Ziggurat Of Doom Redux, Part 3 - Doom And Glory

Here concludes the last part of the "Ziggurat of Doom" battle report.

Poopytail loses his last wound and falls to the ground whimpering, as cruel goblins stab him over and over again.  How much sorrow can we witness in one battle report?

Then finally at last, some good news!  With a flash, the Bullywug King diverts some power to summon a Cockatrice... The fabled Chicken of Doom.  This temple is named for him... Chicken-Itza!  This should help buy time for the defenders.  We still need that darned  Ace of Hearts to pop up and summon the Slann and stop the Orc reinforcements.  The Cockatrice flys up high... where will it swoop to?  Lots of targets to choose from...

Balin and Fangs continue slaying Orcs, but can you see more Orcs coming behind them from the West?

With the Dwarves on the steps, Minnie and some Orcs go to work on the last Crystal.

The Chicken of Doom swoops down on Minnie Castavet, of course! Its up to this chickenwing to save the day.  Her familiar rat and snotling companion look around with worried eyes...

And Minnie is torn to shreds, along with a couple of Orcs.  The rest run away screaming.  If they survive, they will tell their runtling children of the horror of Chicken-Itza.

And finally, a flash of light from above, and a low rumbling shakes the earth, as Slann warriors rise from the spawning pool.  Legendary warriors from ages past arise!

The Orcs on the steps look to their right and do a double take as enemies appear out of nowhere!

The Slann attack, blowing ancient warhorns not heard in centuries.  Kremlo the Slann leads the attack and Orc bodies hit the floor!

The Cockatrice flies up and chases down the Orcs who were trying to flank Balin.  The Bullywug King, free from casting the summoning spell, heads down to lend a hand in the battle below.

Balin and Fangs are cutting through Orcs like a woodcutter among saplings.  Glorious slaughter ensues.

You want to play games?
Okay, I play with you.
You wanna play rough?
Say hello to my little friend!
There! You like that?
You think you can take me?
You need a army, you gonna take me!  

The Orcs in the center break and are pursued!

One last heartbreak.  Just as the Orcs are routed in the East, Balin looks over to see that Fangs McGillycutty the Raptor had died as well. You will be remembered smart girl!

The alliance.  Balin and the Bullywug.  All hail!

What a battle, on a knife edge, it was.

The Bullywug King uses his magic to heal up the fallen Dwarves.

He also summons a Giant Winged Bear as a first payment to Balin.  Balin immediately bonds with his new pet.

Balin:  I shall call you Mr Maloonigans!

Suddenly a fizzling sound is heard from the Last Crystal...

The last remaining Crystal drains of power.  The Bullywug King can do no more magic summoning. In order to summon more creatures and more Slann, he requires energon crystals that might be found in the Carrion Caves.  He cannot send his Slann to do this, since someone has to guard the Temple.  Balin agrees to find these Crystals.

But before that, the Bullywug King asks that Balin learn how to expel the chaos forces that bind him and his companions.  Balin explains he has no time, because he has heard of more chaos dwarves nearby that need his help. Which is where he was heading to, before getting teleported here.  After finding his friends, he will set out on the quest for more Crystals.  The Bullywug King warns him of the dangers of Chaos and how it will eventually corrupt him.  Balin promises he wont turn to the darkside and that upon his return, he will cleanse himself and his dwarves of the taint of chaos.

Bullywug King: (sighs) Told you, I did. Reckless is he. Now matters are worse.
A disembodied Jedi voice: That dwarf is our last hope.
Bullywug King: There is another
A disembodied Jedi voice: Ah yes, another Skywalker...
Bullywug King: Skywalker?  No, another dwarf who can bring stability to Moria.  He comes from a distant Western land with 7 Kingdoms ruled by an Iron Throne.
A disembodied Jedi voice: This doesnt sound canonical at all!
Bullywug King: (sighs) I dont have time to explain it, please read this blog from the beginning and get caught up, ghostly Sir Alec Guinness...
A disembodied Jedi voice: A Jedi always pays his debts!

----

And there it is.  Probably my favorite battle so far in this project.  Like a good boxing or mma match, there were plenty of back and forth moments.  Those Orcs kept getting really high die rolls for reinforcements.

I am really getting used to the rules and the implications.  Routed units pretty much stay routed in 1st edition.  And retreating units, usually end up routing.  1st edition isnt pretty, but again, it gets the job done.  For me, the story's the thing, and what a story that was.  I really enjoy not worrying about points.  I love building scenarios, almost like historical wargaming, but using my imagination instead.  Although I will admit, I have and will use historical set piece battles as inspiration.  I like the fact that 1st edition has so few special rules to keep in the back of your mind.  Its got alot of modifiers, but what game doesnt.  I prefer the modifiers on a summary sheet, rather than a bunch of special rules for each figure or unit.  I must remember that providing choices in the scenario is what makes for good gaming.  Choices and consequences.  No matter what rules you use, those two things must bear out in the scenario, otherwise you are just throwing dice.  Ok, enough with the ruminating...

Hold on, I wonder if Age of Sigmar, might work for me as well though.  I feel dirty for thinking it, since I want to think of myself as a proper old-school grognard.  But, its got round bases!  It doesnt seem to be a point tournament game.  It seems really streamlined.  Im not interested in the models or fluff, just the rules.

Meh, go home, self, you are high on die rolls...  ;p

Cheers,
Mar

Next post:  Winter is coming... to Moria?!

Bonus feature: Soundtrack To This Post!
Music I listened to while playing the game...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUipMnVM0esiDbkC8yNUL3cukRHV4xdRg
Hawkwind - Warrior On The Edge Of Time
King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King
Rainbow (w Dio) - On Stage Live
Yes - Tales From The Topographic Oceans