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Battle Report- White Scars vs Sisters of Battle

Michael Corr

Hi everyone, Michael here with another written battle report. This week, my White Scars take on the Sisters of Battle in an ETC-style mission.

This week’s battle report sees my White Scars take on Angus’ Sisters of Battle in an ETC tournament mission.

Angus was wanting to test his army list for the upcoming London GT, and I was happy to comply. After my last outing with the White Scars, I modified my list to make some changes for another upcoming tournament I would be attending in a few weeks.

 

The ETC mission would use an Eternal War and Maelstrom mission used at the same time. The Eternal War mission was No Mercy, so we would score kill points for each unit destroyed. The maelstrom mission was Spoils of War. This consisted of 3 maelstrom cards per turn. You could also score your opponent’s “Secure Objective X” cards and could not discard these during the game.

My army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Outrider Detachment

Spearhead Detachment

As you can see, a bit of a change for the army. The tournament does not allow multiple detachments of the same type, so I went with three to give me 8 command points. Otherwise, I probably would have gone with two Battalions.

The core of the army was very similar, with two Captains and three units of Scouts. I added two Devastator Squads and a Tactical Squad in order to help block off my deployment zone and block enemy deep strikers. The Thunderfire Cannon was also a key addition, as it was really useful to my list.

The Meltagun Bikers were then to provide me with some more anti-tank firepower. I also took a big unit of Sternguard Veterans, Vanguard Veterans and a Stormraven to give the army a bit more punch. Hopefully, the army would perform well.

Angus’ army consisted of:

Battalion Detachment

Outrider Detachment

 

A highly mobile, armoured force. There were a lot of Flamer and Melta weapons in the army that could take on most of the units in my army. The two Assassins were also a worry, as they could come in anywhere to strike at my forces. I hadn’t faced Celestine yet, but have heard stories about how durable she could be.

The deployment of the objectives was set in the mission. We deployed them as shown below:

I picked my deployment zone, giving me some good cover for the Devastators and Thunderfire Cannon. Angus started the deployment.

I put the Thunderfire Cannon on the right, trying to keep it out of line of sight. He was supported by a unit of Scout Bikers. I put the two Devastator Squads in the centre, supported by a Lieutenant, with the second unit of Scout Bikers in the middle. On the right, I put the Tactical Squad in the ruins next to the objective, with the Biker Captain and Bike Squad on the left. The Stormraven went in the centre, ready to move on either flank. I put the rest of the army in reserve.

I put the Scouts ahead of my army, setting them up 9″ from the enemy deployment zone. I used them to block the Scout moves of the enemy vehicles. Even if I did not get the first turn, I would block their ability to get too close to my lines. The Scouts would be sacrificed, but I figured it was worth it.

Angus split his forces on the two flanks. On the left went two Repressors with Sisters squads in them, an Immolator with a Dominion squad, the Seraphim and Celestine. On the right went two Immolators and a Repressor. He put the two Assassins in reserve.

Angus won the roll off for first turn, but I managed to seize the initiative. Angus opted not to scout move any of his vehicles.

TURN 1- WHITE SCARS

In my first turn, I drew Secure Objective 3, Kingslayer (kill the enemy warlord) and No Prisoners (kill an enemy unit).

On the left flank, the Bike Squad and Bike Captain advanced on the enemy vehicles, the Captain using the Born in the Saddle stratagem to still be able to shoot and charge. The Scouts on either flank moved up on the enemy vehicles, while the Scout Bikers also moved up. The Stormraven committed to the left flank to support the main advance.

At the end of the turn, the reserves arrived, landing on the left flank between the enemy vehicles (so that they could target either).

The Bike Squad fired their Meltaguns at the Repressor in front of them. Both shots hit and wounded, costing me two command points for a re-roll (thanks to the Callidus’ special rule). I took 7 damage from the vehicle (one of the Meltaguns rolled a double 1 for damage).

