IMPERIAL GUARD versus Eldar

Game: Warhammer 40,000 4th edition
Opponent: Gary
Mission: Seek and Destroy
Level: Gamma
Location: Nomolos
Background: Captain Kennell makes several decisive strikes against the Exodite population centres and exterminates the Xenos, effectively claiming Habour for the Imperium. In a last vengeful attack, the Farseer of the unknown Eldar Craftworld vows to kill Commissar Yarrick. Captain Kennell rushes to his mentors' side.
1st turn: Imperial Guard
Points: 2000

Imperial Guard

• Command Platoon 77, Captain Kennell Heroic Senior Officer with power weapon, Company Standard, Medic, Master Vox-Caster, Sanctioned Psyker
• Commissar Yarrick
• Anti tank squad 3, Lascannons
• 8 Stormtroopers, 1 meltagun, 1 plasma gun, deep strike, meltabombs
• Inquisitor Severus, Daemonhammer, bolt pistol, Emperor's Tarot, Holocaust, 3 Combat Servitors, 1 Hierophant, 2 Acolytes with power armour and bolt pistols, Rhino, smoke
• Infantry Platoon 1
• Command Squad 36, Junior Officer with power weapon and plasma pistol, 4 plasma guns
• Infantry Squad 501, Missile Launcher, Grenade Launcher, Vox
• Infantry Squad 541, Missile Launcher, Grenade Launcher, Vox
• Infantry Platoon 2
• Command Squad, Missile Launcher
• Infantry Squad 609, Missile Launcher, Grenade Launcher, vox
• Infantry Squad 812, Missile Launcher and Flamer
• 20 Conscripts
• 10 Inquisitorial Stormtroopers, 2 meltaguns, rhino, extra armour, smoke
• Sentinel, Multilaser, smoke
• Sentinel, Multilaser, searchlight
• Sentinel, Autocannon, Extra Armour, Improved Comms
• Basilisk, Indirect fire
• Leman Russ, Heavy Bolter
  

Eldar

• Farseer with retinue of Warlocks
• 6 Rangers
• Wraithlord with Starcannon
• 8 Dire Avengers with Exarch
• 10 Guardians with Starcannon
• 8 Storm Guardians with 2 fusion guns led by Warlock
• Falcon with 6 Fire Dragons and Exarch
• 2 Warwalkers with Brightlances and scatter lasers
• Wave Serpent with 8 Howling Banshees
• 5 Striking Scorpions with Exarch with infiltrate

Background
This was our first game after a five week lay off, and Gary surprised me by showing up with an Eldar army. He had finally gotten round to painting up a nine man squad of Warp Spiders and was eager to try them out. I had done little to no painting, so I had to rely on a contingent of Daemonhunter allies to round out my Cadians.

Terrain and Deployment
The table was covered in ruined buildings which we agreed would be size 3 area terrain. I had a large building to my left and one to my right, while Gary had a large ruin right in the centre of his deployment zone.

I made two distinct firebases. To my left I placed infantry squad 812 and their command section in the building, with the plasma command section behind, along with the Inquisitor and Inquisitorial Stormtroopers to set up a possible counter charge. They had the Eldar Wave Serpent to contend with, as well as the Striking Scorpions, War Walkers and Warp Spiders.

On my right I placed the Basilisk, Leman Russ, anti-tank squad, an infantry squad and Captain Kennell. The vehicles were over here because Gary made a mistake and deployed his War Walkers first, on my left flank. I knew he had few Bright Lances and the ones he did have were in that unit, so by putting my tanks on the opposite flank I knew they would be safer.

In the centre of my deployment zone I placed two infantry squads and the Conscripts, with Yarrick leading them. I hoped to march the Whiteshields forward to force leadership tests if the Eldar wanted to shoot at further away targets and try to draw the Eldar into an assault in this open ground. Most of the Eldar were in and about the large building near the centre including the Wraithlord, Farseer unit, Dire Avengers, Rangers, Falcon and both Guardian units.

The game
My Sentinels used their free pre-game moves to race forward on both flanks. My plan was to pull the Eldar off into futile assaults on the extreme flanks and bring my other shooting units to bear. If the Eldar ignored the Sentinels, then I would have them in good flanking positions to fire from later in the game.

I won first turn. My very first shot was the Basilisk into the ruined building. I knew that even with a large scatter I would hit something, as the Eldar were tightly packed in. As it happened I hit a Ranger and the Farseer unit, killing the Farseer himself, 2 Warlocks and the Ranger. Nice shot!

The rest of my first turn was similarly rewarding as I stunned one Warwalker, killed half of each Guardian squad, took two wounds off the Wraithlord, blasted a couple of Dire Avengers and wiped out two more Rangers.

The Eldar were left reeling but still tried to force home their attack. On my right the Falcon zoomed out and dropped off the Fire Dragons. The Dragons shot at a Sentinel but only the Exarch was in range and he rolled a 1 to hit. The Falcon itself took aim at the Leman Russ but it emerged unscathed. The Storm Guardians also ran out on this flank, fleeting toward my lines.

