Guarding Guardian
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Farseer Ilvien gazed out over the forces of Craftworld Sheamil arrayed before him. He could feel the shadow in the warp attempting to overwhelm his powers. That was the reason they had come. A victory in this place would cause enough of a setback to the Tyranid swarm that it would turn from its present course. Their Craftworld would be safe.
Ilvien sensed the presence of his allies as they approached. Lord Varakhai flew up to the farseer, jumping out of his raider as he approached. He sauntered up to the Eldar seer, a lust for the coming battle visible in his eyes. Ilvien did not even glance at him as he approached. “Are your Virulent Dragons prepared?” the farseer asked, still surveying the Eldar position.
“Of course,” the Dark Eldar warrior replied, “We are eager for the coming bloodshed.” Ilvien suppressed a shudder at the blood thirst of his dark kin. With a nod he gestured for Varakhai to join his troops.With a laugh, the Lord leapt up to grab ahold of a transport as it zoomed past, heading for the front of the battle.
Ilvien shook his head, then focused his full attention back on the battlefield. The enemy force was appearing on the horizon, charging rapidly forward with the scent of its next meal. Ilvien gave the signal for the tanks to open fire. As the prisms charged with energy, the battle unfolded in the farseer’s mind like a beautiful tapestry, and he began to weave the fates of friend and foe alike.
I played my first game of 6th edition the other day, and decided that I would attempt to write it up in a battle report. This is my first go at this, so any feedback would be appreciated.
The battle pitted my Eldar and Dark Eldar against my friend’s Tyranids in a 1500 point battle. This was my first time using my Dark Eldar at all, and I was looking forward to trying the new rules.
We decided beforehand not to use mysterious terrain or objectives to keep things simpler. We also completely forgot about Night Fight at the start, decided we would just do the roll for it on the fifth turn, and then forgot about it then too. Both of us were still trying to get a grip on the new rules (me having played no games in 6th and him only having had a little experience with it). I also apologize for anything that I forgot or mixed up, since I’m doing this all from memory.
My army was a mix of units intended to test out a bunch of aspects of the new rule set. I wanted to see how a variety of units would perform in 6th. I hadn’t known who I was going to be facing beforehand, so I had made a list that I thought could handle a variety of foes (hence some things like Haywires and Intercept which were pretty useless against ‘Nids).
Eldar + Dark Eldar Allies:
Farseer Ilvien (Farseer - Jetbike, Spirit Stones, Singing Spear, Guide, Mind War, Eldritch Storm)
Rangers x5 - Pathfinders
Guardian Jetbikes x6 – Shuriken Cannon x2
Warp Spiders x5 - Exarch+Double Death Spinner
Swooping Hawks x5 - Exarch+Intercept
Fire Prism
Fire Prism
Lord Varakhai (Duke Sliscus)
Kabalite Warriors x9 - Blaster, Sybarite
Raider
Wyches x6 - Razorflail, Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix+Venom Blade
Raider
Ravager
My friend quickly threw together a unit of Tyranids that focused mostly on hordes with a few larger creatures backing it up.
Tyranids:
Winged Hive Tyrant
Trigon
2 Hive Guard
2 Hive Guard
2 Zoanthropes
Horde of Hormagaunts
Horde of Hormagaunts
Horde of Termagants
Horde of Genestealers
Horde of Gargoyles
Battlefield:
(All directions in this report are relative to my point of view.)
Our deployment zones were along the short board edges. In mine, there was a forest on the left side, some ruins in the center, and a hill on the right. My opponent’s had ruins on the left and a hill on the right. In the center of the board there stood a large set of ruins. This was flanked by a hill to the left and forests to the right.
Mission:
The mission turned out to be Crusade with three objectives. The first was located in the ruins in my deployment zone, the second was in the central ruins, and the third was out in the open near the front center of my opponent’s zone.
Additional Set-Up:
We rolled for warlord traits. My opponent rolled on the Personal chart and got Furious Charge for his Hive Tyrant in my deployment zone. With its already high strength and my flimsy units this wouldn’t change too much. I rolled of the Strategic chart and got -1 to enemy reserves. This at least deterred my opponent from outflanking his Genestealers.
