as promised, here is the detailed report on the last game in Lübeck. This time I had the chance to face Cameron aka Dennis (NTR 5) again. After selling his Wadrhun army, he's now fully focusing on his first faction, the City States. He's gotten quite comfortable with them and brings a strong list to the table. But before I go into the details, here’s my army list again for better context:
== Warlord Priory Commander Sealed Temple [110]:
* Order of the Sealed Temple 3 [205]: Standard Bearer
* Order of the Sealed Temple 3 [205]: Standard Bearer
* Order of the Ashen Dawn 3 [265]: Standard Bearer
* Order of the Ashen Dawn 3 [250]:
== Warlord Imperial Officer [90]: Brace for Impact, On Your Feet
* Men at Arms 3 [105]:
* Mercenary Crossbowmen 3 [105]:
* Mercenary Crossbowmen 3 [105]:
* Mercenary Crossbowmen 3 [105]:
== Priory Commander Crimson Tower [160]: Olefant's Roar, Long Lineage
* Order of the Crimson Tower 4 [295]: Standard Bearer
Dennis played a currently very popular variant of the Expert Scouts City States. This version is particularly dangerous because it grants Vanguard to all infantry units while also allowing the two Titans to enter the game from round 3, thanks to the Talos' flank bonus. When it comes to the Vanguard list, there are essentially two possible variants: a list with the Agema or one with the Thorakites. I’ve been planning to write an article on this type of list for a while because, with Expert Scouts, for just 50 points you get an ability that surpasses all other comparable supremacies. However, Para Bellum has hinted that they will adjust this ability, which is why I haven’t put in the effort yet.
Recently, this list has often been enhanced with chariots, which in my opinion are currently far too strong. They hit way too well and offer tremendous flexibility. Personally, I think it’s a bit over the top, but since we have several City States players in our group, I’ve had plenty of practice against this archetype and knew pretty much exactly what to expect.
Additionally, Nino, another player in our group, bought City States a few weeks ago. In the week before this game, I played against almost identical lists four times, so I was well-prepared. Interestingly, there is currently no active Hundred Kingdoms player in Lübeck, which might have made my playstyle a bit unpredictable for Dennis. Although I usually play against Dennis regularly, we’ve had only a few games so far this year, and I haven’t attended the Lübeck game day for the past two months. As a result, Dennis was unfamiliar with my Sealed Temple. Even though, through his experience with the Agema, he could estimate the charge clash distances well, there’s one crucial aspect that makes the Sealed Temple particularly dangerous against lightly armored opponents – the impact hits.
The City States [2000/2000]
== (Warlord) Aristarch [150]: Primodynamic Globe, Expert Scouts
* Selinoi (3) [130]:
* Selinoi (3) [130]:
* Agema (3) [195]: Andromachos
* War Chariots (Flogobollon//Skorpios) (3) [390]: Skorpios
== Polemarch [130]: Blades of Eakides
* Agema (3) [195]: Andromachos
* Talos (1) [260]: Mask of Eris
* Hephaestian (1) [240]:
* Minotaur Haspists (3) [180]:
The scenario played was "Divide and Conquer," where the objective is to divide the battlefield into several zones and control them. The battlefield was especially interesting, with three blocking terrain pieces. Two of these were positioned so close to the edges that only two stands could pass through at a time. In the center was a hill, with a fog bank to the left, and on each side there was a forest and another hill. This terrain gave the chariots almost free firing lanes, and thanks to Fire and Advance, they could quickly hide behind obstacles after an attack. This was, of course, a strategic advantage I had to factor in from the start.
Since I knew I wouldn’t score points early, my plan was to march as centrally as possible so that the chariots would have to expose themselves if they wanted to shoot at me.
However, that was easier said than done, as Dennis' Selinoi marched onto the field at a breathtaking pace of 21" and established the reinforcement line about 15" into the battlefield. From there, his chariots, with their narrow profile, could drive onto the field and even shoot from the flank. This created an almost absurd threat range from the side, but the key factor was that they couldn’t use Fire and Advance in the turn they entered the game. For this reason, Nino often held back one or two chariots until round 3 in many games. This forces the opponent to eventually position themselves in a way that makes them vulnerable to the chariots, and many players lose track of them by the time they enter the game in round 3.
