Update: February 01, 2017

Operation try and paint at least one hour a week has been in full gear and I'm slowly (oh, so very slowly) getting my Ratkin done for my Kings of War army. I haven't dedicated much more than an hour a week yet (I might have gotten two hours in last week), but progress is progress and deserves to be acknowledged.

Adventures in DnD: Session 2

At the time we played the first session of our game, there were only three player characters: Lord Easton Greymane, Lord Bentar Smakserbotom, and Theren Wanakin (non-affectionately called Elf!). But by the time we were getting ready for our second session, another friend wanted to join the game and had made a character that would fit in with the group. Thus, this second session was an opportunity to expand the party with another character, the Dragonborn Bard, Stethaniel Kensington III. Enjoy.

2016: A Year in Review

At the beginning of every single year I like to take a little look back at this blog and see how things have progressed from year to year. This includes seeing how I did on some gaming resolutions from the prior year, setting some new resolutions, and taking a look at where I want to take my gaming and this blog. This year is no different.

Adventures in DnD: Session 1 (Part 3)

Conclusion from Part 1 and Part 2.

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The air in the cave was damp and cold. A trickle of water poured down from the wall at the far end of the cave, splashing into the creek that wound its way out of the cave’s mouth. What little light entered the cave illuminated a circular expanse roughly forty feet in diameter. Various stalagmites and stalactites littered the cave opening. On the far wall, next to the trickle of water, ran a slight incline of stone heading off towards oppressive darkness. On the right-most wall, before the rising incline stood another small opening. A faint hint of orange light danced on the walls from wherever the small passageway led.

Adventures in DnD: Session 1 (Part 2)

Continued from Part 1.

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The sun had reached its zenith as Theren passed beyond a sharp curve in the dirt path. Despite the sun bearing down there was still a slight chill in the air, even this far south along the Sword Coast. Theren pulled his well-worn traveler’s cloak closer to his chest, and continued forward. He would lose sight of the wagon being driven behind him but he was sure the wagon was only a few hundred yards behind him, staying in the same relative place to him as it had all morning. There’s brown elf-eyes, flecked with burnished gold, scanned the enveloping forest on both sides of the path. A small cliff began to rise up to his right, reaching almost thirty feet high. As he pressed on he noticed two dark shapes lying in the road ahead. Careful, he advanced. His right hand on the pommel of his scimitar, ever ready to draw it at a moment’s notice.

Adventures in DnD: Session 1 (Part 1)

Our group has begun to play some 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons, and we have a few sessions in right now. Rather than a basic here's what each character did write-up (which are fun to watch on Twitch or hear in a podcast, but not fun to read), I decided on a narrative telling of the story. Narrative writing (and fiction in particular) has always been difficulty for me (perhaps its all the brief and motion writing I do at work) and will take more time to flesh out the adventure and its story. But I think it will be the most entertaining for people to read. So I hope everyone enjoys it. To quickly recap, we are playing through the adventure provided in the starter kit first, before moving into a more home-brewed campaign. I hope to be putting up a weekly post for the game until I can bring us to where the game currently is, though I think we are only at five sessions right now and not all of them are very productive with our growing group. After that, I intend to update when we get to play (which is usually about twice a month right now).

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Continued from here.

“I bid six ‘twos’,” Theren bellowed, his elf eyes staring directly at the almost waif-like man across the table.

“But there are only five dice left, Elf,” the man said blankly. Lord Easton Greymane brought a pale and slightly malnourished hand across his face. “It’s impossible to have more of a number than the total number of dice left in the game. Have you never played swindle stones before? Oh, never mind, I call.” He lifted his other hand revealing his set of four jade dice. “I have no ‘twos.’ You lose. Again. That brings your total up to . . .” Easton looked quickly down at a piece of paper on the table. “to two gold, Elf.” Theren scowled, his eyes narrowing in consternation. “Double or nothing,” he added hastily. He was having difficulty grasping the nature of this game in his current inebriated state. It also was not helping that he considered the noble across from him as someone less intelligent than himself and so was constantly trying to force the other man into making a mistake. A mistake that Easton was far too clear headed to make.

“If you are inclined to loss all of the gold that Gundren has promised to you for this delivery then by all means, lose it.” Easton answered. “But remember that we have other business to attend to and I want to be well rested when we set out in the morning. Plus, I will not just sit here all night waiting for you to comprehend something as simple as the nature of numbers.”

