Preferred Enemies: Skaven Slaves

The purpose of this edition of Preferred Enemies is to focus on the core unit in the Skaven army, the Skaven Slaves.  The Skaven Slaves are an extremely versatile unit; they are able to be chafe, harassers, bunkers, anvils and blockers.  Before we go into how to defeat the Skaven Slaves unit, we will discuss how they are used in the current game and the options available to them.  The unit is absolutely cheap, each model only being 2 points each which means for the cost of a single Wood Elf Glade Guard you can buy 6 Slaves.  The minimum unit size is 20 and for ½ a point each you may add spears, shields or even slings.  A fully kitted out Skaven Slave with spear, shield and sling will run you 3 ½ points.  No one will spend that many points on a single slave mind you but that’s an option.  

Skaven Slave Stat line:
M5 WS2 BS2 S3 T3 I4 A1 LD2

Skaven Slaves are able to take advantage of Strength in Numbers so their LD2 can be boosted to LD5 with 3 ranks, higher with a character or if the General is nearby they may take advantage of the LD10 bubble.  Skaven Slaves also have the Expendable and Cornered Rats rules.  Expendable means that the unit the Slaves are engaged in Close Combat with may be fired upon by other Skaven units.  Hits are randomized during the exchange (Skaven hold Slaves in even less regard then their fellow rats – oddly enough).  The other rule is Cornered Rats, when a unit of Slaves breaks in combat they do not flee but rather do 3d3 hits plus 1 hit for every rank in the unit against all units within a certain distance then the Slaves are removed from the game.

Skaven Slaves Uses:
Chafe: Units of 20 sent forth to serve as redirectors and roadblocks to prevent key units from reaching the core of the army.

Harassers: Units of 20-40 sent forward scurrying armed with Slings and sometimes a character much like a Warlock Engineer (sometimes with a Brass Orb or Doom Rocket).  These units tend to serve as cheap replacements for Gutter Runners but their main use is to harass units that are either ranged, war machines or serving as a bunker for a wizard.

Bunkers: Units of 20-40 serving as ablative wounds for a wizard or warlock engineer. Common tactic is to throw a Plague Priest into the unit and get in range to cast.

Anvils: Units of 40-100 (if serving as an anvil usually 60) fielded 5x12 providing the unit steadfast with a character nearby or in the unit and serving to absorb as much punishment as possible while the other harder hitting units in the Skaven army (doomwheels, abominations, stormvermin, plaguemonks, etc..) slam into the side of the now entrenched unit with the Slaves.  This is generally the use seen in most armies these days – it’s effective and cheap cause 80 slaves armed with shields (so they can get a parry save) will only cost you 200 points.

Blockers:  Several units of 20 (usually 3-4) lined up directly in front of the War machines or an area where the Skaven general wishes to delay their opponent to reach.  Commonly they are used to protect War machines and send into combat and shot up by the war machines they were protecting.

The Wood Elf army has a severely difficult time with Skaven not because they have so many hard hitting units but because they outnumber most Wood Elf armies 6 to 1.  It is extremely difficult for a Wood Elf general to deal with the sheer number of Slaves that many generals field just due to the amount of firepower required to deal with a single unit. 

Common Methods to Deal with Skaven Slaves as Wood Elves:
1. The Skaven Slaves are only Toughness 3 so they are normally wounded on 4’s at long range and only on 3’s at short range.  When there are several units of Skaven Slaves to deal with you need to make the decision if you are going to attempt to cause a chain reaction panic test or just annihilate a singular unit.  Due to the LD10 of a General with a +3 rank bonus and a BSB nearby, it gets rather difficult to pull off the panic test when they are in range.  Summary: Focus Fire with Ranged Attacks til Dead.

2.  The Skaven Slaves while numerous do not hold up very well against a full onslaught of heavy monstrous infantry and infantry.  Appropriate flank charges with Dryads and Treekin have an excellent chance to break the unit.  The primary issue is to break the Steadfast since most large close combat Slave units will have 10 ranks and it is rare to have a unit in the Wood Elf army (sans Eternal Guard) to have more than 2 ranks.  I have found that Treemen, Treekin and Dryads provide an excellent amount of blender action to shred an entire unit of 40+ slaves provided the General has been taken out by the other units in the army. (This will be detailed in a later option).

