Fire and Dice Tournament: Game 2- World Eaters vs Necrons

Game 2 of the tournament would see my World Eaters take on the Hypercrypt Necrons in the Supply Drop mission. This was not a great mission to be playing against this army, as their teleport ability would make it easy for them to get onto the objectives late in the game to get a lot of points on the primary mission. 

Terrain Showcase- Necron City

 Today I have another table that I built for my gaming group, Didcot Wargames Club. This was once more using ttcombat terrain, as well as some scratch built pieces to match up with a Necron-themed gaming mat from Frontline Gaming. 

Surrey 40k Tournament Battle Report: Game 3- White Scars vs Necrons

The final 40k battle report sees my White Scars take on Jack's Necrons in the Resupply Drop mission. 

This mission features six objectives on the table. For each objective, you roll off and the winner gets to move the objective up to 3" in any direction. You score a point for each objective you control at the start of your turn, so it is possible for the objective to be moved off your unit before you can score it. We were also using kill points in this mission. The deployment zone was Search and Destroy. 

My White Scars army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Khan on Bike- Twin Bolter, Khan's Spear, Chogorian Storm, Master of Snares, Wrath of the Heavens

Librarian- Jump Pack, Force Stave, Mantle of the Stormseer, Ride the Winds, Storm-wreathed

5 Tactical Marines- Bolters, Heavy Bolter

5 Tactical Marines- Bolters, Plasma Cannon

5 Tactical Marines- Bolters, Power Sword, Flamer

5 Scouts Bikers- Twin Bolters, Shotguns, Combat Knives

5 Bikers- Twin Bolters, 2 Meltaguns, Force Stave

5 Devastators- 4 Grav-cannons, Combi-grav

Rhino- Storm Bolter

Rhino- Storm Bolter

Drop Pod- Storm Bolter

Battalion Detachment

Captain- Bike, Twin Bolter, Teeth of Terra

Lieutenant- Jump Pack, Power Axe, MC Bolter

5 Scouts- Bolters

5 Scouts- Bolters

5 Scouts- Bolt Pistol, Combat Knives

10 Vanguard Veterans- 5 with 2 Chainswords, 5 with Chainsword and Plasma Pistol

5 Sternguard Veterans- Special Issue Bolters

Thunderfire Cannon- Techmarine Gunner with Flamer, Plasma Cutter, 2 Servo-arms

A fast moving White Scars force with some strong buffing characters and some backfield support unit. 

I took a couple of units of Tactical Marines for backfield objective holding, along with the Thunderfire Cannon for long ranged firepower. I took three units of Scouts for board control and grabbing objectives out of my deployment zone. 

For the fast moving elements, I took two units of Bikers, a couple of squads in Rhinos and a unit of Vanguard Veterans. These could move out to take on the enemy units or go after the objectives. For the Characters, I took two Captains on Bike (one of which is a Khan), a Lieutenant with Jump Pack and Librarian with Jump Pack.

Warhammer World GT: Game 4- Deathwatch/Astra Militarum vs Necrons

Game 4 was at the start of day 2 of the Warhammer World Grand Tournament (Heat 1). In this game, my Deathwatch and Astra Militarum would be facing off against Jon's Necrons in the Resupply Drop Eternal War mission.

In this mission, at the start of the third turn, a player nominates three objectives and randomly selects one to stay on the table. The other player randomly selects which of the other three stays, so you end up fighting over 2 objectives.

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment (Deathwatch)

Watch Master- Guardian Spear (WM)

Watch Captain- Jump Pack, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield (WC)

Kill Team 1: Watch Sergeant and 9 Veterans- 10 Storm Bolters, 2 Storm Shields, 8 Chainswords (KT1)

Kill Team 2: Intercessor Sergeant and 9 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols, Auxiliary Grenade Launcher (KT2)

Kill Team 3: Watch Sergeant and 4 Veterans- 2 Frag Cannons, Storm Shield, 3 Shotguns, 2 Chainswords (KT3). 5 Vanguard Veterans- 4 Bolt Pistols, 3 Chainswords, Storm Shield, Pair of Lightning Claws (VV)

Rhino- 2 Storm Bolters (R)

Kill Team 4: Watch Sergeant and 4 Veterans- 3 Combi-Meltas, 2 Bolters, Storm Shield, 4 Chainswords (KT4)

