Note: This report is both a straight report and a prosaic rendition, as I know there are people who like both. The prose version will be interspersed in italics. If you don't like reading those, just skip over it.
Here’s my list:
Lord: Grail Vow, warhorse, shield, Virtue of Discipline, Sword of the Lady’s Champion, Holy Icon (fielded with Grail Knights, designed to add more punch against anything big, while offering serious magic protection)
Paladin BSB: Questing Vow, warhorse, Virtue of Duty, Banner of the Lady of the Lake (fielded with Questing Knights, designed to slay undead with serious CR).
Paladin: Knight’s vow, shield, Virtue of the Joust, Wyrmlance (in case of trolls or flammable TK units)
Damsel: Level 2, barded warhorse, Chalice of Malfleur, Power stone (mainly intended for magical defense, but in case I needed to punch a spell through in a critical moment…)
Damsel: Level 2, barded warhorse, dispel scroll x 2 (Defensive primarily)
Grail Knights x 7: Banner of Defense, standard, musician
Questing Knights x 7: full command
Knights of the Realm x 7: full command, war banner
Peasant Bowmen x 15: villein, defensive stakes, braziers (kill flammable things!)
Peasant Bowmen x 10: villein, braziers, skirmishers
Field Trebuchet
My opponent’s list (from memory):
Tyrant: two foot-Gnoblars
Butcher: Level 2, dispel scroll x 2
Hunter: sabertusks x 2
Bulls x 8
Ironguts x 8
Leadbelchers x 3
Leadbelchers x 3
Knobblar Fighters x 20
Knobblar Trappers x 10
Scraplauncher
Terrain
Terrain was fairly light. One edge of the board had a building near a fenced field and a woods feature. The other side of my board edge had a low hill. Opposite that on his side was a marsh with a river leading away to the nearest corner.
Deployment
I placed my Grail Knights with the General and a damsel in the center, the Knights of the Realm with paladin on their right (from my perspective) and the Questing Knights with BSB and damsel on their left. I put the trebuchet on the hill, and the 15 bowmen in a single line across the front of the hill, angled slightly toward the center. The skirmishing bowmen went on the left flank behind the wood and to the right of the fenced area.
My opponent (from my left to right) deployed the hunter and sabertusks, one unit of leadbelchers, the bulls, the Tyrant, the scraplauncher, the ironguts, knobblar fighters, the butcher, and the second unit of leadbelchers. His trappers (scouts) hid behind the building at left center.
I rolled Mistress of the Marsh and The Rain Lord for one damsel, and The Beast Cowers and The Wolf Hunts for the other.
Galen, Earl of Chabreux, surveyed the misty fields before him. It was late in the morning, but the fog was only just starting to show signs of clearing. He didn’t like the fog. Not when he could hear the sounds of a large army moving into position, but still couldn’t see them.
The reports had been coming in for several days. At first it was messages from scouts, indicating that a large band of brigands or orcs was on the move in the foothills of the Grey Mountains. Then the raids began in the villages near the mountains. The reports sounded like orcs, and yet the few eyewitnesses accounts he’d heard were unsettlingly vague in that area. The only common thread in the reports was that if they were orcs, they were amazingly large.
Galen had assembled a force quickly and moved to protect the borders. His army was not entirely one he would have chosen to field, but it was the best he could come up with on short notice. He would have gladly traded in the blasted trebuchet for more archers, or some men-at-arms to protect their flanks. But to delay for more troops would have meant allowing more villages to be raided, and he simply could not allow more innocents to die. He would find the raiders and put them to flight.
A fluttering sound caught his attention and drew him out of his reflections. His unit’s banner was beginning to wave in the breeze. The breeze... As he raised his eyes he saw the fog, almost like a curtain, recede across the battleground. It suddenly parted around a myriad of dark shapes, and Galen found himself surveying the enemy force: large, brutish shapes he’d not seen before, but not orcs. No, definitely not orcs...
He turned to the unit musician. “Sound prayers. We shall need the Lady’s Blessing as much as breath itself today.”
Turn One: Ogres
I chose to pray, and my opponent opted to go first. Everything moved forward…fast! Twelve inch march moves cover a lot of ground! His Bulls and Ironguts moved out the farthest, with the tyrant and Scraplauncher hanging back a few inches. The flanks also held back a few inches as well. On my right flank his Leadbelchers and Hunter got in each other’s way as they squeezed past the building to where the hunter was in front of the Leadbelchers, blocking their LOS. His Trappers failed their Gnoblar version of the animosity test and stayed put.