The Lieutenant and Bike Captain fired at the Repressor and managed to take three more wounds from it, leaving it on two.

The Jump Pack Captain fired his Combi-Melta at the Repressor, hitting and wounding, but I rolled a 1 for damage. leaving it on a single wound.

The Devastator Squad fired their Heavy Bolters at the same Repressor. I used the Hellfire Shells stratagem (costing me 2 command points once more!) and destroyed the vehicle, killing one of the squad inside. They deployed as far away from the Bikers as possible to try and stop a charge from the Captain and reserves.

The Vanguard Veterans fired their Plasma Pistols at the Immolator, overcharging the shots. Only 2 of the 5 shots hit and one wounded, but Angus saved the damage on a 6+!

The Stormraven fired at the Immolator and newly emerged Battle Sisters squad. The Assault Cannon and Heavy Bolters fired at the squad, wiping them out. The Missiles and Hurricane Bolters fired at the vehicle, doing 7 wounds in total.

The Scouts in front of the vehicle threw a Krak grenade at the Immolator, destroying it. The squad inside were unharmed as they emerged.

The Missile Launcher Devastators fired at the Immolator on the right flank, hitting and wounding twice and taking 6 damage from it.

The Scout Squad on the right fired at the Seraphim, killing two of the squad. The Scout Bikers added their firepower, killing two more. The Thunderfire Cannon fired at the squad, causing 8 wounds and wiping out the rest of the squad.

I chose not to charge any units. I thought about assaulting the Immolators with the Scouts to stop them firing, but most likely the Immolator flamers would wipe me out on the charge, making it pointless.

 

At the end of my turn, I scored First Blood, two points for No Prisoners, Secure Objective 3 and 4 kill points, for 8 points in total. I discarded Kingslayer.

 

TURN 1- SISTERS OF BATTLE 

In Angus’ first turn, he drew Defend Objective 5, Priority Orders Received (Objective 6) and Mission Critical Objective (Objective 6).

The turn began with the Acts of Faith. Celestine used hers to move up on the Thunderfire Cannon, while the Sisters squad on the right flank fired at the Scouts, killing one of the White Scars.

On the left flank, Celestine and the Geminae Superior leapt over the Scout Bikers to move up on the Thunderfire Cannon. The Callidus Assassin revealed her position, deploying a mere 4″ from the Techmarine Gunner. The Sisters of Battle vehicles advanced towards the White Scars lines.

On the right flank, a squad of Battle Sisters moved into the cover to the ruins to secure the objective. Another squad disembarked, joined by the Canoness, while the Inquisitor moved into the trenches nearby. The damaged Immolator retreated from the White Scars warriors swarming their lines.

In the psychic phase, the Inquisitor attempted to Terrify the Vanguard Veterans, but failed to manifest the power.

In the shooting phase, the Immolator fired at the Scouts on the right flank, killing all four of the squad. The nearby Battle Sisters squad fired at the Vanguard Veterans, killing two of the squad. The Canoness fired her Combi-Plasma, killing one more of the squad.

The Inquisitor fired at the Stormraven, wounding it once. The Battle Sisters in the ruins were able to target the Jump Pack Captain, but were only able to do a single wound on him with the Heavy Flamer.

On the other flank, Celestine fired at the Scout Bikers, but failed to harm them. The Callidus Assassin fired the Techmarine Gunner, hitting after the use of a command point re-roll and slaying him.

The Repressor on the far left fired at the Scout Bikers, killing one of the squads. The squad inside fired, killing another of the White Scars Scout Bikers.

The Immolator fired at the Scouts in the central ruins, killing one of them. While the Squad in the second Repressor fired at the second unit of Scout Bikers, killing one.

With no charges, that was the end of the turn. Angus scored 3 kill points, 2 points for Mission Critical Objective and he discarded Priority Orders received.

