Armies of Arcana Snakemen Into Mighty Armies

I wasn't planning on adding another Mighty Armies force to my collection, but the recent announcement of a sale by Lone Gunman Games could not be resisted!

I like all of the Armies of Arcana range, and I already have their Amazons on my workbench – so I decided my next must-have would be the Snakemen:

And since I'm not currently playing Armies of Arcana – though I'd like to try it someday – I realized that I needed to work out game stats for what I am playing currently, which is Mighty Armies (Rebel Games). (There are no stats posted for this army on the Mighty Armies website yet.)

Coming Up With a Concept

The Snakemen range is composed of ten figures, in two groups: the Kaa (Cobra-headed snakes) and the Nyoka (non-Cobra-headed snakes). According to the online catalog, the two types fight as brothers/allies.

I'm going to take a spin on that, and have the cool-looking Kaa be the dominant race (the models are slightly taller and look more impressive), with the Nyoka acting as their less powerful slaves. (This will allow me to try out the Slave rule from Mighty Armies: Ancients!)

My intention is to limit the Kaa to one-third of the typical army, so they must rely on their less powerful slaves. I also want to make the Kaa generally 'bad asses' and the Nyoka relatively weak but numerous.

Speaking of Snakemen in general, I can see arguments for making them faster or slower in movement than standard armies, but I'm opting to keep them the same speed as everyone else.

Also, as Snakemen, I could see giving them various benefits for traversing certain terrain types, but Mighty Armies keeps the terrain rules pretty simple. So I think the best solution is to give all Snakemen the Mobile ability, which means they are never penalized for moving through bad terrain.

Similarly, I thought of giving the Snakemen other powers – hypnotize enemies, spit poison, poison bite – but I don't want to make them too expensive across the board.

Kaa Masters

Kaa Lord (S010)

Let's start with the General troop type, then add some abilities to reflect the mental concentration of the cobra: Fearless and Magic Resistant. And Mobile.

Kaa Wizard (S009)

Spellcaster type, plus Mobile.

Kaa Swordsmen (S006)

Due to their sword and shield, I'll start with the Heavy Infantry troop type. I'll give them Fearless to make them tough, and Mobile.

Kaa Archers (S008)

Starting with the Archer troop type, I'll add Shooting II to make them 'bad ass'. And Mobile.

Kaa Hurlers (S007)

These are the throwing-knife guys. Since they have a shield, I'll start with the Heavy Infantry troop type, and add the Javelins ability (from Mighty Armies: Ancients) and Mobile.

Nyoka Slaves

Nyoka Slavemaster (S005)

This is listed as the Charmer in the catalog, but since it has a whip, it fits in perfectly as a slavemaster. I'm starting with the Light Infantry troop type, plus Mobile, and a new Ability: Slavemaster - Negates Slave penalties for all units in the same Group. (I hope that's not too powerful for one point.)

Nyoka Berserkers (S004)

This is the two-swords guy, called a Blademaster in the catalog. I'm assuming the Kaa hypnotize these guys into becoming berserkers. So I'll start with Light Infantry, then add Horde and Mobile.

Nyoka Spearmen (S002)

Since they have the large shield, I'll start with Heavy Infantry, and add Mobile and Slave.

Nyoka Archers (S003)

Starting with the Archer troop type, plus Mobile and Slave.

Nyoka Swordsmen (S001)

Because of the shield (again), I'll start with Heavy Infantry, then add Mobile and Slave.

Reference Chart

Here are the army stats:

Now, to place my order…