Aden came round to mine to try cracking my tough Tully Sworn Shield list with his Euron led Greyjoys ahead of next weeks

(Last few days to get tickets)

ADEN'S GREYJOY'S

House Harlaw Reapers with Euron Greyjoy C) & Reaver Captain

Silenced Men with Theon Greyjoy & Reaver Captain

Ironborn Bowmen with Baelor Blacktyde

Ironmakers with Asha Lady Greyjoy & Qarl NCU's

Wendamyr, Balon Greyjoy & Rodrik Harlaw

My own Robb double Tully build has proven quite

hard to break down

House Tully Sworn Shields with Robb Stark (C)

• House Tully Sworn Shields with Rickon Stark with Osha

Stark Bowmen with Crannogman Warden

House Umber Berserker with Greatjon Umber

Shaggydog

Grey Wind NCU's

Catelyn Stark & Eddard Stark TERRAIN & DEPLOYMENT

We picked terrain as that is what they are doing at the UK Nationals

Terrain: Corpse Pile, Wall, Weirwood, Corpse Pile

GREYJOYS: Euron's Reapers, Ironmakers, Bowmen

(Theons Silenced men in outflank)

STARKS: Rickons Sworn Shields, Greywind, Robbs Sworn Shields,

Shaggydog, Bowmen, Berserkers

Aden won roll, letting me choose sides and I let Aden deploy first. He elected to take first turn.

ROUND 1

Aden took the Letters, weakening the Bowmen. I had Catelyn influence the bowmen to remove the weakened, then used Horses to advance Bowmen 5". Aden took the Crowns Wendamyr and added a token. I activated my bowmen and advanced up a bit. Aden took Swords to deny it to my last NCU.

Robb marched up the centre and I explained Overwatch to Aden. He wasn't impressed...

Aden kept his Bowmen back, Euron was out of range but I did manage to drop one Ironmaker with Overwatch, and two more panicked. Rob shifted up with tactical reposition as Rickon moved up in support. The Berserkers marched up and encouraged the Bowmen to stay back while both the wolves moved up to support the imminent appearance of Theon

ROUND 2

Theon and his Silenced Men appeared in my rear.

They got weakened as I took the Letters, surprising Aden who I assume expected the Horses. Or Swords to allow my bowmen a shot?

Aden took the Horses to deny me and mulliganed four cards from his hand with Rodrik, fishing for something, then moved Theon's Silenced Men slightly. I then took the Swords and shot the Ironmakers.

Aden took the bags and healed his Ironmakers so I sent Shaggydog into the Silenced Men. Four hits saw 4 die and one panic and run away

Taking the Crowns, Aden played We Do Not Sow and attacked Shaggydog, with Krakens Wrath giving re-rolls and Precision on six attack dice

As well as making me panicked...

The Weakened saw 1 hit saved and two precision wounds. Panic test was close, but passed. Re-roll of two didn't see a one thankfully so healed two using an Eddard token.

Theon allowed a swiftstrike retreat, so I had to turn my Bowmen to face them, moving just out of an Ironmaker long charge or an Ironborn Bowmen rear shooting attack

I lost four bowmen from the charge, with Superior Positioning not helping as Aden rolled five on the way in...

I failed my panic losing on more but didnt re-roll, grateful I didn't roll that for Shaggydog...

Aden decided not to Swift strike, so I played Sudden Retreat and moved away.

Aden then declined to charge either of my Sworn Shields, Euron moving closer to the far left objective and a Wendamyr shift away from a flank charge into Rickon, with the Ironmakers moving up adjacent to Robb staying out of Overwatch LoS. His Bowmen moved up and shot down three Berserkers who had turned to face the rear of the Silenced men but I passed my morale and healed two using an Eddard token.

END OF ROUND 2

HOUSE STARK 3 VP's (3 objectives)

HOUSE GREYJOY 0 VP's

ROUND 3

Aden activated and charged the Bowmen, but he wasn't having much luck, rolling a one on the way in. I lost five bowmen, but passed the panic, so healed four with an Eddard.

Aden elected not to retreat, so I took the offering an charge them in the rear with the Berserkers, playing Winter is Coming to deny Aden using tactics cards or orders on the Silenced Men. The look on his face suggested he had What is Dead may never die.

