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I wanted to see how much I actually needed the new models (gasp, could GW have actually made a codex that didn't force you to abandon your old models for a new tryg- I mean model) vs something that normally kicks the spit out of my Tau: Ward Angels.

Tau:

HQ

Fireblade: 60pts

Commander:-144
-TL Fusion Blaster
-2x Marker Drones
-Stim Injector

Troops

Firewarriors-134
-2 marker drones
-10 FW
-Carbines
-Shas'ui
-Bonded

With

Devilfish-115
-Disruption pod
-Point Defense Targetting Relay
Sensor Spines

Firewarriors-134
2-Marker Drones
-10 FW
-Carbines
-Shas'ui
-Bonded

with

Devilfish-115
-Disruption Pod
-Point Defense Targetting Relay
-Sensor Spines

Firewarriors-169
-12 FW
-2 Marker Drones
-Shas'ui with TL and Markerlight
-Bonded

Firewarriors-169
-12 FW
-2 Marker Drones
-Shas'ui with TL and Markerlight
-Bonded

Elites

XV8 Squad-210
-3 suits
-Fireknife
-Bonded
-Stim injectors
-2 Marker Drones

XV8 Squad-210
-3 suits
-Fireknife
-Bonded
-Stim injectors
-2 Marker Drones

Heavy Support

Railhead:-188
Sub Rounds
Longstrike
Disruption Pod
SMS
Autorepair
Sensor Spines

Fast Attack

Piranha-55
Fusion Blaster
Disruption Pod

Marker Drone Squad-168
-12 marker Drones

1871

Blood Angels:

HQ

Captain-140
Terminator Armor
Power Sword

Troops

Tactical Squad-170
Full Size
Missile Launcher
Flamer

Assault Squad-205
Full Size
Hand Flamer
Flamer


Death Company-335
Lemartes
Jump Packs
5-man team
Hand Flamer

Elites

Furioso Dreadnought-175
Librarian-Wings, Shield

Terminators-360
Thunderhammers and Storm Shields
8 Members

Sanguinary Priests-210
3 models
1 in terminator armor
1 with jump pack
1 regular

Heavy Support

Vindicator-155
Siege Shield

Vindicator-155
Siege Shield

1900

The battlefield was a 4' by 6' area in the middle of a titan factory. Lots of cover along the right flank. Deployment was dawn of war with 5 objectives: Cypher, the two flags, the lego scottsman, and the Guass Cannon



Tau deployed on the table but kept their suits in reserve.

The Fireblade deployed with the orange squad on the right side of the table, the two carbine squads deployed within their devilfishes



Blood angels decided to footslog it, with a sanguinary priest in each squad (tac, assault, termie). The Tac squad deployed around the SM flag behind cover.


The plan with the tau was to see how effective the supposed "gunline beats all" defense was against such a fast force while trying to hold as many objectives as possible. First turn the two devilfishes full of the carbine squads moved up to secure the gauss cannon:


In addition, the piranha zoomed across the table into cover in order to flank the two vindicators on the right side of the board. The Hammerhead tried to take out one of the vindicators with Longstrike's improved BS and Tank Hunters...but of course...


Meanwhile the Blood angels rushed ahead, with the death company and the assault squads closing on the nearest firewarrior teams while the terminators moved up through cover. The Libby Dread also used wings to rush headlong at the enemy


They'll never survive rushing from that distance right???

Unfortunately, the titan limbs and machining equipment offered only cover, not total line of sight blocking, which would cost the death company some squad members

Man that Marker Drone Squadron is worth its points...it meant the firewarrior squads were firing at BS5 or better against those death company...talk about devastating

The vindicators moved up 6" to try and get in range, but only one was. It's S10 blast was still enough to knock almost half the firewarriors off of Orange Team:



That severe drop in firepower though meant that not even 3 markerlights could take any significant chunk out of the closing assault squad:


Turn 2 for the firewarriors, besides trying to knock off more assault squad members (and failing really) had the carbine teams deploying in a modified Fish of Fury formation to defend the guass cannon and try and knock more wounds off the incoming death company.


One Crisis team arrived, and scattered right next to the Terminators...


Fortunately they managed to stunlock one of the vindicators, leaving it unable to fire its ordinance weapon next turn before getting nommed. Longstrike then finally pulled his weight and popped a cap in the other vindicator, destroying it:

The piranha then zoomed by the termies, onto the flank of the stunned Vindicator, and blew that one up too. Yay for melta.

