So the Ribble Warriors club event ran the Ribble Rumble multi-system event on 2nd/3rd December at Element Games in Stockport and I put on our third A Song of Ice and Fire tournament, with 16 players attending. Sadly, two late drop out meant I didn't get to play, but that was fine as got to mingle, socialise and T.O. the event with both hands so to speak.
40K, Mortem et Glorium and Kings of war also ran over both days, with a Star Wars Legion one day on the Saturday, and a nice to see again Warmachine on the Sunday.
I was fortunate enough to have some good correspondence with CMON and Asmodee in Autumn (the Fall to those over the pond) and they were overwhelmingly generous with their prize support, ensuring that all participants recouped their ticket price in figures (including our two late drop out whom we were unable refund).
CMON's support was so great, I was able to share some of it at the event the week before at Leeds and also a few boxes for an event up at Darlington early November.
DREADFORT UNIT ARCHERS or SPEARMEN and a Hedge Knight for everyone. As well as a bespoke 3D printed Ribble Rumble 2023 card holder
3D printed Dragon Eggs and trophies for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, Best Painted and Most Sporting
1st place also got a Martell Starter box
The Samwell Tarly "Not Much use in a fight" Trophy for last place
And a Bolton Bundle for Most Sporting opponent consisting of Bolton Starter set, Both Dreadfort boxes, banners and the Roose Bolton NCU with dagger behind his back (Organised Play kit model?)
With no battle reports, I was able to get plenty of pictures of the players and their games...
With ASOIF STATS tournament organiser doing all the hard work, I was actually able to run the event off of my phone. Trust me, for me, that is a stupendous achievement as I still pay for things with cash and certainly don't use those silly QR scanner apps.
No Starks, but the did send Stephen "PsychoSte" Connor as a more aggressive Bannermen
The list of entrants is below:
1 Elliot Coulbeck - Nights Watch
3 John Wall - Greyjoy
4 Stephen Butler - Targaryen
5 Adam Sargeant - Lannisters
6 Gregory Deane - Greyjoy
7 Kieran scaddan - Martell
8 Finlay Schafer - Targaryen
9 Stephen Connor - Bolton
10 Nathan Birbeck - Freefolk
11 Paul Aden - Freefolk
12 Jack Ling - Lannister
13 Chris Gale - Baratheon
14 Andrew Robinson - Lannister
15 Carly Carvalho - Neutral
16 Joel Kelly - Greyjoy
Saturday 2nd December
Doors Open & Registration 0900
GAME 1 09:45 -12:00 A GAME OF THRONES
Lunch & Best Painted Voting 12:00 - 13:00
GAME 2 13:00 - 15:15 A DANCE WITH DRAGONS
Game 3 15:30 - 17:45 FIRE & BLOOD
18:00 Pizza, beer, more games, etc...
Sunday 3rd December
Doors Open 0900
Game 4 09:45 -12:00 A FEAST FOR CROWS
Lunch
Game 5 13:00 -15:15 HONED & READY
Two Hours 15 minute games allowing plenty of socialising for the quicker players, and no time pressure for the thinkers...
ROUND 1
GAME MODE: A GAME OF THRONES
So Steve Butler wanted an easy game first round and challenged me to a "grudge match". I accepted but had to bail as I dropped out (I don't like bye's at events, just doesn't feel right to me). With Carly's opponent not showing up, I redid the draw to accommodate, with everyone else staying same.
Chris Gale's Baratheons faced a tough first game v Andy's Lannisters
Tim Whiteny's Night's Watch faced off against Greg's Greyjoys
John Wall countered Kieran's Quentyn Martell outflank with a rather dismal charge with his Drowned Men...
It didnt end well for the Drowned Men
Ste's Boltons getting stuck into Jack's Lannisters
I left John and Kieran for a minute, and yes, that are those pesky Dune Skirmishers that had came on by the Freefolk ruler over the far side. Cunning Ploy and one of Damon's cards make them lightning...
