RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies"

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RE.Lee
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1231 Post by RE.Lee »

I got kicked in the ass and the Sphinxes are to blame :lol: They continue to be poor fighters and even worse tanks - the Necrosphinx getting killed by 10 Glade Guards was a new low. So they're right out (for now)!

This means the Tomb Kings and Tomb Guards are back. For any future rematch I'll just run them with a Flaming Banner and laugh at any Treeman charges. The unit always worked well and should be even better with the enemy coming at me.

The Light Council didn't work because I couldn't defend well, the TG horde should fix that so I'll be willing to try these guys out again. Perhaps commit less.

BSB was fine here - he saved a few archers from dying and almost killed the Treeman (he helped fight off an Eagle, too). Not sure if he's worth it but I was pleasantly surprised.

Image

New draft then:

Level 4 Nehekhara, Power Scroll, Talisman of Endurance - I considered Earthing Rod but went for the more offensive option. I'm not going to win by playing it safe.

Level 4 Light, Power Stone

Tomb King, Sword of Might, Potion of Speed, Armour of Destiny, shield - should be a nasty surprise for the Treeman, with the PoSpeed helping against Treewhack.

Level 1 Light, Dispel Scroll

22 Archers, command
22 Archers, command
5 Horse Archers
5 Horse Archers
3 Chariots

29 Tomb Guards, command, BoEFlame
3 Necroknights

Casket
Hierotitan

So, still solid magic but now with a strong unit to anchor all this. The Necroknights, Chariots and Titan should be enough of a support. I also have a better target for support spells.
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1232 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:I got kicked in the ass and the Sphinxes are to blame They continue to be poor fighters and even worse tanks - the Necrosphinx getting killed by 10 Glade Guards was a new low. So they're right out (for now)!
I just wonder if keeping them front and centre, even if they eventually go down, might shield your bunkers and buy these enough time.
RE.Lee wrote:Perhaps commit less.
I definitely think it helps to think of the archery as an added bonus. Their main job is to protect your characters.
RE.Lee wrote:BSB was fine here - he saved a few archers from dying and almost killed the Treeman (he helped fight off an Eagle, too). Not sure if he's worth it but I was pleasantly surprised.
I really like him with the Flaming banner.
RE.Lee wrote:Level 4 Nehekhara, Power Scroll, Talisman of Endurance - I considered Earthing Rod but went for the more offensive option. I'm not going to win by playing it safe.
Lol, this is your Hierophant! You may be right RE but which spell do you plan to use Power Scroll on?
RE.Lee wrote:So, still solid magic but now with a strong unit to anchor all this. The Necroknights, Chariots and Titan should be enough of a support. I also have a better target for support spells.
The key I guess will be keeping the Tomb Guard between the enemy and your wizards, though you'll slow him down by sacrificing Horse Archers etc.. Catapults might be very effective in this match-up.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1233 Post by RE.Lee »

SpellArcher wrote: I just wonder if keeping them front and centre, even if they eventually go down, might shield your bunkers and buy these enough time.
My tactic were abysmal. Not wandering them all over the place would be a good place to start, I agree. Still I'll give them some time to rest :wink:

Nehekhara has some nice big augment bubbles - I'd use the Power Scroll for that. Exchanging it for another offensive Arcane Item is also a possibility. Wand of Jet, stuff like that.

Catapults, much like Warplightning Cannons (stay tuned) just don't seem to work for me :lol:

Before I continue with yet another battle report, I want to share Archaon - ready for the grand finale!

Image
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1234 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Catapults, much like Warplightning Cannons (stay tuned)
Interesting!
RE.Lee wrote:Before I continue with yet another battle report, I want to share Archaon - ready for the grand finale!
He's a beast isn't he? That red seems a good choice for his cloak.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1235 Post by Prince of Spires »

It's always good to come back from holiday and have a couple of battle reports waiting :) You've been busy. Thanks for putting them up. And I'm looking forward to more skaven mischief :)
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1236 Post by RE.Lee »

Thanks guys! The red was an obvious choice, despite my Chaos guys mostly sporting sickly green.

As promised - Skaven take the field again, this time against Vampire Counts in what we assumed would be the battle of Mordkin Lair.

The Chapel Hill, Cemetery and Forest were objectives - each was worth 1VP if there was your unit at least partly with at the end of the game. Everything but characters could score.

