Campaign - Ardan V, Mission 3 Battle Report

The Eldar Pathfinders had quickly visited 6 locations in the industrial district of Baston, before disappearing quickly, practically melting into the ruins around the main fuel storage depot before Hjorvard could get close enough to them to try and extract some information as to what this xenos invasion was all about. 

Still, 6 locations of interest was the best lead the Space Wolves had had in the last three weeks of chasing these shadows all over Baston. There was something about these locations, something important, something he knew his Wolf Lord and Rune Priests would like to hear about.

Arandril Starsong had listened to the Pathfinders reports, agreeing with their assessment that the location of the cursus must be in this industrial sector of Baston. Time was running out now, the cursus would become critically dangerous to the entire planet in a matter of days, maybe even less, if action was not taken. Using the full force at his disposal, Arandril was going to move toward the site and search all six locations and end the threat from the cursus once and for all. He had already forseen a bloody battle with these humans, but he could not determine the aftermath. Giving his orders, in place of the slain Autuarch Alarique Dawn runner, Arandril was firmly set along the path which could also lead to his demise.

Battle Report - 3,000pts

Wolf Lord Fjolnir Lightningwolf's Space Wolves

Fjolnir Lightningwolf - Runic Armour, Wolf Claw, Belt of Russ, Combi-Melta, Wolf Tail Talisman, Saga of the Beat.
Hjorvard Gunnarsson - Runic Armour, Frost Blade, Wolf Tail Talisman, Saga of the Hunter.
Wolf Priest - Runic Armour, Bike, Wolf Tail Talisman, Saga of the Warrior Born.
Rune Priest - Runic Armour, Wolf Tail Talisman, Living Lightning, Tempests Wrath.

Wolf Scouts - 6 Men, Flamer, Power Weapon.
Lone Wolf - TDA, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, 2 x Fenrisian Wolves.
Wolf Guard - Frost Blade/Combi-Melta, Powerfist/Combi-Melta, 2 x Wolf Claw/Combi-Melta, Power weapon/Combi-Plasma, Razorback.
Dreadnought - Extra Armour, Assault Cannon, Missile Launcher.

Grey Hunters - 10 Men, Standard, Powerfist, Meltagun x 2, Rhino.
Grey Hunters - 10 Men, Standard, Powerweapon, Flamer x 2, Rhino. 
Grey Hunters - 6 Men, Standard, Plasma gun, Razorback.
Grey Hunters - 6 Men, Standard, Plasma gun, Razorback.
Blood Claws - 15 Men, 2 x Flamer.


Bikes - 5 Bikes, Flamer, Powerfist, Attack Bike
Wolf Guard Bike - Powerfist, Combi-Melta.


Long Fangs - 6 Men, 5 x Missile Launchers.
Predator - Heavy Bolter Sponsons.
Land Raider Crusader.

Arandril Starsong's Biel-Tan Eldar


Arandril Starsong - Ghosthelm, Rune Armour, Spirit Stones, Shuriken Pistol, Witchblade.
Avatar.
Warlock Unit - Embolden, Enhance, 3x Destructor.


Wraithguard - 5 Men, 1 Warlock with Singing Spear, Wave Serpent with TL Shuriken Catapults and TL Bright Lances.
Harlequin Troupe - 8 Men, 1 Shadowseer with Veil of Tears, 1 Troupe Master.
Fire Dragons - 10 Men, Wave Serpent with TL Shuriken Catapults and TL Shuriken Cannons.


Dire Avengers - 9 Men, Avenger S-Catapult, 1 Exarch, Blade Storm, Defend, Power Weapon, Shimmershield.
Dire Avengers - 9 Men, Avenger S-Catapult, 1 Exarch, Defend, Power Weapon, Shimmershield.
Pathfinders - 5 Men
Guardians - 10 Men, Bright Lance Weapon Platform.
Guardians - 10 Men, Bright Lance Weapon Platform.

Shining Spears - 4 Jetbikes with Laser Lance and TL Shuriken Catapults, 1 Exarch with Star Lance and TL Shuriken Catapults.
Vyper Squadron - 1 Skimmer, Bright Lance, TL Shuriken Catapults.


Wraithlord - Flamer (x2), Wraithsword, Bright Lance.
Wraithlord - Flamer (x2), Wraithsword, Bright Lance.
Fire Prism - Holo-Field, Spirit Stones, TL Shuriken Catapults, Prism Cannon.
Fire Prism - Holo-Field, Spirit Stones, TL Shuriken Catapults, Prism Cannon.

The Space Wolves surged forwards, with the Eldar a long way off in the distance and, for the moment, well out of range of the weaponry the Wolves had. Fjolnir was aboard his Land Raider Crusader alongside his Great Company's newest recruits, whilst Hjorvard took a scout pack around the fringes of the battlefield, hoping to gain a surprise attack on the back lines of the Eldar. 

The scouts early reports were of the mixed variety, the xenos were searching two locations, but still had not found what they were looking for. They also seemed to be a rather light force on the ground and their main forces seemed to be holding back.


The two enemies were closing in on each other now, however few shots had actually been fired, with both sides frantically searching for the cursus so that it could be captured and controlled by one side or the other. Hallkjell, now a lone warrior, having seen his pack destroyed by an earlier skirmish with the Eldar, took his two accompanying Wolves east to search a possible location in the ruins of an old control center. The area was clear, leaving only three locations as the possible source of the cursus. Hallkjell set off west toward the remaining locations when Arandril Starsong appeared from atop of the bridge across the river running through the industrial complex.