Razorback- Twin Lascannons, Storm Bolter (Rz)

Battalion Detachment (Astra Militarum, Cadian)

Company Commander- Plasma Pistol, Chainsword, Grand Strategist Warlord Trait, Kurov's Aquila (CC1)

Company Commander- Laspistol, Chainsword (CC2)

Infantry Squad- Lascannon, Grenade Launcher (IS1)

Infantry Squad- Lascannon, Grenade Launcher (IS2)

Infantry Squad- Lascannon (IS3)

30 Conscripts- Lasguns (C)

Auxiliary Detachment (Assassins)

Culexus Assassin (A)

Battle Report 147- Dark Angels vs Necrons

This week's battle report sees another outing for my tournament Dark Angels army, this time facing the new Necron codex for the first time, commanded by Moz.

In this game, were were playing Kill Confirmed from the Chapter Approved Maelstrom of War missions, using Vanguard Strike deployment. This mission uses three cards per turn, and you cannot discard any cards that require you to kill an enemy unit. In addition, you earn a victory point for each enemy unit destroyed.

My Dark Angels army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Azrael (Az)

Primaris Lieutenant- Master-crafted Auto Bolt Rifle (L)

Primaris Ancient- Bolt Rifle (An)

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifle (I1)

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifle (I2)

5 Devastator Squad- Heavy Bolter, Bolters, Armorium Cherub (D)

5 Scouts- Bolters, Heavy Bolter (S1)

5 Scouts- Bolters, Heavy Bolter (S2)

5 Scouts- Bolt Pistols, Combat Knives (S3)

10 Hellbalsters- Plasma Incinerators (H)

Outrider Detachment

Sammael (S)

5 Black Knights- Plasma Talons, Corvus Hammers (BK)

4 Ravenwing Bikers- Flamer, Twin Bolters, Storm Bolter (RB1)

4 Ravenwing Bikers- Meltagun, Twin Bolters, Storm Bolter (RB2)
4 Ravenwing Bikers- Twin Bolters, Storm Bolter (RB3)

Ravenwing Darkshroud- Assault Cannon (D)

10 Command Points

After the recent FAQ, I dropped the Dark Talon from my list and added a third unit of Ravenwing Bikers. As much as I like the Dark Talon, I'm not sure it is worth 200 pts in my list. It has the potential to do a lot of damage, but it rarely survives past turn 1 in my games. Perhaps I am just playing it wrong and need more practice, but it didn't really bring much to my list.

Battle Report 121- 2000 pts Ravenwing vs Necrons

This week's battle report sees the first outing for my Dark Angels Ravenwing army in 8th edition, taking on Adam's Necrons in a 2000 pts Eternal War mission. 

This game was fought at a tournament at Battle Bunker in Sunderland. I was not planning on attending the tournament, but Justin (who runs Battle Bunker) put out the call on facebook the morning of the tournament. He was one player short and needed someone to make up numbers. Two free games of 40k awaiting, so I showed up for round 2 and was placed at the bottom table as if I had lost the first game. I decided to try out my Ravenwing in 8th edition, so made up a list to test a few units. 

My army consisted of:

Outrider Detachment

Sammael on Corvex (S)

Ravenwing Apothecary (A)

5 Black Knights- Plasma Talons (BK1)

Ravenwing Darkshroud- Assault Cannon (D)

5 Ravenwing Bikers- 2 Meltaguns, Chainswords, Power Sword (RB1)

Outrider Detachment

Librarian- Bike, Force Sword, Mind Worm, Aversion (L2)

5 Black Knights- Plasma Talons (BK2)

5 Ravenwing Bikers- 2 Plasma Guns, Chainswords, Power Sword (RB2)

5 Ravenwing Bikers- Flamer, Chainswords (RB3)

Dark Talon- 2 Hurricane Bolters, Rift Cannon (DT)

Landspeeder- Multi-melta, Typhoon Missile Launcher (L1)

5 Command Points

Two Outrider Detachments allowed me to take an all Ravenwing army. Sammael is a tough character in combat (doubles his strength on the charge) and allows full re-rolls for Ravenwing units. Two units of Black Knights would also be a potent force, as their Plasma Talons and Corvus Hammers would prove to be potent in combat and the shooting phase. 

