Me and Norta had yeat another game today.

Norto took the Tau third phase list and tried out the following changes:

Shaos'o to FW/Shaos'o to FW but keeps crisis suit stats. (+100 Points)
6 Path finders or 4 Pathfinders 2 Devil Fish option.

I decided to take a ground slogging marine list again with lots of land raiders since the proposal to drop points on land raiders as upgrades to 50 points has been met with some sceptisism (can't spell that word apparently).

Heres Nortos list:

Tau Third Phase Expansion (6.8 Approved)
==================================================

FIRE WARRIOR CADRE [325]
8 Fire Warriors, Shas'o

FIRE WARRIOR CADRE [450]
6 Fire Warriors, 3 Devilfish, 2 Pathfinders, 1 Devilfish, Bonded Team, Skyray

FIRE WARRIOR CADRE [350]
6 Fire Warriors, 3 Devilfish, Bonded Team, Skyray

ARMOUR SUPPORT GROUP [325]
4 Hammerhead Gunship (Railhead), Skyray

ARMOUR SUPPORT GROUP [225]
4 Hammerhead Gunship (Railhead)

ARMOUR SUPPORT GROUP [225]
4 Hammerhead Gunship (Railhead)

PATHFINDER GROUP [200]
6 Pathfinders

PATHFINDER GROUP [200]
6 Pathfinders,

RECON SKIMMER GROUP [175]
5 Tetra, Piranha

RECON SKIMMER GROUP [175]
5 Tetra, Piranha

BARRACUDA SQUADRON [150]
2 Barracuda Fighters

SPACECRAFT [200]
Protector Class Cruiser

Heres my list:

Incompertus, 3000 POINTS
Codex Astartes (NetEA Tournament Pack 2015)
==================================================

DEVASTATOR [525]
4 Devastators, Supreme Commander, Hunter, 2 Land Raider

DEVASTATOR [350]
4 Devastators, 2 Land Raider

DEVASTATOR [350]
4 Devastators, 2 Land Raider

LAND SPEEDER [200]
5 Landspeeder

LAND SPEEDER [200]
5 Landspeeder

WARHOUND [275]
1 Warhound Class Titan

WARHOUND [275]
1 Warhound Class Titan

THUNDERBOLT SQUADRON [175]
2 Thunderbolt Fighters

THUNDERBOLT SQUADRON [175]
2 Thunderbolt Fighters

PREDATOR [325]
4 Annihilator, Hunter

SCOUT [150]
4 Scouts

Forgot to take snapshot of initial deployment.

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"You have a right to be offended" - Steve Hughes
"Your feelings are hurting my thoughts" - Aron Flam

TURN 1: Tau wind initiative.

T1.1: Recons do a coordinated fire order together with hammerheads (recon doubles to markerlight devastators and hammerheads advances) and fires on devastators in land raiders killing 1 land raider and two devastator stands (that was inside the land raider (4BM).
T1.2: hammerheads retain and doubles forward. Fires on same devastators for 1BM, breaking the formation.
SM1.1: Thunderbolts ground attacks recons lilling 2 tetras (3BM).
T1.3: Spaceship fails to activate.
SM1.2: Land speeders doubles and fires on pathfinders for 1BM.
SM1.3: Warhound retains and doubles. Fires on same pathfinders killing 4 and breaks the formation.
T1.4: Pathfinders doubles into ruins.
SM1.4: Predators doubles forward n the left flank.
T1.5: Firewarrior doubles and fires on land speeders killing 2 (3BM).
SM1.5: Scouts doubles and fires on fire warriors killing 2 (3BM).
T1.6: Barracudas fail to activate.
SM1.6: Devastators doubles forward.
T1.7: Fire warriors doubles and fires on land speeders wiping them out.
SM1.7: Thunderbolts ground attacks fire warriors but are forced to jink save because of ground AA.
T1.8: Hammerheads doubles and fires on scouts killing 1 rhino (2BM).
SM1.8: Devastators doubles forward and fires on fire warriors killing 1 stand and 1 devilfish (3BM).
T1.9: Fire warriors doubles and fires on scouts killing 2 scouts and 1 rhino breaking the formation.
SM1.9: land speeders marches behind ruin.
T1.10: recons doubles towards Tau blitz and fires on devastators for 1BM.
SM1.10: Warhound doubles forward and fires on hurt recons formation killing 2 units and breaks the formation.

END PHASE:

Pathfinders fails to rally.
Devastators rallies.
Scouts rallies.
Recon rallies.

