Lord of Storms... Dark eldar/Eldar vs Blood angels/Guard 2500

Back to the 40k, I know we have had a little dark potential, but this is why you are here. Now a friend of mine bought a storm lord a while back after playing a game of apocalypse. He has never used it but has wanted to and has been asking me for some time now to use it. I finally caved in and took the challenge to fight against it. 

While this is not a game of apocalypse we said that he could use it, it just counted as a super heavy attachment like they used to back in 3^rd edition when forgeworld first started releasing the imperial armour books. I decided that if I am taking on this metallic behemoth I would have to tailor my list towards taking down tanks, which meant eldar might not be up to the task, so I decided to go a different route.

The Armies

Dark Eldar 2499

Archon – 135 (warlord: ) w/ Incubi

Shadow field, husk blade, soul trap

The Baron – 105

5 Warriors – 60

Blaster

Venom – 65

2 x splinter cannon

5 Warriors – 60

Blaster

Venom – 65

2 x splinter cannon

5 Warriors – 60

Blaster

Venom – 65

2 x splinter cannon

5 Wyches – 50

Raider – 60

Dark lance

10 Warriors – 100

Splinter cannon

Raider – 70

Dark lance, splinter racks

10 Warriors – 100

Raider – 70

Dark lance, splinter racks

6 Incubi – 132

Raider – 60

Dark lance

Ravager – 105

3 x dark lance

Ravager – 105

3 x dark lance

Razorwing – 145

2 x dark lance

Eldrad – 210

10 Wraithguard – 396

Warlock, conceal, spiritseer

3 War walkers – 180

Scatter lasers

6 Fire dragons – 96

Wave serpent – 110

2 x shuriken cannon

Dark eldar army

As you can see I went very heavy on the dark lances, I took probably too many but I wanted to take down that super heavy even if it meant I lost the overall game. It was a personal goal for the game. I had to keep the wraithguard because they have been good to me over the last few games. Plus I know he has a little fear of the wraithguard and that might be useful.

Blood angels 2495

Reclusiarch – 130 (warlord: ) w/ death company

Librarian – 100 w/ infantry squad 3

Techmarine – 75

Servo harness

7 Sternguard – 175

Rhino - 50

10 Assault squad – 210

2 x melta guns

7 Death company – 140

Power sword, power axe

Rhino - 50

Death company dreadnaught – 140

Manga grapple, blood talons

10 Tactical squad – 180

Lascannon

Sanguinary priest – 75

Jump pack

Land speeder – 60

2 x heavy bolter

Lord Commissar – 70

Primaris Psyker – 70

Platoon command 1 – 30 (Inside storm lord)

Infantry squad – 50 (blob 1) (inside storm lord)

Infantry squad – 50 (blob 1)

Platoon command 2 – 30

Infantry squad 3 – 50

Infantry squad 4 – 50

Leman Russ Punisher – 180

Heavy bolter

Storm Lord – 500

Blood angels army

Well his army isn’t that scary apart from the Storm Lord, the guard are just extra bodies with little to no upgrades and the blood angels are quite under equipped as well. If I can take out the storm lord quickly I have a chance to take his army apart piece by piece but if I don’t, that number of shots targeting my low armour tanks defiantly will not end well.

The Mission

As it’s a normal game of 40k, and not apocalypse, we use a standard mission and deployment. We rolled up vanguard strike (the last one I wanted, I would have prefaired dawn of war) and we got the mission big guns never tier. We rolled and ended up with 3 objectives, so to make it a little more fun, IF (and a big IF) the storm lord gets taken down, its wreckage will become an objective as well as those on the table. While this might be a slight advantage to him it was just some fun so we did it.

Rolling for who set up first the blood angels won to go first and set up first. He deployed everything up the far left, and used the rhino and razorback to try and protect the storm lord. A guard squad holds the objective in the middle while the rest are scattered about the table. The punisher and dread are set up in the middle with the guard; he has nothing on his right flank.

Blood angel deployment

This gives me an opportunity. If I can take down his right flank staying out of range of the storm lord, I might be able to take apart his army. I kept the ravagers, incubi and razorwing in reserve to hopefully alpha strike the storm lord turn 2. That’s the plan anyway. I don’t have too many places to hide units so I set up the wraithguard on my left flank so he targets them leaving the rest of my army alone.