Skaven:

Grey Seer, Dispel Scroll, Obsidian Lodestone
Grey Seer, Power Scroll, Talisman of Preservation

BSB, Standard Of Discipline
Warlock, Rocket
Warlock

39 Stormvermin, command, Razor Standard, Warpfire Thrower
33 Clanrats, command, Warpfire Thrower
39 Slaves
39 Slaves

10 Gutter Runners, poison, slings
10 Gutter Runners, poison, slings
9 Plague Censer Bearers

Abomination, spikes
Warplightining Cannon
Doomwheel

Vampire Counts:

Vamp Lord, shiny stuff, Rod of Flaming Death
Necromancer Lord on Corpse Cart, Black Periapt

Vamp, Dispel Scroll
Wight BSB
Banshee

50ish Zombies
30ish Skeletons
24ish Ghouls
5 Dire Wolves

24 Grave Guards, great weapons, command, Banner of the Burrows
3 Vargheists
3 Crypt Horrors

Terrorgheist


Deployment:

Image

Spells:
Plague Seer: Filth, Wither, Vermintide, 13th (no Plague!)
Ruin Seer: Skitterleap, Warplighting, Warpgale, Crack's Call (no Scorch!)

The Undead wizards had a variety of spells but mostly cast Nehek's and Van Hels thoughout.

Thoughts?
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1237 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Obsidian Lodestone
Interesting choice. To counter the Rod?
RE.Lee wrote:Warpfire Thrower
Definitely worth a go against all that Infantry.
RE.Lee wrote:Gutter Runners
Liking these a lot in the absence of enemy armour.
RE.Lee wrote:Banner of the Burrows
Can't help help thinking about Halflings.

:)
RE.Lee wrote:Deployment
I suspect the Terrorgheist is doomed.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1238 Post by RE.Lee »

SpellArcher wrote:
RE.Lee wrote:Obsidian Lodestone
Interesting choice. To counter the Rod?
I suspect the Terrorgheist is doomed.
That was my expectation as well!

The Lodestone was mostly there in the event of my opponent discovering the potency of Spirit Leach. Luckily (?) he stuck with Lore of Vampires. Rod of Flaming Death is not as bad as against the Beastmen, since my units are more than ok with not moving at all.

Turn 1.

Undead move up quickly, with the Terrorgheist redeploying to the back (rightly afraid of my fire power). Magic is stopped with the Scroll.

Image

I stay put - only the Abomination and Doomwheel advance on the extreme flanks. Oh and the Warpfire Throwers, too. Magic is ok as Warplighting wounds a Crypt Horror and I then IF Warpgale, losing just 1 level luckily.
Gutter Runners shoot down several Ghouls, one Warpfire Thrower blows up, as the other shoots short of the Grave Guard. My bad luck continues as the Doom Rocket misfires and I barely miss my own guys. Pretty much THE SAME THING happens to the Warplighting Cannon and this time some 4 Clanrats bite the dust. Still, it could have been much worse.

Image

Turn 2.

Vargheists charge the Abomination. Grave Guards fail their charge against the WFT, but the stand and shoot still kills a few. Everything else advances quickly and then advances again, fueled by dark magics. The Terrorgheist screams at the WFT crew and is effective. Vargheists put 3 wounds on the A-bomb, who only deals 3 back. I lose by 1, break and run off the table.

Image

Things are not looking good, but I still have things up my sleeve. The Plague Censer Bearers charge the Vargheists, one unit of Slaves charges the Dire Wolves, while the other unit blocks the Zombies. Magic phase is stopped, but at least I burn the scroll. Gutter Runner shooting is super effective against the Ghouls, but the WLC fails to shoot the Terrorgheist yet again (at least no misfire, right?).
Dire Wolves, Vargheists die. Zombies obviously hold the Slaves.

Image

Well, that was a rough couple of turns. Pretty much everything misfired (even the Doom Rocket, I don't recall that EVER happening!), I lost the Abomination and the VCs are right there in my face. Can I turn this around?
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1239 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:The Lodestone was mostly there in the event of my opponent discovering the potency of Spirit Leach.
Good call RE, after the number Death snipes did on your Beastmen.
RE.Lee wrote:Still, it could have been much worse.
At some point the luck is likely to turn around.
RE.Lee wrote:Vargheists charge the Abomination.
Were they in charge arc?
RE.Lee wrote:Vargheists put 3 wounds on the A-bomb, who only deals 3 back. I lose by 1, break and run off the table.
Unfortunate.
RE.Lee wrote:Vargheists die.
Wow!
RE.Lee wrote:Gutter Runner shooting is super effective against the Ghouls
Toughness 4 no saves, meet 40 Poisoned shots.

:mrgreen:
RE.Lee wrote:Can I turn this around?
I don't see how your opponent will contest the wood.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1240 Post by RE.Lee »

SpellArcher wrote:I don't see how your opponent will contest the wood.
A very important point, that, as I was fighting for my life, did not occur to me at the time!

The Abomb was in sight of the Vargheists. It was uncertain whether they could fit between the Wolves and their target but I didn't argue. The PCBs finally do their thing and rip the flying beasts apart.

Turn 3.

