First game of 6th Edition for a while, saw me playing a regular oppo at my gaming club. This time he brought Empire. My list was Old Blood, Cold one, LA, Shield, Immune to Psychology Spawning, Revered Blade (+1 Str and no Armour Saves Allowed), Aura of Quetzl (4++ vs Str 5+). Giving 1+ A/S overall and the 4+ ward save to attacks of Str 5+) Scar Vet, Cold One, LA, Shield, Immune to Psychology Spawnng, Great Weapon, venom of Firefly Frog (mundane weapons are magical and poisoned), Glyph Necklace (5++). Giving 1+ A/S and 5+ Ward Save) Level 2 Skink Priest, 2 Dispel Scrolls Level 1 Skink Priest, 2 Dispel Scrolls 3 x 10 skink skirmishers 2 x 6 Cold one cavalry, each with champion 4 Kroxigor 3 Terradons 2 x 2 Salamanders For a lizardman army, this was quite fast paced. The Empire list was the following (apologies for not having exact details) Level 4 mage 2 other magic users (level 2 I think) Hero on Pegasus 5 1+ knights 5 pistollier cavalry 10(?) flagellants 5/6 (?) bow armed scouts (they hid behind the LOS blocking terrain in the middle of the board) 25 block of infantry (5+ save) 8 guys with muskets, as detachment for the above 10 guys with great swords, also a detachment I think 25 block of infantry 10 guys with great swords, detachment 8 Crossbowmen, as a detachment 2 cannons 1 mortar 1 hellblaster Terrain was such that a I placed a lot of LOS blocking stuff in the middle of the table, but also had a wood on my extreme left (mid table), a marsh extreme right (mid table), some ruins in my deployment zone, and a wood in his deployment zone. As we started deploying I could see he was castling in his right flank, as there was a clear channel for me to approach if I choose to do so. That would also mean running into all his guns, muskets, crossbows etc. Charge of The Light Brigade might have been re-enacted! I decided to deploy on my right flank, trying to take advantage of the LOS blocking terrain, then turn his flank and block his shooting lanes. The one exception being a lone unit of skinks to try to distract on the far left, using the wood as cover while approaching. I couldn’t deploy to be completely out of sight from his artillery, and the first couple of turns saw quite a bit of damage inflicted on one unit of cold ones. What was left, together with the Old Blood took refuge behind some buildings in the middle of the table. A single salamander was also lost. I managed to get some crossbowmen with the lone skink unit on my left in Turn 2. Seeing what I was trying to do, my oppo moved the Pegasus mounted hero, the pistolliers, flagellants and hellblaster over to his left. Turn 2/3 my terradons took a double charge from the Pegasus and pistolliers. They died! They pistolliers and Pegasus then overran towards my second cold one unit (with scar vet). The pistolliers made it, the Pegasus did not. I then charged my krox at the Pegasus, who fled. I didn’t take a single loss to the pistolliers and wiped them out in return. The salamanders were now in a position to threaten the scouts and the detachment of musketeers, with the lone salamander threatened in turn by the flagellants. The scouts got burned away, and the flagellants took a couple of losses. They charged the sole salamander. I might have been out of charge range due to the wood in his zone, but wasn’t going to risk it, so fled. This did however bring the flagellants closer to the unit of two sallies. Sallie rallied in my turn. In the middle of the table I was baiting his knights with a unit of skinks, and managed to kill one with poisoned shooting. The depleted unit of cold ones (down to 3) plus the old blood took cover behind the terrain, but ready to charge if/when the knights came forward. The knights did charge the skinks, and I was lucky with the flee, rolling high enough to get the skinks away. The knights were now open to a flank charge from the cold ones.. When I did charge, the knights fled successfully, and now I was in the open and ready to take fire from musketeers, crossbowmen and at least one cannon. After all that, only the Old Blood survived. I haven’t mentioned magic much so far. My oppo also went for Heavens, got Urannons twice, Comet once and a couple of 2nd Signs, plus Portent of Far. I got Urannons, and two 2nd signs. With four scrolls I managed to shut down Urannons, letting him have any 2nd Sign he rolled. He placed two comets (in my opinion he placed them poorly – where I was, not where I was going). In the end I think I lost one figure to a comet. One Urannons I couldn’t stop did cause a unit of skinks to flee, and I couldn’t rally them. Some revenge was taken with the salamanders killing off the flagellants and all but one of the musketeer detachment. With weak offensive magic I knew I’d have to be lucky and it was at this point that the Old Ones smiled on me. I cast Urannons at his four remaining knights. Got it with irresistible force (from only 3 dice). When rolling for the number of wounds, I got 6. When rolling to see if I’d wounded, I got four. No armour save so that unit was gone. On my right flank, I managed to kill the Pegasus with shooting from a unit of skinks. The hero now on foot moved away and into the wood. His hellblaster now fire the first shots of the game in about Turn 4, and decimated the skink unit. I was able to bring up the other cold one unit and the kroxigors ready to charge. However the cold ones would have to endure one round of hellblaster fire. Or rather, they wouldn’t. On his turn his first shot mis-fired, he rolled a 4 I think, but thanks to having 2nd Sign of Amul, he risked a re-roll. This came up a 1 or a 2 and the hellblaster exploded! That opened the way for the knights to charge a block of infantry, and with the musketeers down to one man, the old blood had a very enticing flank charge on the same unit. However my oppo was able to move the hero to block the charge for a turn, and also used the last remaining musketeer to block the old blood. Both these lone figures died, but they had held up the charges for a turn, which turned out to be enough as only the scar vet and cold ones had time to overrun into the infantry block. They I'd killed more, but he had outnumbered, a banner and ranks. I’d only won by two. Last roll of the game was his morale roll. 5 needed. 5 rolled. Bugger! My losses overall were all the skinks, terradons, one unit of cold ones and half points for a unit of salamanders as he’d killed one of two. His losses were his knights, pistolliers, hero on Pegasus, flagellants, scout bowmen, musketeer detachment, hellblaster (I think I was just short of half points for the block of infantry). The points difference was about 20. A draw. If (what a big word that is!) I’d had one more turn, I’d was confident of destroying the infantry and also getting more with the salamanders / untouched kroxigors. Or if he’d failed that morale test…… That said, despite his good early shooting, the rest of the game his artillery tended to misfire, so I was lucky there, but equally only the hellblaster actually blew up. If they had fired properly….it might have been very different. Having lost to him for quite a few games, I was pleased overall. Not sure how this would fare against his favoured undead army, more powerful magic, raising units to block charges/set up counter charges etc, but I feel a faster moving army, which can also turn block enemy charges has some mileage. Its weak on the number of spells it can cast and the number dice available, but with 4 dispel scrolls, if I can stop most of the magic for a couple of turns, it might work.