Battle Report #29 - Lahkers vs Orks, Casual Edition

Hey!  I finally got the Necrons onto the tabletop again, this time for a casual game at the friendly local gaming club.  My opponent was Jeff, and he brought Orks.  I decided to try out Trazyn the Infinite for the first time, as well as a new variation on the royal court.

Lahkers

Trazyn the Infinite w/Empathic Obliterator

10x Warriors

15x Warriors

10x Immortals

8x Triarch Praetorians w/voidblades and particle casters

3x Tomb Blades w/gauss and shield vanes

3x Heavy Destroyers

Annihilation Barge

Orks

Nob blob with Warboss w/powa klaw, Warboss w/Mega-nob armor, Painboy, Mekboy, take Battlewagon (all trukks and wagon had 1x rokkit launcha)

3x Boy mobs, 2 with 'eavy Armor, all in Trukks (3 blobs, 3 Trukks)

3x Deffkoptas

Bomma

We got Big Guns Never Tire for mission and Dawn of War for deployment.  Objectives were placed three nearer to my side of the table, one in the center of the table.

Jeff won the initiative and deployed first, put his Trukks (with boyz inside) line abreast, Battlewagon with his bosses and Nobs in the center, and keeping the Deffkoptas in reserve.

Recalling my earliest games with Orks (the most infamous where Ike tabled me turn 1) and my most recent victory (where I played my gunline army like an actual gunline army)  I took special care to deploy my gunline behind my melee troops and any available terrain.  The Annihilation Barge and Destroyers went on my far right (to destroy the Battlewagon and Nobz), and the Praetorians and Royal Court went in front.  This particular court, with the Lords Nahz and Nihkyanh, Overlord Byrahn, and Trazyn and the Cryptek, was built around Trazyn's body-swapping ability and betting heavily that my T5 and 3+ saves would make them an effective tarpit (or speed bump) unit.

I did not choose to steal the initiative, and Turn 1 began as I expected, except faster.  Jeff's Trukks rocketed across the table, as I'd expected, but got much closer to my lines than I was comfortable with.  Then Jeff let loose with his Trukk's rokkit launchas, which I definitely had not expected.  They missed, Ork accuracy being what it is.

My turn 1, I spread my troops out and moved backwards, widening the distance between us as much as I could.  The Destroyers blew up Jeff's right-most Trukk, and the Orks failed their pinning test and went to ground.  The Barge fired at the Battlewagon and didn't do a thing; I had forgotten that Battlewagons are AV14 on the front, to my detriment.  The rest of my shooting was pretty dismal, between crappy to-hit rolls and Jeff having been kunnin' in equipping his boyz with 'eavy Armor for a 4+ save.

Jeff's turn 2, his transports moved closer, and all his Orks jumped out and closed the distance to my troops.  His Deffkoptas came in, and outflanked on my left side.  The Bomma came on, arrived from Jeff's center edge, and headed directly across the table.  His shooting didn't do much other than take a few wounds.  Then he made his charges; his Warbosses and Nobz got into my Praetorians, and one mob of Boyz got to my Royal Court.  The Nobz dealt a pile of wounds to the Praetorians, who then flunked the majority of their saves, and were quickly wiped.  The Royal Court was another story.  I challenged with Trazyn, the local Nob accepted, and Trazyn survived his big choppa to kill him and get the special rule on his Empathic Obliterator off.  It killed a few more Orks, I lost Nahz and Byrahn, and the combat continued.

My turn I, got the Tomb Blades in, and brought them on to shield the Annihilation Barge from charges.  I pushed my 15-man Warrior blob back against the table edge, and pulled my right-most Warriors back further.  Shooting went poorly; Jeff's Orks were running hot with their armor saves, and while I killed a few Nobz and Boyz and one Trukk, I didn't kill as many as I'd wanted.  I made a gamble with my Immortals and sent them in to join the Royal Court in melee, and with their weight in attacks, routed the Orks, and got them in a sweeping advance!  That doesn't happen every day.

Jeff's turn.  His Bomma roared overhead, dropped one of its bombs successfully, and vaporized Lord Nihkyanh.  His Boyz on my right climbed onto the hill and claimed the objective.  The last Trukk got onto the objective on my left.  The Nobz swarmed towards the Royal Court and multi-assaulted them and my Warrior blob.  Trazyn went down swinging, and the Warriors somehow stayed in combat.  The other Boyz, the ones by the Nobz, charged my Immortals, then lost combat and ran away.

