So I have found myself with a Khador army after a sale at my store, and I quite like the
PP way of doing things in regards to background and what not. But I provided a more concise summary at the bottom of the battle report in case you just want to know who won/my writing is that bad (which it probably is, but I'll gradually improve). I have tried to use art found through googling etc to break up the wall o text a bit, but I haven't had that much luck. Do be aware that none of this work is mine, and if you think that I should I can reference it at the end or something. So yeah, try and enjoy.
Kommandant Gurvaldt Irusk waited by the campfire for the morning's battle. The druid had finally been brought to heel at the outskirts of a forest amid the rubble of a ruined village. The sole Ironfang Uhlan accompanying the force had been despatched for reinforcements, in case the druids had more forces prepared than expected.
Irusk watched Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich inspiring the Winterguard Infantry around a nearby fire, their young eyes shining with patriotic fervour as they gazed upon this hero of the Motherland. He turned his head to the other unit under his command for this hunt, a unit of Ironfang Pikemen with one of their grizzled Kovniks. They were silently preparing for the fight to come, and Irusk had full faith in their ability to either deliver the killing blow, or to hold the line and take not one step backwards. Faint footsteps approached behind him, "Well Seeker," asked Irusk, "You'll be earning your keep in just an hour or two. Do not fail your contract." Sylys nodded, coming to sit by the fire with the Kommandant. "With only one warjack, can we truly hope to overcome the foe?" asked the Iosian. "Of course," replied Irusk, "The destruction the enemy wrought showed no evidence of the werebeasts which the druids so often bring into battle with them, and after all, one warjack is worth a thousand men. But enough talk elf, now to war." Standing up, Irusk ordered his men to form up for battle as the sun rose over the horizon. His veteran eye spied several units of constructs flanking the enemy, and some individual soldiers moving around as well. Then from the trees a giant construct emerged. Irusk's heart beat a little faster at the sight, his breath catching for an instant before recovering and directing his men forwards. No matter the opposition, they were trespassers on the Motherland's soil, and had murdered several of her citizens, and as such deserved no other fate but death. The coming battle would be decided by who held two key pieces of in the village, but Irusk knew there were also other objectives which he needed to either defend, or deny to the enemy.
Irusk watched as the young men and women of the Winterguard Infantry ran up on the left flank, spreading out under the watchful eye of their officer and Kovnik, who was regaling them with tales of their forefathers courage. The Ironfangs did the same on the right flank, their orders communicated swiftly and efficiently along their fighting line. Irusk watched felt a swell of pride at this sight, before summoning his magical might and instilling his warjack with power beyond its usual level, exhorting it to move faster and to strike harder. He then charged at a distant figure, before cloaking the Winterguard Infantry in a protective spell. The mercenary seeker followed him, preparing his own arcane wisdom for the battle. As the Khadoran forces advanced, the enemy began to close, the smaller constructs advancing on the flanks before one of these units was obscured by a fast growing forest, and the rest of the enemy advance into the centre, the ground shaking beneath the tread of the massive stone and timber construct.
The Winterguard Infantry Officer shouts at her troops to advance in an evasive pattern, the protective aura remaining about them. Blunderbusses roaring, six of the infantry fired into one of the glowing stones advancing before the enemy, several shots flying wide but some slammed home causing large cracks to erupt across its surface. In response to this assault, the small enemy constructs concentrated their magical might and punched a thin beam through the forehead of the forward most Winterguard, killing him instantly. Raising his arm Irusk signalled the Ironfang Pikemen forwards. Locking shields, these brave soldiers advanced to take one of the important zones. Before they could act further however, a druid darted out to their flank and before Irusk could direct his warjack towards them or react in any way, four of them were crushed by an eruption of stone from the tip of his staff, their armour no match for the elemental assault. Simultaneously, the last three of the front line were hit by bright green beams which punched clean through their shields and armour plates, killing them where they stood. Before the second line of pikemen could react, a carrion bird dived from the sky to maul the face of the Ironfang bearing the standard. As he swatted at his winged attacker, a blade whispered through the air beside him, decapitating the unit's officer. In heartbeats the rest of the unit was but a red ruin, and all that remained standing was a gaunt, horned man who seemed to melt back into the dawn shadows after his butchery was complete. Shocked by the destruction of his men, the Kovnik took up a position in the forest near the clearing which had seen the ruin of his troops. Irusk shook his head at the death of so many true patriots, determined to avenge their deaths. Ducking low he advanced to a low wall beside a key battlefield position which he knew he had to defend, his hands running over Onslaught in smooth, practised motions, preparing both chambers to fire. The Juggernaut crossed the wall to stand before him, its cortex following its master closer to the fray, metal digits flexing on the grip of its Executioner Axe.
A thump and a foreign curse beside him let Irusk know that Sylys had made it safely to the cover of wall as well, the speed of his feet no doubt hastened by his witnessing the demise of the Ironfang Pikemen. Opposite the Winterguard Infantry, the large enemy construct advanced relentlessly, its eyes blazing with power and hate. A fell glow appeared over its form, and a powerful arcane blast hammered into the Winterguard formation, utterly destroying one of the young soldiers. The glow continued to play over the monstrosities form, swelling and bulging like a second skin. Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich redoubled his exhortations, distracting the Winterguard Infantry from the fate of their countrymen with more tales of their ancestors as the small constructs opposite them were again shrouded by a newly emerging forest.
