Battle Report- World Eaters vs Space Wolves

Today's game sees my World Eaters take on Mark's Space Wolves in a league game for Didcot Wargames Club. This mission was Scorched Earth using Dawn of War deployment. 

My army consisted of:

Angron

Kharn the Betrayer

Lord Invocatus

10 Berzerkers

Rhino

5 Berzerkers

5 Berzerkers

5 Berzerkers

10 Jackals

3 Exalted Eightbound

6 Exalted Eightbound

3 Eightbound

2 Chaos Spawn

This was the army from a recent tournament, but with the Lord on Juggernaught replaced by another unit of 5 Berzerkers, to give me another unit for holding objectives or trading. 

NEO Tournament Battle Report: Game 4- White Scars vs Space Wolves

The fourth game of the North East Open tournament would see my White Scars take on Jac's Space Wolves in ITC mission 4. 

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Captain on Bike- Twin Bolter, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, Master of Snares, Wrath of the Heavens

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

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols
5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols

3 Eliminators- Bolt Sniper Rifles, Camo Cloaks
3 Devastator Centurions- Grav-cannons and grav-amps, Hurricane Bolters

Battalion Detachment

Captain- Jump Pack, Master Crafted Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, Chapter Master, Imperium's Sword

Lieutenant- Jump Pack, Power Axe, MC Bolter

5 Scouts- Bolters

5 Scouts- Bolters

5 Scouts- Bolt Pistol, Combat Knives
3 Inceptors- Assault Bolters
3 Inceptors- Assault Bolters

Battalion Detachment
Chaplain- Jump Pack, Crozius Arcanum, Bolt Pistol, Litany of Hate
Khan on Bike- Khan's Spear

5 Infiltrators- Marksman Bolt Carbines, Smoke Grenades
5 Infiltrators- Marksman Bolt Carbines, Smoke Grenades
5 Tactical Marines- Bolters

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

Surrey 40k Tournament: Game 1- White Scars vs Space Wolves

I recently attended an ITC 40k tournament in Surrey, where I took my White Scars army. This was a five game, 2000 pts tournament, featuring the first five ITC missions. You can also follow the blog on Facebook to get regular updates and photos of my tournament games. 

The first game of the day was against Lee's Space Wolves, using ITC Mission 1 and Dawn of War deployment. 

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Captain on Bike- Twin Bolter, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, Master of Snares, Wrath of the Heavens

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

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols
5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols

Impulsor- 2 Storm Bolters, Ironhail Heavy Stubber, Shield Dome
3 Eliminators- Bolt Sniper Rifles, Camo Cloaks
3 Eliminators- Bolt Sniper Rifles, Camo Cloaks

Battalion Detachment

Captain- Jump Pack, Master Crafted Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, Chapter Master, Imperium's Sword

Lieutenant- Jump Pack, Power Axe, MC Bolter

5 Scouts- Bolters

5 Scouts- Bolters

5 Scouts- Bolt Pistol, Combat Knives
3 Inceptors- Assault Bolters
3 Inceptors- Assault Bolters

Battalion Detachment
Chaplain- Jump Pack, Crozius Arcanum, Bolt Pistol, Litany of Hate
Phobos Librarian- Force Sword, Camo Cloak, Shrouding, Mind Raid

5 Infiltrators- Marksman Bolt Carbines, Smoke Grenades
5 Infiltrators- Marksman Bolt Carbines, Smoke Grenades
5 Tactical Marines- Bolters, Lascannon

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

40k Video battle report- Genestealer Cults vs Space Wolves

Today, I have a new video battle report. This sees my Genestealers Cult take on Chris' Space Wolves army in a maelstrom of war mission. 

Hope you enjoy! 

Warhammer 40k Battle Report 167- Dark Angels/Deathwatch vs Space Wolves

This week's Warhammer 40k battle report sees my combined force of Dark Angels and Deathwatch take on Chris' Space Wolves in a special maelstrom of war mission.