The Butcher attempted to cast the Bonecracker (magic missile spell) and is dispelled. He follows with the Toothcracker (enhances the toughness of a friendly unit) and is dispelled. His Scraplauncher (a combination chariot and catapult, flings shrapnel using the large circle template, each hit subject to killing blow rules!) misfired harmlessly. His Leadbelchers (cannons with grape-shot) on the right flank fired at my archers and missed. His Tyrant fired two handguns at my GKs, killing one. His Hunter fired his crossbow (ie. bolt thrower) at the QKs to no effect.
As Galen and his men knelt beside their mounts he could hear the creaking and clanking of the enemy beginning their advance. Only discipline and the undying faith of a grail knight kept him from raising his eyes to study their advance. The Lady would protect them, but only if they did not doubt.
Behind him he heard Lady Auriel gasp slightly, then mutter a few unintelligible words. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end for a moment, a feeling he recognized all too well. Whoever they were, they used magic. He ignored the sensation and finished his prayer to The Lady.
Once his prayer was completed he stood, taking in the scene. The enemy was much closer than he had anticipated. As large as they were, they moved quickly. He vaulted into the saddle just as a spray of metal objects flew skyward above a large sledge-like conveyance pulled by a hideous creature he’d never seen before. He instinctively raised his shield before realizing that for whatever reason, the shrapnel was traveling straight up. It came down again, clattering noisily against the vehicle.
A large creature near the sledge raised two enormous handguns and pointed them at Galen and his fellow Grail Knights. One projectile ricocheted with a whine, but another struck Sir Ultienne as he was mounting his own warhorse. The knight slumped to the earth, but gasped out for his comrades to continue the fight, to destroy the invaders.
Quickly the word traveled down the line: all were ready. His lieutenants all looked to Galen expectantly. The enemy was drawing ever closer...
Turn One: Bretonnians
Having all started at the forward edge of their deploy zone and having moved (most of them) twelve inches, most of his units should have been within charge range. However, I was (I’ll admit it) intimidated, and didn’t want to charge. The Bulls and the Ironguts were the only ones I could guarantee to reach (if they didn’t flee), and if they didn’t break I’d be easily charged by his flanking troops. On the other hand, if I stayed put he’d likely be able to reach two of my three knight units the next turn with his charge. So did something that raised his eyebrows and will probably get my Bretonnian card revoked: I backed up.
My thinking was this: His left flank was getting tangled up on the building, and a second turn would likely increase the confusion as some of them got stuck behind the woods. His battle line hadn’t advanced uniformly, so another turn of movement might further spread his units out (helped, hopefully, by my damsels), force more units to get tangled, and perhaps reveal a little more what his plan was. I backed my knights up to the very edge of the table to make sure any of his charges would fail (as far as I knew) and sat tight. My skirmishing bowmen march-moved into the woods, taking up shooting positions for the next turn.
For my magic phase I cast Mistress of the Marsh on his right flank unit of Leadbelchers (they and the Butcher were the only units close enough to a water feature), which he made no attempt to dispel. I found out later that his Leadbelchers must stand still for a turn in order to reload their guns, so he had no intention of going anywhere yet anyway. I then cast The Rain Lord on his other (left flank) unit of Leadbelchers and rolled Irresistable Force.
My trebuchet took aim on his Ironguts and missed. The bowmen fired on his right flank Leadbelchers, killing one (the beginning of an incredibly effective game for the bowmen).
Galen’s hands tensed on the pommel of his sword as he prepared to draw it and signal the charge. Suddenly he felt a cool rush of breeze against his brow. A voice, distant and yet right beside him whispered, “Still the errant knight? Have you learned nothing, Galen of Chabreux?”
He knew the voice well, the voice from a dream that had proven more real than the ground beneath him. He knew his Mistress’ voice. And he knew what was needed.
“Give ground!” he commanded. He felt the eyes of every knight suddenly upon him, and a few murmurs of disbelief reached his ears from both the knights of the realm on his right and the questing knights on the left. The knights of the grail behind him, however, were silent. Perhaps they had felt Her, too. Sir Rilian at his side repeated the command, and the unit of The Lady’s chosen champions edged their steeds backward. Startled out of their disbelief, the other knights followed suit.
