First Mk3 Steamroller

Ho-di-oh folks !
Yesterday, as you might know, I went to a Steamroller. If you want to check out the list I'd take just click here. Without further mumbling from me, here is the story of my latest adventure.

First Round - Entrenched

Trollblood

Jarl, Devil of Thornwood
- Bomber
- Rök
- Mulg
- Axer
- Runebearer
Horgle
- Pyre
- Pyre
Min Stone + Elder
Gobber Chief
Bunker

Since Trolls tend to have a High Armour and his second list had a Glacier King, I went with my pThag list. I won the roll-off and choose my table side for the wall and trench, letting my opponent go first. He moved pretty aggressively with his heavies and Pyres, so I went forward a little but didn't run much, because I didn't want to end up in reach of his heavies. His second turn, he moved forward again, staying just out of reach of my warspears, but still threatening both zones. I realised that I can't keep back for an eternity, and moved forward a bit, to bait him. Toward his zone, I sent the Carnivean with the Warmongers and toward mine the Warspear and Typhon. As expected, he charged with a Pyre in my warspear and Jarl started shooting off my Warmongers and scored a CP for him. On my turn, I killed the Pyre and put Thagrosh into my zone to start scoring also, while the Warmongers contested his zone. On his turn, he sent Mulg after Typhon, but the great dragon shrugg off the attack, since Mulg had lost is Mind to some well placed Typhon breathes the turn before. Jarl killed the last Warmonger with the help of his Bomber. Back to me, I don't have any other choice but to move my Carnivean into his zone to contest, and I'm hoping he can survive the Bomber. Typhon helped by the Blackfrost finish off Mulg. Back to him, he cast Primal on his Bomber and Axer and sadly kill the Carnivean. I didn't think about it before, but he snacked with his Bomber, so the Carnivean was removed from play, and I couldn't feat him back. The second Pyre rush into the few Warspears I have left, and then only my unit leader remain. Currently, it is 3-2 on scenario for him, but his caster his a bit exposed, so I tried to kill him with Typhon, but missed the first spray (even boosted) so Jarl dodged 2" away. For the sake of it, Thagrosh charged and killed the Pyre troll before lobbing an Obliteration into Horgle face, killing him outright. And then lost on Scenario, because he scored on my turn then on his turn. 5-3 CP.

Looking back to the game, I'd hold back too much during the first turn and I should have been more aggressive, especially during my first turn. I was really afraid of Mulg, because with his caster he treatened 13", but thinking back, sending Mulg into my Warspears like that would had meant that either Mulg was out of Control, or his caster was very forward. Overall, my opponent was a great guy and a very good player, and the game was a great game until the end.

0-1

Second Round - The Pit

Trollblood

Borka the Kegslayer
-Keg Carrier
-Mauler
-Mauler
-Earthborn
-Axer
-Pyre
-Storm
Max Long Riders
Horthol

Since I was in the "Loser Bracket", I already knew that the best I could do was getting 3-1, so I didn't care much and choose to send Lylyth3, even if I knew that Borka had Wind Wall, because I figured that I could try to beat him on scenario. I won the first roll and choose to go first. He chooses his table edge but I didn't really mind since the Lylyth list I played have Pathfinder and Eyeless Sight everywhere. First turn I moved forward pretty aggressively and cast Battlehost, which I upkeeped all game. After turn one, all my army was already at the zone or a bit more forward on the flank toward his flag. His moved as fast as he could do keep up, but he also but his cavalry in the front, but not far enough to touch the zone, and but Wind Wall on Borka. On my turn, I feated, froze all his army except Borka & Keg-guy and a Mauler hiding behind his cavalry. I also killed the Storm Troll and a Long Rider. On his turn, he had shaken off all the Stationary he could, but the Long Riders still blocked him, and he was alreay hot on fury. He moved all he could forward, and even his Earthborn ran to engage Lylyth. He didn't cast Wind Wall do, because he cast a couple of Rush to help his beat moving forward. On my turn, there was 4-5 of his beast into the zone, so I knew that my only option was the assassination, and Wind Wall was not up, so yeah for me ! The assassination basically takes me an eternity to achieve, and he succeeded two tough roll thanks to Stumbling Drunk, but he was so far behing his beasts that he couldn't transfer anymore. After all my Striders, Raptors and Angelius had a go at it, at last, a well-placed shot from my Bolt Thrower put him out of his misery.

At the beginning of this game, I was unsure how Lylyth would play into a Beast heavy list with a Wind Walled caster, and I knew that this would have been a pThag's drop usually, but I really wanted to try Lylyth 3. At the end, the Clock was 40 minutes left for him, and 5 for me, so that also mean that I will need to step up my game but for a first game, that's ok.

