Monday 29 December 2014

Game 64 - Monsters of Chaos - 2013/04/10

Outcasts vs. Monsters of Chaos

With the recent release of Warrior of Chaos army book a lot of players were eager to test their new ideas and check new options available for them. Wardancer aka Eastern Barbarian also wanted to do so and I was more than happy to line up a thin blue line of High Elven warriors to test his new army.

Always unorthodox with his approach and great Swedish Comp fan, he came up with an idea of a Monster of Chaos army. I don't remember all the details (hopefully Wardancer will help me out later on) but that was his 2500 list:

Monsters of Chaos - Army List

Daemon Prince, Level 4, Chaos Armor, Enchanted Shield, Soul Feeder, Chaos Familiar (?) - Lore of Nurgle
BSB on Juggernout
Throgg


3 x Hounds of Chaos
2 x 6 Trolls
3 Trolls
2 x 3 Dragon Ogres
Chaos Giant
Chimera

Sunday 28 December 2014

Dark Riders can do it better - Fast Cavalry Tactics

Fast Cavalry Tactics

Some time ago I read an excellent article on Druchii.net about Dark Riders written by KillerK. Fast cavalry is one of my favorite units so I really liked the subject. I decided to link it in my blog so that I will always have access to it! But in the meantime I contacted the author, KillerK, and asked him if he allowed me to re-edit his article as a separate entry on the blog. I was very happy to find out he agreed and I finally had time to do so. It is a great piece of advice for any fast cavalry users, so don't worry if you are not playing Dark Elves. Enjoy!

Sunday 21 December 2014

Game 63 - Beastmen - 2013/04/02

Game 3 - Beastmen of Chaos

In the last game of the tournament I faced Jonathan and his Beastie Boyz. I have always a great respect for BoC players. They have a very interesting army to play with but the one that is not that easy to lead. It has a unique character but due to some stupidity during design process their most characterful beasts are way too expensive.

But Swedish Comp has sometimes this effect on players that they are encouraged to bring some unusual units to the table. When I spotted two huge miniatures among others in Jonathan's army I thought it might indeed be the case. Below is the Beastmen army list as I remember it:

Beastmen - Army List

Shaman Lord, level 3, General, Herdstone - Lore of the Beasts
Shaman Lord, level 3, Hagtree Fetish - Lore of the Wild
BSB, Beasts Banner
Shaman, level 1 - Lore of the Beasts
Shaman, level 1 - Lore of the Beasts

40 Gors, Full Command
24 Bestigors, Full Command
25 Ungors, Full Command
5 Ungor Riders
5 Ungor Riders
Tuskgor Chariot
Razorgor Chariot
Razorgor
Razorgor
5 Harpies
5 Harpies
Chaos Spawn

Sunday 14 December 2014

Game 62 - Empire - 2013/03/28

Game 2 - Empire

In a second game of a tournament I faced the army that remains my nemesis. Empire. When I saw a big unit of knights, demigryphs and 2 hellblasters I knew I up to another tough challenge. However, I firmly believed that I learned a thing or two from my defeats and that I might actually put up some good fight.

Josh, my opponent, brought the following list (as always, please, forgive me the lack of details about magic items)

Empire - Army List

Archlector on Altar
BSB
Wizard,
level 2, Lore of Light
Engineer

2 x 10 Crossbowmen
2 x 25 Infantry
(I think halberdiers but possibly swordsmen too)
10 Knights, Great Weapons
4 Demigryphs
5 Outriders
2 x Cannon
2 x Hellblaster

Tuesday 9 December 2014

Game 61 - High Elves - 2013/03/25

Greetings!

On 9th February I had a great pleasure to attend a one-day tournament organized by Queensland Northern Knights. I have never had a chance to attend a tournament outside of Canberra so I decided it is time to do so. :)

Queensland Northern Knights Joust 9.0

One of the things I noticed about warhammer community in Australia is that people here like to organize tournaments in many different ways. Hence you are spoiled for choice due to the variety. There are short and there are long events, you can field armies from 1500 up to 3000 points. Sometimes there is comp, sometimes not etc. Sometimes there are scenarios, sometimes people play battle line. If you ask me it is the way to go as it explores different dimensions of the game rather than forcing players to play the same thing over and over again.

The Knights decided to test Swedish Comp for their local tournament. Each player had to calculate it and send it to TO's with their army list. The only condition was that the army cannot go below 9.0 points (hence 9.0 in the title!).

I must admit I am a little skeptical about this system, although I like the fact it does not ban anything. I do believe, however, that in order to form an opinion and see if something works for me or not I need to try it out instead of neglecting it straight away. Besides, I was curious what kind of armies people will come up with.

The Knights also decided that comp score is not going to be taken into account for the overall score. The only time it was used was to draw opponents for the first game. We were basically paired with the player with as close comp score to our own as possible.

Before the tournament the organizers did their best to secure as much themed terrain as possible. With great help from other players the tables were prepared perfectly and I can tell you right now they were the best tables I played on during any event I attended. Ever! :) 

The tables were set and I could admire great job done. I also met Ele and we immediately started to set up our armies on the elven table. I guess TO's had no choice but to let us play there! As it turned out we had two the most fluffy armies of the tournament and indeed we were drawn as opponents in the first turn

Game 1 - High Elves

There were many reasons why this game was great before it even started. First, I had a chance to play against Ele in real life. I have a feeling he didn't believe me long time ago when I said it might happen. :) Second, having painted armies set up on this fantastic table was a reward in itself. No matter the result. That is what really counts! Last but not least, a chance to have a re-match against cool opponent is always great!

I asked Ele a few days ago if he could write a little story as a prologue for the report from our game. He kindly agreed to do so but also made a condition that I should try and write something too. Well, let's see how it goes, Ele's story first :)

Elessehta and his party left the camp at a brisk trot. While in Elthin Arvan, he thought he’d take the opportunity to try some hunting. Hunting in Yvresse is fraught with danger, getting lost in the mist is the least of the dangers, within the mists prowl fearsome beasts which often come down from the Annuli Mountains. Hunting within the woods of Bretonnia sounded much simpler, even fun.
It was a lovely day, the sun was high and shone through the leaves as they entered a clearing with a strangely elfin tower. Asur like monuments could be seen scattered around the clearing. Ele didn’t remember reading about Asur settlements in this area in his history studies, perhaps it was a mage’s tower or something. It seemed abandoned, but Ele instructed the troops who had accompanied him to spread out and look around, while he and his companions moved towards the tower. Vanyion expressed a great deal of interest in the tower, if it was indeed a mage’s tower, there could be ancient artefacts left behind!
The hunting party moved into the clearing, the other troops, glad to be out of a human city for even a short time followed at their own pace. It was the shore riders, who had ranged ahead like normal, who first spotted movement in the trees on the other side. Not knowing what to expect in a human forest, Ele indicated to Ohta’relen to blow the horn warning the troops of danger. Decades of experience allowed the units to form in minutes, the Knights of the Storm God crowded around Ele and his noble friends, expecting danger.


Bob was lying on the grass in the shade of huge banner he planted nearby. One of the few advantages of being a battle standard bearer was that you didn't have to worry about lack of shade. And shade he needed as this island-continent they arrived to some time ago was very sunny. Bob also wanted to use a little moment of peace when Archie was busy with something else and didn't bother him at all. Elven mage was extremely enthusiastic about his new skills. Well, maybe not that new but he kind of re-discovered them. And Archie was happy as thanks to them he attracted attention of all the elves whose attention he required.

Little golden trinkets always caught the eye of elven maidens. Glittering robes were for elven ladies. Elven lords, thinking themselves art experts, ordered statues of weird creatures, all in gold. Like the last one who was delighted to have Strigoi Ghoul King who looked as if he was still alive, in his collection. If the fool only knew the truth. Elven nobility expressed their gratitude. Each in their own way. Archie just loved that. At least the hounds, who seem to run around the campus were not as messy as normal dogs. And when you stepped in the poo you didn't have to change your shoes.

But the moment of peace, as always, was about to come to an end. Bob spotted a scout approaching him with the most recent report. Apparently elven ruins they have just discovered attracted the attention of another elven war host. And for the greater good of Ulthuan they could not be allowed to find out what exactly caused this ancient city to fall.

Yvresii. Well, Bob had nothing against them, he even like them for their naive sense of honor and respect for their own traditions. He would have preferred, however, to slap one of those proud lords who claimed they knew everything about warfare just because they had a few skirmishes in the vicinity of their small kingdoms. Ah well, maybe next time. Hopefully, the Yvresii can be persuaded to abandon the area without bloodshed. Otherwise it is not going to be another war game.


