League of Shadows ambush Batman and friends

Another game of Batman and a first go at the Ambush scenario this week. I’ve tended to avoid this one and it’s the only one I’ve not attempted so now was as good a time as any.

In this game we played 350 points and I went for Raas, Talia, ninjas and a few prisoners. Batman was accompanied by Robin, Gordon and some cops. In the first turn Batman swooped down on Talia and gave her a good thumping. Not very gentlemanly but all is fair in love and war. On the other side of the table Raas got stuck into Gordon and Robin.

There was a lot of scrapping going on early in the game and Ambush seems to be a pretty brutal scenario as the names suggests. The punch-ups continued over the initial turns with no side gaining dominance but Batman and Raas did impress. With all the fighting the objectives seemed of secondary importance and scoring was unusually low. Mid-game the action livened up with Batman deciding to take on Raas face to face.

It was a fairly even contest with both struggling to do serious damage. Batman decided to Batclaw away as he became surrounded and switched attention to one of the ninjas who had nabbed a loot counter. In the final turns the League managed to pull slightly ahead in a fairly low scoring game and held on for the win.

It was a good game. After we started I realised that a ninja or two could have taken Tattoos to get Bodyguard and this would have been good for protecting Raas and Talia. I think I would like to field Lady Shiva and the female ninjas too rather than the prisoners so will look into that. Finally I think it worth mentioning that Robin’s Flash grenade was very effective and needs to be watched in future.

League of Shadows vs. Batman

I had a bit of hobby time today so decided to spruce up some League of Shadows minis I acquired second hand a while ago. Very simple and quick to paint with a dry brush of Adeptus Grey and a wash of black paint. A little work on the flesh, hair and weapons and a decent tabletop standard gang was ready to rock ‘n roll.
We played 300 points and scenario 5. I took the League of Shadows starter plus Talia and across the table Batman, Alfred and Gordon starter. As is often the case the first turn was spent running into position.

It wasn’t long before Talia was scrapping it out with Gordon a big moshpit was forming in the centre of the board between Batman, Raas and some ninjas.

Talia didn’t have too much difficulty in seeing off Gordon and the SWAT guy. She is not a heavy hitter but has a good number of attacks and with Handy and Sharp she can dish out a decent amount of blood damage over a couple of turns with her Katana.
I had high hopes for the Raas vs. Batman showdown. However both bosses were able to put up a sterling defence so actual damage dealt was limited. Despite having Raas and two ninjas on the Batman I was not able to put a single damage marker on the big guy. It has to be said my dice were shocking but even so it shows just how durable he is. After a couple of turns the cops got involved and I decided to mix things up a bit as I was getting nowhere with Batman. Meanwhile VPs were accumulating slowly for both sides although casaulties amongst the cops and Gordon meant Raas was edging ahead.

With a couple of turns to go we called it a day as most of the cops were down and the League had built up a reasonable lead on VP.
It was a good game and I enjoyed the change in tact that came with the League of Shadows. The melee heavy approach was fun but I was disappointed not to have taken out Batman with Raas. In hindsight I didn’t allocate my tokens very well and I should have relied on his defence of 5 and given more counters to attack and Deadly Strike. A few other points worth remembering for future games include ‘Just a scratch’ which means ranged attack hits inflict a stun if they fail to damage, I failed to use Rapid Fire for the ninja named Lotus – three shuriken attacks per round would have made more dangerous, and finally I forgot to use Inspire to get the ninja henchmen attacking together. That may have helped resolve the moshpit in the centre in my favour and allowed me to at least damaged Batman once or twice!

Ivy beaten by the Bat

A game of Batman this evening. A three way clash using scenario 1 at 200 points. The bosses were Ivy, Bane and Batman.

A friend supplied the buildings this evening and very nice and functional they were too. In the first turn the gangs got themselves into position; nothing too exciting but Bane failed to nail a cop that really would expect him too.

I was able to get Ivy onto a loot counter and Catwoman grabbed one too. In the next turn the forces continued to close but the action didn’t really warm up until mid-game.

By this point Ivy and Loony were scoring heavily on Loot and Ammo objectives. Batman was perched high above the table with a SWAT guy and Bane was closing ominously on Ivy. It was time for Ivy to mix things up with some control pheromones. She took control of Bane and sent him toward Batman!

Unfortunately Bane was not able to make an impression on Batman and Batman retaliated knocking Bane out. It was a simple job for a cop to come along and arrest the big guy!

