Friday 29 June 2012

More meat for the grinder... 1500 bike marines vs guard (good bye 5th edition)

Space marine command squad

Finally I got around to playing another game of 40k, probably my last for 5th edition, so in a rather odd decision; I decided to carry on using my friend’s imperial guard instead of giving my elder one last hurrah. We will see; maybe I can get one more game for 5th edition, But I highly doubt it. Anyway this was a 1500 game, imperial guard vs. Bike marines in a spear head annihilation game.


So 1500 point guard army, in keeping with how I tested them last time i kept the idea of power blobs (for those not familiar with guard lingo, combined infantry squads filled with power weapons) but i have a different special character in this army than last time. Without any further delay, here is my army list.

Imperial guard 1500

Company Command - 100
Lascannon, astropath

Chimera – 70
Extra armour, multi laser, heavy bolter

Platoon Command – 120
Al’Rahem, 2 x melta gun

Infantry squad 1 – 115 (combined with infantry 2)
Power weapon, melta gun, commissar, power weapon

Infantry squad 2 – 70
Power weapon, melta gun

Infantry squad 3 – 115 (combined with infantry 4)
Power weapon, melta gun, commissar, power weapon

Infantry squad 4 - 70
Power weapon, melta gun

Platoon command – 50
Lascannon

Chimera – 70
Extra armour, multi laser, heavy bolter

Infantry squad 5 – 115 (combined with infantry 6)
Power weapon, melta gun, commissar, power weapon

Infantry squad 6 – 70
Power weapon, melta gun

Heavy weapon 1 – 75
3x Auto cannons

Heavy weapon 2 – 90
3x Missile launcher

Rough rider squad – 55

Leman russ exterminator – 150

Leman russ demolisher – 165

And that was my army, two out flanking blob squads thanks to Al while on the table I will have a single blob squad backed up by two tanks and 2 heavy weapon squads. The plan was that the blob squad will hold up anything that gets close to my line thanks to stubborn (from the commissar) and will hopefully get helped out by either the out flankers or the rough riders. Now I know you think that the exterminator is a stupid tank, but I say, it’s cheap and I hope it will blow open any light tanks (e.g. land speeders or rhinos) with its twin autocannons. Possibly a bad idea but I want to try it out. And while the heavy weapon squads might not be the most accurate guys in the game, the company command (cc) should hopefully be able to help them out with orders. So that’s the game plan , a lot of luck will be required for this.

Space marines 1495

Space marine captain – 180
Bike, storm shield, relic blade

Command squad – 345
Bikes, apothacery, 4 storm shields, 2 melta guns, 2 lightning claws, 2 power fists

5 space marine bikes – 245
Power first, 2 plasma guns, attack bike w/ multimelta

5 space marine bikes – 245
Power first, 2 plasma guns, attack bike w/ multimelta

5 space marine bikes – 245
Power first, 2 plasma guns, attack bike w/ multimelta

5 space marine bikes – 235
Power fist, 2 x melta, attack bike w/ multimelta

A very small, but potent force of space marines. I am thinking that the small number of models will help me but the high toughness and the command squad with all its power weapons could be a real pain in my side. My only hope is to hold up the command squad with blobs while weight of numbers hopefully dwindles my opponent’s forces. That was the plan i came up with in my head when I first saw my opponent’s army list any way.

We rolled for set up and i won first turn, as my opponent could be quite fast, I elected to go first. I selected a table quarter with a ruin in for a good fire base and line of sight for my heavy weapons. So i deployed my force accordingly, my missile lauchers on the ruin accompanied by the CC. The blob squad was deployed at the base of the ruin. Autocannons where then deployed with the platoon command (pc) on the edge of the deployment zone next to a wall. The chimeras and russ’s where deployed in the middle of my deployment zone to hopefully have a good line of sight to the enemy. I left the rough riders in reserve for later in the game and the out flankers obviously had to be held back as well. I pass it over to my opponent for his deployment as he reserves everything. That surprised me, and i was a little stumped.

