“To war!” – Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game seige

I’ve been getting back into the Lord Of The Rings, playing the Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game. Last time I played Lord Of The Rings was probably fifteen-ish years ago in my teenage years with my brother, unpainted miniatures laid out on the living room carpet as his Rohirrim galloped around my Uruk-Hai. Playing the SBG now, it’s clear that those fond memories aren’t just rose-tinted with age as it’s still a really good game – simple mechanics, but with numerous nuances that make it very tactical and thought-provoking. I’ve been using my first love of Isengard – the fallen white wizard Saruman and his fighting Uruk-Hai captured me from the first time 14-year-old me saw them in the cinema. So far most of the games have been around 600pts using the basic rulebook scenarios to help me learn the rules again, but last week we decided to do something a little bit more spectacular! And so, on a cold and misty morning, a combined army of fighting Uruk-Hai and Gundebad Orcs march against an Elven citadel…

Ladders at the ready, my Uruk-Hai advance towards the wall.

I was allied with my friend Sam, allowed 400pts each, and up against another friend, Erik – with his 400pts of High Elves behind the castle walls. I opted for two warbands, taking an Uruk-Hai Captain with shield to lead each one. One warband consisted of ten armoured Uruk-Hai with shield – their job would be to carry the ladders and battering ram across the empty field to the walls. The second warband was the assault force, consisting of seven Uruk-Hai Beserkers and an Assault Ballista. Sam took a Gundabad Troll and Ogre, along with some Beserkers of his own and some Gundabad Orcs riding in a seige tower – accompanied by a Bat of Gol-Guldur. Erik’s defenders consisted of the elf lord Glorfindel, accompanied by numerous High Elf warriors and archers, plus a Captain and a banner.

Reaching the base of the wall…

The Uruk-Hai surged towards the wall, each ladder being carried by three armoured Uruk-Hai and three Beserkers, while six more armoured warriors carried the battering ram straight towards the gate. Elf archers on the wall let loose a hail of arrows, their accurate volley felling two of the Uruks carrying the battering ram. Sam’s Bat flew towards the wall, while his Ogre moved up alongside my ram and his Troll pushed the siege tower forward.

With a piercing cry, the Bats charged up onto the walls to engage the Elves – however, surrounded by Elves, they lost the combat and suffered a wound. The Uruk-Hai continued to close the gap towards the wall and, with a snapping twang, the Ballista fired and raised a ladder up to the wall. A Beserker was carried to the top of the wall, ready for combat, but was bested by the finely-honed blades of the Elves – forced to fall back, the Uruk fell off the wall to his death.

Raise the ladders!

The Bat was overwhelmed and cut down by the Elves and the Ogre shot down by the archers, but the free peoples were not having it their own way – the Ballista fired a shot that severely cracked the wooden gate, and with a crash of shattered wood the battering ram demolished what was left of the doors, opening the way for the forces of evil to pour into the castle. One Elf stood bravely between the darkness and defeat – Glorfindel, the captain of the company. Weilding his master-crafted elven blade (and fight value 7!), he effortlessly dispatched each of the Uruk-Hai I sent through the gate. Unfortunately there was only room for two at a time, and with no pikes in my force I could only have two Beserkers attacking the elf lord at best.

While the Uruk-Hai surge up the ladders to the wall…

…the battering ram succeeds in breaking down the fortress gates.

Uruk-Hai abandoned the ladders to try and force their way through the gate as Sam’s siege tower finally reached the walls, the Orcs inside flooding out to engage the Elf defenders. However, even the Gundabad Beserkers fell short against the wall of shields and spears presented by the Elves, with Sam’s Orcs unable to even exit the siege tower against the wall of elven steel. Down at the gate Glorfindel continued to make short work of everything I threw at him, until a shot from the Ballista struck him dead in the chest. The mighty hero passed his fate roll and survived, but was thrown backwards – allowing my fighting Uruk-Hai to push further through and engage the regular Elves behind him. Unfortunately I just didn’t have the numbers to push through against the ranked spearmen, and was unable to capitalise before Glorfindel got to his feet again, pushing my Uruks back out of the castle.

Sam’s Troll tried to intervene, but was cut down by Glorfindel as well. My Ballista lined up a kill-shot on the now-fateless Glorfindel, only to miss on the scatter chart and hit Sam’s Gundabad captain instead! A lone Uruk-Hai tried to climb to the top of the remaining ladder in a last attempt to score a VP, but was beaten back by the Elf archer on top of the wall. And with that the game came to a close in a victory for the forces of good.

A lone Uruk-Hai makes a last effort to scale the walls.

The victorious elves drive the forces of evil back.

Thanks for reading, and who knows – maybe I’ll write another report sometime sooner than 18 months apart!

Take care,

Ben

The Anphelion Project – mission 2: Take & Hold Generatorum III

The mist clung low to the ground, enveloping the foliage in a sea of white clouds. This late in the evening, the frail sunlight struggled to pierce the murky depths, rendering the forest floor below a murky twilight.

With a roar of engines and rotors, three Imperial Valkyries hurtled through the air. Each craft skimmed along the top of the forest canopy, search lights blazing as they attempted to pierce the fog below. Sat up front in the cockpit of the leading plane, Major Durra’s attention was focused on the glowing auspex in front of him.

Three seats down, Corporal Ferro checked her lasgun for the seventh time, expertly stripping down the weapon despite the turbulance of the drop-ship. Slapping a powercell into her weapon, she muttered a prayer to the machine-spirits and the God-Emperor under her breath. Command dossiers had said that the situation on Aphelion Beta was a regular combat drop, but nothing about this felt regular. They’d all heard reports of Tyranid activity on the moon, and seen the Thunderhawks of the Red Scorpions – plus the Inquisitor leading them. A career soldier for the past nine years, Ferro was no stranger to the Imperial war machine, but Astartes weren’t sent in unless the situation was in some serious gak, and that troubled her.

‘Listen up!’ shouted the Major over the roar of the engines. ‘We’re on an escort mission here, dropping this thing’ – he indicated the servitor next to him – ‘into the generatorum and getting the power back online to this Emperor-forsaken place. Scanners show no activity, but these bugs can be stealthy so consider the LZ hot. I want squads covering all entrances. We hit the ground hard, you see something, you shoot and shout. Clear?’

‘Clear, sir!’ chorused the guardsmen.

* * *

The game started with the Imperial troops dropped in around the generator, squads of Elysians fanning out to cover all directions. Seeing movement flickering in and out of the tree line, one of the Sentinels loosed a blast from its lascannon and was rewarded with an alien scream as the Lictor was evaporated by the strength of the weapon. In response, Tyranids flowed from the jungle around the guardsmen, scuttling Termagants and bounding Hormagaunts accompanied by the menacing shapes of larger Tyranid warriors. A hail of living ammunition flew towards the nearest Sentinel, and while most of the tiny voracious organisms clattered harmlessly off its armour, their acidic blood took its toll on the bipod machine and began to eat through the metal.

The Imperial forces quickly secure a perimiter around the generatorum…

…as the Tyranids emerge from the surrounding jungles.

A bounding swarm of Hormagaunts leapt into one of the Elysian squads. A hail of grenades tore through the aliens, but the agile creatures dashed onwards into the guardsmen. Their bladed limbs flickered out, crimson blood spraying in all directions and staining the plantlife red as the Tyranids cut through the Elysians. Seven of the men were cut down by the Hormagaunts, but the remaining three held their nerve.

Oblivious to the battle raging outside, the servitor continues its pre-programmed task to get the powered fences back online.

Inside the bunker, the servitor bypassed the local security systems to access the computer, and control runes on the screen blinked green as power was restored to the fences around the complex. Outside, the Elysians sent disciplined volleys of las-fire into the Tyranids, gunning down the Hormagaunts while the Sentinels brought their heavy weapons to bear on the warrior-forms. One of the lascannons missed, setting the nearby undergrowth alight, but the other sliced through a warrior, bisecting it at the torso and killing the xenos creature.

Waves of Hormagaunts assault the Elysians, as guardsmen squads valiantly try to defend the enterance to the generatorum long enough for the servitor to complete its task.

The hand of the Emperor (or Tom!) reaches down to remove another luckless Guardsmen from the battle.

In response, the distinctive crack of the Warrior’s venom cannon split through the night as it returned fire, the corrosive crystals damaging one of the Sentinels. Now in range, the Termagants unleashed a volley of living ammunition, the horrific beetles launched by their weapons wiping out a complete squad of Guardsmen. The surviving Hormagaunts charged into a depleted squad of Elysians, but despite the casualties they’d suffered the guardsmen were ready, their overwatch fire gunning down all but one of the bounding creatures. Driven onwards by the force of the Hive Mind, the creature lashed about it as reached the men, slicing through the armour of the nearest soldier and leaving him clutching his own guts on the ground. Meanwhile, the Warriors reached the Sentinel, their scything talons cutting through armour and cables but, by the grace of the Omnissiah, the machine weathered their attacks and stayed standing.

