The Grey Knights continue their campaign over Skype - this time we exterminate the hated Imperium!
Wait, what?
Game 2 - Grey Knights vs Militarum Tempestus
Next up is my old sparring partner, Monkey. Technically, we're both on the same side of the heroic Alliance, but these Scions have seen too much, and the Grey Knights leave no witnesses of daemons.
We're playing the Hold Your Gains mission - one side starts off in the centre with one-third of their forces (the rest arrive as random reinforcements); the other comes in from both sides. Whoever has the most models closest to the centre when the game ends will win.
(also, I've been given the side mission of slaughtering every one of the Scions - no witnesses!)
Monkey is now a veteran of commanding Imperial Guard, following his experiences in the last Skypehammer campaign, although these are better in every regard than the average grunt, with superior weapons and air support into the bargain, so I'll need to watch my step.
I start off brightly - moving forward with Grule and the Terminators and blasting the Valkyrie with Smite, then taking some more wounds off with the stormbolters. It's already smoking on five wounds, when the Dreadnought lets me down and misses with both lascannons.
In response, the Scions disembark, while the Valkyrie trains its guns directly on Grule. Their shooting doesn't match their evasive manoeuvres, and no harm is done.
The same can't be said for the Strike Squad, who face the full wrath of the Tempestus reserves (everything but one Squad and the melta Command Squad) - the Grey Knights are wiped out with hot-shot and plasma bolts.
I'm determined to take down the Valkyrie this turn, but the Dreadnought misses again (I wish I could have found the points to buy a Venerable Dreadnought!) and nothing that Grule or the Terminators can do will remove its last wound.
But at least its hovering, so I can still bring it down. The Terminators charge both Scions and Valkyrie, losing one of their number to a Hellstrike missile in Overwatch - and then just falling short of the reaching the Valkyrie.
So Grule takes on the duty himself - and gets smacked in Overwatch by a Hellstrike missile and a Lascannon - my warlord disappears in a puff of smoke and the Scion squad is cut to pieces by the Terminators in revenge.
At least the Tempestus aren't in a place to capitalise on my disadvantage - most of the squads are on the wrong side of the hill (which is a huge line-of-sight blocker) and the Valkyrie can't hit anything in its flagging state (it only hits in Overwatch).
One of the reinforcing squads does arrive in my deployment zone (thankfully not the one with melta guns) and their shots bounce off Terminator armour.
On my turn, I utilise one of the mission-specific stratagems that allows me to resurrect a fallen unit for 3CP - so Grule returns for a second chance (and given he can generate extra CP with his Empyrean Domination power, it feels a bit dirty, so I don't use it).
Either way, Grule finally dispatches his mortal enemy, the Valkyrie, with a Smite. Meanwhile, the Terminators prove that line-of-sight is no impediment when you can cast Astral Aim. They camp out in cover and shoot up the plasma Scions as their mass-reactive rounds curve around the mountain.
The Dreadnought finally gets a chance to do something useful and beats up the reinforcing squad of Scions.
The remaining Scions (and there are quite a few of them left) are in a quite a pickle - unable to stay hidden from the Grey Knights and not wanting to get closer to them.
Monkey opts to move his forces out of stormbolter threat range, but the fun doesn't stop there. It turns out the scoring zone is also home to a number of Ambull eggs, and when Mother shows up, she is not best pleased and targets the nearest unit - which happens to be the Scions.
As compensation, the Scions receive support in the form of a pack of Space Wolves Reivers grav-chuting into the Grey Knights' deployment zone. Their carbines achieve nothing, and they fail their charge on the Terminators, but it's another threat to pull me away from the scoring zone.
In response, I send the Dreadnought to intercept the Reivers (he only manages to pick off one with his lascannons, but this one is clearly a fighter) while Grule himself runs to score the central objective.
Meanwhile, the Terminators prove that Astral Aim is not their only way of reaching out and use the Dreadnought's Gate of Infinity to leap across the battlefield and take on the Scions.
With Smite and Stormbolter, followed up by a very enthusiastic charge, the Terminators manages to kill every Scion (and the Ambull) except for a single man from the Command Squad and the Tempestor Prime.
