Beginners Event - Army Lists

 

These tournaments are acting like buses, you wait for ages then 2 come along at once. Saturday sees a 2nd tournament in as many weeks (making up for lost time).

This event has been tailored towards allowing new or less experienced players the chance to enjoy the tournament experience, with a couple of veterans around to help with rules queries and general running of the event. In total there are 5 players who are totally new to the IHL at this event, so welcome to you all.

This is a 450 point event with a balance of Good vs Evil slightly favoring Good again.

Micheál Bradford - The Trolls

Warband One: Bill the Troll, Bert the Troll, Tom the Troll, and the Campfire.

We start with three monsterous trolls. This is a great thematic list that will hit like a freight train, although lack of numbers might put it at a disadvantage depending on scenario.

Connor Whitla - Thorin's Company.

Warband One - Thorin with Orcrist and Oakenshield, Balin, Dwalin, Bilbo with the Ring and Sting, Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur.

It's widely known within the Irish commuy that Thorin's Company is my favourite faction in the game. Thorin and Dwalin are 2 really good heroes for this points level, especially if combined with Bilbo with the Ring and I hope these guys do well.

Damian Pajestka - Moria

Warband One: Durburz, 1 Bat Swarm, 1 Warg Marauder, 3 Prowlers, 6 Moria Goblin Warriors with shields, and 4 Moria Goblin Warriors with Orc bows + spears.

Warband Two: Groblog, 1 Warg Marauder, 4 Prowlers, 3 Moria Goblin Warriors with shields, and 4 Moria Goblin Warriors with Orc bows + spears.

Warband Three: Moria Goblin Shaman, 3 Moria Blackshields, and 3 Prowlers.

A horde of Moria Goblins. This list packs in plenty of models while also having some room for some fun stuff like the Warg Marauders and Bat Swarm.

Alex Neaves - Riders of Theoden

Warband One: Theoden on armoured horse with heavy armour + shield. and 4 Riders of Rohan with throwing spears.

Warband Two: Dernhelm, and 3 Riders of Rohan with throwing spears.

Warband Three: Gamling on horse with Rohan Royal Standard, and and 3 Riders of Rohan with throwing spears.

Riders of Theoden proved to be a very popular choice on the top tables during the 2020 IHL season. Fast moving, hard hitting and with free might being generated by the Royal Standard, this army is still a top choice.

Ben Hanna - Minas Tirith

Warband One: Faramir on horse with heavy armour, lance + shield, 2 Citadel Guards with longbows, 6 Knights of Minas Tirith with shields, 2 Warriors of Minas Tirith with shields, and 1 Warrior of Minas Tirith with shield + spear.

Warband Two: Beregond, 2 Guards of the Fountain Court with shields, 1 Rangers of Gondor with spear, 2 Warriors of Minas Tirith with shields, and 1 Warrior of Minas Tirith with shield + spear.

Warband Three: Damrod, and 6 Rangers of Gondor with spears.

Warband Four: Avenger Bolt Thrower.

This Minas Tirith army makes use of the cheaper Minor heroes in order to be able to bump up their numbers. With a decent amount of Rangers and a Bolt Thrower this army should win the shooting battle in most matchups.

Mike Wilson - Dark Denizens of Mirkwood

Warband One: Spider Queen, 1 Bat Swarm, and 5 Mirkwood Spiders.

Warband Two: 2 Mirkwood Spiders.

Warband Three: 2 Mirkwood Spiders.

Warband Four: 2 Mirkwood Spiders.

Warband Five: 2 Mirkwood Spiders.

Warband Six: 2 Mirkwood Spiders.

I hope nobody is arachnophobic. A whole host of Spiders that will be hoping to snare their foes in their web. Top marks for theme on this one.

Michael Bunting - Dol Guldur

Warband One: The Witch-King, 5 Gundabad Orcs with shields, and 5 Gundabad Orcs with spears + shields.

Warband Two: The Forsaken, 5 Gundabad Orcs with shields, and 5 Gundabad Orcs with spears + shields.

Warband Three: Castellan of Dol Guldur and 1 Mirkwood Spider.

Warband Four: Castellan of Dol Guldur and 1 Mirkwood Spider.

The Nazgul of Dol Guldur can prove to be tricky to take out thanks to their resurrection ability. Backed up by a group of heavily armoured Orcs, some Castellans and a couple of Spiders for some shenanigans this could be tough to take out.

Jim Latimer - Harondor (The Fiefdoms)

Warband One: El Aurance (Prince Imrahil), 3 Unicorn Knights (Swan Knights/Dol Amroth Knights) on armoured horse with lance.

Warband Two: Fergal Fearnaught (Angbor the Fearless), 3 Clansmen of Velsinir (Clansmen of Lamedon), and 4 Axemen of Harmindon (Axemen of Lossarnach).

