Hobby Update: Undead Werewolves

Up now are some Werewolves for the Undead! The unit caught my eye way back in January of this year, after a few battle reports of DarkBlack on the Forum, who was using them on Universal Battles against Trevor's Penitent-focused Brothermark in some long-distance gaming. Those games happened about the time the new Abyssal Berserkers really started gaining popularity in my view, and about the same time that I found out about, and then really started thinking about, Keith Conroy's Lycan-heavy Herd. Playing around with Speed 9, Nimble units has been a lot of fun for me this year, and it's about time I hobbied these up for the Undead!

The unit.

The unit is a pack of werewolves from Veselaya Zateya / Fantasy Battles, which I believe is a Russian company. I've used them before for Varangur Snow Trolls and also way back for the Barrow Wights from 2nd Edition. Online, I have seen other folks use their Dwarfs for themed  Earth Elementals, and they just seem to have a great selection of of large infantry units we can use for Kings of War. Their pricing is hard to beat, but be warned that the models are cheap plastic, a bit hard to heavily convert, and do need a lot amount of cleaning up before you can prime and paint. Mold lines are the biggest issue, though there are come circular "spots" on some models, I believe from the injection process that will need sanding or filling. 

The unit again.

Hobby-wise, I did what I thought was a fair amount of cleaning up, but even still, I missed a few areas and had to go back and scrape a bit more. Painting-wise, I wanted to keep them dark, so they were primed black, and then hit the bodies and fur with a drybrush of Skavenblight Dinge. (This showcased the mold lines and such that I missed, as dry brushing so often does...) I didn't want bright metals, so used an old Leacbelcher and a new Sycorax Bronze for some contrasting, but somewhat muted, metal colors. I liked the way these turned out, and am digging the softer bronze color. I tried a dark red for around the mouth and bared fangs but it ended up looking like Lady Tottington, but I ended up covering it up with a blood effect. The last hobby thing to note is the shield, which was painted blue with the intent of sticking a decal on later. With the unit already glued to the base and the fog effect added... I decided I didn't like that original plan, and so attempted an awkward free-hand as a homage to the inspiration for the unit, copying their forum-picture. (Thanks DarkBlack!) The fangs aren't as sharp as I would like, but this still reads ok from far away.

Believe it or not, the unit, a third time. 

On the table, this should be a neat unit for the Undead! Speedy units with Nimble are a lot of fun, and no one really expects this kind of unit from the Undead. Hopefully we'll be able to catch a few people out when they hit the table!

Hobby Update: Herd Beast of Nature

Up now are some terrestrial Beasts of Nature for my frigid Herd!

It is many months away, but we will have the second annual Northwoods GT early next year. I did not bring the Herd last year to do Command Orders being in use (the Herd's were pretty terrible), and I could not settle on a list or even a style that I liked. Time and money have both been tight the last year, and I don't anticipate being able to travel much to any tournaments the coming year either, so I want to bring the Herd to our little GT. To do that, I need to put a little more effort into figuring them out in the coming months.

The new duo.

Big picture, I know I want to bring the Avatar of the Father, as it is a nice centerpiece model, and that want to try and fit in some Brute play, presuming that I can make that work well enough for me in the coming months. I've been kicking around a number of ideas on that front recently, but points are always very tight. If I need to drop the third horde of Brutes and take Lycans or something else instead, then I need to free up a lot of points, and my thinking is that I could drop Flying from one or both of my Beasts. It's pretty sacrilegious, as I think Fly does bring a lot to the table, and multiple fliers would help out the Avatar of the Father, but I wanted to have the option, and explore it sometime, so jumped on some Wizkids Owlbears that I liked the look of.

Hiding the seams.

Hobbying-wise, these got some special prep since they are WizKids models. First, they got a nice soapy wash and rinse were allowed to air dry overnight. Then, the following night, I used some green stuff to try and hide the seams and joins of the model. The readied arm had a vey obvious one; around the head was another, and there were more by the legs as well. I am still not great with green stuff, but did ok here, first rolling out a rope, then pressing it along the seam, and then messing around with it using some tweezers and a dull knife to sculpt a quick fur effect.

One of the newbies.

I am a big fan of how uh... "traditional" arctic owlbears look, presenting them as essentially snowy owls, but I felt that much white would be off-putting with the rest of my army. So, painting-wise, I tried to draw inspiration from my original flying Beasts, though the feathers here aren't as distinct. Instead of hard striations, we have a slightly more gentle transition with grey feathers around the legs and body, and then pale teal feathers around the head and arms, with white dry brushed harder and harder into the face and upper extremities. It turned out well enough. The eyes in particular look a little goofy or cartoonish, but again it all works well enough overall.

The other newcomer.

As-mentioned, these are a bit of a hedged hobby project. Flying Beasts are one of the stronger and scarier things a Herd player can bring, and I typically do make use of the extra speed. I don't think these will hit the table too often, but being me, it'll be nice to have them around just in case! That's what collections are for!

Kings of War 3rd Edition: #144 Herd vs Kingdoms of Men in Dominate

 

Intro and Lists

We were out at the Kings of War Wisconsin September meetup. We had an odd number of attendees, and we were all too polite, and so let the dice decide the match-up for the second game. I won the all-important roll, and so the Halflings packed up and we braced ourselves to fight Joe and his new, Pike-heavy Kingdoms of Men. Joe brought the following:

It is neat to have someone play an army you are familiar with, and yowza! I quite like the Kingdoms of Men Pikes, and this is some serious commitment to that unit. Joe plays a lot on UB and apparently has 20+ wins with the list, though this was the first time piloting it in person. He has have four regiments and a horde of Pikes, and a horde of Foot Guard with the Hammer of Measured Force, all to hold ground. A regiment and a horde of flightless Beast Cavalry are around to smash anything that gets held up, and three flying Generals and a flying Monarch are around to do the same while playing a positional game. The last pick is a Wizard on Pegasus, with Bane Chant to support and Hex to disrupt. Lacking other shooting elements in the list, I think this is a fine kit for the wizard. I like Pikes, but I myself only have 3 regiments currently, so overall, I was intrigued by the list concept here, as it was really neat to commit that hard to a unit.

