Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow - Skabbik's Plaguepack Review

There's a lot for Warbands to find in the Wyrdhollow, it might be honor or battle, for the skaven of Skabbik's Plaguepack though it's an important ingredient for a Great Plague. This Warband of six is the latest to be added to Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow and they bring infection and disease to all who face them.

Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow - Skabbik's Plaguepack is a new Warhammer Underworlds Warband following up from The Headsman's Curse in June. Unlike the previous Warband, Skabbik's Plaguepack is a much larger warband of six. This doesn't just mean there's more potential to deal with attacks and acquire strategic positions, but can also leave you open with a variety of weaker fighters.

Inside the box players will find two sprue sheets with the different pieces that make up the Skabbik's Plaguepack, cards for each of the members of the Warband, and a Rivals Deck and Objective Deck. This is an expansion for Warhammer Underworlds so you'll need to make sure you or a friend already have the Starter Set or Wyrdhollow core set to have access to the hex boards to positon your characters across.

Warhammer Underworlds Wyrdhollow Skabbik's Plaguepack Warband

Skabbik's Plaguepack is a group of six Skaven (well five Skaven and one rat) whose aim is to cover the field with disease, much like their name would suggest. This Warband finds themselves in the Wyrdhollow on the hunt for a special ingredient for the Ratman's Great Plague which can be unleashed upon the world.

It's always exciting to see when a purpose and theme of a Warband fits so perfectly with their theme. The key aspect for Inspiring each of these fighters is to successfully Corrupt two different territories across the board.

Skabbik Plagueseeker, Itchitt, and Rabidius Skench are all relatively powerful fighters, but you'll need to watch out where you place your remaining three fighters as they're going to be extremely susceptible to damage and with that a quick death.

Some other fun thematic abilities are Skabbik's ability to stun any fighter nearby with it's stench, Itchitt's hurting those on the same territory, and pitifully Skritter's inability to count as a Fighter out of action.

Here are our favorite cards from the Skabbik's Plaguepack Rivals Deck

• Bringers of Ruination - With a deck whose focus is already on corrupting territories this objective just needs you to stay on top of them. It does earn you a whopping 3 points though.
• Ruinous Supremacy - This objective focus is again a high point scoring card, but has you trying to earn more objectives than surviving enemy fighters. There's a fun balance here between earning your objectives… or making sure no one survives on the opposition side.
• Overpowering Odours - This is a funny, and again thematic, card where you get an added boost to your attacking ability all due to how utterly gross it is to even stand near this Warband.
• Glorious Sacrifice - This is a fun card to use to ensure that even in a situation where you're losing out on something, your fighter, by strategically you are also gaining a corrupted territory.
• Voice of the Great Corruptor - This upgrade lets you turn a fighter into a Priest, you can also use this to create a new leader (this will come into effect with other cards) and will also let you corrupt other territories

What are our final thoughts on Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow - Skabbik's Plaguepack?

I had a fun time checking out Skabbik's Plaguepack. Dealing with a few modaretly powerful fighters and a few very underpowered fighters was an interesting experience. I found myself thinking again, but making incorrect plays leaving those underpowered fighters in the middle of danger or not touched at all.

Knowing what options are in front of you, what objectives are on the field, and what strategy will best fit them will take a bit of time to learn. There's definitely a learning curve here but there's some interesting plays to be made with the Skabbik's Plaguepack Warband.

Should you buy Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow - Skabbik's Plaguepack?

As with every Warband whether Skabbik's Plaguepack is a purchase for you is how you feel you'll gel with the playstyle. For Skabbik's Plaguepack it's going to be all about how well you command six characters with only four chances for movement.

On top of that you'll also need to balance your strategy with the objectives and upgrade cards at your disposal. That could mean the right draws and board could let you dominate in some situations, but leave you useless in other situations.

Master that skill curve and know what you're after and you could do a great job with this Warband.

The copy of Warhammer Underworlds: Wyrdhollow - Skabbik's Plaguepack used to produce this review was provided by the Publisher. All photos were taken by the reviewer over the course of the review.