This is the third time in a row the Motherland goes to WTC. This year it is in Düsseldorf. Mark IV is now a real thing, compared to last year where it was very much in transition. So, I'm finally brining two proper Winter Korps lists. I'm bringing Tatiana, with all the Man-O-Wars and Baranova with a Mastodon. This is the second day of action. The first day went far over expectation. So, let's see how day two proceeds.
I went to WTC in 2022 and 2023. Both times were so much fun that I'm returning this year (for a walk through of my experiences for 2022, see here; and for the 2023 experience see here). All list for this year's WTC are available online. I'll do this in two parts. This is the second part, covering the second day. For the report on day one see here.
My ambitions is, as always to win at least one and not end up last. So currently I'm over performing. I'm 2-1 so far! I'm not going to do a long a complicated write-up; I'll just go briefly go through each battle and see if there are any lessons learned.
This year's Winter Korps lists are Kommander Tatiana Sikora in a heavy armour Man-O-War list and Kapitan Ekaterina Baranova is a (Khador) nimble list. Winter Korps is a big thing at this year's WTC. According to Longshanks, there were 17 players using the Motherland. The third most popular army. I'll include the lists and the short description here for completeness sake. So, without any further ado, here are my two lists:
| Khador - Winter Korps Kommander Tatiana Sikora - Iron Flesh - Puissance - Dire Wolf [9] HEAD - Shield Guard RIGHT ARM - Ice Hammer LEFT ARM - Plow-Shield - Dire Wolf [9] HEAD - Shield Guard RIGHT ARM - Ice Hammer LEFT ARM - Plow-Shield - Dire Wolf [10] HEAD - Shield Guard RIGHT ARM - Long Axe LEFT ARM - Plow-Shield Koldun Lord Damien Korovnik [3] Sergeant Sergei Krol [5] Winter Korps Officer [2] Winter Korps Officer [2] Arkanists [4] Arkanists [4] Man-O-War Suppressors [11] Man-O-War Suppressors [11] Man-O-War Wrecking Crew [10] Man-O-War Wrecking Crew [10] Winter Korps Snipers [4] - Winter Korps Hunting Dog [1] Winter Korps Snipers [4] - Winter Korps Hunting Dog [1] Command cards - Careful Reconnaissance - Hit & Run - Old Faithful - Power Swell - Put the Fires Out Total Points 100/100 | Khador - Winter Korps Kapitan Ekaterina Baranova - Avenging Force - Fog of War - Freezing Grip - Mastodon [34] HEAD - Fire Support RIGHT SHOULDER - Heavy Cannon LEFT SHOULDER - Heavy Cannon RIGHT ARM - Great Axe LEFT ARM - Grinder Fist AC-2 Bison [10] AC-2 Bison [10] Battle Mechanik [2] Battle Mechanik [2] Magziev Zariyah Volkova [4] Winter Korps Officer [2] Winter Korps Officer [2] Winter Korps Officer [2] Arkanists [4] Shock Trooper Pikemen [7] Shock Trooper Pikemen [7] Shock Trooper Pikemen [7] Shock Trooper Pikemen [7] Command cards - Blessing of the Gods - Break Through - High Alert - Old Faithful - Power Swell Total Points 100/100 |
Winter Korps under Kommander Tatiana Sikora
What can I say? I like Man-O-Wars. Big stumpy infantry, which according to the ad material are neigh unstoppable. So, the arrival of the Annihilator Cadre really made my day as the Suppressors finally got some company in the shape of the Wrecking Crew, a sergeant and an new Man-O-War 'caster (we all remember the last incarnation of Sorscha).
I have basically taken all the Man-O-Wars that I'm allowed to; save for two Kontrollors (who actually might be pretty cool, but that is for another time). Who better to lead this wall of steel than Tatiana; herself in a Man-O-War armour? As a side note, it seems that female Man-O-War soldiers are smaller than there male counter parts. Once again, she is only on a 40 mm base, whereas everybody else in on a 50 mm base.
The plan is pretty simple. Walk across the field with the Suppressors in front shooting stuff. Follow up with the Wrecking Crew once the lines meet. Finally, have som 'jacks as a backup plan. Snipers for score, contesting and being annoying. That's it. How hard can it be?
