LA Battle Bunker Escalation Tournament #2 Review

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Hello again!  Here is my review of the second LA Battle Bunker Escalation League Tournament (1,500 points) that took place on 2/25.  If you remember, I had some complaints about the last tournament with regards to the mission packet, pairings and terrain.  Well I am happy to report that all of those issues were handled appropriately this time around, and I have no major complaints! The Bunker was filled to the rim, and had an astonishing 44 participants this time around!  I even had to play one game outside since all the indoor tables were full.  It's great to see such outstanding turnouts for these events - hopefully they will pave the way for another league next year.

Terrain was relatively sparse, as expected when you have to distribute terrain across 22+ tables.  However, it was much more equal this time around.  Last time I played one game with virtually no terrain, and another with 2 large LoS blocking pieces.  This time, it was more even, so while terrain was sparse, I didn't feel like a particular table was more or less advantageous to play on.

The Missions were stapled correctly this time - everyone (that I knew) played the same mission each round.  The tournament started off with Kill Points, then Seize Ground and finally a set 3 objective mission.  The Kill Point and last mission had some terrain elements to them (bonus kill points for destroying a key piece of terrain, and having to put your objective in a key piece of terrain).

So all-in-all, a big bravo to the LA Battle Bunker staff for throwing this shindig together.  They were much better prepared for a large crowd and the tournament really came together nicely.

Now... on to my list and some battle summaries!  I brought Dark Eldar again, but tried something new.  I threw in some 3-man Wrack squads in Raiders with Shock Prow.  I must say that ramming worked out quite well, and resulted in quite a few wrecks / explosions!

HQ 1: Heamonculi - 50

ELITES 1: 4 Trueborn with Blasters, Venom with Dual Cannons – 173 ELITES 2: 4 Trueborn with Blasters, Venom with Dual Cannons – 173 ELITES 3: 4 Trueborn with Blasters, Venom with Dual Cannons – 173

TROOPS 1: 3 Wracks, Raider with Flickerfield and Shock Prow – 105 TROOPS 2: 3 Wracks, Raider with Flickerfield and Shock Prow – 105 TROOPS 3: 5 Warriors (Blaster), Venom with Dual Cannons – 125 TROOPS 4: 5 Warriors (Blaster), Venom with Dual Cannons - 125 TROOPS 5: 5 Warriors (Blaster), Venom with Dual Cannons – 125

HEAVY 1: Ravager with Flickerfields – 115 HEAVY 2: Ravager with Flickerfields - 115 HEAVY 3: Ravager with Flickerfields - 115

Total: 1,499

  • I edged out Tau in the KP mission, and was able to destroy my opponents terrain piece to score a perfect 20 to my opponents 5.
  • I then got matched up with a rather tough IG army with Hydras, Vendettas and 2 Leman Russ'.  This was a very back and forth game, and I was successfully able to stun my opponents key threats in order to keep myself alive throughout.  It came down to the last turn and my Venoms being able to mow down some Imperial Guardsmen on an objective.  I win the game but don't score any bonuses for a 15-8 victory.
  • My final game was against another Imperial Guard player on an open table.  I wish I could take a little bit more credit for this game, but my opponents dice went south and never came back.  He did prevent me from capturing all 3 objectives, giving me a 17-5 victory.
  • I think it's important to note that I went second and did full reserve for each game.
  • Overall I finish second in battle points, and end up with "Best General".

The next Bunker tourney is on March 24th and is 2,000 points.  If you're in the area and have the time, I highly suggest you come on by!