Epic Thagrosh vs. Rasheth Tier 4, 50 points

It's been a while since I've done a battle report, so I thought I'd jump back in with a big one - fifty points, and two large based Warlocks! It's been a while since I've played a 50 point game, and I felt a little bit weird with so many models on the board, but it gave me a chance to see how a lot of the models worked together. Since I'm currently leaving Saeryn on the sidelines, I went with the caster that got me into Everblight in the first place, Thagrosh the Messiah:

Thagrosh, the Messiah (+3pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Carnivean (11pts)
* Scythean (9pts)
Blackfrost Shard (5pts)
Blighted Nyss Hex Hunters (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
Blighted Nyss Striders (Leader and 5 Grunts) (6pts)
* Blighted Nyss Striders Officer & Musician (3pts)
3 Spell Martyrs (3pts)

I know I'm not supposed to be using Striders, but I was curious to see what it would be like to have this many infantry models on the board. I also decided to avoid playing too many Shredders, since while it can be a viable strategy with Thagrosh I wanted to try something different, so I went with my two heavy hitters, the Carnivean and Scythean.

My opponent brought Dominar Rasheth's theme force, running all the way up to tier 4:

Dominar Rasheth (+5pts)
* Basilisk Krea (4pts)
* Bronzeback Titan (9pts)
* Titan Gladiator (7pts)
* Titan Gladiator (7pts)
Gatormen Posse (Leader and 4 Grunts) (9pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Venators Reivers (Leader and 9 Grunts) (9pts)
* Venators Reiver Officer & Standard (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Agonizer (2pts)
Paingiver Task Master (2pts)

Interestingly, this is one of the few games I've played where I have more models than my opponent, and where I have fewer heavy warbeasts. My goal off the bat is to use my infantry to soften up his warbeasts and screen for my own. If I can take out the Titans, I should be able to finish off Rasheth without too much trouble.

Terrain:

We decided the fence would provide concealment and block charges like a linear obstacle, the wall was a standard linear obstacle, and the houses were impassible and blocked line of sight. The lack of quantity and variety of terrain concerned me a bit, but I was glad there were 2 large obstacles to help block line of sight to Thagrosh. I won the roll and opted to go first.

Deployment:
Thagrosh and his warbeasts deployed on the far left, behind the house, hoping to use it for cover. The Hex Hunters deployed in the middle of the board, with the Blackfrost Shard on the right, hoping to hide behind the other house until late game, when they could help my infantry weaken the enemy warbeasts. I split the Spell Martyrs up, leaving one near Thagrosh, one behind the Hex Hunters, and one between the Hex Hunters and the Blackfrost Shard. Since I didn't know my opponent's placement it seemed prudent to be able to arc spells on as much of the board as possible.

My opponent's deployment was pretty similar to mine. Rasheth and his beasts deployed directly across from Thagrosh as his beasts, with the beast masters and Agonizers directly behind them. The Gatormen and task master lined up directly to their right, while the Venators formed a block in the middle of the board.

I placed my Striders on the right ahead of the Blackfrost Shard, as far as Advance Deployment would allow them. I hoped they would be able to whittle down the Reivers quickly enough before sweeping around the back of my opponent's force to remove the Paingivers.

Thagrosh Hellbourne let out a low growl in annoyance. So far the journey south had been uneventful, but from his vantage point he could not see a way past the small contingent of Skorne now blocking their path. His draconic blood surged, and he made up his mind - these pathetic creatures would not live long enough to curse the day they crossed paths with the Messiah.

Everblight, Turn 1:
Like most turn 1's everyone runs. My Carnivean and Scythean run up so they can get protection from the house and fence, while Thagrosh puts Dragon's Blood on the Hex Hunters before moving up to join them, giving himself Spiny Growth and both beasts Tenacity. The Hex Hunters ran forward and spread out in the middle, hopefully forcing my opponent to make some hard choices as he advances into their charge range. Some quick math tells me they won't be in range of the Venators (16" Advance Deploy + 7" Move + 12" Range + 10" Opposing Deployment = 45", less than the 48" board), so I run them forward, trying to stay far enough back to make sure I'm safe with stealth. I start running into a bit of a trouble keeping them spaced apart to avoid AOEs, and two end up being interspersed with the Hex Hunters. The Spell Martyrs all run forward, making sure to stay far enough back to avoid getting shot, and the Blackfrost Shard walks towards the house on their side of the field before giving themselves stealth, since I was wary of the Venators.

