Tactical Command
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BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts
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Author:  Honda [ Fri Feb 03, 2006 5:48 pm ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts


exaggerated details and stupid quotes from people who don't exist. Manage to keep
this section light and somewhat humorous to ensure multiple viewings by individuals
as they chuckle and unknowingly generate the red mail icon that indicates a hot
topic, thus justifying all the creative effort expended by the author>

somewhat Tau-ish if enough apostrophe's are added>


*************************************************************



Safety Unit". Pick one of the Sept worlds in the First Phase Expansion, but not
the home planet because everybody uses that one. Also bold the text for the titles
so that the more mature gamers who read the report can find the OB's without having
to resort to putting on their reading glasses to find out what was on the table>

1 x Crisis with Shas'o upgrade
1 x AMHC w Ion Cannon
1 x Stingray contingent, with Stingray upgrade
1 x Pathfinder contingent, with Pathfinder upgrade
1 x Fire Warrior cadre, with Devilfish, with Fire Warrior upgrade + Devilfish
1 x Markerlight Sentry turrets


Rock star thing as in the previous Eldar battle report. It wasn't that
funny and it was a lot of effort>

Wind Rider War Host @ 400/450
Wild Rider x 1, Farseer x 1, Vypers x 3, Jetbikes x 8

Wind Rider War Host @ 400/450
Wild Rider x 1, Farseer x 1, Vypers x 3, Jetbikes x 8

Guardian Troupe @ 200
Guardians x 6, Wave Serpents x 3

Guardian Troupe @ 200
Guardians x 6, Wave Serpents x 3

Fire Prism Troupe @ 250
Fire Prisms x 3

Engines of Vaul @ 500
Scorpions x 2

Avatar @ 0
Avatar x 1


early in the game in order to maintain the initiative. Also mention how much you
like to go into a battle not really knowing what the other person is fielding
because you think it presents more opportunities to display superior generalship
even though that goes against one of Sun Tzu's core principles which you like to
state on a regular basis because it makes you sound like you're well read on all
kinds of military matters>

repeat the same display mechanisms as in the first Eldar report because that really irritated
Tactica even though you have no idea what he was talking about. Assume that if he really wants to
see the pictures, he'll figure it out somehow>


someone is scrolling. If you don't, someone will probably accuse you of leaving out
really important information...like a whole turn>




the trap worked by engaging all the Saim Hann bike forces and one Guardian squad. Try
not to be too cocky as you tell how the FW Cadre swooped in to line up a huge number
of shots, just like you planned. Be humble and repentant as you recount how only two
kills were scored out of 36 shots. You probably won't get a lot of sympathy, so
lamenting over this rotten turn of luck will most likely be wasted breath. Missing
an opportunity to retain the initiative with the Pathfinders will eventually be
caught by the more astute readers, so bring it out up front and take your lumps.
The only saving grace is that the remainders of the Pathfinders did assassinate
one of the Seers however, they broke as shots reduced them to one DF and two infantry.
Still, the plan to keep the Avatar off the board was halfway there and in the ensuing
exchange the Stingrays were able to wipe out all the Guardians and one Falcon, causing
the unit to break>





of going first. Slightly embelishing the disappointment at not winning the roll after
three consequetive ties may draw the audience to your side, but keep in mind most
of the readers would rather see a bloody mess. So when they see the photo of the
ensuing wipe out, try to keep in mind, it's only a game. Your wife and children
still love you, regardless of your dice rolls. Also, to show that you aren't a bad
sport, make sure to display the photo that Dale liked because it quite pointedly
shows what a mess the FW cadre got into. It won't be difficult for the readers
to visualize a whooshing sound as the jetbikes surround the cadre and completely
wipe it out. It's Ok to express your disappointment in this turn of events. It was
a pretty good lure and it did work to the extent that the jetbikes did what you
wanted them to, you just weren't able to capitalize on the play>

