Wargames @ farfaraway.org » Khador

Strakhov (incl. Gun Carriage) vs Scaverous (50pts)

Owen — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:30:22 +0000

If there was one word to describe tonight’s game it would be ‘attrition’! When the dust settled there was very little left standing on either side. Anthony used a pretty competitive Scaverous list that included a Skarlock, Malice, two Ripjaws, two Warwitch Sirens, two Pistol Wraiths, a min unit of Bile Thralls, a full unit (plus UA) of Bane Thralls and Crowe’s Cutthroats.

I wanted to filed my newly painted Gun Carriage, so it was the first model I added to my list. I’ve been having great fun with Strakov recently, so he was definitely the ‘caster I wanted to field. I rarely use him without Beast-09 and a Devastator. Sylys Wyshnalyrr is a model I’ve wanted to use as I think he is potentially great for Khadoran ‘casters, so I added him to the list (spolier alert – he was great!). The rest of the list revolved around ranged support (Widowmakers and Marksman) and some melee punch (Great Bears, IFP and Shocktroopers). Reinholdt was added as I had a point to spare. Here’s a full rundown of my list -

Warmachine

Khador

1/1

50/50

Kommander Strakhov (*6pts)
* Beast-09 (11pts)
* Devastator (9pts)
* Sylys Wyshnalyrr, the Seeker (2pts)
Gun Carriage (9pts)
Battle Mechaniks (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Great Bears of Gallowswood (5pts)
Iron Fang Pikemen (Leader and 5 Grunts) (5pts)
Man-o-war Shocktroopers (Leader and 2 Grunts) (6pts)
Widowmakers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (4pts)
Reinholdt, Gobber Speculator (proxied by Oridic Pistolier)(1pts)
Widowmaker Marksman (2pts)

We played the Incursion scenario (three flags; one randomly disappears at the end of second round; first player to three control points wins) from the SR2012 Beta, though it hasn’t changed much from its previous incarnation.

Anthony had the first turn and pushed up aggressively. Scaverous moved up through a wood with a Skarlock and Malice close by. In the centre the Banes moved up quickly with the Biles behind them. On the right Crowe’s moved up. On each flank a contingent of Warwitch Siren, Ripjaw and Pistolwraith moved forward.

In response I pushed my whole force up. Strakhov put Sentry onto the Gun Carriage and Superiority onto Beast-09. The battle engine pushed trampled forward and took out of range shots towards Crowe’s and the Banes. I killed one Cutthroat. Beast-09 and the IFP moved up my left flank (opposite Scaverous) and the Great Bears moved up the right (opposite Crowe’s). The Devastator trundled forward and the Widowmakers camped out in a wood.

Anthony attempted destroy Beast-09 through Telekensis-ing Malice and Beast-09 and then dragging Beast into contact with it. The plan was to serve Beast up to the Banes. Bad dice foiled the plan, dooming Malice on my next turn. On the right Crowe’s Cutthroats were ineffective against the Great Bears (a theme that would mostly continue). My Gun Carriage moved up to contest a flag in the centre, killing a Bane and blasting Biles apart while Beast-09 decimated Malice. The Shocktroopers and IFP beat up the Ripjaw on the left while the Great Bears went to town on Crowe’s. I managed to pick up a control point in the centre.

In response the Banes tore Beast-09 apart and a single Bile Thrall managed to purge, killing two IFP, three Mechaniks and my Reinholdt proxy. At this stage the attrition was starting to mount! With a bit of effort I managed to clear enough Banes to score another control point in the middle. This involved effectively sacrificing the Devastator. Scaverous had moved forward and tore it apart while the Banes took the Gun Carriage down. On the final Great Bear died to a Ripjaw, scoring Anthony a control point.

Strakhov has a fun spell, Battering Ram, but I rarely getto cast it. As Anthony only had one model contesting each of the two control points I had an opportunity to score on either. I used Strakhov to push the Ripjaw 3″ back (on my second attempt after rolling three 1′s). The Widowmakers then ran in for the scenario win.

[Show as slideshow]

Closing Thoughts
The Gun Carriage performed very well. It takes a bit of getting used to as the trampling and charging are the best ways to get it moving. This requires giving it a little space. The rough terrain areas left by the cannons are pretty useful, but the best element of the Gun Carriage is how formidable it is. A few Widowmaker shots can clear out an area for the Gun Carriage to trample to, thus making it a pretty scary spectre. I look forward to fielding it again.

Until next time,

Owen

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Converted Khador Gun Carriage (Video)

Owen — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 08:30:57 +0000

This became a bit of a labour of love. I’m really happy with how it turned out, but boy am I glad it’s finished!

Until next time,

Owen

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Khador Gun Carriage: Complete

Owen — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 22:43:49 +0000

This has been on my painting table for weeks. I’m really pleased with how it turned out. The simple story behind the conversion is that an artillery shell landed in front of the carriage, tearing a wheel off, blasting one horse apart and smashing the other into the crater. The crew filled sandbags and created a small defensive position.

Here are some more shots.

I’ll do a video on how I painted it in the next week or so.

