Gothic Battle Report: Imperial Navy vs. Tyranids

Mission: Surprise Attack. An enemy fleet catches a planetary defense garrison unprepared.

Forces

Eric – Imperial Navy

Retribution Battleship with embarked Ld9 Admiral

Mars class battlecruiser with extra turret and upgraded batteries

Lunar class cruiser with Nova Cannon

Dauntless Light Cruiser (Lance)

Dauntless Light Cruiser (Lance)

6 Fire Ships

1 Orbital Defense Weapons Platform (Batteries)

1 Minefield

John – Tyranids

Hive Ship, Pyro Acid Batteries, Pyro Acid Batteries, 3 sets of port/starboard Launch Bays

Hive Ship, Massive Claws and Feeder Tentacles, Bio Plasma Spines, 3 sets of Bio Plasma Spines

Cruiser, Massive Claws, Pyro Acid Batteries

Cruiser, Massive Claws, Pyro Acid Batteries

12 Drone Escorts, Pyro Acid Batteries

4 Kraken Escorts

Deployment

Imperial Navy forces were arranged around the planet to cover all approaches.  Tyranids arrived from a Long board edge.

Turn 1 Tyranids

Cruiser moves up and catches Dauntless light cruiser, kills with boarding action.  Other Cruiser moves up and shoots the other Light Cruiser.  Escorts move up and shoot the Fire Ships, one dies.

Turn 1 Imperial Navy

Dauntless light cruiser fires on Tyranid cruiser, no damage.  Surviving Fire Ship kills one drone escort.

Turn 2 Tyranids

Fleet advances, Cruisers move over the planetary template, fire on another squadron of 2 fire ships.  Assault boats diable weapons on Dauntless

Turn 2 Imperial Navy

Fire ships advance on Cruisers, cause several Fire critical results and one Fire on the Lunar class cruiser.  Bombers from the Mars kill one Tyranid Cruiser.

Turn 3 Tyranids

More assault boats attack Dauntless, irrecoverably screwed.  Kraken advance and fire on Mars, roll poorly, do nothing but force a BFI.  Cruiser fires on Lunar, force BFI.

Turn 3 Imperial Navy

Last Fire Ship hits Hive Ships.  Causes 1 fire on Carrier Hive ship, three on Claw Hive Ship.  Also kills 3 drones.  Dauntless disengages.

Turn 4 Tyranids

Hive Ships advance, Kraken destroy Mars class.  Surviving cruiser hounds Lunar near minefield, then boards.  Lunar wins boarding action by a huge margin and Cruiser dies.  Carrier ship puts out fire, but Claw ship doesn’t and takes 3 damage.

Turn 4 Imperial Navy

Retribution moves around, pot-shots some drones.  Lunar moves around.

Turn 5 Tyranids

Krakens move toward Lunar, team up with Hive Ship and severely cripple it.  Surviving Drones move with Claw Hive Ship and destroy Orbital Defense.  Claw Hive Ship takes 3 more damage and does not put out fires.

Turn 5 Imperial Navy

Lunar disengages.  Retribution kills a Drone.  Solar Flare wreaks havoc across the board.

Turn 6 Tyranids

Kraken start to turn around.  Carrier hive ship enters large Gas and Dust Cloud.  Claw Hive Ship takes 3 more damage from fires.

Turn 6 Imperial Navy

Retribution locks on and kills last Drone Escorts.

Turn 7 Tyranids

Krakens and some Assault Boats move toward Retribution.  Claw Hive Ship disengages.

Turn 7 Imperial Navy

Retribution kills one Kraken.

Turn 8 Tyranids

Kraken disengage.  Assault Boats move toward Retribution.

Turn 8 Imperial Navy

Retribution fails to disengage, removes Assault Boat wave.

Turn 9 Tyranids

More assault boats.

Turn 9 Imperial Navy

Retribution disengages.

Final victory points

Tyranids: 586, Imperial Navy 542.

Analysis: I deployed WAY too close to the board edge.  Also, John had one REALLY good roll with the Krakens that killed the Mars class cruiser.  Had I set up a little better I could have fared better.  As it was the Fire Ships are the only thing that saved me.  I HIGHLY recommend them for defense.

