Eldar Units in a Nutshell

Hi guys,

Johno here and today I’m going to summarize each section of the new Eldar Codex and pick out the good, the bad, and the ugly of each section. I know there are lots of excellent in-depth reviews of the new book online so I will take a lighter approach so for those of you at work can skim over this and get all the information you need without getting caught by your boss with your head in your smart phone. We are very lucky that our new book is very strong in nearly all areas and we have a lot to choose from. I'm going break this analysis it down into HQ, Troops, Elites, Fast Attack, Transport, and Heavy Support.

HQ Section

Excellent Choices:

Avatar – Fearless Bubble, Attracts fire from other units, anti-EVERYTHING. Cheap for what you get!

Loadout – 205pts with Fast Shot

Eldrad – Best Psyker in 40k, Nice special rules with a sprinkle of cheddar. You WILL lose friends.

Loadout – N/A

Farseer – Excellent Psyker and very versatile. Makes already excellent units amazing.

Loadout – No Addon’s really worth it

Autarch – Great Support Character, Often underestimated. Can hold his own against most.

Loadout – Jetbike, Mantle of the Laughing God, Power Axe, Banshee Mask.

Karandras – Godly close combat character. Powerfist strikes at I7.

Loadout – N/A

Asurman – Another great close combat character with good rules to match. Close call between him and Karandras.

Loadout – N/A

Fuegen – Really good close combat character and has feel no pain, whats not to love?

Loadout – N/A

Prince Yriel – Fantastic close combat character but at a hefty price.However you get a lot of nice special rules and a lot of killy for your buck.

Loadout – N/A

Moderate Choices:

Wraithseer – Crucial if you are taking Wraithguard/blades and can give them great buffs. Don’t bring if not taking Wraith units.

Loadout – No Addons

Warlocks – Excellent support units for large groups of guardians. Is 35pts too much for a guy who’s head can explode on a roll of 9 on 2d6? You’re Choice.

Loadout – Singing Spear (Basically a 12” range Lascannon).

Maugan Ra – Decent close combat and ranged character however he’s not exceptionally great at either really. Definitely not worth the outlay in points.

Loadout – N/A

Illic Nightspear – Comes with a great sniper rifle and very killy. Very Fragile. Unlocks Pathfinders. Can be a thorn in your opponents side.

Loadout – N/A

Poor Choices:

Jain Zar – Great Close Combat character however with lack of grenades means she will die fast.

Loadout – N/A

Baharroth – Can be useful but unlikely to really make back his points in most games. Can be good for stealing Line Breaker in late game.

Loadout – N/A

Troops Section

Excellent Choices

Guardian Defenders – Cheap and once in range are devastating. Great buy!

Loadout – Support Platform with Scatter Laser or Brightlance. Blobs of 20 are amazing.

Dire Avengers – Upgraded version of the Guardian. 18” range can be crucial. Better Armor and invun save from Exarch. Excellent unit.

Loadout – Exarch with Powersword and Shimmershield.

Guardian Jetbikes – Extremely fast and durable. Cheap and very reliable Catapults (Twin linked).

Loadout – Take in units of 3 or 6 with upgraded Shuriken cannon for every 3 you take.

Moderate Choices

Rangers - Still a great sniper unit however compared to other races snipers they are expensive for what you get. Not sure if worth it.

Loadout – N/A

Pathfinders - Amazing Snipers but having to spend all those points on Illic Nightspear to unlock them relegates them to moderate choice.

Loadout – N/A

Poor Choices

Storm Guardians – A close combat unit that does its intended job quite poorly.

Loadout - Can be ok if you take blobs of 20 with flamers or unit of 10 in a wave serpent with two fusion guns.

Elites Section

Excellent Choices

Fire Dragons – Still amazing even with points hike. Very reliable.

Loadout – 5 Fire Dragons in Wave Serpent, Done…

Wraithblades – Phenominally hard unit to shift if attached with Wraithseers giving buffs. Capable of 2+ armor save. Extremely killy and will worry your opponent from turn one.

Loadout – Axes and shields are best. Buy a unit of 10 with two spirit seers and march them across the board.

Wraithguard – Shares the W.Blades durability but lacking an invun save however give these Wraithscythes and they WILL kill anything you point them at.

