See Them Driven Before You

The 4th round of Four Horsemen's campaign played out this evening, and the forces of somewhat good hit back hard. Tonight was the first custom scenario, with the Imperium trying to buy time to ready a major attack.

Campaign Scenario: See Them Driven Before You

The defenders of St. Feorla’s World have been driven ever backwards by the invading onslaught. No more! Despite a string of defeats, the Imperial forces still retain the advantages of overwhelming resources, numbers, and positioning. Now is the time to begin using them.

Behind the front lines, Imperial commanders are gathering massive reserves of troops and material in preparation for a hammer blow against the invaders. All they require of the remaining frontline regiments is the time to organize and redeploy… time the forces of Chaos have no intention of giving them. The coming battle will be the first decisive engagement of the campaign!

You Shipped Our Ammo WHERE!?

No campaign bonuses or advantages may be used in this scenario. The defenders (Chaos) are too busy absorbing their conquests to utilize special resources, and the attackers (the Imperium) have been left isolated as their infrastructure struggles to coordinate the planned counterattack.

Only the Strong Survive

Anyone still alive on the Feorlan front lines has been to hell and back… and ensured that plenty of enemies only got to do the former. Between hard won experience, scavenged equipment, and sheer viciousness, the survivors are even more dangerous than usual. To represent this, each player may designate 2 units as veterans and give them any one of the Universal Special Rules listed on p.75-76 of the BRB.

Deployment: Dawn of War

Objectives: Capture and Control 

All normal special rules are still in play: Seize the Initiative, Night Fight, Infiltrate, Etc.

To claim victory, the Imperium must surpass or tie the number of games the Chaos players win. All they must do is stall the invaders’ advance, and they can be pinned down by overwhelming force. If Chaos wins more games, then they will have broken through the Imperial lines and begun rampaging through undefended sectors, cementing their hold and wrecking plans for a decisive counterattack.

Further campaign bonuses will be included based on the outcome of these games.

The  forces of the Imperium hit back hard, wresting positions back from the invaders and buying precious time for their allies to reinforce them.

Further Imperial forces arrived on St. Feorla's World in the form of a company of Salamanders. Arriving at the edge of the battle zone, they were almost immediately set upon by a swarm of rampaging Tyranids. Cleansing flame and righteous fury sufficed to drive the monsters back, but the Salamanders did not escape unbloodied. Even more worrying, the Tyranid attack halted without warning, the leader beasts and their surviving minions withdrawing at some unseen signal of the Hive Mind. The swarms are only biding their time.

Unable to sustain their present rate of loss and with their means of transportation all but destroyed, the Grey Knights "requisitioned" elements of the local PDF to slaughter the Orks standing between them and the daemonic infestation they had initially set out to destroy The battle ended in a tactical draw. The bulk of the Orkish horde was unharmed, and managed to inflict heavy casualties on the hapless Imperial Guardsmen, but the Knights were able to form a spearhead and break through the xenos lines, freeing themselves to hunt the growing Slaaneshi menace. 

The Red Harvest of the Necrons was halted by a combined strike force of Blood Angels and Tau. Setting aside their differences in the face of a relentless foe, the Tau brought their heretical technology to bear on the undead constructs while the Marines descended from the skies on jump packs. After suffering heavy losses, the Necrons vanished from the battlefield ... leaving behind strangely alluring and still functional wreckage. Eager for new captured technology, the freethinking Tau have worked the long, pulsing, Necron gauss weapons into their battle suit mount points. The Blood Angels, disgusted by the actions of their erstwhile allies, are already forming plans to turn on them and take the weaponry for ... additional study ... of their own.

Meanwhile the Space Wolves continued their advance deeper into the invaders' lines. Although faced with a mobile cadre of mercenary Tau, the Sons of Russ, led by the Great Wolf himself, brought their prey to ground and slew them mercilessly. Xenos weaponry felled many brave warriors, but Logan Grimnar never faltered, striding through the fire while his packs snapped and snarled at the flanks of the opposing Fire Warriors and Battlesuits. With no answer such canny savagery, the Tau survivors could only retreat from what they could not kill.

The Black Templar met with disaster as they sought to retake an area recently purged by Necrons. Treading through volcanic landscape, the Marines' armored column was set upon by the minions of the Lord of Excess. Unfazed by the appearance of such abominations in their midst, the Templar took defensive positions and prepared to unleash the wrath of the Emperor. Their confidence was misplaced; heedless of the killing heat, the daemons came through the flames for their quarry, shredding armor and shattering tank hulls. Unable to fell the Greater Daemon that tore apart their Land Raider, the Marshall and his attendant Crusaders retreated, with the wounded Emperor's Champion remaining behind to buy his brothers time to fight another day.

Overall a decisive victory for the defenders of St. Feorla's World. Next week will be Kill Teams, as the Imperial counterattack looms and the forces of Chaos get sneaky and vicious. Tune in.