Turn the Tide (contains photos)

[Cactus]

From 775 to 777.M41 the Segmentum Solar was beset by wars and insurrection. Renegades and aliens took advantage, contributing to the rising anarchy. As part of the force sent to end the so-called Fourth Quadrant Rebellion, the Dark Angels were one of four chapters that deployed their full might.

The industrial colonies on Derren's World suffered an unusually high frequency of psychic phenomena, witchcraft and sporadic demonic incursion. For eighteen months the forces of the XVIIth Grensvan Dragoons, Ordo Hereticus, Ordo Malleus and the Dark Angels fought shoulder to shoulder against the most insidious enemies of mankind. The official records remain sealed by the Ordo Malleus, existing only in a securely warded vault on Titan. But even they do not tell the whole story. Other tales have been suppressed by other authorities.

This is one of them.

My friend Robin and I have been meaning to have a large-ish (ie more than 2000 points) game between my Dark Angels and his Imperial Guard for some time. When our schedules aligned and we set the date I hinted that I'd bought the Cypher dataslate and could provide the model too. We agreed to bring 2500 point forces and randomly select one of Cypher's Altar of War missions on the day. The Hunt was on!

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1001_zpsae78506c.jpg

Supreme Grand Master Azrael

Techmarine Mendeas with servo-harness

5 Deathwing Knights

Venerable dreadnought Varon with multi-melta, power fist and heavy flamer

Drop pod

Squad Shael: 5 Deathwing terminators with heavy flamer, pair of lightning claws, chainfist, thunder hammer and storm shield

Squad Matthias: 7 Deathwing terminators with cyclone missile launcher, chainfist, pair of lightning claws, thunder hammer and storm shield

Squad Jericho: 6 Ravenwing bikes with 2 meltaguns, veteran sergeant with power maul; land speeder with heavy bolter, typhoon missile launcher; attack bike with multi-melta

Land raider with dozer blade, multi-melta, Deathwing vehicle

Land raider with multi-melta, Deathwing vehicle

Land raider crusader with multi-melta, Deathwing vehicle

We rolled mission 1, Turn the Tide. This required Robin to split his army in two. One contingent, of my choosing, would be deployed with Cypher. The second contingent would arrive from reserve at the start of turn 4. Each side would earn one victory point per enemy unit destroyed . I would earn six VPs for wiping out the first contingent by the end of the game or Robin would earn six VPs if I did not. Cypher's special rules also offered up to three VPs to either side so there was a lot to play for. Night fighting would be in effect for the first turn.

The sentinel was switched from one group to the other at the last minute, which is why it's in the wrong photo.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1002_zps34009237.jpg

Imperial Guard main force

Company command squad in a chimera

5 stormtroopers with 2 plasma guns

Platoon command squad and two infantry squads, in chimeras

Heavy weapon squad with 3 lascannon weapon teams

Veteran squad with meltaguns, in a chimera [these seem to be missing from the photo]

Leman Russ executioner with all the plasma

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1003_zps4a391e2b.jpg

Imperial Guard reinforcements

Allied Ordo Malleus Inquisitor with power armour and a force sword

5 stormtroopers with 2 meltaguns

Platoon command squad and two infantry squads, in chimeras

Heavy weapon squad with 3 autocannon weapon teams

Veteran squad with some plasma guns, in a chimera

Allied Grey Knights, in a land raider

Scout sentinel with lascannon

I chose the contingent containing the leman russ executioner and lascannon heavy weapon squad to be deployed, reasoning that I could get the drop on one or both of these and neutralise them early. Robin sensibly castled up behind the tower in his corner and Cypher joined the company command squad in their chimera. The lascannon teams occupied the top floor of the tower and the storm-troopers with plasma guns held the bridge to their left.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1006_zpsf80c1bfe.jpg

Let's call the top of this photo north, which means I'm advancing from the south-east.

Dark Angels turn 1

The Consecrators' land raider and the crusader carrying Azrael, squad Matthias and techmarine Mendeas moved north up the road. The Deathwing knights in their land raider, unwilling to queue, swung to the west side of the large ruin in the centre of the table. With the roar of retro-thrusters a drop pod slammed down behind the leman russ and venerable dreadnought Varon stepped out. Firing his multimelta at the tank's rear he succeeded only in immobilising it.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1007_zps8669542c.jpg

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1011_zpsf542c120.jpg

Imperial Guard turn 1

Company command issued an order to bring down the lead land raider and three searing beams flared in the darkness, followed by the longer-lived illumination of an explosion as the lead land raider was destroyed. As the dust settled the scene was lit for a third time as the Leman Russ executioner eliminated all but one of the terminators it had carried.

