Myself and some friends have also been playing AoStrom, (40k Maelstrom but for Sigmar) which uses a standard objective card deck from 40k and uses common sense to transfer those objectives over to Age of Sigmar. This adds a whole new level of strategy to a game that, in its most basic form, is 'kill or be killed'.
Keen to give this alternative game type a try, my friend Matt and I unpacked two armies and gave it a red hot go. 
My army was first. I chose to give the Daemon Cohort of Nurgle a run on the battlefield. While this restricts my options and forces me into pretty much one possible build, the benefits offer my force a great deal more durability in the form of 'Blessings of Nurgle' as well as a handy damage mechanic in the form of 'Rot, Glorious Rot'. The Great Unclean One would take up the mantle of General, while a Herald of Nurgle would act as second-in-command.
Three units of Plaguebearers would form the bulk of my army, and five Beasts of Nurgle gave me a durable, quick hammer unit that could fill any role that I need them to.
Marching against me would be a horde of naked, bloodthirsty Savage Orcs led by a Shaman and Warboss. His formation mirrored mine in many ways. Three units of infantry backed up by a fast hammer unit in the form of Boar Boys. The significant difference in lists was the presence of a Warboss riding a Wyvern; a model that I didn't really have an immediate answer for. I was hoping that perhaps I could get a few sneaky Arcane Bolts into him and then perhaps tackle him in combat, but a 4+ re rollable save on a 10-wound flying beat stick meant that I was probably going to lose a few models in the process...
I won the roll off to deploy, which meant that I would get first turn.
In a stroke of luck, that proved to be a double edged sword, I rolled 12" for their charge and launched into combat with his Warlord, not realising that this would draw both units of boys into the same combat purely by proximity. I may have bitten off more than I could chew...
My deployment was a simple one. GUO was front and centre, the herald by his side, and my other units spread out so as to have good channels of movement. We were playing on a 4'x4' table, which in hindsight may have been too small, particularly with two tenacious melee armies. My opponent placed his board on the far left flank, and his Wyvern atop the tower. His Savage mobs filled the gaps backed up by his characters.
My first round of objectives were achievable. Objective 1 was right at the feet of my Herald, and I was confident in casting a power with my Unclean One, as the Savage Orc Shaman was well outside range to stop spells.
My first turn was largely uneventful. I pushed up with all units except the Herald, who chose to hang back and sit on the objective. My General placed Inspiring Presence and Mystic Shield upon my Beasts, knowing that they were furthest forward and most likely to be a priority target early in the game. That effectively ended my turn, securing me two Objective cards.
Matt drew some great cards, with Big Game Hunter making the Great Unclean One a huge target, as he is the only model with the Monster keyword. Objective two was also inside his deployment zone. 
He followed my footsteps in handing Mystic Shield and Inspiring Presence to the far-right mob of Boys, before swooping his Wyvern into the centre of the battle line, flanked by two groups of raging barbarians. He claimed Objective 2, and held on to Big Game Hunter, fully intending on giving my General a terrible time. Drawing three new cards left me in a bit of a pickle; hold the two objectives on the far side of the board (with an army notorious for being woefully slow) and kill the 10-wound dragon rider menacing the centre of the board. 
My army pushed up, unsuccessfully trying to cast Mystic Bolt at the Wyvern, and using his special command ability, which hands out extra attacks if a Nurgle unit rolls a 7 on the charge; unreliable but fun if it fires. My beasts pushed up, hoping to make a short charge, while the rest of the Plaguebearers plodded forward. 
My beasts made that charge easily and unleashed a flurry of attacks, but thanks to the Savage Orc's Ju-Ju Paint, only three fell, causing no damage in return. However, thanks to Inspiring Presence, they ignored Battleshock. 
On my left flank, things were looking dire. The boar boys and a very angry Warboss were racing toward my unsupported and isolated infantry.
In the central combat, things got violent. A single survivor was left, enveloped by the right mob. This caused me some major concern, as the very dangerous and very alive Wyvern was now free to draw a bead on my general. 
Then the unthinkable happened. My opponent seized the initiative, and again cast Foot of Gork upon the Great Unclean One. I wasn't too concerned; he had 6 wounds, and the odds of taking damage were unlikely. 
Two stomps. Six mortal wounds. You can't fight good luck!
This was the turning point of the game. With my centre collapsed, and my left unit of Plaguebearers being relentlessly ground down by some very agitated pigs, my last hope was to kill the Wyvern and claim D3 victory points to close the margin. My Herald and last unit of Plaguebearers barrelled into combat, but to no avail. The plagueys had no effect, as they have no Rend to speak of, but the beasts and Herald managed to crush 7 wounds off the monster before my entire force was wiped out in its entirety.
The combat in the centre went surprisingly well. Sure, I was in some serious trouble, but if I could hold those units in place, perhaps it would give me the chance to gain the upper hand elsewhere in the battle.
Perhaps...
To my surprise, Matt's Shaman unleashed the Foot of Gork down upon my monstrous leader, stomping three times and shaving four wounds off with frightening ease!
The Plaguebearers decided to fight with pillows, and got slaughtered by the angry pig riders. The Warboss refrained from combat, instead choosing to make a dash for Objective 3.
The Beasts on the right continued to grind down the Savage Orcs, but in the process, began taking damage from the avalanche of attacks that were returned.
Well, a convincing defeat, but a great game none-the-less and always a pleasure using two fully painted armies!
I think the trouble with that formation is that you simply have to invest too many wounds into Plaguebearers, which, while tough, are slow and struggle to kill anything tougher than a sleeping elf.
We shall see.
Anyway, readers, it's great to be back! Can't wait for the coming weeks, when some seriously exciting models are being released!
Keep it real, and bring that hobby back!
Gabriel
