Friday Afternoon Kill Team

Friday afternoon I dropped the kids off at a friends place for the afternoon. I thought rather than ride all the way home and ride ride back to pick them up, I could arrange to get in a few games at the Dragon's Den - which isn't very far from their friends place. I put out a request on the Hunters of the Warp group on Facebook and a Friendly fellow named Mark offered to play a few games with me.

As Mark was planning to bring Adeptus Mechanicus I brought along my Genestealer and Chaos Kill Teams - along with a couple options for Kill Zones.

GAME ONE

The First scenario we played was Take Prisoners in a Sector Mechanicus Kill Zone.



It seemed an appropriate place to start - as he was playing Ad Mech. The Take Prisoners scenario was interesting and kind of made sense. A Tyrnaid bio-pod crashed on a Forge World and genestealers were sent out to bring back samples of the locals for breakdown and study of their biological components. The Adeptus Mechanicus, for their part, having noticed the landing on their aspen would be interested in capturing nay of the visitors for their own study!



The scenario really requires you to isolate individuals in order to capture them, as that is the only thing you get victory points for - captured enemy. So, I set out two groups around the flanks. I think I lost one Genestealer early in the game to boobytraps the Ad Mech had set up amongst their machines and equipment. A second might have been injured by more booby-traps...? I can't remember.



Moving up, taking cover, ready to pounce!



Of the three on the left flank, one was blown away by overwatch fire and the remaining two found themselves a little overwhelmed facing a Sicarian Infiltrator, two Skitarii Vanguard and  Ranger (or two).



The Right flank more easily overcame a few over extended elements of his Kill Team and quickly captured our first prisoner!

Another was killed by them, but they had friendlies nearby and so could not be captured.



A Sicarian Infiltrator was isolated and surrounded... We knocked off all of it's wounds, but it just would not go down - every wound thereafter was just absorbed by armour or turned into another Flesh Wound!?

 

On the other flank, the second Genestealer was killed leaving one alone and surrounded.

I think by the end of the game - which ended after round five, The Ad mech had captured this Genestealer, but mine had failed to get that Sicarian, so it was even and a draw... So close!


GAME TWO

Our second game I rolled out the Heretic Astartes! This time we played the Terror Tactics scenario in a Sector Munitorum Kill Zone - In the scenario you get two victory points for each model you could get off the enemies table edge and one point for each enemy taken out of action. So better to just try and get as many off - I had a bit of an advantage in numbers with my hoard of cultists!

 

I tried a Bum's Rush Just throw a bunch of cultists at the Mechanicus Team and send another bunch running for the far edge of the table.



Cultists are pretty weak - so the Ad Mechs did manage to kill a BUNCH of them in the process



I did manage to get a few off - and kill a few enemy in the process.



At the end of Round Four I think it was sitting at 9-7 for victory points (I'd gotten six off and took three enemy out of action, The Ad Mechs had taken out SEVEN of mine - Including one of the Chaos Space Marines!). I had to opt for a strategic withdrawal at that point, however, as I had to go pick up the kids. I feel it could still have gone either way at that point. I could easily have gotten at least two, maybe three, more off, which would have put me in a pretty commanding lead... But he could have just as easily killed the rest of my team...

Fun games. I'll have to try and make it out to games at the Den more often.


Coming Soon to Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

Later in the evening we got in another round of our Campaign for Xoxigar, but that deserves a separate post... Stay tuned... Hopefully I'll get to that SOMETIME this weekend!!  It's going to be a busy one, though...

Ironskull's Boyz and Wall of Martyrs

A few more things rolling off the workbench that I finished up over the weekend....

First up; Ironskull's Boyz for Warhammer Underworlds: Shadespire. These are for a friend of mine that bought into Shadespire last year. I painted the Stormcast Eternals over the Holidaze, got the Bloodbound Warband done a week later (so he could actually play the game). Then I got busy trying to get stuff done for the Shadow War: Armageddon Campaign.  Then I started dragging my ass on these and didn't get the Sepulchral Guard done until June... and I'd STARTED these around the same time... but then Imperial Knights (which I haven't even finished one of!)... and then Summer Holidaze... and then Kill Team... So I figured once ToonCon was over, these should be my FIRST PRIORITY! (Well, except for the rest of the Ad Mech Kill Team...)



Ironskull's Boyz for Warhammer Underworlds: Shadespire (from Games Workshop)

Yeah, those are snowflakes on the ground... I like taking pictures outside in natural light. One thing I do like about winter is it is USUALLY overcast, but fairly bright (good light, but no hard showdows). The downside is snow and sometimes not-so-great light - especially in the morning.

Next, I finished up a section of the Wall of Martyrs Imperial Defence Line.



Wall of Martyrs Imperial Defence Line from Games Workshop.

I got this as part of the Kill Team: Wall of Martyrs Kill Zone. I probably didn't really NEED this one... I mean, I HAVE a pretty good trench system... But.. well... it was a "good deal"... (The set was $100CAD - the terrain, bought separately, would have been $125 - and the set included a bunch of scenarios and tactic cards and stuff...).



The front side of the defence line seems to be piles of discarded stuff - broken bits and dead bodies, the backside seems to be storage for extra supplies - crates or ammo or food, a barrel, etc...



This section of line holds an entire squad.

