This was a 1060 point game rolled on the Eternal War table out of the main rule book. They rolled 'The Relic' mission - a format that was sure to force each side out of their comfort zones of sniping from cover and into a heated battle over the one relic that would be placed right in the center of the battlefield.
The gist of the mission is that a single objective is placed in the middle of the table. Whoever controls the objective at the end of the game is the winner. The objective can be picked up at the end of any movement phase by a model that is in base contact with it, and can be moved in subsequent turns, but would be dropped if the model carrying it died, failed a morale check, or had gone to ground.
At the outset I give the Tau a bit of a competitive advantage since their jet pack thrust moves could be used to move the relic up to 12" a turn if they ever got their hands on it, while the Skitarii would be limited to moving the relic at most up to 6" a turn - they would have to create a defensive formation around the seized relic and protect it against the salvos of missiles that the Tau were sure to employ.
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| The Battlefield. Tau Deployed along the near long edge with Skitarii on the far long table edge. |
I didn't have access to exact lists of the two forces, but took some notes as the players did their obligatory list introductions. Below is a general idea of what each force was fielding for this battle.
The Tau list was absolutely terrifying - an expensive formation of Crisis Suits, a Broadside, and a Riptide ate up three quarters of the Tau points values. They were supported by a couple of squads of Fire Warriors and an Ethereal. The Retaliation Cadre formation was kept in reserve and was to automatically enter play via deep strike on turn 2, deployed initially as a single unit.
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| The Retaliation Cadre Held in Deep Strike Reserve |
Tau
Combined Arms Detachment
Ethereal
11x Fire Warriors (no upgrades)
11x Fire Warriors (no upgrades)
Retaliation Cadre
Battlesuit Commander w/ 2x Crisis Suits
3x Crisis Suits
3x Crisis Suits
1x Broadside
1x Riptide
The Skitarii fielded their classic Battle Maniple - Vanguard and Rangers at the core of the force, with some heavy firepower provided by two Onagers, and an assault threat looming in the form a Dragoon and unit of Infiltrators.
Skitarii
Battle Maniple
10x Vanguard w/ 2x Plasma Calivers (omnispex, omniscient mask)
10x Vanguard w/ 2x Plasma Calivers (omnispex, pater radium)
10 Rangers w/ 2x Transuranic Arquebus (omnispex)
2x Onagers w/ 1x Neutron Laser & 1x Eradication Beamer (2x Heavy Stubbers)
1x Sydonian Dragoon w/ Taser Lance & Posphor Serpenta
5x Infiltrators w/ Taser Goads & Flechette Blasters (phase-taser, phosphoenix)
Battlefield & Deployment
The deployment zones were along the long table edges, and the relic placed right in the center of the 6'x4' table. For this mission, we used the infamous "Super Drone" as the key relic. Tau bards and minstrels would recite poetry and sing songs about this Drone's exploits for generations to come following it's improbable survival against all odds - single handedly fighting off dozens of Rippers to help secure a victory for the Greater Good against the Hive Fleet Behemoth Tyranids in a recent battle. The Skitarii of course wanted nothing more than to study the little drone in an attempt to further their anti-Tyranid combat protocols. The Tau could not let this happen - they would defend their new folk hero at any and all costs. Once the sensors of the Fire Warriors caught a force of Skitarii closing in on the vulnerable drone, a Retaliation Cadre was called in, ready to put their Battle Suits, high-tech weaponry, and devastating missiles into action in defense of the one and only Super Drone!
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| Super Drone sits deactivated in the center of the battlefield, with a fresh Ripper corpse blocking his motion sensors |
Alex's Tau won the roll-off for first turn. He chose to deploy and go first. Since his Retaliation Cadre was kept in deep strike reserve, a couple of units of Fire Warriors were deployed in the relative safety of ruins, where they would await the arrival of their Battle Suit reinforcements before engaging the advancing Skitarii.
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| Fire Warriors deployed in cover, with the Etheral on the bottom floor of the ruins |
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| The 2nd unit of Fire Warriors also deploys in the cover of ruins, awaiting the Retaliation Cadre's arrival |
Meanwhile, the Skitarii used their army-wide Scout move to press the action with a very aggressive deployment. The Infiltrators deployed behind enemy lines, ready to dig the Tau out of cover
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| The Battle Maniple deploys as far forward as possible and prepares to take their army-wide scout move. |
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| Skitarii deployment |
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| Infiltrators deploy behind enemy lines, ready to close in on the Fire Warriors and Ethereal taking cover in the green ruins |
Turn One - Tau Skitarii open the action
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| The Skitarii seize the initiative! |
Deployment was complete. Infiltrators had infiltrated in, and the Skitarii had taken all of their scout moves. All that remained was a roll for seizing the initiative, and the battle was set to begin.
