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I made the trip to Chicago this weekend to event 5 of the AWC series championship to try something new. I am giving a painted Blood Angel army away on Sept. 11th and I thought Id bring the army out for people to see at the tournament. I do not play marines so it was going to be a bit of a challenge for me to
A.) Make a list
B.)Play it right
C.) Deploy (I usually play Deamons)

My List

HQ
Librarian (bloodlance, preferred enemy)

Elite
5 x th ss termies
Land Raider redeemer (multi melta)

Fast
2 x Baal predators each with HB sponsons

Heavy
Vindicator-siege sheild

Troops
5 x assault marines (melta)
5 x assault marines (melta, TH)
10 x Tac Squad (Melta, ML, Pfist)
Razorback - Lascannon
8 x Death Company (2 x PW, TH)
Rhino
Death Company Dred-Fists
Drop Pod



It was whacky mission day at the Chicago Bunker. Didnt know if this would help or hurt me but maybe some luck from an odd mission would help this "green" marine player.

Game One
Mission-
Primary....Place two objectives. Score more objectives than your opponent.
2ndry......Get every unit out of your deployment zone
Terrtiary.....Kill all opposing troops.

Whacky part of the mission.....Mine field. Each player has a pitched battle deployment zone, but inbetween is no mans land. Anything moving over 6" between movement or running takes dangerous terrain checks.

Ok, get objective, move into the minefield, and kill all troops. Dont go fast....got it.

Round 1 opponent
Chaos Marines

HQ
2 x Tzeentch DP with wings and warptime
Summoned Greater Deamon

Heavy
2 x defiler

Troops
10 Plaguemarines w/ 2 melta in rhino
10 plaguemarines w/ 2 plasma in rhino
10 Thousand Sons in rhino....sorcerer with S8 shot
10 Thousand Sons in rhino....sorcerer with S4 AP 3 shots



Ok...24" of no mans land can be covered pretty quick with 4 rhinos, 2 winged creatures, and 2 defilers. Luckily there is a minefield. My army has some teeth but killing 40 marines of Nurgle and Tzeentch will take some work.

DEPLOYMENT

I win the roll off and have him deploy first. The board has a 4" tall 6" wide wall in the center of the board with hills and area terrain scattered around. He deploys a rhino of Nurgle and Tzeentch on either side in his deployment zone. Then he put a defiler and DP on each side of the wall. So 2 halves of roughly equal value.
I needed to gun down his wheels and kill those winged things before they got into my lines. I figured I would shoot away and fall back and whatever made it to me I would throw the Death Company and Termies at. Land Raider in Center. Next to it the Vindy, then the 2 Baals against the board edge. Death Company rhino and Razorback hid behin a hill near the vindi. 2 assault squads waited in reserve, Libby went with the Termies. Missile Launcher combat squad on a hill. 2 objectives are in no mans land in the center but on my half the board.

He goes first and moves everything 6" forward and pops smoke. Defiler blasts do nothing.

Bottom 1. Death Company dred lands next to a defiler Furthest from my units trying to cause a distraction. He fires his melta gun and nothing. I Fire a pred at a DP of Tzeentch closest to me and wound it twice. I unload on his rhinos, blowing up the nearest Nurgle one. I also blow up the far, thousand son Rhino. I have crept out of my deployment zone to engage but I didnt want to get within 12" of his army this early so a few of the vehicles were partially in my deployment zone and partially out.

Top 2 He sends his defiler over to kill the death company dred. It assaults and thanks to the fists, the defiler is killed. His nearest DP jumps 12" towards me and attempts to asault a predator. He is about 1/8" short, but since the game was early and it was a fairly light mood I said lets d6 to see if you can make the charge. We do....it falls his way....Predator explodes. Well being sporting was a horrible idea. He takes a sorcerer and fires a S8 beam at my Vindi immobilizing it in my deployment zone. Well there goes the 2ndry objective.