In the first round, I received two units of crossbows, while Dennis got a unit of Selinoi. He started by placing his Selinoi into his strategy deck to immediately get a movement of 7. I then deployed my first crossbows. His Selinoi stormed 21" onto the battlefield and cleverly positioned themselves next to the hill, so my first crossbows couldn’t see them. However, they were already within the move, move, shoot range of my second crossbow unit, which had entered the field thanks to Vanguard. These immediately shot and wiped out a stand. Of course, they were outside the 16" range, but despite only having six shots, five of them hit. Sometimes you almost feel bad for such a lucky roll, but City States deserved it at that moment.
In the second round, I brought in my last crossbows, both units of Sealed Temple, and the Man-at-Arms onto the field. Dennis, on the other hand, brought in the Minotaurs ("the cows"), both Agema, and three chariots. This gave the City States a clear card advantage, especially since their army special rule allows them to modify their cards by essentially +1 – one of the best rules in the game. It’s clear that Para Bellum has a particular fondness for this faction. Not only are the City States receiving many new, impressive models at the moment, but their rules have also become so strong that they are now one of the top three factions in the game.
Nevertheless, I stuck to my original plan and built my deck just as I had in the first round. My crossbows were deployed first to shoot at the Selinoi, followed by the characters, the Man-at-Arms, the other crossbows, and finally the cavalry.
Dennis started the round by moving his Selinoi a little further forward and shooting at my troops, dealing three wounds. In response, my crossbows returned fire, dealing three wounds to the Selinoi. Then, he placed another unit into his strategy deck, likely the Minotaurs, as he wanted to secure points in the central zone and neither the Agema nor the chariots were in range for a safe position. A series of troop movements followed, with the chariots entering the game relatively early because the Agema were still at the end of the deck. Dennis carefully positioned the chariots, with one on the right flank and another directly behind the Minotaurs, who had just moved into the middle zone. The Aristarch's Agema positioned themselves behind the Minotaurs on the right, while the other Agema took position behind the Selinoi on the left flank. At this point, Dennis led 3-0, but he was visibly frustrated with my positioning, which, of course, gave me some satisfaction.
In the third round, I finally received my Ashen Dawn, while Dennis brought all of his remaining units onto the field. Since Dennis had to keep the Sealed Temple in mind with every move, I decided to place both units of Sealed Temple lower in my deck to deploy them strategically later. I inserted the crossbows in between to be able to react more flexibly. I was willing to sacrifice the crossbows to create better positions for the Ashen Dawn and Sealed Temple. Unfortunately, Dennis went first again and nearly wiped out an entire crossbow unit. To make matters worse, I couldn’t land the one crucial hit I needed to eliminate a stand of the Selinoi.
The usual "placeholder" activations followed: characters moved, the Minotaurs ("cows") held their position, chariots repositioned, and the activations dragged on. However, the highlight was when Dennis moved one of his chariots to the right flank, and another one pushed just behind the Minotaurs towards the middle zone, but not into it. I saw an opportunity here: if I could successfully charge the chariot on the right flank, I might be able to push the Minotaurs out of the zone.
I positioned my first Ashen Dawn on the right side in a small zone for protection and placed the second unit behind the heavily depleted crossbows. On the left side, the remaining Selinoi moved towards me, providing cover for the chariot that aimed to put the central left zone under fire. The moment of decision had arrived: should I try to ruin Dennis' game and crush his hopes? Both Sealed Temple units could charge one of his chariots with Reform, Move, Charge on a 3+. Up until this point, I hadn’t measured the distance to avoid alerting Dennis prematurely. But now I had to measure, and I realized I needed a 3 to succeed in the charge. I don’t like rolling for charges, but my biggest worry was that the Sealed Temple might completely destroy the chariot with their 12 impact hits. However, that was unlikely, and the potential strategic gain was huge. So, I went for the charge. Thanks to the reroll, I made it, and as expected, the chariot barely survived.
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That, however, blocked the Agema, which I was happy about. Dennis activated his Agema next, and I shot down his chariot, which visibly displeased him. At least it gave him the chance to activate his last chariot on the left side, which in turn opened the way for my other Sealed Temple unit to charge again.
In our group, we often refer to the Order of the Sealed Temple as the "Order of Fluid Formation." It’s one of the second or third best units in the army book, and not just because it unlocks the Ashen Dawn. Afterward, Dennis brought his two Titans onto the field, with the Talos and a forest positioning themselves behind the weaker Titan. He obviously wanted to prevent me from starting the next round with Blessed and launching a charge clash against his Minotaurs. Nonetheless, I put the Sealed Temple as my first card to try and catch the Minotaurs, even if the Sealed Temple wouldn’t survive the next exchange.
