4th Edition: Battle #033 Stormcast Ogres vs Orcs in Seek and Destroy

Intro and Lists

I recently discovered that I had only taken a single day off of work so far this calendar year. I commute in a ways, and also tend to work a bit of overtime every week. With chores piling up daily and weekends generally booked up more than I'd like, no wonder I've been feeling a little crispy lately. A gentle reminder to everyone to take care of themselves during these dumb days. At work, I quickly blocked out some summer weeks, and grabbed the very next Friday off, which is now, and Joe and his Orcs were able to squeeze in a game. Joe fielded the following:

Joe follows things more closely than I, and apparently a few tournaments have started bumping limits up to 2500 points, and always eager to run more things, Joe wanted to try that out here, though some of his builds are not quite ready. For today, we have lots and lots of Orclings and units of Ax, one unit of Morax since that was all that was finished, three regiments of Gore Riders, two Fight Wagons with items, a Riftforger on terrestrial Manticore, Thonaar the Eternal, and a Krudger on Winged Slasher.

List building in the new edition has been hard for me. I bounce around between armies, and when I want to test a unit, I want to commit to it with multiples. Nowadays though, that approach can quickly end up with some very spammy lists, which are not always fun to run.

I was struggling to build a list that was a one-off, not spammy, looked like fun, and looked like it had a chance to win. After failing struggling through several army ideas, I remembered my Stormcast Ogres. I had picked up the Ogres just after the 9x9 days (9x unlocking Warrior units, termed Troops now, Regiments then, plus a staggering 9 supporting characters). Now that (effective) Troops are back to unlocking things regularly, I wanted to try out some real MSU play for the Ogres! I don't think it will be nearly as effective as the old ways, but we'll do our best, and up to test and evaluate is everything.

• Nomagarok. Troop spam somewhat forces us into multiple battalions given how limited slots are, so we're taking the big Warlock himself. Lightning Bolt, Heal, and Bane Chant are all very relevant spells, so we'll see what he ends up doing and casting this game.
• Ogre Warlocks. I want to run a lot of shooting, so our champions of choice will be Warlocks with Lightning Bolt. We'll hope to get some extra dice, and ding some units from afar.
• Grokakamok. With the second battalion and very limited character slots, we're taking the biggest Ogre warlord we can. He hits like a truck, so we'll try protecting him as we can, but tossing him at the biggest and scariest thing across from us, and see how that works out.
• Stock Ogre Warriors. I have just enough old Liberator models to make the build work. Ogres did not get their attack number nerfed. They aren't likely to break anything on their own, but with good all-around stats, they should be able to find ways to contribute.
• Ogre Warriors with two-handers. We have a few units of these, partially to try out, partially because I ran out of Liberator models. The extra CS could be impactful though, so we'll try to keep them in reserve, and applied as reinforcements where needed. If things go well, though should be able to mop up without their lower Defense coming into play.
• Shooters. We're going big with 4 troops as I simply love the silhouette of the models. A big, armored guy with a massive crossbow just tickles me. a 30" range is also very nice, so we'll try to deploy these back a bit and make use of the extra range.
• Berserkers. I have a little bit let over. Without chariots, Ogres are all Speed 6, which can make for awkward engagements. I'm hoping the Wild Charge can complicate things, and make any opposing cavalry or speedy units think twice about closing. 

It's ... admittedly pretty spammy, and I have just enough movement trays to accommodate the troop-intensive build. I would have liked to have explored some Boomers to help chaff and instigate, but I really wanted to commit to Shooters, and run the Braves for fun, and just didn't have time to fine-tune any thinking. 

Table and Terrain

We were out at Planet Chaos in Fort Atkinson, which continues to be a quirky little place, with Magic, comics, 40k, and lots of board games and collectibles. It's neat! The shop has tables, but geared towards 40k, we needed to push two together, and utilize our own terrain. This ended up being from my desert board for my Kingdoms of Men. We again forgot to explicitly reaffirm the new heights, but I don't think there were any impactful game moments, so we can say that we had some Height 10 Forests, the blocking Buildings were Height 7, Hills were Height 3, Obstacles were Height 2, and the drying oasis was Height 1. I need to update my terrain boxes. I think this last good looked at during preparations for the Northwoods GT, and we're missing some difficult terrain, while having an abundance of palm trees. We'll make do here, emulating our Northwoods endeavors, and swapping in a third forest in lieu of a second piece of flatter difficult terrain.

We rolled, and got Seek and Destroy for our scenario. We'd take turns scattering 7 Loot tokens around the board, and these could be picked up by units, and worth 1 VP each at the end of the game. During the game, if you rout a unit in combat that was holding a token, you can elect to pick it up, ignore it, or destroy it, and remove it from the game. 

The table, with tokens.

I won the rolls for tokens, and spread mine out, while Joe's drops all ended up pretty centrally. Joe then won the roll for sides, and decided to stay put and kick us off. 

View from the left, with an angry Slasher ready to rumble.

On the left is the Slasher, with Orclings on the line, and supporting units of Axes (green bases) and Morax (red base). The right had the contingent of Gore Riders with two in front and one in support, Thonar in support, and then the Fight Wagons with the Brew of Strength on the line (red cork) , with the Wagon with the Prue of Sharpness (purple cork) in reserve. The Orcs deployed centrally first, with Orclings and then Axes, then on the right, with everything, and with the Winged Slasher coming down last to keep my honest. 

Lots of Shooters in the center.

For the Orges, we have Warriors out on the far left, a bit back. Angled Warriors with Grok were poised to support the left, and were my final drops. On the line, a Warlock ready to get into the woods, more Warriors in the front at odd angles, and more two-handers in reserve. We tried to deploy the Shooters around the terrain, and sprinkle in Warlocks, to try and make use of the boosted dice to Lightning Bolt from their Master of the Plains rules, since all my non-heroic units will benefit them. Nom is the white-masked caster on the far right, and we have Warriors with two-handers in reserve, and then Berserkers and Warriors out on the far right, ready to play in the woods.

A bit of a mismatch on the right.

Going into this, I wanted to own 2/3rds of the table, favoring the right since there were 4 tokens out there. However, I ended up going very wide, playing for everything. I don't think this is wise, but surveying the field, I didn't want to bother with layers when it came to my Shooters, like I had originally planned. If the Orcs are clever and quick, I won't be able to charge out with my Warriors without obstructing my shooters on the turn before... so going wide was the approach, and I did manage to deploy things back as well. The Warlocks would need to move, but all the Shooters had Round 1 shots lined up. For other deployment goals, I wanted Warriors with two-handers in reserve positions, which I managed to do, and because it was scary, I opted to keep Grok until late to try and counter the Slasher. With stick combats, even without Individuals, if I can tie the flier down once, I should be able keep it down long enough for Grok to give him the business. 

Overview of the table, with a very long and weird line of Ogres...

Overall, I wasn't thrilled with my deployment. I achieved most of my goals, but everything felt very flimsy, and I did not have great fighting presence on either flank. My opponent did a great job deploying things, and checked beforehand, so that buildings and such would not gum up his opening moves. The Orcs were ready to be aggressive, and unfortunately for me, won the roll for turns, and kicked things off for us.

Top of Round 1: Orcs

On the left, the Slasher moves 10", getting behind the building and hiding. Not much we can do about that. Supporting the titan is a regiment of Ax, who pivot and move their 10" out towards the lane in the left.

A wise Krudger on Slasher holds back.

Centrally, everything moves up as well, with the Orcs being as about as aggressive as they can be. The Riftforger reins it a little bit since he is on a mount, but everything else moves their 10" forward.

