Prologue

Luc and Flint met each other's stares with a look of grim defiance. There was no reason for the two of them to be enemies, but neither seemed ready to back down.

In hindsight, there were many ways to solve this problem without a fight, but the tales of Bretonnian and Dwarven stubborness are by no means overstated.

Stepping back almost similtaneously, the two generals returned to their respective forces, delivering the news that they would have to do battle. Any questions of why though were met with silence.

Dwarven 1

As the Bretonnian forces took to prayer, the forces of Flint Stonebrew began their advance. The layout of the field had given him a distinct advantage, and he planned to exploit it.

Letting fly the twin bolts, Grit watched the missiles soar toward their intended target, a satisfied smirk on his face. In the blink of an eye something happened that caused the dwarf to rub his eyes in disbelief. The bolts had dropped from the sky. Their motion had been arrested and they had simply fallen from the sky straight to the ground harmlessly. It defied every principle of science the engineer knew. Letting out the harshest curse he could muster, Grit voiced his considerable dislike of whatever force was at work this day.

Bretonnia 1

As one the Crusaders mounted their steeds and raised their lances high. As one they sounded a cry and began their speedy advance toward the dwarven battle line.

While the knights all dashed headlong into danger, a pair of innocent looking creatures took up residence within the ruined hollow of a temple, watching the scene unfold. The damsels Alana and Marie are far from harmless though, and they began to weave their spells. The anti-magic of the dwarven race is powerful though, and their attempts proved futile.

The grind of machinery began as the Trebuchet launched it's payload skyward. Bretonnian math is not to be trusted though, as the Imperials will tell you, and the stone sailed wide of it's target, killing only a hapless rabbit.

Dwarven 2

With the Grail Knights bearing down on them, the Longbeards and Warriors on the flank ranked up alongside one another and prepared for the impending assualt.

While the rest of the army got into position to meet the Bretonnian advance, Flint ordered the first volley to be fired. The crack-bang of the handguns split the air as they fired upon Luc and the knights he rode with.

Their armour proved hardy enough to stop the shots though.

Grit turned his attention to the Grail Knights that had invaded his flank, ordering both of his bolt throwers on that target, he grinned again as the bolts took to the air. The banner the knights carried suddenly began to glow in the instant between the bolts' launch and the covering of the short distance. Again disbelief mared Grit's face, as the bolts disappeared entirely, vaporizing against some unseen barrier.

Bretonnian 2

The Grail Knights could hear Grit cursing up a storm from his place on the hill above them, but ignored it as they crashed their lances into the rooted Longbeards. Their choice was well made, as the Pegasus Knights swooped down from on high toward the first bolt thrower.

On the other side of the battlefield, Luc and Gilbert charged as one with their knights into the first unit of Ironbreakers. Luc issuing a challenge to any who would dare to face him.

The hidden damsels brought the winds to themselves, but their respective attempts at the Master of the Wood were quashed. Alana turned her attention to the handgunners and brought the very earth up from underneath them, killing five.

Far removed from the fight, the Trebuchet prepared to fire when suddenly the winch broke, leaving the stone lying useless on the ground. It would take time to repair, time which they did not truly have.

The Ironbreaker's champion met Luc's challenge, but barely had a chance to raise his shield before the skillful Breton dispatched him. The knights around him downed three more of the dwarven warriors, breaking their fighting spirit. Luc and Gilbert gave no pursuit though, allowing the dwarves to slowly escape.

The Pegasi dove in on their target and killed two of the crewman, but found their attempts to fell the last thwarted by the excellently chosen terrain. Below the hill, the Grail Knights crashed home into the Longbeards, killing four of the veterans, while receiving no injuries in return. Neither side refused to budge and the battle continued.

Dwarven 3

The Warriors moved to support their bretheren in their battle with the Grail Knights, letting out a resounding cry as they took to battle. Half a battlefield away, the slayer Locke threw himself into the fray with a headlong charge at Gilbert's knights. The fleeing Ironbreakers could hear Luc's voice still yelling orders behind them and continued to flee, the gruesome display of the one-sided duel still fresh in their minds.

Another crack of guns as the Thunderers opened up on Luc's knights. This time their aim proved truer and one fell under the volley. Grit ordered his bolt thrower to fire across the battlefield, but the impeding terrain stopped the missile short of its target.

Locke hacked his way through two of the Knight of the Realm accompanying the Bretonnian Standard Bearer, the shifting of bodies preventing Gilbert from getting involved in the fight. The slayers ferocity made counter-attacking futile, and the battle would obviously continue as Gilbert tried to get into the fray.

The Warriors joined combat with the Grail Knights, but they were no match for the veteran knights' skills. The Longbeards could not pass the armour of the Grail Knights either. Both dwarven units suffered a single casualty, and even with their superior numbers, couldn't force the Bretonnians to back down.

