Swampstalkers are a no nonsense focused grouping of dice that can easily overpower, outmaneuver, or out magic any army. The combination of racial spells and abilities keep the opponent bogged down in what they can do while the Sarslayen player mops up with their specialized units. To begin let’s take a look at the Racials Abilities and Spells:

Born of the Swamp: While in a Terrain that contains Water (Green) Swamp Stalkers may count Maneuvers as Saves (when rolling for save results).
This is used a lot in Dragon Dice but it remains one of the best Racials you can get for a race. This will make your cavalry, Light Melee, and monsters incredibly resistant to damage and great supplements to your main method of Force destruction.

Mutate: After Dragons have attacked, before taking your first march, so long as you have a Swamp Stalkers unit in your DUA, your opponent has a unit in reserve, and you have an army containing at least 1 Swamp Stalker, you may force a unit in the opponent’s reserve area to make a save roll (regardless of health total), if it fails, it is killed. You may promote a number of health equal to that unit’s health of Swamp Stalkers at a single terrain. The number of health recruited or promoted is equal to 2 times the number of dragons brought in your DUA.

This is an amazing ability that screams unfair but actually really is very fair. The unit gets a save roll, but if not you get a grave based feralization up to the killed unit’s health. With the Sarslayen so tough in watery terrain it may be difficult to get them into your graveyard thought. So just remember the words of a friend of mine, “Statistical Improbability is the most probable in games like this.” When you do loose units you will get them back, and all you need is a deadlands in play to activate 2 of the three conditions. Wanna activate the 3rd on your own? Add in 2 Ashbringers for an offensive Mirage.

Swamp Fever: (Swamp Stalkers) Magic 3
Target three (stacking) health-worth of unit(s) in an opposing army. Roll the targets. If they roll an ID result, they are killed. Any units killed by Swamp Fever make a second roll. If they roll an ID result they are buried.

Direct sniping that can be stacked with an impressive casting crew can devastate an army. Pick a lot of units to then out a few and then wade in for the attack.

Mire (Swamp Stalkers): Target a terrain. Until the beginning of your next turn, any army wishing to march at that terrain must first make a roll. Any unit that does not roll a maneuver result may not be rolled during that march.

This will speed you along while holding your opponent back, not all of your opponents counter maneuvering forces will be comprised of Light or Cavalry troops to stop you. Use this spell when you get to a face you want to stay on, if you don’t have green in the base terrain and you just moved from missile to melee range.

Now that we have discussed Racials lets talk units:

Heavy Melee


Annihilator: (Rare: 5 Melee, 2 Save, 3 Save, 4 Smite, 2 Melee)

Ravager: (Uncommon: 4 Melee, 1 Melee, 3 Melee, 2 Save, 2 Save)

Warmonger: (Common: 2 Melee, 1 Melee, 1 Melee, 1 Save, 1 Save)

Thoughts:
The Sarslayan Heavy Melee hit hard and are hard to damage. They are reliable where they need to be and can be on either the counter attack or main attack for a turn and still do lethal damage.

Light Melee:


Invader: (Rare: 3 Missile, 4 Melee, 3 Maneuver, 4 Poison, 2 save)

Raider: (Uncommon: 2 Missile, 3 Melee, 2 Melee, 2 Save, 3 Maneuver)

Striker: (Common: 1 Missile, 2 Melee, 1 Melee, 1 save, 1 Maneuver)

Thoughts:
Poison is a killed with no save attached SAI. These guys need to be in Green terrain to be truly effective. When they are, however, they become quite the force and share the same resiliency as their heavy counterparts.

Missile:


Deluger: (Rare: 5 Missile, 2 Missile, 2 Missile, 4 bullseye, 2 Save)

Stormer: (Uncommon: 4 Missile, 2 Missile, 2 Missile, 2 Melee, 2 save)

Sprayer: (Common: 2 Missile, 1 Missile, 1 Missile, 1 Save, 1 Melee)

Thoughts:
Missile units for the Sarslayan lack for saving ability so supplement some Cavalry into the army for saves and then just watch as the missile count racks up. Again, with all the melee and magic options for the race don’t count out a five to twelve health missile army.

