Battle Report: The Necropolis Campaign, Part Three

The Necropolis Campaign, Part Three
The Battle of Favonia, Part TwoThe Necropolis, a massive Necron vessel, had begun a rampage throughout the Arcadia Sector. The Imperial Navy amassed all the ships they could and moved to intercept the Necropolis and its accompanying fleet. They would make their stand on the edge of the Favonia system. The battle was too early to call, with the Imperials doing some damage to the Necron fleet, but the Imperials were suffering substantial losses as well.

Click here to see part one of the battle report.

Turn 4
The Dauntless Light Cruiser Constellation, set ablaze by the Necron Tombship, got some revenge, as after drifting closer to the Tombship, her plasma drives overloaded and she suddenly exploded. The Tombship was rocked by the nearby explosion, damaging its inertialess drive.

The fires aboard the Dominator Class Cruiser Warrior went out, but the vessel drifted onward, dead in space.

The Elnath failed its command check to Lock On to the Tombship.

The Apocalypse Class Battleship Repulse fired one broadside on the Silver Scythe, damaging it and disrupting its Power Flow. It fired the other broadside on the Jackals, which lost one ship despite Bracing for Impact.

The Mars Class Battlecruiser Aetolia, in the thick of it, fired all of its weapons systems at varied targets, but failed to damage any, except for the nova cannon shot against the Necropolis, which scored a single hit. The last Firestorm, the Gemini, damaged the Necropolis with its lance, and then combined its fire with the Swords and Cobra Squadron 1, and between them they delivered another point of damage to the Necropolis.

The capital ships Arcadia, Capella, Adhara, Procyon, and Elnath fired a 21-lance salvo against the Tombship, two shots of which got through to damage the ship, also rendering its port weapons unable to fire. Their combined weapons batteries inflicted a further point of damage.

In the ordnance phase, bombers from the carrier Prometheus killed one Khopesh and a Dirge.

The Vulture and the Shroud continued their wide maneuver, and had now moved behind the Imperial fleet, almost in position to strike. This flanking manuever had so far kept the two vessels out of the fight, but their imminent arrival might make the difference.

The Necropolis again fired its Soul Harvester, hitting the Repulse and delivering two points of hull damage. It then lay about with its multiple weapons systems, striking all within range. The Lightning Arc destroyed two Cobras, the Aglaja and the Pales, a pair of Swords, the Sinope and Triton, and the Firestorm Gemini. The Gauss Particle Whip lashed out and damaged the Repulse, crippling her. Finally, it teleported hundreds of Necron Warriors onto the decks of the destroyer Nemesis via its portal. Such was the fury of the onslaught that the Nemesis simply...vanished.

The Tombship and Silver Scythe combined their fire on the Repulse, hitting it three more times. Finally the Tombship repaired its port weapons systems.

Turn 5
The Prometheus attempted to Reload Ordnance but failed its command check.

The Repulse fired its lances on the Silver Scythe, disrupting its power flow and preventing it from firing. The Aetolia and two surviving Cobras fired on the Tombship to no effect.

The Elnath fired its broadside lances on the nearby Jackals, destroying one, while the Arcadia destroyed another.

The Procyon, Capella, and Thunder Child fired their broadsides all at the Tombship, which weathered all of the fire without any shots penetrating its armor.

The Thunder Child fired its lances ahead at the Necropolis, but failed to damage it. The Mimosa and the last surviving Sword Class Frigate, the Nereid, fired their weapons batteries on the Necropolis, delivering one hit.The last Khopesh (lower right) prepares to ram the Elnath, (red-trimmed black cruiser, second from lower right)The last Khopesh rammed into the stern of the Elnath, destroying itself and inflicting two hits to the Gothic Cruiser.

The Shroud and the Vulture had finally moved into attack position, and attack they did, concentrating their fire on the Repulse. Between them they knocked the Repulse's shields down and inflicted two hits. The Tombship's lightning arc inflicted two more. Still, the Repulse held on.

The Necropolis now had a plethora of targets to fire upon. The Gauss Particle Whip lashed the Elnath, but the ship emerged unscathed. One lightning arc downed a shield on the Aetolia, while another hit the Thunder Child, downing its shields and delivering two hits to its hull.

The Silver Scythe spent the turn repairing its damaged weapons systems.The Repulse and the Aetolia pass by the Tombship, making for the NecropolisTurn 6
The Prometheus reloaded its ordnance and prepared for another strike.

The Repulse fired its starboard lances on the Tombship, damaging it once. The Cobras fired on the Jackal, which Braced For Impact. This protected it from the Cobras' fire, but not from the starboard broadside of the Elnath, which destroyed it.