3. Most Skaven are Strength 3 and therefore very susceptible to spells like the Lore of Life spell “Dweller’s Below”.  This spell in particular has the chance to remove half if not more of the unit.  Amber Spear is another good spell to use but that would be better suited to nuking a war machine or Doomwheel.  The Transformation of Kadon into a Black Mountain Chimera (or whatever it is with the 4d6 attacks) is another definite viable option in this instance, especially if you can flank or rear charge with it.

4.  Rather than focus on the huge unit of Skaven Slaves, concentrate firepower on the unit with the General and attempt to neutralize him.  If it is a Grey Seer on a Bell then attempt to shoot him off.  If the general happens to be mounted on a Rat Ogre or hidden in a unit of 40+ rats, cast spells and shoot at the unit as much as possible till the General has been slain.  Reducing the LD from 10 to a max of 7 is a huge boost against units like Skaven Slaves since they begin to lose their tar pit functionality.

5.  Fear and Terror still have a use against Skaven Slaves, if they are out of range of their General and lack a character, the most they will have for LD is going to be 5.  This makes them easy fodder for Terror charges and failing Fear tests in close combat and needing 5’s to hit.  

Things to Avoid:
1. allowing the Skaven General to use his Slaves to redirect your Monstrous Infantry units where they can be flank charged or shot with a Warp Lightning Cannon/Plague Catapult/Warp Fire Thrower/etc…in the flank.  The Skaven Slaves are very adept at providing an annoying tar pit that won’t break due to Steadfast and sets the opposing player’s beefy unit up for flank charges from units like Rat Ogres or war machines.  General rule – when Skaven are lined up in front of you at an angle – don’t charge and attempt to move back and allow your ranged units to do their job.  

2.  Try to avoid allowing the Skaven Slaves to serve as a bunker for a Plague Priest, Grey Seer or Warlock Engineer.  These three casters have the ability to not only debuff a unit but delete one in a single turn.  Items like Doom Rockets and Brass Orbs hidden in a Skaven Slave unit can wreck the Wood Elf army since they are magic weapons and disallow the Forest Spirit Ward Save (stupid god damn rule I swear to God…ok rant off...).  General Rule – bunkers = kill as fast as humanly possible.  Magic is one of the key strengths of the Skaven army; don’t allow them to capitalize on it.

3.  Allowing Skaven Slaves to blockade the heart of the army.  Skaven generals like to field 3 units of 50 slaves for 300 points and organize them 5x10.  When the opposing general moves within range then the Skaven general will reform the 3 units into 10x5 and block off an entire section of the board while the Skaven wizards and war machines rain death from afar and in safety.  The best way to avoid this is to focus all close combat units on to one of the huge blocks and open up a flank to bypass the other two units and enter the Skaven backfield.  

I have found that as a Wood Elf General it is imperative that I perform the following functions as soon as possible when dealing with Skaven in order to combat the onslaught of Slaves.  

1. Assassinate the General as quickly as possible – breaking the Leadership of the army is imperative to dealing with the Slave bunkers.

2.  Knowing when to not charge even when there are Slaves 1” away.  Sometimes it is in your best interests to allow them to charge, disallowing the redirection and spending resources to remove the annoying unit may not be the most favorable option but it will help prolong the life of your key close combat units.

3.  Only charge in the flank or rear.  – I try my best to never allow a unit of slaves to every have their face in base to base contact with my units.  I need to maximize the amount of carnage my elite units can dish out in order to hopefully counteract Steadfast.  Fighting near a forest or in a forest is generally preferred.

4.  Kill all bunkers – Pretty sure this is self-explanatory but … charge/shoot/spell units with wizards in them to death.

While these tactics can and are used against other units in the Skaven army (and honestly in general game play against most armies) there are key tactics that Wood Elf generals will need to use due to the options available to them in the current Wood Elf army book.  There are a few really good resources out there to see how Skaven players play (resources I use to read up on tactics that my local Meta may not use), few such resources are in my blog roll such as: Rhellion’s Tabletop and Warpstoned. I also read the Under Empire forum.  I recommend checking out those blogs and that forum.

That is it for this edition of Preferred Enemy, I’ll try to release one every week or two.