Warband Three: Oophir, Desert Wolf (aka Duinhir) and 5 Harnen River Rangers (Blackroot Vale Archers).

El Aurance (Prince Imrahil) will be one of the most expensive heroes attending this event and brings plenty of hitting power and offers buffs to nearby troops thanks to a huge banner range and Fight Value buff for the Knights. On top of that there's a Fearless buff from Fergal Fearnaught (Angbor the Fearless) and some decent shooting from the Harnen River Rangers.

Jack & Ana - Lothlorien

Warband One: Galadriel, 1 Galadhrim Warrior with banner, 7 Galadhrim Warriors with Elf bows, 5 Galadhrim Warriors with spears + shields.

Warband Two: Haldir with heavy armour, 3 Galadhrim Warriors with shields, 4 Galadhrim Warriors with spears + shields.

Galadriel leads this Lothlorien army and provides the best magical support of all the armies here. That support will be important to aid Haldir and the Galadrim warriors who will be doing all the fighting.

Collie Doherty - Rivendell

Warband One: Gil-Galad with shield on armoured horse, 6 King's Guard with shields, 5 High Elf Warriors with spear and shield, 2 High Elf Warriors with spear and bow, 1 King's Guard with spear and banner, 4 Rivendell Knights.

In this Rivendell the King's Guard will have a better Fight Value than most of the heroes they'll be facing which puts them at a distinct advantage in combat. Added to this is the F9 High King of the Elves himself Gil-Galad, who can make short work of any of his foes.

So there's all the lists. Best of luck to all the players and may you always roll 6s (unless you're Evil and it's a roll-off).

War in the North - Podium Review

 

The weekend just gone saw the War in the North kick off the new IHL season. This was a escalation event ranging from 450-1000 points. Last week I brought you all the army lists that would be competing, so let's see which of them came out on top.

3rd place
Michael Bunting
Lothlorien, Rivendell, Misty Mountains and White Council

In 3rd place is a grand alliance of multiple Good factions. At the lowest points value this army offers a large number of high Fight troops that form the core of the army as the points increase. Leading this small army are the two brothers Haldir and Rumil who, while very competent heroes for the points level, are relatively cheap for elven heroes and so allow the numbers to remain respectable. Onto this core force each points increase adds in another big hitter in the forms of Glorfindel, Galadriel Lady of Light and finally Gwaihir. Whilst this means that the overall model only increased by 10 between the 450 point and 1000 point armies, having that core in place means that those hitters can be facilitated.

2nd place
Gary Doyle
Lake Town and Thorin's Company

As I said in the army lists blog, this was my favourite army of all the ones at this tournament. This is primarily due to my ongoing love of Thorin's Company, but also because I have also started a small Lake Town force to ally with the Company. The bulk of this army comprises of a lot of Lake Town Guard. These provide the numbers that are so crucial to so many of the Scenarios. They also aren't complete slouches in combat thanks to the Master's ability to buff them to F4. The area that Lake Town struggle the most is that, apart from Bard, they lack good combat heroes (2 of the main heroes in the list are unarmed for crying out loud). That's where Thorin and Co come in with Thorin and Dwalin offering some real punch. Bifur is a great pick thanks to ability to generate free heroic moves, and Gandalf's magic is always useful to have.

1st place
David Coleman
Moria and Mordor

Defending Champion David Coleman started his title defense with another victory, although this time with a new army. The primary focus of this Moria based list is the Watch in the Water. This monster is a very adept combatant with 6 Attacks at F6 and S6 and when paired with a Bat Swarm to lower the opponents Fight Value is able to threaten any enemy heroes with a quick death. On top of that it's unique deployment rule and ability to pull models into combat with it's tentacles mean that it's a difficult threat to avoid. The Watcher is supported by a swarm of Goblins, with a handful of Bat Swarms and Spiders who can all help capturing objectives and protecting the Watcher by tying up enemy models and giving the Watcher time to do it's job. The final addition of the Witch King on Fell Beast adds an extra measure of control with his spell casting ability and also an extra big threat for the enemy to deal with.

So there's the top 3 finishers from the IHL Season Opener. Also congratulations to Marty Metcalfe on winning Best Painted with his Rivendell Elves, Gary Doyle for winning Best Themed with his Lake Town and Thorin's Company and a special thank you to Paddy McCormick for being the Tournament Organiser.

And I'll leave you with some photos from the event.

War in the North - Army Lists

 "Looks like tournaments are back on the menu." Ugluk (or something like that)

Well, it's been a while since I had one of these articles to post, but tournaments are back in the Irish Hobbit League!!!!!

This weekend sees 12 players taking to the tables for the War in the North tournament, run by Patrick McCormick at Exploding Dice Games in Bangor, Co. Down. This is an escalation event, starting at 450 points and building all the way up to the final game at 1000 points.

The breakdown of lists shows that Good just edges ahead with 7 of the 12 lists. Also of note is the high prevalence of Elven armies, with a third of forces being predominantly elves.