Skorne, Turn 1:
My opponent's turn is similarly uneventful. Most of his forces run forward, though the Krea and Rasheth walk so they can use the Krea's animus, and Rasheth places Carnivore on the Gatormen before casting Breath of Corruption at the Hex Hunters. It scatters into one of the Striders, killing her and leaving a cloud thats turns out to be a problem for my Hex Hunters' charge lanes. The Reivers move up and use their minifeat so they can perform a massive CRA on the Scythean, rolling box cars for 9 damage - ouch! I'm thankful that Thagrosh didn't run and was out of range, since that would've taken a painful chunk out of his life. The Gatormen run up in front of the Titans while the Task Master gives them tough.

Dominar Rasheth's first warning of the enemy was a bloodcurling roar that echoed over the fields. Even as the Agonizers carrying his dais struggled to turn so he could face the threat, the corpulent warlock began barking orders to the paingivers, who in turn urged their charges forward. As the enemy drew close, he caught the glint of metal hurtling through the air as the Venators unleashed a volley towards one of the malformed beasts, which let out an unnatural cry in reponse - whether in anger of pain, Rasheth could not tell. He followed suit by unleashing a poison cloud into the swarm of elves closing into their position, causing one to collapse to the ground twitching before going still.

Everblight, Turn 2:
Three of my Striders are in range of the Venators, and forfeit their movement to aim while the res shift up to get in range and draw line of sight. Despite needing 6's to hit (4's for the aiming ones) and 4's to kill, only two Reivers fall to 7 shots. I'm forced to walk my Hex Hunter's into melee since the Breath of Corruption cloud is blocking a lot of charge lanes, but their high speed means I still get 4 in melee, who thanks to battle wizard bring down 5 more Reivers. The rest try to Hex Bolt the Gatormen, softening them up so the Carnivean and Thagrosh's sprays force tough checks on 3 of them, though only one dies. Thagrosh also arcs Scourge onto the Krea, dealing a bit of damage to it and an Agonizer thats a little too close, as well as killing off a Beast Handler. Three Shredders mill around the back and cast Tenacity on Thagrosh and the heavies, while the last one goes Rabid and moves around the house to attack a Gatorman, but only deals 4 damage across 2 attacks. ARM 18 is a pain!

Skorne, Turn 2:
My opponent's Bronzeback steps up to crush the Shredder attack the Gatorman, allowing the remainder of the Posse to charge my Hex Hunters. They bring down 4 Hex Hunters, though Dragon's Blood manages to take one of the 1 HP gators with them. An Agonizer runs forward to allow Rasheth to cast Blood Mark on Thagrosh before popping his feat and the remaining Reivers CRA Thagrosh, dealing 2 damage. I think he was going for an assassination, but -4 armor didn't help much when 2 are in range.  His Gladiators hang back, not wanting to feel the wrath of my Carnivean and Scythean.

A twisted smile crossed Thagrosh's face as his Nyss tore into the Skorne ranks before they were snapped up by the powerful jaws of the Gatormen. Several of the feral minions came a bit to close, and he relished the smell of frostbitten flesh as he unleashed a torrent of draconic flame at them, prompting the Carnivean to do the same. Though several seemed on the verge of death, the crack of a Skorne whip brought two of his victims back to their feet. He momentarily lost focus as the remaining pistol wielders hit him with a barrage of needles. He was momentarily caught off balance as they dug deeper than the should have, though a slight signal from Everblight directed him towards the Warlock. His draconic vision allowed him see the magic flow around the enemies torso and down through the base of his platform, wrapping itself like a translucent black cloth over his warriors. Call upon the dragon's power he reached out to the Skorne's mind, and while it was not as receptive as those of his elf servants he was able to break his enemies concentration and halt the flow of ribbons from the sorcerer.

Everblight, Turn 3:
The Striders advance and finish off the unengaged Reivers, while the Hex Hunters wrap up the engaged ones and start launching Hex Bolts at the Gatormen and Agonizers. Even with support from Thagrosh and the Carnivean, all 3 gators survive thanks to tough checks, and because of the Task Master aren't even knocked down! Annoyed I run a Spell Martyr forward to arc Flesh Eater onto the Task Master to make the Gatormen a bit easier to finish off! The Shredders also stay back - I want to clear the Gatormen before sending them out for the kill.

Skorne, Turn 3:
Each Gatorman claims a Hex Hunter, but my opponent is starting to get concerned. His units are all but dead while I still have my full unit of Striders to peck at him as long as he keeps his Titans back. He decides to charge one of the Gladiators across the field to kill a Strider, hoping to put some pressure on me to commit my heavies. Rasheth sends an Agonizer to the right to arc Breath of Corruption into my Striders, and manages to kill the leader and a grunt with a lucky scatter and some boosted damage rolls.

