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Skaven (Renegades fan list) · 137–140 points · Elite infantry
Are Stormvermin good? Halberds or shields
Stormvermin are much better anvils than their reputation suggests, and the weapon choice decides what kind. Both builds won 26 of 60 fights when the enemy charged, the best receiving result of any Skaven unit I tested.
Quick answer: it depends what you point Stormvermin at
- If they charge
- Halberds: 23 of 60 won, about 1.77 wounds inflicted in the opening round
- If they receive
- Either build: 26 of 60 won
- Take shields when
- You want them to survive: about 1.52 wounds suffered in the opening round, against 2.92 with halberds
Halberd Stormvermin are the offensive version and shield Stormvermin the grinder; their win counts barely differ, so the job decides.
How many simulations I ran
I ran 240 complete combats with Stormvermin: 120 each for 13 halberd Stormvermin (137 points) and 12 with hand weapons and shields (140 points), charging and receiving against six opponents. These were the results.
The gap between the two Stormvermin builds is one or two wins in 60, well inside what ten fights per matchup can swing, so the opening-round damage figures tell you more than the win counts. Both builds use the fan-made Skaven Renegades draft.
Stormvermin builds compared
Stormvermin, wins from 60 combats each way. n = 60 combats per direction ±13 points
| Build | Pts | Charging | Receiving | Combined | My read |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 halberds, full command | 137 | 23/60 | 26/60 | 49/120 | Offensive version; more damage, especially on the charge |
| 12 hand weapons and shields, full command | 140 | 22/60 | 26/60 | 48/120 | Defensive grinder; less damage, better survival |
What the opening round showed
When they charged, halberd Stormvermin averaged about 1.77 wounds inflicted and 2.92 suffered in the opening round. The hand-weapon-and-shield unit inflicted about 0.95 and suffered only 1.52.
For comparison, 20 spear-and-shield Clanrats won 52 of 120 at 137 points. See every build on my Skaven melee units page.
My conclusion
Based on these results, I would use halberd Stormvermin as offensive elite infantry and shield Stormvermin as a grinding anvil, and not expect either build to break elite units on its own.
FAQs
Should Stormvermin take halberds or shields?
Halberds if they will charge, shields if they will hold. The win counts were almost identical (49 and 48 of 120), but halberds did nearly twice the opening-round damage while shields took about half as much.
Are Stormvermin better than Clanrats?
Not in my tests. 20 Clanrats with spears and shields won 52 of 120, against 49 and 48 for the two Stormvermin builds at similar points.