Yvresii High Elves - Army List

Ele likes to run cavalry bus and a huge sea guard unit and this time it was not different. However, his army was not the same as I faced some time ago. Here are the details:

Elessehta Silverbough, on a Barded Elven Steed, Dragon Armour, Shield, Star Lance, Vambraces of Defense.
Vanyion of Tor Illyria, on an Elven Steed, level 3, Fencer's Blades, Silver Wand, Obsidian Amulet. - Lore of the Beasts
Evelo Ohta'relen, on a Barded Elven Steed, Great Weapon, Dragon Armour, Shield, Battle Standard, Helm of Fortune, Guardian Phoenix.
Gariath Stormrider, on a Barded Elven Steed, Great Weapon, Heavy Armour, Shield, Dragonhelm, Dawnstone, Gem of Courage.

35x Sea Guard, Full Command, Shields, Gleaming Pennant.
10x Archers, Musician.

5x Shore Riders, Spears.
5x Shore Riders, Spears.
5x Silver Helms, Musician, Shields.
5x Dragon Princes, Musician.
8x Dragon Princes, Musician, Standard, Banner of Ellyrion.

1x Eagle Claw.

Thursday 4 December 2014

End Times Khaine - Review - Introduction

Greetings! 

This year Christmas came early for me. A very good friend of mine, a painting buddy and a fellow blogger, Lead Farmer, decided to be a Santa Claus this year. I don't know how but I guess he must have used his secret contacts to secure a copy of End Times: Khaine for me, part 3 of the ongoing campaign in the warhammer world. It is an amazing thing in itself as online copies in many countries were sold in something like 15 minutes and some of the providers didn't even get access to the books either. 

Lead Farmer, however, succeeded and you should have seen my face when he showed up in his personal version of reindeer sledge in front of my home and with customary "Ho! Ho! Ho!" presented a fresh, hardback copy of ET: Khaine! It is sufficient to say I was smiling as any kid would when given the gift they dreamed of :)

Many thanks, my friend, that was a fantastic thing to do and I greatly appreciate it! And here is a poor quality photo as an evidence :)

End Times: Khaine - The cover
























I must admit I was both excited and concerned about what I am going to find out in the book. Excited, because let's face it, it is always great when a story line moves on and new things are added. It is always great to see the game itself is not stagnant. But I was concerned because I didn't wait for the books to come and started reading all these rumors on various forums. And the magnitude of change as well as the direction they seem to take were not exactly what I expected. There is nothing wrong in being surprised and that is part of making people excited but I wonder where these changes are going to lead us and what kind of game Warhammer is going to change into in the following months. I will come back to that topic later!

ET: Khaine follows the same pattern as previous parts in ET series, meaning it contains two books, one entirely dedicated to background and the other about the rules.

Book I - Background, Book II - The Rules



I have finished reading Book I so far and I intend to continue the review with this one. However, there is a lot to cover so I will do so in separate parts soon. I will follow with the review of the new rules as well.

What I find strange with the release of this part of End Times is that there are absolutely no new models with it and we got only one week release. Part one and two have some amazing new models and their releases were spread over three weeks. I am not sure what that means but I find it surprising for the company that claims their main goal is to create, produce and sell models. 

See you soon! :)

Sunday 30 November 2014

Game 60 - Vampire Counts - 2013/03/19

Greetings!

My friend Adam was preparing for the 3k tournament and asked me for a practice game against his Strigoi themed Vampire army. It was a pleasure to return the favor (Adam gave me a very good practice game with his DE before CanCon) and it is always a great thing to play a game in real life on a fantastic gaming table!

As the tournament Adam was about to attend used scenarios we also played one of them - dreaded Down Attack.

Army Lists and Pre-battle Considerations


I played 3k battles in 8th edition at the very beginning when the rulebook just came out. We loaded with lord level characters back then and it felt like you can have everything you wanted in the army. Now I was thinking how to expand the army I am much more familiar with. I narrowed down my options to two army lists but let me first present the army Adam decided to field:
 
Strigoi - Army List

Strigoi Ghoul King, Level 1, "Screaming Sword", Flying Horror - Lore of Vampires
Necromancer Lord, Level 4, Black Periapt - Lore of Vampires
Vampire BSB, Level 2, Forbidden Lore - Lore of Beasts

38 Ghouls
25 Ghouls
20 Zombies
20 Zombies
10 Crypt Horrors
6 Vargheists
6 Hexwraiths
6 Hexwraiths
2 SpiritHosts
2 SpiritHosts
 
Outcasts - Army List

Archmage, Level 4, Staff of Solidity - Lore of Metal
Battle Standard Bearer, Heavy Armor, Shield, Great Weapon, Reaver Bow, Dragon Helm
Noble, Dragon Armor, Shield, Great Weapon, Barded Steed, Helm of Fortune, The Other Trickster Shard, Pigeon Pennant

2 x 10 Archers, Musician
2 x 20 Lothern Sea Guard, Full Command

10 White Lions, Musician, Banner of Eternal Flame
10 White Lions, Musician, Gleaming Pennant
12 Swordmasters, Musician, Bladelord, Amulet of Light
12 Swordmasters, Musician, Bladelord, Talisman of Loec
2 x 6 Dragon Princes
2 x 5 Ellyrian Reavers, Spears
2 x Great Eagle
1 x Repeater Bolt Thrower

Saturday 22 November 2014

Game 59 - Empire - 2013/02/28

Game 8 - Empire - Battle Line

In the last game of the tournament I faced Simon and his Gobo-like-Empire army. Long time ago I admired his Gobotonnia and this army was another version of it. All units were modeled as Goblins in blue and red colors. Awesome idea and excellent execution! I must admit that playing against such an army is an experience in its own!

What is more Simon was no stranger to me as we played against each other a few months before during Hammer of Dave tournament. Back then Simon had Dark Elf army and was caught by surprise. So we had a great opportunity for a re-match!

Simon brought the newest fashion in terms of the Empire army list composition and that meant ... 1+ armor almost everywhere :) (My sincere apologies for lack of details on magic items :()

Empire - Army List


Grand Master, Runefang, Crown of Command
Wizard Lord, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Life
BSB, Barded Warhorse
Warrior Priest, Barded Warhorse
Captain, Pegasus

13 Inner Circle Knights, Full Command, Steel Banner
20 Archers + 2 x 5 Archers Detachments
5 Reiksguard
4 Demigryphs
Hurricanum
Steam Tank
Cannon

Tuesday 18 November 2014

Game 58 - Warriors of Chaos - 2013/02/23

Game 7 - Warriors of Chaos - Dawn Attack

A year ago there was a Watch Tower scenario played as 7th game. This year TO's decided to swap it with Dawn Attack. Given the choice I would go for Dawn Attack any day as I don't quite like win all - lose all scenarios.

Having said that I knew I was up for another tough challenge due to scenario rules anyway. When I got to know I am about to fight Warriors of Chaos I knew it is even more difficult task.

In game 7 I had a pleasure to play against Joel and his beautifully painted army. I must admit that this is very important aspect for me and I always cherish the opportunity to play in such circumstances. There is also another great topic to discuss after (or even during!) the game.

Joel's army was as tough as it was beautiful though :) No less than three silver surfers backed up by 2 skull crusher steamrollers, one warriors of chaos regiment and huge, 52 strong marauders of chaos horde. Joel was very kind to give me a copy of his army list so here are all the details:

Warriors of Chaos - Army List


Sorcerer Lord, Level 4, Mark of Tzeentch, Disc, Charmed Shield, Talisman of Preservation, Dispel Scroll, 3rd Eye of Tzeentch - Lore of Tzeentch
BSB, Mark of Tzeentch, Disc, Shield, Armour of Destiny, Stream of Corruption
Exalted Hero, Mark of Tzeentch, Disk, Shield, Bloodcurdling Roar, Book of Secrets, Golden Eye of Tzeentch - Lore of Shadow

4 x 5 Chaos Hounds
20 Warriors of Chaos
, Mark of Nurgle, Halberd, Shield, Musician, Standard, Banner of Rage
52 Marauders, Mark of Khorne, Great Weapons, Musician, Standard

5 Hellstriders

5 Skullcrushers
, Musician, Standard, Banner of Eternal Flame
4 Skullcrushers, Musician

Thursday 13 November 2014

Game 57 - Dark Elves - 2013/02/20

Game 6 - Dark Elves - Blood and Glory

Game 6 had a modified rulebook scenario. If one of the army was broken the game continued as normal but the opponent would get 350VP bonus. I really like that change as it can give you that something extra to win the game but it was not win all - lose all situation. One might of course debate if 350VP was enough bonus to try to break the enemy instead of playing it as typical battle line.

