Warmachine Brackets

One of my buddies has a bracketing system for determining his next Warmachine/Hordes faction. I asked him to put one together for me so I can start planning my next one. He sent me an extensive questionnaire on my play style, likes, and dislikes and compiled the results. What follows are my musings on his picks and my decision making process as I work through the bracket. Here we go.

Round One:
There should be some pretty easy picks here, as many of the factions I already own are here and can be eliminated swiftly.

The first match is between Dwarves and Farrow. I have played several games against Farrow and I like their play style. They have some nice combos and a they can be deadly. I have not played with or against any Dwarves, but they do have a wide selection of models that I like and I would have access to all the Mercenary warjacks, which are pretty sweet. The main benefit to playing the Dwarves is that I would be the only one with these units and it would be a good deal different from my other bands. My brother already has a ton of farrow, so I am going with the Dwarves on this match.

The second match is between Menoth and Cygnar. These are both pretty well represented among the local gaming community. I like Menoth's ability to thwart your plans and lay down lots of templates and flame. They have several casters I like and the rest of the line is pretty solid. This army seems to suffer a bit at range, but Warmachine is often decided in close combat anyway. Cygnar offers a different play style, with the ability to focus on range, close, or even combined arms. While all the major factions have plastic kits for their main warjacks, I feel that the Cygnar box truly gives you the ability to put together three very different 'jacks. The flexibility of Cygnar and their overall look will tip the balance in their favor. Win: Cygnar.

The third match is between Mercs and Circle. I love my Circle, but I already have this faction and the goal is to get something new. Win: Mercs.

The fourth match is a bye for Gators. They are heavily favored to win.

On the other side of the bracket we start with another bye for the Trollbloods. They have a pretty good shot as well, since I like their models. We will see.

The sixth match is between Retribution and Legion. This is a tough one. My brother has both of these factions as well and they both have a unique aesthetic. One of the things I like about Privateer is that they have broken out of some of the old fantasy tropes and created something new. Blind half-dragons and mecha-driving elves is not something we see a lot of outside of 40k. Both have a nice set of abilities and would be fun to play. Legion is going to push ahead here with its close combat punch and Lovecraftian imagery. Win: Legion.

The seventh match is between Pirates and Khador. Another easy one. I already have a bunch of Khador and the pirates are cool. Win: Pirates.

The final match is between Cryx and Skorne. I already have two Cryx armies. Win: Skorne.

So heading into round two we will have:

Gators v. Dwarves
Cygnar v. Mercs

and

Trollbloods v. Legion
Pirates v. Skorne

Tune in later for the thrilling results!