The Battle of Osterwald - Part 3

This is a continuation of our battle report. You can find the previous part here, or go back to the start here.

It's all happening!

Orcs Turn 3

With the swordsmen in the centre having fled, the Orcs and Goblins now had control of the high point in the centre of the field. A goblin scurried up with a torch in hand, and even as Azhag rejoined the fight, a second wyvern swept down through the clouds and tore apart one of the few remaining Empire cannons.

Azhag's plan continues to bear fruit as a black orc warboss descends upon a hapless cannon.

On the eastern flank, the landship was now right in the midst of the greenskin lines. The boar boyz tried once again to charge it in the flank, and this time their boars were being more cooperative and they ploughed right into it. The crew managed to drag down two of their assailants, but the landship had already sustained significant structural damage, and this time the entire machine collapsed.

It had a good run... Really I was impressed it lived this long. Not terribly dangerous, but very distracting!

With the boar boyz taking care of the landship, the orc chariots steered themselves toward an even bigger prize - the Knights Panther.

This should be OK. They're inner circle knights with a grand master leading them.

The chariots slammed in with surprising force, impact unhorsing many of the elite knights whilst the tusks of the boars and the spears of the orcs accounted for several more. The knights fought back feebly, with the grand master hacking a couple of times at the nearest chariot but receiving no real help from the men around him. Numbers alone held the regiment in place as they struggled to regroup.

17 impact hits is a lot, but then I couldn't even pass saves against the crew and boars... Honestly the unit would have broken, but we decided that the chariots were a loose formation without a rank (chariots by default don't have ranks or generally even units), so steadfast kept them there. Would have been a sad way to lose the strongest unit in the Empire army...

On the other side of the tower, the halberdiers were punished for their inept maneuvers when a towering hulk of stone lumbered over the hill and into their hastily braced front ranks. The warrior priest called (somewhat weakly) for courage in the face of this monstrosity, and was rewarded for his attention-seeking behaviour by being immediately torn into three pieces. The rest of the front rank fared little better, and their halberds did little more than glance off the surface of the monster's stone hide. The remainder held their ground, though it's hard to imagine what hope they clung to.

The rogue idol starts to tear its way through the halberdiers, beginning with killing blowing the warrior priest. Twice. Why not?

Shoot the ogres, then run away from the giant. Perfect!

Toward the centre, the ogre ironguts suffered yet more casualties as they charged toward the handgunners, only to see their prey elude them as they panicked and fled when the wounded giant also  moved to engage them. The ogres staggered to a disappointed (and bloodied) halt, but the giant shifted his sights to the halberdiers and charged into them instead. The other giant charged the waiting ranks of White Wolf knights, all on his own. 

Half the Empire troops seem to be fleeing, but there are still plenty for the giants to tangle with.

The giant attacking the halberdiers was already on his last legs, having been on the receiving end of a well-placed cannon shot earlier. He staggered into the fight, flailing about him with the massive rock he was using as a club. Half a rank of the human soldiers perished to a single swing, however the giant found half a dozen halberd tips rammed up into his belly, and he fell, toppling across and flattening a few unfortunate White Wolf knights. For their part, the knights lost two more of their number to blows from the other giant, but they returned the favour with a flurry of well-placed hammer blows. The giant staggered back a few steps before collapsing.

Over on the hill, the river trolls were finding it surprisingly difficult to kill the fancily-dressed giant fighting on the Empire side, most likely hypnotised by the swaying of his magnificent feathers (although probably something to do with someone over that side of the field playing all the giants as toughness 6 - I'm sure someone should have known better. Either way, he was lucky to still be there). The regiment of fleeing free company had rallied next to them, but their recovery was interrupted by a chariot and a massive horde of orcs crashing into their formation. The militia fought, but they were hopelessly out-matched and were unceremoniously run down as their nerve failed and they broke. The orcs barely slowed, charging the handgunners who had been standing behind their friends.

The free company are already gone, the orcs have reached the handgunners and the chariot is almost within reach of the volley gun. But wait, what is that purple bubble and how did it get there...?

Having re-entered the fray but without anything worth chopping within arm's reach, Azhag instead decided to call upon the power of his crown once again. The Purple Sun of Xereus surged forth again, this time moving at a blistering pace through the enemy spearmen, steam tank... and his own orc boyz. This resulted in the death of 9 spearmen and 14 orcs. The driver of the steam tank apparently saw it coming and managed to avoid its effects, however he steered right into the path of a shot from a rock lobber, which crashed a serious dent into the side of the machine.

Purple Sun on you...

...And Purple Sun on you...