Aggressive Orclings! With the adults close behind.

The palm tree forests slow things down a bit on the right. The Fight Wagons lag behind, as does one unit of Gore Riders, who will pick up a token. Thonaar stays central, but two regiments of Gore Riders run up, projecting some serious threat into my lines already.

Very aggressive Gore Riders!

Overall, the Orcs were really aggressive! Joe deployed wisely to not get tripped up by buildings or anything else. It's a scary army and I have my work cut out for me! 

Top of Round 1: Stormcast Ogres

The Orcs coming from the right are the immediate threats. It is Round 1 and already they are close enough that I have a double-charge into the lead Riders, and while I don't particularly like it, I think this is the best it's going to get out here, so both the Berserkers and the Warriors charge in. I can choose my path in, so both avoid the woods, which felt nice. Hopefully we'll land some damage here and be able to pick the unit up later.

Some brave delaying charges.

The next-nearest Gore Riders are the next most immediate threat, so a lot of my shooting goes into them, looking for a waver. Fortunately, all my Warlocks are maxing out on their Lightning Bolt bonus dice. I goof Nom's dice (6 instead of 7), but he lands 2, three groups of Shooters do a combined 4 damage, and another Warlock contributes 2 more, taking the Riders up to 8, and we are able to get the waver here, despite the unit being Inspired!

Reforms, after some decent shooting too!

In combat, the Berserkers and Warriors each land 4 damage, and we luck out here as well, able to break the Nerve 15 Riders! I don't want to muck about, so we sidestep inward, each moving 2 inches. At this point, I know the nearby Riders are wavered, and with the melee victory, things are going well, I just need to preserve a unit this turn (the Berserkers), and delay as long as I can here, as the Riders and Fight Wagons are clearly more dangers than the Axes and Orclings in the center.

The Orclings take some hits, despite Stealthy.

Centrally, the final troop of Shooters take aim at the Orclings, but land no damage, as the little guys have Stealthy, which I had forgotten about. Their Nerve is low though, so two of the Warlocks toss in with maxed Lightning Bolt Dice, and despite one of them moving, each lands 3 damage, and we are able to waver this unit with shooting as well, which should slow down things a bit, if my opponent wants to keep the Orclings in front.

The Ogres... sorta contain the Slasher.

On the far left, the Warriors back up, staying at the edge of the Slasher's range. The other unit with shields turns and moves out by the building, ready to brawl, and Warriors with two-handers and Grok lurk, so see of the Slasher will take the bait.

Top of Round 2: Orcs

I was struggling on how to try and contain the flier, and writing the report, I don't like the approach I took, as it is very passive. I might not have been able to reach the edge of the table with 2-handing Warriors, but if I can, the Shielded Warriors should be moving up to pressure, as the 2-handers would already be zoning out a flyby. Right now, I just have a cute kill box, but no pressure on the flier to make a decision.

With no pressure, the flier inches ahead, staying safe and threatens a worse flyby now, while the unit of Ax creep up and claim a second token for the Orcs.

The Slasher is hard to contain with just Speed 6. 

On the other side of the building, the wavering Orclings are left behind, as more Orclings and a unit of Ax run ahead, still being very aggressive.  

More aggressive Orclings in the center.

Centrally, the Orclings continue to sprint ahead, and while the Morax stop atop a token, my opponent opts to not pick it up. It won't really impact their speed, but it's the best fighting unit here, and my opponent doesn't want to just deliver the token to me. 

The Orcs just remove the Warriors, with the Berserker Braves still kicking.

On the right, the duo of Chariots are just barely able to multi-charge the Warriors. Thonaar's "Rage Plus" blesses the wagon with the Brew of Sharpness, which blasts into 22 hits and 16 damage. The wagon with the Brew of Strength doesn't roll, as the unit is already devastated, and we-fast-forward, and the uninspired Warriors do indeed break.

Thonaar looks to go solo, zipping far ahead, and looking to outride and envelope my line in the coming turn.

Top of Round 2: Stormcast Ogres

All turns are tough, full of hard decisions that will shake out immediately, or ripple out with consequences over the coming turns. This one feels extra important, and thank goodness we were not playing on a clock! The Orcs are already in close and threatening a multitude of charges. I have shooting, and have a few injured units opposing me, so target priority and feels very important.

We'll try ignoring the Slasher a bit.

On the left, I am not containing the flier well enough, so somewhat abandon the plan. It just has too many options now, and I can't devote half a dozen units to worrying about it right now. After much consideration, Warriors move at the double, grabbing a token for me and pivoting towards the beast, with the two-handing Warriors moving up behind. We're both large infantry, and not moving the full amounts, can fudge things a bit to just say they are dead square. Nothing else is threatened by the flier right now, and the Ax regiment lingering back would need all 3 Wild Charge successes from the order to help out in any fight. We're as good as we're going to get out here.

Multiple flank charges into the Orclings.

The aggressive Orclings have opened themselves up to a few flank charges. Not much that can be done about that, given the very wide line and slightly speedier units of the Ogres. Grok turns his attention towards the middle. Warriors make an awkward charge into some fresh Ax, Shooters lunge out with a flank into some Orclings, they crisscross with Warriors making a flank charge into other Orclings in front of the Morax, and more Warriors front-charge more Orclings. 

For shooting, the Warlock in the woods holds, and flings Lightning with 3 extra dice into the injured Orclings, landing 2 into the Stealthy kids. Another Warlock approaches the hill, flinging past the flanking shooters into the same Orclings, getting another 2 damage, and taking them up to 12 where they can be routed.

Reforms for the Ogres. 

The combats go pretty well too. The Warriors get Elite, don't bust the Ax regiment, flanking Shooters and Warriors pick up their respective Orclings, though the frontal charge lands a nice 5, and the little guys are found to be Insanely Courageous.

On my right is my last movement decision this turn, with the Berserkers charging the Fight Wagon with the Brew of Sharpness, looking to gum things up. They'll land a nice 6 damage, but will not budget the Inspired unit. Still, the Berserkers have done their jobs this game.

Fights and positioning in the center and right.

In the back line, the first unit of Shooters lands a ridiculous 5 to the wavering Gore Riders, taking them up to 13 damage. I probably should have just called this good, as it is almost certainly a waver, but the nearby Warlock flings into the same unit with Lightning, landing 3 more, and taking them up to 16 damage, where they can be broken, and they will eventually break at the end of the phase. The next Shooters have a cover penalty into the Ax regiment near the building, and land nothing, Nom lands 1 damage, and the last unit of Shooters deal 2, taking them up to 3. They are Inspired, and unbothered.

Aftermath of Round 2.

It was a high-pressure turn, and it felt like we did ok, removing almost all the chaff, and getting damage on a number of other units.  

Top of Round 3: Orcs

On the left, the Ax and their token finagle and move around the building, looking to hold it and maybe fight still. They get close enough to be charged, but finagle a way out of sight of the Warriors with shields on my far left.

The Slasher hops the lines.

The Krudger on Winged Slasher can only charge the Warriors with the shields, and decides that he doesn't want to fight yet, and hops the line instead, eyeing up my line of shooters.

The Ax that took a delaying charge reform into the flank of Ogre Warriors fighting them. Rage fails from the Warlord and the nearby Riftforger, but they still roll out of their minds, dealing twice the expected damage to land 12 onto the Warriors. The Ax will best them, and reform.

Centrally, the Morax charge Warriors on the hill, landing 6 damage, and these Warriors will hold. 

Clashes, mostly in the middle.

