Thursday, April 9, 2009

HOTT Campaign Play-Test: Autumn 823

(refer to the map here: Campaign Map)

And so it was in the dwindling months of the campaigning season that things really heated up…

As the weeks rolled by and their King did not return to the capitol the Nordlanders believed him dead or captured. Either way it was determined by his Jarls that the King must be recovered. Hastened by their fury they arrived at Hammar while the Dwarves were still mopping up and preparing for their march to Starsgard. The lines arrayed and the Nordlanders charged. Despite the Nordlanders fury the Dwarves stood firm like rocks and with each repeated charge the Nordlanders numbers were reduced. They fought like this all day until they could simply no longer stand for, and as night fell the survivors crawled back towards Starsgard. The Nordlanders were decimated, but it stalled the dwarves advance on their capitol.

As winter approached Njal Rorikson, King of the Nord escaped the clutches of the dwarves and staggered into his capitol half-blind, frostbitten, his beard shaved, wearing women’s clothes and smelling fiercely of manure… There was little to rejoice only time to sharpen their swords and make preparations for the spring when they would exact their retribution on the treacherous Dwarves…

To the east The Orcs siege continued. The humans held on with fierce determination and faith that someone would come to end their plight. That some one was King Aethelbert (the Almost Ready). He lifted his siege on Relais and sailed back to defend his new found lands in the north – the Anglaw. The battle was long and bloody, but largely one-sided…?! The Orcs took a sever thrashing and were in the end obliged to give up their siege and retire to Nalgabad.

Meanwhile, however, King Chrisitankhamun V, tried by the Orcs stalling at returning his territories had marched on Nalgabad to forcibly evict the squatters! The Orcs holed up in the ancient fortress and a siege dragged on throughout the season. As the campaign season drew to a close it was becoming apparent the Orcs would not give up before winter. When the Orc field army arrived, depleted though it was, King Chrisitankhamun V decided it was time to retire to winter quarters in Amundabad.

In the South the Narns made preparations to pursue the severely depleted Elf Army to Quewedel. But before they could the Elves returned to battle them again.

This we again played out. You can see the report here:

Second Battle of Lyeldil

The Narns would not make it to Quewedel this year… but the Elves were left with no Field Army to Speak of!!! They held onto their capitol and one other Island but what hope have they of defending it!? There would be little chance for them to raise much of a new army from scratch before the spring…

Perhaps the Age of the Elves draws to a close and it is time they abandoned men to their fate, board their ships and sail off to the undying lands over the ocean…


Shall we continue…? When I started this I completely forgot hat this weekend was a long weekend. Is anyone going to be around to play a second year. If everyone’s game I’ll keep it going for one more year as planned. If everyone’s going to be too damn busy doing family stuff I’m okay with calling it here – I’ve got a pretty good idea of how things are going. I have a lot of questions for you all about various issues that might need to be worked out. Alternatively we could suspend things for the weekend and pick it up again on Monday….?

Here is the situation at the close of the year. The second number in the Field Army size is the size of the Field army that will be ready in the spring.

If everyone’s good to go let me know where you want your field armies located in the spring!

Orcland
Field Army Location: Nalgabad
Field Army Size: 10AP – 20AP
Areas Controlled: Korrt*, Underyun, Garlac, Nalgabad
Prestige Points: 4

Amundala
Field Army Location: Amundabad
Field Army Size: 10AP – 16AP
Areas Controlled: Amundabad*, Tashaklabad
Prestige Points: 0

Narn
Field Army Location: Lyeldil
Field Army Size: 11AP – 21AP
Areas Controlled: Nean*, Boulgeaus, Relais, Lyeldil
Prestige Points: 17

Dwarvia
Field Army Location: Hammar
Field Army Size: 22AP – 24AP
Areas Controlled: Bohl-dur*, Harra-dur, Khalin-dur, Behln-dur, Hammar
Prestige Points: 20

Nordland
Field Army Location: Starsgard
Field Army Size: 6AP – 10AP
Areas Controlled: Starsgard*
Prestige Points: 0

Angland
Field Army Location: Sykl
Field Army Size: 18AP – 24AP
Areas Controlled: Galordon*, Scael, Morgond, Sykl
Prestige Points: 22

Eilf
Field Army Location: Quewedel
Field Army Size: 0AP – 6AP
Areas Controlled: Quewedel*, Andild,
Prestige Points: 0

10 comments:

  1. LOL - I find it amazing that Cory can still have his typical bullshit good luck while Tim is the one rolling the dice...

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  2. Would the Angles not have ended up in Sykl?

    Anyways, I think we should by all means do a second season, although I am going to be away from tomorrow until Mon sometime.

    I think we should have a bit of discussion about rule refinement before we begin, however.

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  3. yeah it kind of blew me away too!? i thought of fudging some results... but really, what's the point - it's just a play-test... It'll be over in a couple days..

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  4. I even used a Fallcon die for him!?

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  5. No wonder, the Fallcon die - well, lets just say I don't want to jinx the Fallcon die. I like the Fallcon die.

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  6. Yes.. yes... Sykl... fixed!

    I'm sorry I'm half asleep - too many late, late nights this week.

    I think I'd rather press on with the rules as they are or just stop.

    I have a LOT of questions that I think will generate a LOT of discussion. To halt and start again after the discussion and subsequent rewriting of the rules... well, I'd rather just start again!!

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  7. But whenever I've mistakenly grabbed the fallcon die and used it in any game I'm playing all it ever rolls is the Fallcon logo (the ONE!?)

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  8. This is because you have been to Fallcon. The die wants those of us who have not been, to go. And so it lures us, and tries to make us think happy thoughts...

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  9. It is a little weird, yes. BTW, I don't call it luck, I call it DBA-fu. It's nice to see that it works long distance.

    I don't think you should fudge rolls Tim. That could open the door to all sorts of micro management...

    I'm having a blast. Everybody's in character, and I get a good laugh every day when I come home.

    I vote we break over the weekend, and keep going...

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  10. I thought I was the only one with the Fallcon dice curse. I actually sort through dice at friend's houses to take them out as they always, always roll 1's for me. Weird.

    So far a great campaign!

    Bob in Edmonton

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