Age of Sigmar Batrep: Khorne Daemons Vs Order Alliance (Dark Elves)Thasia Hell-tamer, last of the true Druchii, breathed deeply of the cool, damp air. Beside her, the sorceress Istra Mistwalker scratched ancient sigils into the damp earth - magics long forgotten from a people long dead. Around them, the remnants of Thasia's corsair crew moved silently through the foggy morning air, their sharp eyes watchful.
"This is a good place," Istra said. "There is power here. And it is well hidden."
Thasia's heart skipped a beat. How could she say this so casually? How long had it been? By Khaine's teeth, it had been centuries since the prospect of safety--of stability
had been dangled under their noses. An endless war--battle after shadowy battle, across space and time, through maelstroms of raw chaos and across the Warp itself--and here they were at last: trees, grass, the babble of a brook and the swell of a ruin-topped knoll. "This place," Thasia breathed, "it will be ours. Yours and mine. We are owed it."
One of Thasia's reavers appeared at her elbow. "Mistress, a horde of demons approaches from the south. Bloodletters."
Thasia heard a note of fear in his voice. She curled her lips into a sneer. "Tell me, Ferian - did you watch hundreds of your brethren slain to crumble now, like some sniveling Asur?"
Ferian the reaver stiffened. "Never, Mistress."
"We did not fight across all the hells the gods could forge to fail now. We are druchii--the last
of our kind--and this is our final challenge. We will slay these blooddrinkers like the others."
"And...and after?" Ferian asked.
Thasia drew her rune-inscribed cutlass. "You'll have to survive the battle first, won't you?" She raised her blade high and called to her troops. "To me, elves of Har Ganeth, last corsairs of the Black Arks, despoilers of Ulthuan - let us show these mewling headhunters what we think of them!"
Around her, the voices of the druchii were raised as one. For one last time, they marched to battle.I played an exhibition game of Age of Sigmar the other day--my first outing. For old time's sake, I dug out my old dark elves (now an illegal, non-existent army) and decided to give them the honor of one last battle before they get packed away in mothballs forever. I owe them that much. My friend Uncle Tungsten fielded a horde of my Khornate Daemons, just to give them a try. I have no doubt these lists are terrible, but here's what we used:
The Corsairs of Thasia Hell-tamerBlack Ark Fleetmaster (Thasia) w/Relic Blade; General (Tenacious)
Sorceress
20 Black Ark Corsairs (w/blades and cutlasses)
5 Drakespawn Knights
Drakespawn Chariot
2 Repeater Bolt Throwers
War Hydra
Endless Spell: Chronomantic Cogs
The Bloody Vanguard of Unferth the BetrayerBlood Throne (Unferth); General (Immense Power)
Bloodmaster, Herald of Khorne w/Deathdealer
20 Bloodletters
20 Bloodletters
3 Bloodcrushers
Skull Cannon
Terrain, Mission, and DeploymentWe decided to play in the realm of Ulgu and wound up having mist and fog limiting ranged attacks to 12" (which sucked for my war machines). The mission was The Duality of Death, meaning there were two objectives of power only claimable by heroes in no-man's-land. The board had a large hill at the center with a ruin atop it, a forest to the east through which a river ran, a spring/mountain in the south west and a small forest along the eastern edge of the board. Most of the rest of the terrain didn't really come up.
My opponent deployed his army in two groups--one blob of bloodletters and Bloodmaster on the east flank, headed for the objective near the river, and the other blob + Blood Throne and Skull Cannon on the other flank, headed for the other objective in the west. The bloodcrushers deployed in the center, looking for a place to commit.
For my own deployment, I put the 20 corsairs + Thasia on the east flank in the forest just on the other side of the river. The Hydra, Knights, and Chariot formed my western flank, followed up by the sorceress. Each Repeater Bolt Thrower deployed behind the hill, with the idea that they would be walking a bit before getting in range to fire.
Deployment
The Forces of the Blood GodDark Elf West FlankThe whole battlefieldThe Corsairs prepare to cross the river...The burning hellblades of the bloodletters could be seen glowing through the thick fog. Thasia held up a hand and her corsairs hunkered down in the underbrush and behind trees, waiting. "Let them come to us," she muttered. "Let their bloodlust be their undoing..."Turn 1I lose the first turn. The forces of the Blood God are not subtle--they run as fast as they can to get closest to my lines. They are too far to charge and too far to claim any objectives, but they get as far as they can.
Top of Turn 1
The Bloodletters enter the forestThe west flank gets close--too close...The daemons did as she hoped--they were predictable, these beasts of Khorne. By the slain gods, how many had she vanquished over these endless years of battle? She had lost count. Thasia stood at the front of her troops, spitting into the soil. "Up, ye reavers of lost Naggaroth! To battle, you dogs of the drained seas! Let us slake our blades on burning blood!
