"...in the compulsory movement phase the Squig Hoppers set off. The first unit on the right of the Goblin centre bounced forwards a massive 15” which was enough to bring them into contact with the building being currently occupied by the Wood Elf Scouts. Seeing 10 angry Squigs bouncing towards them was enough to un-nerve the skirmishers who decided to flee the charge and ran off out the back of the building."
[Ed. Skarsnik's fantasy horde of gobbos gets off to a great start !]
(A detailed, factual battle report. An all goblin army, bar a few Trolls)| source : battlereporter.freeforums.org | credit : Enarbrin-Taine | 18-June-2009 |
Welcome to the first outing for Skarsnik's Horde, my new 2000 Point Night Goblin Army. Who's bright idea was it to take on Wood Elves as my first opponent anyway. Sheesh!
Night Goblins Army List
. Skarsnik and Gobbla - 205Night Goblin Battle Standard Bearer - 107 Light Armour, Rowdy Grotts Raggedy Red Banner.
Oddgit, Level 2 Night Goblin Shaman - 198 Chariot with extra crew, 3 x Magic Mushrooms, Nibbla’s Itty Ring.
Gubbinz, Level 2 Night Goblin Shaman - 130 2 x Magic Mushrooms, Dispel Scroll
32 Night Goblins - 226 Full Command, Nets, 3 x Fanatics.
25 Night Goblins - 170 Full Command, 3 x Fanatics.
25 Night Goblins - 170 Full Command, 3 x Fanatics.
20 Night Goblins - 105 Full Command, Short Bows, 1 x Fanatic.
10 Squig Hoppers. - 150
10 Squig Hoppers. - 150
Rock Lobber. - 70
Doom Diver. - 80
4 Stone Trolls - 240
Wood Elves Army list
Wardancer HighbornWay Watcher Noble
2 x Level 1 Mage
10 Archers
10 Archers
5 Scouts
9 Dryads
9 Dryads
9 Dryads
8 Wardancers
6 Wild Riders
6 Wild Riders
2 x Great Eagles
The Battlefield
With a hill on each side and a fairly even spread of woods and buildings throughout the middle of the battlefield neither side offered any huge advantage to either army. Winning to roll for choice of sides the Goblins opted to set up with the central hill for their war machines and the wall to potentially use as a defended obstacle. The other reason for choosing this side was to deny use of the big wood on the left of the battlefield to the Wood Elves. If they had free run of such a large piece of woodland they could potentially ‘tree sing’ half of their army across to battlefield un-molested drawing out fanatics as they went which would be potentially disastrous.
The Goblin army was arrayed with a strong centre held by Skarsnik’s unit and supporting Night Goblins with one flank of Squig Hoppers, a chariot with mage, another unit of Night Goblins and the unit of Trolls. The basic battle plan was to advance the centre releasing fanatics to throw up a screen in front of the oncoming units whilst overloading one of the Wood Elf Flanks and trying to keep everything in front of my army and away from the war machines and archers encamped on the central hill. The Goblins deployed their other unit of Squig Hoppers on the left flank both as a rapid reaction force to whatever units the Wood Elves sent that way but also to occupy the woods on that flank at the start of the battle to deny them to any potential Scouts/Way watchers or moonstone using Wardancers.
I was hoping that the Wood Elf deployment would be hampered by Skarsnik’s Sneaky Schemes but rolling for all 15 Wood Elf units and Characters I managed one measly ‘6’ meaning that only the Way Watcher Noble would be delayed and have to start the game on the Wood Elf board edge. The rest of the Wood Elf host was arrayed in a spread battle line with the Dryads, Wardancers and Eagles holding the centre and a unit of Wild Riders on each flank.
Amazingly the Goblins had fewer units than the ‘Elite’ Elves and so got the +1 to the roll for the first turn which they promptly won and opted to go first.
