I'm playing through the missions in the Pariah Nexus Crusade book, in order of appearance. The second mission is called Dig site raid, and it's a testament tothe Pariah Nexus crusade book that I was excited for this mission by the second paragraph of the mission briefing. The reason is simple. This mission is about gathering Blackstone (Noctilith) fragments.
The Warhammer 40,000 setting has successfully made Blackstone to be valued. It's featured in the Blackstone Fortress board game, it's a key component in many Black Library novels, and it's not an insignificant motivation for certain factions to be involved in the Nephilim crusade. You might not have cared about Blackstone before Pariah Nexus, but by the time you get to the missions you do. So it's very exciting to discover that each objective marker in Dig site raid contains a Blackstone fragment.
In addition to being important in the lore of the setting, Blackstone is a currency in the Pariah Nexus crusade book. You can buy upgrades for your army with Blackstone fragments.
It doesn't what kind of player you are. In this crusade, Blackstone is important. You've been trained to want it. And this mission has 5 Blackstone fragments up for grabs, right there on the battlefield!
It's well known by now that Necrons are invading the Nephilim sector, and of course Necrons hunger for Noctilith. This provides a convenient excuse for the Adeptus Mechanicus to go to the Nephilim sector and gather as much Noctilith as they can find, to keep it out of Necron hands.
The Blood of the Omnissiah regiment, a deadly combination of Adeptus Mechanicus and Imperial Knights, has been sent to a mining colony in the Nepihilim sector to collect the Noctilith the miners have uncovered. They quickly found that the mining colony was infested by Tyranids. Now they're approaching a prominent dig site, and their scouts report the clear presence of a Genestealer Cult. The Tyranids weren't coincidental. They've been summoned.
In the Dig site raid mission, the Defender is extracting Blackstone, and the Attacker launches a raids to steal it.
For this mission, the Von Ryan's Leapers are out, replaced by a unit of Genestealer Cult neophyte hybrids and a Clamavus. It's a remix of the Tyranid Combat Patrol from White Dwarf 497, containing these models:
I'm proxying a Winged Tyranid Prime for the Lictor and a Tyranid Warrior for the neurolictor, and a kitbashed model as the Clamavus.
Running Tyranids with Genestealer Cults is highly thematic. As in the lore, my interest in Tyranids was derived by my love for the Genestealer Cults. I also love the idea that the Tyranids would be just as happy to devour Genestealer Cultists as they are to devour cultists of the Omnissiah. To express that through mechanics, I'm enacting a rule that when there is no Adeptus Mechanicus opponent within 6" of a Tyranid but there is a Genestealer Cult target within 6" of that Tyranid, the Tyranid attacks the Genestealer Cult target.
My Adeptus Mechanicus Combat Patrol:
Scipio Ω5-Quintus, the Technoarcheologist, still hasn't joined the mission because I'm a little afraid of tipping the balance too far in favour of Cult Mechanicum. The Technoarcheologist isn't terribly powerful, but he does have a pistol with Devastating Wounds, and that can sometimes do actual damage.
I've granted the Legio Cybernetica keyword to the Armiger warglaive so that it fits in with the Cohort Cybernetica detachment from the official codex. I'm still planning on bringing in Canis Rex eventually, and really considered it here, but I don't feel like I quite know the Tyranids well enough yet to start throwing ridiculous enemies in their path.
Pariah Nexus has a fun subsystem for deciding which player is Attacker and which is Defender. First, each player secretly chooses Aggressive, Balanced, or Defensive. Then you cross-reference the intersection of the 2 choices in the Strategic Footing matrix.
The Tyranids and Genestealer Cults chose a Balanced strategy, while the Adeptus Mechanicus, obviously hungry for all that Noctilith, chose Aggressive. According to the matrix in the book, this means that the Adeptus Mechanicus is the Attacker and gains the Advantage.
Advantage: Once per battle, you can target a Character unit with the Epic Challenge stratagem for 0 CP.
Could be useful if the Clamavus embeds himself into the Neophyte Hybrid unit.
I couldn't have planned this setup better. It's exactly what I imagined for this mission.
The Genestealer Cults roll high on initiative.
Using its Infiltrator ability, the Lictor has positioned itself as close as possible to the southeast slab containing Noctilith, and moves to control that objective, gaining 1 Blackstone fragment.
