Shattergrounds

For the absolute best experience, I will accept my Human limitations and suggest that, for the full-bodied narrative experience of this battle, you should totally read Kampilan's, which is so good: https://shattergrounds.warconsole.com/battles/kampilan-vs-chadwick-1697741718

I'm also going to hit Publish right now as Warconsole is entering that funky last-24-hours host error phase on my end. If you're here early, I apologise as you will see my chatter on the battle appear piecemeal.

Several things were going on in the DNA of this game:
- Kampilan graciously accepted my challenge for a Thursday night game of potential Edda spam despite them preparing for a tournament in a different wargame on Saturday.
- Bhai was super safe, so trading wasn't as imperative.
- Also took on the role of teaching me TTS play (my first time, quite fun, but I prefer models of course)
- This was our second game after Sheskiin revealed to us in blitzkrieg why she's top Shas.
- The list I was running is the same list I lost with at the open of the campaign, so poor O-12 Nourkias has had no luck this campaign season from me.
- Almost everything was a REM, but ouch Total Reaction.

Having just discovered Cybermask and the importance of better hiding Dr. Worm, I thought it was time to try seize a victory with this list.

Above we have O-12 Nourkias, Dr. Worm, and a bunch of REM and Unidron support. After the Sheskiin game, it felt uncomfortable not having any marker state or Forward Deployment pieces, which I've come to realise are what I feel more at ease with.

Below it's the Haqq team, which does have a Forward Deployment marker state character involved as well as some nasty HMG TR-bots who really controlled the field versus my lack of mid-ranged firing options.

It just hit me that you should treat this as a behind-the-scenes version of Kampilan's report.

Our agreed upon fiction is that two Remote teams are exploring a QAZ near Edda; for once, I can honestly say that both sides of this battle had relatively good intentions, as in this battle the Combined Army are actually doing what they said they'd do: QAZ clean-up. Unfortunately, Kampilan's Haqqislam forces are also doing the same, and with tensions between the QCC and CHAD as they are, cooperation was never an option.

O-12 Nourkias, on the other hand, who I should also mention is different from regular Nourkias and is likely an illegal-but-tolerated Cube clone, is here because human media cares more about gossip than real news, and he's tired of being the distraction news item of the Human Sphere.

Sadly for him, every REM is equipped with a camera, which WarCorrs will likely get their hands on anyway.

On the first active turn, O-12 Nourkias enters Cybermask and spends a few orders trying to sneak past the REM camera line awaiting him. His innocuous marker walks past several drones, and even if he isn't on any of Haqq's HVT lists, someone watching the footage inevitably recognises him from recent news.

He had almost made it safely into the stairwell of that building, but even with a +3 dodge, the non-O-12 dice rolled grotesquely high, and instead of contesting the furthest zone for an easy 4pts, solid protection of that corridor, and a future superjump into the enemy Lt (you can see them peaking out there behind the building), O-12 Nourkias gets pinned down by the cameras and leaves the table.

Warconsole gave me someone else's image in the first attempt there. I'll leave it as evidence that I should probably wrap this up quickly, and in text.

With O-12 Nourkias off the field, KeyOps Dr. Worm is left in charge but vulnerable behind his little crate. The Unidron team repositions to defend both approaches, but a couple get taken down in the move. Not a problem! Gives me a chance to test out engineering, which didn't happen the last time this list was used as Dr. Worm was an early casualty. Two Unidrons go down to the TR-bot, two Unidrons stand up after effective repairs.

On the Haqq turn, the Beasthunter feels safe without Nourkias guarding that corridor, lays down some mines, and charges in. While plasma takes care of him, the Unidron defense is weakened tremendously to template fire, opening the path for the Kum Biker to take a long lazy smoke-covered pass at Dr. Lt. Worm.

One Unidron gets a plasma shot in, and Dr. Worm shoves a D-charge vitamin into the Kum Biker, but it's a double KO.

No Engineer left to reactivate the downed Unidrons, only two remain to crawl their way to the threatening the mid and far zones to make Kampilan work for points. In Prone, they stay completely out of the view of the TR-bot, and even take down a drone that comes to threaten them.

Unfortunately, Haqq still has an engineer and gets that drone back on its feet, allowing them the weight of points necessary to taking the far zone. And with a baggage bot on the other side, no amount of shenanigans will stop Kampilan from claiming all the zones in final contest.

I learned a lot in this game, but I think what I've learned the most is my own preferences in list building. This punchy 150 list isn't bad by any measure, and I think my own skill issue in the first game stole a very potential win away from it, but without sneaky scuttling pieces, I feel a little lost. Very valuable information that I will take with me after the campaign and as I build more my Shasvastii roster!

Kampilan and I laughed a lot in those final turns, and that's always the sign of a good game. I've missed and been intimidated by returning to Infinity, and I'm glad that intimidation has crumbled away from the fun I've had in Shattergrounds and with the revival of a local gaming group.