Hobby Update: Undead Revenant Cavalry

I actually enjoyed playing the Undead in the demo game from mid-October, and with nothing on my hobby desk at the time, I decided to hobby up a new unit for them. It has taken quite some time, but up now are some unexpected units for an unexpected army: some spooky Revenant Cavalry for my neglected collection of Undead! 

The finished units. All complete and spooky.

After poking around some storage boxes, I decided to refresh some old minis back from the early days of the blog. Back in 2016, I hobbied up some medieval Mounted Sergeants for the Kingdoms of Men, complete with special unit champions, since I had yet to really embrace multibasing. In 2017, the champs were disbanded and these units got a refresh, rebasing them as 4-model cavalry troops. As the rest of the army grew though, their knightly appearance clashed with the rest of my humans, and these have been sitting in a box with old, unused WHFB stuff for several years now. I figured the different shields and weapons and such would work really well for the Undead though, so I got to work.

The Sergeants back in 2016, with unit champions.

Three troops is a weird amount to hobby up, so I resolved to figure out a forth troop as well, which would let me run a variety of unit sizes. 

I didn't think three-strong troops would look good since the stone and mud basing scheme was just so barren. I was out of Fireforge Mounted Sergeants, since it was just one box of 12 from back in the day. I don't actually know what manufacturer or kit the remaining four minis came from - I have picked up a number of random humans boxes, especially knights, over the years, and just sourced the horses and riders from one of my humans bits boxes. That they were close but not exact matches to the existing minis was a positive for me, as I felt the incongruity would enhance the disheveled undead look I was going for. A bunch of skulls and limbs were snagged from my undead bits box (I think these bits were mostly GW), and primed, to help transform the riders as this refresh continued.

The rebased Sergeants back in 2017.

I wanted to mix the new minis into the old units, which meant I'd need to cut the old horses off the old bases. Back in 2016, these had been mounted to 50mm plastic squares. In 2017, those squares were clipped to be irregular, and glued onto a unit base. Now in 2023, I used a knife to cut the old plastic squares away from the MDF base as neatly as I could. The plastic square would be sanded down. The MDF base was flaking a bit from ripping off the plastic squares, but repaired with some slightly wetted PVA glue, wax paper and a heavy book to keep the base compressed and prevent warping with the additional glue. The MDF base was then primed, hoping to seal it and further prevent any possible warping. All this would let me re-use the old bases, as I was feeling frugal. 

WIP shot. 

The super glue was old, and a number of the riders popped off when I was working to remove the plastic squares. I was also able to detach a number of limbs, and then was able to use clippers to distress the head join so that the human heads could be popped off as well. I started mixing in the undead bits, gluing things that looked good, and then got to painting.

A nice mix of bits for a spooky unit.

Coming from the Kingdoms of Men, the tunics were a mix of purple and white, which I painted over to get a more uniform coat for the touchups. I have played a fair amount of D&D 5E over the last decade, and the tunics reminded me of a stock photo I had been using as a token for a Knight of Myrkul in one of my online games, so I decided to run with the idea, going with a dark tunic and dark shield.

GW's Grave Guard kit has a lot of fun bits. The helmets are all great.

Myrkul needs a skull though, and I didn't trust my free hand skills (nor want to attempt that across an entire unit, even if it was a smaller cavalry unit). Fortunately, I had come into some 40k decals, and found some suitable skull ones to utilize here. 

WIP decal work.

Applying decals proved to be easier than a lot of internet folks make it out to be. Yes, you can use chemicals and stuff, but plain old water worked just fine for me.

For working with decals, one cuts the decal (and backing) out with a sharp knife, staying as close to the icon as you can. You let the decal and backing soak in a tiny bit of water for about one minute. Wet the surface of the mini. Fish out the decal from the water. Push it off the backing piece and onto the miniature. Then push the decal around until you like where it is, and wait for it to dry. Excess water can be carefully soaked up with a dry paint brush. There are apparently (much) fancier ways to apply decals, but using just water worked perfectly well for me.

Most went on fine. One decal split and started smearing. Oddly enough, it was the only significant error I made while working with decals, and it happened near the end. I am still not sure what I did, but things were wet enough I was able to just wipe it away with a wet paint brush and then use a dry paint brush to get rid of anything else that remained.

At this point, everything was looking really good! A few of the riders reminded me of the skull-faced alien from Worf's holodeck fighting programs in Star Trek TNG. Apparently the mask was reused from the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe movie from the late 80's, which was a neat factoid (to me at least). 

While I had done up some full-bodied horses for my Soul Reaver Cavalry, I felt like skeleton cavalry should have skeleton horses, and therefore had been hesitant to hobby this kind of unit up. However, I saw a Facebook post that used normal horses just painted green and normal knights just rusted up, and honestly it looked pretty good as generic undead cavalry. I figured I could take that idea and run with it.

Hey, it's unit that reminded me of Worf!

The horses were pretty well-painted (for me). To turn them undead, I messily pained over most of each horse in grey or white. Good coverage wasn't desired. I tried some of the Army Speed Painter colors, but they were much too vibrant. So, each horse got drowned in a variety of washes instead, with the uneven base color leading to a eerie and disordered looking unit overall. The finishing touch for the horses was a simple red blob around the eyes of the horse, and a more refined almost-white on the eyeball to make it pop. 

Some good horses here!

I would assume that the necromantic magics for raising both horse and rider is the same, so part of me is bugged that the horses have the eye effect and the skeletons don't, but that is a Pandora's Box for hobbying that I do not want to open! Practically-speaking, many skeleton sculpts don't have eyeball bits, so I am in the clear, for now at least.

I have felt for a very long time that my basing for the Undead was too barren. It's a neat look, but too spacious. I had explored a few options for zazzing up the basing, but nothing quite clicked. The final touch for the unit here was a basing upgrade idea stolen from Lazy Pirate Painting, a youtube channel recommended recently here on the blog. I don't know the exact players, so I cannot credit them more than that, but one of the Undead players that throws down in the channel on occasion had created a fog effect from cotton balls.

Disaster.

The cotton balls seemed too recognizable, and too white. After a quick test, I settled on using Poly-Fil for my fog, though I did try to color it, to absolutely no success. Painting or more likely spray-painting the fill was possible (similar methods are used for explosions), but with multiple tufts tucked around each base I didn't think I could get a uniform appearance. So I tried mixing up small containers of watered down paint (black, dark grey and light grey), to see if I could get a shaded gradient thing going through absorption, but that was a complete bust. The paint pigments fell to the bottom of the container, and were smeared around the bottom of the fill, which didn't really absorb the water at all. It was a mess! In the end though, I don't think the fill it needs to be colored. The fill is darker than a cotton ball already, which is what it was going for, and the darker color on the fog effect looks like and sinister on the table.

