So at the end of part 1 I informed everyone of the importance of space around your caster. You are no doubt attempting to spread your models out away from your casters more now. Of course you don't want to be too far away or else your army will lose the benefits of your caster. You don't want to be too close to the enemy or they can still threaten your caster.
A natural progression from the idea of space is threat ranges. It is vital to know how far the enemy can threaten you. I repeat: IT IS *VITAL* TO KNOW HOW FAR THE ENEMY CAN THREATEN YOU. In almost every game I play against Jim he asks 'how far is Mulg's threat range?' It's 11" + Goad range Jim, I've told you at least 19 times now. It is important that he asks me this question however, as Mulg is a dangerous model and knowing the range of his attacks helps Jim decide how to position his army or which models to expose. At the start of each game you should be looking at the enemy models and working out their threat ranges.
Once you have a grasp of your opponent's threat ranges you can start to formulate tactics towards dealing with their models. Does the opponent out-threat you? How will you deal with that? Do you out-threat your opponent? What will you attack first?
The idea of threat ranges intrinsically affects the way lists are constructed. My Trollbloods are almost never going to out-threat my opponent, so I have to construct my list to include parts that will absorb or nullify my opponent's threat range. Just look at my pDoomshaper list from a few posts ago: it contains a Bouncer for the Bump animus and Shield Guard, Janissa is there to provide a handy wall to block non-Reach models, and I included Whelps because they can be spawned in charge lanes. The list looks at my threat range, assumes that it will be shorter than my opponent's threat ranges, and then brings the tools to help nullify that disadvantage.
Conversely, an eKaya list will almost always out-threat the opponent and so there are almost no defensive models in her lists except for the Skinwalkers required by her themed force. Why are there none of these defensive models? Well, she doesn't need them as she will be attacking first and aiming to eliminate the key figures in her opponent's army before they can be utilized.
So, let's now combine the ideas of space and threat range. The amount of space that your army, rather than your caster, needs is usually based on threat range. Most good players will attempt to maneuver their armies so that they are outside the enemy's threat range but within their own. There are a variety of techniques to achieving this; such as using a denial feat or simply having faster models. If you are on the short end of the threat stick however you need to be capable of dealing with your opponent's assault. Regardless of which end of the spectrum you are, always be aware of just how far models can threaten your caster. The height of embarrassment in this game is losing your caster so that you snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. That and the turn 2 caster kill...
If we examine general list composition, armies that are going for increased threat ranges typically have smaller model counts, as they attempt to apply maximum pressure to tactically vital parts of the opponent's army; and buffs that increase threat range are usually only for a few models. Armies made to absorb charges however, tend to be larger model counts, having a degree of redundancy to account for models lost during play.
Having covered the idea of threat range, part 3 is about list composition and knowing your enemy.
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