Introduction
This will be the first of hopefully many battle reports cataloguing a mighty empires campaign.
The first game played was vampire counts VS lizardmen.
Using the rules that were written for the campaign by myself, each army is 1500 pts, and is a fluid list (meaning you can change it from game to game).
Each army has a general that can take part in battles only if the opponents general is within three tiles. Each general is a lord choice character, with set weapons and items. The generals points are not included in the army lists when they are used, so they are essentially free.
When the general takes part in a battle they will earn renown points, which can be spent on a retinue/bodyguard, which is also free, but must be fielded with the general. Or on bonus skills or stats to represent their growth over the course of the campaign.
If the general is slain, (fleeing at the end of the game doesn't count, but will cost you renown points), the player rolls and consults a chart to see if he is injured, or killed.
When a general dies, the army scatters and is no longer able to take part in the games.
And now the first report:
Army Lists
Lizardmen
Saurus oldblood W/ blade of revered tzunki, light armor, shield, carnosaur
Skink chief W/ stegadon war spear, riding on an ancient stegadon
Skink priest Lv2 riding engine of the gods
skink priest lv2, W/ cube of darkness
15 skink skirmishers W/ blowpipes
15 skink skirmishers w/ blowpipes
29 saurus warriors W/ full command.
Vampire Counts
Vampire lord W/ bloodletter blade, crown of damnation, flayed hauberk, lord of the dead, lv 3 magic, master of the black arts, dark acolyte
Vampire W/ dark acolyte, avatar of death, (heavy armor, shield) sword of might, book of arkhan
Vampire W/ dark acolyte, lord of the dead, tomb blade, gem of blood
Necromancer W/ two spells, staff of damnation
20 skeleton warriors, full command
20 skeleton warriors, full command, banner of endless nightmare
20 grave guard W/ full command
Corpse cart W/ lodestone
5 cairn wraiths
Deployment
We played an objective game, the large inn on the west side of the board was the objective.
Vampires deployed first.
The grave guard are in the center.
And the lizard deployment zone.
The Game
TURN 1
The lizardmen took first turn, and moved forwards, while the skinks closest to the inn and saurus moved into its shadow to stay out of the fight until later.
There was no shooting, and in magic a comet was called down.
The vampires moved up, and did a little jockeying as the cairn wraiths slipped through the forest and got in position to attack the oldblood, and skink priest.
The vampire magic phase was dismal... the lord threw four of his six dice away trying to increase the save of the skeletons nearest the inn, all failing despite needing a 3+ every time. He then pulled the army dice and rolled four total in an attempt to raise an undead horde.. which miscast, and ended the phase.
TURN 2
The comet dropped and nearly killed the corpse cart, despite inflicting ten wounds. More importantly it killed the lone necromancer that had the staff of ponage...
The ancient stegadon with the skink chief carged into the skeletons. The rest of the army moved around a little, trying to line up for the next few turns.
Shooting was ineffective, though again there was very little of it.
The stegadon killed a half dozen skeletons, and the chief was challenged to a fight by the vampire. Gailed to wound despite have str 6 on the charge... and was eaten alive for his trouble.
The vampires started off on the offensive. The grave guard charged the engine of the gods, and the skeletons charged the carnosaur. Also the skeletons ran up as close to the skinks as they could.
In magic.... it sucked again. The vampire lord miscast and the skinks got a free comet... the only thing that really worked out was the corpse cart got its miasma off. But with a comet sitting right behind the army... it wasn't looking good.
Combats went okay. The cairn wraith put a wound on the carnosaur, and the old blood fluffed it. The skink priest on the engine of the gods was challenged, and killed, which made the stegadon he was riding become frenzied. But it lost the combat annyway and rolled insane courage.
TURN THREE
The lizardmen didn't do much... magic failed, and the skinks shot the heck out of 6 skeletons. The comet didnt drop... which was unfortunate considering that in the combats the graveguard killed the stegadon. And the skeletons were thrashed around a bit but that was it.
With the vampires turn starting the comet dropped. Killing the corpse cart, and most of the skeletons. The grave guard charged the ancient stegadon and the vampires tried to raise back the skeletons.
After combat the grave guard were left sitting out in the open, and the carnosaur was down to its last wound, but the cairn wraiths were all dead.
TURN 4
The saurus moved up to get into position to fight with the graveguard. And the carnosaur was swung around and brought to the other side of the inn in preparation to throw down with whatever made it past the saurus.
The grave guard charged the saurus.
Not much else happened.
Turn 5
In a bid to keep a unit of twenty plus skeletons off the flank of the saurus, the skinks on the east side charged the skeletons with the vampire that had done nothing all game. The skinks that were taking shelter in the inn shot the ever loving hell out of the skeletons and vampire that had killed the ancient stegadon.
The vampires kept in, hoping to break the saurus and take the inn. Other than total deadlock there was almost no change.
Turn 6
The carnosaur charged the skeletons and the skinks finished off the vampire. The carnosaur was killed and the oldblood broke and ran, the skeltons followed him but didn't catch him. But in doing so they were pulled out of range to charge the saurus.
Zhe vampire lord summoned a unit of zombies. In a last ditch move the skink priest was only just able to stop vanhels dance from letting the zombies charge the skinks in the inn.
The game ended with the lizardmen outnumbering the undead around the inn, and so pulling a win from a very close game!