For creating the fog, I would tear off a chunk of poly-fil, and roll it around a few times in my hands to roughly shape it. The fill is a tangle of strands, so this was a must to make sure it all stays within the dimensions of the base. I wasn't sure how PVA or super glue would work (leaving a glue spot or residue), so I used an acrylic glazing medium (the same thing I use for making the mud shiny) as a glue, pushing the tuft fill into the medium for stability and around the minis for the effect. If the shape was too round, the fill could be teased out a bit using a tweezers to fit better around the minis. 

Yowza! These units took a while to complete, but it was great to repurpose some older units. I think they all turned out well! While the project started out small, in my typical fashion I did get distracted with my bits boxes and started in on a few more new units. Additionally, now that I have the fog effect, I'll need to go back and add it in to the rest of my Undead collection. Personal time is still in shorter supply than I would like, but hopefully I'll have a few more updates (and games) to post here before 2023 closes out!

Recommendation: Lazy Pirate Painting

Already having a handful of painted, battle-ready armies, I was excited to notice that the last 5 blog posts of mine have been battle reports! Hobbying is great, but more games and less blabbering was my hope for the general direction of the blog, as I am running out of space to store minis!

Unfortunately, those 5 games have been spread over a few more weeks than I would have liked, and a few were demo games (good, fun, but not as intricate or exciting as dissecting a normal game, not to mention that it would probably be better not to report on those and instead focus entirely on teaching the game). 

This is all to say that I am still busier than I would like to be! Life needs to slow down a bit.

I have gotten some nights off for some self care and some hobbying over the last few months, but not enough nights to get anything off my desk. In lieu of hobbying posts, I figured I'd toss out another Kings of War recommendation for everyone: Lazy Pirate Painting.

It's a Youtube channel that covers painting and a handful of wargames, including Kings of War. The reports are quick, with most being around 10 minutes long.

Each army gets a quick rundown after they have finished deploying, and then they check in at the end of each turn with a summary of the turn's happenings. No filming dice rolls or blabbering on about hypotheticals or what statistically should have happened - just a quick and dirty report. This style of report is unique in the wargaming world from what I have seen, and worth highlighting. They field and fight a variety of armies, all wonderfully painted, so I'd highly recommend you check them out!

Kings of War 3rd Edition: #043 Varangur vs Sylvan Kin [Control]

Intro and Lists

For the immediate rematch, the army match-up was the same, but as usual for us, we each brought a second list to explore. The Sylvan Kin fielded the following:

Core of his army is essentially the same, with a strong verdant cohort supported by a few elven units and heroes. Two hordes of Forest Shamblers and two Hunters of the Wild to form the main line, led by a Tree Herder and a new Forest Warden. The elves contribute Nimue and a kitted Elven Archmage, as well as two Gladestalker regiments to pressure with their ranged shots. The new unit here was a regiment of Stormwind Cavalry and the Helm of the Drunken Ram, boosting TC to 3 to really plow through things on the charge. Last but certainly not least are two Greater Air Elementals, around for long flying charges and unexpected surge combats. Since the Sylvan Kin have a lot of overlap with my Herd, I want to keep any eye on a few of the things that they are running, and see what can be learned regarding:

• Hunters of the Wild. These are proving to be good generalist units, but we’ll see what other tricks or insight can be gleaned. 
• Forest Shambler Hordes. They didn't get up to much Surge plays yet, but the hordes are proving to be decent at holding a line so far.
• Tree Herder. A very strong defensive and supporting monster. I am liking it so far, but we’ll see how it performs this game and what else I can learn about it.
• Meta Elven Archmage. With Alchemist Curse, Boots of Levitation and a horse mount, this is a strong pick in competitive lists, but we’ll see how it does this game.
• Greater Air Elementals. After facing them last game, yeah, their reputation seems well-earned  indeed! They were able to get anywhere they wanted to be. We’ll see what carnage they get up to this game, and if I can figure out an answer to them.
• Sylvan Gladestalkers. Another very strong unit, and one that pairs well with my opponent’s usual approach. We’ll see if I can deal with them any better this game.
• Tree Warden. Given its low attacks, lack of Inspiring and focus on Surge, I had written these off for my Herd so far, but they still intrigued me, since they had a neat mix of stats and abilities. I am very interested to see how it performs!

My second list continued exploring my triple Mounted Sons approach, with some different supporting elements this time. I ran:

While my first list ran a lot of chaff, my second list ran much less of it, trying to get a better idea for how much chaff the Varangur need generally. Up to test for me are:

• Mounted Sons. They are great knights for their cost, but I'm struggling to get good results from them recently. So we’ll try to trio again and see what else we can learn about them.
• Lord with Stealthy Icon. Auras are neat, and this seemed interesting to play around with. 
• Night Raiders. I am still trying to learn these. We learned that they are not great against Gladestalkers last game, so will try to set them up against something else this time.
• Draugr. We’ll see what the scenario is, but they will likely play it, and block things if needed. 
• Tribesmen. These former Clansmen are revamped for 2023! The revisions push them from a more generic human (Me4+ and Def 4+) to a more elite human (Me3+ and Def5+). They cost more, but get a 1/1 Nerve boost now as well. They are expensive, but seem like decent generalist units, similar to the Hunters of the Wild discussed above.
• Horse Raiders. I am still trying to learn these, and we’ll see what else I can learn here. They are quick, but just haven't been doing it for me lately.
• Meta Magus. I am also taking a strong competitive pick here, so we’ll see whose wizard is the most impactful this game.
• Skald with Lute. The Skald has more infantry friends here, and should be sticking close to the Tribesmen and be a bit more impactful this game.

As with the previous game, I had a bit of a drop advantage, but my opponent was not lacking for Unit Strength. We'll see what the scenario is, but I was expecting another difficult game!

Table and Terrain

We reset the table. We rolled for side decision, but remained lazy gamers. We were using typical terrain rules, with the ruins as Height 9 blocking buildings, the forests as Height 6 Difficult Terrain, fences as Height 2 Obstacles, and Hills as Height 3. 

My opponent deployed pretty compactly again. From left-to-right we have Forest Shamblers screening a Greater Air Elemental, a building, more Forest Shamblers, two Hunters of the Wild screening a Tree Herder with the Trickster's Rod, the Elven Archmage, two units of Gladestalkers with the Forest0 Warden (who is accidentally on a smaller base since we re-used the Master Hunter from the previous game) and finally, the new Stormwind Cavalry with the Helm of the Drunken Ram, giving them a scary-strong TC3.

The Sylvan Kin, and the center and right of the Varangur.

I tried to keep things late, but dropped some Mounted Sons on my far flank earlier than I would have liked to. For me, from right-to-left, we have two regiments of Mounted Sons, Lord with the stealthy icon, Draugr chilling in a field, Magnilde, and more Mounted Sons.

The left flank of the Varangur.

The center were some blocking Night Raiders, Kruufnir, and both Tribesmen. More Night Raiders skulked in the forest, and my left had both Horse Raiders and mounted Magus with some Draugr in reserve.

