I had a game versus a regular opponent a couple of days ago and it has been too long since last time I posted a battle report so here it is.
The game was 2400 points using the Battleline scenario. I took my Split deployment list as I wanted to test it for an upcoming tournament. My opponent took Vampire Counts and a promise of a new unit to test (luckily it was not a Grave guard horde, unfortunately it was a medium sized Black knight unit with two characters).
My Empire list:Arch lector: Armour of Meteoric iron, Sword of Torment, Dawnstone - 180p
Arch lector: Heavy armour, shield, Barded warhorse, White cloak of Ulric, Biting blade, Ratslayer helm - 207p
Wizard lord: 4th level Light, Dispel scroll - 225p
Captain: Full plate, Shield, Pegasus w/Swift, Sword of Might, Dragonhelm, Potion of foolhardiness - 158p
Captain: BsB, Full plate, Enchanted shield, Sword of battle - 116p
Engineer - 65p
11 Inner circle knights: Full command – With mounted Arch Lector - 305p
40 Halberdiers: Full command – With Captain BSB - 270p
5 Knights: Musician - 125p
28 Greatswords: Full command, Standard of discipline – With foot Arch lector - 353p
5 Archers detachment - 35p
2 Canons - 240p
Helblaster - 125p
His Vampire counts list:Vampire lord: Red fury, Quickblood, Ogreblade, Talisman of Preservation, Heavy armour, Enchanted shield, 3rd Level Vampire lore - 500p
Necromancer: Dispel scroll, Book of Arkhan - 115p
Vampire: Aura of dark majesty, Fear Incarnate, Nightmare, Sword of Might, Dragonhelm, Heavy armour, Shield, Ironcurse icon, 2nd level Vampire lore - 207p
Wight king: Barded steed, Shield, Greatweapon, Screaming banner - 139p
2x5 Direwolfs - 80p
40 Zombies - 120p
20 Skeletons: Full command, Flaming banner - 140p
40 Skeletons: Full command, Banner of Swiftness – with Vampire lord and Necromancer - 245p
3x single Spirit hosts - 135p
10 Black Knights: Full command, Barding, Lances, Banner of Barrows – with Vampire hero and Wight king BSB - 340p
3 Vargheists - 138p
Varghulf - 175p
Deployment with Vanguard moves:
NOTE: My table isn’t quite big enough, that’s way every unit is deployed 12” in.
Note 2: The engineer is not included, he stayed with the guns the whole time. The Wizard is in the Archer detachment.
So, some comments regarding the ingenious plan with this list. It is constructed so that the ICK unit can act independently of the main block, that’s why it contains an Arch Lector to boost the LD to 9. Deploying this unit on an opposite flank will hopefully draw away opponent units and force him to split his army. This player didn’t fall for that though and deployed his entire army opposite the ICK unit.
When facing stronger opposition the ICK unit will retreat to the base while the artillery and magic will whittle down some units. Here they are in range of boosting spells also other units can provide support.
I did a quick headcount and decided that this view did not look in my favour:
So I will follow the plan and retreat back to base.
Artillery hill view:
Oh yeah, the cannon has a pair of good targets….My Wizard got Burning gaze, Pha’s Protection, Bironas timewarp and Speed of Light.
Opponent got Vanhels dance, Curse of years, Invocation and Raise dead on his Lord. Vamp hero got Invaction and Hellish Vigour and Necromaster took Invocation.
I won the roll for first turn.
Empire turn 1:
I started moving the ICK unit back (Swift reform and 7”) and had to move the Cannon out of the way. I do not know why I even deployed it there…. My small Knight and Halberdier unit sped forward, the Knights are sacrificial and should get in the way of something large. The Captasus moved to block the dogs (forgot to declare charge)just in case they weren’t blown to bits.
Right flank after move:
The Cadian Autocannon is proxied as a Cannon…
Left flank after move and shooting:
In the magic phase I six diced Burning gaze on his Black Knight unit. He used his scroll.
Shooting phase, Helblaster removed the Dogs and the Cannon did 1 wound (Yay!) on the Vargheists.
Onwards to….
Vampire Counts turn 1:
He moved everything forward, small skeleton and zombie unit was out of range of the general so they couldn’t march. He charged the Canon with the Dog unit and the Knight unit with a Spirit host. I fled from the last one hoping to create a small traffic jam or at least slow the Spirit host. Note that he had +1 Movement banner on the Skeleton bus so that unit moved 10”.
Overview of the right flank after move:
In the magic phase he tried to Vanhels his Black Knights unit, I used my scroll.
The only combat was the Canon VS the dogs, I lost...
..). He chose to not overrun because he give my ICK anything to charge because it would only make me go faster. With the combat resolved it meant it was my turn again, the next turn pretty much decides the outcome of the battle:
Empire turn 2: 
I started with declaring a charge on a Spirit host with my Captasus and then successfully rallying the Knight unit. Now it was time to move my ICK unit. Since it was within march block test of the Dogs I rolled a LD test on LD 9 to see if I could march. The first dice landed on 5 followed by…another 5! Oh noez, this was an incredible unfortunate situation. With only normal move of 7” I was within charge range of the Black Knights (needing a 9 on the roll). Not good…
The Halberdiers shuffled forward and the Greatswords reformed.