The box included two such sections of line, plus a modular emplacement and a bunker. I'm hoping, at some point, Finnegan picks up the T'au starter (which came out the same week as this Kill Zone and includes another section of the line) and he passes the terrain on to me to paint....

I forgot to take a picture of this on the Kill Zone board! it's pretty plain. Bare earth with a bunch of craters printed on it.

I have to admit, I haven't even looked at the scenarios or Kill Zone card or tactics cards... This is probably the most sparse of the Kill Zones...


Coming Soon to Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

Hard to say... I'd LIKE to get more games of Kill Team in... but that seems to only happen on the weekend. As for painting? I did say I'd help The Girl paint some Mice & Mystics minis... I'd like to get some more of this Kill Team terrain done (Wall of Martyrs, Munitorum, Mechanicus and Imperialis terrain still to do!)

Adeptus Mechanicus Sicarians and Tech Priests

Shortly after picking up Kill Team back in July, I picked up a box of Adeptus Mechanicus Sicarians. Though the box says Sicarian Ruststalkers, they can also be built as Sicarian Infiltrators. This is great as they are both options for a Adepts Mechanicus Kill Team and I could buy one box and have a few of each as options to add to the Mechanicus Kill Team that came with the Core Box. Last night I finally finished up the last few Rust Stalkers and Infiltrators (I had finished one of the Infiltrators when I was working on the Skitarri)



New Adeptus Mechanicus Sicarians



Sicarian Infiltrator Princeps



Sicarian Infiltrator



Sicarian Ruststalkers

More recently I picked up the Tech Priest Dominus Mechanicus Commander set when Kill Team: Commanders came out and I've painted him up as a commander. I also happen to have a regular Tech Priest that my friend Paul gave me for my birthday in February - presumably to serve with my Imperial Guard regiments - but as they turned out to be an commander option for the Mechanicus Kill Teams, I finally got around to finishing him off to.



Mechanicus Commander options Tech Priest and Tech Priest Dominus. A Kill Team can only ever have ONE commander, so these two will never be serving together in Kill Team.... at least, not as part of the SAME Kill Team!



Tech Priest Dominus



Tech Priest



My small Adeptus Mechanicus force - with all the options for a Kill Team.

The nice thing about Kill Team is that now that these are done... well... That's it. There's really nothing else I could add to this force - well... okay... there's stuff I COULD add to the force... I COULD get enough of each type to make a force entirely of one type of model -  Skitarri Rangers, Skitarri Vanguard, Sicarian Ruststalkers, and Sicarian Infiltrators... but that would be daft.

The downside of Kill Team is BECAUSE I don't need a lot for each Kill Team, there is that temptation (as in DBA) to do ALL THE FACTIONS!? Ugh.... just... I can't do that... Oh, believe me I've already been tempted to pick up a box of Plague Marines and a box of Pox Walkers... but I'm going to try and NOT do that. I have SO MUCH 40K stuff already... I need to get some of THAT painted first before I go buying any more!

(That being said, if they drop a Kill Team: Inquisition boxed set, I am totally down for one of those!)

(and I am NOT getting Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress when it comes out in a week - I really, REALLY need to get all the Rogue Trader stuff painted FIRST!)


Coming Soon to Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

I think next I shall endeavour to finish off John's Shadespire Orcs and then get some stuff painted for Mice & Mystics, before returning to 40K stuff...

When I do return to 40K stuff...? Where to start!? I have and a bunch of Imperial Guard I'd like to finish up - just for assorted Astra Militarum Kill Teams (let alone all the other Imperial Guard I have for full-sized 40K armies!) I have stuff for a Space Marine Kill Team, and a handful of Orks that I could paint up to use as an Ork Kill Team. I really want to get the Rogue Trader Crew and Gellerpox Mutants done - along with all the Rogue trader terrain bits. There's still a LOT of Imperialis and Mechanicus terrain to finish up... and a bit more Munitorum terrain... and the knights... and... Yeah... I'm totally not getting all that done this year... but hopefully I'll have some fun trying.

I'm hoping to get in a game of two of Kill Team this weekend to carry on with the Campaign we started last weekend.

October Games

We got in a few games this month. Unlike previous months - and previous Octobers - all the games seem to be clusetered around weekends - or on Hallowe'en....



There are a couple reasons for this. One is that we - as a family - are doing waaaaaaaay too much other stuff (mostly on Weekday evenings)... Sunday The Girl has Irish Dance Classes. Monday she had swimming and Amanda and I are taking a ballroom dancing class. Tuesday The Girl has Lyrical and Jazz dance classes. I have my Irish dance class, and Finnegan plays D&D every other Tuesday. Wednesday both kids have violin lessons, The Girl has Ballet and Finnegan plays in a Star Wars Role-playing game and Amanda leads a Yin yoga class. Thursday Finnegan plays in another D&D campaign, and both kids have Improv classes at Persephone Theatre school (but at different times!? Luckily it's very close by!). Friday is the one day we don't have much going on... Oh, except my cello lessons, every other Friday... Saturday The Girl has Tap classes and volunteers with the Spirit Fliers and Amanda leads two more yoga classes... Uggggghhhh.... it's maddening... On top of all this Amanda decided we should get an annual pass for the local climbing gym - and so, in theory, we're supposed to work in some time to go climbing so that money doesn't all go to waste.

