Start of the Caracalla campaign

To begin the campaign I wrote a mission brief, an idea I grabbed from reading about 40K campaigns in the Going on Campaign blog (http://goingoncampaign.blogspot.com.au).

+++ Imperial Assignment +++

+++ Date: 675.887.M41 +++

+++ Issued by: Sons of the Sword Command Council +++

+++ Location: DMZ.465 / Caracalla / Severan System +++

+++ Mission Update +++

+++ Your strike force is to retake the mining complex Alpha 825 from the Orc invasion. Then drive on to their home base in the Alludar Mountain Range. The space port has been made available as your supply deport and as home base. +++

+++ The Emperor protects +++

For each side, Space Marines and Orcs, 10 units were selected for the campaign on the planet Caracalla.

Sons of the Sword Chapter space marines above and Orcs below.

The first battle to be fought was at the mining complex Alpha 825. The table set up randomly using dice throws. It consisted of 1 hill, 4 buildings, 4 broken terrain and 4 alien looking tree. Because the table is divided into a grid of 24 zones (4 rows of 6 zones) for each row I roll a dice for each terrain piece inch row. So a row had one type of each terrain, building, broken and trees. The exception was the hill which had to go into a corner of the table, and again was randomly generated.

Each side had 7 units randomly selected from their 10 units plus one extra unit of defence. The Orcs got some defences and the Space Marines were supported by one Imperial Guard unit. See my previous post on how units get selected for a battle.

The forces tool up position, Orcs on the left and Space Marines on the right. A devastator squad takes up position in a building.

While command and tactical squads advanced on the left towards the Orc position.

The Orcs were looking for a fight and quickly attacked the advancing command squad. 

Only for the timely intervention of the Stormraven to land and a terminator squad to attach from the rear. Saving the day! Or the command squad in this instance.

The Orcs responded with Deff Kopters as their reserves started to appear. In my rule set these are treated as flyers.

The Stormraven having delivered the terminators quickly took off and dealt with a nearby Deff Kan.

It was at this point things were looking pretty bleak for the Orcs, and I was thinking the game was up for the green lads. Then using an intervention to get fog of war their war-bikes launched an attack on the other flank.

The devastator squad supported by hover bikes moved to engage and counter the treat from the war-bikes.

Gunning their war-bikes at full throttle the 2 orc war-bike units launched themselves into battle with minimal losses, and doing lots of damage by wiping out the hover bikes.

With the war-bikes tearing up the flank the remaining Orc unit moved to engage the devastator squad. Meanwhile. the remnants of the command and tactical squads, combined to provide support to the centre.

The Orcs had reversed the momentum of the battle, it was definitely in the balance, as they wiped out the devastator squad. The imperial guard were not to going to hold out much longer.

The combined squads arrived taking the Orcs by surprise and quickly put pay to any thoughts of an Orc victory. Seeing off the war-band with bolter and chain-sword.

In the end, a minor victory to the Sons of the Sword, who now move forward one step on their quest towards the Orc home base.

From a rules perspective the overrun rule by vehicles proved important to the Orc war-bikes and the tactical squad when backing up in the centre.