Saga of the combat patrol Smash Lord

[TiguriusX]

Entered the T5S2 combat patrol tournament for the experience.

No unit over 250 points

Rule of 1 is in play (so no spamming ultra efficient units)

Game plays VERY fast which I like.

The meta is also different...you don't have enough points to get everything.

Losing a unit during the game really cuts down on your options because there is no replacement.

Game #1 Incisive Attack v Aeldari

Space Wolves

++ Patrol Detachment 0CP (Imperium - Space Wolves) [23 PL, 2CP, 498pts] ++

+ Configuration [3CP] +

Battle Size [3CP]: 1. Combat Patrol (0-50 Total PL / 0-500 Points) [3CP]

Detachment CP

+ Stratagems [-1CP] +

Trophies of Fenris [-1CP]: Trophies of Fenris - 1 Extra Relic [-1CP]

+ HQ [6 PL, 155pts] +

Wolf Lord [6 PL, 155pts]: Combi-melta [10pts], Frag & Krak grenades, Jump Pack [1 PL, 20pts], Saga of the Hunter, The Armour of Russ, Thunder hammer [40pts], Warlord

+ Troops [5 PL, 107pts] +

Intercessors [5 PL, 107pts]: Auto Bolt Rifle, Auxiliary Grenade Launcher [2pts]

. 4x Intercessor [80pts]: 4x Bolt pistol, 4x Frag & Krak grenades

. Intercessor Pack Leader [25pts]: Bolt pistol, Frag & Krak grenades, Power sword [5pts]

+ Elites [4 PL, 85pts] +

Judiciar [4 PL, 85pts]: Absolver Bolt Pistol, Executioner Relic Blade, Frag & Krak grenades, Runic Armor

+ Fast Attack [1 PL, 15pts] +

Cyberwolves [1 PL, 15pts]

. Cyberwolf [15pts]: Teeth and claws

+ Dedicated Transport [7 PL, 136pts] +

Impulsor [7 PL, 136pts]: 2x Storm Bolters [6pts], Ironhail Heavy Stubber [5pts], Shield Dome [25pts]

++ Total: [23 PL, 2CP, 498pts] ++

Created with BattleScribe (https://battlescribe.net/)

Aeldari

++ Patrol Detachment 0CP (Aeldari - Craftworlds) [26 PL, 3CP, 500pts] ++

+ Configuration +

Battle Size [3CP]: 1. Combat Patrol (0-50 Total PL / 0-500 Points)

Craftworld Attribute: Saim-Hann: Wild Host

Detachment CP

+ HQ +

Farseer [6 PL, 115pts]: 0. Smite, 2. Doom, 4. Executioner, Shuriken Pistol, Witchblade

. Blazing Star of Vaul

Warlock [2 PL, 50pts]: 4. Protect/Jinx, 5. Focus Will, 6: Seer of the Shifting Vector, Craftworlds Warlord, Shuriken Pistol, Witchblade

+ Troops +

Dire Avengers [3 PL, 70pts]

. 4x Dire Avenger: 4x Avenger Shuriken Catapult, 4x Plasma Grenades

. Dire Avenger Exarch: Shimmershield & Power Glaive

. . Exarch Power: Bladestorm

+ Fast Attack +

Shining Spears [10 PL, 175pts]

. 4x Shining Spear: 4x Laser Lance, 4x Twin Shuriken Catapult

. Shining Spear Exarch: Laser Lance

. . Exarch Power: Skilled Rider

Warp Spiders [5 PL, 90pts]

. 4x Warp Spider: 4x Death Spinner

. Warp Spider Exarch: Death Spinner

. . Exarch Power: Web of Deceit

++ Total: [26 PL, 3CP, 500pts] ++

Created with BattleScribe (https://battlescribe.net/)

Pre-game and deployment

When I see his list I see a strong psyker threat and lots of mobility but no anti tank

I plan to leverage my impulsor to get across the map

He places his Warp Spiders in reserve and I breathe sigh of relief. If they had been on the board and used web of deceit they were a threat to my backlines ASAP and force me to keep intercessors exposed on the map to cover my smash lord from being picked off.