(and amongst all that, Amanda's expecting me to find time to renovate the basement before the end of the year...)

Also, this fall, Finnegan has started a new sort of schooling. He's still schooling at home, but is doing an online curriculum - which is a LOT more work that what we used to do! And the curriculum is all set, so there's not working games into the curriculum and no spare time to just have a fun afternoon game...

So... weekends...

The first weekend of October was the Thanksgiving day weekend her in Canada. I already did a post about the games we played that weekend...

Long Weekend Games

The next weekend was ToonCon! Again, I've already written a post about that weekend...

ToonCon 2018

So... what did we do for the REST of the weekends in October?


Monday, 15 October 2018

Okay... technically this WASN'T a weekend... but we'd had so much fun playing games all weekend and we wanted to keep the momentum going and The Girl wasn't able to go to swimming for some reason and Amanda was in Florida dodging a hurricane so I played hooky from Ballroom dance class and we played some more games. It was glorious. Not that ToonCon wasn't fun. But it was really just great for the three of us to sit down and play a couple games together.



First we played Kingdom Builder. In previous years we've usually played Kingdom Builder at ToonCon - but this year it was on Sunday and I was playing the COIN game, The Girl was playing Castles of Burgundy, and Finnegan was playing TI4.... So we decided to play Kingdom Builder this evening...

I made no note of which victory conditions we were playing with... I'm  pretty sure one was points for each settlement in the longest horizontal line... and the others...? One might have been points for each separate clusters of settlements...? And the other might have been points for each settlement surrounding a castle...? I ended up with 67 points, The Girl had 53 and Finnegan had 44... but, more importantly, everyone had fun playing a game we haven't had a chance to play in a while!



Next we tried out a new game I got in the ToonCon game auction; Marrying Mr. Darcy! I remember seeing this when it was originally a Kickstarter and had thought of backing it... but didn't at the time. I'd also seen a copy at King Me Boardgamery about a year, or so, ago... but didn't pick it up then... So I was pretty excited to pick it up, along with the Emma and Undead expansions!

In our first game I got to play Elizabeth Bennet, Finnegan played Caroline Bingley, and The Girl played Kitty Bennet. There are two phases to the game - Courtship and Proposals. Through the courtship phase you take turns drawing and playing event cards - usually the event cards allow you to pick up and play Character cards, which generally add to your character points in one of your five traits (Beauty, Wit, Friendliness, Reputation, and Cunning), but sometimes the Event Cards have some other effect! Once all the Event Cards are played, we move on to the Proposal stage where, in order of cunning, the players all try to get various suitors to propose to them. Who potentially proposes depends on their particular standards and your characters traits (for example Mr. Bingley will only propose to someone with 5+ Friendliness or 5+ Beauty. Mr. Darcy, on the other hand, will only propose to someone with 5+ Wit) If a particular suitor is already married, he obviously will not propose to you (hence the need for cunning - to go first in the proposal round). Once everyone is (hopefully) married off points are tallied - this includes you character points (Beauty, Wit, Friendliness, and Reputation - but NOT Cunning) and your marriage points - each suitor has a marriage point value for each character (for example, Kitty Bennet gets 12 points if she marries Mr. Deny, 10 points if she marries either Mr. Wikham, Mr. Bingley or Col. Fitzwilliam, 9 points if she marries Mr. Darcy, and 6 points if she marries Mr. Collins....).

One of the Highlights of the game was when Finnegan, who was playing Caroline Bingley, drew an event card that involved reading a letter from an aunt or something where she discovered her "true nature"...? (Or something like that...?) I think he had to discard the top cards of each type - though it was early in the game and he only ended up being able to discard two - and then draw four and immediately play them. ALL FOUR cards that he drew were friendliness cards... for Caroline Bingley - who says right on her card; "Mr. Bingley's sister is well to do, and not terribly pleasant..."! That's quite the reversal of character! The Girl pointed out that she had enough friendliness to marry Mr. Bingley at which point Finnegan exclaimed "I CAN'T MARRY MY BROTHER! THIS IS PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, NOT GAME OF THRONES!"



I had a number of Suitors, but was plagued by a scandal - and Event Card I had drawn earlier in the game which gave me a -1 to all proposal rolls! I ended up marrying Col. Fitzwilliam for a total of 22 points. Finnegan, playing Caroline Bingley married Mr. Denny for a total of 24 points, and The Girl, playing Kitty Bennet, married Mr. Wikham for only 21 points.

I thought the game was marvellous - light,  good fun, and pretty quick - a good filler game when you have half an hour to kill.

Amanda returned from Florida later that evening and the following morning we hit the ground running and didn't play anymore games until the following weekend...


Friday, 19 October 2018



We finally played Castles of Burgundy. The Girl had played this at ToonCon two years ago and had loved it so much, that she'd asked for it for her birthday or Xmas...? and someone got it for her...? I said we'd play it with her when she read the rules and could teach it to us all... and so it sat... Last year she played dit again and there was another bout of wanting to play it... but... it didn't happen... Again, she played it at ToonCon this year and had desperately wanted to play it on Monday, but we just couldn't find it!? We spent HOURS turned the house upside down and inside out trying to find it - it's a boxed board game - how hard could that be to find!? Pretty hard actually! Eventually I gave up, but noticed it was only $40 on Amazon and said "Eff it! How much longer are we going to search for this thing?! What is our time worth!?" I honestly couldn't believe it's actually in the house anymore - though I can't think of any reason it would have left!? So I just ordered another one and it arrived on Friday.

