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Ok, I have never written a Bat-Rep before, so I'm giving it a go. A friend and I want to start playing tournaments, so we wrote our lists and play tested. I think he expected a bike army, and I expected an all round tau army... Here's what we took:

Me: Iyanden

Spiritseer + wraithforge stone.
5 Wraithguard with scythes in a serpent with TL SL and a shuri Cannon
5 Wraithguard with cannons in a serpent armed as above
5 Wraithguard with cannons in a serpent armed as above
Wraithknight
Wraithknight - Warlord.

1500 points exactly.

My opponent: Farsight

Farsight
3 crisis suits each with 2 plasma
3 crisis suits with fusion blasters and a single target lock.
Riptide with ion accelerator, fusion blaster and early warning override.
Riptide as above
Riptide as above
2 broadsides with SMS & HYMP
4 pathfinders
4 pathfinders
10 kroot with sniper rounds
Skyray

I think he has some other upgrades that I can't remember?

Anyway, you know the two army lists pretty much. We rolled for missions and for table set up. We got "the relic" mission which I wasn't too disappointed about, but got the hammer and anvil deployment which I want massively impressed with. Scenery was placed and the centre of the board was pretty covered with LOS blocking terrain. Either ends of the board were pretty sparse. He deployed first as he won the roll off. He deployed the three riptides across the centre of his deployment zone. And his left hand flank held his two missile broadsides and his skyray. He kept his 2 squads of 4 pathfinders and his 10 kroot ready for infiltrating. He also deployed 3 of his plasma wielding crisis suits near the relic, but in good cover. He kept farsight and the other 3 crisis suits with fusion blasters in reserve.

Aware that I didn't have first turn, I placed the 3 serpents at the forward edge of my deployment zone, but each in cover. The two flanks held the cannon-guard and the centre was the scythe-guard with the spirit seer. One knight sat with the left serpent, and one sat with the right. Both in minimal cover. Psychic powers has already been rolled for, and the spirit seer had destructor/renewer and voice of twilight.

Anyway, we carried out what so often seems a mere formality and I attempted to seize the initiative......A 6! My friends expression was priceless, he knew what was coming. He had placed his 10 kroot and 4 pathfinders in a ruin in front of my right flank, which had a serpent sat right in front of it. He had two riptides behind so I think he thought he was safe... He placed his other 4 pathfinders in the centre of the board also in a ruin. This made me smile. A lot. The game began and I moved very very little. I mostly 'shuffled' but then came the shooting phase. My right hand serpent opened up into his pathfinders and which the serpent shield firing it killed all four. The next serpent opened up on the hiding kroot and killed 5 (again with the shield) and the last serpent opened up on the other 4 pathfinders, and as if a trend was setting, the serpent shield removed all four of those again. Damn! Why have I never fired these beauties before! I shot my right hand wraithknight (the warlord) at a riptide and rolled a 6 to wound!! Unfortunately his cover save kept him alive, could've been the greatest first turn ever! The left hand knight shot at his broadsides. Caused 2 wounds, but he was saved by 2 cover saves. Damn that cover!

His turn one and he was already whining! I was happy. His gun line never moved very far, with his nova escrow rolls he gained 2 shots from one tides fusions and promptly used that to open up a serpent. Having downed the shield I had to rely on my cover save, which wasn't quite good enough. He got a lucky pen and rolled a 6! So the 5 guard got out, and fell victim to another tides pie plate of doom. That killed 3, and hurt a lot. The skyray and broadsides opened up on the left hand serpent, but this time cover saved me! He fired his remaining kroot into the left hand knight and managed to cause a wound, he then shot all his plasmas at him, but couldn't cause another! He then made use if his assualt moves, and went and cowered back into cover.

Turn 2, I healed the single knight wound and then I started to move up the board. With first blood under my belt I had the early advantage. I pushed both my knights forward, and the right hand serpent. That serpent pretty quickly dispatched of the remaining kroot and managed to keep it's shields up simultaneously. The wraith knight took a wound off of the riptide on my right flank, and the left knight quickly removed the skyray from the board with a gods solid penetrating hit. The left hand serpent opened up on the broadsides, but they were in there tight.

His turn two, and thankfully no sign of farsight! In the whole turn he opened up on the knights and managed a single wound on each. That was pretty much it! A very poor turn of rolling from him. Apart from failing a nova roll and taking a wound on an already hurting riptide.

My turn three. Using renewer and the stone I managed to give wounds back to both knights! Back to full health. My right hand knight managed to jump over the cover and was finally in behind enemy lines, the serpent on the same flank started to move in towards the relic. The left hand one stayed put, as did the knight! - I don't know why he stayed put, call it 'guy instinct' or seer foresight! The knight opened up and took another wound of the tide, and the serpent shot at the suits managing to take only a wound. The other knight killed a broadside, and the serpent wounded the other. He was looking worried, even with all three riptides alive!

His turn 3 and farsight arrives. He lands next to the serpent that was shooting the broadsides up. I know his plan, luckily he decided to sit next to side armour. Shooting commences, and this time it hurt. He finally decided shooting at the knights was a bad idea. He managed to pop both serpents even with the shields up. He killed two of the guard that got out the left hand one, and managed to kill all 5 scythes plus the seer with a pie plate and his plasma shots. I didn't care, my knights were in wounded! He then performed a text book 'run away' with farsight, but it wasn't far enough.

My turn four. The 3 remaining guard chased farsight down and the knight that I held back jumped towards him! The right hand knight lined up on his two tides that were starting to hug each other scared. The guard and knight shot at farsights squad and managed to instant death two. The other two guard and knight opened up on the tide and his invulnerable was holding strong. I then charged. Everything. He fired overwatch and caused no damage at all! The farsight fight was a touch of a disaster. The hammer of wrath hit killed the remaining suit, but meant the knight was out of range of farsight. The two guard were cut down by him, and combat was a draw. Farsight lived one more turn. The knight and guard charged the riptide and killed it.

His turn four, he made a move for the relic with his suits, wasn't quite there yet. He gak the plasmas at the two guard and killed them both. He then assualt jumped them and surrounded the relic. The riptides opened up on the unengaged knight, and yet again did nothing but a single wound. The farsight combat continued...well, for a split second. 4 hits, 4 wounds, 4 failed invulnerable saves. That was too easy. The knight consolidated a full 6" towards the relic.

My turn 5. I now had his warlord too, I was confident. The knight continued the consolidation direction and jumped to within 3" of the suits on the relic. The other knight moved towards the two riptides that were trying to block my path to the suits. I killed a suit with the first knight. And took a wound on a riptide with the second. Then I charged the 2 remaining suits and also the riptide with the other knight. I killed 1 suit in combat, and was disappointed not to kill both, the riptide suffered another 2 wounds and was down to 2.

His turn five. The broadside was scratching his ass. He couldn't do anything else! He charged the knight engaged with the riptide with his other tide. Turn 5 combat, the knight killed the last suit, the other knight killed a tide and took no wounds from the other. I allowed him the pleasure of rolling for a turn 6 and he rolled a 2. No turn six. Made me sad. I really wanted to table the guy, alas I couldn't. But hey - wraithknights rule!

Oh, and yes, we forgot night fighting!

Sounds like a fun game!

Well written (abate some spelling errors) only thing that could make it better is pictures (hehe).

Thanks for a great report!

Sorry about spelling, was written on my phone!

Great report! BRB, buying a second Wraithknight!