The Skitarii rolled a 6 and took charge, ready to make use of their aggressive deployment to bring the fight to the Tau with their ample mid-range firepower.
The Skitarii marched forward in unison toward the two units of Fire Warriors. They had a realistic chance of winning the game outright if they could destroy both units since the Retaliation Cadre couldn't enter play until turn 2!
The Vanguard advanced forward, taking control of the center of the battlefield while peppering the Fire Warriors and Ethereal with fire from their Radium Carbines and Plasma Calivers. The Rangers stayed back, sniping at the Fire Warriors with their Arquebus rifles.
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| Two Rangers with Transuranic Arquebuses take aim downfield with their mighty sniper weapons. |
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| The Infiltrators pepper the Fire Warriors and Ethereal with fire from their Flechette Blasters |
Meanwhile, the Infiltrators used their impressive speed to get behind the ruins housing the Tau warlord and Fire Warrior unit.
The Onagers set their sights on the Fire Warriors that had deployed in cover farther from the objective, near a table corner.
In unison, the tin men and their well-armed walkers fired on the Tau. When all of the blasts were resolved and the dust settled, the Ethereal as well as his entire Fire Warrior unit had been slain, and only 9 of the 11 Fire Warriors deployed near a table corner remained on the table for the Tau force. Their saving grace was that they were out of line of sight, otherwise they too may have fallen to the devastating turn 1 firepower of the Skitarii Battle Maniple.
Turn 1 for the Tau was very simple. With only 9 Fire Warriors left, he would have to stay in cover, out of line of sight, and await the arrival of the Retaliation Cadre. Anything else would be suicide against the marauding Skitarii.
The Tau essentially passed their turn 1, staying in the safety of the ruins.
Turn Two - Mishap!
Turn 1 seemed like a disaster for the Tau, however the real firepower of the Tau force lay with the Battle Suits of the Retaliation Cadre that had yet to enter the battle. The Skitarii held map control, but with a single Deep Strike of the entire formation, the game could turn on a dime in the Tau's favour.
The Skitarii end of turn 2 was rather uneventful. With the remaining Fire Warriors out of line of sight and too far to be charged, the Skitarii simply moved further up the battlefield and seized Super Drone. They set up a defensive formation around the relic, ready to fight off the Tau reinforcements.
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| The Skitarii advance to the center, seizing Super Drone and preparing to download his combat protocols for their nefarious motives. |
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| Yikes! The Retaliation Cadre's deep strike scatters 11" from their intended location. |
Enter Tau turn 2. The awesome firepower of the Retaliation Cadre would be put to the test against the intimidating blob of Skitarii that had taken control of not only the map but also the coveted Super Drone. The Retaliation Cadre automatically enters play via deep strike on turn 2, however they still needed to roll scatter dice. With such a large unit to deploy, they would need a direct hit or favourable scatter, or a mishap could result in them being delayed until turn 3 or entering battle in a sub-optimal location chosen by the Skitarii.
The Tau player rolled scatter for the deep strike... An 11 and an an arrow result on the scatter die did not look good! After a close inspection, this would place the Retaliation Cadre right onto the walls of a ruin, and so they would have to roll on the Mishap table! This was bad news for the Tau.
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| This die roll spelled doom for the Tau |
Bad news turned into disaster really quickly. The Mishap Table result was a 1 - the only result that meant that the Cadre had a mishap while attempting to enter combat airspace and were completely destroyed!!!
As fate would have it, the Retaliation Cadre's commander got the coordinates to the battlefield wrong and they deployed hundreds of miles to the north, right into an acidic Tyranid digestion pool, liquefying all of the battle suits on contact.
With only one unit of Fire Warriors left on the field and Super Drone in firm Skitarii control, the Tau had no choice but to concede, resulting in an improbably quick turn 2 victory for the Skitarii, who had yet to take a single casualty!
It turns out that the massive upside from the Retaliation Cadre's special rules is not without risk. It was unlucky for the Tau for things to turn out this way, but one of the risks taken when fielding such an expensive deep strike formation without any scatter reduction.
The Skitarii, victorious, prepared to conduct their experiments on Super Drone. Most of the Skitarii force evacuated the area, and an Imperial Knight was called in to secure the relic and return it to their Manufactorum for further study.
Bonus Batrep - Tyranids vs Imperial Knight + Skitarii
After the unfortunate and premature conclusion to the Tau vs Skitarii battle, we had some time to get an extra game in. We made it a 1000 point 'The Relic' mission - yet another battle that could decide the fate of Super Drone. The Skitarii had just secured the wondrous machine for their research and study, but a Tyranid force closed in, seeking revenge against the drone.
This time however, the Skitarii had called in an Imperial Knight (Crusader variant) to guard the relic, recognizing it's power and importance.
