The residents of the small village of Middensbury had all heard the rumours. A vile and depraved band of Chaos worshipers had been slaughtering their way through neighbouring settlements. Middensbury would surely be next, and what chance would they stand?

Hope arrived in the form of a bounty hunter known as Red Kate. She too had heard the rumours, and was keen to profit from them. The leader of this band of fiends’ head would fetch a fine price from the local Duke, and she intended to deliver it.

Red Kate was backed up by two of her own comrades. Greybeards, well past their prime, but with long years of experience in the field. This rallied the villagers, and soon they had assembled a sizeable force. Confidence began to grow, and when a young boy returned, breathless, to tell them he’d spotted the enemy, a grim determination swept over this makeshift militia.

Confidence and determination turned to fear for much of the villagers when they finally caught a glimpse of their foe. From cruel and lethal goblins, to warped mutants and hulking Chaos Warriors, they began to realise the odds that were stacked against them. Yes, they had the numbers. But could they really defeat these monsters? And if so, at what cost?

This is the first battle in my Song of Chaos & Vengeance campaign, using the Song of Blades & Heroes system. Playing solo, I’ve not yet nailed down any one way to optimise this, so I’ll be testing and tweaking as I go. For this battle, I aimed to simply do my best with both sides. This means there would be no real surprises or randomness in any of the movement or tactics (something I’ll look to introduce in the next game).

My activation strategy would generally be to opt for the best ‘Quality’ characters first when attacking, and aiming to deal with the most imminent danger whilst defending.

The early part of the battle saw Tebaud the Butcher and his deputy Mallüs Bloodaxe getting stuck right into the Middensbury vanguard. To be fair to Red Kate and co, they held well for several turns. There was a lot of jostling, parrying, and dodging, and it looked like the forces of Chaos might not have it all their own way after all.

Then, disaster struck for the villagers as Tebaud dispatched of one of Kate’s veterans. His body had barely hit the ground before the bounty hunter herself was brutally slain by Mallüs Bloodaxe. Even though the Chaos Warrior was outnumbered, his 6 roll to her 1 ensured that she wouldn’t be collecting any gold this day. Or, on any other for that matter.

With only one mercenary warrior remaining, it seemed like the two Chaos Warriors would now be free to cleave a bloody path through the rest of the villagers. That wasn’t to be. A humble blacksmith by the name of Thorburn had seen enough of this needless butchery, and he intended to put a stop to it.

The old metalworker charged Tebaud, smashing his giant hammer into the Chaos Champion’s helm. This blow was enough to knock Tebaud over, but a re-roll via his Hero perk meant he somehow stayed on his feet. Tavern landlord Portly Alf, inspired by his friends bravery, charged as they doubled up on Tebaud. Unfortunately, the pair couldn’t make their advantage count, and the overweight swordsman became the next villager to decorate the floor with his guts.

Enraged, Thorburn again launched himself at the Chaos Champion. Incredibly, he bested him for a second time. The Dark Gods were clearly smiling on Tebaud this day though, who was saved by his Heavy Armour perk. Would the blacksmith get another chance?

Amos the Executioner tried to take advantage of Thorburn’s heroism by attacking Tebaud. He was no match for the big champion though, and was only saved by the blacksmith fighting at his side, which meant a -1 deduction to Tebaud’s combat rating. His luck didn’t hold out much longer though, he was knocked over and murdered without another thought. The Butcher, armour coated in blood, turned his eyes back to that pesky blacksmith…

On the other side of the battlefield, Jakub Daemonhands arrived in a furious frenzy of whirling limbs and blades. He’d grown tired of watching those armoured idiots huffing and puffing against a bunch of peasants. It was time to show them how the real work was done.

The mutant’s first “opponent” came in the form of Middensbury’s favourite down-and-out, Drunken Dudley. Dudley was oblivious to the attack and had interpreted the afternoon’s events as some sort of street celebration. He was promptly dispatched and sent off to that big tavern in the sky, where his landlord was already setting a jug on the table for him. Rest in Peace, Dudley.

