I finally had my dice, tape measure, and miniatures all in one location! Huzzah! That means it's time for the Algoryn troops of Yadrolla to face of against the Concord attack force from Bastion. For this battle, I broke out the pieces of terrain that I have finished off and set up a 4' x 4' table. Overall this is a fairly straightforward set up, but I wanted to touch on the various elements first.
Here is an overview of the table. The left edge is side A and will be north of this battle for ease of reference. Most of the terrain on the table are basic types right out of the main rules.
Across the board are several areas of dense woodland. They block line of sight and give a cover bonus of +2 Res to units within them, which will make them good cover for the advancing armies. They do count as difficult terrain though, requiring an agility roll with a -1 penalty in order to enter or move through them.
There are also several "buildings" scattered across the board, but in this case they can not be entered and just serve to block line of sight. I'll come up with some more elaborate buildings in the future but for now these will work.
Finally, there is one special piece of terrain that takes the form of a thrasher vine. A form of sentient plant, this is a "counts as" model of a spiker shrub. This means it is a piece of light terrain that provides +1 Res for cover and does require an agility test to move through. In addition, the thrasher shrub will attack units that fail their agility test, causing d3 Sv 0 hits along with one pin.
For the scenario, I grabbed Matched Scenario 2: Reinforce the Position from the main rulebook. For initial deployment, both forces deploy half of their order dice within one move of their table edge. The remaining units can either enter on turn 1 from their own table edge or on turn 2 from either the east or west edge of the board. Units that move on in turn 1 are able to do so freely but any units that enter after that need to make a order test to enter the board.
The objective for both sides is very straight forward; break you opponent by reducing them to half strength (3 order dice for the Concord or 4 dice for the Algoryn). If neither side has done this buy the end of turn 6, a d6 is rolled. On a 4 or better, one more turn is played, otherwise the game is over.
Algoryn garrison troops from Yadrolla
The heart of the Algoryn force consists of three AI squads and one AI assault squad. These are supported by a medic team equipped with mag repeaters, and three 2-man support teams; two of them equipped with x-launchers with all the ammo types, the third a mag cannon team.
This forces gives the Algoryn some options as they advance across the board. The three AI squads can put out respectable firepower between their mag guns and micro x-launchers, while the AI assault squad can move in to threaten any units it can close with. All of the units except for the medic team are equipped with spotter drones, which should give the two x-launcher teams good coverage across the board. The mag cannon will be restricted to attacking units in direct line of sight but it should be able to make short work of any target it hits. Finally, the AI medic team is there to stay close to as many squads as it can to let them reroll a failed Res test and their mag repeaters should give them a bit of punch as well.
Concord Attack Force from Bastion
The Concord force is built around a core of three Strike squads led by a Strike command squad. These are supported by a unit of two light support drones equipped with plasma light supports and a 2-man support team equipped with an x-launcher with all the ammo types. All of the units are equipped with spotter drones while the support units are also equipped with batter drones, providing them with some mobile cover if they need it.
This is a fairly standard Concord force. The Strike teams and their command squad form the backbone of the army while the two supporting units do just that. The batter drones should help provide some cover which will let the Concord advance a little easier and all the spotter drones should be able to give the x-launcher team good coverage.
Deployment
With the forces assembled, its time to deploy. A quick roll of the dice and the Algoryn are assigned side A which is this case is the northern edge of the board. This side of the board is a bit more open than the southern side which will make things a bit trickier, plus there is also the thrasher bush in the northwest corner. Their reflex armor makes them a bit more resilient to its attention but it would still mean unwanted pins on any units moving through.
By comparison, the south side of the board has a large woodland in the center which should provide good cover for the Concord x-launcher team, though linking the spotter line of sights might be a challenge.
As the two forces detect each other, the Concord are quick to jump to action. The x-launcher advances into cover behind the large woodland while their batter drone shifts its batter field off to one side to give the nearby Strike squad some cover.
The Algoryn follow suit with their easternmost x-launcher running forward to get behind their own cover.
The AI assault squad moved next, sprinting through the open to get into cover behind one of the woodlands in the center of the board. Unfortunately they pushed themselves a little too hard and earned themselves a pin for their efforts.
The second x-launcher moved next, advancing into cover behind another woodland in the northeast corner of the board.
The Algoryn continued their offensive wave with the AI squad sprinting forward through the open area in the center of the board. They followed suit as they also strained themselves, also earning a pin.
The Concord Strike squad in the southeast corner advanced into position behind the batter field.