VICTORY POINTS:

White Scars- 8

Sisters of Battle- 5

A great first turn for the White Scars had seen them take the early lead. In my first turn, I had managed to deal a solid blow to the left flank, destroying or damaging the three vehicles and wiping out a few squads. Meanwhile, the right flank seemed poised to be overrun with Celestine leading the way.

TURN 2- WHITE SCARS

In my second turn, I drew Secure Objective 4, Secure Objective 6 and Blood and Guts (kill an unit in the Fight phase).

The two-man squad of Scout Bikers turbo-boosted to get to the objective held by Celestine. Only the Geminae Superior were in range to score it, so I hoped to block Angus from scoring Defend Objective 5. The other Scout Biker moved up behind the ruins in the enemy deployment zone, while the Scouts moved up on the objective in front of them.

On the other flank, the Vanguard Veterans and Captain moved up on the Sisters of Battle Squad in the ruins, while the Bikers and Bike Captain moved around the ruins to target the enemy forces, the Captain using the Born in the Saddle stratagem once more. The Lieutenant advanced over the ruins to support them.

The Sternguard Veterans disembarked and moved up on the Sisters, while the Stormraven moved to the other flank. The central Scout unit advanced onto the enemy objective, hoping to hold it in case it was drawn in the following turn.

The shooting phase began with the Bikers targeting the Immolator and Battle Sisters. The Meltagun in range of the tank failed to harm it, while the Squad’s Bolters killed three of the Battle Sisters. The Captain added his firepower, killing the rest of the squad.

The Vanguard Veterans fired their Plasma Pistols at the squad in front of them, killing three, while the Captain killed one more with his Combi-Melta. I left the lone survivor alive to assault her.

The Stormraven split its fire between the damaged Immolator and closest Repressor. It wounded the Repressor five times and damaged the already wounded Immolator, leaving it on only a few wounds.

The Devastators fired their Heavy Bolters at the Immolator on the left, but were unable to harm it. The Tactical Squad fired at the Inquisitor, their Heavy Bolter wounding him once.

The Sternguard Veterans fired at the Immolator in front of them, using the Masterful Marksmanship stratagem to boost their firepower. They managed an impressive 11 wounds on the enemy tank, destroying it.

The second squad of Devastators fired their Missiles and Lascannon at the Repressor in front of them. They hit and wounded twice, destroying the enemy tank. One of the squad perished inside and Angus chose the Dialogus.

This allowed him to use the Martyrdom stratagem, and he chose to fire at the Scout Bikers with Celestine’s squad. They were able to kill one Biker and wound the last one, thereby allowing him to score Defend Objective 5 at the end of my turn. A smart play by Angus there and one I did not anticipate.

In the charge phase, the Biker Captain assaulted the Canoness. The Vanguard Veterans and Captain charged the lone Battle Sister, while the Sternguard Veterans assaulted the Inquisitor.

The Sternguard attacked the Inquisitor, wounding him 14 times. Only four got through his armour, enough to just kill him. Angus used a command point re-roll to try and keep him alive, but the Inquisitor was slain.

The Biker Captain attacked the Canoness. I rolled my 5 attacks and rolled four 2’s and a 3, resulting in only a single hit! The hit then failed to wound on a 2+ and the Canoness was completely unscathed. The other Captain managed to slay the last of the Battle Sisters squad.

The Canoness struck back at the Captain and managed to wound him twice.

At the end of my turn, I scored 6 kill points and all three of my objectives. Angus also scored Defend Objective 5.

The Biker Captain completely fluffing his attacks was infuriating. Had he been able to kill the Canoness, I would have scored an extra point for Blood and Guts for having killed three units. Things were looking good for the White Scars though, I had pretty much eliminated one flank, but did I have the mobility to get to the other side to deal with the rest of the enemy army?

TURN 2- SISTERS OF BATTLE

This turn, Angus drew Defend Objective 6, Secure Objective 1 and Secure Objective 4.

Celestine used her Act of Faith to move towards the Stormraven. The Sisters Squad on the hill used their Act of Faith to move towards the Devastators and the objective.

