Hi all,
So Vermintide IV was today. My usual super exciting, active social life means that I have a free Saturday night to write up the reports while watching Stargate Atlantis.
I submitted two lists to Vermintide. The first list was for me to use:
Empire:
Warrior Priest: HA, 2HW
BSB: FPA, Ench shield
lvl1: (fire), ruby ring
38 Halberds: FC
2x5 Archer detachments
2x4 Demigryphs: M
Hurricanum
So a very exciting Empire list with a suprisingly strong magic phase...however I spent a fair amount of the day defending the fact that I toom 8 Demigryphs "because I like the models"
The second list I submitted was for my friend Alex to use. He hasnt played much 8th, but I was secretly hoping he would do really well with the list.
Woodies:
Noble: Eagle, LA, sh, spear, stone of rebirth, dragonhelm, potion of foolishness
10 Glade Guard: M, SB
10 Glade Guard: M
4x8 Dryads
5 Wildriders: (m)
3 Treekin
Eagle
A very fun MSU woodie list that didnt rely on shooting to do the damage. I picked this list to make the top 5 if Alex figured out how to use the list quickly.
Anywho- my battles...
GAME 1: Random Deployment vs Bo's Highelves
Very exciting first game. lvl3 with metal (didnt roll final transmute!), MSU elite, big block of Seaguard, eagles and a RBT...fun.
I deployed first
So pretty much exactly how I would have deployed anyway.
Bo deploys and doesnt have the same luck
Looks like I will have to do the walking across the board..
While he Searing Dooms me.
On my right flank the Demigryphs brushed off 5 Whitelions and an eagle before getting the RBT. My magic phase was all fireworks and display, failing to kill off 5 swordmasters over a couple of turns (got it down to 1 grr). My hurricanum decided to have a go at an eagle. Rolled a hit, did d6 s4 due to vs a flier, rolled a 6 (so s6 hit under hole)...and did a massive 1 wound.
In the centre, my Halberds decided to force the issue and found itself in this position
2 rounds of combat, some nervous armour saves on the BSB, and my Halberds were victorious...if not a little beat up! This left only the Seaguard to deal with...but not before the 2 remaining demigryphs of the left unit were searing doomed to oblivian.
(the solo swordmaster is fleeing with snakes eyes needed to rally-goes off the board through the demigryphs). Halberds and Demigryphs charge the front, kill the lvl3 and BSB...win the combat and run down the sea guard.
All the while my lvl1 and his posse had fled turn 4 due to panic and strolled towards my board edge, eventually waltzing off the edge turn 6. My excuse is that after turn 4 there was nothing to fireball...but it did mean that I won 14-6 instead of the max 15-5.
So a good solid win and enjoyable game that would allow me to submarine for the next 2 rounds as a few people won their first game with max points. Bo's army was very well presented and was awarded player's choice for best painted.
GAME 2: Diagional Deployment vs Aaron's Ogres.
Game 2 of Vermintide, and my 2nd game vs the new Ogres. Aaron's list consisted of 9 bulls with BSB and lvl2, 2x2 mournfang, 3 sabretusks, thundertusk (very excited to see one of these on the table!)
We both had everything arrive to the battle. I deployed first, but Aaron stole first turn.
Yay for defensive deployment! However, I was out done by Simon and his dwarfs who literally deployed his army hard up against the board edge in a corner in the face of Sam's advancing OnG.
So things started well. My left Demigryphs were "drawn left" killing chaff, I fire balled another sabre tusk and moved up to get involved...however killing the sabretusk = IF = big template = 2 wounds on right Demigryphs. Aaron decides to capitalise on this with his Thundertusk shooting, killing 1 = fail panic test.
I'm then tricksy with my charge reactions completely collapsing my right flank while the first unit of mournfang hit my lines...sigh
However, it all rallies, my Halberds pull down a mournfang, hold, and the demigryphs flank in as support.