In that game I had a pleasure to meet Lachie and his beautifully painted Khainite Dark Elves. They all had great snow bases, with very chilly dark blue painting scheme. By chance we also had a high elf tower on our table so that it added further to the theme of the civil war.

Lachie's army was also unique in terms of composition. As I have mentioned it was an army dedicated to Khaine but also sported 3 huge regiments backed up by fast support units. In such force cauldron was of course a must!

Dark Elves - Army List

Supreme Sorceress - Lore of Metal
Witch Hag BSB, Rune of Khaine, Manbane, Standard of Hag Graef

30 Crossbowmen, Shields, Full Command
10 Corsairs
5 Dark Riders
, Crossbows
5 Dark Riders, Crossbows
5 Harpies
5 Harpies

40 Witch Elves
, Full Command, Banner of Murder
40 Executioners, Full Command

Cauldron of Blood

Monday 10 November 2014

Game 56 - Chaos Dwarves - 2013/02/17

Game 5 - Chaos Dwarves - Battle for the Pass

In my fifth game of CanCon I had a pleasure to meet Perry who has just switched from 40k to fantasy battles. You could tell he loves big guns by the choice of his army. There were only 2 armies representing Chaos Dwarves but they were very different from each other.

I had absolutely no prior experience in playing against that army. I have seen a few reports and I knew it is a tough one to win against. However, Perry didn't have any of the big toys Chaos Dwarves army usually sports. That didn't mean it was an easy army to win against as he had a proper war machines park. And his artillery alone could do a lot of damage to my small and fragile units simply because they are all template weapons. Add to that Lore of Hashut and you see why it is scary opponent.

As if it was not enough I had to fight them in the battle for the pass scenario. That added extra distance between the armies which suits Chaos Dwarves and limited my own deployment due to lack of space. I basically had to deploy in two lines.

Here are more details of Perry's army (apologies for lack of all information on equipment):

Chaos Dwarves - Army List

Sorcerer-Prophet, level 4, Talisman of Preservation - Lore of Hashut
BSB
Daemonsmith-Sorcerer, level 1, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Fire

24 Infernal Guard, Full Command, Banner of Eternal Flame
25 Blunderbusses, Full Command
5 Hobgoblin Wolf Riders
5 Hobgoblin Wolf Riders
3 Bull Centaurs


Deathshrieker Rocket Launcher
Deathshrieker Rocket Launcher
Deathshrieker Rocket Launcher
Dreadquake Mortar

Sunday 9 November 2014

Game 55 - Lizardmen - 2013/02/13

Game 4 - Lizardmen - Battle Line

In my game 4 I met Adam, whom I played against a year ago at ConCon 2012 and at Hammer of Dave. Each time I managed to win after bloody fight so we started to establish some kind of series of battles between our armies. Adam was kin to prove he can beat me eventually and it was even more interesting as we had almost unchanged armies in comparison to our previous encounters.

Lizardmen - Army List

Slann Mage-Priest, BSB, The Focused Ruminations, The Becalming Cogitations, Plaque of Tepok - Lore of Life
Scar Veteran, Cold One, Light Armor, Shield, Dragon Helm, Dawnstone
Skink Priest on the Engine of the Gods, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Heavens

24 Saurus with Spears, Full Command
24 Saurus with Hand Weapons, Full Command
10 Skins with Javelins
10 Skink Skirmishers
with Blow Pipes

7 Chameleon Skinks
7 Chameleon Skinks
20 Temple Guard
, Full Command
3 Terradon Riders

2 Salamander hunting packs

Thursday 6 November 2014

Game 54 - Wood Elves - 2013/02/06

Game 3 - Wood Elves - Meeting Engagement

In the last game of the day I had a pleasure to meet Alex and play against his beautifully painted Wood Elves. We were going to play a meeting engagement scenario, as per rulebook. It is another tricky scenario when you had to roll for regiments to see what goes to reserves. The fact that particular unit is not going to enter the battle straight away does not mean one can be in trouble. Sometimes just the contrary!

I have not faced Wood Elves since very, very long time, let alone since the beginning of 8th edition. Asrai can be a tough match up, in particular due to their shooting superiority but also due to their excellent maneuverability. Alex had a following, very unique (at least in my opinion) army list:

Wood Elves - Army List


Spellweaver, Level 4, Moonstone of Hidden Ways - Lore of Beast
Spellweaver, Level 3, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Beast
BSB, Great Eagle, Hail of Doom Arrow, Dragon Helm (?)
Wardancer Hero, Blades of Loec
Branchwraith, Level 1

10 Glade Guards
10 Glade Guards
16 Glade Guards
, Banner of Eternal Flame
8 Dryads
8 Dryads
5 Wild Riders
5 Wild Riders
10 Wardancers
10 Wardancers
Great Eagle
Great Eagle

Tuesday 4 November 2014

High Elves Painting Tutorials - by Volomir

Greetings!

If you are a miniature painter yourself you probably already know about Volomir. For me he is one of the best painters and a constant inspiration, in particular because he paints some High Elves too. If you haven't visited his blog yet, you should do it now!


As I have mentioned, for me Volomir is the master painter, in particular in the case of his High Elves. He creates a magical effect with these miniatures, his painting style is incredibly neat and I absolutely love the way he paints armor. 

Fortunately for other aspiring painters he is very happy to share his incredible knowledge about miniatures painting. He created fantastic tutorials and I keep coming back to them for even more inspiration. My favorite ones are linked below:



Last but not least I would like to say that Volomir does not stop at providing advice through his fantastic tutorials or blog entries. He makes sure he replies to comments and if you write him an email he will reply for sure! So don't hesitate and ask him more specific questions because advice from the best is priceless. Just be patient, as he might be busy painting :)

Cheers!

Friday 31 October 2014

Game 53 - Empire - 2013/02/03

Game 2 - Empire - Dawn Attack

I have found out that Dawn Attack can be one of these scenarios that can throw any plans out of the window before the game started. Random deployment is bad not only because some of the regiments might end up on the wrong flank but also that they all might show up in the middle. With not enough space to deploy properly. On top of that I faced Empire, with their 1+ armor all around :)

Empire  - Army List

Archlector on War Altar
Wizard Lord, Level 4 - Lore of Life
BSB
Wizard
, Level 1 - Lore of Light

40 Halberdiers, Full Command
2 x 8 Archers - Detachments
5 Inner Circle Knights, Full Command
5 Knights
4 Demigryphs
4 Demigryphs

Hurricanum
Steamtank
Cannon

Tuesday 28 October 2014

Game 52 - Dwarves - 2013/01/28

Greetings!

This year I had another great opportunity to attend CanCon, probably the biggest gaming event in Australia. 3 days of various gaming activities held in 3 huge halls attracted a lot of attention. Some people came to watch, some to take part in participation games from various systems, some took part in tournaments and many came simply to buy new things.

This time I was not complete stranger and it was great to meet people I played against during various tournaments last year. I also was looking forward to meeting new players. This year CanCon attracted almost 100 players from different states. I guess Warhammers is not dead in Oz! :)

Similarly as a year ago we had a chance to play various scenarios and I must admit that it adds a new dimension to the game for sure. In general the scenarios were as per rulebook with a few additions which I am going to explain later when posting the report from particular game. Only watchtower was not played this time. In addition to battle points (0-160) one could earn points for sport (simple answer yes/no to 5 questions saw that done), painting (awarded by referees) and composition (up to 40 in total). Unlike last year comp (which was reduced by half in comparison to last year) was added once at the end of tournament. Hence pairs were determined only by the battle points.

Game 1 - Battle Line - Dwarves

In my first game I faced James and his Dwarves. I met James at WinterCon and then we played Battle for the Pass with a modification (objectives gave extra points). I managed to snatch a victory back then what was noted in the appropriate chapter of Book of Grudges. Just before CanCon it turned out that grudges could be issued for turn 1 and true to the form we challenged each other to play one more episode of War of the Beard.