In the movement phase, Celestine continued moving towards the Stormraven, joined by the two Repressors. Both vehicles advanced, Angus using a command point re-roll to get one in Meltagun range of the enemy flyer. The Callidus Assassin moved towards the Scout Biker, while the Battle Sisters squad continued towards the objective.

The Eversor Assassin arrived, moving up on the Scouts.

The Callidus Assassin fired on the Scout Biker, hitting but failing to wound. The Culexus Assassin fired at the Scouts, killing one of the squad.

The Battle Sisters fired at the Missile Launcher Devastators, killing two of the squad. The squad in the Repressor fired their Meltaguns at the Stormraven. Some terrible rolling saw only one of the 5 shots hit. However, the single shot struck true and took 6 wounds from the flyer.

Celestine fired her Flamer at the Stormraven, taking a further wound from it. The other squad in the second Repressor fired their Meltaguns at the Stormraven, wounding it three times. The damage was enough to destroy the Stormraven. The Flyer exploded, killing one of the nearby Scouts and wounding the Repressor.

The vehicles fired at the Scouts, killing another one of the squad.

In the charge phase, Celestine and the Assassin charged the Scouts (the Assassin needing a command point re-roll to make it in), while the Callidus charged the Scout Biker.

Celestine wiped out the Scouts, while the Callidus easily dispatched the wounded Scout Biker. The Canoness struck at the Biker Captain, but failed to do any damage. The Captain attacked back, hitting and wounding three times, but failing to get past her Rosarius save.

At the end of his turn, Angus scored 3 kill points, Secure Objective 1 and Secure Objective 4. He discarded Defend Objective 6.

VICTORY POINTS:

White Scars- 17

Sisters of Battle- 13

TURN 3- WHITE SCARS

In my third turn, I drew Big Game Hunter (kill an enemy vehicle), Scour the Skies (kill a unit with the Fly keyword) and Overwhelming Firepower (kill a unit in the shooting phase).

On the left flank, the Bikers, Vanguard Veterans, Lieutenant and Captain moved up on the Canoness. The Biker Captain fell back from combat, moving up to support the Scouts and Sternguard Veterans.

The White Scars Bikers opened fire on the Canoness, slaying her in a hail of Bolter fire.

The Tactical Squad in the ruins fired on the Battle Sisters squad holding the objective, killing one of the squad. The Devastators fired their Heavy Bolters, killing three of the squad, while the Bolters of the remaining Marines finished off the survivor.

The other Devastator Squad fired at the Repressor, hitting and wounding twice. I rolled 8 in total for the damage, using my last command point to re-roll one damage die, destroying the vehicle.

The Sternguard Veterans fired at the newly emerged Battle Sisters, killing all but one. The Scouts added their firepower, slaying the last member of the squad.

The lone Scout Biker fired at Celestine’s squad, killing one of the Geminae Superior and wounding the other.

With no assaults, my turn ended. I scored Overwhelming Firepower for 2 points, Big Game Hunter and four kill points. I discarded Scour the Skies.

TURN 3- SISTERS OF BATTLE

In his turn, Angus drew Big Game Hunter, No Prisoners and Domination (control all the objectives).

Celestine used the Acts of Faith to heal the wounded Geminae Superior, and was then able to bring back the other Geminae. The Culexus Assassin moved up on the Scout Biker, while the Callidus moved to engage the Devastator Squad. The last Repressor and Celestine moved away, towards the White Scars lines.

The Callidus fired at the Devastator Squad, wiping them out. The Squad in the Repressor fired at the Scout Squad, killing one. The Culexus fired at the Scout Biker, killing him.

In the charge phase, the Callidus charged the Lieutenant. She struck at the White Scars warrior, hitting and wounding him twice. The Lieutenant struck back, wounding the Assassin twice, but failing to get past her invulnerable save.

At the end of his turn, Angus scored No Prisoners and 2 kill points. He discarded Domination.

