After my previous foray into Battlesystem 2e, I decided to switch up the scenario to give the morale rules a more rigorous test. I had also based a few more of the lovely, classic, "true 25mm" Ral Partha figures onto Battlesystem's rather involved basing requirements (which require no fewer than sixteen different "standard" base sizes) so I wanted to give these a go and decide what I think about so many large, heavy models on a single base.
Battle at the Tomb of Terror
Tralg had been restless since the battle that deposed King Grimmor. Although his victorious rebels had celebrated for weeks, eating through the fat Goblin King's personal larder and enjoying his many fine trinkets and baubles, provisions were once again running low. If he could not sate the small Goblin tribe of Hipple-Dipple Wood, Tralg knew that he could face the same fate that he had imposed upon Grimmor. Worse than that, the leathery old Goblin Shaman realized that he was not satisfied with simply ruling the Goblins of Hipple-Dipple Wood. Tralg had believed that usurping Grimmor's throne would finally satisfy the murderous, chaotic voices that chattered in his little skull, but alas the victory was proving to be more intolerable that his previous state of subordination. Tralg needed more power, he demanded more power. When the King's larder had been finally cleaned of every last morsel of food and the Shaman's fractious, seditious horde came to him for more victuals and toys to feed their gluttony and boredom, Tralg announced a brave, new direction for the tribe.
For some time now, Tralg had been aware of the mewling complaints of the denizens of the neighboring Dark Vale. The Dire Wolves and Gnolls that lived in that foul valley loved nothing more than to chew on bones and bury their misbegotten hoards all over the nearby hills. Some years ago, these crepuscular marauders had chanced upon a near endless supply of bones in the fields of Swampy Bottom, a bit of barren fen into which the bubbling creek that carved out the Dark Vale flowed. Much was their dismay when the bones, half-submerged in the fetid wetland, began to object to the lupine gravediggers and fight back. Seemingly, this field of unlimited bones was so close, but yet just out of reach.
Tralg knew the cause of these unusual events and struck a deal with the Gnolls and Dire Wolves of Dark Vale. One glorious battle, Goblin and Wolf-kin standing side by side, and the pups would have all the bones they could chew—truly, a lifetime supply. Too bad life is cheap in Swampy Bottom.
Tralg's Goblin Tribe
Tralg, 4th Level Shaman
AD 6, AR 10, Hits 2, CD 9", MV 6"
Spells: Magic Missile x2
Magic Item: King Grimmor's Mace (included in AD above)
18 Goblins
AD 6, AR 8, Hits 1, ML 11, MV 6"
6 Goblins with Short Bows
AD 6*6, AR 8, Hits 1, ML 11, MV 6"
Allies of the Dark Vale
Woofer, Gnoll Chieftain
AD 8, AR 6, Hits 2, CD 9", MV 9"
Special Rules: Irregular only, chaotic, berserker.
6 Gnolls
AD 8, AR 7, Hits 2, ML 11, MV 9"
Special Rules: Irregular only, chaotic, berserkers.
7 Dire Wolves
AD 12, AR 8, Hits 3, ML 10, MV 18"
Thrall of the Tomb of Terror
Creakybones, an 11 HD Lich
AD 10, AR 5, Hits 5, CD 9", MV 6"
Spells: Magic Missile x2, Stinking Cloud x2, Fire Ball, Fear.
Special Rules: Horror -3. Only hit by magic weapons, spells and creatures with 3 or more hits.
12 Skeletons
AD 6, AR 8, Hits 1, ML n/a, MV 12"
Special Rules: Irregular only, horror -1
The Battle
Tralg knew that the Master of the Tomb of Terror was a perilous foe, equipped with powerful magic and supernatural ability. Once as a young Goblin, he and a few of his peers snuck into the Tomb of Terror on a dare. Tralg was the only one of his friends to emerge, half-crazed, but clutching the scrolls that would begin his fated path as a Shaman. The wrinkled Goblin also knew that the Skeleton servitors of the Lich were implaccable opponents. Well aware that he could not drive off the undead, the Shaman had two potential options: either Tralg's forces could contest the entrance to the Lich's barrow mound long enough or they could slay the Lich outright. Although the chance of locating the Lich's phylactery in the depths of the barrow was unlikely, either option could buy enough time for Tralg and his Goblins to plunder the Tomb of Terror for valuable magical items that would assist Tralg's future plans for domination.
