tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664719387598649182024-03-13T09:42:28.492+00:00I came, I saw...Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game blog by BlackMist - Former European Team Champion (2018 Team England) and 2-time UK GT winner (2009/2011). Founder of the Great British Hobbit League and one of the hosts of An Unexpected Podcast. Toys are cool. Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-27186259689963090222021-11-27T07:18:00.000+00:002021-11-27T07:18:30.461+00:00Ardacon 2021 Tournament Report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhcjfORhLTdVoB33TuWDRLKO8H_YfB2-qj5eSa79PXW7oO_RQ96MZAKfreqT9tVD1n0-OBLhRkc-xJC5gURsVE2ndWhWaXlAgHiarHx6aVHl_extBxGNGFb-8mjZgIqntZkuHucOAiITE/s2576/Intro+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXhcjfORhLTdVoB33TuWDRLKO8H_YfB2-qj5eSa79PXW7oO_RQ96MZAKfreqT9tVD1n0-OBLhRkc-xJC5gURsVE2ndWhWaXlAgHiarHx6aVHl_extBxGNGFb-8mjZgIqntZkuHucOAiITE/w640-h304/Intro+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><b><div style="text-align: center;"><b>ARDACON 2021</b></div></b><p style="text-align: justify;">After a year and a half of lockdowns and cancelled tournaments, we are slowly beginning to play toys again with our friends. What better way to get back to it than to go to Ardacon? In this review you'll read about my fun experience of playing at this year's smaller-than-usual World Championships, as well as find out how I did and what I took to this tournament. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">I arrived in Manchester in the afternoon of Thursday, with 4 models left to paint and being a grown-up, I was in the unfortunate situation of having to do some work in my room on Friday, so I had to skip gaming before the main event. Next day at about 11.30am, after finishing the last work call I decided to join into the Doubles tournament, as James mentioned there may be some players there who still haven't got a doubles partner. It turned out that I was the odd one out, but I was able to pair up with PMG (Peter Michael George), one of the tournament staff members. That would have been great, had it not been for the fact that once we formed a team, we became the odd team out and needed 2 more players to play against! Hence my Doubles tournament ended before it had a chance to begin. I'm not sure if there were some players out there who decided not to show up just because they didn't have a partner to play with, but give that these situations happen, I think you can always count on finding someone to pair up with. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">PMG was kind enough to offer to just play some games outside of the tournament, so we proceeded to do just that and I was able to get a refresher on how toys work. I hadn't played since Scouring of Stirlingshire in November 2019, so these two friendly matches were a welcome start to the weekend!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQMiG9cv16uNA7xUqdynWygY2XTKAbs54dxZ4K56QNU7OA6bDZBq7BSDWXczM0rgknxZw4xV_Nh9papsPCydi7jaBwUf7cv1d-tDzIpLZTFZUx9nMMQhIk9T-h3zAciGqgPN4kE3jVvocj/s2578/Intro+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQMiG9cv16uNA7xUqdynWygY2XTKAbs54dxZ4K56QNU7OA6bDZBq7BSDWXczM0rgknxZw4xV_Nh9papsPCydi7jaBwUf7cv1d-tDzIpLZTFZUx9nMMQhIk9T-h3zAciGqgPN4kE3jVvocj/w640-h302/Intro+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvPCYn0Wc3hcNGCk6jTHQaXo43V0mmVykv9J-uVmUl0OuVOI2Hw1fmL2h7sWGxVohhd956vvW72rH10_hS9m2wKPdlWo5rHKH_ETv67jGN7Bard9e9FLo0ZLjphyphenhyphenjIgV0dqK_1xjPwOmhA/s2578/Intro+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvPCYn0Wc3hcNGCk6jTHQaXo43V0mmVykv9J-uVmUl0OuVOI2Hw1fmL2h7sWGxVohhd956vvW72rH10_hS9m2wKPdlWo5rHKH_ETv67jGN7Bard9e9FLo0ZLjphyphenhyphenjIgV0dqK_1xjPwOmhA/w640-h302/Intro+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ-_DyKgjk_T-_FUf7-42peFg1NuPevZOnZ74rEWPUu8zfhLd9pvct-bvz0ZAnzeRYSfJpPFQzSARF29wT8LBU0p2n1wuTGBRqKdWQ3l2p6y4uXC1wSQ6aw5A7-zGW4i6cCdmbT8mTNXi9/s2578/Intro+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ-_DyKgjk_T-_FUf7-42peFg1NuPevZOnZ74rEWPUu8zfhLd9pvct-bvz0ZAnzeRYSfJpPFQzSARF29wT8LBU0p2n1wuTGBRqKdWQ3l2p6y4uXC1wSQ6aw5A7-zGW4i6cCdmbT8mTNXi9/w640-h302/Intro+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3ZPvXtV9KjPWvWIUzglOkfMKshWK-S2lClBHCf4M81ja4E-qC5Epd89qZjjn1QqNd_I994fhPpmzoSK4u3LM_UUxhvEzgIyxNmuzAOH2IBmf0aeNFd2mlwdGEtj5tep_NKyUdFgt3j3z/s2576/Intro+5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3ZPvXtV9KjPWvWIUzglOkfMKshWK-S2lClBHCf4M81ja4E-qC5Epd89qZjjn1QqNd_I994fhPpmzoSK4u3LM_UUxhvEzgIyxNmuzAOH2IBmf0aeNFd2mlwdGEtj5tep_NKyUdFgt3j3z/w640-h304/Intro+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxz0LmRPiDliTUJBmEWKpQO5IDOtI35NCZ15IJ4Af5fqJmvj9mj_Um14lp6N0VWl7jwEwJ52hCvBtvR0omz43FsofXhe9aorKrjJnM7ccdvRSp1gQG_gd7maoATm2yQVBLY3qQlq_bz47i/s2576/Intro+8.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxz0LmRPiDliTUJBmEWKpQO5IDOtI35NCZ15IJ4Af5fqJmvj9mj_Um14lp6N0VWl7jwEwJ52hCvBtvR0omz43FsofXhe9aorKrjJnM7ccdvRSp1gQG_gd7maoATm2yQVBLY3qQlq_bz47i/w640-h304/Intro+8.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><i>Although normally every Ardacon is filled with stalls of people selling and sharing their hobby goodness, this year due to a lower attendance we were lucky to have SBG Magazine crew with all their work displayed for everyone to check out. This is always a highlight of every Ardacon - not only the incredibly high quality magazines, but also the miniatures and terrain that Damian, Tom and SBG contributors have created over the years. Additionally, on Saturday Matthew from Generation Shift turned up with his catalogue of beautifully designed bases.</i></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Friday Evening</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In the evening we had a fabulous SBG Magazine presentation, where Tom & Damian shared their journey with everybody present and discussed the possible future issues of the mag, with plans all the way into the late 2020s! I had the honour of writing an article for them in the latest issue number 11, so if you haven't got your hands on a copy yet, I urge you to get it - it's by far the best publication dedicated to our game out there. Here's a sneak peak of what the article was about:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi1bJLqqW25A3z66WDMfTcmBZkdlqubQ3HHsxfp4T80vAPBjNax3flQ8DIIZyNpv9cNgvupdhiy3-Q60vbJzk7y_J-K-8OnfNOlr7IyYhMmUACg4yFzmZCzailaqQUJzaMBbKsiE_PXgJR/s6000/No+Filter+-+Shelob+1.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3376" data-original-width="6000" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi1bJLqqW25A3z66WDMfTcmBZkdlqubQ3HHsxfp4T80vAPBjNax3flQ8DIIZyNpv9cNgvupdhiy3-Q60vbJzk7y_J-K-8OnfNOlr7IyYhMmUACg4yFzmZCzailaqQUJzaMBbKsiE_PXgJR/w563-h317/No+Filter+-+Shelob+1.JPG" width="563" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUEt9Fx_BpOkXL5yTJoqk-zF6nMk5sL6zuIRQebdHUiZHAK0iyqr6wPU0xTbBr5rX7RJIzliSVvLj-_VCreTDfrfs2UEWhntDiItqApX84rnYDK4RdEJ5tNDIsR1l948XiKWIZ2BUp84rY/s2048/Dead+1+FINISHED+Lower+Res.tif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUEt9Fx_BpOkXL5yTJoqk-zF6nMk5sL6zuIRQebdHUiZHAK0iyqr6wPU0xTbBr5rX7RJIzliSVvLj-_VCreTDfrfs2UEWhntDiItqApX84rnYDK4RdEJ5tNDIsR1l948XiKWIZ2BUp84rY/w564-h317/Dead+1+FINISHED+Lower+Res.tif" width="564" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;">After the presentation, we headed to the hotel bar where many of us ended up hanging out until about 2am.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiBnkaRQGyMTIy_6q7puZsJXxvP5HHg5Qe9Nr6xMQUnFl4BQldtqJ8YXOk3t6I-PHp-YmWqHpVNSBDwM-jgdUT48Yj-CNLshzyfenvB0Z_20jPbxC8D2M5MYHLuWwotFRb8hVaR_Ta32Sf/s2578/Intro+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiBnkaRQGyMTIy_6q7puZsJXxvP5HHg5Qe9Nr6xMQUnFl4BQldtqJ8YXOk3t6I-PHp-YmWqHpVNSBDwM-jgdUT48Yj-CNLshzyfenvB0Z_20jPbxC8D2M5MYHLuWwotFRb8hVaR_Ta32Sf/w640-h302/Intro+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz3QmifCg7y_UFV3C-FZKlgZq8mBX2R7svp6D31IM_yrXZ-pUiG8fAQxA6nNXr5V-n8NGOYDAI9acZ65VhdXNhzK584oK8RVyrxRF4bAEK5EwpD2gky1YJTCmrf5dE5_bd7H19rjoxlZil/s2578/Intro+7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2578" data-original-width="1220" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz3QmifCg7y_UFV3C-FZKlgZq8mBX2R7svp6D31IM_yrXZ-pUiG8fAQxA6nNXr5V-n8NGOYDAI9acZ65VhdXNhzK584oK8RVyrxRF4bAEK5EwpD2gky1YJTCmrf5dE5_bd7H19rjoxlZil/w151-h320/Intro+7.jpg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Oh and I won a Freddo during the presentation!</div><br /><br /><b>THE MAIN EVENT</b><br /><o:p><br />On Saturday morning, after the hotel breakfast, people started flowing into the main room of Mercure Hotel for what was to be 4x 600 point games on Saturday and 2 games on Sunday. From the start the room was filled with super friendly atmosphere as we all proceeded to find our tables and begin our battles.<br /></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><u>THE ARMY LIST:</u><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Suladan, the Serpent Lord on an Armoured Horse (Leader)</b></div>
</b><div style="text-align: justify;">8 Serpent Guard</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Haradrim Warrior with a Spear</div><div style="text-align: justify;">9 Haradrim Warriors with Bows</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Gothmog, Lieutenant of Sauron with a Shield on a Warg</b></div>
</b><div style="text-align: justify;">4 Orcs with Spears</div><div style="text-align: justify;">4 Morannons with Shields & Spears</div><div style="text-align: justify;">7 Morannons with Shields</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Shelob</b></div><o:p></o:p></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total: </b>36 Models, 6 Might (plus Master of Battle), 9
Bows<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">We discussed the army in detail on an episode of An Unexpected
Podcast, which you can watch below:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQZwOE0M3D0&ab_channel=DCHobbitLeague"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="409" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tQZwOE0M3D0" width="492" youtube-src-id="tQZwOE0M3D0"></iframe></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In summary, the reasons for this list were as follows:</div><div style="text-align: justify;">- Suladan is amazing</div><div style="text-align: justify;">- Gothmog was a last minute choice, after the change in the FAQ nerfing Ranger
of Ithilien Legendary Legion. With the nerf in place, I was confident I didn’t need
The Shadow Lord anymore and removed him from my original Mordor/Harad list. The 170 points cost of SL on Fell Beast was then used to get someone cheaper with more troops. Gothmog happens to be a pretty decent
hero. It was a split decision between Gothmog and a 3/12/3 mounted Witch King
with a Crown, but I opted for Gothmog due to Heroic Defence, Master of Battle
and his cool special rules making Orcs and Morannon Orcs significantly stronger
for a short period of time. Had I opted for Black Numenoreans, I would have taken the Witch King.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">- I always wanted Shelob in the list and outside of Gorbag and a handful of
orcs, I didn’t really see any better options before the tournament.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">- 36 is a good number of models to have at 600 points.</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><u>THE SCORING SYSTEM:</u><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">The standard Matched Play Guide provides a scoring system of
5 points for a win, 2 for a draw and 0 for a loss, with an additional 1 TP for
achieving a Major Victory. Additionally, it suggests Oaths of Battle (additional
random objectives) to be used as a tie breaker if the TO wants to use them at all. Ardacon did something different. For
this tournament, the rules said there would not be a Major/Minor victory,
instead a successful completion of an Oath would grant 1 extra Tournament
Point. In effect, completing 5 Oaths throughout the tournament would be
equivalent to an additional ‘free’ win. By the nature of this, there was even possibility of draws granting a score of 3-2, 2-2, 3-3 and 2-3. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">To choose an Oath for your game, you pick 3 previously unused ones from the Matched Play Guide and your opponent randomly picks one of the 3 for you to do for this game. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">As it later transpired, this meant the Oaths of Battle became
rather important if you didn't win all of your games, but we’ll get to that…</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b>THE GAMES</b></p><ul><li><b><u>Game 1: Lords of Battle vs Shane’s Hobbits &
Rivendell</u></b></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Shane’s Army List:<b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i>Note: We were using the Tourn.ee online tournament
software, which allows you to view lists of your opponents on your phone and
keep them saved for later. I love that, since I can put up here the exact lists my
opponents used in their games, as well as see every list of every player at the
event and how well they did. It's also super useful pre-game, as you don't have to find your list and give it to your opponent, since they have access to it already on their phone.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Glorfindel with Armour of Gondolin on Asfaloth</b></div>
</b><div style="text-align: justify;">3 High Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears</div><div style="text-align: justify;">4 High Elf Warriors with Shields & Spears</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Meriadoc on a Pony</b></div></b><div style="text-align: justify;">10 Battlin Brandybucks</div><div style="text-align: justify;">5 Militia</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Robin Smallburrow</b></div></b><div style="text-align: justify;">12 Hobbit Archers</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 4:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Holfoot Bracegirdle</b></div></b><div style="text-align: justify;">8 Sheriffs</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 5:</b></div>
<b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Farmer Maggot & Hounds</b></div></b><div style="text-align: justify;">3 Hobbit Archers</div><div style="text-align: justify;">5 Militia</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Total: 58 Models, 15 Bows, plus however many points of Might the
little ones bring!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>THE GAME:<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>My Oath: Combat Master (Gothmog to kill 10)<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">My tournament began by staring down a horde of Hobbits led
by Glorfindel. We both deployed almost at the centre line and got stuck into combat on turn 2.
Glorfindel found himself on the edge of the board on my right flank, allowing
Shelob, Suladan and Gothmog to do some killing in the middle. The little ones
were unable to put up a good fight against my big heroes and Shelob did made some big Hurls, killing several models in the process. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6zrK4dC5oPQOJfNKA1KmUHylIyNzGtOvgTqBBTaFdhmlc-JyLs-QTJrCf8JFUrC9b4WH6f7CVrmYHnyJtTmxcm8NIohVhPUCLu51OtZIcFnunHDJXmC3dCXun67z2mSRXRjMuuUP3Dqu2/s2576/G1+-+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6zrK4dC5oPQOJfNKA1KmUHylIyNzGtOvgTqBBTaFdhmlc-JyLs-QTJrCf8JFUrC9b4WH6f7CVrmYHnyJtTmxcm8NIohVhPUCLu51OtZIcFnunHDJXmC3dCXun67z2mSRXRjMuuUP3Dqu2/w640-h304/G1+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe0Tc9Vrpno4724v7LXK4cQb44yspZsntKKi1Wro3vrbG4iwuc_eXpHyiN1jcX4OaAEy0IQNipxUxjIIAZYUSCd-p6cQ6Jozj12G7DEwcnsaM6lfaCSv5-cA1UFrHk3RHwEIeB146zs2d8/s2576/G1+-+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe0Tc9Vrpno4724v7LXK4cQb44yspZsntKKi1Wro3vrbG4iwuc_eXpHyiN1jcX4OaAEy0IQNipxUxjIIAZYUSCd-p6cQ6Jozj12G7DEwcnsaM6lfaCSv5-cA1UFrHk3RHwEIeB146zs2d8/w640-h304/G1+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Shane wasn’t able to use his huge numerical advantage thanks
to a relatively dense terrain placement and a solid formation from my orcs and
Haradrim, who backed by Suladan’s banner proved to be too powerful for the
1-attack hobbits to overcome. The overwhelming numbers really got stuck
inbetween buildings and their short legs meant that a lot of the hobbits
weren’t able to engage and surround me quickly, so my infantry line managed to
cut the hobbits down. The Elves proved to be a bit of a trouble and slowed me down, but only for a
short amount of time. <o:p></o:p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuaoxJFFokSDFMvfN9pclvLbo-nl6HkwY-S7t-bDQ6KMCnIamk7K9DYJLAUUoV5ax_b3yewsA548JOEycPeMHiPUnXjtW8_m6Q2kjrecKvBvilDpvhBkE94Euxtj5B7xFFVCrC1C8kQdyZ/s2578/G1+-+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuaoxJFFokSDFMvfN9pclvLbo-nl6HkwY-S7t-bDQ6KMCnIamk7K9DYJLAUUoV5ax_b3yewsA548JOEycPeMHiPUnXjtW8_m6Q2kjrecKvBvilDpvhBkE94Euxtj5B7xFFVCrC1C8kQdyZ/w640-h302/G1+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifizDYgEhSTBpptgnoOzhAPOeo2Z8HtZiEDIj5NVgFTQkDvuVVKLrXLOx_8Hx9m2E1rCu_rn1uEioSV8CTJgGtxyz2op_aUT5fnMNRQarGRg2vDAccK5ereWfKsjwlIzgvwrYTxMHlSRT_/s2578/G1+-+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifizDYgEhSTBpptgnoOzhAPOeo2Z8HtZiEDIj5NVgFTQkDvuVVKLrXLOx_8Hx9m2E1rCu_rn1uEioSV8CTJgGtxyz2op_aUT5fnMNRQarGRg2vDAccK5ereWfKsjwlIzgvwrYTxMHlSRT_/w640-h302/G1+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzqrvwyTs8CCBgOL5LAWgQwesdm-afDjpJXU6VrjAJjtC2PYJ4_bSAG98XG_ImZLp6lpInaeh3OnKQVkUAcgPE1MCgbdJdJkXUTRqjKoxIlMcW_McsLbneoAsut-uTx3ynlrm1EYukqie/s2578/G1+-+5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzqrvwyTs8CCBgOL5LAWgQwesdm-afDjpJXU6VrjAJjtC2PYJ4_bSAG98XG_ImZLp6lpInaeh3OnKQVkUAcgPE1MCgbdJdJkXUTRqjKoxIlMcW_McsLbneoAsut-uTx3ynlrm1EYukqie/w640-h302/G1+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXe-erC-9Y2r7OS9jhvvkdIr6ynC_RKsZVyp29lC5-Fd1Lv6FAcLD09oHVPoS4ZYW-7KmU3dsLm5wSOxIDOfd7QkfXP6NAOGUH0k86pmDaxyjJ2bMgDOB_0gjX2HwDne2Es_XWrir3fhrv/s2578/G1+-+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXe-erC-9Y2r7OS9jhvvkdIr6ynC_RKsZVyp29lC5-Fd1Lv6FAcLD09oHVPoS4ZYW-7KmU3dsLm5wSOxIDOfd7QkfXP6NAOGUH0k86pmDaxyjJ2bMgDOB_0gjX2HwDne2Es_XWrir3fhrv/w640-h302/G1+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Score: 6-1 </b>(the final kill count was 45-18, so I
scored 5 for that, then both armies broke, so we both got 1 TP).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Oath: Failed</b> - Gothmog was supposed to kill 10, but a
failed Heroic Combat against 2 of them meant he was only able to take out 8
hobbits and the game ended on the first roll after breaking. That was quite
unfortunate, as even 1 extra turn would have probably been enough to achieve
this Oath, since all he had to do was win a combat against 2 and roll 2x 4+ from 8 dice. "Kill 10 enemies” is harder than you think, even against the
little ones – in 600 points games on average this Oath is asking your hero to
kill about a quarter or more of your opponent’s troops, which is something not
even the likes of Boromir will do if they get stuck in the wrong place, Transfixed for a couple of turns or blocked by a Heroic Defence. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><ul><li><b><u>Game 2: Domination vs Harry’s Angmar</u></b></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;">Harry’s Army List:</div>
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><b>Witch King of Angmar with Crown, on a horse with 3 Might, 14 Will, 3 Fate</b></b></div><b>
</b><div style="text-align: justify;">7 Orcs with Shield</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Orc with Shield & Banner</div><div style="text-align: justify;">8 Orcs with Spears</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Warg Rider</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Wild Warg</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b></div><b><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Gulavhar, The Terror of Arnor</b></div>
</b><div style="text-align: justify;">6 Orcs with Shield</div><div style="text-align: justify;">6 Orcs with Spear</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Dead Marsh Spectre</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Warg Rider</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Wild Warg</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Total: 35 Models, 6 Might<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>THE GAME:<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>My Oath: Slay the Wizard (Kill The Witch King)<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">In the break between rounds 1 and 2, as I was wandering
around the room, I saw my old friend Harry Moore. We started chatting, then we
realised that we’re both on an Oathless 6-1 win from game 1, so we might play each
other. 10min later we were told exactly that.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">The living legend that Harry is (My ETC-winning teammate from 2018 and a Warhammer Doubles Champion from 2011, as well as winner of many other tournaments), he was always going to be one of the toughest opponents I would face at Ardacon. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Harry’s list had only 2 warbands, led by 2 huge heroes and a
horde of mediocre orcs. The list relied heavily on the insane killing power of
Gulavhar backed by Witch King’s magic and 3 attacks. Gulavhar, with his
Mostrous Charge is capable of throwing 10 strikes at Strength 8
against the unlucky enemies that happen to lose combat to him, meaning he kills
almost everything on 3+, with some things on 4+ (unless you’re Sauron, Balrog
or a Dwarf legend, then he’ll need a 5+, so with 10 strikes he can regularly take out
the likes of Durin in a single turn). <o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzpK39vpJTTYL4HvKATk4k8uOoaB6AuR_EplyTUfJJ_9XP2bXv5QJ4CXbxLJvE1_fmpF9K9XaqXq8DIWiLGgAIHUjayhHpJbA0WbjJ1whqG7bxl99wpBUkisy4pbSb3A6HS_lOHCbLDN4x/s2578/G2+-+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzpK39vpJTTYL4HvKATk4k8uOoaB6AuR_EplyTUfJJ_9XP2bXv5QJ4CXbxLJvE1_fmpF9K9XaqXq8DIWiLGgAIHUjayhHpJbA0WbjJ1whqG7bxl99wpBUkisy4pbSb3A6HS_lOHCbLDN4x/w640-h302/G2+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvt_vcPNtgpHexJP0dicDHAI0h-b1mwFVz7c6HxW4oraWXQqBzBFCoipXTtHnRG6tDI71mZ-9kDGYI-0Kmt8v-6q2D-1RDICdiSrOIsJoMRedOtt5ZO5Od4nU5QuD1_7UlafBGjaxbU6ep/s2578/G2+-+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvt_vcPNtgpHexJP0dicDHAI0h-b1mwFVz7c6HxW4oraWXQqBzBFCoipXTtHnRG6tDI71mZ-9kDGYI-0Kmt8v-6q2D-1RDICdiSrOIsJoMRedOtt5ZO5Od4nU5QuD1_7UlafBGjaxbU6ep/w640-h302/G2+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqs6RGaPrtNdHQv4dMcGROIKQFy4mI-JMVRi8CT_wvcZp25EJpGuoRxMlG4eMO38pcusTCi42odn1gQxug242ysTmqiNbpkm-dkFvhyphenhyphenrE78slcRBzMQkAAGaVyITSshP_lZYRQ1E3ouHmA/s2578/G2+-+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqs6RGaPrtNdHQv4dMcGROIKQFy4mI-JMVRi8CT_wvcZp25EJpGuoRxMlG4eMO38pcusTCi42odn1gQxug242ysTmqiNbpkm-dkFvhyphenhyphenrE78slcRBzMQkAAGaVyITSshP_lZYRQ1E3ouHmA/w640-h302/G2+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">For the deployment I figured there were going to be 2
options – keep all of my heroes together and hope one of them doesn’t get
transfixed on the turn I lose priority and then eaten by Gulavhar before a quick retreat, or spread my
heroes across the lines, hoping that Harry will throw Gulavhar behind my lines early on to try to eat one of them and then I can maybe rescue that hero with the other two. Having
not played for a very long time and knowing that Harry played a tournament just
before Ardacon, I opted for a higher risk/reward option 2, as I didn’t think
with my rusty skills, I can win with a more conservative strategy - we'd play a war of attrition, my Will points would run out and eventually Gulavhar and Witch King would eat my heroes anyway - this had to be quick and risky instead!</p><div>The game started with Harry engaging my troops and casting a Transfix on Suladan, which I managed to resist. I surrounded Suladan with some warriors to keep him safe from a Heroic Combatting Gulavhar, but didn't quite position my troops correctly, as Gully was able to Hurl a model and just about push Suladan off his horse. </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisC3lDHxiGX1SvGeDm7LiOf8-FLFeaoCX5nZuywEoT1A3fi1AQk7tuluSHhVGkVGpQTFrjb9TSsXTzzayWsiD-YbO02EkS1bwQh5fPePsBLfq4nOURrTT3zlt03caUvv901gakYrNfJwuu/s2578/G2+-+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisC3lDHxiGX1SvGeDm7LiOf8-FLFeaoCX5nZuywEoT1A3fi1AQk7tuluSHhVGkVGpQTFrjb9TSsXTzzayWsiD-YbO02EkS1bwQh5fPePsBLfq4nOURrTT3zlt03caUvv901gakYrNfJwuu/w640-h302/G2+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">On turn 2 Gully hopped over my lines and started forcing his way through into Suladan, whilst my leader got Transfixed and Witch King was taking out some of my front rank warriors to also dig a hole in the middle of my force in attempt to get through. At that point I Heroic Combatted Gothmog and Shelob from the right flank back into a position nearby that would allow me to charge the unsuspecting and exposed Witch King a turn later. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">A moment later came the craziest turn of the whole tournament for me. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kvrvh_YQ8pnUIz4VeXWmSbGPuEg3ERxbLsIqeFZ24pbxXIeMeeymTl-jWvVMfSsDX3U5BgcczvvEbzLJ8AaRcmg0SEoxmqdJf_7b73vE8RRcHEcXeAO9E92gTr9M-wrGlMH7Hg34lOpm/s2578/G2+-+5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kvrvh_YQ8pnUIz4VeXWmSbGPuEg3ERxbLsIqeFZ24pbxXIeMeeymTl-jWvVMfSsDX3U5BgcczvvEbzLJ8AaRcmg0SEoxmqdJf_7b73vE8RRcHEcXeAO9E92gTr9M-wrGlMH7Hg34lOpm/w640-h302/G2+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Suladan, Gothmog, Shelob, Gulavhar and Witch King were now all in charging
distance of each other behind my lines. The high-risk plan so far didn't get me killed (yet), I now just needed to roll some good dice. I won priority. Witch King had to call a Heroic Move to
get his charge off and Gothmog’s positioning meant I had one for free, leading
to a possibly game-deciding roll-off.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Harry won the roll-off with Witch King and spent quite some
time figuring out what to do. He then cast Transfix on Suladan on a 6 and my 1
dice and 1 Might weren’t sufficient to resist. He sent
Gulavhar at Shelob and positioned an Orc in a way that my Gothmog wouldn’t be
able to get into the same fight whilst mounted and Orc would force a charge for
Gothmog due to a control zone. When my turn to move came, I decided to dismount
Gothmog and get into fight with both Gulavhar and the Orc (Terror passed), then
charged the Orc with another one of my warriors. With Priority on my side that meant Gothmog and Shelob were fighting Gulavhar, whilst the orc got pulled off by one of my Morannons. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Nothing else in this game is
relevant other than what happened next…<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii9JH8HACDadU0RK5nhawJGkLuXulF37NMksHgj2s5AjkX_jf4NYyFmRSTjKwDYMEsOmx7JyymiYeP8j-jCiDgMCCgQKoI5Y36_c6jMdbsKOsojUrQQDxXyB9iNPi5u2vz3zpvsnmK7gHy/s2578/G2+-+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii9JH8HACDadU0RK5nhawJGkLuXulF37NMksHgj2s5AjkX_jf4NYyFmRSTjKwDYMEsOmx7JyymiYeP8j-jCiDgMCCgQKoI5Y36_c6jMdbsKOsojUrQQDxXyB9iNPi5u2vz3zpvsnmK7gHy/w640-h302/G2+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">In combat, initially nobody called any Heroics. I then made
a pretty big mistake. I was so worried about Gulavhar beating me in combat (Fight 7 on both sides, so with 5 dice for him and 4 for me, a pretty much 50/50 who wins) and killing
Gothmog, that I called a Heroic Strike for my last Might point. This meant
Harry was now able to call a Heroic Strike with Witch King to put himself above Fight 5 in the combat with Transfixed Suladan, without granting me a free Strike with Gothmog. It wasn’t the end of the world, as now I had good odds of beating
Gulavhar in combat and hopefully wounding him 2 or 3 times with Shelob and
Gothmog (only Defence 5). I accepted the fact that Suladan would probably perish, but I was hopeful that Gulavhar will lose a couple of wounds and stop being a major threat. With that threat diminished, I'd be able to use my Gothmog and Shelob next turn to finish him off and go after Witch King with my warriors.</p><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Instead, Gulavhar won his combat against my Fight 10 Gothmog and Shelob and he knocked both Gothmog
and Shelob down. He had 10 strikes, 8 of which killed Gothmog and the remaining
2 caused a wound on Shelob. She had previously spent 3 Will trying to pass a Courage test from one of Harry's Spectres (these guys are great!) and instead of rolling well, she did what this blog is named after… She Came,
She Saw and She Rolled a Double 1 (with C4, -1 for Harbinger and 3 Will, I was
effectively at 4+ on 2 dice to survive, meaning I was passing the test 11 times out of 12…
or 50/50 if you like, as she either runs or she doesn’t). <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">With Gothmog and Shelob gone and Suladan about to die to Witch King, I pretty much gave up at that point. To my surprise, despite losing the fight against Witch King, Suladan survived the fight, but with just 1 Might left and staring down a 4-wound Gulavhar, I had no way of coming back in this game. My leader perished the next turn and my army very swiftly disintegrated.<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zXzZDefOZqPedy6Xg-7JmYK6SLC-GFh6n1YJyrOsV_kGzSwMU-S6HaSsA14fHJNettOtElNOVbZYRi6xaN4MoFS3dRI4gIhSLMM8K2v_yup4zAIEBg97ogTNcNEfy81MKxoZs8UEyjs2/s2578/G2+-+7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zXzZDefOZqPedy6Xg-7JmYK6SLC-GFh6n1YJyrOsV_kGzSwMU-S6HaSsA14fHJNettOtElNOVbZYRi6xaN4MoFS3dRI4gIhSLMM8K2v_yup4zAIEBg97ogTNcNEfy81MKxoZs8UEyjs2/w640-h302/G2+-+7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Score: 2-10</b> (I held 1 objective, but Harry got the others, killed my leader and broke me).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Oath: Failed</b> – Witch King survived.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><ul><li><b><u>Game 3: Command the Battlefield vs Dan's Return of the
King Legendary Legion</u></b></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Dan's Army List:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p><b>Warband 1:</b><br /><b>Aragorn, Strider with Anduril, Flame of the West</b><br />3 Warriors of the Dead with Shield<br />4 Warriors of the Dead with Shield & Spear</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p><b>Warband 2:</b><br /><b>The King of the Dead</b><br />2 Warriors of the Dead with Shield<br />3 Warriors of the Dead with Shield & Spear</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p><b>Warband 3:</b><br /><b>Legolas Greenleaf with Elven Cloak</b><br />2 Riders of the Dead</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>Total: 17 models, 7 Might. </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p><b>My Oath: Take & Hold - Have more models within 6" of the centre than your opponent. </b></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Numbers in this scenario are quite important, as unlike Hold
Ground, where you can get into a relatively small area of the centre with your
whole army and fight it out, here you need to split your army into every corner
and stay away from the centre. Dan had only 17 models, giving me a good
advantage from the start.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">My advantage began to cripple very quickly though, after my Shelob ended up
rolling a 1 for deployment on turn 1 and then coming onto the board in a “safe
space” only to be jumped by King of the Dead's Heroic Move and killed before she managed to
make her 2<sup>nd</sup> move. <o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAN3yNvyzlcsV0MPzYC0SXwnW-JhVkZDVAV3jUnj3o9Th9jJ_CRVNwlC5K93bmbXcIcB7uljVAu2spdEEND8APxeE4IcnZhSIeHi8zVZ3aT4_NSWB4wgDqBJC1F3GSXXG9Y9E-srz0eAIA/s2576/G3+-+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAN3yNvyzlcsV0MPzYC0SXwnW-JhVkZDVAV3jUnj3o9Th9jJ_CRVNwlC5K93bmbXcIcB7uljVAu2spdEEND8APxeE4IcnZhSIeHi8zVZ3aT4_NSWB4wgDqBJC1F3GSXXG9Y9E-srz0eAIA/w640-h304/G3+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuk-ebcszxzlVp7eHVLIev04QvpIrMc7fkj8CNnvRBwp1kjpXSta9VC-QJxqi4OEzKOkQ5v6-srX9FJtM5r8jWj9vRQU3IEUe6nyXGDRQs89lUlxZVEHdEBqt0FPJCzdfqTE_GtAHR5hQc/s2576/G3+-+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuk-ebcszxzlVp7eHVLIev04QvpIrMc7fkj8CNnvRBwp1kjpXSta9VC-QJxqi4OEzKOkQ5v6-srX9FJtM5r8jWj9vRQU3IEUe6nyXGDRQs89lUlxZVEHdEBqt0FPJCzdfqTE_GtAHR5hQc/w640-h304/G3+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUTDBnz51BFcuM9amh7Kz4uc3Mkdho2v1B9gBIVrgFdP-1PeZMa_VVYDWw9BPphR5JbfMb1B24NpBPX7bR4s2FMxO5vV-DzZgEoOqayDq51LM-WMQRieqIZOZDUJg2-NiitfHss0TuoVS/s2578/G3+-+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUTDBnz51BFcuM9amh7Kz4uc3Mkdho2v1B9gBIVrgFdP-1PeZMa_VVYDWw9BPphR5JbfMb1B24NpBPX7bR4s2FMxO5vV-DzZgEoOqayDq51LM-WMQRieqIZOZDUJg2-NiitfHss0TuoVS/w640-h302/G3+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Shelob’s death however meant that half of Dan’s army
was deployed on the opposite side of the board from Aragorn's warband, allowing me to
quickly overwhelm his leader’s troops with my entire army and when he was left
on his own, Gothmog and some orcs went in, won a Heroic Strike-off and swiftly took him out.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Dan’s army broke very quickly and I started spreading into
different corners, using my now very large numerical advantage. Legolas managed to kill a
few models before being swamped and dying in combat with some Haradrim. At that point the game became a
hunt to take out a handful of the Army of the Dead, whilst trying to secure
each corner for max VPs. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsugpIRT0W20Y1_FoOmZcosdfmlyGzDYv6ija9DUt_MhHz-j8ysk9iiwdogLyIki_OhrZmBqyY6EDugS2CRSJLWdQhQmG6yM0hkSiu2rchbDcbTHGVBQdhkI3WQ1wkYV6cWkiNxozlSYqO/s2576/G3+-+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsugpIRT0W20Y1_FoOmZcosdfmlyGzDYv6ija9DUt_MhHz-j8ysk9iiwdogLyIki_OhrZmBqyY6EDugS2CRSJLWdQhQmG6yM0hkSiu2rchbDcbTHGVBQdhkI3WQ1wkYV6cWkiNxozlSYqO/w640-h304/G3+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn-JqvqxEDfgKMOsWkrshQTEOXzlspDo6_g_Larm4RI2cycIc44nfodbX1BQMiDyOlCvppCujWk6vZ9fnEKVkHTYzw9tnzTWPAig8TRbQvoHN7vCdZ-1KNz2giw7WaaA7_mI-x0c5jblh_/s2576/G3+-+5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn-JqvqxEDfgKMOsWkrshQTEOXzlspDo6_g_Larm4RI2cycIc44nfodbX1BQMiDyOlCvppCujWk6vZ9fnEKVkHTYzw9tnzTWPAig8TRbQvoHN7vCdZ-1KNz2giw7WaaA7_mI-x0c5jblh_/w640-h304/G3+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeHmX94VVkmwD4DbKz2g0Vxvw3x08WlkYkzIwSNTpQAxxk0DLmHbNUyQjUmRjo6atf3L00bhR4MJei91gXw84hpDpd1ddWCjWfLBnQ1RX4GcbSknPZMrr9senpOjpGAXbj8dXzKgDPmYZ/s2576/G3+-+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeHmX94VVkmwD4DbKz2g0Vxvw3x08WlkYkzIwSNTpQAxxk0DLmHbNUyQjUmRjo6atf3L00bhR4MJei91gXw84hpDpd1ddWCjWfLBnQ1RX4GcbSknPZMrr9senpOjpGAXbj8dXzKgDPmYZ/w640-h304/G3+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Score: 12-0</b> (or 11-1, I don’t remember exactly if
there was a quarter of the board where I didn’t fully control). <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Oath: Succeeded!</b> I think this is a good Oath to have
in this scenario, because people tend not to go to the middle very much, so it
becomes an easy one to get. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p><b style="text-align: left;"><u>Game 4: Destroy the Supplies vs Nick’s Arnor</u></b></p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Nick's Army List:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b><br /><b>Arvedui, Last King of Arnor</b><br />6 Warriors of Arnor<br />1 Warrior of Arnor with a Banner<br />3 Rangers of Arnor with Spears</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b><br /><b>Captain of Arnor</b><br />7 Warriors of Arnor<br />3 Rangers of Arnor with Spears</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b><br /><b>Malbeth, the Seer</b><br />6 Warriors of Arnor<br />1 Ranger of Arnor<br />2 Rangers of Arnor with Spears</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 4:</b><br /><b>Captain of Arnor</b><br />6 Warriors of Arnor<br />3 Rangers of Arnor with Spears</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Total: 42 Models, 8 Might, 12 Bows. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>My Oath: Sending The Message (Kill the most expensive enemy
hero – Arvedui)</b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">When I saw Nick’s army, my hopes of ending day 1 on 3 wins
vanished. 42 models, with Fight 4 and 5 across the line, a fearless bubble and
5+ saves from Malbeth is a terrifying sight. I never played this scenario before but
having seen how Pascal and Matt played it in a Duel on the German episode of the
podcast...</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="397" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zI4BkNoANpw" width="477" youtube-src-id="zI4BkNoANpw"></iframe></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">.... plus our discussion of it on another episode...</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="398" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NY_tQlIFhQU" width="478" youtube-src-id="NY_tQlIFhQU"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"> ... I had a decent idea what to do and how to win it!</span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">The 2 armies deployed opposite each other. We started
walking and doing a bit of shooting. The terrain positioning meant that I was
able to do a little more shooting than Nick and my 9 Haradrim did more damage than his 12 Rangers. Soon Nick gave up on shooting and began moving towards me at full speed.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZsbDlqsN0J-ULpfOPYEwXPSKhtuhD221I8WEiMcsiO1_UFtDQ-uqiZ_YhPtRh1LWdfSOBSylTAJsJEoTJyugPBji7iTyy-kk6IwqDE3ziOyrSNIWuidPm8XO5gg4tWWYz6aHJGpHWMjTE/s2576/G4+-+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZsbDlqsN0J-ULpfOPYEwXPSKhtuhD221I8WEiMcsiO1_UFtDQ-uqiZ_YhPtRh1LWdfSOBSylTAJsJEoTJyugPBji7iTyy-kk6IwqDE3ziOyrSNIWuidPm8XO5gg4tWWYz6aHJGpHWMjTE/w640-h304/G4+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqp7IhwfHLR16P6l54uJH9IyGLoi4jC1L37VLvbkC4SaHbyPeCueOu0ZPfCsbYzZsfPyamza1RKTzF_4liimCmlbLEXCq1BNxkEoPRl4BPvt7TS6v-JhvIfezBeericBO4I9b2LR6WqIzb/s2576/G4+-+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqp7IhwfHLR16P6l54uJH9IyGLoi4jC1L37VLvbkC4SaHbyPeCueOu0ZPfCsbYzZsfPyamza1RKTzF_4liimCmlbLEXCq1BNxkEoPRl4BPvt7TS6v-JhvIfezBeericBO4I9b2LR6WqIzb/w640-h304/G4+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNU4paghhHQYfZik7rdbf33mw-o2C5KkVnaq4OqRH3Ej5tbd219W98wdgaWiZr3mbaVt5jcNoCd3K-fVz-EALnyh79UE74szqdG3FZtNoKFWog9WmxiAp4wiFFAwWcCcNZi2KAV8OXMq9g/s2578/G4+-+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNU4paghhHQYfZik7rdbf33mw-o2C5KkVnaq4OqRH3Ej5tbd219W98wdgaWiZr3mbaVt5jcNoCd3K-fVz-EALnyh79UE74szqdG3FZtNoKFWog9WmxiAp4wiFFAwWcCcNZi2KAV8OXMq9g/w640-h302/G4+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Early on I decided to send Shelob on a little adventure down the left
flank, which proved key to winning this game. Nick left 3 Rangers defending a
forest-based supply on his right flank, plus a Captain and 1 warrior were sent on the same flank to try and block Shelob from running up. That meant that with the 3 models I killed through shooting, the 5 staying on my left flank and some rangers wandering in the middle of the board, I was able to outnumber him once the main combat began and Gothmog with Suladan throwing Heroic Combats were always going to cut down more enemies than Arvedui with a Captain. My two heroes went on a rampage, with 2 turns of Double Heroics, taking out about 10 models between them, quickly switching between,
left, right and centre, wherever additional killing power was needed.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">On my right flank initially I was having to fight Nick’s
captain and 8 Arnorians with my 11 warriors, but once Suladan joined, the
Arnorians got quickly overpowered thanks to his fighting prowess and the banner re-rolls. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Shelob, on her jolly run initially charged a Ranger thinking she'll take some models out too, but obviously lost combat and I quickly decided to scrap the idea of fighting with her, instead I went around the Rangers and freely ate the central supply, before visiting the right flank supply. The 3 Rangers were desperately trying to wound her, but to no avail. At 2
supplies down, Nick went for one final push on my left flank with the Captain joining the fight, but he didn’t
have enough killing power to break through before Suladan and Gothmog were able to return to defend. The game ended before Nick managed to reach any of my supplies. <o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA1V_jLcoVxPo-qALyCmTh5oygd2cmgwjbiEwBwIS6N5LdKKs1q72DRzaTbdZ5qH116cjhSAuPgLf7-s3e30sO147EEOmaILohYeqhUyrnMG3eGcx5VkF3fEZGctW2JfUpNRPUusjaCKVb/s2578/G4+-+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA1V_jLcoVxPo-qALyCmTh5oygd2cmgwjbiEwBwIS6N5LdKKs1q72DRzaTbdZ5qH116cjhSAuPgLf7-s3e30sO147EEOmaILohYeqhUyrnMG3eGcx5VkF3fEZGctW2JfUpNRPUusjaCKVb/w640-h302/G4+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi88vF5JK5KctVfSc3LUYCNrGQw6o_efUzyItqhj9hYcX4tQtYx33vVS2SqYRT68POLyCywgnB9-PApUKmQ_45TGTGsTigqIbtn3GFOMXXbrAJtdNvmIwCjjP5aJwEbAunUD_6R5LQR-FWf/s2578/G4+-+5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi88vF5JK5KctVfSc3LUYCNrGQw6o_efUzyItqhj9hYcX4tQtYx33vVS2SqYRT68POLyCywgnB9-PApUKmQ_45TGTGsTigqIbtn3GFOMXXbrAJtdNvmIwCjjP5aJwEbAunUD_6R5LQR-FWf/w640-h302/G4+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlm9wlSmiyMN6QhXOEKjEPSEiWUx2GiwlMZdVTSUu__xseDXeJ0jzLttDre6eSKMuxDIl5vvJuKBiFnWwudxNE95wsjTpJHcqOBgGGlBt4wkdqar4ycLHSBXbiNjo4pXrwVZFlNv3Pe40x/s2578/G4+-+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlm9wlSmiyMN6QhXOEKjEPSEiWUx2GiwlMZdVTSUu__xseDXeJ0jzLttDre6eSKMuxDIl5vvJuKBiFnWwudxNE95wsjTpJHcqOBgGGlBt4wkdqar4ycLHSBXbiNjo4pXrwVZFlNv3Pe40x/w640-h302/G4+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUQ6cdK5KrzUWAum1C7SKXUOfY6vHYUd0WC8glAncH2LsFjcnafl4-kRR7xpv3djaWmO_ZZ0wM9qh_YX_8RXGX-OMDVV3v-hYxGhX8HBLfQPvkwhCpeFCa7-ehVoakPzRNXJ99XAbaVDpb/s2576/G4+-+7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUQ6cdK5KrzUWAum1C7SKXUOfY6vHYUd0WC8glAncH2LsFjcnafl4-kRR7xpv3djaWmO_ZZ0wM9qh_YX_8RXGX-OMDVV3v-hYxGhX8HBLfQPvkwhCpeFCa7-ehVoakPzRNXJ99XAbaVDpb/w640-h304/G4+-+7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Score: 8-1</b> – 4 for destroying 2 supplies, 2 for
breaking, 1 for a banner on each side, 1 for wounding Arvedui.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Oath: Failed</b> – Arvedui was out of reach for Gothmog
and Morannons didn’t have enough time to kill him. He got woudned, but survived.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><ul><li><b><u>Game 5: Reconnoitre vs Nathan’s Minas Tirith</u></b></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Nathan's Army List:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b><br /><b>Boromir, Captain of the White Tower with the Banner of Minas Tirith, Horse & Shield</b><br />4 Warriors of MT with Shields<br />1 Knight of MT with Shield<br />3 Rangers of Gondor with Spears<br />1 Guard of the Fountain Court with Shield</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b><br /><b>Húrin, the Tall, Warden of the Keys</b><br />4 Warriors of MT with Shields<br />1 Knight of MT with Shield<br />3 Rangers of Gondor with Spears<br />1 Warrior of MT with Shield & Spear</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b><br /><b>Madril, Captain of Ithilien</b><br />3 Warriors of MT with Shield<br />1 Knight of MT with Shield<br />3 Rangers of Gondor with Spears<br />1 Warrior of MT with Shield & Spear</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Total: 29 Models, 12 Might, 10 Bows</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>My Oath: Worthy Leader (Suladan must not take any wounds or
lose fate)</b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">At 29 models, Nathan’s army wasn’t huge, but it had one of
the biggest threats you can encounter at any points level. The game started with all 3 of my warbands not showing up on turn 1 and his entire army entering in the centre. My Haradrim came onto the table on Turn 2, but Shelob and Gothmog only arrived on turn 3. Suladan's warband moved at full speed at first, then at half speed to get a few shots off. We moved a bit, we
shot a little and both suffered a couple of casualties before engaging. <o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdREtLQvcAURy5blkUa_9Ok3_zm0gMa2G52bIIjW7IRk84cPAYa-s3d-S8ZJM9uinJLcdGoRc9mu2UvXuGZvP9AkoWC8_WrGknbr-hoAR_tAbSrSofoBQiWwmOFHcDhYjt99-2x7ZBQrQS/s2578/G5+-+1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdREtLQvcAURy5blkUa_9Ok3_zm0gMa2G52bIIjW7IRk84cPAYa-s3d-S8ZJM9uinJLcdGoRc9mu2UvXuGZvP9AkoWC8_WrGknbr-hoAR_tAbSrSofoBQiWwmOFHcDhYjt99-2x7ZBQrQS/w640-h302/G5+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVKKo_ry2CJ2MGw3wSUbonz0F7FWx4cg0JlJmmmb6V8tkE2I_IB8eLxb6oFXHaWdNKcZ4jrqt7lTgM0y2E7tMtASg_ElCaCyDEOa10QfPj0k-iWIyIz9tBV2aBsbJtzYJB1y9XZ51YfHtu/s2578/G5+-+2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVKKo_ry2CJ2MGw3wSUbonz0F7FWx4cg0JlJmmmb6V8tkE2I_IB8eLxb6oFXHaWdNKcZ4jrqt7lTgM0y2E7tMtASg_ElCaCyDEOa10QfPj0k-iWIyIz9tBV2aBsbJtzYJB1y9XZ51YfHtu/w640-h302/G5+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">As the lines were coming closer to each other, I decided to
do some killing (aka. Can-Opener Method) with Gothmog before lines joined. I lost priority and sent Gothmog in on his own against 2 Warriors of Minas
Tirith (Fight 3) supported by Rangers (Fight 4). With his Hatred of Men, he normally takes them out on 4+,
so it was a great opportunity to take out 4 Warriors (with a Heroic Combat) from the front rank before the main fighting started and my troops would then engage D4 rangers. With Gothmog's Heroic Defence and Master of Battle I was
confident he was going to be safe up there, as the rest of the army was tight behind him.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7KdFIneL1UTet-FFbhz1ZlUwXN8eEv9XgKdEqvsGlyLzjl7f6c0VqJZ1Icc3dJMp3LojxRP6s9w86chIpDQuJI7BVkHPdpk9TSA2AnIt1H0GXEkC_uXXMf38OKzkIV3M449LcroWwgRL7/s2578/G5+-+3.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7KdFIneL1UTet-FFbhz1ZlUwXN8eEv9XgKdEqvsGlyLzjl7f6c0VqJZ1Icc3dJMp3LojxRP6s9w86chIpDQuJI7BVkHPdpk9TSA2AnIt1H0GXEkC_uXXMf38OKzkIV3M449LcroWwgRL7/w640-h302/G5+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>In combat I rolled a 5 to Nick’s 6, Mighted it to
a 6, as I was committed now and then I was reminded of the obvious
fact that the Rangers of Gondor are Fight 5 within 6” of Boromir's Banner… oh yea, that… I won the roll-off, so it wasn’t too bad. I
killed 2 Warriors and got stuck… moving back felt wrong as I already spent 2 points of Might to kill these 2 models and still had a free fight to engage into if I wanted to, so I decided to engaged 2 more
warriors with 1 of them backed up by a Ranger (I don't think there were any possible ways for me to engage just F3/4 enemies and not fight an F5 warrior), figuring that I was still a favourite to win the fight and take out 2 more guys before combat gets into full swing. Instead, I
lost combat and lost my Warg. I congratulated myself for a massively misplayed turn and moved on... Had I remembered they were Fight 5, Gothmog would never have even considered his can-opener move. You can see on the picture above that Madril was also in the front rank and you may be wondering why I didn't charge him instead and easily taken him out - he was just out of my charge range when I started moving with Gothmog and I didn't want to engage after the Heroic, since I was down to 1 Might and he was on 3 Might with a Fight 5 Ranger supporting him. <div><br /><div><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaTJpttdoMsV9Pd-lUFJIMM5rKi8xBaHBBOsU8H6W9xtvgfLJVEVDlUdb58JyTCPOWXXYQdUmjbdSJECtbfWGFqCxslobPfqZjKDB8j0Yze9kn9nxVq-PULpqAooayYx-MsV5f8ZBZJQ-/w640-h302/G5+-+6.jpg" width="640" /><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuv_uDdjIvT86TSnm9lW0aHiB2EHq2yzfUSrYQMRlZApYXfMEYkD_onk_RiesSiI0BU5Vh9I9W34bLAi8KNuRHUsnMnlMy2im4Q_BBI0YaOvUJVoZ-xtq_Ig-prqI6KneUOyCmQO6hHPru/s2576/G5+-+4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuv_uDdjIvT86TSnm9lW0aHiB2EHq2yzfUSrYQMRlZApYXfMEYkD_onk_RiesSiI0BU5Vh9I9W34bLAi8KNuRHUsnMnlMy2im4Q_BBI0YaOvUJVoZ-xtq_Ig-prqI6KneUOyCmQO6hHPru/w640-h304/G5+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">What followed was a very frustrating couple of turns, where
despite fighting multiple 3 or 4 vs 1s, I ended up either losing to the higher Fight or
losing every single roll-off against Fight 4 with my Serpent Guard. That hurt
and my army started crumbling, but luckily for me Nathan broke first since he had less models to begin with. Following his early failures, Gothmog redeemed himself and turned out to be a bit of a superstar in this game as he managed to frustrate Boromir with a Heroic Defence and winning multiple free Heroic Moves to drain the big man's Might out and stop him from causing major damage.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Nathan sent a couple of Knights of MT down my left flank to try to run them off the board for VPs, but luckily for me he kept Hurin with the main chunk of the fighting instead of sending him off too. This I thought was a mistake, because I only sent Shelob away and once his army broke, one of the Knights failed a Courage test being just 12" from my board edge. Had Hurin gone towards the edge, he would have probably walked off with 3 models with ease. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">In the meantime, Shelob, who killed 1 Knight all game,
decided to run off the board to secure me least 1 model off. With 6 Will and C4 it was a safe bet she'll make it to the edge even after I break, although sending a 90-point model off the board didn't feel great.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Once Nathan broke, I also managed to outnumber him well enough in the centre and I set myself up in a way to maximize my chances of bringing him to 25% as soon as possible, so that the game would end before his Knights escape the board.<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgstPZLfvTeSi0sVaAS3Hlt7bRrx95m1uOM22dbp3nlKb7-JEqQwfd0RVEKCIG23Of2rgvluJ-K2h1prbee56oceX7caOcMyJmkgJhE_B6SoX0WWVrzmqIjJamtT1jmrM3Yq45z9TXW9Yco/s2578/G5+-+5.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgstPZLfvTeSi0sVaAS3Hlt7bRrx95m1uOM22dbp3nlKb7-JEqQwfd0RVEKCIG23Of2rgvluJ-K2h1prbee56oceX7caOcMyJmkgJhE_B6SoX0WWVrzmqIjJamtT1jmrM3Yq45z9TXW9Yco/w640-h302/G5+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFQ0KM7gU_42cLRc_lbMNQPEP_TmDL2MOoRnc-zpNguymupxUr0f2AO1cKfQ085Z3JkVwVxZ-k8j2xuusscXPNlXZxRYDvPubYDuZV-nEquLTgkSE7kGzJ0UFrXEiO9Tcvo1u5H2E14SK/s2578/G5+-+8.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFQ0KM7gU_42cLRc_lbMNQPEP_TmDL2MOoRnc-zpNguymupxUr0f2AO1cKfQ085Z3JkVwVxZ-k8j2xuusscXPNlXZxRYDvPubYDuZV-nEquLTgkSE7kGzJ0UFrXEiO9Tcvo1u5H2E14SK/w640-h302/G5+-+8.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaTJpttdoMsV9Pd-lUFJIMM5rKi8xBaHBBOsU8H6W9xtvgfLJVEVDlUdb58JyTCPOWXXYQdUmjbdSJECtbfWGFqCxslobPfqZjKDB8j0Yze9kn9nxVq-PULpqAooayYx-MsV5f8ZBZJQ-/s2578/G5+-+6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaTJpttdoMsV9Pd-lUFJIMM5rKi8xBaHBBOsU8H6W9xtvgfLJVEVDlUdb58JyTCPOWXXYQdUmjbdSJECtbfWGFqCxslobPfqZjKDB8j0Yze9kn9nxVq-PULpqAooayYx-MsV5f8ZBZJQ-/s2578/G5+-+6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU7ovKj0oZK-AbZCufsOveZzhaSLaUmPhRjVC00Vh2DhyUFsDos3wWgDUGpr0uuj5ksPcFyUMQvChFw41ZXiFnSybs27HZTJBslnxnDk3sYMiPfpM9UfbKP7LJLvTRo7xDC57p6UZd_Sss/s2578/G5+-+7.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU7ovKj0oZK-AbZCufsOveZzhaSLaUmPhRjVC00Vh2DhyUFsDos3wWgDUGpr0uuj5ksPcFyUMQvChFw41ZXiFnSybs27HZTJBslnxnDk3sYMiPfpM9UfbKP7LJLvTRo7xDC57p6UZd_Sss/w640-h302/G5+-+7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;">At this point, sitting there on 6-1 (1 model off and opponent broken)
I counted that I was about to break, but I nearly had Nathan at 25%. I found myself in an annoying situation - I had the chance of sending Suladan away from combat to protect my leader VPs, but that would have allowed Boromir to keep fighting Gothmog and possibly stop me from reducing him to 25% on time. The key was to stop the lone Knight he had left near my board edge to escape. Keeping Suladan engaged in combat there meant that even if Boromir gets to him and kills him, the worst result I can get is a 4-3 win (break on both sides, dead leader points for him and 1 model off for me).</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;">On the final turn of the game Suladan suffered 2 wounds from Boromir, but thanks to that I was able to get him down to 25% and force a game end with 1 Knight being just 3" away from my board edge.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYrqK09gqeHCu-pu8p6pckio2GA_ZxisegNzV4xt0YhyphenhyphenPyNUHdL7aIPofONuAjnL3hBwxFXqJ_7AFAR7mcTb30xP1r0vS-W7lBYuQbXQ2GI3dh8ebBDMSyPXyu4BR6MrisdAYk1AQY_4LB/s2576/G5+-+9.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="2576" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYrqK09gqeHCu-pu8p6pckio2GA_ZxisegNzV4xt0YhyphenhyphenPyNUHdL7aIPofONuAjnL3hBwxFXqJ_7AFAR7mcTb30xP1r0vS-W7lBYuQbXQ2GI3dh8ebBDMSyPXyu4BR6MrisdAYk1AQY_4LB/w640-h304/G5+-+9.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bPFohvbfu69yxW4xxrluRHTBHkqcURr2UlGFnkyW_3wPHT4LuWLyCvt1zGmpzYivnp2i6rxD4mwkZg4ELoVBaXbFc-LIHx4dsNxJ-z0Gc6u9llA_M60lOhUz_rZi6r7EVNK7dtWJkr2I/s2578/G5+-+10.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bPFohvbfu69yxW4xxrluRHTBHkqcURr2UlGFnkyW_3wPHT4LuWLyCvt1zGmpzYivnp2i6rxD4mwkZg4ELoVBaXbFc-LIHx4dsNxJ-z0Gc6u9llA_M60lOhUz_rZi6r7EVNK7dtWJkr2I/w640-h302/G5+-+10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Score: 4-2</b> (I got 1 model off and broke him, he
broke me on the last turn and wounded Suladan).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Oath:</b> <b>Failed -</b> In the final turn Boromir caused
2 wounds on Suladan, so I failed this in the last dice rolls of the game. I had to do it, otherwise I risked not reducing him to 25%, seeing the Knight pass courage, run off and lose the game<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><ul><li><b><u>Game 6: Fog of War vs David’s Dunland LL</u></b></li></ul><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">David's Army List:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b><br /><b>Thrydan Wolfsbane on a Horse</b><br />1 Crebain<br />4 Dunland Warriors with Shields<br />4 Dunland Huscarls<br />1 Wildman of Dunland<br />3 Dunland Warriors with Bows</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:<br />Gorulf Ironskin<br /></b>1 Crebain<br />1 Dunland Cavalry<br />4 Dunland Warriors with Shields<br />5 Dunland Huscarls<br />1 Dunland Warrior with a Banner</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b><br /><b>Dunland Chieftain with a Shield</b><br />1 Dunland Cavalry<br />4 Dunland Warriors with Shields<br />4 Dunland Huscarls<br />2 Dunland Warriors with Bows</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Total: 39 Models, 8 Might, 5 Bows</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>My Oath: Master of Woodland</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Last time David and I played each other was in the final
game of Ardacon 2018 on table 3. That time his win allowed him to finish 3<sup>rd</sup>
at the tournament and put me down to 17<sup>th</sup>. It was time for revenge!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Fog of War can be tricky and if you’re unsure of what your
opponent’s army is capable of, it can be even trickier. I decided to select his Chieftain as my assassination target for the game (Gorulf has a free Heroic
Defence vs Heroes) and to protect Gothmog as my other objective (I assumed he
would pick to kill Shelob, especially knowing what Thrydan is capable of. Coupled with the fact that killing/wounding leaders is irrelevant in this scenario, Thrydan had a free reign). <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">My terrain piece objective was to take over the building on David’s
side of the board.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-GWSsJYbdhDEXnw8O3sxlCqI-J7wFR2jpX79V_aY5veiqzJ08EsBU58QCnrEHr7_LWaNVXQ-NRg8PzLWRQMjrS7XuD3_3b4HeFU7JnOeWtVJJvuWPG6r1Df9tjLJYNFRuhXvRZO0kcNW-/s2578/G6+-+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-GWSsJYbdhDEXnw8O3sxlCqI-J7wFR2jpX79V_aY5veiqzJ08EsBU58QCnrEHr7_LWaNVXQ-NRg8PzLWRQMjrS7XuD3_3b4HeFU7JnOeWtVJJvuWPG6r1Df9tjLJYNFRuhXvRZO0kcNW-/w640-h302/G6+-+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCIFZ6cAC-nGgawJbtaxmzu5NpFQw3uxmP-3Tzma7edjfJ_v8PGcb-HDjE0KoAsilu-Ukq9nXPStCg7mCAlnimiXZpqD0ZjCdUHPCra57eeNHQ5M47mOUpBlwCH2ALeAhfbQNJJaOBHVR/s2578/G6+-+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCIFZ6cAC-nGgawJbtaxmzu5NpFQw3uxmP-3Tzma7edjfJ_v8PGcb-HDjE0KoAsilu-Ukq9nXPStCg7mCAlnimiXZpqD0ZjCdUHPCra57eeNHQ5M47mOUpBlwCH2ALeAhfbQNJJaOBHVR/w640-h302/G6+-+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">We setup on the opposite ends. I started by moving 3” and
shooting to ensure I maximise the bowfire advantage, whilst David walked towards me at
full speed. On the pre-combat turn (the turn where we both cannot charge each
other with our infantry, but the next turn we will) he decided to throw Thrydan into my lines
close to Gothmog to break a hole in order to hopefully later squeeze himself into Shelob. He succeeded in killing 2
Morannon Orcs, then next turn won a Heroic move roll-off and charged in with Thrydan and Gorulf against some Morannons, whilst I was unable to get Gothmog and Suladan into his heroes due to all the bases and terrain in the way.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Shelob got a bit of a scare and went away from my left flank towards my right flank, leaving Gothmog to deal with it, whilst Suladan got stuck in the centre. <o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZGdPU8YXjJA_B11rdxc6HCivogO6u3uOhtbmNaeuW-4K1KBOUXVToFVcG9zFLgGLaisk2Ul8EO_8hM19m3zEqZZVXRRnS1Zq3upJTCFrQ9uf_iLcvDbbzuD5YPm-koNoAdsznnxxC0hA/s2578/G6+-+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZGdPU8YXjJA_B11rdxc6HCivogO6u3uOhtbmNaeuW-4K1KBOUXVToFVcG9zFLgGLaisk2Ul8EO_8hM19m3zEqZZVXRRnS1Zq3upJTCFrQ9uf_iLcvDbbzuD5YPm-koNoAdsznnxxC0hA/w640-h302/G6+-+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhincftdmA7nGfzhMFwxW1WX5eMsfI8MzkivQUG4IktF9qsP3VD5s6eb9qFOtaTJP10nEVCU7EN_WmCFI98q94tQGOUnQq9Lbefh1vpVTA_qhkfPdAxvAPklXwm2MnoEFSabSxGR_jgzY2h/s2578/G6+-+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhincftdmA7nGfzhMFwxW1WX5eMsfI8MzkivQUG4IktF9qsP3VD5s6eb9qFOtaTJP10nEVCU7EN_WmCFI98q94tQGOUnQq9Lbefh1vpVTA_qhkfPdAxvAPklXwm2MnoEFSabSxGR_jgzY2h/w640-h302/G6+-+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Since my Orcs were fighting Thrydan and Gorulf, I decided to
use Gothmog’s special rule “The time of the Orc has come”. I was either going
to win combats against those characters and really punish them, or I was going
to lose combats and lose most of my Morannons anyway. It was probably the best time
to use the rule. I got lucky and dehorsed Thrydan and scored a wound on him!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">On the right flank, despite David having the “Time of the
Wolf” special rule active, I was able to outfight his force with my Fight 4
Haradrim supported by Suladan’s banner and Suladan himself took out 4 models
with a Heroic Combat. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">My right flank began to quickly tear down the Dunlendings, whilst my left was holding against David's heroes. Gothmog ended up
dismounting and getting stuck into some wildmen, then calling Heroic Combats
and forcing a Heroic Strike from Gorulf that ended up getting wasted, since Gothmog chose not to charge him. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Just before David’s army broke, he charged Shelob with his 1
Crebain, won combat and obviously caused a wound. Nobody in their right mind
would charge Shelob like that if that wasn’t their Fog of War objective, so
fair enough, at least now I was double-sure what he was going for!<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf5ropUtsfUVXr-Oxvv-0n68gWWXwg6kthVQRGYP1p51swPG6MXkF3HvOLSsmVWA-ZJFQfmZzs9uIW64z23LX-H5P0N-z3PCLUl_LRtyCWbJHCOQy8ja1nhWvG8tytIqEyL3q3354AZZwS/s2578/G6+-+5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf5ropUtsfUVXr-Oxvv-0n68gWWXwg6kthVQRGYP1p51swPG6MXkF3HvOLSsmVWA-ZJFQfmZzs9uIW64z23LX-H5P0N-z3PCLUl_LRtyCWbJHCOQy8ja1nhWvG8tytIqEyL3q3354AZZwS/w640-h302/G6+-+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhagnjc-_APf4GqLB_PcQW3SfKs32myLNLp4bQ_RBm6cPuy588IMQlU1PMWcFEB_xDbnByXVq_T-Qu9k1FlwFcrLNUKNmKD-19t7TxGh2hpnSBRjsegXDyzaUxnZXVZ1tl6j9wbQZctbZWF/s2578/G6+-+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhagnjc-_APf4GqLB_PcQW3SfKs32myLNLp4bQ_RBm6cPuy588IMQlU1PMWcFEB_xDbnByXVq_T-Qu9k1FlwFcrLNUKNmKD-19t7TxGh2hpnSBRjsegXDyzaUxnZXVZ1tl6j9wbQZctbZWF/w640-h302/G6+-+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Once the Dunland Legion broke, Gothmog managed to win a free
Heroic Move-off and allowed me to surround David's remaining warriors, as well as stopped some warriors rushing towards the forest on my left flank (probably the forest David was trying to take for his objective). 1 turn
after breaking, David’s army almost entirely disappeared, leaving just 2 models alive. It didn't help that Gorulf failed his Break test when standing in a very central position. At that
point, we contested the building on his half, which he managed to defend, but I
scored 3 points for killing the Chieftain (Suladan cut him down a turn before he
broke), 3 for having Gothmog alive and 3 for breaking my opponent.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaB5tDZgykA2NJW_lIFCA3zUYOq1Ods7d9UC_XK9AMDo9MkTc9G4YCVzifyjAq-7wiFEDD3PhrI53UsCGvqBQSUmuC7ahx1FjQlWXaGIXXmmdvogteA6ff2kVDgxB3H_rch1pe69LWWJWy/s2578/G6+-+7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaB5tDZgykA2NJW_lIFCA3zUYOq1Ods7d9UC_XK9AMDo9MkTc9G4YCVzifyjAq-7wiFEDD3PhrI53UsCGvqBQSUmuC7ahx1FjQlWXaGIXXmmdvogteA6ff2kVDgxB3H_rch1pe69LWWJWy/w640-h302/G6+-+7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Score: 9-1</b> (Shelob took a wound).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Oath:</b> <b>Failed -</b> I forgot I had an Oath to do,
then when I realised in the final turn what it was, I was only able to put 2
models in a wood, despite not even being broken… Lack of practice - I kept my eyes on the main objectives, but forgot about the side one. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><o:p><b> =========================================</b></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>FINAL SCORE:</u></b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;">5 wins / 1 loss</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Oath out of possible 6</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i>(Note: With a normal Matched Play system this would have
been 5 Major Wins and 1 Major Loss)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Overall 8<sup>th</sup> position out of 77 is not bad
considering this was the first time I was playing any games since 2019 (not
counting the 2 warm-up games with PMG on the Friday), so I’m quite pleased! I
had a goal of winning 3 over the weekend, so I can’t complain. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">The difference between 2nd and 8<sup>th</sup> was an Oath
difference – The Oaths awarded 1 TP for completion, so for example Tommaso, who
finished 2<sup>nd</sup> had scored 24 points from games (4 wins and 2 draws)
and 5 from Oaths for a 29 total, whilst I scored 25 points from games (5 wins
and a loss) and 1 from Oaths for a total of 26. Harry, my round 2 opponent, who was the only player
I lost to scored 25 points from games (5 wins and a loss) and 4 from Oaths for
a total of 29, dropping out of the podium by VPs, as 2<sup>nd</sup>, 3<sup>rd</sup>
and 4<sup>th</sup> were joint in TPs when combining Oaths. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">The Oath system was quite annoying for me. Essentially there
were 3 additional Oaths I was able to do, but I got unlucky or made a small
misplay – Gothmog needed to kill 2 extra hobbits (failed through bad luck of both losing a fight against 2 of them AND the game ending on the very first turn it could end on), Suladan perhaps shouldn’t have been
exposed in game 5 (but I think he had to be for me to win the game) and next time I’ll have to remind myself to move models into
woods a turn earlier when clearly I’m in a position where I can do it (oh well...). </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b>Tournament Overall Thoughts:</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">First of all, congratulations to Jay Clare for winning and to Tommaso Zerbi for making it into the final. I couldn't have picked two nicer players to play in the final game and I'm sure they had a lot of fun battling it out in the end. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">In general, the event was amazing. Everything ran on schedule, all games were smooth, atmosphere was pretty relaxed, I had no problems with any of my opponents and enjoyed the games, and I hope they all thought the same. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Terrain is something that people have always complained about in the past playing at Ardacon. This year was better, there were more pieces, but I think even one more extra piece of terrain on every board would be a welcome addition. I know there are people out there who love playing on themed boards like Lake-Town or Goblin Town, but for the sake of clarity and balance I find it great that Ardacon basically uses 4 identical, balanced board setups and repeats them throughout all of the tables. I would like to see perhaps 1 less forest and instead 2 more hills or buildings/ruins on every board. This also means that things like Mumaks are a viable choice to take to this tournament, as you don't run the risk of having them stuck in-between some wooden staircases. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Oaths - giving TPs for completing Oaths in their current form is in my opinion a bad idea. They are too random. Not only are you now at the mercy of getting the right match up in the right scenario, but even if you do everything you can and get your big win, you still might miss out on your full victory because you randomly got drawn an Oath that is almost impossible for you to do due to the circumstances. I always advise doing everything to minimise the impact of luck on the games. The only way I can see that Oaths could be used whilst not making it so luck-based is if at the beginning of every round when the scenario is announced, the TOs also announce the Oath that every player has to use for this round. For example Round 2 we play Fog of War AND everybody's Oath for this game is X. Now everybody has an equal playing field and we're not relying luck to get the right Oath for ourselves. The Oath being a secret is also not that big of a deal, as there are so many of them and it's so unpredictable which ones opponent has already played before, that you can't really play the game trying to play around opponent's Oaths and stop them. If we knew the Oath we both have to do at the start, that would add an extra objective to get and to prevent your opponent from getting. In fact, I'd say declare the Oath for the round and make it that if both players achieve their Oath, then neither gets the points, so players are encouraged to stop their opponent from achieving theirs. To get full score you have to win, get your Oath and stop your opponent's Oath.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">I wouldn't mind points increase to 650 or 700 next year. Obviously, that means more games will go to time and with 200+ players present, schedule will probably get delayed, but I find larger points limits to just be more fun as more cool toys get played. I'd make it 699 to ban Smaug without banning Smaug ;)</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b>Army List Afterthoughts:</b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="text-indent: -18pt;">Shelob is a funny model. It’s honestly hard to
figure out if she was good or bad in this tournament. Her presence in the list
arguably won me 2 games, but a couple of mounted models or another mounted hero
would have done the same in Recon. I give her most of the credit for winning
Supplies, as her presence at the back of the Arnor lines meant some models had
to stay behind, allowing me to outnumber the enemy in combat. It’s definitely
easier to contain a random Warg Rider than it is a giant monstrous spider in both
Supplies and Recon. In all other scenarios, she provided a big threat that
didn’t really do anything other than being a big distraction. She lost most of
her combats. Her big base was a massive pain to get into any relevant spot
where she could Hurl someone. However, she managed to kill a few things through
Hurls when they worked, she gave me the full speed through woods, which forced
my opponents to basically never go into woods and always be weary of their
flanks if they were next to woods and generally made my opponents pretty
worried about her potential. I bet she made some players play a lot safer than
they normally would with their heroes, which in return allowed my heroes to
roam around, so I guess that makes her a good choice? A few times I found
myself wishing I dropped 25 points of warriors and took Shagrat instead for a
triple-strike-threat and that precious small infantry base.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">I think if I was to play Ardacon again next weekend and it
was 600 points, I would change the list for this:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Suladan on an Armoured Horse</div><div style="text-align: justify;">5 Haradrim Warriors with Bows</div><div style="text-align: justify;">8 Serpent Guard</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Serpent Rider</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Gothmog on a Warg with a Shield</div><div style="text-align: justify;">4 Morannon Orcs with Shields</div><div style="text-align: justify;">3 Orcs with Spears</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Shagrat with full gear</div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 Warg Rider with a Shield</div><div style="text-align: justify;">4 Morannon Orcs with Shields</div><div style="text-align: justify;">3 Orcs with SpearsTotal:</div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Total: 32 models (break point of 16, quarter of 8), 9 Might,
5 bows. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Overall this would have given me 3 more points of Might,
which with Gothmog would have meant 10+ Might for most games. Shagrat would be
another big hero with Heroic Strike and one that can easily open holes in enemy
lines, whilst also being disposable – he can get into difficult spots and sit
there as a big threat to a hero, then if something goes wrong, he’s not the
general anyway – same idea as the inclusion of Gothmog at the start.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Lower model count would hopefully be off-set by increased
killing power of Shagrat and decreased potential of enemy heroes, now having to
face 3 Heroic Striking F5 models. Shagrat can start the game already in the
front rank, close to Gothmog’s Master of Battle and Suladan’s Banner. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Long term, this army becomes easily expandable to 700, by
either filling up the 3 warbands – there are 17 slots here that can be added – or, in a more adventurous configuration of Witch King or even Amdur coming in instead of Shagrat
and addition of some Easterlings. Whatever it is, I think I’m going to keep
playing with some version of this army at 500-700 points for a while and
