1250 pts Iron Hands vs Astra Militarum

Quick break from tournament reports, and it was time to get in a match against Strohkopf who was testing his 1250 pt list for an upcoming tournament. Originally we were going to play 1850, so I planned to take a farsight bomb but since I didn't manage to fit everything into one case, instead I decided to take the opportunity to try an experimental list where I was combining several things that I had been looking at that would work in theory but needed some practice. It was also time to bust out my ebay bikes:

Iron hands:

Chapter master, bike, shield eternal, power fist, meltabombs (think I even had an Auspex which I didn't use)

5 legion of the damned, meltagun, multi-melta

Dreadnought, multi-melta, heavy flamer, drop pod

5 bikes, 2x grav gun, + multi-melta attack bike (silly and I forgot the models as well, they're being proxied by broadside legs)

Same again

5 scouts, land speeder storm with heavy flamer

Ditto

5 assault marines, 2x flamer, drop pod (proxied by kroot and firewarriors as I forgot to bring them as well having tried to stuff an 1850 point tau list into my case at the same time...)

British WW2 desert camo IG:

HQ1: CCS, Vox, Kurov's Aquila, Master of the ordnance, Chimera ML + HB HQ2: Coteaz
HQ3: Ordo Xenos Inquisitor, Liber, Rad, Psycthroke nades, 3x Servo Skulls
NF1: Commissar
NF2: Ministorum Priest
Troops1: Infantry Platoon
PCS
3x IS, 3x SniperRifles, 3x LasCannons, 2x MeltaBombs, Vox
Conscripts, 25 men
Troops2: Infantry Platoon
PCS, 4x Flamers, Taurox
3x IS, 3x AutoCannons, 3x GrenadeLaunchers, Vox, 2x meltaBombs
HS1: Wyvern
Fort: Aegis, Quad-gun

Mission we got was the emperor's will, with diagonal deployment (vanguard strike - see I've finally learn the names!). We both placed an objective in ruin close to the two table edges in what ended up being our deployment zones. AM got to pick sides and deploy first, making sure to spread out and give no space for any drop pods to land. Couple of servo skulls were planted around or near my dz. only the PCS with flamers in the taurox was in reserve. Coteaz is with the lascannon blob on my left, the inquisitor and priest are with the conscripts. Comissar is with the autocannon platoon on the right.

After some debate I decide to only start one squad of bikes with the chapter master on the table and they hide behind a ruin. I fail to seize. One squad of scouts is in reserve, the other and the two land speeders outflank. I believe my warlord trait allowed me to re-roll my reserves. His conscript screen scouts forwards, and during his turn some heavy weapons shuffle around so that they can see me. I think one biker marine dies from the orbital strike from the master of the ordnance. 

My turn and Mr dreadnought comes down and proceeds to grill the conscripts. Bikers clear a path towards the blob with shooting while advancing cautiously and chapter master places his barrage over the priest and inquisitor but it scatters and the one wound that reaches her is looked out. 

The guard respond by stun-locking the dread and taking off a hull point off the drop pod. I believe I lose a marine or so from the bikes as well. Taurox with PCS comes in from reserve and conservatively rolls on on the far left.

Turn 2 for the iron hands and we get the asm, both speeders and the legion. Speeders manage to kill the PCS sitting in his deployment zone for first blood and the scouts prepare to charge the wyvern. Asm net a couple more conscripts as does the dreadnought who unfortunately can't charge and hold them up à la the evil master plan. Bikes charge the blob and barely eke out a win. Blob holds. Legion of the damned seriously damage the taurox having scattered out of melta range. Chapter master regens a wound and pod and dred regain hps.

Inquisitor doesn't make combat. Dreadnought gets killed finally. The landspeeder with scouts is wrecked and I lose a couple to flaming inside the open-topped speeder as well as light shooting. An hp is taken off a drop pod and I think I lose 2-3 marines from the asm but not the flamers.

Bikes and scouts come in. Two scouts immobilise the wyvern with grenades. Speeder grills some of the second platoon but gets immobilised on terrain. I finally destroy the taurox and burn down the pcs who hop out. Scouts run for the objective and spread out as the master of the ordnance is still alive and safe. Stuff regains hps through it will not die. I finish off the rest of the conscripts except the inquisitor who is left on a wound.

Inquisitor gets into combat with my chapter master and remaining bike and throws grenades at them for two turns so that they only get 1 attack each and get auto hit by the platoon. I eventually lose combat flee and then regroup joining the fresh set of bikes. Scouts finish off the wyvern. Legion of the damned plod along trying to kill coteaz and the platoon. Asm try to get a heroic charge off and lose both men to overwatch I think. Land speeder quickly dies as does the lone scout despite trying to hide behind the wrecked wyvern

Chapter master and bikes reach the chimera but fail to wreck it. They then get caught by the platoon and inquisitor and finished off. 1 biker survives and retreats, only to break his neck on turn 6 when speeding over some dangerous terrain to try and contest. Legion of the damned never make it to the platoon but do leave coteaz on one wound. 

No turn 7. Scouts survive on my objective. AM hold their objective. I have first blood. They have slay the warlord. 4-4 draw, probably with more vps scored (pts killed) for the AM. A great match nonetheless and it was a great opportunity to try out a couple of important things.

Lessons learnt:

- flamers and in particular lss heavy flamers are pretty useless against a canny opponent who spreads their troops

- chapter master is not invincible

- need to be more careful with legion of the damned placement as they are slow and purposeful and cannot run to reposition should they end up in the middle of nowhere

- need to think about what to do against armies that can fill a whole deployment zone so that there is nowhere to deep strike

Next up, another 750 pt torunament report featuring the trademark dual land raiders. Predictions?