Kings of War 3rd Edition: #061 Herd vs Northern Alliance [Control]

Intro and Lists

Friend, fellow blogger, and forum-goer Cartwright and I were able to squeeze in a double-header day recently. With my Herd fighting against his Northern Alliance, we had two arctic-themed armies battling it out for supremacy. For our immediate rematch, he ran the following:

It was his turn to run an unusual list! It plays in a lot of the same "combined arms spaces" familiar to the Northern Alliance, but utilizes a few very different units than the ones we are used to seeing across the table. For the more typical units, we have a regiment of Dwarf Clan Warriors to block and play objectives, two Pack Hunters to contribute bow-fire, and some Naiads with spears, but just run as a regiment this time. The Frostclaw Rider regiment and Bolt Thrower make their second appearances today. For new units, a pair of Cavern Dwellers are around to instigate. With Lifeleech 3 and great Nerve, just one of these monsters has been incredibly hard to deal with previously, so I wasn't sure if I could handle two. We also have two hordes of Ice Elementals, which can contribute damage at range or in melee, or even both, if my opponent gets tricky with Surge and Shambling. He had one source of the former, a legendary Ice-Queen named Serakina, who has both Surge and Windblast. Rounding out the list are some old favorites: two Thegns on Frostfangs, and Hrimm, the Legendary Giant. Overall, the list lacked the heavy-commitment to Regeneration that so many of his NA lists embrace, but still played around with combined arms, and looked like it would be hard to crack! 

I had a very similar Herd list for the rematch here, so I had very similar things to test! For testing, I'll largely just restate things from the previous report:

• Double Spear Hordes. I need something to take up space on the field, and the Tribal Spears looked promising enough that I recently hobbied up a second horde. Being able to purchase TC means they can do ok on the charge… but need to get the initial charge in any grinding combats. Buying the upgrade will be my default for now. We’ll see how they do.
• Guardian Brutes. Running the math, these should actually function similarly to the old, smashy Longhorns, just on a Large Infantry 40mm base. They will void my “regiments-max” MSU approach to the Herd, but so it goes – that’s a pretty hard playstyle. We’ll see how they do here!
• Flying Beasts of Nature. A flying, nimble monster is always nice to have around! heir damage output is less than a General on Winged Beast though, so we’ll see what trouble he can cause.
• Hydra. I have gotten some great feedback about these on the forum, and will try to put the advice into practice here. Essentially, all of the special rules should be viewed from a defensive lens – these things adding up to make it a very unattractive target for my opponent to engage with. So I should be aggressive with it, and treat it more like a tar pit than a hammer. We’ll try to do that this game.
• Druid. I need sources of Inspiring, and am feeling a little lost for my Herd options. These little Bane-Chant casters look like good default units to have around. 
• Wiltfather. My units don’t have great defense, so are likely to accrue damage pretty fast. This means that Radiance of Life will be less impactful (not much difference having 9 damage vs 8), so I opted for the legendary upgrade here. He did well for me when I tried him, and even better against me in the Sylvan Kin list! We’ll see how he does back on my team again today. 
• Scorchwing Regiments. For kicks, I demoted them to regiments. With only two units, I figured they may be less taxing to use, though their ranged damage output will suffer. We’ll see what trouble they stir up for me.
• Wild Gur Panthers. The other list ran no chaff as a bit of an experiment. Demoting each of the Scorchwings freed up enough points to add in two Panther units here, which feels better. This list has the same unit strength, but more drops and more chaff. 

I learned a lot with the previous game. Here, my list had some chaff again, and with a few more drops I felt a bit more confident. His list was tough, but we had similar drops and unit strength, and I was hoping to make better use of things this game.

Table and Terrain

We generated a new table, using his typical terrain, and followed our usual terrain rules, running the buildings as Height 9 blocking terrain, the forests as Height 6 Difficult Terrain, stone fences as Height 2 Obstacles, and Hills as Height 3. The little battlefield app kicked back a very weird set-up with two nearby buildings, but we opted to try it out.

The table, with the weird double-building.

Our brains hurting a bit from the last game. Coffee in-hand, we opted for a more simple scenario this time, and went with Control, with the board broken up into 2' by 2' squares. The squares on the flanks are each worth 1 VP, and while our own central zone is worth 1 VP, our opponent's central zone is worth 2 VP.