Loadout – 5 bodies with Wraithscythes in wave serpent.

Striking Scorpions – Fantastic Close combat unit. The Exarch really makes them shine with his I6 Powerfist.

Loadout – 5 Scorpions with Exarch and Scorpions Claw.

Moderate Choices

Harlequins – As good, if not better close combat unit than Striking Scorpions, however you have to pay through the nose to get them.

Loadout – Shadowseer, Troop Master, Kisses all round.

Poor Choices

Howling Banshees – Best Model, Worst rules. Decent for protecting backfield troops or counter attacks. Will die in droves.

Loadout – 9 Banshees and Exarch with Executioner.

Fast Attack Section

Excellent Choices

Crimson Hunter – Best Air Superiority fighter in the game, epitome of “glass cannon”.

Loadout – Keep with the Pulse Laser and Bright lances and upgrade to an Exarch for BS5 goodness and able to pick out models in a squad on a roll of 6 to hit.

Warp Spiders – Amazing damage output, extremely fast. One of the codex’s best units.

Loadout – 8 Warp Spiders with Exarch and Dual Spinners.

Moderate Choices

Vyper Jetbike – Packs a huge punch but fragile. Very flexible. Can make back their points but die easily.

Loadout – Upgraded under Shuriken Cannon, Shuriken Cannon or Scatter Laser Turret.

Swooping Hawks – Great harassment units, Can win you games. Great at claiming line breaker. Will destroy tanks and infantry.

Loadout – 5 Hawks with Exarch and skyleap.

Poor Choices

Hemlock Wraith Fighter – Too expensive and rather situational. Can horrify your own units too. Best to leave at home.

Loadout – No Addons

Transports Section

Wave Serpent – Expensive transport but absolutely worth it. Probably best transport in the game right now and our best tank in general.

Loadout – Holofields, Scatter Laser, Upgraded under Shuriken Cannon

Heavy Support Section

Excellent Choices

Wraithknight – Extremely durable, fear factor, kills everything. Expensive but worth it.

Loadout – Standard two Heavy Wraith Cannons is best.

Fire Prism – Kills armor and all types of infantry with ease. Can be very difficult to kill. Avoid getting close to close combat troops.

Loadout – Holofields

War Walker – Good Value, More durable now with inv save, a lot of firepower.

Loadout – Dual Scatter Lasers is best

Moderate Choices

Falcon – Excellent anti-tank platform, Can carry small units. Typical tough Eldar tank design.

Loadout – Pulse Laser and Bright Lance, Holofields

Nightspinner – Kills all infantry with impunity. Durable grav tank. Cheap.

Loadout - Holofields

Wraith Lord – Very tough, Decent price, good all rounder. Can get bogged down in close combat with hordes.

Loadout – Ghostglaive, Brightlance, Missile Launcher

Dark Reapers – Expensive, Very killy, Can kill all infantry and vehicles and also aircraft with an Exarch.

Loadout – Upgraded all missiles to Starshot, 5 Reapers with an Exarch included, Night Vision, Skyfire, Fast Shot.

Vauls Battery – Very Cheap and durable but slow, move OR shoot.

Loadout – D-Cannons

No Poor Choices in Heavy

So there you have it, the Eldar codex in a nutshell. All the good and bad points of each unit. Hope you found this article useful for those of you wishing to know which units to take and their strengths and weaknesses. The above evaluation is by no means the bible but it should give you a snapshot of all the Eldar units.

Thanks for reading!

Johno

The Tournament Dilemma

Hi guys,

Johno here with idea’s for a couple of new look Eldar Saim Hann lists for an annual 1600pt national tournament coming up at the end of September called NWG. I love themed armies with lots of background and story to them, but sometimes we are led astray by wild thoughts for just a cool army regardless if it fits fluff or not. Well these new army lists kind of go against the usual make-up of a traditional Saim Hann army but I think it could be good fun to play and look brilliant on the table-top.

List 1:

HQ’s

Autarch 150pts – Jetbike, Mantle of Laughing God, Power Axe, Banshee Mask

This guy will boost my reserve roles for my Jetbikes or my fliers or allow me to delay them with his master of strategy rule. But also he is quite good on his own. With mantle of the laughing god he can’t join another unit but gains hit and run, shrouded and stealth and can reroll all cover saves which on a Jetbike can be a potential 2+ cover save. Pairing a Banshee Mask with the Power Axe should allow him to still hit with his axe before most enemies. He’s isnt going to kill Abaddon or anything but still quite good.

