The
Denizens of Mirkwood are, much like
their brethren in Mordor, a multitudinous but brittle force. They are a serious
threat to all those who live in or near Mirkwood as well as those attempt to
pass through. Made up of orcs of Dol Guldur, orcs of Mirkwood, and terrifying
giant spiders, the Denizens of Mirkwood
are a fearsome threat to the good people of Mirkwood and Dale. Only the
Woodland Realm and Men of Dale keep this threat contained to Mirkwood itself,
but there’s no way of knowing how long this might last.
The
Denizens of Mirkwood player takes the
role of an Orc Captain, commanding a band of raiders, in service to Sauron. He
seeks to slaughter the good people of Dorwinion wherever he finds them, and in
doing so, advance his position using both loot and the favor he gains through success.
While not directly in the view of the Great Eye, his successes and failures do
not go unnoticed.
There
are several troop types unique to the Denizens
of Mirkwood, as follows:
SNAGA
Snaga are the smallest and weakest of the
orcs serving the Dark Lord and as such, are used as slaves by those higher in
the orcish pecking order. Unskilled and under-equipped, they are mere fodder in
the armies of Mirkwood. Their only hope for victory is to massively overwhelm
their enemies with their numbers. To reflect this, a Group of Snaga will be
twelve (12) figures, fighting in three (3) ranks of four (4) with only the
first two (2) ranks fighting and will fight as one level below Levy in combat in regards to troop
quality, but die on a 4, 5, or 6 and Shock on a 1, 2, or 3. They may not form
shieldwall or Spear Hedge without
being in formation with Uruks. When
shot at by Missiles or attacked by Skirmishers they are treated as Levy as well as for Morale Changes.
SOLDIER ORCS
Soldier Orcs form the vast majority of the
armies of Sauron. Small and stooped in stature, they are no match for the
average human warrior in a one on one fight, but what they lack in skill, they
make up in numbers. To reflect this, a Group
of Soldier Orcs will be nine (9)
figures fighting in three (3) ranks of three (3) with only the first two (2)
ranks fighting and will fight as Levy in
combat, but die on a 5 or 6 and Shock on a 2, 3, or 4. They may not form
shieldwall or Spear Hedge without
being in formation with Uruks. When
shot at by Missiles or attacked by Skirmishers they are treated as Levy as well as for Morale Changes.
URUKS
Uruks are the vilest and most fierce of
orcs, fighting with ferocity and skills that nearly match their average human
foes and well equipped by the forges of Dol Guldur. However, they are still
orcs and are prone to flight like the rest of their brethren. To reflect this,
a Group of Uruks will be six (6) figures and will fight as Warriors in combat, but die on a 6 and
Shock on a 3, 4, or 5. They may not form shieldwall, but may form a Spear Hedge defensive formation along
with any other Uruks and Soldier Orcs in Formation with them. When shot at by Missiles or attacked by Skirmishers
they are treated as Warriors as well
as for Morale Changes.
WILD WARGS
Wild Wargs are savage war beasts, somewhat tamed by the orcs and men of Angmar. While they are a fearsome threat, they are by no means as dangerous as the tamed beasts that bear orc riders. Starved and savagely treated they think of little more than eating. To reflect this, a Group of Wild Wargs will be three (3) Wild Warg figures and one (1) Warg Master and will act as Shock Cavalry, doubling any Shock they inflict in the first round of combat. However, they may never evade like standard cavalry and function the same as stationary cavalry if charged. If they are victorious in combat, they must spend the next activation devouring their fallen foes. The Warg Master must roll 1D6 to attempt to regain control of his Wargs, succeeding on a 4, 5, or 6. They may not take any further actions until he regains control. If any enemies are within twelve (12) inches of victorious Wild Wargs, they must roll 1D6 and take that number of Shock to represent the horror of their friends being eaten before their eyes. If they are defeated in combat by two or more kills, they will automatically disperse. This will not affect Force Morale.
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| Property of Clarence Harrison of Quindia Studios |
WARG RIDERS
Warg Riders function the same as Raider Cavalry in The Raiders supplement, but will double any shock inflicted when
they are the attacker.
TROLLS
Trolls are the strongest and most powerful
infantry available to the armies of Mirkwood. Great, hulking beasts from the
deepest caves and equipped by the forges of the Dol Guldur, trolls are a
terrifying presence on the battlefield and instill doubt in even the greatest
of men. To reflect this, a Troll is
one (1) figure and will fight as Elites in
combat, but are wounded on a 6 and Shock on a 5. They may not form shieldwall
or Spear Hedge. When shot at by Missiles or attacked by Skirmishers they are treated as Elites. They fight with six (6) dice in
combat and have six (6) wounds, but for every wound they reduce their attack
dice by one. Unless commanded by a noble attached to the Troll, the Troll will
always move directly towards the nearest enemy Group and attack as soon as possible. They are treated as Elites for Morale Changes.
GIANT SPIDERS
Giant
Spiders strike fear in the hearts of all who oppose them. Their frightful
appearance and terrifying speed cause all manner of fear and disorder to their
opponents. To reflect this, a Group
of four (4) Giant Spiders will act as
Elite Shock Cavalry, but they will
double any Shock they inflict in the
first two (2) rounds of combat rather than just the first. However, since they
are more interested in survival than a battlefield victory, all shock on them
is doubled as well. In addition to this, if they are defeated in combat by two
or more kills, they will automatically disperse. They are treated as Warriors for morale changes.
