@Son_of_Orion: Thankyee. I'll see what can be done... hehe.
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Campaign I: Saduk - Fourth TurnAshley Malkus and Konstanz ScriptorReport on the experience and the warlock and the soldiers around him.
Ashley Fashions a discreet web of psychic energy hoping to trap the warlock
Konstanz closes his eyes, going over what happened in his mind. The image of the Eldar Warlock somehow spotting him has burned into his mind. He lets it all flood out, answering quick questions by the Overseer when needed. The Overseer seems pleased at how well he's remembering the things, down to tiny details like the runes in the Eldar's robes or the details of the black-armoured warriors' missile launchers. After a while, Coazan seems to decide he's heard enough and tells him to stop. The gangly man scurries back over to the Lord-Commander. Alkanius seems worried about the fact the Eldar apparently knew they were here, and with heavy armoured support, but are still willing to put a considerable force to risk.
[1] The locals have flown into a total panic at the news of the Eldar. The Sadukian officials only stop screaming demands and questions when the Lord-Commander unloads a Bolt Pistol clip into the ceiling. Coazan soon wades through the crowd and pushes his face close to Scriptor's.
'Boy, head over to the Valkyrie on the landing pad and wait for us there. It's on the Manor roof. I must keep an eye on Saun and Malkus. Do not stray from your path, do not speak to anyone. Do not use your powers under any circumstances. Do you understand?'
Far from the Manor walls, the psychic form of Ashley Malkus springs into action to catch the Warlock before he can escape. [Focus:5+1=6][Control:2+1=3][Power:4+2=6] She spuns a net of raw Warp-stuff and flings it over the fleeing Eldar. The effect is immediate, the xenos letting out a howl of sheer mental agony that reverberates through both the physical and Warp-touched worlds. His entire essence begins twisting and shuddering, pure Warp-energy bleeding into his mind and body. [6] After a while, the abrupt movements slow down and stop entirely. The Eldar forms defenses and waits, safe from the unholy energies flowing around him.
Unfortunately, Malkus doesn't get to enjoy the spoils of their victory. She came dangerously close to breaching the barrier between the mortal world and the Warp during her act, and the exertion soon pulls her back into her body. Saun is left alone with the trapped Warlock, his protective field breaking with Ashley's departure.
'Ah, my lord.' Coazan's voice says the moment she opens her eyes. 'They're back. Or one of them is.'
The Overseer and the Lord-Commander, flanked by a guard of sycophants and scribes, come to tower over the frail psychic. The Lord-Commander's entourage stay back, clearly afraid to get close to a witch, even a Sanctioned one.
'Well?' Coazan demands. 'What happened? Did you see the Eldar?'
Enemies1 Eldar Warlock at 43/50 HP,
psychic form probably trapped inside a field of raw Warp-energy in the air above the exercise fields[/]. Eldar Psyker
Allies
Saun at 5/5 HP (15/15), psychic form probably in the air above the exercise fields. Imperial Psyker
In the inner sanctum of Calhose ManorKonstanz ScriptorHP: 15/15
Equipment: Force Weapon, Laspistol
[3/3]Known Perks: Imperial PsykerFaction: Imperial Guard
In the inner sanctum of Calhose ManorAshley MalkusHP: 15/15
Equipment: Force Weapon, Laspistol
[3/3]Known Perks: Imperial PsykerFaction: Imperial Guard
Sergeant Grygur UrugurQuickly order the Hellhound's Heavy Bolter to continue suppressive fire. Order vehicle to radio HQ of situation then all remaining guardsmen charge at where the Eldar apparently are, 3 men throwing frag grenades as we close if we have them. Guardsman by the vehicle to assault too (I assume he will hit them from a slightly different angle).