This was just a regular game, and I brought the Herd, with a slightly different list from the previous game, as I tend to do. I am still exploring Triple Brutes, and up to comment on is everything since we're still trying to explore and fine-tune this idea:

• Spirit Walkers with Speed. I need one more unlock, and we're trying out Spirit Walkers again to get some extra Nerve into the list. They have some good reach with their variable wild charge, and are expensive enough to warrant an item, so we're reverting to the Brew of Haste for a little extra speed to hopefully initiate trades and pressure things. 
• Triple Brutes. With Pathfinder and Fury, these have innate terrain and waver mitigation. Usually items cover those deficiencies for units, so having a unit with both covered seems like something worth exploring. Speed 6 and lacking Nimble has been a little concerning, so we're now trying to deploy them centrally to mitigate that. 
• Harpies. I need chaff units and Harpies are great. Preserving them until the just right time is always an issue with chaff though, so we'll see how I manage with them this game.
• Flying Beasts. The flying Beasts with extra attacks are some of the stronger things a Herd player can field. Points are tight though, so I'm considering dropping fly in some future builds. They are strong, but we'll keep an eye on how I'm using them to see if some optimization or points trimming can be done.
• Mounted Druid with Scorched Earth and Bane Chant and Amulet of the Fireheart. Even Druids are nice, but I'm demanding a lot of my heroes these days. Scorched Earth is the big thing here, trying to play into the Herd's terrain advantages, and giving it to the mounted Druid with their extra height and speed to hopefully get the spell off easier. I gave her the Amulet hoping that I can double cast something for a little extra oomph, and we'll see how that item does.
• Gladewalker Druid with Veil of Shadows and Bane Chant. It's a weird loadout, but I need a Spellcaster 2, and I want Veil of Shadows on her since she's going to be nearer the slower Brutes. 
• Moonfang. The legendary Lycan can take hits like a champ thanks to Def5 and Regeneration 4+, but it has been hard for me to thread that needle and give them something they can tank but not die to. We're getting better at using them though, so we'll see what Moonfang fights this time.
• Avatar of the Father. This is effectively a 3rd flier in my list. Fliers are better in multiples, so hopefully we can force some hard angles, get good multi-charges, and hopefully avoid insanely courageous units!

It looked like a heckuva match-up on paper. We each had some gnarly fliers, but the Kingdoms of Men  has a ton of unit strength, and Phalanx and Ensnare are going to give the Herd a lot of trouble if I am not smart about engaging the numerous humans.

Table and Terrain

We were out at Gamer's Realm in New Berlin WI, making use of their tables and terrain. We were using our typical terrain rules, running the ruined buildings as Height 9 blocking terrain, the forests as Height 6 Difficult Terrain, fences as Height 2 Obstacles, and Hills as Height 3, and the ponds s as some Height 0 difficult terrain.

I used the Kings of War App from Data and Dice to generate a new table layout for us, and we got Dominate for the scenario. I won the roll for sides, and was lazy, though this also seemed like the better choice, as I had a little more space.

View from the left.

The Kingdoms of Men went wide, apparently hoping to outflank and encircle the Herd. From left-to-right we have the Beast Cavalry with the Brew of Strength, the Monarch, and a flying General. The Building and forest ahead split the line. Continuing on, we have stacked hordes with the Pikes in front and Foot Guard behind. Then the green flying General with the Wand tentatively back and in the pond, Pikes in the pond too, and then the right had Pikes, the Wizard back slightly, a general on the line, and Pikes on the far right, with Pikes and angled Beast Cavalry in reserve.

A lot of Humans on the right.

With the obstacle in the center, I hoped to minimize it, opting to ignore it and about half the board, and focus exclusively on the left.

Almost all of the Herd in one picture.

The hill was a little awkward and was causing slippages all day. From left to right for the Herd we have a flying Beast, slightly angled Spirit Walkers with Harpies in reserve, angled Brutes with their leader point on the hill, the mounted Druid with Scorched Earth just behind, the Avatar of the Father on the line, then Moonfang and two Brute hordes angled towards the center with the Gladewalker Druid and second unit of Harpies in reserve, and the second flying Beast on the line to project threat out into the center.

Overall, I was happy with my deployment. It is dicey with so many fliers, but I felt like I should be able to safely project threat into the center quickly if needed, and I had enough on the left to hopefully contain the scary Kingdoms of Men units in that lane. I won the roll for turn order, and went first, hoping to use my fliers to better contain his. 

Top of Round 1: Herd

On the left, the Beast of Nature moves up and pivots. I don't think I should have pivoted, nor pivoted that much, but it's not a big mistake. The flying Beast is threatening the Beast Cavalry, but safe from the Monarch.

The Spirit Walkers inch up, giving the imposing Monarch a charge but avoiding everything else from the human battle line.

The Herd moves ahead!

The Guardian Brutes take the hill, and the Avatar and Moonfang inch up, but stay safe. Moonfang doesn't have great arc to the left, but is zoning out the woods and center nicely. 

The Herd eyes up the center.

Centrally, the Guardian Brute hordes advance, with the Gladewalker hiding behind. With no shooting opposing me, I do not cast Veil of Shadows. The second Beast and Harpies move around to get line of sight.

I know Pikes, and the Pike Horde is going to be especially tough to move. The general plan here is to run the Harpies out in front of something to let me fight just the Pikes for a turn or two. Against this much unit strength, I need to be smart about my engagements and pick up units with every charge if I can.

Bottom of Round 1: Kingdoms of Men

On the right, a unit of Pikes moves up, looking to outflank the Herd in the coming turns, and the Wizard hops up behind the building. My Beast lacks line of sight to the Wizard and lack range to the Pikes, and won't be able to bother them next turn. The flying General out here flies up a bit, nimbly pivoting to threaten the center.

The humans move and pivot, heading towards the center.

Three other Pike regiments pivot and move toward the center, and the Beast Cavalry regiment brings up the rear, still in reserve. With three intervening Pike Regiments, it's going to have a tough time getting into any fights anytime soon.

Centrally, the Pike horde moves up, but I think stays more than 12 inches away. If it is within range, only one horde of Brutes can reach. The flying General with the wand hops behind, threating the woods should anything enter; just out past it on the left, should the Spirit Walkers run up; and should be able to cover anything that charges the Pikes as well. The Foot Guard advance slightly.

The Beast Cavalry back off.

On the left, the General and Monarch hold, and the Beast Cavalry inches backwards, in order to get out of range of the Herd's flying Beast.

Top of Round 2: Herd

On the left, I need to pivot, but can shove the flying Beast ahead, just getting out of arc of the Beast Cavalry, while still threatening them in the flank if they do not move. Had I not pivoted in Round 1, I could be in a much more threatening position, but I am still threatening something, and this is still fine in my book. Had I not been able to do this, the Harpies should be able to block for the Beast while it threatens, so we've got some nice pressure here.

The Spirit Walkers and Moonfang try to tempt the humans out to fight.

The Spirit Walkers force the issue a bit, moving ahead slightly. They are now giving up charges to both the Monarch and the flying General, but are safe from the Beast Cavalry and the General between the infantry hordes.

Moonfang steps up as another possible charge, though I think I am able to limit it to just the flying General near the Monarch. The charge ranges are pretty close, so if memory serves, I am threatening the General too, while being safe from the Monarch.

Safe, and in reserve on the left are Harpies, the Druid, and Brutes, all ready to pounce and react.

The Herd line up some threatening charges for next turn.

Centrally, the Avatar sidesteps, just zoning stuff out. I don't think he has the angle to aid or avenge Spirit Walkers, but can avenge Moonfang, threaten the center, and depending on positioning next turn, could hop the woods to really threaten stuff next turn.

The Brutes inch up. Both are now definitely threatening the Pike Horde while staying safe from the infantry. The flying General between the infantry hordes has a solo charge into either of them, but there isn't much I can do about that. 

The Harpies and Beast shuffle about for angles, although I think the Harpies should pivoted to zone out the landing zone between the building and forest, if I am being critical of my play.

Bottom of Round 2: Kingdoms of Men

We're still vying for positions. Out on the right, the Pikes move ahead and pivot, while the Beast Cav also pivots, and the Pegasus hides behind the building.

The humans make use of the buildings to advance into the center.

Nearby, the General continues to try and project threat into the center, and the three regiments of Pikes shuffle ahead. The Pike Horde moves up to threaten the Brutes now, and the Foot Guard Horde Holds.

The Monarch flees, flying towards the center of the field.

Under pressure, my opponent attempts to abandon the left. The Monarch flies away, hiding behind the nearby General, who needs to inch ahead to let the Monarch land.

The Beast Cavalry do what they can to make themselves scarce. 

The green flying General, with the wand, flies back behind the building, but stays just out of range of threatening my Beast. On the far left, the Beast Cavalry are able to move and pivot to get out of arc and project threat, but can't quite reach the Spirit Walkers.

Top of Round 3: Herd

Out on the left, my opponent said my Beast isn't threatened, so we move the monster ahead a few inches, and then pivot 90 degrees, spying the rear of the Beast Cavalry now. Since the distance between the fliers didn't change, I'm not threatening the flying Captain in the backfield, but we're still applying pressure against the Beast Cavalry, and preventing them from doing anything meaningful. 

The Spirit Walkers go in against a flying General.

I may have been able to reach the Beast Cavalry with the wild charge on the Spirit Walkers, but do not remember for sure. The cavalry are isolated though, and with the fliers flying away, and so many humans approaching the midfield, now is the time pressure. The Walkers can get in against the General blocking for the Monarch without issue, and make the charge, while the Harpies move to protect them from the Beast Cavalry.

Moonfang positions to zone out escape paths for the Beast Cav or landing zones for the green flying General behind the building, and the Avatar moves into the woods, out of arc of the Monarch and out of range of the Foot Guard, and being quite threatening. If this push goes poorly for the Walkers, he'll be around to assist next turn against the General or anything else that might unfold. The mounted Druid does manage to land a Bane Chant to help the Spirit Walkers, and they'll deal 12 damage to the General, break him, and then reform slightly.

The Spirit Walkers reform, threatening the human infantry.

Centrally, the Guardian Brutes try to form a concave line to threaten the center. The horde on the left moves up, while the two hordes in the center move back, getting out of charge range of Pike Horde while still threatening charges themselves. 

The plan is still to gum something up win the Harpies on the right. But the time is not now, and they reposition again, along with the flying Beast, and both are safe from the human units advancing on the right.

Bottom of Round 3: Kingdoms of Men

My opponent does not like his options or the game's trajectory. I've got 120-some attacks pointed and the center from multiple angles, and the Herd is really applying some nice pressure.

In the backfield, the green General with the Trickster's Wand mimics my Beast, side-stepping, but then pivots to get a better arc. The pivot should actually put him into range of my Beast. 

Needing to get some use out of the unit, the Beast Cavalry make a hindered charge into the Harpies, and will easily pick the unit up. The cavalry are threatened from multiple angles, but reform to keep Moonfang in the front, while turning the Beast's rear-charge into just a flank charge.

