Top 8 Reasons the Illusionist is Best

Inspirobot will help you cut through the delusions.

I've already collected a lot of miniatures that I've set aside for Frostgrave.  When I first started, I didn't intend to do every wizard as a full warband but as the Bones rolled in it became apparent that I could.  So I did.

I still have my eye on the official Frostgrave models, which came out later.  So I've moved some minis around to make room for Soldiers, Barbarians and Cultists, but it's still going to be a hundred models (not including bestiary or terrain).  However, that hundred models will be a blast to paint, as it will be more about painting characters than troopers.

For the Illusionist, I had some Bones models that I happened to have the corresponding translucents for.  Wizard, Apprentice and Captain.  Woot.  Now I can annoy my opponents with Invisibility.

My first wizard in any campaign was an Illusionist, and I had a lot of fun playing him as a scoundrel.  He's dead.  Still cool though.  The aligned schools for the Illusionist are Soothsayer,  Sigilist and Thaumaturge.  The neutral schools are Necromancer, Witch, Chronomancer, Summoner and Enchanter; the opposed school is Elementalist.  Interestingly, Illusionists are also known as Conjurors (along with many other derisive epithets).

Top 8 Reasons the Illusionist is Best!

1. Beauty
• This can actually cause a lot of disruption in the enemy battle line, especially if they've got a mean crush on (for) your wizard.  It won't work every time, but if you're being attacked by several enemies it can cause them to look stupid for a moment.
2. Fool's Gold
• This is an interesting spell you'll have to play with to get some true use out of.  When they get wise to your spell, try placing a REAL treasure well out of the way and send someone quick to go get it when your enemy is committed to the larger concentrations elsewhere on the board.
3. Glow
• Like most Illusionist spells, this is a solid support spell.  If your enemy forms a strong battle line, you may have to answer it in kind - and this can really turn the tide for your soldiers as +3 isn't a meagre bonus!
4. Illusionary Soldier
• Cast before every battle if you have nothing else to cast.  You have a good range of choice here, but remember the illusions aren't nearly as hardy as their corporeal counterparts and can't really do much.  But still.
5. Invisibility
• A staple for the Illusionist.  It has a great many applications, from approaching combat to escaping it.
6. Monstrous Form
• At first glance, this is very similar to Beauty but has a totally different effect.  It's good for getting enemies to move away from you, and even stopping a beatdown in progress.  However, it doesn't protect you from missiles or cause them to lose actions - but it's a better protection vs. melee.
7. Teleport
• Again, indispensable, no matter what school of wizardry you study.  It's a staple, and can't be ignored.
8. Transpose
• Slightly harder to cast successfully, Transpose can be used both offensively and defensively.  The ability to move ANY models is far out, but if used on the enemy there could be multiple Will rolls to resist.  That said, a successfully cast Transpose can really foul up enemy wizards and their plans.

Honestly, there's a lot of good stuff there...but remember you're starting at Level 1 and your apprentice can barely cast anything.  For my first three spells, I'm going with Glow, Invisibility and Teleport.  My wizard and her apprentice carry bows, and daggers as well, so I'll supplement the Glow advantage with other augmentation spells like Combat Awareness from the Soothsayer school.

I've also selected soldiers with higher move rates, and intend to run this warband like a team of thieves and rogues.  If at all possible, avoid combat and fire missiles with Archers while Thieves and Treasure Hunters grab the loot.  In and off the board in a hurry!!  Though I know combat can't be entirely avoided, it will be fun to see how this plays on the tabletop.