4th Edition: Battle #009 FoN (Herd) vs Abyssal Dwarfs in Raze

Intro and Lists

It was time for the January Meetup for Kings of War Wisconsin! We are often a bit overly-polite and indecisive Midwesterners, but we were setting up, I was called out by Will and his Abyssal Dwarfs to introduce him to 4th Edition. He had the following:

This is a "what is painted" special. Will really leaned on his Immortal Guard, and does not like the changes to them, so they are left on the shelf while he explores new things. The focus of the list are the  returning Greater Obsidian Golem, and triple Lesser Obsidian Golems, providing a strong and durable block, supported by an Iron Caster and an Infernox, whom I don't know for the life of me why he isn't already inspiring. Perhaps there is a lore reason. He only has a regiment of Decimators painted, so that's what he is running here, along with a custom Dragon Fire team to pepper things as they come in, and a duo of Gargoyles to delay things. His Warlord opens up some Ratkin slaves, so he is trying a horde of Rats and a regiment of Orcs, as well as a Ratkin Death Engine to help shred stuff.

For Command Orders we have a Mutated Throwing Mastiff at 15" and hitting on 4's and ignoring all modifiers, and Last Breath, which routs his own slave units in order to damage things engaged with them, which seems really fun and fluffy. 

I am gearing up for the Northwoods GT in early February. The majority of the list is blocked in by necessity already. I like the double Tree Herder, so am mostly just fiddling around with the Champion choices now, but up to evaluate is everything:

• Chieftain with Torc. We need the Chieftain to get Brutes, but the Herd’s Command Orders are good, so it’s nice to have a Warlord and that third dice. He’s been working out fine, and we’ll try the Torc out now to get the extra range on the Command Orders.
• Druid on Foot, Heal, BC, Wither and Perish and Periscope. Much of the list is set, but I want to explore the Champions slots more. We’re loading up on the goodies to try and test a lot, and we’ll see what gets used.
• Druid on Steed, BC, Scorched Earth, and Banner. I like the idea of two casters for an extra Bane Chant and other spells during the game. The steed looks nice, and we’ll try her out and see how this feels.
• Tribal Warriors. To fit in more points for the Champions, we needed to demote one unit of Longhorns. That feels bad, but is also probably wise, as I can have the Warriors on token-duty and park them back without feeling too bad. Feeling this is the way I’m likely going, I’ve been hobbying on a regiment over the last week, and we’ll see how they do.
• Longhorns. I’m also foolishly hobbying on two more Longhorn Regiments, so that I can have the units on regimental bases without the unit trays. The Longhorns have been doing well for me, and I like their return to fighting form. Rally is nice, as 18 Nerve across the line has seemed hard for most opponents to meaningfully shift.
• Critters. I still wish they were quicker, but they are all I have for chaff now, and we’ll keep using them and seeing what we can learn.
• Guardian Brutes. These have been impressing me, and feel like the anchors and protectors their name implies. They have been putting out some good work in other games, and we’ll see what they do here.
• Tree Herders. I am still figuring these out a bit, but have been liking them so far as a nice and sturdy support piece with conditional Inspiring. With Scout, they can get a bit ahead of my line to block and instigate, and hope is Radiance of Life can help keep things in fighting-form for any grinds.  

Table and Terrain

We were out at Gamers Realm in New Berlin, and making use of their tables and terrain, and tried to follow the new terrain rules. Woods and Buildings were Height 8. We played the Hills at Height 3, the obstacles at Height 1, and the sown field as Height 0. The buildings were massive, and we opted to play the structure and not the base.

We got Raze for the scenario, and went with it. As before, one Objective Marker is in the exact center of the board, and we each place three tokens for us to fight towards and then Raze for a point. However, instead of 6” off the center line, our target tokens are in any deployment zone, a distinction which I missed previously. You can't Raze tokens you place in your own zone though, so we were both confused by why someone would do this. Tokens in the opposing zone, placed by you, are still controlled and then razed for a point, but additionally progressive scoring was also introduced, with the central Objective granting a point at the end of your player turn if you control it. 

Table and Terrain.

I put one token in the corner near the dice pile, and two central, and my opponent did similar, with one near the building on my side, and two central.