Grave Guards charge the Stormvermin, the Ghouls charge the Gutter Runners (I do some damage with stand and shoot), Skeletons charge the Slaves, while the Crypt Horrors join the Zombies against the other Slave unit.
Magic brings back some dudes, crucially several Ghouls. A Terrorgheist scream takes down a few Stormvermin (already engaged).
In combat the Gutter Runners fluff their attacks against the Ghouls and get wrecked with the retaliation, but then roll Insane Courage and are going nowhere. Stormvermin are butchered, break and are caught. Zombies explode a unit of Slaves, while the other Slaves hold the Skeletons.

Image

Half the army gone, but I'm not giving up. The Doomwheel charges the vulnerable Necrolord, my Clanrats, trying to scape the GGs assault the Skeletons flank. Clan Eshin joins forces against the Ghouls.
With the last Seer in combat, the magic does nothing of note.
The Warpcannon misses, once again.
Doomwheel slays the Necrolord, Gutter Runners finish off the Ghouls, infantry in the north melts away several Skeletons.

Image

Killing the Necromancer was a major feat and the southern flank seems secure but the center is lost. The northern objective will be key!
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1241 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Ghouls charge the Gutter Runners (I do some damage with stand and shoot)
This is outrageous but entirely legit of course. They simply switch from Slings to Throwing Stars which are Quick to Fire! I've been stung by this before.
RE.Lee wrote:Gutter Runners fluff their attacks against the Ghouls and get wrecked with the retaliation, but then roll Insane Courage and are going nowhere.
That is entirely appropriate!

:)
RE.Lee wrote:The northern objective will be key!
You might want to back up the Censer Bearers RE?
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1242 Post by RE.Lee »

SpellArcher wrote: They simply switch from Slings to Throwing Stars which are Quick to Fire! I've been stung by this before.
A really nasty surprise for my opponent. After weathering 80 poisoned shots the previous few turns, another 10 might not seem like a lot but still.

Turn 4.

Crypt Horrors charge the flank of the Clanrats. The mass of undead infantry in the centre reforms towards the north. The Terrorgheist flies to the back of my Slaves.
Magic is easily stopped. The Terrorgheist screams and kills 6 of the PCBs...
The Crypt Horrors are mediocre in combat, I kill some Skeletons and myrats hold on thanks to steadfast.

Image

Doomwheel charges the back of the Crypt Horrors. Last PCB goes in as well. Gutter Runners dance about.
I cast Cracks Call into combat (seemed legit, as there is no target) and kill a few skeletons.
GRs poison some zombies for fun. The Doomwheel misfires but rolls a 6 on its chart (an additional die to move)!
Combat finally goes my way - I kill a Crypt Horror and some Skeletons and cause a couple more wounds with crumbling.

Image

Turn 5.

Grave Guards fail their charge into the big grind, but the Terrorgheist makes it.
No real magic. Scream kills a couple of Slaves.
With the Terrorgheists thunderstomp I lose the combat but only the Doomwheel flees.

Image

Doomwheel rallies. Gutter Runners dance.
In the magic phase I go for Crack's Call again and kill the Terrorgheist! This allows my to survive another round of combat, even though the small Vampire is causing serious damage. The Seer then teleports out of the doomed fight.
Did I mention the Warpcannon misses again?

Image

Turn 6.
The Grave Guards finally make it into the combat and butcher all rats involved. The pursue roll is the last thing that can get my opponent into the northern objective, but he rolls too low.
I claim the forest with my Gutter Runners, while the Doomwheel and the last survivor from the second unit of GRs contest the cemetery with the Zombies.
I don't bother rolling for the Warpcannon.

Image

After a rough start, its 1:0 for the Skaven!
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1243 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Terrorgheist screams and kills 6 of the PCBs...
Ouch.
RE.Lee wrote:In the magic phase I go for Crack's Call again and kill the Terrorgheist!
Every time I’ve seen a Terrorgheist engage it ends badly. Maybe he should have flown onto the objective? Could the spell still have hit him?
RE.Lee wrote:The pursue roll is the last thing that can get my opponent into the northern objective, but he rolls too low.
Costly.
RE.Lee wrote:After a rough start, its 1:0 for the Skaven!
So I’m guessing your opponent thought he could scream some stuff up and plonk his Terrorgheist on the wood late game? With the firepower facing it though, he opted to redeploy it which made sense from a general point of view. Probably ended up costing him the game though.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1244 Post by RE.Lee »

The behaviour of the Terrorgheist was key here. My opponent was rightfully concerned about leaving him vulnerable to the Gutter Runners. This meant the beast was on the other side of the table when it was the only thing that might influence the outcome on the south edge of the battlefield.

It was a tricky call - the GRs had no real other targets (I kept shooting the Zombies for fun), and the Doomwheel was always a threat as well. The Terrorgheist could have just gone down doing nothing. It was safer in combat and was swinging the fight in the way of the undead, but with no serious wizard left the vampires were left at my mercy in the magic phase and I took advantage.