Scouting

My opponent was again pretty reserved with his available scout moves. Gladestalkers ventured into the forest to get some turn 1 shots, and most everything else just scooched up slightly. 

View of the center, after scout moves.

The two exceptions were the Tree Herder who moved up a few extra inches, enough to hop the line of Hunters, and the Forest Shamblers on the left who moved up maybe just 1 inch. 

My opponent secured the first turn, and decided to take it.

Top of Round 1: Sylvan Kin

Again hiding in the woods, the Gladestalkers loosed their bows into the central Mounted Sons, who were not protected by the stealthy aura of the Lord. In a strong opening for the Sylvan Kin, a total of 7 damage lands from the two Gladestalker regiments, and the Varangur cavalry unit is wavered!

Some hot dice to start!

Unable to get a spell off safely (that is to say, resolved with no charges against him next turn), the Elven Archmage reins it in. The only other thing to note is that both Air Elementals start shuffling towards my right flank in attempts to reposition.

Bottom of Round 1: Varangur

On the right, I move up, but the Mounted Sons hang back an inch from the Stormwind's range, with Magnilde limbering up nearby.

With the Greater Air Elementals moving on, My center moves up 4-5 inches, maintaining an angle, using the hills to hide from everything that wasn't a Tree Herder.

Being sneaky, the wizard moves to the left of the building, but we determine that the the Forest Shamblers would be getting cover for Alchemist Curse, so my opponent graciously lets me undo it, and move the Magus a bit to the right of the building instead, and Alchemist Curse lands against the other Forest Shamblers. Being the first damage they've taken, they are not concerned.

View from the left.

The Horse Raiders canter about on the far left, not doing anything yet, but both are looking to occupy the attention of the Forest Shambler Horde here.

Top of Round 2: Sylvan Kin

Nimue determines that he is in range of my Mounted Sons. Unfortunately for me, the Gladestalkers are not, and they fire with impunity into the same Mounted Sons unit, dealing a fresh 4 and will waver the cavalry unit again.

View from the Varangur right.

The two Greater Air Elementals continue the repositioning efforts, hopping the lines and make it to the center of the table, eyeing up all of the Mounted Sons units.

The Tree Herder uses the Trickster's Wand to hex my mounted Magus. If the Magus moves, he cannot cast spells. If he stays to cast, he'll take 2 damage for successful hits. With Alchemist Curse... this is likely 8-10 damage.

Bottom of Round 2: Varangur

Discombobulated, the mounted Magus wheels around and moves to hide behind the building. The Horse Raiders and Night Raiders scooch up, but can't get in range too throw, so hold back. The Tribesmen and Night Raiders similarly scooch up, but are out of range for now.

Trouble brewing in the center of the battlefield...

Magnilde draws upon her legacy bloodline, and flies into the Stormwind Cavalry, landing a few damage and disordering them. The Mounted Sons move up, threatening charges into the Kin line next turn. 

Varangur pressure on the right, though the Greater Air Elementals are getting awfully close...

Seeing the Great Air Elementals moving up, the Lord tucks in behind the Mounted Sons. 

Top of Round 3: Sylvan Kin

Nimue wanders the ways, appearing just behind the Varangur Mounted Sons. Cloak of Death unnerves the three units here. The Gladestalkers continue to shoot, but get a little unlucky. The Gladestalkers and Alchemist Curse and Nimue's Fireball only does a grand total of 5 damage, and the Mounted Sons here stick around.

The Greater Air Elementals lurk, but hold back. With shooting dibsing the Mounted Sons, the only other target is the central Night Raiders, which doesn't seem worth it. Verdant units advance, to protect the Greater Air Elementals from being charged.

That could have been much worse!

The Stormwind Cavalry counter-charge mighty Magnilde, but striped of TC3, she only takes 5, and Iron Resolves down to 4, holding strong.

Bottom of Round 3: Varangur

With the Stormwind stuffed up, I crisscross the Mounted Sons into the Sylvan Kin, looking to get the wounded unit into the corner with Magnilde to try and preserve it a little longer.

The Mounted Sons get some charges off!

Having accrued some damage last turn from Magnilde, she and her unit trounce the Stormwind Cavalry, with Magnilde overrunning for better line of sight in the coming turn, and the Mounted Sons pivoting to face the Gladestalkers and the woods.

Old, silly habits are back.

Unfortunately, I am falling into some familiar sins this game. I am charging one regiment of knights into two shooter regiments that are hiding out in the woods. They do a surprising 9 hits into 9 damage, but unsurprisingly, the Gladestalkers hold. I should have made some different charges here.

The Lord with the icon smacks Nimue, disordering the caster.

Centrally, things are a bit messy. The maimed unit of Mounted Sons were left alone for a turn, and so move up to threaten things next turn. Kruufnir gets a clear charge into the Hunters of the Wild, and is joined with a hindered charge from the Tribesmen. Everything flubs, and only 6 damage is done here, and in retrospect, one of the Mounted Sons should probably have hit this unit instead of going in alone against the Gladestalkers.

The middle is indeed getting messy.

The Night Raiders make a hindered charge into the other Hunters of the Wild, dealing 1. This was another ill-advised charge, as the Hunters are made for shredding units like this, but I wanted to protect the Tribesmen from a flank charge.

Overview of the table as Round 3 concludes.

Some Horse Raiders have made it into the enemy deployment zone, moving at the double. Free from the Hex, the mounted Magus tosses an Alchemist Curse's into the isolated Forest Shamblers, dealing 4, but the unit hasn't been hit yet, and holds.

Horse Raiders move to block for the Magus. They throw into the Forest Shamblers, but no axes hit.

Top of Round 4: Sylvan Kin

On the right, Nimue disengages from the Varangur Lord, running up to hit the Mounted Sons in the woods with Cloak of Death. The Gladestalkers then collapse, with one charging the front of the Mounted Sons and the other the flank. A Greater Air Elemental moves and pivots to eye the rear of the unit, and the nearby diminutive Warden will surge them the last inch into the rear of the unit, which will be utterly destroyed.

After movement, Top of 4.

Similarly, Hunters of the Wild will countercharge some Tribesmen, and the Tree Herder will surge the second Greater Air Elemental into their flank, routing the Tribesmen.

Great surges from my opponent.

The Forest Shamblers will make a normal charge into the flank of the Night Raiders, and with the Hunters in the front, the Raiders are destroyed.

....and my hefty right flank is basically gone.

The Elven Archmage lands 3 damage with Alchemist Curse against the Mounted Sons near Magnilde, brining them up to 9 total damage, and will waver them.

Bottom of Round 4: Varangur

The Horse Archers and mounted Magus throw Axes and Alchemist Fire into the Forest Shamblers, but the unit holds. It's gotten some passive heals from the Herder, and this was a bit of a long shot if memory serves.

Desperate fights in the center now.

The remaining Tribesmen and Night Raiders multi charge the other horde of Forest Shamblers. I think I needed a 6 to rout it and got a 5 with the inspired reroll, which with Fearless, is not a great result for the Varangur! 