Bestigor Unit - WIP.

I've so far begun painting my unit of 30 Bestigors.
This is a real brief update so I'll just outline my current steps in the batch painting process.
(A process I'll note that is like entering the 7th level of hell)

I primed the models black as you can see here (used character model since I forgot to snap photo of black primed Bestigors).

I next batch painted the entire unit using Scorched Brown - I covered skin, horns and hooves with the color.

I then used the Foundation Paint - Tallarn Flesh to cover the areas of skin - a real fast paint with only 1.5 thin layers.

Lastly I washed the flesh with the Ogryn Flesh wash.  By far my most favorite wash of the now-outdated GW line.

Next up to do will be the first of three flesh highlights then on to red armor and garments! ...fun...

Phase Two Results for The Deployment Zone's - Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign.

Phase Two Results for The Deployment Zone's - Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign.

The second phase of the Deployment Zone’s – Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign has come to a close.  The second phase lasted two weeks and during that time there were 36 games reported and 58 participants.  In the second phase Tamurkhan has forged his way to the Mountains of Mourn and set his armies out to capture and recruit Giants.  There were dozens of Hobgoblin tribes that did not appreciate the Chaos Horde trudging through their territory and they set about harassing the horde at every opportunity.  The ogres who lived in the Mountains of Mourn did their best to prevent the Chaos Horde from crossing into the mountains and trudge through their land.  Tamurkhan and his horde were finally steered into a well laid trap by the Red Fist ogre tribe and a grand battle ensued.  The Ogre Tyrant challenged Tamurkhan to a duel and defeated him in martial combat but was ultimately defeated when the Maggot Lord took over the Tyrants body.  Tamurkhan, now occupying his new body, directed his army to forge through the mountains to the Dead Lands beyond.

While in phase one the Chaos Horde was dominant, they did not do as well as many would have hoped in the second phase.  The Opposition managed to win 22 out of the 36 games reported this phase and won the phase with a total score of 53 to 29 Campaign Points.  

Total Games Reported: 36

Total Opposition Wins/Points Total:  22 Wins – 53 CP’s

Total Chaos Horde Wins/Points Total: 14 Wins – 29 CP’s
Special Scenario played (Conquest of Giants): 11
Hobgoblin Tribes used!: 2

Narrative Battles: 6
Storm of Magic: 4

Notable Battles during Phase 2:

3000 point Storm of Magic Battle – Dwarfs vs. Hobgoblin Tribes

In this Storm of Magic battle, the Dwarfs fought the unique Hobgoblin Tribe.  The Dwarfs actually defeated the Hobgoblins in the last turn after killing off all of the Goblin Shamans and killing a large number of Giants assisting the Hobgoblins!

2500 point Dark Monoliths of Zhulghozar Battle – Dark Elves vs. Bretonnia

In this Narrative Battle of Warhammer, the Dark Elves attempted to slaughter the unsuspecting Bretonnians.  The Dark Elves using many Hydras and Cold One Cavalry sought to dominate the noble Bretonnians and claim the victory.  The Bretonnians had different plans in mind.  The Grail Knights managed to ravage both Hydras and the big unit of Cold One Cavalry while the Trebuchet did a number on the Dark Elf Spearmen.  The Bretonnians ended up winning the game at the top of turn 5 when they wiped out the last remaining Dark Elves.

1500 point Conquest of Giants – Giants vs. Warriors of Chaos

In this Special Scenario, the Giants battled against a Warriors of Chaos army sporting 1 unit of Chaos Warriors, a unit of Chaos Knights and the rest were Marauders.  The general was a Shadow Chaos Sorcerer and they managed to capture 1 -2 Giants a turn and had a solid victory.  This was the only special scenario in which Chaos was victorious.  Good job Eric of Seattle!

Phase 2 has gone to the Opposition and the final outcome of winning each phase will be released when Phase 5 has completed and the final scenario has been released.