The Kingdoms of Men feel forced to make some charges that are less than ideal.

The Monarch is threatened in the rear, and continues to flee. The Foot Guard have one doubly-bad charge, into the Spirit Walkers, but my opponent feels the pressure to take it, as I don't have healing in my list, so and damage against my units is sticking. The Guard is hindered, and with the Hammer, the Def3 of the phantasms works in my favor, though the Guard still over-perform and land 9 damage. 

The Pike Horde doesn't have any charges, but still needs to move up to let the Foot Guard make their charge. It doesn't look like they moved far enough to get out of arc of the Avatar. Wary of the Beast on my right, another Pike unit steps up to protect that flank. 

The Monarch flies far and pivots to face the center. Two Pike regiments wait in reserve, and the Blue General moves to let the Monarch land while using the building to protect itself from the Beast on my right.

The Wizard flies around again, and on the right, the Beast Cavalry regiment moves and pivots to start outflanking, and the Pikes trudge through the forest.

Top of Round 4: Herd

The pressure is on from the Herd. Finally threatened by the outflanking Pike regiment, the Harpies back up, getting out of range. As it turns out, I still don't need them to instigate, so they reposition again, as I want to keep them around for the late game now. One Brute horde also backs up, getting out of range of the Pike units in the center, but still threatening them.

Multiple flank charges from the Herd.

The angles against the human infantry hordes are brutal. The Brute horde in center of my line is able to flank charge the Foot Guard, joined by the Beast from the right in their rear, and the Spirit Walkers Counter-charging. 

With the charges into the Foot Guard, the Brutes on the left can still fit and fight the flank of the Pike Horde.

The horde of Foot Guard is devastated way before all the Herd units can resolve their attack rolls, but unfortunately, I space out for a moment and start to roll this combat first, and the Brutes cannot reform, though the Spirit Walkers overrun and the Beast spins around. The other flanking Brutes pick up the Pikes too, and then back up. I think my thinking was to protect the flank of the stuck unit here. Had I rolled the combats in a better order, I would have needed a 2 on the D3 to let the now-stuck unit reform, but I still should have realized that I should have rolled this combat first.

Reforms for the Herd.

The Avatar has a flank into the Monarch, and takes it, trying to bully the titan. I deal 9 damage, but don't waver or remove the Monarch. 

Out on the left, Moonfang will make a hindered front into the Beast Cavalry, with the flying Beast hitting their flank. The Mounted Druid gets a Bane Chant onto the Beast, and we are able to pick that unit up as well. Both reform to get the green flying General into front arc, if he charges either unit, the other will be in his flank.

Bottom of Round 4: Kingdoms of Men

The green General flies away, hiding behind the other side of the building. A unit of Pikes charges in to disorder the Beast in the center, and will ground it.

The blue general from the right pounces on the stuck units of Brutes, landing 8 damage with a clean flank charge, and getting a waver.

The Kingdoms of Men retaliate with some flank charges of their own.

A Pike regiment makes a flank charge into the Avatar, and the Monarch turns-to-face, but the dice go cold. Bane Chant does not land to help the flanking Pikes, and only 6 damage lands. 

Out on the far right, the Beast regiment trudges into the woods, and the Spears continue on.

Top of Round 5: Herd

I miss turning the turn tracker, but we are in Round 5. Unfortunately for me, it is the Herd's turn to be a little gummed up.

On the right, the Harpies reposition again, just dancing around at this point, and the nearby Brutes move and turn to face the remaining humans coming from the right, though is far enough to deny them a charge still.

With a lucky reprieve, the Avatar of the Father fights the Monarch again, and will get the rout this time, besting the opposing centerpiece model, and will then turn to face the regiment of Pikes.

Combats for the Herd.

Some Brutes have another flank charge into a Pike Regiment, and will devastate and rout them, as-is proper. They back up to potentially fight the remaining outriding humans too.

The injured Brutes are furious, and will countercharge the General. Bane Chant from the Mounted Druid fails, but the Bane Chant from Gladewalker Druid comes through. The Brutes land the expected 10 damage with the spell, and with Brutal, are able to pulverize the flying General and then reform. 

Reforms for the Herd in Round 5.

The flying Beast that rear-charged the Foot Guard is tied up by Pikes. I lose Nimble, and can't reform or get out of the way, so the monster fights on, landing an astonishing 5 damage despite Phalanx and Ensnare. The Spirit Walkers are blocked out of any combat, but will trudge forward a few inches.

Moonfang is tripped up and slowed by the obstacle, but moves over to support the Spirit Walkers, and with nothing else to fight on the left, that Beast flies over to fight on, and is facing the ride side of the board.

Bottom of Round 5: Kingdoms of Men

We're still in Round 5, despite the erroneous tracker.

The green General flanks the flying Beast while the Pikes poke at it from the front. The Pike contribute 2 while the General does 9, and the Beast is uninspired and is picked up. There is a smidge of space for the General to slightly change facing.

Aftermath of Round 5 for the Kingdoms of Men. Pay no attention to the turn marker!

The Wizard on Pegasus repositions slightly to try and Hex the Gladewalker, but I don't think it connects. 

The Pikes fighting the Avatar land 3 damage against him, but he holds. And the Pikes and Beast Cavalry regiment continue to skulk around the far-right.

Top of Round 6: Herd

We catch the turn order goof finally. It is indeed Round 6, and the pressure is truly on!

The Harpies and Brutes charge the Pikes, looking to box out the outriding humans. I believe the Gladewalker gets a Bane Chant onto the Brutes, and just 8 damage lands in total, but the Pikes are uninspired, and a good Nerve check routs them. The Harpies overrun to block out the cavalry regiment for the scenario, and the Brutes reform. This was going to be a nice block anyways, but the Rout is going to make it very hard for the Beast Cavalry to score for the scenario.