Owen

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Wargames Audit: Warmachine and Hordes

Owen — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 09:22:14 +0000

Audit. A word that strikes fear into managers everywhere. If you’re in a business area that doesn’t get audited I envy you! That said taking stock of any activity can be a healthy exercise, so in this series of posts I’m going to reflect on what games I play and how I’ve fared with them in the last year. I’ll also talk about my (tentative) plans for the coming year. Up first it’s Warmachine and Hordes…

Warmachine and Hordes

In the last year the majority of the games I’ve played have been of Warmachine and Hordes, and I definitely consider it to be my main game. I currently have Khador, Mercenaries (mostly Privateers), Cryx and Legion of Everblight factions. Here’s an overview of my collection of models -

Oh yeah, I have a proxied Circle Orboros force too! As you can see I pretty much have everything painted that I own. In the last year the Mercenaries have seen quite a lot added to them, as have Legion. To Khador and Cryx I’ve added the odd model here and there.

In terms of play time Khador and Legion are still my primary factions and I think that will continue, though the Mercenaries are getting a decent amount of play. I’ve done well in competitive play this year with all three of those factions, so I think my standard of play is pretty good. I’ve also played a lot of campaign games, both physically and over VASSAL. I’m really enjoying Warmachine and Hordes and that is set to continue.

In the coming year I’d like to do a couple of things from a painting and modelling perspective – add the Gun Carriage and some more infantry to Khador is one of my main priorities. For the Gun Carriage I’d love to create a diorama base. I have some ideas – more on that in the next month or so! Legion is ticking over quite well. I see myself adding just a few bits to Legion when Domination comes out, maybe Kallus’ character beast and the Legionnaire’s UA. I’d also like to add some models to Cryx to do Skarre’s new theme force from a recent No Quarter. I don’t plan on expanding the Mercenaries this year, though I can seem myself adding a Freebooter warjack to complete the Pirate ‘jacks!

From a gaming perspective I’d like to increase my Press Ganger activity – family life has been pretty hectic with Ciarán’s birth this year, but I’ll hopefully have more time in the coming year. I plan to run the Journeyman Slow Grow League this side of Christmas as well as running a couple of tournaments. I’m going to keep up the campaign play as it’s just silly fun! I’ll probably expand the ANNIHILATION system next year, though I’m not sure what direction to take it in yet. One other thing I’d like to do is to reflect on how much MkII game time my Warcasters and Warlocks have seen. I definitely have my favourites, but I need to consciously try to use my less competitive models.

Next up in the audit: Malifaux!

Owen

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Power-sliding Alpha Strikes!

Owen — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 16:00:14 +0000

I always enjoy bringing Karchev out to play. He’s a fun warcaster with an aggressive play style. Last night Gerry and I played a 35pt game that pitted Absylonia and the man in the machine against each other. We played the Command and Control scenario, but once I clogged the control zone with ‘jacks it became clear that the scenario would have little bearing… Here’s an overview of our game.

On turn one I predictably cast Tow after allocating a focus to each ‘jack (Beast-09, Devastator and Juggernaut). Karchev charged a random target in the distance moving 9″. Obviously you can’t Power-slide with this, but it nets you a few extra inches movement. The ‘jacks then all run from behind Karchev, leaving a gap for him to run through on the next turn.

Gerry moved everything up and it looked like everything was safe enough. One Power-slide later and a focus loaded Beast-09 was charging into the Scythean. I was conscious of focusing effort of killing beasts outright as Absylonia’s feat can be painful if she just repairs one badly damaged heavy. Beast-09 did what was expected with a focus to spare. I used his Murderous imprint just to use up that point of focus – there were Forsaken nearby! My Juggernaut ran into base contact with the Angelius.

On his turn Gerry did a ton of damage on the Juggernaut, taking out its movement, but nothing else. The Striders peppered things with shots, but the heavy armour left few viable targets for them. The Raek leapt into Headlock the Devastator. I responded by loading the Juggernaut with focus, dropping Row and then casting Unearthly Rage on my activation. Karchev then squished the Raek and the Juggnaut went to town on a Forsaken and the Angelius. Forced Evolution meant I needed 10s, but as they were boosted from Rage I manage to hit a few times, taking the beast to within 3 points of dying. I had nothing else that could get near it. Beast-09 couldn’t charge as Gerry had dropped Blight Field over him. He smashed a couple of Striders and a Forsaken in lieu of something better to do.

Gerry needed to feat this turn in order to bring the Angelius back up to health. His back was against the wall. He contemplated charging the Angelius over the Juggernaut into Karchev and risking the free strike, but he opted to take down the Juggernaut instead. The Striders took out some opertune targets, but their effectiveness was hampered by engaging enemy. A Blight Field again prevented Beast-09 and the Devastator from getting focus.

On my final turn I kept all of the focus for Karchev (he had no ‘jack that he could allocate to) and again cast Unearthly Rage. He feated and charged the Angelius, smashing it to pieces. Beast-09 changed facing (thanks to the feat), charged for free (thanks again to the feat) and hit Absylonia with a boosted hit (Unearthly Rage) and one shotted the Legion Warlock.

I love Karchev – so much fun.

Owen

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Kommander Harkevich (Video)

Owen — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 21:53:37 +0000

After playing a few games with Harkevich I almost lost the motivation to finish painting him. He looks so promising on paper, but he’s a ‘caster that tries to do too much. I’m not done with him, but I need think about how I’m going to use him… I might write a narrative campaign with him versus Resnik at Riversmet (nice a fluffy!)

