Monday, January 17, 2022

Picts Emerge Triumphant at Saga Tourney at Game Table Adventures

    My Pictish army at bottom closes with Ted H's all-foot Crusader force in round 1's Change of Plans
Drust son of Drust set a cup of whiskey in front of his father the king and then relaxed into his own carved, wooden chair. The bard began to strum his harp as he saw Drust take a sip from his own cup. "Tonight, we hear the tale of Prince Drust's battle against the men of iron who invaded our isles." Drust remembered the mist that plagued the Orkneys for days prior to the arrival of the strange fleet. Their sails were emblazoned with red crosses, as were many of the host themselves. Drust had been tasked by his father with repelling the unexpected invasion. So, he assembled his warband. Half were veteran warriors, while the other half were the untried and adolescents...

    Drust's Picts faced Ted H's all-foot Crusader army in the first round in the Change of Plans scenario
My first battle in the Game Table Adventures tournament Jan. 15, 2022, was against Ted H's Crusader army. Surprisingly, it had no mounted troops. There was only one small unit of foot knights who remained close to the warlord -- the rest of the army were levy and warriors (like my army). There were two units of levy pilgrims, one of warrior crossbowmen, and two units of foot warriors. 

For the tournament, my Pictish force composition was identical in all three rounds. The tournament allowed a 7-point list, from which you choose 6-points each round. My unused 7th point was the Molossian mercenaries (war dogs). Here were the forces I used:

  • Pictish Foot warlord
  • 3 units of 8 Pictish foot warriors
  • 1 unit of 12 Pictish levy archers
  • 2 units of 12 Pictish levy javelinmen

    Two units of Pictish levy javelinmen cut down the crusader crossbowmen with accurate volleys
 
Round 1: Change of Plans vs. Ted H's Crusaders

One of my later opponents was surprised by the size of my army. Three units of levy really pad out the numbers of your warband. I took all three levy rather than the dogs in the first round because I wanted more missile troops. My plan would be to harass and wear down the crusader's slow-moving footmen. When the crusaders charged my levy units, their sheer numbers should allow them to survive, and my plan would be to then counter-attack with my warriors.

Ted's crusaders moved first and advanced steadily on his first turn. We were playing the Change of Plans scenario, which has you count victory points three times. At the end of Turn 3, each player tallies their Slaughter Points (enemy slain). At the end of Turn 5, we would calculate Survival Points. And finally, at the end of the game, we receive bonus Conquest Points based off of our units that are fully beyond the centerline of the board and inside the enemy's half. Like Ted, I also advanced steadily. My first target would be his crossbowmen (his sole missile unit). I advanced both of my units of javelin levy forward quickly, one deep onto the wooded hill and the other alongside it. Each threw their volleys of javelins. Ted's saving rolls were horrible all game, spectacularly so on turn one. Six of the eight crossbowmen fell, as did two of his foot warriors.

    The crusader pilgrims advanced through the center valley but were blocked by Pictish spearmen
The crusaders were undeterred, though, and continued to advance. Both pilgrim units advanced into the center valley between the forested hill and gentle hill. The foot knights marched forward to plug the gap created by the loss of the crossbowmen. The enemy foot warrior who'd been stung by my levy javelinmen charged in and drove them back into the forest. On the Pictish half of the second turn, my levy units continued their volleys. The javelin men targeted the foot knights this time. My above average rolling and Ted's below average saves continued unabated. All but one of the foot knights fell transfixed by the Pictish javelins. Meanwhile, the archers began to target an advancing crusader warrior foot unit that was marching across the gentle hill towards them.

    Crusader foot warriors hurl Pictish javelinmen back into the woods in
It gradually became obvious that Ted's battle plan was to rely on his pilgrim's enthusiasm. He used the crusader board's advanced Saga abilities to have them fight as warriors and activate for free. One charged into a unit of Pictish spearmen who were blocking the center valley. The veteran Picts closed ranks and hurled the pilgrims back. The other pilgrim unit charged into the woods and shoved back the other unit of javelinmen. 

    Pictish archers whittle away at an advancing crusader warrior unit while Pictish spearmen close in
The first phase of my battle plan was nearing its end. Two of my three levy units were depleted, but still at about half strength. It was time for my Pictish warriors to do their part in the struggle. On the far right, a unit of Pictish spearmen charged and shattered the crusader footmen who had chased the javelinmen into the woods. On the far left, another unit of Pict spearmen closed in towards the center. In the center, the already-engaged unit of warriors remained in place, blocking the Crusader advance.

    

    At game end, the crusader warlord has only the remnants of a pilgrim unit left in his command

Ted continued to use his Saga dice to hammer the pilgrims into my troops, but each time we withstood his blows, backing off slightly or hurling them back. Their numbers were being whittled down. On Ted's turn, my troops would either close ranks or play one of one or more of our defensive Saga abilities to minimize casualties. On the Pictish turn, I used "Stalking" regularly to add 3 attack dice to shooting, and "Ambush" to give 4 bonus attack dice to attacks. There are more lethal melee abilities on the crusader board, but Ted was feeding his dice to his pilgrims instead. As the game wore on, the Picts continued to grind down the enemy army while taking way fewer casualties. Soon, all his warriors were gone, as well as one of the pilgrim units and the last surviving foot knight. I "called off the dogs," so to speak, and focused on moving my entire army across the centerline of the table. Ted did likewise, but the score was very lopsided in this game, and I was off to a 1-0 start in the tournament!

