Preemptive strike
1500 points battle
Army Lists
184th Cadian
First playtest with the Army List Mobile ground forces v1.0Vahiagi's mek Waaaagh!
3x lootas, 2 of them with big mek and shokk gun2x deff dreads with 2x rokkits each
2x squadrons of 2x warbuggies with twinlinked rokkit launcha
Trukk with some boyz
3x squadrons of 3x Killa kanz with Grotzookas
Mission and deployment
Deployment: Hammer and Anvil (short table edges)
I rolled and got first turn. Night fighting is in effect for turn 1.
Well well well. The deployment is very good for my list: potentially I can have more space between my lines and the enemy if i deploy full back.
I must admit that i didn't know the actual statline of the killa kanz, expecially their range. If i did, i would have played my first ranks somewhat differently.
The table has plenty of cover in the deployment zones and a very nice, empty field of fire in the middle: this is very very appreciated from my Lascannons.
The Battle
Deployment
The table has been formed following the 6th edition guidelines: split the table in 6 squares and roll a d3 to see how many terrain pieces are in for each sector. The rolls have been quite above the average! It turned out that this table was very balanced, so I'm gonna like this way of table building, even if it requires a bit more time.
I deploy my aegis line halfway in my deployment zone, to get more inches from my opponent lines, and the flamer platoon in front. Their task is to get at them and slow them down as much as possible... which they would have accomplished better if they stood back and waited for their units to stagger forward (i didn't know that the killa kanz grotzooka was so short ranged... well, nevermind they'll absorb the lootas fire.
My opponent deployed as close to me as possible, of course. The killa kanz provide mobile cover to who's behind, lootas are in cover and ready to fire.
Introduction
Colonel (Thinking):"Sure, safe mission. I've never seen one, even when they assured me it was..."
C: "Thank you sir! It will be absolutely bully! What's it about?" G: "You need to perform a cleansing mission on this planet. It has been more than 10 years since the last ork cleaning mission, and it's about time for a new one"
C (thinking): "TEN YEARS?? Those greenskins would have had time to build a whole new HUGE mechanized army!"
C: "I completely agree, sir. My men will be enthusiast to know the details of this mission"
G: "I couldn't expect worse from your men, colonel. Go now, and prepare for battle"
G (thinking): "I guess he doesn't need to know that the last time we tried to clean the planet, we lost half a regiment worth of vehicle and machinery. It would only hamper his morale, for sure."
"Sir, the command HQ has detached 2 Leman russes "demolisher" to our regiment. Isn't it a bit... unusual... for an ork cleaning?"
"Corporal, remember, we can never know in advance what we can meet on the battlefield, only that the more gun we have, the better it is. Anyway, yes, it's unusual"
A squadron of Scout Sentinels is detached in the night following the planetfall, to discover the greenskins nests. After a single hour of scouting, every contact with the explorers is lost. The last transmission was all but clear, and only a loud "WAAAAAGH!" could be made out from the static discharges.
The greenskins are coming.
Turn 1 - Imperial Guard
Hundreds of boots began to march in the dark fields, with the friendly, lumbering presence of the Demolisher following the cautious advance.
The Lemans' bolters opened fire on the top and bottom squadrons of kans, and the bottom one uses its cannon too. The blast scattered away and is then blocked by cover, and the 6 bolter rounds managed to remove a single HP from one of them.
Here i have made an HUGE HUGE error: i forgot that my tanks have searchlights, thus, all my lascannons and quad gun would have been able to fire. I could have killed a killa kan or two, maybe... Another error: the killa kanz have grotzookas which are short ranged plus they really murder infantry in the open. It haven't been a really brilliant move to march across the field with my guardsmen, closing the gap for them. and only for a single demolisher shot which did nothing!
Turn 1 - Orks
"Hold on a little longer, Lieutenant. Reinforcements are under way. Find the best cover you can get and keep your heads down.
Everything except lootas moved forward. The buggies tried to glance the demolishers, and only 1 hull point is chipped away from the lowest LRD. Everything else opened fire against the infantry squads up front, and i lose several men in the process. At least, every morale test is passed.
Turn 2 - Imperial Guard
"Move, move, move! If you want to see the light of another day, we must reach those buildings and take shelter behind them! And those rusty warbuggies won't stop us, at all! On the double!"
The young Lieutenant drove his men on a desperate run for their only hope of survival.
Several explosive charges flew into the opened warbuggies, but the orks managed to throw all of them out of the chassis, before reversing and stuttering away. If possible, they now sprouted more smoke than before.
Their enhanced lasguns provide covering fire to the melta beams and plasma bolts raining on the rear of the enemy formations: the dread staggered to a cranky halt, before blowing up, throwing razor sharp shrapnel on the field.
"Secure this landing field, we need to clear this sector to allow the rest of the army to regroup!"
The purple squad got back in coherency and got called "Incoming" for a 5+ cover save in the open and a 2+ save for who's behind the tanker.
The four twinlinked lascannons managed to stun the first deff dread...
The CCS lascannon and quadgun are stopped by cover saves
The top demolisher misses completely, but the bottom one manage to wreck a killa can and immobilize another one.
The melta stormtroopers manages to explode the other deff dread (yay first blood for me) and killing a loota in the explosion, but the plasma stormtroopers only manage to glance a single HP from the warbuggies (note that 4 out of 5 plasma shots hit the target, but i managed to roll only one 3. Very bad luck!)