Bottom 2 Death company dred assaults the T sons that shot the Bolt at me and only kills 1. He rolls well on his invuls. I dont disembark my Death Company to hit the DP as I think my shooting will bring it down. Nurgle marines w/ melta are about 18" from the Land Raider. Here is where my inexperience with marines bites me. Do I drive up, multimelta the rhino and assault with termies, or back off. I decide to back off and use the MM and Assault cannon. I unload on the DP and Melta Rhino and fail to do anything. I fire the Baal at the DP and he makes all 6 saves. I fire the Vindi at some Plague marines causing 7 coversaves and he makes 6. I didnt disembark the DC and that DP is a real threat to my whole army. My last 2 shots have to go at it. I fore the ML and the razorback at the Prince and he fails both invul saves. Schwew.

Top 3 No greater Deamon yet. His other DP flies back to go deal with the DC dred. Perfect that dred has killed a defiler and tied up a DP. The poor dred looses both arms and is immobilized. His melta rhino advances 6 more inches putting him about 14" away. The defiler advances up the center as well.

Bottom 3. Both reserves show up and I land them in my backfield as they have no odvious targets. His DP finishes off my dred. My Land Raider advances 6" but I decide to hold the termies inside. I kill the Defiler with an assault cannon and the multimelta stuns the rhino with the Melta. The vindi shoots and knocks out the T sons rhino. The rest of my shooting nets me about 3 dead plaguemarines.

Top 4. Still no Greater Deamon for him. T sons look at the Vindy sitting there immobilized. I think to myself the Vindi is like Arnold in Predator saying "Come on.....Kill me.....do it....Im right here" They assault but do not kill it, though it is stunned. Dam I wanted that thing dead. He fires his melta shots at my Landraider after disembarking. One misses and the other mearly blows a weapon off. He chooses the Ass. annon. His DP assaults the Raider as well but does nothing. Plague marines fire plasma in vein at the predator.

Bottom 4. I think its time to strike and hopefully snuff him out. How do I do it. Termies and death company are wasted on the T sons. Shooting is a waste on the T sons....Hmmm well Ive had success bringing down squads with scarab swarms so Ill try using my 2 assault squads. Each assault squad leaps into melee with the T sons and reduce down to slap fights with little damage to each side. Each T son squad is at about 4 remaining. DC wipes out a squad of plague marines that have plasma. Termies assault and kill the DP of Tzeetch with the help of preferred enemy. Land Raider Firestorms the plaguemarines but only kills 2 due to FNP.

Top 5 His greater deamon arrives and assaults the DC killing 5. I do a wound. Assault squads have one squad of T sons down to 3 and one squad down to 1. A melta Plague marine blows up the Land Raider.

Bottom 5. I finish off a squad of T sons. The other has 2 left. My termies assault the plaguemarines and due to prefered enemy wipe out the squad with combat res. They consolidate towards the last 2 t sons. My razorback jets 12" and the squad disembarks to grab one of the objectives. I start moving the ML squad towards the other objective so his Greater Deamon cant contest both.

We roll and the game ends. Dang it. He was down to 3 wounds left on the Greater Deamon and 2 T sons left on the board. I needed antoher turn to hopefully wipe him out. I won primary. He was entirely out of his deployment zone and I had an immobile Vindi in mine. He won secondary. I needed to kill the last 2 of his 40 marines to eliminate his troops so I dont get terrtiary. So I end the round with command of the battlefield but only 20 points out of 48 to show for it.

I dont think I did anything wrong as moving out of my deployment zone altogether with my army would have givin him the chance to get into me early and go to a melee fest. I have melee units, but small in number. 2 DP of Tzeentch can do some damage. It was a fun, close game, and I didnt feel I had an advantage until the DC and termies charged. Im glad I held the DC back most the game. I liken them to the WAAAGGHH for orks. The later you use it probably the better the game will be for you.

It was fun to use an army that deploys, and that is tricky to run. With deamons I just land...duck for cover...then run full tilt at my opponent hunting whatever I can reach.

This army needs to soften up an opponent and then strike, with a friendly black robot causing a distraction in the enemy backfield somewhere.