Back down at the box-office event, Thorburn the blacksmith lands a power blow on Tebaud the Butcher. This time, he’s a mere 1 point away from killing the Chaos Champion. Sadly, it was to be his last act of heroism, and the beginning of the end for the Middensbury defence. The Butcher replied with a power blow of his own, and this time, he trebles his score for a gruesome kill.

It’s morale checks all round for the horrified villagers who witnessed this brutal slaughter, many of them scattering towards the edge of the table, their spirits broken.

One defender who wasn’t turning tail to run was Old Nicholas the mercenary swordsman. A former army man, he’d fought in more battles than he cared to remember. If this was to be his last, he’d make sure he died on the front foot. Perhaps he’d even take one of these loathsome creatures with him?

And he nearly did, too. Knocking Mallüs Bloodaxe right onto his arse, laughing and taunting the bested Chaos Warrior who scrambled to regain his feet, as well as his pride.

Unfortunately, the villagers who could’ve provided some much-needed backup to Old Nic had already fled, running for their lives after the brutal killing of Thorburn the blacksmith. Isolated and alone, Nicholas smiled grimly to himself as Bloodaxe charged, roaring to some black-hearted God. There were no more heroics for the veteran swordsman who suffered the second gruesome kill of the afternoon.

This prompted more morale checks all round, as the dead now outnumbered the living on the Middensbury side. Tebaud’s warband hadn’t even activated half of their forces, and victory was now within touching distance.

Any dying embers of fight were knocked out of the remaining survivors, who turned and fled for their lives. All except one. An old beggar, leaning heavily on a crutch and upon two wooden legs, rolled three 5s to pass his Morale test.

Perhaps this harmless-looking old man was once a great solder, who’d lost his legs fighting heroically in a long-ago war. He turned towards Jakub Daemonhands and advanced, holding out his begging bowl. The big mutant rolled his eyes at yet another idiot who’d mistaken this massacre for some sort of festivity. But as the beggar got close enough, he threw the contents of his cup into Jakub’s face, following it up with a blow from his crutch.

There was to be no blood spilt against Tebaud’s warband this day though. The attack was easily swatted aside, and the old man’s belly was opened by another of Jakub’s knives.

The massacre of Middensbury was emphatic. And it was over.

As the Dust Settles

And so it was the two Chaos Warriors, Mallüs Bloodaxe and Tebaud the Butcher, who were at the centre of the carnage in this battle. They spilled a lot of blood, but both were matched for a period of time by brave and determined opponents. On another day, one of them could’ve easily fallen to one of the many blows landed upon them.

Jakub Daemonhands was the only other member of the party who really saw any action. Khongor the shaman made his way over to witness the final few exchanges, but didn’t have any real part to play. The others were stuck in their deployment positions, poor quality activation rolls keeping them there for the duration of the battle.

Kills & Casualties

• Tebaud the Butcher – 4 kills
• Mallüs Bloodaxe – 2 kills
• Jakub Daemonhands – 2 kills
• Casualties – 0

As for their next battle, I’ll have more details on that pretty soon. In the meantime, be sure to read about this gruesome warband’s background and history in Song of Chaos & Vengeance.

I recently wrote about solo wargaming, and running some sort of narrative campaign has been on my mind for a while now.

I’d been looking at the miniatures I’ve bought and painted over the past year. I’ve got a few chaos warriors, beastmen, and goblins, along with a few other chaos-y types. Mainly from the excellent Knightmare miniatures range.

I began to come up with the idea for an eclectic and dysfunctional warband of outcasts, misfits, and disgraced heroes. Admittedly, I’ve not come across greenskins allying with chaos since the days of Battlemasters, but if it’s good enough for Battlemasters, it’s good enough for me.

As well as playing through the telling of a story, this was also an opportunity to make some nice cards on MTG Cardsmith. Okay, so my efforts aren’t quite that of the legendary 1980s Citadel Combat Cards standard, but you can see the influence here. Incidentally, the cards have been created for Song of Blades & Heroes, which you can read more about in my miniature agnostic games roundup.

