ElectricPaladin
07-17-2012, 11:23 AM
To ring in the beginning of a new edition, my friends and I played an epic four way battle, an alliance of Tau and Blood Angels, played by myself and my friend, vs. a hive of Tyranids manipulated by the foul machinations of the Necrons.
I'll try to keep this battle report brief and summacious, because it was late when we played and I'd probably get the details wrong anyway.
Here are the lists:
Blood Angels
• HQs: 1 jump Librarian and 1 foot Reclusiarch
• Elites: 5 Sanguinary Guard, 1 Sanguinary Priest
• Troops: 1 max jump Assault Squad with meltas, 2 min laserback Assault Squads with flamers, 1 min flameback Death Company with flamers
• Heavy Support: 5 missile launcher Devastators
Tau
• HQs: 1 fireknife Crisis Commander, 1 Ethereal with shield drones
• Elites: 3 fireknife Crisis Suits
• Troops: 2 10-man pulse Fire Warrior Teams with devilfishes, 12 Kroot
• Fast Attack: 2 Tetras (separate units)
• Heavy Support: 1 Broadside Team, 2 Hammerheads
If these lists sound familiar, it's because they're both mine (my buddy borrowed my Tau), and I've posted them here before.
And on the other side:
Necrons
• I dunno... but it involved Imhotep the Stormlord, a Tomb Scythe, a squad of Warriors on foot and a squad of Warriors in a Ghost Ark. I think there was another special character. Also destroyers. And Flayed Ones. And a Monolith. Sweet mother of lizards, the Monolith...
Tyranids
• There was a Carnifex, a Mawlock, a Tervigon, a huge number of stabby dude troops, Ymargl Genestealers, and the Doom of Malan'tai.
Game Summary
The Mission was The Emperor's Will, the newest iteration of what was once falsely called the "auto-tie" mission. Each player has an objective and you get three points for holding your objective. Deployment was the lengthwise one.
The Necrons knew their control over the Tyranids was uneasy, at best, so they chose to deploy their objectives on opposite corners, with a swarm of Hormagaunts in control of one, and the other untouched. The Monolith and Ghost Arc deployed as far up the field as possible.
Because of their capacity to cooperate like more or less civilized beings, the Tau and Blood Angels commanders chose to coordinate their efforts. They placed their objectives close enough that a single squad could hold both of them. The Lexicanum Barakiel, knowing his troops were better suited to advance and assault than holding objectives, decided to trust the Tau Commander's honor and let him deploy one of his Fire Warrior Teams in control of both objectives, with their transport acting as a movable shield, protecting them from enemy fire but allowing them to shoot to either side and enemies that attempted to outflank them.
Shas'el Jar'ys immediately knew that the length of the battlefield favored him, so he set up with his Hammerheads and Broadsides well back from the fighting. His second Fire Warrior Team deployed in their devilfish, in order to bide their time and look for an opening to advance on the enemy objectives. He kept his Kroot and Tetras in reserve, intending to outflank them. He kept himself and his Crisis Battlesuit Team in reserve as well, waiting for the ideal moment to drop from the Manta Dropship waiting outside of the battlefield's airspace.
Lexicanum Barakiel deployed his ground elements - the razorback squads - in a tight formation on the left flank, intending to advance as fast as possible towards the enemy objectives while using their twin-linked lascannons to take out enemy vehicles.
When the objectives were discovered [NOTE: the Mysterious Objectives rule], it was discovered that the Tau were in control of two Scatterfield Nexi [NOTE: they had an impressive 3+ cover save, as were also in a forest]. The Tyranids, on the other hand, were in control of a single objective, an all but useless grav field generator.
The battle that followed had three main phases.
The first phases [NOTE: Turn 1] was the initial clash of forces. The Necron Monolith advanced, lashing out with its powerful energy blasts and inflicting minor damage on Tau vehicles [NOTE: the empty Devilfish]. The Tyranids, largely incapable of ranged combat, simply ran forwards, the Tervigon spawning as it went, and thankfully becoming sterile in the process. When the Forces of Order responded, it was with devastating effectiveness. Tau railguns roared, inflicting minor damage on the Monolith and - more importantly, decimating both the newly-spawned Tervigaunts and the squad of warriors on foot. The flamer-equipped Razorback engaged the Necron Destroyers, killing one. D
The second phase [NOTE: Turns 2 and 3] involved the arrival of reserves elements and the ensuing slaughter. Flayed Ones teleported directly next to the Broadsides and retreated into cover, ready to attack on their next action. The Genestealers also appeared, and assaulted and destroyed one of the Hammerheads. Fortunately, both the Mawloc and the Mycetic Spore containing the Doom of Malan'tai lost their way, and appeared in a far distant corner of the battlefield.