hope to come up with something even better. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">Good luck!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>Mik / BlackMist</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p><br /></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p><b>PS: FURTHER LISTENING/READING:</b></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>If you prefer reports in a spoken form, I would highly recommend Entmoot Podcast's Ardacon coverage, where Harry goes into detail of the whole event:</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>https://soundcloud.com/entmootpodcast/entmoot-40-ardacon-2021-pt-1</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>https://soundcloud.com/entmootpodcast/entmoot-41-ardacon-pt2-doubles-arda</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>https://soundcloud.com/entmootpodcast/entmoot-42-ardacon-pt3-how-to-win-with-easterlings</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p>Also on An Unexpected Podcast I briefly talked about Ardacon, alongside Matt and Evan covering a US-based tournament in the same episode:</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="387" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0L82Ese5rFU" width="466" youtube-src-id="0L82Ese5rFU"></iframe></div><br /><o:p><br /></o:p><p></p></div></div>Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-88090330347498532782021-08-19T22:43:00.004+01:002021-08-19T22:43:52.801+01:00Figurine It Out - Short FilmAfter the start of the Covid-19 Pandemic, life was hard for many of us. Looking for a new challenge and inspired by my partner Macarena, I went on a journey of creating a short film about my hobby. It was entered into a 3-minute lockdown film competition, where it made it to the final. Afterwards it has been selected to 12 online festivals in Covid-19 / Quarantine categories.
This is the finished Film:<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="366" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/w6PNs5TkqlE" width="481" youtube-src-id="w6PNs5TkqlE"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Also available to watch on Vimeo:</div><div><a href="https://vimeo.com/423623001">https://vimeo.com/423623001</a> </div>Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-46221224403131693112020-09-28T13:21:00.006+01:002020-09-28T16:09:29.727+01:00Fog of War, Part 18; The Woodland Realms<p style="text-align: center;"> <span style="font-size: large; font-weight: 700; text-align: center;">FOG OF WAR</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPeF3i_21AlYzPgHK0XyvYvr2WHr__hR5_xgMizWNqTeBB2bYQLHzJkmiKI8YPi77AqOX5tv_g06XG1rp-L0_G8Va2c8Qz8nB64PgEIyWfFwEjmZt7XS_yXvZZDaKfgtGhKgsnryiyjbMK/s2048/119511889_319337132659097_678664450098916728_n+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="380" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPeF3i_21AlYzPgHK0XyvYvr2WHr__hR5_xgMizWNqTeBB2bYQLHzJkmiKI8YPi77AqOX5tv_g06XG1rp-L0_G8Va2c8Qz8nB64PgEIyWfFwEjmZt7XS_yXvZZDaKfgtGhKgsnryiyjbMK/w506-h380/119511889_319337132659097_678664450098916728_n+%25281%2529.jpg" width="506" /></a></p><h4 style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Part 18: The Woodland Realms</b></span></h4><p style="text-align: justify;">Welcome back to Fog of War, the series where I am joined by some of the top players from around the world in discussing different factions of Middle-earth as a way of presenting them to new and experienced players looking for a new army to start. In part 18 of the series, joining me is Tommaso Zerbi, the Captain of Team Italy at Ardacon since 2018, Admin of Il Sito dell’Anello [and Italian League] forum and an overall excellent player whom I had the pleasure to meet and play against for the first time in November 2019 at the Scouring of Stirlingshire. Our memorable game between Mordor and Tommaso’s beautifully painted Thranduil’s Halls became an inspiration for this article and I decided to cover both Thranduil’s Halls and Lothlórien in this article. </p><h4 style="text-align: center;">HALLS OF THRANDUIL</h4><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Tommaso:</b> The elegant and dangerous armies of the Woodland Realms are my favourite forces in the Strategy Battle Game and some of my go-to armies for as long as I have been playing. Some players still complain about my five Galadhrim Stormcallers — they call them ‘nasty’... When the Woodland Realms — once a single army — got separated into two different and characteristic armies, I asked myself: do I prefer Lothlórien or the Halls of Thranduil? I do not have an answer, but I have been playing Thranduil since its release at the time of the Fall of the Necromancer sourcebook (now that I check, my phone alone contains some 200 lists with the Elven King!). I did play (the Halls of) Thranduil at the Scouring of Stirlingshire (2019) in the great game I had with Mik — the almost mythological BlackMist of the Veni Vidi blog that I had been reading since ages past from Italy! Thank you for having me here, writing about the gems in the mountain that I too desir.... ehm about elks, circlets, shields, and (of course) Elf bows. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6umWn7it7QMmY3ArsbDaOS1YIoo5H4YqAO18oIZcVKho0vPPSJysqrL3P_XQl-kwapEVk_sZvjdw1m8e_OflBW5hLKt51gUMxj8AxrcAsZlvX035iEmTuOb_Ur7PKG_jeIO1YubkoWuiy/s2048/Figure+1_intro.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="419" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6umWn7it7QMmY3ArsbDaOS1YIoo5H4YqAO18oIZcVKho0vPPSJysqrL3P_XQl-kwapEVk_sZvjdw1m8e_OflBW5hLKt51gUMxj8AxrcAsZlvX035iEmTuOb_Ur7PKG_jeIO1YubkoWuiy/w558-h419/Figure+1_intro.jpg" width="558" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">With three named heroes (Thranduil, King of the Woodland Realm, Legolas Greenleaf, Prince of Mirkwood, and Tauriel) and pricey warriors (the cheapest option being a 9-point Mirkwood Elf), The Halls of Thranduil do not have access to the variety of characters of Rivendell nor to the cheap and sneaky Wood Elf Warriors of Lothlórien. They do not have great casters such as Elrond, Master of Rivendell, and Galadriel, nor troops as versatile and effective as the Rivendell Knights. Yet, even if the glistening hosts of Mirkwood might have little interest in the world outside their borders, they are not less dangerous than the other Elven kingdoms, if used wisely. Three things I prefer about the Halls of Thranduil, I would say are (in no particular order): Thranduil, Thranduil, and more Thranduil! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizVHdI5zajwoD5DeEczcdVsGB-mvPUkHc6hFcZTmxGb-XTr-rEF7VXnjf-8QmQfja3gIiHQrjnvA74L2AqqeKiwq8KH9vg0xZyzJ1pFgEC-r7T0mBEOV9ekM1SPr5cFafeSUZlIrtr76Gf/s2048/Figure+6_summary.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1356" data-original-width="2048" height="349" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizVHdI5zajwoD5DeEczcdVsGB-mvPUkHc6hFcZTmxGb-XTr-rEF7VXnjf-8QmQfja3gIiHQrjnvA74L2AqqeKiwq8KH9vg0xZyzJ1pFgEC-r7T0mBEOV9ekM1SPr5cFafeSUZlIrtr76Gf/w526-h349/Figure+6_summary.JPG" width="526" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: justify;">I own more than 120 painted models of pure Mirkwood, but the Elven King is the one I always use in my Mirkwood lists and the model with which I have had the most competitive success over the years. His background as a proud and stubborn Elven lord — quite different from the always-perfect Elrond and Galadriel! — in The Hobbit and the development of his storyline in P. Jackson’s trilogy make him my favourite character in Middle-earth. His versatile profile makes him my go-to model in the Strategy Battle Game. I am against must-haves, but with a cost that goes from 100 to 190 points, there is no reason not to include Thranduil, King of the Woodland Realm, in every Mirkwood list. After all, Lothlórien is not named the ‘Halls of Galadriel,’ whilst Mirkwood is ‘the ‘Halls of Thranduil.’ With six options of equipment that allow the Elven King to show off his true skills, Thranduil makes up for the lack of named heroes. Riding his elk into the fight, fully equipped with additional Elven-made sword, Circlet of Kings, heavy armour, and bow, Thranduil is not only one of the best fighting heroes of the game, but he can join his archers, and cast Aura of Dismay and Nature’s Wrath once per game — something that not even Galadriel can do...! Yet, every option is worth considering. Even at his cheapest form, the King of the Woodland Realm leads up to 18 warriors and, with an Elven cloak, 3 wounds, and 3 fate, he is usually a better general than Legolas and Tauriel. The best part of having Thranduil in a Mirkwood force concerns the army bonus, which gives to any Palace Guard Captains, Mirkwood Elf Captains, Palace Guard Mirkwood Cavalry, and Mirkwood Elves within 3” of Thranduil a +1 to Wound bonus when making Strikes. Although on a one-to-one comparison, the Mirkwood Cavalry and the Palace Guards might seem not to stand a chance against the Rivendell Knights and the Guards of the Galadhrim Court, while nearby to their King — where, respectively, they also count as being in range of a banner and receive a bonus of +1 to their Fight value! — they become the most dangerous Elven cavalry and elite of the game. In short, the army bonus, combined with the optional +1 to Wound given by the Elven-made swords or the pricey Elven-made glaives (when used as a two-handed weapon), and the one Nature’s Wrath, make the Elves of Mirkwood the most dangerous Elven kin of Middle-earth. With the one caveat — keep Thranduil alive! The lists I want to discuss, while focused on the Elven King, propose different options of wargear which mirror different game styles (but all suited to reclaim the white gems of Lasgalen!).</p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>ARMY LISTS:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>List 1: Tommaso’s 700 points of the Halls of Thranduil</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>‘They are less wise, and more dangerous’</i></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Thranduil, King of the Woodland Realm (Circlet of Kings and Elf bow)<br />8 Mirkwood Rangers <br />2 Palace Guards (shield and spear) <br />6 Mirkwood Elves (Elven-made glaive and shield) <br />1 Mirkwood Elf (banner and shield) <br />1 Mirkwood Cavalry (shield) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Legolas Greenleaf, Prince of Mirkwood (horse) <br />8 Mirkwood Rangers <br />6 Mirkwood Elves (Elf bow and Elven-made glaive)<br />1 Mirkwood Elf (Elven-made glaive) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 700 points, 35 models, 6 Might, 22 bows + Thranduil and Legolas</p><p style="text-align: justify;">With an impressive number of bows — which includes those of the Elven King himself (shooting on a 2+!) and that of his son (not by chance the greatest archer in Middle-earth) — on first sight, this list is based upon the first thing that is associated with the armies of the Elves: shooting. Thanks to the army bonus, Mirkwood Rangers from this force do not count towards the army’s Bow Limit. Yet, rather than maximising the number of Rangers (and bows), I prefer to support them with solid lines of armoured Elves. On a close look, this army is as dangerous in close combat as it is from the distance. Thranduil’s Aura of Dismay helps to prevent enemy charges, increase the Rangers’ chances of charging multiple enemies and, therefore, taking advantage of their ‘Knife Fighters’ special rule (they receive an additional Attack for each enemy model they are Engaged in combat with after the first). This, with Nature’s Wrath and the spear support of the Mirkwood Elves and Palace Guards (and their +1 to Wound within 3” of Thranduil) makes the army very deadly in close combat. Whilst within 3” of the Elven King, the 2 Guards increase their Fight Value to 6, which means that they are a valid counter to mighty heroes. Finally, I have included the Banner bearer and a Mirkwood Cavalry with scenario objectives in mind. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">The downsides of the army are the lack of speed — deep inside I am still jealous that the ‘pig-rider Dwarf’ has Heroic March while Thrandy and Leggy don’t... — and the vulnerability. This is also why I tend to add shields to my Mirkwood Elves with Elven-made glaives, even if the glaive already gives them the Shielding rule. I can tell you from long experience that it is worth investing those few points to increase their Defence to 6. The first line of Defence-3 Rangers is as fragile as leaves, which means that they need to win the combat in order to survive — the re-roll of the Banner might help here. For the same reason, despite the pretty amazing number of arrows, this small, elite force fears the most the armies that might already overwhelm it from the distance, especially should they include Blinding Light/Pall of Darkness or deadly machines such as the Iron Hills Ballista.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJJ0svArutOYNlkHwBhs8MAdk5CSlgp5XTSrnfo00iNciae_ZH00MICsdn2CANSPFNCtQMZXjOxU3uI0GwMaAfKBu2sTl6Tc6c1L5PJD9KbxhC-Ajcre2f3xot-e63Oakpy2iB7vMar5e2/s2048/119403516_355782035461669_481175581069363931_n+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1356" data-original-width="2048" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJJ0svArutOYNlkHwBhs8MAdk5CSlgp5XTSrnfo00iNciae_ZH00MICsdn2CANSPFNCtQMZXjOxU3uI0GwMaAfKBu2sTl6Tc6c1L5PJD9KbxhC-Ajcre2f3xot-e63Oakpy2iB7vMar5e2/w549-h364/119403516_355782035461669_481175581069363931_n+%25281%2529.jpg" width="549" /></a></div><div></div><div><b style="text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div><div><b style="text-align: justify;">List 2: Tommaso’s 800 points of the Halls of Thranduil</b></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>‘I came to reclaim something of mine’</i></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Thranduil, King of the Woodland Realm (additional Elven-made sword, Circlet of Kings, elk, heavy armour, Elf bow) <br />9 Mirkwood Cavalry (shield) <br />1 Palace Guard (shield) <br />3 Mirkwood Elves (shield) <br />2 Palace Guards (shield and spear) <br />2 Mirkwood Elves (Elven-made glaive and shield) <br />1 Mirkwood Elf (banner and shield) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Tauriel (Elf bow) <br />1 Mirkwood Elf (shield) <br />4 Mirkwood Elves (Elf bow) <br />6 Mirkwood Elves (Elf bow and Elven-made glaive) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Legolas Greenleaf, Prince of Mirkwood (horse) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 800 points, 32 models, 9 Might, 10 bows + Thranduil, Tauriel, and Legolas</p><p style="text-align: justify;">First thing first. The reason why I propose this list is because it recreates one of the most epic moments of The Hobbit trilogy. Thranduil does not journey to Dale in aid of the people of Lake-Town; he moves his armies to Erebor to reclaim the white gems of Lasgalen. It also gives me a good excuse to play the beautiful sculpt of the Elven King on the elk — with whom I won the category of Hero of Legend at the GT (2019) and various best armies. Due to the low numbers, lack of Blinding Light, Heroic March, and any protection from casters, I do not consider this a very competitive Elven force — the three heroes might easily be countered, and the troops might as easily lose the scenarios. And yet, even though I wouldn’t use it for the ETC and I wouldn’t have high expectations of winning a tournament, I managed to get some great results with it. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSSXI7khqxlekS5oty1etALLDSOoD7byJcoG4vJrICFMz7E-iCfwoNzpnGOyYqgs5WdEIQRLGFadXBSxldUvM9IogXlB6qBs7rdpzXgQyGCYJZlsDqp5WszibPNNylp04XroOpx3_DHKSr/s2048/Figure+5_army+2+with+Mik.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSSXI7khqxlekS5oty1etALLDSOoD7byJcoG4vJrICFMz7E-iCfwoNzpnGOyYqgs5WdEIQRLGFadXBSxldUvM9IogXlB6qBs7rdpzXgQyGCYJZlsDqp5WszibPNNylp04XroOpx3_DHKSr/w514-h386/Figure+5_army+2+with+Mik.jpg" width="514" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i>[Thranduil preparing to smash Mik’s forces]</i></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Having only 32 models at 800 points may seem daunting, but this list offers a solid wall of Mirkwood Elves and Palace Guards, supported by 9 models of Mirkwood Cavalry defending the flanks, a Banner, Aura of Dismay, Nature’s Wrath, and what is arguably the best army bonus available to the Elven kingdoms. It also has three of the best heroes in the game, all armed with bows and deadly in combat. I have three rules when I play this. First, if the force cannot outshoot the enemy, it should not shoot at all — with the one exception of Legolas. It cannot afford to lose much before getting into close combat. Second, sooner or later in the game, the Prince of Mirkwood has to fight. His father and his girlfri... ehm female friend are two fighting beasts thanks to, respectively, the elk, the additional Elven-made sword, and the Blade Mistress special rule, but they are also fragile and easy targets of casters. Do not be afraid to throw Legolas into the fight on his white horse! There’s just one thing better than two combat heroes, and that’s three combat heroes! Last but not least, Thranduil must survive. If the ruler of the Woodland Realm should fall, his army shall fall with him. The skill of the Elven King with a blade is unmatched, but he should not be overly exposed. A Thranduil behind the ranks is better than a dead Thranduil on the front line (which is also why in competitive lists I tend to avoid the elk)! Aura of Dismay, Nature’s Wrath, and the bonuses (Fight Value and banner re-roll to, respectively, the Palace Guards and the Mirkwood Cavalry; +1 to Wound to all the warriors of the army) are the key to victory. After all, there is no point in fighting and reclaiming the gems, if you cannot give them back to the Elven King because he is dead...</p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>ALLIES:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>List 3: Tommaso’s 800 points of the Halls of Thranduil and Survivors of Lake-Town</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b><i>The Darkest Hour</i></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Thranduil, King of the Woodland Realm (additional Elven-made sword, Circlet of Kings, and heavy armour) <br />2 Palace Guards (shield) <br />6 Mirkwood Elves (shield)<br />6 Mirkwood Elves (Elf bow and Elven-made glaive)<br />2 Palace Guards (shield and spear) <br />1 Mirkwood Elf (banner and shield) <br />1 Mirkwood Cavalry (shield) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 2:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Lake-Town Militia Captain <br />6 Lake-Town Militia (bow) <br />6 Lake-Town Militia (bow and spear) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Lake-Town Militia Captain <br />2 Lake-Town Militia (bow) <br />4 Lake-Town Militia <br />6 Lake-Town Militia (spear)</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 4:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Lake-Town Militia Captain <br />6 Lake-Town Militia <br />6 Lake-Town Militia (spear) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 5:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Hilda-Bianca <br />1 Lake-Town Militia <br />1 Lake-Town Militia (shield) <br />3 Lake-Town Militia (spear) </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 800 points, 64 models, 10 Might, 20 bows</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Ironically enough for a(n apparently) selfish ruler like the Elven King, The Halls of Thranduil unleash their full potential when they join/are joined by other forces. They have been blessed with three pretty valid Historical Allies (Erebor Reclaimed, The Iron Hills, and the Survivors of Lake-Town) and a long series of Convenient Allies. One of my go-to allies is Gandalf the Grey (and his Blinding Light). However, Dáin Ironfoot, Lord of the Iron Hills, and an Iron Hills Ballista, or Thorin Oakenshiled, Kind under the Mountain, are also viable options. I considered some lists with Thranduil and Galadriel, Lady of Light, but my suggestion here would be to stick to Historical Allies. Convenient Allies can hardly bring more to the force than the army bonus. The list I propose represents the moment in which Thranduil changes his mind, charges to the rescue of the people of Lake-Town in Dale, and loses his mighty (and pricey) elk. This force, which is the most competitive out of the three, is quite formidable.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Counting 64 models and 20 bows, this army outnumbers and outshoots pretty much everybody. The idea here is to have Thranduil’s warband — with all its bonuses, the banner, and the spells — as the solid and deadly core of the force. Without Bard, the performance of the Lake-Town Militia might seem lacklustre. Yet, the Survivors of Lake-Town bring in cheap heroes (with Heroic March) and warriors that increase the chances of flanking the opponent and get to the precious objectives. Also, Hilda’s Stand by our Men! special rule, paired with a few axes, transforms this army of survivors into a dangerous horde of fierce warriors. The central piece is — surprise, surprise! — Thranduil. I will tell you my secret here. Rather than playing the King of the Woodland Realm as a combat hero, I tend to keep him and his precious Circlet at the back, with the Banner bearer. You might wonder why I have given him the additional Elven-made sword. First, it really makes the difference in Contest of Champions. Second, the rules of the additional Elven-made sword are simply a better addition than 5 more Lake-Town Militia. Here, the general is not supposed to risk his life (there are no casters nor combat heroes that might save him). Yet, on specific occasions, Thranduil might want to join the first line; some sneaky enemies might reach him in close combat. Trust me, if you have some spare points, do include the additional Elven-made sword!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO8aiDciiCCJcr0p9n_paozA6ZL2PzwcM75H7ybg5frP5Bfp_ghKFCbdB80hjxVo1xOl9dcQDIbSjfPmjzgtdxSgkv7uMjvciMS6Cf31XGeqo2T58FsqbidmUBev9nTpx4nvQ5G1WTDkAj/s2048/Figure+3_army+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1267" data-original-width="2048" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO8aiDciiCCJcr0p9n_paozA6ZL2PzwcM75H7ybg5frP5Bfp_ghKFCbdB80hjxVo1xOl9dcQDIbSjfPmjzgtdxSgkv7uMjvciMS6Cf31XGeqo2T58FsqbidmUBev9nTpx4nvQ5G1WTDkAj/w514-h318/Figure+3_army+1.jpg" width="514" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Mik:</b> Having never fully played with Thranduil’s Halls, I don’t feel qualified to say much more here than Tommaso has already done. However, there is one alliance option that shouldn’t be overlooked with Halls of Thranduil. It is simply the fact that Legolas, arguably one of the best Heroes in the game, is a Hero of Valour in this list and other than 3 Historical allies, the Halls are a Convenient ally with every other army on the good side. This makes this list pretty incredible as an alliance option to drop in to other lists. Legolas can be mounted and can bring up to 15 Fight 5 spearmen (with 5 bows) to any other force, so whether you want some extra firepower or to improve the combat capabilities of your Dwarves of Khazad-Dum, or Men of Minas Tirith, or perhaps you want to add some Fight 5 to your Army of the Dead led by Aragorn? You can do all that, whilst bringing one of the game’s most useful characters alongside. People often underestimate Legolas, as after all he ‘only’ has 2 attacks, but when mounted, he fights with 3 dice at Fight 6 with Heroic Strike, 3 Might and has that all important auto-hit which can easily dismount enemy heroes, randomly cause a wound on enemy leaders, take out an unattended Banner-bearer, kill a lone model guarding an objective that you might not have the time to walk over to and so many other things. Leggy and a bunch of elves are my first alliance consideration in virtually every good army I think of. </p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>SUMMARY</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Tommaso: </b>In short, the key to victory for the Halls of Thranduil is the Elven King himself. With his incredibly versatile profile, going from a ridiculous cost of 100 points — which makes him the cheapest Hero of Legend available to the Elves — to 190, the King of the Woodland Realm makes a valid addition to any (Mirkwood) list. As a pure army, despite being one of the most shining and elite forces in the game — and with pretty amazing sculpts —, the Halls of Thranduil are not the most competitive of The Hobbit sourcebook nor of the Elven kingdoms. To unleash their full potential, it is vital for the Elven King to let go his proud and stubborn nature to set foot, instead, beyond his own realm and join a bigger cause [better should they offer some white gems in return...].</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">=========================================</p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><b>LOTHLÓRIEN</b></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7icVw4b-nEhqFax8owZz9artPDmQAPWWIwMWtbWUsG0I41jhqk6xY-oOLPYJ1hQBLkknyavj5C9vxaoSIX8y7otRkxA7pWG3ym55K6JQcpG1EjGXjfhkamzBuQxAPjVJ6ACs8kAgxDBsP/s2578/20200926_125553.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7icVw4b-nEhqFax8owZz9artPDmQAPWWIwMWtbWUsG0I41jhqk6xY-oOLPYJ1hQBLkknyavj5C9vxaoSIX8y7otRkxA7pWG3ym55K6JQcpG1EjGXjfhkamzBuQxAPjVJ6ACs8kAgxDBsP/w555-h262/20200926_125553.jpg" width="555" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Mik: </b>Unlike Halls of Thranduil, Lothlórien is an army I have played with on many occasions and one that I have faced regularly over the years. Back in the day, some 10 or 12 years ago, the forces of Thranduil, Galadriel, Legolas, Haldir, Celeborn, all kind of melted into one pot people called "Wood Elves". Back then this army used to be an absolute powerhouse. In the year when I won the UKGT, there were 6 Wood Elf armies in the top 10 of the tournament, despite Shadow Lord present in virtually every evil list and a Good vs Evil format. The overwhelming firepower combined with high numbers and the incredible Legolas were unstoppable. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Just imagine trying to defeat this commonly used variant of a 700 points army from a decade ago:</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Legolas<br />23 Wood Elves with Throwing Daggers<br />23 Wood Elves with Spears<br />12 Wood Elves with Bows & Spears<br />11 Wood Elves with Bows</p><p style="text-align: justify;">In total you had 70 models with Fight 5, 26 bow shots and 23 Throwing Daggers. Nobody cared about lack of Might when playing this list... they just chose to go to Bugman's early. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">As the rules changed to the last edition, Lothlórien were backed by the abundantly powerful Galadhrim Stormcallers, capable of not only casting Call Winds, which on 2+ knocked over and removed Fell Beasts, but also had access to the 6" range Nature’s Wrath on 4+, with the ability to regain all Will lost to cast a spell if a natural 6 was rolled. In the very first season of Great British Hobbit League, we limited the use of Galadhrim Stormcallers in tournaments, because of their insane power level. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">As the years went by, many new armies were introduced and Lothlórien lost a lot of its strength and appeal. Now they are nowhere near as powerful as they used to be, but they can still be used as a competitive army with many unique features and characters available:</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Throwing Daggers</b> – The Wood Elf Warriors come automatically equipped with an Elven Cloak and an ability to buy Throwing Daggers, as well as spears that give them the ability to Parry (same effects as shielding). That combined with Woodland Creature and shooting skill of 3+ means that they can easily travel through otherwise difficult terrain and harass enemies at range. Even as a front line of Elves, having 10 or 15 Wood Elves walk up within 6” of your opponent and then charge the following turn gives you excessive number of shots that more often than not will hit. With S3 they have a good chance of wounding all lightly armoured enemies and just their sheer numbers can be a threat to heavier armoured troops. This is especially strong against Defence 3 to Defence 5 armies. In combination with large number of bows, the army can be quite versatile, quick and deadly before they even engage. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Celeborn</b> – The Lord of the West always rolls 4 dice to win combat (3 plus the LotW re-roll), ensuring he will win more fights than he loses. His Fight 6, Elven made hand-and-a-half sword, Heroic Strike and a potential of Defence 7 make him a very good fighter. His Aura of Command cast on 2+ combined with a 12” Stand Fast! also make him a very potent leader and character you will often want to include in your forces. His downsides are the lack of option to have a Horse, as well as sadly only the status of Hero of Valour for a pretty steep price of 150 points. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Galadhrim Knights</b> – These guys are I believe the only cavalry in the game with the Fleetfoot special rule, allowing them to ignore Woodland terrain whilst mounted. This improves the speed of the force significantly. Their lack of any bonuses to wound is disappointing, but Fleetfoot alone makes them interesting. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Wood Elf Sentinel</b> – I normally only list 3 favourite things per army, but I couldn’t miss out on the Sentinel. These guys can feel a bit useless and overpriced at times, but Eldamar Madrigal can be one annoying trick, forcing an unsuspecting enemy to move in the wrong place and allow us to slingshot a Heroic Combat off them or to move a Shade, or an important hero out of range of their abilities or charging range. If you have spare points, you should think about including one of these models in your force. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Galadriel</b> – The mighty sorceress is someone who leaves me in two minds in this army. Her profile within the White Council armylist is one of most useful and most powerful models in the game currently. A constant Blinding Light effect, with 3 Attacks, 3 Might, Fortify Spirit, Banish, Heroic Strike and Heroic Defence make the Lady of Light insane. However, her Lothlórien profile is a bit lacklustre. Her biggest downside is the fact that Celeborn is not a Hero of Legend. Because of this, should you wish to take Galadriel, she must be your leader unless you ally in another Hero of Legend (Theoden, anyone?!). This is only possible at higher points. At lower points, this leaves you vulnerable in Contest of Champions, due to her being unarmed. She can be an interesting choice at lower points, since very few Heroes are capable of constantly resisting 2+ Immobilise, but she won't ever be your classic Army leader. Perhaps that uniqueness is one of the reasons to play Lothlórien?</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>The Army Bonus - </b>is interesting, but I don't think it's a dealbreaker when choosing allies, as there are better options out there. It's nice against Ringwraiths, but so is just pure and simple Fight 5 :)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNd6_aExhGaBRXIfnWsboFi8Q1scbF6kCXvCVOChFA2MMZN4CNo3CnwcWu10RIo2kQMT_FC8s-QL_VEl5w30HFjKC-N39Rm4YgKtZodf1st30Jt6Lnb7zcrQ3eJmqQYkgBOjZ9uFJXp44X/s2578/20200926_125238.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNd6_aExhGaBRXIfnWsboFi8Q1scbF6kCXvCVOChFA2MMZN4CNo3CnwcWu10RIo2kQMT_FC8s-QL_VEl5w30HFjKC-N39Rm4YgKtZodf1st30Jt6Lnb7zcrQ3eJmqQYkgBOjZ9uFJXp44X/w546-h257/20200926_125238.jpg" width="546" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><b><br />ARMY LISTS:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>500 Points of ‘Wood Elves’:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Celeborn in Full Kit //OR // Galadriel & a Banner Bearer<br />5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers<br />5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears<br />3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows<br />2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="white-space: pre;"><b>Warband 2:</b> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Haldir with Heavy Armour, Bow & Elven Cloak<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears<br />2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows<br />2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 500 (505 with the banner bearer, so slight tweak needed) Points, 29 Models, 6 might & 11 Shots.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">==============</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>500 Points of ‘Galadhrim’ Elves:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Celeborn in full Kit<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Shields<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Spears & Shields<br />3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Bows<br />2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Bows & Spears</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="white-space: pre;"><b>Warband 2:</b> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Haldir with Heavy Armour, Bow <br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Shields<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Spears & Shields<br />3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Bows<br />1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Bows & Spears</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 500 Points, 27 Models, 6 Might, 11 Shots.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I put the two lists together here, as they are the two basic archetypal ways of building a Lothlórien list. The ‘Wood Elves’ version has access to 9 daggers and 2 more models, whilst the Galadhrim have Defence 6 and essentially work similarly to a classic Rivendell force. Therefore, to me the primary appeal lies with the first list – the Wood Elf version with the Throwing Daggers. Whether you pick Galadriel or Celeborn is an interesting question. On one hand you get Blinding Light and Immobilise, but you lack the killing power of a big hero. On the other hand you get the big hero with a limited magical ability, but your army becomes very vulnerable to bowfire. Which force you pick is going to depend on how you prefer playing, as well as perhaps on the meta that you are expecting to face. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>600 Points of the House of Flying Daggers:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Haldir with an Elf Bow<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears<br />3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows<br />1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="white-space: pre;"><b>Warband 2:</b> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Captain with a Bow<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers<br /><span>3</span><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears<br />3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows<br /><span>2</span><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears<br />1 Guard of the Galadhrim Court</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 3:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Captain with a Bow<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers<br /><span>2</span><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears<br /><span>3</span><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows<br /><span>1</span><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warrior with Bows & Spears<br />1 Guard of the Galadhrim Court<br />1 Wood Elf Warriors with Spear & Banner</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 600 Points, 39 Models, 6 Might, 16 Bow Shots, 12 Throwing Daggers</p><p style="text-align: justify;">A common rule in SBG is for armies to average around 1 model per 20 points. In the case of 600 points lists that means you are expecting about 30 models in the army. More elite forces will be in their high 20s and horde-like armies will be in high 30s to 40s. This force has a staggering 39 at 600 points, which makes it a rather unique horde list - a horde of Fight 5 warriors, who are capable of outshooting most enemies and outrunning them through difficult terrain. The 12 potential throwing daggers offer constant harassment and constant need for your opponent to be winning Heroic Moves or you getting free hits on them – Every time 10 elves get to charge 10 Orcs, you’ll end up killing 2 or 3 orcs for free. The force allows you to wither down a significant number of enemies before the combat begins, whilst at the same time having very good numbers itself. Lack of big heroes could be an issue, but Haldir and 2 Captains provide a decent combat capability, all at Fight 6 basic, alongside Haldir’s Heroic Strike and Captains’ Heroic Marches. Heroic Accuracy can play a major role in the game too, so cannot be overlooked. I think at 600, the classic Wood Elf spam is a force to be reckoned with. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Although not entirely themed to the Wood Elf concept, the 2 Guards of the Galadhrim Court add a little bit of extra protection against Fight 6 heroes, forcing them to use Might on Heroic Strikes when facing just basic elves, as well as ensuring that Fell beasts think twice before flying behind our ranks. Naturally, they give you a slight edge in the mirror match too. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQUybRsnkjAt-0UAaQrzkTzKZoQ7rjUXGeD0N9E_itWwumDADQMY2Ea9jYNigkas1DTo8CdsjuDWKS5AsikQityfQ4WyxfxbSb9hyphenhyphenujnTlqmPGvaW8zL7UFljFFdx19LM2Lz-Q2lZcWZXG/s2578/20200926_125203.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1220" data-original-width="2578" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQUybRsnkjAt-0UAaQrzkTzKZoQ7rjUXGeD0N9E_itWwumDADQMY2Ea9jYNigkas1DTo8CdsjuDWKS5AsikQityfQ4WyxfxbSb9hyphenhyphenujnTlqmPGvaW8zL7UFljFFdx19LM2Lz-Q2lZcWZXG/w557-h263/20200926_125203.jpg" width="557" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>800 Points of Galadriel’s Alliance with Rivendell:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Warband 1:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadriel with the Mirror<br />6<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Shields<br />6<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Spears & Shields<br />5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadhrim Warriors with Bows & Spears<br />1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Sentinel</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="white-space: pre;"><b>Warband 2:</b> </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Elrond, Master of Rivendell on a Horse with H.Armour (Army Leader)<br />2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Rivendell Knights with Shields<br />5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Rivendell Warriors with Shields<br />6<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Rivendell Warriors with Shields & Spears<br />4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Rivendell Warriors with Bows & Spears<br />1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Rivendell Warrior with Shield, Spear & Banner</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>Total:</b> 800 Points, 38 Models, 6 Might, 13 Bows</p><p style="text-align: justify;">This list is not made for competitive reasons, but rather because of a cool rules interaction between Elrond and Galadriel. It only includes 2 heroes, so at first sight might look relatively weak. However, Elrond has a very nice trick with Galadriel in this situation: Vilya, his Elven Ring, allows him to re-roll his Fate rolls. Mirror of Galadriel allows a Hero within 6” to regain all Fate points. As such, Elrond, with his Defence 7, Fight 6, Heroic Strike, Heroic Defence and the Mirror nearby becomes virtually unkillable, unless someone manages to cause 6 wounds at one time against him. Galadriel provides a good amount of bow protection with the Blinding Light and regular Immobilise, and the force has generally solid numbers, some mobility with 3 cavalry models, banner and a Sentinel for some distraction. </p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>800 Points of Halls of Thranduil, White Council & Lothlórien:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Warband 1:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Galadriel, Lady of Light</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Warband 2:</b><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood on a Horse</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elves with Bows</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elves with Shields</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elves with Glaives</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elf with a Banner & Glaive</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Warband 3:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Haldir with a Bow</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Guard of the Galadhrim Court</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Warband 4:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Captain</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Throwing Daggers</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Spears</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Wood Elf Warriors with Bows & Spears</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Guard of the Galadhrim Court</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div></div><b>Total:</b> 800 Points, 43 Models, 11 Might, 18 Shots, 8 Daggers. <div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;">Since we're talking about the two Elven factions here, why not try to combine them? This is an example of an 800 points list that emphasises what Elves are best at - Shooting. It contains arrow protection, 3 Heroes with Heroic Strike, 1 Hero with Heroic March, some daggers, some Fight 6 pikes, alongside 4 heroes all sitting on Fight 6. It might be a bit fragile in combat, but the aim will be to wither down as many enemies before combat starts as possible and to harass mounts from long range. Haldir provides Heroic Accuracy, so that Legolas doesn't have to use his own Might for it. 1 Mounted model isn't much, but the captain adds some Heroic March to the mix. </div><p style="text-align: center;"><b>SUMMARY:</b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Just like Thranduil's Halls, the Lothlórien list does not have any Impossible Allies. As such it can be used as an easy ally with anyone else, simply to add some Fight 5 or Fight 6 Galadhrim Guards into any other force. Whereas the Halls would bring Legolas and some Elves, Lothlórien allows us to bring a support caster like Galadriel or a combat beast like Celeborn alongside. That gives both armies a lot of options when allying. On their own, both factions are able to create solid lists. Whether it's an army of shooting Mirkwood Rangers, or a house of flying daggers type force, both factions allow you to bring and play something different than your regular rank and file troops that you see in most other armies. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Final thing worth mentioning is the Legendary Legion combining elves of Lothlórien led by Haldir to defend Helm's Deep from the Isengard Siege. Alongside Aragorn and a host of Rohan heroes, as well as increased bowfire range to 30", the Legion is possibly a better option than a pure Elven list at certain points levels. However, since it's a Legion, it might get its own article in due course :) For now, that's all!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Good Luck!</p><p style="text-align: justify;">BlackMist & Tomgalad</p><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-58722512344618927062020-06-23T15:26:00.001+01:002020-09-13T17:09:25.336+01:00Fog of War, Part 17: Forces of Azog, Mirkwood and Dol Guldur<div style="height: 0px;">
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Part 17: Forces of Azog, Mirkwood and Dol Guldur</div>
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Welcome back to part 17 of Fog of War, a series of articles with contributions from some of the to players in the game. This time we venture into the dark side of the Hobbit trilogy and will be exploring the forces of Azog’s Legions, Azog’s Hunters, Denizens of Mirkwood and the Dark Powers of Dol Guldur. Joining me will be the 2017 NOVA Open Champion and the co-host of An Unexpected Podcast, Matt Iverson. </div>
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Although it seems like a lot to cover, Dol Guldur is mostly a stand-alone elite force and Denizens of Mirkwood primarily act as allies within other forces, so I thought it would be best to combine them into one article outlining all 4 factions.</div>
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<b>Matt: </b>Azog’s Legion is an army equipped with a number of wonderful toys. You can build lists that go in several different directions, hitting-hero heavy (with Azog and Bolg), monster heavy (spamming trolls, or even better, the cheap but effective ogres), or a horde of tough but effective Gundabad Berserkers and Orcs. What the list does not have, however, is any cavalry or any real shooting. Although you can mount Azog and Bolg on wargs – nothing in this army shoots except the Catapult Troll, and that model, even if you build one (which I have) is far too large a point sink except in the largest of armies. Azog’s Legion does have one of the best faction bonuses in the game, allowing Azog or Bolg to gain the Master of Battle Special Rule if either is your leader. Having a F7 hero of Azog or Bolg’s caliber that can freely counter the Heroic Strikes other heroes will need to match them is a massive advantage. As a note, this special rule attaches even if your leader is not from Azog’s Legion. This means, for example, that if you ally a warband of goblin mercenaries from the Azog’s Legion list into an Azog’s Hunter list led by Bolg, Bolg still gets the bonus.</div>
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<b>Mik: </b>Azog's Legion has the option of deploying a swarm of tiny goblins at the same time as some elite and extremely powerful characters. This faction's basic troops are a weird combination of pseudo-Uruk Hai Berserkers, pseudo-Morannon Orcs and pseudo-Goblin Town Goblins, making it a breed of potentially multiple playstyles thrown into one army. One of my favourite units in the game are Goblin Mercenaries. Their Special Rules regarding deployment create a very interesting game dynamic where in certain scenarios the opponents have to hold troops back (like in their camp in Storm the Camp, or in the normally less guarded places like the home objective in Domination and Capture & Control), thus minimising their own forces' effectiveness in the field by having to account for potentially disastrous 'drop' of the Mercs. If the Mercenaries get lucky, pass multiple Courage Tests and choose not to deploy for a long time, they can create a strain on the enemy forces that may result in really tough game for the opponent.<br />
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<b>Matt: </b>The Azog’s Hunters list allows you to bring hunter orcs, with their cheap access to two-attack models, as well as increased mobility from fell wargs and warg riders. In addition, if you take a pure Azog’s Hunters list (or limit yourself to green allies, like Azog’s Legion), you can equip up to half of your hunter orc models with bows and increase their shoot value to 4+. The Azog’s Hunters list also gives you access to several reasonably-priced three might heroes with some interesting special rules, such as Fimbul with F5 and an ability to ignore terrain, Narzug with his free might to spend on shooting, and Yazneg with his lance.</div>
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<b>Dark Denizens of Mirkwood</b></div>
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<b>Mik: </b>The almighty Spider Queen has been a staple of many armies and a winner of many big tournaments since her release in 2006. Back in the day, around 2007/2008, the UKGTs were won by armies containing between 3 and 5 Spider Queens and some players famously even fielded 8 of them at 700 points (she used to cost only 75!). A lot has changed since in the army-building rules and Spider Queen is now a lot more expensive points-wise than she used to be and counts as a named hero, so can only be taken once per army. Regardless of that, the potential 6 Strength 6 re-rollable strikes on charge, combined with Brutal Power Attacks, Heroic Strike, Might, ignoring difficult terrain and deploying fast, easy to hide and at times incredibly annoying Broodlings still makes her incredibly dangerous, especially against unsuspecting Heroes. Her low Defence and lack of Fate points are her only downside, but when played well, these downsides become largely irrelevant (until a disastrous roll of the dice...). </div>
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The Queen can bring other Spiders, Bat Swarms and Fell Wargs along to the party. All of these provide an interesting bonus when allied with both Azog's Legions and Azog's Hunters, as well as with armies such as Mordor, Moria and many others. </div>
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Naturally, Dark Denizens can play as a very cool army on their own, but lack of other Heroes makes them difficult to scale up to anything over 400 or 500 points without adding allies in the shape of Fell Beasts or other big toys. </div>
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<b>ARMY LISTS </b></div>
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<b>Matt: </b>When building either an Azog’s Hunters or Azog’s Legion list, your first choice is a hero to lead it. While you can take workable lists at lower points levels with just Captains, in most cases you want to center your list on either Azog (if you are above 700 points) or Bolg (if you are at lower points levels). And make sure to include at least one warband from the Azog’s Legion list to give your leader that all-important Master of Battle. </div>
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Your next decision is what should form the core of you army – orcs (of either the Gundabad or Hunter variety), monsters (perhaps a troll or a trio of ogres), or something with mobile hitting power (some berserkers, war bats, or Hunter Orcs on Wargs). </div>
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Finally, you can decide what odds and ends you want to include to give your army some clever tricks. One option is a small warband of Goblin Mercenaries that seize key terrain, the other side’s camp, or just appear exactly where you need them to seize an objective. Another option is a War Bat or two to fly over the lines to pluck at dismounted heroes. You can also opt for a few Fell Wargs or Hunter Orcs on Wargs, whose Fell Sight special rule allows them to lurk out of sight and then dart from cover to entrap unwary opponents. </div>
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<b>List 1.1: Mik’s 500 Points of Azog’s Legion</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Bolg on a Warg </div>
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5 Gundabad Orcs with Shields </div>
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7 Gundabad Orcs with Shields & Spears </div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Goblin Mercenary Captain </div>
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12 Goblin Mercenaries </div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Goblin Mercenary Captain </div>
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12 Goblin Mercenaries </div>
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Total: 39 Models, 7 Might (Plus Master of Battle) </div>
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<b>Mik: </b>At the 2018 ETC, I was very fond of a warband of Goblin Mercenaries, especially since at that time I was able to assign the captain to be my Army Leader, despite having 2 Ringwraiths on Fell Beasts leading a force of Corsair Reavers and Orcs (my leader had the ultimate protection - he didn't even start the game on the table most of the time!)… now that such crazy times have passed, I still feel that the Mercenaries are incredibly valuable and useful models. Not only do they make this 500 points list huge in numbers, they give it pseudo-mobility, which standard Azog’s Legion would lack at this points limit - at times, they’ll deploy in hugely advantageous positions and provide a swarm of cheap attacks that your opponent will struggle to deal with en-masse. At other times, they can be deployed just like any other troops and form a wide line that will likely outnumber most enemy forces. At 500 points Bolg is a powerhouse that in this case gains the Master of Battle Special Rule and acts as a killing machine that only the likes of Boromir, Elendil or Elven Lords can reliably fight against, meaning you can rely on him for most things, except Courage. So make sure not to break.</div>
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Another way of playing Azog's Legion would be to include one of the Trolls or a couple of Ogres. That would however force a vastly different list to the one above, one like for example this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb8TW_Jy-56DULMSfaGcddRh_Y-ExNtRYnyfRU-Y0UgQFkzE7a7XwZNN85oabuKJAFwsmqSJkmPhm2IlvLH1XZYc0wo2hlPKP_XghZO0UD4ogYRaBDNBgM6pzY-7O_vzuvC2rxOO4gDhAp/s1600/IMG_0182.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb8TW_Jy-56DULMSfaGcddRh_Y-ExNtRYnyfRU-Y0UgQFkzE7a7XwZNN85oabuKJAFwsmqSJkmPhm2IlvLH1XZYc0wo2hlPKP_XghZO0UD4ogYRaBDNBgM6pzY-7O_vzuvC2rxOO4gDhAp/w500-h375/IMG_0182.JPG" width="500" /></a></div>
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<b>List 2: Mik's 600 Points of Azog's Legion</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div>
1 Gundabad Orc Captain with Shield</div>
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5 Gundabad Orcs with Shields</div>
<div>
4 Gundabad Orcs with Shields & Spears</div>
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1 Gundabad Orc with Shield, Spear and a Banner</div>
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1 Gundabad Berserker</div>
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1 War Bat</div>
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div>
1 Gundabad Orc Captain with Shield</div>
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4 Gundabad Orcs with Shields & Spears</div>
<div>
3 Gundabad Orcs with Shields & Spears</div>
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1 Gundabad Troll with a Crushing Club</div>
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2 Gundabad Berserker</div>
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div>
1 Goblin Mercenary Captain</div>
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12 Goblin Mercenaries</div>
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Total: 37 Models, 6 Might</div>
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Although low on Might and lacking Master of Battle, this force packs a solid S4/D6 front line with the support of 3 fast-moving and hard-hitting Gundabad Berserkers, 1 objective-grabbing and annoying War Bat and a warband of Mercenaries. The Troll with the Crushing Club poses a major threat to heroes, as winning combat against them will often result in causing too many wounds even for the likes of Aragorn to to withstand. Their only hope against the Troll is its massive base, preventing it from getting into advantageous positions. 6 Might for Heroic Marches is also worth keeping in mind for the times when moving fast is vital. </div>
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<b>List 3: Matt’s 600 Points of Azog’s Hunters & Azog's Legion</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Bolg on Fell Warg </div>
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12 Hunter Orcs </div>
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1 Hunter Orc with a bow </div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Fimbul on Fell Warg </div>
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2 Hunter Orcs on Fell Warg </div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Narzug </div>
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12 Hunter Orcs w/ bow </div>
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<b>Warband 4 (Azog’s Legion Ally):</b></div>
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Goblin Mercenary Captain </div>
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4 Goblin Mercenaries </div>
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Total: 35 models, 11 might (plus Master of Battle), 14 bows (including Narzug). </div>
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<b>Matt: </b>This list puts out a surprising amount of shooting and packs quite a punch when the lines meet. Each warband has a different role in the mix: Bolg’s warband is the army’s main punch, and Bolg’s presence will make most armies hesitant to close in. Narzug and his archers, on the other hand, create a solid base of fire that the enemy will have to either run from or engage. Fimbul and his Warg riding buddies can either grab objectives or use their Fell Sight to lurk in ambush behind terrain pieces. Finally, the Goblin Mercenary warband can appear in the enemy’s rear, on an objective, or in an enemy’s camp. Should they choose to join the army as normal, the Captain can call a Heroic March or two if the army needs to close quickly against superior shooting. </div>
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<b>List 4: Mik’s 800 Points of Azog’s Hunters & Dark Denizens of Mirkwood</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Bolg on a Fell Warg </div>
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14 Hunter Orcs </div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div>
Yazneg on a Fell Warg with Lance </div>
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12 Hunter Orcs </div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div>
Finbul on a Fell Warg </div>
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12 Hunter Orcs </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div>
Spider Queen </div>
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2 Bat Swarms </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Total: 40 Models, 11 Might </div>
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<div>
<b>Mik:</b> Here we have a list with a solid combination of fast moving heroes and a horde of 2-attack warriors. Having 4 mounted heroes (SQ counts as one too) with Heroic Strike can cause a major issue to a lot of infantry lines. Minor Heroes will often struggle to beat the F7/6/5 of Bolg, SQ and Fimbul, whilst even the likes of Aragorn and Boromir can suffer major damage, should they lose a Strike-off to any of the 4 characters, especially when combined with another Hunter or valar-forbid a Bat Swarm. The obvious weakness of this army is the general low defence and numbers which aren't hugely impressive at this points level for a Defence 4 army, but once the combat begins, this force has the capability to hit fast and hard. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
The lack of models from Azog's Legion takes away the Master of Battle Rule, but the addition of Spider Queen naturally makes the alliance a Covenient (yellow) one, thus not eligible for the Army Bonusess anyway. Whether it's a correct trade-off is arguable both ways. </div>
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<b>List 5: Matt’s 800 Points of Azog’s Signal Tower Legion</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1 (and only):</b></div>
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Azog on White Warg, heavy armor, stone flail. </div>
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The Signal Tower w/ 7 Lieutenants. </div>
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22 Berserkers </div>
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1 War bat </div>
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<br /></div>
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Total: 31 models, 13 might (plus Master of Battle on Azog). </div>
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<b>Matt: </b>The core of this list is, obviously, Azog and his Signal Tower, and the list capitalizes on the benefits the Tower conveys. All of the models can move at least 8” a turn, or 11” thanks to the Tower. Each model, regardless of where it is, gains a banner reroll. The +1 courage bonus is sufficient to make the army essentially fearless, and the -1 courage penalty to the opponent makes it very hard to charge Azog while he remains on his mount. Finally, not only do Azog and his mount get a 6+ fury save, but the Tower improves the berserkers’ survivalability even further, discounting 1/3 of the wounds they suffer. </div>
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The most important benefit of the Tower, however, is its mere existence. The Tower allows you to place a terrain piece and seven Lieutenants ANYWHERE ON THE BOARD. Playing Hold Ground? Place the Tower and the Lieutenants in the middle of the board. Playing Seize the Prize? Put the tower between your opponent and the prize. Playing Contest of Champions? Place the Tower in your opponent’s deployment area and use the Lieutenants to box the opponent’s leader into a cage match with Azog. Need cover against a shooting army? Place the Tower in the middle of the board and hide behind it. The possibilities are endless. Have fun! </div>
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<b>Dark Powers of Dol Guldur</b></div>
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<b>Mik: </b>This unique all-hero force appears as more of a relaxed, cool, thematic, not-exactly-competitive force. But appearances can be and are very deceiving in this case. The Necromancer and his Ringwraiths are an incredibly difficult and annoying faction to beat in certain scenarios when the army you are playing lacks the tools for it - these being abundance of F5+ models and Elven Blades. The key model in the army is The Necromancer himself, as he makes the rest of the list virtually invulnerable in combat through the 2+ Mightable resurrection roll. If the Necromancer dies, the army will die soon after, unless it has already caused enough damage to the opponent that a bunch of F5 2-Attack Terror-causing heroes can pick off the remaining scattered troops. </div>
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The uniqueness of each Wraith also adds another advantage that isn't obvious from the start - confusion. The player who learns to use the Wraiths will know exactly what each one of them is capable of and where to put them to the maximum effect. But the opposing player may have to revert to constantly checking each one's rules to remember who does what in order to figure out how to best combat them. As a result, your opponent is far more likely to be making mistakes than you are and more often than not, the player who makes more mistakes is the player who ends up losing the game. </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although the Wraiths can be allied into other forces as interesting captains bringing (newly added in the February FAQ) Heroic Strikes, they are most effective on their own, supported by their boss, meaning that at points of 500 and less, they are hardly viable, but points limits such as 800 or 1000 is where they really shine. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Castellans are also units that often get overlooked. They provide very good fighters at a relatively cheap price, making them good at low points levels, especially when your opponents lack the means of causing multiple wounds on them or lack the resources to drain down their Will over many turns of combat. </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 6: 1000 Points of Dark Powers of Dol Guldur</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Necromancer </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
9 Ringwraiths </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Keeper of the Dungeons</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Summary</b></div>
</div>
</div>
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<b>Matt: </b>Azog’s Legion, together or in conjunction with Azog’s Hunters, gives you a host of options that allow you to play the army in very different ways. This is a great army to begin as a starter set (maybe with Bolg and some orcs) and then expand into a monster army (adding some ogres or trolls), an elite army (with berserkers) or just about anything else you like.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik</b>: Depending how you build your army, forces of Azog have a lot of variety to pick from and utilise throughout the game. Their strong heroes are some of the game's most fearsome and their warriors allow you to build lists that will have very solid, heavy-infantry feel, or look like scattered-skirmish-scouting forces capable of spreading and dealing damage in non-standard-shieldwall ways. If you like your beasts, add some spiders and a Queen. If you like a challenge and an army unlike any other, just take the Nazgul of Dol Guldur. Whatever you choose, you're sure going to have a good game to play. </div>
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Good Luck!</div>
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BlackMist & Matt</div>
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======= </div>
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Pictures kindly provided by Matt.</div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-47945860860199949782020-06-13T11:47:00.002+01:002020-06-18T22:22:09.312+01:00Fog of War, Part 16: The Serpent Horde & Far Harad<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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Part 16: The Serpent Horde & Far Harad. </span></h4>
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Welcome back to Fog of War. This time joining me is the co-host of An Unexpected Podcast, 2018 NOVA Champion and 2019 NOVA runner-up Rainier Lee. Together we will be looking at the factions of The Serpent Horde and Far Harad, and as always showcase example lists for you to see, in case you’re interested in joining the ranks of men fighting for the Dark Lord. </div>
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The Serpent Horde is a unique Evil army, as unlike most Evil armies, it shines in the shoot phase, contains a variety of troops almost as large as that of Mordor and counts Mordor as its Historical Ally, gaining cheap access to some of the Dark Land’s versatile toys. Far Harad has some of the game’s most powerful unnamed heroes and a set of fearless mini-chariots paired up with mini-trolls, providing a unique playing experience for everyone involved. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
HEROES:</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Rainier:</b> The rebellious men of the south offer a long range of heroes from troop killing assassins (Hasharin), taskmasters, death dealing Mahud Kings, and Ringwraiths to the Serpent Lord himself (Suladan).</div>
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First, I would like to focus on Suladan, who is arguably a must take for most Harad lists. Suladan gives players a 3/3/1 Hero of Legend with Heroic Strike and March, and he is a 6-inch banner. Yes, you read that correctly, “is a 6-inch banner”. Meaning, Suladan gives players 1-2 free Victory Points at the end of some scenarios if he is alive. Couple that with him usually being your general (Hero of Legend), most players are sure to keep him alive for the end game victory pts grab! Whilst mounted on an armored horse, he is also very cheap for everything he can offer!</div>
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Second, the Mahud King. The Mahud King is a 2-Might Hero of Valour with Heroic Strike, and Strength. What makes this unnamed hero so deadly is his ability to KILL. At less than 100 points, a King gives you a three-attack strength 5 model with a warspear, shield and camel (I will address camels in more detail later). The King’s stats give him a diverse range of options from going toe to toe with mega heroes to cutting through heavy armored dwarves like butter. At a cost lower than most Heroes of his fighting ability, the Mahud King is a smart choice for your list. </div>
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<b>Mik:</b> Although Suladan is arguably the best and most cost-efficient Hero in the game, allowing you to take 18 warriors alongside him with a banner that covers an area almost 4 times* the size of a standard banner, he isn’t the only choice you have. The Golden King, once an absolute powerhouse on top tables of major tournaments, is still a force to be reckoned with despite losing the ability to Heroic Strike in the current edition. Sitting quietly on top of his banner-throne with more attacks than any other non-monster Hero in the game at Strength 4 and Burly, he provides a solid meat cleaver against Fight 3 and lower basic troops and also is capable of slicing down big heroes when combined with a Transfix or a Heroic Striking friend. His ‘Riches Beyond Renown’ is still one of the best abilities in the game, able to automatically remove any enemy hero from the battlefield. </div>
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Special mention naturally goes to The Betrayer, whose ‘Master of Poisons’ Special Rule technically almost doubles the number of bows the army contains and making the cheap Warriors much more powerful in combat against all opponents. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
PLAYSTYLE:</h4>
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<b>The Serpent Horde:</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Rainier:</b> The Serpent Horde is arguably one of the best shooting factions in the game. Their Army Bonus allows you to equip 50% of your army with bows, instead of the usual 33%. Moreover, Haradrim bows are always poisoned. Combine a horde of poisoned bows with The Betrayer and you will rarely find yourself losing the shoot phase. Bows are a staple for any Harad army and can be complimented with fast moving and cheap Fight 4 lanced cavalry (Serpent Riders). Abrakhan Guards also give a punch in the combat phase, for 9pts you can sprinkle in these strength-4 burly-body-builders. [<i>More like powerlifters – Mik 😉</i>]</div>
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<b>Mik:</b> Players can opt to go in multiple directions with The Serpent Horde, both by spamming high numbers of relatively cheap troops and as a hard hitting elite force. Abrakhan Guards can indeed punch holes in most battle lines and Watchers of Karna provide good flanking troops with extra attacks, but one of the more overlooked units in Harad are Serpent Guards – with their poisoned spears they are able to provide cheap F4 spear support not only to standard Haradrim Warriors, but also to Morannon Orcs or Mahud Warriors, both of whom are Historical Allies and hence easy to drop into the list if required.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIPbKoyAhGkMsaqLj5gENQsRpu2_mHFBsZ_3kDAuKUhDmfp6xryaWPZXbmCm7hRXIMBN6wEt9kG31PueIZIvko_p3HNhdIdz5uReMpTpeow5qj6quU7BgOS_5_X0Ut45RMrRV3y_Eff-1h/s1600/MIB00979.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="1600" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIPbKoyAhGkMsaqLj5gENQsRpu2_mHFBsZ_3kDAuKUhDmfp6xryaWPZXbmCm7hRXIMBN6wEt9kG31PueIZIvko_p3HNhdIdz5uReMpTpeow5qj6quU7BgOS_5_X0Ut45RMrRV3y_Eff-1h/s400/MIB00979.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>Far Harad: </b></div>
