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BATTLE FOR CETI ULTRA VI

Ceti Ultra VI, is a key Agri World on the Fringes of the Segmentum Ultima sector. The planet is host to some of the sectors largest agri-farms and is responsible for providing food and provisions to key hive and forge worlds in the surrounding segmentum. Not only is it home to some of the richest and fertile farms, the wild frontiers have some of the most unique game in the Imperium, whose meat and pelts are prized among the Imperium’s elite aristocrats.

Historically Ceti Ultra VI has been a peaceful planet whose citizens, under the rule of Macragge and the Ultramarines, efficiently work the lands and are known for paying more than their share of imperial tithes. However, all of changed with the arrival of the Great Devourer, Hive Fleet Behemoth, in the Ultima Segmentum.

Although the Ultramarines and the might of the Imperial Guard and Imperial Navy pushed back Behemoth, there many splinters broke off. One such splinter, a brood of infiltrating genesteelers, landed on Ceti Ultra VI, hunting and surviving in the planet’s wilds, collecting information on this lush bio-mass treasure. The geensteelers were biding their time, as they knew in the future they would re-link with the hive mind, and guide it to this fertile treasure. Now, that time has come and the Splinter Fleet Iratus has arrived…

MISSION DETAILS

Mission – Apocalypse Battle
Armies: Ultramarines 2nd Company & Support Vs. Tyranids
Points: 8,000 vs. 8,000
Strategic Assets: 1 Each
Objectives: 6 (2 in each deployment zone; 2 in no-mans land)


ARMY PROFILES

Ultramarines – 2nd Company and Support

This army consists of the entire Ultramarines Second Company, lead by Captain Sicarius and Command Squad. Additionally, the company is supported by a significant element of the Ultramarines First Company in the form of a Titan Hammer Squad (12 Terminators) and 13 Other Terminators (25 total), as well as a Tyranid Veteran Squad (StearnGuard) lead by Chaplain Cassius and Chief Librarian Tigerius.

I know my opponent has the bio-titan, which is quite worrisome for me as I know how tough they can be to kill; I know it will be backed up by numerous swarms and monstrous creatures. My plan is to use the terminators to deal with the titan, and the rest of my army deal with the swarms and MCs

This is my first time using the Thunderhawk gunship; neither of us have seen it in action so it will be interesting to see how it does. I opted for the bombs instead of the missiles (I see 6 one shot krak missiles as a waste) and the Turbo Laser over the T-Hawk Cannon – D-weapons vs. MCs is vicious.

Points – 8,000
Strategic Asset:

Disruption Beacon – Frontline Asset: On a 4+, any enemy unit entering from strategic reserve or deep strike may be repositioned by Beacon’s controlling player
Hold the Line – from Asset
Careful Planning – From Asset
Orbital Bombardment – From Asset
Vortex Grenade – From Asset

Formations:

Space Marines Battle Company: Ultramarines 2nd Company

Captain Sicarius
Command Squad – Company Champion; 3 storm Shields, Thunder Hammer

Chaplain – Jump Pack; Power Fist

Tactical Squad Primus – 10 Marines; Las Cannon, Flamer, Power Sword, Rhino

Tactical Squad Secundus – 10 Marines; Las Cannon, Plasma Gun, Power Sword, Razor Back – Las Cannon & T/L Plasma Gun

Tactical Squad Tertius - 10 Marines; Las Cannon, Plasma Gun, Power Sword, Razor Back – Las Cannon & T/L Plasma Gun

Tactical Squad Quatrus – 10 Marines; Heavy Bolter, Flamer, Power Fist, Combi Flamer, Drop Pod

Tactical Squad Pentius – 10 Marines; Missile Launcher, Flamer, Power Fist, Combi Flamer

Tactical Squad Sextus – 10 Marines; Las Cannon, Plasma Gun, Power Fist

Assault Squad Hammer – 10 Assault Marines, Flamer, Plasma Pistol, thunder Hammer

Assault Squad Anvil – 10 Assault Marines, Flamer, Plasma Pistol, Power Fist

Devastator Squad “Titan Killers” – 10 marines; 4 las cannons

Devastator Squad “Hades” – 10 Marines; 4 Missile Launchers


Titan Hammer

Captain Ageman (Lysander)

6 Thunder Hammer Terminators

6 Thunder Hammer Terminators

Line Breaker Squadron

3 Vindicators

Suppression Force

2 Whirlwinds
1 Land Speeder Typhoon

Non-Formation Units:

- Chaplain Cassius
- Chief Librarian Tigerius
- Captain Indigeous (Pedro Kantor)
- Librarian Epistolary in Terminator Armor & Storm Shield (Null Zone, Might of Ancients)
- Librarian Epistoloary (Avenger, Force Dome)
- Chaplain – Terminator Armor, Combi Plasma gun

- Stearn Guard Squad – 10 marines; 4 combi flamers, 2 heavy flamers, 3 combi plasma guns, Drop Pod
- 8 terminators with Thunder Hammer and Storm Shields
- 5 Terminators with Thunder Hammer and Storm Shields

- Land Speeder – Heavy Flamer
- Land Speeder – Assault Cannon

- Predator – Autocannon, Las Cannon Sponsons

Super Heavy Support:
- Thunderhawk Gunship – Laser Destructor; 6 bombs, 2 Las Cannons, 4 t/l Heavy Bolters


HIVE FLEET IRATUS

Well this should be interesting. Before the game started I guessed my opponent would take the disruptor beacon to try and negate any flank march maneuvers or deep striking shenanigans. To that end I pretty much just took my entire army and deployed the whole thing as close as possible to no-mans land as I could and hope for early assaults.

Overall I’m confident. I have had experience against D-weapons before and this time there is only 1...albeit on a hard to kill Thunderhawk. Will just have to do my best to take it down with the titan and send the rest of my force against his outnumbered marines whilst remembering to keep my MC’s spread out.

Points – 8,000
Strategic Asset: Blind Barrage


Formations:

Behemoth crusher brood
- 5x carnifexes with crushing claws

Non Formations:

Tyranid Prime - Adrenal glands, Regenerate, 2x Boneswords

Tyranid Prime - Adrenal Glands, Regenerate, Lashwhips and Bonesword

Swarmlord

Tyrant - 2x devourers; Wings

Tyrant - 2x Devourers; Armored shell

3x Hive guard
2x Hive guard

3x Zoanthropes in a spod

Doom in a spod

Deathleaper

20 dakkagaunts in a spod
20 dakkagaunts in a spod
20 dakkagaunts in a spod

20 hormagaunts with poison and adrenal glands
20 hormagaunts with poison and adrenal glands

10 genestealers w/ poison +1 Broodlord
10 genestealers w/ poison +1 Broodlord
10 genestealers w/ poison +1 Broodlord
10 genestealers w/ poison

10 gargoyles w/ poison and adrenal glands
10 gargoyles w/ poison and adrenal glands
10 gargoyles w/ poison and adrenal glands
10 gargoyles w/ poison and adrenal glands

7 Shrikes w/ poison, adrenal glands and lashwhips and boneswords
7 Shrikes w/ poison, adrenal glands and lashwhips and boneswords
6 Shrikes w/ poison, adrenal glands and lashwhips and boneswords

3x Mawlocs

Super Heavy Support:

Heirophant bio titan

PREGAME –

ULTRAMARINES – Bid 5 minutes
Idea is to deploy some of the key heavy support units, while keeping a significant portion of the army coming in on turn 1 due to strategic asset Careful Planning

Tyrandis – Bid 30 minutes
Deployed MCs in the middle flanked by Shrikes and Hermagaunts; deployed as close to no-mans land as possible. Geensteelers also infiltrated as close as possible. Mawlacks deployed all the way in the back, spaced out to protect them from the D-gun, and ready to go underground.

ULTRAMARINES TURN 1

At the beginning of the game, Luke used his strategic asset, blind barrage, to prevent me from shooting at his lines with my firing line. However, there were still a couple of units I could hit, although not very effectively.

The important thing was to bring the gunship on and use its bombs to knock out the Hormagant brood closest to my lines…they posed the greatest danger to the firing line. I would also bring on my LineBreaker Squad and Supression Squad. The Titan Hammers would stay in reserve until the Bio-Titan had less support around it.

Drop Pod would come down and try and thin out the tyranid center…not as effective as I had though…however, the bombing run proved to be more brutal than I thought, wiping the guants out

Vindicators combined fire and nearly wiped out the Shrikes to a monster…the prime is the only model that survived (I think I rolled one 1 to wound.

UM Assault squad hammer came in with the attached chaplain, firing its flamer and bolt pistols at the gene steelers to thin them down before assault. – which in the end whipped out the genesteelers, although 3 battle brothers fell as well.

Thunderhawks Laser killed a Carnifex and two Hive Guard, while its bolters focused on the Hormagaunts, thinning their numbers

Orbital bombardment came down (asset from having a company) and caused a few wounds to the genesteelers in the front.

