Of Gods and Mortals - fantasy warbands

I finally got around to trying out Osprey Games' Of Gods and Mortals (which is actually written by Andrea Sfiligoi of Ganesha Games and uses the same engine as Song of Blades & Heroes).  Essentially the game is a slightly larger scale version of SoBH, but includes a three-tiered system of Gods, Legends, and Mortals.  And like other games using SoBH's engine, Andrea Sfiligoi was nice enough to include a unit calculator so players can make up their own units.  So I decided to stat up some fantasy miniatures to give the game a test run.

Very nice rulebook, inexpensive, and has lots of great artwork and pictures.

Lizardmen Warband

Lizardmen (946 points)
Carnosaurus Rex (God) Q2 C4 - Armoured, Huge, Tremble Before My Might
Skink Priest (Legend) Q3 C2 - Healing, Shooter Long
Lizardman Champion (Legend) Q3 C3 - Armoured, Hammering Blow
Lizardman Cavalry (Mortals, x4) Q4 C2 - Armoured, Long Move, Mounted
Lizardman Cavalry (Mortals, x4) Q4 C2 - Armoured, Long Move, Mounted
Lizardman Warriors (Mortals, x8) Q4 C2 - Armoured
Lizardman Warriors (Mortals, x4) Q4 C2 - Armoured

Humanoids and Things Warband

Humanoids and Things (951 points)

Bog Troll Demon (God) Q2 C4 - Big, Hammering Blow

Ogre Chief (Legend) Q3 C3 - Big, Hammering Blow

Goblin Shaman (Legend) Q3 C2 - Lightning, Shooter Long

Mincemeat Chariot (Legend) Q3 C3 - Big, Combat Master, Dashing, Long Move

Trolls (Mortals, x3) Q4 C2 - Big

Orcs (Mortals, x8) Q4 C2

Bugbears (Mortals, x7) Q4 C2 - Ambusher

Gnolls (Mortals, x7) Q4 C2 - Traitorous Strike

This is after deployment.

The scenario was Showdown, just a good ol' fashion battle to the death.  There are three woods and a couple hills for terrain but they wouldn't be a factor in this game.

Lizardmen went first.  The majority of the Lizardmen units moved this first turn, no turn-overs.  The unit of 4 Lizardman Warriors used an Invocation to give their God an extra die.

The Goblin Shaman blasted the Lizardman Champion with a Lightning bolt out of the blue, leaving only ashes behind.  The Lizardman God would begin whittling away at the Gnolls and Orcs.

A lot of back and forth combat occurred midfield.

Mortal units are no match for the mighty Carnosaurus Rex.  The Lizardmen's right flank was in jeopardy until the Lizardman Cavalry charged the Ogre Chief.

The Gnolls have been removed and casualties piling up midfield.  The Orcs would flee after this when they had more dead than living models.

The Bugbears finally were able to advance after a couple turnovers, trying to pile on outnumbering bonuses against the Lizardman God.  So the Lizardmen all piled in as well for a complex fray.  The Goblin Shaman cast another Lightning bolt, this time obliterating the Skink Priest.

Saurus Cavalry were able to take out the Goblin Shaman as the Carnosaurus Rex continued taking out Bugbears, thanks to the Invocations from the 4 Lizardman Warriors relaxing in the back.

The Orcs finally charged back into the mix.  The Mincemeat Chariot killed off one of the Lizardman Warriors used as part of the Invoking squard.

The Lizardman warband had more dead than living, so morale test taken.  All the Mortal units ran back some, but the larger group of Lizardman Warriors completely fled the battlefield.

The Bog Troll Demon charged into Carnosaurus Rex, causing a Clash of Titans, which Awed the Orcs and Bugbears.  Then a follow up attack, the Bog Troll Demon slayed the Lizardmen's God. 

Morale test taken for Lizardman God slain.  All the Lizardmen Cavalry run, their movement takes them off the board.  There are not enough Mortals remaining to perform an Invocation to bring back the Carnosaurus Rex, the Lizardmen have lost this battle.

It really helps already being familiar with the Song of Blades & Heroes mechanics, so the game didn't take long nor was it difficult picking up the new rules.  There are enough differences where I still had to look some things up occasionally, but nothing to worry about.  I made my own quick reference sheet to go along with the one included in the rulebook;  mainly on how CO and OO units move, Invocations, outnumbering, etc.

Its definitely a step up from skirmish, with 29 models for the Humanoids and 23 models for the Lizardmen.  I have mostly individual models in my collection, which is perfect for skirmish games, but not so much for mass combat.  

Overall the game is great.  It might not be something I'll play regularly, however I can see it being used as a way to escalate a SoBH campaign.  There should be a way to incorporate SoBH into OGAM; strip away the God/Invocation mechanic, change the tiers to allow more variety, etc.  We'll see what the future holds.