Awesome Allies: Serpent Horde and Corsairs of Umbar

Today Will begins a new series looking at lists based around allies! Let us know if there is a combination you would like to see in the future!

Will - So in this article we look at list building with The Serpent Horde and Corsairs of Umbar. These armies, for me, are the perfect tandem and give so many options it is unbelievable. Whilst looking at these two together for the last 3 months I have written so many lists in so many variations I have lost count. The Haradrim with their cavalry and shooting options, and the Corsairs with their power in combat and numbers. You even have options for my beloved magical evil characters. As soon as this lockdown is over this is the first army I will be putting on the table and will be looking at playing this at some of the events I have scheduled.

This article we will look at 3 very different ways to build your lists for maximum tabletop pleasure. I have tried, as usual, to give a different feel to each list as much as I can, and bring in many different elements from across the two armies. So, let’s dive straight in!

List 1:

Warband 1

Suladan on Armoured horse
5 Serpent Riders
4 Haradrim Raiders with Bow
1 Haradrim Raider with bow and warspear

Warband 2
Raza Fang of the Serpent
3 Abrakhan Guard
2 Watchers with twin Blades
5 Haradrim Warriors with spear

Warband 3
Delgamar Gate Master of Umbar
5 Corsairs with spear
5 Corsairs with Shield

Warband 4
Corsair Bosun with spear
5 Corsairs with Shield
4 Corsairs with Spear

Warband 5
Corsair Captain with Spear
5 Corsairs with Shield
4 Corsairs with Spear

800pts - 12 might - 48 models (5 bows)

Here you have a list with hitting power and weight in numbers. No need for banners as there are 3 organic ones on the table already.

On the Haradrim side, Suladan’s warband can split down the middle with one half as a skirmish force and one that can hit like a truck. Suladan is powerful as a leader and can do some of the hard-hitting work too.

Raza is a pretty solid choice at 75pts with his Bane of Kings and Serpent’s Weapon special rule, teamed up with the Abrakhan Guard and Watchers, this warband can go hero hunting if they wish and hack through pretty much anything. Just be aware though if they lose the fight it maybe ouchy time.

The Corsair portion of this list puts numbers on the table and all at that Fight 4 level. We have the Captain using the March to get up the table, the Bosun and Delgamar for rerolls, and all have those ever-important throwing weapons from a whopping 30 models. The sheer overwhelming number of these guys can seriously soften up a target and create gaps to start getting those traps working for you.

This list doesn't focus so much on the Serpent Horde shooting power but more on a couple of niche roles that the Corsairs can't cover. 

List 2

Warband 1
The Betrayer on horse
7 Watchers of Karna with Bow
7 Haradrim Warrior with Spear

Warband 2
Haradrim Chieftain with bow
6 Watchers with Bow
6 Warriors with spear

Warband 3
Delgamar
5 Corsairs with Shield
4 Corsairs with Spear

Warband 4
Corsair Bosun with spear
5 Reavers
4 Corsairs with Spear

Warband 5
Corsair Bosun with spear
5 Reavers
4 Corsairs with Spear

799 points - 8 might - 53 models (14 bows)

The Haradrim side of this list wants to keep shooting as much as possible, rerolling wounds and doing all the magic shenanigans possible until the Reavers can get to their target and cause havoc. The Betrayer can then continue to wreak havoc and put the magic where it needs to be. I realise having the Watchers with bows is slightly unconventional but with their Fight 4 they still can be strong in combat if it gets to that point. Having Fight 4 late game if it goes wrong isn't a bad idea and can save you the game.

The Corsair’s plan is to utilise Delgamar’s warband here as a meat shield and to open up gaps. The Reaver’s plan is simply hit hard, rip into the enemy, and hope you win enough fights to gain the advantage. Remember to keep your Bosun fairly safe though, otherwise it could turn ugly very quickly. I have tried to mitigate this by adding the spears and putting them in the back ranks of models.

You could always add more bows to this list by dropping a Bosun warband if you wish. I think the Betrayer will more than make up for it with his magic, however, and the sheer weight of numbers will be difficult for any enemy to deal with. I have also explored putting axes on Reavers and dropping 10 points elsewhere (maybe the Bosun spears). You may as well piercing strike if you do and hope for the best, if you lose the fight you are probably dying anyway so why not?

List 3

Warband 1
Suladan on Armoured horse with Bow
6 Serpent riders

Warband 2
Haradrim Chieftain on Horse
6 Serpent Riders
1 Haradrim Raider with Banner

Warband 3
Dalamyr Fleetmaster of Umbar
6 Black Numenoreans
6 Corsairs with Spear
4 Arbalesters

Warband 4
Black Numenorean Marshal on Horse with lance
5 Black Numenoreans
5 Corsairs with Spear
2 Arbalesters

800pts - 9 might - 41 models (7 bows)

So, as you can see from this list the model count is a lot less than the other 2 lists but the defence is a lot better. This is essentially as much of a tank list as you can make with the troop options across the armies, utilising the Black Numenoreans to get the troops into combat with good defence against other shooting armies. It has great stopping power with 6 crossbows and Fight 4 everywhere.

There are no tricks to this list, the idea here is just to smash into your enemy and rip them apart. Go direct or flank with your cavalry, either way just leave your finesse at the door and go charging in with muddy feet straight into your enemy’s living room.

 I have placed a banner in the Chieftain’s warband, but this wasn’t for him to make use of, this is for the Corsairs. It is definitely the least themey of all the lists and just takes what I believe to be certain strong elements at your disposal and mashing them together. At 41 models this is still a healthy number of troops and won't see you hitting your breakpoint for a while.

Summary:

 "NO MUMAKIL" I hear you all shout in unison as you realise I’m finished. Due to the ally rule there is simply not that much room for a tooled-up mumak, it's crew and a decent number of Corsairs that would make a difference in my opinion. Every list I wrote came out very subpar and I felt I was losing so much in comparison to what you see above. If you do find something by all means feel free to let us know, I’d be really interested to see what others can come up with. The lists above are not perfect and if you look at the amount on my Battlescribe that I have concocted you will clearly see how many unbelievable options there are, I could have literally written a novel (in fact I rewrote this article at least 3 times).

Anyway, I hope you like this new Ally series. We will be back with others in the future to feed your list building interests.