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https://epic40ksweden.wordpress.com/

"You have a right to be offended" - Steve Hughes
"Your feelings are hurting my thoughts" - Aron Flam

TURN 2: Tau wins initiative (Oh god-emperor, why has thou forsaken us??!!)

T2.1: Hammerheads sustain on warhound wiping it out.
T2.2: Fire warriors retain with the help of the SC and doubles. They fire on land speeders killing 2 (3BM).
SM2.1: Predators advance and fires on fire warriors killing 3 deviilfishes and 1 stand (5BM).
SM2.2: Devastators retains and engages same fire warrior unit wiping it out for the loss of 1 land raider. Marines claim BTS-objective.
T2.3: Fire warriors engages scouts wiping them out for no losses.
T2.4: Hammerheads retains and fires on devastators killing 1 landraider and 1 devastator inside it (3BM).
SM2.3: Devastators advances and fires on fire warriors killing 1 skyray (2BM).
SM2.4: Warhounf retains and engages same fire warriors killing 2 of them for no hits back. Warhound wins combat.
T2.5: Spaceship activates and fires on warhound. 1 shot hits but only strips 1 shield (1BM).
SM2.5: Devastators marshalls and moves towards marine blitz.
T2.6: Recons marshalls.
SM2.6: Thunderbolts ground attacks same recon formation killing 1 unit and breaks them.
T2.7: Barracudas goes on CAP.
SM2.7: Land speeders marshalls and hides behind ruins.
T2,8: recons does coordinated fire together with hammerheads (recn doubles forward and hammerheads advances). They both fire on Warhound stripping 1 shield and does 2dc breaking it.
SM2.8: Thunderbolts fails to activate.
T2.9: pathfinders amrches up on central hill.

END PHASE:
Warhound rallies.
Pathfinders rallies.
Recon rallies.

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https://epic40ksweden.wordpress.com/

"You have a right to be offended" - Steve Hughes
"Your feelings are hurting my thoughts" - Aron Flam

TURN 3: Marines wins initiative (finally!)

SM3.1: Warhound advances and fires on recons killing 3 breaking the formation.
SM3.2: Devastators retains and engages pathfinders wiping them out for no losses.
T3.1: Fire warriors doubles into ruins and fires on land speeders killing 2 and breaks the formation.
T3.2: Hammerheads holds and fires on devastators killing 1 land raider and 1 stand that was inside it (again??!)
SM3.3: Devastators doubles and fires on Hammerheads up on central hill killing 2 and breaks the formation.
T3.3: Fire warriors doubles and and fires on devastators (killign the supreme commancer) killing 2 and breaks the formation.
SM3.4: Thunderbolts ground atatcks hammerheads but are shot down from barracuda and skyray AA.
T3.4: Pathfinders by Tau blitz marshalls with the help of the SC and clears their BM.
SM3.5: Thunderbolts ground atatcks broken recons and wipes them out.
T3.5: Hammerheads marches to marine blitz.
SM3.6: Predators doubles and fires on fire warriors that are contesting 1 of the T&H objectives. 2 devilfishes dies and the formation breaks. Marines claims T&H objective.
T3.6: Tau has now one lonely tetra left who can contest T&H objectives and push the game into a turn 4. The little bugger decides to hold and breaks to the dismay of the Tau player.

Marines win 2-0 (BTS and T&H) in Turn 3.

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"You have a right to be offended" - Steve Hughes
"Your feelings are hurting my thoughts" - Aron Flam

My thoughts:

Fun game as usual. Norto did a big gamble when he marched his hammerheads to my blitz and left only a lone tetra to contest the T&H objectives. I think he was pretty sure it would go to a fourth turn where i think he would have gotten the upper hand. But the dice gods decided to punish him instead.

I can't speak to the Tau changes since i don't know the list very well.

I decided to try out many land raider upgrades. at 350 points a devastator formation in land raiders is a very good shooty formation for the marines! Otherwise itä's usually warhound and predators that go around shooting stuff but now the devs can attack both AP and AT targets with lots of firepower. The land raiders alsohelps in engagements to soak up hits with their RA4+.
I decided to try out having the devs inside the land raiders this game. I ended up paying for that 2 or three times when stands got killed after the land raider got hit and was destroyed. Won't be doing that much.
I feel that with this change land raiders is a very viable formation again, especially in a ground slogging marine list. 350 points is alot to invest in though. Is it to cheap? Don't know really, but will help seeing land raiders on the board more in games i'm sure.

_________________
https://epic40ksweden.wordpress.com/

"You have a right to be offended" - Steve Hughes
"Your feelings are hurting my thoughts" - Aron Flam