There's Pirates On the Spanish Main

[Just to paraphrase by George Takei auotgraphed copy of The Firm's Star Trekkin' ]

With the X-wing game last week reminding a bit of my box of never used Pirates of the Spanish Main, I took advantage of the poor Sunday weather to lay down some ocean and get the plastic ships out with Arabiansquire

We looked through the ship choices just played a basic 40 point game (No crews or Unique treasure). Despite getting a few rules wrong the game ran pretty smoothly (it's a simple ruleset) with a good bit of combat (made more exciting by some really poor dice rolling on either side).

Things get a bit crowded in an early island landing.

For those not familar with the game, the aim is to pick up gold on neutral "wild" islands and return said loot back to your home island. Movement is nicely handled via stats on the ship card referring to the long or short sides of the stat card. Each ship has masts (funnily enough) which also correspond to the number of canons on board. These cannons also have a short or long range. To hit another ship you have to roll higher than the number indicated on the mast. Damage comes by way of removing a mast from the ship (to save on mast snappage incidents I have smoke markers). Every ship has a special rule to help make it different (+Short movement when unloaded for example). That's the basic mechanics really.

 The wee lad won the first (unphotographed)  Pirates vs Spanish game by virtue of one of his ships boosting the gold collected by 2. The game is quick enough that we had time for a second game (and for me to fetch a camera).

The Bonaparte lands to pick up gold the two American
vessels capable of damaging it look to get into canon range.

Looking through my American force options I decided upon a cunning plan of 4 smaller ships that were faster than those we'd played with in the last game. I'd be down on firepower (although I hope a couple of special rules I had would even things up) but would run rings rounds his floundering fleet and nip off with the gold. Unfortunately Arabiansquire's French harbour released 3 large ships that went faster than my choices with more capacity and better cannon! And one of his ships had a special rule meaning that I only had 2 canons in my entire arsenal that could damage him. As I'm sure you can already guess the French Coffers were the healthier at the game end.

The Bonaparte's manoeuvring delays until
support arrives.

A fun game in all, and with enough fleet building options to pour over to keep it fresh. Next time we'll add in the crew elements (who bring special rules), which may help those smaller vessels.

Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures game

As we are in between "Song of Blades..." campaigns at the moment it gives by gaming buddy, MacSver, and I the opportunity to play some other games. This week I had MacSver pull out his miniatures for Fantasy Flight's Star Wars: X-Wing game, which I've never played.

We were joined by his gaming brother in law John. Fortunately MacSver has a couple of sets and several expansions to the game (TIE-Advanced, Y-wings, A-Wing, Millennium Falcon, Slave I) so we all had enough ships to play with and just had a simple square go battle. Unfortunately I forgot my camera, so no pictures of his table, just a couple of borrowed ones for flavour!.

Fleet games are one category that I've never really played, apart from the odd participation game at shows with mixed feelings. With the low number of ships and their manoeuvrability this felt a lot more like a skirmish version of a fleet game. The game mechanics are easy to pick up and the turns move pretty quickly. Movement is not random, which is good, and the dice are specialised for the attacking, using a hit\defend system similar to that of Heroscape with a couple of extra smooth mechanics added in. There are other game play options to be made as well that effect the dice, so the turn never feels like it's just manoeuvre and shoot.

In 3 player games there always ends up one player splitting their forces having to defend\attack on two fronts. Unfortunately for our host it was him (shockingly poor manners by the visitors I know) but the game was very enjoyable and will be well worth a second outing.

More Dwarves Arrive

Following on from my post earlier in the month a suitably Ebay-like package ( a foam stuffed cereal bar box in brown paper) has arrived with half a dozen GW LoTR Dwarves inside - 3 warriors and 3 archers. Obviously the main issue was how they'd fit with the Hasslefree ones I'd purchased. Well as you can see from the photo above, not too badly, or at least close enough not to be obvious when they get some paint on them.

And here is the whole happy (grumpy, sleepy, etc) group shot ... so far!

Can't rule out a couple of additions after all...

Back from Dorset

Arabiansquire looks up at the business end
of a Super Tiger

Just back from a visit waaaaaay down south to (West) Dorset. During the visit I spend a few hours in the Tank Museum at Bovington. Anyone who reads Big Lee's blog (and there are quite a few of you out there!) will have seen what happens there. I won't put up all my photo's, just a few favourites, for different reasons.

