Life is like a winter storm
Here in Felstad
Duelling wizards are the norm
Drives a chap mad
Might find some warp rifts
Or die in snow drifts
Frostgrave! (woo oo)
Back in the snowy maze of Felstad for tonight's battle report - another clash of Chronomancy and Enchanting, courtesy of myself (Kraken) and Kasfunatu!
Little has changed since our previous meeting. My warband is still scuffed from the first clash, with about a fifth of my dudes staying at home to nurse their injuries. No matter! For my wizard is an enchanter, and between him, his apprentice and some pretty damn sweet dice rolls, they're bringing a pair of large constructs with them to make up the numbers.
Ouch!
The Chronomancer's band is looking much bigger and better dressed than mine, it's true. Snipers, treasure hunters, barbarians - he's got the numbers.
Good job I have the cojones.
Is that the official name for the summoned?
We're playing the first scenario of the Liche Lord campaign, part of the long, slow build to greater horrors. Under a darkening moon, our bands are fighting their usual squabbles, unaware that something terrible stirs elsewhere in the city.
Each round until the fifth, the moonlight wanes as an unnatural eclipse occurs. This means the maximum range steadily drops for the game, to a minimum of 12" on turn 5 and then coming back up. Anyone casting spells on that fifth turn gets a sizable bonus to the rolls, representing a huge surge in magical energy through the city. Extra XP for any wizard lasting that long! Otherwise, it's snatch the loot as usual.
After setup, we have something like this:
So we pitch straight into each other, loping forward in various packs to seize whatever treasure is nearby.
Two turns in, and I'm already behind. The Chronomancer is using his own powers to keep the construct in the middle petrified and slowed as his own team hurries forward. I've already lost my barbarian to a hail of fire, and my wizard is cowering behind the local rock formations as he sets up his telescope to watch the eclipse.
Worse, my apprentice is already down! Our scrapping has attracted wandering monsters in the form of an imp, which scrags me from behind. Our melee is a draw, which means we both take damage simultaneously. And we both rolled high, so down we both go.
It was very harsh, an unfortunate end to the apprentice.
On my right flank, a snowy tower on a hill, one of my thieves hauls a box down the hill as his two pals buy him some time. Alas, the Chronomancer's men sell time at premium rates - although I manage to injure a couple of his guys by surprise enfilade fire from within the tower, he infiltrates a barbarian in behind us. Even though the Conan-wannabe is carting treasure with him, he still makes mince out of the hapless thieves.
Yes, burdened as he was, he was also embued with speed from the Chronomancer and likes exploring caverns. I was also regretting giving my best fighter the chest to carry, and so wanted to put him into at least one fight as he was a new recruit on probation.
My Enchanter keeps a very low profile, although he does manage to lob a grenade into the middle of the enemy at one point. To absolutely no avail, sadly, for the second game running! After that, he keeps entirely out of sight. He's there when the moon vanishes, and then exits the table stage left. At least his golem has dragged a treasure chest home.
Coward, maybe; safe, definitely! It was a sound move given the XP.
Without the Apprentice to back it up, the middle turns into a snipey quagmire. Enemy archers line up along the side of the hill to bombard my poor slowed construct. It takes a long time, but they gradually whittle it back into kindling.
I also took opportunity in the eclipse to cast slow to such a degree that the golem could never dispel it. With only one action, my crew reload and shoot and rinse and repeat.
I've managed to get two chests home, as well as the wizard, but it's cost me everything else I had. Again.
Recovery is kind. Kindish. I've lost a thief, who I can just about afford to replace, but that cleans out the bank account. The treasure haul is a meagre lot of gold but some very nice potions with it, but I also snag a nifty pair of amulets from the Liche Lord treasure table. The Eyes of Amoto allow me to use somebody else's line of sight for casting a spell - great, considering my new wizardly tactic of hiding behind solid objects.
No deaths, and a few hundred gold, plus an intriguing grimoire (the revenant) from the Liche Lord.
My crew decide to move digs, and purchase an inn which they establish as their new base, and quickly employ the drunkard captain who was staying there. His drinking habit is going to be expensive to keep up with, but he looked battle hardened and that he could handle himself; and he had a dog, who could hate a dog owner.
So the band is up to 12.
More soon!
Little has changed since our previous meeting. My warband is still scuffed from the first clash, with about a fifth of my dudes staying at home to nurse their injuries. No matter! For my wizard is an enchanter, and between him, his apprentice and some pretty damn sweet dice rolls, they're bringing a pair of large constructs with them to make up the numbers.
Ouch!
The Chronomancer's band is looking much bigger and better dressed than mine, it's true. Snipers, treasure hunters, barbarians - he's got the numbers.
Good job I have the cojones.
Is that the official name for the summoned?
