Mage Knight 2.0 Graphical Battle Report – Ram-Capture 2.0 vs Charge 2.0
By Brook Willeford and Kevin Goddard

Recently Warlords were asked to provide four armies that would take advantage of the new proficiencies and game play in Mage Knight. The armies were 300 points, and could include any warriors from any current Mage Knight set (all the way back to Rebellion)! After the first set of battles, these armies were then enhanced with new game elements for Mage Knight 2.0.

The fourth battle takes a look at all of the elements of 2.0, tied together. The armies used are modified versions of the ones provided by Warlords. Domains, Constructed Terrain and Relics are used in this battle, for maximum effectiveness.

Before the battle took place, Brook and Kevin decided to upgrade the armies with a single Mage Knight 2.0 Unique and a Relic. They also agreed to the standing rule that either player would be able to finish out his turn when time was called. Finally, they decided to only use Constructed Terrain for this battle, forgoing any terrain templates.

The text next to both the relics and domains below are the exact text from the cards themselves.

Ram-Capture 2.0 - Kevin Goddard

* Dwarven Ram
** Amazon Mancatcher
** Amazon Mancatcher
** Amazon Mancatcher
** Dwarven Ram
Unique Helkate Hookjaw
Unique General Vale
Jeweled Helm (Relic) – (Optional) At the beginning of your command phase, deal 1 pushing damage to the wielder. Until the beginning of your next command phase, the wielder gets +2 to its attack, defense and speed values.
Magestone Storm (Domain)– Each player rolls one six-sided die at the beginning of his or her command phase. On a result of 1, deal 1 damage to every figure in base contact with another figure. Figures with the Magical Immunity defense type do not take this damage. Magestone Storm is canceled by the Magestone Strip Mine or Wylden Forest Terrain Domain or the Ley Burn Catastrophe Domain.

The original Ram-Capture army was pretty good; it played very strong. Autumn and the Golden Orb were hard cuts, but in the long run something had to go, and they were not as critical to the structure of the army as the rest of the force. General Vale and the Jeweled Helm are a match made in heaven. General Vale gets better as he takes damage, — a lot better! Since the Helm requires the wielder to take a click of pushing damage during the command phase to get its benefits, it’s a great way to beef Vale up. General Vale starts off as a great defensive piece, starting with Defend and an 18 defense. Later he moves into more offensive stats with Smite and 4 damage. Combined with the Jeweled Helm, he’s one tough elf. The final piece to the puzzle is the Magestone Storm Domain. On a roll of 1 during the command phase, this Domain causes 1 damage to every warrior in base contact with another warrior. It’s an interesting random element that can change the game on a die roll.

Charge 2.0! - Brook Willeford

* Heavy Cavalier
*** Heavy Lancer
*** Heavy Lancer
Unique Emerald Glade Mystery
Unique Horned Hunter
* Imp
Venthia's Masque (Relic) – The wielder's defense value is equal to the highest unmodified defense value of any other friendly figure in play.
Rain and Mud (Domain) – All figures with a speed value greater than 8 have a speed value of 8 instead. No figure can use the Surge proficiency. Rain and Mud is canceled by the Blaster Lands Terrain Domain.

This army is strong, fast, and can apply a lot of damage. The Fell Reaper was easy to remove, though it makes a great harasser, but the Horned Hunter is great for applying large amounts of damage. The Imp can serve as a harasser if needed, though it's not an even swap for the Reaper. The Horned Hunter has a strong attack of 10, and has Leadership as well, making it a good centerpiece. Using the Masque, he can use the Emerald Glade Mystery’s defense of 19, make it a good solid bruiser. Constructed Terrain works well with this army — no messy hindering or blocking to really slow it down. Rain and Mud is a natural domain for this army. With so many warriors with the Charge special ability, denying the Surge ability to Kevin is powerful, even with the associated slowing down of the rest of the field.