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<b>Rainier:</b> Far Harad is unique to most factions in that it allows players to deal damage not only in the fight and shoot phase, but also in the move phase. Camels, for example, provide hits when charging in the move phase. If the camel mounted model kills their opponent, they may then continue or finish their 10inch movement inflicting as many of those impact hits as their savage heart’s desire. I once played Far Harad against a Rangers of Ithilien list at a tournament and would wipe out whole Defence 4 warbands in the move phase. What a scary notion for any low defence army! Moreover, a Mahud King or Chieftain can Heroic Combat, offering double the carnage. Mahud Raiders give Far Harad lists a scary ability to ruin formations and cause havoc out of nowhere. Far Harad also gives players some of the best infantry in the game. Half-Trolls provide immense hitting power with their high Strength, Fight and Attacks, allowing you to form battle lines with better stats than many heroes! Let me also not forget Far Harad’s army bonus, which allows its warriors to automatically pass Courage Tests in certain circumstances, so models like Gulavhar can easily become an afterthought before they have the ability to participate in the fight phase. </div>
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<b>Mik: </b>Mumaks… What can I say… they’re awesome! Sadly, the size of their bases and their rules are not really designed for competitive play, despite the really cool upgrade of the Mumak War Leader leading a really powerful looking Grand Army of the South Legendary Legion – Mahud Warriors with blowpipes backed by Haradrim Spearmen with Bows? Sign me up! Nevertheless, Mumaks are an awesome part of the game and definitely worth trying to use, whether for competitive or not reasons. Whether you use Mumaks or fight against them, they usually provide a laugh and a series of unexpected events ensues. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
WEAKNESSES:</h4>
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<b>Rainier:</b> For an enthusiast of the desert tribes of Southern Middle-Earth I must admit that these factions can easily be exploited. Though they can deal a lot of damage in the move, shoot, and fight phase, due to their low defense, The Serpent Horde and Far Harad lack the ability to grind in a long battle. For example, Haradrim archers can many times be outshot by elves with blinding light, or factions with a heavy emphasis on Strength 4 Crossbows. Furthermore, the low Fight Value of Mahud Raiders means that failing to charge may end up costing you large sways of very expensive camels. If you are playing Harad make sure to weaken your opponent before the battle lines hit. If you are playing Far Harad make sure to optimize your killing in the move phase and set yourself up for the counter charge.</div>
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<b>Mik: </b>Suladan, despite being a good offensive and supporting character, and a centerpiece of many Harad Armies, is a particularly fragile Hero. At a lowly Defence for a hero that will usually be your leader, and just one Fate point, a single bad roll against some basic strength 3 troops can easily poke away a Victory Point for your opponent. As a rule, whilst trapped against enemy heroes, losing a Heroic Strike-off usually results with the death of your Leader. It’s imperative that Suladan is kept safe due to his regular status as the Leader and his immense Banner range, but as the best combat hero of The Serpent Horde, players will be regularly throwing him in danger. Elven Bows are also a problem and appearance of Legolas on the other side of the board is something every Suladan player despises, as regardless of how safe we play, it becomes inevitable that at Suladan will drop at least 1 wound, if not more. I've been on the receiving end of Legolas at a GBHL Masters Tournament in 2019 and after spending just 1 Might point earlier in the game, I rolled a 1 on my Fate and lost a game of Reconnoitre by 1-0 simply by not passing the Fate roll. It may be a good idea to look to ally in other Heroes of Legend, so as not to put all your eggs (Leader and Banner) into one basket. It could be Witch King, Dalamyr, or even Saruman.<br />
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
ARMY LISTS:</h4>
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<b>List 1: Rainier’s 800 Points of The Serpent Horde & Far Harad Alliance:</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Sulladan (Armoured Horse)</div>
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2 Abrakhan Guard</div>
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2 Watchers of Karna (Twin Blades)</div>
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6 Harad Warriors with Bows</div>
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3 Harad Warriors with Bows & Spears</div>
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5 Serpent Guards</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Mahud King (Camel, War Spear, Shield)</div>
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3 Half Trolls</div>
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4 Mahud Warriors with Blowpipes</div>
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7 Mahud Warriows with Blowpipes & Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Mahud King (Camel, War Spear, Shield)</div>
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3 Mahud Raiders with Blowpipes & War Spears</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
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Mahud King (Camel, War Spear, Shield)</div>
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2 Mahud Raiders with Blowpipes & War Spears</div>
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<br /></div>
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Total: 797 Points, 41 Models, 9 Might, 9 Bows, 14 Blowpipes, 8 Camels</div>
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<br /></div>
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This 800pt list balances shooting, killing, and movement compacted in a themed army that would have fought at the Pellenor Fields. Like a kid at a candy shop my list echoes “a little of this and a little of that.” My 9 poisoned bows alongside 14 blowpipes that hit on 3s offers enough to harass my opponent with shooting. Ideally, I want to be around 12” away from my opponent to maximize my blowpipes and choose which fights my camels want to engage in. I brought 4 warbands, two of which only have 2-3 models. This allows me to have options on where my camels/Might will be both in the deployment phase and throughout the match depending on what scenario is played. The two main warbands contribute a lot of punch to my force. When combined, they can form a battle line with F5 Half Trolls, Abrakhan Guard and S4 Mahud Warriors with F4 Serpent Guards sprinkled in. Don’t forget Suladan’s 6-inch banner! My 9 Might does not seem like a lot. However, 9 Might distributed amongst four mounted 3-attack models, three of which are baby Dains, can be a problem to most armies. Overall, this force offers a balanced look to what Harad and Far Harad have, as it includes shooting, killing power, and the ability to move around the board.</div>
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<i><b>Mik:</b> You’ll be glad to know that we featured an almost identical list to this one in the first episode of An Unexpected Podcast, where Tim, Devin, Matt and I had a chance to discuss the pros and cons of it with Rainier going into an 800 point tournament. Check it out on the DC Hobbit League Youtube page, starting at 45:30 below: </i><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uC-GTrDVUIk" width="480"></iframe>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>https://youtu.be/uC-GTrDVUIk?t=2732</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<b>List 2: Rainier’s 500 points of The Serpent Horde</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Suladan (Armoured Horse) </div>
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2 Serpent Riders </div>
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4 Abrakhan Guards</div>
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5 Harad Warriors with Bows</div>
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5 Harad Warriors with Spears</div>
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2 Serpent Guards</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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The Betrayer on Horse</div>
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8 Harad Warriors with Bows</div>
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3 Harad Warriors with Bows & Spears</div>
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3 Harad Warriors with Spears</div>
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1 Harad Warrior with a Sword </div>
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Total: 500 Points, 35 Models, 5 Might, 16 Bows, 4 Cav</div>
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<br /></div>
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This 500pt list build is traditional in that it leans on its strengths, which are bows and poison. The Betrayer gives 16 bows the ability to re-roll all failed to wound rolls, which is a terrifying notion at 500pts. Moreover, The Betrayer also buffs this army in the combat phase. Withholding the few Abrakhan Guard, this army with its F4 sprinkled around can also re-roll failed to wound rolls in the combat phase. At 500 points Suladan is likely going to be facing less threats, whilst still providing his awesome banner effect. Overall, this army offers a HUGE punch in the shoot phase and coupled with its cavalry, Burly, and more poison re-rolls can be deadly at 500pts. </div>
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<b>List 3: Mik’s 600 Points of Serpent Horde & Far Harad:</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 1: The Serpent Horde</b></div>
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Suladan, Mounted with a Bow</div>
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9 Haradrim with Bows & Spears</div>
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9 Abrakhan Guard</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 2: The Serpent Horde</b></div>
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Haradrim Chieftain with a Bow</div>
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6 Haradrim with Bows & Spears</div>
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6 Abrakhan Guard</div>
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<b>Warband 3: Far Harad</b></div>
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1 Mahud King with full kit</div>
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3 Mahud Camel Riders with Warspears and Blowpipes</div>
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1 Mahud Camel Rider with a Warspear</div>
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Total: 600 Points, 37 Models, 7 Might</div>
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This is a solid and simple 600 points list that provides decent numbers with a 15-wide front line of Abrakhan Guard backed by Spears, 17 bows, Suladan’s banner and a contingent of Mahud King with 4 Camels, for a total of 6 cavalry models. The Chieftain gives the army an extra Heroic March, ensuring the force can move quickly when it needs to without having to spend Suladan's Might points. The force sacrifices The Betrayer in order to bring some Camels and a better 2nd fighter. There isn’t much to say other than the fact that it’s likely not going to win a straight up shooting war with Rangers of Ithilien, but if it starts the game up close to them, it should annihilate them. </div>
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<b>List 4: Mik’s 700 Points of Golden King & Catapult Combo</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1: The Serpent Horde</b></div>
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Golden King</div>
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8 Haradrim Warriors with Spears & Bows</div>
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6 Abrakhan Guard</div>
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1 Serpent Rider</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 2: Mordor</b></div>
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The Dwimmerlaik on a Horse</div>
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7 Black Numenoreans</div>
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7 Morannon Orcs with Shields & Spears</div>
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1 Warg Rider with Shield</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 3: Mordor</b></div>
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1 Mordor War Catapult with:</div>
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- 1 extra crew member</div>
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- Severed Heads upgrade</div>
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Total: 700 Points, 37 Models, 3 Might (2 really), 8 bows and something special…</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Whether you take Shadow Lord over Dwimmerlaik for better bowfire protection or Betrayer over Dwimmerlaik for those bonuses to re-rolls is up to you. Perhaps taking Dwimmerlaik here is going too far, but hear me out, because this is one of the most fun lists I’ve ever made. </div>
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Golden King’s Special Rule allows you to force your opponent’s heroes to fail Courage Tests. Severed Heads upgrade of the Catapult outright kills models that fail Courage Tests. Together what that means is that if you drop a head on your opponent’s leader and Golden King is nearby, it’s possible that leader will flee regardless of who they are. A Ringwraith’s Harbinger of Evil modifier is a great tool here in improving the odds of the failed test, hence regardless whether you take Shadow Lord, Betrayer or Dwimmerlaik, you’ll get the added bonus. However, this is where the extra hit comes in: Dwimmerlaik’s ‘Sap Fortitude’ Special Rule forces Heroes to spend EXTRA points of Might and Will, meaning that you can either save up on GK’s Will points, or you can force someone who you wouldn’t think would fail into failing. </div>
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That, plus Dwimmerlaik is virtually never used, so wouldn’t it be fun to see him played a bit more often? Start the game with a couple of normal shots, then cast a cheeky Drain Courage or two on your opponent’s leader, then bring both Dwim and GK nearby and aim Severed Heads at him. You could just out of nowhere win a game you never thought you had a chance in. </div>
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And if all that fails? You still have a Catapult, Black Numenoreans, Morannon Orcs and Abrakhan Guard supported by a Banner and a Wraith to keep you going! Lack of Might could be a problem, but hey, such is life for the brave who choose the road less travelled by.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
ALLIES & CONCLUSION:</h4>
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<b>Rainier: </b>Allying can stop your opponent from using your army’s weaknesses against you. Harad has the ability to green ally with factions such as Mordor, or the Corsairs of Umbar. Mordor can give Harad Defence 6 / Strength 4 Morranon Orcs, or the Shadow Lord who can make Haradrim battle lines more sustainable to combat the opposing bow fire. If you ally with Umbar, cheap backstabbing F4 Corsairs and crossbows can make your shooting even deadlier than it already is! </div>
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Far Harad only has one historical ally in The Serpent Horde, but it’s a strong one. It allows your army to not only be an elite small hitting force, but also provides backup in numbers and bows. To conclude, The Serpent Horde and Far Harad offer unique playstyles that when used correctly can cause mayhem on the battlefield. </div>
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<b>Mik: </b>The Serpent Horde and Far Harad offer a ton of strengths and versatility in a force that in itself is full of weaknesses, making every game a challenge and forcing every player to think how to minimise their inevitably high casualty counts and maximise what their army can do. From my personal experience, Harad, in its many iterations is one of the most fun and interesting armies to play and serves as a good learning tool for players of all skill levels. </div>
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Good luck!</div>
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BlackMist & Rainier</div>
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==================================</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><i>* Suladan’s banner range compared to a standard banner:</i></div>
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<i>A standard banner covers an area of 3” in every direction from the base of the model and the base has a diameter of 1”. </i></div>
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<i>Therefore the radius from the centre of the base is π*3.52 = 38.45 inches</i></div>
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<i>Suladan on foot has a radius of 6.5” from the centre of the base, which means the area of the banner effect is: 132.7 inches. </i></div>
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<i>Considering that you’ll virtually always take Suladan on horse and rarely take a mounted banner, because you’re more likely to give the banner bearer a spear to support friends, the true area of Suladan’s banner is going to be:</i></div>
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<i>π*6.82 = 145.2 inches</i></div>
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<i>Note: 6.8 is the 6” banner plus a 40mm of the base is 1.6 inches, hence 6 + ½ *1.6 = 6.8</i></div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-66724719812211884862020-06-11T19:18:00.000+01:002020-06-11T19:18:04.345+01:00An Unexpected Podcast - Episodes 1 & 2.<h4 style="text-align: center;">
An Unexpected Podcast - Episodes 1 & 2.</h4>
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After months of lockdown, 5 players decided to counter the lack-of-tournament-blues and create a competitive Middle-earth SBG podcast. Following weeks of discussions and recordings, the first two episodes were released this week. </div>
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Initially released on DC Hobbit League's Youtube Channel, the podcast will be moving to an audio-only version for those of you who prefer to listen to the podcasts on the go, or simply don't have access to video at the time of listening. Unfortunately, some of the content requires a visual aid - for example we will be discussing deployment and game play strategy in reference to a given board that players may encounter at tournaments. As such, on this blog I will be posting useful, easily accessible companion information for those of you unable to watch the videos. These will include army lists from each episode, pictures of boards being analysed by the hosts and guests and anything else that we feel may be useful to you. Naturally, you'll still need to listen to the podcast to find out what's going on. </div>
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So without further ado, let's introduce the 5 hosts:</div>
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Tim Hynes - New York SBG Player and moderator of the podcast.</div>
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<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Devin Moreno - Warhammer Hero, captain of Ardacon's Team America and the TO behind NOVA Open. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vnc8XYSFaTDkIEkZSxoMaKCBpqUO_ADxTce-gW3kmPJVYAsXa23CIsiDBhr3mumM-XiEB8i_u9OX3x3QdWUYS5u2DZyvdsyUggIA6UHej_d3nuF8R-v6AAa2bzjdZQpJqk5WIzH5EXvh/s1600/FB_IMG_1591883716049.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vnc8XYSFaTDkIEkZSxoMaKCBpqUO_ADxTce-gW3kmPJVYAsXa23CIsiDBhr3mumM-XiEB8i_u9OX3x3QdWUYS5u2DZyvdsyUggIA6UHej_d3nuF8R-v6AAa2bzjdZQpJqk5WIzH5EXvh/s200/FB_IMG_1591883716049.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Rainier Lee - NOVA Open Champion 2018 and NOVA Open Runner-up in 2019.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif2vm-Yn00mMyd3OuGIRFZWtSc4LP2tsqwfNm9u7k52_vCEPHE3kud851QJ-IXcUL6AAxsxftB0zMO8TtKUblxFrkhwO9BrHY6te6KAOrnKTvO_GAQtVJN5rxf_cJKCn-9CAbRJYw9iDTY/s1600/Rainier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="838" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif2vm-Yn00mMyd3OuGIRFZWtSc4LP2tsqwfNm9u7k52_vCEPHE3kud851QJ-IXcUL6AAxsxftB0zMO8TtKUblxFrkhwO9BrHY6te6KAOrnKTvO_GAQtVJN5rxf_cJKCn-9CAbRJYw9iDTY/s200/Rainier.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Matt Iverson - NOVA Open Champion 2017. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvzGej3tZ27-ljZ9O730Lari0f-DDu8giahCA8EmZxbGp3tuJSIA3Sr_JT_f2QflsA-G89UPj16D_A_BMj-z6WiuydEpLUKGALVDGsxfmIm5ORWe0fFi8QMHEQx-WUA6KAHsegh6gtfNsl/s1600/Matt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="849" data-original-width="776" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvzGej3tZ27-ljZ9O730Lari0f-DDu8giahCA8EmZxbGp3tuJSIA3Sr_JT_f2QflsA-G89UPj16D_A_BMj-z6WiuydEpLUKGALVDGsxfmIm5ORWe0fFi8QMHEQx-WUA6KAHsegh6gtfNsl/s200/Matt.jpg" width="182" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Mik Bakalarz - The writer of this blog. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgiQMY8vIS8-yunSHqRicdSDM6JNXfps_XXb8ufclwmlmDeDpM-shamUk2yCOkNiIuqY-0xSBYu21JwDtdDjR38_jZaPx2Nbn9JfV31UNTcUiViz5dpyL-Zn7jCVqXX6ievKy2cbTYQG4Z/s1600/FB_IMG_1591883814492.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgiQMY8vIS8-yunSHqRicdSDM6JNXfps_XXb8ufclwmlmDeDpM-shamUk2yCOkNiIuqY-0xSBYu21JwDtdDjR38_jZaPx2Nbn9JfV31UNTcUiViz5dpyL-Zn7jCVqXX6ievKy2cbTYQG4Z/s200/FB_IMG_1591883814492.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
============================</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>EPISODE 1: </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Our 800 Point Lists for Competitive Tournaments</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/uC-GTrDVUIk/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uC-GTrDVUIk?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Army lists discussed in Episode 1:</b></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Matt's List:</b></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div>
Saruman, the White on Horse</div>
<div>
Galadriel, Lady of Light</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 2: </b></div>
<div>
Boromir, Captain of the White Tower on Horse</div>
<div>
1 Guard of the Fountain Court with Shield</div>
<div>
8 Warriors of Minas Tirith with Shield</div>
<div>
4 Rangers of Gondor with Spear</div>
<div>
2 Citadel Guard with Spear</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div>
Madril, Captain of Ithilien</div>
<div>
5 Rangers of Gondor with Spear</div>
<div>
7 Warriors of Minas Tirith with Shield</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
31 Warriors, 15 Might, 10 Bows</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
=================</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Mik's List:</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Warband 1:</div>
<div>
Master of Lake-town</div>
<div>
5 Laketown Guard with Spears</div>
<div>
5 Laketown Guard with Bows</div>
<div>
5 Laketown Guard</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Warband 2:</div>
<div>
Alfrid</div>
<div>
4 Laketown Guard with Spears</div>
<div>
4 Laketown Guard with Bows & Spears</div>
<div>
2 Laketown Guard</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Warband 3:</div>
<div>
Aragorn, Strider, on Horse with Armour</div>
<div>
Boromir of Gondor, on Horse with Shield</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Warband 4:</div>
<div>
Glorfindel, Lord of the West on Asfaloth with Armour of Gondolin</div>
<div>
Galadriel, Lady of Light</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
31 Models, 17 Might + Alfrid, 9 Bows</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
===================</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Rainier's List:</b></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div>
Suladan on Armoured Horse</div>
<div>
1 Serpent Rider</div>
<div>
4 Abrakhan Guard</div>
<div>
6 Warriors with Bow</div>
<div>
3 Warriors with Bow & Spear</div>
<div>
4 Serpent Guard</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div>
Mahud King on a Camel with a War Spear</div>
<div>
2 Camels with Warspear, Blowpipe & Shield</div>
<div>
4 Half Trolls</div>
<div>
5 Mahud Warriors with Blowpipe & Shield</div>
<div>
4 Mahud Warriors with Blowpipe, Spear and Shield</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div>
Mahud King on a Camel with a War Spear</div>
<div>
4 Camels with Blowpipe, Shield & Warspear</div>
<div>
4 Camels with Shield & Warspear</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
44 Models, 7 Might, 9 Bows, 15 blowpipes. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
============================</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b>EPISODE 2: </b>Terrain Strategy (deployment and positioning)</h4>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>(With guest Evan Iverson stepping in for Rainier)</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Army lists used for discussion:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Devin's Mordor & Moria Convenient Alliance:</b></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b>
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The Undying on Fell Beast<br />
8 Orcs with Shield<br />
7 Orcs with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Guritz<br />
4 Orcs with Shield<br />
4 Orcs with Spear<br />
4 Warg Riders<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Durburz<br />
8 Goblins with Shield<br />
7 Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Gundabad Shaman<br />
3 Goblins with Shield<br />
3 Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 5:</b><br />
Gundabad Shaman<br />
3 Goblins with Shield<br />
3 Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 6:</b><br />
Goblin Captain<br />
6 Goblins with Shield<br />
6 Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
Total 72 Models, 12 Might<br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Mik's Rivendell Knights:</b></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Elrond in full gear</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
17 Rivendell Knights with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
1 Rivendell Knight with Shield & Banner</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Aragorn, Strider, Mounted with Elven Cloak, Armour & Bow (in the podcast I didn't list Armour, but it's there!)<br />
<br />
Total: 20 Models, 6 Might (Plus Mighty Hero), 19 Bows.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Evan's Lake-town & Thranduil's Halls Historical Alliance:</b></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Bard, the Bowman on Horse with Armour<br />
Alfrid<br />
Sigrid and Tilda<br />
7 Lake-town Militia with Shields<br />
7 Lake-town Militia with Spears<br />
1 Lake-town Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Lake-town Militia Captain<br />
6 Militia with Shield<br />
6 Militia with Spear<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Gandalf on Horse<br />
14 Militia with Bows<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Legolas on Horse<br />
1 Wood Elf Sentinel</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b>
Total: 49 Models, 15 bows (+ Legolas), 11 Might<br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Matt's Paths of the Druadan Legendary Legion:</b></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Ghan-Buri-Ghan<br />
15 Woses Warriors</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Theoden (full kit)<br />
2 Riders of Rohan<br />
1 Rohan Royal Guard on Horse with Throwing Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Gamling on Horse with Banner<br />
2 Riders of Rohan<br />
1 Rohan Royal Guard on Horse with Throwing Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Dernhelm with a Throwing Spear<br />
2 Riders of Rohan<br />
1 Rohan Royal Guard on Horse with Throwing Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b>
<b>Warband 5:</b><br />
Eomer (full kit)<br />
2 Riders of Rohan<br />
1 Rohan Royal Guard on Horse with Throwing Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b>
Total: 32 models, 15+ Might.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b>Boards used for the Matchups:</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9tJSsjXFfVLD9EBeka40fwcrJbZ5-05qxEq_2BUtqZJQwhdgpcmezvSut6AQkfFUp2hTexVNoxtGRTF8hr0hksZOg0PNcUsZAYqxfVSrZNERacd_3jsts7Q_XEdKU2sNRghhNeooANHeB/s1600/Ep+2+Board+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="802" data-original-width="1576" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9tJSsjXFfVLD9EBeka40fwcrJbZ5-05qxEq_2BUtqZJQwhdgpcmezvSut6AQkfFUp2hTexVNoxtGRTF8hr0hksZOg0PNcUsZAYqxfVSrZNERacd_3jsts7Q_XEdKU2sNRghhNeooANHeB/s400/Ep+2+Board+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b>Devin vs Matt in Lords of Battle:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizkfixzxqk9gfcmOI2_pyju-16whMoOgS-lYHdLRbvPtH_PcJPaqtHxi5YNgHyI4kKdwxePZdJSLk-EbzL17il5HlSHy2cz_Xmgb2sOWn3UrBN_27o1jgm8DbnP6TrXK1pmUydLjuSYKOX/s1600/Ep+2+Board+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="713" data-original-width="1471" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizkfixzxqk9gfcmOI2_pyju-16whMoOgS-lYHdLRbvPtH_PcJPaqtHxi5YNgHyI4kKdwxePZdJSLk-EbzL17il5HlSHy2cz_Xmgb2sOWn3UrBN_27o1jgm8DbnP6TrXK1pmUydLjuSYKOX/s400/Ep+2+Board+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b>Mik vs Evan in Contest of Champions:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkPFJtW0zmrImPvg-TaJZlBETGmW8rMTH0Phr6FpCkagBobo-VHin_odZsJbl87-NcUSbd0uqRTr06UyQboLJv9CG1VeK95T1ZiJ20bbDRXSNzWor-h1lPMfC6Tj9cfbdsCA5t_UezldP/s1600/Ep+2+Board+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="774" data-original-width="1568" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkPFJtW0zmrImPvg-TaJZlBETGmW8rMTH0Phr6FpCkagBobo-VHin_odZsJbl87-NcUSbd0uqRTr06UyQboLJv9CG1VeK95T1ZiJ20bbDRXSNzWor-h1lPMfC6Tj9cfbdsCA5t_UezldP/s400/Ep+2+Board+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b>Evan vs Devin in TBC:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMsd1NUa_JePbuKqvb5aaXPRIA1EuC1IbxkFXfG9zSKfA9ZmnqapvGYMZHzUyOyknQYfUVoqLVH0nvdzhBk5-l3tL00xVhsLF20U-aZDXj4iDc3geazXCWVWomZ8J4FN6foueITT0JXRj1/s1600/Ep+2+Board+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="787" data-original-width="1564" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMsd1NUa_JePbuKqvb5aaXPRIA1EuC1IbxkFXfG9zSKfA9ZmnqapvGYMZHzUyOyknQYfUVoqLVH0nvdzhBk5-l3tL00xVhsLF20U-aZDXj4iDc3geazXCWVWomZ8J4FN6foueITT0JXRj1/s400/Ep+2+Board+4.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Matt vs Mik in Heirlooms of Ages Past:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i style="text-align: start;">In the future, tune in on Wednesday Tea-o'clock time (5pm GMT / 12pm EST) for new episodes every week!</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i style="text-align: start;"><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i style="text-align: start;"><br /></i></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-53991802763110493192019-04-14T15:20:00.001+01:002020-06-18T22:22:16.042+01:00Fog of War, Part 15: Iron Hills & Erebor Reclaimed<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj3UaootiGTqcDWYkHD65Y9x93pf1VepR3PI1rwUxZFHqjRs5PdonP8RQ533lrCr1XxFvHbuuB_J4pZh30rFmKyL3MjIzFlPB-0PvRRvKrS8n5cGxlqfN4xkTRBhIedwUULHAsy0rdYYyb/s1600/iron+hills.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="480" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj3UaootiGTqcDWYkHD65Y9x93pf1VepR3PI1rwUxZFHqjRs5PdonP8RQ533lrCr1XxFvHbuuB_J4pZh30rFmKyL3MjIzFlPB-0PvRRvKrS8n5cGxlqfN4xkTRBhIedwUULHAsy0rdYYyb/s320/iron+hills.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 15: Iron Hills & Erebor Reclaimed</span></h4>
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Welcome to the last chapter covering Dwarves in this series. Today I am joined by the 2018 GBHL Best Newcomer and the 2019 ETC Team England 2 player Kalman Steels-Wright to talk about the mighty Iron Hills Dwarves and the army of Erebor after the death of Smaug.</div>
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<b>Kalman: </b>Ever since I started playing SBG and after seeing Fellowship of the Ring in the cinema when I was 8, I have always been drawn to the Dwarves of Middle-earth. After reading the book, one dwarf stood out, Dain Ironfoot II, he is unparalleled in combat, a fierce leader and that stubborn, he makes normal dwarves look like pushovers. He took the head off Azog in revenge for his father and showed a messenger of Sauron where the door was when questioned about Bilbo. I instantly started my first Dwarven army, which would nowadays be known as Durin’s Folk, and never looked back. Then came the Battle of the Five Armies movie and with it, the Iron Hills and a revamp of Dain himself, there was no possible way I wasn’t collecting them!</div>
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Now Dwarves had always lacked in a few areas of the game, they lacked spear support and getting outmanoeuvred. That was until the Iron Hill Dwarves joined the fray. With their shield wall backed up by a line of spears, a single warband of them can hold off the majority of an army and their new little toy, the mighty ballista, means they can’t just be shot before lines even meet. Finally there is the Lord of the Iron Hills. Mounted on his War Boar he becomes terrifying, he can mow down any troops and most heroes that fall in front of him. Not only is he unstoppable, he has the Lord of the Iron Hills Special Rule, one of, if not the most important rule of the army. This makes all Iron Hill Dwarves, Goat Riders and Captains within 12” pass all courage tests and means your opponent will have to think where they place their terror causing units. </div>
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<b>Mik:</b> I’ve decided to put together Iron Hills and Erebor Reclaimed into one article, since the two are very similar, with the only differences being their Army Bonuses, Hero options and the Ballista (only accessible to Iron Hills). As you’ll see below, Kalman has done an amazing job at describing every single detail of Iron Hills by himself, and seeing that he’s an expert with the army I think there is very little I could add from my side, so my part of this article focuses on Erebor, thus I believe completing all Dwarves in the series (Part 10 was Khazad-Dum, Part 14 Army of Thror and Part 15 Iron Hills and Erebor Reclaimed). </div>
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I’ve said before Dwarves have never been my favourite faction, but I do appreciate a tough opponent and Iron Hills Dwarves, with their high survivability and high strength have proven time and time again to be one of those armies that players will struggle to defeat if their general plays well, due to their incredible resistance to blows. As the troops choices in Erebor Reclaimed are similar, the same principles apply to a lot of the game play with the two and as you’ll be able to see, the two can ally and work together quite well. </div>
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ARMY LISTS:</h4>
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<b>List 1: Kalman’s 500 points of Iron Hills</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1: </b></div>
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Dain Ironfoot, Lord of the Iron Hills on War boar</div>
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17 Iron Hill Dwarves, all with spear and shield. </div>
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1 Banner</div>
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1 Iron Hills Goat rider</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Ballista</div>
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Total: 23 Models, 4 Might</div>
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<b>List 2: Kalman’s 600 points of Iron Hills</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Dain Ironfoot, Lord of the Iron Hills on War Boar</div>
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18 Iron Hill Dwarves, all but one with spear and shield. </div>
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1 Banner</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Captain on Goat</div>
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1 Iron Hills Goat rider</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Ballista</div>
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Total: 25 Models, 6 Might</div>
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First things first, these lists at low points are hard to play. They are relatively low numbers, low Might and if it’s a mission that requires manoeuvrability then they’re at a large disadvantage. With that being said, the little troops they do have are defence 7, going up to 8 in the shield wall and the ballista can massively help against shooting and thinning out the enemy. Even games that require manoeuvrability can be won, I managed to come third at the GBHL masters with that 500 point list and out of the 3 games I won, 2 of them were Recon and Seize the Prize, so it can be done.</div>
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Let’s start with the heroes. The first thing to remember is there is no such thing as 140 point Dain, he does not walk. On a boar his damage output is amplified, his reach is further and he is just simply more terrifying for your opponent. At 500 points there are few heroes you will come across that can take him on, and if your opponent does have one of the rare few that can, they likely have a tiny force. His Master of Battle (4+) rule makes up for the low Might in the army and he has Heroic March, which is crucial for those missions that require movement. As mentioned earlier, his Lord of the Iron Hills rule is, in Tina Turner’s words, simply the best! It combines nicely with his Fearless rule so you only ever have to worry about Courage if your troops are over 12” away, which is rare for Iron Hills as normally you are castling. Finally it goes without saying about his combat prowess, strength 5, Burly, two handed hammer, Fight value 6, 3 attacks and mounted, and just for fun, if a hero Heroic Strikes against him there is a 50/50 chance of him doing it for free due to Master of Battle. If your opponent puts models in his way, wish them luck. </div>
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At 600 points you have two choices, your first warband with Dain is capped out so can’t add more troops. Do you take Thorin and have two big heroes with small warbands or throw in a Captain? Personally I think 600 is just a little too low to take Thorin (though I have taken him at 650) and prefer to have an Iron Hills captain on a goat. He will have his own little Master of Battle (5+) rule, add 2 more Might to the army and while on a goat be quite the damage giver with his war spear. If his goat is killed he can join the shield wall to become Defence 9. </div>
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Now the troops of your army are truly your backbone and can be amazing if positioned right. With their Shield Wall special rule, Fight value of 4 and all with spears they can sit where they want and your opponent will struggle to move them. They also have the added bonus of being Strength 4, so when those Defence 6 enemies come running, your dwarves won’t flinch at all and God help any model that is Defence 4 in front of that shield wall. Trying not to sound like a broken record but I’m going to have to, Dain’s Lord of the Iron Hills rule just adds even more stubbornness to them. Terror causing models? Nope! Spectres, Sentinels? Nope! Courage for being broken? Nope! Nope! Nope! Once your shield wall sets up camp, your opponent will have to physically move them off. </div>
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Goat riders are a brilliant little tool. I’ve had a few people ask me how many I’d take and granted, a charging battle line of many goats is truly beautiful but far from practical. They will demolish a battle line on the charge but as soon as they lose the move off, they are only 1 Attack and Defence 6. They will not last long like your shield wall and at 20 points a model, it’s a large chunk of your army. I tend to only ever take 1 or 2, only once have I ever taken 3+ and that was for Throne of Skulls at 1000 points. They are there to solely react to what your opponent does or play the mission. If it’s Recon or another mission that requires manoeuvrability then they are very important. I mainly keep them behind my shield wall for when my opponent will try to flank it, which as I’m usually outnumbered, will happen often. I’ll charge into vulnerable areas, do damage, run away and repeat. One last thing is the Devastating Charge rule, mainly used for a bit of fluffy fun but can be overlooked and quite game changing. As said earlier there are not many heroes that can stand against Dain but there are some that can, Aragorn, Azog etc. In a normal scenario, I would be leaving these alone and deal with the army, as one on one, Dain could die. But sometimes an opportunity will show itself where if you charge in a goat, knock the enemy hero down, you can then think of putting a few resources and Dain into them as even if you lose the fight, you won’t lose any models and if you don’t knock them down, then at most you lose a Goat rider. Can even be used if their hero charges you first and you need to slow them down. </div>
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Finally is the mighty, the one, the only, Iron Hills Ballista! If you have played with or against it, it needs no introduction. Its 90 points, can negate enemy shooting, only scatters 3”, has a 2” area effect and comes with 4, yes 4 crew members, which are still Iron Hill Dwarves at the end of the day. The chances of your opponent wanting to thin your ranks with shooting before lines reach is highly likely and most of the time, as dwarves, you have to fight on your opponent’s terms and where they want. The Ballista stops all that and makes your opponent come to you because if they sit back, you will out shoot them to oblivion. Most of the time, your opponent will spread his troops out to avoid the area effect but that’s fine, as they will hit your shield wall in drips and drabs and bounce straight off. Cavalry will lose their mount, I’m sure I don’t need to say how good that can be (sorry Rohan players) and finally it will auto kill any model that gets hit dead on, no matter the amount of wounds. A trick I found out early on and to be honest, a ridiculously important trick, is shooting into combat. Should the battle go ill and your shield wall be swamped, fire that bad boy into the heart of that combat. With the new rules, it now means you can fire at models near yours even though you risk hitting your own guys. The area effect is a Strength 4 hit and if you’re getting swamped, chances are your enemy is a lot lower defence and will get blasted away and even if you do hit your own guys. You’re dwarves, you can take the hit, your opponent can’t. </div>
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<b>List 3: Kalman's 700 points of Iron Hills & Erebor Reclaimed </b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b> </div>
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Dain Ironfoot, Lord of the Iron Hills on War boar</div>
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12 Iron Hill Dwarves, all with spear and shield. </div>
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1 Banner</div>
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<b>Warband 2: </b></div>
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Thorin, King under the Mountain with Orcrist and Goat</div>
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12 Iron Hill Dwarves, all with spear and shield. </div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Ballista</div>
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Total: 30 Models, 7 Might</div>
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<b>List 4: Kalman's 800 points of Iron Hills & Erebor Reclaimed</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Dain Ironfoot, Lord of the Iron Hills on War boar</div>
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8 Iron Hill Dwarves, all with spear and shield. </div>
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1 Banner</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Thorin, King under the Mountain with Orcrist and Goat</div>
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7 Iron Hill Dwarves, all with spear and shield. </div>
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<b>Warband 3: </b></div>
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Dwalin, Champion of Erebor on Goat</div>
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7 Iron Hill Dwarves, all with spear and shield. </div>
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<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Ballista</div>
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Total: 29 Models, 10 Might</div>
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As you can see at larger points there is quite a difference in structure and naturally a difference in play style. Away goes the defensive play and out comes the aggressive, in your face, scary, hairy. Wave goodbye to that army bonus and say hello to the big heroes. Why drop an amazing bonus? Quadruple threat! Who will your opponent go for? If they put too much effort into one of them, the other three will tear a hole in their army. Dain, Thorin and Dwalin all charging in makes it very hard for your opponent to choose because very few army lists can deal with two big heroes, let alone three and then the ballista is just doing what it does best. </div>
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Thorin Oakenshield. We all know who he is, what he can do. He needs no introduction. Mounted with Orcrist glowing in his hands, very few evil armies can stop him. Out of the three heroes he is the only one that doesn’t get +1 to Wound and Strength 5 but makes up in other areas. The main one being that free Heroic Combat. He can comfortably kill 4 models a turn and not break a sweat and if an Orc, Goblin or Uruk hero get in his way, he can turn them inside out with Orcrist. Combine that free Heroic with Dain or Dwalin and suddenly they have 16” movement, a movement that will leave your opponent in need of counselling. Even after all that, Orcrist is an Elven Blade, which is something that can be crucial against the higher Fight value heroes out there. A dwarf with an Elven Blade? No wonder the Goblin King was scared! </div>
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Dwalin. Oh Dwalin. He’s a power house. A nice and cheap power house. 3 Might, strength 5, burly, two handed hammer, fight value 6, 3 attacks and mounted all for 125 points. Bargain! Going to be honest, not many hard tactics with Dwalin, just smash. Oh and he can lead Iron Hills Dwarves (as an ally in Erebor Reclaimed), because Du Bekar! </div>
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As I’ve said these two extra heroes added with Dain makes the armies damage output tremendous. I’ve played a game where early on, I’ve lost my ballista and almost all my warriors to an Uruk horde, only for those three to go on and table my opponent (sorry Mr Clubley!).</div>
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In short, it’s the multitude of threats that make these lists. Most armies can deal with one big hero, some can deal with two but it’s very hard to deal with three. Even if your opponent has a spell caster, they still can only target one a turn and sometimes even fail at that.</div>
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One last thing. You may have noticed not once have I mentioned Mattocks or Crossbows. Mattocks, albeit they are cool, I don’t believe work in the army lists above. I said before the back bone is the shield wall and they simply don’t contribute to that. Defence 6 makes them too squishy for dwarves and now that piercing strike is just +1 strength, I’d personally prefer more shields and more spears. Crossbows are good but very situational. If you’re not taking a ballista then sure thing but if you are, you’re going to be wanting that to hit and if it does, then your crossbows can’t shoot either. Granted they could shoot at different directions or angles but as I said, very situational. </div>
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<b>List 5: Mik’s 500 Points of Erebor Reclaimed</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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1 Thorin with Orcrist on a War Goat</div>
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4 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves with Crossbows & Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 2:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
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1 Dwalin, Champion of Erebor on a War Goat</div>
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4 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves with Crossbows & Spears</div>
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Total: 22 Models, 6 Might, 6 (x)bows</div>
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This list is somewhat similar to lists I posted in my Numenor article, featuring Elendil and Isildur mounted, leading a bunch of Warriors. The idea behind an army such as this is simple. The 14 Dwarves with Defence 8 act as an unbreakable anvil with the mission of surviving for as long as is possible, whilst dashing out some amount of damage. The 6 Crossbows, whilst not many, will sometimes cause some long-range damage and against some opponents they can ensure the battle is fought in our terms in the position which we like the most. 14 of the 22 models being armed with Spears adds to the versatility and allows us to spread our line, use Shielding in the parts of the line where we need to survive and add attacks in the parts where we must kill. Then, the most important thing, the duet of Thorin and Dwalin mounted on War Goats is one of those things which at 500 points is almost unstoppable. Dwalin’s special rule allows him either 5 Strength 5 Attacks on charge, or 4 Strength 5 Burly attacks. Not only that, if he’s near Throrin, he re-rolls one dice, so in effect has 6xS5 or 5xS5 Burly Attacks! Ouch! Add that to Thorin’s free Heroic Combats (and his own re-rolls for being within 6” of himself) every turn and you could be killing 8 models per turn with just these two models, while your opponents struggle to kill any of your high defence infantry troops. Both Thorin and Dwalin having Heroic Strike and Fight 6 ensures that very few enemies will stand in their way at this points level.</div>
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<b>List 6: Mik’s 800 Points of Erebor Reclaimed & Rivendell</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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1 Thorin with Orcrist on a War Goat</div>
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4 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves with Crossbows & Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 2:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
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1 Dwalin, Champion of Erebor on a War Goat</div>
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4 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves with Crossbows & Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
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2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Elladan & Elrohir on Horses in H. Armours with Bows</div>
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6<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>High Elf Warriors with Shields & Spears</div>
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4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>High Elf Warriors with Spears & Bows</div>
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Total: 34 Models, 13 Might, 12 Bows.</div>
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I first wanted to make an 800-points pure Erebor list, but quickly realised that without another 3-Attack Goat-mounted hero available, the list simply won’t be strong enough, so decided to look into alliances. The major downside hero comes up from the other side, Elladan or Elrohir will fall easily. </div>
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Just like in the 500 points list, the idea here is simple: make sure your troops hold and make sure your heroes wreck havoc. As a long time all-hero player, I’ve always tried making lists that can bring the qualities of all-hero lists to a more versatile, all-round setup. The obvious disadvantage of this vs all-hero lists such as Aragorn / Thranduil / Glorfindel / Elrond and the like is that Thorin, Dwalin and the Twins are obviously nowhere near as strong as the models you’d use in those all-hero lists. In a way these guys are 2nd-tier Heroes whose primary goal is in thinning out your opponent’s troops, whilst avoiding their biggest threats. 32 models is an ok number, albeit on the lower side at 800 points. The loss of the Erebor Reclaimed Army Bonus is a slight hindrance, as both Thorin and Dwalin lose 1 attack, but the gain of 2 extra heroes of similar statute means you’re gaining more than you’re losing. </div>
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The theory behind all-hero lists has always been to kill 4 models per hero in the first turn of combat, this usually being 16 at 800 points. If you can pull of 16 casualties here with this list, your opponent not only has 4 mounted heroes now to deal with, but also ends up fighting a large wall of F5/D8 infantry. </div>
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<b>List 7: Mik’s 800 Points of Erebor Reclaimed & Survivors of Lake Town</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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1 Thorin with Orcrist on a War Goat</div>
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4 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves with Crossbows & Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 2:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
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1 Dwalin, Champion of Erebor on a War Goat</div>
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4 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves</div>
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3 Iron Hills Dwarves with Crossbows & Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
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1 Bard the Bowman on a Horse with Armour</div>
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2 Sigrid & Tilda </div>
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1 Alfrid the Councillor</div>
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5 Lake-Town Militia with Shields</div>
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5 Lake-Town Militia with Spears</div>
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5 Lake-Town Militia with Bows & Spears</div>
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Total: 41 Models, 9 Might (plus Alfrid), 12 bows</div>
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List similar to the one above, but with higher model count and with a second Hero that constantly benefits from free Heroic Combats. Just like the 500 points version of Erebor Reclaimed, the idea here is to hold on for as long as possible whilst the big three do their thing. </div>
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800 Points is a level where you will see a large portion of models that can deal with Thorin and Dwalin, whilst also having a large model count and their own threats. This list sacrifices having 4 heroes and Fight Value 5 for your Dwarves in order to gain several models extra and a hero with up to 6 Might and free Heroic Combats. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
ALLIES</h4>
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<b>Kalman:</b> As you can see from my list choices, the main ally for me Erebor Reclaimed but only at appropriate point levels. They are unfortunately convenient allies but I believe what Thorin and Dwalin add the army outweighs any army bonus. Thorin’s free heroic combat and Orcrist make him a must and Dwalin’s shear killing power is something to behold. Granted you lose the reinforcement rule and master of battle but gain two incredible heroes. Heroes, that without, I would not have won Best Newcomer. I have to admit I’ve never used other allies with my Iron Hills, not competitively anyway. If I had to choose an ally other than Erebor Reclaimed, I would choose Thranduil’s Halls. Thranduil himself is a nice little death star but more importantly you can get Elven Glaives. These supporting models can help with the higher fight values you may face but are also Elven made, meaning you get the nifty bonus on those combat roll offs and now benefit from +1 to wound if near Thranduil. </div>
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<b>Mik:</b> Having gone primarily into Erebor Reclaimed in this article I think that the list is strong by itself, but ultimately requires allies at higher points levels in order to stay valid competitively. There are only two heroes in it with access to cavalry charge who have 3 Attacks, so in situations like this I tend to try to see if other factions can add something more - like another hero or two, more bows, more numbers, generally more tools that we'll need to win games against the more numerous opponents, often sporting a wizard or heroes even bigger than ours. </div>
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Allying in a Ballista is a useful thing. Allying in Fight Value 5 is a useful thing. Allying in more models is a useful thing. All of these have very distinct uses however and which is the best will often depend on the meta that we are expecting to likely be facing. Regardless of meta though, Defence 8 is always good. </div>
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SUMMARY</h4>
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The fact that Iron Hills Dwarves are very expensive points-wise means that we'll always be the army that's outnumbered and we will always be striving to get into spots where we can use the quality of our troops and heroes without having the problems of getting surrounded. Our strategy should always be in prioritising the killing potential of our force and using the terrain, as well as shielding and generally playing on a 'survival-mode'. Long term Defence 8 beats most things in the game, so our goal is to get to that long term and get there in good shape. </div>
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Good Luck!</div>
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BlackMist & Kalman</div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-79472632732291832332019-04-06T10:22:00.000+01:002020-06-18T22:22:22.346+01:00Fog of War, Part 14: Army of Thror<div style="text-align: justify;">
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FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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Part 14: Army of Thror</span></h4>
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Welcome back to part 14 of the Fog of War series. We're back again venturing into the people who live deep underground, searching for their shiny rocks. This time I'm joined by ETC Team England 2019 member, former Team Wales Captain and the current GBHL League Coordinator Alastair King, for a review of his recently favourite force - The Army of Thror.</div>
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<b>Alastair:</b> From day 1 in this hobby I have always liked dwarves. The stubborn, grudge bearing, amour encased dwarves are the largest part of my SBG collection since I started way back in the early 00’s (at last count over 350 dwarves, including 8 Balins!). Dwarves always had a great array of troops and some of the best elites in the game. One thing they always lacked however was spear support for their standard troops. That was until the Army of Thror…<br />
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Army of Thror had some major issues in the previous edition. Too many overpriced, ineffective characters and a general sense that Grim Hammers lacked anything to imply they would be "grim" for anyone apart from yourself by taking them. This has changed now, with all the named characters being solid choices for their points cost and Grim hammers becoming D7. Army of Thror now arguably has one of the toughest and strongest battle lines in the game.</div>
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There still are however many issues with the Army of Thror you need to consider when playing them. 1st drawback is movement of 5” across the board and the 2nd drawback is no ranged firepower beyond 6” throwing weapons. One of these on its own will hurt you, both combined will significantly impede you when you are playing many scenarios. Your troop choice has become more limited as well now with the loss of Dale from the force leaving you with only 2 troop choice in the list now. This all means to use Army of Thror well, making sure you plan and manage your resources well will be key. </div>
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Also on a non-gaming aspect army of Thror has some of the nicest models around, probably the nicest plastic kits of any army in the game for me so painting them was an enjoyable experience.</div>
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<b>Mik:</b> I never really looked into Army of Thror properly until watching the final game of the 2019 UK GT, where Alastair used it against Dave Nolan’s Angmar. It’s worth sharing a link to it here in fact, since it involves some of the most miraculous dice rolls I’ve seen in a long time and one very bad decision that probably cost Dave winning his second GT. For those interested, follow the link below (you’ll need a subscription to Warhammer TV Twitch channel, but if you don’t have it, I’d recommend using the free subscription you get with Amazon Prime… and if you don’t have either of the two, I’d recommend getting both :D ). </div>
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<a href="https://www.twitch.tv/videos/393417036">https://www.twitch.tv/videos/393417036</a></div>
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I’ll be honest… I never liked Dwarves. Back when I started, one of my first regular opponents was a familiar face on the GBHL circuit, Loui Joe, who always used Dwarves and always crushed me. For the first year or two of playing, I made it my ultimate goal to beat him. Dwarves just never die, which is something that can be highly frustrating when you generally play armies filled with low defence and low strength. Probably because of my initial experience, they are the only army I never really played competitively (and I even nearly won a GT with Easterlings… which should tell you a lot about how lowly I used to think of Dwarves!), with the exception of sometimes using a warband of Khazad Guards led by Floi in high points games (around 1000) in order to nullify otherwise difficult to beat threats. Despite all that, for a long time I considered the Khazad Guard to be the most powerful infantry units in the game. It took a long time for Dwarf armies to finally find a competitive base, first with Iron Hills and now also with Thror. This variety is good for the game, so I’m looking forward to testing and eventually trying some Dwarves out on the tables. </div>
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Army lists:</h4>
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<b>List 1: Alastair's 500 Points of Army of Thror</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Thror</div>
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12 Guardians of the King</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Captain with a Shield</div>
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12 Warriors of Erebor with Shields and Spears </div>
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When it comes to making Army of Thror lists these days the first name on the sheet will nearly always be Thror. A literal tank with D9 and the Arkenstone. You will be unlucky to concede general points with him around (he has yet to take a wound in 10 tournament games). However, the main reasons for Thror being top of the list is unlocking the Strength 4 on the Grim Hammers (I call them Grimmer Hammers personally) and his 6” Banner effect from the Army Bonus. This effectively gives you 3 dice at Fight 4 to win combat across your entire battle line. It also frees up the Grim Hammers to go 2-handed for extra punch (4’s to wound most of the time or 3s against Defence 5 if you also Piercing Strike) as you still have 2 unmodified dice to win the combat. The Ring of Durin is also handy allowing you another shot at getting (or losing) priority when might is low across the board.</div>
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The Captain is in the list over the other dwarf heroes for the simple reason he has Heroic March. To help get around those situations where move 5” becomes a massive hindrance or to suddenly redirect your troops into a better position, heroic march is essential. A Dwarf Captain also has a nice stat line for an unnamed hero with F5 and D7/8, he is a match for most things at this points level.</div>
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This list’s main strength is not just in its heroes however but its troops. As mentioned, you already have a very solid battle line, having 26 models that are D7 or higher is a scary prospect to break. When most heroes are only killing your dwarves on 6’s the humble dwarves can stop and hold up enemy many times its points for a long time. Grim Hammer throwing weapons are great at making your opponent think twice about waiting just out of 5” but within their own charge range as well, and taking down that extra model when you charge can make a big difference in a game.</div>
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An added benefit of the army is that every model can opt not to kill its opponent either by bashing or shielding, meaning those games when you don’t want your enemy to break or drop to 25% just yet are still in your control.</div>
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<b>List 2: Alastair's 800 Points of Army of Thror</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Thror</div>
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18 Guardians of the King</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Captain, shield</div>
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12 Warriors of Erebor with Shields and Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Thrain</div>
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12 Warriors of Erebor with Shields and Spears</div>
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1 Warrior of Erebor with a Shield and a War Horn</div>
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This list builds on the previous list and is an expansion of the army I took to the GT (which has gone undefeated so far). The 2 main additions to the list from the above one consists of Thrain and the War Horn. Thrain gets the nod over Young Thorin as he is a hero with 3’s in all the right places and a master crafted 2-hand weapon to boot, making him a major threat and yet is pretty disposable with Thror as the general. Also, he has a neat board wide Stand Fast! which can help as well keep those dwarves staying where you want them. </div>
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As for the War Horn, I have become a big fan of these recently. With the number of armies now available to good and evil that can cause Terror through various means (often with a -1 courage) having your dwarves that little extra bit more reliable to charge is more useful than you would have thought for a dwarf. With the army bonus, points I would normally spend on a banner are better spent here.</div>
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The army comes in with a healthy 46 models, meaning you will match or beat most armies’ model count unless you are facing a horde. Key to the success of the army is making sure that you ensure that you can cut down enemy numbers early on. Thror, Thrain and the captain may not have the benefit of a mount to make heroic combats reliable, but they can still reliably take down 4+ guys between them. Players tend to be apprehensive about using might to kill a basic troop but making sure they do means that your own troops won’t get surrounded and can inflict serious damage themselves. You can also then afforded to send squads of dwarves on objective achieving missions without buckling your own battle line far sooner.<br />
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<b>List 3: Mik's 600 Points of Army of Thror</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Thror</div>
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15 Guardians of the King</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Young Thorin with Oakenshield</div>
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5 Warriors of Erebor with Spears </div>
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1 Warrior of Erebor with Spear & Shield</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Young Dwalin</div>
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5 Warriors of Erebor with Spears </div>
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1 Warrior of Erebor with Spear & Shield</div>
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Total: 30 Models, 8 Might</div>
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Heroes are a vital part of the game and especially heroes with 3 attacks each are considerably stronger than those with only 2 Attacks. As such, whenever I build armies, my first inclination is to look out for those characters that can chew through infantry troops with ease - These normally include the likes of Suladan, Boromir, Gwaihir, Theoden, Wraiths on Fell Beasts, etc - the more of these I can have, the better I feel about the army. Luckily, Army of Thror has an abundance of those between Thror, Thrain, Thorin and Dwalin. When most of your army is very reliable at surviving in combat, thanks to high Defence, your opponent is left with a difficult choice – do they concentrate on trying to surround and pick off your basic troops, or do they instead go for the heroes? In this situation, going for the Heroes can prove rather difficult, because there are few things at 600 points that can deal with three A3, F5/6/6 high Defence heroes in a short period of time. </div>
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The downside here naturally is a lack of any bowfire, but the Grim Hammers’ throwing weapons in such high numbers are nothing to be scoffed at. Finally, the list lacks a Captain with Heroic March, so may require longer term planning than if one was present. </div>
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<b>List 4: Mik's 700 Points alliance of Army of Thror with Iron Hills</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Thror</div>
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9 Guardians of the King</div>
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9 Warriors of Erebor with Spears and Shields</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Captain on a War Goat</div>
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6 Goat Riders</div>
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6 Iron Hills Dwarves with Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Iron Hills Ballista with 1 extra Crew Member</div>
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Total: 37 Models, 5 Might</div>