The Riftforger charges out and bonks a unit of Shooters for 1 damage, and Orclings reform, letting the injured unit of Ax come in with a Hindered Charge to try and break through the center, though neither unit can claw any damage in. Unfortunately, the Ax took some shooting damage (just 3), and appear to have lost their damage tracker.

On the far right, Thonaar outrides my line. The wagon with the Brew of Strength peeks into the woods to threaten things, and the delaying Ogre Berserkers take 20 damage from the flanking Gore Riders, and they are bested, with both units pivoting a bit. Unfortunately, the 6 damage on the Purple Fight Wagon also looks to have disappeared.

Top of Round 3: Stormcast Ogres

The pressure on the right is still nutty. So far, we've bested two regiments of Gore Riders though, and that feels pretty good. After some fiddling, the Warriors with two-handers make a hindered charge into the last unit of Gore Riders. as they are safe from the wagons here. That seems tricky and clever.

Positioning on the right. 

Shooters move up to block, and their leader point is not in the woods, so they will fire into Thonaar. Another unit of shooters will do the same, trying to condense and protect my shrinking line of Shooters, and together, they land 2 damage against the Warlord.

And a surprise win for the Ogre Warriors!

The hindered Warriors still manage 6 damage onto the Gore Riders, and will pick the uninspired unit up with a good check. I have Brutal, but kept forgetting it all game.

The double-engaged Warriors will throw hands into the Orclings, trying to pick them up, and we do, but cannot reform since we are still engaged. 

A Warlock flanks the Riftforger, as I think they have 5 attacks. They have just 2, and between the caster and the shooters, just 1 damage lands. Ouch. 

Nom tucks in between the shooters to fling Lightning into the Winged Krudger with 2 extra bolts. The two other Warlocks are safe, and will toss into the same target, though only 1 has extra dice. Together, they land 4 damage onto the titan. 

Centrally, the Warriors fight against the Morax, landing 6, though they do not care.

The positioning for the disagreement.

Moving onto the left, their is a rules disagreement. I want my shooters to flank the injured unit of Ax, but my opponent asserts that I cannot pass through my own unit, nor his. I think I can, but we struggle to look the rules up on the phone. We agree to his assertion though, with the Shooters pivoting and shooting with cover (9 attacks halved, down to just 4...) into the Ax on the obstacle by the building, with no damage done.

Looking things up now, I am correct, we just couldn't find the passage quickly. You can pivot through blocking terrain like buildings (p. 28), so long as you end your pivot clear. Charging units treat friendly units as blocking terrain (p. 17), so I would be able to get into the flank here. The Pivoting section at the bottom of the text says I can pivot through friendly and enemy units on a pivot too, again so long as I end clear) though there is some discrepancy with the section immediately above, saying that enemy units block movement, so I might not be able to get into the Morax, for example, though I believe we've generally been pivoting through things before.

Fights and positioning over on the left.

Grok goes in alone, blasts into 12 hits and then 12 damage, and we'll obliterate the unit. I am just over 10 inches away from the Ax on the far left, and sidestep 2" to really get away with my Warlord. It's still a flank charge, but the Krudger will need to fly back to use the command, and will need all three successes to make the hindered flank charge... and I think Grok is adequately protected.

Some decent damage, and reforms for the Ogres.

The Warriors with shields make it around the building, picking up a token, and threatening the Ax on the obstacle and their token. The Warriors with the two-handers inch around, as we deem them safe from the Ax. I was concerned with Line of Sight, but they might be out of arc as well. 

Top of Round 4: Orcs

The Ax and their token are really boxed in, and the obstacle slows them down even more. Options are not great, and they will turn and fight, giving my Warriors with shields a hindered flank charge, while keeping my Warriors with two-handers and the shooter in front arc.

The Ax ... try and do their best. Outnumbered, something is getting in with a flank though. 

On the hill, the Morax will get a Rage on the second attempt, clobber my Warriors and reform, though it looks to me like Grok is still in their flank. The Ax will reform, sliding over and out of the pond to fight the Warriors. Reforms have been tripping me up a bit, though this game helped in some regards. 

If multi-charged, without awkward spacing, the charging units will align to maximize and share frontage on that facing. The charged unit could reform... but unless another unit is joining in with a multi-charge, you should already be aligned properly. Here, my large infantry (120mm) Warriors were charged with a some swarming large infantry (120mm) Orclings, and heavy infantry (125mm Ax). With 5mm extra, both units should have leader points in my flank, and the Ax should be wrapping around. I was struggling and we just did not think the math through.  

Edit: I write reports to share ideas, and to get better, both in terms of personal decision-making, and uniformly applying rules better. It was pointed out on the Forum for a multi-charge shares proportional frontage, so the larger unit gets more frontage. Here, the Heavy Infantry (125mm) Ax is a bit larger than the Large Infantry (120mm) Orclings, so it would get more of the initial frontage, pulling its leader point closer to mine. The Ax are in the front, and this would have pushed the leader point of the Orclings out into my flank. So, this Reform was done correctly, if by accident.

So, the Ax slide over, and land 4 damage, but it is a pretty even match here, and the Ogre Warriors do not care.

The Slasher gets a kill.

The Krudger on Winged Slasher flanks the engaged Shooters. He's got a surprising 12 high-quality attacks, and will pick the unit up and spin around to hunt Grok. 

The Riftforger cannot victoriously reform, and will slam 2 damage onto the Warlock, who holds.

A weird engagement for the Shooters.

The right is extra complicated for some reason. Boxed in by the Shooters, both of the Wagons go into the troop, hindered. It's frontal charges, but this seems like overkill.

Rage Plus from Thonaar lands on the wagon with the Brew of Sharpness, and they land 17 damage onto the Shooters.... unfortunately, they are found to be Insane. The wagon with the Brew of Strength takes them up to 26 damage, but they shooters are insane, and holding up three strong units by themselves now, which is very unfortunate for the Orcs.

Joe can be pretty critical of his own play. I think he talked through it at the time, though writing the report, I do not recall or understand the thinking behind Thonaar's moves. He is in the woods, but is not charging. He's not preventing any hindered charge, and not being in the combat, isn't going to get any kid of reform here. Being in the woods, he's also going to be slowed down next turn. I 

Top of Round 4:Stormcast Ogres

I consider withdrawing the insane Shooters, but quickly think better of it. We're trying up three units, so we're good right where we are. I'm still devastated, and should swing on the injured purple Wagon with the Brew of Sharpness, but since their tracker dematerialized and I think both are wagons are fresh, we swing with half attacks into the outer unit with the Brew of Strength, and land no damage.

Positioning for the Ogres. The Shooters are delaying ...insanely well.

With no shots, the other shooters run up 12" and pivot, ready to continue to tie things down. The Warriors could turn to fight and threaten things, but I decide it is best to run away, and they pivot and start moving towards my opponent's deployment zone. Thinking all these units are fresh, I just want to take my token and run, and let him worry about the remaining two over here.

The Warriors battle the Ax regiment near the pond. They should be on 3 damage from some early shooting, but again, that looks to have disappeared. We do get the Elite order on them, and they hack 4 into the regiment, which holds.

Brawls in the center.

I consider withdrawing my Warlock against the Riftforger, but he's an individual, so we'll keep him locked down. The Warlock is still in the flank, and lands another 1 damage into him, taking him up to 2 damage.

Nom has a flank charge into the Winged Slasher, and that's an easy decision. The titan has already taken some damage, and losing Nom is fine, and I'm ready to sacrifice another Warlock to keep the titan in place for next round. We should be able to clean most of this center stuffs up this turn, and with the titan pinned down, Grok might be able to get the finishing blow by the end of the game.