Winter Korps under Kapitan Ekaterina Baranova
I have been playing Tatiana to some degree. The second list is quite new to me (yes, I'm really well prepared). I got a Mastodon and really wanted to field it. I did manage to paint it. It was done, along with the rest of the army the night before I left for Germany.
I also have two Bisons, and true to my creed of always duplicating I wanted two in the list. Baranova seems like a pretty good choice. Obviously, I'm not going to use the whole "get focus when stuff gets killed by magic" (which I actually think is a trap). However, her main spell Invocation of Wrath is golden for a shooty list of things that are not terrible good at hitting.
To fill up the list, I took all the Pike men I'm allowed. I actually thing that they are the unpolished gem of the Khador military. But more on that in another post, perhaps. Finally, a bit of support to keep everything running smoothly.
Again, I'm sticking to simple plans. The Mastodon in the middle with its entourage (Mechaniks, Volkova, Arkanists and Baranova. A Bison on each flank with two units of Pike men coming up behind it. Shoot alot and finish off with the Pike men. Again, how hard can it be?
Round 4 — Spanish Khymera
First up is a Spanish team. Despite having argued that I can't see how Khador (or at least my Khador) can do anything about Khymera, I manage to get paired up with exactly that. This list contains two Wyverns and the ubiquitous pig.
Perhaps even more importantly, the time of nation relevant armies seems to been over. I fail to find any thing linking Spain to Khymera. The closest I get is black foot pigs, which is a delicacy. Yet, this year pigs are everywhere. So...
We are playing Wolves at our Heels with two 50 mm objectives (Cohort models), two 40 mm objectives (units) and two caches (pick up the opponent's cache). In addition, we get to move objectives. I don't think it is a match for Baranova (nor Tatiana, for that matter). I'm pretty sure that I can't protect the Mastodon from the two Wyverns and the pig; and the Mastodon is a pretty big investment in the list. So, Tatiana fields her Man-O-Wars. The very nice Spanish player, who it turns out is a mercenary, plays the following list:
| Khymaera - Shadowflame Shard Shyryss, the Flawless Dark - Silence of Death - Execration of Blackest Night - Curse of Shadows - Vipex [10] HEAD - Asp [1] TAIL - Hunter's Mark [3] ARMS - Cleavers [6] Wyvern [1] Wyvern [1] Bellighul, Master of Pain [4] Carver Ultimus [20] - War Boar MMD47 Quick Fang Stalkers [7] - Quick Fang Master Quick Fang Stalkers [7] Talon Lashers [7] Wyrmspine Shadowmancers [5] Command cards - Blessing of the Gods - Break Through - Careful Reconnaissance - Hit & Run - Power Swell Total points 100/100 |
The roll off happens and Shyryss decides to go first. The picture below shows the battle field before all the mayhem.
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| End of deployment |
Shyryss' first turn is quite uneventful. All the troops move into position. It is a very matriculate advancement with lots of measurement and sticks on the table. It seems that the single shot assassination plan is already taking place. The picture below shows the end of the Khymera advancements.
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| End of turn 1, round 1 |
Tatiana looks at the pig and the two mighty Wyverns. She has earlier, during camping done some maths and figure out that actually hurting the pig with the Suppressors is not really a possibility. The Wyverns are a bit easier.
It is quite important to not get charged by the Wyverns. So, the army advances in a pretty well ordered straight line, staying out of the Wyverns' range. The picture below depicts the end of Tatiana's first turn.
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| End of round 1 |
Round two, party time. Shyryss is still very much in love with the measuring tape and measuring sticks. The advancement is slow and attempts are made to bait Tatiana into moving. It is only on the left flank where somebody is approaching the objective. The picture below shows the end of Shyryss' second turn.
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| End of turn 1, round 2 |
Tatiana is a bit bored. Objectives need to be grabbed in a small hope of actually doing something clever in this game. The Snipers on the left flank moves about, trying to fight whatever small models have arrived near the objective. The snipers on the right flank advances to get near the objective.
Most of the action is in the middle. The Suppressors to the left advances and shoots the pig. One model get a Reposition card to get base to base with the pig. One of the Dire Wolfs also runs to the pig to try and engage it. Everybody else advances and spread out to ensure that the Wyverns can't land anywhere near Tatiana. The picture below shows what happens when Tatiana takes the bait.
