Abbadon battle report

A Abbadon stared down at the scanner in front of him, his brow furrowed as he examined the place that those pathetic mortals had chosen to die at. Their infantry was scattered in three large groups, most of their heavy weapons placed on a large hill in the north-east of the area. No doubt they would have a good view of the battlefield from there. The second were clustered behind another large hill, closer to the centre of the scanners view, with the third group further along to the west, hiding in and around the pair of buildings that stood empty now, their inhabitants long since fled. Turning his gaze to his own troops, he saw all was well. The Plague Marines were advancing towards the wood that crept up towards the Guard on the hill, backed up by the hulking forms of the Terminators. A squad of Marines held the large rocky hill to their left, with the Land Raider further along, hidden from the view of the centre Guard infantry, and their heavy weapons. At the foot of the hill, Vorgoth, Exalted Champion of Chaos stood quietly, steam rising from the heat of his jump pack. Holding the far West flank stood the hulking form of a Dreadnought, sunlight glinting off the muzzles of its lascannon and Havoc launcher, backed up by a squad of Noise Marines in the rocks nearby. Occasionally one or another would glance over towards the nearby Guard and check on them. Fainter traces showed the suspected position of other troops. Those blips in the forest near the Plague Marines could only be Imperial infiltrators.. probably those pathetic little half-men. Abbadon's face split into a mirthless grin , knowing how easily they would fall to the Veteran squad that had already taken up position behind them, hidden amongst the trees. Their main purpose was to deal with the tanks he knew would be coming, but the ratlings would provide a few moments sport. The remaining two Veterans squads has positioned themselves where their heavy weapons would do the most good, one in the building to the west of the Marines, with a commanding view of the whole battlefield, the others on the far Eastern flank, in case the fools brought their tanks on there. No, the most likely spot was there in the middle of the Guard lines, run them past the edge of the hill and forest and right on.

"My Lord, sensors indicate incoming fire" came a voice from the consoles hidden in the gloom of the battle barge. A flare of light appeared on the Land Raiders icon, showing that the mighty war machine had been hit, its ablative armour shielding it from what could have been a telling blow.

"Move!" snarled Abbadon to the terminators of his bodyguard . "We take the battle to them *now* ". A glowing nimbus of light surrounded them, and when it faded they were gone, aiming to appear right in the midst of the central block of Guardsmen. Flickering sensors indicated a disrupting effect in the warp, and when they appeared , it was right on the western edge of the forest. With a roar the Chaos forces surged forward. The ratlings squealed in fear as the Plague Marines charge towards them, and 3 veterans appeared as if from nowhere in their rear. The little abhumans were surrounded in a matter of moments, plague knives and powerfists leaving little of them that was not smeared over the nearby foliage.

As the Land Raider clanked forwards Vorgoth ignited his jump pack and leapt over its head, coming down at the foot of the central hill, hidden from any enemy fire, positioning himself to bring death to their number with another leap. With a whine of servo's the Dreadnought advanced, turning to face the Guard atop the far off hill. The Havoc launcher roared as it disgorged its full compliment of missiles into the tightly clustered men, tossing bodies aside like they were dolls. When the final few pieces pattered back to earth , the corpses of perhaps a dozen men littered the side of the hill, proud Pretorians next to the coldly efficient Stormtroopers. The lascannon discharged with a dazzling flash, and another guardsman vanished, vaporised where he stood. Abbadon roared with battle lust, unleashing his stormbolter into the mass of Guardsmen ahead of him, catapulting two of them back into their fellows, gaping holes rent in their uniforms. The terminator beside him levelled his reaper, filling the air full of red hot death, and 3 more Guard tumbled down the hillside. The remained started to flee, but caught side of their Commander imposing presence and stopped, gripping their lasguns more tightly. Across the plain the Noise Marines levelled their weapons and sent screaming waves of sound and pain into the Imperial lines, dropping a number of Guard lifeless to the ground, blood streaming from their noses and ears. The survivors stumbled a few yards back under the relentless barrage of sound, but held their place.

The air of the battlefield was rent with bolter shells and streaks of laser fire as the veterans took careful aim, dropping more and more of the Guards. Cries of pain and for Medics drifted from the Guard lines. The Land Raider had now cleared enough of the hill to find a target in the nearby Guard unit, and its heavy bolters threw half a dozen men to the ground, covering the few survivors in blood and bits that once were they're friends. Only the steadying presence of the Commissar kept them in place. "Steady men " he roared .. "Let your faith in the Emperor be your shield. Those foul spawn couldn't hit a* " and he vanished as a blast from the twin lascannons of the LandRaider flashed past his field, turning him into a fine pink mist.

Then with a roar, the Guard armoured sped onto the battlefield. Pouring through the gap in the Guard lines came a Hellhound, followed closely by two Leman Russ MBTs. On the Western side of the field a Chimera advanced between the houses, heading directing at the Noise Marines. Advancing behind the tanks came two squads of infantry. The two Russes turned their main guns towards the slowly advancing Land Raider and fired. One shell struck the front of the Chaos tank with a defining clang, but the shock of the blow was absorbed by its thick armour. The second shell flew wide, striking the hill the Chaos Marines were standing on, blasting the top clean off the hill, and the two marines sheltering behind it as well. The two lascannons proved equally ineffective, one flashing wide and the second scoring along the side of the tank. The heavy bolters added there voice to the battle, chewing up much of the rock around the marines, but doing no harm. The Hellhound sped forwards, stopping point blank beside Abbadon and his terminators. Inside, Corporal Hikz watched the black armoured figures swell in his sights . Clutching his firing control he murmured around his cigar "Hello boys, need a light" and squeezed. Jets of liquid flame washed over the terminators, burning deep in the forest beyond, catching two of the veterans who had been making their way towards the tanks. When the smoke cleared one of the terminators was a charred husk, his armour having given way and the fuel for his own heavy flamer cooking off , torching him totally. A second figure was rolling on the ground, his armour wreathed in flames. As Hikz watched the movement ceased, and from out of the burning forest came a second flame covered figure, staggering towards the Hellhound.

