(Long) Charge Response: Flee

The following (reply) was written just before the arrival of the HE book under 7th Edition rules. It might still be of some use.

Charge Response: Flee – A Guide to Ogre Kingdoms for Intermediate Players

by SpeedKills

Playing Ogre Kingdoms means relatively few models, easy to paint, thereby hard hitting and thus guaranteeing a successful close combat phase. At least that was what I thought when I started this army. I learned the hard way that I was wrong. Not with the painting part, but with successful combat. Now I know that Ogres run, nearly as fast as Skaven and nearly as often as Wood Elves. Am I disappointed? Not a bit. I became a huge fan of the Ogres and that is what I want to share.

This guide is for players who have a fair grasp of the rules, who have already fought some battles and who now seek advice on how to win the next. I focus on the most efficient tactics and simply skip fluff. Grand tournament participants will not find anything new whereas complete beginners might find my focus too narrow. Explaining why magic standards or Maneaters are not the way to victory is definitely worth the effort but out of scope for this guide.

The Ogre Mantra: Hit or Run

Warhammer rewards attackers. It is as simple as that. Attacking an enemy unit, eliminating enough models to receive no counterattacks, winning the combat, breaking the unit and running it down is the most efficient way to receive victory points. In order to achieve this we need

- A high movement rate to get into close combat
- High strength attacks to eliminate enemy models
- A high static combat resolution to win the combat
- A high movement rate, preferably greater or equal to 7, to run down the enemy

While this is true for any army under any circumstances it is nevertheless helpful to state the fact for later reference.

Try to be the attacker.

But what if we are not attacking? What if we are in the defense? Ogres usually have a low static combat resolution, a low initiative and a low leadership. Doing the maths we realize that there is generally no way how Ogre would be able to withstand an attack of even the weakest enemy units. That is the reason why the usual charge response of an Ogre unit is fleeing. Thus we have:

When in defense try to flee.

As an Ogre Kingdom general you need very good reasons for not fleeing. Think twice if you want to hold and whether you can hold. Do the maths and then flee. Flee always if the chances of not being catched are good.

Another advantage of fleeing, besides not taking attacks and loosing wounds, is that non-flying units failing a charge move only at their usual movement rate. They are effectively march blocked. Preventing the enemy from moving is a good thing. Another good reason for fleeing.   
Big Names, Items and Weapons

Following the Ogre Mantra there is a single best Big Name. Namely,

Longstrider.

It pushes our tyrants movement rate to 7. That makes it easier to bring this fighting machine into combat. If he wins and breaks the enemy unit he pursuits with 3D6 like a flyer and if he gets broken he runs faster than Skaven.  Never forget, characters can charge out of a unit. That can crush the distance math of your opponent when setting up an attack.

The Tenderiser

increases the strength of a tyrant to 7 and essentially doubles the wounds in a challenge or against multi-wound opponents. That helps to win combats and fits in our game plan.
   
The

Wyrdstone Necklace

on a tyrant reduces wounds taken by one third. A good deal and helps to win combats.

Give your Butchers a

Bangstick

and a couple of
 
Dispel Scrolls.

The Bangstick helps to deal with opposing skirmishers, especially single mages. The Dispel Scroll is simply the most efficient way to negate magic.

There are situations when you want to consider other magic items. The Siegebreaker is a very cost efficient weapon and should be considered if you expect your challenges not to be accepted. The Mastodon Armour is very useful against armies being strong in shooting or magic. Remember, your character can only be killed once in each phase and thus it should take a while until you role 1 on D6. The Hellheart essentially negates an opposing magic phase and combined with Mastodon Armour and Daemon-Killer Scars on your Tyrant can give you a game against Skaven.

The Units

Undoubtedly the best Ogre unit is the

Tyrant.

He is a real fighting machine. Heavy armour and a Luck-Gnoblar (together with Wyrdstone Necklace) are viable options. Issue challenges and use the Tenderizer to maximize overkill (usually by hitting the mount). Point for point one of the best units in the whole Warhammer world.

A mage with toughness 5 is the

Butcher.

