Playing With Myself: A 40K Solo Play and Solo Learn Experience

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Battle 3: 1000 Points

March 26, 2019

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It’s a few days after this battle now, and I realise my list creation was all wrong. not that I went for bad choices. I just entered things in to battlescribe that I didn’t mean to. I gave things the wrong weapons, and worst of all were the Terminators. I added Terminators, and I played with Terminator models on the table. I spent the whole game wondering why they were a big deal when they didn’t seem to be much better than regular marines. Turns out I’d added Wolf Guard and not Wolf Guard Terminators. Doh! Anyway, I played with the weapon choices I had meant but didn’t notice the Terminator goof until a few days later. So here goes.

Setup

Tyranids

Relic: Miasma Cannon on Hive tyrant

Warlord Trait: Perfectly Adapted

Hive Adaptation: Synaptic Imperative

Space Wolves

Relic: Wulfen Stone

Warlord Trait: Tenacious Survivor

Scenario 3: The Scouring was rolled, along with Deployment 6: Vanguard. Space Wolves deployed first. Tyranids finished deploying first so got to go first, but the Space Wolves were able to steal the initiative.

Deployment

The diagonal deployment zones seemed like an interesting idea, but instantly ran in to issues of measurement. How do you measure them? I marked out both ends of both deployment with dice and then used a laser line as best as I could, but i couldn’t reach high enough, and I couldn’t deploy and hold up the laser so as you can see by the pic, deployment may have gone a bit wibbly.

I tried to place the heavy hitters where they could be useful but remain screened by infantry. The Termagants chose to deploy where they could get in range of the Grey hunters in their first activation but stay far enough back that they couldn’t be engaged before shooting. They have been outclassed by the Hunters every game so far. I’ve assumed flying models can stop on terrain of any height or type?Can they also see through/over it at any time? I’ve also assumed later on that flight stands don’t block line of sight?

I ran in to questions about forests and LOS too. (The green bits of cloth and the template in front of the Termagants) I assume no one can see from one side to the other, but can people in them be seen at any distance from the edge? In the absence of a clear answer, I played them like in Warmachine. No one can see across them, but anyone in or out can see through a depth of up to 3″.

Round 1: Space Wolves

They move up the table to get the enemy in range of their guns. The Grey Hunters couldn’t get close enough to charge the Termagants, but i wonder if the Wolf Guard could have, with their movement of 12″. I didn’t give it any serious though until after they had moved and I couldn’t measure anything anymore. A successful charge there could have changed the game.

The Grey Hunters shot 3 Termagants. The Wolf Guard shot 2 Hormagaunts. The Venerable Dreadnaught only shot one Termagant. The Dreadnaught shot at but missed the Hive Tyrant. The Vindicator shot its big gun at the Carnifex and its support weapon at the Hormagaunts and missed with both. The Iron priest missed his shot at the Hormagaunts. The Predator shot at and missed the Tyranid Warriors.

No one was close enough to shoot. All in all, a massively ineffective round. The dice were against the Space Wolves.

Round 1: Tyranids

The Tyranids advanced up the table. The Termagants moved up just enough to get everyone in range of their guns, but staying as far back as they can to make charges as risky as possible.

The hive tyrant put The Horror on the Wolf Guard, effectively lowering their leadership and attack skills by 1. He then can Psychic Scream on them, doing 2 damage and killing 2, because I thought I’d added Terminators to my list but they are regular marines, despite the models. Doh.

The Warriors, Termagants and Gargoyles all shot at the Grey hunters, killing 7 of the 11. The hive Tyrant and the Carnifex shot at the Wolf Guard killing one more of them.

I used my first Stratagem here, “Single-Minded Annihilation” (2cp) to allow the Termagants to make another round of shots. This killed 2 more Grey hunters, leaving only 2 alive. Wary of an upcoming charge, I also put “Caustic Blood” (1cp) on the Hormagaunt, meaning that if anyone hurt them they would take damage in return. The hope was that either the enemy would hit me back and then die, or be forced to not attack in order to survive. Either way, its a win for the Hormagaunts.

