1000 point Eldar Vs Imperial Fists: Secure and ControlDeep within the baroque walls of Phalanx lies the Chamber of Xenos. It winds deep into the bedrock of the great fortress monastery of the Imperial Fists, filled with trophies taken from the many campaigns in which the ancient Chapter has vanquished a perfidious alien menace. There are the great carapaces of slain Tyranid war-beasts, the cruel barbed armor of innumerable Drukhari pirates, the blunt skulls of ork barbarians, and more besides.
The stewards of this vast and blasphemous hall will, upon request, give any battle brother a tour, reading off the deeds and the honors rained upon the men who brought their trophies here to be interred. They come not to hear the of the honors, however, but instead come, their eyes sharp and discerning, to learn of the foes they might face in defense of the Emperor's realm. Each comes away with a different lesson--they note the weakness of the bone structure in this beast, or remember the length of that monster's reach. Many trophies are accompanied by an ancient plaque featuring a word of warning or perhaps some record of what cost this foe inflicted.
Of all the varied and horrible artefacts in the Chamber of Xenos, one is the most puzzling. Many a young astartes has stared at it--an elaborate Aeldari headress, punctured cleanly in the face plate by a single bolt round. By all accounts, this was a most dangerous foe--the adepts records state that most clearly--but the word left by the champion who delivered this foul alien to justice seems to bear no correlation to the menace associated with the beast. How could a dangerous enemy be given such a title? What danger could such a thing really pose?
The word? The word is "Coward."
And only the truly wise understand how dangerous that word can be.Imperial Fists SpearheadHQCaptain w/Relic Blade, Mastercrafted Boltgun
TroopsTactical Marines x 10 w/Meltagun, Heavy Bolter, Combiflamer, Powerfist
Tactical Marines x 10 w/Meltagun, Heavy Bolter, Combiflamer, Powerfist
5 Sniper Scouts w/Camo Cloaks
Heavy SupportVindicator w/Storm Bolter
Vindicator w/Storm Bolter
Devastators x 5 w/2x Missile Launcher, Armourium Cherub
Eldar PatrolHQAutarch w/Warp Generator, Banshee Mask, Deathspinner
Elites5 Striking Scorpions w/Exarch (Claw)
Troops10 Guardians w/Shuricannon
--in Wave Serpent w/ 3x Shuricannon
10 Guardians w/Shuricannon
--in Wave Serpent w/ 3x Shuricannon
Fast Attack8 Warp Spiders
Heavy SupportWraithlord w/ 2x Brightlances
Mission, Terrain, and DeploymentMy Eldar opponent and I played at a local gaming store which had just recently instituted a 40K Night--a good sign in an area where 40K had largely died out with the advent of 7th Edition. We got there and got a table, but the table's terrain was a little sparse--an urban parking lot kind of place with a few low platforms, a ruin in the NW and SW corners, and two small ruins in the center. Beyond the occasional low wall or crate, that was it. This was not optimal for my list, as my footslogging marines were really supposed to rely on cover to limit casualties.
The mission was Secure and Control and I won the roll-off for deployment mode. After hemming and hawing, I went with Spearhead Assault (given that I was fielding a Spearhead and hadn't tried it). Well, this deployment mode instantly backfired when my opponent responded by placing his objective in the NW corner. I shouldn't complain, as I placed mine in the SW corner (hey, they were like the only places for cover on the board!). So, now I've got very little odds of making it all the way to his objective and furthermore the deployment scheme that was intended to make coming to grips with his Eldar *easier* has only succeeded in making it even harder. I should have stuck with classic Dawn of War.
As we alternated deployment, it became clear that the Eldar were going for a refused flank--two Wave Serpents, the Autarch, and the Wraithlord deployed in the NW corner out of LOS while the Spiders deployed in the NE quadrant and the Scorpions hid in the shadows.
My two Vindicators deployed centrally, the Devastators took the roof of the SW ruins to guard the objective, and the captain and two tactical squads flanked those ruins. The Tac squad on the left (Tac Squad Attica) was more-or-less in the open. Finally, my scouts deployed atop one of the central ruins.
Deployment
Marines DeploymentSlightly clearer photoScouts in their Sniper PerchEldar Refused FlankSpiders far, far awayTurn 1The Eldar have fewer drops and so they go first. My CP to re-roll the seize the initiative sees me roll two 1s in a row. This would prove to be a motif for the game.
