"Be Quick Or Be Dead..." Scenic Brawlmachine Batrep May 30, 2022: Circle Orboros vs Skorne
We didn't get to play very many games during May, but we got a play in towards the end of the month where I was able to field my newly-painted Gatorman Posse. It's been fun building & painting up a handful of Minion models / units so that we can spice up our Circle & Skorne lists without having to make major overhauls. It also means I don't have to stress to paint a lot at once. Just adding a single Minion unit can really open up new strategies on the table. At the same time, it means that I can gradually work towards having 25 pt Minions lists painted up for each of us; Farrow for Donna & Gators for me.
Scenario & Terrain
Months ago, we learned about a WMH variant called Scenic Steamroller. It's designed / developed by Thomas & Dessa O'Neale and replaces the generic idea of zones / flags with players identifying specific pieces of terrain at set-up to be significant landmarks / areas of value to score.
We finally got around to trying it out a little while back & have since fallen in love with it. It's a simple change, but makes for a much more immersive game play experience in our opinion. It works perfectly with the Brawlmachine format; so much so that all we play now is the combination of the two - which we just call Scenic Brawlmachine for brevity.
We play with all the Brawlmachine rules unchanged as far as models allowed, points, 5 rounds max, 4 pt VP win margin, etc. The main change is in what scores & how as noted in the Scenic Steamroller rules. Also, we go with the Scenic Steamroller rules as far as the idea that the bulk of the terrain be within a 24" x 24" area in the center with other pieces to the outside of that area to keep the scenario live without going too far in the other direction.
The Scenic Steamroller rules PDF can be found at Scenic Steamroller PDF.
A web page giving an overview & explanation of Scenic Steamroller can be found at Disgruntled Wargamer Scenic Steamroller.
We quickly marked off a 24" square zone in the middle of the play area and then both started putting down terrain pieces randomly inside of it. We tried to mix things up as far as distances, angle of placement, type of terrain, etc but for the most part just threw it down quickly without wanting to overthink it.
Since this was our first play with these rules, we just went with what we had within this zone. Since then, we've started adding more terrain after we get the center area filled. We each add 1-2 more pieces of terrain that weren't restricted to the 24" area to fill out the rest of the battlefield a bit after the initial set-up now.
Next, we rolled a d3 to see how many pieces of terrain would be scoring pieces (d3+3). We rolled a 2 which meant that 4 terrain pieces would be marked for scoring with each of us picking 2 pieces and defining whether they'd be scored by beasts / jacks, solos, or units. Donna selected a pond of shallow water to be scored by warbeasts and a dense fog to be scored by units. I chose a rubble pile to be scored by units and a forest to be scored by solos.
The terrain lay out descriptions to follow are described from my (Skorne) side of the table.
There was a large boulder (obstruction) about 14" from the left side of the table and about 13" from the Circle table edge. Directly across from it about 18" to the right was a stone wall (obstacle with cover). Inset a few inches from each of them from left to right and about 4-6" towards the center was a smaller L-shaped stone wall (obstacle with cover) and a 5" patch of dense fog.
Across the direct center of the table with a slight arc towards the Skorne table edge was a pond of shallow water, another large boulder (obstruction), rubble pile (1/2 obstacle, 1/2 obstruction), and a forest. All were roughly 3-6" apart from the nearest other piece of terrain in the arc.
Lastly, there was a wooden house (obstruction) roughly in line with the pond, but angled slightly and a row of hay bails (obstacle with concealment) offset slightly from the forest.
Taking the lead, Tuquir moved up to take cover behind a row of hay bails. His head canted slightly to the side, the Mortitheurge Willbreaker could sense trouble across the woodline of the forest, even if his own eyes failed to pick out the exact cause of the disturbance. With a wave of his hand in the direction of his Lord Tyrant, Tuquir drew upon the agony within to pull at the very fabric of reality as if he were a "Puppet Master"*.
Suddently, the ground rumbled beneath the feet of the gathered Skorne war party. Lord Tyrant Hexeris forced a massive Razor Worm to burrow forward as far ahead as possible while still keeping the great beast in range. An explosion of rocks & dirt sprayed out as the Worm's horn burst from the earth; debris raining down into a nearby pile of rubble. The eyeless head of the Worm swayed gently back and forth as Hexeris tried to gather further clues to the danger Tuquir was sensing.
