MATCHUP:

Faction: Chaos Space Marines

Detachment: Soulforged Warpack

VS

Faction: Necrons

Detachment: Annihilation Legion

MISSION:

Primary: Purge the Foe

Terrain: GW Terrain Layout 1

Twist: None

RESULT:

99 – 66 Win for Necrons

OVERALL TAKEAWAYS:

• Overall game
  • This game was not nearly as close as the score would make it seem. This is because it is very hard to blow out an opponent in Purge the Foe and CSM benefitted from it by staying in the game with 8 points on primary per Round despite being 90% tabled by the middle of Round 3.
  • Necrons played this game very patiently on a terrain layout that favored them.  CSM did not and ended up being too aggressive, which was their downfall.
  • The threat of the Nightbringer was a major factor in this game as the Necrons deploying him on the line then running him towards the center objective essentially scared CSM away from the middle. 
• CSM
  • This was a play style problem, not a list problem.  I played CSM waaaaaaaayyyyyy to aggressively and ended up over extending.  That made it very easy for the Necrons to pick them off.  Instead, I should I have played this list as a Defensive Blocker, which I suspect would have resulted in a much closer game.
  • Hindsight 20/20, I played my units in the reverse order of how I should have.  What I mean by this is that I aggressively ran my melee units out to meet the Necrons head on and played my Forgefiends very conservatively.  Instead, I should have been aggressive with my Forgefiends and used them to try to pick off the various SKorpekhs and Lokhust Heavy Destroyer units.  Then I could have setup a counter charge with my Maulerfiends to clear out anything that charged into the Forgefiends.  I messed this up and it cost me.
  • Key Combos:
    • Forgefiends with Ectoplasma Cannons + the Daemonic Ordnance ability (Devastating Wounds) + a nearby Warpsmith with the A Tempting Addendum Enhancement (+1 to Hit from Warpsmith’s Master of Mechanisms and Full Hit rerolls from the Enhancements) + a nearby Helbrute with the Dark Ascension Ability (grants both Lethals and Sustained Hits for nearby Dark Pacting units) + Dark Pacts faction rule + nearby Vashtorr for the Unholy Mechanism ability (+2 Strength to all weapons) = Absolutely filthy to anything that the Forgefiends can see.
    • Maulerfiend + the Unstoppable Rampage strategy to Kool-Aid Man a Maulerfiend through terrain.
  • Key Stratagems
    • Unstoppable Rampage – see above
    • Daemonic Possession – turn a Helbrute into a Daemon Engine?  Why not?
• Necrons
  • Pretty much all of the 40K influencer and online community will tell you that Annihilation legion is bad.  Maybe it is, but for some reason this detachment fits me like a glove and I have yet to lose a game in 10th edition with it.
  • The game plan for the Necrons was to hide in the early turns and to focus on keeping the game close by holding their home objective and killing at least 1 CSM unit per turn.  The thought was to use the Nightbringer to skirmish in the midfield until the time was right and then to execute a massive “go turn” where all of the Skorpekh’s would charge out to sweep at least 2 midfield objectives clear.  Think of it as a patient and then Aggressive Hitter approach.
  • Suffice it to say that approach worked as the Necrons were able to fully execute their “go turn” in the bottom of Round 2, with CSM losing 6 units and essentially wiping them off of everything except their home and natural expansion objectives.
  • Key Combos:
    • Not a true combo, but 3 Lokhust Heavy Destroyers with Enmitic Exterminators coming out of Strategic Reserves is VERY nasty to any infantry in the area.
    • I didn’t get to execute it in this game, but 5 – 10 Flayed Ones charging into a Below Half Strength target and then popping Spoor of Frailty for +1 Hit and +1 to Wound while getting all hits as Critical Hits and Sustained thanks to the Flesh Hunger ability is NASTY.
  • Key Stratagems
    • Spoor of Frailty – See above combo.
    • Pitiless Hunters – I used this in Rounds 2 and 3 to Pile In and Consolidate 6 inches instead of 3.  It made my Skorpekhs super fast and helped them move from cover to cover and avoid the Forgefiends.
    • Lokhust Destroyers’ Hardwired for Destruction (full Hit rerolls against the nearest enemy unit on an objective) and Gauss Cannons (Lethal Hits) + Lokhust Lord’s  Destroyer Cult ability (Critical Hits on 5+) + Annihilation Protocols detachment rule (+1 AP vs the closest enemy target) = 18 shots with Lethals on 5+ and full rerolls at AP -3, 2 damage.  Big time damage!! 

WHAT I WOULD CHANGE NEXT TIME:

• CSM
  • So many changes that I would make, but the obvious one is to position my Forgefiend castle where it could attack the Necrons Natural Expansion Objective, instead of where it could defend the CSM Natural Expansion one.  It made it too easy for the Necrons to play around them.  
• Necrons
  • Not much.  For some reason, this list and detachment just jive with me.

EARNED HIMSELF A NAME:Lokhust Destroyers + Lokhust Lord.  In Round 2, they delivered 24 damage to Vashtorr and blew him off the board.  This scored the Necrons 7 points on secondaries (Bring it Down and Overwhelming Force) and opened up that whole flank for a Skorpekh charge.  

MAGNUS OF THE GAME: Vashtorr.  Sure he took down 2 Lokhust Destroyers to failed Hazardous checks thanks to his Reorder Reality ability, but that does not make up for him getting one shotted off the board.

