Thursday 25 October 2018

Solar Auxilia Army for Avarii, Horus Heresy


 

Here we have my 3000pts Solar Auxilia force for the Avarii event this weekend in Malmö, Sweden.
There are some minor details left but they are good to go.
(click on the pictures to get a larger picture)









Three Thallaxes with lightning guns and heavy chainblades. They are a optional Heavy Support unit for the Solar Auxilia. The Mechanicum have these as Troops, I loose some upgrade options and I cant take objective with mine but the cost are the same.
I really dont have high hope for them and Im sure I could have spent the points better, on something more usefull for my army but they look cool so I wanted to field test them.


My Magos Biologus Engineseer with some handy Servo-automatas for some menial tasks of collecting rare specimens of fauna and flora, and cataloging them for the trade company.





Lord Marshal Aleksandr of House Naryshkin.
To bad the pictures dont show all the fine details I have painted on his cloak.
The Command squad, the banner bearing the logo of the East Fringe Trading Company.
Its a deviation of the historical East India Trading Company.
From the top you can barely see a small white marking, its the astrological sign for Saturn, showing its origin from the Saturnyne Ordo http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Solar_Auxilia
And at the bottom of the banner can the Solar Auxilia logo be seen.
In the squad is also two xenos mercenaries, counting as just two additional riflemen. They act as a sort of xenos sepoys, or just a way for my officers to show of their incredible wealth with some exotic troops.


Troopmaster Natalia Kolochev, a little to much points is spent on her as she has a slim hope to actually do something with all the big robots and marines around but there is always that small chance to be a hero.


Sergeant Seraphim Uvarovs troops. manning the walls.















Colour wise I have opted to be heavy influences by Russian vehicles during WW2 and the Battle of Berlin with the white cross markings. The Dracosans looked far to much like an ISU-152 or its sister wagons not borrow some colours from them...

Organisation wise these Solar Auxilia is the military arms under the East Fringe Trading Company.
A private company owned by the Noble House of Naryshkin.
The Tzar like family of Naryshkin lives in overwhelming wealth and musters whole expeditions just to gather exotic wares for their palaces and gardens.
The regular humans under their rule is not as lucky and lives on the edge of poverty. The army is well fed and equipped but the regular citizens fare less good.
Lets just hope this turmoil time of the Horus Heresy will lead to some inner problem or some kind of revolt... 

The army is ready to be transported to Avarii, just some minor detailing left. I think I have gone a little overboard with some of the mud effects on the vehicles and the tone is a little wrong to what I had planed.
If I get time i will seal it all with a layer of matte varnish.

I know I have some weaknesses in the army and brought along some units more for fun rather then they are effective in my army but overall Im happy with this.

I played with Solar Auxilia last years Avarii event, in the link you can find the army i brought along then.
http://kampgruppe-engel.blogspot.com/2017/10/3000pts-solar-auxilia-painted-horus.html
Hopefully this new incarnation will fare better then last year. It will be hard to play much worse at least...

Wednesday 24 October 2018

Kroglogg Hunters


Here we have two Kroglogg Hunters from Lead Adventure Miniatures I just painted the last brushes of paint on.
They were a really funny to paint.








The Lead Adventure Miniatures page seems to be down but the models can be found at other pages.

I bought these miniatures and a couple of other fun miniatures from a kickstarter they had.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/822163699/astropolis-ii-the-galactic-melting-pot?fbclid=IwAR3qvr5JAXZT0gtRHmoVbl7xfA0oWQQvNmHgR8Rl0Y9b4180SNGt-CsqrBI
To get a rather different colour I went with baby blue.
Something you usually dont see on the gaming table.


My plan is to use these as alien mercenaries in my Solar Auxilia army.
Using them as "count as" two regular riflemen in my command squad.


Tuesday 9 October 2018

Thallax unit


My Solar Auxilia forces have just acquisition some battle robots, some Thallaxes.

If I include an Engineseer with an Cortex controller I got the option to include these robots as an Heavy Support option in my Solar Auxilia list.
I got somewhat mixed feelings of including other forces troops as an heavy support but they are such cool looking models I could resist.