But before that, his remaining Agema on the left had to decide whether to move into the zone — and thus within charge range of the Ashen Dawn — or to position themselves safely further back. They opted to stay back and avoid the fight. By the end of the third round, the score was tied at 3:3.
In round four, it finally happened: my Crimson Tower, affectionately called "Murder Ponies," appeared on the battlefield. Two of Dennis' chariots were practically out of the game, and if I got the first turn, all hell would break loose. So, I placed the first Sealed Temple at the top of my deck, followed by the Ashen Dawn, the characters, the Man-at-Arms, the Crimson Tower, the other Sealed Temple, and finally the crossbows to finish off any remaining units. Last but not least, the Ashen Dawn came in.
Of course, I activated my Commander’s Supremacy ability for Blessed and Hardened, which would give me a decisive advantage in the upcoming round. But before I could start my turn, Dennis had the chance to act first. His first Titan, the Hephaestian, charged through the forest into the Sealed Temple standing next to the Minotaurs. With 10 attacks, he landed only one hit, which I blocked without even needing Blessed. Dennis was visibly frustrated by the Hephaestian's performance, and this frustration would continue in the following rounds.
Now it was my turn: the other Sealed Temple took out the remaining chariot and turned towards the Selinoi, who in turn decided to attack the Sealed Temple. Despite Blessed, the Selinoi inflicted three damage. I then performed a move-charge with the right Ashen Dawn onto the Minotaurs, which blocked the Agema standing behind them. The remaining chariot had to move forward to shoot at the Sealed Temple, which it did, dealing another three damage to them. The round went largely in my favor: the Talos performed a move-charge into my Sealed Temple, but thanks to Blessed, two stands stood firm in the zone.
Since I wanted to prevent Dennis from unexpectedly pushing into the zone, I made sure to move the Man-at-Arms into it as a precaution. While the Agema of the Polemarch could have attempted a risky move-charge into the zone on a roll of 6, I didn't want to take any chances and avoided any surprises. On the right side, the Crimson Tower advanced, right in front of a chariot. The Hephaestian took nine damage from the Sealed Temple and crossbows because he failed all of his defense rolls—none at all. No armor save, no morale save.
Dennis, who was now struggling to gain a foothold anywhere, could barely deal any damage to the Ashen Dawn with his Minotaurs, as they were extremely resilient thanks to Hardened. In a final effort, he tried to place his Polemarch in the left central zone to prevent me from scoring points. However, a single crossbow unit had already moved into that area, and Dennis had to stay one inch away or engage in close combat. He chose not to engage, likely because it would have forced him to use Fluid Formation, which would have put him within range of my Ashen Dawn. Eventually, he found a position that worked. I then informed him that in my next activation, I would simply charge his remaining Selinoi with my Ashen Dawn, which would push his Polemarch out of the zone. Consequently, Dennis repositioned his Polemarch elsewhere, and the Selinoi were wiped out by the impact hits of my Ashen Dawn.
In the end, I secured two zones and built a small lead: 8–3.
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In round five, my Crimson Tower came out as the first card. Their goal was clear: to destroy the last chariot and prevent it from shooting into the flank. Moreover, the City States still had their Supremacy, and if I didn’t start, I might have to activate in front of the Minotaurs. I preferred to eliminate Dennis's cards in this phase. My deck construction was a bit different than expected, with the Crimson Tower first, followed by the Sealed Temple, Man-at-Arms, characters, Ashen Dawn, and the crossbows.
Of course, the City States started again, and the Talos managed to reduce the Sealed Temple to one life. Then the Agema, together with the Polemarch, charged the Ashen Dawn on the left side and inflicted 11 damage, leaving only two stands remaining. Overall, this was less damage than I had expected. I eliminated the last chariot with the Crimson Tower, and the left Sealed Temple barely failed to take out the last Selinoi. The Hephaestian then had a chance to redeem his failure from the last round. It couldn’t be that hard to kill one life from the last remaining Sealed Temple and then push into the Man-at-Arms positioned behind them with his charge. It was difficult, but he barely succeeded.
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The Man-at-Arms suffered heavy losses but held their ground. It turned out that this Titan had only made a single successful armor save throughout the entire game.
The Agema on the right side were blocked, while the Agema of the Polemarch fell victim to one crossbow stand and two Ashen Dawn. Dennis's cards were out, and I still had Ashen Dawn. The Minotaurs succumbed to the attacks of two regiments of crossbows and the Ashen Dawn, who then moved into the flank of the other Agema. No impact hits because of the forest, and we both held a zone. The score was 11–5.
