Unbreakable

Light drizzle stopped and first wisps of fog started to appear. Weather was good, place and timing were right - Udo would smile, but a snarl was the best he managed. His lack of humour was just another sign of a job that had gone from ordinary to personal. Men of the Bad Company were concealed in the woods and around the road that the dwarven warband marched, unaware of their presence... 

Scenario: Ambush
Defender: Bad Company

Dwarves:

• Gorm Shieldbearer (P); Q2+ C4, Leader, Fearless, Short Move, Steadfast, 95pts
• Ragnar "Knock-knock" Shieldbreaker, Q3+ C4; Fearless, Short Move, Steadfast, 46pts
• Giml... just a warrior (shield and axe); Q3+ C3, Short Move, Steadfast, 30pts 
• Robur, wounded warrior (shield and hammer); Q4+ C3, Short Move, Steadfast, 30pts 
• Skadi the Sharpshooter; Q3+ C3, Good Shot, Shooter: Medium, Short Move, 44pts
• Lorn the Leery, crossbowman; Q3+ C3, Good Shot, Shooter: Medium, Short Move, 44pts

-Tough as Nails
-Courageous (waste of VPs, but it's my opponent's choice)

6VPs, 2CPs

Bad Company:

• Udo, Leader (P); Q3+ C3, Leader, 60 pts
• Yira, Veteran halberdier; Q3+, C3, Steadfast, Tailslap, 42 pts
• Wilhelm, Crossbowman; Q3+, C3, Shooter: Medium, Good Shot, Fearless, 50 pts
• Rudi, Halberdier; Q4+, C3, Dashing, 27 pts
• Vladimir, Bowman; Q4+, C3, Shooter: Long, 33 pts
• John the Bowman; Q4+, C3, Shooter: Long, 33 pts
• Carpenter Jack; Q4+, C3, Greedy, 20 pts
• Neat Pete, Thug; Q4+, C3, Greedy, 20 pts

2VPs, 0CPs

Game

Vladimir was the first to reveal himself, taking a shot at the wounded dwarf, hitting only his shield.

Most of the dwarves ran down the road, apart from Skadi and one warrior. Moment of surprise was gone.

Well placed bolt knocked down the wounded dwarf, and then, before Vladimir could finish him off,  the dwarves moved as one. (Bloody turnover)

Like a tidal wave the dwarves crashed at forest's edge, knocking down Vladimir. Skadi and Lorn did what they did best - shoot the leader. Udo took one bolt to the shield and had to hit the dirt to anoid another.

Udo stood up and was about to command Yira and the scum when his voice failed him. 

(Yep, another turnover.)

Ragnar sent Vladimir to his own red hell and Udo was knocked off his feet by another volley. John sent a warrior reeling back, only to be faced by Gorm.

Thwack! His face unchanged, Wilhelm started reloading his crossbow, keeping one eye on fallen Robur. Udo got his feet and voice back and barked an order. Jack and Pete knew their bussines well, dispatching Robur through exemplar cooperation (there goes Tough as Nails), whileYira flanked the dwarven leader. Rudi then charged Gorm only to push him back.   

Thwack! Thwack! Pete and Jack went down, finished by Gorm and a warrior afterwards. Ragnar failed to move.

Rudi charged and knocked down Gorm, and although Yira tried to avenge his fallen comrades, Gorm proved to be dangerous even when outnumbered and shaken. Both shooters let loose on Ragnar, forcing him to dodge - and close with Udo. (A mistake, grievous mistake - however, Gorm succeded only to stand up and and fail the remaining two dice, resulting in a very convenient turnover).

Yira attacked from the flank, pushing Gorm back. (Fatal blunder - I forgot to use Yira's tailslap.) John then flanked Ragnar, and Wilhelm went for the kill. Rudi charged a crossbowman and pushed him back.

The last picture looks good, doesn't it? Sadly enough, both halberdiers were killed in the next turn, forcing John and Wilhelm to flee. Udo disengaged, muttred something about "the next time" and left the field.

VP score was 11:2 for the dwarves; Ragnar recovered fully and Robur -again- only partially.

Summary: Great game, almost balanced and full of surprise. I hoped to use the ambush bonus, but I had only one chance, and took it only with Vladimir. 

Regarding the campaign, I came up with some house rules, like getting any ability you want for its cost in XP, and -more importantly- buying the next level of C or Q for as many XP as the new C or 6-Q respectively (eg. 3XP for C2 to C3 or Q4+ to Q3+). Although it favours me now, my chivalrous opponent considered those changes sensible and agreed on them.

This one's on me

In Borderlands, tensions between humans and dwarfs had started to rise recently, and although some simple or less informed could attribute it to a couple of incidents, the wiser saw what was to come, sooner or later. Dwarven bankers and merchants grew in wealth and power, therefore diminishing in popularity and becoming a target for increased taxes. On the other hand, any caravan going through the Eastern Pass, maintained and protected by dwarves, had to pay customs higher than usual. Occasional street violence only higlighted the point - fourty years of peace were coming to an end.

