Over to Adam Skarin to tell us all about it...
My Space Wolves have met my friend Patrik's World Eaters two times before this battle.
The first fight the Primarch Angron sliced Bjorn the Fellhanded to pieces with his Chain Axes. The second battle their Terminators and Dreadnought smashed Krom into the dust and only Ragnar Blackmane escaped the battleground.
So this third battle I had to come up with something that could compete with this furious army.
I was thinking AP2, and something that could deny invulnerable saves as I was expecting a Primarch again.
I also wanted Ragnar to come back for scenario reasons. So I brought my Wulfen for the first time. They all have AP2 and initiative 5. But Their save is not that good so I need some troops that could survive and lock his troops in combat.
For that I added some close combat Terminators, Blood Claws and Skyclaws. And I put the Wulfen in a Stormwolf so they arrive later in the game and can assault directly when they hit the ground. Then I brought an Assassin in case he brought a Primarch. The Vindicare assassin has ammunition that can ignore invulnerable saves and is AP2.
Space Wolves Army List 1850pts
Ragnar Blackmane8 Grey Hunters
Pack leader, Combi-melta, 2 Power Fists, Meltagun
5 Blood Claws
Pack leader, Flamer
5 Skyclaws
Pack leader, Frost Axe, Meltagun
5 Wolf Guard Terminators
2 Thunderhamer and Stormshield, 2 pairs of Wolfclaws, 1 Power Fist and Storm Bolter
5 Wulfen
2 Great Frost axes, 2 Frost Claws, 1 Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield
Stormwolf
Twin-linked Multi-meltas
Landspeeder
Typhoon Missile Launcher
Drop Pod
Deathwind Missile Launcher
Razorback
Twin-Linked Heavy Bolter and Stormbolter
Imperial Assassin Ally:
Vindicare Assassin
World Eaters Army List 1850pts
CaptainArtificer Armour, Relic Blade
10 Crusader Squad
Sword Brother, Meltagun, Power Axe
5 Sternguard Veteran Squad
Veteran Sergeant, Special issue ammunition, 2 Heavy Bolter, 2 Combi-Plasma, Melta Bombs
10 Tactical Squad
Sergeant, Flamer, Heavy Bolter
10 Assault Squad
Sergeant, 2 Flamers, 2 Eviscerator
Contemptor Pattern Dreadnought
Dual Chain Fist with Heavy Flamers
Razorback
Twin Linked Heavy Bolter and Stormbolter
Land Rider Crusader
Multimelta
Vindicator
Stormbolter
Deimos Predator
Plasma Destroyer, 2 Heavy Bolters
Deimos Predator
Plasma Destroyer, 2 Heavy Bolters
Mission
Dawn of War deployment with points for Slay the Warlord, First Blood and Line breaker.
We just wanted to hit each other hard!
I won the roll off and decided to let Patrik deploy first. I felt it was important to get my Vindicare assassin and Land Speeder far away from his plasma tanks. So I let him deploy first so I could get a good counter deployment.
The Vindicator and the Contemptor Dreadnought looked scary together on his right hand side so I decided to put my Land Rider on the opposite side and let it challenge his infantry and the two Predator tanks. My Assassin got a perfect spot in the ruins and my Land Speeder deployed behind it both far away from the enemy.
And then it happened, I stole the initiative! Lucky dice roll. And not the first!
So the first hard decision was where to land my Drop Pod with my Warlord Ragnar Blackmane and his Greyhunters armed with fists and Meltaguns. It is an expensive load and I wanted it to count. I felt bold and Dropped it right in between his Land Raider and the Predator tanks. It scattered a little towards the table edge but no miss hap. I disembarked behind the Predator tanks. My Land Raider and Razorback moved up towards the enemy Razorback and Tactical squad. The Land Speeder checked line of sight towards the World Eaters Land Rider. then my Wolves hit the trigger.
My Grey Hunters used the Meltagun and Combi-melta and a crack grenade and blew one of the Predator tanks sky high. Their armor withstanding the heat of the explosion. My Land Rider used its twin-linked Lascannons and made the Razorback blow up. My Assassin and Land Speeder got a hullpoint each on the Land Rider. So a great turn of shooting. My Skyclaws was staying in cover and so did my Razorback. The Drop Pods missile launcher is for lighter targets so I didn't use it. And because I disembark from the Drop Pod I could not get in close combat with Ragnar Blackmane's team.
TURN 1 - WORLD EATERS
At this point the World Easters were furious! The Wolves in their lines was not part of their plan. So Patrik backed up his Land Raider, Drove up the Vindicator and the Dreadnought run forward towards the threat in their lines. The other Predator drove away from the Grey Hunters towards my Land Rider. The marines on the ground stayed in cover.
I got to feel how devastating a Vindicator is. He blew Ragnar and a few Grey Hunters to pieces. The Land Rider Redeemer rapid fired the hurricane bolter and shot with its Assault Canon and Multi-Melta. The Predator tank then turned the Plasma Destroyer canon towards a small gap showing my Razorback. It fired three shots and reduced a hullpoint from it. After the shooting phase the Dreadnought punched its Chain Fists into my Drop Pod and was grinding it down to dust. it exploded but couldn't harm anyone near.
Loosing my warlord and an expensive Grey Hunter pack did hurt. But removing one Predator tank and popping the Razorback was a good thing. My Stormwolf were not planning on coming in yet, I failed the reserve roll. Now I advanced with my Land Rider and letting my Wolf Guard Terminators get out to feel the burned air. They ran forward towards the 10 man Tactical Squad taking cover by the pipes.My Razorback stayed in cover but got line of sight to the 5 man squad that had left the Razorback. My Land Speeder moved forward behind the ruins to get a good shot at the rear of the Vindicator.