I check Nom's stats, and I apparently lied to my opponent. I thought Warlocks had 5 attacks, but they have just 2. I thought Nom was the same, but he's got 5 in the flank, and he's apparently angry. Nom does a ridiculous 6 damage, and has Brutal, which I forget about. The titan is on 10 damage, and the initial Nerve checks is a hot boxcar. Since the initial Doomed result would still break the flier, I need to reroll, and get a lucky 11, and mange to break the the Krudger. I had him contained over the next few turns, but hey, we luck out instead. In shock, I forget to reform Nom.

Grokamok does have a flank into the Moreax on the hill, and will blast into 15 damage, though the Morax are found to be Insane, and just barely not devastated. Nuts. Halving their attacks would have been nice.

Some victories, with the titan falling to Nom's bonking stave. 

Shooters will run ahead to grab a token, looking to flee towards my opponent's deployment zone as well. A Warlock comes up, eyeing the token in the center.

The duo of Warriors will indeed sandwich the Ax and their token. I believe we get Elite on one of them, and they deal a combined 13 damage, and will break the regiment. The Warriors with Shields will pick the token up, and victoriously reform to face my opponent's deployment zone as well. The two-handing Troop will swing around, looking for more fights as the game starts to conclude.

Top of Round 5: Orcs

The insane-and-not-devastated Morax is nice, but things are not looking good elsewhere. The Morax get Rage from the mounted Riftforger, landing 21 hits and smack 9 damage onto Grok with some good dicing, but the Inspiring reroll lets the Ogre Warlord hold. Phew.

Fights in the center, still.

The Ax regiment struggles against the Warriors, and unfortunately for the Orcs, nothing connects here, so the Warriors hold firm.

The Riftforger continues against the Warlock, landing 1 damage, but doesn't pick the spellcaster up.

Fights on the right.

The Fight Wagons with the Brew of Sharpness reform into the flank of the Shooters. This is a wise move, as this puts them atop a token to pick it up. Joe's orcs currently hold the damage record for the blog with 61, and while this could be a contender, he opts not to go for it, and we fast-forward, and the Shooters are found to have calmed down enough to break now.

Reforms, after trampling the Insane Shooters.

Each wagon reform, looking for some way to help as the game concludes. Meanwhile Thonaar tries to pack up with a pivot, but can't quite clear the woods it seems. 

Top of Round 5: Stormcast Ogres

It's been a tough game, but I think the Stormcast Ogres are pulling away with it. From the left, Warriors hold 2 tokens, Shooters hold 1, and Warriors with two-handers on the right also hold 1, which should be enough to win. All of these units book it away from the fighting and towards my opponent's deployment zone. 

The brawls continue as the token-holders flee.

The Shooters on the right, opt to hold, and fire 3 damage into the Wagon with Strength. Nom and a Warlock slip a combined 3 damage in with Lightning Bolts, but on just 6 damage, the Fight Wagon holds on.

The Warriors struggle against the Ax regiment, landing some damage, but they hold on still. Had the shooting damage not disappeared, we probably would have this. 

Grok and the two-handing Warriors break the Morax, and overrun getting on and around the hill to see stuff.

Top of Round 6: Orcs

Since he is not an individual, Thonaar trots from one forest to the other to grab a token for the Orcs.

The Fight Wagon with the Brew of Strength charges the Shooters, getting out of the woods, and the wagon will pick the unit up. 

A Fight Wagon finally makes it into the center.

The plucky Ax regiment will be joined by a hindered charge from the Fight Wagon with the Brew of Sharpness. Thonaar's Rage Plus and the Riftforger's Rage both fail, but the Ogre Warriors are trampled.

The Riftforger swings, but misses against the Warlock. 

Top of Round 6: Stormcast Ogres

My units with tokens continue to flee, and they are still holding a combined 4 tokens for me. An Ogre Warlock gets into the middle of the board to pick up the last unclaimed token, bringing my total up to 5 for the scenario.

The Ogres continue fighting in the center, as the game concludes.

The Warlock lands another 1 damage into the Riftforger, but he holds.

The Warriors with two-handers charge the last Ax regiment, and will cut them down.

Grok is able to charge past that fight, and then pivot to get in cleanly against the Wagon with the Brew of Sharpness. Three hits Blast back into 7, and 7 damage lands. The unit is not inspired, and a good check picks it up. It is holding a token, and the Wagon and the Brew of Strength still handing around, I will destroy the token to cement my lead.

Bloodied reforms for the Ogres.

We have a rules thing at the end, where my opponent doesn't think I can both hold and score two tokens with my unit of shielded Warriors on the far left. I think that is only a limitation for Push (Scenario 12), and that does look to be the case. It's a victory for me regardless, but the additional token pushes this up to a 5-1 victory for the Stormcast Ogres!

Game Conclusions

A big thanks to my opponent for fitting this in on a weekday afternoon, and for putting up with all of my very long turns. I probably should have run something more familiar to me, but it was definitely nice to get the Stormcast Ogres on the table, and try out a bit of a funky build. 

I think I approached this about as well as I could have. There were definitely some goofs and sub-optimal plays, but we were able to make good decisions in the midgame for shooting and charging, and a little luck took us over the line. 

We discussed a bit on the car ride back. I think deployment and the early turns were all very strong from Joe and his Orcs. Things deployed well, in order to not get tripped up by terrain. Luck foiled the plans with his wagons, and Thonaar's odd sojourn into the woods is the only big misplay I can point to. He could have swung around the backline, retreated to grab the token in the woods a bit earlier, or doubled-back to threaten my Warriors and their token, and all of these would have been better options that entering the woods. All else being the same, it would still have been a tough end game, but he would have had some better options if Thonaar was more free.

Testing Conclusions

• Nomagarok. It was a weird but good game for him? We only tossed Lightning Bolts, got that number wrong a few times (Nom is LB4 as his base), but then managed to fell a Winged Slasher in combat. I cannot say he had a bad time, and he seems like a good pick for the Ogres, even if you are not investing into shooting, as Bane Chant and Heal can sill be very helpful.
• Ogre Warlocks. They did fine? Committing to them was a good idea, and in the early game when we had a lot of units, we were able to make good use of the extra dice. That petered out as the game went on though. Their spell selection is a bit goofy, and I don't know how these would fare in a list with less shooting. I feel like most lists will want other champions.
• Grokakamok. We struggled a bit early on, but Grokakamok eventually came into his own, chewing through a few units while enduring a little beating himself. He's still fun, and still very powerful on the battlefield. 
• Stock Ogre Warriors. They take up space well, are ok generalists, and they were able to find ways to help out all game. A very nice way to pay the core tax!
• Ogre Warriors with two-handers. A bit surprisingly, we were able to keep these in reserve, and they were able to move out, and punch through things. Luck was involved, but both survived the game, and having a mix of Warrior units was fun.
• Shooters. Four troops was a bit of a stretch, both for list building and on the table. I had a pretty weak line. If we were up against something besides Orclings and Ax regiments in the center, I think this would have gone very poorly for me. They were a fun unit, but still not super-impactful or super-scary since we're hitting on 5's at best. Hordes of these might be better, and having near-guaranteed Round 1 shots thanks to the extra range is nice. 
• Berserkers. The Orcs were set on instigating with a Gore Rider regiment, so these didn't make my opponent think twice about anything like I was hoping. But, they did a fine job punching and delaying for me. Fearless is nice, and they got a great Nerve for their size, at any size. The troop was fun, but I'd probably want multiple troops, or a sturdier regiment though. 
• Ogre Commands. I did a poor job remembering my Orders. The Stealthy one was useless here, but Elite is very helpful for the melee-minded Orges, and I think I remembered my orders twice?
• Ogre MSU. Heavy Shooters is probably not the way to run MSU, and it was a little awkward wrapping my head around things and dealing with all the incoming pressure, but this style was a blast to play and mess around with. The army started out as a way to demo the game using more familiar minis (unfortunately not encourage with Mantic's Pathfinder program), and is unfortunately also a little awkward with the this movement trays. We probably won't see them very often, but Ogres are still a great army to have around no matter how you run them, as they seem to have retained their popularity between editions. 