The Neurolictor is also an Infiltrator, so it moves into control of the northeast slab and gains 1 Blackstone fragment.
That's 2 of the 5 available Blackstone fragments claimed, but the Adeptus Mechanicus can target a Character unit with the Epic Challenge stratagem for 0 CP. The Neurolictor, is named Death's Shadow on its Profile and so counts as a Character.
The Neophyte Acolytes move into some ruins and make an Advance roll to ascend up the remains of the building, hoping to find a good postion to fire and throw explosives at the incoming Adeptus Mechanicus. They roll 1 for a required 3" advance, so they remain on the ground level. At least they have a wall or 2 between them and their Tyranid overlords.
The Clamavus trails behind the Neurolictor at a safe distance, and also keeping behind cover. The Clamavus imposes a -1 on Battleshock tests, so he may be able to boost the Neurolictor's powers. Then again, if he gets too close then he may just be eaten.
Aggressive though they may be, the Adeptus Mechanicus deployed behind cover. I judged that 1 Neophyte Acolyte could take a shot at the Armiger Warglaive through a sliver of the ruins, but he rolled a 2 to Hit even before accounting for Benefit of Cover. It's tough to go first as a mostly melee army, I guess.
On the Adeptus Mechanicus turn, the Cybernetica Datasmith issues the Conqueror Imperative, granting all weapons the Assault keyword, and improving AP by -1.
The Armiger Warglaive moves to the central Noctilith processor and grabs the Blackstone fragment there. The Kastelan Robots and their Cybernetica Datasmith move to the south slab and claim a Blackstone fragment. The Skitarii Vanguard move around their ruins to get into firing position, and as a bonus end up near the western slab and claim the Blackstone fragment.
All the Noctilith has been claimed. I proposed we call it even and just part ways, but neither army found that agreeable, so we move to the Adeptus Mechanicus Shooting phase.
The Armiger Warglaive targets the Neurolictor, which has Stealth (-1 to Hit) and the Benefit of Cover (+1 Save). Unsurprisingly, only 1 shot manages to hit, and it hits the slab instead of the Neurolictor.
A Kastelan Robot has a clear shot at the Lictor on the south side of the battlefield, however. The Kastelan Robot fires its Incendiary Combustor and overcomes the Lictor's Stealth penalty for 4 hits. The Lictor fails most Saves due to the -2 AP, and takes 2 Wounds (it's got 4 remaining.)
The Skitarii Vanguard are distracted by the acquisition of Blackstone, I guess, because out of 25 shots fired they only manage to remove 2 Neophyte Acolytes.
Adeptus Mechanicus: 4 VP (3 for each objective, 1 for controlling more than theeenemy) Tyranid Cults: 2 VP (2 for each objective)
Tyranids roll high again for initiative. Thanks to the Neophyte Acolytes they get to roll for bonus Command Points, gaining a total of 3 CP this round. During the Reinforcement phase, 2 more Neophyte Hybrids join the unit to make up for the 2 that got removed in the previous Round (which was an ability I was really missing in the previous scenario with a pure Tyranid army!)
In response, the Adeptus Mechanicus initiates the Protector Imperative to grant all weapons the Heavy keyword for the Round, and worsen enemy AP by -1.
The Clamavus moves next to the Neurolictor, which he can do safely now because the Armiger Warglaive is within 12" and looks tastier than the wee Clamavus. The Clamavus has a Voice of the New Truths aura that imposes a -1 to an nearby enemy's Battleshock test, and causes 1 Mortal Wound upon failure. Conveniently, the Neurolictor can choose any enemy within 12" and force a Battleshock test. Unfortunately for them, the Neurolictor's ability triggers only during the Command phase, so this combo can't be used until next round. The Clamavus is taking cover behind the Neurolictor.
The question is, will charging into melee with the Armiger Warglaive jeopardise this strategy? The Neurolictor cares not for the Clamavus and Charges the Armiger Warglaive, leaving the Clamavus exposed. The Armiger Warglaive successfully Saves against 2 Hits, taking 1 Wound.
The Lictor charges the Kastelan Robot unit and hits on all Attacks, but the Kastelan Robot saves, thanks to the AP reduction, and takes no Wounds.