Charges from the Herd.

Aiding the Avatar, more Brutes front charge the Pikes, and a flying Beast hits the humans in the flank, and we will devastate and pick the unit up, as-is proper.

The Spirit Walkers are still tripped up, so move ahead, keeping the General in front arc, and I make certain they are scoring for the scenario. 

I really want to test and use the mounted Druid's Amulet, but targets are spares. She attempts Scorched Earth against the flying General, but I do not recall if it connects. The nearby Brutes do not need the help from Bane Chant, as they have a clean charge into the flank of the Pikes. The Brutes will devastate the regiment with their first round of attacks... but the unit is found to be quite insane. It will be devastated, but hanging around.

Bottom of Round 6: Kingdoms of Men

The Herd have jammed ~15 unit strength of stuff into the center. My opponent might be able to pick up the maimed Brutes, but even still, there is not nearly enough left for the Kingdoms of Men to fight for the scenario, and my opponent concedes after surveying his options.

A victory to the Herd the the triple Brute build!

Game Conclusions

As-ever, I had some minor misplays and a few things could have been pivoting to marginally better positions throughout the game. I tried to highlight those situations in the report, and won't nitpick myself here. Overall my approach was patience and pressure, and it paid off big-time, with me being able to put my opponent on the back foot early on, and then crack the game wide open.in after Round 4.

My opponent has played his list a lot online. It has an overwhelmingly winning record there, and so he was surprised by its performance here. We chatted a bit, and having played a fair bit of the Kingdoms of Men over the years, my advice would be to split up the Pike regiments (you pay extra for the flexibility of the regiments, so never want them fighting side-by-side) and to be aggressive with them. The army doesn't really have chaff, so aggressive Pike regiments would have helped him gain ground while keeping more important units safe. I think my opponent got blinders on trying to protect stuff like the Monarch, which led to errors in the positioning of the hordes that should have won him the game. 

Testing Conclusions

• Spirit Walkers with Speed. They got a little gummed up, but all the multi-charges were worth it to deal with those hordes. I don't like to copy folks, but Brew of Haste seems to be invaluable to them! Speed plus Wild Charge really let them threaten a lot of ground. Deploying them on a flank also proved to be pretty nice here, like Jon had suggested a few games back.
• Triple Brutes. They all survived the game! And didn't even need Insane Courage! They had a great time, and deploying them more centrally did work out well for them.
• Harpies. I traded one for the Beast Cavalry horde which seemed worth it, and the other got into a combat and was set to sacrifice itself to block the Beast Cavalry regiment out of the center. These were used very well, and I was able to preserve them because my opponent had no shooting. 
• Flying Beasts. They continue to be strong picks. Fly and the extra range was integral here against other fliers, and this is an upgrade I really don't want to drop if I can help it.
• Mounted Druid with Scorched Earth and Bane Chant and Amulet of the Fireheart. The spell kit was ok, and the Amulet could have some easier play around the Height 2 Spirit Walkers, and facilitate some big turnsbut I don't think the item is worth prioritizing.
• Gladewalker Druid with Veil of Shadows and Bane Chant. Veil of Shadows was not needed, so a normal Druid would have sufficed here, but I still think the kit is decent, and the Arcane Library spell worth exploring in an all-comer's style list.
• Moonfang. He did not have the biggest combats, but I was able to use him to dissuade and pressure well, which is a decent use of him.
• Avatar of the Father. He got a bit lucky, but did survive the game, and was able to beat out the opposing Monarch while doing so. Without healing though, I need need to be more mindful of how I'm using him, and should be trying to multi-charge whenever possible. Still, the third flier provided a lot of pressure, and this was a good game for him. 

A mixed-day for the Herd, but this mainly solidified my feelings that Rob's Halflings are a particularly tough match-up for me and this army. A big thanks to both of my opponents for making it out to the meetup, and hopefully we'll have some more on the calendar soon!

Kings of War 3rd Edition: #143 Herd vs Halflings in Push

 Intro and Lists

We had the monthly meetup for Kings of War Wisconsin this last weekend. Technically there is an escalation league still going on, but attendance for that has unfortunately dropped off a bit. The League games would have been at 2000 points, but since none of us were dealing with new armies, interest waned for this at this meetup, and so we played some bigger games instead. My opponent here was Rob and his Ravenous Halflings, and he was gearing up for the Michigan GT in early October. That's not a lot of time, so we tried to sneak in a quick practice game for him. Rob ran the following:

The Halflings should look very familiar to long-time readers of the blog. We have an upgraded Horde of Stalwarts to hold ground, some troops of Stalwarts to block, two Harvesters and two units of Grenadiers to interdict, an upgraded Iron Beast, three regiments of Juggers, and the enabling duo of the Muster Captain for Strider, and the Sauceror for her toolbox of Auras. He's been liking the Gunnery Sergeant, so Cinnamon and the troll "Crunch" are sticking around.

The GT has a "gimmick" chariot unit. Rob had his model all ready to go, plus a spare, letting us make this a proper tournament practice game for him. The base chariot noted above also gets Lightning Bolt 3, plus one of several possible upgrades. We both chose the Speed Racer variant for a bump up to Speed 9, Pathfinder, and Wild Charge 1.

Still wanting to explore the Triple Brutes build idea, I brought the Herd, hoping to play a wider variety of folks with it and get some different perspectives on it, now that we have a foundational idea of what we are trying to work with. Up to comment on is everything, since we are trying to fine tune this build idea a bit. 