    Rich S studies the deployment of his Welsh and my Picts in round 2's Claiming Territory

Round 2: Claiming Territory vs. Rich S's Welsh

The cheers of the king's hall rebounded from the rafters as the bard finished his song. Whiskey cups banged on the oaken table and Drust beamed as his father's men cheered the tale of his victory. The bard held his hand up for silence and the noise slowly died away. "Since it is our Prince's birthday, we will have another tale of the martial prowess of our king's heir.  Who remembers the raid on Damnonia?" Drust looked around the hall and saw many of his men from that raid nod their heads, their eyes misting over with memories. "We shall have that song again tonight!" the bard shouted and the hall erupted again...

Those on the Saga Facebook groups and our local group know of my utter disdain for round two's scenario, Claiming Territory. Four objective markers are placed on the board, two on each player's half (their position selected by the opponent). The ONLY way to get points in this game is to move one of your units within Very Short (2") of these while keeping any enemy more than Short (4") away. That's it. Squat on the objective markers and rack up the points. Slay the entire opponent's army? Meaningless. No points at all for killing enemy troops, or losing your own. The Conquest Points chart in the Book of Battles is also heavily weighted in favor of large units of warriors. If your army is composed of no or few warriors you are at a big disadvantage here.

    My right wing deployed to seize one objective marker, while the archers prepare to harass the Welsh
The good news was this was my third time playing this scenario, so I knew its quirks. Even better news was I had 3 points of warriors in my army. For this game, I split them not into three units of 8 but instead into two of 12 figures. My entire battle plan was to squat these big units in front of the objective markers (back rank within 2") and block the enemy's access to them. And rack up the points. Offensively, I would move my two units of javelin levy to contest one of Rich's markers. If I could cause him to not score it for a few turns, he would be too far behind in Conquest Points to come back. What's more, Rich had not played this game before and did not change his unit sizes to maximize his points. As the game unfolded, Rich had an old gamer phrase for the way it played: Sitskrieg (little maneuver - mostly sitting and staring across the table at your enemy).

    My left wing, which would seize and guard one objective and move into position to contest the other
I absolutely love the Welsh army and it is one of my favorite armies I have ever played in Saga. There are so many ways to "mess" with an opponent's battle plan on its board. Plus, it has some nice abilities that provide it a powerful punch. Rich's Welsh warband was composed of two units of 4 mounted hearthguard with javelins, 1 unit of 8 mounted warriors with javelins, two units of 8 foot warriors, and one unit of 12 levy with bows. He began the game advancing his right wing close to the objective marker on his side of the table -- the one I would end up contesting. The other marker, he sent only a unit of foot warriors to claim it. The mounted warriors stayed back and kept an eye out to make sure I didn't get to close to the warriors they were guarding.

    The key maneuver in the game - my javelin levy occupy scrubland that denies the Welsh one objective
On my half of turn one, my 12-man warrior blocks moved in front of the objective markers and adopted a defensive posture. The three levy units raced forward to get within range of the enemy, but staying completely inside the terrain to minimize the effects of a mounted charge. To conform to the terrain, the javelinmen were several ranks deep, which meant very few could get off a shot at his mounted hearthguard. The archers had a longer range and killed one of the enemy warriors. On Rich's turn 2, he sent one of his mounted hearthguards to pull my the old trick I would use with my Moors. He dashed forward, threw javelins, then pulled back. With his unit being only four figures, and mine being 12, it would take a lot of turns of this to have any effect on the points I was racking up, though. Trying to be courteous, as Rich is still learning the nuances of Saga, I pointed out a better use of his battleboard abilities to do this mounted skirmishing tactic.

On my half of the turn, it was time for Rich to show me something about the Welsh I had never really used the way I played them. I moved one of my javelin units up to hurl missiles at his cavalry. He immediately played Guerrilla -- which takes place after my move but BEFORE the free shooting activation. To get all of my levy in on his cavalry, I ended up within range of not only HIS cavalry returning fire, but the javelin-armed warriors to their right and the levy archers to the left. Before we could get off a shot, the levy were plastered with 14 attack dice of shooting! To add insult to injury, when I opted to take my free shot with my surviving javelinmen, he played Evade, and scooted this cavalry back out of our range. That cancelled our shot at their declared target as it was no longer within range. Whoa! I had never happened upon this in my half-dozen games with the Welsh. As I had planned to do, I then pulled the levy back with Scouts, sheepishly vowing never to try that again!