Guard deployment


He doesn’t try to steal the initiative so I take my first turn.

The table layout

Guard turn 1

With no targets on the table I was unsure what to do, thinking about it now I should have just held my ground and waited but I didn’t, I advanced my blob towards his table edge as well as moving around my tanks to get a better line of fire. Nothing else I can do.

Marines turn 1

Yer... my opponent opens a can of tango and passes the turn back to me.



Guard turn 2

I roll for my reserves and I’m regretting taking an astropath as I pray that nothing comes in. Thank fully only the rough riders come in, leaving Al to come in later. I again carried on moving my tanks and blob around to get a good view of the enemy where ever they appeared. Now it was my opponents turn, i hope they only come in bit by bit.



Marines turn 2

He rolls for his reserves and everything but 1 plasma squad comes in... EVERYTHING. That’s not what i wanted now, I needed one, maybe two squads so I can blow them off the table one at a time. Anyway I’m going off topic. He placed the command squad on my left and moved 12 onto the table, while the melta squad turbo boosted up the centre towards the chimera. One plasma squad turbo boosted up the centre and the other moved up the left.
Shooting starts with the command squad targeting the chimera with their melta guns but are out of range but an inch. The plasma squad on the left shoot at the blob squad and manage to take 5 men down. I took a lot less damage than I expected, not a bad turn.



Guard turn 3

I roll for reserves again this time hoping for Al to come on but roll a 1, not a big deal, but it would have been useful. Movement started with the rough riders moving towards the bikes in front of them, hoping that with a decent run roll I can charge them (and wipe them out). In order to get the best out of the rough riders the platoon command moves within order range of them so later i can get them to move!move!move!. The chimera in the way of the autocannons moves so they can fire unobstructed. The blob squad moves towards the command squad, if they are going to get in combat with me i might as well make the charge, reduce their number of attacks and let me hold them up for longer.
Shooting begins with  orders, as i have to start with the CC i order the missiles to fire on my target but roll a 12... no more orders for me, so no move!move!move! later on. Damn. The autocannons on the melta squad, but all the shots only manage to deal a single wound to the attack bike. The demolisher shoots at the bikes on my far left but i place the template about half an inch to far... so it misses. The chimeras shoot at the melta bikes and manage to kill a melta wielding marine. The horses run and roll 4, it might be enough, I’m not sure. The exterminator targets the melta squad but fails to get though the marines 3+ armour save. And to finish the shooting phase the blob fire their melta guns at the command squad killing a power fist marine.
Combat and the rough riders attempt to charge the bikes in front of them but are out by ¼ of an inch. The blob then charges the command squad, losing 7 of their number for their trouble, and unsurprisingly deal no damage to the bikes, 6’s to wound is a ball ache.



Marines turn 3

The final plasma squad appear from reserve and turbo boost towards the rough riders. The plasma bikes on the left move towards the tanks while the bikes in the middle move up to target the chimeras and rough riders.
Commencing shooting with the multmelta the plasma bikes shoot at the demolisher but they are just out of the 12 inch range so require a 6 to glance it. But that doesn’t happen. The melta squad in the middle pick up the slack and fire at the demolisher but manage to penetrate it, causing it to explode. On the right the bikes target the rough riders and kill them all off.
Combat and the command squad kills another 7 men and take no losses. I hold.




