Daemons of Chaos vs Skaven, 31.05.2017

Points: 1500

Deployment: Battle for the pass

Lists:

Daemons of Chaos:

• Herald of Nurgle, BSB, level 1 wizard, lesser gift (Always Strikes First)
• Herald of Nurgle, General, Greater Locus of 4+ Regeneration, level 1 wizard: Stream of Corruption, lesser gift (S2 breath weapon)
• 30-man Plaguebearers, full command, Banner of Swiftness
• 5-man Chaos Furies 
• 2x 5-man Flesh Hounds, Ambushers
• 5-man Seekers of Slaanesh
• Beast of Nurgle
• Skullcannon

My opponent said he'll bring some OP shooting, so I was prepared for cannons with those 2 squads of ambushers and a healthy combat block to march up the field.

Skaven

• Warlord, general
• Assassin
• 40-man Clanrats, full command, swords/shields
• 46-man Clanrats, full command, spears/shields
• Doomwheel
• 3-man Stormfiends, Ratling Cannons
• 5-man Poison Wind Mortars
• 4-man Rat Ogres
• 8-man Warplock Jezzails

We caught a mistake well after we started the game: the Mortars cannot be taken on their own, only attached to other units. Oh well.

Deployment

I set up my Plaguebearers with the Heralds protected from shooting by the Furies. I didn't have any good ranged spells, so I banked on the Flesh Hounds arriving to keep the enemy in check. Beast and Seekers on the Flanks, with the Skullcannon taking aim at the Doomwheel.

The deployment unfortunately did not favor the Skaven. All the shooting was mid-ranged (18-24"), so nothing could fire first turn. Moreover, the army split in half, with one unit of Clanrats and the Rat Ogres facing backwards, to greet the Flesh Hounds.

Daemons, turn 1

I didn't move anything. However, notice the missing Doomwheel. For once, the Skullcannon decided not to blow itself up first turn, and do something useful.

Skaven, turn 1

Stuff moved up, ready to engage. The Mortars also turned around.

Daemons, turn 2

Both squads of Flesh Hounds arrived to my great surprise. Some finagling was needed, but I managed to *just* move out of charge arc of the Clanrats.

The cannon shot the Stormfiends, but inflicted only 1 wound.

Skaven, turn 2

My trap was sprung, and the Skaven army continued its march in two separate directions. The large group of spear-wielding rats with the Warlord (and the Assassin hiding), supported by the Stormfiends, advanced on my lines. The backfield units turned to intercept the Hounds. The Mortars shot and killed one Hound.

Daemons, turn 3

One unit of Hounds charged the Jezzails. One died to stand and shoot, the rest then murdered the rats. The other unit of Hounds failed its march test, but just managed to move forward enough to leave the arc of the large Clanrat unit.

The Skullcannon shot and killed one Stormfiend.

The Seekers moved behind the yellow rock just off-screen.

Skaven, turn 3

The spear rats moved forward, just out of charge range of the Plaguebearers.

The Mortars shot but did minimal damage to the Hounds.

The Fiends shot and killed some Seekers.

The backfield units continued turning ineffectively, trying to catch the Hounds.

Daemons, turn 4

I wanted to catch the Skaven main unit in the middle. In order to keep them there, I moved my Furies just in front of them. The Plaguebearers, even with the banner, could barely keep up.

The Seekers charged the Mortars, which fled almost off the board.

The Cannon shot the Fiends.

Skaven, turn 4

The Clanrats took the bait and charged the Furies, killing them off.

The Mortars managed to rally.

Daemons, turn 5

The Plaguebearers were out of reliable charge range. Plus, I wanted the Clanrats pinned and unable to use their spears effectively. So I marched my units up to surround them.

In an unexpected turn of events, the Beast of Nurgle charged the one remaining Stormfiend. They did no wound to each other, I won by charging, and ran it down.

The small unit of Flesh Hounds retreated behind rocks, trying to preserve their points.

Skaven, turn 5

The Skaven unit charged in, doing good damage, but not enough.

