Helm's Guard Legendary Legion vs Mordor in Fog of War at 600.

Having recently completed Helm Hammerhand, I couldn't wait to try him out on the board! Andrew obliged with a 600 point Mordor list complete with Shaggy and the Witch King himself. We used the veto system with Andrew squashing contest of champions and me killing Heirlooms of Ages past which left Fog of War.

Andrew's Mordor list. 

Helm's Guard LL. Man, I really spent a lot on throwing spears, didn't I?

SETUP: This is the board. I chose the Woods in Andrew's board half as my terrain piece. There was no choice other than the Rohan Captain for both the model I wanted to keep safe and Andrew's target.

Rohan forms a cohesive line, ready to battle in the center. Andrew is deployed thus: the Witch King on the left by the house, Guritz in the center, and Shaggy on the right.

Royal Guards on the flank.

Helm Helm Helm!

The Witch King and Warg Riders.

Guritz.

Shagggggggggy (it wasn't me).

Over the next two turns, the armies close. 

Each turn, Helm uses his free might for a Heroic Resolve which manages to protect a horse from being Black Darted. At this point, I should note that Andrew's dice begin very cold. He charges in with some Warg Riders to tie up my knights, and hoping his throwing spears can take out some horses.

Editor's Note: I totally whiffed that Heroic Resolve means you can't move AT ALL. I definitely did some Heroic Resolves and then my free Heroic Combat. In my defense, this is the first time I've EVER seen a Heroic Resolve used... and it may be the last.

Andrew loses 2 warg riders, as well as one rider though his mount sticks around. Throwing spears have not done a single wound so far.

On turn three, the lines lock! Shagrat crushes a Royal Guard.

Overall, Rohan gains the upper hand across the front line, though do suffer some losses. The Witch King continues to fail at spells. Really, Andrew's dice even with the crown, have been awful. He does manage to get a Transfix off, but Helm's free Heroic Resolve rolls the 6 to counter it. Andrew is smart about boxing Helm in- keeping him fighting one enemy and only being able to heroic combat into one.

I send some Royal Guard around the flank. Their throwing spears miss the mark on the Witch King.

Turn 5 clashes across the front. 

I throw one warrior at Shagrat, hoping to bleed some Might off in heroic combats.

Helm is so close to being able to break through the line!

The fight continues going Rohan's way; with Helm really doing a lot of damage.

The grind continues into turn 6! Helm wins his heroic combat and has enough space to squeeze through and charge Guritz.

The Witch King charges a Royal Guard... loses the fight. The Royal Guard then kills the Witch King's horse. The Witch King then rolls a "1" on thrown rider and hits the ground prone. Did I mention Andrew's dice have been rubbish? You can see Helm on Guritz in the background.

Guritz dies horribly to Helm, leaving the Witch King in a really precarious situation. Andrew calls the Heroic move, and Helm counters. Andrew wins the move, and finally scores a Black Dart on Helm's horse! Helm spends his one fate on the horse, but it still dies. Then Helm rolls a Thrown rider and gets a 2. I decide to use Expert Rider and re-roll... landing the six! With the Witch King prone at the start of his turn... Helm is coming for him! Side note- you can call Heroic Moves when prone, right?

Helm gonna getcha.

Helm and one Rider hit the Witch King! The other two riders cross the barricade.

The Fight continues on the right. Shagrat murders a few men of Rohan but by and large, Rohan gains the upper hand. Mordor begins the turn broken, and I start sending soldiers around the back hoping I have enough time to get into the woods.

The Witch King does win the fight against Helm and the Rider, but fails to cause any wounds.

The game continues. I have initiative, so lock up most of what's left of Mordor.

Not looking great for Shagrat...

The Witch King is dead regardless as all of his Will has been expended.

The Witch King slays the Royal Guard as his spirit dissipates. Andrew assumed the house here was my terrain until I started moving guys into the woods.

Shagrat actually survives! I roll 5 wounds on him, and he passes all 3 fate... But unfortunately for Andrew the game continues another turn. Andrew wins priority and loses the majority of his remaining army to courage checks.

The last orc puts in a valiant effort.

With that, Rohan completely holds the field.

Rohan earns a full 12 VPs for killing Shagrat, protecting the Captain, breaking Mordor without being broken, and controlling their terrain piece. A ridiculous 12-0 for Rohan.

Closing Thoughts: First of all, neither Andrew nor I are superstitious in the least. THAT BEING SAID, Andrew's dice have become legendarily bad and this game was no different. Truly, I don't think Andrew made any major tactical mistakes. None of his spells worked. He lost almost every duel. Duels he did win, he rarely wounded. In the end I lost 12 models over the course of the entire game, and probably half of that was from Shagrat. 

With that aside, Helm is AWESOME! I love him to pieces, though it's a little scary to have him be such a lynchpin of the force. I can imagine one unlucky with that winds up in his death probably seals the fate of this force. Still, he was an absolute monster this game.