French Heavy Char B

Churchill Crocodile

Cromwell

M4A1 Sherman

M10 Tank Destroyer

Panzer MkIV - a particular favourite of mine as it was the first
tank model I ever made (and liked) back when "I were a lad"

SdKfZ 251 Half Track

Sherman Firefly

Tank Mk IV

Tiger Mk I
(with some daft gamer insisting on being in the photo!)

Tiger MkII

Trench scene for a WWI tank attack.
(I doubt if the trenches had free exit signs mind you)

Also, in a bit of an unexpected place, we stumbled across a display at the Abbotsbury Swannery of a test Barnes Wallis bouncing bomb, which was tested in the area.

Being Scottish I can't help but think "muckle golf ball" every time I see it!

Urban War - Koralon First Batch

First batch of Koralon painted up.

As an easy start in both painting and construction I've just done the basic troop type (Brood) a brood Leader and a bigger Larvan. All look capable of bring pain with big pointy blades.

Stayed with the scheme in the test model, but adding the final touch of applying gloss varnish to the black\green areas to help their hard'n'deadly appearance.

I'm building to an initial force of around 300 points painted with the next batch which should contain some higher cost models by way of Phazons ( who can open up portals on the desktop to let their comrade charge through) and Brood masters, who tower above the others with 4 long vicious blades.

Free Grass

Napoli Grass

Linked via a freestuff website, a package arrived with a couple of free samples of artificial grass today. I've read a couple of folk go on about this for small fields, etc, so when the chance arose I thought I'd investigate

Perugia Grass

Both samples were from Artificialgrass4U . For my two samples I picked out the Perugia and Napoli styles as these looked more lush and variated than the others.

Both looked better than I expected (if a little "wind flattened" by the postal journey) and not all plain green plastic bristle.

Using them as small fields of high grass for gaming will do nicely, as the example with one of my 28mm barbarians shows.

Dwarves Arrive

This time they're mine.

This week one of the numerous online vendor newsletters came in from Wayland Games, who were offering a one day 50% off sale for their Hasslefree stock. Now I love the Hasslefree range and I've looked at their Dwarves range with desire many times, so I bit and fired up an order and tentitively watched my inbox for confirmation. Anyone who has ordered from Wayland in the past would do the same. Their prices are excellent but a quick look on a few forums will tell you that Customers satisfaction is not always fulfilled, especially when it comes to items marked "Out-of-stock" claiming to that the order will be delayed for new stock. The last order I made with them was completely cancelled by them with no apology, and I'd vowed not to return. But it seems that sometimes money talks, I'm embarrassed to say.

Funnily enough, the couple of figures that were marked out-of-stock (but still available to order) were chopped off the order by Wayland (with a refund), but the rest of the warband (about a dozen) popped through the door 4 days later, so my reserves are slightly (but not completely) abated about the company.

Hasslefree however has never let me down. The figures are lovely. It did suddenly strike me that they seemed rather diminutive for standard fantasy dwarves, who tend to have a rather "rotund" stature. This could prove cause problems increasing my warband size whilst keeping them within the same look. I dug out examples from my lead pile for comparison, which you can see above.

Unexpectedly the Games Workshop Lord of the Rings Gimli is a reasonable match, so I may well get a few Games Workshop LoTR Dwarves to flesh out the ranks...

Future Kursk?

On the 70th Anniversary of the biggest tank battle in history, the BBC website has an interesting little piece about if such a battle could happen in the future and the viability of tanks in the modern military. There are also some nice tank photo's.

Article here: [BBC] Kursk Legacy: Will there ever be another massive tank battle?

SoBH Campaign 3 - Barbarians vs Dwarves

This page is a base to catalogue my fantasy "Songs Of Blades and Heroes" campaign. I have moved the campaign page to this post to make room at the top for the next campaign (so for those avid readers this isn't anything new, just a bit of re-organising)

The basic warband makeup is Barbarians vs Dwarves : Initial Warband Compositions. The campaign winner is the first warband to 10 Campaign points.

There are a few changes to the previous campaigns. For a start we will be using the new Revised Edition of Song of Blades and Heroes. We have also tinkered with the weather table (to make extreme weather less common) and adding new scenarios from Hour11's fanmade Warhammer/Mordheim Scenario Conversion project (well worth a visit!)