The Tyranid Warriors cut their way through the Elysians.

Seeing the second squad of Warriors closing fast, the nearest Elysians opened fire. Their lasguns pattered harmlessly off the chitinous armour, but the squad’s meltagun was a different matter altogether. With a flash of light, the thermal weapon vaporised another Warrior, leaving one left standing. In an attempt to break the synaptic network and disrupt the swarm, one Sentinel pilot bravely maneouvered his machine into close quarters with the creature, hoping to use the metal bulk of his steed to crush and kill the alien. The xenos was nimble, though, and evaded the Sentinel’s clumsy attack. On the other side of the generatorum, the Termagants were engaged in a ferocious close-quarters battle with the other Sentinel. Their claws were unable to pierce the machine’s armour, while its heavy feet crushed a Termagant into the ground. Guided by the Warrior’s connectionto the hive mind, the little creatures stayed in combat.

The surviving Tyranids try to force their way into the generatorum building…

Talons dripping with blood from the squad they’d butchered, the Hormagaunts bounded towards the guardsmen. Before they could reach them, however, disciplined volleys of las-fire cut them down. The Warrior, on the other hand, deftly charged into three Guardsmen, but the veterans were able to avoid its slashing claws. Dragging down the Imperial Sentinel through sheer weight of numbers, the surviving Termagants tried to push into the generatorum only to be met by the surviving guardsmen, led by Major Durra and his command squad. Unable to kill enough of the Elysians to force them back, the game ended in an Imperial victory!

…but too late, as the hard-fought and bloody game ends in an Imperial victory!

* * *

The hissing of the Tyranids mingled with the rain, a sibilant background noise that set Ferro’s teeth on edge. Most of her men were dead, and the remainder of her squad had fallen back inside the generatorum to try and hold the xenos at the door. Hormagaunts and Termagants threw themselves into the narrow entrance, barely held at bay by las-fire. The snap-crack of lasguns was accompanied by the thermal roar of the melta and the boom of Major Durra’s plasma pistol, but for all their firepower the Tyranids were gaining ground, pushing into the generatorum.

Suddenly, chimes echoed out from the console behind them, and the monotone drone of the servitor announed its task complete. Ferro could hear the Major shouting into the vox for extraction, and the distinctive sound of the drop-ship began to penetrate through the noise of the rain and the Tyranids. ‘To the roof!’ she yelled, her men scrambling up the service ladder through the hatch to the top of the building. Snapping off a last burst at a Hormagaunt that caught it in mid-air and wrenched it away, she slung her lasgun over one shoulder and followed the guardsmen up the ladder.

On top of the building, flares had already been lit. As the last Elysian scrambled through the hatch, the command squad’s engineer slammed it shut and began to seal it with an industrial welder, even as the metal rang with the sounds of the aliens throwing themselves against it. Around the building, Tyranids leapt up the sides, scrambling to reach the soldiers just out of their reach.

The area was bathed in light as, with a scream of engines, their drop-ships banked in low and fast, weapons chattering and forcing the Tyranids away from the walls. Hydraulic whines screeched over the roar of the engines as ramps lowered, and the surviving Elysians scrambled on-board the hovering transports.

As the drop-ship banked away from the generatorum, Corporal Ferro looked back. The surviving Tyranids were no longer snarling and leaping – instead, each creature stood stock still, watching the departing Imperial craft with unblinking eyes. The sight of the creatures, who moments before had been a raging swarm of aggression, sent a chill down Ferro’s spine. ‘Sir…’ she began, turning to the Major, but then the craft’s door closed and they were gone.

* * *

So far so historical, with the Imperials winning the first two battles. I’m currently painting models for the next scenario, so stay tuned for the next part of the Anphelion Project!

Take care,

Ben

The Anphelion Project – Mission 1: Search And Destroy

I’ve always loved the story of the Anphelion Project. Essentially Jurassic Park in 40k, it tells the story of an Imperial outpost on Beta Anphelion IV who captures some live Tyranids for analysis in the hope of finding a weakness they can exploit, keeping them in large cages with electrified fences. In true Jurassic Park fashion this  goes about as well as you’d expect, and when the base goes silent a task force of Red Scorpions, Cadians and Elysians led by Inquisitor Solomon Lok are sent in to investigate. And, as with any inquisition story there’s a lot more going on behind the scenes…

I’ve been up for playing through all the missions from the original Imperial Armour for a while, and luckily a friend of mine is both up for it and has a force of Red Scorpions! I edited the scenario a little to account for the new edition, and added in a couple of stratagems to go with it (you can see the complete scenario rules I wrote here). So, here’s how our first mission went…

* * *

Engines screaming through the early morning silence, two matt-grey Thunderhawk gunships swept in low over the Anphelion base. Below them the area was silent, cargo haulers and transports left unattended.

Cutting the thrusters, the aircraft pulled in low over a clearing. Servos whined as the ramps opened, and the unmistakable shape of the emperor’s astartes deployed onto the mist shrouded ground. Resplendent in their bulky armour, two squads of Red Scorpions Terminators swung their weapons around, scanning the abandoned area.

“No movement in alpha quadrant” one cracked over the vox. “No contract in beta quadrant” confirmed another. Slowly, the Red Scorpions fanned out, moving towards the silent Anphelion base.

The first turn saw a lot of cautious positioning, as Tom’s Red Scorpions started to enter the nearest Anphelion base while keeping overlapping fields of fire. In response, I moved one of my larger Genestealer squads into the base, while the other two moved around the sides to flank the building.

‘Movement on the auspex, straight ahe-‘ The report from squad Raum was suddenly cut off, and the stacatto beat of gunfire filled the vox. ‘Contact, beta quadrant! Genestealers, at least twenty of them. We’re moving to engage’ – another burst of fire punctuated the comms – ‘Throne, watch your flanks, they’re coming out of the wall ducts!’

A moment later, a wave of chitin and claw swept down the corridor to Culln and Darak squad. The astartes opened fire immediately, their storm bolters filling the narrow corridor with a fusilade of letahl firepower. But the aliens were fast and agile, leaping and crawling along the walls and ceiling towards the Terminators. Drawing his power sword and thumbing the activation trigger, Culln stepped forward to engage the xenos.

All hell broke loose in turn 2 as the Genestealers swept down the corridors and into the terminators. Tom used the Overwatch strategem to thin their numbers, but the remaining ‘nids charged into both Terminator squads and Culln himself. Commander Culln was cut down in a flurry of rending claws, while the surviving Terminators fell back in Tom’s turn to continue firing into the Genestealers. The lights flickered and dimmed as I used the Lights Out strategem, but the Red Scorpions fire proved accurate and cut a toll through the surviving Genestealers. In my turn I threw the remaining Genestealers and Broodlord into the Terminators and Tactical Squad, managing to finally wipe out the remaining Terminators – albeit at a heavy cost in casualties.

‘Commander Culln is down, repeat the commander is down! Converge on the central junction, defensive stance and suppressive fire!’ ordered the Primaris Lieutenant. Boltguns chattering and accompanied by the sporadic roar of a Flamer, the surviving Primaris and Tactical Marines fell back in the Anphelion Base. The Tyranids were more cautious now, the corridors strewn with slain Genestealers and the hulking forms of two Broodlords. Auspex scans showed scant few of the xenos left, but the Red Scorpions were veterans and knew better than to underestimate the Tyranids.

As we reached the end of the game, both forces had been whittled down to a mere handful of models left. Both forces continued to trade blows until, at the end of turn 5, one lone Primaris sergeant remained against one lone Genestealer. The Tyranids were on Beta Anphelion IV, and as the Thunderhawks extracted the surviving Red Scorpions to report back to Inquisitor Lok, time was of the essence…

* * *

A hard-fought and bloody game! I don’t think either of us were quite prepared for how much the confines of the Anphelion base and its cramped corridors would affect our fighting – making it hard for Tom’s astartes to move around, and hard for me to get many Genestealers into combat at once. Next up, the Imperial Guard seconded to Lok must try to restart the generators to bring the electic fences back online, ensuring that the Tyranids are contained while Inquisitor Lok tries to uncover what has happened on Beta Anphelion IV…

Take care,

-Ben

The Fate of Konor – Mission 1 – Invasion! Tyranids vs Deathwatch

The Imperial lines were quiet. A soft dawn mist rolled over the empty fields, shrouding the scattered trees and rocky outcrops in a swirling fog.