Dark eldar deployment

Just so I don’t forget to mention it later, the objectives where revealed as:

My deployment zone: Sabotaged

Far left side: Scatter field

Centre objective: Skyfire nexus

Night fight: No

Steal the initiative: No

The Battle

Blood angels turn 1

The game starts, no night fight to protect me, and its the blood angels first. He starts with sending his guard to get the centre objective. The blood angels make a brake down my left flank, the assault marines, rhino and razorback followed by the librarian and friends. The storm lord holds its position so it can fire its mega bolter twice, it’s a worrying prospect. The units in the centre move towards me a little.

Shooting phase and he tries to use his librarian but thanks to Eldrad’s runes of warding he fails his psychic test and gets perils, taking a wound. It’s the same for his primaries psyker, a good start. All his transports use smoke to avoid my volley of dark lances and his guard run for cover (and the centre objective). The punisher shoots its horrific 20 shots at the wych’s raider and makes it explode, killing 4 of the poor souls. So its first blood to him, and then he moves onto the big boy, the storm lord. Both shots from the mega bolter target the wraithguard, as do the heavy bolters and the lascannons. After all those shots, the smoke clears and 4 wraithguard are left as well as all the characters. I only lost 6 wraithguard!!! Thank god for T6 and a 4+ cover. I’m a very happy chap. 

Dark eldar turn 1

Well that could have been a lot worse, so I fortune up the wraithguard with eldrad, and the fire dragons wave serpent. He then guides the war walkers guns. The venoms move up the right to hopefully target whatever infantry stray into the open and take out any tanks. The two raiders holding warriors move staying out of range of the storm lord but still try to target the russ. The lone wych runs to my objective and hides.

Shooting starts with the war walkers targeting the death company rhino, which I get several penetrating hits, a few are stopped by smoke but it still explodes, all of the death company are fine but an assault marine behind it dies. The combined shots from the venoms kill 3 guardsmen; they get very lucky from cover saves. Both raiders fail to do anything to the russ and the warriors shoot at the guard but fail to do anything. The wave serpent only manages to take a heavy bolter off the land speeder. A very lack lustre first turn.

Blood angels turn 2

Continuing the blitz down the right side of the table, the blood angels press the attack. The death company climb out of their wreckage and move towards the wraithguard. The death company dread goes after the venoms.  Moving away from its aggressor the land speeder jumps back to target the venoms.

In its new position the land speeder glances a venom with its heavy bolter. The punisher however does a little better, shaking a raider. Getting its guns into position the storm lord fires its first set of shots from its mega bolter at the wave serpent in addition to its lascannons, this explodes it killing a single aspect warrior. The second shot from the mega bolter shoot at the war walkers and wreck two of the walkers while the heavy bolters shoot at the wraithguard but do nothing. A volley of shots from the rest of the army, take down the fire dragons before they can do any damage.

It’s looking very bleak now. But it’s not over.

Dark eldar turn 2

Now this is what I was hoping to happen this turn, everything would come in and I would get a couple of penetrating hits on the super heavy and it would go apocalyptic killing the majority of his army... or at least just shake a weapon or two. This is what happened...

I roll for reserves and everything comes in, the two ravagers come in close to the super heavy followed by the razorwing. The incubi appear behind the wraithguard ready to help them out next turn if need be. Eldrad casts fortune on the wraithguard and dooms both the death company and the guard holding the sky fire nexus. The venoms move to get in range of the guard as do the raiders so the warriors can shoot from long range.

A possible turning point of the game now, the first ravager shoots at the storm lord, and gets 1 glancing hit, the second ravager shoots knocking off a second hull point. The razorwing then shoots in desperation, nothing. The incubi’s raider shoots at the storm lord but misses... that's 9 shots for 2 hull points, not cool. The venoms shoot at the guard holding the sky fire nexus and kill them all thanks to doom. The warriors on the raiders shoot at half a tactical squad and somehow kill 4 of the marines, leaving the sergeant alive and he makes a run for it, but only moves 3 inches. The raiders shoot at the russ but do nothing again. The wraithguard shoot at the death company but fail to do anything thanks to feel no pain.

Damn.  

Blood angels turn 3

With the nexus unoccupied the punisher moves to get it. The sternguard get out of their rhino behind the wraithguard encircling them. The speeder moves again to keep its jink save while the death company go after the wraithguard. Leading the guardsmen the librarian goes after the ravager while the tech marine goes to repair the damaged super heavy.

Shooting at the wounded venom the speeder wrecks the venom making the warriors jump out. As the punisher was out of range of the razorwing it shoots at a raider making it explode killing 8 of the warriors inside it, the two survivors then run for it. The other half of the tactical squad fires its lascannon at a ravager immobilising it. The storm lord splits it shots and destroys both of the ravagers with a mix of weapons as well as getting a single hit on the razorwing which stuns it. Using the ammo that always wounds on 2+, the stern guard shoot at the wraithguard, the closest of which is eldrad, he does 2 wounds to him which fail both saves, even with the re-roll.