On the hill above, Grit cursed as he watched the last crew member of the other bolt thrower get cut down by the Pegasi. He could not see how the battle went on the far side of the field, but with the Pegasi so close by he didn't feel this flank was any safer.

Bretonnian 3

Climbing quickly into the air before diving again, the Pegasi swooped down onto the back ranks of the warriors at the hill's foot, lending their aid to the Grail Knights.

Luc spurred his knights into the charge, attacking the Warriors forming in the center of the battleline. Once again issuing his challenge, he was forced to use the magical gauntlet in order to find an adversary. It's power drawing the champion to reply.

Alana and Marie once again gathered their magical energies, letting them out at the Ironbreakers accompanying Flint. The pair of spells punched vines through the dwarven armour as if it were cloth, and six fell.

Again a warrior of inferior skill stood to face Luc, and again he was butchered by the lord's flurry of attacks. The Knights of the Realm that followed him defeated another warrior, while receiving no wounds themselves. The horrible display sent the warriors running, and the pursuit given was intercepted by the Thunderers.

Locke suddenly realized where he was, alone and surrounded by Gilbert and his knights, with every fibre of his being he fought of their attacks until he was crushed under the hooves of their warhorses.

The Pegasi fell on the warriors and felled five of the dwarves by hoof and lance. The Grail Knights fought against the enemy on both sides but could not get past the stalwart dwarven defence, losing one of their own to the Longbeards. The courage of the dwarves held and the battle continued.

Dwarven 4

At the battles center, the two units who had witnessed Luc's skills firsthand got their emotions under control and turned to face the battle once again. Flint was finally in position and he attacked, charging his Ironbreakers toward Gilbert and his knights.

Grit let his remaining bolt thrower fly at the fourth unit of knights on the field, the only available target, and the only one that had done nothing as of yet. The bolt pierced the knightly flank, downing two of the human warriors.

Luc's pursuit of the fleeing dwarven warriors had carried him into the Thunderers, and with his knights around him they destroyed the enemy before them. In their fervour they pursued the broken enemy and moved out of position.

Flint broke through the defences of Gilbert's knights, defeating one himself, while his own unit champion was dispatched by Gilbert. Another dwarf fell to the Bretonnian counter attack, but the constant battling had worn down on the knights' will to fight and they fled from the combat.

The Grail Knights continued to fight back against the enemy that surrounded them, killing one warrior from each of the dwarven regiments that faced them. The Warriors had a more difficult fight on their hands though, as they felt the press of the Pegasus Knights from behind, losing warriors to their attacks. Faced with the two elite units of knights and their own mounting loses, both units fled from the fight, only the Longbeards escaped.

Bretonnian 4

Gilbert could not rally the knights around him, no matter what he said they continued to retreat, they were done with the battle for today, and he could not sway them. They left the field of battle with much haste.

On the flank, the Grail Knights continued to pursue the Longbeards, forcing them to leave the field of battle or be run down by the fearsome knights of the Lady. The Pegasi took to the sky once again, flying toward Grit and his crew with lances ready.

With Flint and his troops removed from the battle, sitting alone and exposed, they became the ideal target for the support forces of the Bretonnian army. Alana and Marie let their spells off at the dwarf leader, killing three of his guard with the power of the earth around them.

Finally repaired, the Bretonnian engineer forced his peasant labourers to fire one more time, the rock they lobbed skyward arcing almost elegantly before crashing down into Flint's Ironbreakers. The champion sacrificed himself valiantly to save his leader's life, and three dwarves did not get back up after the missile crashed home.

The Pegasus Knights felled the crew around Grit, forcing the aging dwarf to use the bolt thrower itself to protect himself, it paine dhim to do so, but he survived to defend it afterward.

The battle seemed primed to erupt once more as the opponents maneouvered around one another, then suddenly, the two generals called a stop to the hostilities. The forces split of and regrouped, most unsure of what had just transpired.

Epilogue

Flint raised his hand to command silence over the room, and it was met almost immediately.

"Though we had raised arms against one another earlier, we now sit as friends, here is to a new alliance!"

It took the translator a moment to tell Luc and his men what had been said, but a resounding cheer was their reply when it was done.

None but Luc and Flint can be sure of why they fought that day, and none have dared to ask the awe inspiring Grand Marshal of the Crusaders, nor of the great Thane Flint Stonebrew, it is a mystery lost to history.