1-1

Third round - Extraction

Circle of Orboros

Kromac the Ravenous
-Druid Wilder
-Feral Warpwolf
-Ghetorix
-Warpwolf Stalker
-Wild Argus
Sentry Stone & Mannikins
Sentry Stone & Mannikins
Shifting Stones
Warpborn Skinwalkers
-Alpha

My opponent had only one list, so I had the chance to choose mine knowing exactly what I would be facing. So I choose pThag because I felt like he was the good answer. He won the roll and choose to go first, so I set up and the side with a forest touching a flag, so I could score while being in safety. He made a classic opening move, rushing forward with everything, casting Warpath also. I did about the same, my Carnivean was on the right flank, with Typhon and Warmongers in the middle and Warspears and my left flank behind the forest. On his turn, he killed 2 Ogruns with the Mannikins, rolling hot dice and so triggered 2 Warpath move. His Argus slammed one of my Warmongers and used Dopplerbark so I can't run or charge with the Carnivean. He also moved Kromac very close to the right flag and hide him behind a Sentry Stone forest and two Skinwalkers, because he had no Fury left on him (he upkept Warpath, cast Bestial and Wild Aggression). On my turn, since Kromac was empty, my Carnivean walked up around the Argus and targeted a Skinwalker with his spray and a boosted to hit and damage on Kromac, doing 11 damages. Typhon walked up also and sprayed toward a Mannikins and Kromac, boosting roll to hit Kromac, and finished him.

In this game, my opponent made a mistake, moving as forward as he did, he should have camped at least 2. The game would probably have been very different otherwise. It's no great play from me, just an early assassination.

2-1

Third Round - Take and Hold

Legion of Everblight

Bethayne, Voice of Everblight
-Belphagor
-Zuriel
-Nephilim Bloodseer
-Raek
-Stinger
Max Nyss Swordmen
-Abbot and Champion
Max Raptors
Blackfrost Shard
Grotesque Assassin
Fyanna the Lash

His other list was Absy2 with an Archangel and some more Heavies, so I dropped Lylyth3, 'coz why not, let's try her out again. He won the roll, so he chooses to go first and I picked up the side of the board. They were a bit similar, mine had a forest to the right while his side had a forest in the middle. First turn, he ran with everything and hid Bethayne behind the forest, where she will stay for about the whole game. My first turn, I moved Lylyth forward and kill both the Assassin and a Raptor before shuffeling back. The Deathstalkers killed 1 Swordmen and I sent 3 Scouts to jam his raptor in melee. My opponent his still moving forward, but didn't feat. He ran with the Swordmen to engage my Deathstalkers, the Raek leapt and kill to of my jamming scout. 2 raptors charged my Scouts and one the Angelius, while the last one battle against a jamming Scout. Zuriel also charged forward, and breathed, killing another Scouts. On my turn, I'm thinking about using my feat, but nay, better keep it to make it count since I believe I can win the attrition war. With a bunch of Swordmen on my left flank, I decided that the smart move would be to move my army to the right. I first activated my Scouts to do some melee then my Raptors put some damage on Zuriel. My Angelius also charged Zuriel, and I got triple 6 on my Armour Piercing attack, so Zuriel died, and the Angelius crippled the Mind and Body of the Raek. Annyssa walked his raptor and shoot one down, before reforming toward my flag. Lylyth moved right and had some shoot into the Swordmen and Belphagor. On his next turn, my opponent used his feat, but he only managed to kill the Angelius, Annyssa and another Scout, but did engage my Bolt Thrower with a Swordmen. On my next turn, since a lot of my stuff survive, I moving again way to the right, keeping just outside of the killbox. Overall, my Bolt Thrower killed the pesky swordman engaging him and shot at Belphagor but did low damage. I killed the Blackfrost and the Raek and his last Raptor, plus Lylyth shoot 3 times Belphagor, leaving him on 6, with only his Spirit working. On his turn, he had only a few minutes left on his Clock, so he decided to go dominate his Flag and hoped that he could rush his turn to win or that I would Clock myself since I only had 10 minutes left also. That was all I have been waiting for all game. Lylyth  trampled over to of my Scouts and Fyanna to take position, feated and miss her first shot, but hit with the second, forcing a transfer, hit with the last, doing 15 damage (loaded dice right there), forcing a transfer on Belphagor who die and she still lost 9, but gained a Fury to transfer. I moving in with my 4 last Raptors, hit with first one, forcing his last tranfer, then he concided me with 52 seconds on my Clock to do the last 3 Raptors, which I would had the time to do.So even if I won, several things that I didn't though off during the game because I was tire: Apparition on the Seraph, buying one last attack on the Raek with the Angelius, 'coz he was so dead anyway, better positionning my beasts. My opponent did the right thing, though, but if Bethayne hadn't went out for the flag, I would have want through his Swordmen with Lylyth and Belphagor wouldn't have survived one more turn either, so I was winning on Attrition.

3-1

Overall, I finished the day fifth out of sixteen, so not bad ! Even the guy that beat me finished sixth so... that's a personal victory right there !

Thanks for reading guys !

As always, comments are always welcome.

See you next week !