Guard vs Necrons Narrative IG 2020

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

I've got my Iron Gauntlet batrep ready to go! I will be sharing a game I played against myself between my Guard and my Necrons. I played somewhat fast and loose with the rules (no dynastic codes, no CP, none of the silly little command protocols, I barely touched orders, i ignored minimum game board size as you will likely see) as this was mostly a narrative game. The two rhinos are proxies for basic-loadout chimerae, which I felt were needed for both balance purposes and lore reasons.

 

But first, lore!

 

--

 

“This moon is barely habitable to all life, Warden,” grated Disgraced Prince Rakszan. “How are these...hew-mons...making battle upon it?”

 

Cryptwarden Merisekh shook her head. “It is unknown, Prince. Perhaps they have adaptations.”

 

 

“Adaptations? For a planetoid with a thin atmosphere and radiation blasted? They must be exceptionally strong adaptations. The Necrontyr, they would have died here quickly, weaklings that they were. Tell me, how did your master claim this place prior to biotransference?”

 

“Our master,” Merisekh said, emphasizing the nature of the new relationship between Rakszan and her Phaeron, “Acquired this moon when it was still in orbit of a secondary coreworld and therefore held a stronger atmosphere. 60 million years is sufficient for such things to degrade, especially when coupled with Aeldari interference,” the Cryptwarden spat.

 

“They are truly detestable,” Rakszan agreed. “Still, we must repel these invaders from our lord’s holdings. What appears to be their objective?”

 

Merisekh conjured a display, showing the strategic situation of the matters at hand. “A techno-viral listening strain has confirmed that what appears to be the main thrust of their assault is targeting this secondary tomb complex entrance;” she indicated with a gesture, “and there are harrying strikes occurring here, here, and here.”

 

Rakszan leaned forward from his throne--a vanity, perhaps, but such was a thing all but a very rare few Necron nobles were prone to--and reviewed the map. “Our forces do not appear to be mounting much of a defense.”

 

“Our forces are limited, Prince. Whoever is commanding these hew-mons is intelligent, and grasps well the concept of attacking where the enemy is not. We cannot respond to all of these attacks at once.”

 

“And why not?” he demanded.

 

“Because whatever lord or lordess fished you out of the hyperspace hellholes wasn’t completely in our Lord’s favor at the time, and therefore he was predisposed to dislike you. As such, you were given limited resources, which were in no particular order, two legions, a hunting party, three raiders and a light cruiser, and oversight. That is the extent of your resources, my lord, and if you are incapable of fulfilling our master’s demands then I am well within my rights to sever this partnership.” Her claws drummed pointedly on the hilt of her relic gauss blaster.

 

“Now, if you do not wish to have that happen,” Merisekh growled, “you will listen to my advice like a good noble, and not whine when things do not go your way.

 

“...What. Do you. Suggest.” he ground out.

 

“I recommend pulling our forces away from the outlying defensive posts. They are spreading us too thin, and this mechanized force is capable of smashing through them. A more concentrated stand at the tomb entrance should better allow us to withstand the assault.”

 

She cocked her head. “Of course, even then, you will be required to stand in defense of this complex yourself.” It was almost said as a challenge.

 

“Of course.” He wasn’t going to rise to it, however. Rakszan had enough problems without adding the anger of his watcher to them.

 

And now, the army shots.

 

 

I may misplace a couple shots, but I think I will largely get them in chronological order at least.

I was also certain I had a deployment pic but I guess not.

 

Turn One Guard: 

The Cantorellian 23rd took the first turn as slaves to narrative. Chimeras advance.

movement phase:

Limited Leman Russ fire and sentinel lascannon support kill one scarab.

shooting phase:

 

Turn One Necrons:

The Necrons advance. The Guard thought they were facing the bulk of the remaining defenders, but they were all deceived, for another entrance to the tomb was made. Another phalanx of necron warriors appeared in the heights above, where ancient ruins once stood.

movement and reinforcement steps:

 

They opened fire, their weapons plinking off the armor of the Leman Russ. Their comrades were more successful, dealing concerning but not serious damage to the chimera with the help of the ascendant prince. The scarabs closed the distance and encircled a Chimera, eating into its armor.

shooting and assault:

Edited February 23, 2021 by Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

Turn Two Guard:

 

The Guard advances, and some forces disembark from a chimera.

 

movement:

 

Volleys of fire ensue from all fronts but due to the Necrons’ repair systems damage is limited to a scarab base and a few warriors. Close combat claims perhaps one.

shooting and assault:

 

Turn Two Necrons: 

 

More Necrons appear in the hills as the warriors move down the cliffside . The Necrons fall back from combat to decimate the guard with their superior firepower. The front squad of guardsman is annihilated by gauss fire, and the commissar is left to stand alone against the charging metal tide. Warriors leap upon the starboard chimera and sentinel, intent on locking them down for a bit. Excellent repair subroutines see no necron casualties in the fighting.

 

 

 

 

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

Turn Three Guard: 

 

Commissar Muran falls back into the chimera and proceeds to hose the scarab flock with fire, putting a permanent dent in their numbers. Concentrated fire from a special weapons squad and the Leman Russ wipes a squadron of warriors, and flamer fire from the tank kills a sniper form in the hilltop ruins. The embattled chimera fairs poorly, all of its shots plinking off the armor. A panicked captain Broklaw puts one down permanently with his lascannon, though still holds his hunter-killer missile in reserve.

 

Turn Three Necrons: 

 

Displeased by the recent turn of events, the noble and his keeper step forward to challenge the interlopers. A third crack of thunder splits the sky and the hilltop tomb disgorges a third phalanx of necrons, these ones bedecked in gold and bearing staves of high office—Praetorians of the Triarch. The only shooting worth noting is fire from the warden that fells two guardsmen. In melee, a lucky dodge is the only thing that saves one guardsman from certain doom. However, he cowers in fear and runs away, leaving the overlord exposed to punishing return fire.