LISTS:

Chaos Space Marines

Soulforged Warpack

Strike Force (2,000 Points)

CHARACTERS

Vashtorr the Arkifane (175 Points)

  • Warlord

  • 1x Vashtorr’s claw

  • 1x Vashtorr’s hammer

Warpsmith (95 Points)

  • 1x Flamer tendril

  • 1x Forge weapon

  • 1x Melta tendril

  • 1x Plasma pistol

  • Enhancements: Tempting Addendum

Warpsmith (90 Points)

  • 1x Flamer tendril

  • 1x Forge weapon

  • 1x Melta tendril

  • 1x Plasma pistol

  • Enhancements: Forge’s Blessing

BATTLELINE

Cultist Mob (50 Points)

  • 1x Cultist Champion

     ◦ 1x Autopistol

     ◦ 1x Brutal assault weapon

  • 9x Chaos Cultist

     ◦ 9x Autopistol

     ◦ 9x Brutal assault weapon

Cultist Mob (50 Points)

  • 1x Cultist Champion

     ◦ 1x Autopistol

     ◦ 1x Brutal assault weapon

  • 9x Chaos Cultist

     ◦ 9x Autopistol

     ◦ 9x Brutal assault weapon

OTHER DATASHEETS

Forgefiend (180 Points)

  • 1x Armoured limbs

  • 1x Ectoplasma cannon

  • 2x Ectoplasma cannon

Forgefiend (180 Points)

  • 1x Armoured limbs

  • 1x Ectoplasma cannon

  • 2x Ectoplasma cannon

Forgefiend (180 Points)

  • 1x Armoured limbs

  • 2x Ectoplasma cannon

  • 1x Ectoplasma cannon

Helbrute (130 Points)

  • 1x Close combat weapon

  • 1x Missile launcher

  • 1x Twin lascannon

Helbrute (130 Points)

  • 1x Close combat weapon

  • 2x Heavy flamer

  • 1x Helbrute fist

  • 1x Helbrute fist

Helbrute (130 Points)

  • 1x Close combat weapon

  • 2x Heavy flamer

  • 1x Helbrute fist

  • 1x Helbrute fist

Maulerfiend (130 Points)

  • 1x Lasher tendrils

  • 1x Maulerfiend fists

Maulerfiend (130 Points)

  • 1x Lasher tendrils

  • 1x Maulerfiend fists

Venomcrawler (110 Points)

  • 2x Excruciator cannon

  • 1x Soulflayer tendrils and claws

Venomcrawler (110 Points)

  • 2x Excruciator cannon

  • 1x Soulflayer tendrils and claws

Warp Talons (125 Points)

  • 1x Warp Talon Champion

     ◦ 1x Warp claws

  • 4x Warp Talon

     ◦ 4x Warp claws

Necrons

Annihilation Legion

Strike Force (2,000 Points)

CHARACTERS

C’tan Shard of the Nightbringer (305 Points)

  • 1x Gaze of death

  • 1x Scythe of the Nightbringer

Hexmark Destroyer (75 Points)

  • 1x Close combat weapon

  • 1x Enmitic disintegrator pistols

Hexmark Destroyer (75 Points)

  • 1x Close combat weapon

  • 1x Enmitic disintegrator pistols

Lokhust Lord (90 Points)

  • 1x Resurrection Orb

  • 1x Staff of light

  • Enhancements: Ingrained Superiority

Skorpekh Lord (90 Points)

  • Warlord

  • 1x Enmitic annihilator

  • 1x Flensing claw

  • 1x Hyperphase harvester

Skorpekh Lord (90 Points)

  • 1x Enmitic annihilator

  • 1x Flensing claw

  • 1x Hyperphase harvester

OTHER DATASHEETS

Flayed Ones (120 Points)

  • 10x Flayed One

     ◦ 10x Flayer claws

Flayed Ones (60 Points)

  • 5x Flayed One

     ◦ 5x Flayer claws

Flayed Ones (60 Points)

  • 5x Flayed One

     ◦ 5x Flayer claws

Lokhust Destroyers (180 Points)

  • 6x Lokhust Destroyer

     ◦ 6x Close combat weapon

     ◦ 6x Gauss cannon

Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (110 Points)

  • 2x Lokhust Heavy Destroyer

     ◦ 2x Close combat weapon

     ◦ 2x Gauss destructor

Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (165 Points)

  • 3x Lokhust Heavy Destroyer

     ◦ 3x Close combat weapon

     ◦ 3x Enmitic exterminator

Lokhust Heavy Destroyers (55 Points)

  • 1x Close combat weapon

  • 1x Gauss destructor

Ophydian Destroyers (80 Points)

  • 3x Ophydian Destroyer

     ◦ 3x Ophydian hyperphase weapons

     ◦ 1x Plasmacyte

Ophydian Destroyers (80 Points)

  • 3x Ophydian Destroyer

     ◦ 3x Ophydian hyperphase weapons

     ◦ 1x Plasmacyte

Skorpekh Destroyers (180 Points)

  • 6x Skorpekh Destroyer

     ◦ 2x Plasmacyte

     ◦ 6x Skorpekh hyperphase weapons

Skorpekh Destroyers (90 Points)

  • 3x Skorpekh Destroyer

     ◦ 1x Plasmacyte

     ◦ 3x Skorpekh hyperphase weapons

Skorpekh Destroyers (90 Points)

  • 3x Skorpekh Destroyer

     ◦ 1x Plasmacyte

     ◦ 3x Skorpekh hyperphase weapons

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