The Girl read the rules and explained it to us all and we finally all played it together. It was fun. Don't ask me to explain how it plays... I'm sure if I sat down to play it, it would all come back to me, but at this exact moment, I don't remember much about how it plays... other than rolling some dice and somehow gaining little hexagonal tiles and placing them and getting points and stuff...



Apparently I got the most points and won!

I do remember feeling like it was a pretty slick game and understood why it's been on the Board Game Geek Top 100 (Currently #11) for so long.


Saturday, 20 October 2018



This evening we introduced Amanda to Marrying Mr. Darcy! Once again I played Elizabeth Bennet, Amanda played my elder, prettier sister, Jane Bennet, Finnegan played our younger sister Lydia Bennet, and The Girl played Georgiana Darcy!

At one point, Amanda drew the "Elopement" card and eloped with Mr. Wickham losing all her reputation! She gained back enough reputation to get rid of him later, but was only able to attract Mr. Collins as a suitor.



I managed to marry Mr. Darcy this time around and won the game with 27 points! Finnegan wasn't far behind, marrying Mr. Denny had gained him 25 points. The Girl married off Georgiana Darcy to Colonel Fitzwillaim for a total of 19 points. The earlier elopement had tarnished poor Jane Bennet so much she was only able to attract Mr. Collins, so Amanda ended the game with only 17 points...

Fun and laughs were had.


Sunday, 21 October 2018



Finnegan and I set up and played a game of Space Hulk while the Amanda was out taking The Girl to her Irish dance lesson. There is a full report of that action elsewhere on this blog:

Space Hulk: Exterminate!


Friday, 26 October 2018

This past Friday we started a Kill Team Campaign



Amanda's Drukhari took on The Girl's Harlequins in the Deathworld Forest Kill Zone.



Finnegan's Orks took on Bruce's Genestealers in the Sector Munitorum Kill Zone.

There is a full report of those action, and a bit of a background to the campaign elsewhere on this blog:

Campaign on Xoxigar


Saturday, 27 October 2018



While Amanda was out teaching yoga and The Girl was at her dance classes, our friend Laura joined Finnegan and me for a game of Arkham Horror! Finnegan and I played two characters each - partly because I think the game goes a bit better with more characters - but also The Girl was very disappointed that she might miss getting to play this so we each took and extra character so that if The Girl and Amanda got home early enough they could easily join us take over our spare characters!



I played Dexter Drake (magician) and Gloria Goldberg (author), Finnegan played Michael McGlenn (tough guy) and Jenny Barnes (dilettante), and Laura played Kate Winthrop (scientist or researcher?). In this game we were fighting the Ithaqua! Ithatqua is awful (they're all awful) with the coming of Ithaqua an unseasonable winter storm descends on Arkham and anyone caught in the streets at the end of a turn suffers one stamina from the cold!

In the end Ithaqua was awaked by too many gates open and we eventually lost when all characters were devoured - but we knocked 7 or 8 marker off the doom track fighting!

In the end Amanda and The Girl ended up running some errands and didn't get back in time...


Wednesday, 31 October 2018

Not a weekend...

The Girl's ballet class was cancelled. Sometimes this happens, as they figure most kids won't show up anyway because they all go out trick-or-treating... So we planned to play GAMES!!

Finnegan still went out to play in his Star Wars role-playing game, so I played a few games with his sister, DEATH...



First we played a few rounds of Retro Loonacy, I won the first three rounds... but eventually Death gets you...



Then we played Cthulhu Fluxx. I haven't played Cthulhu Fluxx in a long time. I'd gotten kind of tired of Fluxx game for a while, but I actually had a lot of fun playing this one!



WE totally lost... because... CTHULHU!!! If it hadn't been for the Ungoal that beat us both coming out, I would have won on the next round as there was a play three rule in effect and another rule that said you could still win if you had an investigator keeper in play - and I would have been able to play Randolph Carter (an investigator), The Cultist, and the At Home with the Whateleys - a goal requiring The Cultists and the Farm (which I'd already stollen from Death a few turns before...).



When Finnegan got home we set up another game of Arkham Horror - and this time we decided to try out the Kingsport Expansion. I'd picked up the expansion a few years ago, but we've never played it because I always felt we'd never really played the base game enough to really feel like we knew what was going on enough to add MORE to the game. That's part of the reason why I added it to our 25/30x5 list for the year.



This time I played Tony Morgan. I had the kids pick out and character for me - and they wanted to all play characters from the new expansion. Finnegan played Rex Murphy and The Girl played Lily Chen. This time around we were fighting Y'golonac.

After 3 hours we kind of just gave up. Everyone was getting pretty tired... I feel like if maybe I just played 4-5 more times, I might have a better clue how to play... but when the games take 3+ hours... I don't know... It feels like a LOT of potentially dissatisfying game play to try and get good at a game that I'm starting to wonder if it will EVER get that good - especially when there are SO MANY other shorter games that I really, really enjoy and almost always have a lot of fun playing! (like Marrying Mr. Darcy! Though maybe with enough plays it will get boring...).

I mean I DO like me a good long game that you can really sink your teeth into and plays out to tell an epic story of... something...? This is starting to feel like an epic exercise in frustration!?