The mission was ok, but I am a bit bitter about an early immobilizing essentially ruining my 2ndry objective. Maybe I should have planned for that possibilty and placed an objective near his deployment zone and had an assault squad grab it. This would have forced a unit of his to go back and maybe I could wrap them up into a melee that spills into his depoyment zone so we would have drawn.

I dont have that kind of forward thinking on the spot so I was thankfull to have 20 points and on to round 2.

Round 2 of whacky mission day was a mission I had never played before. The deployment zones were the short edges of the board and you could deploy up to 24" in. This left a 24" no mans land and then 24" of enemy deployment zone.

Primary. You get a point for every unit that moves off the board in the movement phase. The unit is gone for the remainder of the bqattle though. Whoever gets the most off the board wins primary.

2ndry- Kill points

Terrtiary win by 750 VP

Opponent
More Chaos Marines

HQ
2 x Lash Prince w/ wings

Elite
6 x Terrmies 5 combi melta, 1 lightning claw

Heavy
2 x 3 oblits

Troops
2 x 5 Noise marines with S8 blast weapon in Rhino
1 x 10 Noise marines in Rhino.
7 Thousand sons in rhino

He wins roll off and chooses to go first. He deploys as far forward as possible with all rhinos and princes. Termies and Oblits are deepstriking in.
The board is covered with area terrain, it will be hard to move vehicles around without taking dangerous terrain tests. I push as far forward as possible for deployment. Ill have to kill those lash princes and knock out those rhinos. Missile Launcher is put on a hill in the rear of the board. Land Raider and Death company are together and the vindi and razorback are together on the far side of my deployment zone. One Baal is outflanking to get off the board the turn it comes on and I am deepstriking the Assault squads for the same purpose.

Turn 1. He rolls the T sons forward as well as both lash princes. The 10 man noise marine rhino barrels ahead as well. Both the rhinos with s8 shots fire and do nothing to my vehicles.

Bottom 1 Dred drops in and immobilizes one of the 5 man noise marine rhinos. It is in his backfield so he will have to deal with it with oblits or termies, or let it get off the board after killing some noise marines. My shooting immobilizes the t-sons rhino and kills a demon prince.

Top 2 All his reserves come in. He lands one oblit squad off the noise marine rhino that is immobile. He pops the drednaught. Not what I wanted but at least the oblits arent getting off the board. Other Oblit squad lands off the T sons Icon and within MM range of the land Raider. He fires and pops the land raider. He attempts to lash my terrmies and the hood saves me. His termies deepstrike into my backfield looking for early exit.

Bottom 2. My termies try to get at his prince and oblits but I roll a "3" for difficult ground move. There is no way Im in assault range. Plan B Assault prince and oblits with DC. Risky, but they should survive. I assault in and completely whiff the rolls. I wound a single Obliterator and I am down to one DC with the T hammer. I shoot the DP with most my army before I asault and it nets me 2 wounds. Predator immobilizes itself. Vindi misses some Oblits. I stun a rhino with 10 noise marines. Both assault squads show up and land near his backfield, behind terrain so as not to be obliterated.

Top 3 He finishes off my last DC. His noise marines get out of a rhino andd just make it to the vindi and they blow it up. T sons keep trying to start the rhino. Oblits blast an assault squad and I make a couple cover saves so 4 remain. His shooting kills 2 termies.

Bottom 3. Termies make it into the Oblits and the Prince. I kill both due to preferred enemy. One assault squad escapes. Razor back is hiding behind a building stunning one of his rhinos with a missile launcher.

Top 4 His termies escape. His other Oblits try and kill my 2nd assault squad but he mearly kills 2. His T sons rhino is remobilized. His 10 man noise marines hop in their ride and roll 12" forward about 16" from my edge. I need to stop either the rhino or the guys or Im down in the primary 3-2.

Bottom 4. Termies assault and blow up the T sons rhino. I disembark from the razorback and melta the Noise marines rhino dead. Baal pred finally comes out of reserve and rather tahn risk a lascannon from the Oblits I exit immediately.

