WFB3 [Warfork Fantasy Battles] The Battle for Arduthrond Glade

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

​

The Battle for Arduthrond Glade​

Introduction​

The Battle for Maugthrond Pass (as published in a leaflet in Warhammer
Fantasy Battles 4th edition box set) is a well known battle from Grom
the Paunch's invasion of the High Elf Realm of Ulthuan, a key battle
of his march towards the great city of Tor Yvresse.

Less known (up to being lost in obscurity, reasons for that shall soon
be undisclosed) is the sister battle for Arduthrond Glade nearby, that
happened at the same time as the battle for Maugthrond Pass, with a
different sub force of Grom's invading army, but with the same goal:
to find an open route towards Tor Yvresse.

This scenario is basically a shameless copy of Nigel Stillman's 4th
edition classic, ported back to 3rd edition force lists and with
renamed characters and place.
​

Overview​

The Battle for Maugthrond Pass is seen as a representation of one of
the many small skirmishes fought during Grom's march towards the great
city of Tor Yvresse. It took place in a stretch of forested
wilderness, where the goblin invasion force attacked and burned many of
the scattered settlements in their path.

A lot of these villages were heroically defended by their inhabitants
and the local elven militias, but most could not withstand the
overwhelming goblin horde and by no means at all were able to stop
or even slow down Grom's march towards Tor Yvresse.

The historic encounter at the pass of Maugthrond was the first real
chance of halting the goblin invasion force, and many stories are told
about the battle there led by Eltharion, the well-known, heroic
personality of elven history. Not so many stories, if at all, are told
these days about the Battle for Arduthrond Glade, neither will any
scroll be found in Ulthuan's archives with a written account of these
events, although the battle that took place there had a very similar
strategic importance. At the same day Eltharion fought at Maugthrond,
Tharhindrel fought the greenskins at Arduthrond.
​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Setting the Scene​

One of the many isolated elf villages encountered by the goblin horde
was Arduthrond. This settlement was located at the intersection of the
only two roads that allowed passage of the area, which consisted of
densely wooded hills which could not be travelled (at least not by an
invading army) except by using the two well maintained roads cutting
though it. The village stood at the point where the two roads met
roughly at the center of the wooded region, and was therefore a
commercial and logistical hub. Many sea elf merchants only came up to
Arduthrond, where they sold their goods, before returning
coastwards. This saved them from having to travel farther inland,
shortening their trips. From Arduthrond farther inland, high elf
merchants took over the distribution.

Being in control of the village would allow the greenskins to use the
full logistical potential of the roads freely, providing them with two
additional possible attack routes towards Tor Yvresse. The elves would
not know which road would be used, if any, forcing them to guard both
exits from the woods with at least one batallion each, assigning two
batallions that could be used elsewhere, forcing the elf high command
to spread their forces thinly over a vast area. And of course there
were supplies in Arduthrond the greenskins could well use, or burn
just out of fun.

Like many elf villages in the region, Arduthrond Glade was protected
by four watch towers, one located on each side of the village, each
guarding one of the roads entering/leaving the village. Beside each
tower was a warning beacon which could be lit if that tower's guards
spotted danger approaching, calling the rest of the village guard
to battle.

Each watch tower was garrisoned by five archers, locals of
Arduthrond's village guard, choosen because of their proficiency and
marksmanship. They could truely be called elite archers. In the centre
of the village, camped in the village square, where two companies of
spear armed elves. The first, Elril's Guard, was also part of
Arduthond's village guard, consisting of kith, the humble elven folk
serving the wealthy merchants of the village, that mustered together
in times of need - such as a goblin invasion. The second company,
Thronduin's Guard, consisted of warrior kindreds, formed from several
family groups from villages beyond the wooded area, who knew they
would be the next targets of Grom's force, if the defence in the wood
was breached - so they assembled an ally contingent and sent it to
help defend Arduthrond. Additionally, the village guard also proudly
owned a decommissoned sea elf marine bolt thrower, which they aquired
at a bargain from one of the sea elf merchants who had frequent
dealings in Arduthrond. It had been deployed with its local crew in
the western watchtower, the most likely direction from which
goblins were expected.