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Bretonnian – 1997 points

Luc Arkhame – Armour of Agilulf, Birthsword, Virtue of Confidence, Gauntlet of the Duel – 226
Gilbert Darmani – Gromril Great Helm, Sword of Might – 124
Philippe Arkhame – Lance of Artois, Virtue of the Joust – 126
Alana Lafleur – Lore of Life 4,5 – 105
Marie Dumont – Lore of Life 1,4 – 105

8 KotR – joined by Luc – 216
8 KotR – joined by Gilbert – 216
8 KotR – joined by Philippe – 216
3 Pegasus Knights – 165
9 Grail Knights – Banner of Defence – 408
Trebuchet – 90

Dwarves – 1927 points

Flint Stonebrew – Great Weapon (2X Rune of Striking), Gromril Armour (Rune of Stone, Rune of Resistance) – 117
Grit – Engineer, Gromril Armour (Rune of Stone) – 78
Locke – Slayer, Great Weapon (Rune of Fury, Rune of Cleaving, Rune of Speed) – 119

16 Warriors – 169
16 Warriors – 169
10 Thunderers – 150
20 Longbeards – Rune of Battle, Rune of Sanctuary – 355
20 Ironbreakers – Rune of Slowness, joined by Flint – 340
20 Ironbreakers – Rune of Courage – 340
2 Bolt Throwers – 90

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Victory Points

Bretonnia – 1108
1008 Points of Dwarves Killed
+100 For Banners Captured

Dwarves –
340 Points of Bretonnia Killed

768 for Bretonnia, therefore not a massacre? I'm not sure, I can't find the Rulebook, but it definately wasn't as lopsided as some of my previous reports.

This battle was played at my local GW a short while ago and would have gone longer had we not been forced out of the store before it closed on pain of hammering.

Nice batrep, Luc (as always)

Good read, thanks Luc.

You had five characters?

2000 points of Bretonnians allows for five characters; four normally, plus the obligatory BSB.

I almost always go with my full compliment of characters at 2000 points, as I find it important to bolster the strength of the Knights of the Realm. A paladin in each unit makes it a lot harder for the unit to go down, especially if confronted with an enemy hero that I can challenge. And two decked out damsels is usually good enough to take hold of the magic phase, unless playing against a magic heavy army (in which case I downgrade them, caddy them up, and hide them in my knights).

You lacked imagination for the fluff, though. First, because nobody knows why they fought, and also because nobody knows why they stopped fighting, not even the two generals. Even Dwarves and Bretonnians need a reason to butcher each other. And ESPECIALLY Dwarves and Bretonnians need a reason to stop butchering each other. Just deciding to sign a peace treaty is hardly a reason.

Once again, it was a bad day for the enemies of the Grand Marshal. It was nice to read :thumb: , but I had expected a more satisfying story to go with the report.

It worked for me to be honest, and besides it was only a battle. Sometimes you have to stretch the boundaries. Also, I think it may have been a little tongue in cheek, to be able to use his characters in a descriptive way (story format).

Ah, awesome. Don't get me wrong, I love heroes. I always spend far too much on them; they're fun and fill your army with character (arg pun).

Perhaps I should do Bretts. ^_^

Yeah, I know, I thought about it for a few weeks and couldn't come up with any good reason why our two armies would be fighting, since in actual world of Warhammer there would be few places and times where such a battle would occur. And using my own characters made it even harder to do so.

I just coped out in the end, saying that only the generals knew what was going on, but nobody else. Lazy, but my brain has been fried lately.

You COULD have written that the Dwarf lord was incensed over some minor comment by Luc, and promptly marched to war against him to avenge this supposed insult. That way, the Dwarfs are written as the clear aggressors.

Yeah, the only problem with that though is that Luc is a duellist, he would insist on single combat instead of throwing the armies into it.

Maybe a Bretonnian jester mocked the Dwarf lord and his entire court, or some Bretonnian bandits ambushed, robbed and murdered a wandering Thane?

On the battle: well-written, though I'm a little disappointed that the new Dwarfs gave such a poor showing (especially the Ironbreakers . . . .frikkin IRONBREAKERS!)

Actually, this battle was from about a month ago, I got sidetracked and forgot to write it up until now, the guy I was playing against didn't have the new dwarf book yet.

Not sure how much of a difference it would have made, haven't had a chance to read it yet meself.

It's not that different really, except the Longbeards now act as a BSB against panic tests. That, and Dwarf characters can become more uber with stuff like the Rune of Kragg the Grim, Oathstone and Shield-bearers (a unit of Hammerers led by a Lord with an Oathstone would have been a real pain for your army, actually, as it still has a rank bonus even if you hit it in the flank or rear).

I don't know why everyone is complaining about the lack of reason behind the battle. I thought it was damn funny, to tell the truth. I've never played as Stunties of Bretts, but I've read a good deal of their fluff, and see them as full of hot air.

My only qualm is that they signed a treaty. Dwarves don't do treaties, they do grudges!