Unfortunately, due to being out of town for the majority of the week, I was unable to schedule a match in time with my assigned opponent, who was fielding Tyranids.
I was able to contact the league organizer, Chip, and he agreed to play my force over my lunch break today, him fielding Chaos Space Marines.
Battle report is as follows:
Rules: 500 Points, Combat Patrol, Nominate a model (Sgt, etc.) to serve as your leader, Pitched Battle, 4x4 foot table.
Objectives:
1) Kill the opposing leader.
2) Have more units in your enemy's deployment zone than he does.
Deployment: Chip's army consisted of two fully manned Chaos Marine squads, both with Power Fists and Melta/Flamers, and both mounted in Rhinos. His leader was chosen as a Champion of one of the squads. My army was a single guard platoon, made up of the command squad, two infantry sections, a special weapons team, and two Drop Sentinels. Chip deployed first and I decided not to deep strike and set up my platoon in my zone and waited for his transports to rumble into my kill zones.
The Game:
The 228th Elysians, while returning from a routine patrol away from Unnamed Fortress on Grassy Planet #573a, stumbled upon a small vanguard force of Traitor Chaos Marines which seemed to be attempting to infiltrate the fortress by way of a small, elite mechanized force. Startled and dismayed due to not only there being no previous Chaos forces encountered on said Grassy Planet before, but because the two Rhinos were parked directly in between the Elysians and their destination. Their air cover was nowhere to be seen, and nobody could be hailed via long-range vox, so the Elysians hunkered down behind whatever cover they could find as it was obvious the Marines were there waiting for them.
With a roar of poorly maintained engines, the Rhinos surged forward and popped their smoke launchers, obscuring the platoons' view of the spiky, angular metal boxes that carried payloads of fear and death incarnate. The special weapons team let loose with a few long range shots with their plasma guns, but one of the guns' machine spirits was as startled as its gunner and was not correctly coaxed into a firing mood, and as a result it immolated the poor plasma gunner Larry.
Unhindered by the lackluster shooting, the enemy Rhinos continued to trundle forward and came to a halt near the Guard lines, and deposited the Word Bearers within range of the doomed squads. Their bolters opened up with a dirge that ended the world for many of them, slaying four of the five remaining special weapons team from the face of Grassy Planet #573. Covered with small chunks of his squad and with a curse on his lips, the last remaining squad member, nicknamed 'Boomer', primed his demolition charge as his fear gave way to his lust for explosive revenge.
On the other side of the battlefield, the characteristic hiss of a flamer was heard, and as the fire's intended targets lowered their arms away from their dismayed faces, they saw that they were all alive, the flames falling just short of their position. The laughter of the Chaos Marines was almost as deeply resonant and just as disturbing as the eight bolters that opened up immediately afterwards. Several members were blown to chunks, including plasma gunner Jones and demo specialist Ludwig, limiting their combat effectiveness versus such a horrifying foe. Sergeant Billy Bob rallied the men to hold their positions and pour more fire into the enemy, hoping for a lucky lasgun shot, no doubt.
The two Sentinels assigned to support the nearly pulped squad stepped over the remains of their charge and opened fire, and it seemed like justice had been served as flames boiled over the front of the traitors' Rhino and washed over the front half of the hulking squad. The vox network was filled with shouts of terror and curses as the Word Bearers appeared blackened, but unscathed from the burning wall of promethium. The other Sentinel sent a focused microwave multimelta shot at the traitors, sending one of them ducking for cover. The Chaos worshipers seem to be nigh unstoppable, at this point.
Meanwhile, Boomer, while running forward like a man possessed, tripped on a rock while throwing his explosive, having it all but annihilate a nearby tree and leaving an impressive smoking crater in its stead.
Inspired by his insane heroism, a nearby infantry section charged to support Boomer, firing from the hip. Plasma gunner Ray-Ray forgot to name his plasma gun and sleep with it at night, thus the jealous machine spirit detonated the weapon when he pulled the trigger, resulting in his arms and most of his upper body melting like a wax candle. Specialist Yokozuna threw his demo charge with a grunt and it landed amidst the traitors and detonated with such force, that only two of the ten marines were left staggering, but still fighting. A shortlived cheer resounded from the squad as they opened up with their pitiful lasguns, but ultimately doing no damage. Boomer, with nothing else on his mind but fury, took this chance to unsheathe his combat blade and charged, only to be battered aside with a single brutal, backhanded swipe by what appeared to be the contingent's leader. The two remaining marines, stoically drew their pistols at their attackers, drew their wicked chainblades, and charged. A few soldiers went down, but were able to use the marines' disorientation and were able to bring down the two behemoths with a mixture of grenades, knives, and point blank lasgun shots.
On the eastern front, the full squad of marines charged the guardsmen and their protective Sentinels and a swirling melee saw the two walkers take the brunt of the charge which gave the infantry, who had suffered heavy losses from the assault, a small window for a tactical retreat. Frantic maneuvering allowed the Sentinels to keep the Marines tied up for some time, allowing the Elysians' Commissar Volkov to lead skirt the melee and tear open the traitors' waiting transport with an industrial lascutter that fortunately specialist Jax had begged the commander to bring along to the battle. As the Rhino sputtered and died, the command section heard the Sentinels finally crash to the ground and the thundering steps of the Marines drawing closer, and they decided to make a run for it. On the Western front, with the Marine leader dead, the remaining six of the squad booked it to try and make it back to their base to raise the alarm and seek reinforcements.
With the enemy leader dead, and the Elysian patrol making it past the enemy lines, it seems the Guardsmen procured themselves a bitter victory.