This game was a practice for an upcoming tournament. In November, I will be attending Warfare in Reading. This features 5 games of custom missions, which I want to try out before the event. The mission we were playing was called All Out War.

In this game, players draw three cards per turn, up to a maximum of 6 cards. At the end of each turn, you must discard your maelstrom cards until you have only 3 in your hand. The twist is that each maelstrom objective you discard, your opponent scores the points. For example, if you discard Defend Objective 3, your opponent scores 2 points for it. This makes trying to score cards each turn important, as anything you don't achieve could potentially help your opponent to win. I was intrigued to see how this mission played out, as it suits the way that I normally play maelstrom missions.

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment (Dark Angels)

Azrael (Az)

Primaris Lieutenant- Master-crafted Auto Bolt Rifle, Eye of the Unseen (Relic) (L)

Primaris Ancient- Bolt Rifle (An)

5 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles (I)

5 Scouts- Bolters (S1)

5 Scouts- Heavy Bolter, Bolters (S2)

5 Devastators- Heavy Bolter, Armorium Cherub (D)

10 Hellblasters- Plasma Incinerators (H)

Darkshroud- Heavy Bolter (DS)

Battalion Detachment (Deathwatch)

Watch Master- Guardian Spear (W)

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

10 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles, Bolt Pistols (DI)

10 Veterans- 10 Storm Bolters, 2 Storm Shields, 8 Chainswords (DV1)

6 Veterans- 2 Missile Launchers, 4 Stalker Bolters (DV2)

Auxiliary Detachment

Culexus Assassin (CA)

I had previously talked about my thoughts behind the army when I was building the list. This basically boils down to having the Dark Angels as a solid firebase, while the Deathwatch can act as a mobile reserves force for board control and targeting the enemy army. 

Another feature of the Warfare missions pack is a limit on 10 command points. This means that with my three Deathwatch units using the Teleportarium stratagem, I will only start the game on 7 command points. I'm normally used to a lot more to play with! (Note- the Auxiliary detachment doesn't count, as I can use "excess" command points to pay for this, I can only start the game with 10 CP). 

Battle Report 166- Dark Angels vs Space Wolves

This week's battle report sees two ancient adversaries take to the battlefield, as my Dark Angels take on Ben's Space Wolves in a 2000 pts maelstrom of war game. 

This game was played just after the new FAQ dropped, so we didn't use the new rules as we hadn't had a chance to go through them in detail. We played the Race to Victory maelstrom mission. This is where the game ends when the first player reaches 10 cards scored. 

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Primaris Master- Power Sword, Master-crafted Auto Bolt Rifle, Brilliant Strategist (M)

Ravenwing Talonmaster- Twin Assault Cannon, Twin Heavy Bolter, Heavenfall Blade (T)

10 Intercessors- Bolt Rifles (I)

5 Scouts- Bolters, Sergeant has Chainsword (S1)

5 Scouts- Bolters, Heavy Bolter, Sergeant has Chainsword (S2)

5 Devastators- Heavy Bolter, Armorium Cherub (D)

Ravenwing Landspeeder- Heavy Bolter, Assault Cannon (L1)

Ravenwing Landspeeder- Heavy Bolter, Assault Cannon (L2)

Outrider Detachment

Sammael (S)

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

Ravenwing Ancient (An)

Ravenwing Apothecary (Ap)

Darkshroud- Heavy Bolter (DS)

5 Ravenwing Bikers- Twin Bolters, 2 Meltaguns (RB)

A bit of a different force for me to try out with my Dark Angels. I decided not to take Azrael and the Hellblasters (my favourite 80s prog rock band), they are pretty much an auto-include, but I wanted to try out something different.
I thought I would go with a heavy Ravenwing contingent, backed up by some Scouts and Primaris Marines. I made the Primaris Master my warlord, he would go to the back and buff the nearby squads, while trying to keep safe from the enemy army. I took a big unit of Intercessors. The -1 AP on their weapons should help against other power armour. Big squads don't worry the Dark Angels, as they can't lose more than one to a failed morale test. I also added a couple of units of Scouts and a unit of Devastators for the Hellfire Shells stratagem.