“Damsels, slow them down,” Galen continued. “Artillery section, get their attention!” Within seconds the air was a-buzz with ethereal energy and tangible missiles. Sudden rain lashed a unit of huge creatures on the left flank with what looked like cannons lashed to their arms. A volley of arrows hailed down on a similar unit on the right flank, and one of their number fell heavily to the earth. A huge boulder crashed to the ground between the two armies, once again reminding Galen how much he disliked trebuchet.
With a grunt he cleared his mind. He had but a few seconds more to study his new enemy. He intended to use it well...
Turn Two: Ogres
His line continued to advance. He managed to get his left flank untangled, while on the right flank his Butcher moved in behind the Leadbelchers, who weren’t moving. Again he attempted the Toothcracker, which I dispelled. He then miscast on Trollguts (I don’t remember what it does), ending his magic round.
His Scraplauncher took aim on my Grail Knights again, rolled a misfire, and was destroyed! His Tyrant (with a brace of handguns) fired on my GKs again, hitting one, who passed his armor save.
Galen’s keen eyes slowly made sense of the advancing mass before him. The large creatures with what looked like cannons were just that. They were carrying cannons, loaded with pieces of broken weapons. They would likely work similarly to the grapeshot cannons the Empire was said to employ. On the far left flank he could see a cluster of small creatures resembling goblins rounding a farmhouse. Closer in the cannon-bearers and a large creature hoisting a massive crossbow accompanied by two fanged, four-legged creatures the size of horses were cursing each other and jockeying for position. They finally resolved the issue and advanced again.
Next to them marched a unit of similar creatures, the giant handgunner (who appeared to have a pair of the goblin-like creatures scampering about its feet), and the large sledge near the center of the battle line. Another unit marched to the right of the center, this one clad in large sheets of metal resembling some sort of ad hoc armor. Beyond them another large group of the goblin-like creatures advanced in a grim parody of a military fomation.
Finally, to the far right flank was another group of the cannon-bearers, followed by a single creature covered in blood and carrying an odd assortment of items. Even as Galen focused on the blood-soaked creature the hair on Galen’s neck rose again. Whatever it was, it used powerful magic. Low mutterings from behind him told him that the damsels were working to counter the threat...and probably succeeding, Galen decided.
As he turned back to survey the middle of the advancing line, the huge sledge prepared to launch another volley of projectiles. Suddenly with a loud crack the huge machine sprang into the air, lurched, and crashed to earth atop the enormous creature pulling it, the entire contraption a mess of splintered wood, bone, blood, and fur. Galen sighed relief. One less worry.
A loud flash and a bang from the handgunner’s weapon brought him back to full attention as a projectile clanged off his shield. It was too soon to celebrate...
Turn Two: Bretonnians
I charged, attacking his Ironguts with both the Knights of the Realm and the Grail Knights. The Questing Knights attacked his Bulls. In the magic phase my damsel cast Mistress of the Marsh and The Rain Lord on the Leadbelchers on the right flank, succeeding with both. My trebuchet fired at the same unit of Leadbelchers, hitting, but doing no wounds! My bowmen fired on his Gnoblar fighters threatening my KotR flank, and killed five, causing a panic check. They failed and ran away. My skirmishing bowmen hide so well in the woods that I forget to have them shoot at anything.
In close combat the GK and KotR chewed up his Ironguts, winning the combat by a difference something like twelve or so, so I obviously overestimated them and should have applied the KotR elsewhere. The QKs beat the Bulls by enough to break them as well. Both units were run down, putting my knights safely (hah) behind his battle line. His Tyrant passed his panic test.
Galen drew his sword and looked over to the lance of questing knights to his left. With a nod he signalled Sir Armand de Eloirre, the battle standard bearer and his long-time friend. With a flourish, Armand unfurled the army’s banner, which caught the gleam of the sun in the now-clear sky. “Left lance, hit their main unit flankward! Right lance, with me! We ride for The Lady, the King, and the right to call ourselves men! No foe, no matter how great, shall stay our steel! Charge!”
The knightly battle line erupted forward, and to his great pride Galen saw not a moment’s hesitation among his men as they sped toward the towering foe. An exhilarating calm washed over him as he chose his target, a fierce-looking mass of muscle that called to mind the nightmare creatures his mother invoked in his childhood to frighten him into obeying: Ogres.