put together a plan for making a comeback. Remind others that statistics eventually
even out or they don't, so one way or another do something because things either
get better or they don't. Describe the scene where the Hammerheads and Stingrays
break the Guardian unit, then one of the Jet bikes, thus providing a glimmer of
hope. Enjoy describing the heroics of the Pathfinder remnants tripling over to
the broken jet bike unit, preventing it from rallying and contesting one of the
objectives>





topic or decided that they'd rather check on tomorrow's weather. Figure attrition to be
around 73%. If you want to keep the remainder around long enough to add a comment or
two, then make sure to add sufficient drama to the following events>

the Tau are. On the surface, the Eldar have had a break in momentum, but are still
very dangerous. Might be a good place to interject a humorous comment about pointy
eared humnanoids running around in red spandex>

Pathfinders wreak vengance on the broken jet bike squad, wiping them out. Also comment
on the brain freeze you experienced when Dale asked a very straight forward LOF
question on the Stingrays. Express surprise and sympathy for Dale when the remnant
Guardian squad attempts to assault and gets wiped out in return, thus turning the
momentum in a more Tau-ish direction. Add some additional sympathy for the string of
failed command rolls that now plague the Eldar, causing them to fail their next three
activations. Commiserate with Dale as the Stingray squadron doubles over to the
remaining jet bike squad and causes enough casualties to break them. Try not to rub
in the fact that the failed command roll on one of the Scorpions left it out in the
open allowing the Ion Cannon Hammerheads to destroy it. Avoid sounding too gleeful
when the second Scorpion misses its shots on the Crisis cadre>




remnant doubles to secure the Tau objective and then you have to roll a +5 to
rally the hammerheads or go down 3-1. Try to stretch out how the dice seemed to
slow with time as the corners skip across the board flashing first a six, then a
five, then a six, before finally settling on a three and remaining unbroken. Try
to leave out the bitterness you felt at this last blow and how painful it felt
to see a brilliant recovery implode at the last dice roll. Still, remind people
that appearances aside, your life doesn't hang on the fickle results of a meaningless
game.




What a great game! Dale and I were definitely on an emotional rollercoaster as the
dice gods dealt out pleasure and pain with each toss. The Saim Hann are a very
slippery opponent and come to the table with some interesting challenges for the
Tau.

I must give credit to Dale for demonstrating restraint in the way he fielded his
list. Instead of taking a list that features all of the strengths of the SH, Dale
used Windriders with a +2 initiative because he believes that's what the value
ought to be.

There were a number of key events that really shaped the game:

1. The failure of the FW cadre to eliminate or break one of the jet bike units really
put the Tau behind the curve and set them up for their next turn's massacre. Certainly,
not a highlight for the Tau. Still, Dale responded appropriately and wiped them out to
a man, er Tau. It might have made for some interesting dynamics in later turns if I
had been able to take one of the bike squads out early. Shoulda, coulda, woulda.

2. The Eldar's failure in command rolls in the back half of Turn Two and Turn Three
certainly gave me the opporunity to get back into the game. Otherwise, it would have
been a complete wipe out. Also, I think the Tau's weapon range and mobility are a good
balance to the Eldar's ability to close and assault.

3. I was quite impressed with the Pathfinders sniper ability. My plan was to use them
to take out the farseers so that the Avatar could not be summoned in my midst and
cause me yet even more hand-to-hand pain. To that result, they did a very good job
as over the last two turns, the farseers and one chieftain were all taken out using the
rail rifle's range. I think this ability makes for some interesting options against
opponents that take characters. I will definitely explore this concept in the future.

4. The last roll to see if I rallied my hammerhead unit wouldn't have materially changed
the outcome of the game (would have made it 3-2 vs. 3-1), but still we were really
charged up regardless.

5. I think the list I brought gave a good accounting of itself. At the end of the game
I had my stingrays and my crisis left unscathed. Dale had one Scorpion and the Fire Prisms
left. A pretty brutal battle.