Dominar Rasheth scowled as his magic faded. Normally the ritual would have lasted longer, but the draconic magic was providing too much interference. Though his Reivers had fallen, along with the Task Master, his prized beasts were still standing, as well as some of the Gatormen slaves. With a wave of his hand he sent another poison cloud over their heads as they tore into the Nyss Sorcerers battling them, further reducing the enemy's numbers. Once enough of them were down, he would be able to march forth with his beasts, and bring down the warlock leading them. He couldn't help but smile at the prospect - apparently Lord Arbiter Hexeris had managed to catch one, but it had managed to escape before he could study it. Another specimen would surely fetch a high price.

Everblight, Turn 4:
My opponent's gladiator is too sweet a target to pass up, so I bring the Blackfrost Shard out from hiding to help my Scythean devour it. Thagrosh feats and casts Manifest Destiny, then sprays to take out 2 of the Gatormen. The Carnivean, now with the feat move to retreat back, steps up and kills both Agonizers and the last Gatorman. The Striders move up and perform a large CRA on the Krea, and the Hex Hunters try to pile more damage on with their Hex Bolts. The Shredders run up to the Bronzeback and Gladiator, blocking charge lanes while taking a few boxes off the warbeasts. I use my feat move to pull back the Carnivean, but the Scythean can't make it to the cover of the building. I opt to leave it close, since I'm hoping to survive if one of the Titans has to trample the Shredders to get to him. Worst case, it dies to a heavy, and Thagrosh and my Carnivean should be more than enough to avenge it and deal with the other one.

Skorne, Turn 4:
The Bronzeback tramples the Shredders near him, but is unable to kill the one engaging the Gladiator, so Rasheth uses Breath of Corruption to free it up. Hilariously, he's forced to spend a FURY to heal the Gladiator after some high damage rolls finish its last dot of mind, but the beast is certainly healthy enough to charge and dismember my Scythean with its full complement of attacks.

As the Nyss mopped up the last of the enemy infantry, Thagrosh turned his focus to the Titans. One managed to crush a Strider under its massive bulk, but barely had time to savor the victory before his Scythean tore it limb from limb. Feeling the battle reach its zenith, Thagrosh unleashed an earth rending roar, which was echoed by his beasts as they felt his power flow through them. His Shredders viciously attacked the enemy warbeasts, tearing chunks of flesh from them even as they were trampled in retaliation. Despite his efforts, Thagrosh lost himself in the symphony of blood and wrath.

Everblight, Turn 5:
I send my Striders after the enemy Beast Handlers, realizing its what I should have done in the first place, but one manages to survive. Nonetheless I send my Carnivean after the Gladiator, and thanks to Manifest Destiny and support from the Blackfrost Shard it has enough fury remaining to put Spiny Growth on itself.

Skorne, Turn 5:
My opponent is forced to send both his Bronzeback and Krea kill the Carnivean, though the Bronzeback takes a decent amount of damage from Spiny Growth in the process. The remaining Beast Handler moves forward so Rasheth can arc Breath of Corruption and catch two members of the Blackfrost Shard as well as a Strider I accidentally left between them because I forgot I lost reform. Interestingly, Rasheth is now in charge range of Thagrosh.

With most of the warbeasts down, Rasheth gestured his personal Agonizers forward, wanting to be close to enough to collect the enemy personally. As he got in sight, his breath caught in his throat. Rather than the elf he had expected, he faced what could only be described as an abomination. Muscle and bone wove into unnatural shapes, and if not for the insight granted by his mystic powers he would have thought it was a new type of dragonspawn. His confusion soon gave way to pleasure as he considered how much more valuable this trophy would be, and pulled on his remaining warbeasts to focus on the target.

Everblight, Turn 6:
I've got a conundrum: Rasheth is within charge range of Thagrosh, but he has Blood Mark on me, and I don't have anywhere to transfer the damage, so I could end up killing myself with the charge if I roll a 14 or better on 3 dice. I decide its not worth the risk, so Thagrosh charges the Bronzeback, hoping to finish it off quickly enough to also get the Krea, but thanks to bad to hit rolls the light warbeast survives. However, I am now out of Rasheth's line of sight thanks to eruption of ash, so I run two Striders up to him so I can get free strikes if he tries to get me, using the remaining Striders to block off the Krea. My Hex Hunters try to finish it off, but to no avail, and I realize too late I've blocked the charge lanes for Rhyliss, the last member of the Blackfrost Shard.