Dwarves - Army List

James wanted to get more composition points and prior to the tournament asked people at wargamerau to rate his army list. After that he decided to bring the following force:

Runelord, Anvil of doom, Shield, Master rune of balance, Rune of spellbreaking, Rune of stone
Thane, BSB, Master rune of gromril, Master rune of challenge, Rune of resistance

Dragon slayer, Rune of fire, Rune of speed

28 Warriors, Great weapons, full command
28 Warriors, Great weapons, full command
10 Thunderers
21 Miners
, Steam drill, full command

Cannon, Rune of forging, Rune of burning
Grudgethrower, 2 runes of penetrating, rune of accuracy
20 Hammerers, full command, master rune of grungni

Gyrocopter

Monday 27 October 2014

Game 51 - Dark Elves - 2013/01/28

Greetings!

This it the report from the most recent game against GuessRange and his Dark Elves yet (To read GR's version, please, visit his blog here: Episode III - DE version

High Elves vs. Dark Elves - Episode III - Revenge of the Assassins


Guess Range was very kind to continue with our civil war as a part of my preparation for CanCon. I think it was also a good experience for him as he has never played scenarios before (8th edition that is) and I asked for Dawn Attack. This scenario can mess up with my plans both because some units might end up on the wrong flank and also because too many might be in the middle, making the deployment too crowded.

Another mystery was about GR's army list. I know he toyed with a few in between our games, one of which was led by Morathi herself but I was not sure what would be his choice. In the end he want for his trusty shooty army list with proper magical back-up.

Dark Elves - Army List

High Sorceress Melith, Level 4, Darkstar cloak, Dragon Bane Gem - Dark Magic
Sorceress Tabith, Level 2, Dispel Scroll - Death Magic
Death Hag Karena, BSB, Cauldron of Blood
Assassin Kalil, Rune of Khaine, Extra Hand Weapon
Assassin SharikRune of Khaine, Extra Hand Weapon

22 Corsairs, Full Command, Extra Hand Weapon, Sea Serpent Standard
28 Warriors, Full Command, Shields, Banner of Murder
16 Repeater Crossbowmen, Musician
5 Dark Riders, Musician, Repeater Crossbows

12 Shades, Bloodshade, Repeater Crossbows, Great Weapons
12 Shades, Bloodshade, Repeater Crossbows, Great Weapons

3 Reaper Bolt Throwers

Thursday 23 October 2014

Game 50 - Dark Elves - 2013/01/22

Greetings!

The practice for CanCon continues. I tried to get as many games as possible, given shorter time to do so. Fortunately for me I had a lot of friends around who were kind enough to offer me a game and this time I had a fantastic opportunity to play against Adam and his evil (but beautifully painted) Dark Elves. What is more we played that game on Adam's fantastic table! Real game with real miniatures on great table!   :D I must apologize, however, as not all the pictures I took were good enough to show, so not every turn is spiced up by the photo. I hope though that these I have are be good enough!

I met Adam at Hammer of Dave tournament but we didn't have a chance to play back then. Adam was playing Vampires and he also has Warriors of Chaos and Wood Elves but for out battle he chose Dark Elves. He designed his list with CanCon in mind to built a hard but fair army, which might not earn the highest comp but would not be asked for resubmission either.

We also wanted to play a scenario and since I haven't played Blood and Glory yet we picked up this one. At CanCon this scenario is going to be played with a modification. If the army is broken the game does not stop but the opponent earns extra 300 VP. I think it is an interesting twist as it adds a little extra to usual battle line (deployment wise too) but is not all-or-nothing scenario.

Army List and pre-battle considerations

As I have mentioned Adam wanted to give me a tough challenge and for that purpose he chose a magic heavy army. He also added some banners here and there to get more Fortitude points for that particular scenario.

Dark Elves - Army List

Supreme Sorceress, General, level 4, Pendant of Khaeleth, Darkstar Cloak, Lifetaker - Lore of Shadow
Supreme Sorceress, level 3, Dispel Scroll - Dark Magic
BSB with Cauldron of Blood
Master, Dark Pegasus, Shield, Lance, Cloak of Hag Graef, Dawnstone

35 Spearmen, Full Command, Banner of Eternal Flame
30+ Corsairs, Full Command, Sea Serpent Standard
12 Crossbowmen, Shields, Standard

12 Witch Elves
5 Harpies
5 Harpies
5 Shades
5 Shades

2 x Reaper Bolt Thrower

Wednesday 22 October 2014

Game 49 - Empire - 2013/01/20

Greetings!

This time we decided to try and play Meeting Engagement as per rule book. Wardancer, who was my opponent again, decided to try out his cavalry based Empire army. I played against it some time ago and this is a very tough one indeed. The list itself was very similar with a few tweaks, downgrading it to 2400 point limit being the most important one.

Army list and pre-battle considerations

As I have mentioned the army is more or less the same. One less cannon and Pistoliers instead of Outriders too.

Empire - Army List

Wizard Lord on barded Warhorse, Level 4, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Heavens
Warrior Priest on barded Warhorse
BSB on barded Warhorse
Engineer, Pigeon Bombs
Captain on Pegasus
Captain on Pegasus

10 Inner Circle Knights
, Full Command, Steel Banner
5 Knights, Musician
5 Knights, Musician
10 Huntsmen


5 Reiksguard, Musician
5 Pistoliers, Musician
5 Pistoliers, Musician
3 Demigryphs, Musician
Cannon

Steamtank

Tuesday 21 October 2014

Game 48 - Lizardmen - 2013/01/13

Greetings!

This game was planned long time ago but only now I had an honor to play against frapermax himself. He kindly offered to provide me with a proper challenge for my CanCon practice. At the same time, however, he also brought a unique Slannless Lizardmen army. I was sure then that I am not only facing an excellent commander but also an army with a trick or two as well.

Army List and pre-battle considerations

Since there are scenarios to be used during the tournament we played Dawn Attack. This scenario is the one that can mess up with my plans big time since I have so many units and a chance to have a regiment on the "wrong flank" is significant. Hence a requirement to be able to improvise as anything could happen.

To an extend one could cope with it provided he is the second to deploy as players have to deploy their whole armies. But it still depends which regiment is about to be forced to go to particular part of the battlefield.

As I have already mentioned, frapermax brought his Slannless army to the field and it looked like this (I hope I got the items right but if I missed something, please correct me! :)).

Lizardmen - Army List

Saurus Oldblood, Light Armor, Shield, Cold One, Dawnstone, Sword of Anti-heroes
Scar Veteran BSB, Light Armor, Shield, Cold One, Burning Blade of Chotec
Skink-Priest, level 2, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Heavens
Skink-Priest, level 2, Engine of the Gods, Diadem of Power - Lore of Heavens

25 Saurus Warriors, Standard, Musician
17 Skinks + 2 Kroxigors with Great Weapons, Standard, Musician
10 Skink Skirmishers
10 Skink Skirmishers


5 Chameleon Skinks
3 Terradon Riders
7 Saurus Cavalry
, Standard Musician

Ancient Stegadon
Slamander Pack
2 Razordon Packs

Monday 20 October 2014

Game 47 - Skaven - 2012/12/29

Greetings!

Christmas break can or can't be a good period for some more games, depending how busy you are with family duties. Fortunately for me wardancer is always happy to be a sparring partner and we played game 2 of my preparation battles to upcoming CanCon. This time it was Battle for the Pass in the very same way as it is described in the Rule Book.

Wardancer used his slightly modified Skaven list he played with in our 2 previous encounters. Queek didn't want to give up and was eager to get his revenge.

Army lists and pre-battle considerations

It is always quite interesting to play against the same army and the same opponent with the same force. Previous tricks might not work and since the enemy learns quick too I need to come up with more ideas. At the same time the knowledge of the army to play against gained in previous battles helps too.

On top of that there is a scenario that often adds enough variety to change the outcome of the game enough to make it a completely new challenge.

Skaven - Army List


Queek the Headtaker
Warlord on bonebreaker, poison, halberd, Charmed shield , Dragonbane gem, Potion of foolhardiness 

Warlock, level 2, condenser, Ironcurse icon - Lore of Ruin
Warlock, level 1, Dispel scroll - Lore of Ruin
Warlock, level 1, Channeling staff - Lore of Ruin
BSB , Enchanted shield

30 Stormvermin (queek bodyguard), FC, shields, Banner of discipline
2 x 5 Giant rats with packmaster
40 Slaves with musician and pawleader
20 slaves with musician
20 slaves with musician

7 Rat ogres, 2 packmasters, Skweel gnawtooth
2 x 6 Gutterrunners with slings and poison

Warplightning cannon
2 x Doomwheel

Sunday 19 October 2014

Game 46 - Skaven - 2012/12/08

Greetings!