Before Hallkjell could even react to the appearance of the Eldar leader, he could feel his brain beginning to burn, to heat up, an unrelenting pressure within his skull. The Lone Wolf stumbled and lost his footing, falling to both knees as the intensity of the attack reached its crescendo. Hallkjell's brain exploded within his skull and the Space Wolf fell to the ground, his life finished in a second without the chance to gain any vengeance for his fallen pack mates.

Upon hearing of Hallkjells demise, Hjorvard sprang forward with his scouts, determined to responded to the death by taking some Eldar lives for himself. Appearing on the Eldar right flank, Hjorvard and his scouts struggled through the ruins and couldn't reach the Dark Reapers who were hiding there. Unfortunately for Hjorvard and his scouts, the Reapers position was then reinforced by a Harlequin Troupe, an Avatar and Shining Spears. Within moments the scouts and their Wolf Guard Battle Leader were torn to shreds by a ferocious counter attack that spared no one.


In retaliation the Space Wolves unleashed a barrage of fire power at the Farseer, which left him scrambling for his life and barely escaping with his life and finding cover with a Dire Avengers unit that had rushed to his position to assist him. Arandril then attempted to push west toward the last remaining locations that needed investigation, but again got caught in a hail of heavy bolter and assault cannon fire, which forced the Eldar Farseer to flee from the battlefield, with hopes of returning once the remaining Eldar force had secured the cursus.

The Long Fangs had, by now, set up a good position and were loosening off shots at any targets exposing themselves. Meanwhile Fjolnir's Crusader had moved up on the Space Wolves left flank and had moved well within the industrial complex, seeting itself up dangerously next to the fuel tanker situated there, as forces from both sides closed in on its position. 

The Harlequin Troupe converged on a location situated in the river that ran adjacent to the industrial complex. The Eldar had found the cursus and were quick to relay this information to all other Eldar units to bring all back up they could to the area. The Shining Spears, Wraithlords and Avatar all responded immediately, with a Wave Serpent loaded with Wraithguard moving as swiftly as possibly from the Eldar left flank across to their right.


The Space Wolves pushed forward, with the Space Wolves fire taking down one Wraithlord, while the bike squadron tried to take down a Wave Serpent carrying Fire Dragons. The Dragons themselves were forced from their transport, but the bikes suffered heavily in the return melta fire. The remaining Fire Dragons were then wiped out by a Grey Hunter squad who then went on to take the Vyper that was zipping around using their plasma gun.


Over at the cursus location, the Avatar and Wraithlord were firing off high powered shots at the Land Raider, trying to incapacitate it before it got into range of the Harlequins defending the mission objective. One stray Bright Lance later and the fuel tanker ignited and a huge ball of fire which engulfed the entire industrial complex, along the river and back toward nearby ruins of other buildings. The explosion took an almighty toll on both sides, with Shining Spears, Harlequins and Dire Avengers among the dead on the Eldar side and two squads of Grey Hunters losing men as well as the Land Raider having its tracks blown off.


It was at this point that the cursus sprung to life, with 10 Lesser Daemons spewing forth and leaping upon the nearby troupe of Harlequins. The Daemons devoured the Harlequins quickly and set forth toward the nearest unit, a squad of Pathfnders.

The Space Wolf Lord, Fjolnir, led his Blood Claws from the Land Raider Crusader and charged toward the unclaimed objective, avoiding the lurking Avatar and Wraithlord, to claim the objective for the moment for the Wolves. A nearby Grey Hunter unit finished the remaining Shining Spears and moved on toward the Dark Reapers who were firing upon the Wolf Lord at the cursus.


With a couple of Razorbacks still operational, all firing was focused upon the monstrous form of the Avatar that still moved across the battlefield, even though it had taken a couple of wounds already. This focused fire saw the Avatar finally fall, but not soon enough as the remaining Wraithlord had made it into combat with the Wolf Lord near the objective and the close combat there could see only one possible victor thanks to the strength and toughness of the Eldar warmachine.


The Lesser Daemons were still reaping a bloody toll among the Eldar and claimed more lives form the Pathfinders before moving on to a squad of Dire Avengers. The Daemon charge was slowly grinding to a halt thanks to the Dire Avenger Exarch who was restricting their attacks.

Fjolnir had seen his squad slowly wiped out by this walking beast that no weapon either he himself or his squad had could touch. The objective was out of reach and survival was all that occupied Fjolnirs mind. He would not fall this day to this monster.

Both forces had taken heavy casualties and the cursus was looking like being left unclaimed, the power of the warp ready to jump forth from it and devour this ruined world of Ardan V. Fjolnir Lightningwolf was locked in an unending dual with a Wraithlord, a pack of Grey Hunters had just cleaned out the fire base of the Dark Reapers, but were out of range and time to move closer to the cursus to claim it for the Space Wolves.


Suddenly, almost from out of nowhere, a Wave Serpent moved within touching distance of the combat between the Dire Avengers and Lesser Daemons. With the Wraithguard leaving their transport they threw themselves into the combat, helping to obliterate the last of the Daemons and send them back to the warp. Having won the contest, the Dire Avengers slumped to the ground, broken but alive, and able to only take one step forward toward their goal. The fresher Wraithguard could move without any fatigue, claiming the cursus as theirs while also setting up a perimeter around it to ensure no further Daemons could appear from within.


