Skratbukket’s Troop vs. Cassy’s Elegant Guard

Skratbukket sat down to think. Grokpick had just informed him that the Skaven had been routed at the Gorge. Now nothing stood between the hated elves and the Skaven encampment with the clan’s precious breeders and treasure. Resisting his natural urge to chow down on the hapless clan rat, the Warlord instead thanked his cowering cousin. After a quick deliberation, Skratbukket called on his remaining officers and told them of his cunning plan. “We attack-attack at night before the elf-things are ready. Glorious victory and feasting will be ours!” The ratmen all cheered, secretly planning their escape routes.

Meanwhile, the Elf Prince was plotting too. Having lost his earlier battles, he was cautious about tackling the Skaven and their dreaded war machines head on. For once, he laid aside his arrogance and asked advice from his officers. After a brief counsel of war, the elves chose to flank the opposing army.

Neither plan quite worked out so battle was joined before either side was properly prepared. Skratbukket was more cunning while the Elves had a much better plan. It was night when the two armies made contact with some of the units lagging behind. The battleground was an ancient Lustrian ruined temple complex with many strange and magically imbued ruins. Would capturing the ancient structures provide magical and strategic advantages or would the ancient Lustrians stir from their tombs and strike down those desecrating their holy ground?

Scenario The Ancient Ruins from the Lustria Battlefields supplement. Meeting Engagement Scenario with Night Fighting and Ancient Ruins rules.

Skratbukket’s Troop (Custodian)

[WL] Skratbukket (Warlord) General; Dawnstone; Dragonhelm; Warlock-augmented Weapon; War-litter; shield. 208 Planning 3, Persuasion 3, Guile 4+1 [QH] Queek Headtaker 215

[WE] Fizzbang (Warlock Engineer) Doomrocket; Warp-energy Condenser; Level 2 Wizard; Skaven Spells of Ruin; Warplock Pistol. 158 [SS] Sting Sting (Chieftain) Battle Standard; Enchanted Shield; Obsidian Amulet. 110 [PP] Breek Ratscum (Plague Priest) Talisman of Preservation; Level 2 Wizard; flail. 184

[CR] Grokpick’s Clawpack (24 Clanrats) Full command; shields. 110 MISCALC [WFT] Warpfire Thrower. 70 [SV] Skratpack (15 Stormvermin) Full command; Storm Banner. 208 MISCALC [PWM] Poisoned Wind Mortar. 65 [GR1] Ratta Rrossy’s Pack (5 Giant Rats) Packmaster. 23 [GR2] Skratlet’s Pack (5 Giant Rats) Packmaster. 23 [SL1] 35 Skavenslaves Musician; shields. 89.5 [SL2] 35 Skavenslaves Musician; shields. 89.5

[PM] Scar Pusbukket’s Chapter (19 Plague Monks) Full command; Plague Banner. 188 [RO] 4 Rat Ogres 2× Packmaster. 176 [GRU] 6 Gutter Runners Slings; Poisoned Attacks. 108

[DW] Fuzzbang (Doom Wheel) 150 [HPA] Hell Pit Abomination 235 [HPA] Warp Lightning Cannon 90

Total 2,500 points

Cassy’s Elegant Guard (Invader)

[P] Everqueen’s Champion (Prince) Shield of the Merwyrm; The Blade of Leaping Gold; Obsidian Trinket; Moon Dragon; Dragon armour. 560 Planning 4+1, Persuasion 3, Guile 3

[M] Caladriel the Impetuous (Mage) Talisman of Endurance; Level 2 Wizard (Lore of High Magic). 150 [N] Noble Dragonhelm; Griffon; lance; longbow; Dragon armour; shield. 253

[SG1] 12 Lothern Sea Guard Full command; shields. 174 [SG2] 10 Lothern Sea Guard Full command; shields. 150 [ER] 5 Ellyrian Reavers Harbinger; spears; bows. 105 [SH] 8 Silver Helms Full command; shields. 214

