Quest of the Ringbearer Inspired Lists: Ugluk's Scouts Legendary Legion

Good morning gamers,

In our last article, we looked at some Rivendell models you can add to your Quest of the Ringbearer collection to run a fun Rivendell list. Today we're looking at some of my favorite models in the range (aesthetically and thematically): Uruk-Hai Scouts! Yep, we're going to Isengard and seeing what kind of Scout-based lists we can make!

The List

Isengard plays an important part in the Lord of the Rings films, particularly in the Two Towers. In the Fellowship of the Ring, though, there are few forces that are quite as terrifying as seeing the scouts of Isengard racing down the Anduin pursuing the Fellowship (and ultimately engaging them at Amon Hen). Your Isengard collection, though, leaves you with very, VERY few choices:

• Lurtz is the "big hero" during the Amon Hen sequence;
• The Uruk-Hai Scout command pack will be useful too, though you only NEED the Captain with two-handed weapon (the other guys are useful too - just not needed for the campaign);
• You'll need 24 Uruk-Hai Scouts, conveniently provided in a single plastic kit; and
• You have access to 3 Orc Captains and 37 Mordor Orcs from the Osgiliath scenario (which Isengard has access to if you read closely enough).
  

If you're playing Fantasy Fellowships, though, you get a few more models to work with thanks to the Ambush at Night scenario:

• You need Ugluk (who comes in the Lurtz pack);
• You need Mauhur; and
  
• You need Grishnakh and Snaga.
  

If you limit yourself to these models, the clear army to run is the Ugluk's Scouts Legendary Legion, where you can field 5 warbands of Orcs or Uruk-Hai Scouts (for a total of 52 models):

• Ugluk [ARMY LEADER]
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 2 Uruk-Hai Marauders
• 1 Uruk-Hai Marauder with banner
  
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai bows
• Mauhur
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai bows
  
• Uruk-Hai Scout Captain with two-handed axe
• 2 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders
• 2 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai bows
  
• Snaga, Orc Captain
• 4 Orc Warriors with shields
• 1 Orc Warrior with spear
  
• 5 Orc Warriors with shields and spears
• Grishnakh, Orc Captain with shield
• 5 Orc Warriors with shields
• 6 Orc Warriors with shields and spears
• 1 Orc Warrior with shield, spear, and banner

700 points, 52 models, 8 Uruk-Hai bows hitting on a 4+, 1 D6+ model, 28 fast infantry, 13 Might

This is a big list - 52 models is nothing to sniff at. In the international community, it would appear that a lot of people think that this list is a great choice. I, however, get frustrated with this list because the 8" move on the Uruk-Hai is wasted a good bit of the time. Since you have access to spears on the Orcs, if you want to run a shield-supported Uruk-Hai line, your Uruks will need to either a) move 6" to let the Orcs keep up, or b) need to move 4" to shoot and move on the same turn (slowing down your Orcs and not allowing the archers to keep up with any melee Uruks that want to move 8"). Sure, you can run an Uruk-Hai Drummer to make those bow-armed Uruks move 5.5" while shooting (which is basically the same movement as you get on your Orcs), but at that rate, you're moving "as fast as normal troops" - which means the 8-11" movement you should get on those Uruks is still wasted (at least to a degree).

The list also has Animosity, but as I explained in an article on the Cirith Ungol Legendary Legion (and mentioned in an editorial note in Centaur's post on the Ugluk's Scouts Legendary Legion), Animosity is quite hard to pull off because you need to get two models (one Orc, one Uruk) in combat with a single enemy model. IF you can do that, then it's a great rule (effectively S6 Uruks paired with effectively S6 Orcs who Piercing Strike with one-handed picks OR effectively S8 Orcs who Piercing Strike with two-handed picks/axes) - especially on your heroes (those Uruk-Hai Scout Captains with two-handed axes can get +2 To Wound and automatically wound models that are D4 and below - nothing to sniff at). Since triggering this is very difficult (I'd say nearly impossible when the fighting starts), I don't see this is a great benefit over the Lurtz's Scouts LL.