Lexicanum Barakiel understood the need for an immediate tactical redeployment if his Tau allies - and the objectives they controlled - were going to survive. Although the Death Company Razorback continued to advance to threaten the enemy flank, both Assault Squads withdrew to threaten the newly-arrived enemy assets, firing over their shoulders, as it were, at the Monolith, to no effect. Lexicanum Barakiel ordered one of is Razorbacks to physically interpose itself between the Fire Warriors and the oncoming Flayed ones, while the Assault Squad inside disembarked and baptized the blasphemous creatures in flame. Kroot arrived from reserve and fired on the Genestealers, killing several and setting themselves up for a deadly countercharge.
The enemy retaliated. The Gemestealers proved deadly in combat, cutting down Lexicanum Barakiel's entire escort of Sanguinary Guard. However, the Flayed Ones were less effective. Having already lost several members to the wave of fire, they lost even more to the desperate flamer shots of the Assault Squad, got the worse of it in the ensuing combat, tried to flee, and were cut down by the Assault squad..
This was the turning point of the battle. In the moments that followed, both the Monolith and the Ghost Arc were destroyed. Lexicanum Barakiel continued to distinguish himself in melee against the Genestealers, his force sword rising and falling again and again, surviving long enough for the nearby Assault Squad to come to his aid and help him finish off the foul creatures. With the aid of his sergeant's Signum, the last surviving Devastator disabled the Tomb Scythe's deadly Death Ray, rendering the vehicle far less dangerous. A lucky shot from a Razorback's lascannon immolated the Doom of Malan'tai.
[NOTE: This is where we had to stop the game, however, at this point we're pretty sure that we had blunted our opponent's ability to prevent us from keeping our objectives, and possibly taking one or both of theirs. The Necron player was down to a handful of Warriors and a semi-effective Tomb Scythe. The Nids were down to a single Terivgaunts, a horde of Termigaunts, and the Carnifex... ok, they were still a threat. However, we still had a completely untouched four-man fireknife squad, a handful of jump Assault Marines, two completely untouched laserback Assault Squads and their laserbacks, only one of which had even lost a hull point, and a flameback full of raving Death Company marines under the command of a Reclusiarch. Once we'd finished mopping up the Warriors and Tomb Scythe, we were in a position to advance on the remaining Tyranids, with Hammerhead large blasts to soften them up while Assault Marines and Death Company maniacs closed in... and all that with a squad of Kroot, Assault Marines, and an untouched squad of Fire Warriors in a Devilfish to hold their objectives once we'd chased them off it]
Final Reflections
In no particular order.
• Vehicles are easier to kill - which was a great boon to the Tau - but they aren't completely nerfed. They're just... a little squishier. I was able to keep my vehicles alive by hiding them behind terrain and keeping the field flooded with redundant threats, so that my opponents didn't know how to focus fire.
• Death Company in a flameback. It's not a bad idea, but it's not foolproof either. My idea was to simply use the flameback as a fire-spewing tank and wait for someone to crack it on their turn so the Death Company could assault on my turn without having to wait out in the open for an enemy shooting phase. I don't know if my opponent's realized that killing that tank would be more trouble than it was worth, or if I simply got lucky, but it never happened :mad:! I'll need to try this tactic again before I can make a final decision about it's utility.
• Finally, flamers in a counter-assault squad (ie. a squad in a vehicle who I know is going to be the one to take a charge, rather than a jump squad, who stand a better chance of delivering the charge thanks to their higher speed). They're good, but not overpowered. They killed a couple of Flayed Ones that charged them. Not invaluable, but not half bad, either. Overwatch was useful, but not game-changing. This may not have been true of my buddy's Tau (10 Str 5 shots ftw!)... but thanks to my Blood Angels' heroism, they were never assault ;).