The master mortitheurge failed to gain any more insight to the mystery stealthily-hiding in the distance and as such, decided he would do what he could to draw it out. Walking up to take up position near Tuquir, Hexeris again reached out to the Razor Worm. This time, he enslaved the beast's very soul*; strengthening the tenuous bond beast masters struggle to maintain with such barely-tamed creatures of the Bloodstone Marches.
The warlock sent a surge of pain and power channeled through the serpentine beast blasting across the open field. With no specific target in sight, Hexeris knew the chance of a direct hit was null, but hoped that such as devastating explosion could obliterate* anything it might catch in the blast. Exerting the last of the furious power at his hands, he boosted the intensity of the explosion. As the eruption of energy deviated from the greatest extent of his range, the Lord Arbiter sensed the slightest of pains felt from an unknown source.
The arcane magiks Tuquir had embellished him with came into play and Hexeris began to pull at the strings to guide the disturbance in hopes of magnifying the agony. Though not by much, the manipulation worked and Hexeris smiled as he felt the unknown source's pain increasing in the distance. Unbeknownst to the Skorne warlock, the frightful visage of the Lord of the Feast grimaced in the distance. The avatar of the Devourer Wurm at first attempted to shrug off the pain, but had eventually suffered a single point of damage from the blast.
Now that their presence had been made known, Hexeris commanded the remainder of his forces to push forward to establish a front line stretching from a nearby town to the furthest reaches of the eastern forest. Kuros, the mighty Titan Gladiator, was forced to run forward toward the rubble pile. Tapping into the beast's inner magik to grant it a "Rush*" of energy as it barreled forward. Hexeris dug into the Titan's spirit to rile it even further in preparation for the battle to come.
Next, Theran was forced to run up beside Kuros. As the battle-hardened Cyclops Raider readied his Heavy Reiver, Hexeris agitated the beast to build the furious energies within his soul.
The Paingiver Beast Handlers shuffled forward to take up positions directly beside Kuros & Theran where possible. Others were unable to close the distance completely, but their leader, Salaic, instructed them to fan out nearby to offer what aid they could as the fighting progressed. The points of blades & whips prodded and dug into the flesh of the Titan & Cyclops as the Beast Handlers attempted to goad them further into compliance.
Lastly, Hexeris instructed the savage Gatormen to support the left flank of his beasts. Unsure of what dangers may be waiting for them, Deveaux prayed over his brothers sending a light mist* to descend over the scaly hides of the Gatormen. With the rattle of ragged skulls atop his staff, he motioned to send them running up beside a wooden cottage.
* Puppet Master (special action) - You can have one affected model reroll one attack or damage roll, then Puppet Master expires. Puppet Master lasts for one round.
* Soul Slave (spell) - Target warbeast in the spellcaster's battlegroup automatically passes threshold checks. The spellcaster can channel spells through that warbeast.
* Obliteration (spell) - RNG 10 POW 15 AOE 5" magic attack.
* Rush (animus) - Target friendly Faction warbeast gains +2" movement when advancing as part of its Normal Movement and gains Pathfinder. Rush lasts for one turn.
* Dirge Of Mists (prayer) - Affected models gain concealment. Models are not affected while out of formation. Dirge of Mists lasts for one round.
Circling above the assembled front line, Aquilla batted his azure wings and screeched out; angst building in anticipation inside the majestic Rotterhorn Griffon. Under Kaya's urging, Aquilla dove at an incredible speed, coming to hover by a large boulder in the center of the battlefield.
The massive Pureblood Warpwolf, Remus, tapped into the warp and a faint glow began to emanate from him. With a ward of magikal protection* around him, Remus ran up to the bank of a small pond. As he raised his snout attempting to catch the sent of the expected Eastern invaders, Kaya riled him into a furious state. Next, she sent her large two-headed Winter Argus trotting up behind an L-shaped wall. Crouched behind the stone structure, Lumi snarled and peered out looking for prey.
Sitting atop her mount, Laris, Kaya strode up behind Lumi and began to focus all of her will into the warriors and beasts at her side. As she whispered softly into the wind, the air thickened around them and a fog* formed just above the ground; obscuring the figures within it. Maintaining her concentration, but shifting attention to her beasts, Kaya's eye glowed as she outstretched her arms towards her battlegroup. The eyes of all 4 warbeasts flickered a bright orange light for an instance as their mistress wove a synergistic bond* between them all. With the army before them now ready for the fight to come, Kaya & Laris moved into position between the first large boulder and stone wall.