Along the rockrete fortifications, black-armoured marines of the Holy Inquisition’s Deathwatch stood, weapons ready. Watch-Captain Artemis stood in the centre of the lines, his superhuman eyes scanning the mist-enshrouded field for any sign of movement. His team had received a report from a Red Scorpions garrison of a Tyranid attack earlier in the week – an attack the Astartes had repulsed, but Artemis had fought the Tyranid menace before and was well aware that this would hardly be an isolated attack. Evolve, adapt, survive – that was the Tyranid way. Cradling his Boltgun in his armoured hands, the Watch-Captain continued to scour the fields.

Out in the mist, amongst the trees and the rocks, six-limbed creatures silently crept forward towards the Imperial lines.

* * *

I had a second chance to play the Invasion! scenario for the Fate of Konor campaign, hoping to do what Tyranids do best – learn from their losses, evolve, and win! This time, my swarm would be taking on Mark’s Deathwatch for our Tale of Gamers battle this month. So, could my bugs overrun the Imperial lines this time?Mark didn’t manage to seize the initiative, leaving the Tyranids to go first again. The Genestealers bounded forward, along with the Broodlord, positioning themselves for a first-turn charge against the Assault Marines, Librarian and Venerable Dreadnought. Unleashing the psychic might of the Hive Mind, the Broodlord cast Smite on the Librarian – clearly unprepared for such a psychic assault, the Librarian failed to deny the power and took three mortal wounds! I decided to go heavy on the left flank, using the Swarmlord’s Hive Commander ability on one of my Carnifexes to allow it to move even closer to the Deathwatch lines. The Carnifex charged into a Rhino, wrecking the vehicle, while the Broodlord charged into the Dreadnought and the Genestealers charged the Librarian, the Assault Marines and the Dreadnought. Fearing the retaliation of the Counter-Attack stratagem I elected to attack with the Broodlord first, her Monstrous Rending Claws dealing a total of eight damage to the Venerable Dreadnought after its armour saves! However, the veteran Space Marine inside clearly had other ideas as he passed one of his 6+ saves, leaving him with one wound left. Mark elected to use the Counter-Attack stratagem, his Assault Marines ploughing into the Genestealers and crushing some of the xenos beneath their Thunder Hammers. In retaliation, the charging Genestealers took out the Librarian, the Assault Marines and the Dreadnought in a flurry of claws! Not a promising start for the Deathwatch, with four units down and three Tyranid units already on their side of the board.

Undeterred, Watch-Captain Artemis joined the fight personally. His Stasis Grenade hit the Carnifex dead on, dealing an impressive five mortal wounds! His fellow battle-brothers were quick to capitalise, the potent Hellfire rounds in their Boltguns bringing the Carnifex down. Other squads blazed away into the Genestealers, taking down more of the four-armed creatures, while the remaining Rhino drove straight forward towards the Hormagaunts. Guns blazing, the driver ploughed the vehicle straight into the advancing Hormagaunts, crushing one of the gaunts under the tracks! The bounding creatures leapt around the vehicle to retaliate, but their Scything Talons struggled to find any weak spots and they only caused a single wound. Behind the Tyranid lines, a Drop-Pod thundered into the ground, and the Deathwatch Veterans strode forth, their heavy weapons blazing. The Zoanthropes threw up their Warp Field against the blizzard of fire, but the elite Adeptus Astartes were used to such xenos trickery, their accurate fire killing one of the psychic creatures. Seeking to hold up parts of the Tyranid advance, the Razorback charged into the Genestealers while the remaining Rhino continued to hold the Hormagaunts in place, doing a stellar job as it crushed another one and only took one wound in return! The Tyranids ignored the Deathwatch Veterans behind them, the driving will of the Hive Mind pressing them forward into the Imperial lines. The Termagants scuttled forward into a ruined bunker, now able to bring both their Devourers and some of the Fleshborers into range. A hail of living ammunition rained upon the Deathwatch and, while their 2+ save from being in cover held firm, one Marine was still killed by the volley of fire. Hissing a challenge against the valiant Watch-Captain Artemis, the Swarmlord prepared herself to charge him… only for me to roll one inch less than I needed to engage him. Not to worry, I only need a seven on two dice and I want this epic commander showdown to happen, I’ll just spend a command point to re-roll that two… and roll a one. As fate had decreed that this epic warlord duel was not to be, I charged Artemis with the Broodlord, while the Genestealers piled in to the Razorback. Their Rending Claws tore through the armour, but the tank held firm with two wounds left. Meanwhile, the Broodlord’s Rending Claws flickered out, met by Artemis’s glowing Power Sword. Blade met claw as the two duelled, but the inhuman speed of the Broodlord won out as she cut Artemis down.

The Imperial lines were starting to crumble, but these Astartes were the inscrutable members of the Ordo Xenos Deathwatch – the best of the best, long used to the horrors of the xenos. Mark’s Veterans in my back field continued to punish the Zoanthropes, their heavy weapons firepower taking down another of the psychic Tyranids. The surviving Deathwatch Marines manning the barricades focused their fire on the remaining Carnifex, their Hellfire rounds punching through its carapace and taking some wounds. The Razorback was finally destroyed by the Genestealers, though the Rhino continued to hold the Hormagaunt brood in place as it lost a single wound yet again!

The Termagants scuttled into the Imperial deployment zone, their weight of fire killing most of a Deathwatch squad and leaving one Plasma Gunner alive. Determined to engage the enemy this time, my Swarmlord moved up close to a Deathwatch combat squad before charging into them. The xenos-hunters Boltguns dealt a wound, but one of the nearby Tyrant Guard leapt in the path of the shot. Bone Sabres flickered out, and the Swarmlord stood victorious over the corpses of the squad. Enraged by the wounds it had taken, the surviving Carnifex charged into the last Deathwatch squad, killing a Marine but taking more wounds in return from their Power Sword and Xenophase Blade. Faced with the horde of Termagants and having just seen the nearby Swarmlord butcher his battle-brothers, the lone Plasma Gunner failed his morale check and fled.

With precious few models left, the Deathwatch bravely resolved to take as many bugs as they could with them. The Veterans fired their weapons at the lone surviving Zoanthrope, but it had floated out of the range of some of their weapons and those that could reach it weren’t able to penetrate the psychic barrier around it. The Astartes in combat with the Carnifex fared better, dealing more wounds to the creature but sadly unable to finish it off.

And with that, we had run out of time for the evening and the game came to a close in an 11-1 victory for the Tyranids. The Deathwatch had fought bravely, but the sheer number of Tyranid units who had managed to cross the centreline tipped the vp rather alarmingly.

From my side of the table, I think it went wrong for the Deathwatch when the Genestealers were able to charge three units at once due to their close proximity to one another. I usually try to deploy my Genestealers last so I can place them opposite whatever I want them to kill, and they’re just so darn fast that they can be on an opponent before you know what’s happened. Having three units next to one another like that made for a very disruptive charge as opposed to, say, if the Genestealers had only been able to charge the Assault Marines and not the Dreadnought. We’re still in the early days of 8th edition, too, so it’s always a bit confusing facing a new army for the first time – and I don’t think most people expect Tyranids to be quite as fast as they are! I still get surprised by armies in 8th – I didn’t expect T’au to be as mobile as they are with all those battlesuits!

* * *

My Tale of Gamers force, as of the end of July, stands at:

Swarmlord
Broodlord
3 Tyrant Guard with Scything Talons & Rending Claws
3 Zoanthropes
3 Venomthropes
30 Hormagaunts
30 Termagants including 10 Devourers
17 Genestealers
2 Carnifexes with Devourers, Scything Talons and Thresher Scythes.

I’ll try and do some group shots sometime soon! In the meantime, my Hive Fleet has managed to acquire enough bio-mass to keep growing, and is now headed towards Konor itself…

Take care,

Ben

The Fate of Konor – Mission 1 – Invasion! Tyranids vs Red Scorpions

The forces of Chaos have been pushing hard on Astaramis, keeping the Imperial forces on the defensive and constantly under attack from cultists, daemons and the dreaded traitor legions. However, the Ruinous Powers are not the only forces present in the Konor system…

After the devastation at Baal, a splinter of Hive Fleet Leviathan has drifted into the Konor system. Seeking to replenish itself and regrow, the Hive Mind has sensed the vulnerable worlds already in turmoil, and sees only biomass and opportunity. Falling on the hive world of Astaramis, the first wave of myetic spores starts to land on the surface, and Tyranids swarm towards the nearby hive city of Cruthenhive. Initial PDF defence forces were crushed by the xenos advance but, lucklily for the Imperium, the nearest reinforcements are a detachment of the Red Scorpions Adeptus Astartes – famed for their hatred of xenos and experience against the Tyranids. Ordering the PDF to fall back from the front lines, Commander Culln personally prepares to lead his Space Marines against their hated foe in an attempt to halt the Tyranid advance…

* * *

The Tyranids surged forward towards the Imperial lines, a living tide of chitin and claw. Hormagaunts bounded forward down the unguarded left flank, curving in towards the bastion, while the Genestealers dashed towards the barricades. They were on the Imperial defenders before they could react, the enhanced reflexes of the Adeptus Astartes outmatched by the alien speed and ferocity of the Tyranids. Bolter fire rang out, downing some of the four-limbed creatures before the rest smashed into the Tactical marines, tearing them to bloody shreds in a maelstrom of claws.