The Space Wolves, their forces spent and stretched across the battlefield, beat a tactical retreat and could only watch from a distance as the enemy Farseer, who fled the battle much earlier on, returned to the field to confront the tainted artifact, carrying out some form of ceremony to close its threat. With the cursus neutralised the Eldar left the planet of Ardan V immediately, while the Space Wolves were left to gather their dead and harvest the geneseed from the fallen.

Campaign - Ardan V. Mission 3

With their Autarch Elarique Dawnrunner and Farseer Yvaine Sundancer dead, the Eldar had suffered a mighty blow at the hands of the Space Wolves, but they had managed to incapacitate the humans psyker sufficiently to stop him working out why they were on the planet. Farseer Arandril Starsong would have to lead the final assault on Ardan V and close the cursus once and for all.


For the Space Wolves, Lord Fjolnir sent out several packs of his Wolf Scouts to monitor the position of the invading Eldar. The signs all pointed to the xenos searching the planet for some artifact but, whatever the item may be, Fjolnir would not let it fall into the enemies hands. This was one battle that the Wolf Lord would not miss out on. He could smell the xenos blood and now he wanted to spill it.


The remaining few Pathfinders had scouted a ruined industrial complex which still housed a huge storage tank of highly explosive material. Near to the complex was a river which almost sprang out out of nowhere. As they were being pursued by the Space Wolf scouts they could not determine for certain where the cursus was, but they could tell it was in this general area. They quickly reported back to Arandril Starsong as the Wolf Scouts also made their report back to their Wolf Lord. The scene of the final battle was set, the hunt for the cursus was to begin.

Main game: 3000pts. Capture and Control

Two Force Organisation charts can be used to assemble each army.
 

The Space Wolf player must not take Ornulf Windtamer (Chief Rune Priest) and must take Fjolnir Lightning Wolf. Any other HQ is allowed, but if a further Rune Priest is taken they cannot have Master of Runes.

At least one Lone Wolf must be taken to represent the lone Grey Hunter from the first/pre-second mission.

As the Long Fangs have taken heavy casualties only one squad may be used in this battle. 

The Eldar player must field Arandril Starsong (Farseer).

The Eldar force must also include at least one Troupe of Harlequins. 

The objective is to find and hold on to the cursus. As the cursus location is currently unknown six objective markers are to be placed randomly on the table in locations at least 12" apart. When a unit gets within 1" of the marker the area can be searched. For the first location to be searched the cursus will be found on a roll of a 6, for the second searched it will be on a 5 etc until the cursus is found.

However, once the cursus is found the gate to the warp will become active. On the roll of a 6, rolled in each player turns shooting phase, 10 Lesser Daemons will spew forth, attacking the nearest unit to their position.

The abandoned storage tank is also a significant threat. Any shots that are fired that cross over the tank are liable to ignite its contents, causing a huge explosion. If a shot is fired that misses its target it automatically hits the tank. The tank has AV12 all round. If penetrated it will explode automatically in 2d6" in all directions, causing Strength 8 AP - wounds on all affected models.

The game is of random length. There are no further stipulations.

Campaign - Ardan V, Mission 2 Battle Report

Wolf Guard Battle Leader Hjorvard Gunnarsson and his last remaining Grey Hunter, Hallkjell quickly located their Wolf Lord, Fjolnir Lightningwolf, deep in conversation with Ornulf Windtamer, the highest ranking Rune Priest the Space Wolves had on Ardan V. Following a very detailed but brief description of events from Hjorvard, Fjolnir and Ornulf decide the Rune Priest will hold a forward position with a substantial force, while the Wolf Lord will prepare a larger force as a last line of defence against the xenos invaders.

Battle Report - 2,000pts  

Ornulf's Primary Defence Force

Ornulf Windtamer - Runic Armour, Master of Runes, Chooser of the Slain, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman. Living Lightning, Tempests Wrath.

Wolf Guard Battle Leader Kollsegg - Runic Armour, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, Saga of the Beastslayer, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman.

Wolf Guard Squad - Frost Blade and Combi-Melta, Wolf Claw and Combi-Melta (x2), Powerfist and Combi-Melta, Power Weapon and Combi-Plasma, Razorback.
Dreadnought - Heavy Flamer, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman.

Grey Hunters - 10 Men, Rhino, Standard, Powerfist, Meltagun x2.
Grey Hunters - 10 Men, Rhino, Standard, Powerweapon, Flamer x2. 
Grey Hunters - 6 Men, Razorback, Standard, Plasma Gun, Plasma Pistol.
Grey Hunters - 6 Men, Razorback, Standard, Plasma Gun, Plasma Pistol.
Blood Claws - 15 Men, Flamer x2.

Long Fangs - 6 Men, Missile Launchers x5.
Long Fangs - 6 Men, Heavy Bolters x5, Razorback.

Additional Reserves - Grey Hunters - 10 Men, Rhino, Plasma Gun, Flamer.

Elarique Dawnrunner's Primary Assault Squad

Autarch Elarique Dawnrunner - Eldar Jetbike, Laser Lance, TL Shuriken Catapults.

Yvaine Skydancer  - Rune Armour, Ghosthelm, Runes of Warding, Spirit Stones, Witchblade. 

Fire Dragons - 10 Men, Wave Serpent
Howling Banshees (10) - 9 Banshees with 1 Exarch, Wave Serpent.

Guardians - 10 Guardians, 1 Warlock, 1 Bright Lance weapons Platform.
Guardians - 10 Guardians, 1 Bright Lance weapons Platform. 
Pathfinders - 5 Men.
Dire Avengers - 9 Avengers, 1 Exarch, Wave Serpent.