Army of Dunland

Up first we have a horde of angry Dunlendings. This army packs a lot of S4 and an effective use of the Dunlending War Cry could allow this army to tear through the opposition. A limited amount of spear support might cause issues, but multiple 6" banners at the higher points levels should mitigate that.

Azog's Legion, Azog's Hunters and Dol Guldur

Next we have an alliance built around the Azog's Legion and Azog's Hunters list, led by Bolg. Bolg himself is one of the top fighters on the Evil side (if not in the game) and his presence here will make enemy heroes nervous. The basic infantry force of Hunter Orcs supported by Gundabad Orcs with spears means that they should be rolling more dice in the fights than their opponents, especially when in range of a banner. The inclusion of the Dol Guldur contingent at the highest points level adds a few more tricks to the list with the Nazgul and Spiders.

Minas Tirith

King Elessar leads this Minas Tirith and provides most of it's damage potential in the early games. Because he is such a weighty hero them numbers are generally on the lower side with even the 1000 point army being fairly hero heavy. However those heroes should pack a punch and 20 Guard of the Fountain Court should prove to be tough to break through quickly, giving Aragorn and the rest of the heroes time to do the damage.

Serpent Horde and Mordor

3 Ring wraiths (including 2 on Fell Beasts) are going to make this a worrying prospect for enemy heroes (and especially their mounts following the latest FAQ) to face. Those 3 combined with (nearly) fully mounted Harad contingent makes this the most mobile army in attendance.

Moria and Mordor

Release the Kraken... erm I mean Watcher. I'll be honest and say that I'm fully up to speed on The Watcher's rules, but apparently he's quite good. A healthy quantity of Goblins provide back up for The Watcher and a few Bat Swarms help deal with high Fight does while the addition of the Witch King at 1000 points offers another big threat.

Angmar

If you thought 3 spellcasters was a lot, well here we get up to 5. 2 Wraiths and 3 Barrow Wights is an incredible amount of magical power. It's then coupled with a big horde of potentially Terror causing Orcs backed up by a Shade, certainly terrifying.

Rivendell

The 1st of the 4 Elf lists, and also the only one that remains a pure army. Elrond makes for a solid leader and here he is supported by a good quantity of Elven warriors. Cirdan's magical prowess should be very useful in providing the buffs the army requires no matter the situation.

Thranduil's Halls, Fangorn and the Misty Mountains

This army combines a solid core of Elves with some big monsters to do some damage. Thranduil, Treebeard and Gwaihir should pose some questions to the enemy of how to stop all 3 of them and who to target 1st.

Lothlorien, Rivendell, White Council and the Misty Mountains

Well what can I say about this conglomeration of armies. Another army bringing in Gwaihir into an Elven army, this time mainly Galadrim with a smaller contingent of Rivendell. Similar to the last list although with Galadriel providing the magic and Glorfindel some of the hitting power.

Thranduil's Halls, Numenor and Rivendell

And the final Elf army features an alliance of Mirkwood and Rivendell Elves as the mainstay of the list. These 2 Elf lists offer powerful heroes in the form of Thranduil, Glorfindel and Legolas. The addition of Isildur with the Ring is an interesting one which gives this army a few different tricks to play with.

PS. Note that the points cost shown here for Legolas is incorrect due to the change to his Elven Cloak in the Erratas. Therefore the army is within the points limits for the event.

Laketown and Thorin's Company

Probably my favourite list from a purely theme based view point, although that's really just because it's an alliance I've been waiting a long time to try out. Laketown brings big numbers to the army while Thorin's Company provide some fighty heroes that Laketown otherwise miss (with the exception of Bard) and magic from Gandalf. My only criticism is that it's missing Ori and that slingshot.

Return of the King

And finally we have the Return of the King legendary legion. A highly durable core of Warriors of the Dead will make this a tough nut to crack, especially when led by their King. Then Aragorn then brings Might and damage potential to the army and Legolas offers a ranged threat.

So there are all the lists competing. May I wish all the players good luck and I'll be back here next week to break down the top 3 finishers.

Army Showcase - Khazad Dum

 "Dark is the water of Kheled-zaram, and cold are the springs of Kibil-nala, and fair were the many-pillared halls of Khazad-dum in Elder Days before the fall of the mighty kings beneath the stone." Galadriel

I have long been a fan of the Dwarven race in Middle Earth and indeed, one of my first armies was the old Durin's Folk list. However, some of the paint jobs on those old models were beginning to show their age and therefore at the start of this year I decided to undertake a revamp of my Dwarven force. I opted to initially tackle a 600 point army, partially so as not to intimidate myself too much and also to be able to cross off one of the boxes on the Hobby Bingo sheet.

After about 5 months of painting they are finally finished (and as anyone familiar with my painting will tell you that's practically light speed for me). So here is the Army of Khazad Dum.