The Serpents and the Wraithlord pop around the NW ruin and the transports throw most of their firepower into Tac Squad Attica in the open there, killing 4 of them. The Wraithlord throws two brightlances against a Vindicator and takes off...one wound. The Warp Spiders move a whopping 23" or something crazy like that and get right into range of the Scouts and behind wall, to boot. 3 of 5 scouts drop to weaponized silly string. Finally, the Scorpions deploy behind a wall in the SE, but after the Spiders are done liquifying a bunch of Scouts, they're too far away to actually get the charge on anybody.
Top of Turn 1
The Eldar move into positionWhere the hell did *they* come from?They were hiding behind that one wall this whole time, I guess.In my first turn, I decide to write-off the scouts, as they have no good targets and are too damaged to do anything about it. The two vindicators move west, delaying the scorpions from getting stuck in. They first one fires on the Wraithlord and does 10 wounds on two hits. WOW! First blood to me. I am, for this brief and fleeting instant, impressed with Vindicators. The rest of this game will teach me the error of my ways. The lesson begins when the other one takes a ponderous potshot at a Wave Serpent and does 2 wounds, even *with* a CP re-roll. It is up to massed bolter fire of both tactical squads, the Devastators, and a charge from Tac Squad Macedon to wipe out the first serpent. The assault allows me to consolidate into the Guardians who hopped out (losing 3 in the explosion) and the other Wave Serpent (for all the good it will do). I try to get the Captain stuck into that assault on the Serpent, too, but he rolls too poorly to make it (and I burn *another* CP fruitlessly).
The snipers fire at the Scorpions and do nothing because all they roll are 1s and 2s.
Bottom of Turn 1
Marines on the moveOne Grav Tank DownTurn 2In their turn, the engaged Guardians and the Wave Serpent fall back from combat (cowards!). The other squad of Guardians disembarks and, along with the Autarch and the Wave Serpent, pour a cool 35 rending shots into Tactical Squad Macedon. I lose 5 men and then am charged by a full 10 guardians. My overwatch, however, is epic--the combiflamer kills 4 guys by itself and, by the time the smoke clears, only 2 guardians survive combat and I've lost no marines at all. My opponent has to use 2 CP for Insane Courage to keep them from evaporating. I eschew such measures (I only have 1 CP left, after all) and lose one marine to morale (we presume he collapses from his injuries in more marine-like fashion rather than running away). The Wave Serpent's finally blows its shield to take out 3 guys in the other tactical squad (ouch!).
Elsewhere, the Warp Spiders jump ahead and use half their firepower to wipe out the scouts and the other half to take two wounds off the closest Vindicator. The Scorpions advance, having nobody close enough to assault.
Top of Turn 2
Before......and AfterIn the bottom of the second turn, I elect to keep my marines in combat with the two weedy guardians--seems like a good set-up. I charge my captain into single combat with the Autarch (boss duel! Awesome!). Of course, my marines basically whiff in combat and kill 1 dude. My Captain rolls great--4 hits, 4 damage! This, by all rights, should have severely wounded the Autarch, but the jerk rolls all 4 forceshield saves and then turns around with his own impressive barrage--4 hits! 4 wounds (on 5s!). I fail one save, so my captain gets the worst of the exchange.
The Devastators fire krak missiles into the Wave Serpent and does 4-5 wounds. The Demolisher Cannon on the closest Vindicator shoots at it, too, and does nothing. The meltagun in Tac Squad Attica takes a shot at the Serpent and misses. So does the krak grenade the sarge throws. I charge the serpent with the vindicator to soak overwatch (it does nothing) and then charge in the sarge and his meltagun pal. They do a collective wound or two of damage.
Meanwhile, the bolters on the Devs, the storm bolters on the Vindicators, and the *other* Demolisher cannon shoot at the Warp Spiders. The bolters kill 4, the Demolisher kills 1 (booo!), and they lose one more guy to morale. Also somebody, somewhere shoots down a scorpion, but I don't remember who or what.
Bottom of Turn 2
A Mighty Duel!Ram 'em with a tank! That always works! Turn 3And then everybody runs away from combat again, the finks. The guardians engaged with Macedon fall back, allowing the other guardians come back around the corner of the building and blast the remaining marines away (failed my saves in grand fashion, let me tell you--I only needed to make 4 of them). This, unfortunately, exposes the Captain to firepower from the Wave Serpent, which flew atop the nearby ruin, and the Warp Spiders, who teleport right in front of him. He *also* fails all his saves rapidly and dies. Finally, the Scorpions charge the backside of the rear Vindicator and do two wounds. The Vindicator doesn't care.
