Beasts of Chaos vs Dogs of War battle report 2000 pts (maps)

"The Centaur Princess spotted the four-legged abominations of Chaos sneaking through the trees to her flank. She called out to her Guard, and the Centaurs charged in a thunder of hoofbeats into the forest after them. The Centigors turned and fled, leaving the Princess’s Guard trotting through the trees alone."

(a very unique Warhammer Fantasy Battle including a customised "Dogs of War" army consisting of Forest Fey, such as Centaurs. It was played over the internet and published turn by turn for forum reader feedback.)

source : warhammer.org.uk

credit : Xtapl

24-May-2009

In case you missed the first installment of the Interactive Battle Report, here's the deal: Originally, jonpegg came up with the idea of posting a battle report in segments, only posting a turn at a time and letting people discuss the game in progress in between turns. I agreed to participate. The first battle report drew 78 responses and some great tactical discussion. I present to you now the second installment, as the mediocre tactician Xtapl takes on the ridiculously gifted el ray…

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A quiet, remote glade deep in the Arden forests is home to a peaceful village of Centaurs. They have long since retreated to a place where the surrounding Bretonnian natives cannot reach them. However, one stormy afternoon, an satyr scout rushes into the Centaur Grand Shaman's hut. Beastmen have been sighted. They've burned down the first hut they encountered, sending the Centaur villagers fleeing (upper left corner of the field). More huts are in their path of destruction, and they must be stopped before the entire village is overrun.

A council is convened. The Grand Shaman consults with the Centaur Princess and the Medicine Man. The hut burning could be a diversion; a trap to pull the fighting centaurs out of position to ambush them somewhere else. The princess proposes a plan: send a force, led by herself, to the northeast to put out the fires, while the Grand Shaman and the captain of the princess’s guard fans out to the northwest to repel the invaders. As the only approach for a massive army is from the south, perhaps they can be bottlenecked in and prevented from doing more damage.

The plan is agreed upon.

The Grand Shaman assembles the warriors and hunters, and rouses the Satyr Scouts. The Beasts must be repelled at all costs...

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This game was being played via the internet proxy system. We settled up the map and proposed our army lists fairly quickly. I had just finished a game with el ray where he wiped the floor with me (battle report pending), so I was well aware of his tactical abilities and his propensity toward killer list design. He agreed to tone it down a bit, as the US tournament scene is nowhere near the power/OTT level of the European tournament scene. With a more moderate army design from my opponent, I was able to take a tournament list that I am (this close) to building. I thought we’d be in for a pretty fun and challenging game.

THE COMBATANTS

Defenders of the Centaur Glade [Ed. Dogs of War Army List]

The Centaur Great Shaman
Mounted Wizard, level 4, barded steed

The Centaur Medicine Man
Mounted Wizard, level 2, steed

The Centaur Princess
Mounted Paymaster, great weapon, heavy armor, shield, barded steed

Captain of the Centaur Guard
Mounted Captain, great weapon, heavy armor, shield, barded steed, general

9 Voland's Venators
9 Heavy Cav w/ Full Command
4 x 5 Light Cav w/ Bows and Musicians
2 x 5 Light Cav w/ Spears and Shields
3 x 10 Duellists w/ Pistols
3 Ogres w/ Great Weapons

Marauding Beasts of Chaos Horde

Beastlord Mark of Chaos Undivided; General; Great Weapon; Shield
Bray Shaman Mark of Chaos Undivided; Magic Level 2; Braystaff
Bray Shaman Mark of Chaos Undivided; Magic Level 2; Braystaff
9 Beast Herd (Gors) 2ndWeapon; Standard; Musician; Foe-Render, 5 Ungors Spear
9 Beast Herd (Gors) 2ndWeapon; Standard; Musician; Foe-Render, 5 Ungors Spear
6 Beast Herd (Gors) 2ndWeapon; Standard; Musician; Foe-Render, 5 Ungors Spear
5 Beast Herd (Gors) 2ndWeapon; Musician, 7 Ungors Spear
Tuskgor Chariot; Mark of Chaos Undivided
Tuskgor Chariot; Mark of Chaos Undivided
Tuskgor Chariot; Mark of Chaos Undivided
4 Minotaurs; Great Weapon
4 Minotaurs; Great Weapon
6 Centigors; Spear; Light Armour; Shield; Standard; Musician
6 Chaos Furies
3 Dragon Ogres; Great Weapon; Light Armour

DEPLOYMENT

The deployment map looked like this:



There were a couple of forests spread in the center of the table, with three sets of huts scattered to the far left and lower right of the table. In the upper left, there were some ruins to represent the burned centaur huts. They would be difficult terrain.

Battle Map Character colors, so you can keep track:

Great Shaman: Light Blue (Lore of Beasts: Oxen Stands, Eagle’s Cry, Crow’s Feast, Wolf Hunts)
Medicine Man: Dark Blue (Lore of Light: Guardian Light, Blinding Light)
Centaur Princess: Pink and White (Paymaster)
Centaur Captain: Yellow

Beastlord: Red
Brayshaman: Orange (Lore of Shadows: Steed of Shadows, Creeping Death)
Brayshaman: Green (Lore of Shadows: Steed of Shadows, Creeping Death, Pit of Shades)

CENTAURS TURN ONE

Assembling quickly, the Centaurs fanned out to intercept the marauding Beastmen. A few units of lightly armored Centaurs marched out ahead of the army to draw the Beasts in, while the Satyr scouts moved into position to screen the Centaurs from the inevitable Beast ambush. The heavily armored Centaur Guard moved forward at a trot, keeping behind the pace of the lighter units so they could countercharge if necessary. The Medicine Man was even able to rouse three great Cave Bears to come to the Centaurs’ aid; they rumbled alongside the heavier Centaur Guard.

With the army in position, the Great Shaman raised his arms and called out to the spirits of the forest. A massive eagle soared overhead, screaming. The tuskgors pulling the chariot at the far right of the Beast lines panicked at the sound, and fled, dumping the riders to the ground as the chariot left the battlefield.

The Medicine Man, on the far side of the field, summoned his powers over the sky and the sun. With irresistible force, he clapped his hands together, and the full brightness of the sun filled the eyes of the Dragon Ogres. The brutes began to stumble into each other, blinded by the sun’s rays.

The Brayshamans combined to dispel the flock of crows gathering overhead, keeping them at bay for now.

A few of the faster Centaurs loosed arrows at the Centigors and Minotaurs, but their arrows either fell short or failed to penetrate the thick hides of the beasts.

The Centaurs had drawn first blood, and waited to repel the invaders’ advance.



BEASTS TURN ONE

The bloodthirsty Beasts managed to keep their unruly herds in check. However, the smell of combat was near, and the Beasts were ready. The minotaurs launched a charge against the Light Centaurs (K8), while both chariots barreled off after other small groups of Centaurs. (C5 and F5).

The bait had been taken. The Centaurs all turned tail and fled, leaving the Beasts lumbering slowly in their wake.

(PAUSE BUTTON)

At this point, we had our first rules discrepancy, so I will stop here and allow for group discussion. I will not color the discussion at all, and won’t post my opinion until the battle report continues. I hope el ray will show the same courtesy, and we can let you fine folks decide who was right.

The minotaurs charge the light centaurs (the pink arrow). In which direction should the light centaurs flee?



As it turns out, we played it that they fled directly away from the minotaurs, through my line. My opinion was that they should avoid my units and impassable terrain, so, illogical as it may seem, they should flee through the woods. However, reevaluating, there was enough space to have them flee to the right (toward the hut), so that's actually where they should have went. In any case, I don't think they should have fled through my line.

But they did.

The Light Centaurs raced past the Centaur lines, warning them that the Beasts were coming and had taken the bait.

The Brayshaman, clad in fading orange robes, pointed a gnarled finger at the Captain's Centaur Guard, attempting to exhort the winds of creeping death on them. However, the Great Shaman's furious chanting put those shadows to rest...for now.