TROOP’S

10 Dire Avengers 160pts – Exarch, Power Sword and Shimmershield

10 Dire Avengers 160pts – Exarch, Power Sword and Shimmershield

10 Guardian Defenders – 110pts – Bright Lance

10 Guardian Defenders – 110pts – Bright Lance

5 Guardian Jetbikes – 85pts

The Guardian squads and their bright lances man backfield objectives if possible, the Avengers move forward using battle focus to kill enemy infantry and heavy infantry from afar. The Jetbikes will either go in reserve and contest or steal late objectives or backup another squad.

FAST ATTACK

Crimson Hunter 160pts – Pulse Laser, Bright Lance x 2

Crimson Hunter 160pts – Pulse Laser, Bright Lance x 2

Nightwing Interceptor 145pts – Shuriken Cannon x 2, Bright Lance x 2

This will be my source of a good amount of anti armor in my army. Although hard to hit for regular based weaponry, Eldar flier’s are extremely fragile so I will have to be intelligent in my placement of them. Luckily the Crimson Hunter’s weapons are ranged 48” so if im smart I can stay out of that intercepting weapons like Aegis etc.

HEAVY SUPPORT

2 War Walkers 140pts – Scatter Lasers x 2

5 Dark Reapers – 217pts – Exarch, Fast Shot, Skyfire, Night Vision, Starshot missiles.

Here my two War Walkers will tackle all types of targets, from infantry to light vehicles to fliers. My Dark Reapers excel at killing infantry and armor and the Exarch is pretty handy at taking out fliers also.

List 2:

HQ:

Farseer 100pts - Guide, Precience

Farseer 100pts - Guide, Precience

My two Farseers will take Guide and Precience and spam cast both powers on the Wraith Knights and Dire Avengers. I will run both Farseers in the Dire Avenger Squads.

TROOP’S

10 Dire Avengers 160pts – Exarch, Power Sword and Shimmershield

10 Dire Avengers 160pts – Exarch, Power Sword and Shimmershield

10 Guardian Defenders – 110pts – Scatter Laser

10 Guardian Defenders – 110pts – Scatter Laser

4 Guardian Jetbikes – 78pts – Shuriken Cannon

Both Dire Avenger Squads will benefit from guide from the Farseers spitting out 18” bladestorm death with rerolls to hit. The two will hold back field objectives and kill light vehicles and infantry with the 36” range scatter lasers. The Jetbikes will go in reserve and hopefully come in to steal late objectives or boost other units.

HEAVY SUPPORT

Wraithknight 240pts – Heavy Wraith Cannon x 2

Wraithknight 240pts – Heavy Wraith Cannon x 2

Wraithknight 300pts – Sun Cannon, Shimmershield, Scatter Laser

The two Wraith Knights with the Heavy Wraith Cannons will pop Tanks and Transports and Monstrous Creatures with their instant death Distortion rules, all the while advancing to get into close combat. The Sun Cannon Wraith Knight will take out Elite Infantry and Light Infantry while also advancing. Should be hard to deal with these three.

So there you have it, the two lists I am pondering for this tournament but I just don’t know which one to take. List one is excellent at anti-flier and air superiority however I know it won’t dominate some of those airforce lists out there but it should do ok. Plenty of troop’s choices with 5 squads in both lists at 1600pts. The Autarch will hopefully help manipulate reserve rolls and kick some butt with his Power Axe although he will stay well clear of Greater Daemons or Typhus etc. List two introduces three Wraith Knights. This could be a lot of fun and a pain in the arse for opponents to deal with provided they aren’t sporting a load of poison weaponry. The dual Farseer support should mean that all shots hit from these monsters and also from the Dire Avengers. The Farseers will also help with the Wraith Knights hitting fliers however it’s still a long shot and I suppose list 2 somewhat ignores fliers to an extent.

Which list would you take?

