Another week, another big recap of a fantastic event over at Chicagoland Games Dice Dojo! This event was my 2nd of the new edition of Horus Heresy, and my first Apocalypse Game! This game was put on by the awesome Heresy organizers over at the Dice Dojo (big shout out to Tyler, Alec, and Will) and attended by the equally awesome local Heresy players. I got into Horus Heresy in the past year or so as it tends to attract players who really value hobby and narrative play over meta-chasing and win-at-all-costs play styles. The local group is made up of truly fantastic hobbyists and artists who put a lot of thought, care, and time into their armies. While a lot has been said online about the 3rd edition HH rules, the vibes at this game (and the other previous day long events) were overwhelmingly positive and the level of excitement for the game and its’ future was palpable.
The Setup
The day kicked off with us rearranging the Dojo basement into our battlefield. We lined up 7(?) of the 6×4 foot tables, and got to work laying out terrain that would represent the Titan foundries of Mars. Dojo’s massive collection of terrain and battlefield tiles, which is an actual treasure, was put to use crafting a tight maze of ruined factories, landing pads, bunkers, and even a crashed Thunderhawk on the “outskirts” of the foundries. One of the players even brought an appropriately scaled Waffle House for the Loyalist side to defend.
The time to deploy our forces came next. For this game the combined forces of the Loyalists and Traitors came in at a whopping 88,000 points (6,000 of which was mine lol) and included: 36 Lords of War (lots of new plastic Fellblades!) and 2 correction: 3 Primarchs (Guilliman, Perturabo, and Angron). We were lucky enough to have one giant Warlord Titan holding down one side of our line, while the Traitors had a Warlord Titan of their own and 2 Warhound Titans prowling the battlefield.
The mission was simple: the Loyalists were on the defensive, scoring points for destroying whole units, while the Traitors aimed to take and hold key objectives on the table. The Loyalist side was represented by the forces of a number of Legions: White Scars, Salamanders UItramarines, Space Wolves, remnants of the Loyalist Emperor’s Children, along with a Mechanicum host, multiple Knight Households, and a Titan Legio. The Traitor side was made up of a massive group of Iron Warriors (from three different players!), Death Guard, World Eaters, and a smattering of Dark Mechanicum, Knights, and a sizable force of Titans.
With all of these toys on the table, and pictures and videos taken, both teams lined up for a raucous game of Happy Salmon to determine which side would get initiative. This was a fun and rowdy way to get the day started, and it set the tone for 4 rounds of chaotic fighting. Each turn had a silly way of determining which side got initiative. The format of the turns was also unique, with each phase (Movement, Shooting, Charges, Fighting) alternating between each side, rather than the usual format where one side goes through all of their phases. This kept the game moving and ensured people were engaged for the majority of the day.
The Battle
My Loyalist Emperor’s Children deployed alongside Will’s Emperor’s Children , Space Wolves, and Knights. We led the way ahead of Vivienne’s massive Warlord Titan. There was so much armor and so many Knights between Will and I that it took multiple turns to move everything into position. We were essentially sending in waves of Knights, Tanks, and Heavy support vehicles. On our side of the battle, we managed to get a few lucky shots across the table, destroying a number of the forward vehicles of the Iron Warriors. My Assault Infantry, Palatine Blade Aquilae and Scimitar Jetbikes moved quickly up the table, taking advantage of the rooftops and gantries of the Martian foundry. My Jetbikes even managed to knock out a Land Raider, opening up the field for our armor to continue their advance.
Across the table, the White Scars, Salamanders, and Mechanicum duked it out against Dark Mech, Knights, and World Eaters. My Emperor’s Children even managed to land a drop pod of Sunkillers in the middle of this fight to attempt to knock out a hulking Traitor Battle Automata. They didn’t do much.
Nearby the forces of the Salamanders and Ultramarines, led by their Guilliman, fended off wave after wave of Iron Warriors, Death Guard, and a determined squad of Dark Mech Assassins in and around the Waffle House. Reinforcements flooded in from Thunderhawks and Mastodons. All the while the lumbering Titans on both sides blasted one another and demolished whole groups of infantry amongst the ruins. The Loyalists enjoyed an early lead throughout Turns 1 and 2 as the Traitors died by the hundreds. Our side even managed to destroy one of the Traitor Warhounds attacking the Waffle House.
The tide shifted when Bryan’s Traitor Warlord Titan finally brought down our own Warlord, sending it crashing into nearby forces, destroying roughly 1/3 of my vehicles (lol). The Traitor Warlord then set about blowing up each Loyalist Fellblade left on the table, including mine, which left us relying on Laser Destroyers and Las-Cannon Arrays to fend off the seemingly endless waves of Iron Warriors on my side of the table. Bryan’s massed Legion Basilisks (30 in total I believe) rained down fire as well, allowing the Traitors to continue their creep up the field and onto the objectives. All the while Angron gleefully cut his way through hordes of Mechanicum tech-thralls.
In the end, and after 4 turns, the Loyalists simply weren’t able to hold back the implacable advance of the combined Traitor forces. Perturabo even managed to kill Guilliman in a duel in front of the Waffle House, signaling that the tide had turned in favor of the Traitors.
All is not lost for the noble Loyalist forces, as the fight for Mars will continue in next year’s Horus Heresy campaign at the Dice Dojo, before the ultimate climactic conclusion on Terra itself.
The Aftermath
All in all it was another phenomenal Heresy event at the Dojo. Lot’s of folks came down to spectate and gawk at the massive amount of stuff on display. I even managed to win the raffle at the end and snagged this box of Thallax.
Thanks again to the organizers and the Dojo! Cheers!
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