Hand to hand combat is met, the death company flanked by assault marines charge the wraithguard. Eldrad steps forward and challenges the Chaplin to one to one combat which he accepts. The farseer leaves a bloody wound in the marines armour while the Chaplin struggles to get past his. In the whirling maelstrom I lose 2 wraithguard as well as the baron (somehow) and only kill 1 assault marine, a bad turn of combat for me.

Dark eldar turn 3

I cast fortune on what survives of the wraithguard unit as well as doom on the sternguard and death company, but the death company denies my powers. I get the incubi out of the raider and move them towards the death company to aid the wraithguard. The venoms move close to the speeder so the warriors can shoot their blasters. The razorwing moves off the table (or in the shooting phase, either way it goes).

Shooting phase, the warriors manage to destroy the speeder by stripping of its last hull point. The second venom shoots at the death company dread and blows off the magna grapple. A raider finally hits the punisher and gets a glance, it has 2 hull points left. The warriors on board, target the platoon command next to it, and kill 4 of the 5 men. Unloading both guns the war walkers shoots at the sternguard and kills two of the marines.

With a great war cry the incubi charge into the death company and assault marines. The assault marines issue a challenge which the archon is force to accept but nothing happens. At the end of the combat 3 death company lie dead as do two incubi. The combat continues.

Blood angels turn 4

As they haven’t do anything yet, the guard get out of the storm lord and swarm down the left flank. The dreadnaught on the right goes after the venoms again while the punisher moves towards them.

The platoon command leads the charge!

The Archon flees, leaving the eldar to die.

Firing its storm bolter and melta gun the dread blows up a venom and a warrior dies. The storm lord shoots at the war walker and glances it, explodes both the raiders but fails to kill anyone inside. The punisher then takes out 4 of the warriors who were forcibly ejected out of their ride. Just rapid firing into the war walker the sternguard takes off the last hull point of the vehicle.

Combat and another assault marine squad join in the combat, making it one hell of a complex and bloody affaire. At the end of it all I kill 4 marines, I lose all the incubi and the archon flees (obviously knows when a fight isn’t going his way). The death company dread charges into the warriors that jumped out of the exploded venom and are just a smush on the floor, he didn’t break a sweat... well that ever a massive metal killing machine might break.

Dark eldar turn 4

My archon regroups and the razorwing is back in, once again going after the super heavy. The last venom moves to try and take out the punisher.

The flyer does nothing once more to the super heavy and once more the blasters do nothing either.

Combat goes my way as the Chaplin finally kills off eldrad but I manage to do another wound to him reducing him to his last. The last of the wraithguard and the warlock die to a flurry of blows.

Blood angels turn 5

The storm lord targets the archon and unleashes his full power onto him, 16 wounds later and I think he’s dead. The punisher targets the razorwing and destroys it as it has access to the sky fire nexus. The sternguard then finish off the last of the dark eldar warriors.

Dark eldar turn 5

I move the wych...

We decide to just end the game there as I have nothing that can do anything major, only venom and a single wych.

Blood angels: 12 – Dark eldar: 3

Post-Battle

So another loss for me, but this time as dark eldar not eldar, so it’s not as bad as it sounds (that’s what I’m telling myself any way). Regardless as I have never come across a super heavy before this was very enlightening. They are a lot harder to kill then I expected. It makes me want to buy a couple for my existing armies. Even with the little nerf that vehicles got with hull points I'm still loving tanks. Anyway back on topic, what did I learn?

·         Wraithguard are hard as hell: Even taking all that punishment from a super heavy they still lived for a couple of turns. We knew this, but its the only positive I can think of so there it is.

·         I feel I misplayed it: If I left the eldar where they were but focused the whole dark eldar army down the right flank first then went after the super heavy I might have stood more of a chance of surviving.

·         Tactics: I really need to learn from my failures and hide my soft units. Maybe I use the wrong armies, I cant seem to do very well with flimsy armies, I need to have a more forgiving army for a little bit. But it would be a shame to stop with the eldar.

A little something more

This is something new I'm going to add after each article I write, I want to get a bit more info in. So what is next for me? Well I need to keep painting the war walkers and squigs. Once that's done I want to play more games at the club, get a few new opponents for you guys.

Anyway that's it for me this week. And I'm sorry I missed my post last Tuesday