With this combat finished, our lines, err, align and the Thundertusk takes out the hurricanum.
We were playing a little slow, so we were running out of time. Aaron went for it with lots of charges. Mournfang into Demigryphs, Thundertusk into Halberds, and the bull bus failed to make the supporting charge into the halberds.
With no bulls the combats were in my favour, with me running down the thundertusk and killing the mournfang, leaving only the bull bus. Due to running out of time we finished the game there with me winning 12-8 (back to 20-0 max score). My Submarining was going exactly as planned, however having only taken 574ish VP's, my stakes in the "Butcher Award" (most VP's taken during the tournament) were compromised.
GAME 3: Watchtower vs John's Ogres
YAY Ogre's again. Though no need to feel sorry for me, there were people at Vermintide who were stuck with multiple games vs Dwarfs.
Now, since John was also taking photos for his blog
stumpyheaven.blogspot.co.nz we agreed to be completely one sided in our reports.
Anywho-John "won" the watchtower (giving me first turn!) and deployed a unit of 3 bulls in it.
This naturally meant that my halberds charged in first turn. I took the risk of nominating my BSB and Valten (unit champ) to the fight...re-roll to wound prayer was a nice addition along with +1 to hit = I take the tower.
So naturally the Ogres stumbled forward towards my line, keen for a fight. Their butcher eats something funny and a demigryth falls dead with the sound of snapping bones. However, with all their enthusasium, the Ogres stumble a little too close...
Giving my Demigryphs the jump on the mournfang. I win combat, they break (standard bearer dies), and the unit champ just gets away.
(7th ed. hangover habit of collecting standards in play here). On the other side of the board the gnoblar gets stuck in the Ironblaster barrel, meaning it cannot shoot the next turn = the other unit of Demigryphs move to force the Ironblaster into combat. Iron blaster charges while the main part of the Ogre army are threatening to walk of my table edge and miss out on all the fun.
My guys are a little be more savvy and move to avoid the ogres and draw them away from all the exciting stuff.
This naturally confused the Ogres, especially when the Demigryphs ran past them, and the bulls were BBQ'ed. In their confusion they decided that maybe the action was in the other direction.
However, the butcher was having none of that as he was enjoying this new found tasty treat that by-the-by killed demigrpyhs (never seen such consistent rolls of 6).
This was his down fall as the fire mage got his flame on and burnt him to a crisp, while 5 archers valantly died to stop the Ironguts getting to the Demigryphs. My first solution to the butcher was actually to run him over with the hurricanum to test the "chariot" part of its job description. However, it failed miserably on this front, failing what should have been a relatively easy charge.
And so the game ended with a comfortable 20-0 to me, bringing an end to my submarining. Once the Halberds were in the tower with BSB and Warrior Priest there was nothing in John's army that could dislodge them. I just got lucky and managed to pick his army apart piecemeal for the loss of a single archer detachment.
GAME 4: Blood and Glory vs James' High Elves
Another tournament, another NZTC team civil war, and another chance to take suggestive pics of James...
Possibly my best effort so far.
So we deployed and James went first
Basically he shuffled forward. I on the other hand marched on up confidently.
Now I didn't get pics of what happened next because it happened so quickly. Basically James did a textbook move by charging his Prince with re-roll 2+/5++ (who was also the lvl1) into the right demigryphs. I then forget how to pass armour saves and take 4 wounds from 4 attacks. However, this was clearly a bug going around as the Prince then failed 4x 2+, 2+, 5++ and died! The Demigryphs then had an easy charge on the Dragon Princes (who were not expecting to be charged). Dragon Princes flee the charge, and run crazy distance off the board. All of a sudden everything had swung in my favour.
So now my lvl1 decides that the whitelions were feeling a little cold and "heats" them up with fireballs while my army closes in. It's a little hard to see (next pic), but James charged his BSB into the Demigryphs (stubborn in forest due to single infantry model), while I had set up my archers to do the exact same thing...great minds huh? His rear archer unit wore a fireball and ran off the board with a failed panic test.
