PGK Battle Reports

Updated: 12:24am PST, 3-18-11, Game 2 posted!!!

This will be a collection of battle reports of me playing games with Pure Grey Knights.  I will be trying out a lot of different lists over the next couple of weeks to get a better feel of the book.  As always, I'll be pulling PGK lists from my tactica and playtesting my theories so I can turn them into law.  Keep in mind that feedback is very important to me, as well as discussions about tactics and strategy.  In terms of questions, please refer to what game you're talking about.  An example would be:  "In game #1, you did this.." etc.


Game #1
2K Grey Knights vs. Blood Angels

My list consisted of 3x 5x Paladins w/ 2x MC Psycannons, a large squad of Paladins fully kitted with Draigo and Librarian.
His list had a Stormraven w/ Librarian, Honor Guard and Furioso, 2x Tactical squads with Plasma Cannon/Plasma Gun, 2x Devastators w/ Missiles, and 2 Assault Squads w/ Priests and Meltas.

His list is pretty balanced whereas mine is filled with 2W Terminators.

We roll for mission and deployment and we get Spearhead deployment and Annihilation.  My Grand Strategy gives me 3 Scouting Paladin squads (including Draigo's) and I advance up the field with the closest deployment.  I also win first turn and the fun begins.

Turn 1 didn't see much action because I was getting close to him.  Since I won deployment, I chose to go in the area with the heaviest terrain/giving him the least amount of terrain.  I had like 4 bushes to cover in whereas he only had 1 big patch.  Anyways, I advance with nothing in range.

He keeps everything in the back and begins shooting at me with his stuff.  The Plasma Cannon overheats from 1 Tac squad and Shrouding w/ the 3+ cover saves 2 wounds from another.  The SR fires at Draigo's squad with a TL Lascannon and I block it with Draigo's face.

Turn 2 sees me advance more into the woods and I use 3 of my Paladin squads to reduce a Tactical squad to 4 dudes (forced a lot of saves, he didn't do so well).  His return fire puts 2 separate wounds on 2 Paladins from 1 squad and that's about it.  His scatters were laughable and I save all but one of his Krak missiles and a Paladin goes down.

Turn 3, I advance further and shoot down his SR with my Psycannons.  Combined fire from the other squad puts his Honor Guard down to 3 dudes, and his wounded Tactical squad runs off the board after another wound.  On his turn, he moves everything back as I'm getting awfully close except for the assault squads which were behind buildings, well for the most part.

Turn 4, I move up more and shoot at one of the assault squads that was peaking behind a building and forced a couple of wounds.  He saves the majority of them and he assaults me with a 8-man squad of ASM and a Priest.  I test for Sanctuary with my Librarian and he's out of range to hood it.  He test for Hammerhand and he fails to stop it.  Now I'm going first with Halberds w/ WS5 S5 and I kill 6 dudes including his Priest.  He attacks back and kills one, I swing with my Hammer, killing 2 more.  He loses by 6, runs, I can't chase so I move next to him.

We call it here.  I lose 2 Paladins from separate squads, he loses a Tactical squad, a Storm Raven, a squad that's running off the board and most likely, a lot more.

Post-game Analysis:

I think this game was in my favor because I had a favorable mission, superior deployment and took advantage of cover very well.  The map had a lot of trees in the middle and that type of firepower combined with Shrouding was too much for my opponent.  His list also didn't have any big threats to my 2W Terminators.  Against more AP1-2 weaponry and S8+ weapons, I think my list would of suffered more.  Overall, I think the list did what it's supposed to do; advance, shoot, kill things in assault.  In the future, I will probably reserve one of my Paladin squads and come in via DS or Outflank.  That would of caused my opponent to think a little more than backing up into a corner.  The one thing to note is that the list is extremely slow and Eldar armies w/ a lot of lances will have a field day with it.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Game #2

2K Grey Knights vs. Blood Angels

This is a rematch between me and my friend using a different BA list.

Hist list:

Reclusiarch TDA, 5x TH/SS in LRC, 5x ASM in LC/TLPC Razor, 2x 10x ASM w/ PF/Meltas w/ Sanguinary Priests w/ LClaw, 2x Baal Dreads, 2x 5x Devs w/ Missiles

My list:
Grand Master, Blind + Rad nades w/ Skulls, 7x Paladins, Apoth, BBanner, Psybolts, 2x MC Psycannons, 3x 10x GKSS in Rhinos w/ 2x Psycannons, 3x Rifleman Dreads w/ Psybolts

The mission we rolled was Annihilation and the deployment was Pitched Battle.  I won the roll to go first again so I deployed my stuff in some ruins.  I choose to give Scout (rolled a 3 on d3 again) to 2x of my GKSS squads and for my Paladins (they were in reserve for DS).  As for the servo-skulls, they were deployed in the middle exactly 12" from each other so I had a huge bubble of options.  Scout moves sees 2x of the GKSS squads relocate to match my opponent's deployment and his scouting Baals push up a little and pops smoke.

Turn 1 sees most of my army relocate to the right of the battlefield.  One of the GKSS squads disembarks in cover and lays down some fire on the Baal Pred.  Combined shooting from that squad and a Rifledread detonates the ammo bin instead one of the scouting Baals and it goes up in flames.  My other shots from the Psycannon and Rifledreads rips off the TLAC from his LRC.

