LOOK SNORRI! INDEX
1.Daemons
2.Vampires
3.Zealots (Empire)
4.Hydras (Dark Elves)
5.Bloodthirster (Daemons again)
6.Orcs
7.Eagles (High Elves)
Greetings, dear forum users and welcome to yet another installment of the "look snorri!" series. For those not familiar with it, this is an underdog tale; it started when I decided to try out some of the dwarf book's least popular choices, such as the ironbreakers, rangers and the such.
After a very long break from the stunties, I decided to give them a go against a fellow wargamer's experimental high elf list. He goes by the name of Starspawn/Renaissance Homer in some parts of the internet and is a great bloke and a very experienced general.
The lists:
Dwarves of Karak Norn - 2250 points
Runesmith, shield, GW, rune of Stone, Rune of Spellbreaking, MR of Challenge
Daemon Slayer, MR of Smiting, 2x rune of striking
Dragon Slayer
Dragon Slayer
20 Warriors, shields, Full Command
14 Longbeard Rangers, shields, GW, throwing axes, Full Command, Rune of Slowness
10 Quarellers, GW
10 Quarellers, GW
10 Thunderers, shields
14 Troll Slayers, champion
10 Miners, Blasting Charges
10 Miners, Blasting Charges
Bolt Thrower, engineer, rune of burning
Bolt Thrower, engineer, rune of penetrating
Flame Cannon
Gyrocopter
Total:2230 (miscalculated some stuff, next time I'll be adding musicians to my quarellers)
The Eagle Host of the Asur - 2250 points
Prince, Great Eagle, Seafarer's Bow, Caledor Armour, Talisman of Protection
Noble, Great Eagle, BSB, Dragon Armour, Shield, Lance, Battle Banner
Noble, Great Eagle, Dragon Armour, Dragonscale Shield, Sword of Battle, Talisman of Loec
Mage, Lvl2, Silver Wand, Loremaster's Cloak
20 Lothern Seaguard, FC, Shields
10 Lothern Seaguard
5 Silver Helms, Shields, Standard
5 Silver Helms, Shields, Standard
Tiranoc Chariot
Tiranoc Chariot
15 Swordmasters, FC, Banner of Sorcery, Amulet of Light
Great Eagle
Repeater Bolt Thrower
Total: 2250 (yes, elf characters cost a lot!)
PRE-GAME THOUGHTS
Just like I said above, the elf list is highly experimental and includes a lot of wacky choices. In spite of that, its speed and overall hittiness meant that if I wasn't careful, the eagles would outmaneuver me and get to the army's soft underbelly (warmachines, small units worth a lot of points). Dragon armour was bound to be a pain, given that 2 of my warmachines have flame-based attacks! The plan here was to avoid being outdeployed, box in the eagle riders and deliver the killing blow with my slayers.
The elf mage got Drain Magic, Shield of Asuryan, Courage of Aenarion and Flames of the Phoenix
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...deployment.jpg
The above deployment picture shows how I failed the first of my goals; all my shooting units are in a horrible position, staring at the void that is the battlefield's centre. The high elves cunningly hugged cover and decided to push through the flanks, leaving half my army out of position. (To be continued)
Rolling for the first turn, the High Elves seized the initiative and off we went!
*DISCLAIMER! The rangers in this battle used the house rule of "foresters", meaning they got to move freely inside woods*
TURN 1 - HE
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...t%2012/HE1.jpg
Using the rocky feature on the left and the woods on the right as cover, the elven forces advanced as fast as possible. On the left flank, both chariots and the swordmasters closed in on the slayer/miner anchor, the noble threatened the Bolt Thrower on the hill (being S7 made it a priority) and the silver helms backed off a bit to make sure they were out of crossbow range. The battle banner BSB deployed himself to threaten the advance of the dwarves down the centre, should they choose to do so. The right flank was were the elves had the edge, so the Prince and silverhelms positioned themselves to charge next turn while the big seaguard block was angled to intercept the longbeard rangers.
The winds of magic blew weak and Renaissance Homer couldn't roll more than 6 on 3 dice to cast the flames of the Phoenix on the slayers.
Shooting saw the RBT kill 2 thunderers and the prince fail to wound the gyrocopter with his portable bolt thrower.
