SAGA: Age of Magic - The Battles of Baldr the Unfortunate
Battle 1 - Our saga begins
As the third son of an impoverished lord, Baldr is expected to go a viking and return with much riches. Sadly he has no idea that the fickle gods have picked him as their next plaything, and a throw of the runes has already decided his fate. As he and his men think they are preparing themselves for a simple journey, they have no idea who’s shore the gods will be sending them to, or how their leader is about to earn the name of Baldr the Unfortunate!After just a few days at sea, the small flotilla carrying Baldr and his warband are sucked into a waterspout, and have to fight for their lives to break free. Strangely unharmed, they find themselves much nearer land than they expected, so head for shore. Baldr leads a small force ashore but finding no landmarks he recognises and with his men becoming increasingly agitated, he heads back to the boats, but as they get close he hears the guards he left on the beach shouting a warning and strange figures appear on their flank.
Round 2 started with a charge by Bondi on Centaurs that was repulsed with the vikings taking two casualties to the Centaur’s one. The Faun archers reached the top of the hill and let fly, killing another Bondi. The Centaurs, now certain of victory made their own charge and were most surprised to do no damage, lose one of their own, and be repulsed! Susan also let fly, killing a Hirdmen through his chainmail, but the four centaur archers were less capable scoring no casualties on their target.
Round 4 and Baldr, realising he is in trouble from the archers, and seeing a group of Minotaurs approaching, leads his men on towards the ships rather than trying to fight further. The Narnians scurry after them and also advance on the area of scrub where they in turn have been attacked by archers.
Round 5 sees the Viking withdrawal continue. The Faun archers move to fire again on the retreat but suffer fatigue and don’t get a shot off. Meanwhile things are heating up on the beach, the Fauns, now reduced to 3 valiant warriors, finally get at the archers, but only kill 1. The two big cats charge into the Vikings and take out 3 but the panther is now down.
Round 6 and the last three Fauns are first attacked by a Giant and then shot at again by the archers and are destroyed.
As dusk falls, Baldr and his remaining men make it back to their boats and pull away from the shore, still wondering about this strange force of man-like-beasts and horse-like-men. How do they find their way home? What will they face next?
[Final tally: Vikings 20 points, Narnians 13]
Turn 1 - Both sides jockey for position, both with their eye on the hill.
Turn 2 - The Viking archers are surprised as three Kresh charge over the hill, the huge yellow wolves slaughtering four of the levy without a scratch. The Viking Sorcerer, Stigandr, throws caution to the wind and casts a full powered Stoke Fury on the nearest unit, they kill two of the Kresh and then another group hit the third and kill it too. Ulf’s band then charged the mob of Illearth warped villagers but the Ur-vile Loremaster at the head of his wedge cast Aging on them and also protected the mob with spell giving them hard cover, so very little damage was done.
Turn 3 - The Ur-vile wedge immediately powers up again spreading Decay and Aging around them, but the Loremaster takes some nasty side effects and drops dead! Fleshharrower commands the warped to attach Ulf‘s men, it is a draw but the mob continues to protect Fleshharrower. The Cavewights reach the top of the hill to be met by a hail of arrows (killing one) a charge by the axemen (killing another) and a charge by the spearmen (killing the remaining two). Meanwhile, on the other flank the second lot of Kresh crunch down on viking flesh, slaughtering five (three 6s rolled for an excellent use of the Swamped ability that kills three as they try to withdraw). However in the Viking turn, it’s wolf-on-wolf action as the spawn of Fenris hit the flank of the Kresh and take one out, pushing them off.
Turn 5, the Kresh and the Denizens both pounce on the Fenris wolves, and the wolves end up too exhausted to attack anymore. In the centre the battle looks like it will grind to a halt with both sides hampered by fatigue, so Flesharrower throws himself into the fray, killing two Vikings, and in turn Bladr throws himself at the giant raver but only survives when one of the remaining Hearthguards throws himself in the way (the Bodyguards rule). Ulf and the remaining Cavewight are toe-to-toe trading blows until Ulf is forced to withdraw.