The other Brayshaman, clip-clopping along in his putrid green cloak, raised his staff and quickly drew the shadows together for another attack, springing their creeping death from the forest at the Princess's Guard with a force that was irresistable. However, the Centaurs' heavy wooden plate armor protected them from harm, and no damage was done.

The Princess steeled herself. The battle would soon be joined.



CENTAURS TURN TWO

The Cave Bears glanced dully at the Light Centaurs racing past them, seeming to shrug and then trundling toward the approaching beasts. The Light Centaurs whipped around, secure behind the relative safety of the Centaur lines. However, on the far left side of the field, the Light Centaurs failed to hear the clarion call of the main line, and left the battlefield.

The Centaur Princess spotted the four-legged abominations of Chaos sneaking through the trees to her flank. She called out to her Guard, and the Centaurs charged in a thunder of hoofbeats into the forest after them. The Centigors turned and fled, leaving the Princess’s Guard trotting through the trees alone.

Again, the Centaur main line advanced, using the Cave Bears as a shield of sorts. The Great Shaman broke off from the rest of his unit, placing himself beside the Centaur Guard. On the far left of the field, Satyr scouts readied their light crossbows to engage, while the Medicine Man sent his detachment to hide in the shadows of the huts.

Again, the Great Shaman’s attempt to gather the crows of the forest were dispelled by the foul Brayshamans. Quickly, while their attentions were diverted, the Great Shaman exhorted the spirit of the wolf in the Light Centaurs (K5) with irresistible force. However, the spirit was not strong in them, and they barely moved more than three feet. The Medicine Man again flashed the power of the sun before the Dragon Ogres, but they were protected at the last moment by the reading of an ancient text from one of the goat shamen.

The Satyrs at the far left unleashed a hail of crossbow bolts at the chariot before them (C7), spearing one of the Tuskgors greviously in the eye. The Light Centaurs (I) managed to get a single arrow past the defenses of the Minotaurs (J) in front of them. The second unit of Minotaurs looked dimly over at the first, marveling at how a single arrow could penetrate the thick hides of their compatriots. At that moment, the Satyr scouts on the far right fired a torrent of light crossbow bolts into their ranks (M). One of the Minotaurs fell dead on the spot, and a second took two serious wounds that threatened to fell it as well. The Beastlord’s presence kept them from panicking, but major damage had been done.



BEASTS TURN TWO

The Centigors whipped around, fresh for the fight, while it seemed the entire Beast army loped off in a charge against the Centaurs. One chariot launched after the Satyrs which had wounded it (C7->D5), while the other chariot and the Dragon Ogres caught the Light Centaurs in their gaze (G5) and charged them. The Minotaurs pulled up their dying comrade, and barreled into the Cave Bears (M6), while the second unit joined the Furies in charging a unit of Light Centaurs (K5). The beast herd at the far right took off after the Satyrs, looking to exact revenge for the Minotaurs (O).

The entire Centaur line turned and fled, while the Cave Bears roared and stood erect to face the Minotaurs. The Satyrs (O) released another volley of bolts at the incoming beastmen, but failed to find purchase. The furies changed course in midair, launching themselves at the Great Shaman. The old veteran was too fast, however, and retreated to a safer position.

The Beastlord sounded his Brayhorn, and another herd of beastmen appeared at his back.

The Brayshaman in orange raised his hands to call forth Creeping Death, but the Medicine Man quickly produced a sheaf of parchment and read from it, dampening the foul magicks. The Brayshaman in green attempted to follow up with the same spell, but his diction wasn’t quite as clear, and the spell was miscast. A blanket of anti-magic flowed over the beasts, preventing them from casting any more spells.

The Satyrs and the Beast herd clashed, running full speed at each other. The Satyrs, being much smaller and more agile, easily avoided the clumsy blows of the beasts, stabbing one of the goatmen to the ground. Although the beasts had ranks on their side, and were flying their filthy banner high, the stoic Satyrs gave not an inch as they locked the beasts in mortal combat.

The Minotaurs gored one of the Cave Bears to death as they charged in, all horns and axes. The Bears were too large to be moved or intimidated, and ripped and clawed at the Chaos monsters. The wounded Minotaur was torn to shreds, and another was bitten twice in the neck and was rapidly losing blood. The heavyweights circled each other, bloody but unbroken.



(Note that the herd and duellists at far right should have been ranked up, but I didn't bother to draw the units as ranked up because I figured the Duellists were going to get butchered. As you can see, they didn't. So for Turn 3, I went ahead and drew them. Pretend in this pic that they're ranked up. :)

CENTAURS TURN THREE

The Voland, the champion of the Princess’s Guard, motioned to his hornblower. The muscular centaur blew three short notes on his horn, and the Centaur and Satyr units all turned around. The Centaurs were leading the Beasts on a merry chase, fleeing at the last moment only to regroup a second later and dash off to another position. The Centaur line held, despite a possibility of panicking.

Meanwhile, Centaur units were charging into the battle all over the field. The Satyr scouts who had been rearguarding the Centaur lines charged into the daemonic Furies, while a brave group of lighter Centaurs braced their shields and lowered their spears to charge the flank of the unaware Minotaurs who were grappling with the Cave Bears. The Captain of the Centaur Guard bellowed to his own men, and charged headlong into the Minotaurs before him.

While the other units were getting into place, the Medicine Man raced into the shadows of a hut, chanting furiously. Once again, the radiant light of the sun blinded the Dragon Ogres, and they flailed around wildly as their sight left them temporarily.

The Great Shaman once again exhorted the spirit of the wolf, this time on the Princess’s Guard. The force of his spellcasting was irresistible, and the Beasts could do nothing to stop the spectral lupine from carrying the Centaurs forward, crashing into the bewildered Beast Herd hiding in the trees.

The Centaurs shooting was largely ineffective, as the thick hides and sturdy construction of the Chariots protected them from the wooden arrows of the forest creatures.

The Centaur Princess chopped one of the foul Gors to the ground, while her Guard speared another to death. Voland, the Princess’s Champion, roared a challenge to the Foe-Render seething in the Beasts’ ranks. The goatman leaped toward him in acceptance, and was immediately butchered. The rest of the herd watched in horror as Voland trampled their champion into the ground, doing far more damage than was necessary to kill the Gor. The herd panicked and broke from combat, and the Centaurs flattened them under a flurry of hooves as they ran. Seizing the opportunity, they slammed into the flank of the blinded Dragon Ogres. (The range was in question, but we diced for it and I won, so the Centaurs got to overrun into the Dragon Ogres.)

The Centaur Guard and the Captain were faring well against the Minotaurs as well. The force of the charge had felled one of the massive brutes, and wounded another. The monstrosities fought back with vigor, though, and three of the Centaurs fell under the heavy mauls of the Beasts. The fight was too overwhelming for the Minotaurs, and they broke off and ran, narrowly escaping the pursuing Centaurs.

The Satyrs fought with bravery against the Furies, pulling two of the daemons from the sky and crushing them. The Furies were unprepared for such an assault, and nearly lost their hold on reality, as two more of them slipped back into the warp. The Satyrs closed in on the remaining two with swords drawn.

The Light Centaurs jabbed with their spears, dropping the wounded Minotaur to one knee and finishing him off, then wounding the last. The Minotaur snapped the neck of one great Cave Bear, then turned on the last. The bear was upon it before the Minotaur knew what hit it. With a savage snap of its jaws, the bear turned the lights out on the Minotaur.

The other Satyr scouts were all over the Gors in front of them, slaying four of them in the scrum. Two more scouts fell, but the stoic Satyrs hung in there for another go.



BEASTS TURN THREE

The battle was raging all along the battlefield. The Centigors, sensing the danger the Dragon Ogres were in, charged in to help against the Princess’s Guard. The chariot, just barely able to see the Princess’s Guard, turned on the spot and charged. (It was a little clippy, but we diced for it and el ray won, so the chariot got to charge.) The hardened Guard did not panic, however, and steeled themselves for a fight. The Beastlord roared to his herd and charged at the Centaur Guard, but the Captain called for a tactical withdrawl and left the charging beasts in his wake. The light Centaurs bravely stood their ground as the beast herd who was protecting the Brayshaman in green charged, knowing they must protect the Princess’s flank.