He knows 6 spells including Bonecruncher meaning 2D6 hits of S2 at casting level 3. Bangstick and Dispel Scrolls are viable options as are Tooth-Gnoblars. Occasionally you will take a Siegebreaker to surprise your opponent.
 
Ogre generals must take a unit of

Bulls.

Strength 4 is just not good enough in the Warhammer World. Therefore take a unit of 3 with a Bellower to get +1 on rallying. Additional hand weapons give you 33 percent more damage against enemy units with armour save 6+ and worse. Take them.

The working horse in an Ogre army are the

Ironguts.

Strength 6 is what you need to wound opponents. They are elite in most armies but Ogre Kingdoms have them as core. Use them in units of 3 or 4 with a Bellower for the +1 on rallying.

March block opponent or challenge opposing table quarters with

Gnoblar Trappers.

They are scouts and thus are placed after all other units are placed. Keeping this number low means to get a +1 on the roll to start. The Trappers can also be used defensively to restrict opponent options to march block you. Do not place Gnoblars as a screen in front of Ogres. They bicker and your Ogres are blocked. Use Bulls as screens.

Movement 7, strength 5 and ignoring most terrain are

Yhetees.

They give you many tactical options like attacks through woods or pursuit with 3D6. Use them in units of 3. Occasionally  you want to place 5 in a row to give opposing Dryads or Gor Herds a hard time with the 7th Edition rules on Enemy in the Way and Pursuit into fresh Enemy. The are reliable, underrated and fit into the Ogre Mantra.

A real powerhouse pointwise is the

Gorger.

They are placed after turn one so they do not count against your number of units to determine +1 on the roll to start. Gorgers are unbreakable and have killing blow. Use them to nail opposing units as they cannot move if the are in close combat with a Gorger. Once they are immobile attack with Ironguts or Tyrant or both.
As a level 4 mage with toughness 6 our special character

Skrag the Slaughterer

is a little over the top. Use 3 Butchers, 6 Gorgers and ask you opponent for permission as some armies are completely helpless against such a monster.

Occasionally you want to use other units. The only reasonable static combat resolution for Ogres is provided by Gnoblar Fighters. Three ranks and outnumber brings a +4 to your combat resolution meaning they are the only ones going into the woods to meet a Wood Elf Treeman. Use this cheap unit to secure table quarters or to restrict options for enemy units coming into play at your side. The Slavegiant is efficient against cavalry, can flee and causes terror. Very helpful against armies without a lot of shooting like Bretonnians or Chaos. Leadbelchers efficiently hunt opposing mages. They are too unreliable to do much more. Use them in units of 2 or 3 with a Bellower and get the +1 bonus on rallying. Against Skinks, Goblins, Gors or Skaven the Gnoblar Scraplauncher with its 5 inch template is a winner. 
 
Sample Army Lists

Most remarks in this guide can be applied to the following sample army list for a standard 2000 point battle. I am still a learner myself and I field Ironguts in units of 4  well knowingly that more advanced players prefer units of 3. So far, that does not work for me as I then do not get enough attacks to win close combat.

1   Tyrant   Longstrider, Heavy Armour, Luck-Gnoblar, Wyrdstone Necklace, The Tenderizer                        306
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Bangstick, Dispel Scroll            185
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Dispel Scroll, Dispel Scroll         185
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Siegebreaker               165

3   Ogre Bulls   Bellower, additional hand weapons         127
4   Ironguts   Bellower                  202
4   Ironguts   Bellower                  202
20   Gnoblar Fighters                     40
8   Gnoblar Trappers                     48

3   Yhetees                           195
3   Yhetees                           195

1   Gorger                           75
1   Gorger                           75
                              2000

The following list containing Skrag the Slaughterer is tough to beat for some armies whereas others have no problem to massacre it. To get a good game you should probably inform you opponent beforehand.