“But we are still waiting on one more,” Theren retorted. “Gundren said the transportation was a three-person job. No one else has arrived at the inn in the last several hours. Not since the dwarf,” nearly spitting the word out, “left to go on ahead and meet his companion.”

“Well than you can wait up all night for our other companion. I need to rest if I am going to be of any use tomorrow. One’s mind must be clear to draw upon and conjure the arcane energies. You should know this if you really are a druid as you claim.” Lord Easton replied, his right hand making an arcane gesture. “If transporting some mining equipment to a hamlet a day’s travel from here is a three-person job, then Gundren knows something he didn’t tell us. I expect trouble and so should you.”

A loud smack echoed through the near empty room as the door to the inn slammed open. A second later a well-dressed figure pushed his meaty form through the door way. His deep brown eyes quickly scanned the room, looking for danger perhaps, or a recognizable face. His eyes finally settled on the stout figure polishing glasses behind the bar. “Barkeep,” the human shouted, a clear tone of disdain in his voice. “I seek Gundren Rockseer.” He said as he strode toward the bar. “I was to meet him earlier today in this inn but I was necessarily delayed by a set of beautiful blue eyes. Inform Rockseer that Lord Bentar Smakserbotom has arrived and then poor me a pint of bitter.” Bentar turned to take in the other few inhabitants of the inn, clearly expecting his order to have already been completed in such short time. Bentar turned back towards the bar, surprise on his face. “Move along man,” he ordered. “I’m not one to be kept waiting.”

“Bloody noble,” the barkeep whispered under his breath. “Of course my Lord,” he said with obviously fake formality. If Bentar noticed anything amiss in the barkeep’ manner, however, it did not show upon his face. “Unfortunately, Gundren Rockseer already left earlier today. If you are here for the job, the others are already waiting.” He then pointed a finger in the direction of the only other patrons in the inn. The barkeep pushed a pint across the bar. “Gundren paid for one round, and one round only.” He the levelled an eye at Bentar. “Any additional drink costs silver.”

Bentar examined the two individuals thoughtfully. At the table sat an elf, wearing rugged and hardly leather, deeply engaged in conversation with a slightly pale and underfed youth barely old enough to shave. The youth was wearing an expensive and extravagant black rode trimmed in silver thread. He grabbed his drink, careful to keep the overly-headed beer from spilling onto his own fine doublet or riding gloves and strolled towards the table. “Good evening,” he said interrupting the conversation at the table. With an expectant air he continued, “I am Lord Bentar Smakserbotom. I will be leading the travelling party tomorrow morning.” He set his drink down upon the table and removed his riding gloves, waiting for one of the others to offer him a seat.

“I know who you are fourth-born son. I am Lord Easton Greymane. Second-born son to Lord Waxillium Greymane also of Waterdeep. This is Elf,” he said pointing to the elf sitting across the table and now staring ruefully at his dice. “Theren,” said the elf giving a small incline of his head to Bentar. “Theren Wanakin, wandering druid of the forest elves. And this one,” he nodded towards Easton, “is an ass.”

“A rich ass after your poor gambling,” replied Easton. Turning to face Bentar for the first time, Easton’s crystal blue eyes a stark contrast to his pale and withdrawn face, he added, “and you are leader of nothing. We were all hired by Gundren and are under his employ. He is the only leader of our party. As he is already gone on ahead, we will all have a say in how things are run tomorrow.”

Bentar quietly mused. He knew that with another noble in the party he would be unable to bully the group as he could the commoners he normally dealt with, but he still felt the need for some portion of command. His pride demanded it and he wouldn’t lose face in front of another noble, especially not one with similar power and wealth to his own. “Acceptable,” he said begrudgingly. “I will be driving the wagons, however.”

“Fine. I am sure that you have had plenty of experience driving such base beasts as oxen before. And plenty more experience in a wagon.” Chimed Easton.

“Oh yeah, well,” Bentar stammered. “I’ve slept with your sisters.”

Easton’s lips curled slightly into a small smile. “You and half the lords and nobles of Waterdeep,” he chimed. “If they could keep themselves entertained in a less scandalous manner then they would have already been married off and become some other family’s problem. And I wouldn’t have to spend my spare time taking odd jobs between semesters at the University. Instead, they flitter away the family’s money. Here sit.” Easton pushed a chair out from the table with his booted foot. “The Elf here is learning the intricacies of swindle stones.”