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When it comes to competitive play, one must always ask themselves “is this the best I can do, or is there an alternative that is better?”. Iron Hills and Army of Thror are similar enough, that one could run comparisons between pure lists of each of them and make a decision which to use based on which they feel is stronger. At the end of the day, they’re all Dwarves, but with slightly different perks. Where Iron Hills have the Ballista, Army of Thror can have larger numbers and more A3 Heroes, plus Guardians of the King are better at chewing through enemies than their cousins from the Phalanx by going 2-handed with spear support and banner re-rolls (but also die quicker). In some scenarios Ballista can be backbreaking for your opponents, in others, it can be the other way around. In some scenarios a few cavalry models can outright win you the game, but in others they’re a waste of points. This list is a bit of a hybrid and by creating it I keep asking myself “is it actually better than a pure Thror or IH list? Should I even bother?”… you tell me… :D</div>
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Although I don’t think the IH Ballista is overpowered in any way, since high defence troops generally don’t care about bowfire anyway, in this example list the alternatives aren’t many – likely either Thorin or a captain with a handful of warriors. </div>
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The advantage of Thror over Dain and going purely into Iron Hills is that he’s significantly cheaper, just about as good in combat and you’re actually able to control him in tricky spots, whereas Dain is forced to stick to fighting through his Fiery Temper Special Rule. </div>
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Essentially what I’ve done here is to patch up the weaknesses of a pure Thror’s list by adding 7 cavalry models and a ballista, but dropped from potentially 3x A3 heroes into 1 and a Captain. Whether this is better than an alternative with Thror, Thrain, Thorin and 3 stacked warbands of Guardians and Warriors, I can’t say for sure. </div>
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Allies</h4>
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<b>Alastair:</b> When it comes to allies for the Army of Thror you have 2 green allies in Dale and the Iron Hills. I first looked at Dale as potential to be in the army as they seemed a natural fit and could provide some good shooting (they used to be part of the same list in fact). The issue is though with the limit to 33% bows applying to each force as opposed to the army what you find is you will only get 4/5 bow shots and a vastly inferior back line who drop from D7 to D5 and only get you 1 extra model for the exchange, not worth it in my opinion. Girion on the other hand is a solid hero with his Great bow and multi-shots with Might can be useful, I am yet to find a points level where I would put him in but doesn’t mean there isn’t one.</div>
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The other Green alliance available are the Iron Hills, these guys have much better potential as an alliance than Dale do. While again you lack the ability to take more than 4/5 crossbows realistically, your back line becomes arguable better with S4 and D7/8. The army also does give you the option of the much-feared Iron Hills Ballista, which can ruin many an opponent’s plans, and mounted options with the Iron Hills Goat Riders. These guys help overcome many of the limitations to army of Thror and have considered allying them in a few times (not having the models has held me back on trying it). I think the higher points level is when I would. </div>
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Other options to consider if you look at convenient allies is if you wanted could be Gwahir and some Eagles, giving you models to cover the board at speed and monsters in combat. The White Council can provide some nifty casters as well with Radagast being my pick from the bunch. A popular choice for many players is to ally in a back rank of elven support as well for F5, no self-respecting dwarf would rely on the help from these pointy eared fools though so I usually would give this one a pass (the combo is good though in game). </div>
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One thing to note on when you take allies though is Thror’s banner only effect his dwarves not any of the allies and obviously you lose that when you take convenient allies. The balance then is working out if losing the 6” banner effect is worth what you are bringing to the table instead.</div>
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<b>Mik: </b>Normally when taking such elite and high-point forces, I have the inclination to look for alliances that can significantly buff up the numbers and improve the chances of winning in scenarios that require us to split into different places to cover objectives or pass through enemy lines. The problem here is that the only Convenient or Historical allies (with the exception of Dale, which I think is basically a more expensive Lake Town) for Army of Thror are either elves, eagles, ents or even more expensive heroes. So what we're left with is the question of how to buff our fighting formation or how to patch up its weaknesses.<br />
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I tried the latter with the Iron Hills alliance at 700 points above, however I still feel that allying elves (I am, after all, not a self-respecting dwarf ;) ) with their F5 could be a major boost to the combat prowess. The lack of bows in Thror's list means that even if we ally somebody in, we're not going to get any significant firepower, with the exception of a Ballista, so that's not something we should be looking for. A lot of players opt for Cirdan these days, but with a meta shifting into more Terror-resistant forces and us having very high Defence, neither Blinding Light, nor Aura of Dismay surve much of a purpose. In alliances I would look for a handful of cavalry models with a cheap leader for them, or heroes that are better than Thrain and Throrin - if you can't find either of those two options, I would probably stick to playing a pure force and ensure I get the Army Bonus.</div>
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Summary</h4>
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Overall, the Army of Thror is a highly forgiving force due to its very high survivability and an abundance of 3 Attack heroes. Lack of bowfire forces you to be the more proactive player, which may be a bit of an issue with a force that moves at such slow speed, but once combat begins, you should be able to cut through most enemies at ease, so it is vital that you have a plan in place from the start of the game and stick to it. </div>
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Good Luck!</div>
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BlackMist & Alastair</div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-11221276988923826092019-03-13T13:22:00.000+00:002020-06-18T22:21:21.575+01:00Fog of War, Part 13: Lake-Town<h4 style="text-align: center;">
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FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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Part 13: Lake Town</span></h4>
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For part 13 of this series we are dipping our toes in the lake... No... let's start again...</div>
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For part 13 of this series we are for the first time entering Armies of the Hobbit, this time with the Ardacon Team Germany Captain, HTL World Host and one of the best players in his country, Tim Jütersonke. After playing Tim’s army at 2018 Ardacon I was quite impressed by his style, as well as the strength of Gandalf, Bard, his children and a force of villagers, so here come the people that killed a mighty dragon… and I don't mean the White Walkers.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Tim: </b>The first Lake Town model I took to a tournament was Alfrid. I did this filthy thing where you could give his bad advice to Dain or Gwaihir and make them really big threats having lots of might [<i>in the oldest version of Alfrid’s rules he was insane and an auto-include in every Good army in the game – Mik</i>]. But sooner than later I stumbled upon Jay Clare’s enormous successes playing pure Lake Town and as I have been a fan of Bard for a long time (I love how he looks more like Orlando Bloom in the film than Orlando Bloom himself), I started this beautiful army as well. It was a time when the standard troops were packed into finecast blisters of three, and basically that was it. There was a Bard model, but no Bain, no daughters, no Percy. My first Bain was a Mordor orc with Frodo's head – it looked awful, but it served its purpose. I always loved how the heroes and troops have lots of synergies with their special rules – something that felt really unique when Lake Town was released.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With the new edition, a few things have changed for Lake Town. Bard’s phenomenal special rule with the 12” Banner and Fight bonus was nerfed to an Army Bonus, and the omnipresent Gandalf (who blinded and blasted all game with whooping six points of might from Alfrid) is not an auto-include anymore. But on the other hand, Lake Town now has three Historical allies and lots of potential when it comes to shooting-horde lists fielding smaller heroes and buffed troops.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik: </b>Historically, the holy grail of tournament lists up to 800 points has always been the trifecta of Big Hero + Anti-Hero (Wizard) + Horde of troops. For years (even before the last edition came in) players struggled to make armies that would include all three. As the metas shifted and time progressed, it became apparent that Wizard + Horde was the preferred way of competitive play for the Good side, since Wizards were able to not only stop big heroes and blast holes in enemy lines, but also to take out Winged Nazgul. When Lake Town first came out, that changed. It became the first army that was able to field a Wizard (Gandalf), a Gigantic Hero (Bard with 4-6 Might - essentially a cheaper Boromir) and a Horde of troops at virtually no expense, since both Bard and Gandalf were able to lead troops and their other Heroes were incredibly cheap. To no surprise, Lake Town became arguably one of the strongest armies in the game, but despite that, the low defence and the multi-hurling ability of Fell Beasts held it mostly in check, unless the Lake Town player was able to extract the full potential of Gandalf and Bard at dealing with those nasty creatures. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway, too much history. Lake Town have some of the coolest and most unique rules, including Bard protecting his kids who give him superhuman abilities and turn him into a raging monkey if one of them dies, variety of shooting or combat boosts from Percy and Hilda, as well as a strangely positive impact on the army that the scumbag Alfrid provides. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b>ARMY LISTS:</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 1: Tim’s 500 points of Survivors of Lake-Town</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Bard with armour on horse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Sigrid & Tilda</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Alfrid</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8 Militia of Lake Town with shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
7 Militia of Lake Town with spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Percy</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Militia of Lake Town with bow</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8 Militia of Lake Town with bow and spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Captain of Lake Town with shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6 Militia of Lake Town with shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Total: 500 points, 38 models, 13-15 shots</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you plan on taking the Survivors of Lake Town army list, Bard is an auto-include. Not only does he bring Might, shooting and close combat power on the table, but also, he makes your Fight 2 militia to somewhat decent fighters with his 12” Banner, a better Fight Value and a bonus to their Courage.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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Bard on his own is good, but he can be buffed with the help of his daughters. With Fight 6 and free Heroic Combats he is a real beast. Alfrid helps him to compensate for bad rolls with some extra points of Might. I usually take these three heroes in Bard’s warband so they won’t get lost in Maelstrom deployment games (Mik really taught me a lesson in our last game…).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With Bard, I like to aim at the bigger mounted heroes. Strength 4 means he wounds horses on 4+ and even those scary Nazgul on 6s – which is ok if you have 6 points of Might in your store.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Percy is like a better Captain and his Special Rule improves the shooting abilities of your troops. I usually put all of my bow men in his warband and place these troops in my second rank when playing lower points. Then I can have Defence 5 troops in the front and bow men with spears in the second.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Captain helps a bit with the poor mobility Lake Town offers. He brings Heroic March to this list, something that might get handy when it comes to Seize the Prize or Heirlooms of Ages Past. You could swap him for Bain or Hilda and bring a few more troops, but then you would limit yourself to a stand-and-shoot army. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The army bonus in combination with the six heroes makes this list kind of immune to Courage tests when Broken. Just pass Bard’s test and see how your other heroes will automatically pass their tests – even if they get charged, they will pass some kind of Stand Fast to warriors in 3”.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Of course, this army has a few down sides as well: If Bard is taken out by magic or another big hero, this list sucks. If Bard has to charge that specific bow man who shot one of the daughters, this list sucks. So keep the daughters out of sight, and learn how to use Bard the right way. He is a good fighter and his free Heroic Combats are pretty good for killing troops, but sometimes he has to face the bigger heroes to win you the game.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 2: Tim's 750 points of Survivors of Lake-Town</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This point size is a tricky one. Normally I would field Bard, Gandalf, the kids and whatever number of troops I could afford. But with the nerf to Sorcerous Blast and magic in general, I don’t know if Gandalf is worth it anymore. Yes, he brings you Blinding Light which is important for gaining the upper hand in shooting and yes, with Transfix and Compel he hinders enemy heroes from smashing through your troops. He can bring up to 15 warriors, which is pretty good, but is all this worth whooping 180 points? I can’t say for sure – but I think the mighty Grey-beard is still worth a try:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Bard with armour on horse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Sigrid & Tilda</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Alfrid</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8 Militia of Lake Town with shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
7 Militia of Lake Town with spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Gandalf on horse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Militia of Lake Town with shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Militia of Lake Town with spear</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Percy</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
12 Militia of Lake Town with bow</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Captain of Lake Town with shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6 Militia of Lake Town with shield</div>
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3 Militia of Lake Town with spear</div>
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3 Militia of Lake Town with bow</div>
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<br /></div>
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Total: 750 points, 52 models, all the shots</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you look closely you will notice that this looks like the army list from above, adjusted to the higher points value. In fact, I added Gandalf and a few troops to stay somehow competitive. If you leave Gandalf out, you could go for Hilda and Bain and around 18 more militia – but again, this would be a very boring army with less tactical options than most lists. Gandalf brings you magic, protection against shooting and endless Might when refreshing Alfrid's will store.If you can afford to stand back and shoot with your army, you could use Strengthen Will on Alfrid to get even more might on your two big heroes. Also, if you can, leave Gandalf out of combat. If you have to bring him into combat, pair him with a Lake Town militia and attack one of the flanks. Bard’s banner will affect the militia, you have a good fight value and with Strength 5 and 3 attacks on the charge (2 from Gandalf plus one militia) you can easily bring normal troops and even captains down with ease.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you don’t want to spend your points on Gandalf, have a thought about bringing Bilbo. He might not look strong on first glance, but he brings 3 points of might and the one ring. It might get tricky to benefit from it, but if you can bring him and Bard in combat with an enemy hero those two surely can bring him down.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
ALLIES</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Tim:</b> When it comes to allies, I think you should focus on the historical ones. The Army Bonus Lake Town offers is really good and should not be abandoned too thoughtlessly. I like the idea of bringing Thorin and a few Iron Hills warriors or Goat Riders as you then have two big heroes with free Heroic Combats each turn. I have seen people ally Lake Town with Thranduil's Halls to get access to Fight 5 and even better bows – but you will lose the horde aspect of your army. Having Legolas and Bard in one army could work for a really funny shooting competition, though! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Radagast might be an ally to consider, even if you would lose your army bonus. Just imagine the joy of your militia when they get to fight an all prone enemy army without any risk!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik:</b> I decided to focus my part of the article on allies instead. I think there is a limited way of making a pure Lake Town army and I didn’t want to add examples that would look similar to Tim's. I think the horde aspect of the Lake Town army is its biggest benefit in the current state of the rules, but we can do better with little additions like Cirdan, Radagast or Legolas in order to make the army that tiny bit more versatile and powerful.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 3a: </b><b>Mik's 500 Points of Army of Lake Town and Halls of Thranduil</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Master of Lake Town</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
10<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Alfrid the Councillor</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Braga, Captain of the Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood on a Horse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elves with Glaives and Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elves with Bows and Glaives</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Mirkwood Elf with a Banner and a Shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Total 44 Models, 8 Might (+ Alfrid), 14 Bows (+ Legolas)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This army is inspired by the list used by James Braund at the 2019 GBHL Masters tournament, where he defeated me in the first game of the event. Master of Lake Town is a safe leader capable of getting a few kills in Contest of Champions and also capable of surviving in tricky spots thanks to his Heroic Defence. Legolas and the Mirkwood Elves give the army badly needed Fight Value 5, which combined with a banner can get us through a lot of fights without losing anything. 44 Models is a horde that you’ll rarely see at this points limit. Legolas is naturally very good at sniping annoying threats and also is a highly capable killer in combat, especially when mounted.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 3b: As above, but with Radagast</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Master of Lake Town</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Alfrid the Councillor</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Braga, Captain of the Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Lake-Town Captain</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 5:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Radagast on Horse with Sebastian</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Total 42 Models, 9 Might (+ Alfrid), 13 bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is an alternative to the above using Radagast instead of Legolas. The army lacks a banner and a strong hero, but Radagast’s infinite Nature’s Wrath is something that at 500 points level is very difficult to regularly defeat over time. Most Heroes will run out of Will quite quickly trying to resist the Wraths and eventually your opponent should be permanently on the ground and trapped in most combats. The fact that you outnumber everybody by 10-15 models also means you’ll find it easy to protect Radagast. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The lone Captain is is in there due to having 40 points spare and little else to pick from. Heroic March and a couple of extra points of Might could be useful. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 4, 800 Points of Lake-Town / Radagast / Rivendell</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Master of Lake Town</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Alfrid the Councillor</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Braga, Captain of the Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake-Town Guard with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lake Town Guard with Bows and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Radagast on Horse with Sebastian</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 5:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Cirdan </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Rivendell Knights with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>High Elf Warriors with Shields and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 6:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Arwen on Asfaloth</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>High Elf with a Banner, Spear and Shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>High Elf Warriors with Shields and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Total 55 Models, 15 bows, 10 Might (+Alfrid), 3 casters.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This list has the numbers to outnumber pretty much everybody other than Moria/GT/Shire. It has:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Cirdan to win bow fights, cause Terror and pass Courage</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Radagast to keep opponents on the ground, with Arwen to double up on that if they refuse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- 11 FV5 spear supporters and a banner to improve the odds of winning fights when it matters</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- 4 Mounted models to grab objectives, 2 of which can nuke Wraths in key spots</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Enough bows to force opponents to us and enough numbers to survive a 2h long game]</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It’s far from perfect, it needs tweaking and fine-tuning in exact equipment (I’d give Axes to some Guards instead of Spears, but that’s something that will need to be figured out with playtests) and it needs some practice, but I’d be happy to take that to a tournament tomorrow. It’s also possible the Survivors of Lake-Town should be used instead of Army of Lake-Town, but Alfrid’s Fortitude vs Independent status in the two lists has swayed me towards the ALT.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
SUMMARY:</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As you can see, Lake-Town can either play as a stand-alone horde, or it can ally into some very powerful combinations, thanks to the fact that their heroes and troops are incredibly cheap. The sheer number of heroes they can bring to the table also means they will usually have someone to provide Stand Fast! after breaking. Whatever you do, always remember what the goal of your army is and keep your eyes on the objectives. Always try to figure out what your army might struggle with and see if you can fix it.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good Luck!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
BlackMist & Tim</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-57195528880244900052019-02-26T09:34:00.000+00:002020-06-18T22:21:40.911+01:00Fog of War, Part 12: Mordor & Barad-Dur<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 12: Mordor & Barad-Dur</span></h4>
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After a bit of a break due to some personal and work-related reasons, I am back with part 12. This time with my guests, we'll be covering the largest and most versatile faction in the game. Because of Mordor's popularity there have been many players who have achieved significant success with its armies, so instead of getting one expert, I decided to ask the Competitive Community Facebook Page to send me their favourite lists. Out of the submissions, I picked my favourite ones and so today I am joined by one of the best players of Poland: Adam Sokol; one of the best players of Germany: Pascal Wibbe; and one of the best players of England: CJ Millar. Additionally featuring a couple of other tournament-winning lists from the new edition... plus my own ramblings! Hope you enjoy it and learn a thing or two. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mordor's Main Strengths & Weaknesses</h4>
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<b>The Witch King of Angmar </b>- The leader of the 9 used to be rarely used in competitive play, but in the new edition he brings 3 key things that make him one of the best Heroes in the game. Firstly, he is a Hero of Legend when taken in a Mordor list. At just 70 points basic, or 90 points in my favourite 3/10/1 configuration (I'll go into detail later on why these stats), he is one of only 5 model in the game under 100 points that can bring 18 troops with them, ensuring that Mordor always has the numbers it needs. Secondly he has access to Heroic Strike, so can be freely thrown into combat when needed. Thirdly at higher points he can use the Crown of Morgul, ensuring he almost never runs out of Will when casting spells. His main strength however is also his weakness - unless we have another Hero of Legend, the Witch King can be quite a vulnerable leader and whether we should mount him on a Fell Beast (which is what most Wraiths want to be doing) is debatable, since its offensive combat prowess is likely to bring doom to our Leader and often lose us the game. </div>
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<b>The Versatility</b> - Between Morannons, Numenoreans, Orcs, Warg Riders, Morgul Knights, Trackers, Catapults and countless Heroes, we have a ton to choose from. This can be good and bad, because we can end up with a very good well-rounded list, but less experienced players may often run into a problem of lack of consistency and lack of a plan of how the army is supposed to play, synergize, and what it wants to achieve in the game. This reminds me of one of my favourite Zen quotes by the Zen Master Shunryu Suzuki, "In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities. In the expert's there are few". Despite the million choices one could make with this (or many other armies), only a few are actually highly competitive. That's not to say you should make competitive choices, as it's your hobby and you can do whatever you want, but there's a reason many great lists bear similarities to each other. </div>
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<b>The Dark Lord Himself </b>- The Barad-Dur list features the most unique Army Bonus and the most unique play style in the game, relying more on the Army Leader than any other force and often winning or losing games depending how well the player uses Sauron. Naturally, this model is only accessible at high points, making it even harder for new players to learn to play him, as with higher points come more varied enemies and difficult situations throughout the game that we have to deal with, meaning that the entry level for the Barad-Dur forces is somewhat higher than most other armies.</div>
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ARMY LISTS</h4>
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<b>CJ's 500 Points of (Cirith Ungol-themed) Mordor:</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Shagrat with Heavy armour and a Shield</div>
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6 Mordor Uruks with Shields</div>
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5 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</div>
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1 Morannon Orc with a Shield, Spear and a Banner</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Gorbag with a Shield</div>
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6 Morannon Orcs with Shields</div>
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6 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Shelob</div>
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Total: 27 Models, 6 Might.</div>
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<b>CJ:</b> For those fluffy tournaments this can be a fun hard hitting force. Its main weakness is Courage, which might be a hindrance if someone is packing the army of the dead. </div>
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I absolutely love using Shelob. She is a silent assassin who gets underestimated due to only having the one Attack. She gets Monstrous Charge which can add up to 3 Attacks to win in proximity of a Banner, and thanks to her impressive statline she can overpower most things. Fight Value 7 in an era with rarer Strikes than in the previous edition of the game is valuable, and with her Venom she re-rolls all failed wounds. When she has knocked your opponent down and is throwing 4 Strength 7 Strikes with re-rolls she can comfortably chew through two warriors a turn or, far better, flatten a lesser Hero. For the latter, I like using Barge when she wins a 1v1 fight with a normal soldier who’s just tried to pin her in place, then she can charge and cause more damage with the Cavalry bonuses. It also just feels very thematic to have the giant spider barge in order to ambush the Eomer who didn’t Heroic Strike this turn.</div>
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Don’t forget that she can also keep a Wraith on FB (worth twice her points!) in check due to having higher Strength and Monstrous Charge. Even if she gets charged she can still Hurl it. Even when she loses a fight she’s a surprisingly high Defence 7, has 6 Wounds, and despite Hunting Instinct she’s got Courage 4 and 6 Will so it’s odds on she’ll be killed before fleeing.</div>
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Her final trick in the new edition is Caught in a Web. Basically, if she gets charged by a multi-wound model and therefore only has one Attack if she wins, you might as well go for this. They get Paralysed if they take a Wound- it’s what you’d be doing anyway but with a scary bonus. This just adds to her role as a deterrent. </div>
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Gorbag’s new rule is very thematic and helps him to chew through opposing troops, whereas Shagrat can bully enemy Heroes all day. He is the lowest tiered Hero with Heroic Challenge which allows him to shut down Heroes of Fortitude upwards. Spending the Might on these Challenges isn’t a big issue as with Blood and Glory he gets it back, and then on top of that he gets D3 Might for killing his prey. Fight 5 (with the option to Heroic Strike), Strength 5, 3s in the right places and knock down on the charge - he’s a low-mid range Hero butcher. Even if he loses the odd combat, he’s Defence 7, with 3 Wounds and 3 Fate. </div>
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<b>Adam's 650 Points List which won the Polish Doubles Championships:</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Witch King 3/12/3</div>
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7 Morannon Orcs with Shields</div>
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6 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</div>
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1 Orc Warrior with a Banner, Shield and Spear</div>
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1 Orc Tracker on a Warg</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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The Tainted on a Horse</div>
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5 Morannon Orcs with Shields</div>
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4 Orc Warriors with Shields and Spears</div>
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1 Orc Warrior with a Spear</div>
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1 Orc Tracker on a Warg</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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1 Khandish Chieftain on a Chariot</div>
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<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
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1 Khandish Chieftain on a Chariot</div>
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Total: 30 Models, 9 Might</div>
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<b>Adam: </b>The Witch King is a strong, sustainable leader with access to Magic and useful Heroic Actions. The Tainted is the 2nd caster with a Special Rule that both quickly diminish opponent's forces after break, as well as block Heroic Moves for non-Heroes. The infantry is made up of a solid block of Morannon Orcs and a couple of Trackers as objective grabbers and key pieces in Reconnoitre. </div>
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The most important aspect of this list are two Chariots driven by the Chieftains. Combined with The Tainted's Special Rule we get 2 models that almost guarantee to get their Trample when they want to, as the Heroic Moves only affect Heroes, so they are unlikely to ever be charged and locked down before trampling, unless there is a hero in the front rank - who risks getting Transfixed by the Wraiths. </div>
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Overall it's a small list, but very interesting and unique in its play style. </div>
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<b>Pascal's 700 Points of Mordor:</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Witch King 3/17/2 on Fell Beast with a Crown of Morgul</div>
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6 Black Numenoreans </div>
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6 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</div>
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4 Orc Trackers</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Mouth of Sauron on an Armoured Horse</div>
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2 Morgul Knights</div>
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5 Black Numenoreans</div>
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5 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Gorbag with a Shield</div>
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3 Black Numenoreans</div>
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3 Morannon Orcs with Shields</div>
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5 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</div>
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Total: 42 Models</div>
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<b>Pascal:</b> For my first tournament with the new edition I was looking for a new concept to make my Evil/Mordor army work. I've always been a fan of Ringwraiths/Fell Beasts and with the changes to the Witch King, the Leader of my army was a clear choice. With the access to several Heroic Actions, (especially Heroic Strike) he brings a lot of flexibility to the table and with 4 attacks on the charge he is able to kill most key targets in one combat. </div>
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One of the Heroes on the Good side that was improved the most is Cirdan. He provides Aura of Dismay and is available to most Good armies as a Convenient (Yellow) ally so I thought an army that wants to be successful, must have a way to deal with Terror. Shamans are not that great anymore, and even though Kardush would be a better solution, I'd rather take a hero with more Might Points and use Black Numenorians as my front line. They are Courage 4, with the Mordor Army Bonus in play Courage 5 and cause Terror themselves. With Fight 4 they can keep up with most good armies (except Elves) and a Defence 6 line of Black Numenorians/Morannon Orcs is though to crack. </div>
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In the new edition of the game Transfix no longer reduces Fight Value on a non-Channelled level. This makes it really hard to deal with all those amazing heroes with all the 3's in the right places like Aragorn, Boromir, Glorfindel, etc. </div>
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They are devestating in combat - but what if they don't reach combat? In an army that mostly causes Terror, Drain Courage is a great spell. It is easy to cast (on a 2+) and gives the opponent a tough trade off between a point of Will or Courage. With the nerfs to Sap Will this is a really useful way to drain Will points. That is the main job for The Mouth of Sauron, 4 will for 4 times Drain Courage and 2 Might with the ability to use Heroic March at relatively low points. Add to that Fight 5 on an Armoured Horse and you have a really solid all-rounder.</div>
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The Orc Trackers just add cheap bodies to my model count, which helps with Break Point and Army Bonus. 4 bows cheeky shooting into combat and trying to kill Heroes' horses is also a nice option to have.</div>
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In my opinion this is just a well rounded force that makes use of all the flexibility Mordor provides and features all the important key aspects and army should have: strong hero, monster, magic, numbers, might and "bows".</div>
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You don't really need allies for Mordor as they feature everything you'd wish for (except Spectres 😥). I might try to get in an Angmar warband consisting of a Barrow Wight and 3 spectres at 800 points in the future 😉 </div>
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Another great addition would be the Tainted, I might write an article about this very interesting hero in the future 🙂</div>
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That's all from me for now, I hope you enjoyed my thoughts and might have found an idea or two to feature in your next tournament army 🙂</div>
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<b>Mik's 500 Points List for GBHL Masters Tournament 2019</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Suladan, The Serpent Lord on an Armoured Horse</div>
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9 Haradrim Warriors with Spears</div>
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9 Haradrim Warriors with Spears & Bows</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Witch King 3/10/1</div>
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1 Orc with Spear</div>
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17 Black Numenoreans</div>
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Total: 38 Models</div>
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<b>Mik:</b> Although this list is 200 points smaller than Pascal's and so should feature above his in points order, I decided to put it here, as essentially it has been inspired by my conversation with him on this subject. The GBHL Masters Tournament (inviting the 16 best players of GBHL 2018 season) was played at only 500 points, which meant that there would not be very many Shamans and the only high-courage enemies I'd be likely to face would be Elves, so I liked the idea of having good long range firepower to force my opponents to play on my terms and then 17 Terror-causing models with the Witch King's Harbinger of Evil to ensure that once opponent is close, combat becomes difficult for them. The Witch King's Legend status was the primary reason for taking him, as it allowed me numbers far greater than what other heroes would have been able to provide and 1 Fate Point proved to be enough. The list did relatively well at 2-2 in the most fiercely competitive field ever assembled in GBHL, although I had hopes for more!</div>
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The 3/10/1 configuration of the Witch King is something a lot of players have asked me about. The natural tendency for a 1-Wound character would be to go with 2 or even 3 Fate, but to me this comes down to your experience and point-efficiency. That plus I'm just greedy. I tend to play my Wizards quite conservatively, so WK is rarely in harm's way, unless I require him to use Heroic Strike, at which point I'll weigh the odds of him dying vs the Strike being potentially game-winning. 1 Fate means that should Legolas decide to snipe him down, I guarantee to save him once (3 Might) and the likelihood of 2 wounds by the time he has used most of his Will is unlikely. Every Might point you have is important, so 3 Might and 1 Fate is better than 2 Might and 2 Fate. In this list making sure I have maximum number of models meant cutting everything down to minimum. He also wasn't my leader here, so I didn't need the extra protection. </div>
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<b>Jay Clare's 800 Points Barad-Dur list that won the Scouring of Stirlingshire (Good vs Evil) 2018 Tournament</b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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The Dark Lord Sauron</div>
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11 Orc Warriors with Shield</div>
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11 Orc Warriors with Spear</div>
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1 Orc Drummer</div>
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1 Orc Warrior with a Banner</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Orc Captain with a Shield</div>
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5 Orc Warriors with Shields</div>
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5 Orc Warriors with Spears</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Orc Shaman</div>
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4 Warg Riders with Shields</div>
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1 Orc Tracker</div>
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Total: 42 Models, 6 Might. </div>
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<b>Mik: </b>Mr Clare was happy for me to feature this list and discuss it. Ever since starting to play SBG in 2004, Sauron has been one of those things that I ALWAYS wanted to use in a competitive list, but NEVER did. Every edition of the game I tried figuring out lists with Sauron in them, but always ended up with results along the lines of '<i>if I take Sauron, the rest of my army will fold to literally everything</i>'. Finally, the special rule allowing Sauron to bring a Warband of 24, plus his smaller cost, plus the incredibly powerful Army Bonus of Barad-Dur means that the Dark Lord is playable. He still requires us to play in a points limit of 800+ however. At 500, the army would still fold to everything, at 600 and 700 it would struggle, so 800 is in my opinion the bare minimum where Sauron begins to compete and 1000 points is where he shines, as we're able to bring a critical mass of models and have the best centre-piece of an army in the entire game. Seeing this list win a 100pt GBHL Tournament made me quite happy and it isn't a surprise, since the numbers are high and the leader is strong, but also the player is of a rather fine quality himself.</div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
But What About The Flying Circus?!</h4>
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As many of my readers and long-time players know, the Flying Circus (army made up of purely Ringwraiths on Fell Beasts or sometimes also accompanied by Shelob) used to be an extremely powerful force in the hands of a select few (most notably Ed Ball) extremely good players. Sadly this is no longer the case, as the Monster rules have been changed in this edition not to allow double-hurls during Heroic Combats, Wraiths lost access to Heroic Strike and Magic has had significantly diminished effects, leading to less armies using Fell Beasts in general in my experience - in fact at the 1000 point Throne of Skulls I faced 0 Fell Beasts and saw only a handful, in a field of about 100 players!</div>
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The first GBHL tournament of the new edition was still won by the all-Fell Beast army however, consisting of:</div>
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Undying on Fell Beast</div>
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Khamul on Fell Beast</div>
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Ringwraith* (2/14/2) on Fell Beast</div>
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Total: 3 Models, 6 Might</div>
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*The reason for including a Ringwraith over The Witch King was due to Legend status of the WK, which would have prevented Undying from being the Army Leader.</div>
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Personally I am curious to see whether the Flying Circus can still be used to consistently win major competitions, or if it is now gone for good from the top tables. </div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Allies, Legendary Legions and all that new stuff...</h4>
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Mordor has mostly everything it needs, but it can still benefit from allies. Its Army Bonus is very strong, so personally I wouldn't sacrifice it unless I'd be getting something even stronger - perhaps a lone Shade. Because of that, I think Harad is the best ally for Mordor, as the two armies together get to keep their bonuses and Harad provides cheap long range firepower that Mordor lacks. Even if we split the two forces 50/50, we're able to get 25% of all models in the army to be armed with poisoned bows, which will often be good enough to force opponents to play on our terms - something that Mordor cannot often do, as it's generally inclined to charge into combat at the earliest convenience.<br />
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An interesting list that I saw used with good results before even the last edition (ie. around 2009/2010) was one featuring the Mordor War Catapult in a Harad army, ensuring one had a big siege weapon for very long range, then a mass of bows for mid-range and a mass of numbers plus a Troll for close combat. Just some food for thought. </div>
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The new Legendary Legions provide a range of new possibilities, but as there hasn't been enough time to figure these out on competitive level, I decided to leave them out from this article for now and hopefully in a few months I'll update this section with more info. </div>
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Good luck at the tables!</div>
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BlackMist</div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-49149339918814697892018-11-13T11:06:00.000+00:002020-06-18T22:22:28.177+01:00Fog of War, Part 11: The Shire<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZzQOypMTrSUHHOzEViPWFJFzn070YqA3nHaqsn3-d28ZvUBS6TfUFFoFFhUISGi59dv8CjY_advsqpAP9QPPiErevcFnuVi7Yc6hozUOgyxS0DZvTbGwvLyrl-8Pv8lZOalkpO0AdXi5q/s1600/The+Shire.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="528" data-original-width="1280" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZzQOypMTrSUHHOzEViPWFJFzn070YqA3nHaqsn3-d28ZvUBS6TfUFFoFFhUISGi59dv8CjY_advsqpAP9QPPiErevcFnuVi7Yc6hozUOgyxS0DZvTbGwvLyrl-8Pv8lZOalkpO0AdXi5q/s320/The+Shire.png" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 11: The Shire</span></h4>
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We're back! It's been just over a week since The Scouring of Stirlingshire in Scotland and we now venture to the place where it all begun - The Shire. This time I am joined by the 2018 ETC Team Wales player, winner of 2 GBHL 100pt Tournaments and a hobbit extraordinaire, David Farmer.</div>
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<b>David:</b> The Shire as an army has certainly felt the changes of the new edition as much as any other. Every army has felt the changes to the rules for constructing a force but almost none as much as The Shire: a previously highly competitive force that relied on shooting dominance, alliances, and abusing piercing strike arguably more than any other army (4pts for a potentially strength 6 hobbit? Yikes). It is not just army construction changes that have hurt the hobbits however, there have been several nerfs across the board to many aspects of their play. All 3 Hobbit troop choices have increased by a point, the Hobbit Archers have had their range reduced, the previously ubiquitous Battlin' Brandybuck upgrade is now limited to only Merry's warband, and the fact that ponies no longer confer cavalry charge bonuses (a fact that I think is a bigger nerf than many realised to the shire specifically). </div>
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Having said that I don't think these changes are unjustifiable or particularly unfair - a certain amount of power has been trimmed from some of the most egregious examples from the previous edition of the rules.</div>
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Steering away from negatives now we can ask: what got better? Well for a start the army bonus is nice - Woodland Creature doesn't seem like much but for an army with a base movement of 4" an area of woodland can be a complete roadblock that takes many turns to effectively navigate: this change allows the hobbits to potentially gain a movement advantage in a certain situation, which was entirely unheard of in the previous edition! </div>
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Merry and Pippin are both now Heroes of Valour with a second point of Might apiece, allowing them to lead 15 hobbits each which is very nice in a horde - it allows you to get more models into your army and therefore more bows (crucial for hobbits). Several independent heroes from the previous edition have been upgraded to Minor Heroes, so expect to see ever present Fatty and Lobelia leading small warbands - not to mention Farmer Maggot who has not only had a stat improvement, he's jumped right up to a Hero of Fortitude (although 3 warband slots need to be taken up by his dogs). In my opinion the most interesting change is to Frodo who simply had his banner effect increased to 6", but this combined with his 40mm pony base allows him to cover large areas of the battlefield with rerolls - a very important effect given that the hobbit army comes with almost no spears available. In terms of troops, yes they have all increased by a point but in the case of Hobbit Sheriffs it is justified: they now come equipped with hand-and-a-half weapons which can add a small amount of much-needed killing power. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The final big change to the base Shire list (and probably the one I change my mind on the most) is the addition of Gandalf the Grey and Dunedain as a Hero of Valour and Minor Heroes respectively. While this might seem like a straight buff the caveat for taking Gandalf is you become unable to field Merry, Pippin, Frodo or Sam in the army - a fact that denies you access to 3 of the army's most important utilities: Merry, Pippin and Frodo. While there are definitely situations where I would want to take Gandalf, I think the whole paradigm of the list shifts when fielding him and that will definitely take some getting used to.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Mik:</b> The Shire. The doom and gloom. The army that has caused me more pain than any other and one that has given me my greatest defeat, which I remember to this day. Back in 2007, at my first UKGT I was playing on Table 1 in Round 7, facing a then-3-time-GT-Champion, the legendary Vesa Nenye. The tournament structure was 700 points Good vs Evil. Number of players was over 120. It was the largest SBG tournament held to date. With 2 rounds to go I was 2nd and with a chance of moving into 1st if I win this game. The scenario was “Pitched Battle” – 12” setup from the board edge with a single objective: Reduce your opponent to 25% of starting numbers before he/she does that to you. No other objectives (there were no VPs, no Oaths, nothing else, just a win or a loss, on a scale of Major/Minor in the event of the winner getting broken during the game). My Good Force was a pure Minas Tirith army led by Boromir and Faramir, with enough bows to wreck any Evil force at the time. I was confident in beating Vesa’s Moria led by 3 Spider Queens in this scenario. My Evil Force was an Easterling & Harad alliance led by Suladan and Khamul on Fell Beast – to this moment undefeated in the tournament. His Good Force… The Shire led by Gandalf. Not just any Shire… Gandalf, 12 Dunedain and as many Hobbits as points would allow – ie. About 60 of them. The only limitations on army building at the time was a maximum of 75 models, up to 33% of Warriors with bows and 700 points. There was also an alliance chart not dissimilar to the one in the newest edition. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The dice gods pitched my mid-30 model Easterling/Haradrim Force to play against a Hobbit Horde with some 30 bow shots per turn. I was thrashed so badly, I considered quitting and never playing again (I was 17 years old, so it was quite a dramatic loss for me back then...)! I remember that a young teenager I would later meet named Tom Moore was sitting next to Vesa on table 2 and his face expression really made it clear that even he felt my pain. 3 years later he won the GT, a year after that, I did. The Shire taught me for the first time what it meant to hit the rock bottom (they quite literally threw rocks at me!) and I don’t remember EVER being defeated to such extent. I believe I killed approximately 3 hobbits and lost my entire army. I wish I could say I made a mistake by not taking The Shadow Lord… but The Shadow Lord didn’t get released for another year, and even with SL on every table, The Shire proceeded to win the next year's GT anyway! :D </div>
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<br /></div>
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Anyway, it’s now been nearly 12 years since that happened and here, I am considering playing The Shire as one of my next armies – possibly even at the 1000 points Throne of Skulls in December if I manage to paint it on time. The army has experienced some drastic changes from the last edition. Dunedain are back as Heroes of the Shire, albeit Minor ones - they were an essential part of the Shire army between 2007 and 2011, up until The Hobbit edition of the rules removed them from that list. They’re something that I felt the army really needed to regain its former glory, as Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin never really felt like much of an elite fighting force - although they have been boosted in this edition. Gandalf being able to lead 15 Hobbits is also a welcome addition. Those changes have come at a cost however, as the Hobbits have risen in points by 33% for Militia and 25% for Archers and Sheriffs. This sounds fair to me. </div>
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<br /></div>
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It's quite clear that there are two ways to build Hobbit armies now – the Frodo force and the Gandalf force. Sadly the new rules do not allow the Hobbit Boys to be present in an army with Gandalf, so by default we have to pick who we like more and what we want to achieve out of the Hobbit list. As you'll see, David and I have differing opinions on this, so I think it's worth considering both options before dismissing either - perhaps the larger numbers of the Frodo list are your preferred style, or perhaps you like a Wizard to lead your force instead. Both types naturally become better or worse in certain scenarios, but the main idea behind the army is the same - outnumber, outshoot and hopefully outfight. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The Army Bonus is cool for small points, but as you'll see for anything larger than 500 I'd be keen to look for allies, and so I think it's not the sort of bonus we should really be bothered about losing. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
David’s Lists:</h4>
<h4>
LIST 1: 500 Points of The Shire</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Merry on a Pony, with a Shield - LEADER<br />
15 Battlin Brandybucks<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Pippin on a Pony, with a Shield<br />
9 Hobbit Militia<br />
6 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Frodo on a Pony<br />
5 Hobbit Militia<br />
7 Hobbit Archers<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Paladin<br />
7 Hobbit Archers<br />
5 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 5:</b><br />
Fatty Bolger<br />
6 Hobbit Archers<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 500 points, 6 might, 65 models, 20 bows</b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
When using a pure Shire army in smaller points it's important to make sure you outnumber your opponent by a large margin. 65 models and 20 short bow shots is nothing to sniff at in any case, let alone at 500 points when most armies are fielding close to half that number. Using Frodo's pony to increase the size of his Banner bubble is crucial here to give the army its best chance in combat, ideally after a few rounds of bow shots and thrown stones to thin out the enemy ranks a little.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Against blinding light armies or superior shooting forces you have to play the objectives with your numbers as many armies will outrange your short bows! Essentially you want to force your opponent to come to you rather than be able to sit back and shoot at you comfortably. This army is very weak in certain scenarios (think contest of champions) but that's a trade-off that will come to any pure Shire army - strong advantages in some scenarios and crippling disadvantages in others.</div>
<h4>
LIST 2:</h4>
<b>Warband 1: 750 Points of The Shire</b><br />
Gandalf on Gandalf's Cart - LEADER<br />
15 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Bandobras Took<br />
15 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Dunedain with a Spear<br />
3 Hobbit Archers<br />
1 Hobbit Archer/War horn<br />
2 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Dunedain with a Spear<br />
6 Hobbit Archers<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 5:</b><br />
Dunedain with a Spear<br />
6 Hobbit Archers<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 6:</b><br />
Dunedain with a Spear<br />
6 Hobbit Archers<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 7:</b><br />
Dunedain with a Spear<br />
6 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 8:</b><br />
Dunedain<br />
6 Hobbit Shirriffs<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 750 points, 11 might, 74 models, 28 bows</b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This second, larger list makes use of the 'other side' of Shire armies: No Merry, Pippin or Frodo. Instead using Bandobras (since he makes your army lose its army bonus, but only if used with named Hobbit heroes), Gandalf the Grey, and the Dunedain that are given minor hero status in the army list. </div>
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<br /></div>
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This army packs a large amount of Might due to the 6 Dunedain and has the Heroic Accuracies to back up its impressive 22 short bow and 6 bow shots - as well as Blinding Light in the form of Gandalf. I would expect this army to win almost any shooting war because of this, and I would prioritise ridding yourself of any pesky horses any scary opposing Heroes might be packing as accomplishing this will greatly reduce the number of hobbits per turn the Glorfindels and Boromirs of this world can kill. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Taking Gandalf on cart increases the number of models he can guard with his Blinding Light, while still providing the mobility he needs to flexibly perform his duties as a caster. Either Gandalf or Bandobras can be the leader is this army, but I thought that since the requirement of keeping your general safe is a feature in many scenarios, Gandalf made the most sense as he will typically be surrounded by dozens of angry hobbits! </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Realistically I don't recommend taking pure shire at the larger point levels as pure numbers advantage begins to wane in power when you really push the points up and lacking any real punch in their Heroes holds the Shire back significantly - It certainly is an interesting concept, however.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mik’s Lists:</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>LIST 3: 500 Points of The Shire</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Gandalf the Gray on a Horse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Hobbit Sheriffs</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Hobbit Archers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Hobbit Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with a Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Sheriffs</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Archers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with a Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Sheriffs</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Archers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with a Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Sheriffs</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Archers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 5:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with a Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Hobbit Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Hobbit Sheriff</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Hobbit Archers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 6:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with a Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Hobbit Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Hobbit Archer</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Or in other words…</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Gandalf on Horse </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Dunedain with Spears </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
15 Militia</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
12 Sheriffs</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
14 Archers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
All split into whatever warbands you like to split them into!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 47 models, 8 Might, 19 Bows, 1 Wizard</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The strengths of this army are obvious – shoot-em/surround-em/smash-em. 8 Might is a lot and although the army is very slow and quite weak in combat, the numbers and the One-and-a-half-handed weapons of the Sheriffs can be put into very good use. 19 Bows and Blinding Light ensure that we'll be winning every shooting war and we should be outnumbering most of our opponents (with the exception of Moria and the likes) by about 15-20 models - or 20-30 by the time the combat starts in scenarios that allow us to spend a lot of time shooting. Any scenarios that do not start the game within charging range on turn 1 will be difficult for opponents to win. Any scenarios that do, will require a good idea of how to bring together all the numbers into combat, as skilled opponents can exploit the low defence of this army with ease if our combat movement is messed up. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
A correctly played Wizard can go a long way, especially at low points, where it is difficult to shut the Wizard down. With Sorcerous Blast being nerfed in this edition however, Gandalf's role has diminished, but he is still capable of easily stopping enemy heroes from shredding our lines and can take out banners and other valuable targets with ease (especially when backed by all the Heroic Accuracies of the 19 bows). </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 4 – 800 Points</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Well… there’s no list here...</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I haven’t figured it out yet and I don’t think I’m even close to it, so I won’t post a list, instead I’ll share my thinking and let you figure it out. The 500 points list above had 47 models, which is more than most 800 points lists have, so the question really is how many more do we want, or if we want any more at all and if we go with some funky allies instead. The options are many and the Army Bonus is not brilliant, so here’s some food for thought:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Option 1: Immovable Object</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
You could add 300 points worth of Dunedain (with Bandobras) and Hobbits. Counting at as 26 for a Dunedain and 24 for a mix of Militia/Sheriff/Archers, you’re looking at about 80 models in 800 points and around 35 bow shots with insane Might store. The only problem is that you’ll never be able to move all those models in a timely manner and will end up losing games due to running out of time or failing to get to the objective on time – sad! :D You might crush your friend at home in a 5h battle, but you'll struggle to do much at a tournament with 2h per game. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Option 2: Big Heroes</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
You could bring Aragorn and Boromir, or perhaps Twins and Glorfindel. If you were to add these to the force, you’d end up with about 50 models, 15+ Might, 2 or 3 very strong killers, a very good hero-stopper and a large number of bows. Another option here could be playing with Eagles, though whether they are better than the above is questionable due to lack of Might. Either way you are creating a force that is a sort of a merger between an all-hero army and a horde. A hybrid that in theory can be extremely effective if played correctly. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Option 3: Cavalry, Spears & Elites</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
You could also ally in the likes of Rohan, Elven or Gondorian cavalry, or perhaps bring a contingent of 20 Guards of the Fountain Court, making your army not only huge, but also quite durable. You still have Gandalf and a lot of Might. You could also go with something like Ghan-Buri-Ghan and 15 Woses (total 200 points for an extra amount of range weapons, some wounding bonuses and a lot of Spears).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I think there’s a lot to think about in a Hobbit force at larger points. </div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>David’s Thoughts on Allies:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><i>(Mik's are above)</i></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><i><br /></i></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>David:</b> As I mentioned earlier the Shire used to be an army that relied almost entirely on allies to be competitive, and while that may still be true they did get access to one historic alliance: The Rangers. Depending on the points level I would consider adding some men to my army to add killing power in combat. In a 500-600 point list for example I think taking Halbarad with the Banner of Arwen evenstar to give your hobbit horde a 6" bubble of Fearless and Banner rerolls would be a smart choice, and I think once you get to 700+ points adding in Strider on a horse would be a great choice - not only do you get a big combat Hero in there, but you also get access to great utility from Mighty Hero Special Rule. Whether marching every turn to get your slow hobbits to where they need to be, or by calling free Heroic Combats to thin out enemy numbers, or by charging scary monster and calling Heroic Strike - the possibilities are endless when you have access to every Heroic Action! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Of course, the hobbit army bonus isn't so fantastic that taking a convenient alliance would break the army, hobbits have been allying successfully with elves for a long time and there's no reason to think that choice is somehow less viable now. Allying with Lothlorien or Rivendell is potentially very powerful: giving your shooting a strength 3 edge from Elf bows and your combat a big edge with Fight 5 spear supports - it is an alliance that makes sense no matter which way you look at it and losing out on woodland creature on your hobbits would be worth the price for that flexibility in my opinion.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Summary</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although the generic Hobbits have gone up in points, the army has now returned to its original form where it no longer has a limit of models it can take based on the number of heroes that can lead Warbands. To my big surprise, the Scouring of Stirlingshire tournament at 800 points featured 0 Shire armies, but the upcoming WAR tournament in Reading at 500 points is set to feature 5 forces of The Shire. I’d be keen to see how they perform and whether the once-mighty-horde is able to take on the new metagame and be crowned kings, as they were a decade ago. </div>
<br />
Good Luck!<br />
BlackMist & David<br />
