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Showing posts with label Song of Blades and Heroes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Song of Blades and Heroes. Show all posts

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Death in the Fyrn Valley: SBH Battle Report

Barbarians and dwarves advance, bows and crossbows to the flanks, harassing each other. As the two warbands close to contact, the barbarian archer draws first blood, shooting an arrow straight through the throat of one of the dwarven elite warriors. Meanwhile Nirini, the barbarian shaman, sweeps wide to the right flank, hoping to either draw off part of the dwarven force, leaving the rest vulnerable, or else to dash quickly for the mine to blast the entrance shut.

Both sides advance

Contact

Brogg breaks off from the melee developing in the center in an attempt to intercept the shaman, but he is hindered by opponents who engage him. Meanwhile Torolf and his warriors gang up on the remaining two dwarven elites try to hold the center alone, as the dwarven crossbows are quite ineffective.

Brogg's move toward Nirini hindered by two barbarians

Torolf slays another dwarf with a mighty stroke of his axe, while Brogg returns the favor, smashing in a barbarian skull with his hammer. The dwarven crossbows redeploy to the center in a desperate attempt to block the enemy advance.

The barbarians dominate the dwarven elite

The last of the dwarven elite dies with a sword through his belly. Seeing this, the crossbowmen panic and fall back, but then quickly recover. Brogg keeps his head, and seeing how desperate his situation is, pursues the shaman. If he can slay her, perhaps the barbarians will rout.

Brogg chases after Nirini

At Brogg's approach, Nirini attempts to flee. She outruns him briefly, but he catches up to her and cuts her down. The barbarians, instead of fleeing in panic, are simply enraged at the slaying of their spiritual leader. [Game note – a lucky break for Torolf's warband, as all the barbarians passed their morale checks with flying colors]. The barbarians avenge Nirini's death by mobbing the two dwarven crossbowmen and brutally hacking them to pieces.

The last crossbowman stands no chance

The bloodlust finally takes over Brogg completely. "I'll take your savage heads myself, and hang them from my belt!" he shouts as he charges all the remaining barbarians alone. Torolf engages him head-on while his last two companions surround the dwarven warchief. The barbarian leader dodges a vicious blow from the dwarf, and ripostes with a ferocious horizontal hack that enters the dwarf's body mid-chest and tears through muscle, ribs, and spine.

Brogg lies dead

As the rising sun burns off the last wisps of morning fog, Torolf strides toward the mine entrance. "Come," he says, "there is work yet to be done. We have no magic to destroy the mine, but for the miners, simple steel is all we need."

Thursday, December 15, 2011

The Fyrn Valley

Mines and Mists

The barbarians in the Dran Feldar were now raiding dwarven camps and mines, killing as many dwarves as possible and collapsing mine entrances wherever they could. The dwarves did not have enough engineers to both work the mines and fortify them, at least not yet. So they began setting armed warbands to protect the mines and camps.
______________________________

Brogg's dwarves had spent the night guarding the entrance to a new mine in the Fyrn Valley. About half were on watch, and half were asleep. The fire had gone out, but the sky grew lighter. The fog which had settled in over night slowly drifted across the flat, broad, valley floor. Brogg approached the watch and stared intently at the rolling cloud of mist. A guard looked inquiringly at him. "Something isn't right," Brogg said. "Wake the others."
______________________________

"The bones say the spirits will favor us," whispered Nirini. Torolf looked at the shaman. He knew her value in a fight. In battle, her spells slowed the enemy and blasted him to dust. But the barbarian chieftain did not put much stock in omens and portents. The fog was already lifting, and Torolf had wanted it for surprise. He knew the mouth of the dwarves' new mine was just across the valley floor. It was now or never. Torolf signaled to the rest of his band with a shadowy movement of his arm, and an almost imperceptible hiss.
______________________________

Terrain and Deployment

The board is 36" x 36" and represents the flat bottom of a wide valley, lined with trees. At one end is a rock formation that marks the entrance to the new dwarven mine. The dwarves set up within 9" of the mine entrance; the barbarians set up within 9" of the opposite board edge.