Goblins Turn 1
With the battle lines drawn, the Goblins of Skarsnik’s hoard received their orders from the warlord and surprisingly the majority decided to follow them. Not one unit failed their animosity checks and the Night Goblins on the right, in a fit of un-goblin like over eagerness, surged forwards 6 inches. It was now that I discovered the first problem with the armies’ deployment. The Stone Trolls where too far away from Skarsnik to use his Ld and so had to take their stupidity checks on their own pathetic leadership of 4. Unsurprisingly they failed and stupidly stumbled forward 3” I had a feeling that this was going to be a trend that continued throughout the battle.
The Goblins declined to declare any charges and in the compulsory movement phase the Squig Hoppers set off. The first unit on the right of the Goblin centre bounced forwards a massive 15” which was enough to bring them into contact with the building being currently occupied by the Wood Elf Scouts. Seeing 10 angry Squigs bouncing towards them was enough to un-nerve the skirmishers who decided to flee the charge and ran off out the back of the building. The second unit of Squig Hoppers revealed itself as the other mistake in the Goblins deployment as their role of holding the woods on the left was completely scuppered by the fact that they had to move 3D6” each turn. I really should think about this stuff before I deploy units. This left them more than a little exposed and milling around on the left flank as I did not want to advance into charge range of the Wild Riders or into short range for the Wood Elf Archers on the hill. Once again the random nature of the Goblins was proving troublesome.
The centre of the Goblin line advanced up to level with the front of the large wood on the left flank as Skarsnik was still wary of the unit of wild riders out on the extreme left and did not want to have any possibility of receiving a flank charge from this unit. The units on the central hill remained static as they would all battle long, whilst on the right the Night Goblins advanced as far as they could up the flank towards the Wild Riders and the chariot moved forward and took cover from potential charges amongst the village buildings.
Brandishing magic mushrooms the Goblin Shaman on the hill unleashed his powers but the winds of magic blew strong as the Elven mages dispelled the gathering Goblin magic. The shaman on the chariot however was a lot more fortuitous in his spell casting as Hand of Gork was cast with irresistible force and propelled the Night Goblins on the right flank further forwards. This brought them close enough to the Wild Riders to release their fanatics and three of the crazed lunatics came boiling out of the unit. One rolled high enough and crashed through the unit while the other two fell just short and sat whirling in front on the entrapped cavalry. Unfortunately crashing through the unit was a bit of an overstatement as the lone Fanatic hit twice and caused a solitary wound which was promptly saved by the Wild Riders ward save. With both Nibbla’s Ring and Skarsnik’s Prodder being dispelled that was the end of the magic phase.
From their vantage point on the central hill the Goblin war machines surveyed the battlefield. Spying the Wood Elf Wardancers accompanying the enemy general both crews couldn’t resist taking shots at this potentially devastating unit. The Doom Diver’s range guess was right on target, clipping the front of the unit. The dice though weren’t so kind and in an explosion of elastic, Squig hide wings and Goblin body parts the Doom Diver demolished itself in a catastrophic misfire. The Rock Lobber guessed an even better range and managed to land its payload right on the enemy generals head. Anything but a 1 on the ‘look out sir’ roll and you’ll be fine I said to Gideon as he rolled a 1 and took two wounds on his general as well as losing 5 Wardancers to the stones impact.
Wood Elf Turn 1
Seeing the Goblin hoard surge towards them the Elves where not slow to react, there where no charges as everything was either out of range or blocked by fanatics which even the most eager of Wild Riders wouldn’t charge through. The scouts that had fled the Squigs in the earlier turn rallied and turned to face the Goblin chariot nestled in the village. While the rest of the Wood Elf host repositioned itself to make best use of cover or avoid the fanatics the Goblin units where sure to hold. The Eagle on the left of the wood elf line swooped forwards towards the centre of the goblin army causing 6 fanatics to be released. This did however spell the end for the Eagle as feathers are no protection at all against a Goblin orbiting a very large steel ball! The other Wood Elf Eagle flew over the centre of the battlefield towards the central hill and the Goblin War Machines.