The Hormagaunts then charged the Wolf Guard, taking no overwatch damage, but successfully killing 3 more Wolf Guard, leaving 4 alive. The Space Wolf player (also me) spent some time doing the maths and thinking it through and opted not to counterattack this turn. A morale check was coming up which could cause the unit to flee, but losing everyone now is definitely worse and there is a stratagem that can bypass the morale test.

The Wolves put “Insane Bravery” (2cp) on the Wolf Guard, autopassing their morale check. The Grey Hunters failed their roll by 3 and the last survivors ran off the board like little girls. That’s 1VP to the Tyranids for “First Blood”

Round 2: Space Wolves

The predator moved up the table enough to secure line of sight on key targets.

the Wolf guard shot 2 Hormagants with their pistols. The Vindicator shot the Carnifex for 5 damage, and then fired its once per game missile at it and missed. It bought a reroll (1cp) and landed 4 damage, killing it. The Dreadnought and Predator fired their loads at the Hive Tyrant without effect. The Predator fired its Bolter at the Gargoyles, and the Venerable Dreadnought used its gun and flame thrower, killing 6 Gargoyles.

Both Dreadnoughts then charged in to the Hormagaunts, only killing 2 of them. “Laugh in the Face of Danger” (1cp) was then put on the Wolf Guard to increase their melee potential. They were also in range of the Iron Priests relic. They wailed on the Hormagaunts and killed 6 of them. Two of them then struck at the Iron priest for 1 damage, 2 of them could strike at the Venerable Dreadnought and chipped its paintwork for 1 damage and the rest were able to kill 2 more Wolf Guard. The Iron Priest lashed out and cleared those ‘Gaunts off of him and the Vindicator, now finding itself engaged, was actually able to punch(?) a Hormagaunt to death.

All morale checks passed.

Round 2: Tyranids

The Hive Tyrant, Gargoyles and Hormagants moved in to better ranges. The Hive Tyrant then cast Smite at the Wolf Guard killing the last 2 survivors. it is only now that I notice that a smite roll of 10 allows me to do 6 damage instead of 3. I wonder how many times that’s come up and I’ve not noticed? He then Psychic Screams at the Iron priest killing him to death. That’s 1 more VP for the ‘Nids.

The Termagants, Gargoyles and Hive Tyrant doing 5 damage. The Hive Tyrant then failed to charge the Vindicator.

16 Hormagaunts then hit the Dreadnaught for 4 damage, and 3 flailed ineffectually at the Venerable Dreadnaught. The Vindicator and both Dreadnaughts then killed 5 more Gaunts.

I have no notes for what the Warriors did so I assume they moved up but couldn’t get the Predator in range. They were kind of boxed in behind the Termagants for most of the game.

Round 3: Space Wolves

It gets pretty simple and repetitive from here on. Using 1 reroll (1cp), the predator shot the Hive Tyrant for 5 damage. The Dreadnaugh punched one Hormagant to death. 13 Hormagaunts flailed at and missed the Dreadnaught. The venerable killed 2 more, and the Vindicator one more. Round over. I wasn;t needed for this except as a fleshy dice tower.

Round 3: Tyranids

Tyranids advanced with a mind towards controlling objectives as well as killing. The hive Tyrant Smite’ed the Vindicator for 3, and failed to Psychic Scream it. The Tyrant, Gargoyles, Warriors, and Termagants then shot the predator for 5, leaving it on 1 hp, so why not finish it off?

The Gargoyles then went in for a charge, taking no overwatch damage, but failing to kill it. The Hive Tyrant charged the Vindicator doing 3 damage. The Hormagants tried to kill the Dreadnaught but forgot how to use their claws (0 damage). The Wolves countered, only killing 4 more Hormagants.

End of Round 3

Round 4: Space Wolves

5 more Hormagants died, and the Vindicator took 3 more damage. Not much to say or do at this stage in the game.

Round 4: Tyranids

More positioning to allow ranges and controlling objectives. Smite and Psychic Scream did 4 damage, killing the Vindicator. The Venerable Dreadnaught was now out of melee, so the Hive Tyrant shot it for 6, and the Warriors moved up and finished it off.

The Hive Tyrant then charged the remaining Dreadnaught doing 3 damage. The Gargoyles finished off the Predator. The Dreadnaught and the Hormagaunts used harsh words against each other only it appears.