VICTORY POINTS:

White Scars- 24

Sisters of Battle- 16

A great couple of turns had seen the White Scars pull ahead by 8 victory points.


TURN 4- WHITE SCARS

In my fourth turn, I drew Defend Objective 2, Defend Objective 5 and Domination.

The White Scars Captain moved up on the Repressor, while the rest of the fast-moving White Scars forces moved towards the centre of the battlefield, while the Scouts moved back to secure the objective. The Lieutenant fell back from combat with the Assassin.

The Tactical Squad fired at the Assassin, wounding her twice. The Devastators added their firepower, doing another two wounds to the Callidus.

The Sternguard fired at the Repressor, wounding the enemy vehicle once. The Bikers managed to take another two wounds with their Bolters.

The Biker Captain charged the Repressor. He struck at the enemy vehicle, only managing to wound it once and take 3 more damage from it.

At the end of my turn, I scored no points and discarded Domination.

TURN 4- SISTERS OF BATTLE

In his fourth turn, Angus drew Secure Objective 2, Area Denial and had Big Game Hunter.

Celestine used the Acts of Faith to move up on objective 2, while the Repressor fell back from combat with the Captain.

The unit in the Repressor fired at the Biker Captain with their Meltaguns, only hitting with 2 of their 5 shots. Angus used a command point to get another hit. He then wounded twice and one got past the Shield Eternal. Angus rolled for the damage and rolled a 1 and a 2, wounding the Captain once and leave him on a single wound.

Celestine fired at the Scouts and Bike Squad, killing the Scout Squad and wounding a Biker once. The Culexus Assassin fired on the Biker Captain, wounding him once and killing him. The Callidus fired at the Lieutenant, wounding him once.

In the charge phase, the Callidus charged the Lieutenant, while Celestine charged the other Lieutenant and Bike Squad.

The Callidus slew the Lieutenant, consolidating into the nearby Devastator Squad. The Geminae Superior attacked the Bikers, killing one of the squad. Celestine split her attacks evenly between the Bikers and Lieutenant. Angus needed to kill two of them in order to control the objective.

Celestine managed wound the Lieutenant twice, but failed to wound the Bikers after some terrible to wound rolls.

The White Scars attacked back. The Lieutenant managed to kill the Genimae Superior and take 2 wounds off of Celestine. The Devastator Squad managed to wound the Assassin once, leaving her on one wound.

At the end of his turn, Angus scored 3 kill points and slay the warlord. I also scored Defend Objective 2.

VICTORY POINTS:

White Scars- 26

Sisters of Battle- 20

The White Scars were still ahead in victory points and there were very few of the Sisters of Battle left alive.

TURN 5- WHITE SCARS

In my turn, I drew Defend Objective 3 and Behind Enemy Lines to go with Defend Objective 5.

The Biker and Lieutenant fell back from combat with Celestine. The Vanguard Veterans and Captain leapt over the ruins towards the Repressor. The Devastators fell back from combat with the Assassin.

The Vanguard Veterans overcharged their Plasma Pistols and fired on the Repressor. The squad wounded 4 times, but Angus made two 6+ saves and the vehicle took four damage. The Captain fired his Meltagun at the Repressor, destroying it.

The Tactical Squad fired at the Assassin, killing her.

The Sternguard Veterans fired at Celestine’s squad, wounding her 11 times. Four got through her armour. The Lieutenant fired his Master-crafted Bolter at Celestine, killing her. She was resurrected and re-appeared next to the last surviving Battle Sisters squad

The Vanguard Veterans and Captain assaulted the Battle Sisters. The Veterans did 8 wounds, killing two of the squad, while the Captain slew another 2. The Battle Sisters struck back, but did no damage.

At the end of my turn, I scored Behind Enemy Lines for 2 points and two kill points. I also scored Angus’ Secure Objective 2. I discarded Defend Objective 5.

TURN 5- SISTERS OF BATTLE

In his fifth turn, Angus drew Psychological Warfare and Secure Objective 1 to go with Area Denial.