The BSB died under the weight of s5AP attacks, and my archer "trap" succeeded when the Whitelions only killed 4 and I passed my stubborn check. The Demigryphs then charged the archers
and flank the Whitelions.
My archer dies, and the Demigryphs do their thing and all the highelves die for the loss of my archer detachments. 20-0 to me...thank you Prince for forgetting how to pass re-rolling armoursaves and wards!
GAME 5: Battleline vs Pete W's Tombkings
So last game of the tournament and I find myself on the top table with Pete W, who I have never beaten before. We were both exhausted, so an interesting game was promised. We deployed.
Quick run down of Pete's list (left to right). Tomb Scorpion, 3 playdough necroknights (sculpted from liquid greenstuff...), Tomb Scorpion, Necrosphinx, 3 chariots, 10 archers with lvl3 heirophant with rubyring (march, -1s and -1t, killingblow), 3 chariots.
Pete moved his army up. His (my right) chariots came a little too close and my Demigryphs took their chance and charged in.
With the chariots crumbling, my reform instantly put me in the driver's seat.
Now there is a reason why Pete prefers the Necrosphinx to the warkitty-flying = can quickly move to cover these sorts of events. He also moves up a tomb scorpion to slow my demigryphs and give him some room. My Demigryphs charge the scropion and the necroknight.
I take out the scorpion and hold, while my other demigryphs are stuck in an awkward stalemate with the necrosphinx. Pete charges the chariots into my Halberds (who lost one to fireballs, only to regrow it, then to lose it again to fireballs, then to get it back once in combat). The turn before the charge I successfully prayed the 5++ prayer meaning that the halberds shrugged off the chariot attacks (with a few nervous Armour saves on the BSB) and they crumbled. The Demigrifffs not in combat suffered -3s and -3t as a sneaky means of stopping them charging around. However, I picked up my dice, and rolled a jammy "heaps" to charge the necroknights with my halberds (with re-roll to wound prayer), while my Demigriffs went Hierophant hunting.
This naturally means it is time for my Demigriffs in combat with the necrosphinx to lose combat by 1, break and get run down, while there is a single necroknight left with a single wound after the combat.
Pete then flanks the Halberds with the Scropion. the heirphant abandons ship, runs (well, walks as can't march) and the archers move to block the demigryphs. To make life interesting the Halberds find themselves -1s and -1t. The demigryphs take out the archers, the necroknight dies while the scorpion is unharmed. The halberds then reform to face it head on.
Pete's Necrosphinx then bypasses the hurricanum and the demigryhs, and instead rear charges the Halberds. Much death and destruction, but I kill the scorpion, hold on steadfast, and reform to face the necrosphinx.
At this stage the necrosphinx was starting to get a little slim on wounds, however my priority was 5++ on halberds not re-roll to wound (risk adverse).
Turn 6, Pete gets the Hierophant as far away from the Demigryphs as possible-meaning I needed a 9 to get the charge. I pick up the dice, pray to Sigmar for help cleansing the land of this evil, and roll a 9 = in combat with the hierophant!
Heirophant dies, I roll a single 6 to wound to kill the necrosphinx, and then Pete rolls a 5 to survive on a single wound.
We tally points and I win 21-4 (max score was 25-0).
END RESULT
I end on 86 battlepoints out of a possible 100, giving me enough to win Vermintide! I also won the "orphan" award for highest ranked army that was only played by one person. For the Butcher award I had the 2nd most VPs taken (Sam W came first-always beats me at something :P), but the award went to Mike K as the it could not be won by someone in the top 3 (Sam coming 2nd, Pete 3rd).
As for my other army...as I predicted, Alex picked up its playstyle rather quickly and came 5th! Noice, very noice.
So a fantastic start to the Warhammer "year"...now to focus on Masters in a couple of weeks.
I