Turn 6, With no ability to disobey, the poor villagers are sent against Baldr and he kills five before they withdraw. Fleshharrower kills another Viking, Bladr kills the last Cavewight, and the battle ends as the under cover of the dusk Baldr gathers his wounded and withdraws, the victor, but his men are badly shaken by these cursed enemies.
This is the setup, two sets of vikings off their ships and safely ashore, while at the other end the catapult is searching for targets and you can see the 4 unit cards for the reinforcements that will arrive at the end of each turn.
At the end of turn 1, the Vikings are advancing, the Catapult has drawn first blood, and the reinforcements have started to arrive.
Turn 2. This time the catapult rolls two 1s! The Warlord (Necros) is furious and promises if it mis-fires again the next load will be a gunners’ head! The two armies are about to meet …
Turn 3 and Ulf’s band backed by two saga abilities and protection from their sorcerer plough into the wraiths, killing them all for just one loss. (That was overkill probably, I used an ability that would also let me charge with the spears and even the Warlord but didn’t need them and then didn’t have enough activations left for them to move!). Happily the undead have many units that don’t generate dice (catapult, mindless, sorcerer) so they couldn’t move enough to take advantage. Though the catapult did fire and kill three more spears, the Bondi moving towards the skeleton archers expected to be shot at and were prepared (Endurance) and came through unscathed.
Turn 5, and as expected, the Vikings attack! Baldr himself takes out five of the hapless mindless, who still haven’t made it through the scrubland. Hearthguards hit the undead warriors and the few left are mopped up by Ulf’s men. Finally the Bondi get to grips with the archers and leave only two ‘alive’. Necros finishes off the Hearthguards that destroyed the catapult but his army is faltering and none can make a charge. He himself is now exhausted and Baldr orders the withdrawal knowing he can safely get back to the boats which are now free from mystical influence and the threat of the catapult.
Vikings score 15, while the Undead only score 13, giving the Vikings a victory on two counts as they successfully destroyed the catapult!
Turn 1 - the Vikings advance and are surprised as the various flying units of the Dragons close the distance considerably
Turn 2 - the Fenris wolves charge the Black Dragon, even with the Rage ability they only score one hit, it’s a good one, but the Dragon takes it with resilience and both wolves die. The “slings and arrows” levy rush to the top of the hill and fire off a salvo, killing a Drake. The Purple Dragonkin portal to behind the vikings! The Black Dragon breaths corrosive acid at the nearest unit, killing a Hearthguard. The remaining Drake charges the hill but is cut down. The flying kobolds charge the Hearthguard and both sides take two casualties.
Turn 4 - fatigue starts to take its toll as units try to get moving but find they can’t. Ulf’s Band, the “Slings and Arrows” and the two axe wielding Hearthguards with Baldr all fail to do anything, and going the other way, the Dragon Sorcerer can’t do anything and the Brown Dragon finds itself too weak to survive an attack by the remaining three Hirdmen, it also only scored a single hit with 14 dice! By the time the Dragon Warlord and Sorcerer contemplate their next move, they are all that remains of their force and wisely decide that the Vikings can keep their loot!
Vikings 31 points, Dragons only 15, not how I thought things were going to go at the end of turn 2!
Turn 1 - Sea Serpent verses Hydra, both on 14 dice. Hydra scores 5 hits, Serpent 10! Hydra’s hits are better at causing damage (4 out of 5) but the Serpent still lands 5 hits, that battle will grind on. The Ballista has a target rich environment but at this range does get a palpable hit, its time will come.
