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This is my first time posting anything like this so apologies if it's in the wrong section and should in fact be in Dakka fiction, if it should and a mod wants to move it please feel free. I won't be (too) upset.
I recently got back into 40k after more than a decade out of it. I got back in through reading a lot of the really brilliant fluff that exists. I've been building up a reasonably sized Dark Angels force (around 3000 points so far with a few units now painted) and I've been lucky to find someone to play against. I only got back into the game to paint really but after I started painting I thought it might be good to try playing again and then that led onto the few games I've played so far.
Because I love the fluff of 40k so much I thought I might try and turn my hand to writing it a little bit as I write up my initial battle reports. This is my first ever time trying this so any (constructive) feedback gratefully received. Pure fluff is in the spoilers and fluffy battle reports are in the main text. Also you might think I've humanised my Dark Angels too much. That's probably because I read mainly Imperial Guard fluff (and strangely enough I'm human myself) so I find it easiest to relate to the more human elements of the 41st millennium. My opponent doesn't currently have much in the way of an army so is using mostly my Crimson Slaughter from Dark Vengeance but more reinforcements are on their way!
XX.09.39015 – The daring Dark Angels pursued a small band of the hated Crimson Slaughter Chaos Space Marines, and their despised cultist underlings, across the frontier world of Calitra in Markayn Marches subsector of Calixis Sector. As time went on the battles, and the stakes involved, grew larger and larger.
Spoiler:
Sergeant Raphael looked across the wide open vista of the Calitra plains and wondered, not for the first time, had brought the hated foes of the Crimson Slaughter to such a far flung part of the galaxy. Why here, on a frontier world, were the Dark Gods underlings probing at Imperial defences. No matter thought Raphael, his place was not to discern the reasons of the heretics, for in that path lay only madness, his place was to destroy them. Only once they had bested them in battle could Raphael, proud Sergeant in the Dark Angels 5th Company, begin to look for the reasons why the Crimson Slaughter were on Calitra and begin to plan as to how to prevent them achieving their larger aims. With him on Calitra he was with a small force from the 5th Company, supplemented by Battle Brothers from the 1st Company. However, although this was a small force it was enough to take and hold an entire planet. The local PDF had been at turns awestruck, and at turns terrified when the Dark Angels arrived. But if there had any been any doubt as to their loyalty to the far flung God Emperor that was dispelled in an instant as they saw his sons emerge from their gunships. Sergeant Raphael turned to look East and there he saw dust rising on the horizon. With his augmented eyesight he could already tell that he was about to experience his first contact with the Crimson Slaughter.
On 23.09.39015 Squad Raphael took on 20 cultists of the hated Crimson Slaughter. The cultists were destroyed almost to a man (thing?) with only one left to slink off into the night. Sadly four marines received grievous injuries during the encounter and were unable to take any further part in the battle. [Both units of Crimson Slaughter destroyed, four marines killed.]
Spoiler:
That was too easy thought Raphael, his men checking their weapons. The cultists, Emperor curse them, were certainly deadly - the four marines being patched up by their battle brothers could attest to that - but really they were no match for even one squad of marines, especially men of the Dark Angels. But Raphael knew this could just be a feint and so he made sure that all his men were ready for another attack, not that he even needed to check. They were Space Marines, the Emperors finest fighting machines and they were always ready, even those receiving treatment. As Raphael continued to scan the horizon a smile crept to his mouth, in the distance he could see a mighty unit of Deathwing terminators moving towards him. This could mean only one thing, a much more appropriate battle awaited them and they were receiving reinforcements.
