Liberation League Week 4: Win by grievous injuries

I wonder if it is a theorem that "to win by scenario, it to lose if the scenario were removed?" This league season, it sure has happened that way to be. Also, the converse has been true. The scario games I have lost, my army has been mostly undamaged and could have cleaned up in a few rounds.

Red and I played the "On the Move scenario," and I won, but only by sacrificing all but 2 of a unit of 10 Winter Guard, and most of a unit of Iron Fang Pikemen. Most of my war jacks, (I had 3) were ineffective, as they were continually thrown about by Thunderbolt rounds, and the only thing that kept my poor Kodiak together was the Global effect that let him ignore systems being knocked out.

I have some fluff planned for later.

Liberation League Week 3: Defeated by Game System

OK, I hated this game. I think I hated my own attitude most, exacerbated by the weather and several other external factors. My dice didn't help. But most of all, I got trashed by a broken game system.

Hordes is the antithesis of Warmachine. The more I play it, the more I realize the two were never really designed to intermingle. Red has spoken in the past about his problems with Skorne, and I seem to keep getting my posterior handed to my by Circle O.

Now, since I have climbed back to the basement of doom and licked my wounds, I realize I was all of the above; bad mood, bad manners, I owe my opponent a big apology, etc. No doubt he carefully culled his army from the misbegotten dregs of the Hordes books to find all the combos. I rolled my eyes so much I think I sprained them. The Megalith got five attacks. FIVE! No way a non-bonded Warjack could do that. Balder kept popping forests, every Woldwarden (both of them) has both a two-fisted attack, and a ranged spell attack, plus can have spells channeled through them like arc nodes. All of the heavy constructs I faced has a P+S within 2 points of my armor, before any boosting.

Yes, Hulk smash! That's my army under his fists! Around turn 2, I was wondering why I came. By turn 3, it was obvious there was no way I was ever going to win, or even put up a good showing. My dice didn't help at this point, but it really didn't matter.

After another round of death and dismemberment, I just conceded. The victory was caster kill, and I could have drawn it out, but I was down to Vlad, a Kovnik with 2 points, an undamaged Ternion, half of a warjack out of the 3 I started with, less than half of the Iron Fangs, with the Greatbears dead. Oh, and none of the enemy dead, did I mention?

My opponent had played a lot longer than I have. I will admit, I am not good at this game, as is obvious. Nor it seems, am I a good sport. But I will say this, Hordes can dismantle WM in a way MW can not return in kind. I've never seen that statement proven wrong.

So what? Am I ashamed? Yep! Will I quit or refuse to play? No. What happens when you face a Hordes player again? Count on these things: a) I've already lost, b) then lose, c) wonder why I still play WM when I could be playing Hordes and winning.

League Week 2 - Game 2 Loss to Circle

Much the same in the 'Hellhole' scenario; blah blah blah faction warbeast/warjack blah blah blah across a line blah blah blah opponent doesn't blah blah blah Khador loses.

The sinkhole in the table center grew ginormous too quickly, and I had units out of place to deny my opponent the victory. Never mind my opponent was playing a Hordes army. Oooh, so bitter!

League Week 2 - Game 1 Win over Cygnar

Let me be the first admit, it's hard to keep track of both the enemy and the scenario. Most of the the league losses were to me not following the scenario rules or stipulations closely enough.

This being said, and the scenario being so closely worded, I just walked up and took it. I didn't like it one bit. Then again, I went second in the round, and if I got it at the end of my turn, that was also the end of the round. Red just didn't have enough units to stop me stepping over the line and snatching the victory from the jaws of victory.

Further comments on the league scenarios usually involve some Faction Warbeast/Warjack (not Khador or Trollbloods usually) racing to be the first to get to this spot or be across that line on the board. Khador just can't. We aren't a racing type army, not in our warjacks anyway. It just so happened the Demolition Corps were able to smash a big enough hole in the Trenchers to run some units through.

Liberation League Week 2: A Whiff of Gouda

As an overview, I think once again, the scenarios are rigged against Khador. Odd, since it the League Season is the Liberation of Umbrey; Umbrey being a Khadoran province, and home of Vlad. I didn't know where the occupation borders lay until the league started. So, my forces are overwhelmingly Great Prince Vlad trying to crush the rebellious elements in the Umbrean territories.

That being said, there are a lot of "whoever gets a unit to x,y, or z first wins" scenarios. (a subtle grinding of teeth) THAT being said, I am going to lose a lot in this enviroment. Khador stands for endurance, not speed. That was always so. You can only Boundless Charge so often, until you are stranded beyond your own support structure and cut off, then cut up. In several cases, winning by the scenario involved doing things no sane army commander would do. Charge a unit way out in front by itself? Umm, no. So, lots of times, I am not keeping my eye on the schenario, but potentially winning the battle.

• Unless it's against Hordes, but that's another story.

