Author: Nicholas Burden

Idol of Gork Conversion Scenario 3

Back to the Idol of Gork conversion after another hiatus. In the original 5th Edition Campaign the third scenario is based around the idea that the Iron Claw Orcs are looking for allies amongst the Itchy Skab tribe and send a shaman to negotiate. The Empire send a force to attack the orc camp where the negotiations are to be held. Basically if the Empire destroy the orc huts then the negotiations fail and the Iron Claw Orcs have a smaller force available in the final battle – if the orcs defend their huts then the Iron Claws have a points advantage over the Empire in the finale.

I think this is the least focussed of the scenarios – there is something a bit unclear / clumsy about the link between the narrative (alliance formation) and the attack on the huts. The mechanics around burning the huts down are also a bit clunky – especially given the Empire options in terms of light cavalry are quite different post 5th Edition. In short, this will be the most challenging scenario to convert and there will be considerable changes!

Armies: The armies were originally 1000 pts each so we’ll double that to 2000 pts consistent with 9th Age Rules.

In the original scenario there is nothing really remarkable about the Itchy Skab force (Orc Boyz, Arrow Boyz, Big ‘Uns etc.) except for the option of trolls – there is certainly nothing to differentiate the Itchy Skabs from the Iron Claws either in this scenario or if the Orc player wins and gets to add extra points to his army for the final battle. To me this is a wasted opportunity for some colour!

What if, instead, the Itchy Skab tribe are differentiated by from the Iron Claws as more barbaric – they are made up of Savage Orcs and Forest Goblins! So the Orcs and Goblins are only allowed to choose Feral Orcs (boys, ‘eadbashers, boar riders, whatever) and Forest Goblins (infantry and spider riders) and of course the Arachnarock/Gargantula!

The Empire force is themed around a mobile raiding party – they are there to torch the village (and while it’s not clear in the original narrative that the Empire know about the planned alliance, let’s say that they do and they are out to disrupt negotiations). Back in 5th Edition the Empire had Kislevite light cavalry troops which we unfortunately don’t have access to. Pistoliers and Outriders (Reiters) are a perfect fit as light cavalry. Imperial Rangers and Imperial Militia (with ‘Irregulars’ upgrade) make sense too. Without the Kislevites it might be necessary to allow a unit of Knights to bulk out the cavalry / mobile contingent.

Deployment The original campaign has deployment as below:

I don’t really see any major reason to change this up at this stage. However it may be that the orc huts need to be deployed a bit further back to give the orcs a fair chance of defending them.

First Turn – This time the Empire have surprise – they go first!

Number of turns – 5 turns as per the original.

Victory or defeat

1.) As per the original the Empire gain a sudden death victory if they set all the huts ablaze – the Itchy Skabz doubt the Iron Claw’s capacity to deal with the humans and move on.

2.) Otherwise victory is awarded to whichever side wins the most victory points. A draw is still considered an Orc victory – if the Empire don’t win they won’t drive the Itchy Skab tribe off.

Victory Gains

If the Orcs win then the Itchy Skabz join the Iron Claw Orcs for the final battle. In the finale, the Orcs will have access to 1500 extra points of troops which MUST be spent on Feral Orcs and Forest Goblins (Itchy Skabz). This will mean the Orcs have a 500 pt advantage in the final battle.

If the Empire win the Itchy Skabz are driven off. The orcs will have a 500 pt disadvantage to the Empire in the final battle, and will NOT have access to any Feral Orcs, Forest Goblins or Spiders.

Special Rules

Lighting the huts. In the original game, only bowmen and crossbowmen could set the huts alight (assumed to have flaming arrows/bolts). They rolled to hit as per normal, and 10 hits set a hut on fire. This doesn’t quite work for me. First of all, the Empire now has very few troops with bows and while flaming arrows is a cool idea, flaming crossbow bolts seems a bit strange for some reason(?). Also, we miss out on the classic image of riders bearing torches, riding between the buildings and setting them alight! Clearly a modification is in order – but this will need to wait for another post :-).

Battle Report: Empire (Gary) vs Goblins (Dave)

Dave was down from and a coffee with Gary turned into a quick game. Gary took the Empire list I used in the last battle report and Dave took a modified goblin force. I was at a course and only arrived on time to help pack up but Gary wrote a quick report and I thought I would post it here.