With CanCon in the near future it is about time to start some preparation games. And who better than my coach from the previous year to start it for me? :) Wardancer aka Eastern Barbarian was also eager to get a rematch so we were both excited about the upcoming game. We had to change our army lists from 2500 to 2400. Wardancer introduced some more changes to his army. For reminder, he is always using unorthodox forces so don't be surprised by his army. What is more, he decided to use Swedish comp for army list building and that too affected the final shape of his force (e.g. no Storm Banner).

Pre-battle considerations and Army Lists

The army I was about to face was nothing new to me in general but since I have played against it only once I could not tell I knew all the tricks it possessed either. I also knew that Wardancer was about to make some changes and I could only guess what it might be. Not long before the game he decided on the final list and among others I knew there were two doomwheels and 3 engineers! :)

Skaven - Army List

Queek the Headtaker
Warlord on bonebreaker, poison, halberd, Charmed Shield, Dragonbane Gem, Potion of Strength

Warlock level 2, condenser, Ironcurse icon - Lore of Ruin
Warlock level 1, Dispel scroll - Lore of Ruin
Warlock level 1 - Lore of Ruin
Warlock, Obsidian lodestone
BSB , Enchanted Shield

35 Stormvermin (queek bodyguard), FC, shields, ratling gun, Banner of discipline
2 x 5 giant rats with packmaster
40 slaves, musician
20 slaves, musician
20 slaves, musician

6 Rat ogres
, 2 packmasters, Skweel Gnawtooth
2 x 6 Gutterrunners, slings, poison

Warplightning cannon
2 x Doomwheel 

Saturday 18 October 2014

Game 45 - Bretonnia - 2012/11/24

Greetings!

Please, accept my apologies for the delay but fortunately I have finally managed to find time to write the last report from the Hammer of Dave tournament. Last round I played against Murray (Adam's dad whom I faced in round 2) and armored might of Bretonnian army. :)

Army List and pre-battle thoughts

Bretonnian knights are always troublesome. Their high armor save and additional ward save mean they have a good chance to deflect even the mightiest blows. And their S3 in combats when they do not charge is still enough to kill lightly armored elves. Their great speed and formidable lance formation can be the bane of many units of regular size, even more so in the case of MSU type. But they often have quite a nice selection of heroes among regular knights and that makes things even more difficult. If you add to that trebuchets and bowmen who also can hurt small units then you can see that that match up is definitely quite tough.

Murray had a more classical approach to the army list building which means that there was a mixture of knightly units supported by reasonable number of bowmen and field trebuchets. Unfortunately I cannot remember many items his heroes carried and if I made a mistake then it is due to fading memory. I really should have written these reports quicker.

Bretonnia - Army List

Lord, Barded warhorse, heavy armor, shield, Virtue of Heroism, Dawnstone
Prophetess, Barded warhorse, Chalice of Malfleur - Lore of Life
BSB, barded warhorse, heavy armor, shield, Gromril Great Helm
Paladin, barded warhorse, heavy armor, shield, Morning Star of Fracasse, Dragonhelm
Paladin, barder warhorse, heavy armor, Enchanted Shield

9 Knights Errant, Full Command
8 Knights of the Realm, Full Command
8 Knights of the Realm, Full Command
10 Bowmen
10 Bowmen
10 Bowmen


3 Pegasus Knights, Champion

9 Grail Knights, Banner, Musician
Trebuchet
Trebuchet

Friday 17 October 2014

Game 44 - Vampire Counts - 2012/11/17

Greetings!

Game 4 and another challenge in the form of another army of darkness - Vampire Counts. New Vampires have multitudes of options so it is not that easy to predict what the army will consist of. There are also so many new toys in the army list that despite the fact I have played some games against lords of undead there were still many mysteries for me to discover. Kaleb, who came down from Sydney for that small local tournament and against whom I had a great pleasure to play against this time, had a mixture of classic approach and a few new units he added to his army.

Army list and pre-battle thoughts

As I said it is hard to predict what VC is going to field exactly. I had a good training against them when I played against Gatti and his highly mobile forces. I also knew there is an army of VC with two Terrorgheists and a flying Vampire which would be a problem to deal with. Kaleb, however, had a different approach to the undead horde:

Vampire Counts - Army List

Vampire Lord, level 4, hellsteed, heavy armor, shield, Talisman of Preservation, Quickblood, Red Fury, Book of Arkhan - Lore of the Vampires
Necromancer, level 1, Dispel Scroll (?) - Lore of the Vampires
Wight King, BSB, Heavy Armor
Cairn Wraith
Cairn Wraith


44 Crypt Ghouls, Crypt Ghast
25 Skeleton Warriors, Full Command
Corpse Cart
22 Grave Guard, Great Weapons, Full Command, [i]Banner of Barrows[/i]
3 Vargheists, Vargoyle
5 Hexwraiths
5 Hexwraiths

Wednesday 15 October 2014

Game 43 - Daemons of Chaos - 2012/11/15

Greetings!

In Game 3 I played against Peter and his Daemons. I met Peter before at CanCon 2012 where he defeated me with his Warriors of Chaos so it was a good chance for a rematch. On the other hand Daemons tend to be a tough opponent for many armies and when I saw Peter's army list I knew I am up to a challenge again. :)

Army lists and re-battle thoughts

Peter's Warriors were built around big units and his Daemons were similar in that regard. It also seemed that Peter prefers to build tough armies and make up for any penalties from composition score (10/25) with big enough wins against any opponent he faces.

Daemons of Chaos - Army List

Blood Thirster, Obsidian Armor, Immortal Fury, Spell Breaker
Herald of Nurgle, BSB, Noxious Vapours, Stream of Bile
Herald of Khorne, Axe of Khorne, Armor of Khorne
Herald of Tzeentch, Loremaster, Spell Breaker - Lore of Beasts
30 Blood Letters, Full Command
30+ Plaguebearers, Full Command, Icon of Eternal Virulence
7 Flesh Hounds
10 Horrors of Tzeentch
5 Furies
2 x 1 Fiend of Slaanesh

Tuesday 14 October 2014

Game 42 - Lizardmen - 2012/11/10

Greetings!

In my game 2 I faced Adam and his very nicely painted Lizardmen. We played once during CanCon 2012 so it was a chance for a re-match. We had similar armies too, as Adam made a little changes in his list to accommodate Scar Veteran. Otherwise his army was quite the same. Another difference was the scenario. At CanCon we played Battle for the Pass while this time it was Battle Line.

Army Lists and pre-battle thoughts

Adam has an army which for me is a classic type with solid core and phalanx of tough Saurus warriors backed up by a nice section of support units. Unfortunately it still suffers from some comp penalties and Adam got 10/25 score for this list.

Lizardmen - Army List

Slann Mage-Priest, BSB, The Focused Ruminations, The Becalming Cogitations, Plaque of Tepok - Lore of Life
Scar Veteran, Cold One, Light Armor, Shield, Dragon Helm, Dawnstone (I think :))
Skink Priest on the Engine of the Gods, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Heavens

24 Saurus with Spears, Full Command
24 Saurus with Hand Weapons, Full Command
10 Skins with Javelins
10 Skink Skirmishers with Blow Pipes

7 Chameleon Skinks
20 Temple Guard
, Full Command
3 Terradon Riders

2 Salamander hunting packs

Monday 13 October 2014

Fast Cavalry Tactics

Greetings!

There are real gems among posts and articles people write on the forums or on their blogs. It takes some time to find them but when you do they are simply amazing read. I have two of such for you today. Just links to respective forums or blogs:


Hinge writes in a very informative but also very humorous way about the different roles of the fast cavalry a player may find useful to use. The inspiration to write it was the discussion on Orcs & Goblins forum where people discussed the current state of Warhammer and drew the conclusion that there is no space for fast cavalry in the game. Obviously, Hinge didn't agree but he was kind enough to write what this particular unit is good for.


The article written by KillerK is more detailed and discusses examples where Dark Riders are featured but the principles he is talking about are applicable to any other fast cavalry unit. He provides diagrams that illustrate the case studies very well and I think it is one of the best tactical articles for 8th edition Warhammer.

Cheers!

Sunday 12 October 2014

Game 41 - Dark Elves - 2012/11/07

Greetings!

In my first game I faced Simon and his Dark Elves. Little did I know what kind of caliber of a player I am facing. Only later I have found out that Simon is actually the highest ranking player in NSW and will participate in this year Masters (a tournament for the highest ranking players in Australia, participation is granted by invitation only). He was invited to join ETC team for 2013 too. He decided to have a go at a small tournament in Canberra and was one of the two players who came from Sydney to do so. However, seeing his army list and playing against vile Druchii I knew was up to a challenge anyway.