Then I rolled for Psychic Powers (I wanted to try out the new tables). The first came up as Precognition. I swapped this out immediately for Prescience, as buffing my Farseer is not what I took him for. My second roll got me Misfortune, useful against some of the larger ‘Nids, but not that great against their hordes. The third roll came up as… Precognition again. Oh well, looks like I was stuck with it.
I then rolled for Combat Drugs, rolling twice and picking one due to Varakhai’s enhanced poisons. I got to choose between re-rolling to wound or bonus pain tokens. I took the pain tokens, as this meant the Wyches would have FNP and Furious Charge once Lord Varakhai joined them.
Deployment:
I deployed first, placing my Pathfinders in my ruins to hold the objective there. Farseer Ilvien joined them, hiding behind the ruins. The Ravager joined him in hiding. On the left flank my Warp Spiders and one of the Fire Prisms waited behind the forest. Lord Varakhai deployed with the Kabalite Warriors behind the hill on the right. The Wyches waited nearby. Both of their Raiders were also partially shielded by the hill. The other Fire Prism hid behind them. Finally, the Jetbike Squad was kept in reserve and the Swooping Hawks waited to Deep Strike.
The Tyranids deployed most of their units out in a long line at the front of their zone. On my right were the Hive Tyrant and the Gargoyles. The two units of Hormagaunts held the center and left. The Hive Guard, Zoanthropes, and Trigon stood in the center behind them. The Termagants waited in the shadow of the Trigon. After all of this, the Genestealers infiltrated behind the central ruins.
Initial Strategy:
I decided the Dark Eldar forces would focus on the monstrous creatures, using their Splinter weapons and Dark Lances to take down the high toughness. The Eldar would focus the Prism Blasts and anti-infantry power on the hordes to quickly eliminate them before they could get to close. The Jetbikes would hopefully be able to boost to wherever they were needed at the end of the game.
I had to do a slight recalculation when my opponent rolled a 6 and stole the initiative.
Tyranids Turn 1:
The Hive Tyrant took to the air, eliminating my golden opportunity to shoot at him when he was vulnerable. He led the attack as the entire ‘Nid army moved forwards. Thanks to deploying farther back into my zone, none of their weapons were in range, so the creatures simply ran farther forward.
Eldar Turn 1:
This was great! My plan would be able to work even better now with them closer to my ranges and now having the last turn. I wouldn’t be able to take down the Tyrant as easily, but other than that, things were looking good.
I started off by casting Prescience on the Pathfinders. Then Ilvien broke off from them and moved over to join the Warp Spiders, who decided to wait behind the forest until the enemy was closer. The Lord joined the Wyches as they embarked in their transport, and the Warriors got into theirs. The Raiders then flew up onto the top of the hill. The rest of my vehicles maneuvered to get good firing lanes, then my forces unleashed their firepower.
The Kabalite Warriors fired their splinter rifles into the sky at the flying Tyrant. With snap fire only one of the hit and failed to wound the beast, even with its 3+ poison from Sliscus’s venom stores. The Tyrant managed to keep flying.
The two Fire Prisms dropped their dispersed shots among the enemy hordes. One scatter slightly but still caught many targets. The other was a direct hit. Quite a few Gaunts and Gants were wiped out, though a few who were hit survived because of their cover.
The Ravager then targeted the enemy Trigon. 3 shots, 3 hits, 3 wounds, and 3 failed cover saves left the monstrous creature with only half of its wounds left. The two Raiders attempted to lend their support. Both failed to hit.
Then the Pathfinders targeted their long rifles at the sky. Even with their aim enhanced by the Farseer’s power, they were able to get one hit on the Tyrant. It failed to wound and the Tyrant stayed in the air.
With my fire expended, I ended my turn. I had been able to deal some damage, but I didn’t know if it had been enough.
Tyranid Turn 2:
The Tyrant began to glide towards the Dark Eldar transports as the rest of the Tyranids continued their advance. The Genestealers had just begun to exit the middle ruins while the rest of the forces moved up around them.
The bio-weapons then began to fire upon the Dark Eldar transports, aiming to expose the delicious contents. The Hive Guard succeeded in wrecking the Kabalite Warriors’ Raider, and they disembarked as many as they could behind the hill. There wasn’t enough room there though, so two had to be deployed on top of the hill, in plain sight of the Hive Tyrant. The Gargoyles were able to remove a hull point from the Wyches vehicle. I completely forgot to make Jink saves this turn.