Cavalry:


Wave Rider: (Rare: 5 Maneuver, 2 Save, 3 Save, 4 Coil, 2 Maneuver)

Marsh Swimmer: (Uncommon: 4 Maneuver, 2 Save, 2 Save, 2 Melee, 2 Maneuver)

Bog Runner: (Common: 2 Maneuver, 1 Maneuver, 1 Melee, 1 Save, 1 Save)

Thoughts:
At least 12 health-worth of your army should be Cavalry. Sprinkle them into your Hitters, Shooters, and Casters while using Born of the Swamp and they have an 83% chance of a save when rolling for any type of saving throw.

Magic:


Swamp Wizard: (Rare: 5 Magic, 3 Magic, 2 Save, 4 Cantrip, 2 Melee)

Marsh Mage: (Uncommon: 4 Magic, 2 Magic, 2 Magic, 2 Melee, 2 Save)

Bog Adept: (Common: 2 Magic, 1 Magic, 1 Magic, 1 Save, 1 Melee)

Thoughts:
The Sarslayan Mages are consistent results for their type with their rare being super consistent. The Sarslayen have access to stopping power, magical saves, terrain management, and also debuffs. They could easily make for half of a force together, but not a full one. they lack the survivability required and so need to be in favored terrain with preferably cavalry to maintain their strength.

Monsters:


Crocasaur: (Maneuver, Save, Melee, Surprise, Surprise, Tail, Tail, Rend, Melee)

The Crocasaur is a beat stick that is almost a bit redundant. surprise can stop counter attacks, but that stops something that you are already good at taking, which is Saves.

Mudman: (Save, Melee, Smother, Maneuver, Melee, Surprise, Save, Melee, Smother)

Another Melee Monster the Mudman is best used for it’s ability to Smother and spot remove problem targets before they become problems.

Orimyrr: (Save, Maneuver, Magic, Save, Coil, Magic, Missile, Missile, Melee)

It seems every race has one, and the Fireshadow is the only one who works. the Orimyrr is another monster who is a Jack of all Trades, and can’t really decide what range it wants to be in.

Swamp Beast: (Maneuver, Save, Melee, Surprise, Poison, Melee, Wave, Poison, Wave)
The Swamp Beast is at home in the Melee phase. By rolling a Wave it deducts 4 results from the opposition’s save total. Wave can also help with light melee, and cavalry when maneuvering in the same way it helps the melee attack.

Swamp Giant: (Save, Poison, Trample, Smite, Smite, Maneuver, Melee, Save Trample.

The Sarlayan do nice things in melee. The Swamp Giant is no different. He hits hard, saves well in favorable terrain. Most of his attack faces are against no save roll. Top monster Pick for this army.

Terrains:


Terrain choice is possibly the most important choice after deciding what race you want to play. This is because your success or failure is tied to the colors in that terrain. Your minor terrain choices can also play a part in activating abilities from seemingly nowhere. As with any Death race I suggest 2 deadlands for them. It will let you start whittling away at your opponents reserves the turn after you bring one in if you don’t have any dead units. Also remember that you want to fight a lot with this army, so pick a terrain like a dragon’s layer for your frontier so you can always have a melee option to batter your foes with. Since you can’t do that with your home terrain I suggest using a Faeland or Coastland for their emphasis on either magic or missile, respectively. No mater what terrain you choose, make sure it has green in it. If you run across a terrain that doesn’t, bring Minors that share off colors and dominate a terrain once you hit your preferred face. Remember though, in the end it all comes down to melee and speed.

Tactics:


TLDR: Bring an army of Light and heavy melee and another army made of cavalry and either missile or mages. use a couple monsters you like.

Long Version:
Sarslayan do well with mixed armies, light Melee to provide saves for the Heavy Brusers, Cavalry to stop advances while protecting Mages or Missile units. Use a Cavalry and Mage based army to stall and frustrate your opponent with green and black spells, while your melee beat them to a bloody mist. The same can be done with Missile and will work well for using 2 armies to slay 1, so long as that army is in missile range (if this option is chosen I suggest a Coastlands Tower).