Turn 1

The goblins moved forward, their large unit of archers led by the goblin general and the shaman. They were out of range, but a fireball put some hurt on the crossbows. This turn the Empire escaped with minor injuries.

The Empire moved forward on the left flank, trying to come around to flank the goblins but being wary of the crazy gnashers. Shooting and magic put some wounds on the gnasher wrecking team.

Turn 2

The goblins gnashers charged the pistoliers, who fled. The gnasher wrecking team exploded (thank goodness!). The shaman again was tiresome, frying the rest of the crossbowmen in a fireball. The bolt throwers shot off a knight, and the scrap wagon ran over the bowmen skirmishers trying to sneak up through the woods.

The Empire infantry moved forward surrounding the gnasher herd, and the wizard bolstered their fighting abilities. The pistoliers shot off 2 of the herd.

Turn 3

The herd charged the spearmen support unit, but were wiped out after bringing down 2 spearmen. The grotlins charged at the knights, who fled, not wanting to get caught in a protracted fight with this nuisance. However, by doing so they exposed a flank to the goblin bolt throwers which left only one knight alive!

The Empire infantry then moved forward, trying to get in charge range of the goblin archers, who were slowly whittling them away. The lone knight rallied and turned around, prepared to sell his life dearly. The cannon again missed, and Empire magic proved ineffective.

Turn 4

The goblin chariots charged recklessly into the spearmen unit, and the grotlins charged the lone knight. Magic fireballs again took their toll on the Empire, this time 3 pistoliers were incinerated and the remaining 2 fled. A hail of arrows brought down more halberdiers. 11 Spearmen were crushed by the chariot charge, and although inflicting a few wounds on the chariots they broke and ran. The chariots pursued, but failed to catch them.

The determined Empire general then issued a charge on the goblin archers, who stood and fired, bringing down the last of the halberdiers. However, the general and Battle Standard made their charge into the goblins. The remnants of the spearmen rallied, and the pistoliers charged the chariots, bolstered by magic. The pistoliers were woeful, not managing a single wound, as the charioteers brought down one of them. The BSB smashed goblins asunder, and the goblin king and Empire general wounded each other. The goblins lost the fight, and fled. This was the Empires one small chance! Could either the general or marshall carrying the standard run down the foul vermin???? NOOooo…Dave rolled a double 6 and I managed a paltry 5 for each pursuer….. The Empire was lost…..

Turn 5

The goblins rallied, and the scrap wagon smashed into the rear of the spearmen. The spearmen actually destroyed the scrap wagon, but the charioteers wiped out the last pistolier.

The Empire general tried to repeat hid heroic last charge but was pin-cushioned with black-fletched arrows, and fell….the last hope of the Empire faded.

Gary’s final word: “Aaargh….a frustrating game for me due to a poor list, bad deployment, worse tactics and woeful dice-rolling. Oh well, back to the drawing board (or rather empty barracks)”

*A footnote in the annals of the Empire: Astute readers will notice from the photographs that the Imperial Knights in fact seem to have taken their first casualty in turn 1 rather than turn 2, and the next three Imperial Knights to be skewered fell in turn 2 rather than three.

Battle Report: Empire vs. Goblins

I had a rare free day and opportunity to play a quick, 2000 pt 9th Age battle with Gary. We decided to use Empire vs. and all-goblin army – in part because we wanted to see how all-goblins would go against Empire for our planned Idol of Gork campaign, and in part because Gary is really keen on building up his goblins at the moment. We only got to play 3 turns each but had a great time. Gary wrote up a battle report and I thought I’d post it here:

Turn 1

Turn 1 saw my goblins rush forward to get into both bow and spell range of the Empire force.

A huge goblin fireball from the goblin witch doctor turned the entire crossbow unit into blackened crisps.

Encouraged by this, the goblin archers blackened the sky with their arrows at the flanking mounted pistoliers unit. Two were cut down, and the unit lost its nerve and fled the battlefield. A great start for the goblins!

Turn 1 for the Empire saw the spearmen charge the rickety scrap wagon, and bolstered by the mage’s magiks, cut it to kindling. The cannon roared and smashed through the goblin king’s chariot, taking 3 of its 4 wounds. A good riposte from the Empire!