On the other side of the bastion, the ground thundered and shook as a mighty Trygon burst forth, Termagants spewing from the gaping hole it left behind. Their Devourers showered the Tactical squad in the bastion with a hail of living ammunition, the sheer number of flesh-worms overwhelming the Marines despite their cover and downing two of their number. With a deafening roar, the Trygon slithered up the side of the bastion, its masssive Scything Talons lashing around and shredding the remanining Astartes. Coiling its massive body around the bastion, the Trygon let out a bestial roar of triumph.

The air filled with static electricity as reality itself distorted for a moment, the famed Commander Culln and his personal bodyguard of Terminators teleporting in on the right flank. Their Storm Bolters chattered, the explosive-tipped ammunition cutting through the Genestealers. Lending its mighty firepower to the fusilade, the nearby Land Raider Crusader swung its massive bulk around to bring all of its weapons to bear on the Tyranid shock troops. On the hill, the Red Scorpions Tactical Marines opened fire on the Swarmlord with their weapons. The Tyrant Guard leapt to her defence, but when the smoke cleared all three Guard lay dead. Revving its engine, the Land Raider drove straight into the Genestealers, accompanied by the Red Scorpions Dreadnaught and surviving Lieutenant. Together, their assault pushed the Genestealers back, punishing the creatures and leaving few standing.

Scuttling along the field, the Hormagaunts continued to dash down the field towards the surviving Astartes, while the Termagants swarmed along the side of the bastion. Energy crackled around the bulbous heads of the Zoanthropes as they unleashed the psychic might of the Hive Mind, their powers tearing great holes in the Land Raider. With an alien roar, the Swarmlord barrelled into the side of the tank, her Bone Sabres slicing through the thick armour with ease. Metal shrieked as the blades sheared through the mighty tank, tearing it apart and leaving little more than a tangled wreck.

Meanwhile, accompanied by the surviving Genestealers, the Broodlord leapt at the Dreadnaught. She scuttled around it, her alien agility far faster than the Dreadnaught could match. It swung its power fist clumsily, but the alien easily evaded the attack, her Rending Claws tearing through the machine’s armour and gutting the corpse-pilot inside.

Co-ordinating and directing the firepower of his remaining Red Scorpions, Commander Culln exacted a punishing toll on the Tyranids. The remaining Genestealers were torn apart in a hail of bullets, and both the Broodlord and the Swarmlord were badly wounded by the barrage of firepower. The Tactical squad focused their firepower on the advancing Trygon, a krak missile streaking towards it and detonating with horrific force.

Attempting to overrun the Astartes, the Swarmlord, Trygon and Broodlord all charged into Culln and his Terminators. The Marines stood fast, their overwatch fire taking a vicious toll on the assaulting Tyranids thanks to Commander Culln’s orders. Claws and Bone Sabres scythed through the Marines, but Culln led the surviving Terminators forward, their Power Fists crackling and Culln’s sword glowing. Their attacks cut through the three Tyranids, cutting down both the Trygon and the Swarmlord.

Holding fast against the counter-attack, the Broodlord found herself face-to-face with Culln. Her alien reflexes kicked in, and her Rending Claws lashed out at the Astartes commander. All six attacks hit, and four wounded – but, after his armour saves and warlord trait, Culln still stood. In retalliation, his sword lashed out and finally cut the Broodlord down. Appropriately enough, this cinematic duel was the point of no return – with the death of my Broodlord, Tom had now scored more victory points than I could, and so ensured a Space Marine victory! All that was left was for the remaining Tyranids to try and exact vengeance on the seemingly invulnerable Commander Culln. Bounding forward, my thirty-strong Hormagaunt brood prepared to charge… only for me to roll a double one, and with no command points left to re-roll either! Stuck in the open, the gaunts were quickly torn apart by the disciplined firepower of the remaining Terminators and the Tactical squad, their firepower also shredding the Zoanthropes and leaving the surviving Hormagaunts out of synaptic range. Having just lost over half their number in a single round of shooting, the remaining Hormagaunts fled, leaving me with just my Termagants and Warriors in the Space Marine deployment zone. A 8-2 victory to the Red Scorpions!

* * *

Where did it all go wrong? Well, I can tell you that – one reason was my deployment of the Hormagaunts out on the left flank, and another was bringing in the Trygon on the left flank. This meant that, while I was at first able to have several victorious rounds of combat, once Culln and his Terminators turned up I wasn’t able to muster enough manpower (bugpower?) in one place to deal with them. Turns out that, between Culln’s re-rolls, saves and the number of Apothecaries the Red Scorpions tend to have, they can create quite the firebase that’s hard to shift! Ideally I would have liked to throw my Genestealers and Broodlord at Culln and his Terminators – generally my solution to any problem in 8th edition is to throw Genestealers at it until it goes away – but their ability to Deep Strike meant that wasn’t an option. In hindsight, I should have left the Hormagaunts and Warriors alone to deal with the Tactical squad in the bastion by themselves – this would possibly have taken longer than the Trygon did (and almost certainly involved more casualties on my part), but it would have meant that the Hormagaunts were actually doing something and left the Trygon and her Termagants to help out on the right flank. Looking back, I almost should have held them back until Culln turned up, so that I could then deploy them to deal with him. Ah well, lessons learnt! It was a really fun game, particularly the way it swung from the Tyranids crushing the Red Scorpions to Culln and his elite group of veterans turning the game around to a Space Marine victory :)

It’s alright though because, in true Tyranid fashion, my Hive Fleet Leviathan is attacking multiple points along the Imperial line to find the weakest one to break through :) I’ll be playing the Invasion! scenario again this week, this time with my Tale of Gamers Tyranid force (so no Trygon, but more Carnifexes) against Mark’s Deathwatch. A second chance to break through the Imperial lines!

Until then, take care,

Ben

40K objectives: or, how to add a story to your games

I’ve always liked creating objective markers for games. Having something tangible to fight over just evokes that much more of a story than plain bases or dice, and really helps to create a cinematic engagement. In the (far!) past I’ve written about the Epic Armageddon objective markers I’ve made, so when Games Workshop released their new Sector Imperialis objectives I just had to buy a box. I’ve been painting them up in-between squads of Tyranids, and – while they’re not all finished yet – I thought I’d show some here along with the scenarios they inspire in my head.

Unsurprisingly my favourite objective of the bunch, the Xenos Stasis-Crypt is a perfect one for my Tyranids to fight over. Perhaps the remains of the Genestealer Prime in the crypt contains vital biomass that must be absorbed by the hive fleets, or the psychic shockwave from its death still resonates, drawing the Tyranids to it like moths to a flame. The opposing forces may have to fight off waves of Tyranids, or try to carry the stasis-crypt across the board while trying to hold off the rapidly-approaching Tyranids.

This is such a fantastic little model – the countdown timer is a superb little touch! I imagine that the Tyranid attacks are pushing hard, as Imperial forces struggle to hold them back while evacuating the world. Military intelligence reports that they’ve located ‘ground zero’, the original drop-site of the Tyranid invasion – once a lush garden-park for the wealthy, it has now been overrun with spore chimneys, sporocysts and birthing chambers. If the Imperial forces can deliver an Inquisition Exterminatus device into the heart of the area and prime it, the resulting detonation would slow down the Tyranid waves and give the Imperium time to evacuate the planet – or even for reinforcements to arrive.

An Imperial ship carrying vital intelligence about the encroaching Tyranid hive fleet has been attacked and destroyed. The lead agent managed to escape along with the data, but her escape pod has crashed. Bio-readouts show that she is dead, but the intelligence data is still stored within the escape pod for retrieval. The only catch? The area is now swarming with Tyranids…

Imperial forces have been ambushed by a substantial Tyranid force. Outnumbered and outgunned by the Xenos, the commander has deployed an orbital vox relay to send a distress call to the Imperial cruisers in orbit around the planet. Drop-ships are inbound for extraction, but can the Imperial forces hold out and defend the relay long enough for their pilots to arrive and save them?

