First proper table set up at home. This was a 4’x4′ table on two boards. I was going to use a piece of snow fleece – the sort of thing used in Christmas shop window displays. It looked pleasingly fluffy, like fresh snow, but we rapidly discovered that nothing would stand up on it, and it kept snagging on the corners of the bases. I whipped out a small paint roller and some acrylic primer and gave the back of the MDF boards a quick coat of white. A few minutes with the hair dryer and we were ready to go. Probably close to the record for the shortest time between painting a gaming surface and actually using it – I was setting out one end while the other end was still drying.
Snow falling in Felstad
There’s a mixture of some really old and some really new scenery. I’ve cunningly taken this photo so the best stuff is in the background, but I didn’t realise that at the time. In the foreground there are two Warhammer townscape buildings. Behind that is a stone hall with two colours of stonework. That’s scratch built from foam, and then some new gothic ruins and a very old brick Linka tower.
Rowan and I were joined by Joe for a three way skirmish. He didn’t have a warband so Rowan picked him one – mostly old Citadel Norse led by a Harlequin Miniatures Gandalf.
Frostgrave warband deploys
Here my warband rushes off to grab the loot, the warhound lolloping off in front. I took all these photos with the flash on – I rather like the gloomy distance it creates. At the front was Jeremiah Crow, the thaumaturge, assisted by an archer and a massive barbarian. I had Joe on my right flank and Rowan on my left, so this was potentially tough. However, we were playing with the Yaktribe campaign rules which basically mean there’s not much incentive to kill each other. Experience is mainly earned for spell casting and there’s nothing for killing each other.
It was a big table, even for three players, so there is quite a lot of space between us.
Frostgrave ruins
Over on my left flank, Rowan was advancing cautiously. With a Templar and two marksmen he had some heavy hitters. The Templar was wielding a magic sword and he enchanted both the crossbows.
Rowan’s – templar and marksman
Accompanied by my apprentice (Talisman pilgrim), my thief reached the corner of the building and started to climb. There was a piece of treasure right on the top, which he was hoping to retrieve without being picked off by a crossbow bolt. Not much magic so far, although I had successfully cast Shield on a couple of my key people.
Thief prepares to climb for treasure
One treasure chest was on the top level of a ruined hall – seen on the left with Rowan’s warband advancing from the forest in the background. At the end of the game much blood was to be shed over this particular chest, turning a successful hunt into a borderline disaster for my warband.
The fateful treasure chest
Soon a couple of bits of treasure had been grabbed and some wandering creatures showed up. Over on Rowan’s side, a couple of wild dogs showed up, but were soon dispatched by a thug and a marksman.
Rowan’s thug about to seize some treasure
Wild dogs’ bark is worse than their bite
On Joe’s side they were bothered by a skeleton. An archer and a ranger shot at it unsuccessfully and had to be bailed out by his bearskin clad knight.
Skeleton gets permanently killed
Meanwhile my warband rushed up the centre. With the thief retrieving one chest from the top of the brick tower, and another one secured by a thug, and no casualties so far, there was a third chest within reach – the cursed chest that was to bring misfortune on its bearers.
Meanwhile Rowan was advancing towards Joe. A marksman, wizard and apprentice prepared to open fire. Then, in one of those things that only happens in multiplayer games, they struck a deal. Rowan’s crossbowman held his fire, and Joe’s wizard would use his telekinesis to retrieve a treasure precariously balanced at the top of one of the ruins for him.
Rowan’s warband advance
With no such supernatural help available, a thug climbs a tree to get the treasure chest, while some others of my warband stand guard.
Thug climbs for the treasure
He got hold of the box, but nearby Rowan’s warband were gathering, and they had their eye on this loot.
Got it, let’s go home!
After retrieving a chest by Telekinesis, Joe’s wizard successfully summoned an imp for more supernatural treasure gathering and sent it off to the ruins. My thaumaturge was already there. After nipping round the corner to avoid the crossbow bolts, a piece of treasure was almost in his grasp when the imp turned up. Lacking magical weapons, there wasn’t much my warband could do to get rid of him. Thinking quickly, Jeremiah drew an explosive rune on the wall next to the treasure and scrambled through a window out of the way – let’s see the imp fetch it now. Unfortunately the following turn, Joe’s wizard used his telekinesis again to float the treasure away from the rune and into the waiting hands of the imp who scurried off back to the wizard.
“Begone foul hellspawn”
Joe’s warband watch the imp from a safe distance
My thief had successfully climbed down the tower with the treasure (we have a house rule that throwing treasure off high buildings has a risk of destroying it), but Rowan’s treasure hunter was on the prowl, and they are formidable fighters. He hurried for the edge of the board and safety.
Thief and enemy treasure hunter
The archer fell to Rowan’s enchanter’s grenade, but the rest of the group hurried away with the treasure, pursued and surrounded by their enemies.
The journey home
The group found their way blocked by a treasure hunter, whilst a templar and a thug backed by two marksmen were coming up behind. It was looking grim but then Jeremiah sprung to his henchmens’ rescue. In a rare bout of successes with a previously useless spell, first he blinded the treasure hunter with Blinding Light.
The fight develops
The templar killed one of my thugs, while another fell to a grenade. Then Jeremiah managed to blind the templar too.
Barbarian’s last stand
Meanwhile, his three bits of treasure safely away, Joe’s wizard and apprentice came forward and started throwing Elemental magic into the fight, wounding both sides indiscriminately. Their interference cost them dearly when Rowan felled Joe’s apprentice.
The End
The barbarian struck down the blinded treasure hunter and templar, but then was killed himself. Jeremiah and his archer watched helplessly as Rowan’s enchanter retrieved the box. I got away with two bits of treasure (and only four surviving warband members), Joe got three for the loss of an apprentice and Rowan emerged the winner with four treasure – albeit with nearly half the warband dead. The curse of the chest struck most keenly after the game when my barbarian and Rowan’s templar (who had a magic sword) rolled ‘Dead’ in the after game recovery. If only I had just left it behind….
A few thoughts after our third game. Three players worked well, possibly better than both four (a bit slow), and two (not as interesting). It’s important to have a spread of spells, if you have two of similar type (e.g. two attacking spells) then whichever one is harder to cast won’t see much use. Again, I shouldn’t have been so greedy, but at the time the upstairs chest looked very achievable.
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