The table chatter and occasional barb continued for a while longer. After several more drinks for Bentar, and some more bad dice for Theren, each companion headed upstairs to their own individual room. All seeking the comfort of sleep and their own thoughts.

The next morning the Theren, who himself managed to get to sauced to properly meditate, and Bentar were rudely awakened by loud knocking on their doors from the matron of the inn. “Wake up,” she yelled, slamming on the doors until she heard stirring from within, “your rooms were only paid for until first light. Now you are on the inn’s time.” Satisfied that she was causing the unusual guests some discomfort she continued down the hall to Easton Greymane’s room. Hand raised and ready to knock, the door swung suddenly inward before she had offered another call. Before her stood Lord Easton Greymane, in a fine riding robe and already fully packed and prepared for the day. “Is breakfast ready?” he asked. With a scowl the matron huffed, “breakfast is ready. Your wagon will be packed shortly. Gundren, that lovely dwarf, has thankfully paid for our help in advance. But best be on your way shortly, it will take the better part of the day to reach Phandalin and deliver the wagon.” She turned quickly and headed down the stairs. Her quick feet clearly indicating that she was upset at being unable to also wake up and annoy the young noble.

Easton smiled and yelled down the hall, “Thank you. We will be on our way shortly.” He proceeded downstairs and out the door to inspect the wagon. Outside the two-story inn stood a wide wagon heavily laden. The weight of the goods strained the wagon slightly, pressing the wheels into the dirt. At the front was a pair of slow, but powerfully built oxen. The stood ready, but silent, already attached to the wagon’s yoke. The oxen appeared well trained and paid little attention to their surroundings, the reins neatly tied to the seat of the wagon. A quick peak under a thick tied-down canvas showed an array of drills, picks, lanterns and other metal contraptions that Easton could not make out. Satisfied that he was, in fact, transporting mining equipment and other necessary goods and not illicit or dangerous contraband, he returned to the main room of the inn to partake of the thick porridge the matron had prepared for breakfast and await his companions. At the end of the table stood Theren. The elf was in the process of placing various herbs and items into his backpack for the journey.

A loud thunk pulled the two’s attention towards the stairs. It was slowly followed by another. And another. Eventually, Lord Bentar Smakserbotom appeared on the stairs, clad in a fine doublet beneath a set of heavy chain mail. His heavy footsteps, echoing slightly in the stairway, were further accentuated by the tired and slightly hungover look on his face. His middle-age showing in the creases of his tanned face. Across his back he carried two long poles. One, ending in a sharp point, was a perfect weapon to pierce armor and prevent creatures from charging. The other, a heavy-bladed glaive, was designed to chop armor and split and crack bones. Bentar’s body strained slightly under the weight of his armor and weapons, but his muscled frame was built on a lifetime of such heavy burdens, and once the fogginess left his mind, he would be fit for the rest of the journey. Reaching the end of the stairs, Bentar lifted his gauntlet hand from the bannister and swept right through the room and out the door, not even pausing for breakfast or morning conversation. Easton turned quickly to face the elf, nodding towards the door and both followed Bentar into the morning sun. Bentar mounted the wagon, grabbed the reins, and gave the oxen a start. The beasts strained against the weight of the wagon and slowly the wheels turned and the party was off. Theren trotted out ahead of the wagon, keeping it in range of his elf eyes, but ranging far enough away to warn the others of danger if any appeared. Lord Easton, meanwhile, fell in step beside the wagon and reached into his pouch for a book. He placed his left hand on the wagon, trusting in the wagon to take him to the right place. He then began to read, appearing oblivious to the world around him.

The road to Phandalin was little more than a swept dirt path through the forest, wide enough for a wagon, but offered little additional space. It was clear to the party that this road was well traveled, however, as deep rivets were worn into the dirt from years of use by other heavily loaded wagons. Although the occasional weed or overgrowth from the forest showed that the road had fallen into disuse this past year. Bentar directed the oxen into the well-worn rivets and let them take the wagon on the only path available to them. He then settled himself into the seat of the wagon to nurse his slight hangover. The sun began to rise steadily as the party made it way towards Phandalin and what everyone hoped would be a little easy gold. 

                                                                                                                            To be continued. . .  

