Battle Report #8 - Game 1 Series vs Imperial Guard

So in preparation for the X-Legion Tourney my mate was wanting to test his 1750 (which is an unusual point total for the UK/Region - we do play 1500 so most of the time our lists are catered to this rather than higher). Games 1 and 2 were played on the same day where we both used different lists in each game, game 3 was played on another night where he went back to list 1 and I slightly changed my list. I have pictures for most of the 1st and most of the 2nd, but nothing for the 3rd.

I'll do them in different posts just because 1 post it will be HUGE. 

GAME #1 (Battle Report #8)

IMPERIAL GUARD LIST

StormTrooper 1750 Variant:

Company command squad - 4 meltaguns, chimera

5 storm troopers - 2 meltaguns, chimera
5 storm troopers - 2 meltaguns, chimera


Platoon command squad - 4 flamers, chimera
Infantry squad - autocannon
Infantry squad - autocannon

Veteran squad - 3 plasma guns, chimera
Veteran squad - 3 meltaguns, autocannon, chimera
Veteran squad - 3 meltaguns, autocannon, chimera

Vendetta - Triple TL-LasCan
Vendetta - Triple TL-LasCan


Hydra x2 - Squadron
Hydra
Hydra

BLOOD ANGELS (MY) LIST:

Librarian - Fear/Shield

Assault Marines - x5 w/ MG - AssCan Razor
Assault Marines - x5 w/ MG - AssCan Razor
Assault Marines - x5 w/ MG - AssCan Razor
Assault Marines - x5 w/ MG - LasPlas Razor
Assault Marines - x5 w/ MG - LasPlas Razor

Baal Predator - AssCan HB
Baal Predator - AssCan HB
Baal Predator - AssCan HB


Predator - AutoCan LasCan
Predator - AutoCan LasCan
Dreadnought - AutoCan/Autocan


1750 on the dot.


I actuallt left 1 chasis at home so quickly swapped my list around to add the rifleman dread in. I was actually pleasantly surprised with it - and quite tempted to give it another chance if I end up dropping the "dropcannon". (I actually have just thought of a SW list which can get a couple in - more on that later!).


His list is pretty scary - he has no "high powered" tanks - but just look at the ROF he can put out - target priority I find against his list is v.hard - often its just what poses and imediate threat - and then some thing just rolls up in his stead. One thing I have learnt though from all 3 games is that priority 1 is to stop those melta vets from getting anywhere near me - both via shooting and movement. But unfortunatly I never seem to get 1st turn vs him to target theme early enough. He plows them to midfield, pops smoke and do you now shoot at them when he has so many other tanks w/out cover etc...


THE GAME


Dawn of War / Kill Points

Andy wins to go first and rolls on and deploys like so. I keep everything off the board to roll on T1.  My plan is to "refuse flank" him and move along his lines "1 by 1" - however this was not a good idea. He has such a long reach out and touch vs my 24" front line that he can always hit me, and I stood the chance of eventually getting wedged in. The better plan would be to make a huge wall of AV13 that he cant get any side armor on, then have the AV11 rolling up behind it - and the AV12 protecting the 1 "squishy" side.

He obviously cant shoot anything T1.

So I roll on like so:

As you can see I basically "castle up" and block myself in. I'll point out a couple of mistakes - the only real benefit is that I am protecting some AV11 - but I am also wedging myself in - thats a 12" gap I can push through, and could block my entire line. Additionally it wedges the AssCan Razors right at the back as well. I'd have been better off coming in on the more open side on my left flank, rolling the AssCan's a full 12" forward (or even 18" and popping smoke) the AutoLas's "besides" them, and the x5 razors in a line behind them, the dread coming in "near center" and protecting the baal's AV11 side - sort of a sweeping flank, up high on the left flank of the board, but in the center still very near the table edge for a sort of "diagonal" line of AV13.

But it is what it is. I moved forward and a lot of shooting in DOW managed to drop that vendetta - good for me. However I am now to face the full brunt of his force.

Coming out of T2 I think it is the state of play looks like this:

He drops both the outside baals - very very nearly blocking my entire line in - which was the biggest mistake I made in this game. I now really struggle to get those rear AssCans into range which he capitises on and just blasts my front lines 1 at a time. I do however at this stage pull the KP's back a bit. Apolagies - apparently my phone didn't take nearly as many photo's of the game as I thought it did.

I basically manage to take out 2 of those chimera's right in front of my lines and I believe I shake another and do something to that Hydra on the hill. The rifleman and the autolas in that bottom left of the photo both manage to pen the other vendetta but I think he passes cover on 1 (from moving fast) and the other just shakes it I think (or maybe even he saved it).

So by around T3 the game is looking a bit like this;

I think we are both on 3 KP's a piece at this stage - he's drop 2 of my Baals and I believe a razorback. I've dropped a vendy and 2 chimera's

Now my forces are really spread out - he has 2 really "easy" KP's infront of a large ammount of fire power (alot of autocannons and multilasers). He manages to blast me out of another razor back and tries to shoot down the squad from the previous turn but leaves but a man. I go into my T3 4-3 down. The newly de-meched squad runs up and meltas another chimera to pull it back to 4-4, but the rest do little more than either shake 1 or 2 tanks or are shaken/stunned themselves.

In T4 its basically where it ends, in this turn he plasma's the melta squad off the table, he takes out the dread, 1 autolas (which again pen'd and failed to do anything vs the vendetta, think it destroyed 1 weapon, same with the rifleman). He takes out another razorback - I think I went into my T4 8-4 down. With only a single razorback that could shoot - an autolas with a missing weapon. His stormtroopers which had deepstruck were in my lines (or 1 squad were) (they had dropped the autolas w/ melta), and a couple of the squads that I had de-meched were out in the open. I knew I had lost but it was about saving some face before I got tabled lol.

So, I go about doing what I can do. I move where I can, and position a couple of squads for some extra shots. I put fear on his command squad and they run - anything but a double 1 and they are off the board. Ofcourse he rolls double 1. I shoot at them a bit with bolt pistols to hopefully whittle them down so they still need a check next turn - which I manage if I remember correctly. My RAS assaualt his ST's and win.

We decide to call it there. He wins 8-5 - but obviously its more than that. I'd have gotten another 2 KP's probably via the libby / more combat with his other ST's and maybe another tank.


CONCLUSSION:

Deployment. This was my mistake. I wedged myself right in and invited him to shoot at me, which he can do better. I need to exploit the AV13 vs his mass S7 - the way I deployed let his far edge get AV11 side shots, admitadly through cover which I promptly failed on the penetrations.

However in the next 2 games I think I certainly improved my deployment; and it definatly made for different games.