The New Eldar Warlord Traits

Warlord Traits

Eldar players may choose their Warlords traits from either the codex specific warlord traits table, or they can select from the three charts in the main rulebook. I suppose the first and foremost incentive for you to take the codex traits over the ones in the rulebook is that they seem geared for Eldar and in my opinion are quite decent for what you get. On my first observation the warlord traits left much to be desired however after reading them over and thinking of how they could affect the game I have changed my mind on these. Let’s march on and see what we can conjure up with the traits given to us.

1. Ambush of Blades

It allows friendly units within 12” to re-roll to wound rolls a one result for the duration of that shooting phase. Now bearing in mind that the army I field has about 70+ strength 6 shots (typical Eldar army does really) a turn so most of the time I am rolling a 2+ to wound, it could still be very handy if you are fielding large bubbles of infantry. Think about running 2 large blobs of 20 Guardian Defenders along with some Dire Avengers and an Avatar and what you get is one messy round of shooting when you use this warlord trait. Use it as soon as you are in range and when you have most models alive (early in the game) to maximize your damage output. Bear in mind that this is a one use only per battle trait.

2. An Eye on Distant Events

This trait allows for the Warlord to give the Stealth special rule to any units within 12”. I can see this especially useful for a footslogging Eldar army. Not bad having 60+ infantry with the stealth special rule don’t you think? It also confers stealth to vehicles too so not a bad trait at all. Just keep in mind that if you are playing Tau, don’t bother with this trait as they can remove it at a whim. Still though for other games this one is definitely worth considering.

3. Falcon's Swiftness

This trait adds 1” of all running movement to your Warlord and a unit he is attached to. Quite good especially if your warlord and the unit he is attached to want to get some place in a hurry, say close combat. Combine this with fleet and you can get a very fast and dangerous unit. I can see this very useful on your avatar to give him that extra range don’t you think? Moves 6” and then runs a potential 7” with reroll due to fleet! Nice! Unfortunately this trait is completely useless for Jetbike mounted Warlords as they can’t run.

4. Fate's Messenger

Your Eldar Warlord may re-roll a failed saving throw of a one. Again the Avatar can really benefit this but especially those 2+ toting Phoenix Lords too. Might be handy for denying your opponent that Slay the Warlord Victory point or help keep him alive in those intense challenges and frustrate your opponent. Get Asurman and the chances of getting this are very high since you can roll D3 times on the warlord table and pick which one you want. Asurman has a 2+ and a 4+inv so pretty handy.

5. Mark of the Incomparable Hunter

This Warlord trait allows your Warlord to fire at a separate target than the unit he is attached to. Might be handy for a Farseer with Eldrich Storm or a Fusion gun armed Autarch, Think of it like this, the Autarch and his Dire Avengers approach the Rhino/Land Raider etc. The Autarch fires the Fusion gun melting the Land Raider followed then by ten Dire Avengers unleashing a flurry of razor sharp discs into your opponents precious cargo. Ok I know it’s a bit situational but still… Not bad especially on a Seer council.

6. Seer of the Shifting Vector

This can be a decent trait providing you take a list that can take advantage of it. This trait allows any deep striking units not to scatter if they arrive within six inches of the Warlord. Could be very handy for deep striking some Jetbikes or better yet, Warp spiders!

Overall I might have misjudged the Warlord traits when I first looked at them. I definitely see potential there and providing you are willing to accommodate the trait into your list so you can take full advantage of it, I think they are going to be pretty solid for you.

The Forgotten Eldar Autarch

The Venerable Autarch

These days all you see are Farseers and Eldrad and the odd Avatar, but I ask you, how often do you play against an opponent who fields an Autarch against you?

I sometimes imagine the Farseers all gathered in the canteen in their Craftworld eating salad and talking about glorious battles and boasting about slaying some deadly opponent by popping their heads. Just then a couple of Autarchs walk into the canteen and a sudden hush comes over the room. Why? Because the Farseers don't want the Autarchs to know about the fun they been having in all these battles just in case they want to come along to the next battle instead of another Farseer or Mr, Khaine Himself.

Ok without a doubt the Farseer is the best HQ in the codex currently but what has the Autarch got to offer?
Lets take a look at the stats:

For 70pts base you get:
WS BS S T W I A LD Sv
  6    6   3 3  3 6 3 10  3+

They come stock with Shuriken Pistol, Plasma Grenades, Haywire Grenades, Forcefield (4+ inv).

Special Rules: Fleet, Independent Character, Master Stratagist (+1 to reserve rolls).