Joel's Greyjoys were facing Aden's Harma led infantry heavy Freefolk
Elliot's Scorpion had a target rich environemnt against Nathan's Mag list...
Chris facing down the Mountain and wrath of House Clegane
Only a Hedge between Renly and glory....
Vargo Hoat leads the Greyjoys towards the Nights Watch lines...
END OF ROUND 1
ARMIES ON DISPLAY
Finn Schafer's Targaryens
JOHN WALLS GREYJOYS
Some really nice base work
Ste Connor's partially completed BOLTONS
NATHAN's BIG FREEFOLK
ANDY ROBINSONS LANNISTERS
KEVAN IN GOLDEN COMPANY CROSSBOWS
CHRIS GALE'S REALLY NICE BARATHEONS
THEY LOOK FAR BETTER IN THE SUN THAN THE SHADE
STEVE BUTLER'S TARGARYEN (DOTHRAKI)
CARLY CARVALHO NEUTRALS
ELLIOT COULBECK'S NIGHTS WATCH (right)
ELLIOT COULBECK'S NIGHTS WATCH (left)
ELLIOTS TACTICS BOARD
ROUND 2
GAME MODE: A DANCE WITH DRAGONS
Elliot v Ste on table one didn't start so well for Ste's Bolton
Scorpion's at long range can be deadly, as can Othell on the Wall
Finn and John match up with Targaryens v Greyjoys
Andy's Roose Bolton and Adam's Gregor Clegane had a Lannister off on table 2
Aden's Monsters played Tim's Watch
And Greg's Greyjoy's spent Game 2 chasing Steve's horses
Jack and Carly's battle
Baratheons (Chris) v Freefolk (Nathan)
Andy's Knights were hemmed in by Adam's Clegane's
The Watch were taking the fight to the Northern monsters
With a pair of Targaryens v Greyjoys, infantry were being out manouvered in both battles
While Ste had managed to recover his Flayed Men
Steve's Targaryens were ganging up on Greg's units
as you can see below...
The Baratheons had seized the field, but Monsters don't seem bothered.
Ste and Elliot were still slugging it out on the top table
Finn pauses for thought with John
Ste took out the Scorpion and has Flayed Men in the rear
But his Veterans took the fight to the Spearmen in the centre
Wiping them out as the Sworn Brothers engaged those marauding Flayed Men and edging to a narrow 9-8 victory...
GAME 3
GAME MODE: FIRE & BLOOD
Andy Robinson and Steve Butler had moved up to the top spots, occupying Table 1
Joel faced his most hated foe (not Elliot) but he played two games against NW with veterans the previous week at Leeds and really hates how hard they are. Don't we all (unless we are playing them)
Chris had beaten Nathan's Monsters and was rewarded with a match v Jack's Lannisters
Aden faced Carly's Neutrals on table seven
as his fellow Freefolk struggled down on table 8 v Finn
Adam and John and Kieran and Greg occupied the middle tables
And I was thrilled a Nathan brought out his double Mammoth list
Tim corner camped around hi Stone Thrower as Ste closed with those bad Boltons
Andy was penning the Targaryens in, denying Steve room to manouver
The Casterly Rock Knights got stuck into Drogo
While Tim fell for Ste's Spearmen bait, drawing out the Watch and leaving a gap for his Flayed Men to sweep aside the Conscripts, leaving the Stone thrower wide open...
THE END OF DAY ONE SAW ANDY ROBINSON SITTING ON TOP, WITH ELLIOT BACK UP TO FACE HIM IN THE MORNING. THE TWO STEVE (CONNOR AND BUTLER) WOULD SQUARE UP ON TABLE 2, WHILE I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING NATHAN AND ADEN HAVE A MONSTER ROYALE ON TABLE EIGHT
DAY 2
Being an early riser allowed me to enjoy the first snows of Winter in Wigan...