    Static positions on the right - Pict archers unable to shoot Welsh warriors (who would Evade away)
If the Welsh activation reactions were keeping me from targeting his vulnerable mounted troops, the Pictish board had its own ability that deterred him from routing out my levy contesting his marker. Masters of the Field takes an area of uneven terrain and turns it into solid cover for my troops (also not slowing us down as a bonus). It can be played with either an Uncommon or Rare and I was thankfully never short of those in this game. Every single turn the scrubland that my javelin levy lurked in was solid cover for us. What's more, I queued up good defensive melee abilities in case he did decide to try to drive us out. 

In the end, Rich chose not to risk the casualties and try to force the levy out. Thus, we devolved into a Sitskrieg. Neither of us moved from our hunkered down positions. Granted, he SHOULD have tried it. Otherwise, I would continue to pile up 6 Conquest points every turn while he would get only 2 points. And that is what happened. The game ended with a lopsided total in favor of the Picts, even though Rich had killed 10 or so figures to my one. And this is why I detest Claiming Territory. I won this game mostly with my unit sizes and a little bit of maximizing the terrain. I can guarantee that I will never choose this scenario in any tournament that I run, even though my victory in it took me to 2-0. 

  In the "finals" of the tourney, I was facing my nemesis of late: Jim R's Normans in Clash of Warlords

Round 3: Clash of Warlords vs. Jim R's Normans

 As the song of the Raid on Damnonia finished with a flourish, many of the veterans of the battle clustered around Drust and clapped him on his shoulders. A cup of whiskey was slammed down in front of him. Drust hefted it and tossed the fiery liquid back. More cheers resounded from the wooden rafters of the hall. Drust roared, "The Damnonians rightly feared your spears, my brave comrades. Let's hear now of a battle in which we struck blows upon the enemy and received them boldly in return!" Drust waved his cup towards the bard who stood smiling and leaning upon his harp. "If I may ask, will you sing of Orkney's plundering of Normandy and the bloody Fight Amongst the Fens?"

At the end of three rounds, three of the 14 entrants had 2-0 records -- myself, Adrian J's Pagan Rus, and my opponent for round 3, Jim R's Normans. Jim has been a recent nemesis of sorts for me, winning both of our previous meetings. His Arpadian Hungarians (which use the Norman battle board) beat my Carolingians towards the end of last year, and his Normans defeated my Moors in The Crossing scenario at the DayCon 2021 Saga Tournament. Jim has obviously fallen in love with the Norman battle board. Since returning to Saga after sitting out during the Covid interlude, he has played nothing else, to my knowledge. I give it to him that it is indeed a tough army. The 2xLong shot of their levy archers makes it difficult to hide units vulnerable to shooting. The three Activation/Reaction abilities makes it almost impossible for foot-sloggers to catch up with their horse. And their Crusader-style melee abilities mean they pack an incredibly powerful punch. My Picts were in for a tough contest, made all the tougher by the battlefield which include NO pieces of uneven terrain. This entirely took both my Secret Ways and Masters of the Field battle board abilities out of my arsenal. We would fight amidst three swamps (dangerous terrain), with a good area of the board being open ground which the Normans prefer.

    Fearing my archer's effect against his horse, Jim charged them immediately to try to take them out
Round 3's scenario was Clash of Warlords (which Jim also prefers to play on our Saga Sundays). He was first player (I feel I caught a break there) and rolled the "spread out" deployment method. This meant every unit except the warlord had to be more than a Medium (6") away from another friendly unit. Surprisingly, his levy archers were in the open -- not one of the marshes. He did have them in the center where their 2xLong (24") range could sweep the board. There would be no cover either -- marsh is "Low," so doesn't block line of sight. To the archer's right were both units of Norman foot warriors, then further out on the flank were one of the small, 4-man units of mounted warriors and a 6-man unit of Norman mounted hearthguard. Note: I had not realized that the tourney director had okayed the 1/2 point option for buying your troops. Jim bought three points of warrior foot, but gave up half a point to the hearthguard to give them a bigger, more survivable 6-man unit. The Norman warlord was directly behind the archers. Their left was guarded by the other 4-man mounted warrior unit.

Battle lines at the end of Pict turn 1, with the Orkney men scurrying to pin the enemy near the swamps
How would I attack that? My number one priority would be to keep the battle within 4"-6" of the swamp pieces as much as possible. So many of the Pictish battle board abilities require the unit using them to be within either Short or Medium of uneven or dangerous terrain. The three swamps had already taken two of my 10 battle board abilities out of the game. Fighting away from the swamps would declaw the Picts even further. Number two priority was to take out the ridiculous 24"-shooting levy archers -- or at least mask them or reduce their effectiveness. I played a levy javelin unit directly opposite them. To the right of that unit were the levy archers, to their left the other unit of levy javelinmen. On the far left, one warrior spear unit guarded the gap between the swamp and the board edge. In reserve were the two other units of warrior foot and my warlord.