Battle #1: Scattered Amongst a New Foe

Area: Open Plains Ruin

Battle Aftermath:  With 1VP for their kill, the Barbarians win.

Running CP Count: Barbarians 1, Dwarves 0

Injuries:

• Only young Dwarf Hono went down. He sustained a moderate injury so misses next battle before coming back at full strength.

Income: 

• The Dwarves gained 20 Gold post-battle
• In the debris of the battlefield the Barbarians found loot worth 40 Gold
• Exploration: Under a nearby tree the Dwarves came across an abandoned keg of ale. The Barbarians, whilst wandering through a wooded area on the the way back home chanced upon a Blessed Glade, where they were gifted a charmstone.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #2: Barbarians 54, Dwarves 25

Battle #2: Ruined Treasure

Adding to the Dwarve forces (who were temporarily down a warrior for this battle) came Slii Shadesmith, a sneaky thief. Ardaric recruited another warrior to bolster his front line, and a healing potion for his mysterious magical companion, Ooko.

Area: Whithershack Village Ruins

Battle Aftermath: Making off with the treasure, the Barbarians win.

Running CP Count: Barbarians 2, Dwarves 0

Injuries:

• Rod Grimiron made a full recovery for the next battle.
• Notar Battlenugget and Squint Ironsights succummed to their wounds and will play no more a part in this campaign.

Income:

• The treasure chest recovered from the ruins contained 13 gold (and an extra exploration dice), and the Barbarians managed to earn 60 gold from their post battle "activities".
• On their travels after the battle the Barbarians came across an Eldridge graveyard. Being a superstitious people they decided not to anger the spirits by exhuming the dead for riches.
• The Dwarves found 65 gold post battle (including additional underdog bonus)
• On their way back to camp they came across the body of a rich merchant, who had 30 gold in his purse. As he wasn't neeeding it anymore Valgen decided he could put it to better use.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #3: Barbarians 76, Dwarves 96.

Battle #3: Traversing the Tainted Copse

Valgen used the considerable gold accrued from Battle #2 to fill and strengthen his fighting force. To show he was done messing around a new Elite Warrior and a member of his legendary Bear Cavalry joined the ranks. Taking the opposite tact, Aldaric has brought in a stealthy scout.


Area: Twisted Bow Forrest

Battle Aftermath: With equal 4 VPs each and neither warband getting anyone out the Copse in time - a Draw

Running CP Count: Barbarians 2, Dwarves 0.

Injuries:

• Remos Arcfur sustained a moderate injury, meaning his quality is one worse for the next battle. Rookie Wolfan Silentfoot's silent feet will never grace the battlefield again.
• Valgen's scars have healed but he is left with brain damage, making his abilities unpredictable in the run up to battle.

Income:

• The pickings were few in the forest, with the Barbarians picking up 5 gold and the dwarves not doing much better with 10.
• The Dwarves did manage to find another forgotten keg though, hidden in the undergrowth.
• The Barbarians were less fortunate as they stumbled into a foggy swamp and were attacked by angry lizardfolk. Ooko was injured by the Lizard leader but drank his healing potion to recover to his full health.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #4: Barbarians 39, Dwarves 14

Battle #4: Raiding the Grand Library

Most of Ardaric's warband had reached 3XP and decided to use this experience to train themselves up. The archers all built on their experiences in the trees to gain the forester skill. Other warriors were taught better footwork to learn the steadfast skill. The mysterious Elementalist Ooko used his XP combined with 25 gold to increase his summoning pool.

Area: The Grand Library

Battle Aftermath: More more points killed, Barbarian win.

Running CP count: Barbarians 3, Dwarves 0.

Injuries:

• Totila Roastlaw paid the price for moving too far forward and died from his wounds.
• Tundil Sunbeard did not recover from the arrow he took bursting through the door. Snowbeard made a full recovery.

Income:

• Cash is still rare, Valgen picking up 20 gold and the Barbarians only managing half that (10)
• Whilst hunting about for more gold Cerri Crakshot sprung a trap, before falling to his doom he managed to grab hold of the pit edge and survived none the worse.
• Whilst wandering back home Ardaric's crew came into a lovely warm, sunny glade. On leaving Erwig found that a charmstone had appeared in his pocket. He shook his head think of how Totila could have used this.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #5: Barbarians 24, Dwarves 34

Battle #5: Action in Avalanche Country

With cash scarce, Ardaric spent what little he had on a new Healing Potion for Ooko. Remos also had enough XP to train up with Steadfast. Valgen had his men on the training ground. Free disengage for himself and Falster, whilst the Young Warriors had grown to full Warrior strength (+1 Combat). Snowbeard also vowed to push home any advantage he could take against the humans (opportunistic). He also had enough cash to recruit a new Warrior - Manon Hardfoot.