The Necropolis, detecting that it was about to sustain a massive lance barrage, Braced for Impact. The Elnath, Arcadia, Capella, Thunder Child, Aetolia, and Procyon unleashed a total of 24 lance shots at the Necropolis, hitting with fourteen and causing four more damage points to it. The shots damaged its Inertialess Drive, and the hits sustained crippled the vessel. Weapons batteries from the Aetolia, Mimosa, Procyon, and Capella delivered a further two damaging hits.The Necropolis receives a torrent of fire from the Imperial capital shipsThe Vulture, finally in firing position closed up behind the Aetolia and fired. The Aetolia Braced, but despite this her shields were downed and she suffered two hits, including one that damaged her prow armament. Fire from the Necropolis inflicted a further damage point, but the Necropolis, crippled and braced, could not offer much firepower to the fight.

The Silver Scythe moved towards the Scutum and the Prometheus, firing on the Scutum, downing its shields and inflicting two damage points.

Turn 7
The Capella locked its weapon systems on the Necropolis, but the rest of the fleet failed their command checks and no other special orders were given.

Preparing for another massive barrage, the Necropolis attempted to Brace for Impact, but with its leadership decreased due to critical hits, it failed the check. The Repulse fired a broadside and its dorsal batteries, but the Necropolis' armor held. The Thunder Child damaged it once with its prow lances, damaging the ship's inertialess drive again. The Aetolia and Procyon each delivered a hit with their weapon batteries. The Capella then fired and damaged the ship's Command Core, and finally the Arcadia inflicted one more hit. The Necropolis had taken a massive pounding, and only had two hits left.

The Repulse fired its port lances at the Shroud, which was already crippled from damage sustained in a previous battle, and the ship quickly exploded under the weight of fire. The Tombship was caught in the explosion and suffered a hit.

The Silver Scythe focused all of its fire on the Scutum, which was defending the Prometheus. The Scythe smashed the ship hard, downing its shields and delivering five hits, destroying its shield generators. As the crew desperately tried to get the damage under control, the Necropolis fired and finished the ship off, rendering the Scutum a drifting hulk.

The Vulture concentrated its fire on the Aetolia, damaging it three times. The Vulture's attack was followed up by the Tombship, which slammed the Mars Class Battlecruiser, hitting it twice more. The damage overloaded the ship's plasma drive, causing the Aetolia to explode in a fireball. The Necropolis barely escaped the blast.
The Aetolia (just under the Necropolis) explodes
Finally, some bomber waves from the Prometheus reached the Tombship, but they were all driven off or shot down by the Tombship's formidable turret defenses.
The Imperial fleet swarms the Necropolis, pouring all of their fire into itTurn 8
The Necropolis failed to Brace for Impact again, and with all the Imperial ships surrounding it, it seemed clear that its end was near. The Repulse delivered a single hit with its lances, and then the Thunder Child and the Arcadia fired their lances simultaneously, pushing the Necropolis over the edge into destruction. The ship continued to drift, but then the rest of the Imperial fleet continued to pour fire into the ship, causing it to explode in a ball of light.

Once the light faded, the area was filled with debris. The Necron Tombship, Silver Scythe, and Vulture had used the confusion to escape into deep space. Scanning the area, the Imperial ships found no more evidence of the Necron threat, and quickly began to reform their fleet and begin rescuing survivors from the many wrecked ships. The Necron threat had been destroyed, for now...

Imperial Navy Debriefing
Darkwing: My plan to take out the escorts first worked, but I don't think I deserve too many laurels for the victory. Badelaire played into my hands from the first turn, by keeping the Necropolis back and moving the rest of his fleet right into my guns. Also the wide flanking maneuver he performed with the Shroud and the Vulture just kept them out of most of the battle. The sheer number of capital ships at my disposal made my fleet a very tough nut to crack. I also have the dice to thank, because I rolled a lot of criticals on the Necron ships. Necrons are good at repairing damage, but I whittled down their leadership values as the battle went on. In the end, I think that my fleet had the staying power this time to simply overwhelm the Necron forces, giving me the opportunity to pound the Necropolis into submission. My fleet will need some time to recover from this fight, but I imagine I haven't seen the last of the Necrons.

Necron Debriefing
Badelaire: Well, it was a long and bloody engagement. I didn't do that well in the beginning of the fight, but whenever I could bring some heavy firepower to bear, it was telling. Not having shields, even though my armor is great and my Brace For Impact is stellar, means if I take hits, the ships start getting chewed up. Being able to do 2-3 hits to a ship and still not doing damage can be frustrating, but them's the breaks. I did notice about 2/3rds of the way through the game that I was forgetting the Particle Whip rule that allows rolls of 6 to ignore shields - I can't remember if that had any effect or not, but it just goes to show that sometimes having too many "cool rules" means you just forget them and put yourself at a disadvantage.