Later on 23.09.39015 Squad Raphael and Terminator Squad Kaelen took on the despoiled mass of 20 cultists and 6 of the hated Crimson Slaughter Chosen. Thankfully the Empire’s might prevailed and all of the enemy ‘troops’ were destroyed, with only four cultists fleeing in terror after seeing the wholesale destruction of their Chosen leaders. In a very defensive battle, all six Chosen were gunned down. Whilst Squad Raphael took the loss of five marines very heavily, particularly as two were knocked out by their own plasma weapons, the righteousness of the Dark Angels again took the spoils. [All of the Crimson Slaughter destroyed for the loss of five marines]
Spoiler:
It was days now since Raphael had stood shoulder to shoulder with Sergeant Kaelen and his men and destroyed those foul Chosen and he hadn't seen any other action. There had been probing attacks on the small city that marked the provincial capital by cultists, but the PDF had taken the brunt of most of those attacks and had managed to fight off the attackers. Raphael was now searching through the wreckage of one of those attacks - an ambush on a merchants convoy. This had been the first large massacre of civilians since the Crimson Slaughter had arrived and so Company Master Balthasar himself had arrived with larger forces to inspect the wreckage. Raphael could see Company Master Balthasar discussing the attack with Librarian Turmiel but it wasn't the presence of two of the Dark Angels greatest leaders that had led Raphael to look in that direction but the distant sound of chanting that had preceded the other attacks by Crimson Slaughter cultists. Raphael readied his squad, as the rest of the Dark Angels present prepared. He could hear the reassuring sound of his Brothers from the 2nd Company revving his engine and once more he was pleased that he could count the lightning quick Ravenwing at his side. It was then that he noticed the sound of a different, much deeper and more tortured engine sounding from the other side of the overturned lorries of the ambushed merchants caravan. Perhaps the Crimson Slaughter had finally come in strength for a pitched battle...
On 25.09.39015 the scale of the engagements stepped up. Company Master Balthasar and Librarian Turmiel led Tactical squads Raphael and Zadakiel, Ravenwing bike squad Arion, Rhino Swift Delivery, and Terminator Squad Kaelen. Facing them was a plethora of accursed Crimson Tide scum. Ranged against them were a Chaos Lord, two 10 man units of close combat cultists, one 10 man unit of ranged cultists, 6 Space Marine Chosen with close combat weapons, a Hellbrute dreadnaught, and a unit of traitorous imperial guard veterans from the previous garrison force of Calitra who had fallen to the dark chaos gods and had brought three plasma guns, carapace armour, and a psyker with them. The battle started poorly for the Dark Angels with the Ravenwing sweeping around to the right hand side of the battlefield [scouting forward] before the Chosen fell upon them and destroyed them in close combat. Yet again two brave marines were felled by misfiring plasma guns, a heavy price indeed to pay for such exquisite technology. The foul traitor imperial guard entered the field behind tactical squad Zadakiel, led by none other than the Chaos Lord (infiltrated). Taking the brave squad Zadakiel by surprise they were able to use their devastating firepower of three plasma guns and multiple shotguns to take out 5 marines in a single salvo. Sensing the injustice that had just been done to Veteran Sergeant Zadakiel’s brave squad Terminator Squad Kaelen deep striked right in front of the traitor guard, gunning down many as they arrived, with the all but one destroyed in the cross fire between Squad Zadakiel and the Terminators. On the left flank Squad Raphael had made quick work of one of the squads of cultists, with pin point precision. But they had the terrifying Hellbrute bearing down upon them. The Chaos Lord responded in fury and jumped into combat with Squad Zadakiel, taking down four remaining marines in a blur of fury, leaving only veteran sergeant Zadakiel left who managed to fell the sole remaining traitor guard and held his position against the Chaos Lord. Seeing their brothers killed by the foul Chaos Lord Terminator Squad Kaelen charged in and dispatched the profane stain on Calitra that was the Chaos Lord. Squad Raphael and Company Master Balthasar finally took out the terrifying Hellbrute with their plasma weapons after its attempt to charge them was repulsed by the power of their plasma weaponry [failed charge role by 1”]. This left only one unit of long range cultists on the left flank which Squad Raphael swiftly pursued as Balthasar and Turmiel tried to rush to the right flank to aid the Terminators. The Chosen destroyed Squad Zadakiel’s Rhino in close combat. Thankfully though one of the putrid Chosen died in the explosion caused by their own powerful blows. Terminator Squad Kaelen charged the Chosen, wiping them out but losing two more of their number in the strongly fought engagement. The heretical psyker killed Veteran Sergeant Zadakiel, popping his mind with his disgusting chaos magic. The three remaining Terminators in Kaelen squad charged the close combat squad of cultists sheltering the demon spawn cultist psyker and slaughtered them all, running down the survivors, but not before being reduced to a single proud Deathwing. As both sides regrouped it was clear that there had been another powerful victory for the Dark Angels, with only five chaos cultists left. But it had come at a high cost with 13 marines, a Rhino, all three ravenwing, and four terminators as casualties. [DA 10 VP, Chaos 3 VP. Lesson for the day – don’t sell the Ravenwing so cheaply.]
