Original Air Date: April 9, 2011
Gaius told me after the game between the Uruk-Hai and the Wood Elves that we played that he wanted a chance to use the Uruks in a battle at least once. I, of course, said "sure" and proceeded to assemble my army of Dwarves. :-) We will be playing with the following forces:
The Host of Erebor: 419 points
Dain Ironfoot - 125 points
Gimli - 90 points
1 Dwarf Warrior with banner - 38 points
8 Dwarf Warriors with shields- 72 points
6 Dwarf Warriors with Dwarf bows - 54 points
5 Dwarf Warriors with two-handed weapons - 40 points
22 units, 6 bows + throwing axe, 2 heroes
The Fist of Isengard: 419 points
Uruk-Hai Captain with heavy armor and shield - 60 points
1 Uruk-Hai Warrior with banner - 39 points
16 Uruk-Hai Warriors with shields- 160 points
16 Uruk-Hai Warrior with pikes - 160 points
34 units, no bows, 1 hero
I'd like to begin by saying that my friend Zorro informed me that as opposed to what Gaius and I have been doing in the last few fights, two-handed weapon units cannot use their hand weapons (Elven blades are now very awesome). So...in this game, the two-handed weapon Dwarves will be limited to using their great weapons...hope that doesn't backfire.
This scenario is a To The Death game on a board that is 48" long by 24" wide. In our normal way, we will determine which force gets to select their side of the game board to start on, but both players will then split their armies in half: the player who selected his side will then roll a dice for the first half of his force, followed by the second player (rolling for half of his force). The player who selected his side first will then roll a second dice (for the second half of his force) followed by the other player.
On the roll of a 1-3, the specified half of the force must be placed within 3" of the board edge. On the roll of a 4-6, the specified half of the force must be placed within 18" and 24" from the game board edge. It is possible for both halfs of the army to begin within 3" of the board edge or between 18" and 24" of the board edge (the army need not be split if the rolls say so).
To win this game, the opponent must be completely wiped out OR the units flee the field. Furthermore, a major victory is achieved if the winning army is not broken, while a minor victory is achieved if the winner's force is broken. The placement requires that any units that begin within 3" of their board edge must engage quickly, or the rest of their force will likely be destroyed by the enemy.
The map has a hill in the center and a few rocks on the sides (see map later), perfect for both armies. There are no swimming terrain pieces, as we did not want the Uruk-Hai to be at a disadvantage (since the only penalty the Dwarves would have in a swim test would be for their shields and all of the Uruk-Hai would be penalized for their heavy armor and those with shields would receive a further penalty).
After rolling a dice, the Uruks will choose their placement first, while the Dwarves will have priority during the first round.
Placement:
The Uruks divided their force into the following two groups (17 units each):
Unit 1: "The Wall" - 8 shields, 8 pikes
Unit 2: "The Phalanx and Wedge" - captain, banner, 8 shields, 8 pikes
The Dwarves have been divided as follows (11 units each):
Unit 1: "Dain's Wedge" - Dain, banner, 3 bows, 2 two-handed weapons, 4 shields
Unit 2: "Gimli's Wedge" - Gimli, banner, 3 bows, 3 two-handed weapons, 4 shields
The Wall rolled a 4 and was placed 21" away from their board edge, while Dain's Wedge rolled a 5 and was placed exactly 23" from their board edge. The Phalanx and Wedge rolled a 3 and was placed within 3" of their board edge and Gimli's Wedge rolled a 3, placed similarly as close to the action as possible.
I'm looking at the map and thinking that Dain's force has an advantage, as Dain will be able to clear through his opponents quickly. The forces will engage from the get-go, meaning that the archers will need to target the pikes to even out the fights. Thankfully, the phalanx is only 6 units wide, meaning that I will not be overwhelmed when attempting to assail it. If Dain can make a mess of the Phalanx quickly, Gimli's troops will bring the crushing blow that the Dwarves will need to break the captain and his men.
