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Surprise, surprise. I lost a game at Gencon.

Soliok and I got into a game Friday night in the Wabash hall. The terrain
was typical Steamroller set pieces, with mirrored hills and forests.

Faction: Protectorate
Points: 496
Model Count: 30
Victory Points: 19

Feora, Priestess of the Flame
Devout
Avatar of Menoth
Choir of Menoth [6] (2 added)
Holy Zealots [9] (3 added)
Monolith Bearer [1]
Temple Flameguard [9] (3 added)
Temple Flameguard Officer and Standard Bearer [2]

Faction: Legion of Everblight
Points: 499
Model Count: 21
Victory Points: 15

Thagrosh, Prophet of Everblight
Shredder
Shredder
Nephilim Soldier
Carnivean
Incubi
Blighted Swordsmen [10] (4 added)
Totem Hunter

I deploy second, so Soliok deploys densely in the center. I spread out with my
Zealots on the far left, the TFG near the middle to screen my advance, and
everyone else behind them.

Soliok's forces run forward, with his swordsmen up front begging to unleash
the Incubi that aren't on the table yet, along with the Carnivean. Some typical
Thagrosh spells go up, and the Nephilm runs around trying to look threatening.

I try to advance a bit more cautiously. My TFG go into Shieldwall, but not as
far forward as I like. The hill isn't model friendly, so I advance only about 4".
The Zealots advance with the no spells prayer and Feora casts Ignite on the
TFG and keeps her warjacks behind the shieldwall as best she can.

Soliok runs the Swordsman up with the Carnivean close behind. The Totem
Hunter runs and manages to engage my Zealots (I should have played them a bit
further back).

So here's where I screw up.

Instead of just eating the freestrikes and firebombing the Totem Hunter under
Greater Destiny, I try to charge. Yeah. Bad move.

In the middle of the board, the Avatar uses Gaze of Menoth and runs around the TFG
and runs out of movement in between the TFG and swordsmen. Feora walks up and
casts Blazing Effigy. She uses her feat, lighting the rest of the stuff on fire (perhaps I
should have waited for incubi to pop later)

4 Swordsmen die. Soliok has to decide whether or not to unleash the Incubi, and looking
at my Shieldwalled unit and Avatar, he decides to wait.

The Totem Hunter drops the Monolith Bearer and then the unit Priest. The Carnivean and
Swordsmen try to get to work on the Avatar and Spearmen.

The center of the board becomes an entanglement. The TFG maintain shieldwall for as
long as possible, keeping the incubi and swordsmen from pressuring Feora. She puts up
a Wall of Fire on their flank to discourage the units from bypassing the spearmen.

Thagrosh manages to thin the line a bit by casting Mutagenesis into the TFG, and
then kills another model with his spear to create a damaging Ash Cloud.

As Thagrosh and the Carnivean advance, Soliok strings along a series of bad rolls trying
to kill his own weakened heavy. The plan is to use Dark Revival to try to engage Feora.

Instead he uses all his fury only to kill the Carnivean near the end with dragon breath.

By this time I only have the Devout and Feora active. The choir blocks charge lanes
from the totem hunter and Nephilm. She upkeeps Ignite on herself (recast earlier) and
sits on five focus. She eats a single nasty freestrike from a revived Carnivean, leaving
her with five damage boxes. Thagrosh has three fury. I can't afford to boost my attack
rolls, and he has Tenacity on himself.

Of the 5 attacks with Truth and Consequences with Engines of Destruction up, only two
or three land. Then Carnivean eats her.

Fire ensues, game over, ttyl.

Not knowing anything about warmachine and only having recently delved into hordes I can't really comment on any of your apparent "tactical" blunders.

Thagrosh is cool though

Thanks for the report.

I missed killing that stupid Carnivean of mine at least three times, and I think each time I was rolling damage one point shy of success.

That list I played was pretty mediocre from a tactical standpoint, but it contained the model choices I enjoy playing with on the field. I wanted my first game with the elusive Felix to be an enjoyable affair, not an Ivan Drago 'I must break you!' kind of match.

Maybe next time.

I played against Thagrosh yesterday my Exemplar Errant pounded him after he Mutagenesised into the middle. I used Bond of Life to avoid the Dust Cloud heh heh heh.

Yeah, that sounds like a bad idea for him to try, Llamahead. Your friend will
probably know better next time.

I know sad that, he didn't realise the Exemplar Errant were a combat unit and presumed they were just shooters and vulnerable to HtH