<br />Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-30116660552522051462018-10-26T07:08:00.000+01:002020-06-18T22:23:19.960+01:00Fog of War, Part 10: Kingdom of Khazad-Dum / Moria<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 10: Kingdom of Khazad-Dum / Moria</span></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Welcome back to Fog of War! This time I am joined by ETC Team England & 2017 Team World Champion (The Wanderers in the Wild), as well as the winner of a recent London Dark Sphere tournament, Callum Edens. Together we take a look at the finest sprinters in the land – The Dwarves!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Callum:</b> When I was asked to do a faction review I expressed my intentions to do a write up for Durin’s Folk. I have easily found them the most challenging and tactical faction to play within SBG. You may understand their basics but to master their underlying potential can take years of practice. When I first started playing Dwarves they were always considered an underdog faction which would never be seen on top tables. I set out to dispel this myth and give the Sons of Durin the justice and respect they deserved. There is much to say about the stubbornness of the Dwarves…..</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>"Since they were to come in the days of the power of Melkor, Aulë made the dwarves strong to endure. Therefore they are stone-hard, stubborn, fast in friendship and in enmity, and they suffer toil and hunger and hurt of body more hardily than all other speaking peoples; and they live long, far beyond the span of Men, yet not forever."</i> (Tolkien.,Silmarillion)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Kingdom of Khazad-Dum as they are now called encompasses both the forces of Khazud-Dum and Moria. With the new edition, the list has been split and there are even more challenges to make a Dwarven list now than ever before. However, it is much more themed and in my opinion both much more enjoyable to play and more rewarding to win with! The strength of the Dwarves comes mainly from their high Defence, usually as high as 7. The jewel in the crown for any dwarven forces however is having some of the best elite troops in the game - Khazad Guard and Iron Guard! Having Strength 4 in any troop choice in the Forces of Good is rare and incredibly powerful. Bodyguard makes your Khazads auto-pass Courage Tests, which is invaluable when fighting Terror causing foes or standing by your Lord to the last man to try and swing a game in the dying turns. The Dwarf Heroes also give you a great combination of high Defense, Courage and Fight Value. Some of the weaknesses however include lack of cavalry, bow superiority and their universal 5-inch movement. Don’t let this fool you however, as the “Dwarves are very dangerous over short distance”.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik: </b>In my 14-year playing career, Dwarves are the only army I never used at a major tournament, and thus never achieved any tournament success with. They are also the army that my old friend Louis would use all the time against me in the first 3 or 4 years of my SBG adventure and consistently destroy me every time we played. I used to loathe playing against the Dwarves because of their high Defence, as I could never find a way to kill them. I have often fielded a contingent of Khazad Guard led by Floi and back in the days of Legions of Middle-earth (2007-2011) I always feared Khazad Guards supported by Wood Elf Spearmen. Through writing this series I’ve had to ponder about armies I might not always be familiar with and it’s been a fun and rewarding experience :)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
My favourite Dwarf units are Vault Wardens and King’s Champion. The latter is a very interesting character in that the 2 Heralds effectively cost around 45 points each (25 for banner and 20 for their hero-with-2-Fate profile), making the Champion himself *only* 50 points – a total bargain for Fight 5, Strength 5, Defence 7, 3 Attacks, with Heroic Strike and a Defence bonus when in contact with the Heralds. Naturally you won’t ever need more than 2 banners in a game, so getting a 2nd Champion will never provide as good a return on your investment as the first one.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Vault Warden Teams are peculiar in that a line of them is almost unbreakable, but if flanked or surrounded, they fall apart as if they were badly overpriced Orcs, so it’s worth having 1 or 2 in the middle of a line and protect flanks with other units. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Between 2001 and 2011, Khazad Guard was the most powerful infantry unit in the game, especially in the era when all Grand Tournaments were played in Good vs Evil, making their Fight 4 / Strength 4 / Defence 7 absolutely unstoppable for the forces of Evil. Although they haven’t changed at all, everything else has changed, so they lost a lot of their strength in the recent 2 rule sets. I’m still keen to see if they can be feared the way they once were, especially now with their ability to be upgraded to have the Burly special rule. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The biggest downside of pure Dwarf armies is the cost of individual units. They may be incredibly durable, but paying 11, 13 or 15 points per model is a lot when their Heroes are also on the expensive side and the army is unable to provide anything that moves more than 5” without adding allies.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Callum's Lists:</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 1: 600 Points of Khazad-Dum</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Durin, King of Khazad-Dum</div>
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15 Khazad Guards with Hearthguard Upgrade. </div>
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3 Iron Guards</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 2</b></div>
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Mardin</div>
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10 Dwarf Warriors with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dwarf Warrior with a Banner. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 31 Models. 6 might </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This list represents the might of a Dwarven Vanguard. You can now utilize the new Heroic Tier before taking too many costly Heroes to maximise your numbers and increase Break Point. Within the list you have mostly Defence 7, meaning that most of the enemy Heroes and Warriors will require 6s to wound you. Your Khazad Guards all now have Burly for an addition 2 points, which I feel is well worth it. Strength 4 and always going two handed with no penalty will now chew through most armour with ease. Not forgetting you will re-roll 1s to wound with your new Army Bonus!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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The tricks of playing this list is to get stuck in as quick as possible, but always remember your objectives and plan 2 moves ahead. Utilize the 2-Attack troops, Throwing weapons and Might points to kill and call Heroic Combats to give you extra movement and take out strategic pieces in your opponent’s battle line or storm objectives. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 2 - 750 Points of Moria</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Balin King of Moria </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
16 Khazad Guard </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Iron guard </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2 </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Gimli </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8 Dwarf Warriors with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4 Dwarf Warriors with Bows </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3 </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Floi </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4 Dwarf Warriors with Bows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4 Dwarf Warriors with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dwarf Warrior with a Shield and a Banner</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4 </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dwarf Ballista </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 750 Points 43 models, 8 Bows & a Ballista</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This list at a higher points level can give you a little more of everything. You have a reasonable amount of Strength 3 bows and a Ballista to try and force your opponent to engage you. Your vanguard remains strong with lots of Defense 7 and Strength 4 troops. You also have 3 very different types of Heroes. Balin and Gimli have always been my favourite Heroes for the Dwarves and although Balin has taken a bit of a pounding in the new rules, he is still one of the cheapest Heroes of Legend in the game. He also lets you play a tactical game with his special rule of re-rolling Priority which can easily win you a game in certain situations. Gimli remains a wrecking machine as he used to be before and a good all-round combat Hero. Floi is a dark horse and can shut down any nasty Hero with his Special Rule (My favorite is turning off the Undying and then inflicting a single wound to see him flee back into the darkness). The common trait with me is to try and take a Banner in any list with the Dwarves. Having a high Defense Banner is great. Additionally, it counts for VPs in many scenarios and can maximize the potential of you battle line winning combats and doing what they do best.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mik's Lists:</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 3: 600 Points of Khazad-Dum</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
King’s Champion with 2 Heralds</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Iron Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Dwarf Warriors with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dwarf Captain with a Shield </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Iron Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Dwarf Warriors with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dwarf Captain with a Shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
10 Dwarf Rangers with Dwarven Longbows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 35 Models, 6 Might, 10 Bows, 2 Banners</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This list capitalises on the 2 Heralds with Banners, a very powerful Leader and 10 Banner-backed Iron Guards. The guards themselves are capable of cutting through pretty much every enemy in the game, but as there’s only 10 of them, the job of the Dwarves with Shields will be even more important. Shielding is the best ‘Special Strike’ in the game, in a sense that it allows us to tie up 2 or more enemies, beat them in combat, preventing them from killing our models, whilst allowing our more powerful units to cause damage unopposed. A common strategy with a Dwarf army such as this would be to charge the Iron Guards into 1v1 combats (or 1v2 due to Spear Support), back them up with a Banner, so that they roll 3 dice to win combat and ensure they kill their enemies. At the same time, the Shield wielding Dwarves will charge into 1v1s or 1v2s and use Shielding (hopefully still within Banner range to also roll 3 dice) to either win combats and survive or lose combats and still very likely survive due to their high Defence.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Dwarf Rangers have been chosen above Dwarf Warriors with Bows. It’s a borderline decision, as against some armies you will prefer 24” Strength 2 bows and against others you will prefer 18” Strength 3 bows. It’s a debate that’s existed since the dawn of time. I'm on the Rangers side also because of the Mountain Dweller Special Rule, but I wouldn't blame you for taking Warriors with Bows as Defence 6 is quite valuable.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 4: 800</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Durin, King of Khazad-Dum</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4 Vault Warden Teams</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Iron Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Dwarf with a Shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
King’s Champion with 2 Heralds</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4 Vault Warden Teams</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Iron Guard</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dwarf with a Shield</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mardin</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
12 Dwarf Rangers with Dwarven Longbows</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 800 Points, 8 Might, 41 Models, 12 Bows, 2 Banners</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you’re not playing Durin at a high points level, then you’re probably not playing Dwarves of Khazad-Dum. 4 dice to win combat (5 with a Banner nearby), Fight 6 with Heroic Strike, wounding everything at ease thanks to his Axe and one of the highest Defence levels in the game (only Sauron and fortifications are harder to damage!) mean that even if everything goes against you, the chances of your Army Leader actually dying are very slim. He’s Fearless too, so he’s not running away.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
King’s Champion joins Durin in high killing potential, Mardin is excellent against Monsters (He Wounds a Cave Troll on 3+!) and 8 Vault Warden teams ensure that the front line is very difficult to break. The key to winning with this army will be in ensuring that the Vault Wardens are not surrounded. As long as you can maintain a frontal fighting line and not get surrounded, you should be beating most enemies. The Iron Guards and Rangers must protect the flanks at all cost. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b>Allies</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Callum:</b> With the Dwarves you are not spoilt for choice as by nature they are loners who endure winter and wars by themselves. With this in mind you have to make some difficult decisions. Personally the best allies for Dwarves would be a higher Fighting troop with spears to back up your vangaurd and make them unstoppable. The logical choice for me would mean allying Rivendell or Lothlorien. You would however lose Army Bonuses in both lists, but in all fairness this can be ok if you know your list can perform without these as Dwarves have no Historical Allies. Moria are impossible allies with everyone, so an even harder choice would have to be made. As is always the case go out and practice a few lists and forge your own decision on game winning combinations but always keep the theme and enjoyment at the heart of your force! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik: </b>Khazad-Dum’s Army Bonus is something worth keeping in my opinion. Most of the Dwarf armies will be full of Strength 4 troops, wounding majority of enemies on 5+, so re-rolling 1s to wound is going to be very powerful. Sadly there are 0 Historical Allies, so if we go into alliance, I think it doesn’t really matter if we pick Impossible or Convenient ones, as the allies will be there only to patch up some of the weaknesses of a Khazad-Dum army, rather than actually properly fight side-by-side with the Dwarves. The big weaknesses in my mind are:<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Movement – We should try to look into ways of getting cavalry – Rivendell, Minas Tirith, Rohan, Lothlorien?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Numbers & Spears – Arnor helps with this by providing numbers and extra bows with Hobbits, whilst also bringing Spear Support with the Warriors of Arnor.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Summary</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In all, I think Khazad-Dum and Moria have potential in the new edition, but their success will depend largely on the correct configuration of elites and basic troops, as well as the right number of allies we look for – but that’s generally what the success of every army depends on. In the case of the Dwarves I would favour them in higher points games, as their individual troops and heroes are a large investment points-wise and their lack of spears requires the players to adapt some more unusual strategies – perhaps their biggest strength is the fact that your opponents won't be used to fighting such a durable force.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good Luck!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
BlackMist & Callum</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-69789547712225769102018-10-04T13:29:00.001+01:002020-06-18T22:23:50.147+01:00Fog of War, Part 9: The Rangers<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmy2DxAvAc2KYlv0Ma3eqom_V429D_jpGuFEMSUiyYVwXRM4ts5qMinyVbRnGMbRFr2DA4RjtPy35QO6V8R8Hi7SmCUm28NuHoSIbVBkGUqJToKsej7jByW_ls_yuJhwaYL_7tr4fZCKw7/s1600/The+Rangers.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="602" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmy2DxAvAc2KYlv0Ma3eqom_V429D_jpGuFEMSUiyYVwXRM4ts5qMinyVbRnGMbRFr2DA4RjtPy35QO6V8R8Hi7SmCUm28NuHoSIbVBkGUqJToKsej7jByW_ls_yuJhwaYL_7tr4fZCKw7/s320/The+Rangers.png" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 9: The Rangers</span></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Few armies have changed between the Hobbit and the Middle-earth editions of the rules as much as The Rangers (or formerly The Grey Company). For this reason, I think it’s a good idea to look at them from scratch as an army sort-of-new and sort-of-old. This time I am joined by my first guest from over The Pond – the Captain of Team USA, winner of 2 Adepticon tournaments, this year’s Ardacon 5th place finisher and the TO behind the NOVA Open in DC, Devin Moreno. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Devin</b>: Having been rightfully separated from Arnor and turned into their own faction, the Rangers of the North have received a major boost in power in this new era of Middle-earth SBG. From a first glance, a player might actually feel they got worse: The Rangers of the North cost 5 points more, lost a point of courage, lost access to Heroic Strike, and their mounts are now 10 points instead of 6. It’s not like anyone thought they were under-costed before; so why do I think they got better? It’s because the Army Bonus turns this army into the elite rangers they were always supposed to be! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Two attacks, the option to deploy together, being able to Stand Fast! through major characters, and gaining Woodland Creature have turned this faction into an absolute powerhouse. Add in the Banner of Arwen Evenstar and spears, and now you get four dice to win the fight and three dice at strength 4 to kill the enemy. Combine this with proper use of Heroic Combats to chain-link fights (remember that models can’t move again after the second Heroic Combat they participate in but they can still help their friends move), and you can destroy a large portion of an opposing army in a single round of Combat. Use Aragorn to manage all your other necessary Heroics and now you can keep the Might on your Rangers for exactly what you need it for. And don’t forget that the new game of SBG is heavily focused around iconic characters to boost their armies, so take advantage of all the Might you have to assassinate them at a distance, ensuring you never need more than a 5 to wound. Easy way to remove a bonus from the enemy army. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik</b>: Rangers or Grey Company has always been a funny force for me. What first started with 40+ bowmen at 700 points some 10 years ago during the Legions of Middle-earth era, then turned into 25-35 bows in the Hobbit era and now drops to under 20 bows and far better fighting skills in the Middle-earth edition. I think it’s a change for good and just like Devin, I think there is a lot the new force has going for it, but it requires a distinctly different playstyle than the forces a lot of players may be used to. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I have to admit, when I first looked at The Rangers, I thought the GW team have made a big mistake and made it unplayable, but the more I think about this army, the more I think that it isn't necessarily either better or worse than the old one, it's simply different and this is a good change. As mentioned above, the 2 Attacks in combination with spears and the Banner of Arwen Evenstar make them incredibly powerful as a fighting force. 2 Attacks + Spear + Banner at Fight Value 4 and Strength 4 is effectively stronger than an Uruk-Hai Phalanx, especially with all the Might and Woodland Creature. The numbers are the weak side of the army, but with a lot of shooting and a single correctly executed chain of Heroic Combats, they can be very deadly.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Devin’s Lists</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 1: 600 Points</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Arathorn</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Dunedain with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Ranger of the North with spear: 31pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Halbarad on horse with Banner of Arwen Evenstar: 120pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Dunedain with spears: 130pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Ranger of the North with spear: 31pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Ranger of the North on Horse with spear: 41pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Ranger of the North on Horse: 41pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 599 Points, 20 Might, 16 Models, 16 Bows</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Due to the cost of the Rangers, I decided to drop Aragorn to ensure that I have the numbers I need to play the scenarios. Though I must admit that this can be also fixed by allying, but I’ll get into that in a bit. Having only 16 models at 600 points may seem daunting but remember that this army can dismantle a flank of an opponent very quickly. I kept Halbarad in because I feel the Banner is essential. Not only is losing fights potentially disastrous for you (which his Banner helps prevent), but being Fearless is critical to making the army work against all opponents. Arathorn was added for more access to Heroic Strike. I used Dunedain instead of the armoured Rangers to save the 50pts combined that the armour would cost. This makes them weak to strength 2 bows, but I felt the numbers were necessary. I selected two mounted Rangers by themselves which allows me to out-deploy my opponent in most missions. Also despite losing the bonus Attacks while mounted, I still feel that having a few mounted Rangers is essential for missions like Reconnoitre, Capture and Control, Storm the Camp, etc. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 2: 800 Points</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Aragorn on Horse with Armour and Bow: 180pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
8 Rangers of the North with spear: 248pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Halbarad with Banner of Arwen Evenstar: 110pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Rangers of the North with Spear: 155pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with spear: 26pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Ranger of the North on Horse with spear: 41pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Ranger of the North on Horse: 40pts</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 800 Points, 18 Models, 18 Bows, 22* Might.</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is another pure Rangers of the North list without using allies to boost some key weaknesses. I chose not to mount Halbarad and not to take Anduril in favour of adding more rangers. I also upgraded to Rangers of the North from Dunedain since Strength 2 bows and Strength 4 Warriors will be in abundance at this point level. This list relies heavily on Aragorn to shift the army and make sure that they hit the enemy only where I choose. With all the Heroic Actions in the game at your disposal, you can assassinate leaders at a distance, move faster in missions that require speed, constantly challenge Cavalry armies for the charge, and regularly re-position your small force to attack only portions of the enemy. This part about re-positioning is key because you will certainly be one of the smaller armies out there at 800 points. Attacking only portions of the opponent’s army with your entire army is going to be the best way to take down a large army with minimal losses. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mik’s Lists</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 3: 500 Points</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Halbarad with Banner of Arwen Evenstar</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
12 Dunedain with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Dunedain with Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 498 Points, 18 Might, 16 Models, 16 Bows</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At 500 Points I am expecting to face armies between 2 and 3 warbands in size, so between 25 and 35 models on average. In fact, looking back at the previous 8 articles, that’s been roughly what the 500 points lists have had. Given that we have 16 bows and a very strong fighting line, I wouldn’t be too worried using this in competitive matches. By the time combat starts we will hopefully have shot down several enemies and we are very strong in combat against everything except Elves, as their high Fight Value causes a problem. Having 4 Warbands means we can drop 3 of them by the time our opponent deploys their entire army, so we’re always in a good position at the start of the game. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 4: 800 Points</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Aragorn with Armour, Anduril and a Bow</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
10 Dunedain with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
King of the Dead</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
13 Warriors of the Dead</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Riders of the Dead</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 800 Points, 27 Models, 14* Might, 11 Bows. </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I’m not convinced Anduril is necessary, but thematically it makes sense to have it. It’s not an army I would traditionally consider to be very competitive, but 27 models are not terrible at 800 points, especially when all of them either cause Terror or have Might and 2 or more Attacks. King of the Dead is a decent fighter in the Middle-earth edition of the rules and is now capable of posing serious threat to a lot of enemy heroes. Dunedain can either support the Dead, or fight by themselves in a formation 5x2 formation that has 3 Attacks at the front and 2 Might each to support it, in addition to Aragorn. A lot of the game will depend on how well you’re able to execute your Heroics and how you’re able to position yourself into most advantageous situations. Naturally, the weaknesses are obvious – you’ll always be outnumbered and hopefully you won’t have to face Blinding Light or Pall of Night, as they will really make your Archers unable to do the necessary damage at long range. It’s definitely a challenging list to play, but I think if played well, it could be strong. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Allies</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Devin: </b>The Ranger of the North army bonus is way too crucial to ever risk giving it up. Without it, the Rangers are overpriced and only the Dunedain would be useful for a few casual one-drops for deployment. Therefore in my mind, only the Shire and the Dead of Dunharrow would be viable allies for this list as they are Historical Allies. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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The Shire is a great ally since they can easily boost the numbers of your army with minimal cost. Only 34pts gets you Fatty Bolger and 6 Hobbits which brings your break limit up by 3.5. Adding in larger groups of hobbits allows you to get more bow shots and gives the rangers some flank support so that they can deal with sections of an army for longer periods of time. The only problem here is that the Hobbits will anchor you with a 4” speed; so Aragorn will be essential to help speed them up. Alternatively you can have them do what hobbits do best and hide them the entire game if you only have a handful to raise your break limit. A final thought on the Shire is that it also gives access to Gandalf the Grey, whom might be an interesting replacement for one of your larger heroes. Blinding Light and other magical spells can prove quite useful; and if you drop Halbarad you can always just take a Hobbit Horn to boost the courage of your Rangers. </div>
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The Dead of Dunharrow are a tricky ally since they will compete with your army for the precious points you need for the Rangers. Allying will require The King of the Dead to be chosen, whom is already expensive as is. Not to mention the Men of the Dead aren’t cheap either. Adding too many would almost feel like a Dunharrow list with Rangers allied in. However if you do have the points for larger games, then a small Warband of the King of the Dead and 7 Men of the Dead with shields will replace 7 Rangers of the North quite nicely, which will provide a protective wall for your rangers with Defense 8 and Terror with Harbinger of Evil. You can even replace the Mounted Rangers with some Riders of the Dead in that warband to keep the mobility you need. And with Aragorn in the list, you may hardly notice the drop in Might. </div>
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<b>Mik:</b> I posted an 800 points list with allied Army of the Dead, but I’m not convinced whether this is an entirely feasible alliance even at that points level. Perhaps 1000 would be more appropriate, as we’d be able to get another 14 or 15 extra models to really make it look like an army. </div>
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The Shire is definitely something worth looking into as well, but as The Shire already has access to Dunedain, I feel like we’d only be adding some Rangers of the North on horses or Halbarad for his banner. I think The Shire alliance would make the list into something entirely different than The Rangers set out to be in the first place, as we’d probably want to make it into a horde sort of army. In conclusion I think The Rangers are best left to wander on their own, like the dangerous folk they are. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Summary</h4>
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The new Rangers/Grey Company list leaves me with one thought on my mind: This is definitely not a ‘no-brainer, stand back and roll dice’ sort of army that some of the Grey Company lists have been in the past. The force has definitive strengths in the increased number of attacks, all the Might and all the bows, but at the same time it has very obvious weaknesses in the low numbers, Blinding Light/Pall of Night and certain scenarios where it will struggle against certain armies. It will require unconventional tactics, which once learned, will give you as a player even greater advantage in the game than if you were to be using a conventional force, because most of your opponents will not be used to playing against The Rangers. It's kind of like playing against All-Hero or The Flying Circus - the person using them is used to playing against all-comers, but most players don't spend their practice time playing against All-Hero and Flying Circus, so you have a natural advantage through their lack of practice. </div>
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I would define The Rangers as a ‘high variance’ army – you will either do very well under the right circumstances, or you will do very very badly under wrong circumstances. Either way, the games will be very interesting and challenging for both sides, and I think that’s ultimately what all of us want!</div>
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Good Luck!</div>
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BlackMist & Devin</div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-75800618087866877682018-10-01T11:59:00.003+01:002020-07-10T14:26:31.689+01:00Fog of War, Part 8: Angmar<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI-UBjIxllfJXQlodb0d2jdXmDHUx0B4aNyGdpnOtaH4Q62cO87NY2IWpd9v67aW3sS2_O4Udmq3eEvezhDlvGiSs4P0FNKDc_HlQrNaENAuL3JYn8QondQ5_U_PXOQ6YyAFu8nkGxnBy9/s1600/Barrow+Wights+-+Mik.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="867" data-original-width="1600" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI-UBjIxllfJXQlodb0d2jdXmDHUx0B4aNyGdpnOtaH4Q62cO87NY2IWpd9v67aW3sS2_O4Udmq3eEvezhDlvGiSs4P0FNKDc_HlQrNaENAuL3JYn8QondQ5_U_PXOQ6YyAFu8nkGxnBy9/s400/Barrow+Wights+-+Mik.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Part 8: Angmar</span></h4>
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Having visited some of the game’s most popular armies, it is time now for something more unusual. Angmar is a faction that has not seen major tournament play in the past, but one that with the new rules may just become a mainstay on the top tables. This time I am joined by the winner of the 2017 UK Grand Tournament and the mastermind behind the organisation of the European Team Championships (ETC), Dave Nolan.</div>
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<b>Dave</b>: Angmar has always fascinated me because historically, gaming wise, it has struggled to achieve top table placement. It embodies the core of all spirit evil of Middle-earth in my mind and coming from a Warhammer fantasy background my favourite Army was The Undead. The large amount of heroes backed by hordes or orcs always seemed slightly unbalanced as I struggled to find a competitive list. The core piece of most Angmar armies, the Shade, seemed to me to be the major weakness in its composition as it “bubbled” the army too much.</div>
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Under the new rules set and awesome 3”radius Terror army bonus, new exciting and tactical lists crept from dark places and enveloped my mind.</div>
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<b>Witch king.</b></div>
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His hidden powers are slowly coming to the fore in this army. As magic is changing between the last and the new edition, he is becoming more powerful in my estimation. The Crown of Morgul and a Fell beast along with his wealth of Heroic Actions makes him a combat fiend. Moving from a Hero of Valour to a hero of Legend allows that inclusion of horde which is a key strength of Angmar and one that should not readily be dismissed.</div>
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<b>The Tainted.</b></div>
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A very rare inclusion in any lists of the last rules set, the Tainted now gets great attention in larger point armies. I include him here as he is pivotable in my army composition over the last remaining wraith the Dwimmerlaik due to his might allowance. His Seeping Decay is like a cheeky arrow shot finding its mark on a 6 but in combat. Pray to the dice gods because when it happens it can be an annoyance to any opponent. His Miasmatic Presence is potentially a late game finisher or has potential at key moments if predicted at the right time.</div>
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<b>Barrow Wight.</b></div>
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The captains of my army lists. A combination of Special Rules and Magic. These are not the usual Might pools of a normal Captain but their symbiotic relationship to their troops and Wraith leaders generate the most important component of the army - Covering a 3" radius Terror bubble per Wight, a number of Wights can potentially affect a vast area on the table. </div>
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<b>Other Heroes</b></div>
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Many great and powerful heroes are available but potentially change the dynamic and strength of my lists. You may be keen to see the exclusion of the Shade and as some tournaments encourage playing more Good vs Evil, the ability of the humble Spectre is retreating.</div>
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<b>Mik</b>: Angmar is something that I've been interested in for years, but never got round to using. Gulavhar is one of my favourite Monsters in the game, not just because of how cool he is, but his Special Rules of life regeneration are very unique and pose a challenge to the opposition. Sadly Gulavhar was quite underpowered in the previous edition of the rules, but having gained the Monstrous Charge rule, we should be able to see him played more often. That and the decrease in the number of Heroes with Heroic Strike should allow him to quickly and easily pick off valuable targets in enemy armies. Hero of Valour status also means we can now afford to spend the points and still have access to 15 Warriors.</div>
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The other addition in the new rules is the update to The Tainted's profile. In my humble opinion, he may just be the single most powerful model in the game right now and only time will tell whether he will dominate top tables or not, as regardless of how good any model is, they require the right army to support them. His Miasmatic Presence rule is powerful beyond anything I've ever seen in this game. For 1 point of Will you can virtually cancel Heroic Moves and Stand Fast! of your opponent if and when you need to, so keeping The Tainted in the right position will often be backbreaking for whoever you are facing. </div>
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The Shade is always worth giving a special mention to, as his ability effectively turns your lowly Orcs into Fight 11 Warriors (whereas we would normally lose on a Duel draw against higher Fight enemies, our opponent receives -1 to their roll, letting us win, effectively turning our Fight Value to infinite or their to 0. In the rare circumstances when our Fight is higher, like when facing Hobbits or Goblins, the Shade's forces should rarely ever lose combats). In the past his rule would work forever, whereas now there is a limited store of Will for his ability, making him more balanced in my opinion, but also potentially allowing him to stay around longer after the army breaks. Sap Will poses a potential problem, but that's a Spell generally cast on 5+ and only drains an average of 2 points of Will per successful casting, so it's not a major deal. Naturally Banishment is an issue however, but unless Channelled, it will take at least 3 turns to remove the Shade and it can already pay itself off by that time.</div>
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Dave's Lists</h4>
<h4>
List 1: 600 Points:</h4>
<b>Warband 1</b><br />
Witch King on Fell Beast with 3 Might, 18 Will, 3 fate<br />
7 Orcs with Shields<br />
1 Orc with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2</b><br />
Barrow Wight<br />
1 Orc with Shield and a Banner<br />
7 Orcs with Shields<br />
3 Orcs with Spears<br />
1 Orc with Shield and Spear<br />
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<b>Warband 3</b><br />
Barrow Wight<br />
7 Orcs with Shields<br />
3 Orcs with Spears<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4</b><br />
Barrow Wight<br />
6 Orcs with Shields<br />
3 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Total: 599 Points, 43 Models, 3 Might. </b><br />
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I understand and play low Might armies so 3 Might is fine, especially when used efficiently. The line of Orcs, all causing Terror and supported with Harbinger of Evil from the Withc King are a difficult large force to charge, allowing me to hopefully counter charge and surround those fool hardy enough to pass their courage. 3 Barrow wights hold back those powerful enemy heroes least they succumb to Paralysing effects. Finally the greatest power of the Witch King comes to the forefront as he drains the courage of those who cause his army most problems.</div>
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List 2: 800 Points</h4>
<b>Warband 1</b><br />
Witch King on Fell beast, with Crown of Morgul and 3 Might, 20 Will, 3 Fate<br />
7 Orcs with Shields<br />
3 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 2</b><br />
The Tainted (Horse)<br />
5 Orcs with Shields<br />
2 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 3</b><br />
Barrow Wight<br />
1 Orc with a Banner<br />
6 Orcs with Shields<br />
2 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 4</b><br />
Barrow Wight<br />
6 Orcs with Shields<br />
4 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 5</b><br />
Barrow Wight<br />
6 Orcs with Shields<br />
2 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Total: 799 Points, 49 Models, 5 Might</b><br />
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The spear supported front line of Terror with 3 Paralysing Barrow Wights, Harbinger of Evil potentially covering over 50+ inches and 2 Courage drainers helps this list to select its fights. With some scenarios containing multiple objectives the model count of 49 makes it difficult to contain in one place.</div>
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The move away from Shade inclusion allows this army to separate into multiple Terror bubbles with show stopping Magic. Orcs at Strength 3 and potential Defence 5 are a match for any army especially when the number of models they can bring against heroic individuals can dice for dice win the day.</div>
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The lack of Might at (Total 5) is countered by tapping into your enemy's Heroes Might reserves forcing them to potentially use Heroic Resolve to protect key models along with the Tainted special rule which can take away Heroic Move benefits from the rank and file.</div>
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All in all the move away from the Shade bubble by creating smaller individual ones allows Angmar to have a greater board coverage and any isolated loses on one flank can be easily absorbed by the sheer number of models on the table.</div>
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Mik's Lists</h4>
<h4>
List 3: 500 Points</h4>
<b>Warband 1</b><br />
Buhrdur, Troll Chieftain<br />
7 Orcs with Shields<br />
7 Orcs with Spears<br />
1 Orc with a Spear and a Banner<br />
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<b>Warband 2</b><br />
Wild Warg Chieftain<br />
2 Wild Wargs<br />
3 Orcs with Shields<br />
3 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 3</b><br />
Wild Warg Chieftain<br />
2 Wild Wargs<br />
4 Orcs with Shields<br />
4 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Total: 497 Points, 36 Models, 3 (+4 Special) Might. </b><br />
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Wild Warg Chieftains have been given quite a decent profile in the new edition. 2 Might and 3 Attacks alongside Strength 6 and Movement 10 are something that surprised me when I first read their rules, but it's a positive surprise. Fortitude Heroic Tier allows them to still bring quite a few models and I think a combination of Buhrdur and 2 Chieftains is something that should worry a lot of opponents, especially in conjunction with so many Warriors. I would be tempted to go with Cave Trolls, but that would require us to bring other Heroes and they would in turn drastically diminish our numbers.</div>
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36 Models are also quite a horde at 500 points, although the biggest weakness of this army is that if it breaks, it will very quickly collapse, as Buhrdur is the only model that grants Stand Fast to everybody, whilst also being the Army Leader and the strongest piece. The key to success of this army is going to be in good use of Buhrdur and the Chieftains, whilst overwhelming your opponents with numbers and hopefully securing a victory before you break! I admit it may not be too competitive though, but other than swapping 1 WWC for a Witch King for 80 or so points, there aren't many options with reliable Courage that will keep the army together after it breaks.</div>
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List 4: 800 Points</h4>
<b>Warband 1</b><br />
Witch King on an Armoured Horse with 3 Might, 12 Will, 2 Fate<br />
9 Orcs with Shields<br />
9 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 2</b><br />
The Tainted on an Armoured Horse<br />
8 Orcs with Shields<br />
7 Orcs with Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 3</b><br />
The Shade<br />
6 Orcs with Shields<br />
5 Orcs with Spears<br />
1 Orc with a Spear and a Banner<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span><br />
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<b>Warband 4</b><br />
Wild Warg Chieftain<br />
10 Wild Wargs<br />
Total: 799 Points, 59 models, 3 Terror Bubbles<br />
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This is the non-Monster, Shade alternative list. The Shade’s Special Rule works best when you can bring as many models into combat as possible, hence this force focuses on dropping the Fell Beast/Gulavhars and instead pushes the model limit to the maximum (59!). You have 2 Wizards to prevent major Heroes from causing major damage. You have The Tainted to stop Heroic Moves and turn off Stand Fasts!, whilst providing the -1 Harbinger of Evil modifier. Finally, you have the Wild Warg Chieftain with some Wargs to quickly grab objectives, threaten running off the table in Reconnoitre, surround isolated enemies and use Strength 6 when needed to kill off important targets. </div>
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Although the Witch King is the Leader, I haven’t given him the Crown of Morgul or a Fell Beasts in order to really be able to pack as many Warriors as I can. A Crown or a Fell Beast would not only cost extra points, but also require more Will points investment as he’d be expected to fight. In Contest of Champions hopefully his and the Tainted’s Magic combined with the Shade will prevent the enemy Leader from beating us. Same thing goes for The Tainted, as a Fell Beast over an Armoured Horse is 6 extra Orcs and the more models we have, the more effective the Shade becomes. In addition we can freely spend more Will on stopping enemy Heroes from causing damage and using The Tainted's Special Rule and not have to worry that he will die because of being charged by a random Fool That Can Kill Him. </div>
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I wouldn't mind finding space for a couple of Spectres in this list, as they always come in handy.</div>
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An even extreme version of this list could include something like:</div>
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The Tainted, Shade, 3 Barrow Wights, Banner and over 60 Orcs and Wargs! Heroes would struggle and we'd be outnumbering pretty much everybody.</div>
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Bonus List 5: 800 Points</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Gulavhar<br />
7 Orcs with Shields<br />
7 Orcs with Spears<br />
1 Spectre<br />
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<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Wild Warg Chieftain<br />
5 Orcs with Shields<br />
4 Orcs with Spears<br />
2 Wild Wargs<br />
1 Spectre<br />
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<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Wild Warg Chieftain<br />
5 Orcs with Shields<br />
4 Orcs with Spears<br />
1 Orc with Spear & Banner<br />
2 Wild Warg<br />
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<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Wild Warg Chieftain<br />
5 Orcs with Shields<br />
5 Orcs with Spears<br />
2 Wild Warg<br />
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<b>Total 795 Points, 55 Models<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span></b><br />
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This list is basically the 800 points upgrade on my 500 points list. At this points level this seems like more of a fun idea rather than something competitive, as again the lack of models who can provide Stand Fast! means that you’ll be dead when you break and with all the big Heroes running around, chances are you'll break pretty fast. However, Gulavhar and 3 Wild Warg Chieftains can provide enough killing power to win the game before that happens. From a competitive standpoint, I would go with something resembling list 4 or Dave's List 2. From a non-competitive one, I’d play this all day. I'm a dog person...</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Allies</h4>
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<b>Dave</b>: Want none, have none, take none.</div>
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The loss of the army bonus would change the dynamics of the Angmar list completely. The availability of the Desolator of the North would soak up too many points. The inclusion of Moria is potentially good for Moria only as their access to Shade, Wraiths and Barrow Wights along with other Heroes could strengthen their forces but the reverse would harm Angmar in the long game.</div>
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<b>Mik</b>: The major weakness of Angmar is its Defence 5 of Orcs. An army causing Terror may be strong, but with multiple Army Bonuses providing Courage boosts, Fury, Aura of Command and Bodyguards, I'm not entirely sure whether the bonus will always be worth having and if it wouldn't be a good idea to find some allies. Sadly Angmar has no access to Historic Allies and only 2 Convenient allies in Smaug and Moria. However, I think it may be worth looking for individual models that don't harm our army through allying, or whose benefit is greater than the loss of the Army Bonus - Shadow Lord may be the obvious choice for that to eliminate the long range weakness. Then again, we generally have such large numbers, that losing a few models to bows shouldn't be a major issue.<br />
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Summary</h4>
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Thanks to the number of Monsters and cheap Warriors available to Angmar, I think the army now has the potential to claim its spot on the top tables, as long as players are able to figure out the best build and the best combination of Ringwraiths / Spirits / Monsters / Warriors. Despite causing Terror all around, the army also lacks a way to overcome opponent’s Terror causing enemies, as the Angmar Shaman does not have Fury. Although Angmar only has 2 Convenient and 0 Historical Allies, it can very likely stand on its own with the array of Magic, beasts and Spirits. The likes of Gandalf the White and Galadriel may be cause for concern with their Banishment Spell, but hopefully they can be dealt with by the Ringwraiths, especially with the thematic Your Staff Is Broken! spell of the Witch King. </div>
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Good Luck!<br />
BlackMist & Dave<br />
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<br />Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-57069551820413799822018-09-23T07:51:00.001+01:002020-06-18T22:24:10.025+01:00Fog of War, Part 7: Gondor<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 7: Gondor</span></h4>
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Few factions in the game are so vast as the Kingdom of Gondor. Between Warriors of Minas Tirith, Osgiliath Veterans, Rangers, Citadel Guards, Fountain Guards, War Machines, a host of Heroes, and a selection of strong allies from the Fiefdoms, it is the second most diverse army in the game with a great number of possible army lists to choose from. For this part of the series, I am joined by a player who won the Kingdoms of Men Faction category at Ardacon in 2017 and ended up in 3rd place, undefeated, at the 2018 World Championships. A gentleman and a Captain of Gondor like none other, David Clubley. </div>
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<b>David: </b>The Kingdom of Gondor and its iconic city, Minas Tirith, has long been a favourite army of mine and many others. However, with the previous ruleset meta they were long considered underwhelming and so often overlooked. But now as our game enters a new era, with new rules and new profiles Minas Tirith is ready to regain its former glory! And here is how you do it. </div>
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- The “Big” Three</div>
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In this new edition of the game big heroes have been given the time to shine and Gondor has 3 to pick from. Of course, ideally you would want all of them but that will cost you a lot of points.</div>
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1.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Aragorn, King Elessar is the only Hero of Legend in the list and has everything you could want in a profile including 1 free might per turn and a sword that allows him to wound on 3s! Make sure you give him an armoured horse for extra effect.</div>
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2.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Gandalf the White is arguably the best magic caster in the game and has a great arsenal of Spells to choose from as well as being a decent and tough fighter. Make sure to mount him on his trusty steed Shadowfax for maximum impact.</div>
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3.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Boromir, Captain of the White Tower is definitely my favourite and the one I will be trying out the most. Why I hear you ask? The Banner of Minas Tirith! Boromir with this banner is going to make your Minas Tirith Warriors some of the best troops in the game (more on that below). The other Wargear item I would give Boromir is a shield, as YES he can carry it and the banner for no effect and be defence 7 😉 </div>
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<br /></div>
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I would avoid the temptation to mount Boromir on the horse because he is there to buff your troops primarily and if he has a horse that horse will be the public enemy number one to your opponent (and be very unlikely to survive before combat).</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Mik:</b> Having played Gondor as my primary faction for more than a decade I always felt like they were one of the best armies in the game – or at least if not, they had the tools to be if the correct meta existed on the tournament they would be attending. To me their strength always came in their numbers of high Defence (7) troops that Heroes such as Beregond and Damrod allowed you to bring. This changed in the new rules, as the two little stars became Minor Heroes, but I still feel that Gondor has the options to be built in a very elite or a very horde-style and both ways of playing the game work. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I’ve always used the Guards of the Fountain Court as the primary Warrior choice, supported by Saruman, the White, as the combination of the high Defence of the Guards and the high utility of Saruman (especially his Sorcerous Blast) allowed us to be a very safe and controlling faction. With Magic being generally nerfed, I am actually looking forward to again playing a Gondor force that I used at the start of my competitive career – a horde led by Faramir. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
David’s Lists:</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So what has Minas Tirith gained that has made me so excited to play them? Well for starters their army bonus of +1 Courage is pretty nifty and gives your Warriors about an 18% increase in the likelihood of passing their courage checks. Then the average Warrior of Minas Tirith themselves, long considered a bit naff, has gained the Shieldwall special rule making them Defence 7 (making them one of only two non-dwarven warrior profiles to get defence 7, the other being Guard of the Fountain Court).</div>
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<br /></div>
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As you can see if you combine this army bonus, Shieldwall and the Banner of Minas Tirith you can make a 12 inch area of Fight 4, Defence 7, Courage 4 with banner re-rolls to boot. Try bringing that down you filthy orcs!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So let’s look at some sample lists for some standard points match sizes…</div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 1: 500 Points</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Faramir, Captain of Gondor (Heavy Armour, Shield, Lance, Horse)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6 Osgiliath Veterans (Shields)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Knights of Minas Tirith (Shields)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Madril</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
12 Warriors of Minas Tirith (12 Shields, 6 Spears, 1 Banner)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Damrod</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6 Rangers of Gondor (Spears)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 32 Models, 7 Might, Cavalry and 8 Bows. </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This army has the tactical flexibility to take on all comers and if they have a big hero running around then firstly use your bows to take them off their horse. Then use Faramir to hold them up with his Heroic Defence stalling them in their tracks or if you can out Heroic Strike them and use Faramir with a lance to kill them.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 2: 750 Points</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Boromir, Captain of the White Tower (Banner of Minas Tirith, Shield)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
15 Warriors of Minas Tirith (15 Shields, 8 Spears)</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Faramir, Captain of Gondor (Heavy Armour, Shield, Lance, Horse)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
15 Warriors of Minas Tirith (15 Shields, 8 Spears)</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Madril</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
7 Rangers of Gondor (Spears)</div>
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5 Knights of Minas Tirith</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 45 Models, 12 Might, Cavalry and 8 Bows. </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This army again has great tactical flexibility and a huge pool of Might to use. Both Boromir and Faramir are capable of taking on big threats whilst your super buffed warriors grind the enemy down.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mik’s Lists:</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 3: 600 Points of Minas Tirith</b></h4>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Denethor, Steward of Gondor</div>
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14 Guards of the Fountain Court with Shields</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Faramir, Captain of Gondor with a Bow </div>
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11 Rangers of Gondor with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Rangers of Gondor</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Beregond, Guard of the Citadel on a Horse</div>
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3 Knights of Minas Tirith with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Warrior of Minas Tirith with Shield</div>
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1 Warrior of Minas Tirith with Shield and Spear</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Damrod, Ranger of Ithilien</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Warriors of Minas Tirith with Shields and Spears</div>
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3 Warriors of Minas Tirith with Shields</div>
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1 Warrior of Minas Tirith with a Shield, Spear and a Banner</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 600 Points, 44 models, 17 Bows</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
For this army I opted for a horde with a lot of shooting (up to 5 Heroic Accuracies!), a lot of Defence 7, some level of cavalry support and a very bad General. Sadly in Contest of Champions the force will probably not do very well, as Denethor's Special Rule forces him to be our Army Leader, but in all other scenarios the numbers, bows and 5 Might spread across the army’s 4 Warbands should put fear into a lot of our opponents. Whilst lacking the killing power of Boromir, the force is better suited to scenarios requiring a spread of models across the entire battlefield.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.warhammer-community.com/2017/03/23/armies-of-the-hobbit-grand-tournament-winner/">This list is inspired by the 2017 Grand Tournament winning list by Dave Nolan, which can be found here</a>:<br />
https://www.warhammer-community.com/2017/03/23/armies-of-the-hobbit-grand-tournament-winner/<br />
<br />
Dave at the time used staggering 46 models in 600 points at that tournament to overwhelm his opponents, whose armies would have most often only had 30-35 models in total. Although it looks weak with just Faramir to do the heroic fighting, its sheer numbers case trouble for a lot of enemies. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 4: 800 Points of the Fiefdoms</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth on an Armoured Horse with Lance</div>
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9 Knights of Dol Amroth</div>
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9 Men-at-Arms of Dol Amroth</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Duinhir</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
15 Blackroot Vale Archers with Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Forlong, the Fat on a Horse</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
7 Knights of Dol Amroth</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
7 Men-At-Arms of Dol Amroth </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Man-at-Arms of Dol Amroth with a Banner</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>TOTAL: 798 Points, 51 Models, 16 Bows, 8 Might</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This points level seems perfect for a Fiefdoms list to reach its full potential. Whereas 500 or 600 will be missing Imrahil or the numbers, at 800 points this list is something I would worry about facing. Imrahil provides a very large Banner effect, essentially allowing the Knights in his Warband to roll 3 dice to win combat when supported by 1 pike, or 4 dice to win combat when supported by 2 pikes. Same happens to Forlong’s Warband and the Banner in it will more often than not be there as a Victory Points attribute rather than a useful re-roll. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Blackroot Vale Archers really caught my eye. In the previous edition of the rules, they were quite underwhelming, but in this edition, their re-roll to wound when under Heroic Shoot is interesting. Imagine that Duinhir stands in the middle of 15 Blackroot Vale Archers and none of them have moved. He calls a Heroic Shoot. You have 15 shots that hit on 3+ and thanks to their Special Rule they re-roll 1s to hit, leading to an average of 11.66 hits (10 hits normally plus re-rolling the 1s). If your targets are all Defence 4 or lower, that leads to 6.5 kills (3.9 normally plus all the re-rolls, plus Duinhir on top of that. Forces of Harad or Wood Elves will tremble. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In fact, if there’s a 2nd rank hero with D6 and you're willing to use both Accuracy with Duinhir and Heroic Shoot with another hero, you are going to be causing about 2-3 wounds on them on average. I think a version of this may just become my next army project!</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
ALLIES</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>David: </b>The White City does not stand alone in its hour of need, many valorous allies rallied to their defence and you should definitely take advantage of them! The best options to take, Rohan and The Fiefdoms, are also Historical Allies with each other too so you can keep all 3 army bonuses. Let me give you a great example of how to benefit from this…</div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 5: 750 Points</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Boromir, Captain of the White Tower (Banner of Minas Tirith, Shield)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
15 Warriors of Minas Tirith (15 Shields)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Forlong the Fat (Horse)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
15 Axemen of Lossanarch</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Theoden (Heavy Armour, Shield, Armoured Horse)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
10 Rohan Royal Guard (5 Throwing Spears)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 43 Models, 12 Might, 12 Cavalry</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So why does this army work so well? The answer is SYNERGY! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Firstly lets look at the battle line of Minas Tirith Warriors backed by Axemen of Lossanarch you will be forming. With Shieldwall every front ranker apart from the end two will be Defence 7, a solid start. Then with Boromir in the centre of this line your Warriors of Minas Tirith will be F4 BUT the Axemen will be Fight FIVE!!! As the Banner of Minas Tirith affects these guys too. But wait, it gets better, as Forlong carries a War Horn, your Warriors of Minas Tirith will be at an insane Courage 5 (because they still get the +1 for their army bonus). A nice little cherry on the cake is that those Axemen will be re-rolling 1’s to wound within 6 inches of Forlong, nothing to shout about but still helpful.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Now lets look at Forlong himself, with a beastly Fight 5, Strength 5 and a horse & Warspear use Forlong and his 3 Might points to tear the enemy to shreds.</div>
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<br /></div>
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And lastly (but by no means least) the Courage 6 Theoden will be causing devastation on the charge with his Body Guard Royal Guard as they will ALL be Fight 5 and Theoden will be Strength 5 and his Royal Guard will be Strength 4. Woe betide any enemy who is on the receiving end of that cavalry charge.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Well that is all the advice I have for you at the moment, as always though the best way to learn and get better is to get out there and play games. Have fun defending the White City 🙂</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik:</b> The great thing about Minas Tirith to me is that they don’t need allies. They have all the tools. They can get Dol Amroth into the mix and Rohan, as stated above by David, but they can also go it all by themselves. If I were to ally, I would look into something that the army itself is not very good at. Minas Tirith’s Army Bonus of +1 Courage is in my opinion mediocre, so I’m not bothered about losing it. Instead, I wonder about such things as the Eagles of the Misty Mountains. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 6: 800 Points:</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Gwaihir</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Great Eagle</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Madril, Captain of Ithilien</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Warriors of MT with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Warriors of MT with Shields and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
1 Warrior of MT with Shield, Spear and Banner</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Cirion, Lieutenant of Amon Barad</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
6 Warriors of MT with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
5 Warriors of MT with Shields and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Beregond</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Warriors of MT with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Warriors of MT with Shields and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 5:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Damrod</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Warriors of MT with Shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Warriors of MT with Shields and Spears</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 795 Points, 37 models, 4 Monsters, 30+ model Shield Wall.</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Perhaps Gwaihir and 2 Eagles are too many. But with Defence 7 across the board, perhaps Gwaihir and 2 Eagles are exactly what the army needs to cut through everything it comes up against. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Summary</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As you can see from the above, we've created 6 lists, all of which are quite significantly different to each other. Whereas David's forces focused on the killing power of the likes of Boromir, Faramir, Theoden and others, my armies win by swarming and rely less on single characters. It’s hard to say right now which is better, or if perhaps something in the middle is the best – only time will tell how the metagame shapes. I hope however that this article has given you some ideas for fighting with Gondorians and inspired you to perhaps start a new army. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good Luck!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
BlackMist & David</div>
