A Nation Sundered, part 2.

      The Lord Edwin Dufflecoat, commander of the Imperial Expeditionary Force, leaned on his pommel and gazed disdainfully around the deserted village. A handful of fresh corpses scattered around the sole street betrayed the fact that  until recently it had been a thriving community, but like a dozen more villages they had investigated, nobody lived here now. Even the vegetation was sickly and blackened. Half a dozen troopers were all that moved here, ensuring that such evidence as might still be found was undisturbed.

    Grand Meister Grym of the Amethyst order of  the Unpunctuated Otter dismounted his horse and strode to the centre of the village, his cloak swirling about him. He held his ceremonial Scythe aloft and brought the butt of it down on the dry earth in a gesture Lord Edwin considered to be far too dramatic. Dust and debris rose in a cloud and settled on the Wizard's outstretched hand. He peered closer, his lips moving soundlessly, his countenance that of unbreakable concentration. The air around him glowed and lensed, changing from hue to hue rapidly. Lord Edwin leaned forward, craning to see what the Grand Meister might discern, would he at last find evidence for the use of Alchemical weapons as had been rumoured? The Wizard was almost frozen, the tiny particles the focus of all his power and attention. After a moment that seemed to last an eternity the wizard threw the dust to the ground in frustration, and without a word stalked off to examine some nearby foliage. 

     Lord Edwin  sighed, and sank back in his saddle, disappointed at what appeared to be another wild goose chase. But something had to have happened here. A dozen villages don't become deserted without a reason. What power had been unleashed here, what devilry was at work?  His reverie was broken by a flurry of pistol shots from the edge of the village, and the pounding of hooves as the Troopers galloped towards him.

        "Sir! Look out, Sir!" cried the Lieutenant commanding the troop of Pistoliers, riding hard and aiming a pistol behind him. As the pistol fired, Lord Edwins gaze followed the bullets path, his heart skipping a beat as he saw the cause for the Pistoliers panic.

         At the end of the street the dead villagers were beginning to move...

Firstly, some new rules for the campaign!

Each time a player plays a game they get points- 1 for a loss, 2 for a draw, 3 for a win.

The top two ranking players on the 1st of December will play a match with no staked territories, and a special prize territory up for grabs; The Abandoned Alchemical Weapon Factory!

Players are to be reminded to keep track of their Veteran Bonus's and not to forget to roll on the Generals Victory Bonus Chart on page 152 of the Battlebook! 

There is also an events chart:

Whenever a roll on the Territory chart is required for a game between two or more players a roll of a double will trigger an Event! After the game the two players roll off and the loser rolls 2d6 on the Events chart:  Should any of the events result in a player having less than three territories then he must abandon them and roll three new ones as through he'd started the campaign afresh. 

2)  PLAGUE! A terrible plague has broken out among your territories. Victims are stricken with blue and yellow boils all across their body, develop an unquenchable thirst for soy sauce and finally breakout in a rendition of Chumbawumbas 'Tubthumping' sung at a volume that wrecks lungs and vocal chords, and can last for days until the victim finally succumbs. The Plague is invariably fatal, and extremely annoying.  Test with a d6 roll for all Towns and Villages under your control; a Village is destroyed on a 4+, a  Town reduced to a Village on a 6+. Pick one other territory you control which is also destroyed.

3)  PIRATES!  Since the war began Pirates have become more common in the Black Gulf, preying on shipping mostly but occasionally daring to land on Ayris's undefended coast...  Roll a d6 for each wizards tower you own, it is destroyed on a 4+. If you have no Wizards Tower roll for each Sacred Grove, Shrine or Temple- on a 6+ it is reduced to a Wizards Tower.

4)  BANDITS!  The kingdom of Ayris is almost lawless now, with armed bands with nothing to lose roaming and looting at will, and its impossible to maintain patrols on all your lines of supply...

Roll 1d6 for each Trade Route, Road, Bridge and Pass you own. You must abandon it on a 4+.

5) FIRE!  Somebody left the gas on, and now the whole towns aflame!  Quick peeps, bury your Cheese...

One random Town or Village is burnt down: retain the Teritory but gain no benefit from it and you can't stake it. After each subsequent game roll a D6 (add +1 if you win) - on a 6+ the settlement is rebuilt!