After movement, bottom of Round 4.

On the right, Magnilde is just able to see the maimed Gladestalkers. She gets in with a hindered charge, routs them, and then backs up and out of the woods. Kruufnir goes in against the other Gladestalker unit unhindered, deals a fair bit of damage, but falls 1 short of routing them.

Surprising victories out on the right flank!

Two near-misses! It's not all bad though. The Mounded Sons that endured the game's first volleys get an unhindered flank charge into the Greater Air Elemental, and manage to rout the elusive monster. The Lord charges in against the Elven Archmage. I think he is just out of range of Kruufnir's special rule, but manages to beat the mage anyways with some good dice. 

Top of Round 5: Sylvan Kin

A Greater Air Elemental takes a frontal charge into the Mounted Sons, and routs them, avenging the death of the other gaseous beast. Nimue shrouds Magnilde and the Mounded Sons with Cloak of Death, and the Forest Warden hits Kruufnir in the flank while the wavered Gladestalkers hold tight.

The Varangur center starts to fall apart.

Centrally, the Forest Shamblers move up and are surged into the flank of the Night Raiders, obliterating them. They will turn to face the mounted Magus and remaining Horse Raiders.

The other Forest Shamblers and Hunters of the Wild multi-charge the remaining Tribesmen, but the they get a bit lucky, taking just 4 from the Shamblers and only 3 from the Hunters, and will hold, despite the Skald being out of range for Inspiring.

Bottom of Round 5: Varangur

Magnilde makes a hindered charge through the woods into the Gladestalkers. Kruufnir joins her, routing the unit, and the troll will change facing to fight the Forest Warden who has been bothering him.

The Varangur claw a bit back on the right.

The Lord with Icon will smash Nimue down, and the Mounted Sons will clip the woods and make a hindered charge into the front of the Greater Air Elemental, who will take some damage, but will hold.

The Varangur can't quite do anything in the center.

Finished beating down the Night Raiders, the Forest Shamblers are on 7 damage. The Horse Raiders don't have a charge, but I opt to move them up to throw axes along with Alchemist Curse. No axes even hit. Alchemist Curse does some damage, but I fall 1 short of the rout on the Inspired reroll, leaving the Raiders open to a charge next turn.

The Tribesmen catch a bane chant (as I write this, I suppose the Skald could have tossed into the Forest Shamblers too, but the Varangur are just stretched too thin right now), and countercharge the Forest Shamblers, rout them, and reform to face down some Hunters of the Wild.

Top of Round 6: Sylvan Kin

The Forest Shamblers are healed form 12 down to 11 with Radiance of life, and charge the Horse Raiders, dealing 6 and waver them.

The dance around the buildings... continues.

The Tree Herder is stalking around, but I think it needed to move at the double, looking to control the board for the end of the game.

One unit of Hunters of the Wild cut down the Tribesmen, while the other unit, joined by the Forest Warden, slams into Kruufnir, but the legendary troll holds.

The Greater Air Elemental counter-charges the Mounted Sons, and routs them.

Bottom of Round 6: Varangur

Magnilde and the Lord both charge the Greater Air Elemental, and will rout it.

The second Greater Air Elemental falls!

Kruufnir counter-charges the Hunters of the Wild, rampaging, but the unit holds.

A very verdant center. Good think we aren't playing Dominate.

The wavered Horse Raiders withdraw, and then move backward, creating space. The Magus unleashes another Alchemist Curse against the trees, and thankfully routs them.

The Skald charges the Hunters near the center of the board, hoping to get lucky or otherwise occupy them, should there be a Round 7.

View down the table.

As it stands, the Draugr should hold each of my front corners, and the Horse Raiders control the back left corner, for 3 points for the Varangur. The central hunters of the Wild Control my special central zone for 2, the Tree Herder should control my opponent's central zone for 1, and the other Hunters of the Wild overpower Kruufnir in the back right corner for another 1, making this 4-3 in favor of the Sylvan Kin as we wrap up Round 6. 

And then we roll up a Round 7! 

Top of Round 7: Sylvan Kin

The Hunters counter-charge the Skald, dealing 6 to him, but the Skald holds, keeping the Hunters in place.

End of the Top of Round 7.

Kruufnir also takes hits from the other Hunters of the Wild, but also holds.

Bottom of Round 7: Varangur

With the extra turn, I actually have a shot here!

With the Skald having stopped the Hunters, my Magus can make a dash towards the center of the field, lobbing an Alchemist Curst into the verdant unit. Unfortunately, the hits are pitiful. Still three hits convert into 2 damage and an uninspired Nerve check is forced... and is 1 short of the rout I needed here!

Several attempts are made for the win.

Kruufnir, Magnilde and the Lord with Icon all crash into the Hunters of the Wild. The unit is fresh, but it is a lot of good attacks with good CS. All the Varangur leaders will amazingly flub their rolls, and the unit will stick around as well. 

As Round 7 concludes, nothing has changed, and it is still 4-3 in favor of the Sylvan Kin, and they secure the victory! Congrats to my opponent on a second well-fought victory for the day!

Game Conclusions

It was another very close game, but I just couldn't get Nerve checks to fall in my favor, and couldn't quite get it done in the extra Round either! My opponent played a great game and got some fantastic use out of Surge to swing some combats decidedly in his favor and put me on the back foot.

I was able to take out both Greater Air Elementals for the moral victory! However I did fall back into some bad habits this game. I absent-mindedly deployed the two regiments of Tribesmen side-by-side. I charged Gladestalkers in the woods. And I made many little charges instead of dedicated multi-charges to swiftly remove units. The latter really let the Greater Air Elementals eat me up, particularly in Round 4, where each got a nice flank charge in separate combats resulting in two easy victories.

