Prot's Deathwatch Batrep w/Pics: 1850 vs Tau

[Prot]

Hey guys, I hope this one can be done a little more briefly than some of my longer reads as I have little time to do this....

I wanted to do a Battle Report on this game because it features an army that smoked me in T1/2 the last time I used Deathwatch against it. (Actually most ITC style lists have). And I knew I was up for a crazy test again. Once again, please be aware I don't know who my opponents are going to be beforehand. (no list tailoring)

The Game:

Maelstrom 1850pts

My List:

Basic CAD:

Termie Captain

Libbie lvl1

10 Vets/Frag/meltaguns/Shotguns/Pod

10 Vets/Frag/gravguns/Shotguns/Pod

5 Vets/Frag/Shotgun/stormshield/Pod

1 Terminator Assault cannon

1 Terminator Cyclone.

Allies:

Ultramarines Skyhammer:

5 Devs, 4 Grav cannon Pod

5 Devs, 4 Multimeltas, Pod

5 Assault Marines flamer

5 Assault Marines flamer/Eviscerator

Smelly Fish:

Drone'mander (Warlord) w/lots of drones

Pathfinders + Some dude that has 3 wounds and lets all units within 12" get extra shots.

Breacher squad (I can't believe I don't see more of these) in a Fish tank (can't remember the transport name)

Stormsurge , fully loaded

Riptide Wing : 2 Riptides

Kroot infiltrating

Stealth Cadre: Ghostkeel + 2 Units of Stealth teams with Fusion/Plasma.

Game Type: Precious Cargo:

+ You can't discard "secure Objective X". Your opponent can steal any "secure Objective X" card from you.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Deployment + Opening Turns:

+ Looking at my opponent I roll on Telepathy simply for Psychic Shriek and on the outside hope that I get Invisibility. (ITC variant) I do not get Invis, and it was the regroup power. :/ So I pitch it and just stick with Shriek on my ML1 Libby.

+ Unfortunately he wins the roll for first turn. I decide to play the deny game, and hold back my entire army except for two solo Terminators who are completely hidden.

+ He infiltrates Kroot (which are a cheap throwaway for Objectives) right in the center of the table to slow me down.

+ Tau Turn 1: He is doing the ol' castle maneuver. Kroot are forced to lay down their lives for a shiny objective in the center. Off to the Eastern back fringe he has his entire Stealth Cadre +

Early Turns:

+ He takes the early lead, but without me having anything he can see he simply charges his junk up with Invulns, etc. And earns an easy objective point but no First Blood yet....

+ I declare Skyhammer coming in T1. He drew an objective that would force him to zoom a Stealth Team out from their hiding spot on the Eastern Flank towards a grey building.

+ I decide I must Steal this objective from him, and this is my first mistake.....

I drop in one 5 man assault squad and I scatter off the objective a ton. So I am forced to dump a second Assault squad into this bad idea and they stick on the objective facing off against one Stealth suit who just finished short of the objective even after his Jet Pack Move. I fail to kill them with pistols/flamers, and fail to get the charge range. Note the amount of fail used in that turn. But at least I'm on the board with a Stolen objective.

+ Here's where all the fail took place. Again, sorry for all the proxies. These are assault marines. They don't assault, and they're hardly marines, but there you go. +

+ Meanwhile, at the same time in the Tau deployment zone, my Deathwatch HQ and 2 Pods come in along with the rest of Skyhammer:

+ Oh I love the taste of Interceptor in the morning. +

+++ I apologize for all the proxies I'm still re-assembling my army +++

+ The grey marines are supposed to be Grav Cannons. The Blue Marines are MultiMelta. In the middle my Captain, and Libbie strategically place around the pod, (*We are playing official FAQ Pod Rules).

+ This is a pretty big moment. I roll 5 dice on Psychic Shriek of course targeting the Storm Surge. This guy rolls high and he takes 3-4 wounds from Shriek. Even after FnP rolls. Wow.

+ But now it's time for everyone's favorite game: Interceptor!

+ A picture form the Tau edge of the table: Note the Interceptor annihilates most of Skyhammer before it gets to fire. Back to the Black Fortress for more anti-xenos tech??? While your there, somebody hand me that Ork Warboss lucky stick. I could use it right about now. +

+ So Grav Cannon squad takes an amazing amount of firepower. The pods to obscure some Riptides/etc from getting some primary targets, but the Wipe out of the Grav Cannon squad (his number 1 target priority of course) nets him FIRST BLOOD!

