Right, my fouth 8th ed. game with my Bretonnians
and this time I was taking on a small Skaven force (1150 pts.). First of all it should be noted that my mate
fielding the Skaven only has a very small number of models available, and
(awesomely) has chosen them for flavour rather than power – they were great fun
to play against! Also, my apologies
about the grainy pictures – my wife commandeered the camera for use at a Hen’s
Party and I had to rely on my somewhat antiquated mobile phone.
DEPLOYMENT:
We rolled up the ‘Defend the Pass’ scenario – a first for
both of us – and deployed as follows:
From left to right I had 12 knights errant (KE) with full
command, then 28 men-at-arms with spears and full command and finally 12
knights of the realm (KotR) with full command as well as my general (a
paladin), battle-standard bearer (BSB, another paladin) and a level 2
damsel. To the far right and off screen
were my 5 mounted yeomen.
From (screen) left to right for the Skaven were four
rat-ogres (just behind the trees), then a skaven weapons team, then a chunky
block of clan-rats along with the general, then another weapons team and a
smaller unit of clanrats along with a sorcerer.
To the far right, and off-screen, was the whirling ball of chaos and
death that is the skaven doomwheel!
My stalwart mounted yeoman vanguarded up the right flank to
try to delay/distract the doomwheel and prevent it crashing into my knights’
long flank at an awkward moment. My
devout Bretonnians elected to dismount and pray to the Lady, giving the skaven
first turn.
TURN 1:
Skaven:
Most of the skaven decided to hold their ground in turn 1,
the general no doubt hoping that the doomwheel would solve the problem of the
annoying knights quick-quick. The
doomwheel started hurtling wildly towards the dumbstruck mounted yeomen, but
before it could make contact the skaven sorcerer hurled a burl of greenfire
into their midst, incinerating all bar one.
The lone remaining yeoman fled as fast as his surefooted pony could
carry him. The doomwheel had already
charged its bizarre weaponry however and, denied the opportunity to discharge
into the yeomen, began to spin out of control, careening off the side of the
board into the mountain side and splintering to pieces.
Bretonnians:
The Bretonnian KE unit, eager to get into battle, began
cantering forwards, accompanied by the less eager peasant men-at-arms. Under the command of my general, my KotRs
broke a promise I make to myself every time I play: don’t change the battle
plan at the last minute! My initial plan
was a simple two pronged attack down the centre with both KEs and KotRs,
supported by the men-at-arms. However, in
a feat of last-minute tactical madness I decided to rather use the KotRs’ superior
movement to go around the clump of trees centre-right to set up a flank attack
on the right flank. I made this decision
because the doomwheel no longer posed a threat, but did not consider that this
took my BSB and general out of range of my impetuous KEs (who needed someone to
yell at them to hold them back) and my cowardly men-at-arms (who needed someone
to yell at them to stop running away).
TURN 2:
Skaven:
Cursing the incompetence of the doomwheel (which had clearly
smashed itself to smithereens in an act of treachery on the part of some
rival…), the Skaven warlord ordered his weapons teams and warlord to obliterate
the idiotic prancing humans approaching them.
A few KEs fell to noxious fumes but the strange magic of the
Bretonnians’ goddess spared them from the worst of the magical assault.
Bretonnians:
The Bretonnian KEs had been given explicit instructions NOT
to charge until the signal of the KotRs hornblower, NOT to leave the lowly
men-at-arms without instruction and above all NOT to charge the hideous rat-ogres
unsupported. However, without the BSB
and general to keep them in line, the KEs promptly failed their impetuousity
test and declared a suicidal long range charge against the rat-ogres. I wasn’t too worried about this because there
was almost no chance of them making their charge distance… their swift spirited
chargers thought otherwise, however, and promptly smashed into the towering
rat-ogres. Needless to say the
men-at-arms were left in the dust, gaping dumbstruck at the stupidity of
lordlings (and probably wondering whether anyone would notice if they slipped
away back to their farms…). I think we
were all pretty much resigned to the fact that my impetuous KEs were about to
be slaughtered needlessly for their vainglory.
Unbelievably, however, the shock of the KE’s reckless charge smashed
through the mighty rat-ogres, who broke and fled but were run down by the young
gallants.
