Playtest game for Dark Servant (Clint) vs Free People (Sam)
Untold War 5v5 game
This is the game format that we’ll be playing this weekend at the FTF, if you’re interested then please do get in touch as spaces are available, just….
Sam’s Free People Diary
OK, so Sauron’s on a 10 turn timer thanks to the pluck of a Hobbit named Sam (and some other, less interesting heroes) and its up to me to defeat the hordes of evil in the North of Middle-earth.
Unlike 1650 MEPBM, both sides seem to have pretty similar economies, so I will not be waging an economic war. Our elven agents match theirs and we have some good sickness tech, so I can expect the endgame to be fair. It looks as if the most important thing is to be aware of the victory conditions, which score me points if I achieve certain goals.
Well, the individual ones are hard to get my head around, let’s just focus on the big issues. I have to knock over one serious PC for each enemy nation, scoring 250 points for each, I have to take Dol Guldur, worth 500 points, and I need to try and kill one of his nations, for 500. He has the same goals.
The most valuable area to fight in, then, is Dol Guldur, where a victory can secure me 500 points and prevent him from scoring his 500 points for taking my Lothlorien capital, just adjacent.
However, in MEPBM, sometimes doing the most obvious thing can hurt, as the game is about bluff and anticipation. I think Clint will expect me to rush the middle, so I will find another choice, which whether or not it works, will be surprising.
I think that there is a set of moves which might sneak my entire Rohirrim force past his White Wizard army and get them onto Isengard for a turn 2 destruction! He probably doesn’t even think this is possible, which is all the more reason to have a go. Worst case scenario – our forces meet and I crush him like a bug, then move past Isengard to attack the soft underbelly of his Western flank.
I’ll solve the ‘Noldo Problem’, the perenial complaint of all Noldo players that they have too much to do with every character, by seconding in the Silvans to be ‘Caddies’ for the lazy high-elves. This means forming Companies, where the Silvan character does the movement orders, allowing the Noldo to spend their actions on more interesting stuff, like casting spells and doing their lipstick.
The Dwarves have an utterly obvious move along the road to the West (I’ll be complaining about that as part of my playtesting, it’s a choice which is no choice). I’ll make it, but I will send a spare character into one of the armies as defence to enemy agent action. If I think the move is obvious, so will Clint.
Turn 1
Ach. Drat! That wiley Maiar Saruman has sent his troops to block my forces, Isengard will live and I have to worry about the possibility that the White Wizard himself is in this army, ready to issue a challenge to my noble Horselords. At least I get to crush his army.
However, my caution with the Dwarves has born fruit, as my seers report that the most dangerous agent artefact is in the same province as my army, which means that the army commander is as good as dead already.
Aieee! I messed up the move order, and my heroic backup is not in the army. Luckily he is an agent and can have a decent turn attempting to steal the Ring of Wind – potentially a fair exchange for the loss of my troops.
Turn 2
Double drat. I forgot to issue an upgrade order with the Silvans. That’s what comes of playing fast and not taking the time to check my orders. This means I wasted 6 Silvan actions, plus 6 Noldo, including Elrond’s vital ‘Reveal Pop Centre’ on Sarn Goriwing – where I have successfully placed two kick-bottom armies. This means they cannot attack, and may well be killed before they get to interact with the Pop centre, for another 4 wasted actions, and potentially more.
On the bright side, Clint had sent Ji Indur and all his little wizards to my Dwarf location, and attempted to kill everyone, but the plucky Dwarves survived two assassination attempts, with only Ring-stealer Gimli succumbing to a challenge from Khamul the Dragon Lord. We’ll need to tweak a couple of aspects of the game based on this encounter:
a.) That Dwarven army is simply too big, the swing of it living or dying affects the game too much. Probably true of other armies, maybe we should reduce all starting armies by 15%
b.) The Dwarves’ first move is telegraphed. I thought it was so obvious that I sent a contingency back-up, and even that was not enough. We need to rearrange the Dwarf starting power such that there are more options.
Brightest news of all, Clint organised for Rogrog to have the Witch-king’s artefacts, so he could challenge Elrohir, my killer agent. Yet, despite his pulling off the move, Elrohir won, albeit on 1 health. I might frame that page and point at it any time Clint starts claiming that I am ‘intrinsically lucky’.
Last, but not least, on my roll call of errors, is that I have miscounted the effectiveness of the curse squad I have formed. Emergency summons to Cirdan will have him boldly join the fray with a sorry looking weakness – but it will be the difference between 95 wounds and the magic 100.
My plan to smush the White Wizard is going fine, with my Rohan forces joined up into a rolling maul of spikey death that will trundle into the soft underbelly of the Isengard position, trampling pop centres as it goes – the main Saruman army was crushed, like an insect.