A really fun game, all in all - always nice to grab an unexpected win.
I should stop pretending Stormvermin can fight. Ok, they can be ok with the Screaming Bell, but a unit of 40 with no supporting characters just needs to be deployed in a column and soak up the damage. The war machines failed me but thats the life of a Skaven general. I really like the 2 Seer set-up - having a nice mix of spells is great.

I'll be testing a new scenario generating system based on general strategies adopted by each general. So, you and your opponents pick (in secret) an aggressive, indirect or cautious approach and then consult a table:


Aggressive /Indirect /Cautious
Aggressive /Breakthrough /Flank Attack /Fort&Hill
Indirect /Flank Attack /Claim&Hold /Rearguard
Cautious /Fort&Hill /Rearguard /Goblin Trappers

That way you have some control over the type of battle you'll be playing but have to be ready for a variety of situations depending on enemy tactics.

I'm also very much ready for Alderfen/Heffengen - coming this Tuesday 8)
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1245 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:It was a tricky call
True. Probably an error in deployment, though with such a reliance on Infantry blocks, maybe difficult to cover the width of the field. I guess the Terrorgheist might have taken the Doomwheel out, or vice versa. As you say RE, it's prospects were not good because of the Poisoned shooting but maybe that would have helped the Ghouls out.
RE.Lee wrote:Ok, they can be ok with the Screaming Bell
Indeed. That costs you the second Seer I guess.
RE.Lee wrote:I'm also very much ready for Alderfen/Heffengen - coming this Tuesday
Excellent!
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1246 Post by RE.Lee »

Its not easy to cover all that terrain with an army that only moves well around the general (though we did allow units led by Vampires to march as well - not sure if thats the actual rules). Taking more vampiric stuff might be a good idea or just using the Vargheists more conservatively, to secure objectives at the end of the game. They did remove my single biggest threat from the game, though, so its hard to argue they could have done anything better.

Well...

Ar-Ulric/Changeling did its thing and the Auric Bastion is breached. As the Chaos Horde pours through wizards on both sides start performing rituals to help/stop rebuilding the great defensive line...

4k of Legion of Chaos will face-off against 2k of Empire and 2k of Vampire Counts.
In opposite corners there will be impassable hills/ritual sites with T6 , a 4+ ward save and an unlimited number of wounds (the acolytes just keep arriving). Whenever the site will take 1+ wounds the attacking unit will suffer D6 S6 hits (distributed as per shooting). Whoever causes the most damage to the enemy site will be victorious!

I was toying with an asymmetrical scenarios, but couldn't balance it out, so went for a one with same objectives on both sides. I also considered destroyable objectives (we did that for Battle at 9 Daemons), but at 4k I was afraid a single powerful combo might end the battle too early. The final result seems like a fun battle with some defensive and offensive moves needed to win.
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1247 Post by Prince of Spires »

I'm thinking the skaven win could be down to the your opponent forgetting about the scenario for most of the battle (both of you kind of did). After a disastrous first two turns for the skaven, it would have been a hard battle to win if it had been a straight up battle line. Too much damage to really recover I think, unless the VC suffered some serious bad luck.

However, with the scenario it didn't actually matter how much was left on the table. But where it was left. Which is a pretty crucial difference. Other then stuff randomly blowing up the Skaven list itself actually seemed to perform nicely.

Looking forward to the next battle.

Rod
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1248 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Its not easy to cover all that terrain with an army that only moves well around the general
Good point RE.
RE.Lee wrote:though we did allow units led by Vampires to march as well - not sure if thats the actual rules
Per page 26 only models with the Vampiric rule themselves can March if starting more than 12" from the General.
RE.Lee wrote:Empire
I wonder if being able to cannon the objective could be key.
Prince of Spires wrote:Other then stuff randomly blowing up the Skaven list itself actually seemed to perform nicely.
Which is why people play Skaven Rod!

:)
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1249 Post by RE.Lee »

SpellArcher wrote:I wonder if being able to cannon the objective could be key.
Obviously! Question is - if being able to Hellcannon the objective could counter it? 8)

Good point about Skaven - the army plays you, so the general can just go with the flow :wink:

Game done, so:

The armies:

Empire:

Warrior Priest
Mounted BSB
Engineer
Level 2 Death, Dispel Scroll

13 IC Knights, command
12 Handgunners, command

7 Outriders, champion
3 Demigryphs, command

2x Great Cannon
Hellblaster
Steam Tank
Luminarch

Vampire Counts:

Vampire Lord, ASF, +2S, Red Fury, 4++
Necromancer Lord, Black Periapt
Vampire
Wraith

30-ish Skeletons
2x30 Zombies

24 Grave Guards, command
24 Ghouls

Chaos:

Chaos Lord, MoT, Ogre Blade, ToPreservation, OTS, Third Eye, Scaled Skin
Sorcerer Lord, Level 4 Metal, MoT, Blade of Might, ToEndurance, Dispel Scroll, Ironcurse, Enchanted Shield
Great Bray-Shaman, Level 4 Beasts, MoK, Jagged Dagger, Chalice of Dark Rain, Potion of Strength, Many-limbed Fiend

BSB, Banner of Beast, MoK, Gnarled Hide
Bray-Shaman, Level 1 Shadow, MoK, Ruby Ring of Ruin, Hagtree Fetish

31 Gors, MoK, AHW, command
22 Chaos Warriors, MoT, command (+1M)
2x5 Hounds
2x5 Marauder Horsemen
Tuskgor Chariot
10 Ungors, MoS

30 Bestigors, command (+1Ld)
Gorebeast Chariot
3x Razorgor

Shaggoth, GW
3 Crushers, Enscorcelled Weapons, command (Gleaming Banner)
Hellcannon.

Deployment:

Image

Spells:

Sorcerer: Searing Doom, Rust, Transmutation of Lead, Enchanted Blades
Great Shaman: Wildform, Savage Beast, Curse of Anraheir, Savage Beast
Shaman: Miasma

Wizard: Bjuna, Purple Sun
Necrolord: Nehek, Curse of Years, Wind of Death, Vigour (?)
Vamps: Nehek
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1250 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Obviously! Question is - if being able to Hellcannon the objective could counter it?
Cannon are a bit more accurate but good point! It’s funny how Chaos artillery was reintroduced yonks ago but I still think of them as not shooting!
RE.Lee wrote:Level 2 Death, Dispel Scroll
Defensive but might complement the VC wizards.
RE.Lee wrote:Red Fury,
Good but he could really do with OTS as well.
RE.Lee wrote:Chaos
Looks tough but the characters are all on foot which could reduce their impact. I did think the more mobile stuff would get shot off but deployment seems to help things.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1251 Post by RE.Lee »

SpellArcher wrote:Looks tough but the characters are all on foot which could reduce their impact. I did think the more mobile stuff would get shot off but deployment seems to help things.
True. I considered going for a mounted Chaos Lord but thought he might get caught up in a grind with the Undead. Against the Empire he might just get a Hellblaster salvo to his unit and be left on his own. Chaos Knights are so expensive - would sticking him in 15 strong unit of Marauder Horsemen to act as a delivery system work? MoTzeentch for a 6+ ward or just Nurgle? Interesting.

Turn 1.

Empire advances carefully.

I let through Nehek, which summons loads of Zombies (my opponent decided to split up his Zombie unit, because they always get boosted throughout the battle).

Shooting kills my Hounds and puts a couple of wounds on the objective. Feedback does nothing, unfortunately (I was really hoping it would at least put 1 wound on the Tank, to make it more likely to misfire).

Image

I push up the field aggressively, with the Marauders blocking some key units.

Magic is good, as I cast Plague of Rust on the IC Knights (a blessing for my S4 Gors) and Enchanted Blades on the Crushers, in anticipation of their fight against the Demigryphs.

Hellcannon misses.

Image

Turn 2.

Zombies and IC Knights charge and wipe out the Marauders. Demis charge the Shaggoth (should have hidden him better) but I flee and they fail their assault.

Magic is a disaster as I use my Scroll to stop Purple Sun, then fail to stop the Luminarc's bound spell (it kills 5 Bestigor) and finally Curse of Years is cast with IF on the Chaos Warriors (to add insult to incjury no damage is done to the caster!). The CoY does little damage, but now I need to dispel it in my turn. I'm left with 5 dispel dice.

Shooting kills some more Bestigors and puts more wounds on the objective. Again, feedback does nothing.

Image

Charge!

Bestigors, Chariot and Gors into the Ghouls. Warriors into the Zombies. Crushers into the Demigryphs. A Razorgor fails to charge the IC Knights (I was hoping for a double round of combat with some of the units that went into the Ghouls.

Magic is mostly stopped, as I need to dispel the CoY. Hellcannon failed it leadership test and ran up the field, so no shooting.

Ghouls get wiped out, obviously, and I pursue - Bestigors into the Hellblaster, Gors into the IC Knights, Chariot just forward. Warriors wreck the Zombies, but a couple remain, despite my using up the Sorcerer's flaming breath (rolled a 2, as was expected). The Crushers lose to Demis, break and are caught (I forgot about my Gleaming Pennant). Oh well.