Spoiler:
Raphael looked around the field. He knew in the future that it would go down as a glorious victory for the Dark Angel chapter having defeated someone so powerful as a Chaos Lord but at the moment all he could feel was the pain as he looked over at his Brother Sergeant Zadakiel. They had been neophytes together and now he was lying on the floor staring into the sky and howling after that foul chaos sorcerer had invaded his brain. Perhaps Librarian Turmiel would be able to save him but Raphael knew that someone might have to administer the final rites to him. Raphael looked at his boltpistol and then looked away.
That's it for my first go at this. Please let me know what you think!
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/12/29 17:39:28
I like the narrative approach you take to battles, maybe in the future you could include more of the actual battles, but for your first batreps, very nicely done.
TheEyeOfNight- I swear, this thread is 70% smack talk, 20% RP organization, and 10% butt jokes
TheEyeOfNight- "Ordo Xenos reports that the Necrons have attained democracy, kamikaze tendencies, and nuclear fission. It's all tits up, sir."
Space Marine flyers are shaped for the greatest possible air resistance so that the air may never defeat the SPACE MARINES!
Sternguard though, those guys are all about kicking ass. They'd chew bubble gum as well, but bubble gum is heretical. Only tau chew gum
Thanks for the feedback War Kitten. Great to know that people were actually reading this! The first two battles were very short (just us practising the rules as neither had played for a very long time) but I could have probably written more about the third game, I'll keep this in mind for when I next write. Since those games I've been reading the rulebook properly and noticed a number of mistakes we made so hopefully our game will be even better next time (though I'm of the strong believe that if both players had fun then it didn't really matter that we got a couple of rules confused). Of course this was all written from the Space Marine perspective. Very likely you might have got a different view if the foul Chaos had scrawled their incoherent propaganda about what they thought had happened
Balthasar turned to his sergeants and explained his plan to them. It was simple. Direct. A good plan. They had finally made contact with the bulk of the Chaos forces on Calitra. They were the remnants of the PDF on the planet, or so they thought at the time. They were marching on the Dark Angel positions and it was a good time for to meet them in open combat. Balthasar's Battle Demi-Company would seize three important points on the battlefield, designated Objectives Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie, that were equally important to the forsaken PDF and hold them against their attack. Balthasar thought it shouldn't be hard, after all what was a rabble of former PDF heretics against the might of his holy Emperor's avenging angels?
Raphael was pleased to hear the plan, it was divine in its simplicity and would allow the Dark Angels to show the enemy what happened to those who turned away from the light of the God-Emperor. It was also a chance to take to the field with Sergeant Zadakiel again. It was a while since the psyker had nearly destroyed him with his attack, over three standard Terran months, but it had taken this long, and the mental fortitude of a true son of the Lion, to recover from such an attack.
27.12.39015 The size of the force that Company Master Balthasar had at his disposal had increased again. This time he led a Battle Demi-Company with three tactical squads (Veteran Sergeants Zadakiel and Raphael leading two full size squads and Sergeant Lorien leading a half squad), an assault squad, and a Devastator Squad. He was joined by Librarian Turmiel leading his Combined Arms Detatchment of the other half of Sergeant Lorien's squad, Sergeant Corvus' scout squad, a Whirlwind and Predator for heavy support, and a Ravenwing Bike Squad led by Veteran Sergeant Joshua. Arrayed against him were fivesquads of heretics, three Chimera's and a Manticore. But this wasn't the PDF rabble they'd been led to believe but a crack outfit of turncoat Imperial Guard veterans armed with melta's and plasma guns in every squad and one of the five squads was a command squad with an Imperial commander and a dangerous looking psyker in it. [My opponent was playing a mix of IG regiments - all veterans with a mix of either 3 meltas or 3 plasmas in each squad and Carapace Armour. Two squads and the command squad were mounted in Chimeras, two other squads dismounted. I choose to believe they were part of the Chaos rebellion I've been trying to put down. He may think they were a bit more noble than that!].
