Got a late text from my regular gaming friend while I was dying from doing yardwork with my son last night. Would I? Could I? Should I? I replied yes and then quietly died. Later, I got up and ate potato chips, that little-known miracle cure for dying from doing yardwork. Then started work on my ECW figures to keep the momentum trotting along nicely with a hot cup of barista-style coffee.
Today, at high noon, we met and resumed our introduction to Bratwurst and Bogans. If my wife had joined us, it would be a game of Bed and Breakfast....! As it was, we jumped down the rabbit hole with gusto.
The Missing Treasure of Toad Hall
Word reached far and wide that there was treasure in the ruins of Toad Hall. Many had ventured, but so far nothing was found.
It was rumoured that the former lord of the manor, Master Toad, had departed for far off lands to seek further fame and fortune. Unfortunately, in his absence, his estate fell into ruination as those left in charge absconded with all of Toad's worldly possessions leaving the buildings to fall into decay and desecration. But none were able to locate the missing treasure, said to be full of precious gems and gold.
It was rumoured to be never in the same spot, changing location always on a whim.
This time, however, two warbands were on a collision course, choosing the same time to seek the treasure of Master Toad.
Leading one group was Sir Hopworth O'Hare. With him was Daisy the Witch, Robby the Mouse thief, and Akenarsty the Crocodilian.
From the opposite corner approached the group of Sir Mikky Mouse. With him was Mini Mouse the Shieldmaiden, Ron Weezly the Stoat with his trusty and accurate crossbow, and the sneaky Silas Addermouth.
The other side's plan (as revealed later) was simple: use the tall buildings to provide cover for the missileman (Mr Weasel) to target the enemy backed up by the spell caster (Mr Adder). Meanwhile the others (Mr and Mrs Mouse) would search the buildings. And it seemed to work out for them as the Hare leader got targeted and took heavy hits.
Then Mr Adder successfully cast the Transpose Spell and my Crocodilian warrior suddenly found himself switching places with Mr Weasel; instead of rushing toward the statue of Master Toad he found himself standing on the open third level of the ruined tower building!
Meanwhile Daisy - sometimes known as Wanda - the Witch was able to cast the Brilliance spell which would last for 3 turns (roll d4) and meant she couldn't be targeted by missile fire or spell casting unless she suffered a wound (i.e. falling over a cliff and hurting herself or missing a jump). So she could slink about relatively untouched until the spell died out.
While all this was going on, and my warband's attention was distracted, the mice duo searched through the various buildings levels. And, fortuitously, the Mouse leader happened across the loot.
Game Over.
Postscript: thanks to my host for setting up a glorious table. Setting enhances gameplay (naturally) and really brighten and colourizes this batrep.
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Summary
Today we tested group dynamics focusing on shooting and casting magic spells. Firstly, allow me to state that the rules themselves are poorly written with the wording vague. There is much leeway for misinterpretation as we are finding out as we continue our introduction to them. But we persist because we both enjoy skirmish games, like animals, and like quick games. We also enjoy ripping rules to shreds.
When determining wounds with shooting, the number of wounds leftover from the roll-off can prove offputting. But as we nutted the situation out, we realised that the number of wounds, as mentioned in the rules, actually describes the severity or degree of damage done. It was the only possible explanation for the fact that 1 crossbow bolt fired can cause 5 wounds on a heavily armoured figure with a heavy shield!
This also hints at the location of the wound although this is not as important as understanding the reason behind the quantity being what it is. For example, a wound to the arm is less severe than one to the chest. In the game, the Hare leader was targeted by the Weasel crossbow. The shooting was successful and modifiers applied. What was left over was the number of wound which ended up being 5 wounds suffered by the knight. Ouch!
Of course, part of the problem is how we understood the wording of the rule. Hence my claim that the wording needs to clear and unambiguous. It's my personal bugbear. I cannot speak for others who may find it perfectly clear and understandable.
Spell casting. Be aware that, in most situations where casting a spell is directed against an opponent, that it's based on rolling off against a zero outcome. For example, my opponent wanted to cast the Transpose spell against my Crocodilian in favour of his Weasel. For my Crocodilian to defeat the Adder's casting, he had to beat the caster's target (5). Sidenote: as my Crocodilian does not exist in the rules, we agreed to use the Raptor's skill stats instead as it seemed closest. So, he got to roll his Fortitude (d8) against the adder's Presence (d8). Which meant he had to roll a 6,7,8 to defeat the caster. He lost.
With Spells, we ignored the cost for Ingredients choosing to agree that our spell casters had the required ingredients. Also, we opted to run with just two spells.
Before we found the Search section in the rulebook, we chose a house rule of rolling 2d6 to determine if treasure is found - 11 or 12. Any other double reveals the location of a map (carried over to the next scenario if not discovered in this game). Each floor triggers a search. Once a search is done, that floor cannot be searched again. Like I said, we did this PRIOR to discovering the Search section in the rulebook. Worked for us anyway...well, for my opponent, I mean!
Next game of Bungalows and Belligerent is scheduled for a fortnight. Hoping to acquire more warband figures in the meanwhile from Critters Kingdom.
Our eventual goal will be playing one of the rulebook Scenarios. Eventually, once we're familiar with the rules as a whole, we will conduct a full Campaign. Cheers.
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