Backfield movement was pretty useless at this point.

Daemons, turn 6

The hammer fell, and the combined charge killed a lot of Clanrats. They managed to flee, and nothing managed to catch them. It looked like the Skaven could pull a minor defeat...

Skaven, turn 6

But then the general failed the rally test, and the unit fled off the table. Major victory for the Daemons!

Aftermath

I felt bad afterwards, thinking that I brought too strong a list against a new player. Alas, I was warned about Skaven shooting, and tried to counter it as best as I could. I also had luck on my dice, with both Flesh Hound units coming in turn 2, and the cannon not misfiring, not even once, which has never happened before. 

My opponent was frustrated by my dancing around his units and never taking a charge. Then again, this game is won in the movement phase!

Daemons of Chaos vs Beastmen, 30.03.2017

Points: 2000

Deployment: Dawn attack

Lists:

Daemons of Chaos:

• Daemon Prince of Nurgle, general, level 3 wizard (Miasma of Pestilence, Curse of the Leper, Plague Wind)
• Herald of Nurgle, BSB, level 1 wizard: Blades of Putrefaction
• Herald of Nurgle, Greater Gift of 4+ Regeneration, level 1 wizard: Plague Wind
• 30-man Plaguebearers, full command
• 10-man Pink Horrors of Tzeentch, Blue Fire of Tzeentch
• 5-man Chaos Furies of Nurgle
• 5-man Flesh Hounds, Ambushers
• 5-man Seekers of Slaanesh
• 2x Burning Chariot
• Skullcannon

I know Beastmen are infantry heavy, so I figured the Burning Chariots would take care of the little guys with Fire Throwers while the Skullcannon would take out any monsters.

Beastmen

• Doombull: general, Heavy Armour, Shield, Ramhorn Helm, Dawnstone, Sword of Swift Slaying, The Other Trickster's Shard, Gnarled Hide
• Bray-Shaman, Lore of Beasts, Wizard Level 1 (Wildform), Dispell Scroll
• Bray-Shaman, Lore of Beasts, Wizard Level 1 (Wildform)
• Bray-Shaman, Lore of Shadow, Wizard Level 2 (Pit of Shades)
• Gorebull, BSB, Standard of Discipline
• 30-man Gor Herd, full command, additional hand weapons
• 20-man Gor Herd, full command, additional hand weapons
• 2x Tuskgor Chariot
• 2x 10-man Ungor Raiders, musician
• 6-man Minotaurs, full command, Shard of the Herdstone

Minotaur death star with kitted out general. Wizards stand back and buff them with additional power dice from the Herdstone.

Deployment

I won the roll-off and deployed randomly. I managed to roll a lot of 6's, choosing to keep my army together in the center. The block of Plaguebearers is supported by the Prince and the two redirecters. The right is held by the Horrors with chariots (unassembled) in support, with the Skullcannon in the center, ready to shoot at the Minotaurs, whereever they would deploy.

Across, from left to right, two squads of skirmishers; the Minotaur train with Gors behind; two wizards alone by the Herdstone; Chariots represented by paint pots; and more Gors.

For the second time in our history, the Beastmen seized the iniative. Oh well, there goes the opportunity to shoot them up.

Beastmen, turn 1

Most things moved up, with the Minotaurs being in my face and buffed with Wildform (I managed to stop one). Pit of Shades killed two Plaguebearers.

Daemons, turn 1

I sneaked in the Furies in front of the Minotaurs, intending to delay them for a turn. Plaguebearers move up and do a Stream of Corruption, managing to inflict two wounds and kill two Plaguebearers with miscast. All the other buffs go into the Furies, hoping to inflict that last wound before they inevitably die.

On the far side, chariots line up but miss their shots. The Skullcannon missfires.

I rolled +1 Ward save for the storm.

Beastmen, turn 2

The Minotaurs, of course, charge in.

The wizards manage to blow up and inflict a wound on each of them, killing 2 Plaguebearers and buffing the Minotaurs with a Wildform again.