Memorable Games: Andy’s Map Campaign (me vs. Lexington)

For those unfamiliar with Map Campaigns, check out this link: http://fourstrandshobby.com/2011/02/13/memorable-games-joes-map-campaign/

Familiar with the basics?  Good.  Joe’s was not the only memorable map campaign.  Andy put on TWO.  One for Fantasy and one for 40K.  I didn’t participate in the Fantasy one, but it was a GREAT idea.  Essentially, a new Island appeared in the Warhammer Fantasy world, rich with Warpstone deposits.  Every territory had a value.  Coastal areas were a 6+, inland was 5+ and the slopes of the central mountain were a 4+, while the caldera was a 2+ but had nasty side effects if you rolled a 1.  You got Warpstone from successful rolls each week, and the player with the most warpstone won.  A great idea.  Fantasy had never been played as much at our old Studio 40K club.

Andy’s other campaign was pretty standard.  Unlike Joe’s campaign it was every person for themselves!  I forget who “won” but it was just because the campaign went on too long.  Here’s why I’ll never forget the campaign:

Me and Lexington had a knock-down drag-out competition the whole time.  We literally never fought anyone else.  We had some GREAT games that boiled down to this:  If the Orks got there, Lexington won.  If they didn’t I won.  Zagdakka, Lex’s Warboss had some great victories and some horrible defeats.  Par for the course for Zagdakka.  My army leader was a 35 point Space Marine.  Back in the 3rd edition there was a Space Marine HQ choice that had a Veteran Sergeant statline for 30 points.  I gave him a Storm Bolter and boom: HQ slot filled for 35 points letting me take more Terminators and Devastators.

Another cool thing about Andy’s 40K campaign was that all the territories were occupied except one.  This territory belonged to the Nightbringer and Andy’s Necrons.  This was between me and Lex, so no other player could get to it without going through us.  On the last night of the tournament, I attacked the Nightbringer.  Andy left the model at home, so he ceded and declared that I won!  This has to be the easiest kill of a horrific star god clad in living metal EVER.

Lotza Nobz!

A variety of Nobs and a Painboy.  These can be used as Boyz squad Nobs or a Nobs squad.  They work well in either case.  Very minor conversions involved.  Most models are from the Plastic Nobs box or are Assault on Black reach Nobs.  Good variety of weapons.  I even got the special WAAAAGH banner with power klaw model to round them out.  A Nobs squad without a WAAAAGH banner is at about 1/2 effectiveness as it causes them to hit Space Marines on a 3.  Here’s some numbers:

PK and WAAAAGH! banner: 1

PK: 6 (one is not shown)

Shoota-Skorcha: 1

Big Choppas: 2

Choppas: 3

Painboy: 1

Grot Orderly: 1

With 3 regular Boyz squads with PK Nobs I can field a decent sized squad of foot Nobs in a mounted list or my Smartyskull all-walking list.  Good times.

On my plate…

Back during the buildup to the Big Game 5, Lexington had a forum up for us.  I used this as a way to show the other players what I was doing and keep track of what I NEEDED to do.  Periodically I will make posts, such as this one, which will have all of my projects AND their status.

-Blood Bowl: Finish Star Players and 4 more skinks.  Status: Current project. Just started Star players.

-Battlefleet Gothic: Need to paint a few escorts, three light cruisers, two regular cruisers, and a mess of defenses and transports. Status: In progress. This is close to being done.

-Necromunda: Need to finish my Orlock gang, and start painting Delaques.  I also need to get more tabs from Jen so that I can use the Necromunda board she made for me.  Status: In progress. Orlocks are 1/2 painted.

-Azure Flames: Need to convert a stand in for Kor’Sarro Khan, and mod up a Chaplain on Bike.  I also need to conceptualize an Honor Guard unit for Perseus.  Status: ON HOLD. The Flames are complete enough for now.

-Orks: Need to complete painting all minis, possibly buy one more box of Boys but no more. Status: ON HOLD pending spring.  I need warm temperatures outside to do dipping, as I cannot do it indoors due to cares.

-The Saratogan 58th: Need to build most of the minis and paint up at least 1500 points to start learning how to play Guard.  Status: ON HOLD.  Way too much on my plate to start an army from almost scratch.

