(Above show post deployment dispositions with Minas Tirith at the bottom of the image. Before them are the houses that Daddy Denethor said need a tad of flame.)
Last week's wargame was again MESBG, I game I am loving atm. I was back with a vanilla Minas Tirith force this week. I knew my friend Nick, the mastter of Isengard, had changed his allegience. I also knew he was bringing Iron Hills. I listened to a podcast describing Iron Hills and I wet myself ... and the yellow river of trepidation kept flowing when Nick arrived and confirmed ...
Dain was leading his troops!
However, I did have a plan and a theme ... Faramir riding to re-take Osgiliath (the movie version not books.) As we know this didn't end well but Faramir was not facing dwarves.
Nick suggested we play a scenario from the War in Rohan book (?) mainly to put his new terrain on the table. And didn't it look a treat! Shame my role was to set it afire (to wood this time not a fire 'in our flesh!) The Iron Hills would be stoutly defending against the arson of man.
Early in the battle, the initiative mainly went to the men and I enacted my strategy. This consisted of riding about quickly to stretch the Dwarves and set fire to anything I could. In the meantime, I would pepper the dwarf line with arrows ... not in hope of actually killing anyone but trying to goad them into precipitous action. The only dwarves I really wanted dead were their crossbows who were a significant danger to my horsemen.
(Above, a picturesque rural setting ... better introduce it to wood and oil! Then, Faramir will be able to go home with his head held high.)
Here my riders hold back behind a line of shields cautious of the Dwarf crossbows. My rangers press forward as a skirmish line ready to target the crossbowmen.
The Iron Hills used their shield walls to plug the gaps between the buildings and focus on protecting the rear buildings. Eagerly I sent brave riders forward to commit arson against the homes of the innocent.
In the centre, I pushed forward my only battle line that I thought could vaguely match combat with the Iron Hills. This was led by Ingold. My plan really involved not engaging with the dwarves and just praying to Manwe that Dain didn't kill too much. As the game developed, Dain Pig-rider struggled to decide where to commit. I tried to use cavalry to give him multiple threats. He could only crush one at a time!
Please note ... at the top of the above image two Gondorian knights are riding into an unoccupied centre. This would enable them to fan out and set alight several dwellings. One was Faramir, who I only narrowly managed to extricate when Dain charged on his pig of massive conflict. I was very nervous I would lose VP's by having Faramir killed (by Dain.)
Another slightly smaller battle line advanced to just beyond dwarf charge distance. Their job was simply to hold the main enemy battleline in place.
The Iron Hills shield wall ... or bloody scary formation. And this was the smaller one!
And then I didn't take any more photo's. Don't know why, but the theme of the battle has already developed. The Iron Hills were hindered by low movement and multiple threats. The Gondorian knights could ride about seeking the gaps in the centre and rear of the enemy while the shieldwall and rangers threatened the Dwarf line just enough to keep them in place. I did get embroiled in combat in one area and lost 5 ot 6 soldiers to the Iron Hills.
But this was all irrelevant, as the buildings were alight. It was easier to set a fire than extinguish one and the Iron Hills rolled a couple of ones to engulf the buildings in catastrophic flame. In the end all buildings were alight and Minas Tirith had the speed to keep out of range of the dwarfs. We did try some combat and the result was as expected ... a nasty gash caused by beardy warriors. I just couldn't time striking from the front and charging from the back. The Iron Hills heroes on pigs/goats were good enough defence to snuff out this attempted threat.
A very tactical game with not a lot of combat but it was a drubbing on points - Minas Tirith 10 to Iron Hills nil.
I retrospect, I should have bragged a lot ... as I think I'll be taking some vicious hits from the Iron Hills in games to come. (I need to speed up my Mordor painting!)
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