The Furies die to Impact Hits and Doombull attacks without even attacking. The Minotaurs overrun into the Plaguebearers.

Daemons, turn 2

The General takes the high ground, leaving options open for charging.

The Flesh Hounds arrive and threaten the wizards.

The Seekers charge into a unit of Skirmishers.

The Skullcannon missfires again. The Burning Chariots overshoot the Gors. The wizards are also fine. At least I managed to stay out of any charge arcs.

The Seekers overrun into the next group of archers.

The Minotaurs inflicts incredible amounts of damage to the Plaguebearers.

Beastmen, turn 3

Minotaurs grind down more Plaguebearers. I lose enough ranks to not be Steadfast and lose a lot to instability. Tuskgor chariots charges Skullcannon but does not manage to kill it.

Daemons, turn 3

At this point the shop was almost closing, so it was to be the last turn. And of course I was losing. I gambled everything into some desperate moves.

Triple charge the unit of Gors with Seekers, Hounds and Prince.

Charge the Tuskgor chariot in the woods. It flees but not far enough and gets chased down.

Charge a wizard with the other Burning Chariot but fail the distance.

Buff everything into the Plaguebearers. I actually did manage to cast Miasma (for -1 WS on the Minotaurs) and Curse of the Leper for +3 Toughness on the Plaguebearers.

Nevertheless, the Minotaurs won combat and the Plaguebearers and remaining Herald died to instability, suffering EXACTLY the number of wounds remaining.
The Gors actually managed to tie combat by killing the Seekers.
The Chariot died to the Skullcannon, but it was too little, too late. Major victory for the Beastmen!

Thoughts

• The Minotaurs are even scarier than an Ogre GutBus, with a devastating charge (Impact Hits + Frenzy). I definitely should not have accepted their charge, instead either charging in or redirecting them away with the Furies instead of into the Plaguebearers.
• The Herdstone is a great buff for the wizards. Perhaps two units of Flesh Hounds would have effectively threatened them. They just walked out of charge arc of the one Hound unit.
• Shooting was... terrible. Skullcannon never fired (two missfires), Burning Chariots killed 2 Gors with shooting. I still think they were a right choice, as with a little luck they would have obliterated the enemy. Alas, it was not to be.

Daemons of Chaos vs Ogre Kingdoms, 07.03.2017

Points: 1500

Deployment: Meeting engagement

Lists:

Daemons of Chaos:

• Daemon Prince of Nurgle, general, level 2 wizard (Fleshy Abundance, Stream of Corruption), lesser gift (Always Strikes First), Chaos Armor (4+)
• Herald of Nurgle, BSB, level 1 wizard: Fleshy Abundance
• Herald of Nurgle, level 1 wizard: Plague Wind
• 30-man Plaguebearers, full command, Banner of Eternal Flame
• Beast of Nurgle
• 5-man Chaos Furies
• Soul Grinder, Phlegm Bombardment

With more points available, I decided on a beefed up Daemon Prince and lots of wizards to counter the Ogre magic. I also heard of their Trollguts spell, so I included the magic banner of flaming attacks.

Ogre Kingdoms:

• Slaughtermaster, general, level 3 wizard (The Maw, Toothcracker, Trollguts), dispel scroll
• Bruiser, BSB, Crown of Command
• Firebelly, level 1 wizard (Firecloak)
• 15-man Gnoblars, trappers
• 8-man Ogres, champion, standard bearer, Ironfists
• 3-man Leadbelchers
• 2-man Mournfang Cavalry, Dragonhide Banner
• 2x Sabretusk
• Thundertusk

We agreed beforehand to do a good old fashioned monster fight - hence the Grinder and the Thundertusk. 

Deployment

I won the roll-off for deployment. My non-BSB hero got left out, everybody else on the table. The Mournfang also did not make it for deployment.

I wanted to unleash at least a Plague Wind on the big Ogre unit before they get toughed up - but the opponent rolled a 6 and got first turn.

Ogre Kingdoms, turn 1

The Mournfang arrived on the far right side, ready to clear out the Furies or double-charge the Plaguebearers. Everything else moved up, with one Sabretusk blocking the Ogres from being charged.

