Meow Mix
11-04-2010, 01:59 AM
Hey all... new here on the BoLS forum but I've been playing 40k for about 4 years now. Since Dark Eldar were my first army I have been obviously very excited about the new codex. My group usually plays smaller games, with 1k-1.5k battles being the norm, and I haven't seen many of those posted so far. I've always enjoyed Raider spam and a balanced mix of kabalite, wych and haemonculi elements in my lists. I also have a distaste for special characters as a rule- I very much prefer the conversion and storytelling opportunities afforded by creating my own leaders. Finally, this is a list made to fight any army in a casual setting against players who have been throwing dice anywhere from a couple weeks to many years, so I tried to make one that would be fun to play as or against for a variety of skill levels and armies.
So, with that long-winded introduction out of the way, here's the main event:
HQ:
Archon w/ Shadow Field, Huskblade, Soul Cube, Combat Drugs. -145 pts. An obvious configuration but still scary. I'd like him to hunt enemy ICs and MCs, of course, but I think he'll be much more effective as a "boogey man" that keeps the enemy afraid of getting too close with their big guys.
Elites:
8X Mandrakes w/ Nightfiend. -130 pts. I love the models, and though they are a bit of a lackluster unit, I can see them being useful for bunching enemies together with outflank or tying down pieces of terrain with Infiltrate. You never know when they'll surprise you, too! Oh, and the Nightfiend is purely for the +1 Ld- an absolute necessity IMO.
Troops:
2 units of 8X Warriors with Shredders, Sybarite with Venom Blade in Raider with Splinter Racks. -164 total each, 326 all told. Pure offense (none of this Flickerfield stuff! Splinter Racks, rar!), the way I like my DE. The Sybarite is purchased for the +1 Ld, and the Venom Blade is one of the best 5 point upgrades in the game in my opinion- they're cheap and give me a good chance to scratch almost anything that tries to run through the warriors! Likewise, the Shredder is a cheap upgrade that gives the unit some good anti-horde potential while on the move.
8X Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Razorflail, and Hekatrix with Agoniser on a Raider with Grisly Trophies and Torment Grenade Launchers. -206 pts. all told. The Raider is built to be scary and the Wyches are built to tear through things. The Agoniser is very overpriced compared to the Venom Blade in my opinion but gives the gladiators a much needed sting, and the Razorflail is just the killiest wych weapon around. Most of the time, the Archon will be riding with this group, but that may change according to the opponent and deployment
Fast Attack:
6X Reaver Jetbikes with 2 Grav Talons, 2 Heat Lances, Arena Champion w/ Venom Blade. -201 pts. These guys go where they're needed to support where they can. I was unsure on Grav Talons until I realized that they gave +d3 S4 pinning attacks to the Bladevanes instead of replacing them, and so took them as the cheaper alternative to Caltrops. Their role is to support wherever and however they are needed, boosting around as a distraction early game until the enemy is (hopefully) looking elsewhere so they can bring their guns to bear. Again, the Champion is essential for the +1 Ld and the Venom Blade is a nasty fall-back weapon. Plus, you never know what you'll roll for drugs, so in a pinch they can act as a secondary close combat unit!
TOTAL: 1000 points
I've been toying with the ideas of going with an Agoniser Archon to save points and add flexibility, and swapping out the Hekatrix's Agoniser for a Venom Blade, and perhaps slimming down the Mandrake unit, but can't quite decide on what I'd do with the extra points. Another focus of the army is that hit volume > high strength, good AP hits, but I hope I haven't sacrificed too much anti-tank ability by going that route. In 1500 pt games, I'd use Haemies, Wracks and maybe a flier. I'm trying to stick to models in the first or second wave for the time being- I'd hate to make my own and then see gorgeous new models come out for the guys I just slapped together!
Whew! Done! Commenters, go!
So, with that long-winded introduction out of the way, here's the main event:
HQ:
Archon w/ Shadow Field, Huskblade, Soul Cube, Combat Drugs. -145 pts. An obvious configuration but still scary. I'd like him to hunt enemy ICs and MCs, of course, but I think he'll be much more effective as a "boogey man" that keeps the enemy afraid of getting too close with their big guys.
Elites:
8X Mandrakes w/ Nightfiend. -130 pts. I love the models, and though they are a bit of a lackluster unit, I can see them being useful for bunching enemies together with outflank or tying down pieces of terrain with Infiltrate. You never know when they'll surprise you, too! Oh, and the Nightfiend is purely for the +1 Ld- an absolute necessity IMO.
Troops:
2 units of 8X Warriors with Shredders, Sybarite with Venom Blade in Raider with Splinter Racks. -164 total each, 326 all told. Pure offense (none of this Flickerfield stuff! Splinter Racks, rar!), the way I like my DE. The Sybarite is purchased for the +1 Ld, and the Venom Blade is one of the best 5 point upgrades in the game in my opinion- they're cheap and give me a good chance to scratch almost anything that tries to run through the warriors! Likewise, the Shredder is a cheap upgrade that gives the unit some good anti-horde potential while on the move.
8X Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Razorflail, and Hekatrix with Agoniser on a Raider with Grisly Trophies and Torment Grenade Launchers. -206 pts. all told. The Raider is built to be scary and the Wyches are built to tear through things. The Agoniser is very overpriced compared to the Venom Blade in my opinion but gives the gladiators a much needed sting, and the Razorflail is just the killiest wych weapon around. Most of the time, the Archon will be riding with this group, but that may change according to the opponent and deployment
Fast Attack:
6X Reaver Jetbikes with 2 Grav Talons, 2 Heat Lances, Arena Champion w/ Venom Blade. -201 pts. These guys go where they're needed to support where they can. I was unsure on Grav Talons until I realized that they gave +d3 S4 pinning attacks to the Bladevanes instead of replacing them, and so took them as the cheaper alternative to Caltrops. Their role is to support wherever and however they are needed, boosting around as a distraction early game until the enemy is (hopefully) looking elsewhere so they can bring their guns to bear. Again, the Champion is essential for the +1 Ld and the Venom Blade is a nasty fall-back weapon. Plus, you never know what you'll roll for drugs, so in a pinch they can act as a secondary close combat unit!
TOTAL: 1000 points
I've been toying with the ideas of going with an Agoniser Archon to save points and add flexibility, and swapping out the Hekatrix's Agoniser for a Venom Blade, and perhaps slimming down the Mandrake unit, but can't quite decide on what I'd do with the extra points. Another focus of the army is that hit volume > high strength, good AP hits, but I hope I haven't sacrificed too much anti-tank ability by going that route. In 1500 pt games, I'd use Haemies, Wracks and maybe a flier. I'm trying to stick to models in the first or second wave for the time being- I'd hate to make my own and then see gorgeous new models come out for the guys I just slapped together!
Whew! Done! Commenters, go!