Initial Crusade Force

(Per our campaign rules, we start at 1000pts, 5 RP, and 3 units can have 6 XP to be Bloodied w/1 upgrade)

 

il-Phaeron Setokh - Overlord (Voidscythe and Res Orb) - Lead from the Front trait (gives unit Infiltrate), will be with Lychguard

X'ull the Tormented - Skorpekh Lord - Godpyre Mantle relic (unit gains Stealth)

The Watching - Deathmarks x5

The Unbowed - Lychguard x10 (Sword/Shield) - Battle-Scarred Resistance trait (gain 6+ FNP trait)

Deadly Stride - Skorpekh Destroyers x6

The Whisperers - Triarch Praetorians x5 (Rod of Covenant)

Harrekh-I - Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (Gauss)

Harrekh-II - Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (Gauss)

Shadow Runners - Tomb Blades x3 (Twin gauss)

Ma'ar the Mourned - Triarch Stalker (Heavy Gauss)

 

 

Phase 1 - Game 1

(Apologies for no pics, out of practice and will correct that going forward...hopefully)

Veiled Oblivion versus the T'au

Mission  - Outflank

Agendas - Immortal Servitude, Recover Blackstone Data

Necrons win the battle, 65-40 (Necrons were Attacker, went 1st). 3 Blackstone fragments from Recover Blackstone Data.

 

1 Awakening point from Reanimation Systems unlocked via Immortal Servitude Agenda. Rapid Reanimation bonus chosen- Once per battle round, re-roll the Reanimation roll for one unit.

 

No unit suffers Battle Scars.

 

Spend 2 RP for Increase Supply Limit to 1400. Add Transcendent C'tan shard (Nuun'kasi the Desolate) and Triarch Stalker (Iltep Timeworn) for 405 points. Now at 1385

 

Units upgraded 

The  Shadow Runner Tomb Blades gains - Hypergrav Field Manipulation (+2 to Movement)

Deadly Stride Skorpekh Destroyers (Marked for Greatness) gains Warp Hunters (re-roll to Wound rolls of 1 if closest target, if Unbound Adversaries re-roll to Wound roll instead)

 

Overall-

Victory - Veiled Oblivion

Blackstone Fragments - +3 (total = 3)

RP - gain 1, use 2 for Increase Supply Limit. Total is  4

Supply limit - 1400 (using 1385)

Crusade  points - Goes from 3 to 5

 

 

Game Overview

Again, sorry about the lack of pics, which will make this battle report more general than specific. The Tau forces (Experimental Weapons Cadre detachment) were comprised of a Breacher squad w/Fireblade, 1 Sunforge Crisis squad w/Coldstar Commander, 1 Fireknife Crisis squad w/Enforcer Commander, Pathfinder squad, Stealth Squad, a single Broadside, and a squad of Kroot Rampagers. 

 

Outflank is a weird Pariah Nexus mission with two possible deployment maps, I won Advantage (and Attacker) and selected the cornered setup as I figured it would allow me better chances to pull off Recover Data. I infiltrated my Lychguard onto the No Man's Land objective to the left, while my opponent set up his Stealth suits on the objective to the left. All the rest of my forces were pretty much behind some sort of cover towards the center of my deployment and aimed at the middle, as were his. I got the first turn, so was primed for a fast assault.

 

Scout moves happened and my Tomb Blades moved towards the center objective while the Triarch Stalker went for the right objective and the Scout suits there. The center of my army, Skorpekhs/Heavy Destroyers/Tomb Blades, moved onto the center objective to hold it while the Lychguard squad attempted to Recover Data. The Stalker killed off the Stealth suits in a single volley, while the Heavy Destroyers put a single shot into the Broadside suit. On the Tau turn the Fireknife Crisis suits/Broadside wiped out the Stalker. 

 

Round 2 had the Necrons still in the center, though the Lychguard had moved off of the left objective to head towards the center: scoring was simply hold 1 and then hold more for 5 VP each (end of battle whomever holds center gets 20VP) and with the Tau not really moving towards the left objective I wanted my most durable unit to be on the center. Kroot Rampagers and Sunforge Crisis suits split shots into the Lychguard and Skorpekh, taking down two Skorpekh and four and a half Lychguard in a combination of shooting/melee from the Rampagers. In what turned out to be a decisive move, Setokh used his Res Orb and restored a full 6 Wounds and then another 3 Wound from normal Reanimation Protocols, completely negating all damage done. Round 3 had the Skorpekh charging in and destroying the Rampagers, the Deathmarks managing to snipe the Commander with the Fireknife squad, the Heavy Destroyers blasting apart the Broadside, and the Triarch Praetorians coming down behind the enemy's rear objective being held by Breachers. Return fire killed off the Deathmarks and did some damage to each Heavy Destroyer and the Skorpekh, but the end was clear. Skorpekh managed to wipe out the Sunforge suits and eventually the Breachers in combination with the Praetorians, while the Tomb Blades on the center objective managed to Recover twice. 

 

It was an interesting mission, and would have been much closer if the scoring didn't have the 20VP bonus at the end. My only previous Crusade experience was with Nachmund, where if you get a certain number of VP the game ends that round, where in Pariah it is much more balanced it seems. For the most part it was a good game and one that worked well with my aggressive melee plans. 

 

I'll work on getting some lore for the Veiled Oblivion up, and pictures for the next battle report. Thanks for looking!