Goth Girls Gone Wild!--Battle #2  by Patrick Eibel and Kenton Kilgore 
(“Secure and Control”; 1500 points each)

As discussed in the introduction to this campaign, each player was to build on the army list they had used in the previous battle, adding units, wargear, etc., but not subtracting anything previously taken. 

The Kurindans (1497 points)  by Kenton Kilgore
After the debacle of the last game, I realized that I had way too many “chiefs” (Synapse creatures) and not enough “Indians,” basic Troops to get the job done. To correct that problem, I simply added more Hormagaunts and Genestealers. I minimized the size of the additional broods so that I could have more scoring units, which would be key to winning the game. More Hormies and Stealers also helped rectify the error I had made when drafting my initial list: I had failed to plan ahead and had saddled myself with two units (the Lictor and the Zoanthrope) that were not able to claim objectives. Stupid, stupid, stupid….

I brought:

• Three Troglodytes on Dracosaurs  (HQ Warriors w/ leaping, extended carapace, enhanced senses, and toxin sacs; two have rending claws and deathspitters; one has rending claws and a venom cannon; 148 points) 
• One Lurker  (Lictor; 80 points) 
• Four Troglodytes on Dracosaurs  (Elite Warriors w/ leaping, extended carapace, enhanced senses, rending claws, and deathspitters; 164 points) 
• Troglodyte Rampage* #1  (Twelve Genestealers w/ extended carapace; 240 points) 
• Troglodyte Rampage #2  (Six Genestealers w/ extended carapace; 120 points) 
• Troglodyte Rampage #3  (Six Genestealers w/ extended carapace; 120 points) 
• Troglodyte Rampage #4  (Seven Genestealers w/ extended carapace; 140 points) 
• Newt Rampage #1  (Twenty four Hormagaunts; 240 points) 
• Newt Rampage #2  (Eighteen Hormagaunts; 180 points) 
• Shaman  (Zoanthrope w/ Warp Blast and Synapse; 65 points) 

I gave the Warriors the Leaping biomorph to help them keep up with the Hormagaunts. In the last game, the Hormies had wound up out of Synapse range, gotten smacked around in close combat by Pat’s Canoness and Celestians, and were wiped out when they attempted to fall back. Hopefully, Leaping—and some careful deployment—would prevent that from happening again. 

The Sisters of Mercy (1500 points) by Patrick Eibel
For this battle, I would need mobility to grab loot counters, so I gave three squads Rhinos and added Seraphim. I also brought along an Exorcist for some “big-game hunting” in the jungle….

• Canoness Marian Tressant w/ blessed weapon, bolt pistol, rosarius, Book of St. Lucius, purity seals (111 points). Accompanied by Celestian Squad Sapristi. Veteran Sister Superior w/ power weapon and bolt pistol; one Celestian w/ flamer; one Celestian w/ meltagun; six Celestians w/ bolters (153 points). Canoness and Celestians mounted in Rhino w/ extra armor (55 points)
• Battle Sister Squad Piete. Veteran Sister Superior w/ storm bolter, Book of St. Lucius; two Sisters w/ storm bolters; seven Sisters w/ bolters (149 points) 
• Battle Sister Squad Esperance. Veteran Sister Superior w/ storm bolter, Book of St. Lucius; two Sisters w/ storm bolters; seven Sisters w/ bolters (149 points) 
• Battle Sister Squad Croyance. Veteran Sister Superior w/ bolt pistol, close combat weapon, Book of St. Lucius; one Sister w/ meltagun; one Sister w/ heavy flamer; seven Sisters w/ bolters (151 points). Mounted in Rhino (50 points)
• Battle Sister Squad Clemance. Veteran Sister Superior w/ bolt pistol, close combat weapon, Book of St. Lucius; one Sister w/ meltagun; one Sister w/ heavy flamer; seven Sisters w/ bolters (151 points). Mounted in Rhino (50 points)
• Seraphim Squad Belliqueux. Veteran Sister Superior w/ bolt pistol and power weapon; two Seraphim w/ flame pistols; five Seraphim w/ bolt pistols and close combat weapons (210 points)
• Retributor Squad Revanche. Veteran Sister Superior w/ bolter, auspex, Book of St. Lucius; four Sisters w/ heavy bolters (136 points) 
• Croix de Mort. Exorcist (135 points)

I won the roll to pick sides and began to set up first. I placed my Zoanthrope in the middle of the board, then Troglodyte Rampage #1 (the 12-strong Genestealer unit) nearby to make a rush up the middle. I then created “pincers” with Newts (Hormagaunts) and more Troglodytes, led by Trogs on Dracosaurs (Warriors), on the right and left sides of my deployment zones; when I was through deploying, all units were in Synapse range of at least one unit. As per the rules for the Lictor, I held the Lurker in Reserve. 

