[dok]

Here's my battle report for the September 25th Colorado event.

The format was the pooled draft format. I just can't stress enough what a great format this is. It totally levels the power ranking playing field, because bringing powerhouse figures just means you're going to see them drafted out from under you. It also means that every game is with a different army, which really tests your flexibility and tactical thinking as a player. The only downside is that it does take some time to set cards up and run the draft each game - a tournament that uses timed rounds should leave an extra 10 minutes each round for this.

My draft pool featured guards and the warden, and some figures that I thought might be good counters to figures other people might bring.

300 Granite Guardians x3
220 Tor-Kul-Na
90 Marrden Nagrubs x3
50 Drow Chainfighter x2
90 Warden 816
10 Otonashi
120 Omnicron Repulsors x3
120 Black Wyrmlings x4
1000 (maximum allowable total)

The only thing I really wanted to include but couldn't was the zombies, but once I hit on the guard theme/synergy, there really wasn't room.

Game 1
Opponent: Wild_Imagination (Raelin, Thanos, Warforged Soldiers x2, Nakita Agents, Kurrok, Air+Water Elemental x2)
Map: When Paths Cross
I played: Raelin, TKN, grubs x3, Warforged Soldiers x2
Wild_Imagination played: Kurrok, Air+Water Elemental x2, Nakitas, Warden 816, Granite Guardians x1

I won the opening d20 roll, which was the "Raelin roll" all day for Steve. That's the risk of bringing an A+ figure to this event. At least he got the yellow start zone.

In round 1, I lost initiative, but still took the defense glyph as Steve spread out his elemental activations. I took out a Water Elemental, but took two wounds on Raelin from an Air Elemental. In round 2, TKN made his way into the opposing start area, and it was basically a matter of time. Steve rolled good defense for a while, but he just didn't have the numbers or the hitting power to bring down the big hivelord, and he never got his figures into positions that could really give TKN trouble.

Other than the one OM on Raelin to put her on a perch, it was the marro show. In the end I had lost 4 grubs (two to healing) and had taken two wounds on Raelin.

1-0

Game 2
Opponent: Daniel (Werewolf Lord, Wolves of Badru x2, Khosumet, Anubian Wolves x2, Kurrok, Fire+Water+Earth Elemental x2, Dumutef Guard, Otonashi)
Map: Hard Eight (Heroic Rune and Talisman of Defense)
I played: Werewolf Lord, Wolves of Badru x2, Anubian Wolvesx2, Marrden Nagrubs x3, Otonashi
Daniel played: Tor-Kul-Na, Kurrok, Fire+Water+Earth Elemental x2

Daniel picked TKN with his first pick. I considered the options and went with the denial draft of the grubs, and the Werewolf Lord. (Note to players in this sort of format - if you're going to draft half of a synergy pair, draft the half that's better to be stuck with alone first. This will keep you from being vulnerable to tactical denial drafting like this.) Things went smoothly after that, with the two of us clearing out most of Daniel's drafting pool.

My early OMs went on the wolves of Badru, with a combination of pounces and attacks with height leading to a few dead elementals. The Werewolf Lord was killed by TKN in the second round, but not before drawing a couple wounds. The real MVPs of the game for me, though, were the Anubian Wolves, who killed TKN with a combination of stomp denial and a well-timed roll of 18 for moon frenzy. Daniel tried to summon his way back into the game, but the Anubians cleaned up without too much trouble.

2-0

Game 3
Opponent: Dylan (Moriko, Mogrimm, Arkmer, Darrak, Rhogar, Brandis, Wyvern, Mindflayer Mastermind, Protectors of Ullar x1, Warforged Soldiers x1, Black Wyrmling, Blue Wyrmling)
Map: "A River Runs Through it"
I played: Warden 816, Granite Guardians x3, Black Wyrmlings x5, Otonahsi.
Dylan played: Mindflayer Mastermind, Brandis Skyhunter, Wyvern, Rhogar Dragonspine, Warforged Soldiers, Blue Wyrmling

The map was a custom build by lafleurhero; it was a swamp map with abundant jungle and a high, narrow central plateau that had a river running under it.

Dylan is a young kid who is still learning the game. His army pool would be a big weakness in most formats, however, in this format a hodgepodge army pool isn't really a weakness. (In fact, chief intentionally went with the hodgepodge draft pool strategy, and mostly drafted from his opponent's figures all day.) That said, he still struggles with OM management and overall strategy, and has trouble using special powers correctly.