Shining Spears - 4 Jetbikes with TL Shuriken Catapults and Laser Lance, 1 Exarch.

Dark Reapers - 4 Reapers, 1 Exarch with Crackshot.

 Ornwulf positioned himself in the middle of the battlefield, with a clear view of all approaches the Eldar could take toward his position. Pushing all his Razorbacks forward, the Rune Priest was hoping he could slow the advance of the xenos warriors until his Long Fangs squads could get clear line of site shots at the enemy. Today there was no retreat, today the only path for the Wolves was to victory.


Elarique Dawnrunner, along with the accompanying squad of Shining Spears moved quickly down the Eldar right flank, trying to locate the psyker who would bring an end to this planet if he was not stopped. Dawnrunners progress was quickly halted though by the presence of two transport tanks, with large heavy bolters swiveling round toward their position. Moving in to cover, the Autarch watched as 6 of the grey armoured warriors rushed forward toward their position in cover. Spotting the charge, Dawnrunner sent the Shining Spears forward to meet this assault head on. 

Unfortunately for Elarique Dawnrunner he had underestimated the tenacity of the approaching enemy, who managed to throw back what seemed like an endless flurry of attacks, landing wounds on Elarique and three of his companions. There was no escaping the fury of the remaining four Wolves, who gunned down the other two Shining Spears as they attempted to escape and gave pursuit of the Eldar Autarch who seemed to be fleeing the battle.


On the opposing flank, Saemund the Ancient Dreadnought marched forward, unleashing volley after volley of blasts from his assault cannon on any enemy targets and locations he could see, while also covering the advance of a 10 man strong pack of Grey Hunters. The Ancient was amazed at the progress this squad was making, a new saga was being written right in front of him and he would be proud to retell the story to the new recruits for years to come.

The Grey Hunters, having had their Rhino transport immobilised, proceeded on foot toward the encampments of the Eldar Pathfinders. Under hail of fire from the Pathfinders and supporting Guardian units, the Grey Hunters were slowly being eroded down, 10 men became 7 which soon became 6. The Hunters were then within striking range of the Pathfinders and ferociously set about ending their part of this battle, and this they did without taking another casualty. Unfortunately, as soon as the last Pathfinder lay dead at the bottom of the crater they were hiding in, a torrent of fire rained down upon the Grey Hunters, which saw another 2 brothers fall.

Moving quickly as their numbers became ever smaller, the Grey Hunters, now numbering only 3 men, assaulted 10 Guardians and their Warlock who were hiding in cover. The hurting Space Wolves lashed out with precision, taking four Guardians down and, ultimately, chopping every last man of their opponents down as they attempted to flee. With their immediate opponents finished, the Wolves hunkered down in cover, and assessed their options, which appeared to lay in facing off against another 10 man Guardian squad.

 As the remaining three came under heavy fire it appeared their time had come as another of their number fell. The Guardians were lining up to attempt to blast the Wolves from their hiding hole, when the survivors sprang from where they were pinned down and launched what they assumed would be their final assault. In the ensuing melee three Guardians fell, but amazingly the Wolves stood strong and once again chopped down their fleeing opponents. Barely aware of their victory the Wolves then found themselves in the sights of a few remaining Dark Reapers who took but a few seconds to aim and pull their triggers, finally finishing this Grey Hunter rampage.

In matters of the rest of the battle, Elarique Dawnrunner was finally cut down by the plasma fire from the Grey Hunters in pursuit of him, the final wound killing the Eldar Autarch and leaving him beyond the help of any known remedy. 

The Wolf Guard Battle Leader and his Wolf Guard assaulted a Wave Serpent having missed with all their melta shots. It was Kollsegg's Thunder Hammer which caused the destruction blows on the Serpent, the explosion spreading for several metres all around the vehicle. As the smoke cleared an horrendous amount of melta fire poured forth, killing every single Wolf Guard present, leaving Kollsegg standing alone against the emerging Fire Dragons.

Taking the charge of the Dragons, Kollsegg stood firm, deflecting blow after blow until he could work an opening for himself to strike back. His Thunder Hammer obliterated three of the Fire Dragons. In the ensuing carnage of wiping out the Fire Dragons to a man, Kollsegg came under fire from some Dire Avengers who had disembarked from a Wave Serpent along with Yvaine Sundancer, Farseer and now the highest ranking Eldar on the battlefield.

As Kollsegg finally fell to a heavy weight of fire, he also watched in horror as Saemund the Ancient collapsed to the floor, a smouldering wreckage that would be able to do no more this battle.

With Kollsegg and Saemund down and the Eldar left flank completely crushed, Ormunds attention was drawn to a single Wave Serpent moving at speed down the Eldar right flank. Ordering his remaining Long Fangs to unleash their missiles to halt the vehicle, his wishes were duly obliged as the vehicle lost its engines and its nose ploughed into the ground. A high pitched wail suddenly began emanating from the vehicle and soon the Howling Banshees poured forth from the stricken vehicle and carved their way through a full squad of Grey Hunters before moving directly toward Ornulfs position.

With the bloody battle taking its toll on both forces, the Rune Priest had little option but to take his eyes from the battlefield and concentrate on this very real, very close proximity threat. Ordering his Blood Claws to unleash all their firepower, Ornulf was amazed to see only two of the Banshees drop in the face of 13 bolt pistol shots and 2 dousings in burning promethium. He was sure he had seen at least 15 potentially killing shots connect with this xenos threat.