But that proves to be enough. While the Terminators are occupied killing the Ambull, the two remaining Scions run past them, boosting their advance with extra orders, and take up position on the other side of the mountain, within the scoring zone.
If the game ends now, these plucky two survivors are going to outnumber Grule and snatch victory. If it continues, they're going to get torn apart.
I roll for the game length - and it ends!
The Scions take the victory!
We're playing the Hold Your Gains mission - one side starts off in the centre with one-third of their forces (the rest arrive as random reinforcements); the other comes in from both sides. Whoever has the most models closest to the centre when the game ends will win.
(also, I've been given the side mission of slaughtering every one of the Scions - no witnesses!)
Grey Knights
I'm mixing things up a little with a Terminator Squad, whose stormbolters should make short work of the infantry. I also swapped the Dreadknight for a lascannon Dreadnought, since the Grey Knights appear to suffer from a lack of anti-armour, and I'm expecting a Valkyrie, or Taurox, or both.
- Incanus Grule - Librarian (HQ) (Warlord)
Storm Bolter Nemesis Warding Stave
Warlord: First to the Fray
Relic: Cuirass of SacrificePowers: Warp Shaping, Empyrean Domination - 6 x Strike Squad (Troops)
Justicar with Nemesis Force Halberd, 2 x Nemesis Falcions, 2 x Nemesis Force Swords, 5 x Storm Bolters, 1 x Psycannon
Powers: Gate of Infinity - 5 x Terminator Squad (Troops)Justicar with Nemesis Halberd, 3 x Nemesis Force Halberd, 1 x Nemesis Force Sword, 4 x Storm bolters, 1 x Psycannon
Powers: Astral Aim - Dreadnought (Elite)
Twin Lascannon, Dreadnought combat weapon
Powers: Gate of Infinity
Militarum Tempestus - Tannaebryn 48th Commando
- Tempestor Prime (HQ) (Warlord)
Chainsword, Frag & Krak grenades, Tempestus Command Rod
Warlord: Master of Command
Relic: The Laurels of Command - 6 x Scions (Troops)
4 x Hot-shot Lasgun, Grenade Launcher, Tempestor with chainsword - 6 x Scions (Troops)
4 x Hot-shot Lasgun, Grenade Launcher, Tempestor with chainsword - 5 x Scions (Troops)
4 x Hot-shot Lasgun, Grenade Launcher, Tempestor with chainsword - 4 x Command Squad (Elite)
3 x Plasma gun, Hot-shot Volley Gun - 4 x Command Squad (Elite)
3 x Melta gun, Grenade Launcher - Valkyrie (Flyer)
Hellstrike Missiles, Lascannon, 2 x Heavy Bolter
+ Total: [500pts] ++
Hold Your Gains
Monkey's set-up is an unenviable one, not least because I get my entire force on the table and first turn. Not wanting to get shredded by bolter fire, he keeps all his infantry in reserve and puts a single squad in the Valkyrie as a recon force.
I put my Terminators and Dreadnought facing the Valkyrie, backed by Incanus Grule (the Librarian got an upgrade last battle where nearby units can reroll 1s). On the other side of the field go the Strike Squad - I'll lose out on their firepower in the first turn, but I'm trying to bait the reserves to deploy against them (and they can always Gate of Infinity back into the action)
I start off brightly - moving forward with Grule and the Terminators and blasting the Valkyrie with Smite, then taking some more wounds off with the stormbolters. It's already smoking on five wounds, when the Dreadnought lets me down and misses with both lascannons.
In response, the Scions disembark, while the Valkyrie trains its guns directly on Grule. Their shooting doesn't match their evasive manoeuvres, and no harm is done.
The same can't be said for the Strike Squad, who face the full wrath of the Tempestus reserves (everything but one Squad and the melta Command Squad) - the Grey Knights are wiped out with hot-shot and plasma bolts.
I'm determined to take down the Valkyrie this turn, but the Dreadnought misses again (I wish I could have found the points to buy a Venerable Dreadnought!) and nothing that Grule or the Terminators can do will remove its last wound.
But at least its hovering, so I can still bring it down. The Terminators charge both Scions and Valkyrie, losing one of their number to a Hellstrike missile in Overwatch - and then just falling short of the reaching the Valkyrie.