Having taken a rock to the head in the Goblin turn, the Wood Elf General and accompanying War Dancers made haste for the safety of the woods in the centre. While the Wild Riders on the right flank used their free reform to shift sideways and move out of the centre of the three fanatics encircling them. The Wild Riders on the other flank advanced, potentially lining up any exposed flanks of the Goblin centre if they chose to advance in the next turn. One unit of Dryads held the centre of the Wood Elf deployment zone, shielded by the woods whilst one advanced on the Goblin lines in the centre and the other headed for the right flank and the embattled Wild Riders and scouts that could really do with some support. Entering the battlefield after being waylaid by one of Skarsnik’s sneaky schemes, the Way Watcher Noble appeared on the right flank and advanced to join the archers on the hill.
The Wood Elf magic phase was quiet, as with two level one’s the Wood Elves where much more into magical protection than spell casting. It was only once we had progressed through the shooting phase that Gideon realised that he had forgotten to use his general’s moonstone earlier in the turn. A mistake that would cost him dear.
The much feared Wood Elf Shooting phase was not a devastating as it could have been as 20 archers felled 4 Squig Hoppers on the left flank and the mage with the star-fire arrow had no targets as she was at the rear of the central woods. It also helped that the Way Watcher Noble had needed his full movement to join the Archers unit on the hill and so couldn’t unleash his hail of doom arrow this turn.
Goblins Turn 2
Once again the only goblin unit that was to prove troublesome was the Night Goblins on the right flank. Failing their animosity they elected to bash each other about the head rather than the enemy. Also mirroring their previous turns exploits the Stone Trolls continued to stumble around stupidly heading off towards the village with no real purpose in their tiny little minds.
Surprisingly the rest of the Goblin army was following orders and taking their opportunity the Wolf Chariot charged out from the cover of the village into the Wild Riders who had unwittingly revealed themselves whilst trying to avoid the fanatics. This was doubly surprising as in order to charge the chariot had to pass a fear test on it’s own Ld which it managed with ease.
With the Fanatic screen in place the centre of the Goblin hoard decided to stay put, daring the enemy to come at them through the whirling dervishes spinning about in front of their lines. As for the fanatic’s movements, they managed to hit precisely nothing, a few close shaves, but always the distance or direction was off and allowed the Wood Elves to escape unharmed. Once again the Squigs bounced into action, on the left the 6 remaining Squigs leapt forwards to position themselves in between the oncoming Wild Riders and Skarsnik’s unit, the hope being to get the Wild Riders in a position to be charged by the Goblin Generals unit. On the right the Squigs bounced out of the village and into the central woods, rolling just far enough to reach the Wood Elf General and his War Dancers with their sole aim being to take the generals last wound!
The magic phase was a contest in itself with the Wood Elves using a mix of dice and scrolls to counter the Goblins Shamans at every turn. One spell did get through though as the shaman on the hill burst the remaining Eagles brain to leave the noble bird lying in the dust. After theatrics and heroics of the previous Goblin shooting phase, this one was a damp squib with nothing in range of the archers on the hill and the Rock Lobber overshooting the Archers and Way Watcher Noble on the far hill.
The first close combat of the game was between the charging Chariot and the Wild Riders. Three impact hits brought the Goblins one dead Elf and then stunningly both the crew and the Wolves managed to takedown an Elf each. This left one of the elite cavalry and his mount to strike back which he did against the Goblin Shaman taking one wound from the character. The end result of this was the Wild Riders losing the combat by one and needing a 7 or less on 2D6 to hold and continue the combat. Rolling a 9 however meant that the Wild Riders where running from the lowly Goblins and to add insult to injury they only rolled a 7 for their flee distance and where promptly caught and cut down by the pursuing chariot.
