7.12.2010

Beastmen vs. Orcs

After a few weeks of games where we just put the new system through its paces, we've now reached a point of familiarity and are able to tighten up our tactics, able to play to win!

Still, and I've said this several times, though many great analysts out there have made some comments and predictions, everybody is still a long way from understanding how the game will ultimately shake out.  What's that mean?  It means we're a long way from canned armies, from knowing what's 'best.'  It's a fun time to be playing Warhammer!

Frankly, I'm not sure I'll see another holiday from the normal like this for many years to come.  GW managed to turn the paradigm on its head and shake everyone up.  Not easy to do.

Moving on, here's a game between my Beastmen and the Master Manipulator (every store needs one)'s Orcs and Goblins.



The MM(esno) is almost done with his 1000 point list.  He's sporting a block of Black Orcs (seen here), a block of Boys, a unit of Night Goblins with two Fanatics, a Stone Thrower, two Gobo Doom Divers, a General and an Orc Shaman, level 2.

I finally put my beloved Minotaurs in the box until our local games get bigger.  I'm using a big block of Bestigors with the Banner of Speed, two small units of naked Gors - one for ambushing - three Chariots, a Gorebull, and a Bray Shaman, level 1.  It was my first real attempt to build something decent and I'm pretty happy with it so far, but the Shaman needs a boost and the Gorebull needs to be replaced with a Wargor; both easy changes.


My army moves up, as so.  The Orcs hold back to drop rocks and Goblins on my head.  He can pick out my Gorebull, since it isn't of the same type as the unit he joined, so it can be picked out.  Note: you can see he's off to one side, as per the new rule, since the Bestigors are mounted on 25mm bases.  If he joined Ungors on 20mm bases, he'd displace 4 of them and rank up as normal.  Here, he doesn't affect the ranked formation at all, other than widening its frontage.
He backs up slightly, adjusting the amount I'd need to roll on 2d6 in order to charge.  It was a good play, since ultimately it stalled me for a turn, giving him another shooting phase.
Here my Bestigors take cover behind an obstacle in case his Black Orcs get froggy and charge me.  Note I'm keeping the Gorebull free to charge out unobstructed if necessary, though I had no intention of doing so.  My Gors move up to release the Fanatics.  They didn't accomplish much at all, both dying to doubles within a Game Turn.  My other unit rolls a 1 for Ambush, so my opponent places them behind my line to begin walking.
I have two Chariots on the right flank.
Here the Gors are trying to play catch up.  Note, I haven't removed the Ungors from their old 25mm bases, so they're 'Gors' for now.  I really need to finish basing this army.  The sand looks drab.
He repositions.  His Orc Boyz get set to take the charge, while his Black Orcs try to shift my army to the left flank.  It opens a good view for his support elements.  My Gors, meanwhile, didn't fare so well against the Gobos, losing half their numbers.  My Bray Shaman had jumped out of the unit the turn before the charge, so I wasn't worried about it.  Here my Gors are running, but the Night Goblins failed to catch me.  My leftmost Chariot died to support fire at some point.
My Gors rally and I set for the charge.  The Master Manipulator (every store needs one) and I actually discussed the best way to do that, and this is what we ended up with... his idea, for the record.  The idea is to set for the charge and perhaps survive long enough for support from the unit catching up.  If the Gobos choose to hold, I can perhaps bring both elements in to the fight.  The main fight is the Bestigors vs. the Black Orcs.  I don't challenge, so his General does.  I accept that on my Champion, leaving the Gorebull to decimate the ranks some.  I win the fight but he holds.
An overview: you can see the double charge on the fight flank.  I had no choice when he blocked me off with the Boyz.  I was worried, since the new rules aren't nice to unsupported Chariots, but the combination of two works quite well.  I also made my Primal Fury checks with both, so I pick pick picked away at 'em.
A bloody battle.
At this point, the struggle in the middle is going to be telling...
...and it is!  I break the Black Orcs and the Night Goblins run!  This happens in the Black Orc phase, so in the Beastmen phase...
...I run off both units!  I first declare a charge on the Goblins, sending them running off the board, then I make my Leadership test to redirect and force the Black Orcs to roll a flee results as well.  Bye-bye!
The game was effectively over, though the Master Manipulator (every store needs one) ended up playing it out to the bitter end.  That's a trait he shares with Little Barrera, both believing they can learn from every phase, even in lost games.  I think so too, to a certain extent, by I'll fold on games where the outcome is obvious and time is an issue.  Anyway, here was a last laugh moment - I needed 2's to kill the war machine...

Anyway, that's game!  It was, I believe, the first game I've won in the new edition.  Hell, probably the first game of Warhammer I've won in a long, long time!  I've never been that good at the game, but I'm looking to change that with this system... helped by the fact that the boys seem to like the game and are willing to stick with it for the time being.

Thoughts?  Ideas?

9 comments:

Mister Disco said...

You are pure evil. The more you post about fantasy the more I feel the pull back to the land of the squares.

The forces of chaos are calling me and my Tzeentch sorceror is looking at me from my shelve as we speak I can almost feel the pull of tzeentch to mobilize the troops once again. (They've only ever made it out for 5 games maybe)


Lol, but seriously if it weren't for the hefty price tag on the book I would be playing again, as nice as all the extras may be, I'd be lying if I said I'd ever really read it. I guess I'm just doomed to wait until the cheap softback is available so I can pick it up on ebay...

If only someone somewhere happened to have a pdf of the book that I might be able to use until I can get my hands on a hard copy (wink wink poke poke...)

Anonymous said...

Good Battle Report Brent.

I for one have been reading Battle Reports for the last three days. I seriously can't get enough. I know I should be at my table painting, but I really am on pins and needles waiting for the post to come.

