The Green and the Yellow
Being an account of a battle fought between the Mountainguard of Averland and the inhuman greenskins of the border lands
Introduction
In the spring of the year of our Lord Sigmar twenty-five hundred and twenty-three, a large greenskin raiding force was sighted heading for the Blackfire Pass, the gateway to our most glorious Empire. With the fortifications in the pass undermanned and in a poor state of repair due to the winter war with the dead armies of Sylvania, the Ordenmarschall despatched such troops as were available to intercept the raiders at the south-eastern mouth of the pass. It was hoped that the Fähnlein under Captain Hans Fries, together with a squadron of light cavalrymen and the steam-driven war engine called Conciliator, would be able to drive back the greenskin vanguard or at the least delay them long enough for a larger force to arrive from Averheim.
The Disposition of Armies
The Mountainguard of the Blackfire Pass
Twenty-four Mountainguard veteran swordsmen, commanded by Captain Hans Fries
Twenty-four Mountainguard veteran pikemen, commanded by Sergeant Felix Keller
Twenty-four Mountainguard auxiliary swordsmen, commanded by Sergeant Heinrich Gölgli
Twenty-four Mountainguard auxiliary swordsmen, commanded by Sergeant Johannes Schnell
Ten Bergjaeger archers
Ten Halfling archers
Ten mounted wardens, armed with bows and crossbows
Ten mounted wardens, armed with carabines
A Dampfpanzer,
Conciliator
A Bombard,
Maria Sforza, with a crew of twelve
Aureolus Bombastus, an Adept of the Bright College
The Goblin raiders
Twenty-one Hobgoblin spearmen, commanded by a Hobgoblin chieftain
Twenty-four Hobgoblin warriors, commanded by a Hobgoblin champion
Twenty-eight Goblin warriors, commanded by a Hobgoblin champion
Seventeen Goblin archers
Seventeen Goblin archers
Fifteen Goblin wolfriders
A Goblin bonecaster
An elemental spirit of the air
A Great Dragon
Deployment
The terrain at the mouth of the pass was relatively sparse. Two low hills faced each other, with the intervening ground broken by a few outcrops of rock. A small copse of trees stood to the centre of one side of the field.
Turn one
With a great clamour of horns and drums, both armies began a general advance under covering fire from their respective missile troops. The dragon flew boldly before the Empire line, unleashing a jet of flame that caused the ground to scorch and boil but happily failed to cause any real harm.
The Maria Sforza targeted the hovering dragon, but the shot passed far to the creature’s right. Captain Fries cursed under his breath: the bombard had been the best hope for destroying the monstrous beast.
Goblin archery on the right flank struck down only a handful of Empire soldiers. On the left flank, concentrated fire slew so many of the oncoming wolfriders that the cowardly greenskins turned their mounts around and prepared to flee the field.
Turn two
As the wolfriders fled, the mounted wardens broke formation and set off in wild pursuit. In their excitement though, they had forgotten the hostile elemental spirit that lurked nearby. It descended on them in a whirl, clawing at their throats with icy claws. Yet, Ulric favoured the valiant wardens. The elemental found itself driven to pieces by the horsemen’s swords, its substance scattered back onto the winds.
The dragon also moved to attack, falling onto the Halfling archers like a thunderbolt. Again, the monster’s fiery breath missed its mark, surely by the will of Sigmar. Acting quickly, Aureolus Bombastus wove an enchantment upon the Halfings that gave them tongues of flame, and with these strange weapons they battled the mighty fiend. Five halfings died, but the dragon took five terrible wounds, and in panic launched skyward.
The Goblin wizard cast a similar spell of fire upon the Hobgoblin spearmen. Fearing the bombard, they broke into loose order as they advanced. The greenskin and Imperial lines continued their slow advance, Goblin archery on the right flank taking a heavy toll on the Mountainguard auxiliaries under Sergeant Schnell.
Turn three
The wolfriders left the field of battle entirely, and the gravely-injured dragon flew as far as the Goblin-controlled hill. As it passed, the wardens on the right flank inflicted another wound with their carabines, causing the beast to howl in agony.
On the left flank, the other mounted wardens saw the goblin wizard lurking alone behind the lines, and recklessly attempted to ride him down. This time, they were not so fortunate. Arcane fire slew three horsemen before they could reach their target, and another was wounded by the shaman’s crooked blade. Shaken, they turned to flee - even as the badly-wounded shaman made his escape in the other direction.
The bombard fired once more, producing a great deal of smoke but little or no damage. The goblin archers were much more successful, killing yet more of Schnell’s men and breaking their resolve to continue.
Both battle lines were now very close indeed. The real fight was about to begin. The Imperial sorcerer joined the Mountainguard pikemen, casting a spell that caused blue flames to run along their pikes as he did so.
Turn four
It was the greenskins who seized the initiative. The Hobgoblin spearmen, still in open order, charged both the Halfling archers and Sergeant Gölgli’s auxiliaries. The bestial Hobgoblin commander cut down the sergeant with horrible ease, and his fire-breathing troops butchered the brave Halflings. Nevertheless, without the reassurance of close formation they proved unable to penetrate the Imperial line, breaking and fleeing back the way they had come. The loss of their sergeant was too much for the auxiliaries, and they also fled.
In the centre, the Hobgoblin warriors engaged the pikemen. Here as well, the Hobgoblin champion murdered his human counterpart. Bombastus lashed the greenskins with magical flame to little effect, and the battle proved otherwise inconclusive.
On the right, the Goblins were engaged by the veteran swordsmen, the Imperial general and the mighty steam tank. At the same time, the mounted wardens emerged from cover to harry their flanks. Despite this seemingly overwhelming force, the fight went poorly for the Empire. Captain Fries was killed by the Hobgoblin champion - the third officer to die in battle with those terrible creatures - and his veteran swordsmen withdrew from the fight in shock. The Goblins stood firm.
Turn five
The Hobgoblin spearmen ran full pelt from the battle, pursued by the Bergjaeger archers. On the left flank the mounted wardens left the field, but the three fleeing Mountainguard regiments managed to rally.
The dragon, driven mad with pain, charged into the flank of the wardens, themselves in the flank of the Goblin warriors. Carelessly employing its deadly breath against the chaotic melee, it nonetheless failed to kill anything. A single horseman fell to the monster’s bite. The steam tank crushed the wounded Hobgoblin champion under its heavy wheels, but still the Goblins stubbornly refused to break.
In the centre, the Hobgoblin warriors continued to battle the veteran pikemen to little effect. The Imperial wizard set another jet of flame into the ranks, but took a heav wound from the Hobgoblin leader in response.
Turn six
The battle was begining to draw to a close. The Hobgoblin spearmen continued their flight, though the pursuing Bergjaeger took heavy casualties from the Goblin archers on the hill. In the centre, the Goblin wizard cast the flame-breathe spell on the Hobgoblin warriors. Even with this additional help, and even though the Imperial wizard was cut down by their champion, they failed to break the pikemen.
The bombard fired its third and last shot at the fleeing spearmen, but again failed to cause damage. On the left flank, the dragon was dealt a death-bow by an especially-valiant horsemen. The few remaining Goblins fought on for the moment, but their chances of future survival looked slim. The Mountainguard had taken heavy caualties, including the loss of all but one of their officers, but they had succeded in turning back the greenskins. The day was Sigmar’s!
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Thanks to Remy for the pictures, and for the game! 
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(Oh and the Goblins too 
)
It can be good but its just not worth the points in relation to other monsters on the list IMO. However as I say, the best tactic would've probably to have been a cheesemonger and just stayed flying high and there would've been little Rufus could do about it really, with no flyers of his own.