Setup
Several pieces of Constructed Terrain are added to the terrain pool, including several low walls (which are concealing), a canvas tent, an archer’s shield, screens and a stone tower. Kevin rolls highest with a 5, while Brook rolls a 4. Kevin places his token 5 inches from his starting location in the middle of the field; Brook follows suit, placing his 4 inches into the field. Brook, as the second player, places terrain first. He selects a metal screen and the stone tower, placing them next to one another, in front of his objective. Kevin takes two low walls, placing them side by side, also in front of his objective. Brook takes the last two low walls and places them adjacent to his tower and each other, forming a long line of concealing and blocking terrain. Kevin finishes the terrain placement by placing a rawhide tent and a Living Archer’s Shield. Finally Domain Cards are revealed: Kevin places Magestone Storm on the field, while Brook plays Mud and Rain. The scene is set. Two armies converge on an empty camp during a violent Magestone Storm. The ground has soaked up the heavy rain, making movement slow and difficult.

The Battle Begins!

Kevin Turn 1
At the beginning of Kevin’s command phase, he rolls for the Magestone Storm effect. He rolls a 5, so the storm does not affect anyone this round. During his action phase, he moves his group of Mancatchers up to the center of the field using Quickness, making sure to leave one of the Amazon warriors on his Objective. His Dwarven Rams then move up on either side, moving into position to strike. During Kevin’s End Phase, he checks for ownership of objectives, and puts a marker on his own.

Brook Turn 1
During Brook’s command phase, he also is lucky enough to roll high and avoid the storm. The Lancers and Cavalier formation move up the left hand side, into a position to utilize their relative speed and Charge special ability. The Horned Hunter breaks off to the right, protecting that side. Finally the lone Imp moves up the center and takes Brook’s objective. During his end phase he checks for ownership of the objectives, and claims his own.

Kevin Turn 2
Having moved the bulk of his force this first turn, Kevin decides to clear his tokens and let Brook move into the center of the field.

Brook Turn 2
Also playing cautious, Brook moves his Emerald Glade Mystery to support his Cavalry/Lancer formation. In his End Phase he clears his action tokens.

Kevin Turn 3
Seeing that the Horned Hunter could be the biggest threat, Kevin decides to try and eliminate him early. First he double-times Helkate and one of the Amazon Mancatchers into base contact with the Horned Hunter. He follows this up with the Dwarven Ram, basing the Hunter. As all three used double-time, none were able to use their speed special abilities, so the Horned Hunter did not take Ram damage. Using Quickness, the other two Amazon Mancatchers move to the center objective. During his command phase, Kevin checks for ownership of the objectives and claims the center objective.

Brook Turn 3
During Brook’s command phase, he rolls for the Magestone Storm and rolls a 1! Lightning hits the field and affects all of the warriors who are in base contact with each other (friendly or otherwise). Kevin and Brook’s forces alike take one click of damage. During his action phase he charges his Cavalier into one of the Mancatchers on the center objective, hitting for 3 damage. Not going down without a fight, the Horned Hunter attacks Helkate, hitting for 3 damage.

Kevin Turn 4
During Kevin’s command phase, he applies a click of pushing damage to General Vale, providing the bonuses from the Jeweled Helm. During his action phase, Kevin first moves his weak Ram back, closer to his own objective. He then double-times General Vale into the fray, backing up the two Amazon Mancatcher's and providing them with his higher defense value. The two clicks of damage have put General Vale into a much more aggressive set of stats.

Brook Turn 4
Brook positions his Lancers for charges on both General Vale and one of the Amazon Mancatchers. With his third action he provides back-up for the Charge and Lancer with the Emerald Glade Mystery.

Kevin Turn 5
Kevin has to make an important attack roll this turn. His Amazon Mancatcher is going to attempt a capture attempt against the Horned Hunter, whose defense is 19. This is due to the Emerald Glade Mystery who has the highest defense of all of Brook’s friendly figures, a 19. His Relic lets him replace the Horned Hunter’s defense with the Mystery’s. As this is a replacement and not a modifier, it is not subject to the Rule of 3. Subtracting 3 from the Amazon Mancatcher’s attack value makes it an 8, meaning Kevin has to roll an 11 to capture the massive Elemental Avatar. Kevin decides to use the Gang-up proficiency, having Helkate and the Dwarven Ram add +1 to the attack roll. So the final attack number is a 10, making the roll to beat a 9 or higher. Kevin rolls a 12, a critical hit for the capture roll! The Horned Hunter does not take any damage from the capture attempt. However, the Amazon Mancatcher now holds the Horned Hunter captive. Free to act, the standard Dwarven Ram double-times to Brook’sobjective, to challenge the Imp holding it. Helkate also moves fast, double-timing to base both the Emerald Glade Mystery and Heavy Lancer. During the end phase objectives are checked, and Brook’s is now under contention. His token is removed from it.