TURN 1 - Dwarves (no pic, sorry)
With no targets at all for shooting, the dwarves decided to move forward and see what happens, for a change. On the left, slayers and miners deployed in an angle in order to support one another, quarellers reformed to get better shots and the lone slayer moved towards the bolt thrower to deter the eagle from charging it. The Daemon Slayer, Warriors and Quarellers advanced to the centre, hoping to use the rune of challenge to trap the BSB. On the right, the gyrocopter flew over the prince to march-block the seaguard, ready to charge the RBT next turn,while the rangers, being relentless, marched 6" towards the hill. The miners moved sideways to make sure they were more than 10" away from the prince (they wanted to use their blasting charges). Finally, the thunderers moved forward, too, opening a fire lane for the flame cannon to the silver helms.
Shooting started with the flame cannon guessing right on top of the helms and eagle, killing one knight. The S7 Bolt thrower popped a chariot and the gyrocopter's steam gun went nuts, hitting the seaguard, getting 16 hits, 12 wounds, out of which only 2 were saved!! Both panic tests were passed.
TURN 2 - HE
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...t%2012/HE2.jpg
The remaining chariot and the Noble combo-charge the miners on the left, revealing a dwarven mistake: Even maximised, the chariot's overrun path takes it into the lone slayer, allowing it to tactical-wheel and hit him in such an angle that will take it into the bolt thrower next turn! The miners' blasting charges fail to mitigate this, only causing 2 wounds. The BSB is forced to charge the warrior block or flee, so in he goes. Finally, the prince charges past the miners into the other bolt thrower and the silver helms lose two of their mates to blasting charges but still smash into the miners. The rest of the army maneuvers, notably the eagle moves to the centre, threatening both my shooting units and the flame cannon, while the silver helms on the left move full speed behind the rocks. The now 10-strong seaguard turn to face the longbeards' flank.
Magic draws out my single dispel scroll to stop a high roll at flames of the phoenix, the rest is shut down. In the shooting phase, a single longbeard is killed by seaguard arrows, and the gyrocopter barely clings to life after the RBT hits it with a single shot and deals two wounds.
Combat is far more eventful: The combined efforts of noble, eagle and chariot kill 4 miners for no wounds back. Losing by a margin of four, the miners get lucky and stay in the fight with a low break test roll! In the centre, the lance-totting bsb issues a challenge and my runesmith foolishly steps up to accept it. The two characters trade wounds and a roll of "5" on the battle banner forces the warriors to take a break test, which is passed. So now my daemon slayer cannot kill the bsb next turn, as he is still locked in a challenge! (hindsight is a wonderful thing) A couple of miners are killed by the silver helms for no wounds back, but the dwarves fight on. Finally, the prince butchers the engineer in a challenge and the rest of the crew fail their stubborn test and flee, saving the prince from the angry-looking dragon slayer nearby.
TURN 2 - Dwarves
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...rt%2012/D2.jpg
Looking back, last turn's combats favored the dwarves, who were able to blunt the charge of the high elves. The stunties counter-charge! I am reminded how difficult that is to achieve with a 6" range: Dragon slayer and Troll Slayers both charge into the chariot, the latter barely getting a single slayer in contact with the unit's flank. The daemon slayer barely gets into the BSB fight, but the quarellers fail their attempt to flank the same character, leaving them exposed to the eagle. The thunderers reform, trying to create a no-fly zone for the prince and his eagle, the lone slayer moves to defend the flame cannon and the thunderers from possible charges and the rangers move towards the artillery on the hill, with the gyro covering their rear from the seaguard.
In the shooting phase, the BT and quarellers kill 4 swordmasters, the rangers put their thrown axes to good use, resulting in 4 dead seaguard (They were on the hill, so all 13 rangers could shoot them). The gyrocopter fails to repeat its previous feat, but the flame cannon takes a pot shot at the eagle, wounding it once.
Some action is had on the left, where the dragon slayer accepts the noble's challenge. After some horrible rolls, the dragon slayer is still standing despite the 4 re-rollable attacks that hit him! He does better, chopping the noble's head off with his great axe. Between them, miners and slayers kill the chariot, and the riderless eagle flees to safety behind the swordmasters. Luckily for the slayers, their overrun move is just enough to get out of the elven elite's arc of sight. Other combats are uneventful, no wounds are dealt and everyone holds.