Top5 His T sons assault my termies to tie them up. I only kill 3. His 10 man noise marines waste my newly disembarked squad. My razorback is stunned from a s8 missile.

Bottom 5. Termies still killing T sons. I need to get some KP so I unload everything else into his two rhinos and knock some weapons off.

Top 6 His noise marines cant quite make it off, but I am up 3-1 so its a fairly moot point. He shoots some vehicles with oblits but doesnt do anything.

Bottom 6 I finish off the T sons. I fire every weapon at his one rhino and it has both weapons destropyed, its immobile, and stunned several times over.....but alive.

We roll and the game ends. He is left with two immboile rhinos with 5 cowaring noise marines in each. One is about to be assaulted by 3 termies. The other is facing a lascannon razor back. Oh Yeah.....thre Oblits as well. Although the termies could have reached them as well. I needed the last turn to get my KP up. So we add it up.

I get primary with more units escaping. We add up KP and he has me 9-8. Those darn invulnerable rhinos. Had any of those 10 pens or so been wrecks I could have had some points. Oh well. Neither of us won by more than 750 VP.

I get 25 out of 48 battle points. I felt I was winnig both these games and making the right descisions, but it was getting me primary and not 2ndry objectives. Perhaps a tad more aggressive. Probably I need more practice getting my army into the right position. Well Im off to my third game and on table 6. I am going to need a lot of points, and a alot of draws at the top grouping of tables to crack the top 3.
Next opponent ....Guard.

My final opponent on Whaky Mission Day would be a Guard Player. A very sporting Guard player. He took no vets, no valks, no russ', and it was still a lot of guns to deal with.

First off the mission.
Primary - Table Quarters. Have more than opponent
2ndry- Have more units within 12" of the center of the board.
Terrtiary- Have more units in enemy deployment zone at games end than they in yours.

Dawn of War deployment.

Whacky Mission. Each player places one small blast template on the board and scatters it. The blast scatters every player turn. If doubles are rolled use a large blast. Every further doubles roll makes the template scatter one more D6. The template is S10 AP2 and does D6 hits to every unit it touches. If doubles are rolled you also roll an additional D6 for hits as well.

On a side note, a friend of mine and his opponent each were rolling doubles like crazy and as they were throwing more dice to scatter even more doubles were popping up. Both templates were flying over 100" a turn by games end wrecking everything in the path.

My opponent
HQ
Command squad with astropath, banner, officer, things of that nature.
Inquisitor with mystics.

Fast
2 x 10 rough riders

Heavy
2 x Medusas

Troops
Al Rahem
About 6 or 7 chimeras
2 squads of 10 guardsmen with lascannons.

Elite
Sly Marbo


Interesting list. He deploys his two heavy weapons squads in his deployment zones on hills. I deploy nothing.

Turn one. I won the roll off and him go first.

Top 1 He starts marching guardsmen down the short table edge on both sides to deny outflankers. Chimeras roll heavy on one flank while 2 or so go towards the other. Al Raheim and 2 other chimers are outflanking. The two medusas roll on the center with mystics in between.

Bottom 1. I land my dred away from him since I really had no viable target without getting meltas the next turn. All vehicles load up against his heavy chimera flank and I roll 12-18" with all of them. I march my marines up a flank to cover his outflanker near all my tanks.

Top 2 Both storms are now large blasts but are circling the center of the board. He rolls reserves and gets Al Raheim on the flank with all my vehicles. Marbo pops up behind the dred. and the Rough Riders come on his board edge. He begins shooting and due to poor shots, cover saves, and luck, only the DC rhino is immobilized. Marbo launches his demo pack at the dred......it hits....S8 on rear 10.....he rolls two dice and picks the highest.........snake eyes.Schwew, close, we chuckled about that one.

Bottom 2. I pour all my fire at Al Raheim and his melta squad killing his unit dead. Razorback Kills a Medusa. Termies get out of their LR to assault a couple chimeras, but I roll 2" for my assault. Death Company Dred puts Marbo out of his misery. DC sit tight.

