I decided to start a game of WHFB to test out the rules I've learned and decide whether to pick up some starter models. I just got halfway through this game in session as I placed an order for the BoSP set and a Bretonnian batallion box.
Basically, I cut out some proxy bases using heavy cardboard and set up a 1500-point game of Bretonnians versus Tomb Kings, using entires and lists I decided upon earlier (unit preference and monetary cost was a partial factor), controlling both myself. The rulebooks on hand were the armies' respective books plus a $7 copy of Warhammer 6th edition, complete with worn spine and cigarette odor. I read through the rules a couple times beforehand, noting its differences from 40,000, and did my best to add the updated rules from 7th (chiefly ranks and magic, but no psychology in close combat played a huge part.)
TL;DR: Turn-by turn photographed battle report, knights VS mummies, using cardboard stand-ins.
Here's the pre-game setup, before I reconfirmed and adjusted a few unit sizes and use of ranks:
All images are taken from this position, for better evaluation of my ignorant attempts at strategy.
Tomb Kings marked with gold and skulls, Brets in blue, you probably could tell. For the Brets, their two knight units (far flanking sides) are lead by the army's Paladin and Army Battle Standard Bearer, The Baron Lionel d'Arden and Sir Gael, respectively. At the back of the force is the trebuchet and three Pegasus Knights. The other four units are two Men-at-Arms and two Peasant Bowmen. I changed the bowmen's formations each into a single rank of sixteen peasants behind defensive steaks, moving the Paladin's knights further down, and brought the MaA's numbers to their actual sixteen, placing them both in front of the trebuchet. The lower bowmen unit also contains a lvl 2 Damsel of the Lady, taking The Wolf Hunts and The Bear's Anger as her spells.
I've marked the Tomb Prince's 30-some unit of Skeleton Spearmen, the Liche Priest's light Horsemen bodyguard, and four Ushabti. The Prince is flanked by two units of skeleton archers purely to take up space, with six heavy horsemen at the top of the image and four Chariots along the bottom. I brought the Prince's skeletons to their listed number and reformed the Horsemen units for better use of rank bonuses (or lack of them).
The two objects in the middle of the table are a cardboard box and a film tin. I guess they count as impassable rocks or something. Picture the battlefield as plane along the cliff-side coastlines of Tilea, if you want.
I'll write up the first set of rounds in turn 1, but first let's get this battle started.
Tomb Kings VS Bretonnians GO!
Posts
The Brets prayed to the Lady and got their ward save. Tomb Kings gave them time to go first.
Knights and Men-at-Arms began by marching forward, spreading out slightly. The Damsel Aurore hastens the Baron's movement with The Wolf Hunts, which immediately afterwards I considered may have been a rash decision, but such a worry would matter not to the knights anyway.
The Trebuchet let loose a block of stone into thePriest's bodyguard, crushing two undead horsemen under its massive weight. No charges, additional shots, or further notable events occurred.
Tomb Kings Turn 1
(At this point my power went out for a 24 winter storm. Had to rely on a flash for photos until it was too dark to read the rule books for the rest of the day.)
The Prince's army moves steadily forward, Horsemen arcing in response to the swiftly-approaching knights. The Chariot unit wheels around and attempts to take a position behind an obstacle, ready to strike out at approaching units.
Incantations are automatically cast but are swiftly dispelled by some dame with good luck with dispel rolls. Similarly, shots are fired by the archers but nothing gets past the sheer amount of armor carried by their foes. Only little Timmy Tinkletop is slain, taking an Asp arrow to the stomach, which only encourages the lord's men, because god damn did they hate that whiny Tinkletop fuck. His place is refilled and their was much rejoicing.
CHARGE!
All three knightly units raise their arms and declare their targets as their first action in this new turn! Their heroic advance can be thusly summed:
Sir Gael, Ghoul-Slayer, Champion of the Living and Defender of Life, gets all pussy-footed over sixteen skeletons and has a change of heart. I may have to change his knightly title if this becomes a trend.