One thing that kind of bugs me about this game is the skill sliders - I mean I get that if you increase your speed, you decrease your stealth - that makes real world sense... but I don't get the inverse relationship between fighting ability and willpower...?! Part of me feels like I should set them at median levels, so you have SOMETHING in every skill, but it at the same time it feels like just about everything has a negative modifier of some sort, so if you only have median numbers, you'll still effectively have nothing... The answer seems to be to crank them over to the highest level of whatever you're best at and HOPE that when you draw an encounter card it requires the skill you have and not the one you suck at... Which brings me to my other gripe: I feel like there is a bit TOO MUCH random in this game....

I almost felt this evening like maybe it's time to get rid of this game - except I think a new edition was just released - so there will be tonnes of people getting rid of theirs... Maybe it's just because I was super tired and had a HUGE headache... Maybe we'll try again next Hallowe'en...


25/30x5

We did manage to knock a few games off our 25/30x5 list...



With only two months to go and 80+ games still to play... I think this is going to be a bust... I do hope we'll get a few more lines completed - and play all of the games on the list AT LEAST ONCE - I mean, that was the point of the list - to make sure we got to play some games that we really wanted to play - the secondary goal of the list was to play some games we really wanted to learn better and played them enough times that we DID feel like we knew the games better. I think that's worked well enough for most of the games we've played five times already... Next year maybe we'll just stick with a 10x10 challenge ten games we really want to play a lot more of (ten times!) and maybe we'll have a side list of another 10 or so bigger games we want to make sure we get on the table SOMETIME in the year...



Coming Soon to Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

More of the Campaign on Xoxigar...? We were planning to play on Friday... but now we've committed to going out to an art show beginning at 5pm... sure, we could be back by 6pm... but then Amanda has to run out and teach a Yoga class at 8pm - which she's volunteered to do every Friday for the month of November to try and help raise money for Diabetes (as it is Diabetes awareness month).

Painting... I'm just about finished up a few final additions to my Mechanicus Kill Team - I have a Tech-Priest, a Tech-Priest Dominus, and four more Sicarians (a second Infiltrator, and Infiltrator Princeps and two Ruststalkers), then that team will be DONE!

I have some Orcs for Shadespire on the workbench as well, along with the Imperial Knight I started so long ago. The Girl has been reminding me that I promised I would help her paint all the Mice & Mystics miniatures once ToonCon was over... and now it's over... so... 

Campaign on Xoxigar

I've been wanting to start a bit of a narrative campaign for Kill Team since it came out. I wanted to get something special ready for the players - a rich background setting of my own devising and a bunch of purpose made scenarios to weave an elegant narrative in the grim dark galaxy of Warhammer 40,000... Well, I'm not quite there. I'm not sure if I'd ever be there... in the words of General George S. Patton; "A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week..." So I just went ahead and started a campaign this past Friday evening with just bit of background and a desire to build the campaign narrative as we go...

What follows is a bit of the background I have hammered out so far and reports of the first two actions of the campaign.

Campaign on Xoxigar

Positioned just on the wrong side of the Cicatrix Malledictum, Xoxigar has felt the light of the Emperor diminish in recent times, though not so much as to be completely forgotten.

The Xoxigar system has three inhabited planets.


XOXIGAR PRIME

So-named because it was the first of the planets in the system to be colonized. Xoxigar Prime was colonized by humans millennia before the rise of the Emperor during the Age of Technology.

At the time it was a originally colonized Xoxigar Prime was temperate world, lush with vegetation and native fauna. Over the last 25,000 years, however, the star at the center of the Xoxigar system has diminished and cooled considerably, leaving Primus now outside of the temperate zone.

Now it is a lifeless, frozen rock. The only inhabitants are the crew of a few disparate imperial stations and outposts and the last stronghold of the knight household which once ruled the world.


Knight Household

Once a great and mightly household that ruled over Xoxigar Prime for Millennia. After being brought back into the Imperial fold they served the Emperor in many conflicts across the subsector, but has been in steady decline over the centuries. Now all that remains of the once mighty house are the Lady, her consort, two children, and a couple hundred servants, labourers, and support staff.


XOXIGAR SECONDUS

Xoxigar Secondus was the first of the system’s planets colonized by the Imperium after it was brought back into the fold during the Great Crusade. The Adeptus Mechanicus settled it for its rich mineral and promethium reserves. It eventually became a Forge World. Many of the wretched, starving inhabitants from Xoxigar Prime were relocated here to provide indentured labourers to help build the initial settlements.

Millenia of heavy industry and strip mining has left most of the planet surface desertified brownfield between the industrial facilities and hab-complexes. What little food is made locally is grown in expansive green houses or cultured in giant vats. Most food comes from Xoxigar Tertium.


XOXIGAR TERTIUM

Xoxigar Tertium was uninhabitable when humans first came to the system – the planet was shrouded dense swirling clouds – Nearly all of the water on the planet was vapour due to the intense heat. As the star cooled over the millennia more liquid water was able to form on the surface and in a few short millennia (with the aid of a Departmento Munitorum seeding program) the planet was teeming with life. When it had cooled sufficiently for human habitation, the planet was colonized in hopes that it would become an Agriworld. The growing conditions are superb throughout the planet, but optimal production has never been reached as the jungle constantly grows band and has to be cut back regularly.