Quick fun note, the snipers PCS manage to pen a killa kan with rending, but it's stopped by cover. Snap!
Turn 2 - Orks
The automatic weapons of the ork looters opened fire on the stormtroopers on the landing field. The high caliber - high velocity bullets teared through the reinforced ceramite plates of their carapace, slaughtering the hapless drop troops in a single, deadly salvo.
"Sir, Captain Allen reports that the southern flank is taking heavy casualties. We've also lost every contact with Lieutenant Steward and his platoon. What shall we do?"
The situation was looking very bleak, and very little of the first ranks was still able to fight on. The rear-guard diversion has been suppressed as soon as it started, and the enemy battle line was closing in.
It was in times like this that the Colonel thanked the emperor that there were no commissars in sight.
"Corporal, order a full retreat to every forward unit still able to listen to the message. Covering fire is being set up at the main defence line. We'll stop the greenskins there, or the whole mission would become an even greater disaster."
The warbuggies on top disengaged and allowed the boyz to charge the half depleted infantry squads reducing them to a red mush. I manage to kill a single ork boy, wohoo! Three killa kanz murder the small platoon squad with no chances of retaliation, while the other 2 squadrons kept blowing the other two infantry squads to pieces with their grotzookas, hitting the CCS nearby too. At least i passed every single morale check so far. Basically i am left with the static platoon and the main CCS completely unscathed, one demolisher at full condition, one with 2HP left, less than a quarter of a platoon, half secondary CCS (approximately 860 points worth of army) versus my opponent full army minus a deff dread, a killa kan, a loota and a boy. Ouch!
VP count: IG 1+First blood, orks 4
Turn 3 - Imperial Guard
...
"Sir, the 77th artillery reports that their Basilisk are currently under maintenance, and they'll be unavailable for at least three hours, maybe four!"
"Get immediately back on that radio. We won't have that many hours, and the next target after our position is the 77th field HQ. They don't want to wait that much, I am sure."
After a deep breath, the sniper raised his long-las to the shoulder, identified the weak spot, muttered a prayer for a precise shot for his rifle and pulled the trigger.
"Good job, private. Good job!"
They should sell stickers with that sentence. I'd buy several. Everything except heavy weapons moved as back as possible, with a little run too. It's not a good strategy to give my opponent two more free kill points when I handed him so gently 4 of them.
Shooting phase has been a little more satisfying than before. Despite the top Demolisher missing everything again (it scattered exactly between the kanz and the trukk) I manage to explode one, wreck a second and immobilize a third from a single kanz squadron and to immobilize two more (from the other 2 different squadrons). Since my opponent is really lacking in mobility, crippling his forward elements is a great plan to buy more time.
Note: one of the latter immobilizations is due to another rending penetration shot from a sniper. Woah! VP count: IG 2 - Orks 4
Turn 3 - Orks
The killa kanz kept pounding the falling back men of the first ranks. After a storm of explosions, only one sergeant made it back the aegis defense line: every other guardsman has been killed.
"Arrange medical evacuation for every guardsman that's still alive but unable to fight. Reinforce the aegis line, and be ready to open timed lasgun volleys when the greenskins will get close enough. Every heavy weapon still available shall open fire to the closest target. We must hold the line until the 77th finish cleaning their Basilisks. They're our only hope."
The farthest back lootas advanced too along the bottom flank, to get in range of the aegis line next turn. I guess he forgot that heavy weapons can snapfire even when they move...
The remaining squadron of two killa kanz almost wiped away the remnants of the first platoon, and only a sergeant survived! Killpoint denied! (so far)
And lastly, the other 2 loota squads opened fire on the line, killing 7 guardsmen and a Lasercannon!
VP count: IG 2 - orks 4
Turn 4 - Imperial Guard
The reckless advance of the orks has put them in the clear fields of fire in front of the Guard line: without anything obscuring the visual, the guardsmen now have a perfect target for their weapons.
The lascannons discharged their high energy beams in the thinly armoured vehicles racing towards the line: several of them exploded with huge blasts, leaving only charred remnants and metal pieces scattered on the field
The sniper took a deep breath, aimed the long las at the ork driver's head and fired. The overcharged beam of the modified lasgun pierced the air. A sudden bump of the warbuggy saved the head of the ork, but the shot hit the exposed gasoline tank! The explosion broke the car in two pieces, throwing them apart on the field.
"That wasn't exactly what I asked for, private, but good job nevertheless!" Let's go now, it's not safe here anymore."
I keep retreating the lonely sergeant to hide him behind the hill, to save a killpoint, with the second CCS following him closely.
The top demolisher manages to miss everything, again. The bottom one misses too, but at least scatters on a killa kan, wrecking it. Lascannon fire blows up the trukk and glances to a single HP the last deff dread and a great sniper manages to hit, penetrate and explode one of the bottom warbuggies. HERO! (mathammer, for a unit of 4 snipers at bs3 to explode an av10 vehicle, i have a 3% success chance)
VP count: IG 3 - orks 4
Final Turns
He was right: after a short lull, war cries pierced the smoke and echoed through the imperial fortifications
*fzzttt* *fzzttt* "77th artillery regiment ready to fire. Commencing Basiliks barrage at coordinates 5.621.64.4 grid A6. Please confirm the order, Colonel."
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