September Event Game #1: Dark Eldar & Eldar vs Deathwing 1850pts

This month's event at Millennium Games was the first to jump up to 1850pts since the release of 6th edition.  It brought in 17 players who have been itching to play with more points.  I just finished assembling the models for my DaBoyz GT army (also 1850pts), so this would be my first competitive run with the army.  I won't have the luxury of changing the list before the GT, so I'm going to need as much practice as possible.



My first opponent was Mike, who I also played in the first game of last month's event.  He also eliminated me in the first round of last year's 'Ard Boyz.  I knew it was going to be a tough match for my first game.

Mike's List (pre-heresy world eaters as Deathwing):
Belial + th/ss
Deathwing Command Squad + banner, apothecary, th/ss on everyone else
Venerable Dreadnaught + lascannon
Deathwing Squads x3 + cyclone, all th/ss
Tactical Squad + lascannon, plasma gun
Predator + lascannon sponsons
Land Raider Crusader + multi-melta

My List:
Lady Malys
Baron Sathonyx
Maugan Ra
Grotesques x8 + liquifier, aberration, venom blade (Malys here)
Kabalite Warriors x15 + blaster, splinter cannon, sybarite, venom blade (Maugan here)
Wyches x10 + shardnet, hekatrix, agonizer
Rangers x5
Beastmasters x5 - 12 khymerae, 2 razorwings, clawed fiend (Baron here)
War Walkers x3 + scatter lasers x6
Razorwing Jetfighter
Aegis Defense Line + icarus lascannon

The mission was Big Guns Never Tire and Hammer/Anvil deployment.  Mike got furious charge while in my DZ with Belial.  I rolled the night fight trait and used it.  We rolled 3 objectives and Mike won the roll to place 2 of them in his DZ.  Mike also won the roll for first turn, but gave it to me.

This was my deployment before Malys's redeploy.  My objective is directly to the right of the big brown hill.

Mike deploys favoring the far side, even though his objectives favor the close side.  There's 3 identical deathwing units with one inside the LRC.

The tactical squad is in a ruin with an objective (in the blind front corner).  Belial and his command squad will deepstrike.

Here's my army after Malys's redeploy.  I moved the war walkers to the top behind the ruin and the grotesques to the far side also.  Rangers are outflanking.  Mike fails to seize the initiative.

Beasts, grotesques, walkers, and wyches advance.  All of my combined shooting kills 1 terminator.  Grotesques run into terrain.

Belial and terminators arrive behind my line.  I take my interceptor shot but they make their invuln.  I should have put Maugan on it for fast shot.

Two foot squads of deathwing advance and the LRC moves up 6" and throws out the guys.  Right about here I realize may have advanced a bit too far.

His backfield units shift for shots.

His first volley from the LRC puts 5 wounds on beasts and I fail all 5 invulns on khymerae!  His combined fire drops 3 more.  Luckily, I pass my morale.

Only 1 deathwing unit makes its assault range and my liquifier fails to do any damage.  He challenges and I accept with the aberration who smashes the sarge flat.  Lady Malys also cuts down one terminator, but her djinn blade breaks.

9 terminator attacks yeild 3 hits and 3 ones to wound!  I win combat and we lock.

End of turn 1: DE 3vp, DW 6vp (currently held objectives)

The razorwing arrives and the wyches pull back to engage Belial.

My remaining beasts pull up, but I've lost so many that I don't want to risk a 10" assault on unengaged terminators, even with the fleet reroll.

Rangers arrive on the close side.  There's only two places with cover and the other one is within double tap range of his tac squad.  Here, they're at least one move + run away from his DZ.  Snipers fail to cause any damage.  The razorwing only drops 1 terminator from the last full strength unit with 2 missiles and lances.

Combined shooting from warriors, wyches, and Maugan kill 2 terminators and puts 1 wound on Belial.  Wyches assault and wiff.  I lose combat and run away, staying on the table by just 1".

Deciding not to risk a long shot assault, I throw the beasts in to help the grotesques and grab first blood.

Belial and the last 2 terminators let the wyches go and head for the warriors (and Maugan).

The lone terminator with cyclone jumps onto the LRC.  The 4 man unit goes for beasts.

