Orc's Drift Remix-Skaven vs Dwarves

I hope that die hard 3rd editioners will forgive me posting this battle rep as it’s a bit of mash up of a classic 2nd edition scenario with 8th ed rules, however since my good friend Iggs and I are both the greyer side of 40 and both armies are well and truly lead, and have been in development over the last 30 years, hopefully oldhammer won’t mind too much. We decided to play the Orcs Drift scenario, but using the armies we had rather than the original models – so that pitched the Skaven army of Flench Packlord against the Dwarf alliance of Iggrim Smithzor. We tended to take more photos as the games progressed, so apologies for the first couple.
So, just like the original, our story begins with the assassination of King Laeron, the leader of the Grand Alliance of Dwarves, Elves and Men, felled by a poisoned codpiece nonetheless, delivered not by the Orc King Fyarr and his Wyvern this time but by Clan Eshin saboteurs. As the Grand Alliance struggles to come to terms with the loss of their King the Skaven Flench Packlord stops bickering long enough to launch a grand assault of different clans upon the land of Ramalia.
All that stands between this new threat and the capital of Palesandre is the Dwarf army of Iggrim Smithzor. Cue the first battle of the 4 – Kachas Pass.

Kachas Pass
In the service of the Grand League, the dwarves of Olaf Bulgruz guard Kachas pass against all intruders. But Olef Bulgruz is in the throes of a savage death wish due to his affair with the queen of the shieldmaidens at Fendal Rise having been discovered. Rather than face the shame, he has taken the slayer oath and now awaits a glorious death in battle through valorous deeds. Here in this outpost he will regain his family’s honour. Also at the outpost is a captured human cultist spy, caught a few days earlier whilst trying to slip back into the mountains. He is locked in the prison shed, and has a lot of important information on the plans of the Grand league. For this reason he must be closely guarded until the relief guard arrives. When questioned, the spy (Silas Meel) gave rise to suspicions that a Skaven Clan Moulder war party have been active in this area, possibly marching towards Palesandre. For this reason a patrol of 10 rangers have been dispatched to search for them, leaving the garrison under strength. However, unknown to Olef, these have been ambushed and killed by the Skaven. The first battle is

1 Dragonslayer – Olef Bulgruz
1 Thane –Fili Merz
15 Thunderers
10 Quarellers
1 Organ gun
VS
Duhl Doomclaw – Skaven Chieftan
20 clanrats with warpfire thrower
20 clanrats with a Ratling gun
Trevor – a Hellpit Abomination


The game opened with the Skaven appearing on the table as the dwarf sentry, sensing something was up with the huge numbers of malevolent red eyes appearing in the forest to the west, decided to ring the bell and raise the alarm. As the Skaven approached and the organ gun crew ran to their machine, Silas Meel broke the lock on the shed where he was incarcerated and began to sneak around the windmill, looking for a way to bolt and escape. Undaunted by the large numbers of rats bearing down on them, the thin line of dwarf Thunderers lined up next to the Organ gun crew and loaded up their weapons with black powder. As the Skaven burst out of the trees, a huge, lolloping mass of flesh bore down on them.
‘Reminds me of that shieldmaiden from Karak Urzul’ Gimrud exclaimed as he lit the taper for the organ gun.
Trevor meanwhile, was salivating wildly, hugely excited at the prospect of having new people to play with. Bounding along like an oversized puppy he charged the dwarf gunline as a deafening roar exploded and rent the night air with acrid clouds of smoke. Trevor paused for a moment, bewildered at what he was feeling. His legs, all 8 of them, were not working how they were meant to. With a huge, sorrowful whimper all 2 tonnes of his grey, greasy bulk came crashing to the ground, barley inches from the dwarves.