Image
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1252 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:True. I considered going for a mounted Chaos Lord but thought he might get caught up in a grind with the Undead. Against the Empire he might just get a Hellblaster salvo to his unit and be left on his own. Chaos Knights are so expensive - would sticking him in 15 strong unit of Marauder Horsemen to act as a delivery system work? MoTzeentch for a 6+ ward or just Nurgle? Interesting.
I think Tzeentch Knights are viable, with Blasted Standard they should be OK vs shooting. You get a lot of killing power on a small frontage to chew through things. Marauders look too fragile to me and they would lose Fast Cav. Solo Lord on Disc might be best of all.
RE.Lee wrote:I let through Nehek,
Probably wise.
RE.Lee wrote:Magic is a disaster as I use my Scroll to stop Purple Sun, then fail to stop the Luminarc's bound spell (it kills 5 Bestigor) and finally Curse of Years is cast with IF on the Chaos Warriors (to add insult to incjury no damage is done to the caster!). The CoY does little damage, but now I need to dispel it in my turn. I'm left with 5 dispel dice.
Was PS a must-dispel, considering your generally high Initiative? The IF is a pain but nothing you can do about it.
RE.Lee wrote:Ghouls get wiped out, obviously, and I pursue - Bestigors into the Hellblaster, Gors into the IC Knights,
Hooray!
RE.Lee wrote:Warriors wreck the Zombies, but a couple remain, despite my using up the Sorcerer's flaming breath (rolled a 2, as was expected). The Crushers lose to Demis, break and are caught (I forgot about my Gleaming Pennant). Oh well.
Unlucky.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1253 Post by RE.Lee »

The Purple Sun would go through some 20 Bestigors (I3), so some 10 would die. I could live with that but was concerned about the extra dice the carnage could generate. In hindsight I should have perhaps used my 5 dice to stop PS (totally doable, perhaps even with 4) and dealt with anything else with the Scroll. I panicked, I guess ;)

Ah, yes - Blasted Standard! I'm totally doing Tzeentch Knights next time in that case :D

Turn 3.

Demis charge the Hellcannon. Grave Guards charge the newly arrived Ungors (I kill two with stand and shoot!). Zombies charge my Gorebeast chariot (we argued afterwards about who was blocking who :lol: ).

I stop Purple Sun against my Beastmen (this would have been horrific) so I let go Curse of Years on the Gors - there's plenty.

More shooting on the objective - my opponents were rightly focused on getting points there - I was already down some 8:0. Hopefully close combat would even that out. Outiders target the Razorgor - 21 shots, only 1 wound suffered 8)

Bestigors kill the Hellblaster, but fail to overrun into the Cannon. Gors keep grinding down the IC Knights. Warriors finish off the Zombies. Gorebeast hold against the other Zombie unit. Demigryphs win against the Hellcannon, but are held obviously.

Image

Shaggoth joins the Hellcannon. Bestigors say hi to the Great Cannon. Warriors and Razorgors move into better positions.

Using loads of dice from the Jagged Dagger I cast Rust on the IC Knights again, Wildform on the Gors and Enchanted Blades on the Shaggoth. I forget Curse of Years is still on, however, and the poor Gors die some more.

Demis, IC Knights and Cannon all die. Gorebeast holds.

Turn 4.

Grave Guards charge a Razorgor, I flee. Handgunners block my Bestigors.

I dispel CoY and so let through Nehek and CoY again, this time on the Warriors, who suffer a bit of damage. This doesn't hurt as much this time, as I have loads of dice on the Jagged Dagger.

Shooting again fails to kill the Razorgor! Artillery goes for the objective once more.

Gorebeast finally goes down - killed by Zombies.

Image

I charge Handgunners with Bestigors, Skeletons with Warriors and Outriders with a Razorgor. Marauder Horsemen (they survived all this time!) block the Zombies. Razorgor rallies. Shaggoth moves towards the objective - his S8 should help get some points.

I dispel CoY, again. Boost some of my guys and cast Rust on the Grave Guards for fun. Finally, Amber Spear deals a first wound to the enemy base - yay!

Hellcannon misses the objective but lands on the Grave Guards, killing some 7.

Bestigors butcher the Handgunners, Razorgor does the same with Outriders. Skeletons survive this round against the Warriors.

Image
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1254 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:The Purple Sun would go through some 20 Bestigors (I3), so some 10 would die. I could live with that but was concerned about the extra dice the carnage could generate. In hindsight I should have perhaps used my 5 dice to stop PS (totally doable, perhaps even with 4) and dealt with anything else with the Scroll. I panicked, I guess
Tricky decision. I’d thought Beastmen were base Initiative 4 but that’s Marauders isn’t it?
RE.Lee wrote:Ah, yes - Blasted Standard! I'm totally doing Tzeentch Knights next time in that case
Power lists would stick this on Warriors because mounted guys can still join these. Sure, you lose the T2 charge but the characters are very dangerous thereafter and you can put them on Daemonic Mounts for extra fun.

