The Trap: Part Three - Overrun!

Chaos vs Crimson Blades | Gill v Tim | 40k | 57 | 110.997.M41  

Chaplain Sank dropped down the back of the Pernicious Gate, narrowly avoiding the lascannon fire from the approaching Chaos Land Raider, making contact via com for fast reinforcements.

Even if he had been able to open the gate and take control of the daemonic horde beyond, the price would have destroyed him and likely the rest of the Crimson Blades.

The gate had fallen. All they could do now was try and mitigate their losses and strike back before the forces of Chaos could find their footing.

But even as he spoke, sorcerers of the Thousand Sons uttered the incantations to open the gate and gain control of the slathering horde within and the portal burst into fiery light.

Dozens of sinewy lithe female forms strode through; terrible and beautiful in their foul glory: the Daemons of Slaanesh - now under the control of the Chaos Space Marines!

Each had a pair of vicious crab-claws. Each displayed their curvaceous but distorted bodies seductively as a caramel aroma filled the clearing. And around them the consolidated Chaos forces drew in, preparing to depart.

This was the second gate now that had fallen to the Traitor Marines. Only three more remained - three more legions of daemonic fury, waiting to be controlled.

But before the dark forces could make their departure, a dozen bolts flew into their ranks and exploded; then a dozen more.

The Crimson Blades weren't out of the fight yet. A Strike Platoon had manoeuvred into place in response to Chaplain Sank's call and more reinforcements were on the way.

Without a need for command, Seekers of Slaanesh danced away from the clustered forces.

They struck the marine gunline with seductive violence, tickling out the souls of the loyalist marines as they flayed open their armour and flesh.

The Seekers fell, still smiling in the ecstatic throes of battle, but Daemonettes took their place, leaping into action with their great claws snipping at the faces of their enemies.

Assault marines jumped forward powered by the jet packs but Night Lords ran to met them, gaining the initiative and eviscerating them where they stood.

Answering the call from space, a drop pod smashed onto the battlefield, blowing its door clamps, and a command squad emerged, letting fire with plasma weapons.

But the mighty exalted Keeper of Secrets K'Syarta materialised behind them and ripped apart both them and their drop pod.

The attacking force of Crimson Blades were routed and then annihilated. The forces of Chaos were simply too powerful now.

The last two members of the command squad fought on but there was no hope anymore. They were hopelessly outnumbered.

The forces of Chaos were legion now and perhaps nothing could stop them.

The Trap: Part Two - Reversal

Chaos vs Crimson Blades | Gill v Tim | 40k | 56 | 110.997.M41 

The Crimson Blades fell back to the Pernicious Gate, forming a defensive gunline. 

 

 It was absolutely critical that the gate be held. If it fell then the dark host of the Chaos Space marines would gain another swell of power, this one taking them even closer to true indomitability. 

A complete Termination Platoon beamed into position, the Sternguard Veterans taking station on the steps of the mighty gate.

Then suddenly the forces of Chaos were upon them: deathly silent Rubricae letting fly with arcane bolt rounds; slavering gore-red Bloodletters sprinting across the packed earth; huge clanking Chaos Terminators, raking the line with autocannon shells... and a mighty Daemon Prince on leathery wings that plunged into the ranks of the Crimson Blades, slashing back and forth with its mighty blade.

The Sternguard fell immediately to fire and sword. The Bladelords swung round in their Land Raider and leapt from its assault ramp, charging into the fray.

But the Daemon Prince was unstoppable. It carved them in twain, one by one, laughing maniacally.

All they could do was fight on and hope to lower the attacking numbers sufficiently to drive them off.

But fully twenty hardened veterans were spent before the Daemon Prince fell and the loss had a crippling effect on the rest of the line.

More reinforcements of Chaos funnelled into the clearing: a Land Raider churning mud, letting off Lascannon blasts, and the mighty scythed arms of a Daemonic monster. each fall of the scythes impaled another Terminator. The defenders were running out of time and men.

Then the Chaos Land Raider fell open and out poured Night Lords, their winged helms disguising leering features as they charged into close quarter combat, taking losses but bringing down more Space Marines than could be spared.

The gate was being swamped but the Bladelords fought on, Chaplain Sank leading them into the Bloodletters, desperately fighting to hold back Chaos.

