Wednesday, May 29, 2013

The sky is not falling, Eldar will not be bad in the new codex...(plus update with pictures from the codex inside)


As I read the leaked codex info and see people's commentary, I am so perplexed that suddenly everyone is an expert on Eldar, the Meta and game balance. The internet is wrong people, Eldar will not suck in the upcoming release and I'll tell you why!


As an update to this post, here is a blog with pictures of the new codex. Some things I posted below are inaccurate because of this new information (so disregard inaccuracies  I'm aware of them:)) but I still maintain that Eldar are going to be better and different in 6th.

I think, therefore it's true?
So when did everyone become such a philosoraptor on the internet? No people, Eldar are not going to be bad, terrible, suck and be the next CSM...The reason being is that the changes are balanced, make sense, and will allow the good Eldar players to do well. The new rumors, if true, are pretty much what I was hoping for in a new codex (aside from the random powers). I did not want an easy to use, point-click-win army that anyone and everyone can get behind and roflestomp with. I wanted a well thought-out and balanced codex that can provide the good Eldar players with the necessary tools to roflestomp with. I immediately see a lot of opportunities and combinations between units that a lot of people seem to be blowing off or dismissing as failtastic...Its frustrating arguing with the internet sometimes.

With that said, Eldar are not going to be the next IG, SW, GK, Necrons or whatever. They will take some time to get used to and you will need to think to do well with them. One thing Eldar have always been great at is offering a lot of layers of synergy. The players that were able to pull out this synergy from the codex and apply it effectively through making good lists and playing it well in a game are the ones that do well in tournaments. So I am sorry that you can't have the blatantly obvious powerful units that some other codici have, Eldar are not built that way and a lack of such units does not mean they suck.  So about this "synergy" stuff?




Synergy:
I want to point out that the new codex is chalk full of options and opportunities for effective synergy.  For starters, almost everything in the new dex has become more effective/potent; everything in the dex CAN be very lethal with the proper support. Lets go over what we have to work with that we didn't have before:

WS/BS 4 buff, now everything is at a minimum WS/BS 4. This is what a lot of people had a huge problem with when playing Eldar...Having WS/BS3 on so many things was a real pain and so many things were unreliable that you had to have guide to make units do anything. Now, you can count on things being way more accurate than they ever were and this also makes our units synergize a lot more effectively with powers like Guide, though not dependent on powers like guide to be effective (as I'll discuss below).


Shuriken weapons, the staple and signature Eldar weapon, now auto-
wounds and is AP 2 against anything with a Toughness value on a to-wound roll of 6. This is so huge that now our Shuriken weapons can do decent damage to anything with a T value and those Guardians/Dire Avengers or anything with Shuriken weapons suddenly become a threat to things that usually shrugged off these weapons before. Terminators/Space Marines and especially Monstrous Creatures, beware!

So these weapons have a limited range, woop-ti-do? They are now generally on units with greater accuracy thanks to the BS4 buff and any unit with Shuriken weapons have ways to off-set this limited range. If Shuriken weapons had a range buff, then those wielding them would need to be more expensive and I don't think anyone really wants that when simply better play can take care of the range issue. For starters, the ability to run and shoot coupled with more reliable/survivable transports are enough to get our units where they need to be as I'll discuss below.

Battlefocus as a general army wide rule is huge. Now we have the ability to run and shoot or shoot and run on the majority of our units. Combined with Fleet, you can re-roll this distance if you don't like the first result and this then becomes a very reliable way to get closer to the enemy (or farther) without sacrificing your shooting phase. This also allows you to get more milage out of transports since you can actually get out farther from the transport (move vehicle 6", get out 6", run d6" then shoot or shoot then run away d6"). We also have a power that allows a unit to run 3" more so we can potentially have certain units run 9" thereby potentially increasing the threat range of Guardians to 27" (6" move, 9" run, 12" gun range). What's not to love about this rule?