[SM] 10 Swordmasters of Hoeth Full command; Bladelord lost to Assassin stratagem. 160 [DP] 5 Dragon Princes of Caledor Full command; Khaine’s Ring of Fury; Banner of the World Dragon. 250 [TC] Tiranoc Chariot 70 [LC] Lion Chariot of Thrace 120

[GE1] Great Eagle Swiftsense; Shredding Talons. <>65 [GE2] Great Eagle Swiftsense; Shredding Talons. 65 [SAV] 6 Sisters of Avelorn High Sister. 94 [EC] Eagle Claw Bolt Thrower 70

Total 2,500 points

Deployment

The Skaven arranged their forces first, but in the confusion of the night some forces set up facing the wrong way and would be late to the battle including Skratbukket and his Stormvermin bodyguard, Grockpick’s Clawpack of Clan rats and the Doomwheel. To make matters worse, the Warp Lightning Cannon needed some vital repairs and wasn’t ready. “Damn-damn”, cursed Skratbukket. “I will eat-eat those sniveling engineers if they don’t fix-fix it and shoot down the winged-dragon-thing!!”

Breek Ratscum chose Vermintide and Cloud of Corruption magicks while Fizzbang prepared the ever-trusty combination of Warp Lightning and Howling Warpgale. It was up to him to cast the sorcerous gale and stop the dragon flying across the battlefield to wreck havoc on the Skaven horde.

The elves were having their own problems and a large part of their company was left behind in the rush to join the battle. At least Caladriel was on hand with his wizard lore of Arcane Unforging – a type of magical missile – and Hand of Glory.

Skaven Turn 1

The moon started to emerge from a cloud and battle was joined. Unfortunately, the Skaven had been heavily partaking of some brew to bolster their courage. The intoxicating liquor stopped them all from running away but also impaired their vision. Despite a life in tunnels and darkness, the rats eyesight proved no better than that of the keen sighted elves. This limited their ability to see the elves on the other side of the battlefield, and would seriously hamper the Warp Lightning Cannon … if and when it turned up.

Once the moonlight was bright enough to glint off the elven spears, the Hell Pit Abomination roared and charged at the Ellyrian Reavers trying to outflank the Skaven. Sadly, it misjudged the distance and came up short.

At last, most of the rest of the Skaven army caught up and all the rats shuffled forward … just enough to avoid Skratbukket’s wrath at their cowardice.

Breek Ratscum did the best he could with the very weak winds of magic. He channeled as much power as he could but his Vermintide only produced a single rat …. not the carpet of rats he was trying for. It scampered off into the darkness. Fizzbang had more success with his channeled energy and cast an irresistible Warp Lightning on the Sword Masters, killing six of the peerless swordselves. The power was too much for the hapless wizard and he suffered a complete power drain, forgetting all his spells. “Oops-oops” he thought. “What will stop the dragon now?”.

That was not the end of the mixed fortune. Fuzzbang finally arrived but was struggling with the darkness and pointed his Doomwheel the wrong way. Instead of charging into the elves, he ended up still within the Skaven battle lines. To stop frying his own side with Warp Lightning, he tried in vain to restrain the frenzied rats scurrying in the wheels. To make matters worse, Queekheadtaker was closest and Fuzzbang watched in dismay as the feared Warlord took a wound from errant Warp Lightning. “I wish-wish the Elves kill Queek before he gets a chance to eat-eat me in revenge” was the only thought going through the engineer’s terrified brain.

High Elves Turn 1

It was now the turn of the High Elves to receive their much need reinforcements. Cheered by the sight of the chariots and Great Eagle, as well as the returning scouts, the Prince, the trusted Champion of the Everqueen, roared charge.

In the middle of the battle lines, Caladriel forgot that he had no armour or proper weapon. Instead of relying on his magicks, the red mist descended and he urged his troop to attack the cowardly Skavenslaves right there in front of him. Unused as he was to combat and unnerved by the rank upon rank of Skaven and slaves from other races, Caladriel’s will quickly faltered and the charge failed.

