40k List Design: New Chaos

"Eldar fear the Heavy Bolter."
- Ancient Maxim

I've been looking through the new Chaos book, and here's my thoughts.

1) Heavy Bolters

There are none.

Imperials can take Heavy Bolters as follows
1) HQ: 2 in Command Squads
2) HQ and Elite: Inquisitors get them at 4+ save in their retinues, as well as Psycannons
3) Elite: Dreads
4) Elite: Termies get Assault Cannons
5) Elite: 5 man Veteran Squad, infiltrating, gets 1
6) Elite: Scout Squad, infiltrating, gets 1 + Sniper Rifles
7) Elite: Techmarines get them at 4+ save in their retinues
(so far every unit, altho the Command Squad is pushing it a little except in truly static forces)
8) Elite and Troop: Grey Knights get Psycannons
9) Troop: Combat Squads, 5 men can seperate with 1
10) Troop: Razorbacks (also applies to other units as well such as Techmarines or Devastators)
11) Fast Attack: Land Speeders, especially the Assault Cannon+Heavy Bolter combo
12) Fast Attack: Attack Bikes
13) Heavy Support: Devastator Squad
14) Heavy Support: Whirlwind is AP4
15) Heavy Support: Predator Sponsons and Baal
16) Heavy Support: Land Raider Crusader
17) Heavy Support/Transport: Land Raider has one on it
18) HQ Transport: The Land Raider Prometheus bears mention, I think it has something like 12 Heavy Bolters on it, as does one of the Warhound Variants.

That's alot of Heavy Bolters. This is what Chaos gets.

1) Chosen can take them, so ...
1) Elite: 5 man Chosen Squad, infiltrating, with 1 and also plasma gun/combi-bolters
2) Elite: Dreads
3) Elite: Termies can take Reaper Autocannon which is NOT a Heavy Bolter so
3) Troop: Chaos Space Marines can take 1 in a 10 man squad, which also doesn't count, so
3) Heavy Support: Havocs can take them, yay
4) Heavy Support: Obliterators can take them ... oh wait ... no that was the last codex ...
4) Heavy Support: Defilers can take them, but then they can't shoot their Battle Cannon/Fleet so ...
4) Heavy Support: Predator Sponsons
5) Heavy Support/Transport: Land Raider technically has one. Note that it can now only be a transport for 3-5 man squads of Terminators and nothing else.

So in short, Imperials have access to 15+ readily available Heavy Bolters, many of which come in multiples or are Twin Linked. This access spans the organizational chart, including Troop choices. Chaos gets 5, if you count the one on the Land Raider, which is a pretty pricey anti-infantry platform. What's more, given their scarcity, if you really want to have them the only way to really include them is in Havoc squads, other than the occasional Dread.

So if you ever wonder what Imperials 'get' as opposed to their Chaos cousins, now you know. Heavy Bolters.

So what does Chaos get? Chaos gets one thing that Imperials don't, and that's Plasma. And lots of it. Who needs AP4 when you get AP2 and even AP3 in spades? Here's the anti-MEQ stuff