Wave Serpents changed a lot but I think for the better...

-Regarding survivability, The field initially just protected our tanks from Penetrating hits by making Penetrating hits less likely via a S reduction from anything over S8 and D6 reduction from Melta/Ordinance weapons. Ultimately, it did nothing to prevent Glancing hits but only made them more likely (than penetrating ones) and it did nothing to protect from anything already S8 or less...Back before HP were introduced, this was a great mechanic as Glancing shots were more forgiving on the damage chart. Now, the field simply reduces any Penetrating hit to a Glancing hit on a 2+.  Everything can and will be glanced to death at some point, what this field does now is help ensure that the one off Lascannon/Melta/Railgun shot that pens your tank will not destroy it in one go by preventing a roll on the damage chart from taking place all together. Hopefully you can now take Holofields on Wave Serpents and get a nice cover save bonus...Keep in mind that Warlocks can cast Conceal on the transport they are in so you can have Serpents flying around with a 3+ Jink save (2+ if Holofields come into play or you go flat out). That is a pretty cool set of combos and it is effective use of synergy.

-Offensively, the Serpent is a lot more potent in that the Serpent field can be used as a ranged weapon that does D6 S7 Ap- cover ignoring/pinning hits (but if used as a weapon, no field benefit next turn). The Serpent is also more accurate and deadly since it is now BS 4, comes with a Shuriken Cannon as standard and can be upgraded with the same weapons we know and love. This tank is asking for a Scatter Laser turret and underslung Shuriken Cannon! First of all, the Scatter Laser has a new rule that allows it to fire before any other weapon and if it hits, every other weapon on the model/vehicle becomes Twin-linked. This basically gives you quite the punch and turns Wave Serpents into mini gunboats. Move 12" and you can have 7 BS4 S6 Twin-linked shots or if you move 6" you can add the Serpent Shield shooting attack for an extra D6 S7 shots. All of this together offers us a more potent offense from our vehicles. Sure they got a bit more pricy, but if Weapon upgrades are cheaper than I'll live with these changes.

Psychic powers received a huge overhaul and all of our powers have some use/purpose and synergize very well with just about any type of Eldar army...

-Farseer powers have some interesting Witchfire abilities and our Staple powers such as Guide, Fortune and Doom all got majorly buffed (increased range, no restriction on Eldar units being the target and Doom now also allows armor pens to be re-rolled). Sure these powers are random and that sucks, but whatever you get, you are bound to put it to good use. Eldritch Storm has Fleshbane (wounds on 2+) and Haywire, so it can be a threat to any target while Mind War reduces WS/I of the target to 1 in addition to causing wounds that now Ignore armor and cover (sadly, if enemy rolls higher, Farseer becomes WS/I 1), for example.

-Warlock powers now offer us a lot of buffing/debuffing options and you are guaranteed a good power since Conceal is the Primaris power and what's not to love
about +2 cover save on units already in cover/vehicles with the Jink rule? These powers can really shore up a unit's weaknesses and Warlocks are added to squads the same way Wolfguard are so you can choose the buff each squad gets (and if all rolls are bad for your game/army, just take Conceal as the Primaris and have fun). I am personally looking forward to rolling with Fortuned 2+ armor save Wraithguard!

Aspects are generally better. Many got a points reduction with good rules/wargear for a particular purpose. Banshees might have gotten the short end of the stick, though, but overall, every unit has some sort of increased utility/potential. All I will say in this section is that every Aspect is super good at a particular task and is ok at others. Banshees are prob going to take the most effort to make viable but I'm pleased with the points/wargear/abilities that the majority of Aspects get.

Guardian units received a large buff not only from the WS/BS 4, Battlefocus and Shuriken buff but now have better options/upgrades...

