It's an ugly planet; a Bug planet. A planet hostile to life as we know it…
This week’s matchup at the club for my Tyranids was Space Wolves- a full on “competitive” list, 2000 points, NOVA mission format. The primary mission was objectives, with kill points, and then table quarters as the tie breakers. Given that my army bleeds kill points, design nature of the codex, I had to play for the primary win, while considering that the ‘wolves had two win options- go for objectives, or a tie on them so we go to kill points.
My list? Standard 2K- four tervigons, three trygons, hive guard/venoms, and Deathleaper filling in for DOM in a pod as I’m still tossing around ideas for both of them- I sure wish I had DOM for this battle.
My opponent’s list? Logan/Bjorn for the bonus objective (critical for the NV format), grey hunter/razor spam, two rifleman dreads, two MM/HF speeders, and three groups of long fangs- two missiles and one multimelta in a pod with Logan attached. I actually really like this wolf build even if it is spammy. You have the shots and redundancy in the long fangs and grey hunters, the bonus objective for Bjorn, and the multimelta pods with Logan to drop in the back ranks, split fire, and be relentless.
I won the roll off to go first, and passed first turn since the secondary objective was kill points-I wanted that final bottom turn to make sure I was on objectives, etc. so it didn’t go to kill points. Normally I want to go first.
Trygons in the front, tervigons behind, and gaunts behind them. The plan? Push forward and to the left a bit to maximize cover, spawn gaunts with the HQ tervigons, eventually drop back with the TROOPS tervigons and spawn to hold the two objectives on my deployment side.
Turn one has the usual krak missiles, las shots, and autocannon fire coming at me taking two wounds on a trygon and a wound a piece on the tervigons, along with losing a hive guard. I start moving up with the venom bubble and throw FNP on the trygons who move/run. Hive guard shoot a speeder stunning it (?) and gaunts fire some pew pew shots at it.
With all that firepower and me running forward the ‘wolves just sit there shooting away throwing on another wound or two but then my tervigons get into range and start spawning. I drop a load of gaunts who move, shoot, and then assault the first group of long fangs in some ruins. I don’t have grenades of course but with adrenals and poison on the tervigon they re-roll wounds. I lose a few, a few fangs drop, and combat is tied up. Next turn more gaunts pile in and the first fang group is down.
Wolves just keep on sitting there and shooting as the panic sets in that my big bugs are going to crash the front ranks and all the spammy shots aren’t going to stop them. In fairness what helped was some less then optimal rolling for a turn for the ‘wolves, and Logan’s pod not coming in till mid game.
More gaunts keep on spawning, moving and shooting the second long fang group, killing a few and then getting lucky with the wolves rolling a “12” twice in a row for LD as the run off the board. Pure luck, but I would have assaulted them anyway if needed.
Mid game the first tervigon and trygon go down, but I’m already in the back ranks blowing up dreads, razors and cutting down grey hunters. Small groups of grey hunters counter attack and for a mere 16 points a model, these guys sure are the best non dedicated assault troops in the game- they make quick work of two spawned gaunt units. Tell me again why Khorne Berserkers are 20+ points?
Bjorn starts making his way up and my plan is to just not kill him, ignore him so he can’t spawn an objective, unless he comes into my mid core where I have a tervigon and gaunts parked, then I’ll gamble at killing him to get the objective for myself, but no way am I killing him near the grey hunters.
Deathleaper pops in, shoots, does nothing, assaults next turn, kills a grey hunter and then gets cut down like nothing….sad face.
Logan and the last fang group finally comes in and they vape a tervigon, but they now have to deal with another backed by two already spawned group of gaunts, and they pounce along with a third spawned group- all striking with furious charge and poison makes quick work of the long fangs and drown Logan in the mob.
Now we are at the top of six with the Tyranids currently holding three objectives, and the ‘wolves one. Bjorn moves to the center and contests the one I’m holding there, and the last of a grey hunter group moves and contests the one that I hold in my opponent’s deployment zone, which means we both now hold one and if the game ends is a tie.
And I make the mistake that could have cost me the game…
What I can’t accurately capture in words is my attitude and feeling during the game. I have to eat two turn of shooting, lots and lots of shooting, 10 missiles, 2 TL auto cannon shots, 4 las plas, speeder shots, pod shots, etc. As I close with my Tyranids taking those shots it’s like a fury building in me, waiting to unleash the gaunts and run like crazy smashing things with the trygons…so when it happens I tend to go a little berserk and get excited. Sure that little group of three grey hunters is tactically out of the game and no threat, but I’ll swamp them with dozens of gaunts anyway to drown them in a sea of dice. That las/plas razorback has no weapons and is immobile, tactically move on, but I’ll hit it anyway with a trygon exploding. Against Space Wolves I want blood…
So in the final turn before we see if the game ends I forget to move my trygons like a n00b so focused on trying to drown Logan, that when I move into the assault phase they fail to hit range on the charge for the grey hunters contesting an objective. Blinded by visions of Khorne there is a good chance this will cost me the game. I charge a group of gaunts that kill a few hunters but they hold.
We are now tied for kill points and if the game ends we go to kill points which toast me. If the game goes on the hunters will go down and Logan will go down giving me three objectives to one for the Space Wolves…we roll it…game goes on, and they Tyranids secure the win.
After battle observations, the important stuff to walk away with from a game?
What has been encouraging me the most about Tyranids, confirmed on multiple occasions is that since they ‘SUCK” form a competitive point of view and at least around here 95%+ is marine mech there is no frame of reference in dealing with them, so marine players fight me like I’m space marines.
Examples from this game?
Why drop Logan and the multi-melta guys in the pods? From a marine point of view vs. marines this is SOP- drop it down and vape two mission critical vehicles, especially if they are land raiders or storm ravens with death star units inside. But for space bugs? A waste. Better to deploy them out center, and even with the 24” range on the multi-melta shots that is a turn or two of shooting as I’m on the way in. This unit alone shooting from turn two would have dropped a big bug.
Speeders were also tactically used wrong. How do marine players use them? Cheap fast moving suicide units to take out incoming mech or a shooty bunker tank like a predator. Makes sense fighting marines, but again, vs. space bugs? What is there to suicide? You zerg rush with the speeders, pop off shot which can’t kill anything single shot, and then the speeder dies.
Marines inside of transports. SOP is to just stay inside since they really don’t do much other then make the vehicle scoring, can’t shoot out of the razorback and no special weapons. Against SB? Deploy out and in front- every bolter shot at 24” is a potential wound, even against a trygon. When the buggie horde gets close then hop back in the transports and zip away.
Dave, I’m not busting on you here, just pointing out that my win was really because you didn’t know what you were fighting and what to expect. Hands down you had the better list and army, but no frame of reference at how to apply it vs. space bugs. Now you know, and if we face each other at the BFS tourney I’m toast. You also freaked a bit mid game once I started spawning all those gaunts turn after turn and zerged you. I took the momentum, dictated the fight, and never looked back.
From the bug perspective?
Need to keep my cool once the slaughter begins. Such a n00bish mistake could have cost me the game. A good example of when you are “losing” to hang tight and wait and see what mistakes your opponent makes. I had the ‘wolves 90% wiped out and most of my army intact but still could have lost. Need to stay focused.
Deathleaper…sigh…I should know better, DOM back in the list, or even Y-stealers for that matter.
Tervigons- man if only I could get five in the list at 2K AND have enough points for my other toys.
I have a game lined up for next week so can’t give away all the secrets of how I’ve been playing them since said opponent lurks here. You better be ready for me next week, I’ve got you in my sights locked and loaded…
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