Warhammer Underworlds - Crimson Court (B)eats EVERYTHING!?

 Tuesday evening Orion came over for a few one-on-one games of Warhammer Underworlds! We ended up getting in THREE games! 

GAME ONE 

Crimson Court vs Blackpowder's Buccaneers

Because I am a masochist, apparently, and feel like I need to play all the warbands a few times to get a sense of whether they're ever going to be good (because the THREE PREVIOUS BEATDOWNS were apparently not enough!?) I rolled out with Blackpowder's Buccaneers...

(Okay, technically I didn't lose all three of those previous games... I only lost one... but I do also have to acknowledge that the ONLY reason I won the first two was a clever combination of extreme luck with cards draws and insane luck with dice rolls AND Amanda not really knowing how to play the Dread Pageant for the first few matches...)

All set up for Game One... I think Orion won all three rolls for board placement and had me go first each time. This time I chose The Stricken Swamp board and then Orion took The Iceswirl Maw and set them up with long edges adjoining. 

Straight off, Gorath swooped into my territory and smashed poor little Peggz... 

Kagey ran off into enemy territory, along with Mange the monkey, and, I think successfully pinged Prince Duvall for one damage and scored a swag token (which later allowed Blackpowder to fire his Gunderbuss TWICE in the first round, scoring me one Glory... and also inspiring him) 

Prince Duvall killed the little monkey and before getting to inspire, Blackpowder was attacked by Vellas and then Ennias... 

At the beginning of Round Two Blackpowder was inspired, for what it was worth...

But was quickly mobbed by the vampires and taken down. He went down swinging... but, like, swinging and missing... Maybe it's NOT just Amanda... maybe it's ANYONE that plays me... I'd roll three successes, Orion rolled a single crit... I'd roll a Crit, Orion rolled a Crit and a success, I rolled a crit and a success, Orion rolled two Crits... I just COULD! NOT! HIT! ANYTHING!?

And that left poor little Kagey, who tried to hide in the corner... 

But those vampires move fast! 

Kagey did manage to dodge Gorath's initial attack... 

But could not dodge Vellas von Faine... 

So... what now...? we spent the last two activations cycling through objective cards... I drew nothing useful... 

But Orion scored a few more... Ha! Look at that! I made her run out of her fancy acrylic token and made her start using CARDBOARD ONES.... yay...!?

I lost this one 21-4... wow... 

Am I DONE with Blackpowder yet? Hell no!! I'll probably try to figure out SOMETHING with a Nemesis deck and maybe just get rid of all the cards having to do with Swag and the Gunderbuss and just focus on the maneuverability they have with the monkey and birbs reactions and Blackpowders GREAT BIG CUTLASS!? 

Honestly, sometimes I feel a little like Bruce McCulloch in that Kids in the Hall sketch where he picks a fight and just won't stop... 

GAME TWO

Crimson Court vs Ephilim's Pandaemonium

I thought I'd try something different in Game Two and pulled out Ephilim's Pandaemonium, which I'd just finished painting the day before... They can't be that bad... the tabled the Thricefold Discord in teh second round when I played against them! Mind you, my opponent had not only read their cards beforehand, had played with them before and had a Nemesis deck built around them... I had done none of these things, so.... 

Again I lost the board set up roll and took Frost-wracked Ruins from the Deathgorge Core Box. Orion took The Seamsplit Folly from Wyrdhollow... 

Prince Duvall killed Apo'Trax on the first activation. I had a spell that could bring back one of my Changers (the little daemon friends are all called "Changers")... which I actually successfully cast and brought right back... only for Ennais to swoop in and kill again in the very next activation... Those Glory were enought to equip Gorath with... enough upgrades to swoop in a kill Ephilim... which kind of destroyed any chance of this not being at total disaster... 

Flame spooler hit Ennais with his magic flame attack, which spilled over onto Price Duvall - which was enough to take him out at the beginning of Round Two (as he had been bitten by Apo'Trax!) 

Ennais was also taken out, largely with Damage from Flamespooler. Spawnmaw managed to CHOMP Gorath... but, again, less than half of my attacks succeeded because ALL THE CRITS?!

And they were totally wiped out by the beginning of the Third Round.

Aye-yi-yi.... I lost this one 22-6... not sure if that better...? 

GAME THREE

Crimson Court vs Magore's Fiends

I decided maybe I needed something... EASIER to play... It doesn't get much easier than the CHARGE! KILL! tactics of Magore's Fiends!? And Amanda had put together a Nemesis deck for them with Tooth and Claw, so.... 

It played fast and furious - I didn't even remember to take a picture until part way through the first round, by which time ALL of the fighters were engaged in a bit brawl in the middle of the battlefield! 

The Blood Warriors took down Vellas, but lost Ghartok. They took down Gorath, but then lost Magore... Riptooth shredded Ennias.. 

And that left Prince Duvall facing Zharkus the Bloodsighted and Riptooth... But Zharkus couldn't hit anything... 

And Prince Duvall finished him off and successfully dodged teh last of Riptooth's attacks... 

Ah well... I didn't lose this one quite as badly. Orion only doubled my Glory total at 14-7. So, there's that... 

Yeah... I don't know what to DO about these vampires... they are NASTY!? I thought Hexbane's Hunters were bad!? But these guys just start scoring objectives on the first turn and just keep scoring them all throughout the game... and then equip with so many crazy upgrades which make them simultaneously way deadlier and also way harder to kill!? 

I don't hear about them dominating the competitive scene... (one player did make it to the finals at the Las Vegas Open this year with them, I think... but didn't win!?)  So there must be some way to beat them. Roll better dice, I guess!?