Gais Norvus is the current Imperial Commander. The title is hereditary and the family has ruled over Xoxigar Tertium for hundreds of years. In the for over 20 years Xoxigar Tertium has suffered a brutal civil war. A number of cities and declared themselves independent of the rule of Gais Norvus and the Imperium. Norvus has used the Planetary Defence Forces to try and retake the break-away cities. Secessionists and Loyalists have clashed in bloody battle across the world, leaving cities in heaping ruins and fields burning – ripe to be retaken by the creeping jungle.


Imperial Intervention

For the longest time the Imperium took no notice of Xoxigar Tertium’s troubles, as Departmento Munitorum tithes were met, and the Imperial Commander did not request help (Commander Norvus was no doubt concerned that a request for aid would make him seem weak or he could be seen as incompetent and replaced). But as the war ground on, and with the arrival of the Orks (and other factions), production on the planet has been severely impeded and THAT has made the Departmento Munitorum take notice.

A number of Imperial Guard Regiments have been deployed to the war zone so far. So far the conflict hasn’t been deemed serious enough to require intervention of the Adeptus Astartes.

Valhallans

The 275/341st Valhallan regiment is an amalgamated regiment – originally the 275th Valhallan Infantry Regiment and the 341st Valhallan Armoured Regiment. The two regiments have served together for nigh two decades over countless war zones. They have both been greatly reduced in strength over the years. The Infantry regiment, once ten thousand strong, has been reduced to a couple of understrength companies of less than 200 each. The Armoured component, once boasted over twenty companies of battle tanks plus reconnaissance and support vehicles, is now reduced to a single, under-strength company of a half-dozen or so tanks and a few support vehicles.

Many regiments so reduced make up for their lack of numbers by being the hardest, bravest veterans. Not so the 275/341st. All that remains of the respective regiments are the basest of survivors, cowardly wretches and invalids.

The combined regiment has been deployed to Xoxigar Prime as a small reserve and to provide protection for the few small imperial outposts on the world, should the conflict spread this far.


Tallarn

A small army group of Tallarn have been deployed to Xoxigar Secondus to bolster the Mechanicus Skitarri legions and help with rooting out the Ork infestation and protecting the Imperium’s valuable installations and factoriums. Included in the force are the 382nd Tallarn (Desert Raider) Regiment and the 451st Tallarn Tank Regiment, who recently served together on Brind’s World, as well as the 17th Tallarn Super Heavy Tank Regiment with its Shadowswords and Baneblades.


Guaiacan

The 222nd Guaiacan Commando Regiment, which also recently saw action on Brind’s World, has been deployed to the jungles of Xoxigar Tertium – where they are in their element!


Orks

Orks entered the system a dozen years ago aboard a couple of roks and a pair of Attack Ships. The Attack Ships were destroyed by Imperial Navy ships that happened to be in system at the time, but not before the roks detonated in orbit around Xoxigar Secondus and Tertium, showering both planets with meteorid entry vehicles.

Most Orks on the Rok bits did not survive planet fall, but enough spores did that, left in the deep, dark damp forests of Xoxigar Tertium, they were able to quickly grow into a significant force. Significant enough to

On Xoxigar Secondus only a few survived planetfall and have formed small groups of raiding parties that strike out of the desert and attack isolated outposts in less-well-inhabited regions.


Tyranids

Rumours have been floating about telling of Genestealers in the forests of Xoxigar Tertium. This could be the vanguard of an unknown Hive Fleet that arrived in some sort of reconnaissance bio-pod. If the rumours are true, the Imperial forces need to quickly locate and annihilate this threat.


Aeldari

Who can know the mind or reasons of the perfidious Aeldari? Rumoured sightings of different varieties of Aeldari have also arisen, what reason could THEY have for bring in the Xoxigar system, so far from any known craftworlds?


First Shots

This past Friday we played the first few games of our Kill Team capaing set in the Xoxigar system. The Skirmishes involved two groups of Aeldari meeting in the dense jungles of Xoxigar Tertium and Raiding parties of Orks and Genestealers bumping into each other on the field of a remote Munitorum facility!


GAME ONE


Amanda and The Girl decided to battle it out in the Deathworld-like forests of Xoxigar Tertium. It is yet unclear exactly why either force was there, but they bumped into each other and as the first shots rang out – the forest turned against them!



SCENARIO

The scenario they played was Make Your Escape! This was one of the scenarios that came with the Deathworld Forest Killzone box. Essentially two teams meet each other in the forest and as the first shots ring out they are attacked by the forset ("Swarms of Murder Bees!" said The Girl). NO scouting phase, deployment is a bit different; both sides deploy one figure at a time, anywhere - as long as it is not within 3" of an enemy or within 6" of the table edge. After deployment each side determines a random edge that they need to escape from. Each side gains one victory point for each member of their Kill Team that escapes and loses one for each member out of action or left on the table at the end of the game.

Oh, and ALL of the terrain is consider Dangerous Terrain - halving movement and anytime anyone moved - they had to role a D6 and on a 1 they received a mortal wound...

Kill Zone Special Rule: Crawling Undergrowth. If the half move wasn't bad enough, when ever rolling for advancing or charging, players had to roll an extra die, and discard the highest roll... 