The last Strike squad sprinted forward to get behind cover on the southwest corner of the board, but the Concord fitness plan is as efficient as the Algoryn, earning themselves a pin.
About halfway through the turn I realized that the two forces could have brought on their reinforcements in the first turn but... oops. That's okay, they can just show up now.
Once again the Concord grab the initiative, moving on the pair of C1D3 support drones. These floated up the center of the board and opened fire on the AI squad right out in the open. As the hail of plasma flew in their direction, the AI squad dropped to the ground. Most of the squad avoids the barrage but the leader and one of the troopers aren't so lucky, being blasted by the plasma light support guns.
The Algoryn respond by lobbing a net round onto the support drones. As luck would have it the round landed dead on, with the suspensor waves disrupting them and inflicting three pins.
With a second pull for the Algoryn, the support team spotter patches through and they lob another net round at the support drones. Again, the round lands on target and inflicts four more pins, putting the support drones on the edge of breaking completely.
The Algoryn get the next pull as well and take advantage of being able to flank. Entering from the middle of the northwest edge, they moved into one of the woodlands and open fire on the Strike squad. The Concord troops go down and the incoming fire doesn't cause any casualties though they do get another pin.
The trend continues as the Algoryn activate again, this time with the assault squad running forward into the woodland they are behind. They get tangled in the brush but are still able to get into a good position to strike next turn.
Patching through nearby spotter drones, the Concord x-launcher lobs a net round at the assault squad, landing dead on and maxing out the pins at four.
Next is another Algoryn pull but luckily for the Concord, the AI mag cannon team gets lost and don't come onto the board this turn. This is followed by the last of the Concord reinforcements running onto the board as the Strike squad moves into cover behind the support drone batter shield.
The Concord keeps the pressure on with their Strike squad on the eastern edge going onto ambush behind the cover of the support team batter field.
The last two pulls are both Algoryn. First, the last AI squad moves onto the board using one of the buildings to block line of sight to the Strike squad in ambush.
The AI medic team moves next, taking up position behind the AI squad on the western edge of the board.
With all of the units moved, its time to roll for down orders. The Concord strike squad is able to shake it off but the AI squad in the center of the table remains down. Perhaps not the worst thing in the world since they are very exposed but being able to move would probably be better.
The Algoryn led things off with the AI assault squad rallying, managing to loose all of their pins which will put them into a good position... as long as they survive this round.
The Concord support drones follow their lead and rally as well, though they only drop three pins. Not ideal but they are definitely in a better position than they were in.
The AI squad on the western edge opens fire from cover on the Strike squad, open fire in response. A massive flurry of mag rounds and plasma bolts later, one squads take one pin... and that's it. Huzzah!
Next the Strike squad on the southern side by the support drones opens fire on the AI squad that is still down. Unloading a massive amount of rapid fire at their target, the AI squad weathers the attack, only gaining a pin in the process.
One of the AI support teams goes next, lobbing another net round onto the support drones. The shot misses but only deviates an inch, putting all the pins the unit had shed right back on the unit. After that the Concord command Strike squad moves over to take a supporting position behind the Strike squad on ambush on the eastern side.
The mag cannon team finally manages to find its way onto the board, moving onto the northern edge of the board. It lets loose one of it rounds but the shot just barely misses its target.
Last unit for the Concord is the x-launcher which lobs another net round at the recently recovered assault squad. Keeping up the trend, the round strikes home, putting three pins on them again.
Next the second AI x-launcher team fires a net round at the support drones to try to break them but no such luck. The round misses and deviates enough to have no effect at all. This is followed by the medic team advancing though they don't actually move (don't want them to get stuck down) while the AI team behind the building on the east go into ambush.
To wrap up the turn, the AI squad that was stuck down manage to pull themselves together. Meanwhile, the Concord Strike squad that was on ambush gives up its die while the AI team that just went onto ambush keep theirs.
And that marks the halfway point! Neither side has managed to gain the upper hand though the Algoryn have those support drones on the ropes with all those pins. Seems like a good place to call things for now but the rest of the report is coming soon. Until next time...
By comparison, the south side of the board has a large woodland in the center which should provide good cover for the Concord x-launcher team, though linking the spotter line of sights might be a challenge.
Turn One
As the two forces detect each other, the Concord are quick to jump to action. The x-launcher advances into cover behind the large woodland while their batter drone shifts its batter field off to one side to give the nearby Strike squad some cover.
The Algoryn follow suit with their easternmost x-launcher running forward to get behind their own cover.
