Cirque du Soulblighter versus The Cloudspine Militia (MWC'01, Round01)
Game1: Desert Stampede

Things don't bode well at the start for the Cloudspine Militia (CM), who were only able to muster two players for the first two games of round one. Things don't bode all that well for Cirque either during planning time, as
members get confused as to who's who in this themed MWC team made up mostly href="http://townhall.clanplaid.net/stoneheim/">Fellowship of Stoneheim</a>: "Which one is Maz?" Also apparently having a geezer moment, Shakes (Cirque)
thinks he's playing in MWC2k.

CM's Desert stampede strategy seems to hinge on wight placement, as Steven (CM) advises Lionheart (CM) to "hurry" in racing their special turbo wights to ambush points near Desert's river crossings. CM manages to get one wight into the river successfully.

Meanwhile, as though it were a complete surprise to him, M0bi (Cirque) questions a 30-pig trade as too costly, unaware that sacrifices in unit strength are not going to handicap his team later on.

Both teams keep their 30-pig hordes away from the river. While Cirque implements a three-pronged river crossing guard with heavy pus (for CM's pigs), CM attempts a juggernaught north with warriors and dwarves. Oddly, the pigs don't seem to be a part of CM's jugg. In what can only be termed a "jugg feint" or "faint jugg" as it were, CM's warriors and dwarves are crossing the river north while its pigs are still wallowing in mud at the start hill, seemingly oblivious to the urgency of the situation. You'd think they might sense the possibility of 12 blood-thirsty, puss-carrying doggies lurching around, looking for a little bacon treat.

When Cirque thinks it sees a jugg north, it calls its puss-carriers to mobilize there, while Cirque keeps its own pigs in a position well away from the river. CM's warrior and dwarf commandos are cut down at the north river crossing, but CM decides to send its pigs in that direction anyway, escorted by a small group of warriors, dwarves and ghols. Cirque's ghols, puss-ghols and warriors first head mid, then head back to the north crossing and destroy every single one of CM's pigs.

The one wight CM planted mid somehow does not get used as Cirque decides to move its 30 pigs through the middle crossing . Cirque completes the romp as all its pigs survive with about 60% unit points remaining.

Steven observes, "we could have done better." You'll get 'em next week, CM.

******

Game2: Trow Terries

During early PT, Shakes (Cirque) again announces that it's the year 2000. Maybe that was a good year for him. Soon after, bets are placed on what the Cloudspine Militia's unit trade will look like mid. For no apparent reason and despite their uncontestable whiteness, several Cirque members break into ebonics, shouting offerings of "Fity Dolla Bills" for whomever gets the mid
trade correct. Top Hat confides to the film reviewer, "This is what happens when you spend too many years in the circus." The film reviewer wonders which circus speaks ebonics. Other than the happy fun-time place known as the South Bronx.

Both teams attempt a three-flank strat, which proves not to have been such a good idea for CM, which during game two was still sporting two people on its team. Constant harrassment of the CM team's flanks by Cirque's Trow nets a number of unintentional lock losses on CM's part.

One of CM's three flanks (two trow, some myrks, two locks and some souls) merely stays planted at CM's south flag, unused for most of the game. Cirque's unit trade was strangely heavy on souls, which likewise remained unused/unusable for most of the game.

One by one, cirque concentrates on eliminating CM's defending forces at its north and mid flags. Each time, Cirque acts sloppily but swiftly, losing units and incurring damage in a way that implies its members do not often play dark maps. Which is true.

Victories lead the balance of Cirque's forces to CM's south flag, where another swift and messy battle gives Cirque the six-flag victory, with 60% or so of its unit points remaining.

******
Game3: Cracks FR

Although one might think the "Cloudspine Militia" (CM) might do well on Cracks in the Cloudspine, their lackluster and pastoral strat in game three of round one made them look more like Cloudspine Beat Farmers. This with Killbot in attendance, the Godot-like character who makes it to game three, surely to the relief of his teammates.

In PT, M0bi the Clown (Cirque) voices the correct year, perhaps as a gentle hint to Shakes, who somehow still manages to call out "MWC2k..." Too much pre-game liquor perhaps?

The clowns attempt what has become a standard strat for Cracks Flag Rally, sending a strong force mid, with small mixed unit forces guarding the forward two flags with a few thrall guarding the home flags. CM, on the
other hand, seems at first to be attempting an alley sweep, sending two large mixed forces to the sides, a ghol pack mid and leaving one and two thrall on each home base flag.

Finding nothing but a ghol pack at mid, Cirque spreads its large mid force out to the sides, presumably in order to take CM's two forward flags (V and VI). Cirque sends its own gholpack to CM's home base.

Meanwhile, it turns out that CM was only sending its two large flanks to its forward flags for defense, leaving all offensive work to be taken care of by the ghol pack it sent through mid. Sadly for CM, all four flags on Cirque's side are guarded well enough that an en masse ghol attack at any of them would prove fruitless. Killbot, CM's gholer, tries to attack Cirque's base thrall guard anyway and dies in a big clump of red bodies. Sad, really. Ghols are so cute.

Cirque's ghols, by contrast, find a pittance of thrall protection at the CM base, and the ghols take each flag easily.

CM, which keeps its last units planted defensively on flags V and VI, finds itself surrounded at each pass by Cirque flanks. Rather than playing more aggressively in an attempt to break each of Cirque's flanks, CM seems to pin itself to its flags, doing little except taking damage from Cirque's archers and dwarves.

In the end, CM's demise is wrought by Cirque's steady, plinking patience. Once Cirque effectively destroys CM's artillery and conquers flag V, they move in for the kill at the eighth and final flag during the game's last few seconds. Cirque ends another lop-sided victory with 50% of their unit points remaining.