Cursed City - Skaven vs Bretonnia - Campaign game 5

In the citadel of fangwood forest. Lord Belmont of the Grail Order, guardian of the Artifact. Walked with the Castelant of the Citadel.

"I am glad to see you have recovered my lord, the songs of your heroic deeds are being sung across all off fangwood."

"Thank you Castelant, the healers of your citadel are most adept, but now I am concerned with you vaults security. I rode and fought hard, to keep that fell thing from the rat men. I'd like it to stay out of their filth paws."

"Of course my lord, walk this way," they walked through the castle passing many Knights on guard armed and ready, "the recent emergence of the Skaven has every one on alert, and since you rode in I have had all knights of the realm on guard rotation."

Looking around Lord Belmont asks, "We are not walking towards your Vaults."

"Indeed we are not, we saw from the battlements how the Skaven used subterranean tunnels digging their own or making use of our sewer system, so i placed the Artifact in our prison tower, only one way in and that is heavily gated, and well guarded."

As they turned the corner the prison tower came into view, an squat redoubt with a singal gated entrance four knights stood alert outside. At their approach, the guards saluted the lords, and after a discussion through the portal, the gateway opened to admit them.

"There is no basement," said the Lord Castelant as the pair climbed the spiral stairs, "The Artifact is held on the top floor." Approaching the first floor, "there are no prisoners held here currently. But another 4 Knights guard the room at the top should the rats turn into bats and learn to fly." The Castellant laugh dies in his throat as they turn the corner to see the dead guards laying in expanding pools of blood. Lord Belmont explodes into action sword leaping from the scabbard as he brusts into the room.

The Skaven Assassin slipping out of window turns at the sudden intrusion stuffs a bag into his black clothes and with a wink leaps into space.

Leaping across the room , Lord Belmont reaches the window in time to see the Theif glide over the castle walls on cloth stretched between arms and legs.

The artifact long hidden and keep from the Skaven had been stolen , Pegasus riders are dispatch immediately, to track the thieves, Lord Belmont quickly rallys all the knights and the men at arms. The sets out immediately to hunt down the thieves and retrieve it. 

The 5th game in the campaign will be cursed city, we chose this game for it's ambush scenario. We both use 65 pools form the SCGT pack. 

Deployment

Bretonnia set us first, with 20 men-at-arms, a Damsel, 3 Pegasus Knights, a Paladin BsB. And 20 Grail knights.

The Skaven then sprung the ambush. A Doom wheel, 6 Stormfiends (2 shock gauntlets, 2 poison wind launcher, 2 rattling cannon.) A warp fire thrower. Warlock Engineer (general) and 20 stormvermin. The Assassin is hidden in the Gutter runners are hiding, after having lead the Bretonnia's to the ambush.

Turn 1 Skaven
Stormvermin sacrifice 2 of their number in the dammed terrain, for an unholy benefit. Warplock inspires them and casts Mystic Shield on the vermin. Pack master herds the Fiends into the fray.
The Ambush is sprung and the noose tightens on the Brettonian's .

Doom wheel rolls into the men at arms. Gutter runners emerge from hiding and head for the damsel, Assassin is still hiding somewhere.

Gutters loose a volley of warp shot, wounding the damsel.
A gout of flame from the warpfire tower covers the advance of the Stormvermin. While rattling cannons whir and spit death, and poison wind is launched into the knightly ranks. Bullets , gas and flame take their toll on the knights, then the Skaven charge slams home.

The Stormvermin plow into the flank first, they out number the knights, and have to benefits from the damned scarfice, and use they're inspired triumph. (2+ to hit reroll misses). And kill 7 knights in the initial frenzy.
More prepared for the frontal assault. The Grail knights and Paladin Lord Belmont, kill and wound another fiend. But in return the remaining fiends shock and club 5 more knights to death.

The sudden battle shock is to much for the grail knights, and the remaining 4 break from combat, leaving Lord Belmount alone to face the ratty horde.

Across the battle field the doomwheel attempts to roll through the men at arms but there are alot of them and he grinds to a halt.
The men take their halbreds and attempt to dismantle the contraption, and make a good start.
Turn 1 Bretonnia
Seeing the unsurmountable odds in front of him the paladin Belmont, retires from combat and attempts to reason with the ghosts of the battle field.