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| End of round 2 |
From here it goes really fast. So fast that the photographer forgot to take a picture. More reprimands will be given once back home.
In short, the pig does pig things, move, bulldoze and shots the crap out of the Dire Wolf and one of the Wrecking Crew. Somebody else contributes and clear a landing spot for a Wyvern. The Wyvern has all sorts of spells cast on it by Shyryss, so does Tatiana. In goes the Wyvern and eats Tatiana.
That was it. Quite as expected. I was thinking that it really was pointless to put models on the table. But, it is interesting to see what they could do. Basically nothing. I'm not going to complain about double Wyverns. They are dangerous but can probably be managed. Combined with the pig. That is just silly. I do have to admit, though. That my game was the only one that my opponent won. So, that clearly points to the core problem being the pilot of the Khador list, which is not an unfamiliar problem.
Nevertheless, nice opponent and good game. Our team managed a 0-5. So, I was not the only one messing it up.
Round 5 — US Brineblood
Final opponent this year is saltwater trolls from across the great sea. I have never faced the pirate trolls before. So, this will be fun.
We are playing Battle lines with two 40 mm objectives (units), two 30 mm objectives (solos), and two flags (models). I think planting the Mastodon in the middle between the two 40 mm will be nice. So, Baranova is summoned. The lovely American fields the following US-pirates:
| Southern Kriels - Brineblood Marauders Admiral Boomhowler - Black Spot - Fortify - Fortune - Deepborn Dire Troll [14] HEAD - Cantankerous [3] FIN - Spearback [3] TAIL - Hammerhead [5] ARMS - Shark Skull Gauntlet [3] - Reef Troll [7] HEAD - Matey BOOZE - Grog Cask [1] RIGHT ARM - Harpoon [4] LEFT ARM - Boarding Axe [2] Vorogger [12] Booty Boss [3] Booty Boss [3] Fire Guardian [1] Fire Guardian [1] First Mate Hargor Stormjaw [4] Madame Moriarty [3] Pyg Battle Brig [11] Surgeon [3] Surgeon [3] Marauder Crew [6] - Marauder Crew Bosun [3] Marauder Crew [6] - Marauder Crew Bosun [3] Marauder Crew [6] - Marauder Crew Quartermaster [4] Marauder Crew [6] - Marauder Crew Tapper [1] Command cards - Blessing of the Gods - Careful Reconnaissance - Hit & Run - Power Swell - Put the Fires Out Total points 100/100 |
Boomhowler wins the roll off and goes first. She deploys everything in a nice line. Baranova follows the standard deployment with the Mastodon in the middle, and a Bison plus two units of Pikeman on each flank. The picture below shows the deployment. Please note that my opponent forgot to deploy the two Fire Guardians as he mistook it for terrain. He was allowed to "deploy" them after his turn. So they pop up on the left side of the next picture.
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| End of deployment |
First turn, Boomhowler advance her troops and spread them out a bit. She really would like to keep out of range of the Mastodon's guns. That it. The picture below shows the end of the first turn.
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| End of turn 1, round 1 |
Baranova is up. On the right flank, the Bison and two units of Pikemen advance in the standard manner. On the left side, an attempt is made to do them same. However, I discover that I forgot that the 2D terrain was actually an impassable. So, they need to move around it. The officer runs to the behind the house to get into position to the objective for the next round. The Mastodon move up the middle, with the rest trailing behind it. The picture below shows the end of round 1.
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| End of round 1 |
Second round starts with Boomhowler moving Marauders forward on the right flank. Some of all the attachments and solos does all sorts of tricks to make them tough and what not. The balloon moves into the forest. The rest of her models move cautiously forward. The picture below shows the end of Boomhowler's moving her troops about.
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| End of turn 1, round 2 |
Baranova needs to get stuff rolling. On the right side the Bison charges into the Marauders. It does a little and puts some shots into the balloon. The Pikemen follow up the charge into the Marauders. Marauders are pretty hard to kill. The Mastodon moves up and kills the Balloon. It also slams the Reef Troll, I think.
The two remaining Pikemen units moves up and lines up next to the Mastodon. The leftmost Bison also moves up to put some pressure on the objective. This is best done by killing one of the Fire Guardians. The rest moves up behind the line. Baranova feats. The picture below depicts the situation after first blood.