The Silver Helms were the only other unit close enough to the Skaven battle lines to clearly make out the verminous horde in the moonlight gloom. Overcoming their fear of the terrible apparition in front of them, they spurred their horses on and galloped into the waiting arms of the Hell Pit Abomination. Their lances pierced the beasts hide causing grievous damage but the elves watched in despair as the monster simply regenerated the gaping wounds. It then set about feeding on two horses and their riders. Having withstood the charge, the Skaven monster held.

The winds of magic started to blow very strongly and Caladriel used his recovering wits to cast Arcane Unforging in the general direction of the Plague Monks. The desperate Plague Priest drew on all his knowledge and available power to dispell the magick missile before it was halfway across the field. Undeterred, Caladriel cast a full strength Hand of Glory on his Lothern Sea Guard bodyguard, magically strengthening their combat prowess. Surprisingly for him, he completed both spells without mishap.

The Tiranoc Chariot was able to get in range and shoot one of the Skavenslaves. The remaining Swordmasters moved up to get the protection of a stout stone wall.

Skaven Turn 2

With no place to hide as the moonlight continued to wax, the leftmost Skavenslaves joined the Plague Monks to charge the Sea Gruard unit harbouring the pesk Elven magicuser. The stalwart Seaguard stood their ground and shot four Skavenslaves, but this made little impression on the host of rats bearing down on them.

The other Skavenslaves charged into the much-depleted unit of Swordmasters … less in the hope that they would defeat the expert swordsevles … it was just a gambit to bog them down with a carpet of Skaven.

The enraged Rat Ogres had their eyes on the same unit, but it was simply too far and the huge rats ran out of momentum before they had covered half the distance.

On the right flank, the unit of Giant Rats moved to block the Eagle Claw Bolt Thrower in case the Abomination destroyed the Silver Helms this turn. The Doomwheel headed the same way but was still pretty much blocked from going anywhere useful. Fortunately, Fuzzbang was getting the hang of the contraption again so was able to stop the Warp Lightning generator from striking his own side.

The winds of magic blew themselves out and all the Skaven mages could do was to dispell the buff on the Seaguard.

In shooting, the Gutter Runners poisoned slings were able to wound the Tiranoc Chariot once. Fizzbang was still unable to find a juicy target for his Doomrocket and so loitered behing the protection of the Plague Monks in the center of the field.

In combat, the Silver Helms slashed uselessly at the Abomination. In return its Flailing Fists connected with three cavalryelves, killing them outright. The much-depleted unit held.

Galadriel, realising that the game was up, challenged the Plague Priest so that he didn’t have to watch his bodyguard being decimated by the fearsome warrior rat. Miraculously, Breek Ratscum only managed one wound from his flurry of flail attacks as the elven mage was under the protection of a Shield of Saphery. Needless to say, Caladriel nearly fell over his own feet when swinging his dagger and missed completely. The Sea Guard killed four Skavenslaves and three Plague Monks for three losses in return. The brave elves held.

The Sword Masters lived up to their name and sliced six Skaven Slaves with their huge double handed swords. With so few though elven defenders,the Skavenslaves were able to swarm over protecting wall and drag down two elves. The Skavenslaves lost the combat but held since the Warlord was right behind them and would have eaten any slave foolish enough to to run away.

High Elves Turn 2

The Tiranoc Chariot charged the Skavenslaves to relieve Caladriel’s unit. The Dragon Princes charged the blocking Giant Rats but, on the way, one haughty rider was caught by a low hanging tree bough and felled from his horse.

The rest of the Elven army moved up to shoot or get a better position for the upcoming charges. The Dragon Prince flew right up to the Skaven Warlord, unable to charge due to the poor light.

Again, the winds of magic blew strong. Caladriel easily cast Hand of Glory but Breek Ratscum equally easily dispelled the magical buff. No protection from Shield of Saphery for the impetuous mage this turn!