• Regarding the Tau, who were also my army (albeit in the hands of a completely new player). The Tetras were awesome in their role, the the fireknife squad continued to amaze and dismay everyone. The new glance-to-death rules are the only reason we were able to kill the (freaking) Monolith, and it was all about the railguns.
I'll try to keep this battle report brief and summacious, because it was late when we played and I'd probably get the details wrong anyway.
Here are the lists:
Blood Angels
• HQs: 1 jump Librarian and 1 foot Reclusiarch
• Elites: 5 Sanguinary Guard, 1 Sanguinary Priest
• Troops: 1 max jump Assault Squad with meltas, 2 min laserback Assault Squads with flamers, 1 min flameback Death Company with flamers
• Heavy Support: 5 missile launcher Devastators
Tau
• HQs: 1 fireknife Crisis Commander, 1 Ethereal with shield drones
• Elites: 3 fireknife Crisis Suits
• Troops: 2 10-man pulse Fire Warrior Teams with devilfishes, 12 Kroot
• Fast Attack: 2 Tetras (separate units)
• Heavy Support: 1 Broadside Team, 2 Hammerheads
If these lists sound familiar, it's because they're both mine (my buddy borrowed my Tau), and I've posted them here before.
And on the other side:
Necrons
• I dunno... but it involved Imhotep the Stormlord, a Tomb Scythe, a squad of Warriors on foot and a squad of Warriors in a Ghost Ark. I think there was another special character. Also destroyers. And Flayed Ones. And a Monolith. Sweet mother of lizards, the Monolith...
Tyranids
• There was a Carnifex, a Mawlock, a Tervigon, a huge number of stabby dude troops, Ymargl Genestealers, and the Doom of Malan'tai.
Game Summary
The Mission was The Emperor's Will, the newest iteration of what was once falsely called the "auto-tie" mission. Each player has an objective and you get three points for holding your objective. Deployment was the lengthwise one.
The Necrons knew their control over the Tyranids was uneasy, at best, so they chose to deploy their objectives on opposite corners, with a swarm of Hormagaunts in control of one, and the other untouched. The Monolith and Ghost Arc deployed as far up the field as possible.
Because of their capacity to cooperate like more or less civilized beings, the Tau and Blood Angels commanders chose to coordinate their efforts. They placed their objectives close enough that a single squad could hold both of them. The Lexicanum Barakiel, knowing his troops were better suited to advance and assault than holding objectives, decided to trust the Tau Commander's honor and let him deploy one of his Fire Warrior Teams in control of both objectives, with their transport acting as a movable shield, protecting them from enemy fire but allowing them to shoot to either side and enemies that attempted to outflank them.
Shas'el Jar'ys immediately knew that the length of the battlefield favored him, so he set up with his Hammerheads and Broadsides well back from the fighting. His second Fire Warrior Team deployed in their devilfish, in order to bide their time and look for an opening to advance on the enemy objectives. He kept his Kroot and Tetras in reserve, intending to outflank them. He kept himself and his Crisis Battlesuit Team in reserve as well, waiting for the ideal moment to drop from the Manta Dropship waiting outside of the battlefield's airspace.
Lexicanum Barakiel deployed his ground elements - the razorback squads - in a tight formation on the left flank, intending to advance as fast as possible towards the enemy objectives while using their twin-linked lascannons to take out enemy vehicles.
When the objectives were discovered [NOTE: the Mysterious Objectives rule], it was discovered that the Tau were in control of two Scatterfield Nexi [NOTE: they had an impressive 3+ cover save, as were also in a forest]. The Tyranids, on the other hand, were in control of a single objective, an all but useless grav field generator.
The battle that followed had three main phases.
The first phases [NOTE: Turn 1] was the initial clash of forces. The Necron Monolith advanced, lashing out with its powerful energy blasts and inflicting minor damage on Tau vehicles [NOTE: the empty Devilfish]. The Tyranids, largely incapable of ranged combat, simply ran forwards, the Tervigon spawning as it went, and thankfully becoming sterile in the process. When the Forces of Order responded, it was with devastating effectiveness. Tau railguns roared, inflicting minor damage on the Monolith and - more importantly, decimating both the newly-spawned Tervigaunts and the squad of warriors on foot. The flamer-equipped Razorback engaged the Necron Destroyers, killing one. D
The second phase [NOTE: Turns 2 and 3] involved the arrival of reserves elements and the ensuing slaughter. Flayed Ones teleported directly next to the Broadsides and retreated into cover, ready to attack on their next action. The Genestealers also appeared, and assaulted and destroyed one of the Hammerheads. Fortunately, both the Mawloc and the Mycetic Spore containing the Doom of Malan'tai lost their way, and appeared in a far distant corner of the battlefield.
