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2015/01/08 09:07:50
Subject: Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign [Part 5, Mission 1 Complete]
Titan's Fall:A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign
This will be the start of a multi-part campaign between the plucky Tau Forces of Fi'Rios Septword (under my command) and the cunning Ultramarines (under the command of Neophyte2012). Batreps will be written reports & pictures format, with as much fluff as can be mustered liberally sprinkled in between.
The Campaign will be split into five chapters, and each will have its own campaign book uploaded here for you to look at and even play if you so wish to do so (it will not be GW standard or anything, but you might find it fun ) Points will escalate throughout the missions, with various bonuses becoming available depending on battle results. All games will be hosted by the good people at Fun Atelier and their excellent selection of scenery will hopefully be used to add an extra visual dimension to a fluffy campaign. So, without further ado.....
Titan's Fall: Prologue
Spoiler:
O’Vash gazed up to the heavens, a myriad of stars scattered lazily across the black dome of the night sky. The trees of the forest swayed gently in the wind, thin tendrils of mist gliding between their branches like cobwebs on the breeze.
‘It is a beautiful addition to the empire, do you not think El'Or?’
‘As good a place as any to die.’ he replied, a hint of weariness in his voice.
O’Vash laughed loud and long. 'Come now, why so melancholy. Do you feel it in you destiny to die in this place?’
El'Or considered this for a moment, and gave his measured replied. 'If it is my destiny to die in this place, so be it. For the Greater Good.’
‘Ha!’ came the abrupt reply, the humour in the laugh replaced with resentment. For the greater good indeed. El’Or had chosen his words carefully, in full knowledge of the response it would garner from his commander.
O’Vash knew all about the greater good. He had ordered thousands of lives be laid down in the pursuit of it, on a hundred worlds before this. The bitterness of those losses still haunted his dreams, and the memory of it robbed the moment of its serenity.
‘Very well El’Or. Report.’
The grizzled veteran raised the dataslate, its dull yellow glow casting shadows about his craggy features.
‘Fleet reports no extra orbital activity in the system. All Tethys outposts and recon teams have reported in during the last hour without fail. Sensor drones are on station but thus far quiet.’
Silence filled the void between the two warriors, as O’Vash Continued staring into the distance. El’Or had been deployed under his command enough times to know not to interrupt such moments.
O’Vash turned, the soft mechanical whirring of his battle suit barely audible above the rustling of the leaves. ‘And so you doubt me, El’Or?’.
The question hung in the air like a lead weight. El’Or met the cold grey eyes of his commander and held his gaze before answering.
‘Have I ever doubted you? I merely report the facts that are before us, as instructed’ came the typically careful response.
‘And yet I sense unease in your voice?’
‘The only unease I have is at our exposed position. If you are right about this, we are ill situated to deal with it. The battle may go against us.’
‘If I am right…..’ O’Vash strode past his subordinate, stopping at the edge of the ancient ruin to observe the defensive preparations underway.
‘All warfare is based on deception. When we are able to attack, we must seem unable. When our forces are active, we must appear inactive. When we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away. When far away, we must make him believe we are near.’
‘I am well aware of Puretide’s teaching on the matter.’ El’Or replied, lowering his dataslate and turning to observe his commander. The worn, pitted surface of his battle suit cut a ragged silhouette against the camp lights. ‘But to assume the enemy is present simply through his absence is…..’
‘Madness?’ O’Vash cut in, turning suddenly.
‘Overly prudent’ El’Or retorted calmly, sliding the dataslate into his breast pocket ‘However, preparations have been made, and if it comes we are as prepared as we can be. Given our position.’
O’Vash observed his subordinate for a moment, letting the rage subside within him. He was his brother of countless battles by now, and even though he would never admit it to his face, he valued El’Or’s perspective on the world. Especially when in such sharp contrast to his own feelings.
This time however, he could not ignore the doubt that had taken root in the back of his mind.
Something was wrong.
He had argued against this deployment with Contingent Command on Titan Prime. The Imperium was not as lethargic as they assumed, and more capable of launching a quick response than they thought. Half the Cadre was now on Tethys, engaged in this fool’s errand of setting up the Relay Beacon. The moon was only slightly more optimal for transmitting that Titan Prime, but vastly less defendable. If the Imperial counter came now and trapped them here, the consequences could be disastrous. However, the earth caste had been victorious in swaying the Ethereal s to their way of thinking, and so it was decided.
A soft chiming noise broke the silence, along with O’Vash’s introspection.
El’Or once more removed the dataslate and observed its output, the dull yellow glow replaced by a pulsing red rhythm. He looked up.
‘Sensor drones report enemy movement two kilometers to the north. Heading this way.’
A wry smile broke across O’Vash’s face as his fingers danced along the suit control panels. The Plasma rifles swung to life on his shoulders, as the soft whine of the jet pack engines kicked in.
‘Prepare the men. And get to your unit El’Or, they will need you soon enough’.
‘For the Greater Good’ came El’Or’s dead pan reply as he saluted and strode away.
Troops Fire Warrior Team x 12, combat armour, pulse rifle, photon grenades 108pts Fire Warrior Team x 6, combat armour, pulse carbines, photon grenades 54pts
Total Models 26/Infantry 21/Characters 1 /Vehicles 5/Psykers 1/ Wounds 29/ Total KPS 9
SETUP
Spoiler:
Mission: Mission 1.1 Ambush - Destroy the Enemy Deployment: Vanguard Strike Initiative: Tau win the roll off and decide to go second Special Rules: Reserves, Night fighting Terrain: The initial encounter between Imperium and Tau is set deep in the remote forests of Tethys, first moon of Titan Prime. Thick vegetation, rocky outcrops and the remains of a primitive temple litter the battlefield.
Warlord Traits:Tau roll on codex Traits and get 'Through Unity, Devastation (reroll 1's within 12" of warlord for one turn), while the Librarian gets 'Storm of Fire'. Psychic: Librarian rolls on Biomancy and gets Warp Speed and Enfeeble, with Smite Primaris. Some nasty buffs for the psyker if he makes it to close combat. The Tau are unaware of the warp, innocent little blue dudes.
PRE GAME ANALYSIS
Spoiler:
Reasons why Tau will win:
1: Volume of Fire. Tau have multiple units who can pump out obscene amounts of S5+ fire, which will whittle the Space Marines down even with their 3+ saves. They also have better range on average. 2: Markerlights. Given all the cover on offer, these should help to lessen its value to the space marines player. With drone controller on the Mark'O, it should be a guaranteed 5/6 MLs each turn. 3: Broadsides. The missilesides will make short work of TAC combat squads, and should destroy one per turn on average. The fact they have interceptor should also ensure Drop Pod teams get a nasty surprise.
Reasons why the Ultramarines will win:
1: Librarian - Space Marines effectively get a whole phase to themselves, while the Biomancy powers rolled will make him very dangerous, especially in assault. 2: Drop pods - three units will be able to drop right into the heart of the Tau formation, circumventing the Tau range advantage. They just need to avoid being intercepted by the broadsides..... 3: Ironclad, AKA the monstersmurf. Beyond glancing with the S7 MPs & HYMPs on the broadsides, the Tau have no answer to AV13. If he makes it into combat - which he should arriving in a DP - it will be a long afternoon for the Tau. HF is also instadeath to the fire warriors.
DEPLOYMENT
Spoiler:
My opponent has relatively little to deploy as most of his forces are in reserve. The 6 Man TAC squad in the rhino start behind the LOS blocking Ruins.
Tau deploy all models, holding nothing in reserve - given vanguard deployment and terrain, there are limited feasible deployment locations and the Tau corner soon becomes a bit congested. Just as well with all those drop pods...
12 man fire warrior squad and fireblade are deployed toward the centre-front of the Tau deployment zone, surrounding themselves with the ADL.
Broadsides deploy in the ruins to the right to give the FWs fire support and intercept Drop Pods.
6 man Fire Warrior Squad deploys behind the rock outcrop on the left flank
While the Stealth squad infiltrate behind the central ruins
Commander, crisis team and drones spread out along the backline to prevent Drop Pods getting in behind.
TURN 1 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Two Drop Pods come in, and no surprise that the Ironclad is in the first wave.
It drops on target in front of the ADL and firewarriors, heavy flamer all warmed up.
Second Pod containing the 9 man TAC squad and Librarian comes in but scatters off target.
Marines spill out only to fins themselves facing the missilesides. This could hurt....
Rhino moves at combat speed into the centre, cautiously keeping its rear armour out of view of the stealth suits
Before my opponent can begin his shooting phase, I intercept using the Missilesides. 16 shots later, I only manage to kill three marines. Poop.
Librarian rolls low on the warp charge and only manages to get Enfeeble off on the broadsides. The TAC Squad then return fire, but only manage to kill a single missile drone. This is, however, enough to cause the Broadsides to run for their lives.
Ironclad hits the Fire Warriors behind the ADL - 2+ to kill outright, he fries 4. Thanks to the fireblade though, they would hold.
