Reddit Hook-up Pitched Battle: 6th Ed. Battle Report

[Just Tony]

So we meet again, this time with a rather different report…

I had an interaction with a Reddit user in the r/WarhammerFantasy subreddit who turned out to be from the same state. We negotiated game time, had to kick it down the road a week due to me moving, and managed to make it to the second hook up.

The game was played at the Sage’s Shoppe in West Lafayette, IN which should look very familiar to those who have read my barrage of batreps. The Redditor, Arthur, had what I assume to be a Dwarf Battalion and that’s it, which I went ahead and brought almost my entire Dwarf army for him to borrow from. We agreed on 1,000 points and Pitched Battle so we could get the show going as fast as possible.

His list was done on an app, so I didn’t get to see it. Pay attention to that part, it’ll be important later…

What it had compositionwise was:

Core: Warriors (16) – Light Armor, Shield, Full Command
Core: Warriors (16) – Light Armor, Shield, Full Command
Core: Warriors (16) – Light Armor, Shield, Full Command
Core: Warriors (16) – Light Armor, Shield, Full Command
Core: Thunderers (16) – Full Command
Special: Cannon with a rune of some type
Rare: Organ Gun with a rune of some type

TOTAL: No clue, I’ll add it up…

… and I’m at 1,063 without Runes, so I think he may need to reevaluate his app.

My list was made from my recently completed Chaos Warriors army and consisted of the following:

Hero: Exalted Champion – Hand Weapon, Shield, Chaos Armor, Gaze of the Gods – 132 points
Core: Warriors (20) – Hand Weapon, Shield, Full Command – 330 points
Core: Warriors (19) – Hand Weapon, Shield, Full Command – 315 points
Core: Knights (5) – Full Command – 215 points
TOTAL: 992 points

If that looks small to you, it’s because it is. Damn, I need to get some Marauders…

Deployment went as such. He castled his left flank corner with the exception of two Warrior units on his right flank corner and the War Machines edging to the center from his castled position.

My forces really didn’t have many options, so I stayed prett much from the center to my right, matching up with the castled portion of his army.

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Winning the roll to choose, I opt to go first and give Arthur the opportunity to bat clean up.

TURN 1 CHAOS

Not much else to do but surge forward. All three regiments move at top speed, meaning my Knights around the side of the tree were well ahead of my battle line.

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TURN 1 DWARFS

The Warriors on the left flank (I’ll simply give directions from my POV like always, makes things easier to conceptualize…) march forward and wheel around the woods toward the center of the battlefield. The right flank Warriors move up 3” while the Thunderers wheel slightly to line up shots. War machines do not move, for obvious reasons.

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The Organ Gun winds up being out of range. I was pretty sure there was no need to roll for a chance to Misfire but we did anyway which was safe. The Cannon kills 2 of the Exalted Champion’s Warriors, not enough to cause a Panic. The Thunderers however kill 2 Knights which IS enough to cause a Panic, but I pass it.

TURN 2 CHAOS

The 3 remaining Knights charge the right flank Warriors who Hold in response. The Champion’s Warriors march forward and guide right, aiming for the Warriors and Thunderers directly behind them, while the other Chaos Warriors wheel left and march toward the two units out on their own.

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The Knight Champion issues a challenge, which is accepted by the Dwarf Veteran. The Champ wounds once, but it’s saved, while the Vet whiffs his attacks.

Not to be outdone, the remaining two Knights fail to cause a single wound while the Dwarf Warriors respond by doling out 1 wound which cannot make it through the Knights’ armor. Losing combat, the Knights break and flee 12” with the Warriors succesfully restraining.

And I thought taking 5 Knights was going to win me the game…

TURN 2 DWARFS

All Dwarf Warrior regiments march forward while the Thunderers wheel to line up shots again. War Machines stay put.

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The Cannon fires and lands the ball just beside the left Warrior regiment, but the shot embeds where it first hits. The Organ Gun accounts for 2 of the Champion’s Warriors while the Thunderers add a 3rd body to the pile, but the steely resolve of the Chaos unit holds.

TURN 3 CHAOS

The Champion’s Warriors charge the center Dwarf Warrior regiment who hold in response. The Knights rally after I roll a 9 but the +1 from the musician pushed it over the line to pass. The left flank Warriors march 6” up to the edge of the hill.

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The Dwarf Veteran accepts the Exalted Champion’s challenge! Despite 4 attacks at a superior Weapon Skill, the Champion manages to do only the 1 wound necessary to kill the Veteran. The rest of the Warrors manage to kill 2 Dwarf Warriors while the sole fighting Dwarf whiffs his attack. The Dwarfs break and flee5” with the Chaos Warriors pursuing 9”, and all units in range passing their Panic attack.

