Spread The Net
Well, when you haven't got any tourneys happening locally, the only real move you've got is to drive 3 hours away. To my own surprise I held to me commitment to Winions, though the CID releases seemingly popping the same month as Cancon is making me antsy (Ability to resist Croc Pot + Corpse reliant models is weak at best).
I have Arkadius and Ostensibly Rask. The second was basically just quadruple Posse and a terrible list I obviously hadn't played, so I fully expect I was just going to drop Arkadius all day. I essentially had no Cryx drop and didn't really want to see Khador, as they can normally spam enough Heavy crap that killing them is difficult. Hypothetically anyway, double Clockwork Legion games as the beforehand practice isn't amazing.
Only change to the Arkadius list was dropping Alten. At some point I bemused myself with realising I'd taken another caster who was piss weak against Arcane Bolt, with the joyful recognisanze that I could at last take the anti-magic protection Thexus lusts after (Cephalyx society is sufficiently repressed that the lust is manifested n super unhealthy ways, like doing enough anti-body building that you end up looking like a chewed up redskin).
Round 1 is Spread Your Legs. That TO Rev's name for it and I'm to lazy to try to be original.
Arkadius (WWfF) - 2x Road Hog, War Hog, 3x Gun Boar, Battle Boar, Gorax, Dahlia and Sooper Dooper Snek, Swamp Gobbers, Targ, Orin, Efaarit, Hutchuck
vs
Baldur2 (Bones of Orboros) - Woldwrath, Megalith, Wold Guard, 2x Stone Shapers, 2x Blackclads, shifting Stone, Sentry Stone, Celestial Fulcrum
Other list was Tannith, which I would have at lest had the dint of a tiny amount of experience into.
That Gargantuan is going to be an issue. Will always be Armour 23, can't be Crippling Grasped.....euch.
A somewhat open table, especially now that I'm still trying to normalize after the WTC being skewed to suite the team matchup environment. There's a small forest in the centre zone, then I end up with the side with a wall and a couple hills, Circle gets a trench, a blob of water and rubble around their flag.
I think I won the roll? Nabbed first to get up the board and deny some board space.
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Yes, we're fighting in space. The natural area of Pig Mosnters vs Hippies.
Minion 1: The opposing list has some form of ranged attack on most of the models, so Aggravator is an easy choice over Guardian Beast. Forced Evo goes on the left most War Hog, though everything is far more blocked up than normal.
Follow the Raw Adrenaline lessons of the last game, I have Arkadius sit in a bubble of the non-Evolved Road Hog and two of the Gun Boars for some potential Raw Adrenaline action next turn.
The Efaarit on the left had the joy of the Sentry Stone deploying directly opposite him, so he gets to move up and take off half it's health before Repoing back.
Dahlia and Snek are on the right, as they can either stay defensive and score my rectangle or push up for Dahlia to take the Circle flag.
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Circle 1: Circle moves it's stuff up. The Fulcrum hits the Forced Evo with it's first shot, so he Hyper Aggresives forward into charge range. He also gets sprayed by the Sentry Mannikins and shot by the Wold Wrath, he ends up losing his Spirit.
The Sentry Stone pops a forest to stop the Efaarit finishing it off.
Baldur dives into his trench, puts Roots of Earth on the Wold Guard and the Fulcrum. Throws out a rock wall at an inconvenient spot (I had to sharply repress joyful Gorten Rock Wall memories. Curse you pleasant remembrances! I'm trying to throw Bacon on the wargaming grill!).
Also Megalith pops Undergrowth. It's super irritating.
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Minion 2: My plans of feating and alphaing into the Wold Guardian are rendered not worth it by said Undergrowth. Yeah, pathfinder is something I'm going to have to address at some point...
In the meantime, Baldur is just to far back to be killed, so the long game it is. There's few enough Circle models that the basic intent is to just keep the line of battle back enough that they can't stop me racking up defensive control points.
The Efaarit has no targets in range, so just goes to my defensive flag.
Hutchuck, having ambushed in off the left, charges and pops said Sentry Stone. Team Solo, getting it done.