Snap shooting from the Rhino and occupants fails to hit the stealth team, and it is turn over for the Ultramarines.
Turn overview
TURN 1 – Tau
Spoiler:
Target priority for the Tau has to be the Ironclad - he hasn't even got going yet and he is already up 4 fire warriors. Crisis team and Commander move up to get their plasma rifles in range, and give the marker drones a better field of fire.
The 6 man fire warrior team moves out of cover for an angle on the ironclads rear. The stealth team in the ruins stay still, eyeing up the same target.
Broadsides regroup, but can only snap shoot this turn. Even with TL everything, they manage no hits.
Markerlights target the Ironclad, and I get four tokens. The Stealth team use two to remove the cover save and fire their burst cannons. They will glance on 5's, and twelve shots later I get two 5's and a 6, wrecking the ironclad and removing the biggest threat to the Tau. This is huge. It also gives the Tau First Blood and a VP for killing a unit.
Firewarriors and Fireblade volley fire at the Librarian's unit, unleashing 24 S5 shots. SM player rolls well, but still losses four marines, including the sergeant.
With no target left, the 6 man FW team run back into cover.
The Commander & his crisis team fire at the DP with the deathwind missile launcher, but only manage one 6 to glance it, ending the Tau turn.
VP – Tau 2:0 Ultramarines
TURN 2 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Third and final pod containing the sternguard comes in for the ultramarines. It deploys aggressively for maximum effect behind the Tau lines, targeting the commander and his unit.
Unfortunately, if scatters wildly off 11" and almost off the side of the board, eventually settling under the noses of the regrouped broadsides (again).
Rhino moves 6" and disembarks the TAC squad
The Librarian and the remnants of his squad change focus and move towards the Stealth team.
End of movement phase, and the Broadsides intercept the Sternguard. Only one dies to the HYMP fire, while the SMS scores 4 wounds. The SM player rolls his 3+ saves...
...and they are gone, removing another huge threat to the Tau and handing them another VP
Psychic turn, and the Libby cast enfeeble on the Stealth suits and Warp speed on himself. The coming assault phase will hurt for the little blue dudes...
Shooting, and the DP deathwind missile launcher takes out two more FW, but they would hold once again. The 6 man TAC and rhino kill 5 out of 6 Firewarriors, but the last man standing would hang tough.
The Librarian and his unit charge, survive over watch, and wipe out the stealth team easily, exacting revenge for the ironclad and getting their first VP of the game.
TURN 2 – Tau
Spoiler:
Tau are now in a pretty commanding position, and happy to just sit back and try to contain the Ultramarines from range.
A few units shuffle around but not much. Marker Drones light up the Libby's unit, DP deathwind missile launcher is wrecked by plasma rifle fire from the commander and crisis team.
The Firewarriors pick off one of the Librarians unit
The lone firewarrior doesn't contribute much, while the broadsides cannot fire as they intercepted last turn
VP – Tau 4:1 Ultramarines
Turn 3 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
The librarian surveys the battlefield and realizes he is going to be the sole focus of Tau fire next turn
The rhino moves up and offers the Libby some badly needed protection (embarked inside)
Rhino gunner takes out the last remaining FW for a VP
While the TAC squad takes aim at the broadsides. Plasma fire forces them to go to ground, but one still suffers a wound
TURN 3 – Tau
Spoiler:
Commander and crisis move up for better angles on the remaining space marines. Marker drones light up the rhino, allowing the broadsides to ignore cover and boost their snap firing to BS 2. They take aim...
...and wreck the rhino for another VP, with the Librarian and marine disembarking right back into danger
The commander kills the last TAC squad member in the Libby's unit, while the crisis team also wreck the closest DP for another 2VPs, and put a glance on the remaining DP.
VP – Tau 7:2 Ultramarines
Turn 4 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Ultramarines decide to go out with a bang and move up on the broadsides. Librarian moves aggressively towards the firewarriors and gets ready to charge.
Shooting from the TAC squad kills a broadside and the last missile pod, but the remaining suit would hold. The Libby casts Warp Speed on himself and charges the Fire warriors, surviving a hail of over watch to make it into CC.
Despite warpspeed, combat is a bust for the Libby. He kills only one FW, while the fireblade deals a wound back to him. Combat would continue.
TURN 4 – Tau
Spoiler:
Broadside fires at the TAC squad, killing 2. The remainder flee into the ruins.
Combat resumes, but goes badly for the Tau. They loose, break and are swept for 2 VPs (FW team and the fireblade). Libby then consolidates towards the broadside.
VP – Tau 7:4 Ultramarines
Turn 5 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
TAC squad continues to hide in the ruins out of Tau LOS, while their Libby gears up for 3/3 in assault.
Libby casts Warp speed on himself, and annihilates the last broadside in combat for another VP. He then consolidates behind the DP to try and get out of LOS.
TURN 5 – Tau
Spoiler:
Somehow the Tau now find themselves down to one unit! How is this possible? The Libby must die. Marker drones light up the Libby, giving the commanders unit ignores cover and BS7. Plasma rifles take aim...
And drop the Libby, giving Tau 2 VPs (kill point & slay the warlord). The unit then assault jumps up towards the remaining TAC hiding in the ruins.
VP – Tau 9:5 Ultramarines
Turn 6 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Cowardly TAC unit finally find their courage and emerge from the ruins with guns blazing. The unthinkable happens - they kill and crisis suit and two drones, causing the unit to flee!
Alas they only run about 4", but if they don't regroup next turn they could potentially flee straight off the table.
Heroes of the Imperium! Well, kind of...
TURN 6 – Tau
Spoiler:
So the roll that could lose the game for the Tau, and after such dominance..... they need a ten or less to regroup, and thankfully roll an 8. Regrouping, but with only a 3" move and snap firing they do not manage to take out the last DP for an extra VP. We roll to see of the game continues, but the dice say the battle is over
RESULT
Spoiler:
VP POINTS
Tau: 9 pts First Blood 1pt Slay the Warlord 1pt Unit Kills 7pts
Ultramarines: 6 pts Line breaker 1pt Unit Kills 5pts
TAU VICTORY
BREAKDOWN
Decisive moment – the downing of the Ironclad. Not only did this wrack up 2 VPs in the Tau first turn, it also removed the biggest threat to the Tau. Had it made it into turn two, it would have probably spend a lot of time in CC and avoided fire. Besides, the Tau were woefully underequipped to deal with AV13.
Key units
Tau: Lots of contenders, Stealth team made a crucial kill and broadsides made a massive intercept on the sternguard, but the most productive unit was the commanders team. The markerlights played a key role in boosting hitting power, while the crisis suits plasma rifles generate 4 of the 9 VPs.
Ultramarines: Librarian. Went on a rampage that chewed up four units in assault and scored 4 VPs all by his lonesome. Great return on 95 pts.
STATS
Tau: Models remaining 6/35 Kill to Death Ratio 0.75 Efficiency 44%
Ultramarines: Models remaining 4/26 Kill to Death Ratio 1.31 Efficiency 56%
POST GAME
Spoiler:
The Tau open the campaign with a hard fought win, but almost snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in the final turn. Ultramarines pushed them very close and recovered well from a brutal first two turns, the Librarian rallying his forces superbly.
Going into the second mission, the Tau player will be allowed to open up 3 FOC slots of his choice, while the Ultramarines will be able to open up 2. The Tau also generated 175pts extra for the final mission, whilst the Ultramarines generated 125pts.
‘It was planned to launch the main assault from orbit rather than from the beachhead landing zone against the Xenos’ survey site, in an attempt to utilize the element of surprise. I was wrong to do so - the Tau forces seem to be prepared for us, and what should have been a glorious battle in the name of the emperor soon turned into a meat grinder……’ Brother Librarian Herbort, in the Apothecary cell of the Accipiter
‘I ordered my brothers to be prepared for close combat against the Tau forces, but when we came out of the Drop Pod, the sky…..it was… raining…missiles.’ Brother Sergeant Lemal, in the Apothecary cell of the Accipiter
‘fzzzt---------------Incoming! Get dow---------------‘ Final transmission received from Brother Adamant, Sergeant of Sternguard Veteran Squad
‘My squad and I had been dispatched by Thunderhawk gunship to slip through the Tau sentry forces in orbit over Titan and land on the moon of Titan long before this raid operation was due to begin. Three hours before the operation, I was ordered by Brother Captain Fibian to proceed to the drop zone to relieve the forward scouts under the command of Brother Hansus and assist Librarian Herbort and his orbital inseetion force coming directly from the Accipiter.’ ‘During the initial engagement my squad eliminated a small squad of Tau warriors, but I was informed over the vox that the foul XV-88s had slain all brothers of the Veteran Squad Adamant upon arrival in their drop, and also percived our Rhino destroyed by those Battlesuits. It was then that I determined the battle was lost and incorrectly ordered my squad to disengage. Although it looked to me that was the only way to preserve our strength before the arrival of reinforcement, abandoning my brothers on the battle is a great sin and a grave violation of the Holy Codex.’ ‘Apon this realization, I saw a shadow emerged from the smoked of the burning Rhino that bellowed a mighty cry and charged into the heart of the Xeno defense gun line. I realized that was Brother Librarian Herbort, and that he must be under some effect of his sorcery as even with the Astartes’ heightened eyesight, he is so fast that I cannot see his figure clearly. All I can see is a fast moving blur in the shadows of my vision and the lightning striking down the Xeno warriors and battlesuitsn alike. It seems nothing can stand in his way……’ ‘……After the battle, we recovered the Herbort on the field. Thank the Emperor, he is still alive…..’ Brother Sergeant Volus, confessing to the Company Chaplain
‘Brother Adamant will be remembered, and his memory will always remind us never underestimate our foes. It was initially planned to be a quick raid action to destroy a small fraction of the Tau force on Tethys, and such high casualties on both sides were utterly unexpected. It seems that, despite the Xenos noticing that our forward recon forces had already established a beachhead on the surface of Tethys, they had somehow been made aware of the arrival of our fleet and were fully expecting to fight our Drop Pod operations. The Intel collected by Brother Hansus indicated that the Tau forces are smaller than we estimated, and may now retreat from Tethys in a short time. It will be much easier to destroy them during their retreat than to flush them out from their forts. This time, I will lead the force personally….’ Brother Captain Fibian, Ultramarine Master of the Arsenal
Despite my repeated warnings to the Contingent Command on Titan Prime, what I foretold has come to pass.
