So now that I am working on completing my Grey Knights and have my Menoth for Warmachine on order...it's time to plan the next project...you know...after I get my table made and set up...ya I know crazy. Anywho, Dark Eldar are likely to be a port of call at some point soon for a couple reasons. Firstly, I played them in 3rd edition and had to sell my army when I moved back in the day so starting them up again will reconnect old feelings of love and hatred and I can use some of my shitty 3rd ed models left over! Secondly, Vince has started collecting them in part since he won a box at Event Horizon. This will ultimately mean sharing an army between us I imagine to keep costs down but is workable. Thirdly, I love the codex. Just so many options.
So with this in mind I need to make a list. Vince is aiming for a list similar to this one as he wants to use those shiny new Talos models and make a WWP list. I on the other hand want to make a mech list with all the toys I can want :). I'll want a list which can range from 1750-2000 seeing as 1750 is the common tournament size around here and 2000 seems to be on the move forward for a couple of tournaments (i.e. Trollcon, Centurion). I also want to use some things I particularly like rules-wise and model wise though of course I'm flexible on this account to not include all of them at the cost of making a better list. With that in mind let's take a look...
I like Reavers, Hellions and Beastmasters all of which unfortunately lie in the Fast Attack slot. Luckily the Baron moves Hellions out of there and into Troops and also makes them a much more viable choice (3+/FNP, S5+ on the charge x3, skilled rider, 2x poisoned shots). As a bare minimum for competitive play I also think Dark Eldar lists need around 20+ lance shots and around 100 poisoned shots. This allows them to suppress mech and crack it open and torrent away infantry. FNP/2+ armor units can still be a pain but mass poison + mass S8/AP2 shots does have a way of felling those type of units. Any way to include AP1 (Scourges, Reavers, Harlequins, Talos) are also important to factor in as those 20+ lance shots have a set which can reliably crack armor. We also want to have some combat presence and whilst Hellions can be okay in this regard, units like Beastmasters or Incubi are more what we are looking for.
So let's start with a list-building exercise for 2000 points and see what we get! We'll start off with the Baron and a Haemonculus. The Baron gives me access to Hellions which are a decent Troop with the Baron attached and a unit I'd like to use. Baron + Hellions in cover have a 3+ save and with a pain token FNP. They spit out around 30 poisoned shots up to 18" away and can smack things around in combat through sheering torrenting of S4-5+ attacks (3 each on the charge). A great unit to hold midfield. The Baron also brings a PGL to the squad so cover doesn't bone them on the charge and a +1 roll to decide who goes first - very nice for Dark Eldar. The Haemonculus does two things. First it gets that large Hellion unit a pain token to start with and second it allows Wracks to be used as Troops.
Baron Sathonyx
Haemonculus
15x Hellions
This core sets me back 395 points which is decent for a pretty durable Troop and two HQs. Next we'll take the obligatory Ravagers with trip-Dark Lances. I'm going to leave them naked for now as I should be able to generate cover on them with Venoms and terrain - I'm relying on my playing ability here. It does limit my tactical options somewhat as I cannot move them into the open and still have a flicker save but it saves me 30 points.
Ravager
Ravager
Ravager
This sets me back a further 315 points dragging my total to 710 and we've got the usual compliment of anti-tank covered. Boring I know but efficient. Normally I'd run 2x Ravager + Razorwing but since I'm going Hellions I'm going to have an increased amount of anti-infantry already and don't really need the extra anti-infantry the Razorwing brings (plus a Ravager is cheaper money wise). We'll then fill out our Fast Attack - an unusual choice as this slot is generally left to the end but if we recall I have a serious like for both Reavers and Beastmasters (and Hellions). We of course have the usual conundrum of three slot Force Organisation Charts when we want two units - we're always going to have one without a duplicate unit. This means one needs to get redundancy for that unit elsewhere and/or ensure said unit is capable of running solo. With this in mind AP1 is really important and it's hard to get elsewhere in the army. Also having a single unit of AP1 guns is going to make that unit a huge target and running two of such unit improves their chances of being able to do something. With this in mind we'll go with two Reaver squads and a single Beastmaster squad.
So how to layout said squads? Reavers is pretty easy. Three is too small, nine too big unless you taking along the Duke to increase their chances of a good combat drug role. Six is perfect as it allows for two special weapons, makes their footprint not too ungainly and means they can poke stuff in combat. Ld8 sucks but hey we aren't Space Marines... Two of these at 156 should suffice and gives us four more lances with AP1. The Reaver units can also tie up other backfield units pretty effectively and have some anti-infantry capacity.
6x Reavers w/2x Heat Lance
6x Reavers w/2x Heat Lance
This takes us to 1022 points - getting up there. Next the Beastmaster unit. You can really deck this unit out to be quite expensive but we aren't going to have the points for this with only one Troop and no Elites filled so far. We want them to be scary in combat and this is where Razorwings come in with lots of Rending attacks. However, whilst they do have five wounds they are super susceptible to instant death from S6 and taking wounds in combat with T3/6+. Khymera with their 4++ are therefore a great bet to increase their durability as much as possible and a balance between these two models is generally best. With three Beastmasters we can have between five and 15 Khymera and two and six Razorwings depending upon allocation. I think four Razorwings and five Khymera is a solid bet whilst remaining pretty cheap. It gives us 24 rending attacks on the charge along with 20 Khymera attacks + the Beastmasters. Not super scary but it's going to put out a long of wounds on infantry. Take saves please. This costs us a paltry 158 points.
3x Beastmasters w/5x Khymera, 4x Razorwings
We've now used 1180 points and have five Troop and three Elite slots left. At 2000 points we are probably looking for six Troops, especially considering the fragility of Dark Eldar. This is much more important than gimping on Elites so let's focus on that first. We have four options - Wracks, Hellions, Warriors and Wyches. Hellions I'm going to steer away from - whilst they can make great little units I really need to up the vehicle saturation of the army as we've only got three so far. Wyches I'm not a fan of in small numbers which makes them quite expensive and something we don't really have the points for. This leaves Wracks and Warriors who are both capable of operating at small sizes effectively. If I need more scoring oopmh Warriors also work well as 10-strong squads. The question is how to run them? Both have options when small to be run in Raiders or Venoms with both capable of taking a special weapon at five-strong. Let's aim for three Warriors and two Wrack squads then with the Wracks acting as dedicated backfield objective holders and the Warriors joining the Hellions in an aggressive push.
Since the Wracks are just hanging out in the backfield, keeping them tiny is fine. A squad of three strong with a Raider sporting a shock prow is a measly 95 points and at T4/FNP, the Wracks aren't super easy to destroy once their Raider goes down. They also have the option of tank shocking and can shoot at range with the Raider so a nice and cheap objective holder which adds to the army. Two of these sets us back 190 points.
3x Wracks w/Raider, Shock Prow
3x Wracks w/Raider, Shock Prow
We're now at 1370 points so still got quite a bit of flexbility in points. This is good. We want our Warriors in Venoms now to increase our number of poisoned shots. So far for anti-infantry we've only really got the Hellions and Beastmasters so we need to up that. The Blaster gives the unit some duality in being able to pop tanks but without the AP1 this isn't hyper-reliable. I'd prefer to keep these units inside their Venoms at all times because of this. Normally I'd recommend taking the Sybarite + Blast Pistol upgrade as well but not sure we'll have the points. I'll include them just in case which makes each unit cost 150 points.
5x Warriors w/Sybarite, Blast Pistol, Blaster, Venom, 2x Splinter Cannon
5x Warriors w/Sybarite, Blast Pistol, Blaster, Venom, 2x Splinter Cannon
5x Warriors w/Sybarite, Blast Pistol, Blaster, Venom, 2x Splinter Cannon
These units put out six anti-tank shots and 45-54 poisoned shots - not bad for Troops! This takes us to 1820 points which isn't going to be enough for two Elites. Some points will need to be dropped but let's see how many over we go. There are again a lot of options in the Elites for Dark Eldar but with the limited points we have and need of more vehicles (currently at eight), we are going to need something decently cheap. Step forward Trueborn please! These guys can fulfil whatever role we need and right now we need a unit which brings both anti-tank (to take us well above 20+ darklight shots) and anti-infantry (to takes us well above 100 poisoned shots). There are many ways to run these guys but I think getting Venoms + darklight weapons is our most efficient bet here and even then, do we go Blasters or Dark Lances?
Blasterborn are cheaper with Blasters being 15 points and can take more (up to four) but have shorter ranges whilst Dark Lances are more expensive at 25 points and can only be bought in pairs but have double the range and are static. Blasterborn often have a very short life-span unless you can keep them in their transport (and even then, once their transport dies it doesn't take much to shoot down a couple T3/5+ bodies in cover as they'll most likely be in rapid-fire range) whilst Lanceborn are more likely to get to shoot for longer though they are still vulnerable to ranged anti-infantry shooting. The question becomes do I need that early punch more or the sustained pressure from extra Dark Lances? Either way they are coming with a Venom to provide more anti-infantry punch and I think it comes down to taste. Lanceborn are going to cost 175 for five bodies, two lances and a Venom whilst Blasterborn are 173 points for four bodies, four blasters and a Venom. For now we'll run the Lanceborn and if we need or I feel like the Blasterborn are better, we can easily swap to them.
5x Trueborn w/2x Dark Lance, Venom, 2x Splinter Cannon
5x Trueborn w/2x Dark Lance, Venom, 2x Splinter Cannon
This takes us to 2170 points however so we are going to need to drop something. We'll drop all of the Blast Pistols + Sybarite combos from the Warriors saving 75 points and still leaving us 95 points over. Time to shave and we end up with...
Baron
Haemonculus
2x4x Trueborn w/2x Dark Lances, Venom w/2x Splinter Cannon
3x5x Warriors w/Blaster, Venom w/2x Splinter Cannon
12x Hellions
2x3x Wracks w/Raider w/Shock Prow
2x6x Reavers w/2x Heat Lance
3x Beastmasters w/4x Khymera, 4x Razorwing
3x Ravagers
Totals: 1999 points
66 infantry models (12 jetbikes, 13 jumpers, 11 beasts)
10 vehicles
22 darklight weapons + 110-134 poisoned shots
We've trimmed the Hellions down to 12, dropped a Trueborn from each squad and lost a Khymera and end up with 22 darklight shots (four AP1) and well over 100 poisoned shots + decent anti-infantry combat from the Beastmasters and Hellions + Baron. This makes it harder to swap the Lanceborn for Blasterborn since we trimmed the squad there (swap takes us to 2019 points) so extra trimming would be required to fit them in which may make them a less desirable choice (you'd want them to remain 4x Blaster to ensure they are getting some sort of benefit over the Lanceborn).
All in all I like the list as it comes with a lot of threats, the necessary firepower (perhaps a bit light on anti-tank) and the units I like. It's a massive glass cannon like most of Dark Eldar but with two low threat scorers (the Wracks) I have seven firepower units (Wracks, Ravagers, Lanceborn), six midfield units (Hellions, Warriors, Venoms) and three aggressive units (Reavers, Beastmasters) and a lot of mobility everywhere. I also have three pain tokens to start the game with and two ICs so can move those tokens wherever I see fit (generally Hellions + Wracks or Trueborn) and the +1 to decide who goes first bonus. Not really high Ld but with lots of small units this generally isn't a huge issue and Hellions should quickly get Fearless through tokens. Taking it down to 1750 is a bit of a doozy though and requires either the Beastmasters or Hellions to disappear. I believe dropping the Beastmasters is the better bet as the Hellions are providing both shooting and combat potential though the army wide potential for combat obviously drops. The 1750 version would look something like this:
Baron
Haemonculus
2x5x Trueborn w/2x Dark Lances, Venom w/2x Splinter Cannon
2x5x Warriors w/Blaster, Venom w/2x Splinter Cannon
12x Hellions
2x3x Wracks w/Raider w/Shock Prow
2x6x Reavers w/2x Heat Lance
3x Ravagers
Totals: 1740 points
52 infantry models (12 jetbikes, 13 jumpers)
9 vehicles
21 darklight weapons + 100-124 poisoned shots
losing one of the Warrior squads as well but gaining a couple Trueborn bodies back. This version is easier to swap the Lanceborn for Blasterborn but we also see very little reduction in anti-tank and anti-infantry potential from shooting. Again though, a lack of a really scary unit in combat with the Beastmasters gone. There is very little wiggle room with these lists and whilst the 'defensive' number of infantry and vehicle numbers seem decent, they are very weak and prone to being shot off the board quickly - welcome to Dark Eldar.
Anywho, discuss away. Obviously an issue of the list is the price with this all coming in around $600 from overseas places (including Wayland assuming I can order from there at some point in the future). That's without Beastpacks as well so not exactly cheap! Vince, buy more =D.