So let’s dive in and meet my anti-heroes, starting off with their leader, Tebaud the Butcher…

Tebaud the Butcher: Chaos Champion

A fearsome and brutal champion, Tebaud was once at the speartip of a mighty regiment of chaos warriors.

Following the death of their leader in battle, Tebaud put himself forward as the unit’s natural successor. Unfortunately for him, he was challenged by his old friend Jötum Redmane. The two fought to the death for the right to lead their brothers into a new era. Redmane came out on top leaving Tebaud for dead, with wounds that would’ve finished off any mortal man.

But Tebaud did not die. He made his way south to seek refuge, healing, and strength. Tebaud would bide his time, rebuild his forces, and one day return to take what was rightfully his.

Points: 86

Quality: 3+

Combat: 4

Special: Hero, Heavy Armour

Purchased from: Ebay – Old Citadel miniature

Mallüs Bloodaxe: Chaos Warrior

Altdorf-born Bloodaxe was once one of the finest warriors in the imperial army. That was many centuries ago.

How this talented soldier fell victim to the ruinous powers, nobody knows. But fell he did. The Empire’s loss was the Dark Gods’ gain, as Bloodaxe slaughtered untold numbers in their name.

The veteran warrior was loyal to Tebaud the Butcher during his failed leadership challenge and had been poised to become his second in command.

The pair travelled south together, with Bloodaxe defending his wounded master on many occasions. They would go on to assemble and lead this small band of misfits and outcasts, with the longer-term aim of returning north to seize control of their former regiment.

Points: 66

Quality: 3+

Combat: 4

Special: Combat Master, Heavy Armour

Purchased from: Knightmare

Khongor: Beastman Shaman

Little is known about this sinister beastman shaman, other than the fact that he is ancient beyond comprehension, not to mention ruthless and deadly.

Even Tebaud himself is wary of the dark and malevolent powers possessed by Khongor. Whether he is blessed or cursed by the Dark Gods, who can really say. Perhaps they are one and the same?

It seems like Khongor is driven by a desire to destroy and despoil everything in his path, and joining forces with Tebaud gave him ample opportunity to do just that. There’s no loyalty or trust here, just a shared love of violence and vengeance on a weak world and its petty inhabitants.

Points: 38

Quality: 4+

Combat: 2

Special: Magic User

Purchased from: Knightmare

Bogshadow: Chaos Familiar

When Khongor joined Tebaud’s warband, he didn’t do so alone. The creature known as Bogshadow appears to act as some sort of familiar to the shaman.

This disturbing walking mushroom is said to have grown on a rocky plateau of warpstone, high up in the Realm of Chaos. A small, gibbering, and likely insane creature, its lack of size and fighting prowess is made up for by the fact that it can be highly poisonous to anyone in its vicinity.

Bogshadow does not leave its master’s side, so any foe wishing to pick it out as an easy target will also have Khongor’s magic staff to contend with.

The fungi also seems to be invincible, having once been hacked to pieces in a battle on the outskirts of Kislev. By the time the fighting was over, Bogshadow had completely repaired and regenerated itself, continuing on as though nothing had happened.

Points: 13

Quality: 5+

Combat: 2

Special: Poison

Purchased from: CP Models

Uglag Woodenleg: Goblin Archer

A once legendary goblin archer. Uglag was famed for the amount of dwarves he’d slain at range during long campaigns under the World’s Edge Mountains.

But as his renown grew, his guard lowered, and he was caught by surprise and nearly killed by a particularly angry Slayer. Uglag escaped from the frenzied axe-swinging minus one of his legs.

The impairment didn’t affect Uglag’s skills with a bow and arrow, but his inability to keep up with the rest of his raiding party made him a liability. A drunken has-been, he was relegated to training young and unruly goblins to take up the bow.

