#53: Age of Sigmar Battle Report - Beastmen & Dwarfs VS Savage Orcs & Forest Goblins

Last game of the day! We had suffered a close defeat, and a grinding draw, but we were determined to get at least a slim victory in our last game. Time (and more than a little luck) would tell. 

In the last scenario, it was pretty straight forward; one point for every unit you can destroy, with an extra point awarded if it was a General or a Monster, meaning the Runeson was worth a whopping three points! 

Our deployment was pretty standard. The bulk of my Beastmen deployed opposite the huge block of Savage Orcs, knowing full well that the dwarfs simply didn't have the bodies on the field to win that fight. The Longbeards guarded the centre ruins, where the Irondrakes had taken up firing positions. The seething Magmadroth deployed on the left flank, hoping to get his fiery fangs into the Arachnarok. 

We knew this was going to be a tough fight. We were facing the Spider Rider and Savage Orc formations, both of which are ridiculously powerful! It should be noted that while the Savage Orc formation says three units of Savage Orcs, our opponent had rolled those three units into one big block of thirty, making them much harder to deal with. I don't think he realised he wasn't using them correctly, but I believe it was an innocent mistake.

Well, slaughter was the name of the game, so my whole army advanced into the teeth of the enemy. To protect them from the rain of arrows from the Savages,  the Bestigors had Mystic Shield cast upon them, while most other units took cover in or behind cover. Morghur's mutating ability finally worked, turning one of the Bestigor into a Spawn, which I immediately regretted, as it only offered our opponents another opportunity for a kill. 

The Magmadroth applied pressure on the flank, forcing our opponents to commit forces to dealing with him. 

Skittering over terrain, the spiders made a significant shift of focus to the left side, with one unit of Spiders charging into the Magmadroth, while the others blocked possible charges against the hulking, twitching Arachnarok. Behind the pillar, you can just spot the big boss, who remained just in range of each spider unit to increase the toxicity of their venom. 

On the other side of the board, the boat boys wasted no time in charging in and making a right mess of my Tuskgor Chariot! 

In response, the giant wasted no time in crushing the surviving Boar Boys to a pulp, giving special attention to the Standard Bearer, who got jammed down his trousers. I imagine, by the spiky look of the banner, that it was a highly uncomfortable experience for both parties!

Left a measly two wounds thanks to the incredibly powerful venom of the Formation, the Runeson was bleeding but not dead. We had accepted, however, that the lurking Arachnarok would waste no time in finishing the job!

Beastmen have really shown me in this tournament how great they can be! Being able to run and charge with already high movement is a huge deal! It allowed me to barrel across the board and strike where they were needed most, putting huge pressure on the enemy. With every buff I could muster, they put up a good fight, but Lucky Warpaint saved many more Savages than it should have, mathematically! My opponent was faced with the same issue, however. My 3+ armour save proved difficult to penetrate, and I slowly gained the upper hand! Huzzah!

To everyone's complete shock, the Spawn and Chariot charged into the nearby spiders and absolutely obliterated them! Only three survived the onslaught, and they promptly fled after a woeful Battleshock roll! What a shift in momentum...

We certainly had made some good moves, but it didn't change the fact that there was an unharmed Arachnarok roaming the board that we really didn't have any way of stopping. Much to our surprise, the Goblin Big Boss withdrew, and the monstrous spider decided to lend his considerable weight to the Bestigor combat in leiu of finishing off the crippled Magmadroth. 

This moment, right here, is where our opponents lost the game. 

The Savage Orcs made quick work of the Bestigors with the help of the Arachnarok, but had left themselves in their own half of the board, late in the game, with no other targets nearby. 

With a bleating "BACK TO THE FOREST!", Morghur and his few remaining companions made a tactical (and highly dishonourable) retreat toward our table edge, getting as far away as possible.

The dwarfs were no different in their thinking, although their march back home was significantly slower. But that would be all we played, as time ran out.

Having only lost a chariot and the Bestigors, we were one point ahead with two units of spiders and the boar boys, handing us the slimmest (and roughest) victory over our opponents. It was a great game, and both teams really enjoyed it! 

The moment that the Arachnarok didn't charge in, take the final two wounds off the Magmadroth and net himself three more points, was where they lost the game. We were incredibly lucky to win, and only because our opponents missed the golden opportunity. And we felt like bad people to simply retreat, but it almost felt... Nostalgic. Beastmen, fleeing. Just like the good old days. 

Next week's blog will be a little more 40k-based, after having quite a lengthy focus on Age of Sigmar. I hope to see you then...

Thanks for reading,

Gabriel