Throne of Skulls March 2016 - Battle 5, Tyranids Vs Imperial Fists and Grey Knights

Next up Liam and his Imperial Fists [plus Grey Knights] - I've played both a Liam and a Scott this weekend and neither are the guys I came with. Rather disconcertingly Liam has colour matched his dice to his army - yellow. So for the first time ever I'm forced to abandon my dice and switch to my reserves - a motley selection of white dice from various Editions of the game. I certainly didn't want to corrupt his Chessex dice with my cheap ones off ebay. Still, I'd spend the game attempting to pick up the yellow ones...

Psychic Powers Winged Tyrant Tervigon Zoanthrope Broodkin Magus Dominion Dominion Dominion Psychic Shriek Psychic Scream Onslaught Warp Blast Hallucination Onslaught Paroxysm Shrouding Broodlord Dominion The Horror

The low down:

• Into The Maelstrom - Cloak and Shadows
• Warlord Trait - Reserve roll -1
• Night fighting first turn, lost deployment, Liam elected to go second.
• CARNAGE! effect:
• Rage - 2A on charge
• Counter Attack
• Furious Charge
• Re-roll wounds in assault

Liam had a really nice force that was for 30k but he was using all the Marines as Tactical squads. The only real concerns were the Grey Knights, Grav Centurions, Close Combat Centurions and the Deimos Vindicator Laser Destroyer hidden in that ruined building [not actually stationed on the roof].

As per every game the Flyrant moved up.

Getting a bead on the Tactical squad an punching a whole through their line.

Everything else followed up, the Stealers occupying the ruin out of sight.

These were my objectives for the turn.

I wasn't able to get any VPs out of them.

Liam's turn 1 and the Grey Knights arrive.

They flame the Rippers but somehow two survive.

The Grav Centurions Pod arrived, rather cinematically landing on top the wrecked rhino.

I think the Pod's Storm Bolter managed to put one wound on the Carnifex, only for the Centurions to remove the other three.

My turn 2 and the Tyrannocyte landed perfectly, disgorging it's occupant and hungrily aware of the
weaknesses in the Deimos rear armour.

Broodkin and Carnifex surround the Grav Centurions, Rippers and my 9 spawned [out] Gaunts head for the Grey Knights

The Flyrant gets behind the Fists back line, but within Psychic Scream distance of both Tacticals and Centurions. Purestrains venture forth, once again a misguided decision by me.

Shooting by the Gaunts manages to trim down the Grey Knights, only two remain by the end of the shooting phase.

The Flyrant shoots down most of the Tactical Squad, even having Jinked to avoid the Deimos. The last squad members stays resolute, alone.

The Tyrannocyte puts two glancing hull point on the Deimos, meaning I had to use the Carnifex to wreck. I;d been hoping catch the other Tactical squad with his shots. Either way I score 3 VPs from 'strike like lightening' - destroying a unit with a unit that arrived from reserve. I also gain another VP for destroying a unit. I'm 4:1 up.

Carnifex and Broodkin get into combat

Rending hits and the strength of the Carnifex prove too much for the Centurions.

The Rippers and Gaunts break the Grey Knights also

Meaning I get to consolidate.

The Purestrains manage to do only one wound.

And are smashed for their stupidity, with the combat Centurions setting their sights on bigger prey.

Now these are the 4 points I scored, but I can;t quite work out why I didn't get a VP for killing a unit in assault. I have some recollection Liam pointed out nothing actually died in assault, but the pictures seem to show otherwise, unless I've interpreted them wrongly, which is most likely.

Liam's Turn 2 and the Centurions advance on the Carnifex

and dispatch him with ease. They'd then wipe out the Broodkin and just as we moved into my Turn Liam was convinced he'd scored 'A Throne of Skulls' - to kill just 8 models in a turn [amongst many other options] and score 8 VPs. Luckily this picture was consulted and the 9 Broodkin, plus the Carnifex made 10 models killed. He did however score 2 VPs from other cards bringing it to 4:3.

The Broodlord and his attendant finally broke free of the ruins and killed the last surviving Tactical member, I may well have scored that objective too.

I also managed to capture this objective with the Rippers. But as with much of the weekend numbers were completely against me. I'd added another 3 VPs to my score but I'd unwittingly put 2 Rippers and 6 Gaunts within easy reach of the Centurions.

Who multi-charged the two units.

Killing all 8 models and securing not only the 8 VPs for 'A Throne of Skulls' but another 4 for various other cards in Liam's hand.

With a last desperate push I managed to swoop the Flyrant back and and alongside the Onslaughted Carnifex kill three of the Centurions, not enough to score anymore VPs.

The game was called at this point, the Stealers had got me Line Breaker for 8 VPs but Liam had hammered it home with 16, including First Blood. I don't think those Tactical guys are actually scoring LB, and the Captain was less than an inch and a bit from doing it. Carnage points he'd scored 54, whereas I'd managed just 35.

I can honestly say 'A Throne of Skulls' shifted everything, without that card Liam would have been on 4 VPs that turn which would have been a draw, or perhaps another card would have given him an extra VP to win anyways, but 8 VPs in one go, plus the 4, what can you do? It was a great game and we had quite a long chat, as I packed away. Apparently he's going to be setting up a YouTube channel visiting and reviewing/reporting on gaming tournaments of many varieties so look out for him.

So, five games, one win, one draw and three losses, 215 Carnage points and 42 VPs. I came 61st overall, which confused me as my entry number was 60. But overall I had an absolute great time, met some cool people and renewed my faith in the Warhammer World tournaments as a fantastic experience.

