Eldar vs Tau 2k: Supreme Firepower

And Again I face another Tau army, at least this one is different from the same one I thought the last two times. However its going to take some luck do any anything to his Supremacy battle suit. Its a 2k game of Eldar vs Tau with tactical Escalation (again).

The Armies

I try out a rather new list, using a Craftworld Warhost. I have never used one of these before and the core choices in Codex: Craftworlds are very restrictive and I don't have the models for any of them, so I have had to use a Pale Court choice from Imperial Armour: Doom of Mymerea in order to fill it out. This lets me mess around with what to take quite a bit and make it work to my collection than have to buy anything new.

Eldar: Craftworld Warhost

Core:

Pale Court (Swift to anger, Aspect Lord Shrine)

Farseer – 100 (warlord: Tactical genius)

Guide, will of asuryan, doom, eldritch storm

5 Dire Avengers – 75

exarch

5 Dire Avengers – 65

5 Dire Avengers – 65

3 Vypers – 150

2x shuriken cannons

Auxiliary:

Aspect Host

3 Dark Reapers – 109

exarch, starshot

3 Dark Reapers – 109

exarch, starshot

3 Dark Reapers – 109

exarch, starshot

Aspect Host

10 Striking scorpions – 210

exarch, claw

10 Howling Banshees – 150

exarch, executioner

8 Howling Banshees – 124

exarch, executioner

Aspect Host

6 Fire Dragons – 142

exarch

Wave Serpent – 125

twin-linked scatter laser, shuriken cannon

6 Fire Dragons – 142

exarch

Wave Serpent – 125

twin-linked scatter laser, shuriken cannon

10 Warp spiders – 200

exarch

For those of you who don't know, the Pale court is an alternative to the 3 traditional core choices provided in Codex: Craftworld, its benefits aren't as numerous but it is altogether a lot more customisable and lets you give your craftworld a lot more personality. The basics in a Pale court are 1 Farseer, 3 Guardian defender units and 0-1 warlock units. These can be changed based upon what perks you pick.

In my Pale court I chose Swift to anger, which means I have to take a unit of vypers (or hornets) but they gain outflank. I also took Aspect lord shrine, which changes guardian defenders to a 0-3 choice and I have to take 3 of the same aspect warrior unit instead (so I chose dire avengers). This could be taken advantage of by some people, but that can be said about most things.

My army here was designed around the Swordwind idea, all aspect warriors all the time. Taking 3 dedicated close combat units probably isn't the best use of points, but I wanted to see how they did anyway.

Tau: Dawn Blade Detachment

Commander – 165 (warlord: +1 ws)

Coldstar Battlesuit, Shield generator, vectored Retro Thrusters

10 Breachers – 144

shas'ui, guardian drone, gun drone, emp grenades

3 Crisis battlesuits – 174

shas'vre, Iridium Battlesuit, airburst frag projector, cyclic ion blaster, 2x twin-linked plasma rifle, bonding knife

3 Crisis battle suits – 139

shas'vre, twin-linked fusion gun x3, bonding knife

Broadside battle suit – 73

seeker missile, heavy rail rifle

10 pathfinders – 124

2x rail rifle, shas'ui, accelerator drone

Riptide – 210

ion accelerator, stimulant injector

Supremacy - 600

Formation: Optimised Stealth Cadre

GhostKeel – 130

cyclic ion-raker, twin-linked fusion blaster

3 Stealth suits – 108

shas'vre, fusion blaster, markerlight and target lock, bonding knife

3 Stealth suits – 108

shas'vre, fusion blaster, markerlight and target lock, bonding knife

The Mission

We set up the table then roll for mission, and get Tactical Escalation, but we decide to set up the objectives then roll for deployment type instead of just using the one pictured... and roll hammer and anvil. Ok fine. Rolling for deployment zones the Tau win and select the ruined city side, then we roll for deployment and the Tau win again, and select to deploy first.

He keeps both of his crisis teams back in reserve ready to deep strike in later. His Supremacy goes in the middle so it can see everything, and his riptide goes on the left (or top of the pic). His broadside in closer to the right (bottom) to the centre behind a ruin, as does his commander. He places his breacher team front and centre and the stealth formation all on the right flank in cover.