Opposing Forces

The Dwarves
Brogg, Dwarf Commander (95 pts, Q2/C4, Leader, Fearless)
Two Crossbowmen (48 pts, Q4/C3, Short Move, Shooter: Medium)
Three Elite Warriors (138 pts, Q3/C4, Short Move, Steadfast, Fearless)
Total 281

The Barbarians
Torolf, Barbarian Leader (66 pts, Q3/C3Leader, Fearless)
Nirini, Barbarian Shaman (35 pts, Q4/C1, Fearless, Magic-User)
Barbarian Archer (44 pts, Q3/C3, Fearless, Shooter: Medium)
Four Barbarian Warriors (144 pts, Q3/C3, Fearless)
Total 289

Victory Conditions:

Either side wins by eliminating the opposing force by kills or morale failure. Additionally, if Nirini, the barbarian shaman, can successfully cast a ranged attack spell on the mine entrance (mine = C3), she causes it to collapse, and the barbarians win immediately, regardless of casualites. If Nirini is killed, all the barbarians must make a morale check, as if losing a leader.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Surprise at Cobb's Gate: SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES Mithril War Battle Report

PART I

Turn 1: The elves and men advance on the field before Cobb's Gate, while the archers of both sides move to the cover of the trees. The ogre cowers behind [Game note: he rolled three dice for activation and failed all three].


Turn 2: The dragon maneuvers toward Maradon flank as the elven warriors advance. The humans charge the oncoming elven line and warriors on both sides get pushed back and thrown down as the melee begins. Boths sides' archers are off target, and the ogre continues to cower [Game note, again he rolled three dice for activation, and again failed all three]. 


Turn 3: The elves draw first blood as Glythwyl himself finishes a downed Maradon warrior. Glythwyl then penetrates the Maradon line to strike at the next human. Meanwhile an elf warrior on left flank drives back his opponent straight toward the dragon, who kills him instantly with a single swipe of a claw. Things look bad for the humans, when suddenly three Maradon warriors converge on Glythwyl, knocking him to the ground.


Turn 4: The dragon flies over the melee to target Valera, while Glythwyl regains his feet. The remaining two elf warriors press into the fray to help their surrounded leader, killing yet another one of the humans. Arrows continue to fly ineffectively from both sides, but the two human warriors still pressing Glythwyl manage to cut him down.

With his last bit of energy, Glythwyl rolls his torn body over to face the trees, so that their late foliage might be the last thing he sees as the life drains from his body.

Despite the loss of their leader, all three remaining elves and the dragon hold their ground and continue the fight. The ogre suddenly springs to life, charging the dragon, but the dragon fends him off. However, while the dragon is distracted by the ogre, Valera rushes inside the beast's defenses and kills him with a single stroke of her blade! She looks at the ogre, nods, and then turns back to the fight.

Valera catches her breath beside the body of the beast she has just slain.

Suddenly, above the crash of steel, a soul splitting howl comes from the far end of the field stopping all the fighting. Jhanakai and Maradon alike turn to face it, and are startled to see a dwarven warband, supported by a cavern fiend, falling upon them from the hill to their flank! Surprised, some hold their ground, but others stagger backward as they try to comprehend the unexpected change in situation. Without a word, it seems clear that war has just been declared upon both their tattered forces, and an uneasy alliance spontaneously begins.


PART II

Turns 5-6: The dwarves advance in a highly disciplined formation with the cavern fiend on their left flank. The humans and elves quickly try to organize, with the warriors forming a line, the ogre advancing, and the human and elven archers attempting to move back up into shooting positions in the woods. As the dwarven advance continues, the ogre charges and engages the cavern fiend.


Turn 7: While the cavern fiend is driven backward by the ogre, bolts from the dwarven crossbowmen force one of the elven warriors to ground. Then the dwarven line crashes into the human and elven force, with Brogg himself smashing in the helmet of one human with his hammer, killing the man instantly. The troops of both Maradon and Jhanakai are stunned by this sudden kill and are unable to react [Game note: the first human/elf activation roll resulted in two failures].


Turn 8: One of the dwarven warriors finishes off the off-balance elf and Brogg charges past the corpse of the man he just killed straight toward Valera, killing her as well with just one stroke!

As she falls to the ground, Valera's only thought is that it cannot end this way. Her final word is nothing more than a silent curse, lingering on her lips. Then she knows no more.

At the sight of this, all of the humans and elves waver and fall back slowly except the ogre who stands his ground. The last warrior of Maradon takes a blow as he tries to disengage which knocks him to the ground and he, too, is quickly dispatched by a dwarven soldier. Once more the remnants of the Maradon and Jhanakai troops are stunned into inaction, with only the human archer taking a shot that flies wide of the dwarven commander. [Game note: again, two activation failures].