The Deployment Zone’s - Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign Phase 3: The Lords of Ash and FIre

The Deployment Zone’s - Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign Phase 3:

The Lords of Ash and FIre

Tamurkhan and his horde of chaos rampaged to the foot of the Mountains of Mourn, reaping havoc and dismay through out the range.  The horde managed to capture and subdue dozens of Giants to join Tamurkhan’s cause.  The chaos host began to cut it’s way through the mountain range when the Ogre Tribes soon rose to the challenge and effectively shut off several passable routes forcing Tamurkhan to travel South along the edge and through various traps and delays.  The Red Fist tribe watched patiently as the rotting host skirted their lands and funneled towards the pass where the tribe would unleash their assault.  When the host had after many weeks of slow and treacherous travel reached the killing ground, the Red Fist tribe sprung the trap.  Hundreds of Ogres came crashing down the mountain and slammed into the assembled chaos host, the sound of battle echoing through out the valleys.  Walls of hulking flesh and iron bashed and smashed the chaos host, allowing no opportunities for the chaos horde to slip past and overwhelm them.  The battle raged for several hours until a final challenge was issued.  Surrounded by piles of dead champions of chaos, the Red Fist’s Tyrant roared in defiance.  Tamurkhan, atop the bulk of his massive toad-dragon, glared at the challenger and rose to meet his challenge. 

Tamurkhan dismounted and strode across the battlefield to meet his foe, his dark runeblade glowing in anticipation.  The two combatants clashed, neither gaining the upper hand for several minutes until the Ogre Tyrant managed to land a solid blow against the Maggot Lord.  The Tyrant then slammed his bulk into Tamurkhan, staggering him in the process.  Another strike sent the chaos lord slamming to the ground causing a howl of dismay to erupt from the chaos horde.  The Tyrant then tore the chaos runeblade from Tamurkhan’s grasp and snapped it into two pieces and hurled it to the ground.  He then grasped the chaos lord’s upraised arm and bit it off at the elbow allowing the stump to spurt blackened and foul blood everywhere. 

The Tyrant let out a hollow, breathless laugh before Tamurkhan pointed his bleeding stump of a limb and a fountain of befouled, blackened blood spurted into the Tyrant’s face.  The Tyrant howled in pain as thousands of grey grave-worms burrowed into his flesh and a great toothed grave-worm tore itself free of Tamurkhan’s broken body and burrowed itself deep into the throat of the Ogre Tyrant.  For several moments the Tyrant struggled then fell to the earth, still.  The Red Fists tribe that had been celebrating and cheering their leader for overcoming his foe stood silent, uncertain as to what was happening.  A moment later the Tyrant once again rose and strode over to the broken chaos runeblade on the ground.  The Tyrant regarded the weapon then cast it aside, he heft the massive axe that had been in grasp moments before and began to laugh.  He held the axe high and saluted the chaos host which drew a deafening round of cheers as the horde’s leader once again vanquished his foe.  The Ogres were confused, some of their number broke and ran after witnessing their leader die and rise again while the rest of the tribe simply shrugged their shoulders and knelt before Tamurkhan in obedience. 

Tamurkhan, now in a new body and his army’s size now increased by the addition of the Red Fist tribe and Giants, lead his host through the Mountains of Mourn and into the Dark Lands. 

The Dark Lands were home to the next stop in Tamurkhan’s vision, the nefarious and twisted Chaos Dwarfs and their malevolent machines of war and destruction.  In the distance loomed the Black Fortress of Zharr Naggrund, home to Lord Drazhoath and the twisted Legion of Azgorh.  Tamurkhan lead his army towards the blackened towers but the Chaos host would soon learn that not everyone enjoys .....visitors..

Scenario Rules for Campaign Phase 3 – The Lords of Ash and Fire

Special Scenario:  The Crossing of Fire (3 CP to the victor)

The Scenarios: (roll a D6 to determine what battle you play – or you may elect to play the Special scenario instead)

D6           Result

1-2          Dawn Attack (1 CP to the victor – see the Warhammer Rulebook)
3-4          Meeting Engagement (1 CP to the victor – see the Warhammer Rulebook)

5              Battle Line (2 CP to the victor – fought as a Grand Battle see the Warhammer Rulebook)

6              Surprise Encounter* (2 CP to the victor) as a Grand Battle (if the models are available) or a Storm of Magic scenario (2 CP to the victor) as chosen.

