Early in the Age of Myth, the skaven of the Clans Pestilens had a revelation from the Great Horned Rat itself – the existence of 13 Great Plagues. In the millennia since then, they have discovered and harnessed seven of these, and the Plague Lords now believe that a rotten reagent for the eighth Great Plague is hidden
, deep beneath the Gnarlwood.
Skabbik’s Plaguepack have been dispatched to find this mysterious ingredient, spreading disease and corruption as they go. With Skabbik and his minions available to pre-order this weekend, we’ve put together some top tips with help from the folks behind the rules of Warhammer Underworlds.
Fight-fight to Win!
Skabbik’s Plague Pack want to aim for a mix of aggressive and objective play. By their nature, skaven are squishy, inaccurate, and don’t deal a lot of damage. Skabbik and Rabidus buck the trend slightly – both are heavier hitters who can forge ahead into enemy territory and clear out fighters, while the rest of the Plaguepack hang back to grab home objectives, corrupt territories, and eventually Inspire before surging forward to mop up what’s left.
Skabbik is Greatest, Best Leader
Skabbik Plagueseeker is the loathsome lynchpin for the whole warband. Comparatively tanky for one of the verminkin, he can stagger all adjacent fighters at the start of the round thanks to his Befouler ability. Buffing his defence is a smart upgrade route, especially as you’ll need your damage buffs to empower lesser fighters – even more important if a canny opponent prevents you from Inspiring.
Disgusting Appearance is a simple defence increase, while Rotted Flesh reduces incoming damage while Skabbik is in Corrupted territory, the core mechanic the whole warband synergises with.
Wind up Rabidus and Let Him Go
Rabidus Skench is your secret weapon, a flailing zealot who hits like a rampaging Stonehorn but who’s as squishy as a solitary Nurgling. When he’s Inspired, his Flailing Plague Censer is truly menacing – especially with the Scything keyword hitting multiple targets. He’s at his best when worked up into a frenzy and shoved in the general direction of the enemy’s weakest foes.
Screaming Lunatic boosts his flailing to a terrifying Damage 4, while Bursting Sores helps you finish off anyone who has somehow survived his bilious barrage of blows. As the prime target for enemy warbands, Glorious Sacrifice will punish your opponent for taking him out, either granting you Glory or a chance to Inspire if you’ve sent him screaming ahead.
Skritter Cannot Be Ignored
Everyone loves a warband with a cute little critter, and Skritter is the Plaguepack’s petite pestilent pet. He is, as his card says, Worthless. He can’t hold objectives, and doesn’t net your opponent any Glory if they squish him. On the flipside he is incredibly fast, can Corrupt territory, and Staggers opponents as a Befouler.
All this means your opponent really can’t afford to let him live, and every time they’re taking the chance to attack Skritter, they aren’t targeting your big hitters. Use him to score Blessed By Corruption and Useful Distraction early on. If he survives, he’s a tasty target for Glorious Sacrifice too.
The Rest of The Pestilent Pack
The rest of your rotten ratfolk are largely there to distract your opponent and overwhelm them if they don’t pay attention. Itchitt is a great area denial tool thanks to his Book of Woe ability, whereas Poxlik and Rikkit are there to help you Corrupt more territories to Inspire your hard hitters.
As a result, you’ll want to cast your eye at Move-move! which provides immense utility for a warband that favours such an aggressive playstyle. Manifestations of the Great Plague is similarly useful, giving you the potential to easily Inspire your whole warband if you boot Itchitt, Skritter, or another expendable fighter forward early on.
Go Further with Rivals Decks
Skabbik’s Plaguepack work well with a range of different Rivals Decks.
Beastbound Assaulthelps out your minion swarm tactics with aggressive ploys, objectives, and tasty Denizen upgrades you can also nab for Nemesis decks, while
Fearsome Fortressexcels at holding the mid-table, something Skabbik and his noisome pals are keen to do.
For the more technically minded players, Voidcursed Thralls presents plenty of options through just the plot card, which toughens up the Plaguepack and prevents them from being driven back – there are plenty of extra cards to mix in to create the perfect Nemesis deck too.
Sign up for the hunt by pre-ordering Skabbik’s Plaguepack this coming Saturday.