Leadbelchers shot the Beast of Nurgle (no effect). Thundertusk shot the Plaguebearers (scatterred off). The wizards got off most of their spells, but neither came into play - yet.

Daemons, turn 1

I attempted to charge the Beast of Nurgle into the Leadbelchers, but failed the 8 inches.

Plaguebearers reform to possibly take a charge next turn. Herald walks on and joins them.

Furies move in to block the Thundertusk.

Daemon Prince moves to rear-charge the Thundertusk if possible or at least do a spell on it.

Weak magic turn, got off only Flesh Abundance on the Beast.

Grinder shot the Thundertusk, hit it with S3, got in a wound.

Ogre Kingdoms, turn 2

The Mournfang failed their charge into the flank of the Plaguebearers. Looking back, this was actually lucky, as I probably would have won through static combat resolution.

Thundertusk charged the Furies, as expected.

Sabretusks surround the Daemon Prince.

Leadbelchers shoot, to no effect.

Furies die, as expected.

Thundertusk overruns into the Grinder. Then proceeded to stay in there for the rest of the game. Well worth the stone thrower upgrade on the Grinder.

Daemons, turn 2

Plaguebearers and Daemon Prince charge into the Ogre unit. I saw a chance and took it. 

Beast of Nurgle fails a 6 inch charge into the Leadbelchers.

Weak magic phase again, didn't get off anything useful. On to combat.
Both sides did surprisingly little damage. The Daemon Prince did 0 wounds, even with rerolling hits (proud of you, big guy!). The Ogres flailed around with little effect, given -1 to hit and T4 on the Plaguebearers. I won combat, but they were Stubborn, so nothing happened.
The monsters in combat did no wounds to each other (thanks to Trollguts on the Thundertusk).

Ogre Kingdoms, turn 3

The do-or-die moments for the Ogres. Mournfang charge in to flank the Plaguebearers. Sabretusk charges the Daemon Prince from behind for more combat resolution.

I lost combat due to lots of Plaguebearers dying to the Mournfang. I was also down 1 wound on the Daemon Prince. Again, I rolled poorly, but at least I got the Sabretusk with my Stomps and managed to deny the combat resolution of being charged from behind. The Ogre characters in the front row were now sufficiently weakened, but neither died.
I took some chances, rerolling Daemonic Instability, but managed to keep my general alive and only loose a few Plaguebearers.
The monsters each inflicted 1 wound to each other, tying combat.

Daemons, turn 3

Moved the Beast of Nurgle finally out of the way of the Leadbelchers and to charging position.

Lost a lot of Plaguebearers this turn, and still no end in sight to the grind.

Ogre Kingdoms, turn 4

With the Plaguebearers refusing to die, everything that could charged in. Gnoblars and Sabretusk move into the Daemon Prince.

And then everything crumbled.

Both the Ogre General and the BSB died this turn.

The Thundertusk lost combat by 1, and with no Inspiring Presence and reroll, lost combat, and was run down by the Grinder.

The large combat was also lost (my Daemon Prince killed the Sabretusk and 1 Gnoblar, yay for him), and all units fled. I chased down the big unit...

... and that was game.

Aftermath

The Ogres are very, very tough, especially if they get off their spells.

Then again, Nurgle units are also very, very tough - but less killy than the Ogres.

Luck was a big factor in this game, with failed charges for the Mournfang, weak magic phases for me, the Daemon Prince doing almost no damage, the monsters flailing at each other to no effect.

In the end, it was all we could do to send in everything into the grind and hope the Dice Gods smile our way. And they did...

Daemons of Chaos vs Beastmen, 04.02.2017

Points: 1000

Deployment: Watchtower

Lists:

Daemons of Chaos:

• Herald of Nurgle, general, level 1 wizard: Stream of Corruption
• Herald of Nurgle, level 1 wizard: Plague Wind
• 17-man Plaguebearers, full command
• Beast of Nurgle
• 5-man Chaos Furies
• 3-man Screamers of Tzeentch
• 5-man Seekers of Slaanesh
• 5-man Flesh Hounds

This is a polar opposite of my last list. Instead of a killy combat block and a Daemon Prince, I instead included lots and lots of chaff to redirect and surround, and two wizards.