At 0:600 hrs a small detachment of Gue’ron’sha (‘Ultramarines’ designation, REF: IM/AA/CSM/2889.01) attempted to ambush our position, with the presumed intention of capturing/destroying the engineering teams under my command.
The engagement was brief but fierce, resulting in many casualties on either side. As per standard procedure, sensor drones deployed to the surrounding forest gave limited early warning of incoming forces and allowed us to prepare our defensive position. What came as a surprise however were the orbital insertion elements – three Gue’ron’sha ‘drop pods’ being allowed to enter the theatre with no warning from our fleet in orbit around Titan Prime should be of grave concern to, and we would ask that Contingent Command review Fleet procedures to ascertain how this was able to happen.
The battle has ended in favour of our forces and the remnants of the enemy have pulled back to the forests to regroup and no doubt plan their next strike. Losses have been extensive, and my Second in Command 'Darkwave' El'Or'Es has been badly wounded.
It was pure folly to deploy the engineering team to this remote location with so little support, and only a miracle has ensured their survival. Our forces are too meager to pursue the enemy, and I have therefore given the order to withdraw to Supply Base Zulu for reinforcements. It is also my recommendation that we immediately begin reviewing the threat presented by an Imperial force, however limited, and what implications this may have for our presence in the Titan System.
As for our dead, they have been buried at the site of battle and a Mont’Ahsa memorial erected in their honour. These heroes of the Empire have paid the price of the greater good with their blood. Let us ensure their sacrifice was not in vain.
Automatically Appended Next Post: I think I spotted only one error. As I can remember, in Turn 1 Ultramrine, that Tau missile drone is shot down by smite from Librarian psychic phase, they break and run over 10 inch so present no target for that squad. So I hesitated for a long while and decide to make a run move towards the Stealth Suit, which is the only unit possible to charge in the next turn.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/01/09 15:27:37
2015/01/09 15:50:14
Subject: Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign
Insane Battle report bru. Very well done, you could follow it like you where playing yourself. Well done!
3000 Guardians of the Covenant
6000 Iyanden not Wraith heavy
1500 Grey Knights Painted
4000 Necron Painted
1000 Dark Eldar allies for Eldar
1000 Tervigon list
Just started Enclave
Waiting for new cody, Lysander is finished
2000 pts Nurgle
2015/01/09 16:10:15
Subject: Re:Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign
Nocturus wrote:Liked the report. A few comments though:
1. You can only intercept with one of the guns, either the sms or the hymp.
2. A unit cannot benefit from its own marker lights unless they are networked markerlights.
Otherwise I look forward to seeing more of the campaign!
Noc
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for your comments - in reply;
1. They didn't - Sorry, I wrote part of that report badly so it sounded like they did, but I have corrected it now though 2. Its my understanding that EWO gives intercept to all the model's weapons, and since they have multi-tracker allowing them to fire more than one they can both be used to intercept. This is also the most common way I have seen it interpreted here on Dakka.
Dozer Blades wrote:Great report and a very exciting game ! I'll be following this thread.
knightofkob wrote:Insane Battle report bru. Very well done, you could follow it like you where playing yourself. Well done!
DCannon4Life wrote:Good fun! I just started dusting off my CSM...and boy am I rusty! So, if the Tau are new to you, I completely understand how mistakes can be made. I look forward to future reports--really liked all the pics and the after action reports!
Las wrote:Awesome batrep. Cannot wait for more.
Glad you all enjoyed it - was fun to write but even more to play, second game is this weekend so hopefully next batrep will be up this coming week. For the after action reports, Tau is by me and Ultramarines is from Neophyte2012 so thanks to him for making the effort too
Neophyte2012 wrote:Really nice batrep as always. Great work Iapedus Automatically Appended Next Post: I think I spotted only one error. As I can remember, in Turn 1 Ultramrine, that Tau missile drone is shot down by smite from Librarian psychic phase, they break and run over 10 inch so present no target for that squad. So I hesitated for a long while and decide to make a run move towards the Stealth Suit, which is the only unit possible to charge in the next turn.
Ah yes you are right! Sorry that's what happens when you wait so long before writing up looking forward to the continuation this weekend!
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
Fantastic Bat Rep! I've been looking for something to base my own campaigns on and this is really what I've been looking for. Did you write the rules yourself or are the based on another system? That PDF file at the bottom fo the post is really slick and professional, too.
I went to Hershey Park in central PA this year, and I have to say I was more than a little disappointed. I fully expected the entire theme park to be make entirely of chocolate, but no. Here in America, we have "building codes," and some other nonsense about chocolate melting if don't store it someplace kept below room temperature.
2015/01/11 12:37:13
Subject: Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign
Powerfisting wrote:Fantastic Bat Rep! I've been looking for something to base my own campaigns on and this is really what I've been looking for. Did you write the rules yourself or are the based on another system? That PDF file at the bottom fo the post is really slick and professional, too.
Glad you liked it - wrote the rules for the missions myself, with Tau fluff from me and SM fluff from Neophyte2012. Some of the rules are inspired by bits of batreps I have seen here on Dakka, bu I mainly wanted to build a campaign that reward you as you went on with extra points/slots/special rules/etc so even if you lost the game there was still something to play for, and I think it works quite well. Looking forward to writing parts 2 and 3
toasteroven wrote:This is really, really impressive. Checking out the campaign book now.
(This book is pretty dang nice too)
Thanks! Mission 1.2 was played out over the weekend, so hopefully the next bat rep will be up this week
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
PART 1: The Tethys Moon Campaign Escalating 850/1000/1000+ point missions with bonuses.
MISSION 1.2: Fall Back
OPPOSING FORCES
Utilising Bonus earned from last game, the Tau have decided to open up two fast attack and one heavy FOC slot. The Ultramarines open up no FOC slots, saving it for the last mission. The Tau forces are 'in the ascendancy' having won the first mission, and therefore will choose whether to go first or second.
Tau Forces: Fire Warriors from the Setpworld of Fi’Rios 1000pts
Heavy
Vindicator, Tank Commander Brother Anrik, Dozer blade 130pts
Total Models 25/Infantry 15/Characters 1 /Vehicles 10/Psykers 0/ Wounds 35
SETUP
Spoiler:
Mission: Mission 1.2 Fighting Withdrawal (Destroy/Defend the Supply Depots)
Deployment: Dawn of War
Initiative: Tau are 'in the ascendancy' and decide to go first
Special Rules: Reserves, Night fighting, Mysterious Objectives
Terrain: The second encounter between Imperium and Tau is still set deep in the remote forests of Tethys, first moon of Titan Prime. Thick vegetation, rocky outcrops and the clustered remains of a primitive society litter the battlefield.
Warlord Traits:Tau roll on codex Traits and get 'A Ghost Who Walks Among us' (Warlord & Unit get 3D6 Jet Pack thrust moves), while the Captain rolls 'Rites of War' (Morale checks within 12" of warlord can use his LD).
Psychic: No Librarian in the SM ranks, and the Tau are unaware of the warp. Poor innocent little blue dudes.
PRE GAME ANALYSIS
Spoiler:
Reasons why Tau will win:
1: Volume of Fire. Tau have multiple units who can pump out obscene amounts of S5+ fire, which will whittle the Space Marines down even with their 3+ saves. They also have better range on average.
2: Markerlights. With 12 on offer per turn (4 with commanders, 8 with pathfinders) the Tau shooting should be seriously buffed. With drone controller on the Mark'O's, it should be a guaranteed 5/6 MLs each turn.
3: Infiltrators. 2 stealth units plus the kroot mean Tau can infiltrate onto the supply depots and just camp, inviting the enemy onto their supporting fire overwatch. Ouch.