Dreams of fame and glory never left Uglag, though, and he slinked off into the darkness one night, never to return. He found an unlikely kindred spirit in Tebaud the Butcher, a fellow fallen hero who invited him to join his fledgeling warband. Uglag was only too glad to accept, and to get back to doing what he does best.

Points: 39

Quality: 4+

Combat: 2

Special: Shooter (Medium), Assassin, Short Move

Purchased from: Knightmare

Grotti Gutsticker: Goblin Archer

A former pupil of Uglug’s, Grotti Gutsticker is an unremarkable archer with a remarkable appetite for gold.

When his old mentor drunkenly announced that he was off to chase the deeds and glories of his past, Gutsticker begged to tag along.

After a few years of working in-tow with his mentor, Gutsticker can shoot an arrow where it needs to go – most of the time. However, his real passion is in the looting of bodies once the dust has settled. Sometimes even before the dust has settled.

This greedy goblin is barely tolerated by those he’d call his comrades. Aside from Uglag, who relies heavily on him to keep his supply of alcohol flowing.

Points: 18

Quality: 4+

Combat: 2

Special: Shooter (Medium), Greedy

Purchased from: Knightmare

Jakub Daemonhands: Mutant Raider

Born to God-fearing peasants who left him in the woods to die, it was clear that little Jakub had the attention of somewhat darker Gods than those of his parents.

But this four-armed mutant was discovered and raised by a herd of beastmen, who worshipped him like some sort of diety.

Daemonhands was bigger and stronger than most men by the time he reached his thirteenth summer. His temper was explosive, and he murdered most of the herd that had raised him during one particularly violent tantrum.

The mutant became a loner and raider, ambushing and slaughtering everyone from travelling merchants, to entire warbands.

Tebaud’s party were one such warband to be targetted by Daemonhands. And, although he was defeated, the Butcher was so impressed with the fight put up that he spared his life in exchange for his oath.

Points: 35

Quality: 4+

Combat: 4

Special: Free Disengage

Purchased from: Knightmare

Festus the Flea-bitten: Beastman Mercenary

An old Nurgle-worshipping mercenary, Festus the Fleabitten is a diseased and pestilent beastman.

Though the others in the warband often joke that his smell is a more potent weapon than his skill with a blade, Festus is tough.

His swordwork may be slow and steady, with no flair and certainly no finesse, but Festus is rarely phased by any wounds he takes in the process.

Even the sharpest swords and axes seem to do little damage to his thick mangy hide, and he soon tires his opponents out with his relentless stamina.

Festus claims he once lead his own band of warriors to glory many aeons ago, but the rest of the warband take this claim with a pinch of salt.

Points: 45

Quality: 4+

Combat: 3

Special: Tough

Purchased from: Knightmare

What’s Next?

In my next post I’ll be talking more about the campaign story – where they’ll be fighting, who they’ll be fighting, and why. The aim is for each battle to reveal a bit more about each character’s backstory too, as well as spin the web of their fate going forward. SoBaH campaign rules mean that some of them might not make it all the way to the end…

Update: Check out the warband’s first encounter on the tabletop – The Massacre at Middensbury

In the meantime, check out my recent posts on solo wargaming, miniature agnostic games, and populating a Lovecraftian dungeon.

For someone who’s sat alone playing Elder Scrolls: Skyrim for 1500+ hours, I still found the idea of solo wargaming “a bit weird”.

That was a limiting opinion, given that I’d only recently returned to the hobby. I didn’t exactly have a wealth of playing partner options, so I’d be buying and painting miniatures and terrain, pouring over rulebooks, and then… well, not very much, really. I took the “someday, I’ll have a really good game of this” approach.

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See also: The Ultimate Guide to Solo, Co-op, & Narrative Wargaming

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Then 2020 hit, and I realised that any difficulties I had in finding someone to play with had just gotten a whole lot harder.

