Battle Report: Tyranids v. Space Wolves

 A gathering of beasts: Great Wolf Logan Grimnar faces off against a Tyrant of Hive Fleet Tzimisce.


The Setup:
Dawn of War Deployment and Annihilation, 2000 points a side. 

The Lists:   


Space Wolves


Logan Grimnar
Rune Priest

5 Wolf Guard in Terminator Armor, CML, Power weapons, stormbolters, x3, 2 in Drop Pods, 1 in Land Raider

Long Fangs w/ Pack leader, Missile launchers x5, x2 squads

Long Fangs w/ Pack leader, Arjac Rockfist, 2 Multimeltas, 3 Plasma Cannons, Drop Pod 

Tyrandids:

Hive Tyrant w/ Wings, TL BL devourers, Hive Commander - 270

2 Lictors -130, x2
2 Hive Guard - 100

10 Genestealers w/ toxin sacs - 170
10 Genestealers w/ toxin sacs - 170

5 Warriors w/ toxin sacs, lashwhip & bonesword, deathspitters, 1 barbed strangler, in Mycetic Spore w/ Tl deathspitters - 330

10 Termagants in Mycetic Spore w/ Tl deathspitters - 100

Tervigon w/ Toxin Sacs, Adrenal Glands, Catalyst, Scything talons - 200

Trygon - 200, x2

                                                                 The swarm assembled...

The Tyranids won the roll off to pick sides, decided to go second, and held the entire swarm in reserve. In the first two Space Wolf turns, everything but Grimnar and his Drop full of Long Fangs arrives. The Wolves have tried to set up a kill zone in the center of the board: directly behind the Land Raider are a pair of Long Fang packs in a ruin with LoS to most of the board. Two Terminator squads have the ruins and open area in front of the Fangs covered, while the third scattered just a bit too far from the Land Raider... 

The first set of Tyranid reserves go a bit below average, with only the Gaunts, Lictors, Tervigon, and Hive Guard arriving. The Termagants land near the Terminators, hoping to bait them away from the Fangs. The Genestealers and Hive Guard advance on the forward Terminator squad, who have gotten too close to the board edge. The Guard wreck the Pod, while the Genestealers rip the Space Wolves limb from limb, consolidating towards the bridge.

Further up the field, the Lictor broods burst from cover around the Long Fangs, hoping to draw some fire from the rest of the broods. Off screen and behind the Lictors, the Tervigon waddles onto the field: she tries to throw Catalyst on herself, but Perils on a 12 instead.

At the top of the third turn, Logan fails to arrive. The Terminators refuse to take the bait and shuffle back towards the Lictors. One of them is dragged into the earth by Jaws of the World Wolf, while the other falls to a well aimed Krak missile despite going to ground. The Long Fangs split fire, with 2 frag templates lauched at the Termagants and the rest unloading Krak into the 2nd brood of Lictors. The Lictors go to ground but survive, while the Termagants lose 3, and fall back.

More Tyranids swarm across the board. Above the Genestealers begin to rush across the bridge, while one of the Trygons bursts from the ground behind the ruin. Across the river and obscured from view, the Hive Tyrant flies on from the Tyranid board edge. The Warriors and 2nd brood of Genestealers arrive in the upper left corner, boxing in the Terminator squads. A pair of Terminators goes down to massed bioweapon fire, but everything else is out of assault range this turn.

On the left flank after Space Wolf Turn 4. Two Warriors went down to stormbolters and massed krak fire, while their spore was torn apart in assault (pulled casualties put the Warriors themselves out of assault range). The assaulting Terminators consolidate back towards the full squad, trying to shield them from the Warriors and the full brood of Genestealers lurking in that ruin...

On the right flank, Logan makes his grand entrance. Multimelta fire from the Land Raider and the 2 Long Fangs tears 3 wounds off the Trygon, while 3 Plasma cannon shots fry the Genestealers. The two survivors fail morale and run for their lives! Lurking in the ruins, the Lictors take some fire but pass their cover saves without going to ground...

The Tyranids keep advancing, however. On the left flank, the Terminators survive a storm of tentacles, devourer worms, fleshborers, and acid only to face a flurry of rending claws and boneswords. Four of the Terminators go down, but the survivor puts a wound on a Warrior. The Rune Priest finishes it off, then force weapons another, actually winning the combat.  On the right flank, the Lictors make it into assault with one of the Long Fang packs; they kill the pack leader, but one of them goes down to chainswords and fearless saves.

 Turn 5 gets ugly fast. In the Wolf phase, Logan and company splatter the Trygon, but the free Long Fangs and Land Raider are only able to chip off a few wounds from the Tervigon and Tyrant. The last Terminator and Rune Priest are ripped apart in the assault phase. 

In the Tyranid phase, the last Trygon arrives while the Genestealers close in on the Long Fangs. With shooting support and Paroxysm from the Tyrant, they rush into the ruins and wipe out the unengaged Long Fangs, while the only one remains from the original squad after 3 rounds of combat.


We roll for Turn 6, and it comes up a one, giving the Tyranids a narrow 5-4 victory on kill points.