February 25th Grim Tournament: Game 2

Game 2 this past weekend was against my friend Brandon and his Space Wolves.

Bjorn the Fell Handed

Rune Priest - living lightning and murderous hurricane

Rune Priest - living lightning and jaws of the world wolf

4 combi melta wolf guard in a pod

5 wolf scouts with melta bombs

8 Grey hunters with banner, mark of wulfen, melta gun + Wolf guard with combi melta and powerfist in a Rhino

8 Grey hunters with banner, mark of wulfen, melta gun + Wolf guard with combi melta and powerfist in a Rhino

8 Grey hunters with banner, mark of wulfen, melta gun + Wolf guard with combi melta and powerfist in a Rhino

6 Long Fangs with 5 missile launchers

6 Long Fangs with 5 missile launchers

Vindicator

Deployment was pitched battle. Primary mission was 5 objectives placed like Nova(one centered in each quarter and one in the middle), secondary was kill points, and tertiary was getting units into the opposing deployment zone. I forget what the bonus points were.

I chose to let Brandon go first, because pitched battle is my weakest deployment and I would prefer to know where the bulk of his army would be.

He deployed one squad of long fangs on the left with Bjorn and a grey hunter squad in a rhino with one of his priests. The vindicator was almost dead middle. With another grey hunter rhino and priest next to it. With the last grey hunter squad sans priest on the far top right.

I in turn deployed my Archon and harlequins on the right, as this had a clear path to the bulk of his force, the middle on my side was too clogged with terrain for good portal placement.

Brandon dropped his pod in, obviously with no good vehicle targets that they are used to, and that was it.
Turn 1 I moved up and dropped the portal.
Turn 2 Brandon got his scouts in. Like his pod he didnt have a clear goal with these, as my army lacks the conventional targets for them both. He put them on the left side near the pod. Bjorn shuffled forward, the vindicator moved slightly up. As did the rhinos, but no one could as yet get range on the harlequins with the shadowseer's ability shrouding them.
On my turn 2 I got a lot of reserves in. Incubi with Drahzar, Bloodbrides, 15 man Wych squad, Talos, bikes. Moved things on with Bikes jumping the terrain to shoot at a Rhino... only knocking off its gun. Talos did one better breaking the Vindicator's cannon. The rest spread out getting closer with Incubi in front giving cover to bloodbrides and wyches. The bikes used their assault move to spread out more giving cover to everyone including the Talos. Ill mention here that I had rolled a 6 for drugs so almost my entire army had feel no pain right here from the start(Archon joined Incubi giving them feel no pain).
Turn 3 for Brandon and I knew I was going to need to weather some shooting. First he tank shocked with his Vindicator into the bikes, but they passed morale. Then he moved Bjorn and the scouts a bit. Shooting commenced on the bikes the most, living lightning and melta shots killing all but the last 2 who fled. Then he started dropping frag missiles on my Incubi and Wyches, but with cover and feel no pain casualties were extremely light.
On my turn 3 I got the beasts in. I deployed them off the table edge and they charged through terrain to maul the 4 wolf guard, and then consolidated back and left to get out of Bjorns threat bubble. The Harlequins moved up and Melta'd the Vindicator blowing it up, and freeing up the Talos to shoot at the Rhinos, got an immobilized result on the nearer of the 2. The Incubi ran towards that Rhino and assaulted it... merely stunning it. The Bloodbrides charged into the long fangs in the bunker and killed a few but stayed locked in combat.
Turn 4 and Bjorn moved towards the middle instead of towards my fearful beasts, he took a wound off my Talos with his plasma cannon. The grey hunters and rune priest in the immobilized rhino jumped out to assault the Incubi. First they and nearly everything else fired at them weakening them. Then they charged... and a single mark of the wulfen guy killed Drahzar.... Drahzar almost never dies certainly not to weak punks, I was hurt here by my own hubris. Drahzar was initially locked with his rune priest but I jumped off him to kill more marines, but didnt bother to see that I was jumping onto the wulfen guy, I should have stayed on the rune priest and easily killed him. The combat was tied up. But the Bloodbrides finished off the long fangs.

I jumped the Bloodbrides in to help out the Archon and remaining Incubi. The beasts tried to charge up the flank into the wolf scouts but failed their terrain roll. My two small wych squads entered and moved up towards objectives.
Drahzar doing the dance of shame back in the hut.
With Fire power dwindling Brandon again took a wound off the talos with Bjorn. The long fangs remaining were now dropping templates on the beast unit. The Bloodbrides and Incubi finished off that grey hunter unit. Consolidating back towards the fleeing rhino in the corner.

On my turn 5 the Archon left the lone incubi and joined the Bloodbrides in assaulting the rhino. The beasts again failed a charge through terrain. Haywire grenades stunned the Rhino.
On turn 6 Brandon charged the beasts with scouts.... who died. He also shot and charged the Bloodbrides with his grey hunters, cleverly leaving the Rhino in the way to keep my Archon out of the fight(due to close quarters blocking any possible vectors for her pile in). Tie combat. Bjorn finished off the Talos.

On my turn 6 the beasts charged the long fangs killing a few. The harlequins used their fusion pistols to stun Bjorn. And the Bloodbrides continued their combat with the grey hunters, a stalemate still but at the end of this turn their was finally enough space to get the Archon in.

We rolled and the game went on to turn 7. With the game all but lost Brandon tossed his last grey hunter squad into the fray with the beasts. They did spectacular routing the beasts... I was so close to passing leadership too, huzzah the space wolves had taken the field... well that part of the field. The Archon and the Bloodbrides finished off the grey hunters in the top.
At the close of the game I had wyches on each bottom objective. My large squad lined up from the center to the top right objectives. Brandon had the top left objective as he watched the beasts flee. I was up on kill points and had units in his deployment zone. I ended up with all but 1 of the bonus points as well... whatever they were.

Game was great. Fun table Brandon is a great player and better guy and spacewolves are rock solid. The list was very solid and basic but his troop units still stood up to my elite combat units which is scary. Luckily I have more than a few elite combat units.