Top of Turn 3
(Space Marine Captain's corpse not pictured)They're coming for me...I guess...In my turn, the remaining members of Tac Squad Attica blast the last warp spiders off the board and try a 6" charge at the guardians. I fail utterly, even with the use of my last CP. The Devastators put 3 more wounds into the remaining Wave Serpent--it's at 4 wounds left now. One vindicator falls back from combat and the other chokes, its Demolisher cannon missing everything and its storm bolter failing to wound T3 targets. Already outmaneuvered, there is no way I'm going to win this battle if I can't even wound T3 targets with the marine arsenal. A Devastator Bolter kills a single Scorpion, so that's something.
Bottom of Turn 3
Circling the wagons, as it wereTurn 4The Wave Serpent, Guardians, and Autarch blow away my last two Tac marines. I am moderately pleased that it took the whole eldar arsenal some 4 turns of shooting to wipe out my tac marines in the open, but resolve to never let them be taken out piecemeal like this again. The Scorpions charge the other Vindicator and do nothing.
Top of Turn 4
It was a good run, guysThis armor is chainsword proofKnowing I'm just about at endgame, the game is close--I've got 1 objective to his 1 objective, I have First blood and he has Warlord and Linebreaker. If I can get rid of his linebreaker, keep my objective, and get something in his DZ, I'll win. A tall order, but such odds have been overcome before. I have the engaged Vindicator "fall forward" out of combat, heading towards the enemy board edge. The remaining Vindicator kills...one scorpion. Yay.
Forced, as ever, to pull all the weight, the Devastators blow up the last Wave Serpent.
Bottom of Turn 4
Now they've got no ride.Turn 5The Eldar shoot a lot of bladed discs at the Devastators, but marines sitting in ruins are hard to kill, and they whether shooting well. The scorpions, however, charge them, killing 3.
Top of Turn 5
The Devs fall back from combat in my turn and the Vindicators have to try and kill 2 scorpions to keep them from contesting my objective. In this grand challenge, they utterly fail. I do manage to get linebreaker with my other vindi, though.
Behold my last turn's shooting dice! (Dice have not been altered from their final positions)We could have played a 6th turn, but there is no point--it's game over.
Final ScoreEldar: 5 (Objective, Linebreaker, Warlord)
Imperial Fists: 2 (First Blood, Linebreaker)
Post-MortemIn reviewing this report, I think I missed a turn or something, since there was stuff I remember happening that isn't in there (I shot a pair of frag missiles at a bunch of guardians once, for instance--9 hits, only 1 killed. My dice, guys--wow). Nevertheless, you get the gist--a pretty rough handling by the Eldar here.
To large extent, this outcome wasn't surprising--this list was as much a test of units I like (Vindicators, Tactical Squads, Devastators) as anything else. Footslogging marines were massively out maneuvered by the much more nimble Aeldari and they paid for it. Beyond the lists, though, I made a number of mistakes. First was the deployment map, which I've already discussed--Spearhead Assault had the paradoxical effect of making my army *further away* from the enemy instead of closer. Let this serve as a warning to the rest of you. Next, deploying the scouts on one flank was a mistake--they were easy pickings for the Warp Spiders (whose mobility I will not underestimate again) and didn't get to do much of anything. Clearly my sniper-deployment strategy needs some work. Beyond those (significant) mistakes, I felt my army acquitted itself well.
Okay, one caveat to that: the Vindicators were straight-up awful. Granted, my dice were abominably bad this game, but even still they seriously underperformed for their cost. I got a lucky shot off early by blowing away the Wraithlord, but most of the game they spent killing one or maybe two models (if that!) and their stormbolters were honestly more consistent performers than the big gun. Add to their collective cost the fact that my snipers didn't do anything and about 40% of my army did almost nothing for 4 of 5 turns. Everything I got this game was mostly due to the efforts of my tactical squads and devastators. Despite getting caught out in the open and having limited mobility, my Tac Squads performed pretty well for their cost. They will need Rhinos, though, to be more effective--definitely getting my boys a ride in the future. I am also fairly impressed with the Missile Launcher, which proved a pivotal weapon and very versatile. I will probably be equipping more of these, too.
Overall, I fun game that taught me a lot about what works and doesn't in 8th Edition. I hope you found it similarly informative. Thanks for reading and thanks, as always, to my opponent!