Aurore takes on the Anger of the Bear and gains combat boosts from her comfy firing line. In retrospect she could have reasonably accompanied the Men-at-Arms. I guess I was thinking too chivalrously.
Men-at-Arms progress into the middle of the field, bowmen pick off a couple skeleton archers at long-range.
The Trebuchet reveals its true potential in a way I can only describe thusly:
Ten skeletons are obliterated when a block bowls directly over half of them, deviating only slightly from the center of the Tomb Prince's entourage.
Close combat is next settled. The Pegasus trio tangles with the skeleton chariots, but their fail to impart wounds and are discarded for a protracted scuffle.
The Baron, on the other hand, takes note of the trebuchet's tactics and smashes mercilessly through the line of Skeleton Horsemen. Ten lance blows are brought to bear upon the undead riders, whose defenses fail utterly to block a square half-dozen blows from bypassing their armor. 'It's a massacre!', as they say in the far future! Lionel directs the formation onward into the flank of four Ushabti. How will they fair against these towering autonomous obelisks? It's another fearful concern with no place in their hearts, filled now with only victory.
The round ends for the Bretonnians in this condition:
Tomb Kings Turn 2
Couple things went on that changed the balance, both on individual battles and on the big picture. Archers reformed, top ones turned around and charged the knights, while the bottom unit spread out and brought more shots into the approaching peasants, killing two. The Prince brought himself closer to the foray using magical urgency, while the Liche was again disrupted by the Bretonnian Damsel's dispelling abilities.
The dumb choice pulled here was for the Liche Priest to charge the Men-at-Arms, simple as that. "Oh , it's just a dozen wimpy, scared little men, and you've got fear-causing riders and horses. So what?"
1) They still outnumbered his bodyguard
2) Their combat skills were roughly comparable
3) They had three full ranks
4) And a banner
5) And their Yeoman Warden didn't give a shit about skeletons. "Lootkit 'em, they ain't got no meat on them bones! *I* ain't scared of 'em!" He said as he spat upon the ground, which he proceeded to hold.
Five points to not have charged. Five points factored into combat results which caused the bodyguard to lose three members to their one. They were meant to skirt around the army and take pot-shots, not take on units that could not be outnumbered. It wouldn't be long for the army's heirophant, and thus the undead themselves.
The Paladin's unit lost two knights from all the skeletons and Ushabti, who could then turn to face their attackers. The wounds on the skeleton chariots racked up, losing two.
Sir Gael rallies the butterflies in his stomach and finally charges the Skeleton Archers. His Men-at-Arms take heed and join in the combat.
A hat-trick of accuracy is performed by their Trebuchet upon six of the Tomb Prince's warriors, combined with four kills from the peasant Bowmen.
Mark that one on the scorecard, it's a decent spare for the Brets!
The banner-bearer's knights are able to roll over the skeletons with the additional kills made by the MaAs. Eight skellies fall by these attacks alone and another eight crumble from their refusal to break or flee. The Men-at-Arms decide to take their adrenaline rush over into the Tomb Prince's depleted ranks. This is bad news for him, as they'll ignore his terror and will take no psychology tests during the melee.
Another chariot is torn apart from losing the fight, while the Baron's knights make no progress on their Ushabti challengers. Perhaps they can focus some of their attacks on the flanking skeletons, but I didn't take that tactic into consideration.
Tomb Kings Turn 3
Things are looking grim for the Tomb Kings, and not in the way the like. Already by the beginning of turn 2 al of their counter-attack units were either destroyed or charged by cavalry. At the halfway mark they're now dealing with two units wiped out and another three severely depleted. The Brets have been taking too much advantage of CC and overrun psychology, running over weak units and into stronger ones without thought, and sticking in protracted fights without fear.
And then there's that damn Liche Priest.
As nobody's able to move or shoot outside their losing melees, the Tomb Prince immediately calls out for some magical assistance. His attempt at Vengeance is dispelled by the Lady's agent, who then drinks from her chalice in preparation for further dispells. She rolls a failure and takes an unfortunate wound. There's 60 victory points the undead can at least look forward to. The Priest takes his own survival as priority and summons two of his bodyguard horsemen back into being.