Testing Conclusions

• Hunters of the Wild. I again appreciated these more playing against them again. They don’t have the staying power to be your main line, it's not a really spam-able unit, but they do make great supporting elements to stronger units like the Shamblers.
• Forest Shambler Hordes. The Varangur were able to remove them this time, but they were still difficult. Fearless really helps them out as you can't get a lucky waver and need to devote enough things to actually remove them. They were strong and impressive.
• Tree Herder. With high Nerve, fearless, a passive heal and Def6, I had nothing in my list to fell him, so was forced to just ignore him. Thankfully my opponent again prioritized his supporting and casting abilities, rather than combat! But his presence was felt throughout the game.
• Trickster’s Wand. I have under-explored both items and magic, but this was an impressive little trinket! The interaction it forces on the table was impressive, and objectively I liked the decisions it forced me to make, even if it really shut me down for a turn. It’s a neatly-designed item and one I’ll try to remember to check out in the future!
• Greater Air Elementals. I was able to eventually take them down through piece-trading. Having more fighty units and less chaff helped me in this regard, but my opponent was still able to get good use out of both units, making back their points and then some. It's a strong unit for sure.
• Meta Elven Archmage. My opponent again ran his near his lines, and again it met a relatively early end. It did land some damage, but was not an impactful as one might hope. 
• Sylvan Gladestalkers. Shooters in terrain is something my opponent does very well, and even as just a duo, they were strong again here. Stealthy + Terrain makes them quite hard to shoot off, and so you need to make quite the effort to dislodge them. A good unit used well!
• Tree Warden. At 90 points for a scoring unit and decent stats, it is an interesting pick. Here, where my opponent really wanted to get those last 1” surges into units, it worked very well, casting and needed and and clobbering when called for. It actually got in a fair amount of damage on Kruufnir over those few rounds. In my Herd list, with far less shambling, I don’t think it is as impactful an option, but it was neat to see in action, and could be worth it.
• Mounted Sons. They got a bit unlucky, and while they did eventually contribute and do some work, they weren't used particularly well this game. I still like the unit and models, but think I need to rethink how I use them and how to support them effectively.
• Lord with Stealthy Icon. Despite missing so many rout values by 1, Brutal never tipped the scales as I recall. This is a more competitive pick as I understand things, and I can see why! The Stealthy aura was nice, and 150 isn't bad for the full loadout with the extra attack and Brutal so that he can bash things later in the game. 
• Night Raiders. The axes have been great pressure against other infantry, but I was struggling against the elves and other Speed 6 things today. These seem like they need more support against a quicker list, and can't really function on their own like I was thinking, so I will need to rethink some things with them.
• Draugr. They had a boring game! I don’t think I moved them at all after their initial deployment. They played the scenario, but at a bit of a cost, since they didn’t impact the game at all otherwise. Two was ok, but I think taking just one might be fine most of the time. You want units to do more than just sit around during the game.
• Tribesmen. I think it is fair to compare them to the Hunters of the Wild, as both have good stats and can be a bit of a generalist unit. However, these were my main battle line, and the regiments just couldn't cut it. They should be supporting a stronger unit, or run as a horde I think.
• Horse Raiders. Given the scenario and low cost, I wanted to preserve them and so tried leaning on their ranged attacks… but hitting on 5+ with only 12” range, this didn’t go well. I think axes are what you run when you want these as anti-chaff and a screening unit for other cavalry. Bows should fit this pressure and controlling playstyle much better, and is what I will try next time.
• Meta Magus. Despite being Hexed for a turn, I used this pick much better throughout this game., and while the last cast was a bit of a dud, the spell was doing good damage all game. 
• Skald with Lute. With the extra infantry around, this list was a better fit for him, but it still wasn't that exciting. If I run infantry I'll run the Skald, but otherwise, I need to find a better generic source of Inspiring to default to.
• No Snow Foxes. They proved to be effective last game in disordering the Gladestalkers. As everything collapsed into my (foolish) Mounted Sons unit, I was wishing I had taken some here. I think Snow Foxes are a solid pick for chaff, and 1-2 units is probably a must for me. 
• Chess Clock. We were trying the chess clock again for the rematch, and things went about the same as the first game. Deployment is probably the silliest time since you are trading 10-15 seconds. Overall, we had some minor pauses and snafus, but we started with one hour and ten minutes apiece, and both ended with time left on the clocks, so I think it is safe to say we are doing ok for our speed of play.

As before, win or lose it is always a pleasure to get these games in. A big thank you to my opponent for fitting the time in and for hosting, and congrats on another victory!

Kings of War 3rd Edition: #042 Varangur vs Sylvan Kin [Dominate]

Intro and Lists

We had tried to fit this game in as an afternoon battle a few weeks back, but were forced to cancel as the shop was unexpectedly too full with ongoing MTG games and lacked any table space for us, and my place, though nearby, was in the midst of some DIY projects and unfortunately lacked space as well. It was a bummer of a day.

Luckily, forum-goer Cartwright and I were able to get a double-header in recently! For the first game, we ran the lists from our cancelled game, and the mixed it up a bit for the second battle. My opponent was running a pretty new army for him in the Sylvan Kin, brining the following:

I had played alongside the Sylvan Kin previously in the semi-recent group game. They hard-carried us to victory there, so I figured I was going to be in for a hard game facing against them! The army has a very strong nature-contingent, and the forest is well-represented by two regiments of Hunters of the Wild and two Hordes of Forest Shamblers as well as a Tree Herder.  Two Greater Air Elementals also make an appearance. The army is a bit light on the Kin, but has three Gladestalker Regiments, and a slew of elven characters: a Master Hunter with bow, a mounted Elven Archmage with Boots of Levitation and Alchemist’s Curse, and the legendary Nimue, with a lot of spells. The nature-contingent has a lot of overlap with my Herd, so I’ll be keeping an eye on:

• Hunters of the Wild. I have used these, and have enjoyed them. We’ll see if I can pick up any tricks or insight.
• Forest Shambler Hordes. I liked the regiments appearing in the recent demo game, and I am eager to see how the hordes perform!
• Tree Herder. I have not gotten to run one yet with my Herd, but this seems like a great centerpiece model and good unit to build around. It is certainly expensive, but should be able to grind many things out. With its high defense, the Herder is likely to stick around, so the healing aura has the potential to do a lot of work throughout the game.
• Greater Air Elementals. These have garnered such a reputation in the game that even I have heard of them and their potency! They made an appearance in the group game, but I didn’t give them too close a look at the time. They look quite powerful indeed. Rumor is that a nerf is on the horizon for them, so we wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
• "Meta" Elven Archmage. A wizard, on an individual mount, with Boots of Levitation, and Alchemist's Curse, seems like a common inclusion in many lists. The spell provides pretty nice damage and the combination of Boots + Mount gives the wizard a large threat range. Allegedly, nerfs / restrictions are coming for both the spell and the boots, so again, we wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
• Sylvan Gladestalkers. Another unit with a bit of a reputation! They performed well in the group game, but also didn’t receive any pressure. My opponent tends to get a lot of mileage out of these kinds of units, so we’ll see how they perform this time. 

The Sylvan Kin army is a bit light on drops, but still has some terrific Unit Strength. It has a lot of scouting moves, and has with multiple Surge Casters to make good use of all the Elementals. It’s not a fully optimized list, but seems like it will be strong in every phase. 

