Dark Eldar vs DA: 2000 points

Battle Report #12 2000 points: Dark Angles vs. DE

We decided to try out our lists for an upcoming campaign. My opponent was using his DA for the second time since the new codex came out and wanted to try a super elite list. I don’t have all the names and rules down, but basically he had three big groups of termies, a squad with Azrael, termies with Belial with lots of chain fists, havoc missle launchers, power claws etc. He had two squads of bikes with homing beacons and a drop pod. I am unsure about the new codex, but I think the ravenwing bikers are troops and the deathwing termies fast attack? Everything he had was kitted out to the max.

The armies:

DE

HQ
Duke Sliscus
Haemonculus: LG
Haemonculus: LG

Troops
9 Wyches: RF in a Raider with DL, NS, Haemonculus starts here
9 Wyches: RF in a Raider with DL, NS, Haemonculus starts here
16 Warriors: SC, Duke starts here
5 Wracks, LG in a Venom with SC X 2
5 Wyches, Venom with SC X2

Elites
4 Incubi, SC X 2, NS


Fast
6 Reavers with 2 HL
6 Reavers with 2 HL


Heavy
Ravager NS
Ravager NS
Razorwing, 2 DC, FF, NS

DA

HQ
Azreal
Belliel
Some kind of chaplain or something that gave FNP etc

Troops
Marines in a drop pod (one of the HQs and the chaplain dude here)
Ravenwing bike squad
Ravenwing bike squad

Elite
7 Termies

Fast
6 Deathwing termies
6 Deathwing termies


Mission: #1: rolled for 5 objectives
Deployment: Hammer and Anvil
Special Issues: None
Warlord Traits: I don’t remember what he got, I got -1 to his reserve rolls which didn’t matter.
Terrain: See diagram and picture, I couldn’t put the lava rivers on the diagram so use your imagination.
Ability rolls: I rolled for combat drugs and got +1 to strength.
Night Fighting: we forgot

Here is the board, though it is after the game and all the DA have been packed up and all my DE are still out but it gives an idea of the layout. Sorry, I forgot to take pics while the game was actually going on.




Deployment: I won the roll off. I put my warriors behind the defense line with the Duke. I then put the venom with the Incubi there with them. The raiders, ravagers and venoms I split between the sides.

I realized after I finished this that I did not spread out to cover all the area on my side so he couldn’t deepstrike well. In fact I forgot it for the first turn as well.

He then put his bikes on either side of the field to try and drive up the field to get precision deep strike going and put one squad of termies on the board. We did not find anything in the rules that exempted him from the 50% only, in reserves.

He made his scout moves, redeploying 6 inches up the field.

He failed to steal the initiative.




Turn 1 Bloody Claw:
I moved everything around to get even shots on the two bike squads. The ravager on the right took out two bikes and then two venoms killed the other two. On the left, the ravager killed on, the raider killed one a venom killed one and the quad gun took a wound off the sergeant. Then I remembered the warrior with the splinter cannon and he killed the sergeant.



Turn 1 DA:
He moved his Termies forward and tried to deepstrike one of his units behind my warriors, but scattered off the board and misshaped back into ongoing reserves. In the shooting phase he was just a couple of inches out of range.




Turn 2 Bloody Claw:

The Razorwing did not come in but both groups of reavers did. I was not sure where he would come in, so kept my forces divided between the sides, while putting as much firepower as I could on his termies. I unloaded my 5 wyches, contemplating assaulting. The venom with the incubi came back for the Duke who I had forgotten to load up on it.

In the shooting phase the reavers turboboosted getting 2 wounds but he made both saves. Then the ravagers and raiders managed to kill 3. After that he just couldn’t survive all the splinter shots from the venoms and the SC from the one warrior and the other four went down.

I forgot to turbo boost my other reavers for the jink, but oh well.



Turn 2: DA

In the movement phase he dropped a squad between my two venoms, one behind my warriors and the drop pod over near my reavers.

In the shooting phase did a ton of shooting and he blew up my ravager and wrecked my venom with the wracks. He took a hull point off my venom with the wyches with a glance. He killed two of my reavers with bolter fire, but I managed several jink saves on them. His drop pod bolter missed. He could not assault due to deep strike.




Turn 3 Bloody Claw:
I realized here that I forgot to have the raider on the map so it is in it’s position now. It really was on the field before  The 4 reavers moved away from the squad of very powerful characters and turbo boosted in the shooting phase. The 5 wyche squad got back in their venom and moved out towards the objectives on his now unguarded side of the field, as did the raider on the left. The 6 reavers moved in behind the venom to get shots at his squad and everything else repositioned. The wracks moved in to get into combat. The duke and the incubi jumped out and got ready to charge before the venom moved away.

Shooting: The wracks killed two termies with an AP 1 liquifier gun shot. The razorwing wiffed but the two raiders and one ravager managed another couple of kills and after the venom there were only two standing. In the middle of the defense line his other squad of termies got hit with a ravager’s 3 DLs killing one, a raider that wiffed and then the quad gun killed one. Then the 16 warriors in rapid fire range with 3+ poison from the duke killed all but three. The duke then hit with his blast pistol, but he made the invulnerable save.

In the assault the Wracks made it in without losing anything to over watch. Then with their extra attack on the assault made short work of the Sergeant and regular termies, receiving no wounds from the sergeant who was at the same initiative.

At that point, before the incubi and duke took their first blows he conceded.





I learned that I need to be careful about deep striking units. Also, the wracks did well on the charge and massed poison shots are a great thing. I liked having so many troops for an objective match. I will also move my NS from my raiders to my ravagers. Oh, and don’t forget to boost reavers for their save.

He made a mistake putting his bikes out front to try and get the deep strike in, thinking that his saves would keep them safe. And the long board didn’t help him at all, but is great for DE with our fast vehicles and long range.

Excellent report and I love your table. Great result for the Bloody Claw.

Great game Nappen! The lava table is absolutely stunning!

If I remember right Deathwing terminators are Elite and Ravenwing are fast attack. However taking Azreal makes them both troops, and taking Belliel makes terminators troops as well.

Also one question on The Bloody Claws turn two which table edge did the reavers come in from?

Good to see the new Dark Angel codex not causing us any trouble.

Thanks for sharing the pain (added the report to the sticky).

They came in on my edge the far right. Arrow did a funky thing, and I was tired and missed it. one came in near the screen top its full distance and then turboboosted full distance. The one near the bottom just came in and sat

The other thing that I think really came into play in this game was the length of the table. His bikes couldn't get to me in time and anything foot slogging was just going to get peppered across the board.

Nappen wrote:

The other thing that I think really came into play in this game was the length of the table. His bikes couldn't get to me in time and anything foot slogging was just going to get peppered across the board.

I noticed that too in my game against Ravenwing, hammer and anvil is a real advantage for us.