:)
RE.Lee wrote:Using loads of dice from the Jagged Dagger
For that nice, warm feeling inside.
RE.Lee wrote:Demis, IC Knights and Cannon all die. Gorebeast holds.
It’s mounting up isn’t it?
RE.Lee wrote:I dispel CoY and so let through Nehek and CoY again, this time on the Warriors, who suffer a bit of damage. This doesn't hurt as much this time, as I have loads of dice on the Jagged Dagger.
Well played RE.
RE.Lee wrote:Hellcannon misses the objective but lands on the Grave Guards, killing some 7.
Just getting warmed up.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1255 Post by RE.Lee »

Yup, it Marauders that get to have I4. Having played HE/Skaven for most of my life I'd never figure I'd care about Initiative so much! :lol:

Started having doubts about the Blasted Standard - 1-in-6 chance of getting a S8 handgun shot (or S6 arrow, for that matter!) is not so good. Its best against S6 shooting, but there's not much of that. I'll probably still try it out, but I'm getting more and more fed up with Chaos Magic Items - soo random! Then again, what did I expect? :roll:

I'm chewing through opposition with relative ease - its a race against time at this point.

Turn 5.

Wight BSB charges into my Razorgor, while the Grave Guards push towards my Warriors. The Vamp Lord leaves the unit and blocks my Shaggoth (curses!). Zombies charge my Horsemen.
Magic does Wind of Death on the Warriors. I shrug it off - I think I was T5 with Wildform at this moment.
Steam Tank does nothing this time (forgot to mention: the other cannon got torn to shreds by magic feedback - about time!).
Razorgor puts 2 wounds on the BSB, loses the combat (banner!) but holds, inspired by the presence of the Chaos Lord, I guess? Warriors fail to finish off the Skeletons (3 are left!). Zombies beat Horsemen who flee.

Image

Gors and a Razorgor charge the Necromancer Lord (he left the Skeletons some time ago, and was hiding behind).Shaggoth charges the Vampire Lord - can I take him on with S8 and Thunderstomp? Bestigors turn towards the Steam Tank, though this doesn't matter anymore.
Magic boosts some units, but crucially Amber Spear is stopped.
Hellcannon hits this time but only puts a single wound on the objective.
Necrolord bites it, obviously. Vamp Lord strikes first against the Shaggoth and deals 10 wounds (Red Fury!)... Chaos Warriors finally deal with the Skeletons and reform - can they make it in the last round?

Image

Turn 6.

Vamp Lord charges my Razorgor.
Magic does nothing. Shooting put 1 more wound on the objective.
Vamp Lord kills my Razorgor.

Image

I charge my Gors into the Ritual Site - there's some decent fighters there! Unfortunately, the Chaos Lord, needing a 7 to join them, only rolls 6 (sad trombone). His OTS would be so, so useful here! Bestigors charge the Tank.
Magic boosts the Gors with Wildform.
Hellcannon lands a perfect shot and kills some 20 Zombies.
Bestigors wound the Tank.
The Gors do their best against the objective but only manage 3 wounds.

Image

The Alliance wins 12:5!
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1256 Post by Prince of Spires »

I'm wondering if you haven't left the objective alone for too long. Dealing 8 wounds to T6, 4+ ward save in 2 turns isn't an easy task. Not impossible, but if anything goes wrong then you'll have managed to wipe out your opponent but you'll still lose the battle.

edit, simultaneous post: Seems my feeling was justified. The alliance got torn to pieces, but still won because of their singular focus on the objective. Kind of feels in character. The empire + VC making a desperate last stand where all they care about is defeating chaos, no matter the cost. While chaos is more focussed on killing then on victory.

And of course, in the grand scheme of things, VC don't really care about how many die. Just extra bodies to be used later, after the dust settles. ;)
RE.Lee wrote:I'll probably still try it out, but I'm getting more and more fed up with Chaos Magic Items - soo random
Come back into the light. It's lots of fun here. And you always know what you get when picking magic items, very few of which blow up in your face...

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1257 Post by RE.Lee »

Ha, yes - it did turn out to be quite a thematic battle. I had great fun just crashing into enemy lines, taking the damage because I knew I had so much to give back! Not focusing on the enemy objective did hurt - I wanted to disrupt the imperial artillery, but by the time I got there the damage was already done and my Bestigors would be better of battering at the enemy base with that S6. I felt combat could really do a lot of damage (the Besties would do, on average, 4 wounds per round) but I got there too late.

Still a great time was had by all involved.

Image

Some elven wizards, dispatched by Teclis, helped with the ritual but they soon grew distrustful of their undead allies...

After over a year of playing inferior creatures, I took the field with an army of High Elves today! There you go, Rod! :D
cheers, Lee

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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1258 Post by SpellArcher »

RE.Lee wrote:Yup, it Marauders that get to have I4. Having played HE/Skaven for most of my life I'd never figure I'd care about Initiative so much!
We get so blasé playing elves, don't we? I still resent my Daemon army's criminal lack of archery!