Reasons why the Ultramarines will win:
1: Bike Squad. Beyond volume of fire, the Tau have no answer to this unit. If it makes combat T1, expect it to sweep a unit each turn as it romps around the field unchallenged.
2: Vindicator. Dawn of war deployment has helped its range issues, and its S10 AP1 means instant un-savable death to pretty much everything the tau possess. Also AV13 on front.
3: Once again, the dreaded Ironclad, AKA the monstersmurf. Beyond a sole Fusion wielding crisis suit and trying to glance it to death with the S7 MPs & HYMPs, the Tau have no answer to AV13. If he makes it into combat - which he should arriving in a DP - it will be a long afternoon for the blue dudes. HF is also insta-death to all the Tau infantry.
DEPLOYMENT
Spoiler:
Ultramarines win the roll for sides and chooses the side of the board with slightly more terrain (the right). Tau places the four objectives on their side of the board but outside of his deployment zone.
Tau forces deploy their troops across the board, with the intention of countering any SM flank stacking with their infiltrating units. Broadside, pathfinder team and Commander 'Banetide' deploy on the right flank, behind objective 1
Fire warriors and crisis body guard teams deploy in the centre, behind the LOS blocking terrain and near objectives 2 & 3
While Commander 'Calmstar', the other broadside and the remaining pathfinder team take the left flank
View across the Tau line (left flank to right in distance)
Ultramarines decide to stack the right flank with the Rhino & embarked 5 man TAC with PG and serg. on the very right (behind terrain), bike squad and vindicator slightly inside of them
TAC squad with ML deploys into central ruin for clear lines of fire (sorry no photo).
Tau places first infiltrators, going against the initial plan of infiltrating onto objectives, instead deploying to try and contain the bike squad. First Stealth team deploys behind the right most ruin.
Ultramarines deploys their scouts, behind the central LOS blocking terrain.
Tau then place their remaining units - the second Stealth team onto objective 2 and the Kroot in a long line in front of the bike squad. The intention here is to provide both a CC speed bump to the bike squad (and not a very good one at that) and also set an overwatch trap. Between the kroot and the supporting fire stealth suits there are about 44 overwatch shots that can be got off if they charge the kroot.
Scout movement, and the Tau move all kroot and stealth suits up to block the bike squads path
While forgetting to move the pathfinder teams. Ultramarine scouts shuffle a bit.
TURN 1 – Tau
Spoiler:
Kroot and stealth units move up another 6", boxing the bike unit and vindicator in
Lone fusion suit makes a move for objective 2, while the plasma suits go for objective 3, taking care to stay behind the LOS blocking terrain.
Commander Calmstar also moves up for a marker light option on the MLTAC squad
On the right flank, markerlights and commander Banetide light up the bike squad for four tokens between them. Then all hell breaks loose - the Kroot, stealth teams and broadside utilize the markerlights and pour almost 50 shots into the bike squad. After some serious tanking by the captains artificer armour though, and a couple of inspired FNP saves, the squad only losses one biker and a wound of the captain. Major blow for the Tau , who really needed to cripple this unit asap. Only hope now is that they fall for the overwatch trap.....
On the right flank, commander Calmstar and the broadside take on the MLTAC squad, killing three (but not the ML). They would hold.
Tau shooting over, and the suits jump around. Fusion and commander Banetide reposition, while stealth suit team moves away from the kroot (but still within supporting fire range)
Plasma suits jump forward, keen to get in the fight but keeping their distance from the scouts
While the commander jumps a massive 17" thanks to his warlord trait, getting up nice and close the to the TAC squad.
TURN 1 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
The Marines have weathered the Tau shooting well, time to take advantage of it. Ironclad comes in and plops down right in the middle of the Tau front to claim objective 3.
Unfortunately it scatters slightly right, but the ironclad deploys out to claim objective 2 (remember the SM payer needs to hold the objective for a whole turn uncontested to destroy it).
Bike squad and vindicator move up to the kroot line
While the right Rhino comes in off its flank and deploys its TAC squad with PG
Scouts move towards the suits
As the movement phase ends, the Tau intercept the Ironclad with the HYMPs of both Broadsides, resulting in a glancing hit.
Shooting, and the Ultramarines recognise the trap for what it is and structure their fire accordingly. Firstly the TAC squad blow a hole in the kroot squad, killing two but also losing the Plasma gunner to gets hot. Storm bolter on the Rhino kills another.
Having made a hole, the bike squad takes aim at the Stealth squad behind the kroot, killing two of them.
Unfortunately, having started to deconstruct the trap, SM firing starts to go awry at this point. Vindicator takes aim at the broadside and hits, but he makes his cover save by going to ground
While the ML marines takes aim at the kroot but misses too.
Ironclad also has a pop at the fusion suit but misses
and the scouts do nothing to the plasma suits with their bolt pistols.
They would then compound their misery by failing a 5" charge.
Ending a fairly lack luster turn for the smurfs. Morale tests don't go in their favour either, with the Kroot and lone stealth suit holding.
VP – Tau 0:0 Ultramarines
TURN 2 – Tau
Spoiler:
Tau movement, and the kroot spread out to fill the gap
While the lone Stealth positions himself for a go on the Ironclads rear armour
Plasma suits move away from scouts but keep them in rapid fire range
Commander Calmstar gets the angle on the vindicator side armour
Commander Banetide lights up the Ironclad, and the Fusion suit one shot wonders it, penning with an explodes result, for first blood and removing a major threat to the Tau. Brother Boris has not had a good campaign.....
Pathfinders light up the bike squad, and once more the Kroot, stealth suits and commanders MPs pour almost 40 shots into the unit....killing one biker. Great tanking again by the Captain, with some more brilliant FNP roles.
Pathfinders easily wreck the DP with EMPs
While Plasma suits kill 3 scouts. They hold, so crisis move up to tempt them into combat.
Commander fails to hurt the vindicator and assault jumps up towards the TAC remnants
While the fusion suit and lone stealth jump forward too
TURN 2 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Turn overview
Bike squad decides to go after the Stealth suits in the ruin as they have the more dangerous weapons and cannot get supporting fire from the Kroot. Plan will be to soften them up with the grav guns and then assault, sweep them and consolidate beyond the kroot. They reposition accordingly.
Bikes take aim...
And kill all three with the grav guns, despite the 2+ cover saves. This is disastrous for the Bike squad, as they now have no one left to charge and remain stuck in front of the Kroot.
Elsewhere, the Vindicator takes aim at the Fusion crisis lurking in cover
And annihilates him
TAC squad has a pop at Commander Calmstar, but whiffs it shooting
While the scouts shoot and assault the plasma suits, hoping to tie them up in CC for a turn or two
but suffer a complete reversal, getting killed outright. A rare day for Tau in CC indeed.
VP – Tau 1:0 Ultramarines
Turn 3 – Tau
Spoiler:
Turn overview - Tau control most of the board and still have the marines boxed in, but if the bikes can break out this turn it will all change.
Kroot shuffle around to block in the bikes
Despite having written the mission rules, Tau suffer a brain fart and think that they have to capture the supply depots to get the victory points, so start moving pathfinders and fire warriors away from the action and towards objectives 3 and 4. Broadside tries to get into the action but will snap fire accordingly as a result.
Plasma suits move forward to try and engage the vindicator
While Commander Calsmstar moves into finish the TAC squad off
Lone stealth moves in to support the kroot
So, for the third turn in a row the Tau throw everything they can at the bike squad. Pathfinders and marker drones light them up for 4 tokens, then Kroot, Stealth and broadsides (one snap firing) pour everything they have into them (30 shots). Finally, they wilt under the pressure and start failing their saves. Captain Fabian tries to tank one too many hits and falls, giving up slay the warlord, while the bike squad is decimated leaving only the apothecary standing.
Commander Banetide then lines up the apothecary and finishes him off, removing the last best hope for the ultramarines force.
To top off a bad turn for the marines, Commander Calmstar also finishes off the TAC squad
Everything that didn't shoot for the Tau runs to claim objectives (needlessly) and the various suits assault jump around
TURN 3 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Ultramarines may not be able to win the game now, but they can at least reclaim some pride and pick up some bonuses for the final mission.
Vindicator moves forward
While TAC squad embarks into the rhino, which moves forward to challenge for objective 1
Only one shot this round, and the vindicator vaporizes the broadside on objective 1, despite him going to ground.
VP – Tau 2:0 Ultramarines
Turn 4 – Tau
Spoiler:
Suits tighten the noose on the Vindicator
While Fire warriors, kroot and pathfinder team move towards objectives
Shooting at the vindicator is a bust for the Tau, who then forget to assault jump the suits. Shooting at the rhino only manages one glancing hit also.