West Coast GT 2016: Tournament Review (Part 2)

Alright, time to wrap up my West Coast GT tournament review. Last time I went through Day 1 and what were effectively some of my first Kings of War games. To recap, I lucked into some solid points by not going to Turn 7 in Game 3, and rolled pretty well the other two games. In all, I ended Day 1 with 47 battle points and sitting in Second Place. How did my games go for Day 2? And how did I finish overall? Let's check it out.

Round #4: Kraig Beaver - Ogres
For my first game of Day 2, I knew I was going to be playing Kraig Beaver, the gentleman who was currently sitting in First Place with a solid 52 battle points out of 60! Kraig was staying at the same house I was staying at for the tournament so we were able to get a lot of smack-talk out of the way at Saturday night bowling and down time.

Kraig was playing a very hard hitting Ogre list that included all of the net-list goodies, although it was toned down slightly from some of the nasty things that pop up on the forums and internet builds. His list included:

Berserker Braves Regiment (150 pts)
Berserker Braves Regiment (155 pts) (Blade of Slashing)
Berserker Braves Horde (255 pts) (Blessing of the Gods)
Berserker Braves Horde (250 pts) (Maccwar's Potion of the Caterpillar)
Shooters Horde (275 pts)(Brew of Keen-eyeness)
Boomers Regiment (150 pts)
Boomers Regiment (150 pts)
Warlock (125 pts)(Scarletmaw's Fenulian Amulet, Lightning Bolt (3))
Warlock (130 pts) (Healing Charm, Lightning Bolt (3))
Warlock (100 pts) (Lightning Bolt (3))
Boomer Sergeant (120 pts) (Diadem of Dragon-kind)
Grokagamok (260 pts)
Red Goblin Blaster (65 pts)
Red Goblin Blaster (65 pts)

Deployment:
Round #4 was the "Walk of Shame" scenario which was a modified invasion scenario. In this scenario, victory points would only be awarded for units on the opponent's half of the board. And, unfortunately for me, all individuals, war engines, and monsters were only worth half points instead of their full point value. Additionally, the was a special token that went with a unit that was worth bonus points if the unit made it into the opponent's deployment zone, and even more points if the unit made it off the board.

This time, the deployment item I brought actually proved useful as Kraig was forced to deploy four units before I had to deploy a single one. This put Kraig on an unsure footing as he didn't know where all of my shooting units were going to go. So instead, he opted for a very strong refused flank formation with almost the entirety of his army deployed on the left flank. The shooters held down the extreme edge of the flank with the berserker units protecting the characters and then the boomers in the center trees to hold his limited right flank. On the far edge, after I had deployed a few units, Kraig deployed both exploding goblin blasters and the boomer sergeant with diadem to take aim at my artillery and weapon teams.

Seeing that Kraig was setting up hard on the left flank, and knowing that I needed to get units into his side of the table, I set up with a strong center with shooting flanks. In the center I deployed all three horde units along with the characters and both death engines on each flank. On the actual flanks I deployed the various weapon teams, artillery, and long range shooters, along with both warrior units. In truth, my deployment was pretty sub-standard still as I had not learned my army or the invasion scenario well, but I was hoping that my luck from the first day would carry through during my shooting phases.

Deployment

Turn #1:
Kraig had won the first turn and proceeded to shift his army slowly towards the left flank and center of the board. Not wanting to deprive himself of the eventual bonuses to his lightning bolt from the Berserker units, Kraig swung them all towards the left flank. On the right flank, the goblin bombs raced forward hoping to explode near my fragile weapon teams. In his shooting phase, Kraig's awesome ogre shooters managed to pepper the clawshots on the back of the board and rout the unit in a single turn. I had never faced Orge shooters before, and now I was seeing what all the hype was about.

With the loss of one of my better high damage shooting units right off the bat, I needed to moved quickly into position against Kraig while also not exposing my units to his shooters in return. On the left, I moved the warrior unit up to counteract Kraig's units knowing that I would be losing the unit eventually. In hindsight, it would have been better to use the protection of the building for another turn or two to limit the damage he could put on the unit before it had a chance to get into combat. In the center, all units moved up slowly, positioning themselves against the Boomer units. The right flank held still, outside of the range of the goblin bombs. A few rats managed to hit one bomb and put through a few wounds, but not enough to cause the bomb to explode.

Turn 1 and the rats are already down a unit.