The defenders of Arduthrond knew about the approaching goblins, but
did not know whether the horde would come towards their village or
pass their densly wooded region. Arduthrond was located in a remote
area, off the beaten track, and many believed that the horde would
follow a more direct route along the main highway to Tor Yvresse. The
lookouts were vigilant, but hoped that they might only have to fend
off goblin foragers operating on the flanks of the marching invading
force, not a major force.

As for the goblins, their warlord Grom had decided not to follow the
obvious direct route to Tor Yvresse. He wanted to surprise and
outflank any elven forces on the main highway so he led the main force
of his inading greenskins through the wilderness passes, searching for
a suitable passage, sending wolf riders to make a feint along the main
route, thus confusing the elven high command as to his intentions.

​

While the goblin host was advancing on Tor Yvresse, Eltharion was
sailing down the coast trying to reach the city before Grom's
horde. As the fleet progressed he made regular flights inland, riding
Stormwing, his war griffon. Of course he was not the only one, there
were also other eagle and pegasus riders and even one other griffon
rider - Tharhindrel on Breezeflap. But somehow in history as written
down, everyone other than Eltharion has been omitted... History as
written down also attributes Eltharion of following the Goblin horde
along the main highway, loosing it and finding it again - only to
realize it wasn't the main force, but the distracting contingent of
wolf riders. Of course that was accomplished by multiple high elf
fliers. But somehow history as written down only attributes
Eltharion. It was indeed him who gave the order to fly over the
wilderness regions on either side of the great highway to locate the
new axis of the attack, although in the timespan the distraction force
was discovered, Eltharion could never have managed alone to cover such
a wide area.

That evening, Grom gave the order to send two smaller detachments to
probe two locations that might have been suitable to allow passage for
the main Goblin host. One probe, at Maugthrond Pass, would be let by
himself, the other, at Arduthrond Glade, by one of his lieutenants,
Scak the Beanstalk of Foggy Valleys.

Scak was a longtime fanboy of Grom, serving under him for a long time
already, and imitated him as best as he could. He dreamed of being as
great of a warlord one day as Grom was, but his lanky figure had
always led to him not been taken seriously by many other goblins to
ever allow him to reach such a position. Even for his position as
lieutenant he had to fight more usurpers than the other lieutenants in
Grom's entourage. Amongst other things, he often found himself accused
of being a crossbreed between elf and goblin, because he was so tall
and lanky. Only about three quarter of those cases he was able to
convince everyone of the contrary, by smashing the insulter to the
ground... There was even a debate, if he should be allowed to lead any
goblin contingent in the invasion with his heritage and everything.

Scak was accompanied by his assistant and bearer of his personal
standard, Zrok. And he was riding a chariot of course, drawn by
exactly three wolves, no more, no less. Three was the number of wolves
it needed to have, and the number of the counting the wolves drawing
the chariot shall be three. Four wolves should not be counted on the
chariot, neither should only two be counted, excepting that thou then
proceed to the third. Five wolves is right out. Once three wolves,
being the third number, be reached when counting the wolves drawing
the chariot, it would be good to go. Because Grom also had three
wolves drawing his chariot, you know, so it must be the right number
of wolves. And Skac was carrying a big axe. Some say, this was just a
cheap knock-off of Grom's axe. Others say, it was a magïckal axe,
though not as powerful as Grom's. Still others say it indeed was
Grom's axe, which Scak... ahem... borrowed... for the day. Which would
mean that at Maugthrond, Grom wasn't actually carrying the mighty axe
everyone expected him to bring to a battle, and that its effect there
was more placebo-ish. And that Eltharion's success wasn't as great of
an achievment as it is often presented as, as he just fought a goblin
with a lump of metal, not Grom with his famous magïckal axe. And it
would explain Grom flying into a rage that night and having some
sincere words with Scak. Whatever really transpired, Scak was carrying
an axe - so much is clear. Except for some outlier tales which portray
him carrying a polearm. But these can safely be disregarded as being a
confusion with his name. Probably.
​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Grom's detachment moved stealthily through the passes - long,
winding, densely overgrown dry valleys between the forested hills. The
detachment followed the ancient tracks along the bottom of the valleys
leading towards Maughthrond. Scak was following the nortern road
through the wooded area, advancing on Arduthrond Glade, using the
darkness to advance as far towards the village without being spotted
as possible.