The Neophyte Hybrids abandon their plan to disperse around the ruins and rush headlong into battle. They open fire and kill 3 Skitarii Vanguard, even with the Benefit of Cover. Worse still, they now hold the centre objective. Their combined 10 OC plus 1 OC from the Neurolictor beats the Armiger Warglaive's 8 OC.
On the Adeptus Mechanicus turn, the Kastelan Robots surround the Lictor and set off a whole chain of melee attacks. The ones that get through are the Twin-Linked Power Fists, but the Lictor uses a Command Re-roll to survive with 5 out of 6 Wounds. But the Cybernetica Datasmith also has a Power Fist and it deals 2 damage. With the power of the Omnissiah in his heart, the Datasmith strikes at the Lictor and deals 4 Wounds. The Lictor rolls a 1 and a 6. That Saves against one (even with -2 AP), so the Lictor uses a Command Re-roll for the fail, and rolls a 5. That's still a fail due to the -2 AP of the Power Fist, and so the Lictor is gone.
Most importantly, the Cybernetica Datasmith pries the Blackstone fragment from the Lictor's claws. I think there was a way for that to have gone better for the Tyranids, and it involved using more Command Points earlier in the fight. By the time it became clear that the Lictor's injuries were critical, it was too late.
The Armiger Warglaive strikes the Neurolictor with its Reader Chain for 4 Hits and 12 Wounds. The Neurolictor has an Invulnerable Save of 4+ and saves for half. Spending the last of the army's Command Points, the Neurolictor manages to Invulnerable Save against the other half and takes no Wounds.
The Skitarii Vanguards move up to the centre objective, but in a way that they're able to also hold the west objective. Thanks to the Rad-saturation of the Vanguard, the Neophyte Hybrids now have 0 OC, and no longer control the centre objective. Angered by the loss of so many good Skitarii Vanguard, they fire at almost point blank range and kill 6 Neophyte Hybrids. Don't worry, there are more lurking in the mines.
Adeptus Mechanicus: 8 VP (3 for each objective, 1 for controlling more than the enemy) Tyranid Cults: 3 VP (1 for each objective)
Initiative rolls are tied, so initiative goes to the Army that previously rolled low. That's the Tech-Priests of Mars, and so the Cybernetic Datasmith declares the Conqueror Imperative. All weapons have the Assault keyword, and all AP is improved by -1. Enticingly, this delays a bunch of the abilities of the Tyranid Cults, such as getting reinforcement Neophyte Hybrids, and being forced to take a Battleshock test. Can the Adeptus Mechanicus use this situation to its full advantage? Spoilers, but the answer is very nearly.
The Skitarii Vanguard blast their Radium Carbines into the Neophyte Hybrids, kill 3 out of the 4 remaining. There's 1 remaining, until the Skitarii Vanguard Alpha levels his archeotech pistol at the survivor, just emerging from the ruins to throw some mining explosives, and takes a shot. No more Neophyte Hybrids.
This clears the path for the honourable Cybernetica Datasmith and his Kastelan Robots to travers the battlefield, northward toward Death's Shadow and the Clamavus. The Tech-Priest goes first, tossing aside some scaffolding and taking aim at the Clamavus round the corner. He fires and misses, but his Robots aren't far behind and deal 2 Wounds to the Clamavus and 3 Wounds to Death's Shadow. The Tyranids have no Command Points currently, so there aren't any re-rolls, and no possibility of stratagems.
The Armiger Warglaive strikes at the Death's Shadow, still reeling from the blasts from the Robots, and deals another 2 Wounds with a Reaper Chain strike. That's 5 of 7 Wounds total.
That's where the Adeptus Mechanicus end their turn, and the Tyranid Cult has been pretty well decimated. Only Death's Shadow and the Clamavus remain, and only Death's Shadow has a Blackstone fragment. This requires careful consideration, because the Tyranids have obviously lost control of the dig site. They have a Blackstone fragment, however, so it may well be worth giving up the fight for now just to get some Noctilith back to the hive.
Before a tactical retreat can happen, though, there are some aura effects to resolve.
The Clamavus causes all units within 12" to suffer -1 to Battleshock tests, and when a Battleshock test is failed the unit takes 1 Mortal Wound. During the Command phase, the Neurolictor forces a Battleshock test on a single unit within 12". Obviously, the Neurolictor chooses the Armiger Warglaive that it's currently locked in melee combat with.