I place a unit of Banshees on each flank, and both wave serpents on the left flank at the back. A unit of Dark reapers are placed on each flank and in the centre as well. Dire avengers are quite symmetrical as well, with flanks and centre. The warp spiders slightly to the left of the centre. I keep the vypers in reserve to outflank. The farseer goes with the fire dragons in the back wave serpent.

We roll for infiltrators and his places his pathfinders first, in a ruin to the left of his deployment zone, my scorpions then just go in a wood slightly closer to his lines.

Night Fight: He wants it, I don't, we roll, and No Night Fighting

Steal the Initiative: YES!!!!! I go first.

The Battle

Eldar turn 1

Every one moves up as fast as possible other wise those bloody tau suits will start to shred me. The warp spiders move 11 inches and most of the dark reapers hold still apart from the unit of the right who move to see the ghostkeel.

To start with both units of banshees run 9 inches (6 from the warhost +3 for their rules). The scorpions run then shoot their pistols (mistake) at the breachers killing 1. The spiders run into range of the breachers and kill an impressive 7 more breachers. Dark reaper fire kills off the remaining breachers leaving the dire avengers to just move up. The other two units of dark reapers shoot at the ghostkeel and deal 1 wound to it (damn 2+ cover save). The serpents move up a little.

Assault and the spiders jet pack forwards a little bit more onto objective 4.

Score: First blood (1 – 0)

Tau turn 1

The stealth suits and ghostkeel move towards the banshees while the Supremacy takes a step forwards, and the riptide peaks its head out around the corner to see what happening.

First the pathfinders target the farseers wave serpent and get 4 marker light hits on it, and a rail rifle glances it! The broadside targets it and ignores cover, getting a penetrating hit (reduced to a glance by the serpent shield) then the seeker missile is fired at it taking the last hull point off it... wrecking the tank. Shooting from cover the commander shoots at the warp spiders but their armour proves too resilient. On the right the ghostkeel targets the banshees killing 5 on its own, then a stealth team opens fire on them and kill them all but the exarch, who still gets wounded. The other stealth team shoot at the dire avengers killing one of them and wounding the exarch, but the squad leader targets the banshee exarch and kills her off. Next we get to the Supremacy, first it targets the warp spiders with its Fusion Eradicator and the spiders flicker away out of range. However it appears this is what he wanted and then his big gun on his back uses its apocalyptic barrage mode. It targets the spiders but it scatters a little, and then he gets 10 hits on the warp spiders (9 die), and 6 striking scorpions also die. It fires its ion cannons at the right hand side dark reapers killing them. Its smaller arms fire targets the one remaining warp spider and and take 1 wound off it. Finally the riptide shoots at the striking scorpions finishing them off.

Assault phase and the battle suits jump around.

Score: Nothing (1 – 0)

Eldar turn 2

Again I move up, the dire avengers and lone spider move to the right and ghostkeel, while the banshees go for the riptide. Now on foot the farseer and fire dragons move into the woods to take the objective.

I go to the psychic phase and I attempt to cast guide on the wave serpent but even with 4 dice. With my remaining dice I cast will to make every one fearless within 12 inches.

I want to try and get rid of the pathfinders before they throw around any more marker lights, so the wave serpent shoots at them with its scatter laser which kills 1, then I really want them dead so use the serpent shield which does no damage. I run the banshees forward then they pistol the pathfinders and some how kill 3 more! The dire avengers on the left run up and shuriken the riptide and get 2 wounds on him. On the right dire avengers and warp spiders combine shots and manage to kill off the ghostkeel despite its crazy cover saves (2+ or 3+ depending how far away you are). I have one unit of dire avengers left and they run and shoot at the stealth suits not in cover, and kill off the squad bar the unit leader. I finish the turn with dark reapers who fail on the riptide and kill 2 more pathfinders. Moral and the lone stealth suit run for it.

Score: Objective 2 (2 – 0)

Tau turn 2

In from reserve both units of crisis suits deep strike in, on locks on behind the centre unit of dark reapers in the woods, the other unit tries to arrive behind the unit in the ruin but lands in front of them on the other side of the ruin. Jumping to the sky the commander takes off while the supremacy steps forward again.