TURN 3 - HE
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...t%2012/HE3.jpg
The ealge spots the quarellers' flank and charges in! I hold, knowing from experience that sooner or later the eagle will fluff its attacks, take a wound for its troubles and flee away. The gyrocopter redirects the seaguard from the rangers' rear, falling into the woods and dying in the process. The dead noble's eagle rallies, prince comes back to haunt the dwarves. Other moves include the mage bailing out of the swordmasters (who advance towards the slayers) and the seaguard on the hill backing away from the longbeards.
Magic is uneventful, as the mage's efforts to cast the shield of asuryan on the swordmasters and the flames of the phoenix on the slayers are nullified by the runesmith.
The elven arrows fare better, amounting for 4 dead rangers (RBT and seaguard) and another 4 dead thunderers, victims of the prince's flank shot.
In combat, the bsb and eagle deal 3 wounds on the runesmith, but dwarven gromril proves its worth, keeping him alive. He can't wound the elf back, who loses combat by 3 but holds. The eagle kills a single quareller for a tied combat. In the miner/helm fight, the dwarves go crazy and kill both knights with their picks, taking their banner.
TURN 3 - Dwarves
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...rt%2012/D3.jpg
The lonbeards open the turn by charging into the RBT, barely making contact. The dragon slayer decides against charging the prince, whose stand and shoot would probably kill the naked dwarf before he got to strike. Lots of maneuvering for the dwarves: Miners run into the face of the swordmasters, preparing a trap with the troll slayers and dragon slayer. If the swordmasters charge the miners, their overrun will take them into the lone dragon slayer, leaving them exposed to a flank charge from his troll-slaying counterparts. The banner-totting miners enter the house and decide to pass their winter inside. Finally, the thunderers turn to threaten the prince with a stand-and-shoot reaction, should he decide to charge, and the lone slayer stays close to the flame cannon, ready to defend it.
Shooting sees the death of 2 swordmasters to quareller bolts, but the main event is the bolt thower: It targets the prince (47" away!), hits, randomises on the eagle but only deals two wounds.
Combat: Longbeards dispatch the rbt crew and overrun into the seaguard. The eagle munches another quareller, staying in combat. In the warrior combat, no wounds are dealt but the battle banner rolls a "5" once more and the warriors decide they've seen enough! They leg it, leaving the daemon slayer to deal with the elf and his pet.
TURN 4- HE
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...t%2012/HE4.jpg
The swordmasters take the bait and charge the miners, the prince goes for the flame cannon, both targets stand. The unengaged seaguard move towards the longbeards, threatening their rear and the silverhelms angle themselves better to charge the slayers next turn.
In the magic phase the lone wizard once more fails to cast the flames of the phoenix, the rest is stopped.
With no shooting to speak of, we move to the combat phase. The prince and eagle kill two of the crewmen, the survivor fails to cause the last wound to the eagle, then fluffs his break test and runs. Thankfullly for the dwarves, Homer only rolled 6" for pursuit, leaving my fleeing warrior unit intact and his prince in charge range of my dragon slayer. The eagle flanking the quarellers kills yet another one, drawing the combat. (i really need to get some musicians for them!)
In the bsb combat, the elf fails to wound the daemon slayer, who wounds the elf back for a total of 5 wounds (d6 wounds weapon), breaks the eagle but restrains his pursuit. The longbeards beat the seaguard and send them fleeing off the table, losing one of their number to the elven spears.
Finally, the swordmasters make short work of the miners and overrun into the dragon slayer. That's when the flaw in my battleplan became apparent: The swordmasters perform a tactical wheel and hit the dragonslayer in such a way that presents their front to the trollslayers, disarming my trap!
