What heroes do you use for Dwarves?

[Lampros]

I am using all 4 currently, but it is getting to be too many characters to micro-manage (5 including the lord), so I am thinking of cutting out the Thane and just going with Slayer, Engineer, and Runesmith. What do you guys do?

[ChaosKhan]

Out of the 4 the thane is certainly the most "replaceable", but I honestly don't see your micro issue. The thane should be where your lord is as long as he is low lvl. Put the lord and all heroes except engeneer (and maybe slayer) into one group and you're good. Once he reches lvl 20 and properly equipped, he can hold the line quite well by himself and requires the least micro of any hero you have.

[Fryskar]

Engi is a must.
Runepriest or runelord also.
Slayers are quiet nice for replenish.
Thanes exist i suppose. Can be used for some niche stuff.

Depending on the lord, you could just tag the thane along with him or maybe with the slayer.

[Skurio]

Depends on the army, doesnt it?

Gyro stacks get multiple Engineers and nothing else.
Slayers if there is replenishment required, Runesmiths if there is rune magic required. Engineers if restock and missile buff is required.

Not sure i ever found much use for Thanes, maybe as a frontline for artillery spams.

[ChaosKhan]

Originally posted by Skurio:

Depends on the army, doesnt it?

Gyro stacks get multiple Engineers and nothing else.
Slayers if there is replenishment required, Runesmiths if there is rune magic required. Engineers if restock and missile buff is required.

Not sure i ever found much use for Thanes, maybe as a frontline for artillery spams.

The thane is just a tank, nothing more, nothing less. He is also reasonable at dueling and dealing with monsters, as long as you don't expect him to take 1v1 Grimgor or something. He is especially important in stacks that are led by a runelord, since the runelord usually struggles at keeping strong monsters and characters at bay but also works with any other type of lord as a sidekick and force multiplier thanks to his tanky presence. He is tremendously useful at taking off heat from your runesmiths and your lords if sent into the same melee.

[Zeek]

Thanes for straight up tanking and getting stuff to blob around them.

Engineers for the ranged unit buffs

Runelords for the sweet rune magic.

I like to do one of each.

I never use slayers.

[Skurio]

Originally posted by ChaosKhan:

...

Correct me if i am wrong, but unless you are playing multiplayer, the lord support is not really necessary? Dwarf infantry are quite tanky, just use them. In all likelihood you are going to use range to kill lords and monsters any way. Seems like a wasted slot used that way, Unit of slayers should do as good or better. Do you have a scenario where that wouldnt be the case?

Granted, Thanes are reasonable as a frontline to pin down infantry or cavalry units without blocking sight. But thats a usecase where i would normally spam a few of them.

I played with the idea of using him to buff one man doomstacks but having to be in range makes that seem non viable.

[76561198042686546]

Engineers get a movespeed buff, so they're an absolute must for any campaign that is expected to go on for a reasonable amount of time. They're also OK combatants, their shotgun devastates low-armored targets and flashbang can ruin the day of some troops that rely on their mobility to stay alive.

Others... you can live without. You shouldn't, probably, but you can.

[Fryskar]

Originally posted by Skurio:

Originally posted by ChaosKhan:

...

Correct me if i am wrong, but unless you are playing multiplayer, the lord support is not really necessary? Dwarf infantry are quite tanky, just use them. In all likelihood you are going to use range to kill lords and monsters any way. Seems like a wasted slot used that way, Unit of slayers should do as good or better. Do you have a scenario where that wouldnt be the case?

Granted, Thanes are reasonable as a frontline to pin down infantry or cavalry units without blocking sight. But thats a usecase where i would normally spam a few of them.

I played with the idea of using him to buff one man doomstacks but having to be in range makes that seem non viable.

If grimgor or smiliar, small lords/heroes break through. Granted, a thane won't last long either.

[Lampros]

Originally posted by ChaosKhan:

Out of the 4 the thane is certainly the most "replaceable", but I honestly don't see your micro issue. The thane should be where your lord is as long as he is low lvl. Put the lord and all heroes except engeneer (and maybe slayer) into one group and you're good. Once he reches lvl 20 and properly equipped, he can hold the line quite well by himself and requires the least micro of any hero you have.

I like to give each character a separate number grouping, so I am not used to grouping characters together. But I guess I will try then.

Originally posted by War Crimes Appreciator:

Engineers get a movespeed buff, so they're an absolute must for any campaign that is expected to go on for a reasonable amount of time. They're also OK combatants, their shotgun devastates low-armored targets and flashbang can ruin the day of some troops that rely on their mobility to stay alive.

Others... you can live without. You shouldn't, probably, but you can.

Exactly. I don't like Engineers in combat because due to too much micro-management, but they are invaluable in ferrying the army around.

So you use the Grudge-raker line and not the Dead Eye line for Engineers?

[Lampros]

Originally posted by Fryskar:

If grimgor or smiliar, small lords/heroes break through. Granted, a thane won't last long either.

The beauty of Dwarf characters is that you can really tack on tons of items on them to over-perform their base value though.

[76561198042686546]

Both have their place, if the Engineer is expected to babysit the cannons, he needs the long-ranged variant, but if you want to use him as a combat unit of his own, I believe the shotgun is better (as long as you're not shooting ridiculously armored units like Blackguards, Chaos Chosen or... other Dwarves).

[Fryskar]

Originally posted by Lampros:

Originally posted by Fryskar:

If grimgor or smiliar, small lords/heroes break through. Granted, a thane won't last long either.

The beauty of Dwarf characters is that you can really tack on tons of items on them to over-perform their base value though.

Even fully decked out, grimgor can wreck them pretty well.

[Lampros]

Originally posted by War Crimes Appreciator:

Both have their place, if the Engineer is expected to babysit the cannons, he needs the long-ranged variant, but if you want to use him as a combat unit of his own, I believe the shotgun is better (as long as you're not shooting ridiculously armored units like Blackguards, Chaos Chosen or... other Dwarves).

Got it. I am currently dissatisfied with the Dead Eyes version, so I am experimenting with the Grudge-raker version.

How exactly does the baby-sitting cannons version work? I know Engineers can replenish ammo, but my cannons rarely run out of ammo to begin with, because they don't fire much once the front-line engage. And if I try to move them, the ranged unit bug does its own thing, and they try to melee - so I just leave them alone :(

[Lampros]

Originally posted by Fryskar:

Originally posted by Lampros:

The beauty of Dwarf characters is that you can really tack on tons of items on them to over-perform their base value though.

Even fully decked out, grimgor can wreck them pretty well.

I see :(

I haven't seen Grimgor in a while as Thorgrim; usually Tamurkan gets rid of him in my campaigns, and it's him that gives me grief in Thorgrim campaigns, not Grimgor. So I've forgotten about Grimgor since WH2.

[pascal.difolco]

Thanes are super useful tanky melee units, and you can have a lot of them : lock enemies with them, have missiles kill the enemy
Engineers are super useful in missile heavy armies, and even in others with their mobility boost
Slayers are useful in campaign for replenishment and hit pretty hard, but beware of missiles
Runesmiths are the ones I use the least , though runes can often be useful