Battle Report
Battlefleet Gothic
A Gathering Of Arms - Part One
Introduction
|
|
|
|
Turn One Turn Two |
Turn Four Conclusion |
Date of Game: Saturday 29th December 2001
Forces Used: Imperial and Chaos
Points Limit: 1500 (Imperial Defender), 1000 (Chaos Attacker)
Mission Played: Blockade Run - Scenario Five (Blue Book)
Battlefield: Deep Space - No celestial phenomena
Table: 1.83m x 0.90m
Special Rules: We decided to try out a variation of the turret defence rules, which states that turrets get their normal defensive fire for every five wings of attack craft - although the rules for turret defensive fire agianst torpedoes was unchanged and not using this variation. This is to give ships more defence against large waves of attack craft and not allow carriers to dominate the game as much. The game had a limit of six turns of play, and since we always forget the modifiers to command checks we decided from the start to ignore these for this game. (Before you all email in and tell me how this affects the game, I know, but it seemed easier than bringing them in half way or only remembering to use them some of the time. I would not suggest that you use this modification to the rules in your normal games, unless you give it background such as ion storms disrupting communication and battle information.) Finally, we do not use the fleet allocation rules for picking a fleet for a game, and simply choose whatever we like.
Another note that should be pointed out is that in this version of the scenario we decided to give the defender two thirds the points value of the Imperial fleet, instead of half the points. I say 'decided', but in reality I didnt read the scenario properly and constructed a larger fleet. This is not such a problem, as this game is the first of two. We decided to play the scenario twice, each as the attacker and defender, and work out the overall winner over the two games. This being the case, the increased points value for the defender would haunt me, as the Imperial fleet would have the same advantage next game.
Background: The Viridian System had been highly contested by Imperial and Chaos fleets for eighteen years, and the result was that both sides had been reduced to a fraction of their original strength and power. The Imperial and Chaos forces had entered the area at the edges of their controlled space looking to secure the system to use as a watch post, and the fact that myths and legends had spoken of an ancient race inhabiting the planet eons ago was seen as meer stories, of no relevance to the present struggles. It was at this point that a beacon was detected beneath the surface of the fourth planet. The two fleets raced against each other to secure the planet, drawing any of the scattered forces that they could muster to it, and attempting to prevent the other side from getting their various battle groups and squadrons into the area.
So, another game against Tim. We decided to play the Blockade Run scenario from the Blue Book (page 73), and I won the choice of attacker or defender. I decided to play the attacker, as my Chaos fleet will perform better making a break for it as it has the speed and hitting power to do it. Still, if I had lost the choice, I am pretty sure that Tim would have taken the defender anyway, since the Imperial fleet is less agile and has better armour for the immovable defence.
The scenario is a difficult one for the defenders, but that does not make it a walkover for the attackers. While the attacker starts at a disadvantage with only half the points value, the defender is forced to spread his ships across the far side of the board and each ship or squadron is placed in a random third. I also get bonus points for getting clear of the board intact. There are two ways to play this game. Get the ships off as quick as possible, or hang around and cause as much damage as you can, playing on the fact that my half points should be up against only a third of the enemy force for the first turn or two, and then get clear when a few ships are destroyed.
I think that I will simply move forward and try to get clear. But, I am not going to simply press the big red button and panic fly forwards. I want to stay in formation, take as much out of the Imperial fleet as I can as I go forwards. I also don't want to sacrifice my firepower for speed, so although I wont be hanging around for a chat, I wont storm out of the battle recklessly.
My first choice is my Warmaster. I think that, around the second or third turn, I will need as much help as I can get, and for this reason I want to take an extra reroll. However, I always take both ships and characters from my fleet list, and while I have a number of characters on the list (around eight), none of them have a leadership of 9 and the Mark of Tzeentch. In the end, I go for Lord Vermilion with leadership of 8 and the reroll. But I may regret that later! For his flagship, I decide on a Repulsive grand cruiser. I love this class, and for this game it will provide the firepower, with strength 14 broadsides each side, and the staying power, with 10 hits and three turrets. This ship will be able to survive and support the rest of the fleet, and the torpedoes may prove useful for clearing an exit path.
For this fleet, I think that a majority of cruisers is the best strategy, as they have the survivability and firepower not to dissolve after a turn or two. I also want to put my faith in large weapons batteries on broadsides as I envision that I will be attacked from the sides and will need to hold open a channel to fly down. However, my next choice is another a personal favourite, a Devastation class cruiser. I don't think that attack craft will be particularly useful for my mission this game, but fighter squadrons will hopefully be able to hold back the enemy bombers and torpedoes that are bound to be present - especially since my fleet will need to be fairly close together to support each other. So, the Sariel will be included to throw out fighter squadrons, and when these are exhausted it may be used as a sacrificial ship to allow other ships off the board if necessary.