This isn't an official mechanic, but to spice things up I propose that if the Warglaive fails its Battleshock test, then the Neurolictor is also able to snatch away the Warglaive's Blackstone fragment.
The Armiger Warglaive rolls 7 for a Leadership of 7, but the Clamavus subtracts 1 from that roll, and so the Warglaive fails and takes 1 Mortal Wound. It has 10 Wounds remaining, so that's not a big deal, but it is now Battleshocked. The Neurolictor falls back 8", spending 1 CP for the Predators Not Prey stratagem to auto-pass its Desperate Escape test, and runs for the pits of the mines with 2 Blackstone fragments.
The Adeptus Mechanicus still has a chance to clear the Battlefield. The Neurolictor isn't out of sight by any means, so some precision shooting could put a stop to its desperate escape. Initiative is going to be everything, next round.
Adeptus Mechanicus: 12 VP (3 for each objective, 1 for controlling more than theeenemy) Tryanid Cults: 4 VP (1 for each objective)
The Adeptus Mechanicus rolls high for initiative, which is probably bad news for the Tyranids.
The Kastelan Robots open fire at the Clamavus and removes him, clearing the path for the Armiger Warglaive. The Warglaive moves into position to shoot the Neurolictor in the back as it retreats, and totally bungles it.
It's a whole miniseries of failures. The Warglaive rolls low to Hit, which is compounded by the Neurolictor's Stealth ability. The Warglaive spends a 2 Command Points for re-rolls, and rolls even lower. Either way, targeting the Neurolictor gives it the opportunity to use its Psionic Phantoms enhancement, which allows it to immediately move 6". This gets the Neurolictor well out of sight and close enough to the mine entrance that I think it's only fair to say that he's escaped.
Adeptus Mechanicus: 16 VP (3 for each objective, 1 for controlling more than theeenemy) Tryanid Cults: 4 VP
The mission specifies that each army is awarded 10 Victory Points for each Blackstone fragment possessed by a Character model. Death's Shadow escaped with 2 Blackstone fragments, so that's 24 VP total. The Cybernetica Datasmith also has 2 Blackstone fragments (the other 1 is held by the Skitarii), for a total of 36 VP.
The Adeptus Mechanicus are victorious again. The Army gains 3 Blackstone fragments and 2 Requisition Points (1 for the battle, 1 for winning this mission.)
Each unit gains 1 XP for taking part in the crusade, and 3 XP for destroying 2 enemy units (the whole Neophyte Hybrid unit, the Lictor, and the Clamavus.) Plus, I'm selecting the Skitarii Vanguard to gain a mission-specific bonus of 5 XP. I'm also awarding the Kastelan Robots with the Marked for Greatness bonus 3 XP.
In total:
Every unit in the army that's seen action now has the Booded Battle Honour, so they've all earned a Battle Trait.
Armiger Warglaive [Blooded]: Reaper (Re-roll a Hit roll of 1 against Infantry or Mounted target)
Skitarii Vanguard [Blooded]: +1 Move and +1 Advance
Kastelan Robots [Blooded]: Hardened Machine Spirit (You can ignore any or all modifiers to your characteristics or roll or test, with the exception of your Save roll)
Cybernetica Datasmith [Blooded]: Brutal (Archeotech pistol has +1 Strength) and Precise (Critical Wound has Precision)
The Tyranids get 1 Requisition Point and 1 XP for partaking in a battle, but no bonus XP for their poor performance.
I'm awarding the Neophyte Hybrids the Marked for Greatness bonus 3 XP, because they were doing great until a bad initiative roll caught them off guard. They'll do better next time.
A list of the Crusade Forces that have seen action so far, whether they were in this battle or not:
I do feel that the hivemind is displeased with this army's performance. For the next mission, I'm adding a few more units to the Tyranid Cults to try to give the Tech-Priests a greater challenge.
I don't own the Tyranid codex so I'm using Genestealer Cults instead.
The Neophyte Hybrids roll 4 for Out of Action, so no Battle Scars.
The Lictor isn't as lucky. It rolls 1 on its Out of Action test.
Frankly, this guy had it coming. He died before his first turn in Gheists in the static and didn't make it through Dig site raid. He needs to get his head in the game or I will be painting one of the 2 other Tyranid Warriors on my painting desk to replace him.
The next mission is Quantum siege.