 Having little in the way of options, Ornulf and his Blood Claws lept in to action, jumping at the lightning quick Banshees, hoping to cause some form of damage. Eventually the Banshees fell silent as the last of their number was caught on the end of chainsword, but not before a terrible toll of 9 Blood Claws had fallen to the xenos power weapons. Even more worrying was that Ornulf had also fallen during the battle, thankfully the great Rune Priest was not dead but fallen deep into a coma from which his body may never fully recover.

The last remaining battle saw the Grey Hunters who had taken down the Eldar Autarch Elarique Dawnrunner ambushing the Farseer Yvaine Sundancer, killing the Eldar psyker with accurate plasma fire. The only remaining Eldar on the battlefield, 3 Dark Reapers, seeing the battle was well and truly lost, melted into the ruins and vanished. The Space Wolves had won this confrontation, but at tremendous cost to both sides.

Campaign - Ardan V, Pre-Mission 2 Battle Report

The Pathfinders were closing the gap between themselves and the fleeing Space Wolves quickly, soon they would be able to take sight with their rifles and put an end to this chase. Just a few more metres.

Hjorvard could see the xenos warriors pursuing them, getting ever closer, ever more dangerous. They needed to clear the outskirts of the city, disappear into the denser wreckage of the city that once was Baston, the capital of Ardan V, and ensure safe passage of the news of this Eldar invasion to Lord Fjolnir before he was set upon by a surprise attack similar to the attack Hjorvard himself had been subjected to. Failure was not an option for these Space Wolves, the message had to get through.

The Pathfinders split in five different directions, each with specified targets that they had to take down. Moving quickly and skillfully into position, their rolling formation allowed one three to take aim while two rushed forward. The first round of firing saw two shots hit their mark brilliantly through the ruins, but could not stop the Space Wolf movement.

Hjorvard vaulted over ruined walls, crashing through debris without stopping, determined to make it to the city in double quick time. Once or twice he felt the ping of shots ricocheting safely from his runic armour. Behind him he could hear the distinct roars of fury from the two Grey Hunters who had escaped the camp site massacre with him.

Hallkjell was determined to level the playing field in this chase and doubled back immediately, launching himself at the first Pathfinder, crushing the fragile Eldar warrior before he could manage to do any damage back. With the taste of xenos blood he threw himself quickly into combat with a second, which again ended with the death of yet another Pathfinder. His remaining Grey Hunter brother, Alfgeir, ran his chainsword through his closest opponent, the blood of the xenos fighter spraying up the front of his armour and dripping from his sword as he deactivated the blade. Hallkjell could only watch in despair as one of the enemies bullets finally found a way through their defences, with Alfgeirs head snapping back violently, the lens of his right eye shattered and blood pouring from the hole.

As Hallkjell watched the  body of his friend waver on its feet for a second, before crashing down to the floor, he realised he had now seen the end of each member of his pack. Looking across the ruins he could see no signs of Hjorvard and interference on their vox units made it impossible to discern whether his Battle Leader remained alive or not. With long, piercing howl Hallkjell began at a jog and proceeded into a full sprint to close the gap toward the remaining pursuers.

The two Pathfinders had been trying to land critical hits on the running Wolf for some time now, his agility and resilience commendable, but allowing him to escape was ultimately problematic. The Space Wolf had managed to get to the maximum range of their rifles and showed no signs of slowing. Suddenly one of the other Space Wolves had attacked a position to the left of them, leaving him in the open. Taking careful aim from such close range, the Pathfinder found his target, and watched as the unnatural humans head jerked backward, with the body collapsing to the floor moments later. A quick glance back toward the leader of these Space Wolves brought an end to this skirmish, he was out of the range of their guns, they could not catch him before he made it into the city wreckage. 

A long howl in the direction of their one and only kill brought the Pathfinders attention back to the Space Wolves who had turned around and assaulted them instead of trying to warn their leader of the potential threat. Knowing their mission was failed, the two Pathfinders melted into the ruins to report their shortcomings to the Farseer Yvaine Sundancer and leave the Wolves to their own devices for now.

Hjorvard could see Hallkjell charging toward the last known position of the Eldar pursuers. Lighting a flare to let Hallkjell know of his whereabouts, he tossed the brightly burning light to the floor and moved into the wrecked city to wait for the lone Grey Hunter before moving on toward the camp of the Wolf Lord Fjolnir Lightningwolf to warn of the coming storm.

Campaign - Ardan V, Mission 2

Having crushed the Space Wolf force outside the city to prevent them interfering further down the road, the Eldar were ready to proceed with the first of their two primary objectives - the killing of the Space Wolf Rune Priest, as this would hinder the Space Wolves in locating the cursus.

Meanwhile, using the time bought with the lives of his men, and the reorganising of the Eldar forces after the damage done to them, Wolf Guard Battle Leader Gunnarson made his way through the city that had been devastated in the fighting between his Lords Great Company and the Oracles of Change. Hoping to warn Fjolnir Lightning Wolf of the presence of the xenos before they struck again.

Knowing that a few of the space wolves had escaped their ambush Farseer Yvaine Sundancer dispatched a squad of Pathfinders after the fleeing Wolves.

Pregame Mini-game: Kill Team

Space Wolf side: Hjorvard Gunnarson and two Grey Hunters.

Eldar side: 5 Pathfinders.

Played on a 4x4 board. Lots of city terrain.

The Space Wolves deploy 18" onto the board, and have to get 1 model off the far side.