All in all, the battle was a blast. While the Necropolis finally died out, I was able to destroy all but one of Darkwing's escorts and a fair number of capital ships. In the end though, numbers won out, and the Necropolis died like a bear pulled down by a pack of wolves. A very fitting end to an awesome campaign.

Battle Report: The Necropolis Campaign, Part Two

The Necropolis Campaign, Part Two
The Battle of Favonia, Part One

Introduction
With the Imperial Navy's defeat at the Battle of Axis Columen, a massive Necron vessel, the Necropolis, awakened from its slumber under the planet's surface and lifted off. More Necron vessels phased in as others arrived from the depths of space. The massive fleet began to move implacably through the sector, destroying any settlement it came across and harvesting the souls of those who lived there.

While the Imperial Navy floundered desperately to amass another fleet to take on the Necrons, a third race intervened. A force of Eldar from two different craftworlds converged on the Necron fleet. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, the Eldar made a heroic effort to destroy the Necropolis. In the end they failed, but they did manage to weaken the Necron Fleet somewhat.

After harvesting the souls of the Eldar trapped inside the wreckage of their destroyed vessels, the Necropolis and company continued through the sector, harvesting several more worlds before setting their sights on the planet of Favonia.

Favonia was an Imperial world of little strategic importance to the sector, but it was populated by much of the sector's aristocracy, being a nexus of commerce and leisure for the upper classes of Imperial Society. As such, when the system came under threat, the calls for the Imperial Navy to respond swiftly and decisively were loud and laced with panic. Regardless, the Imperial Navy had had time to amass a task force, including several upgraded vessels, to take on the Necron threat. They would make their stand on the edge of the Favonia system.

Imperial Fleet - Task Force 43

Apocalypse Class Battleship (BB-2 Repulse)	365
Arcadia Class Battleship (BB-5 Arcadia)	375
Mars Class Battlecruiser (CB-3 Aetolia)	270
Armageddon Class Battlecruiser (CB-18 Capella)	245
Prometheus Class Carrier (CV-1 Prometheus)	340
Scutum Class Cruiser (CG-57 Scutum)	180
Lunar Class Cruiser (CA-20 Procyon)	180
Lunar Class Cruiser (CA-34 Adhara)	180
Gothic Class Cruiser (CA-21 Achernar)	180
Gothic Class Cruiser (CA-39 Elnath)	180
Tyrant Class Crusier (CA-32 Mimosa)	185
Dominator Class Cruiser (CA-62 Warrior)	190
Dauntless Class Light Cruiser (CL-52 Constellation)	110
Dauntless Class Light Cruiser (CL-53 Thunder Child)	110
1st Firestorm Squadron (3 Firestorm Class Frigates, FFL-33 Dorado, FFL-34 Draco, FFL-35 Equuleus)	120
2nd Firestorm Squadron (3 Firestorm Class Frigates, FFL-36 Eridanus, FFL-37 Fornax, FFL-38 Gemini)	120
1st Sword Squadron (3 Sword Class Frigates, FF-98 Ganymede, FF-99 Callisto, FF-100 Leda)	105
2nd Sword Squadron (3 Sword Class Frigates, FF-107 Sinope, FF-146 Triton, FF-147 Nereid)	105
1st Cobra Squadron (4 Cobra Class Destroyers, 1 Nemesis Class Destroyer, DD-46 Hestia, DD-47 Aglaja, DD-48 Doris, DD-49 Pales, DD-128 Nemesis)	150
2nd Cobra Squadron (4 Cobra Class Destroyers, DD-50 Virginia, DD-51 Nemausa, DD-52 Europa, DD-53 Kalypso)	120
Total	3810

Imperial Navy Briefing
Darkwing: The officer corp of Battlefleet Arcadia, while still relatively inexperienced to those of other Imperial Sectors, are starting to wise up with respect to the Necron menace. Now there are surviving captains from previous battles (the Lunar Class Cruiser Elnath and the Tyrant Class Cruiser Mimosa having survived the battle of Axis Columen) and signals intelligence of the battle between the Eldar and the Necrons, the Imperial Navy has come up with a strategy to deal with the Necrons.