-Guardian Defenders went up a point but are now BS4, have deadlier Shuriken weapons and will get better use out of heavy weapons. One particular synergy I want to point out is Scatter Laser hitting more effectively at BS4 and effectively twin-links all the Shuriken Catapults if an enemy is dumb enough to get close enough (or you were smart and got in the opponent's face). These units beg to be used aggressively and sticking them in a Wave Serpent, zooming towards a target and then getting out will potentially unload 4 BS4 S6 shots, 18 twin-linked S4 shots with mini-rend on top of the shooting from the wave serpent. If you do take a large blob on foot, you can now take an additional weapon platform for every 10 Guardians so bulking up the unit isn't necessarily worthless.

-Storm Guardians went up a point as well but now are more survivable thanks to WS/BS4 and are a great place to stick a Warlock with +1 S or +1 WS/I. Options for 2 Flamers/Meltas are there with additional options for 2 Power Weapons. Great unit to stick into a Serpent.

-Guardian Jetbikes received a HUGE points drop and are now even more effective with their weapons.
Throw in a Warlock on a Jetbike and you have a reliable 3+ Jink or if you get a +1 Armor Save power, bikes with a 2+ armor save is pretty fun as well. A great unit to unload a lot of shooting with on a vulnerable enemy position with BS 4 Shuriken shots and then run away via the 2d6 Jetbike move.

Vehicles are generally better in that they have a better BS, some good vehicle upgrades and weapon options. For example, Vypers are now BS4, can take Holofields for 4+ Jinks (3+ if you hide them behind ruins) and my favorite loadout of Scatter Laser turret/Cannon bottom is a lot more effective without any real points increase. War Walkers are BS4 and while they are Open Topped, come with a 5++ which will protect them from things that ignore cover/close combat weapons and can lay down a lot more accurate shooting. Fire Prism now has a Lance mode offering us a S9 Ap 1 Lance weapon at 60" while the Falcon enjoys BS4 and is more likely to do something useful other than survive the game. Overall, between the BS upgrade, better vehicle upgrades and hopefully cheaper weapon options, our vehicles become a lot better offensively and even defensively.

Wraith units have also received a general buff in terms of survivability and damage output...

-Wraithknight is a new addition that offers us a type of firepower unique in the codex so I see it as a sort of "Eldar Crisis Suit." If we need more S6 AP2 shooting, this is the place to get it via shoulder mount Star Cannons and arm mounted Suncannon; if we need more ranged S10 Ap2 shots, take the 2 arm Heavy Wraithcannons; if you need a fast CC unit that is tough, Sword/Shield generator is a good option as well. Regardless of how you equip the arms, the shoulder weapons provide great options too and I see dual Starcannons/Scatter Lasers as the top contenders. Either way, this unit offers a lot of utility by offering a lot of unique and potent Firepower as well as drawing enemy fire away from other Wraith units or possibly Vehicles. If this thing dies every game, but you have x number of Wraith units/Vehicles still alive that mean a lot more in terms of achieving victory, that is a win in my book.

-Wraithlord got a points increase and an extra attack with a S drop to S8 so that is a bummer and possibly a huge nerf. It ultimately depends on how expensive other meaningful weapon options are as if a Warithlord with 2 Brightlances is roughly the same as 155, we have not lost anything in terms of offensive capability but only vastly increased it as before you couldn't take 2 of the same weapon without them being twin-linked which was bad. Ultimately, Wraithlords got a boost in both CC and Shooting so I look forward to seeing how their weapon upgrades cost.

-Wraithguard/Wraithblades received a breathe of fresh air into an otherwise maligned unit. I personally always loved these guys and put them to great use and now, I leap for joy as their tactical potential has increased so much. First of all, they are now 32 points each rather than 35. I imagine their upgrades (D-
Scythe and Axe/Shield) might cost 3 points each but if not, bonus!

-Wraithcannons are S10 AP2 with autopen/ID on a roll of 6 so you can still utterly destroy T6+ models on a 6 and now ID anything T5 or less on a 2+ (in addition to basically penetrating vehicles A LOT more easily). Combined with Doom, these guys will destroy any vehicle they shoot at.