* - Narrative scenario from the Warhammer Rulebook

Special Rules:
Dread Hosts:

These reflect the creatures of the strange and inhuman domains of the dragons of the Plain of Bones, and may be used as an Opposition army if you have access to the Storm of Magic expansion.  Each Dread Host must be commanded by a single Great Dragon or Emperor Dragon chosen from the Storm of Magic expansion.  This is the only 'character' in the army and there is no % limit on the points cost for them as part of the army.  In addition, the army's Core choice may be made up of units of either monstrous infantry or monstrous beasts from the Storm of Magic expansion with the exception that Daemons may not be selected.  For the army's Special choices, Monsters costing less than 150 points from the Storm of Magic expansion may be taken, and for its Rare choices Monsters costing more than 150 points from the Storm of Magic expansion each may be taken, and with the only proviso being that in either case Daemons may not be taken. 

*Battles using both the Dread Host special rule and the special scenario will count for 5 CP to the victor and 1 CP to the loser. 

Deadly Ground:

The Dark Lands are one of the most inhospitable realms in all the Warhammer world, filled with boiling rivers of sulphur and hills that are little more than treacherous mounds of bone and ash among which many foul things lurk.  In addition to any other terrain effect, hills are counted as being Dangerous Terrain and any water or swamp scenery inflicts 2D6 Strength 1 hits on any unit caught in it during the Compulsory Movement phase of the player's turn.

Victory Effects:
Victory effects will be listed when the final scenario is released.

Special Scenario:

The Crossing of Fire

This scenario represents the Legion of Azgorh's attempts to block the Chaos horde's passage into it's dark realm.

Armies:
This scenario is for two players.  The Chaos Horde represents the Attacker, and the Opposition the Defender.  Each player chooses their army list from the Warhammer Army book to an agreed points value, with refrence to the outline of phase 3 of the Throne of Chaos campaign, and the proviso that the Defender's point value should only be 75% of what the Attacker has. 

The Battlefield:
The table is set up using the rules presented on page 142 of the Warhammer Rulebook, with a bias given towards craggy hills, lava pools, sinkholes and ruins.  The board is then divided up diagonally into deployment zones as per a Meeting Engagement mission  (See page 149 of the Warhammer rulebook). The Defender may then place a watchtower anywhere within their deployment zone, and may then place three 6" x 1" obstacles, representing fire vents (barricades or strips of material are fine for this) in the gap between deployment zones, but no closer than 2" together.  These fire ventes do not block line of sight; but models moving through them suffer a Strength 5 automatic hit (counted as a Flaming attack).

Deployment:
First the Attacker sets up their entire army in their deployment zone.  Next the Defender  sets up their entire army within their deployment zone.  This represents the Defender being prepared for their enemy's slow advance through the hostile Dark Lands.

First Turn:
In this scenario the Attacker goes first.

Game Length:
The game lasts for six turn or until a previously decided time limit. 

Victory Conditions:
The player that scores the greatest number of Victory Points (worked out normally) wins the battle, with the special condition that if the watchtower is controlled by the Defending player at the end of the game, they gain a bonus of +500 Victory Points.

Scenario Special Rules:
The special conditions for fighting in the Dark Lands are used in the scenario, except that any hills on the Defender's side are not considered Dangerous terrain to them.

Narrative Battle: 

The narrative battle for this scenario – Surprise Encounter is to represent the Legion of Azgorh laying in wait to ambush the Horde of Chaos.  See page 389 of the Warhammer Rulebook for scenario details.

Please make sure to report your battles to me in person, at john@thedeploymentzone.com or through the Ordo Fanaticus forums (http://www.ordofanaticus.com/forum) and message me as Sylvos.

Thanks!

Phase One Results for The Deployment Zone's - Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign.

The first phase of the Deployment Zone’s – Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign has come to a close.  The first phase lasted two weeks and during that time there were 41 games reported and 58 participants.  In the first phase, Tamurkhan is marshalling his forces and establishing his foothold of power.  He journeys with his horde to the battle site of Zanbaijin and defeats the embattled armies there.  Once he has proven himself victorious, he journeys to the far reaches of the Northern Wastes and enters the Gallows Tree where he receives Nurgle’s blessing and becomes a Paragon of Chaos.  

The first story scenario provided was to recreate the battle of Zanbaijin or the narrative battle at the battle of the Azure Flames.  

