My goblins are reinforced by some command types from Splintered Light's Goblin warband.
Firstly, on the far left, a wizard in patchy robe, perched on a rock and festooned with amulets. I did consider a Night Goblin colour scheme but, again, any combination of 15mm mini, black clothing and my skill level would make for a poor finish. The second and third are leaders of some sort. The burly spear-goblin is straightforward enough but the running goblin with severed head is a great, animated pose.
Stylistically, there's something about most of the Splintered Light goblins that suggest they are a cut above the usual green hero-fodder. The musician and standard bearer are in keeping with that style, well-equipped and warmly dressed. The flag could do with an icon but that's a job for Future Me as I don't think I've got the skills yet.
When added to my stash of painted goblins, this batch gives me another full size Dragon Rampant unit.
My miniatures have been seeing regular action in a Pathfinder campaign for the past few months but as a wargamer at heart, I needed to try something a little grander than shuffling them across a quick-wipe hex map. As it happened, I had a friend willing to playtest Dragon Rampant.
We present the isolated dwarf settlement of Bail Eantua. Generally, the bearded folk are found below ground but these lumber camps are not uncommon in the Old World. The dwarves have been gnawing away at the forest for some time and, amid reports of shadows in the trees, people have started to vanish.
Some of my Dark Ages and WW2 terrain is repurposed for the cause. I was concerned that the table was a little too heavily forested but it seemed to work out well.
Determined to root out any threat to the relentless march of progress, the local Alliance garrison has arrived. The force is led by a Wizard (Elite Foot-Spellcaster) who has brought his bound Fire Elemental (Greater Warbeast) with him. The local human regiment (Heavy Foot) has been joined by a veteran dwarven militia (Heavy Foot).
With the interlopers approaching an ancient boundary marker, the arboreal guardians rouse themselves to action. The force is led by a Grand Ent (Cunning Greater Warbeast). His troop consists of a trio of Dryads ( Invisible Scouts), Treemen (Elite Foot) and Forest Wolves (Lesser Warbeasts).
Some teething problems with the rules handicap the forest folk for the first few combats as we were rolling six rather than twelve dice for their attacks but we manage to plough on to a satisfying conclusion, regardless.
The battle opens as the human regiment marches bravely into the sacred clearing, lay into all about them and are slowly reduced at great cost to the forest folk. They finally break and are encouraged off the table by some ranged fire.
The Fire Elemental takes heavy damage in a running battle with the wolves and falls back. The guardians of Nature hold the centre briefly but as the Wizard advances it becomes clear that the forces of the forest folk are spent and the Ent and Treemen are wiped out. The surviving wolf wisely flees.
By this time, the Dwarfs, having spent the game marching very very slowly through the woods find themselves called on to earn their keep. The Dryads have been playing a dangerous game leaping forward and shooting in a bid to bring down the heavily damaged Elemental in the enemy rear. The dwarves catch them in the open and their axes make short work of the willowy pests.
A single wolf flees into the brush, mournfully howling a tale of utter defeat. Another tract of the great forest is opened for logging.
Rules-wise, Dragon Rampant seems perfect for my purposes. The games are fast, book-keeping is minimal and I can use any models in my collection. The table space required is quite modest which pleases me as I tire of setting up 6x4s. I'm already looking at my Undead, Goblin and Elf stockpiles and composing lists.
