Death in the Rain - Miridian

Planet: Miridian.
Region: Cadian sector.

Death Guard vs Drukhari
1500 points.
Mission: Secure and Control.
Deployment: Vanguard Strike.

Bad weather and shattered roads hampered the Death Guard's pursuit of the Drukhari after the battle of Miridian City. In the autumn rain, forward elements of the plague marines encountered fire from a combined Drukhari force just north of the city ruins. This started an impressive three day battle. When the Drukhari reinforcements arrived on the battlefield, the xenos gained an overwhelming advantage, forcing the Death Guard to withdraw back into the city.

My first game against the brand new Drukhari codex. I was looking forward to this and dreading it at the same time. With a new codex to hand I fully expected to get my backside handed to me plus I don't often have much luck against Dark Eldar Drukhari due to their annoying poisoned weapons ignoring my T5 benefit. Dan and I agreed to a smaller 1500 points game. I chose Secure and Control as a possible easier mission than going for a kill point total. With some annoyance I yet again rolled the hated Vanguard Strike deployment.

I managed the first turn but with no visible targets to really shoot at all I could do was move a few units forwards. To protect my daemon prince I used my psychic potential to miasma the deathshroud terminators and up their strength and toughness just in case. My only shooting came from the plagueburst crawler which was able to ineffectually shoot at a group of venoms and a talos.

Dan's first turn saw him move everything forward bar one unit which sat back on his own objective far away from anything I could throw at them. His shooting stripped a few wounds off of my vehicles and daemon engines but nothing I couldn't handle.

Turn two was where it started to go horribly wrong. My advance was blocked in both routes by the Drukhari. A flight of venoms to my left flank and a pair of talos to my right. I did manage a few more wounds but not an awful lot. Dan's turn was a lot better. I lost a significant chunk of my army to Dan's phenomenal round of shooting. From that point the game was lost to me.

Turn three and there was little I could do. From the shadows burst forth wracks and mandrakes behind my lines. Dark lance fire burnt my daemon prince down, and assault decimated what few infantry I had left. I think by the end of the turn I had two or three plague marines and a couple cultists left while Dan's army was almost untouched. So I conceded.

---

++ Battalion Detachment +5CP (Chaos - Death Guard) [85 PL, 1500pts] ++

+ HQ +

Daemon Prince of Nurgle [8 PL, 156pts]: 3. Tainted Regeneration, 5. Putrescent Vitality, Hellforged sword, Warlord

Malignant Plaguecaster [6 PL, 110pts]: 1. Miasma of Pestilence, 6. Curse of the Leper, The Pandemic Staff

+ Troops +

Chaos Cultists [6 PL, 48pts]
. 9x Chaos Cultist w/ autopistol and brutal assault weapon
. Chaos Cultist w/ special weapon: Heavy stubber
. Cultist Champion: Shotgun

Plague Marines [10 PL, 186pts]: Icon of Despair
. Plague Champion: Plague knife, Plasma gun, Power fist
. 4x Plague Marine w/ boltgun
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Plague Spewer
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Plasma gun

Plague Marines [10 PL, 177pts]: Icon of Despair
. Plague Champion: Plague knife, Plasma gun, Power fist
. 4x Plague Marine w/ boltgun
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Plasma gun
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Blight launcher

+ Elites +

Deathshroud Terminators [11 PL, 180pts]
. Deathshroud Champion: Manreaper, Plaguespurt gauntlets
. 2x Deathshroud Terminator: 2x Manreaper, 2x Plaguespurt gauntlets

Hellforged Contemptor Dreadnought [10 PL, 185pts]
. Left Arm: Hellflamer, Hellforged deathclaw
. Right Arm: Kheres assault cannon

+ Fast Attack +

Foetid Bloat-drone [8 PL, 158pts]: 2x Plaguespitters, Plague probe

+ Heavy Support +

Plagueburst Crawler [8 PL, 152pts]: 2x Entropy cannon, Rothail volley gun

+ Dedicated Transport +

Chaos Rhino [4 PL, 74pts]: Combi-bolter, Combi-bolter
Chaos Rhino [4 PL, 74pts]: Combi-bolter, Combi-bolter

++ Total: [85 PL, 1500pts] ++

---

After game thoughts...

I didn't think I was going to have much luck in this game. Mainly due to a combination of new codex and not having the sort of options to handle what the Drukhari are good at. Even so I tried a list that I hoped would get me across the table and deal with the sort of Drukhari infantry armies that I have faced previously. Still, a very good game and maybe next time I'll have better luck.

