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.

War by Proxy

 One of the big debates within the SBG community is related to the use of alternative models in our games. There are many different arguments both for and against this straying from the Games Workshop standard but I definitely fall into the pro-proxy camp.

One of the main arguments that I have seen against the use of alternative models is that it breaks the immersion of playing the Lord of the Rings (and therefore ruins the fun) when you introduce models of someone else's vision of the armies of Middle Earth. The question I then wondered is "well who's vision of Middle Earth is the 'right' one to use? My own? My opponent's? GW's design team's? Peter Jackson's? Professor Tolkein's?" 

These versions of Middle Earth can all differ from each other. For example, the clearest description of the evil men in Sauron's service is this line, "They have black eyes, and long black hair, and gold rings in their ears... lots of beautiful gold. And some have red paint on their cheeks, and red cloaks and their flags are red, and the tips of their spears; and they have round shields, yellow and black with big spikes." (Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Book 4 Ch. 3 "The Black Gate is Closed"). This description matches none of the film depictions or any of the in-game factions that Tolkein could possibly be describing (Serpent Horde, Easterlings, Khand or Far Harad) but would it be unacceptable to create an army using proxy models based upon this description?

Artwork from Flight Fantasy Game's Lord of the Rings card game.

There are  many different instances where this variation of vision occurs between versions of Middle Earth:

• Iron Hills dwarves had round shields, mail armour and no spears in the book.
• Game Workshop's Dunlendings wearing head to toe metal armour despite both book and film versions having minimal metal.

'[The Dunlendings] were without body-armour, having only among them a few hauberks gained by theft or in loot....' (Unfinished Tales) and yet a typical SBG Dunland army is filled with armour clad warriors.

• Movie version plate vs book version chain mail armoured Gondorians.
• The book's description of Thorin's Company bares minimal similarities with the film depictions.

Spot the difference between Alan Lee's depiction of Thorin's Company and the film version.

Then there's all the areas beyond the edges of the map and those little detailed peoples or past events that barely get a mention in the lore of Middle Earth. People like the Beornings, or the other Dwarven houses and historical events such as Thorongil's adventures, the Gondorian Kin-Strife or the War of Dwarves and Dragons.

Creativity is one of the aspects of this hobby that I enjoy the most and the ability to explore these different versions to create a unique force fills me with excitement. To then limit that creativity and be forced to stay within the GW aesthetic is very disappointing to me.

Another major argument in the proxy war comes down to cost, especially with regards to out of production models. While I appreciate the view that supporting the creators of the game is important in order to ensure the future of the game I also acknowledge that this can be an expensive hobby and believe that gatekeeping based on wealth and affordability is wrong.

I'll finish by saying one thing, any deviations you do decide to make from the established Games Workshop standard should be made clear and obvious and explained to your opponent before and during the game in the interest of fairness. But as long as you stay within the spirit of the lore and the spirit of the game then in my view then work away to your hearts content.

Faction Focus - Minas Tirith

 'Have you ever seen it, Aragorn? The White Tower of Ecthelion, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver, its banners caught high in the morning breeze. Have you ever been called home by the clear ringing of silver trumpets?'

The stalwart defenders of Minas Tirith have long been a popular force in ME:SBG and it's not hard to see why. This is an army that is iconic in the Return of the King and the army list in SBG features a lot of great options.

'Gondor has no king, Gondor needs no king'

Minas Tirith has access to some of the biggest Heroes available to the Good side in Aragorn King Elessar, Gandalf the White and Boromir Captain of the White Tower. Generally you will be limited to taking just one of these three heroes, unless you are playing a very high points level game, because of how many points they take up in your army. Therefore picking which of these to use is usually the 1st step in writing an army list. Any of the three is a viable pick to build an army around.

They all bring different strengths to the army. Aragorn is one of the best killers in the game thanks to Anduril always wounding on 4s and his Mighty Hero rule. Boromir, while not quite as potent as Aragorn, is still a top Combat Hero who also has the bonus of being able to carry the Banner of Minas Tirith to buff the Fight value of nearby troops. And Gandalf has the benefit of his magical powers which offset his slightly inferior fighting prowess.

'A chance for Faramir, Captain of Gondor, to show his quality!'

Minas Tirith has access to a wide array of mid and low tier heroes and they can all offer something different for the army. I'm not going to go through all of them in depth here (there's plenty of other places that have though) but the important point to think about is what each Hero can bring to the army to fill out the gaps in your list.

For example, neither Boromir or Gandalf have Heroic March so a Hero like Madril is a very good pick to fill that gap. Faramir or Hurin offer a good secondary combat Hero to back up your big Hero and take some pressure off them. Ingold is good for holding your battleline in place and making the most of Shieldwall. And the cheaper heroes such as Damrod or Beregond can allow you to bulk up your numbers with cheap warband drops (special mention to Denethor in this role who can do this with a warband of 15 men, and by being the army leader removes some of the pressure on your big hitters).

That's just scratching the surface of the heroes available within the Minas Tirith army list.

'You are soldiers of Gondor! No matter what comes through that gate you will stand your ground!'

Like with the Hero options, Minas Tirith has plenty of options in their warriors. The most basic of these is the Warrior of Minas Tirith, who can provide a very solid battleline thanks to the ability to reach D7 with the Shieldwall special rule. The 2 Guard models in the Minas Tirith list both offer F4 spear support as well as Bodyguard, although Guards of the Fountain Court edge the contest due to their shield option allowing them to reach D7 as opposed to the Citadel Guard's D5.

As for cavalry, Minas Tirith's only options are their Knights or Mounted Citadel Guard. The knights have more hitting power thanks to their lances but only have F3, which can leave them losing more fights.

'Aim for the Trolls! Kill the Trolls'

Within the Minas Tirith list there are several different options for ranged warfare. Rangers have the important 3+ Shoot value to set them above most of the other options such as Warriors or Osgiliath Veterans with bows. As well they can also be used as F4 spear support for your more heavily armoured battleline. In my opinion these points make them the better option for shooting, however, Citadel Guard with Longbows can be a reasonable option because of the S3 Longbows that they carry.

The other ranged option is to bring along a seige engine or two. I'll not go into too much detail here because I don't personally have much experience with seige engines but both Trebuchets and Bolt Throwers are options for ranged fire support. A trebuchet will force your opponent to come towards your army for fear of a direct hit on a key model, whereas the Bolt Thrower functions more like a group of high strength archers.

Example Army List

Here's an example 750 point army list that I threw together that hopefully covers all the points above. Boromir is the Big Hero, Faramir and Madril the supporting cast, then a solid block of Fountain Court Guard and Warriors of Minas Tirith with Rangers providing ranged fire.

Boromir Captain of the White Tower (horse, shield and Banner)
8 Guard of the Fountain Court with shields
7 Warriors of Minas Tirith with shields

Faramir (Heavy armour, horse, lance and shield)
3 Knights of Minas Tirith with shields
6 Warriors of Minas Tirith with shields
6 Warriors of Minas Tirith with shields and spears

Madril
7 Rangers of Gondor with spears
3 Rangers of Gondor