Quoting from his work "How to fully subjugate your enemies" at the top of his lungs, using his arcane powers to ensure every loyal child of Khador on the field heard his words, he rose from behind the wall, armour shining in the reflected glow of his warjack's boiler fire. Raising Onslaught, he fired at the monstrous apparition which had killed the Ironfang Pikeman unit, his round taking it through the chest and killing it in an instant. A grim smile played across his lips at this revenge, which was completed when he saw the Ironfang Kovnik charge into the open and bury his axe in the chest of the elemental druid who had contributed to the death of his men. He saw old Jozef roar his encouragement at his troops, who advanced and took careful aim at the small constructs in front of them. In a hail of fire, two of them were destroyed. A hail of blunderbuss fire bounced off the back of the large construct however, failing to damage it. Irusk reached out to the cortex of his Juggernaut, sending it barrelling into the seemingly indestructible monster. With axe and fist the Juggernaut hammered into the construct, ropes parting and runed stone shattering under the strength of the blows, yet when it paused for further command the enemy still stood.
In response to this vicious assault, the runes on the construct glowed bright, the ground heaving around it in response to this geomancy. It then began slamming its stone fists into his warjack, denting its carapace in several places before tearing its left arm off, oil spurting from the badly damaged warjack. A bright green flash to Irusk's right signalled the demise of the Ironfang Kovnik. There would be no Black Dragons returning after this battle. To his left a similar green bolt slammed into a Winterguard soldier, who picked himself up off the ground, his blood mixing into the red of his uniform. An eruption of stone in the middle of their formation knocked three more guardsmen to their feet, but these men did not rise. Distant movement then caught Irusk's eye, a large man with a huge stone sword slung over his shoulder. His voice echoed in the distance, and the ground around him burst into movement.
Irusk knew that travelling through that mess would cost his troops valuable time, but he also knew that the battle hang on a knife's edge, and there was no way to go but forwards.
Summoning his arcane power, Irusk caused a red mist to descend over the remaining Winterguard Infantry, who were further roused by their senior Kovnik. With a roar they clambered over the broken terrain, some reaching the enemy construct and hacking at the thick ropes holding its limbs in place.
Others stumbled and fell before they reached their target, stranded in the middle of the broken field. The officer charged into the cracked stone in front of her, shattering it with a single axe blow, a burst of green energy erupting from the ruined stone. Irusk then urged his damaged warjack to destroy the now staggering giant construct. With two blows the Juggernaut shattered the heart of the fell beast, whatever force animating it fleeing into the earth from whence it had came.
Irusk cursed as he ducked below the wall, green beams splashing off its solid surface from his right. He cursed again as he saw the remaining Winterguard Infantry destroyed by the foe, bursts of rock and green beams cutting them down where they stood. When the enemy's assault had finished, all that was left was the officer who had hung back to destroy the stone, the shock on her face evident even from this distance. A sudden pain shot through his mind, the pain of his mental link with the cortex of his Juggernaut being severed. Rising to his feet, Irusk winced as he saw the enemy druid who was orchestrating the whole force dismember his faithful Juggernaut with a giant stone blade. As he finished this, a blast from the officer's blunderbuss hammered into the warlock's shoulder, drawing blood. The officer was immediately killed by the small enemy constructs who had wreaked such havoc so far. Hearing the seeker muttering behind him, Irusk turned to face the constructs who had killed the Ironfangs and their Kovnik, calling down an explosion of magical force on them. It slammed down immediately in front of them, and with a glare at the Iosan who had the good graces to look embarrassed, he tried again. He saw several of the constructs fall to this blast, and he took another down with the cannon attached to Onslaught before ducking back behind cover. A loud crack heralded the destruction of the last construct he had been attacking, Kovnik Jozef Grigorovich striding closer to the swirling melee, his handcannon smoking.
His troops dead, his warjack a pile of smouldering metal, Gurvaldt Irusk found himself briefly contemplating the horror of failing his motherland. His distraction nearly cost him his life, the ground beneath him erupting in great spikes, punching deep into his thigh, clean through his power field and warcaster armour. As the spikes withdrew covered in blood, his remaining good leg failed him, and Irusk fell to the ground, only to be engulfed in another elemental blast, this one crushing his shoulder. He felt something break under the crushing force, and his vision began to blur at the edges. Through this he saw Jozef fire his handcannon at the enemy warlock, punching the round into his stomach. Knowing that this was his last chance, he forced himself to his feet with Onslaught, digging its tip into the earth and levering himself to his feet. Summoning a powerful blast of energy normally reserved for dealing with enemy warjacks from his fingers, he threw it at the enemy warlock, knowing that with him eliminated, the enemy's nerve would break like water upon rock. The arcane blast slammed into the man's chest, and he went down in a bloody heap. The stones which had been following the enemy throughout the battle immediately began to glow, and the remaining enemy troops disappeared in a blaze of green light, taking with them all their dead. Even the shattered constructs were removed, leaving fresh green grass where they had fallen.
