BOUND SPELLS TACTICA 9/9/99
by Lockjaw
aka
Lachlan Macwhirter
lachlan@ci.com.au


Bound Spells can make a great addition to the magic phase of a cunning
general, but in order for them to be effective one must know how and when
to use them.  What follows is my experiance on how to get the most out
these powerful items.  I have only covered items that are available to all
races and it should be noted that I mainly play an Empire army.  However,
the tactics I'm about to describe will be effective with almost any army.

To begin with, lets take a look at all the items that contain bound
spells.

Note: There is a specific category of magic items in Warhammer that is
called 'Bound Spells'.  Please be aware that they are not the only Bound
Spells as such in the game, as you will see below.

Ring of Volans (25pts)
Ring of Darkness (40pts)
Orb of Thunder (50pts)
Pipes of Doom (75pts)
Horn of Urgok (75pts)
Doomfire Ring (100pts)
Ring of Corin (50pts)
Staff of Flaming Death (50pts)
Staff of Lightning (50pts)
Staff of Osiris (50pts)
Banner of Wrath (75pts)

This list does not cover all bound spell items, for example, the Staff of
Damnation is a bound spell, yet it is Undead Only, so I haven't included
it here. 

So are these bound spells worth their cost? In general, the answer is a
resounding yes!

There are two main types of bound spell items; those that can run out, and
those that are inexahaustable.  You'll notice some items say something
along the lines of 'may only be cast 3 times'.  For all intents and
purposes, these can be considered inexhaustible.  You most likely won't get
the chance to use the item more than 3 times in a 4 or 5 turn game.  It is
really a left over clause from 4th edition.

Whether an item is inexhaustible or not has a large bearing on how it
should be used to best effect.

Bound spells that don't expire are a great asset to your magic phase, they
can be used for two purposes.  The first is to draw out powered-up dispels.
Use the item at the start of the phase and force your opponent to do
something about it.  This will cost him a dispel and perhaps a power card or
two if he really wants to do the job properly.  Staff of Flaming death,
Ring of Corin, Pipes of Doom, Banner of Wrath, Ring of Darkness and Orb of
Thunder are all great for doing this.  And there is always a chance the
dispel will fail.

Items that run out require a slightly different approach.  Generally
speaking these items are more powerful in effect than similarly priced
inexhaustible items.  This means you'll probably want to use them as more
than just dispel magnets.  If you want to stand a good chance of having
thse items actually do what they're designed for, you need to use them at
the end of the magic phase.  They should be the last thing you cast.  After
all your power cards are spent and your opponent thinks he's weathered the
storm, bring out that Staff of Osiris and assasinate his characters! 
You'll have a much better chance getting these spells off at the end of
the phase as the enemy will be low on dispels (hopefully none at all) and
low on power to boost dispels.

If you combine multiple bound items in your army, you can use both these
strategies in combination.  Use your inexhaustable items to draw out
dispels, and save your exhaustable items for the end of the phase.

Lets take a closer look at each individual item:

Ring of Darkness (40pts)

Whilst I've seen this item used to good effect, I'm not a big fan of it.
Sure, if you manage to cast it you have great protection, but it's not a
sure fire method.  When it comes to defence, I like to know exactly what I
can and can't rely on. 

Ring of Volans (25pts)

I see people use this item and ask myself why?  It's a random battle magic
spell that can only be cast once and can be dispelled.  I can think of much
better ways to spend that 25 pts.  Sure, if you get lucky you might draw
Move Unit or Net but chances are you won't.  Spend the extra 5 pts and buy
yourself a power scroll.

Doomfire Ring (100pts)

I've never seen this used and doubt I ever will.  You'd hafta be stupid to
spend 100 pts on this kinda item when so much else is available.

Ring of Corin (50pts)

Well, up until now you must be thinking these bound spells are pretty
crappy, but now is when we start getting into the good stuff.  RoC is a
great item.  It needs to be combined with the skull staff to be effective
however.  You have to *know* the item you're trying to destroy, you can't
just guess.  I've used a lvl 3 mage with RoC, Skull Staff and Cloak of
Mists & Shadows to great effect.  The Cloak allows you to get within 12" of
your target easily, whilst the Skull Staff identifies the items.  I've managed
to destroy no less than 4 items over the course of a 5 turn battle.  You'd
be amazed how much a character's effectiveness can be reduced with the
loss of even one magic item (Black Amulets and Golden Crowns are prime
targets for the RoC).

Staff of Flaming Death (50pts)

Another great item.  You can't find a better item for drawing dispels and
being a general nuisance to the enemy.  Target those low LD units
(skirmishers and screens are very nice targets).  Your opponent will have
to do something about it or risk failing those panic tests.

Staff of Osiris (50pts)

When it comes to killing characters, this item is one of the best.
Characters can't take Look Out, Sir! rolls from magical attacks such as
this.  You can pick out characters from units and with str 6 d3 wounds,
you've got a great chance of making a real mess of things.  Not only that,
it works like a bolt thrower as well!  So if you kill the first model in
it's path, you can go on and take out another.  Just remember that it is
exhausted on a 1 or 2 after each use, so you want to make sure that
when you do use it, it counts.

Staff of Lightning (50pts)

Whilst perhaps not as deadly as the Staff of Osiris, this item has the
advantage of a 24" range, which allows you to use it from a relatively
safe distance.  3 str 6 hits will put a hole in almost any opponent.

Horn of Urgok (75pts)

Now this item is a real game winner, especially for low LD armies...  The
ability to automatically rally your troops late in the game will save you
plenty of VPs.  Not only this, but you can panic the enemy as well!  Just
make sure you keep the bearer alive until the end of the game, that is
when you'll need to horn the most.

Pipes of Doom (75 pts)

Bretonnians and other cavalry heavy armies are the prime targets for this
nasty little item.  You can do more damage to the unit with something like
the Banner of Wrath, but the ability to prevent the unit charging cannot
be under-estimated.  It can screw your opponent's entire battle plan if you
get this spell off at the right time.  I'd recommend it against Bretonnians
every time, and I'd be sure to take it into consideration any time you
expect a big cavalry unit. 

Banner of Wrath (75pts)

A very straight forward and effective item.  Target those heavily armoured
troops, this baby doesn't allow armour saves.  If your opponent neglects to
dispel this item, he'll be watching those Chaos Knights, Ironbreakers and
Bretonnians fall in droves.  Also, it has the added benefit of being a
standard, which means you can put it in a unit capable of taking a magic
standard, thus it can be used until the unit is destroyed, rather than
just a single model.

The key to using bound items effectively is to have a plan.  You can't just
take them and expect them to work independantly.  They need to be used in
combination with your normal spells and with each other.  Even if you don't
derive any direct benefits from bound spells, the effort your opponent
must expend nullifying their effects should allow you to capitalise on
other areas of the magic phase.

One final point I'd like to make: if you take a bound spell, don't forget
it!!  You'd be surprised how easy it is to get carried away in the magic
phase with your standard spell casting and forget all about the items
you have. 

I hope you've gained something from this article, comments are welcome as
always :)

Lockjaw.