For the Ravenwing contingent, the force was led by Sammael and a Talonmaster. Sammael is great for buffing the nearby Ravenwing units, as well as being pretty good in combat, which should be handy against the Space Wolves.

I haven't really used the Talonmaster much, so wanted to see how he would perform in the list. His Twin Heavy Bolter and Twin Assault Cannon should be of use, I also gave him the Heavenfall Blade to help him out in combat too.

I decided to take a big unit of Black Knights, backed up by a Ravenwing Apothecary and Ravenwing Ancient. I was hoping the Plasma could take care of any Space Wolves, while using the Apothecary and Ancient to buff the unit in combat and keep them alive for longer.

I wanted to try out some Landspeeders too. I had heard some good things about them, so wanted to see if their mobility and firepower was worth taking in my army.

Space Wolves Codex Review: Part 2- Warlord Traits, Relics and Psychic Powers

Part 2 of my Space Wolves codex review will take a look at the Warlord traits, Relics and Psychic Powers in the new codex. 

Warlord Traits

The Space Wolves warlord traits are different from most other warlord traits in the codexes. The ability is always active on the warlord. However, by completing special conditions, the warlord trait turns into a 6" bubble, granting the effect to all nearby Space Wolves units. This gives you the ability to provide further additional buffs from your warlord to boost nearby units. 

Saga of the Warrior Born

You can always choose to fight first in the Fight phase. If an enemy unit charged or has a similar ability, alternate which units can fight, staring with the player whose turn it is. To activate the Saga, your warlord must kill an enemy Character. 

This provides a powerful ability for your warlord, giving you a free interrupt essentially in a protracted combat. It is pretty easy to activate, given that most Space Wolves characters are likely to be buffed up for combat. It should also be reasonably easy to activate against most opponents if they have weaker buff characters that can be targeted. 

Once the saga is activated, this gives your nearby units a huge boost in protracted combats, essentially allowing you to strike before most enemy units and do a lot of damage before they can be chosen. 

Saga of the Wolfin

Add 1 to the attacks characteristic of units in the Fight phase if they charged, were charged or performed a heroic intervention in the same turn. To activate the saga, your warlord must kill 5 models in the Fight phase (keep a rolling total). 

Again, a nice boost for your warlord, who is likely to be armed for combat. The combination of +1 attacks and +1 to hit on charging or being charged is a great bonus, turning your warlord into a potent combat machine. When this activates, you are going to get a lot of bonus attacks for nearby units. Strong units such as Thunderwolf Cavalry and Wulfen are going to chew through enemy units with this activated. Should be pretty easy for your warlord to achieve after a couple of Fight phases against most enemy units. 

Space Wolves Codex Review: Part 1- Stratagems

Welcome to the first part of my Space Wolves codex review, looking at the new stratagems available to the army. 

For this codex, I am not planning to do a full codex review. I will simply be looking at the generic army special rules, such as stratagems, psychic powers, warlord traits, etc in the book. 

Stratagems

The Space Wolves have a whole host of new stratagems to boost their effectiveness on the tabletop, as well as some of the common Space Marine ones that other Chapters have access to. 

I'm only going to look at some of the Space Wolves specific stratagem, as I have covered most of the basic Marines stratagems in my Space Marine Codex review. 

Overwhelming Impetuosity (1CP)
Use at the start of the Fight phase on a Blood Claws unit that successfully charged this turn and is within 1" of an enemy unit with a higher power rating. You can re-roll all failed hits for the Blood Claws unit that targets that unit.

A decent stratagem for only 1CP. You get full re-rolls to hit against one specific enemy unit. With the +1 to hit from the Space Wolves' Chapter Tactic, this should give you a lot of hits in combat. You can only use it against enemy units with a higher power rating, so may be too powerful for the Blood Claws or difficult to get one if you have a big unit. It also might be difficult to remember which enemy units have a higher power level.