So Grule takes on the duty himself - and gets smacked in Overwatch by a Hellstrike missile and a Lascannon - my warlord disappears in a puff of smoke and the Scion squad is cut to pieces by the Terminators in revenge.
 |
| Ouch. |
At least the Tempestus aren't in a place to capitalise on my disadvantage - most of the squads are on the wrong side of the hill (which is a huge line-of-sight blocker) and the Valkyrie can't hit anything in its flagging state (it only hits in Overwatch).
One of the reinforcing squads does arrive in my deployment zone (thankfully not the one with melta guns) and their shots bounce off Terminator armour.
On my turn, I utilise one of the mission-specific stratagems that allows me to resurrect a fallen unit for 3CP - so Grule returns for a second chance (and given he can generate extra CP with his Empyrean Domination power, it feels a bit dirty, so I don't use it).
Either way, Grule finally dispatches his mortal enemy, the Valkyrie, with a Smite. Meanwhile, the Terminators prove that line-of-sight is no impediment when you can cast Astral Aim. They camp out in cover and shoot up the plasma Scions as their mass-reactive rounds curve around the mountain.
The Dreadnought finally gets a chance to do something useful and beats up the reinforcing squad of Scions.
The remaining Scions (and there are quite a few of them left) are in a quite a pickle - unable to stay hidden from the Grey Knights and not wanting to get closer to them.
Monkey opts to move his forces out of stormbolter threat range, but the fun doesn't stop there. It turns out the scoring zone is also home to a number of Ambull eggs, and when Mother shows up, she is not best pleased and targets the nearest unit - which happens to be the Scions.
As compensation, the Scions receive support in the form of a pack of Space Wolves Reivers grav-chuting into the Grey Knights' deployment zone. Their carbines achieve nothing, and they fail their charge on the Terminators, but it's another threat to pull me away from the scoring zone.
In response, I send the Dreadnought to intercept the Reivers (he only manages to pick off one with his lascannons, but this one is clearly a fighter) while Grule himself runs to score the central objective.
Meanwhile, the Terminators prove that Astral Aim is not their only way of reaching out and use the Dreadnought's Gate of Infinity to leap across the battlefield and take on the Scions.
With Smite and Stormbolter, followed up by a very enthusiastic charge, the Terminators manages to kill every Scion (and the Ambull) except for a single man from the Command Squad and the Tempestor Prime.
But that proves to be enough. While the Terminators are occupied killing the Ambull, the two remaining Scions run past them, boosting their advance with extra orders, and take up position on the other side of the mountain, within the scoring zone.
If the game ends now, these plucky two survivors are going to outnumber Grule and snatch victory. If it continues, they're going to get torn apart.
I roll for the game length - and it ends!
The Scions take the victory!
Aftermath
The dice betrayed me! All I needed was a three and I would have had it in the bag!
In fairness, this scenario seemed hugely stacked in my favour and I threw it away. If the Terminators had just backed up onto the scoring zone, rather than charging forward, they could have gunned down the Scions and outnumbered the survivors on the objective, but my blood was up and I wanted the Ambull head for my wall.
Overall, the plan didn't go too badly (aside from the hopeless marksmanship of the Dreadnought and the rather unfortunate Overwatch from the Valkyrie) - the Terminators made for a great firebase, especially with Astral Aim helping them out, and with the Scions special weapons kept at arms' length, I could shoot with impunity.
Alas, the Grey Knights left two witnesses, which means it's the Militarum Tempestus who shall advance to face the ultimate foe, while the Knights of Titan hold the rearguard in the final action.
Love the Ambull's appearance! Just like classic Rogue Trader games.
ReplyDeleteI GM'd a game back in those days where I had an Ambull appear out of its nest, so I also really appreciated that bit! Along with the minefields, the two combatant armies were pretty thin on the ground by the time they actually made contact...
DeleteVery interesting. I had read Grule disappearing "in a puff of smoke" on the turn 2 charge as code for him getting killed by the overwatch, but as he then went on to score objectives I guess not! Interesting to match the durability but very low model count of the Grey Knights vs the punch but fragility of the Scions.
ReplyDeleteGrule came back due to me playing a mission specific stratagem. It felt a bit dirty to use it at this level, so I held off bringing back the Strike Squad too.
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