Turn 2

Turn 2 saw the gnasher herd and goblin king charge the spearmen, who sensibly fled leaving the chariot in no-mans land…

…but the gnasher herd were able to redirect their charge into the main halberdier unit of the Empire. The combat was brutal and swift as the gnashers ate 6 halberdiers, but were then destroyed by the men of the Empire.

Turn 2 for the Empire saw Nick go on the offensive.

The knights charged into the 2nd gnasher herd, and the spearmen rallied.

The cannon roared again, and……disaster!!, the goblin king was smashed asunder!

The cave goblin unit panicked and turned tail and ran. The goblin archers thought bugger this, and legged it as well. Only the crazy goblin chief on his wolf didn’t run away. He was keen for a fight….

The knights smashed the gnasher herd, running right over them.

Turn 3

Turn 3 saw the crazy goblin charge alone into the big Empire unit. The giant only just failed as he attempted to help by charging at the halberdier unit’s flank. Nick breathed a sigh of relief as the giant only managed to get a 10 instead of a 11….ooooh, so close!! The witch doctor rallied the goblin unit, but the goblin archers kept running, yelling and cursing each other. The goblin bolt thrower crew surprised themselves by blasting a knight from his saddle.

The goblin chief went crashing into the Marshall, the Empire’s Battle Standard Bearer and dealt him a wound, but he was promptly cut to pieces by the halberdiers.

Turn 3 for the Empire saw the knights launch another charge, this time at the bolt thrower to avenge their fallen comrade. So determined were they that even a fanatic crashing through them did no wounds and they completed a successful charge against the war machine, utterly destroying it. The Empire then reformed their units and gazed across the devastation they had wrought. The goblin force had been crushed, leaving a unit of cave goblins looking rather nervous, and a rather confused-looking giant wandering around aimlessly.

We could have continued the game, but Nick was keen to avoid the Friday traffic, so decided to head off. Either way he had won comprehensively, and the last few turns would have seen him easily mopping up the last of the goblin force. A very enjoyable game that started so well for the goblins. However, the cannon turned the game around. Removing the goblin king was critical, as the goblins lost their leadership and their nerve. I tried with bow shooting and magic to try to destroy the cannon earlier, but could not do enough wounds. Nick’s roar of triumph almost equalled the roar of the cannon when the king was blasted away. We both knew the consequences…..

Idol of Gork Conversion Scenario 2: Ambush

It has been a little while since I’ve worked on the Idol of Gork 9th Age conversion, but now that reality is no longer getting in the way I am excited to get back into it!

Scenario 2 in the old 5th Edition campaign pack involves an Orc ambush of an Empire marching column. Count Rutger has sent riders back to the Empire in requesting reinforcements and in particular some heavy artillery from Nuln and magical support from the Imperial College in Altdorf. The latter is particularly important because Rutger needs the enchantments on the Orc Idols dealt with so that they can be torn down and the hold of the Orc gods on the land broken. These reinforcements are marching along the road towards Rutgerberg when they are ambushed by a force of Orc raiders, and the Empire’s capacity to see off the attack will determine whether or not the reinforcements reach Rutgerberg and are available for the final battle.

Armies: The armies were originally 1500 pts, so they will be doubled to 3000 pts to fit 9th Age rules.

In the original 5th Edition campaign the Greenskins are allowed to field ANY NUMBER of goblin wolf rider or wolf chariot units and orc boar boy and boar chariot units. This perfectly fits the theme of a mobile raiding force which has been striking fast and then retreating! The greenskins will also be allowed any number of regular orc infantry and archer units and any number of common goblin units – all of these are lightly armoured and suggest mobility. I have decided to disallow the single Black Orc unit allowed in the original campaign – they are too heavily armoured to fit. However ‘big uns’ may fit the bill and the Greenskins are allowed a single unit of these! These are the only troops available to the Greenskins.

The Empire should be themed around the idea of ‘special’ reinforcements, artillery and magical support as per the campaign story. The 5th Edition Empire army didn’t have warrior priests available but Sigmarite support seems likely too – after all, who else better to call on to deal with blasphemous orc idols! So, it makes sense that the Empire would be able to call on an Imperial Steamtank and the Hellblaster Volley gun + 2 other artillery pieces (special delivery from Nuln), the Luninark of Hysh / Celestial Hurricanum under the careful gaze of a powerful Wizard (Lord?) (as requested from the Imperial College), and a warrior priest leading a mob of crazed flagellants (zealots flocking to some messianic goal of obliterating the orc idols and founding a Sigmarite paradise in this new land). Pistoliers and outriders form the escort. Possibly also an ‘exotic’ order of Knights (the White Wolves?). So the Empire get a lot of toys to play with but risk losing them, and the Orcs advantage will be in positioning / situational.