Cloaked by the Storm (3CP)
Use in the psychic phase. Select a Rune Priest that successfully manifest a psychic power. All units within 6" are at -1 to hit when targeted by enemy units with ranged weapons.

This is an expensive stratagem at 3CP, but could be very powerful in the right circumstances. Normally these types of stratagems cost 2CP and only affect a single unit. However, with a 6" bubble on the Rune Priest, this has the potential to affect several enemy units for a single turn and well be worth the 3CP cost to use it. It does rely on you successfully manifesting a psychic power, but you can wait to see if successful before using it, so as not to waste the command points.
This would suit a rune priest supporting a gun line to help keep them safer from enemy firepower and the range should allow him to protect a large number of units. At 3CP, you won't be able to use this for very long before running out of command points.

Battle Report 164- 2000 pts Genestealer Cults vs Adeptus Mechanicus/Space Wolves

This week's battle report sees my Genestealer Cults take on the Adeptus Mechanicus and Space Wolves in a maelstrom of war mission. We were playing the Kill Confirmed mission, which is the one with three cards per turn and kill points in addition. 

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment
Patriarch- Monstrous Rending Claws, Mass Hypnosis(Pt)
Primus- Needle Pistol, Bonesword (P1)
10 Acolyte Hybrids- 2 Heavy Rock Saws (A1)
10 Acolyte Hybrids- 2 Heavy Rock Cutters (A2)
10 Acolyte Hybrids- 2 Heavy Rock Drills (A3)
6 Acolyte Hybrids (A4)
15 Purestrain Genestealers (G)
5 Aberrants- Power Hammers (Ab)

Battalion Detachment
Primus- Needle Pistol, Bonesword (P2)
Magus- Force Stave, Might From Beyond (M1)
10 Neophyte Hybrids- Autoguns, Heavy Stubber (N1)
10 Neophyte Hybrids- Autoguns, Mining Laser (N2)
5 Acolyte Hybrids (A5)
Leman Russ- Battle Cannon, 3 Heavy Bolters (LR)
Goliath Truck- Twin Autocannon, Heavy Stubber (GT)

Outrider Detachment
Magus- Force Stave, Mind Control (M2)
Scout Sentinel- Heavy Flamer (S1)
Scout Sentinel- Missile Launcher (S2)
Scout Sentinel- Autocannon (S3)

I took a good mix of units in my army. The Patriarch was selected to lead the army, as a strong fighter and good support. I took two Primus units to lead in my heavy hitters, the Genestealers and Aberrants. These should hopefully allow the two units to charge from reserve. 

I took the Leman Russ and Neophytes to hold my backline, while the Sentinels could scout ahead to harass the enemy army or block enemy deep strikers. I took a strong force of Acolyte Hybrids. The two small units could be used to block out my backfield and give me enough power level to put my strong units in reserve. 

Battle Report 139- 2000 pts Orks vs Space Wolves

This week's battle report sees the first outing for my Orks in 8th edition 40k. I would be taking on Ben's Space Wolves once more in an Eternal War mission.

I've been playing a lot of maelstrom missions recently, but decided to give one of the new Eternal War missions from Chapter Approved a shot for this game. We decided to do a toss up between Dominate and Destroy and Ascension. This was actually a mistake, as I mixed up the rules for the two missions.

For this mission, we would be using 6 objectives. Players gain a point for each objective they held at the end of their turn, as well as a kill point for each enemy unit destroyed. In addition, we used the Ascendancy rules, meaning that Characters control the objective if they are in range. In addition, they score bonus points for each consecutive turn they hold the objective. This was totally a conscious effort to spice up the mission and not down to me confusing the two scenarios.......... honest.