Neoma ran up to support Lumi. Both the Argus Moonhound & Winter Argus were now positioned behind the stone wall. The Skinwalker Alpha, Kylo, gave the order for his brothers to move into and around the area of dense fog that lay just north of the forest. A massive War Wolf that accompanied Kylo took up position behind their formation; its massive fangs flared as it growled.
Lord of the Feast had hoped to exact at least a small measure of revenge on the Skorne who had attacked him. Unfortunately, there were none in range of his Raven's scouting ability even if the Feast Lord moved forward to advance his hunt. With no immediate targets, the avatar of the Wurm cautiously moved into the northern tree line of the forest.
* Spell Ward (warp effect) - This model cannot be targeted by spells.
* Fog Of War (spell) - Models gain concealment while in the spellcaster's control range. Upkeep.
* Synergy (spell) - While in the spellcaster's control range, models in this model's battlegroup gain a +1 cumulative bonus on melee attack & damage rolls for each other model in the battlegroup that hit an enemy model with a melee attack this turn while in the spellcaster's control range. This cumulative bonus cannot exceed +3. Upkeep.
Lord Tyrant Hexeris reigned in his beasts, drawing from their rage and anguish to replenish his own power. Tuquir, the Mortitheurge Willbreaker, moved into the tree line of the forest to take cover. Pulling at the strings like a "Puppet Master" once more, he emboldened the mortitheurgical abilities of his master.
Looking through the eye of his Cyclops Raider, Hexeris spotted a Rotterhorn Griffon heading towards his front line. Commanding Theran to take aim at the winged beast, the warlock forced the Cyclops to connect with the aching memories of its training to increase the shot's chance of hitting. A spray of iron needles flew into the air, but Aquila's incredible agility along with the obscuring "Fog Of War" made all of Hexeris' urging for naught. Aquilla shreaked in defiance, staring down the hapless beast who dared attack him.
Hexeris urged the Razor Worm to slither to the edge of the dense fog. Digging into the darkest of his mortitheurgial magiks, the Lord Tyrant began to distort and morph the Worm's physical being; forcing it to transform. The carapace along its spine thickened and large spikes began to grow from the beast's flesh*.
Through the eyeless sight of the Razor Worm, Hexeris could sense the presence of several Warpborn Skinwalkers in the area. Reaching out once more though the Worm, he sent a wave of spectral maggots spraying into the Wolfsworn warriors; focusing on the one he recognized to be the Alpha. As the parasitic* worms dug into the flesh of the Skinwalkers, they howled as one in agony. Draining a portion of their essence into himself, Hexeris felt his body strengthen, as his enemies were made weak.
With the Skinwalkers suffering under the effects of the parasites, Hexeris channeled years of pain & rage through the Razor Worm to unleash a force of "Obliteration" onto the Alpha; again using the reality manipulating ability granted to him from Tuquir to maximize the damage done. An explosion of raw energy erupted at the feet of Kylo, the Skinwalker Alpha. As the the wave of pain wracked the warrior, he suffered 5 damage at dice +2.
The Beast Handlers moved up to support Theran & Kuros. One snapped his whip to stir up the mighty Titan; "Enraging"* it. Another drew his knife & used the curved blade to "Prod"* Kuros into battle. A cloud of dust trailed behind the massive Titan Gladiator as it charged towards Aquilla; lowering his Tusks to strike at the Griffon. Aquila just barely dodged the attack, but was not so lucky when Kuros slammed a War Gauntlet across his head a moment later. Hexeris forced the raging Titan both in the attack & power of the resulting damage. Aquila stumbled, taking 8 damage to spiral 1, and his thoughts began to scramble as his mind was crippled. Kuros attempted to slash at him with his left War Gauntlet to follow up, but was unable to connect a second time.
Deveaux prayed to maintain the protective mist around his brothers and instructed them to advance towards the Pureblood Warpwolf heading their way. The web-footed warriors moved up around the outside of the pond; drooling from mouths agape & readyied their blades.
* Spiny Growth (animus) - The spellcaster gains +2 ARM. If a non-warrior model hits the spellcaster with a melee attack, the attacking model suffers d3 damage points immediately after the attack is resolved unless the spellcaster is destroyed or removed from play. Lasts 1 round.