In the early evening of that day, the villagers of Arduthrond saw a
stampede of all sorts of woodland animals through their streets (ok,
honestly there actually are only two in Arduthrond) from out of the
dense woods at the western skirts of the village. At first it was
unclear what caused this behavior, although foraging goblins ranked
high in the list of suspicions. But would a handful of goblins cause
such an exodus...? The archers in the towers were uneasy and
watchful. Something was in the air...

At dawn, the goblin detachments had taken up position at the
fringes of the woods facing Maugthrond and Arduthrond, their
deployment concealed by the morning mist. The sentries at Arduthrond
did not detect any of the goblins. They were wary, though, due to the
animals fleeing the woods earlier. And this morning, there wasn't any
birdsong...

The lookouts in the watch tower knew the drill in case they spotted
enemies or they were attacked. One of them would have to run out and
light the warning beacon. This would warn the rest of the defenders
and bring them to the danger spot. Meanwhile the lookouts would defend
the tower as best they could. As mentioned previously, there were four
such towers, guarding the north, south, east and west roads to/from
the Arduthrond. When the warning beacon was lit, the village guard
would see it from the village square and prepare for battle while
their families would be gathered together and led away from danger. As
a precaution, the village guard had already positioned their prized
sea elf marine bolt thrower in the western tower just in case a
foraging column of goblins should come from this direction, to greet
them with the right skewering ability.

In the woods, hidden by the mist, Scak had advanced his detachment
together with Yellow Toe Nail, the orc shaman apprentice to Black
Tooth, Grom's loyal shaman, who had accompanied the army during its
conquests. As Grom had a personal orc shaman, Scak of course also
needed to have one in his entourage. The units were hidden among the
trees and crags to avoid being spotted from the air by the occasional
flying creatures that had been seen passing overhead during the march
inland. Scak rightly identified these as griffin and pegasus riders,
who were scouting to find the goblin forces.

It was easy to see where the goblins had been because of the smoke of
burning villages and farmsteads in their wake, but less easy to count
their numbers or follow them through expanses of rugged terrain. Grom
had sent out many flanking columns of wolf riders to spread
destruction over a broad front, making it difficult for the elves to
tell which was the exact position of the main column of the horde and
therefore identify where the main thrust would take place.

This tactic also had allowed Scak to remain undetected so far. He had
organised his detachment into three units of archers and two of
spearmen. The smaller bands of archers would go ahead followed by the
rest of the horde. The tactic he came up with was to try and whittle down the
number of defenders before the spear armed units clashed with the elves in
hand-to-hand combat. Scak knew his troops were unlikely to put up much
fight against elves unless they had overwhelming numbers on their
side. If all of the before sounds familiar, that is because it is
exactly the tactic and order of battle Grom used at Maugthrond
pass. Scak was such a fanboy, that he also copied his idol's tactics -
irrespecive of whether or not these tactics fit his current situation
as well as the situation Grom used them in.

The orc shaman Black Tooth was determined to find the great standing
stone in the village of Maughtrond and steal its magïck. Every elf
village that they had encountered so far had one of these standing
stones. Black Tooth had ordered each of them pulled to the ground once
he had tapped into their magïckal power to enhance his own power. The night
before the battle, Black Tooth went off into the forest, being
accompagnied by his apprenctice Yellow Toe Nail only, searching for a
special kind of stone that would serve a plan he had hatched. At
daybreak he was still deep in the forest carving an amulet from a lump
of blue-black crystal and muttering a strange spell; all of his
actions meticulously being copied by his apprentice.