My opponent won the roll off for sides, and started deploying, though infantry hordes took up much more space that he was anticipating. From left to right we have an unbroken line naked Golems, Golems with the Blade with Gargoyles and the Iron Caster in reserve, the Greater Golem, the Ratkin Slaves with Golems with the Brew of Healing in reserve, Orc Slaves with the Golekh Skinflayer in reserve, then Blacksouls, with the Gargoyles and Infernox both in reserve, and ending things with the Ratkin Death Engine. The building broke things up, and camping the corner was the Dragon Breath and Decimators.

Overview of deployment.

With a building impinging on my deployment zone, I seek to ignore that third of the table. For the Herd, we have a Tree Herder near the building, with Brutes, Critters in reserve, Longhorns supported by the Druid on foot, and then more Brutes in the forest, joined by the Chieftain, angled and Critters. Angled Longhorns are nearby, and then the final unit of Guardian Brutes, Critters screening for the Mounted Druid, with a Tree Herder and Tribal Warriors way out on the left.

Scout moves, from the Tree Herders.

I had Scout moves from the Tree Herders, and used them, moving up the full six inches. I then won the roll for turn order, and happily went first.

Top of Round 1: Herd

On the right, the Tree Herder hops ahead to threaten the shooters. In tow are the Critters and Tribal Warriors, moving at the double, and the Druid on Steed who is around to keep things Inspired mostly. Nothing is charging or injured, so no Command orders from her this turn. I’m hoping to press hard here in this corner, win the token quickly, and then get the Tree Herder behind enemy lines.

The Herder sprints ahead.

With no fliers, the only way I’m razing any of these tokens is cutting through enemy units and fighting my way through. With the Golems mostly on the left, I need to press hard before they can shuffle their way into the center.

The Herd is wary of the concerningly-named "Death Engine."

The Death Engine has a long charge range though, so it slows my advance down, but everything should be safe from it. In the center, Critters hop ahead and pivot, threatening a delaying charge next turn into the infantry, and the rest of the battle line moves up as far as they safely can. Again, with nothing charging and nothing injured, no Commands are issued by the Chieftain here.

The Tree Herder view his options from atop the hill. 

On the left, the Tree Herder moves up to block, with the Guardian Brutes and Longhorns moving at the double, with Critters and the Druid keeping pace, and again, no Commands are issued.

I will note, that while a lot of the scenario has changed… you can still only score from Round 2 onwards, and we missed that at the time, with the Herd controlling the center here and taking an illegal immediate lead.

Bottom of Round 1: Abyssal Dwarfs

Given the scenario, with two long lines, my plan was to move up early, and be fighting on his half of the board as much as possible. If I break through his line, I can raze tokens, and he’d need to break through my lines and then move to get to his, but I kinda forgot about the Gargoyles on the left. They move their 20” up, ready to raze their first token next turn, and should put me on a clock to break through.

Speedy Gargoyles and slow Golems.

Shamblers are in a bit of a spot this edition, not getting the extra pivots and such, and the Golems on the left have a harder time repositioning. One regiment just moves up, and the other, with the Blade of Slashing moves and pivots, and will then be Surged ahead 3 more inches, out of the woods and towards the center.

The Greater Golem moves and pivots to focus on the Tree Herder, and the rest of the line moves up uniformly, with the Ratkin, Orcs, and Blacksouls all keeping a straight line.

The battle line looks to gain some ground.

The Blacksouls are issued a Throwing Mastiff order, and land 4 into the Critters. They are unfortunately the only Ironborn unit around here, so my opponent can’t pile on the damage. Under the supervision of the Chieftain, the Critters hold.

Shooting into the imposing Tree Herder.

On the right, both units move, and shots go into the Tree Herder. The war machine lands 3, but the Decimators fail to pierce the iron-like bark.

Top of Round 2: Herd

I opt to try and silence both shooters, with the Herder charging the Dragon Team and the Tribesmen charging the Decimators. Tying both up limits their options next turn. The Herder easily breaks the team, and pivots in victory to keep an eye on the Tribal Warriors.