They managed to eliminate the Daemons but the Night Lords had dispatched their enemies and now charged up onto the gate steps to throw open the portal.

Only two loyalist marines remained: Chaplain Sank and the last Bladelord. Their bodies shook with their exertions then they became suddenly calm, stilling their thoughts, and leapt to battle once more.

The Bladelord fell but Chaplain Sank smashed his Crozius Arcanum back and forth, pulverising bone and flesh inside the corrupt power armour. The huge Daemonic monstrosity reached his Land Raider, its scythes tearing its ceramite to shreds.

Chaplain Sank withdrew up to the gate.

 

He was the only one left now and he had a choice: open the gate himself if he could; take control of the Daemonic legion - damning his soul - or withdraw and muster what little forces they still had nearby for a counterstrike - one last attack to knock the head from the shoulders of this invading force at least. 

The choice had to be made now.

The Trap: Part One - Incursion

Chaos vs Crimson Blades | Gill v Tim | 40k | 55 | 110.997.M41

In the dark centre of the Lapitar jungles, the second Pernicious Gate stood guarded by a ring of defensive bastions.

It was critical beyond measure that the Chaos Space Marines not break through and seize control of it for if they did, a second horde of daemons would fall under their dominion.

But the Chaos forces had been spying on the defences with their scrying tools and they perceived that a hammer blow against a narrow frontage would easily fold back the defensive perimeter - especially with Crimson Blade forces kept busy in multiple other warzones.

And so they came, swooping down in drop ships as dozens of slavering daemons of Khorne materialised and bounded forward.

The marines stationed at the perimeter let fly instantly with explosive bolter shells but it was immediately clear that Lord Morder had been correct in his strategic plan. There were simply too many Chaos troops to hold back.

But then the trap was sprung.

Knowing that a Chaos Incursion was imminent, Alarice Klein, Chapter Mistress, had purposely left the defences weaker in order to manipulate the dark forces to attack.

The second their approach was detected, the signal was given and the hidden forces of the Crimson Blades sprang into action, bikers powering out of the undergrowth and Terminators deep striking down from the Black Scabbard in orbit.

A Land Raider churned out from the jungle cover, disgorging Assault Terminators into the midst of the daemonic approach.

But the Chaos Space Marines had anticipated this and they sprang a trap of their own.

A Chaos Land Raider surged in, Night Lord Assault Marines leaping from it and charging into combat as more and more daemons materialised, closing in on their enemies.

It had meant to be an overwhelming defeat for Chaos but the Crimson Blades were being overrun! They fought back but they were losing men. It was obvious that their only choice was to pull back and form an inner perimeter.

As the mighty Bloodthirster tore through their ranks they realised that, in all likelihood, they had no chance of slowing the Chaos approach to the Pernicious Gate and all the power it contained therein.

Survivors in Escavar

Escavar Mavericks v Daemons of Khorne | Tim v Gill | Space Hulk | 43 | 095.997.M41

One month had passed since the Calamity of Escavar had wiped out almost all life in the ruins of the former capital city and now in the wake of the Daemon Storm, horrific daemons crawled through the shattered buildings, spreading corruption to everything they touched where once Tyranids had lurked and crawled.

In all that time there had been no sign of the Escavar Mavericks.

Until now.

How some had survived, no one outside the ruined city could know, but survive they did.

A platoon of Mavericks crept through the shattered buildings, assessing the strength of the daemonic infestation, conducting reconnaissance for the bulk of the force, still in hiding. Pausing in one of the cramped alleyways, Captain Shore flicked his com-unit into place and gave the hand signal for his master vox operator to relay his signal back to base. “The daemons are everywhere. They’ve taken this part of the city entirely.”

The signal came to withdraw but Shore could see the closing blips on his auspex. “Negative. We’re surrounded with closing contacts on all sides. Overwhelming odds. There’s no way through.” He gritted his teeth and fired up his chainblade. “We’re just going to have to kill them all!”

His men grinned. In perfect unison they all checked their charge cartridges and fired up their illumination units so that they could tell, in the gloom, who was friend and who was about to die.

Then the alleyways in every direction crowded simultaneously with Bloodletters of Khorne.

The platoon squads took careful aim and eliminated the encroaching daemons. As charges ran low on their lasguns, the front men would step aside for their brothers to step forward. The daemons came closer and closer but as soon as it looked like they’d meet the lines the squads pulled back to another pre-prepared fire-point.

