The Proteus Diet - 40k Battle Report

Land Raider Proteus makes a tabletop debut

To mark the visit of Conscript Sean M from parts out east we squeezed some extra gaming with a pair of 40k 6th Edition games.  My most recent experience playing 40k was typically horrible, but what the heck?  For a change of pace I rolled out with my Tau - a collection of figures I painted over 10 years ago.  Dallas brought out his Howling Griffons retro "beakie" Marines, and Dave V brought his Eldar.

Table just before deployment - the artifact is in the middle, by the crossroads

During our previous game, Dave V mentioned that the Tau were pretty vicious to deal with in the current edition of the rules.  I haven't played a game using the Tau for like....I'm not even sure - maybe eight years? If a 40k expert like Dave V is concerned about the Tau, then there absolutely must be something there, so I figured it would be fun to wheel them out for the current edition. He was right...

Fire Warriors prepare to take out pretty much anything with their high power weapons

We played 1000 point games on a 6' x 4' table.  Up first I played Dallas' Marines.  The scenario involved capturing an old relic from the centre of the table.  My force included six Crisis suits, two Broadside suits, a small unit of four drones, and two squads of twelve Fire Warriors.  Dallas had two squads in Rhinos, a squad of Terminators, and his brand spanking new Land Raider Proteus (click here for a post showing some excellent WIP shots on this outstanding project by Dallas).

Broadside suit goes hunting

The Proteus advances, not expecting what comes next...

The game involved a lot (a lot) of casualties for the Marines.  The Tau are...broken.  The firepower of their basic troopers is sufficient to knock out Rhinos.  They put out a volume of high-AP fire that decimates armoured troops like Marines or Terminators.  The Crisis suits can move, fire, then move again.  The Broadside suits' rail guns have strength of 10, and AP1, and that really wreck vehicles.

More Fire Warriors in a wadi on the flank

Gun drones irritate the opponents - note the flaming Rhinos...

Tau Commander with Crisis suits

Dallas' outstanding Land Raider model suffered from an acute case of the "first-game-for-a-new-model-curse".  My Broadsides fired on it on our first turn, and we rolled vegas.  The Land Raider was reduced to a crater without firing a shot...ouch....about the only consolation to offer Dallas on that one is to assure him that at least the "curse game" is over with.

This crater was the Land Raider Proteus the top of the second turn...

Marine vehicles burn while the cheesebag Crisis suits hop around and cause trouble...

On the plus side for Dallas, despite a stack of casualties, it was a tie game.  The victory conditions revolved entirely around seizing the artifact, which Dallas' Marines did on the second turn, and held until the game ended, even as the smoking boots piled up around them. A very "Marine" ending.  The Tau got points for "first blood", for killing the enemy warlord, and for "line breaking".  The Marines got three points for holding the artifact.  Three points each.

The Crisis Suits had a successful "deep strike"

The Terminators looked great, but struggled to take down the pesky Tau...

After Dallas and I played, Sean took my Tau army out for a spin against Dave's Eldar.  Although they lasted only a little longer than my Elysians did, Sean's rolling wasn't much better than it had been during the Spearhead game earlier in the week. Dave V took some photos, so I'm sure he will post a report on that game.

The Marines hold to the bitter end - successfully!

Fire Warriors - so close, but so far away from the artifact

It was great to see Sean M once again.   And it was interesting to play 40k and not get completely killed before the game even starts.  But the Tau are out of control in this new edition of the rules.  Of course they "suck" at close combat, but close combat is not much of an issue when you have guns that mow down everything in sight.  And as for the Land Raider Proteus, I know it will be back...