+ Nothing like relinquishing First Blood to your opponent on your own turn! So he knew the Grav Cannons were going to probably finish off the Stormsurge and once they were gone he picked off a few Deathwatch, but then focused REALLY hard on the Deathwatch HQ squad.

+ The Deathwatch HQ squad gets a few cover saves but not many. The squad is wiped until we get to the Libby. He takes one failed save, then Look out Sir's 6 remaining wounds onto the Termie Captain. Thank you Librarian. Middle management really is useless sometimes. The Head honcho takes 5 saves, before losing a wound. Not bad. He's still breathing.

+ Finally I get to shoot in my own turn!

+ The 10 man Deathwatch split into combat squads and hammer away at top targets starting with the Stormsurge. I keep using 12" Impact Frag Shots and lucky poison hits (basically NONE), but after 8 or so Frag Cannon/Melta/Multimelta shots, the Stormsurge goes down! Wow.

+ With what little I have left I take poison rounds at a Riptide, but 2+ then FnP is immensely hard for me to get through. I maybe put one or two wounds on a Riptide with the rest of my army.

+ The termies roll up on objectives, and I score 2 points and we're tied.

Tau T2:

+ He takes some pot shots at my HQ, and isn't too worried about them, and tries to dilute my Frag Cannon count. Which he does.

+ He is trying to reinforce his Stealth cadre at Eastern / Mid, but has trouble killing all of my one squad there so my Assault Squad rushes him and loses Close Combat to a SINGLE STEALTH SUIT. This shall not be recorded back at the Black Fortress!!!

+ I drew an objective on his side last turn, and he steals it. He kills a squad off getting another point. For some reason his Riptide assaults my remaining Multi Melta team. I believe he was afraid of me assaulting his Drone Comander, which I would have tried, but probably died to the gobs of Overwatch.

+ His Riptides shot me up pretty badly and his Pathfinder squad with HQ had an amazing amount of shots. I knew they'd have to be widdled down.

+ Riptide assaults?

Deathwatch T2:

+ He drew a card on my side of the table which I stole...

+ The Kroot are fried by Frag Cannons. Chicken for supper.

+ Another bolter squad concentrates heavily on the Pathfindes and kills half.

+ My libby takes another shot at Shriek. He almost denies it, but fails. I get 2-3 wounds on a Riptide, but none of my shooting can do anything else to it. The Termies try to help but no go.

+ Our 2 Turns of Close combat against the Riptide slowly kill off my Ultra Multi Melta's.

+ I take two more objectives.

Turn 3 :

+ He realizes my Obsec has hurt him here. He hasn't killed me fast enough. The Stormsurge dying T1 is huge. But I threw everything at it.

+ The Ghost Keel moves out and my two assault squads are now down to one squad, and they kill the 1 dude he has left there. But it's a final 10 man Deathwatch Drop Pod that fries them with Frag Cannons (no 2+ Stealth for the Stealth Suits!) .

+ His Breacher squad steps into the Deathwatch that just killed his Kroot and he annhilates them with that High Strength /AP3 shooting.

+ I complete a few big objectives at this point and he's Rick Rolling my army to nothing at this point, but yet I scramble odd squads and try to maintain my army.

+ With the combination of Marker Drones, and Riptides he annihilates my Libby, Hq Termie and the squad they had just joined.

+ I am now forced to pick my next moves very carefully as my army is pretty beat up.... I grab another couple of objectives, while trying to find cover.

+ A remnant squad of Deathwatch have to kill a vehicle to net a point.... I destroy the Fish Tank, but the ensuing explosion kills two of my guys. OUCH. One is a frag Cannon.

+ Pointswise I take the lead in bottom of T3 with a 3 Point turn, but it is costly as I had to sacrifice a lot. Now to see if I can keep the lead and not get tabled at the same time...

Turn 4:

+ Tau realize they have to be a bit bolder to 1) catch up in points, or 2) table me.

+ The Tau shooting is still devastating. He starts advancing a Riptide from deep in his lines, I still can't seem to kill these stupid things. They both have wounds but 2+/3++/5+ FnP is sick. I poison the crap out of one of them with my fragile line, but he still has one wound left.

