Battle Report 1 - Tyranids vs. Eldar Alaitoc Rangers

Composed by Michael J. Casavant (Hive Fleet Phage).

1750 Point <No Mission>(19MAY2001?)

Tyranid Army List

Eldar Alaitoc Rangers List

Narrative

The wrecked ball of rock that you were called to was once an industrial production planet for the Emperor's valiant legions. That was before the Eldar scum came to the planet. However, they had a nasty surprise waiting for them. Genestealer units had infested the populace and a cult had formed and called a hive of Tyranids to the planet. You have killed the few surviving marines you have interviewed so far. It was the only way to wipe away the stain of their cowardice. The last one, however, might even be a hero beneath the layers of filth. He floats on a gravchair, his lower limbs were severed by a Starcannon volley that also claimed one of his arms. His remaining limb is wounded badly, barely containing the strength he used to activate his beacon when the troopship entered orbit.

Your staff officer already told the tale of his survival. After losing combat effectiveness, he dragged himself to a latrine and camouflaged himself from sight and smell. Then he recorded the subsequent events with his helmet's optics. The few clear images were a handful of stills that lacked vital information. Now you were hear to ask the man himself to fill in the details. There is no time to wait for others to take reports. They would only muck up the details and with the bugs and the keeblers, details can kill you.

The smell of Sergeant Bralicus is overwhelming. You barely contain yourself as the thick stench of excrement and weeks-old filth threatens to suffocate your senses. You press a small filter unit into your nose and mouth and feel the relief of clean air wash into your lungs.

The broken frame of Bralicus twitches to a position of sitting attention. He brings up his arm to salute, a clumsy and obviously painful motion.

You adopt a soothing but commanding tone. "At ease, Sergeant. Report."

He lowers his crippled limb and sits tall. His eyes stare off into the distance as the fog of his memory clears. "We only had a few squads on garrison duty at the complex when a rain of fire from a Falcon grav tank cut them down. Only a few of us survived the volley and we advanced under cover with our Krak grenades at the ready. We heard the herald of our doom as the blasts of a Shadow Weaver battery rained death on us. The blast took my legs and one of my left arm and knocked me out and into some rubble. When I woke up, I was covered in shit and weaponless. Kinda like this mudball is now."

"Anyway, I couldn't drag myself free, so I rolled down into a break in the rocks and watched the main square of the complex. Then I heard the reports of the Hive ship and I just had to laugh. The only food left on this rock was those bastard keeblers and I was gonna get to watch lunch."

The Sergeant laughs, producing a rough gravely noise that culminates in a large wad of bloody phlegm. "So, I hunkered down, cranked up the air filter, and coated my armor in shit. I figured the keeblers would be scared to investigate the smell and the bugs wouldn't find it appetizing."

"There were more keeblers than I had thought. They lined up in cover, ready for the onslaught. They were Alaitoc Rangers by their markings and there were plenty of snipers. They had two units of their regular snipers on a building and behind a low wall. Some of their elite snipers were up on the roof of another building right smack in the middle of the force. Below the elites was one of those damn psykers."

You interject, "a Farseer?"

"Yeah, that's right and he had some of those foul Warlocks with him. There were two units of Guardian Defenders, both with their own Warlocks and Starcannons on grav platforms. One was backed up by a Wraithlord and the other an Avatar, an Avatar of Khaine. There was also a squad of firedrakes led by an exarch and a support squad with two Shadow Weavers. Then the bugs came."

"One second there was nothing, then there was a swarm of the little monsters. There were over fifty Genestealers that seemed to be organized into five units. There was a unit of Ripper Swarms, about 7 clusters of them. Leading the group was one of those Hive Tyrants. By the Emperor that thing was enormous! He had a trio of Tyrant Guards protecting him and two Carnifexes following close behind to avoid being singled out. These things were not the mindless eating machines I expected. They used cover and combined assaults. And they did not falter. Not a single one fell back."

[Picture: Initial table layout]

[Picture: "Consume!" A closeup of the Hive Tyrant, his three invisible Tyrant Guard (unassembled by the battle) and 2 Carnifexes]

"So they moved forward through the buildings. They used cover as best they could but only the Tyrant, his guards, and the 'fexes used it to great effect. It worked though. Those keeblers rained almost every last round down on their heads, but they only managed to nick them. The Tyrant and the 'fexes had greatly bloody big cannons growing out of their arms but they had little effect. They couldn't hit the broadside of a bunker with those things, but it was not surprise with all of the ducking and dodging behind cover they were doing. What they did hit though was melted or corroded beyond recognition."

[Picture: Turn 1, Tyranids finished.]

"The keeb grunts moved forward, along with the Farseer's unit and the Avatar. If it were me, I'd cock the bolter and cut the bugs in half, but I'm no keeb. Who can figure out what goes on in those pointy little helmets?"

[Picture: Turn 1, Eldar Alaitoc Rangers finished.]

"The bugs kept on coming, the big ones firing their cannons to little effect. The 'stealers were rushing forward in a slow wave and the ripper swarms were managing to sneak up to flank the keebs without drawing any attention."

[Picture: Turn 2, Tyranids finished.]

"That Avatar must have some sort of effect on those keeb grunts, because they didn't pause for a minute, even with all of those 'stealers coming at 'em. Must have been some sight from where the Avatar was standing."

[Picture: Turn 2, The Avatar of Khaine stands undaunted.]

"Those keebs just kept on marching. I have to give them credit for courage if nothing else, but it was probably just some keebler magic that kept them moving forward, gutless keebs that they are."

[Picture: Turn 2, Eldar Alaitoc Rangers finish their Move phase.]

"Then it got really interesting. The keeblers opened up with everything they had and charged the bugs! They killed almost an entire unit of stealers with weapons fire alone."

[Picture: Turn 2, Eldar Alaitoc Rangers gun down 9 out of 10 models of a Genestealer brood.]

and crippled another with their volley and managed to kill off the last of the Tyrant Guards. They even scraped the Tyrant and one of the Carnifexes, but it's hard to be sure how wounded on of those beasts are. They roar and flail about whether or not they are wounded. The 'stealers over by the big guys fared a lot better and the keebs over there must have known that their number was up soon."

[Picture: Turn 2, Eldar Alaitoc Rangers assault Genestealer brood]

Most of the keeb grunts rushed into close combat and took more damage then they dished out. I saw those 'stealer claws rip through the Avatar's armor like it was soft cheese. The grunts with him, the Firedrakes, held their ground though. The rest of the bugs could smell the blood and the battle turned into a sea of flying limbs, blood, and pieces of meat sailing overhead. Those keebs looked like they had fallen into a blender!

[Picture: Turn 3, Ripper Swarms join the fight against the Firedrakes, which take heavy losses.]

[Picture: Turn 3, Lone Genestealer as well as trailing brood, assault Guardian Defenders w/ Starcannon.]

"Another unit of Genestealers joined the with the other Guardian unit and that was even messier. The soldiers were getting gutted left and right, so they fell back. They must have been nervous about retreating in front of their Wraithlord and Farseer, though, 'cause they mucked it up and the 'stealers drove them to the ground and eviscerated them without even missing a step. And within seconds, the unit was dead and the 'stealers were on top of the Wraithlord."

"Speaking of the Farseer, his group didn't fare too well either. They had closed the distance and that gave the Tyrant and the two 'fexes a chance to charge them. The warlock bodyguard was cut to pieces. The Farseer took a hit and tried to fall back, but the Tyrant had clipped his leg and he fell back too slowly. The scything talons of the 'fexes ripped him in two and swallowed the pieces in one smooth motion. They almost made it to the snipers behind the Farseer."

[Picture: Turn 3, Genestealers assault Guardians, inflicting heavy losses and then killing them in an Advance; Hive Tyrant and Carnifexes assault Farseer and retinue, killing the retinue in the assault and then killing the Farseer in an advance which brings them face to face with a Rangers unit.]

"After that, the keebs fell apart and the bugs swarmed over them and then they really fell apart." [Eldar Alaitoc Rangers conceded the battle]

The Sergeant chuckles grimly, "Now, sir, I formally request to petition for bionic replacements. My Emperor needs me on the field of battle, not back here chatting with your staff!"

[Picture: End of Battle]