2) Plasmaguns et al

1) HQ/Thousand Sun: The old Heavy Bolter Doombolt from the Tzeentch demons has been replaced with a spell that is S4 AP3. Not bad. The Tzeentch Chicken Head Demon Weapon does the same.
2) Elite: Chosen. Chosen can take 5, count em, 5 infiltrating plasma guns, or they can back 4 plasma guns up with a heavy weapon of their choice, including Heavy Bolters. Think of it as the Renegade Scout Squad.
3) Elite: Dreads again. Plasma Cannon, or ML/PC coming in at a cool ~100 points.
4) Elite: Terminators. Chaos Terminators are cheap and the whole squad can take a combi-plasma or combi-melta for 5 points each. Perfect if you like to deep strike.
5) Troop: Chaos Space Marines and Plague Marines can both take two Plasma or two Melta guns in the ~150 to 175 point range. Not bad for a Troop choice. Imperials get their Combat Squads but Chaos can take 2x Special.
6) Troop: Thousand Suns now get AP3 bolters. Bolters. Their bolters are AP3. And correct me if I'm wrong but with Slow and Purposeful they can shoot them while moving. Nasty. The Force Weapon isn't as much of a rip as you might think considering CSM pay 45 points for a power weapon and 55 points for a power fist anyway.
7) Fast Attack: Bikes can take two Plasma or two Melta guns just like Imperials can. Boo Imperials.
8) Heavy Support: Havocs get a wide assortment of AP2/AP3 goodness.
9) Heavy Support: Obliterators get Plasma Cannons amongst others.
10) Heavy Support: Predator and Land Raider, just like the Imperials.
11) Heavy Support: It bears mention, Chaos gets the Vindicator, just like the Imperials do
12) Heavy Support: Defiler has a Battle Cannon, yay Battle Cannon

So what Chaos is lacking in big guns, Havoc squads aside (which can also take special weapons), they make up for with 18" effective Special Weapons or 24" effective stand and shoot. This is opposed to the evil Imperials with their cheese fest 36" and longer weaponry. Chaos is saved by their Heavy Support and the occasional Dread or Flying Chicken Head of Doom to force morale checks at longer ranges.

3) Close Combat

With all this close range fighting, Chaos also gets an abundance of close combat. There's no need to go on about it, but one unit that caught my eye was the Berzerkers. At only 21 points a model a 6 man squad comes to 126 points, where a 10 man CSM squad with special weapons and an icon comes to ~175 points. Berzerkers are useful "right out of the box" so to speak. You just have to get them there. Did I mention they also have Furious Charge?

6 Possessed with their 5++ are 156 points, but the Berzerkers have 3 attacks each at WS5 opposed to S5. And the Berzerkers are Troop. While they've lost their movement rules, Berzerkers are a very solid close combat unit to back up your wargear toting CSM squads and possibly other more specialized squads like Plague Marines or Noise Marines. I'm personally not going to bother with either, but to each their own. Berzerkers lack the 18" (or longer) effectiveness of the other squads but they're brutal in combat, which is what they're for. I do like Bikes, just because I like them, but also for Summoning/Teleporting, and Chaos Termies are a great close combat squad. Mine are going to be Slaaneshi with I5 and power weapons. Yay me. And no, I'm not leaving the combi weapons behind ;)

40k List: Iyanden III

"Their arrogance is matched only by their firepower."

I'm keeping all my Dark Reapers. What I have left comes in at a cool 4000 points. I don't think I would ever pick anything up again, other than Titans and a Mk II Scorpion. I don't like the chassis on the Cobra, I would pick up a Scorpion and then convert a second turret for it.

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Farseer w/ Runes of Warding, Spirit Stones, Doom, Fortune
Autarch w/ Power Weapon, Avenger Shuriken Catapult
Warlock Bodyguard (10 models)

Harlequin Troupe (10 models)
Striking Scorpions (10 models)

Dire Avengers (10 models)
3x Guardians (14 models)
Wraithguard (11 models)
Pathfinders (6 models)
Guardian Storm Squad (11 models)

Swooping Hawks (6 models)
2x Vyper

2x Wraithlord
2x Fire Prism
2x D-Cannon (2 guns)
2x Dark Reapers (5 models)

Nice army, 4000 might make for a good game of Apocolypse. The idea with the Reapers is that they are only pulled out when they need the really big guns.

I honestly don't know if it would be an effective army for Apocolypse. I think in Apocolypse you're going to see army lists changing because of all the guns on the board. Falcons will be even better because they can soak up so much firepower. There is only so much room on the table for manouvering infantry units, especially large ones so static long range supporting fire power becomes disproportionately more useful.

