And now the conclusion of the Reinforce the Position battle report. At the end of turn three, neither side had managed to gain the upper hand. The AI assault squad had taken a lot of pins from a net round early in the game but managed to quickly shrug them off, only to be hit with another net round. The Algoryn were giving as good as they were getting though, lobbing multiple net rounds at the Concord support drones, rendering them virtually useless. Which side will reign supreme? Let's get back to the game and find out.
Turn Four
This turn opened with the AI assault squad trying to take advantage of their position to charge the nearby Strike squad. Unfortunately they couldn't manage to pass their command check and were forced to go down instead.
The nearby AI squad showed them how it was done, charging into assault against the same Strike squad. The Concord troops tried to ready themselves against their opponents only to fail their reaction miserably. This combined with the incoming fire from the Algoryn left the Concord troops seriously rattled and made them useless in the assault. Loosing one of their own, things looked grim for the Concord soldiers but somehow they managed to keep it together long enough to weather a follow up assault and even take down the micro x trooper in the AI squad.
After the fight, both squads consolidated back towards cover to try to get into a better position for the next turn.
The AI squad in the center of the board went next but they were still too rattled by the previous attacks, going down as they failed their command check to run. The Algoryn streak continued though with one of the x-launchers firing. They dropped another net round on the support drones and this time it was too much for them to process. The drones broke and fled the table, leaving one of the Strike squads standing in the middle of the board with no batter field.
Hoping to return the favor, the Concord x-launcher lobbed its own net round at the AI assault squad, adding another single pin to the unit trapped in the woodland.
The second AI support team fired next, this time using a conventional x-launcher round against the severely shaken Strike squad on the western side of the board. Unlike all the net rounds, this one went wide and exploded harmlessly in front of the Strike troopers.
The Strike squad in open middle of the board braced themselves and opened fire on the assault squad. Several shots hit home but bounced off the reflex armor with no effect.
The Strike command squad ordered the nearby Strike squad forward and the two units ran into the woodlands by the AI squad laying in ambush. Most of the AI troops couldn't get a line of sight though so they held onto the ambush order a bit longer.
The mag cannon team felt differently, letting loose a round that blasted a hole right through one of the Strike troopers.
The turn ended with the western Strike squad rallying to shed a majority of their pins and the AI medic team moving up to support the AI squad in the nearby woodlands. Wrapping things up, the AI squad on ambush return their die to the bag, and the down AI squad and assault squads both pass the test to return their order dice as well.
Concord started this turn with the deafening sound of silence as their x-launcher team tried to fire a dude round. Ironically enough the Algoryn didn't fare any better as their assault team, now free of pins, got too tangled in the woodland to move at all.
The western AI squad went next, opening fire on the nearby Strike squad who took the opportunity to fire back. A flurry of rounds later and both units had lost a trooper to their opponents fusillade.
The Strike squad in the center of the field advanced brave as brass and fired on the batter AI squad that had run to get into cover. They didn't have line of sight to the whole unit but they were able to get them down to a sole survivor who bravely stood his ground.
The eastern Strike squad went next, advancing out of the woodland to open fire on the AI squad. Most of the rounds bounced off harmlessly but one of them did strike home, killing the AI squad leader.
Undaunted, the AI squad charged the Strike squad, taking down the Concord squad leader in turn as they charged forward. Neither side could get an upper hand in the ensuing melee and both squads fell back to regroup.
One of the AI support teams tried to follow up against the same Concord squad, dropping a standard round right on top of them. The Strike troopers were to well dug in though and easily weathered the blast.
The Strike command squad opened fire on the AI squad but their plasma bolts bounced off the Algoryn reflex armor, having little effect.
The rest of the turn was the Algoryn troops repositioning and readying themselves for the final turn. The medic team held their position, the mag cannon support team went into ambush, and other support team moved forward into the woodland to try to get a line of sight.
Going into potentially the last turn, things were still fairly balanced though casualties were starting to pile up on both side.
This turn a miracle happened; the AI assault squad actually did something! Charging forward from the mass of brambles they had been tied up in, the assault squad slammed into the Stike squad in the center of the field. The rejoicing was short lived as two of their number were gunned down by the Strike troopers but the caused a casualty themselves so all wasn't lost.
With their d-spinners set for plasma grenades, the three remaining assault troopers tore into the Strike troopers... and took only took out one of them while two of the assault troopers fell. The squad leader was undaunted though and held his ground!
The Concord troops followed up their advantage and dog piled onto the assault leader, taking him down though another of their numbers fell in the melee. Overall not the most impressive showing but it was definitely better than being stuck in the woods.
The remnants of the Concord squad fell back into the nearby woodland to try to get some cover from the other AI squads that hadn't activated yet.
The Concord support team went next and landed a net round right on top of the closest AI squad. This proved to be too much for them and they quickly ran from the field.
The western AI squad opened fire on the same Concord team as last turn but this time the Strike were caught by surprise with one of their numbers falling to the incoming mag rounds.