Army Lists and pre-battle considerations

After 3 tournaments with composition scores in Oz I have noticed that in general players just take the armies they like. They are either hard but players aim at massacring the opponents or the lists are softer but the players can still be very tough opponents and can count on a little extra leverage for the overall scoring. It seemed that Simon prefers to crash his enemies as suits Druchii merciless warriors and make up for lower comp score with his outstanding results from battles. At least it was the case with this army :)

Dark Elves - Army List

Dreadlord on Dark Steed, Sea Dragon Cloak, Blood Armor, Pendant of Kaleth, Crown of Command, Biting Blade
Supreme Sorceress, level 4, Sacrificial Dagger, Talisman of Preservation - Lore of Shadow
Death Hag BSB, Cauldron of Blood
Sorceress, level 2, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Fire
Assassin

30 Corsairs, extra hand weapon, Full Command, Sea Serpent Standard
25 Warriors, Full Command
10 Crossbowmen

20 Black Guard
5 Harpies
5 Harpies
5 Shades

Hydra

Saturday 11 October 2014

Game 40 - Dark Elves - 2012/10/27

Greetings!

I have mentioned that already a few times that I had an opportunity to play a rematch against GuessRange and his DE. After massive beating I received last time I was more than eager to show that it is not going to be a regular outcome of our battles!

Pre-battle considerations and Army Lists


I knew already that I am against a very capable commander and an army that has quite a nice selection of tools that huts my army in particular. I was wondering, however, if GR is going to make any significant changes in order to test new toys. This is what he brought to the field of battle this time:

Dark Elves - Army List

High Sorceress Melith, Level 4, General, Darkstar Cloak, Crystal of Midnight - Dark Magic
Master Horkrim, BSB, Heavy Armour, Great Weapon
Assassin Kalil, Extra hand weapon, Repeater handbow, Rune of Khaine
Assassin Sharik, Extra hand weapon, Repeater handbow, Rune of Khaine

20 Corsairs, Full Command, Repeater handbow
20 Corsairs, Full Command, Repeater handbow
16 Repeater Crossbowmen, Musician
8 Dark Riders, Musician, Repeater Crossbows
5 Harpies

20 Black Guard, Full Command, Banner of Murder
5 Cold One Knights, Full Command, Standard of Discipline
8 Shades, Great Weapons

3 Reaper Bolt Throwers

Friday 10 October 2014

Game 39 - Skaven - 2012/10/21

Greetings!

The first game I played over the weekend was against wardancer/eastern barbarian and his vile Skaven. However, unlike some time ago, a few of usual suspects were missing. Wardancer decided to build an army with special characters but more importantly, the one that could score a little higher than usual in the more and more famous Swedish Comp system.

Pre-battle considerations and Army lists

Skaven are one of these armies where you can have multitude of choices and still come up with a dangerous army. It was hard to anticipate what this one might have but wardancer showed his first draft early enough for me to start thinking about counters to his force. In the end he made some changes to the list he intended to use in the first place but the main idea remained the same. Here are the details:
Skaven - Army List

Queek the Headtaker
Warlord on bonebreaker, poison, halberd, pistol, Potion of Strength

Warlock level 2, condenser, Ironcurse icon - Lore of Ruin
Warlock level 1, Dispel scroll - Lore of Ruin
BSB , shield, Storm banner

30 Stormvermin (queek bodyguard), FC, shields, ratling gun, Banner of discipline
2 x 5 giant rats with packmaster
40 slaves, musician
41  slaves,musician

7 Rat ogres, 2 packmasters, master bred rat ogre, Skweel Gnawtooth
2 x 6 Gutterrunners, slings, poison

2 x Plagueclaw catapult
Warplightning cannon
Domwheel

Tuesday 7 October 2014

Game 38 - Dark Elves - 2012/10/14

Greetings!

GuessRange, a frequent visitor to the warhammerau forum, was kind enough to offer me a game with his evil Dark Elves. Yet another game on the UB due to the fact it is far easier to have one online than to travel to another city, even in the same country. :) I was very happy to play against him as he often had very interesting comment on my own battles and I knew I would face a very good opponent. And I haven't played against vile Druchii in ages so it would be an interesting match up too!

GuessRange have already finished his account of that battle so if you are interested in how it looked from the point of view of the evil ones check out his great blog (the report is very good and it is a rare occasion when you can have two from one game so if I were you I would not think twice :)): 


Pre-battle considerations and Army Lists

GR told me he didn't play much in 8th edition but I was not fooled by his "inexperience". His comments always showed great insight and very good understanding of the game so I expected tough game (in a very positive sense! :)). On top of that Dark Elves are very versatile army and despite the fact many armies tend to look the same they have many other good builds. However, GR told me he wanted to play with miniatures he has in his collection and which come mainly from 4th and 5th edition. That suggested that I might face more old school Druchii rather than some horde corsairs/crossbows, double hydras and pendant dreadlord. Not that it would made things anything different :) And to an extend I was correct as this is how his army list looked like in details:

Dark Elves - Army List

High Sorceress Melith, Level 4, General, Darkstar Cloak, Crystal of Midnight - Dark Magic
Master Horkrim, BSB, Heavy Armour, Great Weapon
Assassin Kalil, Rune of Khaine
Assassin Sharik, Rune of Khaine

19 Corsairs, Full Command, extra Hand Weapon
19 Corsairs, Full Command, extra Hand Weapon
16 Repeater Crossbowmen, Musician
8 Dark Riders, Musician, Repeater Crossbows
5 Harpies

19 Black Guard, Full Command, Banner of Hag Graef with Kouran, Crimson Death, Armour of Grief
5 Cold One Knights, Full Command, Gleaming Pennant
8 Shades, extra Hand Weapon

3 Reaper Bolt Throwers

Monday 29 September 2014

Game 37 - High Elves - 2012/10/04

Greetings!

I must admit it is a great thing to be able to play with more and more members from the forums I read. I am also aware it is only possible in XXI century with all the benefits of the internet. This time I had a pleasure to play against Elessehta of Yvresse from Ulthuan! Ele has his own unique approach to High Elves with his Yvresii theme. He is also a great story teller and I am very glad that he agreed to write a little as a prologue and epilogue for our game.

Prologue

Elessehta rested in his tent, the encounter with the Asrai had been brief, bloody, and totally unexpected. He had left the others with his troops to get some peace, he needed to meditate. After the shocking loss against a small contingent of men, and then again losing to some Eatainii sailor on a Great Eagle... how he wished his mighty Griffon could have come with them on this journey.

He needed to remember the lessons taught to him at the Armis Kormalin, he'd studied the Way of the Owl with Grand Master Thoronthol himself. Why had he deviated from it so much? Meditation would help.

He still saw the wild elves who had ridden through him and his entourage of mighty Storm Knights. He chuckled thinking that those savages had come upon them like lightning from Mathlann himself. The Paladin Ainmiru took it as a sign that they’d angered their god somehow. Ele had given them permission to return to the sea to try and contact the mighty storm god, but Ainmiru was his cousin, and wouldn’t leave him while he was injured.

His meditation was interrupted by a voice in his head,“Lord Silverbough, a message has come from Tor Yvresse. You had best come quickly”. Maethor, employing an old trick that came with his blood. Ohta’relen, Daggro, and he could all communicate telepathically, without the use of the stones. This is why they were concerned about Daggro, neither of them could reach him, this worried them.

Elessehta signalled to the horn bearer, who blew a note. The small force assembled and they moved quietly through the trees back toward the coast.
A message that Maethor didn't want to relay through the thought-speech, that sounded ominous.

Upon arriving back at camp Elessehta sought out Maethor, finding him in the command tent. He asked for the message, sat down and opened the letter. An incredulous look showed on his face as he read the flowing script on the page.
Turning to his weather mage he said"Prepare the soldiers, our Lord Eltharion will be testing us soon though a magic spell of the Arhain aspect of Qhaysh. A simulated battle against one of the great generals of the People. He wants to know how far I've come in my training in the Way of the Owl"
"My lord, who will be fighting this battle?" Maethor asked.
"Everyone except Vanyion, who will anchor the spell on this side" was the reply.
"Everyone? That's going to be a large battle, who is the General we'll be facing?" Maethor, full of questions as usual.
"A Sapherian Archmage, who many think has gone rogue. He is a brilliant general from all accounts, who likes to flood the battlefield with small units of hand picked warriors."
"We will be fighting this Mage for real in the aether?"
"No, they are using Arhain to project a likeness of him here."
Maethor laughed "We're fighting ghosts? HaHa~ This will be fun."


