The Battle of Blood Valley - Part 2

This is a continuation of the Battle of Blood Valley battle report. You can find the first part here.

Empire Turn 2

Empire Turn 2

The Empire general and army standard had fallen. They and the Knights escorting them had fallen prey to Reichardt's own hubris and needless aggression. Their skulls would be added to Khorne's collection, but the battle was not yet over.

Lost in the mindless stampede as they ran down the fleeing Empire commander, the Chaos Knights were oblivious to the charge of the Greatswords into their exposed flank until it was too late. The Skullcrushers were also unexpectedly flanked when the Chaos Hounds blocking the path of the Outriders decided to turn tail and flee when they charged. As the Hounds made their escape through their own lines (and ultimately from the field entirely) the Outriders altered their course and charged the monstrous Skullcrushers instead. What they thought about this sudden change of opponents is probably best not recorded.

The Chaos Knights ans Skullcrushers find themselves flanked mid-celebration. How unsporting. The Outriders were meant to be getting out of the way for the Steam Tank to charge the Skullcrushers, but compulsory movement occurring later meant the Outriders had already maximised and left no room.

The Battle of Blood Valley - Part 1

A 3,250 point Warhammer Fantasy Battle 8th edition battle report with Aaron Graham.

It has been a while since I posted a proper battle report, so I thought I would put out the call and see who was interested in these disturbing and Age of Sigmar-laden times. Aaron put up his hand, and we set about planning a game. Things were largely dictated by what he had available (hence the slightly strange points limit). I tried to make an army that might face off fairly evenly against the sorts of units he would be fielding, and away we went.

Unfortunately the lighting at the club is really not great, so some of these photos are pretty dark despite my efforts to adjust the camera. In the end (as the afternoon got even darker) I wound up resorting to the flash. Sorry about my shoddy photography skills. Anyway, on with the game!

Prologue
Smoke smeared the horizon as Grand Master Reichardt called his column to a halt at the top of a gently rolling hill. They stood on the lip of a green valley. The farmhouses occupying the area had all been abandoned for a while. The Chaos warband that was rampaging in this direction was hardly the first threat to the area in recent memory. In truth, the whole region was a war zone. A tide of warriors had been arriving from the north, and there was a limit to how many armies Elector Count Valmir von Raukov could dispatch to combat the problem. 


Reichardt's task force was one such force. He had been dispatched with the specific purpose of intercepting and destroying this latest warband before its southerly course took it beyond the Elector's reach and deeper into the Empire. This was not the first such sortie that the Grand Master and his men had been on. Every fighting man in Ostland was a veteran by now; there was no room for idle men.

A forced march had brought them to this valley, which Reichardt had identified as the best place to halt the northerners. They were arriving toward the later part of the afternoon however, and the sun would soon be setting. It would have been time to make camp, however the sounds from the other side of the valley suggested that there would be no time for that. The battle would take place now.

Already the lead elements of the Chaos force were emerging from the trees on the far side of the field. As the sun began to set behind them and the smoky sky overhead began to turn red, the gathering Northmen took up a chant as they formed ranks across the valley from the hastily deploying Empire forces. The chant was simple, but it simultaneously struck fear into the hearts of their enemies and praised their malevolent master.

"Blood! Blood! Blood! BLOOD!"