Scenario: Tavern

Warbands:
Bad Company Reassembled

• Udo, Leader (P); Q3+ C3, Leader, 60 pts
• Yira, Veteran halberdier; Q3+, C3, Steadfast, Tailslap, 42 pts
• Wilhelm, Crossbowman; Q3+, C3, Shooter: Medium, Good Shot, Fearless, 50 pts
• Lucky Jacques, Halberdier; Q4+, C3, Dashing, 27 pts
• Vladimir, Bowman; Q4+, C3, Shooter: Long, 33 pts
• John the Bowman; Q4+, C3, Shooter: Long, 33 pts
• Antar, Grounded pirate; Q4+, C3, Greedy, 20 pts
• Neat Pete, Thug; Q4+, C3, Greedy, 20 pts

Dwarves

• Leader (P): Q2+ C4; Leader, Short Move, Fearless, Steadfast - 95 pts
• Shieldbreaker: Q3+ C4; Short Move, Fearless, Steadfast - 46 pts
• 2x Warrior: Q3+ C3; Short Move, Steadfast - 30 pts each
• 2x Crossbowman: Q3+ C3; Good Shot, Shooter: Medium - 44 pts each

Bad news: Dwarves became tough as nails. This is what saved them this game. 

Victor: Dwarves (16VP, 2CP)
Defeated: Bad Company (2VP, 0CP)

Bad Company were after an agenda only Udo knew when they refreshed in a tavern at crossroads. Beer was good and Lucky Jacques even won some coppers from Vladimir, when the doors burst in and guess who wanted to enter their tavern... Few well meant words of advice and appreciation were exchanged, ever compassionate and caring Neat Pete even tried to quench dwarves' thirst by a ballistically served beer - only to be thrown off balance by impolitely kicked table.

Properly refreshed warrior even leaped onto the table and tried to thank him in person. Dwarven leader, not to be outdone by such a courtesy jumped on the table as well and solved Jacques' problems with alcohol once and forever.

Wilhelm let loose, his perfection being his curse: His bolt hit the leader right between the eyes, where his helmet was reinforced. With a mighty crash he fell to the floor behind the table. Both John and Vladimir scored no significant hit, but Antar ran to the fallen leader, and almost dipatched him for good - but this was where dwarven toughness came into play, negating a gruesome kill. Yira jumped on the table and with Pete's aid killed the bold warrior (or so he thought). This was the finest hour of Bad Company.

As inevitably as death and taxes, the dwarven leader rose and cut poor Antar in half (roll of 5 + mighty blow vs roll of 1) - gruesome kill! Before morale test

...and after. Bitter Wilhelm and stoic John held their positions, and their comrades -though shaken- didn't leave the inn... but... 

The inspiring sight of their captain leaving was too much for poor mercenaries, and after the second morale test none but dwarves and corpses remained. The slain dwarven warrior eventually got better and next battle he'll take to the field again (albeit a bit unsure).

Summary: I laughed a lot. I just had to, because the only other option was crying like a baby. Come to think of it, the next scenario is probably going to be Ambush, because I see no other way for Udo to keep his face.

Ready for Revenge!

As you might have read, my warband was almost wiped out in the first game of the campaign. Quite an unfortunate beginning, but it allowed me to alter the roster on the other hand. 

Regarding the rules inconsistencies: 

• I should not be able to buy a new leader as a replacement. But then, I'd have to make all the rest Q3+, and we'd end up fighting with similar warbands.
• Yira actually should have died (it's in the rulebook!), but being a named character has its perks.

So, here they are:

Bad Company 2 (this time even worse)

Appearing (from left to right):

Udo, Leader (P) - Q3+ C3, Leader, 60 pts

Udo had his own contract with Plisskens when contacted by Yira. In spite of the halberdiers' pitiful appearance he let them both sign in.

Yira, Veteran halberdier - Q3+, C3, Steadfast, Tailslap, 42 pts

Yira has quite a common CV - from fighting for his life he went to fight for the Right Thing, and finally ended up fighting just for the money. He has seen his share of horrors and learned some dirty tricks, but time from time he makes a good deed not to lose favour of those above.

Wilhelm, Crossbowman (WIP) - Q3+, C3, Shooter: Medium, Good Shot, Fearless, 50 pts

Wilhelm is a bitter man, always striving for a perfect shot. Should the heaven tear and earth shatter, he will take his time to aim. "...because, you know, sometimes you'd rather not miss." So don't offer him an apple, not even when he's sober.

Lucky Jacques, Halberdier - Q4+, C3, Dashing, 27 pts

Although his luck takes many forms, like losing five silver and a stolen bracelet in dice, only to find the lucky winner's head with the word "THIEF" carved on the forehead next morning. Or a terrible hangover keeping him paralyzed for the whole morning while his buddies were on their way to slaughter...

