Battle of the Hornburg (a.k.a The Battle of Helm’s Deep) – 3-4 March T.A.

3019

Overleaf background copied from source site: https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Battle_of_the_Hornburg

The battle began when an older man accidentally fired an arrow at the Uruk-hai, killing one by hitting him in the neck. At first it consisted primarily of volleys of arrows. The
Elven Archers demonstrated their unmatched proficiency of archery, as they loosened devastating hails of arrows in seconds, felling many Uruk-hai. Despite their fine
bowmanship, and the weight of fire being put out by the human and elf defenders, the Uruk hordes moved steadily closer to the walls. At short range, the Uruk
crossbowmen could finally hit back with their slow-loading, yet hard-hitting crossbows. Then the Uruk-hai began raising ladders, each with a berserker on top. Many elves
were killed during this stage of the battle as the pressure increased. Despite that, they and the Rohirrim had managed to keep the Uruk-hai from getting a foothold on the
wall. While the elves were sword-fighting with the Uruk-hai on the wall, the sappers, a group of four Uruk-hai, laid the charges that were prepared by Saruman in the
culvert under the wall. A berserker lit the blasting powder despite Legolas' repeated attempts to bring him down. The ensuing explosion sent Uruks, Elves, and huge chunks
of rock high into the air. The falling debris brought great casualties to both sides of the conflict.Once the wall was blown, the Uruk-hai poured into Helm's Deep through the
large gap that was made from the explosion, while another group of Uruk-hai brought a wooden battering ram to the main gate and attempted to break it. The elves,
despite being outnumbered, managed to stem the tide. Soon afterwards Aragorn, Gimli, and the elves were forced to retreat as the battle became more desperate; Haldir,
still fighting on the wall, was slain by two Uruk-hai before Aragorn's eyes. Despite fighting ferociously, the Rohirrim defenders were cut down quickly by the overwhelming
Uruk numbers. With Helm's Deep being quickly overrun, Theoden ordered a retreat to the keep. Aragorn and Gimli, trapped outside the gate, were able to scale the wall up
to the Hornburg, via a rope cast down to them by Legolas. During the retreat, many Rohirrim were killed. Once inside the keep, Théoden fell into despair while his men tried
to brace the door. Aragorn sent word to evacuate the caves. At this point, Gimli noted that the sun was rising, and Aragorn remembered Gandalf telling him that he would
arrive at dawn on the fifth day, and convinced Théoden to ride out with him. Gimli sounded the horn of Helm Hammerhand and what remained of the Rohirrim, along with
Aragorn and Legolas, mounted on their horses and charged the Uruks just as they broke through the door, at the command of 'Forth Eorlingas'. Théoden's cavalry drove out
all of the orcs from the Hornburg, killing and knocking out hundreds of Uruks and broke through the gate and the causeway, with Saruman's main host now gathered
outside the fortress.

Outside the keep, Théoden and Aragorn saw Gandalf arrive on Shadowfax. Alongside him was Éomer and his cavalry, and together they charged down the valley. The Uruk-
hai formed up a phalanx of spears to repel Eomer’s horsemen; however, the Rohirrim charged down with the sun behind them, and the Uruk-hai defense was thrown into
disarray when the sun crested the hill and blinded them. Between the combined forces, the Uruk-hai were forced to retreat.

 Pennants: Army of Orthanc commanded by Saruman the White (Unnamed Uruk Hai commander present at the battle) – Level 1 Commander and Level 2 Warrior.
 Standards: Army of Rohan commanded by King Theoden – Level 2 Commander and Level 2 Warrior (plus a Level 3 Wizard once Gandalf enters the battle). First turn.
 Battle Savvy rules apply. 7 banners required for victory. Standard army archers use Longbow rules.

Special rules: All pennant units are Uruk Hai and ignore the “Goblin Run” trait that usually applies to goblinoid units.

The orange shaded units are Elvish units; ignoring the movement and combat restrictions of wooded terrain (as per Wood Giant rules) and roll +1 dice in ranged attacks.

Special event trigger: “Fire of Orthanc” the Pennant army can choose to sacrifice a unit in the culvert hex to remove an adjacent section of the wall and any occupying unit.

Special event trigger: “Dawn on the 5th day” Eomer’s 6 horse units can only be placed on the board after the Standard army has lost 5 units.

Battlefield markers:

1: Causeway to enter Hornburg 2: Theoden in the Hornburg 3: Aragorn (Commander hero) 4: Gimli (Warrior hero) 5: Legolas (Warrior hero)
6: Haldir 7: Gandalf and Eomer 8: Culvert 9: Uruk Hai commander 10: The Deeping Wall