Lexicanum Barakiel understood the need for an immediate tactical redeployment if his Tau allies - and the objectives they controlled - were going to survive. Although the Death Company Razorback continued to advance to threaten the enemy flank, both Assault Squads withdrew to threaten the newly-arrived enemy assets, firing over their shoulders, as it were, at the Monolith, to no effect. Lexicanum Barakiel ordered one of is Razorbacks to physically interpose itself between the Fire Warriors and the oncoming Flayed ones, while the Assault Squad inside disembarked and baptized the blasphemous creatures in flame. Kroot arrived from reserve and fired on the Genestealers, killing several and setting themselves up for a deadly countercharge.
The enemy retaliated. The Gemestealers proved deadly in combat, cutting down Lexicanum Barakiel's entire escort of Sanguinary Guard. However, the Flayed Ones were less effective. Having already lost several members to the wave of fire, they lost even more to the desperate flamer shots of the Assault Squad, got the worse of it in the ensuing combat, tried to flee, and were cut down by the Assault squad..
This was the turning point of the battle. In the moments that followed, both the Monolith and the Ghost Arc were destroyed. Lexicanum Barakiel continued to distinguish himself in melee against the Genestealers, his force sword rising and falling again and again, surviving long enough for the nearby Assault Squad to come to his aid and help him finish off the foul creatures. With the aid of his sergeant's Signum, the last surviving Devastator disabled the Tomb Scythe's deadly Death Ray, rendering the vehicle far less dangerous. A lucky shot from a Razorback's lascannon immolated the Doom of Malan'tai.
[NOTE: This is where we had to stop the game, however, at this point we're pretty sure that we had blunted our opponent's ability to prevent us from keeping our objectives, and possibly taking one or both of theirs. The Necron player was down to a handful of Warriors and a semi-effective Tomb Scythe. The Nids were down to a single Terivgaunts, a horde of Termigaunts, and the Carnifex... ok, they were still a threat. However, we still had a completely untouched four-man fireknife squad, a handful of jump Assault Marines, two completely untouched laserback Assault Squads and their laserbacks, only one of which had even lost a hull point, and a flameback full of raving Death Company marines under the command of a Reclusiarch. Once we'd finished mopping up the Warriors and Tomb Scythe, we were in a position to advance on the remaining Tyranids, with Hammerhead large blasts to soften them up while Assault Marines and Death Company maniacs closed in... and all that with a squad of Kroot, Assault Marines, and an untouched squad of Fire Warriors in a Devilfish to hold their objectives once we'd chased them off it]
Final Reflections
In no particular order.
• Vehicles are easier to kill - which was a great boon to the Tau - but they aren't completely nerfed. They're just... a little squishier. I was able to keep my vehicles alive by hiding them behind terrain and keeping the field flooded with redundant threats, so that my opponents didn't know how to focus fire.
• Death Company in a flameback. It's not a bad idea, but it's not foolproof either. My idea was to simply use the flameback as a fire-spewing tank and wait for someone to crack it on their turn so the Death Company could assault on my turn without having to wait out in the open for an enemy shooting phase. I don't know if my opponent's realized that killing that tank would be more trouble than it was worth, or if I simply got lucky, but it never happened :mad:! I'll need to try this tactic again before I can make a final decision about it's utility.
• Finally, flamers in a counter-assault squad (ie. a squad in a vehicle who I know is going to be the one to take a charge, rather than a jump squad, who stand a better chance of delivering the charge thanks to their higher speed). They're good, but not overpowered. They killed a couple of Flayed Ones that charged them. Not invaluable, but not half bad, either. Overwatch was useful, but not game-changing. This may not have been true of my buddy's Tau (10 Str 5 shots ftw!)... but thanks to my Blood Angels' heroism, they were never assault ;).
• Regarding the Tau, who were also my army (albeit in the hands of a completely new player). The Tetras were awesome in their role, the the fireknife squad continued to amaze and dismay everyone. The new glance-to-death rules are the only reason we were able to kill the (freaking) Monolith, and it was all about the railguns.