The soon to be suicide Road Hog has to be healed, which necessitates activating the Mad Scientist that definitely isn't wanted for suspicious behavior with Porcine's in civilised lands.
Pops Psycho Surgery, stabs the two Gun Boars near with Adrenaline, then repositions backward.
Gorax primals the relevant Road Hog.
I then go with the Road Hog and realise my error, as I've moved Arkadius to far back for an Assault spray to conveniently get random extra targets (Optimistically, it'd be a stone, Baldur and a blackclad, realistically that'd probably put Arkadius in a bad spot however a spray on a shifting stone definitely should have happened). He maxes Fury, leaves the Battle Engine on about eight or so boxes.
The Adrenalin-ed Gun Boars then move up,it takes both shots but they finish it off.
All my other beasts hang back, I doa weird threat range dance where Orin positions to stop the requisite Hunters Mark. Some Lights are in danger of being killed and the Primalled Road Hog, which I'm happy with.
Gobbers cloud in front of Arkadius, Dahlia and long friend move further out to the right to optimistically draw resources to do something about them or they go up the flank and start being an annoyance.
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Circle 2: After some convoluted measuring, the central Black Clad moves up to Hunters Mark, Orin cancels it.
Baldur stays in his trench (A mans hole in the dirt is his fortress!), feats and puts a Rock Wall down that protects the Wold Wrath somewhat.
Megalith goes into the back of the Road Hog and punches him to death (As I type I realise I could have used Aggravator to turn around. Likely negligible with Weight of Stone added, but rumour in Downunda is that occasionally Megalith whiffs when he tries to kill things).
The Wold Guardian charges up, kills the forward most Gun Boar.
Wold Wrath moves up a little, gun shot takes out the left most Gun Boars Mind.
Shifting stones contest the left and centre zone because they are fuckwith rocks that I hate.
The Stone Shapers and one Shifting pebble hide behind the Wold Warath in a clump.
The other Black Clad runs to the Circle flag.
I score my flag and zone, Circle score their flag.
2-1 to me.
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Minion 3: I've placed my models such that the central forst makes assassination mvoes an insurmountable obstacle. Quite annoying. I also want to hold my feat to let the War Hog get into the Wold Wrath.
Plan is to kill the Wold Guard and clear out the Circle flag.
I spend a silly amount of time thinking I could run a light to score the Circle rectangle, until the Efaarit tries to shoot a stone and get reminded that the Shifting Stones are super tough right now.
Hutchuck and the Efaarit basically dance on their respective spots, scoring my flag and contesting the circle Rectangle.
Out on the right, things go pretty well.
Dahlia moves up to get the scoring Black Clad in her control area, the Snake moves up and explodes him. The Gun Boar out on this flank then moves up, shoots the clump of Stone Shapers + Shifting Stone. He boosts the various damages, kills one Shaper and puts the other on one health. Sweet.
Arkadius pops his Surgery healing spell again, Forced Evo's the other Road Hog, Crippliing Grasps Megalith to slow him up then retreats out to the left behind another Gobber Cloud.
The Gun Boar in the centre zone moves, shoots the remaining Stone SHaper, kill him and the Shifting Stone he was next to. Rocking.
Battle Boar Primals the Road Hog. The Roadie then goes into the Wold Guardian and does......an insufficient amount. The Gorax then goes in, without buffs it's a futile effort.
Targ runs across to the right, with Arkadius making his way to the left Herding will likely come up.
I score my flag and zone again, now 4-1.
That was an awful Crippling Grasp. Megalith was facing the wrong way anyway, with the armour levels out there a concerted effort needed to be made to destroy a single piece. With some better placement I could have also run a light in front of the Wold Wrath to block it up and be a pain in the Amoeba.
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Circle 3: Unfortunately for Circle, Not Weasley critically forgets about applying enough scenario pressure. The Wold kill a solid chunk of my beasts and magic attacks kill Hutchuck, my defensive elements however don't get contested and I auto win 6-1 on scenario.
That Spread your legs action.
Highlights the issue I already suspected the list had, armour cracking just isn't the degree of potency the current meta is asking about. Though that is obviously based on a puny sample size, onto the next round to try to prove myself wrong.
