I took the pGoreshade list out for a spin last night, and found myself facing another horrible match-up. It was a T4 eKaya list, which means he had the same advantages I had (mostly stealth), longer threat range, and the ability to impact my lines twice before I got to retaliate.
I'll stand by the opinion that any game can be won in spite of massive dice rape, but it requires something I certainly didn't have last night: knowledge and skill. Snapjaw spent four attacks missing at 6+, The Withershadow Combine missed five attacks on 7+, Goreshade himself rolled snake eyes on the one attack he actually did make, and my Bane Thralls hit with two out of six attacks on 6+.- Upsides: Wrong Eye putting twenty points of damage on a Warpwolf Stalker.
- Downsides: Everything else.
I just didn't have the experience needed to work around those dice, and my army was horrible (a lot worse than I thought!). He almost did lose the game, since he got cocky, but a Gorax took down Goreshade with my opponents last available activation.
Stalker: It's a piece of junk without the ability to Ghost Walk. It seemed so promising, but it's just to slow to be of any use, and without the ability to ignore free strikes it dies before it can get close. I'll try without them.The Withershadow Combine: Not actually that useful. I'll try without them.
Edit: Seethers could be worth a look as well.