-Warmachine: Need to paint Cygnar, and think of a color scheme for Mercs.  Status: ON HOLD. Don’t play Warmachine a lot nowadays.

-Epic 40,000: Have to get more Space Marine Rhinos, and paint both a huge Space Marine army and Ork army.  Status: ON HOLD.  Once again, too much on my plate.

It would be nice if I could have infinite time…

The origins of the Saratogan 58th

Saratoga is an unassuming little world in the galactic southwest of the Segmentum Ultima, between Valedor and Boras Minor. Discovered around the Age of Apostasy, Saratoga was founded, and soon developed a planet-spanning industrial infrastructure.

Saratoga was initially a patriarichal society, like most Imperial worlds. This changed when the planetary governor fell under the influence of Chaos and attempted to secede. Rebel citizens loyal to the Emperor took up arms, and through a long and bloody civil war, expelled the heretics. Most of the armed forces were made up of men at the time, so the rebellion had to draw upon women for support.

Since then, women have been proud to serve in the Saratogan armed forces. Whenever an Imperial Guard regiment is mustered, it is an integrated fighting force of men and women. Women traditionally make up 35-55% of Saratogan forces. Saratoga does not have abundant resources, and so often only has one to three regiments active in service at a time. These regiments are used until worn through, and then either reinforced from new Saratogan recruits, or disbanded. Rarely, a regiment is wiped out. Whenver a regiment is disbanded or destroyed, it’s number is retired, and a memorial is built on Saratoga.

Currently, the only active regiment from Saratoga is the 58th. Nicknamed the “Wild Cards” from their adaptability and fighting prowess, they have been in service for approximatley 95 years. Reinforced from Saratoga regularly, they maintain almost constant combat activity, punctuated by short periods of rest and re-training.

The “Wild Cards” have seen action in the Segmentums Solar, Ultima, and Tempestus, most notably during their actions on Julius during the Chasma Spica incident. Currently under the command of Tyrus Cassius McQueen, whose fiery temper and refusal to leave behind trapped Saratogan units has earned him the nickname “The Angriest Angel.” McQueen’s signature black beret and his height make him an imposing and inspiring figure.

Because of Saratoga’s constant supplies of soldiers, planetary population is nowhere near where it could be. To supplement this, Saratoga grows clones in glass artificial wombs. The clones, called “tanks” after the tanks they grow in, are born fully grown, and after about five years of training are ready to fight or enter society. “Tanks can be identified by a small protrusion at the back of the neck, leading “tanks” to be referred to as “nipple-necks.” Most “tanks” choose to serve in the Guard, as they are indoctrinated for loyalty during their “education.” Guard recruitment rates among “tanks” were at 90% before T.C. McQueen took command of the 58th. A “tank” himself, his inspiring loyalty and tales of heroism has boosted “tank” recruitment to 97%. This has left the civillian population free to expand, and as of c999m41, a new founding of a Saratogan regiment is expected to happen within the next 50 years.

DISCLAIMER: The above fluff was inspired by the television show Space: Above and Beyond by 20th Century Fox Television and Hard Eight Pictures.  No copyright infringement was intended and indeed this is meant as a tribute.  Games Workshop is unaffiliated with either of the above entities, but it would be cool if they were.

Leonidas, Captain of the First Company of the Azure Flames

NOTE TO ALL READERS: THIS FLUFF WAS CONCEPTUALIZED AND PARTIALLY WRITTEN AT LEAST 7 YEARS BEFORE THE MOVIE 300 CAME OUT.

Modeling

Leonidas is the model with the Heavy Flamer and the Hammer.  The ORIGINAL Leonidas model was made by Joe for a guy called King Douche Greg who ran our LARP and played Salamanders.  He sold his army to “Big” Matt T. and Matt used most of it to expand his Chaos army.  I bought the Leonidas model from Matt T. and did a slight repaint, hitting the rims and knees with white.  He originally had a pistol, and I added a shield and used him as a Comapny Champion.