But then on the other hand, Apocolypse is really just about putting all your models on the table and having a good time. Why field 10 Leman Russ tanks when you can field 30? XD

40k List: Iyanden II

"Our home, our craftworld, our floating fortress amongst the stars, Craftworld Jailinth is beginning to reel from the numerous setbacks and defeats that stand alongside our daring victories and triumph. Our race is dwindling ever more with the ensuing rush of the centuries, new enemies and old nipping at the scattered remains of our past glory. Even the mighty Eldrad himself -- mightest amongst us -- fell in a recent campaign, pitted against the most powerful of all our enemies. Our enemies are many. Our numbers are few. We will stand forever."
- Battle-Seer Tilithas, Advisor to Autarchs, Master of the Art of War, Master of the Blade

I'm selling
- Full squad of Banshees
- Full squad of Fire Dragons
- Full squad of Warp Spiders
- Full squad of Dark Reapers including an EML conversion
- 14 Guardians with a Platform
- 1 D-Cannon/Vibro Cannon
- 1 metal Avatar War God of Shortness
- Two plastic Wave Serpent kits, including the extended rear end (sigh). Pity, because they look really nice. If and when I have money again I want to get the Forge World Falcon spoilers, or maybe I can convert something.

Who knows how much I'll get for it, I'm putting it up as one big lot. It's a sweet deal, nice selection perfect for someone starting out.

I still have a good 2000 to 3000 points.
- Forge World Avatar, when I get it
- 2 Farseers
- 14 Warlocks which I'm cutting into pieces and putting together again. Should be a nice centerpiece as a 10 man bodyguard. I'd like to convert some more but I need robes. I'm getting a 10 man box of Empire Flagellants maybe I can use something from there.

- 10 Wraithguard. May as well keep them. I can always 'pro-paint' them Iyanden and sell them. No I didn't pay full price for them.
- Guardians. I have tons of Guardians, mostly off of Ebay. I have one 20 man squad and two 14 man squads finished. I also have a 14 man Storm squad I may as well keep, I can always paint them and put them on Ebay or sell to a local player. After that the rest of them are getting hacked up as sacrifices to convert ...

- Harlequins and Dire Avengers. I have two old 2nd ed Harlequin leaders, one is going to be my Troupe Leader and one is going to be my Shadowseer. After that I'm going to convert Harlequins mostly using my 20 Dark Eldar from the 3rd ed box set, scraps of Guardians and an odd bit here and there. Not to mention "dynamic poses". As for Dire Avengers, they are going to be Guardians with Dark Eldar heads and a bit of green stuff. With a fancy banner. Hopefully I can get 20 Dire Avengers and 8 Harlequins out of the 20 Dark Eldar + infinite Guardians but I'm not holding my breath.

Support:
- I'm keeping my two Vypers. No serious Eldar player can be without Vypers. What are you going to do 1/6 games when you're playing Cleanse and you need to fly 24" to grab the objective?
- Two metal Wraithlords, the old standbys of reliability.
- My beloved D-Cannons. I have four remaining: one squad of three, or two squads of two.
- I'm keeping my two Falcons. I also have the Forge World Brightlance turret for Wave Serpents. I have it converted to represent Fire Prisms or I can use it in a pinch to make a ghetto Wave Serpent. So I can use them
-- Fire Prism x2
-- Falcon x2
-- Or I can put Wraithguard or Dire Avengers in Wave Serpents
- I have six old rangers. I can keep them. I can sell them. Maybe I can find a local player. 'meh'. I don't really care. They're skinny.