Turn 2 - The Levy gets in position to fire at the lizards but all it does is provoke them into a charge, leaving seven archers dead! Axemen verses Turtles is a draw (one casualty on each side), but the Cobra Paladin also dives in and kills another Axeman. The two Giant Snakes pounce on the Bondi but one goes down. The Lizard Shaman fires a Spear of Light and a Hearthguard in front of Baldr goes down, then the Reptile Warlord hacks into the same unit attempting to get through to Baldr, but his men do themselves proud, two go down but they take the Lizard and its horrendous beast down!
The few remaining lizards in the centre are so shaken they can do nothing. The Shaman fires a powerful Bolt at Stigmandir but he survives it. The Ballista fires at the sword wielding Hearthguard heading towards them but the are ready for it and dodge the huge bolt, and the Snakemen are so shaken by events they also all miss!
Turn 4 - On the right, Hirdmen verses Paladin is a draw, but Sea Serpent verses Turtles turns into Turtle Soup! In the centre, Stigmandr buffs the Bondi who charge in to support Baldr, and between them the kill three more Snakemen. Ulf’s band emerges from the trees to kill the two remaining lizards.
The Ballista can no longer target the advancing Hirdmen, so fire at the Giant, to no effect. The Snakemen can though and finally one falls. The Paladin charges the Giant but that lopsided battle doesn’t go well for it. In a heroic last ditch effort, the Shaman tries to cast the most powerful version of Spear of Light which could have caused havoc if it wasn’t for the fact that the spell got away from him and he dropped stone dead!
Turn 5 - The Hirdmen on the left finally make it on to the hill and kill four Archers, the last Snakeman in the centre is cut into small pieces, and the Paladin on the right is still struggling against two Hirdmen and it is only a matter of time before the Sea Serpent recovers enough to come after it. The Reptile Archer Levy at the back of the battlefield have never moved and and probably sneak quietly away and claim they were never there.
Reptiles 13 points, Vikings 36!
For a few days Baldr and his men gather supplies before setting sail again, cursing the luck that has dogged them so far. When land appears on the horizon once more they brace themselves for yet more conflict but instead are amazed to find they have finally made it home. Thus ends the Odyssey of Baldr the Unfortunate … or does it?
Round 1 was just positioning, the Vikings continue towards the sea while the Narnians make ready to attack these unknown invaders.
Round 2 started with a charge by Bondi on Centaurs that was repulsed with the vikings taking two casualties to the Centaur’s one. The Faun archers reached the top of the hill and let fly, killing another Bondi. The Centaurs, now certain of victory made their own charge and were most surprised to do no damage, lose one of their own, and be repulsed! Susan also let fly, killing a Hirdmen through his chainmail, but the four centaur archers were less capable scoring no casualties on their target.
Round 3 saw Stigmandir, the Viking’s Sorcerer, cast Rites of Battle, so that when Ulf and his band charge into the Centaur archers they slaughtered the whole unit, although losing one of their own. The faun archers and Susan retaliated with a shower of Sharpened Arrows, taking three more Vikings out of the battle.
Round 4 and Baldr, realising he is in trouble from the archers, and seeing a group of Minotaurs approaching, leads his men on towards the ships rather than trying to fight further. The Narnians scurry after them and also advance on the area of scrub where they in turn have been attacked by archers.
Round 5 sees the Viking withdrawal continue. The Faun archers move to fire again on the retreat but suffer fatigue and don’t get a shot off. Meanwhile things are heating up on the beach, the Fauns, now reduced to 3 valiant warriors, finally get at the archers, but only kill 1. The two big cats charge into the Vikings and take out 3 but the panther is now down.
Round 6 and the last three Fauns are first attacked by a Giant and then shot at again by the archers and are destroyed.
Seeing that the enemy is getting to close behind his men, Baldr himself charges into the Minotaurs, taking three Hearthguard with him using We Obey, and takes the Minotaurs out. The remaining Narnians are so disheartened by these two events that the heart goes out of them.