When the latest Space Marine Codex came out, Vulkan He’Stan was a must-have character.  Arguments on the internet say that the Space Marine Codex is only competitive with him, and agree or not he is a VERY useful golf club to have in your bag.  I decided that Leonidas would be the perfect stand-in.  So I stripped the original Leonidas Model.  I replaced the shoulder and lower part of the right arm.  I added a new left arm, and modified a Dreadnought Heavy Flamer with a shaved meltabomb to be Leonidas’ Heavy Flamer.  I replaced the head with the masked head from the Space Marine Captain box.  The backpack, torso, and legs are the originals.  I added the Cross from the Terminator box set to the left knee.

The company champion with the sword upraised is the Emperor’s Champion model.  The Flame was added with putty.  I also added a Fantasy shield.

The company champion that is pointing with the sword uses the helmet of the Ultramarine character Chronus, with the Mk 9 sergeant armor.  The sword is from the Space Marine Captain box, and the shield is another fantasy shield.

All three backpacks are Xavier Salamander Mantles.

Painting

Leonidas’ original paint job was a Salamanders scheme, but darker as King Douche Greg used Dark Angels green instead of Snot Green.  I improved this paint job with the white rims and knees.  To fit it into the Azure Flames, I made up the story in the Background section below.

I repainted the new Leonidas in a similar scheme.  I added the Ivy detailing and lettering by hand.  This is the scheme shown above, the “original” colors of the “Sons of the Salamander.”  I wrote the Vision of Atrus story specifically to include the mini made by Joe in my army, and explain why he was painted in different colors.

Backstory

Unlike most youths who voluntarily submit applications to the Azure Flames (then the Sons of the Salamander) as a tithe from a grateful world, Leonidas of house Atraps joined the chapter by crashing the tests.

Literally.

Leonidas’ parents were wealthy aristocrats on a world called Orpheus.  When the Sons of the Salamander prevented Orks from entering orbit, the chapter requested that Orpheus allow any boys of age apply to the rigorous physical and mental tests to join.  His parents forbade him from applying, so Leonidas stole his father’s private shuttle and crashed it into the testing facilities.  The crash was probably due to the fact that Leonidas had never flown before.  Luckily there was warning and few were hurt.  Sons of the Salamander Apothecaries were the first on the scene, finding the youth concussed and unconscious, surrounded by smashed luxury liquor bottles and ruined imported Aquarian caviar.

Upon regaining consciousness, Leonidas demanded he be allowed to take the test for admittance.  Despite recovering from a concussion he excelled at the tasks set before him.  Over the protestations of his influential family and the planetary governor, Leonidas was admitted to the Sons of the Salamander.

Leonidas’ career was blood spattered and glorious.  He always seemed to be at the forefront of fighting, even as bolter support in the 9th company Devastators.  His combat prowess eventually led him to be named Company Champion of the 3rd Company.  Later, when the Sons of the Salamander command structure was killed when the Battle Barge His Hammer was destroyed, he was inducted to the 1st company .

Leonidas was the loudest voice of dissent against the transition from Sons of the Salamander to the Azure Flames.  While he shared in the vision and was convinced of its authenticity, he felt that changing the chapter would be seen as heresy.  During the conference of Nocturne where Atrus and Salamanders Chapter Master Tu’Shan argued the terms of the chapter’s change, Leonidas pushed open the doors and barged in.  His musings on compromise led to the composition of the Concord of Leonidas, a binding agreement that limited the independence of the newly named Azure Flames and closely tied them to their parent chapter, the Salamanders.  Part of this agreement (under Leonidas’ insistence) would be that the company champions of the Azure Flames wear the colors of the Sons of the Salamander, to remember the Chapter’s beginnings.

Leonidas served in the 1st company wherever fighting was hottest.  After Atrus’ interment in the sarcophagus of a Dreadnought, he personally formed Atrus’ Techmarine Bodyguard from the four most dedicated Techmarines in the chapter.  He was a constant source of irritation to Perseus (then Captain of the 1st company) due to his willfullness and stubbornness.  Leonidas was the first Space Marine on the scene of Atrus’ death, and was the first to find the statue that the Eldar had left, depicting Atrus as he was before his interment.