Spoiler:
Balthasar was nonplussed. It was true that the intelligence about the enemy was incorrect and they were facing seemingly better drilled opponents than they had imagined, and with significantly better weapons than he would have liked, but these were still unaugmented humans who would die before the might of his men.
The battle started slowly with the IG rebels not doing much to start with other than to have their Psyker be pulled screaming into the warp after successfully helping all reserve throws to be re-rolled. After seeing the IG hesitate I decided to take all three objectives on my opening turn - my scouts already had one after scouting forward before the battle began and I had tactical squads move up to occupy the other two. With all troops on both sides having objective secured it was important to be close to them to cement control.
But what was this. Turn two began with the IG commander revealed his true strength with three flyers (2 Valkyries and 1 Vendetta). Inside was another veteran squad, two storm trooper section, and a storm trooper command squad parachuted in. Suddenly I was facing rather a threatening army.
Spoiler:
Raphael could read, for the briefest of seconds, the disgust on Company Master Balthasar's face. He was honoured when the venerable Company Master had chosen to join his squad in the middle of the battlefield as they approached Objective Bravo. Now he knew he would get a chance to see the tactical brilliance that Balthasar was famed for in action. He could see the older Battle Brother speaking into his comlink and both his hearts rejoiced when he heard Bathasar's call answered by no less than Grand Master Belial. Raphael knew that this would be a famous victory for his men.
The reinforcements, all zooming in, made an immediate impact - one vendetta blowing up the Whirlwind after it had only taking out one chaos neophyte. Three members of Squad Raphael were gunned down by the Valkerie and a further three marines from the half squad on objective Charlie were killed by a combination of the second Vendetta and the newly arrived stormtrooper command squad. This was too much for the squad to take and they were forced to fall back [not retreat of course] from the objective but instantly turned to face their enemy again. On the left flank of the battlefield three of Squad Zadakiel were lost at Objective Alpha to the firing of the veteran squads facing them. Better was seen from the scouts who had taken up a high sniping position on Objective Bravo who only lost one of their number after being targeted by seven plasma cannons, an autocannon, two multilasers, two heavy stubbers, and a heavy bolter! Their ability to take strong cover positions in the tower they were inhabiting was proving to be very useful.
Spoiler:
With a shimmer in the air Raphael saw two squads of Deathwing, one including Grand Master Belial, materialise out of the immaterium behind enemy lines. He heard the low, gruff roar of three engines as a Ravenwing force charged in from the right flank taking the veteran squad there by surprise, and finally behind him an Assault squad roared in on their jetpacks. He knew the chaos scum, despite the casualties they had just caused with their unexpected reinforcements, would now be quailing in fear at the might of the Dark Angels arrayed around them. Now it would be crucial to negate the enemy flyers or this could be a very costly battle for the Dark Angels, no more brave brothers should be lost to those who had fallen from the light of the Emperor.
My reinforcements, all arriving on the second turn, instantly evened things up a bit more. Librarian Turmiel made sure that the deadly Valkerie could only snap fire in the next turn. Terminator Squad Barachiel managed to take out most of a veteran squad as they arrived with their guns blazing. Terminator Squad Kaelen and Grand Master Belial destroyed a Chimera and three further veterans.
Moving on the traitors disembarked three further squads, two of stormtroopers and one of veterans, from their three flyers. As the traitor guard fought back they managed to kill the whole of Ravenwing Squad Joshua, hitting them with a remarkable level of plasma hits and vaporising the bikes from under them. Both of the small tactical squads from Squad Lorien and Librarian Turmiel who was with one of them, all near objective Charlie, were destroyed by newly landed scions and one of the Vendettas. Three terminators from squad Barachiel were killed by the Imperial Guard commander's squad, and three more Terminators from squad Kaelen, attached to Belial, were destroyed by combined gunfire from a number of squads and Chimeras. Squad Raphael is reduced to a single marine by the final scion squad. This was an extraordinary few minutes for the brave Marines of the 1st, 2nd, and 5th companies.
The Dark Angels had to hit back hard in their third round and started with a few vets taken down by shooting before the Assault squad took out an entire scion squad in a single round of combat. Unfortunately Company Master Balthasar was overwhelmed by veterans [after failing to damage with any of his four attacks], over on the left wing Belial and his lone remaining terminator took out three further veterans.