TURN 3 DWARFS

Both Dwarf Warrior units on the left flank move up 3” toward the Chaos Warriors, and the Thunders and right flank Warriors wheel toward the center. War Machines stationary, of course

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The Cannon rolls a touch high on the first roll, barely reaching the left flank Chaos Warriors where one is pasted by the hit. The Organ Gun misfires and rolls a 1 for its result, exploding and killing its crew. The Thunderers fire at the Champion’s Warriors and hit 5 times, but fail to wound.

TURN 4 CHAOS

The left flank Warriors charge the closest Dwarf Warrior regiment to them, the Champion’s Warriors charge the Thunderers, and the Knights charge the right flank Dwarf Warriors AGAIN. In true Dwarf fashion all units hold.

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All three Chaos units issue challenges and all three are accepted!!!!!!!!!!!!! Like I said, true Dwarf fashion. This dude was a treat to play against…

However, during this phase I find out that he had not bought a General at all. No Hero level anything. He didn’t know he needed one. I kind of hang my head in my hands and mumble “Aw, man. You’re army’s illegal.” We continued on as we were already committed.

ANYWAY…

The Knight Champion kills the Veteran, 1 Dwarf is killed, and 1 Knight falls to Dwarven axes. To NOBODY’S surprise the Knights break again, fleeing 14”. This time Arthur decides to pursue so he can be close enough to charge them while fleeing, guaranteeing they leave the board. Determined, he rolls his dice… and comes up with 4” after modifier. Goddamn…

The Exalted Champion kills the Vet twice, scoring a coveted Overkill wound. The Warriors manage to kill 1 Thunderer while the Thunderers whiff in return. The Thunderers then break from combat 8” while the Champ’s Warriors pursue 5”.

Even with a challenge proceeding, every Chaos Warrior and Dwarf Warrior model in the left flank either misses or fails to wound. Adding up resolution sees the Chaos Warriors win by 1. The roll is made and comes up a natural 12!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I don’t have the words, other than they fled 3” with the Chaos Warriors pursuing 9”.

What I thought was a sure fire loss for me solely based on numbers turned around REALLY fast…

TURN 4 DWARFS

The Thunderers rally and reform into fighting ranks as they cannot move out of the way of the Champ’s Warriors, the surviving unit of left flank Dwarf Warriors reforms to face the recently victorious left flank Chaos Warriors, the right flank Dwarf Warriors march 6” to close the gap with the Knights, and the Cannon sits quite stationary.

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The Cannon hits 1 left flank Chaos Warrior after rolling high and almost bypassing the unit, and then fails to wound.

TURN 5 CHAOS

The Champ’s Warriors charge the Thunderers AGAIN and they hold AGAIN. The Knights rally AGAIN and the left flank Chaos Warriors reform to face the left flank Dwarf Warriors.

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4 Thunderers die to the attacks of the Champ’s Warriors, leaving nobody to fight back. Breaking from combat the Thunderers flee 6” with the Champ’s Warriors pursuing 11” off the board.

TURN 5 DWARFS

The left flank Dwarf Warriors charge the left flank Chaos Warriors and the right flank Dwarf Warriors charge the Knights. Both hold.

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The Knights kill 1 Dwarf with no wounds in response. Despite this, they lose combat and break 9” with the Dwarfs pursuing 8”.

The left flank Veteran issues a challenge, and my Chaos Warrior Champion accepts with a smirk, a smirk that quickly fades away as the Vet manages to kill the Champ before he can strike a single attack. In utter shock at the result of the challenge, no other model in the combat can land either a hit or a wound, leading to a drawn combat.

TURN 6 CHAOS

The Knights rally as the Exalted Champ lead his Warriors back onto the board.

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All models whiff their attacks in the left flank combat resulting in another draw.

TURN 6 DWARFS

The right flank Warriors charge the Knights again, who hold.

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The Cannon overshoots the Champ’s Warriors completely.

In combat the right flank Dwarf Warriors kill 1 Knight with the Knight Champion killing 1 Dwarf. Breaking from combat AGAIN the Knights roll 12” and flee off the board. Good riddance, underperformers! The Dwarf Warriors past their restraint test.

The left flank Chaos Warriors kill 2 Dwarfs and the Dwarfs whiff in return, however the break test is passed.

And that was game. Given how massively outnumbered I was I figured that I’d be worked over in no time, however a few bad rolls in tandem with a few good rolls combined with drawing part of the castle away gave me at least a fighting chance, and the lighter armor of the Dwarfs did the rest.

I advised Arthur on ways to look for players a touch closer so he can get more gaming in, and he also was already searching for BfSP Thanes on ebay to add to his army.

The highlight though was not the gameplay itself, but the extremely positive attitudes all the way around. He was as characterful and “Dwarfy” as you can imagine one to be, and he never lost his demeanor.

Overall it was a learning experience and just a fun game. Feel free to chime in with any insight you might have.