+ Tau wipe out the Deathwatch squad that just killed a fish tank. Aside from Pods I have only 2 solo deathwatch marines left at mid table.

+ Tau wipe the rest of the assault squads which were largely doing nothing. Breachers wipe one out, the Ghost Keel wipes the other out.

+ By the end of his Turn 4, the table starts to look really bleak for me....

+ Tau fire power has nearly eliminated anything I had in his zone. The Pods still block his passage though, and the pods have been plinking away at Pathfinders and drones. +

Turn 5:

+ I lead the game, the Termies are being rushed by the Riptide still.

+I manage to wipe the Pathfinders and their HQ for a point with Drop Pods and the Cyclone frag missile rounds.

+ For the sake of movement and in case we go to Turn 6 he starts shooting at Pods. He gets one down, the rest miraculously survive. He doesn't want to waste high volumes of shots at my solo guys running around. But he still manages to kill one with drones. now leaving me with ONE marine at mid.

+ I am retreating my last 4 marines on my side of the table with 2 Grav guns as I know his riptide is breaking for an important point which is being held by my Terminator!

+ Here the Riptide has one wound left! I throw poison at it with my last mid table marine. The Riptide destroys the Assault Cannon Terminator seen here protecting the edge of an Objective with is life on the line.

+ The Riptide ends up stealing this objective, but on the other side of this grey tower is 2 Grav guns and they destroy the Riptide, netting me a point.

Turn 6:

+ The Tau destroy a pod, and my last mid table marine. But can only get a point, and I have 4 marines, and a Terminator left on the table. The destruction is immense on both sides but I'm hanging by a thread.

+ He finishes his top half of the turn and can only score one point. We add up the points to be certain and I have the lead 13-9 so he cannot come close to a tie at this point and he concedes to the Deathwatch.

+ Many fishsticks and rejoicing is had by the 5 surviving members of this game.

Thanks for checking the batrep out!

[Runefyre]

Gosh. That's brutal. I could feel the frustration emanating from your post as I read it

Basically you played out every novel that involves Tau. Except you managed to actually win

[Prot]

haha. I didn't mean it to come across that way, but I understand.

 

Every game against Tau is like this.

 

This game reminded me a lot of my Ultra Battle Company games, except less efficient. Basically against ITC Tau you have to have a good alpha, spread out your ObSec with long term thinking in mind, then you have to establish a lead and try not to get tabled by T6.

[Sheesh Mode]

 

haha. I didn't mean it to come across that way, but I understand.

 

Every game against Tau is like this.

 

This game reminded me a lot of my Ultra Battle Company games, except less efficient. Basically against ITC Tau you have to have a good alpha, spread out your ObSec with long term thinking in mind, then you have to establish a lead and try not to get tabled by T6.

This is exactly what I face when I play against Tau locally. It's an extraordinary challenge, honestly. I am surprised you are not using more combi-weapons to pack additional punch into your alpha strike. 

[Vel'Cona]

Great batrep, glad to see a win eked out for the mighty DW! I've always found hard-fought games to be the most memorable.

[Prot]

haha. I didn't mean it to come across that way, but I understand.

Every game against Tau is like this.

This game reminded me a lot of my Ultra Battle Company games, except less efficient. Basically against ITC Tau you have to have a good alpha, spread out your ObSec with long term thinking in mind, then you have to establish a lead and try not to get tabled by T6.

This is exactly what I face when I play against Tau locally. It's an extraordinary challenge, honestly. I am surprised you are not using more combi-weapons to pack additional punch into your alpha strike.

Well I've gone that route, especially with Sternguard in months past with Ultra. I think for now I'm done with combi weapons for competitive play with DW. I used 2 meltaguns, 2 gravguns, and most Frag to go hunting.

But to be fair if the 4 Gravcannons (which I still swear are superior to Frag) that Surge would have been toast in T1 especially with 1) Ultramarine's Dev Tactics in play and 2) using the Beacon Angelis to basically put the Ultra's where ever I needed.

Skyhammer has become more situational than when it first came out. I'm honestly not sure I'd go there again. I have to think about it.

As far as combi weapons, they're too close in points melta wise to the real deal and in heavier situations I'm starting to gravitate more and more to the actual special weapons over combi.

Great batrep, glad to see a win eked out for the mighty DW! I've always found hard-fought games to be the most memorable.