I've found in our games that Jim has two speeds - full stop (when he is just hanging back and shooting you) and super-aggressive. Jim began with the latter, charging a 4-man mounted warrior unit against my levy archers. I understood the move. They are the missile troops that can inflict damage on his cavalry at range. Still, he would likely lose a Saga die -- which is the main point of splitting the 8-man warrior point into two units of four. The Breton cavalry charged in, slew five archers, but at the cost of half their numbers.

    It was important to tie the battle down around the swamps so I could use my battle board's strengths
On my half of the turn, my archers moved close enough to the swamp to play Stalking (gaining 3 bonus shooting dice), then loosed a volley to eliminate the remainders of the Breton cavalry. On the far left, the Pictish warrior unit used Scouts to hurry 12" towards the edge of the swamp anchoring the Norman right. I did not get a Rare, so was unable to move a second unit with Scouts. I was also short on Uncommon dice, which prevented me from having the javelinmen move towards the Norman archers and to try and block out any other targets. This would cost me on the next couple turns. Otherwise, the Pictish army advanced as fast as it could. 

My rapid advance was partly to prevent the Normans from withdrawing to the open areas of the table
Jim's levy archers loosed their usual "ridiculous range" volley (I call it the Norman trebuchet unit) and whittled my levy archers down to 3 figures (eliminating one of my Saga dice - this would be a very tit-for-tat game!). I countered with an aggressive advance on his right. The Pictish warriors moved into the swamp, while the javelin levy advanced alongside in the open and hurled javelins at the 10-man Norman foot warrior units. Bad rolls meant we killed only one. The other javelin levy unit did much better, advancing right into the face of the Norman archers, killing four of them with their volley.

    Knowing their bravery would be sung about, the Pictish youths hurled javelins at the Norman line
Jim went from shooting mode to aggressive mode on turn 3. His warlord, much to my surprise, took on the job of driving off the javelinmen menacing his archers. He loaded up some big melee abilities -- remember, I said the Normans are like the Crusaders and pack a humongous melee punch -- and slaughtered nine of the 12 javelinmen. My other javelin levy unit was charged by the warriors who they'd stung them with a casualty last turn. Six javelinmen fell, but importantly, this weakened the warrior unit even more and would set up my riposte. With a fierce yell, the Pictish tribesmen splashed out of the swamp and into the flank of the Norman warriors. They cut them down to a man, losing only two of their own number. Meanwhile, Prince Drust brought up the other two units of Pictish warriors for the next counterpunch.

    In back to back turns, both Normans and Picts launched bloody charges and counter-charges
This was the polar opposite of my game from my round 2. The Normans and the Picts landed blow after blow on each other's army. As the turns went on, the casualty totals seemed to be about even. The key difference that I was seeing was that I was completely eliminating some of his units, while he was usually leaving a few survivors. I was carefully moving the remnants towards the back and behind my other troops where he couldn't pick them off later with the "Norman trebuchet." On Jim's turn 4, he sent his mounted hearthguard unit to avenge the death of the warrior spearmen. We closed ranks - as we would tend to do on turns he charged -- and were able to keep the unit alive with a single figure, who scurried back towards the swamps. Then, he decided to prove his levy archers had not been defanged by my javelinmen and shot at one of the advancing Pictish warrior units. He put 5 dice into this attack (1 Uncommon to fire the archers and 4 other Saga dice in Combat bonus).  Three spearmen died, but the unit was still at an effective force and producing a Saga die.

    More charges punches landed as the two armies batter each other mercilessly, turn after turn
Now, it was time for the Pictish counterpunch! The levy javelinmen advanced and hurled their missiles at the Norman cavalry, knocking two troopers from their saddles. The full strength Pictish warrior unit charged the remaining 10-man unit of Norman warriors, slaughtering seven of them. This was turning into one of the hardest-fought battles I've played in Saga. I felt like I was using 100% of my consciousness and maximizing the use of every Saga dice to inflict the most casualties on the enemy while trying to minimize their potentially devastating counter-blows.

One of the hardest-fought battles I've played in Saga - I squeezed out every tactic & advantage I could
At one point, we honestly lost track and weren't certain whether we were on turn 4 or 5. We had to retrace what his archers had done to be able to ascertain it. In the intensity of the game, I had forgotten to flip the turn marker die I usually keep on the table. The game came down to turn 6 - no surprise! The Norman cavalry attempted to charge the javelinmen who had wounded them earlier. However, I noticed he had no other way of activating them and they had a fatigue. I played their fatigue, and their charge came up short so was cancelled. Next, his warlord once again charged into the fray, slaughtering to a man my largest unit of Pictish warriors. I was down to three Saga dice for my final turn.
    The cinematic final moment of a hard-fought game: Prince Drust cuts down the Norman warlord!
Now would have been the perfect time to roll a Rare so I could utilize Activation Pool. However, the Rares were stingy in this game despite being plentiful in my two earlier rounds. No Rare on turn 6. Examining the remaining clumps of warriors on both sides scattered across the battlefield, there seemed to be only one tactic: the Norman warlord must die! First, I used "We Obey" to activate the javelinmen to hurl their missiles at the general, hoping to inflict more fatigue. Jim played the levy's own fatigue to raise his armor to five and he survived with no hits. I'd been hoping he would play that fatigue right away. Next, I used a Saga dice to activate them to shoot again. I also played Stalking, giving a bonus 3 dice. After saves, he still suffered only one casualty. However, he was double-fatigued. 