Again, a big thanks to Joe for fitting this in on a weekday afternoon! My brain took a big beating but this was a lot of fun to get in. We've got a couple Kings of War Wisconsin meetups on the calendar now, so hopefully a few more games and report to come through later in May!

4th Edition: Battle #031 Abyssals vs Orcs in Raze

Intro and Lists

Kings of War Wisconsin had a long demo day recently, and during a lull, I was able to get in a full game. Up against me was Joe and his ever-growing collection of Orcs.

I will apologize at the top, having played against him regularly, I assumed I had a good pic of the army for the cover. With the growing collection and new basing though, I do not. The new units eschew his typically favored grasses, are all based with really slick, vibrant red bases, reminding me a lot of Warcraft's Draenor. I dig it, but don't have a current picture for things. We'll try to update this later.

This list itself was a little ridiculous, with two Chariots with items, eight Gore Rider regiments, some with items, a Godspeaker, a few mounted Riftforgers, and Thonar, as one does, if you are an Orc player. It's a lot of speed, and very scary since the Orcs can get a Wild Charge from their orders.

I brought the Abyssals. I was looking to explore some more Core options for the army, and up to test and discuss is everything. 

• Lower Abyssal Hordes. I’m still trying to explore the Core options for the Abyssals. I miss the Abyssal Guard, and don’t particularly like any of our options. Lower Abyssal regiments seem ok, to just pay the Tax and have something to block, instigate, or play the scenario, but also don’t really seem like fun. I am not a fan of the hordes, as they have bad Nerve and hit on 5’s but we will try out an assortment here and see how we do with flooding the board.
• Bloody Cardinal. Yep, we’re being very unoriginal, and taking the Cardinal again. I like him as a second-line fighter, bringing Dread to the opening fights, and then just being a bit of an opportunist as the game progresses. We’re trying out Hordes of Lower Abyssals here, so we’ll try to hide him early and do just that later on.
• Warlocks with Drain Life. I like the Warlocks, and we’ll try Drain Life with them here. Bane Chant is nice, but doesn’t seem worthwhile when so many things are hitting on 5’s. We’ll give Drain Life a try here, and see if we can’t be annoying resilient with our hordes and such.
• Gargoyles. I like them a lot, but points and slots are a little weird here. I could only fit in two without spending a ton of time trying to optimize, which I did not want to do. I think here, they will be best used in reserve, and hopping out to mitigate what is coming in against the hordes, so that’ll be the approach we try.
• Tortured Soul Regiments. I wasn’t a huge fan of the regiments, but I wanted to try them here anyways. If we can finagle it that the hordes get charged, and the hordes hold, maybe these can shine on the rebuttal.
• Nagarri. I wasn’t a big fan of these in 3E, and am not sold on them yet for 4E. They are just … weird, still. I like the CS2 TC1 mix, and I like hitting on 3’s but they don’t have Regeneration, and are just Def4, and have just 12 attacks, for a rather hefty price tag. Pathfinder was nice in 3E, but seems less impactful now, especially on such a large unit, where difficult terrain can easily trip you up. I feel like you are unlikely to traverse the terrain fully to make use of it, but we’ll see what opportunities we find. We’re trying them out because of Rally, and seeing how that might work with the Lower Abyssal Hordes. 
• Fiends. Another wild pick here! I liked them in 3E as they Inspired, could fight, and had Fireball, and were just generally a nice, all-comers kind of unit. Now, conditional Rally seems rough, but I want to get a game in with these regardless. We’ll see if their Fireball can be supplemented by Orders, and see if we can’t get them some flank charges too with them.

Table and Terrain

We were out at Gamer's Realm in New Berlin, which as we discovered last week, is closing at the end of the month, due to a doubling of the rent from the previous, inaugural year at the new location. It's a bummer all around and just madness. We had arranged for one more demo day, and the owner honored that, letting us get in for one more meetup and general hang out too.

Set for Demo Games!

I was hoping to snag the purple and green mat we had often played on here, but some unknown customer apparently beat me to it. We were able to use Rob's mat and what was left of the terrain in the shop to throw down.

For our game we got Raze, an objective-based scenario which received some changes in the new edition which I still don't quite understand. There is a central token which is immutable, and we each place 3 objective tokens into either deployment zones. We can contest but not control Objectives in our own deployment zone, and if we can reach and control one in the opposing deployment zone, we can raze it for a point, and remove it from the game. Ideally, we'll whittle down what were are fighting over, down to just the central token for a clash at the end. Aha, writing up the report, and rereading the scenario... the Objective tokens don't care who placed them, just where they are. So you can be a real jerk and stick your tokens in your own deployment zone to muddy up your opponent's plans. I don't really like this, but I understand it now.

A pre-deployment overview of the table. 

I believe we rolled the side-picking and token-placing rolls together, which technically should have been separate, but Joe came away with the win, and kicked us off.

Overview of table, more or less.

The Orcs came down in a few distinct groups. On the far left, guarding one of my objective, were two basic Gore Rider regiments, a Riftforger, and the Chariots with the Boots. The center-right had two basic regiments escorting Thonar, and one with I believe the Brew of Sharpness in the back. The right then had the Gore Rides with the Brew of Strength, the one with the Blessing of the Gods, a Riftforger, and the Godspeaker, who was hiding behind the building.

View on the left.

With a brand new and rather sprawling list, I wasn't quite sure what to do. The deployment goals were to spread the hordes out, and try to pair each with one of the other units. On the left, we have Gargoyles hiding behind the building. This is overcautious, since the Orcs don't have any shooting. We have the Lower Abyssals with the Sanguinary Scripture out here, supported by a Warlock, with a Fiend nearby.

View in the center.

Nagarri took the woods, so I could maintain a long line. Lower Abyssals with two-handers we a big back from the line, with Gargoyles and the Bloody Cardinal in reserve. Two units of Tortured Souls ended up nearby, as I felt like the fighting would be fiercest here, as all three of his tokens were placed out here. 

View on the right.

The basic, Def4 Lower Abyssals start on the hill, with the Warlock supporting, and then Tortured Souls screening for the Fiend, as I could not squeeze them all in on the line, due to poor planning with my spacing. 

I won the roll for turn order. Despite wanting to play a little passive with the list, letting the Lower Abyssals take some hits and see what they could endure... letting the speedy Orcs get first turn seemed like a very bad plan, so I choose to kick things off for us.

Top of Round 1: Abyssals

There are no tokens on the left, so we just need to delay. The Gargoyles hold, behind the building. I don’t really care about charging, so they can sit tight.

The Abyssals posture a bit on the left.

The Lower Abyssals move up a few inches, and partially hide behind the obstacle. The Warlock scoots to their left, and the Fiend to their right.

The Nagarri move up.

The Nagarri are Height 4, so they pivot-move-and-pivot towards their left, just getting out of the woods, but staying more than 19 inches away from the Orcs and their potentially wild charges.