With a gasp, Irusk forced himself to stand as Jozef approached. The old Winterguardsman's face was harder than normal, the loss of so many soldiers weighing heavily on his old heart as it always did after a bloody battle like this. Lending his shoulder to the wounded warcaster, the scarred Kovnik was not surprised to see his help rejected. Slowly at first, but with a gradual increase in speed as his magic began to ease, or at least mask, his wounds, Irusk and the survivors of the battle headed in the direction of their approaching reinforcements, who could be seen cresting the distant hills. They would bury their dead and return the valuable parts of the warjack to one of the great foundries. And as they limped into the low hills, Irusk thought of the losses that they had suffered, regret touching his heart as they disappeared into the cold hills to meet the rest of his forces.
Pre-game
I deployed the Winterguard Infantry with
UA on the left along with Jozef, the Ironfang Pikemen on the right with their Kovnik, and Sylys, the Juggernaut and Irusk centrally.
My opponent deployed Baldur, Megalith, the Lord of the Feast and his shifting stones centrally, his woldstalkers on the flanks, and the Blackclad Wayfarer on my right.
My Turn 1
My Winterguard Infantry with
UA ran on the left, spreading out in my zone, the Ironfang Pikemen ran up on the right and maintained formation. The Kovniks of these units followed them up, Jozef making the Winterguard Tough and Fearless. Irusk cast Superiority on the Juggernaut, charged a woldstalker and cast IF on the Winterguard Infantry. The Juggernaut ran up centrally, as did Sylys.
His Turn 1
He shifted his stones forwards, running Megalith and the Lord of the Feast besides the stones. The woldstalkers advanced on each flank, Baldur pops a forest on the unit on my left, and casts solid ground before advancing.
My Turn 2
My Winterguard Infantry with
UA Bob and Weave, advance,
CRA into the foremost stone and do 4 damage. Joe makes them tough again. Sylys, Irusk and Juggernaut advance to a wall beside my objective, with Juggernaut just passing it, IF and Superiority were upkept. Ironfangs get ordered to shield march and advance into the enemy zone, forming two lines. The Ironfang Kovnik advances behind them, toeing into a forest.
His Turn 2
The Wayfarer advances and sprays, killing 4 of the Ironfangs. I start thinking that maybe I should have feated. The Woldstalkers kill 3 more Ironfangs. Now I really think that I should have feated. The Lord of the Feast kills the remaining 5. Wow, I probably should have feated, hey? Megalith advances and casts 2 spells, 1 AOE which kills 1 winterguard, and stoneskin. The Woldstalkers opposite the Winterguard kill 1. Baldur upkeeps solid ground and recasts his forest spell, advancing as well.
My Turn 3
Irusk activate, pops feat and shoots the Lord of the Feast, killing him. The Ironfang Kovnik charges and kills the wayfarer. Jozef gives the Winterguard Infantry boosted attack rolls, and they then kill 2 of the woldstalkers opposite them, and fail to hurt megalith at dice-3. The Juggernaut then charges Megalith and does significant damage.
His Turn 3
Megalith does a spell which slows people down and creates some rough terrain, then hits my Juggernaut for 4 damage to 6, 11 damage to 2, and 5 damage to 6, knocking out the open fist. The woldstalkers kill the Ironfang Kovnik but miss Irusk because they were out of range. The woldstalkers damage a winterguard but he toughs on a 4+, the stonekeeper kills 3 Winterguard infantry with his AOE, and then Baldur advances and feats.
My Turn 4
Jozef gives Bear Strength to the Winterguard Infantry, before Irusk puts Blood Lust on them as well. They then mostly charged Megalith, with the officer charging the damaged stone which was nearby. Lots of them didn't make it, but enough did to put 4 damage on Megalith, and the officer killed the damaged stone. The Juggernaut then kills Megalith, Baldur reaving until he was full.
His Turn 4
Between the Stonekeeper and woldstalkers, Stonekeeper he kills a whole bunch of Winterguard Infantry until only the officer remains. Baldur then charges and destroys the Juggernaut. The woldstalkers miss Irusk again.
My Turn 5
The Winterguard Infantry Officer shoots Baldur for 5 damage with a boosted to hit from Jozef. Jozef then shoots and kills a woldstalker opposite Irusk, before Sylys Arcane Secrets Irusk who tries to Airburst the woldstalkers opposite him, which missed. He cast it again, killing three of the woldstalkers. He then shoots the last one to death.
His Turn 5
Baldur casts Earth Spikes at Irusk for 4 damage, knocking him down. The stonekeeper moves in front of Baldur and does 3 damage to the knocked down Irusk, while the remaining woldstalker unit kills the winterguard officer. The controller of the other woldstalker unit also moves in front of Baldur.
My Turn 6
Jozef does some additional damage to Baldur, before Irusk gets Arcane Secrets from Sylys and hits Baldur with a boosted Grind, killing him.
