Recovered enough after Rose City Raid 2019 to get a game in. Than was all too happy to oblige, and was kind enough to make the trip down to my home to play. Work is pretty nuts right now, so I very much appreciated him taking the time to make the 30-40 minute drive from his place in the rain! Been struggling with what to play, so I left it up to my meta. I’ve heard FRRM, Tohaa, Spiral, JSA, and Corregidor. Not sure what I’m feeling yet. We’ll see. This time though, I was feeling Tohaa, so with Than playing Spiral we had a bit of a false flag operation going? I dunno.

I haven’t played much on the table with the mountain, so I wanted to give it a go. Since I don’t have to make my terrain span two tables, I did my best to block off a decent amount of the center, given the really commanding mountain on one side. Definitely still needs some tweaking, but I really enjoyed the catwalk system. I need to find my bag of scatter terrain, I have no idea where it went!

Overview

Mission : Supremacy

: Supremacy Forces : Tohaa versus Spiral Corps (300)

: versus (300) Deploy First : Spiral Corps

: First Turn: Spiral Corps

Supremacy GROUP 1 | 10 1 SUKEUL Lieutenant (Forward Observer) K1 Combi Rifle, D-Charges / Pistol, Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 32)

KAELTAR Light Shotgun, Flash Pulse + 2 SymbioBombs / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 15)

MAKAUL Heavy Flamethrower, Eclipse Grenades / Pistol, Viral CCW. (0 | 13) CLIPSOS (Forward Observer) Combi Rifle, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 25)

CLIPSOS Boarding Shotgun, Nullifier / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 23)

GREIF-OP (Inferior Impersonation) Combi Rifle / 2 Breaker Pistols, Knife. (1 | 21)

DRAAL Submachine Gun, Pulzar, D-Charges, Dazer / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0 | 30)

KAAURI Sentinel Sniper / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0.5 | 19)

KAAURI Sentinel Sniper / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0.5 | 19)

GAO-TARSOS HMG / Pistol, CC Weapon. (1.5 | 36) GROUP 2 | 3 1 KRIIGEL Submachine Gun, Phero-Booster / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0 | 24)

REEX (Marksmanship L1) K1 Marksman Rifle / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 20)

REEX Boarding Shotgun, Contender, Nanopulser / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 13) LIBERTO (Minelayer) Light Shotgun, Chain-colt, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Knife. (1 | 10) 5 SWC | 300 Points | Open in Infinity Army

I threw together his hot mess over a quick dinner while Than was driving over. I’ve been wanting to get a Gao Tarsos on the table for awhile now, and I figured Supremacy was a good mission for it. Double Clipsos is also fun, and I wanted to try out this Kriigel+2 Reex thing. It’s pretty fragile and can’t take a specialist, but it seemed like a good board control option for not all that many points. Sukeul Lt because good.

Spiral Corps GROUP 1 | 10 NEEMA Lieutenant (Advanced Command) Spitfire, Nanopulser / Viral Pistol, Shock CCW. (1.5 | 48)

KOSUIL Engineer Boarding Shotgun, D-Charges, Panzerfaust / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 24)

TAAGMA (Tri-Core) Breaker Combi Rifle, Nanopulser / Pistol, Knife. (1 | 21) TAAGMA (Multispectral Visor L2) Viral Sniper / Pistol, Knife. (1.5 | 25)

KRIIGEL Breaker Combi Rifle + Smoke Light Grenade Launcher / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 27)

KAELTAR (Chain of Command) Light Shotgun, Flash Pulse + 2 SymbioMates / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0.5 | 21) KRIIGEL Submachine Gun, Phero-Booster / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0 | 24)

REEX (Marksmanship L1) K1 Marksman Rifle / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 20)

REEX Boarding Shotgun, Contender, Nanopulser / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 13) DRAAL Submachine Gun, Pulzar, D-Charges, Dazer / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0 | 30) GROUP 2 | 1 3 KAAURI Sentinel Submachine Gun, 2 Nanopulsers, Nullifier / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 12)

HELOT MILITIAMAN Shock Marksman Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 13)

HELOT MILITIAMAN Shock Marksman Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 13)

HELOT MILITIAMAN Submachine Gun, Light Rocket Launcher / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 9) 6 SWC | 300 Points | Open in Infinity Army

Than’s list is pretty gross. I’m really not liking facing Helots. Every time I face them it’s just… gross. Than’s three Triads are also really gross. He’s also taking the same Reex/Kriigel Triad that I am. He’s got a defensive Triad and a nice attack Triad. I had actually not realized that the Draal are specialist operatives too, so I ended up using/deploying mine a little funny.