Clint’s armies are ranging through Mirkwood, taking out towns and Major Towns at will. I think I can simply ignore this, as I had no intention of using them, and then send my vast Silvan force around them, on the road, with the intention of arriving at Dol Guldur in two turns.
Before then, I will have the curse squad and my best agents attempt to put pressure on the Dragon Lord recruitment, so that with luck I can sweep in unopposed. I might need that, given that the Silvan force includes 6000 archers – troops which tend to die really easily against serious opposition, but can do a lot of damage fast.
I wish I had the spare orders to cast any lore spells, I’m kinda flying blind without knowledge of where the bad guys are. But that’s the ‘Noldo Problem’ for you.
Turn 3
Yikes, money’s going to get tight. I’ve focused on trying to make big unstoppable forces, and that’s gone well, with the Witch-king capital falling, and the White Wizard underbelly exposed. However, Clint has sniped off enough of my outlying pop centres to make things look parlous 3 turns down the line.
The stupid Silvan Mages elected not to discover the name of the army commander at Dol Guldur, so my cunningly crafted plan to curse away the army, reveal the popcentre and drop 7000 archers into place hinges on my gamble that it is Duran in charge of things.
The Rohan are under heavy attack, let’s hope my pulling together of all the team horses and leather allow them to recruit their way out of trouble. I’m going to use the Mantle of Doriath to hide one of my weak Mirkwood holdings and send the agents and curse squad into the heart of the Fire-king, to wreak havoc in advance of the Noldo sweeping in from Imladris. Where can that Saruman army from 1910 have got to? I was expecting it on turn 1 and its still missing…
Turn 4
Well, things are moving in the direction I wanted them to. The only question is whether that is a good direction. As the great Ralph Vaughan Williams said about his 4th Symphony: “I don’t know if I like it, but it’s what I meant.”
My enormous Dwarven, Rohirrim and Silvan armies have gathered in position and are rolling through the Witch-king, White Wizard and Dragon Lord positions, but are costing me dearly. Clint has taken his targets of opportunity and knocked over a good deal of my bread-basket pop centres, taking several of them for himself with some cheeky threatening from the Balrog Gothmog, presumably stacked to the gills with command artefacts.
In a similar way, I have now got my agents and mages into companies, a hard-work-but-worth-it play that means that I should not face any challenge risks whilst I attempt to knock over some of Clint’s troops that are standing in the way of my juggernauts.
He’s got his own little wizards doing the same to me, and whilst I could try and take him on, with my Curse squad dominating his Sickness squad, I fear that I would need to take some gambles in order to catch him out, and I can’t take those risks given my long term choices. I need action now, and that means persecuting the Witch-king and the Fire King some more.
Playing these turns fast means that I miscounted the strength of my curse squad, and has forced Cirdan into the most undignified situation of needing to learn Weakness and sully himself with getting stuck into the action, whilst Galadriel, Elladan and Galdor ‘Nuke them from orbit’ in their curse squad in another province.
[b]Clint’s Dark Servant report
Turn 0[/b]
Okay so at first glance the armies on the Western side of the Misties look like they need to be cleared out so that I have a defensive line. Witch King looks the weakest so I’ve decided to support them with my Agents as best I can and partial Curse Squad. Knowing Sam he’ll hunt Murazor down so I need to move him out turn 1 (Mu’s got so much to do!). So decision in the North made. Move to protect the WK town of Carach Annon @2105 and stop his 2004 army coming to hit the WK’s fleshy towns in the North.
For my agents get them into a squad (Leardinoth seems the ideal Company commander) and off to 2705 as there’s very likely to be a dwarf army there to sup on.
Weak points for the FP – the Noldo look like they could be hit and if I can take them out I’ll get a bunch of War Points. FK’s armies are immense so I want to use them asap and hit the towns in Mirkwood before his NM, Silvan forces come to bear there and take the pressure away from my inner Mirkwood fleshy PCs.
Finally decide on a sneaky attack into the back yard to hit 3112 (NM town of Buhr Ailgra) so send Gothmog there with all the start DogLord cavalry.
If I can get Hornburg on turn 1 that’s a lot of points in the bag so I’m aiming to hit that as well.
Tried to dump as much food as possible….
Turn 1
Murazor successfully learns Weakness and is ready to join Erennis company learning Sickness – ready to move to the Noldo Capital with my Sick squad. Elrohir turns up at the WK capital, glad I named and split most of my forces to the new character (hope he hasn’t done a Divine Army or other info spell). Will try to challenge Elrohir and guessing at Lindahl as he seems a possible candidate to be there, but we’ll see what happens.