I had thrown together a new Varangur 2023 list, though I don’t think I used too much from the newer update here. I haven’t played them for a while, and didn’t think Cartwright had gotten to play against them much at all, so I figured it was time to take them for a spin. I brought the following:

My list is an iteration on an older one, running three regiments of Mounted Sons with a lot of supporting elements. Up to test are:

• Mounted Sons. These have done well for me previously! Strong knights with CS should let them grind even if they don't get a charge. I was running them without upgrades to 
• Night Raiders. I have used these before, but I am not great at them yet.
• Draugr. A great objective camper and an ok chaff unit. I think three might be too many again, especially in a list with no serious infantry units for them to support, but we’ll see how they do.
• Snow Foxes. I have liked these before, but again think three might be too many here. 
• Horse Raiders. I have used these before, but not terribly well. We’ll see how I use them this game. Being the same height, these should hopefully be able to screen well for the Mounted Sons at the very least.
• "Meta" Magus. I haven’t dabbled much with magic spells, and am still barely picking items beyond a Lute in most of my lists. I think I picked on this concept up from a MasterSight video, and decided to try it out. With my opponent taking the same kind of loadout, we'll get even more testing in, and with all the Draugr around, maybe we’ll get a transfusion in this game too!
• Skald with Lute. This seems like a decent pick, and the Lute is a go-to item for ASB-like units in all my armies. I think he plays best with other infantry; even more so since he gained the Forced March aura. I don’t think this is a great list for him, so want to check-in at the end of the game here to see if he is a good generalist source of Inspiring, or something best run with purpose alongside other infantry.

Oddly enough, our lists have some unique parallels. More obviously, we each succumbed to trying out a more competitive pick in the mounted wizard with Boots of Levitation and Alchemist’s Curse. For those unaware, the Curse is Piercing 4 and gives more dice to hit based on the defense of the target; it is great at taking out high-defense units. The simple horse mount boosts the speed of the caster while retaining all the free pivots from being an Individual, and the Boots allow the caster to attempt a spell, even if they move at the double. This combination (allegedly set to be disallowed soon, since horses don't wear boots!) makes for a heck of a threat range on a very potent spell. We'll see which of us gets more mileage out of this pick! 

We also each have exactly 40 ranged shots. However our differences start to creep in here, as all my shots are all 12” axes while the Kin all have 24” bows. The Sylvan Kin have even more ranged options with Nimue’s spells, which will give them a definite advantage in the ranged phase. 

Overall, I have an advantage in drops and deployment, but that advantage comes through an abundance of chaff units, which may not be that impactful as the game progresses. In a vacuum I think I can handle all of the “Verdant” units well enough, but I don’t know if I have good answers for the Gladestalkers and Greater Air Elementals. The Sylvan Kin is new to me, but clearly has some strong options here, so we’ll see how the game goes!

Table and Terrain

My opponent was hosting our games, and had used an app to generate the table prior to my arrival, so we'd have a better chance of squeezing in two games. We were using typical terrain rules, with the ruins as Height 9 blocking buildings, the forests as Height 6 Difficult Terrain, fences as Height 2 Obstacles, and Hills as Height 3. 

We rolled up Dominate for the scenario. At the end of the game, whoever had the most unit strength within 12 inches of the center of the table would prevail! Fortunately for us, our play mat had a nice circle delineating the scoring zone, which should make this easier to determine. 

Faced with a drop disadvantage, my opponent deployed compactly. From left-to-right we see the three Gladestalkers set to scout up into the forest nearby, the Tree Herder, Forest Shambler Hordes flanking the elvish Alchemist wizard and screening the Greater Air Elementals, then Nimue and the two regiments of Forest Shamblers. 

The Sylvan Kin deployed compactly, but were deceptively quick.

I figured the Gladestalkers would be in the woods, and opted to try and go wide. My early drops were all Draugr and Snow Foxes and the various Raider units. From left to right for me we have Snow Foxes screening Mounted Sons, angled Draugr ready to trudge forward, to the left of the building and towards the center, the Skald, two regiments of Night Raiders readying themselves for a forest assault. 

The Varangur are less organized.

A building broke up my lines a bit, with more angled Draugr nearby. Snow Foxes screened Kruufnir and another regiment of Mounted Sons, then more Snow Foxes screening the Thegn and Horse Raiders. My mounted Magus with Alchemist Curse sat tight in the reserves with even more angled Draugr. 

The loose right-flank of the Varangur prepares for battle.

Magnilde stalked the forest, and on my far-right were a second troop of Horse Raiders and the third regiment of Mounted Sons.

Scout Moves

All of the Varangur units deployed an inch or so back. With so many scouting moves across from me, I wanted to make sure I gave myself some space to react, especially with a wider and weaker line like mine. 

Scout moves from the Sylvan Kin.

My opponent ended up not going too aggressive with the scouting moves. The Gladestalkers took their place in the woods, and everything else moved up, but nothing moved at the double. I won the roll for first turn, and opted to take it, hoping to minimize the superior shooting from my opponent and start enveloping the enemy line.

Top of Round 1: Varangur

Over on my left, the Foxes and Mounted Sons sped ahead, moving at the double. The Night Raiders jogged ahead, screening the Draugr, but were an inch or so too far to throw their axes. (This due to the the smart positioning of my opponent, not a fault on my part; the Gladestalkers purposefully held back on the scouting move.) I briefly considered moving up more, but was wary of getting charged by the Gladestalkers. I didn't want them breaking through, and my cavalry wasn't in a position to threaten a counter attack, so I held back, thinking I could probably endure some of their shooting, but it was a bit of a pickle for me.

I did not really think through how this shooting war would actually go...

Snow Foxes scampered ahead, screening for Kruufnir and the Mounted Sons, as well as for the Thegn and Horse Raiders. With nothing to safely target, the Magus held back this turn.

The far flanks move up the quickest, looking to encircle my opponent.

Elsewhere, Magnilde got to the edge of the woods, and the Horse Raiders and Mounted Sons on my far-right zipped up forward to pressure the Hunters of the Wild. With no CS opposing me here, I figured I might be able to bully the Hunters a bit.

Nothing was in range for shooting, and there were no combats, so it was a quick opening turn.

Bottom of Round 1: Sylvan Kin

Protected by the forest, the Gladestalkers shoot out. My "shooters" are stealthy too, but the Night Raiders take 8 damage from afar and are wavered. 

The Sylvan Kin take a very slow and steady approach.

The rest of the Sylvan Kin's line makes minor adjustments, but declines to venture out. The Hunters of the Wild cannot escape, so just make sure things will hit them in the front.

Top of Round 2: Varangur

On the left, one unit of Snow Foxes swings wide around the building, eyeing up the flanks of the Gladestalkers. The Mounted Sons decide they can't wait a few more turns to do the same, so pivot and move to threaten the Gladestalkers in the coming turn. 

The Varangur left tries to pressure the Gladestalkers.

The wavered Night Raiders hang back, while their comrades move and toss their axes against a Gladestalker unit, landing a few hits with some lucky sixes, which translate into a few damage, if memory serves. Nearby, some Snow Foxes scamper in and will deal 1 and disorder a unit of Gladestalkers. 

The Varangur right flank crashes in!

Centrally, Snow Foxes look to bait a charge out from the walking trees before them, with Kruufnir, Mounted Sons and the Thegn all looking to retaliate. 

Over on the right, Horse Raiders screen for the Magus. Axes and an Alchemist Curse goes into the Hunters of the Wild on the hill, but the unit is unfazed. I opt to multi-charge the other unit of Hunters with Mounted Sons and Horse Raiders, but the Sons flub their hit rolls, missing with 10 of their attacks, and the Sylvan unit sticks around with ease.