Turn 1: The Sound of Arms (Priority - Dwarves)
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Dwarves engage the Wall and begin to prepare for battle. Most of the combats are in range of the banner, which is good for the Dwarf lack of spear support. Archers have moved towards the wings and one was engaged by an extra Uruk. Both the Phalanx & Wedge and Gimli's Wedge have moved as fast as possible towards the action.
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Nothing of importance happened in the shoot phase. Dain calls a heroic combat and wins, killing both of his opponents. He then moves to engage the two pikes supporting an Uruk in the fight of the two-handed axeman beside him. Unfortunately, even with banner support, Dain only rolls a 3 high against these Uruks and so loses the fight (no wound).
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In the other fights (starting from the bottom), a Dwarf won but didn't wound, 2 Dwarves lost but were not wounded, a Dwarf trapped his opponent and won but couldn't wound him, a Dwarf tied his opponents but lost the roll off (no wound), and a Dwarf with two-handed weapon wins his fight and wounds his opponent. Outside of this screen shot, a Dwarf archer beat an Uruk, but failed to wound.
Total death count: Uruks 3/34, Dwarves 0/22.
Turn 2: Tactical Retreats (P - tie, Uruks)
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The Uruks pull back their forward formation and unite it (mostly) with their back formation. Knowing that charging that huge row of pikes will be bad, the Dwarves pull out of charge range of the Uruks and prepare to loose a few arrows at their opponents, while Gimli's Dwarves are still three turns out from combat (though his archers will be in range next turn).
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In the shoot phase, one Dwarf archer killed an Uruk pikeman, bringing the death count to Uruks 4/34, Dwarves 0/22.
Turn 3: Retreating Further (P - Dwarves)
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Dain's Dwarves move a little farther back, keeping the archers out of charge range. Also, Gimli's Dwarves have reached the hill and will begin to work their way into the battle. The Uruks reposition their troops so as to provide a greater challenge in assailing them. They are now, as you can see, in one long line...not good. During the Shoot phase, one Dwarf archer killed an Uruk with shield, bringing the kill tally to Uruks 5/34, Dwarves 0/22.
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Turn 4: The Phalanx Engages (P - Uruks)
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With priority in the Uruk-Hai court, they reformed their phalanx and made a three-deep rank against Dain's men, looking for a chance to crush them. The Captain engaged Dain, as it would be harder for Dain to wound him and get through the other ranks of units. Some of the spare Uruks with shields have turned around the flanks of the battle lines, pursuing archers and preparing for Gimli's troops. The Dwarves have reorganized their position, but remain stalwart before their foes. Nothing happened in the Shoot phase.
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In the three fights above Dain, two Dwarves lost their fights but were not wounded, while one Dwarf with shield was killed. In the fights below Dain, one Dwarf with two-handed weapon died and the other two Dwarves won their fights (one by shielding, one failing to wound). Dain wins his fight, has trapped his opponent, but after a ton of 2s, only makes 1 wound (saved by Fate). The count is now Uruks 5/34, Dwarves 2/22.
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Turn 5: Fresh Dwarves Arrive (P - Tie, Dwarves)
Inevitably, in each of my posts, there's a round that I forgot to take pictures for...this is it. All of the Dwarves now prepare for combat, as Gimli's troops begin to take the brunt of the assault away from Dain's men. The Uruks responded in kind, trying to make the fights as equal as possible. In the shoot phase, a keen-eyed archer shoots through the Dwarf ranks and nails a pikeman in the eye.
Gimli calls a heroic combat, kills his man, and rushes to engage both pikes behind him. He must pay his final remaining Might points to win the fight and wound both of them (one to win, one to wound). Dain loses his fight on a roll-off against the captain, sustaining 1 wound that cannot be saved by either Fate point (rolled 2 1s). The Uruks succeed in killing two of Dain's shield-bearing Dwarves, while all of Dain's other troops escape from their fights unwounded. Two of Gimli's Dwarves ganged up on an Uruk-Hai and tied him, won the roll-off, and killed him. In all of the other fights, the Dwarves sustained no wounds (and only lost one fight).