The Minotaurs, sensing that the Centaur Guard was no longer pursuing them, rallied and turned to survey the field.

The Brayshaman attempted to raise the shadows to carry the Beastlord into battle, but the powerful anti-magic of the Centaurs dampened the effect. Frustrated, it snorted and incanted to bring about creeping death on the light Centaurs (M5), but the Great Shaman read from a scroll of ancient parchment, and the spell dissipated.

The Light Centaurs were butchered by the charging beast herd, selling their lives dearly to protect the flank of the Princess. The Centaur Guard barely noticed, however, as they had problems of their own. The Chariot barreled into them from the front, but quick hooves and thick wooden plate armor protected them from any damage at all. (2 impact hits, 2 wounds, 2 saves) The Princess and Voland raged on the Dragon Ogres, cutting one one of the blinded monstrosities down before it could react, with the help of one of the Princess’s Guard. Blows were coming in from every angle, from the Centigors and the Chariot crew and the Tuskgors. However, a little luck and some finely made armor protected the Princess’s Guard from the majority of the damage, and only two of the brave soldiers were killed. (One 5+ save, four 4+ saves, and four 3+ saves, and I only failed two. Of the 3+ saves, if you can believe that…) The Centaurs in the back rank turned and fought fiercely against the Centigors, and killed two of the abominations on the spot. The ferocity of the Princess’s Guard was unparalleled, and too much for the Beasts to take. The Dragon Ogres, Chariot, and Centigors all turned and broke off of the combat. The Beast Herd and Brayshaman were so amazed to see one small band of Centaurs take so much damage and come out relatively unharmed that they wanted to get as far away as possible, and turned and fled. A rousing whoop went up from the Princess’s Guard, and they galloped off after the Dragon Ogres, who were too far in the distance to catch.

(Here we debate about banners. Can the Centaurs capture the Centigors’ banner, even though they pursued the Dragon Ogres? For full discussion, go here.)

The Satyrs fell upon the remaining daemonic Furies, and sent them back into the warp. Their comrades on the far right side of the battlefield did not fare as well, as they only killed one Gor, and lost three of their numbers. They had protected the flank as long as they could, but they broke from battle and were run down by the goats.

A small Centaur galloped up beside the Great Shaman, out of breath. He panted out a message from the north. A detachment of High Elves were passing closeby, and offered assistance against the encroaching Beasts. If the Centaurs could hold on just three more hours, the High Elves would arrive in time to repel the invaders. The Great Shaman furrowed his brow. Three hours, and they could all be dead. But help too late was better than no help at all. They would have to last three more hours.



CENTAURS TURN FOUR

Taking hold of the opportunity, the Princess’s Guard and the light Centaurs rushed after the fleeing Dragon Ogres and chariot. The lone Cave Bear galloped into the Beastlord’s herd, and the light Centaurs came charging in after. Both the Dragon Ogres and the chariot outpaced the pursuing centaurs, while the beast herd braced itself for impact.

The chaos of battle broke the concentration of the Brayshamans, and the Great Centaur Shaman took advantage. Quickly, he gathered the crows of the forest, and set them upon the Centigors. Two of them were clawed and pecked to death before the murder dissipated. The brayshamans snapped back to attention to dispel the Great Shaman’s next casting attempt.

The light centaurs (C) loosed a small volley of arrows, wounding the charioteer (C7).

The combat was an utter disaster for the centaurs. The Cave Bear tore a huge chunk out of the Beastlord, despite his armor of damnation. Immediately, the hole regenerated. The herd fell upon the great bear, and chopped it to the ground. Two of the light centaurs also met their end, and the remaining three fled for their lives. The beasts attempted to catch them, but were no match for the centaurs’ speed.

The Great Shaman looked at the sky, gauging the position of the sun. Two and a half more hours. They needed to hold on just a little while longer.



BEASTS TURN FOUR

The Dragon Ogres had seen enough. They fled from the battlefield, while the rest of the beasts turned around to face the incoming centaurs. The Beastlord brayed to his herd, and they charged full speed toward the Centaur Guard. The Centaur Captain frowned, and signaled to his unit to pull back to a more tactical position. They easily outran the beasts.

The Brayshamans’ skill with magic was no match for the Centaurs’ ancient magicks. Nearly every attempt to cast a spell was thwarted, and while a Brayshaman did manage to evoke creeping death on the Princess’s Guard, only one of the stalwart Centaurs went down.

With many units from both sides in a position to make a difference in the battle, the next two hours would be crucial to deciding the fate of the Centaur village.



CENTAURS TURN FIVE

The powerful sense of leadership the Centaurs felt in defending their homeland was most evident on the field this day, as panic seemed like a thing of the past. Both the Centaur Guard and the light Centaurs spun around, prepared to fight once again. With a shout, both units of Satyr scouts charged headlong into battle; one unit against the menacing Tuskgor chariot, and one unit against the Beastlord’s herd.

The Medicine Man’s power over the sun was absolute, and he flashed a beam of brightest sunshine into the eyes of the charioteers and their Tuskgors (D7). The Brayshamans were not paying attention, and the spell went off perfectly. The Great Shaman poured the spirit of the wolf into the Princess’s Guard, but timely reading of a scroll stopped the spell. The crows were dispersed by the Brayshamans before they could gather.

The light Centaurs failed utterly in their singular task, as 15 arrows into the Beast Herd managed to kill only one Ungor. The Centaurs were dismayed; many of them would probably die for their mistake.

The Satyr scouts fought viciously against the Beast Herd, dropping four of their number with their light crossbow shots and wooden swords. Their feeling of victory was short lived, however, as the Beastlord and his herd hacked seven of them to the ground. The remaining handful of scouts turned to run, and quickly outpaced the herd. The Beastlord tried to stop his bloodthirsty herd from giving chase, but they were off to the races too quickly.

The other Satyr scouts were fairing much better. The incoming volley of crossbow bolts wounded the charioteer deeply, and, although they killed one of the scouts in the ensuing rumble, the weight of numbers was too much for the chariot. It turned and fled the battlefield, with the Satyrs right on its heels to escort it from the forest.

The Great Shaman looked at the sun and calculated the time. Only one and a half hours to go. The Centaurs had to hold on.



BEASTS TURN FIVE

The blinded chariot could just barely see the Princess’s Guard in front of it, and it rushed toward them. The Beastherd on the far right flank charged toward the light Centaurs, but the speedy forest folk easily withdrew. The Beastherd on the southern front moved to surround the light Centaurs; their end was surely at hand.

The Brayshaman filled his general with the speed of the shadows, and the Beastlord flew through the air toward the Great Shaman. The wily old Centaur immediately turned and moved out of the way, leaving the Beastlord stranded. While one shaman could not muster up the creeping death, the other got the spell to work against the light Centaurs. However, the Medicine Man’s chanting easily dispelled the spell.

The chariot crashed into the Princess’s Guard, and the Tuskgors viciously gored at the Centaurs. The heavy wooden armor protected most of the Centaurs from harm, although one unlucky Guardsman was caught under the wheels of the chariot and came up lame, hobbling away from the fight. Although the Centaurs fought fiercely, they could not wound the blinded chariot. However, the weight of numbers was too much for the chariot crew, and they turned to flee. The Princess held her guard back; the chariot was too far away to give chase.

One hour until the Elven host arrived to give aid. Would any Centaurs be left?



CENTAURS TURN SIX

The two Satyr Scouts continued to run, leaving the battlefield, while both the lightly armored Centaurs and the Great Shaman turned to face the field. One brave unit of Light Centaurs stepped in to shield the Great Shaman from the oncoming forces, while the other raced toward the center of the field. The remnants of the last band of lightly armored Centaurs took refuge in the shadows of the Centaur huts.

The Medicine Man poured the brightest light of the sun into the eyes of the Brayshaman and its herd, hoping the blindness would help save the Centaurs who were surrounded by the bloodthirsty herd. The beasts were able to dispel the last attempt by the Great Shaman to fill the Princess’s Guard with the spirit of the wolf.

