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Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

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Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby Baragash » Wed Jan 19, 2011 11:30 pm

Tonight I played my first game of 8th Ed, 750pts versus Phil's Skaven. I ran:
15 Lothern Sea Guard (Full Command, Shields, Banner of Arcane Protection)
Korhil
Bolt Thrower
Tironic Chariot
5 Dragon Princes (Champion, Musician)

Total: 750 (Core 32.7%, Special 35.3%, Rare 13.3%, Lord 0%, Hero 18.7%)

He ran:
Chieftain (Halberd, Warpstone Armour)
Warlock Engineer (Warplock Pistol, Level 1, Warp-Energy Condenser)
20 Clanrats (Full Command, Spears)
20 Clanrats (Full Command, Hand Weapon & Shield) with Poisoned Wind Mortar
50 Skaven Slaves (Shields)
9 Giant Rats with 1 Packmaster
9 Giant Rats with 1 Packmaster
Warp Lightning Cannon

Total: 750 (Core 56.0%, Special 0.0, Rare 12.0%, Lord 0%, Hero 22.7%)

Scenario: Battleline (keeping it simple for the first game)
I won the roll for deployment but lost the roll for first turn despite the +1 for deploying first.
Image
HE (bottom to top): Dragon Princes (DP), Tironic Chariot (TC), Repeater Bolt Thrower (RBT), Lothern Sea Guard with Korhil (LSG[K])
Skaven (bottom to top): Giant Rats (GR1), Giant Rats (GR2), Clanrats with hand weapons and Chieftain (CRhw[C]), Warlock Engineer (WE), Skaven Slaves (SS), Poisoned Wind Mortar (PWM), Clanrats with Spears (CRs), Warp Lightning Cannon (WLC)

Skaven Turn 1

Movement

Pipsqueek ordered his soldiers forward, positioning himself in the ideal position for his tactical mastermind could guide the ebb and flow of battle, behind half a century of Slaves and surrounded by his bodyguard.

Everything bar the WLC moves forward

Image

Magic

Warlock Ikvolt sniffed the Winds of Magic, content for now to watch it swirl about the battlefield until the pesky Elves were close enough to zap.

Out of range

Shooting

After some intense chittering, the crew of the Poisoned Wind Mortar decide that the hill on the far side of the field is out of range. The crew of the Warp Lightning Cannon have a similar argument which results in them over-estimating the distance and the baleful energies pass harmlessly by the Elves on the hill.

PWM is out of range
WLC overshoots the LSG [K]

High Elf Turn 1

Movement

The Tironic Charioteers galloped out to meet the Giant Rats, the vermin would be crushed to a bloody pulp beneath their wheels. Indraugnir Company looked contemptuously at the Charioteers….. such foes were beneath them and they swiftly reformed to move towards the main battle line in search of more worthy opposition.

TC moves forward
DP swift reform and move across front of deployment zone towards centre

Image

Shooting

The Charioteers sighted the Giant Rats, but the movement and distance proved beyond even the keen eyesight of Elves. Korhil directed Merwyrm Company to aim at the approaching Spear-rats and a couple of vermin fell beneath the long range bow fire. The Repeater Bolt Thrower unleashed a hail of bolts at the Poisoned Wind Mortar, but it was difficult to distinguish the crew amongst the mass of bodies and the weapons team survived the volley.

TC misses GR1
LSG[K] kill 2 CRs
RBT causes 1 wound on PWM which is saved

Skaven Turn 2

Movement

Content that his masterplan was proceeding correctly, Pipsqueek again urged his forces forward, in an attempt to drown the Elves under the tide of hunger and enforced enthusiasm from the Slave horde in front of him.

Everything bar the WLC moves forward

Image

Magic

The Winds of Magic were sluggish, and Ikvolt struggled to pull more energy from them. Turning the dial up to eleven on his Warp-Energy Condenser, the machine started to buck violently. Warp Lightning arced all over the metal components Ikvolt was carrying before a large “Squeek!” and explosion left a very frazzled and de-powered Engineer lying bleeding on the grass.

Winds of Magic: 3 & 1, no channeling
WE casts Warp Lightning with Irresistible Force! The miscast removes his magic level and his spell, and then a 1 for the Warp Lightning inflicts the hit on himself reducing him to 1 wound!

Image

Shooting

Having finished arguing over the mistakes on their previous shot, the crew of the Warp Lightning Cannon adjust the angle and a beam of warp energy incinerates two of the Elven bowmen on the hill. Looking to press the advantage, Pipsqueek orders the Poisoned Wind Mortar to shoot at the same Elves, but the poisonous gas drifts wide.