His turn 1 sees his Baal advance and make one of my servo-skulls disappear.  He lays down some fire on my exposed GKSS squad and I take 2 of my guys off the table.  The Razor shoots at my Rifledread and fails to do anything.  The LRC moves up 12" and pops smokes and the rest of his army flies up a little closer while hugging cover from his vehicles.  His one Dev squad that had LoS shot this turn, but epically failed to do anything.

Turn 2 sees one of my Rhinos race up and I disembark some Psycannons to shoot at his LRC.  Paladins do not arrive this turn and all other GKSS stood still and took aim.  Too bad aiming didn't really help and combined shooting from the Psycannons do no damage to his Baal or LRC.  My Rifledreads on the far left try  for the Baal but it was blocked pretty nicely from the LRC so a 3+ cover was in order.  He passes his cover save but his Razorback was not as lucky.  My far right Rifle puts 2 pens into the Razor's hull and blows apart its weapons.  With 2 of my GKSS squads exposed for assault, I get a little nervous.

His turn was extremely bloody in terms of combat.  Combat was so fierce that his Devastators moved up to get a better position because LoS was killing his field of fire (more realistically, they just wanted to watch).  His LRC moves up and immobilizes my right most Rifleman while it unloads his Reclusiarch and TH/SS Termies.  One of his ASM squads jumps over a building and into assault range of my GKSS squad.  I misjudged distance a little bit and they're just within 6" of my first guy.  Gunfire opens here and there and a few Grey Knights go down.  The Reclusiarch and his squad charges my top GKSS and the other GKSS squad sees combat with his ASM squad.  I Hammerhand with both squads and brace for impact.  The top squad of GKSS (already down to 6 dudes from shooting) takes 3 more wounds from the Reclusiarch and the Justicar swings with his hammer.  It connects with 2 wounds on the Blood Angels hero and he fails one of his precious invulnerable saves.  Splat.  It goes without saying that the other GKSS were butchered to the last man by the TH/SS Termies.  Assault on the other squad sees 7 dead on my side and 3 dead on his.  I lose by 4, ATSKNF, and I lose 1 more Knight.

Turn 3 has the Paladins come down in the middle of the battlefield in cover with no scatter.  I pass my difficult terrain and unpack my last squad of GKSS from their Rhinos to open fire on the Terminators.  Combined fire from everything on the field except for 1 Rifledread puts a crap ton of saves on the 5x Termies.  They save them all.  My rightmost Rifleman opens up no the Baal Pred and turns it into a slag of molten armor.  Assault sees my last Knight fall to the ASM squad and I brace myself for the impact of next round.

His turn produced a lot of good shooting as his ASM squad, Dev squads and MM from the LRC drops 2 Rhinos and a Rifleman Dread.  Melta fire from the top ASM squad rips both arms off a Rifledread and before charging and killing it.  His TH/SS squad also charges my big unit of Paladins but they get shit on by Rad Grenades + Hammerhand and I6 Halberds.  Four die in the first second and the last one kills a Paladin before he himself gets silenced by the Grand Master.  I consolidate closer to his ASM squad that killed the Rhino so I'm in charge range next turn.

On my turn 4, I pack up my GKSS squad in my Rhino and run 12" away from his ASM squad on top.  My Paladin squad moves a inch away from his ASM squad on the bottom and lay into them with S5 Stormbolters and Psycannons.  3+ armor and FNP saves everything there before I assault in.  HH fails to cast on a 11 but I still manage to tear through everything in my way.  All the Blood Angels fall dead before the Paladins and the Priest himself fights for his life before getting slapped by a Daemonhammer.  I consolidate towards his LRC.

On his turn, he moves the LRC up and misses with his MM.  Hurricane Bolters do no damage to the Paladins and concentrated fire from the Devastators don't kill any Paladins either.  His ASM squad moves closer to my Paladins but is out of range of my assault.

Turn 5 sees me move my last squad of GKSS up and unload on a Dev squad.  Combined fire from my last Rifledread and the GKSS puts down 3 members from a Dev squad and my Paladins move against his LRC.  Psycannon fire rips the MM off the LRC and the assault with the S10 Hammer glances it with Stunned (he moved 12").

With his last try, everything in his army pours into the Paladins and one of them goes down to a Meltagun from the ASM squad.  They charge, I pop HH and between the Brotherhood Banner giving me +1 attack, Rad Grenades taking away 1 Toughness, the I6 Halberds rips through every single Battle Brother before they even get to swing.  I inflicted 11 wounds with my WS5 Paladins needing 3s and 2s.  We call the game here in my favor because he had nothing left that can touch the Paladins reliably.

Post-game Analysis:

Up until the Paladins entered combat, everything was going pretty good for him.  I lost 2 units of GKSS to his assaults early and my vehicles were in ruins.  As soon as the Grand Master and his bodyguard intervened, everything changed.  Marines just melt to I6 Force Halberds and I soaked up an insane amount of damage from the remnants of his army.  As long as I have the Paladins left as a anchor unit, and my opponent doesn't have enough low AP S8+ weapons left, I feel very comfortable in taking the game in force.  God knows that Blood Angels are one of the best armies to take damage because of their 3+ and FNP, but that just doesn't do anything to I6 NFWs.  I almost feel that the assault nature of the army (BA) is rendered useless because of the Pally layout.  Blind Grenades takes away your extra attack on the charge, Rad Grenades makes you T3 vs. my S5, I6 Halberds means your FC means nothing and my 2W FNP Terminators will just take regular attacks like they're nothing.  The entire squad's dead before they strike, and that's before my Grand Master even gets to swing.