Yesterday evening witnessed my first game set in J R R Tolkien's Lost Kingdom of Arnor. It was not a great success as I wasn't happy with the rules I was play testing (an adaptation of the 3x3 PW). Still, I'm not one to waste stuff if I can help it, so here are a few pictures of the action.
A large Army of Orcs has been sent by the Witch-King of Angmar to ravage and plunder the lands beyond the North Downs. The leading elements have encountered, and pursued, a retreating band of Arnorians led by Harl the Helmless.
Harl's rearguard warn him that the fast moving Orcs are almost upon his column. The men of Arnor, mostly farmers and herdsmen, turn and make a stand on a ridge, with their backs to a wood.
.jpg) |
| Men of Arnor |
.jpg) |
| Advance of the Orcs |
.jpg) |
| Wolf Riders about to hit the Arnorian flank |
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg) |
| The end of the beginning |
Having been whittled away by the overwhelming strength of the Angmar force, Harl and the surviving men of North Arnor escaped into the forest, and made their way towards the Downs, picking up stragglers on the way...
Excellent MJT. Your Arnor project looks VERY interesting.
ReplyDeleteI recently picked up the old SPI versions of 'Gondor' & 'Sauron', with a view to re-scripting them for Age of Hannibal, amongst some RE Howard games too...
The (later) Battle of Pellenor Fields in the movie has NEVER sat well with me...harrumph...too many green ghosts - why I almost stormed out of the cinema, but I was young then; full of piss and vinegar...(nods sagely)
Cheers!
DeleteI enjoyed the LoTR movies as a visual spectacle - just had to bite my lip and not say "That's wrong" every other minute...
The SPI game looks interesting (found a pdf online) - I've never played it. Looking forward to seeing what you do with your copy (no pressure).
Looked like an interesting battle. I'm interested in your rules modifications once you are happy with them.
ReplyDeleteThanks Mark - once I find a version I'm happy with I'll let you know and could email you a copy
DeleteThanks! I don't mind posting my email here, but if you don't want me too I'm sure Bob Cordery won't mind giving it to you.
DeleteMark, my email address is in my profile
DeleteGood to seeing fighting under way ⚔️. Do you assign terrain/set up randomly at all, or is there a preset plan of ‘what happens next’, as part of your campaign?
ReplyDeleteCheers Martin.
DeleteFor these games I have a storyline which leads to the terrain on the board, so for the next game in this series it will be hilly downlands, though there will be a pause while I tinker with the rules...
Good luck with your rules. Even if there is more work to do on them, it is always interesting (and sometime fun) testing them out.
ReplyDeleteThanks Peter - will be giving them another go soon. I wasn't in a very good frame of mind on Friday so perhaps that was the problem too
DeleteNice battle report ⚔️⚔️
ReplyDeleteIn terms of wargames miniatures the Arnorian force doesn’t look to be greatly outnumbered, but maybe they were of lesser “quality” than their opponents? Farmers and herdsmen (militia?) will likely struggle to match the ferocity of the well ‘ard Orcs 😉
A few more play tests will hopefully allow you to fine tune the rules.
Cheers,
Geoff
Thanks Geoff. The majority of the Arnorians in this game were, as you rightly pointed out, of lesser quality. The next game should see a few more regular types.
Delete
DeleteSounds like it has potential…and the souvenir set looks ideal with these figures 👍🏼
Hoping to get the next one played soon(ish)
Delete