‘Nice shooting lads’ Gimrud bellowed, ‘now where’s those clanrats got to?’
From then on it went pretty much downhill for the Skaven. The dwarves stand and shoot had overcome the huge charge of the Abomination, and despite a burst of supporting fire from the Ratling gun, the dwarves ducked behind the wall and survived without a single casualty. The Quarrellers routed one pack of Clanrats and together with the Thunderers, pincushioned the other. And then the Warpfire thrower blew up.
Olef finished the game when he charged the Skaven chieftan and chopped his head clean from his shoulders, and then furthered the victory by hunting down an escaping Silas Meel and knocking him out with his axe shaft. Only 6 clanrats managed to tactically rout off, on the excuse that they were needed later for Orcs Drift.
 

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The second battle was Ashak Rise – the dwarf mining outpost. Since the original scenario already included dwarf miners, all we needed to do was substitute the Orc forces of Hagar Sheol with those of Ashish the Black, Clan Eshin assassin and inventor of the poisoned cod piece.

Ashak Rise
1 Thane – Borrin Fimbul
1 Engineer – son of Borrin – Snorrin Fimbul
6 Miners
6 Rangers
vs
Ashish the Black – Skaven Assassin
10 Gutter Runners
10 Nightrunners
Packmaster Gruel and 10 Giant Rats

The battle began with the dwarves at the river raising the alarm as the fast moving rats and Clan Eshin swarmed out of the shadows and headed towards them. The Miners headed down to the bridge, under the command of Snorrin, who set up position behind a wall and levelled his handgun at the vermin. Since the bridge was the only way across, the Miners lined up and levelled their pickaxes as the furry tide crashed into them. Their path blocked by the combat on the bridge, Ashish cursed the incompetence of their general’s tactics and the lack of fighting ability of his furry ancestors.

The Rangers however took full advantage of this logjam and began picking off Nightrunners and Gutterrunners with crossbow fire, aided by the accuracy of Snorrin, whilst another of their number made the cart ready and harnessed up the pony.
Ironically the Giant rats routing from the miners left the bridge clear for Clan Eshin troops to pour through, and in hand to hand combat, they chopped down the Miners and charged the Rangers behind the wall. All was not lost however as Snorrin valiantly fought on after his comrades had fallen, before eventually succumbing to the overwhelming numbers of black cloaked rats.
Enraged at seeing his beloved son struck down, Borrin yelled a battle oath to his ancestors and charged the Gutter runners, but was cut down by a blade in the back as Ashish the Black vaulted a hedge and crept up behind him. All looked lost for the dwarves as even the indomitable Bill the mining pony was struck down by a whirl of slingshot hurled by the Night runners. The remaining Ranger knew that if he could just push the cart a few more yards, it was a steep downhill from there on and he could hop on and ride it to safety. In the final turn of the game the Nightrunners, which were the only unit in range, had the choice of either using their slings to try to fell the dwarf, or charge him. Of course, being the tactical genius that I am, I chose wrongly and the dwarf escaped with the cart full of gold, turning only to mock the inaccuracy of the Skaven shooting. Another victory to the bearded ones.
 

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The Linden Way Mine

The third battle saw Master Engineer Gimbrin Leofine (who had been tasked with managing the Linden Way Mithril mine, guarding the settlement around it and the roads of Linden Way) desperately trying to keep his recent unwanted discovery of a huge lump of Warpstone in the mine from the hands of the Skaven. It is not only the Mithril deposit that is invaluable, but the Dwarves families also live at the settlement.
For this game we replaced the original cast as shown below, and we also decided that the mad schizophrenic hermit, Old Barrachas, of the original should be a mad schizophrenic jade wizard who randomly swapped sides during the battle. If the Skaven gained the mine and captured the Warpstone, they would be able to build either a Doomwheel, Warp lightning cannon or Rat tank for the final battle

1 Master Engineer- Gimbrin Leofine
15 Dwarf Clansmen
5 Quarellers
1 Bolt Thrower
10 Miners
vs
Scathe the Tainted – Skaven Chieftan
Bodgit – lv2 Warlock Engineer
30 clanrats with Doomflayer
20 slaves
8 Gloabadiers with Poisoned Wind Mortar