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

Turn Four Guard:

 

The guard have the breakout they need. Commissar Muran drives her chimera like there’s no tomorrow. The Leman Russ advances and draws a bead on the necron nobility, ignoring the troops on the hill above. Volleys of plasma severely damage the noble and destroy his keeper, but for how long nobody knows....

 

Turn Four Necrons:

 

The hilltop is quiet, for now, but those who had already arrived waste no time in engaging the enemy. Praetorian fire damages the forward chimera, while the deathmarks’ weapons fail to penetrate the Leman Russ’s thick hide. A grinding combat continues on the right flank, while the noble carves the chimera into a smoking wreck. The commissar survives and advances on toward the objective, aware that she may not survive the trip.

 

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

Turn Five Guard: 

 

The guard advance and put fire into the Praetorians, putting two of them down with plasma volleys. In close quarters, another chunk of scarabs die, as well as a warrior. Commissar Muran continues her desperate run.

 

 

Turn Five Necrons:

The Necrons advance—the tomb still silent—and fire grazes but does not kill Commissar Muran. She manages to survive the turn, as the overlord somehow (whistles and shoves several rerolls under his dicebag) fails his charge to reach her.

[Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch]

Turn Six Guard: 

 

Muran advances to the tomb entrance and disappears into it, wounded but headlong into the enemy’s tomb complex with her teleport beacon. Shooting damages the overlord and kills a warrior. The grindy close combat that has locked down the other rhino, the command squad, and the sentinel for the past three turns continues to fail to have any real consequences.

 

 

Having reached the objective stone with at least one infantry model, the Guard win the game! 

 

Have some closing lore: 

 

Commissar Muran screamed in agony as the eerie feeling of teleportation intensified the pain of her wounds, haloes of red light ringing her perception of her body as she was simultaneously stretched across a solar system and compressed into the space of an atom. And in an instant, and an eternity, she fell to the ground beneath a carbon copy of the giant, floating stone she had touched prior to being transported to...wherever here was. The Tomb Complex, she thought, and their designated target.

 

Not that any of her regiment had managed to make it to the objective. The xeno firepower had been extremely strong, and their durability had made killing them complicated. She still didn’t know how she had been able to reach the massive floating stone without being cut down, except by the grace of the God-Emperor.

 

 

Speaking of which, she had a job to do. Each squad (and herself) had been given a small device by the inquisitor who was currently in orbit, directing the regiments’ attacks, which was designed to provide a teleportation signal for the squad of Deathwatch holy warriors that were awaiting that signal to deliver a precise, destabilizing strike to centralized systems in the tomb.

 

Why the Inquisitor had not chosen to deploy those marines to the battlefield themselves, in order that they might make a less bloody entrance, Muran did not know, and she quashed the thoughts quickly. It was not her place to question the God-Emperor’s Holy Inquisition.

 

Looking around, apart from the teleportation monolith, there was nothing remarkable about the corridor she was in. Just power conduit in the floor, pulsing a dull red, and the odd hexagonal shape that marked a Necron cartouche every few paces, following some precise pattern that she couldn’t hope to identify.

 

Gingerly, she rose to her feet, mindful of the painful but fortunately glancing gauss wounds she had on her shoulder and elbow and proceeded to stumble down the hallway, supporting herself against the chrome-plated wall.

 

A whip-lash crack echoed through the air as a monstrous black and orange snake-thing appeared from the wall, its horrendous form slowly phasing into existence and turning on a hairsbreadth to vanish down a side corridor. Muran didn’t know if it simply didn’t know she was there, or if her weak, biological form was simply seen as a non-entity. Either way she thanked the God-Emperor for the small blessing and continued her stumbling progression.

 

Eventually, after what felt like an hour but what her chronometer confirmed to be only 15 minutes or so, she reached what appeared to be a large junctional room of sorts. The power conduits in the floor seemed to converge in a central structure, and it was reverberating with a low hum. Looking about, she saw almost nothing protecting the structure, just a few chittering mechanical insects the size of rats crawling and floating everywhere.

The commissar decided that she wasn’t going to find much of a better target, so she reached beneath her sash and withdrew the grenade-sized device, thumbed the activation rune, and lobbed it about ten meters away, to ensure that none of the hulking warriors would materialize inside the walls of the underground complex.

 

A thundercrack split the air and five giants clad in silver-gilt midnight plate appeared in a flash of light. Muran smiled weakly and greeted them with a weak smile and a raised fist. Her mission was complete, and now perhaps she had a good chance at getting out of here alive.

 

Things I learned from playing this game:

• Scarabs are the ultimate tarpit. I knew this, but it was nice to see it reiterated.
• Guard struggle to hit and or kill anything without tanks. The only shooting that did much of anything this game were the flamers, that didn't need to pass to hit rolls, and the Leman Russ, who spat out enough plasma fire that the shots that did get through hit hard enough to matter. Blast also helped, since the necron units all started with a minimum of five models in a unit, which guaranteed three shots on the small plasma cannons and raised the damage floor of the main gun. MVP was definitely the Leman Russ Executioner.
• Reaper warriors are gods at close range. They straight-up obliterated an equal-sized guard squad. I am looking forward to playing more of these boys in a more balanced environment.

Anyway, if you read through this I hope you enjoyed it, and I apologize again for the shoddy camera work and the wacko terrain. COVID limited my options hard, I am sorry to say, and I was limited to the loft.

Edited February 17, 2021 by Daimyo-Phaeron Lenoch