Brogg stands triumphantly over Valera's corpse.

Turn 9: Brogg rushes the last elven warrior and cleaves his skull with his axe [Game note: for those keeping score this is Brogg's third single-blow kill in a row]. The human archer shoots again at Brogg, but once more his arrow flies wide of the mark. As this happens, the cavern fiend throws the ogre to the ground.


Turn 10: The cave fiend finishes off the helpless ogre, and Brogg engages the archer that shot at him. As the archer tries to pull away and escape, Brogg drops him, leaving an axe embedded in the man's back [Game note: that's four one-shot kills in a row for Brogg!]. Now the last survivor of the terrible carnage, an elven archer, turns and runs for his life.


In the aftermath of the struggle, Brogg surveys with satisfaction the silent field, littered with human and elven corpses. Not one of his own soldiers was lost. "This," thinks Brogg to himself, "was a fine day for battle, a day worthy of any Kabad'zem-natar."

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Surprise at Cobb's Gate: A Mithril War Scenario for SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES

INTRODUCTION

A strong, warm wind suddenly blew across the woods and fields from behind Glythwyl's encampment. He turned to look up into the newly sunlit sky and saw the dragon on its approach. As much as he disliked his enemies, he felt pity on them for what they were about to endure. "Come," he said to the men gathered around him. "Fear not this beast. He attacks the keep, and it is for us to deal with any who attempt sortie or escape."

The sudden, hot dragon-wind blew the sole pennant right off the top of the tower keep. At a cry from the watch, Valera rushed to the battlement. Looking out to the horizon, she spotted the coming dragon. So this was how the elves planned to drive them from the fortress. Valera cursed under her breath. The tower would crumble beneath the dragon's assault, and they would all simply be crushed beneath the rubble. Better to meet them in the open she thought; at least there they had some chance. "Form up!" she cried. "We'll meet them on the field below!"

The dwarven warchief watched the advancing men and elves on the plain beneath his concealed position on the hilltop. "Finally it begins," he thought. He would wait until the men and elves were fully engaged, and in the confusion of the melee, he would take both enemies in the flank.

BOARD

A 3' x 3' board set up as follows:


FORCES

Human Warband
Valera, Human Leader (60 points), Q3, C3, Leader
Ogre Warrior (50 points), Q4, C4, Long Move, Big
Human Archer (44 points), Q3, C3, Shooter (Long)
Five Human Warriors (30 points each), Q3, C3
Total Points: 304 (8 models)

Elven Warband
Glythwyl, Elf Commander (100 points), Q2, C5, Leader
Small Dragon (80 points), Q3, C4, Flying, Big, Shooter (Long)
Wood Elf Archer (50 points), Q3, C3, Forester, Shooter (Long)
Two Elf Warriors (36 points each), Q3, C3, Forester
Total Points: 302 (5 models)

Dwarven Warband (Only enter the fight as per the special scenario rule)
Brogg, Dwarf Commander (95 points), Q2, C4, Leader, Fearless
Cavern Fiend (62 points), Q3, C4, Fearless, Huge, Savage
Two Dwarf Crossbowmen (24 points each), Q4, C3, Short Move, Shooter (Medium)
Three Dwarf Warriors (34 points each), Q3, C4, Short Move
Total Points: 307 (7 models)

INITIAL SEQUENCE OF PLAY

To start, the elves move first, and the dwarves not get a turn at all, until they enter as per the special scenario rules. At that point the turn sequence changes.

SPECIAL SCENARIO RULES

Entry of the Dwarves: The dwarven warband sets up concealed in the tress on the hill and does not enter the game until one third of the combined models of the elves and humans (i.e., any combination of five models from the two sides together) has been eliminated. Once that number of models has been eliminated, the dwarves become visible instantly (even if mid-turn) by moving just outside the trees in a line at the foot of the hill. Prior to the dwarves' appearance, no model of the human or elven warbands may move into spotting distance of the hidden dwarven force.

Surprise: The appearance of the dwarves will surprise the other two warbands on the table. The instant the dwarves appear, normal play stops and all models of the human and elven warbands still on the table must immediately make a morale check.

New Turn Sequence: Once the dwarves appear and the morale checks have been made, there is a new turn sequence: dwarves then elves then humans (the latter two activate together if allied, otherwise separately and in that order).