The battle opened with the Skaven pouring along the road towards the settlement whilst the Miners exited the mine, and the alarm was raised in the settlement, causing the dwarven women and children to prepare to leave by the road to Meledir. As the Skaven advanced and moved towards the ruins that Old Barrachas called home, the ancient druid had an uncharacteristic wave of affection for the rats and began running around offering to make them herbal tea. Scathe the Tainted chittered at him, and prodded him with his halberd, causing him to charge the first wave of dwarf warriors in a frenzy. Meanwhile the Clan Skrye Globadiers took up residence in the newly vacated ruins, whilst the mortar opened fire, killing a dwarf in a blast of toxic green smoke. The dwarves answered with some shooting of their own, the Quarellers in the tower and the Bolt Thrower skewering several slaves and clanrats.

The slaves and the Doomflayer attempted to outflank the dwarves and get to the mine to reclaim the Warpstone, but as they moved through the woods, more were felled, by a combination of terrain and feathered bolts. You’ll notice in this photo that the lovely old metal models are moving onwards whilst the plastic age of sigmar model remains static as a statue in the ruins (there’s a really subtle metaphor here for the current GW Warhammer situation). As the Doomflayer rolled into range of the crossbows in the tower they felled it jubilantly, allowing more villagers to get to safety and the miners to organise themselves for battle. A sudden flash of green light indicated the demise of Old Barrachas, as he miscast a Regrowth spell on the Skaven.
Invigorated by the sudden blast of energy, the clanrats charged the Bolt Thrower, Scathe pausing only to quaff a viscous purple potion before slicing the master engineer Gimbirn in two with his halberd. The clanrats were themselves flank charged by the dwarf warriors, and as battle joined, both sides took casualties, not only from the combat, but from errant poisoned wind globes casually tossed into the fray. Scathe cursed the Globadiers and vowed his revenge should they survive the battle. The dwarves uncharacteristically routed, despite being stubborn, but rallied quickly before they could be caught. Having hidden the Warpstone in a nearby forest, the miners charged into the fray, coming to help out the 2 remaining Bolt thrower crew, who were somehow still holding off a unit of 24 clanrats. But Bodgit was finally getting into his stride and a blast of Warplightning, followed by a well placed musket shot felled 5 more valiant dwarves. Having dealt with the Miners and Bolt Thrower crew, the Skaven assault continued by the slaves charging the remaining Quarellers in the tower. The musk of fear was duly sprayed however and they disintegrated in a wave of scratching and clawing, desperate to escape. Only 3 Quarellers remained, and yet they were proving extremely stubborn. They had done their job well, allowing their kinsfolk to escape, and now they prepared to sell their lives dearly as a frustrated Scathe finally decided that‘if you want a job doing well, do it yourself’ and charged in with the remaining Clanrats, finally felling the last of the defenders and winning the day. The Warpstone was duly found under a bush, (stupid dwarves) and I rolled a D6 to see what they would build with it- a 6 – hooray – Klamunkasts Rat Tank was available for the final battle.
 

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The Dwarves of Orc’s Drift
The Army of the Grand League has been called East in pursuit of the Skaven Clan Eshin Force that assassinated the Elector King Laeron. Crossing the river Canis 2 days ago, Osrim Chardz had been ordered to repair the stone bridge over the river which was damaged by the crossing of the Grand League’s army. The work is almost complete and he is due to march East to rejoin the army in 2 days time. The Engineers are in a dull mood, put out at being left behind in this way. Also at the river is a rather annoying unit of Irondrakes that the king of Karak Igzor, Iggrim Smithzor, has left behind for their protection. The Irondrakes make the most of each and every opportunity to patronise the Engineers fully, letting them know that they are here to protect and watch over them while they do this ‘terribly important’ work. Osrim is of the opinion that he needs their ‘protection’ about as much as he needs a grobbo’s help. Also at the garrison hospital is a small unit of wounded Slayers, who arrived too late to catch up with the army although they have recently taken to drowning their sorrows at merely being wounded rather than killed in Bugmans XXXXX.
Such is the state of play when word suddenly reaches the dwarves of a sighting of a war party of Skaven away to the North, heading towards the outpost of Orc’s Drift. It appears that the Grand League’s army have been tricked into pursuing a ghost, whilst the real attack happens elsewhere. The dwarves build a hasty defence of stone walls and wait to see what the day will bring.