My army consisted of:
Battalion Detachment 
Warboss- Power Klaw, Kustom Shoota (W)
Big Mek- Kustom Force Field, Slugga, Choppa (BM1)
30 Ork Boyz- Shootas, 3 Big Shootas, Nob with Power Klaw (BM1)
30 Ork Boyz- Sluggas, Choppas, Nob with Power Klaw (BM2)
12 Ork Boyz- Sluggas, Choppas, Nob with Power Klaw (BM3)
Trukk- Big Shoota (T1)
12 Ork Boyz- Sluggas, Choppas, Nob with Power Klaw (DM3)
Trukk- Big Shoota (T2)
15 Lootas- Deffguns (L)
Deff Dread- 2 Scorchas, 2 Klaws (DD)
21 Stormboyz- Sluggas, Choppas, Nob with Power Klaw (S)

Battalion Detachment
Warboss- Big Choppa, Kustom Shoota (W)
Painboy- Urty Syringe, Power Klaw (P)
10 Grots (G1)
10 Grots (G2)
Kustom Mega Kannon (MG1)
Kustom Mega Kannon (MG2)
Kustom Mega Kannon (MG3)

Dakkajet-6 Supa Shootas (D)

I decided to take a mix of units as this was my first time out with the Orks. I thought the Painboy was a HQ unit by mistake, so thought I had 2 Battalions, but wouldn't have been able to field them due to lacking a fourth HQ unit.

I took two big mobs of Boyz to move towards the enemy army. They were backed up by two Warbosses, allowing them to advance and charge and giving them some morale mitigation. In the backfield, I had two units of Grots, three Mek guns and Lootas. The faster elements of the army were the Stormboyz and two units of Trukk Boyz.

Battle Report 129- 2000 pts Genestealers Cults vs Space Wolves

This week's battle report sees my Genestealers Cults take on Ben's Space Wolves in a maelstrom of war game. 

This game was fought at the Spiky Club in Reading and featured the second outing for my Genestealers Cult. 

My army consisted of:

Brigade Detachment

Patriarch- Mass Hypnosis (Pt)

Magus- Force Stave, Might from Beyond (M)

Primus- Needle Pistol, Bonesword, Toxic Injector Claw (Pr)

10 Neophyte Hybrids- Mining Laser, Grenade Launcher, Autogun (N1)

10 Neophyte Hybrids- Mining Laser, Autogun (N2)

10 Acolyte Hybrids- 2 Heavy Rock Cutters (A1)

10 Acolyte Hybrids- 2 Heavy Rock Drills (A2)

10 Acolyte Hybrids- 2 Heavy Rock Saws (A3)

5 Acolyte Hybrids (A4)

15 Purestrain Genestealers- Purestrain Talons, Rending Claws (PG)

4 Aberrants- Power Hammers (Ab1)

4 Aberrants- Power Picks (Ab2)

Scout Sentinel- Heavy Flamer (S1)

Scout Sentinel- Heavy Flamer (S2)

Scout Sentinel- Multi-laser (S3)

Goliath Rockgrinder- Heavy Stubber, Clearance Incinerator (GR1)

Goliath Rockgrinder- Heavy Stubber, Clearance Incinerator (GR2)

Cult Leman Russ- Battle Cannon, 3 Heavy Bolters (LR)

12 Command Points

I decided to go for a massed force for my Cult to get those precious command points. This would be the first game where I would be testing my Leman Russ and Scout Sentinels. I was hoping they would provide some good board control with the Sentinels and the Leman Russ would give some good firepower for the Space Wolves. 

This would allow me to put a fair few units in Cult Ambush to attack the Marines. 

Caledonian Revolution 2017: Game 3- Deathwatch vs Space Wolves

The final game of day 1 of Caledonian Revolution saw my Deathwatch take on Joel's Space Wolves. 

Game 3 featured Secure and Control as the Eternal War mission (one main objective each) and Deadlock as the Maelstrom mission (6 cards, decreasing each turn). The deployment map was Search and Destroy. 