The attackers arrayed themselves in a semi-circular formation around the barrow mound, spaced between spots of swampy ground. On the left stood the Dire Wolves and the company of Goblin archers. Woofer's Gnoll pack took up the center. On the right was Tralg and his battalion of Goblins. Some 250 yards away, the Lich Creakybones stood atop the mound, next to the entrance to his underground lair. Before him were arrayed 120 skeletal troops in two broad lines, motionless and silent as a gentle breeze whistled through their rib cages.
The Undead host won initiative in the early rounds but opted to let the attackers approach. Creakybones was careful to husband his handful of spells well, knowing they were the key to thinning out the hundreds of humanoid and wolfish raiders who had unexpectedly appeared at his doorstep. The Dire Wolves were the first to bound forward, using their exceptional speed to close within striking distance in a single round. Even a fireball from the Lich did not dissuade the yapping wolves, although it did remove one model and wound another. In retrospect, the Goblin/Wolflike confederation should have reserved the Dire Wolves, as they most of all stood the best chance of slaying the Lich. In AD&D 2e, a Lich can only be hit by +1 magical weapons, but as Table 48 in the DMG suggests, creatures with 4+1 or more Hit Dice negate this immunity. Woofer, the Gnoll Chieftain, and Tralg himself were only 4 Hit Dice, just short of the threshold to negate the Lich's immunity, and the remainder of the troops were below as well. Nevertheless, not much came of the Dire Wolves anyway. Although they passed their charge initiation, they turned tail and fled when their charge came within 10 yards of the undead host. Careening around, the Dire Wolves bolted for the rear, coming to cower in a copse of dead trees, with only the marshy ground keeping them from fleeing off the field.
Next, Woofer and his Gnolls charged in. An explosive melee resulted, as the greedy Gnolls finally got within gnawing distance of their precious bone-warriors. Amazingly, the Gnolls only failed one Morale Check for the first few rounds—the test to keep the chaotic hyena men from charging impulsively. The horror of the undead did not dissuade them, nor did no fewer than two Stinking Cloud spells from the increasingly panicked Lich standing mere yards behind the skeletal frontline. For two turns, the Gnolls chomped happily on the skeletons, wiping out half of their number. Although the skeleton's resistance to edged weapons reduced the incoming damage, the Gnolls remained in Good Order and thus made excellent use of their berserker fury. Finally, a challenging turn arrived with a gauntlet of morale tests—the Gnolls had been brought down to half their number, yet passed their test. The Lich had moved closer to the frontline so that the Gnolls would again have to check horror (now at a staggering -3 penalty). The Gnolls again passed. Finally, the usual end of turn morale check for being in contact with a horror-causing creature (the skeletons) resulted in a failed morale check. The Gnolls withdrew and then promptly broke, fleeing to midfield and subsequently back to the woods where the Dire Wolves had cowered and eventually clear off the field. The crumpled bodies of thirty dead Gnolls and scattered piles of 60 skeletal warriors littered the base of the barrow mound, but the remaining 60 skeletons and their Lich master stood defiant on their precious hill.
During this time, the Dire Wolves had rallied and returned to the field and the Goblin forces had slowly maneuvered into position. The Goblin Archers were particularly sluggish, as they had been out of command for the entire battle and moved a mere 3" a turn. Although they had arrived within shooting distance while the Gnolls still fought on the hill, there was nothing to shoot at: the skeletons were engaged and the Lich was immune. The cumbersome Goblin battalion was also slow to get into position, but mostly because of the tight terrain. There were several turns spent moving diagonally this way or that, and one quarter turn maneuver in order to get into a good place to charge the mound. Tralg was also careful to hide behind the ranks, knowing full well that a single Magic Missile from Creakybones' mighty digits would spell his doom. While the Dire Wolves were the fastest to achieve their position on the battlefield (again), they too were delayed for a turn or so as they simply had to wait behind Woofer's Gnolls.