Top 3. One of the storms scatters into his inquisitor squad and kills the inquisitor and 2 mystics. He unloads on the termies and kills 3. His flank snakes were now about 50-60% on each board edge and both my preds were outflanking yet. Lascannons stunned my razorback. He also blew the Assault cannon off of my Land Raider.

Bottom 3 A storm scatters again into his units and this time it wipes out 9 rough riders. I get a pred Tank and I get it on the quiet flank. I move on next to his flank snake and fire killing 9 of the guardmen. The last one breaks. On the other flank the termies wreck a Chimera and the bloodlance fails to do any damage. Vindi knocks out another chimera. Firestorm cannons are cleaning up squads.

Top 4 He meltas my vindi and it explodes. He also fires everything at the termies killing them all off including the librarian. Death Company dred gets immobilized on top of a chimera.

Bottom 4 The other pred comes on the busy flank but there is no room to come on with all the broken guard squads, and tank debris. So I bring it on towards my edge. Both Assault squads arrive and I try landing one by the medusa to melta it but I scatter 6" into a guardsquad and am banished to the warp. The other lands safely near the quiet flank to hold that quarter. My pred shoots a unit in cover and does nearly nothing. Razorback moves towards the center. Land Raider Tries flaminf one of the last melta gunners and fails to kill him.

Top 5. Storm kills last rough rider of one squad and takes 7 out of the heavy weapon squad. His medusa knocks out my pred. on the quiet flank. Melta pops the Land Raider. He spills just into my table quarter on each side of the board.

Bottom 5. DC get out of their ride and push towards the center where a mystic is cowering. Razorback does the same. Baal pred tries to tank shock a unit back onto his side and shoot another dead, but his cover saves held, and his melta gunner is sitting right next to the Baal My assault squad leaps towards an encraoaching guard squad but I wont be able to reach them. He has One chimera remaining at this point.

We roll to see if the game ends and it does.

Top 6 Rough Riders move to assault the DC but his fleet rolls were poor leaving him short. Melta pops my remaining Baal predator. He fails to kill my lone dred contesting his table quarter. Chimera unloads and plasmas my 5 assault marines death.

Bottom 6 Storm hits his rough riders and kills all 10. I assault the mystic and wipe it out. Another storm hits the chimera that just unloaded his men and knocks out the weapon. Razorback knocks out the last medusa.

We roll and the game continues.

Top 7 he shoots whats left and kills some DC. He has a unit in every table quarter.

Bottom 7. I move a unit into each table quarter and have 2 in the center. Game ends.



Well I was extremely fortunate that game that two warp storms knocked a couple hundred points of things out of his army while doing no damage to me. The first whacky mission burned me but this one helped me, so I cant complain. I scores 37 out of 48. This netted me fifth overall in the tournament. I was 20 points short of first. Not to bad with an army I was unfamiliar with. Of course it is also an army that is the newest in 40k so opponents arent used to facing it so I guess that bounces as far as advantage.

I liked the Blood Angels a lot. It reminded me of playing my Necrons with some shooting, not a lot of units, and melee with key units if I had to.

As usual I had an awesome time playing at the AWC series and Ill need to make a few more games to qualify for their invite tournament held at Adepticon.

*cry* Why is there no Mephiston in your list?

I dont have the model. Also, the points cost, I dont know if Ill ever really run him. He reminds me of Abbadon, sometimes he is worth it, sometimes definately not.

I was your friends opponet 3rd round... yeah. When the template went over his 10 bezerks and generated 49 wounds, despite going to gound in hard cover, he couldn't live through. From that point on, we didn't have to roll for wounds because he added a ton a dice to 'd6' pile.

* Did you and your opponet not notice the 3rd game didn't roll randomly for game end?

Good to see your blood angles doing well. Mephiston is very good, but at 2K, there are a lot of units that can kill him dead dead dead. In 1500 or even 1850, he can stay out of harm to cause havok.

You did well for not having much experience with the BA.