Good game Dale!
Author:  Chroma [ Fri Feb 03, 2006 6:02 pm ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts
Brilliant report!  Loved it!
Author:  jfrazell [ Fri Feb 03, 2006 6:26 pm ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts
Great report Honda.
Author:  Tactica [ Fri Feb 03, 2006 7:01 pm ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts

repeat the same display mechanisms as in the first Eldar report because that really irritated
Tactica even though you have no idea what he was talking about. Assume that if he really wants to
see the pictures, he'll figure it out somehow>


:/







:alien:



Author:  code_ronin [ Sat Feb 04, 2006 1:34 am ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts
Honda,

I loved the report and the game. Just a few points from my perspective:

1. There are no if's, and's or but's about it; once I crushed the FW Cadre (and found out it was his BTS unit), I got over-confident. No question about it. Then I started making mistakes... ?:/

2.The biggest mistake, by far, was getting cocky about being able to rally the Jetbikes at the end of turn 2. I wanted to be close to the front for the next turn, so I did not want to pull all the way back. BIIIIG mistake. THEN, to compound the error, when I didn't rally, I gave away the initiative even though I had the Guardians within shooting range to his mounted Pathfinders. If I had moved and assaulted then, I could have destroyed the Devilfish, possibly killing the two mounted Pathfinders AND been within range of the objective.

3. The Scorpions didn't fail activation, they both rolled a '1' on the first roll of their MW 2+ Pulse weapon, remember? And that was turn 2. You burned one of the Scorpions on turn 3 and I retaliated with the other against the IonHeads, which broke them. They ran to the objective, hoping to rally.

Correct me if I am wrong - and I am not trying to smack someone who is down - but I got the distinct impression that you were not considering that I could win on turn 3, despite my having more unbroken units than you. I think the critical move at the end was when the Stingrays had to double from cover to smack the last Wind Riders, yet you did not move to within 15cm of the objective to contest it. Maybe my memory is faulty and you did not have the distance. Ultimately it is that move that cost you the game, I think.

Also comment on the brain freeze you experienced when Dale asked a very straight forward LOF
question on the Stingrays.


Does that mean you think we ruled wrong on the LOF (that the terrain should have blocked LOF)? Or that your brain froze when you planned your move and then found out you were out of LOF? (The latter would explain your not moving to contest the objective and get LOF on the jetbikes.)

This game showed me about Fire Prisms. When Honda stayed hidden behind woods near his baseline, where I could not get a LOF from my current position, I marched the Fire Prisms across the table to a flanking position that was also near my objective. I figured that caused you some consternation.

By the way, I really did think I was killing all of the markerlights in the army when I charged those drones. I was kind of taken aback when the Pathfinders marked me (and I shouldn't have been surprised about that). Then when I broke them, I was smug in my assumption that I was free at last of the little red dots. I was shocked when you said that practically every unit had markerlights. That was when I wondered whether I had overextended myself attempting to accomplish the unaccomplishable.

Great game and looking forward to the next one. I know an Ork that wants another crack at me, so we'll have to see when we can do it again.

And, oh yes, the Pathfinders will definitely be high on my kill list, just for the Sniper ability.

Dale
From the back of his jetbike
Author:  HecklerMD [ Sat Feb 04, 2006 4:02 am ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts


Author:  code_ronin [ Sat Feb 04, 2006 4:48 am ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts
Oh yeah, I forgot. If you started making Sammy Hagar references again in the BatRep, I was going to make a smart-ass remarks like "I can't drive - 35cm!"  :D  :/  :80:

Okay, I'll stop now.
Author:  Honda [ Sat Feb 04, 2006 12:45 pm ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts

Correct me if I am wrong - and I am not trying to smack someone who is down - but I got the distinct impression that you were not considering that I could win on turn 3, despite my having more unbroken units than you. I think the critical move at the end was when the Stingrays had to double from cover to smack the last Wind Riders, yet you did not move to within 15cm of the objective to contest it. Maybe my memory is faulty and you did not have the distance. Ultimately it is that move that cost you the game, I think.