6) Mine Exhausted! If you dig up to much gold, eventually you'll run out of gold to dig up...

 Randomly select a Silver or Gold mine you own. Abandon it.

7) SCANDAL!  Your political opponents at home are making life difficult for you with spurious rumours that aren't in any way true! Fake news! Fake News! And that picture of you with a Badger is clearly photoshopped...unfortunately until you can gain some good publicity your funding has been cut and confidence in your abilities is at an all time low. Your General is at -1 LD, and can't earn or use Veteran or Victory bonus's. This lasts until you win a game.

8)  STORMS!  The weatherman didn't see this one coming, Storms and heavy rain turn your roads into swamps and wash away your bridges...lose the benefit of any Passes, Bridges or Roads in your next game, and you can't stake them either.

9) The Peasants are Revolting! One of your Towns (if no Towns then a Village) has risen against you, fed up with your emptying their graveyards/filling their graveyards/massive taxation/bizarre  demands for physical gratification (delete as appropriate) . They have had enough and now spend their days chanting slogans , building barricades and waving flags. The town now gives you no benefits, and can't be staked (nobody else wants that problem!) . If you lose a game the Rebellion spreads to another Town or Village you control. If you win a game you've managed to hang the rebel scum in one settlement. Once you've stamped out all rebellions it stops spreading.

10) Earthquake!  The native Earth Gods of Ayris are angry at the temples you've erected to false gods on their turf, and they intend to destroy the intruders! One Random Temple/Wizards Tower/Shrine/Sacred grove you own is destroyed. 

11) VOLCANO!  Ayris is littered with sleeping volcanoes...and one has just woken up. One Random Territory you own is destroyed, unless in your next game you appease the Volcano with a sacrifice! One character model (not a unit champion as they are not important enough, and not your General as you're not stupid enough to sacrifice yourself) that you can take as part of your army must have its points paid for as part of the army but then NOT be used in the game! Deploy as normal and then declare which of your deployed characters you are sacrificing! Roll 2d6 and multiply by 10. If the Score is lower than the Points cost of the Sacrificed Character the Volcano is appeased and the Territory saved!  

12)  CHAOS REIGNS! The Chaos Gods don't have quite as much power this far south, but the way Ayris is tearing itself to pieces amuses them greatly, and they're keen to join in the fun and games:  Randomly select one random Territory you own- It now does the opposite of what it is supposed to do! So for example, if you have a Trade route allowing you a magic item it no longer grants the magic item, AND it counters the effects of another territories effects as well, so if you had a second Trade Route the first Reversed Territory would cancel this out, and neither would gain you a Magic Item. Or if you had a Shrine the Reversed Trade Route would mean you no longer received the 50pt magic item from the Shrine but could still have the level 3 wizard. This Effect is permanent, and you can continue to stake the territory as well...whether you tell your opponents about it before or after they take it is up to you! 

The News

Battle has come to Ayris and  a flurry of battles have heralded the arrival of many combatants each faction seeking to establish a base of operations from which to conduct its campaign.  The Undead tasted first blood with a victory over the forces of Chaos, but found it tougher going against the less rash and more calculating Empire. The Dark Elves saw victory across the board with the Orcs and Chaos Warriors tasting their whips and chains.  

In other news A Giant Sea Creature has been sighted in the Black Gulf. It is hoped that this is targeting the Pirates that infest the Gulf rather than the Ships that are intended to resupply the campaigning armies. Also the City of Minimostok has vanished. Reward offered for its safe return.

Lord Edwin Dufflecoats Imperial Expeditionary Force prepares to meet the Undead! 

Dark Elves and Chaos Warriors deploy for battle!

A number of battlefields are reported as having Giant Hands pointing at them...

...but there is no truth in this at all. 

The forces of Chaos wastes its strength against the Nigh Unbreakable Elves

The Orcs discover why Air Superiority in this war will be vital... 

whilst the Undead learn why M3 is such a disadvantage

Stay tuned for more news from the front!

A Nation Sundered, a 5th Ed. WHFB campaign

So, having piqued the groups interest in 5th ed WHFB I was reading through my various books and wandering what to do next when I happened upon the Campaign rules in the battlebook. I like these rules; they are simple but work well. A quick survey suggested there was some interest in a little campaign, and so I decided to run one!