The Satyr Scouts fired off their crossbows in the hopes of finishing off the fleeing chariot, and while they did wound, it was not enough to destroy the infernal contraption. The combined shooting of the two Light Centaur units saw off a grand total of one Ungor.

This was it. Either the Centaurs would hold out for the last half an hour, or the High Elves would arrive to find the Centaur village in ruins.



BEASTS TURN SIX

The horns sounding in the distance meant the High Elf host was close at hand. The beastlord and his herd charged the Light Centaurs, who bravely steeled themselves to protect their Great Shaman. The blinded herd stumbled into the other Light Centaurs, who hoped they could avoid the brunt of the damage. Sadly, for the Centaurs, the chariot rallied and turned around.

A violent miscast by the first Brayshaman zapped the spells from his mind, and left him staggering around, holding his head and screaming at the sky. The other Brayshaman’s attempt to cast was easily dispelled by the Centaurs.

The beastlord and his herd cut through the lightly armored Centaurs like cloth, and the last remaining Centaur fled for the hills. The beastlord and his herd gave chase, and, alas, although the Centaurs had given their lives to protect their Great Shaman, the old stallion was nearly trampled in the ensuing pursuit. He panicked, and ran for the safety of the trees, easily outpacing the beast herd, but still…his presence gone from the battlefield would be a huge blow to the Centaurs’ morale.

The Brayshaman swung his club wildly, knocking one poor Centaur unconscious. The others, however, lashed back at the blinded herd, dropping three of the Gors. However, it just wasn’t enough, and the weight of numbers caused the Centaurs to give up and flee.



END GAME

Tallying up the scores, the Beastmen had eliminated 989 points worth of the Centaurs’ army and fully controlled one quarter of the battlefield. The Centaurs had eliminated 836 points of the Beastmen army, and held two banners (one from the Centigors, and one from a Beast Herd). The finals score was Centaurs 1036, Beastmen 1089. With a difference of only 53 points, the game was a draw!

It was an excellent learning experience for me with this army, and a fun game. I made a few mistakes which cost me points, but I’m happy with the way I played. Definitely have a few new tricks the next time I use the army.

Thanks for watching! Hope you enjoyed! Feel free to discuss the results.

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The trees opened, and a great cheer went up from the Centaurs as a stream of brightly armored Silver Helms raced into the glen, followed by charging units of White Lions and Spearelves. The beasts began to immediately pull back, knowing that the numbers were no longer with them.

The Medicine Man caught up to the Great Shaman, who was galloping through the trees toward the village. He brought news from the front. The beasts had been turned back. The glen was safe; but the victory was not without cost. Many fine Centaurs had lost their lives in defense of their homes.

Too much was lost to consider the battle a victory. However, the village had been saved, so it was not a total loss, either.

Like the nature of the forest itself, at the end of this day, there was only balance.

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Goblin Wolfriders vs Tomb King Army 2000pt battle report

warhammer fantasy map report :-

"The Shaman and his boys rallied and hid behind the hill, like the gibbering cowards that they are. The other Shaman, free to march, swung hard down the left flank and made a beeline for the Liche on horseback."

(featuring an experimental Goblin Wolfrider army !)

source : warhammer.org.uk

credit : Xtapl

12-May-2009

Hey, boss, the goblin squeaked, battered old spyglass pressed against his eye, "I see somefin' movin' over dere."

Gimmee, Warboss Nutzkikka growled, snatching the spyglass and peering into the distance. Through the grimy lens, he could see a horde of undead constructs shuffling slowly toward them. In the center of the lines, a massive golden altar was being dragged by a giant comprised of animated bones and golden plates.

Ooh... Warboss Nutzkikka murnured. "Shiny. Let's go get some."

But, boss, the goblin saddled next to him squealed, pressing closer to his wolf, "They'z dead things."

Well, then, dat just makes 'em easier ta kill then, don' it? He chuckled maniacally as he pressed his heels into the flanks of the massive wolf he was riding. The canine let out a melancholy howl, which was soon joined by dozens of others, and the wolfrider patrol sped off to claim its prizes.

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So, for the last few days, I have been curious about the all-wolfrider list. I've been wondering if it's still viable, or if the removal of the extra characters and 2-for-1 chariots spelled the doom of the list as competitive. For giggles, I built up a list, went off to my favorite online server, and threw down with some guy from Poland. My list was:

2000 point Goblin Army List

Warboss (167)
LA, Shield
Martog's Best Basha
Amulet of Protectyness
Horn of Urgok
Wolf

Shaman (147)
Level 2 (rolled Brain Bursta and Hand of Gork)
Scroll
Nibbla's Itty Ring
Wolf

Shaman (127)
Level 2 (rolled Foot of Gork and Hand of Gork)
Scroll
Wolf

Big Boss (139)
Chariot
LA, Shield
Wollapa's One Hit Wunda
Brimstone Bauble

20 Wolf Riders (324)
Full Command
Spears and Shields

15 Wolf Riders (240)
Full Command
Spears and Shields

10 Wolf Riders (172)
Standard and Musician
Spears and Shields

10 Wolf Riders (172)
Standard and Musician
Spears and Shields

5 Wolf Riders (83)
Short Bows
Boss and Musician

5 Wolf Riders (83)
Short Bows
Boss and Musician

5 Wolf Riders (83)
Short Bows
Boss and Musician

Wolf Chariot (60)
Wolf Chariot (60)
Wolf Chariot (60)

2 Spear Chukkas (70)


The enemy's list (from memory) was approximately:

20000 points Tomb Kings Army list

Tomb King
Terror Mask
Flail of Skulls
Light Armor and Shield

Liche Priest
Horse
Heiratic Jar
Dispel Scroll

Liche Priest
Casket
Dispel Scroll

Liche Priest
Staff of Ravening

20 Skeletons w/ Banner of Summoning Stuff

2 Tomb Swarms

Tomb Scorpion

Bone Giant

5 Ushabti

5 Light Cavalry

Not the toughest list I've ever seen, but the Casket and the big unit of Ushabti were worrysome, as was the Bone Giant. Lots of Fear and Terror, which is awesome when your whole army can't stand up to a strong breeze without running for their lives in abject horror.

Deployment looked like this:



I went with the classic "KYSOOTM" deployment: keep your sht out of the middle. Send strong contingents down both flanks and hopefully sweep into the middle later. Unfortunately, he only gave me a unit of Light Cav on the right flank to play with, and that meant a good chunk of my points were out of position. Fortunately, my whole army moves 18" a turn and is largely Fast Cavalry, so redeploying wouldn't be too much of a burden.


I pushed forward pretty aggressively, because I figured I couldn't wait for the Tomb Kings to come to me. Plus, what's the good of having all that M9 if you're not going to use it? Even better, no animosity nonsense first turn. Gotta love that. I took the risk of exposing my shamans early by placing them on the hill as well. If I could get a couple of key spells off earily, I could wipe out the Casket before it became a bother. Besides, I had two dispel scrolls packed away, so I knew I was safe from at least one turn of Casket nonsense.

The Tomb Kings pretty easily swatted away my magic phase with dice and a scroll for good measure. The shooting phase was slightly more successful as, despite Goblin BS, one Spear Chukka managed to skewer the Bone Giant, slamming him for three wounds.

First blood to the Goblins.



Charge! The Light Cavalry came crashing into my Wolf Riders on the right flank, although the Goblins were scared sh'tless, and would be hitting on 6s. The rest of the Tomb Kings pressed forward. I was able to stave off most of the Tomb Kings' magic, although a timely magic missile took down three of my Wolf Riders and sent them and the Shaman running. Irritating. Fortunately, he had already used his dispel scroll to stop the Ushabti from charging me, and the other scroll was used to silence the Casket. Dang. Turn one, and I had already burned my scrolls.

Despite taking a few casualities, the Wolf Riders won combat against the Light Cav. Not bad for a bunch of weedy gits on dogback.