Vital intelligence data-files are stored on a master cogitator unit – unfortunately the Administratum building housing the machine is on the wrong side of your lines. Take and hold the area against the enemy forces long enough for your tech-priest to complete the rites of sanctification and download the data!

I’ve also based up the Tyranid infestation markers that came with some of my Genestealers, which regularly get used as objective markers too – I imagine it like the red weed in H. G. Wells’ War Of The Worlds, slowly spreading over the planet as the aliens invade!

Just a few Tyranid-centric ideas for how I’ll be working these markers into my own games. Leave me a comment if you’ve been thinking up ideas for themed objectives in your games, I’d love to hear them :)

Take care,

Ben

Tale of Gamers: Part 3

It’s been a while since I wrote about it, but it was time for the next Tale of Gamers battle last week (now with eighth edition rules!). I’ve decided to change which army I’ll be doing for this, working on expanding and building my Tyranids instead of the Inquisition. Don’t get me wrong, I love Ariada du Bois and her little Inquisitorial force – but it feels right in smaller games, rather than the larger ones we’ll be progressing into. I’ve always imagined Ariada and her exploits along the lines of the Eisenhorn or Ravenor books; small groups of warriors fighting a secret war for the good of the Imperium. So, I’d like to keep my Inquisitor and her force for smaller games, and have decided instead to build up my Tyranid Hive Fleet for this Tale of Gamers.

I’ve talked before about how I started Tyranids back in third edition before selling them all off during a break from wargaming, and am really enjoying rebuilding the force. The Hive Fleet Leviathan colour scheme is very relaxing to paint (for me, at least). So far, my updated Tale of Gamers force consists of:

The Swarmlord
Broodlord
12 Genestealers
20 Hormagaunts
30 Termagants (10 with Devourers)
2 Carnifexes with Monstrous Scything Talons, Devourers and Thresher Scythe

(It’s a bit of a mess points-wise as my 7th edition 1000pts turned out not to be legal in 8th edition due to little changes like the minimum unit size for Zoanthropes, so it got re-jigged for 8th. Everyone else’s has also been a bit messy regarding points with the edition change, so we’re going to be matching points as closely as possible this time and then simply increasing our forces to 1500pts for next time.)

This week’s game ended up being a three-player match due to an odd number of people, with my Tyranids facing off against the nefarious Drukhari and a green tide of Orks that threatened to outnumber even my bugs! The armies clashed together quickly, with a 30-strong mob of Ork boyz charging into and obliterating my Hormagaunts in a single round of combat. In retaliation, the Swarmlord, Broolord and Genestealers charged into the unit, scything their way through the greenskins and obliterating the unit in return. One of the Carnifexes was struck dead-on by a beam from the Drukhari’s Dark Lance, while the other found itself having to double back to deal with a unit of Mandrakes who appeared behind my lines. The Termagants advanced through an abandoned PDF trenchline, the beetles from their Devourers making short work of a squad of Hellions before the Reaver Jetbikes and a Raider full of Warriors sped over (man those things are fast!), killing the ‘gaunts with a hail of splinter fire and a combined charge. Due to time constraints the game had to end there, with a victory going to the Orks for first blood and objectives.

Tyranids swarm across the abandoned PDF trenchline towards the Orks and Drukhari.

A Hormagaunt brood leaps forward.

Drukhari Mandrakes appear behind the Tyranid lines.

Hordes clash with hordes as the Ork and Tyranid lines meet.

Accompanied by the Swarmlord and the Broodlord, the Genestealers break the Ork lines by destroying the large Ork mob.

A combined Drukhari assault breaks the Tyranids on the right flank.

I’ve actually been very industrious and have managed to paint far more than just that lot, though there’s still quite a bit to go! Currently on the painting table are some more Hormagaunts, backed up by three Warriors, a Lictor and a few more Genestealers. Hopefully they’ll be finished soon, and I can move on to painting up those all-important units – Venomthropes and Tyrant Guard (I know, I really should prioritise those two units – but the others are already half-painted, and I’m loath to stop when they’re already partially done!).

I’m not sure what I want to add in to the force for next month’s game – I’d certainly like to bump up the Hormagaunts and Genestealers to their maximum unit sizes, and get some Tyrant Guard in to help protect the Swarmlord. After that, I’m not sure – I’ve already painted a Trygon so it’d be a shame not to include her, but then again I have also got those Venomthropes and a Tervigon on the painting table…

Take care,

Ben

Warhammer 40K 8th edition battle report – 2000pts Tyranids vs T’au

The air was still, broken only by the gentle lapping of the waves at the shore and the screech of the Dhhji-birds as they wheeled overhead. Aun’ui Au’taal Draira sat cross-legged on the sand of the beach, meditating in the evening light. He closed his eyes, letting the sound of the waves roll over him.

The tranquility was broken by the sound of a Devilfish, coming in fast and low over the water. Opening his eyes, Au’taal saw the ship painted in green livery scream overhead, the pilot pulling a sharp turn to bring the ship around, landing it expertly on the beach a few hundred feet downwind from him. The ramp hit the beach and a lone Fire Warrior hurried out, dashing down the beach towards the Ethereal. As he reached the venerable T’au, he slowed and bowed his head in a gesture of respect. His training is commendable, Au’taal thought, that he remains silent until spoken to despite the urgency of his message. With a wave of his hand, the Ethereal motioned for the Shas’ui to speak.

‘Your grace, our Pathfinders have reports of hostiles approaching from the west, and fast. Your eminence, we believe-‘, he inhaled deeply, ‘-we lost communication with our teams, but we have reason to believe that the Tyranids have found this world.’

Au’taal pushed himself to his feet, brushing sand from his robes. ‘What are the odds of this information being incorrect? I was not advised that our long-range scanners had detected any Tyranid presence.’

The Shas’ui swallowed. ‘Your grace, we haven’t been able to determine how the Tyranids approached us without our systems recognizing them, but recon drones report a 98.7% bio-match between the approaching creatures and the Tyranids known as Hive Fleet Leviathan.’

Au’taal nodded. ‘Give the order to evacuate the colony, Shas’ui, and gather your squad. We must ensure that there is time for our research to be removed before those creatures arrive.’

The still evening air was pierced by the shrill wail of klaxons and sirens from the human bastion, as the T’au and their Gue’la auxiliaries hurried to the transports and defensive positions. On the horizon, Au’taal could already see the shadows of alien shapes moving towards them.

* * *

Warhammer 40,000:8th edition has been released! A friend and I were keen to try it out as soon as possible, so once our orders arrived in the post we set up the terrain and arranged our forces. His stalwart T’au would be facing off against my Hive Fleet Leviathan Tyranids. The T’au force consisted of:

Commander with Burst Cannon and Missile Pod (148pts)
Fireblade (42pts)
11 Fire Warriors (91pts)
11 Fire Warriors (91pts)
Riptide with Ion Accelerator and two Fusion Blasters (418pts)
6 Stealth Suits including one Fusion Blaster (200pts)
3 Crisis Suits with two Plasma Rifles each (192pts)
3 Broadsides with Missile Pods and Smart Missile Systems (612pts)
Hammerhead with Railgun and Smart Missile System (195pts)

Total: 1989pts

The Tyranid army consisted of:

The Swarmlord (300pts)
Broodlord (162pts)
3 Tyranid Warriors including one Barbed Strangler (83pts)
3 Tyranid Warriors including one Venom Cannon (77pts)
20 Genestealers (240pts)
30 Hormagaunts (150pts)
30 Termagants including ten Devourers (160pts)
3 Tyrant Guard (111pts)
Lictor (45pts)
3 Zoanthropes (120pts)
20 Gargoyles (120pts)
5 Spore Mines (50pts)
Trygon (175pts)
2 Carnifexes each with Monstrous Scything Talons, Devourers and a Thresher Scythe (204pts)

Total: 1997pts

The Tyranid army all ready to be deployed! I’m pretty pleased with myself that it’s almost all painted, too :)

We chose the basic ‘Only War’ mission to keep things simple, rolling the ‘Slay and Secure’ primary objective that meant that each objective marker would be worth 2vp at the end of the game to whoever controlled it – and that, if we managed to slay the other person’s warlord, we’d earn an extra D3 victory points. I chose the Swarmlord as my warlord, while Tom went for his Commander.

Deployment on the left flank…

…and on the right.

Deploying Termagants that close together?? But what about blast templa-oooohhh :)

T’au turn 1

Perhaps unsurprisingly, very little of the T’au army moved! The mighty Riptide advanced forward, bringing its heavy weapons into short range. With a fizzle of dissipating energy, a team of Stealth Suits appeared on the right flank near the Tyranid Warriors, accompanied by a roar of jets as a team of Crisis Suits boldly landed in front of the Swarmlord. Jet-pack engines blazing, the T’au commander joined his forces, landing alongside the Stealth suits.