Field Before Tyranid Turn 1

TYRANID TURN 1

Mawlocks went under ground, most of the army moved towards the UM Line while the winged tyrant moved into position to assualt a devestator squad in the ruins – during the assult 2 marines were killed, no wounds back – made their LD test – stubborn + Sicarius’ LD 10

The biotitan moved into position to bring its massive bio-cannons to bear against the thunderhwak, however out of 16 shots it only hit twice (needing 6’s to hit); of those 2 penetrating this were scored, although because of the rules for skimmes (4+cover), both were saved thus the Thunderhawk was unharmed.

The genesteelers in the ruins moved down to assault the marine assualt squad hammerl; however, they needed a five in their fleet rol to make it, and only scored a 4, thus were out of charge range.

The middle Shrike Unite and a carnifex turned around and completely obliterated the Stearnguard and Tigerius – tigerius tried to give the unit a 5+ invulnerable save, but suffered perils of the war (his leadership was reduced to 7 because of the Deathleaper) ; during combat he gave himself S6, but never go to strike as the shirkes shredded him…however, CASSIUS LIVED!!!!!!!!!

Field Before Ultramarines Turn 2

ULTRAMARINES TURN 2

The Thunderhawk flew to the other side of the table commencing another bombing run, this time against the Hive guard – wiping them out; the Turbo Laser obliterated the Dakka Tyrant.

The other SM Assualt squad came in and provided support to the devestator squad against the winged tryant; lost 3 assualt marines…1 wound back. Assualt marines pass their leadership (stubborn + Sicarius Ld10); devsatators fail on an 11 – they run off the board…

Whirlwinds fire at the geenstealers killing several from each squad; most heavy weapons are missing or failing to wound the monsterous creatures…do kill one Carnifex though and the Swarm Lord (6 wounds out of 20 Heavy weapons shots…)

Titan hammers come in…TH1 with Lysander hit their target and throw their vortex grenade at the bio titan causing 5 wounds! TH2 deviates too close to their target and mishap – luckily they are only placed back in reserve.

Assault marines shoot at and assault the other geensteelers – ultimately winning combat; Vindis shoot at bio titan although nothing happens. Thunder Hammer terminators come in and assualt the guants

Tactical squad and librarian drop pod onto objectives; Cassius Survives a round of Close Combat!!!!!!!!!!

Field Before Tyranids Turn 2

TYRANIDS TURN 2

The vortex grenade moves off, luckily not landing on either sides troops; the bio titan regenerated 1 wound.

4 Spods come in unloading 60 dakka guants and 3 zoanthropes…the guants and zoantrhopes make short work of the tactical squad, librarian and drop pod.

The Bio titan shoots at the terminators, although all saves were made, the Mawlok comes up underneath the 3 vindicators, destroying one and destroying the weapon of the other. The explosion killed a terminator. The other 2 mawlocks come up, but do not do as well on the results.

Cassius finally falls, Tigerius, then teleports both to the safety of the reserve command unit to recover – they will fight another day.

Geensteelers finally make it into combat, engaging the predator and a tactical squad – predator is stunned, tactical squad loses 2 marines.

Field Before UltramarinesTurn 3

ULTRAMARINES TURN 3

Thunderhawk makes its final bombing run, causing significant casualties to a unit of shrikes, firing its turbo laser at the other unit, killing two more and strafing some guants with its bolters

Whirlwinds, with their landspeeder spotting, drop two missile barrages on the guants at the far end of the table. The landspeeder fires its two missiles at the pod eliminating one of the 4 in the zone.

The vindicator fires at the Prime, killing it with its Demolisher Cannon.

The Chaplain from Assualt squad Hammer moves to join TH1, they then charge the bio titan along with the other unit of terminators assault the bio titan…the librarian in the thunderhawk used his psychic powers to force rerolls of invulnerable saves (we later found that this should not have affected the bio titan) and the combined assult of the terminators caused 6 wounds on the titan, felling the great beast.

Sicarius debarks from the razorback and assaults a mawlock, killing him with a single mighty blow; Land speeder fired its heavy flamer, killing the last two geensteelers that assaulted the predator…other combats were relatively non eventful

After UltramarinesTurn 3

We decided to call the game here, as there were only gargoyles and other small items in reserve for the tyranid player, and for the most part the marines were at full strength, less 1 tactical squad, 1 stearnguard squad and a few vehicles…here is what the board looked like.

Overall, the Thunderhawk was much nastier than either one of us thought it would be. Seems like there are only a few ways to effectively deal with it; we even tested the asset for 3 D hits against a random Super heavy, which would have hurt the T-Hawk, not destroyed it.