Animosity finally reared its ugly head, with one block of Wolf Riders squabbling in place. The rest of the Wolf Riders decided to CHARGE! Both huge blocks went into the Ushabtis on the stout Leadership 8 of the Warboss. The Shaman and his boys rallied and hid behind the hill, like the gibbering cowards that they are. The other Shaman, free to march, swung hard down the left flank and made a beeline for the Liche on horseback.

With only one Shaman in position to cast anything useful, the magic was pretty easily dispelled. However, shooting was much, much more eventful, as a handful of short bows + short range + lightly armored mage = dead Liche Priest. That much less scary magic to worry about.

The Warboss took down one Ushabti by himself, while the entire rest of the Wolf Rider units bounced. Yes, bounced. All of them. In both units. And the wolves, too. Not one single goblin or wolf besides the Warboss did jack squat. In return, the Ushabti carved two wounds into the Warboss (stupid Amulet working *against* me this time), and the rest of the Ushabti made short work of 6(!) Wolf Riders from the smaller unit. Even with the heavy casualties, the Goblins won combat.

Out on the right flank, the Wolf Riders proved too vicious for the light cavalry, and they crumbled to death under the weight of numbers and wounds.



From beneath the sand of the hill, a giant Tomb Scorpion emerged and barreled into the flank of the suicide goblin. Fortunately for me, the Tomb Swarms misfired, and ended up crushed beneath the sand. One less annoyance to worry about.

I was able to dispel most of the truly heinous stuff, like moving the Bone Giant into combat, but that meant I had no dice left to stop him from healing the Bone Giant back up to full, or to stop the Casket. I thought to myself, "Okay, well, it's only three units that will be affected. I can deal with that."

Only one wound on the chariot. That's good.
Six wounds on the first Bolt Thrower. Boo.
Four wounds on the second Bolt Thrower. Boo.

That Casket has to GO.

The Scorpion went after my Big Boss, which kind of made me giggle at the thought of him blowing up and taking the Scorpion with him. Alas, the Scorpion only put one wound on him, and he held tight. The Warboss was not so lucky, as he put one Ushabti down, then was prompty dispatched by the undead constructs. The smaller wolf unit continued to take a beating, but the Goblins managed to get rid of yet another Ushabti, and win the combat again. So that's right, math fans. Over 600 points worth of Goblins cannot get rid of 300 points of Shubbies. Even with multiple turns to get it done, rank bonuses, standards, and outnumbering. Irritating.



CHARGE! Wolf Chariot to the flank of the Tomb Scorpion ought to do the trick like a big ol' can of Raid. I thought I'd be able to take care of the Bone Giant this turn, too, but the wounded Chariot had other plans, failed its Terror test, and turned tail and ran for it. I also needed some help with the Tomb Kings' magic users, so the small unit of Wolf Riders came rushing across the lower field, carefully (and cowardly) making sure they couldn't see the accursed Casket. I started bringing the chariot around from the right flank, while the bigger unit of Wolf Riders out on the right decided Operation Be Not Victory Points was in order, and took their own sweet time securing the table quarter. I brought both shamans around to face the Casket, hoping that a magical barrage would silence it quickly.

But a barrage wasn't really needed. All that was needed was one Irresitable Force on a Hand of Gork, and the Shaman's wolves slammed into the Casket, Liche, and guards. This freed up the other shaman to do a whole bunch of nothin'. The wolves tried to plink a couple of shots off the Bone Giant, but to no avail.

The Wolf Riders continued to beat on the Ushabti, and take serious casualties in return. The Shubbies took off the rank bonus of the biggest unit this turn, but the Wolves still won combat and held. Meanwhile, the Shaman accepted the Liche Priest's challenge, and it was a little girls' slap fight that ended in embarassment for both sides. Meanwhile, angry wolves tore the casket guards to shreds, and the Tomb Kings crumbled under the weight of CR. Another Liche bites the dust. Word. The overrun wasn't enough to get into the Heirophant, however, which was disappointing.

Up to the north, the Wolf Chariot careened into the Tomb Scorpion for a rousing 7 impact hits, and the construct was dust almost immediately.



So far, so good for the Gobbos, right? Pretty well have the game in hand? Now, let's play, "But You're Using Goblins!"

CHARGE! The Bone Giant hit the flank of the Wolf Riders. The Heirophant heard the pattering footsteps of Wolves coming to gobble him up, and broke from the trees into open ground. A failed dispel attempt (love those double 1s!) allowed him to activate his Cloak of the Dunes and get the hell out of Dodge. He floated away and joined the King in the relative safety of the skeleton unit.

The Bone Giant didn't do a ton of damage, killing only two Wolf Riders. He didn't need to, however, as the Ushabtis were handling business just fine. I lost combat by 1, which, when you're LD6, is pretty much a death sentence.

Now, everybody wait for it. What's going to happen now? If you answered, "All hell breaks loose," you would be correct.

Both Wolf Rider units fled, directly through my chariots. Suicide Gobbo hangs on, but the other chariot turns and flees like its on fire. Pretty much to be expected, right?



Except that it doesn't stop there. Nobody rallies, and they all continue to bolt for it, with two units running off the table and another nearly joining them. To top it all off, Suicide Gobbo fails his Terror test and runs off the table as well. Oh, and to top it all off, despite WAAAGHing on their Animosity roll, the block of Wolf Riders fail their Terror test to rear charge the Tomb King's unit, and flees as well.

Awesome. Then I miscast and ended the magic phase, because Goblins RULE.

Meanwhile, the two shamans and the third unit of Wolf Riders all line up short bows and pepper the Bone Giant down to only one wound. That was, at least, a bonus.



Not much happened in the Tomb Kings' turn. Just some maneuvering, him either forgetting to charge the fleeing Wolf Riders or bizarrely choosing not to, and a bunch of dispelling.

Top of my Turn 5, guess what? Three unit of Wolves rally! Go musicians! Then, of course, the Shaman's unit fails its Terror test against the Giant and takes off running.

In retribution, my Shaman Irresistable Force casts Brain Bursta, and takes the last wound off the Bone Giant, dropping him to dust.



Bottom of the fifth, he charges his Ushabti into my Wolf Riders again, and turns his Tomb King's unit around. I do a pretty decent job of dispelling most of the magic. The Ushabtis make quick work of the Wolf Riders and chase them off the table.



Top of the sixth, my Shaman flees off the table. Not only that, but the small unit of Wolf Riders fail their Terror test, and take off running, too. Not much other action, as I just whittle away at the King's skeletons.



Last turn sees his skeletons fail charging my Shaman's unit, then me using my considerable three dice of dispelling power to stop him from getting that movement spell off on his King's unit.

So, at the end of the game, he had his King, Heirophant, and 17 skeletons left on the table. I had one Shaman, one unit of 5 wolf riders, both units of 10 wolf riders, and two chariots left. And that, my friends, it what it looks like to snatch a draw out of the jaws of victory. He didn't beat me; Goblins beat themselves. I had a major victory in the bag, and then Leadership took over, and I the draw was the best I could do.

Frustrating.

The army was a LOT of fun to play, though. I thoroughly enjoyed them. I didn't even mind the Animosity too much. It's the LD6 that's the killer for this build. LD6 + 3d6" flee distance = lots of points running off the table. Bleh.

Ogres vs High Elves 2250 point battle report

"Swordmaster playtesting" for warhammer fantasy battle tournament :-

"And here come the charges. Of course, because this is a game where I am trying to test the hardiness of Swordmasters, they failed their Terror check and proceeded to flee and get eaten by a Bull Rhinox. Lovely. "

(I really like Xtapl's battle reports, plenty of personality, opinion and great maps)

source : warhammer.org.uk

credit : Xtapl

28-Mar-2009

High Elf Army list 2250 pts

Archmage (360)
Level 4, Folaraith's Robe, Talisman of Saphery, Dispel Scroll

Noble (149)
Dragon Armor, Shield, Battle Standard, Barded Steed
Sword of Might, Talisman of Protection

10 Archers (110)
11 Archers (121)

6 Dragon Princes (255)
Full Command
Lion Standard

10 Swordmasters (156)
Musician

10 Swordmasters (156)
Musician

Lion Chariot (140)
Lion Chariot (140)

18 White Lions (350)
Banner of Sorcery

Great Eagle (50)
Great Eagle (50)

Repeating Bolt Thrower [RBT] (100)
Repeating Bolt Thrower [RBT] (100)

Total: 2247


I rolled up Shield, Courage, Flames of the Phoenx, and Vaul's Unmaking for my Archmage. No magic missile. Boo.