With a crackle of energy the Riptide opened fire on the Swarmlord, dealing a total of six wounds. The nearby Tyrant Guard were ready, though, two of them leaping in the way to sacrifice themselves for the swarm leader. The Crisis Suits added their weapons to the barrage, most of the shots bouncing off the Swarmlord’s chitinous carapace and the remaining Tyrant Guard. Pulse rifles barked as the Fire Warriors and Fireblade shot too, though all of their shots bounced off the Swarmlord. On the far right flank, the Stealth Suits burst cannons whirred into life, obliterating one of the Tyranid Warriors in a hail of fire. The Commander fired into the warriors, wounding one, but unable to finish it.

Planting their feet firmly in the ground, the Broadsides loosed a barrage of missiles into the Swarmlord. When the smoke cleared, the final Tyrant Guard was dead and the mighty Tyrant was reduced to two wounds. The second squad of Fire Warriors wounded a Carnifex, while the Hammerhead Gunship brought its weapons to bear on the Zoanthropes. The psychic will of the creatures were strong, though, deflecting the railgun rounds.

Tyranid turn 1

As one, the swarm advanced. The ground rumbled as a Trygon burst forth near the Hammerhead, six-limbed Genestealers swarming out of the tunnel it left behind. A section of wall seemed to detach itself from the ruined cathedral as a Lictor shimmered into view, appearing near the Crisis Suits. Overhead, Spore Mines drifted lazily to earth near the Broadsides, their tendrils wafting in the breeze.

Psychic energy crackled around the craniums of the Zoanthropes, their powers dealing a single mortal wound to the Hammerhead from Smite. The Swarmlord used her connection to the Hive Mind to Smite the Crisis Suits, though I had to spend my first command point to cast it. She also cast Catalyst on herself, hoping to weather the next round of T’au shooting.

The Carnifexes fired their Devourers at the Crisis Suits, the brainleech worms managing to burrow through their armour to the soft pilot inside and killing one Crisis Suit. The Tyranid Warriors fired at the Stealth Suits, but the T’au technology proved more than adequate as their weapons failed to hurt the shimmering figures. Meanwhile the Termagants and Gargoyles rounded the building to shoot at the Broadsides, but again the T’au armour proved impervious to their weapons as dead Fleshborer beetles pattered against the thick hulls and fell to the ground, their short lifespan expended trying to burrow through the armour. The Warriors fared better, their Venom Cannon taking a wound from the Hammerhead.

With a sibilant hiss the Hormagaunts bounded into the T’au Fire Warriors, their Bounding Leap ability letting them engage the Stealth Suits, Commander, Fireblade and Crisis Suits too! The Genestealers tried to charge the Hammerhead, but failed to reach it even with a re-roll from another precious command point. Incredibly the Trygon also failed to charge, as the Hammerhead’s Rail Cannon overwatch hit the creature and took off six wounds! The Gargoyles managed to charge into the Broadsides, though fully half their number was shot from the air as they did so. One Carnifex barreled into the Crisis Suits along with the Swarmlord, while the second Carnifex attacked the Riptide. Finally, my remaining Warriors on the right flank charged into the Stealth Suits.

The Hormagaunts set about them with their Scything Talons, wounding a Stealth Suit and the Fireblade before cutting down six Fire Warriors. In response the Fireblade cut down two Hormagaunts, and the Fire Warriors drew their ritual blades to kill two more. The Warriors killed a Stealth Suit, but in return were beaten down by the T’au stealth suits. More worryingly, both the Swarmlord and the Carnifex fluffed their rolls and failed to hurt the Crisis Suits, though the T’au pilots were unable to hurt them in return. With a bellowing roar the Carnifex slammed into the Riptide, its Monstrous Scything Talons cutting through the advanced technology with brute force to deal 3 damage to the battlesuit. The Gargoyles flapped ineffectively at the Broadsides, who swung their heavy fists to smash one of the creatures out of the air, killing it. Five of the Fire Warriors lost their courage and fled, abandoning their remaining comrade to the Hormagaunts. Over-extended and out of Synapse range, the remaining Gargoyles took flight and fled the battlefield.

T’au turn 2

The Fireblade and the remaining Fire Warrior fell back from combat, as did the Crisis Suits and the Riptide. As the mighty battlesuit fell back, its weapons barked again, but both the Carnifex and the Swarmlord survived the barrage. The Stealth Suits and Crisis Suits added their weapons to the fusilade, but the Swarmlord’s Catalyst power held firm and she saved all the wounds. A pinpoint volley of missiles from the Broadsides dealt two damage to a Carnifex, and dealt five damage to the other one to leave it on two wounds left! Seeing the rapidly approaching Tyranids, the Hammerhead’s crew brought its weapons around to fire again, but were only able to kill a single Genestealer. Finally, in an attempt to bring her down, the remaining Fire Warrior squad shot the Swarmlord, dealing a single wound – hoping to keep her alive, I opted to spend another command point and managed to save the wound.

Carnage erupts as the Tyranids reach the T’au lines.

Tyranids turn 2

Tasting blood and seeing the enemy falling back, the swarm continued to advance into the T’au lines. The Swarmlord summoned the psychic energies of the Hive Mind to Catalyst herself before casting Smite on the Crisis Suits for two wounds, while the Zoanthropes dealt three wounds to the Broadsides with their own Smite power. On the left flank, the Broodlord also cast Smite to take two wounds off the Hammerhead, psychic power tearing chunks of metal from the elegant T’au vehicle.

Termagants swarm past the forest towards the T’au artillery battlesuits.

The Carnifexes managed to wound the Riptide with their Devourers, the frenzied beetles managing to bore through even the advanced armour of the T’au battlesuit. A hail of fire hit the tenacious Broadside battlesuits from both the Termagants and the nearby Warriors, but the combined fire only managed to deal a single wound to the T’au artillery.

Moving into combat, one of my Carnifexes charged into the Riptide, taking an astounding four wounds from overwatch fire as its twin followed it in. The Hormagaunts charged into the T’au commander, losing a couple of their number to his Burst Cannon, while on the far side of the field the Genestealers and the Trygon barreled into the Hammerhead. Meanwhile, the Lictor charged into the Crisis Suits. The Swarmlord followed her, but calamity struck as Tom’s Crisis Suits used the T’au army-wide ability For The Greater Good, opening fire on her and bringing the mighty Hive Tyrant down! Ah well, at least she’ll just be reabsorbed by the swarm to be reincarnated soon :)

The Genestealers fell upon the Hammerhead in a sea of claws, tearing open hatches and scuttling inside. Their ferocious attack tore the tank apart, rupturing one of the delicate fusion-reactors in the process and causing an explosion of plasmic energy that killed one Genestealer and took another two wounds off the Trygon. The Lictor tore apart the remaining Crisis Battlesuit, while the Carnifexes dealt another six damage to the Riptide. Battered and rent, the mighty T’au battlesuit continued to operate, though it was unable to deal any damage back to the Carnifexes.

The Genestealers and the Trygon tear apart the Hammerhead…

…while the Carnifexes continue to attack the tough-as-nails Riptide.

In a sea of claws and ferocity, the Hormagaunts fell upon the unfortunate T’au commander, tearing his suit apart in a frenzy of attacks and taking Tom’s warlord from full wounds to 0 in a single round of combat! Two Fire Warriors also fell to their wicked Scything Talons, though the T’au gave as good as they got with their ritual blades and killed two Hormagaunts in retaliation. Far from Synapse and out of control after killing the T’au commander, two Hormagaunts fell to Battleshock.

T’au turn 3

Red lights blinking and alarms sounding inside the cockpit, the pilot of the Riptide drew his mighty battlesuit back again from the Carnifexes, readying its weapons for another barrage. Nearby the Fire Warriors also fell back from the Hormagaunts, while the Stealth Suits moved towards the Carnifexes to support their brethren. The Riptide opened fire again, this time killing one of the Carnifexes. The Stealth Suits opened fire on the Lictor, reducing it to one wound, while the Broadside battle suits re-targeted their weapons on the Zoanthropes this time, their barrage of high-impact rockets proving too much for even the psychic might of the creatures and killing one.

Tyranid turn 3

In retaliation, the Zoanthropes unleashed another blast of psychic energy with Smite that wounded a Broadside. The Trygon’s Bio-Electric Pulse overloaded the Broadsides’ systems, causing another wound. The Termagants opened fire on the Riptide this time, the sheer volume of fire from their Devourers finding some of the cracks in its armour caused by the Carnifexes and dealing another wound. Readying itself for a charge, the Lictor’s flesh hooks whipped out to wound one of the Stealth Suits.