Here is the list of how many of each army are signed up and what side:

Tamurkhan army breakdown

Chaos	#		Order	#
Warriors of Chaos	8		Empire	4
Daemons of Chaos	5		High Elves	4
Beastmen	3		Wood Elves	1
Dark Elves	2		Bretonnia	3
Skaven	2		Dwarfs	5
Vampire Counts	6		Lizardmen	2
Orcs and Goblins	3		Ogre Kingdoms	4
Chaos Dwarfs	1		Tomb Kings	2
Ogre Kingdoms	1		Dogs of War	1
Tomb Kings	0
Dogs of War	1
	32			26

The Chaos Horde dominated the first phase winning 28 games to the Opposition’s 12 wins and there was a single game that ended with a draw.  A good number of the games (27 out of 41) used the special scenario or the narrative battle.  

End Results of Phase 1:
Chaos Horde – 63 Campaign Points

Opposition/Forces of Order – 31 Campaign Points

Tamurkhan and his Chaos Horde have taken a substantial lead after the first phase but in the next phase they are sorely pressed to recruit allies.  The second phase should provide some interesting results!

I’m going to list some of the really notable battles from the first phase.

4000 point battle of High Elves vs. Dark Elves

            There was a rather huge themed grand battle between a High elf army lead by Tyrion and Teclis versus the nefarious Dark elves lead by Malkith riding a black dragon.  The players used the Altar of Battle special scenario and the Dark Elves pulled out a victory in the last turn by 1 Victory Point.  

3800 point battle of Warriors of Chaos vs. The Empire

            The next epic match up that I’ll report on is yet another themed grand battle that took place between an Archaon the Everchosen lead Warriors of Chaos army and an Emperor Karl Franz lead Empire legion.  The game was finally decided during turn 6 when Karl Franz defeated Archaon in a challenge and scored a victory for the Empire.

3000 point Storm of Magic battle between Bretonnia vs Orcs and Goblins

            The lone Storm of Magic game that was reported took place between a Bretonnian army and some Orcs and Goblins.  There were monsters galore in this game, the battle report showed some Giants, Chimeras, a Manticore and even a few Griffons.  The Orcs and Goblins ended up winning the battle after the Bretonnians could not get them off their fulcrums.

Overall, there was an outstanding amount of participation for this event and I appreciated everyone that sent in battle results.  I am hoping to see either more use of the Campaign scenarios or some more really epic themed battles like the ones listed above.  Phase two has officially begun and we’ll see if the Opposition can rally and win the next phase or continue to let the Chaos Horde rampage across the land!

The Deployment Zone’s - Tamurkhan, Throne of Chaos Campaign Phase 2: The Lands of Stone and Dust

The great host of Tamurkhan the Maggot Lord set forth with baleful lights of the Realms of Chaos waxing above them, casting down their sickly and fabulous radiance on those below.  Under this unhallowed light many were stricken with visions and others were blessed with the touch of insanity by the Dark God's revelations.  Men and beasts fell and were changed, their bodies contorting and mutating anew into shapes more pleasing to their masters, and those around them rejoiced, letting out great howls of triumph, for surely by this omen was their cause blessed.

So it was that Tamurkhan led them forth from the Northern Wastes.  They were as a stain upon the land - a spreading plague of despoil and devastation that burned like a fire through the raid grasslands of the Eastern Steppe, driving all before it.  Ever swelling with the promise of victory was the host, as warriors and madmen, marauders and beasts flocked to Tamurkhan's flyblown standard, and fell in with the horde.  Soon their number could not well be counted, for as numerous as a swarm of locusts they had become.  They shook the ground as they walked, and all that was sane and natural recoiled at their touch.  The Hobgoblin wolf-tribes of the steppes, as vicious and numerous as they were, were yet cowards and fled in vast numbers before the horde's coming rather than offer battle, their small and blackened souls quailing before the shadow of Chaos.  For its provender the great horde emptied the sparse lands about it as it travelled, and ahead of its three legion-strong columns an arrowhead of thousands of swift-mounted horsemen went abroad, spying out the land and falling into savagery on anything they encountered for meat and murder.*

- Tamrukhan, Throne of Chaos

Scenario Rules for Campaign Phase 2 – Lands of Stone and Dust

Special Scenario: Conquest of Giants (3 CP to the victor) 