Thanks Vel. It's always a grind against most Xenos. I really didn't know who was going to win this one til about T4.... and as you say, definitely memorable.

[SnakeChisler]

 

 

Skyhammer has become more situational than when it first came out. I'm honestly not sure I'd go there again. I have to think about it.

 

 

 

 

I'd have to agree there was a load of rage against it by some at the club when it 1st came out but that has subsided, still carping from some Xenos factions but who listens to them ;)

 

I've never had any issues with it as a Marine based force you stay in your 35 point Transport making it a really difficult for the drop units to do any more than pop a couple of Rhino's.

 

Also Coteaz started turning up again in a lot of people's lists

 

Tau still can't hack Psykers, nerf batting MC's & large units with Psychic powers is funny, and the latest wheeze to do on the Stormsurge is make it have to keep taking blind tests as the big squatting goat doesn't have sun filters and can't take them.

[Prot]

Yes I always find it so funny that the Surge can't take Sun Filters. I always shoot for nightlight pre game.

[Sheesh Mode]

 

As far as combi weapons, they're too close in points melta wise to the real deal and in heavier situations I'm starting to gravitate more and more to the actual special weapons over combi.

 

Prot, you get a bolter, a shotgun, and a single shot of special weapon if you take the combi. C'mon man! Think of the possibilities!

[Prot]

I get it but what about shogun / melta gun? I haven't tried it but if it's legal.... that might be a real solution.

 

I absolutely fail at firing one shot weapons. Every time I take combimelta I fail on one shot then usually fail to pen on the shot that hit.

 

The reason I swapped to this is experimenting with actual Gravguns I saw it took a bit of heat off of Frag as they usually die first. In subsequent turns the Grav has often made a difference. Again just experimenting everything.

 

I didn't mention this in my batrep but I rolled a ridiculous amount of 2's in that game. Even my opponent commented on that. So having the full weapon was a bit of a buff in this game at least.

[Relic]

Tau Breachers don't make it into many competitive lists, simply because other stuff does their job better! Mainly the Devilfish cost is prohibitively expensive. Although drop pod marines hate breachers as they are a perfect target! 

 

I'm a Tau player myself, and have played the other side of it with marines of my own, against similar Tau lists, except no Breachers/pathfinders & more Ghostkeels or Crisis suits. Least favorite match-up, bar some of the crazy deathstars. The combat stats of your men are fairly redundant as they won't likely see combat as they lack the mobility, and footslogging infantry don't rule 40k at the moment. 

 

Unless they are really cheap (G.Cult) or free transports! 

[Lysere]

Great bat rep once again. Not much I can say but assuming the lists are accurate the Tau would need another riptide to take the wing as the formation is three units of riptides.

 

Lone terminators are rockstars for sure though.

[Sheesh Mode]

I get it but what about shogun / melta gun? I haven't tried it but if it's legal.... that might be a real solution.

 

I absolutely fail at firing one shot weapons. Every time I take combimelta I fail on one shot then usually fail to pen on the shot that hit.

 

The reason I swapped to this is experimenting with actual Gravguns I saw it took a bit of heat off of Frag as they usually die first. In subsequent turns the Grav has often made a difference. Again just experimenting everything.

To my knowledge you cannot have a shotgun, stalker boltgun, or special weapon on the same model, but you can equip all the other options including the combi-weapons, power weapons, and shield. That's worth serious consideration. 

 

I, personally, have average rolls when I use combi-weapons and find that my veterans rarely live long enough to fire a second or third time. Combi-weapons suit my extremely aggressive play style so my experience revolves around making that work for Death Watch. Still... Grav-guns..... I'm gonna look into that...

[Vel'Cona]

I like combi-plasma for those incidental close range engagements but I don't like stacking my anti-armour/MC/GC cards in one-shot meltas if I can avoid it.

[Prot]

As Sheesh said it's worth noting that they have to live long enough to do the work. ;)

 

I keep trying the different combo's just to make sure I'm not leaving any rock unturned. That said I actually thought even a pair of Grav Guns is good.... I'm telling you if we had access to Cataphractii.... I would definitely go with 3-4 in a squad and let the Cataphractii tank it.

 

Grav is one of the big misses in the codex. Frag is good, but coming off of a long stint with Ultramarines, that Grav Cannon really helped make them competitive so it's quite a learning curve. ;)