Now was the time, Drust son of Drust knew. Time to forever cement his name in the annals of Orkney legend. Accompanied by his bannerman and his faithful Deerhound Machrie, Drust charged the wounded warlord. His steed pierced by a javelin shaft, the warlord could not get away. Drust raised his sword and cut his enemy down. As the Norman leader tumbled from the saddle, the Pictish prince was certain this would prove to be the decisive blow. Victory would be theirs!

Both Jim and I let out a huge sigh after this epic game. We counted up the victory points. At first glance, it looked like we were tied. Tied?? Then, I recounted. No! I had forgotten to tabulate his six destroyed mounted warriors. That earned 3 more points -- exactly what was needed to go from a dead-even tie to a victory! Adrian actually also ended up 3-0 with is Pagan Rus, and would have won if we did end in a tie. It was a long day, but definitely a satisfying end. After my two previous experiences in Saga tournaments (1-1-1 and 1-2), it was good to get the monkey off my back and have a good outing.

 Here are the standings for the tournament, as given to me by John:

  • Mike Demana (Picts - AOI), 3-0, 110 points
  • Adrian John (Jomsvikings - AOV), 3-0, 97 points
  • Jim Randall (Normans - AOV), 2-1, 92 points
  • Rich Smethurst (Welsh - AOV), 2-1, 84 points
  • Robert Smethurst (Goths - AOI), 2-1, 81 points
  • Theodore Hehemann (Levantine Crusaders - AOC), 2-1, 62 points
  • John Loy (Saracen - AOC), 1-1-1, 70 points
  • David Eblin (Roman - AOI), 1-1-1, 65 points
  • Ross Geidenberger (Vikings - AOV), 1-2, 78 points
  • Jason Stelzer (Romans - AOI), 1-2, 73 points
  • Michael Cooper (Republican Roman - AOH), 1-2, 72 points
  • Karen C (Vikings - AOV), 1-2, 68 points
  • Mike Stelzer (Vikings - AOV), 0-3, 73 points
  • Jenny Torbett (Vikings - AOV) 0-3, 47 points

Thanks for John for running the tournament, and Dan at Game Table Adventures for hosting it.

 

 


Sunday, January 2, 2022

Picts Pounce on Viking Raiders in the Orkneys

Picts gather their forces to repel a Norse landing in the Orkney islands at our 1st game day in 2022
From the shelter of the trees, Drust watched the Norsemen begin to deploy in their battle lines. Their scouts must have spotted the presence of his Pictish warband. Either that, or they heard the baying of his hounds. Perhaps this time the dogs would do more than mark their territory in the trees! He was paying their pack master well, so hopefully the man and his hounds would earn their silver this time. Drust noticed that the rain clouds continued to gather and darken overhead, which was not ideal for his archers. He would need to start the battle soon, before the rain began to fall and affected his archers' bowstrings. Drust ducked back beneath the branches and summoned his nobles to give them their orders.

    Viking and Pictish warbands arrayed after my first turn of Pictish movement and shooting
We had an odd number of players for our first Saga game day in 2022. So, I helped organize the matchups then recorded all of the strategic actions, as we were starting a Saga campaign (see the post Strongholds Saga Campaign Underway in 2022) that meeting. I also recorded which player was attacking who, and what scenarios they chose to play. However, about 15 minutes after the games began, we had a brand-new player arrive at the Guardtower East who'd learned about our game days from our Saga Ohio Facebook page. He knew Andy S from other games (mainly Flames of War WW II), so I offered to teach him the game. I lent him my other Viking army (my two Viking armies are my most common loaners) and ran him through the Saga basics -- troop types, Saga dice, the turn order with Orders, Activations, etc. Once he seemed comfortable with the mechanics, we set up a simple Clash of Warlords game against my Picts. I explained that my army was heavily dependent on terrain, so urged him to cut off placing terrain at 3 pieces (I was Player 1, as it turned out). Our battlefield was a large circular woods in the center, a small fields he placed on his left, and a small woods I placed on my own left.

    A great opening shot by my levy javelin men transfix three of the six Viking elite hearthguards
I decided to give the war hounds another try ("Molossian" mercenaries from Age of Invasions). I figured the Viking's Odin ability would cut down on my shooting, so another Warrior unit would be better than a third levy one. I deployed my archers so I could rush them forward through the large woods in the center, my javelin men were placed in the left hand woods. I "refused" on the right flank where Daniel N (the new player) had placed his own levy bowmen. The three warrior units and the dog pack were deployed in a second line to support the levy. Daniel N deployed one of his 6-man hearthguard units opposite the javelin men, and an 8-man warrior unit opposite the center woods. I had a feeling he was going to advance them aggressively and try to take out my shooting units. With the Viking battle board's Odin ability, I knew I had to strike fast with my shooting. 

