Boomer sergeants vs Berserker Bullies

Army lists and Tactics
#1

Let me preface this by saying i’m a noob, so what follows could be just wrong.

I see loads of blogs/reviews/posts singing the praises of Berserker Bullies, and I get it, they are amazing, super smashy, fearless with unit strength on a small nimble base.

The problem as I see it is that ogre hero slots are at a premium with good characters and difficult unlocks. By the time you get your ogre hordes in place for unlocks you have so much face smash in the army that more seems redundant.

Boomer Sergeants however just seem to fill a perfect niche; nimble, low points, not an individual, better than average shooting. It just seems to me that they can shoot and/or act as semi-decent chaff. Who cares about throwing <100 points to bait a charge for your siegebreakers.

So what I’m saying is that it might just be zero experience on my part but i think i’d rather fill any spare hero slots with boomer sergeants, Im obviously not talking about boomer vs the amazing other hero slots like Noma etc…

Open to being educated! :smiley:

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#2

Check out this is you haven’t already: https://dash28.org/2020/05/21/kings-of-war-3rd-edition-ogre-army-review/

There is nothing at all bad about the boomer sergeant - decent shooting attack, scoring and pretty cheap. The bully though has really quality stats all round, so is objectively ‘better’.

If you are mainly running combat hordes them the boomer, along with the warlock, can provide some decent mobile shooting. On the other hand, if you are running boomer hordes, then getting the bully makes sense (esp if you are also taking the odd berserker unit)

#3

Yeah I’d seen that article, and your observations are spot on, its probably how I would approach building for the ogres in that I prefer combat units (specifically siege breakers) over boomers. If I did build the opposite way then Berserkers are a much better fit. Thanks :slight_smile:

#4

Boomers sgts just don’t cut it for me. I’d sooner take I think any other hero in front of them.

unlocks are a premium in ogres and agreed they can shoot but with them taking penalties for shooting in cover, individuals etc then they may still struggle to clear chaff, combined with a 12" range it’s tough going.

if you want chaff use a BSB they are insanely good value for 70pts. they have better me and de stats and have insp.

if you want shooting that will achieve chaff clearing use a warlock with DL. LB6 or DL 8 is great at clearing stuff out and can influence the game in all 6 turns. A boomer sgt can struggle to be relevant on every turn.

Bullies are fearless and have WC and are bonkers good in combat for their price. They are great chaff and provide some serious threat range that no one can ignore. They are also surprisingly hard to break with light shooting due to their nerve and self insp .

all my opinion of course :slight_smile:

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#5

Yeah great points Matt, I’d kind of sold myself on them as a Chaff+ type option but the nerve is the crux of it i think (both theirs and the fact the dont inspire). I still want to try them out I’ve semi-settled on this list to paint up:

Ogres.3e.2000.001
Ogres
Siege Breakers (Horde) 240
Nomagarok [1] 140
Siege Breakers (Horde) 240
Siege Breakers (Horde) 240
Boomers (Horde) 230
Grokagamok[1] 250
Boomer Sergeant 90
Boomers (Horde) 230
Red Goblin Scouts* (Troop) 100
Red Goblin Scouts* (Troop) 100
Berserker Bully 130

Total Unit Strength: 21
Total Units: 11
Target Points: 2000
Core (Target%): 1990 (99.5%)

Its just to use locally and I might tone it down because i get the feeling that seige breaker spam is frowned upon, its difficult to gauge being a noob tho. Your BSB suggestion as a 3rd inspire has serious merit though, and if I go down the bully route i think it raises the stock of Berserker Braves regiments as “chaff”.