Game End: The fight then continues until two thirds of the total models engaged from all sides in the battle (i.e., any combination of 14 models from all three warbands together, including the initial 5 lost by the men and elves). At that point the fight ends, and the warband with the most victory points is considered to have held the field, while the other two run away.

VICTORY POINTS

These are calculated as follows.

For the elves:
6 points each for eliminating Valera or the Ogre prior to the arrival of the dwarves
3 points each for eliminating other models prior to the arrival of the dwarves
3 points each for eliminating Brogg or the Cavern Fiend
1 point each for any other model eliminated after the arrival of the dwarves

For the humans:
6 points each for eliminating Glythwyl or the Dragon prior to the arrival of the dwarves
3 points each for eliminating other models prior to the arrival of the dwarves
3 points each for eliminating Brogg or the Cavern Fiend
1 point each for any other model eliminated after the arrival of the dwarves.

For the dwarves:
2 points each for eliminating Glythwyl, Valera, the Ogre or the Dragon
1 point each for any other models eliminated
X for eliminating the last remaining figure of either the human or elven warband, where "X" is one half of the eliminated warband's accumulated victory points, fractions rounded up

If a warband is completely wiped out, it forfeits all of its victory points.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Ambush on the Forest Road Battle Report: The Shortest Fight Ever

I played this solo, as always, personally giving orders to both sides in turn. I had never played the "ambush" scenario before, and I severely underestimated the value for the elves of having their troops hidden through the use of dummy markers. Apart from the use of the dummy markers, the scenario sets up just like the standard "all out battle" scenario. Superficially, it looks like the ambush scenario does not much change the flavor of the game – in fact I was a bit disappointed by this appearance when I initially set up the board and deployed the troops. Boy was I ever wrong...

Brunt's men marched down the forest road, keeping their eyes peeled for elves among the trees. As they came upon a place where the road passed a crumbling ruin, one of Brunt's men spotted something, but before the troop could react, the elves were upon them. Glythwyl's rangers took the men in the flank, killing two human soldiers quickly. Glythwyl himself, again, as in his previous battle, managed to quickly charge his human counterpart, knocking Brunt to the ground.


Stunned by the speed and ferocity of the elves' onslaught, the only one of Brunt's men able to react was the archer, who angled out to the right flank for a clear shot, but even he was unable to get off a single arrow before Glythwyl finished off Brunt. Seeing captain Brunt slain, one of the men fled in panic. In the flurry of arrows and blows that followed, one more human warrior was killed, along with Flux, the wizard, who was laid low before managing to cast any spells.


The archer and the remaining Maradon soldier took off running through the trees and made their escape.


Lessons Learned: I played the elves well and the humans badly. This got compounded with favorable dice rolls for the elves which turned what would already have been a difficult battle for the men into an absolute slaughter. The tactical lesson for today: don't underestimate the advantage of setting up with dummy markers in the ambush scenario. 

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Ambush on the Forest Road: Mithril War Scenario for SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES

Lord Granthos drummed his fingers on the heavy wooden table as he pondered the guard's report. Beragon and his band had been gone a fortnight and no report had come back. This could only mean that the raid had failed. In which case offensive action on the part of the elves could be expected at any time. Granthos turned to the guard. "Report to your sergeant. Tell him I want increased patrols. Twice as many, sent out twice as far. If there are enemy troop movements, I want to know about it long before they get here."

*****

Glythwyl was waiting for his last scout to come in before evening fell. His men had reported a number of human warbands patrolling the area. Without the troops to mount a major offensive, his orders, for now, were to fight small actions whenever and wherever a favorable opportunity presented itself. These human patrols might just offer him that chance. When the scout returned he told Glythwyl that a band of men was patrolling the route northward through the forest to the east, and appeared to have made camp for the night.
"How far off are they?" asked the elf commander.
"About five hours march."
"Good. We'll move out now and set up an ambush just ahead of them on the forest road."

*****

The Board: The scenario is played on a 3' x 3' board covered in scattered trees with a road running down the center. The odd ruin or rock formation can be dropped in here and there as well.


The two sides set up as per the "Ambush" scenario in the SBH rulebook. The elves use markers (two for each actual soldier) to show where their soldiers might be. When they are activated or spotted, they get replaced by actual figures or are revealed as dummies (to make the markers, I simply took some inexpensive unpainted plastic elves I had lying around, sprayed them black, and voilà).