Owen

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Steamroller Tournament Report (24th July 2011)

Owen — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:00:57 +0000

Last weekend Stu organised a 35pt Steamroller tournament in Gamers World (Dublin). It was well attended with 16 players and a good spread of factions. Below is the defining moment of the tournament for me. It was in the final game, Tomek’s beautiful pGaspy army clashed with my Strakhov led force and both armies were whittled down with a lot of aggressive play. I saw the chance for the assassination run, so I used Aiyana’s Lurynsar’s Touch on Asphyxious, tried to drop a Black Oil grenade on him from Gorman (which missed) and then went for it with a fully loaded Strakhov. I connected with the charge (after boosting the hit), then hit again, and again and finally missing a last boosted attack (I needed 8). After all of that Asphyxious was left on 1 point of damage. We called the game there. Later that night I remembered Strakhov has Brutal Charge (+2 Damage on charge attack) – oh well, I should know my own model’s rules. It was a fun and tight game regardless.

Game 1 – Retribution (Christoph)

This game was a big loss for me. It was the Revelation scenario and I kept my force slightly right, but the rightmost flag disappeared. I caused a lot of damage to Christoph’s Rahn led force, but I completely failed to challenge for the scenario. He nearly assassinated me too! It was a good game, but I didn’t play well.

Game 2 – Legion of Everblight (Stu/Bye)

I played the TO as this was a bye round for me. I used Karchev as Stu had a Tier 4 Absylonia list. It was a fun game, but the super Angelius was nigh unstoppable. It assassinated Karchev after dancing around my army. The game was great fun and was everything Warmachine and Hordes should be – big machines clashing with large beasts. Stu’s heading over to Gencon so he’s offered to do some ninja shopping for me – woot!

Game 3 – Trollbloods (Jason)

This game was a good example for why you should play scenarios when practicing. It was the Sacrifice scenario, but to date Jason had only been playing ‘caster kills. I went full tilt for the scenario as I had a Devastator who could be ‘sacrificed’ – you got to love ARM 25! Gunnbjorn (proxied) and his ranged-centric list never really got into the game as Occultation on Strakhov spoiled their fun. I won on scenario.

Game 4 – Cryx (Tomek)

Between the bye and the win I was right back in the hunt for a place, but as you can see from above things didn’t go to plan. Tomek won the game and claimed 2nd place.

It was another fun day. I’m glad I didn’t bring Harkevich. I need more practice to figure out what army (if any) works best with him.

Owen

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Harkevich, what is he good for?

Owen — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 19:30:22 +0000

I’ve been testing Harkevich recently and so far I’m not impressed. I’m trying him out for a tournament that’s coming up on Sunday, but I’ve yet to figure out what he’s good at. Part of his feat and the Broadside spell are obviously intended for ranged ‘jacks, but therein lines the problem. The Khadoran ‘jacks can’t hit the broadside (haha!) of a barn on RAT 4 and POW 7 blasts are going to kill very little. Black Ivan is tailor-made for Harkevich as boosted attack rolls are necessary.

Tonight I tried him with some melee ‘jacks – Beast-09 and a Juggernaut. Escort (and its +2″ movement) is great on them. Fortune is quite nice too. The second half of Harkevich’s feat (free charge/slam and +3 ARM) is quite useful too

In the game tonight against a Tier 3 Bethayne army I used his feat defensively to get up in the face of Joe’s Hex Hunters and managed to engage a good chunk of his army. It was at that point that I realised the power of Bethayne’s feat. The Hex Hunters’ boosted magic attack and damage rolls decimated my Iron Fang Pikemen and the pair of Hellions took out my Great Bears, Aiyana, Holt and a Koldun Lord. Ouch! And that was Joe being nice. He could have easily taken down Harkevich that turn. I killed a few things in retaliation, but the writing was on the wall. One arced spell later and Harkevich was toast.

To be fair thst was a tough matchup, but I’m still trying to figure out what he’s good at….

Owen

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Owen — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:05:18 +0000

Last night myself and Anthony played the SR2011 Sacrifice scenario in preparation for a tournament at the weekend. Here’s the video -

Owen

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Karchev vs Epic Kreoss (25pt Battle Report; VASSAL; Video)

Owen — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 19:38:37 +0000

Here’s another video VASSAL battle report, this time featuring eKreoss and Karchev. Here’s the video -

Enjoy!

Owen

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Kommander Orsus Zoktavir

Owen — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 11:30:55 +0000

I’ve always been a fan of pButcher, but have yet to try his epic version. I painted this model up a while ago, but didn’t get around to taking decent photos until recently.

I procrastinated a long time before painting this model, but I’m not sure why. He’s easy to paint and even the base wasn’t too hard to do. Maybe it’s because I’m not the biggest fan of the sculpt. It definitely exudes character, but I think the feet look awkward.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to playing him. I have no idea how to do that, but I’m looking forward it!

Owen

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Menite Incursions: Outpost Attack

Owen — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 20:22:24 +0000

This is a quick overview of a game Phil and I played (on VASSAL) using the Apprentice Warcasters that I mentioned previously. The idea behind these guys is that we wanted a commander for small forces where it didn’t make sense for a full blown Warcaster to be in control. Khador have some options in their ‘jack marshals, but the Protectorate don’t really. In this game there was one win condition – seize the objective on the road in the Khadoran Outpost. Note, ‘caster kill is not a win condition.