Bursting from the woods, the Genestealers attempted to charge the Broadsides. Three of them died to overwatch, and my charge roll wasn’t quite enough to reach them. In an attempt to finally deal with the tenacious T’au, I used my last command point to re-roll one dice and managed to make the charge. The Broodlord also failed to reach the Broadsides, while the Lictor died to the Stealth Suit’s overwatch fire. Both the Termagants and the remaining Carnifex tried to charge the Riptide, but failed to reach it. Finally, in a moment of stupidity, I tried to charge the Hormagaunts into the Riptide, only to roll a double one. In hindsight, I should have charged the Fire Warriors – not only were they within 2″, but the Hormagaunt’s Bounding Leap ability would have then let them reach the Riptide as they piled in. Ah well, lesson learnt….

The T’au left flank begins to collapse as the Genestealers sweep onwards into the Broadsides.

The Genestealers attacked the Broadsides, their Rending Claws cutting through the armour to deal eight wounds and drag down two Broadsides.

T’au turn 4

Things were beginning to look a little bleak for the T’au, as the Tyranid left flank of Genestealers finally reached the main battle line and began to cut a swathe through them. The Riptide moved back from combat, as did the remaining Broadside, while the Stealth Suits moved further forward to reinforce the T’au lines. Their Burst Cannons whirred again, failing to wound the Carnifex but killing two Termagants and a Genestealer. The Riptide’s weapons fired again, though fate favoured the Carnifex as it only took one wound, surviving with a single wound left. Under the command of the nearby Fireblade, the remaining Fire Warrior squad – who I had discounted compared to the threat of the Riptide and Broadsides – suddenly let loose a volley of accurate fire, killing ten Genestealers and reducing the unit to two models! At least the Synapse Broodlord was still nearby to keep them in check.

My remaining Carnifex lives on, but how long can it survive…

Tyranid turn 4

Still moving as one under the guiding influence of the Hive Mind, the swarm of Hive Fleet Leviathan continued its advance on the remaining Tyranid forces. The Broodlord cast Smite on the final Broadside, though the tenacious battlesuit still stood. However, the Zoanthropes floated up to the abandoned bunker, their craniums cracking with nebulous energy as they finally dealt the killing blow and blew the Riptide apart in a storm of psychic power!

Finally the Broadsides are defeated by the Hive Mind.

The Termagants fired a hail of beetles into the Stealth Suits, the voracious little creatures managing to burrow through the armour of one unfortunate T’au and kill him. In an attempt to capitalize on this success the Termagants tried to charge the Stealth Suits, but failed to reach them. The Carnifex also prepared to charge, but the Shas’ui stood firm and a searing beam from his Fusion Blaster finally killed the titanic Tyranid. The Hormagaunts, however, charged into the Fire Warriors before using their Bounding Leap ability to also engage the Stealth Suits, their Scything Talons cutting down five Fire Warriors and one Stealth Suit. Ritual blades drawn, the Fire Warriors cut down one Genestealer to leave me with one left.

T’au turn 5

The T’au forces disengaged again, but the Fire Warriors were still surrounded by Tyranids. Nearby, the Stealth Suits fired their Burst Cannons in an attempt to thin the horde, but to no avail as they failed to land any wounds.

Tyranid turn 5

The Zoanthropes and Broodlord both cast Smite, killing a couple of Stealth Suits. Another fusilade of shots from the Termagants killed another, and the Warriors finally brought their Venom cannon to bear to wound another.

In a moment of over-confidence, I declared that my Broodlord would lead the charge into the Stealth Suits. Again, the Shas’ui stood his ground, his Fusion Blaster hitting my Broodlord and dealing five wounds to take her down to her last wound! The Fire Warriors joined in with their For The Greater Good, and in a hail of Pulse Rifle fire my Broodlord fell. In an attempt to make up for my over-confidence and finish off the remaining T’au forces, my Hormagaunts and remaining Genestealer charged back into the fray. The Hormagaunts managed to kill a Fire Warrior and wound the Fireblade, but the few survivours of the T’au force still stood defiently.

Turn five complete – in the immortal words of Private Hudson, ‘Game over, man! Game over!’. Neither of us had managed to completely wipe out the other (despite some pretty heavy casualties on both sides of the board!), so it came down to objectives. Tom had killed my Warlord and rolled 2vp, while I rolled 3vp for killing his. Combined with my Trygon and Termagants holding two objectives, the game ended in a 7-2 victory for the Tyranids!

The surviving (and victorious) Tyranid models.

* * *

That was a really enjoyable game. From what I can tell after the first experience, 8th edition plays more neatly than 7th edition – it’s great having most of the rules included in the unit’s profile, and changes like the new WS and the removal of initiative help to speed the game up. On the latter one there, I was worried that was something I wouldn’t like, but with the reintroduction of the movement stat and ‘charging units go first’ it’s not such a big deal. Generally, fast units you’d expect to strike first (such as Genestealers and Hormagaunts, for example) have a high enough movement stat that they can basically dictate when and where they’ll get in melee, allowing them to strike first by virtue of charging. The psychic phase was another part of the game that stood out to me as a fantastic change – it’s far simpler to cast powers now, and (at least the Tyranid ones and Smite) feel more like you’re supporting and buffing your army rather than having your psykers run riot doing all the work!

So, what stood out in this game? The Fly ability being on so many battlesuits is incredible, allowing large parts of the T’au army to fall back from combat and still fire at full effectiveness – just as I’ve always envisioned them to do! It makes them a very mobile and hard-hitting army, since you can’t just tie them up in combat to avoid the damage they can (and will!) put out with those ranged weapons. The Broadsides and the Riptide in particular pack an awful lot of firepower, which is made even more potent by the ability to fire weapons at different targets nowadays. On the subject of my Tyranid army, I learnt that 12 wounds and toughness 6 are not enough by themselves to keep my beloved Swarmlord alive, and I still need to be more careful where I deploy her! The Hormagaunts and Genestealers are incredible combat units, and the Bounding Leap of the former is just amazing – perfect to charge one unit and then leap over them to engage two or three others without risking their overwatch! I can imagine that gunline armies without Fly will have to be very careful with their positioning, and Hormagaunts will be a priority unit for them to target. On the other side of the coin, I didn’t feel like I got much use out of the Spore Mines thanks to their slow movement, and the Gargoyles were a bit of a let-down (though I think I sent them at the wrong target, so that one may be on me – I was hoping to tie down the Broadsides, not expecting the Gargoyles to completely disappear within one turn!).

Well, that’s a quick write-up of my thoughts after the first game. Looking forward to Wednesday now, when my Tyranids get to hit the table again!

Take care,

Ben

Magic: The Gathering & Charity part 2

A while ago, I wrote about starting a charity project for WWF’s tiger preservation & protection. Despite purchasing the cards and donating the money, I’ve only just gotten around to writing about the progress of this little pet project.

Artwork for Stalking Tiger (C) by Terese Nielsen.

So far, the deck’s clocked in at £30.94, and features at least one of (almost) every tiger I could find in MTG:

1 x Zodiac Tiger
1 x Jedit Ojanen of Efrava
2 x Springing Tiger
2 x Zarichi Tiger
2 x Riparian Tiger
3 x Seht’s Tiger
4 x Stalking Tiger
4 x Phantom Tiger
1 x Cave Tiger
1 x Scythe Tiger
2 x Primal Bellow
4 x Vines of Vastwood
4 x Tiger Claws
2 x Ethereal Armour
2 x Chosen By Heliod
1 x Divine Favour
1 x Spear of Heliod
2 x Rancor
13 x Forest
7 x Plains
1 x Selesnya Guildgate

I’ve tried to include all the tigers I could find (except for Sabretooth Tiger, just because I didn’t want to splash in red as well for just one creature. I’ve still bought four of them, though, and the amount spent is included in the amount donated!), with multiples of my favourites (Stalking Tiger in particular – just look at Terese Nielsen’s artwork above in its full resolution glory!). There’s even the elusive Zodiac tiger in there, because it’s a nice-looking card and (at £5 a pop) it was a good way to easily increase the amount donated to WWF.

I’ve played the deck against a few friends, and it’s actually working surprisingly well – thanks in no small part to the combo of the Phantom Tiger (a card which still makes me sad when you look at the artwork) and Spear of Heliod / Tiger Claws / Chosen by Heliod / anything that gives it +x/+1, since that makes it effectively immortal!