FORCES

The Crimson Wave
Vulvatrix of the Crimson Wave - Wych Cult Hekatrix - Leader - Blast Pistol and Agonizer - 13 points
Thrixxesh Xosh - Kabalite Gunner - Sniper Specialist -  Dark Lance - 12 points
Khatryx Veluxis - Wych Fighter - Zealot Specialist - Razorflails - 11 points
Kladys Vaganix - Wych Fighter - Combat Specialist - Hydra Gauntlets - 11 points
Peiythia Labiyx - Wych Fighter - Shardnet and Impaler - 11 points
Asphyxa Noiyr- Wych - Splinter Pistol and Hekatari Blade - 8 points
Adalyx Bloodslyk - Wych - Splinter Pistol and Hekatari Blade - 8 points
Klitlyx Slythk - Wych - Splinter Pistol and Hekatari Blade - 8 points
Saphisykh Vhrex - Kabalite Warrior - Splinter Rifle - 7 points
Draeven Starr - Kabalite Warrior - Splinter Rifle - 7 points
96 points total.


The Blood Orange Ballet
Eureka - Player - Shuriken Pistol and Harlequin Kiss - Leader - 16 points
Fantastico - Player - Shuriken Pistol and Harlequin Kiss - Zealot - 16 points
Arrrrr Matey - Player - Fusion Pistol and Harlequin Blade - 15 Points
Spontaneous Combustion - Player - Neuro Disruptor  and Harlequin Embrace - Medic - 16 points
Jazz Hands - Player - Neuro Disruptor and Harlequin Kiss - 18 points
The Bloodied Shadow - Player - Shuriken Pistol and Harlequin Caress - 15 points
(additionally, all are armed with Plasma Grenades)
96 points total
(I am assured that their names are more elegant and have deeper meaning in their native Aeldari, there's something lost in the translation to Gothic/English...)

With lower numbers the Harlequins were going to have a tough go at it. If both sides simply ran off the table, they would lose because the numbers the Drukhari had would give them more points. Thus they HAD to engage the Drukhari, take at least a few of them out, AND escape off the table before all the Drukhari - or on the same turn the last Drukhari to have a hope of winning. 

THE GAME

Rolling for which Combat Drugs her lychees were using, Amanda scored some Painbringer (+1 to Toughness characteristic - Drukhari Wyches with Toughness of 4... this was going to be gross...)

DEPLOYMENT

Most of the Drukhari set up in one big bunch more or less in the middle of the table - though slightly off towards one of the corners - Amanda hedging her bets that she would roll ONE of the two sides she was slightly closer to as the edge she needs to escape from. The Harlequins set up all around the board. 

ROUND ONE

The Drukhari went first and the first to move - rolled a one and received a mortal wound - luckily it was only a flesh wound! I think one or two others received flesh wounds this turn just trying to move in the Forrest of Death! A pair of Drukhari also charged one of the harlequins. When it was the harlequins turn to move, The Bloodied Shadow tried to come to the aid of her comrade and charge into the same melee and rolled three ones and a six... and had to discard the six... halving that... One and a half inch charge... didn't make it. Didn't matter, in the fight phase the Harlequin K.O.ed Adalyx. Thrixxesh Xosh shot at, hit and wounded a Harlequin with her Dark Lance... but the Harelquin simply danced out of the way (Let's here it for that 4+ invulnerable save!) 

ROUND TWO

Another Drukhari was taken out of action... by the forest! But five managed to successfully run off the table (we realized much later that Amanda hadn't been using an extra die and taking the lowest... oops...). The Harlequin Troupe Leader also took a flesh wound from the terrain and decided to high tail it out of there!

There was a bit of shooting, but it was mostly blind shots through the thrashing shifting bush and thus all missed. A couple of hits were scored in the fight phase... or WOULD have hit, if they weren't dodged...

ROUND THREE

The Harelquin Combat and Zealot specialists FINALLY managed to charge into combat against one of their foes - Thrixxesh Xosh, The Dark Lance toting, Drukhari sniper specialist - and took her DOWN! 

By the end of the round the only Drukhari left on the table was Saphisykh Vhrex, a Kabalite Warrior, who had survived three rounds of going toe-to-toe with a Harlequin (during the first round I had predicted the Wych that was also in the melee would survive, not the Kabalite!). As the Drukhari already had six off the table, and had lost only three so far, The Girl Realized she'd have to keep the  Drukhai Kabalite alive long enough for her to get at least two more of her Harlequins off the table (because if she succeeded in killing the lone Kabalite, all Drukhari would be off the table - ending the scenario) before the game ended - she'd have to get all three off if she just let the Drukhari go and everyone just fled to their escape edges... but I think she'd had enough and opted for a strategic withdrawal.


END GAME

The Harlequins ended the game with none out of action, but four had flesh wounds and had to check if they wend out of action after the game - three did, including the leader, the zealot and the combat specialist!! One, the Zealot, ended up convalescing and will have to miss the next game. Another rolled, the Combat Specialist, rolled Hard Knocks and gained a bonus experience point for all her suffering. The Leader was okay. I think everyone got just one experience point, except the Combat Specialist, who got two because of her roll on the injury table. The Harlequins lost one materiel and one morale for their defeat in this scenario.