I pulled my army away from the Ork-dominated center.  Immortals on the left, Tomb Blades, Destroyers, and the Barge and my last few Warriors on the right.  I had my Blades and Destroyers head for the center of the board, in an attempt to grab or contest objectives.  The Destroyers killed the Battlewagon, the Tomb Blades picked off that lonely Boy, and the Immortals killed the Trukk camping on the left objective.  Inevitably, my Warrior blob was crushed by the Nobz.

However.  Jeff now had only his Warboss-Nob squad, his Deffkoptas, and a Bomma left.  I had numerical superiority.  The Bomma made a run on my Barge, and I jinked it.  The bomb failed to drop anyway (Ork bombing run table screwed it over), and the Nobz had to console themselves by slaughtering my Immortals.  The Deffkoptas jumped on the center objective on my side of the board, and the last Boy mob (on my right) got tangled up with my remaining Warriors.

My turn, I moved the Barge onto the right objective, got the Destroyers to the center objective on the other side of the board (thank you jet pack move) and the Tomb Blades shot down two Deffkoptas and assaulted the last one, contesting the objective.

The game ended there.  I held 2 objectives (6VP) and had First Blood (1VP) for a total of 7VP.  Jeff had 1 objective (3VP), Slay the Warlord for killing Trazyn (1VP), and Line Breaker (1VP) for a total of 5VP.

7-5 victory points, my favor.  Lahkers won for the second time in a row!

I was surprised, just like my last game.  I had been confident turn 1, concerned turn 2, and resigned from turn 3 onward, expecting a defeat...and then it turned out I'd killed just enough, and Jeff had gone all-in to such an extent, that he couldn't grab the key other objective, and I could.

Props to Jeff for being a chill Ork player (is there any other kind?) and to Trazyn and the Praetorians for dying so the gunline could live just long enough.  It's good to Warhammer again.

Edit: images are now proper size.

Extra Pics:

 

Battle Report #19: Casual Lahkers vs Chaos Space Marines/Orks

Played a casual match with Ike recently.  I got to test a Maelstrom list for Byrahn to lead, a list that wouldn't fall apart on Turn 2, and see Ike's newly-painted Iron Warriors.

Command Center ate my list, so here it is in regular old type form.  We played 1750 point lists.

Lahkers CAD
Necron Overlord (Byrahn) w/warscythe, phase shifter, Veil of Darkness
10x Warriors in Ghost Ark
10x Immortals w/gauss
3x Tomb Blades w/particle beamer, shield vanes, nebuloscope
7x Lychguard w/hyperphase sword and dispersion shield (with Byrahn)
8x Triarch Praetorians w/voidblade and particle caster
Destroyer Cult:
Destroyer Lord w/Solar Staff, phase shifter
3x Destroyers
3x Destroyers
3x Destroyers
3x Heavy Destroyers

Ike's Iron Warriors & Orky pals
Iron Warriors
Chaos Lord w/power sword, plasma pistol, Mark of Khorne, sigil of corruption
10x Cultists w/flamer, autopistol-and-CCW
10x Cultists w/heavy stubber, autoguns
20x Chaos Space Marines w/Icon of Vengeance
4x Chaos Space Marines w/bolt pistol-and-CCW, Aspiring Champion has 2x lightning claws and gift of mutation, all in Chaos Rhino (dirge caster, extra armour, dozer blade, smoke launchers)
3x Chaos Spawn, each on their own
Mayhem Pack:
3x Helbrutes w/multi-melta, power fist
Orks
Painboy w/urty syringe, dok's tools
10x Boyz in trukk
5x Deffkoptas w/choppa, twin-linked rokkit launcha
10x Lootas w/deffgun and stikkbombs

We rolled Big Guns Never Tire on Dawn of War deployment.  Objectives were placed nearly straight across the center of the table, one each in the big ruins, one in the very center by the giant Chaos meat patty, one in the round cacti field.
Warlord traits: I got Eternal Warrior for Byrahn, Ike got the one on the CSM table that lets him infiltrate D3 units.