My opponent won the roll off, and graciously remained a lazy gamer. Seeing the table, we both quickly decided to largely ignore the narrow corridor on the flank near the buildings, and focus on the other 2/3rds of the table.

Deployment on the left for the Northern Alliance.

On the left, my opponent had a Thegn, the regiment of Naiads, and the Bolt Thrower, who was eying up the center zones.

The more robust center for the Northern Alliance. 

The other Northern Alliance group had a Cavern Dweller, Ice Elementals, Serakina the Ice Queen with Wind Blast and Surge, and the second Cavern Dweller, nestled between the second horde of Ice Elementals. Two Pack Hunters camped in the woods, with Frostclaws, Hrimm, the second Thegn and Dwarfs behind and in reserve.

Out on my left, I had some early Gur Panthers, and Scorchwings. Unfortunately, I could not spare anything to help Inspire them, so this flank was just going to try and be a nuisance again. A flying Beast set up behind the double building. I didn't measure anything and didn't have a great plan here, I just figured the buildings would protect the Beast from the Bolt Thrower, and I might be able to make something happen as the game progressed.

The left for the Herd.

For the rest of my line, we have Guardian Brutes supported by a Druid, the Hydra, Tribal Spears supported by Scorchwings and a Druid, Panthers screening for Guardian Brutes, the Wiltfather, more Tribal Spears, and the second flying Beast way out on my right flank.

The bulk of the Herd's forces.

The Wiltfather scouted up 12" and then my opponent won the roll for deciding the turn order, eventually sticking it with me.

Top of Round 1: Herd

Seeing the table, I definitely didn't expect first turn, and opted to be very aggressive with the gift.

Both Beasts of Nature were able to move up 20" and nimbly pivot, facing the Northern Alliance battle line without anything to threaten them next turn. The pivot for the one on the left is slight, allowing for a potential charge into the Bolt Thrower. My mantra with fliers is to always try and threaten something. You don't need to charge it next turn, but this forces a decision from your opponent, and causes them a little stress. 

A very threatening opening turn from the Herd!

The Wiltfather moves up, with everything in his front arc. The Wild Gur Panthers eagerly run up to block for the legendary tree. Nothing can charge the Wiltfather next turn because nothing can fit between the panthers and him.

Everything else in the main group moved up aggressively, including both hordes of Tribal Spears, who were moving at the double. This regiment of Scorchwings moved up, but didn't have anything in range to shoot at.

The herd on the left get the message as well.

Out on the left, the Panthers move up to block for the Scorchwings, but I remain out of charge range of the Thegn. The Scorchwings here have shots into the Naiads, but I forget to take them. It's not a big deal.

Bottom of Round 1: Northern Alliance

My opponent is feeling the pressure already! Very little moves, but frantic shots fly out from the Northern Alliance battle line. The Bolt Thrower lands 3 into the Guardian Brutes, who hold.

The Frostclaws fly up to try and slow the Herd down.

The Frostclaws eventually fly up to throw their bombs at the Scorchwings, landing 3 damage. 

Hrimm is out of range for a breath attack, but turns to face the Wiltfather, and try to dissuade the flying Beast on my right from charging in. 

The Ice Elementals toss into the Gur Panthers, dealing 5, while some Pack Hunters back up, and contribute 3 damage at range and with penalty. At 8 damage, the Panthers will rout.

Shooting and Wind Blast does a number to the Herd's advance.

The second unit of Pack Hunters shoot into the central Tribal Spears, dealing 2. 

In a surprise move, the Ice Queen Serakina Wind Blasts the Wiltfather back, and the rolls are good enough to deny him a charge next turn!

Over on the left, the Thegn wheels about to keep an eye on the Bolt Thrower. If my Beast charges in, he'll be ready. The Naiads move up slightly. Spacing-wise, I can see but no longer fit into the flank of the Thegn, so the Naiads are cleverly protecting their leader. 

My opponent was under pressure, but the Naiad's astute movement and the timely Wind Blast were both well-played!

Top of Round 2: Herd

On the left the Scorchwings take the hill, and will land 1 damage into the Naiads. The Gur Panthers run past the Naiads, and will pivot to get the Thegn and Bolt Thrower into their front arc.