And lastly, Aspect Warriors:
- I'm still keeping my 10 man squad of Scorpions and my 6 man squad of Swooping Hawks. I think I have a couple more Swooping Hawks and a couple more Scorpions I can sell to a local player or make into an Autarch or something. I'm keeping a squad of Dark Reapers because they're cool. Yes, I have that many. They used to be Troop choices. Yes I used to be that guy. :)
- I like Hawks and Scorpions I feel they offer a certain traditional "combined arms" aproach. I've always loved the idea of Hawks, where they fly around but they don't belong in close combat they shoot their guns and have their grenades. Warlocks, Harlequins and Dire Avengers fill a role for elite infantry otherwise missing. Scorpions are a favoured aspect as far as the craftworld's fluff is concerned, even if they miss their haywire grenades and S9 powerfist. The feel of the army and the fluff of the craftworld will be somewhat of an Iyanden-esque 'do more with less' approach. The fluff will definately continue its emphasis on the idea that while the craftworld is a smaller one, and their seers are not necessarily the most powerful, they play a role leading the forces on the battlefield.

40k List: Iyanden

Craftworld Jailinth has finally buckled under population pressure and is no more, their warriors cut down in battle and the last remnants of their lore scattered to the wind.

I'm selling most of my Eldar miniatures on ebay. They're ugly models anyway.

I'm selling the tanks. 10 man Aspect squad + Wave Serpent is too pricey and I find Falcons dull since the change to Spirit Stones. Besides, someone will buy them.

I'm selling all my Aspect Warriors. I'm not real big on them, after years of experience I find them gimicky. I'm tempted to keep the Reapers at least, but 'meh'. They may as well go too. I'm selling my Avatar I want to get the Forge World one.

I'm left with

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Farseer (Fortune and Doom)
Warlock Bodyguard w/ Enhance, Embolden, Conceal and Destructor x1 (6 models)

Wraithguard w/ Conceal and Singing Spear (6 models)
Wraithguard w/ Conceal and Singing Spear (6 models)

Guardians w/ Conceal and Scatterlaser (14 models)
Guardians w/ Conceal and Scatterlaser (14 models)
Guardians w/ Conceal and Scatterlaser (14 models)

D-Cannons (battery of 2 guns)
Wraithlord w/ Brightlance and Eldar Missle Launcher

Comes to 1663 points. Pricey. In 1500 I would probably drop a Wraithguard squad. To push to 2000 I would add more D-Cannons or another Wraithlord. I can also bring the Warlock squad up to 10 models. I'd really like to get a squad of Dire Avengers, but I probably won't. I'm tempted to include a squad of Harlequins, mostly for fluff reasons. If I find it's a losing list I may have to.

Orrrrrrr ... maybe I'll keep them. I'd really like to take them to a GT someday and test myself against the best.

40k: Enough with the Rending, Already

"Chewbacca! What a wookie!"
- Supernova

.... this article will be updated as time goes on ....

40k. Is 40k. It's fun. Lately I've been playing Hordes.

There's a number of things about 40k that are just ... I don't want to say 'broken'. People love playing 40k, I love playing 40k, if people love it it must be a good game. And it is. A game. Like Sorry! or another game with dice, that's all it is really. OK. I'm lying. It's not just a game. It's the fucking ruined battlefields of the 41st millennium and THERE CAN BE ONLY WAR!!!!

Here's my 40k bitch-list.

1. Rending.

Enough with the fucking rending. It's gets to the point I hate the word. "Oh does that have 'rending'". "Yep." "Oh OK so everything dies."

You know what should have rending? Yep. Rending claws. You know, Tyranids? Bug-monsters from hell? Space Hulk? Ripping through panels on a space cruiser? Those guys. With the 'Rending' Claws. They're even called that. It's in the name. Deamonettes have rending. That's fine. I don't care if Deamonettes have rending. They're demon-bitches and they have those big fucking claws on them. That's fine.

You know what else should have rending? Nothing. Nope, not even that. Nothing. OK Shrike can still have it and MAYBE, ONE weird Chaos weapon/character of some kind. It doesn't even need to be a USR, just take it out of the rule book and put it in the army books. The only reason they even made USR was because Hit&Run was fucked up. And then they nerfed Raptors.

The problem with rending isn't infantry, it's vehicles. Besides rending claws here's the list.

