Other SBG Battles

Fall of Minas Ithil

This is a scenario of Games Workshop's Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game, from the Rise of Angmar sourcebook.

Here the Witch-King of Angmar leads a host to capture the city of Minas Ithil. Historically, he succeeded and the city was renamed Minas Morgul. Evil wins when (s)he controls at least two of three possible objectives, by outnumbering the defenders there (within 3") by at least 2:1. The Good side has a single victory condition: kill the Witch-King.

I had this scenario set up for a number of weeks but had a hard time finding the motivation to play it. Why? Because of another special rule: slain Evil warriors have a 50% chance of returning each turn, combined with the lack of a turn limit.

Do you see the problem? Evil has no incentive to actually engage. They can stand off, shoot their bows, and have the Witch-King hide in a building. If Good does nothing, Evil will eventually, after hundreds of turns, have eliminated enough Good models that they can force the win. So Good must attack, seeking out the Witch-King to get a quick win. But the Witch-King has a horse and there are many obstacles in the city, so Good is going to have a hard time catching him. And by hanging back, returning Evil casualties will just get into the battle that much faster.

That doesn't sound like what should be an Evil assault. Worse, it didn't sound like much fun. Long battle reports where not much happens on any given turn are boring.

So I've modified the scenario by imposing a 12-turn limit. The victory conditions remain the same until then, but if Evil hasn't won by the end of turn 12, Good wins.

(Click on any image to see an enlargement.)

The Forces

The Good forces are 3 Captains of Minas Tirith, 12 bowmen, 12 swordsmen, and 12 spearmen. To help both me and you keep track of which captain is which, I'm proxying them using Boromir, Faramir, and Madril models. But despite appearances, they have just the usual Captain's stats.

The Evil forces are the Witch-King of Angmar on horse, two Orc Captains, 3 Spectres, 12 Orcs with shield, 12 Orcs with spear, 6 Orcs with bow, and 6 Orcs with two-handed weapons. One captain has a helmet and the other doesn't, which has no effect on game play but helps keep straight which captain is which.

Setup

The battle takes place among the ruins of the city of Minas Ithil. The first image shows the battlefield facing west, with the Evil army (second image) in the distance at the top and the Good troops mostly deployed in line guarding the central objective (third and fourth images). The three objectives are the large gray pillars most prominent in the last image.

Two Good archers are deployed at the top of the large tower near the center of the board. This gives them an excellent field of fire for sniping the Witch-King if he comes near. The remaining Good archers are stationed in the ruins north of that tower, four of them on the elevated platform for similar line-of-sight reasons.

Leaving two objectives unguarded is perhaps dangerous, but Evil has no paratroopers and the rear ranks can be split off to contest them if Evil makes a play for them.

It's a bit weird that the city is being assaulted from the west, given that west of Minas Ithil is a mountain range. Wouldn't it be more likely to be assaulted from Mordor in the east? It was be easier access, and that's where the Evil troops were presumably mustered in the first place?

Turn 1

Good always has Priority on the first turn and chooses to go first. The main line advances to protect the center objective, while the archers stay put so as to not suffer the penalty in the Shoot phase for moving.

Evil advances, carefully positioning the Witch-King to keep out of Good bow range. The Orc archers curse the shorter range of their bows and make a full move so as to get in range next turn.

Good's shooting turns out to be terrible, though. Of twelve 50/50 shots, only two hit. Luckily, one is a KIA. The red bead noting such is barely visible near the point of Evil's wedge formation.

Turn 2

Evil Priority, 2-1.

Evil chooses to go first, making a general advance. The Witch-King moves left (out of the first picture, unfortunately) so as to get into position to work on the Good archers on the northern flank.

In response, Good advances, but stays just out of Charge range in hopes of counter-charging next turn and hence being able to pair off Combats.

In the Shooting phase, the two archers in the tower take out an Orc. The remaining Good bowmen on the other side of the battlefield might as well shoot at the Witch-King, despite the 4(!) In the Way rolls required due to the protecting ring of orcs. After all, a lucky shot could win the game outright. Amazingly, one shot actually does make it through to the Witch-King, though it fails to Wound.

Turn 3

Evil Priority, 6-3.

Evil decides to let Good have Priority. Good tightens their line, while Evil then advances in hopes of initiating the hand-to-hand fighting next turn.

The Spectres are now close enough to try their A Fell Light is In Them power. There's one Spectre in the south (3rd figure from left at the bottom of the image) who tries to lure out an enemy swordsman. But the enemy is too smart. But the two Spectres in the north (visible on the far side of the ruined doorway in the left ruin) try to work their wiles on "Boromir". He fails the first Intelligence roll by one and uses a point of Will to pass. This turns out to be illegal but isn't super important as he also fails the second Intelligence roll and is pulled willy-nilly into the Evil line for what will be the first Combat of the game. (Note the white bead in the center.)

Shooting is completely ineffective this turn.

Combat sees "Boromir" defeat his two foes, but he's unable to inflict any Wounds.

Turn 4

Good Priority, 4-4.