As dusk falls, Baldr and his remaining men make it back to their boats and pull away from the shore, still wondering about this strange force of man-like-beasts and horse-like-men. How do they find their way home? What will they face next?
[Final tally: Vikings 20 points, Narnians 13]
Battle 2 - Fleshharrower approaches!
Once again Baldr and some of his Warband make landfall, but before they make any progress inland an opposing force appears clearly intent on their destruction, at their head a Giant bathed in green light from the strange shard of stone it holds aloft.
Turn 2 - The Viking archers are surprised as three Kresh charge over the hill, the huge yellow wolves slaughtering four of the levy without a scratch. The Viking Sorcerer, Stigandr, throws caution to the wind and casts a full powered Stoke Fury on the nearest unit, they kill two of the Kresh and then another group hit the third and kill it too. Ulf’s band then charged the mob of Illearth warped villagers but the Ur-vile Loremaster at the head of his wedge cast Aging on them and also protected the mob with spell giving them hard cover, so very little damage was done.
Turn 3 - The Ur-vile wedge immediately powers up again spreading Decay and Aging around them, but the Loremaster takes some nasty side effects and drops dead! Fleshharrower commands the warped to attach Ulf‘s men, it is a draw but the mob continues to protect Fleshharrower. The Cavewights reach the top of the hill to be met by a hail of arrows (killing one) a charge by the axemen (killing another) and a charge by the spearmen (killing the remaining two). Meanwhile, on the other flank the second lot of Kresh crunch down on viking flesh, slaughtering five (three 6s rolled for an excellent use of the Swamped ability that kills three as they try to withdraw). However in the Viking turn, it’s wolf-on-wolf action as the spawn of Fenris hit the flank of the Kresh and take one out, pushing them off.
Turn 4, Fleshharrower pushes everyone forward but the Kresh can’t muster a charge, leaving the twisted Sangrave denizens out in the open on their own and prey to the Fenris wolves. The remianing Cavewights likewise find themselves attacked from two sides, and the leaderless Ur-Viles come face-to-face with Baldr himself. There are now bodies all over the place!
Turn 5, the Kresh and the Denizens both pounce on the Fenris wolves, and the wolves end up too exhausted to attack anymore. In the centre the battle looks like it will grind to a halt with both sides hampered by fatigue, so Flesharrower throws himself into the fray, killing two Vikings, and in turn Bladr throws himself at the giant raver but only survives when one of the remaining Hearthguards throws himself in the way (the Bodyguards rule). Ulf and the remaining Cavewight are toe-to-toe trading blows until Ulf is forced to withdraw.
Turn 6, With no ability to disobey, the poor villagers are sent against Baldr and he kills five before they withdraw. Fleshharrower kills another Viking, Bladr kills the last Cavewight, and the battle ends as the under cover of the dusk Baldr gathers his wounded and withdraws, the victor, but his men are badly shaken by these cursed enemies.
[Victory Points - Vikings 33 points, Lord Foul 17]
Battle 3 - The enemy are already dead!
Becalmed near an forbidding shore line, our heroes come under attack from a powerful catapult. There’s nothing for it but to get ashore under cover of what terrain they can find and take out that catapult. The enemy have seen them though and have called for reinforcements, the battle is on!
This is the setup, two sets of vikings off their ships and safely ashore, while at the other end the catapult is searching for targets and you can see the 4 unit cards for the reinforcements that will arrive at the end of each turn.
At the end of turn 1, the Vikings are advancing, the Catapult has drawn first blood, and the reinforcements have started to arrive.
Turn 2. This time the catapult rolls two 1s! The Warlord (Necros) is furious and promises if it mis-fires again the next load will be a gunners’ head! The two armies are about to meet …
Turn 3 and Ulf’s band backed by two saga abilities and protection from their sorcerer plough into the wraiths, killing them all for just one loss. (That was overkill probably, I used an ability that would also let me charge with the spears and even the Warlord but didn’t need them and then didn’t have enough activations left for them to move!). Happily the undead have many units that don’t generate dice (catapult, mindless, sorcerer) so they couldn’t move enough to take advantage. Though the catapult did fire and kill three more spears, the Bondi moving towards the skeleton archers expected to be shot at and were prepared (Endurance) and came through unscathed.
