Battle of The Lords of War

Tanks Vs Daemons

Greetings. A few weeks ago, my gaming group gathered round Stuart to give it death with abandon. My Astra Militarum allied with Billy's Ultramarines to protect the Imperium from the foul depredations of Mortarion most disgusting of Primarchs and an offal cart full of daemons and Death Guard, led by the dynamic duo of Stuart and Dylan. Giving sage advice on the sidelines was Alan. Now, I've found four player games tend to be a bit more confusing and shouty so a lot of the tactical nuances are missed by me and pertinent facts left unsaid. So with that in mind I'll let the pictures tell the story of the short and bloody battle.

Most of my army is in this picture, left to right Hellhound, infantry, mortar squad, commander, another infantry squad, Leman Russ, some Ultramarines, another infantry squad, Tank Commander, more Ultramarines and a Baneblade. 

Rouboute Gulliman and some ratlings make up the rest of the deployed units. Billy kept some characters up in space or something like that. On the other side of the table some Blight Drones, Plaguebearers, Great Unclean One, Chaos Rhino filled with Death Guard, Poxwalkers, Maulerfiend (or some such)and Chaos Predator. There is also a daemon Prince lurking around there and completly out of shot Mortarion, but I suspect he is somewhere between the Plaguebearers and GUO.

Gullimann is basically surrounding himself with expendable troops while giving out rerolls like they are tictacs. The Baneblade is parked sideways on as it wouldn't fit after I had placed nearly everything else. I paid the points for 4 sponsons armed with a lascannon and heavy bolter in each one. This thing has so much dakka it is criminal!

We were playing the scenario where a player (or in this case team) wins when they complete 10 tactical objectives. Our first three all applied to Mortarion so he was a very important target.

Virtually our entire army (those that had range anyway) targeted Ole Morty and barely managed to kill him. First Blood and Kingslayer got us a good headstart in the VP stakes.

Nurglings had appeared on the battlefield and another Rhino I had previously forgotten to mention. Some brave Astra Militarum break out the Daemonic Insect Repellent - Claggonne® and attach it to their bayonets. Sergeant Bloke yells to his men "We're going to need bigger flypaper!".

The majority of the Imperial army stays right where it is with perhaps some Primaris Marines showing off in front of their Primarch. "Dad! look at us! We're the bestest Marines in the whole universe, aren't we dad?".

Some Nurglings get into combat with the Primaris Marines. I don't think a 5+ invulnerable save will save you from Rouboute Gullimann's favourite test tube babies.

Nurgling Attack!

Rather a lot of Plaguebearers get uncomfortably close to the Imperial line. I think Gullimann has rather a cavalier attitude towards Astra Militarum. Probably thinks they like catching horrible diseases in stead of him.

Meanwhile the Blight Drones and Rhino are destroyed by Leman Russ and the Chaos Marines have to footslog their way across the battlefield.

On this side of the table a unit of Marine Scouts that I had completely forgotten about hold an objective. Various servants of the ruinous powers amble over the battlefield to spread all manner of diseases amongst Imperial ranks. Chlamydia is off limits of course as that one belongs to Slaanesh. 

A Daemonic power turned the planet violently on it's axis, or I failed to rotate this picture, you decide. Perhaps the Nurglings assaulting the Hellhound ran into it so hard it shoved the planet 90° temporarily. The Guardsmen in the building are getting whittled away nicely by unwelcome Death Guard pox encrusted bullets.

Reality rights itself in time for the Plaguebearers to assault both Primaris Marines and guardsmen. On the bright side the tanks and Gullimann are perfectly safe. 

A closer view of the fight for objective five.

Sometime around turn two Billy deepstruck two powerful Ultramarine characters to assassinate a Daemon Prince and GUO They were both pretty tasty and Billy's Librarian attempted to cast a psychic power to give them a reroll to his charge plus bonuses in combat. Sadly the power failed and left the Lieutenant up shit creek as he failed his assault and both models were duly trounced by the tag team of pus. Sadly I can find no pictures to support this anecdote but I'm sure it happened and I didn't dream it.

In this picture my claw like hand is about to either a) pick up dice or b)remove casualties 😟.  Also in the picture are two more members of C.L.A.W. - Dylan & Stuart. In the foreground the Slaughterbrute kicks some dung out of SM scouts, it will teach them about the correct use of cover in a battle. 

The final picture taken of the battle. The followers of Nurgle although still advancing are not taking out many imperial assets.

The game was conceded in turn 3 by the forces of farts and snot. In retrospect the first turn was essential. Virtually the entire Imperial army targeted Mortarion killing him. Only just. The Baneblade is an awesome tank, especially with Rouboute Gullimann holding it's hand. One thing I have decided on is not using one again for a while as it is pretty domineering on the battlefield. Had Morty gotten first turn it could well have been the Imperials that quit turn three. There is definitely a massive advantage to going first.

Thanks for reading.

Dramatis Personae II (The Scargill PDF)

After having two battles recently where all my characters performed fairly well (reports incoming) I thought I'd immortalise them before they cark it! So in the hope that they have long and distinguished careers in my own part of hobby heaven, here are some of the important members of the Scargill Planetary Defense Force, Kinnock region.