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| Property of C'tan on fantasygames.com.pl |
Force Rules
Out of Command: Orcs that are not in command range
of a Noble’s Command Radius are
considered Out of Command. Any orc Group or Formation that are Out of
Command will not advance and will accrue one point of Shock per Group every
turn that they are Out of Command.
Any Group or Formation that is Out of
Command and has a number of Shock
equal to or greater than the number of miniatures in the unit, the will be
treated as Misplacing their Amphora.
They can no longer be rallied and will leave the field of battle as quickly as
possible. Each time the turn ends they will move 3D6 inches towards their
friendly table edge.
Follow Up: All Denizens of Mirkwood Groups
and Formations must follow up after
winning a combat unless the Noble makes his follow up test.
Weak Willed: Any orc Group or Formation that
is passed through by withdrawing units will suffer the full effects of their
routing allies. Any friendly Groups
withdrawn through will suffer one point of Shock
for each point of Shock on the
retiring Group. If there is a
difference in troop quality, they will add or subtract Shock depending on their level.
For
example: A group of six Snaga have
eight points of Shock and are obliged
to withdraw eight inches (4 inches for each excess point of Shock). They must withdraw through a Group of Uruks to do so. The Snaga
have eight points of Shock, so the Uruks should suffer eight points of Shock when interpenetrated. However,
this number is reduced by two as the Uruks
are two levels of quality greater than the Snaga,
leaving the Uruks to take six Shock. Had the roles been reversed, the Snaga would have taken eight points of Shock, plus another two points as the Uruks are two quality levels higher, for
a total of ten points.
Ambushers: The forces of the Denizens of Mirkwood are skilled
ambushers. To reflect this they may elect to use either the Surprise or Flank Miracle from the main rules before every game. They do not
inform their opponent of their decision to use this ability or which option
they select.
Missiles: All orc Groups carry bows and may elect to function as Missile Troops during the turn. If they choose to do so, they’re
unit size does not change, but they will function as a Group of four (4) Missiles
until their next activation. If they are attacked, they may attempt to Evade like Missile Troops, but may only evade 2D6 inches. If they are
contacted, they will receive double Shock
for the first two (2) rounds of combat, and will fight as one (1) level
lower in troop quality. For example: If a Group
of Uruks is contacted while
acting as Missiles they will fight as
Levy and receive double Shock and if a Group of Soldier Orcs is
contacted while acting as Missiles
they will fight as one level below Levy in
regards to troop quality and receive double Shock.
Any Group of Snaga that is unable to evade will be dispersed, like standard Missiles. As long as all Groups in a Formation are within two inches on each other, they remain in Formation. However, if any Group is further than this distance,
they are no longer in the Formation and
must be reattached.The Evade may be
stopped if the attacker uses a Carpe Diem
card, the same as in the standard rules. If acting as Missile Troops during the turn, the Fleet of Foot card may be used
on the Group.
(Author’s Note: The reason that the
penalties are so great for being unable to evade are to both reflect the poor
quality and morale of orcs as well as to prevent this ability to be used for
too many shenanigans. This has the effect of allowing all orcs to use bows, which
Tolkien described nearly all of them carrying, as well as being relatively
accurate to what would actually occur if orcs were forced to drop their bows
and fight unprepared.)
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| Property of Garfy on Tale of Painters |
Starting Forces
The
starting forces for the Denizens of
Mirkwood are as follows: One Captain (Status III Lord), two Lieutenants
(One Status II Noble and One Status I Noble), and a Champion.
Led
by these Nobles, you will have three Groups
of Snaga, three Groups of Soldier Orcs,
one Groups of Uruks, and two groups of Raiders.
They will also have one Group of Wild Wargs.
Reinforcements for the Denizens
of Mirkwood are gained the same
way as the Saxons in the main game.
Reinforcements which arrive using the reinforcements table will
be as below.
Reinforcements arrive in the order shown, from 1 to 5. The first
time a force receives
reinforcements it will gain the Group indicated in row 1, the second time the Group
shown in row 2, and so on up to row 5 after which no further
reinforcements are
available. However, at any time a player may choose to take the Group from the row
numbered higher, but this will mean that will never receive the Group he passes over.
Order
|
Denizens of Mirkwood
|
1
|
Two
Groups of Twelve Snaga
|
2
|
Four
Giant Spiders
|
3
|
Four
Wild Wargs and Warg Master
|
4
|
Nine
Soldier Orcs
|
5
|
One
Troll and a Status I Noble
|
Denizens of Mirkwood Cards
The
Denizens of Mirkwood begin the game
with one Goad card and one Darting Blow card. The balance of their hands are
dealt at random from the Fate Deck. The remainder of their cards added to the
Fate Deck are as follows:
Carpe
Diem x 3
Darting
Blow x 1
Spear
Hedge x 1
Goad
x 1
Aggressive
Charge x 1
The Eye is Watching x 2
The Eye is Watching: This card must be used on a Group or Formation within the command radius of the Orc Lord. When played,
the Lord uses the threat of Sauron’s displeasure to rally his troops. For the
first two rounds of combat for these units this turn, they will receive no Shock. This is a Pursuit Card in Post-Game Phase. (Use unused Saxon or Raider cards
to Represent this card, or make your own!)
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