From left to right, I deployed the Praetorians, Lychguard with Byrahn, Immortals, Destroyer Lord, and Ghost Ark as my front line.  On my second line, left to right, I had Destroyers, more Destroyers, and then the Heavy Destroyers.  The last squad of Destroyers and Tomb Blades I kept in reserve.

Ike put the Chaos Lord, his Rhino, and the Boyz and Painboy in their Trukk went in the center.  On my right he put the Deffkoptas, and on the very table edge, in the ruins, the Lootas.  Three Chaos Spawn, each alone, were spaced roughly equadistant across his front line.  He had the two Cultists squads and the 20-man CSM blob infiltrate at 18" away, the CSM going in the center, the Cultists in line with the two large ruins.  He held his Ferrus Infernum Dreadnought and Helbrute Mayhem Pack in reserve.

GAME TURN 1

Turn 1 - Me

I moved the Praetorians, Lychguard, and Destroyer Lord up, intending to use them to stall Ike's advancing units.  Both regular Destroyer squads moved up too, one behind the Praetorians, one into cover in the central ruins.  In the Shooting phase, I picked off a few models here and there, but didn't do anything spectacular (though I may have killed one of the Spawn).

Turn 1 - Ike

Ike uniformly moved his army forwards, sending the Cultists into the ruins on my left, his Trukk and CSM blob into the center, and scooting his Deffkoptas up to threaten my Ghost Ark.  The Chaos Spawn rocketed across the field, one targeting my Praetorians, one targeting the Destroyers in the ruins, and where the third one was either dead already or died in a boring and unmemorable manner.  Speaking of dying.  The Deffkoptas opened up on the Ark, and it Jinked both them and the Lootas' shooting.  Ike's shooting was about as (in)effective as mine, killing maybe one Praetorian and Lychguard, and a Destroyer in the ruins.  The Spawn all got into combat, one dying to my Praetorians, the other having more success against my Destroyers.

GAME TURN 2

Turn 2 - Me

I rolled reserves, and got both the Tomb Blades and Destroyers.  I deep-struck the Destroyers in Ike's back line, and brought the Tomb Blades in on my right flank to deal with the Lootas.  Turn 2 moving was very similar to my Turn 1 moving, with the exception of the Immortals and Heavy Destroyers shuffling forward further for better targets.  I made a tactical blunder on my left, bringing my Destroyers too close to the Chaos Rhino, and not screening the Rhino with my Praetorians.  I wrecked the Rhino, but the Chaos Lord and his squad slipped out towards my Destroyers which had not been properly screened by the Praetorians.  Yes, I am still kicking myself for this.  The Immortals and Heavy Destroyers dealt a few wounds to the Deffkoptas, and the Tomb Blades killed a few Lootas, and would have killed a lot more had I remembered they had the Nebuloscope (AP4 blasts with Ignores Cover = a lot of dead Orks).  The Lychguard and Destroyer Lord charged the CSM blob and began hacking them down to size.  I lost a Destroyer to that annoying Chaos Spawn in the ruins.

Turn 2 - Ike

Ike rolled for reserves, got his Infernum Dread in, but thankfully did not get the Helbrutes.  The angry Chaos Dreadnought used Outflank and waddled threateningly onto my left flank.  The Chaos Lord lunged at my exposed Destroyers on the left flank, the Trukk dropped its Boyz in the center field and then backed up towards my deep-striking Destroyers, and dropped off the Painboy.  The Deffkoptas chased my Ark around.  The Lootas and both Cultist squads sat tight in their cover.  The Deffkoptas once again failed to hurt the Ark.  Not much else happened in Shooting, I may have lost a Praetorian to the Cultists.  Then the Chaos Lord got stuck in with my Destroyers, the Spawn ate my last Destroyer in the ruins, and the Boyz joined in the Lychguard-CSM mosh pit in the center.  The Painboy got into combat with my Destroyers.

