Kings of War 3rd Edition: #087 Kingdoms of Men vs Abyssal Dwarfs in Hold the Line

Intro and Lists

I recently attended Dragonfall 2024, a convention held relatively nearby in beautiful Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. The convention had a wargaming component, and the Kings of War event was hosted by Todd of Grognard Games, which has a pair of shops in nearby Illinois. It was a tiny one-day, three-game event at 1500 points. 

Game 1 can be found here.

Game 2 at Dragonfall had another familiar face, Will and his Abyssal Dwarfs! We've only seen him across the table a few times, but he's been around, and had a good run with these Abyssals in his league games as I understand it. I really like the look of the Abyssal Dwarfs, so it's always a pleasure to see some across the table, and it's been great to see more of Will as well.

He's always brought interesting lists, and that definitely includes this one! The core of it was the two Decimator regiments and two hordes of Lesser Obsidian Golems, which had a lot of close-range shooting with Piercing. With Steady Aim as well, very little would be able to close with the evil Dwarfs without eating at least one potent volley of fire, and Mastiffs (with Throwing Mastiffs!) should be able to chaff and block and interdict as well. Anchoring the line was a titanic, Surge-able Infernok, an Iron-Caster to do the Surging, and an Infernox hero to support in a variety of ways, from shooting to combat to tanking. This hero doesn't Inspire innately, but the Talisman was taken, making him even more versatile. Definitely a neat pick in a neat list!

As covered a little more thoroughly here, I brought the Kingdoms of Men to Dragonfall, and leaned into a bunch of titans, with maxed out rampage Giants and a Monarch to lead them. The Ratkin in Game 1 were numerous, but we came away with a rather strong win against them. The Abyssal Dwarfs had a lot of strong, close-range shooting and not a lot of targets for my Rampage, so we'll see what we can do!

Table and Terrain

The terrain was pretty basic, and tables were pretty uniform in their selection, with no special rules, or weird, oversized pieces. The buildings were Height 7 blocking, Boulders also Heigh7 blocking, Forests were Height 10 Difficult, Hills were Height 3, Obstacles were the normal Height 2, and each table had a "rough spot" of Height 0 difficult terrain. I moved on to a new table for Game 2.

Scenarios were determined ahead of time, with the second game being Hold the Line from the Clash 2024 Rulebook. For the scenario, a 12" band runs down the center of the board between the players. This band is split into three zones to be controlled by Unit Strength. At the end of the game, the left and right are each worth 2 Points, and the center is worth 3 Points. In addition to the Scenario Points, which was 15/10/5 for Win/Draw/Loss, we were also supposed to compare the differential of points killed for an additional modifier, of up to +/- 5 Points, depending on what side of the differential you were on. 

The Abyssal Dwarfs won the roll for sides, and then got down to it. If memory serves, he started in the center, and then moved out towards the table edge, gradually committing harder and harder to that corner. 

Left-to-right we have Mastiffs, Decimators, the titanic Infernok, the Infernox, more Decimators screening more Mastiffs, then the Golems, the Iron-Caster, and then the final Golems near the center of the field.

Top of Round 1: Abyssal Dwarfs

It was a quick turn. The Abyssal Dwarfs had a lot of shooting, but not a lot of range on said shooting. 

Constrained by Shambling units, the Abyssal Dwarfs pace themselves as they move out.

Mastiff Packs jumped ahead, and the rest of the line meandered forward.

Bottom of Round 1: Kingdoms of Men

It's a quick turn here as well. I am not too eager to go charging in, so attempt more of a wheel for my battle line, with the center holding and the right moving more.

I opt to move the Giant in the corner at the double, slowing down the advance of the Crossbowmen. 

The Kingdoms of Men wheel about to fight.

The Foot Guard move up, as does a Giant. The Monarch, Pikes, and sneaky Mounted Sergeants stay put. Hiding behind the tower, I honestly forgot about the Sergeants, but don't really want to do anything with them anyways. 

Top of Round 2: Abyssal Dwarfs

The meandering continues! 

A slow, menacing advance.

Things continue to trudge towards the center of the field, but again, the Abyssal Dwarfs have no shots, so it's another very quick turn. We had clocks, though they weren't enforced. I think we are maybe 10 game minutes into the game at this point?

Bottom of Round 2: Kingdoms of Men

And the Kingdoms of Men continue to match the Abyssal Dwarfs move for mow, slowly repositioning before the lines meet. 

The Giants and Foot Guard ready themselves.