* Parasite (spell) - Target model / unit suffers -3 ARM and the spellcaster gains +1 ARM.
* Enrage (star ability) - RNG 3. Target friendly Faction warbeast gets +2 STR for one turn.
* Prodding (innate ability) - While within 1" of this model, friendly Faction warbeasts can charge without being forced.
Kaya drew from the power of her beasts to replenish her own. Using a portion of what she gained, she maintained the "Fog Of War" over her army and the "Synergy" shared between her beasts.
The Feast Lord sent his Raven out from the forest in search of the Skorne invaders. Letting out a shrill cry to mark its prey, the corvine creature signaled its master, who was immediately teleported behind Hexeris. With a single arcing blow of his Wurmblade, the frail avatar reeked havoc upon the Skorne rear line. Blood & viscera sprayed across Theran's back as two Beast Handlers were cut across their sides; dying instantly. Despite Hexeris' magikal parasitic protections, he too was caught in the blade for 3 damage. The Lord Tyrant pressed his hand against the shallow wound in his lower back to stop the bleeding, while savoring the pain coursing through every fiber of his body. The Lord Of The Feast collected the corpses of the slain Beast Handlers, strengthening his sickly form with the energies drawn from them.
Feeling the angst building inside Laris, Kaya unleashed him in a ferocious charge into the Gatormen. Upon impact, the massive wolf slashed razor-sharp claws into the exposed belly of Huval, the nearest Gatorman; doing 6 damage. As the reptilian warrior tried to regain his footing, the blackclad warlock drove the point of her spear into the gaping wound Laris was ripped into him. The piercing blow was too much for the young Gator to withstand. He perished unable to "Tough" out the excruciating pain as he lay at the shore of the pond bleeding.
Kaya then called upon the energies she'd leeched from her beasts to attack, Savoie, a Gatorman to her left. Slashing at him with Mistral, the blade just caught his right shoulder for 2 damage. She then called down the Shadow of the Moon* to drape her beasts & warriors in darkness; further obscuring their enemies' vision. She then motioned for Laris to reposition them behind the large boulder by Aquila.
Kylo quieted his mind, connecting with the warp & drawing upon its essence to mend his wounds*. Healing himself of 3 damage, he gave the command for his Skinwalker brethren to charge the Razor Worm. The Alpha and 3 of his warriors, rushed the serpentine beast as a concerted Gang*; slashing at it with their Pole Axes. The first 3 hit easily and crippled the beast's Spirit, doing 5 damage to spiral 6, 3 damage to spiral 4, & 3 damage to spiral 5. The 4th connected, but was only able to a single damage to spiral 4. The last 2 Skinwalkers were unable to get a clear path to charge, but ran up to close the distance instead. The War Wolf followed suit; moving around the right side of the dense fog.
Aquilla side stepped to slash at at Kuros with his claws. With his mind clouded by the crippling damage he'd taken, he was only able to hit with one of his two attack & only then thanks to Kaya pushing him to boost his chances. Claws tore at Kuros' right bicep; severing a tendon and doing 5 damage to spiral 2. Ichor dripped from the Griffon's claw into the ground & the synergistic bond he shared with the rest of the battlegroup strengthened temporarily. Hoping to wound the Titan further, Kaya forced Aquila to unleash a "Death Shriek"*. Kuros shrugged and flinched as the deafening screech washed over him, but it served as nothing more of an annoyance to the behemoth Gladiator.
Remus warped a continued protection against spells & sloshed through the pond with the remaining Gatormen in his sights. With teeth bared, the hulking Warpwolf let loose with a deathly howl sending shockwaves crashing into Chauf & Breau. Both of them staggered slightly as they were hit for 2 & 6 damaged respectively.
Taking advantage of the opening Aquila provided, Lumi charged into Kuros. Biting at the Titan Gladiator with both of her heads, the ferocious Winter Argus tore at his flesh. Driven by the synergistic magiks Kaya wove between her beasts, Lumi gnashed at Kuros for 4 damage to spiral 5 and 7 more damage to spiral 2. Neoma ran up behind Lumi, but wasn't able to get close enough to get into the fray.
With each side holding strategic locations on the battlefield, they began a tug of war to strengthen their respective positions. Skorne held the forest while the forces of Circle Orboros dominated the pond and fog to the north.