I didn't take photos of this battle, so I'll keep this brief with just a run-down of the forces and the result:
Skitarii + Knight
Imperial Knights Allied Detachment
Knight Crusader - Rapid-Fire Battle Cannon, Twin Icarus Autocannon, Avenger Gatling Cannon, Heavy Flamer, Heavy Stubber, Ion Shield
Skitarii Battle Maniple
10x Vanguard w/ 1 Plasma Caliver
10x Rangers w/ 2 Transuranic Arquebus
2x Onagers w/ 1 Neutron Laser & 1 Icarus Array
Tyranids
Combined Arms Detachment
Hive Tyrant w/ Wings, 2x Twin-Linked Devourers with Brainleech Worms
3x Hive Guard w/ Impaler Cannons
3x Zoanthropes (w/ Neurothrope)
1x Malanthrope
10x Termagants w/ Fleshborers
3x Tyranid Warriors w/ 1 Venom Cannon
5x Ripper Swarms w/ Deep Strike, Spine Fists
3x Biovores
The Verdict
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| Tyranid Deployment. That green ruins building and the Malanthrope's shrouded bubble proved instrumental. |
With close to three quarters of the Skitarii force taken up by three models (the 465 point Knight and 250 points for the 2 Onagers), the Tyranid force would have to find a way to deal with the devastating firepower of the three walkers if it was to succeed. Fortunately, Warp Lance was available to not only the Zoanthrope Brood but also to the Hive Tyrant, so some S10 AP2 Lance mind bullets would perhaps be the key, along with the S8 shooting of the Hive Guard and the Tyrant's ability to get behind the target to pepper the walkers' rear armour with S6 brainleech worms.
The Termagants, Zoanthropes, Hive Guard, and Malanthrope spent the majority of the battle focusing their firepower on the Imperial Knight and 2 Onagers from the safety of ruins. With the 4+ ruins save and shrouded, the Tyranids enjoyed a 2+ cover save which was instrumental in their survival against fire coming from the Knight Crusader, Neutron Laser Onager, and unit of Rangers. Despite copious amounts of firepower absorbed, only the brood of Termagants and one Zoanthrope were felled.
The Zoanthropes were able to put two hull points of damage against the Knight Crusader early on in the battle using their Warp Lances before he was able to activate the Ion Shields.
The Hive Guard supported the Hive Tyrant in destroying both Onagers, and soaking up fire from the Rangers with their T6 durability and 2+ cover saves.
The Biovores and Tyranid Warriors deployed far away to deal with a unit of Vanguard and advance toward the objective. However despite multiple rounds of fire, the Biovores didn't do too much, felling only 2-3 Rangers over the course of the battle. The Tyranid Warriors too were rather ineffective, taking out a couple of Vanguard and providing synapse to the Biovores.
A brood of Ripper Swarms, 5 bases strong, used Deep Strike to tie up the remaining Vanguard but were also ineffective, killing only 1 Vanguard before being destroyed with a combination of shooting and assault. I keep trying to find a use for the Ripper Swarms and continue to be disappointed. It seems like sinking 95 points into these Swarms was only good for tying up a similarly costed unit of opposing infantry for a turn or two - not really worth it.
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| Skitarii Deployment. 2 Units of Infantry, 2 Onagers, and a hulking Knight Crusader prepare to take on the Tyranid forces. |
The Tyrant would go on to destroy both Onagers with the supporting fire of the Hive Guard, and in turn 3 he did the improbable and single handedly put 4 hull points worth of damage on the Knight Crusader, destroying the Super-Heavy Walker and forcing the remaining Skitarii to concede as the Tyranids had lost only 185 points worth of models to the 750 of the Skitarii/Knights force.
Yet again my opponent was unlucky with the rolls for his Skyfire against the Flyrant, allowing the Tyranid Warlord to survive and inflict copious amounts of damage in the following turns.
This was also the first game in which I got to employ the Venomthrope/Malanthrope shrouded bubble in ruins for those juicy 2+ cover saves. This seems to be a very solid tactic that I will definitely go back to in the future.
The Zoanthropes and Hive Guard also performed well. The one negative from this battle for the Tyranid side is my inability to make use of the Ripper Swarms. I love the models and want to find a place for them, but so far have not been able to use them in an effective manner. It'll be back to the drawing board for the Rippers, while the remainder of Hive Fleet Behemoth happily continues to put together a short winning streak.
Most importantly, Super Drone was reclaimed from the Skitarii before they could return him to their Manufactorum for further research. The Tyranids were now free to take their revenge against the Tau drone... but he had fought against all odds and won in the past - could this really be the end of Super Drone!? Stay tuned to find out.
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| The gorgeous Imperial Knight, right before it was downed by an improbable 4 glances in one turn of shooting from the Flyrant's Twin-Linked Devourers. |
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