Pat placed Squad Revanche in the center of his deployment zone and the Croix de Mort to their left, with Squads Esperance and Piete nearby. Mounted in their Rhinos, Squads Croyance and Clemance held Pat’s right flank. Pat kept his HQ in their Rhino and used them to anchor his left flank, then had his Seraphim back up Croyance and Clemance on the right. 

I won the roll to see who went first and chose to go second, which would give me the opportunity to grab loot counters at the very end of the game. 

Turn 1
Pat began the game by advancing the Rhino belonging to his HQ unit and having the Canoness and her Celestians dismount. Inside their Rhinos, Squads Croyance and Clemance also advanced. Squad Esperance moved up 5" on foot and the Seraphim chose not to use their jump packs, moving up 6" on foot. Squads Piete and Revanche held their ground, as did the Exorcist. Despite Pat’s maneuvering, none of my units were in sight, and there was no shooting. On my turn, all my Kurindans advanced through and behind terrain, staying off the paths and using Fleet of Foot if they could do so.

Turn 2
Squad Esperance reached Loot Counter #2 and the Celestians formed a perimeter near them to ward off Kurindans. Squad Croyance’s Rhino got stuck going through a patch of trees and the Battle Sisters within dismounted. Squads Clemance and Belliqueux moved closer to Croyance. With no enemy in sight, there was still no shooting.

On my turn, the Kurindans continued to advance, until Newt Rampage #1 charged the Celestians and Newt Rampage #2 charged Squad Croyance. The HQ Troglodytes and their Dracosaurs assaulted the Celestians’ Rhino, but the other Warrior Trogs (and their mounts) failed to reach Croyance’s Rhino, being hindered by difficult terrain. 

Being in cover, Squad Croyance went first in close combat, killing three Newts. Clawing and stabbing furiously, the little purple aliens killed six Sisters, who managed to make their Break test only because of the Seraphim nearby. 

The Celestians failed to invoke The Passion but succeeded in summoning The Hand of the Emperor. Their devotion was in vain, however, as they lost seven members and only killed one Newt, but at least they held their ground. The HQ Trogs failed to damage their Rhino. 

Turn 3
The Celestians’ Rhino backed away from the Troglodytes on Dracosaurs as Squads Esperance and Piete moved in to help the Celestians. On the other side of the board, Squads Clemance and Belliqueux came to Croyance’s defense. The Celestians' Rhino opened fire on the mounted Trogs, to no effect; the Exorcist fired two missiles at the same unit, killing one of the alien captains. 

As one, Canoness Tressant and Squads Esperance and Piete charged Newt Rampage #1. Tressant and the Celestians invoked The Passion and the other squads invoked Hand of the Emperor. At the end of the turn, the Sisters had killed 20 Newts and lost one from Esperance and one Celestian. 

On the other side of the battlefield, Squads Clemance and Croyance invoked The Passion; with the Seraphim, they killed seven of Newt Rampage #2, losing two more from Croyance. Inspired by the mounted Troglodytes nearby, both Newt rampages held their ground (i.e.., both Hormagaunt broods were in Synapse range of the Warriors). 

Kurindan reinforcements burst from the jungle. The mounted Trogs and Troglodyte Rampages 1, 2, and 3 slammed into the Sisters fighting the remnants of Newt Rampage #1. Though Esperance invoked Hand of the Emperor, Piete failed to cast Hand of the Emperor or Divine Guidance. Tressant, her last Celestian, and Squad Esperance were overwhelmed and hacked down; Piete lost three members. The Kurindans lost four Troglodytes from two different groups. 

Similarly, Troglodyte Rampage #4 charged the Sisters of Squad Clemance, combining their attacks with the Newts already in combat. The Kurindans cut down the last two from Squad Croyance and caught Clemance before they could flee, wiping them out and sweeping into the Seraphim. The Trogs on Dracosaurs attacked the immobilized Rhino of Squad Croyance, ripping off its storm bolter and shaking the crew. 