Circle 2 - Skorne 1
* Moon Shadow (feat) - While in Kaya's control range, friendly Faction models gain +2 DEF & cannot be targeted by free strikes. Friendly Faction models can advance through enemy models if her control range if they have enough movement to move completely past their bases. Lasts 1 round
*Hyper-Regeneration (innate ability) - Remove d3 damage points from this model at the start of each of its activations.
* Gang (unit ability granted by the Alpha) - When making a melee attack targeting an enemy model in the melee range of another model in this unit, a model with Gang gains +2 to melee attack & melee damage rolls.
* Death Shriek (animus) - Enemy models currently within 2" of the spellcaster suffer an unboostable POW 8 damage roll.
Hexeris leeched the furious energy from his warbeasts & began to work a "Dark Dominion"* over the battlefield. Purple runes swam in the air around his outstretched hand causing an uneasy ethereal weight to hang on his enemies. Hexeris moved around to get a better vantage point on Lord Of The Feast and slashed at him with Gulgata. Striking the the Walking Hunger for 4 damage and driving him back towards the approaching Skinwalkers.
Hexeris pressed his advantage, spending some of the pent up energy drawn from his beasts to attack again. Gulgata's blade nearly decapitated the Feast Lord; striking him for 9 more damage. As the life drained from the ghoulish avatar, his eyes flickered a dark ebony; black energies radiating from them. With this, Hexeris took command of the now-Undead Feast Lord and forced him into the front line of the Wolfsworn warriors.
Awkwardly lunging forward, Lord Of The Feast caught Fynn off guard and drove the point of Wurmblade through his chest; killing the Skinwalker instantly. As the lifeless body of the Feast Lord slumped to the ground, Hexeris took command of Fynn's corpse. Turning his bloodied Pole Axe against his Alpha, the Undead Skinwalker clumsily struck a glancing blow that thankfully only managed to inflict a single point of damage.
Relishing in the intoxication of his enemies' anguish, Hexeris raised Gulgata towards the nearest Skinwalker. Sending forth a way of skorneful magik into their formation, he hoped to Obliterate several warriors in the explosion. Allowing his excitement to affect his concentration, the attack missed, but the resulting blast caught Kylo, Thorin, & the Razor Worm. The resulting 6 damage killed the Alpha, but the other Skinwalker caught in the attack only suffered 1 point of damage. The Worm ducked its head into the earth; suffering no damage as the blast crashed harmlessly against its carapace.
Hexeris took charge of Kylo's lifeless body and drove him to attack his brother nearby. The Alpha's Pole Axe struck Thorin for 4 more damage; cutting across his abdomen and stunning the young warrior. The most veteran Skinwalker, Jaha, took command of what remained of their unit.
Theran raised his Heavy Reiver at the closest Skinwalker, Anton. Pulling the trigger to spray a hailstorm of needles at his victim, the Cyclops was forced to boost his chances to hit & damage by the master mortitheurgist. Anton didn't feel any pain when dozens of needles plunged into his chest, as the first to hit drove through his left eye and out the back of his skull. His head slumped, the Undead Skinwalker was driven to turn on Thorin and finally put the wounded Skinwalker out of his misery. Anton's blade opened Thorin's carotid artery; draining his life as the blood poured from the wound.
Hexeris commanded Thorin's corpse to attack Jaha. The veteran warrior had no time to react as he stood in disbelief at the carnage unfolding around him. Thorin drove the blade of his Pole Axe into Jaha's skull for 8 damage; killing him instantly. As Thorin's body fell, Hexeris took command of Jaha and advanced him up behind the last living Skinwalker, Nyko. Jaha's blade cut across Nyko's back for 5 damage. The young Skinwalker struggled to stand upright as pain wracked his body, but he continued to fight on...for now.
Salaic organized his Paingiver Beast Handlers to move up to assist Kuros & the Razor Worm. Two of them worked feverishly to "Medicate"* Kuros and mend the Titan's wounds. The mighty beast was healed for 4 damage total; 2 to spiral 3 and another 2 to spiral 5. Dom and Rabar poked and prodded at Kuros & the Worm to "Enrage" both beasts.
Tuquir moved discreetly to the western edge of the forest. Ducking down to remain somewhat hidden in the foliage's cover, he motioned towards Kuros and the "Puppet Master" worked to manipulate the future laid out before him. The Mortitheurge Willbreaker then forced the herculean Titan to lunge at Aquila with a massive War Gauntlet. The Rotterhorn Griffon initially managed to deflect the initial attack, but suddenly blackish-purple runes danced around Tuquir's wrist and time seemed to reverse by seconds.