The Assault squad quickly became the target of two squads and two Vendetta's and were just taken down. A storm trooper squad gained objective Bravo and burnt out all the remaining scouts there. This meant that in killing the assault marines and the scouts that both Bravo and Charlie were now in the hands of the arch-enemy. Tactical squad Zadekial continued to get picked off whilst they bravely held objective Alpha, losing two more marines to plasma guns. In the close combat taking place at the back of the battlefield Terminator squad Barachiel took out the enemy commander in chief in close combat and Belial destroyed the squad that he had been fighting.
Belial then had a decision to make, to charge towards objective Bravo, opening himself up to fire from the stormtroopers safely within it's walls but possibly gaining control over the objective, or charging a Chimera with a melta squad in that had caused such pain to his loyal brothers lying around him. Not knowing how much longer the battle would rage for, and being too far from objective Bravo to be sure of reaching it he decided to charge the Chimera. The remains of Terminator squad Barachiel make a similar decision. However both squads only manage to land a single glancing blow on the surprisingly hardy Chimeras. Other than that Squad Zadekial's heavy plasma managed to destroy a Valkerie, finally reducing the aerial threat facing the Dark Angels.
The traitor guard consolidate their positions around the objectives and open fire on the unharmed Devestators, singly failing to do them any damage despite the weight of fire (including five lascannons) they can use against them. The final terminator of squad Barachiel is picked off by plasma fire, and the last terminator of squad Kaelen is picked off by melta fire - leaving Belial on his own. Sergeant Zadekial is knocked down by plasma fire leaving only two Marines in his squad still standing.
With the battle almost over there was just time for the devestator squad, who up until now have only taken out a few imperial guard, to take out a Vendetta, and the Predator (who had yet to mark up a single kill) to take out four more veterans.
Spoiler:
Grand Master Belial surveyed the ruined landscape that he was fighting over, and that he had lost so many good battle brothers in. He had to accept it. As much as he may hate to do it, the tactically sound decision was to call a retreat. To nurse their wounded and live to fight another day. The days losses had been grievous. He didn't know their status at the moment but many great Marines, including members of inner circle, had fallen under the weapons of the Chaos heretics today. Although many would live on, the chaplains and the apothecary would all be busy this evening. He depressed the stud on his comlink and gave the order.
Overall this was a bit of a beating I took against a very elite Imperial Guard army. I didn't know my opponent had any aircraft so when I turned up and there were three(!) and I hadn't bothered to take any anti aircraft precautions in my army I knew I was in for a hard time. In the end I was left with only Belial, 2 tactical marines, a Predator, and an unharmed devestator squad. I was facing still two (damaged) Chimera, two veteran squads, a storm trooper squad, a vendetta, and a Manticore. I also only had possession of one objective and my opponent had two.
Okay so what did I learn? Firstly that I needed anti-aircraft options. Unfortunately I only own three models with missile launchers so at most I could have taken three flakk missiles. Anyone with more suggestions for Dark Angels to counter an aerial threat? Secondly I was stupid to charge in Ravenwing on the flank unsupported. They basically had to sit there and take a face full of plasma shots before they could charge and unfortunately it took them out. Thirdly I shouldn't have dropped the terminators in the backfield. As the best units I had they should have been on the objectives, holding them. I got carried away with killing and didn't concentrate on the objectives as much as I should have towards the end. Fourth charging vehicles was a mistake, despite the tanks only being WS1 I still needed threes to hit and some terrible dice rolling meant I was missing a lot. Also Belial is not good against tanks, only having a power sword and so wasn't able to finish off a tank in two rounds of combat. Also the fact (that I hadn't realised before) that you're not locked in combat with vehicles meant that I got a turn less cc against them and turn extra being shot at with plasma and meltas - losing two terminators in the process. Really wouldn't attack vehicles again unless I had a lot more luck with the dice and a lot more power fists. Fifth it's true that unpainted models do worse - my army is about half painted (I'm trying to catch up) whereas my opponents was fully painted. My rolling was horrible, his pretty good. Sixth not being able to charge from a successful combat into another combat means that winning combat is not always good - if you win it on your turn you're going to have to take a turn of being shot on your opponents turn before you can charge again (if you survive). Any suggestions for taking on a shooty veteran IG force greatly appreciated, perhaps my army choice was wrong so I'd also take any advice on that.