Turn #2:
With first blood to the Ogres, Kraig really wanted to maintain his momentum and push his units into my half of the table. Thanks to the building on the left flank, however, Kraig was forced to split his forces and he chose to move most of them, including three of the Berserker units and the wizard characters to the left of the building. Around the right side of the building advanced a Berserker horde and the special character, both protected by the woods. On the right flank both goblin bombs continued forward but were still outside of explosion range from my lines. Shooting and magical lightning bolts from the Ogres was both the warrior unit and the weapon team trying to hold down the left flank were destroyed outright.

Having lost my left flank in two turns (even though it wasn't the strongest flank, and moving up the units was totally my fault), I needed to focus on taking the right flank completely so I could swing towards the center supported by my shooting units while Kraig was forced to come around the building. I pivoted most units towards the center to go after the Boomers which I thought I could take fairly easily with my hordes. The right flank then unloaded on the two goblin bombers, explosions showering the rats with goblin pits and dirt. The rat wizards also managed to put a few wounds on the boomer sergeant to keep it from charging the flanks of my units.

Turn 2 and the flanks are almost clear on both sides.

Turn #3:
Kraig continued his push getting almost all his units (and thus a ton of points into my half of the table). Looking back at the game right now, if Kraig had simply hid most of his units behind the building at this point, he probably would have absolutely smashed me and taken a full point win in this game. In the center, he moved several units forward to try and engage the rat lines. With shooting, the Ogre shooters and boomers took aim at the hordes in the center of the board, but thankfully, only a few wounds were put on each unit.

In return, I rushed my center forward hard, hoping to close the lines. The blight horde with pathfinder charged through the trees into the Berserker horde while the other hordes made it into combat range of the Boomers and outside of the special character's line of sight. Shooting saw the Boomer sergeant die to the weapon teams. In combat, the blight horde managed to put several wounds on the Berserker horde, but not enough to even possibly rout the unit.

Combat, though limited, is finally engaged.

Turn #4:
Combat had been engaged, and there was only one thing left to do: counter charge. In the trees, the Berserker horde counter charged the blight horde and both Boomer units stayed put to shoot at the hordes directly in front of them. On the left flank, Kraig's units began moving around the building with one wizard making it around far enough to be able to see the Death Engine. Grokagamok raced forward towards the hill in an attempt to catch some characters an break the shooting units apart. Magic saw the Death Engine on the left flank take a few wounds, but the fearless contraption continued to stand. In the center, a few more wounds were put on each horde, but both units were still standing and ready for combat. In the combat in the trees, Kraig rolled well and killed a score of rats, but the unit, benefiting from the presence of other rat units stayed on the battlefield.

For my Turn 4, I pushed forward, hoping to get several of my units (an the most of my points) over the table line so that I could grab some victory points. All three horde units charged or counter charged the units in front of them. On the right flank, the weapon teams and artillery units pushed forward to get away from Grokagamok and towards Kraig's deployment zone. My characters and other Death Engine turned around the giant Ogre and caused several wounds, but not enough to cause the special character any concern. On the left flank, the wounded Death Engine killed several Orges from the horde unit, but their fearless nature kept them firmly in the battle. In combat, all three horde units decimated their foes, burying the Orges in waves and rats and routing all three units in a single phase.

Combat really heats up and the rats take control of the center of the board.

Turn #5:
Well that was a decent turn for the rats. The center of the board was under rat control and over 700 victory points were gained while depriving Kraig of over 250 points. Unfortunately for me, and great for Kraig, was his extremely strong left flank that continued to push around the building. All three wizards were brought into range and line of sight of many of my units. Taking aim at the Death Engine, the enforcer, and the closest blight horde, the Ogre wizards called forth lightning routing the Death Engine and Blight horde and wounding the enforcer. The Ogre shooters saw the edge of the other blight horde in the trees and still managed to cause a few wounds even needing "6s" to hit. The slightly wounded Grokagamok, upset that there were now holes in his trousers, picked up his gigantic axes and slammed into the clawshots on the hill, killing them in a flurry of blows.

Making a major mistake, I turned the shock troop horde around hoping that I could engage the Orge lines instead of running the unit further into Kraig's deployment zone. Meanwhile, my right flank turned and shot at Grokagamok again causing a few wounds, but not killing the character. On the extreme right flank, the artillery continued to advance hoping to gain at least a few victory points by being on the opposite side of the table. Finally. the remaining blight horde ran through the forest hoping to make it off the board in the next turn with the scenario token.

The rat's center collapses under the Ogre's magical assault.