With a series of dull pops the tanks fired off blind grenade after blind grenade, blanketing the area between the two forces, with clouds so thick that nothing could be seen through them. At the barked command of "Fire" all the Guardsmen across the field volleyed off their lasguns, lascannon and heavy bolters. All around the forces of Chaos the air was filled with fury, but only a single Noise Marine was blasted from behind the rock outcropping where he sheltered. With most of the battlefield obscured by the blind clouds and other terrain, the few shots that the Noise Marines took were the only ones that hit, blasting several more Guard from the roof one one building. The remainder , though shaken, held their place. Abbadon roared a challenge as he rushed towards the Hellhound that had savaged his bodyguard unit, the last survivor charging in with him. Punching his chainfist through a slit in the front of the tank , Veteran Brother Malvor felt it bite into the soft flesh of the driver beyond, the muffled scream telling him his aim was true. Abbadon's daemon blade clove through the armour of the Hellhound as if it were paper, a mighty blow splitting the turret in two. With a roar the tanks for the Hellhounds flamer went up, the blast engulfing everything within a dozen yards of the shattered tank. When the roiling flamecloud ceased, it left over a dozen of the unfortunate Guardsmen little more than blackened husks, the driver of the rearmost tank, and the gunner on the other dead in their seats, flame having lanced through weakened armour. As well as that both tanks were afire in several places. Abbadon himself did not escape unharmed, his armour failing to protect him from the explosion, and only his inhuman endurance allowing him to survive.

On the far side of the field, Vorgoth leap into the air, landing a few feet from the lumbering Chimera. pulling the pin on his Haywire grenade he tossed it right onto the hull, where it landed with a dull clank, dropping down onto the near track before erupting in a shower of sparks. The Chimera lurched, but kept coming, though slower now. Vorgoth cursed and readied his powerfist. With its driver dead the rearmost Russ goes out of control and rams the other one, smashing a track and its lascannon. The flames burn through and destroy one of the heavy bolters before going out. The Russ that was rammed suffered terrible damage, the crew compartment exploding, spinning it around before it came to a halt near what was left of the Hellhound. As the Chimera spun around and headed towards to the centre of the battlefield, an overwatching lascannon got perfect line of sight, and used it. The shot struck the side of the hull, blasting through and killing all inside as the Chimera shuddered to a halt.

The Imperial Guardsmen opened up on the few remaining targets that they could see, 4 lascannons striking Abbadon's remaining bodyguard before he fell. On the far side yet another Noise Marine is picked off by a well fire lascannon. The 3 surviving members of his squad pay no heed. Once again the piercing shrieks on the sonic blasters filled the air, dropping another handful of Guard in their tracks. The survivors had barely time to recover before Vorgoth landed amounts them, his sword and powerfist striking out left and right, sending both men hurtling from the roof of the building, leaping after them onto another pair below.Lurching past the wrecked tanks Abbadon spotted the remnants of the Guard squad and ran towards them, cutting the first two down before they knew he was there, hurling himself onto the next group, the three men valiantly trying to fend him off with lasguns and bayonets. Again the mass volley of Guard fire roared from the top of the hill, striking the plague Marines at the edge of the forest, only to be turned by their thick armour. On the far distant hill, a couple more of the black armoured marines could be seen to tumble from the rocks to lie unmoving below.

Swinging its remaining firepower around the wrecked Russ triggers its heavy bolter into the melee beside it, cutting down the three Guardsmen, but causing only one more scar on Abbadon's armour. Seeing the way now clear, Sergeant Venn triggered the main gun at point blank range. The gun must have been twisted in the crash, because the shell detonated in the barrel, tearing the turret clean off the tank, to fall with a crash , narrowly missing the Guard Lt a few feet away. (NB and also giving rise to the possibility of the new Imperial Vechile card, the Sunroof <G>) Abbadon charged forward into the few remaining Guards, and this was too much for them, and they broke and ran. His manic charge took him crashing into the surviving Sgt and Lt of another squad, and those he chopped down without breaking stride. Their deaths delayed him enough that he couldn't catch the fleeing Guardsmen though. Vorogth too swiftly disposed off the Guards beside him, and charged into the next fray. More lascannon and heavy bolter fire fill the air as the Veterans cut down the remains another Guard squad. The handful of Guardsmen remaining prepare to sell their lives as best they can , trapped between the onrushing Abbadon and Vorgoth. >From the edge of the wood the Plague Marines threw a swarm of blight grenades onto the Guard lines, dropping another half dozen amidst the clouds of noxious fumes and flies. The one remaining las cannon on the Guard western flank turned it towards the advancing Abbadon, took care aim, and missed. The few lasguns that accompanied it just made him angrier. The Guard atop the hill responded with volley after volley of lascannon, heavy bolter and lasgun fire, but due to the cover of the forest, their inhuman toughness and superior armour, not a single Plague Marine fell. With that last volley the battlefield grew silent as the Guard (what was left of them) withdraw.- - - - - - -

The final score was around 2050 to 540 in favour of Chaos.