11. July 2012 · 12:45
So, this will be my first tournament report in this Blog. I decided to field my actual army, the Ogres to the lovely city of Katzelsdorf (south to Vienna) and crush some heads (only literally, of course). It was a fine tournament, with a free sausage buffet, a motivated organization team and many many new faces which have never played a tournament before (it was thought to be more a fun than a competitive event). So the armies should be fun to play against and not the usual tournament lists.
I decided to bring my Ogres for two reasons: firstly, after the local tournament organisators had a very restrictive and banning attitude against Dwarves, my most beloved race, I wanted to try something else. And because I have played Ogres with the bad crappy old book, I wanted to give the old fatties another chance. As the tournament should be especially friendly for new tournament players (although I still do not understand why someone who likes Warhammer should not like to play tournaments), the army size was restricted to 1650 points. The Ogres should do well with this little size.
Tyrant, General, LA, Giantbreaker, Sword of Striking, Potion of Strength – 270 Pts.
Butcher, GW, Scroll, Lore of The Great Maw – 134 Pts.
8 Ironguts, M – 354 Pts.
8 Ironguts, M – 354 Pts.
6 Maneaters, 3 x 2xHw, 3 x GW, Immune to Psychology, Stubborn, M, S, Lookout Gnoblar – 364 Pts.
Ironblaster – 170 Pts.
Total: 1646
A tough little expedition with much punch in the core and elite section. The big cannon was meant for things like chariots and eagles, which can ruin the day of every tyrant. Additionally, I had to bring one Ironblaster because the scenario of the second game included a dragon which should be killed and gave massive game points to the player who slayed him. So, I needed a weapon which could could multiple damage.
The core units were easy choices. Thanks to Games Workshop, basic Ogres are no mandatory selection anymore and so we can use the much better Ironguts to fill the core ranks. The Butcher was taken simply because I wanted the Scroll, and the Maneaters were taken because I did not have the cat riders ready at this moment.
The Tyrant was an experiment. I tend to misroll the attack rolls when I need them most, so the Sword of Striking was an obvious choice. The Great Name is also an easy choice, for it provides the Tyrant with the really needed hitting power. But the Potion of Strength was primary meant against the dragon in scenario two, when I would need something against this Toughness-6 Monster. Looking back, perhaps I should have given the Butcher the Rock Eye and therefore cancel the Lookout Gnoblar.
First Game – Bernhard Horner (Ogres)
The very first competition and it should be a battle against another tribe! Well, it wouldn’t be too tough, would it?
My opponent played a slightly different list than me. Instead of the Maneaters, he fielded four Cat riders and used a Firebelly and a Sabertooth (OK, I have to blame myself for forgetting to take one with me) and a big unit of Thunderers instead of the big cannon. So he had no Tyrant, no big impact unit and no cannon. As long as I could hit his riders with the cannon, it should not be too hard to play. How pathetically wrong I was…
The game started with a poor decision. I wanted the Maneaters to come from the right side, so I placed them far too right where they could not be of much use. My opponent could easily dance me out with shooting some Ironguts with his Thunderers and blocking my important units with the Sabertooth and Gnoblars (again, never forget the Sabertooth. Perhaps I was a little scared to take him because he could cause panic tests so easily). Anyhow, I was blocked out and couldn’t do any harm against his riders. The only positive shoot from the cannon caused two dead Thunderers, failed their panic tests and run (not far enough, though, but it was very satisfying).
The rest of the game: he manages to eat my Butcher with his Ironguts, and can run over into the cannon (again, I have to remember to place it more properly). The Tyrant feels brave and counterattacks the Firebelly/Irongut unit, but he can’t save the cannon. The Maneaters storm into the Thunderers, and even manage not to be shot altogether, but then have to face the cat riders which they obviously don’t survive.
So, in the end, I am seriously beaten by my own race and have to rethink something playing Ogres. Congratulations to my opponent, he always used his tools to best effort and got a deserved victory (although I don’t remember the points exactly, I was happy not to be beaten up 0-20).
Second game – Jakob Husinsky (High Elves)
Ah, High Elves. Always striking first (and rerolling this!) and carrying Great weapons surely are the nightmare of every honest Tyrant who has no option to reroll his dice. Anyhow, maybe the scenario would help. We both would have to hunt a dragon, who gave additionally victory points to those who slayed him. Couldn’t be too tough for Ogres, eh?
The melee units of the elves were not too big, but my first target was the dragon – if I could kill him first, I would (at least) score four tournament points. So I added the tyrant to the Maneaters and tried to charge in round one. Sadly, I missed the score for just one inch. Anyhow, it was no catastrophe.
The elven mage blow himself up, so I didn’t have to care about magic any more. While the Phoenix Guard ate my Butcher/Irongut unit, the Tyrant and the Maneaters could charge the White Lions with an elven hero and kill them. But sadly, it wasn’t enough, for the Phoenix Guard showed up in the rear and ate the poor Tyrant.
The dragon survived the game (who could have guessed?) and neither one of us got the bonus points. I’m still not quite content with this scenario, for it is nearly impossible for any player to score 20 points, due to a very strict victory points calculation table.
Game three – Benjamin Wolf (Empire)
Well, Empire. With no steam tank, no griffon riders, and just one cannon. At last, an army that should be manageable. How wrong I was…
The game started pretty good, when my Ironblaster could blew up his cannon and therefore eliminate the biggest trouble for my Ogres. The scenario was a bit like the second, for we had to chase a running wizard. Again, I wanted a confrontation right in the middle of the board, so the units headed forward. The Maneaters (now on the left flank) tried to keep the Greatswords out of the game, while my Ironguts with the Tyrant should cope with the inner circle knights with priest in front of them. Well, it wasn’t quite as I expected. I managed to attack the knights, but their +1 save kept too many of them alive, so I couldn’t break them and was attacked in the flank by the smaller knight unit in return. When I saw that the two Irongut units plus the heroes were lost, I conceded (also due to the fact that I was very tired at the end of the third game).
At the end, it was a very fine tournament. Congratulations to all my partners, every one of them deserved his victory (although I am pretty happy that I managed not to lose the first two games with zero points). A big thank you to the organization team, who cared a lot and created a very fine tournament (and sausage buffet, and nicely cooled tournament rooms). Perhaps, some of the new faces I saw will attend in a tournament in Vienna.
And for the army: I enjoyed the straight-forward playing style of Ogres, although I didn’t play them well. I know that there will be a lot of practising ahead. But the ultimate goal of winning a tournament is still ahead.
Perhaps, I will try the Slaughtermaster with the Frog Roll and Lore of Death in future games. Although I know that I will prefer the more directly and offensive Tyrant, maybe I will understand why he is esteemed to be so effective.
Some armies participating in the tournament
As the tournament progresses, players struggle for keeping concentration
The trophies, the happy winner and the organization team and a random player from Vienna on the left (just to add a little sexappeal)
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