-D-Scythes are now S4 AP2 Template weapons that auto-pen/ID on a roll of 6 as well. Anyone that knows anything about 40k knows that proper application of flame templates HURTS (see internet griping about the old Tzeench Flamers that wounded on a 4+ and ignored saves). I can definitely see this unit protecting an objective or being put in Serpents and flown towards vulnerable infantry...Not only do you now have T6 Ap2 Template wielding scoring units (if you took Spiritseer) being crammed down your opponent's throat, good luck charging a unit with 5d3 S4 Ap2 shooting from overwatch...

-Ghostswords/axes are an interesting option now in that Wraithblades come with 2 S+1 AP3 swords (for a total of 2 base attacks) for dealing with hordes/tactical squad type units and a S+2 AP2 Axe with a 4++ for dealing with tough CC units like TH/SS terminators.

synergizing the Wraith units has never been easier and making them more powerful is a synch as you can now put the right buff for each game on these guys at deployment. Specifically, Every Wraith unit (except Lord/Knight) should have a Warlock and hopefully you get a +1 armor one or otherwise a +2 cover one for some protection from enemy shooting. Lords/Knights benefit greatly from the power that restores lost wounds and if you use Warlock powers to reduce enemy S, Armor, WS/I or even Ld with any of the Warlock powers, you make everything in your army ultimately more powerful against that particular target. Wraith units make a hardy bulwark witch which to receive an enemy charge or draw enemy fire providing the rest of your army some relief and ability to do their thing.

Flyers are a new thing for Eldar that have a mixed bag of rules. However, having no real protection other than a Jink save and being AV10 is going to be a real pain for these guys so perhaps going second against flyers and hoping you kill the Quad-gun before it can hit your flyers will probably be important strategic decisions.

-The Bomber has a decent damage out-put through the 2 Ap2 Blast weapons and can really mess with infantry formations in a unique way by casting Horrify on them and forcing re-rolls to morale/pinning tests. Combine this with either IG allied Psyker Battle squads or Warlocks casting -3 Ld on a unit and you can reliably pin/make certain units run away; and what's not to love about making an otherwise fearless unit run in abject terror? At least if this flyer Jinks, it can still cast Horrify which is one of the main reasons to bring this flyer in the first place.

-The fighter offers us a great platform for S8 Ap2 weapons that can effectively dominate opposing flyers. Conversely, it can also take 2 Starcannons for a total of 6 AP2 shots that are bound to lay the hurt down on anything as long as this flyer is still alive...I wonder how expensive and worthwhile the Exarch/Power upgrades will be as 160 base for a flyer that might have to Jink the first few turns to survive the game will be a bummer.

Ultimately, I can see the Flyers being pretty cool with 2 Autarchs who can make your reserve rolls be a 5+ which will help keep your flyers out of the game until your ground forces can deal with anti-air elements. Otherwise, Holofields giving a 4+ Jink might be essential and then you will be able to go to town on enemy units once anti-air shooting is dealt with. Taking multiples of these guys will definitely be a good idea as their damage output is huge (see Dark Eldar Ravagers) and they really are more survivable than a lot of things out there by virtue of their Flyer rules and options for a 4+ Jink.



So with all of this said, I just wanted to point out that many of our units have uses and are more effective with the right things in place. That is what Eldar have always been about...You pay X points for unit Y and on paper, unit Y can only do so much but when you introduce the buffs/utility from other units then the damage output/survivability of an Eldar army is greater than its individual parts.

Between our Wraith and Guardian units, we have very strong close range shooting while between our Vehicles, Wraithlord/Knight, Flyers, we have very strong ranged shooting. Throw in some Psychic power support and you have a lot of unique shooting/close combat that can address any other kind of army out there. Here's to a new and awesome codex!