Forces:

Glythwyl's Rangers:
Glythwyl, Commander (100)
Elf Warriors (2 x 38)
Elf Archers (2 x 55)
Total: 286 points

Maradon Patrol:
Brunt, Human Leader (60)
Flux, Human Magic-User (40)
Human Archer (44)
Five Human Warriors (5 x 30)
Total: 294 Points

Friday, May 13, 2011

Raid on Rhal: Part 2 (The Conclusion; Re-post)

A confused mêlée gradually developed on the hill, in which there were many close calls on both sides. Afraid of the damage the Maradon wizard could do to his rangers, Glythwyl charged up the hill [successful three-dice activation – what a hero!] to engage the magic-user and prevent him casting spells. Glythwyl quickly knocked him down, and things looked dangerous for the Maradon warband – without their spellcaster they would be at a distinct disadvantage. Beragon in his own right charged up the hill to take on the elves' leader, thereby buying time for the wizard to get back to his feet.

 A confused mêlée on the hilltop

Meanwhile on the elves' left, the archers, who had misjudged the speed with which the Maradon soldiers could advance, suddenly found themselves embroiled in a close combat – the last thing they could possibly want. This stripped away the archers' only advantage – their ability to shoot. On top of it all, disaster seemed to rear its head, when the archer on the elves' far left flank was knocked to the ground, then finished off by his opponent.

Outnumbered eight to five to begin with, the elves could not afford to take even a single unanswered casualty. The outcome of the fight now seemed seriously in doubt.

The men of Maradon fall back

However, the tide of battle has its undertow. As the elves' left flank weakened, Glythwyl went on a rampage, killing both Beragon and the wizard. With their leader dead, most of Maradon's soldiers broke, several flying in wild panic, others retreating, with one stout fellow carefully guarding the rear. [Tactical lesson learned: with their high combat strength, elf commanders BELONG in the thick of the mêlée; human leaders most definitely do NOT].

In the end, Glythwyl's rangers held the hill, and the settlement of Rhal, and decisively shattered a powerful Maradon warband.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Raid on Rhal: Battle Report Part 1

The two warbands rush into the settlement, the elven archers moving quickly to take up positions in cover near the buildings, the elven warriors and Glythwyl trying to seize the high ground to their right. As the men of Maradon push to meet them, the elven archers shoot ineffectively, and soon the men have split up to tackle the dispersed elves, with Beragon's wizard dashing to the hilltop and grabbing the hilltop before the elves can do so.

Opening moves: the big picture

 On the elves' left: two men charge an archer

On the elves' right: a struggle for the high ground

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Raid on Rhal: A Scenario for SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES

Prologue: Quietly Beragon led his troops across the hills, moving toward the elven prospecting settlement of Rhal. Their mission was simple. Drive out the prospectors and secure the area so the Baron's own engineers could move in. With each faint clink of armor, Beragon gritted his teeth. "Quiet!" he hissed, barely above a whisper. Silence was paramount. The last thing they needed was to draw the attention of a Jhanakai archer before they even reached the settlement.

In his camp, Glythwyl thought for a moment. One of his scouts had spotted the group of soldiers from Maradon marching across the hills of the Dran Feldar. Heading to...? Rhal. That was the only logical choice. Glythwyl wasted no time, and called his rangers to him. "Weapons only!" he cried. "We move quickly!" Racing to Rhal with his small company, Glythwyl arrived just in time to meet the men of Maradon head-on and try to thwart their designs.


The Battlefield: A 3' x 3' area, laid out as in the image below.

Beragon's Raiders arrive at the top of the image, 
Glythwyl's Rangers from the bottom.

Glythwyl's Rangers:
Glythwyl, Commander (100)
Elf Warriors (2 x 38)
Elf Archers (2 x 55)
Total: 286 points

Beragon's Raiders:
Human Leader (60)
Human Magic-User (40)
Human Archer (44)
Five Human Warriors (5 x 30)
Total: 294 Points

Victory: This is simply an all-out battle. Whichever side retains possession of the settlement, by driving off the other, wins.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Elf Warband for SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES Completed

It really takes me forever to paint even just a handful of figures, but I finally finished my two elf archers today.

Eldarion, elf archer, from Reaper

With these two fellows done, that means my elf warband is good to go.