WLC kills 2 LSG[K]
PWM misses the LSG[K]

High Elf Turn 2

Movement

The Charioteers continued forward, being careful not to get surrounded by the teeming hordes of Giant Rats. Indraugnir Company continued their leisurely trot towards the main battle line, their enthusiasm for the fight dampened by the lack of the enemy’s so-called “elite” troops.

TC continues forward
DP continue across the line

Image

Shooting

This time the Charioteers were able to pick off one of the Giant Rats with their bows. Now the Poisoned Wind Mortar had advanced to a point it was more easily distinguished, the Bolt Thrower crew showed all the legendary ballistic skill of the Elves and slammed a full volley of 6 bolts into the furry crew, guaranteeing no more bombardments of poisonous fumes would come arcing towards the Elven line. Merwyrm Company attempted to keep the pressure on the Spear-rats, but the rodents made good use of their shields to prevent further casualties.

TC kills 1 GR1
RBT causes 6 hits and 6 wounds on PWM! It dies....
LSG[K] fail to harm CRs

Skaven Turn 3

Movement

Pipsqueek chattered excitedly as he looked to spring his trap. He ordered the mass of Slaves forward to block the gap that the Elven horseflesh was heading for, ordering Brikitt and his Clanrats to sneak up the side of the graveyard within him for his cunning ambush. Snitch led his Spear-rats towards the hill, keen to press the Elves under cover of the bombardment of warpstone weaponry and silence their hateful arrows.

CRhw[C], CRs and SS move forward

Image

Shooting

Seeing the Poison Wind Mortar turned into a pincushion on the previous turn caused the crew of the Warp Lightning Cannon to fear they would be the next target of the Bolt Thrower. To preserve their own hides they decided to strike first, and despite their agitation managed a direct hit on the elegant machine. Unfortunately the magical energies were weak and left only scorch marks on the fine craftsmanship.

WLC fails to wound RBT

High Elf Turn 3

Movement

The Charioteers let out one of their whooping Elven war cries for which they were famous, and with the wind whistling in their ears they crashed into one of the packs of Giant Rats. Korhil decided the time was right to take the initiative, and led Merwyrm Company in a downhill charge into the Spear-rats. Snorting in disdain, Indraugnir Company backed away from the horde of Slaves, the idea of being bogged down amidst such scum offending their ideals of martial prowess.

TC charges GR2
LSG[K] charge CRs
DP half move backwards

Shooting

With the Poisoned Wind Mortar now dead, the Bolt Thrower turned it’s attention to the Chieftain’s unit, with it’s first volley at the Clanrats leaving 4 skewered furballs.

RBT kills 4 CRhw[C]

Close Combat

The Chariot and Steeds managed to crush 2 of the slippery rodents with their charge, with the rats too intent on preserving their fur to land any telling blows in return. Seeing the blood, they turned to scurry away, and the remainder were crushed beneath the Elven vehicle. Korhil led the charge by example, and Spear-rat heads were scattered by the swift blows of Chayal whilst many bodies were stabbed by the naval soldiers. Though the Spear-rats dragged one marine down in return, losing half their number destroyed their resolve and they were cut down by Merwyrm Company. As the last of the slaughter was complete, Korhil rallied his troops for a fresh assault, and the Elves swiftly swept into the flank of the Slave unit.

TC kills 2 GR2 for no damage in return, breaking them and running them down
LSG[K] kill 9 CRs (including 2 Killing Blows) for 1 casualty in return, breaking and running them down and just overrunning into the end of SS

Skaven Turn 4

Movement

Having seen his rival Packmaster Scalpin run from the Chariot like the craven he was, Patchitt whipped his pack in pursuit of the Elven war machine… he’d show Pipsqueek who the head packmaster should be! Warlock Ikvolt snuck round the back of the mass of Slaves, and aimed his pistol into the mass of bodies fighting on the Slaves flank, hoping that he’d hit an Elf somewhere in the melee….

GR1 move after TC
WE moves round back of SS

Shooting

….unfortunately he still had the jitters from his magical shock earlier, and his aim meandered extensively before his shot whizzed off into the distance. Making further adjustments to their machine, the Warp Lightning Cannon crew sent a super-charged bolt through the Elves and Slaves, miraculously leaving them all unharmed, and into the Bolt Thrower, which was obliterated in a huge ball of eldritch green light.