Skorne, Turn 6:
The Krea kills off 2 Striders, but they keep her from getting to Thagrosh. Rasheth is forced to use Breath of Corruption to free himself from my Striders, and then shifts to get line of sight to Thagrosh and use the Breath again on Thagrosh. Fortunately he only manages 6 points of damage on me, enough for me to spawn a Shredder, but leaving me alive at 12 health.

Thagrosh

Everblight, Turn 7:
I move my Striders so Rhyliss can get a charge and he combines with the remaining Hex Hunters to finish of the Krea. All my opponent has left now is Rasheth. Thagrosh cuts himself for 6 fury and walks up to the fat man, and though I roll a 5-6 for damage and he transfers to me, I am able to send the damage to the Shredder, killing it and taking 2 points off Thagrosh. Two more blows from Rapture later and the game is finally over.

Rasheth desperately tried to pull himself away from the demonic beast that has just carved through his palanquin, though he found his head spinning from blood loss. Oddly, his opponent seemed to have paused, surveying the carnage rather than finishing the Dominar. His gaze particularly lingered on the remnants of the Nyss, where the handful of survivors where picking through the fallen, helping those they could and collecting the corpses of those they couldn't. Despite his injuries, he couldn't help but be intrigued. While his people valued the finely trained warbeasts over any individual grunt, the corrupted Nyss seemed to do the opposite. Rasheth was shaken back to reality as a rough claw dragged him off the ground. The beast's voice was like a noxious cloud, sending spasms through Rasheth's body. "Let this serve as a warning to your masters. We are the children of Everblight, and those who do not bow will be reaped." Rasheth's vision swam, and he was unconscious before hitting the ground.

Aftermath:
Wow, that game took a while! I've never had an attrition match drag out like that, though it ended up being in my favor since I had more combat units. The Gatormen helped keep my opponent in the game, especially with all the tough rolls they made. Gotta remember to make the Task Master a priority in the future. I did learn a few things:
-Dragon's Blood isn't nearly as good on the Hex Hunters as I'd hoped. ARM 14 is pretty much the same as ARM 12 when the vast majority of attacks are at least POW 10, and while the damage did take down a Gatorman, its not reliable enough to count as a plus. I think in future games I'm just going to drop it on one of my heavies - combined with Spiny Growth it can bring them up to ARM 22, which pretty much demands dedicating a heavy + support to killing it, and even then bad rolls mean he could survive.
-The Carnivean's spray is actually really good. Sure his RAT is only 4, but if he boosts to hit on key targets he hits DEF 14 on average, 16 if he can stand and shoot like he could this game. Still, his primary purpose is melee, so while he can provide some nice utility with the spray and Spiny Growth, I wouldn't hesitate to throw him at another heavy.
-I'm still trying to figure out Epic Thagrosh. This game he arced some spells and helped out with Manifest Destiny and his feat, but otherwise was a backline caster most of the game. I actually think this was the right way to play him - despite his stature he's not tough enough to take blows in the front, though his excellent hitting power makes him good for cleanup. In the future I'd like to get a little more out of him - I think I can probably run a little lighter on fury since I'm keeping him back, and my target selection could use work.
Overall it was a pretty fun game, and I'm excited to try out more at 50 points!

Big New Releases

Hey guys, sorry for the long hiatus - there are several posts I've been working on that are taking a bit longer than I'd hoped thanks to real life getting in the way (grrr, real life), but since there are several new releases revealed at Lock & Load last weekend I thought I'd post my thoughts on them.

First up, we have the preview of the Legion of Everblight Gargantuan, the Archangel.

Here's some more pictures, as well as a video interview with the sculptor as he's builds it. I'm going to echo the comments I've seen everywhere else and say HOLY CRAP THIS THING IS INCREDIBLE. As someone who got into Legion because of the dragon theme, I cannot wait to get my hands on this guy. I can honestly say this is the first model I've seen in any system that I knew I wanted to buy it before seeing anything about the rules. Very, very psyched for this.

Speaking of the rules, the Mountain King was released at Lock & Load, giving us a chance to see what the Gargantuan cards will looks like.

There's a complete unboxing rundown here. Off the bat, I'm a little bit disappointed. The Collosals are walking armories, most with at least 3 enormous guns and so many special rules you could confuse the card back with a warcaster. This guy has one gun (still enormous), a solid but not unique animus, Battle Wizard except with his gun instead of magic, and Whelp Shedding. In addition, his stats are pretty mediocre - his offensive power is less than Mulg, not even adding more FURY, and while ARM 19 is pretty solid, 48 boxes is a lot less than you'd get from 2 heavies that cost the same amount of points. While I'm not terribly excited about him, I'll leave that discussion for all the Trollblood players. What I'd really like to focus on is what we can guess about the Archangel given this guy's stats.