My force consisted of a Kovnik Warcaster, a Juggernaut, 6 Winterguard, 4 Widowmakers and a Marksman. They were deployed around the outpost. Phil’s force was led by a Chosen of Menoth and was made up of a Devout, 6 Deliverers, 6 Exemplar Errants and an Exemplar Errant Seneschal. His army was approaching from the south.

Not an in depth battle report, but a quick overview to mention how the Apprentice Warcasters performed. This is just one game, so it’s hardly what you might consider playtesting!

The Widowmakers pinged some Deliverers on the left, but a couple of lucky deviations from them caused two snipers to fall and the unit to fall back towards the outpost. On the right the Exemplars and Winterguard exchanged fire to little effect. The Winterguard survived quite well thanks to Iron Flesh. The Juggernaut moved up the centre while the Chosen and Devout moved to the left of the Errants.

Phil made a mistake placing his Chosen behind his ‘jack. A slam from the Juggernaut placed both of them on their asses, a follow-up shot from the Marksman finished the Chosen. The Widowmakers and Errants exchanged fire while it was my turn to make a mistake. Recognising that the Kovnik Warcaster’s control range is terribly short I decided to move him closer to the Juggernaut. I should have kept him back and let the Juggernaut move (slowly) back to him. Instead he became a pin cushion for the Errants. He could have done with Iron Flesh!

The game came down to whose infantry could get the job done. In the end my guys came out on top.

So, not really enough to say how the Apprentice Warcasters performed. They are super squishy, but can get a ‘jack to where it needs to be and do what it needs to do. They can buff a unit, but with so little focus to go around they are always struggling to do all you’d want them to. I’m not sure how they’d perform alongside a real Warcaster. The could stay backfield after putting the buffing spell in play. They could also feed focus to a ranged ‘jack which would keep them relatively safe.

For now we’ll just use them as commanders of small forces for campaigns. In the meantime m remaining infantry are speeding back to the garrison to warn them that the Menites are on their way.

Owen

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Apprentice Warcasters for Khador and the Protectorate of Menoth

Owen — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 12:00:15 +0000

Phil and I are about to kick off another ANNIHILATION campaign on VASSAL and we thought it’d be a bit of fun to have a couple of small games as a prelude to the campaign. We didn’t really want any warcasters involved as such powerful characters can overwhelm a small military action. We decided we’d try out ‘Journeyman’ warcasters for Khador and the Protectorate of Menoth to lead our respective forces. In order to keep things simple we kept the basic stats, rules and cost of the Cygnar Journeyman Warcaster (P.121 of Prime MkII) as our basis, but decided to replace the spells.

Kovnik Warcaster
The Khadoran military is a rigid and disciplined organisation where men and women of the Empire fight side-by-side with brutal Warjacks. The stresses of battle can lead to the manifestation of arcane ability. This is a frightening experience as the soldier temporarily takes control of a marshalled ‘jack or finds energy shooting from their fingertips. The Khadoran command is quick to identify such individuals and place them in the care of the Greylords Covenant for their initial training.

The Khadorans do not believe in wasting resources on those unworthy, so trainee warcasters often find themselves on the frontline in command of an obsolete or barely functioning ‘jack early in their training. If they survive their arcane and military training continues.

Spell	Cost	RNG	AOE	POW	UP	OFF	Description
Iron Flesh	2	6	-	-	Yes	No	Target friendly warrior model/unit gains +3 DEF but suffers –1 SPD.
Razor Wind	2	10	-	11	No	Yes	A blade of wind slices through the target model.

Chosen of Menoth
Despite its small population the Protectorate of Menoth has a surprisingly large number of skilled warcasters. This is due to several reasons – meditative prayer often unlocks latent talents, a large proportion of the populace serves in the military at some stage (thus bringing them into proximity of Warjacks) and an ever vigilant priesthood keeping a watchful eye for any signs of arcane power.

Those to whom Menoth has given this gift are immediately separated from their former lives and placed into a strict regime of martial and spiritual training. Only the strongest of these worthy are chosen to command the valuable Warjacks. If they survive the perils of combat it is a sign that the Creator has marked them for a destiny of distinction.

Spell	Cost	RNG	AOE	POW	UP	OFF	Description
Defender’s Ward	2	6	-	-	Yes	No	Target friendly Faction model/unit gains +2 DEF and ARM.
Immolation	2	8	-	12	No	Yes	Immolation causes fire damage. On a critical hit, the model hit suffers the Fire continuous effect.

Basically, that’s one offensive and one defensive spell each – the same as the Cygnar version. We went with spells that are represented in the respective factions.

Let me know what you think.

Owen

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Menite Incursions: Battle for Orosk – Campaign Report

Owen — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 12:44:51 +0000

This is the second campaign in the Menite Incursions arc. The first ended in stalemate as both sides etched out two wins a piece. For this second campaign we continued the story of the Menite forces attempting to make their way north through eastern Khador and move towards the Legion-held Scourge Bringer weapon. I’ve been slow writing up the campaigns I’ve been playing this year, but thankfully Phil has come to the rescue and written them up on his blog – Subject to Stupidity. I’ve cheekily copied the fluff Phil wrote below. Follow the links to the full battle reports.