Scak knew there was no point delaying the attack waiting for the orc
shaman apprentice to emerge; one never knew how long his sessions with
his master would take, at times they were not seen for days. It was
important to gain the element of surprise, especially as he knew
Grom's attacḱ would start at the same time, so he gave the order to
attack. He hoped that Yellow Toe Nail would soon swoop out of the sky
riding his ferocious war wyvern Fleabite Worm.

As the sun rose over the horizon, silhouetting the coast of Ulthuan,
Eltharion took off again from the deck of his flagship upon the
griffon Stormwing, together with the unnamed other elves on flying
creatures, which, as mentioned before, never found themselves recorded
in history. Among them Tharhindrel on his griffon
Breezeflap. The fliers headed inland for the wilderness east of Tor
Yvresse, spreading accross the area hoping to relocate the horde and
find out how much closer to the city it had advanced. This would be
difficult. The landscape below was swathed in mist. As the sun rose
higher during the day, the mist began to clear. Eltharion was flying
high over the wilderness when, far below, the unmistakable shape of a
wyvern flapped out of the trees and swooped low over the forest
towards the west. Eltharion immediately followed the wyvern, knowing
that it must be ridden by a great orc war leader or shaman and would
certainly lead him to the main goblin horde.

About the same time, Tharhindel, further to the north, also saw a
wyvern emerge from the woods; this being Fleabite Worm carrying Yellow
Toe Nail, who only a couple minutes before had parted with Black Tooth
once they had finished crafting their twin amulets. While Black Tooth
flew to Grom to support him at Maughtrond, Yellow Toe Nail flew to
Scak to bolster the attack on Arduthond Glade, and to tap into the
magïck of the standing stone there, as Black Tooth had instructed him
to.

Tharhindel was a distant cousin to Eltharion, both were born only a
couple weeks apart, and had spent a great part of their youth
togethers. When they grew up both joined the military of Ulthuan at
the same time, advancing through the ranks. All the time, they were
good friends, getting along well and supporting each other. Then they
met Eleiri - only daughter of a minor noble, and a beauty to behold,
even for elven standards. Both instantly fell in love with her, as did
many other young elves. After courting her for some time, Eltharion
and Tharhindel both seemed to be making an impression on her, all
other contenders seemed to have fallen behind. Then Eltharion was sent
on a mission to repel a localized dark elf invasion. When he came back
victoriously, Eleiri and Tharhindel were espoused. Eltharion was not
amused. He accused Tharhindel of treason, of using his absence in his
favour. In reality he simply had not noticed that he was falling
behind, and Eleiri choosing Tharhindel was a forgone conclusion even
before his departure. But Eltharion would have none of it. As his
family was more influential than that of his distant cousin or that of
Eleiri, he pulled strings to discriminate against them. Tharhindel
would never get another promotion in his life, Eleiri was socially
left behind, suddenly not being invited to any relevant events any
more. This also included making sure, that Tharhindel's role in
Arduthrond that day, or the battle for Arduthrond at all, was not
recorded in elven history, and Tharhindel's achievments remained
unknown in the elven hierarchy. Tharhindel's next promotion was long
overdue anyway, but somehow had not materialized... and also would not
after this day.