On offense, I'm really optimistic about the Archangel. The Legion doesn't have anything that hits like Mulg, with most of our heavies striking at POW 17. If the Archangel has POW 19, or even 18 with reach, it'll be a great way to add some more punch to higher point armies. In addition, it has wings, making me think it'll be at least speed 6, if not 7. And of all the hordes armies, we tend to have the best guns on our heavies, so I'm looking forward to what he gets. On the downside, I don't think its going to have a FURY higher than 4. The Mountain King may be an exception since dire trolls naturally have FURY 5, but if that monstrosity doesn't get an extra point I doubt the Archangel will.

Everblight has never been known for defense, but I think the Archangel may become the exception. So far our heavies with wings have had solid DEF scores, particularly since we can buff it with Tenacity in nearly every army. While I don't think it'll happen, DEF 13 would be ideal, since with a 14 after tenacity most heavies will need an 8 to hit, forcing them to boost and depriving them of the attacks needed to chew through all the boxes. Even a DEF 12 would be amazing, though if its any lower, we're probably going to be better off focusing on ARM with Spiny Growth. Still, it's going to be exciting for the glass cannon faction to finally have something that isn't guaranteed to die to a charge from a heavy.

The last new release I want to mention is the Extreme Carnivean.

This is without a doubt my least favorite model in the Warmachine/Hordes range. It looks like the regular Carnivean bulked up, but his skin didn't stretch so its just torn over Incubi-like muscle. The claws look like oven mitts, too bloated to be used as open firsts, and the pose is just bizarre - maybe it would make sense as part of a diorama where the Carnivean is dodging an enemy attack, but on the table this guy can't dodge anything, an really shouldn't be trying. Why not a more aggressive stance like the Warpwolf Extreme or Dire Troll Mauler Extreme, or at least neutral like the Gladiator Extreme? Perhaps my least favorite part is the spines. Whats up with the fleshy rubberbands around them? Not only do they look terrible, they don't make any sense - how or why would those straps grow? Why are spines wrapped with muscle tissue? I'm really sad because the Carnivean is one of my favorite beasts, and I really feel like he gets bashed more than he deserves from the community, but this sculpt is just terrible.

So a rundown: Archangel yay, Extreme Carnivean boo. I should have another post up in a week or so with some actual progress on my army!

Recruits and Resolutions

So I finally found a good way to use the gift certificate I "won" from the tournament I was at. Please welcome the newest addition to my Legion, Hex Hunters!

I'm particularly excited about these guys since I've noticed that I'm using my Striders in almost every list I make, and these guys will hopefully give me some more options. That leads my to the second part of my post. I've noticed that while I'm doing ok with Saeryn, I've gotten a lot worse with all my other Warlocks. In an effort to get better with everyone else, I've decided not to use Saeryn for the next two months, and actually thinking about it I'm going to avoid Striders as well. Just one exception: I've been asked to do a battle report at my new store, and as we're taking pictures, my list needs to be fully painted. I'm going to go with my Saeryn list as its the closest to being complete (and the one I'm least likely to embarrass myself with) for the report. Otherwise, I'm saying goodbye to Saeryn and the Striders for a while. Wish me luck!

And we're back

Hey guys, its been a while! Moving has been pretty hectic, but I finally managed to get out and play a few games of Warmachine this weekend at Gamescape in San Francisco. They were actually hosting a tournament, and it seemed like a good way to meet the local Warmachine/Hordes community. I completely forgot how draining they are though. A friend of mine randomly wandered into the store between the third and fourth rounds, and I'm pretty sure I sounded drunk! I managed to go 2-2, which I was pretty happy with, especially since my losses were to the only guy who went undefeated and a combo I'd never seen that got me on turn 2. The format was 2 list, 35 points, using 2012 Steamroller scenarios. These were the lists I brought:

Saeryn, Omen of Everblight (+5pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Carnivean (11pts)
* Scythean (9pts)
Blackfrost Shard (5pts)
Blighted Nyss Striders (Leader and 5 Grunts) (6pts)
* Blighted Nyss Striders Officer & Musician (3pts)
2 Spell Martyrs (2pts)