The Lurtz's Scouts Legendary Legion is different - because you have no Orcs in the list, getting 8" movement on everyone and a drummer (and March on everyone), you can move incredibly fast with your melee troops and move faster than normal infantry with your archers (7" each turn) while still shooting. With lots of archery, these guys are lethal and I like them (though I do think they play better at 600 than at 700+). A list might look like this (though it requires getting an extra box of Uruk-Hai Scouts):

• Lurtz with shield
• INDEPENDENT: Uruk-Hai Drummer
• 4 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai bows
• 1 Uruk-Hai Marauder with Uruk-Hai bow and banner
  
• Ugluk
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders
• 4 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai bows
• 1 Uruk-Hai Marauder with Uruk-Hai bow and banner
  
• Mauhur
• 2 Uruk-Hai Marauders
• 1 Uruk-Hai Marauder with banner
• 4 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with Uruk-Hai bows
  
• Uruk-Hai Scout Captain with two-handed axe
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders
• 3 Uruk-Hai Marauders with shields
• 1 Uruk-Hai Marauder with Uruk-Hai bow
  

700 points, 41 models, 12 Uruk-Hai bows hitting on a 4+ AND 1 Uruk-Hai bow hitting on a 3+, 1 D6+ model, 41 fast infantry, 10 Might

While I don't like the Ugluk's Scouts list in theory, I played an 800-point game against Centaur's Ugluk's Scouts the other day and he packed a very impressive 65 models into his list (all four named heroes, his beloved Uruk-Hai Scout Captain with two-handed weapon, and a BOATLOAD of guys - nearly full warbands of Orcs and Uruks). After getting a right good thrashing from that, I decided I'd give the army a go at a review. Centaur's been playing this army a lot recently, so I had him back-stop my writing.

Centaur: Personally, I disagree on the 8" move being wasted - it just becomes more tactical. Since some scenarios require you to deploy from a corner, for example, or in situations where you have terrain that may block the easy moving of battle lines, it's kind of nice that you can set your spearmen up on straightaway paths and have a bit more flexibility for your front rank to move around obstacles, take cover from archery, etc. What's more, Jeremy from the Green Dragon Podcast made a really good point in one of their episodes, talking about how he likes to move his models less than their full movement so that opponents kind of get used to the distance they move being "their maximum move value" optically, allowing you to reach out and strike them with your full move when the times comes, taking your opponent by surprise. 

For Uruks in this list you get that x10 because not only does it look like they are moving their full distance (because they are marching in ranks), but you actually have +2" more than other infantry, so you can strike very far after having feigned a certain speed for the opening part of the game. And worst case scenario you can always run Uruks up to a spot, shield for a turn, and then take advantage of your spear supports next turn when they catch up. So personally I don't see it as wasted, though in theorycraft, yes, it's underutilized potential. It's also put to great use when some of your Uruks are flanking enemy formations while their brothers take on the "anvil" head-on backed up by spears, so it does get a good bit of use.

I actually don't mind that Animosity doesn't show up all the time - it's a lot like the Backstabbers rule for Moria, except that you have a bit more control over how often it comes up. Since you get access to dirt cheap two-hander axemen there's a natural pairing alongside your Uruks, and you can get really good value out of those 6-point models because of Animosity. Sure, you don't use it in every fight (unless you're fighting an all hero army maybe), but all of the "you find it easier to wound" army bonuses don't come up every round (unless you're Mordor and you're running like a bajillion guys, in which case sure, you get it basically all the time), so I don't think this is as big a drawback as it seems. Especially since it turns Uruks into S6 beaters (with the possibility of a spearman to help them win the fight to take advantage of this S6) and the Orcs with two-handed axes into effectively S7 slayers (for 6 POINTS - that's incredible value).

I'll call it now: this is a sleeper special rule. A lot of people are going to forget you have this (because it hardly comes up) right up until your axemen get around the flank and start cleaving through their D7 shieldwall formations on 4s and 5s. And by then it will be too late to reposition and redeploy because you have 8" move Uruks to tie them down, wrap around, and cut off their escape.

Tiberius: Well, after thinking it over a bit, I figured let's give this army a go and see how we can use it - though bear in mind, I think the Lurtz's Scouts LL plays to my personal play style a bit better (see my previous thoughts on it).

