Shadow War Battle Report - Elysians vs. Arbites

Although I have a lot of outstanding projects on the go, I was lucky enough to score a gaming day last weekend, so I thought I'd share some pics.  This is using GW's new(ish) Shadow War ruleset.  I've blogged separately about how pleased I am that GW are bringing back some of these classic games in updated guises, but suffice it to say this skirmish game draws on the best elements of Inquisitor, Necromunda and Kill Team.  My favourite part is the flexibility of the lists, which allows you to take virtually any squad from your 40K army and turn it into a Shadow War team.

Dan played with his superb Elysian troopers, and I blew the dust of my Arbities SCT-7 team which we last used five years ago in our Necromunda Campaign Weekend.

Setup is really easy for this game, and most of the rules follow the classic GW move-shoot-assault structure, rolling for hit-wound-armour-injury.  This meant we had little to look up except weapon statistics, and we could focus on a really cinematic and enjoyable game.

These are some of my favourite models of all time.  It's been a criminally long time since I've used them.

I had to break through Dan's line and get to the other side of the board.

There are lots of snipers and plasma gunners lurking in the gloom...

Dan's beautifully-painted Elysian kill team was a pleasure to play against.

The man in the top of the tower has come down with verdigris, so he's on the automated surgery table.

My cyber mastif - again, because of the rules' flexibility I just created an ordinary trooper with a knife to represent him.  Round the left of that building up ahead is the heartless trooper who shot him.

Failing a dangerous terrain test, one of Dan's men fell into this dangerous pit of gloop - but fortunately it turned out to be non-toxic.

The wheels slowly come off my plan as I am surrounded - but fortunately Dan failed a bottle test here which lost him the game.  However, since we were having such fun we played on unto the death.

My sergeant's power maul claims its first victim...

Its second...

(Meanwhile one of my chaps fails a dangerous terrain test and falls head first into this crushing machine.  Ouch.

He failed a series of initiative tests and wound rolls to be killed outright - less than a 0.7% chance overall!

Oh yes, back to the tally!  Number three...

Four...

Five!  There was no-one left after that.

So I scraped to victory - despite being thoroughly pinned down and surrounded, my sergeant's power maul just proved too effective.  This was a really enjoyable game and Dan was a sporting opponent - we had such fun throwing in those random dangerous terrain tests, even if they did end up killing our own blokes:  "I know!  On a one, he slips and falls head first into the crusher.  Oh, it's a one.  Hurray!".  When I play with Dan I know we'll have fun no matter who wins/loses/falls headfirst into a vat of acid.

What a fun game!