DAEMONHUNTERS versus Eldar

Game: Warhammer 40,000 3rd edition
Opponent: Gary
Mission: Ambush
1st turn: Daemonhunters
Points: 1500

Daemonhunters

• Inquisitor Lord Severus, Master-crafted Daemonhammer, Bolt pistol, Holocaust, Icon of the Just, 2xAcolytes, Power Armour, Bolt Pistols and Close Combat Weapons, 1xAcolyte with power weapon and las pistol, Combat Servitor, Rhino with Smoke Launchers
• Inquisitor Kurven, Psycannon, Power Armour, Gun Servitor, Plasma Cannon, Frag Grenades, Krak Grenades, Targeter, 2 x Imperial Guard Veteran, Plasma Gun, Frag Grenades, Krak Grenades, Targeter, 2 x Sage, Close Combat Weapon, Laspistol, Mystic, Close Combat Weapon, Laspistol
• 2 Daemonhosts
• Squad Matoso, 8 Stormtroopers, 2 meltaguns, Veteran with Bolt Pistol and Power Weapon, Rhino, Smoke launchers, Extra Armour, Hunter Killer Missile
• Squad Godirtho, 5 Stormtroopers, 2 plasma guns
• Armoured Fist Squad (inducted Imperial Guard) Sergeant, Close Combat Weapon, Laspistol, Flamer, Chimera, Multilaser, Heavy Bolter, Smoke Launchers, hunter killer missile, heavy stubber
• Infantry Platoon (inducted Imperial Guard) Command squad junior officer with power sword and plasma pistol, medic, vox caster, 2 plasma guns, Infantry squad missile launcher, grenade launcher, vox caster, Infantry squad missile launcher, grenade launcher, vox caster
• 3 Sentinels, 2 Multilasers, 1 Autocannon, Extra Armour, Searchlight, Improved Comms
  

Eldar

• Farseer with mindwar and singing spear, Warlock retinue with witchblades, All tooled up with psychic powers
• 5 Scouts
• 8 Dire Avengers including exarch with power weapon
• Wraithlord with starcannon
• Falcon with scatterlaser and holo-field
• 5 Fire dragons including exarch with burning fist
• 5 Striking scorpions including exarch with powerfist
• Waveserpent with twin-linked Starcannons

Terrain and deployment
Gary was actually playing with only 1400 points in this game against my 1500 points so I allowed him to choose the mission, to try and balance things out. Gary diced off between a breakout and an ambush and we ended up with my Daemonhunters being jumped by the Eldar.

With a large contingent of men on foot I knew I wasn't going to get units off the board so I set up a static firebase in and amongst the trees that lined the road I was moving along. My plan was to go for victory points, ignoring the bonus for escaping the table.

However, I knew I would be getting assaulted on turn 1 as I had used that trick when I was the attacker against Tyranids in an earlier game. This was going to be close.

As expected the Waveserpent unloaded a squad of Striking Scorpions within assault range of my Guardsmen and they were slaughtered. Unfortunately I passed the morale check and the Scorpions were safe from my shooting in combat. It was the last successful morale check I would see for quite some time.

I chose to ignore the assaulting Eldar and concentrate my fire upon the rest of the Eldar army, hoping to get a sackful of victory points in my first shooting phase. I took two wounds off the Wraithlord when I should have killed it, the Waveserpent emerged unharmed despite its rear armour being exposed to virtually my whole army and the Falcon survived 7 plasma weapon shots unscathed. In that appalling round of shooting I lost the game.

The Scorpions took out the rest of the Imperial Guard squad and then assaulted Stormtrooper squad Godirtho and the Guard Command squad. The Stormtroopers were wiped out and the command squad routed. They failed three further morale checks until they hit the board edge and then were tank-shocked off the table. My remaining Guard squad had already been routed by this stage and had run off too.

Stormtrooper squad Matoso had the rhino shot out from under them but still managed to catch the Fire Dragons off-guard and killed everyone but the Exarch. The Fire Dragon assaulted and killed Matoso's veteran sergeant and yes, you've guessed it, failed their morale check several times and ran off the board edge.

Inquisitor Kurven and the Sentinels were assaulted by the Farseer unit and they were all wiped out. The Farseer unit munched their way down my column, taking out the Chimera and armoured fist squad, until they hit Severus who gave them a good spanking.

My Daemonhosts arrived at the top end of the table and did for the scouts. The wounded Wraithlord peeled back to take them on but the Daemonhosts tag teamed to kill him (although one Daemonhost was instantly killed). The survivor was then within range of the Dire Avengers shuriken catapults and he was sliced apart by the razor sharp discs.

By the end of the game it was painfully obvious that the Eldar had won so we didn't even add up the victory points.

Result: Loss

Learning points

• What a panelling! Gary felt a bit guilty about picking the ambush mission but I reckon I had a chance to win. The main problem I had was very bad luck with the dice. At one point I failed at least seven morale checks in a row! And that shooting phase. Uggh.
• The one positive was my Daemonhosts that assaulted the scouts on the turn they arrived and wiped them out, and then rolled decent powers to tackle the Wraithlord.
• After such a comprehensive defeat, with Wave Serpents, Falcons and a Wraithlord wandering around the battlefield with impunity, I am going to make a rock hard army to play in my next game!