We BOTH scored First Blood?! (a.k.a. Beer League, Game 2)

Back in October I played the second game in the Winnipeg 40K Beer League.

Host: DaveV (me)
List: List 1 (Mixed-Mech Swordwind with Farseer and Wraithlord, available for viewing here)

Guest: CharlesJ
List: List 1 (Crimson Fists led by Pedro Cantor, list available for viewing here)

Beer (the important bit): Sapporo

We played The Relic scenario with Vanguard Strike deployment. This was another close game, filled with (un)lucky die rolls.

Below is a photo of our setup, looking north and east. The Farseer is in the Wave Serpent with the black tailfin, deployed close to the Wraithlord try and forestall Wraithsight and keep it in action. The Fire Storm is in the rear, since its guns almost cover the length of the 6'x4' table.



Here's a closeup of Charles' fancy Contemptor dread. I tried to keep the Eldar over 24" away from its gatling guns.



Here is the relic, set up in the exact middle of the table. Whoever controlled it at the end of the game would score 3 Victory Points. A model could pick it up and move with it, but not faster than 6" per turn, due to its fragile nature. It's the power core from the downed flyer in the 4th edition boxed set - a relic indeed!



The festivities started immediately, as Charles deep stuck a drop pod with Pedro Cantor and two 5-man squads of Sternguard Veterans.



The Crimson Fists whiffed with their combi-meltas, and in response the Eldar shot a few of them away.  The Wraithlord charged Pedro's squad. Charging into terrain, the Wraithlord would fight an Initiative 1, simultaneously with the Marine Power Fists.

Indeed, both sides scored First Blood, the Sternguard and Wraithlord wiping each other out at Initiative Step 1 in the bottom of the first turn!



Ater the smoke cleared, Pedro and a couple of Sternguard were left in the Eldar deployment zone.



The Fire Dragons took a lot of fire, so they went to ground, leaving a couple alive. The Marine chapter master figured he'd charge them for an easy victory, but the Dragons nailed Pedro with a snap shot (gotta like Strength 8, AP 1), scoring a VP for killing the enemy Warlord.



In the pond to the right in the photo below can be seen the wreckage of a landspeeder, shot down by the Fire Storm as it deep struck onto the table.



After taking some fire, a lone Sternguard was left to try and take revenge against the Dragons...



...who blew him away with yet another snap shot.



Several times in th successive turns some Marines seized control of the Relic, only to be shot down by fire from dismounted Dire Avengers and their tanks.



I threw a Serpent to the east, in order to draw the attention of the Contemptor, which shot it down in one round of firing.



The Fire Dragons meanwhile had mounted up and joined the Farseer in her tank.



The remaining Dragons dismounted with the Farseer, then blew up the Contemptor with a lucky shot. Below, Charles surveys the carnage and the crater left by the dreadnought's demise.



The rest of the game did not change the VP standings established in the first two turns; the Relic lay unclaimed at game's end. The MVP award surely goes to the Fire Dragons, who weathered tons of enemy fire and managed to put the kill shot on three enemy units.

VP's for Eldar: 2
VP's for Crimson Fists: 1
Result: Eldar Win

Below are a few other dead soldiers, the detritus of a fun evening.



Thanks again to Charles for a great game!