“PORTALS,” a gaming store, has opened on Kent Island, MD, a few minutes’ drive from my home, featuring “Tabletop Thursday” open play from 5:00 to 9:00 pm. This has given my neighbor Nate, my brother-in-law Drew, Drew’s son Daniel, and me the perfect opportunity to get together, move minis, and roll dice, using the Grimdark Future rules from OPR Games.
(Why Grimdark Future? Because all four of us agree that it is sooooo much easier and quicker to play than 10e Warhammer 40K. You can read my take on it here).
We intend to meet every two weeks; what follows is the first in what I hope is a long-running series of summarized battle reports of each game.
Game 1: “Battle Brothers” vs. Xenos
For our inaugural game at Portals, we decided to bring 1000 points each. I assembled a small force of Fighting Tigers of Veda, my signature army. Grimdark Future is basically a rules-lite version of 40K, with equivalents of every faction and most units, all of them renamed to avoid infringing on Games Workshop’s intellectual property.
Thus, instead of my Tigers being “Adeptus Astartes,” they are considered “Battle Brothers;” Nate’s “Primaris Marines” are “Prime Brothers;” Daniel’s “Tyranids” are “Alien Hives;” and Drew’s “Orks” are…”Orc Marauders.” (*shrug*)
Point values in Grimdark Future are higher than in 40K, so you’ll notice that 1000 points doesn’t go very far. In my case, it purchased the equivalent of two 10-man Tactical Squads, and a 10-man Scout squad. The only bells and whistles that each squad had were “fusion rifles” (aka melta-guns) and “heavy machineguns” (heavy bolters) for the Tac boys, and a missile launcher (same name as its 40K version) for the Scouts.
Nate brought the Grimdark Future versions of two Lieutenants, an Intercessor Squad, and an Infiltrator Squad. Drew’s Waaagh!shingdun Kommandos had one 10-strong mob of Boyz and two 20-strong Boyz mobs, as well as three Nobz in mega-armor. Daniel had the equivalent of a Hive Tyrant, a Carnifex, and two 10-strong broods of Hormagaunts.
(Note that GF doesn’t have a required Force Organization Chart or something similar, as was done in previous 40K editions)
Getting Started
We agreed that it was going to be me and Nate against Drew and Daniel. I got to the store ahead of time and set up the table with terrain provided by Portals. The scene was the shattered remains of a city that had been in ruins for decades, and was becoming overgrown with vegetation. I placed five objectives in the “no-man’s” land between the standard 12″ deployment zones, and Nate put some clear plastic discs under the objectives to show everyone how close their models had to be to claim them.
Because I set up the table, I let Drew pick which side he wanted. Following the Grimdark Future rules for starting a game (which are basically the same as 40K’s), we took turns deploying our units, and off we went, with the Xenos winning the roll to go first.
If you’ve never played Grimdark Future, the biggest change from 40K is that instead of one player moving, shooting, and charging with their entire army while the other player sits back and waits, players alternate using units. So, Daniel started the game by moving his Carnifex, then I moved a Tactical Squad, then Drew ran a mob of Orks up the field, then Nate moved and fired a squad of his guys, then Daniel moved his Hormagaunts, then I maneuvered the other Tac Squad and had them shoot, and so on.
This style of play is much more dynamic and fun than 40K’s “I-Go-You-Go” approach. Almost as important as knowing where to move a unit is knowing when to move a unit. Feints and counterattacks are more viable and effective under the Grimdark Future rules.
Turn 1
Because the Xenos side had won the die roll to go first, Daniel got us underway by moving his Carnivo-Rex (aka Carnifex) to grab an objective, a still-functioning nuclear reactor. The rest of the Xenos followed suit, swarming forward, grabbing more objectives.
Fighting Tiger shooting dropped enough Orks in one of Drew’s 20-strong mobs to call for a Morale check, which they failed, forcing the rest to flee. I also shot and break a unit of Daniel’s Assault Grunts (Hormagaunts). Nevertheless, by the end of the turn, the Xenos were firmly in control of the game.
Objectives held at the end of Turn 1: Xenos 4, Imperials 1
Turn 2
The Xenos onslaught continued, with Orcs running for the Ultramarines’ lines, and Alien Hives pressing the Fighting Tigers.