Army Theory

Let's begin with an understanding of how to move with this army. Naturally, we have lots of spearmen in our Orc warbands (6-7 in each warband), so we want each Orc warband to deploy alongside the Uruk-Hai warbands. If possible, we want Snaga's warband deploying near Ugluk's warband (6 spears to back up 6 melee Uruks, 4 Orc shields to protect 3 Uruk-Hai bowmen) and we want Grishnakh's warband deploying near Mauhur's warband (7 spears to back up 7 melee Uruks, 5 Orc shields to protect 3 Uruk-Hai bowmen). Your Scout Captain's warband can group up with the others or operate on its own - it's your "Bean's 'Toon", free to do what the scenario requires.

When advancing up the field, you can let your melee Uruks drift a little ahead of your Orcs (who will be advancing 2" slower each turn). If you are threatened by bow-fire you can have your Uruks take round-about routes from cover to cover (and moving through woodland terrain if required, thanks to the Woodland Creature rule on everyone). When you're about two turns away from being charged, have your Uruks halt (or form a line if they've spread out behind cover) so your Orcs can catch up. Once your lines have reformed, you won't be moving more than 6" a turn, but you're ready to fight (so you shouldn't need the extra movement).

For those Uruks who don't have spear-supports (like the Captain's squad), you can have them run wide of one flank and be ready to slam into the enemy lines with their 8" movement - on a good day, you'll be able to engage spear-supporting models and trap the models in the front rank, while on a bad day you'll have drawn some models off to block you. Either way, you're happy with it. Your archer blocks should have clear firing lanes of the action, advancing behind their Orc shield-carrying guards (literally meat-shields), but they too can race 8" forward if your opponent is about to close with you and limit your archery targets. You'll need to leave the Orcs behind, but you don't care - archers are swordsmen and the Uruks in this list are pretty good in combat.

The key to using this army, though, is found in how you use its heroes. You have two heroes who can Strike (Ugluk and Grishnakh), neither of whom Strikes from a good Fight Value (F5 for Ugluk is okay, F4 for Grishnakh isn't great), so you really don't want these guys challenging someone big. Instead, all of your heroes are better suited for chopping through warriors (especially that Uruk-Hai Scout Captain). With the potential for Animosity, Heroic Combats with these heroes against a single opponent are far more devastating than Striking against something big. Instead, tie up big heroes with Orc Warriors with shields if you can (Uruk-Hai Scouts if you have to) and wall off heroes so they can't be hit.

If you should break, Ugluk needs to be in a protected space with Orcs nearby that he can remove for Head-Taker. With a 12" stand fast that affects all friendly models (heroes and warriors), this army doesn't need to run from the fight - if Ugluk is shielded from danger. With mass numbers and selective speed and firepower, this army can "do the Isengard thing" and use its warriors to punch holes in the enemy force pretty well. Beware the average Defense (but if you're used to playing Isengard, this isn't anything new).

If you can bring your numbers to bear against your opponent (and use those heroes to get a few more kills on the books quickly), winning games can be done by just having more bodies than your opponent. Once you've broken the main lines and your opponent's lines are a mess, make sure you get your Orc spearmen into fights with your Uruks (not supporting unless there's another Orc already fighting there) so you can get Animosity as a boost - this can help you get still more damage coming out once you've gotten the enemy on their back heels. If you're able to capitalize on this, winning should come easily.

With this in mind, let's take a look at how to approach each of the missions.

Game Play Strategy

Maelstrom & Object Missions (Pools 1 & 3)

You have five warbands, so some of your warbands are likely to arrive together regardless of how you deploy. I would begin my deploying your Uruk-Hai warbands first and then deploy your Orc warbands second (since their Might is less valuable than the Uruk Might is and you can use it to deploy these guys where you want them).

In Hold Ground, you need your Orcs near the Uruk warbands because your March heroes are Uruk-Hai and your Orc heroes are not. Ideally, as mentioned above, you want Snaga near Ugluk and Grishnakh near Mauhur, but if getting one or both of these Orc heroes near any Uruk-Hai hero is less Might-expensive, I'd do that. March your armies as close to the center as you can and circle up there - you can use your bowmen to stall the enemy on your approach if you want to, but I'd prioritize getting into the center.