[3] Grygur grits his teeth and continues giving orders, tryíng the wound with his hand and regretting it an instant later. [3] The Hellhound's Heavy Bolter continues its deafening roaring, [6] firing over a larger area to keep both of the Eldar down. [Dodges:6/6] It keeps their heads down as it's supposed to. The sergeant voxes the driver, unable to shout over the noise of the heavy weapon. He's told to contact HQ and explain their situation. [4] The man gets to work quickly enough. After listening into the company frequency a bit, he gets the impression they're not the only ones who've stumbled upon these xenos. The Sergeant follows his example and sets his commbead on the same channel.
'Deathspear to Company Command, we've encountered an Eldar squad. We have a casualty and my Hellhound's taken some damage, please advise, over.' the driver says, cutting over the other vox traffic for a while. There's a long pause, then Gasoon's voice comes online.
'Copy that, Deathspear. Company Command here, I've already sent the Talons to look for you, get in contact with Abbar. What's the situation out there? Is the sergeant intact?'
[5+1=6] Just then, the squad charges over the left mound, flanking the Heavy Bolter's. [Combat Rolls: 5 Passed] Trooper Dusinin trips over the bank of earth and falls, but the rest of the squad pull off a perfect assault and open up at two prone Eldar. [Dodges:1/3/5/5/2/4] Their shots scar the earth around the Eldar Guardians, [Damages:25+8=33][Damage:18] and a few bursts even actually hit. The wounded Guardian is killed instantly, but the other survives the shot that should've pulverized his ribcage.
[6-2+1=5] The disciplined Eldar warrior fires a surprising burst of shurikens with his Catapult, despite the high-explosive bolt rounds exploding all around him. [Dodge:5] They shriek through the air, but land harmlessly in the road mound. [3+1=4] Trooper Vas, who the burst was aimed at, counters with a [Dodge:2] skillful shot that cracks through the Eldar's [Damage:15] and spatters his brains over the forest floor.
'I think we're pretty good here, sir. Sarge got hit, but it doesn't look like anything we can't patch up with the medkit. What are our orders, Command?' the driver finishes after a pause, seeing the victorious soldiers climb back up the mound. There's a lenghty pause.
'Err... meet up with Abbar and establish a defensive perimeter, and wait for orders. Did you get that, Deathspear?' Gasoon asks. The driver acknowledges and pops out of the Hellhound. The sarge nods to show he heard and climbs aboard to look for the medkit. [5] He stops the bleeding easily enough, though proper treatment will have to wait for now.
Then they gather up around their fallen comrade. Englass still lies on an almost grotesque, anatomically improbable position, his lower body torn open by the deadly alien shurikens. The squad's cheering quickly falls silent when they remember him. They stand beside his body for a while in silence, until the sergeant orders them to carry his body inside the Hellhound. There might not be much space there and the crew aren't too keen on having him onboard, but like hell they're leaving one of their own out here.
The next obvious step would be contacting the Talons of Bryndis and finding a good defensive position. The farmstead is one option, though the hedges around it might need to be burnt down for a clear avenue of fire. Going up or down the road to look for alternative positions is also a viable option.
On the lower west road, next to the HellhoundSergeant Grygur UrugurHP: 11/25
Equipment: Lasgun
[6/6], Laspistol
[3/3], Chainsword
Known Perks: DisciplinedFaction: Imperial Guard
Deathspear Squad1 Guardsman with Lasgun [3/6] and Combat Knife,
at the Hellhound.
Disciplined4 Guardsmen with Lasguns [4/6] and Combat Knives,
at the Hellhound.
Disciplined1 Guardsman with Longlas [3/6] and Combat Knife,
at the Hellhound.
Disciplined1 Hellhound at HP 550/650 with Inferno Cannon
[1/3] and Heavy Bolter
[6/8],
on the lower west road.
Sergeant Micelus Abbar"Men, today may very well be your first taste of combat. For those amongst you who are fearful, worry not; it is but natural. We go to reinforce Urugur's men. They've reported some hostiles. Move out."
Move the men out to the west road and reinforce Urugur. Approach with caution and look out for ambushers.