GAME TURN 3

Turn 3 - Me

The Immortals, Heavy Destroyers, and Tomb Blades scooted further into my right flank.  The Praetorians realized their terrible mistake and doubled back to bail the Destroyers out, or at least avenge their deaths.  This time, I remembered the Nebuloscope, and wiped the Loots out in one volley.  I think I disembarked the Warriors from the Ark, seeing that it would be Jinking for some turns to come.  The rest of my turn was passed in assault, where the Lychguard, Orks, and CSM all whaled on each other in good old bloody hand-to-hand combat.  Byrahn and the Destroyer Lord were having a blast.  All three squads were losing models, but I was coming out on top thanks to my the Lychguards' 3++ and AP3, and the fact that all my models were T5 or T6.  The Praetorians got into the CSM-Destroyer combat and began slapping down Chaos Marines.  Not much happened with the Painboy-Destroyer combat.

Turn 3 - Ike

Ike finally got his Helbrutes in, and had them deep-strike roughly in my center back line.  The Helbrutes weren't terribly effective in their shooting, but did pen the Ghost Ark and bring down its Quantum Shields.  He had his Painboy head towards my Destroyers in his lines.  Again, most of the turn was in assault.  The Chaos Lord and his CSM killed my Destroyers, however my Praetorians killed off all his bodyguards.  The Infernum Dread waddled into combat, assuring my Praetorians' eventual destruction.  I think the last Spawn had run over to join this combat at this point.  My Destroyers put a wound on the Painboy.

GAME TURN 4

Turn 4 - Me

The Warriors scrambled into the spiky plants to hold the objective there, and the Heavy Destroyers got as far away from the Helbrutes as they could.  Seeing how low my model count was getting in the Lychguard-CSM combat (I'd killed the Orks off at this point), I send the Immortals over to make sure I won the fight.  I had the Tomb Blades cruise towards the Cultist squads as well.  The Heavy Destroyers immobilized one Helbrute and reduced it to 1HP.  The Praetorians killed the Chaos Lord and Spawn, and then were squashed flat by the Infernum Dread.  Worth it.  The Immortals joined the Lychguard-CSM combat, and helped Byrahn and the Destroyer Lord deal the final blows.  Byrahn and his one remaining Lychguard consolidated towards the objective and the Proxy-Helbrute, and the Destroyer Lord headed for the large ruins with the Cultists.  My Destroyers killed the Painboy and consolidated towards the same Cultists.

Turn 4 - Ike

Ike had the Infernum Dread head towards center field, and had the Helbrutes fire on whatever they could.  I think I lost a Tomb Blade to them.  The Deffkoptas, what few remained, tried to chase down my Destroyers behind Ike's lines.  Then the Infernum Dread headed for my Tomb Blades, and I think the Proxy-Helbrute charged Byrahn and the Lychguard.  The other Helbrute charged and annihilated my Heavy Destroyers.  My models held fast and I believe Byrahn wrecked the Proxy-Helbrute in a single round.  The Destroyers got stuck in with the Cultists, and lost one Destroyer to a dangerous terrain roll on the charge.  Meh.  One Cultist made his t-shirt 6+ save (Destroyers have no AP), proving that products from a Noise Marine concert can come in handy.

GAME TURN 5

Turn 5 - Me

I had the Destroyers move into the large ruins to contest the Cultist-held objective, with the Destroyer Lord following close behind.  Byrahn and the Lychguard headed for the remaining mobile Helbrute.  The Immortals killed the remaining Deffkoptas, and the Ghost Ark (still alive, to my surprise) turned towards the Helbrutes.  The Destroyers-Cultist combat went nowhere, the Destroyer Lord whiffed on his charge, and Byrahn charged and killed his second Helbrute.  (Props to the Lychguard for being an excellent meat shield.)

Turn 5 - Ike

Ike's remaining Helbrute shot at Byrahn, I believe, and was once more frustrated by the Lychguard's 3++.  The Infernum Dread marched into combat with my Immortals and killed four of them.

I get the feeling we actually went for 6 turns, but I don't know for sure.  I didn't take notes for this game.  I do know it didn't get to Turn 7.

Regardless, at the end of the game, I had 2 objectives (6VP), and Slay the Warlord and First Blood and a Heavy Support kill (3VP total), for a final total of 9VP.  Ike had 2 objectives (2VP), Line Breaker, and one Heavy Support kill (2VP total) for a final total of 8VP.  Lahker victory!

Ike said afterwards a Khorne Daemonkin list might have been better.  I personally think it was a worthy list, the only problem being his Mayhem Pack didn't make it in till turn 3.  Not having 9 total HP of angry Chaos walkers to deal with until things were half over was 40-50% the reason I won, I would say.  I liked how this list panned out.  I want to get in the practice of winning games again without resorting to the Decurion.