Turn 2 for the BA had the assault squad closing in on Orange Team, the Death company going after the marker drone team, and the terminator squad omnomming Crisis Team Grey.
Overwatch fire by the markerdrones and Green team knocked off two more death company, but they pushed into the markerdrones, won combat, and swept them.

The tac squad did something besides sitting still, and managed to immobilize one of the devilfishes:

Mercifully, the Libby rolled snake eyes on its assault charge and was left out of range.

Unfortunately, the Assault team reached Orange Team, and ate them. Even the fireblade couldn't get a wound in before being killed...


Payback however, is a bitch:


And S5 does nasty things to rear armor when you mass it:


And Green Team picked off the rest of the Death company.

Meanwhile one of the carbine teams hopped in the devilfish that was still mobile and began zooming to take the Tau flag now left unclaimed.

With only two squads still mobile on the BA side of things, the terminators moved off through cover but were waylaid by their difficult terrain tests, slowing them before they could cross the Titan Limbs.
The tau however were down on VP at the time, and couldn't afford to tie with one Objective apiece, and so Green team moved to capture the Cypher point. The second crisis team finally arrived, and the Commander moved to attack the terminators with his fusion rifle. Lastly, the piranha moved to intercept the terminators and prevent them from reaching the Firewarriors on the Cypher piont without sucking down plasma and pulse overwatch shots while the firewarrior team in the devilfish zoomed further towards the Tau flag:

Combined fire from the Tau units managed to pick off two Terminators without wounding the captain (stupid LOS rolls)...but it wasn't enough to stop them omnomming the piranha next turn...which then exploded, takin a wound off the captain as he failed his LOS roll!
In addition, on turn 4 for the BA, the Tac squad performed some more shenanigans, forming a conga line that managed to assault the remaining carbine team on the gauss cannon while still holding the Blood Angel flag...and then promptly ate the carbine team in a sweeping advance =/
Turn 5 proved to be the deciding factor however, as the terminators were rushed by everything:

First losing bodies to a Hammerhead sub round, then losing the more of their team (including the captain and the sanguinary priest) to BS5 pulse rifle and Fireknife fire, leaving the top of the Turn 5 with the Tau holding 2 objectives, and the BA holding their flag. However Turn 5 for the Blood angels resulted in them assaulting Crisis Team Green, then consolidating towards the center objective contesting it.

However, at the end of the game, the tau and BA held 1 point apiece. Tau had 8 VP though, and the BA held 4 VP, leaving Tau the winners.

It's amazing how beneficial one new unit can be to this army...massed pulse rifle fire at BS5 and firing 3 shots per model is insane.

First off, I love your play space. Most people who don't have a dedicated play space simply put one large los blocker in the middle and call it a day. I like that your terrain was varied and gave a lot of cover.

As for needed the new tau stuff, no you don't. They really only added two new models and of those only the riptide is any good. And it is very good but not so good that you need to take him. Crisis suits are still amazing and a riptide is no replacement for crisis suits.

Long time since I have seen an actual floorhammer game. Nice variety of terrain also.

lambsandlions wrote:First off, I love your play space. Most people who don't have a dedicated play space simply put one large los blocker in the middle and call it a day. I like that your terrain was varied and gave a lot of cover.

As for needed the new tau stuff, no you don't. They really only added two new models and of those only the riptide is any good. And it is very good but not so good that you need to take him. Crisis suits are still amazing and a riptide is no replacement for crisis suits.

Yea I did notice though that a static gunline isn't as powerful as all the people (who I see complaining about how boring it is to play against) seem to think it is. Hell without those devilfishes and mobile fireteams I wouldn't have been able to capture the Tau flag after I lost orange team.

That fireblade though was pretty awesome...glad he didn't turn out to be like all the new units the 4th edition tau codex recieved (vespid, shadowsun, space pope, skyrays, sniper teams...)

barnowl wrote:Long time since I have seen an actual floorhammer game. Nice variety of terrain also.

Thanks, going to school to be a mechanical engineer means I get time in the machine shop... all the terrain I made myself, including the barbells and the pvc piping (well, I cut that myself)

I don't really like you're Tau list at all, but that terrain.......