...And Purple Sun for all you guys too! All told it was a reasonable amount of damage, although obviously the steam tank was the real target. The spell did generate 8 power dice thanks to all the spearmen and orcs dying screaming, so that's obviously a win, right?

The Empire wizards were having trouble containing the magic being unleashed by the orcs, and this was only made worse when the goblin shaman on the western flank gathered entirely too much power for him to control and unleashed the full force of Da Curse of Da Bad Moon, right through his allies as well as the masses of knights in front of him...

The squig herd arrives to help deal with the knight regiment, rushing through a fanatic in their haste to join in the fun. 4 handlers and 5 squigs perished, but that's OK...

...There are still plenty of chompy teeth to go around. So many crunchable knightses... But first, the squigs get to deal with the hazard that is their own idiot shaman!

Actually, it's not so bad for the squigs. Da Curse of da Bad Moon launches through the steam tank and giant, before ploughing through the knights and coming to a halt next to the Grand Theogonist. Not being a complete potato, the shaman decided that everyone would be taking strength tests. This meant the giant and steam tank were ok. The knights... not so much.

A massive swirling vortex of power erupted in front of the shaman, briefly consuming the steam tank and giant before moving into the knights. The screams of men and horses could be heard over the roar of the spell as a dozen of them were consumed before the spell finally drifted clear of what remained of the rear ranks.

Man, there used to be more knights there a moment ago. Even the warrior priest was wounded!

With the horrors of the spell behind them, the knights set about trying to protect themselves in a mortal struggle with a great many squigs and a very large (though mostly dead) giant. The squigs hurled themselves at their victims, claiming half a dozen knights despite their armour. The humans hacked back as best they could, struggling to make inroads against the giant's tough hide without the aid of their lances. Some squigs fell, but ever more swarmed forward to take their place. The fight was looking grim.

It was at this moment that the wounded warrior priest hefted his mighty hammer and slammed it down upon the knee of the foul brute. The giant gave out a pained bellow and collapsed... straight into the centre of the squig herd.

The dying giant lands smack in the middle of the squig herd, and all hell breaks loose.

Wait, is this my best angle?

Man oh man... What a mess. The greenskins had the upper hand in the fight until the giant landed upon the squigs, crushing 13 of them. And that was that. They lost the combat and it all went very wrong.

The damage from the fallen giant completely changed the fortunes of the goblins. Realising the fight was lost, the goblin spearmen turned to retreat. The remaining giant held his ground, but then the squig herd exploded, with crazed tooth-gnashing squigs bounding in all directions. The giant was felled and landed directly on the steam tank, further damaging it. Fleeing goblins, black orcs, night goblins, knights, flagellants trying to hide in the tower... none were safe from the thundering mass of teeth that crashed like a wave over their formations.

Well that was interesting. And suddenly the western flank seems a whole lot clearer. Note the missing models from units all over the place, and the lack of fanatics. Oh, and the squigs. They all went home after they had eaten their fill of human, orc, goblin and giant.

The falling giant had been a disaster, and the west flank was now very much in control of the Empire.

Scribe's notes:

A Wyvern attacks Josh's right-most cannon. Gobbo archers fling Poo at the Boar Boyz in the centre, Ironguts charge handgunners and take 2 casualties and fail their charge while the Giant then charges the handgunners who fail Fear and flee through Halberdiers.White Wolves charged by Giant and pass Fear test, wounded Giant charges Halberdiers,   On the Empire right, Boar Chariots hit the Knights Panther, Boar Boyz flank the Landship, Dark Giant chargers the halberdiers in front of the Reiksguard - halberdiers pass Fear test.  Blue Fanatic kills 2 Kights Panther, yellow goes sideways and is join ed by other blue fanatic.

On Empire left a Fanatic takes out 4 handlers and 5 squigs on his way into the Venators and the Free Company have reformed and are hit by a horde of Orc boyz.

Orks get 16 power dice though a Shaman down (thanks to Azhag back on table) while Empire have 13 dispel dice  Azhag pops Purple Sun with 30" movement  This kills 14 Orks (for 5 extra Power Dice), and 9 Spearmen for 3 Power Dice. The Steam Tank scooby-dooed out of the way of the Sun.  Sneaky Stabbing on the Ork far right Squigs is dispelled and Hand of Gork is also Dispelled. Boosted Curse of the Bad Moon is cast irresistibly on the Steam Tank/Giants combat Empire far left.  Giant and Tank shrug off the hits, a squig handler is killed as is a Gobbo spearman, a Warrior Priest takes a Wound, 12 Venators are killed. The spell is then lost!