    In Saga, for every success there is a failure - such as the archers' lack of hits on these hearthguard
This was actually one of the times when being Player 1 was a benefit. No Odin to deal with on Turn 1 -- I could shoot to my heart's content without having to worry about being Exhausted by the one-eyed one's wrath at our cowardly archery! And even more luckily, I rolled a Stag (Rare) die for one of my three Saga dice I received as first player. I placed it on Scouts, which allows two (when using a Rare) units to move a Long distance -- the move not being reduced by terrain or fatigue. The archers and javelin levy raced forward just far enough so that all figures were within range. The archers shot and scored only one hit on the warrior unit opposite them. However, the javelin men -- eager to please their warlord Drust, the king's son -- transfixed three of the heavily armored Viking huscarles opposite them. Of course, they were given a bonus 3 attack dice with Stalking, but what a throw...er, roll!

    The 3 remaining hearthguard drive off and kill half of my javelin men in revenge, losing one
As Daniel rolled his first-ever Saga dice in battle, I talked him through, giving suggestions. I showed him how he would need two moves to reach my javelin men. He understood that would have them enter battle with a fatigue, but I pointed out how the Vikings' advanced Saga ability "Frig" would allow him to remove that before I could use it to reduce his armor or increase mine. I pointed out my 12 levy javelin men would roll only four dice in combat, so perhaps "Heimdall" would be worth it. It would lower HIS armor by one, but give him five more attack dice. He took my suggestions, finished placing his dice on his board, and waved forward his Vikings and launched his attack. The depleted, 3-man hearthguard unit cut down six of my 12 javelin men at the cost of only one man of their own. Revenge for Daniel!

    This was NOT going to be pretty: 6 Viking hearthguard charging a unit of Exhausted levy archers
On his left, he moved his other 6-man hearthguard unit to enter the woods and prepare to do the same thing to my archers next turn. He ended up with an empty battle board except for Odin -- which I stressed he should queue up as often as he could until my shooters were no threat anymore. On my turn 2, I decided to pull my archers back out of the woods and then shoot them at his advancing veteran hearthguard. I played "Stalking" for three more attack dice, bringing me to 9 dice. I talked him through the timing of when to play Odin. First, he used my leftover fatigue from turn 1's shooting to raise his armor to 6. This would leave them Exhausted and vulnerable next turn. My archers' shots must have all been deflected by the branches, because I scored no sixes and thus no hits on my nine dice.

However, on my left flank, I decided to take out his remaining two hearth guard in the woods. I advanced one of my Pictish warrior units and then charged them in with a second move. My board was loaded up for melee -- including Frenzy (plus 2 attack dice and re-roll all misses) and Ambush (+4 more attack dice). Daniel decided to close ranks in hopes of weathering the Pictish onslaught. He just missed doing so with his saving rolls. The Vikings were down an entire 6-man hearthguard unit at the cost of only one warrior and six levies, so far. And the woods on the left were ours again!

    With battle board loaded, a unit of Pictish warriors drives off the Vikings and slays all but one
The inevitable payback came on Daniel's half of the turn. His hearthguard charged into my Exhausted archers. He wisely played abilities that gave him lots of attack dice and managed the fatigue so that I could do no damage to him and he could kill as many of my levy as possible. One of the strengths of 12-man levy units is simply their numbers. The Viking hearthguard ended up rolling 13 hits -- yikes! Luckily, I rolled 3 saves, which meant my unit was not eliminated. The pair of surviving archers skedaddled towards the rear. 

    Finally - the war hounds see some action! The pack gallops in and tears the last Viking to pieces
This game was definitely one of charge, push the enemy back, then suffer the opponent's riposte. The counterattacking unit would then be vulnerable and attacked themselves. His remaining 6-man hearthguard was alone on my half of the with five of my units within striking range. How to deliver the death blow and kill all of them? Drust was VERY tempted to send in the dogs first to soften them up. One of the Molossians' advantages was that a combat with them gives two fatigues, instead of one. Then I could finish them off with a warrior unit. However, I knew that an eliminated mercenary unit provides the opponent with a bonus two points in scoring at game's end. So, I decided to load up my board for that one combat, including Sacred Tattoos (+4 defense dice). My tattooed and tartan-clad warriors charged in and slew five of the six Vikings. What was even more amazing was we took zero casualties doing so! Daniel's attack roll was awful. At this point, Drust motioned to the war hounds pack master. The baying of his hounds filled the air and they bounded into the woods, tearing the terrified Viking to pieces. The dogs had done their work!

    The struggle for the woods on the left see-sawed back and forth all game as we both fed in fresh units
Meanwhile, in the woods on the left, the tit-for-tat continued. A unit of Viking warriors charged my Picts who were occupying the woods, driving the Orkney men back. He followed it up immediately with another charge by the same unit. This time, I had my Picts close ranks. Both of us rolled dismally, and no casualties were inflicted. The frustrated Vikings backed off. On the following turn, I sent in another fresh warrior unit. Their charge shattered the Viking warriors, and hurling them out of the woods once more.

