30K Batrep: XX Legion training day

After my mad digression into 30k, based basically on some audiobooks and YouTube Batreps, realisation dawned on me that I essentially have no clue about how to play this game. Sure, I did play back in third edition 40k, so at least an edition closer in style to the current day than Rogue Trader and 2nd edition. However, that was a while ago. So I got some of my new toys built and undercoated, and Jason was willing to show me the ropes. We did 1000pts on a 4x4' table. The aim was to just kill each other. I had Autilon Skorr (with the strategic that gave a bonus to reserves), Pride of the Legion, six Terminators with plasma Blaster, a Contemptor Courtis Dreadnought with Assault Cannon and Plasma Blaster, Vindicator, deeptriking landspeeder with multimelta and ten outflanking Vets with plasma guns. Jason was the psychotic World Eaters, sent to punish us for annoying Horus somehow. His list was basically two choppy squads on foot and another with jumpacks including an apothecary and his boss, as well as a Contempor Cortus with double the fists and a graviton gun. Here I was glad for mutable tactics and the flexibility for Skorr to choose a Warlord trait. So I got to craft my plan on the fly: Counterattack for everyone, castle up around the Vindicator with the Terminators, then use my flanking reserves to set up the kill zone. Did it work or did the World Eaters' lack of subtlety pay off?

 

+++ Istvaan V 006.M31 +++

+++ Establising Vox link +++

+++ (For the Emperor)+++

Comrades, the revolution is now well underway. The Comrade Warmaster is displeased by our alleged counter-revolutionary actions and has unleashed Angron's Dogs to chastise us. Of course we could elude them but they should make good close combat practice. So an elaborate, if improvised, trap it is. To ensure the unsubtle clods see the bait through their nail induced bloodlust, we have stationed our biggest units on a hill. 

 

There are a lot of them. Worse, they moved first and were they primed to advance extremely quickly. Luckily the ground between us is dangerous and their commander self-inflicted the first wound of the battle. This was fortunate as they were equiped with ordnance deflecting combat-shields and took little damage from the Vindicator's heavy gun. 

 

But our revolutionary zeal did not waver. Just as the tide of lumpen and class-enemies threatened to wash over our small band of defenders, Comrade-Consul Skorr directed a precise flanking attack. The Land Speeder failed to even hit the Dreadnought but the Veterans cut down several World Eater dogs with precise plasma and boltgun fire. 

 

True to form, this made the running-dog lackeys very, very angry. Through sound application of scientific revolutionary planning, we had brought a number of close combat weapons... but they had Brough whirring chain axes. Skorr is a cunning leader but probably not the match of his World Eater counterpart. Some we watched with mounting concern from the hill as both sides began to to wipe each other out until only the two commanders remained to swing their unwieldy axes...

 

Good thing Skorr hadn't been blood thirsty enough to trip and sprain his ankle earlier in the battle. At this point, having seen off the enemy commander and a third of their troops, it was determined that the correct course was to withdraw out of choppy-axe charge range and nurse his wound. For the Revolution! 

 

Somehow, the units on the hill had managed to avoid being charged. In fact, since their slavering enemies had brought axes to a gunfight, they were largely unscathed. The worst of it was the repeated graviton gun fire eventually resulted in the Vindicator throwing its tracks when attempting to pivot. On the other hand, enough damage was done to the enemy Dreadnought to immobilise it and close range Ordnance blasts and volleys of plasma fire had slaughtered the jump-pack troops. 

 

The rest of the World Eaters finally made it into close combat with the waiting Termintors. This was hardly a favourable matchup but the slathering madmen did surprisingly well, killing half of them. However, in the background, booming explosions and a plume of smoke indicated their Dreadnought had been destroyed. Even if our Terminators somehow lost, our own Dreadnought will finish the job. 

It was not needed though. Even a warped mind knows a losing battle and the sole surviving World Eater marine broke and ran. By the standards of this glorious fratricidal revolution, our casualties were surprisingly light. 

+++ Hydra Domnatus +++

+++ End Transmission +++

Thanks heaps for teaching me the rules, Jason. I have the general idea now. I'm told the standard points level is 2500 so a fair way to go. Other forces get all sorts of nasty boosts to their favoured fighting style. Alpha Legion get flexibility. So I'm not going to be relying on Infiltrate as the go-to mutable tactic and instead prepare them to use tank-hunters or counterattack as well, as the situation demands. Somehow. I've got a little armoured support but no big-hitters so we will see how I do vs all the combos out there. 

Thanks for reading.