Throne of Skulls March 2016 - Battle 4, Tyranids Vs Space Wolves

Chris was my opponent for game 4. Space Wolves and Wulfen so I was going to try the new furballs in the Grimdark

Psychic Powers Winged Tyrant Tervigon Zoanthrope Broodkin Magus Dominion Dominion Dominion Psychic Shriek Psychic Scream Warp Blast Warp Blast Invisibility Catalyst Catalyst Dominate Broodlord Dominion The Horror

The low down:

• Into The Maelstrom - Deadlock
• Warlord Trait - 3 enemy units must make pinning tests
• Night fighting first turn, won deployment, elected to go first.
• CARNAGE! effect:
• Rage - 2A on charge
• Counter Attack
• Furious Charge

Now that's a compact army... [although some Termiantors are missing]

I deployed in a similar formation as last time, using the trees as cover for the Carnifex.

Chris only had three units on the battlefield at the start.

All I had in reserve were the Rippers in the pod

These were my 6 cards that would whittle down as the game went on, I hoped to achieve [I photographed them again so they would be clear] That 6VP Lord of the Dead for putting a wound on every unit in Line of Sight, seemed possible

So I swooped the Flyrant towards the Thunderwolves and advanced everything else.

I think I managed two out of the three, with the Hive Guard managing to get two wounds on the Land Raider with impressive twin 6s to hit, followed by twin 6s to glance! But it was to no avail

As suddenly I had Murderfang at my Back door and Terminators at the front.

Broodkin and Stealer took casualties.

But it was the Carnifex that would take the brunt

Chris managed to score 3 mission VPs and First Blood in his first turn, I think the lead Carnifex fell to the Terminators despite Catalyst.

In return I was able to wipe them out, thanks to all the Devourer shots and Flesheborer shots from the 11 spawned gaunts from turn 1 and 12 from turn 2. Only the Wolf Lord was left.

My Tyrranocyte managed put wounds on the Dreadnought.

While the Termagants managed to swamp the Wolf Lord, who saved out of his skin this turn.

Genestealers and Broodkin charged Murderfang

Rage and Furious Charge were just too much for it, I mean the Broodkin were doing 5 S4 Rending attacks each! The Purestrains managed to put a Hull Point on the Drop Pod.

Stealers and Broodkin scatter with my consolidation.

The Wolf Lord continued to hold off the diminishing gaunts

I manage to pull of these 5 VPs in the one turn, I'm back in the game!

The Stormwolf arrives from reserve, I'd fogrgotten about that.

I manage to save the Tervigon from the Las Cannon attack but when it comes to the Helfrost Cannon typically there's my toughness test, anything other than a 6! It suffers the one wound and is frozen solid.

I think I was lucky with Synaptic Feedack as there doesn't seem to be too many gaunts dead.

The Land Raider turned round and roasted the Rippers, giving Chris an easy VP

And I'm pretty sure this was good news

But infortuantely this was not as I think the Tyrannocyte got squashed by the Thunderwolves. Chris managed to go one better than me and secure 6 VPs this turn, taking him to 9 and leaving me on 5.

These were my four new missions, all achievable.

I manage to kill the Thunder Wolves, I think with the Carnifex.

The other Carnifex manages to destroy the Land Raider. Now I read that I'd get a VP for that with the 'Self Destruct Protocols' card but when I re-read it I only read the 'suffers an "Explodes"' result, not 'causes, or suffers an "Explodes"'. So I may well have got a VP that I didn't count for this. I ddi however get 3 VPs for killing it just with attacks and 2 VPs for destroying it in my assault phase. Unfortunately I couldn't kill the drop pod to make it 4.

Meanwhile the Wolf Lord STILL won't die!

But I did get objective 3, bringing my VP total this turn to 6 [although it was actually 7 with the Land Raider]. Current score - 11-9

The Storm Wolf deposits the Wulfen, again I'd forgotten about those.

And they Prove devastating, slaughtering the Carnifex like it wasn't there.

The Wolf Lord STILL won;t die and manages to kill the Broodlord too!

Turn 4 and these are my missions. Objectove 2 is a done deal, there are 5 Wulfen on the board and all those Genestealers MUST be able to kill the Wolf Lord.

Just in case I send in the Purestrains, who'd finished wrecking the Drop Pod to clear my DZ of Line Breakers. The Hive Guard manage to make a 10" charge on the Stormwolf but can't wreck it. As the dust settled I managed to do all three of my cards but the weight of numbers still wouldn't give up the 4 VPs, the Wolf Lord lived yet again! I was on 14 VPs [actually 15].

Chris was pretty much out of options and all that was left was to see if the Wolf Lord survived and finally he was rent asunder giving me Slay the Warlord.

Final score was 15(16)-11 but once again I'd lost on Carnage points, giving up 88 and scoring only 43. This had been a great game, with the wealth of cards it really opens up more options compared with the other Maelstrom missions where you're stuck with one or two cards that are difficult and your opponent is racking up easier objectives. The Wulfen were pretty brutal but so were the Broodkin, of course the Rage and Furious Charge helped raise their profile.

I was desparateky unlucky with the Tervigon but credit where it's due that Wolf Lord was insane, surviving almost 6 rounds of combat, more in part beacause I just didn't roll any rends but he saved out of his skin for every other wound. I sugegsted to Chris he be interred in the remains of the wrecked Dreadnought, hopefully to fight another day. Now onto the last game.