Battle Report #325: Haley2 vs Issyria

:: Prologue ::

My Retribution friend wanted a rematch between Haley2 and Issyria today so it was on again.

:: Lists ::

Cygnar:

Major Victoria Haley - WJ: +25
- Squire - PC: 5
- Stormwall - PC: 39 (Battlegroup Points Used: 25)
- Lightning Pod
- Thorn - PC: 13
- Ironclad - PC: 12
Journeyman Warcaster - PC: 4
- Firefly - PC: 8
Lanyssa Ryssyl, Nyss Sorceress - PC: 3
Ragman - PC: 4
Storm Lances - Leader & 2 Grunts: 12

Opponent:

Issyria, Sibyl of Dawn - WJ: +29
- Hyperion - PC: 36 (Battlegroup Points Used: 29)
- Phoenix - PC: 18
Arcanist Mechanik - PC: 2
Arcanist Mechanik - PC: 2
Elara, Tyro of the Third Chamber - PC: 4
- Discordia - PC: 18
Lanyssa Ryssyl, Nyss Sorceress - PC: 3
Dawnguard Invictors - Leader & 9 Grunts: 16
- Dawnguard Invictor Officer & Standard - Officer & Standard: 4
- Soulless Escort - PC: 1

:: Pre-Battle Thoughts & Deployment ::

Today we were playing The Pit and Retribution went first, again. I deployed to move directly for scenario. I wanted his Invictors on the right flank so I put Lances there to try and draw him over. 

:: Game ::

Inviolable Resolve on Hyperion which moves right, Admonition on Phoenix which moves left with Discordia.

Phoenix is within 21" of Stormwall so I put up TA + Deflection and send 3 boosted shots into it. A few boxes are lost. Thorn runs across the board to grab cover. Ragman is placed within 3" of all 3 Lances to sac pawn. Lanyssa in woods for Stealth.

Issyria considers Blinding Light on Haley but leaves it be. Note to self: Could and should have blocked her off with Firefly here. He decides against it and drops Admonition, moving over to the flag and casting Blinding Light on the Stormwall instead. A very lucky Discordia spray takes out Thorn's Arc Node.

Right after I took the picture I pointed out that Discordia likely needs to back off so that the Stormwall doesn't get both heavies in one alpha. We mini-feat it back and move on. Haley moves up, casts Domination on Phoenix and kills an Invictor. Thorn moves up and stabs Phoenix a bit. Stormwall charges and kills it. Disrupt Discordia with pod. Firefly kills remaining Invictors. One Lance runs to contest and the 2 others camp behind the wall at the edge of the zone. Support solos camp the middle.

As I moved to 1-0 under feat we started discussing the various openings here. After 5 minutes going back and forth we agreed that the game is essentially over: Dice are kind of irrelevant because it is impossible for Retribution to contest. I don't even have to kill a lot of models, I simply need to jam him shut. I'm already effectively at 3-0 with a lead in attrition as the Phoenix is dead. Consider the situation:

It really is a lost cause for Retribution at this point in time. 

Victory to the Swans!

:: Evaluation ::

The Pit is a nightmare to face solid control casters in. I think that Issyria may simply be better off going second here, because it slows down Haley's scoring. It also lets her pick the superior side, forcing Haley to expose herself somewhat more.

As this game evolved though I think Retribution leaves the left flank too open. A single Phoenix cannot get enough work done, even with Admonition. Granted he could have tried to alpha Thorn but at DEF19 and Dodge that is a super dicey move. Blinding Light on Haley might be the best play I guess and exposing her like that is probably my biggest mistake. With the Ironclad + Lances on the opposite side, dealing with Admonition becomes very hard for me without being able to cast offensive spells.