Since "Boromir" is isolated, Good chooses to have Priority. The nearby Orc Captain without helmet calls a Heroic Move, which "Boromir" counters to avoid the trap, and fortunately for him, Good wins the roll-off.

Good Charges everywhere, hoping to tie up as many models as possible. The Witch-King moves behind a building in the north, relying on In the Way rolls as well as his innate high defense to protect him from the Good archers.

In the Shooting phase, the Good bowmen have no effect. One shot actually hit the Witch-King but doesn't Wound. The Evil bowmen are finally in range this turn, but their archery has no effect either.

Good's Shooting luck hasn't been very good over these four turns but they make up for it here in Combat, where one Spectre and four Orcs are slain at the cost of one Warrior of Minas Tirith.

Turn 5

Evil Priority, 6-4.

Now "Madril" is exposed (first image), so he calls a Heroic Move which is countered by the Orc Captain with helmet. Good again wins a critical roll-off. "Madril" is tempted to try to roll up the Evil line. But several orcs are peeling off and running toward the southeast objective. So instead he reforms a defensive line, freeing a few spearmen to head off the orcs.

On Evil's left (second image, apologies for the quality), the Witch-King continues to hide but the Spectres start trying to pull the enemy archers out into vulnerable positions. One succumbs and is in danger of being trapped next turn.

In the center (third image), Evil swarms the line.

On Evil's right (fourth image), the Orc archers are more of a threat with their person (to the objective) than their bow (against enemy models) so they make a full move.

There's only one kill from Shooting this turn, but it's an important one, as another Spectre goes down (second image).

Combat sees one of those odd situations where there are lots of sixes rolled for Duels, but almost none for Wounds. So there aren't many casualties. Two trapped Warriors of Minas Tirith, one on each flank, are slain, along with another non-trapped fellow in the center.

"Boromir" loses his Duel roll by one. He thinks about spending his last Might point to win, but trusts to his armor and saves it for later. He takes a Wound for his trouble.

Turn 6

Evil Priority, 4-3.

"Boromir" is in danger of being trapped, and there's a hole in the line near "Faramir" which needs to be plugged. So they both call Heroic Moves. The Orc Captain without helmet counters with his last Might point and Evil wins the roll-off. At last.

The orcs in the north swarm "Boromir" (left edge of second image, the Orc Captain just out of camera view), wrapping around the flank of Good's line.

The Witch-King continues to hide (top of first image) but some Gondorian bowmen forgo possible shooting to try to kill the remaining Spectre.

Shooting has no effect this turn, the Evil archers all having moved and though two arrows reach the Witch-King, they again fail to Wound.

Combat favors Good, which isn't too surprising given that the Warriors of Minas Tirith have both better Fight value and better Defense. One Warrior of Minas Tirith dies in exchange for 4 Orcs, with an Orc Captain taking a Wound as well.

Turn 7

Evil Priority, 5-4.

"Boromir" is still in trouble but has no more Might. The other two Good heroes are more or less OK so no Heroic Moves get called this turn.

So Evil pushes forward. The holes in Good's line are going to start being a problem soon. Several Gondorian spearmen leave their supporting role in the center of the line to retreat the center objective. This will prevent Evil from achieving an objective on the cheap if they clear a hole and then get Priority again next turn.

The Witch-King has been biding his time behind a building (first image) but during the Shooting phase an archer manages both the hit him and to inflict a Wound! The Witch-King expends two Fate points to save himself and the game.

Combat again favors Good. Three Warriors of Minas Tirith die (two near "Boromir" in the second image and one in the south in the third image) but 9(!) Orcs are slain as well, including the one threatening the southeast objective.

Turn 8

Good Priority, 5-3.

Good finally gets Priority back, and (s)he can use it. The Orc Captain without helmet (in the north, at the bottom of the first image) would love to call a Heroic Move in hopes of finally taking out "Boromir". But he's got no Might left. So Good proceeds.

In the north, Good is stretched thin and pulls back his line to form a rough fishhook around the center objective (second image). But in the south, the Evil forces have been thinned enough that Good attacks.

I haven't mentioned returning Evil models. Remember that Evil warrior casualties come back on a roll of 4+. Evil's luck has so far been pretty terrible, and models dying from here on out are unlikely to be able to get back into action in time to make a difference. But the Spectre eliminated on Turn 4 is now back in the game and close enough to try to lure "Madril" out of Combat. He uses 1 Will to avoid the spell. (This is still illegal, but that's how I played it at the time.)

The Witch-King is tired of cowering and makes a dash (first image) in hopes of getting to the northeast objective. He tried to rescue the Spectre being ganged up on by hurling a three-die Black Dart at one of the attackers and succeeds in killing him.

With the Witch-King in the open, all Good archery turns to him. One hits, gets the six on the first Wound roll, then gets only a three on the second Wound roll. He needed a five. So close!

Combat finally evens out a bit. "Madril" takes a Wound and three Warriors of Minas Tirith are lost at the cost of only four Orcs. Bad news for Good.

Turn 9

Good Priority, 6-3.

Evil has only 1 Might point in the battle line, and the Witch-King is out of Charge range, so no Heroic Moves.

