TAU versus Space Wolves

Game: Warhammer 40,000 3rd edition
Opponent: Maurice
Mission: Cleanse
1st turn: Tau
Points: 1000

Tau

• Shas’O’Tau’Ko’Vash’Ch’ien’ShiShas’O - plasma rifle, fusion blaster, shield generator
• Shas’Ui’Tau’Ho’Lu’Demlock- Crisis battle suit, Shas’ui with plasma rifle, missile pod and multitracker
• Shas’Ui’Tau’Ho’Lu’Hemlock - Crisis battle suit, Shas’ui with plasma rifle, missile pod and multitracker
• Shas’Ui’Tau’Ho’Lu’Vemlock - Crisis battle suit, Shas’ui with plasma rifle, missile pod and multitracker
• Shas’La’Tau’Han’Dan - 6 Fire warriors, 5 with pulse rifles, one with pulse carbine
• Shas’La’Tau’Mont’Yr - 6 Fire warriors, 5 with pulse rifles, one with pulse carbine
• Shas’La’Tau’Mull’Kin’Tyr - 6 Fire warriors, 5 with pulse rifles, one with pulse carbine
• Shas’La’Tau’Tan’Klyr - 6 Fire warriors, 5 with pulse rifles, one with pulse carbine
• Murabla - 10 Kroot
• Shas’La’Tau’Tam’La’Mo’Town - 6 Pathfinders, bonded, Shas’ui, photon grenades, Devilfish with decoy launchers and two seeker missiles
• Kor’Vesa - 7 Gun drones
• Shas’Ui’Tau’Yu’Rang - Shas’ui Broadside with twin linked railguns, smart missile system and shield generator

Space Wolves

• Venerable Dread - twin-linked heavy bolter, heavy flamer, power fist
• Dreadnought - assault cannon
• Blood claws
• Grey hunters
• Scouts
• Terminators with assault cannon
• Psyker in terminator armour

The game
The Tau dominated the shooting early on, killing the regular Dread and wiping out the Blood Claws.

The Pathfinders were destroyed by the Venerable Dread while the Broadside succumbed to bolter fire from the Grey Hunters (oh, the shame).

The Scouts arrived from reserve and attacked a Crisis suit deep in my own deployment zone. They took it down but were counter charged and wiped out by the Kroot. The Drone squadron sneaked up behind the Venerable Dread and immobilised it but were caught by the Heavy flamer and Heavy bolter and were driven off.

The Terminators advanced straight down the centre of the table, away from the crisis suits, and only lost two members in the whole game. In return they killed a Crisis suit, a Fire Warrior squad and half the Kroot by shooting and another Fire Warrior squad in assault. They could have tied the game by killing another Crisis suit but he made all of his saves.

That Crisis suit contested a quarter with the Grey Hunters, the Terminators contested another with the final Fire Warrior squad and the Pathfinder's Devilfish controlled the quarter with the immobilised Venerable Dread.

Result: A (very) narrow win.

Learning points

• The Pathfinders are very fragile, especially racing toward the enemy on a small board, but in contrast the Devilfish is very durable and won me the game.
• The pinning tactic doesn’t work!
• Space Wolf scouts can come on from reserve from any board edge - the Kroot prove their worth yet again.
• Numerous small units make cleanse easier to achieve.