Kuros repeated the same attack in this new, twisted reality; striking Aquila directly across the side of his head for 16 damage to spiral 4. Fearing a potential attack and wanting to strengthen her defense against it, Kaya reeved the fury of Aquilla's dying cry. Kuros then turned his attention to Lumi and slashed at her with his other War Gauntlet and Tusks. Boosting both attacks, Kuros battered the Winter Argus for 7 and 11 damage, respectively, both to spiral 5. Lumi cried out as both her mind and spirit were crippled in the onslaught.
Hexeris drove the Razor Worm to attack Nyko. Biting into his side to tear into the Skinwalker's entrails and left lung, the Worm nearly separated Nyko's torso from his lower body. The Lord Tyrant attempted to take control of Nyko's corpse to finish off Lumi, but what was left of the Skinwalker's ragged body flailed haplessly; driving its Pole Axe into the ground at the Winter Argus' paw.
Deveaux submitted an offering* unto the Gatormens' god, Kossk and charged into Remus. The other Gatormen followed suit, trampling over the fallen body of Huval en route to the Pureblood Warpwolf. Just barely crossing the edge the pond, they bit and stabbed at the massive Warpwolf with teeth & blade alike. Even with the blessings from Kossk's answer to Deveaux's prayer they only succeeded in striking him twice. Deveaux's teeth tore into Remus exposed neck for 5 damage to spiral 1 and Savoie's blade cut into the left side of his face to do 5 more damage to spiral 2. The Pureblood Warpwolf staggered slightly; his vision clouded as the attacks crippled his mind.
While Tuquir still maintained control of the forest, the Gatormen positioned themselves to nullify Remus' domination of the pond. Skorne worked to close in on Circle's lead controlling key areas of the battlefield.
Circle Orboros 2 - Skorne 2
* Dark Dominion (feat) - When a living or undead enemy warrior model is boxed by an attack while in Hexeris' control range, you can take control of it. The model becomes an independent model and gains Undead. The model can immediately advance up to 3" and can make one basic melee attack, then remove the model from play. The model cannot be targeted by free strikes during this movement. Dark Dominion lasts for one turn.
* Medicate (star ability) - RNG B2B. Remove d3 damage points from a friendly Faction warbeast in range.
Kaya struggled to draw all of the fury amassed on her remaining beasts; now regretting the energy she'd collected as Aquila was slain. Taking as much of the power into herself as she could withstand, she lost control of Lumi. Caught in a frenzied state of unchecked emotion, Lumi lashed out at the Titan Gladiator in front of her. Biting at Kuros' forearm, her teeth merely scratched at the armor of his War Gauntlet.
As the outburst subsided, Kaya soothed her weary Winter Argus. She allowed the "Fog Of War" to dissipate, but expended a portion of her power to continue the synergistic bond between her beasts.
The War Wolf then made its way through the patch of dense fog. Gnashing its teeth into the Razor Worm's underbelly, the Wolf did 4 damage to spiral 6 at dice -4.
Kaya forced her Argus Moonhound to charge into the Razor Worm; wanting to rid herself of the nuisance it was proving to be. Benefiting from the "Synergy" shared with the other beasts, Neoma tore into the Worm to destroy it.
Remus warped "Strength"* and Kaya forced him to heal his crippled mind; removing 2 damage from spiral 1. He stepped towards Breau & Savoie; slashing his claws into them for 12 and 8 damage respectively, at dice +1. The Gatormen tried to "Tough" out the attacks, but both eventually bled out and succumbed to their wounds. Kaya charged into the lane the Pureblood opened for her to attack Deveaux. Laris' claws scratched at the Gatorman's scaly back, but didn't injure him at all. Not to be denied, the warlock stabbed at Deveaux with Mistral; cutting across his face for 3 damage.
Kaya's eyes flashed bright orange and she swung the blade of Mistral at the 2 remaining Gatormen. Deveaux awkwardly ducked under the attack, but Chauf wasn't so lucky. Despite the Gatorman's Unyielding nature, he died on Kaya's blade, as she boosted the force of the attack to devastating effect. Spending a portion of her power to attack once more, Kaya stabbed at Deveaux for another 3 damage. The Gatorman leader was severely injured, but he stood defiant against her attacks.
