Tournament Log: Conflagration '09

Place: 4th
Well, I've survived half of Conflagration, Glasgow's annual role-playing game/wargame/whatever even at the QMU. Yet again I'm at 4th place, this appears to be an ongoing theme with me. One day I'll get me one of those shiny, shiny medals...

Game One: ...
Scenario King of the Hill (Mosh Pit with a hill in the middle instead)
I got a by in the first round since the Murchie twins had not arrived yet, and so I won by default - I had an usually good strength of schedule because of this. I'd like to have tried out Ashlynn against either of their lists - Menoth or Cryx - but it wasn't to be so I sat around watching other games. Some of my friends from Aberdeen had come down, but only one was playing in the Warmachine tournament and that was Chris. He was unlucky enough to draw Jim in the first round and Chris has never played a scenario before so took a list with a massive bias towards shooting. As it was he never entered the area of the hill, and once he realised this all he had left was Caine to get up onto the hill - right in front of a full unit of Iron Fang Pikemen. Caine got hosed.

Game Two: Jim, Khador
Scenario Some sort of territory map.

Zevanna Agha, Old Witch of Khador
*Scrapjack
*Destroyer
Greylord Ternion
Iron Fang Pikemen (8)
*Iron Fang Officer and Standard Bearer
Widowmakers
Eiryss, Mage Hunter of Ios
Gorman di Wulfe, Rogue Alchemist

I opted to use my Ashlynn list, which wasn't a bad choice but wasn't ideal in dealing with the Old Witch. There's not much to say about this game, Jim locked my army down with the Old Witch's feat and I really should have used Ashlynn's feat on turn two. If I'd had another turn I think I could have made the assassination run once Anastasia had brought the secret back with her to Ashlynn.

Game Three: Chris, Cygnar
Scenario Assassination

Lieutenant Allister Caine
*Hunter
Eiryss, Mage Hunter of Ios
Black 13th Gun Mage Strike Team
Trenchers (10)
*Trencher Officer and Sharpshooter
*Trencher Grenade Porter
Lady Aiyana and Master Holt

Chris decided to be a bastard and deployed his entire force on top of a steep plateau with an entrance about 4 inches wide for me to get up and engage him with. The Ogrun Bokur I'd advanced deployed with Stannis as his client (Stannis using the Highborn Covenant's AD tricksiness) ate the dirt stupidly early, despite hiding at the base of the cliff. Eventually I managed to get most of my Halberdiers up the narrow gap - along with Stannis himself holding point - and got rid of the majority of those pesky trenchers shooting me. No such luck for the Black 13th however and I had to use my feat defensively to stop him from destroying my army.
Anastasia proved to be the deciding factor as she learned a secret and then Chris failed to kill her by a single point of health. Despite Caine being on a cliff to the right and behind Ashlynn and Gorman, once I'd gotten back to Ashlynn with the secret I was suddenly facing the right way and within range of both a Black Oil Grenade and Ashlynn's charge. It took a couple of hits but Caine eventually took a dirt nap once I'd used Point Blank to shoot him with my Hand Cannon - which would have killed him outright, even without the charge attack with Nemesis (the sword!).

Game Four: Bill (Sevwall), Trollbloods
Scenario Ridge Raiders
Perhaps one of the worst scenarios - why this one just isn't replaced with No Man's Land I'll never know.

Madrak Ironhide
Dire Troll Mauler
Troll Impaler
Trollkin Champions
Krielstone Bearer and Stone Scribes
*Stone Scribe Elder
Trollkin Hero
Fell Caller
Swamp Gobber Bellows Crew

I totally played into Bill's hands for this one. He deployed his force VERY heavily on my left and moved into some ruins where I could only engage him on three very narrow fronts - which he quickly blocked off with his Champions. I just couldn't hit and damage the DEF 16 Champions, even with Roulette up. I massacred the Dire Troll Mauler however, and some Stone Scribes, but really I'd have been better off trying to stay back a bit and making him spread out. As it was he just wore down my forces. Next time I'll put Feint on the Mule instead so that once it's killed the Dire Troll Mauler it can get the hell away from those Champions with the STR buff aura from the Krielstone.

There's nothing to really conclude about this tournament, it was fun, I got to try out Ashlynn a bit more and discover her limits - which are actually rather similar to Magnus' except her feat is made of pure awesomesauce. She manages to be unusually threatening in person, and on the feat turn the troops can very reliably hit high DEF models, but outside of that it's the same slug feat to get the Steelheads into position. I had a good Q&A session with Jim to figure out some tactics for her so I'll try to put those into effect in the next game we have, which should be a week on Tuesday.