Extra Pics:

Do not apply Chaos Spawn to face, hands, body, belongings, friends, or anything, really.

How not to screen enemy units off.

Best fisticuffs I've seen in a long time.

Battle Report #15: Lahkers & Tau vs Red Marauders

The Lahkers and the Tau couldn't agree on many things, but the need to teach those uppity, Dreadnought-spamming Red Marauders a lesson was one of those things two xenos races could concur on.

This was another Not-Apoc game, 4,000 points, from late summer, with me and Nathaniel teamed up against Ike.  We knew what each other were bringing, Ike with a special Iron Hands Dreadnought/Ork team-up, Nathaniel with his anti-tank Tau, and me with with an early iteration of the Lahkers' Destroyer Cult, along with my first try at fielding a Deathbringer Flight consisting of my Doom Scythe and my B-2 stealth bomber model.

Deployment was Dawn of War, mission was good old kill points.

My list. Destroyer Lord is the Warlord.

Nathaniel's Galactic Empire-themed Tau.

Ike's list (4000pts total)

Red Marauders Space Marines (Iron Hands Chapter Tactics)
Librarian w/Auspex, Digital Weapons, Mastery Level 2, Force Sword, Jump Pack
2x Techmarines (one with bolt pistol, boltgun, servo arm, other with auspex, boltgun, servo arm, storm bolter)
2x Servitors
Master of the Forge w/Conversion Beamer
2x Venerable Dreadnoughts w/extra armor, multi-melta, power fist/storm bolter, both in Drop Pods with Deathwind misisle launcher
2x Venerable Dreadnoughts w/assault cannon, power fist, one with storm bolter, one with heavy flamer
Ironclad Dreadnought w/hurricane bolter, Ironclad assault launchers, Seismic Hammer/heavy flamer
5x Scouts w/camo cloaks, heavy bolter w/hellfire shells, 3x sniper rifles
5x Tactical Marines w/vet sarge (armed with boltgun) and flamer in Razorback w/dozer blade, storm bolter, TL heavy bolter
5x Assault Marines w/2x flamers, vet sarge with combat shield and power axe
5x Devastators, 2x heavy bolters, sarge w/bolt pistol and chainsword, in Rhino

Orks
Painboy w/Gitfinda
Warboss w/attack squig, Bosspole, Cybork Body, 'eavy Armor, Kombi-Skorcha, Power klaw
Weirdboy Mastery level 2
4x Nobz in Battlewagon w/'ard case, extra armor, Grot Riggers, Kannon, Reinforced Ram
17x Shoota Boyz w/'eavy armor and Nob w/bosspole
10x Slugga Boyz in Trukk w/rokkit launcha
Burna-Bommer w/6x Skorcha missiles
2x Big Trakks w/2x Big Shootas, Grot Riggers, Supa-Kannon
Deff Dread w/extra armor, Grot Rigger, Power Klaw, Rokkit Launcha
Deff Dread w/extra armor, Grot Riggers, 2x Skorchas
4x Lootas w/Mek armed with Rokkit Launcha

Skitarii
5x Skitarii Rangers w/Transuranic arquebus, Ranger Alpha has galvanic rifle and refractor field
5x Skitarii Vanguard w/arc rifle, enhanced data-tether, plasma caliver, Vanguard Alpha has arc maul, conversion field, digital weapons, phosphor blast pistol

Inquisition
Ordo Xenos Inquisitor w/Conversion Beamer, Power Armor, Psychotroke Grenades, Mastery level 1, Rad Grenades, 3x Servo Skulls, Warlord
Henchmen Warband, 3x Acolytes w/boltguns, carapace armor, laspistol, 3x Jokaero Weaponsmiths, 1x Servitor w/heavy bolter

Deployment

Our deployment.  Me and Nathaniel roughly split the battlefield halfway for our armies.  The anti-tank guns were spread as evenly as possible across the board.  His Pathfinders were placed up on terrain for better markerlighting, my Triarch Stalker stood in a big crowd of Necrons to make its buff as effective as possible, and I put my Master of the Forge and his Scouts on the tall ruins at the top of the picture for maximum coverage with the Conversion Beamer.