TURN 4 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Rhino rolls forward and the TAC squad disembark, claiming objective 1
Shooting at Commander Banetide kills one drone and puts a wound on him
Vindicator repositions itself and lines up the plasma suits
And once more auto deletes them. Good day for the vindicator
VP – Tau 2:0 Ultramarines
Turn 5 – Tau
Spoiler:
Fire warriors finally end their long trek to objective 4
While stealth suit and Commander Calmstar give up on killing the vindicator and move out of range/LOS
Pathfinders use their pulse carbines for the first time and go after the rhino, getting one pen and stunning it
While the commander backs off the approaching TAC squad
TURN 5 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Turn overview
Objective 1 has been claimed for a full turn now, and it duly explodes.
TAC squad move up and kill a few pathfinders. They would hold.
While the vindicator kill off a few more kroot on objective 2. They would also hold.
We roll to see of the game continues, but it doesn't. The battle is over.
RESULT
Spoiler:
VP POINTS
Tau: 6 pts First Blood 1pt
Slay the Warlord 1pt
Line breaker 1pt
Supply Depots intact 3pts
Ultramarines: 2 pts Line breaker 1pt
Supply Depots destroyed 1pts
TAU VICTORY
BREAKDOWN
Decisive moment – the bike squad not charging the Kroot on turn 1. A tough call for the Ultramarines, as the overwatch trap was very real and could just as easily been devastating. However, by charging they would have at least had a chance to break out T2 and start terrorising the Tau supporting units and claiming objectives. As it was, they never broke the Kroot line and we contained and ultimately destroyed by volume of fire.
Key units
Tau: Kroot. Not often these guys are the hero of the Tau hour, but they and their supporting stealth teams did a fantastic job of containing the most dangerous enemy unit on the board, allowing the Tau firepower to bear down on them for three turns.
Ultramarines: Vindicator. Racked up the most kills of any unit, taking out three suits, a broadside and a couple of the pesky kroot to boot.
STATS
Tau: Models remaining 21/37
Kill to Death Ratio 1.18
Efficiency 54%
Ultramarines: Models remaining 6/25
Kill to Death Ratio 0.84
Efficiency 46%
POST GAME
Spoiler:
The Tau continue the campaign with another victory, dealing another bloody nose to the Ultramarines. Captain Fabian will be thirsting for revenge after this reversal, just as soon as he gets out of the sick bay.
Going into the third mission, the Tau player will be allowed to open a further FOC slot of his choice. The Tau also generated 150pts extra for the final mission, whilst the Ultramarines generated 50pts.
‘As we moved forward towards the wretched Kroot and Stealth Suit lines, we ran into a hail of pulse shots, so many that Brother Captain Fabian, who led the charge from the forefront, succumbed to the pure weight of fire’
Brother Helion, Apothercary of 3rd Company, in the apothecary cell of the Accipiter
‘With the Brother Captain felled, I spotted an alternative route to bypass the Kroot, and ordered Brother Anrik to cover our advance. My squad embarked back into our Rhino and drove as fast as we could, outflanking the enemy towards the nearest supply depot. Thank the Emperor, Brother Anrik’s Vindicator bought us enough time to destroy that depot, and Brother Vetiman is truly a sharp gunner, his precise shots either vanquished the enemy or kept them pinned down.
Brother Sergeant Volus
Suddenly a squad of Tau Battle Suit appeared at our right flank - missiles and plasma bolts showered upon our armored hull, but were nothing more than rain on the rocks. We can still feel the shock caused by the impaction. I ordered the tank to break right, so Brother Vetiman could bring the main gun to bear on them, and he once more fired a precision shot - the entire Battle Suit squad was obliterated in the huge explosion of the siege shell!
Brother Sergeant Anrik, Tank Commander of Vindicator
It was my hesitation in front of the enemy gun line that led to the demise of the whole operation. We were confusing by the presence of the Kroot screen for too long, and offered ourselves as targets to the massed Tau fire power. Thanks to the initiative of Brother Volus, we have at least caused some damage to the Tau supply lines, but it was far less than enough to break their operation.
I have to pay my highly respect to those lowly Kroot. They gallantly poured themselves in front of the Demolisher Cannon and all our bolters to buy their allies time to accomplish their mission. Although they are the enemy of the Emperor, their bravery deserved respect even from the sons of Guilliman. However next time I meet them, I will crush them without any hesitation, and bury them properly after the battle, if I can.
As we failed to destroy the Tau supply depots, it is going to be hard to stop their relocation to Titan Prime. However, we may still stand a chance to undermine their defenses in this system if the partially established Relay Beacon can be captured or destroyed. This will severe their communication with their own realm, which will delay their reinforcements until after the full Imperial forces can be brought to bear.
Brother Fabian, Captain of Ultramarine 3rd Company, Master of Arsenal, acting commander of Battle Force Titan, in the apothecary cell of the Accipiter
Brother Fabian made fatal mistakes in this operation, which not only caused extreme casualties on our own forces, but also let the tide of this crusade turn against the Imperium. However, I have decided to offer him a chance to redeem his soul in the coming battles, as it is always a bad decision to replace a visionary commander like Fabian for one mistake, especially during the battle.
Reinforcements are already on route from Ultramar to Titan System, and will arrive imminently. In the meantime Brother Fabian and Brother Herbort should continue to identify and destroy vital Tau forces in Titan System quickly, giving the Astra Militarium in our wake an easier task of purging the vile Xenos and Heretics in this system once and for all. The Imperium cannot allow such a huge force and mountain of valuable resources being locked in Titan System for a long time, as much greater dangers are now threatening the Holy territory of the Emperor from all corners towards…..
Marneus Augustus Calgar, Chapter Master of Ultramarine, Lord of Macargge, upon Chapter Council in Fortress of Hera, Macargge, Private Scriptures of meditations.
It would now appear that Imperial Forces on Tethys are in greater numbers than previously estimated, and the fretting over whether to evacuate or not must be bought to an end.
Preparations for an evacuation have begun, but at the behest of the Earth Caste work has continued on the establishment of the Communication Relay Beacon, despite my reservations on the matter being repeatedly expressed. Notwithstanding our expectation to come under further attack, at 0:530 hrs a larger than excepted force of Gue’ron’sha (once again ‘Ultramarines’ designation, REF: IM/AA/CSM/2889.01) launched an attack on our position.
The engagement was once again short-lived and ferocious, but the enemy has been repelled and had much the worst of it. A further adaption of their tactics was evident, as they attempted to combine orbital insertion elements with fast moving ground vehicles. The presence of a Tank (designation, REF: IM/AA/VDCTR/0255.01) also signified the escalating force strength and confirmation that this action is not merely intended as a raid.
It was initially assumed that the intention of the attack was to once more annihilate the engineering teams under our supervision, but post battle analysis has suggested that the intended target may well have been our supply depots. If so, this will represent a dangerous evolution of the Gue’ron’sha tactics, as they may now understand just how precarious our position is on this (Profane Expletive Deleted) forsaken moon.
Thanks in no small part to our Auxiliary Kroot units, losses amongst the enemy were severe and they have once more retreated to the forests where they will no doubt regroup and retaliate. Our position here on Tethys is even less defendable now the Imperium has established a foothold, and as such I would now advise that the evacuation be accelerated. I have already overridden the Earth Caste engineer’s senior officer and ordered that the Relay Beacon be disassembled. I have also ordered that all on world operations cease and outlying teams report to their evacuation points. We will be returning to Tethys HQ within the hour, along with those supplies that have survived, to oversee the final evacuation.
On a side note Commander Banetide, my temporary second in command while Fireblade 'Darkwave' El'Or'Es recovers from his wounds, acquitted himself well in his new role. He is however still too green to be give the post on a permanent basis, and will benefit from more direct supervision of an experienced commander. It is my intention to reassign him to bodyguard team duty so he can further benefit from my direction.
The situation on Tethys is in danger of deteriorating rapidly, and all effort must now be made to get our forces and supplies back to Titan Prime, and ensure the Relay Beacon does not fall into enemy hands.
Despite having written the mission rules, Tau suffer a brain fart and think that they have to capture the supply depots to get the victory points, so start moving pathfinders and fire warriors away from the action and towards objectives 3 and 4. Broadside tries to get into the action but will snap fire accordingly as a result
Classic
Great batrep! will be looking forward to seeing this campaign end!
I went to Hershey Park in central PA this year, and I have to say I was more than a little disappointed. I fully expected the entire theme park to be make entirely of chocolate, but no. Here in America, we have "building codes," and some other nonsense about chocolate melting if don't store it someplace kept below room temperature.
2015/01/20 15:47:18
Subject: Re:Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign [Games 1 & 2 Complete]
As the marine player in this campaign, I spotted some of my own mistakes in the game. First off, sometimes it is a bad idea to fire the strongest weapon at the target enemy unit if you intend to charge them, that may either wipe them all out and leave you in no man's land or worse, make them suffer a some wounds and break morale and run away from danger.
After reviewing the second game one week after the game. I think the best solution to break through the Kroot screen is let the scout move towards the blockade line is let the Captain's squad and Scout against the left and right stealth suit squads respectively at the same time. Which would divert overwatch fire, and the stealth suit squads maybe more than 6 inch from each other and may have problem in helping out each other. Accorrding to the game result, the true, fatal mistake I made in this game is let the scouts moving to the marines right flank to try to hold up Crisis Suit. Which actually gain nothing.
