Aerial Heroes...

Good morning,

Last night Bruce, whose daughter I taught last year, and who has taught my own children at high school came round for his first bona fide miniatures wargame. He was keen on something mythological, so I brought out HOTT. Specifically my Early Imperial Romans vs. my Skellies.



I set up before he arrived thinking that he'd take the Romans. He arrived and immediately chose the Skellies, repleat with my latest addition/alteration to this army, an Aerial Hero (the Bone Dragon with a rider. In fact, the riders just sitting on it, so I can remove it should I want a dragon. But after tonight...)



And away we went.


Mars hisself arrived on the scene, did some pushing and shoving...



...and then beggered off without killing a thing!


Blimmin false gods!

(I really do need a more arable/dry/summer-grass-looking battle mat. Still, this was dirt cheap, and covers my 9 foot by 5 foot table tennis table, so...)

Anyway, Bruce picked things up very quickly, and soon sent that dratted Ariel Hero behind my front line.



It soon started to wreak havoc!



In the meantime I tried to advance in the centre...


...and pulling out my own hero from Bruces. Heroes are quick killed by heroes (and both are destroyed on a draw) so I figured it could do better work where it'd have better odds!


Note in the background my Rider General that I brought up behind his Knight chariot in an effort to unleash the explosive buttocks of death! (Denying him room to recoil, should such a result, well, result.)

Bruce promptly did the same to my end Blade element.


In either case, it didn't work!


So I charge my General into the his Knight, supported by Legionaries. Praetorians, in point of fact.



Huzzah!

Concurrently, my centre Blades had dispatched those two pesky centre-of-the-field-hogging Hordes, so Bruce sends that nasty Aerial Hero up behind one of these said Blades, forcing it to turn to face without the support of it's mate.



No worries!

Next bound I redress my lines and send forth my general to threaten his Magician General.


My subsequent bound, after another unsuccessful attempt at my Legionaries, I close the door, so to speak on mister threatening there.


All for a Stand result (a tie). Still, at least I got into contact with his General, and managed to push him back.


Things were getting down to the wire. I had lost 10 AP, Bruce something like 8 (mostly Hordes). He couldn't afford to loose that Aerial Hero, I couldn't afford to loose, well, anything else, so he sends in a Horde to force the Blade off the flank of the big beastie, closes the door on the other Blade...


...and finally dispatches the Legionaries facing his Hero.


...and that was the end of that!

Well played Bruce, well played.

Those Aerial Heroes are, I think, worth the points...

Nick