• Spirit Walkers with Nimble. I need an unlock, and wanted to keep exploring the Spirit Walkers for their little extra Nerve. With 30 quality attacks, they hold a lot of items well, but we're going to try a Nimble infantry horde here for funsies. If deploy the horde late and run it on the flank, this could be a very scary unit for opponents to deal with.
• Triple Brutes. We're still on the triple Brute train and trying to explore that idea and make it work. Most hammers want to mitigate wavering and terrain issues, and with Pathfinder and Fury, I still think this unit has the potential to be the backbone of a list. This time, we'll be trying to deploy the Brutes much more centrally to mitigate their lack of speediness.
• Harpies / Panthers. Points were crazy-tight here, so one Harpy troop got demoted. Disordered fliers lose Nimble, so these is a slight difference between these. We'll try to throw the Gur Panther's more central, just in case they don't die, but either unit is a fine take in my book.
• Flying Beasts. Flying Beasts are some of the better picks for the Herd. Tying to optimize a list and with points this tight though, I am wondering if I could maybe drop fly from them, so while these are strong, we'll be looking at them a bit more critically today.
• Mounted Druid with Scorched Earth and Bane Chant. I've been exploring the heroic options recently, and demanding more from my picks. I think a duo of casters has potential. The Mount is just nice to have, and Bane Chant is great for the Herd. The thing to explore is the special spell. We've tried Barkskin a few times, which seems like a good pick, but without Heals, the damage just seems to accrue too quickly. With the mount, Hex could be a possibility, but we'll give Scorched Earth a try here and see how that does.
• Gladewalker Druid with Veil of Shadows and Bane Chant. It's still a weird loadout, but I need the higher spellcaster level, and this seems good enough. Protecting the Brutes is most important, and the slower Gladewalker should do ok here. While it would be slick to get the Horn for a larger aura, I think I need a Bane Chant here more.
• Moonfang. With Regen 4, the legendary Lycan can take a beating, but I'm still getting a feel for just how much damage they can actually take and still stay on the field! With four units with 30 attacks though, Moonfang seems like a great pick, as their conditional Vicious could really swing a fight with any of those units.
• Avatar of the Father. We're building with an eye to a tournament, and the Avatar is one of my better Herd models, so I want to try and fit them in if I can. Unfortunately, they seem to have a habit of finding Insane units. That did not happen in the last game though, so hopefully the curse has been lifted.
• Surprise Special Chariot. I picked this out of reflex. I mean, Pathfinder on a Herd Chariot? That seemed pretty great. 

The Halflings have historically been an incredibly tough match up for the Herd, so hopefully we'll get a good test in and see how the triple Brute idea is coming along!

Table and Terrain

We were out at Gamer's Realm in New Berlin WI, making use of their tables and terrain. We were using our typical terrain rules, running the ruined buildings as Height 9 blocking terrain, the forests as Height 6 Difficult Terrain, fences as Height 2 Obstacles, and Hills as Height 3, and the ponds s as some Height 0 difficult terrain.

Overview of the table.

I used the Kings of War App from Data and Dice to generate a table layout for us, and we got Push for the Scenario. Being a practice game for a tournament we choose to max out on the tokens, so we'd each have 3 to distribute, plus the one in the center. A unit can carry multiple tokens, but can only score one at the end of the game. We'll get 1 point for tokens held on our side of the board, and 2 points for tokens held on our opponent's side.

View from the left.

The Halflings spread themselves around the field, and significantly out-dropped the Herd. From left to right we have two regiments of Juggers with a third, the Muster Captain and some Grenadiers in reserve. Both Poachers sat ready to take the hill, and would do so, leaving the Harvester, Gunnery Sergeant and Poachers behind. Another Harvester and the Iron Beast sat near the woods, with the Sauceror behind, and the contraption. The Heroic Horde of Stalwarts held the approximate middle with Grenadiers in reserve, and then way out on the right was another troop of Stalwarts, and the special chariot. The inner Poachers, Iron Beast, and Troop of Stalwarts on the far right all got tokens, with the Heroic Horde eyeing the center token. Final drops for the Halflings were all three Jugger regiments, the Strider Captain, and their special chariot. 

The view from the center.

The Herd were going to be out-dropped, so I aimed to play a tight game. Jon from Battle 142 had suggested putting the speedier Spirit Walkers on a flank, and Brutes in the center, and I wanted to try and follow that advice, especially with a Nimble infantry horde! With multiple obstacles on the right, I chose to ignore that third of the board and focus on the left. From left-to-right we have the Avatar of the Father, some Nimble Spirit Walkers, and then Moonfang peeking into the woods already. The center had an angled line of Guardian Brutes with a flying Beast just ahead to project threat, and both casters and both chaff pieces in reserve. Mishearing the finer details of the special character, my Chariot and Beast are in the center to project threat.

The set-up, after the scout moves of the Poachers.

My opponent scouted the Poachers onto the hill, and then secured first turn for himself. Booo.

Top of Round 1: Halflings

The Halflings get Rally 2 from the Sauceror behind the Iron Beast. Out on the right, the Halfling Jalopy sputters ahead, and zaps the Beast of Nature with a Lightning Bolt, dealing 1 damage. The Poachers inch ahead with their token.

The Halfling center inches ahead, but is quite slow. The Halflings have a strong shooting contingent, so they don't need to rush ahead.

The Halflings push out.

Speaking of, the Sergeant joins the Poachers on the hill, and with the extra height, are able to plink 8 damage onto the Harpies, and rout them. I really need the Harpies and chaff to instigate for me, so this is unfortunate. 

On the left, the Grenadiers fluttered ahead, projecting threat for the Juggers, who inch ahead with the Muster Captain, but make sure to not give the Avatar a charge.

Bottom of Round 1: Herd

On the left the Avatar inches up. He is threatened by the Grenadiers, but there's not much that can be done about that. The Avatar is threatening the Juggers, but out of their maximum charge range. 

The Spirit Walkers move up, into the woods, and are able to get their leader point in while being out of range of two of the three Juggers.