--

Worlds of the Narrative - Miridian

Planet: Miridian.
Segmentum: Obscurus.
Sector: Cadian.
System: Miridian.
Surveyed: Unknown.
Planets:
Miridian - Hive World.
Miridan's Belt - Asteroid belt.

Summery:
Miridian sits below the galactic plane on the edge of the Cadian sector. Until the 41st millennium it had never been invaded nor known the horrors of war. The planet was colonised by the Imperium about the same time as Cadia and while that world became a bastion of Imperial defiance, Miridian grew to become a populous hive world supplying many hundreds of thousands of men and women to the defence of Cadia through the millennia.

Miridian has no real manufacturing or agricultural significance. However, the asteroid field known as Miridian's Belt has assisted the world's of the Cadian sector with vital ores and metals to construct their weapons of war.
Size: Equatorial distance - 5,000 miles.
Gravity: 1.0G
Satellites: Two moons.
Population: 66,000,000,000 at last count.
Orbit: 120 million miles to it's star. Grendel III takes 400 days to complete one orbit.
Climate: Mean surface temperature of 19 degrees centigrade.

Before the start of the 13th Black Crusade, Typhus was dispatched by Abaddon to be the vanguard for his great invasion. Typhus had his eyes on the Lelithar system but first he would need a base of operations from which to launch his attack. Scouring the charts he soon found the world of Miridian and it's relative isolation made it a perfect target. The Death Guard caught the planet unawares and began with an atmospheric bombardment of poisons, plagues and bacteria. They then deployed to the surface. The planetary defence forces were no match for a battle-hardened force and the war was swiftly completed. The population not slain were rounded up and either enslaved or forced into the rapidly growing chaos cults of the plague father.

Not three weeks after the Miridian campaign was concluded, the planet came under surprise attack by a superior Drukhari raiding force. They had expected a weak and unprepared human population but instead found a renegade astartes force eager to slay the alien interlopers for their intrusion. The coming war against the Imperium was forgotten while the Death Guard waged war against the alien slavers.

Notes: Miridian is the world for games where the Death Guard face down the Drukhari.

Tide of Battle:
Drukhari victories: 2.
Death Guard victories: 3.
Draws: 0

The invading Drukhari are not doing well. The entrenched plague marines have the upper hand currently but will it last as more xenos raiders arrive to bolster the attacking kabals.

1. Into Darkness (7th edition).
2. The Scouring (7th edition).
3. Hold the Line.
4. Drukhari Ambush.
5. Death in the Rain.

Drukhari Ambush - Miridian

Planet: Miridian.
Region: Cadian sector.

Death Guard vs Drukhari
50 power level
Mission: No Mercy.
Deployment: Pitched Battle.

The Drukhari raiders fall back from the renewed Death Guard offensive. The ruins of Miridian go strangely silent in the green mists. Typhus delivers orders that his forces are to sweep the ruins and decimate any stragglers.
His own patrol soon comes under attack from an entrenched band of kabelites. Outgunned they fight on with the grim determination of their legion.

A nice small game against Gary D this week after my planned opponent had to bail. Gary brought his Drukhari out to play once more. This was also my first game with the new Death Guard codex so I was quite excited to see what my army could do now.

We decided on the night to play No Mercy and we rolled our deployment. When Gary started deploying a ravager and put two raiders in reserve I felt my shoulders slump. I wasn't sure that I had what I needed to take them down and fully expected them to destroy my predator first turn. I hoped to steal the initiative but it was not to be.

First turn he swooped in with the ravager and brought the raiders in on the opposing flank. Together knocked some wounds from my predator leaving it belching smoke. I advanced everything and used a new strategem to allow the predator to move and shoot. It took a couple wounds off the ravager but that was to be the last act it did.

With the predator destroyed fairly quickly, Gary turned his weapons on my plague marines. They soaked a few wounds but then they began to crumble. After a couple turns I had nothing of one squad. But luck was about to turn. My plaguecaster started to smite one ravager and a very lucky swipe with his stick sent it crashing into it's partner and exploding. Man of the match! Same turn Gary brought in a unit of scourges behind my lines only for them to be charged by my blightbringer who swiftly dished out psychic contagion with his relic bell.