Thagrosh, the Messiah (+3pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Shredder (2pts)
* Carnivean (11pts)
* Seraph (8pts)
Blighted Nyss Striders (Leader and 5 Grunts) (6pts)
* Blighted Nyss Striders Officer & Musician (3pts)
2 Spell Martyrs (2pts)

The Saeryn list should look familiar to anyone whose read this blog before, and it was a nice way to ease back into the game with a list I have a lot of practice with. The Epic Thagrosh list was an attempt to combine all the best things I've done with him, including an assassination with Scourge and a Carnivean's spray, as well as mobs of Shredders under Manifest Destiny and his feat, Dragon Storm. Anyway, without further ado, here are recaps of my matches:

Game 1: Saeryn vs. Epic Vlad
Scenario 2 - Gauntlet
Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Champion (+5pts)
* Drago (8pts)
Great Bears of Gallowswood (5pts)
Iron Fang Pikemen (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Black Dragon Officer & Standard (2pts)
Iron Fang Pikemen (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Iron Fang Pikemen Officer & Standard (2pts)
Iron Fang Uhlans (Leader and 2 Grunts) (7pts)

This was the guy who ended up going undefeated. His other list was Karchev, who I knew I probably wasn't going to assassinate, so I chose Saeryn. I managed to down the Ulhans early with Striders and a Shredder, and seriously injure the Great Bears with a Blightbringer, but forgot to feat on the second turn and lost my Carnivean. I almost managed to get the win anyway by clearing a path for my Scythean to get to Vlad, but after he took 10 damage from the first blow his defenses got too high for me to finish him off thanks to Might of Kings. 24 Iron Fangs was ridiculously hard to deal with, mainly because of the numbers, high ARM, and the fact that they are strong enough to threaten heavies. Still need to figure out an answer to that...

Game 2: Saeryn vs. Naaresh
Scenario 15 - Restoration
Master Ascetic Naaresh (+6pts)
* Basilisk Krea (4pts)
* Cyclops Brute (5pts)
* Cyclops Savage (5pts)
* Molik Karn (11pts)
Nihilators (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Paingiver Beast Handlers (Leader and 5 Grunts) (3pts)
Tyrant Commander & Standard Bearer (3pts)

Both his lists had a Cyclops brute to provide Safeguard to prevent the caster from being knocked down, so I opted for Saeryn since Thagrosh would lose one of his best assassination vectors. On turns 1 and 2, I arc'ed Breathstealer on Molik Karn to keep him at bay, then used my feat on turn 2 to force my Carnivean and Scythean into his lines, killing Molik Karn and injuring Naaresh. In response he cycloned out and put himself next to Saeryn to go for the assassination next turn, and unfortunately most of my beasts frenzied, and the Scythean alone couldn't penetrate Naaresh's DEF 18 ARM 20 thanks to Iron Flesh and Pain Monger. My beasts frenzied, and I had to focus on killing him cyclopses rather than going after Naaresh, but thankfully none of the paingivers could get to him that turn so he wasn't able to bring down Saeryn, giving me another turn to finish him off.

Game 3: Epic Thagrosh vs. Calandra
Scenario 7 - Incursion
Calandra Truthsayer, Oracle of the Glimmerwood (+5pts)
* Troll Impaler (5pts)
* Dire Troll Bomber (10pts)
Farrow Bone Grinders (Leader and 3 Grunts) (2pts)
Pyg Burrowers (Leader and 9 Grunts) (6pts)
Trollkin Fennblades (Leader and 9 Grunts) (8pts)
* Trollkin Fennblade Officer & Drummer (2pts)
Alten Ashley, Monster Hunter (2pts)
Stone Scribe Chronicler (2pts)
Trollkin Champion Hero (3pts)

At last, a chance to try out Epic Thagrosh! Well, not really. On turn 2, he used his feat and unborrowed his Pyg Burrowers to assassinate Thagrosh. While I've heard of them before, I've never seen them in action - those POW 14 guns really hurt! I almost managed to weather it by using the spawned Shredder to prevent 2 of them from firing, but the last one still managed to finish me off. I was kicking myself because I brought Thagrosh out of cover for no good reason, and the DEF bonus would probably have saved him. Also, I had excess fury and used it to cast tenacity twice instead of Spiny Growth, which would have saved him.