1. Assault Cannon.

Does it need rending? No. It's a multi-shot S6 anti-infantry large caliber machine gun. It's a Heavy Bolter with a shorter range. It's a perfectly adequate weapon. If they want it to be better, give it more shots and give normal dreads the option of tank hunters, and give all tactical terminators the option of tank hunters (regardless of whether they are Blood Angels etc). They're terminators. They're dreadnoughts. They're bad-ass. They probably know their way around the battlefield better than their commander for all that Rites of Battle BS.

Should it have rending? No. It doesn't even make any sense. Have you ever heard the experiment where you can throw 1000 ping pong balls with one force unit at a window and not break it, but if you throw one rock of 1000 force units at a window it will break? That's what happens when you shoot a Land Raider with a large caliber machine gun. Nothing. Armour piercing weaponry is pretty advanced science. You can't just keep throwing rocks at a tank and think you're going to penetrate the hull.

2. What else has rending. Harlequins have it now but I'm saving it. Lightning claws. Lightning claws don't actually have rending. But it would be cool if they did. They had something similiar in 2nd ed. Space Hulk was Genestealers vs Terminators. Genestealers have rending. Terminators have Lightning Claws. If it has anything to do with Space Hulk, it must be good. Lightning Claws are cool. If not rending, give them 2d6 armour pen like Chain Fists. Does it need it? Sure. Should it have it? Why not?

3. Something else has rending. OK Harlequins. Harlequins get it now. Since I'm a weird nerdy Eldar player I know the Harlequin Kiss used to wound on a 2+ and did not ignore armour saves.

Does it need it? What's wrong with the wound on a 2+? It's a Witchblade without the armour piercing. OK so Harlies get Furious Charge, maybe it's not such a bad idea giving them rending over wound on 2+ (since they can take advantage of the S4 on the charge). I don't really know what they could have, to be honest. Maybe re-roll to-wound like Living Ammunition.

Should it have it? Again, vehicles. It's the Eldar equivalent of Living Ammunition -- it's a poison weapon basically. On a furious charge rending hit (1/3 of hits after the vehicle has been moving) it counts a S10 weapon, same as a blow from a Carnifex, Dreadnought or Wraithlord. It can destroy a Land Raider or demolish a small building. No it should not have rending.

4. Eldar Rangers count as AP1 on a to-hit roll of 5+/6+. That's a cool rule. Sisters of Battle get something similar. Not rending, but armour piercing. The AP1 Sniper Rifle can technically get a pen when the AP roll is a tie but that's cool cause it can pen AV 11 on a roll of 12 anyway. Since that's just how awesome they are. The Sisters of Battle rule gives them AP1 on a wound roll of 6+. Doesn't effect vehicles. Those are cool rules.

5. Shit, that's what it was. Death Company. They gave the Death Company rending. I guess they're just REALLY REALLY pissed the fuck off. "For Sanguinius!!! AHHHHHH! Fucking Mephisto that guy needs to learn to chill." No, and no. Enough with the fucking rending. Use some imagination.

2. Tau vs MEQ

Stand and shoot Tau vs assaulting MEQ is a cliche. Tau shoot, MEQ die, MEQ reach the lines, Tau die. See who wins. It really just comes down to rolling dice. Something's wrong with the game. I'm not saying it's not fun, it's just not fun when you've done it more than once or twice. You know how much that shit costs? You wonder why Ebay is full of Tau armies. Should you be able to fire stand-and-shoot weapons (heavy and rapid-fire) on the move? A sort of reverse twin-linking where you have to hit twice for it to count? Maybe scenarios can change, or deployment (more use of deep strike and better use of reserves). Fixed army lists? Or maybe things are fine and it's just a game meant to played for fun.