The aggression continues, even out on the left!

The flying Beast that had been threatening the Bolt Thrower declines to charge. Since its pivot was so slight last turn, it can fly up even further now, and nimbly pivot. It's out of the firing arc of the Bolt Thrower now, and eyeing up the flanks and rears of the Northern Alliance line.

A blurry shot! I think you can figure things out.

The Hydra and Scorchwings charge into the Frostclaws, land a combined 6 damage, and get a waver!

The rest of the Herd line advances, threatening charges next turn, with some Tribal Spears taking the hill on the right. Notably, the second Beast of Nature also declines to charge in just yet, moving 10 inches and nimbly pivoting to get closer while also look down the Northern Alliance line. These were some great opening turns for the flying Beasts!

Bottom of Round 2: Northern Alliance

Wary of the flying Beasts, Hrimm pivots and moves, looking to pressure one flier with a potential charge while just getting out of reach of the one behind him. The Thegn takes an equally defensive posture, giving the Beast his front face and looking to support or avenge the Pack Hunters if I go into them on my turn.

The Northern Alliance line tries to break out of the constraining Herd units.

The ranged fire continues to fly from the Northern Alliance lines. The Pack Hunters roll well and land 9 damage into the Guardian Brutes facing them. 

The Guardian Brutes are Windblasted, but accidentally stopped by the Druid after an inch or so. I had been measuring from the outer edge of movement tray for simplicity, and keeping measurements consistent, the unit bumped into the Druid. This wasn't planned by me, but fortunate. Still, they are Frozen, which will reduce their speed, and this reduction will limit their options next turn. 

Meanwhile the Bolt Thrower lands 2 into the other Guardian Brutes, with the Ice Elementals contributing 3 damage. I want to say the Hydra/Dweller was blocking just enough to provide a cover penalty here? They are at 8, and will Waver.

Speaking of, one Cavern Dweller goes into the Hydra, dealing 6 damage, while the other Dweller goes into the central Tribal Spear horde, dealing 5 damage.

Ouch! The Herd continue to have a cowardly day.

My opponent doesn't want the Tribal Spears charging off the hill, so sends in some Dwarf Clansmen to block them up.

The Frostclaws have Fury, and will countercharge my Scorchwing regiment, dealing 3 and bringing them to 6 damage, but the bird things manage to hold strong for me.

It is a lot of damage, but almost everything holds. Out on the left, the Thegn takes the charge into the Gur Panthers, and victoriously pivots, to get the Scorchwings there into his front arc. The Naiads don't have a charge, but move at the double to get into the faces of my Scorchwings.

Top of Round 3: Herd

On the left, the Scorchwings fly over the Naiads, and pivot. They should be safe from Bolt Thrower Fire, and the Thegn, while threatening charges into both of them.

Movement in the Top of Round 3.

The flying Beasts finally pounce, and pincer of one of the Ice Elemental hordes, each tearing into a flank. They land 12 damage, and manage to pick up the Elemental Horde! I thought I rolled low, but with just CS2, this is pretty average damage, and they just got lucky with the check. I think I actually like their facings, so those don't change in victory. Though one does victoriously back up towards the Ice Elementals.

There are a lot of combats in Round 3!

The Hydra regenerates from 6 down to three damage. It lands a surprising 5 damage into the Cavern Dweller, and gets a lucky Waver against the monster, which does not have Fury. No Lifeleeching for it next turn!

The Scorchwings will counter charge the Frostclaws, rout them, and then overrun.

The wavered Guardian Brutes back up a few inches. They are maimed, but the fights are going well, and I can still play the scenario with them if they can survive a bit longer.

Frozen and pushed back, the Guardian Brutes can't reach the inner Pack Hunters like I had been hoping for. Instead, they hit the flank of the Dwarfs fighting the Tribal Spears. The Brutes contribute 19 while the Spears deal 4, and the unit is obliterated. The Brutes victoriously spin, and it unfortunately looks like they'll be taking the charges next turn.

The aftermath of the turn.

The other Tribal Spears are aided by the Wiltfather against the Cavern Dweller. The Spears contribute 1 damage, while the Wiltfather does 12, including Cloak of Death, and Cavern Dweller is bested!