And I just love the idea with large robots mixed in between the ranks of puny humans. Besides, these were really really fun to paint.
I opted for an military type of colour scheme on them to fit into my regular Solar Auxilia forces.








Please not the cable markings. Neutral, phase and polkagris, nothing can possibly go wrong here...





One of the shoulder guards on each Thallax are decorated with the "Ajax" logo, from the Ajax, Horus Heresy event I attended this summer.
It was from an transfer sheet from the goody bag at the event.


Wednesday 3 October 2018

Ambush on Parvana Mahrukh, Solar Auxilia vs Milita Horus Heresy battle report


Episode 3 in our Campaign in the Parvana Mahrukh System.

Previously the Eastern Fringe Trading Company had taken the important Hill 134 and thus the control or atleast overview of the trading routes and movements in the area of the Benafsha region.
http://kampgruppe-engel.blogspot.com/2018/09/escalating-conflict-on-parvana-mahrukh.html


After some trade negotiation with local clans and warlords the goods and treasures from the Benafsha region started to move.
The Eastern Fringe Trading Company had plans to make lots of money here.

The
Expeditional Protection Force had other plans...An ambush was organised.


For all the games in this campaign, look at the "Campaign - Parvana Mahrukh" label on this blog:
http://kampgruppe-engel.blogspot.com/search/label/Campaign%20-%20Parvana%20Mahrukh




For this game we decided to use the 8th edition scenario of "Ambush" but with some minor tweaks.
For scoring method we decided that three "Dracosan Camels" would be used and not the regular army. These needed to be protected and moved out of the table or taken out, depending of the side.
For the Dracosan Camel I used standard Dracosan stats but removed the transport ability and the front gun. The cost of miniature was halved but I could upgrade it for standard cost. In this scenario I choose not to upgrade it with Flareshields as I thought it would be a bit boring.



Here is my friend Håkans Milita force acting on the behalf of the Expeditional Protection Force.
They are lead by Commander Kolm Bask




Here is my Solar Auxilia force under the command of the Eastern Fringe Trading Company:

++ Armies of Dark Compliance (Solar Auxilia) [1264pts] ++

+ HQ +

Auxilia Tactical Command Section [105pts]: Veteran Auxiliaries, Veteran Auxiliaries, Veteran Auxiliaries, Veteran Auxiliaries
. Strategos: Close Combat Weapon, Laspistol
. Veteran Special Weapon Auxiliaries: Grenade Launcher
. Veteran Special Weapon Auxiliaries: Grenade Launcher

+ Elites +

Auxilia Medicae Detachment [90pts]: 5x Medicae Orderly

+ Troops +

Auxilia Infantry Tercio [239pts]
. Auxilia Lasrifle Section
. . Troopmaster Natailia Koluchev: Blast Pistol, Power Fist, Troop Master
. Auxilia Lasrifle Section
. . Sergeant Seraphim Uvarov: Blast Pistol, Charnabal Sabre


Auxilia Infantry Tercio [245pts]
. Veletaris Storm Section
. . Prime: Laspistol, Power Weapon, Volkite Charger
. . Velentarii: Volkite Chargers

. Veletaris Storm Section
. . Prime: Charnabal Sabre, Laspistol, Volkite Charger
. . Velentarii: Volkite Chargers


+ Fast Attack +

Auxilia Primaris-Lightning Strike Fighter [215pts]: Battle Servitor Control, Ground-tracking Auguries, 2x Twin-linked Autocannon, Two Sunfury heavy missiles

+ Heavy Support +

Auxilia Artillery Tank Battery [185pts]
. Auxilia Medusa: Pintle-mounted Multi-laser

Auxilia Artillery Tank Battery [185pts]
. Auxilia Medusa: Pintle-mounted Multi-laser


+ Scenario Special +

Dracosan Camel [68+10=78pts]
 . Pintle-mounted Multi-laser

Dracosan Camel [68+10=78pts]
 . Pintle-mounted Multi-laser

Dracosan Camel [68+10=78pts]
 . Pintle-mounted Multi-laser

++ Total: [1498pts] ++


Something that really struck me when I built my force was that I felt that I really miss some kind of scouting infantry in my force. It would have been nice to have some kind of infantry with the scout or infiltrating ability for the Solar Auxilia.