Bottom of Round 2: Sylvan Kin

The Hunters on the hill have changed their facing a bit last turn, but can juuust spot a sliver of base from the stalled Mounted Sons, and take the flank charge, with there other unit of Hunters counter-charging, and joined by a Greater Air Elemental in the front. 

Yikes. 

Nimue is lurking nearby, hitting both the Sons and the Raiders with a Cloak of Death, and the Mounted Sons are quickly dragged down. The Greater Air Elemental and flanking unit reform, with the remaining regiment likely enough to deal with the solitary troop of Horse Raiders...

Yeah, a pretty big disaster here.

Nearby a unit of Forest Shamblers charges the Horse Raiders protecting the Magus, dealing 5 to them and wavering them.

Centrally, the Elven Archmage lobs an Alchemist Curst into the more central Mounted Sons, thankfully landing just 3 damage, and the other Forest Shamblers will take the bait and the upstart Snow Foxes off of the table.

Over on the left, one unit of Night Raiders is shot off, while the other accrues two damage from the Gladestalkers and Master Hunter. The disordered unit counter charges the Snow Foxes, dealing 4 and Wavering them.

Top of Round 3: Varangur

I opt to use Magnilde's ability to fly up and bonk the Greater Air Elemental, hoping that grounding it might help things. The Wavered Horse Raiders back off, letting the Mounted Magus slip past. The Magus will pivot, and Alchemist Curst will remove the unit. 

The wavered Horse Raiders will back up, and the nearby Draugr will flank charge the Forest Shambler Horde for ... reasons. I don't think this was a particularly good plan on my part.

View on the disastrous right.

Centrally, the Mounted Sons and Thegn will charge in against the other Forest Shamblers, The charges are all clear, but this unit of Sons fails as well, again missing more than half of their attacks. The Thegn rolls very well though, and the resulting 9 damage isn't too far off of a usual result. The first Nerve check is good, but the horde sticks around with the Inspired reroll.

The Elven Archmage was tucked away near the Tree Herder, but Kruufnir is able to nimbly get in. Reading the rules for "Bring me Their Head" it doesn't say "another" or "a different" unit, and the troll meets the keyword criteria, so we let the special rule apply here, and Kruufnir does the job himself, ending the Elven Mage and turning Defiantly towards the Three Herder. 

Some small victories out on the left.

It's a little jammed up here on the left. The Snow Foxes are wavered and opt to stay put. The Night Raiders charge in against the central unit, and with Pathfinder, are able to deal a few damage and get a lucky waver, disordering a unit. 

There is a hindered charge into the Master Hunter for the Mounted Sons, but I'll bump my own unit of raiders first in any overrun, since they are pushed ever so slightly out due to the wider base of the Snow Foxes. So, instead, the Mounted Sons trip on the fence, making a hindered charge into the front of the Gladestalkers while the Snow Foxes take them in the flank. The Sons get a Bane Chant from the Skald (though this doesn't matter math-wise), and are able to rout the unit of archers. 

Bottom of Round 3: Sylvan Kin

One Greater Air Elemental shrugs off the hits from Magnilde and squeezes along the ground and through the other combats to arrive in the right flank of the central Mounted Sons. The other flies up, and will be surged the 1 inch into the left flank. The Forest Shamblers hit the unit in the front, and another unit of Mounted Sons is swiftly cut down. 

Sneaky! The Great Air Elementals can see a lot with Height 5...

Over on the right, the Forest Shamblers countercharge the silly Draugr, landing 5 damage in against the Zombies, who will Iron Resolve 1 back later, since we didn't catch this at the time.

The remaining Hunters will hit the flank of the Horse Raiders, and reform to face my remaining units on the right. I do not catch this at the time.

Victorious reforms.

Nimue gets close and is able to land some damage with Fireball against the remaining unit of Horse Raiders. The cacophonous boom is enough to spook the horses, and the unit is Wavered.

.

Over on the far-left, one Gladestalker regiment is wavered, and the other will finally prevail over the Snow Foxes, and will attempt (but fail) to overrun to get out of Kruufnir's charge arc.

Top of Round 4: Varangur

With the nearby Snow Foxes killed by the Gladestalkers, the Night Raiders are able to square up with the remaining unit. Another unit of Snow Foxes hits the Gladestalkers from the rear. 

Movement, top of Round 4.

The Mounted Sons get another Bane Chant, and make another hindered charge, this time into the Master Hunter. I resolve this combat first, rout him, and then overrun into the remaining Gladestalker unit, which is obliterated from three sides.

Kruufnir cleanly hits the flank of the remaining Gladestalker unit, going on a rampage. Unfortunately the Troll misses 9 of his 16 attacks, and despite some damage landing, the unit holds.

The Thegn opts to be brave, and charges the Forest Shamblers. In the end, I need a 4 to rout them, and on the Inspired reroll, only get a 3. 

On the right, Magnilde vents her frustrations into Nimue, who takes the hits like a champ. I had failed to notice that the Hunters of the Wild changed facing with their victory, and will move the Magus right into their range and arc. Alchemist Curse lands, and I get them to 10 total damage, and then roll another 3 on the check, letting them stick around, unwavered.

Bottom of Round 4: Sylvan Kin

Nimue disengages and jukes around, and Cloak of Death hits Magnilde, the Horse Raiders, and the Magus. The Hunters of the wild then charge down and into the Magus, dealing 4 and wavering him. 

Pre-combat.

One Greater Air Elemental crashes into the Flank of the Thegn, and together with the fearless Forest Shamblers, the Elementals are able to bash him down.

The Greater Air Elementals hunt with impunity.

The other Greater Air Elemental is surged into Kruunir's flank while the Gladestalkers counter-charge the troll in the front. A total of 10 damage is done, but thankfully Kruufnir is found to be insane.

Top of Round 5: Varangur

The pressure is on!

Over on the right, Magnilde will beat on Nimue again, and will rout them this time. The mounted Magus backs off, and the Horse Raiders change facing. They throw their axes into the Hunters of the Wild... and nothing connects, so no Nerve check is made..

The right flank is not having a great time this game.

I don't have the best of options in the center. Kruufnir regenerates 4, and goes in against the Gladestalkers. He is joined by the Snow Foxes in the flank. Additionally, the Night Raiders hit in the unit in the rear, as due to angles, they were unable to fit in a multi-charge against the Tree Herder with the Mounted Sons, or charge or throw at anything else. The Gladestalkers slain, but as should be expected, the Mounted Sons are unable to really dent the Tree Herder on their one, especially since they are still charging through the woods and are perpetually hindered... They manage 5 damage against the Herder, which is about as-expected.

The Gladestalkers are removed! We'll take the small victory.

I hadn't really messed with the positioning of the other two Draugr units since the start of the game, but they are still safe and poised to hop into the Dominate Circle next turn.

Bottom of Round 5: Sylvan Kin

The Tree Herder backs off. Positioning-wise, the Mounted Sons are in for another hindered charge next turn as they are still clipping the forest with a corner of their base. 