At the end of this round, the death toll is Uruks 10/34, Dwarves 4/22 - both sides are 7 from breaking.
Turn 6: The Heroic Showdown (P - Dwarves)
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The Dwarves have now cut into the back of the Uruks and the Uruks have responded as best they can. Nothing happened during the Shoot phase.
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Dain and the Captain call heroic combats. The Captain will perform his first. The Captain gains the necessary 6 after rerolling one of his dice and wounds the defending Dwarf with 4 6s (ouch!). He then engages the banner-bearer. Dain wins his fight and also wins (and wounds) easily. He then turns and fights with the captain, encouraging his men to keep fighting. Both of these warriors roll a 6 to win, but Dain wins the roll off and rolls no less than two 6s and one 5 to wound...that's death for any beast of defense 8 and below.
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Gimli wins his fight, but fails to roll higher than a 2 on his wound dice. In all of the other fights, two Uruks and two Dwarves are killed, bringing the total death count to Uruks 15/34, Dwarves 7/22 - Uruks are 2 away from breaking, while the Dwarves are 4 away.
Turn 7: Wrath on the Leaderless (P - Dwarves)
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After winning priority again, the Dwarves capitalize on their already advantageous position. A Dwarf archer have prepared to loose arrows at pikemen who cannot move out of their line of fire, due to the other units who have been locked in combat. Nothing happened in the shoot phase, though.
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Dain used his last Might point to call a heroic combat. Though he quite decisively won the fight, he failed to wound either of them, rolling no higher than a 3 (and needing a 4 to wound). Perhaps more unfortunately, Gimli loses his fight, takes a wound, and fails to save that wound with either Fate point. In all of the other fights, two Uruks and two Dwarves died, breaking the Uruk-Hai force. Death toll: Uruks 17/34, Dwarves 9/22.
Turn 8: The Hammer Falls (P - Dwarves)
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The Dwarves engage minimal units, waiting to see which of the Uruks choose to stay. Of the 17 units left in the army, 6 decided to flee. Dain wins his fight, but again fails to wound (no higher than a 3...two turns in a row!). Gimli wins against the banner, and wounds him. In the other fights, one Dwarf and one Uruk died.
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At this point, it's looking bleak for the Uruks: they are outnumbered 12-to-9 and are facing two heroes with 1-2 health each and 8-9 Defense (respectively). We decided to call the game here.
Conclusion:
Assessment by Gaius:
The Uruk phalanx is really cool: on the turn that it worked, there were few fights we couldn't win. Against lighter opponents, the phalanx would probably work out rather well...and if my whole army started in one place. :-P At any rate, crossbows (or cheap Orc bowmen) would be a good improvement.
Assessment by Tiberius:
Again, my Dwarves did amazing. I'm just glad that we caught the Uruks the first turn...elsewise, things could have been a lot different. I was a little disappointed in the heroes near the end of the game, but they never fail to bring the enemy to the breaking point at the beginning of the game, which makes the endurance of the Dwarves pay off. Also, shielding against large amounts of Uruks (especially in phalanx) formation isn't worth it if you have a banner, as you'll get pushed back even if you win...since they've trapped themselves.
Stellar unit for the Uruk-Hai: shield Uruks...or Captain? It's always hard to tell what units deserve what credit because the Uruks with shields would not be very effective without the pikes and the pikes would be very vulnerable without the shields. Ergo, when viewing the damage done by these units individually, the durability that the shields provide (wound on a 6 instead of a 5+) was incredible. Still, the Captain was great (4 attacks with banner reroll, 4 Strength 5 wounds when he won). We'll see if that becomes the trend, though he works well in the wedge formation with the banner too.
Stellar unit for the Dwarves: shield Dwarves. These guys require the roll of a 6 to wound, which meant that they could take a beating early in the game while the second company arrived and protecting Dain from being hopelessly overwhelmed.
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