Despite the Tigers firing everything they had into the Hive Lord, and inflicting several Wounds on it, they could not stop it from hacking and slashing into Rudra Squad 1, killing seven Tactical Marines. Fortunately, the three survivors kept their nerve, passing their Morale test.
Objectives held at the end of Turn 2: Xenos 4, Imperials 1
Turn 3
With the Orc attack bogged down by difficult terrain, which reduced movement to no more than 6″ per turn, the Ultramarines could turn their attentions to the Hive Lord, blasting it to acidic goo.
Relief was short-lived, as the Carnivo-Rex swiftly attacked, charging the Prime Brothers (aka Intercessor) Squad. Surprisingly, it was considerably less deadly in melee, felling only two Marines, despite Daniel having good rolls to hit.
Under the Grimdark Future rules, units in melee are not locked in to close combat, so the Ultramarines retreated and combined fire with the Fighting Tigers, gunning down the Carnivo-Rex. With only a single brood of 10 Assault Grunts (the equivalent of Hormagaunts) left, the threat from the Alien Hives was effectively over, and the Tigers took the objective that the Big Scary Alien Monsters had possessed.
The Orcs, however, were still very much in play. Having snagged an objective at the far end of the table (which the Imperials had no hope of reaching), Drew hunkered down his 10-Boy mob in a crater to keep them safe, while his remaining 20-strong mob and his Ultra Veterans (Nobz in mega-armor) closed in on the Ultramarines.
Objectives held at the end of Turn 3: Xenos 3, Imperials 2
Turn 4
In the final turn (GF games last only four turns), the Orcs did what they do best: charge! The Ultra Vetz (Nobz) ran an end-around the wreckage that had been slowing down the other Boyz, and hit the Ultramarine Infiltrators who had been holding a central objective. Much krumping ensued, with the heavy-armored Orcs laying impressive hits on the Marines, inflicting four casualties while losing only one of their own.
Despite the Nobz having to withdraw 1″ (per the GF rules) following their scrap, there was no respite for the Infiltration Squad, as the big mob of Boyz shrugged off some Marine fire and then charged the Infiltrators, determined to crush them and take the objective. Alas for the Waaagh!shingdun Orcball Team, the two surviving Infiltrators stubbornly refused to fail their Morale test, and still contested the objective.
On the Imperials’ left flank, the 10 remaining Assault Grunts (Hormagaunts) charged the Tigers’ Tactical Squad Rudra 2, but were easily pummeled and gunned down, with no Fighting Tigers lost. Rudra 2 then moved up the field and claimed the nuclear reactor that the Alien Hives had previously taken.
The battle was hanging in the balance, with the Tigers and Orcs each holding two objectives, and the last one contested. It was up to Squad Puchan, the Pathfinders (Space Marine Scouts), to see if they could tip the game in the Imperials’ favor.
They fired into the remaining regular Boyz that had fought the Ultramarine Infiltrators, killing enough of them to force a Morale test, which the Orcs failed. The Marines had won the day!
Objectives held at the end of Turn 4: Imperials 3, Xenos 2
Post-Game Analysis
Being faster, more numerous, and more spread out across the board, the Alien Alliance jumped out to a huge early lead by taking four out of five objectives in Turn 1. But taking and holding are two different things. Because of how they set up, with Daniel far out on their right flank, father and son couldn’t coordinate their attacks well, whereas Nate and I, who were side-by-side, could.
With his heavy-hitting Hive Lord and Carnivo-Rex, as well as his uber-fast Grunts, Daniel became Priority #1. While Nate fended off Drew’s slower Orcs, I dealt with the majority of Daniel’s Aliens, with Nate helping to finish them off. Then I returned the favor by breaking the Boyz that were threatening one of our objectives.
Still, it was a near thing: if some dice rolls had gone better for Team: Xenos, they would have easily won. Neither Drew nor Daniel are sore about how the game turned out, and we’re all looking forward to our next outing. In that game, the Orcs and Alien Hive will be joined by my Dvergar Steeljacks (Space Dwarves) against 3000 points of Nate’s Ultramarines. Come back soon and see what happens!
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Kenton Kilgore writes books for kids, young adults, and adults who are still young. Follow Kenton on Facebook for frequent posts on sci-fi, fantasy, and other speculative fiction. You can also catch him on Instagram.