In shooting, the Ellyrian Reavers and Griffon Noble both missed Queek, while the Sisters of Avelorn peppered the blocking Giant Rats with flaming arrows. Despite the best efforts of the Packmaster, the creatures fled. With a clear shot, the Eagle Bolt Claw put a hefty bolt right through a spoke of the Doomwheel for one wound. In the middle of the field, the dragon’s breathed fire right at Skratbukket. With the shout of “Look Out”, his surprisingly brave bodyguard sacrificed themselves and pushed the Warlord and Battle Standard Bearer out of the path of the flames. Five Stormvermin were burnt to a crisp in the conflagration. The rest of troop stood their ground and prepared to fight the monster.

In combat, the Sword Masters easily felled two Skavenslaves and brushed off the attacks of the rest, drawing combat. The Ellyrian Reavers struck first again to wound the Hell Pit Abomination only to see the severed limb grow back just before an Avalanche of Flesh overcame the few remaining riders.

The Dragon Princes easily dispatched the Giant Rats and reformed.

The Tiranoc Chariot had a bad day and its charging momentum was only able to crush two Skavenslaves. The multitudinous rats managed one wound in return from a lucky blow. Even worse, the Sea Guard could only kill one Skavenslave and they fluffed all their attacks on the Plague Monks. Galadriel tried hard to keep the combat going but without his magical protection he was cut to pieces by Breek Ratscum. After such a disastrous combat, the remaining elves panicked and fled. The remaining Sea Guard were too slow and were caught and trampled to death. The chariot just managed to stay ahead of disaster and swerved past the Lion Chariot to safety. Undeterred, the pursuing Skavenslaves slammed into the lion chariot.

Skaven Turn 3

After making the final adjustments to the Warp Lightning Cannon to get it into some sort of working order, the engineers of Clan Skyre pushed their fiendish contraption onto the battlefield. “Better late than never-never” then squeaked apologetically to the furious Warlord. “Kill that Flying-Dragon-thing now … and don’t blow-explode-up this time!!!” he barked back, just before urging his bodyguard to charge at the aforementioned beast and its rider. However, as soon as the dragon-riding elven Prince and Skaven Warlord were locked in a challenge, the engineers couldn’t fire for fear of hitting the wrong target.

In desperate bid to avoid Skartbukket’s ire, all the rest of the rats also got stuck in to the fight. High Elves were a lot less scary than him!

First was the combined charge of the Hell Pit Abomination and Queek into the Ellyrian Reavers. The lightly armoured scouts were no match for the experienced Warlord and fearsome monster. With barely any loss of momentum, the Hell Pit overcharged into the elven Noble astride his trusty Griffon. Queek was following on behind but not quite quick enough to keep up.

The frenzied Rat Ogres charged into the flank of the two remaining Swordmasters. The elves managed to dispatch another 3 Skavenslaves before going down under the clawed feet of their much larger and scarier brethren. The Rat Ogres overran on through the marsh but couldn’t quite reach the waiting Seaguard. It was hard to find a way through the mist wreathed swamp in the dark and one of the monstrous rats was wounded when it lost its footing.

At the same time, the Doomwheel charged and obliterated the Eagle Bolt Thrower while the Clan Rats charged, severely wounded and scared-off one Giant Eagle. The rats charged after the fleeing eagle but couldn’t reach it before it took to the skies. Nearby, the Giant Rats charged into the other eagle but it was an inconclusive battle with both sides taking a wound apiece.

The Plague Monks charged at the fleeing Tiranoc Chariot but couldn’t catch the fleet footed elven horses who disappeared off into the distance.

As there were no possible targets in view, there was no magic or shooting.

In combat, Skratbukket’s Magic armor saved the day and deflected the many vicious sword strokes of the Elven Prince. In return, the rat Warlord and his litter bearers managed to sneak in enough blows to kill the hated elf. The dragon mount went Raargh! and thrashed wildly. Four devastating claw swipes struck the Warlord’s breastplate. Only the magic imbued in his lucky charm saved him from certain death. The dragon lost the combat but stayed on to fight due to insane courage.

