good idea. The enemy will just slaughter lots of skinks so that they break, taking the Kroxigors with them.

Cold Ones make excellent counter-attack troops and can also be used to take out 'soft' targets like skirmishers, and exposed war machine crews. The skinks get +1 strength
	on the charge, and Cold Ones do lots of damage anyway. The main thing to watch for is letting them get shot at. Because they are cavalry, the rider's toughness 2 is used for working out wounds. Even with a 3+ save, this still causes an uncomfortable number of casualties. I once had an entire regiment reduced to only a hero by a High Elven Repeater Bolt Thrower on mulitple shot mode...

One of my favorite special characters is Oxayotl, the Chameleon Skink. His ability to infiltrate the battlefield, combined with his blowpipe attack, allows you to get near the enemy and soften them up before they close on your battle line. His -2 to hit also makes him very durable and unlikely to die from archery fire.
Tenehuini, the prophet of Sotek is good because of his ability to summon serpent swarms. If you do this to an enemy in a fight, it could easily turn the tide of the combat. He also has the abilities of a normal Skink Shaman which is always useful...			...Also, don't forget that the Dagger of Sotek is an invaluable aid when taking on large Skaven regiments.
One of the main problems with Cold Ones is their stupidity...	Model Not Painted Yet	...Inxi-Huinxi prevents this, and his ability to throw darts when charging can often win you the combat. He also has an improved mount, the fearsome Horned One.
	On the subject of Cold Ones, Tichi-Huichi's Raiders are an excellent addition to your army. They are a Dogs of War regiment, who are basically identical to Cold One Riders with a hero, but they cannot be run down if they lose a combat. If you have any Cold Ones, you should replace them with Tichi-Huichi's Raiders to get this benefit. The added flexibility of hero is not to be underestimated. With a good magic weapon, he can challenge and kill many other characters on the charge.