When the Gnolls broke, the Dire Wolves charged again and again they were turned away the moment their charge came within a handful of yards from the enemy. The Lich, now closer to the front lines, projected a menacing aura over the base of the hill, almost ensuring that any attackers would be dissuaded. This time, the Dire Wolves, having achieved next to nothing, decided to quit the field for good. They failed their rout test and fled back through the woods where they had rallied, exiting the battlefield at the same time as the broken Gnolls, who fled shoulder to shoulder with the Dire Wolves.
While this was happening, the Goblin Archers finally had a clear shot and began picking away at the Skeletons on the hill. Despite considerable penalties (from being out of command, at medium range and shooting arrows at skeletons), the small company of Goblin bowmen managed to pick off a Skeleton model each round. This so infuriated Creakybones that he blasted the impudent Goblin Archers with a Magic Missile and sent his Skeletons (now reduced to 30 soulless warriors) to chase off the archers. Amazingly, the powerful Magic Missile (which caused 5 automatic hits) only resulted in a single casualty. The Skeletons caused another in combat and the Goblin Archers responded in kind. Somewhat rashly, Tralg responded by blasting the remaining two Skeletons to bits with a Magic Missile of his own. (In retrospect, the Goblin Archers were expendable troops and the Shaman should have probably saved the Magic Missile for the Lich.)
With few options for defeating the Lich, Tralg knew that he needed to contest the mound in order to win the day. The oppressive Horror aura of the Lich stood in his way. Even after the Lich expended his last magic missile to blast thirty Goblins from his large battalion, there were still 150 Goblins that could occupy the lone Lich, now bereft of all spells, for some time. If only they can maintain their morale…
The Goblin Battalion passed its initiation to charge, rushed forward and… failed their morale! Worse still, they routed and fled BEHIND Tralg! Now, there was only 60 odd yards of open ground between the Shaman and the mighty Lich. In the next turn, the Goblin battalion rallied but remained cowering some 10 yards behind their leader, looking to the aged Shaman to do something. The small group of Goblin Archers that remained also looked on from the side, knowing they could do little to impact the battle now. Tralg had hoped it wouldn't come down to this. Personal risk was not something that was supposed to come with the job of leading a horde of Goblins—that was the entire purpose of his underlings! Nevertheless, Tralg, ever-cunning, did indeed have a backup plan. For months, he had eyed King Grimmor's Mace, an item of clear magical potential that the fat Goblin King had wrenched from the dying hands of a Lawful Good Cleric. After Grimmor's downfall, Tralg had the opportunity to study the weapon more closely, confirming his suspicions. Now, he would test his theory. Tralg charged forward against the lone Lich, sole defender of the Tomb of Terror, the entrance to which stood on the hill mere yards behind its deathless master. The Lich was surprised by this impetuous move but scoffed at the lowly Goblin shaman, striking him with his 10-sided attack die. A roll of 4 meant but a single wound, which Tralg failed to save. Still living, Tralg struck with his Mace of Disruption, rolling a 5 which was then doubled against the Undead opponent to two hits. The Lich saved one and suffered only a single wound, a mere scratch to his 5 total hits. Almost immediately, however, a dawning panic creased the weathered face of the Lich, sprouting new cracks in his dry skin. His very bones began to shake and vibrate as he rolled a special 1d100 save—an 89! In a moment, the Mace's true power revealed itself, and Creakybones exploded into a million shards across the sunken fen. A roar arose from the humanoid ranks. Tralg and the Goblins of Hipple-Dipple Wood were victorious!