Deployment: The original campaign has deployment as below:

The Empire player deploys their entire army first, along the road as outlined in the map above, all marching in the direction of the arrow. All warmachines are being pulled (either by horses or by units of infantry). Once the entire Empire force has been deployed the Greenskin army is deployed.

First turn: The Greenskins have the element of surprise – they go first!

Number of turns: The initial scenario lists 4 turns, but once again I think an element of randomness / race against time is fun. Let’s imagine that Rutger has sent out a force to meet and escort the reinforcements and the Orcs and Goblins will have to break off the attack when this arrives. So, rolling a d6 after turn 4 the relief force arrives on 5+, after turn 5 it arrives on 3+ and it arrives regardless after turn 6.

Victory Conditions:

1.) As per the original campaign the Orcs and Goblins win a sudden death victory by killing or disabling (e.g. fleeing) the Wizard Lord and the Warmachines.

2.) Otherwise victory is determined by the number of victory points at the end of the battle. However, in the event of a draw in terms of victory points the Empire are deemed victors, as in this instance they will still likely be able to make it to reinforce Rutgerberg.

Victory Gains: If the Orcs and Goblins win the battle then the Empire’s artillery and magical reinforcements are destroyed. The Empire will not have access to the Steamtank, Hellblaster, Rocket, or Luminark / Celestial Hurricanum in the final battle. In the original version they also lose access to the Wizard Lord (either killed… or at least returned to Altdorf to repair his priceless Luminark!) and I am thinking of keeping this option too, particularly if the Orcs and Goblins risk losing their wizard lord in the first game.

Furthermore, several of the reinforcing units are not readily available for reinforcement this far from the Empire and will not be available in the final battle if they finish the game with the whole unit destroyed (and/or fleeing?). These units/characters include: the Flagellants, the Warrior Priest, and the exotic order of knights (likely White Wolves – perhaps Demi-Gryphs?).

Special Rules:

1.) Ambushed on the march!: In order to reflect the chaos of the rapid orc and goblin attack I really like the idea of some sort of impediment to the Imperial response (though this was not included in the original rules). I am still working on this, but what I am thinking is that every Imperial unit and character needs to make a discipline test in order to respond effectively to the ambush (redeploy in battle formation, ready equipment, etc). I am still playing around with this but think a version of “Stupid” would work – must pass a discipline test or count as shaken and must move d6 inches directly forward ALONG THE ROAD (in other words, the unit carries on marching rather than deploying for battle). This test only needs to be taken ONCE for each unit + character (thereafter they have taken battle formation). Pistoliers and Outriders will ignore this rule as scouting units used to rapid response.

2. ) Unlimbering the artillery: All artillery (including the Steam Tank) begin the game pulled by horses or infantry units. It takes the Empires whole first turn to unlimber the artillery and ready them to fire – therefore they remain inactive their first full turn (and even then only ONCE they have passed their discipline check as in Ambushed on the march above).

Well there it is. As with the first scenario, nothing finalised and lots still to think about but the general elements are there. I think I will complete writing out my thoughts on the remaining two scenarios and then go back and tweak and tighten them all together to ensure continuity.

ABC Classic 100: Composer

Voting for this year’s ABC Classic 100 is an exercise in exquisite agony. The theme is to pick your favourite (NOT the best) composer – the one you cannot live without… it’s a really tough ask, and strangely made all the tougher by being able to nominate up to 10. If I am backed into a corner and absolutely forced to pick a favourite composer I am fairly comfortable picking Ralph Vaughn Williams. His Lark Ascending and re-imaginings of Tallis send my soul soaring to dizzying heights above rolling English hills and hedgerows from my childhood, real and imagined. But for some reason being asked to name ten composers seems more cruel… it’s as if I am forced to leave good friends out. I know that Hildegard of Bingen and Monteverdi will definitely be in there.