Bottom of Round 3: Northern Alliance

The Northern Alliance is in a rough spot, but the Herd has a lot of damaged units. With the fliers committed, the Northern Alliance tries to trap them and pick up a few units to even out the numbers.

The Northern Alliance moves to fight the Beasts of Nature.

Hrimm pops a mint and turns to breathe on one of the Beasts, landing 2 damage. The Ice Elemental pivot and fling into the same monster, landing another 2, but that Beast holds. That's pretty low output, and I think the flying Beast in front of the Elementals was maybe providing a cover penalty here? 

However, this Beast is facing the wrong way because I forgot about Surge. The Ice Elementals are then Surged into the rear of the Beast, and obliterated.

Ranged fire continues to fly out. The Pack Hunters land 6 into the central Spears, and secure a waver.

The Bolt Thrower fires into the Guardian Brutes on the left, landing 3 damage and bringing them to 11, and wavering them again.

The wavered Cavern Dweller does nothing. 

The Thegn on the right charges the other horde of Guardian Brutes, lands 4 and brings them to 13, but only wavers them, which is a disastrous result for the Alliance, since the Brutes have Fury.

The Thegn on the left backs up slightly, to just get the Scorchwings into his charge arc. Meanwhile, the Naiads move at the double over the hill, and onto my side of the battlefield for the scenario.

Top of Round 4: Herd

On the left, the Scorchwings charge the Bolt Thrower, and will rout it. The Thegn couldn't or didn't back up further last turn, allowing the birds to victoriously pivot, and evade his charge arc.

The bird-things go into the Bolt Thrower!

The other Scorchwings go into the Ice Elementals, and land the 1 damage that I need to disorder them. The Ice Elementals are a versatile unit, and limiting their effectiveness with a wounded unit of mine is great for the Herd.

Combats in the Top of Round 4.

The wavered-but-unengaged Guardian Brutes do nothing. As do the wavered-but-unengaged Tribal Spears.

The wavered-and-engaged Guardian Brutes counter charge the Thegn, and slide down to let the Tribal Spears join in on the multi-charge. The Tribal Spears catch a Bane Chant, and the Thegn will be devastated and then routed.

The flying Beast looks to escape Hrimm, and makes a long charge into the flank of the remaining Cavern Dweller while catching a Bane Chant. The Hydra joins in, and together they deal 11 more damage, and rout the monster, who is sitting at 16 damage. 

After combats, in the Top of Round 4. 

The Wiltfather charges some Pack Hunters. With Cloak of Death he brings them up to 6 damage, and gets a waver for them.

Bottom of Round 4: Northern Alliance

The Herd army is still bleeding heavily, but all these injured units are still on the field. 

Hrimm doesn't have the inches to charge, so moves up and lands 1 damage on the remaining flying Beast with another breath attack.

The Ice Elementals will trounce the disrupting Scorchwings.

The legendary Ice Queen Windblasts my Guardian Brutes back, which is fine by me. They are wounded, and can score my central zone for the scenario.

Unfortunately, the wavered Pack Hunters can't really do anything, and while the other regiment charges the Tribal Spears, they amazingly fail to damage them at all. 

Positioning in the bottom of Round 4.

Out on the left, the Thegn continues to dance against the Scorchwings, backing up again to get them into his charge arc yet again.

Top of Round 5: Herd

The remaining Scorchwings sidestep towards the center of the field. Given the angle of the Thegn, this gets them out of his charge arc. The Scorchwings have 2 Unit Strength to the Thegn's 1, and we are both still in this section of the board, o I am actually winning here with all this chicanery.

More combats, in the Top of Round 5.

The Hydra hasn't taken a lot of damage, but is also back down to just 1. It charges the Ice Elementals to tie them up.

Similarly, the injured Beast of Nature charges Hrimm to disorder and hopefully distract him from doing anything important.

Charging off the hill, the Tribal Spears hit the flank of the Pack Hunters in the woods, and together with the Wiltfather, will rout them.

The nearby Guardian Brutes will likewise flank the Pack Hunters fighting the other Tribal Spear horde. The Spears will catch a Bane Chant, and the second unit of Pack Hunters will fall.

Bottom of Round 5: Northern Alliance

The legendary giant Hrimm disengages from the distraction that is the flying Beast of Nature. Instead, Hrimm takes a penalty and charges the nearby Guardian Brutes, and slays them. 

