Today we are going to be taking a closer look at these rules for recreating Viking Sagas on the tabletop. We are going to be using a Norse hero versus a group of game-controlled monsters. We will also be using one of the Mythic scenarios from the rules.
You can find those rules here:
Erik Greybeard was attempting to build up his legend. He was planning an expedition across the ocean, and to do that he needed to gather followers. The Jarl's were not taking him seriously and he knew he needed to prove himself. Therefore, he gathered his kin and out to face the horrors in the Shieldlands above Geatland. He had heard rumors of an Ogre and his kin band terrorizing the people of the area. Erik was determined to track them down.
Forces:
Vikings:
Erik Greybeard - Hero - Chain Mail, Shield Hand Weapon - Patron: Heimdal- Disengage
Gunnar Erikson - Second- Spear, Armor, Shield
8 Kin - Soldiers- Shield, Mix of spears and hand weapons
These will be my Victrix models.
Monsters:
Ogre - Monster- Chain Mail, Two-Handed weapon
Winter Wolf - Beast- Shield, Fast
7 Black Elves - Creatures- Hand weapons, shields, armor
1 Wolf- Creature- Fast
I will be using my Heroquest models to represent the Monsters!
Mission:
For this game, we will be using the Into the Lair of the Beasts scenario found in the main rulebook. We will be using 1 MU = 1 inch on a 36 x 36 MU board.
We also rolled up two complications! The first is Long Shadows and the second was Bad Omens! Let's see if I recall them during game play. These make it easier for the Hide action and more likely for things to fail Fear tests.
The Vikings are trying to get into the Lair of the Beasts.
Set-up:
We set-up terrain per the rules in the main rulebook. However, we also needed 1 terrain piece to act as the entrance to the monster's lair! This time I used two frozen ponds to represent the entrance, similar to the lair for Grendel's Mother.
We rolled up Connected Edges for deployment and then followed the rules for deployment and the scenario. These can be found in the main rulebook.
As normal, I will not be covering each action and dice roll. I will only discuss those if they are relevant to the game, or to help you understand the basic rules. However, I will be breaking the game up into the Maneuver phase, Battle Phase, and End Phase. Normally turn 1 and 2 is the Maneuver portion, 3-6 is the Battle, and 7-8 is the End phase. This game lasts 8 turns or until the Heroes break.
Maneuver Phase
One soldier bravely leaves the woods and soon draws the attention of all the beasts! They quickly close in on him, while his comrades are hampered by the woods behind him. The soldier bravely steps forward to face the Winter Wolf, but has his head knocked off for his audacity!
Gunnar bravely challenges the Winter Wolf next, and their fight is inconclusive. however, it gets crazier as the Ogre and another Viking charge in as well. Meanwhile, as the Vikings emerge from the woods, they are engaged by the Dark Elves. A beast manages to bludgeon another Viking to death.
Battle Phase
Things start poorly for the Vikings as Gunnar is downed by the Ogre right off the bat! However, Erik manages to slay a Dark Elf in return and charges into the next! Fighting across the slowly forming front is inconclusive as the last of the Vikings start leaving the woods.
The Viking fighting the Winter Wolf and the Ogre sees the long odds and the bad omens and runs away back into the woods. The Ogre finishes poor Gunnar off. The Ogre than charges into the next melee, and quickly smacks another Viking to the ground!
End Phase
Things look bleak for our Viking Heroes as they have been whittled down by the beasts. The ogre lumbers into a melee and swings wildly, giving that viking the opening, and he dashes away from the wolf, a Dark Elf, and the Ogre. The Wolf chases him down, but is unable to injure him. However, another Viking is brought down by the Dark Elves.
Erik Greybeard manages to twist away from the fangs of the Winter Wolf and sprints to the Lair entrance and ducks inside. With Erik getting to the lair, the rest of his kin decide it is better to flee and live to fight another day!
Conclusion
That was ugly! Somehow, the Vikings held on long enough for their Hero to get to the lair and secure the win. However, they had to pass a few Runaway checks to do it. They needed 3 VP to win, and Greybeard making it to the Lair gave them 3. However, he lost 3 killled kin, and 2 Missing after the fight. Those two would eventually make their way home to fight again. Thankfully, Greybeard's son would also manage to survive the engagement, with a nasty scar. In return, they barely managed to injure the Beast, downing only 2 Dark Elves in the fight.
Some thoughts. The terrain really hampered my Vikings ability to coordinate. Plus, moving one of my soldiers out of the woods allowed all the beasts to move towards my deployment zone early, that was a big mistake. The Woods played a big part in this battle.
My Vikings also had a hard time getting past the Beasts armor and shields. The beasts also came for blood today, often choosing to Deal Damage whenever they could. Ouch. That Three Dice Ogre was cutting through Vikings like a hot knife through butter, especially when he was getting help from Dark Elf friends. Being Outnumbered is no joke in this game!
Ultimately, my victory came when I won a couple key fights and chose to disengage and then move with extra activations rather than Deal Damage. Heimdall's Gifts paid off in spades in this scenario. If I would have focused on killing enemies, I would have lost. I guess you have to keep your eyes on the prize and tactical movement paid off in this game. It is hard to recall sometimes that you are not locked in combat, but to unlock you have to win a combat. It is a bit counter to a lot of games I have played in that way.
You can find Odin's Ravens: Viking Age Bad Boys on the Blood and Spectacles Wargame Vault page.
Until next time!
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