DE Kaballite units are boss

[thecactusman17]

So when we don't have rum, we turn to Vodka. The superior, more evil drink to Rum. Some people point out that Rum was drank by pirates, and I say that if Johhny Depp can drink it and be a good guy then I'll be damned if I can.

The DE fluff and units are just that good. I mean really, none of the over-the-top craziness of Blood Angels, and even a humorous nod to the "Eldrad is a Dick" meme in more than a few lore pieces (obviously substituting Vect for Eldrad). So here I am to discuss the awesomness of the Kabals. Not the Wyches, or the Haemonculai covens, just the standard Kabals.

The first and most important question, of course, is "what is a Kabalite unit?"

In addition to the obvious (Kabalite Wariors/Trueborn), there are a few clues throughout the codex. Kabals are more like organized militias in the 5th edition DE codex, so looking for clearly organized shooting units is a god example. And of course, Archons and special character Archons are leaders of their respective Kabals. Finally, Kabals rely on muscle. So while, they aren't the lithe dancers of the Wyches or the horrendous mutants of the Haemonculai, Kabals tend to favor signs of outward strength and toughness.

Here is my list of "Kabalite" units:

Adrusaebel Vect
Lady Maliyce
Duke Sliscus
Archon
Archon's Retinue
Raiders
Ravagers
Venoms
Trueborn
Warriors


Vect is obviously the very first thing that springs to mind when considering the overall design of a Kabal. Or at least, the concept of the vastly impressive leader of the dark eldar. He knows everythign before and after the game starts. He is impossibly skilled and wields the most dangerous wargear known to man and dark eldar alike. he laughs off blows that would kill a lesser being. And of course, he is ALWAYS in control of the situation. 240 points would be a lot were it not for that ridiculous power to seize the initiative on a 4+. Abuse the hell out of this rule. You will not believe how severely it can affect your opponent, knowing that there is a 50/50 chance that they will suddenly be under the gun on the first turn. Force your opponent to overestimate your abilities and it can be just as useful as their underestimating them. We get to the weaponry and Vect is just as impressive--a 2+ invulnerable save, I8, rerolls to hit anything and rerolls to wound against Eldar units, the most accurate small blast in the game with a max deviation of 4 inches, and said balst is both AP3 and restores previously lost wounds. He even comes with his own (vastly overpriced) transport.

The Dais, unfortunately, is the opposite of Vect. Armor 13 is pretty awesome, but it boasts none of the survivability of a standard Raider, Ravager, or even Venom. The Dais, you see, has none of the shields that protect its lesser cousins from return firepower (these being Nightshields and Flickerfields, which protect less costly units with greater firepower admirably. Also, it does not have the Aerial Assault special rules to let it use it's monstrous firepower on the move. So a fast moving Dais is at best an AV13 Predator with a flat-out save.

Malys is a very impressive special rule wrapped around an effective model in is own right. Deployment and maneuver are key to the dark eldar, and like Vect she affects your game before either side moves an inch. Suddenly, that powerful flank attack vanishes, leaving your opponent wildly out of place. She is the exact opposite of Vect, in that where Vect is a character that delights in going second and reacting to opponents, Malys is a character that does the same by going first. She's also the smartest way to include a Djinn blade in your army--all the best methods for two attacks, with the least devastating downside. However, there are better close combat units, and they can even manage a shot or two. Malyce should be bought for her deployment rule, but she won't be a slouch if used correctly later on.

Sliscus just hammers the idea home: Dark Aldar Archons are at their best when deploying units. Seriously, just look at this crazy badass: options when rolling combat drugs, option to deploy everything in the army by deepstrike, 3+ poisoned weapons, armor and invul to soak up wounds. Sliscus is the bridge between Vect and the rest of the eldar, a character who bumps up everyone a little and turns good units into incredible units. Sliscus himself is a little less impressive in his statline but makes up for it with a phenomenal selection of wargear--this guy can do just about anything on the battlefield, including shooting and assaulting mechanized infantry. The problem (and it's not much of one) is that he's a sort of locked role in your army. He buffs a bunch of units, then you hope he survives until something comes within striking distance. Where Malyce and Vect can really mess with your opponent's head at the beginning of the game, Sliscus is an open book who does a bunch of very impressive tricks out in the open.

"Bog Standard" Archons are a testament to game design, and perhaps best call back to the powerful Daemon/Witch Hunter "design a ridiculous hero" builds of 3rd edition. Less than a hundred points buys you a statline that the most powerful Space Marines find enviable, and weaponry and gear to make it work. Unlike the named characters though, you get no special rules past those of the normal DE. Even so, you are working with a model that can bring down whole units on its own. Utterly destroying a carnifex brood single handedly, for example, is a wondrous thing.

Archon Retinues are cool ideas with poor rules. Bluntly, everything is done better with other units. the lohamea, for example, can only affect 2 different weapons in the unit (splinter pistols and shardcarbines), while the roles of Sslyth are better handled by other high-toughness units like grotesques, wracks, and Haemonuculai. if you like the archon's Court, leave the points open for the wondrously ridiculous beastmasters.

Tune in next time for more semi-drunken ramblings!

[thecactusman17]

Let's talk vehicles, and vehicle upgrades!

Dark Eldar have, after Tyranids, the smallest number of vehicle platforms so far in 5th edition, which is somewhat odd considering the mechanized nature of the game. But what a collection! There is only ONE bad option in the book now, especially after the January FAQ updates.

The Dais is still crap. Now whiney people who couldn't see it before are forced to acknowledge my above post: no survivability. AV13 (hell, relying on AV alone PERIOD) will do nothing to make this thing stay on the board longer unless your opponent simply hates the idea of taking 2d6 penetration weapons or S8+ weapons. Still open topped. Still can be engaged at full range. Not even an invul save 1/3 of the time. Oh, and it can't move more than 6" if it wants to fire more than one of those Dark Lances it has. And you are forced to shove a 9-model unit inside. Forced to.

If transports are your thing, then the Raider is just simply where it's at. Cheap, reliable, comes with a great weapon option, and can be given relatively inexpensive options to make it last FOREVER with a bit of care. Nightshields are the ridiculous trick in this codex and Raiders live and die by them, especially in a shooting heavy Kabal list. Flickerfields are also a decent option, though not as reliable for obvious reasons with their 5+ invul save. However, nothing will make you laugh harder than an opponent swinging wildly at your Raider in close combat only to have it shrug off that one critical strike, leaving them exposed for a barrage of return fire. The remaining options trend from "OK" down to "nearly useless," especially now that destroyed tank-shocking vehicles kill their passengers. One potentially useful option is tormentor grenades, which harm leadership in their immediate area for a 12th the cost of the vehicle they are mounted to.

Venoms are a decent transport, though they lack the versatility of a Raider. The primary trouble with a Venom is that it's actually slightly more expensive than a Raider, requiring a second splinter cannon and nightshields to maintain it's primary usefulness as an infantry killing powerhouse. 12 shots a turn, moving at 12 inches, delivering cargo which can also do immense damage in shooting or close combat. But you need that nightshield or your Venom is simply going to be shot down by another unit in the backfield firing autocannons or even heavy bolters.

Ravagers aren't the best heavy support in the codex, but they certainly aren't bad by any stretch. 3 Dark Lances a turn can make even the most leafy of blowers quiver. Again, NIGHTSHIELDS are where it's at with these things, giving you that crucial few inches of wiggle room that reduces or eliminates return fire. Be warned though--against massed hordes, Ravagers incorrectly equipped will tend to be useful only as mobile cover for your anti-infntry units.

[MaltonNecromancer]

For my money, Sliscus is the best HQ choice, bar none, purely for the unit buffs.

Sliscus deployed in a 20 strong Kabalite unit with 2 Splinter Cannons = pure anti-infantry win. 18" threat range of 48 shots that hit and wound on 3+? Sign me up.

Alternatively, Sliscus deployed in a 9 strong Kabalite Trueborn unit with Shardcarbines, 2 Splinter Cannons mounted in a Raider with Splinter racks = super fast anti-infantry win. 30" threat bubble of 29 shots that hit on a 3+ with a reroll, wounds on a 3+? Brilliant stuff.

Plus your Wyches are more likely to get a better Combat Drugs roll into the bargain.

[thecactusman17]

Splinter racks don't affect Shardcarbines or Splinter cannons, only splinter rifles and pistols. Unfortunately.

None more tonight, but thanks for the input!

[gcsmith]

actually with shard carbines in raider threat range is 24" as u cant move 12 and fire from the vehicle.

[thecactusman17]

Quite true GCsmith! As I learned to my chagrin after a few games. Forgive me, my previous army was a bit more traditional (Third edition, AND I LOVE IT SO!) and so I will admit to having missed the whole section on moving and shooting more than 6" in anything at all, much less a fast skimmer.

