How 34 generals, 20 factions, and one break-neck weekend rewrote my spreadsheets
TL;DR
- Rad Brylowski’s Abyssal Dwarfs went 5-0 and claimed the crown.
- Trident Realm and Nightstalkers joined the podium, shrugging off the usual “soft meta” jokes.
Setting the Stage
Sceleris over on KoW Forums tipped me off that Northern Kings was stacked this year. Thirty-four players, 20 different factions, and more big-name captains than a Clash of Kings feature match. I crunched the pre-event lists (see the Pre-Tourney Report workbook below) and—using the same random-forest model I previewed last month—spat out a “strength rank” for every general.
Contents
Topline Results
| Place | Player | Faction | W‑L‑D | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radoslaw Brylowski | Abyssal Dwarfs | 5‑0‑0 | 1826 |
| 2 | Florence Maunders | Trident Realm | 4‑1‑0 | 1701 |
| 3 | Chris Lynch | Nightstalkers | 4‑1‑0 | 1697 |
| 4 | Chris Christopherson | Basileans | 4‑1‑0 | 1667 |
| 5 | Ed Herzig | Free Dwarfs | 4‑1‑0 | 1661 |
| 6 | Rich Tomlinson | Elves | 3‑2‑0 | 1610 |
| 7 | Andy Marshall | Sylvan Kin | 3‑2‑0 | 1598 |
| 8 | Elliot Morrish | Trident Realm | 3‑2‑0 | 1595 |
| 9 | Daniel Graves | Sylvan Kin | 3‑2‑0 | 1588 |
| 10 | Daniel Bailey | Salamanders | 3‑1‑1 | 1584 |
Faction Performance
| Faction | Players | Avg Wins | Avg Finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trident Realm | 3 | 3.3 | 7.0 |
| Sylvan Kin | 2 | 3.0 | 9.0 |
| Abyssal Dwarfs | 3 | 2.7 | 16.0 |
| Free Dwarfs | 2 | 3.0 | 16.0 |
| Basileans | 2 | 2.5 | 19.5 |
| Salamanders | 2 | 2.5 | 15.5 |
| Elves | 1 | 3.0 | 6.0 |
| Nightstalkers | 2 | 2.5 | 14.5 |
| Green Lady | 2 | 2.5 | 23.0 |
| Halflings | 2 | 1.5 | 28.0 |
| Twilight Kin | 1 | 2.0 | 11.0 |
| Ogres | 1 | 1.0 | 29.0 |
| Empire of Dust | 1 | 2.0 | 21.0 |
| Ratkin | 1 | 2.0 | 18.0 |
| Orcs | 1 | 2.0 | 17.0 |
| Northern Alliance | 1 | 2.0 | 26.0 |
| Varangur | 1 | 2.0 | 24.0 |
| Undead | 1 | 2.0 | 25.0 |
| League of Rhordia | 1 | 1.0 | 30.0 |
| Dwarfs | 1 | 0.0 | 34.0 |
Speed kills: fleets and flitters averaged a full win more than the armoured blocs.
Key Takeaways & Meta Implications
- Combined arms lists are back. Radoslaw’s Abyssal Dwarfs, Ed’s Free Dwarfs, Florence’s Trident Realm, and Chris’ Nightstalkers were all balanced, all-rounder lists that rose to the top. Meanwhile, Robert Hutson’s blazing-fast Riftforged Orcs (average Speed 8.5) and Jeff Horton’s Green Lady (Speed 8.2) fizzled in the rankings.
- Basilean hype cools. My model adored George Kirke’s list on paper, but the angels met real-world traffic jams. Meanwhile, Chris Christopherson’s similar Basilean list did well.
- List depth matters. The four strongest “toolbox” builds (AD, TR, NS, SK) all posted > 3 wins on average.
- Magic items still shape the meta. Lute of Insatiable Darkness (14 picks), Jesse’s Boots of Striding (13), Blood of the Old King (10), and Helm of the Drunken Ram (10) were the most common upgrades seen across the field. The Lute in particular showed up in nearly half the top-10 armies.
- Power is less concentrated. Traditionally, top armies load most of their killing punch into one or two heavy hitters. But Florence (23.0) and Chris Lynch (20.8) bucked that trend with distributed damage profiles. Is the age of the alpha hammer fading?
Closing Thoughts
Northern Kings 2025 delivered upsets, break-out performances, and another reminder that dice care nothing for spreadsheets.
Did I miss your favorite moment? Drop a comment below or ping me on the KOW Forums.
