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Dragon Rampant |
| 2025-12-31 |
Dragon Rampant
Yesterday evening was devoted to Dragon Rampant second edition.
Mutazoid had challenged me a few days before, stating we shall fight with 30 points armies. I have only played Lion Rampant, the non-fantasy father of Dragon Rampant so far. I accepted the challenge. My Norman host, assisted by some Viking raiders would take the field.
I was tempted for a while to use a Trench+Crusade War Wolf as a Warbeast, but my miniature is not painted and I didn't have the time to read up the rules for it. So I stuck to a non-fantasy army.
Ah the thrill of humanity versus faery.
- 1 unit of Elite Riders (Norman cav)
- 2 units of Elite Foot, with one hosting my general (Norman inf)
- 2 units of Light Foot (Viking inf)
- 1 unit of Light Missiles (Norman archers)
The last remaining two army points went to turn the archers into sharpshooters.
(Thanks to Gary for having skillfully painted all my miniatures)
Mutazoid had chosen the first scenario — "Gory Bloodbath on the Plains of Doom" — each army had to enter the field by regular move activation. I chose a compact entry behind the single hill, aiming to crown it with my archers and foot it with light infantry arrayed in a shield wall.
In Lion and Dragon Rampant, on your turn, you activate one unit after another, rolling 2d6 to move, shoot, or attack. As soon as an activation fail, your whole turn ends and the the hand goes to the adversary. You can re-roll once per turn a failed activation for a unit withing twelve inches of the general.
I was trusting my luck and despatched my cavalry on the left. It needed 7 or better to activate for moving. I always rolled for them as the last unit of my turn (having usually succeeded to activate the other units, close to the leader). Of course, as soon as the cavalry went out of re-roll range, they stuck there.
I managed to win the encounter... We read the scenario win conditions right after my commanding unit was wiped out, and they ruled I had just won the turn before. Oh well.
The Rampant series deserve the love it gets. Time to table is short and time on table is just right.
Read the battle report by Mutazoid himself.