At this point, with one more turn to play, we decided to call the game. I was comfortably ahead on points, and would use my Turn 6 Saga dice rolls to back off out of his range. He would then be unlikely able to mount an effective attack on his turn as both hearthguard and one of his warrior units destroyed and the remaining severely weakened. His archers were out of range to do much. So, it was an obvious Pictish victory.

    With nearly every unit fatigued, the Picts still hold the field over the depleted Viking warband
Daniel had picked up the nuances of the game very quickly, I felt. It was fun teaching a new person the game and seeing how he was excited about the possibilities. He dissected the strengths and weaknesses of our two battle boards, and was intrigued by the four "Age of..." books and the variety of armies available. I asked the players if my game with Daniel should "count" as a campaign one, and they all agreed that it should. Daniel said he was interested in playing in the campaign, so we became the 9th and 10th players. 

Drust patted the head of one of the packmaster's hounds and congratulated him on the dogs' performance. Behind him, he could hear his warriors jeering at the Vikings as the Norsemen began withdrawing to their longships. With all of his elite oath men slain, the Norse jarl would doubtless think twice before sailing to the Orkneys again to raid. Just as importantly, Drust's name remained secure. He would continued to be the prince and his father's heir apparent -- Drust son of Drust, of the Orkney realm...

'Strongholds' Saga Campaign Underway in 2022

    Andy's Republican Romans advance upon Jason's Carthaginian army in Battle of Heroes
We had 10 players help launch our "Strongholds & Realms" Saga campaign at our first game day in 2022. Each player chose a faction from one of the four "Age of..." historical books and was given a Realm which would function to track their successes over the course of the campaign. Since it was our first meeting, the player initiative order was randomized. One of the things I like best about the design of this campaign is the players will take control of determining the matchups. When it is their turn in the player order, they select another player to attack, and the two are paired off for a battle. The remaining players can't attack those two, and so on until all players are matched up. As GM, I will be "odd man out." The Realms who did the attacking move to the bottom of the player order and the others all scoot up the player order. This simple system should provide fresh matchups month after month.

    Jason, right, tosses the dice and hopes the Carthaginian goddess of Luck will smile upon him
The Attacker also automatically becomes the First Player (or Attacker) in the battle. They get the advantage of selecting the scenario. However, attackers are allowed to choose the same scenario only twice over the course of the campaign. This is meant to ensure players try out a variety of scenarios. I designed the system avoid what I have seen happen before in map-based campaigns: the same two players slugging it out, month after month, mired in a border war. There is no map for this campaign and the space each Realm occupies is abstracted. So, any players can attack any other player participating in the campaign. This should help keep things fresh and interesting.

    Bob's Roman cavalry charges into a massed melee against Karen's Vikings in Feasting & Pillaging
At the suggestion of Bob B, one of my players, absent players can schedule a makeup game if they miss the monthly meeting. Those who are unable to play a game will suffer a slight penalty in Victory Points (VPs), though. I also added mechanisms for new players to join the campaign but not be so far behind as to make their participation meaningless. I was eager to see how all of it worked as the players trickled in that Sunday morning. I filled out an index card with each player's name and faction. Once we were sure we had everyone, I took mine out (as we had an odd number), and shuffled them thoroughly. I placed them in a single column, top to bottom. The order was Jenny T (Vikings), Andy S (Republican Romans - Age of Hannibal), Karen C (Vikings), Mike S (Vikings), Joe M (Mutatawwi'a), Jason S (Carthaginians), Dave E (Romans - AOI), and Bob B (Romans - AOI). 

    Bob and Karen deploy their battle lines, each eying the objective markers placed between the armies
Wouldn't you know it, but my first player passed! Jenny passed up her choice to attack, ensuring she remained atop the player order next meeting. Andy chose to attack Jason to play a historical Republican Romans vs. Carthaginian battle. Karen chose to attack Bob, and Mike S attacked Jenny. With two players left, each tried Jenny's tactic of passing (also trying to ensure they were Player 2 perhaps!). Players are allowed to pass only once, so Joe was forced into launching an attack with his Mutatawwi'a (Arab Conquest army) against Dave's Romans. Of course, about 15 minutes after all the matchups were decided, we had a new player show up who wanted to try out the game. This meant Mr. Odd Man Out ended up playing after all. We rolled for Player 1 (since we didn't have cards made out for us) and I ended up attacking with my Picts against the Viking army I loaned him. See my Picts Pounce on Viking Raiders in the Orkneys post for my battle report).

    Joe's Mutatawwi'a deploy to prevent Dave's wagons from escaping in Prized Possessions
So, did my limiting the number of times players could select a particular scenario work out? I think so. I played Clash of Warlords with Daniel N, the new player. I wanted to make it as easy as possible on him. The other four games all had different scenarios: Battle of Heroes, Prized Possessions, Feasting and Pillaging, and another Clash of Warlords. I call that a success! Mike S made an interesting suggestion. Since Battle of Heroes is so randomized, perhaps NOT limit that particular scenario? Hmm...I'll have to get the player's feedback on that. Maybe dictate the "Chaos Option" rather than the Tactical or Considered options for any times it is chosen after the first two? 

