At last, I finally get around to posting game 3....it's been a while, but the arrival of my first born (a son!) has certainly thrown my schedule into disarray!
Anyway, on with the Batrep. Campaign Map at the beggining of Turn 3:
Locations:
1:Starport Angelus - Main Imperial Base and reinforcement entry point
2:Forge Precinct Alpha
3:Forge Precinct Omega
4:Emperor's Shield Orbital Defence Bastion
5:Equatorial Hub
6:Oceanic Hub - Ork Planetstrike location and reinforcement entry point
7:Berephous Prime Hive
Ork forces hold both Agricultural Hubs and move to overrun the undefended Orbital Defence Bastion (no deep strikes for you marines now ho ho!). The Imperial forces hold the starport, Forge Precinct Alpha and the move to secure the main hive. Forge Precint Omega is still contested, with both sides throwing the majority of their reinforcements into the ongoing battle...
The board was set up with 3 objectives - one in each deployment zone, and one in no mans land - whoever held the most would control the forges....Boyd and Julz won the roll and elected to go first...
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Commander Boydus Maximus stepped up to a low wall and looked out across the blasted landscape. Smashed buildings and burnt out vehicles were scattered in front of his defensive position like the discarded toys of some cruel god. Precious machanicum forges lay open to the sky, the sacred machinery defiled by the greenskins. The ash grey sky added a shroud of gloom over the already desolate scene as a watery sun hung low on the horizon. A double chime on his command vox confirmed the arrival of Librarian Scarius on the right flank. His Blood Angel terminator squad would form the pivot for the upcoming advance to drive the filthy Xenos from the forges.
A sudden warning warble from the Commander's auspex announced that the enemy had been spotted. Grinding track noises and roaring engines gave away the ork's position long before the crude vehicles and their barbaric crews clanked into view. The captain keyed his master channel switch and signalled to his assembled units.
"Enemy sighted - all units engage. Spearhead units advance - for the Emperor!"
He vaulted a low wall and led his terminator squad through the ruined forge towards the smoky outlines of the foe. Let them come he thought, there was enough righteous hatred for them all....
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Two ork battlewagons advance behind a buggy screen as they move forward to engage the marine battle line.
A third battlewagon mounting a Killkannon grundles into position on the left flank
The Ultramarine landraider takes up a firing position as the Death Company advances towards the central objective
Ultramarine Tactical squads take up firing positions in the upper stories of ruined mechanicum forges. Missile launcher tubes take aim at the oncoming Orks...
A mob of Killa Kans moves into position across from the tactical squads, with mega Nobs in support
Librarian Scarius and his terminator squad (honestly, the colour on those termies is blood red in real life - curse my camera!!!) advances on the left flank towards the battlewagons and buggies
Boydus maximus leads his terminator squad past a tactical rhino towards the Kans, meganobs and Killkannon Battlewagon
The marine shooting phase blasts away two Kans and shakes the Killkannon BW on the right. On the left two buggies are immobilised. With a roar a lone attack bike heads for the battlewagons, determined to destroy the one holding the Mek and his Kustom Force Field...
banzai!!!
Alas, a one is rolled....
Reserve rolls see the Dethkoptas arrive on the right flank (too early...). They make up for their premature arrival by immobilising the dred and striping away its Multi Melta
Deth from da side!
Their triumph is short lived though, as the combined firepower of a tactical squad and the command terminators blasts 4 of them from the sky and sends the remaining flyers fleeing....
On the left a rash Ork move sees a trukk rush forward and deploy a mob of Orks in front of the Lbrarians squad to give them the charge. What could possibly go wrong?
Despite managing to kill one terminator, the ork mob is horribly killed (several times over...). But they do slow the expensive unit...
The marine scout squad also arrives inconveniently early on the left flank, but manage to quickly seize the Ork Deployment Objective
Regrettably for them, a short distance away sits two battlewagons. Hemmed in by landraider and devastator squad fire, they nevertheless still hold 40 orks between them....20 of which deploy into the back line and hose the scouts away in a rare display of Ork marksmanship (not hard when you have 20 models shooting..)
The pesky attack bike finally dies as the last of the buggy shield is blasted away. The 2 battlewagons continue to trade frire with the landraider - zzap guns vs lascannons. (why did I think this was a good idea?) eventually the landraider trades a destroyed sponson for a immobilised BW and two destroyed zzap guns.
Captain Boydus moves forward and engages the last kan (who had been hopelessly trudging forward), ripping it apart with his relic blade. The mega nobs reposition to threaten the central objective, as do the mobile BW's
Seeing the Orks moving towards the central objective, the Death Company runs forward. A tactical squad redeploys, but as it bunches up in the tight terrain exposes itself to the killkannon BW... a single hit accounts for 8 marines, with the 2 survivors falling back to the marine deployment zone objective.
The leading Ork BW reaches the central objective and disgorges its load of greenskins into the ruins
The Death Company is moments behind, assaulting the central objective and spraying orks bits everywhere....
As the BW mob evaporates, the Orks throw caution to the wind. Everything advances to contest or protect objectives. The meganobs reach the central objective and charge the Death Company
The Killkannon BW is charged and immobilised by the command team. It has no mob on board though, and now stands between Boydus maximus and the pivotal fight in the centre...
The Librarian terminator squad reach the Ork objective, but the Orks close up to contest (but not charge - they do learn eventually..)
With the game coming down to the wire, the count is two objectives contested, one marine held. In a typical display of Ork bravado, the Warboss and his Nob retinue race forwards into the guns of the devastator squad to assualt the marine objective
'Ere we go, 'ere we go, 'ere we go...
4 heavy weapons fire......3 ones and 2 non-penetrating hits....
Undamaged, the trukk crashes into the building containing the marine objective (now held by two lonely marines from the luckless squad blasted by the Killkannon) and the Warboss and Nobs charge in....
....far too many attacks to count later and the marine objective is in Ork hands!
Final tally
2 objectives contested
1 Ork Held
Orks win!
Fortune favours the ugly...
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Boydus Maximus cursed as he saw the Orks outflank his position. Despite superior forces, his tactical situation was now untenable with the Orks holding the advantage. Struggling to keep his anger in check he ordered a general withdrawal for his mostly intact forces.
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So, the Orks seize the first forge precinct and begin to press on the second, with the main hive now exposed. The marine forces fall back in good order, but the orks now hold more territory (and therefore resources). The Ork forces also now threaten the main Imperial base in the north. To make matters worse, if the Orks hold both forges, they gain the ability to build Stompa Gargants (each location on the map grants a special bonus to the side that holds it, from extra requistion to new units). But all is not lost for the Imperials as reinforcements arrive....
Coming next - Game 4: Massacre....