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| End of round 2 |
Boomhowler strikes back; and what a strike. Maraudes are pretty hard hitting. Despite Baranova's feat, I basically loose all Pikemen, save one. Also the right most Bison disappears in a cloud. This is horrible.
In one short turn, Baranova goes from being kind of OK to be really on her heels. Pikemen do not survie charges from Marauders. ARM 18 and 5 boxes is not nearly enough. Anyway, the picture below shows what remains after Boomhowler's revenge.
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| End of turn 1, round 3 |
Baranova is in trouble. Yet, there is only one way and that is forward. Attempts are made to clean up the objective on the right. However, the Pikeman is clearly shaken and doesn't really perform. As so many times before it is up to the Royal Mechaniks Society. A Mechanik charges and removes two Marauders.
The Mastodon start up cleaning services. It removes the Vorogger, or Frog with the tongue. A few Marauders and slams the Reef Troll once again.
In the middle, Baranova moves back into the woods. The Arkanists move forward. So does Volkova. On the left, the Bison attempts to do things, without much luck. The Officer charges the remaining Fire Guardian and does nothing. The picture below shows how it looks when Baranova is hanging on with what little remains.
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| End of round 3 |
Boomhowler is in great form and is ready to continue the onslaught. On the left side, the Marauders clean out the Bison and the Officer, and moves towards the flag in the bottom left. On the right side, the last Pikeman and the Mechaniks keep the line. In the middle, the Deepborn charges the Mastodon and does some damage. Boomhowler moves out of harms way. The picture below depicts "going down hill in snow" by Ekaterina Baranova.
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| End of turn 1, round 4 |
Scenario is actually 2-1 in Baranova's favour. So not all is lost. The Mastodon is in shape. On the right side, the combined might of the Pikeman and the Mechanik finally clears out the objective. Baranova moves up behind the Mastodon and it goes to work. Some Marauders go away. Not an impressive amount, though. The last Officer runs to contest the objective on the right. That is it. The picture below shows Baranova on overtime.
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| End of round 4 |
Boomhowler continues the pressure. Marauders are now at the flag. The last Officer dies valiantly. Some troll moves to the objective on the right. The picture below shows further down the slippery slope.
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| End of turn 1, round 5 |
Not a whole lot of time left on the clock. So, it is a matter of grabbing scenario points. The Mastodon moves to the flag on the left. The right side is attempted to be cleaned out, with no luck. Time's up. We end up at a scenario score of 5-7 in Boomhowler's favour. The picture below shows the end of the slope.
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| End of round 5, end of game |
This was a really fun game. Very lovely opponent. I loose on time, but was loosing anyway. Scenarion was 5-7 in Boomhowler's favour.
Saltwater trolls are surprisingly rough. On paper Maraudes look almost benign. However, they can really stack buffs, making them really hard. I don't think I managed to kill many of them. More experience with these pirates are clearly needed.
The team again went 0-5. So, I'm not alone.
Summary & Lessons Learned
This was fantastic. This year's WTC was very well organised. Everybody I met were fantastic, as they always are in the Warmachine world.
Somehow I managed to over perform. My goal was to win one match. I managed to go 2-3. As a sweet bonus I became the best placed on my team. I would not have guessed that. Our team went 1-4 and did not end up last. So our goals achieved.
I it always really good to go to these tournaments. There is a lot of good player around, and I get showed how to actually play Warmachine. It is always a very educational experience; and fun!
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| Pigs on parade - all 119 of them |
So, Steamforge or Privateer Press please don't do that again (I had hoped that you had learned your lesson from the Archon incident at the end of Mark III).
I'm not sure about the idea of mercenaries working for all armies in itself is a good idea. I am sure, however that making one that is clearly so over the top that everybody and their grandma brings one is just dumb. Not only is it pretty hard to deal with. But the ubiquity of a specific model really risks ruins the fun of the game.
Surprisingly, I only faced one. But that was also sufficient. It really needs a lot of work on the rules before it becomes sensible.
That was it. Another fantastic year. Next year is in Sweden. I'm already looking forward to it. the game.
See you all in Sweden.
For the Motherland!
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