SAD 2008 40K Campaign Final Battle – The Fight for Landing Stage XI

The Fight for Landing Stage XI

The final of the 2008 SAD 40K Campaign was fought between 6 competitors divided into two teams. Rather than pick teams, the two Warlords, Matthew Davies and Paul Cockram, decided to base the sides on fluff.

Imperial Forces:

Warlord Paul Cockram, Witch Hunters

Maddy Councill, Old Space Marines Codex

Paul nettle, New Space Marines Codex

Anti-Imperial Alliance

Warlord Matthew Davies, Eldar

James Funnell, Tau

Sean Councill, Dark Eldar

The game was fought on a 12 foot by 4 foot table, with 5 objectives. One of the objectives, Landing Stage XI, was worth 3 Objectives, and was captured by the side with the most troops on it.

The sides prepare for war

The two objectives contested by Maddy and Matthew was a cat and mouse fight, as Maddy captured them early on, and the Eldar struggled to knock out her Dreadnoughts. Paul Cockram’s Battle Sisters lent support, but on the final turn Matthew’s Eldar Jet Bikes glided in to contest them, and in the end no-one captured them.

On the other flank Paul Nettle’s Space Marines advanced against two thirds of Sean’s Dark Eldar – Sean had sent the rest to contest the landing stage. Despite problems with the Dark Eldar witches, Paul had captured both objectives on the final Imperial turn, having killed off the elements of Tau sent to assist the Dark Eldar. On the final Dark Eldar turn, Sean could have contested both objectives simply by moving up to them. However, true to their fluff, the Dark Eldar attacked the Space Marines and an epic melee broke out around both objectives. Sean’s dice really let him down when it really mattered, and despite everything the Space Marines won both objectives.

With two objectives won by the Imperial forces, and with two objectives contested, the three objectives that could be won for the Landing platform were vital.

The Tau and Witch Hunters were the two opposing forces selected to capture the Landing platform. The Witch Hunters were first onto and around the platform, using devastating earth-moving weapons that physically shifted the Landing Stage closer to their table edge. The Tau spent several turns drifting in and out of cover, sweeping Paul Cockram’s Battle Sisters and their Rhinos with fire. Still the battle sisters endured behind whatever cover they could find. The turning point came when Sean’s witches and Archon attacked the platform. They devastated the Imperial forces and tied them in an ever-lasting combat; preventing them from replacing their dead comrades on the Platform; and whilst this was going on, Eldar and Tau forces landed on the Platform, unopposed. After four turns the only forces on the Platform were from the anti-Imperial alliance; and they scored the three objectives, and won the game!

The platform on Turn 3