Countless Blood Harvesters filled the water, their scythes shining in the darkness. Torches and fires were being lit throughout Hernfar Isle, signaling that Citadel Guards and Knights were on the way, but for now a few Greyhaven Battlemages would have to hold off the invasion alone. As the hulking forms of the Uthuk Y’llan forces began to come ashore, one mage held aloft a rune and shouted an attack spell at the top of her lungs…

Take up arms against the ravenous hordes of the Uthuk Y’llan with Hernfar Guardians, an Army Pack expansion for BattleLore Second Edition. Hernfar Guardians features four new Daqan units, from mages skilled in combat magic to thundering metal automatons. With the included army cards, these units and the included Citadel Guard units can be instantly delployed in two different, complete, formidable armies, each able to stand firm against any onslaught. Or, you can combine units from Hernfar Guardians with those from the core set for a custom army suited to the battle at hand.

In today’s preview you’ll learn about these new Daqan units, their unique abilities, and the strategic strength of both the Hernfar Guardians and Tranlon’s Raiders armies.

Shield Your Forces and Trample Your Enemy

The powerful Greyhaven Battlemages are experts in battlefield spells trained in Terrinoth's center of magical knowledge. With the same movement, combat value, and health as Citadel Guards, they can be used in many of the same ways. Unlike the Citadel Guards, however, the Greyhaven Battlemages are not limited to melee fighting. Their combat magic can attack an enemy as far as three hexes away.

Two unit abilities allow these fearless wizards to benefit the entire army with their spells. Catalyst lets you draw a lore card and gain a lore point for every result a unit of Battlemages rolls during combat, so that you can cycle through the lore deck quickly and keep the most tactically beneficial lore cards in hand. Rune Shield, activated with a result, protects a friendly unit within one hex of the Caster unit that rolled it, allowing the protected unit to ignore one damage the next time it is attacked. Deploy a unit of Greyhaven Battlemages in the front lines, or pair them with another unit advancing into enemy territory to shield and support the entire advance.

A heavily armored cavalry unit is also joining the Daqan army: the Citadel Lancers. They are not as fast as the Riverwatch Riders, but the do have a higher combat value and two deadly unit abilities. Charge, activated with a result, does damage to target units that your unit of Citadel Lancers moved towards during the Move Step, as if these horsemen’s momentum literally carries them into the enemy. Their strong horses can also Trample, doing damage for every retreat that a supported enemy unit ignores. The Riverwatch Riders excel in supporting friendly units and speeding behind enemy lines, but when you want to forcefully break an enemy line, deploy Citadel Lancers.

Stand Firm with Iron and Stone

The Greyhaven Battlemages and Citadel Lancers make a fast and fierce offensive team, but a balanced army is strong both offensively and defensively. Behind your infantry and cavalry, therefore, the armored Ironbound and a huge Siege Golem form a solid defensive wall of iron and stone. Both of these units are designed to stand firm and wipe out attacking enemies while taking minimal damage.

The magically controlled Ironbound automatons can easily wipe out an enemy unit with a single attack. With a combat value of four, they can do as much damage as a Roc Warrior and, thanks to their Armor ability, they ignore the first result produced each combat. Their only limitation is in mobility: during the move step an Ironbound unit can only move one hex. If you spend a lore at the moment you order it, however, the unit can move one hex further, so as long as you have Greyhaven Battlemages fighting and maintaining your pool of lore, your Ironbound will remain as mobile as your Citadel Guards.

The Siege Golem, an immense, four-legged, artillery-carrying Rune Golem, is the most massive Daqan unit yet to take the field. Their sheer size gives these ranged units a health of six, and makes them Immovable so they can ignore a retreat, but it also prevents them from moving and attacking in the same turn. Yet, a Siege Golem can shoot as far as up to six hexes away, and ignores other units when determining line of sight, so you will not have to move it very often. The Barrage ability enables a Siege Golem to score a hit even when missing its main target: a result causes damage to an enemy unit adjacent to the target unit. Positioning a Siege Golem close behind your front lines gives you the chance to eradicate approaching enemies long before those front units engage in melee combat.

Defend and Destroy

The army cards featured in Hernfar Guardians suggest two thoroughly different armies, each with its own strategic purpose. The Hernfar Guardians army is a defensive force, designed to protect the small, settled island that sits at the border between Terrinoth and the territory of the Uthuk Y’llan– the first place to be attacked in an invasion. The infantry component – two units of Greyhaven Battlemages – is smaller than the defensive line consisting of two Ironbound units and one Siege Golem. Citadel Lancers are included to herd the enemy units into perilous positions and trample them across the field, while a Crystal Spire hex is included to give any unit stationed on it an extra die during combat – perhaps your Siege Golem will linger there to make its artillery even more deadly.

Tranlon’s Raiders, on the other hand, with a five-unit infantry made of Citadel Guards and Greyhaven Battlemages, is made for making inroads into enemy territory and slaying as many of the enemy as possible while moving forward. This huge infantry force is supported by two units of Citadel Lancers and two units of Ironbound. You could send the Citadel Lancers ahead to ease the way for your swarm of guards and mages, keeping the Ironbound on the sides to prevent your forced from being flanked. Another option is to divide and conquer your opponent, attacking them with a cluster of mages, cavalry, and Ironbound on each side. Once more, a Crystal Spire allows you to make one hex a particularly strong location for any Daqan unit positioned there.

Take Command

Use the army cards to instantly put strong Daqan deployments on the battlefield, or combine the units introduced in Hernfar Guardians with those from the core set of BattleLore Second Edition. For an impenetrable defensive force, you might combine Siege Golems and Ironbound with Rune Golems and a few Citadel Guards. If speed is what you’re looking for, pair the Greyhaven Battlemages and Citadel Lancers with Riverwatch Riders and a Roc Warrior, who can distract the enemy troops as the cavalry outflanks their defenses. Whether you use the included army cards or deploy armies specifically suited to your strengths as a commander, the new units of Hernfar Guardians promise to transform your battles.

In our next preview, you’ll discover the Uthuk Y’llan units and armies of the Warband of Scorn Army Pack expansion. Future previews will explore the new lore cards and scenarios introduced in each Army Pack. You can also visit the BattleLore Second Edition minisite for more details.

Pre-order Hernfar Guardians from your local retailer today!