Fire Prism and Raider are Hammerheads, walkers and Wraithlord are Broadside suits.

Ike's deployment.  He put a blob of boyz behind his Aegis line on his left flank, with the interceptor Quad-gun, put the Iron Hands armor in the center, and on the right flank put the Warboss and Weirdboy in their Trukks.  His Scouts infiltrated on the square ruins near our lines.

Full deployment, examples A and B.

And that was that for deployment.  On to the battle.

GAME TURN 1

Turn 1, ex. A

Turn 1, ex. B

Turn 1 - Us

The combined Necron-Tau force walked forward a bit.  Not much happened.  We were able to kill a Scout and a Loota, and mentally prepared ourselves for what was to come.

Turn 1 - Ike

Ike's turn began with a Deathwind-armed Drop Pod landing in our left corner, deploying his Vendread with the multi-melta.  His forces moved into and behind any available cover, and the Warboss and Weirdboy drove their Trukks forward according to standard ere-we-go tactics.  In the shooting phase, he killed two Destroyers, and the Drop Pod VenDread immobilized a Hammerhead gunship (the Raider).

GAME TURN 2

Turn 2, ex. A

Turn 2, ex. B

Turn 2 - Us

The action started to pick up this turn.  Both Praetorian squads came in, along with the Doom Scythes.  I sent the Scythes towards the Razorback, AT-ST Deff Dread, and the footslogging Ironclad Dread, and dropped the Praetorians in on Ike's right flank.  On our right flank, the Lahker troops and Destroyers made it to the square-based ruins, backed up by the Stalker and Crisis suits.  In shooting, we killed a few more scouts, my Heavy Destroyer knocked 1 HP off the Big Trakk on Ike's left flank, and my Destroyer squad in the middle (under the Scythes) killed the Weirdboy's Trukk for First Blood.  The Praetorians killed off Ik's right-flank Big Trakk, Nathaniel's Fire Warriors charged and grenaded the Drop Pod Dread to death, and the Hammerhead repaired its Immobilized result.

*Possibly this turn, possibly next turn, my Dev-proxy MoTF and Ike's Inquisitor began a conversion beamer duel, and I made this to commemorate it.*

Wait...conversion "beamber?" Dammit...

Turn 2 - Ike

Ike's Burna-Bomma, not about to be left out of the battle, flew onto the field.  The barely-assembled Skitarii Rangers and Vanguard made it onto the field, outflanked on Ike's left flank.  One of the Tau units Intercepted the Vanguard and killed 4 of the 5 men in the squad.  Ike poured on the shooting, however he only inflicted minimal casualties, mostly warriors and a Praetorian.  He did get some boyz into combat with the Tau on our left flank, not sure how.  Darn meddlin' orks.  The lone Skitarii Vanguard valiantly assaulted my warriors and was slain.

GAME TURN 3

Turn 3, ex. A 

Turn 3, ex. B

Turn 3 - Us

Our Necron-Tau infantry line didn't move much further this turn, they stood and fired.  The Riptide moved towards our left flank to provide fire support against the Orks and Dreadnought.  The Doom Scythes homed in on the Aegis defense line and killed the remaining Big Trakk hiding in the woods.  The Deff Dread (real model) approaching the Lahker-held ruins was destroyed, and the other Dreadnoughts were damaged.  My MoTF had a Conversion Beamer duel with Ike's Inquisitor, and killed a few of his acolytes.  The Praetorian squads then assaulted the Inquisitor's squad and the remaining Dreadnought on Ike's right flank.  (Bad move against the Dread, Praetorians with Rods of Covenant can't glance AV12)

Turn 3 - Ike

Ike's second Drop Pod finally arrived, putting his repainted Dreadnought down almost in our center field...it got Intercepted and exploded.  He began to inch his Orks and Lootas on his left flank up at this point.  The Burna-Bomma decimated the midfield squad of Fire Warriors, killing all but one model.  The Librarian and Assault Squad deep-struck into our right flank.  Ike caused light casualties across the board otherwise, and assaulted Lord Nahz's squad on the square ruins with the VenDread.  His Inquisitor's squad suffered losses at the hands of the Praetorians.