The Lower Abyssals with two-handers move up into the field. With the intervening Hill, they are save from charges. The Gargoyles tuck up behind them, as does the Bloody Cardinal.

Tortured Souls avoid the field.

The Tortured Souls both inch up. One hands back a bit, staying out of the field, so they are not hindered, and the other moves up just a bit more, again staying more than 19 inches away. 

The horde on the right moves up to bait a charge.

The stock Lower Abyssals on the far right move up, getting just over 18” away from some of the Gore Riders. The Tortured Souls stay safe with the Fiend behind, and the Warlock adjusts here.

No orders, no spells, and it is a pretty quick opening turn for the Abyssals.

Bottom of Round 1: Orcs

The Orcs seek to leverage their speed, applying some early pressure with a unit or two, but not over-enthusiastically run up. It is a wise approach, given the match up. I wish I had more Gargoyles!

On the right, the lead Chariots (I believe with the Blessing) give a charge up to the Tortured Souls on the far right, but nothing else. The Gore Riders hang back in reserve, ready to join in the fun if I do decide to charge.

The Orcs tentative push out as well, in a game of cat and also cat.

The Godspeaker peers out from behind the building, making use of the new line of sight methods to barely spy the Warlock, and Hex him. I haven’t encountered the spell enough yet to internalize the ramifications, so we look it up. It appears the movement restrictions for a successful hit have been removed, so it is just taking 2 damage for each successful hit. I like this change. While the spell loses some versatility, simple is good.

Some Gore Riders take the hill, but overall, the greenskins are quite reserved.

A pair of Gore Riders hangs way back, while the third takes the hill, with Thonaar supporting thing behind the hill.

The Orcs shuffle about on the left as well.

Most of the thought goes into the left. The Chariots with the Boots just barely poke into the woods to see. They should be out of range of the Nagarri but threatening a potentially Striding charge themselves. The Riftforger tucks in, and a unit of Gore Riders pivots to face the corridor on far left potentially threatening to run around in the coming turns. The last regiment of Gore Riders moves up, threatening the Lower Abyssals, but is far enough away to be safe from the infantry, and the Fiend behind them. It’s clever, but very patient play.

Top of Round 2: Abyssals

The original plan was to use Gargoyles to block up charges into the Lower Abyssals, preventing some multi-charges, but I am doubting that approach now. I don’t really have any big, mean hitters to punish over-commitments, and so that would mostly just be tossing away Gargoyles for free. I have a 20” charge with them, and so we will start threating to use that and gum things up for a turn, and forcing some reactions. The Gargoyles on the left flap out more to the left, and will start pressuring the Gore Riders.

The Gargoyles go wide to be annoying.

Again, there are no tokens out here for my opponent, so this horde just needs to delay as long as possible. They back up. The Gore Riders will need two successes on the command to get in, and the horde is safe from the Chariots. The Warlock and Fiend adjust as well.

I see a weird opening, and decide to take it. The token ahead of the Nagarri is uncontested, so they can zip up and control and raze it, and I opt to do so. I am out of arcs, but the Riftforgers are individuals, so this is a bit sketchy in the long run.

The Tortured Souls get a double charge.

Joe and I are getting much better at discussing intentions and also actually confirming them ahead of time. It is not enough to announce, ya gotta measure and confirm before you pass the turn or any issues arise. Most of the measurement attention was on the left though, and when I go to measure, I appear to be just barely in with the second regiment of Tortured Souls vs the Gore Riders on the hill. Joe graciously acquiesces, and I’ll take the charge, really wanting to see how they perform. Checking the math, a little over 5 damage is expected per unit with a clean charge here, and while we slightly underperform with only 9 damage, we are luckily able to pick them up and then reform both units, to face Thonaar and the other Gore Riders. Double flowers go to Joe here, as I completely forgot to roll my only combat before passing the turn back! Thankfully we immediately caught this and rewound slightly.

The hordes move up to keep the pressure on.

On the right, I am a bit of a loss. With the Tortured Souls charging, I feel compelled to press up to try and support that push. Going super-far up could pen in the Gore Riders in, in that little corridor, but would also open the Lower Abyssals to a flank charge from the other side of the building. So they inch up, protecting the Fiend, and we’ll see if we can survive a double-front charge. For science!

The Warlock grants the Lowers a Fireball, which blasts nicely but only singes 1 damage into the armor of the Gore Riders. The Fiend also tosses, but funds into the same issue, with a blasting 9 hits, but only 2 damage getting in.

The Tortured Souls pivot, move, and pivot off to the left, looking to see how they might help in the coming turns.

Bottom of Round 2: Orcs

I had a little fun drawing first blood against an elite list, but now it is time for the Orcs to respond. The Chariots charge out, as does the Gore Riders with the Brew of Strength, with both slamming into the Lower Abyssal Horde.

Two double charges from the Orcs. Ouch!

The Riders get a normal rage, and with 18 base attacks, land 17 damage, thanks to the exploding dice from the Order. The Chariots land 9 damage. The Abyssals are Rallied by the Fiend and Inspired by the Warlock, but this is more than enough to easily devastate the Lower Abyssals, who break. The Riders overrun, and the Chariots change facing, to try and box in the Tortured Souls.

Reforms from the speedy Orcs.

A Gore Rider duo multi-charges one of the Tortured Souls on the hill, with one getting a normal Rage from the Godspeaker, and one getting a boosted Rage from Thonaar. I was expecting solo charges, but I’ll take it, as each regiment contributes 15 damage, overkilling the Tortured Souls by a lot. One reforms to try and box in the Tortured Souls, and the other will overrun.

The Orcs continue to play coy out on the left, and occupy the Nagarri.

The Riftforger opts to rear-charge the Nagarri to tag them, and 2 damage lands. Thonaar moves up threateningly, but doesn’t charge, as he isn’t an individual, and didn’t have them in his arc to start.

On the left, the Orcs are inexplicably cagey, still messing about in their deployment zone. One regiment exposed their flank to the Gargoyles, while the other regiment moves slightly to deny proper alignment to that flank. They Gargoyles can only charge the closer unit, in the front.

The Chariots inch slightly ahead through the woods, just barely threatening a normal charge into the Lower Abyssals.

Top of Round 3: Abyssals

We still just gotta delay the Orcs out on the left. The Gargoyles decline to charge, but can sneak in out of arc, and maybe force some reactions next turn.

Gargoyles zip ahead! The Lower Abyssals do the opposite.

Again, the Lower Abyssals inch back, and are over 18” away from everything. The Orcs will need a lot of lucky Command Dice to get in next turn. The Warlock inches back, and is even further away, and the Fiend does similarly, looking to avoid the forest, as he lacks strider.

No good options for the Nagarri...

The Nagarri lands a hot 8 into the Riftforger on Manticore, and thankfully will pick him up. Thonaar complicates reforms, but the Nagarri are in a lot of trouble next turn no matter what I do, so we don’t sweat it too much.

A pair of flank charges from Tortured Souls.

The Tortured Souls do have fly, so we endeavor to utilize it this round, while we still can. Centrally, the Lower Abyssals make a hindered charge out of the field and over the obstacle, sliding way way down to let the Tortured Souls hit the Gore Riders in the flank. The Souls land their expected 10, and hitting on 6’s, the Lower Abyssals manage to smack 5 as well. The Bloody Cardinal is around for Dread, and we fell another regiment of Gore Riders.

Both units are pretty safe. The Tortured Souls are forced to do a 180 spin, while the Lower Abyssals want to overrun for now, to get off of the obstacle, since just changing facing won’t get that done. They get a 1” overrun. Despite facing a speedy Orc list, most of the fighting is on their side of the field though, so I’m pretty happy.

