Game 163 - Forces of Nature - 2022/10/23

[Edzig]

Thanks for the report Swordmaster. The game sticks in my memory quite well, as it was one of those where I thought I had it in the bag, only to see you snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

In deployment, I decided at once to deploy my whole army on the right and only aim for the four right-hand zones. With the blocking terrain in the middle, I thought that was the best way to avoid being outflanked and overwhelmed by your more speedy, manoeuvrable and numerous army. I took a while to decide whether to deploy the elementals centrally - which is where I would usually put them - or on the flank. In the end I chose the flank, so as to make the most of Craggoth’s Scout move to put pressure on that flank. With hindsight that was probably a mistake. The hordes at least should have gone in the centre, where they would not have ended the game stranded in the bottom corner, with nothing to charge and not enough speed to get into a different scoring zone. I wanted to keep the hordes and Craggoth together so that both could benefit from Martyr’s Prayer, but that should have been a secondary consideration.

You played it well on that flank, delaying as long as you could and making my Elementals go deep into the corner. And I did not press on as fast as I could have with Craggoth in turn 2. He waited a bit for the hordes to catch up, which was a mistake. Apart from that I thought I played the game OK until my turn 5. (And I agree that you made a mistake charging in your right Drakons turn 4.) I had a choice of targets for the right Brocks - Archers or Silver breeze. I chose the Silver Breeze because I was likely to rout them and then only (!) had to take a front charge from the Storm Wind (without inspiration). That would have left your Storm Wind exposed to a rear charge
from Elementals. Unfortunately, the Storm Wind routed the Brocks and rolled high enough for the overrun to get clear of the Elementals’ charge range.

My other mistake in turn 5 was to overrun with the right Elementals horde. They should have sidestepped right to get them closer to the centre line and able to join in the combat with Sverri in turn 6, or to step across the centre line to be in a different scoring zone. It never occurred to me that your Archers could charge out of the forest and into a different scoring zone.

In the end I had 11 US on the table, but 4 of them were in one scoring zone, where you had none. You only had 9, but they were all doing work, winning you one scoring zone 4:3 and another 2:1 and contesting your centre zone 3:3. You won the scenario 3:1. Most annoying! Are you ready for a rematch?

[Swordmaster]

Hello!

Here is the link to my most recent battle report from the game of Kings of War played on Universal Battle 2. Elves vs Ratkin commanded by Simon in Invade scenario.

Game 158 - Ratkin - 2021/04/25

Many thanks to Simon for a great game!

[Swordmaster]

Hi Ed!

Thanks a lot for your comments on the battle. I can always count on you to do so and I greatly appreciate that! I think it is always interesting to have the summary from both sides. It makes it all so much more interesting to read!

I actually expected the Elementals in the centre as well. They are very difficult to defeat in a frontal charge and can grind through pretty much everything I can offer. I am curious how would the deployment look like if you did. In particular, if the formation was still quite compact or maybe this time, the other units would spread to the flanks a bit more?

It is often easy to say that the mistake was made where the outcome was not favourable. For instance, your Brock Riders could have held against the Stormwind and that would have been a game over for me. If you charged the Archers, that would have been hindered charge against a unit with better nerve. If they held, then that would have been a flank charge for Stormwind. However, if you succeeded, then it would have been a much more difficult situation for me. A lot of “ifs” here

And I guess if an Elf annoys a Dwarf then all seems to be just normal!

I would definitely like a rematch but I am afraid not at this moment. I will contact you with some more details.

Thanks again for the game! And all the best in the current UB2 tournament! You are doing great!

[Swordmaster]

Hi MarkG,

Apologies for a delay in replying.

I don’t mind reviewing my assumptions as to the army composition and how I would like to use it. Even if it means discussing things that go beyond potential constraints. For example, my collection is limited but it does not mean I cannot add to it. In fact, I have some really cool metal models for another Stormwind cavalry regiment I would like to paint one day, even for the sake of painting.

I am also perfectly fine with people telling me that my army list may not be the best this particular faction has to offer. In fact, looking at the current top 10 of the Universal Battle 2 online international tournament, it looks like people prefer hordes of Large/Monstrous Infantry and nimble heroes/titans as the core of their armies.

For those interested, here are the links to the current ladder and to the army lists:

It’s Always Sunny II - UB2 Tournament

Army Lists

What I try to understand is your approach to the army list building and what would you like to achieve. You have just mentioned that you take into account the constraints and you add what may make the army “better scalpels”.

My personal approach is to first see if the change in the army list is what is really necessary. The reason is that I almost always can see how I can play with the existing army. And I know that if I were to change it, perhaps it would lead to another set of mistakes. Some players are very good at making such changes, often playing with different iterations of their forces every time they play. I don’t think I am such a player.

Second element of the approach is that I prefer to play to my strengths. Which in the case of this army are speed, mobility, sometimes a small advantage in the number of units and total unit strength.

Another approach would be to focus on weaknesses. There is nothing wrong in this, just different. For instance, the suggestion with Dragonshield or second Stormwind cavalry appears to me as covering the weakness more. So my question would be, is that change what makes the army “a better scalpel” or is it actually turning it into a different type of a force?

The funny part about list building, that many players love, is that there may be no list that has it all for a particular player. More often than not you would find a selection of choices, equally good, just different. So you can have infinite number of versions of your army list. For many it seems very appealing and trying to gain an advantage at the list building stage will always be a popular choice.

Cheers!