Meanwhile, the great war drums and raucous horns of Scak's horde
sounded, and the goblins were advancing out of the mist towards
Arduthrond Glade. The elf lookouts were taken completely by surprise
by the mass of greenskins advancing on them - these were not the few
foragers they had expected! Thanks to the mist, the goblins had stolen
the initiative and made the first move. As goblin arrows began hitting
the structure of the watch tower, the elves knew that they must light
the warning beacon at all costs or the village would be overwhelmed,
and doom would be spelled for the villages beyond the wood and perhaps
even Tor Yvresse.
​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

The Battle​

What happens on that day at Arduthrond Glade will be decided by you
and your opponent. One player takes command of the high elf village
guard and Tharhindel, while the other takes command of Scak and his
goblin detachment. The elf player must try and save Arduthrond and its
defenders from destruction and hold up the goblins for as long as
possible. If Scak and his detachment encounter fierce resistance, Scak
will fall back and report this rout as too heavily
defended. Arduthrond will not be burned to the ground, and Grom will
have one option less of how to unfold his advance on Tor
Yvresse. Ideally the goblin player must defeat the defending high
elves and clear the way for the horde to advance via one or both roads
leading through the densly wooded area into the open plains and onward
to Tor Yvresse. And even more ideally, Scak will report success to
Grom, otherwise the topic of the axe could go into a direction not
favourable to Scak... if the alleged borrowing indeed ever happened,
of course.

The Battlefield​

The battlefield represents the eastern part of Arduthrond, where the
east watchtower is guarding the east road's exit from the wood. The
battle is fought on a playing area of 48" x 72".

A slightly winding road is placed running the length of the table,
vertically centered. Trees are placed north and south of the road,
about 6" into the table's eastern edge, to represent the edge of the
forest.

20" from the eastern table edge, beside the road, the east watchtower
is placed on a small hill. Next to it, also on the hill, on the
tower's western side, the warning beacon is placed 4" away from the
tower to the north-west.

On the other side of the road, opposite the watch tower, Arduthrond's
standing stone is placed, also on a small hill, 30" from the eastern
table edge.


Intersecting the east-west road is the north-south road, which meet
12" from the west board edge. The intersection marks the center
of the town, the four watchtowers have been built about equidistant
from the center of the village. As the center of the village is not at
the center of the table, the other three watchtowers as a consequence
are situated off the table edges on the other three sides.

The rest of the table can be set up as the players wish and according
to their terrain collection. There should be buildings, representing
the village. Between the village and the edge of the woods, there are
a few crop fields, providing grain to the village. The center of the
village around the intersection is represented by an open square,
where usually the trading between sea elf and high elf merchants takes
place. At this day, it is the area where the two defending spearmen
companies are camped.

The warning beacon must be visible from the village square, which can
always be explained by it being on a hill, but at least some houses,
or the two elven companies themselves, should be placed in a way that
there is no direct line of sight from the elven defending units to the
exit of the easter road from the wood and therefore to the goblin
deployment zone. The guard units have to rely on the lookouts to warn
them until the goblins get close enough to attack.

​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

​

​

​

Scak's Goblin Horde​

You are Scak, leader of a Goblin horde. You are with your vanguard at​

the head of the glade, ready to attack the Elven village which bars​

your way. Your forces are deployed and ready for a surprise attack at​

daybreak. You can place your forces how you wish within 12" of the​

eastern table edge; you may put them among the woods or on the​

road. The Shaman, Yellow Toe Nail, arrives after the battle has​

started, intent on finding the magick standing stone to steal its​

power. When he has done this his Black Amulet is activated and may be​

used. Your objective is to overwhelm the village before the defenders​

can concentrate to offer effective resistance.​

​

​

​

The Ball & Chain Fanatics can be distributed among the goblin units,​

as you wish, with a maximum of 3 fanatics per unit. Secretly note down​

which unit contains how many fanatics, and show this note to the​

gamemaster. The elven player knows the number of fanatics, but not how​

they have been allocated.​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Tharhindrel's High Elf Watch​

You are the Tharhindrel, leader of the defenders of the village of
Arduthrond Glade. It is early morning and your lookouts in the
watchtowers are guarding the village from attack on each of its four
sides. This morning the unit in the Eastern watchtower, looking out
over the pass towards the wooded hills to the east, suddenly sees a
horde of Goblins emerging from the mist that shrouds the trees and
hillsides. They must warn the village garrison before the Goblins
attack. The defenders number five archers and a bolt-thrower, and they
must survive long enough to light the warning beacon to raise the
alarm. If warned in time, the rest of the elven force stationed in the
village may act as reinforcements. You are flying high above the
battlefield on your griffon, ready to swoop down and lend your support
as the battle unfolds below. It is your duty is to defend your village
and, if possible, halt the Goblin advance.

​

Elril, the leader of the village guard, defers command to Tharhindrel
of course - when he arrives. Before Tharhindrels arrival, it is Elril
who is the highest ranking military elf of Arduthrond, leading the
defence. Therefore, Elril is considered a Subordinate Commander.

Thronduin leads a unit composed of non-Arduthrond citizens, which came
to help. They are not part of the Arduthrond village guard, and
therefore are not under Elril's command. They are considered a Ally
Contingent, with Thronduin being considered the Ally Contingent
Commander.

When Tharhindrel arrives, everyone on the field accepts him as the
Commander. As long as Tharhindrel is on the table, he is the Commander
and Thronduin and his unit are part of his batallion.

​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Deployment​

The goblins are deployed anywhere between the eastern edge and 12" in from that edge. They are positioned as the goblin player wishes, ready to attack the village.

The elf bolt thrower is placed on the watch tower. Five elf archers are also in the tower. The other three units of five archers are placed on the north, south and west edges, ready to come on. They are assumed to be in the other watch towers and appear on the table to take part in the battle when the warning beacon is lit or on the third elf turn if it is not. They cannot be attacked until they are on the
table.

The two units of elf spearmen are placed in the centre of the village. They cannot come out of the village square until the warning beacon is lit, or on the third elf turn if it is not. The lookouts in the watch towers are assumed to be wide awake and scanning the skyline with their keen eyes for signs of trouble. The elves in the village square are already awake and cooking breakfast. They can move if
warning is given, or in the elves' third turn if not.

The Elf player can choose to place Tharhindrel riding his griffon on any table edge except the eastern one. He enters by this edge on the fifth Elf turn. He appears in the turn begin phase, and can take a normal turn like any other elf model on the table.

Yellow Toe Nail, the orc shaman riding his wyvern is placed on the eastern table edge. He enters by this edge on the goblins' second turn. He appears in the turn begin phase, and can take a normal turn like any other goblin model on the table.

​

The Turn Sequence​

Apart from the orc shaman all the Goblin forces are on the battlefield from the start. Some of the elves arrive on the battlefield after the goblins have begun their attack. The goblins have the first turn because they have the element of surprise. It is up to the goblin player to use this to his utmost advantage if he can. Initially the Elves are outnumbered and taken by surprise. However, elf reinforcements are arriving throughout the battle and may turn the
tide against the goblins.

The gamesmaster needs to pay close attention to below table, and tell the elf player when he can activate which units. All the elf units except the initially deployed archer and bolt thrower unit will arrive on the table at some point after the battle has begun, because they will respond to the din of battle and rush to join in the defence of the village. There is a chance that some or even all of these units will
arrive earlier if they are warned by the elves in the eastern watch
tower lighting the warning beacon.

The orc shaman arrives after the battle starts. Tharhindrel is tailing
the Yellow Toe Nail and will arrive in the middle of the battle, after the shaman has arrived.

• Goblin Turn 1
  Mist recedes. Skac's goblins are revealed and may be activated.
• Elf Turn 1
  Only the East Watchtower elves may be activated.
• Goblin Turn 2
  Yellow Toe Nail arrives at the eastern table edge during the turn begin phase. He may be activated this turn.
• Elf Turn 2
  Elril's and Thronduin's Guards enter battle and may be activated if they have been warned.
• Goblin Turn 3
  ---
• Elf Turn 3
  Elril's and Thronduin's Guards enter battle and may be activated. The North, South and West Tower Guards enter battle and may be activated if they have been warned.
• Goblin Turn 4
  ---
• Elf Turn 4
  The North, South and West Tower Guards may be activated.
• Goblin Turn 5
  ---
• Elf Turn 5
  Tharhindrel arrives during the turn begin phase and may be activated.
• Goblin Turn 6
  ---
• Elf Turn 6
  ---
• Goblin Turn 7
  ---
• Elf Turn 7
  ---
• Nightfall
  The battle ends - determine victory points to decide who has won.