And the piece-trading goes ok.

The right has all the Orc tokens. With the Lower Abyssal horde falling, we’re in damage control mode, and want to try and fight our way through and keep them off the tokens as long as we can. I do some measuring, and then the Gargoyles fly up and into the Chariots to slow them down, landing 1 damage too.

It’s admittedly cheeky, but I can get a 15-20mm connection into the flank of the other Gore Riders, and will take it, with the Fiend joining in the front. The Tortured Souls land 8 damage, the Fiend 2, but the Nerve checks break our way, and we are able to pick up the unit with the Brew of Strength.

I am eying my token in the far corner, and the Fiend tries to overrun, getting another 1 inch, and the Tortured Souls spin around, ready to fight the Chariots in the coming turn.

Bottom of Round 3: Orcs

On the right, the Riftforger grants a rage to the Chariots against the Gargoyles, and as an individual, is then able to skirt around and hit the Bloody Cardinal in the flank, landing 2 damage. The Cardinal holds.

The Chariot is able to trample the Gargoyles without any problems, and then reform, getting both the Fiend and Tortured Souls in front arc.

The Abyssals get bogged down on the right.

The Godspeaker charges in to delay the Lower Abyssals with Two handers, and even manages to damage them with his one attack.

The Nagarri are obliterated .... four times over.

Thonaar hits the Nagarri in the front, with some Gore Riders coming in from the right flank and getting a boosted Rage from the Warlord. In a cute but probably unnecessary move, the Chariots shuffle back, preventing more Gore Riders from being hindered into the other flank of the Nagarri, who also get a rage. The Nagarri start on 2 damage, and for kicks, we see how high things can go. Thonaar lands 1, the ones on the left do 35 damage, while the ones on the left “only” manage 23 damage. The Nagarri end on 61 damage and…. Are devasted and routed, as is proper. In victory, the Orcs shuffle around.

On the far right, the Gore Riders again inch up, just barely threatening a charge into the Lower Abyssals. With good order, the Chariots in the Woods might be able to get in too, but I do not recall.

Top of Round 4: Abyssals

It’s been some impressive damage, but the Orcish cavalry are still largely fighting in their own deployment done. I’m somehow doing ok here, and am in the lead, having Razed 1 token so far. The Gargoyles on the left flitter up slightly, securing a second token for me, and stare down the deployment zone for the Orcs.

The Gargoyles nab another token for me.

Again, just trying to delay, the Lower Abyssals back up again, getting out of range of the Gore Riders without very hot Command Dice, and out of range of the Chariots completely.

A delaying charge from the Tortured Souls.

The Tortured Souls have a few options. They can’t quite reach the Gore Riders behind Thonaar though. Charging Thonaar seems mediocre, so after some measuring, we make a boring charge into the nearest Gore Riders. Thonaar is too far away to threaten the Lower Abyssals, so sacrificing more units to keep the fights on the Orc’s side of the table seems like a decent approach. This unit has the Brew of Sharpness, and we’ll smack 6 damage onto them.

Scrums on the right.

Elsewhere, we are gummed up. The Lower Abyssals with two-handers regenerate their 1 damage, but underperform a bit in the melee, smacking 4 damage into the Godspeaker. We have Dread, but just barely fail to move him.

The Bloody Cardinal lands 4 into the Riftforger on Manticore, Lifeleeching back down to 0 damage. The first check is good for me, but the second check is good for the Riftforger, and he just barely hangs on too, despite Dread.

The Orc leaders survives, but the Chariots are bested.

The Warlock repositions, landing a Drain Life 2 into the Chariots, though has nothing to heal, as the Cardinal was just out of range. We need to pick this up, so both the Fiend and the Tortured Souls hit the front. The Souls add a hot 7 and the Fiend adds 3, and we will break the unit. My opponent has these on 16 damage, but I think it’s 13 (Gargoyles 1, DL 2, Souls 7, Fiend 3?), I’m not sure how we got off here, but the checks are high enough this doesn’t matter.

I still have the far token to fight over. The Fiend overruns nicely, but the Tortured Souls overrun for just 1 inch again.

Bottom of Round 4: Orcs

We’ve somehow won out on the right, though are starting to loose ground elsewhere. Still, it is Round 4 and we’re up 2:0 and the Orcs are still fighting essentially in their deployment zone, so we’re doing ok overall.

The Godspeaker fights back against the Lower Abyssals. His solitary attack doesn’t land this time, but still, my horde is engaged and bogged down.

The Gore Riders trample the Tortured Souls on the hill.

The Riftforger smacks another 2 into the Bloody Cardinal, but I hold again. The Gore Riders reform, and are joined by another unit. Thonaar grants one of them a boosted Rage, and 29 damage lands, with the overruns being a silly 5 and 6 inches.

Needing to play the scenario, Thonaar makes his way into the center of the field, seeing what he might be able to accomplish in the coming turns.

The Orcs try to close in before the game ends.

On the left, the Chariots finally leave the forest, again just barely threatening charges. The Gore Riders do similarly.

Top of Round 5: Abyssals

I guess we just keep delaying on the left? Even with two turns, the Gargoyles are too far to reach the token on the far right for me before the game ends. I’ll need another plan for that, but this does free them up.

Gargoyles delay on the left.

I pivot and fly them up to complicate the Orc movements on the left. The Warlock zips over a bit, and the Lower Abyssals tuck in by the building. The Gargoyles flap up, denying the space for the Gores to get in, and the Chariots will need a pivot past them… and so can’t get in against the Lower Abyssals either.

It’s cute, but a little awkward. I should be pivoting harder with the Lower Horde I think? If they are protected, I should be trying to get into a better position. This move with the Gargoyles slows them Orcs down, but doesn’t really impact much. Blocking up the Chariots completely might have been a better call too, as again… nothing is out here for the Orcs and the Horde is just a distraction.

The Fiend backs up a bit, and pivots. I think he moved as far as he could, and is just within 17 inches away from the Chariots.

The scrums continue on the right.

The Lower Abysasls with the two-handers reform, allowing the Fiend to trip over the obstacle and come to try and help. The hope is to pop him, reform, and box in both units of Gore Riders. The Fiend lands 3, and the Abyssals a fresh 6, and we’ll devastate and Rout the Godspeaker, as is proper. Indeed the Lower Abyssals are able to spin and reform to capture the attention of the Gore Riders, and the Fiend spins as well, waiting to counter-punch.

Having measured things from my perspective, the Warlock makes a break for the token in the far corner, and will be able to reach it next turn.

Reforms for the horde, at least.

The Bloody Cardinal holds, and ultimately, I choose to send the Tortured Souls into the rear of the Riftforger. The Cardinal will land 2 more for Lifeleech, and we’ll devastate the Riftforger with the first back of rear attacks…. But the Riftforger is found to be insane.

I had a choice here, whether to take this charge or send the Tortured Souls out to try and dissuade Thonaar. I was hoping for the break, and then be able to reform to threaten Thonaar too, but this was apparently too greedy, and not to be, unfortunately.

Bottom of Round 5: Orcs

Its Bottom of 5, so the Orcs are starting to consider transitioning away from Kill to whatever scenario we are playing...

Thonaar grabs a token, and the fighting continues.

On the hill, one unit of Gore Riders considers running away to try and fight me for my token in the back right, but my opponent realizes he can’t beat me there. It will charge the Lower Abyssals instead. The Riftforger should be in range to grant a Rage, but I don’t see a token, so this may have failed or been forgotten, and the damage is kept to just 11, and the Lower Abyssal horde holds.