</div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-14209749956791035532018-09-18T08:41:00.000+01:002020-06-18T22:24:20.940+01:00Fog of War, Part 6: Isengard<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUtnvdkyL1DuNaOPfDBPwQqMuL4WzuThre_rn7bPBV-T4My2qjVuCVB-vNY-19FV2YJxSkDthCc888BDDesg3IVeSivXqD6OsfW8GaOD9eVk0QunWiTXxML7zGKUnVbNvQhfWkTLzUVY5r/s1600/Isengard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUtnvdkyL1DuNaOPfDBPwQqMuL4WzuThre_rn7bPBV-T4My2qjVuCVB-vNY-19FV2YJxSkDthCc888BDDesg3IVeSivXqD6OsfW8GaOD9eVk0QunWiTXxML7zGKUnVbNvQhfWkTLzUVY5r/s320/Isengard.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 6: Isengard</span></h4>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With the introduction of the new edition of the game, Isengard is one of the factions that has had probably some of the biggest changes and got a lot of people excited to try it out again. Today I shall be riding to Isengard to seek counsel from someone who has had more success in the GBHL using Isengard than any other player in the UK. It is with great honour to welcome the next guest on the series, the Captain of the 2017 Team World Champions, Team Wanderers in the Wild, the winner of 6 GBHL tournaments (to date), a Freddo-aficionado and one of the founding writers of the SBG Magazine, Damian O’Byrne. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Damian: </b>Saruman’s vast armies of Isengard are my favourite Evil force in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and have been one of my go-to armies in the Strategy Battle Game for as long as I have been playing. They’re a powerful and versatile army that look great on the tabletop and to this day I still think they’re one of the best sculpted ranges in the game. They’re also the army with which I’ve had the most competitive success, largely due to what I dubbed the ‘Fererker’ build which, in its simplest terms, is an Isengard army that consists of one third Crossbows and two thirds Berserkers and Feral Uruk-hai. With the exception of one major nerf to Berserkers (more on that later), the forces of Isengard have received some fantastic boosts in the new edition which should help its generals to taste man-flesh like never before!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Isengard has a lot of the basic tools that make for a strong army, they have a wide range of troops and can easily access valuable stats like Fight 4, Strength 4 and Defence 6. They also have good ranged troops in the form of their deadly Crossbows and, more recently, Uruk-hai Bows, making them as deadly from afar as they are up close. These solid troops are backed up by some excellent Heroes; the new and improved Saruman is one of the best Wizards in the game and we now have no less than three 3 Might Heroes with access to Heroic Strike, an attribute I believe will be key if you are to have any hope of bringing down the terrifying mounted Heroes you will likely be facing in this edition. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Isengard have so much versatility at their disposal that one of the biggest challenges is figuring out exactly which type of army you want to take; the army list encompasses the fast moving scouts that harried the Fellowship, the heavily armoured fighting Uruk-hai that assaulted Helm’s Deep, my elite Fererker builds geared towards competitive play and any number of other combinations that can be made by adding in Orcs, Dunlendings and Wild Men. It’s genuinely tough to attempt to pick the ‘best’ approach but in this article we’ll look at a few builds, Mik will be looking at the Scouts whilst I will be examining the fighting Uruk-hai and trying to figure out if my Fererker build is still viable in this brave new world (spoilers: no). We’ll be politely ignoring the Dunlendings and the Wild Men because, well quite frankly they’re just dreadful…[<i>I found them to be really good conversion material for Axe-wielding Corsair Reavers in the last edition 😉 – Mik</i>]</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik:</b> To me, the combination of all the captain-level named heroes such as Ugluk, Mauhur, Sharku and ultimately Lurtz are what most appeals to me about this faction. It’s a force that allows you to bring more Might to the table than probably any other ‘standard’ army in the game (not counting such things as All-hero) and the amount of Might is one of the most important factors in winning games, as it allows you to call more Heroic Moves, Marches and Combats than your opponents. The other advantage here is that the Captain-level heroes are able to bring excessive numbers to the table, leading to often outnumbering most opponents, with the exception of the likes of Moria, Shire or Goblin Town, all of whom they will be faster than and stronger in combat against. Combination of high numbers, Strength 4, multiple heroes and the excess Might really makes an Isengard army terrifying. Add to that the army bonus of Woodland Creature and no Courage Tests until 66% casualties and we could have one of the most powerful factions of the Middle-earth. Although I am probably the world’s biggest fan of Saruman, I decided for this article to leave him at home and give him to Damian to try to figure out the best list with him. I am still trying to get used to the idea that Sorcerous Blast will no longer be killing 10-20 models in every game!</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Damian’s Army lists:</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 1 – 600 Points of Fighting Uruk Hai</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I’m going to start with a fairly generic 600 point fighting Uruk-hai list that new players might want to try, it uses a range of basic troop types (saving the Scouts for Mik) and should perform fairly solidly on the tabletop.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 1</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Leader - Lurtz with shield </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
4 Uruk-hai Warriors with shields </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Uruk-hai Warriors with pikes</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Uruk-hai Berserkers</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Uruk-hai Warrior with banner and shield </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Warg Rider with shield and throwing weapon</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 2</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ugluk</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Uruk-hai Warriors with shields</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
2 Uruk-hai Warriors with pikes </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Uruk-hai Berserkers </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Orc Warrior with spear </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Orc Warrior with spear and shield </div>
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Warg Rider with shield and throwing weapon </div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3</b></div>
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Vrasku </div>
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11 Uruk-hai Warriors with crossbows </div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Total: 600 points, 35 models, 9 Might, 13 crossbow shots + 1 bow</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
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This list contains a wide range of the troops that make Isengard strong. In the new edition Lurtz has been given the profile that many Isengard players dreamed of and now surely becomes the default army-leader until Saruman can join the force - +1 Courage, Shoot, Attack, Defence and Wound, an Uruk-hai bow and an incredible special rule for a 30 point increase? Yes please! At these lower point values where you won’t have Saruman, Ugluk’s 'Head Taker' Special Rule will now be invaluable and the two Orc Warriors are brought along as sacrifices for him. Head Taker has received a fantastic boost in the new edition as it is far easier to achieve and it now affects other Heroes, so be sure to move Ugluk first to keep Lurtz in the game! </div>
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<br /></div>
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In the previous edition, I always favoured the 3 Might of Ugluk and Lurtz over the 3 Attacks of Mauhur and I think he now drops even further out of favour for me due to his lack of Heroic Strike. Vrashku was pretty much the only auto-include Hero in an Isengard list in the previous edition and, despite his lack of Heroic Strike, I think he remains so in the new rules. Firing two crossbow shots on a 3+ is very effective and, crucially, he brings Heroic Accuracy to the table which could be absolutely invaluable in bringing down the horses of Gil-Galad, Elrond, Glorfindel etc. as they come charging towards you. Finally, I have included the Warg Riders and the Banner with scenario objectives in mind. Two of the scenarios now award VPs for having a Banner and the speed of the Warg Riders can be invaluable in scenarios like Reconnoitre, Heirloom of Ages Past, Fog of War, Capture and Control etc.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
<b>List 2 – 850 Points of ‘Fererkers’</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Next, I’m going to give an example of how my ‘competitive’ Fererker build looks in the new edition. I’ve picked 850 points for this as, after some initial number crunching, this feels like the most favourable points level for this build.</div>
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<b>Warband 1</b></div>
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Saruman on horse </div>
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Grima </div>
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11 Berserkers </div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 2</b></div>
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Lurtz with shield </div>
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12 Berserkers </div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3</b></div>
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Vrasku </div>
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12 Uruk-hai with crossbows (3 with shields) </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 39 models. 9 Might points, 14 crossbow shots + 1 bow</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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For those who have never faced the Fererkers on the table it’s easy to say that the numbers and Might are too low for 850 points but I can only promise that this has not been an issue in the past. The army works by making good use of the 14 Crossbow shots to thin the numbers and then hits like an absolute hammer in combat (it’s essentially an army of Captains of Men). However, the weaknesses of the previous edition remain: armies with Blinding Light/Pall of Darkness will negate the impact of the Crossbows and hordes will have a good chance of overwhelming it through sheer weight of numbers.</div>
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<br /></div>
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700 points has always been the point at which I would add Saruman to an Isengard list and that remains so for his buffed profile in the new edition. Saruman now has much improved Spell-casting (and a new Spell!), the Lord of the Istari rule and his Stand Fast! now affects Heroes - He might cost 10 points more but, even with the nerfs to Immobilise and Sorcerous Blast, he’s still an incredibly strong choice in the new edition and he probably remains an auto-include for Isengard at higher point levels.</div>
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<br /></div>
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You’ll note that, despite this being a Fererker list, there is not a single Feral Uruk-hai to be seen; in my opinion, Ferals have been nerfed into oblivion in the new edition, the drop to Defence 4 along with a 1 point increase means that there is simply no reason to ever take them over a Berserker. The Berserker gains +2 courage and +1/+2 defence for only 2 points more, sadly it’s an absolute no-brainer that will forever consign my trusty Ferals to storage case. Goodnight boys, it’s been a blast.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Unfortunately, the buffs and points increases to heroes have actually had a negative impact on this build. In the previous edition I would achieve similar numbers to this list at around the 800 point mark and the loss of models comes from the ‘tax’ you now pay for the points increases on all three Heroes. The real-world impact of this is the loss of 2 Berserkers, 1 Feral and 1 Crossbowman and the loss of 4 models (3 of whom have 2 Attacks). In a small, elite force this is a huge problem and one of the reasons that I don’t think this build will be anywhere near as competitive anymore. As such, there’s a case to be made that Mauhur or Sharku and some extra Warriors might actually be a better choice than Lurtz, despite how great his new profile is. However, the biggest problem with this force in the new edition is that Berserkers are now Defence 5 in combat; I can tell you from long, hard experience that the Berserkers’ Defence 6 was absolutely vital to winning games against Strength 3 Good forces. Defence 6 kept the small, elite army viable whereas Defence 5 makes them far more susceptible to the attacks of those enemy forces that frequently outnumber you. I will certainly give the list at least one try at a competitive event but I fear they simply no longer have the tools to compete.</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mik’s Army Lists </h4>
<h4>
<span style="text-align: justify;">List 3 - 500 Points Scouting Force:</span></h4>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Lurtz</div>
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14 Uruk-Hai Scouts with Shields</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Mauhur</div>
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12 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Shields</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Uruk-Hai Scout Captain</div>
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8 Orcs with Spears</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Total: 499 Points, 8 Might, 37 Models</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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This force utilises speed, numbers and Might. Lurtz’s Warband includes 15 models for that all-important Maelstrom of Battle deployment when he can drop all of his friends in the most crucial or the safest place we need them in. Mauhur’s Warband moves 8” allowing them to outrun all of the infantry forces and even cause troubles to Riders of Rohan who wish to move and shoot against us. The last part of the force is a Captain and some Spear wielding Orcs, simply for the sake of giving us the flexibility of the spear support if/when it is needed as well as the Captain with 2 Might points for the Heroic March, so that we don’t have to use up Lurtz’s. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The obvious weakness here is Defence 4 and 5 across the board and not an excessive number of spears. Elves naturally benefit from that as they will be killing us on 5s, but we will outnumber them. Lurtz can hold his own against most heroes, just like we’ve seen in the films. Normally terrain would pose an issue, as we could get stuck fighting a shield wall with a lower number of attacks, but with the Woodland Creature Special Rule we are able to use forests to our advantage. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 4 - 800 Points Scouting Force</h4>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Lurtz</div>
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Uruk-Hai Drummer</div>
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9 Uruk-Hai Scouts with Shields, including 1 Banner</div>
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5 Uruk-Hai Scouts with Bows</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Mauhur</div>
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12 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Shields</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Ugluk</div>
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11 Uruk-Hai Scouts with Bows</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
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Sharku on a Warg</div>
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10 Warg Riders with Shields</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Total: 800 Points, 12 Might, 52 models.</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
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Now… Uruk-Hai Drummer is not listed in the Army Bonus as gaining the Woodland Creature, but I think that will get fixed in an FAQ, as the model is represented by a Scout with a drum. Naturally I’m not the rules writer and my blog isn’t official GW, but I’d be happy to bet on it happening 😉</div>
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<br /></div>
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As it stands now, the Drum and Heroic March effects stack, giving us potentially 14” movement on the Marauders – you must turn the Drum on at the start of the Movement Phase, call a Heroic March, move the Marching hero first and then all models who were under the effect of both March and Drum get +6” movement. It’s a pretty crazy bonus, as for most armies 14” is pretty far. Again this makes Scouts incredible in Maelstrom deployment scenarios like Hold Ground or Heirlooms. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I have listed 16 Uruk-Hai with bows. I think the upgrade of their bow to Strength 3 makes them far more valuable than in the past, despite keeping the same 18" range. One thing I wonder about is who should actually be armed with bows. Marauders could move 4" and shoot, but we may want to be able to always move them 8. Marauders with a Drum could move 5.5" and shoot, but then if we're sounding the drum, they are still lagging behind a bit and it feels like the 14" move of Marauders could be quite valuable in some situations, so I'm not sure I want them to be stuck with bows. Lurtz's Warband has been given some, so Ugluk had to take the rest. No idea which combination is correct at this stage. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Isengard do not have any Historical Allies, so I’m not entirely convinced we should really be looking at the alliance options if we're going for a Scouting force, because the Army Bonus is just so powerful, especially if we combine Woodland Creature with it. Instead in this list I opted for Sharku and Warg Riders, because of the overall theme of Need For Speed. </div>
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<br /></div>
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This list does not have spear supports. But it does have a staggering 52 models, 3 heroes with 3 attacks (Sharku counts on Charge), abundance of Might and fast-moving models to grab objectives, quickly surround and catch people unprepared, great Army Bonus and Ugluk’s Special Rule that essentially means you probably will not have to ever take a Courage Test for being Broken. </div>
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<br /></div>
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If you compare the numbers with the other factions I have so far written about:</div>
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- Rivendell @ 32</div>
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- Easterlings @ 37</div>
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- Númenor @ 38</div>
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- Moria @ 48 (albeit with a Balrog)</div>
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- Rohan @ 34</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It appears we have a new Horde on the block 😉 Naturally, these are not the optimal and the best lists that can be made at 800 points and there is a ton of room for improvement in all of them, but I’m liking the sound of a very themed Scouting Force – not just because of how cool they look and how rare I have seen such forces do well in tournaments, but also because of how different their play style will be to all other infantry armies. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Chances are that the way the new meta shapes will surprise us all, so although these are the starting numbers, I would not count this as be-all-and-end-all advice on army building. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><i>One final note…</i></b> One idea I’ve always been a fan of, but never really worked it into any of my armies, has been the Demolition Team. I always wondered how these guys could be implemented into points matches. Now that Magic is weaker, there are fewer ways to deal with big Named Heroes. What if we were to combine a Drum, a Heroic March and some bombs to nuke Glorfindel, Elrond, Aragorn and their friends into oblivion? Imagine the look on your opponent’s face when you drop a bomb on their General on turn 1 in Contest of Champions or Hold Ground… A bomb is effectively only 45 points as long as we don’t pop it, as we get a Berserker and 2 Uruks to fight if need be. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
Lurtz-Nuke-Em-Halflings!</h4>
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Lurtz</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Uruk-Hai Drummer</div>
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2x Uruk-Hai Demolition Teams (4 Uruks and 2 Berserkers)</div>
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4 Uruks with Shields</div>
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3 Uruks with Pikes</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
A 16-model Warband with 2 bombs is 340 points. Bombs alone can take out that amount of points if you get a lucky roll!</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b>ALLIES:</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Damian: </b>Isengard have been blessed with a grand total of zero Historical Allies in the new edition so the question of whether to bring allies is actually a question of whether or not allies can bring more to the force than the army bonus. The Isengard Army Bonus means that models with the Isengard keyword don’t have to take courage tests for being Broken until the force has taken 66% casualties. There’s no doubt that this is a solid bonus, my 600 point army above has 35 models which would mean that an opponent would have to kill 24 models instead of 18 to force Courage Tests. Whilst it’s perfectly possible to lose over 6 models in one turn if the game is going against you, I think that will be rather unlikely in most games meaning that the army bonus should give you one extra turn without having to take Courage Tests and might give you two extra turns (or even more), something that could very well make the difference between victory and defeat for Courage 3 Uruk-hai holding your objectives. However, when using the Fererker build over the years, the Courage Tests from being Broken generally didn’t worry me: As long as Saruman was free to move then his Stand Fast! and the high courage of the Fererkers meant that the force was largely unaffected by being Broken. Conversely, if I was Broken and Saruman wasn’t free or had been killed then I wasn’t too worried about Courage Tests as I’d probably lost the game anyway… Similarly, at lower points games where you don’t have Saruman you should have Ugluk performing a similar role, again making the army bonus less critical. So, for me, the Army bonus is just that, a bonus that forms a welcome addition but not something that would prevent me adding allies to boost my competitiveness.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As for what to ally, there’s only one choice that springs to mind and it’s a bit of a roll your eyes obvious one - The Shadow Lord. I’ve noted before that the Fererker army suffers against Blinding Light so fight fire with fire and neuter your opponent’s shooting. I’ve had great success in the past with a 1000 point Fererker list that added a cheap Witch-King, two casters is always helpful and Your Staff is Broken was a great counter for enemy wizards so a Wraith can certainly work well with an Isengard force. I actually think there could be potential in an alternate 850 point Fererker list that dropped Saruman and Grima in favour of the Shadow Lord on horse, Ugluk and a few more Berserkers (including some sacrificial orcs for Ugluk of course!) - hopefully the Pall of Darkness will keep enough Berserkers alive so that their lower Defence is of less consequence when the lines clash - perhaps I’ll try it out sometime in 2019!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik: </b>As I mentioned before, the Army Bonus is extremely powerful, so I’m not convinced at this stage that we need to worry about allies, unless of course our focus is on a large number of Berserkers, at which point we really don't care about Courage, as Damian mentioned above. However, if we did, there are some things that are always worthy additions to any army – Perhaps a Shade? Perhaps a Ringwraith? Perhaps a Balrog? Perhaps not... Losing a bonus may not be the end of the world if we don’t care about the Scouts and if we have Saruman in the army, as his special Stand Fast! rule keeps everyone we care about together, as long as we don’t dip too deeply into the Impossible Alliances. Isengard is quite complete by itself that it probably doesn’t really need allies, but only time will tell, as we'll be looking for answers to things that the army cannot solve by itself. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Summary</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Damian: </b>So there you have it, between Crossbows, Saruman, Grima and multiple sources of Heroics Strike, the Isengard army certainly has the tools to deal with the mega-Heroes that will surely become ever-more prevalent. Isengard also has access to some less traditional threats to enemy Heroes such as the Ballista (whose ability to deploy at the back of a board with a Might point could be deadly against small all-hero armies) and the Isengard troll. The Isengard troll has received a huge boost in this edition of the game that seems to have gone largely unnoticed, gaining +1 Fight and +1 Strength, he now eclipses his Mordor cousins and should cause at least a moment of caution to those tricksy mounted Heroes. And if all that doesn’t work, why not just grab a Demolition team and blow them all to smithereens? </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In short, Isengard definitely has the tools to compete in this new edition of the game but, whilst its Heroes have become more effective than ever, it remains to be seen exactly which combination of Warriors will lead to the most success - it’ll sure be fun finding out though!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik: </b>Isengard is an army that’s always been in the back of my mind. The first ever blister pack I bought was 3 Berserkers. I used Isengard at the GTs in 2008 (with 26 Crossbows and 48 Orcs at 700 points…), 2009 and 2010 and ever since they have always stayed on my radar as something I’d like to come back to. I think in the new edition, I may just dig some of these toys out of the box. Although I’ve never been a fan of the Fererkers, I always dreaded playing Damian with them. Hopefully that build of the army can still be viable, but if it isn’t, I think there are now quite a few different ways we can shape Isengard armies. With magic becoming weaker in the new edition than in the last, and Shadow Lord needing to expend Will points to turn Pall of Darkness on, it seems to me that we may just see a few less of the dreaded 6s-to-hit effects (although Cirdan is now certainly a valuable Hero), so Crossbows may be viable again, despite losing their pikes. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although Damian focused on a non-Scout army and I focused exclusively on Scouts, I think there is an argument for mixing both of these ideas together. On one hand you could have a very strong fighting line, on the other you could have a lot of models with Woodland Creature to be able to ignore the forests, surround your enemies and grab objectives that aren't so easy for your opponents to get to. Perhaps we should be looking at a Warband of Scouts for every 2 Warbands of non-Scouts?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As for other things, Saruman is better than before, but Magic is worse in general, so only time will tell how he develops and how strong he ends up being.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Grima’s rule has been nerfed to only affect Heroic Actions and not all Might spent, which is a welcome change to all of Isengard’s enemies. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In all I think there is a lot to think about when building Isengard lists and we will have to wait a while before the best builds are figured out. Until then I hope that this guide will be handy to all new and old generals of the White Hand. </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good Luck!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
BlackMist & Dr Grant </div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-12450088464150856322018-09-12T15:59:00.001+01:002020-06-18T22:24:29.724+01:00Fog of War, Part 5: Rohan<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkypBDhD2WfKKbTnL6HFw5H0SiJyb6Tm6POU2Z2B5yhWk0aTXdxBSkwBexBg5TvNyXeMrt4y6emEWlz7QEJnHi-rU28gW1xBwI7HxC4ovHuOod4i9JSK4lXb93gRwL2270qGv32RPEqznS/s1600/Rohan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="1200" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkypBDhD2WfKKbTnL6HFw5H0SiJyb6Tm6POU2Z2B5yhWk0aTXdxBSkwBexBg5TvNyXeMrt4y6emEWlz7QEJnHi-rU28gW1xBwI7HxC4ovHuOod4i9JSK4lXb93gRwL2270qGv32RPEqznS/s320/Rohan.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
Part 5: Rohan</span></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After reviewing Moria with Jasmine, time comes for another Champion of GBHL to share their knowledge of their favourite army. In today’s army review we venture to the plains of the Kingdom of Rohan, with none other than the Warhammer Hero (<i>of Legend<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(</span></i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">TM)</span>), James Clark of the Riddermark. In the nearly 20 year history of the game, Rohan has had its ups and downs, although mostly downs throughout the last several years, and with the new edition of the rules, that now changes. Their Army Bonus is outstanding and amount of possibilities within Rohan forces is staggering.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>James:</b> With the launch of Middle-earth SBG, it really is time to mount up and ride for ruin and the world’s ending! Us Horse Lords have received an awful lot of love and attention in the latest edition of the game, with new rules and profile tweaks that allow the wannabe Marshalls of the Mark to play out the charges of the Rohirrim how they see them in both the books and the films.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Previously, recklessly charging the lines of your foes screaming “Deeeeeaaaath” usually led to exactly that and mastering the horse masters required further guile, patience and skill. It was a strategy of probing and picking, skirting and circling rather than anything we witnessed of them at Helms Deep or the Pelennor. Iconic Heroes we know and loved were often sidelined in the pursuit of optimising your muster, which was rarely without the mighty (cheap) Erkenbrand with all he brought to your Eored. Sweeping renovations have seen Theoden regain the lead as perhaps he well should, with a Heroic stat line to match his fabled heroics and a swath of Special Rules and buffs which make him indispensable for any commander bringing Riders of Rohan or Royal Guard. The latter of which seem to have ridden to the front of our force, with fight 5 and strength 4 on the charge making them a most formidable foe. </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Whilst killing was never really the issue for the charging Eored, +1 strength across the board whilst charging on horseback truly enables players to feel like they can play the Rohirrim how they’ve always wanted, all but guaranteeing those casualties and in particularly buffing the chances of their Heroes to succeed in those all-important initial Heroic Combats. Combine all of the above with the pegging down of two of Rohan’s greatest hinderances, Magic and Monsters (Hurl) it may just be time for those fluttering Banners of white horses against green to reign supreme on the battlefields of Middle-earth going into the next age.</div>
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<b>Mik:</b> The new edition brings a major overhaul of the rules, now enabling once-forgotten models to be brought back to the table. As mentioned by James, Theoden poses a real threat now, but he is not the only one. Combination of cheap heroes, the Army Bonus and the overall 10” move of all of its primary Warriors mean that Rohan will have a clear advantage in the scenarios that require speed such as Reconnoitre, Fog of War or Hold Ground. Gamling in particular has caught my eye, as now the Royal Standard of Rohan renews not only the Might points of other Rohan Heroes around him, but also himself, meaning that once he burns the 3 Might points, he regains one at the start of every turn, turning into a Mini-Aragorn of sorts (without the Fight, Sword, Attacks, Wounds, Courage, Will, Fate, the million Heroic Actions and a claim to the throne of a kingdom… but you know what I mean…). The ‘Free’ Might point is going to not only allow Gamling to call unlimited number of Heroic Moves and Marches, but also let him survive for extended amount of time with his Heroic Defense. Being a veteran with nearly 15 years of experience, I can remember very well the days when Rohan Outriders counted as Heroes and benefitted from Gamling’s Banner. Not counting towards the Bow Limit due to the Hero status and every turn gaining either +1 to hit or +1 to wound… some of us can still feel the pain their arrows caused!</div>
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The big downside of Rohan has always been the vulnerability of its horses to bowfire. Although it is still the case, the Horse Lord Special Rule somewhat solves that issue by allowing Fate points to be used to protect the horses, so we are just slightly more likely to get the Heroes into combats with their horses unharmed and gain the Extra Attack and Knock To The Ground bonuses. But even then, with just 1 point of Fate on most of their Heroes, chances are the same problems will persist, but in smaller measure. The other problem has always been in their numbers, but that is something that can be often taken care of by good tactics.</div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
James’s Army lists:</h4>
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List 1: 600 Points</h4>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Theoden, King of Rohan with Armour, Shield and on an Armoured Horse</div>
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7 Rohan Royal Guard on Horses</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Gamling, Captain of Rohan with the Royal Standard and on a Horse</div>
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7 Rohan Royal Guard on Horses</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Hama, Captain of Rohan with shield on a Horse</div>
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7 Rohan Royal Guard on Horses</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Total: 600 Points, 9 Might</b></div>
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The age of men is over, the age of the Royal Guard has begun! The above list is a solid choice for a variety of reasons. Everything synergises with your mighty King, from 'Sworn Protector'<b> </b>on Gamling and Hama to the 'Arise Riders of Theoden'n Special Rules on our Royal Guard. High defence across the board and Terror knows not the heart of these riders! Both Gamling and Hama have moved up the hero hierarchy, the key area being that in spite of a rather lacklustre Fight Value of 4, they now both bring 3 might each to the table, key for pulling off those much-needed Heroic Moves and Combats.</div>
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The Royal Standard of Rohan adds significantly to this too, not only giving Theoden and Hama a Might top up when they reach zero, but also working for Gamling himself now, who effectively gains Mighty Hero once his might is depleted. 9 Might Point base with top ups available will be key for this army. Add to that the fact that the Standard itself will be giving re-rolls across the board, which increase in value as the Royal Guard benefit from +1 Fight Value and become Fight 5 on the charge. Plus being key in a number of Scenarios now. Leaving a couple of Guard to support Gamling and Hama should shield them from their own Fight Value inadequacies! </div>
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Since this force wants to be in the face of your opponents, Gamling’s ability to Heroic March should help with this, especially as you can afford to be liberal with your Might. But if you don’t feel comfortable being without the range threat Riders of Rohan give you with their ability to break the Bow Limit, you could always drop all the Royal Guard with Gamling and Hama for Riders of Rohan and gain yourself an extra Rider, increasing your troops to 22. But I think I’d prefer to replace just the 7 with Rohan Outriders on Horses instead, which then also allow you to bring an extra Rider of Rohan OR kit out 7 Royal Guard with Throwing Spears.</div>
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List 2: 800 Points</h4>
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Now I would love to reveal the 800 point all mounted Rohan army I’m planning to take to Stirling BUT I think I’ll share something more rounded instead. It builds on the 600 point list above.</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Theoden, King of Rohan with Armour, Shield and on an Armoured Horse</div>
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10 Rohan Royal Guard on Horses</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Gamling, Captain of Rohan with the Royal Standard of Rohan and on a Horse</div>
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10 Rohan Royal Guard on Horses</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Eomer, Marshall of the Mark with Shield and on an Armoured Horse</div>
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11 Rohan Royal Guard on Horses</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Total: 800 Points, 34 Models</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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The list takes the opportunity to upgrade Hama into Rohan’s mightiest single piece Hero, Eomer. A beast in combat and a huge threat, a hero like this will be a must at bigger points levels. The great thing is that Theodred can also fill this role incredibly well now too. The army works on the same principle as the one above, but do note that at higher points levels, the number of bows you may face may be an amount that can cause problems. So you may wish to build on the advice given for the 600 point list if you wish to be able to counter that threat beyond using your manoeuvrability and Heroic March capability!</div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mik’s Lists:</h4>
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List 3: 500 Points</h4>
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<b>Warband 1</b></div>
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Theoden, King of Rohan with Heavy Armour, Shield and Armoured Horse</div>
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10 Riders of Rohan</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2</b></div>
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Eomer, Marshal of the Riddermark with Shield and Armoured Horse</div>
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10 Riders of Rohan</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Total: 500 Points, 6 Might, 22 Models, 20 Bows</b></div>
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<br /></div>
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500 is a points level where effects such as Blinding Light and Pall of Night are hardly ever present. That means that we can take a full advantage of the Bow fire capabilities of the Riders of Rohan. It is unlikely that any other army at this level will be able to get up to 20 shots per turn. Combining this with 10” movement means that we can not only set ourselves up in the best positions and force our opponents out into open spaces, where they will lose the defensive terrain bonuses, but it also means that our Army can move and shoot at almost the same speed as most opponents will just be moving. Although you could call it a coward’s tactic, it is viable for you to spend most of the game running around your opponent and shooting, reducing their numbers, whilst trying to set yourself up for some devastating charges. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At the European Team Championships, one member of the Polish team members used an army of 20-something Riders of Rohan, Saruman and Gandalf, and did not lose a game, nearly beating me in the final round of the tournament (I salvaged a draw from the jaws of defeat after salvaging a defeat from the jaws of victory ;)). Although the rules have changed, the strategy in my opinion remains viable.</div>
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The choice of Eomer over Gamling comes down to the fact that I like heroes with 3 Attacks at a points level where it is difficult to stop them! Gamling appeals to me more in forces that can really take advantage of the constantly replenishing Might. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
One consideration for you however may be that if you play Gamling in an all-bow force, you could potentially call Heroic March every single turn, letting you to move 7.5" and still shooting. Your enemies would find it difficult to ever catch you, as long as you planned and executed your moves well.</div>
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List 4: 800 Points</h4>
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<b>Warband 1</b></div>
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Theoden, King of Rohan with Heavy Armour, Shield and Armoured Horse</div>
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10 Riders of Rohan</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 2</b></div>
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Eomer, Marshal of the Riddermark with Shield and Armoured Horse</div>
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10 Riders of Rohan</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ghan-Buri-Ghan</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
9 Woses Warriors</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Warband 4:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
9 Woses Warriors</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Warband 5:</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
9 Woses Warriors</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 799 Points, 9 Might, 50 Models, 48 of which have ranged attacks.</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Not only does Rohan have some amazing Heroes and Cavalry choices. They are also Historic Allies with my all-time favourite army – Wildmen of Druadan. The Woses Warriors have had some significant changes made to them in the new edition of the rules. First of all, they no longer require Warband Leaders other than Ghan to lead them. They went up by 2 points and Stalk Unseen is not quite the Elven Cloak of the olden days, allowing you to hide 50 models behind a single tree… However, they have also gained 1” of movement and the Blowpipe no longer restricts movement like a Crossbow, but is now treated as a Bow with shorter range.</div>
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At 800 points, due to the number of models, many armies suffer disadvantages from the terrain present on the battlefield. This is especially true with Cavalry forces such as Rohan, since their opponents can simply hide inside forests, stay safe, shoot out of the forests or just stall the game, forcing a draw. With 28 Woses, forests now become open ground to a large portion of our army. Not only that, forests can now be used by our army to shoot from, whilst being chased – we can move 3” and shoot, whilst our opponents can move 3” at full speed and still not catch us!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Total of 48 shots across the entire battle-line is also something rather scary. Even at Strength 2, with 28 of them re-rolling 1s to wound, our opponents will generally be forced to play on our terms and come where we want them to come. When that happens, we can combine the deadly Rohirrim charge with the abundance of Warriors who Hate Orcs, Goblins and Uruk-Hai.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Another consideration could be an army full of Warriors of Rohan on foot upgraded to have Strength 4 with Grimbold. It's definitely an option worth exploring, although I don't think it offers as much as the Woses. </div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<b>ALLIES:</b></h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>James:</b> Gondor calls for aid… and Rohan shall answer! Minas Tirith are a natural ally for Rohan, not just thematically but in SBG too. Whether you’re deciding to ally in Gandalf the White for some Wizard support at higher points levels, or truly want an anvil for your hammer, provided nicely by the newly Shield-Walling Warriors of Minas Tirith, look no further than the Gondorians to buff up your numbers. There is no obvious alliance worth sacrificing your army bonuses for, so if you are inclined to stand side by side with others, stand by those given the green light by the Alliance Matrix. You might feel combining Galadriel’s Protection of the Valar spell with the Horse Lord special rule is a nice synergy in what is another green alliance, but honestly, if I was taking this route, it’s Gondor that comes to the fore.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik:</b> As I’ve already discussed above, Woses seem like a go-to Infantry force in my opinion. Although I’ve been a lifelong fan of Gondor, I think that the combination of their Shieldwalls and big Heroes may not necessarily allow us to play the synergistic game that Rohan wants to play, whilst Woses provide what the Horse Lords are missing – more open ground where there would normally be forests, and more models. All-mounted Rohan forces will suffer from always being outnumbered, but Woses go a long way in fixing that issue.</div>
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<br /></div>
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And so here you have it. Both James and I have looked at Rohan from different perspectives and created 4 vastly different lists. Who is right? Probably the one who is successful with Rohan in 12 months time, as how the best armies are built will depend on what other players do with their armies and what shape the meta takes.</div>
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If you’re interested in a more in-depth analysis of Rohan, you can check out James’s video on the GBHL Podcast right here: </div>
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkrMZXYYP0g</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wkrMZXYYP0g/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wkrMZXYYP0g?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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I would also highly recommend recently published content by <a href="https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/09/10/10th-sept-riding-to-glory-with-king-theodengw-homepage-post-2gw-homepage-post-4/">Damian O’Byrne about Theoden on the ForgeWorld Blog</a>:</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/09/10/10th-sept-riding-to-glory-with-king-theodengw-homepage-post-2gw-homepage-post-4/</div>
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Ride now... Ride for Ruin...</div>
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Good luck!</div>
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BlackMist James</div>
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</div>
Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-3652136531194366612018-09-10T09:43:00.000+01:002020-06-18T22:25:17.853+01:00Fog of War, Part 4: Moria<h4 style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">
FOG OF WAR</span></h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmtTK1gG8EMx46c11E2F62i7P7raIbQvx_xdIpzSFzyhSNteR09F39MEJ1DTC2Al67OPiuQgQUVWB2HeoaGZrUhnwRhVUw9EDcbIvcfGcaxdnX1UKYa4r9_LbSjTZpJIl6aT1Jtae58hY/s1600/Moria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="984" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEmtTK1gG8EMx46c11E2F62i7P7raIbQvx_xdIpzSFzyhSNteR09F39MEJ1DTC2Al67OPiuQgQUVWB2HeoaGZrUhnwRhVUw9EDcbIvcfGcaxdnX1UKYa4r9_LbSjTZpJIl6aT1Jtae58hY/s320/Moria.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large; text-align: start;">Part 4: Moria</span></h4>
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When I first started writing the series, I imagined that some of the most prolific members of the community would be able to spare some time and chip in with their personal thoughts on their favourite factions. I lit the beacons and indeed my allies have answered! It is with great honour to welcome the 2020 UK Grand Tournament Champion, Jasmine Tetley.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Jasmine:</b> Moria were always great, with lots of diversity and powerful monsters, and the brand new Balrog is the king of them all! There is little that Moria doesn’t have. The basic Goblin is still the staple of every army, but more elite and harder to kill troops can support them. Especially worth noting is the killing power of the Prowlers. Diverse Shamans can bring other beasts (Spiders and Bats) which give more movement to an army that has little speed outside the Warg Marauders.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
The new army bonus and Groblog’s special rule can help to make up for the lower fight value, while Durburz is still well worth his points, especially as he can be a rare back line and safe leader in the new hero tiers system. There is a lack of Magic, but with the access to a huge variety of Monsters (cheaper ones like the Dweller and Cave Troll, plus the more expensive Balrog and Dragon), it makes Moria very fun (and powerful) in a game. With the diminished power of Magic, they are now going to be harder to stop.</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Whilst the Army Bonus is aimed towards your classic horde army, an all-Monster Moria looks very fun and potentially quite good with the buffs to the Balrog and both Cave Drakes and Dragons with their Monstrous Charge. The below lists steer towards numbers and their bonus which seems to be very effective, but show two different ways of playing. </div>
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<br /></div>
<h4>
List 1: 800 Points - With The Balrog</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
The Balrog<br />
7 Moria Goblin Prowlers<br />
6 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
5 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Durburz<br />
5 Moria Goblin Prowlers<br />
5 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
5 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Groblog<br />
3 Moria Goblin Prowlers<br />
3 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
3 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
3 Warg Marauder<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 800 Points, 6 Might, 48 Models</b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Balrog is the centre of this list and obviously the most important piece. Yes, the Balrog is slow and can be easy to pin down with one model, but he now has ways to work around that, the first of which is being able call a Heroic Combat for free every turn. The second part is the Flaming Whip, which allows you to potentially pull enemies in during the Shoot Phase, and then Heroic Combat. An additional use for the Whip can be to target back line Heroes and Banners etc. as with some luck on the In The Ways, you can drag them into combat over their own friendly models. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Finally The Balrog acts as a super Shaman, allowing you to bring along Fearless Goblins, which provide the numbers. The new Army Bonus, alongside Groblog, potentially gives you Fight Value 5 prowlers with +2 To Wound modifier applied against trapped models.</div>
<h4>
<br />List 2: 750 Points - Without The Balrog</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Durburz<br />
3 Moria Blackshields<br />
4 Moria Goblin Prowlers<br />
2 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
6 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Moria Blackshield Captain<br />
Moria Blackshield Drummers<br />
3 Moria Blackshields<br />
1 Moria Goblin Prowler<br />
2 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
4 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Moria Goblin Captain<br />
2 Moria Blackshields<br />
1 Moria Goblin Prowler<br />
5 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
4 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Moria Goblin Captain<br />
1 Moria Goblin Prowler<br />
6 Moria Goblins with Shield<br />
4 Moria Goblins with Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 5:</b><br />
Cave Drake<br />
2 Warg Marauders<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 750 Points, 10 Might, 57 models</b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The reduction in points to the Goblin Drums (100 in the previous edition) makes them even better than they were before, with the Blackshield one favoured for the Courage and ability to re-position. The increase in courage gives us a Courage 5 Leader and Courage 4 troops with Blackshields. The Re-Rolls are great and the -1 Courage Modifier to the enemy makes it hard for them to charge your Terrifying models and more likely to run when Broken. Captains are favoured for Heroic Marches. Marauders still have their place as they apply pressure and can grab objectives. </div>
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The army is topped off with the now very powerful Cave Drake that has the new Monstrous Charge rule, giving it 5 attacks and the ability to knock over lower Strength Monsters (Fell Beasts!). Combination of a large base, Mountain Dweller and Woodland Creature, all mean that it should not be too hard to get the Drake round the back of your enemy's lines and provide a lot more traps for your Goblins, as well as causing general chaos. A Drake is best used offensively to disrupt and cause the enemy problems early (Due to its low Courage, it is more likely to flee once you are Broken), and allows your goblins more freedom to gain an advantage. </div>
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<b>Mik:</b> My experience with Moria has not been as vast as Jasmine’s. However, I’ve always been a fan of the regular goblins and their sheer numbers, instead of focusing on the elite troops such as Blackshields and Prowlers. Check out this list:</div>
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<h4>
<b>List 3: 500 Points</b></h4>
<b>Warband 1</b><br />
Durburz, The Goblin King of Moria<br />
6 Goblins with Shields<br />
6 Goblins with Spears<br />
1 Cave Troll<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2</b><br />
Groblog<br />
6 Goblins with Shields<br />
5 Goblins with Spears<br />
1 Cave Troll<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3</b><br />
Moria Goblin Captain<br />
6 Goblins with Shields<br />
5 Goblins with Spears<br />
1 Bat Swarm<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 500 points, 39 Models, 8 Might Points and “They have 2 Cave Trolls!”</b><br />
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Naturally at 500 it’s difficult to include The Balrog (although… you never know… it wouldn’t surprise me if I saw one!). Instead the list focuses on amassing as many Goblins as it can. 2 Cave Trolls provide an enormous amount of hitting power on top of the large numbers and a Bat Swarm designed to help cutting down the enemy heroes. </div>
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There is an argument that says you generally require some number of fast moving creatures in this game, due to the variety of scenarios you may end up playing, as some of them need you to move quickly off the board or chase an objective. To help with speed, whilst still keeping the high Strength and killing power, here's an alternative 500 Points list with Druzhag and his beasts:</div>
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<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
List 4: 500 Points</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Durburz, The Goblin King of Moria<br />
6 Goblins with Shields<br />
6 Goblins with Spears<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Groblog<br />
6 Goblins with Shields<br />
6 Goblins with Spears<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Druzhag, the Beastcaller<br />
1 Bat Swarm<br />
6 Wild Wargs<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Moria Goblin Captain<br />
6 Goblins with Shields<br />
6 Goblins with Spears<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 47 Models, 10 Might Points, 0 Bows.</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
There are just so many ways of building Moria lists. At 500 points you can outnumber pretty much every opponent, with the exception of maybe Shire and Goblin Town. At higher points, you have the biggest and coolest Monsters in the game. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see a Double-Dragon list at 800 built such as:</div>
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<br /></div>
2 Dragons with Fly<br />
26 Goblins<br />
2 Bat Swarms<br />
<br />
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Or perhaps with the point reduction and the staggering 6/6/6 (Fight/Strength/Attacks) we should be looking at the Watcher in the Water as the new powerhouse among big threats. It wouldn't be hard for the Watcher to simply appear next to the enemy General, drag him into combat with a Tentacle and outright kill him. It seems quite literally as a sleeper Monster right now that could put a lot of players in major trouble. </div>
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<br /></div>
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And what about the Dwellers in the Dark? With the significantly lower access to Heroic Strike than in the last edition, perhaps each Warband could have one of these instead of a Cave Troll? 8-inch Movement, very high Fight Value, Magic Resistance and a lot of Strength 5 Attacks are not something anyone can scoff at. Only time will tell what rules the tables!<br />
<br />
Just my favourite part of the Moria equation - The Balrog and 6 Dwellers total 800 points. How cool is that?!<br />
<br />
With all this excitement about Monsters in mind, we must however remember that despite their sheer combat prowess, they are still not the be-all-end-all models in the game. A well placed Heroic Strike, a Channelled Transfix, or simply one bad roll can bring a Monster on its knees, so no matter how many of them you have, you must be careful not to put them into too much trouble and always protect them the way you would protect your Queen in a game of Chess. For me Monsters are the reason to play Moria, but they can also be the player's downfall, as without them, the rest of the army can crumble. </div>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<b>Allies </b></h4>
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<b>Jasmine: </b>You can afford to lose the army bonus in most situations, and being convenient allies with most gives you lots of options to explore. </div>
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<b>Mik: </b>I could have added allies, but as they do not have any Historical Allies, I didn’t want to lose the Army Bonus at 500 points. The Fight Value increase can help against armies such as Rohan, Minas Tirith, Mordor, Goblin Town, Hobbits and even other Moria forces if they decide to get tricksy and ally something special! At higher points, it's worth considering losing the bonus, just like Jasmine mentioned - there's a lot more options to explore!</div>
<br />
Good luck!<br />
BlackMist & Jasmine<br />
<br />Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-33748234079537111732018-09-07T08:03:00.004+01:002020-06-18T22:25:26.806+01:00Fog of War, Part 3: Númenor<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">FOG OF WAR</span></b></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh711bWCKf1Or4AT_AaG2tQDCSusimYuQOWm2TbpXL3nQBF6U5lT7pDfDfYZsqfizPzf6RsWeWcKG3JOFMUan1ixVlFvkBZhW9Fc1-XiFToRvUIGyukXT8tZVNWpizM8GUxFuEYZ6nb_qhD/s1600/Numenor.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="1368" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh711bWCKf1Or4AT_AaG2tQDCSusimYuQOWm2TbpXL3nQBF6U5lT7pDfDfYZsqfizPzf6RsWeWcKG3JOFMUan1ixVlFvkBZhW9Fc1-XiFToRvUIGyukXT8tZVNWpizM8GUxFuEYZ6nb_qhD/s320/Numenor.png" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Part 3: Númenor</span></b></h3>
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Following on from Rivendell and Easterlings, I thought it would be cool to finish off the week on the Númenor / Last Alliance theme, as it’s another one of the armies that hasn’t seen much play in the last decade and has not really had any great tournament results in the past editions of the game. So here we are!</div>
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The first thing that jumps out from the faction list is Elendil. With Strength 5, Narsil, good choice of Heroic Actions, magic protection and an ability to ride a Horse, he is truly the High King worthy of the Legendary status he possesses. His son, Isildur is also a worthy fighter, although compared to the old rules, he cannot take The Ring if Elendil is present (as naturally Elendil died before Isildur claimed it), adding a bit of a thematic dilemma for those wanting to build an army out of Númenor.</div>
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Another good thing about Númenor is that all of its warriors have Fight Value and Strength at level 4, making it easier to chop through whatever is thrown at them and between Elendil and their Army Bonus it is unlikely they will be running away from the table very often.</div>
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<h4>
500 Points:</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Elendil, High King of Gondor and Arnor with a Shield on a Horse<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Bows<br />
1 Warrior of Númenor with a Spear and a Bow<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Isildur on a Horse<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Bows<br />
1 Warrior of Númenor with a Spear and a Bow<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 500 Points, 20 Models, 6 Might, 6 Bows.</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although it doesn’t look like much, with only 20 Models, the sheer strength of Elendil and Isildur makes up for the lack of numbers, as they are both easily capable of cutting down 4 models per turn each, this being especially true with Elendil’s Heroic Combats. </div>
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Lack of a Banner is a weakness for some scenarios, but not all armies have Banners at 500 points. This army’s primary focus is to correctly navigate their heroes into spots where they cause large amount of damage, whilst ensuring the rest of the army is there to support them. Naturally what this means is that your mission will be to achieve the most possible amount of damage with your heroes, whilst using your warriors for claiming objectives and protecting their leaders from getting swamped and overworked. </div>
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Some armies in the game struggle at certain points levels but excel at others. Númenor may just be one of them. Whereas at 500 we lack the numbers to really support the two generals, at 600 we are able to bring 10+ extra models at no additional cost (other than their own points), due to the Heroic Tier that Elendil at Isildur possess:</div>
<h4>
600 Points:</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Elendil, High King of Gondor and Arnor with a Shield on a Horse<br />
4 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
4 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Bows<br />
2 Warrior of Númenor with a Spear and a Bow<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Isildur on a Horse<br />
4 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
4 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
1 Warrior of Numenor with a Banner<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Bows<br />
2 Warrior of Númenor with a Spear and a Bow<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 600 Points, 6 Might, 28 Models, 9 Bows.</b><br />
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And the Heroic Tier still allows us to get a total of 7 more models if we were to go up to 650 or 700 points!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Another way of building Númenor at 500 points could be to skip the superheroes and go for generic captains, for a sort of an elite Cavalry formation, like here:</div>
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<h4>
500 Points:</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Captain of Númenor with Shield, Heavy Armour, Lance and Horse<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
1 Warriors of Númenor with a Bow<br />
1 Warrior of Númenor with a Bow and Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Captain of Númenor with Shield, Heavy Armour, Lance and Horse<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with a Bow<br />
1 Warrior of Númenor with a Bow and Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Captain of Númenor with Shield, Heavy Armour, Lance and Horse<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
2 Warriors of Númenor with a Bow<br />
1 Warrior of Númenor with a Bow and Spear<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 4:</b><br />
Captain of Númenor with Shield, Heavy Armour, Lance and Horse<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Total: 500 Points, 26 Models, 8 Might, 8 Bows</b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although this list lacks the flavour of the other one, the 4 Captains of <span style="text-align: start;">Númenor</span> riding horses with Lances are not something I’d be looking forward taking head on. </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Perhaps the right answer lies somewhere in between the two?</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
ALLIES:</h4>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Moving onto 800 points and above I think it’s fair to say that the <span style="text-align: start;">Númenore</span>ans will be looking for some allies. Their friends aren’t many if we want to stay within either Historic of Convenient alliance levels – A bunch of monsters and or Elves of all variety. Naturally the Last Alliance theme seems like something out of a book ;)</div>
<h4>
800 Points:</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Elendil, High King of Gondor and Arnor with a Shield on a Horse<br />
6 Warriors of Númenor with Shields<br />
5 Warriors of Númenor with Spears and Shields<br />
1 Warrior of Númenor with a Spear, Shield and a Banner<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Bows<br />
3 Warriors of Númenor with Bows and Spears<br />
<br />
<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Gil-Galad, High King of the Elves, with a Shield on a Horse<br />
6 High Elf Warriors with Shields<br />
5 High Elf Warriors with Shields and Spears<br />
1 High Elf Warrior with a Spear and a Banner<br />
3 High Elf Warriors with Bows<br />
3 High Elf Warriors with Bows and Spears<br />
<br />
<b>Total: 800 points, 6 Might, 38 Models, 12 Bows and 2 Banners</b><br />
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Of course, TWO banners might be an overkill, but if the two warbands end up being deployed separately on two opposite board edges, like they could be in Hold Ground, or Heirlooms of Ages Past, you at least ensure that all of your warriors will be getting additional dice in combat. Also, as the Banner bearers also carry Spears, you will want to keep them close to the fighting lines, and especially close to Gil-Galad and Elendil, providing them with extra re-rolls to win combats. Besides, they just look awesome!</div>
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Lastly, a thing worth considering is mixing up the two factions together into one combat line. If you were to invest into less Spears on the High Elves and more spears on the Númenoreans, you will be able to create a battle line that has the front rank of Elves and the back rank of Men (or vice versa!), providing you with Fight Value 5, Defence 6 front rank alongside Strength 4 support – and if you are facing Strength 4 opponents, you will probably want to swap this to have the Defence 5 Men at the front, to preserve the higher Defence troops for later. Perhaps the correct thing would be to arm every model in the army with a Spear, instead of having a second Banner? Or perhaps that’s an overkill… I’ll leave it to you to figure out!</div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">Join me next week as we venture into some of the more popular armies with some guest writers from all across GBHL! </span></div>
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Good Luck!<br />
BlackMist<br />
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-39293711987656222082018-09-05T08:35:00.277+01:002020-09-15T10:40:29.700+01:00Fog of War, Part 2: Easterlings & Khand<h4 style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">FOG OF WAR</span></h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4UjhXVzmwRSSRz7jaYCCiNhJL4Wu16AM5JP8pxZw415cyWGor0MUnnfde734ue7v5Rta-YzdJYWTMBDLdKUMIpPIFB2ifPkd6sFKZo4IZMPnnF6U0D62P8wEzuwZdQfIEKnQEHfL3VBi_/s2541/IMG_3202.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1237" data-original-width="2541" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4UjhXVzmwRSSRz7jaYCCiNhJL4Wu16AM5JP8pxZw415cyWGor0MUnnfde734ue7v5Rta-YzdJYWTMBDLdKUMIpPIFB2ifPkd6sFKZo4IZMPnnF6U0D62P8wEzuwZdQfIEKnQEHfL3VBi_/w500-h244/IMG_3202.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Part 2: Easterlings & Khand<br /></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(Updated in September 2020 to include latest FAQs)</i></span></h4>
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<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After beginning the series with High Elves, I decided to move onto an army that has not seen much love in the recent years, or in fact most of the game's history. My experience with it goes back over a decade. Last time I used Easterlings, they were led by Khamul on Fell Beast in an alliance with Harad at the 2007 Eastern Europe Grand Tournament, where I finished 2nd. Since then, I have stashed them so deeply into the box, that I haven't been able to find them since. I still hope they will one day make a glorious comeback. <br />
<br />
The premise of this series from the beginning has bring to bring together some of the brightest minds of Middle-earth SBG and ask them to share their experiences of the game in order to help new players discover the factions and intricacies of this incredible game. The guest in this part is Tim Hixon, a California player with whom I have debated SBG since as long as I can remember, going back all the way to Games Workshop Forums around 2005, through to The Last Alliance forums and now on GBHL Facebook page. We first met in real life about a decade ago at Warhammer World, though I think that's excusable, since we do live about 5000 miles from each other! He is someone who over the years has had a major influence on my gaming and taught me to look at the game from different perspectives. His input into my armylists has made me a far better player than I ever thought I would become. I have asked Tim to help me write this article, as for most part of the last 15 years I have known him to be an avid Khand player.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Before we begin, I would like to thank Zachary Adamczyk for providing me with some excellent pictures of his amazingly painted Easterling army, which won the Best Painted Army Award at the Polish Team Championships in 2018. </div><div style="text-align: justify;">