ROUND 4
GAME MODE: A FEAST FOR CROWS
It was cold in the hall and, despite the weather, everyone made it in from the proceeding day
Adam faced Kieran on table 3
Andy and Elliot were ready to duke it out on Table 1
Mortem et Gloriam was also being played. Looks good, but lots never played it
Jackets on, but its a MAG OFF!!! on table 8
Andy went for his double crossbow list, closing in on the Elliot's Watch. The Mountain was hit early by the Scorpion (and took a wound from a failed panic check)
The middle row, tables 6 to 4...
Greg was still unboxing his army. Chris waited patiently. No jokes were directed at Speedy Greg all day though...
Double Mammoths!!! Sorry Aden, I'm rooting for Nathan...
Steve and Ste's game soon warmed up, can't say the same for Ste, he looks frozen...
Carly surveys the tactic cards in hand as John contemplates his next move...
It's nearing lunch, but Greg is on the move...
Andy lost the Mountain but his crossbow shot down the Scorpion. Unfortunately, the Men of the Watch against missile units seems a bit of a mismatch
Tim and Finn were going at it with gusto
Ste's double Flayed Men were proving too heavy for Steve Butler's lighter Targaryen cavalry
And Adam kept going on about his Alpha strike. It seemed to be working against Kieran, hemming the Martells in
Giants certainly make the battlefield look sparse, but there was a lot of intricate tactics between these two. It was good to watch...
Chris was certainly manouvering well around Greg, but was Greg simply concentrating on draw the Baratheons in
Close between Joel and Jack as they danced around the board
Andy held the lead, but Elliot had the upper hand as the epic top table duel entered the last round...
Andy retreated out to avoid melee, before healing up his crossbowmen
But it didn't avail him, as the Watch hit them, and Bronn just, just failed his panic check, giving Elliot an 8-8 win with units left on the table.
It was a great game to watch!!!
As was the battle of the bottom Beasts!!!
John and his Greyjoys just eeked out a win against Carly's Neutrals
And Nathan's big guys started to get the upper hand
Aden's forces finally succumbed to the Might of Nathan's Mag...
Greg's Vargo Hoat led Greyjoy list allowed him to butcher a trio of Baratheons, two falling to Sadistic Mutilation while Parmen Crane was at least nobly cut down in a duel...
ROUND 5
GAME MODE: HONED AND READY
With Elliot having beaten both Ste and Andy in very tight games, Elliot with his 4 wins couldn't play Ste in second or Andy in third, who were thrilled to be playing one another on table 2. (This was a rerun of last year top table Game 5)
Table 3 saw Tim Whitney's Night Watch play Jack Ling's Lannisters
TABLE 4 saw Kieran Scaddan face Steve Butler
Chris's Baratheon's were Aden's foe on table 8
Mid table saw John and Joel in a Greyjoy civil war
And up on Table 1, Adam had surged up to 4th, to challenge the unbeaten Elliot
Adam deployed his Alpha strike tactic again and went straight at Elliot, although the Mountain's Cutthroats were thinned by panic and Othell on the wall
Again, amazing of CMON and Asmodee to support us in the UK so well. I was busy setting this up and peering over my shoulder at Adam's lack of subtlety...
The Most Sporting Opponent prize is the most important to my mind, as want to encourage "good" behaviour at the Ribble Rumble, helping the newer, less experienced players and also ensuring your opponent enjoys playing the game. So they'd get some cuddly boys from the Dreadfort...
On table 1, Elliot had lost his Scorpion and the Brigands had over ran into the Veterans, cutting swathes from Elliot's forces, as the Lannister infantry took objectives
On table 2, Andy was bemoaning bad dice (with two failed 2+ charges)and the fact that his Knights of Casterly Rock fell to a flank charge from Flayed Men
Ste was focussed though and kept the pressure on...
Less stress down the bottom, as Chris and Aden were all smiles...
Kieran and Steve played out an epic 11 - 11, 14 points each destroyed. Steve took it with points left.
With no cavalry, the Greyjoys were playing on slow mode...