Now that I know I am safe I put the judiciar and intercessors inside the impulsor and the smash lord behind to keep him safe. The wolf hangs out behind a wall

I also swap the relic on my judiciar for a wolf tail talisman

BatRep

I win roll for turn 1 and take it.

I move NOTHING on turn 1...my space wolves are a COUNTER army. I don't make the first move. Doing this lets me guarantee 5 primary points for holding my objective and gets me 1 turn closer to tactical and assault doctrines

He pops the fortune buff on his dire avengers and marches them forward to draw me out of cover but nothing else moves

Turn 2

I know his warp spiders are coming and my wolf is dead regardless. I decide to move everything forward and force him to choose between killing me or getting his linebreaker etc.

Wolf advances and snugs up against the wall giving him good but not perfect cover near objective #3

Smash lord advances 1"....I reroll and get another 1"

This limits my options. I originally wanted to get to the middle terrain but I can't reach it.

The threat of his shining spears and warp spiders means I need to bubble wrap front AND back

I decide to push right to objective #2 with the impulsor blocking LOS in front and the intercessors hop out to serve as a bodyguard detail

I am able to place 3 in LOS of his dire avengers

Judiciar hops out and clutches the wolf tail talisman tightly to his chest

The impulsor and intercessors unload and leave the exarch alive with a single wound

He flees due to morale wiping out the unit

On his turn the warp spiders drop in the dense cover on the left near my wolf and objective #3

He realizes he doesn't have enough bodies to do what he wants. With the dire avengers dead he needs somebody to babysit the objective.

He also doesn't want to split up his farseer/warlock combo...he tells me against anyone else he would rush towards me and start casting psyker powers but the 18" wolf tail talisman bubble is a deal breaker.

He also decides the shining spears are scared of my counter attack and don't want to go out alone so they stay put again

He fails every psyker roll and is unable to execute the cyber wolf

His warp spiders fire and barely kill off my wolf...it came down to a CP reroll of armor save at 4+

Turn 3

I stay in the tactical doctrine

My original plan is wipe out the warp spiders and position myself defensively to defend against his shining spears

If the warp spiders are dead it basically prevents all his secondaries from being scored

I start by advancing my wolf lord and roll a 6

With that much movement I am able to change to plan B and land 5 inches from his shining spears instead. I will charge up to the wall and unleash the hammer

I move the impulsor next to the smash lord in case I fail the charge

My intercessors advance and line up shots on his warp spiders by moving back towards my DZ and getting LOS from 22" away

Judiciar advances to bring his wolf tail talisman closer to the smash lord

The impulsor...intercessors...and wolf lord kill off his warp spiders

The smash lord unleashes touch of the wild and kills 4/5 shining spears

The impulsor also charges in and now I have 2 units on the objective to steal it

I fight again using my last remaining CP and the shining spears are dead

The warlock and farseer are all that remain

Opponent concedes at this point and we talk out the final score

Final score and recap

85-15 victory for the wolves!!!

The combat patrol army I use is basically the same units I have in my 2000 point army. I have plenty of in game experience using them as a separate group because I send them off alone to secure objectives all the time.

I feel it is a very balanced force and am curious what ideas people come up with for future lists

My opponent and I had a nice long talk about things he would do differently.

He says he will never send dire avengers out as bait again because in combat patrol you can't afford to lose objective holding units.

I tell him I definitely think the warp spiders should be on the board turn 1 for the threat of that web of deceit redeploy trick. They also should focus on scoring linebreaker and other secondary points instead of fighting. Chasing down the warp spiders is a real PITA when you have so few troops.

He is also going to drop his shining spears from 5 to 3. 5 works in large 2000 point games but is overkill in combat patrol. He is going to add a war walker with a bright lance to give him the anti tank tool he was missing.

I think his new list is going to be awesome and am glad I don't need to face it

We then had a chat about star wars squadrons and called it a day

The actual combat patrol game took between 30 minutes to an hour...was VERY fast

Edited October 3, 2020 by TiguriusX