It’s a biggy today! 2,000 delicious points of gaming at Boards and Swords! The Astra Militarum with some Custodians will take on Chris’ Genestealer Cult again, it’s a rematch. Last time we played this Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum match, I lost on the Supply Drop Mission from Chapter Approved.

Not got an Astra Militarum army, but interested? Check out my Getting Started series.

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Overview – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Astra Militarum 2,000 Points

This gives me 15CP which is knocked down to 10 before the game begins because my extra Astra Militarum relics cost 3CP, the Custodian relic costs 1CP and the Deep Striking Custodians costs 1CP.

• • 3x Company Commander, one with Kurov’s Aquila, Grand Strategist, one with Laurels of Command and one stock
  • Platoon Commander with Dagger if Tu’Sakh, Power Sword and Plasma Pistol
  • Command Squad with Plasma Guns
  • 3x Infantry Squads with Vox and Mortar
  • 3x Infantry Squads with Vox and Flamer in Chimeras
  • 2x Chimera with Multi-Laser and Heavy Bolter
  • Chimera with Heavy Flamer and Heavy Bolter
  • 3x Scout Sentinels with Multi-Laser

• 2x squads of five Ratlings
• 2x Wyvern
• Missile Launchers Heavy Weapons Team with 3x
• Lascannons Heavy Weapons Team with 3x
• Autocannons Heavy Weapons Team with 3x
• General Trajann
• Praetor with Vexillus Defensor and Castellan’s Mask relic
• 4x Custodian Guard

View from the guard lines – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Genestealer Cult 2,000 Points

• A Patriarch
• 8x Purestrain Genestealers
• An Infantry Squad with Lascannon
• 3x Squads of Neophytes with Grenade Launcher and Mining Laser
• A Primus
• A Magus
• 4x Aberrants (2x Hammer and 2x Picks)
• A Master of Ordnance
• 2x Manticore
• A Wyvern
• A squad of three Armoured Sentinels with Autocannons
• A Rockgrinder with Heavy Stubber and Mining Laser
• A Chimera
• A Leman Russ Executioner
• A Leman Russ Battle Tank
• A Company Commander

Genestealer Cult battle line – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Mission and Deployment

We rolled on Chapter Approved’s Eternal War Missions, and rolled, Supply Drop! This truly is a rematch now!

Both of us had a lot of units to deploy. I had slightly more though.

I placed my Custodian Guard into high orbit for 1CP. And my Platoon Commander with the Dagger went into Deep Strike with the Command Squad of Plasma.

The Genestealer Cult put a lot of units into the shadows ready for later;

• Three Squads of Neophytes
• Patriarch
• Genestealers
• The Aberrants
• The Magus
• The Primus

For Supply Drop, you place six objectives as normal. Then at the start of turn 3, the player whose turn it is selects 3 objectives and rolls a D3. Whichever objective is rolled is kept. The other two are removed. When it’s the other players turn three they roll a D3 for the other objectives and keep the one that’s rolled. Therefore you end up with just two objectives worth 3VP each.

Plus First Blood, Linebreaker and Slay the Warlord.

Astra Militarum – Turn 1

Right, so, I have my thinking cap on. What do I need to do to maximise my first turn? The first turn is the most important it seems to me for the Astra Militarum. And so often I come out the other side of it achieving very little.

The enemy artillery seemed like the biggest threat and the hardest to kill. The Wyvern plus two Manticores were capable of hitting most of the battlefield and easily deleting entire units.

I was going to move my Chimeras up the board, then I wasn’t. I settled on doing it and moving them to the table centre. The Sentinels I kept lurking in my Deployment Zone to stop Deep Strikers.

Chimeras move up – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Of course, the Wyverns and Heavy Weapons stayed still. Trajann and the Praetor also hung back behind the Autocannons so they couldn’t be targeted.

There was only one infantry squad on the battlefield at this point. So I slammed my Mortars and Wyverns into them – killing them all including a Lascannon. First Blood!

