New dungeon, new heroes - let's go hunt some orc!
After triumphing in Dwarf King's Quest (almost - we're still waiting for us all to be in the same country before attempting the finale), Leofa and I, Stylus, once again face the Evil Overlord Kraken in a brand new dungeon: Warlord of Galahir!
Anyway, the caper is that Thrundak Skullsplitter, Orc Warlord, has captured a rich merchant and we four have to break into the dungeon to rescue him.
Now now. Say what you like about Dan Brown, we've all read him. Kraken here, looking after greenskin interests during this quest.
Step one involves... advancing down a broad corridor and killing a troll.
Okay. Let's call this one tutorial-level.
There's a bonus mission whereby every member of the party has to inflict a wound on the troll, so no lingering at the back for the weaklings.
But the big news is that the Gladewalker has an immobilise spell (Root - this campaign's version of Feet of Stone) so we can pin the Troll in place and weaken him for our attacks.
We decide not to cast this turn (he's too far away for the fighting characters to close in), and just just advance as one. The Elf tries a ranging shot, which misses.
The the Overlord's turn, he cautiously backs away down the corridor, seeking the suppport of the Mawbeasts.
I was luring you into a trap, quite clearly. Caution smaution, we're greenskins, dammit.
In the Overlord's turn, the Troll has no options, so the two Mawbeasts charge forward (my, those things are fast!) and take a chomp out of the Gladewalker and Salamander, respectively.
He also summons a pack of Orclings to scuttle up behind us.
Yeah, I've got some new tricks to play with here, and summoning Orclings is the first of the new Orc-flavour Overlord cards. Orclings are an interesting pick - they're reasonably durable, but can't actually attack. The rule for this is called 'pesky', which is pretty appropriate. They're also rather slow, and I can't drop them on sections with a hero already in, but my options were pretty limited otherwise.
In the Overlord's turn, there's nothing much to do but bash the Dwarf on the head and scuttle the Orclings forward (who aren't as fast at Mawbeasts, so unlikely to see action). The Troll also regenerates one of his wounds, so there's still a few to hack away.
That Root spell in the previous turn was actually the right time to cast it, I think. Otherwise I'd have backed further into the corner and protected my vulnerable trollish rump. As it is, stuck in the middle of the room and surrounded by angry hero types, my mighty troll swiftly looks rather feeble. I have a horrible suspicion that Legolas might suddenly jump on its head and shoot arrows down its throat.
Being so hopelessly surrounded, the poor Troll can now only flail about and fail to regenerate wounds.
Right now, he feels so dangerous, he ought to have a shock of neon hair.
... which is enough to kill him. Primary and secondary missions achieved - go team!
Yeah, but don't forget, this game is generally rather forgiving for the heroes. Even so, I thought the Troll would do better than he did. Leaving him in the middle of a room was a ticket to die against these experienced slayers. Always remember, backs to the wall in the dungeon, chaps.
Either way, nice to get some different models into a new dungeon!
As a bonus, the characters can accrue experience points for mission success and general enemy-slaying. I forget what we get with enough points, but I'm sure it's going to be awesome.
It sure is! A one-shot whole bonus dice, to be added to the roll of your choice! (combat, ranged attack, spell or defence, no apparent rule to stop you taking it above the normal max of six dice, numbers may roll up as well as down)
This seems a good enough place to record it:
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| Say hello to Guraf, Kapoka, Hrrath and Thessilar |
After triumphing in Dwarf King's Quest (almost - we're still waiting for us all to be in the same country before attempting the finale), Leofa and I, Stylus, once again face the Evil Overlord Kraken in a brand new dungeon: Warlord of Galahir!
Mission 1: Breaking and Entering
"Grund’s beard, that smells disgusting!” Guraf’s disgusted nose wrinkled disgustedly with disgust..." (I'm very impressed that they hired Dan Brown to write the flavour text).Anyway, the caper is that Thrundak Skullsplitter, Orc Warlord, has captured a rich merchant and we four have to break into the dungeon to rescue him.
Now now. Say what you like about Dan Brown, we've all read him. Kraken here, looking after greenskin interests during this quest.
Step one involves... advancing down a broad corridor and killing a troll.
Okay. Let's call this one tutorial-level.
Deployment
No extra chambers here - what you see at the start is the entire dungeon. There is only one door to open (and at 5/5, it's a brute), but you can circumvent that by killing the troll (also a brute).There's a bonus mission whereby every member of the party has to inflict a wound on the troll, so no lingering at the back for the weaklings.
