Finished Chaos Fleet!

The above ordannce markers are the last thing for my Chaos fleet!  20 fighters, 21 bombers, 20 Forgeworld Dreadclaw assault boats (yes there’s one per base, they’re expensive) and 8 count ’em 8 custom converted torpedo bomber bases!

All were glued to 20mm fantasy bases.  The torpedoes for the torpedo bombers are bristles from a $3 woman’s purse hairbrush.

The final picture is the fleet!  There are fewer escorts for Chaos compared to my Imperial Navy fleet.  However, I do have the Repulsive Grand Cruiser re-based onto a large base so I can buy the 3rd shield.  I also have a LOT more ordnance because my Chaos fleet is pretty carrier heavy.

Next: Defences!!

Chaos Escorts

Next: Ordnance and then Chaos is done!  Then defences and Gothic is complete!

Imperial Navy Fleet finished

Imperial Navy done!  Next: Chaos!  First, I must re-base the Repulsive class grand cruiser onto a large base so it can buy a 3rd shield.  Then, paint 11 escorts and all their ordnance, which is a lot.

EDIT: With all available upgrades, Torpedo Bombers on the Emperor Class,  and a Solar Admiral with 3 re-rolls, this is 3980 points, so if 4 ships take power rams, it’s exactly 4000

More Imperial Navy

All Imperial Navy ships are done, but I forgot the Ordnance Markers!  Those will hopefully be fast.

Imperial Navy Dauntless Light Cruisers

Three Dauntless Light Cruisers, Lance armament.  I don’t think I need torpedoes, as I have a bunch of ships that do that.

The Surprise is named after the ship in the made for T.V. scifi movie Star Command.  The plot was that Earth is fighting a group of seceding space colonies.  An enemy fleet of 5 battleships is on the way to Earth to destroy it, and only the D.R.E Surprise, a destroyer manned by cadets, can stop them.  It was a great little movie, though low budget.

The Roanoke is named after both the American colony and the colony in John Scalzi’s The Last Colony.

The Kestrel is named after the best non-military ship from Escape Velocity by Ambrosia Software.

Next: More cruisers and escorts, then Chaos, then Defences, then Done With Gothic!

Retribution Class Battleship: Nieman Lion

I’ve decided to take an “Imperials First” strategy to painting the rest of my Gothic forces.  After this Chaos and then Defences.

Battlefleet Gothic Heavy Transport

At RIW Games today, a guy was selliing some stuff from a Bitz Box.  For $7 I got a Chaos Cruiser Hull.  I used a spare bridge, some Chaos and Imperial sensors, and pieces of sprue to make a Heavy Transport.  This brings my “transport” capacity to 10, so I can play a Convoy or Planetary Assault game  of 2500 points!

Your Local Gaming Store

So for those that read the battle report previous to this, you know I played John in Battlefleet Gothic.  We took off in search of some gaming space at Pandemonium Games in Garden City.  Sadly, the place was crawling with Yu-Gi-Oh players and there was not a board to be found.

A quick call to Lexington and John pulled up the address for RIW Games in Livonia, which is actually closer to my house.  We checked the store, but it was full of merchandise, no gaming space.  I bought some paint and asked if there was gaming space in the back.  The clerk told me that they have space in the same shopping area, but in a non-adjacent building.  We pushed some tables together and got our game on, see the previous post for details.

During our prep, a man playing some sort of counter-terrorism board game noticed our Gothic game.  He mentioned Epic, and I said that I played Epic.  He pointed to a box of old bitz, filled with Epic stuff and said that in the room next door, there was a local Epic club playing!  I introduced myself to them, and learned they have a forum: http://www.miniartofwar.net/smf/index.php

Hopefully I can get some games of Epic!  All this from patronizing my (slightly closer) Local Game Store.  They’re important!

Gothic Battle Report: Imperial Navy vs. Tyranids

Mission: Surprise Attack. An enemy fleet catches a planetary defense garrison unprepared.

Forces

Eric – Imperial Navy

Retribution Battleship with embarked Ld9 Admiral

Mars class battlecruiser with extra turret and upgraded batteries

Lunar class cruiser with Nova Cannon

Dauntless Light Cruiser (Lance)

Dauntless Light Cruiser (Lance)

6 Fire Ships

1 Orbital Defense Weapons Platform (Batteries)

1 Minefield

John – Tyranids

Hive Ship, Pyro Acid Batteries, Pyro Acid Batteries, 3 sets of port/starboard Launch Bays

Hive Ship, Massive Claws and Feeder Tentacles, Bio Plasma Spines, 3 sets of Bio Plasma Spines

Cruiser, Massive Claws, Pyro Acid Batteries

Cruiser, Massive Claws, Pyro Acid Batteries

12 Drone Escorts, Pyro Acid Batteries

4 Kraken Escorts

Deployment

Imperial Navy forces were arranged around the planet to cover all approaches.  Tyranids arrived from a Long board edge.

Turn 1 Tyranids

Cruiser moves up and catches Dauntless light cruiser, kills with boarding action.  Other Cruiser moves up and shoots the other Light Cruiser.  Escorts move up and shoot the Fire Ships, one dies.

Turn 1 Imperial Navy

Dauntless light cruiser fires on Tyranid cruiser, no damage.  Surviving Fire Ship kills one drone escort.

Turn 2 Tyranids

Fleet advances, Cruisers move over the planetary template, fire on another squadron of 2 fire ships.  Assault boats diable weapons on Dauntless

Turn 2 Imperial Navy

Fire ships advance on Cruisers, cause several Fire critical results and one Fire on the Lunar class cruiser.  Bombers from the Mars kill one Tyranid Cruiser.