I tried very hard to get the 5+ ward save on my ICK unit in the magic phase but there wasn’t enough dice..
Shooting, the Helblaster was out of range but the Cannon managed to kill 1 vargheist.
In the Combat phase I managed to destroy the Spirit host.
The plan was to overrun away from the Zombie unit charge arc and not end up in the Skellie unit. I really hadn’t thought this through (or even pre-measured) so the poor Captasus ended up in the Skellie unit.
With an unnerving ominous sensation I passed the turn the vampires.
Vampire Counts turn 2
Yes, he did make the charge with his stupid Black Knights…I was not looking forward to the Combat phase…
The rest of the army shuffles forward and the Vargheist move in position on the Captasus. The Dogs reformed.
To add insult to injury he got off Curse of year on ICK unit and Vanhels on the Black knights (reroll to hit I think).
Picture of my doomed knights:
The Combat phase was short and brutal. He added a decapitating head blow to the already issued insult and injury when he revealed that I had to take a fear test at 1-LD and using 3 dice discarding the lowest result. I failed the fear test, the Vampire hero killed off a couple and the BK’s and Wight King accounted for 7 more. 9 kills total. My knights didn’t kill any one and I had kept the Arch lector in the front rank.
I failed the break test but the ICK’s wasn’t caught.
I pulled my sobbing body together and dragged myself on to…
Empire Turn 3:
No charges this turn, tried to rally the ICK but failed (I had musician but was still in range of the -1LD effect). The failed rally roll was really a blessing because it opened up an opportunity for the Knights to slow down the BK’s. My hopes are that the ICK unit will rally out of harm’s way and conserve the points. Remaining units shuffles.
Fulfilling their destiny…Nothing happens in the magic phase.
Helblaster out of range and the canon misses.
The Captasus adds some wounds on the Skellie unit.
Vampire counts turn 3:
He declares charge on my small Knight unit, I stand in order to slow him down. A spirit host are also just within charge range of the depleted ICK unit and charges. I must flee and does so off the table because of the angle. The rest of the army advances.
In the magic phase something wonderful happens! He miscasts with his Lord on 4 dice (casting Curse I think) and rolls the result where you lose d3 levels and spells. Curse and Vanhels is lost and he also loses the remaining power dice.
My small knight unit gets even smaller as only one knights stands after the attacks He flees, the Black Knights reform.
Right flank at turn 3:
Empire turn 4:
I’ll just do a quick summary of this turn, because of anger management issues. I rallied the lone knight (forgot that only works on double 1’s…), hit the varghulf with my cannon but he regenerated and blew up some dogs with the Helblaster (2-3 dogs, is not shown in the map).
Then the Wizard Kaboomed! and was eaten….next turn please!
Vampire Counts turn 4:
He moves forward with everything, taking it slow. He is so ahead on points he doesn’t need to rush things. The last Knight dies to the Spirit host, magic is uneventful.
The Halberdiers stares into the sunset and oblivion…Empire turn 5:
I decide to try and get some points (and dignity) back by eliminating the Black knight unit. I needed to slow the Blenderlord down so I charged the Spirit host with my BSB hoping to overrun into his unit (thereby keeping it stuck next turn).
The Helblaster opened on the Black knights who finally was in range and removed 3. The Canon targeted the varghulf (I did this in the remote chance I could one shot it) but he regenerated.
I try to get some buffs going for the Greatswords but fail.
The BSB Captain removes the Host and successfully overruns into the Skeletons.
The view from the greatswords:
Vampire Counts turn 5:
In this turn (which is going to be the final turn, we called the game after this) he charges the Greatswords, Halberdiers and Helblaster.
In the magic phase he raises the lost Black Knights back.
Combat, Halberdiers and Zombies are a push and the BSB Captain is eliminated.
In the crucial fight between Greatswords and Black knights things do not look promising when I fail the fear test (-1LD, 3 dice discard lowest. He doesn’t wipe out the entire unit but there are so few left it’s not going to make a difference.
We called the game then, a massacre win for the Vampires.
So, if anyone have some constructive criticism or good suggestions please feel free to post. I will stick to this list however, Im sure the small problems can be fixed.
For this battle I should have placed the second cannon together with the rest of the artillery and the small Knight unit should gone for the Dogs. In regards to the Ick unit I am not sure if it would be better to keep them in place an perhaps hold off the BK block. I could easily have moved the Wizard into range of the ICK unit.
I also will try some small changes to the list, adding Gleaming pendant to the ICK and reducing the point cost overall for this unit. Maybe also try to change lore, perhaps Heavens?
That’s it for now, hope you had a good read.