The Hive Tyrant then decided he wanted a snack. He began by casting Paroxysm on my Kabalites, reducing their BS and WS to 1 for a round. He did not fire any of his weapons, as he could only see two of the warriors and didn’t want to spoil his chances for the assault.
The units that were not in range ran forward. Most moved up around the ruins, while the Trigon headed over towards the Tyrant and Gargoyles.
With all the shooting done, the Tyranids prepared to charge against the Commorites. The Hive Tyrant let out a bellow as he prepared to assault, and the two Kabalite Warriors let off hasty shots that failed to hit the monster. However, they must have been distracting, as the Tyrant failed to roll the 6 inches necessary to make it to them.
At the same time, the Gargoyles decided to attack the remaining Raider containing the Wyches. However, their confusion at their leader’s actions slowed them down, and they were unable to charge the 7 inches that they required.
My opponent’s turn was over, and he had been unable to cause much damage!
Eldar Turn 2:
Now was my time to counterattack. Ilvien started by casting Prescience on the Warp Spiders he was with, then attempting to cause the nearby Hormagaunts to suffer Misfortune. However, they fought of the eldritch energy with a successful Deny the Witch roll.
Reserves were rolled for and the Hawks decided to join the battle. The Jetbikes didn’t arrive yet, but that was fine by me, as it kept them protected longer.
With a glimmer of wings the Swooping Hawks flew onto the battlefield. As they entered, they dropped their grenades on the Gargoyles, eliminating four members of that unit. They then attempted to land far behind the enemy lines but scattered closer to the Termagants in the back. At least they were in prime position to unleash their weapons on the squad.
The Warp Spiders and Farseer jumped over the forest to engage the enemy. The Kabalite Warriors, moved up onto the hill to stare at the Hive Tyrant that had not gotten to disembowel them. The remaining Raider flew off the hill and Lord Varakhai led the Wyches out of their transport in front of the Genestealers. The rest of the vehicles shifted to get better angles and Jink saves (which I was making sure to remember now).
The shooting began with the squad of Kabalites opening up into the Hive Tyrant. My opponent was worried until I reminded him that he had cast Paroxysm on me, so I still needed 6’s to hit. Only two connected and they were still unable to wound on the 3+ poison. Thanks to the casting that he had completely forgotten about, the Hive Tyrant was safe for now.
The Warp Spiders and Farseer then targeted the Gaunts that stood in front of them. In a mass of mono-molecular mesh, the creatures were left as nothing more than writhing piles of flesh.
My vehicles then began their punishing fire. The Ravager once again targeted the Trigon, dealing two wounds and leaving it with only one left. One fire prism sent another shot into the hordes and was able to take out a few Hormagaunts and a Genestealer. The second tried to land a focused shot on the Hive Guard, but the shot deviated of target and exploded on an empty hill.
The Pathfinders then set their sights on the Hive Tyrant once again. This time, two shots connected, and one of them caused a wound at AP1. The Tyrant failed it cover save and took its first injury.
Finally the Wyches opened fire with their splinter pistols. They were able to take out a few Genestealers, weakening the squad. I then did something that my opponent rarely saw… I charged the Genestealers.
As I charged my Wyches in, I realized that I had made a mistake. I had forgotten my lone squad of Hawks sitting on the opposite end of the table! Having so far only had units on one side of the table, they had escaped my notice in the shooting phase. My opponent grinned as his Termagants turned to stare hungrily at the vulnerable Aspect Warriors.
My Warp Spiders and Farseer Ilvien also made jumps back behind the forest. I was able to pull it off without losing a Spider (this is probably a first for me, I always roll doubles on the second jump).
In combat, the Wyches, Lord Varakhai, and the Genestealers all struck simultaneously. The Wyches furious charge was strong enough to wipe out all of the Genestealers remaining! However, three Wyches were lost, as well as Varakhai when his shadow field failed him. Unfortunately, I forgotten to roll for my FNP! Once again, my defensive benefits were forgotten. The remaining Wyches consolidated around the objective in the ruins, having gained their third Pain token.
With that my turn ended. I had been able to deal a significant blow to the enemy, but they were now in a perfect position to get revenge.
