Warhammer 40,000 Battle Report #54 – Blood Angels vs Necrons

The battlefields of Arenam ring once more with the sounds of gunfire, as the Necrons and the Blood Angels continue the campaign to control the ancient secrets of this long-lost planet. Today the battle spills into the cities, as the ancient Necrons seek out their unfathomable goals, leading them directly into the path of the Blood Angels.

Nemesor Sartokh sighed impatiently as he watched his Warriors scrabbling from the ruined sewers of the human world. A thousand times they had descended, seeking the entrance to an ancient tomb that had been lost millions of years before. He couldn’t be sure if he was even on the right planet, which annoyed him immensely. Still, he would carry out the work of The Painter, regardless of where it carried him.

In the distance he could hear primitive engines roaring as they carried the defenders of humanity into battle. Sartokh sighed again, knowing that the humans would seek to stop his advance. They would be forced to pay for their insolence.

“We march against them,” he said to the Immortals that stood around him. Their metallic bodies hissed and clicked as they stood at attention in response.

“We will find their leader, and I will slay him.”

The Armies

Knights of Baal

Blood Angels – 2,000

Combined Arms Detachment

HQ

Sanguinary Priest: WARLORD, Bolt Pistol

ELITES

Sternguard Veterans: five additional Veterans

TROOPS

Tactical Squad: one additional Space Marine, Plasma Gun, Razorback transport with Lascannon   and Twin Plasma Guns

Tactical Squad: Plasma Gun, Razorback transport with Lascannon and Twin Plasma Guns

FAST ATTACK

Bike Squad: four additional Bikes; Veteran Sergeant with Power Maul, 2x Grav-Guns

HEAVY SUPPORT

Vindicator: Overcharged Engines, Siege Shield

Lucifer Armored Task Force

Techmarine

Baal Predator: Twin Assault Cannons, Heavy Bolter Sponsons

Baal Predator: Twin Assault Cannons, Heavy Bolter Sponsons

Baal Predator: Twin Assault Cannons, Heavy Bolter Sponsons

Predator: Twin Lascannons, Lascannon Sponsons

Predator: Twin Lascannons, Lascannon Sponsons

Land Raider Crusader: Multi-Melta

Dagon Dynasty

Necrons – 2,000

Decurion Detachment

Reclamation Legion

Overlord: WARLORD; Warscythe, Phase Shifter

Immortals: five additional Immortals; Gauss Blasters

Immortals: five additional Immortals; Gauss Blasters

Necron Warriors: one additional Warrior

Necron Warriors

Necron Warriors

Tomb Blades: six additional Tomb Blades; Shieldvanes, Nebuloscopes

Monolith

Canoptek Harvest

Canoptek Spyder

Canoptek Wraiths: Whip Coils

Canoptek Scarab Swarms: four additional Scarab Swarms

Judicator Battalion

Triarch Stalker: Twin Heavy Gauss Cannons

Triarch Praetorians: Rods of Covenant

Triarch Praetorians: Rods of Covenant

After Action Review

Sartokh powered forward, gauss fire whipping around him and slamming home in the final knot of Imperial warriors. The Space Marines crumpled against the onslaught, one after another, until eventually only their warlord and a single, half-robotic warrior remained. This monstrosity stepped forward and flexed arms that extended from his back in Sartokh’s direction, but a moment later he fell under the deluge of crackling anti-gravity. Sartokh kicked him aside and lunged in to face their leader.

“Your army is slain,” he rasped, warscythe trailing fire as it sought to meet the crimson warrior’s chest. “You are defeated, utterly. Know this before I end you.”

“Sanguinius protects,” the enemy breathed, sweat pouring down his brow as his chainsword worked to and fro. The blade sparked against Sartokh’s body, and the enemy continued to dance outside the reach of his ponderous scythe. The Immortals made to step forward, but Sartokh motioned them away with an annoyed gesture.

The warrior swung again, and Sartokh caught the blade in his empty palm. Teeth screamed for a moment before exploding, and the blade fell to pieces. Before the warrior could move away, Sartokh grasped him by the arm, jerking him closer.

“You have fought honorably, foe,” he crowed. “Thus, I give you an honorable death.”

The Blood Angel roared his defiance a moment before the scythe opened his chest. The priest turned to ash, drifting away on the wind as his armor clattered to the ground.

While the Blood Angels put up an excellent show of cutting into the Necrons in the later turns of the game, that second turn of Necron shooting was absolutely BRUTAL. I was moving the second Immortal squad into position to do some damage in future turns; I had absolutely no plans of them completely finishing a Baal Predator with that single round of a dozen dice. Likewise, I didn’t expect the Wraiths to make their charge, or to have a single Hull Point left to remove from the Land Raider. Everything worked perfectly for me, and my Reanimation Protocols were either on point or above average the entire game. This coupled to give the Blood Angels little opportunity to bring the game back. They lost all of their mobility as the Necrons poured in from every direction, meaning they were poorly situated to take Objectives in the later game. Even the sewer tunnels were little use to them, since they were using so much armor and had no way to push through for those chances at maneuver.

That said, I think Eric played a good first game for the channel. He made some good assaults and chose targets wisely for shooting for most of the game, and in the end it meant he put a sizable dent in my numbers. He simply couldn’t find a way to recover from that horrendous damage in turn two.

I’m still on the fence about the Monolith; I really feel like the Eternity Gate has been weakened to the point where it is of very limited use. I would love to see it return to my armies on a regular basis, but for now I imagine the Monoliths will mostly make their appearance when we stop to play Apocalypse a few times each year.

Stay tuned; there are plenty more battles for Arenam coming in the near future.