Game 4: Saeryn vs. The Witch Coven
Scenario 8 - Process of Elimination
The Witch Coven of Garlghast (+5pts)
* Defiler (5pts)
* Defiler (5pts)
* Helldiver (3pts)
* Deathjack (12pts)
* Seether (9pts)
Bane Knights (Leader and 5 Grunts) (6pts)

I really wanted to use Thagrosh here, but the scenario seemed too good for Saeryn's feat. On turn 2 I ran both my heavies into the middle of the control zones and popped feat, essentially daring him to try to take them. He had no choice but to move up to keep me from scoring, and I was able to charge and finish off both his heavies while using Striders and Blightbringer to carve up the Bane Knights. As a last-ditch attempt he tried to assassinate Saeryn with the Helldiver, but it wasn't strong enough, and I cleared out the last of his units to get the second control point.

While I didn't place, I did randomly win a gift certificate as part of the raffle, which I'll probably put towards some Hex Hunters. I feel like I'm using Striders too much and they seem like a good alternative. I'll leave you guys with some pics from my third game, the only one I remembered to photograph. Thanks for reading - its good to be back on the field!

Final view of the battle.

Pyg Burrowers shoot up Thagrosh. To his left you can see the cover I was hiding behind until I thought it was a good idea to move out and Slipstream my Seraph, who was fine where it was. I still don't know what I was doing.

The rest of my opponent's army. The Fennblade unit lost 6 members to the Striders on the first turn, and I really feel like I could have won this game had I not foolishly left my caster out. 

If you can't be good, be lucky. Woo free moneys!

Hiatus

As you've probably guessed by the title (and lack of posting), I'm putting this blog on indefinite hiatus because I am moving to another state for work. I was hoping to have a battle report or review to go with this, but unfortunately the chaos of finding a new place to live, someone to take over my lease, and the moving itself pretty much sucked up all my Warmachine time over the last month. I'm going to be looking for another place to play, but at least for the next month I'm unlikely to get any games in while I settling into my new job. Hopefully I'll be back in February, but I'd rather not make any promises.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Battle Report: Saeryn vs. pMorghul

Hey all. It's been a pretty intense weekend on the Warmachine front. Like I mentioned last week, one of the stores I go to was running their Domination event this Saturday, and I took the opportunity to try out some of the new Everblight models. This game actually took place last Friday, as several players were trying out lists for Saturday's event. I decided to try out one of the most intriguing new additions to the Legion, the new character Carnivean Proteus. At 11 points, it feels like he'll be competing against the Carnivean for space in lists, so I decided to sub into my Saeryn list, which ended up looking like this:

Saeryn, Omen of Everblight
-Proteus
-Scythean
-Shredder
-Shredder
Striders + UA
Blackfrost Shard
2 Spell Martyrs

There are two big downsides I see with Proteus: his most powerful attack is P+S 16, and his MAT isn't any better than the Carnivean's. I feel like this list should help address both of those problems, since the Blackfrost Shard's Kiss of Lyliss boosts his POW up to Carnivean levels, and both the Shard and Saeryn can help him hit with Ice Cage and Breathstealer respectively. Hopefully it'll also help his ranged attack connect, which I think is his best ability.

My opponent was running a beast heavy Skorne list, headed by pMorghul:

Master Tormentor Morghul
-Bronzeback Titan
-Titan Gladiator
-Rhinodon
-Cyclops Savage
-Cyclops Brute
-Basilisk Krea
Full Paingiver Beast Handlers

Wow, thats a ton of beasts for a 5 FURY Warlock! It'll be interesting going up against this list - Proteus and my Scythean should tear into his beasts, especially with the Blackfrost Shard and Saeryn's feat backing them up, but the Striders are probably going to running interferance more than anything else.

My opponent won the roll and opted to go first. Here's a quick sketch of the terrain:

Deployment
My opponent deployed his forces in the center, with the Bronzeback, Gladiator, Rhinodon and Savage forming a front line. Morghul was behind them in the middle, flanked by the Krea and Brute. The Paingivers deployed around the back, trying to set up as close to the beasts as possible.

I deployed everything on the far right, hoping to take advantage of the forest. Proteus and the Scythean deployed directly behind it, with the Shredders on either side of them and Saeryn behind them. The Spell Martyrs deployed next to the Shredders, and the Blackfrost Shard deployed close to the middle, behind the wall. Though opponent had virtually no shooting, I figured it would keep them safe from charges. The Striders advance deployed as far up as possible on the right. I figured I could run them into the back field and try to snipe out the Paingivers.

Skorne Turn 1
Rush was passed out, and all my opponent's beasts ran towards my force, stopping short of the forest.