Tyranid Turn 3:
The Tyrant jumped up onto the hill with my Kabalite Warriors as the Gargoyles flew forward into my lines. The Trigon advanced towards my empty Raider. The Termagants surrounded my Hawks while the Hormagaunts moved in around my Wyches. The Hive Guard and Zoanthropes continued forward.
The Hive Tyrant unleashed his pent up fury at the Kabalites in front of him. He used Leech Essence on them, killing two and regaining his lost wound. His weapons then accounted for three more deaths.
The Termagants opened fire on the Swooping Hawks. Even with their plethora of fire, the Hawks weathered the storm with two of their number remaining.
The Zoanthropes unleashed their psychic potential. The warp energy lanced out at the Fire Prism in front of them, blowing it sky high. A Pathfinder ducked behind cover as a piece of the shrapnel flew over his head.
The Hive Guard then opened fire on the Ravager. A few of their shots connected with the vehicle, but its Jink save protected it from all their hits except for one glance. The Gargoyles also targeted it, but their aim was poorer, their guns were weaker, and the Ravager’s Jink save protected it from the one glance that occurred.
As the shooting ended, the Kabalites decided that they had no chance against the monstrosity that stood before them. They broke and ran for the board edge. The Hawks were made of sterner stuff. They held, preparing for the inevitable assault.
The Termagants were happy to oblige. Overwatch was unsuccessful and the Hawks did no damage striking first. In return, the Termagants brought down the brave warriors in a wave of teeth and claws. They consolidated around the objective in the open.
The Hormagaunts charged into the Wyches. The Wyches launched a series of attacks against the creatures, but only one was able to kill. Then the numbers overwhelmed them, and they were destroyed, leaving the Hormagaunts around the middle objective.
The Trigon then assaulted the damaged Raider. A few smashes later and the vehicle was a wreck on the ground.
The Hive Tyrant charged into the fleeing warriors. Even in their terror, they rallied to fight back. However, their efforts were futile. The Hive Tyrant destroyed a few and then cut down those who tried to flee. It consolidated towards the Pathfinders, eyeing them intently.
Finally, the Gargoyles attacked the Ravager, trying to finish off the elusive vehicle. However, they failed to even glance it, leaving it free to act another turn.
Eldar Turn 3:
I had lost quite a few units, but I wasn’t out of it yet. With a good round of attacks I could turn things around. Ilvien used Prescience on the Warp Spiders again and then targeted Misfortune on the Zoanthropes. This time the power was successful, and I began my counterattack.
To help things out, my Jetbike squad arrived this turn. They zoomed out onto the battlefield, aiming for the Gargoyles in the middle of my forces. Ilvein and the Warp Spiders once again jumped out over the forest. The Ravager flew away from the Gargoyles, getting line of sight to the Trigon once again. The remaining Fire Prism flew over behind the ruins.
The Jetbikes unleashed a barrage of shurikens into the Gargoyles. When the attack was done, not a single one of the flying monsters remained alive.
The Warp Spiders unleashed their deadly web into the Zoanthropes. Against the plethora of attacks, the Zoanthropes fell, failing four saves. Misfortune hadn’t been needed at all.
The Ravager then continued its attack on its chosen target. This time, one wound was caused on the Trigon, finally felling the enormous brute.
The Fire Prism launched a focused blast at the Hive Guard, managing to hit one from each squad. The first squad took a wound, but the second was unharmed.
The Pathfinders then fired on the weakened Hive Guard squad. Two wounds were caused, and the squad was left with one member with one wound left. Without a Synapse creature in range, it was forced to make a leadership test, which it passed.
My Warp Spiders and Farseer then jumped behind the forest again. Once again there were no casualties from the risky jump through the warp.
My retaliation had been powerful. I had weakened much of the opponent’s force and removed most of the nearby threats. However, the Hive Tyrant was still in attack range, which was going to cause trouble.
Tyranids Turn 4:
With the Hive Tyrant far away from his forces none of the remaining Tyranid units were in synapse range. They all rolled their test, and the Hormagaunts failed. In their blind rage they suffered the terrible penalty of… +1 Str. With the changes to Rage, being out of synapse is not as terrible. Oh well, until there is some change, that’s how it is.