The Ice Elementals disengage, and withdraw, side-stepping. They are disordered, so can't shoot, but the Ice Queen Surges them for a charge. With their leader point now in the flank, we play this as a flank charge, and the Ice Elementals swing their base around to align.

The weird surge charge.

We didn't look it up due to laziness, but rereading Surge, this is totally incorrect. Rereading the Surge spell (Big Red Book, pg. 63), if the surged unit would connect with an enemy units facing, the charge is for that facing. In this case, the elementals started flush with the Hydra. Backed off, then side-stepped, then were surged right back in ... to connect squarely with the front-facing of the Hydra. This should be a front charge.

End of the Round 5. Hrimm doesn't reform as my opponent is ready to concede.

There is an edge case though, which is where the misunderstanding crept in, since neither of use Shamble much. If the Surging unit would hit the corner of an enemy unit, then and only then we do look at the leader point and figure out how to align the Surging unit, similar to a normal charge. So, the wrong ruling in our case, but technically a situation that could pop up. Good to know!

My opponent played out his turn for the sake of it, but concedes afterwards. The Herd are maimed, but still in a good place to close the game out.

With the concession, this is a victory to the Herd!

Game Conclusions

Playing these games back-to-back, I was able to remember the takeaways from the previous game, and fortunately put up a better performance this time. With some chaff units as well, I was able to better protect some of my more important units, and able to engage in actual piece trades. Being (much) more aggressive, I was able to mitigate my opponent's shooting, and box him in. It wasn't a perfect game from me, but there was a lot I did well and having some good luck to effectively deal with both Cavern Dwellers and one of the the Ice Elemental Hordes by Round 3 really put the momentum of the game firmly on my side.

Going into the game, I was quite wary of the Ice Elementals, though my opponent thought they were overhyped. A lot of their shooting was done around blocking units and with cover penalties, but that might be from gathering dust on the shelf for so long! I still think they are powerful and versatile units, and I wouldn't be surprised if see them again sometime. 

Combined arms is a very fun way to play and a great way to run the Northern Alliance, and Wind Blast paired nicely with Frozen. I think his list has potential, but it was a mistake letting me go first. Being boxed in from the start, I think he made a lot of correct moves, but aggression and good luck let the Herd get the win.

Testing Conclusions

• Double Spear Hordes. They took beating here as well, but were able to survive and even able to get some good charges in themselves! Moving them up aggressively was a good call, and I think buying TC is going to be worth it the vast majority of the time for me, just to give them that threatening option.
• Guardian Brutes. They are still weak to chip damage and enemy shooting, and I could do more to protect them, but I think I am starting to learn these a little bit more. 
• Flying Beasts of Nature. They had a phenomenal game... but I got lucky with the Nerve check against the Ice Elementals. They actually have worse damage output than a General on a Winged Beast, so while this was a good showing, I'm not sure about them. More testing is needed. 
• Hydra. Fighting the Cavern Dweller was ideal for me, as the monster would have a hard time seeing around the titan to withdraw and maybe fight something else. He made for a good aggressive tar pit this game, and this was a great showing for him.
• Druid. Again, these druids with Bane Chant worked very well. Bane Chants weren't guaranteed, but continued to land pretty reliably, and they kept things Inspired for the most part. They still seem like a great pick for a basic inspiring unit.
• Wiltfather. Used better this game, which means I am learning! He's ok by himself, but I think he (or any Tree Herder) would benefit from bringing some other units along. The Gur Panthers worked well for chaff here, but other Scouting units or more fliers could be potent. We'll try some more testing at some point.
• Scorchwing Regiments. I think the day of gaming eventually got to my opponent. I had a bit of an advantage early on getting to the Bolt Thrower, but don't think I should have been able to run circles around the Thegn like that normally. These worked fine in their roles, but are still kind of expensive at 130 points. 
• Wild Gur Panthers. Speedy chaff was great to have again, and these worked out pretty well in their chaffy roles. Even just blocking for the Wiltfather was a big deal this game. Height 2 could make them surprisingly good screens too, which I may need to explore more at some point. 

Getting in a double header against Cartwright has always a good day these last few years, and we were fortunate enough to each walk away with a victory and plenty to think about. A big thank you to my opponent for hosting and for fitting these games in!