With half the points spent, I need to look at strength and a couple of stable choices. For this I pick a Carnage class and a Murder class cruiser, this is a pair of cruisers with excellent firepower and a good range. I decided against the Slaughter Class for this game as its speed, while getting it out of play quickly, would separate it from the fleet. I wanted to go for a combined and relentless breakthrough and these two ships will provide the backbone of my fleet and are excellent value for points.
Finally, with only one hundred and fifty points left, I was on to the Escorts. While torpedoes might be nice, they would probably be wasted as my enemy would be attacking me from the sides and I would want to just defend as much as possible, and I had a few in my flagship. The Idolators were also tempting, but did not really have enough punch. Iconoclasts can be fragile ships, but with 3 firepower each and at only 30 points, I could have a single squadron with combined firepower of 15 which was able to take 10 hits. Not bad, and it may be able to pick off and distract any attacks and protect the main fleet.
So, with a fleet that I am happy with, it was time to think of how to use it. I have the advantage of being able to set up my fleet after the defender, and seeing the enemy location. I think that I will pick a weak flank to break through, and hope that half of the enemy fleet will be unable to arrive in good time, or that I can pick them off in isolation. I will try to keep my ships in a rough line to give the broadsides maximum spread, with the Repulsive starting at the front but moving slower to cover the other ships. The Devastation will stay inside the line in relative safety while it throws out fighters and the Iconoclasts will probably take point, a little away from the main line to engage anything before the rest of my fleet is in range. That is the theory…
Despite the number of points available from which to pick my fleet, my choice of ships for this battle is largely influenced by the scenario. My forces will have to be able to cover a large amount of space with their weapons and be able to move around rapidly if they are to block Iain's forces and prevent them leaving the board. Given the depth of battle space Iain has to cover, on average this will take his vessels only three turns.
In order to do this I have brought to fruition an idea that I have had in mind since the days of Space Fleet, ten years ago. The idea is that of the hunter/killer battlegroup. This is a force of ships consisting of one fast cruiser and a swarm of escorts. These would be able to move rapidly against an enemy cruiser (hunting) and then have enough firepower deployed around that vessel to destroy it (killer). The combination of a Dauntless cruiser and 5 Cobra escorts is ideal for this role. Speed of between 25cm and 30cm per turn and 90 degree turning gives them the necessary agility and rapid movement. Their torpedo armament allows the force to pump out 16 torpedoes per turn with weapon batteries in support. With two such groups in my force their aim will be to hunt and kill Iain's fast moving escorts and 'find' and 'fix' any capital ships. To 'strike' such ships I have included four cruisers. Two Tyrants with massive close range weapon batteries to do the killing, a Gothic to give lance fire and a Dictator carrier as an insurance against bomber attack. All these vessels are torpedo armed for extra battering power. I have gone against my traditional preference for carriers as I believe I will not have enough time in this scenario to build up strike wings of sufficient strength. I have also bought an Admiral and two extra re-rolls as insurance should I find myself in any tricky leadership situations. So will the hunter/killer teams swarm like piranha or wallow like toothless old whales? We shall see!
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Setup was performed as per the instructions for the scenario. The Imperials, as defenders, deployed first, allowing the Chaos fleet to see the deployment before setting up. The Imperial is further restricted in that each vessel and squadron is sent to a random third of the setup area. Tim, not knowing my setup at this point, distributed his ships as evenly the dice allowed. I then concentrated my forces to face what I perceived to be his weaker flank, in the east.
|
On board the Iblis, Lord Khan gazed around. He knew that some fleets which were allied to the dark powers
had lost their honour and discipline, and he prided himself that his ship remained structured and ordered
in these difficult times. The entire fleet had a reputation for being ruthlessly efficient, a simmering
battlelust held in check by devotion to a common cause. The Viridian System held an important key, he could
feel it, and he would be there with the Iblis at the taking of the planet and the discovery of whatever mysteries
it held. Only a thin line of the weak Imperial fools stood before his fleet and a clear path to the fourth planet. They were many, more than the Chaos fleet that was true, but they could not stand before him. It had been ordaned and they could not be stopped. These 'loyalists' were blinded by their faith, stuck within the old routines and traditions which had long become obsolete and redundent, and which kept the truth from them and never allowed them to see outside of their own tiny perception of the galaxy. |
Date: 11/05/2002
Written by: CyberShadow