The Dire Avengers left the building and headed straight for the Conscripts but were just out of assault range. The Guardians shot their Starcannon at a Guard squad, killing two, while the Wraithlord killed two members of my anti-tank unit.

On the left, the Wave Serpent zoomed forward as the Scorpions and Warp Spiders moved into position for a next turn assault on the Guard in the building.

My Stormtroopers arrived from deep strike straight away and they landed smack on target in a ruined building in between the Warwalkers and Wave Serpent. They shot at the Serpent but the plasma gunner blew himself up and the melta gunner missed. Bloody Stormtroopers! At least they had melta bombs to use in future turns.

I continued my effective shooting by rapid firing the Conscripts into the Dire Avengers and killing four of them - the rest were finished off by other infantry squad fire. Yarrick had left the unit at this stage and moved toward another infantry squad. The Storm Guardian squad were all but wiped out too, with only the Warlock remaining. I knocked a scatter laser off a Warwalker and also shook the crew of the Falcon, preventing it from firing next turn.

The Eldar brought in their own deep strikers, the Swooping Hawks, right into the open centre of the board, behind the Conscripts and between two infantry squads. Unfortunately for Gary he forgot to fire them this turn or utilise their grenade packs. I guess he was flustered. They were later assaulted and ripped up by Yarrick.

The surviving Warlock charged the Conscripts and became embroiled in a long combat that was only ended after several turns when the Whiteshields failed their morale check and were run down. One Warlock kills over 15 men. Unbelievable!

Gary managed to drive home his assault on the left by disembarking the Banshees out of the Serpent and charging the foremost Infantry squad. The Scorpions also managed to contact this unit, who now looked doomed. The Warp Spiders shot at the Sentinel and blew it up as they didn't want to get stuck in combat with it.

Still on the left Gary shot the Stormtroopers with his Warwalkers and killed two, just enough to force a morale test. I failed it, of course, and they began to run back to the Guard deployment zone (and the Banshees and Scorpions). Aaaaaarrrrggghhh!

As predicted the Infantry squad were slaughtered to a man and the Banshees consolidated into my command section. The Scorpions couldn't make it though, so they pulled back deeper into the ruins.

Time for the counter assault! Both rhinos raced around the side of the building to take on the Banshees and Scorpions...and then we realised that you can't assault out of vehicles anymore. Like the Banshees had just done. D'oh.

I shot up the Scorpions with my plasma command section of death™ and lost one model (on an overheat) to their three, while the impotent Severus killed another with his bolt pistol. The Exarch promptly failed his morale check and ran away.

On the right things weren't going so well for the Eldar. Gary flew his Falcon 24" deep into my corner in order to get loads of tank shocks going next turn and he felt confident that I wouldn't be able to take it down. Unfortunately for him he didn't check out the weaponry in Captain Kennell's command section (they were set up behind the building, out of Gary's line of sight). I marched them over to the Falcon with their 3 meltaguns and blew that baby out of the sky. Heh heh heh.

The Warlock was killed by a missile launcher shot and a couple of rounds from the 'Russ did for the Fire Dragons. My Sentinels took the Rangers below half strength but were destroyed in turn by the Wraithlord. His Guardians with the Starcannon also took a pounding and routed off the board, leaving only the wounded Wraithlord alive on this side of the table.

Gary needed something special from his remaining units to get anything out of this game. The Warp Spiders shot at the Inquisitorial Stormtroopers and killed four. The six survivors fell back after a fluffed morale check. The Banshees had finished off the command section by this time and set their sights on Severus. They shot their shuriken pistols to soften them up first and killed the Hierophant and a combat servitor (damn majority saves) and, you guessed it, my Inquisitor failed his morale check. My whole flank was in disarray now as I had 3 separate units running away.

The Banshees charged the Inquisitor eventually anyway and in a titanic battle (due largely to the dismal Eldar dice rolls and Holocaust) they emerged victorious but only the Exarch and a couple of Banshees remained. They ran into the deep striking Stormtroopers who were still falling back. It should have been a foregone conclusion in favour of the Eldar but the Stormtroopers won, with the sergeant the only survivor. Sweet.

The last few turns of the game were all about claiming those last few victory points. I didn't quite manage to take the Warp Spiders below half strength but I felt pretty confident I was well ahead on victory points anyway. Those Spiders shot at a Rhino in the last action of the game but could only blow its storm bolter off.

When we totted up the victory points at the end I was surprised to learn that the War Walkers gave away no victory points, even though one of them was immobilised and the other was missing a weapon. Added to the considerable points value of the Warp Spiders the difference was only 230 points. Still, it was just enough for me to claim a solid victory.

Result: Win

Imperial Control: 14%

Kennell's Commendation: The Basilisk gets the nod here, for numerous shots, including the one on the Farseer.

Learning points

• That charge by the Banshees was annoying, but we forgot all about the new vehicle rules in the heat of battle. It kind of balanced out another mistake though; the first Basilisk shot that killed the Farseer was illegal as it was within 36" and indirect. Silly mistakes that I'm sure we'll not make in the future.
• I just loved that move by the Falcon and it's subsequent destruction: priceless. To add insult to injury my psyker also had machine curse. I haven't stopped laughing yet.