This left the Company Commander with nothing around him. And he quickly died too from Sentinel and Chimera fire. Meanwhile, the Ratlings sniped at the Master of Ordnance and got him down to one wound! Argh!

My Autocannons, Missiles and Lascannons fired into one of the Manticores and got him down to one wound! Double argh! That meant he was hitting on a 6+ at least but sadly it wasn’t dead. My Company Commander was present during all of this to give re-rolls to hit for all my Heavy Weapons Teams thanks to the Laurels of Command.

So despite my best efforts to cripple the artillery of the enemy I had failed. The Master of Ordnance was still alive, as were all the artillery pieces.

Ratlings with an excellent vantage point – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Genestealer Cult – Turn 1

And now it was the enemy’s turn to maximise their shooting and cripple my forces. The movement was limited from the Cult but the Rockgrinder did move up my right flank. It had no occupants.

The Cult’s shooting killed two Lascannon Teams and all my Missile Teams. The Autocannons were untouched. This was despite Taking Cover (a Stratagem) on the Lascannon Team and having the Praetor close by for a 5+ Invulnerable Save.

Despite those loses I think I weathered the shooting pretty well.

Can you spot the Master of Ordnance – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Astra Militarum – Turn 2

My two Chimeras in the middle of the battlefield moved up again. Both contained a squad of Guardsmen with a Vox and a Flamer. One also had a stock Company Commander inside. The Sentinels still lurked at the back for Deep Strike denial. The Mortars and Wyverns of course, again, stayed still.

Chimers getting up the battlefield – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

A single Autocannon Team moved out of the way of Trajann and the Praetor. Allowing them to slip past and towards the Chimeras. With so many Heavy Weapons now gone it made sense for the Praetor to protect the infantry squads in the centre of the table.

The Command Squad with Platoon Commander arrived on the left flank to attack the Leman Russ Executioner. Despite re-rolling ones to hit thanks to the Platoon Commander – I caused only 2 wounds.

Plasma Command Squad arriving – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

The Custodians also arrived and appeared right in front of the Sentinels and Cult artillery. They did a few wounds to a Sentinel but failed their charge. Leaving them in the open. Trajann wasn’t nearby either so no re-rolls of one for hits and wounds.

Custodians arrive – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

The Ratlings successfully sniped the Master of Ordnance and the Manticore with one wound was easily finished off. The other Manticore was targeted by the Heavy Weapons and took some wounds. The Autocannons and remaining Lascannon were still doing the Emperor’s work.

With no infantry at all to shoot at, the Wyverns and Mortars went for the Sentinels. I had a fair amount of CP left too. So I used Overlapping Fields of Fire and Aerial Spotter (on one Wyvern). One Sentinel was destroyed and another lost about half its wounds. That wasn’t great, but it was the best choice at the moment.

Genestealer Cult – Turn 2

The Rockgrinder continued to push up my right flank towards a Sentinel, my Warlord and an Infantry Squad. Everything else stood still.

I lost two Custodian Guard to shooting attacks.

The rolling for the Cult Ambush was not what Chris needed/wanted and all the units arrived from the Cult’s board edge. Despite getting better rolls there wasn’t anywhere meaningful for him to set up near my units or in my deployment zone so he opted for a walk on.

It took both Leman Russ and a squad of Neophytes to kill the four Veterans of the Plasma Command Squad. I think I used Take Cover but I had some great saving throws. While they only did two wounds on the Leman Russ in the shooting phase, they will now go down as legends. Only the Platoon Commander remained who was charged and survived to tell the tale.

The Aberrants came on with a Primus, and the Custodian Guard shot at them using a Stratagem. One Aberrant died. The remaining Aberrants made their charge killing all the Custodians.

A squad of Neophytes came on and just snuck into some ruins for cover. The final squad of Neophytes came on near the Wyvern.