The Drukhari had three that were out of action, and two with flesh wounds. One of those with Flesh wounds ended up out of action. All were okay, except for Thrixxesh Xosh - who died of her wounds. I guess the Harlequin Zealot really did a number on her! Next game she will be replaced by... Thrixxesh Xoshut. Such an original name... ah well, at least I don't have to repaint the name on her base! Everyone got one experience, except maybe one of the specialists...? That may have used a tactic...? I don't remember. I'll have to look that up...

GAME TWO

Finnegan and Bruce had a got at it in the Sector Munitorum. They started a bit later - because Bruce had to make his Kill Team (he brought his own models, but doesn't have the rules or anything, so....). Despite that, they went four full rounds and finished before the Grrrlz finished at the end of three!? Finnegan does know the game really well, and Bruce picked it up really quick.



SCENARIO

The scenario they played was one from the Sector Munitorum Box - Scavenge Supplies. There were five objective markers (the piles of crates and barrels) and at the end of the turn when an unshaken model was within 1" of them the player would roll to see what it was it could be nothing, it could be a "curio" which gained the player 1 victory point immediately and then was no longer considered an objective, it could be some good supplies, which was worth 2 victory points if the objective was held at the end of the game, or it could be some REALLY good supplies, which were worth 3 victory points if the objective was held at the end of the game.

FORCES

The Inescapable Tendril

Ted Prime - Genestealer - Rending Claws - Leader - 11 Points
Blue Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - Combat - 11 Points
Yellow Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - Veteran - 11 Points
Red Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - Scout - 11 Points
Other Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - 11 Points
Other Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - 11 Points
Other Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - 11 Points
Other Ted - Genestealer - Rending Claws - 11 Points
88 points total


I.S.(A).S.S.O.S.F. (just... don't ask...)
Dark Jawbusta - Boss Nob - Power Klaw and Slugga - Leader - 14 points
Smashface - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - Veteran - 6 points
Khazgok 'eadcutta - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - Combat - 6 points
Da Bomb Speshlist - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - Demolitions - 6 points
Nork - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Chuz - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Dragdozz - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Ugbogg - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Grunge - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Ghizaggar - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Garghal - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Tugrug - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Ozgok - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Rugtug - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
Bogdor - Boy - Choppa and Slugga - 6 points
98 points total

THE GAME


DEPLOYMENT

Orks deployed - both sides had a relatively small area in which to deploy - so the Orks really had to pack it in there. 

Just after Deployment, the Genestealers got to move a two of their number (because of scouting phase strategy) and the Veteran used it's tactic to move as well. 

ROUND ONE

MOVE! All surged forward - I think only three Orks DIDN'T advance - so they could try shooting - which was useless.

At the end of the round all objective markers had models within 1" of them so they were checked. Of the two that the Orks were close to, one was worth two victory points if held at the end of the game and the other was a curio that netted the Orks one victory point right then and there. All three of the objectives the Genestealers held were worth THREE victory points if held at the end of the game (that's three sixes Bruce had to roll to get that!). 

ROUND TWO

CHARGE! The Genestealers charged a bunch of the Orks, dodging overwatch fire on the way in, then any Orks not engaged charged in against GEnestealers. It was a big bloody mess. The Orks took out one of the Genestealers, so Bruce used the Caustic Blood tactic (roll a d6 for each enemy within 1" - on a 6 they are dealt one mortal wound)... He took out THREE ORKS with that!! Yellow Ted, the Genestealer veteran, was hit and wounded by three different Orks, but always ended up with just another flesh wound! 

ROUND THREE

The Orks actually made use of one of the Special Munitorum Tactics... to move the damned Servo-Hauler out of the way! The Orks lost two more, as did the Genestealers. 

The Genestealers had to make a break test this turn (so they must have lost three in the first round...?) but easily passed (Leadership of 9 will do that... it's not really that they have great "leadership", per se - it's just that they don't care about their fellow Tyranid/genestealers dying....) 

ROUND FOUR

The Orks finished off the last of the Genestealers and that was the end of the game...


END GAME

The orks had suffered five losses. All but one turned out to be okay - or well enough to recover and fight in the next battle! Except for poor Rugtug. Rugtug died. It would be replaced by Rugtugger next game... Everyone but the Leader and the Demolitions specialist gained TWO experience points!

The Genestealers had been tables so everyone had to check for casualties. One died. It was Other Ted. Well, one of them. It will be replaced by New Ted next game. All but the Scout gained two experience points. Blue Ted and Yellow Ted gained two because of rolling Hard Knocks on the injury table - not from using specialist tactics - if they HAD, they'd be levelling up. Maybe next game.

The Tyranid force lost 1 intelligence and 1 Morale for their defeat in this game.


Well that turned out to be pretty fun. I didn't get a game in, but that's okay. Maybe I'll get one in sometime this week with Amanda or one of the kids. I'm not sure when we'll ALL be playing again (as this coming weekend looks pretty busy), but I'm very much looking forward to it.


Coming Soon To Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog:

In a couple days I should have a round-up of the games we played in October (other than the one already mentioned in the ToonCon Report and the ones played over the Long Weekend). As already mentioned, I'm not sure when we'll next play Kill Team...

Things have been going slowly on the painting front. I have a few Adeptus Mechanicus creatures on the workbench that I'm slowly working at, as well as a few Orks for Shadespire. Hopefully I'll finish ONE of those batches up sometime this week and post pictures of them.