Damsel is unable to cast and retreats to the ruined wall section. The Pegasus, see an opportunity to strike at the Skaven leadership, fly over the Skaven lines and swoop down on the Engineer commanding the horde.

More at home in a Labratory, than a battlefield, the engineer is easily dispatched.

Swooping again the pegasus knights also kill the warp fire thrower that is lurking behind the Skaven battle line.
Ghosts of the the Skaven tortured victims emerge, drawn by the blood shed the spectres attack indiscrimintly. A fiend is wounded, as is the damsel, some stormvermin and a few men-at-arms are killed.

Turn 2 Skaven
Even leaderless the stormvermin do not falter. Together with the fiends they turn on the swooping Pegasus. A hail of warp bullets proceed the charge, shredding a flying horse.

Gutter runners enter the ruined wall section that is harbouring the Damsel. As they surround her, the Assassin thief, so far hidden amongst them, casts off his diguise.
The Storm of verminous fiends surround the brave Pegasus Knights and drag one from the air, to be torn apart on the ground.

With a smug tittering laugh the assassin launches his himself at the caster and makes short work of killing the Damsel.

The superior numbers of the men-at -arms is finally telling enough to pull down the mechanical death wheel.

Turn 2 Bretonnia
Paladin entreaties the ghosts of this cursed city, the specters of fallen bretonnia agree to aid their living kinsmen.

Turning from his ethereal parley, Lord Belmont looks up in time to see the Damsel brutally murdered by a black cloaked rat-man.  Could this be the same theif from the castle fangwood.
The Skaven assassin looks up form his kill, and with a leer, winks at Lord Belmont. 
Enraged by the repeated mocking  gesture from the theif, Belmont spurs his horse at the assassin. Leaping up onto the ruined wall section he is confronted by the Gutter runners accompanying the Assassin and must hack through them too get his target.

The men at arms fall back to a defensive postion.
Last remaining Pegasus night alight out of combat, and fly's to a safe position to catch his breath.
Ghosts of the cursed area have heard the paladin's pleas and attack the Stormvermin.
Turn 3 Bretonia
Pegasus Knight charges in hoping again to remove leadership from the horde, he singles out the Pack master. The plucky Ratman, is not ready to die and using the nervous energy of his race dodges all attacks (a lot of 6 plus saves were made) until a horse hoof catches him in the gut.

Turn 3 Skaven
Stormvermin leave the last Pegasus to the Fiends, and run off after the men-at-arms.
Packmaster flees, shouting for his fiends to attack. The Rattling cannons open fire, and shred the last Pegasus knight, before he can flee again.

Assassin continues to attack the Paladin, the armour has proved difficult to penetrate. But his flurry of blows spooks the horse to back off the wall section, with a thud man and beast hit the floor and rise no more.

Turn 4 Skaven
Hiding in the deadly ruins are the remnants of the man army. Skaven converge on their position.

Turn 4 Bretonnia
Seeing assassins approaching, the men flee out of the ruin. Hoping the dangerous terrain between them will claim, some of the Skaven when they charge.

Turn 5 Skaven
But fleeing the building has left them exposed.
Fiends sweep around outside to catch the men on the flank, devastating.

The fall hadn't killed him but it felt like it should have. Stumbling back from the Assassin's assault his horses back leg had slipped from the ruined wall and they had both tumbled from the top. His horse hadn't been so lucky. 
The battlefield was now silent, removing his armour piece by piece, he climbed painfully to the top of the wall. 
Reaching the top, he surveyed the battlefield, it was littered with corpses, some Skaven, but mostly horses and men. How blindly had he raced after the theif, thoughts only of pursuit and speed but never caution. 
A bubbling cough behind caught his attention. Spinning and on gaurd, he approached the corpses of the Skaven he slaughtered up here, but none stirred. Behind them however a Damsel did, cut, pierced and broken, she clung desperately to life. 
"Lord Belm....," she coughed "must stop, vermin." Spluttering blood, "......Ritual." breath stops.