TURN 4 - Dwarves
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...rt%2012/D4.jpg
Trapped in the snares of their own trap, the slayers decide to charge anyway! Due to the dragon slayer's placement, only 3 dwarves can fight, leaving the rest of the unit exposed to the silverhelms' charge next turn. The unengaged dragon slayer charges the prince in the rear (no stand and shoot for you, mr elf!), daemon slayer charges the eagle next to him, who flees off the table. In remaining moves, the thunderers reform yet again to face the dead BSB's mount, making me reminisce of the good old days when handguns used to be move-AND-fire. The longbeards turn to face the remaining seaguard. Warriors with runesmith rally.
Shooting doesn't dissappoint: The bolt thrower spots the silver helms' flank and kills three of them in one go! Quarellers wound the lone mage once, despite needing 6's to hit! The longbeard rangers continue their streak, killing four seaguard with their axes.
Combat: The eagle kills another quareller and draws the fight, giving us both a feeling of deja vu. The dragon slayer deals a wound to the elf prince, suffers none back and locks the elf lord into place for another turn. In the main event, the swordmaster champion turns down the Dragon slayers' challenge, leaving two swordmasters to attack the hero and another two to strike against the dual-wielding troll slayers. Imagine my delight when the hero didn't suffer any wounds, the unit only suffered two casualties and in retaliation two swordmasters were killed! The dwarves win combat by one, causing the elven elite to flee. To add to the insult, they are ran down by the troll slayers, who pursue into the last 2 silver helms (they flee).
TURN 5 - HE
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...t%2012/HE5.jpg
Fleeing eagle rallies, silverhelms fail to do so due to lack of musician and keep on fleeing. The 2 remaining seaguard back away from the longbeards, mage moves away from quarellers as well.
With the banner of sorcery gone, magic is shut down completely.
In combat, the elf prince and his mount fail to wound the dragon slayer once more and in return he inflicts three wounds on the general, killing him! The eagle fails its reaction test and becomes unbreakable. To top it off, the eagle engaged with the quarellers fails to wound them,but holds.
TURN 5 - Dwarves
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...rt%2012/D5.jpg
The last two turns have been disastrous for the elves, meaning that all the dwarves have to do is mop up. Warriors fail to charge the eagle, longbeards advance towards the seaguard.
In the shooting phase, the seaguard are wiped out, the eagle suffers a wound to the dwarven handguns and the BT snipes one of the fleeing silverhelms, getting them under 25% and rendering them unable to rally.
In combat the prince's eagle is killed and the quareller/eagle dance continues as normal.
TURN 6 AND ENDGAME
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/e...12/ENDGAME.jpg
Wounded eagle charges the thunderers, kills two and runs them down, lone mage is killed by shooting and the other eagle takes the quarellers under half strength. When the dust settles down, only two eagles remain from the elven force...
RESULT: VICTORY to the Dwarves!
AFTERMATH:
That went really well for me! Barring three or four failed break tests that weren't of consequence, the rolls favored me all game long. Looking back, the mismatch of the lists and some crucial rolls are what turned an evenly matched game to a massacre.
Key moments:
-The elven deployment left half the dwarven army out of position! Out of all the dwarven shooting, only a single unit of quarellers and the bolt thrower got any shots at all!
-The gyrocopter burning half the seaguard, effectively freeing the longbeards to clear the hill and take out the surviving elves in the closing stages of the game.
-The elven BSB getting Challenged and breaking the warriors single-handedly after 4 rounds of combat.
-The lone slayers performed admirably: Daemon Slayer got the BSB and an eagle, left Dragon Slayer evaded Loec Noble's blows, killed him and then stopped the swordmasters on their tracks! The right hand Dragon Slayer did even better, killing the High Elf Lord! Needless to say, luck played a big part in this, as did their toughness of 5 and the lack of any strength-boosting equipment on the nobles.
-Blasting charges did well, causing some wounds and tipping the balance of the silver helm fight.
-The left miners holding the chariot/noble charge was huge, as it saved the entire left flank.
All in all, a very entertaining game against an ace opponent. Renassance Homer is always a fun guy, even when luck kills half his army and that's something I'd really like to learn how to do.
So that's all for this installment of Look Snorri!
Feel free to post criticism, questions, praise or suggestions before you leave!
Until the next time,
Happy_doctor
Originally Posted by King Thurgun
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I think your turn 1 shooting, alas, set the scene for what was to come. Thanks for the well written report 
Malorian