Game 1 – Chance Encounter at Orosk

The blizzard had finally abated. The frozen hills were no place to be stuck in the middle of a snow storm. The first snows of the season had taken the Menites by suprise and they were ill prepared for the turn in the weather. Their supplies were far behind them and the rough terrain meant it would be evening before they would catch up. In their haste to get to Orosk the Harbinger had left Reznik and half their forces with the baggage train. She regretted that now as she shivered on the ridge overlooking the village. She had paused here to survey the apparently deserted hovel. All seemed quiet, indeed not a single peasant could be spotted in the area. No fires seemed to burn in the hearths of the homes here. The only life visible were the crows congregated on the buildings and trees. Ranging ahead of the main forces the Avatar of Menoth stopped. The lone Idrian scout the Harbinger had brought north from Lael could now be seen running from the trees to the east of the village. He was waving and even from this distance it was obvious that something was wrong. Suddenly two plumes of smoke rose from the centre of the village. From behind one of the houses a Juggernaut moved. The huge Warjacks frame shuddered with the movement. Ice could be seen breaking off the oddly grey coloured hulk in huge chunks. So the village wasn’t as empty as they had hoped.

Game 1 Battle Report

Game 2 – Noon at Orosk

The Temple Guard had pulled back and formed up in a defensive line along the ridge overlooking the hovels that made up Orosk. A makeshift barricade had been erected from the fallen trunks of two trees, pulled into place by Crusaders. Small fires had been set up behind this in an attempt to keep the troops warm. The Harbinger suspected the Temple Guard had used some of Menoth’s sacred fire but she forgave the insult. At this point staying warm was too important. The khadorans had also pulled back towards the centre of the village. With no wall surrounding the place it would be hard to defend, thought the Harbinger. A simple flanking move while engaging them lightly elsewhere should sweep them aside. The snow had picked up again and covered the tracks and remnants from the battle. Here and there some blood could still be seen, colouring the snow a disturbing pink. The Avatar had been salvaged but without the Mekaniks who were accompanying the baggage train nothing could be done to prepare it for battle. One of its legs was badly damaged as were the actuators in its shoulders. It would be days before it could be returned to action. The Idrian Scout had been sent to meet Reznik and to order him to speed up and come upon the village from the west. Her zealots had formed a screen in front of the lines ready to disrupt any response from the village. Now she just needed that damned Reznik to get here before the khadorans came at her again.

Game 2 Battle Report

Game 3 – Slaughter at Orosk

Smoke rose from the centre of the village. Something was burning but the Harbinger coudn’t make out what. The snow swirling around had reduced visibility to the point that seeing the smoke was almost impossible. Reznik should still be circling around Orosk she thought. The smoke told her otherwise. It looked like the situation was turning, Reznik had gone in alone and now was paying the price for his impetuousness. Quickly she assembled a paltry force from what she had. The Avatar was still being repaired so he was no use, the damage from the morning had been far more extensive than initially thought. All that was left in terms of Warjacks were an old Crusader, a Revenger and a Guardian. The Crusader was a sad reflection of its former glory but the old battlehorse wasn’t ready to be scrapped just yet. He had accompanied her from Sul if she remembered correctly. Back then the ‘jack was fresh from the Vassal Mekaniks assembly plant. In terms of infantry should couldn’t justify bringing everyone. The Templeguard would be used to hold the line on the ridge so that they could make an effective retreat if needed. The zealots wouldn’t be much use in defense so she called to their leader to assemble. If only the Errants had arrived she could storm the village and wipe out the defenders. Now she needed to be cautious and tentatively test the defences in the hope she could get to Reznik in time. With the ever ready zealots and her bodyguard of Paladins she descended from the ridge to discover exactly what was transpiring in Orosk.

Game 3 Battle Report

Enjoy!

Owen

Menite Incursions – Game 1 (VASSAL Battle Report) Recently Phil and I have been getting our game on...
Menite Incursions – Game 2 (VASSAL Game Overview) In Game 1 I managed to get a win against...
Menite Incursions: Outpost Attack This is a quick overview of a game Phil and...

Menite Incursions – Game 2 (VASSAL Game Overview)

Owen — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 17:02:49 +0000

In Game 1 I managed to get a win against Feora, but Game 2 wasn’t to go my way!

Game 2 Overview

Scenario: Killing Field (from Prime MkII)

I really missed the ranged elements of my army in this game. I barely dented Phil’s force and ultimately it was the Sunburst of all things that finished me off! In the last game my Marksman took out the Sunburst by himself, but I had no such option in this game.

Severius (and Phil!) proved too much for the Butcher’s slow moving army. I wasn’t aggressive enough – I should have moved up faster. I didn’t. As it was I was blasted with spells and then the Sunburst – that’s about the sum of it. That said I did manage to take out the Templar, so at least that’s something!

From a campaign perspective it’s all square with a game a piece, but Khador is ahead in the attrition game.

Owen

Menite Incursions – Game 1 (VASSAL Battle Report) Recently Phil and I have been getting our game on...
Menite Incursions: Outpost Attack This is a quick overview of a game Phil and...
Menite Incursions: Battle for Orosk – Campaign Report This is the second campaign in the Menite Incursions arc....