Area: The Echo Pass Mountains

Battle Aftermath: With more points on the table at the end (and no kills) the Barabarians win.

Running CP count: Barbarians 4, dwarves 0.

Injuries:

• No Injuries!

Income:

• Post battle both the Barbarians and Dwarves collected 10 gold.
• During their exploration Boindel sprung a death trap and fell to his doom!
• The barbarians stumbled upon a Good temple and plundered it for 25 gold.
• Gold reserves for Battle #6: Barbarians 44, Dwarves 12

Battle #6: Hunting round Town for a Bite

Ardaric realising he was short of bodies and decided to go for experience over youth, so recruited the over-experienced veteran Cohan Deathaxe to impart some wisdom (via numerous "In my day..." stories). Meanwhile in the Dwarf camp, Cerri Crackshot had been training, improving his quality by 1.


Battle Aftermath: Both warbands with a townsfolk to minions ratio 2:1 - a draw

Running CP Count: Barbarians 4, Dwarves 0.

Injuries:

• No Injuries

Income:

• After the battle the Dwarves collected 10 gold. The Barbarians collected 20 and an extra bonus 12 as reward for killing 2 Vampire minions.
• On their way back, the Dwarves got got in the dark, so will suffer a -1 modifier to their initiative next battle.
• Whilst they rested after the fight a Dark Unicorn approached the Barbarian camp, but sensing that the warband were not evil, it made off again into the night.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #7: Barbarians 46, Dwarves 22.

Battle #7: Door to Door Enquiries.

Ardaric held onto his cash with future development plans, so no change to the Barbarians. Valgen sold his spare kegs of ale to muster enough in the coffers to employ a novice crossbowman.

Battle Aftermath: Neither warband managed to gain any information, so a draw.

Running CP Count: Barbarians 4, Dwarves 0.

Injuries:

• For the Barbarians, Rudulf Wolfhowl sustained a serious injury which will keep him out of the next battle.
• Both Dwarven Warriors Manon Hardfoot and Rod Grimiron received Moderate injries, meaning their qualities will be one worse for the next battle.

Income:

• Both warbands "amassed" 15 gold from the battle.
• On the way back to camp the Dwarves stumbled on the body of a farmer on his way back to the farm  who had been attacked by wolves. Obviously he had just been to market as Valgen found 30 gold pieces in his pockets.
• On the way back to their Barbarian Camp the sky darkens as an enormous murder of crows flies overhead, swirls above them then flies off. Could this be a bad omen for a forthcoming battle?
• Gold Reserves for Battle #8: Barbarians: 61, Dwarves: 45.

Battle #8: Into the Enemies Den.

Valgen had pooled together both cash and experience to bring in a specially trained Elite Warrior who has been taught to counter Barbarian combat techniques. Also a lot of the warband have been tightly drilled to take to battle the Shieldwall skill. Aldaric has used his cash to bring in a second archer. Also the group have been working on a variety of skills to try and oppose the surging Dwarven numbers and skills. Ardaric and Elementalist Ooko have been building on their battlezone experience to improve his quality. Erwig Bonetooth has been honing his ducking and diving to hone his Free Disengage Skill and Ramos Arcfur has been sharpening his long sword and hacking stout ale barrels to matchsticks to improve his combat skill.

Battle Aftermath: With the only kill and also holding only all the gems - Barbarians Win

Running CP Count: Barbarians 5, Dwarves 0.

Injuries:

• Cerri sustained a moderate injury meaning his Quality will be one worse for the next battle.

Income:

• Post battle the Dwarves earned 30 gold. Despite having a fistful of stones the Barbarians only earned 20 gold.
• Moving away from their soiled camps the Barbarians were set upon by another band of brigands. This force were all slaughtered by the geed-up Barbarians and 10 gold looted from the bodies.
• Valgen and co discovered a strange looking rock on the way home. A key hole was discovered, but Slii was unable to pick the lock and they were forced to leave it behind unopened.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #9: Barbarians: 41 ,Dwarves: 35.

