OAAH Mars - again, same, but added dimension

Racking it up.  First, I decided to go from last weeks just over 2,000 points to 3,000.

So this was my first "mundane" take on the extra:

Euxinus Lacus

Last weeks total 2,026

Add another Medium cavaly. 531

Double Guild Spear and Crossbow 504

3,061

Herculis 

Last weeks total 2,051

add another Swords cavalry 426

Double borderers 344

Another 5 crossbow 190

3,011

All I really gain is more stuff and less room, possibly longer game. 

Here is my updated list using some of my not-quite-finished bits:

Euxinus Lacus 
 General. 3 3 6 Mounted, Fast, Extra lives3. 000 119

Medium 4 3 5 Mounted, Fast, Shoot1, extra lives2.1 units of 8 = 531.

00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00

Lancer 4 3 6 Fast, Mounted, Fast, Devastating charge, extra lives2. 6 = 408

00 00 00 00 00 00

Guild Pike 5 2 5 pikes slow steadfast drilled 16 x 29 = 464

Guild Crossbow 5 1 5 Shoot 2, Drilled 8 x 30 = 240 (undrilled was 28)

Guild Spear 4 2 6 Drilled , Shieldwall 8 x 37 = 296

Shieldwall morale, +1Defence.

New- 

6 Guild masters Cavalry 4 3 6 Fast, Mounted, Fast, Resilient Extra lives2. 6 = 438

00 00 00 00 00 00 Resilient 5,6 save.

Total 2,026

Guild masters 438

Guild Spear + Crossbow 568

3,032

Herculis 
General. 3 4 6 Mounted, Fast, Extra lives3. 000 125

Swords. Cav. 4 3 5 Mounted, Fast, Drilled, Devastating charge, Extra lives2.  1 units of 6 = 426

00 00 00 00 00 00

Lancers 4 4 6 Mounted, Fast, Drilled, Devastating charge, Extra lives2. 6 x 47 = 474

00 00 00 00 00 00

Borderers 4 2 5 Shoot1, Devastating charge, 8 x 43 = 344

Heavy Infantry 4 2 6 Slow (-1 scouting) Elan (1^st turn +1 activation) 8 x 40 = 320

Crossbow 4 1 5 Shoot2 3 (7) x 38 = 114

Dragonkind 3 6 8 Giant3, Devastating charge, Trample, Tough, Extra lives 4 248

00 00

New

Field Artillery 4 1 6 Artillery 2 Resilient, Slow. 55

2 White Apes 4 5 6 Giant L3, Extra lives 3, Fear, Resilient 258

Beast Lord 3 1 5 Spell caster, Alter terrain, Curse, Frenzy 72

Alter terrain 1,2,3 (last per) unoccupied, clear to rough, bridge or ford, road, hill into diff type.

Curse 2 actions, 1 use, any range, target -1 A or D end of game.

Frenzy 2 actions, 1 use, any range, target +1 activation & reaction per game.

Magician Flyer 3 1 5 Airship, Fast Spellcaster Lightning bolt, Rain arrows, Eagles eyes, 76

Lightning bolt, 1,2,3 actions, 1D per action special damage, 1 area, 1 only on unit, but reroll on any extra lives personality.

Rain arrows, 2 0or 3 actions, 1D per action used. Hit at +1. 1’s rerolled.

Eagles eyes, 3 actions, +1 next shooting no range restriction.

Grenadier Flyer 3 2 5 Shoot0, Fast, Airship, Grenades 5,6

Grenades 1 use, hit on a 4, ignore resilient & tough. Against fort hit 5,6.

Scout Flyer 3 2 6 Scout, Fast, Shoot1, Skirmisher. Airship, 74

Scouts 3 3 6 Scout, Fast, Savage 210

Savage at end of melee count as I extra hit.

New total 2,852

Plus 4 crossbow @ 159 = 3,011

NB:  I cocked up the Airships which should have flying (!) Resilient and at least 2 extra lives.  Just goes to show- I blame the tories and brexit for distracting me.

The Game I took the easy side leaving Tony to struggle with all the fiddly bits.  Hah.  Despite having all the extras (scouts, flying units) he lost the scouting.  So his scouts stayed back and I had the initiative. 

Pikes on the road!  Come 'n get some!

Oh goody, artillery-.  These are most effective blocks as they always cause disorder.  And the Dragonkind.  Note new Guild masters heavy cavalry.