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Watch Master- Guardian Spear (W)

Watch Captain- Jump Pack, Xenophase Blade, Bolt Pistol (W)
Kill Team 1- Sergeant with Power Sword, Black Shield with Power Sword, 3 Veterans, 2 Frag Cannons, Vanguard Veteran with Pair Lightning Claws, Deathwatch Biker with Teleport Homer (KT1)
Kill Team 2- 5 Veterans with 2 Frag Cannons and 2 Shotguns (KT2)
Kill Team 3- 5 Veterans with Meltagun, 3 Combi-meltas (KT3)
Kill Team 4- 5 Veterans with 5 Stalker Pattern Boltguns (KT4)
Kill Team 5- 5 Veterans, Terminator with Power Fist, Storm Bolter and Cyclone Missile Launcher (KT5)
Rhino- Storm Bolter (R1)
Rhino- Storm Bolter (R2)
5 Vanguard Veterans- 2 pairs Lightning Claws, 2 Heavy Thunder Hammers (VV)
4 Bikers- Teleport Homer, Power Axe, Power Maul, 2 Power Swords (DB1)
4 Bikers- Teleport Homer, Power Maul, 3 Power Swords (DB2)
Corvus Blackstar- Twin Assault Cannon, 2 Stormstrike Missiles, Hurricane Bolter, Auspex Array (CB)

6 Command Points

My Warlord was the Watch Master, who had the Legendary Fighter warlord trait.

Battle Report 101- 1500 pts Ravenwing vs Space Wolves

During my time at Warhammer Fest, I was able to observe some of the Grand Tournament games and write them up as battle reports. The first game that I observed was Ben's Ravenwing taking on Lewis' Space Wolves.
I'd met Ben at the Birthday Bash, where his Ravenwing army had done rather well in the maelstrom missions. It was great to catch up again and see him use a force very similar to one I would normally field.

The first mission was Crusade with 3 objectives, using Hammer and Anvil deployment.

Ben's army consisted of:
Ravenwing Strike Force
Interrogator-Chaplain- Bike, Mace of Redemption. (with CS)
Librarian- Level 2 Psyker, Bike, Conversion Field. (with CS)
Librarian- Level 2 Psyker, Bike, Conversion Field. (with CS)
5 Ravenwing Bikers- 2 Grav Guns, Combi-Grav, Meltabombs (RB1)
5 Ravenwing Bikers- 2 Grav Guns, Combi-Grav, Meltabombs (RB2)
5 Black Knights- Grenade Launcher, Meltabombs (BK)
5 Ravenwing Command Squad- Apothecary, Grenade Launcher (CS)
Ravenwing Support Squadron- Darkshroud with Heavy Bolter, 3 Landspeeders with Heavy Bolters and Typhoon Missile Launchers. (SS)

Ben's warlord was the Chaplain, who got Furious Charge for his Warlord Trait. One Librarian rolled on Telepathy, getting Invisibility, Terrify and Psychic Shriek. The other rolled on Divination and got Perfect Timing, Prescience and Forewarning.
As I said above, a very similar army to one that I would field with my Ravenwing. I was interested to see how the support squadron would perform with the Heavy Bolters and Typhoon Missile Launchers (I normally go for Heavy Bolters and Assault Cannons). Ben also got a good range of powers on his Librarians and could seriously buff the Command Squad.

Battle Report 97- 2000 pts Deathwatch/Assassins vs Space Wolves

This week's battle report sees my Deathwatch take on Stu's Space Wolves in the Spoils of War maelstrom mission. This battle would sees the inaugural use of my Assassins, that were recently completed for me by Rob (30Kplus40K). Lets see how they would fare against the Sons of Russ. 