However I am torn because my favourite composers of the moment are often contemporary composers, and I have toyed with the idea of dropping the names which I surely couldn’t live without (Bach, Mozart, Vivaldi, Ravel, Debussy, Schubert) but who will surely feature in favour of some of the wonderful contemporary composers I have been listening to: Olafur Arnaulds, Ola Gjeilo, Luke Howard and Stuart Greenbaum. So favourite composers of all time or favourite composers on my playlist right now? Time is running out and I haven’t yet decided…

Voting closes on Monday May 20th at 9 am.

Jordi Savall Concert Recording

On Sunday afternoon I listened to the ABC Classic recording of Jordi Savall, viola da gambist and UNESCO artist for peace, playing in concert as part of the Melbourne Recital Centre Great Performers series alongside Xavier Diaz-Latorre. I highly recommend it. The program featured many of my favourite early baroque pieces (Folias, Canarios, Galliard Napoletane) and, played with the rich, earthy viola da gamba, thiorbo and guitar, made for the perfect accompaniment to a reflective Autumn afternoon. Auditory dark chocolate? For me the highlight was Robert de Visee‘s Prélude and Chaconne from Pièces de théorbe (G Major). I know very little about music (I am a musical peasant!) but I love the chaconne as a musical form and this performance exemplifies what draws me so strongly to it, those variations on a theme which seem to weave order from chaos in the soul and for a few blissful minutes set the world to its celestial rights. Apparently Robert de Visee played guitar in the bedchamber of Louis IV and I can see why. I love the little (I think) contemporary flourishes Savall and Diaz-Latorre add too.

You can listen to the concert online here for the next little while.

Idol of Gork Conversion Scenario 1: “Da Snatch”

The Idol of Gork campaign opens with the eponymous Idol falling upon the Imperial settlers trying to pull the idol down. Fearing sinister magic is at work, Count Rutger calls a halt to the work and sends messengers back to the Empire for the assistance of the College of Magic and the Cult of Sigmar. In the meantime he dispatches a small force to guard the Idols and prevent Greenskin mischief…

In the first scenario of the original campaign, a goblin raiding force under the Night Goblin Shaman Oddgit attempts to snatch the Crown of Gork from a small force of Imperial guards, commanded by the veteran captain Manfred von Bock.

Armies: The battle was originally to be a small 1000 pts battle, which for 9th Age is simply doubled for 2000 pts. In the original campaign the Greenskin force could include any goblin troops, but given the prominence of the Night Goblin Shaman, that the attack happens at night and that Gary has a large and varied force of Night Goblins, I have decided it would be more flavourful to have an all Night Goblin force (including Night Goblin themed units like Squigs etc.). For the Empire, guard duty suggests infantry only and less prestigious troops, so the Empire force will be limited to Core infantry models as well as Greatswords.

Deployment: The original campaign has deployment as below.

There is also a Warmaster conversion which has the idols of Gork and Mork slightly closer to the Empire deployment zone (as below). To me this makes more sense both from a narrative point of view (the Empire are on guard duty after all) and is likely more balanced if the original victory conditions are used. So we’ll have to decide which one to go for. It should be noted that the Greatswords can be deployed in front of the Idols in both versions of the scenario.

First turn: This one is not controversial – it’s a night raid under cover of darkness so the Night Goblins go first!

Number of turns: The original scenario listed 5 turns, representing the 5 hours from midnight until sunrise when the Night Goblins, who hate the light, break off the attack. This seems very thematic – the only thing I am tempted to tinker with is to make the turn length random to build tension on both sides – when will the sun crest the hill? The rule would be something like: after turn 4 roll 1d6 and the battle ends on 5+; after turn 5 role a dice and the battle ends on 3+; the battle ends after turn 6 regardless. Another thing to consider.

Victory conditions: In the original scenario only Oddgit the shaman could retrieve and claim the crown of command, so the following special victory conditions followed:

1.) The Empire automatically wins if Oddgit is killed.

2.) The Night Goblins automatically win if Oddgit reaches the fallen idol.

3.) If neither of the above ‘sudden death’ conditions are met, then the Empire just need a draw in terms of points to win (they are considered to have beaten off the attack). The Night Goblins require a points victory in order to claim the Crown of Gork.

From my reading about this scenario it seems the Night Goblins ‘automatic victory’ rule walking Oddgit into the idols is a little bit easy for them, particularly given the special rules (below). One option would be to insist that Oddgit has to actually either get off the board with the Crown of Gork or survive till the end of the battle with the Crown of Gork in his possession in order to get it. The other option would be to keep the original victory condition but have the Idols of Gork placed closer to the Empire deployment lines as in the Warmaster version (see deployment, above). More thinking required on this one.