I always like to start playing a new list against Ogres, because if I can't beat Ogres, I need to start all over [Ouch ! Ed.] Renaissance Homer was kind enough to oblige, and took a fairly standard Ogres list.

Deployment looked like this:



I was hoping to rush the left flank, using the house to shield my right side from the Ogres, while holding the middle for a little while with the threat of Swordmastery death. The archers got deployed wide right as deployment bait, and kind of did their job in that respect, as RH spread his stuff out more than I expected he would.

I won the roll for first turn, and away we went...


HIGH ELVES TURN ONE

Move out!

Started off the magic phase with Flames of the Phoenix on the bulls/butcher. Got it off IF, but caused no wounds. Vaul's couldn't muster enough juice. Drain Magic got dispelled.

The left side RBT put two wounds on the Bull Rhinox, but the other RBT missed. Note to self: Archers can't wound Bull Rhinoxes. They can, however, kill a Leadbelcher and wound the next.



OGRES TURN ONE

Stuff starts getting closer. We hates that, we does.

Surprisingly, with 4 dice and +1 to cast, you can dispel quite a few spells. It also helps when lots of one die spells come up 1. That lets you also dispel the Bangstick.
In other news, the Tyrant shot a Swordmaster dead. Bet he wishes he had a Lion Cloak.



HIGH ELVES TURN TWO

Hm. To charge the Lion Chariots at the Gnoblars or not? If they flee, I get flanked and that's no good. If they hold, I blow through them into the Bulls and maybe do enough damage that even a flank charge doesn't outweigh the wounds caused.

Bleh. Better safe than sorry. I just moved around.

My super-sweet Archmage totally miscasted Courage on the first spell, took a wound, and ended the magic phase. Thanks, dude.

Highly deadly yet much maligned High Elf S3 shooting killed another Leadbelcher. Take -THAT-, T4!



OGRES TURN TWO

And here come the charges. Of course, because this is a game where I am trying to test the hardiness of Swordmasters, they failed their Terror check and proceeded to flee and get eaten by a Bull Rhinox. Lovely.

Just to the east of that wonderful happening, the Eagle sacrificed itself and fled into house, dying but holding up the Tyrant as he charged into the impassable house and just stood there like a goon. The other Eagle bucked up its courage and held on the charge from the Butcher.

Despite my double-dice dispel attempt, the Butcher managed to cast+1T/Stubborn on himself. Jerk. The other Butcher cast his magic missile on my right archers for 8 hits and 2 wounds. Bleh.

Fortunately, as expected, the Leadbelcher misfired on himself. Because that's what they do. 3 hits and 1 wound later, we were both laughing about it.
Of course, this brought bad karma for me, as Gnoblar sharp stuff wounded my right Lion Chariot. Stupid.

With all that newfound toughness, the Butcher wounded my Eagle and won. This left it in a relatively bad situation, and it had really no choice but to pursue. So pursue it did, although my Eagle got away.

Against the Bruiser, my Swordmasters rolled up 7 hits on 8 swings. Woo! Then, guess what? 1-1-1-2-2-2-2. Not even making that up. Two of them die in return, but they still hold.

Operation Swordmaster isn't going all that well...



HIGH ELVES TURN THREE

No Terror for the White Lions. They barely even registered the giant stinking Rhinox next to them.

RAWR! Apparently, Ironguts don't want to face a double Lion Chariot charge, because they fled. Chickens. Especially since the Gnoblars held the EITW, and passed two Fear tests to boot. Ironguts are wussies.

The Dragon Princes, of course, charged the Butcher. I knew he was going to just challenge me, but I thought I'd sacrifice the Champion and then beat him on CR. This was moments before I realized the stupid Butcher was still Stubborn. Annoying.
The Eagle rallied.

Vaul's got scrolled, Drain Magic was cast and allowed, and I failed to dispel the Stubborn. On three dice. Because that's the kind of night I was having.

To make up for it, the two RBTs killed the Bull Rhinox. 2+/3+ doesn't leave much room for survival for a large target... Continuing their rain of death, the Archers killed a Bull.

Swordmasters decided maybe they'd take their thumbs out of their butts and get to work. They fired off 2 wounds on the Bruiser, but took 2 dead back. The Bruiser held, but was beginning to realize Swordmasters can take his solo charge pretty easily.
The Lion Chariot charge resulted in 10 Gnoblars dead. Nom nom nom! The Lions were so busy mauling Gnoblars that they didn't notice the buggers fulling themselves with Insane Courage...

The Dragon Prince champion speared one wound onto the Butcher in the inevitable challenge, but was wily enough to take none back. That's when the Butcher held. Stupid stubborn.



OGRES TURN THREE

This should get interesting. Bulls charged the Dragon Princes to help out the Butcher, while the other Bulls charged the White Lions, trying to pick off my Archmage. Little did they know.... Meanwhile, the Ironguts rallied.

Had to make sure +1S on the Bulls charging the Dragon Princes was dispelled. This let the other Butcher get another magic missile off and kill four Archers; the Bangstick finished it off. Fortunately for me, the Butcher in combat tried to Heal himself, miscast and the spell was wiped from the game forever.

In combat, the Lion Chariots continued to eat Gnoblars. Lots. The remaining handful fled, and both chariots pursued. Not far enough to get into combat, unfortunately, but that would change shortly.

The Bulls killed a Dragon Prince on impact. The Butcher took another wound, then killed the Dragon Prince champion. The rest of the Dragon Princes did one wound to the incoming Bulls, then saved all the returning wounds, because DP are surprisingly tough. The Butcher hung in, but the Bulls broke and fled.

The Bulls up against the White Lions found out the hard way that ASF+S6+WS5=OUCH. Immediately, they took 5 wounds, dodged the incoming feeble attacks of the remaining Bull, and broke him soundly.

For their own part, the Swordmasters finally kicked it into gear, and the Bruiser got mauled.



HIGH ELVES TURN FOUR

It was time to break the back of the Ogres once and for all. Both chariots charged the Bulls. The Eagle charged the fleeing Bull, while the White Lions charged the Gnoblars. The Eagle caught the poor Bull; the Gnoblars quickly and wisely fled.

Meanwhile, the Archers wheeled big; and the RBT got pushed up onto the hill.
Nothing happened in the magic phase except the Butcher's Stubborn finally got dispelled. This led my Noble to believe it was okay to challenge the Butcher. Then, of course, he totally whiffed. The Butcher wounded him, but it was too little too late. He turned to flee and was run down. This caused the Bulls to have to reflee.

On the other side of the field, the Lion Chariots mauled the Bulls. Just barely close enough to have to test, the Ironguts unfortunately failed and fled off the table in panic. One chariot overran off the table, while the other went not quite as far.



OGRES TURN FOUR

Renaissance Homer was rapidly running out of Ogres. The Butcher tried a magic missile, but I scrolled. His attempt at Regen was dispelled, and so was his Bangstick.



HIGH ELVES TURN FIVE

Both the Dragon Princes and the White Lions charged the Gnoblars, who fled. The Bulls failed to rally and fled off the table.

With much less resistance now, the Archmage was able to Vaul's the Tyrant's Thundermace. That should change his plans significantly. An attempt at Shield failed, and Flames went off on the Tyrant, but he barely cared.

He cared a LOT more when the RBT on the hill put two wounds on him. The other RBT, charged with nothing but shooting a Leadbelcher in the face at basically point-blank range, of course did only one wound and would probably die next turn.