Vladimir, Bowman - Q4+, C3, Shooter: Long, 33 pts

Having his own point of view on the social order, Vladimir became quite expert in wealth redistribution and evading authorities.

John the Bowman (very WIP) - Q4+, C3, Shooter: Long, 33 pts

John talks a little, shoots well and has a thing for dark hot beverage and bicuits.

Antar, Grounded pirate - Q4+, C3, Greedy, 20 pts

Having too many enemies at and over sea Antar tries something different this time.

Neat Pete, Thug - Q4+, C3, Greedy, 20 pts

Pete likes to talk about the meaning of life, bathe in gold coins and beat people up. And since he's always lacking audience, money, or both...

Yes, I named them all this time. No, I don't think it's going to help them.

The Sword of Strife

An ancient dwarven sword, wrested from the hand of dead dwarven noble, became a hereditary item of house Plissken, one of the mightiest borderland houses. Or rather - it was intended to become one, were Joachim Plissken the senior not robbed of it some fourty years later. Retrieving such an item will surely bring old Joachim's favour to otherwise lesser descendant - however, the hired band of adventurers hired was not the only one looking for a dwarven sword...

Scenario: Treasure Hunt (more or less)
Warbands: Bad Company, Dwarves - as per previous post.
Victor: Dwarves (16VP, 1CP)
Defeated: Bad Company (1VP)

Bad Company were ad-hoc band of mercenaries, outlaws and other scum. Heinrich, their leader, did not even care to remember their names (all fake, anyway), except Yira's. First, his name sounded quite funny and second, the veteran halberdier was probably the only one Heinrich could rely on. The rest had to be kept under direct command to achieve something. One halberdier failed even to appear when they set out.

 Although it was not the best idea, Heinrich split his forces to cover all possible treasure locations. A tussle developed near the forest, and his men were hard pressed.

However, pirates' ferocity and Yira's experience eliminated the shieldbreaker and another stuntie was thrown back.

Up to this point, everything ran more or less according to the plan.

One unfortunate turn-over later...

"It's either heedless or headless.." Heinrich threw himself info the fray, and for a moment he thought he might collect the reward after all...

Mighty blow landed on his shield throwing him back, which was exactly the opportunity Skadi yearned for. The bolt was only stopped by the inner side of the helmet, and Heinrich was dead before his body hit the ground.

 

Yira was a veteran, and hearing a stomping behind him he knew what to do. He turned around, bringing all his strength into a low hack - which landed on a shield. Then a glimpse of a hammer coming in...

...and that was all he could tell about the skirmish. Fortunately for him, the late halberdier finally caught up with them, only to find everyone else dead. Sharing the loot worldly possesions of their deceased comrades they returned to civilization.

Summary: Bad decisions, bad luck - and having a band with 6 Q4s didn't help either. The dwarves rolled all three dice in proximity of their leader (having effectively Q2+), so standing up and power blow was not uncommon. I could have ran away, but even with three remaining characters I tried to snatch the treasure - only to lose them all. 

P.S.: Pictures were (and will be) taken by my mobile phone, so please don't expect any eye candy. I use them to roughly illustrate situation and break up text.

Campaign Warbands

I decided to try out a simple SoBH campaign with two warbands: Human and Dwarves. Later on I plan to make a Night Goblin warband, but that's a future too distant. Also, no names so far.

Dwarves (289)

• Leader (P): Q2+ C4; Leader, Short Move, Fearless, Steadfast - 95 pts
• Shieldbreaker: Q3+ C4; Short Move, Fearless, Steadfast - 46 pts
• 2x Warrior: Q3+ C3; Short Move, Steadfast - 30 pts each
• 2x Crossbowman: Q3+ C3; Good Shot, Shooter: Medium - 44 pts each

This is a slow moving, but disciplined warband. Staying around their leader they seldom roll less than three dice for activation, getting two actions on average. The crossbowmen can surely pack a punch with aimed shot, warriors are deadly with powerblows, and the horror of shieldbreaker unleashed is nearly beyond imagination. Crossbowmen are Mantic Ironwatch, the rest is from Mantic Ironclad sprue.

Bad Company (289)

• Heinrich (P): Q3+ C3; Leader - 60 pts
• Yira - Halberdier Veteran: Q3+ C3; Steadfast, Tailslap - 42 pts
• 3x Halberdier: Q4+ C3; Dashing - 27 pts each
• 2x Pirate/Free Company: Q4+ C3; Greedy - 20 pts each
• Bowman: Q4 C3+; Shooter: Long - 33 pts
• Crossbowman: Q4+ C3; Good Shot, Shooter: Medium - 33 pts

Bunch of deserters, outcasts and other misfits, most of them have a hard time obeying or carrying out orders even with their commander in sight. Not that they were useles in combat, however, they are quite difficult to coordinate. All made from GW Militia/Free Company box.