Turn 1
We spend most of the first turn reviewing our new (sadly-truncated: we are no longer legendary - boo!) abilities. The Dwarf and Elf are similar (although the Dwarf seems a bit more fighty), the Salamander is the barbarian-substitute (albeit more durable, with some bonus abilities) and the Gladewalker is our spellcaster (more durable than the wizard, but his starting spelldeck is less exciting - hopefully this will improve).But the big news is that the Gladewalker has an immobilise spell (Root - this campaign's version of Feet of Stone) so we can pin the Troll in place and weaken him for our attacks.
We decide not to cast this turn (he's too far away for the fighting characters to close in), and just just advance as one. The Elf tries a ranging shot, which misses.
The the Overlord's turn, he cautiously backs away down the corridor, seeking the suppport of the Mawbeasts.
I was luring you into a trap, quite clearly. Caution smaution, we're greenskins, dammit.
Turn 2
Even though we're still not in range of the Troll, we cast Root anyway (we either lost patience, or else got jumpy about the Overlord playing an interrupt, such is our abject fear of those Interrupt cards).
So the Troll stays where he is, everyone advances closer (Elf notwithstanding, we're not a fast party) and the Elf tries to shoot a Mawbeast, but fails.
In the Overlord's turn, the Troll has no options, so the two Mawbeasts charge forward (my, those things are fast!) and take a chomp out of the Gladewalker and Salamander, respectively.
He also summons a pack of Orclings to scuttle up behind us.
Yeah, I've got some new tricks to play with here, and summoning Orclings is the first of the new Orc-flavour Overlord cards. Orclings are an interesting pick - they're reasonably durable, but can't actually attack. The rule for this is called 'pesky', which is pretty appropriate. They're also rather slow, and I can't drop them on sections with a hero already in, but my options were pretty limited otherwise.
Turn 3
Time to get stuck in! Though he is no longer rooted the spot, the Dwarf toddles forward and knocks a couple of wounds off the Troll (so that's his allocation done). Elsewhere the Salamander kills his Mawbeast, and the Elf shoots the other. While his Root spell recharges, he throws around a few protective buffs.In the Overlord's turn, there's nothing much to do but bash the Dwarf on the head and scuttle the Orclings forward (who aren't as fast at Mawbeasts, so unlikely to see action). The Troll also regenerates one of his wounds, so there's still a few to hack away.
That Root spell in the previous turn was actually the right time to cast it, I think. Otherwise I'd have backed further into the corner and protected my vulnerable trollish rump. As it is, stuck in the middle of the room and surrounded by angry hero types, my mighty troll swiftly looks rather feeble. I have a horrible suspicion that Legolas might suddenly jump on its head and shoot arrows down its throat.
Turn 4
The Root spell is recharged, which means the Troll can once more be immobilised and dog-piled. the Salamander and Elf rush around the back, for optimum combat bonuses (rooted, outnumbered and rear-charged). They each knock of their share of wounds, though the Gladewalker, who can only make it around the side, and is generally weedier, fails to harm.Being so hopelessly surrounded, the poor Troll can now only flail about and fail to regenerate wounds.
Right now, he feels so dangerous, he ought to have a shock of neon hair.
Turn 5
We're straight into it, and the Gladewalker needs to earn his kill, so he doesn't even cast his spell, just dashes around the back and whacks the Troll for all his worth...
... which is enough to kill him. Primary and secondary missions achieved - go team!
Back at the Tavern
Hardly the most complex of missions, but it served as a gently get-to-know-you for the adventurers. I think we've certainly licked the basics of Troll-killing by now, so I think this could have been a wee bit more challenging, since it would almost inevitably be played by veterans of Dwarf King's Quest.Yeah, but don't forget, this game is generally rather forgiving for the heroes. Even so, I thought the Troll would do better than he did. Leaving him in the middle of a room was a ticket to die against these experienced slayers. Always remember, backs to the wall in the dungeon, chaps.
Either way, nice to get some different models into a new dungeon!
As a bonus, the characters can accrue experience points for mission success and general enemy-slaying. I forget what we get with enough points, but I'm sure it's going to be awesome.
It sure is! A one-shot whole bonus dice, to be added to the roll of your choice! (combat, ranged attack, spell or defence, no apparent rule to stop you taking it above the normal max of six dice, numbers may roll up as well as down)
This seems a good enough place to record it:
- Kapoka (Gladewalker): 1 kills + 1 exp
- Hrrath (Salamander): 1 kills + 1 exp
- Thessilar (Elf): 1 kills + 1 exp
- Guraf (Dwarf): 0 kills + 1 exp
We're back in the dungeon next week!
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