The Scenarios: (roll a D6 to determine what battle you play – or you may elect to play the Special scenario instead)

D6 Result

1-2 Battle line (1 CP to the victor – see the Warhammer Rulebook) 
3-4  Meeting Engagement (1 CP to the victor – see the Warhammer Rulebook)
5    Surpise Encounter* (2 CP to the victor – see the Warhammer Rulebook)
6    Dark Monoliths of Zhulgozar* (2 CP to the victor) as a Grand Battle (if the models are available) or a Storm of Magic scenario (2 CP to the victor) as chosen.
* - Narrative scenario from the Warhammer Rulebook

Special Rules for all scenarios: 
Hobgoblin Tribes: (Unique Army for Phase) The lands of the Steppe are infamous for the nomadic tribes of marauding Hobgoblins that plague them.  You can use stand-in Orc & Goblin models to represent these.  Core units for these armies can be comprised of Hobgoblin Cutthroats, Wolf Raiders, and Hobgoblin Khans as Hero choices (See the Legion of Azgorh army list for details).  In addition, Goblin Shamans can also be taken as Hero choices, Goblin Wolf Chariots and Spear Chukkas as Special choices, crewed by Hobgoblins with the appropriate profiles, and with Giants as Rare choices (See Warhammer Armies: Orcs and Goblins for details - their costs remain unchanged).

Dust storms:  Scenarios played in the Stone Lands are subject to the cruel and freakishly unpredictable winds that howl ceaselessly through the area, kicking up dense clouds of blinding dust.  At the beginning of each player's turn, both players roll a D6.  If the result is double then for this turn only all units count as being 6" further away than they actually are for purposes of shooting attacks, and a penalty of -1 is imposed to all charge distances rolled.

Victory Effects: 
Victory effects will be listed when the final scenario is released.

Special Scenario: Conquest of Giants (3 CP to the Victor)

This scenario represents Tamurkhan's plan to enslave the giants of the Mountains of Mourn to do his nefarious bidding.

Armies: 
This scenario is for two players.  The Horde of Chaos player has an army of up to 1,500 pointsto use, while the Opposition has five Giants!

The Battlefield: 
The table is set up using the rules presented on page 142 of the Warhammer Rulebook, with a bias given towards ruins, hills and crags as suggested.

Deployment: 
The battlefield is divided into a central deployment zone which is 24" x 16" in size, and a second all round table edge deployment zone 6" wide.  The Giants deploy first in the central zone and the Chaos Horde player deploys in the second, placing all their units within the deployment zone around the table edge.

First Turn: 
Roll off for first turn.

Game Length: 
The game lasts for six turn or until a previously decided time limit. 

Victory Conditions: 
The goal of this scenario is for the Chaos forces to capture rather than kill the Giants which is no mean feat (see scenario special rules).

For every captured Giant, the Chaos Horde gains 1 victory Victory Point.

For every Giant still alive at the end of the game, the Opposition player gains a Victory point.

If no Giants remain captured at the end of the game, the Opposition player wins by default.

Scenario Special Rules: 
Capturing Giants:

Each Infantry, Cavalry, Monstrous Infantry, and Monstrous Cavalry unit in the Chaos Horde army counts as being equipped with grapples and nets.

Grapples:

These are used as a shooting attack with a range of 8" (roll once to hit per unit, if the unit is more than two ranks strong, re-roll misses).  This attack may be used against Giants engaged in combat.  At the end of the Shooting phase the grappled Giant must make a Strength test, with a -1 penalty for every grapple attached to it this round after the first grapple.  if the Giant succeeds, it breaks free of the grapples and can act normally.  If it fails, it falls over!

Nets:
If a unit with nets charges a Giant which has fallen over and passes a Strength test (rather than fighting), the Giant has been trussed up.  The Giant has been captured and can only escape by passing a Strength test of its own at the start of the owning player's phase to break free.

Narrative Battle: 
The narrative battles for this phase follow the same rules as detailed on page 389 or 390 of the Warhammer Rulebook.

The campaign has officially begun!  Please make sure to report your battles to me in person, at john@thedeploymentzone.com or message Sylvos through the Ordo Fanaticus forums (http://www.ordofanaticus.com/forum).