As the Eldar learned from their battle with the Necropolis, Necron escorts simply cannot be ignored. The Eldar had tried to focus everything on the Necropolis, and were torn apart by the rest of the fleet. A squadron of five Jackals, for example, packs the punch of a Cairn Class Tombship, and if allowed to roam unchallenged, can wreak devastation upon an Imperial Fleet.

So my strategy in this battle will be as follows: Strip away the Necropolis' defenses by destroying its escorts (that is, all the other Necron ships), then swarm it and destroy it. If I go straight for the Necropolis, I think my fleet will be torn to shreds by the rest of theirs.

Necron Fleet

Necropolis	1000
Cairn Class Tombship	550
2 Scythe Class Harvest Ships	550
Vulture Class Cruiser	300
Shroud Class Light Cruiser	155
5 Jackal Class Escorts	250
5 Jackal Class Escorts	250
4 Dirge Class Escorts	200
6 Khopesh Class Ramships	240
6 Khopesh Class Ramships	240
Total	3735

Necron Briefing
Badelaire: Playing out a "test to destruction" game can be interesting, but it's also somewhat depressing as well. I know that in the end, I will be beaten down and I'll lose the Necropolis - I don't have any illusions to the contrary. Right now it's just a matter of how many Imperial ships I can take with me before the Necropolis is wiped out that's the question.

Unlike fighting the Eldar, my Khopeshes are great for killing escorts, and if used en masse, I can severely cripple a capital ship as well if I hit i right. The question really becomes whether or not I can use a lot of my Necron special rules and my speed to their greatest advantage, or will the confusion of battle and just remembering the correct way to play out the standard BFG rules cloud the issue to the point where I'm not remembering half of what I should be paying attention to? I'm sure I'll make mistakes--but I also think that I'll give Darkwing's fleet, especially his escorts, quite the beating. Unfortunately, it's going to be the massive number of cruisers, especially his new lance-heavy battlecruiser and his "carrier", that I'm going to have to worry about.

Scenario
The Fleet Engagement Scenario will be used, with the deployment zones enlarged to accommodate the large fleets and available space.
The Imperial Line of Battle
The Necron Line of BattleThe Imperial Line of BattleThe two fleets pass each otherTurn 1
The Imperial Fleet assumed a Cross formation, so as to present its broadside to the Necron Fleet, while the Necrons tried to break through the Imperial Fleet using a wedge. As a result, both fleets passed each other's flank, just out of range of their weapons. The Imperial Capital ships, in line astern, began a simultaneous turn to port, closing the distance to the Necron Forces. Still out of range of most of their weapons, the Apocalyse Battleship Repulse, the Mars Battlecruiser Aetolia and the Dominator Cruiser Warrior all opened fire with their Nova Cannons, aiming for the bulk of the Necron Fleet, but the long range thwarted all three shots and they exploded harmlessly in space. Finally the Aetolia and the Prometheus launched massed waves of bombers.
The Imperial fleet turns to engageThe Necropolis held its course, while the rest of the Necron fleet turned to meet the Imperial fleet head on. The Vulture and the shroud, however, moved ahead of the main Necron fleet in an apparent attempt to outflank the Imperials.
The Necrons move to meet the challengeOne squadron of Khopeshes attempted to go on All Ahead Full orders to ram the Imperial ships, but failed their command check. One squadron of Jackals closed in on Firestorm Squadron 2 and unleashed their Lightning Arcs, destroying the Eridanus and Fornax. The other group of Jackals fired on Cobra Squadron 2, destroying the Virginia and Nemausa. The Silver Scythe continued to pick on the Cobras, destroying the Europa, while the Gold Scythe finished off the Cobras with its Lightning Arc, destroying the Kalypso. The Gold Scythe's particle whip was still ready to fire, however, and it blasted the Firestorm Equuleus out of the sky. The Tombship then assisted the Gold Scythe, finishing off Firestorm Squadron 2, killing the Dorado and Draco.

Finally, the Dirges converged on the cruiser Warrior, knocking down its shields and damaging its hull, nearly crippling her.
The two fleets approachTurn 2
The Imperial Fleet plunged ahead into the teeth of the Necrons, and let fly with their broadsides. The Prometheus reloaded its ordnance, preparing for the next strike. The Gothic Cruiser Achernar then failed its command check to Lock On. The Apocalypse Class Battleship Repulse fired its lances at the nearby Khopeshes, which then Braced for Impact, but even so one of the Khopeshes was destroyed. The Repulse then took aim with its nova cannon at the Gold Scythe, but the shot missed, instead blowing two Jackals to smithereens. The Warrior fired its own broadside on the Dirges to no effect, but its nova cannon shot also hit Jackals, destroying two more of them. The Aetolia fired its nova cannon, but missed its target, but was able to take out a Khopesh with its dorsal lances.The two fleets about to clashBoth squadrons of Swords combined their fire on the Khopeshes ahead of them, and accounted for two of the blade-like ships. The Achernar fired its left lance broadside against the Dirges, which responded by Bracing for Impact, but one of the Dirges was destroyed. The Dauntless Light Cruiser Constellation and the Lunar Cruiser Procyon each fired on the second group of Khopeshes, destroying one each. The Dauntless Light Cruiser Thunder Child fired its prow lances at the long Jackals in front of it, killing it.