Turn 3 Tyranids

More assault boats attack Dauntless, irrecoverably screwed.  Kraken advance and fire on Mars, roll poorly, do nothing but force a BFI.  Cruiser fires on Lunar, force BFI.

Turn 3 Imperial Navy

Last Fire Ship hits Hive Ships.  Causes 1 fire on Carrier Hive ship, three on Claw Hive Ship.  Also kills 3 drones.  Dauntless disengages.

Turn 4 Tyranids

Hive Ships advance, Kraken destroy Mars class.  Surviving cruiser hounds Lunar near minefield, then boards.  Lunar wins boarding action by a huge margin and Cruiser dies.  Carrier ship puts out fire, but Claw ship doesn’t and takes 3 damage.

Turn 4 Imperial Navy

Retribution moves around, pot-shots some drones.  Lunar moves around.

Turn 5 Tyranids

Krakens move toward Lunar, team up with Hive Ship and severely cripple it.  Surviving Drones move with Claw Hive Ship and destroy Orbital Defense.  Claw Hive Ship takes 3 more damage and does not put out fires.

Turn 5 Imperial Navy

Lunar disengages.  Retribution kills a Drone.  Solar Flare wreaks havoc across the board.

Turn 6 Tyranids

Kraken start to turn around.  Carrier hive ship enters large Gas and Dust Cloud.  Claw Hive Ship takes 3 more damage from fires.

Turn 6 Imperial Navy

Retribution locks on and kills last Drone Escorts.

Turn 7 Tyranids

Krakens and some Assault Boats move toward Retribution.  Claw Hive Ship disengages.

Turn 7 Imperial Navy

Retribution kills one Kraken.

Turn 8 Tyranids

Kraken disengage.  Assault Boats move toward Retribution.

Turn 8 Imperial Navy

Retribution fails to disengage, removes Assault Boat wave.

Turn 9 Tyranids

More assault boats.

Turn 9 Imperial Navy

Retribution disengages.

Final victory points

Tyranids: 586, Imperial Navy 542.

Analysis: I deployed WAY too close to the board edge.  Also, John had one REALLY good roll with the Krakens that killed the Mars class cruiser.  Had I set up a little better I could have fared better.  As it was the Fire Ships are the only thing that saved me.  I HIGHLY recommend them for defense.

Battlefleet Gothic Battle Report: Convoy

Mission

In convoy, a fleet is trying to protect a convoy of transports through an enemy blockade.  The enemy is spread out thin to catch the convoy, so there might be a chance to punch through the blockade.  In this scenario, the defender takes 100pts for every two free transports.  The attacker recieves random forces from a table, on which they get D3 + (transports/2) rolls.

Forces

Alan – Imperial Navy

Lunar class Cruiser

Dauntless Light Cruiser (Torpedoes)

Dauntless Light Cruiser (Torpedoes)

Four Transports

Four Transports

Eric – Chaos (Got 5 rolls on chart, rolled 6,5,5,5,1)

Carnage class cruiser

3 Idolater escorts (lance boats)

3 Infidel escorts (torpedo boats)

3 Infidel escorts (torpedo boats)

2 Dreadclaw Assault boats

Setup

Primary Biosphere, medium planet, 2 moons.  Planet was in lower left corner.  Moon 1 in upper left, moon 2 almost in exact center of board.  1 gas/dust cloud high center.  2 Asteroid belts lower right.

Deployment

I deployed my marker beacons in a “W” shaped pattern with the Carnage class cruiser in the middle and the Infidels on the ends.  Alan’s convoy came on from the left.

Turn 1 Imperial Navy

Alan brought in his 3 warships and no transports.  One was close enough to reveal the closest beacon, 3 Infidels.  2 were destroyed, the third on BFI.

Turn 1 Chaos

Revealed Assault Boats, which hid behind the medium planet.  Surviving Infidel moved behind main Imperial lines.

Turn 2 Imperial Navy

Alan brought on his transports.  He moved up and turned to get line of sight to shoot the last Infidel.  Infidel failed check to BFI, but amazingly survived.  Assault Boats and boarding torpedoes attack transports, with no effect.

Turn 2 Chaos

Farthest marker revealed as 2nd Infidel squadron.  Fails to All Ahead full.  Lone Infidel attempts to board transport.  Tie causes neither ship to be removed.

Turn 3 Imperial Navy

Fleet moves up to engage, fires at Infidel Squadron 2, no effect at extremem range.  Dauntless cruisers reload ordnance.

Turn 3 Chaos

All remaining markers revealed.  Chaos forces engage Imperial fleet, do minor damage.  Lone Infidel reloads ordnance, fires, kills one transport with Boarding  Torpedoes.

Turn 4 Imperial Navy

Dauntless cruisers lock on, fire on Idolaters and Infidels.  One Idolater destoyed.  Transports fire on lone Infidel, no effect.

Turn 4 Chaos

Carnage class cruiser moves throught imperial lines, draws bead on transports, destroys one.  Infidel squadron fires torpedoes, kills one transport.  Idolaters also kill one transport.

Turn 5 Imperial Navy

Imperials bring forces to bear on escorts.  BFI rolls make only one Infidel die.

Turn 5 Chaos

Further shooting reduces imperial transports to 2.  Game ceded.

Analysis

Convoy is HARD.  It is almost impossible for the convoy to make it if the enemy has rolled well, and the bigger the game the better they can be.  The defender is better off with smaller ships like the Dauntless or some escorts.  The attacker needs to essentially ignore the main lines and get through to the transports.  If the defender rushes ahead, this is actually easy.  The defender needs to slow it down and blast anything that comes close.