Atrus’ death made Perseus Chapter Master, and left a power vacuum in the 1st company.  To prevent Leonidas from continuing his insubordinate attitude, Perseus made him Captain of the 1st company.  Now Leonidas’ willful spirit is overpowered by his dizzying array of responsibilities.  After learning from Perseus the secret that Antonius was the gene-son of Atrus, Leonidas made Perseus swear that Antonius, not Leonidas would replace Perseus should he ever fall.  Leonidas is currently assembling a corps of elite bodyguards for Perseus, though Perseus finds this unneccesary as he is usually in the company of the 3rd Terminator squad in battle.

Leonidas personally returned to Nocturne following this and re-negotiated his namesake agreement.  Several provisions were suspended permanently.

Leonidas wields a custom made hammer that is much lighter and quicker than a Thunder Hammer, yet still contains powerful motion enhancers that make his blows truly powerful.  He also wields a huge Heavy Flamer one-handed as an example of what Space Marines should be able to do.

The Concord of Leonidas

Resolved,

-That the Chapter known as The Sons of the Salamander requires restructuring following the loss of their command structure, during the loss of the Battle Barge His Hammer, at the battle of Taranga VII.

-That, although independent from founding chapters, successor chapters should maintain nominal ties with their parent chapter to prevent heresy or mutation.

-That major changes to a chapters’ practices, though rare, are not deviant, so long as they remain loyal to the Emperor.

Hence,

The Chapter known as The Sons of the Salamander shall be known as The Azure Flames, and shall be acknowledged as free of heresy by their founding chapter, The Salamanders, according to the agreement below.

1. The Azure Flames recognize and continue to follow the Promethean Cult as they have done so in the past.  All Azure Flames Chaplains must preach according to the Promethean Cult, save that they are allowed to include Atrus’ vision as part of their teachings.

2. The Azure Flames will change their livery to a dark blue scheme, save the Champion of each company, who shall remain in the livery of The Sons of the Salamander, and Chaplains, who shall retain their black armour, and Apothecaries who shall retain their white armour.

3. A representative of The Azure Flames shall be sent to Nocturne in order to participate in the yearly Salamander hunt.  All spoils are the property of the contestant.

4. Apothecaries of the Salamanders shall have full access to the Azure Flames Gene Seed repository at any time, should they so choose.  Salamander Apothecaries are allowed one complete Azure Flames gene seed sample per 1,000 years to ensure genetic purity. (This Provision suspended 964.82 M41)

5. Librarians of the Salamanders shall have full access to the Azure Flames Librarium at any time, should they so choose.  Salamander Librarians are allowed as many mental scans of any Azure Flames Space Marine to satisfy that the chapter is free of heresy.  All scans are to have an Azure Flames Librarian and no other guards, for security purposes. (This Provision suspended 964.82 M41)

6. The Salamanders shall maintain a garrison of no less than ten Space Marines on the homeworld of The Azure Flames, once they choose a world to call their own. (This Provision suspended 964.82 M41)

7. Any Azure Flames fleet must report their co-ordinates to an Imperial outpost upon entry of an Imperial star system, with instructions that these co-ordinates are to be sent to Nocturne, and the Battle Barge His Anvil, or the Fortress-Monastery of the Azure Flames once it is founded. (This Provision suspended 964.82 M41)

Agreed this day, 814.76  M41

Tu’Shan, Chapter Master of The Salamanders

Chief Librarian Atrus, Chapter Master of the Azure Flames

Leonidas, Champion of the first company of the Azure Flames

Where you do what you do: Hobby Space

Everyone has a place where they do their modeling and painting.  Whether this is a specially dedicated room or just a corner of a table, you need a place to do stuff.  There’s just too much you need to model; it’s hard to move around easily.  To do this hobby you need:

-Miniatures

-Something to put them in (a case, box, or foam tray)

-Primer (possibly multiple colors)

-Paints (takes lots of room if you do this right)

-Brushes

-Water source (dish, old tray, etc)

-Palate for mixing colors, and paper towel and newspaper for protection.

-Putty

-Sculpting tools

-Modeling knife

-Files

-Pin vise with drill bits

-Pinning materials (brass rod, paperclip, etc)

-Model glue (super glue, zap-a-gap, etc)

-Base glue (Elmers, PVA)

-Basing material (talus, flock, sand, etc.  This is optional if you sculpt tiles on bases or use custom moulded bases)

-Tools such as jeweler’s saw, clippers, dremel, etc.