The Hive Tyrant moved up closer to my Pathfinders while the Hormagaunts and Hive Guard continued towards my troops. The Termagants remained camped on the objective in the enemy zone.
The Tyrant cast Paroxysm on the Pathfinders, making their already terrible melee skills even worse. Then the Hive Guard fired on the Ravager. The smaller squad failed to do anything, but the others succeeded in hitting a vital area. The skimmer exploded, showering the Jetbikes with shrapnel. One of the bikers was destroyed by the flying shards.
The Hive Tyrant then charged into the Pathfinders. Overwatch was ineffective at doing anything to the rampaging warlord. The battle was never even in question. The Tyrant slaughtered four of the rangers and sliced down the final one as he tried to escape. The monster consolidated onto the objective, preventing my units from claiming it.
Eldar Turn 4:
My plan was now very clear. In order to win, I was going to have to eliminate the two enemy troop choices as well as claim an objective with my Jetbikes. It was time to do what the Eldar do best.
Once again,Farseer Ilvien cast Prescience on the Warp Spiders. Then Misfortune was targeted on the Hormagaunts and it succeeded. All three of my units moved towards the center of the table, right by the Hormagaunts who were sitting ducks.
A round of death spinner shots and shurikens from the Warp Spiders and the Farseer flew towards the Gaunts. The shurikens penetrated their armor, killing two. Then the remaining seven were forced to take eleven 6+ saves, re-rolling successes. My opponent didn’t bother, and just removed the models.
With that target out of the way, it was time for rapid redeployment. The Jetbikes turboboosted up the field, threatening the Termagants on the enemy objective. The Fire Prism used a flat out movement to move up behind them, leaving the Tyrant and Hive Guard behind.
Finally, the Warp Spiders and Ilvien jumped in the assault phase, but this time they advanced to get in between the Hive Tyrant and the rest of my units. They were able to pull it off with no casualties yet again. Now I could just hope that my units would survive long enough to pull off my plan.
Tyranid Turn 5:
After losing one of their two scoring units, the Tyranids struck back to prevent losing the other. The Tyrant flew from the ruins towards the Warp Spiders while the Hive Guard and Termagants leveled their weapons.
The Tyrant unleashed his power on the Warp Spiders and Ilvien. He led off with Paroxysm which the Farseer failed to deny. He then brought his guns to bear, but only killed one of the Spiders.
The Hive Guard fired their weapons at the Fire Prism. Despite its Jink save from moving flat out, it still took one glancing and one penetrating hit. The roll on the damage table came up as a two, shaking the tank. It would be unable to shoot next turn, and was left with only one hull point.
The Termagants then brought their firepower to bear against the Jetbikes, slaying two of the riders. The remaining three made their leadership test and stayed in the fight.
With a roar the Hive Tyrant charged into the Warp Spiders. Their guns did nothing to stop the charge of the angry warlord. Standing in front of his squad the Exarch decided to take on the rampaging beast by himself to hopefully hold it in combat and save his squad for longer. The Tyrant accepted his challenge and predictably smashed the puny warrior. Under Ilvien’s leadership, the squad made its test and held the Tyrant in combat.
Eldar Turn 5:
This was possibly the last turn, and I needed to remove those Termagants. Before that however, I needed to prepare for the next round of the assault. Ilvien used Prescience on his squad once again, and even with the shadow in the warp he was able to succeed. Then he cast Misfortune on the Tyrant, once again succeeding despite the shadow. The Tyrant failed his denial, and was affected by the power.
Then the rest of my force made its move. The Jetbikes jumped up towards the Termagants. Then my Fire Prism, unable to shoot this turn, flew forward to tank shock the bugs. Away from synapse and terrified of the tank bearing down on them, they failed their leadership test and fled.
As they fled from the tank, my Jetbikes flew in to assault them. (I realize now that we actually had the Termagants fire overwatch even though they were fleeing. This killed one of my Jetbikers.) The Termagants were unable to rally and fight the Guardian riders bearing down on them and were slaughtered as they fled. This left my Jetbikes claiming the objective, while my opponent had no more troop choices. However the remaining bikers were in direct line of fire from the Hive Guard squad.
