Domination
This battlefield will provide a distinct tactical advantage for whoever holds it for many years to come. Victory can be achieved by forcing the enemy back and securing the key points on the battlefield. Failure will not be permitted! - Matched Play Guide (pg. 11).
First up, we have a look at Domination. Before armies are deployed, 1 objective is placed centrally and 4 others are placed by the players in alternating order. There are restrictions in place to make sure the objectives are spread fairly evenly across the tabletop. The deployment areas for Domination are great for armies that want to tear through their opponents in brutal close combat, with both zones ending at 24" or half of the battlefield. This allows you to place immediate pressure on your opponent and helps to mitigate losses from bow fire as they will struggle to fire too many times when you're already bearing down upon them. If you are not deploying on the centre line then, in all but a tiny handful of circumstances, you're making a mistake. This is because of the way VPs are scored in Domination. With each objective worth 2VPs if only friendly models are within 3" or 1VP if more friendly than enemy models are within 3", objective control is vital. If you don't contest the centre of the board early, you will often find that you are surrendering too much board control and facing an uphill battle from the first dice roll. Given that breaking and wounding the enemy leader only offer 1VP each, Domination is a rare scenario in which you can fairly comfortably chuck bodies forward with reckless abandon.
The scenario promotes positive, aggressive play and often becomes a real slugfest. The only issue for me is that it requires models to end the game within range of the objective and the game doesn't end until 25%. This means you're likely to face plenty of courage tests for being broken before the game ends and orcs and many other evil armies don't like courage tests! It is hugely frustrating when 4 orcs flee for their very lives on an objective you thought was safe and secure. It's even worse when the lonely elf warrior of your opponent's smugly passes every check needed for 3 turns. This means good armies typically win out in the end game of Domination, but a smart evil player never leaves home without packing their trusty shaman in his back pocket. The scenario is also very hard for smaller, elite armies. Numbers are key to Domination so make sure you're bringing plenty of bodies.
Scenario rating: 4/5
Capture and Control
By holding key strategic points, both armies believe they can control the field of battle and use these tactically important locations to force their enemy in to defeat. Whoever controls the battlefield will have gained an important foothold for the many battles yet to come. - Matched Play Guide (pg. 19).
What a great scenario! For me, Capture and Control takes all of the small drawbacks of Domination, screws them up, throws them in the bin and leaves behind a stellar scenario for any type of player and any type of army. Again, 5 objectives are placed before the game but, this time, in a predesignated plus (+) shape. The deployment once again allows centre line deployment, although high dice rolls for warbands mean you can deploy further back, and, as before, the centre line is where you should be deploying.
The major difference in Capture and Control is that you don't control objectives by having more models by them. Instead, a friendly model tags an objective which you gain control of over the end turn and any objectives which friendly and enemy models in base contact stay neutral. This is brilliant as you can 'tag and go' objectives and don't have to leave a portion of your army sitting on an objective, twiddling their thumbs. It means small, elite armies can compete with bigger armies. Having more models still offers a small advantage but a smart player will manoeuvre in a way to remove this bonus. The game also ends differently, this time on a 1-2 when one force is reduced to 50%. All of a sudden, every turn becomes massively important as it may end up being the last of the game. This adds extra tension and excitement to the game. I distinctly remember one game at 'W.A.R of the Ring' where the game refused to end and it boiled down to 1 uruk-hai crossbowman against Glorfindel on foot and a single Numenorean warrior! Capture and Control always seems to create memorable and interesting games for both players. What more can we ask for?
Scenario rating: 5/5
Breakthrough
With both forces locked in a battle for supremacy, both sides know that if they can break through their enemy's lines they can seize a valuable strategic point from their foe. - Matched Play Guide (pg. 26).
Added in the Matched Play Guide, Breakthrough rounds of the Hold Objective scenario pool with great addition to the scenarios of MESBG. Prior to the game, 4 objectives are placed in a diamond shape in the middle of the battlefield, 12" apart in each corner of the diamond. VPs are then scored for controlling each objective, achieved by having more models within 3". The twist this time? The objective in your deployment zone is worth only 1 VP, the 2 on the centre line up to 2VPs and your opponent's objective worth up to a huge 4VPs! With 24" deployment zones, it's a third scenario where you deploy as close to your opponent as possible. The highlight of this scenario is the importance of attacking and defending. You don't care about your almost worthless objective but your opponent sure does! It is a case of one man's trash is another man's treasure. There is no point going gung-ho for your opponent's objective if you can't hold your own. This delicate tactical balance provides a scenario which challenges the best generals and leads to close, thoughtful tabletop games. It is worth noting your leader can give away 2VPs in this scenario if killed so they need a little babysitting when compared to the other 2 scenarios in this pool. For me, the only downsides echo those from Domination. Bigger armies will find the scenario easier and evil armies can struggle when they get to the business end of the fighting and start taking courage tests for being broken as this scenario doesn't end until one army is reduced to 25%. However, Breakthrough is another example of an aggressive, in-your-face scenario that creates memorable battles.
Scenario rating: 4/5
The Hold Objective scenario pool is always a welcome sight at any tournament. All 3 scenarios offer well-balanced, positive and tactical gameplay experiences for both players. A strong contender for best scenario pool in the game. Next time we look at the Object scenario pool; they have a hard act to follow!
Thanks for reading,
Kieran
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