Looking to press their advantage on the shaken Concord squads, one of the AI support teams launched a net round to try to break them. The round went wide, just falling short of hitting the nearby Strike command squad.
The second support team fared better. Their round deviated but still managed to hit their target, racking up a number of pins on the command squad.
The central Strike squad tried to take a shot at the closest AI squad but it the strain was too much, forcing them down for the turn.
Meanwhile, the AI medic team advanced to the edge of the woodland and opened fire on the western Strike squad. Their tender ministrations dropped another C3 trooper and sent the last one running for the hills.
The eastern Strike squad opened fire on the lone AI trooper hiding behind the building but weren't able to get any of their shots to connect. He responded by firing back but wasn't able to pierce their hyper light armor.
And with that... the game was over. The die roll for an extra turn came up with a 1, definitively drawing the action to a close but the question remains... which side won? Since neither side was broken, the point values of the units that were removed are used to determine the winner. On the Concord side of the table, the C3D1 light support drone unit was taken out along with one of the Strike squads, coming up with a grand total of 273 points. On the Algoryn side, they lost the AI assault squad and one AI squad for a total of 267 points meaning they just barely squeak by with a win.
I believe this was the first time that I tried fielding such well rounded lists and it was interesting to see how the pieces all fit together. The support units really do help round out the forces and can be a valuable asset to have though in the future I want to try running them differently.
I think it would be better to split up the C3D1 drones and give them each a batter drone. This would let them move around the battlefield independently and provide cover for other units as they advance. That said I think I would leave the spotter drones off of them. Since I see them a supporting tactical units which should already have spotters, it seems a bit to redundant and kind of a points sink to put them on the support drones as well.
Meanwhile, I think I'll skip the batter drone for the support squad with an x-launcher. With overhead spotter patching, the support team will probably be out of line of sight so the points for a batter drone would probably be better spent elsewhere.
On the Algoryn side of things, I want to get some more AI assault troopers so I can field a larger squad. I'll admit that they really haven't been very effective for me but hopefully with another couple of bodies in there it will help. I really like the concept behind them so it would be great to have them be a viable choice for an army.
The other thing I might do is drop the medic team. I've never had them in position to use them as medics though having a small two man team with mag guns isn't a bad thing. Still I can't help but wonder if perhaps there might be a better use for the points.
Something that applies for both factions is the various special ammunition types. This game I primarily used net ammo to pile on the pins. I looked at the other kinds and tried to look for situations that they would be helpful but I just wasn't seeing anything. I might try dropping the other types for now and then expand to include more as I identify situations that they could be useful. This would probably be easier from a rules point of view as well as I would only have to remember one type of speical muntion instead of five.
The same applies for the special munitions for the micro-x and slingnet launchers. I genuinely forgot about overload and slingnet munitions so I might drop down to one of them for now so that using it becomes second nature. Once this happens, I can look at adding or swapping in the other type as needed. It will also free up some more points and give me a bit more to play with.
Of course none of these things are really mistakes, but there was a doozy that I was making; spotter OH patching can only be done through one spotter drone. I was thinking that you could patch through multiple drones which is the main reason there was some much overhead fire in the first couple of turns. Whoopsy! Let's count that as a lesson learned, shall we?
So now the question is what's next? I'm thinking I might break out the Ghar and give them a test drive; see how the distort die and all their other rules change the game. That said, it also might be good to do another game or two with the more normal armies to make sure some of these rules are second nature first. I also have a friend that has said he would be interested in a demo so I need to figure out when we can fit that it as well; it's always better to have another opponent to play against instead of just pushing around the models solo. There is also at least one gaming store locally that I want to check out, plus another in New Hampshire that I know hosts Antares games so there are definietly some options out there. Until next time...
Turn Five
Concord started this turn with the deafening sound of silence as their x-launcher team tried to fire a dude round. Ironically enough the Algoryn didn't fare any better as their assault team, now free of pins, got too tangled in the woodland to move at all.
The western AI squad went next, opening fire on the nearby Strike squad who took the opportunity to fire back. A flurry of rounds later and both units had lost a trooper to their opponents fusillade.
The Strike squad in the center of the field advanced brave as brass and fired on the batter AI squad that had run to get into cover. They didn't have line of sight to the whole unit but they were able to get them down to a sole survivor who bravely stood his ground.
The eastern Strike squad went next, advancing out of the woodland to open fire on the AI squad. Most of the rounds bounced off harmlessly but one of them did strike home, killing the AI squad leader.
Undaunted, the AI squad charged the Strike squad, taking down the Concord squad leader in turn as they charged forward. Neither side could get an upper hand in the ensuing melee and both squads fell back to regroup.
One of the AI support teams tried to follow up against the same Concord squad, dropping a standard round right on top of them. The Strike troopers were to well dug in though and easily weathered the blast.
The Strike command squad opened fire on the AI squad but their plasma bolts bounced off the Algoryn reflex armor, having little effect.
The rest of the turn was the Algoryn troops repositioning and readying themselves for the final turn. The medic team held their position, the mag cannon support team went into ambush, and other support team moved forward into the woodland to try to get a line of sight.