3. Imperial Psychic Powers

Librarians are WAY overpowered. Inquisitors (especially Inquisitor Lords) are underpowered. Fear of the Darkness is overpowered. So is the pinning one. I don't care. It is. It's my bitch-list. Witchhunter Inquisitor powers are OK. But they could be better. They kind of suck, actually. There's no reason why they can't be better. Ordos Malleus powers are all about fighting demons. And that's it, really. They could stand to have a couple more powers that effect the enemy's morale in some way, or even Eldar-esque helping powers. "For the Emperor!" Hopefully when Ordos Xenos is done all Inquisitors will get a bit of a boost. Cause they're cool.

4. Monstrous Creatures and Vehicles

Lots of people complain about this, it must be a valid point. I like the rules for vehicles, I don't think there's anything wrong with them. It's only a six turn game. You get smoke launchers to keep them alive. They can pop on one shot or they can last all game. If your plan revolves around them take two. People don't like vehicles because your opponent can score a moral victory by popping your favorite unit with one shot. That's why it's called Heavy Support. You get Troop choices for a reason. Now get out there and seize some objectives.

Monstrous Creatures tend to be more reliable, ESPECIALLY the ones with 4++ invulnerable saves. No invulnerable? Run them through a forest. And they don't suffer from Crew Shaken, either. I have to admit they could probably use a small nerf. Maybe give each existing Monstrous Creature an extra wound and then make certain weapons cause multiple wounds. Or how about this: the number of wounds caused is based on a difference between the strength of the weapon and the toughness of the MC. So if you hit a T6 MC with S7/S8 it causes 1 wound, and if you hit it with S9/S10 it causes 2. Certain weapons could have bonuses to this, and certain MC's could have rules mitigating it.

5. To come ....

40k Eldar Strategy: In Defence of War Walkers

The Eldar Army list has the most varied, unique and (arguably) most powerful heavy support of any army save the Imperial Guard.

These are their choices.

Falcons (duh): The fastest, most reliable transport in the game, belonging to the army that has the best assault squads. And it has 3 big guns on it to boot.
Wraithlord: WS4 BS4 S10 T8 I4 W3 3+. Option to carry two Eldar heavy weapons. 'nuff said.
Fire Prism: Finally got their due in the new book. 115 point Predator, Eldar style (it flies). Provides S9 anti-tank, AP4 anti-infantry AND AP3/AP2 anti-MEQ.
D-Cannons/Support Weapons: They're freaking D-Cannons. Artillery rules keep them alive.

Following the big guns come Dark Reapers and War Walkers. Dark Reapers tend to get respect (cause they're kick ass) and War Walkers tend not to. There are reasons for this, the price ($$) per model being one of them. Much talk is had of guiding batteries of S6 shooting blah blah, I don't want to hear it. You shouldn't have to toss in a 100+ point HQ selection to make a unit viable.

I just want to mention: one mistake I had been making myself is that unlike the Wraithlord, if a War Walker carries two of the same weapon it does not count as twin-linked. It counts as having two weapons.

Imperial Guard Sentinels are the obvious comparison. They are both AV10 Walkers, they both get the Scouts rule and they are both BS3. Sentinels, unfortunately -- are a rip. Their only saving grace being the fact that they take up a Fast Attack selection in the Guard/LatD armies, with the bevy of strong Heavy Support choices available. War Walkers are no longer open topped, unlike Sentinels.

Sentinel w/ Armoured Crew Compartment and 1x Multilaser: 60 pts.
War Walker w/ 2x Scatter Laser: 60 pts.

'nuff said. War Walker: 1, Other Stuff: 0. Imperial Guard pay a premium for their Heavy Weapons, but the War Walker is still a great deal points wise. It even gets I4 and an extra attack. w00t.

Within the Eldar list, the closest comparisons are Dark Reapers, Vypers and Wraithlords. We can also include the Fire Prism, assuming it is shooting once. Hand-waving I'm going to consider the Fire Prism one shot at S9 to be equivalent.