The insane-but-devasted Riftforger does throw into the Tortured Souls, landing 1 damage.

Thonaar does run out to raze the middle of the Orc’s tokens, and the second Gore Riders from the hill run over to the middle of the field, joined by a regiment from the right. The departing regiment is just out of charge range of the Lower Abyssals out here. Bah.

The Chariots go in, making a play for the token!

The Gargoyles are ignored, and before departing, Thonaar grants the Chariots the needed Wild Charge range to get in against the Fiend, and brawl for that token. The Boots are popped, and a concerning 10 damage lands. The Fiend is not Inspired, Brutal is in play from the Chariots, but we do manage to hold on.

Top of Round 6: Abyssals

The Lower Abyssals can’t charge, but run ahead in case there is a Round 7. The Gargoyles flap in, looking to gum up the center for a possible Round 7, but in retrospect, this is silly. I should have kept these back to threaten a charge in Round 7 – just moving in does nothing right now.

The Gargoyles fly in, just because.

The Warlock moves up to Inspire the Lower Abyssals and Fiend, and we’ll land a Drain life 2 into the Chariots in the woods. The Fiend lands 6, and with no Inspiring, one hot check dooms them. In victory, the Titan reforms, but I don’t like this in retrospect. If I am playing for Round 7, I should be trying to overrun into the woods, and threaten a hindered charge into the center next.

The Lower Abyssals regenerate a hot 6 damage, and reform, sliding down and allowing the Titan to join the fight. Some damage lands, I guess 6, but we don’t prevail here.

We are able to pick up the insane Riftforger, and seeing how things are going, the Tortured Souls opt to face the center. I could try to threaten Thonaar, but won’t be able to stop him from grabbing the a token in the back right, and if he goes for that, he can't help the center, so I think I need to prep for a possible fight in the center for a potential Round 7.

The Warlock zips up, and will raze my last token for me.

Bottom of Round 6: Orcs

Thonaar runs out and will raze a second token for the Orcs, making this 2:3 in favor of the Abyssals.

The Gore Riders hold, fighting against the Lower Abyssals, and the regiment with the Brew of Sharpness leaves the center to join in this fight. There is no Rage, but the horde is still taking damage on 2’s, and takes 19 new damage, to be devastated and routed. One unit is still engaged, but the unit with the Brew backs up, trying to get back to the center, but is a little short.

Charges in the bottom of Round 6.

In the center, the Gore Riders take their free rear charge into the Gargoyles, will break them and reform to face the Lower Abyssals, since neither the Bloody Cardinal nor Tortured Souls have the inches to get in against them.

What remains of the Orcs.

Holding the center puts the Orcs at 3, making this a time game, but we do roll up a Round 7. My opponent considers conceding, as I can fly into the center, but he is convinced to keep playing.

Top of Round 7: Abyssals

The Fiend holds, and the Bloody Cardinal charges in against the injured Gore Riders. They each deal 3, taking them up to 12 damage. Brutal and Dread don’t stack, and while the check is a 3 the unit should still be bested. We must have gotten the math wrong somewhere.

The Tortured Souls hop into the center, successfully contesting it.

The Tortured Souls hop into the center.

Since the Fiend didn’t overrun, he can’t help. The Warlock moves in for another Drain Life 2 into the Gor Riders, and the Lower Abyssals contribute a nice 6 damage, but the Orcs hold, and the horde is about a half inch away from helping control the center.

Bottom of Round 7: Orcs

The Gore riders on the hill throw into the Bloody Cardinal, land 12 damage, and break him.

I think the Gore Riders with the Brew of Sharpness are boxed out, but apparently not quite.

We don't need to respect a 1" buffer anymore, and with a pivot-move-pivot, they are just about into the center token, measuring from the edge of the token, to wrest control of it back in favor of the Orcs. Our observer Rob thinks they are out, but I think they are in. This is probably the kind of situation that calls for a die roll to determine things, but it was a clever play, the Orcs deserve a tie here. I could have charged the Cardinal in against them, or had my Souls slightly back or closer to my deployment zone to prevent the first pivot or them getting close enough. I can say well done here!

Having wrested control of the center back, the Orcs claw things back to 3:3 and a tie game!

Game Conclusions

I definitely had some options to try and seal the deal in the final turns. Overrunning the Fiend, charging the Cardinal into the other regiment; preserving the Gargoyles, or even just moving the Tortured Souls ever-so-slightly differently… and I simply didn’t recognize any of them to take them and help me close out for the actual win.

With what felt like an inferior list, I was very happy to even have this game end remotely close, and I am more than happy with a tie. While we weren’t tracking attrition, that did cross the Orc player's mind, and it looks like the Abyssals lost 1405, and the Orcs lost 1480? So a slight edge to the Abyssals, but not enough to make a big splash for any typical tournament. I didn’t really like my list, but apparently I ran it well enough here!

Testing Conclusions

• Bloody Cardinal. A second-line opportunist continues to be a good playstyle fit for him, and he had a decent run, all things considered. With my Despoilers still needing to be rebased, he's a good go-to for now, and I might even pick up the Mantic model, now that I don't need to buy the full Champions box to get him. 
• Warlocks with Drain Life. The Warlocks are fine, and did ok for me throughout, keeping things Inspired and playing the scenario and such. I avoided Firebolts to try and deny charges, and playing it safe was probably the right call. Drain Life was mediocre though. It's not bad, but with so few dice being tossed around it's never as impactful as I'd like it to be. 
• Lower Abyssal Hordes. I had to try them out, but I do not like these. They did ok, but low Defense and Low Nerve (even Rallied, as many were this game) was not enough to hold, and hitting on 5's is just so very rough. Without Abyssal Guard, these really need to hit on 4's to be impactful. They are an expensive, regenerating tar pit that I think will struggle to absorb the damage taken. A bunch of regiments are cheap though, and might be the way to go, racking up unlocks and then dedicated scenario monkeys.
• Gargoyles. I was thinking of using them to block incoming charges into the horde, but that seemed like it would just be tossing away points here, so I tried to be a little more proactive with them, and it worked out ok. A great unit, and I wish I had a few more this game!
• Tortured Soul Regiments. I did not have high hopes for these. They actually did ok, with fly making the difference in the mid-game, when my opponent forgot that they had it. Flank charging was great with them, but overall, we have much better picks in the slot, and for real hammers, and I think these are best as troops.
• Nagarri. This was unfortunately not a great test for them. I tossed them away a bit early, though their sacrifice did keep everything but Thonar fighting on the Orc side of the table for the rest of the game, which seemed worth it. Still an odd unit. We'll try to fit them in another time.
• Fiends. They Survived, and we'll give them that, but I did not really like these. Conditional Inspiring is meh, lacking Inspiring is bad, and getting a points increase for all of these changes just feels like an insult. They might do ok in a Flame Bearer list, but otherwise, I think I can leave these on the shelf for a while.
• Abyssal Commands. We eeked out one use of Fireball, for 1 damage. Without a strong Flame Bearer contingent, this command really falls flat. We didn't face any shooting, so the Unholy Shield wasn't ever considered. The Abyssals have neat Commands, but they are very niche. 

I love the look of these new Orcs, and we'll get better pictures in the future. It was neat (terrifying!) to see the Orcs casually dishing out so much damage. Rage is a fantasticly potent command, though it's hard to hold when the damage dealt can exceed the units base attacks... I think 61 damage taken might be the new damage record for the blog? In any event, this was a good time. Thanks Joe!