For my final game of 2016, I had just received my Storm Raptor in the mail (literally as I was walking out the door) and I couldn't wait to give the thing a try.
It was partially assembled as the game started, and it got finished somewhere around turn 2.
My local Menoth opponent was good enough to let me try it out, so we threw down in style for the end of the year!
Kromac 2
- Storm Raptor
- Ghetorix
- Stalker
- Gorax Rager
Blackclad Wayfarer
Min Mist Riders
Gobbers Bellows Crew
Against:
Malekus
- Heirophant
- Reckoner
- Reckoner
- Hand of Judgment
- Castigator
- Revenger
- Repenter? Spray Jack?
Temple Flame Guard and CA
Choir (max)
Wrack
I won the roll off, and we were playing Extraction, so I windmill slammed first. I really wanted to get the Storm Raptor up the table fast without having to worry about eating shots turn 1.
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| Blackclad is hiding under the left wing. |
My opponent counter-deployed by putting all of his shooting stuff across from the Storm Raptor, which is the right thing to do.
Circle turn 1:
I started things off with Kromac casting Awakened Spirit on the Storm Raptor and Vengeful on Ghetorix, before charging up the field to the right.
Literally everything ran at that point, with the Storm Raptor doing a nice switcharoo and coming to the side of the table where I actually felt like he could get work done without being blown to smithereens.
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| Isn't it pretty! |
My opponent uses the TFG mini-feat and runs them at me.
Jacks move up, and Ignite goes onto the Revenger.
Choir sings no shooting.
Circle turn 2:
I do some premeasuring, and the Storm Raptor can aim and shoot some TFG to death.
More interestingly, if I can get the Hunters Mark off, Kromac can charge over to that side of the table, kill 3-4 Idrians for basically free and then Sprint back to just outside of Castigator charge range and THEN the Storm Raptor can bazap a zap TFG to death.
The Blackclad moves up and...whiffs his six.
The Storm Raptor sighs and aims and...misses both of his attacks needing fives.
The Mist Riders go up and do a little bit of work and then Reposition back to make it awkward for the TFG to charge them the next turn.
Kromac moves up into the rubble, and Ghetorix runs instead of walking up and casting Spiny Growth like he should have.
The Stalker runs to the wall, making it so that anything that commits to the flag will get a Stalker to the face.
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| I had to take like three pictures to get all the models in the shot. |
Menoth turn 2:
Things start to go off the rails pretty hard here.
The Revenger gets Battled and charges Ghetorix. Ghetorix rolls boxcars on his Vengeful attack, and then dies as the Revenger rolls 10, 11, 12 for damage.
TFG charge in and fail to kill the second Gobber, and the Castigator runs to the left flag to cap it.
The spray light comes and guns down my Blackclad.
Menoth scores a point.
Score 0-1
Advantage Menoth
Circle turn 3:
Well...that sucked.
My plan here is to clear the TFG without activating Kromac, use the Storm Raptor to charge the Revenger, and then have Kromac feat and charge the Reckoner (empty base by the cloud).
Once he kills it, he'll sprint back to the safety of the right side of the forest and my Stalker will charge in, wreck the Castigator and maybe the light jack, and then Sprint to engage the remaining two heavies.
Thunder Goats go first and...miss an attack in the TFG back arc and then roll 1 for eLeaps twice. *sigh*
The Storm Raptor moves to the Revengers back arc and hits the first attack, boosting damage at dice - 3 and does....3 damage. The Reload shot connects and does average damage, leaving the jack on a few boxes.
Kromac charges to the left of the Revenger to get at the Reckoner and Feats. He hits his charge at MAT 10 and rolls...1,1,2 for damage. I buy an attack and roll 1,2 for damage. He camps five.
Stalker charges in, wrecks the Castigator, and Sprints to engage Hand and the other Reckoner.
Unfortunately, all I have to transfer to is a Gorax.
No points are scored.
Score 0-1
Advantage Menoth
Menoth turn 3:
Battle is sung, and Reckoner number one goes into Kromac, doing fair damage.
The two lights go in, the Revenger being crippled, and the Revenger fails to connect. This is important because Kromac is 3.5 inches from the edge of the forest on the left, so Hand and the other Reckoner can't see him from where he is.
Malekus pops feat and sprays Kromac.
Reckoner two moves away from the Stalker, who takes his club arm off with a massive free strike. The Reckoner tries to shoot Kromac, but at effective DEF 20, the Tharn King is missed.
Hand backs away and takes another good free strike, and sprays Kromac as well, but also misses.
My opponent is down to about a minute on his clock.
\\Score 0-1
Advantage Menoth
Circle turn 4:
Looking back at this turn, I am actually really miffed with how I had played it.
Kromac's fire damage wouldn't have killed him, but he transfers it to the Gorax who dies.
Malekus is sitting in the open on nothing. I pull from the Stalker and a couple from the Storm Raptor, who does not fail his frenzy check.
The correct play here is to have the Storm Raptor advance, shoot Malekus with boosted everything for an average of 9 damage, have Kromac cast Primal Shock through the Raptor twice at dice - 3 for an average of 16 damage, and then have the two Mist Riders charge him for another 10 damage on average.
The next best play is to have the Raptor disrupt the Reckoner and sit there, have the Mist Riders charge Malekus and Reposition in front of him to engage him and block a charge lane.
What I actually did was the worst thing I could have done.
Kromac activates and hits the Reckoner for a pathetic amount. He buys an attack, and then another, doing essentially nothing.
The Stalker kills the other Reckoner and then Sprints to engage Hand of Judgment.
The Raptor kills the remaining TFG.
The Mist Riders charge Malekus and do pretty good damage and then...don't Reposition in front of him.
But hey, I score a point right?
Score 1-1
Tie!
Menoth turn 4:
My opponent times out pretty quick, but we continue on.
The Reckoner is about to start clubbing Kromac when I remind my opponent that he can do a head butt.
His Reckoner does so, and buys an attack doing a few more. His little jack knocks Kromac down to 3 health and 1 transfer, and Malekus charges to seal the deal.
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| Other than Malekus, this is what I should have done. |
Sadly, a loss for the Druids.
Post Game:
Now that I've had a couple days to look at this game more objectively, I realize that the dice really weren't the thing that lost me the game here.
I had a totally viable assassination run, and I didn't take it.
I had multiple ways to not die here, and I didn't take them.
In a tournament, while I would have won this game due to time, I probably wouldn't have felt very good about it. Plain and simple, I let my opponent have the opening and he took it - well played!
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