Menite Incursions – Game 1 (VASSAL Battle Report)

Owen — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 11:51:54 +0000

Recently Phil and I have been getting our game on in VASSAL. We decided to play out a 4 x 25pt game variant of the ANNIHILATION rules. Phil brought his beloved Protectorate of Menoth and I decided to bring my Khadorans out to play. Over the course of the four games we had some great fun – VASSAL plus Skype is a natural combination and it feels almost like the real thing, well 75% of the tabletop experience anyway. Given that Phil and I live over 1000km apart I think that’s pretty good. Anyway, here’s a brief report on the first game (click to open larger images on Flickr).

Campaign Overview

The Menite Incursions campaign is set in eastern Khador with forces from the Northern Crusade moving from Llael into Khadoran territory. The battles in this campaign take place near Fort Bruzig. The Khador forces are jus protecting their lands, but the Menites have are attempting to move north to retrieve and destroy the Scourge Bringer pieces. This campaign is part of the Orgoth Legacy campaign.

Game 1

Scenario: Killing Field (from Prime MkII)

	Deployment Armies: Phil’s army comprised Feora, 2 Repenters, a Revenger, a max unit of TFG with UA, a min Choir, a Sunburst, 2 Vassal Mechanics and three Wracks. My army had the Butcher, a Juggernaut, a max unit of IFP with UA, a max unit of Shocktroopers, a Marksman, a Manhunter and the Wardog. You can see the deployment in this image.
Round 1 Not a lot to report in the first couple of turns. Both sides moved up rapidly, while keeping an eye on the scenario points.
	Round 2 Things hotted up this round. The Menites blasted several Iron Fangs apart at range and Feora put a wall of fire to prevent the rest charging. On the left the Manhunter charged the Flameguard to stall them, but he was a fraction out of range. The Marksman grabbed the scenario point on the right and picked off one of the Sunburst crew. The Butcher moved back into the middle of his force and camped focus again.
Round 3 There was a lot of melee in this turn, but it started with Feora arcing spells at the Iron Fangs killing several, but there were still enough to scrap the offending Revenger and deal some damage to the Repenter. One of Feora’s walls of fire prevented the Shocktroopers from doing much. The Temple Flameguard dispatched the Manhunter and the Juggernaut remained on the left to stop them sweeping in from that flank. The Marksman picked off another Sunburst crewman and snagged another control point.
	Round 4 I hate Feora’s feat and it hit this round. It finished off the rest of the Iron Fangs, but at least I took out the Repenter that foolishly charged the Butcher. The Shocktroopers took a small amount of fire damage and moved to block the Flameguard on the and the approaching Feora in the middle. On the right flank the other Repenter moved to engage the Marksman, but failed to hit him. The Marksman survived the free strike to move out of the wood and shoot the Sunburst.
Round 5 This was the final round – it saw the Repenter on the right finally blast the Marksman. Feora mistakenly charged the Shocktroopers, killing one. Realising the error Phil ran the Choir to engage the Butcher, but he laughed off the freestrikes as he charged into Feora. I boosted his attack roll, ut somehow managed to miss! The followup attacks were more than enough to strike down the Priestess of the Flame.

As this was part of an ANNIHILATION campaign every lost model hurts. I was down all of my IFP, most of my Shocktroopers, a Marksman and a Manhunter – Ouch! Phil was down a couple of ‘jacks and a few minor bits an pieces. So, we ended with a win to Khador, but at what cost?

Owen

Menite Incursions – Game 2 (VASSAL Game Overview) In Game 1 I managed to get a win against...
Menite Incursions: Battle for Orosk – Campaign Report This is the second campaign in the Menite Incursions arc....
Menite Incursions: Outpost Attack This is a quick overview of a game Phil and...

The Orgoth Legacy – Campaign Progress

Owen — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 18:00:42 +0000

This year is turning into the year of the campaign! I decided that I wanted to rebalance my painting and playing as I was finding I had many miniatures painted that had seen very little tabletop time. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy painting in its own right, but upon reflection I didn’t think I was getting as much value out of my painted miniatures as I could be. Having grown a little jaded with competitive play after playing on the Warhammer Fantasy scene for years I didn’t want the same thing to happen with Warmachine/Hordes. Enter The Orgoth Legacy, a narrative campaign arc to carry my Warmachine gaming for (at least the early part of) this year.

The Orgoth Legacy Overview

It all began with an opportunistic campaign that I played with Clay and Dan in Orlando late last year called Scourge Bringer. The idea of the narrative campaign is simple – every campaign, a sequence of at least a few games would carry the story forward a little. Scourge Bringer began it all with a mad scramble between three powerful warlocks/warcasters for pieces of a powerful Orgoth Weapon, the Scourge Bringer. Thagrosh and the Legion of Everblight won out after three hard fought games and won this dubious prize. Dubious for it is a weapon, that once assembled, has the power to slay a dragon. As Everblight is still gathering strength he ordered his minions to keep the weapon pieces separate and keep them safe.

To that end Vayl spawned three unique beasts in the Shard Spires (Northern Khador) and installed a weapon piece in each. These bestial vessels were continuous eroded by the weapon, but were designed to regenerate rapidly. For additional security each beast was frozen in the core of a glacier, but before the final beast named Vylodectes could be entombed the Legion were set upon by the audacious Cryx. Enter the Frozen North campaign, a part of the Cryxian Ambition arc. The forces of Cryx clashed with the spawned beasts initially resulting in a vicious stalemate. However, the Nightmare Empire overcame the Legion forces, destroying Vylodectes and seizing the weapon. Traveling through Khador is hazardous and the Cryxians have clashed with Pirates (The Landing), Trollbloods (Flanking Move) and finally each other (Power Struggle; yet to be played). The great draconic powers now possessed pieces of this most dangerous weapon.