Beastmen:

• Beastlord: additional hand weapon, general
• Bray-Shaman, level 2, lore of beasts: Wyssan's Wildform, The Amber Spear
• Bray-Shaman, level 1, lore of beasts: Wyssan's Wildform
• Wargor, Battle Standard Bearer
• 25-man Gor Herd, full command, additional hand weapons
• 25-man Gor Herd, full command, additional hand weapons
• 2x 1-boar Razorgor Herd 

Similar list as last time, but this time with two wizards. Two blocks of very killy infantry (lots and lots of attacks) and two Razorgors as chaff.

Deployment

I won the deployment roll-off, and placed my Plaguebearers with the two Heralds inside the watchtower. Everything else deployed in a neat line. The Beastmen deployed their two blocks in the middle, with the Razorgors on the sides.

Beastmen, turn 1

The center block (containing the level 1 Shaman and the BSB) charged the watchtower. A couple of models died on each side. Everything else advanced. The Amber Spear did 1 wound to a Flesh Hound.

Daemons, turn 1

I took a very aggressive stance. The Screamers went for a 10-inch charge and made it into combat. The Flesh Hounds advanced on the left flank, intent on engaging the other Razorgor. The Seekers and Furies took full advantage of flying/fast cavalry movement and encircled the Gor block. The Beast of Nurgle also advanced.

I rolled 10 on the Warp Storm table, but forgot to apply the +1 Ward Save this turn. Shame! At least I managed to get off a Stream of Corruption and killed a few Gors in the block attacking me.

Beastmen, turn 2

The center block again charged the watchtower, but was repelled. Alas, I had so few Plaguebearers that I could no longer send a 10-man assault party. The other block turned to face the incoming melee. The Razorgor charged the Flesh Hounds and fought them to a standstill.

In the magic phase, the center block was Wildformed.

Daemons, turn 2

This is the turn that I charge the center block and annihilate them! Hah, just kidding. I rolled terribly. I won combat, but took great losses.

Beastmen, turn 3

What's in the photo below is basically what I have left from the previous turn. Not much. The big block charged in. The small block was again Wildformed.

Not much to say here. The Seekers were annihilated by the attacks of the Beastlord alone. Whatever didn't die phased out due to instability.

The Hounds and the Razorgor continued to caress each other, inflicting no wounds.

All in all, things seemed pretty much lost.

Daemons, turn 3

I managed to kill the Razorgor. Yeah.

Beastmen, turn 4

The eternal combat: Wildformed Gors against Plaguebearers. Can't remember why the big block didn't charge the Watchtower.

Daemons, turn 4

And when all seemed lost, an excellent magic phase turned the tables again. I got off both a Stream of Corruption and a small Plague Wind. The first one wasn't denied and the second one miscasted, causing one wound to the wizard. I killed a lot of Gors, targeting the large unit which wasn't Wildformed, and got a lot of Plaguebearers back. In fact, the point here was that I had more models inside now, and could hold on almost indefinitely. 

Another lucky die roll was the Flesh Hound passing their march block test. I placed them so that the second block couldn't charge the watchtower.

Beastmen, turn 5

The Beastlord charged out of the unit, assaulting the watchtower with the remainder of the small Gor block. At this point I consulted the building assault rules again and decided to target the characters. I managed to kill off the BSB, although it didn't matter much at this point. And yes, I forgot to place my spell-summoned Plaguebearers at this point. But they'll be there in the next picture...

Daemons, turn 5

I had the Flesh Hounds take advantage of the Beastlord not being in the unit, and charged. They munched through, but the champion (single remaining model) rolled insane courage and held fast. I managed to cast some spells, but the Wildformed T5 Gors didn't fail any toughness tests.

And at the end of the round, I rolled a 5 on the variable game length and won, holding the watchtower.