1   Skrag the Slaughterer                     400
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Tooth-Gnoblar, Bangstick, Dispel Scroll      190
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Tooth-Gnoblar, Dispel Scroll         165
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Tooth-Gnoblar, Dispel Scroll         165

3   Ogre Bulls   Bellower, additional hand weapons         127
3   Ironguts   Bellower                  154
3   Ironguts   Bellower                  154


3   Yhetees                           195

1   Gorger                           75
1   Gorger                           75
1   Gorger                           75
1   Gorger                           75
1   Gorger                           75
1   Gorger                           75
                              2000

To avoid totally unbalanced armies I prefer to play sealed deck. That means 2 consecutive battles against the same opponent. First with his army against your own and than with your army against his. Add up victory points and highest total wins. My favorite sealed deck list uses about any rule the Ogre Kingdoms book contains and is very challenging for opponents to play.

1   Tyrant      Iron Fist, heavy armour, Luck-Gnoblar, Wyrdstone Necklace   243
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Bangstick, Dispel Scroll               185
1   Butcher   Tooth-Gnoblar, Dispel Scroll, Dispel Scroll            185
1   Hunter      Sabretusk, Sabretusk, Sword of Might            205

3   Ogre Bulls   Light Armour, Ironfists                  129
3   Ironguts   Bellower, Standard Bearer, Lookout-Gnoblar          179
20 Gnoblar Fighters                           40
8   Gnoblar Trappers                        48

3   Yhetees                              195
3   Leadbelcher   Bellower                     175
1   Gnoblar Scraplauncher                        165

1   Gorger                              75
1   Slavegiant                           175
                                 1999

The Terrain and Deployment

In general an Ogre Kingdoms general should use terrain and deployment in a way to maximize his own movement options, to maximize his own magic line of sight, to minimize opponents movement options and to deny opponent shooting and magic line of sight. The key to achieve this is the following observation. Difficult terrain halves the movement rate of most units passing it. Following the Ogre Mantra we try to

avoid difficult terrain.

Do not move through difficult terrain, because you cannot march through. Yhetees and Trappers are of course exceptions and this is the very reason why they are in the army. Place terrain and units in such a way that your Ironguts have the option to march. Place you Yhetees behind difficult or impassable terrain (which they can pass. Sometimes you and your opponent have to agree beforehand what terrain counts as passable for Yhetees.) To deny your opponent a good line of sight try to

do not give hills to your (shooting) opponent.

Under these restrictions try to get one of two deployment plans. Either

Ironguts in the center and Yhetees at the flanks

or deny the flank and put the

Ironguts at one flank and Yhetees at the other flank.

When do you deny the flank? Sometimes you run into an opponent deploying an unbreakable center, for example

Lizardmen:   Stegadon, Kroxigors and Skinks at flanks. Swarms in the center.
Empire:      Cavalry and Steam Tank at the flanks. Flagellants in the center.
Vampire Counts:   Cavalry at the flank. Ghosts in the center.

Or your opponent deploys an essentially non-existent center, for example

Wood Elves:   Treeman and Dryads at the Flanks. Glade Guard in the center.
Bretonnians:   Heavy Cavalry everywhere.
Dwarfs:      All units in one table quarter.

In all these cases you should consider to deny your flank and concentrate on one opponent flank.

The Butchers go into the Irongut units because of their leadership of 8. Never place a Butcher in a unit of Bulls with leadership 7. The Tyrant either joins a unit of Ironguts or supports a flank on its own.

Place your scouts in a way that either they march block your opponent or that your opponent cannot march block you. If that is not possible try to contest or secure a table quarter.

The Phases

Who goes first? Normally you should have less units than your opponent and thus get +1 to your dice roll. Quite frequently you will be in a position to decide who goes first. If your opponent has deployed his army in such a way that he can do something useful in the first turn, like heavy magic or heavy shooting, decide to start. In all other cases the Ogre Mantra implies:

Let your opponent start if he cannot use his first turn reasonably.

Do not fear to let him start. You will be rewarded in the last turn. Your turn (not the first) begins and you should not forget to

roll for your Gorgers to arrive.

Next comes the most important phase for Ogre Kingdoms, namely movement. Move as much as possible. Either by charging or by marching. Set up traps for enemy units pursuing or failing to charge your Bulls. But most importantly

bring your Butchers into position.

Bull Charge is not an issue. If you have it do not forget the hits at beginning of close combat. Do not play for it. It is not worth it. Rally your fleeing troops and do not forget your Bellowers.