The rules to be used would be pretty much as written.  Starting armies limited to 1000 points with increments for territories as normal. And thats it. The rest of the work has already been done, and is already in the 5th ed battle book! But I shall list the limitations for completeness:

Army size limit; 1000 points
Only one wizard, max level 1.
A General is compulsory but other characters are not allowed until the requisite territory is taken.
One magic item, up to 50 points in value.
1 warmachine
1 large monster
No allies.

Players are to tell the umpire (me) of the results of their battles, including who ended up with what territory and what objectives were or were not achieved. Also to keep track of their own veteran or elite status's of their units.

I decided some background was in order.

Somewhere between the Worlds Edge Mountains and the Black Gulf lies the small, unregarded kingdom of Ayris, a kingdom so overlooked that it was often missing from maps of the Old World altogether! This state of affairs might have continued had not a civil war broken out between the corrupt King Wossisname and his dissatisfied subjects. Whilst this was an almost entirely internal struggle, its impact was felt across the world. The kingdoms position on the edge of the gulf meant that trade in the area between Tilea, the Border princes, Araby, various of the more southerly dwarven strongholds and the Crusader Kingdoms was disrupted. This disruption threatened many of the more precarious states, and as many of these states were closely tied to the Great Powers of the world it wasn't long before the eyes of the world were turned on Ayris. 

The struggle between those loyal to the king, and the rebel scum had been violent and each had fought the other to a standstill. Exhausted, they both turned to foreign powers for aid. And so armies came from far and wide, some openly supporting one cause or another, others keeping their cards closer to their chest and pursuing their own private interests. Some were simply there to secure certain resources, Ayris being the source of a particularly potent 'Potion of Strength', and a producer of vast numbers of 'Dispel Scrolls' . And a few came sensing that in the chaos would be opportunity; for riches and glory, or to carve out their own kingdom. 

As the kingdom of Ayris tore itself apart, the vultures began to circle...

As the foreign powers representatives arrive they secure for themselves , by political wrangling or by force, a base of operations:

Myself, commanding an Empire army occupied a Village, a Forest(2) and a lost valley containing a Temple and a Trade Route.

Geoff, commanding the Wood Elves, controls two Towns and a bridge(80).

Rob, with dark elves, terrorizing a lost valley including a Road(50) and Village, a Trade Route and a wizards tower.

Chris, is Chaotic, and corrupts a Village, a Forest(1), and a Sacred Grove.

David, also Dark Elvish , is being unpleasant to a Village, a Trade Route, and a Pass(120).

Dafydd, is Undead, and now haunts a pair of villages, and a road (30).

Rick is also Undead and infests a Town, a Trade Route and a Mountain(1)

I will, shortly, be furnishing some, all or none of the players some sort of secret objective that they must try and achieve to further their own nefarious aims. Success or failure may result in great rewards, or penalties!

This could be interesting....

Breakthrough!

The other day more troops for my Empire army rolled of the production line; the first two regiments of Horse - Pistoliers and knights of the White Wolf , and some reinforcements for the infantry and artillery. The guns were brand new, the rest had been waiting for attention for quite a while, and included some of the first figures I bought for my Empire Army...some twenty -odd years ago!  There are still a few more units to paint- Knights of the Blazing Sun, Knights Panther, a Steam Tank, and a few more heroes, but it felt like a milestone of sorts had been reached, which could mean only three things: First, a celebratory cuppa. Secondly, some pics should be taken, and thirdly, the Empire must go to war!  A challenge was laid down, and Chris foolishly accepted !

Pistoliers and knights of the White Wolf- the Pistoliers Standard has to
set some kind of record for longest time taken over the simplest conversion:
the  pistol was cut to make way for the staff 20 years ago. The staff was added
last week!

The entire force arrayed

 So, to war!  We agreed to play a 2500 point game, with no special characters. Scenario selected on the night was Breakthrough, with me attacking, and we rolled 5 turns.

