Team Background
We are four gamers from the Merseyside area who regularly play a large and varied number war games, we applied for the Antares four gamers Initiative as a group of players who are passionate about Beyond the Gates of Antares we think it is such a cool game, the models are fantastic, the skimmer tanks are just mind-blowingly awesome, we get excited just thinking about the game, as Gates of Antares is a relatively new game, we hope we can grow support for the game in the Merseyside area
Group Members From L to R; Dan Miller, Martin Otten, Shane Phillips, Phil Millar
In this our first article for the Antares Initiative we will each tell you what armies we chose and why, also at the end we give our initial thoughts of the first games we play using the Drone Integration scenario that warlord sent out to all the clubs that applied to take part.
First up Martin Otten
Hi, my choice of army came while flipping through the rule book I came across page 94 and saw the picture of the Skimmer, and thought it was the coolest looking tank i had ever seen and I had to have one or several. I found out that it was an Algoryn Skimmer, and decided there and then that Algoryn was the Faction for me.
So with my faction chosen, now to pick a 500pts Scout force, this was harder than I thought, I needed help so I posted on the Gates of Antares Facebook group and asked for help, I got a lot of helpful comments, then I listened to the freeborn shard pod cast episode 5 which had a talk about the Algoryn, you must bear in mind I have never played a game of Antares, so my choice is based partly on the information I was given, but mostly just on what I wanted.
Ok first up on my list is a AI command Team, as standard these come with the commander and two troopers, I have added an additional two troopers to give my commander a bit more protection, and also because they are all armed with Plasma Carbines which have a superior SV over the standard Mag Gun I though the extra firepower would come in handy
Next is two identical AI Squads, each with 2 Micro X-Launchers for that bit of extra firepower, these are my basic troops, and will spend most of the game getting shot at, so at the moment they have no upgrades bar the Micro X-Launchers
Next and my reason for choosing Algoryn in the first place was a Skimmer, It is an Avenger Attack Skimmer, upgraded with Twin Mag Light Support, it is also a MOD2 vehicle, so uses 2 order dice and has a Res of 11, I am hoping it has real staying power.
Last up is my Medic Team. I will keep these close to my commander, to hopefully help him live longer, and get the most out of his units Plasma Carbines
This gives me five units and six order dice in the bag, which I think is quite a lot for 500pts. I am really looking forward to getting my Miniatures and starting to assemble my fledgling force. But that is a tail for next month.
Next up is Dan Miller
I’ve gone for the pan-human concord because I really like the high-tech look and feel. The concord come across like their strength is superior technology rather than brute force makes them look like they could be a real finesse and control faction. Looks like there is lots of interesting tricks and synergy such as interceptor squads and compactor drones. Definitely look like an elite force with less numbers but great technology such as drones and probes. Really excited about using x-launchers; really unusual to see weapons allowing such a variety of ammo and one of main things I liked about the game.
I’ve gone for as much variety in my starting force as possible as i generally find that is the most fun to play with and play against, i also feel it is best way to learn the ins and outs of game.
This is my 500pt Concord Scouting Force
+ Tactical (370pts) +
C3 Strike Command Squad (130pts) (Medi-Drone Upgrade)
C3 Strike Squad (115pts) (Plasma Lance Upgrade)
C3 Strike Squad (125pts) (Plasma Lance and Spotter Drone Upgrade)
+ Support (60pts) +
C3 Support Team (60pts) X-Launcher (Spotter Drone Upgrade). [Grip, Net]
+ Auxiliary (70pts) +
C3D1/GP Light General Purpose Drone (70pts) (With Batter Drone, Spotter Drone and Subverter Matrix)
The reasons behind why i chose the units for my force start with the strike squads they are there as medium range either backing up the light support drone or protecting the x launcher. Spotter Drone for Lance shots and to give patch sighting to x launcher. Great that lances can pick out other target. I really like that the strike Command squad helps out your other units especially with the medi drone. I plan to have them in the middle helping other units as needed. I picked the X-launcher for long range; love the options of ammo and looks like it will be really versatile. I’ve also given them a spotter Drone to gain patch sighting from units in front protecting it. Most exciting part of the force for me is the light support drone. Looking forward to trying out the batter drone giving it a shield and also another Spotter Drone. Subverter Matrix is why I picked concord and sums them up for me. Either takes out enemy target probes or closes in and disables their force while the x launcher and strike squads take them down.
Next Phil Millar
Hi, Everyone, for my army, there was only one in my mind, the hardy Boromites. The hardworking, space-miner look really spoke to me, in this world of miraculous tech and clean sleekness, the Boromites are rugged, practical and dirty. I wanted my force to have that at the forefront, in my mind, they’re a mining clan first and foremost and any fighting they do is to help with that aim.
