ENTE round 4 aftermath: Looting and Sabotaging vs. Shasvasti

Even with all my games done, one of the more unexperienced players in the event asked for a test-game and since I had a free afternoon, I took the chance. To stay with the level of the event, I took the same list as in my real game and was curious how it would perform against Shasvasti.

HPLSLI
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9  / 1  
 BRAWLER (Multispectral Visor L2) MULTI Sniper / Pistol, Knife. (1.5 | 28)
 DRUZE Hacker (Killer Hacking Device) Combi Rifle + Pitcher, D-Charges / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0 | 25)
 ARSLAN Lieutenant MULTI Rifle, Light Shotgun / Viral Pistol, Knife. (0 | 36)
 SAITO TOGAN Combi Rifle, Smoke Grenades / Pistol, EXP CCW, Knife. (0 | 39)
 SCARFACE & CORDELIA TURNER . (1.5 | 78)
   SCARFACE 2 Mk12, Heavy Rocket Launcher / AP CCW. (1.5 | 61)
   SCARFACE Boarding Shotgun / Pistol, CCW. ()
   CORDELIA TURNER Combi Rifle, Chain-colt, D-Charges / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 17)
 VALERYA GROMOZ Hacker (Hacking Device UPGRADE: Expel) Combi Rifle + Pitcher / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 21)
 PEACEMAKER Spitfire + AUXBOT_3 / Electric Pulse. (1 | 27)
   AUXBOT_3 Heavy Flamethrower / Electric Pulse. (- | 4)
 SIERRA DRONBOT HMG / Electric Pulse. (1 | 25)
 NASMAT Electric Pulse. (0 | 3)
 HUNZAKUT (Forward Observer, Deployable Repeater) Rifle + Light Shotgun, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 18)

 5.5 SWC | 300 Points
Open in Infinity Army

In general, my plan for this mission turned out quite good the last time, so I planned for the same game here. The amount of difficult terrain needs to be considered and normally nothing except for my  camo-guys should really take a walk there to save ressources

 Shasvastii Expeditionary Force
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10  
 SPECULO KILLER (Minelayer) Combi Rifle, Smoke Grenades, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Monofilament CCW, Knife. (1.5 | 39)
 SPECULO KILLER (Minelayer) Combi Rifle, Smoke Grenades, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Monofilament CCW, Knife. (1.5 | 39)
 SPHINX Spitfire, 2 Heavy Flamethrowers / EXP CCW. (2 | 106)
   SCINDRON Flash Pulse / Knife. (0 | 0)
 IKADRON (Baggage, Repeater) 2 Light Flamethrowers, Flash Pulse / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 9)
 IKADRON (Baggage, Repeater) 2 Light Flamethrowers, Flash Pulse / Pistol, Electric Pulse. (0 | 9)
 MED-TECH OBSIDON MEDCHANOID Combi Rifle, D-Charges / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 23)
 SLAVE DRONE Electric Pulse. (0 | 3)
 NOX Hacker (EI Hacking Device) Submachine Gun, Zapper / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 17)
 NOX Hacker (EI Hacking Device) Submachine Gun, Zapper / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 17)
 NOX Lieutenant Combi Rifle, Zapper / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 14)
 SHROUDED (Minelayer) Boarding Shotgun, Dazer / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 24)

 6 SWC | 300 Points
Open in Infinity Army

One of the most reasonable tools for Shasvasti to destroy the AC2 is the Avatar, so I kind of expected it, what does not really help to solve this problem with Druze. My opponent thought that even monofilamt-ccws could destroy the AC2, so there are two Speculos and some more or less reasonable support for them. The Shrouded definitvly can slow down things on their way to the own AC2, but once it is reached, only the Ikadrons can defend it somehow.

My opponent chose the same map as in my real game, so I was not that sad here. I win the Lt-roll this time and choose to deploy second on the red side, since I experienced that side to be easier to defend, especially against an Avatar. My opponent takes the first turn.

Dr. Wurm and one Ikadron start  in the base in the closed chamber, a Nox, a Ikadron and the Slave drone take the center and one Nox hides behind the rocks inside the DZ. One camo-marker appears in the central room One impersonator and a camo-marker start outside in front of my DZ, a second pair starts in the base, blocking the wide entrance.

First I am glad to have no Speculo in reserve, since I totally forgot about them in my planning. But the way they are positioned, I really need to look for good positions to start the run with Saito and the get my Peacemaker into the game. The Sierra overwatches the outside from the far right corner, Scarface and Gromoz start in the outside hidden behind the central rocks, too and my core-team overwatches the center and the left. The MSV-Brawler can overwatch the whole path towrds my AC2, since I assumed the outside-way to be the chosen one for the Avatar. My Hunzakut starts inside the base but not that far advanced and Cordelia takes a position near that door.

The Avatar appeared in marker state inside and I puzzle my Peacemaker out of the trigger area of the mine outside with the Auxbot overwatching the wide door of the base.

Shasvasti 1: The Shrouded places his Dazer in the center, covering my Peacemaker. The inside-Speculo grabs some armour out of the panoply, places a mine to cover my Hunzakut and re-impersonates. Now the Avatar advances, grabbing a combirifle out of the panoply  and tries to engage my Hunzakut. He places a repeater in the first contact and manages to dodge the flamethrower, while my overlord-hacking fizzles.

Druze 1: The Hunzakut places an other repeater to pin the Avatar a bit longer. Saito Togan takes a cautious walk and manages to reach the AC2. This time two orders are enough to destroy it. With the last orders, he shoots down the Shrouded and clears an Ikadron in CC, then recamos.

Shasvasti 2: The inside-Speculo takes some orders to ground the Hunzakut and the repeater. In the own DZ a Nox discovers Saito and the other Ikadron burns him down. The Avatar uses the small door on my left to shoot at my core-team. The Brawler goes down while everyone else survives.

Druze 2: Gromoz fails to place a pitcher to protect my AC2 while she and Scarface advance to bait out the other Speculo and secure the HVT.

Shasvasti 3: The Avatar tries to burn down my last link-members. Cordelia manages to engage it and while burning down, Arslan stunns the Avatar. This  cuts the chances for him to damage my AC2. An Ikadron advances and a Nox hacker tries to spotlight my HVT without success.

Druze 3: Cordelia  blows up the Avatar with one D-charge and Scarface manages to discover and shoot the outside-Speculo. Cordelia then fails to take out the other Speculo and is shot in return.

Since my HVT is blocked by the other Speculo, I can't secure the HVT. I also grabbed nothing from the panoplies, so I win this game 8-1. I got a bit lucky with Arslans stun-shot, but on the other hand, the chances to block the Avatar somewhere on the way in that turn, were not that bad. We discussed later, that a Speculo as reserve would have brought more options to him, since I have had to plan for a second one with my DZ and he could have searched for a whole in my deployment and crack the path for the Avatar.