26 comments:

  1. Just trolling 4chan again, saw some photo's of the new codex. Wave serpent can upgrade the twin linked shuriken cannons to bright lance, star cannon, or scatter lasers for grand total of 5 points each. EML costs more to upgrade to 15 points. 10 points to upgrade the under-slung gun to cannon. Can take any vehicle upgrade.

    Wraithknight gets uber expensive, I'm thinking they way to run him will be stock and using a spirit seer to mark a target to re-roll ones to hit. Grab a cover save from area terrain and wave serpents.

    The combo's in this book look to run long and deep, I've some ideas I want to try out (as well as try out an all plastic army). I for one am not disappointed by what I see and look forward to returning to the Eldar.

    Great post. Looking forward to reading your thoughts in the next while.

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  2. It's good to see someone putting in a good word for the new codex (especially the Wraithknight). I don't understand all the doom-and-gloom in the air about the launch. It's got cool new models, unique rules, and is in no way non-competitive.

    People just want to make noise and complain no matter what they hear..

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  3. The codex is pretty bad. I've read it fully, and it's replacing a lot of finesse with randumb. You got a few things wrong so I'll correct you;

    You can only cast conceal on the warlock, so it can't be given to a vehicle.

    Warlocks need to be divided into squads immediately after warlord traits are rolled, which happens before psychic powers are rolled. So you can't divide warlocks up after you see what psychic powers they have.

    Warlocks can only join guardian squads, weapons platform squads, and guardian jetbikes, but that isn't a change.

    The wraithlord got 1+ attack so if it smashes it'll go down to it's old 2 attacks but will get S10 and rerollable penetrating hits. It's point cost increase was massive though.

    The old wave serpent energy shield did protect against glancing hits, by reducing strength/ignoring melta, which made it less likely that the weapon would glance at all. No weapon had more than a 50% chance to glance a wave serpent, ever. The new serpent shield does not protect against glancing hits in any way.

    I honestly can't see a single instance of synergy between units being increased. If anything it's been reduced, by making our psychic powers unreliable. Both in having to roll for them, and warlocks unrerollable ld8 that gives them a 1/3rd chance to mess any psychic power up.

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    1. Thanks for the corrections but some points of my own.

      -Bummer about only targeting Warlock, but still makes for some potent Guardian/Jetbike based units

      -determining when powers are rolled for if before split off or not may need an FAQ but I think your interpretation is correct

      -Warlocks not being able to join Wraithguard units is the biggest bummer in my opinion, they used to be upgrades for the units back in the previous codex editions. A Jetbike council or Guardian Jetbike unit with a Warlock is still pretty strong as you can guarantee Conceal and if you get the 2+ armor save power, bonus.

      -Wraithlord base cost is increased but it comes out to being the same or cheaper. Wraithlord with 2 Brightlances is 155, which before was an EML/BL Lord. You can also take a Sword for 5 points on top of it all, so ultimately, the points increase is balanced by cheaper weapon options.

      -You reaffirmed what I said about the Serpent shield, that it never did protect from glancing hits but only made them more likely than penetrating hits...This is because everything that was S8 or more always was a 50% chance to glance, slightly lower topen and it did NOTHING to protect against S7 and below. The new shield actually protects us from penetrating hits regardless of S and we can rely on a 4+ Jink (3+ if flat out) to protect us from the rest of the shooting. Ultimately, I think the change is a good one.

      I disagree that there is less synergy and I also think the math is off on a 1/3 chance to fail a ld8 test on 2 dice (but I'm no math wiz). Ultimately, There are a few things I am disappointed by but the army is still good and can be made to work.

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    2. Well it's a 28% chance of failing, so thereabouts.

      Also I forgot, but the scatterlaser's new rule only affects the firing model. So it doesn't work on guardians.

      You can take a spiritseer for wraithguard, but that's a 70pt model that takes up an HQ slot. For a few points more you could just give them a farseer.

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    3. Indeed, however, Guide can help overcome the lack of Scatter laser working for Guardians. Still, BS4 is a nice buff.