Total Eclipse
We're playing the first scenario of the Liche Lord campaign, part of the long, slow build to greater horrors. Under a darkening moon, our bands are fighting their usual squabbles, unaware that something terrible stirs elsewhere in the city.
 |
| More of my old DnD floorplans here - a ruined tower up a cliff-packed valley on the right, with a series of frozen ponds and rock formations on the left. We agreed on special terrain rules before we started, and then didn't need any of them. |
Each round until the fifth, the moonlight wanes as an unnatural eclipse occurs. This means the maximum range steadily drops for the game, to a minimum of 12" on turn 5 and then coming back up. Anyone casting spells on that fifth turn gets a sizable bonus to the rolls, representing a huge surge in magical energy through the city. Extra XP for any wizard lasting that long! Otherwise, it's snatch the loot as usual.
Twilight Heist
After setup, we have something like this:
 |
| Chronomancer in red. two big groups to the north. Enchanter in green, more spread out, with an unled pack of trackers and thieves on the right. Treasure in yellow. |
So we pitch straight into each other, loping forward in various packs to seize whatever treasure is nearby.
Two turns in, and I'm already behind. The Chronomancer is using his own powers to keep the construct in the middle petrified and slowed as his own team hurries forward. I've already lost my barbarian to a hail of fire, and my wizard is cowering behind the local rock formations as he sets up his telescope to watch the eclipse.
 |
| There he is, off to the left, staying out of sight. |
Worse, my apprentice is already down! Our scrapping has attracted wandering monsters in the form of an imp, which scrags me from behind. Our melee is a draw, which means we both take damage simultaneously. And we both rolled high, so down we both go.
It was very harsh, an unfortunate end to the apprentice.
On my right flank, a snowy tower on a hill, one of my thieves hauls a box down the hill as his two pals buy him some time. Alas, the Chronomancer's men sell time at premium rates - although I manage to injure a couple of his guys by surprise enfilade fire from within the tower, he infiltrates a barbarian in behind us. Even though the Conan-wannabe is carting treasure with him, he still makes mince out of the hapless thieves.
Yes, burdened as he was, he was also embued with speed from the Chronomancer and likes exploring caverns. I was also regretting giving my best fighter the chest to carry, and so wanted to put him into at least one fight as he was a new recruit on probation.
My Enchanter keeps a very low profile, although he does manage to lob a grenade into the middle of the enemy at one point. To absolutely no avail, sadly, for the second game running! After that, he keeps entirely out of sight. He's there when the moon vanishes, and then exits the table stage left. At least his golem has dragged a treasure chest home.
Coward, maybe; safe, definitely! It was a sound move given the XP.
 |
| It was a brass bull, there in the bottom left. Good, reliable performance, if a bit slow and unremarkable. |
Without the Apprentice to back it up, the middle turns into a snipey quagmire. Enemy archers line up along the side of the hill to bombard my poor slowed construct. It takes a long time, but they gradually whittle it back into kindling.
I also took opportunity in the eclipse to cast slow to such a degree that the golem could never dispel it. With only one action, my crew reload and shoot and rinse and repeat.
 |
| Hit it with everything you've got! Oh, you did. Now it's dead. |
I've managed to get two chests home, as well as the wizard, but it's cost me everything else I had. Again.
Damn You Chronomancer!
(That's a title - I didn't say that)
Recovery is kind. Kindish. I've lost a thief, who I can just about afford to replace, but that cleans out the bank account. The treasure haul is a meagre lot of gold but some very nice potions with it, but I also snag a nifty pair of amulets from the Liche Lord treasure table. The Eyes of Amoto allow me to use somebody else's line of sight for casting a spell - great, considering my new wizardly tactic of hiding behind solid objects.
No deaths, and a few hundred gold, plus an intriguing grimoire (the revenant) from the Liche Lord.
My crew decide to move digs, and purchase an inn which they establish as their new base, and quickly employ the drunkard captain who was staying there. His drinking habit is going to be expensive to keep up with, but he looked battle hardened and that he could handle himself; and he had a dog, who could hate a dog owner.
So the band is up to 12.
More soon!
I'll be humming that theme tune all day...
ReplyDeleteNice to see a campaign unfold. One rules question: can a warband exceed 10 members?
The warband is a wizard slot, an apprentice slot and eight henchman slots. There are a couple of ways of getting an eleventh man on - even a twelfth with the right combos I think - so your dream of Frostgrave Cricket can live on.
Delete- Summoned zombies don't count
- Certain bases (the inn) or add-ons to the base allow an extra slot.
- The new Crow Master henchman brings a free crow with him
- Not really a slot, but if you cast control undead or bind demon on wandering monsters you could get a numerical advantage.
It was the base add-on of kennel that allowed the additional dog.
Delete