Orks shooty phase: Bolt thrower takes out two Reiksguard, 3 Leopard company are also killed by Doom Diver. Josh's steam tank takes 5 wounds to bolt thrower and rock lobber.

Pete's Boar Chariots do 17 Impact Hits on Knights Panther and 7 kills result.  The Grand Master does 2 Wounds, the piggies do 3 wounds for 2 kills (Greg!), the Knights do 1 wound (not saved) and the ponies nought.  The Boyz do 1 wound (not saved) and the Knights lose combat but hold. Wolf Riders pass Fear test and lose 2 while taking out the Landship's last wounds. Reform facing towards Boar Boyz.  The Dark Giant charges the halberdiers, eats a Warrior Priest and did 8 other wounds - the halberdiers stand!  Giant on 1 wound vs halberdiers does 5 wounds but takes 5 and falls onto the White Wolves who take 3 casualties. The Giant vs the White Wolves does 4 wounds and 2 are saved, Wolves do enough wounds to remove the Giant, who falls backwards for a dent in the turf!

Two Giants combat - Blue Giant doing well but is killed by a Warrior Priest, falls over, kills 13 squiggies and the rest explode! 8 dead Night Gobbos, 6 dead Gobbo spears, 6 dead Black Orks, 6 dead Flagellants and the second Giant is killed, falls and does 3 wounds on the Steam Tank. The Common Gobbos flee. The Orks clean up the Free Company and overrun into the handgunners in the centre, with a Boar Chariot in company.

Empire Turn 3

The Flagellants finally had uncontested control off the tower on the western side of the field, and a particularly bright flash as one of them set his entire head and beard on fire was all the signal that the Empire needed. The mists swirled, a shadow emerged, and the emperor himself swept down and into the fight with the river trolls.

Karl Franz joined the fight, right as the giant was swaying on his last legs.

The emperor shouted a challenge as he arrived, leveling his mighty hammer at Badgutz Trollbreath, the orc warboss who was at their head. The orc bellowed his enthusiasm for the duel, and thus began a struggle that went on far longer than any observer could have imagined. Karl Franz found it difficult to lay a blow on his opponent, and each time he did, the orc's glowing talisman flared with power and the strike glanced off harmlessly. Deathclaw was even less fortunate, sustaining multiple wounds as the warboss struck back at the griffon, having decided that he was the easier target. At this point the trolls finally overpowered the giant, leaving the emperor to fight on alone.

The White Wolves charge the massive regiment of black orcs, whilst the halberdiers look to use the ogres as a springboard to join them.

Matters were coming to a head nearby, as the White Wolves decided it was time to engage the vast tide of black orcs that was approaching them. The Ostland halberdiers charged alongside them, however their path to the black orcs was blocked by what remained of the ogre ironguts. As they arrived, the Bright wizard in their midst managed to cast Flaming Sword of Rhuin. All across the regiment, halberd heads blazed with burning hot energy.

The wizard casts Flaming Sword to boost his unit in the combats to come, but then pays the price for being right in front of the ogre bruiser...

The ogres were heavily armed, but slow to move. The charging halberdiers went headlong into them, and their enchanted blades made short work of the remaining ironguts. The bruiser however, was made of sterner stuff. A halberd struck a deep wound across his torso, but it had little effect upon his return strike, as he swung his massive hammer about and reduced the wizard into a paste. He had little time to admire his handiwork though, as the charging halberdiers pressed on and he was forced to abandon his pride and flee for his life through the mass of black orcs behind him. The halberdiers were hot on his heels, but he eluded capture as they crashed into the waiting orcs.

It's only 80 black orcs led by an angry warboss. We've got this, right? Right? You rolled a 6 for the Battleaxe of the Last Waaagh? What does that mean?

The White Wolf knights and black orcs were already exchanging blows as the halberdiers joined the fight, laying about them with their still-searing hot weapons. The fighting was intense, with no less than sixteen black orcs succumbing to the blows of the charging Empire troops. In fact the exact same number of knights and halberdiers fell to the great weapons of the black orcs. The confrontation was virtually at a standstill, and likely to be decided by the duel at the centre of it. The warboss had bellowed a challenge as the knights thundered in, and the champion of the White Wolves accepted. As they approached each other, the axe of the black orc glowed with an evil malevolence that seemed to pulse through him, and his eyes began to glow like the axe itself. Seemingly realising the danger, the White Wolf raised his hammer to strike, but the warboss hurled himself forward with unbelievable speed and ferocity, carving both rider and horse alike into multiple pieces with blows of impossible strength.

