Overview:
Game 1
Game 2
Game 3
Welcome back to the final part of the Chronicle Wings over Bremerhaven.
But before I tell you whether the Queen’s loyal Flap Flaps were able to prevail in the third game as well, bringing love and justice to the people, here once again is their army list.
Birds of Prey [2000/2000] – The W'adrhûn
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(Warlord) Thunder Chieftain [150]: Conquest
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Thunder Riders (3) [220]
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Thunder Riders (3) [220]
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Quatl (1) [180]
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Quatl (1) [180]
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Winglord Predator [220]: War
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Hunting Pack (3) [120]
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Apex Predator (1) [190]
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Winglord Predator [220]: Death
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Hunting Pack (3) [120]
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Raptor Riders (3) [180]
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Game 3 against Martin with City States on Off Balance
Once again, fate led the Queen into the final, and once again the dreaded City States awaited her. This marked the third time since the venerable Chios update that the army of freedom, love, and justice had to face this stubborn faction. Memories and reports from the last tournament in Wolfschlugen resurfaced, where a City States army had also claimed victory. This was something the Queen was determined to avoid, aiming instead to lead the brave people back out of the shadows.
From Poland and Italy, one currently hears little in the way of kind words about the City States, but here in good old Germany they seem to be enjoying real success at the moment. The list the opponent brought to the field was very similar to the well-known Carsten, aka Redfreak, list from Worms and Duisburg, and Martin had consulted with Carsten and made a few adjustments of his own.
The best part about this army, however, was that it had been borrowed from Nino and the Beast from Hildesheim, meaning a significant portion of it was already painted. A true feast for the eyes on the battlefield, and a welcome consolation for the fact that the Queen was not allowed to play at the other table against Nicki’s Old Dominion. Nicki occasionally needs the Queen’s gentle but firm hand on the back of his neck to understand that he shouldn’t always be playing such grim and gloomy stuff.
A small spoiler is permitted: Nicki narrowly won against David, who was also running dinosaurs. Nevertheless, Nicki’s W’adrhûn trauma was permanently reinforced by three regiments of Raptors, which the Queen considered a perfectly sufficient disciplinary measure.
=== The Last Argument of Kings ===
Bremerhaven [2000/2000]
The City States
== (Warlord) Polemarch [175]: Standard of Last Oration, Blades of Eakides
- Hoplites (5) [235]: Dorilates, Minotaur Haspist Auxiliary
- Minotaur Haspists (3) [170]:
- Selinoi (3) [120]:
- Satyroi (3) [160]:
- Thorakites (5) [230]: Andromachos, Minotaur Thyrean Auxiliary
- Companion Cavalry (3) [140]:
- Companion Cavalry (3) [140]:
- War Chariots (Flogobollon//Skorpios) (2) [260]: Flogobollon, Skorpios
- War Chariots (Flogobollon//Skorpios) (1) [130]: Skorpios
In the first round, both Polemarchos Martin and the Queen received two light regiments. However, the Queen was once again missing a Hunting Pack, a circumstance that slightly dampened the spirits of the Birds of Freedom. A brief glance across the battlefield revealed that the City States’ side was well protected against ranged fire, while the W’adrhûn side offered considerably less cover. This darkened the Queen’s mood a little further, but the large house that almost split the battlefield in two like a guardian proved to be a useful tactical point on the field of honor, both for the City States and the W’adrhûn. In addition, the left flank was the area where scoring would be possible in round two.
The first troops were led onto the battlefield. The W’adrhûn deployed their first Hunting Pack, and the Raptors also advanced onto the right flank. Hopes were high that the City States’ Thorakites would be deployed there as well, allowing a friendly flying dinosaur to glide into the zone without being immediately threatened. The plan worked, and indeed both City States regiments were obligingly placed on the right side, drawing a cautious smile from the Queen.
In the second round, both players each received two medium regiments. In addition, another Hunting Pack appeared for the friendly Queen, who is always known for running casual lists, much to her delight. The City States could certainly have brought more units onto the field, but this turned out to be a welcome advantage.
This time, the Queen chose a Quatl and a Winglord, while Martin deployed his Hoplites and the Phlogoballoon. With the Strategy Deck, this gave him two more cards than the Queen, but it did not unsettle her. She placed a Winglord at the very top of her stack, with the Raptors above it. The rest was of secondary importance for the moment.
Carefully, well outside the Thorakites’ range, the Queen deployed the Quatl, whose war chariot rolled onto the battlefield behind the objective marker. Time crept by, and the Thorakites advanced only slightly, seemingly reluctant to later find the bird, or any of the other dinosaur units, caught in a trap. This suited the Queen just fine, as she wished to avoid any unpleasant dice rolling in the next round.
Next, the Winglord had to be activated. With majestic calm, he flew along the flank into the left zone. There he felt at ease as the Hoplites appeared on that side, just as expected. The position was ideal: the house provided cover on one side, while Martin still wanted to deploy only three models wide, leaving space for another regiment. Most importantly, even with a move-and-charge, he would not be able to reach the Winglord in the next round. Thus, the Queen secured two points on her own and surveyed the battlefield with satisfied composure.
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In round three, almost all of Martin’s units appeared, with the Satyroi missing only once. On the Queen’s side, the second Quatl was once again absent, but otherwise all units were present, exactly as the rough expectations had suggested.