Good ties up the Evil models wherever possible. In the center, where the Good line is thinning out, several single models take on multiple enemies (third image, apologies for its poor quality). "Boromir" continues to back the "hook" part of the line to prevent Evil from flanking.

With the Witch-King threatening to capture the northeast objective, the two archers remaining on the ground floor of the building move to block him. The four archers above them jump down to help, and three of them die in the process! (first image)

The returning Spectre is now close enough get on camera (left side, third image). He lures an enemy warrior out of the line. Spoiler: per the red bead, he (un)lives to regret it in the Combat phase.

We're down to almost no shooting as only the two Good archers in the large tower are able to. They miss.

Good's luck returns in Combat, with only a single Warrior of Minas Tirith lost to 5 Orcs plus the Spectre.

Turn 10

Good Priority, 6-5.

Same thoughts as last time. Evil saves his Might.

Good moves to tie up all the Evil models that (s)he can. The Orc Captain without helmet is trapped (second image, right) but the nearby Spectre succeeds in pulling off the trapping Warrior (third image).

The Witch-King moves to claim the northeast objective and hurls a four-die Black Dart at an approaching archer, killing him (first image). There are three Good bowmen with line of sight to the Nazgûl, but they all miss in the Shooting phase.

The Orc Captain without helmet is attacked by both "Faramir" and "Boromir", who win the Duel roll. The Captain takes one Wound, which he saves with his Fate point. But "Faramir" spends a Might point to inflict a second Wound and the Captain is slain.

But that's about the limit of Good's luck in Combat. Only two Orcs fall compared to 3 Warriors of Minas Tirith.

Turn 11

Good Priority, 4-3.

There's a small gap in Good's line near "Madril", so the nearby Orc Captain calls a Heroic Move. "Madril" counters and wins the roll-off.

With the game nearing its close, Good ties up as many Evil models as possible. One of the archers near the Witch-King tries to Charge him, but the Harbinger of Evil rule saves the ringwraith (white bead, first image). In return the Witch-King throws another four-die Black Dart at the closest archer and slays him (red bead, first image). Evil still controls the northeast objective.

"Madril" looks terribly out of place (left, third image) but he's been pulled away by another returning Spectre.

Two Orc archers find a hole in the Good line and make a dash for the center objective (upper right, second image). They're not close enough to claim it yet, but they are definitely a threat.

The two tower archers shoot for the Witch-King. Both hit, but only the horse, and the Wound rolls are an abysmal 1 and 2.

Combat is about even, with 5 Orcs exchanging themselves for 3 Warriors of Minas Tirith. The Good lines are definitely thinning, and the Evil lines are being reinforced by returning casualties from previous turns.

Turn 12

Good Priority, 6-3.

The Witch-King calls a Heroic Move, since if he's engaged he can't cast spells and risks losing the objective. He casts a three-die Black Dart (so as to leave one Will point) at his opponent. Unfortunately, he rolls a 3-highest. Fortunately, he still has two Might points, which he uses to make the spell succeed, which then slays the Warrior (first image). Evil maintains control of this objective.

Evil is engaged everywhere so that no one is free. But there are Spectres near by, and the Good line is so thin that a lured out Warrior or two would create a hole allowing Orcs to reach the center objective. So "Boromir" pulls back to guard it (second image).

But the Spectres ability fails, the two tower archers have no effect, and so combat ultimately doesn't matter in terms of objective control.

Good win!

Post-game Thoughts

I certainly didn't play that optimally. With hindsight, I think the best Evil plan is to concentrate the Witch-King and the Spectres, protected from archery by a couple of lines In the Way fodder. They then use their abilities to pull enemies out of the line, opening a hole and exposing the Good models to traps. Meanwhile the rest of the troops spread out to help thin out the Good line. They'll eventually be able to punch through somewhere.

On the Good side, putting the bowmen aloft gave them some great fields of fire. But their inability to contribute to the line and the dangers of falling damage means they probably should have stayed on the ground. And the swordsmen and spearmen should have remembered the shielding rule.

But regardless of those mistakes, the time limit made that pretty fun to play. Good had better luck in Heroic Combat roll-offs and in Combat in general. Given more even luck, or even just an extra turn or so, I think Evil could have pulled the game out. I chose twelve turns as the limit more or less arbitrarily. For finer balance, you might want to shave off (or add) a turn or two. Twelve felt about in the right ballpark, though.

There are a lot of similar scenarios of this type, where Orcs and Warriors of Minas Tirith fighting over a city. I think what makes this one stand out a bit is the presence of the Spectres, which gives the Evil some extra tactics not available in a more generic situation.

As discussed in the introduction, I don't think the scenario works at all straight from the book. One star. But the turn limit seemed to work in making this an actual game, in the 3-4 star range. I try to rate the scenarios on what's written, which is what GW is charging us for. But the fix here is so easy to implement that I'm giving it an extra star for the record. Don't let that stop you from trying it out with a turn limit, especially as you likely already have most or all of the models.

My rating: ★★☆☆☆

Dave Townsend / dave@davetownsend.org / 11 Mar 2025