I played in a tournament at Paladin Games in Avalon Park, FL on Saturday. It was a small turnout (3 players), as many holiday season tournaments are, but we played anyways, and everyone got to play each other. I forgot to take pictures or notes, so here are the outcomes, including my take-aways.
Round 1 vs Guild: I tried a list containing a large number of minions (4 Corrupted Hounds, 2 Changelings, 2 Terror Tots) along with the Doppelganger, Widow Weaver, Primordial Magic and Lucius. Opponent played Sonnia, Francisco, Sam Hopkins, 2 Austringers, Friekorps Specialists, Eternal Flame. I ended up losing 5-8. It felt close, but it really wasn't as I basically had no shot at getting Take Prisoner.
Lessons from the game: 1. Do not try to Take Prisoner on an Austringer. I wasn't aware of their push action, and it cost me 3 points and the, well, draw. 2. You need a beater. I spent 2 turns with 3 models attacking Sonnia (2 Changelings and a Tot) and got her to 11 wounds before she sworded her way back to 7 wounds. If I had something a bit harder hitting, she'd have been out of there and I'd have had a bit of breathing room. I also had 3 turns of hounds surrounding Francisco, unable to finish him off. Same problem. Needed a harder hitter. 3. Holy crap does Lucius really need a Lawyer. I had 3 failed Horror duels in one turn (yes, I should have stopped using the ability...I see that now), which resulted in 2 turns of Francisco whacking dogs unanswered. Bad player, could have saved it with a some Law.
Round 2 vs Arcanists. I played Lucius, Dashel, 2 Guard Riflemen, Lawyer, Beckoner, Tuco and 3 Corrupted Hounds against Ramos, Howard, Joss, Brass Arachnid and some spiders. I got swarmed hard. I killed Howard but lost Dashel shortly thereafter, and just could keep my shooters clear long enough. The game ended with probably 6 more spiders having been made throughout the game. Lucius managed to survive the game, and cost my opponent an unrevealed ALitS by stealing one of his four scheme markers on the center line. This kept the game as a 6-5 loss for me. Had I been able to keep a Squat marker one more turn, it would have been a tie.
Lessons from this game: 1. Don't use 3 crap guys to hold a flank. Joss tore through my Corrupted Hounds without any trouble, and held down an entire side of the board. 2. Don't pick a 7 point model for Frame for Murder and get it killed early. Pick a crappy model and throw it at a henchman. I got Tuco killed on turn 2 after being obnoxious with the shotgun while standing near Howard. Also, Howard is not a henchman. I should have gone after Joss :) 3. Don't set up a firebase on a flank. It should be more central, and able to reach out and touch most of the objective points.
That said, I really enjoyed this game. I got some good synergy rolling, had some killing power, and got to shout "Objection!" far more than any game should allow. It was fun and light-hearted, as we were both out of the running for first, but holy crap spider summoning! I couldn't keep them off the table!
The day, as a whole, was good. Played a pair of good games against factions I don't usually see at the home shop, and played them both with Lucius. This brings my games played with him up to...3. I need to play more.
As for the TOMB3, I'll post again soon. I've got some painting to do, to catch up, but I'm feeling the painting bug getting ready to bite over the holidays!