Cypher and the company command squad poured fire into Varon and wrecked the ancient chassis.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1012_zps697eb8a2.jpg

Dark Angels turn 2

The lone terminator hefted his heavy flamer and began his solitary walk towards enemy lines. The crusader passed him, guns blazing at the storm-troopers and causing the two survivors to break and run. Lascannon fire from the last land raider slew two of the lascannon weapon-teams and the survivor also fled.

Squad Jericho arrived from the north to finish what the dreadnought had started, their two meltaguns wrecking the leman russ. Meanwhile the attack bike moved as swiftly as possible from the south and the land speeder typhoon dropped in to the east, trying to line up flanking shots on the line of chimeras.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1014_zps98a79004.jpg

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1013_zpsa92d313b.jpg

Imperial Guard turn 2

The heavy weapon team rallied and moved back up the tower. Disgracefully the storm-troopers did not and retreated further. Cypher continued to direct a stream of fire from the command squad, this time at the Ravenwing. The nearby infantry squads and their transports added their own shots and the six bikes fell.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1016_zpsaeea2ceb.jpg

Dark Angels turn 3

The front ramp of the crusader hit the ground with a bang and Azrael led the charge, leaving techmarine Mendeas behind to continue repairs. Azrael and squad Matthias destroyed a chimera and the squad inside before consolidating towards Cypher. The surviving marine from squad Shael saw a way to avoid being shot with many multilasers and embarked on the crusader through the side door. On the western flank the Deathwing knights advanced in their land raider, the attack bike just behind. The bike lost a wound to a dangerous terrain test here which, in hindsight, I didn't have to take. After turbo-boosting the 4+ jink is as good as the 4+ cover save from the ruins. This mistake would cost me later. Another chimera exploded under a fusillade of laser and melta fire, only the missile team surviving the inferno.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1018_zps4d94b29b.jpg

Imperial Guard turn 3

The missile team fell back to the table edge and regrouped - in this scenario models in Cypher's army cannot fall back off the table before turn 4. Responding to the land raider, a veteran squad equipped with meltaguns disembarked from their chimera. They disabled the tank's right sponson but did nothing to delay the knights. Both surviving chimeras and Cypher's unit poured everything they could into Azrael and squad Matthias on their left, downing three.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1019_zpsa8354a8f.jpg

Dark Angels turn 4

The Deathwing knights charged from their land raider. The overwatching meltaguns hit home but the energy was dissipated by the knights' shields and they unsurprisingly crushed the veteran soldiers. One of the land raiders finally finished off the lascannon weapon team in the tower while the attack bike failed to hit Cypher's chimera. Azrael and squad Matthias wrecked the empty chimera in assault but made slow progress towards Cypher.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1020_zps44f01bad.jpg

Imperial Guard turn 4

Reinforcements arrive, including four chimeras, a sentinel and a land raider carrying a Grey Knights strike squad and Ordo Xenos inquisitor! A squad of storm-troopers dropped in behind my crusader, two meltaguns were trained on the engine block and another tank exploded. The techmarine and terminator inside were unscathed but the two storm-troopers who had succeeded so well were immolated in the fireball! Cypher's tank backed into the north west corner while the newly arrived chimeras focussed their fire, reducing Azrael's unit to one marine with lightning claws. The Deathwing knights also came under intense fire but none fell. The attack bike was not so fortunate and suffered one wound. After taking one from the dangerous terrain test in turn 3 this was enough to remove my most threatening anti-tank unit.