The Patriarch failed its charge against my Chimera but the Genestealers made it into combat. Taking the Chimera down to 7 wounds. The Genestealers lost two or three guys on the charge and another from the Chimera’s melee attacks! That Chimera driver got skills!

Claws vs Armour – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

The Rockgrinder charged the Sentinel. I can’t remember the outcome at this point. But the Sentinel lost that fight either this turn or next turn.

Astra Militarum – Turn 3

I selected the three objectives on my tableside. And the leftmost one was selected as the one to remain after a D3 roll. The other two were removed.

That objective quickly became swamped by a Chimera and a Sentinel. Objective Secured.

I’d secured the easiest objective for me to grasp. Next turn Chris would roll and another two from his tableside would be removed. Leaving one remaining near his deployment zone.

The Astra Militarum swamp the centre – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

The Chimera that was engaged in combat with the Genestealers disembarked its Guardsmen and then it backed away. The other Chimera also unloaded its men who shot at the Neophytes in the centre of the Cult’s deployment zone.

Trajann and the Praetor stayed still to ensure they couldn’t be targeted. Everything else also didn’t move and I opened up with my guns again.

The Ratlings sniped the Primus from the board. Another Cult Sentinel was destroyed and the remaining Manticore went pop too. The Wyvern took a Wound or two as well.

My Mortars rained onto the squad of Neophytes near the Wyvern killing them all bar one. The Aberrants were also now all dead too.

All the Genestealers were destroyed from Lasgun, Flamer and Chimera firepower.

The Cult lines were being gradually cleared out.

Overview – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Genestealer Cult – Turn 3

Chris rolled for his objective and the central most one was selected. I have Trajann, the Praetor, 2 Chimeras and 20 Guardsmen bear that objective.

Last stand for my Platoon Commander – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

The Rockgrinder continued up the right flank and charged my Guardsmen. Slowing it down and protecting my Company Commander Warlord.

The Platoon Commander finally bit the dust from being surrounded by Neophytes.

A big combat now took place right in the middle of the battlefield as the Patriarch made its charge into Trajaan. The beast took 6 of his 7 wounds. Allowing me to attack back. His great axe slew the beast! Go Trajann!

Trajaan!

Astra Militarum – Turn 4

I now needed to secure the newly identified objective in the Cult’s deployment zone. I threw a squad of Guardsmen onto it along with the Praetor to give them a 5+ Invulnerable save from shooting attacks. This was now the only thing that mattered in the game.

Objective Secured!

The objective on my side of the battlefield was now enveloped with Guardsmen – safe and secure with no enemy units nearby. The Chimera that used to house them sped forward to flame the Neophytes that had just killed the Platoon Commander. A few died – the Heavy Flamer was disappointing this time around.

We called the game here because we were out of time and I’m well and truly secured both objectives, plus Slay the Warlord from killing the Patriarch, plus Behind Enemy Lines and plus First Blood.

Final score 9 to zero. Astra Militarum win!

Battle MVP

Heavy Weapons Teams were the most valuable for me this game. They did most of the wounds against the two Manticores and crippled the Wyvern. Coupled with the Praetor they are a little tougher and take up more enemy firepower to remove them from play.

They totalled 210 points, all Missile Launchers were lost, 2 Lascannons were lost and all Autocannons survived. They destroyed 2 Manticores worth 286 points and would’ve probably finished off the Wyvern for another 103 points. That’s some good returns.

The Cult’s armour is gone – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

Summary – Genestealer Cult vs Astra Militarum

What a win for the Astra Militarum. I was really surprised to come away with a nine – nil win. Chris was incredibly unlucky with some shooting attacks and I was incredibly lucky. I rolled 3 sixes at one point for my Command Squad armour saves. Those boys took so much shooting.

Master of Ordnance Position

Painting for Next Game

That’s right I’m still finding up my Heavy Weapons Teams. They deserve a paint job after their performance today.