In the central woods the Wood Elf General and his War Dancers squared off with the Squig Hoppers. With their many options for combat the War Dancers could have elected to strike first at the charging foe but with the General only on one wound they elected to gain a 4+ ward save instead. This proved to be costly as the war dancers themselves lost one of their number to the voracious Squigs and the Wood Elf General was dragged down under a pile of teeth and claws before he could strike. Striking back the remaining two War Dancers felled two hoppers but it was too little too late as with their general dead, and being outnumbered by the enemy the remaining warriors fled the combat only to by cut down as they ran. The Squigs used their pursuit move the charge the unengaged Wood Elf mage hiding at the rear of the woods. At this point Gideon lamented that if he had remembered to use his moonstone in the last turn the General and his War Dancers would now be safely lurking in the woods on the left of Skarsnik’s unit ready to pounce on the unsuspecting night Goblins rather than slowly digesting inside a unit of Squig Hoppers!
Wood Elf Turn 2
Needing to seize back the initiative the Wood Elf host charged on every opportunity. Sweeping in from the left the remaining Wild Riders crashed into the Squig Hoppers that had put themselves in the way of danger the previous turn. The Dryads in the centre rushed to the aid of the embattled mage, engaging the Squig Hoppers in the central woods whilst the Wood Elf scouts attempted to charge the rear of the Chariot that had just destroyed the Wild Riders on the right flank.
The Dryads on the right and left continued to advance towards their respective targets while both units of Archers remained stationary to maximise their firepower against the oncoming Goblin units.
With one Wood Elf Mage engaged by the Squig Hoppers, the magic phase remained balanced meaning the neither side could really gain the upper hand and cast without resistance.
The shooting phase suddenly came alive for the Wood Elves. Two units of Archers and a Way Watcher Noble with a hail of doom arrow spelt 14 dead Night Goblins from the Skarsnik’s unit. This caused a panic test which the Goblins passed easily with Skarsnik’s Ld of 8.
As the arrows of the Wood Elves found their marks the blades and spears of the woodland kindred where doing similar work amongst the Goblin units. The scouts hit the rear of the chariot, and dispatched the Goblin Shaman with consummate ease. Bereft of its impact hits and the attacks from the wolves the chariot failed to cause a single wound in return and was promptly chased off the table. In the central woods the Dryads caused a massive 5 wounds on the Squig Hoppers, proving just how devastating they can be with 2 S4 Ws4 attacks each! This would be enough to see off the insane Goblins and their bouncing mounts but not before they where able to fell the Wood Elf mage who was caught up in the combat. Fleeing from the enraged Dryads the Squig Hoppers managed to out distance their pursuing foes and escape destruction.
On the Left it was no contest between the Wild Riders and the Squig Hoppers. The elite fast cavalry rode straight through the remaining Squigs without pausing and only stopped when they ran out of impetus just in front and to the left of Skarsnik’s Night Goblins.
Goblins Turn 3.
The Squig Hoppers on the left had been sacrificed but it was hopefully not in vain as the Wild Riders minus the one that the Squigs had managed to kill where now in a prime position to be charged by the Goblin generals unit. The Squig Hoppers fleeing in the centre rallied on Skarsnik’s leadership, and turned to face to onrushing Dryads that had defeated them in the previous turn.
Miracle of miracles the Trolls passed a stupidity test on their own Ld and with the threat on the right flank eliminated, turned around and headed back towards the centre of the battlefield with the hope of helping out the units on the central hill who where going to be meeting some unfriendly Dryads very soon. At this point though disaster strikes for the Goblins as the unit champion inadvertently treads on Skarsnik’s foot causing the general to swipe at him with his prodder missing the champion and hitting three Goblins from the second rank and soon the whole of the generals unit is embroiled in squabbling rather than charging the Wild Riders unit sat in front of them. Grumbles about stupid, pointless Goblins being incapable of doing as their told soon ensue from the Goblin side.
The one Goblin unit that could move repositioned itself to receive the inevitable charge of the Dryads that had pursued the Squig Hoppers out of the woods. At this point I would like to point out that of the 9 Fanatics whirling round the battlefield the sole casualty has been the bark on one of the trees in the central wood as a Fanatic collided with it. Fanatics hate me!