Brook Turn 5
Not trusting that even a wounded Helkate could capture his Lancer, Brook rolls for breakaway, and succeeds, moving the Lancer away (and causing a click of shake-off damage). The Imp, defending its objective, attacks and hits the Dwarven Ram. The Cavalier attacks the Mancatcher; however General Vale’s defense of 19 and Defend special ability protects the Mancatcher, and the Cavalier misses.

Kevin Turn 6
Kevin’s weak Ram launches forward to threaten the Lancer and Cavalier pair. General Vale also maneuvers into combat, basing both the Emerald Glade Mystery and Heavy Cavalier.

Brook Turn 6
Not wanting to lose his high defense, Brook rolls for breakaway and moves the Emerald Glade Mystery away from General Vale (causing shakeoff damage). The Heavy Cavalier pushes to attack the Mancatcher, eliminating it. The Heavy Lancer follows suit, attacking the lone Mancatcher, critically hitting for 4 damage.

Kevin Turn 7
On Kevin’s command phase, he rolls a 1, and damage is applied to several warriors. The storm is having its desired effect, weakening warriors across the board. The weak Dwarven Ram pushes to Ram the Lancer, adding to the damage. General Vale also pushes to attack the Heavy Cavalier, successfully hitting it. Finally, Kevin’s standard Ram hits the Imp, killing it, and allowing Kevin to claim Brook’s objective during Kevin’s end phase.

Brook Turn 7
Brook attacks the Mancatcher holding his Horned Hunter captive. Hitting her for 2, she is demoralized, but still holds the captive. Brook needs to free his Horned Hunter! Hoping for a big late game push, Brook clears the rest of his tokens.

Kevin Turn 8
Running out of warriors and actions, Kevin moves the demoralized Helkate into the space between General Vale and the Emerald Glade Mystery (not touching either). This stops the Mystery from making a ranged attack on General Vale.

Brook Turn 8
Brook rolls for breakaway with his Heavy Cavalier and fails. He decides to take the risk, and pushes the Lancer to kill the Amazon Mancatcher, freeing his Horned Hunter, who is relatively fresh. Rising to Kevin’s taunts, Brook moves the Horned Hunter into close combat with General Vale. Doing so, both players forget the Ram on the Horned Hunter, possibly a costly mistake for Brook. It’s a showdown between the leaders of these two armies.

Kevin Turn 9
The Storm strikes again, hitting several warriors. General Vale has soaked up a lot of damage, but still has plenty of fight left in him. He attacks the Horned Hunter, hitting for 2 damage. The Weak Ram breaks away from the Lancer and Rams the Emerald Glade Mystery.

Brook Turn 9
Time is almost up — the next few actions could determine the outcome of the game. The Horned Hunter prepares to land the killing blow on General Vale, but critically misses! Seeing Kevin’s objective unprotected, Brook double-times his Lancer to the objective. Finally his Emerald Glade Mystery hits the Weak Ram for 2, not enough to eliminate it. During his end phase, objectives are checked. Kevin holds Brook’s objective, Brook holds Kevin’s objective and the center objective is under contention.

Kevin Turn 10
Kevin has to either capture the Emerald Glade Mystery, so that he can claim the center objective, or find a way to eliminate one of Brook’s more expensive warriors, as Brook currently leads in points of eliminated warriors. Kevin first attempts to capture the Emerald Glade Mystery with his Weak Ram, pushing to do so. He misses the capture roll. General Vale then attacks the Horned Hunter. With a mighty swing, the elven General critically hits the Horned Hunter, doing enough damage to eliminate the warrior. The General takes a click of pushing damage, not enough to eliminate him.

Time is called. That Critical Hit roll won the game for Kevin. Both players had 1 objective under control. Up to the last turn, Brook had eliminated more of Kevin’s warriors (in points) then vice versa. Eliminating the Horned Hunter gave Kevin the extra points he needed to claim the win. Playing the Magestone Storm was certainly a gamble, considering the fact that Kevin’s force is primarily a close combat group. However, both players often had to consider basing one another, especially in large groups.