Then Galen and his knights were upon the enemy, and everything was a chaotic tableau of flashing steel, cracking wood, surging flesh, hideous bellows, splattering gore, and flailing hooves. Galen’s sword flashed, gouging deep gashes in the ogre before him, the broken end of a lance already embedded in its shoulder. Its eyes rolled backward and it staggered forward. Galen’s warhorse Gaspard danced gracefully to one side to avoid the crashing hulk.
Suddenly the remaining ogres, bellowing fear and anger, turned and fled. “After them,” Galen cried, and the lance of grail knights surged forward in pursuit. One by one the ogres fell until there were no more, and the knights found themselves in the open behind the ogre lines. Off to their right the unit of goblin-like creatures, shrieking with panic and fear, were nearly keeping pace with the mounted knights. “Let them go,” Galen ordered, seeing that they offered no threat...
Turn Three: Ogres
The left-flank Leadbelchers, Hunter, and Tyrant all turned to face my knights behind them. The Leadbelchers on the right flank advanced at half speed (due to Mistress of Marsh) toward the bowmen. The Trappers come around the building. The Sabertusks charge the skirmishing bowmen, who flee successfully.
His Butcher casts Toothcracker on the nearby Leadbelchers, which I failed to dispel. He also casts Bonecrusher, which I dispel. My damsel, in using her Chalice of Malfleur, fails and takes a wound. His Hunter fires his bolt thrower at the Grail Knights and misses. The Tyrant fires his handguns again, which hit a knight, but is saved by armor.
Turn Three: Bretonnians:
The skirmishers rally. All my knights turn around. The Grail Knights and KotR are so close to each other after charging the Ironguts that they inhibit each other’s movement. I attempt to cast The Rain Lord on the Tyrant which fails. I attempt to cast The Wolf Hunts on the Questing Knights to charge his Tyrant, but he uses a dispel scroll. The trebuchet takes aim at his closer unit of Leadbelchers, but misfires harmlessly. The Bowmen shoot at the Leadbelchers approaching them, causing two more wounds.
The knights slowed their momentum, coming to a halt. “Come about,” Galen ordered. The unit musicians took up the command as he quickly assessed his troops. With a surge of relief he noted that nearly no one had been lost. Perhaps the ogres were not as fearsome as they appeared.
As the knights came about, however, Galen noticed that the knights of the realm were far too close to his own unit, as if they were seeking comfort from their more courageous brethren. “Sir Validen,” Galen called out. “Your men are too close! We won’t be able to maneuver like this!”
The paladin called out his agreement and ordered his formation of knights to move out, but they remained fast.
With a growl of frustration, Galen assessed the rest of the field. The remaining ogres were already turning about and organizing their response. The other unit of the cannon-wielders and their wizard continued to approach the bowmen, who continued to pepper the advancing giants. “Brace yourselves, men!” he called. “Here they come!”
Galen noted grimly that they had stopped too close behind the lines. He hoped it would not be a costly mistake...
Turn Four: Ogres
The Tyrant, Hunter, and Leadbelchers charge my Questing Knights, and I experience The Bull Rush rules for the first time. The Lady is kind, and I lose only one knight. Then the hand to hand attacks come, and all but the BSB and the Damsel are killed. They lose the combat by 3, fail both the break test and the re-roll from the BSB. Fortunately they outrun the pursuit.
Meanwhile, the Butcher casts Bonecrusher on the bowmen and is dispelled. Still out of range, his right-flank Leadbelchers hold their fire (or fail their Rain Lord test, I can’t remember which). His Sabertusks, stuck in the woods from their previous failed charge, charge out of the woods and route the skirmishers, sending them fleeing off the board.
With a bloodcurdling bellow, the two ogre leaders and one group of cannon-bearers charged the questing knights. Galen ordered his men to prepare a counter-charge, but the knights of the realm were still in the way. He could do little more than watch in horror as the ogres plowed into the noble knights, throwing their weapons and bodies into the fray. The formation of knights disappeared from sight.
“Get out of there, Armand,” Galen muttered through clenched teeth. Suddenly a horse burst free of the fray, Lady Regaine spurring it furiously onward. Then another rider extricated itself from the melee, and every eye strained to make out the heraldry. As if in reply, the rider held aloft a gleaming banner. It was Armand. Galen let out the breath he suddenly realized he’d been holding.