Completed elf warband

Elf Commander (100)
Elf Warriors (2 x 38)
Elf Archers (2 x 55)
Total: 286 points

Instead of doing a good vs. evil thing, I'm thinking something more "political" is on the horizon, like a human vs. elf border conflict, since the human warband I painted a little while back still hasn't seen any action yet.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Templar Knights from Reaper Minis

So after my ten-day trip and a full week of trying to catch up on things when I got back home, I finally managed to pick up a brush this week and start painting again – boy, did it feel good! Painting is terribly therapeutic. I've decided to switch up from 25mm plastics to 28mm metal minis for my Song of Blades and Heroes warbands. I spent the week painting five Templar Knights from Reaper.

I opted to not paint them as Templars, going instead with a scheme to match some existing figures. The five knights will join up with Sir Titus, Lorus Hightower the Wizard, and Connor the Archer to make a nice human warband.


Human Leader (60)
Human Magic-User (40)
Human Archer (44)
Five Human Warriors (5 x 30)
Total: 294 Points

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Counterattack at Synnaeth: The Debacle (Conclusion of a SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES Battle Report)

The battle at Synnaeth is already going badly [ PART 1 ; PART 2 ] for the orcs as they try to hold the village of against the human counterattack. As the occupiers see their feeble attempts to stem the human advance fail, they waver once more, unable to organize better resistance.

[Game note: again the orc activation rolls were miserable. Since their luck with multiple activation dice hadn't worked out so well, they shifted to attempting single-die activations – and rolled four ones in a row. If my math is correct, the chance of this happening is roughly eight one hundredths of a percent. The least of the orc captain's obscenities would make human ears bleed.]

From that point on, the fight becomes a slaughter. Two more orcs get killed, and yet somehow the remainder, instead of routing, hang on in a futile effort to hold the line.

[Game note: after miserable activation rolls, the four remaining orcs make miraculous morale rolls, with each one passing on all three dice. Go figure.]

Still, the battle closes as one would expect, since the orcs, who initially outnumbered the humans are now outnumbered themselves by almost two to one. The men quickly grind them down, ganging up and overwhelming them.


Toward the end, only Pog, the orc captain, remains. And it looks as though he might actually break free and at least save himself, by sneaking back through the village of Synnaeth and then into the forest beyond. But Mynnoth, the dragon, is too fast, swooping down between Pog and salvation. Alone against the dragon, Pog has no hope. Mynnoth catches the orc in his mighty jaws and swiftly devours him.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Counterattack at Synnaeth: First Blood (Part Two of a Battle Report for SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES)

Mynnoth breathes fire at Maggr with a ferocious blast that does no damage to the troll but which knocks him to the ground. Seeing the troll down, the human warriors swarm on top of him, hacking with their swords. The great troll tries to fend them off, but is wounded. Meanwhile, Imbal transfixes the orc on the flank nearest the human warriors piling up on Maggr.


The orcs are completely stunned by the ferocity of the human onslaught, staring, dumbfounded, at the disaster beginning to brew on their right flank [Pog's reaction to the orcs' hideous activation rolls has been censored – ed.].

The humans make a general advance. One warrior delivers a mortal wound to the fallen Maggr, and Captain Burris personally finishes off the transfixed orc. Mynnoth flies left to exploit the exposed orc flank.


Pog's troops suddenly pull themselves together, but to poor effect. Their archers shoot wide of the mark, and though their warriors reform the line to try and hold against the humans, yet one more of them is knocked flat on his back.


To be continued...

Monday, March 28, 2011

Counterattack at Synnaeth: The Opening (Part One of a SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES Battle Report)

The human warband moves into the outlying farmsteads of Synnaeth village. Pog orders his orcs to form a defensive line protecting both flanks with the farm buildings. He deploys his archers on the orc left, and positions Maggr, the troll, to the far right. Pog's hope is to use Maggr to break up the human attack by pounding on the pink-skins' left flank.


During the humans' advance, Captain Burris directs Mynnoth, the dragon, to the left flank in order to lead the attack against the enemy troll. Meanwhile he orders his warriors to advance in the center to engage the bulk of the orc force, and posts Imbal on the right flank to either support the central engagement with spells, or to defend that flank from attack.

As the two forces close, the orcs manage to maintain cohesion but have not quite worked their way into the defensive position Pog desired, with their line being slightly more "concave" than would suit his taste. Captain Burris, on the other hand, is pleased as Mynnoth moves to almost within fire-breathing range of the enemy troll.

To be continued...