Going into potentially the last turn, things were still fairly balanced though casualties were starting to pile up on both side.
Turn Six
This turn a miracle happened; the AI assault squad actually did something! Charging forward from the mass of brambles they had been tied up in, the assault squad slammed into the Stike squad in the center of the field. The rejoicing was short lived as two of their number were gunned down by the Strike troopers but the caused a casualty themselves so all wasn't lost.
With their d-spinners set for plasma grenades, the three remaining assault troopers tore into the Strike troopers... and took only took out one of them while two of the assault troopers fell. The squad leader was undaunted though and held his ground!
The Concord troops followed up their advantage and dog piled onto the assault leader, taking him down though another of their numbers fell in the melee. Overall not the most impressive showing but it was definitely better than being stuck in the woods.
The remnants of the Concord squad fell back into the nearby woodland to try to get some cover from the other AI squads that hadn't activated yet.
The Concord support team went next and landed a net round right on top of the closest AI squad. This proved to be too much for them and they quickly ran from the field.
The western AI squad opened fire on the same Concord team as last turn but this time the Strike were caught by surprise with one of their numbers falling to the incoming mag rounds.
Looking to press their advantage on the shaken Concord squads, one of the AI support teams launched a net round to try to break them. The round went wide, just falling short of hitting the nearby Strike command squad.
The second support team fared better. Their round deviated but still managed to hit their target, racking up a number of pins on the command squad.
The central Strike squad tried to take a shot at the closest AI squad but it the strain was too much, forcing them down for the turn.
Meanwhile, the AI medic team advanced to the edge of the woodland and opened fire on the western Strike squad. Their tender ministrations dropped another C3 trooper and sent the last one running for the hills.
The eastern Strike squad opened fire on the lone AI trooper hiding behind the building but weren't able to get any of their shots to connect. He responded by firing back but wasn't able to pierce their hyper light armor.
And with that... the game was over. The die roll for an extra turn came up with a 1, definitively drawing the action to a close but the question remains... which side won? Since neither side was broken, the point values of the units that were removed are used to determine the winner. On the Concord side of the table, the C3D1 light support drone unit was taken out along with one of the Strike squads, coming up with a grand total of 273 points. On the Algoryn side, they lost the AI assault squad and one AI squad for a total of 267 points meaning they just barely squeak by with a win.
Mistakes Made and Things Learned
I believe this was the first time that I tried fielding such well rounded lists and it was interesting to see how the pieces all fit together. The support units really do help round out the forces and can be a valuable asset to have though in the future I want to try running them differently.
I think it would be better to split up the C3D1 drones and give them each a batter drone. This would let them move around the battlefield independently and provide cover for other units as they advance. That said I think I would leave the spotter drones off of them. Since I see them a supporting tactical units which should already have spotters, it seems a bit to redundant and kind of a points sink to put them on the support drones as well.
Meanwhile, I think I'll skip the batter drone for the support squad with an x-launcher. With overhead spotter patching, the support team will probably be out of line of sight so the points for a batter drone would probably be better spent elsewhere.
On the Algoryn side of things, I want to get some more AI assault troopers so I can field a larger squad. I'll admit that they really haven't been very effective for me but hopefully with another couple of bodies in there it will help. I really like the concept behind them so it would be great to have them be a viable choice for an army.
The other thing I might do is drop the medic team. I've never had them in position to use them as medics though having a small two man team with mag guns isn't a bad thing. Still I can't help but wonder if perhaps there might be a better use for the points.
Something that applies for both factions is the various special ammunition types. This game I primarily used net ammo to pile on the pins. I looked at the other kinds and tried to look for situations that they would be helpful but I just wasn't seeing anything. I might try dropping the other types for now and then expand to include more as I identify situations that they could be useful. This would probably be easier from a rules point of view as well as I would only have to remember one type of speical muntion instead of five.
The same applies for the special munitions for the micro-x and slingnet launchers. I genuinely forgot about overload and slingnet munitions so I might drop down to one of them for now so that using it becomes second nature. Once this happens, I can look at adding or swapping in the other type as needed. It will also free up some more points and give me a bit more to play with.
Of course none of these things are really mistakes, but there was a doozy that I was making; spotter OH patching can only be done through one spotter drone. I was thinking that you could patch through multiple drones which is the main reason there was some much overhead fire in the first couple of turns. Whoopsy! Let's count that as a lesson learned, shall we?
Final Thoughts
So now the question is what's next? I'm thinking I might break out the Ghar and give them a test drive; see how the distort die and all their other rules change the game. That said, it also might be good to do another game or two with the more normal armies to make sure some of these rules are second nature first. I also have a friend that has said he would be interested in a demo so I need to figure out when we can fit that it as well; it's always better to have another opponent to play against instead of just pushing around the models solo. There is also at least one gaming store locally that I want to check out, plus another in New Hampshire that I know hosts Antares games so there are definietly some options out there. Until next time...
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