Depressingly the magic and shooting phases lived up to true Goblin Standards and did precisely nothing which put an end to the most pointless turn any army has ever had anywhere. When the highlight of your turn is that your Trolls aren’t being stupid then you know something’s wrong.
Wood Elf Turn 3
It was make or break time for the Wood Elves. Having been handed the initiative by the terrible last Goblin turn the Elves had to capitalise of the openings now available to them. Digging their heels in the Wild Riders spurred their mounts forward, not into the Generals unit as expected but into the exposed flank of the supporting Night Goblin unit in the centre. This would be a problem for the Goblins as the unit strength 8 Wild Riders would negate the Goblins rank bonus making surviving combat all the more difficult. The Dryads pursuing the recently rallied Squig Hoppers charged into them once more hoping to crush the remaining loonies and consolidate through into the combat between the Night Goblins and Wild Riders.
The central Dryads charged Skarsnik’s unit now that it had been weakened by bow fire wanting to at least hold the unit in place for the other units to get back to once they had finished the units on the hill. On the left the Dryads continued to close in on the Night Goblins that had been stationary for the last two turns, hoping that when combined with the withering fire of the scouts the forest spirits would be able to clear the table quarter of enemy troops.
The Wood Elf Magic was once again countered as they only had one Level one mage left alive and their ranged units found themselves bereft of targets as everything was either out of range, out of sight or engaged in combat. Only 1 Night Goblin in the unit on the right flank fell, pierced by a scout’s arrow.
Close combat proved to be a mixed bag for the Elves. The Wild Riders beat up on the Night Goblin unit in the centre killing 5 of the green hoard, but losing one of their number in return and couldn’t break the unit due to the proximity of Skarsnik and the battle standard bearer. The Dryads in the Centre had no trouble with the remaining Squig Hoppers killing all three and then over running into the combat between the Goblins and the Wild Riders. The problems for the Elves occurred in the other combat where the Dryads only felled 4 goblins with their attacks and lost three of their number in return. This combined with the units formidable static combat res meant they lost the combat badly and ran for it, being chased down and destroyed by the diminutive green warriors. Much moaning can be heard from the Wood Elf side at this point about their inability to run away properly!
Goblins Turn 4
The battle was in the balance now, If the Goblin centre could hold or break their foes then it would swing firmly in their favour, if not then there would be nothing left to stop the remaining Dryads and Wild Riders overrunning the units ensorcelled on the hill and the Wood Elf Archers picking off everything else from a distance.
I needed the Trolls in the fight in the centre as their added muscle and the fact that they did not fear the Elves would possibly swing the battle in the Goblins favour. Unfortunately the Trolls weren’t on board with this idea and failed their stupidity test for the third time in four turns, turning what could have been a glorious charge into a stumbling shambles. Skarsnik’s unit passed its animosity test with ease and with the way open to the Wood Elf Archer units the Goblin general advanced as fast as his little legs would carry him. This left only the Night Goblins on the hill and out on the right flank needed animosity tests as everything else was in combat. Unfortunately both proceeded to roll 1’s and stand around biting their fingernails (or each other) instead of doing anything useful!
There was no magic as the sole remaining Goblin Shaman was in the squabbling unit on the hill, and the Stone thrower managed another spectacular miss dropping its payload in the middle of no mans land. Let this be a lesson, goblins and complex machinery do not mix.
The melee in the centre between the Night Goblins, Wild Riders and Dryads continued, with 5 Goblins falling to the Elves and Forrest Spirits. Fortunately, Skarsnik and the battle standard bearer where still close enough to make the difference and the Goblins held their ground.
Wood Elf Turn 4
The Dryads on the right where finally in range of the block of Night Goblins holding the table quarter, but seeing what was happening in the centre the forest spirits decided not to charge the enemy as they would still have to overcome a SCO of 5 before wounds where even taken into account. Much better to try and soften them up with bow fore from the Scouts was the thinking.