Troops always arrive in the turns indicated. The elf player cannot choose to delay them further to avoid losing on victory points. Remember, these elves are determined to defend their village at all costs. It is a matter of honour!


​

The Warning Beacon​

The warning beacon is a bonfire located next to the eastern watch
tower. The five elf archers of the east watch tower unit are deployed
inside it. As soon as the goblins' first turn is over, the elves will
know that they are under attack by having seen or heard the goblins.

In the elves' first turn the elf player can send one or more elves out
of the tower to light the beacon. All you need to do is move an elf
next to the beacon. He cannot attack in ranged or hand-to-hand combat
while trying to light the flame. The beacon should be between 1" and
5" away from the tower so that it can be reached in one movement
phase. The bonfire is a bit wet, so roll 1d6 to light the beacon. The
roll is taken during the elf's player turn end phase, and the beacon
will be lit on a score of 4+. If the warning beacon is lit, other Elf
units will be warned and prepare to move.

It is up to the elf player to choose whether to take advantage of the
beacon. It is up to the goblin player to try and stop the elves from
giving advance warning, either by shooting down the elves who run out
to the beacon, or by getting in between the beacon and the door of the
tower. If the way out of the tower is blocked by goblins, the elves
emerging from the tower cannot get to the beacon without fighting
their way through the enemy.

The elves may think their chances of survival are better if they stay
inside the tower and fight the attackers with their arrows,
benefitting from hard cover. If so they will have to hold out for
longer before the rest of the defenders of the village are aroused,
and they will also be allowing the village to be taken by surprise. A
great burden of responsibility bears down upon these elves, and also a
great opportunity for heroic action!
​

The Standing Stone​

Yellow Toe Nail the orc shaman apprentice, as ordered by his master
Black Tooth the orc master shaman, wants to steal the magick power
from the standing stone of the elf village. He plans to trap its
magick in a Black Amulet which will protect him in battle and make him
more powerful. To do this, Yellow Toe Nail must move into contact with
the standing stone and stop beside it for the rest of the turn. As he
waits by the standing stone he is assumed to be stealing its power.


Once the stone's power is stolen the Black Amulet starts to work - it
is useless until it has been activated in this way. Yellow Toe Nail
gains the protective power of the amulet in the magick phase of the
turn that he moves next to the stone.

​

Victory and Defeat​

• If all the goblins are slain or routed from the battlefield the
  battle is an outright victory for the elves.
• If all the elves are slain or routed from the battlefield this is an
  outright victory for the Goblins.
• If night falls before either side has been decisively beaten, then
  the gamemaster calculates the victory points awarded to each side to
  determine who wins. If the totals are equal, it is a draw.

Elf Victory Points​

• Skac the Beanstalk slain
  10 victory points
• Yellow Toe Nail is slain
  10 vicotry points
• Each goblin, orc or troll unit destroyed
  1 victory point

​

Goblin Victory Points​

• Tharhindrel is slain
  10 victory points
• Each elf unit destroyed (except Thronduin's Guard)
  1 victory point
• Thronduin's Guard destroyed
  2 victory points
• The standing stone's power was stolen by Yellow Toe Nail
  10 victory points

​

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Getting everything needed to play this scenario assembled, build and painted is my 2025 new year's resolution. See the corresponding WIP thread.