Further up the field, the leftmost Skavenslaves were still bogging down the Lion Chariot. The angry lions killed three of the Slaves but had yet to make any serious dent in the big unit.

High Elves Turn 3

The moon continued to give a reasonable view across the battlefield.

The Dragon Princes charged the flank of the Clan Rats. Despite one more rider succumbing to the intervening forest, the remaining cavalry elves decimated the rats and overran.

The Seaguard were just as successful in charging and crushing the Rat Ogres.

Taking cheer from this turn of events, the Giant Eagle, though sorely wounded, rallied and turned to face the foe.

The Sisters of Averlorn shot true into the Doomwheel but some magic coating of the wooden contraption was at work and the flaming arrows did no discernible damage.

The Lion Chariot continued chewing through the massed ranks of Skavenslaves, eating four.

In the middle of the field, the Moon dragon, still angry at the loss of its master, tore at Skratbukket who disappeared under a flurry of blows. Just before falling to the ground, the Warlord was able to slash out with his magical weapon and cause one sneaky wound in return. Only the steadying comfort of the Stromvermin banner, Battle Standard and massed ranks kept his honor guard in the fight.

On the other hand a flurry of poisoned daggers saw off one of the Giant Eagles while the flailing fists of the Hell Pit Abomination took the lives of both the Griffon and its Noble rider.

Skaven Turn 4

The moon went behind a cloud making it even harder for the rats to see. The Chieftain called on the Stormvermin carrying the Storm banner to let loose its magical ability and call down arcane winds to keep the elven flyers firmly rooted to the ground.

The Doomwheel charged into and decimated the Sisters of Avelorn. The few survivors ran off the battlefield.

The Skavenslaves charged into flank of the Sea Guard but were no match in fighting for the doughty spear-elves. One rat was skewered and the Sea Guard took the opportunity to reform and face the remaining slaves head on.

Taking the opportunity of a lull in the battle around them, the depleted unit of Giant Rats went over to one of the nearby ruins in search of treasure.

All the other Skaven units shuffled around. The Hell Pit Abomination had no choice but charge off into the distance since it was effectively blocked from turning by Queek Headtaker. The manic rat lord made even the great beast nervous!

The Plague Priest cast an evil Cloud of Corruption over everyone nearby. Both units of rats emerged unharmed being used to the tricky poisonous experiments of Clan Pestilens. But the evil fug was too much for the lions and charioteers who gasped on the verminous cloud and fell dead.

The Warp Fire thrower aimed wildly at the Dragon Princes bearing down on them and the Skavens weapon team was lucky to strike down one of the cavalryelves.

In combat, the enraged Dragon killed two Stormvermin. The unit bravely stood their ground even though their weapons were unable to pierce the monster’s scaly hide.

Elven Turn 4

The moon came out from behind the clouds lighting up the battlefield though the Storm banner winds still blew strong. This effectively stopped the eagle from charging.

The two remaining Dragon Princes wheeled to face and get up close and personal with the War fire thrower.

In combat, the Sea Guard slaughtered so many Skavenslaves that the remaining Skaven simply took off in all directions. When then ran into other units that faught wildly … just like cornered rats. Luckily none of the nearby units were harmed as the slaves ran past, striking out blindly as they fled.

The dragon fumbled its attacks only killing one Stormvermin and even took a wound in return. Losing the combat and feeling abandoned, the mighty beast fled for home through the marsh. It just managed to keep ahead of the pursuing Stormvermin.

Aftermath

Recognizing that there was now no chance of winning this engagement, the arrogant champion of the Dragon Princes raised the white flag of surrender.

Skratbukket was found heavily wounded but still alive despite the dragon’s worst. He could claim victory this time and continue home with the Pepperpot of Doom still in his grasp. “Now, where-where are those tunnels” he squawked. The delighted warlord headed back to Skavenblight so that Clan Pestilens could smelt down the Pepperpot of Doom and create a Plague Furnace. “With-with that evil contraption, I can conquer-smash the world!”.