So, Red and I were bashing it out, and I saw a cheap way to lose the battle, but win the scenario, and I took it. Not really proud. Don't like it when the opponent doesn't get a chance to react, but that was the way it was worded. The points salved my soul a little, and so did a league victory, but it still feels cheesy.

Maybe I expect too much.

Liberation League Week 1:Loss to Cryx

Nykon Kozyar, trooper of B Company, 16th Demolition Corps, had been uneasy all morning. This new alliance did not sit well with him, the sergeant, or the rest of the "Frost Fathers." It was bad enough to ally with the raven-haired witch with the milling hoard of undead, but the elf caused him to grind his teeth. She always camped on the edge of the stockade, skulking about, throwing withering looks at the war jacks of Prince Vladimir. As a fellow Umbrean, he took offense for his liege.

When battle came, the 16th were deployed on the Khadoran right, facing the skull-headed thralls of the war-witch Deneghra. Even the sturdy "Frost Fathers" were restless in their presence. As the battle unfolded 'the elf,' using the 16th for cover, began shooting her ridiculous crossbow at a Pistol Wraith. As the heavy hammers of the Demolition Corps began to smash apart the axe wielding horrors, Nykon watched in frustration as the pair failed to kill each other. The crossbow bolts did nothing, and the bullets of the wraith did little to the cloaked elf.

At last, he could take no more. Walking into the elf's line of fire, Nykon activated his maul and smashed the animated skeleton to icy slivers in a single blow. His steam armor whistling and creaking, he turned over his shoulder shouting to the elf, "Take note pretty one! That is how it is done in Umbrey!" Merely returning his jibe with a glare, Eiryss brought her scarf to her nose to block the wretched stink of burning coal.

The battle raged on....

As Red pointed out, I forfeited the first battle in lieu of defeating the Horrible Grass Monster in my yard. (Yay!) Lo, and behold, it never rained that day, just threatened. (shrug)

The Frenzy of Iron

"Fall Back to this Line!"
Like the well trained unit they were, the Pikemen of the 85th Iron Fangs quickly regrouped on the Unit standard, and on Alexei Kyznetsov, its bearer. 'A rough campaign already,' he mused, 'and this our first time in battle.' He thought back to the wild train ride south, then the short river ferry and the last few miles to reach the base camp of Force Kommander Radik Sashenka Grigori Egorov. A hard man in a tough spot, to be sure, left to fend at the tip of Khador's spear.

As his friends and comrades formed a line and locked shields, Alexi took stock. They had spent the morning groping though dense fog and unfamiliar ground only to blunder into the Cygnar warkaster Coleman Styker with Khadoran forces in disarray. The new kaster, Kommandant Irusk threw the men forward, bringing all his tactical savvy to bear on the situation. The Men-of-War were nearly destroyed by the Cygnar warjack that threw lightning as easily as others dropped clinker and ash. The Khadoran Behemoth seemed to spend an inordinate amount of time shelling the dug in troops on the opposite side of the battlefield. The fur clad Manhunter, rumored to be the fiercest killer among the Force spent all the time relocating. Then it happened.

Irusk, was a legend among the troops of Khador for his ability to draw the very best from the men. Sensing a change in the strategy, he stepped forward and began shouting "For the Homeland! For the Empress!" in Khard. Over and over, taken up by officer and trooper alike, passed from man to man, bolstering the courage and breathing new life into every man.

In this case, the fervor of patriotism was carried too far. As Kommandant Irusk led the cheer, discharging his rifle at the enemy, both Alexi, and the unit Kaptain Adrik Stepanov saw Irusk's error. While in full view of his own men, he had also moved in full view of the enemy and was standing exposed on the battlefield, open to fire from two units, two warkasters and the hellish 'jack of Cygnar's. Nearly as one, the two men yelled, "Protect the Kommander!"

Too late the Pikemen turned on its flank and ran to screen the Khadoran warkaster. Bolts of chain lightning and numerous bullets impacted the man knocking him back, making him jerk like a puppet. The last of the Men-of-War died and the spell warlocks of the Greylords began summoning the power to freeze and break as the Cygnaran trench fighters slid behind the Khadoran Behemoth to continue their fire. Even Stryker was lured from his cover, the life of Irusk tempting him from behind his wall of steel.

In later days, Alexei would tell of Irusk's willingness to used his own body to lure the wakaster from his position. In reality, while ordering the Behemoth to finally rid the battlefield of the Lightning spawn, Irusk staggered into a patch of forest as the 85th formed a screening wall to block him from view. Kaptain Stepanov gave his final order, "No one crosses this line! Ve kill all who try." A trench fighter's bullet killed him as he stood next to the unit standard.

Bullets from all over the field were converging on the woods where Irusk stood. Some fell short, some flew beyond the shield wall, and some scored on the Kommader again. Alexi saw the smaller Cygnar warjack plunge its spear through the Manhunter, ending his feeble attacks on Stryker. It was then the Behemoth, its boiler shrieking the same rage as Irusk, plowed through the wreckage of the Cygnar heavy to pummel the Cygnaran warkaster with armor-piercing fists.