HOTT Day in July - Battle 2

And onto Battle Two. This was my first (of two) games against Tony with his 15mm WW2 Germans, based up on 60mm wide bases ala 25mm DBx.

His army comprised of...

• 1 x Hero General - Rommel standing in front of his half track


• 1 x Behemoth - a hulking great Tiger II


• 1 x Magician - an artillery spotter - all the advantage of an artillery piece, but the terrain doesn't get in the way!


• 2 x Flyers - one Fulke Wolfe 190 and a Stuka. Way cool models, 1/144^th scale plastic jobbies from Japan


• 4 x Shooters - German infantry


• 1 x Magnificent Stronghold!

The terrain was pretty much as you see it...


A bit of Bad Going and three Steep Hills.

Having rued not using my Hordes at all effectively last game, I decided that they would run up the centre, and the Beasts would try to stay away from Tony's shooters for as long as they could by holding back in the 'wood'. My main thrust was hopefully to work up my left with the Giant and riders against Tony's bigg'ns - the Tiger and Rommel.



As I was advancing the boys, I had a bit of a brain wave, and decided to peel off a beastie so that it could support the thrust on the left from the relative safety from the Steep Hill. I really didn't want to get it caught in the open by Tony's mounted (the Behemoth and Hero). They didn't stand up too well last time!


It was at this point when I realised that Tony's Magician was relatively unsupported sitting atop the Steep Hill. "Ha!", thought I, "if I could get my Beasts in there, he's be dog meat!"


And so, I advanced my doggies out of the safety of the wood and off into the wild green yonder...



Unfortunately, Tony saw what I was going (I think it was the whole 'advancing in the open' thing...), and managed to move over a shooter just in time...


And even though it was 3 to 3, with a potential quick kill in my favour, he still managed to push me back...


...and bring over more shooters. Bother. Who managed to recoil me further. Bother it.


And so, rather than risk getting gunned down prematurely, I called the doggies back home.



On the other flank, we slowly lumbered towards each other.



Before the titans clashed, Tony flew the Stuka over and into my rear. Wasn't much I could do about it, so I hoped that the rest of his PIP dice would be low and carried on...


Not content to see my doggies run away, Tony decided to chase them...with guns...and malicious intent. And such intent was realised, when he managed to shoot on of my Beasts to pieces. Bother.


Still, at least my other Beast had made it to the hill, and was ready to hassle Tony's Tiger, and hopefully catch it in the rough.


Contact! As expected, Tony flew the Stuka into the rear of my Giant before I could get my doggies in to support him.


Hurrah! A stand result, and I was able to catch his Flyer and envelop his Shooter...


Another stand result with the Giant, and with the Beasties as well, but at least I managed to dispatch his Shooter. With any luck, I'd be able to mob his Hero General...


Incredibly, Tony moved in the Tiger to 'close the door' on my doggies. How rude!


Another stand for my Beasts (whew!), and my Giant managed to recoil Rommel, which he dutifully followed up after...


My next bound, and in go my Riders into the flank and rear of Tony's Hero and Flyer respectively. I also started to move up a Horde to menace the flank of his Behemoth, caught as it was in Bad Going.


Down goes the flyer, but Tony's General hangs in there. Bother. Still, now my Bad Going troops could at least do their job and dispatch his Behemoth, right? I mean, how could they not?



Argghhh! Noooo! My poor doggies get squashed by Tony's Tiger! Oh stink! That was my best chance to dispatch the jolly thing too!


To add further insult to injury, his Hero manage to bounce both my Giant and Rider. Bother.


Meanwhile, on the other flank, Tony has moved in his shooters to the point where I can threaten his flank...


Not content with the squishing of dog meat between its tracks, Tony turned his nasty big Tiger onto my luckless little Lizard riders. Even though his Behemoth was down -2 for being in BGo (we were playing any part of the base means the whole thing's in the rough), so were my Riders, fighting as they were enemy in the rough. Soo...+5-2+1 (uphill) to +3-2...doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess what could have happened next...

My second rider element was facing only slightly better odds when Tony's Hero came storming in. (Storming Rommel?)



Yet, shockingly, they were only recoiled, as were the second unlucky (or lucky, depending on how you look at it) Rider.

Significantly more shockingly, my Giant got zapped by Tony's Magician. He stumbled back and fall over Tony's Tiger. Aargghhh! Stink, stink, stink!


Right, time to get desperate! I through in my Rider again, this time sending in the Horde to close the door behind the Tiger. Not great odds, but hey, it's worth a crack, right?