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<h4 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">THE EASTERLINGS</span></b></h4><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcZLfCpfjyf1txWO9k1QQ5zi7bLdvWlWTDmY_tD2TlF3lPot7c_kFM-f2aoDlxgi5y1PvJ9nDDt-FiCsM-d7aXrNqskweJRQqEcHIiL2OuyMRv9fZ_xAWU9xbV0ILjaI-xZyThG56cNQS/s2048/IMG_3192.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcZLfCpfjyf1txWO9k1QQ5zi7bLdvWlWTDmY_tD2TlF3lPot7c_kFM-f2aoDlxgi5y1PvJ9nDDt-FiCsM-d7aXrNqskweJRQqEcHIiL2OuyMRv9fZ_xAWU9xbV0ILjaI-xZyThG56cNQS/w500-h375/IMG_3192.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Mik:</b> The thing that stands out for the Easterlings is their Army Bonus. Although I'm not generally concerned about Courage after breaking, as correctly played heroes tend to take care of that, I like the +1 Courage bonus that armies like Easterlings or Minas Tirith get, as it makes it easier for them to fight Terror-causing enemies without the need to bring someone like a War Priest (East) or models with Bodyguard (MT). Easterlings get something extra special though - the Scenario-specific re-roll, which can have an enormous effect and will come in handy in all scenarios that have an end-game condition depending on a roll of 1-2 after an army has been broken. Frankly, there are so many of them that you will probably play at least 1 in every tournament. </div>
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</div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
First look at the Easterlings shows that Amdur is what I call a 633 - A Hero with Fight Value of 6 or higher, 3 Attacks and 3 points of Might. What this means is that he can easily outfight all rank and file troops in the game, with the exception of King's Guard and a rare few others. His special rules are also very interesting, as he can either help with the core fighting or go after heroes without the fear of automatically losing to Heroic Strikes. As it stands, Amdur is one of the best heroes of the Evil side and possibly one of the best heroes in the game - not necessarily in power level alone, but rather by his efficiency, ie. how much a player gets for the amount of points spent. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimMNBcpIQrGzgl4lTft1syOSVFPFXnPObd006Xjv0oeLRjId-9QqGhX5PFUnIIt8v8_Cqhuggt_oL4yORHragSvgJJAMoPCHFaYYA5FQnjFnUxyqrrpANvzc_dPxoz-o8u9uktch2Iz_Xu/s2048/IMG_3191.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimMNBcpIQrGzgl4lTft1syOSVFPFXnPObd006Xjv0oeLRjId-9QqGhX5PFUnIIt8v8_Cqhuggt_oL4yORHragSvgJJAMoPCHFaYYA5FQnjFnUxyqrrpANvzc_dPxoz-o8u9uktch2Iz_Xu/w500-h375/IMG_3191.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Easterlings use the unique Phalanx rule, allowing them to fight in 3 ranks without trapping the warriors in the front rank when they lose combat. Uruk-Hai and Fiefdoms Pikemen always suffer from a very high variance - when they win fights, they usually kill, but when they lose fights, their warriors usually die to double strikes from the enemy. Easterlings don't suffer this penalty thanks to the Phalanx rule. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Final thing that Easterlings have going for them is their ability to carry shields and pikes and still receive the shield bonus, meaning that they don't leave you in a situation where you'll have to choose if you take a pike or a shield like in the case of Isengard, instead you get best of both worlds. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwpZ4YjAv3gxHc1my0rWvy6Tbx_A9Ei455uGxLuSsv0tGW0BYlEq5Ee3y0czhOOsFhfe8XCrHTPHnPbbeYjblAzdOV4c0jEHL0qEyKh_QJQFodvIAArhnHqjp0ilel34b7EiIz0JR-LMWA/s2048/IMG_3193.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwpZ4YjAv3gxHc1my0rWvy6Tbx_A9Ei455uGxLuSsv0tGW0BYlEq5Ee3y0czhOOsFhfe8XCrHTPHnPbbeYjblAzdOV4c0jEHL0qEyKh_QJQFodvIAArhnHqjp0ilel34b7EiIz0JR-LMWA/w500-h375/IMG_3193.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div>
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<h4>
List 1: Mik's 500 Points of Easterlings</h4>
<div>
<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
<div>
Amdur, Lord of Blades on an Armoured Horse</div>
<div>9 Easterling Warriors with Shields and Pikes</div>
<div>3 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes</div><div>2 Black Dragon Kataphrakts</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
<div>
Easterling Captain with Shield on an Armoured Horse </div>
<div>1 Black Dragon Kataphrakt with a War Drum</div><div>9 Easterling Warriors with Shields & Pikes</div><div>2 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes</div><div><br /></div>
<div><b>Total 500 Points, 28 Models, 5 Might. </b></div>
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<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
To start off I think arming all of your foot models with Shield and Pike is better than having some with just shields. It means that you’ll be able to freely move, turn, face whatever direction and always have 2 or 3 attacks in every fight. However, the way GW packages Easterlings doesn't give you this choice, so you may need to convert or stick to more shields & swords, which is okay too, since the front rank will be able to faint keeping the Fight value 4 of Black Dragons. </div>
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</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The 5 Black Dragons are there as a reassurance that if you need the Fight 4 (facing Minas Tirith, Mordor, Dwarves, etc), then you’ll have access to it at all times, as the Fight Value is passed into combat whether you’re directly in it or just supporting. You can put them in the back rank to keep them protected, whilst providing Fight 4 to the front rank.</div>
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</div>
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The second Warband with the drum greatly improves the speed of the army and the total of 5 mounted models make the army really fast. Not only will you be able to outmaneuver most opponents, you can also get to objectives and better positions quicker. I opted for 0 bows, as I don’t think they’re great here.</div>
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You can have a War Priest, a Dragon Knight or a Captain to lead the second Warband. For me at 500 points the War Priest is too weak in combat, whilst Bladewrath is too much of an overkill for Amdur, who will manage with no help. Dragon Knight is interesting thanks to his 3 attacks, but his status as a Minor Hero is a problem, since we want to maximise numbers. As such, the best option here is to go for a Captain (also Heroic March stacks with the drum, so you can have those board-leaping marches if you need). </div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">Lack of a banner may be a hindrance for certain scenarios, but we still get the combat re-rolls through Amdur's special rule. It's worth noting Amdur benefits from his own banner, so will always roll 4 dice to win combat and 5 when charging mounted - a total beast! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPmp9bamBocD746IBmbGBl-YR7INS5e1EqNOhLlGLWUon3ju-qotX_LjDxGIa1xhor5fd5EqsTKNkbzQQyFmtewpEls2BwjvA-DmhzJQ7ASXYhiCoIkWp1P2FrD_qpAps-tYgWOSL26LzJ/s2048/IMG_3180.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1120" data-original-width="2048" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPmp9bamBocD746IBmbGBl-YR7INS5e1EqNOhLlGLWUon3ju-qotX_LjDxGIa1xhor5fd5EqsTKNkbzQQyFmtewpEls2BwjvA-DmhzJQ7ASXYhiCoIkWp1P2FrD_qpAps-tYgWOSL26LzJ/w500-h274/IMG_3180.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
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List 2: Mik's 800 Points of Easterlings</h4>
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<b>Warband 1:</b></div>
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Amdur, Lord of Blades on an Armoured Horse</div>
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10 Easterling Warriors with Shields and Pikes (1 also carries a Banner)</div>
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5 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes</div>
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<b>Warband 2:</b></div>
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Khamul on Fell Beast</div>
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6 Black Dragon Kataphrakts </div>
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1 Kataphrakt with a War Drum</div>
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<b>Warband 3:</b></div>
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Easterling War Priest on an Armoured Horse</div>
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9 Easterling Warriors with Shields and Pikes</div>
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3 Black Dragon Warriors with Shields and Pikes</div>
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<b>Total: 799 points, 6 Might, 37 models. </b></div>
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There is an argument here to add bows and by all means get 10-12 of them if you wish. Bows will cost you a point of Defence, so it’s a trade off that you could make if you think that they will be useful and they can be kept in the second rank of the Phalanx, instead of shields, thus staying safe at least at the start. </div>
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Khamul is a worthy addition at 800 points. An important thing to note is that I would make Amdur the Army Leader and let Khamul roam around behind enemy lines, trying to pick off banners, heroes or other unprotected targets. Then, if Khamul dies, we haven't given away Victory Points for losing the Leader. Being one of only two Wraiths with access to Heroic Strike makes Khamul incredibly valuable, as he's not going to be too afraid going after enemy Heroes, especially since his special rule allows him to increase his Fight Value to 6 too. </div>
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10 Cavalry models, including a Fell Beast, all moving at 15-17" per turn, alongside a 5x3 Phalanx and a 4x3 Phalanx with 9" movement makes a very mobile force. The War Priest's Bladewrath in this instance can essentially turn Amdur into a second Fell Beast, as he'll be charging with 4 Attacks , Banner re-roll and 8 Strength 6 (or 10!) strikes when he wins, ensuring easy kills.<br />
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The primary weakness of an Easterling force is going to be its low Fight Value and Strength in combat. You can invest in a lot of Black Dragons, but they will cut into your numbers. You can not do anything about Strength 3 however. To play this army properly you'll have to learn how to utilise your centre piece heroes, as well as how to mitigate the lower Fight Value by bringing in as many attacks into each combat as possible, so making the most of your Phalanx. The numbers are not your strength either, as the above 800 points list has 37 models, which is somewhat of a low-end at 800 points. Your models are generally weaker than your opponent's, so it's your movement speed, manoeuvrability and combination of War Priest, Khamul and Amdur that will define your results. It might be an idea to swap 4 Black Dragon Kataphrakts for 8 Warriors, but whether you want to do it is up to you - I like the look of a force full of heavy cavalry. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">You could also go with Captains and more Warriors instead of the Fell Beast, but where's the fun in that?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtCcY8pHko7GXlINJ5YVPTGnHzJOGD5H_ZqgZCrSOLL7-suS73jyBG0Pi5I88xQSIoiMoCQrXsB2Bc5Gf85c2mufsZqmW6kN2nLc-FHuvLp_RGTN6IARLsdrI0Csrh3A8W4pTIy3YFx36l/s2048/IMG_3209.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtCcY8pHko7GXlINJ5YVPTGnHzJOGD5H_ZqgZCrSOLL7-suS73jyBG0Pi5I88xQSIoiMoCQrXsB2Bc5Gf85c2mufsZqmW6kN2nLc-FHuvLp_RGTN6IARLsdrI0Csrh3A8W4pTIy3YFx36l/w500-h375/IMG_3209.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBGoJlYAPlG3BlLLo514HzuKr_bRYxSzM3DJrBE0wpY5BryjWiRVRiF-V3XD6xTX66wiNCy-N4jUiwPYUDP0hg15YwmE1DSUDoZ6eu64V_1pdGxNMp_atUcBQCLEfo2SaprbEI_mhBr3T/s2048/IMG_0580.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1394" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBGoJlYAPlG3BlLLo514HzuKr_bRYxSzM3DJrBE0wpY5BryjWiRVRiF-V3XD6xTX66wiNCy-N4jUiwPYUDP0hg15YwmE1DSUDoZ6eu64V_1pdGxNMp_atUcBQCLEfo2SaprbEI_mhBr3T/w341-h500/IMG_0580.jpg" width="341" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><b>============================================</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><b>============================================</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: bold;">VARIAGS OF KHAND</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASWpFtUDsnxuUf1-EVOSWAPK7zoZYV6D0_4O2QHfYIy0k2Q_QZjglWejzEGRZIWTfncNHulWmVzFgqzgfGFNH7MENo0UvkL_iPzaEkIfYoxQyLeUkXfAoeaTif05hLf7jljb3VYVwWdxG/s2048/Variag+King+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1153" data-original-width="2048" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgASWpFtUDsnxuUf1-EVOSWAPK7zoZYV6D0_4O2QHfYIy0k2Q_QZjglWejzEGRZIWTfncNHulWmVzFgqzgfGFNH7MENo0UvkL_iPzaEkIfYoxQyLeUkXfAoeaTif05hLf7jljb3VYVwWdxG/w500-h281/Variag+King+1.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i>(Mik's converted Khandish King/Ringwraith in a Chariot)</i></div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Tim:</b> Khandish Kings are a rare breed of three attack unnamed heroes and are the back bone of any Variag force with their killing potential and their 6" Commanding Presence special rule. The King also has access to Heroic Strike which allows him to go toe to toe with any hero or monster. Finally, the Kings have access to Heroic Resolve which can provide a crucial turn of Magical defense when facing a magic capable opponent.<br />
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All Variag heroes and models are armed with a hand-and-a-half axe which give them access to Piercing Strike in addition to going two-handed. The chariot provides an additional layer of protection by taking strikes for the rider 2/3s of the time when they lose duels and during the shoot phase. <br />
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Khandish Chariots are scythes that can cut down rank and file models as they hit them, with cavalry being more vulnerable as both the rider and the mount take the impact hits. With a hero at the reigns, the chariots can potentially move twice in a turn by using a Heroic Combat. Chariots are also cheap enough that they can be used in larger numbers.<br />
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Khandish Horsemen are in my opinion the best light cavalry in the game. Their Fight Value is higher than 3, they can be 100% bow armed if using a pure theme or allied with Easterlings and they have a hand-and-a-half axe which allows them to piercing strike and/or two handed strike. This gives this warrior the potential to hit at strength 4 with a +1 to wound and double strikes when they win.<br />
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Khandish Warriors are nothing special other than their Fight Value and weapon choices. They are good for adding numbers and holding objectives. Against the right opponent (Rohan and Gondor) they can also provide additional support in combat.<br />
<br /><div>The Variags of Khand are great allies to other forces, but do not greatly benefit from using allies in their own force. Easterlings are their only Historical Ally which allows the Variags of Khand access to a Fellbeast mounted Khamùl. The Easterling and Variags keep their respective army bonuses and including Khamùl on a Fellbeast provides an anti-monster tool with some magical support, Harbinger of Evil and line breaking hurl capability to the Khandish army. Khandish Heroes on Chariots bring a punch the Easterlings lack on their own, alongside the ability to bring mounted horsemen for taking objectives, some additional combat support and sniping on the move.</div><div><br /></div><div>Variags Heroes do make for great allies to other forces, even Impossible Alliances. A King on a chariot can freely ally with any other force and provide a rank and file scything blade. Because they do not affect allied heroes or troops they can call Heroic Moves independently of the main force without cancelling out any Heroic Move or March actions called within six inches of themselves. This allows the chariots to disrupt enemy movements while the allied force manoeuvres without constraints.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqi6ujVFFbC8TbKFFQcILG_846ev1Yi3KkPQwGS6QSwJswxTLXI0dCcPILwxsTQqpS8m2XxLZGWFg7JfBqGdZ20Akgk9XomYf5zvTIp-W19d_jJEvVS9y5UYfCgDyhajiQslfxA5fX7nob/s2042/KHAND+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1070" data-original-width="2042" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqi6ujVFFbC8TbKFFQcILG_846ev1Yi3KkPQwGS6QSwJswxTLXI0dCcPILwxsTQqpS8m2XxLZGWFg7JfBqGdZ20Akgk9XomYf5zvTIp-W19d_jJEvVS9y5UYfCgDyhajiQslfxA5fX7nob/w500-h263/KHAND+1.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>
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<b>List 3: Tim's 500 Points of Khand</b></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><div><b>Warband 1:</b></div><div>Khandish King with Khandish Chariot</div><div>5 Khandish Horsemen</div><div>2 Khandish Charioteers with hand-and-a-half axe</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Warband 2:</b></div><div>Khandish King with Khandish Chariot</div><div>5 Khandish Horsemen</div><div>2 Khandish Charioteers with hand-and-a-half axe</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Total: 500 Points, 16 Models, 12 bows</b></div></div>
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<b>List 4: Tim's 800 Points of Khand</b><br />
<br /><div><b>Warband 1:</b></div><div>Khamûl the Easterling with Fell Beast</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Warband 2:</b></div><div>Khandish King with Khandish Chariot</div><div>15 Khandish Horsemen</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Warband 3:</b></div><div>Khandish King with Khandish Chariot</div><div>14 Khandish Horsemen</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Total: 797 Points, 32 Models, 31 bows</b></div>
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<b>List 5: Tim's "Modern version of his best performing Khandish Army"</b><br />
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<b>Warband 1:</b><br /><div>Khandish King with Horse; </div><div>15 Khandish Horsemen</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Warband 2:</b></div><div>Khandish King with Khandish Chariot; </div><div>14 Khandish Warriors</div><div>1 Khandish Horseman</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Warband 3:</b></div><div>Khandish King with Khandish Chariot; </div><div>14 Khandish Warriors</div><div>1 Khandish Horseman</div><div><br /></div><div>Total: 800 Points, 48 Models, 20 Bows</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Mik: </b>I personally have very little experience playing with or against Khand, but the army has one of the most fascinating tricks in the game. Since Chariots are unaffected by spells that would knock them down, such as Sorcerous Blast or Nature's Wrath, there exists a cool interaction between Saruman and Khandish Chariots (as well War Beasts and Iron Hills Chariot on the good side):</div><div><br /></div><div>- Sorcerous Blasts knocks over all models in combat except Chariots. </div><div>- If a Chariot is in combat with multiple enemies, casting Blast on just 1 of them will knock them all down, including Trolls, Fell Beasts and all sorts of things like that. The Chariot will stay standing. As a result, getting your chariots surrounded is what you want to happen with a Wizard around. Naturally the S3 hit will then occur on both sides, possibly wounding or killing multiple enemies (and potentially the Charioteer!). </div><div><br /></div><div>This is especially good with Heroes, since they won't die from a single S3 hit. Additionally, they can call Heroic Move and choose not to call With Me! when doing so, resulting in some cool situations:</div><div><br /></div><div>1. Move first, charge, trample someone. </div><div>2. Opponent will counter-charge and surround the Chariot. </div><div>3. One model will be blasted, leaving the Chariot in combat with enemies on the ground, resulting in a situation where even if the Chariot loses, opponents won't be able to strike (unless they have spear support). </div><div>In the event of losing a Heroic Move roll-off, opponents will charge and then end up on the floor again. This creates an interesting situation where it is generally best not to challenge Heroic Moves called by Chariots and where winning Priority whilst using a Chariot is actively bad (because then the Wizard has to move before opponents get to trap the Chariot). Opponent may choose to engage the Chariot with only 1 or two warriors in fear of Sorcerous Blast, but that can result in a Heroic Combat from your Chieftain or King, killing those 1 or 2 warriors and moving again in the Combat Phase. </div><div><br /></div><div>Although it's a cool interaction, there really isn't an army that can deploy it competitively, because Saruman and King in Chariot take up so many points, it leaves very little for anything else. But if you want a fun list trying to abuse this trick, here's one for you:</div><div><br /></div><div>Saruman on a Horse</div><div>18 Orcs with Spears</div><div><br /></div><div>Khandish King on a Chariot</div><div>12 Khandish Warriors</div><div><br /></div><div>Khandish Chieftain on a Chariot</div><div>12 Khandish Warriors</div><div><br /></div><div>Total 700 Points, 45 Models, 7 Might. </div><div><br /></div><div>I'm not saying this will win you events and it might struggle to win games too, but I'd love to see my opponent's frustration dealing with the Chariots :) Alternatively you could try dropping in a King Chariot into an Isengard army or some other weird monstrosity. </div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Summary:</b></div><div><br /></div>So whether you're looking for a force full of heavy Golden Infantry, or an army full of nomadic horsemen, both Easterlings and Khand will provide a lot of memorable experiences. The armies may require more luck and skill than most other forces out there to achieve success with, but if you're up for a challenge, you should definitely try them out!</div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;">
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Good luck!</div>
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BlackMist & Tim</div><div><br /></div><div>PS. Khand is one of those armies, which isn't seen on the tables very often, which is why on <i>An Unexpected Podcast</i>, Tim, Devin, Matt, Rainier and I had a little chat about them. You can check it out here and on iTunes:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ts7x7QkhFOc" width="320" youtube-src-id="ts7x7QkhFOc"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div>
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-73481676122242772222018-09-04T16:53:00.004+01:002020-09-13T17:03:32.627+01:00Fog of War: Series Index<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbdIqaJcricq3fdvk46M7G83g3r1z6LnnZOAvGbaWkymu59ies5A4zsEDvHeCYsv_JnAWX_EhaigImDPrBIvISm_HKRAXhQBP4Obt8dwXZIerShAc1Q6Oth2OuzoMj2eIcDvtihIcsGhV/s1600/Fog+of+War.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="242" data-original-width="576" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbdIqaJcricq3fdvk46M7G83g3r1z6LnnZOAvGbaWkymu59ies5A4zsEDvHeCYsv_JnAWX_EhaigImDPrBIvISm_HKRAXhQBP4Obt8dwXZIerShAc1Q6Oth2OuzoMj2eIcDvtihIcsGhV/s320/Fog+of+War.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>FOG OF WAR: INDEX PAGE</b></span></span></h4><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">Welcome to the new series of articles dedicated to the armies of the newest edition of Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">The title ‘Fog of War’ is inspired by the same term used to represent uncertainty in situational awareness experienced by participants in military operations. In other words, to represent the unknown. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;">With guest participants including multiple Grand Tournament winners, NOVA Open Champions and some of the best known members of the community, hopefully this series will give new players an idea of what to look for when building army lists and will help veterans establish what they are likely to face in the upcoming tournaments. Hope you enjoy the read as much as I enjoy writing it!</span></span></div>
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></b>
<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Just click the links below to be taken directly to the army you are interested in:</span></b></b><br />
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<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><i>(Please note, following the February 2020 FAQ on Allies, all articles with the * next to them may contain lists that are outdated and may need an update from me. The ideas discussed are largely the same however). </i></b></span></span></div>
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-1-rivendell.html">Part 1: Rivendell</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-2-easterlings.html">Part 2: Easterlings (with Tim Hixon)</a> </b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-3-numenor.html">Part 3: Númenor</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-4-moria.html">Part 4: Moria (with Jasmine Tetley)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-5-rohan.html">Part 5: Rohan (with James Clark)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-6-isengard.html">Part 6: Isengard (with Damian O'Byrne)</a>*</b><br />
<b><br /></b><b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/09/fog-of-war-part-7-gondor.html">Part 7: Gondor (with David Clubley)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/10/fog-of-war-part-8-angmar.html">Part 8: Angmar (with Dave Nolan)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/10/fog-of-war-part-9-rangers.html">Part 9: The Rangers (with Devin Moreno)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/10/fog-of-war-part-10-kingdom-of-khazad.html">Part 10: The Kingdom of Khazad-Dum (with Callum Edens)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2018/11/fog-of-war-part-11-shire.html">Part 11: The Shire (with David Farmer)</a>*</b><br />
<b><br /></b><b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2019/02/fog-of-war-part-12-mordor-barad-dur.html">Part 12: Mordor & Barad Dur (with Adam Sokol, Pascal Wibbe and CJ Millar)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="https://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2019/03/fog-of-war-part-13-lake-town.html">Part 13: Lake Town (with Tim Jütersonke)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2019/04/fog-of-war-part-14-army-of-thror.html">Part 14: Army of Thror (with Alastair King)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2019/04/fog-of-war-part-15-iron-hills-erebor.html">Part 15: Iron Hills & Erebor Reclaimed (with Kalman Steels-Wright)</a>*</b><br />
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<b><a href="http://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2020/06/fog-of-war-part-16-serpent-horde-far.html">Part 16: The Serpent Horde & Far Harad (with Rainier Lee)</a></b><br />
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<b><a href="https://venivididouble1.blogspot.com/2020/06/fog-of-war-part-17-forces-of-azog.html">Part 17: Forces of Azog, Mirkwood & Dol Guldur (with Matt Iverson)</a></b><br />
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<b>More Coming Soon...</b><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>ALSO - </b>Check out 'An Unexpected Podcast' on DC Hobbit League's Youtube Channel, where as one of the hosts, I talk about SBG every week:</div><div><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9Eja6Xn-KtSXeAyLyTpJsA/videos">https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9Eja6Xn-KtSXeAyLyTpJsA/videos</a><b><br /></b>
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<br /></div>Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-32849478001569632912018-09-03T09:29:00.002+01:002020-08-22T13:13:34.882+01:00Fog of War, Part 1: Rivendell<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">FOG OF WAR</span></b></h3>
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<b>Welcome to the new series of articles dedicated to the armies of the newest edition of Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game. The title ‘Fog of War’ is inspired by the same term used to represent uncertainty in situational awareness experienced by participants in military operations. In other words, to represent the unknown. Hopefully, this series will give new players an idea of what to look for when building army lists and will help veterans establish what they are likely to face in the upcoming tournaments. Hope you enjoy the read as much as I enjoy writing it!</b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Part 1: Rivendell</span></b></div>
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When I returned to SBG in 2017 after a 3-year break from competitive play I made an 800 points Rivendell list for Desolation of Stockport. The list was purely a meta call for that tournament – a combination of Fight 5, Defence 6 and Courage 5 was the best thing going against a Double-Fell Beast Mordor and Harad armies I expected to face. I also included Saruman, 2 High Elf Storm Callers and Arwen to ensure no Fell Beast ever does any harm. I loved that list, but it wasn’t really something that most players would enjoy playing, because it didn’t contain any worthy Elven heroes.</div>
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Thus, I decided to start this series of articles with Rivendell. I feel like it’s one of the armies that have gained the most in the newest edition of the rules, and rightly so. A common complaint of most players for several years had been that the Elven Heroes, the likes of Glorfindel or Gil-Galad, were simply too weak. Magic overshadowed their abilities and their Fighting skills were dwarfed by the amount of Heroic Strikes everybody was able to call.</div>
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The new edition of the rules not only changes that by removing Heroic Strike from majority of the heroes and making Magic generally weaker. The Elf Lords now are even better at facing magic (with Magic resistance or better!) and they have gained an extra dice in combat, effectively giving them 4 dice to win combat (or 5 mounted on charge), making them as powerful as historically their names would suggest.</div>
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As GBHL tournaments most commonly play between 500 and 800 points, throughout this series, I am going to aim to stick to that sort of point limit, sometimes varying up or down.</div>
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500 Points:</h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Elrond, Master of Rivendell on a Horse<br />
7 High Elf Warriors with Shields<br />
7 High Elf Warriors with Bows and Spears<br />
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<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Arwen Undomiel on Asfaloth<br />
4 High Elf Warriors with Shields<br />
2 High Elf Warriors with Spears<br />
1 High Elf Warrior with Spear and Banner<br />
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<b>Total: 500 Points, 23 Models, 4 Might, 7 Bows and a lot of angry rivers.</b><br />
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At small points level like this there are few things that can take out an Elf Lord. His magic combined with his daughter’s magic should make the enemies tremble. There is an argument here for moving Elrond and Arwen around, so the bowmen can benefit from his Army Bonus. But since he’s mounted, I think it’s easy enough to move him during the game.</div>
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<h4>
*BONUS LIST*</h4>
<b>500 Points:</b><br />
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Elrond, Master of Rivendell on a Horse with Heavy Armour<br />
12 Rivendell Knights with Shields<br />
1 Rivendell Knight with a Banner<br />
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Because who doesn’t love a Rivendell Knight!<br />
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<h4>
<b>800 Points:</b></h4>
<b>Warband 1:</b><br />
Gil-Galad on a Horse<br />
6 King's Guard with Shields<br />
6 King’s Guard with Spears and Shields<br />
1 King's Guard with Shield, Spear and a Banner<br />
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<b>Warband 2:</b><br />
Glorfindel, Lord of the West on Asfaloth<br />
3 High Elf Warriors with Shields<br />
3 High Elf Warriors with Spears and Shields<br />
3 Rivendell Knights with Shields<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Warband 3:</b><br />
Cirdan<br />
4 High Elf Warriors with Elf Bows and Spears<br />
3 High Elf Warriors with Elf Bows<br />
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<b>Total: 800 Points, 7 Might, 32 Models, 10 Bows.</b><br />
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The first thing you’ll notice is the lack of shield for Gil-Galad and Armour of Gondolin for Glorfindel. Honestly I don’t think these are necessary. With the number of dice these guys have, they will rarely, if ever lose combats. Defence only matters when you lose. Even if they were to lose a combat, the number of Wounds and Fate points will keep them easily alive. I’d rather have 2 more Elves.</div>
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King’s Guard is in there because Fight 6 will be useful not just in the mirror matches (which I would expect quite a few), but also to make enemy heroes burn through Might. I always wanted to include these guys in Rivendell in the past, but in the previous edition Gil-Galad was just not good enough. Supported by a banner, they will be losing very few combats.</div>
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Cirdan, historically (game-wise) the worst of all Elf characters is now somewhere between good and very good, as he adds some nice defensive variety in Blinding Light and Aura of Dismay and a cool offensive spell that makes our heroes that bit stronger.</div>
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Lastly the Army Bonus only works if the leader (Gil-Galad) is near the bowmen. I think this leaves you with a choice – if you wish to primarily shoot and don’t need Gil-Galad in combat, by all means ride him to the bowmen. If you’d prefer to be fighting, he’s better off with his Warband.</div>
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Another alternative could be to use both Gil-Galad and Elrond, as they’re both Heroes of Legend, which would allow you to skip on Cirdan and have 33 Elves, for a total of 35 models. You would then get the Wrath of Bruinen but lose Blinding Light and Aura of Dismay. There’s a lot of ways to build this list and we haven’t even touched on Twins and other named heroes!<br />
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The primary weakness of Elven forces is always going to be in its numbers. The very nature of an elite force such as this means that you will generally always fight against armies that outnumber you, thus you will have to use terrain to your advantage and utilise your powerful heroes as the centrepieces of the army to bring the enemy numbers down. Once the numbers are even or you have a numerical advantage, you should be able to defeat most other armies, as the quality of your troops will generally always be higher than everyone else's. </div>
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<h4>
ALLIES:</h4>
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Since High Elves and their heroes cost so many points, I’m not entirely sure whether it’s worth investing in alliances. Elendil screams to be picked alongside Gil-Galad for a Last Alliance theme, but whether TLA will be strong enough depends entirely on whether Strength 4 and Defence 5 is better than Fight Value 5 and Defence 6 on troops. We won’t really know that until several tournaments have been played and a metagame has been established. I will definitely be looking at Numenor separately though. As for others, we have some cool options, but I think I’d just stick to pure Rivendell for now.</div>
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Personally I can’t wait to cast a Channelled Aura of Dismay and then every turn use Enchanted Blades on either Glorfindel or Gil-Galad…</div>
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Good Luck!<br />
BlackMist<div><br /></div><div>PS. Rivendell was always a subject of Episode 11 of An Unexpected Podcast. For an in-depth discussion, check out this video:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/F91n1d_N0zI" width="320" youtube-src-id="F91n1d_N0zI"></iframe></div><div><br />
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</div>Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-969297067590819542018-05-20T11:50:00.001+01:002018-05-20T13:00:25.949+01:00European Team Championships 2018 - The Report<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP84zS3oyHOyTkbIBkFloUNSBLe-GbaC_6nmmE5YfmzkC0MoHlaaxNWwjrBFkPgFu7xdedXXAqamncUWaYseGaTg2513wyKIqCeJ0_KIwBDxXflaRxTJ8qrRzgdTfZtto2RnAe23Np_Euv/s1600/ALL+COMPETITORS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP84zS3oyHOyTkbIBkFloUNSBLe-GbaC_6nmmE5YfmzkC0MoHlaaxNWwjrBFkPgFu7xdedXXAqamncUWaYseGaTg2513wyKIqCeJ0_KIwBDxXflaRxTJ8qrRzgdTfZtto2RnAe23Np_Euv/s400/ALL+COMPETITORS.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Now that the dust has settled, axes were put down to rest and we all
came home safe, it is time to think back of the battles that were had and the
extraordinary weekend that happened at Firestorm Games in Cardiff on the 28<sup>th</sup>
and 29<sup>th</sup> of April 2018, bringing together the best players from Spain,
France, Poland, Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and
England, as well as a team representing the Rest of the World, all to battle
for the trophy of European Team Champions. What was to be the most competitive
event in the world was also a very friendly encounter of different cultures and
styles of play.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Several countries were able to deploy 2 teams each, so the total number of teams reached 16 and so 64 players took part in the event. If you're interested in hearing about their lists, you should check out the following 4 links, with pre-tournament analysis:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">GROUP A: </span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="asynclazy" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DIrZZnvjvEI8%26feature%3Dyoutu.be&h=ATNfXnHfL4PMCTtV3UHUPe3B6lV4pb7xVmkO37K5UWR0Q0oBpdfYanTM9dpjPnEdE_Sb11H-CWNwqPKriKGHLAS2CihAxFNMw4TLhPWFX_vNU5Aa6cKo_4rRw7mAONYLgPdRQ9cUSqJ4D5Mhrho4ajGy" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrZZnvjvEI8&feature=youtu.be" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #365899; cursor: pointer; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrZZnvjvEI8&feature=youtu.be</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Poland 1</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Scotland 2</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Sweden</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Wales 1</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">GROUP B: </span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="asynclazy" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsxE3tfQ0Hrk%26feature%3Dyoutu.be&h=ATO-mwZMlBbxqz-U3P8tEMB8smFQJYzcOAJJO_YMegZ5CAqK-Q93vRmr4Y1Ztp2A0UX7k8afrYMiGuCXRyCUH3BFSuoxnKWAhbSoDj37oojgfDbiQulf6y2V1-gf1TrofsPHU8f9tCWMtUW2NYWX7pzh" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxE3tfQ0Hrk&feature=youtu.be" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #365899; cursor: pointer; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxE3tfQ0Hrk&feature=youtu.be</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">England 1</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Wales 2</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Spain </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">France 2</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">GROUP C: </span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="asynclazy" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DHrlXvb5LR9w%26feature%3Dyoutu.be&h=ATM3p2aYJNN6AhHQND3UxuXJmKM3e7_dy35bk84Htme3-TAZucLWKx6_Jg8rcTKJqdbzVrFdzKJderQJg2kJJbeE1sbcnxzeU3_9kdiyO7aU1lQW4vV0UYBWgZQnRKXqZCtn_5AuAe7BHwY7EcIw-avq" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrlXvb5LR9w&feature=youtu.be" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #365899; cursor: pointer; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrlXvb5LR9w&feature=youtu.be</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Poland 2</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Netherlands</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Belgium</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Scotland 1</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">GROUP D: </span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="asynclazy" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DSnit7aNer0k%26feature%3Dyoutu.be&h=ATOGpW9GE2qd_vdyiDDOi6ZPqCcuLWObkEwj-RlYwBJ_0ZH7ugKCFnc4ldMjCs3LSmvfYdni_sBJh0waB5PtVUDnFeJ4B0ml1igqDU-TN_M7M4aQTEpVaD0FD4gIbjT5ISQnX4SWodviitXmG6W9DG-r" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Snit7aNer0k&feature=youtu.be" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #365899; cursor: pointer; text-align: start;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Snit7aNer0k&feature=youtu.be</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">France 1</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">World Team</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">Ireland </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; text-align: start;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">England 2</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">For more details about the draw, the lists, the event organisation and so on, follow these links:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Facebook Page: <a class="profileLink" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/group.php?id=1526937497350241&extragetparams=%7B%22fref%22%3A%22gs%22%2C%22directed_target_id%22%3A472128942815892%2C%22dti%22%3A472128942815892%2C%22hc_location%22%3A%22group%22%7D&ref=gs" href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/sbgetc/?ref=gs&fref=gs&dti=472128942815892&hc_location=group" style="background-color: white; color: #365899; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;">https://www.facebook.com/groups/sbgetc/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Website: <a href="https://www.middleearth-etc.com/">https://www.middleearth-etc.com</a> </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><i>The bit about the venue and the tables and all that...</i></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The first thing that jumps out at you when you turn up to the ETC is terrain and board layout. Dave has done a great job making the terrain for the tables this year. He managed to build 4 sets of 4 tables that would have identical terrain with identical setup, so as to ensure fairness for the teams. All players in the match get to play on exactly the same board and there is a reference sheet on every table on where each piece should be set. Sleepless nights paid off, as the tables looked great. As far as I know, the plan is now to complete 4 more sets of tables in time for the ETC 2019 taking place in Poland, so that there will be 8 sets. Each table set has a theme to it, just check them out below. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The venue for this tournament was Cardiff's Firestorm Games, aka. The South West Gaming Centre, which can be found here: <a href="https://www.firestormgames.co.uk/">https://www.firestormgames.co.uk/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Hosting 2 Hobbit Events per year in the Great British Hobbit League, it is a venue well known to the regular players of the League and so a friendly and homely environment to play in. Good food too... oh and a bar!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><i>The bit about my army...</i></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">To save you time on finding the list that this article will be about, I'm pasting it here. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">MY ARMY LIST:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Goblin Mercenary Captain (Leader)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">5 Goblin Mercenaries<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Betrayer on Fell Beast<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Reavers with Axes<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">4 Watchers of Karna with Bows<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Serpent Rider<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Shadow Lord on Fell Beast<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Morannon Orcs with Spears, Shields and Swords<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Orcs with Spears and Swords<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Spectre<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Haradrim Taskmaster<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Reavers with Axes</span></span></div>
4 Watchers of Karna with Bows<br />
1 Serpent Rider<br />
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Total 41 Models, 8 Might Points, 8 Bows. <br />
Breaks at 22 dead<br />
Quartered at 10 alive.<br />
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Rest of the team used:<br />
- 4 Fell Beasts & Shelob - Ed<br />
- Gondor with Saruman & Galadriel - Jay<br />
- Laketown/Wood Elves with Gandalf & Thranduil - Harry<br />
Their detailed lists can be found in the videos linked above.<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: small;"> The bit where I explain on why we picked this army...</span></i></h2>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">I know what you’re thinking. Goblin Mercenary Captain wasn’t my
first choice for a general. It was an idea Ed tossed in during our team Skype
call. What at first seemed like a joke, quickly made a lot of sense. Merc
Captain does not have to start on the table, so can be deployed after all of
the opponent’s army is there, thus ensuring he’s either in a right place for
his Might or as a general he is safe from the expected swarm of flying
monsters, Wizards, superheroes or the like. More importantly, picking the Merc as the leader means both
Ringwraiths on Fell Beasts have complete freedom of movement and if they die,
nothing happens as far as VPs are concerned. It’s the idea that Jay recently
mentioned in an article about splitting your targets – the opponent will have
to kill the Wraiths or they kill him, but killing them does not in any way
grant any Victory Points. Splitting your attention between A) a Cap that doesn’t
do anything, but grants VPs and B) 2 Wraiths that wreck your army but don’t grant
VPs makes the game a lot more difficult. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The obvious choice for the general one would say is the Task Master. It was also the model I picked in the first draft of the list.
However, TM needs to be as close to combat as possible, very often in the
middle of it, as he carries an axe and for his rule to provide most benefit, he
has to be where the Fell Beasts are, which is basically where it is most
dangerous. We don’t want a general with F4/D5/W2 to be anywhere near the front
lines in 800pts games. It grants free VPs to your opponent and it is a headache
to keep him safe when facing Wizards, Fell Beasts and multitude of major heroes
that are common at this points level. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The Cap and 5 Mercs cost a total of 75 points. Again, you could
argue that for 25 points extra, a Shade would be a better investment and in
fact that is what most of the teams we faced opted for in armies featuring
double Fell Beasts. We considered it, but for the scenarios played at this
event, it made more sense to have the Mercs. Have a look:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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- Lords of Battle - Shade is better </div>
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- Domination – It’s close between the two and really depends on the enemy. Mercs can drop onto an objective to ensure it is taken. Shade helps in the centre where the fight is thickest. </div>
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- Fog of War – Mercs are better to drop into the objective for free VPs </div>
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- Storm the Camp – Mercs are better to drop into the camp for auto-win or threaten the drop, thus forcing models to stay back (they can then decide to drop into the centre and make the opponent waste a lot of resources at the back that he/she needs out on the board).</div>
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- Reconnoitre – Mercs are better, as depending on the terrain, they can be dropped on a given turn and walk off the next turn </div>
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- Seize the Prize – Shade is better, but Mercs can randomly pop out and stop a prize from escaping, grab it and run off with it. If the prize is in terrain, they can also drop right on top of it or behind it if needed
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">What also pushes it in the direction of the Mercs is that the Shade
is an awful general and forces the Task Master to take the leader’s role. It
also means the force has about 10 models less, which looks pretty miserable.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Analyzing the metagame of 800pts level shows the following
possibilities (this is a rough estimate to give us an idea of what we're facing on average at this points level):<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
- Wood Elves with 40-50 models <br />
- High Elves with 30-40 models <br />
- Double Fell Beast lists with 30-40, both across Harad (mass bows) and Mordor (S4/D6) <br />
- Shire with 60+ <br />
- Double-Wizard Rohan at mid 20s <br />
- High Elf Knights at low 20s with Saruman <br />
- Iron Hills with 30-40 S4/D8 <br />
- Commonly used Spirit-Killer, Galadriel, Lady of Light
<br />
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Numbers are not be-all-and-end-all in this game. However, being
outnumbered when almost your entire army is Defence 4 or less is not something I
would recommend doing, no matter how good you are. Hurl and Blasts are a
terrible prospect to face. At 800 points we expected a lot of Fell Beasts and a
lot of Wizards, so no matter whether your general is Boromir of the White Tower
or Beregond, they will struggle when they are close to the front lines.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">When the army breaks, Task Master is C3 probably with no Might and a
Will point. Shade is C1 with 3 Will. Merc is C3 probably with 2 Might and 1
Will. Also, if the Merc is still not on the table when the force breaks, you don’t
have to test for Courage for him. If he's not on the table when the game ends, he does not count as a casualty either. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Overall I think we made the correct decision in picking Mercs and
their Captain was the only general that made sense. </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3CFOBhXJ6e_fgz1JsjAiAf7CpkFR0hnp-a2-Vn0kRxV-S9wPhXMVrrCEHy6TT5WbD6VHv-E3R4bm5mPKsd5WZJhVGvPZfYSsCF2BL5sSaYKkSPFXrHbSeuTe5JMXIc4vigPoZ1uuhPqZ/s1600/20180428_113902.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw3CFOBhXJ6e_fgz1JsjAiAf7CpkFR0hnp-a2-Vn0kRxV-S9wPhXMVrrCEHy6TT5WbD6VHv-E3R4bm5mPKsd5WZJhVGvPZfYSsCF2BL5sSaYKkSPFXrHbSeuTe5JMXIc4vigPoZ1uuhPqZ/s400/20180428_113902.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Great Leader Himself leads from behind!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<h2 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><b><i>The actual gaming bit...</i></b></span></span></h2>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDRY2dv0GlJjlnxoYREcMYgkg5Nui5UQmODR2AB1-oaBlZIvsQv_j9xdiZjsCXi46OeQ9yHIQUy6lgCCy0dVAuDZhjzGqI-OCaeq8M2-575VWiWq-o_L0OgzRFJyX6J6PhoGHKqi3iETBT/s1600/Coach+TShirt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="714" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDRY2dv0GlJjlnxoYREcMYgkg5Nui5UQmODR2AB1-oaBlZIvsQv_j9xdiZjsCXi46OeQ9yHIQUy6lgCCy0dVAuDZhjzGqI-OCaeq8M2-575VWiWq-o_L0OgzRFJyX6J6PhoGHKqi3iETBT/s320/Coach+TShirt.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Coach!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinoMcNnn4BFJ4z_QUl6PafT9yjTneSoOvKWoJbtUBuV8sEOf8NWo98JWxAXIcCumCYLgZjTkOrHubr35AJ80WF5B2zbT31SdqewwYyA0pursIfNbewmQMRAgfDthWx4ATsxZW0MuwU8q4E/s1600/Tshirts+Team+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="955" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinoMcNnn4BFJ4z_QUl6PafT9yjTneSoOvKWoJbtUBuV8sEOf8NWo98JWxAXIcCumCYLgZjTkOrHubr35AJ80WF5B2zbT31SdqewwYyA0pursIfNbewmQMRAgfDthWx4ATsxZW0MuwU8q4E/s320/Tshirts+Team+1.jpg" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Team 1!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1WhaCeXlTAxhq6DoFrNM3gCbt0XoTW7qXVpxpusbWLuxh6PqRih3xgz6jVLbthN2u2CyO6Z9-zYwxKxKqPY0ddzeWomGuS8Y2Y0IiWpH8vsFuuTEWunzclzVjS5kUuRdLQP3bUelJslak/s1600/TShirts+Team+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="955" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1WhaCeXlTAxhq6DoFrNM3gCbt0XoTW7qXVpxpusbWLuxh6PqRih3xgz6jVLbthN2u2CyO6Z9-zYwxKxKqPY0ddzeWomGuS8Y2Y0IiWpH8vsFuuTEWunzclzVjS5kUuRdLQP3bUelJslak/s320/TShirts+Team+2.jpg" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Team 2!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>===========================</o:p></span></div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">ROUND
1: WALES 2 & David</span></span></b></h3>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">List:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Gandalf the White on Shadowfax with Elven Cloak (General)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">1 Fa</span><span style="font-size: small;">ramir, Captain of </span><span style="font-size: small;">Gondor with Horse, Heavy Armour, Lance, Shield</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Guards of the Fountain Court with Shields</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Knights of Minas Tirith with Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Rangers of Gondor with Spears</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Citadel Guard with Longbows</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Madril</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Guards of the Fountain Court with Shields</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Knights of Minas Tirith with Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Rangers of Gondor with Spears</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Citadel Guard with Longbows</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Cirion</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Knights of Minas Tirith with Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Ranger of Gondor with Spear</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Warriors of Minas Tirith with Shields and Spears</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Beregond</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Total: 34 models, 13 Might, 11 bows</span></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The tournament started with a very good match up for me. Having used
Gandalf and Saruman against Fell Beasts for nearly a decade, I’m confident in countering
Wizards, despite always stating that I prefer being on the Wizard’s side. We
get into combat and the Fight 5 with Axe bonus quickly becomes overwhelming for
the Gondorians to cope with. In the end Shadow Lord chases down Gandalf, but
fails to kill him in time before the game ends. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">RESULT: Major Win<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 16-0 / 4 Major Wins<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 4-0 TP / 11-0 VP<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">MVP: The General<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">(Note: The way Tournaments
points are scored is as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">If you have scored double
or more VPs in the game, you win 4-0<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">If you have scored more
VPs, but less than double, you win 3-1<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">If you scored an even
number of VPs, the game is a draw of 2-2. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The most points a team can
score from a match is 16. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The result of the match
itself is not important. What is important is how many points each individual
game has scored, so a team with 6 matches won can still finish behind a team
with 4 matches won and 2 losses. What this means is that every player will
generally always push to score the highest points possible for their team,
rather than playing a draw/denial game).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
===========================</div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">ROUND
2: SPAIN & Jaime </span></span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">List: <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Shadow Lord on Fell Beast</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Morannon Orcs with Shield and Spear</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Undying on Fell Beast (General)</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Morannon Orcs with Shield and Spear</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Shade</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Orc Trackers</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Warg Riders with Shields</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Spectres</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Haradrim Taskmaster</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">8 Corsair Reavers</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">4 Watchers of Karna</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Total: 35 models, 6 Might + TM, 7 Bows</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As we were selecting the pairing, this was the one match-up I did not want to face, as I would be outfought in combat and outmatched with better casting Wraiths on the enemy side and a lot more Will. The result of the draw however meant that I was the one to be ‘thrown under the bus’ for this round. Luckily it isn’t the lists that win tournaments, but what you do with them.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
My opponent sets up 24” in, with Shade behind his lines alongside the 2 Fell Beasts. As I’m utterly terrified of the possibility of Shade, Fight 5, Strength 4 and 2 Hurls getting into combat with my squishy Defence 4 troops suffering from the -1 fighting penalty, I set myself up 7” away and cross my fingers hoping that I don’t have to move first in this game, as if I do, there is no play that can lead to anything good – If I move forward, I get double hurled, Shaded and wrecked. If I move back, I am giving up the centre for good and get into an uphill magic battle.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Luckily I don’t have to move first. Jaime Channels with one Wraith, casts a Channeled Sap Will at my Shadow Lord, which I resist and a normal Sap Will on my Betrayer, which I let happen and lose 4 Will. He then moves everything about 3” forward, denying me space within 3” of the centre. He ends up within charging range of all of my troops, without actually charging anything himself. It still looks grim, but... what’s about to happen is probably the single most incredible turn in my entire 14-year career of playing this game…- Spectre makes the Shade take a courage test. Shade fails. As the Shade is not fully blocked by warriors, I move him into the open on the left flank. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Shadow Lord compels a model on the right and attacks it with some Reavers and the Task Master </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Betrayer compels a Tracker on Warg on the left and charges it with some Reavers. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Front ranks engage. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Task Master calls a Heroic Combat </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Betrayer Calls a Heroic Combat </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Betrayer kills the Tracker and the Warg, jumps onto the Shade at the back left. Reavers engage in a safe advantageous way on the left flank. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Shadow Lord kills the enemy Reaver, jumps onto the Task Master and Reavers engage on the right flank </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Betrayer Kills the Shade </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- Shadow Lord kills the Task Master </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- I kill a total of 17 models, losing 1. He is 1 away from being Broken. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
- 41 vs 34 turns into 40 vs 17.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Turn 2<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">I win a heroic move Roll-off and decide that I don’t exactly want
him to be hurling anything, as really that’s the only way he could possibly win
this game… I engage my 2 Fell beasts into his 2, whilst the rest of the army
surrounds and begins to slaughter everything else. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Eventually in turns 2 and 3 I end up losing my 2 Wraiths, whilst he
loses 1, but I’m so far ahead, there is no way I can ever lose at this stage. In
a last gasp attempt Jaime tries to get his Undying onto one of my home
objectives, preventing me from having full control of it and threatening my
general in the wood nearby.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">RESULT: Major Win<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 13-3 / 3 Major Wins + 1 Minor Loss<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 4-0 TP / 9-0 VP<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">MVP: Spectre<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div style="border-bottom: double windowtext 2.25pt; border: none; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: double windowtext 2.25pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm; padding: 0cm; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> </span></o:p></span>===========================</div>
</div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">ROUND
3: FRANCE 2 & Guillaume</span></span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">List:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Legolas with Armour and Horse (General)</span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Galadhrim Knights with Elf Bows</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Thranduil, King of Mirkwood</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Guards of the Galadhrim Court</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">4 Galadhrim Warriors with Shields</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">4 Galadhrim Warriors with Shields and Spears</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Wood Elf Warrior with Bow</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Sentinel</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Haldir, Defender of Helm's Deep</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Guards of the Galadhrim Court</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Galadhrim Warriors with Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Galadhrim Warriors with Spears and Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Galadhrim Warrior with a Banner</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Galadhrim Warriors with Bows</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Wood Elf Warrior with a Bow</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Rumil</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Guards of the Galadhrim Court</span></div>
<div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Galadhrim Warriors with Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Galadhrim Warriors with Spears and Shields</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Galadhrim Warrior with a Banner</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Galadhrim Warriors with Bows</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Wood Elf Warrior with a Bow</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Total: 42 models, 12 Might, 12 bows (14 shots).</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Fog of War is always a difficult scenario, as you never know what
can and cannot be committed to the fight. Having picked the Merc as the
general, I committed to a game plan of throwing the Fell Beasts into the thick
of battle and not really caring if they die or not, as long as their mission is
accomplished. Of course in this scenario, one of them dying means I could be
giving 3 points to my opponent and those 3 points could be a difference between
a win or a loss. Same goes for the Task Master, so I have to play both safe and
unsafe, whilst also trying to figure out which model is my opponent trying to
kill for VPs. Guillame’s list of F5 and F6 with 4 Elven Heroes is also
something I don’t exactly fancy playing against, but the match up is better for
me than for Ed’s Flying Circus, so due to the way the pairing is selected, I’m stuck with it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The game begins with a lucky Watcher shot on the right flank taking
off 3 Fate Points from Legolas and another shot killing his horse, pretty much
making him unusable for the rest of the game. As the armies come close, I start
throwing Black Darts at Haldir, who is my ‘target hero’. I have to be careful,
as he’s wearing an Elven Cloak, so I have to get into 6” range to cast and then
retreat. In the first turn of combat he gets transfixed and dies fighting a
Reaver. The fight between Elves and Reavers gets very close and we are both
getting very close to breaking, so I am forced to commit Fell Beasts into
combat to ensure that I don’t break and randomly lose the game due to courage
tests. Combination of some Heroic Strikes and Heroic Combats against transfixed
Elves leads to a large chunk of Guillame’s army dying to Hurls and the game
ends without me ever breaking. In the end he prevents me from killing
Thranduil, securing 3 VPs, but I manage to control a hill in his half of the
board, stop him from taking over a rock in my half, break him, kill Haldir and prevent Task Master from dying, leading to a
12-3 victory. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">RESULT: Major Win<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 16-0 / 4 Major Wins<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 4-0 TP / 12-3 VP<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">MVP: The Watcher who shot Legolas</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>===========================</o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><br /></o:p></span>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: small;">The bit with more pictures to break up the big wall of text...</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><br /></o:p></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><br /></o:p></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><br /></o:p></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>===========================</o:p></span></div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">ROUND
4: WALES 1 & Dewi</span></span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">List:</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Witch King on Fell Beast with 3/18/3 Stats (General)</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Morannon Orcs with Spears</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Black Numenoreans</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Black Numenorean with a Banner</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Black Guard of Barad-Dur</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 The Undying on Fell Beast</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">4 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Morannon Orcs with Spears</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Black Numenoreans</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Black Guards of Barad-Dur</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Spectre</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Mordor Task Master</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Morannon Orcs with Spears</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Morgul Knights</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Black Numenoreans</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Black Guard of Barad-Dur</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">38 Models, 6 Might. </span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Storm the Camp is a weird scenario in that it requires you to be
able to finely balance between how many models you leave in the camp and how
many you push forward. Additionally, as it’s played diagonally, the area of
play actually becomes wider than it is in all other scenarios. On a 48”x48” board,
the corner-to-corner distance is 67.8” (Or so Pythagoras would claim). After
taking off the 12” deployment zone, you end up starting the game about 44” away
from each other on a 68”-wide board. This setup poses extra challenges in
splitting your forces, positioning and figuring out where to concentrate your
main threats and protect from theirs. Given unlimited amount of time, it’s a
great scenario. However, given a time limit, it’s not something I (or many other
players I know) like playing, as the distances make it very difficult to ever
get into the camp before the time runs out. Unless you have some cavalry or perhaps a Mercenary?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">TL;DR – It’s hard to get the camp, so it becomes a secondary
objective. The primary objectives are 'Kill the Leader' & 'Break Them'<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The first few turns nothing of significance really happens. I keep
my General off the table to threaten an ambush in the camp, so Dewi has to keep
about 5 Numenorians back at base. Eventually the lines get close enough, that
Dewi attempts a couple of Sap Wills at my Shadow Lord, one of which I let happen
(6) and the other I resist (3), dropping myself down to 8 Will. The way he then
positions his wraiths leaves it open for me to potentially get a Heroic Combat
off into Witch King on a suicide mission to score 3 VPs behind his ranks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Just like in round 2, an epic sequence begins with a Spectre…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
- A Black Guard is asked to move forward. He obliges. <br />
- Shadow Lord flies forward, casting Compel on the Witch King, gets him to use 2 Might to resist, as Dewi only gets a 4 highest to my 6. SL charges into the BG. <br />
- Betrayer also casts a Compel at Witch King, gets a 6 and again WK only gets a 4 to resist, resulting in a move forward and automatic halving of Fight Value. Betrayer charges the same BG.<br />
- Task Master and a Reaver also charge the same Black Guard and both get some supports. <br />
- Task Master calls a Heroic Combat. <br />
- Shadow Lord calls a Heroic Strike to ensure Fight will be higher than 5, which is the maximum the WK could also have. <br />
- They kill the BG. <br />
- They both fly at the Witch King <br />
- They kill the Witch King. 3-0.