TURN 3:
Skaven:
Cursing the incompetence of his rat-ogres (clearly Clan
Moulder had treacherously sold him inferior rat-ogres in jealously of his
obvious greatness), the Skaven warlord realised that he was probably going to
have to get involved in the battle himself.
Seeing the knights of the realm thundering towards his line on the right
while the dazed peasants stared on idiotically in the centre, the skaven
Warlord knew immediately where his supreme combat abilities would be most
needed. As such the skaven Warlord
ordered his sorcerer (of whom he was becoming somewhat suspicious) to hold the
advancing knights while he led his clanrats (from just-behind) into a charge
against the men-at-arms, who broke in terror at the sight of his awesome
majesty (with a little help from the blades of his clan-rats). The Skaven Warlord curbed his desire to
capture the peasants to sell into slavery back in Skavenblight, and instead
reformed his troops ready to finish off the foolish KotR who should by now have
been held up by his warlock’s clan-rat unit… but it was not to be…
Bretonnians:
My Bretonnian KotR lead by my general and BSB had finally arrived
around the woods, lowered their lances and charged at the skaven warlock and
his clan-rats. The cunning warlock had
seen what the Bretonnian lance charge had done to the rat-ogres, however, and
ordered his unit to feign flight, enraging the frustrated Bretonnians who could
not close with their foes. Meanwhile the
KEs had reformed after running down the last of the rat-ogres and were trotting
back towards the fray from the top of the battlefield. Impressed by their chivalry, the mysterious
damsel riding with my general wand and healed the wounds of all those KEs who
had fallen fighting the rat-ogres, bringing their unit up to full strength!
TURN 4:
Skaven:
The Skaven Warlock had not survived this long in Skaven
society without learning to spot a potential threat, and he was all too aware of
the KEs reforming ahead of him even as the KotRs failed their charge behind
him. As such he decided that his feigned
flight might as well just become a real one, and he lead his clansmen in
continued headlong flight. He had never
had much use for that Skaven warlord anyway, this expedition would have all
gone according to plan if it was better lead…
Cursing the cowardice of the treacherous warlock who was
running from the KotR, the Skaven warlord realised that he was going to have to
finish off the KotR himself and, what is worse, he would now have to do it from
the front. If you want something done
properly, he mused, you’ve just got to do it yourself. Besides, he still outnumbered the stupid
man-things and their ridiculous animals.
Resisting the urge to squirt the musk of fear, the Skaven warlord
ordered his clan-rats into a charge, running into the front of the KotR and
denying them the shock of their lance charge.
The KotR found themselves rather taken aback by the savagery of the
biting, stabbing horde accosting them, and they were forced to stab ineffectually
at the fast moving foe with the butts of their lances.
Bretonnians:
Just when it seemed that the numbers of the Skaven might
overwhelm the Bretonnians, the KEs smashed into the rear of the skaven horde,
who as one squirted the musk of fear and scattered before the Bretonnians. The battle was won, and the unicorn-banner of
Quenelles raised over the mountain pass once more!
I thoroughly enjoyed this game, in no small part because of
the spirit of my opponent who has chosen a Skaven army for flavour rather than
the ridiculous net-builds you find online.
I have to admit that I think my strategy in this game was more than
ordinary… splitting my KEs from my KotR at the last minute in this particular
battle was a terrible move which should almost certainly have cost me the game
if my KEs hadn’t (VERY IMPROBABLY) smashed through the rat-ogres on their charge
like that. If they hadn’t, the rat-ogres
would surely have ripped them limb from limb, my men-at-arms were left isolated
without knightly leadership and could be disposed of piecemeal (as they were,
though they managed to rally when the clan-rats reformed to take on my KotR), and
my KotR would have been at the mercy of the entire skaven force. I had other luck as well: the doomwheel
careening into the cliffs, the skaven warlock’s inability to do anything
worthwhile in the magic phase, and my damsel’s incredible ability to heal the
wounds (regen spell) of about NINE of my knights over the course of the four
turns.
Still, while I can’t claim any credit for it moments like
the KEs breaking the rat-ogres on a front-charge are pretty much the most fun
you can have as a Bretonnian general, and I really savoured this moment! All I can say is that sometimes fortune DOES
favour the bold.
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