The Prince's unit is left with what little warriors it still has, which are further reduced by the Yeoman Warden and his adjacent men. The Ushabti land a couple deadly blows on their Knightly targets, reducing the unit to five. They continue to hold despite this setback.
The priest's fresh horsemen help little as the Peasants strike down with more wounds and overpowering resolution bonuses. The Priest falls along with the army's binging magic. The skeleton archers lose one of their number from this, but the rest of the army seems to have enough will to keep themselves together.
So there you have it. I'm off to play another turn but I have doubts it will last much longer.
Bretonnians Turn 4
With all undead units tied up in combat, Sir Gael wheels around to assist Baron Lionel by charging the Ushabti in the back.
The charge of course falls short, and even a boost from the Damsel leaves them but a few inches away. They should be able to make it next round.
Unless the undead finally scares the shit out of three units.
The Liche-slaying Yeoman, unphased by skeletal horsemen and mummy warlocks, loses all resolve at the hideous golden visage of the nameless Prince and bolts in the opposite direction. He does rally in the following turn, for the record.
The Baron Lionel, on the other hand, loses his break test when reduced to three knights. One Ushabti finally fell but with the loss of their second rank they turned around and fled off the board. I can only hope for their sake they're preparing a new counter-offensive (which might make for an interesting warband game if I had more than cardboard squares to play with). The sight of this throws Sir Gael the Army Banner Bearer into a panic, turning around and running four inches.
What a mess. There were no unengaged targets to shoot, so the Bowmen abandoned their defensive posts and moved further inward.
Tomb Kings Turn 4
Tomb Kings, being undead bastards, will keep on fighting even when loss is inevitable not for the hope for success but the vengeance of ensuring you don't win, either.
The Ushabti turn around and charge the remaining Knights, slaying one in the ensuing rear attack. The Pegasus flying circus is at last untangled as the final chariot is torn apart, earning their points back at this late stage in the game.
Finally, with all his entourage at last destroyed, the Tomb Prince steps up and bears his might upon the peasant crowd. He saves all wounds and refuses to yield further, becoming instead overwhelmed by the mob. The damning curse uttered beneath his death mask as they tear him apart chills their souls; a half-dozen of the Men-at-Arms simply drop dead.
That said, I think you might want to split up those chariots and place half on your other flank. They need the room to manouvre and they might actually be able to do something other than giving your opponent some free points. >_>
Use them to charge into the flank of an already engaged unit for instarapingimpact goodness.
The TK Chariot unit minimum is 3, they're lighter than the standard versions, and though my intent was to ram the enemy in the side, I set up the Brets for the same tactic and got both flanking units charged on turn 2. A problem which could have been alleviated if the TKs went first and avoided those Pegasus Knights.
But the game just got finished at the top of turn 6. I'm about the upload the last images and start the last 3 round writeups.
No charges occur this round as the Bretonnians struggle to reorganize their forces.
The bowmen move further forward as the MaA rally and press their way toward the remaining undead. The Pegasus drop into the middle of the board and remain available for a counter-attack. The Trebuchet's luck runs out and scatters a rock eight inches away from anything.
Finally, Sir Gael's knights take another casualty and flee further away from the Ushabti. The constructs decide pursuit of cavalry would be futile hold, prioritizing weaker units and the protection of their flanks from attack.
Tomb Kings Turn 5
The Ushabti charge unrelenting into the closest Men-at-Arms regiment. The trio cut down all but the Yeoman, who attempts to flee. Having survived charging a rank of skeletons, held up against two turns against a terrorizing Tomb Prince entourage and withstood his curse, and escaped the initial charge from towering Ushabti, the Yeoman is at last cut down as he runs. Poor bastard will probably be forgotten after his own wage-payed funeral.
Bretonnians Last Turn
Now if the Tomb Kings had pulled off this kind of maneuver earlier in the game, they wouldn't have lost so badly.