My army consisted of:

Combined Arms Detachment

Watch Captain Artemis (with VV)

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 Stalker Pattern Bolters (V3)

5 Veterans- 5 Deathwatch Shotguns, Storm Shield (V4)

Drop Pod (DP3)

3 Bikers- Power Weapons, Meltabombs (B1)

3 Bikers- Power Weapons, Meltabombs (B2)

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

Corvus Blackstar- Inferno Halo Launcher (CB)

Assassinorum Execution Force
Callidus Assassin (Cal)
Culexus Assassin (Cul)
Eversor Assassin (EA)
Vindicare Assassin (VA)

The army was based on my force for the upcoming Birthday Bash tournament, but with a few modifications to allow me to take all four Assassins. My warlord was Watch Captain Artemis. 

Club Search- Newcastle Warlords

As part of my continuing efforts to try all the gaming clubs in the local area, last week I visited Newcastle Warlords. 

The club meets at St Marys the Virgin Church in Fawdon on a Thursday (7-10 pm) every two or three weeks (depends on when the hall is available). I actually found out about the club when the organiser, Steve, messaged me after seeing one of my blog posts on another clubs' facebook page, so I was keen to go along and try it out. 

First off, the church hall was only a 15 minute drive from my flat, so perfect travelling time for me. The 7 pm start also allows me to miss the rush hour traffic, so another bonus there. There were about a dozen or so gamers there that night, playing a variety of games including 40k, Age of Sigmar, Blood Bowl, Guild Ball and X-wing. 

As the club is just starting out, they are a little short on terrain and ask members to bring along their own stuff. They do have several gaming mats though for players to use though. This wasn't such a big deal for me, as I had some of my own terrain with me in Newcastle anyway. It's quite nice to get to use my own terrain every once in a while after going to the effort of building and painting it! It also gives me a nice incentive to get more terrain built and painted.

The cost was £4, which is a bit more expensive than the other clubs in the area, but still very reasonable for a club night. In addition, there is unlimited free tea, coffee and squash available. 

I had arranged a game on the facebook page and found myself taking on Stu and his Space Wolves with my White Scars. Stu has only recently got into 40k, so I went for a milder White Scars list to have a more fun and competitive game.

We played the Contact Lost maelstrom mission, as Stu had not played a maelstrom mission before. I didn't take full notes for a battle report. Since Stu had not been playing long, I wanted to have a chat with him during the turns and hopefully help with any rules issues during the game rather than spending my time taking notes. 

Blog Wars Battle Report Game 1- Space Wolves

I set off early in the am to the distant land of Stockport. I had a car packed with mighty warriors, eager to sell their lives for victory, along with a long drive's supply of power ballads (I wanna know what love is!) and pockets full of my strange, foreign money (the most fun you can have in England is trying to buy things with Scottish money, I occasionally throw in monopoly money, just to see if they notice). This was my first foray to Blog Wars and I was looking forward to seeing how I got on. My last tournament gave me one win, one loss and one draw, I was eager to see how my fortune would change.

 

Unfortunately, due to the time constraints of the tournament, I was unable to take sufficient notes for a full battle report, but will give an overview of the battle with plenty of photos.

The mission was essentially kill points. You scored a number of blood points proportional to how much of the enemy army you destroyed (a unit or model reduced to 50% models or wounds/hull points was worth half) and a bonus for killing the special character, as well as the secondary objectives

Our forces clash.

My first game was against Nathaniel (NafNaf from Objective Secured) and his thunderwolf cavalry heavy Space Wolves army (Blue in maps). His fantastic looking army (along with some lovely conversions) consisted of:

 

Two units of 5 thunderwolf cavalry- with wolves and storm shields (T1 and T2)

One Wolfguard battle leader on thunderwolf (WBL)

Two Iron Priests on Thunderwolf (IP1 and IP2)

Tactical squad (TM1) with two plasma guns in rhino (R)

Tactical squad (TM2) with two meltaguns and combi-melta in drop pod (DP2)

Dreadnought (D)- blizzard shield and great axe in drop pod (DP3)

Arjac Rockfist (A) and 4 terminators (T)- mix of thunder hammers, storm shields and combi-meltas in drop pod (DP1).