OGRES TURN FIVE

The poor harried Gnoblars fled off the table. Meanwhile, the Leadbelcher, as expected, charged the RBT. The stalwart crew immediately failed its Fear test and fled. Without his Thundermace, the Tyrant seemed pretty loathe to charge the White Lions now. Instead, he pulled out his handgun and killed a Dragon Prince. The Maneater used his own handgun to kill a Swordmaster.



HIGH ELVES TURN SIX

Not much left to do. The Swordmasters charged the Leadbelcher, who ran away. The RBT crew rallied.

In the magic phase, there was not enough juice for Vaul's, but enough to cast Shield on the White Lions.

Shooting did nothing, unfortunately.



OGRES TURN SIX

As I expected, the Maneaters charged the Swordmasters in the flank. The Leadbelcher rallied.

The Butcher cast a spell to try to panic the Lion Chariot, but the LD test was passed.

As expected, the Swordmasters were wiped out.



So, at the end of the game, with a quarter to each of us and RH unfortunately capturing his BSB's standard back, the final score stood at 1577-710 - an 867 point difference for a Solid Victory to the High Elves!

Good, fun game for me on the one hand. On the other hand, it was only Ogres [another ouch ! Ed.] Now, to see if the list can stand up to stouter foes...

Dogs of War vs Wood Elves 2250 points

warhammer fantasy battle report :-

"Ricco's Republican Guard turned to face the incoming threat of the Wardancers"
(good maps and movement/shooting/magic markers)

source : warhammer.org.uk

credit : Xtapl

03-Feb-2009

Wood Elf Army List

=Aliethorien's Kindred of Caidath=

Wardancer Highborn (285)
Blades of Loec, Stone of the Crystal Mere, Annoyance of Nettlings

Wardancer Noble (140)
Wardancer Weapons, Moonstone of the Hidden Ways

Spellsinger (120) Hail of Doom Arrow

Spellsinger (140) Dispel Scroll, Calaingor's Stave

10 Glade Guard (120)
10 Glade Guard (120)
14 Eternal Guard (174) Musician
15 Wardancers (277) Musician
8 Wardancers (151) Musician
8 Wardancers (151) Musician
8 Wardancers (151) Musician
7 Waywatchers (176) Sentinel
7 Waywatchers (176) Sentinel

for Dogs of War Army list (see map below)

Aliethorien's task could not be more clear - the Forest Spirits were moving deep into their winter slumber, and though the first snowfall had not yet hit the ground, it would only be a matter of time before the glade was covered in a thick blanket of white. Until the spring thaw, she would have to ensure that none passed this sacred grove. It had been quiet in the weeks since the Druchii had been turned back, and months since the Asur's diplomatic overtures were rebuffed. The glade was still and peaceful. The Mistress of the Deep Water Kindred sat quietly in the arms of an ancient tree, eyes starting to lose focus as she passed into meditation.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed her shoulder and shook it roughly. Instinctively, her hands went to her weapons, but the touch was familiar and not unkind. Aliethorien blinked, staring into the face of Melthorien.

"Sister," he spoke, in barely more than a whisper. "A consort approaches. It is vast, and varied. Humans, halflings, even a giant. And behind them, an enormous warband of Ogres."

His voice grew grim as he relayed this last, and Aliethorien was well aware why. Ogres. They would ransack the glade for sure, devouring anything that moved. No, this was not acceptable at all. She knew why the mercenaries would choose this route - it was the fastest way from Tilea to the Empire - but it was a mistake nonetheless. They would have to be convinced to go around.

Renaissance Homer's Dogs of War have been something of a remarkable story within the TWF Ashes tournaments. He has won back to back Best Army awards, and his success rate for keeping a Wizard Lord alive has been shocking. We've never gotten a chance to play before, and I was really looking forward to seeing what tactical acumen he would bring to bear on my Wardancer troupe.

The last match, I wasn't happy with the amount of shooting I had (well, actually, I was fine with it - my opponent was not), so I thought I'd scale it back a little. I dropped a unit of Glade Guard and a couple of Waywatchers and picked up a small unit of Eternal Guard. I didn't think they'd do much, but they make a good bunker for a mage and they can put out enough attacks to be a quality distraction.

My plan was pretty simple: Use my superior archery to hold the right side for a while so my troops could clear out the light cav and the giant, then sweep in from the side and punch through the middle. If I could get Aliethorien and Melthorien into the heart of the enemy with the Moonstone, so much the better for me, so much the worse for Homer. I didn't like the idea of facing down two Pegasi on the same side of the table, so far away from all of my stuff that could kill it, but wasn't much I could do about it. He took all my good scouting spots.



The DoW seized the initiative, moving forward pretty aggressively. I was concerned immediately about the Glade Guard, as I knew the ruins would not block line of sight to them, and he had a whole bunch of shooting/magic on that side of the table.

As it turned out, I let him get a Fireball off on them from the level 1 mage, and he rolled 5 hits and 3 wounds. (Keep this in mind; see if you can spot a trend.) The mage kicked in with a Dark Hand of Death and took off 4 more casualties, and that was enough to turn the remaining three away in panic.

The cannon didn't have a heck of a lot to shoot at, with my being skirmishy and all, but it did manage to cannonball an Eternal Guard and a couple of Waywatchers.



Fortunately, the Glade Guard rallied. I moved my whole army into the safety of the trees, and spun the Glade Guard on the hill around to tee up the Captain (while Elensar beat a hasty retreat into the trees). A single unit of Wardancers crept around the far left side of the field to handle the light cav and maneater strolling along there.

Magic was pretty good, as I got off a couple of nice Treesingings thanks to the addition of Calaingor's Stave. This took the Waywatchers into Killing Blow range, which they used to thin out the Light Cav at center. The Glade Guard on the hill loosed on the Captain, but could only score a single wound, and it was on the pegasus.



The light cav at left tried to charge the Waywatchers, but misjudged the distance with the trees and failed, while the Giant barreled toward the other Waywatchers, who wisely fled. The Captain charged the last of the Glade Guard, while the rest of the army shifted around a bit.

Magic saw the level 1 wizard get off another Fireball, this time killing 4 Wardancers (rolled another 6 hits there), while the level 4 wizard could only kill one Glade Guard and was otherwise largely dispelled.

The cannon took a potshot at the fleeing Waywatchers, killing one.

The Pegasus Captain found that with Wardancer troupes, even the relatively inexperienced Glade Guard are formidable warriors. The Captain killed one Glade Guard, despite having many more attacks than necessary to kill all three, and the remaining two held firm (much to the Captain's dismay).



Charge! The Wardancers took off after the Light Cavalry, who fled. The rest of my army moved forward, while the Waywatchers rallied and the other Waywatchers got on the Giant's flank. Aliethorien and Melthorien nodded to each other, gathered their Wardancers, and teleported into the forest, ready to strike against the Dogs of War.

Magic was decent, as again, Treesinging ruled the day.

The shooting phase was both awesome and disastrous for the Kindred. The Waywatchers put two wounds at point blank range onto the Giant, which was great. The Glade Guard killed off the level 4's pegasus, which was also great.

Then, Lissësúl lined up the wizard and launched her Hail of Doom arrow. 13 arrows! Woo!

But guess what?

In the end, she only did 2 wounds to the mage, and he lived. Barely. And that would probably be my last chance to kill him, too. Bleh.

In combat, the last two Glade Guard finally fell to the Peg Captain. Now, if I had just moved the other Glade Guard far enough to be out of his line of sight...



I did not. The Peg Captain hit the flank of the Glade Guard, and they would have to be brave until help could arrive. The Maneater at left also crashed into the Wardancers, and the Light Cav rallied and moved to the Wardancers' flank. I would have to kill him quickly if I didn't want him ransacking my Eternal Guard. The Giant moved away, hoping to escape the Waywatchers' arrows, while the Duellists moved up to help. The whole DoW center scrambled to deal with the impending Wardancer charge.

The magic phase was pretty short, as I used a scroll to deal with the worst of the spells cast, and dispelled anything he managed to cast (thankfully, he failed a couple of spells there).