I then took three units of Bikers, each with different special weapons. I took a Librarian and Apothecary to provide some useful psychic boosts and potentially heal some Black Knights. 

Finally, a rounded out the army with a Darkshroud (who provides -1 to hit against nearby units), a Landspeeder for some tank hunting and a Dark Talon. Two Hurricane Bolters combined with Strafing Run (+1 to hit) should provide a lot of anti-infantry firepower, and the Rift Cannon would also be good for hunting monsters and vehicles. My warlord was Sammael, who took Tenacious Survivor. 

Birthday Bash Tournament Battle Report 1- Deathwatch vs Necrons

Welcome to my first battle report of the recent Birthday Bash tournament that I attended. Birthday Bash was organised by Dave over at Confessions of a 40k addict and run at Wargames over in Southport. I will do a full review of the tournament and store after my battle reports, but I'll just say that it was an awesome event held at a great store. 

I arrived with my Deathwatch at Southport on the Friday night, ready for the carnage to come the next day. I did manage to get a decent sleep at the hotel (though I was awoken during the night by the couple next door who were really enjoying their stay!). 

The tournament was a 1500 points, three game event that was going to be three maelstrom missions. All armies were using a Combined Arms Detachment, with Lords of War allowed. Armies were 'encouraged' to be a friendlier affair than a hardcore tournament list. The maelstrom missions would use a modified maelstrom deck- basically the deck cut in half and each card only worth one victory point. In addition, you could score a maximum of two cards per turn. This would prevent any player from running away with the game in most cases. Impossible cards could be discarded when drawn (impossible from that game point onwards).

My first game was against Jonathan from Dragon's Eye Miniatures, who was fielding his Necron Maynarkh Dynasty army. Jonathan has been chronicling his updates to the rules for the Imperial Armour Necrons, so has come up with a fun and thematic force for his Birthday Bash army. The first mission was Cleanse and Control, where you get up to three maelstrom cards per turn. We would also be using Vanguard deployment.

My army consisted of:

Watch Captain Artemis (with V3)

5 Veterans- 3 Frag Cannons, Storm Shield (V1)

Drop Pod (DP1)

5 Veterans- Meltagun, 2 Combi-meltas, Auspex (V2)

Drop Pod (DP2)

5 Veterans- 5 Deathwatch Shotguns, Storm Shield (V3)

Drop Pod (DP3)
5 Veterans- 5 Stalker Pattern Bolters (V4)

4 Bikers- Power Weapons, Meltabombs (B1)

4 Bikers- Power Weapons, Meltabombs (B2)

4 Vanguard Veterans- 2 Heavy Thunder Hammers, 2 Pairs of Lightning Claws (VV)

Corvus Blackstar- Inferno Halo Launcher (CB)

Artemis was my warlord and his warlord trait would grant me one extra change to my Mission Tactics (so two in total). I decided to change his unit for this game. Normally he goes with the Vanguard Veterans in the Corvus, but this time, I put him with the Shotgun Marines in the Drop Pod. I figured his poisoned combi-flamer would be of more use with their shotguns and he would add some combat punch to the unit for when they are inevitably assaulted. 

Battle Report 90- 1850 pts Deathwatch vs Necrons

This week's battle report saw my Deathwatch take on a Necron Decurion, commanded by Tom, in the Contact Lost Maelstrom mission (3 cards per turn).

My army consisted of:

Black Spear Strike Force

Watch Master- Beacon Angelus

Aquila Kill Team
5 Veterans- Infernus Heavy Bolter
Terminator- Heavy Flamer, Auxiliary Meltagun

Dominatus Kill Team
5 Veterans- 2 Heavy Thunder Hammers, Storm Shield and Power Maul, Black Shield with Power Sword
3 Vanguard Veterans- 2 Pairs Lightning Claws, I Heavy Thunder Hammer

Corvus Blackstar- Auspex Array, Hurricane Bolter

Combined Arms Detachment
Librarian- Level 2, Auspex, Meltabombs
10 Veterans- 4 Frag Cannons, 2 Storm Shields and Auspex
Drop Pod- Locator Beacon
5 Veterans- 5 Stalker Pattern Boltguns
Rhino
4 Bikers- 4 Power Weapons
4 Bikers- 4 Power Weapons

My warlord trait was Bane of Monstrosities, giving me re-rolls to wound and AP against Monstrous Creatures, Tanks and Superheavy Vehicles for the Watch Master.
The Librarian rolled on Fulmination, getting Electrosurge, Magnetokinesis and Electropulse.

