A great WAAAGH! began the day and the Ork players started turn 1 by bringing their forces on from their table edge. The Imperials followed suit and the shooting began almost immediately. The big guns from Imperial and Space Marine tanks blasted into Ork wartrukks, followed up by the familiar Ork "Dakka, Dakka", the warcrys of Chaos Marines, and the shrieking death of Eldar and Dark Eldar weaponry. Then the booming guns of renegade Imperial Guard, fully dedicated to Von Straub spoke. It wasn't long before Speed Freek armies were in hand to hand with Space Marines and Sisters of Battle.

An Ork Rok provided the first of the day's special events by making an orbital bombardment on the battlefield which hit Commander Phillip Brody's Basilisk, "The Scorpion", assigned to his 42nd Cadian Rifles. Bloodthirsty cheers of the Chaos forces charging toward the brave guardsmen went up do their dark gods. Amazingly, the Basilisk survived the ordinance, only losing its Earthshaker Cannon. Undaunted, the crew inside fired hot death at the invaders using the heavy bolter for the remainder of the day.

The first objectives seized belonged to the Ork side, or rather, the Eldar. Farseer Mike Hoffman's Swordwind army captured two objectives amidst the ruined and overgrown ancient temples on the jungle battlefield, while the Farseer Kyle Wallingford's Eldar did so in Helsreach Hive itself. The Ork side took an early lead with the objectives, but the Imperial players steeled themselves. There was a still a long day ahead.

Gall Skullsplitter, Speed Freek Warboss, (admirably played by Heinz Heinecke) cut a swath of devastation through the desert against the Killer Shrike Chapter of Space Marines and Canoness Shannon Grove's Sisters of Battle, the Order of the Angels Resplendent, backed by Eldar and Dark Eldar allies. As the Sisters uttered their last dying prayers to the Emperor, a ship landed in the middle of the desert, disgorging Eric Taschian's Valhallan Valkyries Imperial Guard regiment. The Valkyries immediately opened up on the Speed Freek Warboss and his horde, hoping to save the few remaining Sisters of Battle from the brutal Ork choppas. Skullsplitter only gave a toothy grin and praised Gork and Mork for giving him more 'oomies to butcher. Throughout the day, the Ork Warboss would prove nigh unstoppable, racking up victory points for Ghazghkull Thraka.

In the jungle, Orks and Eldar swept forward, crushing the Angels of Absolution and slaughtering Black Templars wholesale. The Templars surged forward to meet the green tide, but the number of Orks took their toll, leaving only a single Land Raider Crusader immoblized in the jungle to represent them. Yet, the Crusader crew kept blazing away at the Orks and their vehicles with hurricane bolters, assault cannons and multi-meltas. Even though the Orks kept pounding on the hull, the Crusader proved impervious and continued to mow down Ork after Ork, as it rested in the shadow of a broken down Gargant. The Angels kept fighting to the bitter end, and they slowly began to turn the tide of battle in the jungle.

In the midlands between the jungle and the desert wastes, Black Templars and Space Wolves fought alongside Tallarn guardsmen (including some impressive camel riders) against more Orks, Dark Eldar, Chaos legions, and Mordians dedicated to Von Straub. Camel riders charged enemy tanks, while the Space Wolves and Templars combined to annihilate the Dark Eldar, scoring the first victory points of the day for the Imperium. Wolf Lord Zatkin and Grand Marshall Eckberg quickly broadcast the news to the rest of the Imperium inspiring their fellows. The desert regions saw the Sisters of Battle fighting alongside a previously unknown Marine chapter, the Order of the Holy Flame against Eldar forces and Speed Freeks. Gall Skullsplitter continued his WAAAGH! killing the Valhallan Valkyries after finishing off one order of Sisters while the Killer Shrike chapter was forced to quit the field against the wall of green. The 42nd Cadian Rifles along with the Blood Angels and other Guard forces successfully took control of the desert road closest to Helsreach, holding it against all adversaries, which they would continue to do so, despite Chaos and Dark Eldar attempts to wrest it away later in the day.

While the Dark Eldar and Orks fought to control the area outside of Helsreach against a contingent of Space Marines, the battle in the Hive City itself was extremely intense. The Blood Angels, Space Wolves, and the L'Ultramarines fought against determined numbers of Orks, Renegade Imperial Guard, and the Eldar of the Maj-bahn Craftworld. The Eldar Wraithlord of Farseer Greg Swansrund came to grips with Force Commander Mike LaCosta's L'Ultramarine Dreadnought and impaled its sarcophagus with a sorcerous halbred. These two waged a war of attrition throughout the day, while Stuart Ellege's Blood Angels would fight until the last member of the Death Company remained.

The Imperials began a surge of victories led by the Bengal Legion while their opposition used their superior movement to acquire more objectives, led by Erik McIntosh's Dark Eldar and Mike Hoffman's Eldar. Warboss Reuben Timineri's Orks captured objectives the old-fashioned way, by marching up to them and defying anyone to remove his green warriors. The victory points remained close leading both sides to be separated by only three victory points as the day progressed.

The Bengal Legion convinced Colonel Rudy Diaz's renegade Mordian Mechanized to change sides after the Mordian Basilisk blew an Ork truck in the jungle to kingdom come instead of the pesky Black Templar Crusader which would not die. The Bengal Legion wiped out the command of the Mordians, proving to them that Von Straub was indeed a traitor. Col. Diaz's troops redeployed after being wiped out in the Hive City, where they would play a dramatic role toward the game's end.

The reinforcements couldn't come soon enough for the Imperials in Helsreach. Capt. Grenville of the L'Ultramarines discovered a special event taking place as the courageous Space Marine entered a building coated with a mysterious, almost organic slime...

Meanwhile, the Orks who had fought so well in the jungle had to finally give way to the Angels of Absolution of Commander Leroy Gutierrez and that accursed lone Black Templar Crusader of Grand Marshall Sanders. However, several players noticed another potential event taking place as the Gargant shifted slightly behind the Crusader. When the Vahallan Valkyries redeployed to the jungle, the Imperial forces appeared to have the advantage on both ends of the battlefield.

Then, the Gargant activated, smashing the Crusader to bits. With a final effort, the surviving Mekboyz fired off a last volley, but to little avail against the Imperials. The Gargant slumped into inaction as giant gears exploded out its backside.

Meanwhile, Eldar and Dark Eldar began to race along Hel's Highway, trying to make it from one edge of the board, sixty feet to the other side. Wheeling, dealing and bribery became the theme of the day as Vipers and Raiders jockeyed with one another as they sped through the battlezones.

The fighting continued to intensify. Blood Angels and Orks went at it in different zones while Dark Eldar and Imperial Guard exchanged shots. The banners of Chaos were shown as servants of the Dark Gods butchered Imperials, only to fall themselves. Warboss Gall Skullsplitter reigned triumphant in the desert, dealing with all comers, until finally, the warriors of Fenris, the Space Wolves of Wolf Lord Carlos Gomez, came into battle with the Orks. Even the WAAAGH! could not keep Skullsplitter from falling in single combat to Wolf Priest Cjral Nightrunner, much to the cheers of nearby Imperial commanders. On the other end of the desert, Col. Bob Felix's battle leader Capt Dansing and his Catachan troops continued to hold the field against Chaos and Dark Eldar incursions.

An Ork Fighta-Bomma squadron flew over the war-torn fields dropping bombs everywhere. As is usual with Orkish accuracy, they either were amazingly effective or completely ineffective in their attacks. In some places, the bombing killed Marines and Sisters of Battle, yet a number of Imperial Guardsmen survived direct hits. The moral of the story seemed to be not to let Grots arm bombs.

In the Hive itself, Genestealers and Carnifexes erupted from the slime-covered lab, surging with rage into both sides and cutting a bloody swath of death. Von Straub loyalists, Eldar, and Space Marines all died facing the Tyranid Swarm. The Tyranids united the Imperials and solidified their opposition as both sides split their focus.

The Dark Eldar force racing around the board gave way to combat against Blood Angels and the tenacious Cadian 42nd rifles, which had held Capt. Dansing's flank throughout the day. The Eldar Vipers continued to fly on, racing down into trenches and hunting for cover. Unfortunately, as the Imperial players realized what was transpiring, the Vipers were coming under fire from numerous Basilisks all across the board, causing Ork players to curse as the Eldar raced along. The Eldar managed to survive, but scatter from ordinance began wiping out Ork forces all along the table edges. On the outskirts of Helsreach, Wolf Lord Zatkin had a Venerable Dreadnought suffer friendly fire (ironically from Col. Diaz's once-traitorous Mordian Mechanized), but the Ork force he faced was decimated by barrages, leaving them vulnerable and within reach of the hungry Space Wolves.

The day was ending, but the outcome was well within doubt. The spread of victory points gave the Imperium a slight advantages, but the difference was near enough that a single turn could spell victory for Warlord Ghazghkull Thraka and his allies. Twilight fell across the battlefields, warning everyone that night fighting rules would soon take effect.

In the Hive City, the Tyranid threat came down to single combat between an Emperor's Champion of the Black Templars and a dread Hive Tyrant. Somehow, the Black Templar's prayers to the Emperor were answered as the Tyrant failed to drive home a single blow against him during the combat. Seizing his opportunity, with righteous fury, the Emperor's Champion drove the Black Sword through the Hive Tyrant, scattering ichor and scales across the battle torn Hive. Cheers and nods of respect came from both sides, as the battle recommenced. The Maj-bahn Eldar still remained, limited now to rangers, sniping off their enemies.

The Orks continued to bring terror to the Imperium in the jungles, while the Bengal Legion helped coordinate Imperial victories at the desert's edge. This Space Marine chapter was undaunted by the Ork's reputation, and their Force Commander ended a Warbosses second run in hand to hand combat. Throughout the day, Dark Angels Master Erik Wallingford's forces, the 42nd Cadian Rifles and Kurt Knippel's Sisters of Battles had seized one objective after another for the Imperials, and the Imperials maintained their lead. The Ork side became a bit dishearted as the remaining Viper jetbike flew over the walls of Helreach, two turns at most from surviving the run through the entire battlefield when the Mordian Mechanized Basilisk of Col. Diaz found its aim and ended Farseer Kyle Wallingford's brave attempt.

Night fell, bringing with it a last flurry of combat. The final turns were characterized by wild charges, desperate runs for objectives and the efforts of holdouts from decimated forces clinging to survival, trying anything to turn the tide of battle. When the final result was annnounced, no one knew what to expect.

By a small margin of victory the Imperium held the battlefield against the Ork invaders. It had been close, and the battle was decided during the final exciting turn. The Orks just couldn't pull it off despite their frenzied last minute push!