Where were we? Oh, yes...


Let's start with the Warriors. For a mechanized unit, you can hardly make a more impressive choice for troops. Easy assault lance weapons, riidculous firepower which can be supplemented by a Splainter Cannon or two. And with good 5th edition cover, even the generally unwieldy 20-model shooting unit (I love being forced to avoid "man," excellent job on the female models) can be fairly useful. The obvious downside is leadership, but if leadership is of no concern to you then you will find these impressive fellows to range from fiarly cheap to an impressive bargain. Seriously, a squad that can down a carnifex or Tervigon in a single round of shooting is pretty ******* impressive. Of course, as with all splinter weapon weilding units, the magic goes away a little when your opponent is packing well over a hundred S3 models. And awkwardly these gunline-centric units can't even be trusted with your basic photon grenade (but then again, who needs preparation when you can be rebuilt by a Haemonculai should you screw things up?). So charging that 10-20 model guardsmen squad in cover is just asking for trouble.

Trueborn....

Oh my God...

Where does one begin with these evil, evil *******s? Trueborn continue the recent GW trend of placing impossibly powerful elite units in the section they belong. A 10-model unit with the firepower an an entire force org slot is a pretty impressive feat on its own, the fact that you can manage one for less than 300 points is just incredibly jarring. Blasters, plinter cannons, and shardcarbines combine to make a fast-moving death unit equally at home killing heavy armor squadrons and marines alike. A fully decked unit with 4 blasters, 2 splinter cannons, and 4 shardcarbines puts out a fantastical 28 shots a turn, four of which will instant-death most infantry and the rest of which will simply kill it anyway. If there is an "leafblower" list that the DE will eventually lay claim to, expect it to feature these fine upstanding Commorites in abundance. Add in two great transport options and the only problem most players will have is figuring out where they can find more special weapons. In addition, Trueborn have a constant 42 inch threat bubble thanks to those marvelous splinter cannons never losing that 36 inch range in addition to their movement. Assualt 4 36" weapons. If this is what Grey Knights get to look forward to, then expect the next few 'Ard Boys tournaments to be in pretty crazy events.

[jorz192]

Venoms are a decent transport, though they lack the versatility of a Raider. The primary trouble with a Venom is that it's actually slightly more expensive than a Raider, requiring a second splinter cannon and nightshields to maintain it's primary usefulness as an infantry killing powerhouse. 12 shots a turn, moving at 12 inches, delivering cargo which can also do immense damage in shooting or close combat. But you need that nightshield or your Venom is simply going to be shot down by another unit in the backfield firing autocannons or even heavy bolters.

A venom with the extra splinter cannon, night shields, and flickerfields is 75 points.
A raider with nightshields and flickerfields is 80.
The venom comes already with the flickerfield upgrade

[thecactusman17]

I don't see flickerfields as necessary to a vehicle with such long range firepower as a dark lance. And if you desire to get up close, your cover save against 99% of incoming fire is going to be 4+ anyway due to "flat out". However, I WILL accept FFs as being an excellent defense against assault units and attempts to ram (assuming you fail your skimmer save, of course).

--edit: Just to make it clear, I think flickerfields are a great option in many unit builds and I'm not trying to dissuade people against them. But nightshields are so integral to keeping most vehicles in this codex alive that the mearest thought that you wouldn't take them seems ludicrous to me. We are talking about a weapon that makes meltaguns get within 3 inches to gain that second D6 (not that they'll generally need it) and more importantly, rapid fire bolters need to get within 6" to bring your skimmer down. This is NOT an easy proposition for many armies. A 5+ invulnerable save is, by comparison, an only rarely used option.

TL;DR: Nightshields are useful aginst everything, flickerfields only work 1/3rd of the time. At 10 points per upgrade, most playres will know which is the better bargain.

[gcsmith]

Actually melta guns stil get extra dice in 6" just they cant hit u out of 6". Melta range for a melta gun is 6 inches, just 6 inches, nothing about nightfields change that, and with the build ive got for my DE army, i just take flickers.
I need to get close to blow tanks and flickerfields allow me to do that easier, obv i will be willing to change that if playtesting tells me otherwise.

[Caldera02]

I disagree. Nightshields brings a meltagun down to 6in, therefore making it's melta range half of that. The only thing nightshields has a caveat for is you can't force a weapons range below 6in. This does not say melta range. The weapon's range and it's melta range are seperate.