Trygve ran. They had set out with such confidence that morning. The local Irish were going to pay they’d thought. A show of force would put their posturing to an end…

His shield swung limply from his arm as his legs propelled him through the thicket. His spear had been discarded somewhere, possibly during his flight.

This wasn’t the respect Leif had spoken so boldly about. A respect they were due according to him. Leif lay dead on that scrappy piece of land. The Irish had shown their ‘respect’.

Trygve had faced the Irish champion, a brute called Fiachra, and survived. Maybe he’d lost his spear then. The Irish chieftain, Conall, fell during the skirmish, but Fiachra had definitely survived. His taunting still rang in Trygve’s ears.

It had all happened so quickly. The wolfhounds, javelins, and great axes of the Irish hit them in a blur.

Trygve ran. He had to warn the elders and people of the settlement.

The game

It’s been a long time since I played Saga, but it is a game I really like. John and I decided to play 4pts and to use the standard Clash of Warlords scenario. My force was made up of my warlord, two points of bondi and two of hirdmen, for four Saga dice. John’s had his warlord, two Curaidh, a unit of javelin-armed warriors, a unit of wolfhounds and a small unit of hearthguard, also with four Saga dice.

John’s models were bare metal this morning! He primed, painted and based them in the few hours before we played. He did a great job using Contrast paints and they really pop! There’s nothing better than a fully painted game.

Here’s how we deployed.

John hit me hard in the centre, his heavy weapon-armed hearthguard mincing a unit of warriors; it took most of my unit of warriors to deal with them. This weak centre exposed my warlord and he was taken down by a combination of the wolfhounds and a Curaidh.

My hirdmen responded when his warlord charged them, but it was too late. My numbers were severely diminished. By the end, only one of my warriors (Trygve) survived!

I definitely learned some lessons in this game. I look forward to seeing if I can translate them into gameplay the next time we play! And there will be a next time. John and I agreed it was an excellent game.

Until next time,

Owen