Final words

• A very, very close game with lots of back-and-forth. There were several moments for both of us when we saw sure victory or defeat.
• The Lore of Beasts performed well in both games. Wildform is an excellent spell.
• One good magic phase can turn the game around. This happened in both games; but today, it happened in my favor.
• Beastmen are frequently bashed for being weak. I guess they would perform badly against heavy armor; but against my 5+ saved Daemons, they wreck face. When I charged the center block with 4 units, I expected them to die. They didn't.

Daemons of Chaos vs Beastmen, 31.01.2017

Points: 1000

Deployment: Meeting engagement

Lists:

Daemons of Chaos:

• Daemon Prince of Slaanesh, general
• Herald of Slaanesh, battle standard bearer, War Banner (+1 combat resolution), Locus of Swiftness (Always Strikes First)
• 20-man Daemonettes, full command, Banner of Swiftness (+1 movement)
• 5-man Seekers of Slaanesh, champion, standard
• 5-man Flesh Hounds, ambushers

I wanted to try out something new. I planned to pincer or at least double-charge the enemy with the Daemonette block and the Daemon Prince, with the war banner giving enough static resolution to pad out the damage caused by the monster. No wizards though.

Beastmen:

• Beastlord: heavy armor, additional hand weapon, Potion of Foolhardiness, general
• Bray-Shaman, level 2, lore of beasts: Wyssan's Wildform, The Curse of Anraheir
• Wargor, Battle Standard Bearer
• 30-man Gor Herd, full command, additional hand weapons
• 27-man Gor Herd, full command, additional hand weapons
• 2x 1-boar Razorgor Herd 

Two blocks of very killy infantry (lots and lots of attacks) and two Razorgors as chaff.

Deployment

I won the deployment roll and placed my Daemon Prince in cover, with the two fast units on the flanks. I decided to vanguard my Seekers backwards to avoid the Razorgor hiding in the forest. Beastlord and BSB in the right unit, shaman in the left unit.

Turn 1, Daemons

I made the charge on the left flank into the Razorgor. Lost one Flesh Hound, but won combat and let it flee off the table.

Consolidated my positioning in the center.

Turn 1, Beastmen

Failed charge into my Daemonette block.

Other gor unit moved forward, the shaman cursed the Seekers but I dispelled the Wildform.

Turn 2, Daemons

Charge! Daemon Prince and Daemonette block into the Gors.

Lost two Seekers to the curse, but managed to march them out of charge arc and into position to maybe help out the combat next turn. Hounds advanced to do the same.

Combat went fairly well, although the Daemon Prince failed at his rolls and only killed 3 gors (stomps included). Issued a challenge with my champion to protect the Herald, and managed to draw in the Beastlord. Herald killed the BSB by attacking it directly. I won combat but the gors were steadfast.

Turn 2, Beastmen

Other gor unit face the combat. Razorgor moves in to help next turn. The shaman successfully cast both the Curse on the Daemonettes and Wildform on the gors in combat.

Accordingly, this time combat was a disaster. I accepted the Beastlord's challenge with the Daemon Prince, but only managed to inflict 2 out of 3 wounds, rolling double ones on stomps, and receiving 2 wounds in return. Daemonettes were wounding on 6's. I lost badly, with the Daemon Prince phasing out (sheesh) and the Daemonette unit decimated.

Turn 3, Daemons

I tried a last trick, by charging the Hounds into the flank and sacrificing the Seekers to redirect the other gor unit, just in case I survive. I didn't. The Herald survived by being in a challenge with the gor champion (barely managed to kill him), but the gors inflicted enough wounds to phase out the hounds.

I conceded.

Aftermath

To be honest, my Daemon Prince failed horribly in combat. Had he done more wounds, or even killed the Beastlord in the second turn, it might have gone differently. Combat dice were awesome for the gors, killing lots of Daemonettes each turn.

On the other hand, I had no magic defense, and the Beastmen had free reign in the second turn, when the winds of magic rolled 11. That was definitely a big hole in this list.