After some terrible attempts at Stoicism, I finally realised that Mark 3 had caused me to reassemble my full SUSSness. Ergo I dropped the list that wasn't working and put in the current favourite chaff junk:
MacBain1 - Galleon, Sylyssysyssl, Dahlia + Skarath, Alexia2, Ragman, Gorman, Piper, Saxon, 2x Halberdiers
Objective: Effigy of Valor
Dropped Assassins, Aiyanna/Holt and Anastasia for 2x Steelhead Halberdiers and Saxon.
Needing to feat on both Kayazy and important solos was too much of a strain, any plan that gets torn apart by a single dice roll going bad is a bad list plan. Now I can put tokens on a couple models with Reach and have loads to spare if they are dying on the approach.
The Wild Wrastling Wussel threw down the angrily dispossessed.
Calandra1 - Mauler, 2x Bomber, Axer, Stone + UA, Highwayman, Braylan, Lannysa
Objective: Armory
Scenario is Entrenched, pretty sure the zones were the wrong position but the table was set up from the day before, so sod it.
Merc Deploy: I won the roll, picked first. I was given what looked to be the less advantageous side.
No pic, because I'm lazy and working within the PP forums image per post limit.
Galleon went straight in the middle to go through a blob of water, Snake went to his left theorising that the nearby forest in my friendly zone would be ideal for Prowl. Halberdiers went either side.
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Troll Deploy: For this game, Brown=hills, green blobs = TREES.
Proxies, so the list from left to right.
Gerlak = Braylan
Black Ogrun?=Highway Peoples
Helljack=Bomber
Mauler and Axer are.....Mauler and Axer!
Gaspy=Calandra
Stones are Stones with Stones of Rock. I mean Stone.
Helljack=Bomber #2
Warwitch=Lannysa
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Merc 1: On clock, the photos will suffer from both that and apparently those yellow zones are just the worst.
Basically everything runs forward, Fortune goes on teh SNake, Counter Measures on Alexia, Failsafe on the Galleon.
Saxon gives some Pathfinder to the left Halbs.
Alexia legs it to the middle of the board, lusting after some delicious Roadkill souls (Readthrough Note: Rethink on if this joke about the Highway chumps works or not).
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Troll 1: On the right side, Lannysa legs it into the zone and the right Helljack/Bomber uses his Animus and blows up four Halbs on the right.
Everything else goes toward the left.
The Mauler/Axer/Calandra climb on the strategic hill and put up Star Crossed.
The Highwayman chock up behind the Obstruction of doom.
Left Bomber mimics its brethren on the right, but fails to scatter onto anything.
[img]https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD1dr7pbxxN7G502CgIFsuvcXwWMqWXBOcdHCW-Tnalmi44ZVz8rl6fnhQIExojcHnTjBdZSrUf-uHjs1LoG4dXcRxySYA14ZV0aDZN8AwvSzda6V7M-pPZ8RKhhuDcC1YFRWqGiYRcEQ/s1600/005+%2528800x450%2529.jpg [/img]
Merc 2: I upkeep everything.
I breathe a sigh of relief that MacBain was not impeded by me having an attack of the dumb this time.
Plan is to jam up, Galleon will try to drag in the Mauler but if it fails I'll throws invincible models in the way.
Plan is go, Alexia starts us off by charging the Highway man, she knocks one down.
Galleon advances, shoots down the knockdowned Highwayman and pops a couple members of the Stone, revs up the Harpoon on the Mauler. Lands the boosted Star Crossed 9, drags it in and misses with it's melee attack.
Ragman Darkfields the Galleon, then the Snake moves across and eats the Mauler, Warbeast Bond and Paralysis making a mock job of Star Crossed.
MacBain feats, rolls max, I throw a token on Dahlia, Gorman, Alexia and Halbs from each unit. He then throws Counter Measures on the left Halberdiers.
Gorman clouds in front of MacBain.
Right Halberdiers get Concealment from Dougal and run up into the right zone.
Mid way through moving the left Halberdier unit Trolls concede.
It is awkward from here, the Highwayman will have to backup and the Halberdiers with Countermeasures will just follow and maul them. Three Thralls are plonking down somewhere, I'll kill a Heavy a turn with Galleon.
Clock is probably the best win condition for Trolls at this point, it was 47min to my 39, that should still be plenty of time for me to push it through.
I will definitely feel clock pressure with this list in future, Halberdiers are easy (Galleon screw ups not withstanding), but the other pieces need to not be wasted for me to do well in the games.
This finished quick enough that we happily cruise to another game, next one goes the distance.