The ogres roared triumphantly and hurried to pursue, but they were unable to catch the retreating knight and damsel. Though he knew he couldn’t possibly hear, Galen called out to his friend. “Go, Armand! You have done all you can! Keep Regaine safe while I avenge our brethren.” And then an unearthly howl and the screams of men coming from the nearby woods pulled Galen’s attention back to the battle...
Turn Four: Bretonnians
The BSB and the Damsel, being less than 25% the original strength of the unit, are unable to attempt a rally check and flee the table. (We did debate this, both agreeing that it was a strange rule to apply to characters, but could see it easily going either way, as all other psychology rules affect characters within units. I think we settled it with a die roll, which went in his favor. Frankly, all it would have accomplished had they rallied was to get them charged again, finishing the job, so I didn’t argue very hard. At least this way he didn’t get the Banner of the Lady to add to his victory points.)
Meanwhile, the Grail Knights and the Knights of the Realm move to flank the Tyrant, Hunter, and Leadbelchers, untangling from each other, and turning to prepare another charge. Again I attempt to cast The Rain Lord on the Tyrant, forcing him to use another dispel scroll. I then try Mistress of the Marsh on the Leadbelchers approaching the bowmen, only to have it dispelled with dice.
The trebuchet fires at the approaching Leadbelchers and hits, killing one. His movements have exposed the Butcher, who draws arrow fire from the bowmen, killing him (100 points of bowmen have now killed around 250 points, making the proportionately the most effective unit of the game! They will eventually claim close to 300 points).
The two units of knights were still too close to freely maneuver. Finally Galen ordered both units to advance. Once they got moving they were able to put a little more distance between themselves, and after a short distance Galen ordered his own unit to stop, wheeling to face the ogre leaders. Further away, the knights of the realm did the same, this time leaving a more suitable distance between the two units.
A cheer went up in the distance, and Galen turned in time to see the ogre wizard collapse, bristling with arrows. The bowmen were proving their worth. He only hoped they wouldn’t suddenly find themselves in over their heads. As long as they kept the ogres at a distance they would survive. Meanwhile, his duty was to get his knights ready for another charge...
Turn Five: Ogres
Gnoblar fighters, who have continued to fail their rally tests, finally exit the board. His Tyrant and Hunter move to flank the knights. The left flank Leadbelchers attempt to follow them. The Trappers move toward the Grail Knights. His Sabertusks come around the woods toward the knights and bowmen. Both his units of Leadbelchers fail their Rain Lord tests and are unable to fire this turn.
Turn Five: Bretonnians
The Grail Knights charge his left-flank Leadbelchers, while the Knights of the Realm charge the Trappers. The remaining Damsel attempts to cast The Rain Lord on the Tyrant, and miscasts, making her unable to cast any more spells for two turns (the end of the game). The trebuchet takes aim at his Tyrant, misses, and barely misses the Grail Knights. The bowmen fire at the remaining right-flank Leadbelcher, wounding him and causing a panic test. He flees.
In close combat the Grail Knights obliterate the Leadbelchers, and the KotR obliterate the Trappers. The Tyrant and Hunter pass their panic tests.
The ogres weren’t making the same mistake twice. Seeing the Bretonnians forming up for a charge, they hurried toward their flank, spoiling the approach. The cannon-bearers, however, were unable to move quickly enough, passing right before the grail knights, and exposing their flank. Trap or not, it was too good to pass up.
Off to the left beyond the knights of the realm Galen saw the two cat-like creatures emerge from the wood, blood still on their faces and fur. Bretonnian blood. They noticed the knights and advanced, growling. Near the farmhouse the goblin-like creatures also advanced on the knights. Galen saw Sir Validen point them out to his knights, and they prepared to charge.
The two groups of knights leaped forward almost as one, crashing into their foes. It was over almost before it had begun. But the charge had left the grail knights’ flank exposed...
Turn Six: Ogres
His last Leadbelcher rallies. The Sabertusks charge the bowmen, who successfully flee. His Tyrant and Hunter both turn to face the knights. His Leadbelcher fires on the fleeing bowmen (I didn’t think about it then, but can he do that?), killing three. The Hunter shoots his bolt thrower at the Grail Knights, killing two. The Tyrant fires handguns at the Grail Knights and misses.
Turn Six: Bretonnians
Unable to reach the Tyrant or Hunter, the knights do nothing. The bowmen panicking causes the Trebuchet crew to panic and flee off the board. The bowmen then rally.