Luckily, the range is full of models to help that, the Work Gangs with their Mass Compactors are just miners up from the tunnels, using their heavy equipment as brutally effective weapons of war and the Frag Borer is for digging tunnels but can just as easily dig chunks out of anyone the Boromites point it at!
So I made sure those two were in my army and then I added some Rock Riders. For my clan, when at work, I see them as the supervisors who travel around the mines to make sure everything is going smoothly. I wanted to add some Lavamites too, because they look cool and fit in as there are all sorts of uses for these vicious rock dogs in a mine setting.
Lastly, I put in a squad of Gang Fighters, while most of the army are primarily workers, that doesn’t mean they don’t have a stash of weaponry to break out when a fight is brewing. The Gang Fighters are the more trained and able soldiers of the clan, downing the tools of industry and grabbing their guns!
Last but not least is Shane Phillips
Hi, when choosing my force I wanted something different to what everyone else has chosen, I did consider the Ghar and the Freeborn, before settling on the Isorian’s. The main reason for choosing them was because of there background, there almost the same as the concord but with enough differences to make them more interesting. They also have a high reliance on drones, I like the drones, but the main reason for choosing them was because I wanted to take a phase sniper, the model just shouted out to me, and the thought of him lying in wait for his next victim really appealed to me.
I was unsure if he was worth taking so like Martin I worked out a couple of lists and posed them on the Antares Facebook group to get some feedback, and on the whole it was positive, so I based my army list around him, a command squad, a couple of phase squads and a load of drones. The main feedback I got was drones were a must have in games of Gates of Antares so this is the list i decided on.
+++ Isorian Scout Force (498pts) +++
Senatex Command Squad with Medi drone, Spotter Drone and Plasma Grenades
Senatex Phase Squad with Plasma Lance and Spotter Drone
Senatex Phase Squad with Plasma Lance and Spotter Drone
Isorian Phase Sniper with Leader 2, Camo Drone and Shield Drone
The Drone Integration Scenario
As to the playing our first Games of the Drone integration Scenario, we think Phil Sums it up perfectly
This week the group got together and i played my first few games of Antares. While I’ve been interested in the game since before launch (hey, I was even a Kickstarter backer back in the day!) when it came out, I never got a chance to get involved. I’d bought an Overseer squad for the Boromites early on but never used it as I didn’t know anyone else playing. Now I have had the chance, I’m kicking myself for not getting involved before.
The demo games we played using the Drone Integration scenario were fast, fun and involving. The dice-bag mechanic means you’re always in the game and leads to some really interesting tactical choices that I hadn’t even thought about before playing. You can’t always tell which unit your opponent will activate and you have to weigh that up against your own options too. Pin Markers hampering a unit’s ability to fight was really interesting and meant that even though your weapons might not do any direct damage, they always had a chance of an effect that could hamper your opponent.
At the end of the night, Dan and I played a game using most of the rules, rather than just the basics from the demo. This was even more fun, tense and exciting with every dice pulled from the bag! The game went back and forth, with the Concord under my, rather amateurish, command almost totally succumbing to the massive amount of deadly firepower put out by the Ghar battle-suits early on. Eventually, through luck and a lot of Pin Markers more than any sort of tactical ability on my behalf, I was able to grab the Transmat with all that remained of my squad and, presumably, teleport out to safety!
By the end of the night crowds started gathering around to watch the game play
Well that’s it, I hope you will join us next month for the next instalment in our Gates of Antares adventure.
Download your own copy for FREE below…
If you haven’t yet tried out the drone integration then download the PDF of it below as there is no better way to get started in the Antarean Universe…
You can download your own copy of the scenario by clicking the image below!
You can use the C3M4 combat drone or a standard C3D1 Light support drone as a proxy without changing its rules to get you started!
The downloadable match-up has been specifically designed by us Warlord folks to get you playing as quickly as possible using the contents of the ‘Xilos Horizon’ starter box set (with which – incidentally – you can pick-up a FREE box set when you purchase through the Warlord webstore!)
We’ve also taken some of the key reference pages from the core Rulebook and made them available separately as PDFs for you to download and print as gaming aids, to save you from flicking back-and-forth through the Rulebook – the Quick Reference Sheet & Weapons Summary are available to download here
This information is taken from pages 256 & 257 of the Beyond the Gates of Antares rulebook, please download it and print as you see fit – it’ll help tremendously with your games!
For a brief summary of some of the key points of Antares gameplay, take a look at this webpage.
Sam Phillips