The Lascannons from my Land Rider shot at the Vindicator and ripped one hullpoint of it. Vindicare got one from the Landrider but the Land Speeder didn't hit the Vindicator. My Razorback failed to kill any marine. So I didn't blow anything up in this turn. Then my Terminators charged the Tactical Squad. One Wolf Guard died from overwatch. I hoped to be stuck in combat at the end but my Wolf Guards killed everyone of the enemy marines. AP3 Claws and AP2 Hammers and Fist made short work of them. So I had to consolidate in the open ground. I spread them out towards the armored enemy coming towards me. Shields in front.
TURN 2 - WORLD EATERS
The Vindicator, Dreadnought and Land Rider all moved combat speed towards my Land Rider and Terminators.And from the skies Patriks Assault squad came dropping down from the skies with their jump packs. He dropped them in the center of the whole board and they didn't scatter. They weren't to far from my five man Skyclaws. The Dreadnought were out of range to flame so it ran.
Then hell broke loose. The Vindicator, Predator and Land Rider unloaded everything they had on my terminators, and that was a lot! I got to save a lot of 2+ armor and 3+ shield saves and didn't fail any one of them. The Terminators stood firm. Amazing! I was jumping in circles in pure joy and Patrik was coursing his dice.
My flier heard all the thunder in the area and found its way to the battlefield. It zoomed straight for the armored vehicles in white and blue colors. Inside its bulk the pilot could hear howling noise from the Wulfen wanting to get out. But first it took aim and fired everything it had on the Vindicator until smoke pour out of its hull. The Space Wolves Land Rider targeted the enemy Predator tank but failed to destroy it. The Razorback drove forward and made a 90 degree turn letting the Blood Claws out firing some Bolt Pistols at the remaining five man squad in front of them. But that shooting was more for heating up their guns and getting their adrenaline pumping.
The Skyclaws finely got to move forward. They saw that no one else were trying to stop that furious Dreadnought with its roaring Chain Fists. So one brave pup peaked out behind the basilisk and fired a melta shot in its feet making it immobilized! Another of those lucky dice rolls.My Landspeeder couldn't draw line of sight of anything this turn so it moved even closer to the enemy table edge aiming for line breaker in the end. The assassin shoot one more shot at the Land Raider but failed to destroy it. I hoped to get the World Eater Warlord out of it for my Terminators to charge them. But they got to take care of it in the assault face. 11 angry Worldeaters pour out of its broken hull. Eviscerators and Chainswords roaring for blood.
With the Vindicator and Land Rider smoking and a stranded Dreadnought it was time to get close and personal. The angry Contemptor Dreadnought looked the Skyclaw pup in the eyes as it aimed its two heavy flamers into its face frying it and all of its pack mates. The Predator tank ignored the big old Land Raider in front of it and instead aimed at the Blood Claws that gone out to make a fight. It unloaded three plasma shots and three Heavy Bolter shots into them killing two of them. The squad in front of them didn't pay any attention to them and instead ran forward and in behind the Land Raider picking up grenades and a melta bomb. they throw everything at it but not making a scratch. The dice gods were not with them. The Assault squad jumped forward also aiming for the Land Raider. But when trying to charge they failed their charge distance. The Warlords unit took aim on the four Terminators and shot a lot of pistol shots and a melta and killing of one of them. Then they charged in and swarmed around the Wolf Guards. But the Storm Shields and Terminator Armor resisted it all. I made amazing amount of successful dice rolls. Then the hammers did their job of cracking skulls and ribs of the enemy. The Warlord and a couple of marines from the Crusader squad were still in for more fighting.
The Stormwolf lowered the ramp and the Wulfen charged out of it in fury. And in hovering speed it turned towards the rear of the Predator tank and blew it up. The Razorback and the raging Blood Claws flamed the unit that tried to blow up the Land Rider instead of charging them. The Vindicare Assassin shot a hole through the Dreadnoughts head and putting it out of its misery. The Landspeeder were now on the table edge of the World Eaters side and shot two frag grenades at the back of the Assault squad killing off a few. The Land Raider shot at the Assault Squad but not making them any harm. Then the Wulfen attacked ripping every Crusader marine into pieces of meat. Only the Warlord survived with his Iron Halo saving him. Not even the slow Thunder Hammers did hit him.
The Assault squad jumped towards their Warlord, thinking about saving him. He yelled at them to help out in the fight. They looked at him and then took a sky leap backwards. They wanted the Land Rider to die!
To the sound of the Warlord dying they carved their Eviscerators into the hull of the old Land Raider but the Dice gods had abandoned Patrik this day.
A Epic Handshake and this battle was over.
SPACE WOLVES scored: First Blood, Slay the Warlord and Line Breaker
WORLD EATERS scored: Slay the Warlord
SPACE WOLVES VICTORY!
CONCLUSION
It was not the battle I was preparing for but I had forces for different tasks and it worked out fine.I had many lucky dice rolls that in all made a big difference. My Terminators with Shields were beasts in tanking wounds. And I must say that my Landspeeder and Assassin did exactly what I wanted them to do, to stay far away picking of wounds without appearing to be a threat.
That might have been a result of my crazy Drop Pod move in turn one. I admit it was a mistake but it was also a good distraction. Next time I bring a less expensive unit with meltas for the job and NOT stick my Warlord in it.
Patrik played well. He is a hard opponent and often change tactics that you were not expecting. I was also glad that I hold back my Skyclaws and Blood Claws until they could advance and make a difference.
Hope you enjoyed this Battlereport.
- Adam Skarin