Once again I'm facing the Skaven in a good old fashioned grudge match! After our
first battle, the Skaven player vowed revenge against the zombie horde. A special Clan Pestilens envoy, Pusstle Pitraf, struck out to succeed where his clearly incompetent counterpart Engineer Scabnose had failed.
I stuck with my previous list, wanting to see what it could do against a frenzied horde of diseased rats!
Lets get to the fighting!
Table setup:
The terrain we had were some of our newly acquired Mordheim buildings along with a graveyard
(ofcourse!). Terrain was scattered as normal. It's a nice upgrade in terms of looks to our old table, having found a nice thin green blanket to act as our base. The Mordheim buildings were built just before the fight to add abit more flare to the scenery.
Our lovely gaming table
Deployment:
Undead won the roll for deployment
(third time in a row ^__^) and chose the side with the monument. Zombie squads set up on either side of the monument, two of them on the right side, with corpse carts behind the zombies for support. The necromancers split up and each followed a corpse cart. Skaven deployed mostly in the center with the plague monks and clanrats close together. The rat swarms were deployed just infront of the graveyard. Skaven player finished deploying first and won the roll for going first
(and again the Undead went second...I'm seeing a pattern here).
Battle lines drawn
Skaven 1
The foul plague monks surge forward, their malodorous leader shrieking commands to the Clanrat unit to follow. Swarms of rats surged in amongst the disturbed graves on the right flank.
Skaven turn ends
Undead 1
The undead plod onwards, the zombie units flowing around a monument, the reason for its existence dead with the inhabitants of the town. Corpse carts trundled forward, covering behind the zombies. The Necromancers splitting into different directions. Dark magic flowed into the necromancers. Barlag swept his hand up, the ground infront of him shuddering as dead hands clawed their way up from the soil. Seven zombies were added to the unit on the left. Rothhurgur called out to the dead just beyond the house on his right, but the Skaven Plague Priests gibbering prayers blocked any summon. Furious by this denial Rothhurgur raised his staff and incandescent energies flickered around its haft, which again were blocked by devoted Skaven counter spells.
Undead turn ends.
End of turn 1
Skaven 2
As if guided by some malign intelligence, a swarm of rats sped out of the graveyard and into the zombies on the right. Ferociously gnawing at rotten limbs, rat fought zombie in ponderous melee. Zombies won the combat but the rats, being unbreakable, held their ground. The plague monks and clanrats realigned themselves, letting the zombies get closer.
Undead 2
The zombies moved with more vigor now, their dead jaws snapping at the prospect of feasting on warm ratman flesh. The necromancers barely containing the hungering undead in their ranks. Two units of zombies swept past the monument, corpse cart rolling up behind the two blocks. Barlag sprinted from the left zombie unit into cover behind the center zombie squad. A massive pulse of dark magic was released raising 10 zombies into the right unit facing the frenzied plague monks. Rothhurgur gibbered dark spells raising a new unit of five zombies on the plague monk right flank. Combat with the rat swarm continues. The rats gnawed apart tendons, toppling zombies with frightening speed though the brainless undead creatures had started to eat and crush the rats as they gnawed them. Combat was at a standstill, 2 wounds caused on the rat swarm and five zombies gnawed apart.
Undead turn ends.
End of turn 2. At this point the BEAST, THE BRINGER OF END TIMES appeared and terrorized the battlefield for a moment before being lovingly carried away. Yes, we do have a naked pink cat ^^
Skaven 3
A shrieking warcry sends the frenzied unit of plague monks along with the clanrats, crashing into the undead battle line. Plague Priest Pusstle sharply inhales, preparing to send a foul cloud of devouring plague over the zombies. He draws magic into himself, but the presence of so much dark magic makes him falter in his incantations. Rothhurgur seizes the oppertunity and leeches the power from the plague priest and with a triumphant scream manages to raise seven zombies behind the clanrat unit. The nearby ratling gun sends streams of metal death scything into the zombies killing them all. In close combat the undead strike with frightening speed, being affected by the foul miasma from the corpse carts. The plague monks supernatural resilience and the clanrats superior armor wards off all of the undead attacks. The zombies suffer horrible casualties in return. Six zombies are cut apart in the center, and nine zombies fall to the relentless plague monk assault. Three more zombies are eaten by the rat swarms on the left who in return suffer another wound.
Skaven turn ends.
Skaven turn 3. Ferocious melee breaks out in the center.
Undead 3
A gutteral groan signals the charge of the zombies into the plague monk flank. The corpse carts move up to support multiple undead units as the necromancers group up at the base of the monument. The corpse cart on the left aligns itself for a charge at the clanrat unit next turn. Seven zombies are summoned behind the clanrats, aligned to charge either the ratling gun or the clanrats next turn. A further seven zombies are summoned into the center unit though all other magic is dispelled. Close combat is short and brutal. Two more zombies die to the rat swarms on the left though they finally manage to disperse one of the rat swarms. In the center four zombies are cut apart, taking with them a single clanrat. The plague monks are dervishes of destruction, their frothing frenzy overpowering the zombies. The flanking zombie unit is wiped out with a total of 12 casualties in the right zombie unit though one plague monk is pulled apart in the frenzied melee.
Undead turn ends.