However, Legion and Cryx aren’t the only factions with an interest in the Scourge Bringer. Recently the religious zealots from the Protectorate of Menoth have begun moving into Southern Khador as they begin moving towards what they view to be an abominable creation. They seek to use the power of their creator to purge the Scourge Bringer from Caen.

The interests of the enigmatic Skorne are less easy to decipher. They have clashed with the forces of Legion as they too show their interest in the ancient weapon.

Progress to date

Here’s a breakdown of the games played to date.

Scourge Bringer (three games; Legion vs Khador vs Circle; Vescheneg Headlands) – COMPLETE
Cryxian Ambition (eleven games)

The Landing (one game; Pirates vs Cryx; Outside of Ohk) – COMPLETE
Frozen North (ANNIHILATION team campaign (five games); Legion vs Cryx; The Shard Spires) – COMPLETE
Flanking Move (ANNIHILATION campaign (four games); Trollbloods vs Cryx; Scarsfell Forest) – One game left
Power Struggle (one game; Cryx vs Cryx; Outside of Ohk) – Not played yet

Menite Incursions (four games)

Near Fort Bruzig (altered ANNIHILATION VASSAL campaign; Protectorate vs Khador) – One game left

Inflicted Pain (four games)

Near Bloodsmeath Marshes (ANNIHILATION campaign; Skorne vs Legion) – Two games left

So, the campaigns are progressing well and I’m getting lots of games played. Once the Cryxian Ambition arc is finished I’ll figure out where the story can go next.

Owen

The Orgoth Legacy – A Narrative Campaign for Warmachine and Hordes (Video) The idea behind this is pretty simple. Campaigns usually fail...
Frozen North – Campaign Review Undying Loyalty Toruk’s spies had failed him. The Scourge Bringer...
Scourge Bringer: Modeling an Orgoth Weapon As part of the upcoming campaign (story part 1, part...

The Orgoth Legacy – A Narrative Campaign for Warmachine and Hordes (Video)

Owen — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 18:00:38 +0000

The idea behind this is pretty simple. Campaigns usually fail because they involve too many players and take too long to play. I wanted a campaign that wasn’t going to fall into those traps. Enter the idea of a narrative campaign. It’s simply a story arc to house several smaller campaigns.

The Orgoth Legacy is such a narrative campaign. At the moment it is the story that houses Scourge Bringer (bespoke campaign), Frozen North (ANNIHILATION derivative), a campaign between the Legion and Skorne (standard ANNIHILATION), a campaign between Khador and Menoth (VASSAL-based ANNIHILATION), and a campaign between Trolls and Cryx (standard ANNIHILATION). All of these factions are being drawn into a fight over this powerful weapon.

As each campaign is only 3-4 games they are fairly easy to run and the results are fed into the overall story. Will the Cryx be able to sieze a weapon piece from Legion? Will the Menites be able to make their way north through Khador? What is the Skorne’s interest in this weapon? Will the kriels of southern Khador be overrun by the advancing Cryx?

All simple story tangents that feed into the overall arc.

Owen

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pIrusk vs High Reclaimer (25pt Battle Report; VASSAL)

Owen — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 22:46:00 +0000

This’ll be a quick one. Tonight myself and Phil got a game in on VASSAL. I guess it’s down to a joint New Years resolution to play more games against each other. Phil lives in Hamburg and VASSAL gives use a chance to play against each other. We played a 25pt Break the Line game with my Khadorans trying to keep his Menites from moving into southern Khador. The High Reclaimer has an interest in Scourge Bringer, so is attempting to make his way north. Here’s the deployment for the game -

It went pretty well for me. I pushed my army slowly towards the Protectorate force, using Superiority and Iron Flesh to buff my Juggernaut and Iron Fang Pikemen respectively. The Destroyer killed five Zealots with a single shot on the right flank after the Man-o-War unit killed the Paladin. The Reclaimer’s ash clouds were a pain, but I managed to push my Juggernaut into contact with the Vanquisher, which suffered a free strike trying to move away from the bug red ‘jack. It had moved away so the zealots could throw ‘Fervored’ bombs at the Juggernaut. Thankfully Phil’s damage rolls were terrible. This gave it the opportunity to walk into the High Reclaimer and squish him. Here’s how it ended -

It was a good game as we both had to be careful not to lose the game on scenario. Phil’s a great opponent and we plan to play a 4x25pt ANNIHILATION campaign starting soon.

Owen

Skarre vs Saeryn (25pt Battle Report; VASSAL) Joe and I got a chance to play a game...
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Kommander Sorscha Kratikoff: Painting Guide

Owen — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 21:29:35 +0000

I’m finishing off a few models before my Christmas project. First up is the new Kommander Sorscha from the plastic Khador Battle Box set. I converted and painted the Juggernaut into Beast-09 and the Destroyer will probably find its way onto eBay (I have two already). I didn’t put too much time into painting Sorscha, about 3 hours in total, as I just want to finish up a few stray models before Christmas. She was my only unpainted Khador model. Next up on my desk is the new sculpt of Skarre (last unpainted Cryx model) and Al-Vianna, a proxy for Kaya.