Dark Reapers w/ Missile Launcher and Fast Shot (4 models): 182 pts. (2 shots @ BS5)
3x Vypers w/ Missile Launchers: 195 pts. (3 shots @ BS3)
Wraithlord w/ Missile Launcher and Bright Lance: 155 pts. (2 shots at BS4)
Fire Prism w/ Prism Cannon: 115 pts. (1 shot at BS4)
3x War Walkers w/ 2x Missile Launchers: 210 pts. (6 shots @ BS3)

Some simple math. Hits/point, normalized by x100:
Dark Reapers: 0.916
Vypers: 0.769
Wraithlord: 0.860
Fire Prism: 0.580 to 0.800 (hand-waving)
War Walkers: 1.429

War Walkers: 2, Other Stuff: 0.

Anti-infantry.
Dark Reapers (4 models): 140 pts. (8 S5 shots @ BS4)
2x Vypers w/ 2x Shuriken Cannons: 120 pts. (12 S6 shots @ BS3)
Fire Prism w/ Prism Cannon: 115 pts. (6 S5 shots at BS4) (pie plate == 6 models, hand-waving)
2x War Walkers w/ 2x Scatter Laser: 120 pts. (16 S6 shots @ BS3)

Math. Hits/point, normalized by x100. This counts S5 and S6 as equal:
Dark Reapers: 3.810 (AP3)
Vypers: 5.000 (AP5)
Fire Prism: 3.478 (AP4)
War Walkers: 6.667 (AP6)

Go War Walkers. Fire Prism does better if you can get more models under the template, and shines against 4+.

War Walkers: 3, Other Stuff: 0.

Anti-MEQ.
Dark Reapers (4 models): 140 pts. (8 S5 shots @ BS4)
2x Vypers w/ Star Cannon and Shuriken Cannon (counts as one additional shot): 160 pts. (6 S6 shots @ BS3)
Two Fire Prisms w/ Prism Cannon: 230 pts. (6 S6 shots at TL BS4) (pie plate == 6 models, hand-waving)
2x War Walkers w/ 2x Star Cannon: 160 pts. (8 S6 shots @ BS3)

Dark Reapers: 3.810 (S5)
Vypers: 1.875 (S6)
Fire Prism: 2.319 (S6)
War Walkers: 2.500 (S6)

Ouch. Reapers 4TW. Note that if you take into account cover saves you're better off or about the same with Scatter Lasers over Star Cannons, at least against 3+. Terminators are another story. Starcannons might be worth it against Terminators but I prefer to use our old friend the Shuriken Catapult. So as it stands call it

War Walkers: 3, Other Stuff: 1.

So War Walkers have their uses, and could be considered a valid use of a Heavy Support slot. Before I got carried away, all I really wanted to show was that the Eldar Missile Launcher is a great weapons choice. Cheaper than both the Starcannon and Bright Lance, it comes with a longer range of 48". Great for keeping the more fragile War Walkers and Vypers out of harm's way. So for 140 points you get 4 Missile Launcher shots at BS3 with 48" range. The War Walkers have Scouts and get 3d6 for their difficult terrain roll, allowing for a chance at key flanking deployment. While understandable, it's a shame they aren't a Fast Attack choice giving them a later deployment. Very important for a flanking unit. In addition, the blast on the EML is AP4, and even forces a pinning test. The Scatter Laser battery also makes a very viable choice, coming in at 120 or 180 points.

Personally, I'd probably just take Reapers and Fire Prisms. I have the models, for one. I think they're fun, for another. Dark Reapers really put the hurt on MEQ, and Fire Prisms have very unique versatility (at the cost of two Heavy Support selections). War Walkers are a good fit in a two Falcon Army, giving them some serious anti-armour fire support they could be missing.

And yes, you can even combine them with Guide. XD

40k Eldar List: Falcons? Falcons? We don't need no stinkin' Falcons!

"Where does he get those wonderful toys?"
- The Joker

My last list had a ~350 point unit: A Falcon with six Harlequins inside it. Gotta love it, right? With the change to Spirit Stones, Falcons have gone from 'nigh unkillable' to 'just plain unkillable'. I'm good enough at the game (measuring ranges, etc) that I rarely make mistakes and I can get away with having some fun in my list. So instead of a 350 point unit that is really nothing more than an assault squad, here is my new army for my next games.

