Chaos Wins!

Shep and I got a 2000 point game in recently as testing for an upcoming GT I may be attending in early September.

This was Shep's golden ticket earning list from the Conquest GT last month.

Imperial Guard Glass Cannon (2000)

HQ

Company Command Squad (Melta x4) w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)
Company Command Squad (Melta x4) w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)

Troop

Veteran Squad x 10 (Plasma x 3) w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)
Veteran Squad x 10 (Plasma x 3) w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)
Veteran Squad x 10 (Plasma x 3) w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)
Veteran Squad x 10 (Plasma x 3) w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)

Heavy Support

Manticore (Heavy Flamer)
Manticore (Heavy Flamer)
Manticore (Heavy Flamer)

Fast Attack

Vendetta (Twin Linked Lascannon)
Vendetta (Twin Linked Lascannon)
Vendetta (Twin Linked Lascannon)

Elite

Psyker Battle Squad x 8 w Chimera (Heavy Flamer)

Pretty impressive glass cannon offering here: Tons of front loaded firepower designed to shock and awe early along with plenty of mobility to grab objective late.

The Ork list I countered with I outlined in this article here: A pretty standard Battlewagon rush list but with a significant amount of fire support.

Mission Type:

Spearhead / Capture Control

We place our objectives in the opposite corners. Shep wins the roll and opts to go first. This single roll already lowers my odds considerably. IG is very difficult to beat, often insurmountable when going second.

Shep deploys like so with his scout move:

From 40k_Batrep

I consider a number of options here and end up just deploying my fire support. I leave all my troops, wagons, HQ's and fast attack in reserve.

From 40k_Batrep

I'm forced to cram most of my army into the forest to get area terrain cover. Without it the Manticores are free to rain fiery death onto my fire support indirectly and I'll get no cover at all.

I attempt to seize initiative as doing so would be a significant benefit. With over 20 lootas and 3 twin linked kannonz I could knock down his shooting significantly or at least stun his fire buying me time for the reserves to show up.

I fail to seize.

Turn 1 - IG

Shep unloads on my lootas and kannonz. Multiple Manticore blasts rip into my infantry blowing the majority to bits. Here is a picture of the aftermath.

From 40k_Batrep

He wiped the 14 man Loota unit with several barrages and then a weaken resolve from his Psyker Battle Squad. The Kannonz were also wiped out with his first round of shooting. I did manage to keep a couple of small loota units alive although one was pinned with a failed leadership test.

Turn 1 - Orks

I am able to retaliate with a single 4 infantry loota unit. I wreck a vendetta.

Turn 2 - IG

Shep moves towards my objective with a troop chimera and prepares for my reserves with the rest of his army. He manages to run off an additional loota unit and the rest of my kannon crew. He doesn't roll too well with this blasts though so I still have a surviving loota unit of 3 remaining.

From 40k_Batrep

Turn 2 - Orks

Ork Reserves:

Wagon with 19 Boyz + KFF
Wagon with 3 Nobz + Ghazghkull Thraka
6 Warbuggies

I get very lucky with my reserve rolls. That is crucial to my split deployment strategy.

I move on with my wagons full speed and position my buggies for rockitt shots on his vehicles. I keep everything within KFF range so when he shoots back I'll benefit from cover saves. Ghazghkull debarks from his wagon and positions himself for a charge.

I am able to wreck a CCS chimera with rockitt fire and stun a second one. My 3 lootas stun one of his vendettas sparing my wagons from some LC fire for one more turn. Ghazghkull assaults and blows up the stunned vehicle along with a number of the CCS inside.

From 40k_Batrep

From 40k_Batrep

From 40k_Batrep

Turn 3 - IG

Shep retaliates with his lone functional Vendetta, some melta guns from the debarked CCS and more manticore spam. He shells my wagons and wrecks one and explodes another. The nobz and boyz are now exposed with the KFF. He also stuns a buggy and weapon destroys another. He attempts to weaken resolve the vulnerable boyz that fell out of the wagon but I pop Ghazghkull's WAAGH ability making my entire army fearless for the turn. This also confers him with a 2+ invulnerable save against the CCS melta fire. He survives an entire round of shooting and only takes 1 wound.

From 40k_Batrep

Turn 3 - Orks

Ork Reserves:

30 Boyz
10 Gretchin

I crash my infantry reserves on top of my objective in the far corner figuring if he's going to take that objective I'm going to make him earn it. He's split his vendettas over near that side and a single Chimera. His forward objective taking offense isn't quite as imposing as his current fire support.

From 40k_Batrep

From 40k_Batrep

On the other side I move the Nobz and battered boy unit into position to assault and aim to take additional shots with my buggies. I wreck another two chimeras and expose guardsmen and his psyker battle squad. I explode a leading manticore with a Ghazgkhull assault. Still under Ghazghkull's WAAAGH! I then run and charge all exposed infantry with my nobz and boyz and finish them off.

From 40k_Batrep

Turn 4 - IG

Shep now takes advantage of garbage time on his side of the table. My infantry are exposed and my WAAGH! now resolved. Ghazghkull reverts from a 2+ invulnerable save to a 5+ and succumbs to plasma spam. The remaining ork infantry are almost wiped out near his objective and really only buggies remain. He attempts to engage my foot orks near my objective but can't make any inroads to the marker.

Turn 4 - Orks

Ork Reserves:

Battlewagon with 19 Boyz.

I move the wagon onto the table in the middle aiming towards the chimera near my own objective. The remaining boyz shoot big shoota fire into his side armor and fail. The last of the lootas immobilizes the vehicle however and I'm able to finish it off with a massive boyz charge. On the other side of the table my buggies pepper rockitt shots into his chimeras and happen to stun one and then wreck his now missile-less manticores.

From 40k_Batrep

Turn 5 - IG

Shep wipes almost all of the remaining buggies with plasma shots and his functional vendettas and secures his objective with a troop. He doesn't have any additional firepower to deal with the massive horde of Orks on mine however.

From 40k_Batrep

Turn 5 - Orks

With the chimera nearby my objective now immobile and functionally a paper weight I consolidate onto my objective with 3 troops. The last battlewagon in from reserve is a non-factor and serves as insurance to any further turns. The game ends.

From 40k_Batrep

Orks tie Imperial Guard, 1 objective to 1.

I somehow manage to turn a severe beating in the early game into a tie. I think my reserve rolls on turn 2 were a bit over the top but still, those threats were enough to win and my army was resilient on defense enough to completely overwhelm his attack on my objective. Over 100 infantry tend to be able to do that.

I still don't like this matchup, but it's nice to see that I can still pull off a draw even if I don't go first. I'm not sure if the reserve strategy is always appropriate but here I basically nerfed his Vendetta's in the early game as they didn't have any viable targets to shoot at, and I made him use his manticore missiles on infantry instead of vehicles. My wagons still didn't last very long but he just had too many orks to kill to focus on offense once the reserves started showing up.

All in all a decent game and against the heat I was facing I'm pleased with my list.