DAEMONHUNTERS Versus Blood Angels Space Marines

Game: Warhammer 40,000 3rd edition
Opponent: Joseph
Campaign: Vogen campaign game 1
Mission: Recon
1st turn: Blood Angels Space Marines
Points: 1000

Daemonhunters

• Inquisitor Lord Severus, Daemonhammer, Bolt pistol, Holocaust, Icon of the Just, 2x Acolytes, Power Armour, Bolt Pistols and Close Combat Weapons, 1x Acolyte with Close Combat weapon and las pistol, 3xCombat Servitor, 3x Mystics, Rhino with Smoke Launchers, Hunter Killer missile, Searchlight
• Inquisitor Kurven, Psycannon, Power Armour, Emperor's Tarot, Gun Servitor, Plasma Cannon, Frag Grenades, Krak Grenades, Targeter, 2x Imperial Guard Veteran, Plasma Gun, Frag Grenades, Krak Grenades, Targeter, 2x Sage, Close Combat Weapon, Laspistol, Hierophant, Close Combat Weapon, Laspistol
• Daemonhost
• Eversor Assassin
• Squad Matoso, 5 Stormtroopers, 2 meltaguns, Rhino, Smoke launchers, Extra Armour, Hunter Killer Missile
• Squad Godirtho, 5 Stormtroopers, 2 plasma guns
• Squad Seralvo, 5 Stormtroopers, 2 Grenade Launchers
• Squad Vargas, 5 Stormtroopers, 2 Flamers
  

Blood Angels

• Librarian with Jump pack
• 5 Honour Guard with Jump packs and power weapons
• 5 Terminators with 4 Lightning claws
• 8 Marines with veteran sergeant with power weapon in rhino
• 7 Marines with veteran sergeant with power weapon
• Dreadnought with Assault cannon
• 6 man Death Company squad with 3 power weapons

My Opponent
Before the Vogen campaign was organised I had bumped into Joseph and he was complaining because no-one would take on his Death Company army (an entire Blood Angel army who have succumbed to the rage). I'm not one willing to dodge a game (I'll play anyone with any army) I said I would take it on. Then the campaign rules disallowed his army so he had to field regular Blood Angels instead. Disappointed, we played the game anyway.

Terrain and Deployment
The table deserves a mention because it is so heavily covered in terrain. Because the campaign had attracted so many players we were forced onto the smaller 4x4 tables, and this one was built for Lord of the Rings. Most of the middle table is covered by largish houses fixed to the board (around 12 of them). Some of the gaps in between them weren't even large enough to allow a regular model to move through. The edges of the board were covered in forest with one corner taken up by a large cornfield. A river also ran from one edge to another, near the edge of the table. Assault armies would have a terrific advantage, with very poor lanes of fire for shooters. I was particularly worried about my rhinos as they had only a couple of areas on the board where they could move around without hitting difficult terrain.

Anyway, I lost the choice of table edge and then had to set a unit up first. I placed Squad Vargas with their flamers up front to push the Space Marines back, and set up as good a firebase as possible given the terrain. I basically refused the right flank, set my firebase up on my left flank in the most open terrain, and kept the Eversor and Severus near the centre to countercharge.

The Blood Angels had set up fairly centrally, mostly hidden behind a building but they had one tactical squad out on the far right.

The Game
I won first turn and Squad Seralvo got lucky, taking out the Blood Angels rhino with the first shot of the game! I pulled my squads back from the centre so that my whole army was on my left flank, with the Stormtroopers up front and Kurven, Severus and the assassin behind. The Blood Angels took the bait and piled forward.

On turn 2 Squad Seralvo were charged by the dismounted tactical squad, Squad Matoso in the rhino were charged by the Librarian and his honour guard and Squad Vargas were charged by the Death Company. Squad Seralvo and most of squad Vargas were killed but this set up my rapid firing plasma guns to wipe out the Librarian and his unit and the Tactical squad, and the Eversor and Severus decimated the Death Company. This tore the heart out of the Blood Angel attack and pretty much won me the game.

My Daemonhost appeared in the centre just in time to help out the Eversor and Squad Matoso wipe out the second tactical squad, but then the Terminators arrived and only the Daemonhost survived to the end of the game.

Neither of us had gotten a unit into the others deployment zone, but I was 150 points ahead in victory points, so took the game.

Result: Win

Campaign effect
Because I won the game I had to roll on a chart to see what the benefit of the game was. My opponent ended up losing a wound from his Librarian for the rest of the campaign!

Campaign score: Played 1, Won 1, Lost 0

Learning points

• My plan broadly worked as I set up the small Stormtrooper squads as charge-bait and this allowed me to maximise my shooting and my own assault elements. It's not often you see the Blood Angels duffed over in combat but I managed it in this game.
• The table was a nightmare to play on. Despite having two hunter killer missiles I couldn't get a clear line of sight to the Dreadnought to use them! To do so I would have had to block my other shooting units with my own vehicles. In many ways the game was similar to a Cityfight as the terrain was so dense.
• Severus' squad was of limited use in this game as their movement was seriously hampered by the terrain. It also meant that when they assaulted the Death Company I could only get the powerfists into base contact and of course meant I had to remove them as casualties first, so they were all killed before they could swing. Then the large unit had difficulty moving around the board so they played no further part in the game.