From standoff range, the Battleship Arcadia swung its three triple-lance turrets to port and aimed at the Gold Scythe, and fired, rocking the vessel with three hits, and damaging its drive system. The Procyon then fired its torpedo salvo at it, damaging it further and crippling it. Cobra Squadron 1 then fired its torpedo salvo at the Jackals ahead, destroying one of the escorts before the salvo was expended.The Arcadia fires a broadside at the Gold ScytheThe Vulture and Shroud continued their flanking maneuver, as the rest of the Necron forces continued the merge with the Imperial Fleet. Two Khopeshes plowed right into the Prometheus' bomber waves, sacrificing themselves to eliminate the massive strike.

The Dirges and Jackals both converged on the Repulse, which, anticipating the attack, promptly Braced for Impact. The Repulse weathered the fire well, only suffering a single shield failure.Dirges and Jackals attack the RepulseThe Silver Scythe fired on the Warrior, but only managed to down one of its shields. The Gold Scythe fired on Sword Squadron 1, destroying the Callisto and the Leda.

The Necropolis turned ponderously, beginning the slow sweep which would bring the Soul Harvester to bear upon the Imperial ships. It then fired its particle whip, destroying the Sword Frigate Ganymede.

The Tombship then concentrated its fire on the Gothic Cruiser Achernar, blasting away its shields and riddling it with six hits, crippling it.

The Gold Scythe succeeded in repairing its drives.

Turn 3
The Imperial line of battle began to close on the Tombship, which, seeing it was about to take a lot of punishment, promptly Braced for Impact. The Tyrant Cruiser Mimosa locked on to the Tombship and prepared to fire, but the other Imperial cruisers failed their command checks. The Arcadia, Mimosa, Lunar Cruiser Adhara, Armageddon Battlecruiser Capella, Gothic Cruiser Elnath, and Dauntless Thunder Child all opened fire on the Tombship, and hit it 17 times, but all but three hits were saved by its armor. The ship's sepulchre was damaged as well, but as a whole the Tombship weathered the fire very well.

The Silver Scythe, also preparing to receive a massive barrage, also Braced for Impact. Multiple Imperial ships prepared to fire on the Silver Scythe. The Achernar delivered a single hit with its broadside, and then Sword Squadron 2, the last Firestorm Frigate, the Dauntless Constellation, and Cobra Squadron 1 opened fire on the Scythe, but the Scythe's bracing proved effective, and no further hits were scored.

The Repulse fired its lances at the Dirges, destroying two of them.

The Warrior fired its broadside against the Gold Scythe, delivering a massive four hits, damaging the Scythe's Command Core and disrupting the ship's power flow. The Constellation then fired its prow lances, blasting through the Scythe's armor and detonating its plasma drive, causing the harvest ship to explode. The Constellation was damaged in the blast, and the Tombship was also caught in the explosion, but undamaged.The Gold Scythe (right) explodesThe Shroud and Vulture continued to move around the Imperial flank. The Silver Scythe plowed forward through the Imperial battle line, while the Necropolis swung its massive prow around, bringing the Repulse and the Warrior within its sights. Sensing the danger, both ships Braced for Impact. The Khopeshes went on All Ahead Full orders, so as to reposition themselves for an attack run on the Imperial rear.

The Soul Harvester fired, blasting at a Sword Frigate, the Warrior, and the Repulse, but miraculously failed to damage any of the ships. The Necropolis then opened fire with its other weapons, crippling the Warrior with its lightning arc and hitting the Achernar hard with its particle whip. The Achernar Braced for Impact, yet despite negating four of the hits, the ship was destroyed anyway and reduced to a drifting hulk. Then the Silver Scythe fired its weapons at the Warrior, blasting through its armor and destroying it, sending it careening through space, ablaze from stem to stern.The Dominator Class Cruiser Warrior(next to the Scythe) is set ablazeThe Dirges and Jackals swarmed towards the Gothic Cruiser Elnath, downing its shields and delivering a hit. Finally some bombers from the Prometheus made their attack runs on the Khopeshes, destroying two of the four remaining.