Battle #9: Certain Mortar Danger

Valgen had his men up in the mountains before this battle, getting the hang of a new consignment of snow shoes to give some of them snowwalk. Ardaric recruited another Warrior from the homelands to try and counter the growing number of Dwarves. He also spent a Campaign Point on a Exploration Warband advance.

Battle Aftermath: Running amok at the end, Valgen secured his first Campaign Point in style.

Running CP Count: Barbarians 4, Dwarves 1

Injuries:

• Cohan Deathaxe sustained a Serious Injury that will keep him out of the next battle.
• Remos suffered a moderate Injury, meaning his quality will be one worse for the next battle.
• Both Garos and Rodulf made full recoveries.

Income: 

• The Barbarians made off with 25 gold
• The Dwarves earned 30 Gold and also sold the Mortar for an additional 50.
• Limping on their way back home the Barbarians came upon a trade caravan. But with little money and no appetite to haggle Ardaric didn't stop to trade.
• The triumphant singing of the Dwarf camp attracted the attention of a band of Lizardmen. In the resulting struggle Slii Shadesmith was injured, but not seriously enough to prevent a full recovery before the next battle.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #10: Barbarians 30, Dwarves 115

Battle #10: Keep the Beacon Fires Burning.
Valgen had spent some of his riches on a new breed hit'n'run bear cavalry, Whilst Odel Bowtwanger had earned his full crossbowman status (increasing his Quality). The experience of the last battle had shown Ardaric that he'd been spending to much time barking orders and needed to get back to basics, so he hit the training ground with Erwig to increase their combat effectiveness.

Battle Aftermath: The beacon was successfully defended so a Barbarian win.

Running CP Count: Barbarians 5, Dwarves 1

Injuries:

• Valgen recovered from his wounds but was left with a bitter Anger. He now has Hatred (Barbarian) on his stat line.
• Ireheart made a full recovery
• Hono suffered a serious wound, meaning he misses the next battle.
• Slii Shadesmith and Odel Bowtwanger died from their wounds.

Income:

• The Barbarians were rewarded 30 gold for their warning of the surrounding area.
• The Dwarves collected 15 Gold.
• The red mist that had desended over Valgen clouded his navigation and the warband lost their way home. They suffer -1 to their initiative roll next battle.
• The Barbarians met on old beggar at the roadside on the way home. After his victory Ardaric was feeling generous and gifted the old man a gold coin.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #11: Barbarians 59, Dwarves 62

Battle #11: Run for Help!

Ardaric brought in another Warrior to add to his lines. Meanwhile, on the training ground, Cohen has been spending his time sparring with Ooko, giving him the opportunistic skill and Ooko's bobbing and weaving giving him the acrobat skill. T-ord has also been having his mentor, Erwig, teach him the skill of Free Disengage. With his close escape at Eagles Eyre still fresh in his mind Ardaric purchased a healing potion for himself and a spell scroll for Ooko. Valgen replaced the fallen Odel with an Elite Crossbowman, Hagar.

Battle Aftermath: The messanger never got through - a Barbarian Win.

Running CP Count: Barbarians 6, Dwarves 1

Injuries: The only injury was to rookie Hagar, who made a full recovery.

Income:

• The Barbarians were rewarded 40 gold for holding their blockade.
• The Dwarves collected 50 gold with their underdog bonus.
• One their way back to camp the Dwarves stumbled upon a body with a bulging purse containing 30 gold.
• The Barbarians found an old forgotten tomb, but but despite searching it could not find anything of value.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #12: Barbarians 43, Dwarves 98

Battle #12: Something Wicked This Way Comes

Valgen used his cash reserves to recruit in  3 new rookies (Two new warriors and a Barbarian hating Slayer) also experience was spend training up some of the troops in the ways of the forest. Haggar Swiftbolt also took a trip to the market to make sure he didn't run out of ammunition again. Ardaric had less funds to play with and only one warband recruit slot to go before reaching his maximum. So he spent some cash on a horse and had Remos trained up as Cavalry.

Battle Aftermath: With the only kill of the game - a Barbarian Win

Running CP Count: Barbarians 7, Dwarves 1

Injuries: Boindel and his bear made a full recovery.