I am also testing new combination by playing the campaign. So this is the first time I ever use a "smashbane" build Captain I will also try some new units that I never used before in the rest of the games.
Automatically Appended Next Post: One more thing. Highly appreciate Iapedus for posting the batrep so quick. Great effort once again.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/01/20 16:17:33
2015/01/23 03:31:10
Subject: Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign [Games 1 & 2 Complete]
Powerfisting wrote:Great batrep! will be looking forward to seeing this campaign end!
Thanks! Third battle coming up soon, should be a cracker
Neophyte2012 wrote:As the marine player in this campaign, I spotted some of my own mistakes in the game. First off, sometimes it is a bad idea to fire the strongest weapon at the target enemy unit if you intend to charge them, that may either wipe them all out and leave you in no man's land or worse, make them suffer a some wounds and break morale and run away from danger.
Yeah, I think you were just really unlucky in a strange sort of way - failing my 2+ cover saves should not have really happened but it actually turned out to be a bit of good fortune for me!
Neophyte2012 wrote:After reviewing the second game one week after the game. I think the best solution to break through the Kroot screen is let the scout move towards the blockade line is let the Captain's squad and Scout against the left and right stealth suit squads respectively at the same time. Which would divert overwatch fire, and the stealth suit squads maybe more than 6 inch from each other and may have problem in helping out each other. According to the game result, the true, fatal mistake I made in this game is let the scouts moving to the marines right flank to try to hold up Crisis Suit. Which actually gain nothing.
I think a further refinement might have been to shoot out both Stealth teams with both TAC squads and the vindicator (rather than going after the more tempting broadside ) and then hit the kroot with the bike squad - their grav guns wouldn't have done much but you would have easily swept them in CC. You could also have charged the remaining stealth suits beforehand with the scout/TAC squad so they couldn't supporting fire. But the dice were really against you in that game and they would probably have all failed their charge ranges anyway
Neophyte2012 wrote:I am also testing new combination by playing the campaign. So this is the first time I ever use a "smashbane" build Captain I will also try some new units that I never used before in the rest of the games.
I look forward to seeing these! I am also going to vary it up a bit and try out some new toys...... don't worry though, no riptide.... yet
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
Dozer Blades wrote: That one was kind of a disappointment. He could have easily multi assaulted both units.
He could have, but only had he gone after the Stealth team as the primary target (as if he had charged the kroot as the primary target of the multiple assault they would have had more than enough bodies to accommodate his bike squad, leaving him unable to charge a secondary target) but the stealth team were in cover which would have meant dangerous terrain tests for the bike squad.
He would also have still been subject to the 44 supporting fire overwatch shots, which might have obliterated his squad before he got there (unlikely I know, but stranger things have happened.....). I think he had the right idea trying to shoot out the supporting units, it just didn't go to plan - the shooting sort of fell apart T1 and in T2 was too effective in wiping out a unit and leaving the bike squad stranded with no one to charge.
It was a tough call for Neo, as had they made it through the overwatch T1 they would have been heroes and run riot. Had they not, the game would have been a lot earlier than it was.
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
I'm just sad that the Ironclad has been having such a hard time. I understand why he took that shot at the melta-suit, but I still think it was a mistake. The Commander was right there begging to take the heavy flamer to the face, and you should have obliged him.
Belac Ynnead wrote:I'm just sad that the Ironclad has been having such a hard time. I understand why he took that shot at the melta-suit, but I still think it was a mistake. The Commander was right there begging to take the heavy flamer to the face, and you should have obliged him.
Yeah, I think he was all too aware of what would happen in the next turn to the poor ironclad and was desperate to try and avoid having him knocked out two games in a row. In all likelihood had he gone after the commander the marker drones would have tanked the hits anyway - although I guess he still might have failed morale
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
PART 1: The Tethys Moon Campaign Escalating 850/1000/1000+ point missions with bonuses.
MISSION 1.3: Steadfast
OPPOSING FORCES
Utilizing bonuses earned from last game, the Tau decided to open up a further fast attack slot. The Ultramarines also open up a Fast attack Slot. The Tau forces are 'in the ascendancy' having won the Second mission, and therefore chooses whether to go first or second.
Time constraints: Due to Real Life priorities, there is a time limit of three hours on todays game (including setting up, and alas I was 15 minutes late due to traffic), so both sides will be up against it to get the game played out in full. They will, however, try their best
Tau Forces: Fire Warriors from the Setpworld of Fi’Rios 1325pts
Mission: Mission 1.3 Steadfast (Capture/Defend the Relay Beacon)
Deployment: Vanguard Strike
Initiative: Tau are 'in the ascendancy' and decide to go first
Special Rules: Reserves, Night fighting
Terrain: The Third and final encounter between Imperium and Tau is still set deep in the remote forests of Tethys, first moon of Titan Prime. Thick vegetation, rocky outcrops and the clustered remains of a primitive society litter the battlefield.
Warlord Traits:Tau roll on codex Traits and get 'A Ghost Who Walks Among us' (Warlord & Unit get 3D6 Jet Pack thrust moves), while the Chapter Master rolls 'Rites of War' (Morale checks within 12" of warlord can use his LD). Exactly the same as the previous game. Spoooooky....
Psychic: The Librarian Rolls on Telepathy, getting Shrouding, Hallucination and Psychic Shriek Primaris. The Tau are unaware of the warp. Poor innocent little blue dudes.
PRE GAME ANALYSIS
Spoiler:
Reasons why Tau will win:
1: Numerical Superiority. Tau have almost twice as many models on the board, and equally disproportionate wound count. It will be hard for the Space Marines to remove significant numbers of enemy every turn unless they can get into combat quickly and regularly.
2: Volume of Fire. Tau have multiple units who can pump out obscene amounts of S5+ fire, which will whittle the Space Marines down even with their 3+ saves. They also have better range on average, although this is hurt slightly by the Vanguard Strike Deployment.
3: Markerlights. With 14 on offer per turn (4 with commanders, 10 with pathfinders) the Tau shooting should be seriously buffed. With drone controller on the Mark 'O, it should be a guaranteed 8/9 MLs each turn.
Reasons why the Ultramarines will win:
1: Threat Overload. The Ultramarines have lots of highly mobile units, meaning they will try to get up in the Tau faces as soon as possible, forcing them to dilute their firepower over multiple threats. The lack of a decent interceptor threat in the Tau arsenal is also a boon to the Drop Pod Unit.
2: Bike Squad. A significant part of the above. Beyond volume of fire, the Tau have no answer to this unit. If it makes combat T1, expect it to sweep a unit each turn as it romps around the field unchallenged.
3: Vindicator. Vanguard deployment has really helped its range issues, and its S10 AP1 means instant un-savable death to pretty much everything the tau possess. Also AV13 on front.
DEPLOYMENT
Spoiler:
Ultramarines win the roll for sides and chooses the side of the board with slightly more terrain (the blue zone). Tau places the Relay Beacon objective on their side of the board (red dot in Orange zone).
Relay Beacon
The Tau deployment is attempting to bait the enemy towards the Relay Beacon. The ADL is arranged to form a pocket around the objective, with flanks curling around it. Fire warriors and Fireblade 'Darkwave' holds the centre of the ADL, with a unit of pathfinders on the left edge of the wall. Broadsides sit behind the fire warriors, ready to lend fire support or switch attentions to anything try to outflank on the left.
Another unit of pathfinders and the Hammerhead deploy behind the ruins on the right flank to try and set up a cross fire.
While Commander 'Calmstar' and his Mark 'O unit deploy behind the LOS blocking terrain.
Tau Deployment Overview
Ultramarines decide to deploy the main force to the centre, presumably to go after the objective. Bike unit, assault squad and Rhino with TAC squad embarked move right up to the line.
While vindicator deploys on the right flank, to try and close the distance asap. DP in reserves, Librarian has joined the TACs quad embarked inside.
Overview of Ultramarines deployment
Tau places first infiltrators - one stealth team deploys on the left flank to keep the Vindicator honest.
While the other deploys on the far right to harass the assault squad
Kroot blob on the central ruins, completing the killing zone around the objective and providing a possible speed bump if needed.
Seizing the initiative would be a relief to the marines, since they are a significant chunk of points down due to previous mission bonuses, and any reason to avoid a round of Tau shooting is a good one. Ultramarines roll to seize...
And are successful! The Emperor be praised!
TURN 1 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Ultramarines signal their intent early on, deploying the drop pod team directly on top of the objective and capturing it immediately. Tau Broadsides opt not to intercept, preferring to wait for possible marker light support.
Librarian and TAC squad pile out, putting the DP between them and the fire warriors as much as possible, but finding them selves in the midst of the cauldron.
The vindicator moves up to try and get the angle on the Commander team
While the Bikes pour forward towards the enemy lines
Assault squad and Rhino also get going
Psychic Phase, and the Libby gets Shrouding off on his boys, Tau don't try to deny
The Libby then casts hallucination on the fire warriors, and Tau fail to deny. Result is a -1 to WS, BS, Initiative and Attacks while the fire warriors sit around and contemplate how beautiful the world is...
Vindicator finds itself slightly out of range of the commander, so moves up closer but remaining in cover.
Bikes also continue to trundle forward, passing their dangerous terrain tests to boot.
With everything else having run, the Libby and his TAC unit open up on the Kroot in cover, killing three. They would hold.
Marines may not have killed much, but they have significantly closed the gap between them and the waiting Tau gun line with no casualties....yet.
TURN 1 – Tau
Spoiler:
So.... the Tau forces, being Tau, don't see that much in the way of close combat. For understandable reasons. Believing their own hype in the fluff that Kroot are the answer to this issue, they decide to take advantage of the close proximity of the TAC unit, forgo their rapid fire shooting and position themselves for an easy charge.
Hammerhead comes out to play
Stealth team move up on the Bounding Assault marines
While the Mark 'O unit get the angle on the bike squad
The other stealth team maneuver for the angel to get side armour on the vindicator
Pathfinders suffer from marker light blindness - rather than pumping their pulse carbines into the TAC squad right in front of them, they opt to light up the assault marines with 2 tokens. The rail rifle also manages to kill one.
Command team light up the Vindicator for four ML tokens, while firing their MPs at the bike squad to no effect (thanks to some awesome FNP saves)
Stealth team take advantage of the tokens, boosting BS to 7 and make every shot count. 12 rolls at AP, need 3 6's to glance it to death.... but only manage 2! Could mean death for the stealth team next turn...
Hammerhead's turn to whiff. Goes after the rhino laden with troops - Big gun hits but it gets cover saved. SMS then hits home, but only manages a glance.
Other stealth teams use up the ML tokens on the assault squad, killing 2 more. They would hold.
Time to bring the gun line to bear. Broadside have a crack at the bike squad, but whiff. Pathfinders light up the bike squad for 2 MLs, and Fire warriors bring their guns to bear and utilize the ML tokens to bring their BS back up to 4 (after -1 from hallucination).
29 shots later, and one biker is dead - again, mostly due to tanking by the chapter master, some inspired FNP rolls and a timely Look out Sir.
Combat phase (yes, there is one to write about in the Tau turn!!!) and kroot charge in
In hindsight, this was a stupid decision. The kroot might be able to beat down on, say, guardsmen I suppose, but they are not built for dealing with marines in close quarters. The combat is predictably disastrous, and the kroot are swept on their own charge, with no loss to the marines.
Assault moves, and the command team try to get out of range/sight of the vindicator
While the stealth team spread out to try and lessen the pain if he decides to go after them instead
Overall, a very bad turn for the Tau.
TURN 2 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Ultramarines prepare to get stuck in. Libby and TAC squad move towards the pathfinders in the ruins
While Rhino with TAC embarked moves up 12" to support
the battered and bruised assault squad switches focus and go for revenge against the stealth team
Bike squad moves in on the pathfinders. Having survived a hail of fire last turn, they lose a marine to dangerous terrain. Go figure.
While the vindicator positions for an angle on the Command teams marker drones
Psychic phase, and Libby gets shrouding off on his unit again
While he casts Psychic Shriek on the Fire warriors. Thanks to the Cadre Fireblade's LD9 though it ha no effect
Shooting, and the vindicator scatters off the marker drones
While bike squad and Libby TAC squad forgo shooting, not wishing to remove their charge target form play. Assault squad charges the stealth team, but fails the distance.
To make matters worse, they then lose a marine to over watch
Libby ad TAC squad charge the pathfinders
and sweep them, with no casualties
The then consolidate back towards the drop pod
Bike Squad charges the other unit of pathfinders with ease
They take 40+ over watch shots due to supporting fire from the fire warriors
But emerge unscathed to sweep the pathfinder unit
They don't consolidate enough to get past the ADL, so just shuffle around instead. All in all, great turn for the marines.
TURN 2 – Tau
Spoiler:
Tau are in a tough spot - they have lost 2/3 of their marker light support and have barely dented the enemy who are now in charge range of multiple units. Time to start focusing down enemy units and reducing the number of threats on the board before the Tau get overwhelmed.
Rolling on reserves, and the Piranha comes in. Unfortunately, it mishaps by 1/2" and goes back into ongoing reserves.
Stealth team move in to eliminate the lone assault marine. He will not survive.
While the other team move in for another go at the vindicators side armour
Hammerhead ignores the rhino and gets the angle on the Libby and TAC squad. Nicely packed together, if only this big gun had some kind of pie plate it could drop....
Commander team start moving away from the bike squad.
Shooting, and the Stealth team wipe out the assault marine (top left), while hammer head drops a submunition round on the TAC, followed up with the SMS. Unfortunately, this only manages to kill 2 marines.
Command team light up the bike squad for 2 ML tokens, and as a bonus manage to take out a biker with their MPs
Broadsides shoot at the rhino laden with TAC squad, but once again whiff. The fire warriors use up the marker lights and pile 30 shots into the bike squad, scoring a massive 15 wounds!
Two marines by the farm with Look Out Sirs, leaving the Chapter master to tank 13 wounds on his Artificer armour / FNP. The dice are rolled..... and he only fails two!
To make matters worse, the Stealth team fail to get the single dance they needed at point blank range to take out the vindicator.
Another sub par shooting phase for the Tau, the command team assault jump as far as possible from the bike squad
Turn 3 – Ultramarines
Spoiler:
Ultramarines find themselves in a commanding position, time to go for the jugular
Bike squad moves forward, with only one target in mind
Vindicator decides to deal with the pesky stealth team
While the rhino repositions and deploys the TAC squad in behind the hammerhead
The Libby & TAC squad move menacingly towards the fire warriors position
Psychic phase, and the Libby Perils while getting Shrouding off, suffering a wound.
He also manages to cast Psychic Shriek, killing three fire warriors. They would hold.
TAC squad open up on the stealth team with mixed results. They only kill two (mostly tanks to the 2+ cover save) but lose their sergeant to gets hot on the combi-plasma.
Vindicator shoots at the other stealth team, but they make all their cover saves. Bike squad charges the command team, losing nothing to over watch (including supporting fore from the broadsides, who are yet to hit anything...)
They win the combat, destroying the marker drones. The command squad would hold, remaining in combat.
Libby and TAC squad go for glory and attempt to storm the Tau lines, but fail the charge. They then lose two marines to over watch
TURN 3 – Tau
Spoiler:
Turn Overview
Unfortunately for us, time has run out and we are forced to call the game. It would be fairly unfair to just call it a draw, as one player is clearly in the ascendancy. So, lets see if we can predict how the next turn would have played out.
Given the removal of all maker light support, if the Tau player was lucky he might kill off the TAC squad & Libby in the centre this turn, but wont be removing the drop pod from the objective anytime soon.
The Broadsides would probably have stayed true to form and continued whiffing, while the command team would be dead in their own assault turn thanks to AP2 instant death on the bike chapter master.
The Hammerhead might take out a marine or two or maybe the drop pod on the objective, but will only be moving 6" max, leaving him dangerously close to the krak grenade wielding TAC squad.
While Both stealth units are out of position and not going to contribute to the end game. The latter will spend most of its time running away from the vindicator, now it has little to no chance of getting the angle on the side armour
Ultramarines turn, and the bike squad would charge the broadsides and easily sweep them, consolidating towards the fire warriors position. TAC squad would charge and easily wreck the Hammerhead on its AV10 rear, while the rhino would either reclaim the objective (if DP was taken out last turn) or turn its attentions to the lone stealth suit behind him. Either way, end of SM turn 4 the Tau would have been out of the game anyway, so it is more than fair to call the game in favour of the Ultramarines.
RESULT
Spoiler:
VP POINTS
Tau: 0 pts Tau Forces do not hold the Relay Beacon
Ultramarines: 1 pts Ultramarine Forces do hold the Relay Beacon
ULTRAMARINES VICTORY
BREAKDOWN
Decisive moment – Ultramarines seizing the initiative. This gave the smurfs a massive advantage, taking them out of Tau ranged for a turn and allowing them to close the gap quickly with no losses. Also hallucination on the FWs at a crucial moment meant they whiffed first turn shooting at the bike squad.
Key units
Tau: Fire warriors. Nothing really stood out for the Tau this game, Stealth teams came close to knocking out the Vindicator, but the fire warriors probably had the most solid performance in a rum bunch.
Ultramarines: Libby & Unit. Effectively sprung the Tau 'trap' around the objective, swept two units in combat and held the objective all game, proving very difficult for the Tau to remove. Psychic powers also had a significant effect this game.
STATS
Tau: Models remaining 19/57
Kill to Death Ratio 0.34
Efficiency 25%
Ultramarines: Models remaining 16/29
Kill to Death Ratio 2.61
Efficiency 75%
POST GAME
Spoiler:
The Ultramarines have captured the Relay Beacon, dealing a blow to the Tau defence of the system. It also allows them to introduce a named character for the part 2 campaign.