The Eldar move on in turn 1 and have to kill all three Space Wolves.

If the Space Wolves manage to get off the board then the Space Wolf player can reinforce the Rune Priests forces with a squad of Grey Hunters armed with a flamer and a plasma gun in a Rhino on turn 4 of the main game.

Main game: 2000pts.

The space wolf player must take Ornulf Windtamer and may not take Fjolnir Lightning Wolf or Hjorvard Gunnarson, any Wolf Lords or Wolf Priests as there is only 1 Wolf Lord, and  the other Wolf Priest is with Fjolnir.

The Eldar player must field at least one of Elarique Dawnrunner (Autarch) and/or Arandril Starsong (Farseer).

The Eldar objective is to kill the Rune Priest. If they succeed the body becomes an objective that can be held by any infantry or jump infantry unit, that either side can claim.

The Eldar player gains 3VP if they kill the Rune Priest and 1VP if they wound him. the Space Wolves gain 2VP if he stays alive. All other HQ choices are worth 2VP if killed on either side. The objective formed by the Rune Priests body is worth 3VP.

Deployment:

The game is played lengthways down the table. The Space Wolves deploy in one half of the table, however the Rune Priest must be deployed in the center of the Space Wolf deployment zone and all Space Wolf units must be deployed. The Eldar deploy within 12" of the opposite short edge, and may keep units in reserve.

If the Space Wolves win the mini game, then they get a free unit of 10 grey hunters with one flamer, one plasma gun and no other equipment. This bonus unit arrives automatically on the short edge of the Space Wolf deployment zone on turn 4 in a Rhino with no extra upgrades.

The table should have as much city terrain as is reasonable.

Campaign - Ardan V, Mission 1 Battle Report

With the battle coming to a close in Baston, the last remaining remnants of the Oracles of Change were being slowly pressurised into a last stand by the Wolf Lord Fjolnir Lightningwolf and his Great Company. Huge Land Raider Crusaders bathed buildings in burning promethium, forcing the Chaos Marines out of their hiding holes within these buildings and out into the welcoming arms of the Lightningwolf's very own Wolf Guard.

High above the planet the Fang of Russ and its Gladius class escort Grimnar's Fury monitored movements within Ardan V's capital city. The Oracle were broken and in complete disarray, but all units continued to retreat north away from the advancing Space Wolf forces.

Having received this information from his flagship, Fjolnir commands his second in command, the Wolf Guard Battle Leader Hjorvard Gunnarson, to flank around the outside of the main battle area and set up camp with a small force, ready to launch an assault on the fleeing traitor marines if they make it that far.

Meanwhile on the Biel-Tan craftworld Darryth Sunblade made the last preparations required for his strike squad to achieve planetfall and establish a safe perimeter for more of his Eldar brethren to join them and eliminate the threat from the Cursus. Accompanying the Exarch on this mission, Yvaine Skydancer knew what was required, a force was to be led toward the Space Wolves Rune Priest, the one who could bring the entire to planet to ruin if he were allowed near the Cursus.

Battle Report - 1,500pts

Hjorvard's Force

Hjorvard Gunnarson - Runic Armour, Frost Blade, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Wolf Tail Talisman.

Wolf Priest - Runic Armour, Wolf Tooth Necklace,
Wolf Tail Talisman.

Wolf Guard - 1. Powerfist, Combi-Melta
                      2. Wolf Claw, Combi-Melta
                      3. Frost Blade, Combi-Melta
                      4. Powerfist, Combi-Melta, Space Marine Bike

Grey Hunters - 7 Men, Standard, Flamer
Grey Hunters - 7 Men, Standard, Meltagun
Grey Hunters - 7 Men, Standard, Plasma Gun
Grey Hunters - 7 Men, Standard, Flamer

Bikes - 5 Bikers with Flamer and Powerfist, 1 Attack Bike

Long Fangs - 6 Men, 5 Heavy Bolters, Razorback
Long Fangs - 6 Men, 5 Heavy Bolters, Razorback

Yvaine's Strike Squad

Yvaine Skydancer  - Rune Armour, Runes of Warding, Spirit Stones, Witchblade.


Fire Dragons - 10 Men, Wave Serpent with TL Shuriken Catapult and TL Star Cannon.
Howling Banshees - 10 Men including 1 Exarch


Dire Avengers - 10 Men including 1 Exarch
Dire Avengers - 10 Men including 1 Exarch

Shining Spears - 5 Spears including 1 Exarch
Vyper - 1 Skimmer, Bright Lance, TL Shuriken Catapults.

War Walker Squadron - 3 Walkers with 2 Starcannons.

Hjorvard and his men settled down into their camp, having covered 30 miles since receiving their orders from Lord Fjolnir. The two squads of Long Fangs took up positions in the north-east and south-west, with the Land Speeder parked and disengaged in the centre of the camp. All other units were spread around the skimmer on all sides. The silence unnerved Hjorvard, although he could find no reason for his uneasiness with the situation and as such took up position with a squad of Grey Hunters he had fought many battles with on Ardan V.


Yvaine Sundancer could see clearly the layout of the Space Wolves camp that sat between the Eldar and the Rune Priest who could unleash all manner of hell from the Cursus located somewhere on this planet. Splitting their forces accordingly, Yvaine hoped that a swift and deadly surprise assault would destroy these humans and leave the Eldar forces relatively intact.