The few remaining pathfinders target the dark reapers in the woods with marker lights but only hit once, so the stealth suits mark them as well so 2 are on them. The plasma suits shoot at the dark reapers in the woods and use the marker lights to ignore cover and shred the unit, killing all 3 with ease. The other crisis team shoot their melta weapons at the dark reapers in the ruins, they go to ground and only 1 dies. Its a long shot but the broadside shoots at the banshees and brings 2 down. Riptide on the banshees and 4 more die, leaving 4 left I believe. Supremacy... it fires its little guns at the dire avengers and just shreds reducing them all to a few models. The fusion guns target the wave serpent which jinks, and I pass all the cover saves. It uses its D blast at the farseer but it scatters a little, it clips the wave serpent and gets a 6 which just ends its life. He rolls a lot of 1's on the farseer and fire dragons, but 3 still die. The commander finishes off the blue dire avengers.

Assault phase and the suits jump back away from harm again.

Score: Behind enemy lines, objective 4 (2 – 2)

Eldar turn 3

From reserve the vypers outflank, they come on the left flank next to the riptide trying to snipe a few wounds. The banshees move towards the riptide again while the few scattered remains of the dire avengers move around. Its a risk but the farseer holds the objective on his own while the remaining fire dragons move back to attack the battle suits. The fire dragons which were forced out of their wave serpent this turn moves towards the supremacy. One lone dire avenger goes after the supremacy while two purples ones go after the flying commander.

Psychic phase and I guide the unit of dire avengers hunting the flying commander and doom the Supremacy.

Fire dragons on the melta crisis unit kills a single battle suit. Even though they went to ground, the dark reapers target the flying commander but miss. The dire avengers shoot at the commander though and thanks to guide hit him, wound him and he takes a single wound, obviously he was busy dodging the reaper missiles and gets hit in the face by a shuriken. Unleashing all their shots, the vypers ambushing the riptide fail to do any damage, but a lone dire avenger on Supremacy deals 1 wound. And in true fire dragon fashion, they fail to do any damage to the supremacy despite doom. End of the shooting phase and the commander has to take a grounding test, he fails and crashes to the ground and fails his invulnerable save... we check his toughness and that single strength 9 hit just instantly killed his warlord... well that was unexpected.

Combat and the banshees charge into the riptide, I fail to do no damage to the riptide and he kills 2. Even with the re-roll for moral the two banshees run for it.

Score: king slayer (2), slay the warlord, objective 2 (6 - 2)

Tau turn 3

The remaining stealth team moves into the woods for cover while the riptide moves towards my objectives. The broadside also goes after an objective.

He marks the farseer to get rip of his cover save and hits him with the fusion shots from the supremacy... he dies. He then D shots the fire dragons killing 4 of the 6, but they get gunned down by the little guns. Something else kills 1 banshee. Crisis suits kill off fire dragons hunting them down and the broadside destroys a weapon off a vyper.

Score: Overwhelming fire-power (1), slay the warlord, Objective 2 and 5 (6 – 6)

And at this point we have to call it because of time, some how these 3 turns look 4 hours? We were just talking rubbish all though it I guess. While the game ends a draw if it carries on I had no chance so we can happily call it a Tau Victory.

Post-Battle

I really liked using the Eldar warhost, the instant 6 on the run is crazy and very useful. When combined with banshees its fun to run 9 inches. However you can see from the game that just because its fun, doesn't mean that its going to be any good. Having most of my troops on foot did make them easy targets, even though they are fast. I like the idea of the list but it will defiantly need some changes.

In this game my biggest issue was being on foot and being shredded before I could do anything, this was especially true for the combat units which just disappeared very quickly. However the shooting units did quite well, especially the warp spiders who can dance around the table quickly. If I played this game again I would happily drop the banshees (they did nothing) and replace them with more warp spiders. However that means I will have to drop the scorpions as well (not a massive issue), but I need to either come up with a whole new aspect host or change something else. So the most likely choice for me would be to expand the dark reaper units to 5 and drop one unit for space for a second unit of warp spiders. This would allow me to have a bit more shooting from long range, as well as having a crazy fast unit to jump around. Now I haven't run the points yet but I reckon I could probably get In a wraithknight as well which would help with god damn Titans who want to ruin your day. I would also like to try other options from the Pale courts, as well as dropping the list down to 1500 points but that can wait for the future.