It is risky, but we are here to test things out. The mounted Druid gets just within 18 inches to cast Scorched Earth on the nearest Juggers, and the spell does land. Slightly back from her is Moonfang.

The Herd project threat as best they can against the Juggers.

Gur Panthers move out towards the left to help with the Jugger fights, and some Brutes get a leader point onto the hill while another unit peers around it. I don't like the positioning, but if memory serves I need to be here to prevent a charge from the Harvester.

The Brutes array themselves to fight for the center.

The third Brute unit moves up, while the flying Beast and loaner Chariot sidestep to get closer to the line. The Gladewalker Druid lands Veil of Shadows, protecting all three Brutes units. I forget that the chariot has Lightning Bolt, and so don't cast it.

Unfortunately, losing the Harpies, I am going to struggle to instigate in the center. Holding tokens, the Brutes are just Speed 5, so the Halflings are likely going to outrange me for charges. If I can keep projecting threat though, we have a standoff. I think the back-up plan for instigating is long charges, or dropping tokens to get to drop on something.

Top of Round 2: Halflings

On the right, the Stalwarts advance with the token while the Jalopy veers towards the center. It lands 2 damage with Lightning Bolt against the Beast, and another 1 from the Iron Beast, and a strong 3 from some Poachers to bring it to 7 damage, and a hot 11 on the Nerve Check will rout the Beast, as I failed to realize that the Chariot was only Inspiring (Self) and not true Inspiring...

The Halfling Jalopy approaches!

The other unit of Poachers will land 1 into Moonfang, and the Gunnery Sergeant will shoot through the Veil to land 1 onto the Brutes. 

The Juggers take the bait. They have the Striding Aura, but are still hindered by Scorched Earth. They land 5 damage into the Druid, and get a waver.

The Juggers go in, and bounce.

My opponent marks off 12 inches from the Spirit Walkers , and the Juggers and Muster Captain form up.

The Grenadiers also take the delaying charge into the Avatar of the Father, rolling well to land 2 damage and ground him, but the Avatar holds.

Bottom of Round 2: Herd

Inadvertently, I spring multiple traps this turn!

The Spirit Walkers have Wild Charge, and any result will get them in against the wary Juggers. They go in against the one on the outside, and I can't support them much, but send in a flying Beast to block up the other unit of Juggers, and Moonfang extricates himself to keep this push Inspired. 

The Herd catch the Halflings unawares!

The Avatar pushed back against the Granadiers, and the Gur Panthers are able to spot and hit the fliers in the flank after the Spirit Walkers charge out.

The Wavering Druid has done her part here, but wavering, can't quite get out of arc of the Juggers, so she backs up to temp them again if I do fail to remove the unit, and it is flanked by the nearby Guardian Brutes.

The Herd reforms after some great combats.

Luckily, my kill combats for three for three, with the Spirit Walkers picking up Juggers after landing 12 damage, Brutes picking up another unit of Juggers with 18 damage in the flank, and the Avatar and Panthers picking up the Grenadiers. The Flying Beast does well and lands 6 damage into their unit, though they hold and Iron Resolves down to 5.

The Gladewalker Druid does not cast Veil. In the movement phase, I debated Bane Chant for the flank charge, but decided against it, and just forgot to then cast Veil when I moved into the Ranged Phase, so that's a big error from me.

Esh. The Herd's loaner chariot hides.

The Brutes form a haggard line, and stand ready to fight. Unable to Inspire, the loaner Chariot moves towards the ruins now, looking for a future flank charge or to interdict to protect the Brutes.

Top of Round 3: Halflings

The loaner was apparently Just within range of the Grenadiers, who turn the tables, and charge out to occupy it.

The halfling Jalopy and all other Halfling shooting components light up a unit of Brutes to hit them for 13 damage, and will rout my horde. Ouch. 

Shooting fells a unit of Brutes.

Elsewhere the Juggers counter-charge the Beast of Nature, landing 2 damage and disordering it, though the Beast holds.

The Spirit Walkers take a beating.

And a Harvester rolls into the Spirit Walkers, landing 7 damage, though the Spirits hold.

Bottom of Round 3: Herd

I have a few options, and feeling behind after losing a Brute horde, I go greedy. In retrospect, I don't like this. The Halflings have lost most of their Juggers, and I should be a little more reserved.

The Avatar is the unit with the most options. It cannot fit against the Poachers, and would be hitting the front of the Harvester on the outside. He can't reach the Poachers nor the Stalwart Troop. Instead, the Avatar goes in against the Muster Captain, and my aim is to remove the source of Inspiring here to speed up the other combats. Checking the math though, I need lots of luck here, and should have just charged the Harvester instead, making use of the plentiful CS and TC.

Adding insult to injury, I don't even roll the Muster combat first. 

I try a Bane Chant into the Spirit Walkers but miss, but they still hit well, and land 5 damage. The Avatar lands 5 against the Muster Captain, which is about as-expected, but not enough. Doubling up against the Harvester would have been smarter I think.

The Herd stall out.

Starting on 5 damage, the Juggers take charges from Moonfang and the flying Beast and I think I should be able to pick the cavalry up here. The Beast contributes 4, but Moonfang flubs, landing just 1 damage, and the Juggers are only Wavered when the dust settles.

I want to drop my tokens and charge with the Brutes, but my opponent is wise to this option, and nothing is within 12 inches. With no good way to instigate for the Brutes, they back up, looking to buy time for the left to come through. I thought I kept my leader point on the hill still, but might have slipped off. I don't recall if I needed inches or line or sight to escape the Harvester. 

The Brutes were hoping for a Breakthrough from the left, but that has stalled out, and the game is slipping away.

The Herd cowers.

The Herd's loaner chariot countercharges the Grenadiers, and lands 2 damage, but it is not enough to move them.