Deployment

Than deploys first, putting two Helots on the mountain and one on the left. He pretends that the Taagma with viral sniper is Le Muet, but he’s not fooling me. There’s a Kaeltar and Kriigel Smoke LGL hanging out with him as well. The Kriigel SMG goes on the catwalk to make it into the center and hold down the fort, and then the two Reex deploy immediately behind, on the ground floor. The Draal goes on the left to do some button pushing and Xenotech carting around, and then Than’s workhorse Triad goes in the middle in a nice little blob. Oh how I wish I had a missile launcher with a shot to that Triad…

I set up my two Kauuri on the left, intending to force Than to remove them at high order cost, or maybe get lucky! I copy Than’s deployment of his Kriigel and Reex, putting mine on a catwalk with the two Reex below. I put mine facing backwards just in case Than has some AD. He can’t AD into my deployment zone with a Cube Jager, but it’s a good habit to get into anyway.

I put a Clipsos BSG down covering Neema’s likely path, and then put a Clipsos FO down on my right to do some button pushing. I figured there wasn’t a great spot on my left for my Sukuel Triad, so that went on the right. The Libertos adds some more teeth to the choke point on the right, and then it was time to deploy reserves. Than’s reserve was one of the two Helots on his right, and mine was the Grief, just outside of his deployment zone basically putting points in a quadrant.

Turn 1

Top of 1 – Spiral Corps

I take one order from Than, who informs me he has counter intelligence. Sure, not unexpected. He’s got 5 command tokens, so I know who his lieutenant is–it’s Neema. He’s played enough Tohaa to know who my Lieutenant is as well, so I’m not really at an advantage.

Anyway, Than’s Draal starts by flipping the nearby console and drags the Xenotech forward to deploy the multiscanner. To finish things off, he drops a Dazer at the bottom of the helipad and he started with StratusCloud up, so that’s a pretty well saturated area. Eh? Eh?

With two points on the board, Than sees about taking out my Kauuri. He sets up some smoke for “Le Muet” and then forms the Triad with Le Muet in it. He throws three dice at my Kauuri, who is unaffected by the -6 from smoke thanks to SSL2. We both whiff, and Than is a bit concerned about his chances against the Kauuri:

22.74 23.51 53.76

He needn’t have worried all that much, he had over double my chances to win the face to face.

Than decides to send in Neema instead, and slices the pie. Even at bad range, having a Tri-Core in the link helps a lot:

10.21 26.54 63.26

Neema pastes the first Kauuri…

and makes short work of the second.

At this point though, Than has spent one order to set up smoke for his Taagma VSR, one command token to reform the link, and three orders of shooting plus an order getting Neema into position. While the Kauuri are sadly not throwaway pieces, I can’t say that they didn’t tie up most of Than’s first turn. The Helots advance up the hill to secure the quadrant along with Neema, and the other Helot pokes out to cover the firelane on my right. After repositioning his Kauuri to cover my Grief operator, Than passes turn.

Bottom of 1 – Tohaa

I start by being pretty ballsy and just push the Reex forward, the K1 Marksman leading the way. It takes me to orders of moving them forward, face to facing a marksman Helot through the Dazer’s saturation zone, but I finally drop the Helot:

39.72 34.51 25.77

The odds weren’t great, but I got it done.

I spend the Libertos’s order on the Reex triad to get them into position to secure my near two quadrants, letting me focus on doing some damage with my Gao Tarsos in my first group–or so I thought.

I find a decent spot in Than’s deployment zone to land and start gunning guys down, but of course I roll an 18 on the PH roll and deviate off the table, landing me in my deployment zone.

I debate walking it on the mountaintop, but both Helots can see. Symbiont Armor isn’t going to save me against that, so I don’t even bother. It’s gonna take a ton of orders to get it anywhere on the right, so I hope to out-dice the Taagma VSR.

26.75 20.43 52.81

Not the best plan on my part, because even after climbing the stairs we’re outside of 32″. I could’ve mathed that based on deployment zones, but I wasn’t thinking about it.

In any case, I lose the Gao Tarsos, and then just grab my Multiscanner points and Eraser Than’s Draal with my Draal’s SymbioBomb.

Turn 2

We measure Quadrants, and one of my Reex is straddling my two quadrants. Than generously gives it to me, tying us up 2-2 quadrants. We’ve both got our Xenotechs in a dominated zone, so we’re currently tied 1-1, ignoring Than’s console.

Top of 2 – Spiral Corps

Even though the Draal is isolated, Than manages to clear my Libertos’s mine and Pulzars the Libertos as I shotgun the Draal. This was definitely a mistake. I should’ve kept the Libertos in camo, especially since the mine popped the SymbioMate and also caused a wound. Than would’ve dodged instead, but that’s fine, it’s not a guaranteed dodge.