With the Scouts and Archers being the only other unengaged Wood Elf units and the level 1 mage still locked in stalemate with his Goblin counterpart we moved straight through to the shooting phase where another 2 Goblins where laid low by the Scouts on the right and Skarsnik’s unit where facing down 20 Wood Elf Archers, a Way Watcher Noble and a mage all at short range. 7 Goblins lay dead after the fusillade causing another panic test on this most important unit in the Goblin army, which of course they passed with ease.
The Wild Riders and Dryads in the centre re-doubled their efforts against the Night Goblins and in a flurry of attacks caused enough wounds that they where left needing a double 1 even on the generals leadership. It was not to be and the goblins failed both the Ld test and the re-roll from the battle standard and where cut down as they turned tail and fled. Both units pursued the fleeing Goblins and caught them but neither rolled quite high enough to reach the units on the hill.
Goblins Turn 5
If ever the Goblin army needed the might of the Trolls it was now. With nothing left in the centre between the on coming Wild Riders and Dryads, only the trolls intervention could possibly stop the Wood Elf units chewing up the Goblins vulnerable missile unit and War Machine and in this finely balance a battle the 220 points they where worth could easily bring victory to the Wood Elves if they could claim them. We rolled for animosity first and the Goblins had no failures although the Archers on the hill decided that they where up for a scrap and ran 2 inches towards the waiting Wood Elf units. Rolling the dice for the trolls’ stupidity test I was praying for a 4 or less on 2D6. When the dice settled I’d rolled an 11 meaning the Trolls where stupid and would stumble forward 3”. On measuring the distance we discovered that the Trolls where exactly three inches away from the unit of Dryads at the base of the hill meaning that this ‘stumble’ counted as a charge and the Trolls may yet have something to say about the outcome of the battle.
Standing at the base of the far hill facing the Wood Elf archers, Skarsnik was faced with a dilemma. The battle was so close that to pull of a win the Goblins needed to take out at least one of the Wood Elf Archer units but without losing the remnants of Skarsnik’s unit. Looking at the options the Goblin General and battle standard bearer declared a charge against the unit containing the Way Watcher Noble on the hill, separating from the rest of the unit as it would slow them down and mean that the charge would be out of range. If I could engage this unit in combat it would more than half the firepower arrayed against the remains of the unit and also with Skarsnik’s attacks and the Battle Standards support I had a good chance of taking out the archers and the Noble.
Being more than half their charge range away the Archers unit where able to stand and shoot against the attacking characters. They elected to stand and shoot against Skarsnik as he charged up the hill and being unerringly accurate they managed to take 4 wounds from the Goblin general. This would give them half of his points in the final tally meaning that it was now even more important for the warlord to take out the Archers and the Wood Elf Noble.
The magic and shooting phases where rushed through without a second thought as all eyes where on the pivotal combats on the two hills.
The Trolls struck first (having inadvertently charged the unsuspecting Dryads) and brought low 4 of the Forest Spirits. In return the Dryads hit the lumbering Stone Trolls 4 times but where dismayed as the Trolls regenerated the lacerations in front of their eyes. Losing the combat the Dryads fled being destroyed as they couldn’t roll high enough to escape. The Trolls pursuit to them into combat with the remaining Wild Riders. The Trolls may yet save the day for the Goblins!
Over on the far hill Skarsnik was mad after taking 4 wounds whilst charging up the hill at the pointy eared tree huggers. Bellowing a challenge as he brandished his prodder menacingly. The Way Watcher Noble didn’t like the look of Gobbla and slunk to the back of the unit declining the challenge and leaving the Archers to fight the enraged Goblin warlord. Skarsnik and Gobbla both took down one Archer while the battle standard bearer put paid to another. In return the Archers could not wound the Goblin hero’s and lost the combat despite Rank, High Ground and Outnumber. The battle standard bearers +1CR was the difference. Unfortunately for the Goblins the Archers and their cowardly Noble held their ground and the fight continued.