Similarly, in Command the Battlefield, you want your Orcs to arrive near your Uruk-Hai heroes because any quadrant could become the front lines of the fight. Ideally you get Snaga near Ugluk and Grishnakh near Mauhur, but if you don't, have your Uruks race towards where your Orcs are located. If you have to, you can even meet up in the "no-man's-zone" in the center and then you can race/fan out to the quadrants where your opponent is weak (while sending troops to engage your opponent where he is strong.

In Heirlooms of Ages Past, you could arrive in five different places to pursue objectives, but it's probably better to have your Orcs arrive with your Uruks and have your Uruks race towards the center of the board to find objectives that you place (you have fast infantry - place your objectives near the center of the board). If you can find the Heirloom, hedge up around it and die as slowly as possible. If your opponent finds it, group your units together and press as a group.

In Seize the Prize, you have immense speed on infantry models, so your melee Uruks can race for the center (you won't quite make it, but you will be close with 19 models, three of which are heroes) and your Orcs can follow in your wake. Because you can't make it directly, do what we've recommended with other groups, calling a March with Ugluk (since you don't want him exposed), moving your archers up 4" with a clear view of the Prize and your melee Uruks covering both wings (staying within 6" of Ugluk so they can move 11"). If you need to, call a March with your Captain as well - you could use Mauhur, but I find that he's a diva and messes up his rolls too often to NOT have Might around for fighting. Your Orcs should follow as well as they can, but they won't be outpaced enough that they won't be able to support you during the following round. Have your Uruk-Hai Marauders take turns trying to dig up the prize if you're left unchallenged in the center and rely on your numbers to give you bodies to screen your runner so you can get the Prize up the enemy's side of the table and hopefully off the board.

In Destroy the Supplies, you have lots of fast models and enough models to hold up your opponents from getting to your supply tokens. Your archers can hold back to guard them if you want, but the key is to get your Uruks and Orcs pressing towards the enemy supplies as quickly as possible. Press hard and try to get an Uruk or two into an enemy supply stash as quickly as possible.

Retrieval is similar: you will need to guard your own flag for as long as possible, but press as hard as you can to engage the enemy as close to his flag as possible. If you can race over with a fast Uruk to sweep it up, do so - but your primary goal is to secure the flag when you can escort it back safely. If the main fight happens by your opponent's flag and away from yours, so much the better - but watch out for anyone breaking past your lines.

Control Missions (Pools 2 & 5)

No matter what kind of control mission you play, having 52 models is valuable. In Domination, you can have some of your Uruks (probably your bowmen) guarding whatever objectives you can start with and have the rest of your horde (40ish models) seeking to secure the other three. With such numbers pressing your opponent (starting as close to the center line as you can), you can force your opponent to stay away from 2-3 of the objectives and if you can hold those after you break (keep Ugluk shielded from harm), you can win.

In Breakthrough and Command and Control, you know where the objectives are going to be and can start on the centerline to contest most of the objectives right away. Use your heavy numbers and all those Uruks to press the enemy hard quickly. In Breakthrough, your opponent will need to throw tremendous resources trying to keep your army from running up the center and hitting the objective he guards in his rear (worth a lot to you in Breakthrough), which will hopefully distract him from the objective you hold in your deployment zone. Using your archers to guard your rear objective will be good, but they need to be able to race to the side objectives too so that you don't have to reinforce from your main assault body.

Reconnoitre is a scenario you can do well in, since you have 7 Might that can be used for March and lots of really fast units. The key in this scenario is to use your Orcs to hold down enemy models that try to get to your board edge (make a Thin Red Line as close to the middle of the board as you can) while your Uruk-Hai attempt to race off your opponent's board edge. Marches can be used early to get you to the middle of the board, but make sure some Might is saved for Marches late in the game to get a handful of models off the enemy board edge. The game will end when one army is quartered, so make sure you have 13 models on the board or escaped off the board edge - don't run more than 13 guys off the board edge!

