Friday, January 31, 2014

Practice Game – April Hall – Daemons of Chaos


Deployment: Battleline

The List
Greater Daemon of Nurgle, Level 4, Lore of Nurgle

Herald of Nurgle, Level 1, Lore of Nurgle, BSB

46 Plaguebearers, full command, banner of swiftness

8 Flesh Houds of Khorne
3 Beasts of Nurgle
3 Beasts of Nurgle

Skill Cannon
Skill Cannon
Soulgrinder, Mark of Nurgle, Phlegm Bombardment


April is a newer player to the Sacramento area.  Not sure how long she has been playing.  I had gone down to the shop to try to get in a 2000 point game for High Elves practice, hoping for 2 games.  I did have a game scheduled but when I got down that guy was playing someone else with another game already queued up, so instead of leaving without a game, I asked April.  April only had a 2500 point list ready, and while she did offer to drop 500 points I told her not to worry about it.  I wasn’t really interested in winning, but in practicing with my army so that when I got to Waaagh!PACA I wouldn’t have to check my book with every rule.  Plus, just dropping 300 points wouldn’t have left her list legal, as she wasn’t offering to rewrite, just drop some of the beasts (and my list doesn’t really care about beasts… now if she had offered to drop a cannon, hehe).  Up 500 points or not, she has a nasty list.  We did agree that because she started with 500 points up front, I would get 500 points at the end.

Magic
For my magic I took the starting Flaming Sword, and as I didn’t roll flame cage with my other roll, took fireball.

April took Plague wind, Miasma, Curse and Rancid on her level 4 and Fleshy Abundance on her level 1.






Deployment
April put dogs on her right flank, with the nurgle in the center and one unit of beasts on the right.  I’m surprised by this deployment.  You’ll not the many proxies.  The Tzeentch greater daemon is in fact the Nurgle daemon and the white worm things are beasts.  April put a cannon on each side and her soul grinder on the right-center.

I split my spear only units onto the wings with the other units spread out.  I also split my monsters, with the characters on the right and the phoenix on the left.  In hindsight, I probably should have put the dragon on the other side to gain the protection from the wall.

I vanguarded strong in the hopes that April would take some charges that I could flee.


We rolled and April got the first turn.




Turn 1 – Daemons of Chaos
The daemons did not charge.  April moved up nearly with every unit.  I think the Skill Cannons held still.

April rolled a 5/4 magic phase.  The table kills 1 reaver off the right unit.  I allow a 3D caress on my dragon to lower its stats by 3.  I then dispel a 2D magic missile at a unit of reavers.

In shooting, the cannons go after my dragon, with the first rolling double 1s to wound and the second killing the dragon.  So sad, I spend 20+ hours painting that model and the first game all I got to do was deploy it.  My bad for not putting it behind the wall.  The stone thrower misses.




Turn 1 – High Elves
On my turn I move over the beast units and only manage 1 wound.

I roll a 10/6 magic phase, giving me +1 Ward Save.  I 3D flaming sword on a unit of dark riders, which April allows.  I then 6D the largest fireball at the Greater Daemon for 1 wound and a failed dispel.  In shooting I put 1 wound on the right cannon.




Turn 2 – Daemons of Chaos
Another turn without charges.  For the most part April continues to move up.

A 6/5 magic phase, and the table does nothing.  I allow a 3D miasma for -2T on Phoenix and dispel the magic missile.  The first skill cannon rolls 1 to wound on phoenix and the second takes off the charmed shield.




Turn 2 – High Elves
On my turn 2 and my entire remaining army, besides the dragon mage and the back center unit of reavers charges a skill cannon.

I roll an 8/5 magic phase and get +1S on Phoenixes.  A 3D flaming sword is dispelled and a 5D big fireball puts another wound on the greater daemon.

The one unit doesn’t do anything on shooting.


In combat my general does 2 wounds and the reavers do the last wound to the skill cannon.  The only skill cannon only takes 2 wounds, doing 1 but dies on the leadership roll.



Turn 3 – Daemons of Chaos
Again, no charges for the Daemons (allowing my little wizard to live a little longer!).  April moves up a little inconsistently, I felt, but I’m sure she had a plan.

A 12/6 magic phase has a unit of khorn pop up in my back field in an attempt to pin in my wizard (though they get placed a little close, leaving me an out).  A 6D miasma puts a -1 on a Phoenix and a 6D vortex fails to go off.


The stone thrower misses my wizard.



Turn 3 – High Elves
No charges as I’m fairly out of position, but movement gives me 3 wounds on the hounds, 1 wounds to the beasts and 2 wounds on the horde.

I roll a 9/7 magic phase, 2D flaming sword on a shooting unit and my fireball is dispelled.

Shooting puts 1 wound on the soul grinder (I’ve decided my general is going to kill him, so I wanted to plink off a few wounds even though it meant splitting fire from the greater daemon).





Turn 4 – Daemons of Chaos
Again, no charges as my wizard had ducked behind the khorn unit which prevented everything else from charging.  I give April a few pointers about how she might want to move to pin my wizard down.

April rolls an 8/5 magic phase and the table does nothing.  A 3D curse is allowed on my wizard and I scroll a 5D magic missile at the wizard.


The soulgrinder finally hits and kills the wizard.



Turn 4 – High Elves
My general charges the soulgrinder but doesn’t roll high enough to make it.  My movement does 4 more wounds to the dogs.

No caster and a change in Initiative has no effect on the game.

Shooting puts 2 more wounds onto the Greater Daemon.





Turn 5 – Daemons of Chaos
No charges, but April turns a bunch of her army around.

A 4/2 magic phase lowers her wardsave by 1.  I fail to dispel a 4D magic missile which kills 2 reavers.


The soulgrinder misses.


Turn 5 – High Elves
My general again charges, and this time completes with the soul grinder.  Looking to lower his leadership with static combat, I charge as well with 2 units of reavers, one in the front and one in the flank.  I am hoping to roll some 6s while he only has a 5+ armor and a 6+ ward that he has to reroll.

In my movement I do only 1 more wound to the dogs.

My magic lowers the strength of my Phoenix, poor timing.


In combat, my general only manages to do 1 wound because the soulgrinder is toughness 7 and nurgle.  The Phoenix takes 2 wounds and he passes his leadership test.



Turn 6 – Daemons of Chaos
The greater daemon flanks the unit of reavers.  The horde fails a long charge against a phoenix.

A 6/5 magic phase and the table again does nothing.  A 3D Pestilence lowers my general’s weapons skill and Initiative by 1 (fail to dispel).  He then 3D to lower the toughness on my phoenix/general.

In combat, my general does another wound to the soulgrinder.  The phoenix takes 2 more wounds.  2 reavers die.  I lose and both reaver units run, the greater daemon catching one and then over running to charge my general.  My general rolled to hold.

Turn 6 – High Elves
My last turn and no charges.  I move to kill the dogs.  The magic roll gives my Phoenix +1 Initiative.

In combat, my general challenges to block out the soul grinder.  We all make out ward saves.

Final standing has April with 629 points, 445 from the dragon, 134 from a unit of reavers and 50 from banners.  I scored 450 points from both skill cannons and the unit of dogs, but with the 500 points back from playing down score a win.

This game was sort of a successful test.  Dragon doesn’t get a 2+ ward versus fire, so I needed to be smarter in her placement.  Sucks I didn’t get to play with her at all, she might have fared better against the soul grinder, which was her target long term (hoping to tag team with general, but redirected to cannon when she died).  My expectations that this army isn’t that great seems to bear fruit and I’m glad to be well on my way to having my revised dark elves for adepticon.

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