Tactical Meeting, outside the pub.

Balto Krudditch

Balto Krudditch is a career soldier, never and overly imaginative or charismatic leader, he still has the ability to get a lot out of his troops. He comes from one of the wealthier families on Scargill and has custom made weapons to which he is known to use with considerable skill. He usually goes into battle using his custom powerfist and a family heirloom plasma pistol which has been microengineered to seem nothing more than a lowly stub pistol. Although 'technically' Krudditch hasn't actually fought in hand to hand combat yet, he is sure he is up for the job and will make his father; Gumbah Krudditch proud.

Balto Krudditch

Revs Cantalope

Revs Cantalope is a newly promoted tank commander (so new I haven't converted a model to use for him yet) that has distinguished himself in recent conflicts. His Leman Russ The Painful Reply is a Demolisher variant that has sent many enemies of mankind back to whatever heathen afterlife they believe in. The relatively short range of the Demolisher suits Cantalope's aggressive style of battle. 

Vim Ajax

Vim Ajax is one of the few authorised Primaris Psykers on Scargill. Originally from Scargill's outermost planet : Gruesome Discovery. Ajax was recruited into the sectors capital defense corps once his manifest abilities were discovered. Ajax is usually accompanied by his pet Thoutwyrm, a sanctioned xenos lifeform that augments his mental abilities. These creatures are semi sentient beings that have the ability to siphon off negative mental thoughts and instill feelings of euphoria instead. How or why they are able to do this is still subject to conjecture by xenobiologists, but Thoutwyrms have been utilised in the Scargill Sector for many decades.

Vim Ajax and Zimpy his Thoutwyrm.

Chuck Nimrod

Nimrod is the eccentric commander of the Scargill PDF Gremthorpe protectorate platoon, also known as the Rockworms due to their ability to dig in during battle, taking fewer casualties. Nimrod himself does not fit the image of a typical soldier with a thick beard and the tribal garb of  the hill men of  Scroxix in Gremthorpe. Despite his rustic appearance he is a fearsome warrior and able tactician. He is armed with a plasma pistol and his right arm has a cleverly disguised power field built into the wristband on his left hand that counts as a powerfist.

Chuck Nimrod.

Sergeant Barker

The good 'Sarge' is a large brute of a man. He is a fierce combatant and bears all the characteristics of the Catachan legendary warrior of the similar name. In fact some say Sergeant Barker has styled himself on Sergeant Harker. He is armed with a particularly lethal weapon he has named 'paycheck' and has assembled a group of like-minded soldiers he has dubbed Barker's Beerraisers.

Sergeant Barker

Barker and some of his Beerraisers.

So here are some more models in my collection given names to make them seem more real to me. Hopefully they can help keep Scargill human and make sure filthy xenos don't lay claim to something that humanity may or may not have stolen from another civilization thousands of years ago.

Miniature Wars you may have missed: 40K Space Rangers

Miniature Wars you may have missed: 40K Space Rangers: Space Rangers In the dark mists of time, when the Emperor was challenged he always sent for his most trusted troops, the elite of the eli...

A Short Battle Report (that is in fact quite long).

The Orks of Waargh Gitsmasha were moving inexorably towards Scargill but one smaller group (sub)Waargh Tonkwappa and it's ramshackle fleet lost its way due to 'Cheep Navigshunal Gubbinz' and arrived in an unremarkable system with a single habitable planet. Without pause a couple of shuttles were crash landed on the planet's surface to start resupplying the fleet. After shooting up the forest and burning a few trees down, the main Ork force advanced on a large seemingly abandoned human settlement. As the first bikes roared in, seemingly from nowhere, a large force of Aeldari appeared in full battle array. Warboss Tonkwappa bellowed his orders "Roight ladz! Da pansies want a scrap, lets give it to 'em!". 

A Fighter Bommer, Grotz, Stormboyz, Deff Dread, Big Mek and Lootas are in sight, as well as some boyz and bikers. My Guardians, D Cannon and Wave Serpent filled with Asurmen, a Warlock and Dire Avengers lurk in plain view. The Fighter Bommer is a loverly model, nicely painted but I failed to take any more pictures of it for some reason. Next game......

Deathworld Flora and Fauna Episode 2; The Miral Catcher & Catachan Mantrap

Welcome To The Jungle!

We've got fun and games. So here I am with another collection of virtually finished foliage for your perusal. Like I said in my previous post, I love the idea of lethal plant life on alien planets. So I got some more inspiration from White Dwarf issue 242. I think I will put up the picture from the magazine then my attempt so you can judge how accurate/inaccurate I am.

Mangrovian Trees

The first non-lethal trees I made were these palm type trees. Simply made with twisted wire, masking tape and surgical bandages they are very easy to make. To make them a bit more 'alien' I tried to elongate the roots that go into the ground, a lot like mangrove trees here on blessed Terra but slightly different.

White Dwarf 242 a Prince of a magazine

At the surgical bandage stage.