Army Lists and pre-battle considerations

It was a great honor that it was Eltharion himself who picked the army of outcasts and misfits to test Elessehta's generalship. He is by far my most favorite character :)

I knew that Ele uses Yvresii theme and that meant I could expect Sea Guard, Rangers, Eagle Claws and quite few characters. He was also very kind to send me his army list before the game as well as a photo of assembled army so that there is no doubt we could play the same game in real life if there was an opportunity to do so.

Yvresii High Elves - Army List

Elessehta Silverbough, Barded Elven Steed, Dragon Armour, Ogre Blade, Charmed Shield, Vambraces of Defense
Evelo Maethor of the Mists, Level 4, Jewel of the Dusk, Folariath's Robe - Lore of Heavens
Evelo Ohta'relen, Hand Weapon, Dragon Armour, Shield, Battle Standard, Reaver Bow, Mask of the Merlord
Elithmar of Ar Ninglor, Extra Hand Weapon, Longbow, Shadow Armour, Dragonbane Gem, Potion of Foolhardiness.

47 Sea Guard, Full Command, with Shields.

7x Sword Masters, Musician.
7x Sword Masters, Musician.
5x Yvressii Rangers.
5x Shore Riders
, Musician, Bows.
8x Dragon Princes, Full Command, Potion of Strength, Razor Standard

1x Eagle Claw Bolt Thrower.
1x Eagle Claw Bolt Thrower.

Friday 26 September 2014

Game 36 - Vampire Counts - 2012/09/23

Greetings!

Some time ago Gatti came up with an idea of a super fast Vampire army. I saw it in action and I must say it is a sight to behold. It would be a great challenge for me to play against it. What is more I owned Gatti a rematch and we finally met on the UB-battlefield again.

Army lists and pre-battle considerations

Gatti decided to theme his army on Blood Dragons and I am really looking forward to seeing some of his conversion ideas taking shape. Other than that it is a flying circus army that hits like tone of bricks. It also shows how varied VC armies can be.

Vampire Counts - Army List

Vampire Lord, Zombie Dragon, Heavy Armor, Shield, Red Fury, Quick Blood, The Other Trickster Shard, Dragonhelm, Talisman of Preservation, Level 1 - The Lore of the Vampires
Vampire, BSB, Hellsteed, Heavy Armor, Red Fury, Sword of Striking, Dawnstone, Enchanted Shield, Potion of Foolhardiness, Level 2 - The Lore of the Vampires
Necromancer - Dispel Scroll, Level 2 - The Lore of the Vampires

50 Zombies
50 Zombies
39 Zombies
5 Dire Wolves
5 Dire Wolves
5 Dire Wolves
5 Dire Wolves
5 Dire Wolves

4 Vargheists
, Vargoyle
4 Vargheists, Vargoyle

Terrorgheist
Terrorgheist

Monday 22 September 2014

Game 35 - Bretonnia - 2012/09/17

Greetings!

This time I had a great opportunity to play a game against Lord Anathir (ShadowMage for UB players). He mentioned long time ago that he would like to provide a proper test for my MSU army and finally we met at the battlefield. He also gave me a choice between his Dwarves or Bretonnians. Since I am at the moment still healing after the beating I got while assaulting a Dwarven castle I picked Brets. I knew roughly what his army is going to have and it was a different kind of challenge. Flying Circus! :)

Army Lists and pre-battle considerations

Bretonnia in general is tough opponent. With high armor save, ward save all around and fast troops it is hard to inflict significant damage and picking up fights is not easy either. We also played ETC rules as LA plans to attend that event next year but I thought we are using only rules for terrain and such. As it turned out, LA brought his 2400 and I had my usual 2500, which luckily for me fits the current rules pack too. I still feel embarrassed though that we didn't check that out before the game  :oops:

Brets might look like one dimensional army and it is true that they don't have that many options as other armies but I think they are still doing great despite having one of the oldest army books out there. As I have mentioned earlier, LA brought flying circus and here are the details:

Bretonnia - Army List

Lord, Pegasus, Asf sword, Hkb, Dawnstone, Dragonhelm
Lvl4, warhorse, Falconhorn, Dispel scroll - Lore of Heavens
Bsb, barded horse, questing vow, great weapon, morning star, Gromril great helm, Mantle of damsel elena
Paladin, barded steed, virtue of duty, morning star, Enchanted shield

12 Knights of the Realm, fc, Gleaming pennant
12 Knights Errants, fc, Warbanner
3 Pegasus Knights, champ
3 Pegasus Knights, champ
3 Pegasus Knights, champ
5 yeomen
2 x trebuchet
5 Grail Knights
, standard, Banner of Eternal Flame

Thursday 18 September 2014

Game 34 - Dwarves - 2012/09/09

Greetings!

After longer than expected break in gaming I had a chance for a rematch against Dwarven castle led by Targ Ironfist. I had a new plan how to storm it and I was very keen to test it. I also made an adjustment in my army list.

Army Lists and pre-battle considerations
I knew I have to do something about Organ Guns before I approached the lines of the enemy. Since he had protective banner against shooting his other troops were much better protected with combination of more wounds to inflict, armor and ward save. Despite the fact I had to roll 6's to wound I believed I had a chance to destroy them faster than 10 quarrelers. However, I didn't know how exactly his castle is going to look like this time and that is why I decided to deploy my elites in the middle first so that I could shuffle to the flank I wanted to while be able to position my shooters where I needed them the most. I also thought that this would help me to be out of range and sight of some of Dwarven missile troops so I could bear more numbers to the shooting duel. If I had some woods to offer additional protection it would be great.

The other part of the army were to maneuver carefully to be able to move all at once so that Organ Gun on the other side could not kill them all. I also wanted to use White Lions to protect Swordmasters from missile fire so I was looking for chances to deploy my elites in 2 thin lines to minimize casualties from cannons. Ok, army lists:

Dwarves - Army List

King with Shield Bearers
Runesmith, Master Rune of Balance, Rune of Spellbreaking
Battle Standard Bearer, Master Rune of Challenge

30 Warriorrs, Great Weapons, Full Command
33 Hammerers, Full Command, Master Rune of Grungni
10 Quarrelers, Shields
16 Quarrelers, Great Weapons
10 Slayers

2 x Organ Gun
Cannon, Rune of Forging, Rune of Burning
Cannon, Rune of Forging

Gyrocopter

Tuesday 16 September 2014

Game 33 - Empire - 2012/07/04

Greetings!

It seemed that we haven't played against each other for some time so when Eastern Barbarian aka wardancer told me he wants to put his highly experimental MSU Empire army to the test I was more than happy to accept the challenge!

Army List and pre-battle considerations

I haven't had many chances to play against Empire so far but the most recent game at Wintercon proved it can be a tough army. Sheer amount of 1+ armor save is already difficult to deal with while addition of a nasty artillery makes it even more troublesome. However, I know EB often picks completely different units and armies for his forces so I was curious as what he is going to test this time. It was an experimental force since he has not played with new book yet and also because he got hooked by MSU concept and all he does now is this approach.

Empire - Army List

Wizard Lord on barded Warhorse, Level 4 - Lore of Heavens
Warrior Priest on barded Warhorse
BSB on barded Warhorse
Engineer
Captain on Pegasus
Captain on Pegasus


10 Inner Circle Knights, Full Command, Steel Banner
5 Knights, Musician
5 Knights, Musician
10 Huntsmen

5 Reiksguard
, Musician
5 Outriders, Musician
5 Outriders, Musician
3 Demigryphs, Musician
Cannon
Cannon


Steamtank

Sunday 14 September 2014

Game 32 - Dwarves - 2012/07/01

Greetings!

Some time ago I was challenged by Dwarven player Targ Ironfist and we finally managed to meet on the battlefield (thanks to UB website :)). I had no idea what kind of army Targ likes to play with so I didn't make any in-depth battle plans before the game, trusting my limited experience with Dwarves should be enough. We rolled for scenario and ended up with Blood and Glory, with no modifications to the rules in the rulebook.