:)
RE.Lee wrote:Started having doubts about the Blasted Standard - 1-in-6 chance of getting a S8 handgun shot (or S6 arrow, for that matter!) is not so good. Its best against S6 shooting, but there's not much of that. I'll probably still try it out, but I'm getting more and more fed up with Chaos Magic Items - soo random! Then again, what did I expect?
But only 1-in-6 of those shots will be S8, the other 5 will be S2. Not bad for T4 Warriors.
RE.Lee wrote:Shaggoth charges the Vampire Lord
If only he struck first.
Prince of Spires wrote:The alliance got torn to pieces, but still won because of their singular focus on the objective.
The cannon essentially scored free points. Even in regular games they can turn things around with one or two shots.
RE.Lee wrote:Some elven wizards, dispatched by Teclis, helped with the ritual but they soon grew distrustful of their undead allies...
Great pic! Love the colour scheme on the mages, reminds me of the Farseer I painted back in the day.
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1259 Post by Prince of Spires »

In the end, all that matters was that fun was had by all :)
RE.Lee wrote: After over a year of playing inferior creatures, I took the field with an army of High Elves today! There you go, Rod!
Thanks! Welcome back in the light. ;) Looking forward to a battle report
SpellArcher wrote:
RE.Lee wrote:Yup, it Marauders that get to have I4. Having played HE/Skaven for most of my life I'd never figure I'd care about Initiative so much!
We get so blasé playing elves, don't we? I still resent my Daemon army's criminal lack of archery!
Definitely. It's just so easy not to have to worry (too much) about a LD check or I test. And ASF (especially the rerolls) makes for a very reliable army. No rubber lance syndrome (or rubber whatever-weapon) removes a lot of uncertainty from the game for an elf player. It makes me wonder if you can become a better (elf) player by also playing other armies which don't have these advantages. Makes you appreciate what you have more at least.
SpellArcher wrote:
Prince of Spires wrote:The alliance got torn to pieces, but still won because of their singular focus on the objective.
The cannon essentially scored free points. Even in regular games they can turn things around with one or two shots.
This is true. But also missing my point perhaps. The cannons could have started with focussing on the other dangerous stuff on the table. Which could have tipped the overall balance of the battle more in the Empires favour but lost them the battle.

RE on the other hand focussed on destroying the opposing army first. He could have actually succeeded in massacring the opposing army, leaving not a model on the table and still lose. It's telling that he only manages to get the first wound on the objective T5 (or was that the second?). And at this point, the only way to still win the battle meant that an awful lot of things had to go right. Any one of them going wrong meant losing. Which is what happened. It's the sort of thing you do not want to leave up to dice. In my opinion, the objective should have been the primary focus from T4 onwards.

Of course, having very limited shooting (with a mind of its own as well) didn't help. But when playing a scenario game, the scenario is what matters. The rest is only secondary (though it can be loads of fun!).

Rod
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Re: RE.Lee's "Record of Lost Colonies" - End Times Reloaded!

#1260 Post by RE.Lee »

I messed up my tactics, true, but remain unapologetic! :lol: When deploying I want to concentrate on keeping the army compact and this ended up in not placing units where they should have went. The right wing was only so-so and the Grave Guards with the Vampire Lord were enough to keep me honest there. Had I had a nice big infantry block I'd grind down the opposition, crumble the undead and be left to hit the objective.
SpellArcher wrote:We get so blasé playing elves, don't we?
We sure are!

On the Blasted Banner. With the 1+ armour save of the Knights S2 is not that much of a difference compared to S4. With Warriors perhaps it makes more sense. It absolutely would work against Organ Guns so if my opponent decides to give his Dwarfs a spin again, I'll try it out :wink:

On to the latest battle.

We gave our scenario generator a go: I picked Cautious, while my friend went for Aggressive, so we would play the tried and tested Fort&Hill scenario (2vp for Hill, 1vp for Fort at the end of the battle). It was 2600p per side.

High Elves:

Loremaster, ToPreservation, Dispel Scroll
Archmage level 4 Shadow, ToEndurance, BoHoeth

BSB, SoMight, Shield of Merwyrm, Golden Crown

24 Spearmen, command, BoDiscipline
24 Spearmen, command
10 Archers
5 Reavers

19 Phoenix Guards, command, BoSwiftness
21 White Lions, command, BotWorldDragon

2x Eagle
2x RBT
Frost Phoenix

Vampire Counts:

Vamp Lord, Level 4 Vampires, ASF, Red Fury, +2S, Periapt, 4++
Strigoi King, Level 1 Vampires, ASF, Red Fury, +1S

Wraith
Wraith

30 Zombies
30 Zombies
30 Skeletons
23 Ghouls
2x 5 Dire Wolves

23 Grave Guards, command, BotBurrows
3 Crypt Horrors
3 Vargheists
3 Spirit Hosts
5 Hexwraiths

Deployment:

Image

Spells:

Archmage - Miasma, Pendulum, Withering, Mindrazor

Vampire Lord - Nehek, Gaze of Nagash, Curse of Years, Van Hels
cheers, Lee

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