Ok so not bad on paper but how do we load him out?

 Movement Options:

Swooping Hawk Wiings:

You can equip your Autarch with Swooping Hawk wings. I suppose the only real reason that makes sense for doing such a thing is to attach your Autarch to a unit of Swooping Hawks and just stay off the board the whole game dropping templates and skyleaping away. Then in the last turn land in your opponents deployment zone claiming "Line Breaker" objective.

Warp Jump Generator:

Another way your Autarch can get around is by taking a warp jump generator , identical to the teleportation device that our Warp Spiders operate. This will allow your Autarch to jump 12" in the movement phase, then shoot and then jump away again. How would you use such an Autarch? Well obviously a unit of Warp Spiders would work well but I can't see it being worthwhile.



Eldar Jetbike:

This is by far the most popular and for good reason. Ok it costs a little bit more than the other two options but for the privilege you get a 12" movement that can turbo boost up to 36". You get +1 T and also twin linked Str 4 Assault 2 shots. It also gives you a  3+ armor save but the Autarch already comes with this. The best way to use this type of Autarch is to attach him to either a Seer Council or a unit of Shining Spears.



Weapon Options:

Fusion Gun:

Same thing as a Melta Gun with a phalic appearance and best of all it comes with the kit! Take if you want to blow up Vehicles but beware of its limited 12" range. Dont forget you need to be half range to get that juicey 2D6 armor penetration.

Reaper Launcher:

A 36" range missile launcher that fires two Str 5 missiles at AP3. Not only that but your Autarch can move normally and shoot this even though it's a heavy weapon due to him being on a jetbike. Bit pricey but well worth it in my opinion. You will have to convert this as it doesn't come with the current kit. Hopefully it does if the model is re-released with the new codex.

Laser Lance:

I really like the laser lance. You can shoot it from 6" away and when you charge with it you get all your attacks count as Str 6. It's only AP4 however but still Str 6 pretty sweet. I prefer this over a power sword but there are arguments for the power sword too so take what suits your taste.

Power Sword:

The famous power sword in all its glory. Oh wait it's wounding on Str 3! While the Laser Lance wounds easier, the power sword negates 3+ armor saves. Versus 2+ armor you are much better off with the Laser Lance since Str 6 will serve you better and is why I usually take one over a power sword.

General Uses:

Ok so the stats above are good, not amazing but just good. Lets not forget that he is still only T3 when on foot. Also if you come up against a reasonably decent melee HQ from another army be prepared to open that figure case and get his designated space in it prepped because he will be going in it very soon. He just doesnt have the wargear or special rules to allow him to compete with the best or the very good for that matter.

So why bring one at all? If you are using some flyers in your list he will allow them in on a 2+ which is always handy. I use a Nightwing myself so it is that more reliable with an Autarch on the scene. Add him to the right unit and that unit will tear through anything bar the very best units in the game.

So currently what's the best way to use him/her?

Ok firstly in my opinion the only way to really take an Autarch and make the most out of him is on a Jetbike. Then a nice Laser Lance to give him that 6x Str6 charge in attacks is alway good. Then I give him a Reaper Launcher for some good ranged hitting power as you are closing in with your target. All this comes to a pricey 155pts.

I run mine in a Seer Council unit and currently I think this is the best way to use him. He gives the entire unit grenades which is extremely important. Also he gives the unit even more hitting power and crucially he protects the farseer from challenges. In return he gains fortune from the farseer increasing his surviablility drastically. Also with a Warlock with Enhance his WS and initiative goes up to WS7 and I7. Together with the Seer Council they will kill nearly anything they come across but be wary of 2+ armor.

Another way to run the Jetbike Autarch is with Shining Spears. He gives the unit that bit more "umph" and gains skilled rider which in his case he has a 4+inv anyway but gains the other benfits of the special rule. At the moment the Shining Spears are just too pricey for what they do but if you are so inclined they will gain grenades, LD10, and you can protect the Autarch from challenges with your Exarch or vice versa.



Conclusion:

Is he the best unit it in the codex? Certainly not. Is he the worst unit in the codex? Certainly not. Although he is overpriced and wont stand toe to toe to lets say a kitted out Chaos Lord, if you play him with a some cunning I feel he can do you justice.

Codex Rating: C