WE misses LSG[K]
WLC causes a S10 hit on the LSG[K] but fails to wound! Destroys RBT

Close Combat

Hearing the commotion on their flank, the Slaves began to swarm round to their left. Suddenly a larger and furrier creature started laying about them with a huge axe and as the Salves at the front wavered in confusion, the migration turned into a rout. “Th-this is bad,” thought Ikvolt as the horde of Slaves began to run towards him. He began to sigh in relief as the momentum petered out… until he saw the Elven Captain and his soldiers bearing down on him. “Hu-hurt me not,” he squeeked, doing his best to look harmless before the Elves.

K makes way and kills 3 SS, breaking them and LSG[K] overrun into WE

High Elf Turn 4

Movement

The blood-spattered Chariot rolled out of the crushed rodents and cantered towards the back of the Skaven warband, determined to take the Warp Lightning Cannon out of commission and protect the lives of their comrades. Seeing the Chieftain and his personal rats appear from behind the mass of fleeing slaves, Indraugnir Company heroically lowered their lances and charge, determined to bag themselves the most valuable enemy on the battlefield..

DP charge CRhw[C]
TC moves across towards WLC

Image

Shooting

The Charioteers attempted to snipe some of the crew as the bore down on the war machine, but the ratmen merely dodged behind the cover of their machine.

TC misses WLC

Close Combat

As the Warlock sniveled before the press of Sea Guard, the unit parted for Korhil to stride through and dispatch the coward, before calmly ordering the Company to form up towards the fight between Indraugnir Company and the Clanrats. As the Sea Guard formed up, they were just in time to see two of the Caledonian nobility dragged from their saddles, but as the knights pushed further into the Skaven formation, leaving a trail of battered corpses, it all proved too much for the ratmen, who turned and outdistanced the cavalry.

K kills WE, LSG[K] reform to face CRhw[C]
DP kill 8 CRhw for 2 casualties from C in return, breaking them but CRhw flee 12" and escape DP pursuit of 10"

Skaven Turn 5

Movement

Patchitt saw the masterful opportunity that Pipsqueek’s cunning retreat had set up and goaded his Giant Rats towards the Elven cavalry. The Elves promptly wheeled their horses away as Patchitt mocked them.

GR1 charge DP who flee 13" and escape leaving GR1 to move 8"
CRhw[C] continue to flee

Image

Shooting

Flushed with success, the Warp Lightning Cannon crew couldn’t resist trying to zap both the horseflesh and the soldiers that had lined up in front of them, despite the Chariot that was heading in their direction. Their confidence was their undoing however as they rushed the shot, and only one horse-elf was knocked from his saddle, his ornate armour no protection against the dark energy of their machine.

WLC tries to hit both LSG[K] and DP, but only bounces enough to hit DP and with S2 kills 1

High Elf Turn 5

Movement

The Charioteers spurred their Steeds up the hill to engage the crew of the Warp Lightning Cannon. Indraugnir Company were satisfied with their distance from the Giant Rats, and reined in their tactical retreat, with Merwyrm Company moving across to face the oncoming pack.

TC charges WLC
DP rally
LSG[K] move towards GR1

Image

Shooting

Merwyrm Company launched a deadly volley of arrows into the Giant Rats, slaying over half of them and causing the pack to turn tail and run.

LSG[K] shoot at GR1 killing 5 and causing them to flee

Image

Close Combat

The crew of the Warp Lightning Cannon use the bulk of the war machine to hide themselves from the Chariot’s first pass as the Elves taunt the rats to come out and face them.

TC and WLC cause no damage but WLC passes test

Skaven Turn 6

Movement

With the field lost, Patchitt continued to run, there was nothing he could do for the Horned Rat, or more importantly himself, by dying today.

GR1 flee a further 10"
CRhw[C] rallies

Close Combat

One of the crew of the Warp Lightning Cannon got a little too eager to get at the Elves and was caught in the wheel of the Chariot. Seeing no other ratmen likely to come to their aid, the crew decided that discretion was the better part of everything and abandoned the machine.

TC defeats WLC which breaks and is destroyed

High Elf Turn 6

Movement

Instructing the Sea Guard to finish the Giant Rats, Korhil calls for one last charge to catch the Chieftain and cleanse the area of Skaven. As he barrels towards the Clanrats, the thunder of hooves overtakes him as Indragnir Company and the Tironic Chariot slam into the Clanrats.

DP and TC charge CWhw[C]
K fails to charge CWhw[C] and moves 8"
LSG move towards GR1

Image

Shooting

Merwyrm Company attempt to kill the remainder of the Giant Rats, but the dastardly Packmaster grabs 2 of his charges to use as makeshift shield, ensuring he can scurry away to fight another day.