In the late game there was a bit of a moshpit in the centre of the board. The game was very close on objectives but Batman and his GCPD allies were looking strong as they had barely been scratched during the game. In the final moments Batman and Catwoman put the hurt on Ivy and she went down. The cop who arrested Bane did the same trick on Ivy and it was all over.
I didn’t take a final tally of points but Batman would have won by a few. It was a close game that started slowly and built to a tense climax. Ivy did very well in the initial stages securing and camping  objectives, but the lack of genuine offense meant that Batman and the cops eventually got the better of her. Batman was very effective in this game. When used well he is manoeuvreable, resilient and dangerous on the attack – just as he should be. Catwoman was also good as was the cheap cop shadowing Batman and arresting the villans.

Ivy vs. Two-Face

This evening a good game of Batman. We were playing an intro game with my Ivy and Two-Face gangs around 270 points. Scenario 1, Chance Encounter, is always a good bet for some fast and brutal action and we made sure all four objective types were included for variety.
In the initial setup Tsasz failed to arrive but the rest of the models were fairly evenly spread around the table. In the early action Two-Face’s shotgun henchman managed to put some hurt on one of my prisoners while the rest of models dashed for the objectives.

In the second turn I flooded the centre of the table with 4 of the 5 plant slaves I had taken but Tsasz failed to show again! My prisoner escaped from the shotgun wielding henchman through the use of a smoke grenade and a few scuffles on the edge.
By turn 3 Tsasz was on and Ivy had managed to pull off her Control Pheromone trick to get one of Two-Face’s henchmen to shoot the main man in the back. This was a key moment as 4 blood on the boss allowed one of the Plant Slaves to pull off a couple of jammy shots and knock Two-Face out. I had also managed to get Tsasz and a Prisoner onto the Ammo Objective and the were starting to accumulate.
In the remaining action Cat Woman (who shouldn’t have been in Two-Face’s gang, whoops, my mistake!) nabbed the loot and ran for it will Tsasz and Ivy cleaned up some of Two-Face’s henchmen. When Tsasz pounced on the badly beaten Two-Face it was clear the game was over and we called time.

So, Ivy’s Control Pheromone trick was the business again. It really is a very nice ability especially against an opponent not familiar with it. The Plant Slaves did quite well too and I am pleased Tsasz did well as I enjoy using him. Still enjoying my Batman and I am determined to get this Ivy gang painted up.

Ivy Crew – part 4

Finished up my second trio of Plant Slaves tonight. I have a third trio as but will need to get Ivy and some Prisoners done before tackling those. I doubt I will ever use all nine but having the option to take 3 of any given Plant Slave appeals to my darker side.

Ivy Crew – part 3

My rate of painting has been shocking in recent months. I’m aiming to try and do a few minutes each night hence forth and this evening my second set of Plant Slaves got a little love. I’ve got a third det on the way too!

Ivy Crew – Part 2

There is a very helpful chap by the name of Andrew Bruce on the Facebook Batman Miniatures  Game buying and selling page. He has been willing to split blister packs so I took the opportunity to grab another set of Plant Slaves for my Ivy crew. Apologies for the poor pic.

The Plant Slaves are not brilliant in game terms but they are very fluffly for Ivy and I like the models. Looking forward to trying a whole forest of thrle blighters next time!

Ivy crew – part 1

It’s been so long since I painted a miniature I don’t even remember if I posted any pics of my Ivy crew in progress. Anyway, I did manage a couple of hours this evening and I really enjoyed getting back to it.

The purples are Warlock Purple highlighted with P3 Icy Blue and shaded with Scab red. The greens are Goblin green shaded with P3 Bloodstone and highlighted with a bright citadel yellow (Badmoon?) and the reds are blood red highlighted with P3 Flesh. I’ve acquired another set of Plant Slaves recently so I thought I would crack on with these before getting overwhelmed with weeds!

Ivy and Tsaz wreak havoc at the Asylum

Another game with Ivy this evening. This time slightly smaller at 300 points and no room for Swamp Thing. This time Tsaz made an appearance and the gang was rounded out with a selection of Plants, Black Gate Prisoners and a Loony from the Asylum. Across the table Batman supported by Gordon and his SWAT team. We played scenario 5 which I believe is Seize Ground (or something similar).