 I wanted to fit in as many of my painted units as possible, so I chose all of them , and then worked out what heroes I could have with my remaining points. I ended up with the following:

Captain-General von Drakmoor w/ Runefang, Armour of Fortune, pistol, barded warhorse.
Sergeant-at-arms Owen Grimace ;  Battle standard w/ Warbanner, heavy armour, pistol, barded warhorse
Hildegard, Archsorceress of the Menificent Order of the Umpth Wuncicle: wizard, level 3, warhorse.
Knights of the White Wolf ,5 inc Standard bearer w/ Standard of Shielding, Champion w/ Jade Amulet.
The Nordreik Horse; 9 Pistoliers, inc standard.
The Werberg Regt. of Foot: 25 halberdiers, inc standard, musician and champion
The Innleigh Guard: 15 halberdiers, inc standard, musician and champion
Freikorps,  16 inc musician (count as halberdiers)
The Soerheim Company of Archers, 21 inc standard.
The Froddasheim Greatswords, 12 inc standard, musician and champion.
Borther Stumptickles Company; 18 dwarf crossbows, inc standard and musician.
2 greatcannons
1 mortar
1 hellblaster

The Chaos Horde deploys whilst its commander contemplates his
'blurred hands' mutation.

 The Chaos Horde (all 37 of them !) consisted of
A lord of Slannesh on chariot  (the big palanquin thing)
a daemon prince
two units of 10 warriors
5 knights
10 horsemen

The chaos force was deployed across the road to Hargendorf, covering their brethren in the siege lines encircling that town. Von Drakmoor has been tasked with breaking through , and raising the siege!

The first turn was awfully dull. Von Drakmoor ordered a general advance, but none of the artillery found it's mark. The Chaos force retreated slightly. Magic played little part, but the Nordreik Horse caught some sort of pox that made it hard to walk !

Encouraged by the lack of inappropriate behaviour from the frottage squad the Imperial advance continued, the artillery finding the range and sending the marauder horse flying from the field. Archsorceress Hildegard spurred her horse forward and hurled a fireball at the chaos knights. To a cry of "I'm not wasting a dispel on a power 1 spell!" all but one of the regiment was immolated!

In retaliation a large pink daemon prince dropped from the sky in front of her, keen to avenge the fallen and find out what a Wuncicle was when it was at home; distracting the giant pervert with a well timed "look; behind you !" the Archsorceress rode safely away, and the Imperial line wavered, but held firm under their commanders eye !

That'll be Terror tests all round then?

 The great cannons roared, their shot tearing the Princely One asunder, but it was able to Escape! and staggered back on to the battlefield to general dismay!  The Chaos Lord rode in to the fray, scattering the Soerheim Archers, shrugging off  their attempts to slow it down!

chap with wings, five rounds rapid!

 The hedonistic headcase rode on in to the Innleigh Guard, but received a flank charge from the mighty Knights of the White Wolf. A spirited duel began between the knights champion, and the chaos lord. The rest of the Imperial troops turned his pimped up ride into firewood. Enraged by this vandalism he refused to flee!

CHARGE!

The Pistoliers came under attack from the injured Daemon Prince ,but despite its only having one wound their pistols were unable to find their mark . With chaos halberdiers loitering with intent on the far side of the village the advance of the  Freikorps and Greatswords was suitably cautious.

Freikorps on a pub crawl  

  The Werberg Regt. charged the last chaos knight, hoping to break it and thus hasten their egress. Alas, even a single chaos knight was a match for an entire regiment of men, and they were soon outflanked, and destroyed.  Meanwhile, the Chaos Lord had felled the Knights champion , and turned his unwanted attention on Von Drakmoor, who whacked him mightily with his Runefang! The gods of chaos attempted to resurrect the chaos knights, but there some sort of administrative error and three the Nordreik Horse staggered back to their feet and returned to the fight, albeit briefly!

 Seeing the horrific fate of the Werbergers, Hildebrand spurred forward once more , incinerating the last chaos knight. Sporadic shooting accounted for a few more chaos warriors, the last Pistolier held his ground, and von Drakmoor tried to finish off his opponent but only managed to tickle him with his mighty weapon!   But the followers of Slaanesh had had enough; realizing a break through was inevitable, they fell back in good order to buy what time they could for the besiegers of Hargendorf.

I love the smell of burning chaos knights in the morning ...
smells like...my wifes cooking.

And that was it. A 10-6 victory for The Empire ! Though Chris loudly proclaimed a moral victory (on the grounds that I'm immoral ) ...until he realised he hadn't paid for a retinue for the Daemon Prince and his army was technically illegal ...whoops.

So, after all that...time for a campaign I think.