The Pegasus knights swoop over the remaining archers, wipe them out to the last skeleton, and promptly return back to the middle of the battlefield. Meanwhile, the Damsel attempts to muster the peasant regiment to charge the last undead units, but as they are 15-foot tall Ushabti even she lacks the courage. Instead, she spots Sir Gael and his Knights of the Realm, wheeling in a great arc and approaching the constructs' side. She summons the Bear's Anger upon the Army Standard Bearer to grant him enough strength to ensure the enemy is destroyed.
The knights charge, taking the Ushabti down to the last construct's final wound. Outmatched and overrun, the great statue forces all its might onto Sir Gael himself, now fighting like a fierce beast with his mere hands. Two blows from an ancient ritual blade chop through the hero's armor, ending his life. The Ushabti thus collapses and is trampled in the wake of horses.
In conclusion: The Tomb Kings were completely wiped out, all 1500 points, greatly due to some poor strategic choices and bad luck with so many counter-attack units getting tide up early on. The Bretonnians lost two Heroes, a third wounded, one whole knights units fled the board with one MaA regiment wiped. The Trebuchet smashed more than double its point cost, and though the bowmen kept themselves a little too defensive for fighting such an enemy the Damsel pulled some pretty spiffy shit from her place among them; I'm glad I upgraded her to lvl 2. The Knights didn't do as much as I was hoping (particularly the Baron of Arden), though Sir Gael's sacrifice made quite a show at the end. The real show-stoppers were the Men-at-Arms, taking on two hero-lead undead units roughly eaqual to their numbers.
And yet after the battle, the Baron will return, say 'jolly goode battle, men' to the remaining knights, pay the remaining peasants a penny each for their survival bounty, and not a damn thing will be said for either Yeoman. God I love Bretonnia. :P
I learned a lot form the experience (running through the phases sure got a lot quicker later on), but it probably would have been more interesting for everyone else if I had actual miniatures and could justify close-up photos instead of a distant strategic perspective.
Now where Morskittar when I need him...
They seem to play pretty well from what I can tell from a single game. Fear does factor into preventing charges, thus the Tomb Kings could afford to play a bit more defensively and spread out a bit (again part of the trouble with using a 4'x4'6" space). Considering the fact that:
1) The Liche charged like a moron.
2) The Tomb Prince lost 20 skeletons from two bullseye trebuchet hits
3) The Prince was subsequently flanked fearlessly by a dozen peasants and whittled down without his intervention
4) The Bret's BASB Paladin sacrificed himself to wipe out three Ushabti.
That totals over 900 points. Assuming they survived over 50% the Tomb Kings would have won by a slight margin. It was a matter of poor strategy and tactical decisions, not taking advantage of their strengths and not recognizing weaknesses in practice. I have a clear grasp on Bretonnia's playstyle, hence picking them as my main army, but Tomb Kings I'd need to play some more actual games.
Maybe I'll write up another report here for a second game, albeit a little less wordy.
Only unpainted, partially assembled figures will ever roll as well. As compared to the horror of a newly painted unit routing on the first turn. Every time. Ever.
I finally found my way to this thread, Utsanomiko. Good stuff!
I've only played against Tomb Kings a few times, and it was never pretty. They seem to rely on forcing attrition more than anything else, but they're fragile enough you need to do it in unison. I've never seen them successful in person, but I'd imagine it would be a "start slow, grind the enemy to paste by turn five" kind of thing. The suffer from all the weaknesses of undead, but don't have blinding surprise attacks and insane hard-hitters like Vampire Counts.
Bretonnia, on the other hand, will always come at you the same way. If you can beat them, you will quite often. If you don't know how to blunt an all out attack, they'll run all over your face. They can't win, though, if your warpfire thrower catches fire, runs straight at Louen Leoncouer, then blows up on his head and kills him.
This thread needs more battle reports now. 40k and Fantasy, or whatever else.
You're probably more familiar than I, at this point. I've gotten to play all of one game of 7th so far.