Saturday, March 26, 2011

SONG OF BLADES AND HEROES Scenario: Counterattack at Synnaeth

Background: Though the skirmishes at Undin Wood and Ristyp went poorly for the orc invaders, at many other points on the frontier the orcs succeeded in gaining ground and capturing human villages. One such place was the village of Synnaeth. The orcs had taken the village, killing, driving off, or enslaving the civilian population, and turning the hamlet into an orc outpost. A nearby watchtower, however, overlooking the outlying fields and farmsteads of Synnaeth, remained in the hands of the humans.


Captain Burris, commander of the watchtower garrison, received orders to launch a counterattack into the village of Synnaeth against its foul occupiers. The messenger carrying the orders had flown in on the back of a young dragon named Mynnoth, who had been tamed and trained by the Magician Imbal the Wise. Mynnoth and Imbal were to join Captain Burris' attack against the orcs in Synnaeth village. The orcs, for their part, were led by Pog the Shield-Bearer [game note: proxy for a SBH orc standard bearer] and supported by a rather large troll named Maggr.


The Human Warband:

Captain Burris, Human Leader = 60 points
Imbal the Wise, Human Magic-User = 40 points
Mynnoth, a Young Dragon = 80 points
Four Human Warriors = 120 points
Total = 300 points

The Dragon is a pre-painted toy by PAPO.

The Orc Warband:

Pog, Shield Bearer [SBH standard bearer proxy] = 60 points
Maggr, the Troll = 41 points
Six Orc Warriors = 138 points
Two Orc Archers = 58 points
Total = 297 points

The Troll is a pre-painted D&D Miniature.

The Battlefield: The battlefield is a 3' x 3' surface, set up as per the diagram (colors reflect board areas important for victory purposes).


Victory: For the men to win, they must clear the green and yellow sectors of orcs. For the orcs to win, they must outnumber the men in the blue and green sectors by a ratio of 3:1. As soon as either of these conditions is met, the game ends instantly, and the side that met its victory condition wins.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Connor, Yeoman Archer

Another figure from Reaper: Connor, Yeoman Archer.


I think he'll make a nice Barony faction figure for Steel and Glory, or a similar character for a human warband in Song of Blades and Heroes.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

In Krug's Wake: Song of Blades and Heroes Battle Report

The path left by Krug and his Poison-Blade Savage Orcs was not difficult to find. The raiders had left a string of smoldering, smoking villages in their wake. A Barbarian War Party sent out to track down the plunderers finally caught up with them in the rocky, wooded fields just beyond the most recently burned settlement.


Turn 1: The barbarians advance, the scout darting ahead through the trees on their left flank. Krug moves to meet them, while his orcs momentarily hesitate, hanging back (This was horrid luck – after Krug moved, all three orcs failed their activation rolls!).

Turn 2: The barbarian warband tries to take advantage of the orcs' hesitation, seeking to swarm around Krug who has advanced beyond his support. Krug slows down to allow his orcs to catch up. The latter advance to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their leader, while the orc archer still hangs back in the cover of the trees.


Turn 3: The barbarians engage. The scout rushes out to ambush the orcs' right flank, already locked in melee with one barbarian, and an orc is forced to recoil. The barbarian hero and another warrior attack Krug in the center, but the hero is forced to fall back, while the remaining barbarian engages the orc on Krug's left.
 
 
In response, the orc to Krug's left knocks down the barbarian facing him, and Krug also knocks down his foe.


Turn 4: The barbarians seem disorganized (again rotten luck on the activation rolls, this time for the barbarians – when the first fallen barbarian tried to stand, he rolled two dice and failed to activate on both!), so the orcs continue to press the attack. The orc with the fallen opponent finishes him off, and Krug does the same with his downed adversary. The orc archer finally advances and his shot knocks the barbarian hero off balance, while the last orc engages the scout on the barbarians' left flank. 

Turn 5: The off-balance hero regains his footing and shifts to reform the line with his comrades. The scout forces the orc facing her to recoil once more. Krug attacks the barbarian hero but is himself forced to take a step back. The archer also shoots at the barbarian hero, who has to dive to the ground to dodge the arrow. Unfortunately for him, an orc then rushes in and kills him while he's still prone. With half the warband killed, the scout wavers and falls back. The remaining barbarian fighter tries to hold his ground, but is also driven backward by the last orc.


Turn 6: Seeing that the situation is hopeless, the last two barbarians decide to take flight, leaving the field to Krug and his orcs.