When Game 4 came around, both my Ogre Kingdoms opponent and I knew we were out of podium contention, so this game was played with a much lighter mood. There was a 150VP bounty on each generals head, meaning that Slugtongue weighed in at a whopping 440VP should he meet a violent or otherwise unsavoury demise, and giving me considerable incentive to keep him alive.
We began deploying in normal battle lines, when we noticed everyone else was not following suit. It turned out that for the final game, deployment was diagonal and our forces were a mere 12" apart, virtually guaranteeing first turn charges and ensuring a bloody, fast game. Now, my dear reader, it is said that there is a great deal to be learnt from history. After getting bulldozed in Game2 but a very similar list (minor tweaks and units but very similar), I was understandably hesitant to get into a boxing match with Ironguts. So, in a "divide & conquer" strategy, I concentrated my force on the right, leaving only a unit of hounds and one of my trolls to protect my left flank from the imposing Mournfang. 
The majority of the Ogres reacted accordingly, deploying the bulk of his force on the right. I rolled up Spirit Leech and Doom & Darkness, both of which are very useful against ogres and also synergise brilliantly with each other. With my hounds left with restricted options for Vanguard, I moved straight on to Slugtongue's curse, which finally fired. One of his three Mournfang dropped dead and his friends panicked. Being only seven inches from the diagonal board edge, I held my breath as he rolled three dice to flee... And he ran four inches. Lucky!
Then came the roll for first turn. Whoever won this roll was getting charges and I would rather not be on the receiving end of a handful of short ranged bull charges. My opponent, having a bonus to first turn, gained the upper hand, much to my dismay.
The ogres wasted no time in declaring charges, with both of his combat regiments aiming at my Gors and the meaty chunk of VPs with Sluggo's name on it. Surprisingly, his Ironguts failed a six inch charge, which was a relief, leaving the Bulls unsupported. The mournfang, in a stroke of luck, rallied and turned to face the battlefield once more, while the Leadbelchers on his other flank continued to display how devastating they can be by blasting five hounds off the table. 
The Firebelly turned his attention to my right hand trolls, killing two outright with a high-casting Fireball. The Gors then showed their power, by taking the brunt of the Ogre assault and still fighting back to win combat and run down the fleeing brutes. Huzzah!
Having only suffered minor casualties considering the predicament I had found myself in, I committed to the charges. The Gors charged the Ironguts, but the chariot fell short, which was disastrous because it would add some vital combat resolution against a serious threat. Doom and Darkness was stopped by a Dispel Scroll and Summoning failed. The game suddenly shifted momentum back to Ogres, when the Firebelly unleashed his breath weapon upon the unit and his hammer upon Slugtongue, smiting him dead. By the time the Ironguts waded in with their oversized machetes, the Gor unit had been shattered and in turn was run down and killed. 
With a huge power shift to my opponent, he began dishing out the hurt with textbook execution. A charge on the solitary troll was unnecessary when Flame Cage torched him before blows could be struck. The two remaining mournfang, having felt wildly left out, slammed into the pesky hounds, killing them instantly, while the unharmed Leadbelchers stripped two wounds off my chariot.
Now, good reader, in this photo, you will notice the distinct lack of enemies on the board. Allow me to explain the most unlikely and unpredictable of things. At the start of my turn two, I had lost almost all my units, being left with literally five models on the board (a Razorgor, a badly damaged chariot and three trolls in the direct path of a Mournfang freight train), I decided that it was time to try and kick some teeth in on my plummet to defeat. A lone Razorgor charged the flank of his Ironguts, getting into base contact with his Firebelly in a hope to tag a few wounds off his general. In a stroke of complete, unbelievable luck, my Razorgor did two wounds to his general and suffered no wounds in return. This combined with a flank charge was enough to break the Ironguts, and the Razorgor ran them down thanks to his high speed. To top the turn off, Nurgle's Rot killed two of the Leadbelchers. Despite passing his panic check, the last Leadbelcher was significantly more manageable than three.
In his turn, his last Belcher's aim failed him as he tried to kill off the irritating chariot, and his Mournfang moved up 7 inches away from my last trolls, betting that I would fail my leadership four stupidity check. Boy, did I show him...
My chariot made an easy charge on his last Leadbelcher, passing my dangerous terrain (against my usually abysmal trend) and killing him with impact hits, claiming another nice chunk of points. But the shining moment, in a game full of shining moments on both sides, was my three trolls passing their stupidity and charging headlong into his unprepared Mournfang. I managed to drag one from his saddle, and in return, he just whiffed his attacks, doing one measly wound from memory. Regardless, it was not enough to save him, and his last Mournfang was run down, handing the Beastmen a bloody and hard-fought victory. Somehow. I don't know how...
What an unbelievable game. So back and forth, Luck swinging from army to army and then back again (a few times), with some crazy rolls and crazier tactics. Knowing that the game would not have a huge impact on either of our non-existent chances to place, we spent this last game laughing almost non-stop, and I have no shame in saying that my opponent from game four was my choice for Best Sport. 13-7 Win.
In summary, I had a lot of fun at the event. 1000 points is a hilarious points size, and games are usually nice and quick. In hindsight, and after four rather brutal games, my list was probably not constructed all that well. I think I would have been better off without Slugtongue (despite my love of this janky wizard), saving 55 points and taking a regular Bray Shaman with a scroll, and using Lore of Beasts or Shadow. I don't use death often and was probably a little too unfamiliar with its antics. And despite Mark of Slannesh mitigating a lot of my "running away" problems, trolls were a mistake. They shone at times but they were a huge liability at times for the amount of points invested in them. If I could turn back time (there's a song to be written in there somewhere), I would have dropped the trolls completely, investing those points and the points saved by changing my general into either a regiment of Bestigors or even Chaos Ogres. But I ponder on the past. All in all, I played four great opponents with a hilariously unreliable army, and had a grand ol' time in the process!
My campaign for Players Choice was also thwarted by a fellow gamer and his stunning Warriors of Chaos army (which, given the opportunity, I would love to showcase in the future). I couldn't be upset, however, as his prize was well deserved. I mean, I voted for him!
Best Sports went to a true gentleman who was running a fully mounted High Elf army, while first place was taken out by a well-constructed Brettonian force!
I finished 7th out of 19 players, which I was really happy with. Looking forward to the next tournament in my calendar!
Thanks for reading!
Gabriel
No comments:
Post a Comment