Monday 16 August 2010

Wound allocation:bols up?

7 comments
I've just been reading an article on bols about wound allocation. This seems to be in the same vein as the authors previous article about true line of sight. I'm not quite sure what to make of these articles. It seems like they are purposefully trying to stir up responses from the community.
Having looked at the example he gives he is an extremely lucky player. Every plasma gun shot hits and wounds? Awesome. 6 wounds from lssguns? Amazing. I wouldn't expect that many from a full squad of 10 on first rank, second rank order, Rapid fire range. The space marines with the lasgun wounds are likely to to lose 2 of their number. Moving on.
Considering 5th edition has been out a while now. I'm at a loss as to how this is plaguing the game.
However, lets have a look at the authors complaints about the system, as well as some of the commenters complaints.
- Squad can potentially survive by taking more incoming fire. 
- 'wasted' wounds. Wounds that get allocated to models that have already recieved a killing wound. 
- multi wound units with unique wargear.
I think this covers the vast majority of peoples issues. So what would be the best way round this? There is no real one solution that can cover every issue by itself. So in order to satisfy the complaints I prepose the following: 
Wounds are allocated in order of increasing AP, starting at ignores armour then 1, finishing at -. 
That deals with the first issue. I doubt very much that the bols author will be complaing about his missed lasgun wounds.
If a model has more then 1 wound it must be allocated the number of wounds equal to its wounds characteristic before wounds can be allocated to the next model. For example, a 5 man space marine squad (1 wound each) with attached chaplain (2 wounds). Takes 3 AP 2 wounds and 6 AP 5 wounds. The space marine player may elect to allocate the 3 AP 2 wounds to the normal marines, 2 AP 5 wounds to the two remaining, as yet unwounded marines. Then 2 AP 5 wounds must be allocated to the chaplain before cycling the 2 remaining wounds back round. 
This helps rectify the second point about wasted wounds. As each model has to take their fill of wounds rather then 1 each. However in order to keep things fair:
When a unit with multi wound models takes wounds from a weapon that causes instant death, each model can only be allocated 1 instant death wound before wounds are allocated to the next model. Instant death wounds are to be applied to unwounded models if possible. For example, a unit of 6 ork nobz, T4 2 wounds, has one model previously wounded. The Orks take 3 wounds from missile launchers, 2 AP 2 wounds and 7 AP 5 wounds. The AP 2 has to be applied to the wounded Ork. The missile launchers have to be applied to un wounded Orks where possible. 4 of the AP 5 shots will be needed to fill out the wounds on the Orks that still need to be allocated wounds (to meet their wounds characteristic) before the final 3 AP 5 wounds can be allocated in the second cycle of wound allocations. Note, in the event of a unit containing a model of 2+ wounds when the majority of the squad has one wound, or an independent/upgrade character is in the unit. There is no requirement for the model or character, with two wounds to be allocated the instant death shot. This is to prevent unscrupulous players that may take advantage of wound allocation rules from 'sniping' characters in squads with missile launchers.
This should hopefully solve the major issues that have cropped up on wound allocation. As you can see it is an extremely simple system that should take virtually no time during gaming. 

Either that, or don't bother firing the lasguns as well.

Friday 13 August 2010

Battle report: Tau Vs Blood angels

5 comments
I finally got the opportunity to head to my local GW last night for a quick game of 40K. I ended up arriving just after 20:00 meaning there was only one table left and one opponent who wasn’t matched up to anyone. This was the same Blood Angels player I played last time. He was determined to get me back for the last time we played, game ended in a draw but was heavily one sided in my favour an extra turn would have seen is army wiped out.

Note, this post my contain a few rants about my opponents conduct throughout the game. You’ll understand why as you read it.

My army list was written towards 1500 points (actually 1511 as written), Given that my opponent wanted to play 2000 points, I upped my list to just over 1900 by adding some rail rifles to the pathfinders and putting in a squad of basic XV9 battlesuits plus 4 shield drones. This isn’t really fluffy in a Farsight list but what the hey. So it’s my 1900 points Vs his 2000.

My List:

Farsight
Bodyguard: 3x XV8, 3xPlasma, 3x targeting array, HW Drone controller 2x shield drones

3 x XV8, 3x TL missile pods, 3x Burst cannons, Team leader with HW Drone controller 2x Gun drones

7 firewarriors, Shas’ui (Squad x 3)

5 pathfinders, rail rifle (squad x 2)
Devilfish (flechettes, Dis pod)

3x XV9 (3 x DC, 4 x shield drone)

2x Broadside, team leader, 2 x plasma, 2 x multitracker, HWDC 2 x shield drones.

Hammerhead, Railgun, burst cannons, MT, DP, Flechette

His List:

(From memory)
Dante
Sanguinor

6x Sanguinary guard, banner, melta pistols (squad x2)
Priest with jump pack

Death company x10, 2x power weapons 2x thunder hammers.

Baal Predator TLAC, heavy bolter sponsons

Landraider

Deployment and Mission:

We rolled for deployment and mission type. I won the roll for deployment; mission was spearhead one objective in each deployment zone.

Rant 1: During deployment I was getting my army out of my case, despite the fact that I got first turn he wanted to deploy first (getting first turn) while I placed my army. He got annoyed when I said no.