At her urging, the druchii stood and flew through the woods, light on their feet, their blades held low and ready. The bloodletters never knew what hit them...Since the daemons of Khorne were so thoughtful as to giftwrap themselves for me, I elected to charge with all my army. This charge was augmented by the sorceress conjuring the Chronomantic Cogs to give me a boost in both the movement and charge phases. This paid off big time, as all my charges worked. The Corsairs and Fleetmaster charged the bloodletters on the east flank in the forest, with At Them You Curs augmenting their attacks. I slew some ten Bloodletters in that combat and lost 3. My Fleetmaster claimed that objective and secured a VP for my side.
In the west, the chariot and drakespawn knights charged the other group of Bloodletters, killing 11 but losing 1 knight. In that particular battle, the drakespawn ("the Cold Ones" for you old-timers) were the real stars of the show, eating a bunch of daemons. The Hydra charged the Skull Cannon, knocking it down to 1 wound and took no damage in return.
Finally, the Repeater Bolt Throwers moved up, one on the east and the other in the west, trying to get a target through the gloom.
Bottom of Turn 1
They got a bit too close, eh?The Knights crash into the bloodlettersThe Hydra trashes the Skull CannonA raging melee in the forestTurn 1 Score: 1-0, Dark Elves in leadTurn 2The Daemons win again for the round and elect to go first rather than give me the first turn. The Blood Throne crashes into the Hydra, and it loses 6 wounds as a result of attacks from both the Skull Cannon and the Throne, but it dishes out some six wounds to the Blood Throne in the process. I lose all my knights but 1, but in return the bloodletters in the west are trimmed down to only seven guys. In the east, the Skullmaster engages in the combat and the bloodletters slay all but 8 Corsairs, but the bloodletters pay with their lives. The Bloodcrushers, unable to decide where they should go, turn and head back towards the Hydra, but miss their charge.
Top of Turn 2
The Bloodcrushers are totally useless...Thasia Hell-tamer cuts her way through the last few bloodletters on her way to face the BloodmasterThe Corsairs deliver the coup-de-graceThe Hydra is double-teamedThasia ducked the daemon's massive swing and cut off its leg with a precise swipe of her sword. As it fell, she kicked away the hellblade and plunged the bladed edge of her shield across its throat. It screamed and burst into flames. Too easy.
"THASIA!" She turned to see a huge, hulking daemon--a mass of muscle and fire, a necklace of blood skulls swinging around it's trunk-thick neck.
She smiled at it. "Bloodmaster. How good of you to come."
"THIS TIME, YOUR HEAD WILL BE MINE."
"That's what I like about you, Bloodmaster--ever the optimist." Thasia twirled her ancient blade and danced into the duel.In the bottom of the second turn, the Repeater Bolt Throwers got into range and put down the Blood Throne with a few well-placed Ithilmar bolts. The other took a wound or two off Bloodmaster. Then Thasia charged in and took him out with two precise swings of her sword--bam, character dead.
In the west, the knights and chariot held the line while the Hydra devoured the Skull Cannon. The sorceress moved forward to claim the second objective. With no more heroes left to claim objectives, the game is a foregone conclusion. My opponent concedes.
Bottom of Turn 2
Thasia Vs BloodmasterWhy fight him in the front when you can shoot him in the back?Holding the Line...Final ScoreDark Elves: 4
Daemons: 0
Bloodmasters massive sword made the air sizzle as it swung towards Thasia with inhuman speed, and yet she bobbed and weaved out of its path, waiting for her opening. Then, the great daemon stumbled as five black-iron bolts slammed into his back. Thasia darted in, slicing his arm off at the wrist and sending his sword spinning away. The daemon growled, "TR...TREACHERY..."
She grabbed him by the skulls around his neck and dragged him close. "Know this, daemon--I am Thasia Hell-tamer, I am druchii, and whenever you scurry back to the master that holds your leash, tell him that I will be here, waiting for him."
Bloodmaster lunged, hoping perhaps to gore her on his horns, but she pivoted and let him fall into the babbling brook like a bull fighter controlling a beast. Then she cut his head off from behind, and smiled as his body disintegrated into ash. The day was hers.Post-MortemThis was a quick game among non-ideal armies, for certain, but it was fun and gave us a sense of the game. It does run a lot faster than 40k, which is nice, and the rules were pretty straightforward. Both of us had a lot of fun, too, and I'm eager to give the game some real attention.
We did wind up with a few questions:
1) If a unit starts a turn within 3" of an enemy, can it still charge? It seems as though it can, and in the bottom of 2 I had the chariot re-charge the bloodletters to get its bladed wheels closer to more targets (only killed one, so whatever).
2) How many heroes do most armies run with? Seems like they're pretty key to the game, so you'd want a bunch of them, right?
3) While the Chronomantic Cogs were clutch, the sorceress didn't do a whole lot. Is magic a must-have? Are Endless Spells?
Anyway, it was a fun game and a great time. Thanks for reading!