I’d been reading the rulebook of Song of Blades & Heroes (find out more about it in my Miniature Agnostic Games roundup), and I’d also recently picked up Dungeon Saga. The latter actually came with a solo-play element and I thought I’d give it a shot (there are also some great adaptations available out there). I’d painted up all the in-box miniatures and created an Oathsworn Miniatures party to delve these dungeons with.

I also started playing out some warband skirmishes with the Sellswords and Spellslingers rules. During some of these early games, it began to click that solo wargaming came with a whole host of benefits that I’d been missing out on before.

No solo wargaming article is complete without mentioning Rangers of Shadow Deep either. This is one of the genre’s elite games, penned by the creator of the legendary Frostrgrave.

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Check out our Rangers of Shadow Deep episode on the Tabletop Miniature Hobby Podcast.

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1. There’s Always Time for Solo Wargaming

Do you work strange shift patterns and find yourself free between 2 am and 4 am most mornings? Playing solo only means you have to suit one person’s availability, and that’s you.

There’s no back and forth arranging dates and times, not to mention last minute cancellations. If you’ve got time, then you’ve got time to get a game in.

You might also save a lot of time in the setting up and tidying up, if you have the luxury of a play area that doesn’t need to resume its role as dinning table that evening. Your opponent won’t need to take their miniatures home, so games can be set up and played over days, or even weeks.

2. You Can Learn at Your Own Pace

Few people like to admit that they are a slow learner, but I definitely am. It takes a while for rules to sink in. I can pour over a rulebook for weeks, and think that I know the game inside out. Then, when I put it into practice on the tabletop, I start forgetting everything and it all goes to pieces.

I’m someone who learns best by doing. The problem was that I could seldom “do” because I rarely had anyone to play against. Solo wargaming has allowed me to gradually soak up the rules and quirks of the main game systems that interest me. When I make mistakes or need to spend 5mins looking through a rulebook, I’ve no paranoia that I’m ruining anyone else’s experience.

This relaxed “at your own pace” approach has given me a deeper understanding of how everything works in practice.

3. You Can Tell Better Stories

If someone is going to the trouble of meeting you for a game, there are usually certain expectations. One of those is that we’re going to face off with two forces similar in strength, and we’ll both have a realistic shot of winning.

I’ve always been more into the storytelling than the winning. I know that many wargamers do have great narrative-play experiences with their gaming pals. But it’s a tough sell to say to someone “here’s 4 halfling skirmishers, let’s see how long you can hold this hamlet against my minotaur horde.”

With solo wargaming, no setup or scenario is too unfair, or even, too silly. A single giant can take on hundreds of goblins and it doesn’t matter than one turn takes 30 seconds whilst the other takes 5 minutes. It’s often in these games that the most dramatic, cinematic, and downright hilarious moments occur, too.

4. You Can Test, Test, Test

Whether it’s a new army list, some home-brewed rules to a flawed but otherwise favourite ruleset, or the layout of some new terrain pieces, solo wargaming is the perfect testing ground.

Troubleshooting whilst playing solo means a smoother and more enjoyable game next time you’re able to get together with someone. It’s not just about fixing flaws though – you can optimise too. After a few solo games with your new medieval village terrain, you might come up with a layout that’s just perfect for kicking off your next campaign. So set up some solo games to answer the questions of “does this work?” and “how can this be even better?”.

Summary: Solo Wargaming

The purpose of this article isn’t to convince you that solo wargaming is better than playing against (or with) a friend. It’s just yet another layer of the hobby that many of us miss out on because it can initially seem “a bit weird”. But so can collecting and painting tiny toy soldiers, to be honest. You quickly get over other people’s perceptions – sometimes it’s harder to get over your own.

So why not try being an army of one (or would that be two armies of one?) and see what you think? If it doesn’t work out for you, it’s not like you’ve got far to go to get home 🙂

If you’re looking for some excellent solo rulesets to get started, be sure to check out Rangers of Shadow Deep, as well as Sellswords and Spellslingers!

Next up: 8 Tips to Rekindle Your Miniature Painting Motivation