 

Celestine used her Acts of Faith to move up on the Devastator Squad. The other squad of Battle Sisters moved up towards the other ruins.

Celestine continued to move towards the Devastators, while the Culexus Assassin moved up on the enemy Bikers.

The Assassin fired at the Bikers, hitting but failing to wound. Celestine fired at the Vanguard Veterans, but failed to do any damage.

In the charge phase, the Culexus Assassin charged the Bikers, while Celestine led her squad in an assault on the Devastators.

The Culexus Assassin managed to put a single wound on the Bikers. Celestine struck at the White Scars, killing three after using a command point re-roll. The Geminae Superior managed to kill another of the Devastators.

The White Scars struck back, but were unable to do any damage.

At the end of his turn, Angus scored Area Denial and discarded Psychological Warfare. I also scored his Secure Objective 1 and my Defend Objective 3.

VICTORY POINTS:

White Scars- 34

Sisters of Battle- 21

The White Scars had been able to build up quite a large lead. We rolled to see if the game ended and it did not.

TURN 6- WHITE SCARS

In my sixth turn, I drew Hold the Line, Assassinate and Secure Objective 1.

The Bikers and Lieutenant fell back from combat with the Assassin. The Vanguard Veterans and Captain moved up on Celestine and the Geminae Superior.

The Sternguard Veterans fired on the Culexus Assassin, wounding him once. The Vanguard Veterans overcharged their Plasma Pistols and fired on Celestine, killing the Genimae Superior and wounding Celestine twice. The Captain fired his Meltagun at Celestine, but the wound was blocked by her invulnerable save.

In the charge phase, the Captain and Vanguard Veterans charged Celestine. The Sternguard Veterans, Biker and Lieutenant charged the Assassin.

The Captain struck at Celestine, hitting and wounding four times. She failed two saves and was slain once more. The rest of the White Scars managed to put a wound on the Assassin, while the Assassin killed one Biker.

At the end of my turn, I scored Assassination, Slay the Warlord, Secure Objective 1 and one kill point.

TURN 6- SISTERS OF BATTLE

In his sixth turn, Angus drew Advance, Kingslayer and Defend Objective 4.

The Battle Sisters used their Acts of Faith to move up on the ruins, moving further in their movement phase to get out of line of sight.

In the fight phase, the Culexus Assassin killed the last of the Bikers, while the Sternguard Veterans were able to put another wound on the Assassin.

At the end of his turn, Angus scored Kingslayer for 2 points, Linebreaker and a kill point. We rolled to see if the game ended, and it finished there.

VICTORY POINTS:

White Scars- 40

Sisters of Battle- 24

A win for the White Scars.

AFTER-BATTLE THOUGHTS 

Thanks to Angus for a great game against a tough Sisters of Battle army.

I changed up my White Scars list from my last tournament performance, learning some lessons from the Greetings From the Warp tournament.

The core of the army was the same, with the two Captains, the Scout squads and Devastators and Tactical Marines.

The Scouts were great once more in this game. I was able to use them to block the scout moves of the Sisters of Battle vehicles. This kept them away from my backline for longer, allowing my Devastators to cause more damage to the enemy army. I was lucky to seize the initiative, but I think if I had gone second, the Scouts would still have been very useful for blocking the enemy vehicles from falling back.

The Stormraven is also a great addition to the army. It provides me with a lot of firepower and is a prime target for the enemy guns, helping to keep my smaller squads alive for longer. The big unit of Sternguard Veterans and Vanguard Veterans are also a useful addition to the army, able to deal a lot of damage in the shooting phase and fight phase.

In Angus’ army, the Callidus Assassin was very useful. She made me burn through a lot of command points in the first turn. This reduced the effectiveness of some of my units as the game went on.

Overall, my plan worked well. I was able to focus on one flank and decimate it, using my fast-moving units to go after the other threats in the enemy army once I had dealt with one side of the battlefield.

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