Turn #6:
Seizing a chance to gain a ton of victory points, Kraig rushed the wounded Berserker horde (who survived the last turn thanks to a horrible nerve roll of "3") off the board, taking his scenario token (and my chance at a bonus point) with them. The rest of his army pivoted to face my units, hoping to blast several more of them off this turn. The Ogre shooters took aim at the blight horde pushing even more wounds on the heavily wounded unit, but a poor nerve roll of "5" saw the unit stay on the board (a "6" would have seem them off the board, along with the token). The wizards killed the enforcer as that was the only target in range and line of sight. On the right flank, Grokagamok charged the warriors, causing a ton of wounds but Kraig promptly rolled double "1s" keeping the unit in the fight for the battle.

Ouch, things were not looking good down on my side of the board. Hoping that Turn 6 would be the end of the game, I pulled everything I could across the table half. The blight horde with the token ran off the board bringing me equal to Kraig in this regard. The artillery and weapon team too far away from the Ogres ran across the board along with one of the wizards. The rat wizard then called down the lightning and put five wounds on the Berserker unit in my deployment zone. A well thrown nerve roll of "10" saw the unit routed and put me above Kraig in victory points. Then, the combined shooting and magic on the right flank killed Grokagamok and swung me into a solid victory, assuming the game ended on this turn.

Two last minute kills swing the game into the rat's favor.

Turn #7:
However, the dice had deserted me after Round 3's lucky Turn 7 roll, and Kraig and I were headed into Turn 7 and my forces out in the open facing off against several Ogre wizards and a unit of shooters. Kraig continued his push around the forest to take aim at the Death Engine and shock horde. Magic saw the Death Engine destroyed and the shock horde severely wounded and easy pickings for the Ogre shooters who mopped the unit up. Kraig's single run in Turn 7 turned my solid win to a minor loss as I lost over 500 points in that single turn.

With little to do, I moved what I could into Kraig's table half and turned my wizards and weapon teams to face the Ogre wizards, managing to kill one of them with some combined lightning bolts from the rat wizards. And with that, the game ended.

Turn 7 and my solid win collapses around me to a straight draw.

Counting up the points, the game ended in a straight draw as despite having more units on the other side of the board, several of the units were only worth half points. I had managed to gain two of the four available bonus points (+1 for getting my token off the board and +1 for only having one unit in my deployment zone) giving me a total of 12 points for the round. Kraig also got 12 battle points so with our game I had failed to gain on his battle point total. Round 4 ended with Kraig still sitting in First Place and six battle points ahead of me.

Round Battle Points: 12
Running Total Battle Points: 57

EPIC FAIL MOMENT:
For me, the epic fail moment came when I turned the shock horde around rather than push forward into the trees. This would have put that unit further away from the wizards and given the shooters a -1 penalty. Instead, I turned them around where they did nothing but get themselves killed.

For Kraig, I think his biggest fail came on Turn 2 when he continued to push most of his army around the building. If he had swung over to the right side then he could have supported his smaller units with the lightning bolts and another horde unit and really crushed my center without losing the units that he did.


Round #5: Rashad - Undead
For Round #5, the last game of the tournament, I was playing Rashad and his Undead army. Rashad had been doing well during the tournament, but was in the middle of the pack. We ended up playing because as I was in 2nd place, I had already played everyone around me in 1st (Kraig), 3rd (Mike), and 4th (Scott) place.

Rashad was a great player and he was polite enough to walk me through the rules of the Undead army before we set up to play, which really allowed me to focus on his units better and took a lot of the surprise factor out his army, though I was still surprised, and almost overwhelmed, by his army's sheer speed with his flanking units. His undead army included:

Ghouls Troop (65 pts)
Ghouls Troop (65 pts)
Ghouls Troop (180 pts) (Brew of Strength)
Revenants Horde (245 pts) (Crushing Strength (1), Brew of Sharpness)
Wraiths Regiment (200 pts)
Werewolves Horde (270 pts) (Blessing of the Gods)
Wights Horde (235 pts)
Soul Reaver Cavalry Regiment (320 pts) (Maccwar's Potion of the Caterpillar)
Vampire Lord (240 pts) (Mounted on Undead horse, Blade of Slashing)
Necromancer (135 pts) (Bane-chant (2), mounted on Undead horse, Inspiring Talisman)
Necromancer (115 pts) (Bane-chant (2), mounted on Undead horse)
Lykanis (180 pts) (Ensorcelled Armour)

Having now played against the Undead, I think that they are a great army in Kings of War and will probably be my second army after I finish that rats as I have probably 3000 points worth of various Undead units sitting in my closet.