Neema’s Triad advances, flipping Than’s near right console (my far left), and then Neema sees about climbing a hill to see my Kriigel. She needs to long skill climb, and Than just lets me have a shot at her with the Kriigel. What he doesn’t realize is that I also have a Clipsos BSG there, so I reveal her and blast the Kosuil as Neema climbs, catching Neema under the template.

Neema passes all of her saves, but the Kosuil takes a wound. Neema activates again, splitting burst between the Clipsos and the Kriigel. The Kriigel actually crits Neema, thankfully, but the Clipsos dies in hail of fire. I should’ve shot at the Taagma Tri-Core, but I just autopiloted into forcing a face to face. Alas, I had a 57% chance to drop that Taagma too.

Than’s out of orders in his first group, so he pushes his Helots around and passes turn.

Bottom of 2 – Tohaa

Well, I need to get rid of Neema, and I don’t want to make it easy for Than. I send in my Sukeul.

62.01 25.91 12.08

It takes me two orders to chew through Neema’s remaining two wounds, but I get it done. Mimetism rifles are no joke!

I send the Reex boarding shotgun and finish off the Kosuil…

and the Taagma Tri-Core.

We notice after this that Than’s got a shot on the Reex with a Helot, so I just give him the shots for free, which knocks out the Reex. Ah well. It’s a friendly game. I burn down Than’s isolated Draal with my Makaul’s heavy flamethrower…

and spend most of the remainder of my order pool trying and failing to take out the Helot that took out the Reex, using my Sukeul.

Turn 3

Since my BSG Reex is down and I stupidly didn’t move anything into that quadrant–it would’ve been trivial to crawl the Kriigel down the stairs to get into the quadrant as the Reex gunned everyone down–Than’s winning the quadrant game, 2-1. I’ve got the Xenotech domination though, so we’re at a 2-2 tie for points, again ignoring Than’s two consoles.

Top of 3 – Spiral Corps

Than has a pretty fast turn. He pushes up the Reex/Kriigel link, erasers my Draal with his Kriigel, kills the Makaul, syncs his Xenotech to a Reex, breaking the link, and then throws a bunch of stuff into suppression making things difficult for me on the right.

Bottom of 3 – Tohaa

With my Draal isolated, I won’t have the Xenotech bonus anymore. I coordinate a final order in group two, moving the Kriigel into the left quadrant and the remaining Reex into position on the right. I attempt to sync the Xenotech and fail. Drat!

I take out the Kriigel in suppression with the Draal, which wasn’t a sure thing at all.

29.16 47.24 23.60

I can’t vault the wall because the Viral Sniper will see me, so I’m stuck in this quadrant. No matter, that at least guarantees that I’m holding the quadrant.

I reveal my final Clipsos and dive it into the quadrant with my Grief operatior, easily out-pointing the Reex and Kauuri there. I manage to get it into a position to secure Than’s HVT but…

Than’s got a Reex securing my HVT, so that needs to go away.

55.50 32.69 11.81

It takes all my remaining orders, but my Sukuel Lt finally manages to punch through the suppression fire and saturation zone and take it out. I’ve now got three zones and Secure the HVT, so with Than’s two consoles it’s a

6-6 Tie!

Post Game Analysis

It’s definitely been entirely too long since I’ve played an area control mission. A lot of forgetting to put things into the right quadrants with coordinated or linked orders definitely cost me the game.

I also made a mistake not taking out the Taagma Tri-Core with the Clipsos BSG. Terribly unimpressed with my Gao Tarsos usage too. I should’ve easily known that I would’ve been on terrible odds to take out the Taagma sniper.

I also wasn’t terribly impressed with my usage of the Kauuri. I think leaving one prone at the start would’ve been good, or putting one on top of the mountain to deal with the Helots up there would also have been good. Ah well. I don’t think the list needs a ton of work, I just needed to use it better.

The Draal SMG is a bit of an odd duck–he definitely has a lot of tools but has some problems outside of 8″. I think I need to use them a lot more to really get a good feel for them. Really the big thing that I missed was that they’ve got specialist operative! I probably wouldn’t have put him on a box had I known that at the start. Ah well.

I do, however, like the Reex/Kriigel Triad. It’s not that expensive, and it does a lot of work. Than used his really well, locking down the center, and I was pretty impressed with mine as well. That Neema Triad is pretty gross as well.

I think putting my Sukuel on the left would’ve been a good idea too–the Makaul would’ve let me smoke up the objectives. I think I just deployed stupidly, with all my specialists on the right. Than did a great job of putting a bunch of annoying roadblocks there so I was only able to tie things up.

Some more careful deployment would’ve gone a long way. Still a long way to go to get my head really wrapped around Tohaa/Spiral. I’m digging it though. I was pleased with the Grief, it basically just sat there and got me points. I’ll take it. In any case, thanks again to Than for a great game and for braving the rain and the long drive to come visit me!