Galen heard the impact and jerked his head around just in time to see both Sir Equiris and Sir Dalovere thrown from their mounts, impaled by the brutal shaft of the ogre’s crossbow. The other ogre fired his handguns, but succeeded only in injuring the mounts of the two unfortunate knights. Then both ogres turned and fled toward the woods on the far side of the battlefield from whence they had come. Toward the bowmen’s position a solitary cannon-wielder waved his smoking weapon defiantly, then hurried off in the same direction. The two feral beasts broke off their pursuit of the bowmen and hurried off behind their master.
Galen allowed a tired smile. They had won. All that remained was to seek out the wounded, honor the dead, and examine the enemy corpses. He needed to know more about this ferocious new threat. He and his knights had carried the day, but the thought of another engagement cause him great concern. The ogres had likely learned more about him and his forces then he had learned about them.
End of Game: Bretonnians win a solid victory.
Analysis
Ogres are fast. He was in range for me to charge on Turn One! I didn’t, though, and it proved to be a good choice--as much from luck as from design. I had no way of knowing his Scraplauncher would blow itself up if I waited another turn, but with it gone I felt a lot more comfortable charging. I was also able to soften up one unit of Leadbelchers and effectively eliminate the Gnoblar unit, which was not particularly scary, but well-positioned to charge my flank. Dowsing both his Leadbelchers with The Rain Lord before combat really got going helped, too.
The crux of the game, however, was the first charge. With the ogre’s speed, they could most likely have outrun my charge. That might have left my knights exposed to enfilading fire from the Leadbelchers on both sides, plus either a charge or more fire from the Hunter and Tyrant. Instead, they took the charge, and my opponent lost 40% of his force in a single turn. But even then, what he had left was nasty. My poor Questing Knights never knew what hit them.
The “battle of the right flank” also proved a bigger deal than I might have expected. Between the continual Mistress of the Marsh spells and the irritant of my bowmen, his Leadbelchers were kept largely out of the action. My bowmen performed beautifully, whereas starting the game I was sure they’d prove largely useless.
The left flank is where I struggled. Perhaps the skirmishing bowmen wouldn’t have been as effective as their comrades on the other flank, but had I remembered to have them shoot they may have made a difference in the battle. Had I not put them behind the woods they might have been more effective as well. As it was, it was his right flank that pasted my Questing Knights.
I screwed up with my Questing Knights, pure and simple. Even if I had made them flee the charge there would have been no one around to help since my Grail Knights and Knights of the Realm were tangled together. Maneuver is important! It’s not just to get you the charge, but also to make sure you can get back into the battle again afterward. If you’re going to fight an opponent that can get you into combat no later than turn two you’d better plan on how you’re going to get your units back into position for turns three through six--and keep them from getting pasted in the mean time!
The main advantages I can see to the Ogres are their speed and their flexibility. They can close the distance very quickly, and their impact hits are especially distressing. They don’t have much long range shooting capability, but at short range they’ll be lethal. I don’t know if Leadbelchers can stand and shoot, but if they can, ouch.
Their magic is interesting. The 3+ casting really eats up your dispel dice. They’re almost guaranteed that anything they cast is going to succeed unless you actively oppose it. If I hadn’t owned the magic phase with my two damsels, who knows what might have happened.
Their size is a blessing and a curse. It’s hard to hit more than one or two with a catapult, and even if you do there’s a decent chance they can survive it. Against Bretonnians they will still field more units than you, and with their wide frontage, they pose a very long battle line. You may be able to knock out their center, but they’ll still have a very large flank force left.
On the other hand, they have very large frontage and inherently small unit size. They aren’t going to get many rank bonuses, and not very many of them are going to get to fight back if charged. Sure, they have a lot of wounds, but wounds still count in combat results. Their toughness isn’t as high as I would expect, considering, and without much of an armor save, they go down quickly.
As satisfying as my win was, I know better than to relax. I was able to capitalize on my opponent’s lack of experience with both my army and his own (It was only the second game he’s played with OK). Next time I suspect things will be dramatically different. For that matter, if we played the same game over again I suspect things would be dramatically different.
My opponent was a great guy, and very fun to play with (I say “with” rather than “against,” as it very much seemed as if we were both there to see how things turned out rather than there to see who could destroy the other). It was a relaxing, enjoyable game, and I certainly look forward to a rematch--though I shudder to think what his Orcs and Goblins might be like to take on.