We appear to have made a mistake here and allowed the Grey Knights to charge after arriving from reserve. I only noticed when I couldn't make sense of the photos! It didn't help them however as I was able to precision strike the one model with an AP2 demon hammer before he could attack. None of the Deathwing knights failed an armour save.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/SAM_1021_zps6c7789ee.jpg

Dark Angels turn 5

Azrael and friend joined the Deathwing knights and swiftly silenced the agents of the Inquisition, while my land raider immobilised theirs. The lone terminator with the heavy flamer finally got to unleash it on the storm-troopers in the centre of the battlefield, despatching the last one with his power fist in the assault phase. The techmarine assaulted a chimera and methodically wrecked it with his two servo arms, the platoon command squad tumbling from the back.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/20140201_173131_zpsba38e42d.jpg

Imperial Guard turn 5

Once again the Imperial Guard trained their guns on Azrael, killing the marine with him and leaving the Supreme Grand Master on one wound. The now de-mechanised command squad fired their grenade launchers at the land speeder to no effect.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/20140201_174219_zps2006ff4d.jpg

Dark Angels turn 6

Azrael joined the Deathwing knights and they surged forwards, wrecking another chimera in close combat. The techmarine unleashed his flamer and boltgun on the exposed command squad but the officer survived.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/20140201_180019_zpsa1833301.jpg

Imperial Guard turn 6

Robin fired everything he had at my dwindling force: one land speeder, one techmarine, one terminator, one land raider, Azrael on one wound and one unwounded Deathwing knight unit. Lots of opportunities to focus fire and pick up some VPs! One of the knights fell but bad dice ensured that the easy victory points remained out of reach. The officer on his own just ran as far from the techmarine as he could.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/20140201_180308_zpsf6a8d787.jpg

Dark Angels turn 7

Techmarine Mendeas moved behind a chimera and played his plasma cutter beam across its rear. The tank exploded and between that and the terminator's heavy flamer nobody survived. Azrael and the knights declared a multi-charge against the disembarked infantry squad and Cypher's chimera. The infantry squad was wiped out but two knights failed to even glance the chimera's armour!

Imperial Guard turn 7

The lone terminator from squad Shael was brought down by the scout sentinel. Autocannon fire from the heavy weapons teams wrecked the land speeder. Azrael and the knights continued to resist all Cypher's firepower.

http://i1205.photobucket.com/albums/bb440/Cactus-/Turn the Tide/20140201_182953_zps7317ab09.jpg

Cypher remained at large and a bloody toll had been paid by the Imperium for the Unforgiven's grim quest, but who had won?

I had destroyed 6 chimeras, one heavy weapon squad, two storm-trooper squads, one platoon command squad, two veteran squads, two infantry squads and a leman russ for a total of 15 VPs. I had lost two land raiders, two Deathwing squads, one dreadnought, one land speeder, one attack bike and a Ravenwing squadron, giving Robin 8 VPs. He earned another 6 because I had not destroyed all of the first contingent. Cypher still being active was worth D3 VPs and Robin rolled... 1. After seven turns and more exploding tanks than I can count we had drawn with 15 victory points each.

[Edit] Included details of the opposing army!

With thanks to Alan Bligh for the Fourth Quadrant Rebellion.

Edited September 29, 2022 by Cactus

[Kierdale]

A very exciting battle report!

It's always nice to read one which has photos too.

And you have some nice models there. I see a very early type of TDA ;)

[Isiah]

Excellent batrep + pics. Sounds like some fun carnage was had by all. Better luck hunting Cypher next time - he lives to fight another day curse him!

 

Cheers

I

[Cactus]

Thank you chaps, I'm glad you enjoyed it. In a way I'm pleased that Cypher escaped in the game. I had no ideas for a conclusion to the narrative that would allow him to subsequently get away!

 

It was a very brutal and fun game, especially when I got the chance to attack dismounted guardsmen. My first turn was the only one in which no units were destroyed. Neither of us was counting VPs as we went so the conclusion was a surprise to us both.

 

One thing I forgot to mention is that I neglected to use the knights' smite attack. I was saving it for the one round of close combat I hoped to get with Cypher - he has Hit and Run so I'd be lucky to get a second - but when it came to the final turn and I couldn't do any more than wreck his chimera I forgot to smite it then rolled nothing higher than a 3 for armour penetration. I did have the option in turn 6 to smite the immobilised Inquisition land raider as well as, or instead of, a chimera. In hindsight this would have given my land raider a better line of fire to Cypher's chimera but at the time I decided to focus on more reliable kills against softer targets.

 

Robin said afterwards that at no point did he feel Cypher was overcosted, and I didn't feel he was overpowered - though overwatch with a plasma pistol at BS 10 is scary! Overall it's a thumbs up for the most notorious Fallen Angel. :tu: