Hey all

i wrote this list on a whim a few weeks ago, and when asked if i wanted a game next week i made the snap decision to use it. i was bound by the models in Kate's collection (originally started under late 3rd ed rules), with a few tweaks. its far from the ideal 5th ed Eldar list i would write if i was making the army from scratch, but it should still be fun to use (even if it is a bit top-heavy). without further ado, here it is:

Code: Select all

Eldar Army List - 1498 pts

HQ [303 pts]

Farseer #1  [140 pts]   
Witchblade, Shuriken Pistol, Ghosthelm, Rune Armour, Spirit Stones, Runes of Warding, Guide, Fortune

Farseer #2 [163 pts]
Singing Spear, Shuriken Pistol, Ghosthelm, Rune Armour, Spirit Stones, Runes of Witnessing, Guide, Fortune, Doom

TROOPS [638 pts]

Guardian Defender Squad #1 [10 models + 1 Heavy Weapon Platform = 100 pts]
10 Guardians: Shuriken Catapults
Heavy Weapon Platform: Eldar Missile Launcher

Guardian Defender Squad #2 [20 models + 1 Heavy Weapon Platform = 220 pts]
19 Guardians: Shuriken Catapults
Heavy Weapon Platform: Starcannon
Warlock: Singing Spear, Shuiken Pistol, Rune Armour, Conceal

Guardian Defender Squad #3 [11 models + 1 Heavy Weapon Platform = 138 pts]
10 Guardians: Shuriken Catapults
Heavy Weapon Platform: Brightlance
Warlock: Singing Spear, Shuiken Pistol, Rune Armour

Dire Avenger Aspect Warrior Squad [6 Models = 104 pts]
Exarch: 2 Shuriken Catapults, Exarch Powers: Bladestorm
5 Dire Avengers: Avenger Shuriken Catapults

Guardian Jetbike Squadron [3 Models = 76 pts]
2 Jetbikes: Twin Linked Shuriken Catapults, Shuriken Pistol
1 Jetbike: Shuriken Cannon, Shuriken Pistol


FAST ATTACK [137 pts]

Swooping Hawk Aspect Warrior Squad [5 Models = 137 pts]
Exarch: Lasblaster, Warrior Powers: Skyleap, Intercept
4 Swooping Hawks (84): Lasblasters
Plasma & Haywire Grenades, Swooping Hawk Grenade Pack, Swooping Hawk Wings


HEAVY SUPPORT [420 pts]   

Dark Reaper Aspect Warrior Squad [5 Models = 237 pts]
Exarch: Tempest Launcher, Warrior Powers: Fast Shot & Crack Shot
4 Dark Reapers: Reaper Launchers

Support Weapon Battery [183 pts]
3 Support Weapon Platforms: 3 x D-Cannons
Warlock: Singing Spear, Shuiken Pistol, Rune Armour, Embolden

i will probably be facing CSM, but he might bring his mostly-mech Eldar.

the general plan:
put the cheaper Farseer in with the D-Cannons (Warlock + Embolden to help with Psy tests), set them up out of LOS/in good cover, with the Dark Reapers nearby. the Brightlance squad will also be nearby, but can move away to get better LOS to vehicle targets if needbe.

the other Farseer will probably go with the bigger Guardian squad.

in an Objective based mission, the Guardians will be used to sit on objectives (with the big Conceal unit going for any in the open). the Jetbikes will be used to snatch objectives or bolster my lines. the Swooping Hawks will try to contest objectives at the last minute.

in a KP game, the big Guardian squad will provide cover to the smaller more vulnerable units. ive only got 10 KP worth of units in my list, which is pretty good for 1500 pts IMO.

if im facing a lot of Vehicles, the Hawks will use Intercept & their Haywire grenades to go tank hunting.

so, what do you think? any problems/weakneses with the list i should look out for? any tips or advice for using it?

cheers

~ Tim

I forget now what those D-Cannons do (Guess Ranged IIRC), but u seem to be very light on anti-armour. Swooping Hawks won't last too long going for armour. The turn the DS they can only run, therefore they will be getting shot each turn they go to assault armour with grens.

The question is here; what list would you make for 5th ed, and then see how far ur list here differs..

The best Eldar Troops I think are Jetbikes... with S6 weapons for side/rear armour. Also Bladestorming Avengers in WSerpant are great infantry killers.

Best HS for Eldar is the Prisim now that the Falcon's fire power has been reduced. I also like Vibro Cannons

Best Elite choice - I think are Fire Dragons for anti-armour & high 'T' killing roles and reapers for shooting infantry and then Striking Scorps/Banshees for assaults.

Autarch with 'fusion' and pear as HQ with maybe a cheap farseer.

How many points do I have left?

KInG wrote:I forget now what those D-Cannons do (Guess Ranged IIRC), but u seem to be very light on anti-armour.

they are Barrage weapons, yes. against Vehicles they auto glance on a 3+ and auto Pen. on a 5+. against non-Vehilces they wound on a 2+/cause ID on a 6, and have AP2.

on Anti-tank duties, ive got:
Krak Missile
Bright Lance
D-Cannons
Jetbikes in Side/Rear
Singing Spears
Haywire Intercept Hawks

its kinda light, i agree. unfortunately theres not a lot i can do about it. i used to run the Reaper Exarch with an EML, but i found the rest of the squad was wasted if he tried to take out tanks. instead i wanted to try out the Tempest.

KInG wrote:Swooping Hawks won't last too long going for armour. The turn the DS they can only run, therefore they will be getting shot each turn they go to assault armour with grens.

if im facing a lot of Vehicles, they will probably start on the board, try to get a first turn charge, then use the wreck as cover. then they can Skyleap. hopefully no-one will get to shoot at them until after they have killed their first tank.

i know its risky, but it would only be if i was really going to struggle.

KInG wrote:The question is here; what list would you make for 5th ed, and then see how far ur list here differs..

hmm let me see... if money and time werent a factor, and i had a clean slate to start with, it would probably be something like:
- Autarch on Jetbike
- Farseer
- just 1-2 squads of Guardians (EMLs)
- Pathfinders
- 6 Jetbikes with Destructor Warlock
- 2 x 10 man Dire Avenger squads in Wave Serpents
- Scorpions (Infiltrate/Outflank)
- Banshees/Harlies
- Warwalkers
- Vibrocannons

so yeah, not much like the collection of models we have out our disposal (im using almost all the models we have, FYI)

anyway, any tips on using what i do have? its been a long time since ive played a big game using Eldar, or since ive used most of these models (some stuff ive not even tried under the new codex).

cheers

~ Tim

For shooting I use Dark Reapers /Exarch w Crack shot, and 10 Pathfinders standing close together.

Join a Guide/Fortune farseer to Reapers, fortune the Reapers and guide the Pathfinders.

Guided Pathfinders are really nice(for me). And, if I have another farseer, (or want to use Eldrad,) then doom the squad the pathfinders are shooting. (Doom allows you to re-roll your 'regular' hits in the hopes of turning them into rending shots.)(see note at bottom)

I try to put both squads in ruins with 3 levels (to reduce template anxiety,) and a small banshee squad (gone to ground) on the bottom floor to prevent assaults on my shooters. A squad of Enhanced Storm Guardians also works about as well as 5 banshees, even if it costs more.

(fwiw, a 10 squad of guided pathfinders shooting a doomed target, yields 4 rending wounds and 3 regular saves per turn. The dark reapers will average 2 wounds that can only be saved by 2+ or invulnerable, and 4 wounds that can take cover saves.)

You can count on this building being the target of your opponents entire efforts, which allows you to plan what you will do with the rest of your force to stop him.

Your other doomseer can guide one group of Guardians as he dooms the squad your pathfinders are shooting. (If you have Eldrad, he can guide 2 groups of your guardians.) Guided Guardians are about as good as bladestorming Dire Avengers imo.

Btw, why does everyone like Bladestorm? Not being able to shoot next turn seems painful to me.


(Doom: Pathfinders will hit 6 times, with 3 AP1 possibles.
Guide raises that to 8 and 4. For the 'regular' hits, I will re-roll everything but the 6's. For the ap1 hits, I just re-roll misses, all of the preceding not only yields 4 rends and 3 regular saves, but it just thoroughly destroys your opponents concentration as you repeat over and over, "Well, so far you have X number of invulnerable saves, but unFORTUNATELY for you, you are doomed, so I'm going to add to the pain by re-rolling your regular saves".)

Gymbol wrote:Btw, why does everyone like Bladestorm? Not being able to shoot next turn seems painful to me.

Presumably, if you get it right, there isn't anything left to shoot at you back, allowing you to reposition for the following turn I'd rather blow a unit away and then get out of dodge ready to perform the same feat elsewhere than do half a job and get hit back

you use Bladestorm when...

- you know you are going to be Running/in combat next turn anyway
- when its the last turn of the game and you have nothing to lose
- when you really need to cripple the enemy (best to kill them first so they cant hurt you back, or do extra damage before they get into combat, or to force so many saves that specialists get picked out, or so you kill enough to force a Moral check, or you wipe them out to stop them scoring/contesting an objective)

to be honest, there arent many times when you wouldnt want to do it (usually only if it would be overkill and you know you would have more targets next turn anyway) - its normally best to do as much damage as you can as soon as possible, so there is less alive to hurt you back.

Bladestorm is a force multiplier - for example, take it on a 6 man squad, and when they need to, they can fire like a 10 man squad instead!

~ Tim

I can't recal the last time a saw a Dire Avenger unit fire normally actually, so I would have to go along with what Tim said.

No point being able to shoot, if ur next move is going to be to get back in the Wave Serpant and move to the next target.

As a recent convert to the Pointy Eared fraternity I was also sceptical about the Bladestorm ability. But after a few games of devastating Marine squads with 31 shots and then hoping back into a transport and heading for a new target I’m getting to like it a lot.
I am however not enjoying the Guardians much, which I am ashamed about because I like using them (Fluff wise) and am interested to see how you get on with your list Tim.
2 Farseers seems very expensive, what are the benefits of 2 (is this just my in experience)
A little kindly advice would be welcome if you have the time.

cgra1 wrote:I am however not enjoying the Guardians much, which I am ashamed about because I like using them (Fluff wise) and am interested to see how you get on with your list Tim.

10 with an EML, sitting in your DZ is the way to go, IMO (start out of LOS and only reveal yourself when about to fire).

however, ive got the make the most of what we've got...

cgra1 wrote:2 Farseers seems very expensive, what are the benefits of 2 (is this just my in experience)

we used to use 2 when it cost the same to buy 2 as it did to buy one with Spirit Stones (so you go to cast the same number of powers, but got 3 extra Wounds for the same number of points).

in the new codex though, i agree it is a lot of points. (if i was wishlisting, i would replace one with an Autarch)

the plus side of taking 2 now though is that you:
- get to give 2 different units Ld 10
- get to cast twice as many powers (so thats 2 units rerolling shooting and 2 units rerolling saves, every turn, for example)
- get an extra Singing Spear/Witchblade
- dont all your eggs (runes) in one basket

im hoping that 20 x Ld10 5+ Rerollable Cover (even in the open) Guardians that Reroll misses, have 2 Singing Spears and a Starcannon (and about 40 close range shots), and are Scoring, should work well.

plus the other 'Seer will join the D-Cannons (which means he cant be hit by shooting as he isnt Crew in 5th ed) to give them Ld10. in return, they will give him somewhere to hide and the ability to reroll his failed Psy tests (Embolden). he will probably spend the game casting Guide & Fortune on the Reapers (who will be in Cover) to really give them a boost. if he needs to, he can leave the D-Cannons to join one of the smaller Guardian squads.

thats the plan anyway... only 6 hrs to game time - will have to see how it goes! (like i said, ive not used a lot of this stuff since the new codex... )

cheers

~ Tim

Good Luck Tim, and thanks.
Im not to sure about 2 HQ choices but I think that stems from playing Orks and being able to have as much as I wanted for 1500pts, u just cant get enough models in an Eldar army.
Ive been using Guardians in the defensive role but as Ive mainly been playing Kings Drop Pods of doom they haven't lasted long.
post the reslts please

well the game went well, very well infact, for the Eldar.

we played Seize Ground (4 Objectives) using Pitched Battle DZs, with the Eldar going first (Chaos failed to Seize the Initiative).

all my units did what they were supposed to do - nothing disappointed me at all. i did have some difficulty killing tanks, but that was expected.

in the end, my opponent conceded at the end of turn 5 (as soon as we found out there was going to be another turn).

by this point i had captured 2 objectives, and he was contesting the other 2. at the end of the game, i had only lost:
- the EML Guardians
- the Swooping Hawks
- half a dozen Guardians from the big squad
- 1 Reaper
- 2 Avengers

in return, he had lost everything, except his Vindi (just the Havoc Launcher left) and his Las/Auto Predator. his dead pile included:
- Jump Pack Lord
- Raptors
- 3 squads of CSM
- Rhino
- 1KSons
- Terminators

with no Scoring Units left, and too little firepower, there was no way he could beat me at this point (even a Draw may have been impossible).

this was my first time trying:
- Intercept Haywire Hawks against Vehicles: this was a big risk, but it paid off (combined with the ability to hit a Vehicle in its own turn if it doesnt move away from your attackers), as it stopped his Vindi from shooting for 2 turns, and took off its Demolisher Cannon.
- Doom: this worked great as an "extra" power, allowing me to concentrate fire when i needed to eliminate a threat (DS'ing Termies with Heavy Flamer, and later 1KSons). worked well combined with Guide, and multiple shooting units. i will definately take this power again - but i would still want Guide and Fortune as the "main" powers.
- the new D-Cannon rules: these didnt actually make any real difference in this game, except when it came to damaging Vehicles, when i missed its old S10.
- the new Artillery/Scatter rules: i managed to use the Warlock's superior BS when firing the D-Cannons within LOS (2D6-4 instead of 3), but in the end it didnt make a difference, as i pushed my luck and chose to reroll scatter (Guide) only to miss completly.
- Tempest Launcher: the Reaper Exarch was the man of the match, easily matching the number of killed caused by the rest of his squad put together. with Guide, BS5 (LOS) and Crack Shot, he was killing 4-5 CSM a turn by himself! he even managed to Pin a unit of Marines in the first turn. i had an evil vision of running 3 x 3 man Reaper squads each with one of these guys...

getting 4 powers a turn was definately very nice, and the extra survivability and firepower made up for the lack of a hardhitting CC monster (like an Autarch/Avatar/Phoenix Lord), i feel - especially with all the close range Shuriken Catapult fire (40-50 shots a turn, between various units).

at the end of the game, i had maybe 30 Scoring models around the 4 Objectives.

in my opponent's defence, he had atrocious luck (failing 5 saves out of 6 sometimes, for example, or rolling a 1 three turns in a row for a unit's Run move...), and isnt used to playing with that army (he normally uses his Eldar).

it was a great game, with a few tense moments (Termies DS onto an objective within Heavy Flamer range of my Guardians, right next to the disembarking 1KSons and an apparantly indestructable Rhino, which was quite scary... until i gunned them down; Chaos Lord chasing away my Hawks and then heading for my Guardians, which had me sweating... until the Predator killed just enough Guardians for me to prevent the Lord from reaching them in the Assault Phase - allowing the Reapers to shoot him), if a little one sided at times. i dont feel guilty though, as my IG are still burying their dead after our last couple of games.

cheers

~ Tim
p.s. no 40K next week, as i am trying a WWII game called "Flames of War". we are also playing a caveman game called "Settlement" tomorrow... err, tonight.

Sounds like a great game. BDA raves about the reaper exarch too.

I've heard very good things about Flames of War.

I still like guardians better than dire avengers.

227 pts for guardians vs 204 for dire avengers. (With transport.)

23 points more, but 2 flamers and a heavy flamer make up for a bunch of shooting.

Against Marine armies, I figure Storm Guardians will do one more wound than Dire Avengers in the shooting phase, and 2 more in the assault phase.

Against Armor 4 opponents, guardians will do 3 or 4 more kills than Dire Avengers.

Guardians on foot kind of stink though. Dire Avengers with their 18" range are just much better with no doubt about that.

Sounds like a good game, thanks for keeping us informed

Looking good Tim-

Just a couple of questions!

How do you use your Hawks against armies with little-2-no-tanks? especially MeQs? If you have played em.

Also with the Avengers being so small in number, do they bag many kills per game or do they hide and/or take pot shots?

Ta

-Rob