Code Magpie

This weekend I partook in a 40k version of a WoffBoot arranged by Reinbowarrior.

My army of choice was Daemons, still reeling from the unlikely generosity of GW by allowing to have two armies for the price of one, I was determined to get some additional use from them.

I had, prior to the weekend, played 4 games of 40k in its current incarnation. Prior to that I remember a couple of games on the floor of Amen court with Kraken, which must make it about six or seven years ago!

My first game, I had been leant Reinbowarrior’s elite Terminator only deathwing – they beat his own Tyranid force.  For my second game, I took a large contingent of my own Nurgle forces and took down the Dark Angels showing them a beating they had never seen before (I had a lucky storm of chaos roll which made the librarian’s head explode, and a herald of knorne taking his place, in turn one). My third game was an abysmal offering from Tzeentch against ‘nids. I setup badly, misplayed the rules for combat and powers (both to my deficit) and got utterly trounced. Finally I took Khorne, and once my units had deep struck in had done enough damage for Reinbowarrior to concede the game (although time also played a part)….  So having won 3 of 4 games (or 2 of 3 with daemons) I was feeling buoyed for the campaign.

We only had 1250 points, and only 1HQ – so it made more sense than normal to go mono-god. I dismissed Tzeentch after their poor showing, and was umming between Nurgle and Khorne… but the lack of powers meant that Nurgle took it for me… especially when I realised I could take a daemon prince as a heavy choice if I took a great unclean one. So that was 1HQ and 1Heavy choice made; and you have to take a soul grinder. Before I knew it, I had spent 800 of my 1250 and knew I wanted plague drones and needed to have troops. My lack of understanding of the rules for objectives and I unwittingly really hampered myself before we started as of my two troop choices, one was a swarm; and it was only troops who could capture objectives… oh well.

So in the end I looked like:

                HQ: Great Unclean One (lvl 3 psyker) 2 greater gifts, 1 lesser
                Troops: 15 plaguebearers with instrument of chaos, plague banner and champion
                Troops: 3 Nurlgings
                Fast: 4 Plague drones with icon of chaos, death heads, and proboscis*
                Heavy: Daemon prince of Nurgle (lvl 2 psyker) wings, armour, 1 greater gift, 1 lesser
                Heavy: Soul grinder of Nurgle with warpgaze and warpsword

* (I only played 3 of the 4 for first two games due to tool’s difference in logic to fantasy)

My first game against the Eldar gave me a rude awakening about being happy about random rolls.
My GUO had rolled: feel no pain (an extra 4+ save), +1 wound and it will not die (chance to regain wounds every turn)…  So I was a little upset when he got banished to another dimension… as it was not a kill, none of his saves worked L This was a sign of things to come, and my drones were shot to pieces, the daemon prince sent to the same dimension as the GUO and the plaguebearers and soulgrinder did not even deepstrike onto the board… it was all over at the end of turn two… everyone was a little shell shocked. Including me! Result: embarrassing tabling.

The second game was against the Dark Angels. Reinbowarrior took a mass gunline giving him about a 100 bolter shots per round (as long as in range). This time the GUO stayed safely in the warp to see how the battle started, sending the soul grinder in his place. The plague drones dove forward hoping to be a beacon to summon support, but did not survive the gunline. The soulgrinder took pot shots at the tank, but a dreadnought turned up behind it, first shooting off his sword. The grinder kept it’s stare on the tank, eventually taking it down, but at his own cost. Leaving the dreadnought access to first immobilise, and then rip out the daemon engine’s heart. The daemon prince took the librarian on in a fight to the death (his) but did wound the librarian a couple of times, so once the GUO had had fun destroying half the gunline he turned on the command squad and librarian. A unit of plaguebearers took on the second set of troops, hoping to prevent them stealing an objective; which with their plaguebanner (and a misread rule from Reinbowarrior and others) they did. Result a draw.
It was hard fought, and after the game we had to take a break and a beer. Everyone needed it.

The third game was also against marine-esque; this time Papa Nurgle was going to watch two of his children bicker as the Nurgle chaos marines, took on the Nurgle daemons. Again the GUO hid in support. Realising more points were in objectives than killing, the GUO ignored one objective and focussed on securing the other two. The prince was sent forward to kill the warlord, the soul grinder took out a devastator. The fight between DP and Typhus took a few turns, but a psychic power allowed the imbued DP to rip the terminator apart; but then was held up fighting his supporting cultists for a few rounds. The drones took out one unit of marines then zoomed off to find another (they did not catch them). The plaguebearers finally arrived in the penultimate turn and spread out in a line holding hands to capture two objectives at the same time; their sparse formation not being concern now everything that side of the battlefield was dead. The soulgrinder had charged a second unit of marines, and the GUO started romping towards the third. Another turn and the final 5 marines may have also fled, but as it was they camped out in the third objective to earn some points. Result: a win for Daemons. Another good and enjoyable battle (and I have to thank James for letting me take a missed movement after going in to shooting phase).
               

Battle Results:

Eldar v Daemons
Dark Angels v Chaos Marines
Eldar v Chaos Marines
Dark Angels v Daemons
Chaos Marines v Daemons
Dark Angels v Eldar

Weekend Result:

Dark Angels:  1^st (7gp)
Daemons: 2^nd (4gp)
Eldar: 3^rd (3gp/17vp)
Chaos Marines: 3^rd (3gp/17vp)

Final verdict: I learnt a lot about how to play during the game, and it was not all about wiping the opponent out. It was interesting to see the difference in game type, and odd to have loose movement and different rules. I’m up for another game at some point. 

Also it meant I came home and did a bit of painting.

PS: Thanks again to Reinbowarrior for hosting.