So, I ended up playing a fourth game, but the score would not count towards my total. This was due to the odd number of participants and the issues that occurred at the start of the tournament (I won't go in to them again, I've moaned enough about them!). I'm not sure if this was the best way to make up the games, as I was playing sabotage rather than for points. The game however was really enjoyable.
So, I was wondering how to play this game. Aggressive or defensive? I deployed first and went for a usual set-up, however I decided to push the wyverns up in to one of the ruins for some cover, try and keep them away from the big scary beasts. I had nothing but the flyers and their squads in reserve.
The forces of the imperium.
My opposition flooded his side of the table with models. 2 large broods of Gargoyles and to large groups of Gaunts on opposite sides of the table, 4 flyers, 2 flying Hive Tyrants and 2 Crones started on the table. Rounding everything off were a couple of Tyranid Warrior broods. Oh, and a couple of Zoanthropes and some spore mine things in reserve.
A very scary nids deployment.
If you can't be seen, to can't be hit. Hiding in the ruins
I knew that his flyers were going to be on me in no time at all, but I didn't really have anything for dealing with them apart from the autocannons and they didn't have line of sight. So my main target was either one of the Gaunts or the Gargoyles. I went for the Gargoyles as I thought that they were the greater threat, mainly due to their speed. I fired the Wyverns at the squad and with all the re-rolls managed to eliminate a whole unit, earning first blood in the process. Only 26 points left available! I took a couple of pot shots at some Warriors, but did little.
First blood!
My opponent replied in brutal fashion, with his flyers moving right up and taking on my Wyverns ! After a lot of shooting, including two template haywire shots! But my Wyverns went pop, not a good start. In the rest of the shooting, a number of guardsmen got hit, but the majority of the fire-power went on the Wyverns. Everything else ran to get in range.
Oh crap!
Wyverns about to die.
The hoard approaches, Crone to the front, Gaunts in the centre and Warriors to the rear!
With the flyers right on my doorstep and both my Wyverns down and out, things were looking pretty dire. The only bit of luck was managing to ground one of the crones, which was then dispatched with massed lass fire!
Now you see it (bottom left)
Now you don't! 1 down 3 to go!
The rest of the units did little. The centre held the line but the PCS ran for the ruins at the top of the table. The newly arrived Valkyrie targeted one unit of Gaunts, killing a number, but not wiping them out.
My opposition continued his advance. Pretty much everything but the flyers and the Warriors ran forward. The flyers went to work on the troops, removing a number of the guardsmen, as did the Warriors, even though they only had one shot, a blast, in range.
Moving in for the kill.
End of turn 2. A lack of guardsmen in the centre
Its hard to see, but if you look through the window on the left, you can just see a Gaunts head peaking around the corner of the building in the middle of the table. (Trust me its there!)
For the first time in all the battles, my Promethium Relay Pipe come in to there own. The unit of Gaunts moving towards the centre objective get the full force of thee torrent flamers and a bunch of lasguns, killing all but one Gaunt! On the left side, the flamers and lasgun fire take the other Gaunts down to half strength. I also take a chance this turn, and decide to Grav-Chute insert my vet squad, something I generally don't like doing, and for good reason, when 2 of my squad manage to splat themselves all over a building. The rest run in to the cover of said building, with the intention of going for both line breaker and his objective.
One gaunt, holding the objective.
My opponent continued attacking with the flyers. One moved in to glide to keep firing at the guardsmen, the other swung around going for new targets. The left Gaunts recover and move up, but not in to the building, keeping out of flamer range. The Warriors start there moves forward as well. By this point, I'm starting to run out of units, but I've not given up many points at this point.
The onslaught continues!
End of turn 3, and the grunts on both sides have been feeling the pain!
Turn 4
As there is little I can really do to all the flying beasts, I decide to move. My left squad moves towards the objective, removing some more Gaunts in the process, with the flamers hanging back to keep the torrent rule. On the right hand side, the PCS move up and issue an order to themselves, to fire and move, flaming the Gargoyles on that side. As a result of 4 flamers, the squad is removed, clearing the way for the PCS to take the objective. In another point saving move, the two psykers break form the centre squads and move off with the left squad, running away from the flyers in the centre. The Vendetta went in to hover and dropped of the plasma command squad, with a lot more accuracy than the last drop! I did put the Vendetta in a dangerous position. The squad didn't fire though as they charged in to the two units, the last Gaunt and the Zoanthrope, both of which were on the objective.
Advance!
The table at the top of turn 4.
Moving for the objective.
Combat.
My opposition continued his relentless assault on my squads, killing off the command squad and killing my warlord and more importantly earning himself a number of points. Unfortunately, my gamble didn't pay off and my vendetta was brought down. The combat in the centre continued with nothing happening, which was not good for my part, as I wanted to break out to be able to fire in my turn.
End of turn 4
Turn 5
By the beginning of turn 5 it was pretty clear that I had managed to complete my objective of reducing the points my opposition was getting. I had sacrificed a few units, but that had been necessary.
For my turn I just moved to secure the objective, the PCS on the right, the Blob on the left and the vets ran for my oppositions objective, while the remnants of the centre blob held mine. The centre objective was still contested at this point, but I managed to destroy the Zoanthrope during the assault phase.
My opposition did his bit and went for kill points, taking down the now hovering Valkyrie and also opening up on the plasma command squad in the centre with his Warriors, as a result the command squad was down to the commander on 1 wound. The flyers also eliminated the last of the centre blob squad, which was taken with one of the swooping flyers. There was not much else that happened as it was clear that my opposition was not able to gain the number of points needed to win the tournament.
End game, apart from the squad at the bottom is dead.
At the end of the game, the score were, 10 to me, First Blood, Line breaker, 4 for objectives and 4 kill points, and my opposition had 12, Line breaker, Slay the Warlord, 7 kill points and 3 objectives. While this was a loss, my only one of the tournament, it was in fact a successful game, I gave away only 12 points, short of the 21 my opposition needed to win. In many respects, this game wound have ended differently had we both been playing for points. At the start of the game I was on 25 and my opponent was on 23. This would have put us on 35 a piece, and drawing. What would have happen, I don't know, but it would have gone on to tertiary points (Warlord, first blood and line breaker) and i might have still been able to win. However, if we had of been playing for points, i might have played differently, keeping both flyers in zooming and gone for the last of the Gaunts for more points. We also made a few mistakes at the end, with the plasma command squad commander surviving a strength 6 hit which should have killed him outright, giving a kill point and also enabling him to take the centre objective. This would have put his score to 15 and potentially winning the tournament. Its all academic though, as my points were already decided.
End game - loss - 10 (FB, LB, 4obj, 4 kp) - 12 (LB, StW, 7kp, 3obj)
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