Dylan spent his early turns turtling in his startzone while my Warden-assisted Granite Guardians worked their way over the central high ground. I used my black wyrmlings to take out his warforged soldiers, then pretty much let my GGs do the rest. Dylan rolled pretty well on attack dice, and managed to take out 2 wyrmlings and 4 GGs before the end.


3-0

Game 4
Opponent: kpucblek (Deathreaversx2, Mohicans x3, Brave Arrow, Nakita Agents, Gorrilinators x2, DW9k, Zettian Guards, Warden 816, Marcu)
Map: A Stone's Throw (no glyphs)
I played: Deathreavers x2, Mohicans x3, Brave Arrow, Black Wyrmlings x4, Drow Chainfighter x2, Marcu (sit one rat)
kpucblek played: Omnicron Repulsors x3, DW9k, Zettian Guards, Nakitas, Warden 816, Otonashi

This was the only army I faced all day where my Omnicron Repulsors would have been useful, but after I won the d20 roll-off, I picked Chris's two squads of Deathreavers. This led to him taking my repulsors, naturally.

On such a tight-in map, I felt that devoting early OMs to the rats would be a poor investment, particularly given the nine repulsors he had on the board. So in stead, I sat a rat to get under the hex limit, and never activated my rats all game. While kpucblek took out my two advanced rats right away with a DW9k explosion and sent his repulsors out to take out more of them while plinking at Mohicans, I put five of my first six OMs on the black wyrmlings, and went after his high-value unique squaddies. At the end of the second round, I had lost five of seven rats (mostly to overload), plus one Mohican and one Wyrmling, but I had acid-breathed all of the Zettians and Nakitas to death. (The black wyrmling's ability to use fledgling acid breath against one figure while engaged to another was absolutely crucial in this battle.)

At that point, I switched over to the Mohicans, and they had little trouble taking out the rest of kpucblek's army. The Deathwalker roll in round three didn't help Chris's cause much (3 skulls for Brave arrow, one shield for DW9k). I really enjoyed playing the Mohicans - I don't own them, I've never proxied them, and I've only faced them once before (and that was without Brave Arrow), but they are pretty neat. They make you think about all sorts of positioning and engagement issues in a different way.

Interesting side note - this was the only game all day where I rolled for a ranged attack.

4-0

Game 5 (finals)
Opponent: lafleurhero (Tagawa Samurai Archers x3, Hatamoto Taro, Tagawa Samurai, Gurei-Oni, Shiori, Quasatch Hunters x2, Tarn Viking Warriors, Valguard, Otonashi)
Map: Ratcatcher
I played: Tor-Kul-Na, Marrden Nagrubs x3, Tagawa Samurai Archers x3, Drow Chainfighter, Otonashi
lafleurhero played: Black Wyrmlings x4, Granite Guardians x2, Tagawa Samurai, Gurei-Oni, Otonashi

Marshall is one of three players to have a tournament win against me (ManOfWar and Matthias Maccabeus are the others) and he was excited to get a rubber match with our head-to-head record sitting at 1-1. I was excited to finally get a tournament game in on Ratcatcher. I've professed my appreciation for this map in the past, and while I understand the objections the BoV judges had for that map, a format like this one really lets the players adjust to this map's unique features.

lafleurhero won the initial dice-off, and he strongly considered drafting second before picking first and taking the black wyrmlings. I countered by taking the Nagrubs and his Tagawa Samurai Archers. When he picked Gurei-Oni, I knew I was going to win or lose with Tor-Kul-Na.

As it turned out, it was win. I never revealed an order marker on anything except the nagrubs for the entire game. Marshall won opening initiative and put the black wyrmlings up on the plateau. Careful nagrub movement (and an OM on the Granite Guardians) kept him from aciding anything, but poor stomping and attacking rolls meant only one wyrmling bit the dust.

However, round two was a different story altogether. TKN and the grubs took out 2 more wyrmlings up high, and TKN then headed straight for the opposing startzone and went on one of his trademark rampages. Four turns later, all the Tagawa Samurai and all but one Granite Guardian were dead. Marshall used clever placement of Gurei-Oni, as well as some "gain low ground" moves, to force me to disengage several times, and that combined with one great G-O attack got TKN heavily wounded. But it was too little too late, as TKN took out Gurei-Oni at the start of round 4 to end the match.

5-0, first place.

Again, I really can't emphasize enough what a cool format this is, and I strongly recommend that other areas try something similar.