Well, I played a few games against an O&G force this weekend.
A couple of small battle thoughts.
1000 points each.
My army:
General
Liche priest
Liche Priest, Dispel Scroll
4 units of skeleton infantry
2 units of bowmen
2 units of bolt throwers
2 units of cavalry
2 units of chariots.
Not an ideal army, I just wanted to play around with some concepts and try out the rules. I also wanted to proxy as little as possible, so just the chariots were proxied.
Opponents army
General, crown of command
Goblin Hero, upgraded to an orc hero for the 2nd game
Goblin Shaman-Staff of Spellbinding
Orc Shaman-Dispel Scroll
Giant
3 units of Orcs, one had sword of fate
2 units of Goblins
Stone thrower
Goblin wolf riders
I'm forgetting stuff, he had 10 total units, so probably more orcs or goblins He decided that cavalry was too expensive for what it did, so he ignored the boar riders, I think he's reconsidering after our games.
One unit of chariots and one unit of cavalry make a a double move to charge the biggest unit of orcs, brigaded into one huge unit of 2 orcs and 2 goblins support. I Cast Raise the dead twice, burning out his dispel scroll and getting a unit to the flank and rear of the brigade. I win combat by lots and destroy his brigade of 4 units, he's down to one unit before an auto loss. The giant keeps moving around some trees to line up on the chariot-cavalry unit. Eventually I get the bone throwers in position to unload on one unit and cast 2 of the shooting spells from the liches. The unit is reduced to one stand, he fails a command roll to get it out of harms way and I chariot smash it.
He drops a unit of goblins and the sword of fate to upgrade his gobbo hero to a orc hero.
A couple of my units crush a unit of gobbos and orcs that are unsupported. He makes a double roll to get his giant into the flank of my brigade of bowmen and infantry(needing a 6). They are slowly ground down to nothing, but inflict the critical 4 wounds. (I think we goofed here, since he immediately moved his guy down to 4 attacks) He follows up into a unit of chariots, which manage to tie him. Next turn the chariots charge in, supported by a unit of cavalry to destroy the giant, but the chariot unit is down to one stand. The rock lobber and foot of gork reduce the other chariot unit to one stand. A few turns pass by with some movement here and there but no combat.
He commits his general to a unit of orcs that again make a double move to charge a unit of cavalry(needing a 5). They have an impressive 17 attacks against my 6 from a cavalry unit. We DRAW combat. I do enough to kill one stand. Everybody and their neighbor moves up to shoot the general's unit of orcs. I reduce him to one stand with one hit remaining and push him back 18 cm. Moments after I say I'm done, I realize I've forgotton to shoot one of my units of bolt throwers(aarggh), too many shooting attacks in a short span of time. Two turns later he makes an amazing series of roles to get his infantry units into combat, needing a 3 for the final order for one unit and a 4 for another. He destroys 4 units in combat and I lose.
Overall some good games. A lot of looking up the rules and we probably played some stuff wrong, but I was very impressed by the game overall.
Raise the dead is the most powerful spell in the game if I'm playing it correctly. IMHO.
Nicholas Kost
Department Assistant
Office of Interdisciplinary Centers and Programs
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, OH