Andy was facing an uphill battle, but was battling valiantly
Nathan and Carly were not going for subtlety in their match, with centre ground being the battle zone...
I arrived back at Table 2 in time to see the Mountain being levelled by a Flayed Man and a few duff dice rolls
On table 1, Adam had kept used his cavalry to keep the Night Watch infantry in the back line as his infantry took the central and flank objectives to steam ahead
The Brigands did succumb, but Elliot's Night's Watch were sorely depleted.
Meanwhile, Carly was butchering poor helpless Mammoths
Aden was now deep in thought
Although Tim's watch were depleted, his forces were victorious over Jack's Lannisters
Andy had fought well, despite his earlier set backs, but Ste took the win...
And Elliot lost to Adam "The ALPHA strike" Sargeant with his daring cavalry blitz...
Aden welcomed my arrival by failing enough armour saves to drop Mag the Mighty. Apparently I made a habit of arriving just in time to see panic checks fail, Monsters die and generally dice go to sh*t...
Ah, he took the defeat well in truth...
END OF FIVE GAMES, TIME TO GIVE OUT THE PRIZES!!!
Some real twists and turns over the weekend, and I was very pleased at how close some of those game were. Even more importantly, of 16 players, 12 got first choice for Most Sporting, the remaining four all getting at least one second preference. With so much time for games, and between for early finishers, the socialising and friendly atmosphere is what we strive to achieve. Games may be competitive, but shouldn't be at the exclusion of everything that makes the game enjoyable.
From five games, three players ended with 13 VP's, the next 5 on 11VP's
1st Place
13/17/86
Stephen Connor
2nd Place
13/15/79
Adam Sargeant
A round two defeat for Adam Sargeant too, but he came back for a well deserved second place with House Lannister
3rd Place
13/11/95
Elliot Coulbeck
Won't deny it, I was a bit gutted for Elliot as he had some really tough games and just couldnt hold on to that top spot. He also just missed out on Best Painted Army too with his lovely Night's Watch. But as you can tell from the pictures, he had a blast and still finished top three...
4th Place and Best Painted Army Winner, Tim Whitney
Night's Watch
(Easier to win with an army after all)
5th Place
Andy Robinson
House Lannister
6th Place
JOHN WALL
HOUSE GREYJOY
7th Place,
Steve Butler
HOUSE TARGARYEN
8th Place,
Greg Deane
HOUSE GREYJOY
AND WINNER OF MOST SPORTING OPPONENT (and a new Faction)
9th Place,
Carly Carvalho
NEUTRALS
10th Place,
Jack Ling
HOUSE TARGARYEN
11th Place,
Kieran Scaddan,
HOUSE MARTELL
12th place,
Chris Gale
HOUSE BARATHEON
13th Place,
Joel Kelly
HOUSE GREYJOY
14th Place,
Nathan Birbeck
FREEFOLK
15th Place,
Finn Schafer
HOUSE TARGARYEN
16th Place
(BOTTOM)
Paul Aden
FREEFOLK
LOSING FIVE OF FIVE, ADEN TOOK THE HIGHLY COVETED
"SAMWELL TARLY" AWARD
A GREAT YEAR OF EVENTS ROUNDED OFF WITH A CRACKING EVENT THAT WAS SUPER SMOOTH TO RUN, AS EVEYRONE EMBRACED THE CHILLED OUT APPROACH TO THE GAMING. A GREAT PERSONAL THANKS TO ALL THE COMPETITORS
COMING IN 2024
THE SEVEN KINGDOMS
EVENT PAGE on Stats
20th January 2024, 32 players
Board In Brum West Midlands Gaming Centre, Walsall, Willenhall, UK
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SOLD OUT
(Amazing event 2022& 2023, no surprise - Reserve list active)
THE WELSH GT 2024
-------------------------------------
War of the Whispering Woods 2024
Pascal and his Microwave Express Train comrades
18th/19th May 2024
16 Player Event
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