Finally, my first event of the year has come around, and it was all very exciting. I’m taking my Basileans to their first proper tournament after making a last-minute switch to rats at Christmas Carnage in December. So, let’s get into it.
Location, location, location
I headed down to High Wycombe, which meant a stop at the magical Reading Services on the way, and the event was held at the local games store Tabletop Republic. Venuewise, it was really easy to find, and there was loads of parking within a couple of minutes walk.
The store itself was clean and had good natural light, which is always nice. The town around it was very pleasant with a great range of food places. I opted for a quiet kebab at lunchtime covered in cheese sauce. What could go wrong?
The list
As with all the best tournament lists, I decided to make changes to the list I’ve been practicing with about a week before the event after a single game. So, I spent last week desperately painting a new regiment of mounted paladins and was really happy with how they came out. As a result, the list I took looked like:
Priest with Shroud of the Saint
Julius
High Paladin with Scythe of the Harvester
Phoenix
Mounted Paladin regiments (2) one with Caterpillar Potion and one with Sir Jesse’s Boots, both with Aegis Fragments
Elohi Regiment with Celestial Fury
Elohi Horde with Brew of Strength
Spear horde with Hammer of Measured Force
Gur Panther troop
How did the games go?
Game 1
Pillage, vs Elves, loss
My first game was against an Elf army that I’ve faced before, and that I have previously defeated, albeit in a lower point game. The army is a really nice mix of elite warriors and solid elf shooting which meant the pressure went on from turn one and didn’t let up at any point during the game. The biggest frustration for me was Julius getting held up by a troop of light cavalry for three turns as the rest of my army got battered. I’m not saying that having Julius available for more turns would have won me the game, but he is a significant amount of points that could have been more usefully deployed. Despite it all it was a fun game to start the event with.
Game 2
Invade, vs Abyssal Dwarfs, loss
I would have been quite happy with this scenario and match up had the Abyssal Dwarf army not consisted entirely of cavalry and flyers. Since I’ve started playing Basileans I haven’t played another alpha strike list, and I did not cover myself in glory!
A poor set up, combined with some really revolutionary Elohi tactics, bearing in mind most revolutions fail, saw my Basileans swept away in short order. My approach to the game was diabolically bad, but sometimes you just do things wrong. Usefully my opponent asked me about the spearmen in my list, and what their role was. This has been a really useful challenge and has since got me thinking (watch this space).
Game 3
Loot, vs League of Rhordia, win
This was my first game in 3rd edition against the League. It was a nice mixed arms force with a decent number of Halfings supporting, and structurally an army list I’m much more used to playing. All that meant the Basileans did what they do best, using their movement to stay out of the worst of the shooting and pick the combats they thought they had the best chances with.
Final thoughts
As always, I had three fantastic opponents and three very relaxed games. It was an all-round enjoyable event, and I’m looking forward to attending more events around the South-East this year if I can find the time. I would definitely recommend this event to anyone thinking about playing in the South-East.
In terms of results, I’d say I was generally happy. I tend to pick armies based on units I like the look of and according to a loose narrative thread, which means they aren’t often as efficient as they could be. I find when I’m trying to build competitive lists its only when I start playing events with them I start to notice where the gaps are. My list has done well locally, so I’m not going to say it’s a bad list, but there are some improvements to be made. The first being the need to have a good think about whether the small amount of infantry I have are the best fit for the wider list.
So, with that, a final thank you to my opponents, the organisers, and of course all the friendly faces. Not sure how many times I should say this, but its still as true now as it was last year – its good to be back to face-to-face events.
The Wizard's Bookshelf 