[After Action Report] The Eta Beta Pi Caper | Tenth Edition | Only War | Incursion | Necrons vs. Chaos Space Marines

Preamble

This derelict brownstone settlement in the subequatorial jungles of Mer'thy'rod has become a new front in the ongoing war. Here, the planet's gaseous emissions are less "terrifying, dangerous vent" and more "concentrated geyser of potentially extreme mineral content."

Yet it appears these particular vents have already been... compromised. Mined, even. These Astartes are not with the other Astartes active in the sector; their presence on vox-relays and auspex sweeps is as a disturbing emptiness, a silence where there should be sound. These are the Alpha Legion, and whatever it is they want among the decrepitude of a former colony cannot be good.

Yes, it's variety time at ARGG - a new player has materialised, and he plays Chaos Space Marines! I leapt at the chance to take on my former faction and a new face, especially one who'd be providing his own battlefield.

Army Lists

Chaos Space Marines: Deceptors

Master of Executions (Cursed Fang)
Sorcerer in Terminator armour (Shroud of Obfuscation)
Sorcerer

5 Legionaries (lascannon, heavy melee weapon, chainswords)
5 Legionaries (lascannon, heavy melee weapon, chainswords)
10 Cultists
10 Cultists

5 Warp Talons
5 Chosen (power fist, twin accursed weapons, plasma pistol) in Rhino (combi-bolters)
Predator Annihilator (lascannons, combi-bolter, havoc launcher)

Necrons: Awakened Dynasty

Catacomb Command Barge (Phasal Subjugator)
Skorpekh Lord (Energaic Dermal Bond)
Technomancer (Nether Realm Casket)

10 Warriors (gauss reapers)

6 Canoptek Scarab Swarms
6 Skorpekh Destroyers (2 Plasmacytes)
3 Tomb Blades (tesla carbines, shieldvanes, shadowlooms)
Triarch Stalker (gauss cannons)
Triarch Stalker (gauss cannons)

Deployment

The Alpha Legion being what they are, most of the infantry are either Infiltrating (with the Cultists tagging two objectives, up to whatever nefarious doings they're doing in the geysers), or in Deep Strike. The twocked Ultramarines Rhino on the far right flank contains the Chosen, and each Legionary squad has a character attached.

The Play

Skorpekh Destroyers advance on the right, but the Sorcerer invokes a Relentless Advance in an away-wards type direction while the Rhino busses forward. Subsequent small arms fire chafes the Skorpekhs' carapaces a little, but they stay silly, charging headlong into the Rhino. The Skorpekh Lord wrecks nine of its ten available wounds all by himself.

On the left flank and centre, aggressive Scout moves deliver the Tomb Blades and Triarch Stalkers forward, strafing the Cultists and Legionaries. The Tomb Blades, notably, shoot-and-scoot, stealing the back geyser that the Cultists have rendered... sticky. Sadly, their occupancy is not protracted. With a rrrrrrrip and tear in reality, the Warp Talons arrive. Alpha Legion forces counter-charge across the field, and it transpires that mass charges stack into a modifier that can reliably deliver the Warp Talons across the dreaded 9" reserve distance.

The Chosen and Skorpekhs are more easily matched, especially with half the Destroyers knocked out by further, Death Hex empowered small arms.

In the centre, a wave of Scarabs descends, trying to loosen the Alpha Legion's control of the fire corridor. The Predator Annihilator, which has been trading shots with Triarch Stalkers for some time, lives up to its name and destroys the frontrunning walker, then charges into the Scarabs, grinding two bases under its Tank Shock.

Undeterred by the deaths of its charges, the beloved omnicide tripod carves up the rest of the Chosen and circles around to line up on the Predator. Then I realise... I don't need it there at all. 

I have Scarabs! The Predator Annihilator has three wounds left! That's enough for a Scarab detonation to finish it off! In the ensuing explosion, the Command Barge, Scarabs and Terminator Sorcerer all take three mortal wounds. (This did not kill any actual models, which is really silly now that I think about it. I mean, why call them mortal wounds if you can survive them?)

 

The Command Barge sweeps in to clear the last Chaos Space Marines from the field: one sweep of the Overlord's Blade cleaves the Warp Talons asunder and, in the next round, the Terminator Sorcerer follows.

Debrief

At the bottom of round four, the Alpha Legion were tabled, and that left the Necrons to rack up two more divots for a 7-2 victory.

It's not as if I had it all my own way. The left flank completely crumpled, especially when the Warp Talons turned up, and there was some good play in throwing depleted units into charges so's to guarantee theirs with From All Sides. I was aided by Alpharius regularly blowing three mortal wounds off his units with Dark Pacts and struggling to land power armour saves. I've seen some appalling dice in my time but these were terrible. 

 

My learned Alpharius asked almost immediately "what could I have done differently" and honestly, I'm not sure. The Legionaries seemed to struggle, but they were in firing lane of two marine-busting Triarch Stalkers. I might have been tempted to hold them back more, get into some ruins and focus five lascannon shots onto each vehicle in turn. Fall back and shoot is in the stratagem suite for a reason. I think a greater focus on heavy weapons with the Legionaries is in order - and an exorcism for those dice.