With Tuquir controlling the forest unabated, Hexeris' forces began to take a lead in the battle.
Circle 2 - Skorne 3
* Warp Strength (warp ability) - Gains +2 STR.
Hexeris drew upon the fury of his beasts to replenish his own power once more and commanded Deveaux to attack Remus. The Gatorman continued his prayers and supplication to Kossk in hopes of gaining favor & blessing in his attacks on the Warpwolf. There was only so much that the god of the Gatormen could do to help the near-dead Deveaux unfortunately. While his teeth dug into the leather wrapped around Remus' forearms, they failed to dig into his flesh. His feeble attempts to strike the Pureblood with his staff whiffed past his foe harmlessly.
Salaic moved to contact the rubble pile that lay in the center of the battlefield & instructed his Paingiver Beast Handlers to support Kuros. Three of them "Medicated" the Titan's wounds, healing him for 3 to spiral 3 and 2 to spiral 2, while the 4th Beast Handler snapped his whip against the Gladiator's back to "Enrage" him.
Crouched in the tree line, Tuquir sent a surge of mortitheurgical magik into Hexeris, who then charged the War Wolf. The momentum of the attack buried Gulgata's blade into the Wolf's back; severing its spinal cord and doing 11 damage. Hexeris then channeled some of his remaining power to buy 2 attacks on Neoma, but only one of them injured the Moonhound. As Gulgata cut across her left snout, Neoma cried out in pain; taking 8 damage to spiral 2.
Hexeris took command of Kuros and tried to have him throw Lumi into Neoma. Despite her injuries, the Winter Argus remained spry and managed to pull free of Kuros grip before the Titan could attempt to hurl her at the Moonhound. Her luck wouldn't last long though. Hexeris forced Kuros to attack her with his War Gauntlets and the Titan pummeled Lumi into the nearby rubble pile; killing her with 11 damage to spiral 2.
Theran steadied his Heavy Reiver to aim at Neoma next. His errant shot only served to shower the rubble pile between them with needles clanging against the rocks. With Salaic now positioned to control the area around the rubble pile, Skorne's lead nearly doubled.
Circle 2 - Skorne 5
Kaya leeched what fury she could from her beasts and connected with the Spirit Bond she shared with Aquila to replenish her power. She maintained the synergy between her beasts with a portion of it before focusing all of her attention on Deveaux.
Wanting to clear Remus' path to the rear of Hexeris' battlegroup, the blackclad targeted the lone Gatorman and expended all of her remaining power to boost multiple attacks against him. Deveaux managed to Tough out what would have been the killing blow before Kaya's final strike found the blade of Mistral driven into the back of his skull as he lay prostrate at her feet. Kaya then repositioned to the safety at the rear pond; out of range of any of Hexeris' army.
Remus warped "Strength" and launched an assault charge into the rear of the Beast Handlers. Letting loose a Death Howl, the Pureblood discharged a sonic wave of suffering that tore through the assembled Skorne and even caught Hexeris at the end. Kuros survived the attack unscathed, but the 2 Beast Handlers were killed outright. As Dom and Salaic fell dead, Rabar took control of the remaining Paingivers at the rear of the rubble pile. Hexeris was hit for 6 damage at dice -2; which he channeled through to Theran, who suffered the blow to spiral 1. Remus followed up with a devastating rake of his claw to the only other Beast Handler in range. The ferocity of the attack was more than Sorgha could withstand. He lay slain at the feet of the Warpwolf as blood dripped from his claws.
Kaya then forced Neoma to move up to attack Hexeris; boosting her chances to hit and damage. The first bite hit the Lord Tyrant for 10 damage as the Moonhound's teeth sunk into his side. Again, he spent a measure of his power to transfer the wound to his Cyclops Raider. The tears in Hexeris' flesh began to close up instantly as Theran fell to a knee; his body crippled as he suffered the 10 damage to spiral 3. Neoma's second bite tore at Hexeris right leg; hitting him for 5 damage, which he accepted - savoring the pain as exhilarating as if it were a drug.
In the end, the mental game came into play more than anything. She had enjoyed such a long domination of my Skorne & Cryx with a very strong Circle list that when I finally figured out a way to capitalize on my "weaker" Skorne list, it made her second guess herself; a lesson she learned the hard way, but definitely learned and made me pay for in our next play.
Comments
Post a Comment