The Tombship focused its fire on the Constellation, overwhelming its defenses and rendering it a blazing hulk.

The sheer number of Imperial Capital ships were taking their toll upon the Necron Fleet, but the mighty firepower of the Necron vessels were beginning to make itself felt as well, as one by one the Imperial ships began to die. It would remain to be seen whether the Necropolis would blast its way through the Imperial Fleet and continue its rampage throughout the Arcadia Sector.

Stay tuned for part two of the Battle of Favonia...

Arcadia Class Battleship

The Arcadia Class Battleship is frequently described as a “fast battleship” as it is larger and more heavily armed than an Imperial Battlecruiser, but is as fast as a standard Imperial Cruiser.

The Arcadia Class was designed as a response to the frequent Necron incursions into the Arcadia Sector. Against the Necron fleet, Imperial ships were constantly finding themselves outmaneuvered by their Necron counterparts. Also, experience had shown that lance batteries were by far the most effective weapon system against Necron vessels. Thus, the Arcadia Class Battleship was designed to address both of these issues. The standard battlecruiser hull was lengthened, and much more powerful engines were installed, along with upgraded power relays to power the massive lance batteries. Two three-lance superfiring turrets were installed forward, and a third three-lance turret aft. A secondary weapons battery was installed amidships to deal with smaller threats.

I wanted to create an anti-Necron vessel. It only made sense, since the first forays I had against Necron vessels with my Imperial Fleets resulted in horrific defeats.

Hence the Arcadia Class was born. After constructing the Scutum Class Cruiser, I wanted to try to make another ship with the bridge moved forward. This, combined with a desire to make the ship's main battery an extremely powerful lance armament, I decided to make it look a lot like a World War II Battleship. Seeing as the lance battery was so powerful (it can unleash a Str9 broadside), I had to make it a battleship rather than a cruiser, in order to justify how the ship is able to generate sufficient power for them.
As such I lengthened the hull both forward and aft with plasticard and bits from another Imperial Cruiser. I used bits from a Chaos cruiser to make the triple lance turrets and the secondary battery amidships.
I'm not sure that I'm entirely happy with either the lenghthening of the engines (that is, how they look, not the added length), as well as the relatively featurelessness of the forward sides of the hull, as they look rather "blank". At some later date the ship can always undergo a cosmetic refit.
The Arcadia has yet to see action, but it will soon make the Necrons pay for the defeat at Axis Columen.
The Arcadia Class Battleship next to a Lunar Class Cruiser, showing the Arcadia's added length
Comparison shot showing the lance turrets facing to either side of the ship
As a little bit of a bonus, I magnetized the three lance turrets so I can rotate them at will.

Nemesis Class Destroyer

The Nemesis Class Destroyer is a relatively new design, combining the speed and maneuverability of the Cobra Class Destroyer with a similar, albeit slightly less powerful armament to the Sword Class Frigate. Although not quite as well armed or armored as the reliable Swords, the Nemesis Class Frigate can be deadly in numbers. These ships are still rare, but are being built in increasing numbers.

I wanted to create a new escort ship for the Imperial Navy, something that serves the same role as the Iconoclast Escort provides for the Chaos Fleet. Basically, a smaller, faster, cheaper version of the Sword Class Frigate. I really liked the look of the real-world modern ship, the Littoral Combat Ship, specifically the General Dynamics design, which is a trimaran. In some ways it looks like a spaceship already.
I scratchbuilt the ship out of plasticard, and now that I've built the thing, I think I succeeded a little too well. It looks like the actual LCS took off and is flying in space... I'll have to play with the design a little bit, the second ship in the class will hopefully look a little bit more like a spaceship and less like the real LCS.

Scutum Class Cruiser

While the Prometheus Class Carriers had a formidable offensive armament in the form of its attack craft, it was sorely lacking in defense. The Scutum Class Cruiser was developed to fulfill that role in the fleet. With the powerful Scutum Integrated Defense System, the Scutum Class is a master of anti-ordnance warfare, allowing all nearby ships to combine their defensive systems in a protective shield around the group.

While its offensive armament is lacking compared to other cruisers, the Scutum almost always acts in company with a Prometheus Class Carrier or other offensive platforms, providing defense for the fleet as a whole.