<br />
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">What follows is a very tense and close several turns going back and
forth in the centre-right. Shadow Lord dies. Undying is left at 11. Betrayer
drops to 1 Will and begins a retreat back to my camp to protect it in case of
some Undying shenanigans of 'Heroic move/Heroic Combat/Heroic Move'. We are both out of Might, but then around turn 10 or
so… THE GENERAL DECIDES TO TURN UP!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The general deploys pretty much in the middle of the board,
providing 2 extra Might points and some extra bodies to help break Dewi. The 2
Might proves invaluable, as Dewi has none left on the table and I now have 2 in
play. The Undying gets killed and opponent is broken. With 15min on the clock
however, we decide there is no way I will ever get to his camp on time. It’s
also not something I’m too keen on doing, as I’m only about 3 or 4 models away
from breaking, so I’m happy taking a 6-0 win (Break & General) instead of
pushing forward and risking a potential break of my own leading to 4-1 or even
a 2-2, if my Merc Captain doesn’t manage to get back into my camp in time. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The great benefit of Mercs in this game was that 6 of them forced 5 or 6 of Dewi's models to stay back in the camp. Then, instead of dropping into the camp, the Goblins dropped into the middle of the battle - they both added 6 models and 2 Might into combat and took away 6 models from enemy's side that had to stay back. Big swing. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">RESULT:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 14-2 / 2 Major Wins + 2 Minor Wins<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 4-0 TP / 6-0VP<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">MVP: The General<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> </span></o:p></span>===========================</div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">ROUND
5: POLAND 2 & Piotr (aka. Zichu)</span></span></b></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">List:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 The Undying on Fell Beast (General)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Axes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">7 Morannon Orcs with Spears and Shields</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Spectre</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Orc Tracker on a Warg</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Shadow Lord on Fell Beast</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Axes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6 Morannon Orcs with Shields and Spears</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Spectre</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Orc Tracker on a Warg</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Haradrim Task Master</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">7 Corsair Reavers with axes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Watchers of Karna with Bows and Axes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Shade</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Total 34 models, 6 Might, 4 Bows.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After the pairings were set, I found out I’d be up against an almost identical army to round 2 – Undying, Shadow Lord, Shade, 34 models. With a gigantic hill in the middle of the board, we decide to sit our Fell Beasts on the two sides of the hill and cast some spells. Both Shadow Lords pop, but nothing else of significance happens all game. Neither of us wants to risk throwing things forward or letting a Fell Beast to run through and escape over the other side of the board, so we both play it very conservatively and defensively across the entire table. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With 30min spare, we call it a draw, as there is no way either of us is winning it and we might as well have a break.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although the game was uneventful, the chat was enjoyable and Zichu proved to be a very nice player. Sadly, other games didn’t go as “well” as mine and with Ed and Jay losing their games and Harry drawing, we ended up losing the match 11-5. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Result: Draw<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 5-11 / 1 Major Loss + 1 Minor Loss + 2 Draws<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 2-2 TP / 0-0 VP<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
MVP: The Hill in the Middle<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p>===========================</o:p></span></div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">THE
FINAL: POLAND 2 & Maciek (aka. Mike)</span></span></b></h3>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">List:</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Gandalf, the Grey on Horse</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Saruman, the White on Horse</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Erkenbrand, Captain of Rohan on Horse with an Axe</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">9 Westfold Redshields with Axes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Eowyn, Shield Maiden of Rohan on Horse with a Shield</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">8 Westfold Redshields with Axes</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Rangers of the North on Horses with Spears</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">1 Fatty Bolger</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Total: 25 Models, 14 Might, 20 bows</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Having lost a 6-point lead at the top of the leaderboard, we were feeling
less confident than before. After round 5, England 1 and Poland 2 were on 64
points. France was on 60 and Poland 1 on 59, having just drawn with France. As
the rules specify that final round allows rematches and has to be paired using the Swiss system, we got to play Poland 2 again and France were to play Poland
1. All 4 teams had a chance of winning the tournament, depending on the results
of specific games. We had to score 13 out of 16 to guarantee the tournament
win. Anything less than that and we'd be watching table 2 and hoping neither side achieves too big of a victory over the other.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The pairing sets up a game against Mike and an army of 2 Wizards and
all-mounted Rohan. Out of all the scenarios, this is the one where I don't mind playing against this army (pretty sure in all other scenarios I'm the underdog) as the objectives require quick advancement to the centre. I'd rather be on the side of Wizards!</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Due to how Warband deployment works, Mike is able to wait for me to deploy my whole army whilst dropping a Ranger or Fatty each time I put down 12 models. That gives him an early edge. The objective being hidden on the top of a hill in the middle means that there will be some advantage with defending elevated positions, should I manage to get there first. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Turn 1 I take priority and decide to march my force onto the hill and dig up the artifact with one of the riders. I also make a gigantic mistake that I really should not be making at this level of play - I leave a gap large enough between the Fell Beasts, that a man-sized model is able to pass through. That allows Mike to charge a Fell Beast with a Rider, then Compel my warrior carrying the prize into the same combat and blast it away with his other Wizard, causing an automatic dismount on the Fell Beast. He also manages to roll low enough on the blast distance that the Prize gets stuck in the middle of the board on the cliff, instead of falling far back into my ranks for me to start running with it. Next turn I lose a Heroic Move roll-off and lose the 2nd Fell Beast in exactly the same manner.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">For a long time the game progresses by me picking up the prize, then dropping it, then him picking it up, then dropping it. Although it is very tight, nothing of major significance seems to be happening. I lose every single Heroic Move roll-off in the entire game, so end up failing to cast to cast a single spell after turn 1 and fail to ever move first with my prize. Eventually my forces start getting surrounded, but luckily for me the 2 Wraiths manage not to die despite fighting multiple Redshields charging them with axe bonuses, so the Wraiths end up holding two crucial elevated positions that basically prevent most of his army from getting onto the hill. In the end I manage to pick up the prize, put it in a corner of a building and drop my Reinforcements with General into the centre to protect the Prize. As the time is called we play the last turn, during which both of us break. Since I'm carrying the prize in my half, it looks like I'll be winning the game 4-1, but Gandalf and Saruman are still due to move... The first Blast targeting my Watcher fails to cast. The second succeeds on a 5 with no Might remaining. Watcher of Karna takes a resistance test which will decide whether I win or draw the game. He fails to resist. Standing next to a wall, he receives 2x S5 hits. 25% chance of surviving. 75% chance of dying. With the last roll of the tournament he drops the prize and the game is a draw. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Result: Draw<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 10-6 / 2 Major Wins + 1 Draw + 1 Major Loss<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 2-2 TP / 1-1 VP<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">MVP: Defending Elevated Positions Special Rule<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<h2 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><b><i>The boring statistical bit...</i></b></span></span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team: 74 points / 1<sup>st</sup> Place<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Personal: 4 Major Wins, 2 Draws, 20 tournament points out of 24
(think that puts me as 3<sup>rd</sup> highest scoring player?), 39 VPs scored,
4 VPs lost, for a total of +35VP Diff.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Team Totals: <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">15 Major Wins (62.5%)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Minor Wins (8.3%)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">3 Draws (12.5%)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Minor Losses (8.3%)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">2 Major Losses (8.3%)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">VPs Scored: 147 </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">VPs Conceded: 34</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">VP Diff: +113 </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSAw9WuVeZlstoi9DDjEyrPd_dm_lzh9nbhhb1oa34LGd_xJhIbUFSzP-itsAeuyMAJJBrZgkKHeP06erkNgPaZEuOI_bgqWaGW_DAiycbrwrpnzN4djCe-nlNH-n9TiyGtAJa7CDBMGZn/s1600/31466876_10155691568752569_3808641992275024032_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSAw9WuVeZlstoi9DDjEyrPd_dm_lzh9nbhhb1oa34LGd_xJhIbUFSzP-itsAeuyMAJJBrZgkKHeP06erkNgPaZEuOI_bgqWaGW_DAiycbrwrpnzN4djCe-nlNH-n9TiyGtAJa7CDBMGZn/s400/31466876_10155691568752569_3808641992275024032_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
Final Results</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h2>
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><br />Winners of the Painting Competitions</span></i></h2>
<div>
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></i></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig-o56mlgWvSWqAqbHyz40Bvggf5xJ1Q03kj37gprTgam4wzgCF1-tshiwtN2jQps8PbpcGXa5xu7Cd4KD9n8UhStc37GTKkTwFko3yHCAz2Bq8F0OHd7AoEpeBa4jS_GBexoozy_53FP3/s1600/Painting+Comp.-2+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="945" data-original-width="1000" height="377" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig-o56mlgWvSWqAqbHyz40Bvggf5xJ1Q03kj37gprTgam4wzgCF1-tshiwtN2jQps8PbpcGXa5xu7Cd4KD9n8UhStc37GTKkTwFko3yHCAz2Bq8F0OHd7AoEpeBa4jS_GBexoozy_53FP3/s400/Painting+Comp.-2+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martin from Team Rest of the World wins the Best Painted Army</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaAVJTdmxkb5wpthz75DglzrMUS91UKA_h1qVxqblaZOfJLcJqsRB1_C3SrgBWBty_rtv_yPK4diXHQXI0UKz_MIqa9yCpeo_D6u35dpm6GA8nBn8LrAp6ozefwsj4NcR77zgXzuj6qX4O/s1600/Painting+Comp.-3+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="1000" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaAVJTdmxkb5wpthz75DglzrMUS91UKA_h1qVxqblaZOfJLcJqsRB1_C3SrgBWBty_rtv_yPK4diXHQXI0UKz_MIqa9yCpeo_D6u35dpm6GA8nBn8LrAp6ozefwsj4NcR77zgXzuj6qX4O/s400/Painting+Comp.-3+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guillaume from France 2 wins the Best Painted Model</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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</div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><i>The bit that's like a summary...</i></span></span></b></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">A lot of people have a view that competitive play is the
bane of the hobby. Complaints about maximised lists (and axes in SBG's case) are something that wargaming in general is full of and it isn't uncommon to see internet comments on how people would never attend
a tournament because they destroy the ‘fun’ aspect of the game. As someone who
has been playing this game for nearly 15 years, with most of the time spent
somewhere near top tables playing against the toughest opponents, I am always dazzled at such comments. The SBG
community is about the friendliest war-gaming community you will ever find. In
all the years I have perhaps only had 2 or 3 games that I didn’t enjoy,
regardless of whether my opponents were playing the filthiest, maxed out, purely power gaming lists or whatever
fluffy thing they brought. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">If tournaments were all about the army lists, I would say ETC is a
terrible (perhaps the worst) tournament to attend. I have never played 6
equally hard games for 2 days in a row. When I sat down on the train home, I
pretty much instantly passed out from sheer mental exhaustion. But it isn’t about that. The tournament
experience is not about armies, but about the players. Despite playing against
the filthiest lists imaginable (Double Fell Beast / TaskMaster / Shade /
Reavers… TWICE!), I have enjoyed all games as much as I would enjoy every other
game against great opponents - always smiling, always friendly, always at the
peak of sportsmanship. Although none of the players I played gave up on any
edges and neither did I (If someone did not call ‘With Me’ on a Heroic Move, I
called them out on it and stopped their moves), we always ended the games with
smiles and positive attitude. In all 6 games I think I gave a 4 or 5 out of 5
Sportsmanship Score to all of them. Whatever others tell you about competitive
players being all bad and terrible, it isn’t true of the majority, and it
especially isn’t true about the best players in Europe, as shown by the ETC. In my opinion, a truly great player is one that will give you a very challenging game, but also ensure that your experience is enjoyable whether you win or get completely decimated. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The fact that we won the event, having won only 71% of our games
proves how difficult the tournament really was for everybody and how well
matched the teams were. In comparison at the last Desolation of Stockport, the
first 3 places had a winrate of 85% / 85% / 71% and at The Scouring of Cheshire
the first 5 places had a winrate of 83%. But that’s not a surprise, as the ETC
is supposed to bring the best players from around Europe to fight and figure
out who is the best gaming nation, so the skill difference between players is significantly smaller than on average it would be. Theme becomes secondary and finding the most
powerful and efficient lists becomes priority. The tournament is unique in this
way. Other than Will Champion with his incredible performance scoring 24/24
using Burhdur and Hunter Orcs, every other player ended up either losing games
or finishing with multiple draws. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">My MVP for the tournament was the Goblin Mercenary Captain. Simply
because he fought 0 combats, stayed safe out of harm’s way, denying VPs,
threatened to parachute the camp, dropped into the right places in games when
it was safe to drop close to combat and boost the army with 2 fresh Might and
some bodies. It was the first time I didn’t worry about my leader dying. Additionally I was free to do whatever I wanted to do with my Fell Beasts. They ended up dying in pretty much every game as I was happily deploying a high-risk/high-reward tactics with them, but they generally died for the right cause (except in the last game... but we shall put it away and never speak of it again!).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Last, but not least, I would like to thank:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">All of my opponents, for thoroughly enjoyable, hard and entertaining
games.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Dave for taking charge of organising the ETC for the greater good of the SBG community, building all of the great terrain, as well as being kind enough to allow me to use his pictures in this article.</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Matt, Sam and Owen for their organizational and refereeing
work on the event. The event ran smoothly and as a player I could not have been more
satisfied with everything involved. The judges were very knowledgeable and
quick to answer any questions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Firestorm Games, for providing the great venue and food for the
event. All the sponsors for their help in making Middle Earth ETC happen. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Everybody who was kind enough to lend me models for the event (I Frankensteined the list between 5 different people).</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Jamie for being an outstanding Team Coach and taking care of the two
England teams, sourcing awesome T-shirts and dice, as well as helping out with
pairings and looking after the organizational side of the team, allowing us to
fully focus on our games. Sam Jeffery for selecting the teams and helping out too.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Callum, James, Barney and Dan (ie. England Team 2) for fun times in
between rounds and in the off-time as well as constant cheers and support.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Harry, Jay and Ed for their spectacular efforts in claiming every VP
they could claim and always giving their best, despite the hardships the
opposition could throw against them. I am honoured to have been part of this
extraordinary team. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Everyone at home sending us their support!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Good Luck,</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Mik</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjayqhsKv-6Sc3Orpeg4wZRwkWEZce85pavg7rZyPrsCAbUKel-mbUTUxEIMVjQsFegylPccHpSdRbeUGRvRBA3avji5AAaKP2CLfzPS39zx8plvQ00qh0QxOabHJmAPa8INM0rvPamdnkn/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-05-16+at+18.17.15.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="987" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjayqhsKv-6Sc3Orpeg4wZRwkWEZce85pavg7rZyPrsCAbUKel-mbUTUxEIMVjQsFegylPccHpSdRbeUGRvRBA3avji5AAaKP2CLfzPS39zx8plvQ00qh0QxOabHJmAPa8INM0rvPamdnkn/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-05-16+at+18.17.15.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Team GB</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaBpPhn10ASxKLEWCnYWIZ6dK-sn4vIxYl4lY6kltBaAXaj-d2F06g5pXDPIfbMCpqtszSP00Q7a2ADxGTvzuPulVWFu4ydtTvsUBA86hRnRYMdXXYR3Hlm3e7s-cz1LmIkX0EC05F0b95/s1600/TEAM+ENGLAND+FULL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1315" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaBpPhn10ASxKLEWCnYWIZ6dK-sn4vIxYl4lY6kltBaAXaj-d2F06g5pXDPIfbMCpqtszSP00Q7a2ADxGTvzuPulVWFu4ydtTvsUBA86hRnRYMdXXYR3Hlm3e7s-cz1LmIkX0EC05F0b95/s400/TEAM+ENGLAND+FULL.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teams England 1 & 2:</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVZ9k0NJ83t6qA4lXqyl5rF4PPvCFCsuWanG2dgvIqU4uBHZBPFkN-SBj65776L1DTcpV8pebGliTUp2DsCW3bMPa0XHSFFO2_Nxyr-HLDLsOm-OZqB2hODDVN4sCa-etcitF9fFI2YM69/s1600/ENGLAND+CHAMPIONS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="856" data-original-width="1440" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVZ9k0NJ83t6qA4lXqyl5rF4PPvCFCsuWanG2dgvIqU4uBHZBPFkN-SBj65776L1DTcpV8pebGliTUp2DsCW3bMPa0XHSFFO2_Nxyr-HLDLsOm-OZqB2hODDVN4sCa-etcitF9fFI2YM69/s400/ENGLAND+CHAMPIONS.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2018 European Champions - Team England 1</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWAtPvIzJOojsjysv6yDrAtldSJA8OBKMGMhN0Bc36s4neerXqaVJWxWJxTxSbAaMzYa0xvP82YmVIgA5buLiAygM0GzzSOyofT19Mny2UqSPMl-cG8gUDNdBrfxQCC8s8u6zPg_uMMgu5/s1600/SECOND+PLACE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWAtPvIzJOojsjysv6yDrAtldSJA8OBKMGMhN0Bc36s4neerXqaVJWxWJxTxSbAaMzYa0xvP82YmVIgA5buLiAygM0GzzSOyofT19Mny2UqSPMl-cG8gUDNdBrfxQCC8s8u6zPg_uMMgu5/s400/SECOND+PLACE.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2nd Place - Team Poland 2</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">3rd Place -Team Poland 1</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span>
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<h2 style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><i>The bit that didn't make it into the theatrical release, but is where Boromir is actually cool a bit... and more elves...</i></span></span></b></h2>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">APPENDIX A: ETC PAIRING SYSTEM<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The ETC pairing system is a separate game by itself and another
consideration for the army selection. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Each team secretly selects 1 player and puts them forward<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Once revealed, both teams select 2 players to play that player<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Once revealed, both of the firstly selected players pick which of
the two they want to play against.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The opponent they did not select plays against the 4<sup>th</sup>
player in the team. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Example:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">X<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 177.2pt;" valign="top" width="177"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">England 1<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 200.65pt;" valign="top" width="201"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">England 2<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</td>
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<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 47.95pt;" valign="top" width="48"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">STEP 1<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 177.2pt;" valign="top" width="177"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Ed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 200.65pt;" valign="top" width="201"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Barney<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 47.95pt;" valign="top" width="48"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">STEP 2<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Harry & Jay are selected to face Barney<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 200.65pt;" valign="top" width="201"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">James & Callum are selected to face Ed<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">STEP 3<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Ed picks to play James<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Mik therefore plays Callum<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Barney picks to play Harry<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Dan therefore plays Jay<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The matchups in the above end up being:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Ed vs James<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Harry vs Barney<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Jay vs Dan<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Mik vs Callum<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The player we pick as Player 1 for the match has the choice of NOT
playing their weakest match-up, unless they want to do it for the benefit of
the team (if for example overall the remaining 3 match-ups will be better for
us). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Players 2 and 3 from each team are picked by players 1 and 4 from
that team.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">A1 and A4 will always play B2 or B3 and vice versa. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">It’s complicated at first, but easy once you get it. About 10min before the start of every round is the pairing time and that's really when the teams have to work together and to know each other very well to ensure that their strengths are well suited for the potential opposition and their weaknesses are covered by their teammates playing the unfavourable matchups. </span></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-43532056949745591032018-04-12T12:09:00.000+01:002018-04-12T12:24:41.570+01:00Running Up in the World...<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPVESQebC5UffpQUl5y62wjbXVCQTht2syRYFGFQfffFkVsPdkmnHJaijtRqVUZsdZ1HKksoFJd3o_JjwUF1qgWpOiAKCkt0tPAG0Fu4RaLvTsFeigBnF2-fT3X0FYLALm02nVibKfNtI8/s1600/20180408_222611.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPVESQebC5UffpQUl5y62wjbXVCQTht2syRYFGFQfffFkVsPdkmnHJaijtRqVUZsdZ1HKksoFJd3o_JjwUF1qgWpOiAKCkt0tPAG0Fu4RaLvTsFeigBnF2-fT3X0FYLALm02nVibKfNtI8/s320/20180408_222611.jpg" /></a></div>
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<i>(Note: As the blog doesn't allow me to put too many pictures, I decided to skip that process. If you're interested in pics, go to Great British Hobbit League Facebook group and search for #DoS2018)</i><br />
<br />
<br />
1 year ago, Desolation of Stockport 2017 marked my return to competitive SBG after roughly 3 years break from the game (I only played 1 event between March 2014 and April 2017 and only because it was 20min from my door). When I first got to DoS17, I came with 0 practice and only a theoretical metagame idea:<br />
- 800pts is a points level filled with Fell Beasts... what do Fell Beasts hate the most?<br />
<br />
I took an army of High Elves with Arwen, 2 High Elf Stormcallers (because of Call Winds knocking down Fell Beasts and all sorts of threatening models) and Saruman (because once you've learned how to play the best character in the game, you can never unlearn it). It didn't surprise me that I killed 9 Fell Beasts over 6 games... but finishing 2nd on tiebreak was beyond all of my expectations.<br />
<br />
What followed was a rather decent rest of the season including 2nd places individually on 4 of the 6 tournaments attended and a 5th at Cheshire's 2018 Season opener. I returned to DoS18 a year after my comeback began. The first thing I said when I got there was that I would finish 2nd. And so here's how that went down...<br />
<br />
Army List:<br />
<br />
Betrayer on Fell Beast<br />
10 Reavers with Axes<br />
<br />
Shadow Lord on Fell Beast<br />
10 Orcs with Spears<br />
<br />
Total: 22 models, 4 Might, 0 Bows. Break at 12 dead. 25% at 5 alive.<br />
<div>
<br />
<br />
<b> ROUND 1: High Ground vs Ronnie's Durin's Folk led by Balin. Table 27</b><br />
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Starting on the bottom table I was paired with Ronnie, who was playing his 1st GBHL tournament. He brought a list with Balin, Floi, Captain and a mix of about 24 Dwarves including Iron Guards, Bowmen and Khazads. The tournament started for me by rolling 1 for each of my warbands, which I mighted up to 2 on both rolls, leaving me with entire 2 points of Might for this game, facing Ronnie's 6. The Dwarf Captain had an unlucky entry in the middle of my board edge, whilst the other 2 warbands entered on the other end. What that meant was that the Dwarves came very close to breaking very quickly, as I was able to push my entire army at the Captain's warband. As the Dwarves got to the middle, the points level meant that they weren't really able to occupy the whole area and block my access, so I was able to quickly take over control of the centre and kill off Transfixed Balin with the Betrayer (the re-rolls to wound are great!). <br />
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Total VPs: 3x in the centre, enemy leader dead, enemy force broken. <br />
Result: 12:0 Victory<br />
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<b> ROUND 2: Domination vs Ringer's (Jamie) All-Hero Good. Table 5</b><br />
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It isn't common to see The Ringer on table 5, but Jamie and James decided to play the Ringer player as a normal competitor, sharing the games between them and Callum on day 2. What I faced was Aragorn, Twins and Glorfindel, all mounted. That force at 500pts is extremely dangerous and is what I used at Warhammer Fest last year (with Glorfindel changed to Imrahil carrying a lance). A single turn with 4 heroic combats easily causes most armies to break and unless you have a heavy amount of magic, it becomes very difficult to stop that army from just tearing you apart. I had enough magic to burn all of Aragorn's Will and Might on the first turn, resisting a double Transfix. I then had to throw my Wraiths into combat and cross my fingers that my Heroic Strikes would roll higher than Jamie's. They did and the game ended on turn 3 about 10 minutes into the round, with all of Jamie's models dead and me controlling 4 of the 5 objectives. My last turn should have involved a Heroic Combat and move into the 5th objective with The Betrayer, but I forgot that in the flurry of dice and spells.<br />
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Total VPs: 4 objectives controlled, enemy leader dead, enemy army broken. <br />
Result: 10:0 Victory<br />
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<b> ROUND 3: Contest of Champions vs Jay's Lake Town. Table 1.</b><br />
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Always good to play against the best players and Jay with Ed are the two of my favourite opponents. As is usually the case, Jay brought his Lake Town packing Bard, his kids, Alfrid, 2 other heroes and a total of 42 models, outnumbering me by 20. At the start he pointed out that if every one of my models kills 1 of his, then he will be broken. All he needed to do is get his models to kill just over half a model each to break me!<br />
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The game started with Bard improving to 5 Might points (Alfrid still on 1 Will) and LakeTown charging into the Reavers. I tried double Transfixing Bard, but failed both times. However, his Might went back down to 3 and Will to 0. Although I generally play the game quite conservatively and safely, I decided this time that it will be better for me to take a slightly higher variance approach as long term I am bound to make more mistakes than someone who spends much more time playing than me, especially a player of Jay's calibre. Thus I sent my Shadow Lord behind Jay's ranks, with the hope of calling a Heroic Combat and hurling a Militia into Bard. As I called a Heroic, so did he, knowing that if he wins the roll off and kills 2 Reavers, he can charge the SL head on before SL's Heroic. I decided to call a second Heroic with the Betrayer to potentially countercharge Bard or someone nearby, should he win the roll-off and have a second go at hurling someone into him. Luckily, I won it and got a Hurl off at Bard, followed up by Betrayer killing 2 in first combat and 2 in the second (no Hurling, as that doesn't score for Contest). By turn 2 I was solidly in charge at 7-1 in Leader Kills and decided I needed to speed up the breaking process. But... being comfortably in the lead sometimes makes you lose concentration and make mistakes. I threw Betrayer into combat behind Jay's lines, scored 2 more kills and then saw Bard kill Shadow Lord... then charge and kill the Betrayer and leave us in quite an awkward situation...<br />
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Kill Count 7-1 and VP score of 7-0 turns into Kill count of 9-4 and VP score of 6-4 within a single turn (we both broke, he scored 3 for killing my leader with his leader and I scored 5 for killing double with my leader). As we were both broken, Jay won priority, charged what he could and my failing courage tests alongside more casualties meant that the game would end THIS turn. Because of the current conditions, it was only possible for me to lose, if Bard manages to kill 6 models in a single turn, which is physically impossible, so we quickly moved to the last combat of the game to see whether Bard can gain 1 extra kill. In summary: If Bard wins against 2 models and kills 1, the death count turns to 9-5, thus leading to a 4-4 draw. If Bard loses, it stays at 6-4. Out of Might... he lost combat.<br />
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Total VPs: Double Kills by Champion, Both Broken, My Leader killed by His Leader<br />
Result: 6-4 Victory<br />
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<b><br /> ROUND 4: Seize the Prize vs Jasmine's Goblin Town. Table 1. </b><br />
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My least favourite scenario was up against Jasmine, who last time we played, smashed me with a similar list at the League Finale. As there was a rock in the middle of the board slightly towards East from where I was standing, I decided to pick West side of the board to deploy in instead of the standard North/South. On turn 1 I estimated that the only model that could get into the prize on turn 2 before any of my warriors was the Goblin King. Considering that it was Jasmine's leader, I made a decision not to fly in too early and let the King move in and try to dig up the prize. The prize got dug up and picked up. The Goblin King was then Compelled forward and charged by 1 Fell Beasts and a Reaver. The plan here was basically:<br />
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- The Goblin King gets isolated, surrounded and dies<br />
- I pick up the prize<br />
- I pass it to a Fell Beast<br />
- The Fell Beast will never be caught by the 5" moving Goblins. I can't really lose anymore. <br />
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What actually happened was:<br />
- The Goblin King took 4 wounds in the first turn of combat, failing 1 Blubbery Mass save.<br />
- For the next 3 turns the Goblin King was transfixed and charged by 2 Fell Beasts each time, taking a total of 27 wounds, saving ALL OF THEM. <br />
- My army got surrounded and wiped out by overwhelming numbers and Marauders.<br />
- The Goblin King walked off my board edge. <br />
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As we kept the dice rolling, we both sat there in disbelief at what was happening. A game that was seemingly un-losable turned into a kind of 1-in-50,000 incident of godly dice rolls. The only thing I could have done differently was to perhaps try and kill the King with Black Darts... but then surely I'm more likely to kill him by causing obscene number of wounds than by hoping that my multiple Black Darts (channelled or not) don't get resisted by Resistance to Magic and Might and then cause 2 extra wounds.<br />
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Total VPs: Her leader wounded. My army annihilated and prize taken off my edge. <br />
Result: 1-12 Loss<br />
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<b> ROUND 5: Storm the Camp vs Luke's Goblin Town. Table 5. </b><br />
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Rolling back into the venue on day 2, I dropped to Table 5 and saw a mirror image of Jasmine's list, but with a Bat Swarm instead of a 4th Marauder. The scenario meant we had a lot more to figure out throughout the game, as the Marauders were trying to outrun Fell Beasts on my right flank, which were also trying to threaten the middle and left flanks without dying to the Goblin King's goblin-throwing-Fell-Beast-Killer ability. <br />
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On the first turn of shooting, 3 Marauders hitting on 6s managed to cause 2 wounds on the Betrayer's Fell Beast. He then compelled and assassinated one of the Marauders, before losing his FB in the very next combat, leaving me with just 1. Luckily Reavers are pretty good at cutting through Goblin Town and I managed to Break Luke very quickly. When that happened, I was myself just 2 models away from breaking, so decided to start pulling everything away from combat as to not lose anything, and keeping my Shadow Lord on FB within the Harbinger of Evil range for the King to hopefully fail. Both of my Wraiths ended the game on 1 Will and 0 Might each, and the King fled on the last possible turn before returning to the camp, leading to VPs for break + leader. Sadly, my remaining 10 warriors and 2 nearly dead wraiths were never going to force their way through a Goblin Captain and some 18 warriors back at the camp, so we ended the game there. <br />
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Total VPs: Enemy broken and leader dead. <br />
Result: 6-0 Victory<br />
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<b> ROUND 6: Lords of Battle vs James' Harad. Table 3. </b><br />
Rarely does a game come up when you and your opponent compliment each other for correct decisions, but this was one of those rare times when to the huuuuge annoyance of both of us, neither of us made a single mistake throughout the entire game. James is of course a veteran and one of the best players in the country, plus a gentleman like no other. He played a list consisting of Betrayer on Fell Beast, Golden King, 12 Watchers with bows and 11 or 12 Serpent Guards for support. The exact sort of list that I anticipated would obliterate me if I don't take The Shadow Lord. <br />
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As expected I setup in the middle and James went as far back as he could. On turn 2 he compelled one of my Orcs outside of Shadow Lord's Special Rule's range and in a way that all of his archers could shoot at the orc hitting on 3+ and have in-the-way rolls for my Reavers and other orcs. The dice gods however had a different idea. In the first shot of the turn, an arrow hit... it missed the 1st ITW... it missed the 2nd ITW... it missed the 3rd ITW... it killed the Orc... The remaining 11 shots hitting on 6s scored 1 hit and a result of a 3... he kills on 5+ and re-rolls 1s and 2s!<br />
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On turn 3 I lost priority and got Shadow Lord stuck into combat to make a massive hurl across James's 15 or so models. I only killed about 3. Next turn the Shadow Lord died after being charged by the Golden King. His Betrayer went to my flank, whilst my Betrayer stayed far out of combat, as to not die by accident but still use his magic. Enemy Betrayer fell soon to lack of Will and a charging Orc and both of our forces broke. However, with no Might left on James' side, I was able to call a heroic with Betrayer and ensure most of the 'bad guys' died to courage tests once GK was pinned down. The game did not end after breaking for another turn, during which Betrayer and multiple Reavers charged and killed the Golden King. <br />
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Total Wounds Tally: 27:16. Both broken. Enemy leader dead. <br />
Result: 6-1 Victory<br />
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<b> ROUND 7: Heirlooms of Ages Past vs Alastair's Harad. Table 2. </b><br />
Seeing Ed and Jay fighting it out on table 1 and a scenario where they can only ever really win or lose with a score-line of about +7 or +10 VPs to either side, meant that there was really no way for me to win the tournament anymore and I was fighting for 2nd place with Alastair.<br />
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The Wales Captain brought mounted Suladan, Harad Chieftain, a 0/7/0 Wraith, couple of Morannons and a mix of Half Trolls and F5 Venomblood Knights (The Black Numenorian upgrade, whatever it is called). I lost priority and Al got all 3 of his warbands set in the South West corner of the board, about 15" from the nearest objective. I then rolled for the Betrayer and got a result that meant I could pick North or South... So we could have a nice standard game on the opposite edges and picking up objectives... or I could just run into him. I set myself up just next to Alastair's army and compelled a warrior into combat with both Betrayer and a Reaver, setting up for a nice hurl. Then the Shadow Lord setup on the West edge, doing exactly the same thing, except this time compelling a guy into himself and an orc and getting 2 supporting orcs. SL called a Heroic Combat. Both of them hurled a model each and knocked down about 20 others. SL then went and took out the enemy Wraith. The Hurls themselves were almost entirely useless, as they only killed 1 or 2 models. However... the first one knocked Suladan down, causing 2 wounds on him, which proved to be pivotal...<br />
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For the next few turns we both fought bravely (my guys less bravely, as they kept failing terror tests to charge the Knights). He lost the Chieftain and I had only 8 models left to his 14 or so, but I was broken, whilst he was 1 model away from breaking. Both Wraiths were down to 2 and 3 Will points, so really out of resources. Alastair tried digging up one prize, but failed. I decided I wanted to end the game right now, despite some 15min left on the clock and neither of us in possession of the prize, as he was more likely to get to the prizes before me. All I had to do was to break him and lose 3 models (down to 25%). I started the last turn by taking Courage Tests with my warriors before heroes, losing 2. Betrayer tried casting Black Dart down to 1 Will, but failed. He then flew towards another prize, dismounted, tried to pick it up and rolled a 5 instead of a 6. The Shadow Lord cast Black Dart down to 1 Will, killed a model to break him, then flew into combat in an effort to die at the end of turn by running out of Will. <br />
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Total VPs: Both Broken. Enemy leader wounded. <br />
Result: 2-1 Victory<br />
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<b> FINAL RESULT:</b><br />
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6 Wins - 1 Loss / 43VPs for - 18VPs Against / VP Diff: +25<br />
Runner Up... on tiebreaks... again...<br />
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It is now 5 individual and 6 total 2nd places in the last 8 tournaments over the last 12 months... They call finishing 4th "Doing a Jeffery"... I'm not far from having 2nd place named after me :D<br />
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<b> Afterthoughts:</b><br />
Jamie and James as always did a wonderful job running the event and nothing but praise can be given. Element Games is a great venue, so once again, nothing but positive thoughts! All of my opponents were very sporting and very relaxed, leading to really enjoyable games throughout the 2 days. <br />
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Personally, I still need to work on my own game in terms of pulling off maximum VPs at all times. I still play with a "victory is a victory" mindset rather than "how can I pull the extra VP here or there", which in bigger tournaments is what is required to win or place well, as it's not uncommon to have 2 or more players on the same win/loss ratio, with only VPs to differentiate them, even on the podium. It has now been DoS17, Dos18, Cheshire 18 and WFest17 that I could have been 1st in, had I placed more attention to individual VPs rather than simply ensuring I win the games.<br />
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Multiple players have asked me throughout the event why I chose to play Betrayer over Knight of Umbar, when the Knight seems like a far superior choice, especially when I have no bowfire to benefit his special rule. I think Betrayer is a sound choice for small games such as this. Normally you won't face much magic from the opposition, so the extra Will you use in combat doesn't affect you in a significant way, thus the only difference between the two becomes 1 extra point of Might vs re-rolls in combat. At 500pts, unlike 800 or 1000, it is very simple to isolate heroes. Once isolated, throwing a Fell Beast at them will only average 3 wounds for D5/6 or 2 wounds for 7/8. Throwing Betrayer at them will average 4.5 wounds for D5/6 and 3.3 wounds for D7/8, meaning that you pretty much ensure you kill every commonly used transfixed hero in a single fight. In the case of 700 or 800+ points games, the further threat from Saruman/Gandalf/Galadriel/Wraiths means that you want to preserve as much Will as possible, plus when you face heroes with 3 wounds and 3 fate, even the Betrayer is not very likely to take them out in a single go, so it is generally not advisable throwing your Wraiths at them unless you also surround them with additional troops for more attacks. Finally the rule of stealing stats from opponents is not very good when all you ever face is F5 or F4 heroes at such a small points level. Overall, the Betrayer is a worthy contender. As for Shadow Lord... I knew I'd be outnumbered in every game and I had Defence 4 across the board, so I couldn't afford to take casualties from shooting.<br />
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Good luck!<br />
<br />
Mik<br />
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-566471938759864918.post-12753195438817238432016-12-24T21:20:00.001+00:002017-12-24T21:11:02.178+00:00GBHL: Origins <div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">“There was a dream that was Rome. You could only whisper it. Anything more than a whisper and it would vanish, it was so fragile”</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> <i> -- Gladiator (2000) </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Author's Note: Originally written in December 2016, I've made edits in December 2017 in the last few paragraphs. I thought editing the start would take away from the backstory and it would be too time consuming. Hope you enjoy nevertheless!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>========================</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's been a while since I've written about SBG. This article has been long coming. So long that it has evolved in my mind several times before I even started. I've been barely active in the SBG community for a while now, mainly due to a job that requires tons of travel, but slowly and surely I scribbled down notes over the last few months and managed to put it all down. It's pretty long, so you may want to grab a coffee and a snack!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">4 months ago I attended my first league event in a long time, the Longbottom Carnival in London, partially due to being just an hour away on public transport. Last time I played at Longbottom was in 2013. Throughout the course of the event several people asked me about the founding of the Great British Hobbit League (GBHL). I've had questions about it from people all over the world in the past, so in case I get Transfixed, Chill Souled or Black Darted I decided to begin writing it at the end of August. But I just couldn't finish it. Finally, seeing the success of Ardacon 2016 has given me the inspiration to get to the end. Then another trip stopped me. But Christmas is here, so I have no excuses not to finish it... and neither do you for not reading it, right? Now that I'm done it happens to coincide with the 4 year anniversary of the start of GBHL, which is somewhere around Christmas 2012. It is long. Parts of it are nostalgic. Parts of it are critical/analytical, but hopefully in a constructive way. Parts of it are hopeful for the future to come.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Expect to see some very old photos with faces you may or may not be familiar with. You may or may not agree with everything I say, since I tend to have a lot more competitive perspective at the game (and a lot of other things in life) than most people, despite a 3 year break from competitive play. As always, happy to discuss in comments here or on the GBHL Facebook page in case questions arise.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Where do we begin... Before we begin, here's a challenge: Spot the still active players on these (colour?!) pictures of Team TLA (The Last Alliance) in their glory days:</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Note: Clicking on the pictures will enlarge them.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2009 Doubles GT - The "We all just got our TLA t-shirts!" picture</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2010 Singles GT - The one attended by a certain representative of the United States (Tim Hixon). Not sure what that white blob is covering parts of 2 faces. I downloaded it from my FB profile and never saw that before.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2010 Hunting For Trolls - The one where GBHL Jamie's afro was larger than mount doom. Was this Jay Clare's virgin LotR tournament?! Our new Lord of Middle Earth hasn't aged a day! It's also one where a certain Moore (not Harry...) missed his train, missed round 1, but won the next 7 and still won the tournament...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2011 Singles GT - Was Ed taking this photograph??</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Hey, I hear they replaced this scene in the Director's Cut...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">======================</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">During the Longbottom Carnival one of my opponents asked me when did I start playing the game. I said 12 years ago. I looked around and there were at least Ed Ball and James Braund who came from roughly the same(ish) era. Like the last remaining dinosaurs we hang on and always come back to the greatest wargame ever made. I believe Dan Entwisle, Jamie Giblin and Sam Jeffery were around a bit later than that? I may be wrong. I remember reading Ed's 2005 or 2006 Grand Tournament (GT - yearly tournaments that effectively counted as UK/World Championships) report from when he took an army consisting of 2 Fell Beasts and a horse-mounted Wraith at 500 points and it blew my mind. My best performance by that time had been a few wins at my local GW in Manchester. The guy was a genius with Fell Beasts before most of you even had your first Aragorn. It baffles me when inexperienced players sometimes pick up his Flying Circus army and think they can succeed with it. It took the guy nearly a decade to master it. It is art in its purest form as far as this game is concerned.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Then there were the 8 Spider Queens at the 2009 Doubles of James Braund and Craig Johnson. Incredible to watch. Then there was the super-broken-biggest-mistake-in-design-ever Outriders with Gamling that broke the game so much the community united in its common hatred of it (for those unfamiliar Outriders were heroes with 0 Might, 0 Will and 1 Fate and Gamling's Banner gave 1 Might to heroes per turn if they started the turn with 0. They also didn't count for bow limit because they were heroes at 10 points a piece... oops!). The Polish Hussars ascended onto the UK for the first time in 2009 and placed 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th at the Singles GT. They would arrive again at doubles 3 years later to a podium finish and not return until Ardacon, which they again won in the team portion and with a fresh new team.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">There was the incredible dominance of Wood Elf armies at the 2010 GT, with 6 of the top 10 placing with them. There was the 2010 Doubles when the 1st (Craig Johnson & James Braund) and 2nd (Me and James Knight) were tied in games and the winner was decided by a single point on a knowledge quiz (10/10 vs 9/10!). Anyway, that's not the point of this article, just some memories that came back after 2 days of awesome gaming at the Longbottom Carnival and recently browsing through posts and pictures about Ardacon.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">THE FIRST AND SECOND AGES</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It did not begin with the forging of the Great Rings and I really couldn't care less who they were given to. It began with The Last Alliance. Well... I lie... actually, it began with Games Workshop forums, which closed circa 2005 and forced mass migration of players onto The Last Alliance and One Ring. Time flies. It felt like yesterday when I thought the game was going to die! The competitive bunch moved mainly to TLA and everyone else split between the two. Somehow One Ring ended up having the most amazing collection of painters and sculptors ever assembled. At the time, the game was extremely popular. Both TLA and OR had thousands of members around the world and were the two main resources for everything LotR: SBG related. Throughout 2005/6/7/8 the Grand Tournaments were increasing in scale, up to the epic 144 player event in 2008, which has only now, 8 years later been overtaken by Ardacon as the largest SBG event ever held anywhere (I say event, because as far as tournaments go, it had exactly the same number of players). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When I looked on this blog the other day I noticed I have an unfinished 2008 GT report that I started translating a couple of years ago from my original I wrote in Polish after the event - all with army lists, scenarios, opponents, pictures. I'm still aiming to one day publish it :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When I say the forums were popular I mean it. At one point I reached over 4,600 posts on TLA and I don't think I was even in the top 5 of the most active posters on the site. That averages 4 posts per day over 4 years. It's possible I may have had a problem... but just like any other person with an addiction I would not admit it!</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">In the glory days, circa 2009, Craig Johnson (UkRocky) and I had a number of discussions about seizing this opportunity and creating a league. He tried organising a few small events, but they didn't attract many people. I mean like 7 or 10 players would turn up. Hunting for Trolls in 2010 was the most successful one with about 20. We talked with others, TLA managed to get 2 tournaments in London in 2007 and 2008. Yet, because of the introduction of Doubles, the general consensus was that we had a massive Singles GT every year, we had a massive Doubles GT every year, we had a couple of random events here and there. So there was really no need for a league or more tournaments. People were happy with the choice they had. The idea got abandoned.</span></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I sort of mark the First Age as the Pre-LoME (Legions of Middle Earth) time of release of the game until release of Legions in 2006. Second Age therefore is Legions of Middle Earth era up until the release of the Hobbit: SBG rules. </span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Fast forward to 2012. The year that I felt was the year when everything began to collapse. Games Workshop finally touched LotR with its "Throne of Skulls" and killed the GTs. The 2012 event was still an all-out competitive grind many of us loved and spent weeks and months preparing for. It was glorious. But then something happened that the Ring did not intend... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When the events team finally announced the GTs would stop being competitive and would be run solely for the "fun" side of things, all I saw was the approaching meteor that would inevitably wipe off most of the dinosaurs. I understood that the sales were dropping, the game was slowly dying through less and less players playing it and it seemed that the voices of those calling for "fun" play were given more attention than the rest of us who had committed thousands of hours of our time discussing and playing the game we loved. What we all found fun differed on a person-to-person basis. When that happened, and with the new rules coming out, a large portion of the old players left the game to play systems that supported their desire to compete - Flames of War, Malifaux, Warmachine/Hordes, etc, etc.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The GW-run events were already dropping in popularity and were about to reach its bottom. Over the next few years, the Warhammer World Events Team still provided a thrilling experience for everyone that attended and the events were as far as I've been told an absolute blast, so don't take this the wrong way. I wouldn't criticize the outstanding work of Nick and his team. It's the politics and the description of what 'fun' supposedly meant that I've always had a problem with, but I'll come back to this.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">THE THIRD AGE</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Let's just say that the future looked really grim and Sauron seemed stronger than ever. I discussed things with others and the general consensus was 'this is it... game over... lack of support, lack of tournaments, lack of incentive for a lot of us to keep on playing and therefore caring'. If we stop playing, we won't buy as much, therefore more things will go out of production and eventually GW will drop the game. Considering the lack of major immediate releases at the time of the films other than a rulebook we were pretty convinced the Hobbit wasn't exactly on the priority list for our Masters. It came down to the fans to save their hobby from extermination. Surely, as we've become friends over the gaming table, we couldn't just end it there and stop talking to each other and just move on with our lives. So the idea of the league came back. </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">This was as good a moment as any to seize this opportunity as the Hobbit movie had just been released.</span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We didn't have a rules set and the now 2,500+ member GBHL Facebook page had maybe 50 people, not very active, with a 'Hobbit Events' title or something like that created by Dan Entwisle. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Just before Christmas 2012 I was talking to Sam Jeffery about army lists for the upcoming 2013 Throne of Skulls. Sam was going to attend, but he didn't seem too surprised I wasn't. I had been to 12 previously organised GW Singles and Doubles Grand Tournaments. I hadn't missed one since 2006, but the new format just wasn't for me. I said to Sam I would write a rulespack for some sort of a league over Christmas and maybe we could convince some people to help out. The idea came out of necessity. I loved the game, but I wanted a platform to be able to compete, since ToS wasn't for me anymore and it looked like the competitive side of things may become completely unsupported by GW. My initial idea was to have 4 or 5 tournaments in a year and crown a champion at the end. Then see what happens and how we can take it further.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Some time around Christmas 2012 the Rulespack got written...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Around New Year it got published...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">To the sound of fanfares...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">To the 'ahhs' and 'ohhs' and the applause of thousands of fanatical, bewildered spectators boasting mighty roof-tearing roars at the top of their throats...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The eyes of the Valar looked down upon us as we stood in front of the greatest challenge any race of Middle Earth was ever to face! In the words of President Whitmore we were "fighting for our right to live... to survive!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">And then...</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Nothing happened...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Literally...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Maybe 5 people took notice. Maybe 8 at a stretch.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Well... Rome wasn't built over Christmas either!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I contacted Chris and Damian at Titans Wargames Club in London. It seemed like the first logical place to start. After all we lived in the same city and their club was about an hour away on the tube for me. They keenly organised an event in March and despite heavily advertising on the OR and TLA forums a whopping 18 players turned up. The winner was none other than GBHL Jamie, the member of the 2017 ETC England Team [<i>insert applause</i>]. It's still saved deep in the league rankings, check it out if you want. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">About 2 months later Sam Jeffery and Dan Entwisle organised a tournament in Stockport under the incredibly humble title "Grand Hobbit Championships". The championships were in fact so grand, that entire 10 people ascended from the distant lands and James Braund was crowned the UK Grand Hobbit Champion, winning this really strange and I'm not entirely sure if in any way, shape or form relevant to the Hobbit, trophy of a Samurai wielding a sword or two. I don't know where to find a picture of that, so if anyone has it or if James wouldn't mind sharing, it would be great to see it again!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sometime early that year I got in touch with Leonardis and Sam Page from the East Grinstead gaming club over One-Ring forum as I remembered coming across a blog about their gaming group. They liked the idea and got together with others and got a tournament going which attracted 14 players and was won by a certain GBHL Damian. Before that even took place I reorganised the rankings from the GW's Throne of Skulls and used them to add more players and scores to the league. Just to make it more shiny for people to look at. I then did the same with Doubles. I didn't ask Nick from the Events Team if that was OK, so I kinda regret not asking at the very start, but I fixed my mistake later on and clearly he's been cool with that ever since :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Some time after East Grinstead and the GW Doubles, Sam and Dan chose to organise the Grand Hobbits Defence (so grand!), a tournament that attracted 9 players and was won by Alan Liddle.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Based on the success of their first tournament, Chris and Damian decided to organise the 2nd Longbottom Carnival (apparently there had been a 1st a year before that, but I didn't even know about that at the time). That would become the largest independent tournament of 2013, with 26 players. Some random Polish guy won that one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Things were beginning to look nice. We still had 4 months to go till the end of the year. I talked with Charles Sims and David Reid to see if maybe they could do something further up in the north, since so far there had been a lot organised in the south. It turned out that they were both able to organise events. First up, Preston ran by Charles attracted 11 players for what was known as the "Battle For Middle-England". It's worth noting however, that out of those 11, I believe 7 or 8 were in contention for the top spot in the league and it was probably the toughest tournament most of those players had to play up to that point and possibly one of the toughest ever in GBHL history. When the dust over Middle-England settled, Tom Harrison stood victorious for the 2nd time that year. After that, Stirling Wargames (David & The Scots) organised an event that hosted 12 people with Jamie Giblin picking up his 2nd win of the season. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I thought this was enough for the first year. It was already more than I had hoped for, but I felt like it needed an ending and partially because of it beginning in London (and partially because of my laziness of not wanting to travel outside of London for toys at the time) I decided to announce that the final tournament of the 2013 season would actually take place in 2014. It was a weird event, since it counted towards both 2013 and 2014 rankings. Anyway, we crowned our first league champion, Ed Ball. The picture of that event (which gathered 32 players!) is still the group picture of the GBHL Committee (a secret group for everyone working behind the scenes to ensure the calendar works, the rules work, the FAQ is up to date, the league prizes are there, etc, etc. ;) ).</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5aCr4w6FxLvY_rVsquPE8nTDhJud86r0givzBxWCedyJ5z_Q_RG_1zZ2idrvW7JRIih93KkiECSiF07TyAJS317UBdR9DX6IaPeiewGvyVxdeSzU_MI78SyfILtRqA44DOUotU4UqR1po/s1600/7.+Committee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5aCr4w6FxLvY_rVsquPE8nTDhJud86r0givzBxWCedyJ5z_Q_RG_1zZ2idrvW7JRIih93KkiECSiF07TyAJS317UBdR9DX6IaPeiewGvyVxdeSzU_MI78SyfILtRqA44DOUotU4UqR1po/s640/7.+Committee.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The notepad in my hand was what I used to calculate the final scores in a battle between Ed, Tom and Damian, all of whom had a chance to win the first season depending on the outcome of that tournament. Damian won the tournament, but he needed Ed to finish outside of top 6 and I think Tom somewhere outside top 8 to claim the trophy. It was a really complicated setup that depending on their perspective finishes, any of them could have won it. Ed finished 5th and Tom 7th, giving Ed the season triumph. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The 1st season's Independent Tournaments had the following attendance:</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">1. Shadow & Sorcery, aka. League Finale, London - 32</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2. Longbottom Carnival, London - 26</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">3. Close Encounters of the Third Age, London - 18</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">4. East Grinstead Event, East Grinstead - 14</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">5. Scouring of Stirlingshire, Stirling - 12</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">6. Battle for Middle-England, Preston - 11</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">7. Grand Hobbit Championships, Stockport - 10</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">8. Grand Hobbits Defence, Stockport - 9</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Average players for the indie scene in season 1: 16.5</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">A total of 81 unique players participated in the first season, with only 11 of them attending the required minimum threshold of 5 counting towards the final league score (that got changed to 4 in season 2 and stayed the same till now). </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Years later GBHL Damian recalled how initially he went to the first London tournament it was all going to be for a day rolling dice and laughing with friends, but when later he saw the ranking he thought "wait a second, I could win this thing!" A lot of players clearly thought the same and so within a year we'd run 8 independent events and crowned the first League Champion. Season 2 saw the rise in popularity of the GBHL channel with James, Jamie, Tom and Damian taking the hotseat, a total of 14 tournaments counting towards the league and almost twice as many unique players attending. I suppose all is history now, but if you'd like to have a detailed look of the results and rankings from years gone by, just follow this link: <a href="https://1drv.ms/x/s!AmaFSdy92G3qgU-ya3387Rw6JFAf">League Rankings</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After being in charge of 2013 and 2014 seasons I decided to pass the reins to someone similarly or more passionate about the hobby than me, but most importantly someone I trusted would be committed to taking this project and making it better. My suggestion to the TOs was the eventual 2015-2017 coordinator, SBG magazine co-founder and the GBHL Youtuber Tom Harrison. Over the years the league has grown at an incredible pace and the work the TOs have put into ensuring great atmosphere and experience has generally received a very positive feedback from the community, which is great for both the organisers and the players.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I suppose the hardest thing was the beginning and figuring out what makes it all tick. I'm afraid I'm going to say something controversial here, that many will probably disagree with, but I will explain my reasoning. It is the competitive side that really was the reason it all worked in the first place. The very thing that GW abandoned and the very thing many players slacked for 'destroying the fun', made GBHL what it is now and allowed it to expand enough that we can now have all sorts of events organised and can guarantee that people will turn up - something that 4 years ago would have almost certainly failed. In all honesty, the reason for that is...</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The (<i>oh so evil!</i>) Power Gamer!</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">This chapter is less about the league and more about what I, as a player with 12 years of experience of attending dozens of events have figured out. Obviously, this is not be-all and end-all, but this is the basic idea upon which I wrote the initial rulespack for GBHL and why I think we managed to pull it off in the first place.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">To make events worth running, you need a core group of players who will keep attending most or all events. So how does one attract players to regularly come to events? People need to come because they care and because they want to come. You need to first understand what makes people care and since this is a game and we're mostly geeks/nerds, there is one thing that a lot of people definitely care about - beating the cr*p out of their friends in front of a larger group of friends. Yeah... it's a nerd thing... we just do it because we do it. Admit it - there isn't a greater feeling in life than defeating someone with a model last week they argued was worthless (like back in the day people thought Spider Queen was useless "because it's defence 4 and dies to bowfire, boo"... then Spider Queens dominated the world and had to have FAQ change them to a named hero and then still had to have its points increased by a whopping 40 to stop it from being on every table). Well... ok, maybe there are better things in life, but they're few and far between!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">On a more serious note competition is the very basis of our society. It drives our civilization. It drives progress. We compete for jobs, for partners, for schools, for trophies, for money, for everything. Hell, we even compete in who's got a cuter cat or whether your or my cat's hair looks more like that of the new US President. True story. Google it. It's called "Trump Your Cat" and whether you voted for him or not I don't care and don't wanna know, but you gotta admit it's the funniest thing to come out of this election cycle. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">There are essentially two types of people who play SBG - competitors and casuals. Competitors play the game for the challenge. They want to be good at it and they want to win. As such they are the people who are willing to prioritise the game above other things in life. They are the grinders. There is a weekend tournament - a grinder has a choice of going to play or hanging out with his mates - chances are he will go to play. A casual player will think about what's going to give him more pleasure, and inevitably more often than not will choose the mates (of course, ideally mates play toys too... which becomes very true once you've been playing on the GBHL circuit for a while). Competitive player will look at costs and decide often he'd rather play toys than eat that cake in the shop, whilst a casual player will usually just eat the cake and then have another one. My point is... In any borderline situation you can count on the grinder to turn up and make a guess whether the casual will. As such, despite there being more casuals, they will attend a smaller number of events and not really be bothered about them. For events to ensure that they can run, they require a core group of players you can always count on turning up, if only for the reasons of the cost of hosting events. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Imagine a situation where Longbottom Carnival was to only attract casuals and not the competitors - look... this is a Bank Holiday weekend in August, it's hot outside (and that happens once every 7 years in London) and it's Notting Hill Carnival weekend... I'm pretty sure there are more interesting things to do out there than sit in a boiling room surrounded by sweaty people rolling dice and shouting quotes from some fantasy book... or are there? Depends on what your mindset is and how much you care about those dice rolling well. This year pretty much all of the grinders turned up, yet the event wasn't even sold out, despite being in the western Europe's largest city on a long weekend off! Grinder might not seem like the nicest way to call these people, but they are probably the most passionate group of players there are in this hobby. They are always there, willing to fight. You can always count on them and you know they will be there when the TOs need them to be there. They not only attend every 100pt tournament they can, they also attend every 80pt (also known as casual tournament) they can. They simply care that people play and other people see people play. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Most grinders or competitive players are to some degree power gamers. Enter the mind of the power gamer. I didn't have to look far, I just looked at myself... Think about the core and the most basic way that a competitive player thinks:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- There's a tournament in my area. I'm going to go and smash it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- I came to 1 event... perhaps I failed at smashing, but smashing was awesome and adrenaline was kicking!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- I want to smash more... there's a second event I know of... smash smash!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- Someone made a ranking and I'm just behind that guy who I smashed the other day! Whoah... I'm not having that... So I need at least 4 tournaments to get into the proper ranking? Fine, let's do that... I'm committed to smashing him now anyway.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- 4 tournaments in, I'm either 1st and someone is so close to me I can't risk them taking over, so I will go wherever they go! Or if I'm not first, surely I gotta be first! Smash... This is so addictive!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- Before you know it, you have a group of players who got tricked into attending way more tournaments than they expected because of the feel of always being so so so close to being the best. And of course, they like to smash.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I'm simplifying this as I think humour is the best thing at explaining many things within our society.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In my own race to win a GT I took a beating after beating, came home, re-evaluated, practiced and didn't give up until I finally got what I wanted. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">That might sound basic, but men are basic. You get the point. Eye of the Tiger. If you're willing to work for it, you will get there. I strongly believe in putting in the 10,000 hours to achieve success and not relying on luck or talent. Winning at SBG is exactly that - an exercise in deliberate practice, which taken into real life can help you succeed in many other areas. I wouldn't be half as successful in my career if it wasn't for the mindset I developed playing SBG. Always pushing to be the best, never giving up, never letting bad luck affect my feelings, always learning from those better around me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">This is relevant, because to sustain a league you need motivated players who will play. Once you've built your core group of players, that's when you can really take off and think about something bigger. The year 1 of the league was essentially that - the core was built over the course of 10 events that averaged about 15 or so players by the end of it. 11 players reached the threshold required to try and win the league. Once the core was there, we knew that the following year is going to be easier because we can count on these guys to turn up and once that happens, others will follow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Competitive players have a drive to succeed. To do it they need to practice. To practice they need other people, often resulting in convincing someone outside of the game (fellow hobbyists playing a different game, or as in the case of some - their partner... and you know who you are... Yes, I'm looking at you Ed Sheeran of GBHL :) But I know you're not the only one, sir!) to come and play with them - this could be someone who played in the past or someone completely new. The new player will then often come along to the tournament - whether as a grinder or a casual doesn't matter as long as they come and enjoy themselves.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Depending on the sort of people they are, the new players will either follow the same route or come as casuals because they really enjoy the atmosphere and want to get the experience. At this point it is the responsibility of the the community to make sure other players are welcome - something the Hobbit community has been incredible with. My own example, coming back to a tournament after 2.5 years break I get hugged, cheered and exchange hours of stories with people I used to hang out with years ago. We may initially connect through the game, but once the game stops it is up to us to open the conversation on other subjects and meet the people behind the mighty generals.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">So you've catered to the competitive players. You've just guaranteed yourself that you will have people coming to tournaments regularly. But now some of you are probably thinking "this guy is boring and sounds like a competitive douchebag". But hold on, we're only half way there, grab another biscuit and re-fill that coffee with some hot water. Go on, I'll wait... to wake you up also check out this video of funny cats.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Well, I understand and respect the fact that there are casual players out there, who don't care about winning. Guess what, the league is for them too, whether they want to compete or not. The competitive playing is just the foundation of something far greater, of something that brings together all sorts of different people and puts them into one place to share their love of their hobby. Competitive players are in no way better or worse than casual players. We are equals and both sides should respect the other. Politicians around the world on both sides of the spectrum have already done a sickening job at dividing the society, so I don't think we, the wargamers should come down to their level.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Tournaments are key. By covering the tournament circuit you automatically cover all aspects of the hobby - people want to break out, so they will show off their paint jobs, conversions, or wicked list ideas. The tournaments award prizes for outstanding painting, for sporting behaviour, even for coming last, which in itself is a challenge worthy of fighting for! Everybody enjoys a few likes on Facebook... yes, Facebook was a godsend to the success of the league. Thanks Marc. Without it, I can guarantee GBHL would have failed because Facebook is the biggest and easiest platform to reach out to like-minded people. As soon as there is talk about tournaments, there is talk about the game and all aspects of it. That attracts more casuals and more competitors. Both groups are happy. Casuals start to appear on the league circuit more regularly, not only because of all the cool hobby, non-competitive things you get awarded for and the awesome experience of the tournaments, but because there are other casuals who they can play there instead of just competitors. You are building a core of casual players without even realising it. This worked well for us and it was further improved when the Hobbit celebrities James, Jamie, Tom and Damian setup their GBHL Youtube Channel, which then led to even more people finding out about the league.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The thing that worked so beautifully about the old GT system was that despite a lot of moaning from a certain small group of people, it actually catered for all. Competitive players spent most of the tournament playing other competitive players on the top half of the tables. Casual players spent most of the tournament playing other casuals on the bottom half of the tables. The people on one side of the hall had fun because they loved the challenge. The people on the other side had fun because they had a laugh. As far as I know, this is exactly what happened at Ardacon. Of course, you then had players once in a while playing opponents who didn't match their desired competitiveness level and that created issues. Well... no system is perfect and I have a feeling (I may be wrong of course) that the GTs were dumped in part because of the complaints of those who didn't like this mixing. Those who are unhappy are always the loudest. Vast majority of people I talked to absolutely loved the GTs for everything they provided. In my opinion they were the best thing that ever happened to the game. Yet, I had a situation at least once, when I got to the table and the opponent on the other side literally stood there and began to moan in my face from the start how my army wasn't themed and how they were going to hate playing me because I was there to win and not to have fun. Nope, it probably wasn't themed (although, considering it was all made in the same factory, I think I may have a case!), but thanks for manners. Whoah, who said winning isn't fun?! Somehow GW decided (by following the feedback or not) to take away a platform to play from the competitive community, enforcing their own idea of fun. Luckily we proved afterwards that we loved the game enough that now it doesn't really matter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">So let me summarise what I think were the key things that made the league a success and something that other people can take to create or improve their own leagues:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- A simple rulespack that made sense</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- A group of players looking for a platform to play</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- A ranking system that motivated players to dedicate themselves to the game, thus building the core of gamers, the so-called grinders. In other words a reason for them to stop doing what they're doing and choose to enter an event over chilling with their friends. Once the grinders are there, others will come too.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- A very good relationship between Tournament Organisers and their willingness to support the idea despite its bumpy start. In this case they've all been stars from the beginning till now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- A marketing system - ie. Facebook Page / Youtube Channel / advertising at events or venues. Did I mention that when the GBHL first began I personally went to multiple Games Workshop stores, talked to managers and told them about the league and tournaments we were organising? They didn't let me leave leaflets and I don't think it led to anyone actually turning up from those GWs, but if it did bring at least 1 more player in, then it would already be a success considering my hopeless marketing skills. That was 4 years ago. Last Sunday I went to a GW store in central London and mentioned GBHL... everyone knew what it was and a sales assistant was even a member of the group. How awesome is that?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- Probably the most important - not giving up. After I wrote the rulespack, the first month of the league had 0 tournaments. The second had 1 that wasn't even organised by the league. March, April and June had 1 tournament each. It really wasn't a fast starter. Honestly I hoped to maybe have 4 events in the first year. We got 8. 200% of what I aimed for. Anyway, let's get to the fun part...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>Fun</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">That's probably a pretty random heading for anyone who hasn't read up to now. If you haven't, go back!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's a funny subject (pun not intended...). Controversial, one might say. I wasn't sure if it's worth putting it here or making a completely new post about it, but I thought it's too important to put it somewhere else and for it to get lost. Its analysis requires an approach that is 0% emotional and 100% logical and unbiased, even though the core idea of fun is an emotional one by definition. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Before we get into this, I think we need a parallel example from the real world to explain my thinking process. I love AC/DC (the rock band). I've been to 2 of their concerts. I have a friend who loves Beyonce and thinks AC/DC is noise. I can't stand Beyonce - I find her music pointless and lyrics shallow. AC/DC is awesome. It's super fun. I couldn't care less about Beyonce. But my friend is the opposite. My friend finds Beyonce fun and AC/DC boring and pointless.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Why did I just write that? Because I find different things fun than my friends, my parents, my girlfriend, my teachers or even my cat (although, we both find lasers fun, so my cat is probably more similar to me in that sense). It doesn't mean I'm right and they're wrong, or vice versa. We're just different. I accept that and I expect my friends to accept that too. I respect their idea of fun and I hope they respect my idea of fun, because fun is subjective.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When someone says "this event/game is meant to be fun" and thus implies that competitive events/games are not fun, it really confuses me and makes me not angry, but sad. They are fun, just perhaps not from your personal biased perspective. There is a large group of people in the wargaming community, who believe that what they see as fun is the only "right" and "correct" fun and anything else isn't. It's pure and simple discrimination against players who see fun differently to them. It saddens me that there is a portion of the SBG community, who think that competitive players are basically scum who destroy fun for everybody. It's like saying you listening to Beyonce is wrong and me listening to AC/DC is right. If it was up to me, I would refrain from using the word 'fun' to describe events and instead use the word that I have been using throughout this article - 'casual' or 'relaxed'. As an example:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">GBHL's Seven Stones Doubles tournament. It's a relaxed, casual tournament, but at the end of the day people are competing. People still want to win. Nobody really cares about winning that much because the 80 points the tournament provides does not allow anyone to actually win the League. It's there as a motivator, bragging rights and a reward. At the end of the day it makes a difference in the race to reach the top 20 of the league. It's a tournament. It's competitive by definition, but because of the attitude of the players and the TOs it's a relaxed and casual competition. It doesn't mean it's wrong in any way. Imagine a situation where Jay plays against Ed on table 1 in the final round of a World Championship tournament. I expect the battle to be as stiff as they get and I expect for them to argue over every roll, point out every single discrepancy and measure every single inch. But when Jay plays Ed on table 20 in the same round in the same tournament (in theory, since in practice they don't know where table 20 is located), then I expect them to have a relaxed bash. If I'd be watching that game, I know I wouldn't get bored because these players will challenge each other to the maximum of competitive capability. On table 20 they will still try their best, but won't stretch every rule to their advantage and won't press for every half-inch, because there is no need for that. Regardless I'm sure they are having a lot of fun and I'm sure that I would be having a lot of fun if I was in either of their shoes, or even just spectating. This is exactly the same in any other tournament. It comes down to players attitude. Any game in any event can be fun, it's up to you and your opponent to make it fun, whatever level of competition you are on. Even if you see that your opponent has decided to bring a very 'filthy' army and you have a Fellowship, it isn't really what's on the table that determines if both players have fun, it's your attitude to what's in front of you and the person you are playing against. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Let me be honest, whether Aragorn is a model of Viggo Mortensen holding a sword, or a yellow pebble on a 20mm base makes 0 difference to me. I really don't care. That's not why I play this game. I treat it like chess with dice rolling, a measuring tape and a set of obstacles. You could put a cat on a dragon's base and I wouldn't care as long as I knew it hopped 12 inches and was badass enough to require a lot of my attention to defeat it. But please don't do it, cats don't want to play SBG, they want to be cuddled and they want to scheme to destroy the world instead. A model to me represents a set of statistics and the game is about mathematics and visualising a set of optimal plays. You can play chess with beautifully crafted set of marble pieces, but at the end of the day it's just chess. I may be the only one, but I don't think I am. To me 'fun' is playing the most broken army against the other most broken army and playing out a game that is as close to perfect in every move as possible. The aesthetics are cool, the theme is cool, but really it's all about the rules and gameplay for me. And I hope that this is ok, because for me it is ok for other players to want to play completely themed forces and not pay much attention to every inch and every detail of every rule. As such when someone complains in front of me that my army is not themed I'm not exactly bothered by that. Why do I say this? Because there are other players like me and when we play the game, what we find fun is trying to outsmart each other within a set of rules laid out in front of us. We don't break the rules. We just use them to their maximum level and the models to their maximum potential. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The point I'm trying to make is essentially 'live and let live'. That's been my motto in my life for many years now. Play the game however you like and let others do the same. To me the biggest virus of wargaming is the idea that 'my fun is better than your fun'. It's just like saying 'my type of music is the best type of music'. It's nonsense. Live and let other people live the way they want to live. Let others be who they want to be and believe in what they want to believe and the world will be a better place overall. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When GT was turned into Throne of Skulls and rebranded as a 'fun tournament', that's when SBG went into cardiac arrest. The WHW tournaments have always been amazing regardless and they've had the most extraordinary Events Team led by a cool guy named Nick, but a lot of players in my opinion have lost interest in this game in large part because of this specific rebranding. The GTs were always fun. They were fun for vast majority of players. Why change it when it clearly wasn't broken? Frankly if not the league, the passion of the TOs, the amazing support of players and hobbyists and the awesome job of the GBHL podcast team, I don't think there would even be any more Thrones of Skulls because the game looked pretty dead to me 4 years ago and the base of players was very quickly disappearing. Players and TOs should be proud of themselves. You all did what needed to be done - supported your hobby. Really, it's the hard work of the players, TOs and of all the hobbyists that paid off in the end. People credit me with founding the league, but the only thing I ever did was write the initial rulespack, talked to some really enthusiastic people and created a structure for the first 2 seasons before letting it go. It's all of you who made sure that the game grew back to what it once had been.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The Fourth Age (edited)</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I look back at that Christmas 2012 and I wonder how did we manage to get this far. How did we manage to bring back the former glory. With the news of Battle of Osgiliath released sometime next year and a "Middle Earth SBG" featuring in the presentations at both Warhammer Fest and Ardacon, it feels as if the 3rd Age is coming to an end and we will soon be entering the fourth age. It seems as if we're pretty much at the Black Gate right now and Frodo is about to throw the ring in, so unless Gollum manages to stop him, Sauron should be defeated!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Battle Companies have just been released and based on all the posts on the GBHL page it seems like they have become an instant hit. At the time of writing this, Ardacon 2018 has already sold over 200 tickets, meaning it will definitely become the largest SBG event EVER. The 2nd GT after its successful return last year has already sold out with a capacity of 90. The European Team Championships in 2018 are looking at welcoming teams from over 20 countries. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The GBHL 2018 calendar is ready with staggering 24 events scheduled in the year, welcoming new locations in Birmingham, Edinburgh and even Ireland. But there are still more than 20 free weekends in the year when people are welcome to organise any campaigns, non-league events, big battles, battle companies events, community get-togethers, really anything that supports the hobby. I can guarantee they will receive amazing support from the GBHL in their effort to infest other gamers with SBG, so whatever you do, post and share on the Facebook page! The Southern England SBG league has also finished the first season this year and there has just been news announced that the Dutch (who had I believe the largest foreign contingent at Ardacon in 2017) were starting their own league very soon. The resurrection continues everywhere, with this year's NOVA in DC selling out and posts popping up once in a while about big events all over Europe, USA and even Australia. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">So... sky is the limit guys and girls. Let's show GW which is their best system and their best community! </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The success of the Great British Hobbit League would not have been possible without the following people. It is them who truly are the heroes of this tale and I hope their names will one day shine in the halls of our forefathers, never to be forgotten by fans of SBG, for not only resurrecting this great game, but for lifting it above and beyond its former glory. In no particular order...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Chris Young</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Damian Grantham</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Thomas Harrison</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Damian O'Byrne</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">James Clark</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">James Braund</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jamie Giblin</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Dan Entwisle</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sam Jeffery</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Ed Ball</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Dan Bird</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Dave Nolan</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jay Clare</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Adam Troke</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sam Page</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Charles Sims</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">And probably many others I cannot recall right now, but deserve all the acclaim for their outstanding work for the hobby. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">If the Valar exist, I'm sure they look kindly upon you. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Games Workshop have created an amazing game that changed my life. It actually had a major positive impact on me and helped boost my confidence enormously, considering that I moved to the UK at the age of 14, didn't know anybody here and barely spoke English... I had this dream that the first book I would read in full in English would be Romeo and Juliet, but instead it turned out to be the Retu</span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">rn of the King rulebook. So romantic! When I won the GT it was a major stepping stone in my life. It was a confirmation that if I really put a lot of hard work into something it will pay off. In my professional life the last line on my CV includes my GT wins... I actually got at least 2 jobs in large part because of tha</span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">t. It shows the employers that you are willing to commit and achieve the best results. I work freelance though, so every little thing may suddenly change your potential employer's mind. Without SBG, I would have been a completely different person. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In 2016 when I originally wrote this article, I ended it with a feeling of nostalgia for the good days 10 years ago that I thought would never come back. At the time I was sad that at that Longbottom Carnival I didn't see many familiar faces from that time. But this year is different. I set myself a goal at the start of the year to qualify for the Team England for the ETC2018. I didn't have much time to do it after I had to cancel all of my tournaments in the first 3 months and then I was away most of the summer, but I managed to attend 5 events and qualify literally in the last game of the season finale! I re-acquainted myself with many of my old friends and made some new ones. I enjoyed every single tournament and every single game. I realised that the people I met 10 or 15 years ago grew up to all be extraordinary individuals and I couldn't be more grateful for being a part of this hobby and this community. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I suppose the last thing to say is thanks to everyone for being such awesome supporters of SBG in the last 5 years and long live SBG & GBHL. I leave you with a cool tune, my brothers in arms.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">However you're spending your Christmas break. Have fun. Happy gaming and a prosperous 2018 full of 5s and 6s!</span>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">See you at the tables in 2018,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">BlackMist</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">=====================</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">APPENDIX 1: FUN FACTS (partially stolen from "Owen's Stats of Interest created by David Reid" and re-edited and re-branded to be "Mik's Fun Facts"...):</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- GBHL Season 1 had 81 players and 11 reached the threshold for best qualifying tournaments.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- GBHL Season 5 had 320 players and 82 have played in at least 4 events</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- Even if we were to assume 50% of Ardacon and 50% of the GT were players not living and playing in GBHL on daily basis, that would still leave us with over 200 active players in the UK.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- 3 players attended 14 events in 2017 - Harry Moore, David Reid and Callum Clapperton. That's 4 more than there were organised in 2013 and same number as organised in 2014!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- League Opener 2018 is sold out at 50.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- UKGT 2018 is sold out at 90.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- Ardacon 2018 is nearly sold out at 200+</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">- When I originally wrote this, GBHL FB group had just over 2,500 members. As of December 24th 2017 it has reached nearly 4200!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">APPENDIX 2: CATS</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">You came here to see cats, so I leave you with that rather than some silly songs and facts!</span><br />
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Mikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00271147706219324836noreply@blogger.com0