On my left flank Typhus was marching his poxwalkers forwards all game. I had no idea what I was going to do with them so they simply acted as a shroud to protect him from incoming fire. They and Typhus charged the ravager eventually and Typhus cleaved it with a mighty swing from his manreaper. The remaining plague marines marched upon the ruin where the kabalite warriors and archon were cowardly hiding in. They slowly blasted the aliens away but despite knocking the shadow field from the archon, they were unable to kill him before the end of the game.

On the right flank it soon became a mosh with the warriors in the destroyed raider leaping into frenzied battle with my plaguecaster but a mixture of martial skills and new Nurgle psychic powers ensured that they did not survive. Then, between the plaguecaster and the blightbringer, they brought down the last raider although the plaguecaster died doing it.

The game ended turn 5 and when we counted up the victory points I amazingly ahead with 6 victory points to Gary's 2. For a list that I thought was not going to do well against what my opponent brought I was pleasantly surprised. As always though I kept forgetting that my opponent was using poisoned weapons so my high toughness was not useful and maybe I could have done something different to keep my marines alive. The new psychic powers however were really good and certainly helped me out a lot so I have nothing to complain about.

Unfortunately my camera phone died on me during the evening and I lost the photos of the game.


My list for the night was:

++ Battalion Detachment +3CP (Chaos - Death Guard) ++

+ HQ +

Malignant Plaguecaster: Curse of the Leper, Plague Wind

Typhus: Miasma of Pestilence, Putrescent Vitality.

+ Troops +

Plague Marines: Icon of Despair
. Plague Champion: Plaguesword
. . Power fist and Plasma gun: Plasma gun, Power fist
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Plasma gun
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Plasma gun
. 4x Plague Marines

Plague Marines: Icon of Despair
. Plague Champion: Plaguesword
. . Power fist and Plasma gun: Plasma gun, Power fist
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Plasma gun
. Plague Marine w/ Special Weapon: Blight launcher
. 4x Plague Marines

Poxwalkers: 10x Poxwalker

+ Elites +

Noxious Blightbringer: Plasma pistol and Dolorous Knell.

+ Heavy Support +

Chaos Predator: Combi-flamer, Havoc launcher, Twin lascannon
. Two heavy bolters: 2x Heavy bolter

Hold the Line - Miridian

Planet: Miridian.
Region: Cadian sector.

Death Guard / Nurgle Daemons vs Drukhari
2000 points / 100 power level
Mission: Capture and Control.
Deployment: Pitched Battle.

Rather than continue to lose numbers of marines to random hit and run attacks by the alien slavers, Typhus orders his Death Guard to consolidate and hold the line against the xenos. His plan being to hold the Drukhari in place long enough for reinforcements from the Scourge Stars to arrive.

My first game against Dark Eldar with my Death Guard was against Gary D so it seemed only fair that his first or second game of 8th be against my revenge hungry plague marines. To be honest though I wasn't sure what he would bring as I know he has an Imperial Fists army as well. I went for a more all comers list with a lot more troop options than I usually play. I was pleasantly pleased to see a Drukhari army turn up as I haven't played against them under 8th until now.

This was a good old fashioned set across the table from one another. I had a hard time deciding what should be placed when and where. I knew that his forces were super fast and his razorwing was going to be a problem, and that determined where everything had to go. I may have made a couple small mistakes but not enough to make much difference to the game's outcome.

I got the first turn and made sure to direct the heldrake towards his razorwing although the baleflamer didn't do much. I threw my cultists and poxwalkers forward in an attempt to draw his fire whilst still maintaining a link to the the objectives that I started with. My shooting was largely ineffective this round but the defiler's battle cannon was quite accurate. The heldrake charged the razorwing tearing a few chunks from it.

On Gary's turn he took umbridge to my plaguecaster and dropped five scourges down behind him. My plaguecaster survived the shooting though unharmed. Nothing Gary aimed at my heldrake could hit it. I lost a few cultists and poxwalkers but everything else was making it's DR rolls.

From turn two it became a game of brutal close combat. The Heldrake continued to hound the enemy flyer, burning his troops but continuing to slam into the flyer in the assault phase. His scourges launched an assault on my plaguecaster and knocked two wounds from him but suffered some losses in return. Those scourges would then die on my next turn due to smite.

Turn three saw the death of his razorwing which had been ineffective all game. Drazhar lept out of his venom alongside a unit of wytches from theirs, and then assaulted into my poxwalkers and cultists. The cultists died far too easily although two incubi rose from the dead as new poxwalkers meaning I didn't mind the losses he inflicted on them otherwise.