LSG kill 2 GR1 leaving a packmaster with a single rat

Close Combat

The charge of the Chariot and Dragon Princes scythes through the Clanrats with contemptuous ease. As the Chieftain’s halberd clanged uselessly of the Vaul-forged armour of Indraugnir Company, the Skaven leader realised he was all alone and promptly tried to flee the battlefield, only to be clipped by the pursuing Chariot, the Dragon Princes seeing no sport in chasing the Chieftain down.

TC kills 4 CRhw with impact hits, DP kill 2 CRhw, TC crew kill 1 CRhw, steeds kill 1 CRhw with no casualties in return (this was conducted in I order) and TC runs down C

Final Result

Image

High Elves: 865 Victory Points
Skaven: 100 Victory Points
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby DaBoss » Sun Jan 23, 2011 8:24 pm

Great report - missed a few turns worth of photos - you get so caught up in the action and then realise you missed it all.

Skaven are a very hard army to do justice at less than 1500pts. But it looks like a good Core force.
Now with Abomination, Warplightning Cannon and Plague Catapult plastics out - plenty to choose from.

The High Elves are a good controllable force - Dragon Princes looked a bit out of the running to start with (I don't rate Cavalry in the new addition).

Look forward to seeing more as you build your forces.
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby Baragash » Mon Jan 24, 2011 10:55 am

Thanks for the comments :)

DaBoss wrote:Great report - missed a few turns worth of photos - you get so caught up in the action and then realise you missed it all.


Yeah, as it was our first CC phases of 8th we got distracted doing it step-by-step (would have missed some of the bonuses to CC resolution if we hadn't, so if was worth it), as a result I forgot to take photos for probably the most crucial part of the game - the LSG just overrunning into the Slaves.

DaBoss wrote:Skaven are a very hard army to do justice at less than 1500pts. But it looks like a good Core force.
Now with Abomination, Warplightning Cannon and Plague Catapult plastics out - plenty to choose from.


It's just about time at the moment, once we've played half a dozen games we'll look at moving above 1k, but we have to start tidying up by 9.30 :(

DaBoss wrote:The High Elves are a good controllable force - Dragon Princes looked a bit out of the running to start with (I don't rate Cavalry in the new addition).


I was originally planning to roll that whole flank, but he had so much infantry in the middle I realised I'd just get steam-rollered so I moved them across. As for cavalry, IMO flank attacks are still important due to the additional damage (to remove Steadfast as quick as possible) and denying the easy +3 rank bonus points to ensure you win the combat (especially if you aren't Steadfast). DPs are possibly not the most points efficient way of doing it at this points value though.
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby mattjgilbert » Mon Jan 24, 2011 10:59 am

oops...missed this when it was posted... will try and have a read tonight.
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby mattjgilbert » Tue Jan 25, 2011 8:51 pm

Great little batrep - I love the narrative snippets at the start of each section.

Looking at the lists at the start I was convinced the elves had no chance!

What are your impressions of 8th ed?
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby Red Devil » Wed Jan 26, 2011 8:58 am

Ha! Looking at the start of the game I thought I would have done a bit better than I did!

As Bara says, the LSG just about got into the flank of the slaves (literally milimetres), but it was my mistake that allowed it - I didn't leave enough clearance for fleeing clanrats and the pursuing LSG. Lesson learnt! I also learnt that a BSB is crucial - I failed so many Ld rolls. I was also un-Skaven-like in my fleeing! I think the high rolls for Ld tests (I think the lowest I rolled was 9) were bound to lead to low flee rolls (I think the highest was 7).

I quite like 8th ed. Only played the one game, but reading the rules it looks more fun - more bloodthirsty! I like the movement rules - wheel and reform. Simple, yet still needing to be mastered to make a decent game.

Another game tonight - looking forward to it (and Bara's excellent bat rep!)
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby Baragash » Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:06 am

I think the core rulebook for 8th Ed is generally a great improvement except for magic - though I haven't tried magic, I'm not a fan of the high cost/high risk nature of using it.

IMO the same thing that made 7th a bit crap towards the end is still the problem now: the army books, even if the gap between them is much, much narrower. It is annoying needing several trees to play Fantasy, I'd actually have liked them to have Ravening Hordes'd the lot.
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby mattjgilbert » Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:37 am

You want to give Kings of War a go then :)

Looking forward to the report on the rematch!
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Re: Battle Report: High Elves vs Skaven (750)

Postby Baragash » Wed Jan 26, 2011 12:34 pm

KoW is on my list ;)
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