I’m enjoying this – it’s great to combine a (casual) hobby of mine with such an important cause, and one that’s very close to my heart. I think that I’ll be adding in some more cards like Spear Of Heliod soon, to increase the donated amount and to focus the deck more on buffing up the tigers. I’d also like to pick up some more interesting lands like Oran-Rief the Vastwood and Llanowar Reborn. Don’t worry, the focus will still be very firmly on only using tiger creatures and as many thematic cards as possible! I’ll definitely be working on this deck over the coming months and, as before, will be donating an equal amount to whatever I spend to WWF’s tiger preservation.

Kind regards,

Ben

Kill-Team battle reports

In preparation for an event I’m attending in the near future, some friends and I met up one evening last week for a couple of kill-team games. I’d already decided what kill-team I want to use at this event, going for a Tyranid force comprised of:

Broodlord – kill-team Leader with the Been there, Seen it, Done it trait and (subsequently) the Feel No Pain Indomitable Specialist skill.
3 Genestealers
1 Genestealer with Scything Talons.
1 Genestealer – Dirty Fighter Specialist with the Murderous Blows skill.
1 Genestealer – Guerilla Specialist with the Preferred Enemy skill.
1 Zoanthrope – Weapon Specialist with the Expert Shot skill.

Total: 196pts

I’ve been having great fun playing my Tyranids since restarting them recently, and the idea of an alien kill-team is really enjoyable. Plus, it means that I get to make loads of Aliens / Starship Troopers / Jurassic Park references during each game (‘How could they cut the power, man!? They’re animals!‘ ‘You kill anything that has more than two legs, you get me?‘ ‘Shoot her!‘). Unfortunately I haven’t finished painting my Broodlord yet and, more importantly, the Zoanthropes I’ve ordered hadn’t arrived. Luckily, my friends graciously let me use a Ripper Swarm as a stand-in, since they’re both on the same size base. Psychic Rippers, now there’s a terrifying thought – something for the Hive Mind to start evolving for 8th edition!

* * *

The night was still, the quiet broken only by the chirruping of the local wildlife amongst the ruins. Estoria’s three moons hung low in the sky, bathing the world in a feeble light and casting a monochrome shade over the crumbling buildings. Their pale moonlight illuminated the PDF trenchline as it snaked its way through the city, but the encampment was abandoned. No men manned the vantage points, no soldiers sat at the guns. It was as if the whole company had simply vanished without a trace.

The Space Marines moved almost silently despite their size, panning their boltguns around in slow, sweeping motions. Each Astartes moved in unison, covering each other as the squad advanced. Ahead, Battle-Brother Kurt held up one gauntleted hand for the squad to stop, the other gripping his auspex. His voice crackled over the comm-links in their helmets. ‘Brothers, I read movement ahead. Multiple signals in the ruins, and closing.’

‘Brother Nova, join him to investigate. Brothers Nate and Shiflett, form a secondary team and follow my lead’ Brother-Sergeant Grohl ordered. Fanning out, the Space Marines moved cautiously forward.

All around, in the darkness of the ruins, alien eyes watched them.

* * *

Game one pitted my bugs against Mark’s Space Marines in a game of Head Hunt. His forces consisted of four Space Marines led by their leader, Brother-Sergeant Grohl, and accompanied by heavy armour in the form of a a lascannon-armed Razorback tank. The Space Marines deployed close together, with the Razorback and three marines kept in reserve thanks to Brother-Sergeant Grohl’s A Cunning Ruse ability. I deployed most of my Genestealers hidden away in the ruins, with the Broodlord on a separate flank and the Zoanthrope – as the only model without Infiltrate – a bit further back in my deployment zone.

The Space Marines fan out as the Genestealers creep through the ruins.

Getting closer and closer…

The game started slowly as the Genestealers clung to the shadows of the ruins, avoiding the incoming fire from the Space Marines. At the start of the second turn the Razorback roared onto the board, its twin-linked lascannon turret traversing and blasting a shot at my Broodlord. She was clearly a tough specimen, however, as she shrugged off the potent shot. In response, my Genestealers moved out of cover and prepared to assault. The Broodlord thundered into the newly-arrived Astartes tank, her razor-sharp rending claws cutting through the armour and immobilizing the vehicle with a shriek of tortured gears. Meanwhile, one of the Genestealers scrambled up the side of the nearby abandoned PDF trenchline, launching itself at Brother-Sergeant Grohl in a diving charge. Sensing the creature, the Brother-Sergeant swung around, his arcane plasma pistol already in his armoured hand… only for calamity to strike as the fusion coils of the weapon overheated, detonating in a spectacular white-hot explosion and vaporizing the unfortunate marine.

Brother-Sergeant Grohl about to meet his end.

The Broodlord engages the Razorback.

Undeterred by this loss, his fellow marines pumped bolter rounds and meltagun shots into the Broodlord, but she continued to be tenacious and shrugged off all but one of the wounds thanks to Feel No Pain. The Genestealers, meanwhile, quickly closed the gap and started attacking the Astartes in close quarters as the Broodlord continued to attack the Razorback, her claws tearing off the turret and leaving the vehicle helpless. As turn five drew to a close, we rolled to see if the game would continue. Rolling a one, the game ended with every Tyranid model still alive (somehow!) and a 7-0 victory to the Tyranids.

A wave of chitin and claw falls upon the surviving Space Marines.

* * *

Colonel Jenson sipped the mug of hot recaff as much to warm his hands as to wake him up. Nights were bitter and cold on this Emperor-forsaken rock, and long too. Due to some quirk of the planet’s rotation, nights stretched to twenty Terran hours, leaving little of each day in the pale light of the sun.

He didn’t even know why they were here, to be honest. Command had briefed him about some insurgent rebellion, but by the time the regiment had arrived it seemed to be all but dealt with. Yet they were still stuck here, garrisoned out in the edges of the city.

All around him, giant floodlights were mounted on poles, cables trailing to and from generators which buzzed with a constant low hum. Despite their power, the lights barely penetrated the night, the darkness seeming to almost swallow up the light. Jenson didn’t care. Just a couple more hours of tedious sentry duty before his platoon was relieved, and he could retire to the officer’s quarters for some proper rest.

His reverie was broken by a shout from one of the sentries. ‘Look sir, movement!’ Straining his eyes into the darkness, Jenson glimpsed what the sentry had seen – inhuman multi-limbed shapes moving towards their position – and fast. Dropping his mug and drawing his plasma pistol, he shouted orders to his men. ‘Forward positions, two ranks! Targets at six o’clock, light them up!’ Around him Guardsmen scrambled forward to the sandbags, the distinctive snap-crack of lasguns piercing the night as the shadowy alien creatures abandoned stealth and dashed forward towards the line.

* * *

We rolled the Infiltrate the Camp scenario for my second game – this time taking on Tom and his Imperial Guard garrison. I won the roll-off to decide who was the attacker, and it seemed appropriate for the Tyranids to be trying to run through an Imperial Guard road-block. I deployed my force on one flank, hoping to maximise the cover to close the distance without too many casualties. In response, Tom’s Guardsmen deployed opposite, creating a two-man deep wall of bodies and lasguns. As the night started to fade away, my Tyranids prepared to run the gauntlet to punch through the Imperial lines!

The Imperial Guard blockade.

My Tyranids hug cover as they prepare to advance on the road block.

The Tyranids moved up the board with surprisingly few casualties, mainly due to the difference between the lasgun’s strength of 3 and the fact that all my models were at least toughness 4. Drawing upon the powers of its advanced mind, the Zoanthrope vaporized a few of the Guardsmen with its Warp Blast, scoring me a vp for First Blood and thinning down the line a little. A couple of Genestealers were gunned down by the Guardsmen, with a third killed by overwatch shots as it attempted to charge.

‘Fall back! Fall back!’ The Guardsmen panic as the Genestealers reach their lines and start to break through.

Having survived the barrage of lasgun fire, the remaining Genestealers cut their way through the Imperial Guardsmen.

The rest of the Genestealers, led by the Broodlord, made it into combat and promptly started to cut a swathe through the defenders in an attempt to break through to the table edge behind them. At the end of turn five I’d managed to get most of my remaining models behind the Guardsmen, with the Broodlord, Zoanthrope and a Genestealer running off the board at the start of turn six. The remaining two Genestealers chanced their luck, charging an unlucky Guardsman who was loitering too close to the board edge. The first Genestealer disembowelled the unfortunate man, and both managed to roll high enough to consolidate off the board. With five models escaped and three killed, the game ended in a 6-1 victory for the Tyranids!

The survivors of my kill-team who made it off the board, ready to now wreak some havoc behind Imperial lines!

Two very fun games, and I’m pretty happy with my kill-team. Just need to finish painting my Broodlord and the objective markers, and paint the Zoanthrope (which has now arrived). Hopefully I’ll get some more games in soon, and will report back!

Take care,

Ben