    Dave's Roman legionaries escort 3 supply wagons, hoping to get them off the table on the far edge

One thing that surprised me was the number of battles that ended in a tie. We had two games result in a dead-even tie. Only one of the five games ended up with the Attacker defeating the Defender (my Pict's victory over Daniel's Vikings).  In the other two games, the Defender won. One of the campaign mechanics is that an Attacker takes possession of one of the Defender's strongholds with a victory. So, my Picts took one of Daniel's border towers. Each Realm starts the game in control of one Castle (+3d6 dice VPs), two Fortresses (+2d6 VPs), and three Towers (+1d6 VPs). You can get a bonus +1d6 for killing the enemy warlord. Another bonus +1d6 can come from a Defender victory. Attacker victories result in taking one of the Defender's strongholds. A player must have lost a Tower first in a previous turn before an enemy can seize a Fortress. Similarly, they must have lost a Fortress before the Castle can be targeted by an enemy attack. Surprisingly, with five games, only one stronghold changed possession.

    Mike S and Jenny's Viking warbands face off against each other in Clash of Warlords
Not surprisingly were the player rolls for VPs. I fully understood these would provide a random element that the game of Saga provides, as well. For example, the lowest roll proved to be Joe's 11 dice totaling only 27 points (average of 2.45 per die). The highest was Jason S's roll (well, he'd left already so his dad Mike rolled). Jason scored 46 on 10 dice (4.6 average). Obviously, over the course of the campaign, this is meant to even itself out. The most rolled by a player was 12 (Bob and Dave who both won and killed the enemy warlord). The least was Daniel with 9 dice. The range in VP scores is a high of 46 and low of 27. Certainly not insurmountable over the course of a multi-month campaign!

    Carthaginian cavalry gallop into Andy's Roman legionaries in a game that would end in a tie
For a little color, I am asking players to come up with a name for their Realm, hopefully in the theme of their faction. For example, mine is Orkney -- which was one of the seven sub-kingdoms of the historical Pictish kingdom. Jenny chose Ingstad - the earldom of Lagertha, the strong female character from the Vikings series.  I am still waiting for other player names to roll in and will update the scoring grid with their choices as I receive them.

A huge part of the design of this campaign is to minimize what players (and the GM) have to keep track of over the course of games. For Strongholds & Realms, this means recording:

  • Strategic actions of each player (Pass, who they attacked, etc.)
  • Scenario the Attacker chose
  • Winner of the battle, along with any warlords slain
  • Victory Points rolled, to be added to their Realm's total each turn
  • Adjusting the Player Order for the next turn

The result of the five battles (fought so far -- absent players who want to participate can still get in their games before next month!):

  • Bob B's defending Romans defeated Karen's attacking Vikings in Feasting in Pillaging, 24-11.
  • Mike D's attacking Picts defeated Daniel N's defending Vikings in Clash of Warlords, no score calculated.
  • Dave E's defending Romans defeated Joe M's attacking Mutatawwi'a in Prized Possessions, (-5) to (-8) -- yes, both players ended up in negative points!
  • Andy S's attacking Republican Romans tied Jason S's defending Carthaginians in Battle of Heroes, 14-14.
  • Mike S's attacking Vikings tied Jenny T's defending Vikings in Clash of Warlords, 17-17.

Here are the Realms, listed first place to 10th, after one round of the campaign (I will add in the names of player Realms as they send them to me): 

Player

Position

Victory Points

Strongholds

Battles chosen as Attacker

BARCA

Jason S (Carthaginian - AOH)

1st (T)

46

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

ORKNEY

Mike D 

(Pictish - AOI)

1st (T)

46

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

4 Towers

Clash of Warlords (1)

GALLIA

Bob B

(Roman - AOI)

3rd

41

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

SOSTERIS

Andy S

(Republican Roman - AOH)

4th

37

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

Battle of Heroes (1)

UPPER

PANNONIA

Dave E

(Roman - AOI)

5th

36

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

GEATLAND

Mike S

(Vikings - AOV)

6th

35

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

Clash of Warlords (1)

INGSTAD

Jenny T

(Vikings - AOV)

7th 

32

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

BJON BORG

Karen C

(Vikings - AOV)

8th (T)

31

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

Feasting & Pillaging (1)

SILESIA

Daniel N

(Vikings - AOV)

8th (T)

31

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

2 Towers


ALMOHAD CALIPHATE

Joe M

(Mutatawwi’a - AOC)

10th

27

1 Castle

2 Fortresses

3 Towers

Prized Possessions (1)

Here is the player order for next turn. If absent players join in, this will be adjusted before our next meeting in February.

Turn 2

Jenny T

Jason S

Dave E

Bob B

Daniel N

Mike D

Joe M

Mike S

Karen C

Andy S