Deployment:
For the last round of the tournament Rashad and I were playing the Center Stage scenario. For this scenario, victory points were only awarded to units that were on the Center Stage at the end of the game. Also, being on center stage granted bonus effects like Headstrong, Fury, Elite or Vicious.

Rashad deployed with a very strong center with all of his units in the center forming a protective ring around the Necromancers. The only units not in the center were the fastest Undead units, the Werewolves and Lykanis, which were headed down the right flank of the board, protected by a building.

For this round, I actually deployed my army properly, or as properly as tactics dictate as I maximized my units in the center, surrounding my best units with both several Rallying bonuses as well as re-rolls from inspiring. I don't know why it took me 5 rounds to finally get this down, but now the rats were a combat force protected by dangerous units on the side and a solid wall of rats with very high nerve values on the front line. I felt rather proud of myself for figuring this out even though everyone had been telling me to play this way all tournament.

Deployment of two solid center-focused battle lines.

Turn #1:
Rashad won the first turn and pushed his army forward as fast as possible for having so many units with shambling. On the right flank, both fast units surged forward getting into range of several rat units for the next turn. Magic saw a few units shamble forward a little bit more, but the main Undead battleline had only moved forward a few inches out of Rashad's deployment zone.

My Turn 1 saw the rat box (what I call a properly deployed army) move forward, still out of charge range from any of the Undead units except for the werewolves. Shooting and magic targeted the soul reaver cav causing several wounds and the wight horde. The clawshots on the hit tried to hit the werewolves, but failed miserably.

Turn 1 and the armies are still staring at each other.

Turn #2:
For Turn 2, Rashad's Undead horde continued to advance with the Werewolves charging the clawshots on the hill in the flank. Lykanis moved around the building looking to hit the rat flanks in the coming turn. The vampire lord hid himself in the trees looking to take out the rat artillery lines. The rest of the undead moved forward, with several units entering center stage and gaining a significant victory point advantage. In combat, the werewolves easily killed the clawshots and prepared to run behind the rat lines.

Seeing the Undead encroaching from the flanks, the rats decided to slow down and pick apart the Undead in the center not wanting to be engaged on three sides. Over on the right flank, the warriors who had turned to face last turn charged the werewolves, causing two wounds, but were otherwise ineffective. With shooting, the rats continued to pummel the wight horde almost causing the unit to break. The shooters on the right along with the rat wizards' lightning bolts then destroyed soul reaver cavalary thereby opening up a spot on Rashad's flank. Then, with the remaining clawshot unit, I took aim at the necromancer in the center and wavered the character, limiting the number of surges that Rashad could cast in the next turn.

Turn 2 and the Undead attempt to flank the rats.

Turn #3:
Having weathered the rats' shooting for two turns, the Undead finally decided it was time to make combat. The two ghoul troops combo-charged the left-most blight horde while the ghoul horde charged straight forward into the other blight horde. The vampire lord on the left flank charged my artillery and the werewolves counter-charged the warriors directly in front of them, supported by a flank charge by Lykanis. In combat, the werewolves and Lykanis easily dispatched the warriors while all of the ghouls basically bounced off their respective targets with the blight hordes' -1 to hit. In the bottom left, the vampire lord smashed aside the rat artillery.

With the battle lines engaged, it was now my turn to being to smash the Undead center. The blight hordes counter-charged into the ghoul horde and one of the ghoul troops. The rest of the rat army pivoted around to face the undead supporting units. In shooting, the rats opened up on the wight horde and the wraiths, routing the wraiths completely, but a poor nerve roll kept the wight horde in the game (though blocked by one of the ghoul troops). In combat, the one ghoul troops was easily dispatched. The ghoul horde was equally mangled, but the sheer number of ghoul bodies kept the unit around.

A massive combat begins to brew in the center of the board with none of the rats on center stage.

Turn #4:
Seeing that the rats' flanks had been turned, Rashad utilized the vampire lord and werewolves' fast movements to hit my army in spots I wasn't expecting (but will not let happen in future games). The vampire lord charged a Death engine behind the shock troops. Meanwhile, the werewolves charged the remaining warrior unit in the rear. Lykanis then charged the last rat artillery. In the center, the ghouls charged their respective targets again. In combat, the werewolves and Lykanis routed both of the units they were engaged with. Once again neither Ghoul unit managed to cause too many wounds to the blight rats. In the bottom, the vampire lord wounded, but failed to rout the Death Engine (though it could not shoot this turn).