As I had recently created the Prometheus Class Carrier, a ship which had essentially no armament other than its own attack craft, I decided to make a defense ship for it. Since the Prometheus' offensive power is ordnance, I decided to make its escort an ordnance defense ship, having a role similar to the roles Aegis Cruisers have in protecting U.S. aircraft carriers. Instead of being an "Aegis" Cruiser, mine is the "Scutum" Cruiser.
In that regard, the Scutum Class has a lot of similar features to a modern missile defense cruiser. It has a Vertical Launch System (36 cells forward, 46 aft), which launches Anti-Ordnance Missiles (AOMs). On the stern there are two torpedo launchers, one facing to port, the other starboard, similar to the Harpoon Anti-Ship Missile Launchers on the sterns of many modern US ships. On the port and starboard of the main hull, the Scutum has a pair of radomes, similar to those on the superstructures of missile defense ships. Ok, so I copied tons of stuff from present day ships. Despite this, it's still just a conversion of the standard Imperial Crusier design, so it looks "gothic" enough to fit with the other Imperial Ships.
To make it, I trimmed off parts of the basic cruiser's superstructure, to make room for the VLS' and the stern torpedo launchers. For the sides of the ship, I did not add any of the normal weapon systems, but filled it in with plasticard and greenstuff. For the bow I drilled some holes and loaded it up with sensor masts.
I also shifted the bridge structure forward from its usual aft position and onto the forward "hardpoint" where you normally could attach a mast or a lance battery. Imperial cruisers, with their bridges aft, looked disturbingly similar to Imperial Star Destroyers from Star Wars to me (along with the prodigious size of the vessels themselves). Moving the bridge forward makes the ship look more aggressive in my opinion, and is also in line with the bridges of real world warships.

Prometheus Class Carrier

The Prometheus Class Carrier is a vessel designed in response to the Second and Third Battles of Arcadia Prime, against massive forces of raiding Eldar. During the battles, there was a constant duel between Imperial attack craft and those of the Eldar. Ultimately the attack craft proved at least as effective as all of the rest of the weapons fire from the Imperial ships, destroying a dozen escorts, two cruisers, and crippling a Void Stalker Battleship. This led to the development of a purely dedicated carrier vessel, with a complement of twelve squadrons of attack craft.

In order to maximize the impact of its attack squadrons, the Prometheus Class Carriers frequently employ torpedo bomber squadrons in addition to their regular bomber squadrons.

After scratchbuilding various Necron ships, I got on a kick of designing and converting/scratching building Imperial vessels as well. The Imperial Navy in the 40k Universe is based more on World War I navies than those of World War II or more modern times. While the Imperial does have some attack craft "carriers", they are really battleships or cruisers, that carry attack craft in addition to their regular armament. Other than the Forgeworld "Escort Carrier", the IN has no dedicated carrier vessel. Hence my invention of the Prometheus Class Carrier.

Aside from some sensor masts, prow skull/wings, and the launch bays, the Prometheus is entirely scratchbuilt out of plasticard.
My first attempt at the Prometheus included a bow made out of green stuff, and I got to the priming stage before I decided that I really didn't like the bow as it was (it really did stink). So I lopped off the old bow and replaced it with a mass of plastic rods, which I then carved down to make a new bow. there were a few gaps left over that I filled in with greenstuff. In the end, the new bow came out much better than the old.
I think the final result came out pretty well, except the one thing I don't like about it is the "height" of the hull--I think it's too "tall". (this is most obvious in the side view)

Battle Report: The Axis Columen Campaign, Part Three

This battle is the third battle in a four battle mini-campaign between the Necrons and the Brazen Claw.

Located in a strategic central location that is also at the nexus of navigable passages through the warp, Axis Columen is known as the “keystone” of the Arcadia Sector. The planet itself remains uncolonized, however its orbit is widely trafficked by both the Imperial Navy and commercial shipping. Upon discovery of a unknown signal emanating from the planet, Imperial Navy scouts were sent to the planet’s surface to investigate, but contact with them was quickly lost. One of the scouts' last recorded transmissions indicated implacable, mechanical beings advancing on them.

Navy Commanders contacted the nearest Space Marine force in the area, a Strike Cruiser of the Brazen Claw. Recognizing the threat, the Brazen Claw responded quickly and decisively.

Battle Three: Stop the Necron Fleet (Battlefleet Gothic)
Now that contact has been initiated, the Brazen Claw and Necron forces are poised to do battle. The Brazen Claw must seize ground in order prepare for their final strike on the Necron Beacon.

This battle report is presented in a different format from my other battle reports--rather than post it in html format, I opted to make it in Word and then create a PDF. Doing so allows me to be a bit more creative with the format, but doing it was a pain! It also has some downsides, such as while you can zoom in on the PDF, you can't click on the maps to make them larger and easier to read. In any case, I'm not sure if doing it this way is a step forward or backward, so comments are welcome!