The AI assault squad moved next, sprinting through the open to get into cover behind one of the woodlands in the center of the board. Unfortunately they pushed themselves a little too hard and earned themselves a pin for their efforts.
The second x-launcher moved next, advancing into cover behind another woodland in the northeast corner of the board.
The Algoryn continued their offensive wave with the AI squad sprinting forward through the open area in the center of the board. They followed suit as they also strained themselves, also earning a pin.
The Concord Strike squad in the southeast corner advanced into position behind the batter field.
The last Strike squad sprinted forward to get behind cover on the southwest corner of the board, but the Concord fitness plan is as efficient as the Algoryn, earning themselves a pin.
About halfway through the turn I realized that the two forces could have brought on their reinforcements in the first turn but... oops. That's okay, they can just show up now.
Turn Two
Once again the Concord grab the initiative, moving on the pair of C1D3 support drones. These floated up the center of the board and opened fire on the AI squad right out in the open. As the hail of plasma flew in their direction, the AI squad dropped to the ground. Most of the squad avoids the barrage but the leader and one of the troopers aren't so lucky, being blasted by the plasma light support guns.
The Algoryn respond by lobbing a net round onto the support drones. As luck would have it the round landed dead on, with the suspensor waves disrupting them and inflicting three pins.
With a second pull for the Algoryn, the support team spotter patches through and they lob another net round at the support drones. Again, the round lands on target and inflicts four more pins, putting the support drones on the edge of breaking completely.
The Algoryn get the next pull as well and take advantage of being able to flank. Entering from the middle of the northwest edge, they moved into one of the woodlands and open fire on the Strike squad. The Concord troops go down and the incoming fire doesn't cause any casualties though they do get another pin.
The trend continues as the Algoryn activate again, this time with the assault squad running forward into the woodland they are behind. They get tangled in the brush but are still able to get into a good position to strike next turn.
Patching through nearby spotter drones, the Concord x-launcher lobs a net round at the assault squad, landing dead on and maxing out the pins at four.
Next is another Algoryn pull but luckily for the Concord, the AI mag cannon team gets lost and don't come onto the board this turn. This is followed by the last of the Concord reinforcements running onto the board as the Strike squad moves into cover behind the support drone batter shield.
The Concord keeps the pressure on with their Strike squad on the eastern edge going onto ambush behind the cover of the support team batter field.
The last two pulls are both Algoryn. First, the last AI squad moves onto the board using one of the buildings to block line of sight to the Strike squad in ambush.
The AI medic team moves next, taking up position behind the AI squad on the western edge of the board.
With all of the units moved, its time to roll for down orders. The Concord strike squad is able to shake it off but the AI squad in the center of the table remains down. Perhaps not the worst thing in the world since they are very exposed but being able to move would probably be better.
Turn Three
The Algoryn led things off with the AI assault squad rallying, managing to loose all of their pins which will put them into a good position... as long as they survive this round.
The Concord support drones follow their lead and rally as well, though they only drop three pins. Not ideal but they are definitely in a better position than they were in.
The AI squad on the western edge opens fire from cover on the Strike squad, open fire in response. A massive flurry of mag rounds and plasma bolts later, one squads take one pin... and that's it. Huzzah!
Next the Strike squad on the southern side by the support drones opens fire on the AI squad that is still down. Unloading a massive amount of rapid fire at their target, the AI squad weathers the attack, only gaining a pin in the process.
One of the AI support teams goes next, lobbing another net round onto the support drones. The shot misses but only deviates an inch, putting all the pins the unit had shed right back on the unit. After that the Concord command Strike squad moves over to take a supporting position behind the Strike squad on ambush on the eastern side.
The mag cannon team finally manages to find its way onto the board, moving onto the northern edge of the board. It lets loose one of it rounds but the shot just barely misses its target.
Last unit for the Concord is the x-launcher which lobs another net round at the recently recovered assault squad. Keeping up the trend, the round strikes home, putting three pins on them again.
Next the second AI x-launcher team fires a net round at the support drones to try to break them but no such luck. The round misses and deviates enough to have no effect at all. This is followed by the medic team advancing though they don't actually move (don't want them to get stuck down) while the AI team behind the building on the east go into ambush.
To wrap up the turn, the AI squad that was stuck down manage to pull themselves together. Meanwhile, the Concord Strike squad that was on ambush gives up its die while the AI team that just went onto ambush keep theirs.
And that marks the halfway point! Neither side has managed to gain the upper hand though the Algoryn have those support drones on the ropes with all those pins. Seems like a good place to call things for now but the rest of the report is coming soon. Until next time...
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