The rats' battle line was beginning to be crushed from the flanks and rear and so I needed to really push through the center and get onto center stage. With that in mind, the blight hordes counter-charged hoping to finally push through the ghouls holding up the rat lines. The right-most Death Engine charged the werewolves in the flank and the other engine counter-charged the vampire lord. Shooting was focused on one of the necromancers (killing the Undead leader) and the revenant horde, causing over 10 wounds in a single turn. In combat, the ghoul troop was dispatched but the ghoul horde was able to continue to fight despite severe wounds due to a really poor nerve roll of a "3". Both Death Engines rolled poorly and only managed a few wounds on the vampire lord and werewolves, respectfully.

The rats cause severe damage, but fail to break into the center of the board.

Turn #5:
The Undead continued to pick apart the rat flanks, looking to trap the formidable rat units while they were off center stage. The werewolves counter charged the death engine who failed to rout them last turn. Lykanis charged the flank of the last clawshot unit and the vampire lord again charged the other death engine down in my deployment zone. In the center, a necromancer charged a weapon team hoping to eliminate even more of my shooting. Finally, both of Rashad's hordes charged into the blight units right in front of them.

In combat, Rashad's Undead began to clear away the small rat units. The vampire lord destroyed the death engine. The werewolves killed the other death engine. Lykanis destroyed the clawshots. Both hordes causes serious damage but failed to rout either blight unit. And the poor necromancer failed to wound the weapon team.

Seeing my backfield destroyed completely, I knew I had to push through Rashad's center this turn if I was going to get on center stage. Both Blight hordes counter charged the undead units in front of them. The rest of my units simply moved to maximize shooting on the units not in combat. With my combined magic and shooting, I finally managed to kill the vampire lord that had been running around my backfield and the necromancer that had charged my weapon team, but failed to wound either Lykanis or the werewolves (lots of threes to wound this time). In combat, the ghoul horde finally died to the blight horde that it had been in combat with for three turns. Unfortunately, the revenant horde was not destroyed.

Turn 5 and both players start losing units left and right.

Turn #6:
With potentially only one more turn left, Rashad had to work to make up some serious points now that I had an open line to center stage. I think at this point Rashad was really hoping for a Turn 7 as he played for the long game here by charging the shock troop horde that was behind the blight horde with both the werewolves and Lykanis. The revenant horde also hoped to hold up the blight horde. Once Rashad made these moves, I knew that I was set to win if the game only went to Turn 6 as he had no points on center stage. In combat, the shock troop horde was destroyed, but the blight horde stayed thanks to a poor nerve roll.

Hoping the game would end on Turn 6, I moved everything I could onto the center stage while the blight horde counter charged the revenant horde. Just in case the game went another turn, I poured everything I could into the werewolves, but despite putting on 10 wounds, the creatures were too stubborn to run away. Thankfully, we rolled and did not get a Turn 7 meaning that I had managed to take over center stage and win the game.

The rats take control over the center of the board.

Counting up the points, the game ended  with a solid victory in my favor as I was the only one on center stage. I also managed to grab all 4 bonus points to five me total of 16 points for the round.

Round Battle Points: 16
Running Total Battle Points: 73

EPIC FAIL MOMENT:
For Rashad, I was thinking that he didn't really have a bad play until his Turn 6 moves. He was setting up for a devastating Turn 7, but in doing so, he completely deprived himself of any victory points at the end of Turn 6. Instead, he could have at least made the werewolbves onto the stage and maybe even Lykanis.

For me, the biggest epic fail moment came, I believe, when I failed to turn the shock horde around at any time in the game. I think having another unit that could take on the vampire or push towards the werewolves would have protected a lot more of my backfield.


At the end of the tournament I was sitting at 73 battle points and finished in FIRST PLACE for Best General by 1 point! Go me! I was nowhere close to Best Overall because of a combination of paint points and sportsmanship which included over 15 points for army composition (which I only got a few points as one of the hardest lists in the tournament). At the end of the weekend, I had learned a lot about my list, the rat army in general, and how to play the game and I am really looking forward to finishing up my army and playing in more tournaments next year. See you guys at a tournament real soon.