Guard turn 4

 Finally the man of the hour arrives bringing with him 40 men ready for action. Al’rahem arrives and i roll the right side, using the astropath i decide to re-roll it and get the left. So Al and his two blob squads appear on the left swarming the bike squad on that side of the table. With nothing else to move bar rotating some chimeras i move onto the shooting phase.
The CC shouts to the closest blob squad ‘First rank fire! Second rank fire’ but falls on deaf ears as the order fails. Not to be discouraged the CC’s second order succeeds, telling the missile weapons team to ‘fire on my target’ at the centre bikes. This manages to down a single biker. With no more orders the chimeras target the centre bikes as well but fail to deal any damage, followed by the autocannon team who kills 2 marines. The exterminator continues the bombardment on the same bike squad but fails to penetrate the final bikes armour. But the luck of the final bike doesn’t hold out as the CC sees the final bike and snipes it with its lascannon team. Yay, a kill point. On the left side of the board Al attempts to melt the bikes on the left but fails to do anything. The blob squad then rapid fire into them, 35 shots in total, but again not a single dead marine.  
Combat phase, the blob squad that didn’t rapid fire into the bikes charge them instead, aided by Al. I somehow manage to kill 3 bikes thanks to the power weapons and deal a single wound to the attack bike with the regular attacks, only taking 3 wounds for my trouble. Now my opponent decides to use combat tactics to retreat and manages to escape and stay on the table. I consolidate a little. The command squad finally finished off my original blob squad and moves 6 towards my men.



Marines turn 4

The bikes fall back, but not for long
The bikes that fell back regroup as i wasn’t close enough to keep them running. They then move towards al. The command squad moves to attack the blob squads on the left. The bikes on the right turbo boost 24 to attack my lines next turn.
Opening all they have at Al and his squad, the bikes on the left kill every one but Al himself who is wounded. On the right one of the bikes squads fires at the side armour of a chimera, with one of the plasma guns over heating killing its owner. Combined with the multimelta the squad manages to shake the chimera 3 times... not bad for me i guess.
The command squad decide not to shot but instead to just charge a blob squad killing 9 of my men, but in return a power weapons manages to put a wound of the captain. I hold once again thanks to my commissars.



Guard turn 5

As I'm starting to get desperate, the command squad cutting though me while I have nothing to really answer them, the blob squad not in combat moves to charge them (or at least hold them up for the rest of the game). And that’s my movement phase.
The cc orders his squad to fire on the regrouped bikes, killing one of the bikes. Al then orders himself to move ‘like the wind’ killing another bike with his plasma pistol then running 4 inches away (just in case the last guy lives). The missile heavy weapon team, seeing the last bike fire, managing to get one shot though, gaining me another kill point. The autocannons in the middle of the table target bikes on the right managing to down a marine, followed by the executioner who adds a further two marines to its kill tally.
Straight to combat and the blob squad charges the command squad killing a marine but 5 guard die. I still hold though.



Marines turn 5

As the marines are winning then try to minimise any future losses by hugging the cover of the walls in front of them. One bike squad fires at the platoon command managing to only kill one guardsman thanks to the cover save from the wall but the other bike squad opens on the autocannon team, killing them all. Combat continues with me dealing no damage and loosing 4 guard.

We roll to see if the game continues.... it does

Guard turn 6

As I only have heavy weapons left I don’t have much to move, going to shooting the missiles miss the bikes as does the cc and the platoon command. The executioner manages to hit a target but bounces off their armour, same story for the chimeras. Now that’s not what I need so late in the game when I'm behind on kill points. I think it was defiantly this point in the game that prevents me from pulling out a draw ( I was never going to get a win).
Combat and I loose 3 and deal 0. I still hold.



Marines turn 6

The bikes in the middle move to threaten the side armour of the chimera. The bike squad closest to the platoon command stays where it is.
Shooting from the bikes on the platoon command deals 5 wounds, but thanks to cover the heavy weapon takes no damage, but the junior officer dies. He holds his ground thank god, no kill point given away. The bikes by the chimera shoot and manage to immobilised and stun it.
Combat phase and the same old think happens, I loose 4 guys and deal no damage but hold.

We roll to see if the game continues... it doesn’t.

The game ends 4 – 2, a marine victory.

 Well that was an interesting game, and it was a fun way to say good bye to 5th edition. I won’t bother with learning points for this game as next time I play the rules may have changed as well as what’s needed to win. But thank you 5th edition, you have been fun.

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