Gauthic said...

Jennifer: If you have the ability to wait until September, you should be able to get the new boxed set with the 'condensed' rulebook (and subsequently buy them separately on Ebay).

Cheers.

Master Manipulator (every store needs one) said...

Even though I lost this one it was a great game. I made him take the picture of the dice. As soon as he rolled 3 impact hits I thought the crew were dead, but he did not let me down. I can always count of Brent to screw up dice rolls at the right time.

I have really been having a good time with fantasy right now. I hope it lasts.

The big tell for me will be when someone starts to really bring the cheese. I am curious how well the system holds up under some of the nasty characters that are out there. That is the area that has ruined it for me in the past, but I am holding out hope that the changes to the system have solved some of those issues.

Chumbalaya said...

Cool beans, you may be edging out Not Brent soon.

Learning Fantasy is fun.

Herr Fernseher said...

Lewis, as a fellow O&G player, do we have any cheese to bring? I've barely cracked the book, but I am already enjoying some of the changes I've found. Not far enough along though to have any idea what I wanna play. It will either be:

1)Something radically different from your list (just to spice of the event)

or

2)Whatever I can afford/have time to throw together.

Master Manipulator (every store needs one) said...

Yeah a deamon list

Brent said...

Sure seems that way.

Evil Homer's got no place to go but up!

Brent

Evil Homer said...

not true. I'm .500 right now I could go up or now. Like always I am agonizing over lists...see its just like 40k...

(A new favorite!) Anon: I haven’t even bothered playing a game of 6th yet, cause I have read the rules, and actually understand how they interact with units. I know my armies no longer function how they should, and so I need to change them.

Strictly Average: 'cause 6-inches is all you get.

Stalking Jawaballs since 2009.

Jawaballs: "My butt just tightened up."

Brent, preferred 2-to-1 over Not Brent in a recent, scientific poll.

Brent: emptied the Kool Aid and DRINKING YOUR MILKSHAKE with an extra-long straw.

Unicorns don't exist.

Home of the Stormbuster, the Dyson Pattern Storm Raven.

I'm a comment whore and this whore is getting no play.

Not Brent hurts Brent's feelings.

I think, therefore I blog.

"You should stop writing for everyone else and worry about your crappy blog." - Anon.

Not Brent has been spotted lurking around with a green marker.

He's not like a bad guy from a cartoon, all devious but never quite evil, Not Brent is bad beans, man, bad beans.

Dethtron: "Again I feel obliged to remind you that trying to sound smart only works if you are."

MVB: "I am not one to join the unwashed masses of self-titled 40k experts out there distributing advice from their blogs about exactly how your list should be built..."

Shiner Bock on tap: that's how I choose hotels.

Strictly Average: The Home of Hugs and Gropings.

Don't feed the trolls!

MoD: "Welcome to Brent's head."

Competitive is Consistent.

Dethtron: "...you could use that extra time to figure out a way to get your panties unbunched and perform a sandectomy on your vagina."

Dethtron: “When calling someone an idiot, it's generally best to avoid making grammatical mistakes.”

Warboss Stalin: "You know, if it actually WAS funny, maybe I wouldn't mind."

Mike Brandt: "It's not a successful bachelor party if you don't misplace someone".

"The Master Manipulator (every store needs one): "...now, enough stroking."

Kirby: "I don't know about gropings. Seriously, Brent, keep it in the pants, please."

Loquacious: "No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get Hugs & Gropings or Stalks Jawaballs into Brent's little tribute."

Captain Kellen: "I rate this article a Brent on the Faith Hill to Nancy Pelosi scale!"

Drathmere: "Come for the balls, stay for the Brent? Kind of disturbing, man."

Go no further, lest thee see something thine eyes would fain look past!

Isabelle: "So, thank you for supporting your local and not so local unicorns. A noble gesture like that can show some scared kids out there that they don't have to hide from everyone and it's ok to be who they really are."

There is nothing more interesting than We The People... in all our beautiful, ugly glory!

On Internet Advice: You see, I have an almost religious belief that's it's a huge, colossal waste of time.

...I think I'll call it the Gun Shy Pattern Stormbuster, because after the Internet destroyed my first humble effort, I find I'm a bit worried about the reaction to this one.

Lauby: "Is it left over from that time you thought that you could just complete step one 12 times to meet the mandates of that court order?"

Not Brent: "I guess we'll have to read on and find out. Signed, Not Brent. Especially today."

Cynthia Davis: "I think the scrolling text is from Glen Beck's new book."

Grimaldi: "Spamming certain units creates interesting possibilities but also fatal weaknesses."

Purgatus: "Math can inform decisions. It cannot make decisions."

Thoughts? Comments? Hugs and gropings?

You'd be that much quicker to figure out what I mean when I refer to a Unicorn if I covered it in a rainbow flag.

SinSynn: (To Brent) "Curse you and your insidious influence on the internets..."

Dave G (N++): "You know you're an internet celebrity when your following is more akin to tabloids."

I prefer the term Internet Personality (or IP) myself, seeing as how I coined it.

Lauby: "Your attempt to humanize him as failed. I feel nothing but scorn for his beard - it's like a warcrime or something."

BBF: "I've always thought you are a good player but I finally figured out that you are a great player. It's hard to see sometimes because your personality is engaging, sincere and quite charming - to me that is kind of a rare combination."

'Clearly cheating?' I didn't misspeak: you jumped to conclusions. If you'd like to apologize I'll be happy to send you an autographed picture of my ass.

Ass.

I thought I was doing alright before I realized I was losing.

Age and treachery beats youth and vigor every time.

Popular Posts