Spring 987 - The Battle of the Black Hole

Treyine had invaded the Border Kingdoms, fearing the increasing influence and power of the Brethren. With the Spear of Saint Lindorf carried in front of the army, they knew they had right on their side. Of course, the sturdy Treyine yeomanry with their bows that were as tall as they were helped too. As they advanced, scouts reported that the enemy had deployed in the open ahead of them, ready to engage them in battle. The Treyine army quickly deployed. They knew that the enemy would ride them down in the open so the archers hammered their stakes into the ground to the right of a thick wood. The halberdiers and knights formed up between the two bodies of archers and the mercenary company of Sir Geoffrey Chambers formed up on the right flank. Lacking cavalry, the Treyine army was relying on Sir Geoffrey to defend the open flank.

The view from the Brethren lines (click all pictures for larger versions)


The Treyine army had the tactical initiative but the commanders chose to cede that initiative to the enemy in favour of holding a strong position, well, apart from Sir Geoffrey, who chose impetuousness over prudence, but more of that later. As the enemy approached, Callifraxia Glories-in-the-Sun approached the army commander with a plan. She began to chant and the sky darkened. With a triumphant shout and almost contemptuous ease she watched as an entire unit of Brethren Knights were swallowed up by a yawning abyss that briefly opened up beneath them. She had barely even broken a sweat. The enemy army was thrown into confusion.

Callifraxia, the wizard, targeted the enemy general with an Abyss spell. She rolled a multiplier of 1 for the cost and the unit died, although the Brethren general did manage to escape. The Brethren army lost a unit of crossbowmen and the unit of Brethren sergeants to the Leader Lost check, but the rest of the army survived in one for or another.

The results of the Abyss spell


With the enemy in confusion and trying to reform, Sir Geoffrey Chambers led his personal unit of knights through a gap in the enemy lines. Some peasants with bows managed to injure some of the knights as they charged through, causing the unit to charge further than expected, but Sir Geoffrey was able to turn them around and they promptly rode down the peasants, who scattered before the armoured knights.

The peasants were able to turn and fire at the knights, causing a retire result, which put one hit on them. The knights then charged and the peasants routed.

Sir Geoffrey's mad dash


While Sir Geoffrey was engaging the enemy, the Treyine troops waited patiently for the enemy to approach within range of their bows. Callifraxia was spending her time summoning minor demons to her service and sending them at the enemy. The demons flew over the Brethren force, causing consternation in the ranks and further disrupting them, while Sir Geoffrey reformed and prepared to charge into the flank of the enemy troops. The Brethren sent forward a party to parlay surrender terms as their numbers thinned due to deserting troops. The battle was over.

The Legions of Night have the Terror ability and can fly. Flying troops cause Threat tests for all enemies near to them, so it only took a few of these flying over the Brethren to start making troops rout, especially with Steve's poor dice rolls.

The End


The Treyine army lost no troops and gained a territory. The Brethren lost 1 unit of Knights and 1 of Heavy Spearmen. Their general survived. Both sides tested their national morale. The Brethren failed miserably and sued for peace. They will now provide a supporting element to the Treyine army. Treyine scored one success and is shaken, resulting in a reduction of 1 from their national morale. The peace between the Brethren and Treyine will last for two years.

This puts the Brethren in the position of not actually having anyone they can attack for the time being because all their possible foes lie beyond territories that they cannot attack. Sounds like time to consider adding new nations to the campaign. I had better get on and paint them, I suppose. Destroying the enemy general on turn 1 was probably what decided this battle. It has made me realise that a Level 3 wizard is rather powerful and worth preserving.

Border Kingdoms/Brethren (post-battle formation)
1 Brother Sergeants
4 Heavy Spearmen
3 Peasant Foot
2 Crossbows
1 Peasant Archer
1 Black Moon Goblins (allied contingent)