-Varnish spray (Testors or go home, any other brand makes your minis look like frosted flakes)

…and all this stuff takes space.  Back when I lived in Charlotte MI, I had a good system.  I took a paper ream box and cut down the bottom part so it barely fit into the lid.  Stuff goes in the box.  The stuff I need goes on TOP under a piece of newspaper.  The box goes on my lap, and I paint on my couch watching T.V. for background noise.  This was pretty efficient, I got a lot done in Charlotte despite completing a teaching degree.  Nowadays I just use the corner of a table and pile stuff in the corner.

But I’m working on it…

Nob Bikers – Bane of Gaming

So I’ve been writing a lot about lack of balance and overpowered units.  Nob bikers are the worst of the lot.

So of course I had to have some.  Just to keep things even…

All of these use the Nob box set and the Ork Warbike box set.  Some of the torsos were taken from the Ork Boys box set (the Nob body).  Some of the legs are regular Ork Biker legs and some are plastic Nob legs sawed and re-puttied to look good.  It’s hard to tell the difference.

So, as you can see from the weapon kit, I’ve made a lot of different options.  Several Power Klaws and Big Choppas.  There’s also one regular choppa.  These have alternating Bosspoles and sans-bosspoles to create more annoying variety.

There’s also a Painboy.  The Mask was made with putty.  The syringe is made from the Ork Nob Harpoon Arm bionik, with the spool removed and the harpoon shaved down.  A pin vise made the hole, and the canister is a Space Marine Meltabomb shaved down.  The Grot Orderly mask is actually a grot head from the Plastic Gretchin box, and also uses the Ammo Runt arms with the Stikkbomb carved out.  The bag is made of putty.

The WAAAAAGH! banner is made of brass rod and plasticard with the Ork skull on top.  The glyphs read “WAAAAAGH!  Smartyskull” in Ork.

In games I have used them, they have performed like you’d think they would.  I usually don’t include them because it’s not fun to just have them rampage through everything and win uncontested.

Konquata Monitors Kroxigor and Journeymen Skinks

The Kroxigor is number 1 (it’s as high as he can count!)  The journeymen don’t have proper numbers, they haven’t earned them yet!

Next: Star Players!  They will feature non-Konquata skin tones, as they were not born on Konquata (Albion), so I’m going to experiment with other various colors such as red, blue, true green and orange.

Musings: What IS a point?

There has been a lot of complaining about balance lately.  Some of it even came from this blog.  However, all complaints about balance come down to one idea: something in the game is too powerful.  This is a wrong way to think.  It is my opinion that nothing can be too powerful.

I’ll stop for a second to let you clean up the drink you just spat out.

Nothing? Nothing. Not even an invincible model that has a weapon that kills every model within 24″ and cannot be removed from play, even by effects that instantly kill everything?  Even that.  Here’s why.  It’s a nitpicky stupid way to look at it, but I think it works.  Nothing is too powerful AS LONG AS YOU PAY THE POINTS FOR IT.

Which begs the question: what IS a point?  How do you determine how much a model SHOULD cost?  Chances are, you’ve heard another gamer say “Man (insert unit name here) should totally cost (insert integer here) more points per model.”  But how did that person come up with that number?

Well, lots of people just make them up.  However after being thrashed by Nob Bikers/Missile Wolves/Flying Circus/Whatever enough times, you figure out just how many points on average that unit kills.  You then compare that to the actual cost of the unit.  On average they should be the same, and if the one is higher (usually MUCH higher in the cases where this much complaining happens) then the unit doesn’t cost enough and is “overpowered.”

But this doesn’t answer the question.  What IS a point?  It is a mathematical representation of simulated military power.  Because it has a fixed value (multiples of one, you can’t have half a point) then ideally on average a unit will “make its points back” plus or minus a bit.  It’s those units that make WAY more than their points back on average that are overpowered or underpointed.

Sadly, once identified there’s not a really good way to fix the problem without an errata from the game company, which are sometimes rare (GW has been good lately, bringing Dark Angels and Black Templars back up to par).