There's a big gap no-one wants to go into.

We were getting to stalemate so I charged my heavies at his lancers.

Equal casualties so 'go back as I'd charged.

That gave his artillery crew the opportunity to crank that handle, which hurt.

There's an awful lot there--.

Tony tries his luck with a great white ape.  We keep forgetting that you can activate 2 units in the same area at the same time.  There's no rules for this, so you could either do as individuals then divvy up the combat or move both on one dice roll using the Q of the lowest unit.  This might have made a difference.  We roll Fear on charge as well as when attacked.  This is based on troops responses to elephants.  They are more likely to be charged than charging.

In this case they came in individually.  First one dies.

The Dragonkind goes in, but both are hard and there's just one casualty each.  My cavalry are the defenders so get shoved back.

My remaining heavy is pincushioned by the flyers.

Now the Dragonkind goes after my borderers while the other ape does much better against the cavalry and push them back, blooded.

I now have a line, but it's all the way back there.

My crossbow advance to engage the flyers.

I'm trying to get my spear up to shield the flank of the pike.

The ape crashes into the flank of my spear, who just manage to make a shieldwall.  But they lose and go back.

The lancers charge the artillery which does well but still gets trampled.

I wanted this scout flyer to look like one of those banged-up old vans permanently needing body work.

I need to work out the equivalent of "Trotters Independent Trading" on the side.  Cushty.

It lays some ineffectual fire on me lancers then zooms off.

Pikes go off-road, but my General looks awfully exposed-.

The other unit of spear advance on the ape.  They pass the fear test.  As they are not receiving they cannot claim shieldwall.

I win this one and the beasty is deaded.

NOW they come together.

Meanstwhile, my lancers are disorganised having been hit by artillery.  That gives the heavies the opportunity to move in.  Amazingly, I win!

The survivors retreat to support the crossbow.

The Dragonkind now crashes into the end spear unit.  The casualties (all mine fight) are equal and it dies or I would have gone back.

My crossbow advance on the fliers and bring the magician down, taking ineffectual shooting in return.

Not it's all-in.  The crossbows try my weakened spear but get repulsed by heavy casualties.

The scouts leap on my General!  But he rolls well and they go down.

Note- the General rolls 3 dice for being a General and 2 for being cavalry.  If the white (Generals) dice roll 5 or less - he's in stook.  The small dice represents his lost life.

Form a line and advance!

Tony decides to do the historically correct-but-mad thing and charge his cavalry into my pike!  They die.  Note that they are being led by my new Prince & pet.

That ended game 1.  I'd done surprisingly well.  The "extras" can be fun but are usually more expensive than their mundane cousins.  it's all about balance.

Game 2, our usual swapsies.  I used the fortress as a terrain piece & didn't occupy it.  I thought I'd put all my exotics in one place- and on the road.

Cuddling the fort.

Tony is going for solid blocks rather than flank protection for the pike.

But that does look like a solid force, doesn't it?

Cavalry up!

My lancers strike his cavalry and get wiped out!

Tony's lancer strike at one ape and my artillery, killing the ape but only 2 get away.

Solid clumps advancing!  The dice doesn't show up, but the Beastmaster turns the ground in front of them to rough for a total of 4 turns.

The other ape goes down trying to destroy the remnant of his cavalry.

I get lucky!  The pike crash into my artillery and Dragonkind.  But on a reaction my borderers swarm into them, shooting as they come.  That was - messy.  I lose my artillery.

Disorganised from being pushed back AND being shot at by artillery, the pikes are swamped by my borderers.  But they take them with them.

Spear take to the road to avoid the rough ground.

They engage my beastmaster and the Dragonkind.  4 and 12 respectively.

Beastmaster dies taking one with her (The brutes!) But the Dragonkind flings them back.  The winners needn't go back but it makes sense that they would as the unit as a whole lost more than inflicted.

Crossbow catch the flyer, bringing it down, getting 1 casualty in return.  There's no hard & fast rule, but we take a crash to be 1 area ahead in line of flight.

We ended it there as I had the advantage in remaining troops.

As mentioned above, the "extras" tend to cost more and be less cost effective, if more fun, than their mundane cousins.  Air or giant power was not decisive.  However, the giants, artillery and grenades were all potentially effective against the fort.  More on that point a bit later on when I've stuck some MDF together--.