      Spirit Seer making WG troops is worth it IMO considering previously you needed to get 10 WG with a Spirit Seer and any worthwhile upgrade was 15 points which ended up costing 25(Warlock)+6(spiritseer)+15(power)=46 points. Spiritseer still getting to roll for powers and ability to still take another Farseer is nice and now you can get 5 man Wraithguard units for troops or 10 man units and not need a Warlock which seldom added THAT much to Wraithguard to begin with. Now, Farseer with Fortune (hopefully) and a Spiritseer with some Divination powers in a Wraithguard unit is still very strong.

      Ultimately, I can see a Seer Council on Jetbikes and Guardian Jetbikes with Warlocks as being very strong options.

      I'll be posting a more thorough commentary and sample lists later on but thanks for your comments Elliot, keeping me on my toes/honest!

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    4. One major advantage to the new wave serpent rule is no more exploding transports. Ask a dark eldar player how that feels. Its way too early to espouse doom and gloom for the new book. Its different and fresh.



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    5. Isn't the Warlord Trait and Psychic powers occurring before you deploy? I guess it depends on when you put in the Warlocks - as if it states deploy etc - you should roll your powers first before you deploy and attach IC's and characters like the Wolf guard etc.

      So it would seem you would roll all your stuff first, then attach them as needed right? But again this could all be different as I don't have the book and just basing it on other books that either have the same type of character attachment (ie wolves, crons) and when you actually roll your abilities.

      Both the Warlord Trait, Psychic Spells, and even the Daemon Gifts all they occur in the phase after sides are picked and objectives are placed right? I need to find where my book is hah.

      I looked through the FAQ just to be sure - nothing in there. Will find out from the Eldar book what everything looks like. It feels alright - and seems to imply smarter play versus point, click, and shoot that Tau and Necrons show.

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    6. Elliot is right, the entry for warlocks specify warlocks are assigned to the squads directly after warlord traits are rolled for.

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  4. Personally I think the doom and gloom is a good sign. It is always frustrating to me when gamers immediately find the one or two overpowered units and spam them to death. It is good for Eldar players that people can't see that. It means we are going to have a lot of different builds that will be effective.

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    1. Hahahha. I agree. I don't want everyone playing Eldar. I love feeling its me vs. the world with my Eldar. Great article by the way, I'm an Eldar only player and I am very happy with what I've seen/heard. :D

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    2. @ Cavalier ava, that is how I feel as well, I don't want to walk into a store and see 80% Eldar players there! That is what Necrons/GK are for, right?

      I hope Eldar players are still in the minority as its fun being the underdog.

      @ Goatboy, the Warlock joining other units happens "Immediately after rolling Warlord Traits" (eldar codex) and rolling for powers is "before either player deploys their army" (brb). It makes logical sense that splitting Warlocks off occurs sometime after Warlord trait is rolled and before deployment and rolling for powers but this issue may need an FAQ.

      Otherwise, its not that big of an issue as most units that can get a Warlock will want conceal in the first place.

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  5. Im still very happy with what im reading. Avatar is buffed, lords and walkers are going to hit harder, and my spiders and scorpions free up my serpents. Only question is if i want to run dragon heavy or Wraith heavy. Jet bikes are better and ready for play.

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  6. I've read conflicting statements regarding the Scatterlaser. I've read you fire the scatterlaser and if you get a hit, the rest of the model/unit's shooting is twin linked. I've also read where it states the rest of the model's shooting is twin linked (assuming the scatterlaser hits).

    A pretty signficant difference when looking 20 strong Guardian units with 2 Scatterlasers or 3 War Walkers with 6 Scatterlasers.

    All in all, I see a good amount of needed synergy in what I've read so far, but not a single thing has made me act like 'ooohhhh, that is Helldrake OTT'.

    Looking forward to this weekend and finally seeing all the the finer details.