The dread and predator fail to hit my flyer.

Belial declares an assault and the unit drops the banner with overwatch.  He challenges with the apothecary (so only 1 model can strike it) and I accept with the sybarite since Maugan is too far away.  The angle he came at me from and position of my unit means only 4 models can swing on Belial and they fail to hurt him.  The challenge is a stalemate.  I lose several warriors to hammer blows.  Maugan makes them fearless though so we lock.  Terminators assault beasts and I kill all but 1.

End of turn 2: DE 4vp, DW 6vp

The razorwing advances 18" and walkers come up.  Grotesques get a bad terrain roll.

Wyches rally and consolidate 3".  Walkers only strip 1 hull point from the dread after he makes several cover saves.  Razorwing wiffs against the LRC.  Belial challenges Maugan and I decline.  The sybarite takes out the apothecary with her venom blade.  The mass of fearless warriors take another wound from Belial.  The beasts drop their last terminator.

The far flank readjusts to block my advance.  The predator explodes my razorwing with a lucky autocannon shot (6 to hit, 6 to pen, 6 on the damage chart) and the falling wreckage takes out a beastmaster.  Then, he unloads everything else and I lose all the beasts except 4.  The baron even rolled double 1's and dies.  The beasts also fall back.  The tac squad and snipers exchange pot shots and I go to ground.

Belial continues to force Maugan to the back and survive the mass of warriors.

End of turn 3: DE 1vp (Belial pulled me off my objective), DW 8vp

Wyches move and run up onto my objective.  Beasts rally and consolidate 3".

Grotesques get another bad terrain roll and walkers continue to advance.  Scatter lasers strip the last 2 hull points from the dread and wreck it.  Back in my DZ, the mass of warriors finally take Belial's last wound and get me the warlord point.

The last cyclone terminator disembarks from the LRC so now he has 3 scoring units (w/ heavies from the mission) on the central objective and the terminator is out of LoS.  I lose a sniper or two and a couple wounds on grotesques.

End of turn 4: DE 5vp (got my objective back and warlord), DW 8vp

Skipped some pics here because we're almost out of time and I want to get through the random game length.

Grotesques get 1 model into his DZ with another poor terrain roll and run.  Beasts jump the aegis and make a run for the far side of the bunker.

The LRC tank shocks my one grotesque back out of his DZ.  I let Mike roll for the end and the game goes on.

End of turn 5: DE 5vp, DW 8vp

Grotesques move up past the LRC and the beasts get around the bunker.

Maugan takes over the icarus lascannon, but fails to penetrate the LRC.  Beasts and grotesques both assault the predator (couldn't see the terminator), and wreck it giving me bonus points since it was a heavy.  They're both also in contest range.

Mike moves his last terminator out of the way and tank shocks the LRC (passing terrain) into a perfect position, forcing my grotesques further than 3" from the objective.

The game ends at the end of turn 6.  Final score is DE 8vp (1 objective, 1 hvy, first blood, linebreaker, warlord) to DW 8vp (2 objectives, 1 hvy).  A draw!

Wow, what a close game!  I was literally sweating bullets there at the end since we were the last people playing and had several spectators.  Mike pulled a perfect move at the end for the draw, but he was winning most of the game since he got to place the majority of the objectives in his DZ.  I botched the deployment too looking back.  I redeployed to the far side in reaction to his deployment, and a reactionary posture is a disadvantageous one with a fragile army.  I should have favored the close side and swept through the solo tactical squad with the speed of beasts and firepower of the walkers.  The rangers would have arrived and held the objective and I could have stalled the terminators on foot with beasts and grotesques.  I also underestimated the LRC's firepower, but failing 5/5 invulns on khymerae in the first volley really hurt.  This was a tough match for me also with no psykers to block with Malys and enough 2+/3++ and high AV's to nullify Maugan.

Now that I've played several 6th ed games, I actually enjoy the balance of allies and fortifications.  I do think though that since players place objectives after they've chosen sides, there should always be an even number of objectives.  Starting the game in a losing position sucks.

For more coverage of this same event, check out Calypso's report at Purple Reign.

And also PoliticalOfficerKrad's first round at  Death or Glory.