Undead turn 3. Undead suffer heavy losses
Skaven 4
The skaven ratling gun revs up and cuts apart four of the zombies heading for the rear of the clanrat unit. Close combat sees the destruction of the zombie unit facing the plague monks, the monks taking a single casualty in return. The rat swarms account for themselves by ripping apart two more zombies, though the swarm receives a wound in return. Center combat is a stalemate.
Skaven turn ends.
Skaven turn 4. Zombies are destroyed.
Undead 4
A groan of rotting wood and rusty metal heralds the corpse cart charge into the clanrat unit along with the remnants of the rear zombie unit. The Undead magic phase sees alot of summoning occurring, with zombies being added to all combats and a new unit of zombies summoned infront of the plague monks. Close combat on the left flank sees more zombies gnawed clean through and the rat swarm taking another wound. Center combat is decisive with the clanrats losing against the overwhelming numbers of zombies and the oppressive presence of the corpse cart. The clanrats flee and get mowed down by the corpse cart.
Undead turn ends.
Undead turn 4. Corpse cart wipes out the clanrat unit as it flees. Zombies summoned infront of plague monks.
Skaven 5
The plague monks charge the freshly summoned zombie unit, their blades sticky with gore from their previous combat. The ratling gun prepares to fire point blank into the corpse cart but jams as the ammo feeder eagerly loads more ammunition than the gun can handle. Close combat is decisive. The plague monks punch through the newly summoned undead unit and overrun into the corpse cart. The rat swarm takes down two zombies but receives two wounds in return. The game hangs in the balance.
Skaven turn ends.
Undead 5
The undead forces reform and prepare to swarm the plague monks. The corpse cart, having overrun last turn swings around readying a charge into the rear of the plague monks along with the remaining zombies from the rear combat with the clanrats. The center zombie unit turns to face the plague monks. Magic phase sees more zombies being added; 6 to the center unit and 5 to the small unit preparing a rear charge. The close combat phase begins with the rat swarm being finally taken down after four turns of fighting, though the rats take down one last zombie. Amazingly enough the plague monks manage just one wound one the corpse cart, its armor and regeneration proving a tough nut to crack for the frenzied plague vermin. In return the corpse cart adds another corpse to its pile by skewering a plague monk.
Undead turn ends.
End of turn 5. Plague monks have charged a corpse cart (the
hilarious Result of their attacks on it from their turn...no wonder it survived ^^) . Undead army wheels around to surround the plague monks.
Skaven 6
The ratling gun takes careful aim at the zombie unit preparing a rear charge and whittles their numbers down to 2 from 7. The plague monks, further enraged by the resilience of the corpse cart clamber onto it and strike at the driver. The cart collapses into a smouldering heap as the plague monks triumph over the foul undead construct.
Skaven turn ends.
Undead 6
The center zombie unit, the now small rear charging zombie unit along with a corpse cart all charge the plague monks. Zombies are summoned into the rear and center units. Rothhurgur pops out of cover and sends a fiery skull shrieking towards the ratling gun team. The gunner catches fire and is thrown into the ammo feeder. The entire apparatus then explodes in a brilliant fireball as the most brutal close combat of the game ensues. The plague monks shrugging off all the attacks from the zombies and corpse cart. In return they dominate the combat destroying every single undead that attacked them due to attacks and combat resolution. Over thirty zombies are hacked apart along with the last corpse cart.
At the end of it, the plague monks are left facing the last unit of zombies. Dark magic is poured into the zombie unit, the necromancers frantically attempting to strengthen their undead minions before the inevitable charge.
Turn 6 signals end of game.
Situation at the end of the game.
Result:
Draw!
After action report:
That was a crazy game. I thought my zombies performed admirably given the circumstances, but those plague monks...oh those plague monks. Facing a T4, frenzied monk with 3 attacks led by a plague priest is propably the hardest unit my zombies have ever attempted to tackle. Can't say I didn't try, but those rats just shrugged it all off and kept coming.
Ofcourse we tried to play the next few turns, it just ended up being a chase with my necromancers summoning new units and the plague monks destroying them. I made plenty of mistakes, leaving that ratling gun for so so long, not devoting more attention to the rat swarm holding up one of my units, not charging in with the corpse carts sooner, failing to effectively surround the skaven units etc. A few rule questions came up during our game Like, if I charge with five zombies into a flank who are subsequently killed in melee does the opponent still not get his rank bonus since ranks are taken as they were at the beginning of the combat,
(i.e. negated). Also, can you add up the unit strength of units attacking a particular flank, so say a corpse cart and four zombies would make a US 7 unit? Stuff like this came up, but we just kept going and tried to not let it slow down the game.
I learned alot from this game. I need to act faster and be more aggressive in my summoning and to focus IoN on units that require it. I learnt how much of a combat monster the corpse cart is
(just refusing to die vs. those plague monks for an entire turn despite multiple wounding hits and CR wounds!).
I'm looking forward to my ogre rematch and to see if I can also manage a draw against them. If I manage that I'll be a happy ghoul ^^
Hats
(and heads) off to my lovely opponent who has just posted more detailed pictures of her Skaven
here!
Skaven came back with a vengeance and showed how tough the ratmen can be. I wonder if my zombies can feast on ogre meat next? Stay tuned.
p.s.
Sorry for my tense-dancing in the writeup, the result of writing this over too many sessions =p
Suffused with the dying memories of Sanguinus, the warriors of the Death Company seek only one thing: death in battle fighting against the enemies of the Emperor. 
"William Adama, Battlestar Galactica
3rd 40k Army