Army Lists and pre-battle considerations

Dwarves are always tough army to play against. The scenario rules made the situation even more difficult since capturing standards and killing characters is definitely not what Dwarves would let you get. As it turned out Targ has quite classic Dwarven force:

Dwarves - Army List

King with Shield Bearers
Runesmith, Rune of Spellbreaking
Battle Standard Bearer

30 Warriorrs, Great Weapons, Full Command
33 Hammerers, Full Command, Master Rune of Grungni
10 Quarrelers, Shields
16 Quarrelers, Great Weapons
10 Slayers

2 x Organ Gun
Cannon, Rune of Forging, Rune of Burning
Cannon, Rune of Forging

Gyrocopter

Thursday 11 September 2014

Game 31 - High Elves - 2012/06/27

Greetings!

The last game of the Wintercon was to be another civil war or "magical tactical simulation" :) as I faced Steve and his High Elves. We used Battle line scenario rules for this one.

Army List and per-battle considerations

I think I am getting used to fighting against HE. :) It is actually quite interesting because all the games I had so far (5 of them in total to be precise) were against different army lists. There were some similarities but also distinct differences which in general made particular army unique on its own. Steve had an army which had some very unusual choices (I picked pink color for Steve's army after his set of dice he bought especially for this event!):

High Elves - Army List

Prince, Great Weapon, Shield, Bow of Seafarer, Armor of Stars, Talisman of Protection
Archmage, Level 4, Guardian Phoenix, Vortex Shard - Lore of Shadow
BSB, Great Weapon, Armor of Caledor, Dawnstone
Mage, Level 2, Talisman of Endurance, Silver Wand, Ironcurse Icon - Lore of Metal

24 Lothern Sea Guard, Full Command, Banner of Eternal Flame
20 Lothern Sea Guard, Full Command

3 x 7 Swordmasters
14 Phoenix Guard
,  Full Command, Banner of Swiftness, Skeinsliver

2 x Great Eagle

Sunday 7 September 2014

Game 30 - Warriors of Chaos - 2012/06/25

Greetings!

Battle 7 was played with the use of modified Watchtower scenario where whoever controlled the the tower by the end of the game received extra 500VP. Other rules applied as normal. This time I had a great pleasure to play against Chris and his Khorne Warriors!

Army List and pre-battle considerations

Watchtower scenario can be tough one but thanks to the modification it was actually an interesting one. 500VP is a nice bonus but do not make you win by very large margin just by keeping the garrison in the tower. On the other hand if you ignore the enemy unit defending it then you can still have a chance to win the game regardless.

Chaos Warriors are always a tough army to play against, no matter what is the list. Tough units, well armored units, cheap units, hard hitting too. My previous experience from CanCon was definitely helpful but then I lost twice against them. Can it be the time for a rematch?

Khorne Warriors - Army List

With apologies to Chris for any inconsistencies and missed magic items .

Chaos Lord, Barded Chaos Steed, Chaos Armor, Shield, Mark of Khorne, Talisman of Preservation
Battle Standard Bearer, Mark of Khorne
Sorcerer, level 2, Infernal Puppet - Lore of Tzeentch
Sorcerer, level 2, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Tzeentch

15 Chaos Warriors, Halberds, Shields, Full Command, Mark of Khorne
15 Chaos Warriors, Halberds, Shields, Full Command, Mark of Tzeentch, Banner of Rage

18 Chosen, Halberds, Mark of Khorne, Full Command
4 Chaos Ogres, Chaos Armor, Great Weapons, Mark of Khorne
5 Chaos Knights, Banner, Mark of Khorne

Warshrine

Friday 5 September 2014

Game 29 - Ogre Kingdoms - 2012/06/23

Greetings!

Game 3 of the Day 2 of Wintercon was to be played with modified Blood and Glory scenario. The modification awarded extra 550VP for the player who broke his enemy but the game was to last full 6 turns if possible anyway. This time I had a pleasure to play Garry and his unique army of Ogre Kingdoms.

Army List and pre-battle considerations

Ogre Kingdoms are considered one of the best armies among 8th edition army books. Very tough and with infamous gutstars and ironblasters they are definitely a force to respect. My last game against OK was a disaster and I lost badly at CanCon 2012 also in a blood and glory scenario.This time I had one standard more, also for this occasion but I was glad a I have a chance for some kind of a rematch. When I saw Garry's army I initially thought it is a similar force to any other, with a horde of Ogres and 2 units of Mournfangs. I was, however, wrong!

Ogre Kingdoms - Army List

Slaughter Master, level 4, Talisman of Preservation - Lore of Beast
Battle Standard Bearer
Butcher, level 2, Dispel Scroll - Gut Lore

3 x 9 Ogres, Full Commands
2 x Sabertusk
3 x 2 Mournfangs
, Musicians
6 Maneaters, Stubborn, Swiftstride, Full Command

Tuesday 2 September 2014

Game 28 - Dwarves - 2012/06/21

Greetings!

The fifth battle was to be Battle for the Pass and I was about to face the army which is probably one of the best suited for that scenario ... Dwarves :) However, to make things more interesting tournament organizers decided that there will be 3 markers going across the middle of the pass. Each marker was worth 500VP if there was a unit with a banner in 6" away from it. On the other hand, the objective could be contested by any other unit of the enemy also in 6" from it. A very interesting twist if you ask me.

Army List and pre-battle considerations

My opponent, James, was very curious about playing High Elves. He also had an interesting and quite compact force of tough and relentless warriors. Despite the fact that Dwarves are also a very difficult opponent for my army I was looking forward to playing that game as two forces with completely (if not opposite) approaches to warfare were about to clash.

When my army relies on speed and maneuver, James's force is at its best forming shieldwall and obliterating enemy with his insanely accurate war machines. Yet another episode from War of the Beard :)

Dwarves - Army List

I hope that James is going to read this battle report and correct all the details about the runes as I don't remember all of them 

Dwarf King with Shieldbearers
Runelord with Anvil of Doom, Rune of Spellbreaking
BSB
Engineer


3 x 25 Warriors, Great Weapons, Full Command
28 Hammerers, Full Command, Master Rune of Grungni

Grudge Thrower, Rune of Accuracy, Rune of Penetrating x2
Grudge Thrower, Rune of Accuracy, Rune of Penetrating
Cannon, Rune of Burning, Rune of Forging

Thursday 28 August 2014

Game 27 - Empire - 2012/06/19

Greetings!

Day 2 started with another Battle Line and this time I was to face Rowan and his heavily armored Empire. Little I knew about the fact that Rowan is actually famous JPM among Australian warhammer players and is very high ranking one too! His most recent success prior Wintercon was to win a tournament with a MSU Tomb King army. I was very happy when I found that I am going to play against such a successful and skilled player as I was sure I was about to learn a valuable lesson. I would also like to add that Rowan's army looked absolutely fantastic!

Army list and re-battle considerations


I haven't had many opportunities to play against Empire in 8th edition so far. Two games I had were quite traumatic experiences too. Now they have new army book and people are still learning how to play with and against it. It is also hard to anticipate what exactly Empire army is going to contain as different builds seem to viable at the moment. Rowan decided to bring the following list which is his army-in-progress as he told me. He plans to paint more infantry and his artillery is going to be stronger for the upcoming ETC he is going to take part in.

Empire - Army List

Grandmaster, Runefang, Potion of Foolhardiness, Charmed Shield
BSB on Barded Warhorse, Dawnstone, The Other Trickster Shard
Warrior Priest on Barded Warhorse, Crown of Command, Enchanted Shield
Wizard Lord, Level 4, Dispel Scroll - Lore of Heavens
2 x Engineer with Pigeon Bombs

12 Inner Circle Knights, Full Command, Steel Standard
5 Knights
10 Crossbowmen
10 Huntsmen

2 x 3 Demigryphs
, Standards, Musicians
Cannon

Hellblaster Volleygun
Steamtank

Wednesday 27 August 2014

Game 26 - Tomb Kings - 2012/06/16

Greetings!

Battle 3 and Meeting Engagement against Dale and his Tomb Kings. No changes to the rulebook scenario yet.

Army List and pre-battle considerations

 Tomb Kings do not have any army list to rule them all so in theory I could expect anything. Dale decided to bring the following:

Tomb Kings - Army List

Prince on Foot
BSB, Helm of Discord
Rhamotep - special character necrotect
High Lich Priest, Neffera's Scroll, Talisman of Preservation - Lore of Nehekhara

40 Skeleton Warriors, Full Command
25 Skeleton Warriors, Full Command
28 Skeleton Bowmen, Full Command (?)

28 Tomb Guard, Full Command

4 Chariots
Warsphinx
Hierotitan

Screaming Skull Catapult
Screaming Skull Catapult
Casket of Souls