As usual round 1 was spent getting into position, although Tsaz, being a bit of a speedster, was able to nip to an objective and score the three bonus VPs. Batman was isolated on one side of the board but quite near the Prisoners, while Gordon and co were facing off with Ivy, Tsaz, the Plants and the Loony in the centre of the board.

In round 2 one of the Plants scored a lucky crit on Gordon but was subsequently blown away by a SWAT guy. Ivy and Tsaz moved into dangerous central positions and Tsaz attacked a SWAT guy but missed. On the other side of the board Batman swooped on the Prisoners but fell slightly short. They piled in but the Batman was largely unaffected by their attacks.

In round 3 Batman pummelled the two Prisoners knocking both of them onto their arses. Their attacks back were pretty feeble but, importantly, they were tying up the Batman and keeping him away from the action in the centre of the board. Tsaz turned his attention to Gordon knocking him out but then took too nasty hits from the gun of a SWAT guy. Meanwhile another SWAT guy had grabbed the Loot and my Loony took ovee Tsaz guarding my Titan Dose objective.

Round 4 saw Batman continuing to grapple with the Prisoners while the action in the centre of the board was brutal. The Loony and SWAT guy were tied up in a scrap meaning objective VPs had dried up but there were still plenty on offer for knocking out the enemy. Ivy took over the mind of a SWAT guy who wandered over to Gordon and in an act of disgraceful treason hit his boss on the deck! She went on to Paralyse and knock out another SWAT guy. Tsaz had little trouble finishing Gordon off and things were looking pretty grim for the heros of Gotham.

Looking over the board (and given it was quite late by now) Batman threw in the towel. It was 14 – 3 on VPs and a clear victory for Ivy. A good game and I’m settling into an effective pattern of play with Ivy. Her Control Pheromones are fantastic against the right target and once again made a difference in the game. Batman should have been better but got tied up fighting two Prisoners. I’m of the opinion that Batman needs to keep mobile and should focus on the enemy big hitters. Tsaz was the star of the show this time. He is very fast and given the right opportunities he can be quite lethal. He pretty much killed a SWAT guy and Gordon in this game which is a great performance.

An enjoyable game 🙂

As an aside we discussed the use of the Asylum in the centre of the board. I am reluctant to do this as there is no back to the building but it seems a shame not to get in more involved in the play. We decided a removal back panel would make it look good and allow it to take a more central place on the table. I will look into this soon.

Ivy escapes from the Asylum

A good game of Batman this evening and a chance to use the Asylum. 350 point game with Ivy and Swamp Thing playing against Batman and Gordon. We played scenario 1 from the book.

During set-up Ivy and Swampy ended up near the Asylum while Batman and the GCPD were mostly on an adjoining edge. My prisoners were on the opposite edge to the Asylum but the chap with the axe deployed right next to Batman.

Ivy’s crew got the first turn and the prisoner waded into the Batman scoring four lucky blood damage. Batman then pummelled the poor chap but this made Bats a much less scary prospect for the rest of the game. The rest of the first turn was spent in the main manoeuvring into good positions.

In the second turn Bats made his move and threatened Ivy. I was aware that Ivy would need protection from him and I elected to keep her near to Swampy. There was also some jostling from the various grunts and by the end of the turn Batman and co. were slightly ahead on VPs.

The big moment of the occured when Batman came down to take a swing at Ivy. She was able to dodge some of the blows and hang in the game leaving Swamp thing to come in and put some big hits on Batman.

Batman did survive the onslaught, but when Ivy’s crew got the initiative for the next turn it was pretty clear what was coming next. Swampy knocked Batman out and one of Ivy’s plants gave him a nibble to finish him off. By this stage Ivy was building up a lead on Vps scored on her Loot and Titan dose objectives and racking up the Vps for bashing Bats. It was looking a bit grim for the Good Guys.

In the final plays of the game Gordon also feel victim to Swampy and we callex it a day at 23 – 12 to Ivy.
It was a good game and the second successful outing for this crew. Interestingly it was Swamp thing who was the star of the show this time. Ivy didn’t achieve a lot but with acrobat and defence 4 she was able to threaten objectives and stay fairly safe. Poor old Batman was unlucky to get seriously injured by the axe man in the first round and in the post game analysis it seems Batman forgot to remind Robin to turn up – whoops! I’m also pleased the Asylum played well in the game and looked nice on the table. I must get the models in this crew painted now…..