Turn 4, the Hearthguard unit coming through the centre, sense victory and knowing they are protected by their sorcerer, charge home against the catapult and destroy it! The Undead Warlord takes out two of them afterwards, while the Undead Warriors turn into a howling pack and take out the remaining spears, and the archers finally kill a Bondi, this may make our heroes pause for thought? At this point the rest should probably retreat, but then again they are Vikings!
Turn 5, and as expected, the Vikings attack! Baldr himself takes out five of the hapless mindless, who still haven’t made it through the scrubland. Hearthguards hit the undead warriors and the few left are mopped up by Ulf’s men. Finally the Bondi get to grips with the archers and leave only two ‘alive’. Necros finishes off the Hearthguards that destroyed the catapult but his army is faltering and none can make a charge. He himself is now exhausted and Baldr orders the withdrawal knowing he can safely get back to the boats which are now free from mystical influence and the threat of the catapult.
Vikings score 15, while the Undead only score 13, giving the Vikings a victory on two counts as they successfully destroyed the catapult!
Battle 4 - Here be Dragons!
Our heroes have found a horde of gold and gems and are transporting it back their ships when they find a dragon army in their way, and we all know how dragons feel about their treasure …
Turn 1 - the Vikings advance and are surprised as the various flying units of the Dragons close the distance considerably
Turn 2 - the Fenris wolves charge the Black Dragon, even with the Rage ability they only score one hit, it’s a good one, but the Dragon takes it with resilience and both wolves die. The “slings and arrows” levy rush to the top of the hill and fire off a salvo, killing a Drake. The Purple Dragonkin portal to behind the vikings! The Black Dragon breaths corrosive acid at the nearest unit, killing a Hearthguard. The remaining Drake charges the hill but is cut down. The flying kobolds charge the Hearthguard and both sides take two casualties.
Turn 3 - you can tell that Ulf’s band really wants a crack at the Red Dragon, but first the need to clear away the Green Dragonkin, which with the aid of Rage they do. Stigandr takes a chance using the full force of Stoke Fury on his lord Baldr, which passes without incident, and Baldr slaughters most of the remaining flying kobolds, and We Obey makes the remaining two Hearthguard jump in and finish them off. On the other flank, a Purple is shot by each of the two Levies and the Black Dragon is taken down by the Spear wielding Hearthguard.
The Dragon Sorcerer is not having a good day, he fires both Bolt and Breath at Ulf’s band to no effect. The Red Dragon then attacks and scores five hits but only one causes a casualty, while three of the four hits from Ulf’s Band land true and down goes the Dragon! The Brown dragon wisely chooses easier foe and crashes into the Bondi unit trying to hide behind a hedge. The Dragon Warlord also enters the fray and kills the last two Hearthguard Spears, who will be welcomed into Valhalla though for besting a Black Dragon! Meanwhile those pesky Purple Dragonkin kill the driver of the cart, can they recover the treasure?
The Dragon Sorcerer is not having a good day, he fires both Bolt and Breath at Ulf’s band to no effect. The Red Dragon then attacks and scores five hits but only one causes a casualty, while three of the four hits from Ulf’s Band land true and down goes the Dragon! The Brown dragon wisely chooses easier foe and crashes into the Bondi unit trying to hide behind a hedge. The Dragon Warlord also enters the fray and kills the last two Hearthguard Spears, who will be welcomed into Valhalla though for besting a Black Dragon! Meanwhile those pesky Purple Dragonkin kill the driver of the cart, can they recover the treasure?