Everblight Turn 1
My Striders ran forward, placing themselves to the right of the forest and my opponent's force. They had 2 roles: bait opposing heavies close so I could get the charge, and if they survived, push further and take a shot at the Paingivers. Unfortunately Perfect Balance made Morghul immune to Combined Range Attacks, and with the Krea's animus I was unlikely to get an assassination that way. The rest of my force ran forward, placing themselves behind the forest. Saeryn gave Respawn to Proteus, since I figured he would end up closer to the opposing force and be more likely to need it.

Skorne Turn 2
My opponent noticed that the Rhinodon had line of sight to my Scythean, and decided to go for a quick kill. He placed Rush on it and then use the Paingivers to boost its strength, then moved up Morghul so it would remain in his control radius and cast Abuse on the beast. All told, it had +4 Strength and Speed! It charged my Scythean, just barely making it into range. After a few lucky rolls, my poor beast was reduced to paste. Thats what I get for underestimating Skorne's charge range! The Titans and Savage went after the Striders, killing 3 of them as they tried to get around the forest and get LOS to Saeryn. Meanwhile, the Krea and Brute moved forward to protect Morghul with their abilities and animi.

Everblight Turn 2
Things are looking bad, but there is a silver lining: Morghul is now within Proteus' range. Decided I need to go for broke, I run my Spell Martyrs up and activate Saeryn, making sure to pop her feat before moving up and casting Hellfire on the Cyclops Brute - I couldn't have Shield Guard messing up my assassination. She then placed Breathstealer on Morghul. The Blackfrost Shard then activated, moving around the Rhinodon to place Ice Cage on Morghul (sadly only one of the two hit) and Kiss of Lyliss on the Brute. My Shredders then moved forward, immune to the Rhinodon's free strikes thanks to Saeryn's feat, and with some good rolls devoured the Brute and opening up a path for Proteus. The Cthulhu-Carnivean hybrid then moved up and used his ranged tentacle attack. Boosting to hit, I barely managed to snare Morghul and drag him close. Fortunately he was only sitting on 1 FURY, and fell under Proteus' barrage of attacks.

Aftermath
Wow, that was a nailbiter! While Proteus was clutch, upon thinking about it, I realized I was relatively unimpressed with him. Here's why: while I initially thought he would be competing with the Carnivean, I actually found he was closer to a Scythean. While the Carnivean is more of a utility beast with his spray and animus, Proteus' special ability is his drag. While it seems like a good utility ability, all it does is move one model. I can think of a better way to accomlish this: kill that model. In this respect, Proteus seems more like a beatstick than a utility beast, even more so because of his weak animus.

Ok, so he's a beatstick. He still has extra range on the Scythean thanks to his ranged attack, and an additional point of FURY on the Scythean. That makes him worth 2 more points, right? Unfortunately, Proteus has one more disadvantage: his best P+S weapon is 1 point weaker than the Scythean's. To me, this is the deal breaker. While he'll do fine against most targets, against the very heviest opponents, more often than not Proteus will fail to finish them off while a Scythean would get the kill.

It isn't all bad news though. With a damage buff, Proteus should be able to take on anything. For Warlocks who can provide one (pLylyth, pThagrosh, Kallus) or for those already including the Blackfrost Shard, he should be a solid alternative to the Scythean. In a game thats won by millimeters, having an extra inch of range can make all the difference, and between his extra FURY and attacks he's definitely a serious threat to all but the most armored opponents.

Longest Night

Long time no post! Last week I played at a Longest Night event at one of the stores I go to, and I have to say it was a lot of fun. Most of the players agreed that the scenario is the best Privateer has ever come up with, which was especially impressive because the only terrain on the tables was the festival tents. Perhaps one of the best moments was on a table next to me, where the players got so caught up in fighting each other they didn't pay attention to the thralls. As a result, by the end of turn 4 there were more thralls on the board than models controlled by both players combined, and they had managed to kill 3 light warjacks and 3 heavies! If you didn't get a chance to play, I'd highly recommend trying it out next time you have a match - you can find the rules here.

This week is the Domination release event, so hopefully I'll have some interesting Hordes vs Hordes battle reports to put up. I'm going to be pretty busy this month so I won't have much time to play, but I'll make some time to post my thoughts on the Domination releases. I know most have been spoiled already, but I'd like to take a look at the book so I don't miss any details and maybe try one or two out.

One last thing - I mentioned in my last post that I was going to work on painting, and I've actually got most of my Scythean complete. Unfortunately my camera is broken, so it'll be a little while before I'm able to show off the pictures. I'm also working on finishing my Shredders and Spell Martyrs, mainly because of the Longest Night event. There were bonus points for having a fully painted army, and I missed by just those little guys, which inspired me to finish them up!