Overall the Tau take the Part 1 campaign though, 2 wins to 1. After this final reversal though, they will be at a significant disadvantage in the part 2 campaign.
‘We emerged from our Drop Pod into cover to avoid enemy interceptor fire, but find ourselves sandwiched between the wretched Kroots and skulking Pathfinders. I heard the tales from Brother Fabian about the bravery of those Kroots, and this time I witnessed it for myself. Like enraged animals they charged bravery towards my brothers, only for us to decimate them in the blinking of an eye. Poor fools.’
Brother Librarian Herbort
‘I have to complain to Brother Techmarine, our plasma weaponry has obviously not been properly blessed before being delivered to us at the start of this crusade. It seems to always malfunctioned and end up hurt our own brothers… ‘
Brother Sergeant Volus, in the apothecary cell of Accipiter
‘A Tau skimmer tank suddenly emerged from our behind our position, followed by a HE shell exploding just above our heads. Thanks to the Power Armor and the protection of the Emperor, most of my brothers were unharmed. However, I am unlucky in that a few pieces of shrapnel cut through the knee junction of my armor and broke my leg, stopped me from keeping up with Brother Librarian Herbort and the rest of my brothers.
As I crawled along the ground, I looked up and I suddenly saw blood spewing from Brother Herbort’s ears and mouth as he began to emit an extremely strange noise, So fierce and unnatural it was, as I imagine the sound generated by the opening of the Gates of Hell itself, which almost forced my soul to resonance with it. It was directed towards the enemy though, and multiple Tau warriors opposing us fell to the ground unconsciously to this tumult, their bright cyan blood spilling out all over their armor.’
Brother Veteran Sergeant Lemal, in the apothecary cell of Accipiter
‘All Battle Brothers of Tactical Squad Lemal were very lucky to not suffer the consequence of that Peril of the Warp. Should the mental strength of Brother Herbort be a little weaker at that catastrophic moment, his own soul would have been dragged into the Immaterium, and any souls nearby would have been lashed by the unnatural forces from the Warp.’
Varro Tigurius, Chief Librarian of Ultramarine, Macragge
We buried the Kroot warriors fallen on the battle. They showed their valor once again as they try to tie up Brother Herbort and his men. This time however, it was more like a suicide charge than a well-planned action.
We won a hard fight victory today, capturing the enemy relay beacon and dealing a significant blow to the Tau forces, but with the cost of high casualties on our own side. I decided not to chase the enemy commander and his body guard when they retreat from the battle, as we were not sure whether the cowardly Tau were preparing an ambush for us in the deep forest at that moment. We deconstructed what is left of the relay beacon and delivered it to Brother Sevano the Techmarine, and he promised he will try his best to intercept and compromise the enemy interstellar communication with these devices at hand.
Intel shows that the Tau forces have now decided to retreat from Tethys and relocate on Titan Prime. We may have brought this moon back into the light of the Emperor, however when we move on to the Titan Prime itself we can expect much higher levels of resistance. The battle has been won, but this is only the end of the beginning.’
Brother Fabian, Captain of Ultramarine 3rd Company, Master of Arsenal, acting commander of Battle Force Titan.
Disaster is upon us, and there may be no recovery from it.
This may seem like a hyperbolic statement, but there can be no denying the impact of losing the intact Relay Beacon to the enemy. While communications have been send to Fi’Rios by secondary means to immediately change their encryption codes, it will take time for this message to arrive - time in which our every movement and preparation in this sector will be under Imperial Scrutiny.
The strategy was sound, in line with Puretide's teachings, and an adequate trap set that should have exploited the boldness of the Gue’ron’sha. However our preparation was not sufficiently well planned and the strategy not sufficiently well executed by all forces under my control. It did not help matters that we were further undone by our Auxiliaries recklessness, and a lack of appropriate equipment.
In terms of equipment, we were forced to deploy what little we had remaining that was undamaged – most notably our heavier anti-tank equipment. This was utterly inappropriate for the enemy composition, and proved largely ineffective.
However, the key part of this defeat was our Kroot allies’ recklessness. They formed a keystone of the trap set around the Relay Beacon, and once the Gue’ron’sha had taken the bait, they should have held their position and provided a deadly crossfire. What possessed them to charge into the enemy headlong, I will never know, but it resulted in their destruction and the beginning of our defeat.
The battle was a disaster, and it seems I underestimated the Gue’ron’sha ability to adapt their tactics and foresee our own. Further meditation on the subject to fully understand our failings will be required.
However, the Imperial obsession with capturing the Beacon and an unwillingness to pursue our forces did at least buy us enough time to evacuate all remaining equipment and personnel from Tethys, enabling us to better cement our defence of Titan Prime while we await reinforcement. We can only pray that this is enough.
Borntolose wrote: Great Battle Reports! Nice style, very easy to understand what's going on. Are you going to continue this campaign?
Thanks! Yes, definitely - we have Parts 2 & 3 planned, and they will come with their own campaign booklets too. Hopefully we will pick it up again after Chinese new year. I may even have some more of my Tau painted by then.....
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/02/17 01:17:14
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
As the marine player, I view the victory due to no small part of luck, that stolen inititive is crucial and Imho, Tau's list is not fully optimised, if the Broadside is arming HYMP like the two previous game, it is doubtful wether the bikers can get into combat that smoothly. Maybe Tau is too concern dealing with the Vindicator or the probably present Ironclad Dreadnought. But according to the games played in this campaign, the best way to deal with these "Heavy armor" in these dense terrains scenarios would be tons of S5 or 6 shots into their AV10 rear, rather than only a couple S10 or S8 shots, even AP1. These vehicles can find cover or even hide out of LOS from the heavy AT platform.
On the Ultrmarine side, despite winning, there is one obvious tactical mistake in game. The Libby and his squad should consolidate directly towards the Tau Fire Warriors after eliminate the pathfinders instead to the droppod to seek cover, as the Tau forces were mainly concentrating on the CM and command squad, they may not take heavy causaulty in the incoming Tau shooting phase, and this squad would stand a high chance making into combat in marine's turn 3. Should they made it, the marine's victory might be more convincing.
No matter winning or losing, this campaign is breat chance for me to keep practice the gaming skills, and try out new unit. It is great experience.
2015/02/17 20:04:08
Subject: Titan's Fall: A Tau vs Ultramarines Escalating Campaign [Games 1,2 & 3 Complete]
Dozer Blades wrote:Nice to see the boys in blue finally take one for the Emperor !
Indeed! The Smurf's luck has finally changed for the better!
Neophyte2012 wrote:As the marine player, I view the victory due to no small part of luck, that stolen inititive is crucial and Imho, Tau's list is not fully optimised, if the Broadside is arming HYMP like the two previous game, it is doubtful wether the bikers can get into combat that smoothly. Maybe Tau is too concern dealing with the Vindicator or the probably present Ironclad Dreadnought. But according to the games played in this campaign, the best way to deal with these "Heavy armor" in these dense terrains scenarios would be tons of S5 or 6 shots into their AV10 rear, rather than only a couple S10 or S8 shots, even AP1. These vehicles can find cover or even hide out of LOS from the heavy AT platform.
Yeah Seizing the Initiative was key here, put your guys on the front foot and I couldn't stop their momentum. I went for the HRR mainly as I hadn't tried it before and wanted to see how it performed (as well as the model looking cool ) but in all it was very sub par and I choose its targets poorly (going after Bike squad instead of Drop Pod, etc).
Neophyte2012 wrote:On the Ultramarine side, despite winning, there is one obvious tactical mistake in game. The Libby and his squad should consolidate directly towards the Tau Fire Warriors after eliminate the pathfinders instead to the droppod to seek cover, as the Tau forces were mainly concentrating on the CM and command squad, they may not take heavy casualty in the incoming Tau shooting phase, and this squad would stand a high chance making into combat in marine's turn 3. Should they made it, the marine's victory might be more convincing.
Yeah, would have made the rout complete I think - Threat overload really hurts Tau and I think you demonstrated it here, good job
Righteousrob wrote:Nice reports. Fun to read.
Glad you liked it, more to come in the near future!
If in doubt, frag it out...
Fight spam with spam, cheese with cheese, and fluff with a razor sharp sense of the appropriate
) Points will escalate throughout the missions, with various bonuses becoming available depending on battle results. All games will be hosted by the good people at 
![[Disk]](/dakkaforum/templates/default/images/icon_disk.gif){kind=icon}
3000 Guardians of the Covenant
6000 Iyanden not Wraith heavy
1500 Grey Knights Painted
4000 Necron Painted
1000 Dark Eldar allies for Eldar
1000 Tervigon list
Just started Enclave
Waiting for new cody, Lysander is finished
Thought for the day 
looking forward to the continuation this weekend!
I will also try some new units that I never used before in the rest of the games. 
) and then hit the kroot with the bike squad - their grav guns wouldn't have done much but you would have easily swept them in 
Sable Brotherhood - 2000pts
Wraithsight Corsairs - 2000pts
Void Angels - 500pts 
1500 