Rant 2: At my local GW the standard table size is 4’x4’, he started arguing that this enabled him to deploy within 6” of the centre rather then 12” in the rulebook. Obviously being as this meant he would be able to get into combat much quicker I refused. Obvious advantage to his army. To end the argument after about 5 minutes I relented and let him deploy 9” from the centre.

Rant 3: Before deploying his army he rolled for and got steal the initiative. I couldn’t even be bothered to argue at this point. Told him it wouldn’t matter because I was going to table him anyway :-P.

Shockingly, he deployed as close to as feasibly possible.

Turn 1:

The blood angels took to the skies and landed 12” closer to me. The landraider started moving between two buildings. All the sanguinary guard were within 12” of the priest for the feel no pain. The baal predator advanced slowly peppering my normal battlesuits with assault cannon and heavy bolter fire killing the two drones and causing a wound on one of the battlesuits. The storm bolter on the libby dreadnought killed two pathfinders in one squad. The guard and associated characters ran forward. The landraider shot at my hammerhead but failed to penetrate.

I moved the devilfish to block off his landraiders advance between two buildings, mwhahaha. This would hopefully hold up his death company for a couple of turns allowing me to deal with his army in two parts. Farsight and friends jumped out from behind the building with the intention of hitting Dante and co with plasma death.
My return firing wasn’t as effective as I would have liked. The 2+ save combined with the priests feel no pain mean that the sanguinary guard and Dante survived 12 wounds from the XV9s burst cannons, the firewarriors shooting at them (I left two units in reserve), two shots from the rail rifles. Gun drones, burst cannons. All without taking taking a single casualty. Farsight and friends opened up killing 3 of the sanguinary guard with their plasma rifles, broadsides followed up by taking out the last two guard and putting a wound on Dante. My deathrains (kinda) shot at the dreadnought shaking it.

Rant 4: After taking 3 wounds on the remaining 3 models in Dantes squad my opponent went to put 2 wounds on Dante without taking a wound on one of the guard. I pointed out that he had to take a wound on each model before putting a second wound on Dante. After I explained it to him calmly, then pointed out the rule in the rulebook, then got the store manager to reiterated it to him. He spent a few minutes complaining about it and saying how he has always played it like that before finally grumbling and accepting it.

Turn 2 Onwards:
The blood angels moved onwards towards my lines taking heavy casualties from my plasma rifles. The other squad of sanguinary guard and the sanguinor died quickly enough. Dante fell to mass pulse rifle fire. However his vehicles survived lots of penetrating hits with nothing more then being stunned. 


Eventually the Librarian dreadnought took out the broadsides hiding in the building, but was taken out by a charge by farsight. The death company carried on eating through my units, which I fed to them to prevent them hitting my main line at the same time as the rest of his army. 


I was able to prevent his characters from charging into farsights unit by blocking his move with a squad of firewarriors. They were killed by the sanguinor though. Farsight managed to take out the sanguinor with plasma rifle fire, while dante was taken out by another squad of firewarriors rapid firing at him. 


On the last turn of the game all my opponent had left was his landraider, which blasted my squad of firewarriors holding my objective. Who failed all their cover saves, they did however roll high enough to fail their morale check and run far enough to fall back of the table. So at least I was rolling about average :-P. With my last scoring squad gone, I had to take out His landraider to table him and win the game with no broadsides and no fusion blasters....


Farsight leaped onto the building, the strange looking dreadnought was discarding the remains of his Broadside like a kid throwing away an unwanted toy. The dreadnought looked at Farsight, a strange energy playing across its weapons. It charged forward with surprising speed for such a clumsy looking Gue'la machine. Farsight was ready for it though. With a quick coded command to one of his guards, a shield drone flew forward to meet the dreadnoughts heavy combat fist. There was a burst of energy as the two energy fields collided the feedback wrecked the drone but was enough to deflect the dreadnoughts blow. Farsight ignited his thrusters in a controlled burst landing his suit expertly on top of the dreadnoughts sarcophagus. With two quick blows he disarmed the dreadnought the dawnblade cutting effortlessly through the machines thick armour a third blow went straight down into the machines main body killing the occupant. Farsight jumped from the top of the falling machine, a short burst from his suits jetpack bringing him to the ground the recoil compensator's in his legs absorbing the impact without difficultly. On his left his suits sensors detected a squad of black armoured marines butchering a squad of firewarriors, the plasma rifle on his shoulder combined with those of his squad making short work of them.
He looked ahead, sprinting towards the last of the Gue'la forces. The behemoth bearing down on the remains of his forces, a landraider. Farsight jinked to the side as the sponson mounted lascannons opened fire, the heavy beams of coherent light missing him by mere inches the heat scorching the paint from his armour. Feeding power to his jetpack he launched himself into the air, the landraiders heavy bolter stitching a line through the air behind him. Farsight landed behind the landraider swinging the dawnblade to the hilt in the machines power plant his suits servo motors straining, Farsight started to draw the blade down into the landraiders vital parts. The landraider exploded, the force blowing Farsight back 15 meters. 
Picking himself up from the ground, he scanned the surroundings no more Gue'la forces were nearby. The day belonged to the Tau.