GAME TURN 4

Turn 4, ex. A

Turn 4, ex. B

Turn 4 - Us

The Doom Scythes moved into ongoing reserves.  My warriors and Stalker, finding themselves in range of Lootas, a Rhino of Marines, and the Assault Marines, decided to back up and re-form the line.  The Immortals gaussed the AT-ST Dread down.  The Rhino that had been hovering in the midfield near the square ruins was finally wrecked as well.  One Hammerhead and the Riptide put the Warboss and Nobz down.  In an unlikely intervention, Nahz had his Necron ass saved when the Crisis suits joined his combat and killed Ike's Dreadnought with an Onager gauntlet.

Turn 4 - Ike

Ike's forces had pretty much been removed from the lower half of the board at this point.  He focused his efforts on killing Nahz's squad and the Crisis suits.  The Crisis suits died to the joint effort of a Big Shoota and the Ironclad Dread, and Nahz was tackled lethally by the Librarian and his Assault buddies.  The Razorback charged onto our side of the table, I'm pretty sure it took a shot at the Stalker, but thankfully failed to kill it.

GAME TURN 5

Turn 5, ex. A

Turn 5, ex. B

Turn 5 - Us

The Doom Scythes swooped back onto the field, went after the Burna-Bomma, spammed the tesla destructors, and knocked it out of the sky.  The rest of the Necron-Tau force consolidated towards our side of the board in general, finishing off the mauled enemy units within range.  The Praetorians overcame the hardy Inquisitor and got Slay the Warlord at long last (the others got squished in their ill-considered Dreadnought combat), and a Techmarine and his servitors wandering around in the midfield were slain.

Turn 5 - Ike

Ike's Shoota Boyz made it far enough they could hose the Destroyers on their end of the board, taking a few of them out.  The Librarian charged my Destroyer Lord, whiffed his attacks, and then dodged the return attacks and...survived?  Maybe?  The record is incomplete here.  The Praetorian squad is listed as "kill", who or what is not specified.  They may have been killed, they don't show up in any pics at that point.  Ike's Scouts, battered but alive, still hunched in the square ruins, somehow hanging on through the slaughter going on around them.

The game ended the bottom of Turn 5.  Final score: Lahkers and Tau 17 kill points (counting Slay the Warlord and First Blood), and Ike got 11 kill points.  Victory for the Greater Good and the Dynasty!  (But more importantly the Dynasty.  Necrons rule.)

Final thoughts:

• Deathbringer Flight was a lot of fun, honestly more cool than effective for their points...still, they shot down the Bommer, destroyed a Big Trakk, and took a few HP off the Ironclad Dreadnought.  Not too bad.
• Destroyers do NOT belong on the front lines or in assault, not at all.
• Stalkers do a lot for your army when they're alive...hint hint, Gabe, put that Stalker in cover.  Maybe even in reserve.
• Funnily enough, Praetorians are better tank-busters with the voidblade (Rending, Entropic Strike) and the S6 particle caster pistol, rather than the nasty but low-strength Rod of Covenant.
• Be very, very thankful you were on the friendly end of the Tau guns this game.

Extra Pics:

Pictured: grand prize winners of the survive-the-match contest.

Ike's Lootas.

Ike's Inquisitorial warband, complete with what I believe are Battletech proxies for the Jokaeros.

The Warboss and the Weirdboy Wyrdfang da White.

An advance slightly more orderly than the 5k-point game.

I may have enjoyed this moment more than was necessary.

Skitarii...uh...Rangers outflank.

Skitarii Vanguard outflank, right before getting Intercepted.

We let Ike use Battletech's "flippy-arms" rule so his Dreadnought could bring his guns to bear on the Praetorians.

The Burna-Bommer lets fly with a skorcha missile.

Wyrdfang da White (left) charges into combat.

Ike actually had another conversion beamer on the field, but he got left out of the duel. Sorry MoTF.

The very nicely painted Dreadnought, which got intercepted when he dropped in.

MOST DEFINITELY NOT AS PLANNED

I may not be a great nemesor, but by the Silent Kings I can get good shots with them.

The Inquisitor-Praetorian combat. He did not go down easy.

The dramatic aerial pursuit of the Burna-Bommer.

That jump Librarian may not have survived after all.

"Guys, guys!  We're alive!  Who woulda thought?"