The Eldar struck quickly and with incredible force. With very little time to react the Space Wolves numbers were cut down in a matter of moments. The Long Fangs in the south-west were annihilated from a storm of plasma sent out by the war walkers, who were personally guided by Yvaine.

That was not the only casualty of the surprise assault. The Swiftclaw bikers were reduced to molten waste by a squad of Fire Dragons, the Land Speeder stunned from a Bright Lance from the Vyper and a few Grey Hunters falling to shots from Dire Avengers.

A squad of Howling Banshees heading for the north-east Long Fangs did not have much luck as the unit of Fangs, utilising all their experience, got their heavy bolters into position quick enough to cut down every last Banshee and ensure they would not fall to their power weapons today.

Success for the Wolves was in very short supply, but this did not prevent a heavy bolter shell from a Razorback strike the Farseer Yvaine Sundancer and cause a wound, while return plasma fire from a nearby Grey Hunter squad momentarily halt the movement and firing from the war walkers.

Where the Wolves could, they launched into combat with their Eldar attackers, fighting against hope as the onslaught of the Xenos warriors slowly began to reduce their numbers. The Dire Avengers masterfully held up the Wolf Priest long enough for the Shining Spears to come to their aid and finish of the remaining Wolves who struggled for what seemed an eternity against the Avengers.


Hjorvard had better luck up against the Dire Avengers he had squared off against. After coming under a hail of fire, twice, in which he lost five men, Hjorvard and his remaining squad are assaulted by Dire Avengers, who believe they have the Wolf Guard Battle Leader almost finished. With a vicious snarl, Hjorvard leaps into combat, slaying a Dire Avenger while his squad smash another apart. The Avengers falter and break at the sheer ferocity of the Wolves counter-charge, with Hjorvard leading the move to cut down the surviving exarch and his troops before they can escape.


Turning to survey the rest of the battlefield with his two accompanying Grey Hunters, Hjorvard is confronted with a scene of utter devastation. In the distance he can see a long serving Razorback being ripped open by the Witchblade of Yvaine Sundance, the Land Speeder exploding under the melta weapons of the Fire Dragons where he sees at least one of the enemy attackers burn in the blaze.

It does not take Hjorvard very long to realise that there is only himself and the two that stand alongside him left alive. This battle was lost before it even started and the Space Wolves now have a newer and more powerful enemy on the soil of Ardan V.


It was now obvious that trying to claim some level of vengeance against these Eldar was a pointless exercise at this particular moment in time and Hjorvard decided that the three of them would attempt to fall back and get word to Wolf Lord Fjolnir so that a bigger force can be assembled to drive them from the planet.


Yvaine Sundancer stepped away from the blazing wreckage of the tank destroyed with the help of the Witchblade, pleased to see that the Eldar force had only suffered two units worth of casualties. By his calculations the human warriors had lost ten units. A successful assault and the first part of a plan going smoothly completed. That was until Yvaine spotted three warriors in the grey armour slip from the battlefield in the direction of the main city of the planet. If those three lived, warnings about the Eldar arrival could be raised and a much bigger force, and bigger problems, would lie in wait.


Considering the situation for the briefest of moments, Yvaine dispatched a fresh squad of Pathfinders to hunt down and kill the fleeing Space Wolves, hoping to silence their warnings forever.


Introduction to the Campaign, Mission One.

Campaign - Ardan V, Mission 1

Following on from the Ardan V Campaign introduction, this post will detail the two possible missions that could have happened and also state the rules for each of those missions.

The battle report will be next in the series.

Again, pictures from around the net will accompany this post. Some of them I have had saved on my computer for some time and I am not sure who the artist is, but it is safe to say none of them are my own works, kudos to those who did create them.

The Ardan V Campaign - Mission 1.

To determine the first scenario, both commanders make a Leadership test using the Ld of their force commander (Arandril Starsong and Fjolnir Lightningwolf). Whoever makes the roll by the highest margin wins the roll.

POSSIBLE MISSION 1

If Fjolnir wins the roll, then an alert chapter thrall aboard the Fang of Russ notes a short energy spike of an unknown energy type in the countryside approximately 60 miles from Baston but is unable to pin point the source. Concerned by the possibility that some of the traitor marines of the Oracles are still at large and up to something, Fjolnir dispatches a small, fast moving force to investigate the energy surge under the command of his second in command Hjorvard Gunnarson, the leader of his Wolf Guard.

On reaching the area Hjorvard encounters a small force of Eldar, and sets an ambush for them.

This is a 1000pt game. All of the Space Wolf units must be mechanised. (I.e. aboard a transport, on bikes, or be a tank). The space wolf player must take a Wolf Guard Battle Leader, to represent Hjorvard, but this is is only allowed HQ choice.

The Eldar player may take no tanks, no Wraith Guard or Wraithlords. They must take at least one squad of aspect warriors with an exarch, but may have no more than two aspect warriors squads. The Eldar player may not take any HQ choices. The compulsory exarch is his  force commander.

The Eldar player deploys all of his units first, within 6 inches of the centre line of the table, and more than 12 inches from the short edges of the table. The Space Wolf player deploys all of his forces anywhere on the table more than 12 inches from the centreline.

The two players roll of to see who goes first.

This is a kill point mission.

The Eldar player may move units off the short edges of the table voluntarily,they many not return to the battle but do not count as destroyed if the move off the table in this way.

At the end of turn four the game ends on the d6 roll of a 1,2 or 3. At the end of turn five on the d6 roll of 1,2,3,4 or 5. The game ends automatically at the end of turn 6.