[5] The squad takes Abbar's words in their own ways, some nodding solemnly, some swelling with anticipating and excitement, some looking nervous. He puts on a confident expression for the men and climbs aboard the cramped Chimera. As always, it smells like overly strong incense, machine oils and various bodily fluids. The Chimera, a small, closed metal box at heart, heats up easily in the sun and the effect this creates is never pleasant. He's seen some of the men recharge their power packs on top of the engine. It's against regulations, but a common enough practice so he overlooks it.
The crew performs the appropriate rituals for the machine spirit and the sturdy support vehicle begins making its way down the camp road. From the narrow view-ports, Micelus and his squad regard the camp around them. Other vehicles and squads are moving outwards, but mostly the movements of the men seem to be random and confused. They run around to briefings and armouries, trying to locate their gear and the rest of their squad. Soon the Chimera leaves the camp behind and turns for the west road, passing over to an off-road. From the way the Chimera shakes, Abbar dreads for the day they might be forced to travel on untamed ground for longer periods of time.
[2] After a while of travel up the west road, the Chimera stops. The engine hisses in protest to the sudden stop. The driver, Imane, pops his head into the transport space.
'We've got bodies up ahead.' he says simply. Abbar nods and makes his way to the top hatch. He looks out at the remains of what seems to have been a very brief and very violent skirmish up the road. Human bodies, civilians by the look of it, lie scattered around, most missing atleast one body part. They've been cut apart by what Abbar guesses to have been Power Swords.
The attackers might still be near, but at the same time, Urugur's squad needs their help. They could just let Gasoon know and head on, though that would leave a potential threat running around behind them.
In the ChimeraSergeant Micelus AbbarHP: 25/25
Equipment: Lasgun
[6/6], Laspistol
[3/3], Chainsword
Known Perks: DisciplinedFaction: Imperial Guard
Talons of Bryndis Squad6 Guardsmen with Lasguns and Combat Knives,
in the Chimera.
Disciplined1 Guardsman with Melta Gun and Combat Knife,
in the Chimera.
Disciplined1 Chimera with Multi-laser
[6/6] and Heavy Bolter
[8/8],
on the start of the west road.
Laric and Markon JoanosMarkon yelled at the crew to reload the main gun and continue firing on the damaged Fire Prism with the bolters, then turned to the vox set, and answered "We've got lots of Eldar heavy vehicles attacking. They outnumber us, the pointy-eared grox fethers."
Reload, continue firing on the damager Fiire Prism.
Shoot at the damaged Falcon with Autocannon [Focus fire], and and the damaged Vyper with Plasma cannons
[5] Markon explains the situation as quickly as he can. The Colonel is obviously having trouble hearing him over the roar of battle.
'Understood. We are on our way. Keep up the good work. You are in command until Captain Stalos reaches the area.' he says, cutting the channel. Joanos feels a strange gratitude for the show of trust, however temporary his leadership over the company might be.
[Bolters:5/1/5] The Heavy Bolters open up at the smoking Fire Prism again. This time it's close enough for them to see without mechanical aid. [Dodges:2+1-1=2/4+1-1=4] The main Bolter tries to keep up with the fast Eldar vehicle but only scores glancing hits on its side. [Damage:112] Even so, the heavy rounds do considerable damage to the relatively fragile Eldar grav-tank.
[1-2=1] Either the Fire Prism doesn't realize where the fire is coming from, or the crew is still too shocked to react, but no return fire comes their way. [Eldar Targeting:1/4][Combat Roll:1] No fire comes their way from any of the other nearby Eldar craft either, apparently preoccupied with other enemies. [1] None of the Vypers attempt a strafing run on them either. It seems the Emperor is with them today.
As the crew finish reloading the Battle Cannon, [3] a haggard voice comes on the vox. '
Destructum, this is
Old Hound, please advise. My tracks have been blown to hell and I can't move worth shit.'