I realize that the Monarch doesn't have Strider, so the Pikes sidestep, and the Monarch Pivots, hoping to get a good clean retaliatory charge if they are charged. The Abyssal Dwarves are awfully shooty list  though, and I think I am being overly optimistic that the Pikes will be charged! 

The Two Giants and the Foot Guard plod ahead. 

The Crossbowmen move again, and are already in scoring position.

The Crossbowmen move and shoot into the nearest Golems, landing a hot 3 damage. The Crossbowmen are sitting in the scoring zone, facing the center field and are pretty content.

Top of Round 3: Abyssal Dwarfs

My opponent definitely remembered about my Sergeants, and commits a Mastiff Pack to throw a Mastiff at them, landing just 1 solitary damage with some cold dice, and the Sergeants hold firm.

The Sergeants are put on notice.

The rest of the line is a little better for dice, but can't quite focus fire. 

The volley from the Abyssal Dwarfs.

Cannons sing and shotguns blast, and 5 damage hits the Foot Guard, who Iron Resolve down to 4, and 4 damage smacks into the Giant, but both units hold.

Bottom of Round 3: Kingdoms of Men

Well, it appears to be fighting time! I check some angles, and one Giant has a clear flank into the maimed Golems. My opponent wisely held the Golems back, and the Foot Guard don't have the inches to join in, so I send the second Giant into the front while the Foot Guard move up awkwardly to support. I was only an inch short; I probably could have positioned these better.

Charges from the Kingdoms of Men.

My opponent does have access to Surge, so I feel the need to continue pushing down along my line of battle to prevent any shenanigans. The Monarch makes a hindered charge into the Golems, and the Pikes moves up to try and make spacing awkward for any reprisal charges. Things should be able to smartly sort themselves out on the charge, with the Golems shifting down to allow a cleaner flank... but this does complicate any Surge charges from the looming titanic Infernok, so I am hoping it is adequate to protect the Monarch for a turn.

Lastly, the Mounted Sergeants also charge the Mastiffs, hoping to best them and overrun, to gum up the Infernok and other units. 

The push goes pretty ok. The Giants don't have Rampage triggers, but are able to connect enough to best the first horde of Golems. The flanker overruns 1 inch, and the other Giant reforms, so they can both be staring down the flank of the Abyssal Dwarf line.

Reforms for the Kingdoms of men.

The Monarch lands 4 damage into the other Horde of Golems, but it easily holds.

The Mounted Sergeants deal 5 to the Mastiffs, but fail to even Waver them. Still, the Sergeants should delay things for a turn, and that should be enough.

Top of Round 4: Abyssal Dwarfs

One unit of Decimators backs up to allow the Mastiff Packs to ravage the Mounted Sergeants, which couldn't otherwise fit between the shooters and the building. Angles-wise, I don't think the scooching Decimators take any shots this turn.

The Mastiffs have a fantastic combat.

The other Decimators and the Infernox hero shoot into the Pikes, but the dice feel ice cold, and just 3 new damage is done. 

The titanic Infernok moves to be Surged in against the Pikes, and is. The Iron Caster then burns the Amulet of the Fireheart to attempt a Bane Chant into the Golems fighting the Monarch, but that spell unfortunately fizzles for the evil dwarfs. 

The Abyssal Dwarfs strike back hard.

The Golems land a strong 10 damage against the Monarch, who thankfully holds. The titanic Infernok brutalizes the Pikes in the flank, and easily routs them.

Bottom of Round 4: Kingdoms of Men

I have some nice long charges, and so try to threaten the Abyssal Dwarfs from multiple angles. One Giant makes a long flank charge into the Inferox hero. Rampage doesn't trigger, but in the flank, the Giant is able to paste him, and then turn to intimidate both Decimator regiments.

Charges for the Kingdoms of Men.

The Monarch continues against the Golems, with a Giant joining in the flank, and the second horde of Golems is picked up. The Monarch changes facing to get the rival titan into the front arc, and the Foot Guard hang back, ready to support.

The Crossbowmen hold and shoot, landing 2 damage into the towering titanic construct.

Top of Round 5: Abyssal Dwarfs

Having lost both Lesser Obsidian Golem hordes so swiftly, my opponent is on the back foot has some tough choices. 

Positioning as the turn begins.

The Decimators both turn and shoot into the nearest Giant. I believe the other Throwing Mastiff is tossed in as well. A total of 8 damage is done, but the Giant holds.

After some consideration, the Infernok opts to charge the Monarch. With more damage and less Nerve, my opponent is more likely to pick my titan up. 

Post-combat, for the Abyssal Dwarfs.