1 Dwarf lord – Osrim Chardz
1 Master Engineer – Thorin Hertz
10 Rangers
1 Thane – Gloin Golfug
10 Irondrakes
1 cannon
4 Drunken Slayers - Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Bimfir
1 Runesmith – Kili Snart
VS
Flench Packlord on Pox, a Brood Horror
20 Stormvermin Bodygaurd with Doomflayer
Klamunkast’s rat tank
6 clanrats (survivors from battle 1)
1 Assassin, 5 Gutter Runners, 8 Nightrunners (from battle 2)
16 clanrats, Scathe the Tainted, Bodgit, 8 Globadiers and Poisoned wind mortar (from battle 3)

The dwarves hastily build some stone wall defences, entrenching the cannon on a hill near the Engineers camp by the bridge. Just as they are finishing the Skaven clans appear from the North , East and West, to the East rumbles a fearsome iron behemoth accompanied by 16 Clanrats, Bodgit, Scathe the Tainted and the Globadiers. To the West comes a unit of vicious Stormvermin, a shambling Brood Horror at their head, and to the North come the black clad skirmishers of Clan Eshin, heading for the Dwarven war machines. Flench’s mount flops over the defending wall to the West and Gloin Golfug valiantly sells his life to try to buy the garrison precious time, however his rune of slowness has little effect on the Skaven Beast and he is crushed. The dwarf cannon overshoots Bodgit, but wipes out the Mortar team and smacks into the Rat tank with a resounding clang, that deafens those nearby. The Dwarf Lord, Osrim Chardz, destroys the unit of 6 Clanrats with his mighty glowing axe of Karak Eight Peaks. The Rangers pepper the Gutter runners with crossbow bolts before charging them, as Ashish the Black leaves them to their fate and charges the cannon crew on top of the hill.

Meanwhile Klamunkast’s pride and joy, the Rat tank trundles onto the bridge before grinding to an impromptu halt as the engine overloads and green smoke comes billowing out of the dashboard. As he struggles to find the Haynes manual the tank becomes an extremely effective roadblock, thwarting the advance of the remaining Clanrats, who have to resort to single file to trickle past it.
 

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On the other side of the battlefield the Slayers stagger forward out of the hospital, heads spinning due to the potent brew of Bugman’s they have imbibed - only to be hacked apart in a whirlwind of flesh and gore as the Doomflayer crashes into them, followed seconds later by the Runesmith, whose Gromril armour is no match for the halberds of the Stormvermin. As the Assassin slays the last of the cannon crew in a whirl of poisoned blades, the last act of the master gunner is to fling his glowing taper into a barrel of gunpowder, detonating the booby trap and sending the Assassin tumbling down the hill in a cloud of smoke, wounded but still somehow alive.

He dusts himself off and leaps the wall, heading towards the Irondrakes in the centre.

The remaining Rangers somehow decide to flee from the Globadiers on the other side of the battlefield as Osrim Chardz plants his rune encrusted axe firmly in the Assassin’s singed hide, finishing him off once and for all. The Irondrakes stand and shoot against the huge, fleshy shape charging towards them, dousing the Brood horror in alchemical fire, but it survives long enough to drag several of them into the mud. Osrim bellows a challenge to Flench, and in the last round of the game he puts an end to the foul Skaven mount once and for all, before finally succumbing to the flurry of attacks from it’s Warlord rider. As the proud form of the dwarf sinks to the ground, the Skaven begin pillaging and feeding on the fallen, but the real winner of the campaign is, of course Oldhammer.
 

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