Markon acknowledges, telling the tank's captain to hang on tight. Unable to move, the battle tank is easy prey for the highly mobile Eldar. If the Eldar breach the Imperial battle line, it will have to rely on whatever teeth it has left to combat them.
Down the line, Laric gives new orders for his gunners while verbally abusing his driver a bit more. [Combat Rolls:5/2] The right-side gunner waits patiently for the Eldar craft to enter his arc of fire, anticipates its route through the sky and fires. [Dodge:1+2=3] The fast Eldar aircraft turns away at the last possible moment, but not quickly enough to fully avoid the force of the explosion. [Damage:262-84=178] Flames burst out from the engines and spread quickly through the rest of the speeder. The ex-ganger gunner imagines the pilot screaming in pain as the Vyper plunges down to the ground and disappears in a gratifying explosion, and smiles.
[Tactic: Focus Fire][Leadership:1-1=1] Watching the Vyper's destruction, Markon forgets to finish the order he had started giving. As a result, the gunner waits, confused, and no shots come out of the Autocannon.
[Eldar Targeting:6/2/6] Both the Falcon the
Cobra had damaged already and one of the others decide to turn their attentions on Laric, with maximum force. [Combat Rolls:3/2/1/2] Despite the impressively co-ordinated manouever, only the undamaged Falcon remembers to fire, [Dodge:6-1-1=4] but even it misses every shot. The Emperor seems to protecting them as well.
[4] A Vyper, seeking to avenge the death of his or her comrade, [Dodge:1-1-1+1=1] lets loose a Bright Lance beam and scores a perfect hit on the Imperial tank's [1][2] front armor, taking with it the Heavy Bolter and passing through inside. [Damage:100+96=196] The damage to the tank is considerable, but the death of the gunner of the Bolter shakes the crew more than anything. Above, the Vyper races on, perhaps turning for another strike.
Enemies (Markon Joanos)1 Eldar Fire Prism,
closing in from the north-east, Close Range. Mobile Skimmer1 Eldar Fire Prism at 153/600 HP with Prism Cannon [1/1],
heading to the right, Close Range. Mobile Skimmer1 Eldar Wave Serpent,
heading to the right, Close Range. Mobile Skimmer3 Eldar Vypers,
circling in the sky, Close Range.
Fast Speeder1 Eldar Wraithlord,
moving towards the battle, Long Range.
Wraithsight,
Heavy StructureEnemies (Laric)1 Eldar Falcon at 410/600 HP,
closing in fast, Close Range. Mobile Skimmer1 Eldar Falcon at 600/600 HP with 2 Scatter Lasers [9/10] and Pulse Laser [5/5],
flanking right, Close Range. Mobile Skimmer1 Eldar Falcon at 316/600 HP with 2 Starcannons [1/2] and Pulse Laser [5/5],
flanking left, Close Range. Mobile Skimmer2 Eldar Vypers,
circling in the sky, Close Range.
Fast Speeder1 Eldar Vyper with Bright Lance [0/2] at 80/80 HP,
circling in the sky, Close Range.
Fast Speeder1 Eldar Wave Serpent,
on the far side of the fields, Long Range.
Mobile SkimmerOn the west edge of the fieldIron CobraHP: 1139/1400
Equipment: 2 Exterminator Autocannons
[7/8], Plasma Cannon
[3/3], Plasma Cannon
[1/3]Known Perks: Lumbering Behemoth,
Incompetent DriverFaction: Imperial Guard
On the west edge of the fieldDestructum PeccansHP: 1300/1300
Equipment: Battle Cannon
[1/1], Heavy Bolter
[5/8], Heavy Bolter
[6/8], Heavy Bolter
[7/8]Known Perks: Lumbering Behemoth, Piece of JunkFaction: Imperial Guard
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Hmm, maybe I should add a dodge penalty to Suppressed-status. *shrug*
This update came out well, even took less time than usually.