This time, I split my forces between the Blackspear Strike Force and the CAD. I decided to try the Librarian with the Stalker Boltgun Veterans. The Stalkers and Bikes would deploy first, with the rest of the army coming in via deep strike as the game went on.

Caledonian Revolution 2016: Game 2- White Scars vs Necrons

After my absolute crushing in Game 1 of the tournament, I found myself banished to table 32 to play Simon and his Necrons, after he had as good a start as I did. 

The ETC mission for this game was The Relic as the primary and Spoils of War as the secondary (3 maelstrom cards per turn, you can steal your opponent's secure objective cards).

As a reminder, my army consisted of:

Scarblade Strike Force

Hunting Force

Khan- Moondrakken (with CS)

Command Squad- Bikes, Apothecary, 4 grav guns, 4 storm shields, Banner of the Eagle (CS)

6 Bikers- 2 grav guns, sergeant with power axe and meltabombs (BS1)

6 Bikers- 2 grav guns, sergeant with meltabombs (BS2)

Attack Bike- Multimelta (AB)

6 Scout Bikers- 2 Grenades launchers, sergeant with meltabombs and homing beacon (SB)

Stormbringer Squadron

5 Scouts- bolt pistols, combat weapons, sergeant with meltabombs (S1)

Landspeeder Storm- Heavy Bolter, Cerberus Launcher (LS1)

Landspeeder- Multimelta, Typhoon Missile Launcher (L)

Combined Arms Detachment

Chaplain- Bike, Hunter's Eye, Meltabombs (with CS or L2)

5 Scouts- Bolters, sergeant with meltabombs (S2)

Landspeeder Storm- Heavy Bolter, Cerberus Launcher (LS2)

3 Bikers- 2 meltaguns, sergeant with meltabombs (BS3)

3 Centurions- Grav cannons and grav amps, hurricane bolters (C)

Drop Pod (DP)

Stormhawk Interceptor- TL assault cannon, Skyhammer missile launcher, Las-talon (SI)

Khan was my warlord.

Formation-ing an opinion: The Evolution of Formations in 40k

Formations seem to have become an integral part of army building in 40k these days. Whether that is a good or bad thing is for each individual to decide, today I thought I would take you through my thoughts on formations and how I feel they influence the vast universe of warhammer 40,000 these days.

Not a free transport in sight......

Right off the bat, it is only fair to let you know dear reader, that I rarely use formations in 40k. This is not due to some particular stance on the use of formations, I just like the Combined Arms Detachment (CAD) and find it the easiest way to make up an army and what I have been used to for many years. The second issue is that even with my vast collection of models for some armies, I sometimes still struggle to have the basic requirements for many of the formations that I can field, so am limited in this respect too. The one exception to this is the Ravenwing Strike Force from the 7th edition Dark Angels codex. Being a big fan of Ravenwing (and bike) armies, I have utilised this formation a lot in recent months, even taking an all Ravenwing army to the recent Blog Wars X tournament using the formation and having a measure of success with it in my games.

 

So this is where these opinions and impressions come from, a player who generally doesn't use formations, but has some experience both playing with them and against them in a competitive and casual environment.

 

Also, a note of nomenclature. I tend to use Formations and Detachments interchangeably when talking about them. I know that there are differences between the two, but to me, the comments on one could be equally applied to the other.

 

The Early Days of Formations

 

Force Organisation Chart

You could argue that one of the earliest instances of the use of formations in 40k was the introduction of the Force Organisation Chart in 3rd edition 40k (I certainly would argue this, and since this is my article, I can do what I want!).

Hasn't changed much at all.

Prior to 3rd edition, armies were constructed using the percentage system. Your army would be composed of units/models based on the percentage of the points used, for example; 25% or more core units, up to 25% characters, etc.