Since nothing from the City States posed any real threat to the beloved dinosaurs, the Queen felt no immediate pressure to act. One Winglord moved downward, as did the Raptors and the Hunting Packs. The City States did have three more activations thanks to the Strategy Deck, but as long as they did not advance, there was no reason for the W’adrhûn to commit. Moreover, the Queen was already in the lead. The plan was to roughly maintain the gap and deny the left zone. If the Thorakites were to do something rash, the Quatl might potentially fly into the zone; otherwise, everything was fine.
The City States were allowed to begin. Some units, spoiler: the Thorakites, ent into the Strategy Deck. Overall, very little happened. On the left side, the cavalry with the Ipparchos appeared. This might have required action, but the Queen waited. On the right flank, the remaining cavalry showed up, and Martin attempted to bring the chariot onto the battlefield from the side. In the process, a bird cheekily took a few hits. The Phlogoballoon dealt damage to the objective marker, and a chariot was parked nearby. All in all, the Queen was not dissatisfied.
She placed the Apex at the objective marker, the first Thunder Riders without a character behind the right Hunting Packs, and the next Winglord on the right flank as well. Both the Winglord and the Quatl fired once at the right-side cavalry, and two of them fell. Surprising, the Queen thought, remembering that they only had Defense 2.
The plan for the other flank began to take shape in her mind. The Hoplites had not yet been activated, the Haspists on the right were merely standing around, having just been taken out of the box, and the Thorakites were also missing. However, the proxy base revealed that the Winglord could perform a move–volley–charge into the cavalry on the left flank without the Hoplites being able to see him. That sounded more than acceptable, so the bird flew in. Unfortunately, he dealt only seven damage, but this was made up for by the subsequent move–charge of the Hoplites.
The Hunting Pack had not yet been activated, but Martin approved of the plan. The pack took the charge, rolled only moderately well, and still inflicted ten damage on the regiment. It wasn’t perfect, but the Haspists, who now appeared on that side, did nothing to change the situation.
No one scored in this round, but the W’adrhûn continued to lead with two points, for love and justice.
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In round four, both Winglords were placed right at the top of the deck. If one of them survived, he would still make his contribution. The other, meanwhile, was ready to fly into one of those annoying chariots should the opportunity arise. The rest of the units remained positioned rather conservatively. The Thunder Riders were placed lower in the stack, in the hope that the lead would hold.
Despite their disadvantage, the City States were allowed to begin. They very nearly brought down the first Winglord. He resisted pitifully, but in the end another regiment put the bird out of his misery. In what order this happened is undocumented, but overall it was not a glorious performance.
The second Winglord also failed to make himself and his name immortal with a move–volley–charge, but at least he prevented some annoying fire from the chariot, which was acceptable. Overall, the outcome did not quite meet expectations, and perhaps the Hunting Pack should indeed have been placed higher in the stack. The Queen, however, had been too stingy. As a result, the Hunting Packs died to the charge of the Haspists, who in turn were attacked by a move–charge from the Thunder Riders with Chieftain. Anyone who still had doubts about the effectiveness of these units could now witness how 18 wounds were convincingly erased in a single sweep of impact hits and trample moves.
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In an attempt to somehow salvage the flank, the City States sent their reserve troops, the Satyroi, onto that side, while the Queen dispatched a Quatl. Simply because scoring points is great, and because the Thunder Riders might yet fail.
In the center, the Apex Predator executed a beautiful move–charge into a chariot, while the other chariot fired at him. The Apex took seven damage but at least held on.
On the remainder of the right flank, after some prolonged consideration, the Queen decided to advance only minimally. There was no reason to push further forward. In the following round, this would be an option regardless of how the Thorakites acted, as they were once again sitting in the Strategy Deck. Either they would attempt a charge on the Winglord, in which case they would be tied up for two rounds and the Queen would secure the zone in the end, or they would advance and die to the Thunder Riders in the next round. They chose to stay where they were, and the Queen was quite pleased with that decision.
In round five, the right flank had a bit of time to spare, but the left flank absolutely had to succeed. The Thunder Riders and the Quatl were placed at the top of the deck. Given the Queen’s card disadvantage, taking the first activation should not have been a problem. Well, then the City States actually began, and the Satyroi charged the Thunder Riders. But practically nothing happened. The Queen considered this acceptable. Without Inspire, the attackers were swept aside, and the Hoplites were finished off on the charge.
Then came the ponies, who bravely broke their legs in the field and likewise failed to inflict any meaningful damage. The Queen thus had the flank handed to her by Fortuna herself, how kind. The Quatl, already familiar with the punishment for failure, shot down these brave ponies with precision. Thus, the left side remained in the iron grip of the W’adrhûn for the rest of the game.
In the center, the Apex Predator devoured one chariot and grinned mischievously at the other. But before any further movements could take place on the right flank, the City States conceded in the face of the hopeless situation on the battlefield.
The W’adrhûn stood victorious, their wings of freedom, love, and justice held high, and the final was decided.
Thus, a trophy for the Queen was assured. Which one it would be, however, was to be decided by Strength of Schedule. As close as it had been between Nicki and the friendliest of all casual players at the end of game two, so clearly did the field separate in the end. Full of joy, the Queen was able to take home a beautiful golden trophy.
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