In the meantime, on the other flank I through my doggies into his exposed Shooters, and hoped for the best!


NOOOOOO!!! Not only did Tony's Tiger stomp my Riders, but my Hordes didn't have the room to recoil, so they died as well! Arrgggghhh!

Well, at least I managed to take out one of his Shooters...but it still wasn't the highlight of the day for me!


I guess one good thing to come from the collapse of my left - at least the Tiger had run out of things to run over!


My next bound, the remaining Lizard riders having withstood another combat with Rommel, I tried my luck again with the Wolves...


...and it worked!

Unfortunatley...my Riders were not so fortunate against Rommel!

Bother!


And that was the game!

Still, it was an improvement over my first outing, and Tony really enjoyed the game, so it's all good!


Well done Tony,

Nick

HOTT Day in July - Battle 1

And so it began...

Game 1.

Gordon, with his 28mm Dwarfs.

• 1 x Knight General, on the chariot


• 2 x Behemoths, those great big nasty looking lizards


• 1 x Rider, Dwarfs on Boars


• 1 x Hero, the Dwarf being carried around on his shield


• 1 x Blade


• 2 x Shooters, crossbow boys, if you will.

Up against my Raetian Goblins, thusly arrayed...

• 1 x Blade General, Goblin war leader and his bodyguard


• 1 x Behemoth, a Storm Giant


• 2 x Riders, Goblins on Lizardback


• 4 x Beasts, Wolves


• 6 x Hordes, Raetian Goblins

I was the invader, Gordon the defender. The field was a bit awkward really - a river ending in a lake from the middle down to the right, and a large steep hill in the left quarter.

I knew my hordes would be at a distinct disadvantage if they got caught crossing the river (like, down -2 to 0!), but I thought the wolves would be good on the hill. Sooo...hold back on the right, advance on the left...



...so I started moving my Giant and General over to the left to support what I was hoping would be Gordon's advance.



In the meantime Gordon saw that I was just going to sit there in the Bad Going and wait for him to come to me, so he started working his Shooters, Blade and Hero around to the right.




And so, I turned my Giant and General back to pretty much where they started! To add additional complications, Gordon flew his whirligig around into my rear. Although I knew that it'd do no good, I sent back one of my riders to bolster my right.




Seeing that he was just going to sit there on the left and slowly work around the right, I decided to bite the bullet. Advancing the Giant...




...so together my left flank could take on his right.


Trouble was, Gordon's flyer had wobbled right behind my army and was now sitting behind my left, waiting to pounce.


And as he charged his pointy line of lizardly deathness into my mounted, pounce he did.


Unbelievably, I managed to recoil his whole line first pop!



So I followed up, hoping that by double overlapping his riders, my riders could, well, ride him down!


Instead, I got a stand...


...and then run over myself! It was at this point where I came to the unpleasant realisation that my doggies get quick killed by opposing mounted. Bother. However, I briefly consoled myself that I had managed to take out one of Gordon's big pointy Behemoths...


...until someone mistakenly expressed the belief that Behemoths couldn't get recoiled by anything other than Behemoths. (Which didn't sound right at the time, and was in fact corrected half way through subsequent battle, but we played this 'rule' for the rest of this game.

He got confused between recoils and push backs - Behemoths can get recoiled by anything, but only pushed back by another recoiling element by really big stuff.)

So that meant that the overlap that I had managed to create by recoiling one of the Behemoths (go doggies!), which in turn meant I could double overlap the second Behemoth and kill it, was reversed. Bother. Had we played this rule correctly at this point, the game could have turned out very differently, seeing as I had just opened up the left flank on his right...ah well...


Still, there was aught else I could do, so I pressed on. My doggies went into the flank of his piggies, who turned to face...



...and were recoiled, while their companions further along the way were run over.



Gordon's next bound, and he ran over the other lizard facing doggies and made some room to manoeuvre to tackle my Giant.


In the meantime, he advanced his Hero across the river to meet my awaiting Hordes...the outcome was never really in doubt!



Back where the main action was, confusion reigned for a bit, while Gordon tried to get one Behemoth out of the way so he could get the other into contact with mine.



It didn't end well for my remaining doggies.


And so began the Clash of the Titans!


With both Behemoths down -2 (the Giant was caught at the edge of the lake, Gordon's was fighting someone in Bad Going), the clash didn't last long. Two bounds, in fact...



And that was the game. Done like a dinner, was I. Still, if we had played the rules correctly I would have at least killed something of his!

My biggest lesson from this game - doggies die quickly to mounted. Also, use the Hordes...

Nick