Kommander Sorcha was finished yesterday. Here’s a quick guide for how I painted her -

I undercoated the model using black Gesso.
I tackled the reds next using the technique described here.
Next up was the flesh – I base coated it Tallarn Flesh. It was washed with Ogryn Flesh, thenfollowed by adding increasing amounts of Elf Flesh to the base coat up to a pure Elf Flesh highlight.
The eyes were painted Kommando Khaki and dotted with Chaos Black.
The hat was based Battlefield Brown, drybrushed Khemri Brown, then Kommando Khaki and finally Bleached Bone. This was washed with Devlan Mud.
Other leathers were based Battlefield Brown and highlighted Bestial Brown. Again Devlan Mud was used for the wash.
The metals are either Shining Gold or Boltgun Metal. These are washed with … you guessed it … Devlan Mud.
Finally I based the model using my basic basing scheme.

Hopefully that all makes sense.

Owen

Pirate Queen Skarre: Painting Guide I got a chance to paint up the new (2009)...
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Beast-09 and eButcher (Video)

Owen — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 21:02:37 +0000

Here’s a quick video featuring Khador’s two biggest beat-sticks!

Enjoy!

Owen

Karchev vs Epic Kreoss (25pt Battle Report; VASSAL; Video) Here’s another video VASSAL battle report, this time featuring eKreoss...
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MacBain vs Epic Feora (35pt Battle Report; VASSAL; Video) Here’s a video VASSAL battle report, featuring MacBain and eFeora....

Khador vs Cryx: 35pt Video Battle Report

Owen — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 10:14:33 +0000

Anthony and I got a 35pt Steamroller game in last night – Strakhov versus eSkarre. We used timed turns and it wasn’t an issue – I’m getting much quicker and we still managed to have an enjoyable game. Anyway, here’s the video -

Enjoy,

Owen

MacBain vs Epic Feora (35pt Battle Report; VASSAL; Video) Here’s a video VASSAL battle report, featuring MacBain and eFeora....
Saeryn vs Epic Feora (35pt Battle Report; VASSAL; Video) Grab the popcorn – this is a long one! I...
Karchev vs Epic Kreoss (25pt Battle Report; VASSAL; Video) Here’s another video VASSAL battle report, this time featuring eKreoss...

Converting Beast-09 from a Plastic Juggernaut

Owen — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 19:37:17 +0000

A while ago I converted Deathjack from an old Slayer chassis and it worked out pretty well. I didn’t like the original Deathjack, so I went for something quite different. This time, however, I wasn’t converting a Juggernaut into Beast-09 because I didn’t like the model. I think Beast looks pretty good, if a little static. I was looking at the Beast-09 box in my FLGS and it was €39, the same price as the Khador battlegroup. Hmmmm! I decided to pick up the battlegroup and use the Juggernaut as the basis for this conversion. That way I have another Destroyer (I have 2 already, so I’ll probably eBay it) and the new Sorscha pose. Anyway, here’s Beast-09 converted from the plastic Juggernaut -

Owen

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Scourge Bringer: Part 1

Owen — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 20:53:35 +0000

Blood Frenzy

Orsus Zoktavir did not consider himself as having a single place he thought of as home. He spent most of his time in or near battle. That was his home – the sound of slaughter and the smell of ionised air. That was what he longed for. The only place he had ever come close to sensing those homely and familiar things was in the black towered city of Khardov. The choking fumes from its mines and the unmistakable dark aura of the Orgoth were comforting to him.

It was there two weeks ago that he met Great Prince Aeniv Rolonovik. Orsus did not usually have any time for nobility. Their incessant pleasantries, lofty notions of Empire and misplaced ideas of duty were of no interest to him, but Aeniv was different. He was as dedicated, albeit in a very different way, to battle and slaughter as Orsus. In the Orgoth Keep of Khardov Aeniv had mastered the manufacture of the dreaded Fell Blades, the weapons that drove the Doom Reavers to feats of glorious carnage. It was in the Keep amongst those moaning weapons that the Great Prince told the story that set Orsus on the path he was now following.

The northerly wind began to scream louder as the Vescheneg Headlands reared up from the horizon. That was where he would find it, the Scourge Bringer, a mystical axe so uncontrollable the Orgoth had sought to destroy it. All they could achieve was to divide the weapon and scatter the pieces. In the four hundred years since the Orgoth quit Western Immoren the axe had slowly managed to pull its pieces closer and closer together. Aeniv believed the weapon now lay in three pieces somewhere in the Veschenegs. With his recent exposure to the Fell Blades Orsus was certain he could find and reunite this most reviled of relics. Wielding it in one hand and Lola in the other his unchecked fury would wreak havoc amongst Khador’s enemies. It wasn’t through duty; it wasn’t to protect his home; Orsus was driven to bring destruction to all those who stood against him.

Scourge Bringer is a three player campaign for Warmachine and Hordes. Watch this space.

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Kommander Strakhov: Video Painting Guide

Owen — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 20:03:06 +0000

Here’s a video painting guide for Kommander Strakhov. Enjoy!

Don’t forget to watch the HD version if your internet connection can handle it!

Owen

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