HOTT Night without the Kids

The kids were having a sleep over at their grandparents. What are two young(-ish) parents to do on an evening without their kids…? Let me tell you the action was HOTT and furious!

Amanda reprised her role as leader of the elves though there were some more changes to the composition of her army. She has come to the conclusion that “magicians aren’t that useful” and desperately wanted to try out the Riders and additional Knights – she’s a girl… girls like horsies… what can I say..?

Due to their lack of sensible military tactics (and their propensity to just blow up?!) we have both abandoned the idea of letting out magicians run our armies and instead left that job to some trusty foot soldiers…

FORCES

The Army of the Elf Queen Amandalyll

1x Blade General
1x Blade
1x Magician
2x Knights
2x Riders
3x Shooters
2x Lurkers

The Army of the Witch Queen Maevella

1xBlade General
1x Magician (Witch Queen Maevella)
1x Beasts (Wolves)
2x Warband (Nekid Warrior Fanatics)
6x Blade (Norse Mercenaries)

THE GAME

Dicing for who was attacker I rolled the first of many sixes I would roll this evening… so Amanda set up the terrain and I picked a favoured side, which I didn’t get, but things could have been worse…

(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


After much agonizing over where things should go… (she’s all, like, thinking tactics and stuff… darn it she’s catching on!) Amanda finally has her battle line set up.


The two opposing forces set up. I have a pair of Warband I thought I might run around the far flank just to create some havoc – it was also the closest to the Elf Blade, furthest from the Elf Knights, and it would keep her riders busy for a bit…


After a turn or two of ponderous moving.


The Warband and riders clash. They spent a number of turns shoving each other back and forth, and a few just standing about pushing and going no where…


Her left archers moved into the woods – hoping to menace the flank of my main line. so I sent the beasts in there to cause them some trouble… yes, I knew she had lurkers. If nothing else I figured throwing the beasts in there would cause a traffic jam in the woods especially if she deployed both lurkers. Well, deploy them both she did, clever little monkey…


The wolves managed to scare off the menacing little leprechauns. The next bound they turned and ate the Dryads.


The bound after that the Leprechauns were back with some Elf archers to assist them….


…and that was the end of the wolves in the woods… She also managed to bring around two stands of archers to the edge of the woods, threatening the flank of my main line…


I tried to turn art of my line and somewhere in the process lost a stand of blade… I can’t remember if it was the shooters or the Magician, and I can’t remember if they got REALLY lucky or if the recoiled into friendlies facing the wrong direction… I have a feeling it was the latter on both accounts.

The Elf knights charged into the split line of blades and there was much shoving back and forth for a turn or two.


Things went downhill for the elves for a bit. The Blades on the hill overwhelmed the Elvish knights – taking out BOTH!! In cone case it was an incredibly lucky roll, in the other I caused them to recoil while I had frontal contact with their flank.

The same turn they lost a stand of archers – they had come out of the woods to shoot at my line - because I made a point of staying at least 200 paces away from the edge of the woods. When they did my blade moved in and wrecked their line, forcing one to retire back into the woods and knocking out another.


After many turns of back and forth and not a few of just standing facing each other yelling and exchanging jeers and insults and taunting each other (as neither general could spare the pips to move them back into contact)… the elves finally got the upper hand. One turn they got lucky and took out one of the warbands, the following turn they flanked the second one and it was all over.


Meanwhile, I was desperately trying to reform some semblance of a battle line. What I SHOULD have done was backed everyone up and set up a line on that nice big, long hill… but for some reason I brought the line forward to chase the archers back into the woods. (it’s the impetuous Irish in me…).


The elf archers reformed their line at the edge of the woods and waited for me while their riders came galloping around the woods to attack from the rear.


Should have just waited here…


A shout rose up from the Viking line that would chill the soul of the bravest soldier and then they charged down the hill at the archers in the woods! GRARRR!!!


It worked out no too bad as I somehow managed to knock out one of the stands of archers…?!


Then the riders got to my Magician.


There was a bit of shoving back and forth there for a bit.


Back into the fray!


Though I managed to force the elf magician and archers to recoil back into the woods – I’d be damned if I followed elves into the woods – The elf riders saved me from having to actually consider that option by surrounding the magician and knocking her out, ending the game.

Conclusions


Amanda pleased with the performance of the Elvish Riders. At first I think she was a little underwhelmed by their lack of combat factor and quick-kill abilities, but then realized their potential to turn a flank and gallop about the enemies rear… and was very much pleased. I think they will be a regular feature in her future forces.

Maybe I should get some Centaurs for her… build a whole army of them, modeling them on the Scythians or Mongols or something….

Losses

Elves
2x Knights
2x Shooters
1x Lurker

Vikings
2x Warband
1x Blade
1x Beast
1x Magician