 

When 40k was re-launched with 3rd edition in 1998, a new mechanic for army building was introduced- the Force Organisation Chart (now known as the Combined Arms Detachment). For the first time, units in an army were separated into 5 different types; HQ, Elites, Troops, Fast Attack and Heavy Support. Players constructed armies by selecting units from "slots" in the force organisation chart and calculating their points cost for the unit until the agreed upon points limit was reached. The only compulsory choices in your army were one HQ and two troops slots. This limit still applies today in the CAD.

 

The idea was to allow players to build themed forces, more representative of typical armies your fraction would be likely to field. Your army would consist of an HQ unit to lead the army and two units of core troops to provide the backbone of the army. Additional troops units could be used to bolster your force and more powerful units could be taken from the other slots, though in lesser numbers to represent their more limited availability.

Rapid Fire 2015- Game 4: White Scars vs Necrons

Welcome to my battle report for game 4 from Rapid Fire 2015. This was the first game on the Sunday and I was hoping to add some victories to my tally of games.

 

On a side note, the Saturday night before was when the clocks changed in the UK. Idiot that I am, I managed to put the clock forward instead of backwards. So, instead of getting up at 7 am to travel to Stirling,  I wound up waking at 5 am. Needless to say, I went back to bed for a couple of hours to try and get some more rest before my journey!

 

The first game of day two was Purge the Alien with Hammer and Anvil deployment. My opponent was Martin and his Necron Decurion army. This was possibly one of the worst missions to face against the Decurion. I know from experience how durable the Necron Decurion formation can be and knew this would be a hard fought game to try and wipe out the enemy army.

As a reminder, my army consisted of:
 

Kor'sarro Khan- Moondrakken (with CS)

Librarian- Mastery Level 2, Auspex, Meltabombs, Force Sword, Bolt Pistol (with C)

5 Command Squad- Mounted on bikes, 4 grav guns, 2 storm shields, Apothecary (CS)

5 Bikers- 2 Grav guns, sergeant has meltabombs (GB1)

5 Bikers- 2 Grav guns, sergeant has meltabombs (GB2)

5 Bikers- 2 Meltaguns, sergeant has meltabombs (MB)

10 Tactical marines- Meltagun, sergeant has combi-melta and meltabombs (TS1)

Drop Pod- Storm Bolter (DP2)

5 Scouts- Bolt pistols, close combat weapons, sergeant has meltabombs (Sc)

Landspeeder Storm- Heavy Bolter, Cerberus Missile launcher (LS)

Drop Pod- Deathwind missile launcher (DP1)

Stormtalon- TL assault cannons, skyhammer missile launcher (ST)

2 Attack Bikes- Multimeltas (AB)

5 Devastators- 4 Missile Launchers (D)

Rhino- Storm Bolter (R)

3 Centurions- Grav amps and grav cannons, hurricane bolters (C)

For this game, my psychic powers were once again Presecince and Psychic Shriek. I decided not to combat squad the tactical marines- no point giving up additional Kill Points.

Rapid Fire 2015 Battle Report- Game 2: White Scars vs Necrons

Welcome to my battle report for game 2 of Rapid Fire 2015. The last post gave an overview of the tournament and my report for game 1, where my White Scars took on an Ork army.

 

The second game of the Saturday saw the White Scars taking on Duncan's Necron Decurion list on table 6. The mission was Cleanse and Control using Hammer and Anvil deployment. Cleanse and Control is a maelstrom mission, where up to 3 cards are drawn each turn. Having faced a Decurion once before, I knew that they were extremely durable, but lacked objective secured, so I would have some advantages in a maelstrom mission (namely my mobility and objective secured). It was a lovely looking army, so was sure to be a great looking game regardless of how it went.

As a reminder, my list consisted of:
 

Kor'sarro Khan- Moondrakken (with CS)

Librarian- Mastery Level 2, Auspex, Meltabombs, Force Sword, Bolt Pistol (with C)

5 Command Squad- Mounted on bikes, 4 grav guns, 2 storm shields, Apothecary (CS)

5 Bikers- 2 Grav guns, sergeant has meltabombs (GB1)

5 Bikers- 2 Grav guns, sergeant has meltabombs (GB2)

5 Bikers- 2 Meltaguns, sergeant has meltabombs (MB)

10 Tactical marines- Meltagun, sergeant has combi-melta and meltabombs (TS1 and TS2)

Drop Pod- Storm Bolter (DP2)