The second most important phase for Ogres is magic. With all spells at hand and casting level 3 Ogre Kingdoms have the most reliable magic phase in the whole game. Always use 2 dice to cast spells. That maximizes your chances to get something through. Use

Bonecruncher

as often as possible. If a Bonecruncher resolves use a Tooth-Gnoblar for the next. Use Toothcracker on a unit expected to break from close combat. If Bonecruncher is not an option, use Braingobbler on expensive enemy units not being immune to psychology. Use it multiple times. Give your opponent any chance to fail the panic test. Do not use your buffs too early. You will just wound your Butchers for nothing. Later you will need your Butchers in close combat. Any wound counts. Use your

Bangstick.

Dispelling opponents remains in play spells at end of phase is more of a theoretical option, since you usually need all your dice to cast your own spells.

Usually Ogres do not have a shooting phase. Some sharp stuff and done. At start of close combat do not forget to

issue challenges.

If you did everything right. You will break opponents and
 
pursuit (preferably with 3D6).

You should pursuit as often as possible. It is a free movement after all and you win only if you move your units.

During your opponent turn you should be careful to choose the correct charge response (usually flee), to dispel correct spells (usually those making his units move or directly damaging your units)  and to issue challenges.
Psychology

Ogres cause fear. Hence,

try to outnumber your enemy and win close combat to auto-break,

if your foe is susceptible to fear. Because of low leadership Ogres will panic frequently and run for their lives.

Use Bellowers to get the rallying bonus.

Dealing with ...

Knowing your enemy is important. A detailed description for each match-up can be found in more advanced guides. I just give a few ideas and game plans. 

Bretonnians

Bretonnians have a higher movement rate (cavalry), have more high strength attacks (due to lance formation), have a higher static combat resolution (due to magic standards and lance formation) and pursuit with 3D6 (cavalry). Check the Ogre Mantra and realize that Bretonnians are the better Ogres. Use Slavegiants and terrain to minimize losses. A minor loss is a win.

Wood Elves

Do not let the Wood Elves move their forests. Do not let the Dryads flank you. Attack them with a Tyrant or with Ironguts, they cannot flee. Attack the Glade Guard with Gorgers. Ignore the Treeman. Hunt the mages with Yhetees. Do not let them move forests. A draw is a win.

Skaven

Use any anti-magic you have, use psychology to your advantage and move fast. Attack the Warp Lightning Canon with Trappers, it has to flee. Use Scraplaunchers to hit them hard. Do not fight them, make them flee. Hope for misfires, malfunctions and miscasts. They will happen. Try to get as much of your army into the last turn. Let them take leadership tests. Get those mages. A minor loss is a win.

Dwarfs

Gunline. Move fast and hit hard. That is hard, especially when they use Thorek. You will be behind in victory points for the whole battle. Keep your spirit high. The longer the battle lasts the more likely you will win. There will not be a draw. Either they shoot you to pieces and wipe out the rest of your army in close combat or you get enough attacks in their deployment zone to win. All in.

Dark Elves and High Elves

Get those Repeater Bolt Throwers and get those mages. Yhetees work overtime. Do not get march blocked. Let them bleed for your losses against Wood elves. The turn before you attack let your characters leave units. Present many target for few magic and bolt throwers. Bonecruncher rules against toughness 3. Try to win. If you get the mages early, try to massacre.

Orks and Goblins

Get their Bolt Throwers with your Gorgers. Let your Gorgers and your Gnoblars test for Fanatics. If they do not have enough magic and shooting do not advance. You have time. Wait for the fanatics to arrive. Use Scraplaunchers against Goblins and Ironguts against Orks. Avoid getting stuck in Trolls. Avoid their uber characters.

Tomb Kings

During the first 2 or 3 turns dispel everything, especially movement spells on Giants and on Ushabti. Due to their low movement Tomb Kings rely on magic to live the Ogre Mantra. Tomb Kings have a fantastic magic standard allowing a free reform. Beware! By turn 3 you should be in close combat. Be merciless and try to massacre.