The Mastiff packs are not nimble. After besting the Sergeants, one backed up, allowing the flanker  to overrun. That flanker now swings down and towards the center of the field, while the other swings towards the left side of the table to look to score for the scenario. I believe the flanker still had their throwing Mastiff, which contributed to shooting against the Giant this turn.

Bottom of Round 5: Kingdoms of Men

The Giants continue their uh.. rampage. One makes a frontal charge into the left-most Decimators, dealing 7, but the shooters hold. The other Giant makes a flank charge into the other Decimator unit, devastating them and then routing them. Engaging and disordering both of the shooters seemed like a better call than charging the opposing titan.

Charges for the Kingdoms of Men.

With the Giants out of the way, the Foot Guard charge the Infernok, and catch a Bane Chant. They fail miserably, and deal just 3 damage. (8ish is expected.) I do remember Lifeleech to bring the Foot Guard down to just 3 damage, but with the opposing titan at just a pitiful 5 damage, the construct holds strong, and now I am a little worried for the Foot Guard.

Reforms for the Kingdoms of men.

The Crossbowmen don't have any shots this turn, and so move to get to the edge of the right scoring zone. They had the inches to make it into the center, but I figured hanging back to try and score either the center or right zone with them is the better call. 

The Crossbowmen survey the long battlefield.

It's a bloody game, but not quite done over yet!

Top of Round 6: Abyssal Dwarfs

The titanic Infernok counter-charges the Foot Guard, landing a staggering 9 new damage, and will waver the Foot Guard with a hot check.

Final charges for the Abyssal Dwarfs.

The Decimators countercharge the Giant, and deal 1 damage to him and forcing a Nerve check, but the Giant holds.

A Mastiff pack charges the other Giant, and lands 1 damage as well, bringing him to 5 damage, and this Giant holds as well. That was expected, my opponent just wanted to hold the Giant up and prevent me from flanking the Infernok this turn. A good call from my opponent.

The last Mastiff pack spins around, looking for options in case their is a Round 7 rolled up.

Bottom of Round 6: Kingdoms of Men

The Giants clean up, picking up the Decimators and the Mastiffs in front of them. One turns to face the last Mastiffs, and the other turns to see the flank of the Infernok.

Positioning for the Kingdoms of Men at the end of Round 6.

The Foot Guard pop Indomitable Will, but I don't think catch a Bane Chant this time. They deal 5 damage to the titan, but unfortunately can't best it, due to the cold rolling last turn.

With the Foot Guard alive this turn, the Crossbowmen hang out on the right, scoring that zone. They have no shots this turn.

I get the honors, and do not roll up a Round 7 for us.

In the Left Zone, my Giant (2US) bests the Mastiffs (1US) to score that for me for 2 Points. In the Center Zone, the Giant (2US) and Foot Guard (4US) bests the Infernok (2US) for 3 points, and in the Right Zone, the Crossbowmen (3US) lay claim and are uncontested for another 2 Points. It's an overwhelming 7-0 victory for the Kingdoms of Men, and we again killed a good deal more than we gave up, for another strong conclusion. 

Game Conclusions

Trying to play for all three zones has been a downfall of mine in the past. Both of us had the right idea trying to claim a side and then move in to compete for control of the middle. The angle of approach was more awkward for the Abyssal Dwarfs though, in part due to his Shambling. He still got a strong volley of fire off, and still did some nice damage. Unfortunately, he wasn't quite able to focus fire, and I was then able to get some charges in, including a nice flank charge, and was quickly able to start rolling through his Def6 Golems without getting caught up.

He was a little rough on himself for missing that incoming flank, but looking at the pictures, there might not have been much he could actually do. Avoiding the Foot Guard was important too, and he did accomplish that. My titans were all going to be able to charge something that turn, and even if he could get both Giants in the front, even without Slayer Triggers, that Golem unit would still be in for quite a beating (presuming, of course, that the Giants can roll up some hits. I will note though that we didn’t even burn through half of time allotted for our game. If we assume that this positioning was indeed an error, taking things a little slower could help in the future.

I love the look of the Abyssal Dwarfs generally, and quite like seeing Will’s army across from me. He’s not big on basing materials, choosing to paint stuff onto the base instead, which I just really dig the look of. The shooting focus of his list was really neat, and that quality of piercing fire would have been withering without the longer charges of my titans, and the odd angle of our battle lines to really help me out on the approach. It was a unique and interesting way to approach the game at this points value for sure, and I can't wait to see what he cooks up the next time we meet.

The records weren't really formal for this tournament. We were all pretty casual with only eight attendees. But with two games and two wins, I believe I am the only one with that record going in to the third and final game. Huzzah!