All seven attacks hit home, the vulnerable token being played on both successes.

But one of those came up a six, leaving Theon to pass the morale check. He didn't...

Aden was then faced with a 5+ sentinel charge at the Berserkers, or a move up to chase the Bowmen?

He chose the latter, but after I had pivoted start of next turn I played Swift Reposition to give him a longer charge

I had dropped my Berserkers onto the objective again and ready to face the Ironmakers. Aden moved the Ironmakers back out of bow range by taking the Horses

Out of bow range but into flank arc of Robb. I charged off the wall, only dropping one Ironmakers but it pinched the rank and I then used Hit & Run to retreat and put a weakened on them too

I then had Eddard take the bags and heal the Bowmen up

Euron and his Harlaw Reapers charged Rickon's Tully Sworn Shields, but I saved four of the six successful hits blocking the two passes with shieldwall and thus auto passing he panic and doing a wound. And the miss was taken back from Osha's counterstrike, so Aden lost a second man attacking me.

I activated the unit and attacked back, dropping four of the Reapers

The Ironmakers charged into the Berserkers but with weakened and Eddard, I didn't drop a rank and Qarl bottled the single combat with the Greatjon

(Aden rolled one with Expert Duellist)

I activated my Bowmen who managed to drop 4 of the Ironmakers by shooting them in the flank. Balon brought Theon and his unit back on in front of the Ironborn Bowmen before I charged the Ironmakers flank, killing them with a failed panic and err, using a second Winter is Coming to deny Aden the use of his What is Dead May never die. He told me he had both of them when I played my card. Ste had popped by to eat my biscuits and point out our errors.

(I apparently didn't weaken the Ironmakers when I shot them in the flank, and the returning Silenced men couldn't have Wendamyr shifted onto the objective. Bloody know-it-all!!!)

END OF ROUND 3

HOUSE STARK 8 VP's (2 units, 6 objectives)

HOUSE GREYJOY 1 VP ( 1 objective)

ROUND 4

I influenced the Berserkers with Catelyn for highest attacks, when she took the Swords allowing Rickons unit to kill Euron. But he survived with What is Dead May never die.

I moved my Bowmen up off of the Horses after Aden healed Euron's unit, so Aden activated and attacked, moving out of range.

The attack resulted in another dead Greyjoy, before I activated and attacked, killing the unit and forcing Aden to play his second What is Dead. Aden then failed the panic, so they died anyway...

I surged forth back to the objective, then was able to play Swift reposition to take it as had the Horses

The Greatjon charged the Silenced Men cutting them down to four but they passed the panic and healed one

In return I was cut down to a single rank.

including losing three to a panic fail when I'd lost one rank...

Shooting from the Bowmen dropped my unit, but I survived with a To the Last. Before Aden hit me with We Do Not Sow attack, killing me. But I passed the Too the last easily. But then the panic. Yeah, sadly for Aden as one rank left my morale was now 3+...

BOARD END OF ROUND 4 (and GAME)

HOUSE STARK 13 VP's (3 units, 10 objectives)

HOUSE GREYJOY 2 VP's (2 objectives)

That was painful for Aden, not helped by some poor dice (rolling 1's on charges, few bad morale checks, not killing Shaggydog or the Bowmen). In trying to be open by explaining Overwatch it may have inadvertently stymied Aden's play as he avoided moving up much early so Theon was unsupported. And two units destroyed while sitting on What is Dead was hard to take, I had the right cards to play at the right time. (I'd love to get Sansa in my list). With 3 units starting on the board, he didn't take an objective turn 2. And sure Robb's unit on a wall in the centre is hard, but by-passing and doing nothing until end of Round 3 with Ironmakers meant I was just sucking up objective points. Game of Thrones is a good scenario for my list. Oh, and Aden never got the Cunning Ploy he was lookin gfor early on with his two Rodrik tokens. Plan was to allow Ironmakers to steam up and smack me...

SO NEXT UP, ITS THE UK NATIONALS FOR THE NINE STRONG WARDENS OF HE NORTH-WEST CONTINGENT

(Although Ste " The Biscuit Bandit" and I are playing the Hands Tourney on the Friday beforehand - chess clocks indeed, pfft, stuff and nonsense)

UPCOMING EVENTS

YECATS MINIATURES PRESENT

UK NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS