Rise Up! Scenario One: The Ambush!

4.515.020.M42

Trooper Danica Castigel's PDF unit had only arrived in Gehardog Fol this morning. There were part of the Tertiary Reserve PDF - only to be called up to active service in the case of a full-scale planetary invasion!  Last week most of them were still clerks and fabricators and other menials.



Castigel had heard of about the rioting by the insurrectionists, but seeing the damage firsthand was eye-opening, to say the least. The sheer scale of destruction could hardly be believed. Who would DO this to their own city!?

After stooping their gear in their billets, the platoon had been sent out on a "presence patrol" to "get to know the lay of the land" and to let the locals know that they were here and the Imperium didn't just give up cities to ragtag bands of indentured proles that were unhappy with their lot.

Despite the total devastation, that spread out in all directions as far as they eye could see, the patrol had been very quiet. Unnervingly quiet. It was as if the city had been utterly abandoned. They were almost back the the Forward Operating Base when the first shots rang out!

A few of her comrades returned fire. Other just stood and stared at their assailants stupefied and gawping at the unreality of their first experience of combat! Someone actually shooting at them! It took Castigel a moment to even realize what was going on! She gathered her wits, as best she could, and found some cover and began to return fire. 



After the first shot, she froze. She finally saw their ambushers. Though she couldn't see details, they had a recognizably human form. Still, there was something about them she instantly noticed... something different... something... wrong... it was in their movements... something... alien....


In this first scenario of our Rise Up! Campaign, we see our plucky band of rebels ambush a newly arrived platoon of PDF troopers. The reason is twofold - to seize the initiative and keep these new arrivals off-balance, as well as to scavenge more weapons and supplies from their dead!


Scenario

The scenario is based of the Ambush scenario in the Narrative Play section of the Warhammer 40000 (8th Edition) core rulebook - but tweaked and scaled down for our purposes. The engagement is asymmetric and the imperial forces face overwhelming odds - there is next to no chance they will escape or survive - the challenge is for the Genestealer Cultists - who can kill the most, the fastest!

As this is a Combat Patrol engagement, each side receives 3 Command Points to start.


Forces

Imperial Forces
5th Platoon, 7th Company, 452nd (Tertiary Reserve) Regiment, Xoxigar Planetary Defence Force.
Patrol Detachment - Cost: 2CP - Command Benefit +2CP

HQ
Lt. Cyril Bergstrom - Company Commander - PR2

Troops
1st Squad - Conscripts (20) - PR3
2nd Squad - Conscripts (20) - PR3

Eites
Command Squad (4) - PR2

Total Power Level: 10


Genestealer Cult Forces
Battalion Detachment - Cost: 3CP - Command Benefit +3CP

Ian:
Xenofobix - HQ - PR4
Ability: Psychic Might: Can attempt to manifest one additional power each Psychic Phase.
Warlord Trait: Shadow Stalker
Psychic Powers: Smite, Psionic Blast, Might From Beyond.
Troops -Neophyte Hybrids (10) -  PR4

Finnegan:
Ehxmuhnxd Ebonyviper II - HQ - Primus - PR4
Ability: Stealthy: Subtract 1 from hit rolls made with ranged weapons that target this model.
Troops -Neophyte Hybrids (10) -  PR4

Oliver:
Phil Lip - HQ - Primus - PR4
Ability: Impervious: This model regains 1 lost wound at the start of your turn.
Troops -Brood Brothers Infantry (10) -  PR4


The Game



After a little catching up with these guys we haven't seen in months, and going over some of the campaign rules and picking abilities and such.



5th Platoon, 7th Company, 452nd (Tertiary Reserve) Regiment, Xoxigar Planetary Defence Force heading back to their Forward Operating Base.



Genestealer Cult Primaris Phil Lip and his squad of Brood Brothers Infantry - deserters from the PREVIOUS PDF Regiment sent to Gehardog Fol! Hiding in plain view, still wearing their PDF uniforms!



Magos Xenofobix and a band of Neophyte Hybrids



Ehxmuhnxd Ebonyviper II and his band of Neophyte Hybrids - including his cronies; Bladric, Gorge, and Perky.


ROUND ONE



As the Imperialists entered the Kill Zone, Magos Xenofobix gave the signal!



Primaris Phil Lip chittered with glee at the thought of annihilating the Imperialists wandering into their sites, blissfully unaware of the doom about to befall them.



MOVEMENT! CONTACT RIGHT! CONTACT LEFT! THEY'RE ALL AROUND US, MAN!?



it was Magos Xenofobix that fired the first shot, as it were, projecting out a furious arch of warp energy, reducing the lead trooper to dust!



Ehxmuhnxd Ebonyviper II opened fire next, catching a few more as they entered the Kill Zone.

The Brood Brothers also opened fire taking down a few more.

The Squad totally failed morale and a few more scarpered - only to be captured by other cultists lurking in the darker parts of the surrounding ruins... Eleven out of twenty were lost in the top of the first Round, before they were even able to move... Yikes!



2nd squad, seeing the lead elements of the platoon had walked into an ambush, deciding to flank their ambushers through eh cover of the surrounding ruins.



"Forward for the Emperor!" Cried Lt. Bergstrom - an order that allows Guard units to fire, even if they've advanced in the Movements phase - which the 1st Squad and Command Squad did! Unfortunately Conscripts (as these PDF were) only follow orders on a 4+... and these did not...



The Command Squad was made of more professional soldiers and they returned the Brood Brothers fire - taking one out of action.


ROUND TWO



AT the top of Round Two, the first squad of 5th Platoon, 7th Company, 452nd (Tertiary Reserve) Regiment, Xoxigar Planetary Defence Force, found themselves in a very unfortunate position...



Fire from the three squads reduced their number to just two - Trooper Danica Castigel and Corporal Zed - a pipe-fitter from the capitol, Xoxigaria... They fled to what they thought might be cover, a darkened ruin at the corner of the intersection through which they hoped they might exfiltrate themselves and make their way back to the base! They were wrong on so many levels... So many dark and terrifying things lurk in the shadows of the ruins of Gehardog Fol!

The Command Squad also took fire and Trooper Levit, the Vox-Caster Operator, and Trooper Drayfuz, the Grenadier, went down in a hail of fire from Xenofobix's band of Neophytes. The terror of seeing her brothers-in-arms drop so suddenly, caused Trooper Casterpollix to flee into the ruins.



Second Squad continued to push through the ruins and Lt. Bergstrom with the remains of his command squad fled into the same ruin. Trooper Wedwix, the platoon's medicae was a able to patch up Trooper Drayfuz enough to get him back into action!



Second Squad and Ebonyviper's squad exchanged fire - both losing a few of their number.


ROUND THREE



After exchanging more fire while Second Squad moved up into assault position, Second Squad charged the neophytes and their leader!

Whithering fire from the other GEnestealer Cultists had taken Lt. Bergstrom and Trooper Drayfuz out of action.


ROUND FOUR



Trooper Wedwix had found Trooper Casterpollix and got her up and moving again with a few kind words of ancouragment - only for the two of them to be utterly destroyed by the warp energies of the Cultist's Magos! Zzzzzot!



Ebonyviper II fled the brutal melee his cronies were engaged in - offering encouragement safely from cover.



Things were not going well for the PDF troopers as they desperately fought for their lives against the horrifying mutants!



The last to fall was the squads a lay preacher - attached to the squad to help with their morale in this time of uncertainty...  They'd fought to protect him - to the last... but it was all for naught. The preacher, along with the rest of the patrol, was never heard from again...


END GAME

All characters survived and gained 1 Advancement Point - which allowed each to pick another Ability.

Xenofobix chose Directed Fire: Re-roll hit rolls of 1 in the shooting phase for [cult] units within 6" of this model

Ehxmuhnxd Ebonyviper II chose Camouflage: add 2 instead of 1 to saving throws made for this model when it is receiving the benefit of cover.

Phil Lip chose Toughened Armour: Improve this model's armour save by 1 (4+ now)

All of the Squads gained only one experience for taking part in the battle - with the exception of Phil Lip's Brood Brothers, who gained an additional 3 for taking out the patrol's leader.


Coming Soon to Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

Tomorrow, at some point, Finnegan and I were supposed to play the second game in The Signal Campaign. Hopefully that will still happen...

On Thursday we are to play game two of the Rise Up! Campaign

Friday we're back to The Signal for Game Three...

(and somewhere in there I need to prepare the Wrath & Glory game for Saturday!?)

(and I'd really like to get some new stuff PAINTED for both of these campaigns!!)