1,850 Dark Eldar all comers yo!

[RocketRollRebel]

So the past week or so I've been considering making a Dark Eldar army. I've got a decent amount of warriors, l10 wyches, bunch of incubi, a talos, some warp beasts and some jet bikes hanging around and I figure I might as well do something with them! Plus I play IG and BA and I'm tired of having the same army as half the people at the event I'm attending ;). So here is an 1,850 all comers list based on what I have and what my half drunken mind thought would be a good idea. I'm open to all ideas and suggestions! Enjoy!

Hq-
Archon
Agonizer
Splinter Pistol
Plasma Grenade
Shadow Field
-108pts

9 Incubi
Plas Grenades
Blaster x2
Raider
-314pts
-------------------
Troops-
10 Warriors
2 Dark lances
-100pts

10 Warriors
2 Dark lances
-100pts

10 Warriors
2 Dark lances
-100pts

10 Warriors
Shredder
Raider
-145pts

10 Warriors
Shredder
Raider
-145pts

10 Warriors
Shredder
Raider
-145pts
------------------
Fast Attack-

5 Reaver Jetbikes
2 blasters
-145pts

5 Reaver Jetbikes
2 blasters
-145pts

4 Warpbeasts
Beast Master
-63pts
-------------------
Heavy Support-

Ravager w/3 disintegrators
-120pts

Ravager w/3 disintegrators
-120pts

Talos
-100pts

1,850 total

I really have no idea how the army works but on paper this seemed decent. I'm kinda sad that I feel I have only 1 good (and overpriced) cc unit but I feel like this could be cool vs most MEQ and Mech armies, just hordes might be a hard time. But any critique and advice is welcome!

Thanks!

[BlindGunn]

Archon is pretty standard. I would consider the option of Combat Drugs if you can find the points - they come in handy.

Incubi are great against Marines, however, I usually don't bother with the Blasters as I'm usually trying to get into combat with infantry - not take out vehicles. The rest of the Incubi only have a splinter pistol hidden in their helmets, so shooting is NOT their thing AND you loose out on the Punisher Power weapon taking the Blasters.

3 "Sniper" Squads - good anti-vehicle coverage.

The 3 Raider squads - Normally, I would throw in a Splinter Cannon to add to the unit fire power. I've not had much luck with Shreaders so I use Blasters here. Let the riders shoot from the raiders until the raiders get shot down! ;)

Reaver Jet Bikes - normally I would go for a unit of 3 with 2 Blasters for "Tank Hunting", and make a larger unit with a Succubus, Agonizer and Combat Drugs to get into Close Combat. If you're going Tank Hunting with both squads, you probably only need 3 bikes each.

Warp Beasts - Oops! 2 Things! Not a Fast choice but an "Elite" choice. Not a big issue - thought I would point it out before someone gives you grief. What is a bigger issue is the rule hidden in the margin on Page 9. (Terrible place to hide it. I missed it the first couple of times I played them.) "If you have a unit of Wyches in your Army, you can take a unit of Warp Beasts"... It implies you need Wyches to take the Warp Beasts. Check with your opponents to see if they will allow you to take the Warp Beasts with Reavers (they ARE bike-riding Wyches, after all). A particularly nasty opponent or tournament organizer may not allow them with this list as I see no Elite choice "Wyches". Remember - according to the box - they count as Elites, but don't take up a slot (I guess they're an extension of the Wych squad.)

Ravagers are ok, but I would put at least one Dark Lance on each. Night Shield can be helpful for Ravagers near your table edge but as they have tissue armour - you may want to save the points.

Talos will be very slow compared to the rest of the army. Be patient with it or get another Ravager!

One thing you are missing: Wyches! I would definitely recommend a unit riding a Raider. All with Plasma Grenades and Wyche Weapons. Get the Succubus with Agonizer and Combat Drugs and get into Close Combat AS FAST AS YOU CAN! Unfortunately, to get Wyches, you need to drop somethig else!

[RocketRollRebel]

ugh crap! Thank you for that! Yeah I was weighing wyches in a raider vs the bikes...I may cut the bikes down to a unit of 3 or something and add the wyches. They just didn't seem able to stand up to most things in CC and on paper only looked like they were good vs weak units that warriors could take care of! I really like the idea of playing the army but my god is this book an out dated mess! haha. Thanks for the input and I'm curious what I would drop for the wyches? maybe a sniper squad?

[BlindGunn]

However, I like Bikes too, so it's always a compromise when deciding what you want.

Wyches are incredibly vulnerable to shooting, yes. However, in combat, they have a 4+ Inv save so they're actually more "survivable" than the warriors in CC. Also, against a unit with lots of Power Weapons - Wyches still get their saves where Incubi and Reevers do not. Run Wyches beside the Inubi and they can each protect the other from units the other can't handle!

One possible way to keep Wyches alive would be to get a Webway Portal and deploy it near the centre of the table. The problem is they're expensive and you usually want a spare portal in case one of the models carrying the Portal get killed.

Another option is to buy Screaming Jets for their Raider and just Deepstrike the unit in, then disembark and charge the following turn.

Otherwise - keep their raider in cover and hope the Terrain allows you to sneak up into charge range unscathed.

Couple of possabilities to add Wyches:
Drop one of the Sniper Squads or Raider Squads. You can then free up some points by reducing the warriors in the Raider Squads down to 5 or 6 strong. Dropping a couple of bikes from one Reaver squad will get more points. That way, keep a unit of 5 and a unit of 3.

Actually, I find the Warp Beasts don't last that long either. With their Save of 6+, every peashooter shooting at them will kill them and unlike the Wyches, they cannot be mounted on a Raider. If you drop them, that'll free up a significant portion of the points you will need as well. If you want to keep them, they would be best used as reinforcements from a portal. Come in and charge the same turn that way.

[DrLove42]

Agree with Blindgunn there, warp beasts are a bit pointless in my eyes. Have to walk (which in a DE army is a rare thing) to the enemy and will prob die on the way.

I personally like Grotesques cos they can shrug off a ridiculous amount of firepower thanks to the old version of FNP they have (may only be T3, but can only be wounded by something S6 or higher...). They work really well as shield on any ground based folk cos they grant a high toughness meat shield, and give a 4+ to folk behind them. And to a DE warrior a 4+ is wonderful

Also if you have the points gives a Hemon a stinger. Short range yes, but so funny. Wound on a 2+, kill him then put a blast template on his head at his S and AV. Basically put a pieplate down that killsoutright on a 4+. Great against hordes cos of their low saves, but also great against big things. Blow up a terminator and watch the rest of his squad go with him. Pop a pregant nid bugger (can't remember the name of the spawning thing...), ignore his T and wound on a 2. Then watch his babies die to a much stronger attack.

Also...if you've already got some bits do those first. Don't rush out and buy everything yet. With a new codex and models around the corner last thing you want is out dated models that aren't legal or competive anymore