Into the Unknown: Mass Hysteria! Three-in-one combo pack: special event, Endless Ones vs. Blood Angels, and revised campaign maps

Earlier the campaign the local GW store is running had a special event, with everyone who showed up putting a small force on and competing for servitors who were serving as little mind-wiped R2D2s, with important information locked in their skulls.  Getting them off the table got you bonus points for the campaign and revealed a bit more about the larger plot.  Here we see orks, necrons, two different chaos armies, Dark Angels, nids, and the GM-run inquisitorial thunderfire battery that came in to mess with everyone.  And this is just one corner of the massive scrum.

There were also a few assassins lurking around taking shots at various HQs.

A good bit of variety.  I think we had some of everything but Knights, Grey Knights, Sisters, IG, and Tau on the table.  Several Chaos Marines, several Orks, several Dark Angels and successors, a couple Necrons and a mix of others.  

For my own part, with a score of players involved, I ended up in a corner between the two people there I'd played so far in the campaign.  Hmm.

I had my sorcerer and his Tzeentch marines in one Rhino, my counts-as Kharn and some berzerkers in the other.  Two spawn and a group of Supplicants (cultists) to get in the way of things.

I moved up towards one of the servitors and dismounted.  Then the Dark Angels I'd fought earlier popped onto the table turn one and started lighting me up!  What?  You, here?  Curse your prognostications!

The cultists fall back and soon off the table, a spawn takes a wound and one rhino takes a hull point; a few berzerkers shed some blood for Khorne.

The Gorkanaut had arrived and took some shots at the zerkers too, killing one.  Mike's winged daemons flew over and molten beam'd it away for me so I could devote my full attention to the Dark Angels.  A poor first showing for the Gorkanaut.  It should do better when it's painted.  I turned and charged into the DA and a slow grind ensued.

Kargoth Skulltaker (aka Kharn) was the sole survivor (the DA even killed some of his fellows, he didn't have to do ALL the work) of one combat, but soon discovers that hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for twin-linked lascannons on tanks.  He takes a shot in the face goes down.

At the end of the game, my marines were all wiped out, and the spawn were keeping the two surviving DA (captain and sgt) occupied.  He had powerfields on both his ICs, so all my guys in the various combats benefited from it as well, which helped them last longer against the mace of chaos-smiting the captain was swinging around.

I had a good time, even if my force never got out of first gear.  Lots of neat armies, and good to see so many players at once.  There was a lot going on, and even with several people taking turns at once there would sometimes be long waits.  From what I could tell everyone dealt with it pretty well and adjusted well to the chaos instead of complaining too much. 

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Earlier in the week I played my friend Joel and his Blood Angels, to get him a round 1 game in.  We tried out the Maelstrom of War objectives.  OK, but crazy random, and at lower points you have a lot fewer tools to accomplish a lot of them.

Endless Ones

Blood Angels ready to rumble for the first time in years

Map with a lot of dangerous terrain scattered about.

Blood Angel fire proved superior to the traitors'

Sucks to lose three guys to overwatch and then fail a 4" charge

This sort of thing tends to happen soon afterwards

The Blood Angels crushed me.  I had three scared cultists and a Rhino at the end while he had lost maybe five guys total from the two squads.  In the end though we had a tie.  Most of our objectives we couldn't accomplish.  He got first blood, slay the warlord, and Kingslayer from breaking and running off the unit with my sorcerer in it.  I got three points over three turns for holding one objective, so we tied 3-3.

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Our previous giant campaign map has broken up into eight different planets - six we are scattered about to start with, and two others we can send armies over to.

#1 -Orks, Nurgle, and some other guys

#2 - Thousand Sons, more Orks, I think Dark Angels and someone else

#3 - Necrons, Nids, Eldar, some others

#4 - Counter-clockwise - me, Blood Angels, Slaanesh marines, Dark Eldar, someone else

#5 - Nurgle, Necrons, Marines, someone else

#6 - Imperial guard, Space Wolves, others.

We'll see how this shakes out!  I look forward to some games against other folks and even some more mass craziness.