In the shooting phase, this dirty cheating lout guessed zero on his cannon, and almost plugged Melthorien! Fortunately, the wind caught the cannonball, and it sailed over Melthorien's head and killed a Wardancer instead. Still, he would pay for his insolence!

The Leadbelchers also aimed up on the Wardancers in the trees, but thankfully, low LB BS + Skirmishers + Trees = Zero Casualities.

The Wardancers at left rolled up on their 4+ ward save, avoiding most of the damage, then turned around and put two wounds on the Maneater. The stubborn old ogre hung in there.

The Peg Captain crashed into the flank of the Glade Guard, killing a couple, but their stout leadership kept them in the fight. Good for them. Don't let The Man get you down.



CHARGE! Aliethorien let out a piercing war whoop, and the twins led their Wardancers right into the front of the pikes. Ranks? ASF? Who cares? Let's kill someone! The Eternal Guard moved forward in Operation Draw The Giant Into The Trees, while the Waywatchers moved to deal with the Light Cav at left. Wardancers bravely rushed from the trees to the hill, hoping to survive long enough to help the Glade Guard.

Lots of Treesinging, but not much else to speak of.

The Waywatchers were accurate and deadly, wiping out the Light Cav completely.

The Wardancers danced +1 attack, and used those extra swings to chop the Maneater down to the ground. That would free them up for Giant hunting on the left flank. The Pegasus Captain was finiding the Glade Guard more difficult to contend with than he figured, as they again resisted most of his attacks and hung in with a low LD test.

The Pikes were in trouble from the start. Aliethorien led the Wardancers in a 4+ ward save dance, and despite 4 ranks worth of attacks, the pikes couldn't kill more than a couple of Wardancers. In return, the twins cut a bloody swath through the DoW ranks, decimating their lines. The remaining Wardancers did the same, kicking in more wounds, and the pikes had no choice but to break and run. Aliethorien and company chased them from the battlefield, ready to return in a moment.

It was probably a clever trap by the Dogs of War, but the Wardancers would be ready for whatever awaited them when they returned.



Predictably, the Giant and the Duellists charged the Eternal Guard, who turned and ran. That left both the Dogs of War partially in the forest. Muhahahaha....

Oh, those dirty, dirty mercenaries... they set up shop all around where Aliethorien would have to come back onto the table. I suppose they figured they could double charge me with Duellists and Voland's. But I had other plans...

Meanwhile, the Maneater was creeping up the right flank, and the Leadbelchers took a short pause to reload.

In the magic phase, the level 1 threw out yet another Fireball, for yet another 5 hits on my Wardancers. Awesome.

Oh, and those Glade Guard? Yeah, they hung in again. Brave lads.



Here comes the cavalry! Okay, well, here come the Wardancers, anyway. In they went againt the Captain. The Eternal Guard rallied, and Aliethorien and Melthorien led their Wardancers onto the table, just out of range of the Duellists. Come and get us alone, Voland! Wardancers also flooded out of the trees to the flank of Ricco's Republican guard, hoping to get sent magically into the flank with a Call of the Hunt.

Which, of course, was summarily dispelled. Bleh.

Fortunately, a few Treesingings kncoked off a Duellist, and put another three wounds on the Giant. Woot.

That made the big fella ripe for the pickings, as the Waywatchers took careful aim and stuck an arrow through his eye, dropping him to the ground dead where he stood.

The Wardancers danced +1 attack, and carved the Pegasus to the ground. The Captain fought back, killing two Glade Guard, but it was too little too late. The Wardancers pressed in, he turned to flee, and was cut down. Unfortunately, the pursuit path left the lone Glade Guard in contact with the Light Cav, while the Wardancers just kind of sailed on by...



Well, time to steel ourselves, as Voland's Venators and the Paymaster came charging in. Aliethorien squared up on the Paymaster, while Melthorien lined up on Voland. Ricco's Republican Guard turned to face the incoming threat of the Wardancers, while the Leadbelchers came back for support. The Maneater and the Halflings took aim at the remaining Wardancers to the east of the hill, while the Duellists in the west moved to fire on the Waywatchers.

The magic phase saw, once again, Fireballs rain down on the Wardancers, who were then finished off with another Dark Hand of Death.

In the shooting phase, the Maneater and Halflings combined to kill one Wardancer, while the Duellists fared a little better and killed a couple of Waywatchers.

In combat, the Wardancers danced 4+ ward save, and really held off the vast majority of damage. Aliethorien deeply wounded the Paymaster, but the rest of the Wardancers couldn't get through the thick armor of the Venators. Things would be different in a moment, though, once the initial charge was blunted and the Wardancers decided to start using Killing Blow. Muhahahaha...

Oh, and one lone Glade Guard cannot beat two Fast Cav, and was run down. Poor guy. His unit was so brave.



The Wardancers in the west charged the Duellists, who fled. The Waywatchers moved back to the north to finish off the Light Cav. Eternal Guard moved forward, with both spellsingers joining them for safety.

A couple of Treesingings killed a few Duellists, but they hung on. The Waywatchers easily dispatched the Light Cav, and the other Waywatchers dropped a fleeing Duellist or two.

Combat got down and dirty, as Wardancers got to swing first and hacked apart two Ventaors. Melthorien danced and leaped in the air, neatly bringing both of his blades down into Voland's back and killing him instantly. Aliethorien continued to struggle to finish off the Paymaster, and with the rerollable break test, the Venators stayed stuck in for another turn.



The level 4 broke from the Pikes and joined the Duellists just outside of the treeline. The Maneater turned and lumbered toward midfield, while the second unit of Duellists rallied. Most of the level 4's spells went toward trying to Steal Soul, but he was denied. He made up for it by totally demolishing the Eternal Guard, although to their credit, they managed not to run away in panic.

There really was no shooting phase to speak of, so we got on with the combat. This time, Aliethorien had grown weary of the fight, and she landed more wounds on the Paymaster than he could save. He slumped from the saddle, Melthorien dispatched another Venator, and that was enough for the last two. They tried to run, but were cut down from behind.

That left Aliethorien, Melthorien, and the three remaining Wardancers free to charge the cannon crew. Meanwhile, the Waywatchers moved to take the hill and contest that quarter, Wardancers broke toward the south to take that quarter, and the remaining Waywatchers moved in for the kill on the Duellists.

It paid off. The two mages combined for a couple of kills on the Duellists with Treesinging, and then the Waywatchers killed just enough Duellists to force a panic check...which came up as a 10, and the level 4 took off running with a couple of Duellists, never to return. The Waywatchers on the hill put a couple of wounds on the Maneater, but it wasn't enough to kill him.

The cannon crew stood no chance, as Aliethorien cut them all down before anyone else could swing.



In the end, with banners and table quarters, what looked like it might be a close draw turned out to be a solid victory for the Wood Elves!

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Aliethorien wiped her blades off on the clothes of the cannon crew as she watched the few remaining mercenaries follow their fleeing wizard lord from the field. Sure, she had left an entire regiment of well-heeled pikemen to fight another day, but she made enough of a dent in the morale of the sellswords that she wasn't worried about them reappearing any time soon.

However, it seemed like all would not be quiet after all. A Maneater and two Leadbelchers had escaped, and from the great rumbling happening beneath her feet, she could tell that the secondary part of the mercenary army - the ogres - were on the move and heading right for them.

Melthorien walked up to his sister and pointed into the distance.

"The ogres are on the move and heading right for us," he growled.

Aliethorien nodded. She turned and shouted to what was left of her dancers, "Hurry! Gather every Asrai you can find! Tell them to meet me at the Waytower. We must move swiftly, before the Ogres can reach the glade. We may be able to stop them where they are!"

The twins took off running toward the Waytower, with all the able-bodied Asrai that could be summoned following quickly in their wake...

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So another victory, and a hard fought one at that! I miss the third unit of Glade Guard - Renaissance Homer was really smart about how he took my arrows out of the game. A third unit would have really helped. The Eternal Guard did all right, but they're not a credible threat - they're just there to bunker the mages. Not sure I like that.