The Primaris Psyker attached to the platoon used his powerful mind to predict their new attack vectors and direct the fire before shattering the oncoming attacks with lightning.

Captain Shore shot bolt after bolt into the filthy daemonic flesh then cut into them with his chainblade as they got close.

But still the daemons came!

There was no way that the Mavericks could defeat them all. But defeat them they did. They kept up the firing discipline for seven straight hours, eliminating every single daemon that came their way and only losing seven men. The tight confines of the alleys had worked to their advantage – had given them the upper hand they needed.

All around them, the daemons lay dead.

The Escavar Mavericks were back!

“There’s no way through. We’re just going to have to kill them all!”

- Captain Shore of the Escavar Mavericks

Race for the Gate

Tyranids & Crimson Blades v Dark Eilte & Pernicious Host | Tim v Peter | 40k | 55 | 133.997.M41

Erasmus Bachmann grinned. The Pernicious Gate was within his grasp at last and this time nothing was going to stop him.

The jungle gave way under the tracks of his Predator and Land Raider as he strode alongside the monstrous Daemon Prince Bel’Akor. Drawn perhaps to the psychic reverberations of the Pernicious Gate, the Tyranids lurked close by it, not infesting the jungle at every step as they had on previous expeditions. This was going to be too easy, especially with the secret power Erasmus commanded.

He threw up his arms and scorched the air with the brazen syllables that spewed forth from his mouth and suddenly reality curled and tore as dozens of daemons poured out from the warp into the jungle. Muscular Bloodletters charged through the underbrush in front of gargantuan scuttling Soul Grinders, massive daemon engines on metallic crab claws, and in response the Tyranids came forward to meet them.

A huge Broodlord led the assault at the head of a swarm of Genestealers, bringing down two hulking Bloodcrushers of Khorne before the mighty beasts could react. The daemonic horde was led by a huge Bloodthirster that leapt into the air on pinioned wings and crashed into the Tyranid Hive Tyrant, ripping it limb from limb with a mighty war. Skarbrand, an even taller Bloodthirster, this one wingless, ripped into a unit of Tyranid Warriors and quickly dismembered them with its mighty metallic claws.

Meanwhile, the advancing Dark Elite took long range pot-shots with their vehicle-mounted heavy weapons, gravely wounding the larger monstrous creatures. The Bloodthirster landed next to a mighty Carnifex and ripped that apart too before it could strike back. There was still a long way to travel through the jungle but the resistance was crumbling. With the support from the daemons, the Pernicious Gate would be theirs!

Then there was an energy spike and suddenly sections of foliage caught fire as three squads of Space Marine Terminators materialised near to the Pernicious Gate.

The Crimson Blade had been monitoring the Chaos Space Marines since their assault on the Fortress Bastion in Escavar and they and quickly realised the intention of this mission. Stopping the Chaos forces taking the gate was absolutely critical and they had committed their most valuable asset to stop them.

It was an impossible situation. With only limited space to land, the Terminators had been forced to teleport in deep in the infested area for fear of being enfiladed by the Dark Elite. Now they had to fight the Daemons and the erstwhile “allies,” the Tyranids.

Bachmann commanded the Daemons to devour them but he quickly realised the mistake he’d made in deploying so far from his objective and gave the order to accelerate. The transport vehicles went into overdrive, pushing through the dense terrain as the Crimson Blades let fly with Storm Bolters, Assault Cannons and Cyclone Missile Launchers.

The Daemons were falling and although every faction fought a war on two fronts, the Tactical Dreadnoughts were simply too tough to be taken down. The last of the Daemons were taken down and shortly afterwards the remaining Tyranids were picked off as well.

Bachmann gave the order to halt and roared in frustration. There was simply no more time to recapture the Pernicious Gate and more Space Marine drop ships were coming down from the cloud cover to consolidate their prize. He had risked everything to take this potent weapon under his control and he had failed again. All he could do now was withdraw.

Chaplain Kato and Captain Knot watched the vehicles of the Dark Elite circle and pull away from them from the raised dais of the Pernicious Gate.

“Should we go after them?” asked Kato.

“No,” replied Captain Knot. “We’ve got what we came for. They did the hard work, clearing the jungle of Tyranids; we reap the rewards. That’s a good enough day for me.”