5 Scouts- Bolt pistols, close combat weapons, sergeant has meltabombs (Sc)

Landspeeder Storm- Heavy Bolter, Cerberus Missile launcher (LS)

Drop Pod- Deathwind missile launcher (DP1)

Stormtalon- TL assault cannons, skyhammer missile launcher (ST)

2 Attack Bikes- Multimeltas (AB)

5 Devastators- 4 Missile Launchers (D)

Rhino- Storm Bolter (R)

3 Centurions- Grav amps and grav cannons, hurricane bolters (C)

 

Once again, my Librarian ended up with Psychic Shriek and Prescience.

 

Duncan's army consisted of:

 

Reclamation Legion

Necron Overlord- Staff of Light, Veil of Darkness (with I)

10 Necron Warriors (W1)

10 Necron Warriors (W2)

5 Immortals (I)

8 Tomb Blades (TB1)

8 Tomb Blades (TB2)

8 Tomb Blades (TB3)

5 Flayed Ones (FO)

 

Destroyer Cult

Destroyer Lord- Warscythe, Resurrection Orb, Phase Shifter (DL)

5 Destroyers (D1)

3 Destroyers (D2)

3 Destroyers (D3)

3 Heavy Destroyers (HD)

 

Looks to be quite a solid list, but slow (with the exception of the Tomb Blades). The Hammer and Anvil deployment should help me keep away from the Necron units as much as possible. I was also pleased to see no Wraiths in the list.

 

It's hard to make a plan for maelstrom missions as you don't know what cards you will get. I would instead focus on trying to score as many cards as possible and not worry too much about killing the enemy (as it is very difficult to do for a Decurion).

GW Aberdeen Doubles Tournament- Game 3 and Final Thoughts

Our third and final game of the Clan Clash doubles tournament was against Aberdeen once again.

 

This scenario was called Line of March, a mixture of Maelstrom and objective grabbing. The objectives were set up in set positions around the board (two on each short side and two in the middle). Each turn, players would draw 3 secret maelstrom cards and have to complete them. At the end of the game, additional points would be awarded for controlling the objectives as well as additional points for table control and destroying enemy units in the final turn of the game.

 

I was paired up with Chris (from the Aberdeen store) and his Tau for this mission. As a reminder, my army consisted of:

Captain- Space Marine Bike, Power fist, Storm Shield

5 Bikers- 2 Grav guns, sergeant with Meltabombs

5 Bikers- 2 Grav guns, sergeant with Meltabombs

5 Bikers- 2 Meltaguns, sergeant with Meltabombs

5 Sternguard Veterans- 3 with combi-meltas in drop pod

Chris' Tau army consisted of:
Commander Farsight and two crisis suits with drones
Two units of Fire Warriors
A unit of Sniper Drones
Riptide

We were up against Craig and his Space Marines (who I faced in the first game) and Ricky with his Necrons. The army consisted of:

Librarian
3 Grav centurions in drop pod
10 Tactical marines- meltagun with drop pod
10 Tactical marines- meltagun with drop pod

Necron Lord
Two units of Necron Warriors
6 Wraiths
Night Scythe

A tough army to face. I knew from experience in the first game that the Centurions were going to be deadly and Necrons are always a tough proposition. Unfortunately, my Tau allies had no interceptor  to try and take out the pods before they could cause much damage.

Blog Wars Battle Report Game 2- Necrons

Game two was against Ben’s Necrons in a Decurion detachment on table 8. I have not played Necrons since the new codex came out, but had read all about the durability of the Decurion detachment, so was expecting a tough match.

The mission was a modification of The Relic. There were 3 objectives; one in the centre of the table and one in each of our deployment zones. Your own objective was worth 5 points, the centre was worth 10 points and your opponents was worth 15.

Trouble comes this way.

Ben’s army consisted of:
2 units of wraiths (W1 and W2)
two units of flayed ones (FO1 and FO2)
a unit of necron warriors (NW)
two tomb spiders (TS1 and TS2)
two units of scarabs (S1 and S2)
two units of immortals (I1 and I2)
a unit of destroyers (D)
a unit of Lynchguard (L) and Nemesor (N).
Seeing them arrayed, that was a whole heap of necrons to try and kill.