Income:

• The Barbarians collected 20 gold for their victory
• The Dwarves used their underdog bonus to amass 50 gold
• On their way back to what was civilisation to them the Ardaric's warband came across an Alehouse, which they took over.
• The Dwarves stumbled upon a forgotten keg of ale to drown their sorrows.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #13: Barbarians 48, Dwarves 53

Battle #13: Open The Gate

Valgen Recruited

Battle Aftermath: The gate wasn't opened so a costly Barbarian Win

Running CP Count: Barbarians 8, Dwarves 1

Injuries: Rodulf and Garos both died from their wounds.

Income:

• Barbarians earned 10 gold for the battle and 5 gold from Alehouse sales = 15 total
• The Dwarves took 10 gold away with them
• During the night as the Barbarians slept, a black wind blew through the camp. Skulldrinker heard strange voices in his dreams, trying to tempt him over to the ways of chaos, but he resisted.
• The Dwarves fell upon a Cursed Glade, which Falster succommed to, leaving him a bit confused (Quality one worse the next battle)
• Gold Reserves for Battle #14: Barbarians 63, Dwarves 38

Battle #14: Catch Those Critters

To try and plug the wide gap in warband numbers Ooko went through another magic ritual, converting 50 gold to his summoning pool. Valgen brought a new recruit in.

Battle Aftermath: With most Critters caught- a Dwarven Win

Running CP Count: Barbarians 8, Dwarves 2

Injuries: No fallen.

Income:

• The Dwarves reaped 30 gold from their win
• The Barbarians could only muster a meagre 5 gold (+ 5 gold from the Alehouse) = 10 gold
• On their travels the Dwarves set upon a Den of Thieves who agreed to work with them by stealing 1D6 gold from the barbarians after every fight and giving the spoils to Valgen.
• The Barbarians met a Centaur Hero in the wilderness, who agreed to join Ardaric's crew.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #15: Barbarians 23, Dwarves 35

Battle #15: Camp Assault ( the Return )

With no cash on either side no additions were made to the warbands.

Battle Aftermath: Repulsing the Dwarves: a Barbarian Win

Running CP Count: Barbarians 9, Dwarves 2

Injuries:

• Valgen suffered an Injury, permanently reducing his quality by one.
• Haggar and Slarti Bartfast both miss the next battle.

Income:

• The Dwarves picked up 10 Gold post battle and an extra 6 gold from their light fingered allies = 16
• The Barbarians had 20 gold, bolstered by the 5 from thier Alehouse sales but lost 6 to the Thieves = 19
• On their travels the Dwarves after a long hunt, the Dwarves finally found an Alehouse they could call their own (and there was much rejoicing)
• The Barbarians also found an abandoned property - A Smithy, which will give them 1D6 x 5 gold after each battle.
• Gold Reserves for Battle #16: Barbarians 42, Dwarves 51

Battle #16: Blow Up the Outpost

With having 2 crossbowmen out for Battle 16 Valgen had some desissions to make. He brought in another Warrior and also purchased a charmstone in case a vital roll went against him. Ardaric had just enough gold to bring in an fresh faced warrior.

Battle Aftermath: A desperate battle: Barbarian Win

Running CP Count: Barbarians 10, Dwarves 2

Campaign Outcome
Victory for Ardaric's Barbarians

Post Campaign Thoughts:

Arabianknight:

The Elementals really shifted this campaign I feel. Over the run I expected them to be useful at the start and fade as the Dwarves gained stronger with experience, but for campaign use they gave me a good first line of disposable heroes that I could just stick forward as I wouldn't have to "buy back" replacements for the next battle. I know Valgen MacSver really enjoyed killing them, and that says alot. Those Dwarves are still tough warriors to crack mind you. And when they've traded their XP for skills that help overcome their short legs (Snow-walk, Forrester) they can get around surprisingly quickly. If they get don't split up then my forces just can't take them on, toe to toe. Even then, with replacement Barbarians being 12 gold more expensive than the average rookie Dwarf Warrior I was reluctant to go "mano-a-dwarfo". 

Individual models really make the long campaign shine, as you really feel whenever a named character that you've brought on dies (and also increases the excitement whenever anyone rolls on the injury table for either side). The Scenario booklet from Hour11 (mentioned at the top) was excellent and will be ploughed through again to try a fully make use of the joys within next campaign.