Analysis
This scenario was admittedly aimed to test the morale rules more rigorously, with many overlapping opportunities to fail morale and see the effects of that on the game. Not only were the units a bit bigger than they had been, meaning longer combats and more opportunities to break and flee, but the undead imposed many morale checks (whether from their innate auras of horror or the many spells which could be used to panic the enemy). I also played around with more special rules—not just converting magical items to the game, but fielding irregular and chaotic troops as well. I thought the Dire Wolves were going to be the stars of this game. With a big AD 12, a massive 3 hits and incredible movement, I assumed they would be super cavalry, rushing about the battlefield and trampling all in their way. They ended up being a bit of a joke, losing only a single model and doing little more than running around and nearly panicking the Goblin Archers. The Gnolls on the other hand were absolute champs, aided in no small way by their berserker special rules. They held on for much longer than I expected and greatly reduced the Skeletons guarding the Tomb. The Goblins, who ultimately took few casualties, could have likely done the same if the Gnolls had proven as unreliable as the Dire Wolves, but not nearly with such efficiency and speed (and time is never on your side when facing the horrors of the deathless horde).
The scenario was built to allow different outcomes. If the Goblins had contested the hill itself for one or more turns, they would get a like number of opportunities to retrieve magic items from the Barrows. Holding on to the hill for any number of turns was the trick though, as even the Lich alone could practically ensure that the Goblins would be repulsed. He was immune to all of their attacks and could likely cause a figure or two in casualties from melee every round, but it was his -3 horror check that would be punishing. The unlikely death of the Lich however brought about the best result: it would be several days before the Lich could reform from his phylactery, more than enough time to send parties of hapless Goblins to set off the traps and bring back the most desirable treasures of the Tomb of Terror.
The battle worked well and was surprisingly fast, resolving in maybe 30 minutes of actual play. The large, multi-based stands worked well and the considerable footprint forces you to think carefully about terrain. Units that remained in standard formation (like the Goblin battalion) were incredibly clumsy in the tight terrain of Swampy Bottom. There was a lot of wiggling this way or that to get into position. Units that were in irregular formation, like the Gnolls, had a much better time of it and could actually move through the templates of swampy ground and dead trees, but still they took up a lot of space in the battle line and several times I had units waiting patiently for the boisterous Gnolls to finish their combat with the Skeletons so that I could filter in the reserves. I don't think I've quite felt that restraint in many other mass battle games, although it is a realistic consideration and much of the reason why large armies did not like to fight in rough and broken terrain.
I had to make a lot of determinations for myself as to how to convert various aspects of AD&D 2e to Battlesystem 2e. Firstly, I corrected Tralg's Command Distance according to the rules for monstrous leaders. Otherwise, the new monster stats were fairly straightforward, although I could not figure out what creature would lead the Dire Wolves and ultimately decided that unit simply had a built-in commander who acted like a normal model and would be removed last. This did little to help the Dire Wolves' ultimate fate. In retrospect, I should have applied the rules for animal packs to the Dire Wolves (in my defense, I thought they were more intelligent than the Monstrous Manual actually indicates). I thought about assigning a sub-chief to lead the small company of Goblin Archers, but ultimately decided to see how a leader-less unit would play in the game. The Archers were resultantly sluggish and less effective, although the "round up" rule still guaranteed that they got at least a single hit every turn when they did eventually get close enough to shoot. Oddly enough, lacking a commander seemed to have no penalty on the unit's morale (this, in a game that assigns a penalty to morale for having a bad leader). That said, once the unit does become shaken, it cannot rally until it is again in command (which conversely puts perhaps too much emphasis on leadership, as a shaken unit can do very little in the game). Speaking of leadership, I did neglect a rule that would have impacted the Lich on several of the turns. While the Gnolls were battling his lines of Skeletons, the Lich cast some spells (namely, Stinking Clouds), which should have meant that the Skeletons were out of command on those turns and thus fighting only at half-effect. In the end, this would have likely meant fewer casualties for the Gnolls and probably no -2 penalty for half casualties, but the morale rolls that resulted in them fleeing off the table were all well-above their base morale score anyway.