Turn 4 - fatigue starts to take its toll as units try to get moving but find they can’t. Ulf’s Band, the “Slings and Arrows” and the two axe wielding Hearthguards with Baldr all fail to do anything, and going the other way, the Dragon Sorcerer can’t do anything and the Brown Dragon finds itself too weak to survive an attack by the remaining three Hirdmen, it also only scored a single hit with 14 dice! By the time the Dragon Warlord and Sorcerer contemplate their next move, they are all that remains of their force and wisely decide that the Vikings can keep their loot!
Vikings 31 points, Dragons only 15, not how I thought things were going to go at the end of turn 2!
Battle 5 - The Final Battle
Baldr was starting to realise that the fates were messing with him. Every time they made landfall it seemed they ran in to some new enemy bent on their destruction. They needed provisions badly though and this time retreat was not an option. They landed on an inlet and he disembarked the whole force as it was soon clear that once again, the fates were against them as strange beasts quickly appeared before them.
Turn 1 - Sea Serpent verses Hydra, both on 14 dice. Hydra scores 5 hits, Serpent 10! Hydra’s hits are better at causing damage (4 out of 5) but the Serpent still lands 5 hits, that battle will grind on. The Ballista has a target rich environment but at this range does get a palpable hit, its time will come.
Turn 2 - The Levy gets in position to fire at the lizards but all it does is provoke them into a charge, leaving seven archers dead! Axemen verses Turtles is a draw (one casualty on each side), but the Cobra Paladin also dives in and kills another Axeman. The two Giant Snakes pounce on the Bondi but one goes down. The Lizard Shaman fires a Spear of Light and a Hearthguard in front of Baldr goes down, then the Reptile Warlord hacks into the same unit attempting to get through to Baldr, but his men do themselves proud, two go down but they take the Lizard and its horrendous beast down!
Turn 3 - make or break for the Vikings. The Sea Serpent wins the battle of the behemoths, sending a ripple of inaction through the nearby troops. Stigmandir casts Rites of Battle, bolstering the troops in the centre including Eindride, the Norse Giant who kills four lizards and the remaining Spear wielding Hearthguard kills another. The Bondi kill the remaining Giant Snake, and Baldr himself launches into the Snakemen, killing half but causing that last Spearman to sacrifice himself.
The few remaining lizards in the centre are so shaken they can do nothing. The Shaman fires a powerful Bolt at Stigmandir but he survives it. The Ballista fires at the sword wielding Hearthguard heading towards them but the are ready for it and dodge the huge bolt, and the Snakemen are so shaken by events they also all miss!
Turn 4 - On the right, Hirdmen verses Paladin is a draw, but Sea Serpent verses Turtles turns into Turtle Soup! In the centre, Stigmandr buffs the Bondi who charge in to support Baldr, and between them the kill three more Snakemen. Ulf’s band emerges from the trees to kill the two remaining lizards.
The Ballista can no longer target the advancing Hirdmen, so fire at the Giant, to no effect. The Snakemen can though and finally one falls. The Paladin charges the Giant but that lopsided battle doesn’t go well for it. In a heroic last ditch effort, the Shaman tries to cast the most powerful version of Spear of Light which could have caused havoc if it wasn’t for the fact that the spell got away from him and he dropped stone dead!
Turn 5 - The Hirdmen on the left finally make it on to the hill and kill four Archers, the last Snakeman in the centre is cut into small pieces, and the Paladin on the right is still struggling against two Hirdmen and it is only a matter of time before the Sea Serpent recovers enough to come after it. The Reptile Archer Levy at the back of the battlefield have never moved and and probably sneak quietly away and claim they were never there.
Reptiles 13 points, Vikings 36!
For a few days Baldr and his men gather supplies before setting sail again, cursing the luck that has dogged them so far. When land appears on the horizon once more they brace themselves for yet more conflict but instead are amazed to find they have finally made it home. Thus ends the Odyssey of Baldr the Unfortunate … or does it?
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