Getting leafy. After making these I figure some walking plantlife shouldn't be too difficult. The Day Of The Triffids will come!

Avec Bases.

In all their glory! I sculpted a green grub type thing at the base of the second from left tree with a nifty pipe, tube and tentacle maker from Green Stuff World. I am sure an entire post devoted to the tool is on it's way. Be warned. 

Sergeant Cutter of the Catachan 79th regiment shows newly recruited trooper Terry some wildlife. "See these Mangrovians? Chop here, here and here. Careful no Eyebiter Grubs don't land on yer head, mind".

The second type of tree is made using exactly the same method, only with much longer and broader leaves. I also used the masking tape tree trunk method instead of the bandages. Although this tree is nicely different to the previous ones it is rather impractical as it takes up a lot of room without any great benefit. I also left the roots bare and applied pva to them to give a pretty gnarled look. Painted a fairly luminous green that will be washed with a darker shade to tone it down a bit.

"Now these Crusherleaf trees are a different story, chop here, here and here. While your at it give it a good hard kick to make sure any filthy xenos get dislodged and fall down for a good bayoneting.".

Miral Catcher

The Deathworld of Miral has to my knowledge two dangerous things the Miral Land Shark (just ask commander Stracken about those) and this nasty plant, the Miral Catcher. It has tentacles according to the WD article, Sadly stamen was used in the first entry so an alternative was searched for, inadequately found, so the T word was used even though they're not a fitting plant accessory. Anyway, the Miral Catcher's overly sensitive roots detect prey and it's 'tentacles' lash out trapping it with it's powerful paralyzing stings. Leaving it's victim to death by compost. Anyway My version is in some ways similar to the studio one. Not as good but there is a definite similarity.

The Miral Catcher shares a page with the Venus Mantrap

"So these Miral Catchers are tricky buggers. a few chops should do it, but it's always better to bring a couple of mates with heavy flamers. Just to make sure it won't sting you on the arse. This particular Catcher seems to have very bloody long appendages, someone is bound to trip over it. Better get health and safety down here".

Catachan Mantrap

The 'official' Catachan Mantrap in the magazine is very different to my attempt. It's sensory tendrills are far more discrete than my versions. The jawlike leaves on the one in the studio looks less like eyeless Kermit the frogs, than my one, but I think I captured the ethos of the original. According to the blurb the Catachan Mantrap moves it's leaves around actively seeking prey but GW's version, like mine doesn't show any evidence of how it is achieved. All I will say though, this one is newer! 

Catachan Mantrap and a Sucker Tree.

"As you well know, Catachan Mantraps are horrible bastards, with all that aggressively seeking it's prey with its jaw-like leaves. Just chop here, here and here and stick a frag grenade up it's hoo ha. That should do it. Careful it doesn't blind you with pollen though. There was that nasty business with that overly curious Butafucco 12th regiment over on Pseudo Earth 9 ". 

So there you have it, some jungle vegetation that my Catachan fighters can frolic through and kill the enemies of mankind. A member of our gaming group suggested a 'Get To The Chopper' scenario where my squad of Catachans try to escape the clutches of an evil Lictor, Predator style. There are also a couple of cool scenario's from the Rogue Trader rulebook involving jungles, dinosaurs and unfortunate Imperial employees trying to get home for Thanksgiving. So as my tables get a little bit more occupied here's to me getting some proper Oldhammer gaming going on!

Thanks For Reading.

Deathworld Flora and Fauna Episode 1 - The Strangleplant

The Rogue Trader rulebook contains many entries concerning dangerous plants and alien wildlife. A far better blog than mine has many examples of them. Now, hopefully you've clicking on the link, been enthralled then felt a bit guilty about being so fickle and returned here. Anyway since my earliest encounter with Rogue Trader, I dearly wanted to create some of the wondrous things to adorn my gaming table. Nearly thirty years later and my ability is approaching my ambition. I was looking around in my loft for some new endeavor when I found a White Dwarf with lots of Catachan Jungle Fighters on the cover looking like they've just walked of the set of 300; More Muscled Men With Oiled Torsos. I opened it up and found this page........

Back in the good old days when Paul Sawyer was editor.

Foule Ole Gron And Weak Eldar Stomachs

Following two previous skirmishes involving the disgusting minions of Nurgle, Farseer Gelladrill was once more forced to intercede on a minor Imperial planet, in High Gothic it was known as Triumphant Fanfare or something similar but in the common vernacular of the locals it was something far less inspirational. The planet itself was a small if somewhat heavily industrialized place filled with surly humans choking on the highly polluted atmosphere crushed by the monotonous drudgery of their short brutal lives. It made them ripe for the ruinous powers to subvert them. A cult had formed, dedicated to the Lord of Pestilence, and their saviors had landed. A small force of Death Guard marines led by a hideous Daemon Prince named Festerpuke . The rancid second in command; Foule Ole Gron had quickly attacked the main PDF garrison overwhelming them. Advancing into the main plaza of Gorgonplatz to consolidate was where the Ulthwe force met them. Failure here would mean disaster in the future for the Craftworld. Gelladrill vowed that would not happen!