Victory Gains: If the Night Goblins win then Oddgit presents the Crown of Gork to Grotfang, which means the Orcs and Goblins do NOT suffer animosity in the final battle. Now, the 9th Age has done away with animosity for Orcs and Goblins. I am not going to go into the debate about it (though I personally think there has been a bit of an overemphasis on balance at the cost of flavour, and find the rule characterful myself). One option would be to replace the Crown of Gork with an alternate magical item, but none of the items in the Orc and Goblins 9th Age book really excited me. Instead, I thought why not just include the old animosity rule for the purposes of this campaign? Perhaps the Iron Claw orcs are particularly unruly or undisciplined? Perhaps their cohesion has been shaken by the Empire’s invasion of their lands? All that is left to do then is choose WHICH VERSION of animosity from previous Warhammer editions to use.

Special Rules: As per the original scenario, the following special rules apply:

1.) Darkness – Night Goblins re-roll any missed to-hit rolls when shooting due to fighting in their preferred conditions. In contrast, the Empire receive a -1 to hit when shooting and are unable to make march moves due to their poor vision. Ouch.

2.) Sneakin’ Up – Prior to movement on the first turn the Night Goblins may move forward d6 inches to represent them sneaking up on the foe before spotted by the Empire pickets. Will have to figure out whether this happens before or after animosity!

3.) Eerie Noises – No Empire troops may be deployed on the Idol of Gork terrain, and must make a leadership test in order to move onto or through the Idol terrain. Superstition!

I’m inclined to keep the special rules as written. Overall, they are fairly heavily in favour of the Night Goblins, which in combination with the rather limited Empire army list leads me to consider modifications to the Deployment (having the Idols closer to Empire deployment zone) and Victory Conditions (making Oddgit have to flee with the Idol) which give the Empire a bit of a boost.

For now, there is lots to think about. I will make decisions about these issues and discuss the characters in my next post…

Idol of Gork Campaign Overview

The old Warhammer 5th Edition Idol of Gork campaign is set in the Border Princes, that Balkanised frontier land of squabbling petty fiefdoms where second sons, lordlings and glorified bandits have the opportunity to carve out their own domain… albeit until all laid to ruin by the next warlord, orc horde or Chaos invasion to sweep through.

Our particular tale begins when Rutger, an Imperial second son with little hope of inheriting, receives a grant to settle lands in the Border Princes by a local ruler. The catch is that these lands are already settled by the IronClaw Orcs and conflict ensues to determine who will be the master of these lands. (Interestingly, given that the Orcs are generally cast as villains, one can’t help but sense that the Empire are cast as colonial aggressors in this, but maybe that’s just me?)

Anyway, the campaign takes the form of four linked battles in which each of the first three battles has an impact on the fourth, final showdown which determines the ultimate victor:

In Scenario 1: ‘Da Snatch’, a small force of goblins attempt to recover the “Crown of Gork” from beneath the idols of Gork and Mork, while a small force of Imperial soldiers on guard duty attempt to stop them. Victory determines whether or not the Orcs and Goblins will get to use the ‘Crown of Gork’ to mitigate animosity in the final battle (this will require a fair bit of thought for conversion in 9th Age rules which no longer included animosity rules for Greenskins)

In Scenario 2: ‘The Ambush’, a mobile greenskin force ambushes Imperial reinforcements on their way to bolster Rutger’s forces. Victory determines whether the Empire gets to deploy some of its fancier toys and heavier firepower in the final battle.

In Scenario 3: ‘The Battle of Troll Rocks’ the Empire take the initiative with an attack on the village where the Ironfang Orcs are seeking to negotiate with a neighbouring tribe. Victory determines whether the negotiations succeed and as such whether the Ironfang Orcs have numerical superiority over the Empire in the final battle.

In Scenario 4: “The Battle for Rutgerburg”, the Ironfang Orcs lead a final all-out assault on the fledgling keep of Lord Rutger. Each of the previous battles has lead up to this point and had an influence on the forces arrayed against each other. If the Ironfang Orcs win the fledgling settlement is raised and the Greenskins resume control of the region. If the Empire wins then control of the region is consolidated and Lord Rutger takes his place as one of the Border Princes!