In the sixth round, what was inevitable happened: I started the turn, and both Dennis's Warlord and the Agema fell. While the two Titans might have still saved the situation, the Hephaistion fell in the fighting with the Officer. It turned out that this Titan had only made a single successful armor save throughout the entire game, and the Selinoi also went home. For the rest of the game, I focused my fire on the Talos while holding two and later three zones. The Talos stubbornly remained in his zone and held out defiantly—but in the end, it wasn't enough. Victory for the brave humans!
Reflection on Army Composition
Overall, I find the current playstyle of the Hundred Kingdoms to be less flexible. I particularly miss the previously scoring Rangers with Officer, which allowed for greater strategic diversity. The current dependence on the Ashen Dawn represents, in my view, a weak point for the faction. With this unit, the Hundred Kingdoms are in the middle tier, but without it, the faction tends to fall behind. Detractors might say it’s at the bottom of the food chain, and for this reason, a moderate adjustment nerf for the Ashen Dawn, combined with buffs for other units in the faction, could significantly improve balance.
The current focus on the Ashen Dawn causes other units to lose significance and greatly restricts army composition. Their strength and versatility compared to other options necessitate designing armies around this unit. At the same time, the faction struggles to keep pace with the stronger units from other factions without the Ashen Dawn. Similar considerations can be applied to the Incarnates of the Spire. It may be worthwhile to pursue a more moderate design direction for these extreme high-stat profiles.- Warlord 1 Priory Commander – Sealed Temple: The Quicksilver Strike ability is often ineffective, while The First Blessing consistently provides strong support. Combined with the Sealed Temple regiment, the Priory Commander gives the unit enough hitting power to take on stronger opponents. However, it's crucial not to sacrifice him too early, as doing so would negate the benefits of The First Blessing.
- Warlord 2 Imperial Officer + Man at Arms: This block costs 200 points, making it relatively expensive and not particularly efficient, which is why it is seldom played. Nonetheless, I currently want two regiments that can score in Round 2, and this is the only viable option available. The Man at Arms are less present in the current meta, which is understandable given their static role.
- Order of the Sealed Temple: This unit has proven solid in every game, even against strong opponents like the Dweghom. The Fluid Formation rule remains one of the best in the game, providing impressive tactical flexibility. Their threat range is good, but their melee damage remains limited without a successful charge. Despite this limitation, the overall package is solid, especially since they score as a Medium Regiment.- Order of the Ashen Dawn: The Ashen Dawn is currently the strongest unit of the faction, which leads to other units often taking a backseat. It’s interesting to note that Marcus and I use them quite differently. For me, they are living tanks meant to absorb enemy attacks, while Marcus employs them as an offensive all-purpose weapon.
- Order of the Crimson Tower with Olefant's Roar: The "Murder Ponies" have, once again, not impressed in this tournament. Although they offer high damage potential at 500 points, they were rarely needed. A more flexible alternative might have been a better choice.
- Mercenary Crossbowmen: There is criticism from Nick that three regiments of crossbowmen are too few, as I start to worry if I have less than eight. However, since I only own four, I’ve never pursued this tactic, though I appreciate Nick's concern for my health. Eight regiments also don't seem particularly efficient. The crossbowmen are solid, especially in the late game, where they can be quite disruptive to the opponent. In the early phases of the game, they serve more as a distraction or protection but still apply pressure. However, one shouldn’t expect miracles from them, especially against opponents with high hit points or special abilities like Hardened or Loose Formation, where their effectiveness decreases significantly.
Just a few words about the tournament in general, because I often experienced this myself at Warmachine events. Nick was very committed to organizing a great tournament and didn’t participate himself because organizing, making sandwiches, etc., took up a lot of time. However, he also had no one from the club to help him, and our offer to assist was graciously declined since we were guests. Nevertheless, or perhaps because of this, the atmosphere throughout the tournament was fantastic, as he truly put in a lot of effort and invested a great deal of time and passion into the system. All players were fair and friendly, just like at every Conquest tournament so far, and despite the intense battles on the battlefield, there was always a pleasant, collegial vibe. You could feel the passion for the game in every participant. Overall, it was once again very relaxed and enjoyable, even though there was butter on the meat sandwiches.
I hope you enjoyed the battle reports, and as always, I would greatly appreciate comments and feedback.
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