Turn 4
With most of the surviving Sisters in hand-to-hand combat, Pat moved back his mobile Rhinos and the Exorcist. The Retributors charged to Piete’s defense, both squads invoking Spirit of the Martyr. Martyred they were, as only the Veteran Sister Superiors from each squad survived to fall back out of the clutches of the Kurindans. 

On the other side of the board, the Seraphim invoked Hand of the Emperor. Killing one member of Troglodyte Rampage #4 and losing two of their own, the Seraphim used their Hit and Run ability to jump 5" away. This was not nearly far enough to escape the Kurindans, of course. On my turn, the Lurker arrived from Reserves, and joined the Trogs and the nearby Newts in charging the Seraphim and wiping them out, despite the Seraphim using Spirit of the Martyr. 

Elsewhere, the HQ Trogs on Dracosaurs charged the Exorcist, destroying it; Trog Rampage #3 similarly destroyed the Celestians’ Rhino; and Newt Rampage #1 struck down the Retributor Veteran Sister Superior. At this point, Pat conceded, and we decided that, for Victory Point purposes, we would assume that with my remaining two turns, I would be able to destroy the remnants of his army and take all three Loot counters.

Post-Game Analysis  by Kenton Kilgore
Well, that worked out much better than last time, and mostly, I think, to army list selection and careful planning. As mentioned, I bulked out my list with Hormagaunts and Genestealers and added the Leaping biomorph to the Warriors. While my Hormagaunts got chewed up in Turns 2 and 3, I could remain confident because I had plenty of Stealers left to reinforce them. 

In between the last game and this one, I read and re-read Codex: Witch Hunters to learn more about the Sisters and what their funky Acts of Faith could do. I filled out a Battle Plan Sheet with notes on which units to deploy where and what their objectives were. 

During the game, I relied on my numbers and the small size of the board to launch a “pincer” attack against Pat’s girls. I lucked out by being able to pick the side and to being able to choose to go second. One thing that hurt Pat was our agreement that the “lander” pieces were to count as area terrain, which prevented Pat from shooting past them; in future games, we will only count those pieces as difficult terrain. 

Though this was a big win, I’m keeping it in perspective: I’ve been able to rebound from a disastrous first game and gain a one-point lead on Campaign Points. It would be a mistake to think that this game was anything but a fluke, as games between us are usually close and the last time I actually won against Pat was at Conflict back in February 2005. I know that for the next game, I’ll have to prepare just as hard to have a chance against him. 

Post-Game Analysis  by Patrick Eibel
The great thing about the game of 40K is that just when you think you cannot lose, you find yourself getting your derriere handed to you to humble you. To say that I made monumental tactical errors until the second turn is an understatement.  If in the first battle I played “smart” and won handily, this battle I played “stupid” and paid dearly for it.

My first mistake occurred during setup. I had brought along the pieces for the Aquila lander because I thought they would be neat terrain in which to put the objective markers, and the question arose of whether to count them as area terrain. I agreed that they were without giving it much thought. Because the lander was area terrain and all the green areas counted as jungle, I had effectively blocked my line of sight in every direction. The key stat of the game is that the Exorcist got off one shot and the Retributors got no shots during the entire game. Dumb, dumb, dumb! I should have made the lander pieces merely difficult terrain, or changed my battle plan and lined my troops up along the back edge of the table.

My second mistake, which was compounded by my first one, was that I moved towards the Kurindans. If I had been able to get off any shooting, this may not have been disastrous, but as it was, I was merely making it easier for Kenton to get into assault by Turn 2. 

My third mistake, which was compounded by my first two, was deploying across the deployment zone rather than concentrating my force on one side. Kenton had wisely added more troops to his army list, and by spreading my squads out, I had insufficient numbers to withstand his assault. Once the Genestealers reached my battle line, the game was effectively over.

Kenton likes to call the Sisters of Battle the “magic” army because they can use Faith Points to help them when needed. However, they cannot change the fact that Sisters are only Toughness 3 or that the average Sister is Weapon Skill 3, which generally spells doom in close combat with Tyranids (or Kurindans, as the case may be). Sisters rely on short-range firepower to keep things close, and in this battle, my firepower was completely negated. As with Kenton after the last battle, I find myself looking forward to the next game to try and erase the bad taste of this loss.

Posted: August 2006
 

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