POSSIBLE MISSION 1

If the Eldar player wins the Ld roll, then the Eldar forces have managed to slip onto the planet unnoticed and set up a forward operating base in preparation for their operations on  Ardan V. Now with their forces in place, they launch an assault on a small Space Wolf encampment that lies between them and their true target, the Space Wolf Rune Priest Ornulf Windtamer.

This is a 1500pt mission.

This is a kill point mission.

The space wolves may not take Fjolnir or Ornulf (the are in the city) but may take other non wolf lord, non rune priest HQ choices. The space wolves may also not field land raiders or terminator armoured wolf guard as these are deployed within the city where their close quarters firepower and heavy armour are of greatest use.

The Eldar player may not take the Avatar, Wraith guard or wraith lords, as they are considered too slow for this first assault, or support weapon batteries as they take too long to position and set up for a surprise assault on troops as elite as space wolves.

The Eldar player must take Yvaine Skydancer, Arandril's 2nd in command. (a Farseer) as their only HQ choice.

The space wolf player sets up anywhere not within 12 inches of a board edge, and as his units are settling into camp each unit must be at least 6 inches from any other unit. The Eldar go first and move on from any table edge.

Campaign - Ardan V

Now that my friend Ian and I have completed our campaign on Ardan V, which saw my Space Wolves go up against his Eldar, I thought I would put up a sequence of posts to cover all aspects of the campaign.

This first post is purely to set out the background to the start of the campaign, with the scenario and rules for the first mission to be put up in the next few days.

I am also going to put up various artworks I found around on the net that I thought looked awesome, not sure who the artists are but they are very good indeed so hats off to them all.

Ardan V Campaign.

For the last two months, the warriors of Fjolnir Lightningwolfs Great Company of the Space Wolves of the Adeptus Astartes  have been fighting a bloody conflict with the Traitor Marines of the Oracles of Change.

This Tzeentchian warband and their sorcerous commander Amadeus Volkstein had attacked Ardan V without warning, and had devastated the PDF defending the capital city of Baston.

The PDF had however managed to hold off the traitor marines long enough for a good portion of the civilian population to evacuate the city, and for an astropathic distress call to be sent.

Luckily for Ardan V the Space Wolf strike cruiser Fang of Russ had been transiting the warp nearby on route to the embattled world of Cadia and diverted, along with its Gladius class escort Grimnar's Fury, to assist in the defence of Ardan.

When the Wolves arrived in the system two weeks later they encountered, engaged and destroyed the Carnage Class cruiser "Wanton Desecration" which had been in orbit around Ardan V, having glided into the system on low power, powering up to pound the Desecration with bombardment cannon and weapons batteries before it's crew knew they were there.

With the destruction of the Chaos vessel, the two Space Wolf vessels entered low orbit. Then with typical Space Wolf tactics, launched an immediate drop pod assault on two of the larger concentrations of the Oracles forces killing many traitors with only light casualties in return.

However the concentrations of Oracle units were never very high in any one area, instead they were scattered throughout the city as if searching for something.

With the sudden arrival of the Wolf Lord and his men however, this quickly changed, with the Oracle units reuniting and denying the Space Wolves the ability to isolate and destroy the originally small groups of traitors. The campaign settled into a bloody war of attrition as both sides hunted each other through the city. The sorcerous abilities of the Oracles pitted against the ferocity of the Wolves.

Eventually, after weeks of heavy fighting, the Wolves got the upper hand after a band of Wolf Scouts identified and located the Oracles commander, and guided the Lord Fjolnir and his Wolf Guard in for the kill.

Taken by surprise Amadeus and his bodyguard fought well, but the outcome was never really in doubt and Fjolnir struck the head from his shoulders with his Wolf Claw Vengeance.

Meanwhile in the dome of Crystal Seers on the Biel-Tan craftworld Farseer Arandril Starsong examined the skein of fate, looking for threats to his home and it's people. Drawing a rune from a pouch at his waist he cast it into the air before him, shaking his head in dismay seeing the rune of Tzeentch the Deciever before him, knowing it was not to be a good sign. Drawing more runes from his pouch the runes of war, and humanity took up an orbit around the rune of Tzeentch, with the rune of Biel-Tan taking orbit around these runes.

Allowing the runes to guide his perception of the skein of Fate he saw the super human warriors of humanity battling the forces of the Deciever on one of humanity's many worlds. Saw the savage Space Marines defeat the forces of Chaos, only to find something, a cursus, during the mopping up. Saw the bumbling human psychic activate the cursus, opening a direct gate to the realm of Chaos. Saw daemons pour through the rift in real space, overwhelm the Emperor's warriors, and infest a planet with a direct link to the webway. Saw daemons pouring through the webway into Biel-Tan itself.

The vision ended abruptly, as he saw his own death, torn apart by a pack of demons in service to the great enemy as they sort entry to the Dome of Crystal Seers.

Stunned briefly, Arandril stood there as his runes fell to the floor. Shaking off the after effects of the vision he gathered up his runes as his mind sought contact with another. His psyche soared through the towers and gardens of Biel-Tan until he found the one he sought, Elarique Dawnrunner, inspecting ships of the Fleet in the Forge of Vaul.

The Autarch immediately understood the seriousness of the vision, strode to the command centre of Biel-Tan's armed forces and began co-ordinating the assembly of a task force to intercept and destroy the humans before they could unleash this fate on the craftworld.

His first act was to send a small force under the Exarch Darryth Sunblade through the webway to secure an operating base on the world the humans knew as Ardan V.