To their credit, the White Wolves held their ground despite what they had just witnessed, but it was too much for the halberdiers, who immediately turned and fled, in flight before the last pieces of the diced warhorse had settled on the ground. Perhaps this influenced the mood of the handgunners behind the lines, who decided not to rally, and instead continued their retreat away from the battlefield.

The combats continue, with the next wave approaching (or in the case of the Reiksguard, still stuck behind).

The halberdiers continued to hack futilely at the rocky monstrosity before them, doing their best to ignore the casualties that they were sustaining in return. The captain and champion shrieked their final commands as they were flattened, along with half a dozen of their subordinates.

The Knights Panther fared much better against the chariots now that they were no longer travelling at great speed and one of the machines was cut to pieces, although the remainder held their ground.

Elements of the Empire western flank are forced to turn due to the reappearance of Azhag.

On the western flank, the spearmen turned to face the threat of the wyvern behind their lines. Both steam tanks were stationary, as their drivers battled the leaking boilers of their damaged contraptions. The flagellants emerged from the tower in order to try to get to grips with the night goblins nearby, and were rewarded with some fanatics who had not yet been released. Behind them, the strange goblin with the fancy magical hat had been weaving about on his spider in a bit of a confused fog. It's unclear whether he even realised his plight as both crossbowman regiments opened fire and turned him and his mount into pincushions.

Hard on the flank, the knights continued their push into the enemy-controlled areas of the field by charging the much smaller regiment of black orcs. There may not have been as many of these back orcs, but they remained dangerous prey, and a handful of knights fell to their great weapons before the toll on the orcs became too great and they fled, somehow eluding the pursuing cavalry.

Closer to the centre, the orc horde that had overrun into the Ostland handgunners made light work of them, and the Empire troops were unable to hold. They tried to flee, but the orcs ran over them thanks to their momentum, and found yet more prey in the from of the Stirland crossbowmen.

Something has gone wrong here. Why were the crossbowmen in front of the Teutogen Guard? This is less than ideal.

The remaining black orcs flee for the safety of the mobile phone. Well, they seem to racing the goblin spearmen for it.

If you've spent too long in your tower and no doom has come to find you, it's time to go look for your doom elsewhere. A Trollslayer would understand.

Scribe's notes:

Noakes' Steam Tank stalls while Josh's sits tight. Handgunners fail in centre and leave table after fleeing last turn. The Huricanum and swordsmen rally but the cannon is passed through by the handgunners and fail their test. Venators charge Black Orks and Flagellants come out of the tower and form up.

The White Wolves charge the Black Orks and Karl Franz arrives to charge the Trolls. The Great Swords move up behind the Knights Panther.

Magic - 12 magic dice to 7 dispel dice.Wyldform dispelled by Pete, Re-rolls to wound on White Wolves is dispelled.  Same on halberdiers is cast on a 5, dispelled by Azhag. Ward save on White Wolves dispelled by Azhag. Flaming Sword cast on the halberdiers which Pete can't manage to dispel. The Vortex wandered off the table.

Cannon fires at Azhag, does 2 wounds to Skullmuncher only.  Volley gun in middle shoots at the Wyvern and rider, 3 wounds on the Wyvern only.  Crossbowmen on the left kill the spider-rider warboss. Hellblaster in the middle takes the remainder of the squiq-riders rear rank off. 

Hallberdiers against the Dark Giant lose the Captain, Champion and 2 rankers, then another 4 to Thunderstomp (Greg unable to roll 6s after good to hit rolls). Knights Panther remove a Boar Chariot  and chariots lose combat but pass test to stand.  In the centre, halberdiers vs Ogres - 2 Ogre casualties and a Wound on the Bruiser, who hits the Wizard twice and kills him. Bruiser breaks and evades the halberdiers, who follow up into the Black Orks. Black Orks hit the Champion of the White Wolves with 6 wounds (overkill) while the halberdiers join in and do 6 wounds for 5 kills.  The White Wolves do 11 casualties on the Black Orks.  The horde of Black Orks do 18 attacks on the Wolves, killing 9.  Then 12 attacks on the halberdiers, killing 7.  The Empire loses the combat by 5 and the halberdiers break and flee.  The White Wolves stand.

Orks that cleaned up Free Company defeat handgunners and run them down. Venators defeat Black Orks but don't run them down. However, the Gobbo spearmen bolt as do the Night Goblins behind the hill.  Deathclaw is hit an suffers 3 wounds from the Trollz, who then also take out the Empire Giant in this combat but the Emperor stands.

End of Turn 3

You can find the next turn of the report here.