 

[Dreadaxe]

Excellent! Maybe @Eric can look at the profile formatting issue

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

That is not an issue, it is a feature

The forum tables do not allow for merging table cells, so having a profile table line and then a paragraph with equipment etc., I just not like the look of. So I did an ASCII table; which unfortunately does not look as good rendered here as in my terminal ...

Might replace that code block with a screenshot

 

[ManicMan]

Oh, it's not too hard to add a colspan and rowspan to the BBCode for the forum.
But at the moment, Eric is kinda the guy who has access to do that ^_^

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Already asked him, he currently doesn't find the time for that enhancement.

 

[ManicMan]

fair enough ^_^ he has been a bit busy

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

I svg-ed the text and replaced the code blocks.

BTW, 9px MesloLGS NF, 1cm margins is how the text fits onto an A4 page, width-wise.

 

[MichaelStockin]

Cool beans.
I have a question:

You say that it is 4th ported back to 3rd, but the names of the magical items seem to be from 4th?

Sword of Teclis, Axe of Grom, The Black Amulet etc.

What are they in terms of 3rd edition weapons?

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

You say that it is 4th ported back to 3rd, but the names of the magical items seem to be from 4th?
What are they in terms of 3rd edition weapons?

I play with my own rules Warfork Fantasy Battles. I took the 3e rules, reformatted and in parts reformulated them, then added stuff from other editions (like that is the reason why the engines of war [note, not warmachines ] have T and W, which they don't in stock 3e), and also some rules from completely other systems (charging is based on combat movement from StarGrunt II). The magic weapon system from 3e I completely replaced with the items from 4e (some had to be rewritten, especially any that affect the magic spell casting; some are still pending).

I posted some more details here on the magic system, if you are interested.

 

[jon_1066]

Looks like you had fun writing it but can I make a suggestion?

Playing down the length of the table means the goblins are unlikely to reach the village until at least turn 5. There is also the fact they cannot hope to get between the tower and the beacon. Could you perhaps swap out some of the goblins with some wolf riders? It makes sense thematically since what would you expect in the vanguard and also works for the scenario since they can be flung forward to surprise the elves but risk being isolated.

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Looks like you had fun writing it but can I make a suggestion?

Of course! That is one of the reasons why I post the scenario here

Playing down the length of the table means the goblins are unlikely to reach the village until at least turn 5.

Playing lengthwise is according to the original, never questioned that.

To win, the goblins don't need to reach the village, there is no VP allocation for getting there, so I don't see the distance to the village as relevant.

Do I miss something?

There is also the fact they cannot hope to get between the tower and the beacon.

That is also as in the original, the only way to stop the elves getting to the beacon is by shooting. Or hope for them not making the dice roll.
I might be wrong about that, but if the goblins could get in there, the 5 archers wouldn't have any chance of lighting it, would they?

Could you perhaps swap out some of the goblins with some wolf riders?

So far, except for the troll, fanatics and unit champions, the force composition and table layout are as per the original 4e scenario.

I have pla... ideas for wolf riders as well as a unit of elven cavalry that will arrive at a random (late game, perhaps having been alerted by Tharhindrel) point as reinforcements. But only after I got the initial force done.
Although, strictly fluff speaking, all the wolf riders should be on the main road as the diversion force



But I have never played the scenario, so your points might be valid. To be evaluated after the first game Whenever that might be...

Or if you get a chance to play it, let us know

 

[MichaelStockin]

like that is the reason why the engines of war [note, not warmachines ] have T and W, which they don't in stock 3e)

Yeah, I used the war machine rules from 4th when I played 3rd, the rules in 3rd for chariots and things are a bit odd.

 

[KingOfTheLeadPile]

Yeah, I used the war machine rules from 4th when I played 3rd, the rules in 3rd for chariots and things are a bit odd.

Chariots I actually use the 3e rules for, my type of oddness apparently But you cannot damage engines war except with a direct hit from another one, which is too odd an restrictive for my taste. Especially as it was different in 2e.
But I only changed that damage taking for engines of war, the attacking rules I use 3e more less unchanged.