Top of Round 4: Halflings

The Poachers on the right are across the line and scoring. The Jalopy joins the Grenadiers against my chariot, but only 2 damage makes it through. The Halfing center continues to constrict, making sure to stay safe. Since I am not on the hill, the Harvester can move up to threaten me, while still making sure to stay more than 12 inches away, so I can't drop my tokens for a surprise fight.

My opponent is still toying with the shorter Herd Charge Ranges.

The Muster Captain excuses himself, and the Stalwarts charge in, but fail to disorder the Avatar of the Father, but that's the about only thing that goes well for me this turn.

The shooting is split. Brutes are spared with Lightning Bolt and a volley from Poachers doing nothing thanks to Veil and cover penalties, but the Iron Beast, Sergeant and other Poachers land 8 on my stalled out flying Beast fighting the wavering Juggers, and two 11's will rout the bird.

The Spirit Walkers take a counter charge from the Harvester, which spikes the dice to land 13 new damage, and then easily breaks the horde.

Bottom of Round 4: Herd

The Gur Panthers zip towards the center, hoping to block and instigate for the Brutes, who do what they can for positioning. The unit in the pond inches up to threaten the Stalwart Horde, and the other horde of Brutes takes the hill. 

We land Veil of Shadows, but it seem superfluous with the lines about to clash. The mounted Druid avoids the arc of the Poachers, but gets close enough to land Scorched Earth into the Harvester, trying to blunt charges into the Brutes. 

Charges from the Herd in Round 4.

Moonfang charges the Juggers, and makes up for the last round, landing all 6 damage and routing the cavalry this turn. In victory, he will sidestep to get the Harvester in front-arc.

The Avatar is free, and can get a nice flank charge into one of the Poachers while avoiding the other and the Gunnery Sergeant. I land 9 damage, just shy of expected damage, and... the Poachers are insane. The curse of the Avatar raises its head again.

While I have dealt with the Jugger menace, I am too far behind otherwise, and being a casual game, concede here. We have an odd number of attendees again, and want to make sure the other guy gets a game in and is not under any time pressure.

Game Conclusions

I did not play the best of games, but also did not have the best of luck. Unfortunately, the Halflings are a really tough match-up for the Herd, and I need both good tactics and good luck to have a chance at victory against them. 

Excluding the misunderstanding and misuse of the special chariot and the follow-on errors there, I think my approach overall was ok. The double Arcane Library Spells seem to be going in the right direction, and the refused flank seemed to work well enough in practice, though needs some tweaks. Moonfang, the Avatar and the Beasts all all filling similar roles, and I need to consider their positioning more carefully. I think having the Avatar and Moonfang more central to make better use of their Inspiring is probably a good idea.

Testing Conclusions

• Spirit Walkers with Nimble. I misjudged their durability vs the Harvester, though it looks like the Halfling contraption really spiked the dice on both those turns, with both number of attacks, and then combat rolls. Nimble is neat, and could be very threatening, but not worth it here. I think my drop number is too low to consistently get these is a super-threatening position and unopposed, and the best time to use this arrangement is Round 1 to be extra scary, and building a list assuming I get first turn is probably not a good idea!  My opponent suggested items for Elite/Vicious, and while they would hold either item well, having Moonfang and his conditional Vicious makes that less desirable. They probably should get an item, and we'll need to keep exploring to see what that should be.
• Triple Brutes. I did not have great ways to protect them or instigate, especially once I lost the Harpies. I had hoped for first turn and a strong push out, but didn't get it; dropping the tokens and charging was my backup, and my opponent wisely kept his distance. 
• Harpies / Panthers. My opponent prioritized targeting them, so their effectiveness was limited. Still, the Panthers got some use freeing the Avatar, and were swinging back to hopefully interdict in Round 5... had the wheels not fallen off everywhere else. 
• Flying Beasts. They are still strong, though I did not use them or support them well here, due mainly with to mistakes with the special unit's Inspiring rules. Speed 10 is really nice for me, and I am very hesitant to give that up. I have been sticking these out on the edges of my line though, with the intent of deterring my opponent rather than threatening them. 
• Mounted Druid with Scorched Earth and Bane Chant. The mounted Druid did ok. Scorched Earth was rough here, as the Halflings, especially the Juggers have a crazy long and variable charge range. It worked out ok to set up the initial trades on the left though, and seems viable and worth exploring more, especially since I am not bringing stuff with Phalanx.
• Gladewalker Druid with Veil of Shadows and Bane Chant. This still feels like an odd loadout due to her innate spell selection, but this kit is still practical, I think. Not getting first turn and a Veil to start out was rough. Forgetting Veil on a critical turn was also rough! I can only really control one of those situation though. When the spell was active, my opponent did his utmost to shoot around it, and  that was still illuminating for me. I think it's a good pick for me, and we'll see if I can get better at using it.
• Moonfang. Overall, I think I used him ok. The dice flub is just dice being dice. I don't like charging him in alongside the flying Beasts since they already have Vicious, but it is making me remember it on both units, which isn't bad.
• Avatar of the Father. Drat, the curse persists! I was a bit reckless at the end due to being so far behind, and the insane result was the sign to just pack it up. The unit still has promise, this is just an ugly match-up for me.
• Surprise Special Chariot. Clearly, I did not utilize this extra piece well. Had I brought my own model I'm sure I would have done better! I scribbled down the stats and rules quickly, but continually forgot them, and was really punished for it.

"Gimmick" units at events can really open up neat gameplay options for armies, as well as some really awesome conversions and hobby projects. Shoehorning this unit in as we were setting up just didn't work out for me here, and my list probably played worse than usual since I understood it poorly. It was a quick game, but hopefully it help Rob settle on his chariot upgrade, and we'll wish him the best of luck at the tournament!