Over on my left flank I gunned down his raider and talos. The plague marines failed to charge but the lord of contagion succeeded and was happy to slice through his kabelites. On the right, Gary dropped another unit of scourges. I was beginning to think that he didn't like my plaguecaster. Those scourges combined with the wytches were then able to slay my plaguecaster in combat. Meanwhile I was trying desperately to get Typhus into combat with Drazhar but wytches were his only targets, and they manged to knock two wounds from him.

The game ended at the end of turn 4 due to time but victory was mine. I think it was on the cards, literally, from the end of turn 2. We finished with the Death Guard having seven victory points to the Drukhari's one.

The tactical objective cards had been in my favour the whole game. I was winning two a turn on average plus first blood. Gary was stuck with trying to kill an enemy psyker as his most likely card to achieve. My DR rolls were good. Not as good as last week but still very above average. Gary had similar from Power from Pain but couldn't make enough of them. The only downer for me was my plaguebearers who sat there all game holding an objective that never came up and then not interacting in the game the entire evening.

A very good game and I'm sure that it won't be long until I get a rematch.

My list was:

Battalion detachment (6 cp).
Typhus.
Lord of Contagion.
Malignant Plaguecaster.
10 Plague marines with two meltaguns and an icon of despair. Champion with plasma pistol and plaguesword.
10 Plague marines with two meltaguns and an icon of despair. Champion with plasma pistol and plaguesword.
20 Plaguebearers with two icons.
20 Poxwalkers.
15 cultists with autopistols and brutal assault weapons. One heavy stubber.
Defiler with scourge.
Heldrake with baleflamer.
Predator with TL-lascannons and heavy bolters.

Battle in the skies.

Savage close combat on my right flank.

Foul Drukhari slavers.

Death Guard deployment.

The Scouring - Miridian

Planet: Miridian.
Region: Cadian Sector.
999.M41

Death Guard vs Dark Eldar.
1500 points.
Mission: The Scouring.

Through the ruins of Miridian's cities the Death Guard and Dark Eldar fight a series of running battles. The favoured of Nurgle called upon the mightiest in their arsenal to destroy the raiders..

This was a revenge match against Gary D's army from the last battle report. He didn't even change his list. But I played a list which I expected to be fun but easily defeated. How wrong I was!




My list was:

Sorcerer of Nurgle, level 1.
Two 20 man Plague Marine squads, with two meltaguns and a icon of despair. Both champions had plasma pistols and power swords. One squad a Rhino.
Predator with TL lascannons and heavy bolter sponsons.
Chaos Knight with thermal blaster and chainsword.

Deployment was short table ends and I set up with the idea of moving forward and taking the two nearest objectives, and then using the Knight to advance to the most important one. Gary purposefully moved his army to the opposite edge to where the Knight was and en mass moved all his fast skimmers up and began to smash through my plague marines from one side of my table across to the other. I managed to take down a few and the Knight just moved up, capturing the highest scoring objective and blasting the Dark Eldar. My opponent managed to knock a couple hull points on it but the big machine healed them with It Will Not Die.

When the game ended, I still managed to secure victory by just 1 victory point and it was because all because of the Knight. Hopefully the beginning of a nice winning streak.

Into Darkness - Miridian

Planet: Miridian.
Region: Cadian Sector.
999.M41

Death Guard vs Dark Eldar.
1500 points.
Mission: Purge the Alien.

The Death Guard had successfully captured the world of Miridian from the Imperium. Typhus began to turn the planet into his own place of power from which to launch attacks upon Cadia.
A few weeks after the Death Guard won the planet, they cam under attack from a raiding force of Dark Eldar eager for slaves and to sow confusion.




This was a replacement match for the last game. I played Gary D's Dark Eldar in the Purge the Alien mission. I wanted to play against a Xenos army as it was thematic to the mission. Gary D is, like myself, a very casual gamer and this approach made for a very fun game. At the time of writing this I cannot remember a lot of the game but I do remember I got to field my two heavy 20 vengeance defence cannon turrets. Unfortunately I do remember that he avoided them staying on his side of the table and using long range dark lance fire to slowly strip my army down. He didn't even need to do anything to achieve victory. It was still a very good game but I think I put too much faith in the defence turrets when I thought they would do a lot better. I don't even think the game went to full term before I lost.