Kruufnir fighting for his life.

Kruufnir was victorious, but there was not much for him to do. The Greater Air Elementals now hit him in the front and flank, with the Forest Shamblers also hitting the flank. The Shamblers alone do 14 to the Troll, and he is soon seen off the field. 

Elsewhere, the Hunters go into the mounted Magus again, landing a few more damage, but just waver him again.

Top of Round 6: Varangur

The The Mounted Sons take another hindered charge into the Tree Herder, as there are no other legal targets. They get a bane chant, land a few more damage, but the Herder isn't going anywhere. Still, they are scoring for the scenario now, so they've got that going for them.

Overview of the battlefield.

The Snow Foxes and the Night Raiders do into the central Forest Shamblers, and are able to pop the unit, who started the turn with double-digits of damage.

Magnilde hits the Hunters of the Wild in the flank, and rolls well. They need Insane Courage and do not get it.

The Horse Raiders trotted over to throw into the other Forest Shamblers, who I thought were more wounded than they were... but none of the axes hit. 

Both Draugr units hop into the scoring circle.

Bottom of Round 6: Sylvan Kin

The Herder and both Greater Air Elementals hit the Mounted Sons, all in the front, and will crush them.

My opponent doesn't think that the Forest Shamblers can rout the Night Raiders in one go, so they charge the Snow Foxes instead, and will remove them, and will reform to face the Night Raiders.

End of Round 6.

As the round concludes, the Varangur has two regiments of Draugr (2 each for a total of 4) and a regiment of Night Raiders (2) for a total of 6 Unit Strength for the scenario. The Sylvan Kin Have a horde of Forest Shambles (3), and a Herder and two Greater Air Elementals (1 apiece), for a total of also 6 Unit Strength!

....and then we then roll up a round 7.

Top of Round 7: Varangur

Well, the Varangur are out of options. The mounted Magus tries, but nothing is in range even with the full move. 

The Skald goess in against a Greater Air Elemental. The hope was to disorder it, and limit it's options a bit, but no hits land. The Draugr charge the Herder, trying to disorder it to stop surge and simultaneously hide behind it. The second Draugr unit changes facing to complicate any charges from the Greater Air Elementals.

The Night Raiders are able to charge the Forest Shamblers, and land some damage. They are uninspired, but the nerve check is 1 below what I need to rout them. The Horse Raiders would have loved to have joined this combat, but could not see over the Height 3 hill to see the Height 3 Shamblers, so no charges for them, and they just move up to score. 

The Varangur is out of steam.

Bottom of Round 7: Sylvan Kin

The Night Raiders get a frontal charge from the Forest Shamblers and a rear charge from the Greater Air Elemental and are routed. The other Greater Air Elemental gets a frontal charge into the Horse Raiders, but we don't even resolve the combat. With the Night Raiders falling, the Sylvan Kin take the lead with unit strength, and secure the victory!

Game Conclusion

I was a bit rusty - we haven't had a tactical game in a few months. My deployment could have been a little better and my strategy needed some work, such as putting the Night Raiders up against the Gladestalkers. Letting my Magus get charged for no reason in Round 4 was incredibly unfortunate for me and should not have happened! 

I was pleasantly surprised with clawing my way to a draw as we ended Round 6. Unfortunately I was out of units and steam while my opponent was not, and Round 7 let my opponent squeeze out the win with their monsters. As-ever, my opponent played a clean game with his list. Well played and congrats on the win!

Testing Conclusion

It was a great game full of stuff to look at, so let’s get down to it!

• Hunters of the Wild. I appreciated these much more after playing against them. With great stats and 15 attacks they are good generalist units, able to hold their own while slipping in a few damage in each combat against most things.
• Forest Shambler Hordes. I didn’t have a lot of combat units, so these were surprisingly difficult to deal with as it turns out. They don’t have a lot of bells or whistle but Fearless gives them a lot of staying power and I was impressed.
• Tree Herder. My opponent prioritized the support and Surge casting. Height 5 lets him see a lot, and he was able to cast Surge on anything he wished to. I didn’t track the Radiance of Life heals, but that aura did quiet work throughout the game. The Herder was expensive, and didn’t contribute much to any combats, but was a powerful pick that I had no real answer to as the game went on. Very cool to see this guy in action!
• Greater Air Elementals. Once melee combat breaks out in a few places it is incredibly hard to deal with these. Having both monsters come in against the same unit of Mounted Sons at the bottom of Round 3 was demoralizing, as I realized I just had no answers to them. A very strong unit used very well by my opponent.
• Meta Elven Archmage. My opponent didn’t roll great with Alchemist Curse, and the hero was taken off the field early. It was not a great showing for the Archmage. 
• Sylvan Gladestalkers. They parked themselves in the woods and were a general nuisance I didn’t have a great answer for. With the Master Hunter nearby, all 40 ranged attacks were in these woods, and were hard to dislodge given that they were in cover with Stealthy. 
• Scout. My opponent definitely used it, but nothing was too daring. The Gladestalkers mostly just lined up their shots, and I think this reserved approach to Scouting moves was the right call here. 
• Mounted Sons. All three of my regiments underperformed consistently this game, often missing to hit with half their attacks whether it was a clear charge or not. It was hard to compensate for that underperformance when they were really my only heavy hitters in the list. 
• Night Raiders. The Night Raiders proved to be a pretty poor choice to face the Gladestalkers. While I have my own stealthy, and Pathfinder and Thunderous Charge, the raiders need to get close to do anything, and I should have supported them better. These were not used well.
• Draugr. It was obviously a mistake to charge them into the flank of the Forest Shamblers. The other two units were used well though, lurking and waiting for the end of the game. 
• Snow Foxes. These wily beasts actually performed quite well, getting up and into the Gladestalker Regiments. The Foxes won’t rout them, so will need follow-up support, but on average should be able to disorder the shooters. A nice niche application for them.
• Horse Raiders. I don’t think they were particularly used well. Given their ranged attack option, 
• Meta Magus. Unfortunately, Famulus doesn’t work with the Curse, but I didn’t remember the special rule at all until most of the way through the second game! Here, with the Boots, I could have easily avoided the Hunters and still gotten the spell off against them – I missed them reforming in their victory and that is entirely on me. So, this was not the best outing for me and my competitive pick either, but I can see why folks like this setup.
• Skald with Lute. Forced March didn’t come up at all. The Bane Chant was nice, but didn’t really swing any fights. The list felt a bit awkward for him, and I think another Thegn on Frostfang or something could be a getter generic pick in the future.
• Chess Clock. This was our first time using the chess clock. We started with an hour and ten minutes apiece. We paused it a few times for quick pictures, and had a few small goofs, but at the end, we each had time left on the clock, and combined had about a half hour remaining. Not bad! 

Win or lose, I have been adulting too much lately, so it was wonderful to get this game in! Thank you to my opponent for fitting this in and for hosting!