With the fall of my Exarch, Farseer Ilvien decided to sacrifice himself to save the squad. He reached out with his mind and touched the dark void in the warp, drawing the attention to the Hive Tyrant to him. With a roar the Tyrant smashed at him and managed to wound with two attacks that would instantly slay my Farseer. However his invulnerable saves from the Runic Armour came up as a 4 and a 5. He had been protected and had a chance to strike back!
With only one attack with his spear, Ilvien swung with all his might. The re-roll to hit from Prescience allowed him to connect, and the spear wounded his monstrous foe. Then the Tyrant failed his save, taking a wound. The Tyrant had lost the combat! Being fearless however, there were no ill effects suffered, and he prepared to simply smash the puny psyker next turn.
However, it was not to be. The die for continuing the game came up as a 1. The Eldar controlled one objective and had units in the enemy zone, giving them 4 victory points. The Tyranids on the other hand only had a unit in the enemy deployment zone and had drawn first blood for 2 points.
Result: Eldar Victory!
After Battle Thoughts:
Overall, the battle went according to plan. All of my units carried out their assigned roles and supported each other very well. I also think I got lucky at times. Being out of range the first turn and failing to charge on the second hurt my opponent’s early game. Overall, I don’t think the dice were skewed too much toward either side.
I definitely made mistakes though. Trying to remember all of the special rules was difficult for my first game, which caused me to lose some units too easily. If I had remembered FNP for the Wyches and Jink for my vehicles right away, some of those units might have survived longer to aid in the overall effort. Forgetting to shoot with my Hawks also made them not as effective in the game. I had placed my reserves right by my deployment zone so that I would remember to roll for them, but once I deep struck them on the other side of the table I forgot them. They probably could have wiped out most of the Termagants then and there, which would have made the end easier for me. A tactical error I made was probably not focusing more on the Hive Tyrant. He accounted for many casualties and was a huge threat to my forces with his maneuverability. There were plenty of opportunities when he was vulnerable, but I instead focused on other targets like the Trigon, which probably could have waited. I’ll have to remember that for next battle.
Overall, many of my units performed admirably. The Ravager single-handedly took down the Trigon and took a lot of fire before it was destroyed.. The Fire Prisms wiped out swathes of the Tyranid hordes and broke the Termagants at the end. The Wyches disrupted the center of the Tyranid line, slowing them down and preventing them from reaching my other units. The Warriors distracted the Hive Tyrant for a little while, standing as a threat with their 3+ poison. And the Jetbikes came when they needed and were able to claim the victory for me.
However, I think the most effective unit was the Warp Spiders, backed up by Farseer Ilvien. They not only devastated the left side of the Tyranid line, taking out two squads of Hormagaunts and the Zoanthropes, but they also succeeded in stopping the Hive Tyrant from advancing on the rest of my forces at the end. For these acts of bravery, they deserve recognition.
Men of the Match: Warp Spiders
As the Eldar forces returned through the webway, Ilvien felt a strong sense of relief. The Craftworld had been protected once again. The Hive Fleet had been delayed long enough that they would encounter juicier prey after devouring the current planet. They would turn aside from their present course and chase this new meal. The Craftworld was no longer in danger.
Ilvien came upon Lord Varakhai, who was limping along with the shattered remnants of the wyches he had brought. His audacity in charging the Tyranid lines had been an almost suicidal move, but the farseer had to admit that it had had a major role in turning the tides of the battle. “You should be more careful next time,” he said to the Commorite. Varakhai chuckled, “And miss that exquisite pain? I would never pass up the chance for that kind of experience.” Ilvien started moving away, disgusted, but grateful for the help his kin had lent.
He turned as he noticed someone approaching him. Eirtenael, exarch of the Silver Wind temple of the Warp Spiders, approached him. “We have received a message from the Autarch,” he stated in his deep voice. “Our forces are required on a new planet.”
Ilvien sighed and glanced over at his Dark Eldar ally. Varakhai gave him a wicked grin in return. The farseer turned back toward the aspect warrior, “Very well, have all of the troops regroup. We return to war.” The exarch nodded and left to carry out the seer’s orders.
Though one threat had been stopped, another was threatening their precarious existence. War was never done. They would continue to fight, in order to keep their friends and family on the Craftworld safe. Sheamil would be protected, so that beauty would live forever.
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