Pre-charge, the Druid commands the Tree Herder to heal, getting 1, and Radiance of Life will put the Herder down to just 1 damage here. She'll also Bane Chant the Tribal Warriors as they cleanly charge the Decimators. The Warriors are able to cut 6 into the Decimators, who hold.

Many Round 2 charges from the Herd.

Everything else is a darned mess. Critters from the right can’t help with the fights on the right, so they turn and fly to gum things up and apply pressure towards the center, with Brutes hopping up behind them.

The Chieftain will eventually move up to keep things Inspired. I don’t do a good job of discussing intentions here. Eyeballing it, the Death Engine doesn’t look like it can get into him, and will be stuck charging some screening Critters. Even if he gets charged, I should be able to reinforce, and the goal is to tag him out with the Mounted Druid, and send him back to fight Gargoyles and prevent them from getting all three tokens.

The rest of the center starts to clash. On my left, Critters moves as far as they can, which isn’t great with just their 6 inches, but with the Ratkin and Golem stack, this should hopefully still limit what can get into the Tree Herder next turn.

Speaking of, the Tree Herder goes into the Orcs, with the Guardian Brutes just in range as well. The charges are clean, and we’ll take the Orcs up to 15 damage, before finding them to be quite insane.

The Chieftain comes through with a Striding order to the Longhorns, who charge the Blacksouls while catching a Bane Chant from the Druid on foot. They go crazy, and savage the Blacksouls for 15 damage, greatly overperforming. Critters join this fight too, hindered, and contribute nothing, but gum up the line too.

I hold the center, and it is Round 2, so the Herd will now take its first point.

Bottom of Round 2: Abyssal Dwarfs

On the left, the Gargoyles move as far as they can and will raze their first token, tying this up 1:1. From the far left, the Golems here pivot and move, and try to get surged ahead a few inches, eager to join the erupting fights.

Juuuust in range to race this.

The lines are indeed gummed up. The Greater Golem charges the Critters in the front, with Lesser Golems in the flank, and are easily picked up. The Greater sidesteps to create space, and the Lessers pivot.

Orcs explode and the lines of battle clash.

Cackling, Mr. Skinflayer commands the insane orcs to draw their last breath, and the unit detonates, putting 2 damage onto the Herder and 4 onto the Brutes. While arguably bad for me, this was a very fun turn of events, and felt really cool.

With the Orcs gone, the Ratkin will sidestep to block in the Tree Herder, and the reserve Gargoyles will charge the Brutes, landing 2 damage and taking them up to 6.

The Blacksouls slam 5 onto the Longhorns, while the Infernox thumps the Critters, will roll well to rout them, and then back up.

A withdraw move from the Decimators!

The Death Engine, indeed can only charge the screening Critters, and is prevented from sliding down by the Infernox. However, the feathers of the hatchlings get caught in the gears and while 5 damage lands, the Critters hold.

On the right, my opponent wants to shoot, so we discuss Withdraw. The Decimators pass their check, and back up a few inches, and then unload 5 damage into the Tribal Warriors, and a hot boxcar will waver them!

Top of Round 3: Herd

Unfortunately for the Decimators, their success is short-lived. The Tree Herder is right there, and I had the foresight last turn to play it safe and pivot towards the Decimators, just in case.

The Herder will charge in, deal 7 damage to take them to 13, and then get the rout. He’ll reform to be able to zip past the building next turn as planned, and the Tribal Warriors can claim this token next turn.

A long line of clashes.

While the Critters gumming up the gears for the Death Engine was a plus, I think I do want to just press hard here. They attempt to withdraw, fail twice, and are routed, but this allows more things to charge in.

The Druid gets a Strider command into the Brutes who charge the Death Engine. The Chieftain charges the Infernox to tie him up, but fails his command to the Striding Longhorns, coming to aid their brothers in the fight against the Blacksouls.

The Chieftain does 3 to the Infernox, who holds. The Brutes land 9 into the contraption, and will break it thanks to brutal, and reform slightly.

The Longhorns will flub against the armor, and each only deal 5 damage, but that still takes the horde up to 25, and we will get he rout, and reform, kinking the reforms so the units can see around each other a bit.

Brutes fight the Gargoyles, and will pick them up and reform. The Druid on commands the Brutes to heal, getting 2, with Radiance of Life getting them down to 3 damage. I look to have donked up the damage dice for the Herder, which went from 3 down to 1 somehow; I must have Radiance of Life twice.