“Well,” said Kato, looking up at the sizzling stone of the Pernicious Gate. “The question now, is what are we going to do with it? If we can open it then we gain the power to control a vast swarm of daemonic creatures.”

Kato narrowed his eyes and looked into the dark pits of his friend’s skull mast. “Tempting, isn’t it?”

Mission Briefing: Race for the Gate

Erasmus Bachmann stood in front of the tactical console on the bridge of the Litany of Jeopardy. Before him towered the being known to him as Bel' Akor - millennia ago and light years distant known as the Butcher of Ere k'or [1V]

"You WILL activate the Portal. It is requested by the Master"

Bachman had to use much of his tremendous willpower not to cower before the Daemon Prince. Each syllable hit him like a concussion grenade. He had actually flinched when the monstrous creature had first spoken. "I have insufficient forces, great one. Those accursed Tyranids have taken too many of my troops."

Bel' Akor drew his brass axe; as big as Bachmann himself; gently across the edge of the console, creating multi-coloured sparks of psychic energy. "It is not a request Sorcerer, your very existence depends on it!"

A small bead of sweat formed on the Chaos Sorcerer's brow and rolled slowly down his face. If the Comms officer sitting silently nearby had not lost the use of his eyes he would have seen the droplet bounce gently on the plasteel floor and then scuttle away on three pairs of tiny, newly sprouted legs.

"We must wait, there are other ships arriving in this system, I ..."

"Prepare to teleport NOW! Bring whatever of your forces remain" The Daemon turned away sharply with blurring speed and proceeded towards the exit.

Backmann hesitated, then barked the order to his Comms "Prepare for Planet-Drop immediately" He joined Bel' Akor at the turbo-lift. A single tear formed in Eramus's eye and rolled slowly down his cheek, finally falling from his chin to the deck.

If the Comms officer had retained his eyes....

Lord Ubel of the Good People has finally accepted that the only hope of taking the second Pernicious Gate is to dedicate a massive amount of resources to it, whatever the risk. The Dark Elite under his command have failed to break through the hordes of Tyranids twice now but their sacrifices have pinpointed the gate’s exact location. Now they will go in a third and final time but this time the daemons will go with them; dozens of slavering Bloodletters of Khorne: the fruits of the last Pernicious gate they captured.

However other shrouded eyes are watching the activities of the Chaos Space Marines and are preparing to take action. If the Dark Elite take possession of the second Pernicious Gate then the balance of power will shift in their favour. That cannot be allowed to happen.

Board Layout

• The board is covered in woods and jungle. At one end if the Pernicious Gate, placed close to the centre and near to the edge.

Deployment and First Turn

• The Tyranids are deployed first. All Tyranids must be deployed within 24” of the short board edge nearest the Pernicious Gate.
• They have 1,500 points worth of models available.
• The Dark Elite are deployed second. They may be deployed anywhere on the board more than 24” from the edge of the Pernicious Gate.
• They have 3,000 points worth of models available: 1,500 Chaos Space marines and 1,500 Daemons of Khorne.
• The Daemons deploy using Deep Strike as normal.
• The Space Marine Terminators of the Crimson Blades First Company arrive as Reserves via Deep Strike anywhere on the board or moving on from any board edge more than 36” from the Pernicious Gate.
• They have 1,500 points worth of models available.

Turn Sequence and Allies

• The Chaos Space marines move first in this mission.
• The Tyranids and Space Marines are allied in so much as they both have the same objective: Stop the Chaos Space Marines. The controlling player moves both in his turn.
• Crimson Blades will only attack Tyranids if they are assaulted, even if ignoring them is tantamount to suicide.
• The Tyranids will target the closest non-Tyranid unit.

Game Length

• The game lasts for six turns or until the time limit is reached.
• If an even number of player turns have been played half an hour before the time limit is reached the game will end without a new game turn being started.

Victory Conditions

• Victory is determined by who controls the portal of the Pernicious Gate at the end of the game.

The Ongoing Conflict

A new chapter of the Ongoing Conflict has been added to the Ongoing Conflict Page.

The story is hotting up as the Crimson Blade Space Marines take desperate actions to consolidate their position on Valorax, the Tyranids make their grisly return and the Necrons stop losing and start winning!