[Swordmaster]

Hi @MarkG,

I am really sorry you decided to withdraw

I really appreciate the fact you are coming with new comments and ideas. This is something very rare. I am simply trying to understand your approach and attempted to convey my point of view. I am very much interested in exchange of thoughts. I am not trying to interpret your thoughts, I am letting you know how I understand them. And I hoped you would correct me if I didn’t.

Clearly I did not do a good job. I hope you will change your mind. In any case, I thank you for your comments on the battle reports, they were always taken as food for thought and the opportunity to see things from another angle.

[Swordmaster]

Hello!

Here is the link to my most recent battle report. Elves vs Night Stalkers commanded by Erasmus (aka DarkBlack) in Loot scenario.

Many thanks to Erasmus for a great game!

Game 159 - Niht Stalkers - 2021/12/28

[DarkBlack]

Thanks for a great game!
Always fun to have some thrilling heroics to remember.

[Edzig]

Thanks for another excellent - and long awaited - battle report. That was a nail-biter!

I also like play by email, for the same reasons. A 2-3 hour block of time for a live game is often hard to find, but finding one or two 20-minute slots to take a turn is possible almost any day. And it removes the time difference factor when playing opponents on the other side of the world.

[Swordmaster]

Thanks for reaching out and offering the game @DarkBlack ! It was much needed solution in our circumstances And I am happy you enjoyed the game, regardless of the result. It is definitely great to have such heroic moments in the battle that turn it into a nice story!

[Swordmaster]

Thank you Ed! Good to be back, hopefully for more regular reports from now on!

Indeed, there are some nice advantages when playing this way. Great to have a variety of options to choose from too!

[Swordmaster]

Hello!

Here is the link to my most recent battle report. Elves vs Salamanders commanded by Karl in the Invade scenario. Played on Tabletop Simulator.

Game 160 - Salamanders - 2022/01/23

Many thanks to Karl for a great game!

[Swordmaster]

Hello!

Here is the link to my most recent battle report. Elves vs Dwarfs commanded by Erasmus aka @DarkBlack in Pillage scenario.

Game 161 - Dwarfs - 2022/01/30

Many thanks to Erasmus for a great game!

[DarkBlack]

What a great game! Thanks for writing it up.
I don’t do it particularly well, but I have great fun playing dwarfs and being stubborn with them.

The beserker lord is still awfully smug and pleased with himself.

[Swordmaster]

Thanks a lot! I am glad you liked the report and yes, I really wanted to highlight the Berserker Lord’s achievements.

[Mikes]

Just got around to reading this years first two battle reports @Swordmaster and both are awesome The Dwarf one especially was a blast to read, but then I’ve always had a soft spot for Elven vs. Dwarven Battles

[Swordmaster]

Thanks @Mikes !

There is, indeed, something special about centuries old rivalry between Elves and Dwarfs. I am glad we can add yet another chapter to the saga.

Cheers!

[Swordmaster]

Hello!

Here is the link to my most recent battle report. Elves vs Forces of Nature commanded by @Edzig in Loot scenario.

Many thanks to Ed for a great game!

Game 162 - Forces of Nature - 2022/04/23

[Edzig]

This was a cracking game - as usual. It wasn’t a great map to be South, with Loot as the scenario. There was a big piece of blocking terrain in the middle of my deployment zone blocking access to the middle token.

At deployment, I thought about splitting my force on both sides of the terrain, but figured that would be a mistake as Swordmaster’s more mobile army would be able to deal with the two contingents piecemeal. With hindsight, I’m not sure that was the case, as he left his centre almost empty and deployed almost everything on the wings. I wasn’t smart or quick enough to think about that at the time, so deployed everything on the left, barring the BoN who was there to make it harder for his forces on that side to swing round to the centre.

My plan was to try to win first turn, push the Hunters past the middle token, use the GAE to seize it, and then pass it backwards to the units behind, whose flanks were protected by the blocking terrain. The plan was good, except that it depended on the 50:50 chance of winning first turn. When I lost that roll it was always going to be tough.

During the game, I think my only big mistake was sending the BoN in a turn too early. I wanted the first charge with it, but I would have been better off withdrawing and taking the charge from the solo King. That way the Elves would have had to keep at least the Drakons facing his way and couldn’t have joined the fight in the centre so soon. The King turned out to be a huge asset in the congested melée in the middle. We both had some good and bad dice here and there, though it may be that the Elves got lucky at moments when it mattered more, but the crucial dice rolls were probably the ones to choose sides and for first turn.

The game was a good illustration of the strength of MSU. In the end, I ran out of units, while the Outcasts still had some spare after all the trade offs in a very bloody encounter.

[Swordmaster]

Hi Ed!

Thank you very much for taking time to add some comments from your point of view. It is always great to have the battle described by both players.

With the full benefit of the hindsight, how would you deploy differently and how would your plan look like if you didn’t bet on winning the first turn?

Indeed, if compared the rolls (I believe there is even a feature in UB2 that allows to collect the data), perhaps they would not look that odd. However, it does matter when particular rolls happen. I wonder if there is a way to make plans that are less reliant on the dice rolls like that. Perhaps this is the reason hordes of Large/Monstrous Infantry are so popular. They seem to have good resilience combined with good damage dealing abilities to do so.

Thank you very much for the game again!

[Swordmaster]

Hello!

Here is the link to my most recent battle report vs Twilight Kin:

Game 163 - Twilight Kin - 2022/10/23

Many thanks to Duncan for a great game!