First two games of Burrows and Badgers vs Mort.

Two more real, face to face games! Life just gets beter and better!

Mort came round after Paul had gone (and I had cleaned the table and chairs then planted a tree, long story), for a couple of games of Burrows and Badgers.

Why? The Leighton Buzzard Club bought in during lockdown and most of all, because it's cool!

He was using his Big Yin and Rogues, I had my Free Beasts of the Well of Ashes.

This is Big Ouseux the Sparrow, Batty the Bat, L'Otter Napaspeur (my leader and mage), Bowie the cat (her second), and Snappy, my squirrel ranger  plus Squeaker the Mouse ranger.


Squeaker the mouse ranger.


Being Freebeasts, we got to roll three times on the rare item chart. Bowie picked up a master crafted sword (+1 to strike rolls, tasty), another spell for L’Otter, meaning she now knows 4! She picked luck. Batty picked up a bottle of mortal poison, muhahahahahah!
Scenario 1 (to learn the rules) was an all out brawl and stand up fight. My secondaries were 'deliver the message' and to launch a hand-to-hand ambush.

One thing I quickly realised is that I lack decent 28mm scale psedo-medieval terrain. This will have to be rectified (and Mort has very generously dropped a kit round to build since)!

I do have a church, a house and a LOT of ruins, but not much variety otherwise. Mort added his ruins to the landscape and we were ready to go. My squirrel was on sniper duty on the tower, while my mouse deployed forward of their deployment area (a bonus for owning an abandoned burrow). My party packed a lot of healing potions, and Batty a second portion of mortal poison (the joys of having an Apothacry in our pocket).

Almost immediately, Batty fluttered off Mort's back edge to deliver his message, gaining me my secondary objective (and coincidently stopping Mort from achiving one of his, which I did not know at the time).

The L’Otter and Squeaker sniped at Mort’s gang with arrows and lightning, also Snappy was on top of the tower, also snipping, but instead of hitting Mort's gang, his only successful rôlé was as a lightning conductor for Mort's squirrel mage!

 Sneaker and Ouseux had teamed up on the fast approaching Bother the Weasel. The two of them had taken down Bother the Weasel, but off screen Bowie had been taken out the game. L’Otter spent most of game in close combat with Big Yin, who moved FAST! Not being a combat animal (three times weak and delicate did not help) spent her time casting ‘heal’ upon herself! Unfortunately, I learned that this does not work as a survival stratergy in the long run...

Meanwhile we ended up in a mouse-off in the broken ground near the church, which Sneaker, despite laying down some good hits, was taken out the game.
Nearby,Ouseux and Little Yin slugged away (Ouseux did not fail a single save, amazing).

Bowie lies licking his wounds, Mort advances Her Ladyship, trying to get into my deployment zone to gain his secondary objective.


It was all over bar the shouting as L'Otter was eliminated. A big win to Mort! L'Otter and Bowie were unharmed andd returned to action for game two, but Sneaker had deep lacerations and missed the next game, I should have played to my parties strengths, ranged hit and run, but I had gone for a fight. Mort's gang is built for the long fight, and I didn't do well on that! I only picked up a few pennies, and did bnot even look at the rare items on display.
Refreshment was sought, and we both agreed that this slipped down rather too easily, as did Squeaker as he recovered from his wounds!

Mort brought out some rather fabulous terrain, and we rolled our scenario, take and hold! Take three unoccupied terrain pieces, and as the smaller gang, if I win, major bonuses, so this was one to go for.
Secondary objective for me was 'Purge' - take out the opposing magic user.

Deployed in advance was Snappy by my housem, I had an inkling of plan. Seeing how Mort's mage  had stayed back in the last game, I figured Mort would do something similar, so I sent my two fliers out hunting. Bowie moves up through the trenches with L'Otter as bodyguard cover. Ouseux and Batty both flew out wide, Ouseux to the left hand ruins, Batty to the forge, using the cover to evade Mort's heavy hitters.

Big Yin was moving toward the house too, which was a real threat to Snappy, so a quick shot and he broke away to the fence line (which also got us to learn the difficult terrain rules, useful).

Ouseux and Batty had both moved out wide on their flanks. As Mort's squirrel mage moved the two of them fluttered in to take a swing at him. Ouseux's first swing and damage was massive, Batty, using mortal posion (extra damage) was pitiful (only 3, come on!); so much for a quick assasination...

This mean Mort rushed back Little Yin and Her Ladyship to save face. Batty, being delicate, took some major damage from Little Yin's mighty sword.

Big Yin takes shelter behind the house, but he is still in line of sight of Snappy, who puts and arrow in his back with quite a lot of damage attached.


Bowie holds the fort as Bother attacks, trying to break through to L'Otter, but with aid from a few well aimed lightning bolts at Big Yin, severly weakening him. L'Otter's new spell of luck allowed Bowie some amazing defensive rolls, plus a wall to hide behind is a real bonus.


Snappy and L'Otter combine to take down Mort's mouse ranger lurking in the ruins.

And Bowie takes down Big Yin on the charge. My pet swashbuckler hit hard!

With Batty taken down, as is Mort's Squirrel mage, Snappy, Bowie and L'Otter holding terrain, Mort decided to bug out before his losses escalated.

It was a slaughter. Again, Ouseux and Little Yin took lumps out of each other, but Ouseux shield saving him on several occasions, he only took minor damage against a much harder opponent.


The Freebeasts have now fought two, and won one, not bad. We captured Mort's mage, made a pretty penny off the local witch hunter who rewarded us well, and then ransomed the mage back to Mort, plus held the terrain gaining us much needed rewards. Traders flocked to us, we were offered rare items, we even picked up an ancient tome, which contained the Light spell 'Invincible', and added to L'Otter's new movement skill, so now is slippery (as an Otter should be), she has become quite an impressive character. Two new spells overall for L'Otter, who now must qualify as an Archmage! We even found an ancient relic, which should keep us in the fight longer. Batty whi had been taken out of play, fully recovered and even gained experience, allowing him to gain the 'slippery' skill, which allows him to break off from combat without the opponent getting a free hack. Snappy up-levelled too, and gained 'Freeze' meaning he is unspottable until he reveals himself in ambush. Bowie picked up an extra presence stat. and the gang generated enough labour and resources over the two games to build a 'Magic Garden' for L'Otter to study in.

 A great pair of games, huge laughs, and thank you to Mort for coming round.

L'Otter Napaspeur - it is now very true!