Planetstrike-2500pt-Tau vs. Imperial Guard

          

     The Imperial Guard is trying to reclaim a just seized Tau planet. The Tau hastily set up some defenses and take refuge in an old Imperial Guard Bastion just as war closes in around them.

      In this Planetstrike the Tau are the defenders and Imperial Guard (IG) are the attackers who are trying to get their planet back. The mission is Seize and Destroy. The defenders must split their force into two and the attacker gets to pick which half starts on the board and which in reserve. To claim victory the attacker must have a model in base contact with the centrally placed objective building and there must be no defenders in base contact.
   
       TURN ONE: IMPERIAL GUARD: The IG started off by launching their Firestorm. However devastating Firestorm normally is, this time it was not so. Though five Vespid and a Kroot lost their lives it was a very small loss. The IG player made up for this when the Leman Russ destroyed my Hammerhead's Railgun, rendering it pretty much useless. The two Valkaries move instantly where they want to be and one of them (by the Bastion) drops off a squad of five storm troopers. The IG was setting up for the kill.

       
              

        TAU: During the Tau's first turn, I get my twenty Kroot and a squad of Fire Warriors (FW) with a Devilfish (DF). The mission makes it -2 for reserves for the defender so this was a lucky roll. The FW disembarked and shot at a heavy weapons squad within twelve inches of them. They couldn't hold against twenty-four shots and were quickly dead. My Battlesuit, armed with a missile pod, immobilized and destroyed the las cannon of the Valkarie by the Bastion. The FW in the Bastion killed all five storm troopers who had already taken down the void shield of the building. (Stratagem with armor 12.) Aun'va assaulted the command squad (the squad of five on the upper middle board in the above pic) and killed all but the sergeant. In the corner the Krootox tried to shoot at the Valkarie by the jungle but failed. This, though I knew it not, sealed the fate of most the Kroot.

        TURN TWO: IMPERIAL GUARD: This turn was probably one of the most bloody and critical turns for both sides. After getting in the rest of his reserves the IG started with Marbo throwing his Demo charge at my Piranha. The grenade veered off and landed square over Aun'va and the sergeant he was in close combat against. Because of Aun'va and his guards incredible immunity to being shot at, only one guard was wounded, where as the IG sergeant died. Now open to be shot at Aun’va and his other guard were also wounded by the Hellhound’s hungry flames.
When I placed the Vespid next to the building I had in mind to go a little bit away from it, then rush back at the last moment. When the guardsmen infantry killed two more it was pretty clear the last one would die before he could single handedly win the game.
         With the small stuff taken care of the real chaos began. The heavy weapons squad wreaked the building, which hurt bad enough. The following happened so fast I couldn’t believe my eyes. The Valkarie by the jungle had dropped off ten Catachan three of which were armed with flamers (one was heavy). The Valkarie started by shooting its two large blast marker, str 4 rockets. BOOM. Nine Kroot blown away. Then the flamers struck. Seventeen more unsaved wounds. That was 27 unsaved wounds that I suffered for not thinking through what a bunch of Catachan were doing in a Valkarie. Then the Demolisher immobilized my DF leaving my FW way out of reach of any thing they could take. The Chimera killed my Battlesuit and after surviving several maimings from the Leman Russ my Piranha was blown up by that darn Marbo and his Melta bombs. Its explosion wounded Marbo and killed a FW.

                  TAU:Finally it was my turn for revenge, and I took it. My FW which I thought to be too far away to do any damage, shot at the Leman Russ with twenty-four shots and wreaked it. My stealth suits used outflank and ended up right on the side of the IG Mantacore. They wreaked that as well while it still had all four deadly missiles. The two Hammerheads fired at the infantry with their SMS and killed four. The one that had a Railgun failed to hit the Valkarie by the building. The FW, who had to file out of the building when it blew, killed Marbo. My two Crisis suits with fusion blasters(Melta), deepstriked in to a perfect place to kill the Hellhound, however they scored no result. Lastly, what was left of my Kroot assaulted the Catachan and finished them off losing none in the process.

TURN THREE:  IMPERIAL

 GUARD:

Over by the jungle, the Valkarie that still I failed to take down killed three FW and wounded the Ethereal. The infantry finished the last Vespid and the other infantry squad shot and killed two FW. The Chimera killed a couple Stealthsuits and their marker drone. The command squad (different and much superior to the one Aun’va assaulted) included Commissar Yarrick, Colonel Straken, a medic and three others. These are a very lethal bunch combined with the feel no pain special rule and almost invincible. This squad hopped out of the Chimera and murdered my two Battlesuits in the shooting phase.

            TAU: Last of my reserves, my Piranha comes in and immediately blows up that pesky Valkarie hanging out by the jungle. My Stealthsuits killed one heavy weapons guy and then assaulted them. My FW killed five infantry with their AP 5 guns and my Hammerhead killed three more thus killing off one full squad of infantry. My Commander, who had deepstriked in, shakes the Valkarie with his missile pod. My Hammerhead immobilizes the Hellhound.

           TURN FOUR: IMPERIAL GUARD: Causing trouble still, that Demolisher kills five FW and two Kroot. The infantry kill another FW. My Commander was shot at by the Chimera in full and five of her passengers inside all armed with powerful weapons and still neither he nor either his shield drones were harmed. The Hellhound wounded Aun’va again.

        Hellhound fires at My Commander but he remains untouchable. The Command squad gets out of the immobilized Chimera and assault and defeat Aun’va. But that was a loss for the greater good, as losing him would enable me to shoot at the Command squad. (HAHA IM EVIL!)
 TAU: My Hammerheads shot their SMS at the infantry and killed four more and finally my FW killed the last two IG infantry in the game. Likewise the Stealthsuits killed the last Heavy weapons men of the game. My Commander immobilized and shook the Chimera. Now the only vehicle of the IG that’s wasn’t dead or immobilized was the Demolisher.

         TURN FIVE (LAST TURN): IMPERIAL GUARD: Again the Demolisher shoots and again five FW fall dead and three more Kroot. The Hellhound fires at My Commander but he remains untouchable. The Command squad gets out of the immobilized Chimera and assault and defeat Aun’va. But that was a loss for the greater good, as losing him would enable me to shoot at the Command squad. (HAHA IM EVIL!)

        

         TAU: The Hammerhead and FW are lucky enough to kill three inferiors from the Command squad with their twenty-eight shots! The Stealthsuits shake the Hellhound. Finally yes, that blasted Demolisher was blasted away by my piranha. And though this last part I did purely for funs sake I’ll relay it anyway. My two very much reduced squads of Kroot(2 shapers, 1 Krootox, and 3 other Kroot) and my wounded Ethereal, with what was left of his honor guard, assaulted the Command squad. My FW were enraged by the loss of Aun'va and thus had furious charge and preferred enemy. Of the many wounds I incurred upon them only one man was wounded because of that medic. On my side, the Ethereal and his three honor guard were completely wiped out, two Kroot were killed and the rest left running. Later I thought, ’huh, that part wasn’t as I thought It’d be.’ But I finished it off by my Commander’s assault move right up to the building. VICTORY FOR THE TAU AND THE GREATER GOOD!

                                                                  

       

              Just when the Imperial dogs thought they had beat off the last bunch and won the battle the Commander of the enemy himself came and secured the Bastion long enough for many more reinforcements to come and wipe out the cocky officers.


-Nick