Wood Elf Turn 5
Once again the Dryads on the right didn’t like the odds and decided not to charge the Night Goblin unit contesting the table quarter. Content to let the scouts whittle them down for another turn and try to remove some of that SCR. The rest of the Wood Elf army had to try to make the most of the remaining opportunities available to them. The remaining unengaged archers unit turned to face the remnants of Skarsnik’s unit. If they could stay out of combat and get two good rounds of shooting at them they had a chance of claiming the full 226 VP’s available for destroying the unit.
Drawing their bow strings the Elven sharp shooters let fly, the scouts wounding 3 of the Night Goblins on the right lank while the Archers in the centre dropped 5 of the remaining 9 Goblins. Because of the proximity of Skarsnik and the BSB the unit passed their panic test.
Combat rolled on on the hill, with the Noble once again skulking at the rear of the unit. This time 4 archers where killed by the Goblin characters and with and inability to hit them in return and without the rank and high ground bonus’s the Wood Elf unit lost the combat and turned tail and fled, being cut down as they ran.
The Trolls where just beginning to enjoy themselves back in the centre, pulling 2 Wild Riders from the saddle and bashing the other as he tried to make his escape.
Goblins Turn 6
With nothing in charge arc or charge range on their last turn the Goblins remained fairly static. Skarsnik, Gobbla and the BSB stayed on the far side of the hill out of range of the Archers, wanting to protect their valuable remaining wounds and aware that they could make no further difference in the battle.
The Shaman on the hill was once again foiled by the Wood Elf Mage lurking on the far side of the woods and the Rock lobber shot at the Dryads threatening the Night Goblin Unit on the far right scattered a massive ten inches and caused no harm whatsoever.
Wood Elf Turn 6
In their last turn the Wood Elves where looking to take as many remaining VP’s as possible. Both the Dryads and the scouts charged the Night Goblins on the right who promptly failed their fear test and would be hitting there Wood Elf units on 6’s.
In the centre there was nothing further the Mage could do other than to stay alive and so did not cast a spell in case of a miscast. The Archers carefully took aim at the last 4 Goblins from Skarsnik’s unit knowing if they could kill them then it was worth a swing of 226 VP’s in the Wood Elves favour. 7 shots hit home causing three wounds. This left the unit champion standing all alone and needing to pass a panic test or effectively count as destroyed as he would not be able to rally. Rolling 2D6 the dice came up with a 7 which was a pass as he was still within 12” of the army general.
The Dryads and the scouts attacked the lowly Night Goblins without mercy and cut down 7 of the wretched creatures before they could even raise their blades to defend themselves. Unsurprisingly the Goblins missed all their attacks back as they needed 6’s to hit and found themselves needing a double 1 to stay in the fight. This they didn’t get and they promptly legged it being chased off the table edge by the vengeful enemy units.
The Aftermath
Counting up the final victory points it turned out that the Goblins had won, just! Skarsnik’s hoard managed a minor victory on its first true outing just scraping home with a margin on 325 VP’s difference which is only 25 VP’s more than a drawn battle. The trolls clearing out The Wood Elf units from the central hill and leaving the Goblin ranged units intact had saved the day and allowed the Green Hoard to pull of its first win.
If I was a Wood Elf General
On reflection this was a really close battle and an excellent Wood Elf army which the Goblins where very very lucky to beat. Take away a couple of mistakes such as not using the moonstone and a couple of unfortunate rolls for flee moves etc and you’d have a very different result. I’m not sure I would change anything about the army, I’d just try to use it to it’s full potential which I think could be a real handful for any opposition.
The Magic worked really well as the mages where there to offer protection not magical dominance. There is a really solid base of ranged units which can cause headaches for most opposition and an excellent selection of combat units which when co-ordinated have enough punch and skill to take on most opponents and win.
Image of Skarsnik is © Games Workshop Ltd. All rights reserved. Used without permission.
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