I deployed in a sort of column with a Medusa at the front, the Dracosan Camels behind and infantry lining the formation. I didnt have space to deploy both the Medusas in a single line so I kept one in reserve with a Lightning strike fighter operating in the area.













A Leman Russ shoots in battlecannon but dont get the aim correctly and the shot scatters into a rocky pillar.



The heavy teams at their fire position on the small hill.

Looking down at the advancing column.

When the first shells starts to land the forces of the Eastern Fringe Trading company started to spread out.
The Medusa takes a fire position as the infantry runs towards the flank to engage the infantry.

The elite Veletaris takes casualties but just barely manages to hold their moral and storms forth with their volkite rayguns.






With their volkites chooming away at the enemy the Veletaris draws their close combat weapons and charges the small hill.

The combination of rayguns and old honest combat blades takes a massive toll on the enemy and they are forced to flee the field.

The close protection of the heavy teams are taken out but their weapons are now homing in on the Veletaris.

Sergeant Seraphim Uvarov charges the large "blob" of militia levies with his lasrifle section.

The casualties inflicted and the levies was forced from the field.

The heavy weapons shoots at the hill as the Veletaris tries to find cover.

With even more casualties they are forced to fall back.

The Sergeant Seraphim Uvarov and his lasrifle section tries to find some protection behind the step hill.

And a charge is issued, the lasrifle section climbs the step hill.


The charge is not as effective as I would have hoped but I managed to atleast win the combat and force a moral roll.
Seeing some of their men charged and cut down the whole unit of heavy weapon teams decided it was more then enough and they flees of the table.

At the main road two Dracosan Camels had advanced with their pintle mounted mulitlasers in an attempt to keep the advaning enemy down. My own infantry had been forced to fall back from all the firepower on the hill.

A Dracosan Camel pushes up with its pintlemounted multilaser in an attempt to protect it self from all those missile launchers.

The enemy had managed to take out a Dracosan Camel with all those kraken grenades they were carrying. Troopmaster Natalia Koluchev had to stop them and she charged in with her lasrifle section, challenged the enemy sergeant to a duel.
It was fisting time...


I had pull full back on a Dracosan Camel, I couldn't afford to use it at the front as protection for my force.


Atlast the airforce responded to the distress call and flew into the battle.
It unleashed all its autocannons with a roar and two of the lascannon equipped sentinels exploded...


The Dracosan Camels and the Medusas had taken a heavy toll on the heavy teams on the hill and as the sentinels exploded more men were taken out.
Commander Kolm Bask was also caught in the blast and pull shrapnel from his face...


Another sentinel was taken out, also exploding and even this time Commander Kolm Bask was caught in the blast taking even more wounds...


The wounded enemy commander, here seen between the burning left over bits from the exploding sentinels...

My infantry on the flanks had managed to push forward and take out a Leman Russ

All my forces rushed the hill with the enemy commander.

My Velitaris rushes forward with their volkites scanning the hill for enemy forces.

They located the enemy commander, Commander Kolm Bask and fired their volkites, their martian rayguns at him and he was taken out.

With its flanking maneuver the way was now safe to move out but the ambush had taken out the momentum, the speed of the convoy.
They needed to speed up to get the convoy to regain the lost time.
Barely just barely I managed to move out a Dracosan Camel of the table on the last turn.

As we had switched the scenario from me needing 1/3 of my force to needing 1/3 of the Dracosan Camels to leave the table this was enough to give me a victory.


As we were short on time to get the rest of the convoy moving no thural investigation after the battle could be taken and the enemy that fled to the mountain could not be pursued and the body of Commander Kolm Bask was not to be found. He is thought to have been perished in this ambush in this moment of writing.

The convoy had managed to push through.