Nope, you've got the sequence correct and my assumptions.

Some of that was due to me losing track of the other Guardian unit which was cleverly camoflauged in the back forest (They're bright red so that's a little hard to explain as I'm not color-blind).

However, I'd also point out that your Fire Prisms had not activated at that point and I was trying to ensure that should they get up and go, I had some measure of cover to protect me or at least force you to make as tough a move as you put me through.

As it was, I had a difficult time lining up any shot, keeping my unit alive post shots, and getting close to the objective. Your placement of the bike unit was very well done.

As a historian, I probably wouldn't cut it because I rarely let the facts get in the way of a good story. ?:/


3. The Scorpions didn't fail activation, they both rolled a '1' on the first roll of their MW 2+ Pulse weapon, remember? And that was turn 2. You burned one of the Scorpions on turn 3 and I retaliated with the other against the IonHeads, which broke them. They ran to the objective, hoping to rally.


Correctomundo! I knew there were a couple of one's in there somewhere.


Correct me if I am wrong - and I am not trying to smack someone who is down - but I got the distinct impression that you were not considering that I could win on turn 3, despite my having more unbroken units than you. I think the critical move at the end was when the Stingrays had to double from cover to smack the last Wind Riders, yet you did not move to within 15cm of the objective to contest it. Maybe my memory is faulty and you did not have the distance. Ultimately it is that move that cost you the game, I think.


Oh, I'm not down. It was a very intense, enjoyable game. The double to the left objective to get the shot, definitely cost me.



Quote ?
Also comment on the brain freeze you experienced when Dale asked a very straight forward LOF
question on the Stingrays.


Does that mean you think we ruled wrong on the LOF (that the terrain should have blocked LOF)? Or that your brain froze when you planned your move and then found out you were out of LOF? (The latter would explain your not moving to contest the objective and get LOF on the jetbikes.


Not in the least. Your interpretation was correct, but in hindsight it seemed like such a simple question and all I had to say was, "Yep, you're right", but the words must of ran out my ear, because it took at least 60 seconds to regenerate them. ?:80:

In any case, it was a very clever play on your part and I would have to credit it to saving that objective for you. You still would have won (2-1), so taking the long view, the point wasn't critical, but the lesson did remind me that when you have terrain available, using can be an advantage.

:;):

@HecklerMD




Some Real Men ™ are waiting for the other Real Men ™ to build up their forces to a higher level.

However, your point is valid as the game gets "extremely" interesting when you hit 4K.

To date, we have preferred to only play with painted miniatures as the game is just developing in our area and we know that games with painted figures just show better. Our group is in a heavy promotion phase and to emphasize the "sizzle", we do everything we can to help the game show well. That means decent/nice terrain, painted figures, interrupting a dice roll to answer somebody's question regardless of age (we're seeing a lot of interest from the younger crowd), and point out that they can order their stuff (except Tau) from the store and not pay shipping. Our store also has a rule book handy that people can thumb through, so we always encourage them to check it out.

We get a lot of drive by looks from visitors, some of whom, decide to dig out their old figs or consider looking into Epic because of what they see.

We've gone from 0 players to about 10+ people at least pulling out their old stuff, if not getting in a game or ordering figures in 3.5 months. My goal is to get us to 15 - 20 "players" by this time next year.

We'll also stage some bigger games soon, but right now we have people still learning their lists, getting their armies painted up, and showing up on a regular basis.

But point taken.
Author:  code_ronin [ Sat Feb 04, 2006 3:29 pm ]
Post subject:  BATREP: Tau vs. SH Eldar, 2000 pts
Another point regarding 4K games is that we typically game at a GW shop on a weeknight, where we really don't get up to speed until 6 PM and we have to pack up (usually) by 9 PM.

Honda and i were rushed to finish turn 3 by 9:30 PM. When the GW guy sweeps the broom around your feet it usually is a subtle way to say 'last call gents'. :laugh:
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