Vampire Counts

Vampire Counts are undead and thus cannot be broken in close combat. Consider standards to up your static combat resolution. They can cast new units to march block. They have hard hitting cavalry which they can magically move into combat. You will have to dispel a lot. Banshees are a pain because of our low leadership and Ghosts can essentially just  be harmed by Yhetees. Try not to get stuck in combats. When you hit, hit them hard. Get the general as quick as possible. Tough match.

Lizardmen

Nail the Slann with you Gorgers and hit him with Tyrant and Ironguts. Maybe you are lucky and you outnumber and auto-break. More likely he will have a magic standard to avoid fear. Beware of movement 9 characters attacking out of units. Avoid being attacked by Kroxigors. Flee. Attack Skinks with your Butchers, magically and physically. You have to nail down the Skinks and their mages. Avoid being attacked by a Stegadon. Flee. Do not let them march block you with scouts. Avoid uber characters on uber uber Raptors. Flee. The good news is, they can not have everything on the field at the same time. The bad news is, that whatever they field is a though match-up for you. There will not be a draw. Either you kill the Slann/uber General and win or you loose.

Empire

Empire is very flexible. Play against a gunline as if it were Dwarves. And tell them. Call their general Thorek and such. Do not attack a Hellblaster Volley Gun with a Gorger. They just shoot him down. Try to overrun or pursuit into them with Ogres. If they field Karl Franz on a dragon explain that this is unrealistic. The great emperor against a small Ogre Kingdom. Nothing better to do for him? Avoid him, sacrifice units and kill the rest of the army. Try a draw. If they field cavalry, flagellants and hand gunners you have to try hard to get favorable attacks. Do not underestimate Outriders. Take them out as quick as possible.

Beasts of Chaos

They have skirmishers with a high static combat resolution. As a surprise use 5 Yhetees in a row and wipe through. That avoids their rank bonus. No shooting, thus you can use Slavegiants. Avoid the Shaggoth. Beware of magically driven surprise attacks. Probably the best match-up for Ogres.

Hordes of Chaos

Hordes have sometimes less units than Ogres and thus can decide to go second. That is not a good thing, since during your first turn you can just run towards your opponent. If he is not fielding frenzied units which you can lure out that is not enough for a good turn. Let them come. They have no shooting and your magic is superior. Yes, it is! Avoid uber characters like Blood Demon or a general on dragon and kill the rest of his army. Sacrifice units to their uber characters. Try to win against Khorne by setting up favorable attacks, against Tzeench by casting Braingobbler on his expensive units and against Nurgle by just hitting them hard. Against Slaneesh a win is harder. You cannot use Braingobbler on their expensive unit, say a general on dragon, you cannot set up a favorable attack because he has higher movement and need not attack and Slaneesh has magic items to make this unit nearly invincible for Ogre Kingdoms.

Ogre

Try to move better. Try to be the attacker. Flee if necessary. Get his Butchers. Obviously this match up is balanced. Try to get more than a bloody draw.

Units

I close this guide with some remarks on how to efficiently deal with special units you will frequently encounter on Warhammer battlefields.

Dragons you should avoid. Sacrifice cheap units and concentrate on the rest of the opposing army. If you can attack, then attack with your Tyrant or Ironguts. In a challenge you usually strike against the dragon not the rider. Mages shine in the late game. You must take them out or they deliver too much damage over the course of a game. Break the units they are in or use your units to hunt mages. Yhetees are good at that. Use Bonecruncher and Bangstick to kill them whenever possible. Killing mages is a main objective in Warhammer and even more for Ogre Kingdoms. War machines should be taken out by Gorgers or Yhetees. These are your first units hitting your opponents deployment zone. Your Tyrant usually has other things to do. Skirmishers / light cavalry can pass terrain better that Ogre units. It is not ease to get them without being flanked. Restrict their movement options be moving in long straight lines until they cannot hide anymore. Then attack and take them down in close combat. Chariots can be dealt with easiest with strength 7 attacks. Use your Tyrant or cast Bullgorger on Ironguts and wound it.

That is it. Now go out and make the other Ogre Kingdoms generals proud by beating up opponents. Good luck.

SpeedKills