Imperial Navy and Brazen Claw (1835pts) vs. Necrons (2450pts)

Battle Report: Tau vs. Imperial Navy Cruiser Clash (modified)

It has been…well, years since I’ve played a game of Battlefleet Gothic, and my fleets have long been gathering dust on the shelf. However, I love the game, so it was high time to have another battle. I had been building up a Tau fleet for a long time as well, but as yet it had remained unblooded. Time to finally get them up in the sky and into the fight. We were both rusty on the rules, so it would be a refresher battle more than anything else. Although I call this a Cruiser Clash, it isn't quite the same--we're not using victory points or anything like that. It's mainly just a basic fleet engagement with the most basic of objectives: destroy the enemy fleet or force it to flee.
For this battle report I also attempted something relatively new for me—adding fluff text to the report itself. I have inserted very small amounts of fluff into previous battle reports, but this time I would include a generous amount of it. Also these maps are new my BFG battle reports, so I decided to have a little fun with them. They aren't as "clear" as the maps are on some of the other batreps, but I was going more for atmosphere on them than anything else. I based the symbols on the NTDS symbols from old U.S. naval tactical displays. They aren't perfect, and I don't use them exactly the same way, but they get the point across.

Tau vs. Imperial Navy, 1,425pts

Battlefleet Arcadia

Here are some pictures of my Imperial Fleet:
Emperor Class Battleship
Sword Class Frigates
Sword Class Frigates

Battle Report: The Third Battle of Arcadia Prime

For months now, the Eldar forces of the surface of Arcadia Prime had been struggling to evade battle and avoid annihilation while they waited for a relief force to arrive in orbit and extract them. The Eldar formed a large fleet and arranged a surprise attacks on the Imperial Forces guarding Arcadia Prime. If the Eldar succeeded in neutralizing or driving off the Imperial Fleet, their transports could move in to extract the Eldar ground forces, if not, the Eldar on the ground were effectively lost.

Battle Report: The Second Battle of Arcadia Prime, Lagrange-5 Sector

After spending several months building ships at a frantic pace at its hidden shipyards located in the Arcadia System's Asteroid Belt, the Arcadian Navy launched a massive attack of the Eldar Forces in orbit about Arcadia Prime. The Arcadian Fleet would hit the Eldar in several places, including their forces located near the Lagrange-5 point of Arcadia Prime.

Battle Report: The Second Battle of Arcadia Prime, Lagrange-2 Sector

After spending several months building ships at a frantic pace at its hidden shipyards located in the Arcadia System's Asteroid Belt, the Arcadian Navy launched a massive attack of the Eldar Forces in orbit about Arcadia Prime. The Arcadian Fleet would hit the Eldar in several places, including their forces located near the Lagrange-2 point of Arcadia Prime.

Battle Report: The Second Battle of Arcadia Prime, Lagrange-1 Sector

After spending several months building ships at a frantic pace at its hidden shipyards located in the Arcadia System's Asteroid Belt, the Arcadian Navy launched a massive attack of the Eldar Forces in orbit about Arcadia Prime. The Arcadian Fleet would hit the Eldar in several places, including their forces located near the Lagrange-1 point between Arcadia Prime and its primary.

Battle Report: The Battle of Septimus Five

Two Task forces from the Arcadian Navy were sent to investigate the region of the Battle of the Outer Rim--their mission was to search for and destroy any Eldar Raiders that they came across. Near the fifth Lagrange point of the the planet Arcadia Septimus, the Imperial ships encountered an Eldar attack force. Both forces engaged, while billions of kilometers away the Arcadia Prime Starbase was coming under attack.

Battle Report: The Battle of Arcadia Prime

The Eldar Craftworld Yriel-Dyann launched its surprise attack on the Arcadia Prime Starbase. The Eldar plan was to attack the Starbase and destroy as many ships as possible before the Imperial forces could respond. Doing so would leave the planet vulnerable to invasion.

Battle Report: The Battle of the Outer Rim

The Eldar Craftworld Yriel-Dyann was preparing its massive assault upon the military forces of the Imperial controlled planet of Arcadia Prime. The first phase in their plan was a massive surprise attack on the Arcadian fleet and their Starbase at Arcadia Prime. The craftworld had enlisted the aid of an Eldar Pirate Fleet to carry out the operation. As the fleet began amassing for the attack, Captain Kier of the Eldar vessel Neien and his squadron were inadvertantly discovered by the Arcadian Navy Task Force 33, a small force on routine patrol. Realizing that the attack on Arcadia Prime would be jeopardized by his discovery, he directed his forces to wipe out the Arcadian ships before they could alert the rest of their fleet.