Seize the Camp is a risky scenario for most people, but you've got plenty of speed. March early to get to the middle of the board and get a few models (Mauhur would be a good option) towards the enemy camp so you can capture it. Most of your Uruks want to be ranked-up with your Orcs, racing to get into position near the middle of the board first, then have your Orcs file in to support you as you prepare to fight. Your archers are important, providing cover fire for your Uruk-Hai and later falling back to defend your camp.

Divide and Conquer will require you to split your army up into two groups - so make sure you start with Ugluk's warband, then Mauhur's warband, then Snaga's warband (supporting Ugluk), then Grishnakh's warband (supporting Mauhur), then the Scout Captain's warband (so he can March Ugluk around). Each group will have a banner, which is a good way to keep your units around in case you get attacked before you get to the center. Racing to the center (first with your Uruk-Hai and following up with your Orcs), camp out on the objectives and hedge up so that your opponent has problems getting to the objectives.

Killing Missions (Pools 4 & 6)

To The Death is a toss-up for you - you don't have great shooting in this list, so you can't rely on your opponent having to come to you. Instead, you need to pack in tight and march towards your opponent as quickly as possible (consider using a Pac-Man formation to do this). Your Uruks can race in quickly with your Orcs following behind, but you want to be VERY careful not to engage before you have your Orcs supporting you, but you also don't want to advance slowly to be taken apart by archery. Do your best not to break - and break the enemy as quickly as possible.

Clash by Moonlight is similarly challenging, as you don't have a lot of archery and your Defense is low. Use your archers to provide fire as best you can, but you need to prioritize getting locked into combat quickly. Like To The Death, you get a lot of points for breaking the enemy on this scenario, so make sure that happens. Shoot heroes if you can - your heroes MIGHT be able to pull it off, but you really want them to be crashing through warriors.

Lords of Battle is similarly quite challenging - you have lots of average Defense warriors that can be killed and your heroes are all squishy too. Thankfully, you can deploy on the centerline and can race in with your Uruks and get locked in fast. This is one of those games that you can only win by hacking through your opponent's models as quickly as possible, getting as many models into combat as possible. Use your heroes to call Heroic Combats to up your kill count faster.

In Contest of Champions, Ugluk isn't a bad hero, but he's not particularly good. Your ability to stall the enemy army leader will be very limited, so tie him down with an Orc if you can and then shoot the Orc with your Uruk-Hai if you can (if you don't kill the Orc, you'll get shots on the enemy leader's person or mount). Do your best to keep the enemy army leader fighting one guy at a time, keeping your heroes well away from him so he doesn't get Might back. Crush the enemy army as quickly as possible so the game ends and make sure Ugluk is shielded from harm while tearing through enemy warriors.

Assassination will similarly be difficult - you have a lot of vulnerable heroes and your best assassin is probably Mauhur or the Uruk-Hai Captain (though the Orc heroes would make interesting targets). Chances are good that Snaga or the Uruk-Hai Captain will be the target because they are slightly more vulnerable than Mauhur (3 Attacks) and Grishnakh (Strike), but Mauhur is likely to be used on offense, so he can't be hidden away without a severe loss. Breaking the enemy is key here, so make sure your Orcs are with your Uruks when you engage (and shoot as much as you can to weaken the enemy before you fight).

Fog of War is less complicated, since you probably want to keep Snaga tucked away in some corner to stay alive and you can pick any woodland-terrain objective to be the piece you want to control. Picking someone to kill is probably best done with your archers in mind, though Mauhur and/or Ugluk may have to finish off the guy. The general strategy will be, once again, to break the enemy as quickly as possible because you're probably going to break in a prolonged fight. Keep Snaga kicking and hold that objective and you should be fine (hopefully he picked Snaga to kill and won't get the chance to get to him, though I often pick Mauhur if he's on the board, since he wants to be fighting).

Conclusion

Well, I'm not convinced that this Legion is better than the Lurtz's Scouts Legion (it's a play-style thing), but it is the better Legion to pursue if you're collecting the models from Quest of the Ringbearer. In our next post, we turn to an interesting army that is by no means competitive but is likely to throw your opponent for a loop because . . . well, no one in their right minds would have a two-model footprint. This will be a discussion of an army that I will not be collecting for a long while, but one that I really, REALLY want to try sometime. Curious? Check back next week to find out who we're looking at - and until then, happy hobbying!