Azure Flames 1st Company All Terminators vs. Tallarn GT list, 2000 pts

I’m sick of the Salamanders.

Well, not REALLY. I’m sick of bog standard 5-man squad MSU gunlines.  Yes, it’s very powerful and competitive, especially if you throw in a Rhino or two for some mobility, but it’s so BORING.

So, what else do I have in my magic box of Space Marines?  Hmmmmm…

OH YES FOUR FULL SQUADS OF TERMINATORS.

Thanks to the magic of the Vanguard formation, taking 42 models in Terminator Armor is a Battle Forged list!

Fourstrands veteran Nathan wanted to test a list against a mission from an upcoming Grand Tournament, and so I brought this somewhat unorthodox list to challenge him.  Let’s Batrep!

Wait, that sounded idiotic.  Forget I typed that.

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Bozeman – Azure Flames (Salamanders)

Vanguard Detachment

• Captain Perseus in Terminator Armour, The Shield Eternal, Thunder Hammer, Warlord Trait: Iron Resolve
• Librarian in Terminator Armour, Force Axe, Storm Shield, Psychic Powers: Smite, Veil of Time, Might of Heroes
• Terminator Squad x10, 2x Heavy Flamer, Teleport Homer
• Terminator Squad x10, 2x Assault Cannon, Chainfist, Teleport Homer
• Terminator Assault Squad x10, 10x Thunder Hammer Storm Shield, Teleport Homer
• Terminator Assault Squad x10, 10x Lightning Claw, Teleport Homer

Nathan – Tallarn Desert Raiders Imperial Guard

Brigade Detachment

• Commander
• Tank Commander, Leman Russ Vanquisher
• Primaris Psyker
• Infantry Squad
• Infantry Squad
• Infantry Squad
• Infantry Squad
• Veteran Squad
• Veteran Squad
• Company Commander
• Command Squad
• Special Weapons Squad
• Hellhound x2
• Sentinel
• Sentinel x2
• Leman Russ Punisher x2
• Heavy Weapon Squad
• Heavy Weapon Squad
• Wyvern x2

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Mission: Grand Tournament Mission #5

Setup: Vanguard Strike

Objectives: One objective (stationary) is placed 24″ from the corner of each players deployment zone, in line with the board center.  The other 4 objectives are placed along the center line.  These 4 objectives may be picked up and carried per the rules in The Relic.  At the end of the game, stationary objectives are worth 1 VP and Relic objectives are worth 3VP.

Tactical Objectives: At the beginning of each player’s turn, they draw Tactical Objectives until they have a number equal to the current turn number.  No Tactical Objectives are generated after turn 5.

Secondary Objectives: First Strike (kill a unit on turn 1), King of the Hill (have the closest unit to the center of the board when the game ends), Priority Target (destroy the most expensive enemy unit)

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Setup:

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Pregame: Nathan uses a preliminary bombardment.  Several models including the Librarian take a mortal wound!

Turn 1 – Azure Flames

Units without guns advance.  Shooting takes out 9/10 models in an Infantry Squad, but Nathan spends 2CP to pass the morale test to deny me First Strike.

Turn 1 – Tallarn Desert Raiders

Hellhounds, Sentinels, and Leman Russ Punishers arrive via Outflank.  Several Teleport Homers are removed thanks to the Sentinels.  4/5 of one of the Lightning Claw squads is killed, the last one fails morale to score First Strike for Nathan!

Turn 2 – Azure Flames

What remains of the Assault Cannon squad charges at the Hellhounds, damaging both.  Other squads try to charge the Leman Russes, but they’re too far away.  Librarian casts Might of Heroes on the Lightning Claw squad.  Smite and bolter fire take out a few guardsmen in the building.

Turn 2 – Tallarn Desert Raiders

Hellhound retreats.  Leman Russ Punishers do some damage to the Thunder Hammer squad.  The rest of the army eliminates the Lightning Claw squad.  One of the Sentinels overheats a Plasma Cannon and dies!

Turn 3 – Azure Flames

Flame weapons and bolters wipe out the Special Weapons squad, and then the Heavy Flamer Terminators roll boxcars and charge an Infantry squad!  This wipes out the guardsmen and scores a VP.  Librarian casts Might of Heroes on the squad that charged.  Two remaining Terminators chase the Sentinel.  Assault Cannon squad holds objective 6 and other squads gain objctives to score D3 VP (because this is a GT scenario, any D3 VP objectives automatically score 2.)

Turn 3 – Tallarn Desert Raiders

Primaris Psyker uses Psychic Maelstrom to remove two Terminators, and other fire removes two more and wounds the Sergeant.  Guard squad charges the Sergeant, but he survives and cuts several of them down.  Leman Russes reduce the Thunder Hammer squad to one wounded model, and then a Leman Russ uses the Crush Them strategem and charges alongside a Guard squad, but the lone Terminator survives, denying the enemy control of objective 3.  Sentinel legs it to escape the Terminators chasing it.

Turn 4 – Azure Flames

Assault Cannon squad charges, severely damaging the last Helhound.  Terminator Sergeant continues to chop up the Guardsmen, who lose two of their number to a failed Morale check.  Captain Perseus charges the squad harassing the Thunder Hammer Terminator, taking a few out.  Terminator Squad shoots up and charges a squad and the survivors flee.  I score a few points thanks to objectives.

Turn 4 – Tallarn Desert Raiders

Lascannon sentinel charges the Terminators, to mixed failed results.  All of the rest of the army focus on the Librarian, but he shrugs it off.  Leman Russ and squad fall back from the Captain and THSS Termie.  Get Back in the Fight allows them to shoot the Captain with some meltaguns, but they bounce off thanks to the Shield Eternal.  Other Leman Russ puts 8 wounds on the last wounded THSS guy, but he makes all 8 saves!  Game ceded.

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At the end of the game, I had Captain Perseus, unharmed, The Librarian who had take one wound from the Preliminary Bombardment, two one-man squads of THSS Terminators, two Assault Cannon Terminators two regular Terminators, and a squad of 3 with a Chainfist.  9 out of 40 regular models, plus the Characters.  That’s about 74% of the entire army, gone in four turns.

The final score for Tactical Objectives was Azure Flames 9, Imperial Guard 2.  Nathan didn’t have the mobility to really go out and accomplish objectives.  We didn’t count the main objectives, but I had at least 2, possibly 3 of the 3VP ones, and Nathan’s tanks could have easily taken one, plus his starting 1VP objective.  This mission rewards initiative, mobility, and flexibility.

There was also the possibility that Nathan could have tabled me had the game gone to turn 7, but with the Assault Cannon guys hiding and Perseus being a nigh-unkillable beast, that would have been unlikely.

So, that was my fun time with an unconventional list!  Coming up next, I’m almost done with a paint project!