The clashes become a string of Herd victories.

The last unit to cover is the Guardian Brutes on the far left. They have a charge into the Greater or lesser Golems, and we opt to charge the Lessers, as they have a slightly lower Nerve. The Druid lands a Bane Chant, so we’re on 3’s and 2’s. We land just 6, but Brutal treats that like 7, and we luck out getting exactly 10’s twice to luckily pick this unit up, and reform.

We hold the center again, and in victory, the Longhorns are able to raze a token putting me up to 3 official points.

Bottom of Round 3: Abyssal Dwarfs

The Gargoyles should be able to grab another token, but things are looking rather dire for the short, evil Dwarfs, and the Herd is pressing hard.

He's measuring and thinking, and the Golems coming from the left don’t have the inches to charge the impulsive and very lucky Brutes, and need something like 6 successes on a Surge to make it in. The Greater Golem would also like a surge, to try and flank the lucky Brutes on the hill. The Ratkin have some charges, but the spacing is tough for an infantry horde, and overall, he is just not liking his options at this point. Personally, I’d at least play out the turn, but my opponent is not interested, and concedes here.

A victory to the Herd!

Game Conclusions

I believe this was his first game of the new edition, so this was a bit of a rough introduction, and really highlights why I like playing smaller games as my first games. Deployment of the infantry hordes really seemed to trip my opponent up, and with all the Shambling ending up on the far flank, he really struggled to dig himself out of that hole. Already on the back foot, some exceptional dice for the Herd kept the pressure on and the momentum in my favor.

Testing Conclusions

• Chieftain with Torc. He was used well enough, issuing orders and making a delaying charge. I was interested to see how that grind might go, but with everything else breaking around the Infernox, I could easily be reinforcing that fight next turn.
• Druid on Foot, Heal, BC, Wither and Perish and Periscope. We took a lot of bells and whistles here, but mostly just defaulted to BC, to help us get through Def6. Punching harder felt smarter than trying to grind.
• Druid on Steed, BC, Scorched Earth, and Banner. So far we’ve been ok at instigating fights safely, against high-defense, we again defaulted to BC over any other spells. More testing is needed. The 18” range is also a little troublesome, but theoretically I like the utility and survivability SE can provide, but we just haven’t been playing against lists it is good against.
• Tribal Warriors. They got wavered, but understood the assignment, and they were still doing their jobs well. 
• Longhorns. I will acknowledge that they got pretty lucky this game, being able to remove the Blacksouls in just two turns. They can struggle against armor, but alternating them with Guardian Brutes is serving me well so far.
• Critters. I could be using them better, but do feel I am slowly learning the unit more, so that’s trending in the right direction. Speed is still a massive concern, but they doing ok at just getting in the way of things.
• Guardian Brutes. They also got lucky this game, but I am remembering Brutal almost every combat, and starting to remember Vicious as well. They are a nice, punchy unit, able to focus on armored targets while the Longhorns fight everything else.
• Tree Herders. I think I used them wisely this game. I could have easily gotten greedy on the right, but I had the foresight to play it safe and stay to help the Warriors; and declining to fight on the left and just gum things up for opposing charges looked to be the correct call too, as the Ratkin couldn’t then withdraw, and it messed up what could be coming my way.

It was a brutally quick game. Deployment really did him in here. Afterwards, I tried to be constructive, but probably came off as a little patronizing, so my apologies to Will if that was the case. I like noodling through tactics and trying to claw my way back into a game, especially when time is not an issue. 

Changing as little as possible, I suggested just keeping the slow, shambling Golems more central whenever possible, and using the Gargoyles in reserve to see between them, and then use the fliers break up possible charges. The Chariots could also be used on the line to project threat and let the infantry advance as I can't just park everything exactly where I want it. He did end up winning his second game of the day, 

I liked new steps for these Abyssal Dwarfs. The disposable slaves were amazingly fun to see in action, and I hope we see more of that from Will, as it was really fun and fluffy, and also lets him use his great chariot character. We'll see what the future holds for the army, but it was good to see Will pushing little dudes across the table and rolling dice!