Managed to get the FK to 2711 and the Dragon Lord there so that should fall nicely. Plan on for moving to hit the Noldo still intact after one turn. Up North Gimli is in the back-up of Dain’s army @2705 and Thorin has no-one in his army so that’s one dead army (maybe Sam will 355 the troops but I might get something out of it and might get a sneaky challenge on Gimli as well although I suspect not, will try to take out Gimli and Thorin with two kills this turn.). Cavalry to 3112 works with all the command items now off to 2720, Methedras to draw some attention away from the WWizard!
The FPs have moved to hit the White Wizard’s capital so that’s bad news – at least I blocked him from hitting it turn 1. I’ll was going to move Bugrug’s cavalry army over the mountain (the road through Moria is great for that) and hope to hit a Noldo PC but with the heat on from the full might of the Rohan I’m going to desperately defend and try to keep the WW alive. Main FK army from capital to come south as from the capital to combine with Felagrod’s army @ 2412.
Blocked the Dwarven army in the North going to the easy WK towns there so that should be a big help.
Turn 2
Arghhhh, get a challenge on Gimli but the kidnap and assassination @2705 fail against the Dwarves. All the agents and my sick squad go to 2514 to give the Noldo a bloody nose. At the WK capital Rogrog challenges Elrohir but lose – he ends up on 1 wound left. At least he doesn’t get the army killed so I can now send off the majority of my troops.
Sam’s pulled off a cunning move to try to threaten 2006 – it’s going to be hard to hold that. Dis’s force refuse and don’t attack, I expected him to take MY army out so the WK army under Ashdu is stuck now. So the North isn’t as peachy as it could be. Down south the combined might of the Riders take out the WW’s army – so I’ve moved everything to desperately defend that troopwise. Annoyingly my 3rd army move for them has failed, but with 3 turns in three days it somewhat hectic to say the least!
The good news, 2711 falls and I get to move the Dragon Lord army to 2709 so hope to be able to take that this coming turn. 2513 is mine as well this turn with any luck. I combine the 2212 and 2309 FK armies @2411 feinting moving south – hope to be able to get them to 2508 this turn. 2307 MIGHT fall this coming turn, which is going to be a BIG pain as I had moves to stop that but too late now. WW troops move over the mountain to help the offensive into Mirkwood. In the east I threaten 3112 and moved to take 2718 and 2720, aiming to get to 2520 and more importantly 2419 this coming turn with a big threatening army under Gothmog (114 command rank with 10 more on its way).
I’ll try to get the Emi items onto Grima to get some PCs created in the west. Now the only question is what to do with the agents – decide to move them to 2809 region and hurt the armies in that area.
Turn 3
Interesting turn – no Riders forces have turned up as of yet on the WW’s pcs (capital the exception). So that’s good news. In the East though I lost 2006 to Sammies’ tricksy army there. Boo. Also the Dwarves turn up @2305 – ah well was never going to hold it after the agents failed.
Good news Galadriel is dead. 2809 has been revealed – wonder what that means about the Curse squad – nothing’s happened so far… J Took 2911 and continue to be a pain in the middle of Mirkwood. Gothmog threatens another Town 2720 (Methedras) and runs into a small army @2419 (Buhr Lomia) so all things being well I should take that this turn. That means I SHOULD be able to get to 2421 and take that – taking the pressure off of the WW big time I hope. 5213 gets threaten by the Goblin-King, will try again.
However, block onto the NM @2508 (Maethelburg) which is a shame but I hope to get a big enough force to take that next turn – and with annoyance in the far East that should mean that the NM is effectively out of commission for the remainder of the game. Noldo will get 2307 but it all depends on how many troops they have. We shall see. (Early error has cost me big time in that area!) Saruman is down to conjure mounts and natsell (or buy leather) each turn at present, what a sad day for the White Wizard…
Turn 4
Oh, oh, looks like the FPs have got a Curse/Weak squad on-line and the combined might of the Silvan are now at the revealed Dragon Lord capital! Nasty indeed, last moment decided not to block (information about what was coming would have been invaluable at that point)!
Lost the WK capital but hope to take out the combined Dwarven forces blocked @2204. Riders are now about to lose their second MT and look very much on the back foot with little to stop the combined hordes of Dragon Lord and Dog Lord. Lots of PCs falling like leaves from a tree! Riders tried to sacrifice against the WW capital (and challenge Gothmog, now 153 challenge rank) but the WW’s cavalry held the fort there so just about to lose its first non-camp PC, but the hordes I’ve raised have held that up.
At this point we’d tested the game enough to know what changes to make, and here you are… version 13 of the Untold War… enjoy.