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  7. Just a quick comment. I read on someones page already people are starting to say" laser lock and guardians twin linked rolling if their heavy weapon kits a target. this is wrong. If you read the codex, it says, the "model" if one of its scatterlasers hit" then the other weapons are now twinlinked... so its the model, not unit... my 2 cents..

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  8. Im also really annoyed that the Wraith Knight doesn't allow you to have 2 sun cannons... bah!

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    1. Roy, you and Eliot Rube pointed that out (regarding Guardians and the Scatter laser) and I think you guys are right, however, I am hoping for an FAQ to clarify it further or say that it will work for Guardans. =)

      Also, I am kind of bummed out with the Wraithknight load-outs as well, in addition to the points costs...I plan on keeping mine cheap with just the Heavy Wraithcannons and a single Scatter Laser. If I were playing a bigger game, I'd prob use 2 Starcannons and a Suncannon.

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    2. Yea, im 100% sure thats what the codex says.

      But we will find out on saturday!

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    3. Yriel, unfortunately there is no indication that Wraithknight can shoot more than 2 ranged weapons at once (as he is a Monster Creature). Thus I see 3 relatively optimal variants:
      1) Cheapest - 2 Heavy Wraithcannons and no shoulder mounted weapons
      2) Combat-centered - Sword+Shield (either with shoulder weapons or without them)
      3) Costly Nuking build - Sun Cannon + Shield + 1 Shoulder mounted scatter laser (to make the Sun Cannon twin-linked by laserlock rule)

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    4. I am hoping that there is some rule somehow that lets the Wraithknight shoot more weapons (or all of them if stationary). But alas, I do fear you are right but here's to seeing how things turn out!

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  9. I love that old pic of the Wave Serpent. I miss the armor cast days :)

    If we get synergistic weapons (Scatter laser) for groups/guardian foot troops, than the Warlocks are just icing on the cake. Pass/fail the test, it's just a bonus - but can free up points in other places. BS4 just helps soo much, I can't even believe that passed specs.

    The HQ choices is where I see my being crowded now. Avatar and his Wraithlord/War Walker entourage is going to cost more overall, but I feel most of my warlocks will be biker baby sitters. With the scorpions not having to ride in the Serpents, that frees up room for Str 10 in your face Wraithguard to punch a giant hole in something and still be able to survive.

    I think I'm having stimulus overload trying to figure out how to fit everything in :)

    And I'm not running super barbie, so that's not even a consideration for me at this point.

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  10. I agree to Yriel to most of his point, but for me eldar should be a competitive elite-psychic army, not some hope-you rolled for what you "need" thing.

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    1. Eldar are a competitive elite-psychic army still. I just think that we have to rely on our powers in a different way.

      First things generally got better/cheaper to the point we don't need to rely on our powers to buff our units individually to make them work.

      Second, the powers we CAN guarantee are useful enough to buff any unit's survivability and offensive capabilities and anything we roll on top of that is just icing on the cake. Specifically, Farseer can get Guide and then Prescience for essentially 2 "guides" a turn and a large Seer Council on Jetbikes has the potential to be a very strong buffing/debuffing unit.

      I'm sad about the lack of guaranteed Fortune/Doom but I think things changed enough to where we might not need them at all, though I will still try to get them!

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    2. One of the main things I have been hoping for is running an army that does not require fortune/guide/doom because I love Autarchs but it is just to hard to make them work without a Farseer so I am excited at the possibility of taking my double Autarchs and still having a fighting chance. It will be nice to have multiple warlocks filling the Farseer psychic role.

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    3. Good point Copernicus, Warlocks do not need a Farseer or Spiritseer to be taken so you can take a few and join them to other units or take a giant Seer Council on Bikes. Keep in mind they can't get access to a Wave Serpent transport but if you make them only 6 strong, they can fit in a Falcon but ultimately bikes are their best options.

      Still, Fortune on a Seer Council is quite tempting, especially with a potential 2+ armor or 2+ cover save!

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