While initially disapointed, I really do love the new Eldar book. Taking away the tank hunting from the Striking Scorpions was a shame, but you can't have everything. The Warlock Bodyguard, Harlequins and Wraithguard squads of less then 5 models more than make up for it.

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Striking Scorpions (infiltrating) (10 models)

Dire Avengers w/ all upgrades including Shimmershield (10 models)
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal (14 models)
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal (14 models)

Swooping Hawks (6 models)
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher

Comes to 1155 points. Which gives us lots of room in 2000.

We can then make additions. Variety is mostly dependant on Heavy Support.

Pretty balanced list.
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Autarch w/ Power Weapon and Shuriken Catapult (goes with Dire Avengers)

Striking Scorpions (infiltrating)
Wraithguard (3 models)

Dire Avengers w/ all upgrades including Shimmershield
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal

Swooping Hawks
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher x2
Warp Spiders (6 models)

D-Cannon (battery of two cannons)
D-Cannon (battery of two cannons)
Wraithlord w/ Wraithsword and Starcannon

Another Good List.
Avatar
Autarch w/ Power Weapon and Shuriken Catapult (goes with Dire Avengers)

Striking Scorpions (infiltrating)
Wraithguard (3 models)

Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Dire Avengers w/ all upgrades including Shimmershield
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Pathfinders (5 models)

Swooping Hawks
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher x2
Warp Spiders (6 models)

Fire Prism
Fire Prism
Dark Reapers w/ Missile Launcher and Fast Shot (4 models)

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The biggest change in these two lists from the original one is the removal of the Falcon and the addition of the Warp Spider unit. Freeing up a Heavy Support selection gives us some room to add the Dark Reapers or have some fun with two units of D-Cannons. The Falcon + Harlequin combo is something that you can't go wrong with when you're designing your list. But there's more than way to win, and mixing things up keeps an opponent on their toes.

This is the 'D-Cannon' List. You can guide D-Cannons, giving a re-roll on the scatter dice. Brutal. With the change from S10 AP2 to having the same rules as Wraithcannon, the D-Cannon can still pop vehicles without having to have the center of the blast template landing on the vehicle. Brutal. Note that while I've listed six D-Cannons just for the sake of things, I actually only own five models (thank you Mr. Ebay). This is more of a fire base type of army, with some assault units for counter charge rather than acting as shock troops.

Avatar
Eldrad ('Farseer Tilithas', Battle-Seer of Craftworld Jailinth)

Striking Scorpions (infiltrating)

Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal
Dire Avengers w/ all upgrades including Shimmershield
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal (20 models)

Swooping Hawks
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher

D-Cannons (battery of 3 guns)
D-Cannons (battery of 3 guns)
Wraithlord w/ Wraithsword and Starcannon

This list could probably use some tweaking. If we got rid of the Avatar, we have another 'core' army to build lists around.

Eldrad ('Farseer Tilithas', Battle-Seer of Craftworld Jailinth)

Dire Avengers w/ all upgrades including Shimmershield (10 models)
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Embolden (14 models)
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Embolden (14 models)
Guardians w/ Scatterlaser and Conceal (20 models)

Swooping Hawks (6 models)
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher
Vyper w/ Eldar Missile Launcher

D-Cannons (battery of 3 guns) w/ Embolden
D-Cannons (battery of 3 guns) w/ Embolden

Comes to 1555 points. With a Heavy Support and 3 Elites choices free. Lots of room to add assault troops, long range supporting fire or flanking units such as Warp Spiders. The addition of each thereby changing the feel of the army and how it's used. There's even enough room to add a Falcon full of Harlequins, which would be a very useful addition -- not to mention fluffy, if it's taken to be an Ulthwe army.